《The Taming Master》 Prologue TaMa Prologue Prologue TL: Haku Edited: Myoni Ian opened his inventory. Elixir of Reincarnation Category: Miscellaneous Rank: Heroic This elixir was created through ancient alchemy.Drinking this elixir will reset your character.All your stats, including your level, will be reset. The item information box was filled with frightful words for Ian, the highest level player on the South Korean Kailran server, to read! As if it was a deadly poison, Ian grabbed the sooty hourglass bottle with a serious expression. ¡°Hoo¡­¡± And surprisingly, after exhaling a deep breath, he lifted the gourd and, in one shot, poured all of the content into his mouth. At the same time, a white light engulfed Ian¡¯s mind. And¡­ You drank the Elixir of Reincarnation.Your character¡¯s stats, including your level, will be reset. CH 0 Ian opened his inventory. [Potion of Reincarnation] Category: General Item Rank: Hero ¨C Potion brewed using ancient alchemy. ¨C Drinking the potion will reset your character. ¨C All abilities, including the level, will be reset. The item information window was full of terrifying words for Ian, a top-level player on Kailan¡¯s Korean server. As if it was a poison, Ian grasped the black bottle with a determined expression. ¡°Hu¡­¡± He took a deep breath, then surprisingly, Ian lifted the bottle and gulped down its content. At the same time, a white light shrouded his entire body. And¡­ ¨C You drank the Potion of Reincarnation. ¨C All abilities, including the character¡¯s level, will be reset. This was the beginning of the legend. CH 1 TaMa Chapter 1 Chapter 1: Large Update (1) TL: Haku Edited: Myoni ¡°Ha¡­ Why is my timetable so crappy.¡± Jinsung sighed deeply as he looked at his timetable on his phone. There were two subjects he needed to take today. One of the subjects, ¡°Understanding Virtual Reality¡±, he had just finished and came out from. The problem was that he now had three hours before his next class. He sat in the room, shaking his head when he heard someone retort behind him. ¡°Your timetable is crappy because your course registration was done poorly.¡± It was Jinsung¡¯s closest friend and colleague Han Yoohyun. If it was any other day, he would have replied back but, today, Jinsung didn¡¯t have the strength. Yoohyun looked at Jinsung, who reclined on his chair and smirked before he returned to his laptop. To be honest, Yoohyun was in the same situation as Jinsung. He, too, was trying to kill time. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± As Yoohyun turned his attention back to his laptop and the room, only occupied by the two of them, filled with silence. However, a moment later, a slightly excited Yoohyun¡¯s voice woke up a drowsy Jinsung, who was slowly falling asleep. ¡°Hey, Jinsung, wake up! Now is not the time to be lying down!¡± ¡°What, man, your big bro is tired. Don¡¯t bother me.¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to regret it. There¡¯s a large update notification for Kailran on LB Sports main page. You¡¯re not going to look?¡± The moment he was done talking, Jinsung, who was leaning against his chair with his eyes closed, reacted immediately, standing up to go sit next to Yoohyun. ¡°Really? Was today the day they were uploading the notice?¡± ¡°Yeah, bro. Wasn¡¯t that why this big bro has been monitoring this the whole time?¡± The two focused on the screen of the laptop as if they were going to be sucked in and began reading the contents. ¡°Hey, this is crazy! There¡¯s going to be three more new classes.¡± ¡°Yeah, no kidding! New areas are going to be opened as well¡­¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t Assassin look cool? I¡¯m gearing more towards this. Warlock looks like fun too¡­ Would the Taming Master be able to control and use dragons however they wish, what do you think?¡± Jinsung smirked as he responded to the excited Yoohyun¡¯s words. ¡°Don¡¯t even think about it, man. What¡¯s the point of new classes, it¡¯s only good for players that are just starting. I¡¯m over lv 90 now¡­ and you¡¯re also over lv 80. Are you planning on restarting?¡± For virtual reality game ¡°Kailran¡±, there was no such thing as sub-accounts. Once you created a character, through iris recognition, the game was set up so that the same person could not make another character. On top of that, the system was built so that once you selected a class, you could not change it, so if a player wanted to use a new class, the only option was resetting. However, to reset their characters, the two people had come too far. ¡°Keu, that¡¯s right, let¡¯s just go to the new areas once the update is done. If we can grab one of the new, valuable items, it could pay off one semester¡¯s worth of tuition.¡± Jinsung was the one that smirked at Yoohyun¡¯s words; however, he was just as excited. The update was exactly one week from now, June 20th. The date was a little bothersome. That day was three days away from Jinsung¡¯s final exam. ¡°Ugh, this Basics of Game Theory. It pisses me off that I already have to waste three hours every Friday for this class and the exam date is the very last, too.¡± However, right then, Jinsung¡¯s two eyes lit up. ¡°Wait¡­!¡± Jinsung slightly turned his head to look at Yoohyun, who was focused on reading the update content. ¡°Hyun.¡± ¡°Hm?¡± ¡°Should we drop Basics of Game Theory?¡± ¡°What?!¡± Yoohyun¡¯s two eyes trembled slightly. ¡°Why are you acting surprised, this your first or second time dropping a course?¡± ¡°You ask me like you don¡¯t know. If we drop the course now, we¡¯ll fail it, man. We¡¯ve already skipped class twice.¡± The corners of Jinsung¡¯s mouth turned upwards slightly at those words. ¡°Hyun, look at that. What does it say there?¡± Yoohyun turned to where Jinsung was pointing at. ¡°What, this? The opening date?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. You see the date, June 20th, right?¡± ¡°Yeah, I see it.¡± ¡°What day was our Basics of Game Theory exam?¡± As if he couldn¡¯t remember clearly, Yoohyun scratched the back of his head. ¡°What day was it?¡± ¡°June 23rd.¡± ¡°Damn, was that exam that late? I was happy because I thought that the update day was on the same day as our vacation.¡± ¡°Such a frustrating man¡­ Do you not realize the decision we have to make at this point?¡± Yoohyun began to think deeply at Jisung¡¯s words. Once he figured out the answer, his eyes fluttered slightly. ¡°D¡­rop?¡± Jinsung and Yoohyun¡¯s eyes met as Jinsung lifted his thumb before standing up. ¡°Exactly! This is why I like you. You understand so quickly.¡± Yoohyun shook his head as he watched him. However, suddenly, he closed his laptop and packed his bag. Then Yoohyun closed his eyes shut as he began to reason with himself. ¡°You¡¯re right, if you don¡¯t do this during your first year in your first semester, when else will you do this.¡± In the midst of his thoughts, Jinsung¡¯s voice, who was already heading out of the room, was heard. ¡°Oh, and don¡¯t come looking for me today! I¡¯m going to the top of Click Mountain as a solo player.¡± @ As if he was running away from the campus, Jinsung hurried home and immediately turned the lights on before he went into the shower. Although he wanted to just sit in the capsule as soon as possible, game addict Jinsung didn¡¯t even want to sit in a capsule room with no ventilation on a hot summer day drenched in sweat. On top of that, he most definitely wouldn¡¯t be coming out of that room for the next 10 hours once he went in. ¡°Keu, dropping the course was a great choice. If I had known sooner, I would have dropped the course a week earlier.¡± Jinsung was currently living in a one-room near the school gates alone. The one-room was quite big and luxurious for a university student to be living alone in. It wasn¡¯t because Jinsung¡¯s family was so rich that he could afford such a luxurious room. In fact, Jisung¡¯s parents lived in the countryside without giving him a penny of allowance. However, compared to the average university student, Jinsung was able to live much more comfortably. His secret was the game currency he traded for money in the virtual reality game ¡®Kailran¡¯. If Jinsung said he was second, no one could claim they were first. As soon as his university acceptance letter arrived, Jinsung¡¯s parents stated that they did their job and left Jinsung with 5 million won[1] for his tuition and a shabby room. However, Jinsung did not use that money towards his tuition. He put the 5 million Won into his bank account, paying his tuition with student loans, and began working in a factory starting January. He did all of this to buy the 10-million-won capsule for the virtual reality game Kailran. As soon as the school year started, Jinsung was able to successfully purchase a capsule with the money he strictly saved up for two months, his parents 5 million Won and the entire lumped sum he had managed to save up during that time. Yoohyun who watched Jinsung¡¯s efforts to obtain a capsule called it a ¡°human success story¡±. Though he did start two months later than everybody else, however, Jinsung¡¯s passion and his talent towards gaming were amazing. Even though he was two months late, he was able to catch up to and overcome Yoohyun who started as soon as the game opened and even proved his speedy growth by getting his name in the top 1000 in the South Korean rankings within 4 months. Kailran monopolized the game markets all over the world and proving its popularity, had over 10 million people online at the same time for a while. On top of that, getting ranked within the top 1000 in South Korea, known as the strong country in gaming, was quite the feat. Eventually, Jinsung finished showering and got comfortable in his capsule. ¡°How about we burn things up until the weekend?¡± Iris recognition complete. Player ¡®Ian¡¯, welcome to the world of Kailran. Along with the system message, Jinsung¡¯s eyes slowly began to close. @ [1] 5, 000, 000 KRW = 4, 4462.80 USD CH 2 Chapter 2: Large update (2) Ping-! A sharp piercing projectile emitting a blue light ripped through the air with incredible force. Schwaff- ¡°Keuh-aaahhh-!¡± The Ogre cried out loudly before falling onto the ground as the arrow filled with cold air directly hit the Ogre¡¯s forehead. Koong-! -You have killed the Ogre. You have gained 5,910 Experience Points. Jinsung, no, Ian collected his breath and slowly ran to the corpse of the Ogre. ¡°Good, I¡¯m getting faster.¡± As Ian placed his hand on the Ogre, it turned into a grey light before disappearing. -You have obtained 745 gold from the ¡®Ogre¡¯. -You have obtained the ¡®Ogre¡¯s thick leather¡¯. Ian opened his inventory as he confirmed the system message that appeared. ¡°I¡¯ll have to rest after I collect 100,000 gold.¡± Nicknamed the ¡®Ogre Field¡¯ by the players because of a large amount of Ogres that spawned on the hunting grounds, Click Mountain was where Ian was currently hunting. For Ian who was currently lv 93, Ogres who were around lv 80 might seem easy but that was only for hunting parties. From the perspective of Solo Players, Click Mountain was one of the most challenging hunting grounds for even high-ranking players. This was because Ogres had higher health and dealt more damage than other monsters in the same level range. For the purpose of leveling, it would have been more efficient to join a party made up of people of the same level as the hunting ground and enter together; however, Ian had a different purpose for soloing Click Mountain. The reason was because this location was the optimal ¡®Gold Grinding Spot¡¯ in his opinion. Kailran had its own developed system that exchanged game money for cash. Not only could cash be traded in for game money but game money could also be sold. Since the system was as transparent as for how real world banks worked, the goods in Kailran had almost no difference in value to cash. Currently, Kailran¡¯s exchange rate to cash from gold was about 1:2 and Ogres gave about 800 gold each. For each Ogre, you earned around 1,600 Won[1]. At Ian¡¯s speed of easily killing 100 Ogres an hour, it was basically equivalent to working a job that paid 200,000 Won an hour. Ian¡¯s habit of collecting money to pay off his student loans remained in that he still spent an hour grinding gold whenever he was online. ¡°Shall we move again¡­¡± After confirming that there were no more Ogres left, Ian started to walk to move to another hunting ground. Ian was hyped when he experienced a faster hunting speed thanks to the ¡®Dark Composite Bow¡¯ he obtained from the Drake Raid he joined last week. Ian Lv 93: 79,954,300/98,500,000 (81.2%) Race: Human Class: Archer (Skilled Sharpshooter) Nickname: Drake Hunter Fame: 158,920 (If your fame drops below 0, it changes into Notoriety) Power: 150 (+75) Agility: 275 (+305) Intellect: 75 (+25) Health: 105 (+137) Vitality: 12,420 (+5,600) Mana: 3,725 (+2,215) After looking at his Status Window once, Ian shook his head. ¡°Haa, I¡¯ve only gone up 6% despite the amount of Ogres I¡¯ve hunted since last week.¡± He was talking about his Experience. After passing lv 90, you needed to put in an incredible amount of effort to even level up once. ¡°It¡¯s not like I¡¯m hunting these guys to level up, but this is too much.¡± Grumbling, Ian began to scan the surrounding area for monsters through the use of the Archer class¡¯s special skill ¨C Hawkeye. A moment later, an unfamiliar being caught Ian¡¯s attention. ¡®What the heck? Did a Heroic Rank monster besides the Ogre King infest Click Mountain?¡¯ The only thing you could see through Hawkeye was the location of monsters and their levels within a certain range from the user. To find out what kind of monster it was, you needed to go find it and see it with your own two eyes. ¡®It¡¯s a bit risky if it¡¯s a Heroic Rank monster¡­¡¯ The only known Heroic Rank monster on Click Mountain was the Ogre King, which was at lv 95. Of course, Ian had killed an Ogre King before but he didn¡¯t do it alone. ¡®What to do¡­¡¯ Ian pondered. Except for Field Bosses that appeared at designated locations, it was extremely rare to find a Heroic Rank monster like this. Also, there was an established theory that Heroic Rank monsters that appeared randomly on the field like this had a high drop rate for good items. ¡°First, let¡¯s go!¡± If he were to die, the Experience Ian gained would reset and the week would be wasted but to give up such a good chance was not his playing style. After making sure that the cooldown times for all his skills were over and his skills were refreshed, Ian slowly moved towards the marked location of the Heroic Rank monster. And moments later, a two-headed monster three times bigger than a normal Ogre appeared in his vision. ¡®What the heck, was there such a guy?¡¯ With the appearance of such a rare and fascinating monster unknown to Ian until now, his desire to obtain the monster grew like fire. Ian calmly brought out some traps and installed a couple in appropriate places. They were expensive items unable to be reused that he was saving up for a Heroic Rank monster. ¡°Tsk, to have to use these so soon.¡¯ Although purchased to be used, he couldn¡¯t help but feel like it was a waste to use them. This was because these traps were the best quality and cost 50,000 gold each. ¡°Well, even if one part of the Ogre¡¯s Warrior set drops, it¡¯s worth it¡­¡± Even the shoes, which are the cheapest part of the Ogre¡¯s Warrior set, were at a set cost of 1.3 million gold. If the Ogre¡¯s Warrior set dropped, not only would it be beneficial, it would be hitting the jackpot. Ian, who finished perfectly placing the traps, took out his bow and aimed at the Ogre¡¯s head -¡®Weak Point Capturing¡¯ skill has been triggered. The weak point of the target will be indicated with the accuracy rate rising 40% and the chance to critical hit increasing 37%. If the weak point is hit, evasiveness will increase 255%. -¡®Deadly Arrow¡¯ skill has been triggered. When hit, the target will be slowed for 10 seconds and will cause a steady decline in their vitality. Ping-! The arrow that left Ian¡¯s hands precisely hit the Ogre¡¯s head and once Ian was discovered, the Two-Headed Ogre let out a loud roar filled with rage before beginning to run towards Ian. ¡°Koo-uuhhhhh-!¡± Ian¡¯s eyes slightly widened as he watched his opponent run swiftly towards him despite its house-sized stature. ¡®It¡¯s definitely different from the normal Ogres. It¡¯s fast¡­!¡¯ Whether it was because it was a trait of the Ogre race, even the Ogre King¡¯s movements were slow. Though like its status as a Heroic Rank monster, its health and power were far superior to other ogres. So for Ian who calmly expected the Two-Headed Ogre to be just as slow couldn¡¯t help but be a little bewildered. Using the continuous skill, Ian shot the arrows at the Ogre quickly to lure him into the traps. Thump-. Thump-. Thump-. Whether it was because of the constant damage he received from the poison, the Ogre¡¯s expression slightly distorted. Ta-tat-! Having almost dragged the Ogre to the destination, Ian moved with fast reflexes, climbing a tree before pulling his bowstring back again. -¡®Explosive Arrow¡¯ skill has been triggered. Once the arrow hits the target, it will explode a second later with 300% additional damage. The arrow that left Ian¡¯s hand undoubtedly hit the Ogre¡¯s weak spot, which was highlighted in red due to the Weak Point Capturing skill. Even considering the Archer class¡¯s trait and skill to calibrate his accuracy, his skill was admirable. Kwang-! The arrow that lodged into the Ogre¡¯s chest exploded, causing the running Ogre to jump back slightly. The damage from the Critical Hit and the Weak Point Capturing along with the explosion raised the attack by twenty times in one hit, dealing enough damage to even hinder a Heroic Rank monster. However, it was only for a brief moment before the Ogre suddenly ran over to where Ian was and swung a monstrous Ogre¡¯s club at Ian. Kwang-! Along with a roar, the tree that Ian was sitting on collapsed. However, this was already after Ian had moved out of the way. A cold sweat broke out from Ian¡¯s back as he saw the power of the Ogre¡¯s wooden club. ¡®I might die with just one hit¡­!¡¯ Ian swallowed hard. There was a need to be a little more cautious. While Ian rolled around on the ground to avoid the Ogre¡¯s attack, the Ogre finally stepped onto one of Ian¡¯s traps. Ka-chink-! The Ogre began to roar along with the blunt sounds of the steel trap. -The advanced slowing trap has been triggered. For ten minutes, the speed of the target will decrease 30%. With the combination of the Deadly Arrow¡¯s effect, the total slowing effect was at 40%. The Ogre was visibly slower, even to the naked eye and Ian pulled his bowstring again. -¡®Swift¡¯ skill has been triggered. For 15 minutes, any movement will become 50% faster. Pi-ing-. Ping-. Ping-. With the speedy movements backed up with the Swift skill, Ian shot three arrows in the blink of an eye before he began running away. This was because the Ogre had reached Ian¡¯s location again. ¡°Hoo-oo¡­¡± Ian took a deep breath before he directly taunted the Ogre at a distance. From the outside it looked like Ian was easily fooling the Ogre, however, that wasn¡¯t the truth. Ian¡¯s Two-Headed Ogre hunting method was almost as dangerous as walking on a tightrope. Even allowing one hit would send him off¡­ Truthfully, Archers, along with Magicians, were known to be an incredibly hard class to solo play. This was because they would become helpless once a monster closed in. After a long game of cat and mouse with the Ogre, a system message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. -¡®Swift¡¯ skill has one minute left remaining. ¡°Keu-eum¡­¡± Ian let out a low groan. Once the Swift skill was over, it would be difficult to continue this battle. No matter what, he needed to win this in under a minute. ¡®There¡¯s one trap left. Stun trap¡­¡¯ Ian¡¯s mind began to spin violently. Ian threw his body in order to differentiate the winner in such a short amount of time. ¡°Over here, you disgusting piece of shit!¡± Ian shot arrows while provoking the Ogre and with the slowing effect gone, the Ogre recklessly charged towards him. And¡­ Chul-kuk-! The sound of the last trap being triggered was heard. -The advanced stunning trap has been triggered. For five seconds, the target will be stunned and be in an unprotected state. The moment the trap was triggered, one of Ian¡¯s knees was bent as he got into a steady position. The trapped Ogre stood stunned in an awkward position and Ian had his bow pointed at the shining red weak point of the Ogre. -¡®Critical Shot Fortification¡¯ skill has been triggered. If the attack is a critical hit, evasiveness will increase 300%. -¡®Sniper¡¯ skill has been triggered. For 10 seconds, you will not be able to move and offensive power will increase 400%. -¡®Concentration¡¯ skill has been triggered. With the bowstring pulled back, offensive power will increase proportionately to the amount of time focused on a target (max. increase: 500%) Ian used all the buffing skills and fortification skills he currently owned. ¡®Now everything is dependent on this one shot¡­!¡¯ If this arrow accurately penetrated the Ogre¡¯s weak point, he was confident the Ogre would collapse. Even if he didn¡¯t collapse, he was sure this shot would at least put him in a dying state. With the use of the ¡®Sniper¡¯ skill, there was no turning back for Ian now. If the Ogre wasn¡¯t hit properly and was released from its stunned state, Ian would still be rooted for another 5 seconds and become helpless. Counting down the seconds, Ian maximised the Concentration skill and released the arrow. Swiiiiish! A sound of air violently ripping apart sounded out and, at the same time, the Ogre was released from its stunned state. However, before the Ogre could move, Ian¡¯s arrow had already reached its heart. Thud-! The arrow, filled with all of Ian¡¯s strength, was lodged deep into the Ogre¡¯s weak point and Ian¡¯s subsequent attacks flew into the same spot. And with its vitality all gone, the Two-Headed Ogre¡¯s gigantic body began to collapse. Koong-! A heavy thud rang out as the large figure collapsed onto the floor and a happy system message popped up. -You have killed the Two-Headed Ogre. You have obtained 98,500 Experience points. ¡°Hoo-oo, hoo¡­¡± Ian breathed heavily. He had finally slain the Two-Headed Ogre after fighting it for almost 30 minutes. He had drained all his energy after running for a whole 30 minutes. ¡®Shall we see what items you¡¯ve dropped¡­¡¯ The moment of tension more nerve-wracking than the final blow¡­! Ian placed his hand on top of the corpse of the Ogre. CH 3 Chapter 3: Large Update (3) TL: Haku Edited: Stealth ¨C You have obtained 9,845 gold from Heroic Rank monster ¡®Two-Headed Ogre¡¯. ¨C You have obtained the ¡®Ogre¡¯s Warrior Spaulder¡¯. ¨C You have obtained the ¡®Ogre¡¯s Warrior Shoes¡¯. ¨C You have obtained the ¡®Crystal of Myuran¡¯. Ian couldn¡¯t close his mouth from smiling once he confirmed the items he obtained. ¡®I can¡¯t believe two pieces from the Ogre¡¯s Warrior set dropped! Did I use a whole month worth of luck all today?¡¯ The Ogre¡¯s Warrior set were items that may or may not have dropped once even after killing ten Ogre Kings. Excluding everything else, if the shoes and spaulder were cashed out¡­ ¡°Euh-hahahaha!¡± Laughter exploded from Ian¡¯s lips. He had made at least 5 million Won in 30 minutes. He couldn¡¯t help but laugh. ¡°But Crystal of Myuran? What is this¡­?¡± Even Ian, who was well-informed on quite a variety of items, had never heard of this item before. Ian immediately used his Judgement Scroll to identify the Crystal of Myuran. Crystal of Myuran A brilliant crystal shining with various colours. If you take this crystal to a class-changing NPC you can receive a class-changing quest, however, this can only be used by a ¡®Beginner¡¯ who hasn¡¯t changed class before. ¨C Non-tradeable item. Ian momentarily froze after reading the item information. And a second later¡­ ¡°This crazy¡­!¡± A slew of swear words spouted from his mouth without him realizing it. ¡°Why did this come out now! Euh-aak!¡± With no one nearby, Ian began to cry out to the sky. An item that irrevocably placed the hidden class in Ian¡¯s hand had dropped. Anything related to the hidden class was so rare, even the community almost had no information. He was sure that this was an incredibly special item¡­ however, the problem was that this item was totally useless to Ian now. Ian was already at such a high level and he had his name up on the South Korean ranking list. And class-changing was only applicable to ¡®Beginners¡¯ lower than lv 10. It would be strange if swear words didn¡¯t come out in this situation. ¡®On top of that, it¡¯s non-tradeable. If I were to sell this, I would be bringing in the cash¡­!¡¯ Ian¡¯s head was spinning. ¡®Ah¡­ Heaven, why this kind of trial¡­!¡¯ As mentioned before, Kailran has no such thing as an alt. The only way for Ian to use the Crystal of Myuran would be for him to reset his character. ¡°Ha, let¡¯s rest first.¡± Ian pulled out a return scroll from his bag. ¡®First I¡¯ll take care of the Ogre¡¯s Warrior set and then think about the Crystal of Myuran.¡¯ Ian¡¯s body was wrapped in white light before he disappeared into the air. @ ¡°Now, there¡¯s no one that hasn¡¯t arrived yet, right?¡± A knight user fully-plated with armor and surrounded by a white light scanned the room and checked the number of people. He was no other than Ian¡¯s best friend and Lotus guild¡¯s guild master, Han Yoohyun. His Kailran ID was Herz. ¡°Yes, I think everybody¡¯s arrived.¡± ¡°Shall we head out then?¡± Just then a female player with a cute appearance wearing a blue robe called Yoohyun. ¡°Herz.¡± ¡°Yes, Fiolan.¡± ¡°Is Ian not coming today? It seemed like he was connecting right now.¡± At the girl¡¯s question, the gazes of all the party members slid towards Herz. ¡°Ah, it seemed that guy was thinking of solo playing today. He¡¯s probably at Click Mountain right now.¡± ¡°Ehh, Click Mountain? Isn¡¯t that the Ogre Field?¡± ¡°Correct.¡± What kind of Archer goes to the Ogre Field to play solo? I did know that Ian was a monster but¡­¡± Herz shook his head. ¡°He does well on his own even though you pay no attention so¡­ I just assume so.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s just because I¡¯m unsatisfied. With even just Ian in the party, our hunting speed would be a hundred times faster¡­¡± A warrior that had stood off to the side wordlessly nodded his head before adding on. ¡°That¡¯s right. Ian is certainly a killer when it comes to one-hits.¡± The Lotus guild had an average party level of 80 to clear the dungeon. On top of being lv 93, he was incomparable to fellow players who were the same level when it came to firepower, so not having Ian and his incredible power was disappointing for all the party members. ¡°Ah, looks like we won¡¯t be able to get carried by Ian today. Nothing we can do, I guess.¡± Yoohyun, no, Herz gave a bitter laugh as he opened his mouth. ¡°Still, we¡¯ll be going into Naka Temple, so even without Ian, it won¡¯t be hard. If we¡¯re ready, shall we head in?¡± Naka Temple¡¯s average monster level was in the low 80s and they were also unassociated with each other, so it was a fairly easy hunting ground for Lotus guild members. ¡°I¡¯m done preparing!¡± ¡°Me, too!¡± As soon as Herz raised his hand towards the slate on the dungeon entrance, a message from a familiar ID arrived. ¨C Ian: Yo, are you in the middle of running dungeons? Once you¡¯re done, let me know. I have something to show you. ¡®What the heck? Making me curious¡­¡¯ Herz was incredibly curious about what Ian was going to show him, but first, the dungeon was more important, and so he stepped into the entrance. @ Within 20 minutes, the Ogre¡¯s Warrior set pieces that Ian had put up in the auction house were sold. Despite having four million gold instantly fill up his inventory, his expression was extremely serious. ¡°Ah, this is a dilemma. This was the biggest dilemma in Jinsung Park¡¯s Kailran life¡­¡± Ian was more serious than when he had put in his university admission application. ¡®If only the Crystal of Myuran or whatever didn¡¯t show up¡­ If only the Ogre¡¯s Warrior set showed up, I would have been all happy and smiling like an idiot¡­¡¯ Truthfully, if it wasn¡¯t for the new update notice, he wouldn¡¯t have had such a dilemma over this, only just a little bit sad over the wastefulness. The two new classes coming along with the update was the problem. The hidden classes shown so far weren¡¯t actually a new class, but rather upgrades of already existing classes, or new versions of them. Taking the most well-known hidden class ¡®Berserker¡¯ for example, it was indicated in the system as ¡®Warrior (Berserker)¡¯ and had been transformed to be more offensive than the original Warrior class. Once the large update was applied, there was definitely going to be a new class-changing NPC, and once you get the Crystal of Myuran to them, they will for sure allow you access to the hidden classes related to the original classes. The important point here was ¡®original¡¯. To Ian who had always regretted not being able to play Kailran starting its opening day, ¡®first¡¯ was a word that held a lot of value. ¡°Eugh¡­ this is too good to pass up¡­¡¯ To put it another way, the Crystal of Myuran was like a chicken rib to Ian. There¡¯s no flesh to eat, but to just throw it out, it seemed wasteful. Just because you delete your character doesn¡¯t mean you lose the goods or items as well. The only things you lost were the parts related to your characters ability such as level, stats and title. In the end, Ian¡¯s dilemma was¡­ Firstly, the value of ¡®the character level and stats of Archer I have spent playing for days and nights for 4 months¡¯. Secondly, the value of ¡®having the title of first hidden class player and the potentials regarding it¡¯. You could say he was weighing it out the between these two. ¡®Character reset¡­ reset¡­¡¯ However, Ian¡¯s game playing style was constantly whispering him to not give up the hidden classes. ¡®That¡¯s right, normal doesn¡¯t go with Jinsung Park¡¯s gaming life. Let¡¯s do it, and then see from there.¡¯ Before Ian realized it, he had already begun to rationalize his thoughts. ¡®To say it bluntly, if I keep selling Ranger, can I still rank worldwide?¡¯ Of course, Ian¡¯s game ability was in the top rankings. That¡¯s why he was able to rank in the top 1000 in the South Korean server despite being two months late. However, Ian was realizing that there was a limit to this. He thought it would be possible with some luck to somehow get into the top 100 in the South Korean rankings, but getting into the top 100 worldwide was impossible. ¡®Alright, even if I can¡¯t reach it, let¡¯s go!¡¯ Originally, Ian was thinking of showing Yoohyun the crystal once he had run through the dungeons and consult with him, but Ian¡¯s heart was already decided. The last thing that got to him was that once he reset, he would lose the income that he made from gold grinding and item farming for a while¡­ ¡®Well, I do have quite a bit saved up in the bank¡­ I shouldn¡¯t have a problem with living for a while.¡¯ For Ian, the enjoyment of games was not something that could be converted from wealth. In an instance, ¡®consultation¡¯ turned to ¡®notice¡¯. @ ¡°Yo, are you for real?¡± After hearing Ian¡¯s explanation and notice, those were Yoohyun¡¯s first words. ¡°Why man, what¡¯s the issue?¡± Opposite to a quite shocked Yoohyun, who wore a dumbfounded expression, Jinsung wore a very calm expression. ¡°What¡¯s the issue¡­! Do you not feel like it¡¯s a waste at all? You¡¯re at lv 93 right now. You¡¯re ranked in the top 1000 in South Korea! On top of that, if you narrow it down to the Archer rankings, you¡¯re close to the top 100¡­ yet you¡¯re willing to just throw that away?¡± Yoohyun¡¯s explosion made sense. He knew that Ian was a reckless guy, but this was a total exception, exceeding his thoughts. ¡°Yeah, don¡¯t you think I find it a waste, too? But this is a chance to have one of the first hidden classes based on the new classes. You¡¯re telling me to just throw this chance away?¡± Yoohyun opened his mouth again to calmly admonish Jinsung. ¡°You as well should know about the information released relating to the hidden classes. Just in our guild, you know we have a Sniper, right?¡± Sniper was the hidden class for Archer. Jinsung nodded his head. ¡°I know, I even hunted with them last time.¡± ¡°When you saw the Sniper, was there anything that was particularly better than the normal Archer?¡± Pausing momentarily, Jinsung continued speaking. ¡°Well¡­ we had quite a big level gap, so I can¡¯t give a solid comparison, but comparing it to Archer the pros and cons were obvious. Their range was unbelievably long and their damage for one hit was powerful, however, rapid fires were difficult. The biggest con would be that when there are mobs, its efficiency drops¡­ that¡¯s about it?¡± Yoohyun nodded his head as he heard those words. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right, my point is that just because it¡¯s a hidden class doesn¡¯t mean that it¡¯s stronger to the point it seems rigged.¡± Jinsung nodded his head. ¡°I know.¡± ¡°You know? You know yet you¡¯ll throw away your lv 93 Archer for that? Your character, which you can easily make a million won with just a suitable area for farming?¡± At those words, Jinsung smirked. ¡°Hey, Yoohyun.¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°Why do you play Kailran?¡± At the random question, Yoohyun was slightly thrown off but responded shortly after. ¡°Because it¡¯s fun.¡± Jinsung grinned. ¡°There¡¯s the answer.¡± ¡°What?¡± Jinsung added one more sentence after seeing a baffled Yoohyun. ¡°It looks like so much fun¡­ Do you need another reason?¡± CH 4 Chapter 4: Large Update (4) TL: Haku Edited: Stealth Within a record-breakingly short period of time of three hours, Jinsung sat at his desk after easily convincing (?) Yoohyun. Of course, it wasn¡¯t to study. ¡°Well, shall we start making a plan?¡± Since he had set his heart, he now needed to make a master plan. In Jinsung¡¯s gaming life, there was no such thing as ¡®just going with the flow¡¯. No matter the game, he liked to study the game¡¯s system and find the most efficient way to play. ¡°The first priority would be¡­ definitely gathering information, right?¡± Jinsung turned on his computer. The first thing he found was the promotion videos. More specifically, it was the trailer for the new classes that were created along with the large update. Jinsung played the Assassin¡¯s video. ¡°Hm¡­ As expected, stealth is optimized¡­ Just like the name, it seems like a killer¡­¡± The video was magnificent and cool enough, but it just didn¡¯t draw him in. The Assassin in the video used fast movements and attacks to amplify their damage in a short amount of time. ¡®Wow, the damage dealt in one go is really strong. It looks like there will be a cooldown time after using all the skills¡­.¡¯ Jinsung continued to concentrate on the video. ¡®But why am I not really drawn to it?¡¯ Jinsung found out the reason soon enough. ¡°There are parts that overlap with Archer.¡± A special characteristic for classes with Agility-based stats, although their attacks were different, their passive and utility skills were similar to Archer. On top of that, their assisting skills like trap-installing were skills that Jinsung regularly used when he played Archer. ¡°Pass on Assassin.¡± Since he was starting a new class, he wanted to experience a completely different one, so from the beginning, he immediately excluded Assassin. Jinsung instantly clicked on the next video. It was the trailer for the Dark Magician. After focusing quietly on the video, Jinsung mumbled with a low voice. ¡°This time, it¡¯s a Necromancer.¡± Like a commander, it was a class that could call countless undead. When Jinsung was young, he had enjoyed playing a Necromancer much like this one on a computer game. The Dark Magician was similar to the Necromancer class that Jinsung knew. While watching the video of the dozens of skulls following the user and expanding the fight, Jinsung felt an excitement that was different from when he saw the Assassin. ¡°For someone that likes to Solo Play like me, the class does look good¡­¡± Jinsung reserved his choice after momentarily contemplating and turned his attention to the next video. It looked alright, but there was still one more trailer that was left. Last was the Taming Master. ¡°Would the Taming Master be like a Shaman?¡± Jinsung¡¯s eyes shined as he watched the video. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s not that you have a specific monster that you tame, but rather you tame the field monsters and contract them.¡± The user in the video ¨C although probably a GM ¨C was taming a rare monster called ¡®Red Wolf¡¯ from an area in their level zone. ¡°Is there no taming restriction based on the monster¡¯s class? Would it be possible to tame a Heroic Rank or Legendary monster?¡± They were questions that definitely came to his mind. As if it heard Jinsung¡¯s muttering, a scripted explanation was shown in the video. The user is able to tame all monsters of any rank. The only monsters that cannot be tamed are monsters that appear in an event for a quest, and boss monsters that exist in instant dungeons. A low exclamation was let out from Jinsung¡¯s mouth. ¡°Whoa¡­.¡± However, as you go up the rankings, it becomes exponentially more difficult to tame. It would be right to say that it¡¯s almost impossible to tame a monster starting from the Heroic Rank. Jinsung smirked. ¡°Impossible, my ass. You should be dragging around a Legendary monster to look cool.¡± Every monster and item that appears in Kailran had a rank. Starting from the most commonly appearing that take up the biggest portion, there were Rare, Unique and Heroic Rank applying to monsters and items, which was the format most users knew about, however, there were legendary items ranked even higher that very few people had seen. As Kailran had been released less than half a year ago and was still relatively a new game, there were a lot of unknown information but Jinsung thought that there would be more unknown rankings above the Heroic Rank. The more he watched the video, the more excited he got. Compared to the Dark Magician and Assassin, it lacked a bit of splendor in battle, but the content format had more variety compared to the other classes. The point he liked most was that the monsters that the Taming Master could use were very extensive and that even though they were the same monsters, depending on how they were raised, how their stats would differ got him all excited. As soon as the video ended, Jinsung clenched his fist. ¡°This is the one!¡± Jinsung¡¯s heart was set. The Taming Master class matched so well with his play style. The way that Jinsung played games was quite unique. When he picked an item or a skill, he never just picked it. He found pleasure in analyzing every element in the game and finding the most efficient way to use the skill, so he never overlooked small details, writing them down before organizing it away. This was his secret to how he was able to make it in the top rankings despite being two months late. For example, the other day, he hit thousands of the same monsters and analyzed every hit to find out how blocking and attacking interacted with each other. So for Jinsung, Taming Master was a very appealing class. Just thinking about experimenting on all the countless monsters in Kailran made his body itch. Jinsung, who had decided on Taming Master, began to extensively read all information relating to the Taming Master. ¡°There¡¯s exactly one week left until the update day¡­¡± Jinsung began to think. ¡°To get to the level where you can change class would take about 1-2 days, but there¡¯s a test in between one of the days, and I¡¯ll need time to adjust to my reset stats, so it would be a good idea to exclude about three days¡­¡± Jinsung was planning on making it to lv 10 before the update, and then find the class-changing NPC. ¡°Then I¡¯ll have about 4 days left¡­ Starting from now until the weekend, would it be enough to just focus on farming?¡± His plan became much easier. Since his income would be cut off for a while after he reset his character, he needed to make as much as he could and as fast as possible. After opening the fridge and roughly stuffing his empty stomach, Jinsung immediately went into the capsule. It was the start of gold grinding. ¡®Let¡¯s make just 5 million before resetting.¡¯ Every minute, every second couldn¡¯t be wasted. CH 5 3 days later. ¡°Ahh! Finally, freedom!¡± After finishing his last (?) first-semester exam, Jinsung returned home and immediately logged onto his game to check the auction house. ¡°How much has been sold?¡± Ogre¡¯s Warrior Breastplate ¨C 2.2 million gold.Naga Queen¡¯s Frost Necklace ¨C 1.53 million gold.Feather of the Thunder Bird ¨C 120,000 gold. ¡­..Omission¡­.. Sapphire Ring of the Abyss ¨C 1.35 million gold. ¡°Good, good. Aside from one or two, everything¡¯s been sold.¡± Ian had a satisfied expression. ¡°Shall I do an exact calculation now?¡± After calculating all of the items that were sold, the corners of Ian¡¯s smile hung from his ears as he saw the gold that was piled in his inventory. ¡°I made more than I was expecting. With this much, I shouldn¡¯t have a problem for quite a while?¡± Ian currently had 19 million gold in his inventory. Of course, he didn¡¯t make 19 million within 3 days. He made about 8 million selling the items that he had stored away, about 5 million he already had saved up and 6 million gold from the items and gold he earned from the 3 days. Using Kailran¡¯s official exchange system to change it to cash and removing the service charge, it would still be a huge amount of 35 million won! By doing a direct trade through another user, the service charge cost could be saved, and the total amount that could be taken home would be closer to 40 million won. ¡°Since I have enough for living expenses, I¡¯ll just exchange for around ten million won.¡± It was better to keep as much gold as possible. When he first started raising Archer, he used cheap items and hunted with his spirit, but he had no thoughts of doing this again after resetting. He was thinking of using the auction to buy all the items he needed without hesitation. ¡°Do I only have character resetting left¡­?¡± Even though all of his preparations were complete, as the final decision time came closer, he couldn¡¯t help but feel restless. There were two ways to reset your character in Kailran. The first method was through the system support¡¯s ¡®Account Resetting¡¯, and the second was using an item called the ¡®Elixir of Reincarnation¡¯. Usually, people that want to reset their characters were low-level users. And usually, the reason these beginner users were resetting their characters were because they ¡®want to change their nickname¡¯ or they ¡®changed their class but it doesn¡¯t fit their character¡¯. These people, in general, used the system support¡¯s account resetting. This was because the Elixir of Reincarnation was too expensive for beginners to obtain. In this situation, your level and stats, and all the items you possessed would be reset, and you would have to start from the tutorial, which was complicated. Although it was a bother, beginners with no money would have to leave their items and gold with a friend and use the account resetting method. The only people that were resetting their characters were not just low-level beginners, but high-level players like Ian. Their reasons were each their own, but the most common cases were players that were trying to cleanse their bad reputation away. In Kailran, there was a Fame System. If you PK (Player Kill) another user or if evil deeds pile up in-game, this Fame System decreased, and once your fame reached below 0, you collected a bad reputation instead of fame. Once you collected a bad reputation, your label doesn¡¯t disappear even though you were collecting fame again, and players with a high, bad reputation would receive a hostile reaction from most of the NPCs. Your bad reputation also would be revealed to other users, resulting in a great penalty in-game. Players that earn money by PK-ing robbed other users of their items and when they had gathered enough funds, they would reset their character to cleanse the bad reputation they had collected, however, different to beginner users, they used the ¡®Elixir of Reincarnation¡¯ instead of account resetting since they had collected a lot of things. The pros of the Elixir of Reincarnation were, first of all, it keeps everything, aside from level and stats even though you reset your character. On top of that, if you were lucky, you randomly get a handful of bonus stats, so it was beneficial for high-level users to use the elixir even though it was expensive. Also, there were four ranks that existed for the Elixir of Reincarnation, and the lowest ranking elixir was about 200,000 gold. The most expensive-ranking elixir was being auctioned at 5 million gold. The probability of the status bonuses being bigger was supposedly higher the higher the rank, so it was obvious that the prices jumped so much. The other day, a rich user spent a ton of money to buy five Elixirs of Reincarnation and drank it one after another, and the first reset they got five bonus points, while the last four times they didn¡¯t gain any points. No one revealed the exact reason, but there was a rumor that the bonuses obtained through the elixir were influenced by the user¡¯s former stats and level. ¡°Shall we go buy the elixir now¡­?¡± Of course, there was no way that Ian, who didn¡¯t lack money, would opt for account resetting. Ian left the auction and began to walk to buy the elixir. It was possible to obtain a low-ranked one from the auction, but you couldn¡¯t obtain the top-ranked one from there. It wasn¡¯t very well-known information, but Ian knew the route to obtaining the top-ranked elixir. @ The largest city in southern continent Malik, Trombone. Not just in the southern continent, but across virtual reality game ¡®Kailran¡¯, Trombone could be considered the most transformed city. When a character is created in Kailran, Trombone was one of the three places that they can start at, plus the location was incredibly good. Also, the underground of Trombone city, the southern continent¡¯s largest black market was placed. In general, the people in the black market had this certain aura that made first-timers hesitate when they first step in. It was basically a dark place, but ironically it was crowded with people. And despite the large amount of people that were coming and going, it was strangely quiet. It was an atmosphere that couldn¡¯t help but feel heterogeneous. If you were to pick at least one raucous location¡­. The vacant lot in the black market¡¯s corner. For whatever reason, several people were gathered around an elder and spectating, while a variety of items were displayed in front of the elder. And one man with a serious gaze examined the items displayed one by one. ¡°I¡¯ll take this.¡± The man picked up one of the displayed items. It was an interesting item, with the hilt of the sword shining emerald. ¡°You cannot exchange your item once chosen. But of course, you know that, right?¡± At the words of the elder, the man¡¯s gaze slightly shook. However, he immediately nodded his head calmly. ¡°Yes, I¡¯ll go with this.¡± With a dull voice, the elder continued. ¡°The price of every item is 100,000 gold.¡± With shaking hands, the man passed on 100,000 gold to the elder. From the looks of the equipment he was wearing and his attitude, it was obvious that 100,000 gold was quite a big amount for him. The elder instantly passed on the sword to him, and as soon as he received the sword, he grabbed his Identification Scroll. The spectators nearby watched him with an interested expression. ¡°Judgement!¡± The man stared at the floating sword with a very flushed expression. Hoo-oo-oong-. A white light engulfed his sword before dispersing into the air. And in the air, the information about the item he purchased was laid out. Brave Goblin¡¯s Warrior Sword Category: One-Handed Sword Rank: Rare Requirement: 50+ Strength Power: 125-130 Durability: 75/75 Options: Strength +5/Agility +5 It was a sword used by a Brave Goblin Warrior. The quality was good; however, it was a common weapon that you could find at any blacksmith¡¯s. The snickering of the spectators could be heard from here and there. Through the approximate item information, it was an item that a lv 20 beginner could use, and on top of that the Options weren¡¯t good. At most, it was a cheap weapon that would only be sold at about 5000 gold. The man, who was the owner of the item, shoved the sword into his inventory with a completely flushed face and disappeared as if he was running away. Even though he was clueless, it was obvious that the 100,000 gold was gathered by hunting day and night. The elder smirked as he saw that state. ¡°Is there another adventurer that would like to challenge?¡± The elder of the vacant lot¡¯s name was Fleur. He was well-known in the official Kailran community as Trombone¡¯s popular figure, and between the users, he was an NPC known as the Gamble Elder. Right then, there was a man that squeezed himself through the spectators and quietly stood. That man was Jinsung, no, Ian. Ian looked at the clock hanging at the very end of the black market and muttered in a low voice. ¡°It¡¯s time for the gamble to end now¡­¡± After the man who purchased the Goblin¡¯s Warrior Sword for hundreds of times more expensive, there were a couple more gambles that continued. There was no user that was successful in the gamble. The last user at least managed to break even, and that was the best result. After this, Fleur folded up his stall and began to move somewhere else. Ian followed behind him. Fleur sluggishly walked and stopped as if he had arrived at his destination, while Ian slowly approached him. As his eyes met Ian¡¯s, Fleur opened his mouth. ¡°For what reason did you come find me?¡± Ian immediately responded. ¡°I came to look for the Elixir of Reincarnation.¡± As soon as he heard his words, Fleur¡¯s gaze changed. His way of talking also subtly changed. ¡°You¡¯ve found the right place. You¡¯re lucky, just in time for the items that arrived.¡± Ian followed the elder into the building. And through the elder, Ian was able to obtain a silk pouch containing a gourd from there. ¡°I¡¯m assuming you¡¯ve come knowing the estimated price?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Give me 5.2 million gold.¡± It was a slightly expensive price, but Ian didn¡¯t mind and passed the gold instantly. ¡°Here you go.¡± ¡°I like that you¡¯re very cool about it.¡± The Elder, Fleur, grinned. Ian slightly bowed his head to him after receiving the elixir and escaped the black market. Truthfully, there was no issue with drinking the elixir right away, but there were too many eyes watching the black market. Ian wasn¡¯t the type to attract attention for no reason. Ian pulled out the gourd after sitting astride on a rock that people didn¡¯t pass by very often. Elixir of Reincarnation Category: Miscellaneous Rank: Heroic This elixir was created through ancient alchemy.Drinking this elixir will reset your character.All your stats, including your level, will be reset. For ranking players, the information box read no differently compared to a deadly poison, however, Ian was fearless. After Ian popped off the cork lid, he showed no hesitation as he drank it. And then a white light wrapped around his body. You drank the Elixir of Reincarnation.Your character¡¯s stats, including your level, will be reset. CH 6 Chapter 6: Large Update (6) TL: Haku Edited: Stealth Sponsor: Kuro ¡°W-what? You want me to be the sub-guild master?¡± Fiolan¡¯s two eyes rounded at Herz¡¯s words. ¡°Yes, starting from today, I¡¯m hoping that you¡¯ll take charge as sub-guild master.¡± Lotus guild¡¯s sub-guild master was Ian. Since Herz was the founder of the guild, it was only obvious he was master, and Ian was in charge as the sub-guild master because he was the strongest and of the highest level, so there were no disagreements. However, at the sudden request to take over sub-guild master position, Fiolan couldn¡¯t help but be bewildered at the situation. ¡°Ian is in a situation where he can no longer take charge as a sub-guild master.¡± To join a guild in Kailran, you needed to be at least lv 20. As soon as Ian reset his character, he was immediately withdrawn from the guild list. At Herz¡¯s bitter expression, Fiolan became even more bewildered. ¡°This sudden¡­ Did Ian say that he would leave the guild?¡± Herz shook his head. ¡°No, that¡¯s not it¡­¡± He let out a deep sigh before continuing his words. ¡°He drank an Elixir of Reincarnation.¡± ¡°¡­.!¡± There were situations where one becomes so bewildered they panic temporarily. That was currently Fiolan¡¯s situation. A moment later, Fiolan collected herself and continued. ¡°No, why, though?¡± ¡°Exactly, why would he have done that?¡± ¡°No¡­¡± Herz felt a hesitant feeling from Fiolan, who was at a loss for words. ¡°Well, even though the circumstances, the choice is up to you.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why, don¡¯t ask why the dude reset his character and please take charge as sub-guild master.¡± Fiolan was a lv 89 magician. Before Ian reset his character, she was the next highest-leveled user in the guild, which is why Ian was asking her to be a sub-guild master. ¡°Ha¡­ Ha¡­ It¡¯s a little, no, quite bewildering.¡± ¡°It¡¯s the same for me.¡± After the awkward silence passed by, Fiolan accepted Herz¡¯s offer. ¡°Well, then first give me the position of sub-guild master. Once Ian hits lv 20 and joins again, do I just have to pass it back to him?¡± Herz shook his head. ¡°No, even if he returns, to be a sub-guild master at lv 20 would be a bit weird to see.¡± ¡°It would¡­ Wouldn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°Yes. That¡¯s why for a while¡­ No, you might have to be sub-guild master forever¡­ Haha.¡± Shortly after, a system message popped up in Fiolan¡¯s view. You have been promoted to ¡®Sub-Guild Master¡¯ of ¡®Lotus Guild¡¯. ¡°Well, since I have been given the position of sub-guild master, I will do my best.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Ian¡­ will return, though, right?¡± Herz nodded. ¡°Certainly. That dude will easily hit lv 20.¡± ¡°Well, if it¡¯s Ian¡¯s skills, no matter what, he would brilliantly do one man¡¯s worth within the guild quickly.¡± ¡°¡­ I¡¯m hoping that¡¯s the case.¡± And as if he remembered something else, Herz added another word. ¡°Oh, and Fiolan.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°For a while, Ian having reset his character¡­ is a secret.¡± ¡°Won¡¯t people find out after opening the guild information once?¡± ¡°No, the guild members will find out soon enough. I¡¯m talking about externally. If they find out that Ian is not here, several guilds may try and start a guild war with us.¡± Herz¡¯s words were not just elderly grandma¡¯s talk. Ian¡¯s role in the Lotus Guild was that important that it took that big of a proportion. Fiolan smiled bitterly and nodded. ¡°Understood.¡± @ While Herz and Fiolan were sighing constantly, Ian, who successfully (?) reset his character, was moving his body around. ¡°This somehow drains your power in many ways.¡± Once he drank the Elixir of Reincarnation, Ian felt his body physically become suddenly heavier. ¡°It¡¯s probably because all my stats were removed, right?¡± It was only understandable, as he went from lv 93 to lv 1. ¡°Shall we check my condition?¡± As Ian opened his condition window, he couldn¡¯t help but feel his pulse rise. ¡®Since I was already going to reset anyways, I just chose the most expensive one¡­ At least let there be a lot of bonus stats!¡¯ Ian Lv 1: 0/15 (0%) Race: Human Class: N/A (Beginner) Nickname: None Fame: 0 (if your fame drops below 0, it changes into Notoriety) Power: 25 (+0) Agility: 49 (+0) Intellect: 20 (+0) Health: 23 (+0) Vitality: 230 (+0) Mana: 150 (+0) After checking the condition window, Ian¡¯s jaw dropped. ¡°What, what is this?¡± Ian was incredibly bewildered. The reason was because generally when you create a new character, a lv 1 user¡¯s stats are all 10. In other words, Ian received 77 bonus points from the Elixir of Reincarnation. ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­ 15 on Strength, 39 on Agility, 10 on Intellect, 13 on Health¡­ Altogether 77?¡± Ian was shocked. From what he knew, so far, the highest amount of bonus stats received after resetting their character through the Elixir of Reincarnation was around 40. Even that was considered a miracle. But 77. ¡°As expected¡­ I was destined to do well no matter what!¡± Ian felt his strength rise. 77 stat points was not a small amount. When a user levels up in Kailran, they increase about a total of 5-6 points. And they¡¯re automatically distributed, but it was well-known that they were influenced by how the user hunted in order to level. Assuming you received 5.5 points per level up, Ian was only a lv 1 on the outside but when you looked at his stats, he was equal to a lv 15. If you thought about how hellishly difficult it was to level up as a high level, these 77 stat points were honey-like stats. ¡°Even so, to do a second reset¡­.¡± There were many other ways to raise your stats aside from resetting, so unless it was a special case like Ian¡¯s, resetting was definitely inefficient. ¡®Should I have panhandled a bit more before resetting¡­? If only I knew my stats would go up this much¡­.¡¯ For Ian, who was starting the game as a lv 1 with lv 15 stats, getting to lv 10 was not a task. On top of that, Ian, who had a great battle instinct, it was possible for him to hunt as a lv 1 in a hunting ground with lv 20 monsters. ¡°1-2 hours? No, even about 1 hour¡­ is enough for 10 levels.¡± If he chose not to change his class, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to level up passed lv 10 anyways. Unless there was a sudden update, for 2-3 days he had nothing to do. ¡°First, let¡¯s get to lv 10 and think about it.¡± Ian began to walk. The place he arrived was none other than the auction. Ian was planning on plastering on the best items he could wear now before starting to hunt. In Kailran, there was a wide variety of limits to equipping items. There was a level limit to equipping items but there was also a stat limit on almost all equipment. Bows, a weapon used by Archers, usually had a limit like ¡®Agility over __ can equip¡¯, while Axes and Broadswords, which were weapons that Warriors mainly used, had a limit like ¡®Strength over __ can equip¡¯. ¡®The best weapon I can equip at the moment would probably be bow.¡¯ Whether it was because of the influence of his stats before resetting, around half of the bonus points Ian gained were focused on Agility. And the most proficient battle method for Ian still was long-distant hunting with a bow. Ian began to search for a bow at the auction. ¡®To have equip-limit relieved option as my top option would be good.¡¯ The lower the level, the more efficient it was to have an item that had the equip-limit relieved option on it. This was because the best options of the equip-limit relieved option relieved items enough for someone 10 levels below to use. Ian was lv 1 but his Agility stat was 49. His stats were similar to lv 15 Archers but if he found good items with the equip-limit relieved option on, he could possibly equip a weapon used by Archers that were close to lv 30. Excluding the other parts, he was planning on investing in the best weapon he could equip at the moment. And soon enough a decently good item appeared through his eyes. Light Lizard Archer¡¯s Bow Classification: Longbow Rank: Heroic Equip Limit: Agility over 45, Strength over 20 Power: 53-175 Durability: 105/105 Option: Agility +25 / Health +20 / Critical Strike Chance +6% A luxurious bow used by a Lizard Archer. It¡¯s clear it was produced by a high-level lizard blacksmith. The cost of the item was 70,000 gold. Because it was an item that was equip-able for a level 10-20 user, no matter how good the item was, the price could only be low. Rather, 70,000 gold was quite an investment for users of that level. However, for Ian it was equivalent to the price of a pack of gum, so he immediately bought it. ¡®Its flaw is that the minimum damage is quite low, but it can be covered with accuracy.¡¯ Bows had the lowest minimum damage compared to other types of weapons, but it also had the highest maximum damage. However, the bow that Ian bought had a minimum damage that was much worse than other normal bows. However, that wasn¡¯t a big problem for Ian. This was because Kailran had a system where the more accurate an attack was, the higher the chance to gain maximum damage. And if it was Ian¡¯s accuracy, this damage configuration was rather more welcomed. Ian ended up buying a150,000 gold bow that was similar to the one he bought for when he hit lv 10, then he roughly finished setting up the rest of his armor and accessories. ¡®The first hunting ground is¡­¡± Ian quickly decided after momentarily thinking. ¡°Kalymputh Hill.¡± Kalymputh Hill was a hunting ground nicknamed the ¡®Fox Den¡¯. This was because the monsters that appeared were mostly foxes. The average level for the foxes that appeared at Kalymputh Hill were about lv 25, so after thoroughly analyzing, Ian chose a hunting ground that was slightly difficult with his current stats. Ian began to walk. Kalymputh Hill was not far from where he was in Trombone City. CH 7 Chapter 7: Large Update (7) TL: Haku Edited: Obelisk Ian, who arrived at Kalymputh Hill, had a surprised expression. ¡®There are way more people than when I used to hunt.¡¯ It wasn¡¯t like there were only a few people during the time when Ian used to hunt at Kalymputh Hill. However, now it was appropriate to use the expression that it was swarming with people. ¡®Does that mean that there are this many more Kailran users?¡¯ It was delightful news that there were more Kailran users, but having so many people on the hunting grounds wasn¡¯t exactly welcomed. ¡®It¡¯s not even like this place is Gangnam¡­ Well, damn.¡¯ There were shouts here and there of people looking for parties or trading to get items needed for hunting. ¡°Looking for someone above lv 25 that can deal out explosive damage! Waiting for two Knights and one Priest!¡± ¡°Looking for a Priest that has more than two buffing skills! Giving two times the gold distribution! We¡¯ll head out immediately once we get a Priest!¡± ¡°Buying all Red Fox Leather for 2 gold each piece!¡± It was all content that was unrelated to Ian. Ian had no plans on joining a party but there was also no party that was going to take in a lv 1 beginner. Ian began to move his feet in long strides. At that moment, he heard someone whispering behind his back. ¡°What is that lv 1 user? He¡¯s going to the hunting grounds alone!¡± ¡°Really¡­? What is he doing?¡± ¡°His method of suicide is something else.¡± Ian, who heard the whispers, smirked and changed his level information to private. He had no thoughts of gaining the attention of several others. ¡®Let¡¯s see¡­ It¡¯s been so long since I¡¯ve been here, so the feeling is new. The roads are confusing too.¡¯ Ian finally found a decent hunting place with few people after going deeper into the hunting grounds. And coincidentally a good prey caught his eyes. It was the most common monster on these hunting grounds, the Red Fox. Ian carefully checked and made sure that there were no other monsters nearby before he pulled the bowstring slowly. He was in a quite nervous state. Before resetting, it was a monster that wouldn¡¯t have mattered even if there were hundreds after him, but at his current level, if he didn¡¯t do his best, it was an opponent that he wouldn¡¯t be able to catch. ¡®Let¡¯s start by lodging one right in its forehead¡­.!¡¯ Ian aimed exactly in the middle of the fox¡¯s forehead. Ping-! The arrow that left Ian¡¯s hands flew and exactly penetrated the fox¡¯s forehead. Grrr-. Whether it was because the fox took quite a bit of damage, it flinched before it turned its head and stared at the location from where the arrow came from. However, right then, a message that Ian didn¡¯t even think about popped up into his sight. You have located the fox¡¯s weak point exactly and attacked!You have obtained the passive skill ¡®Weak Point Capturing¡¯. Weak Point Capturing Classification: Passive Skill Skill Level: 0 Proficiency: 0% The weak point of the target is indicated with the accuracy rate increasing 10% and the chance to critical hit increasing 15%. If the weak point is hit, evasiveness will also increase 50%. In Kailran, there were more ways of learning skills aside from the simple ¡®certain level achieved¡¯ method. Jinsung had naturally attacked the fox¡¯s weak point based on all his experience as a low-level player, hunting them endlessly before he reset, and that somehow lead to him learning the passive skill so quickly. Ian let out a shout of delight at his unpredicted luck. Passive skills were usually not this easily gained. ¡®Is it because it¡¯s a skill that I had before resetting, so my body is already accustomed to it¡­?¡¯ It was an unexpected message but Ian didn¡¯t have much time to appreciate it. This was because the fox quickly discovered him and began running towards him. ¡®Euh, my body has gotten heavier for sure.¡¯ Measly stats that were incomparable to before resetting. Ian was frustrated that his body wouldn¡¯t follow as he wanted it to. However, it was a problem that wouldn¡¯t be solved through complaining. Ping-. Pi-ing-! Ian swiftly shot two more arrows, and the two arrows hit the fox¡¯s body without a doubt. The Red Fox¡¯s name slowly began to start blinking. It was a signal that its health had dropped below half. Ian quickly rolled on the ground at the fox¡¯s attack, but he still allowed one hit. You have been attacked by the Red Fox. You have received 105 damage. Even though it wasn¡¯t a proper hit, his health was reduced by more than 30%. Ian started to get more nervous. Whether it was because he focused less on his armor, the fox¡¯s attack hurt a lot more than he thought. Ping-. Pi-ing-! Since it was close combat, his power dropped, but as he didn¡¯t have a good tactic to deal with close combat, Ian continued to shoot arrows at the fox running after him. Puck-! Eventually, the fox¡¯s attack scratched Ian¡¯s back once more. You have received 170 damage. Your health will drop below 20%. Whether it was because he allowed a proper attack this time, he received tremendous damage. However, Ian felt that the fox didn¡¯t have much vitality left. Ta-Tat-! Throwing his body in the opposite direction from where the fox landed, Ian exerted a high degree of concentration and shot one more arrow. And that arrow lodged deeply into a weak point of the Red Fox. You have killed the Red Fox. You have gained 320 Experience Points. You have leveled up. You have reached lv 2. ¡­ You have leveled up. You have reached lv 7. He had only caught one, but he had reached lv 7. Ian was happy, yet he was taken aback. ¡®Ha, when I first started the game, I used to have such a hard time trying to level¡­¡¯ When he first made his character, he played the whole day and it was to the point that he barely got to lv 4-5. It was quite dangerous, but with one battle he got to lv 7, so it made sense to be taken aback. However, another message popped up then. You have killed a monster over 20 levels higher. You have gained the nickname ¡®Master of Hunting¡¯. ¡°Huh¡­ This is going too well?¡± This was the first time Ian had seen the nickname ¡®Master of Hunting¡¯. However, he could already predict what kind of nickname it was. This was because he gained the nickname ¡®Genius of Hunting¡¯ after capturing a monster 10 levels above him before resetting. And because it had a useful effect, he had favoured it for a while. Since it the nickname ¡®Master of Hunting¡¯ was a higher level nickname in the same category, Ian checked the nickname¡¯s information. Master of Hunting Rank: Heroic When going against an enemy that is a higher level than you, all your stats increase by 5%.When going against an enemy that is a higher level than you, the Experience Points you gain are increased in proportion to the level difference. Ian¡¯s two eyes slightly grew. The nickname ¡®Genius of Hunting¡¯ also had an option attached that increased your stats when going against an enemy of a higher level. However, it was his first time seeing an option that increased the amount of Experience Points you gained. ¡®This could possibly be the most optimal nickname in this situation.¡¯ Jinsung¡¯s experimental instinct underneath his analysis instinct was activated. Jinsung enjoyed experimenting and analyzing all possible cases that occurred in-game, to the point that Yoohyun gave him the nickname ¡®Game Researcher¡¯. And for someone who had such game tendencies, it was obvious that he wanted to see how much extra Experience Points he gained. ¡®I just need to catch one more immediately.¡¯ He was able to find one more Red Fox of the same level after going deeper into the forest. Whether it was because of Jinsung¡¯s increased levels, it was a bit easier to hunt the fox. You have killed the Red Fox. You have gained 592 Experience Points.You have leveled up. You have reached lv 8. He gained another level shortly after but Jinsung¡¯s interest was currently elsewhere. ¡®Both the foxes were lv 24. That¡¯s a 17 level difference from me¡­¡¯ Jinsung began to diligently calculate. ¡®The first amount of Experience Points gained was 320. The amount of Experience Points I gained this time was 592¡­ so I¡¯ve gained 185% the original Experience Points. Jinsung was smiling from ear to ear. ¡®If you assume that it is directly proportionate to the level difference, then you gain about 5% per level difference?¡¯ Even if this nickname was not of ¡®Heroic¡¯ Rank but ¡®Legendary¡¯ Rank, it was a great option that Jinsung liked! ¡®I¡¯ll be able to hunt monsters 20 levels above me for a while now thanks to the bonus points I gained from the Elixir of Reincarnation.¡¯ For Jinsung who would have been fine with a Double Experience Points Event, he was smiling from ear to ear. Even without it, he had already secured an incredibly fast leveling-up situation by being able to catch monsters that were of a much higher level than him, but with this kind of Experience Points bonus on top of it¡­ Jinsung even wanted dance. ¡®At this rate I¡¯ll reach lv 50 at the speed of light, Keu-heu-heu.¡¯ At lv 60-70, monsters would become drastically stronger. This meant that when Jinsung hit around lv 50, it would be impossible to overcome the gap of 20 levels with even his superior stats and ludicrous items. No matter what, the fraudulent effect didn¡¯t change for now. ¡°Hoo-hoo.¡± Jinsung checked his remaining Experience Points. ¡®Since I have 900 points left until lv 9, I¡¯ll probably lv up after killing two more¡­¡¯ By calculating the amount of points needed to get to lv 10, he concluded that he needed to catch about eight more. After Jinsung replenished his health with the medicine that he prepared beforehand, he began to hunt again. CH 8 It took Jinsung abHout 1 hour to hit lv 10. Rather than taking a long time to hunt, the problem was that there were too few foxes, possibly because there were so many users and too few foxes. ¡°Well, now what should I do for 2 days?¡± Having everything go so smoothly was also a problem. However, Jinsung had no intention of wasting his time despite his situation. ¡°Shall I raise the level of my skills?¡± While hunting ten foxes, he obtained a couple passive skills he had lost when he reset. There was a total of three skills registered on Ian¡¯s skill list. Weak Point Capturing, Critical Shot Fortification, Rapid Fire. ¡®It would be somewhat useful if I leveled up my skills¡­ But it¡¯s now like I¡¯ll be an Archer again¡­¡¯ It wasn¡¯t a bad choice but he felt like there would be a better method for him to spend his time more efficiently. Right then, there was one good idea that grazed through his thoughts. ¡®There¡¯s a Training Centre in Trombone, too, right?¡¯ The Training Centre was a training ground with a martial arts instructor NPC that allowed you to train a variety of different fighting abilities. Once you had trained for a certain amount of time at the Training Centre, you could gain bonus stats based on the training method and the time trained. However, gaining stats at the Training Centre required an insensible and barbaric amount of grinding, so usually high-level users that had trouble leveling used the Training Centre to grind their way up. Because it was favourable for him if he could hunt higher level monsters despite being lv 1, each and every stat was precious to him. Ian, who had his heart set, moved fast. ¡®Time is gold.¡¯ Leaving Kalymputh Hill and quickly arriving in Trombone, Ian skillfully found the Training Centre. As it was a place that he kept going in and out of a dozen times before resetting, he knew it very well. ¡°I want to use the Training Centre.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, the Training Centre¡¯s supervisor NPC looked up and down at his body. ¡°From my observations, you seem to be a ¡®Beginner¡¯. ¡°That is right.¡± ¡°Your passion for wanting to train is desirable, but a beginner should just change their class and go on an adventure in order to get stronger faster.¡± The Training Centre¡¯s NPC kindly gave advice regarding Ian¡¯s path(?). However, that advice was only useful to generic users. ¡°Before I go out into the world, I want to be more solidly prepared.¡± Ian was annoyed by the conversation with the NPC, but he responded with a smiling face. ¡®They should just hurry up and let me in instead of minding other people¡¯s business¡­¡¯ By saying what he really felt, his friendliness with the NPC would decrease, and that would become a disadvantage in Kailran. ¡°Humph, you do have a point. Alright, I¡¯ll let you in. Beginners can use the Training Centre free of charge.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Ian, who entered the Training Centre, first grabbed a wooden sword used for training in his hands. ¡®Since I don¡¯t know what stats are important when playing as a Taming Master¡­ I¡¯ll train in every way!¡¯ It was a very ignorant way indeed, but in this situation, it was also the best training method. Ian began to infinitely repeat the familiar actions from before resetting. It was the beginning of the endless ¡®grind¡¯. From repeated training, your physical strength has increased. Your Power stat has increased by 1.From repeated training, your flexibility has increased. Your Agility stat has increased by 1. ¡®After increasing my Power and Agility little by little after endlessly repeating the same action of swinging a wooden sword¡­¡¯ You¡¯ve endured damage close to the limit. Your Health stat has increased by 1.Through meditating for a long period of time, you have gained enlightenment. Your Intellect stat has increased by 1. Due to getting beaten by the Training Centre¡¯s instructors, he raised his Health and from meditating, he increased his Intellect stat. Ian continued this insensible training method that couldn¡¯t be done unless you really had a lot of time on your hands. The NPCs that watched him were stricken with admiration. ¡°You are an adventurer pursuing true strength!¡± ¡°Up until now, I¡¯ve never seen a more persistent trainee!¡± Ian¡¯s concentration and tenacity were incredible. Every time a stat increased by one, it felt as if some strength that wasn¡¯t there before was gushing out. In order to fulfill Ian¡¯s personal plan to get to the best level up condition, he carried out resolutely the way of the endless grind. And finally, the day of the large update came. @ Ian, who was sitting in the Training Centre locked into meditation, opened his eyes at the sound of a system message. Through meditating for a long period of time, you have gained enlightenment. Your Intellect stat has increased by 1. He checked the time. ¡®There¡¯s around 4 hours left until the server maintenance.¡¯ He was talking about the server maintenance for the update. Ian stood up from his spot. 4 hours was barely enough time to increase even a stat by one through training. Through training more and more, it took progressively longer to raise his stats. ¡®Since they said it will take around 6 hours to update, there¡¯s 10 hours left until the server reopens.¡¯ Ian planned. ¡®First, I¡¯ll log off and shop for the food I¡¯ll need for the next couple of days. On the way back, I¡¯ll stop by the bank and pay my maintenance fees, and give a call to my parents¡­ and I¡¯ll sleep well for 8 hours before waking up.¡¯ It was a must to reduce unnecessary time and efficiently plan to take care of his health in order to game for long periods of time. Ian left the Training Centre and logged off. Since he had not slept to train, his eyes were sunken and his complexion looked washed out and rough. However, he had a satisfied smile hung around his mouth. Finally, the D-Day had arrived. Iris recognition complete. Player ¡®Ian¡¯, welcome to the world of Kailran. As soon as the server opened, Ian signed into the game at the speed of light. ¡®My condition is better than any other day!¡¯ As the white light disappeared, Ian saw a hanging board for a Magician¡¯s guild in front of him. Ian, who didn¡¯t even want to waste 1 second, logged out after reaching the location where all the class guilds were. Ian glanced around. And shortly after, he was able to find the building he wanted. ¡®The Taming Master Guild! I found it!¡¯ Without hesitation, Ian opened the doors of the guild and went in. It may have been obvious, but there was no one in the Taming Master guild. Ian was the first. Ian found the class-changing NPC at the inner part of the building. Since all of the class guild¡¯s building structure were similar, it wasn¡¯t hard to find. Ian immediately began to talk to him. His name was Cain. ¡°I want to change my class to a Taming Master.¡± Cain looked up and down at Ian before responding. ¡°Humph, the path of a Taming Master is by no means easy. Domesticating a fierce monster is not a job that anybody can do.¡± ¡°I know. However, as difficult as it is, I think it is just as splendid.¡± At Ian¡¯s flattery, Cain laughed while nodding his head. ¡°Of course, that is true.¡± He stared at Ian¡¯s eyes before continuing his words. ¡°Good, you have enough rights to change class! I¡¯ll ask one last time; will you really change class to Taming Master?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°Yes, I am positive.¡± ¡®It should be enough if I pull it out now, right?¡¯ As he spoke, Ian pulled out the Crystal of Myuran from his inventory. As Ian expected, Cain¡¯s pupil slightly magnified when he noticed the crystal. ¡°No¡­ This is¡­.!¡± ¡°Do you know about this item?¡± The corners of Ian¡¯s lips slightly went up. At the thought of finally being able to meet the hidden class, his heart began to palpitate. ¡°Is it not the crystal that the continental hero Myuran left behind!¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°You¡¯re correct.¡± ¡°You are more of an important person than I thought!¡± Ian waited for his next words. ¡®Hurry, give me the hidden class!¡¯ ¡°If that¡¯s the case, do you think you can take my request?¡± CH 9 Chapter 9: Hidden Class (2) TL: Haku Edited: Obelisk ¡°Whatever you want, just tell me.¡± At Ian¡¯s confident response Cain gave a satisfied expression before continuing his words. ¡°A ¡®Blue-Eyed Wolf¡¯ appeared somewhere in Lamoude Plains. My son recently changed his class to a Summoner, and he said he wanted to get the Blue-Eyed Wolf as a pet. I¡¯d like to catch it and give it to him¡­¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Ian retorted without even realizing himself. The Blue-Eyed Wolf was a strong Rare rank monster that was over lv 40. He remembered it because it was a monster that he had trouble catching as a beginner before resetting. ¡®I don¡¯t remember it being a beginner-level monster?¡¯ Why was such an outrageous monster¡¯s name being said in a class-changing quest for a beginner who just recently hit lv 10? On top of that, he didn¡¯t even change his class yet. He didn¡¯t have any skills to tame a monster. Indifferent to whether Ian was shocked or not, Cain¡¯s words continued. ¡°I am tied down here, so I cannot go, and although it is a bit embarrassing, my son is still lacking in skill to take on such an opponent.¡± Cain pulled out an item that resembled a scroll from his chest and then handed it to Ian. ¡°There are five sealing grimoires here. After tiring out the wolf as much as you can, you just need to use the grimoire and seal it. The wolf wandering Laude Plains is still young, so it shouldn¡¯t be that strong.¡± Along with his words, a system message resonated. Di-ring-. Capture the Blue-Eyed Wolf in Lamoude Plains! The Summoner¡¯s guild master Cain¡¯s son wanted the Blue-Eyed Wolf. Since they say that a young Blue-Eyed Wolf that wasn¡¯t fully grown appeared just in time in Lamoude Plains, seal it and bring it to Cain. Quest Difficulty Level: E Reward: Class-change to Summoner (Monster Trainer) Will you accept this quest? Ian¡¯s two eyes sparkled. The level of difficulty of the quest made no sense even when roughly heard, but that wasn¡¯t the reason why. The first word that caught his eyes was ¡®Monster Trainer¡¯. ¡®The hidden class!¡¯ Without any thought, Ian took the sealing grimoires and responded. ¡°Yes, I will catch the dog for sure.¡± Cain had a satisfied expression. ¡°Thank you. Then, I¡¯ll wait for the good news. To use the sealing grimoires, think of the target you want to seal and just shout ¡®seal¡¯.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± As Cain watched Ian head out of the building, he added to his sentence. ¡°Ah, also if it doesn¡¯t work out, come find me again. I can help you out one more time.¡± At those words, Ian felt a bit of reassurance. ¡®Even if I fail once, it¡¯s not like the quest will disappear.¡¯ However, Ian was planning on succeeding no matter what on the first try. There was no time for anything such as failure. Shortly after leaving the Summoner¡¯s guild, Ian headed towards Lamoude Plains. He was slightly taken aback by the word ¡®Blue-Eyed Wolf¡¯, but he was confident in succeeding somehow. ¡®The monsters that appear in Lamoude Plains were around lv 10. Even though it is a Blue-Eyed Wolf, he said it was a young one. And since he said it¡¯s in Lamoude Plains¡­ It shouldn¡¯t be that strong.¡¯ Ian, who had not slept for 2 days and grinded training, now had stats higher than the average lv 30. He fully had the rights to be that confident. ¡®Well, shall we find the thing?¡¯ After quickly arriving in Lamoude Plains, Ian began to thoroughly search through the map. Although the named plains were attached, the map was not that large. On top of that, there were not a lot of original monsters, so there was no reason to be bothered by other users since the map wasn¡¯t a hunting ground. After combing through the map for an hour, Ian was able to find the Blue-Eyed Wolf. And he was shocked. ¡®What the hell, that dog is lv 20!¡¯ It was a good thing that it was Ian with monstrous stats, for if it was a normal user, they would have had to deal with something like this at lv 10. Ian was stared blankly. ¡®Were hidden class quests usually this hard?¡¯ He felt a bit of doubt, but Ian positioned himself to deal with it. And with his bow, he took aim towards the wolf. ¡®Since I don¡¯t have to worry about one-hitting it, do I have to say I¡¯m lucky¡­?¡¯ With Ian¡¯s current offensive power, he could shoot down a lv 10 monster with one hit of his arrow. For Ian, who needed to catch the wolf rather than kill it, he actually thought of it as a relief. Piiing-! Ian¡¯s arrow ripped through the air and flew towards the Blue-Eyed Wolf. And without a doubt, it hit the body of the wolf. In case it would have died, he didn¡¯t even use Weak Point Capturing. Keu-reu-reung-! After getting hit by the arrow, the Blue-Eyed Wolf discovered Ian and started to violently running towards him. As it was a young wolf that wasn¡¯t fully grown, it was only about half the size of a mature wolf¡¯s body, but it was still much bigger than the average wolf. Ian lightly dodged the attack, turning his body and kicked up into the wolf¡¯s abdomen. Puck-! Along with a dull sound, the wolf fell and rolled on the ground. Keu-reu-reu¡­ Whether it was because it realized that it was facing an opponent stronger than them, the wolf¡¯s spirits were subsided. ¡®It¡¯s a lot weaker than I thought¡­.? Is it really lv 20?¡¯ Ian hooked the arrows onto his back. He felt as though the wolf would die with just a couple more shots. Then the situation would become more complicated. ¡®Once I¡¯ve worn the wolf down as much as possible, he told me to use the sealing grimoires, right?¡¯ It seemed like he meant that he was supposed to reduce its vitality just enough so that it doesn¡¯t die and then use the grimoire. Ian slowly approached the wolf. Ta-Tat-! Whether it was because it still had some strength left in it, the wolf charged towards Ian first. Incredibly sharp and swift movements. Puh-puck-! Letting the charging wolf¡¯s attack slide by, Ian¡¯s fist again struck its face. Kkae-gaeng-. The wolf and Ian¡¯s match continued. By stats alone, Ian was much higher, but since his goal wasn¡¯t to kill, rather his goal was to capture it, so he had to face it with bare fists. Therefore, it took quite a long time. The Blue-Eyed Wolf that was beaten by Ian without a moment of rest finally sprawled on the ground. Kkeeng-. However, Ian wasn¡¯t unscathed either. ¡°Hoo-oo, Hoo.¡± Heavily breathing, Ian, who approached the collapsed wolf, opened his inventory and pulled out the grimoire. ¡°Seal!¡± As soon as he finished saying the word, the grimoire that Ian was clutching turned into a white light that shot out towards the wolf. Oo-oo-oong-! Ian watched the scene with excitement. ¡®Oh-ho, is this how you capture?¡¯ Just when he thought everything was completed, the white light wrapped around the wolf dispersed into the air and a system message popped up. You have failed to Seal. Ian was taken aback. ¡°What, what the hell? I still have to beat it up?¡± As Ian lifted his fists along with his words, the wolf sprawled on the ground flinched. At that, Ian lowered his fist. ¡°It looks like it will die if I just hit it once more¡­ So then why exactly is it not working?¡± However aside from a fistfight, he couldn¡¯t really think of an answer. At the end of his deep-thinking, Ian thought of a clever scheme. ¡®I¡¯ll just replenish a little of its strength, then beat it up again.¡¯ Ian was happy with the thought, which was so cruel that if the wolf had known it would have peed itself in fear, and he pulled out meat from his inventory before lifting it up. It was the Red Fox meat that he hunted not long ago. As Ian held out the meat, the wolf warily watched him, guarded, before he started ripping the meat and eating it hastily. And shortly after, the wolf, who felt satisfied, gently wagged its tail before standing up. It had developed a bit of closeness towards Ian. However, Ian, unfortunately, didn¡¯t notice the wolf¡¯s changed attitude. And Ian¡¯s beatings started again. Puck-. Puh-puck-! The wolf, which already lost its fighting spirit, was beaten mercilessly. Shortly after, the wolf was once again sprawled on the ground, while Ian again held out a piece of fox meat to the wolf. The faces of the beginner users, who happened to just pass by coincidentally, turned pale as they watched the figure and ran away from the scene hurriedly. ¡®That dude, there¡¯s no mistake that he¡¯s a psychopath! We have to get away fast!¡¯ ¡®This is the first time I feel pity towards a mo-monster. How can he do that without a blink of an eye?¡¯ Of course, the wolf growled and didn¡¯t eat the meat that Ian was giving. However, despite that, Ian had no intention of giving up. ¡®If it doesn¡¯t want to die, it will have to eat, yet it won¡¯t eat and just endure?¡¯ No matter how others may have thought of him, Ian waited until the wolf got tired from its hunger and ate the meat, before going ahead and beating it up again. And as the wolf collapsed¡­ ¡°Seal!¡± Once again, he used the grimoire, but this time, the wolf was not sealed as well. To be honest, if he attempted to seal after feeding it fox meat the first time, his chances of succeeding would have been high. However, through the beatings that happened right after, the hostility that the wolf had towards Ian peaked then. Ian, who had no chance to know about that truth, glared angrily. ¡°Are you saying you want to fight until one of us wins?¡± Ian, who had no time to spare, could no longer forgive the wolf that was wasting his time. Ian began to act violently, and one to two spectators gathered around him. They developed a curiosity while watching Ian use the sealing grimoire. ¡°Look at that person, he must be a Summoner!¡± ¡°Is there a person that changed his class to a Summoner already?¡± The spectators began to whisper. ¡°But was the Summoner that cruel of a class?¡± There was also a disappointed beginner user. ¡°I was planning on changing my class to Summoner, but I might consider changing to a different class.¡± Ian, who had behaved violently towards the wolf for over 1 hour and used up all the sealing grimoires, was finally able to seal the wolf. Closeness and regulations had nothing next to violence. Oo-oo-oong-! The expression of the wolf, which was being sucked into the sheets along with the white light, was incredibly pitiable. You have succeeded in sealing the ¡®Blue-Eyed Wolf¡¯. Holding the grimoire with the wolf sealed inside, Ian began to move his feet quickly. ¡®The time has been very delayed. There are probably a lot of users that succeeded in changing their class to Summoner.¡¯ He didn¡¯t care whether other users were spectating or not. His interest was only on changing his class. CH 10 Chapter 10: Hidden Class (3) TL: Haku Edited: Stealth Sponsor: Hanna ¡°Oh, Ian, have you returned?¡± Cain welcomed back Ian, who returned to the guild to change his class. ¡°As expected, the request wasn¡¯t easy, was it? Kkul-kkul¡­¡± Cain was not at all expecting Ian to have succeeded the quest and returned. It was a part of the quest¡¯s progress to return to the guild after failing to catch the wolf from the start. However, Ian was not a user belonging to the normal category. ¡°Yes, it wasn¡¯t easy. The wolf was being incredibly stubborn¡­¡± Ian was being honest. This was because it took him over 1 hour to assault the wolf. ¡°However, I have caught him and returned.¡± Ian pulled out the grimoire that the Blue-Eyed Wolf was sealed in from his inventory and gave it to Cain. ¡°What? Did you really catch the wolf!¡± ¡°Yes, what¡¯s the issue¡­?¡± Cain hurriedly checked the seal. The grimoire really had the Blue-Eyed Wolf sealed inside. Cain¡¯s gaze changed. ¡°You weren¡¯t a beginner, were you?¡± ¡°Correct.¡± Ian vaguely understood the reason for Cain¡¯s strange reaction. ¡®The quest was certainly not an easy quest for normal lv 10 beginners unlike me.¡¯ However, he thought it was just surprising over how quickly he solved it, he never thought that he had destroyed(?) the original quest¡¯s route. ¡°You are really a¡­amazing!¡± There was a bit of respect in Cain¡¯s gaze. Whether Cain was like this or not, Ian¡¯s focus was only on class-changing. ¡°So, does that mean I can change my class to Monster Trainer now?¡± However, when he thought that the answer was going to yes for sure, Cain shook his head. ¡°No, Monster Trainer doesn¡¯t suit you.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Putting aside the visit of Ian¡¯s fluster, Cain continued his words. ¡°Do you, by any chance, want to walk the path of a master?¡± Along with that, a new system message popped up in Ian¡¯s view. Di-ring-. The Path of a Master The Summoner guild¡¯s guild master Cain is impressed by your talent. He is wanting for you to go the path of a master. If you accept his proposal, you can class-change to ¡®Taming Master¡¯. Difficulty Level: ¨C Reward: Class-change to Summoner (Taming Master) Will you accept? Ian shuddered after checking the content. ¡®This¡­! I¡¯ve never heard of a class quest that connected like this¡­?¡¯ Even by just looking at the name, ¡®Taming Master¡¯ felt like it was of a higher class than ¡®Monster Trainer¡¯. There was no reason to hesitate. ¡°I want to become a master.¡± At Ian¡¯s response, Cain was very happy. ¡°Oh, as expected! I was thinking if it was you, you would accept.¡± Along with Cain¡¯s words, a white light wrapped around Ian¡¯s body. And a new system message was plastered over Ian¡¯s view. You have class-changed to ¡®Summoner (Taming Master)¡¯The new skill ¡®Affinity¡¯ has been formed. The new skill ¡®Taming Ability¡¯ has been formed.The new skill ¡®Leadership¡¯ has been formed.¡®Beginner-Level Summoning lv 1 (workmanship 0%)¡¯ has been formed in the Skill Window.You have learned the basic active skill ¡®Summon (Release)¡¯.You have learned the active skill ¡®Capture¡¯.You have learned the active skill ¡®The Blessings of the Wind¡¯.You have learned the active skill ¡®First Aid¡¯.You have learned the active skill ¡®Beginner-level Training¡¯.You have become the very first ¡®Taming Master¡¯. You have obtained 500 fame.From discovering the hidden class ¡®Taming Master, Affinity and Taming Ability, Leadership has increased by 30 each. Soon the white light disappeared and he felt bliss. He had taken the first step towards a new path. ¡°The path to becoming a Taming Master is incredibly difficult. However, I believe if it¡¯s you, then you will succeed. I hope that you will rebuild that legend!¡± ¡°Absolutely.¡± Ian checked his condition. Ian Lv 10: 0/3200 (0%) Race: Human Class:?Summoner (Taming Master) Nickname: Master of Hunting Fame: 500 (if your fame drops below 0, it changes into Infamy) Power: 45 (+0) Agility: 77 (+0) Intellect: 30 (+0) Health: 35 (+0) Affinity: 40 Taming Ability: 75 Leadership: 40 Vitality: 750 (+0) Mana: 350 (+0) Ian¡¯s body heated up. Ian wanted to quickly go and capture monsters. However, before that, there was a need to gather as much information as possible from Cain. ¡°I just need to catch monsters with the skill ¡®Capture¡¯, right?¡± Cain responded kindly. ¡°That¡¯s right. For someone like you who didn¡¯t have any Affinity when capturing the Blue-Eyed Wolf means that you certainly were born with talent in capturing, but I¡¯ll teach you some tips.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Cain¡¯s words continued. ¡°The chance for you to succeed in capturing a monster increases the lower its vitality is. This you know, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°However, there is an element more important than lowering a monster¡¯s vitality.¡± Ian listened courteously without a word. ¡°It¡¯s ¡®Affinity¡¯.¡± ¡°Are you talking about the ¡®Affinity¡¯ between the monsters you are catching?¡± Cain nodded. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± However, Ian thought something was odd. ¡°Then, in order to raise the affinity between the monster and you, should you not fight them from the beginning?¡± Ian¡¯s question was natural. This was because the act of attacking a monster commonsensically would negatively influence the affinity when you thought about it. ¡°That¡¯s a good question.¡± Shortly after letting it settle, Cain continued his words. ¡°The basic method of capturing is different for each monster. However, the standard procedure to capturing a general monster is by gaining its respect by showing the Summoner¡¯s strength through fighting and then raising its affinity through food or care. It is even harder to try and raise its affinity without gaining the monster¡¯s respect towards the Summoner.¡± It was an explanation that made total sense. ¡°Ah, however, there is an exception.¡± ¡°An exception?¡± ¡°In the case of a young monster that isn¡¯t fully grown, it is comparatively easier to raise its affinity without fighting. Of course, this is different for each monster.¡± Ian tried to remember what Cain was telling him without an exception. The ¡®Summoner¡¯ class was indeed undeveloped. The one who had the most information about Summoners was this NPC, Cain. ¡°And naturally, the higher the affinity of the monster that you are trying to capture is, the higher the chance to succeed in capturing.¡± ¡°Raising its affinity seems to be incredibly important.¡± ¡°Correct.¡± Ian had more things that he was curious about. ¡°Then is it possible to endlessly capture monsters?¡± ¡°As expected, a keen question.¡± Cain continued his explanation. ¡°Firstly, when talking about the conclusion, it¡¯s possible to endlessly capture monsters. However, the monster that you can carry around with you is limited.¡± Ian, who didn¡¯t understand, vacantly stood there as Cain smirked before opening his mouth again. ¡°When a Summoner captures a monster, a small tattoo forms on their forearm. The monster seals to that tattoo. And the Summoner can summon or release the captured monster whenever.¡± Ian, who heard the explanation, grumbled to himself. ¡®There are a lot of things you need to know from the beginning as a Summoner.¡¯ Whether it was because he gained the hidden class, there was an incomparably large amount of information that he needed to know, different to when he first class-changed to Archer. However, he only grumbled with his words, as Ian was incredibly satisfied right now. The complicated ¡®Summoner¡¯ class that required a lot of attention perfectly matched Ian¡¯s ideal type of gameplay. The word complicated had something in common with ¡®there is a lot to experiment with¡¯. ¡°However, if you¡¯re Leadership is low, you will not be able to capture any more monsters. For those times, you would use the ¡®Sealing Grimoire¡¯ that I had given you earlier.¡± Ian, who knew the game very well, understood those words very quickly. ¡°So what you¡¯re saying is, is that the higher the Leadership, the more monsters that you can have sealed?¡± ¡°Correct.¡± ¡°And for situations where you¡¯ve reached the limit of your Leadership when a monster you like appeared, you have to keep sealing grimoires with you in case.¡± Cain clapped. ¡°That¡¯s exactly it. As expected, Summoner is definitely your calling.¡± Ian asked Cain about a couple more points he was curious of. ¡®There¡¯s still a lot that I¡¯m curious about, but I¡¯ll have to bump into them myself.¡¯ Ian left the Summoner guild. The corners of his mouth went slightly up. ¡°Now then, shall I go make my first subordinate?¡± CH 11 TaMa Chapter 11 Chapter 11: Hidden Class (4) Edited: Stealth Lately, Im Eunyoung was extremely busy. She was a reporter for YTBC, a broadcasting station that handled virtual reality game content on an expertise level. The work she mainly did was casting users that were progressing through an interesting quest or finding sites where a large scale fight was going on to discover content for YTBC to broadcast. Exactly yesterday was the day for Kailran¡¯s large update, the virtual reality game that was basically taking over the market all over the world. ¡°Ah, I need to find something that will satisfy the boss so that I can relax for another week¡­¡± Eunyoung was also an enthusiastic fan and user on Kailran. And on Kailran, her name was ¡®Lucia¡¯. ¡°Is there no one that¡¯s changed their class to a new class?¡± She was a lv 65 Priest. She wasn¡¯t a high-level player that ranked in the top rankings, but she was still quite a high level. However, improper to her level, she was at ¡®Kairon Basin¡¯, a hunting ground where around lv 10-15 Wolves appeared. Lucia observed the beginner users that were hunting the wolves with fire in her eyes. ¡°There definitely has to be a user that succeeded in class-change into one of the new classes. I need to find them.¡± There weren¡¯t just one or two new contents that emerged through Kailran¡¯s large update, but one of the parts that users were most interested in were about the new classes. She was planning on finding information about the new classes faster than anybody else before tossing it to the newsroom, so she could game peacefully for about a week. ¡°But why are there so many people gathered over there?¡± A spot where quite a lot of beginners were gathered caught Lucia¡¯s eyes. Shortly after, she started heading to that place. At that spot, a couple of users were fighting a Red Wolf, while several users were observing that scene. Lucia approached one of the spectators. ¡°Excuse me, sorry, but what are those people doing right now?¡± ¡°Ah, one of the members of that party must be a Summoner. Whether it¡¯s because they were planning to capture that Red Wolf from a while ago, they¡¯ve been like that, so I was curious and came to watch.¡± As if it was as they said, the party didn¡¯t make a bold attack on the Red Wolf but instead gnawed the wolf¡¯s health away little by little. Lucia¡¯s two eyes shone. She squeezed into the group of spectators and began to watch the user catch the Red Wolf. ¡®I¡¯ll have to go and grab an interview with that person once they capture that Red Wolf.¡¯ Within those spectators, Ian was also included. As expected, Ian came to try and catch the Red Wolf that came out in the Summoner trailer video once he succeeded in class-changing. The Red Wolf was one of the weaker monsters of the ¡®Unique¡¯ rank, which was why it was Ian¡¯s first target. ¡®To think there was someone faster than me.¡¯ Because of the quest related to the hidden class, he was slowed down, but Ian was in a sour mood at the fact that there was someone that succeeded in class-changing faster than him. ¡®Shall we at least observe how they catch?¡¯ The party quickly cut down the Red Wolf¡¯s health. When they thought the wolf¡¯s health had dropped enough, the guy that looked like a Summoner within the party tried to capture. ¡®No matter how low-level of a monster it is¡­ Will a Unique-rank monster get caught so easily?¡¯ Ian stared at the white light that was wrapped around the Red Wolf with curiosity. Sure enough, the Red Wolf was not captured. ¡®As expected.¡¯ However, just then, the Red Wolf suddenly jumped up into the air. A-whooo-. ¡°What the hell!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t lose it! Catch it!¡± The party members were taken aback at the sudden situation. In the end, they lost the wolf that planned its escape. Ian shook his head. ¡®Jeez, it¡¯s going to be really hard trying to find a Red Wolf again that already disappeared once¡­.¡¯ Ian wanted at least to capture a high-ranking monster for his first monster. However, instead of wasting time trying to find and capture a high-rank monster that was hard to find, he thought it would be a better idea to first catch any monster. ¡®Since Wolves are scattered everywhere here, shall we try and catch any of them?¡¯ Ian¡¯s experimental instinct was invoked. ¡®How many Wolves could I catch with my Leadership?¡¯ Since you could release any monster that you had caught, Ian had no burden capturing monsters. To catch the wolf that appeared in his view first, Ian aimed his bow. Ping-! A sharp, piercing sound along with an arrow lodged directly into the wolf¡¯s body and the wolf died shortly after. You have killed the Wolf. You have gained 45 Experience Points. ¡°As expected¡­¡± This time, Ian targeted the wolf¡¯s leg instead of the body. However, the result didn¡¯t change. You have killed the Wolf. You have gained 42 Experience Points. Ian slung the bow and raised his two arms. And he charged towards wandering wolves nearby. You have succeeded in capturing the ¡®Wolf¡¯. Whether it was because the wolf was a Common-ranked monster, it was incredibly easy to capture. By using the Capture skill with a slight beating, he was able to quickly succeed. ¡°One for starters.¡± Ian checked the wolf¡¯s stats. Wolf Lv: 12 Classification: Wild Animal Rank: Common Personality: Timid Evolution impossible Offensive Power: 23 Defensive Power: 12 Agility: 19 Intellect: 8 Vitality: 75/75 It¡¯s a normal wolf that inhabits grasslands. It has fast feet and sharp teeth. ¡°What the hell, this dog.¡± Ian smirked. ¡°Timid? There¡¯s even personality in the monster¡¯s description.¡± Ian began to continue catching wolves around him. You have succeeded in capturing the ¡®Wolf¡¯. ¡­Omission¡­ You have succeeded in capturing the ¡®Wolf¡¯. And when he attempted to capture his ninth one, a new system message popped up. You cannot capture anymore as you do not have enough Leadership. Ian, who saw the message, killed the wolf in front of him without hesitation. ¡°I¡¯ve caught a total of eight. Since my Leadership is at 40 right now¡­It seems I need about 5 Leadership points per wolf to carry it around, huh? Truthfully, if it wasn¡¯t for the 30 Leadership points that he obtained as a bonus for discovering the hidden class, Ian would have only been able to capture two. Ian, who had confirmed the information that he wanted, started to release the wolves he had caught. ¡°There¡¯s no need to bring eight wolves with me. I¡¯ll keep one or two and release the rest.¡± Ian, who had confirmed that he had some Leadership to spare, thought about having a Half-Moon Bear as his first monster that he would use as a summon. The Half-Moon Bear was about mid-lv 30s. He had calculated that with his Leadership, he could capture at least one. However, when he had released about three wolves, Ian noticed something strange. ¡®Huh? This one, it¡¯s the same level as the one I just released, but its stats are way higher?¡¯ Ian stopped releasing and opened the Wolf¡¯s stat window. Agile Wolf Lv: 12 Classification: Wild Animal Rank: Common Personality: Cunning Evolution impossible Offensive Power: 25 Defensive Power: 13 Agility: 24 Intellect: 10 Vitality: 75/75 It¡¯s a normal wolf that inhabits grasslands. It has fast feet and sharp teeth. ¡°¡¯Agile Wolf¡¯? Even the name is slightly different?¡± After comparing the stat window of the wolves left, Ian grinned. ¡®Oh-ho, even if it¡¯s the same level and the same monster, the stats are different!¡¯ It was quite an interesting discovery. ¡®Just like how each person has different abilities, even though we are all human, the monsters in Kailran also have slightly different stats.¡¯ And within them, an extraordinary one was sure to exist. Just like how this wolf with the name ¡®Agile Wolf¡¯ was. ¡®Shall we find the wolf with the best stats in Kairon Basin?¡¯ Ian was curious as to how big of a difference a similar stat could be. His experimental instinct was invoked. ¡°Excluding the best one, I¡¯ll have to just catch wolves using the releasing method.¡± Ian began to move while remarking how much grinding he¡¯ll have to do based on his predictions. ¡°I¡¯ll just catch wolves for about a day.¡± So, Ian, who was different from others, began his grind. CH 12 Chapter 12: Monster Researcher (1) TL: Haku Edited: Obelisk Ian began to catch wolves to the point he fell into a trance. However, just as he thought, a wolf better than the one ¡®Agile Wolf¡¯ from the first eight he caught didn¡¯t appear so easily. Through repeated successful captures, your Affinity stat has increased by 1. He had grinded so much to the point that his Affinity stat rose. Around five hours of just wolf capturing had passed by, and perhaps it was because Ian¡¯s efforts were recognized, a new stat messaged popped into his view. Through a large number of wolves having been captured, you have obtained the nickname ¡®Wolf Expert¡¯.As you obtained the nickname ¡®Wolf Expert¡¯, from now on when you try to capture a wolf, it will be easier to gain Affinity.As you obtained the nickname ¡®Wolf Expert¡¯, from now on, you can differentiate the best wolves without capturing them. Ian¡¯s expression brightened up. To have the skill to differentiate the best wolves without capturing them was a big help to his grinding. ¡®While they¡¯re at it, can¡¯t they just apply that to every monster?¡¯ Ian grumbled internally, but he knew well that that was a robber¡¯s devilish mind. ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­¡± Ian examined the wolves that were wandering the field. And among them, he discovered a wolf that had a name faintly shining gold. ¡®Is it this one?¡¯ He approached the wolf without hesitation. And just like he had done until now, after he easily captured it, he opened the stat window. Tough Wolf Lv: 13 Classification: Wild Animal Rank: Common Personality: Courageous Evolution impossible Offensive Power: 30 Defensive Power: 12 Agility: 20 Intellect: 10 Vitality: 82/82 It¡¯s a normal wolf that inhabits grasslands. It has fast feet and sharp teeth. As expected, he had caught one with outstanding stats from a modifier attached to its name. Ian¡¯s smile deepened. ¡°The wolf¡¯s offensive power is at 30, huh?¡± Compared to the ones with ¡®Weak¡¯ or ¡®Mean¡¯ or other inferior modifiers, it was a difference of almost 1.5 times. However, several wolves around this level were already caught through his grinding. He had no intention of quitting his grinding until he caught one that was significantly greater. Right then, a wolf that was a little far away with a name that was distinctly shining gold caught Ian¡¯s eyes. ¡°Whoa¡­.!¡± Without even realizing, an exclamation broke out from Ian. And before anybody else could discover it, he hurriedly ran towards the wolf. This was because if someone killed it before Ian caught it, it would become a big problem. ¡°Keu-reu-reung-!¡± The wolf growled as it saw Ian approach it. ¡°This little, what are you going to do if you stare?¡± Whether it was because Ian¡¯s smirk disgusted it, the wolf charged towards him instantly. The difference in its swiftness and movements could be felt when compared to the wolves that he had caught already. Puck-. Pu-puck-! However, despite that, the wolf couldn¡¯t do anything else but submit to Ian¡¯s incredible stats. ¡°Capture!¡± You have succeeded in capturing the ¡®Wolf¡¯. Ian gulped before opening the Wolf¡¯s stat window. He was just as nervous as when a rare item dropped. Wolf Lv: 11 Classification: Wild Animal Rank: Common Personality: Valiant Evolution possible Offensive Power: 37 Defensive Power: 15 Agility: 31 Intellect: 19 Vitality: 90/90 It¡¯s a normal wolf that inhabits grasslands. It has fast feet and sharp teeth. After checking the stat window, Ian¡¯s two eyes widened. The stats that were incomparably different were shocking enough, but there was something else that really shocked him. ¡®Evolution possible? You¡¯re saying evolution is possible?¡¯ Ian couldn¡¯t believe his eyes, so he checked multiple times. However, the words ¡®Evolution possible¡¯ were distinctly written. ¡°Jackpot!¡± There was a strange point, though. ¡®How come this one doesn¡¯t have a modifier attached? Is it because its stats are all good?¡¯ Ian immediately stopped grinding and released all the other wolves. Of course, there could be a wolf with better stats, but the one that was just captured looked like it was worth raising. Ian was all smiles. ¡°Alright, now to hunt!¡± Ian was originally going to start hunting after he maxed out his Leadership once he captured several different monsters, but he changed his mind. This was because he heard from Cain that the more monsters you had that were participating in hunting, the more your Experience points would be divided amongst them. It was the same concept as when you went with a hunting party. Ian, who wanted to quickly grow the wolf, immediately moved to hunt. The place that Ian was headed towards was where he hunted last time, ¡®Fox Den¡¯ Kalymputh Hill. In his heart, he wanted to go to a higher level hunting ground, but as the wolf¡¯s level was too low, he decided on Kalymputh Hill for now. With light footsteps, Ian left Kairon Basin. @ Ian, who arrived at Kalymputh Hill, didn¡¯t immediately summon his wolf. This was because on top of there not being a lot of users that class-changed to Summoner yet, if news surfaced that there was a Summoner that was already able to hunt in the lv 25 hunting grounds, the Fox Den, then it would become too troublesome. From the outside, Ian was currently a perfect Archer user. When Ian was about to go into the hunting grounds, one guy approached him and asked. ¡°Excuse me, if you don¡¯t have a party, would you like to hunt with us? We¡¯re lacking a long-distance damage dealer.¡± However, because Ian had absolutely no desire to hunt in a party, he declined politely. ¡°No, I¡¯m sorry. I personally need to do a quest.¡± ¡°Ah, I see.¡± Ian, who declined the party, quickly moved and entered the hunting grounds. And when he positioned himself in a place deep within the woods, he summoned his wolf. ¡°Summon!¡± Finally, along with a white light, the wolf appeared in front of Ian. This is the first time you have summoned the ¡®Wolf¡¯. You can give it a name. ¡®Name? It¡¯s too troublesome, so should I Just call it wolf?¡¯ Ian, who thought about it for a moment, decided to name the wolf ¡®Ly¡¯. There was no big meaning, but it was a name using the first two letters of Lycanthrope, meaning man-wolf. ¡°Ly, your name is now Ly.¡± Whether it was because it liked the name that Ian gave it, the wolf growled and rubbed its head against Ian¡¯s leg. Ly like its own name.Your affinity with Ly increased. Ly¡¯s loyalty rose by 5. Ian had a doubtful expression when he saw the system message. ¡®Was there a Loyalty stat?¡¯ And after checking the wolf¡¯s stat window, Ian nodded his head. ¡®It¡¯s visible when you open up the detailed stat window.¡¯ There was a concept called ¡®Detailed Stat Window¡¯ even for a character¡¯s stat window. It was a part where you could see detailed stats like specific offensive and defensive power, critical hit chance, and different attributes and resistances as well as others. The summoned one¡¯s stat window was similar. ¡®Its loyalty is 70%. As expected, the max is probably 100%, right?¡¯ Firstly, Ian used the only active skill for combat he had for hunting. ¡°Blessings of the Wind!¡± You have used ¡®Blessings of the Wind¡¯. Your agility will increase by 37%. The agility of summoned ¡®Ly¡¯ will increase by 37%. Definitely Ian, but the agility of summoned ¡®Ly¡¯ increased as well. ¡®This is a good buff skill.¡¯ Ian lifted his bow and took aim at the Red Fox that was visible. CH 13 Chapter 13: Monster Researcher (2) TL: Haku Edited: Stealth Ly, who was immersed in preparing for combat, growled at the fox but held himself back at Ian¡¯s hand movements. ¡°Attack after my arrow hits, Ly. You can¡¯t attack first.¡± Whether it was because it was a Familiar, the wolf roughly understood Ian¡¯s command and stopped its movements. After seeing that, Ian, whose bowstring was pulled taut, let it go. Pew-! The moment after the bow hit the fox¡¯s forehead, the wolf ran after it at lightning speed. Grrrr-! ¡®It¡¯s quite clearly weaker than the Red Fox, yet it¡¯s running after it without any fear? Is it due to its personality?¡¯ Ly¡¯s personality was ¡®Valiant¡¯. Whether it was because of that or because Ian¡¯s stats were high, it was not intimidated by the slightest against the fox that was double its level. Ly exactly bit the nape of the fox¡¯s neck, but he was quickly thrown off. It was because the difference in stats was big. ¡®Levels are one thing, but since wolves themselves aren¡¯t monsters with high health¡­ it could die easily after a few bites from a fox.¡¯ Ian consecutively shot out arrows. Even though its level and combat were on the lower side, with Ly buying time, it was much easier to hunt. You have killed the Red Fox. You have gained 265 Experience Points.You have killed the Red Fox. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has gained 265 Experience Points. ¡®As expected, the Experience Points are divided in half.¡¯ Ian nodded his head. It was the start of grinding again. ¡®We¡¯ll just get to lv 15 here.¡¯ Before starting to hunt, Ian used the last skill he hadn¡¯t tried, ¡®Beginner-level Training¡¯. Shortly after, a blue light emitted from Ly¡¯s body and a system message popped up. You have used the skill ¡®Beginner-level Training¡¯ (Cooldown time: 35 minutes).For 10 minutes, Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ will better understand and study its Summoner¡¯s commands. The more you repeat its training, the more your ¡¯s ¡®Potential¡¯ increases. ¡®Ly¡¯s current potential: 65 Ian pondered as to what command he should give while looking at Ly. And shortly after, the words that came out of his mouth¡­ ¡°Ly, sit!¡± Grr-. ¡°Stand up!¡± Grrr-. He tried to do the exact same thing as when he trained ¡®Bboro¡¯, a puppy he raised at home since he was young. Ly had on an arrogant expression as if it was saying ¡®Do you think I won¡¯t even be able to do that?¡¯ Ian, who deeply thought about what to command it, came to a conclusion. ¡°Just hunting on this hunting ground is probably best.¡± Truthfully, the Beginner-level Training skill was a simple skill that once activated, you just needed to go hunt. Ian was just thinking of it in a complicated way. Ian, who now comprehended how to utilize the skill, began to hunt. At first, he wasn¡¯t in tune with Ly, so there were several situations where Ly¡¯s vitality was in danger. You have used ¡®First Aid¡¯. ¡®Ly¡¯ has recovered 45 Vitality. However, little by little, they got accustomed to each other, and Ian began to hunt foxes as if he was popping corn with lightning. ¡®Whether it¡¯s because Ly¡¯s agility is high, even though his health is a little weak, he doesn¡¯t have much chance to get hit.¡¯ Of course, there was the fact that the foxes died in an instant after getting hit by a couple of Ian¡¯s arrows, but he was content with Ly¡¯s overall performance(?). Around 3 hours had passed and both Ian and Ly were at lv 15. ¡®Leveling up is slower than I thought. As expected, it¡¯s probably because I¡¯m splitting my Experience Points with my Familiar, right?¡¯ However, Ian didn¡¯t have any big complaints. It was because he was quite pleased with the enjoyment of raising Ly than he thought he would be. Surprisingly, whenever Ly leveled up, he grew so much that he could feel how strong he was getting. And looking from a general perspective, he truthfully wasn¡¯t late in leveling up¡­ ¡°Ly, shall we go catch some bears now?¡± Grr-. Grr-. Ly growled lowly as it watched Ian wrap a bandage using the First Aid skill. While hunting, its Loyalty also increased, so it was now at around 80%. Once he finished healing Ly, Ian took him and started to move. His destination was the habitat of the ¡®Black Half-Moon Bear¡¯ monster, Nuran Mountain Range. @ After eating dinner with his parents, Yoohyun opened the capsule door to play Kailran just like any other day. However, whether it was because he suddenly remembered something, he turned around and first turned on the computer before sitting down at his desk. ¡®Shall we just search some information on the Summoner? Since two days have passed since the update, there should be information about it here and there by now¡­¡¯ Jinsung, who was the treasure of Lotus guild, suddenly reset his character, but Yoohyun was planning on fully supporting him as a guild since he already reset. ¡®Well, he was a dude who did more than his pay, so he¡¯ll probably do something this time, too.¡¯ Because of several reasons, Yoohyun, who became curious about the information on the Summoner class that Jinsung changed to, opened up the internet and accessed Kailran¡¯s official community. ¡°Let¡¯s see here¡­¡± The place that Yoohyun went into was the bulletin board for the Summoner class. ¡°Huh? But why are all the titles like this?¡± Yoohyun was taken aback. This was because the Summoner¡¯s bulletin board on the official community was in chaos. Isn¡¯t Summoner a trash class?Ha, this is the biggest, no-answer class. Don¡¯t play Summoner, everyone. Amongst the numerous posts, the post with the highest inquiries caught Yoohyun¡¯s eyes. Title: I¡¯m finally lv 12. Since it¡¯s after hunting, I thought I¡¯d write. ¡°Shall we take a look?¡¯ As soon as Yoohyun clicked on the post, quite a long post reviewing the Summoner spread open. I am a user that made a lv 10 beginner to class-change to Summoner and took the ¡®Class-Changing Quest¡¯ at lightning speed once the servers opened and became a Summoner. For reference, I am a user that reset their lv 25 Magician character to become a Summoner. Firstly, the conclusion is that Summoner is fun. The fun in raising a monster you¡¯ve captured is quite pleasing. The first monster I captured was Kairon Basin¡¯s Rare-ranked monster, the Black Wolf. Fighting it was difficult, but with the help of my guild members and using all the meat that I had somehow managed to subdue to feed it, I had just barely captured it. While fighting with it summoned, you can definitely feel that you are a bit stronger than other classes that are the same level. When I gave the Black Wolf a buff, it fights as well as a decent Warrior. However, there is one incredible flaw. It¡¯s that your Exp is hell to raise. I did party hunting, but the Experience points I gained from my part of the party, I shared with my Familiar by 1/N. But to solo play, my hunting speed is too slow¡­ From then, I hunted like crazy for 10 hours every day, and barely raised my level by 2. Summoner¡­ I don¡¯t know how it will change later on, but people that are trying to raise it, just know that it¡¯s hellish to level up in the beginning. For reference, I¡¯m going to continue being a Summoner. It¡¯s impossible to try and catch up to the high-rankers with any class at this point currently, and the fun in collecting monsters sounds like it will be quite pleasing. Whether it was because it was a post that had over a thousand inquiries, there were a lot of comments as well. SummonMania: I just class-changed now¡­ Isn¡¯t this post too full of hopelessness?DragonCatcherTaehyun: Person above, you aren¡¯t too late. Reset your character quickly. I just came from the Black Magician¡¯s bulletin board, and although the skulls are a little weak, they don¡¯t take away your Experience Points and you can summon several of them, so they say leveling up is fast.KimchiMakingWarrior: But can¡¯t you capture a bunch of monsters and drag them around like a corps? It looks like a hunting party¡¯s efficiency is atrocious, so increasing your Familiars and trying solo play¡­ka1908: It seems like the person above has no idea on Summoners. Summoners have a stat called Leadership, so if your Leadership is low, you can¡¯t even summon a bunch.pts1120: That¡¯s right. I purposely captured five wild dogs that only need a little Leadership and carried them around, but no answer. Wild dogs die within two bites from a wolf, and somehow, I barely managed to catch one, but the Experience points were divided by six, so I was only left with something equivalent to a chick¡¯s teardrop¡­ No answer. After reading each and every post on the bulletin board, Yoohyun¡¯s expression darkened. ¡°Well, since it is still only the beginning, it makes sense that there are a lot of complaints¡­ but isn¡¯t this too much? This Jinsung even reset his character¡­¡± However, Yoohyun quickly folded his worries. As of now, all the classes in Kailran were well-balanced. The developer of Kailran, LB Sports, was an incredible developer, and he thought that someone like them wouldn¡¯t let out such a useless class. On top of that, it¡¯s only been two days since the new classes came out. It was too early to make a judgment already. ¡®Even still, it¡¯s a fact that leveling up in the beginning is difficult, so it will probably take some time for him to hit lv 20 and enter the guild.¡¯ Yoohyun turned off the computer and entered the capsule. However, different from his thoughts, Jinsung was already approaching lv 20. @ CH 14 Chapter 14: Monster Researcher (3) TL: Haku Edited: Stealth Your skill¡¯s proficiency increased, so ¡®Beginner-level Summoning¡¯ has reached lv 2.You have gained 3 skill points.You have learned active skill ¡®Barbaric Warrior¡¯s Blessing¡¯.You have learned passive skill ¡®Beginner-level Tactics¡¯. Ian face visibly brightened at the pleasing system message. ¡°As expected, grinding is the true way to go.¡± Immediately after the server opened, Jinsung minimized his eating time and even his sleeping time and clung onto hunting. The result of that was that both Jinsung and Ly¡¯s level were both 18, and just a moment ago, he was able to raise Beginner-level Summoning up one level. ¡®I¡¯ll have to hold onto the new skill points I gained for now. I¡¯ll use it after I understand what skill will be most effective.¡¯ The most basic way to raise a skill level was to repeatedly use and master it, but there was also a case like this where depending on the way the character grew, skill points were formed. Kailran¡¯s skill obtaining structure was incredibly unique. It was a concept where you needed to tie the basic class skills altogether and raise its level in order to open up higher-ranking skills one by one. For example, in an Archer¡¯s case, it was a concept where you could learn higher-ranking skills as ¡®Archery¡¯ leveled up, and for Ian¡¯s current class, the Summoner¡¯s case, you needed to raise the level of ¡®Summoning¡¯ in order to gain the higher-ranking skills. Aside from that, there were other ways that you could gain skills but a user could personally develop skills with repeated actions and experimenting and learn new skills through quests or skill books. That¡¯s why there was almost no concept of a high-level user raising a low-level user in Kailran. You could help them obtain experience points through the so-called concept of giving them a bus ride but if you leveled up like that, you would not be able to raise the proficiency of your skills. In the end, you would have a ¡®fail character¡¯ that would be a high level but has weak fighting power that would be thrown away. That¡¯s why in Kailran, even if you were the same level, depending on how it was nurtured, it was a game where the users¡¯ fighting powers were vastly different. Ian opened the information on the newly developed skills. Barbaric Warrior¡¯s Blessing Classification: Active Skill Skill Level: Lv 0 Proficiency: 0% Mana Consumption: 150 All party members, including yourself, will receive the Barbaric Warrior¡¯s Blessing and for 20 minutes, it will increase your Offensive Power by 30%.When used on your Familiar, it will increase their efficiency by 100%. ¡®Hm, it¡¯s a buff skill. It¡¯s pretty good?¡¯ Compared to the buffs given by Priests, its stat amplification factor was low but it felt very good as it had the option to raise a Familiar¡¯s efficiency. ¡®Beginner-level Tactics¡­ What¡¯s this?¡¯ Right away, Ian opened up the information for the next skill. Beginner-level Tactics Classification: Passive Skill Skill Level: Lv 0 Proficiency: 0% The Summoner¡¯s Leadership and Taming Ability will increase by 10%. In combat, the Familiar will better understand the Summoner¡¯s directions. Ian¡¯s expression brightened as soon as he checked the skill¡¯s content. ¡®Ooh, if my Leadership increases 10%¡­ I might be able to catch one bear now?¡¯ Truthfully, Ian came to the hunting grounds and when he reached around lv 15, he attempted to capture a Half-Moon Bear. He was thinking of raising his stats through repeated capturing and releasing, instead of just hunting, as he remembered his ¡®Affinity¡¯ and ¡®Taming Ability¡¯ stats went up little by little whenever he captured wolves. By doing that, there maybe would have been a chance to create a new skill related to capturing. However, two messages, one saying that he didn¡¯t have enough Leadership and the other saying that capturing is impossible, popped up together. ¡®Let¡¯s attempt capturing again.¡¯ To find a Half-Moon Bear, Ian looked around carefully. ¡°Won¡¯t one bear somewhat similar to Ly appear?¡± He mumbled to himself as he grasped the bow that was slung onto him again. Because Ly was growing at a very satisfying rate compared to Ian¡¯s first expectation, he felt more greed towards monsters. Ian immediately attempted to capture a Half-Moon Bear that appeared in his vision. ¡°As expected, it worked.¡± Whether it was because of the ¡®Beginner-level Tactic¡¯, he didn¡¯t lack Leadership. ¡®Let¡¯s see here, shall we compare with Ly?¡¯ Ian opened up both Ly and the Half-Moon Bear¡¯s stats and began to compare them. A light shone from his eyes. ¡®This Ly, is he really a Wolf? Why are his stats like this?¡¯ Currently lv 18 Ly¡¯s stats were not lacking even when compared to a lv 34 Half-Moon Bear. His Offensive Power was close to the Half-Moon Bear¡¯s and his Agility was actually higher. His Health and Defensive Power lacked significantly, but considering that the bear was almost twice its level, it was quite incredible. Before Ian closed the stat windows, he licked his lips as he read ¡®Evolution possible¡¯ written in Ly¡¯s stat window. ¡®But when can I get him to evolve? I want to know what the qualifications are¡­¡¯ Ly was already doing 1 person¡¯s part incredibly well but he couldn¡¯t help but feel anticipation towards evolution. ¡®Since I have to go to the town once I¡¯m lv 20 anyways, I¡¯ll have to stop by the Summoner guild and find out.¡¯ When he reached lv 20, he needed to go to the town to also apply to the Lotus guild and sell the items he had been keeping so far. Whether it was because he felt he had rested enough, Ian invoked a buff skill. ¡°Blessings of the Wind, Barbaric Warrior¡¯s Blessing!¡± Ly, who received the buffs, growled and Ian began to hunt again. ¡°Ly, grab that bear¡¯s attention!¡± When they first came here, they picked a Half-Moon Bear that was off on its own and hunted. However, now as their levels increased, they didn¡¯t avoid groups of two or three bears and instead attacked. The Half-Moon Bear was a monster that had strong Health and Offensive Power, but its movements were slow. Using his speed, Ly bought time as he faced one and Ian hunted using a luring method to handle the other one. Rooarr-! Ly roared loudly as he bit the Half-Moon Bear¡¯s shoulder. The Half-Moon Bear immediately swung its front paw at Ly but Ly, who quickly avoided it, had created quite a distance between them. Ian was pleased with the incredibly intelligent play. ¡°Good, just like that!¡± Ly wasn¡¯t able to fight with this method from the beginning. As Ian continuously taught him the combat method repeatedly, he was able to intelligently put pressure on his opponent without any instructions. This was possible because of the active skill Beginner-level Training. It was thanks to directly applying the Beginner-level Training¡¯s function ¡®the effect to better understand and study the commands received from the user for 10 minutes¡¯. Ian, who easily hunted the two bears, continued hunting at a fast pace. ¡®I can definitely feel my leveling-up rate slowing down from just only hunting. Starting from lv 20, I¡¯ll have to carry out quests as well to level up.¡¯ There were quite a bit of quests relating to the Half-Moon Bears that he was currently catching. However, the reason why Ian wasn¡¯t doing the quests was because he needed to go back and forth from the town and more time would have been wasted on miscellaneous things. He believed that for now, the amount of Exp he gained from just hunting without quests were much higher. And after lv 20, you slowly begin to shed the image of a beginner, so there were more decent quests that you could carry out. Ian grinned while watching Ly valiantly charge towards a Half-Moon Bear again. ¡®Yes, yes, grow rapidly, you pretty thing.¡¯ Ian raised his arrow and aimed at the bear. Before access was closed, he raised a goal to make it to lv 19. There was no reason to go to the town, unless his bag was full, thanks to the pleasing skill called First Aid. Ian hunted and hunted, and hunted again. And when about 4 hours passed, he was able to see the message he wanted. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s level rose. It has reached lv 19. ¡°Okay!¡± Ever since Ly was first captured, it was 1 level higher than Ian, so it had reached lv 19 a little quicker. And 30 minutes later¡­ Your level rose. You have reached lv 19. Ian, who reached his goal, closed the game without hesitation. It was time to rest for tomorrow. ¡®You need to strategically act like a cripple in order to be a good one.¡¯ It was one of Ian¡¯s firm game philosophies. CH 15 Chapter 15: Ly¡¯s Growth (1) TL: Haku Edited: Stealth Jinsung, who logged off and came out of a refreshing shower, sat in front of the computer before he went to sleep. As expected, it was to search up information related to Kailran. Jinsung was curious about the information on not the hidden class part but the normal Summoner class. He wanted to know the difference between him and a normal Summoner. ¡®I¡¯m pretty sure there will be a ¡®loser¡¯ that wanted to brag on the community¡­¡¯ Jinsung thoroughly looked through the newly made Summoner class¡¯s bulletin board from the beginning to the end. And he clucked his tongue while looking at the bulletin board plastered with negative stories. ¡®That¡¯s right, Summoner¡¯s are definitely on the side where it¡¯s a pain to level¡­ Despite that, though, there¡¯s an incredible amount of whining posts.¡¯ Ian was looking for a user over lv 15 that had posted a review on the class play. However, no matter how hard he looked, he couldn¡¯t find one. ¡®What the hell? Did no one upload because they didn¡¯t want to share information? Since I¡¯m at lv 19, there should already be users that had reached over lv 15, no¡­?¡¯ The reason he was looking for a lv 15 specifically was because they needed to be around there to have raised the proficiency of ¡®Summoning¡¯ enough to have it leveled up and that way he could check more of the skills of a normal Summoner. Looking at the other bulletin boards of the new classes, even on the Assassin¡¯s bulletin board, posts bragging about how they had reached lv 15 popped up quite often and on the Black Magician¡¯s bulletin board, there was a user that had even reached lv 18, it was only on the Summoner¡¯s bulletin board that you couldn¡¯t find it. Lacking in anything better, Jinsung clicked on the review of a Summoner user that had reached lv 13. And he began to carefully check the information. ¡°Firstly, ¡®Capture¡¯ or ¡®Blessings of the Wind¡¯, ¡®First Aid¡¯ are all the same skills as mine¡­¡± Just then, a light shone from Jinsung¡¯s two eyes. ¡®There¡¯s a skill that I¡¯ve never seen before?¡¯ Just as he said, there was a skill he hadn¡¯t seen on the screen Jinsung was looking at. Possession Classification: Active Skill Skill Level: Lv 1 Proficiency: 55% You possess the soul of one of the monsters that you can summon to your body. 30% of the stats that the possessed soul had get added to the stat of the Summoner. You cannot summon a possessed monster for combat. The user who uploaded the bulletin board message gave the skill ¡®Possession¡¯ high praise, calling it a Summoner¡¯s ¡®bread and butter¡¯. However, Jinsung shook his head. ¡°Why possess a Familiar that fights well on its own? It¡¯s not like you get 100% of the stats¡­ Well, if you raise the skill level, will it get close to 100%?¡± That user felt that the most ideal advantage of the skill ¡®Possession¡¯ was that you didn¡¯t have to share your Exp with your Familiar but Jinsung couldn¡¯t fully agree with that either. ¡®Then that means that you can¡¯t raise the level of your Familiar¡­ It¡¯s so pleasing to watch the fun in raising Ly¡¯s level, yet they¡¯re calling that an advantage¡­¡¯ He was thinking like this but he did acknowledge that it was an alright advantage to a certain degree. This was because if you didn¡¯t have much of an attachment towards the Familiar you were raising, whenever there was a level gap, you could release the Familiars you had and capture new Familiars at that level and possess them. Jinsung was still relieved that he wasn¡¯t too jealous of the skills that he didn¡¯t have. ¡®Then what are the skills that I have that a normal Summoner doesn¡¯t?¡¯ Jinsung, who thought about it momentarily, clapped his hands shortly after. ¡®Oh, Beginner-level Training!¡¯ Jinsung nodded his head. In his opinion, Beginner-level Training was more worthy than ¡®Possession¡¯. This was because the more training was repeated, Ly¡¯s actual fighting power noticeably increased. Jinsung continuously used Beginner-level Training on a regular basis once the 35 minute cooldown time was over. ¡®There wasn¡¯t as much information as I was expecting but by combining the information available, generally predicting¡­ Taming Master¡¯s direct combat skills are lacking compared to a normal Summoner but does that mean it has a merit of being able to raise your Familiar to become much stronger instead?¡¯ He was only generally predicting, but whether it was because of Jinsung¡¯s incredible game sense, his inference was quite accurate. ¡®That means that I¡¯m raising my character in the right direction right now.¡¯ Jinsung, who was personally pleased with his play so far, turned off the stand lights on top of his desk and went and lied down on his bed. He didn¡¯t forget to set the alarm that would ring exactly 5 hours from now. ¡®It might be good to try and capture a Rare-ranking or Unique-ranking monster.¡¯ Jinsung was curious as to how Ly¡¯s stats compared to a Rare-ranking or Unique-ranking monster. However, even though he searched through the bulletin board, there were a couple users that had captured Rare-ranking monsters, but there was no one who had captured a Unique-ranking monster. If it was as Jinsung¡¯s calculations, ¡®Ly¡¯s stats would be equal to a ¡®Rare¡¯-ranking or ¡®Heroic¡¯-ranking monster of the same level. Whether it was because he was tired, Jinsung, who was organizing tomorrow¡¯s plans in his head, fell asleep shortly after. @ Jinsung, who woke up exactly with the set alarm time, roughly ate cereal as breakfast and quickly logged into the game. ¡®Lv 20 before dawn!¡¯ It was Jinsung¡¯s ambitious goal. The time he had logged into Kailran was at a shocking 4 AM! He had gone to sleep at 11 o¡¯clock, the time where there were the most users and limited mobs and had logged in at the golden time where there was the least amount of users, 4 AM. From the average user¡¯s perspective, it was an obsessive and detailed planning that was astonishing. Ian, who had logged in, wore a broad grin as he watched the hunting grounds filled with Half-Moon Bears. ¡°Hu-hu-hu¡­ Keu-keu-keuk¡­.¡± Ian spilled out a dark laughter. The Half-Moon Bears all looked like Exp to Ian. The hunting ground he had established himself in was already on the low side on humans and because of the golden time(?), there wasn¡¯t a user in sight yet a ton of prey, so this place was heaven. ¡°Ly, Summon!¡± Ian summoned Ly without delay. Arooo-! Ian petted Ly, who howled as if he was bragging his presence as soon as he was summoned. ¡°Let¡¯s charge forward today, too!¡± Ly responded to Ian¡¯s words by growling and raising his claws sharply. It felt as if Ian¡¯s combatting and hunting with no rest matched well with Ly¡¯s nature. Ian, who gave a satisfied smile at that image, used all the buff skills, even invoking the Beginner-level Training skill as well. Ian aimed his bow at the closest Half-Moon Bear nearby. ¡®Weak Point Capturing¡¯ skill will be triggered. The weak point of the target will be indicated with the accuracy rate rising 13.5% and the chance to critical hit increasing 20%. If the weak point is hit, evasiveness will increase 85%. The Weak Point Capturing skill has been triggered. Compared to the first time he received the skill, its proficiency has gone up quite a bit, so the percent coefficients were quite useful. Piiing-! Ian¡¯s arrow rushed towards its destination quickly and hit the target exactly. And shortly after, Ly, who quickly ran towards the bear, bit off a different weak point that was highlighted. This was because Ian, who discovered that the red part that is marked by Weak Point Capturing is also visible to the Familiar, trained him to attack the weak points preferentially. Ping-! Pi-ping-! The Half-Moon Bear, who received an art-like Ian and Ly¡¯s combined attack, turned into a grey light in an instant and disappeared. It was a hunting speed that was fearsome. ¡®When I was a lv 35 Archer, I¡¯m pretty sure I hunted here¡­ My hunting speed is much faster compared to then, too.¡¯ Ian and Ly began to wipe out the field of Half-Moon Bears like a machine. Ly¡¯s Affinity and Loyalty towards Ian was already at its max. This was through their maximum efficiency when hunting and system messages popped up without rest. You have killed the Half-Moon Bear. You have gained 545 Experience Points.You have killed the Half-Moon Bear. You have gained 583 Experience Points. Ian, who only hunted for the longest time as if he was crazy, aimed his arrow towards his next prey when he felt something weird. ¡®What the hell? Why does that bear¡¯s size seem bigger?¡¯ After focusing his vision, he looked at it again before seeing the words ¡®Jet-Black Half-Moon Bear¡¯. CH 16 TaMa Chapter 16 Chapter 16: Ly¡¯s Growth (2) TL: Haku Edited: Stealth Sponsor: Kuro ¡®Alright!¡¯ The ¡®Jet-Black Half-Moon Bear¡¯ was not just a Rare-ranking, but a Unique-ranking monster that was hard to find. Different from other Unique-ranking monsters, it didn¡¯t look much different from the other normal Half-Moon Bears nearby, which is why it was a monster that wasn¡¯t discovered very often. Firstly, Ian checked if he was able to capture it. This was because if his Leadership was high enough, the Capture skill would be invoked without subtracting its Health and before raising its Affinity. ¡°Capture!¡± Right away, a disappointing message popped up. You cannot capture anymore as you do not have enough Leadership. Just to be sure, he checked his list of Familiars, but the Half-Moon Bear he caught the other day was already released long ago. The reason why it couldn¡¯t be captured was simply because the Jet-Black Half-Moon Bear¡¯s rank and level were higher than a normal Half-Moon Bear¡¯s. Ian licked his lips at the lost opportunity. ¡®Ha, this time when I go to the town, I¡¯m going to pack an ample amount of Sealing Grimoires no matter what.¡¯ Ian raised the bow that he had dropped and aimed at the Jet-Black Half-Moon Bear. Piiing-! Ly, who made out the signal of Ian¡¯s attack, charged after the bear shortly after. Roar-! The Jet-Black Half-Moon Bear was a whopping lv 38 and a Unique-ranking monster but Ian had no thoughts that this would be difficult. ¡®Since Ly fights well, almost at the same level as me, a lv 38 is no problem¡­¡¯ Just as Ian thought, the Jet-Black Half-Moon bear was not as difficult of an opponent. Thud-. At the end of an intense battle that lasted 10 minutes, the Half-Moon Bear hung his big body without strength and turned into a grey light. You have killed the Jet-Black Half-Moon Bear. You have gained 1,045 Experience Points. At the same time, Ly¡¯s body shone a white light. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has leveled up. It has reached lv 20. Ian wanted to give a shoulder dance as Ly leveled up at the same time when the Half-Moon Bear was killed. Ly¡¯s level-up message was just as happy news as Ian¡¯s own level-up message. On top of that, lv 20 was quite meaningful in Kailran. The moment a user¡¯s character turns to lv 20, there was a lot of content that opened up such as applying to a guild, entering instant dungeons, empire quests, etc. You could also call it the level where the label ¡®Beginner¡¯ was removed. To Ian, lv 20 was a joke, but in the circumstance that you had no talent in games and you weren¡¯t that good, there were people like these that took two months to get to lv 20. ¡®Shall we check the items?¡¯ This was the first Unique-ranking monster since after resetting. As Unique-ranking monsters dropped quite decent items, Ian felt a bit of anticipation. You have obtained 75 gold from the ¡®Jet-Black Half-Moon Bear¡¯.You have obtained the ¡®Half-Moon Bear¡¯s meat¡¯.You have obtained the ¡®Bear Hunter¡¯s Combat Hammer¡¯.You have obtained the ¡®Necklace of Pitch Darkness¡¯. ¡®Ooh¡­¡¯ The Bear Hunter¡¯s Combat Hammer was an item that Ian knew about and it wasn¡¯t that good of an item. The ¡®Necklace of Pitch Darkness¡¯ was what caught Ian¡¯s attention. Immediately, he used his Identification Scroll. ¡°Identify!¡± Necklace of Pitch Darkness Classification: Necklace Rank: Unique Equip Limit:?Intellect over 35 Durability: 124/124 Option: Vitality +15% Decrease of all skill¡¯s cooldown time: 20% A necklace with an unknown origin. A necklace crafted from obsidian filled with the darkness of the abyss and looks incredibly rare. Ian¡¯s face glowed. The necklace that he was wearing right now was a good item that he got from the auction but this Necklace of Pitch Darkness looked better. ¡®If I can profit from giving up about 10 stat points for vitality and decreased cooldown time¡­ this choice seems better.¡¯ The only skill from Ian¡¯s skills currently that had a cooldown time was Beginner-level Training. Truthfully, just being able to use Beginner-level Training more frequently seemed like a charming enough option. ¡®You could call it the first beneficial item since after resetting.¡¯ Ian wore a happy smile. ¡°An item like this is pleasing¡­ Well then, shall we see how much Ly¡¯s stats have gone up?¡± Ian pulled out a notebook from his chest. In that notebook was a bunch of numbers that he could only understand crammed onto the paper. ¡°Offensive Power has gone up by 4, Defensive Power by 2, Reflexes by¡­¡± What Ian was writing in the notebook was nothing other than Ly¡¯s stats. Commonly acknowledged ¡®Game Researcher¡¯ Ian had been meticulously writing down Ly¡¯s stats every time he leveled up and compared them. ¡®Now then, since you¡¯re lv 20, shall we do an analysis work that¡¯s been pushed back.¡¯ It was a sight that would have made a normal user shake their head and be astonished. However, this time of research and analysis was an area that Ian enjoyed most. ¡°Ly, sit down and rest for a bit. Eat this for now,¡± Ian tossed Ly the meat from catching the Half-Moon Bear from his inventory. Grr-. Grr-. Whether it was because Ly was in a good mood, he wagged his tail like a puppy and began to eat the meat the Ian tossed to him. Meanwhile, Ian focused on his notebook. When around 5 minutes had passed since Ian started analyzing, his two eyes suddenly widened. ¡®What the hell is this? Did the stat growth range grow for monsters per level originally as you went on?¡¯ Surprisingly, as Ly¡¯s level got higher, the range of the stats he received from leveling up got bigger little by little. If Ian style of gameplay was rough, it was an element he would have never found out. As he was incredibly curious as to why Ly¡¯s stat¡¯s growth range continuously increased, he continuously compared and analyzed the figures written down in his notebook. He discovered from looking at the records that it doesn¡¯t always increase, but there were sections that didn¡¯t increase as well. Ian was in confusion. ¡®Ergh¡­ What exactly is official? Why are this one¡¯s stats unevenly rising? It¡¯s definite that they wouldn¡¯t have totally groundlessly placed the figures randomly¡­¡¯ The truth was already revealed but for a user¡¯s character¡¯s case, their stats rose a fixed 5-6 points whenever they leveled up. The distribution of those stats was different per class and user¡¯s play style but the average of the increased figures was around 5.5 points. Once class-changed, there were extra stats that you received per level up depending on the class¡¯s distinct skill, excluding that part it was always 5.5. That¡¯s why Ian assumed monsters were like that as well and began to record because he was curious as to what Ly¡¯s stat¡¯s growth range was. However, different from his assumption, Ly¡¯s stat¡¯s growth rate was uneven. ¡®I need to find this out no matter what.¡¯ At first, he only compared the basic, primary stats, such as Offensive Power, Defensive Power, Agility, etc., but he could not find anything just based on those. That¡¯s why Ian began to compare how the detailed stats increased. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Around 30 minutes had already passed since Ian sat and began to peer into his notebook and Ly, who finished eating the meat, started to doze off lying next to Ian. However, just then, Ian, who discovered something, suddenly stood up. ¡®Potential! Potential was the secret!¡¯ CH 17 Chapter 17: Ly¡¯s Growth (3) TL: Haku Edited: Stealth Through the training skill, Ly¡¯s Potential increased little by little. And whenever his Potential¡¯s digit changed by 10, the growth range of Ly¡¯s stats increased whenever Ly leveled up. ¡®As expected, Beginner-level Training skill was a fraud skill!¡¯ In the Kailran community, instead of seeing the hidden classes as a better class than the normal class, they saw it more strongly as a slightly different and rare class. This was because the users with the hidden classes weren¡¯t particularly stronger than the users with the normal classes. However, Ian thought that wasn¡¯t correct all the time. When a hidden class is received, appropriate experimentation and thinking were needed according to the class and optimized nurturing is needed, but he thought that because people raise their hidden class just as they would a normal one, which is why it becomes average. And while raising a hidden class himself, Ian was realizing that his assumption was right. ¡®All monsters have a distinct Potential and depending on this Potential, the stat range increased per level up is decided.¡¯ Increasing Potential meant that the Monster¡¯s class itself was rising. And the skill that was able to raise that Potential was precisely ¡®Training¡¯. Ian, who received that enlightenment, immediately opened the skill window. And he invested all the skill points that he hadn¡¯t used since the beginning and saved up onto ¡®Beginner-level Training¡¯. He was tempted for a moment to maybe invest into ¡®Beginner-level Tactics¡¯ as he was low on Leadership and couldn¡¯t catch the bear, but he automatically thought that he did a good job holding back. You have invested all of your skill points towards ¡®Beginner-level Training¡¯.As ¡®Beginner-level Training¡¯ skill has reached lv 5, it has been reinforced to ¡®Intermediate-level Training¡¯. Ian checked the skill window with a satisfied expression. Intermediate-level Training Classification: Active Skill Skill Level: Lv 0 Proficiency: 0% Cooldown Time: 25 minutes For 15 minutes, the appointed Familiar will be put into ¡®Training¡¯ status.The Familiar in the ¡®Training¡¯ status will have a higher understanding towards commands than usual and will learn the commands.The more ¡®Training¡¯ is repeated, the Familiar¡¯s ¡®Potential¡¯ increases.The higher ¡®Intermediate-level Training¡¯s skill level, the bigger the range to increase Potential. Ian brightened up. It didn¡¯t show up in the information window, but the range to increase Potential per training time would have for sure increased as well. And above all, the cooldown time had reduced 10 minutes. With the application of the option to reduce the cooldown time that was attached to the ¡®Necklace of Pitch Darkness¡¯ that he just obtained, he was able to use it every 20 minutes. Ian, who solved a big curiosity, put his notebook back into his chest with a satisfied smile. ¡®Now I feel much better.¡¯ Like a person who had just solved their constipation, Ian¡¯s expression was incredibly bright. Before he began to hunt again, Ian checked Ly¡¯s Potential once again. ¡®His Potential is at 94. We¡¯ll be able to hit 100 soon enough.¡¯ Since the growth range changed every 10 digits, Ian felt incredible anticipation wondering what change there would be when there was an increase in digits themselves. ¡°Damn it, I¡¯ve wasted almost 1 hr.¡± Ian, who checked the time, grumbled to himself as he lifted his bow again. If limitless training without getting tired was a talent, Ian had an incredible talent. And shortly after, he reached lv 20. @ Jinsung logged off according to the lunch time he had decided and consumed a simple meal of bread and milk. Click-. Click-. Of course, even at this time, he was diligently searching for information about Kailran with one hand holding the mouse. ¡°If I studied like this, I would probably be a judge or a doctor by now, right?¡± Jinsung, who mumbled out meaningless words, watched a video while taking a bite of his bread. It was a combat video on one of the new classes that were released along with the update, the Black Magician. It was the lv 18 user that was the highest-level Black Magician currently up in the community. ¡°Ooh, the skulls are cuter than I thought.¡± Jinsung, who was diligently clicking his mouse, finished his milk and without hesitation, he stood up from his spot. It was time to sit back inside the capsule. ¡°Shall I log in now?¡± However, just then, Jinsung¡¯s smartphone started ringing. Ring-. Ring-. ¡®What the hell? There¡¯s nowhere to be getting a call from¡­¡¯ It was a situation just as rare as the chance of getting dragon armor from catching slime. Jinsung, who slightly flinched at the unexpected situation, checked the calling number. ¡®This is an unknown number¡­ I¡¯ve paid off all my school loans, maintenance fees I paid last time¡­ where exactly am I getting a call from?¡¯ Ian considered just ending the call but because it was a call in such a long time, he decided to pick up the phone. ¡°Hello?¡± Yes, this is the number of student Jinsung, right? It was even a thin and beautiful voice of a woman. Jinsung felt his heart throb a little. ¡°Yes, I am?¡± I am Lee Jihyun, the teaching assistant of Korea University¡¯s Virtual Reality major department. ¡°Ah, yes, TA, hello.¡± The heart throbbing was only a moment and as soon as Jinsung heard that it was a TA, he was nervous. This was because Jinsung had a lot of parts where he felt guilty because of his lack of responsibility towards his school life, to the point none of his professors thought that he was a current student throughout the whole semester. Yes, it¡¯s nothing else. You know Lee Jinook Professor, right? If it was Lee Jinook Professor, Jinsung knew him. This was because he was also the head of the department. ¡°Yes, I know him.¡± The Professor asks that you call him. ¡°Call¡­ him?¡± He began to be seized by unknown anxiety. Yes. ¡°Can I¡­ know the reason why?¡± It¡¯s most likely because of student Jinsung¡¯s mark¡­ Jinsung¡¯s hands started to shake. ¡®What the hell? I was thinking that it wasn¡¯t an academic warning, no way that its probation? No, I¡¯ve attended all classes of The Understanding of Virtual Reality, so they should have given me a D.¡¯ Jinsung, who collected his unsteady heart, opened his mouth. ¡°Excuse me¡­ TA. ¡± Yes? ¡°What would happen if I don¡¯t call the Professor?¡± Ah, right. If student Jinsung doesn¡¯t call the Professor, he said he¡¯ll send your report card home¡­ Of course, you know that home doesn¡¯t mean your rented room here, right? Jinsung¡¯s pupil began to shake again. He couldn¡¯t let that happen. Jinsung had no confidence in controlling his father¡¯s wrath that would explode out as soon as the report card went home. ¡®At the sweet age of 20, I may be forced to return to farming.¡¯ The scarier thing than returning to farming was the chance that he might had to sell his capsule away. ¡®Er¡­¡¯ Jinsung had no other choice. ¡°Looks¡­ like I¡¯ll have to give him a call.¡± Oh-ho, good thinking. Let¡¯s meet next semester, student Jinsung. Beep-. As the call ended, Jinsung had an expression as if he had lived his whole life. He didn¡¯t know that the phone call he hadn¡¯t had in a long time would leave this much mental damage. ¡°Ha¡­ right, I need¡­ to call. Do I have Lee Jinook Professor¡¯s number?¡± Fortunately, he had the number. He believed he saved the number at the Freshman Orientation. ¡°Hoo¡­¡± Jinsung, who calmed his anxious heart with deep breaths, called the Professor shortly after. Yes, this is Lee Jinook. ¡°Hello, Professor. This is Park Jinsung. I heard you were looking for me¡­¡± A dry voice rang through the phone. It was like the voice of a middle-aged delivery man of a Chinese restaurant that had an overload of orders on a rainy day. Park Jinsung? Ah, right, the freshman. That¡¯s right, I did tell you to call me. ¡°Yes, for what reason you were looking for me¡­.¡± Are you asking that right now because you don¡¯t know? Jinsung opened his mouth again after suppressing the desire to say ¡®I don¡¯t know.¡¯ ¡°By any chance, is it because of my marks?¡± That¡¯s right. Is there some bad situation in your home? Or did you get dumped by your girlfriend¡­ Why exactly have you not done anything in your major and get an academic warning in your first semester? Jinsung flinched again at the word academic warning. ¡°Academic¡­ warning? Don¡¯t I have¡­ two Fs?¡± At Korea University where Jinsung was attending, it was an academic warning if you got 3 Fs in one semester. If it was two academic warnings, then it was expulsion. For someone who was not very afraid of getting a low grade, Jinsung¡¯s reason for being afraid of getting an academic warning was here. That¡¯s right, you have two Fs so far. That¡¯s why I¡¯m thinking about giving you your third F. An obvious threat! Jinsung¡¯s two hands shook. He wanted to say ¡®What do you exactly want from me, Professor¡¯, but Jinsung wasn¡¯t that fearless of a student. ¡°What do I need to do then, Professor¡­¡± Firstly, let¡¯s hear the reason why you¡¯re neglecting your major. Truthfully, there was never a case where in university, not even high school, a Professor personally called saying that you weren¡¯t studying hard. However, the Virtual Reality department was a new department newly created at Korea University. Especially Lee Jinook Professor¡¯s passion and pride towards the department was on a different level from others, so Jinsung¡¯s negligence was unacceptable. Meanwhile, Jinsung was thinking about how to respond and thought hard of a stunt that he could pull. ¡®I had no choice because I was gaming¡­ would make me sound like I¡¯ve gone crazy, wouldn¡¯t it?¡¯ Firstly, Jinsung slightly tested Lee Jinook Professor. ¡°Professor, the reason why I came into the Virtual Reality department.¡± Tell me. ¡°I had a not-so-small interest in ¡®Virtual Reality¡¯ ever since, and it was because I felt a longing towards the infinite possibilities.¡± ¡­ So? ¡°There are many reasons why ¡®Virtual Reality¡¯ is currently getting so much attention right now, but one of the biggest reasons is because of the game ¡®Kailran¡¯, right?¡± That¡¯s true. Jinsung swallowed his dry saliva. From now on was important. ¡°If you want to catch a tiger, don¡¯t you have to go into the tiger¡¯s den?¡± Lee Jinook Professor¡¯s sense was fast. He figured out what Jinsung was trying to say instantly. So you¡¯re saying you¡¯ve been playing a game all day, so you couldn¡¯t do well in your studies¡­? ¡°It¡¯s not for the purpose of just playing games all day, Professor. It was to more closely research about the Virtual Reality world implemented in Kailran that is surprisingly realistic¡­¡± At Jinsung¡¯s lame excuse, Lee Jinook sent off a reproach. So then, what level are you? ¡°¡­!¡± I¡¯m asking what level are you? If you¡¯ve worked so hard, you must be ranked in the Korean server ranking, no? For a second, Jinsung felt his body stiffen as if it was hit by lightning. He thought even a tear would drop at his sadness. ¡®If only I didn¡¯t reset¡­!¡¯ For the first time, he regretted resetting his character. If it wasn¡¯t for resetting, he could have confidently said ¡®I am ranked¡¯ here. ¡°I¡­ That is¡­ Professor.¡± Why can¡¯t you say it? However, he couldn¡¯t think of an excuse to say. He wanted to ask himself. ¡®Jinsung, why can¡¯t you say it¡­¡¯ That¡¯s why he could only say the truth that sounded more like a lie than an actual lie. ¡°I was originally a lv 93¡­ but I reset just a while ago¡­ So I¡¯m lv 20¡­ right now¡­¡± The more he said, Jinsung¡¯s words became muddled. At those words, the Professor couldn¡¯t help but feel ridiculed. What? Are you kidding me¡­ However, Jinsung had little words that he could say. ¡°But it¡¯s the truth, Professor¡­¡± CH 18 Chapter 18: Ly¡¯s Growth (4) TL: Haku Edited: emptycube Jinsung logged back in with a heavy heart. Perhaps it was because he didn¡¯t unsummon Ly when he logged off but Ly was summoned as soon as he logged in. Jinsung looked at Ly with eyes brimming with tears. ¡°Ly.¡± Grr-? ¡°We need to work harder.¡± Ly tilted his head at Ian¡¯s sudden words and Ian wordlessly petted Ly¡¯s head. He was glad that he had Ly to share his mental damage with. ¡®Euh¡­ I would have never expected. For the Professor to have known me¡­¡¯ Ian, who tussled with Lee Jinook Professor, ended the lengthy 10-minute call with a bet. It turned out that Lee Jinook Professor was also a user who enjoyed Kailran, so something like a bet could be established. Before the beginning of the semester, if he succeeded in getting to the lv he was before resetting, lv 93, Ian would win and if he failed, the Professor would win. ¡®Though my original goal was returning to the level I was at previously before the break ended¡­¡¯ This was a slightly different feeling from when it was just a goal. ¡®Nonetheless, should I be relieved for now that I was able to avoid an academic warning for my first semester?¡¯ Due to his vigor when he proposed the bet, Lee Jinook Professor let him avoid an academic warning for this semester for now. However, in the case that Ian lost the bet, the report cards for this semester and next semester would definitely be sent, untouched, to his parents. On top of that, he had also promised to attend all department events without complaining. ¡®No matter what¡­ I need to succeed¡­!¡¯ For Ian, he needed to win the bet no matter what. There was no future for his game life if he lost . On the other hand, in the case that Ian won the bet, the benefit was also considerable. Firstly, Lee Jinook Professor promised an A+ regardless of Ian¡¯s attendance of his classes. He probably thought that this was absolutely impossible, so he placed that condition but Ian¡¯s thoughts were different. ¡®I can do it, for sure.¡¯ Wasn¡¯t it his original goal? Ian pulled himself together. He wanted to swallow a woohwangcheongsimhwan[1] but there was no chance that something like that existed in Kailran, no matter how realistic it was. ¡®For now, let¡¯s go to town.¡¯ Mental damage was damage but he needed to progress with his plans. In fact, he needed to move more thoroughly and faster. ¡°Ly, unsummon!¡± Even if a return scroll was used to get to the town, Ly wouldn¡¯t be with him, so he first needed to unsummon him. Ian returned to the town shortly after. The first thing that he did when he returned to the village was look for the guild administrator. ¡®Firstly, I¡¯ll join a guild.¡¯ The Lotus guild that Ian was in was an exceptional guild that placed in the top 5%. There was no reason for him, nor did he want to, find another guild. And the reason why Ian was applying to join a guild first was because if you joined a good guild, the NPC¡¯s trust in you would go up, so the chance of getting good quests would rise and you could prevent getting caught up in some troublesome work beforehand. The help he would get from his guild members was an additional part. ¡°For what reason did you come find me?¡± ¡°I¡¯m planning on joining a guild.¡± The administrator NPC nodded her head. ¡°You must have reached lv 20.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Along with his words, a long list of guilds appeared in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. ¡°Is there a guild that you were thinking of?¡± At the NPC¡¯s words, Ian responded immediately. ¡°The Lotus guild.¡± The NPC, who momentarily looked through the list, tilted her head as she spoke. ¡°The desired level for new guild mates for the Lotus guild is 60. I can put in a guild application for you but you¡¯ll be rejected¡­ is that still alright?¡± Ian nodded his head. From his position, where he was friends with all the guild members on top of the guild master being his close friend, it wasn¡¯t something he was worried about. ¡°I have put in the request to join. If the guild master accepts, then you will automatically join them.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Ian, who put in the request to join the guild, was immediately going to ¡®whisper¡¯ Herz and ask him to accept but he couldn¡¯t. Herz was offline. ¡®It¡¯s nothing particularly urgent at the moment, he¡¯ll probably accept when he sees it.¡¯ The next thing that Ian did was go to the auction. ¡®I¡¯ll completely change my gears, hehe.¡¯ The privilege of a rich beginner! Starting from his weapon to his armors, Ian was planning on setting himself up with the top items that he could use with his current stats. ¡®My character¡¯s fighting power should start to drop by now¡­¡¯ Characters with classes that displayed their own fighting power, such as Warriors and Archers, Magicians and others, had something called ¡®Class Bonus Stats¡¯. Aside from the 5.5 stats points that were added per level up, there were additional stat points that were added according to the stats related to your class. On top of that, there were passive skills similar to weapon proficiency, so even though Ian started off with 77 extra stat points in the beginning, other classes would catch up to him when it came to his character¡¯s fighting stats at around lv 30. Of course, Ian¡¯s class bonus stats were added to his Leadership and Taming ability instead of his fighting stats, so he had no complaints. From now on, his reliance on his Familiars would increase when hunting. ¡®Are there no items that will increase the Familiar¡¯s stats¡­? Whether it be enchanted with a buff¡­¡¯ Ian, who was searching the auction for some time, discovered an item that he had never seen before. Mother Nature¡¯s Headband Classification: Head Ornament Rank: Heroic Equip Limit:?Over Lv 25 Defensive Power: 24 Durability: 224/224 Option: Vitality +25% Vitality +20%, Offensive Power +15% increase for all Familiars summoned. 5% increase of the Familiar¡¯s projective evasiveness. ¡®Jackpot!¡¯ Ian didn¡¯t need to think twice as he pressed the purchase button immediately. ¡®Buy first, think later!¡¯ It had a level requirement of 25, but he had confidence in leveling up 5 levels quickly. He pressed the purchase button without even checking the price, but fortunately(?) it wasn¡¯t very expensive. 150,000 gold. It was a similar price to a normal lv 25 head ornament that was Heroic rank, so Ian was satisfied. ¡®Finally, items used by Summoners are now being released!¡¯ Ian was happy to the point he could fly. After seeing an item he liked, he had forgotten the slight(?) worry he had only moments ago. ¡®Good timing.¡¯ It was now slowly getting to the point where Ly¡¯s fighting power would overtake his own fighting power. His stats were still lacking but Ian was a human character that had almost no combat skills, while Ly was a wild monster that specialized in fighting. Their actual fighting power had become similar. You could say that at this point, Ian needed items that increased the stats of Familiars . ¡®Mother Nature¡¯s Headband¡­ wouldn¡¯t other items for a different part that have the modifier Mother Nature be used by Familiars?¡¯ Ian searched for items with the modifier Mother Nature. And after about 10 minutes of looking through the auction, he was able to find one more as expected. [1] Woohwangcheongsimhwan ¨C medication people take when they are nervous or when they experience a mental shock CH 19 Chapter 19: Ly¡¯s Growth (5) TL: Haku Editor: Stealth Mother Nature¡¯s Staff Classification: Staff Rank: Heroic Equip Limit:?Over Lv 20, Strength over 40 Offensive Power: 150-165 Durability: 201/201 Option: Intellect +21 Leadership +35 Affinity +20 Increases Offensive Power +35% for all Familiars summoned.Increases Critical Strike Chance +15% for the Summoner. ¡®Err¡­ I need to think about this¡­¡¯ Staves were weapons. The moment he picked the staff, Ian¡¯s archery skills would become meaningless. However, he decided to think about it after he purchased it. ¡°Purchase!¡± Maybe it was because the level limit was lower than the headband, he was able to buy the product for about 100,000 gold. Ian was locked away in his thoughts while looking at the staff in his inventory. ¡®Truthfully, right this moment, the bow has more merit¡­¡¯ It was an obvious. If he was to use the staff, all the passives related to the Archer would become useless and Ian¡¯s combat skills with the bow would totally be unusable. However, there was the important truth that he would eventually be unable to use the bow at some point. ¡®It is a little early but with this opportunity, it might not be bad to change my fighting style and get used to it.¡¯ Fortunately, he felt little reassurance from the fact that his ¡®Weak Point Capturing¡¯ skill, which he raised its proficiency by a lot, was a common, passive skill from his previous class that could be invoked even without using a bow. Also, the advantage of using a weapon in the classification ¡®Staff¡¯ had a characteristic where all skills¡¯ cooldown time and mana consumption would reduce by 10%. ¡®I need to raise Ly to be a little stronger. I also need to think about raising another Familiar eventually.¡¯ Ian, who decided on using the staff, put his bow up in the auction shortly after. This impressive drive was one of Ian¡¯s virtues. ¡°Now that I¡¯m holding a staff, it¡¯s kind of awkward, hmph¡­¡± It was obviously going to be awkward since it was his first time holding a staff as he had only used a bow from the moment he started Kailran. Ian searched for several more minutes, but he couldn¡¯t find any more items that had the modifier ¡®Mother Nature¡¯. So he left the auction without any lingering feelings. Right then, an alarm rang from inside Ian¡¯s bag. Ring-. Ring-. ¡°Oh, right.¡± Ian, who heard that sound, immediately summoned ¡®Ly¡¯. ¡°Ly, Summon!¡± As soon as Ly was summoned, he was about to howl as usual before flinching. It looked as if he felt awkward being summoned in a big city after always being summoned in the forest. Ian immediately used the Intermediate-level Training skill. You have used the skill ¡®Intermediate-level Training¡¯ (Cooldown Time: 25 minutes).For 10 minutes, Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ will better understand your commands and learn them.As training is repeated, the Familiar¡¯s ¡®Potential will increase.Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s current Potential: 98 Ian¡¯s alarm was none other than an alarm matched to the cooldown time of the Intermediate-level Training skill. ¡®Whew, it was a good thing I set an alarm. I would have forgotten if it wasn¡¯t for that.¡¯ Ian had no thoughts on wasting away even non-combat time. You would never know how big of a difference it would have on Potential once non-combat time piled up. He felt as if he would be so depressed that he wouldn¡¯t be able to sleep if he had wasted 10 minutes without knowing that the cooldown time had ended. ¡°Ly, this isn¡¯t a hunting ground, so you need to be well-behaved and just follow me.¡± Grr-. Grrr-. As if Ly was saying he understood, he nodded his head and stuck closely to Ian¡¯s side. It looked as if he was nervous at his new surroundings. ¡°Wow, look at that, that person¡¯s a Summoner!¡± As there were not a lot of Summoners, there were people who stared in fascination. ¡°He uses a Wolf as his Familiar. He must not be that high of a level yet.¡± ¡°They say that the level of difficulty to leveling up a Summoner is atrocious. I haven¡¯t seen someone who¡¯s hit lv 15 yet.¡± ¡°Oh, really?¡± As this kind of attention was burdensome, he didn¡¯t usually summon Ly but if it was for the Training skill, he believed that he could endure this much trouble. ¡®Shall we go get a quest now?¡¯ Ian knew of one good quest that could get him from lv 20 to lv 30 in an instant. Of course, it was a quest that a normal user over lv 40 would challenge. ¡®Where did the Goblin Camping Ground Suppression Quest begin again?¡¯ Truthfully, people had greatly divided opinions about the Goblin Camping Ground Quest. This was because its level of difficulty was overwhelming compared to quests around the same rank and its reward wasn¡¯t that good when you looked at the money aspect. However, Ian was considering a different part. ¡®If I remember correctly, while doing the Goblin Camping Ground Quest, you get two times the EXP when you kill a goblin.¡¯ It was the enormous EXP. ¡®Before resetting, I wasn¡¯t as composed so I hunted alongside punitive forces¡­ This time I¡¯ll wipe them by myself.¡¯ The average Goblin in the Goblin Camping Ground was just below lv 40, Goblin Warriors were in the early lv 40s, while the Boss-rank monster, the Goblin Chief, was a lv 45 Shaman-like monster. Cases where Goblins characteristically gathered together in dozens were common but Ian was planning on gathering EXP there. With another reason to quickly raise his level right now, hesitation was a luxury. ¡®I found it.¡¯ Ian discovered a middle-aged man strolling the outskirts of the village at dawn and headed towards him. It was Lapierre, the vigilante leader that would give him the Goblin Camping Ground Suppression Quest. ¡°Lapierre, it¡¯s been a while.¡± Ian approached Lapierre in a friendly manner. ¡®The NPC wouldn¡¯t have forgotten about me because I reset, right?¡¯ Fortunately, it seemed that Lapierre remembered Ian. ¡°Oh, who¡¯s this. If it isn¡¯t Ian.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve been well, right?¡± Like the position of a vigilante leader, Lapierre was an important NPC that would give quite a lot of quests during the beginning and the middle stages. ¡®It seems like the affinity you¡¯ve collected with an NPC doesn¡¯t reset. What a relief.¡¯ While watching Ian, who was feeling relieved on the inside, Lapierre spoke again. ¡°Of course, thanks to you killing the Ogre Warrior the other day, I even received a thank-you from Phillip, haha.¡± Phillip was a vigilante leader from another region and before resetting, there was a time when Ian had taken care of his request. Ian had no thoughts of talking with the NPC for an extended time. ¡°I see. Director, by any chance, are the Goblins quiet lately?¡± At his words, Lapierre¡¯s complexion brightened immediately. ¡°Oh, speaking of which the Goblin Camping Ground has become a bit of a headache lately¡­ the punitive forces have been lacking military power. Is there possibly an incredible mercenary that you could introduce to me?¡± ¡°I was planning on doing it myself.¡± ¡°You yourself? Oh¡­ If that¡¯s the case, then I¡¯m all for it! However, I would be happier if there were more people¡­¡± At that moment, the quest notification that Ian was waiting for rang. Ring-. Saumur Canyon¡¯s Goblin Camping Ground Suppression Lucain Town¡¯s vigilante leader Lapierre is recruiting people for the Goblin Camping Ground punitive force. Join the punitive force and sweep the Goblin Camping Ground. Quest Difficulty Level: E Quest Condition: A party of 2+ people Reward: You will gain gold proportional to your level of contribution. During the quest, you will be able to gain double the EXP when you kill a Goblin. Will you accept this quest? CH 20 Chapter 20: Ly¡¯s Growth (6) TL: Haku Editor: Stealth The corners of Ian¡¯s mouth rolled up when he saw the content of the quest and discovered the doubled EXP part written in the rewards. ¡®As expected, my memory was right.¡¯ However, his expression could only crumble again. ¡®Ah, right, this quest was originally a ¡®Party Quest¡­.¡¯ At that time, he was with guild members, so he had forgotten about the party quest part. ¡®This is no good¡­ Who should I ask?¡¯ The first place he thought of was the guild. ¡®Although, I don¡¯t think there will be a beginner that¡¯s around lv 40 in the guild now¡­¡¯ For now, Ian spoke to Lapierre to postpone the quest. ¡°Director, in that case, can you postpone the suppression schedule until I go find a party?¡± ¡°Of course, that much I can consider. Then, before that, do you think you can you eliminate the Camping Ground Scouts?¡± The quest notification rung again. Ring-. Elimination of Saumur Canyon¡¯s Goblin Scouts Lucain Town¡¯s vigilante leader Lapierre is recruiting a mercenary that is able to eliminate the Scouts in the Goblin Camping Ground before the punitive force starts moving. Kill over ten Scouts and return safely. Quest Difficulty Level: E Reward: A Vigilante¡¯s Leather Armor Will you accept this quest? Saumur Canyon, commonly called the Beginner Zone, was a place that was located outside the Luspel Empire border. The place Ian was in was also a town affiliated with the border area of the empire but it was still quite a distance from Saumur Canyon, so it was troublesome. ¡®It¡¯s going to take 30 minutes to go back and forth. It¡¯s a bit annoying to do but¡­ there¡¯s nothing I can do.¡¯ It was troublesome but because he knew that if he didn¡¯t help out with this quest, the Camping Ground Suppression Quest wouldn¡¯t be activated, so Ian immediately accepted. ¡°I¡¯ll do as you ask.¡± ¡°Alright, thanks. As expected, you¡¯re the only one. I can count on.¡± Ian, who finished speaking to Lapierre, immediately contacted Herz. Fortunately, Herz was logged on. Yoohyun, accept my guild admission.Huh? Guild admission? You¡¯re already lv 20? Yoohyun spoke as if he was a little taken aback but Ian continued his words without paying attention. Yeah, I just hit it. Yoohyun, who momentarily was silent, sent another message. You¡¯re right, you monster. I accepted your admission application.Thanks.Yo, how exactly did you already hit lv 20? I haven¡¯t seen a Black Magician, which is supposed to be crazily fast at leveling up, that hit lv 20 yet.Don¡¯t you know me? I¡¯m going to follow your level soon. Try harder, man. Ian said it as a joke but somehow Yoohyun didn¡¯t hear it as empty talk. He always thought that if Ian had started Kailran since the opening, he may have ranked in the top 100. ¡­ Yes, hurry and raise your level up. There are a lot of uncomfortable things without you here. Ian, who carried on an ordinary conversation, brought up his main subject. Yo, is there someone that¡¯s around lv 40 within our guild members?Huh? Lv 40? No, there isn¡¯t, why?As expected¡­ It¡¯s nothing, I¡¯ll do it myself. Ian closed the chat window with Herz and opened the Guild chat room. It would be faster recruiting himself in the chat room. ¡®It¡¯s probably better if I recruit an acquaintance of a guild member than recruiting someone I don¡¯t know.¡¯ Ian posted a message shortly after. Ian: I¡¯ve joined again. Have you all been well? The guild chat room that was quiet was instantly swarmed at Ian¡¯s message. Fiolan: No way, Ian, you¡¯ve already hit lv 20?Kroban: What the hell, Ian already hit lv 20 and joined? Wasn¡¯t it hellish to level up a Summoner? Was it all false? Ian shared a reunion(?) with his guild members. Ian: I only hit lv 20, why are you fussing over it. Everybody, be on edge. I¡¯ll restore my original level soon. Tension, whatever, it was just welcomes. Fiolan: Please¡­ Level up quickly. Without Ian, hunting is too slow.Carwin: Oh, it¡¯s Ian bro! As the chat room went on, there were more people joining the chat. It looked as if they were happy to see Ian, who appeared after a week. However, quick-tempered Ian quickly brought up his main subject. Ian: Excuse me but, guild members, if you know a user around lv 40 around you, please introduce me to them.Kroban: 40? Why are you looking for a lv 40? For a moment, Ian paused, trying to think about how to respond. This was because if he said he was doing the Goblin Camping Ground Quest when he was only just lv 20, he would get caught up in an attack of questions that weren¡¯t even going to be a small amount. However, there was no other way but saying the truth. Ian: Oh, I¡¯m trying to do the ¡®Goblin Camping Ground Quest¡¯, but turns out, it¡¯s a ¡®Party Quest¡¯. I just need one more person. Someone that can do 1-person¡¯s role at the Camping Ground. No, they don¡¯t even need to do 1-person¡¯s role, it just needs to be someone who wants to go to the Camping Grounds. I¡¯ll ¡®carry¡¯. Just as Ian predicted, the messages were rushing in from here and there. Fiolan: Ian, aren¡¯t you lv 20? How are you able to do the Camping Ground Quest, let alone carry?Carwin: Carry, my ass¡­ Isn¡¯t that bro trying to get power-leveling from the Camping Ground Quest? Doesn¡¯t it also seem like he rode the friend bus to hit lv 20?Kroban: You idiot, with his personality, do you think he¡¯d do it to get power-leveling? Also, if he wanted to get power-leveling, he would have asked us, why would he look for a lv 40.Carwin: What are you talking about? You can¡¯t even get the Camping Ground Quest if you¡¯re over lv 60. How can we power-level him.Kroban: Oh, was it like that¡­? Ian was befuddled and spoke vaguely. Ian: I am only lv 20 at the moment but luckily, I was able to get a monster-like Familiar, so I think the Camping Ground Quest will be do-able. He will carry. After saying those words, it was quite plausible. Since it was a situation where there was not a lot of information about Summoners, it was a justification that the others could accept. Although, it was words that would have opposed and called it a lie if there was another user that was playing as a Summoner. Kroban, who was the most na?ve(?)-like in the guild, reacted first. Kroban: Wow, how come you also have good luck. A reaction that showed no suspicion. Ian smirked. Fiolan: As expected, there was a reason why you hit lv 20 so fast. However, there was a lot of appraisal saying that Summoners weren¡¯t that good here and there but that must not really be the case? Fiolan also agreed. Ian responded just as he experienced. Ian: What do you mean the Summoner isn¡¯t that good. If you use it well, I think it¡¯s a really good class.Fiolan: Oh-ho¡­ Right then, Carwin said what Ian was waiting for. Carwin: Ian bro, I do have a friend that¡¯s about lv 45¡­ Ian immediately asked back. Ian: Oh, really? Can you introduce us?Carwin: But he raised this character focusing on production class, so his combat skills are probably¡­ There were a lot of production classes in Kailran such as Blacksmith, Seamstress, Painter, Architect, etc. But most of the users didn¡¯t pay attention to the production classes. It was because it felt like there wasn¡¯t enough time to level up and fight, so it was a waste of time to grind and raise production classes as well. The Blacksmith, for example, if you want to level that class, you need to shut yourself in a smithy and produce weapons as if your life depended on it but compared to hunting or fighting, it was tiresome and boring. Different from combat classes, one user can have multiple production classes but it was a pointless state since there were no users that properly raise even one class. The most popular production classes, at the least, were the Blacksmith, who could produce actual items, and the Enchanter, who could grant magic into items and produce scrolls that you could put in one-time magic. Although the Blacksmith wasn¡¯t a class that could help grow your character stronger, it made money, so it was popular and in the Enchanter¡¯s case, because users that had magician-combat classes could raise their magician¡¯s skill proficiency and raise their Enchanter¡¯s proficiency, there were a lot of people that did it. Of course, there were only a handful of users with Blacksmiths and Enchanters that had high enough proficiency to be over Intermediate-rank. Ian: Really? It¡¯s alright. So, what¡¯s his class?Carwin: His combat class is Priest, and his production class was probably Cook¡­? Ian, who thought it would have been a leading production class like Blacksmith or Enchanter, was slightly taken aback. You could call it a relief that he was at least a Priest that had healing magic. Ian: Cook¡­?Carwin: Uh¡­ Yeah¡­ Even though he¡¯s a Priest, he¡¯ll actually be no help in combat and he¡¯s not very good at gaming¡­ Is it still alright? However, because Ian¡¯s goal from the beginning was to reach the amount of people required, he had no interest in the party member¡¯s fighting power. Ian: It¡¯s alright. Do me a favour and when that person logs in, get me in contact with them. Carwin response seemed a bit bitter at the unexpected reaction. Carwin: Huh? O¡­Ok got it. Are you really ok with it?Ian: Yeah, I¡¯m ok. Kroban, who was listening to the two people¡¯s conversation, butted in. Kroban: Yo, Ian, how good of a Familiar do you have to be so confident? I suddenly want to go see him fight? Immediately, Fiolan tackled him. Fiolan: Kroban, because of the northern ¡®Expedition Quest¡¯, you cannot go anywhere for a while.Kroban: Yes¡­ Sub-guild Master¡­ Ian smirked and posted a message. Ian: Kroban bro, get a lot of information on the northern continent. I¡¯m going to level up quickly and follow you. The northern continent was a new field that opened with this large update. However, Ian, who was still lacking in level, couldn¡¯t go there yet. Kroban: alright, kiddo, hurry up and restore your level. Ian, who was swept with the uneasy feeling that a lot of his time might be taken away if he stayed messaging, hurriedly finished with the messaging. Ian: I have something to do right now, so I have to leave the chat room, bro. I¡¯ll contact you again immediately if there¡¯s something else. Carwin, once you get in contact with the person you wanted to introduce to me, send me a message right away.Carwin: Alright bro.Kroban: Ok, got it. As it had been a while, he had fun messaging his guild members but it was incomparable to the enjoyment of hunting and growing. Ian, who left the guild chat room without hesitation, took Ly and started moving out of the castle gate. ¡®I better finish the preceding quest before I get a call from Carwin.¡¯ When he was talking about the preceding quest, he meant the Goblin Scout Killing Quest. Ian headed towards the Goblin Camping Ground without delay. He knew of the exact location of the advance barracks where the Goblin Scouts were. CH 21 Chapter 21: The Very First Evolution (1) TL: Haku Editor: Stealth Sponsor: Anonymous (2), Manpapper and Yanle To get to Saumur Canyon, you needed to pass through Saumur Forest. Saumur Forest was a map that had lower level monsters appear than the Canyon but they were still a level that Ian could behave carelessly. The monsters that appeared were a predatory monster named ¡®Corkun¡¯. It was around late lv 30s and it wasn¡¯t much bigger than a Half-Moon Bear but because it had a habit of moving in a large group, it was classified as a much more dangerous monster than the Half-Moon Bear. If you were to compare a real animal to how the Corkun looked, it felt like a Jaguar that had a rusty-coloured integument. ¡®If I caught a Corkun and raised it, I¡¯d look cool. To look cool with this Ly is a little¡­¡¯ Ian glanced slightly at Ly, who followed his back. He was showing fearful potential and growth to the point it was impossible to think that he was a Wolf but truthfully, his appearance was shabby. His appearance was just as a Wolf, a low-level hunting ground field monster, anyways. However, just then, Ly, who was following him, suddenly stopped and stood. At that, Ian was startled on the inside. ¡®It¡¯s, it¡¯s not like our thoughts were shared by any chance, right¡­?¡¯ Ian, who felt sorry in vain, spoke as he petted Ly. ¡°This Ly, you know that this bro fiercely likes you, right?¡± Ian, who was very worried that the Affinity he difficultly raised would drop. However, Ly didn¡¯t move an inch and stood still. Just when Ian was questioning him, a faint light began to gather around Ly¡¯s surrounding. ¡°What, what¡¯s this?¡± Ian, who was taken aback, opened Ly¡¯s stat window. And shortly after, he was enlightened on the situation. Evolving The information that was always written as Evolution possible on Ly¡¯s stat window had changed to ¡®Evolving¡¯ and was blinking a red light. ¡®Finally! You¡¯re finally evolving!¡¯ Dozens of times, whenever he opened Ly¡¯s stat window, the ¡®Evolution possible¡¯ information always caught Ian¡¯s eyes. He uttered yells of delight as he had secretly anticipated when the evolution would happen. ¡®But why is he suddenly evolving? What exactly is the condition to evolve?¡¯ Ian attentively searched Ly¡¯s stat window. And shortly after, he was able to find the related answer. ¡®Potential! His Potential reached 100!¡¯ Ian, who wouldn¡¯t have wasted travelling time as expected, continuously rotated the Intermediate-level Training skill periodically and through that, Ly was able to reach 100 Potential and evolve. Ian wanted to dance joyfully. ¡®If he evolves, his appearance will definitely change, right? I wish his build got a little bigger¡­ so I can go around riding him¡­¡¯ Separately from Ian, who was grinning from ear to ear, Ly¡¯s evolution was still progressing. The light that gathered from Ly¡¯s surrounding had become so bright that it was dazzling and it wrapped around his whole body. And Ly¡¯s appearance began to slowly change. ¡®Whoa¡­¡¯ Ian just let go of his spirit and watched that figure. Grrr-! Ly¡¯s body, which was wrapped in the white light, grew almost twice his previous size before stopping his growth. And shortly after the light began to clear, a system message that made Ian feel good popped up. Ring-. Wolf ¡®Ly¡¯ has evolved into a Blood-Red Maned Wolf. Blood-Red Maned Wolf. The title of the newly evolved monster exactly sniped Ian¡¯s taste. An exclamation naturally flowed out of Ian¡¯s mouth. ¡°Wow¡­¡± And this wasn¡¯t the end of the messages. As the Familiar successfully evolved, the proficiency of ¡®Intermediate-level Training¡¯ has increased.¡®Intermediate-level Training¡¯ skill has increased to Lv 2 (45.7% until the next level).You have successfully evolved your Familiar for the first time. Your fame has increased by 1000 and your Taming Ability and Leadership has increased by 30.You have summoned a Blood-Red Maned Wolf for the first time. Your fame has increased by 1500. System messages that popped up consecutively! Each and every message was a notification that was equally exciting news but the point that was making Ian the happiest was that the individual that Ly evolved into was a unique monster that he hadn¡¯t seen until now. ¡°Muahahaha!!¡± Ian burst out in laughter. A full, red mane that shone extremely and on top of that, a build that wouldn¡¯t fall back even when compared to a relative opponent. Ian, who was positively thrilled, hugged Ly. ¡°Argh, Ly, this bro fiercely loves you.¡± As if looking at a happy Ian put Ly in a good mood, he licked his cheek and rubbed his body against him. As the excitement died down, Ian opened Ly¡¯s information window. Ly Lv: 20 Classification: Predatory Animal Rank: Rare Personality: Valiant (???) Evolution possible Offensive Power: 235 Defensive Power: 97 Agility: 215 Intellect: 135 Vitality: 790/790 Inherent Ability 15% of the damage dealt on the opponent will be absorbed as its own health and if fatal damage is dealt, 50% of that damage will be absorbed as its own health.If fatal damage is dealt on the opponent, it will make the opponent go into ¡®Bleeding¡¯ state. When the opponent is in Bleeding state, fixed damage equal to 20% damage per second will be dealt for 10 seconds. A ferocious wolf with a mysterious, red mane. It has an incredibly aggressive tendency. Ly¡¯s information window were simply showing surprises one after another. His Offensive Power and Agility were higher than Ian who had a full set of equipment and inherent abilities such as health absorption and Bleeding were newly developed. His Defensive Power and Health were comparably low but he decided that his high Offensive Power and health absorption could cover for it sufficiently. ¡®His rank also changed from Common to Rare¡­¡¯ Since his rank went up, he consumed more Leadership but for these stats, the consumed Leadership was nothing. Since he got 30 more Leadership points as a bonus for his first evolution, it seemed he wouldn¡¯t be lacking in extra Leadership. And if useless, high-level field monsters were common items, he considered Ly almost as a Unique-ranking item. On top of that¡­ ¡®He¡¯s still able to evolve?¡¯ It meant that Ly still had available potential. ¡®If he evolves once more, will he become a Unique-rank?¡¯ Even just thinking about it was a happy thought! To be more exact, Ian¡¯s hidden class, ¡®Taming Master¡¯, was more of a fraud than the Summoner. Of course, Ian¡¯s talent was incredible as he was able to find Ly within a ton of normal Wolves¡­ But if it wasn¡¯t for the Taming Master¡¯s own skill ¡®Intermediate-level Training¡¯, it was certain that Ly¡¯s evolution would still be far-off. Anyways, thanks to that, Ian¡¯s footsteps towards Saumur Canyon had lightened considerably. Ian, who watched the Corkuns hang around in groups far away, rebuked himself for momentarily being envious of the appearance of Corkuns. ¡®Pfft, Corkuns. Even if you gave me a million trucks worth of them, I wouldn¡¯t need them. My Ly is the best, of course!¡¯ Ian approached Ly. ¡°Ly, do you think you can give me a ride and move?¡± Grrr-. At Ian¡¯s words, Ly lowered his stance and sat down as if to say for him to climb on. Ian gave a bright smile before immediately climbing onto Ly¡¯s back. ¡°Wow, Ly, run!¡± Ian, who was excited about climbing onto Ly¡¯s back, shouted ¡®run¡¯ but shortly after, he couldn¡¯t help but regret it. This was because Ly shot forward in an instant and he was flung onto the ground in an unedifying form. As if Ly felt sorry, he approached Ian, who was knocked over and licked his arm. ¡°Err¡­ Do I at least need a saddle? If I put something like a saddle on, it doesn¡¯t look good.¡± Ian climbed onto Ly¡¯s back again. It wasn¡¯t like Ian to give up after tumbling down once. Ian had already felt a need of his image riding Ly greater than any narcissism. ¡°Try to move, Ly. A little slower.¡± At those words, Ly began to move cautiously and Ian slowly adjusted to Ly¡¯s back. ¡°Good, good.¡± Ly slowly increased his speed with Ian on his back. Thanks to that, they were able to arrive at Saumur Canyon faster than Ian thought he would. @ CH 22 Chapter 22: The Very First Evolution (2) TL: Haku Editor: Stealth Caw-Caw-! The gloomy cries of crows rang out. The moment he entered Saumur Canyon, a dreary chill flowed through Ian¡¯s body. ¡°Kailran made such pointless things like this so realistically.¡± Ian grumbled but he knew that it was because of such detailed elements that people were so enthusiastic about Kailran. ¡®Was the quest content to kill ten Goblin Scouts?¡¯ Ian was originally planning to dispose of 10 scouts cleanly and return to the town but he changed his mind. ¡®Ly even evolved splendidly, so there¡¯s no way I could do that.¡¯ Just at the thought of only catching ten and returning made him feel unsatisfied. ¡°Ly, let¡¯s have some fun.¡± Ian murmured as he petted Ly¡¯s head. Ian¡¯s excitement right now was comparable to a driver who, after only driving an economy car with 1500cc engine, had saved up for years and finally bought a ¡®supercar¡¯ with a 4000cc engine and was about to turn it on for the first time. Firstly, Ian got down from Ly¡¯s back and used his buff skills. You have used ¡®Blessings of the Wind¡¯. Your Agility will increase by 37%. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s Agility will increase by 37%.You have used ¡®Barbaric Warrior¡¯s Blessing¡¯. Your Offensive Power will increase by 33%. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s Offensive Power will increase by 66%. As his proficiency went up, the buff skill¡¯s stat increase went up by small increments. Especially in the case of Barbaric Warrior¡¯s Blessing, its effect doubled on Familiars, so Ly¡¯s Offensive Power increased to an incredible 390 from 155. ¡®On top of that, because of the effect of the Mother Nature¡¯s items, there are stat increases that aren¡¯t visible.¡¯ Ian raised his staff and, in an awkward position, gave Ly a command. ¡°Ly, you see those three Goblins loitering around over there? Go and attack them first, I¡¯ll follow behind you.¡± Grr-. Grr-! Ly expressed his understanding with a low growl before running towards the Goblins without hesitation. Ian momentarily watched that figure from behind. ¡®Right now, it¡¯s a situation where none of Ly¡¯s buffed stats are lower than the Goblins. On top of that, he developed two new inherent abilities¡­ Since his fighting AI is incomparably stronger than a normal field monster¡­¡¯ With his precise analytical skill, he concluded Ly currently was at the point where he could face three Goblin Scouts on his own. However, out of concern, he activated the Weak Point Capturing skill and extended the notification range of the system messages. Now, notification messages related to Ly¡¯s fight would ring. ¡®Weak Point Capturing¡¯ skill has been triggered. The weak point of the target will be indicated with the accuracy rate rising 14.5% and the chance to critical hit increasing 22%. If the weak point is hit, evasiveness will increase 91%. Ian, who would help if Ly was in a pinch, kept an eye on Ly and the Goblins¡¯ movements. While currently holding a staff, he tried to ignore the thought that he would only be a burden for Ly if he butted into the fight. Awooo-! With a howl, Ly ran towards the Goblin Scouts at an incredible speed. ¡°Keu-reu-reuk, Wolf, it¡¯s a Red Wolf!?? ¡°Chweeeek- Chweek- the Wolf is going to attack!¡± The Goblins raised their clubs when they discovered the Blood-Red Wolf running towards them. However, by the time they discovered Ly, Ly had already shoved his teeth into the nape of one of the Goblin Scout¡¯s neck. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ dealt fatal damage to a Goblin Scout!The Goblin Scout¡¯s Vitality decreased by 1075 (89% of its total Health).The Goblin Scout has gone into ¡®Bleeding¡¯ state, so 215 damage will be dealt per second for 10 seconds. At the continuous messages that popped up, before Ian could be surprised again, another message rang. The Goblin Scout died through ¡®Bleeding¡¯.You have killed a Goblin Scout. You have obtained 1210 EXP. As the Goblin Scout only had 11 percent of its Vitality left, after 1 second, it had died from the Bleeding damage. Since Bleeding original damage dealt 20% damage every second as an extra effect, it was obvious that it would die immediately. ¡®What, what is this? How can a lv 40 monster disappear with one hit?¡¯ Smack-! This time, a Goblin¡¯s club beat Ly¡¯s back. If it was a one-on-one situation, he wouldn¡¯t have easily taken an attack from a not-so-agile Goblin but since several were attacking at the same time, it was hard even for Ly to avoid all the attacks. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ received 294 damage from a Goblin Scout. His Offensive Power was incredible but on top of his Defensive Power being weak, he had no buff relating to blocking, so the damage received was incredible as well. If it was the same damage as now, Ly would die after several hits as well. However, Ly had another Inherent Ability. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ dealt 495 damage to a Goblin Scout!75 Health points were recovered from 15% of the damage dealt. ¡°There we go!¡± Ian let out a response without even realizing it. And along with the continuous attacks, Ly had almost completely recovered the health he had lost in an instant. 73 Health points were recovered from 15% of the damage dealt.76 Health points were recovered from 15% of the damage dealt. Indeed, in a blink of an eye, two out of three of the Goblin Scouts turned into a grey light and were sprawled on the ground. Ian couldn¡¯t close his open mouth and watched the fight absent-mindedly. Since then, Ly took another blow from the one remaining Goblin. However¡­ 523 Health points were recovered from 50% of the damage dealt. Along with the fatal attack that burst out immediately after, the highest Health completely recovered from Ly! On top of dealing over two times the damage through the fatal attack, the recovery amount increased to 50% and in one blow, he recovered a huge amount of almost 70% of his Health. Ly, who carried out the command in an instant, returned, wagging his tail at Ian as if asking for a compliment. ¡°¡­ Ly, you¡­!¡± Ian was deeply moved. ¡°Thanks for the bus[1], you little!¡± Since then, Ian¡¯s hunting went very fast. As the Goblin Scouts went around in groups of 4-5 at most, Ly literally flew around. All Ian did was stand by absent-mindedly like an outcast and when the cooldown time was almost over, you could say re-applying the buff skills was Ian¡¯s only job. It was a situation where the ¡®First Aid¡¯ skill was useless thanks to Ly¡¯s health absorption ability. His only complaint(?) was that Ian himself was too bored. Even though it was satisfying just watching. ¡®Everything¡¯s good if this is the case but I can¡¯t raise the proficiency of First Aid?¡¯ Although it was a situation where everything looked perfect, an obsessive man who couldn¡¯t be satisfied, Ian! In order to raise the proficiency of First Aid, Ian ended up deciding to stand in himself as a meat shield(?). ¡°Ly, from now on, I¡¯ll go in first and lure them, so come in a little later.¡± Ly momentarily revealed an expression that made Ian think he didn¡¯t understand why, but he tried his best to ignore it and rushed towards the Goblins. Fortunately, Familiar Ly followed Ian¡¯s command well. Through that, hunting that Ian thought was perfect(?) progressed smoothly. Afterwards, Ian fell into a trance, continuing his hunting until he received a whisper for Carwin. @ [1] Bus = Carrying CH 23 Chapter 23: The Very First Evolution (3) TL: Haku Editor: Stealth Carwin: Bro, you¡¯re logged on, right? Can you talk right now? Ian, who was knocking out goblins hard¡­ no, who was getting hit hard by the goblins, stopped fighting when he saw Carwin¡¯s message. You have killed a Goblin Scout. You have gained 1250 EXP. ¡°Ly, let¡¯s stop here, come over here.¡± Grr-. Ly had finished catching all the Goblins and was about to charge towards the next Goblin group but at Ian¡¯s words, he obediently returned. ¡°You did a really excellent job. Eat this.¡± Ian tossed Ly a Half-Moon Bear meat that he had crammed into his inventory and opened his message window. Ian: Yeah, I can talk.Carwin: You probably guessed but I got a response from that friend. They just logged in.Ian: Oh, really? What did they say? Can they do it?Carwin: Yeah, they said they¡¯ll do it. Ian let out a sigh of relief on the inside. This was because if Carwin¡¯s friend said that they couldn¡¯t do it, he would have had to find someone else and go through the trouble again. Ian: Alright, thanks. What¡¯s your friend¡¯s ID?Carwin: It¡¯s ¡®Harin¡¯. Try and send a message right now.Ian: Ok, ok. Thinking that the conversation was over, Ian was about to open a new message window when Carwin said something else. Carwin: Bro, but¡­ You¡¯re really okay with this, right? You need to think that this person¡¯s fighting power is zero. Ian smirked. He didn¡¯t really mind from the beginning but with Ly currently evolved, Ian had nothing to fear. Ian: Yo, don¡¯t worry about it. Your bro just wiped Saumur Canyon as a solo-player and is heading out now.Carwin: Where was Saumur Canyon again¡­ As it had been a hunting ground that he hunted on a long time ago, Carwin¡¯s memory was hazy but shortly after, he was able to grab his memories and be shocked. Carwin: What? You wiped Saumur Canyon alone? Isn¡¯t that the Goblin Camping Grounds?Ian: Yeah, that¡¯s right. For a quarter of the day, I just caught Goblin Scouts on the advanced base as if my life depended on it. I even raised my lv by five.Carwin: What the hell, bro. You¡¯re not using some kind of cheat or bug, are you? If you get a permanent suspension and cry about it, I¡¯m not going to act like I know you. From Carwin¡¯s perspective, it was words that were acceptably shocking. It hadn¡¯t been long since he hit lv 20, yet he¡¯s already saying that he¡¯s going around, wiping a lv 40 hunting ground. On top of that, he raised his lv by five within a quarter of a day. Originally, at lv 20, the average was that it took a day to level-up 1 lv and at most, 2 lvs. No wonder there was no other monster. Ian: Bug, my ass. Anyways, there¡¯s nothing for you to worry about, so don¡¯t pay attention.Carwin: O¡­Okay. Since you¡¯re saying it, it must be the case. Alright.Ian: Yes, good.Carwin: Haha¡­ This bro might actually catch up to our level in a second. Ian smirked. And he spoke seriously. Ian: Just wait exactly two months.Carwin: ¡­ Currently, in the Lotus guild, you could say that the levels of the guild members in the main force were mostly lv 80. Not too long ago, Fiolan had leveled up and was the only lv 90 in the guild, while the other users were all in between lv 85-88. From Ian¡¯s experience, starting from lv 90, to level up, it took a week for 1 lv. That was only in the case when you focused on leveling up like crazy for the whole week. His assumption was that two months later, his guild members would be huddled around lv 95. ¡®I¡¯m going to hit lv 100 within two months.¡¯ Two months and his break would be at its end time. Ian was confident. He was not nervous about in achieving the bet that he had made with Lee Jinook Professor in restoring his lv before resetting, lv 93. Ly¡¯s evolution had become that much of a strength to Ian. ¡®In the next two weeks 50. And then 80 within the two weeks after that. And then 100 with the leftover month.¡¯ That was Ian¡¯s master plan. With the condition being better than before, it was a situation where he was walking a path that he had already walked before. Ly had evolved and he developed a motivation towards the bet with the Professor. ¡®The bet that I made with the Professor may end up being more beneficial to me instead. This bet, I¡¯m going to win no matter what!¡¯ In that sense, he needed to start this quest immediately. Ian closed the message window with Carwin and sent a message to ¡®Harin¡¯, who he was going to progress the quest with. Ian: Hello, you¡¯re Carwin¡¯s friend, right? A response came shortly after. Harin: Yes, that¡¯s right. Nice to meet you. Ian went straight to the main point. Ian: Where are you right now?Harin: I¡¯m getting my equipment repaired by the blacksmith in Lucain Town.Ian: Ah-ha, you¡¯re already in Lucain Town. Stay at the blacksmith¡¯s, I¡¯ll be there within 10 minutes.Harin: Yes, sounds good. @ Ian, who returned to Lucain in an instant by riding Ly, immediately found the blacksmith. And he was able to instantly find Harin, who was standing in front of the blacksmith. ¡°Hello, I¡¯m Ian.¡± Harin was a female user with a lean body and incredibly beautiful, white face. However, Ian knew very well how foolish it was to believe in the appearance of a female user in Kailran, where it was possible to slightly alter your outer appearance. This was because a person¡¯s face was strange in that even if you fixed even a slight bit, you become a different person. ¡°Hello, I¡¯m Harin. I¡¯ve heard a lot about you from Carwin.¡± ¡°You must be a friend of Carwin¡¯s?¡± ¡°No, we¡¯re not friends¡­ I¡¯m a close older sis.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± He was sure that Carwin said they were friends but as it wasn¡¯t a big deal, Ian went over it without much thought. ¡°I¡¯ve finished getting ready, so I think I should be alright to start heading out for the quest right now. How about you, Ian?¡± ¡°Yes, I can also start heading out immediately.¡± Ian felt relieved as he felt that Harin¡¯s straightforwardness matched well with his nature. He hated lazy party members the most. ¡°Harin, is there possibly a separate reason why you are doing the Camping Ground Quest?¡± Ian had asked without much thought but Harin surprisingly nodded her head as she responded. ¡°Yes, there¡¯s a quest that I want to get but I realized you can only progress with it unless you¡¯ve finished the Camping Ground Quest. I was originally going to ask Carwin or another high-level friend for help but just in time, I was told that you were doing that quest¡­¡± At those words, Ian suddenly was curious at that content. ¡°Is it a quest that¡¯s connected to the Camping Ground Quest?¡± Harin laughed as she shook her head. ¡°No, it¡¯s not like that. The quest that I want to receive is an assignment you receive from the cook in the Castle of the Duke of Trepin but to enter the Duke¡¯s castle, don¡¯t you need to finish this quest?¡± ¡®Ah, right, it was like that.¡¯ Lapierre, who gave the Camping Ground Quest, was acquainted with the Public Order Management Chief of the Duke¡¯s castle. That¡¯s why if you ask Lapierre, you would be able to enter the Duke¡¯s castle but in order to do that, you needed to raise your Affinity with Lapierre, so this Camping Ground Quest was necessary. ¡°I see. But what kind of quest from the cook¡­¡± While speaking, Ian remembered Harin¡¯s production class that he heard from Carwin. ¡°Ah, he said you were a Cook.¡± Harin was delighted. ¡°Oh my, how did you know? Did Carwin tell you?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°Yes, I heard from Carwin. That your production class was Cook.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right. I¡¯m also a culinary arts major in real life.¡± ¡°Ah-ha, I heard that it¡¯s hard to raise your production class but if your major is culinary arts, then it must have been easier.¡± ¡°Yeah, I realized. It¡¯s also more fun¡­¡± In Kailran, not just fighting but production classes such as Cook, Blacksmith reflected on the user¡¯s actual skill. Your dexterity in real life was influential even in the game. The Blacksmith, for example, although realistically the system¡¯s strength affected the process in making the item, he heard that in a Cook¡¯s case, it was almost 90% similar to the process of cooking in real life. There were a lot of opinions that said it was almost perfectly alike if you exclude the points that you could make the fire stronger than real life or carry realistic ovens or mixers conveniently. That¡¯s why, ironically, users turned away from Cooks. The reason was simple. Since it was so realistic, it was just as difficult. ¡°Anyways, this is the first time I had a Cook as an acquaintance. Will I be able to eat a delicious meal next time from you?¡± Harin smiled brightly and nodded her head. ¡°Of course!¡± CH 24 Chapter 24: The Very First Evolution (4) TL: Haku Editor: Stealth Just like how the cooking process was realistic in Kailran, the flavour of the food you tasted was also incredibly realistic. Ian¡¯s words of wanting to try her food were not empty words. The barley bread he ate on a fixed schedule that was meant to fill his stomach was really tasteless. The two slowly got closer while talking about this and that and shortly after they were able to arrive at the place where Lapierre was. The two people received the quest immediately. ¡°Oh, you¡¯ve found a party member and came back. I think it won¡¯t be enough with two people¡­ but since I know well of Ian¡¯s skill, I¡¯ll believe and leave it to you. The advance party just headed out but if you move fast, you¡¯ll catch up to them in no time. Go and help them.¡± Ring-. Saumur Canyon¡¯s Goblin Camping Ground Suppression Lucain Town¡¯s vigilante leader Lapierre requested that you follow the Goblin Camping Ground punitive force and support them. Quest Difficulty Level: E Quest Condition: A party of 2+ people Reward: You will gain gold proportional to your level of contribution. During the quest, you will be able to gain double the EXP when you kill a Goblin. Will you accept this quest? At the fault of arriving a little late, the quest content had changed a little possibly because the punitive force had headed out first but the reward had not changed. ¡®That¡¯s a relief.¡¯ Ian inwardly let out a sigh of relief then questioned Harin, who was standing beside him. ¡°Harin, did you receive the quest well?¡± ¡°Yes, I checked.¡± ¡°Then shall we go?¡± Along with his words, Ian made a hand gesture towards somewhere. Then Ly, who was wandering on the outskirts of the castle, ran towards him at lightning speed. As Lucain Town was a small town on the border, so there weren¡¯t a lot of people but the attention towards Ly was burdensome. But even so, Ian didn¡¯t want to leave the Intermediate-level Training skill unused, so he went with the most convenient method. Grr-. Grrr-. Harin, who saw that figure, backed up in surprise. ¡°Ah!¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright, he¡¯s not a monster, he¡¯s my Familiar.¡± However, at Ian¡¯s words, Harin was more shocked. ¡°Huh? Familiar?¡± ¡°Yes, what¡¯s the problem¡­?¡± If he thought about it a little, he would have easily known the reason for Harin¡¯s surprise but Ian repeated his question without much thought. ¡°Based on how you handle your Familiar, you do seem like a Summoner¡­ but how are you able to already do the Goblin ¡®Camping Ground Quest¡¯ when it¡¯s only been a couple days since the New Classes opened?¡± Ian instantly went ¡®crap¡¯. His level was only now 25 but if he said the truth as was, no one would party with him. ¡®Should I say that I got a Summoning Magic Artifact? But to say a lie that would immediately get caught by Carwin is a little¡­¡¯ Ian, who thought about it momentarily, used the same words that he said to his guild members. It was an excuse with a little bit(?) of exaggeration mixed in. ¡°Oh, I had a bit of luck. This Wolf here is a bit of a cheat¡­ Leveling up is fast and I realized he was able to catch Goblins easily.¡± No matter who saw it, his excuse was full of holes. It was easy to see these words were said with the intention of glossing over the question rather than an excuse. However, Harin was easily convinced, to the point Ian was taken aback. ¡°Ah, I see. I¡¯m jealous. I¡¯m lv 45 but I still run away whenever I encounter a Goblin Scout¡­¡± Ian felt one sweat drop that didn¡¯t even run down when he hunted without rest roll down. ¡®What, what the hell, this girl¡­ Why does it seem like she actually believes me¡­? Is she just forcing herself to believe?¡¯ On top of that, even though it was a character that you raised focusing on the production class, to not be able to catch a Goblin Scout at lv 45, it made him curious as to how she even got to lv 45. Ian laughed forcibly. ¡°Well, it¡¯s probably because you fostered your character with its main force being its production skill, haha¡­ There for sure must be a lot of use for cooking but as it hasn¡¯t been long since the game¡¯s been out, that¡¯s probably why.¡± ¡°Thank you for thinking of it that way. Well, since cooking more fun than fighting for me, it¡¯s alright.¡± Harin was thankful for Ian, who spoke of cooking in a positive way. However, just then, Ly approached Harin¡¯s side slowly. ¡°Wow but this Wolf is really cool. I think this my first time seeing this Wolf.¡± Harin¡¯s compliments on Ly put Ian in a good mood. ¡°Ho-ho, there¡¯s still probably only one of him on the server.¡± Ly didn¡¯t seem to hate Harin¡¯s hand, as he stood still. Grr-. Grrr-. ¡°Does he have a name?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°Yes. You can just call him ¡®Ly¡¯.¡± ¡°Ah-ha, his name is really cute. Hello, Ly?¡± At Harin¡¯s incredibly bright image, Ian¡¯s expression also brightened. ¡°Is it possible for me to give him something to eat?¡± ¡°Yes, well, Ly probably likes all meat.¡± Harin pulled something out of her chest. Seeing that, Ian¡¯s eyes widened. ¡®What the hell, that¡¯s a cooked steak with even sauce spread on it?¡¯ As it was a dish that was pulled out of the inventory, tons of steam rose and more than anything, the smell was no joke. Gulp-. His mouth watered. Suddenly, he remembered the barley bread he ate 1 hour ago. ¡®Even so, I can¡¯t ask her to give me the food that she pulled out to give to Ly¡­¡¯ As soon as Harin tossed it to him, Ly ate the steak in one mouthful and cleared it away. Just then, a system message that Ian wasn¡¯t expecting popped up. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ ate the ¡®Smoked Steak¡¯. For 20 minutes, his Health increased by 200. ¡°Huh?¡± At Ian¡¯s bewildered expression, Harin asked him. ¡°Ian, what¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°Ly¡¯s stats went up right now. Is it the effect of the dish?¡± At those words, Harin nodded her head. ¡°That¡¯s right. After my cooking skill became high-class, depending on the rank of the dish made, a buff activates for a set duration.¡± Ly¡¯s total Health right now was a little less than 1400. To get 200 Health points on top of this was a quite big help for fighting. ¡®If I get close with Harin, it might be helpful in various ways.¡¯ Ian thought that there was no class that was useless in Kailran. Currently, production classes were nonmainstream classes that received a lot of contempt but Ian thought it won¡¯t be long before their potential would be discovered. Ian, who thought of Harin as luggage, changed his perception a bit. On the other hand, as if Ly had a lingering image of the steak¡¯s flavour still left behind, he kept on smacking his lips together. Shortly after that, he approached Harin and rubbed his head against her. ¡°Was it tasty?¡± Ian asked Ly about the taste of the steak before he realized himself. ¡°Pu-[1].¡± As if that image was funny, Harin laughed out loud and Ian grumbled. ¡°Is there none for me¡­¡± ¡°Not at the moment.¡± ¡°Ha¡­¡± Harin spoke as she smiled. ¡°For you, Ian, I¡¯ll make you something even more delicious after the quest, don¡¯t get jealous.¡± Ian had an expression that was more serious than ever. ¡°¡­ That¡¯s a promise.¡± [1] A sound made when someone is trying to hold back their laughter at you. CH 25 Chapter 25: Goblin Camping Ground (1) TL: Haku Editor: Stealth Rukin, who followed the punitive force with his guild members for the Goblin Camping Ground Quest, was incredibly baffled as he looked at the empty entrance of Saumur Canyons. ¡°What the hell, where did all the scouts go?¡± His colleagues, Falcon and Millun, were just as baffled. ¡°No kidding, wasn¡¯t it packed just this morning when we did the ¡®Scouts¡¯ Quest¡¯?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m saying. The Scouts¡¯ EXP was quite good, too¡­ Did a high-ranker with nothing to do pass by and wiped the place out of boredom?¡± Monsters in a normal hunting ground each had their own regen time, so when that certain time passed, the monster formed again in a designated location. However, the Goblin monsters in the Goblin Camping Ground map weren¡¯t like that. Because they were a kind of event monster, it was a system where the Camping Ground Quest needed to be completely finished once and the Chief needed to be killed in order for the Goblins to regen a couple days later. That¡¯s why Rukin¡¯s party was completely baffled. ¡°You may not get to level up today even if you go around the place once.¡± Truthfully, Falcon and Millun¡¯s main goal wasn¡¯t the Camping Ground Quest. They were users that followed Rukin and came to Saumur Canyon to help Rukin level up, or in other words, take the role of the so-called bus driver[1]. Rukin was lv 34 while Falcon and Millun were in the early lv 50s. ¡°No kidding¡­ I need to hit lv 35 by today¡­ The Chief Priest Quest is too hard for you guys, right?¡± The Chief Priest Quest was a kind of hidden quest. It was a quest that occurred when you went into the tunnel at the rear of the Camping Ground before returning to the vigilante once the Goblin Camping Ground was swept. ¡°Well, I don¡¯t think it will be that hard. From what I remember, the Goblin Chief Priest¡¯s is around lv 55 and rather than the Chief Priest being strong, it¡¯s difficult because there are a lot of Goblin Warriors in front. It should be easily possible if we pull the Goblin Warriors beforehand while doing the ¡®Camping Ground Quest¡¯ and catch them with the vigilantes.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, if we just take care of the Goblin Warriors beforehand, the two of us are enough for the Chief Priest.¡± ¡°Really? That¡¯s a relief. I¡¯ll have to fill up my EXP from there at least.¡± However, losing the enormous EXP the Scouts gave unsettled his stomach. ¡°Hmph.¡± Rukin licked his lips as though saying he was disappointed and began to move. ¡°Firstly, let¡¯s go report that there are no Scouts. We need to progress through the quests.¡± Rukin nodded his head and responded. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go back.¡± The trio returned to the captain of the punitive forces, NPC Hugo, and reported the situation. ¡°Captain of the punitive forces, there are not a lot of Scouts left. I think you can hit the military headquarters immediately.¡± At those words, Hugo was delighted and stood up. ¡°Oh-ho, is that so? Good, good. We¡¯ll be able to minimize the damage of our vigilante. We had better get going!¡± Rukin grumbled internally. ¡®All the EXP bundles disappeared, so what¡¯s so good about it? It¡¯s just making me irritated.¡¯ Aside from his irritation, he only took himself into consideration as he needed to gather even the smallest EXP. ¡°Could the three of us perform as the spearhead of the battle?¡± At those words, Hugo joyfully nodded his head. ¡°Of course. Can you really do that for us?¡± ¡°Yes, we will stand as the lead.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Hugo had a delighted expression and the three, including Rukin, moved quickly and stood at the head of the unit. Shortly after, Hugo followed behind them and began to advance towards the Goblin Camping Ground, leading over 100 NPC vigilantes. Just then, one NPC vigilante called Hugo and stopped him. ¡°Captain, the new mercenary reinforcements have arrived.¡± At those words, Hugo momentarily stopped and turned towards the direction that the vigilante was directing to. The new mercenaries were none other than Ian and Harin. As the two people reached close by, Hugo held out his hand. ¡°Oh, new reinforcements. The more people giving their strength, the easier the suppression should be. Thank you for coming all the way here.¡± Ian held Hugo¡¯s hand equally and bowed his head slightly. ¡°We¡¯re just doing the obvious job.¡± Ian let out a sigh of relief at the fact that they had arrived at the exact time before the quest started. If he came on his own, he would have ridden Ly and arrived at the start but because he came with Harin, he was much later than he had expected. ¡°Now, today we¡¯re going to completely wipe out the Goblins in Saumur Canyons! Everyone charge forward!¡± As Hugo let out the command, the vigilantes let out a shout and ran forward. From the front, likewise, tons of pitch black Goblin Warriors were running out of the Camping Ground. Even with just a glance at the hundreds of Goblin Warriors, Harin looked a little frightened. ¡°Uh, Ian¡­ will it be okay?¡± However, different from Harin, Ian only saw all of those Goblins as bundles of EXP. ¡°It will be alright. You just need to do what we talked about on the way here.¡± ¡°Can we really do that? If we do that, though, then it will really be just you fighting.¡± ¡°No, that¡¯s not true. Basically, you¡¯re going to be buffing us and you taking aggro with the shield will be a big help.¡± Among the Priest¡¯s skills, there was a skill called ¡®Shield of Brilliance¡¯ and that skill was the best defensive skill that Priests could use to protect themselves. The Shield of Brilliance transformed a Priest¡¯s divine magic into a shield at a specific ratio that would protect them from losing health until their divine magic was completely consumed. The downside was that they could only cast it on themselves, but the ratio of divine magic consumed and the shield was so incredibly efficient that if a Priest poured all their divine magic into the Shield of Brilliance, it was enough to ¡®out-tank¡¯ decent tankers. Ian assumed that faint-hearted Harin would have a high proficiency with that skill based on her personality and as expected, the Shield of Brilliance was Harin¡¯s main skill. It was even a situation where the Shield of Brilliance¡¯s proficiency was absurdly high. That¡¯s why the strategy that the two people made was simple. Harin would focus all her divine magic onto the Shield of Brilliance and use it only to protect herself while buffing Ian and Ly whenever the cooldown time was over. When summarized in one word, she was a buff shuttle[2] that didn¡¯t die. That was not all. Ian was currently setting an ambitious plan to drag Harin to fight on the frontlines. ¡®Harin¡¯s level is comparably high for coming to the Goblin Camping Ground anyways. On top of that, the proficiency of her Shield of Brilliance is equal to about lv 60.¡¯ In other words, as long as she poured all her efforts into her shield, no matter how bad she is at the game, he calculated that there would be almost no chance of her dying here. ¡®We¡¯ll have to use Harin as a tanker.¡¯ If they fought comfortably in the back along with the vigilantes, Harin would most likely be useless. ¡®Although there isn¡¯t really a problem if we just fight¡­¡¯ As he¡¯s already brought Harin, Ian¡¯s thoughts were that he should bring out her strongest advantages and maximize their hunting efficiency. To clean it up in one word, his plan was to toss Harin out to the frontlines, and once the aggro was leaning towards her, he would pick up all the EXP with Ly. In this plan, Harin¡¯s role was in simple terms a ¡®meat shield¡¯. And if Harin was worse at the game than he thought, or if the aggro leaning towards her was more than he had expected, the chance to die was not impossible. ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll believe in you, Ian.¡± Despite hearing Ian¡¯s plan, Harin didn¡¯t catch onto the main point and just nodded her head slowly. As if his conscience made him feel slightly guilty, he looked afar and petted Ly. ¡°You just need to believe in this one, not me.¡± Ian rationalized to himself. ¡®As long as Harin doesn¡¯t die, it¡¯s a plan that would allow her to get a huge amount of EXP¡­.¡¯ In no way was it because Ly got to eat something more delicious than him and he was holding a grudge. @ [1] bus driver = a player that is carrying a person/party. [2] shuttle = another term for carrie CH 26 Chapter 26: Goblin Camping Ground (2) TL: Haku Editor: adkji Bang-! Baang-! The clubs of the attacking Goblins bounced off along with swooshing sounds of splitting air. This was because the Shield of Brilliance had surrounded Harin, not leaving a single gap. ¡°Harin, how much divine magic do you have left?¡± Ian asked as he blocked the incoming Goblins that attacked without rest. ¡°I think I can still last 10 more minutes! Don¡¯t worry about me!¡± Ian¡¯s plan was quite successful since Harin held out longer than he thought she would. ¡®She¡¯s doing better than I thought? Though she is a user that is over lv 40, so did I just worry too much?¡¯ Truthfully, it wasn¡¯t that Ian had been needlessly worried, but rather, her role was simply too easy. Aside from the buff that she put on Ian and Ly every so often, it was a situation where she just needed to check her Health and focus everything on healing or shielding. However, this kind of control was something that even a person playing Priest for the first time could do. Originally, Priests were well-known to boast their level of difficulty, which was the highest among the Combat Classes. It wasn¡¯t like it needed detailed control, but it was a position that needed an eye that knew how to see the whole battlefield or else they wouldn¡¯t be able to do their job properly if their range was small. ¡®It seems like Harin has room to relax.¡¯ After Ian killed the Goblin he was facing, he glanced over at Ly. Of course, Ly was flying around like crazy. Grrr-. Grr-. The Goblin Warriors had a stronger fighting power than the Goblin Scouts, but if Ly bit them a few times, they turned into a grey light without question and disappeared. Although Ly¡¯s Defensive Power and Health were weak and Ly¡¯s Health went up and down as if it was performing an acrobatic feat, Harin had a blocking buff, so it wasn¡¯t as dangerous of a situation. You have killed a Goblin Warrior. You have obtained 910 EXP. ¡­Omission¡­ You have killed a Goblin Warrior. You have obtained 925 EXP. Despite Harin obviously dividing the EXP with Ly, an unbelievable amount of EXP poured in. You have leveled up. You are now lv 27. Only about 3 hours had passed since they started fighting, but they leveled up again. ¡®This is what I¡¯m talking about!¡¯ Ian felt his exhaustion relieve through the repeated hunting. The Goblin Camping Ground Quest could be divided into three parts. The first part was a violent collision between the swarming Goblin Warriors and the vigilantes. This part took about 5 hours to complete if he was fast, 7 hours if he took long. If it took longer than that, it was normal to say that you failed. Because of this first part, despite the Goblin Camping Ground Quest giving a huge amount of EXP, it was not popular. Combat without rest for almost a quarter of the day! Unless you were a grinder like Ian or a pervert that found entertainment in hunting, it was a quest that you could only avoid. After finishing the first part, the second part was a little easier. While the vigilantes are fighting the Goblin Chief, if you found and caught all the Goblin Rangers that hid and shot arrows, then you cleared that part. And lastly, if you helped the vigilantes kill the Goblin Chief, all the quests would be completed. Depending on how many Goblin Warriors you caught in the first part, you could say that the level of difficulty would be decided for the second part and third part. Ian clenched his fist. ¡°We¡¯ll hit at least 30 here and leave.¡± A determination towards fast growth. And based on Ly¡¯s action state, it looked as if Ian¡¯s plan could be fulfilled sufficiently. However, even in this situation where it looked as if there was nothing that could be better, Ian felt unsatisfied. He felt that it was a pity that the EXP of the Goblin Warriors, that were being hunted by the vigilantes, were going to waste. ¡®If Ly had something like an AoE attack, it would be better¡­¡¯ The advantage of an AoE attack was that even if you dealt a little damage on them, you gained a little bit of EXP. Suddenly, there was a monster that flashed across Ian¡¯s mind. ¡®Oh, why didn¡¯t I think of that sooner!¡¯ It wasn¡¯t a hunting ground, but there was a location that Magicians needed to pass through to learn freezing magic before they turned lv 40. Abysmal Lake. The Abysmal Lake was a huge lake that you could see the horizon from. And in the middle of that lake, there was an island made of ice. It was well-known because there was a quest there that allowed you to get freezing magic. The monsters that appeared on the island were Ice Golems that were similar in level to the Half-Moon Bear, but there weren¡¯t many of them and they were quite picky to hunt compared to their level; so, it was a location that nobody used as a hunting ground. ¡®Once I finish this Goblin Quest, I¡¯m going to go catch an Ice Golem.¡¯ The thing that Ian remembered was the Ice Golems inherent skill. ¡®Ice Wave.¡¯ It was a magic AoE attack with quite a large range. It was a skill in the form of a shock wave, and its damage wasn¡¯t that strong. However, he was for sure that its usefulness will be incredible because it can inflict damage with an ice attribute over a wide range and could leave a slowing effect. On top of that, Ice Golems¡¯ Health were high, so if you were just careful about magic affiliated with fire, he felt that it could take on the role of a great tanker. After deciding the new Familiar he would recruit, Ian felt stronger. In that manner, most likely indebted to Ian and Ly¡¯s active part, the first part of the Camping Ground Quest was completed in a short duration of 4 hours. @ Rukin was going through an incredibly bewildering experience. ¡®What the hell is with that guy? His Familiar shouldn¡¯t be at a level where it could come here already¡­?¡¯ He had forgotten to fight and just stared at the red wolf absent-mindedly. For the purpose of leveling up today, he came to Saumur Canyons with the thought of monopolizing the Goblin Camping Ground Quest, even paying two of his guild members for their efforts. However, a 2-people party was catching Goblin Warriors at a fast rate that could be comparable his party that included two early lv 50s. Rukin was infuriated. ¡®Based on that wolf¡¯s fighting power, it looks as if it¡¯s at least lv 60¡­ What the hell is this¡­¡¯ And conclusively, he came up with his own results. ¡®I¡¯m positive he has an artifact that allows him to summon a special Familiar!¡¯ Rukin¡¯s assumption was reasonable. In Kailran, there were artifacts that had a sealing magic that allowed you to call out a monster here and there. That¡¯s why, before the Summoner class appeared, there were cases where users here and there could call out a Familiar. However, even if it was an artifact that had a low-level monster sealed into it because it was so rare, its price was unbelievable. Therefore, it was common for a normal player to have not had even seen it. Going crazy at the though, Rukin developed a greed. As the first part¡¯s combat started to finish up, Rukin called his two colleagues over. ¡°Falcon, Millun. Come over here for a second.¡± ¡°Why, Rukin, what¡¯s up?¡± At Millun¡¯s response, Rukin continued his words with a polite voice. ¡°You saw the monster that the user over there is using, right?¡± ¡°I saw. You¡¯re talking about the red wolf, right?¡± ¡°Yeah, what do you think about it.¡± At Rukin¡¯s words, Millun asked back with a puzzled expression. ¡°Think about what? He must be a Summoner.¡± Rukin shook his head, frustrated at Millun, and spoke again. ¡°No, you saw how that thing fought, right? If it¡¯s a Summoner that can hunt here, then that means that he¡¯s at least lv 40¡­ but looking at just the wolf¡¯s fighting power, doesn¡¯t it look like it could be over lv 60?¡± Falcon and Millun listened without a word and Rukin continued his words. ¡°How long has it been since the Summoner class was opened for him to already reach lv 40? No matter how hard he tried, at least lv 20, anything higher would be difficult.¡± As Rukin¡¯s words finished, Falcon and Millun¡¯s eyes grew slightly. This was because, different from Rukin, they were catching Goblins without much thought. ¡°Oh! Now that I think about it, you¡¯re right!¡± ¡°No kidding. That¡¯s right, I saw in the community, but I think the highest-level person confirmed on the Summoner bulletin board was lv 17 or 18!¡± Rukin¡¯s eyes shone. ¡°Then in that case, what could the identity of the red wolf that the user is handling be?¡± Falcon spoke cautiously. ¡°By any chance¡­ an artifact that has monster summoning magic¡­?¡± Millun had an expression of surprise and Rukin nodded. ¡°That¡¯s right, those are my thoughts, too.¡± Rukin glanced around at the surrounding for a moment. Now that the first part was finishing up and based on the Goblin Archers running in all directions, the second part was about to begin. ¡°Roughly looking at the way they fight, the Priest is a girl who doesn¡¯t really know what to do properly and, if it wasn¡¯t for the wolf, that staff-holding guy is nothing much, either. His weapon is a staff, but he does close combat. It looks as if he doesn¡¯t have any threatening magic, either.¡± Falcon and Millun accurately understood Rukin¡¯s meaning. CH 27 Chapter 27: Goblin Camping Ground (3) TL: Haku Editor: adkji ¡°Then, are you saying we should PK (Player Kill) that guy?¡± At Millun¡¯s words, Rukin pressed his finger to his lips and continued his words with a cautious tone. ¡°Be quieter, Millun.¡± ¡°Oh, alright, sorry.¡± Falcon spoke with a slightly uneasy expression. ¡°But, isn¡¯t it a bit of a hasty judgment?¡± Truthfully, they weren¡¯t expert PK-ers but, depending on their needs, they were people that had experience killing other users occasionally without hesitation. Between the three of them, there was no one that would feel guilty over something like this. The only thing they were anxious about was the items dropped by the killed user were of low value compared to the penalty received from doing PK. Once dropped to Infamy, it was hard to recover from it, so discretion was necessary. ¡°Think about it. If we pick up and sell one Summoning Magic Artifact, it¡¯s at least 20 million gold. Even if we divide it between the three of us, each person can pick up 6-7 million gold.¡± Gulp-. Millun gulped without realizing it himself. To them, who were about lv 50, 20 million gold was truly an astronomical amount. Even when it was converted to cash, it was a fortune approaching 40 million Won[1]. They were naturally moved by greed. ¡°If we make it big, we won¡¯t have to worry about equipment until lv 80 at the least. And you want to let this opportunity pass by?¡± ¡°¡­¡± The other two said nothing. However, Rukin read their desire just from looking at their gaze. When Rukin thought that they had almost fallen for it, he began to talk about his plan. ¡°And I have a brilliant thought.¡± At his secretive voice, Millun opened his mouth. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Those amateurs will definitely not know about the Chief Priest Quest.¡± ¡°Probably. Since it is quite high-class information.¡± The fighting power in Ian¡¯s party was nothing special when Ly was excluded, at least, from what they had seen. ¡°If we tell them about the Chief Priest Quest and act like we¡¯re being generous, then they¡¯ll probably loosen their guard on us.¡± ¡°And?¡± ¡°And next, well, we act like we¡¯re completing the quest with them and at a crucial moment, we¡¯ll hit them from the back. If that wolf helps out, it should be able to catch all of the Goblin Warriors¡­ We just need to catch them off guard before the Chief Priest dies.¡± There was nothing greatly amazing about Rukin¡¯s plan, but it was definitely a plan that looked reasonable. Additionally, Millun and Falcon were already blinded by their desires. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s do that.¡± While they were talking, the second part of the quest began. They exchanged glances with each other and firstly moved to progress with the quest. They just needed to do what they had been doing until they caught the Goblin Chief. @ Before they knew it, they were reaching the final stages of the quest. The quest would be completed once they caught the leftover Goblin Warriors and the Chief. Harin was doing better than expected and, through Ly¡¯s explosive active part, Ian¡¯s level would reach 30 at any moment now. ¡®What special class skills will I get?¡¯ All classes got two special class skills every time they reached lv 30, lv 60, lv 90. The skills you gained during those times were not fixed, but instead, it was different for each person. So, users thought that at every level intervals of 30 were important. This was because, if you gained good skills starting from the early stages, it would be easier to develop and you could raise the proficiency of those skills beforehand. It was understood throughout the community that the special class skills you gained were both 100% random, but Ian believed that was wrong. ¡®For special class skills, when you reach the lv 30 point, you gain one skill related to or linked to the skill which you have the highest proficiency in. The other one is completely random, not both are random.¡¯ When Ian was an Archer, he obtained the two skills ¡®Sniper¡¯ and ¡®Concentration¡¯ when he became lv 30. The skill with the highest proficiency that Ian had at the time was Intersection Increase, and just as he had expected, he gained the Sniper skill. This was not just from Ian, but it¡¯s a conclusion drawn from the base of many other users¡¯ data, so he was almost sure of this formula. ¡®The skill with the highest proficiency from what I have right now is¡­¡¯ Ian examined his skill window. Shortly after the skill with the highest proficiency caught his eye. Intermediate-level Training Classification: Active Skill Skill Level: Lv 3 Proficiency: 79% Cooldown Time: 25 minutes For 15 minutes, the appointed Familiar will be put into ¡®Training¡¯ status.The Familiar in the ¡®Training¡¯ status will have a higher understanding towards commands than usual and will learn the commands.The more ¡®Training¡¯ is repeated, the Familiar¡¯s ¡®Potential¡¯ increases.The higher ¡®Intermediate-level Training¡¯s skill level, the bigger the range to increase Potential. The only skill that was raised to Intermediate level 3 was, as expected, ¡®Intermediate-level Training¡¯, the one that Ian used attentively. ¡®In the end, Intermediate-level Training is a skill that raises Potential¡­ so will I get a skill related to Potential?¡¯ Even just thinking about it, it made his heart race. ¡®In any case, the other one is random¡­ but I hope I get a skill related to capturing.¡¯ Ian caught the Goblin Warriors in front of his eyes while imagining things that made him feel good. Whether it was because his level went up or he got used to the fighting method, Ian was quite good at facing the Goblins with his staff now. ¡°Ian, I¡¯ve only got 5% left of my divine magic!¡± Ian, who heard Harin¡¯s words, immediately gave a command to Ly. ¡°Ly, help Harin! And Harin, fall back a little!¡± When they first started hunting, they used the method where Ly stuck to Harin¡¯s side and killed the Goblins that charged towards her. However, as Ly and Ian¡¯s levels increased and Ly got stronger, Ly ended up going in a little deeper and fought there. At Ian¡¯s command, Ly jumped and killed the Goblin facing Harin at lightning speed. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ dealt critical damage to a Goblin Warrior!The Goblin Warrior¡¯s Vitality decreased by 1675 (94% of its total Health).You have killed the Goblin Warrior. You have obtained 921 EXP. At the fearful fighting power of Ly, who had gotten stronger, the Goblin Warriors that were about to attack Harin turned into a grey light in an instant. ¡°Thanks, Ly.¡± Grr grrrr-. Ian felt a bit of jealousy as he watched Ly share a warm conversation(?) with Harin but he was, once again, busy hunting the EXP in front of his eyes. And the final destination of the quest, the Goblin Chief appeared from the barracks. ¡°Kael-Kael-! For humans to have dare come all the way here, kill them all!¡± As the Goblin Chief raised his staff, a flame shot up from all directions. Blaze-! As a barrier of fire surged from here and there, the vigilantes shouted at the heat. ¡°Ack!¡± ¡°My armor caught on fire!¡± ¡°Save me!¡± It was common for the numbers of the vigilantes to not even reach 30% when the Goblin Chief appeared. That¡¯s why it was normal to not have that many people get hit by this sporadic flame skill, but it looked as if Ian and Rukin¡¯s two parties, that participated in this quest, took a much more active role than the average power, so they both still had more than half of their strengths left. At that fault, there were more vigilantes hit by the flame magic than expected. Suppression Captain Hugo, who was fighting in the frontlines, let out a lion roar. ¡°Army, charge! If we kill that one, then this fight is over!¡± Along with Hugo¡¯s lion roar, a system message popped up. Allies¡¯ fighting spirit will increase 30%.For 20 minutes, all stats will rise 10%. The vigilantes, who even received the wide area buff, charged towards the Goblin Chief altogether. Ian began to pour out a fierce attack onto the Goblin Chief as well. Along with the Weak Point Capturing skill being invoked, Ly bit the Goblin Chief¡¯s shoulder joint at lightning speed. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ dealt critical damage to a Goblin Chief!The Goblin Chief¡¯s Vitality decreased by 1215 (0.7% of its total Health).The Goblin Chief has gone into ¡®Bleeding¡¯ state, so 243 damage will be dealt per second for 10 seconds. As the Goblin Chief was a boss monster, despite being a magician-like monster, its Health and Defensive Power was unbelievable. However, the leftover Goblin Warriors were all killed shortly after and its Health began to rapidly drop as it gained the focus of many people. The Goblin Chief has 52,071 Health (30% of its total Health) left.The Goblin Chief has changed into ¡®Double Width¡¯ state. ¡°Roaaaar-!¡± The Goblin Warrior let out a horrible shriek full of fury and swung its staff around. Bang bang bang-! Then, explosions rose from here and there and many vigilantes were killed again. You have been hit by the chain explosions. You have received 684 damage. Ian couldn¡¯t avoid the explosions as well and received an incredible amount of damage. ¡°Ow, this hurts like hell!¡± Ian grumbled and was about to invoke the First Aid skill when a white light wrapped around his body and sank in. Party member ¡®Harin¡¯ cast Light of Healing. You have recovered 1,020 Health. He was taken aback momentarily at the unexpected heal, but Ian slightly bowed his head towards Harin and focused on fighting again. Because the Goblin Chief turned more violent as it became the final stage, so if you made a mistake, you could die in vain. Like that, 10 minutes passed and, in the end, the Goblin Chief¡¯s form turned into a grey light and collapsed down. You have killed the Goblin Chief. You have obtained 6,740 EXP.You have contributed the most to the ¡®Goblin Camping Ground Quest¡¯. Your Fame has increased 124. And finally, another message that made him happy popped up. You have leveled up. You have reached lv 30.You have gained the special skill ¡®Familiar Skill Grant¡¯.You have gained the special skill ¡®Space Distortion¡¯. [1] 40,000,000 KWD = 34,032.00 USD CH 28 Chapter 28: Goblin Camping Ground (4) TL: Haku Editor: Stealth Ian barely held back his mouth from hanging open. This was because the punitive force captain Hugo approached him as he had the highest level of contribution. ¡°Thank you. It was Ian, right?¡± ¡°yes, Captain.¡± ¡°Thanks to you, we were able to suppress the camping ground without much damage.¡± ¡°Not at all. The vigilantes were courageous, which is why we were able to successfully fulfill the mission.¡± After shaking hands with Ian, Hugo expressed his gratitude to the other users one by one. ¡°Since the mission is completed, we should return now.¡± Hugo raised his sword. ¡°Good work, gentlemen! We will return to the town!¡± ¡°Whoooooooo!¡± The vigilantes turned the heads of their horses and started to head back to the town, while Ian plopped onto the ground to rest his body a little from the long battle. ¡®Shall we check the gained skills now?¡¯ Just from the name itself, the two skills both raised his curiosity incredibly. Ian opened his skill window while sitting down to rest. Familiar Skill Grant Classification: Active Skill Skill Level: Lv 0 Proficiency: 0% Cooldown Time: 24 hours One random skill will be granted to a Familiar. Every time Skill Grant is casted, the targeted Familiar will consume 20 Potential, and in the case that Skill Grant is casted on a Familiar that was already granted with a skill, the existing granted skill will be transformed into the new skill. The higher the level and the proficiency of Skill Grant, the higher the chance of the Familiar obtaining a high-class skill. Ian, who opened the first skill, nodded his head. ¡®As expected, one skill related to Potential formed.¡¯ And shortly after, he let out an exclamation inside himself. ¡®To grant a Familiar a skill¡­! I must grant Ly a new skill.¡¯ Ian checked how much Ly¡¯s Potential was. ¡®Ly¡¯s Potential is only at 6.¡¯ This was because to evolve, it consumed 100 Potential. ¡®Once his Potential reaches 20, the first thing I¡¯ll do is grant a skill.¡¯ He also wanted to quickly collect 100 Potential and see his next evolution but he felt it would be more favourable to grant a skill first. Ian, who had roughly grasped what the first skill was about, opened the second skill. Space Distortion Classification: Active Skill Skill Level: Lv 0 Proficiency: 0% Cooldown Time: 3 minutes Among the Familiars summoned, you switch positions with one of the Familiars you want to change with. During the 0.5-1 second that the skill is being invoked, you must not receive any attacks for it to be invoked normally. The higher the level and the proficiency of Space Distortion, the shorter the cooldown time. ¡®It¡¯s a little disappointing that an attacking skill or one related to capturing didn¡¯t come out¡­ but at least a skill that could be useful in combat came out.¡¯ Ian was quite satisfied after reading both the skills. He thought that the skills he gained were excellent. While Ian was organizing the skills and items he obtained, Harin approached him with a satisfied expression. ¡°Ian, thank you, because of you I was able to clear the quest.¡± Harin looked exhausted but her expression was incredibly bright. ¡°Haha, it¡¯s nothing. You¡¯ve done the work of more than one person.¡± ¡°Still, if it wasn¡¯t for you, I wouldn¡¯t have been able to clear it. Thank you for your hard work.¡± Ian petted Ly, who came next to him before he knew it and sat down, and replied. ¡°Rather than me, it¡¯s this one who put in a lot of work, honestly.¡± Harin agreed. ¡°No kidding, I was really surprised while watching Ly. His combat skills are unbelievable.¡± Harin, who turned her attention towards Ly, smiled brightly and crouched down in front of him. ¡°Ly, thank you for today.¡± As if his mood lifted at Harin¡¯s words, Ly growled. Grr-. Grrr-. However, just then, Rukin and his party, who were organizing their obtained items, approached Ian. ¡®What¡¯s this? Are they trying to thank us for our hard work.¡¯ They weren¡¯t users that he had a good impression of but he couldn¡¯t act as if he didn¡¯t know they were approaching him, so Ian brushed his butt and stood up from his spot. Eventually, Rukin held out his hand towards Ian and greeted him. ¡°It¡¯s nice to meet you. My name is Rukin. Because of the quest, I was in a daze and am only greeting you now.¡± Ian took his hand and responded. ¡°I was also in a daze. It¡¯s nice to meet you, too, my name is Ian.¡± Rukin, who had a simple introduction with Ian, slowly pulled out his point. ¡°But, Ian, I was wondering if you would like to do another quest with us by any chance?¡± ¡°A quest?¡± Rukin nodded. ¡°Yes, we know another hidden quest that is related to the Camping Ground Quest.¡± Ian¡¯s eyes shone momentarily but nobody was able to notice that instant change of expression. ¡®If it¡¯s a hidden quest related to the Camping Ground, that means it¡¯s probably the Chief Priest Quest¡­¡¯ Originally, because of the level of difficulty, he was going to give up but during the Camping Ground Quest, he raised his level a lot more than he was expecting, so he was actually slightly considering it. And in the midst of that, they had approached him. But Ian wondered. ¡®But these guys¡­ just by roughly looking, those two seem like they¡¯re over lv 50 but why are they trying to drag us into the Chief Priest Quest?¡¯ Ian was in a situation where he already had an assumption of what level the two were at after seeing Falcon and Millun fight in the middle of the battle. Especially because Millun was an Archer, just by looking at the combination of skills he used a couple times, he could assume what level he was. ¡®I have a bad feeling about this¡­¡¯ Ian suspected something strange but he acted as if he didn¡¯t know anything. ¡°Oh, there¡¯s a related hidden quest?¡± At Ian¡¯s na?ve(?) expression, Rukin yelled in delight on the inside. ¡°yes, it¡¯s called the Goblin Chief Priest Quest and if you go around through the tunnel behind the barracks, the Chief Priest is there. It¡¯s a quest where you just need to kill him.¡± Beside him, Falcon assisted. ¡°He is weaker than the Chief but we thought it would be too hard on our own. From the looks of how you fight, it looks like you also have a Summoning Magic Artifact¡­ We thought it would be easily accomplishable if the Priest joined as well.¡± Falcon said those words to probe Ian and to see if he really had an artifact, but through words, Ian was able to become certain of their intentions. ¡®Ah-ha, would you look at these guys. They thought that Ly was a Familiar that was summoned through a Summoning Magic Artifact, huh?¡¯ The corners of Ian¡¯s mouth slightly rolled up. ¡®Since the artifact is expensive, they were going to catch me and try to make it big¡­¡¯ If it were the beginner days where Ian knew nothing, he would have taken their proposal without any suspicions but he was a veteran user that had seen so many situations like these before resetting. To this Ian, Rukin¡¯s party was too lax. ¡®Should we go the other way around and screw them up?¡¯ Ian, who made up his mind, sent a message to Harin. Ian: Harin. At the sudden message, Harin flinched but as she was not clueless, she responded with a message instantly. Harin: Yes, Ian, why suddenly through message¡­? Ian: Just now¡­ As the others could be suspicious if they didn¡¯t respond for a while, Ian firstly smiled brightly and responded to Rukin¡¯s proposal. ¡°I would love to but I¡¯ll ask my party members as well. Could you wait a moment?¡± Rukin nodded. ¡°Absolutely.¡± Ian approached Harin. ¡°Harin, you heard Rukin¡¯s words, right? What do you think?¡± ¡°Yes¡­ I¡­.¡± While speaking, Ian sent a message to Harin at the same time. Ian: Harin, I think those guys are trying to PK us. Harin: Huh? PK? Ian: Yes. While doing the Chief Priest Quest, they¡¯ll most likely kill us when they see an opportunity. Accurately, though, rather than ¡®us¡¯, it was ¡®Ian¡¯. Harin: Then what should we do? Ian: Firstly, respond to my question saying that it sounds good. Harin was taken aback at the unexpected response but as Ian¡¯s expression was so composed, she instantly regained her composure and followed his lead. ¡°Sounds good. There¡¯s no reason for me to reject the offer when they¡¯re willing to share the hidden quest with me.¡± After Harin nodded her head and expressed her approval, she instantly sent a message again. Harin: What are you planning on doing? Ian: What am I planning? We need to catch these idiots instead. Harin: Huh? Will it be alright? Ian: Yes, don¡¯t worry. I have an idea. Ian, who reassured Harin, returned to Rukin and opened his mouth. ¡°Harin says it sounds good.¡± ¡°Haha, as expected, I knew you would consent. Thank you.¡± To reassure Rukin, Ian expressed his gratitude with exaggeration. ¡°You¡¯re willing to share the hidden quest with us, so we¡¯re truly thankful. If something drops from the Chief Priest set, we¡¯ll give it to you.¡± ¡°Haha¡­ You don¡¯t have to¡­¡± Rukin yelled in delight on the inside again. ¡®Na?ve guy¡­ Hehe. A guy that¡¯s so rich that he has a Summoning Magic Artifact, he probably doesn¡¯t even see the Chief Priest set as an item.¡¯ The Chief Priest set was an armor set that was suitable for magic users around lv 40-50. The price was around 50 million-80million gold per piece and it was quite a good item. On the other hand, Ian cluck his tongue on the inside. ¡®How should I roast these stupid guys so that I feel better?¡¯ Ian felt if he could ambush them first even now, he could suppress these guys but in order to find a better way, he put his brain to work. There was no need to put up with any risk. ¡®These guys aren¡¯t even worth putting up a risk of raising Infamy¡­¡¯ Just then a good idea popped up in Ian¡¯s mind. ¡®Alright, if it¡¯s this method¡­!¡¯ Ian, who thought of a satisfying method on his own, snickered to himself. A wicked smile hung from his mouth. Ian¡¯s Plan (1) ¡°As expected, Kailran¡¯s clean air is refreshing no matter when you breathe it in.¡± Looking about 50, a middle-aged man with salt-and-pepper hair and a strict expression sat down on a large rock and stretched. ¡°The scientists who implemented this incredible virtual reality are really wonderful.¡± The place where the man was sitting on was the highest peak of Robos Mountain, Merkan Peak. Looking down from the top of the peak could simply be described as grand. Sharp, steep cliffs, oddly shaped rocks, colourful fall foliage as well as a spilling waterfall that twisted along the valley! ¡°Starting next month, I must persuade the members of the Gipilko Mountain Club in climbing with me in Kailran.¡± The man, who felt allurement while sitting on the rock, pulled out a lunch box from his backpack and began to eat. It was only 10 silver for one roll, and it tasted amazing, Trombone¡¯s famous food, Kimbap! While he over-exaggerated his admiration for the Kimbap¡¯s flavour, he enjoyed the scenery of Merkan Peak. However, just then. ¡°Neukttol, summon!¡± As he shouted his order, one black wolf appeared. A-wooo-! The wolf howled before sitting next to him and leaning his head. ¡°Neukttol, eat one of these.¡± The man tossed a piece of meat from the deer he hunted on the way up from his backpack. As he did that, the wolf took a bite of the meat with a happy expression and began to chew it. ¡°It¡¯s really relaxing and nice.¡± He thought. ¡®Kailran is not something you consider as merely a game. It¡¯s indeed another world! Virtual reality in a true sense!¡¯ He was not a scientist that was experimenting on virtual reality. The thing he was experimenting was studies related to virtual reality¡¯s social and cultural influence on reality and its possibilities. His identity was Korea University¡¯s principal professor of the VR department, Lee Jinook. ¡°Neukttol, shall we slowly head down now?¡± Grr- Grr-! In reality, he was also an environmental enthusiast that really liked mountain climbing and nature as well as animals. And in Kailran, there was a class that fit perfectly with him, precisely the Summoner. ¡°I want to go up the Flanian Peak next but they said there are dangerous monsters at lv 17 there, right?¡± Jinook had a warm smile as he watched Neukttol, who tagged along next to him. This one was a precious Familiar that he just barely caught after grilling all the assistants that played Kailran. ¡°Neukttol, let¡¯s work hard to level up and go climb Flanian Peak next!¡± Grr- Grr-! As if Neukttol was expressing his excitement, he jumped up in the air. Jinook moved with light steps. And suddenly he remembered the one freshman that boldly made a nonsense bet with him. ¡®That lying brat is still probably gaming, right? Should I have at least asked what his class was?¡¯ Jinook moved his feet while humming to himself. He felt that Kailran¡¯s sky was especially clear today CH 29 Chapter 29: Ian¡¯s Plan (2) TL: Haku Editor: Stealth ¡°Ian, please block that side!¡± ¡°Harin, heals over here please!¡± Rukin¡¯s party and Ian, Harin, altogether five of them, were getting through the Goblin Camping Ground hidden quest, the Chief Priest Quest, step by step. Because the fighting powers of the five were quite strong, they were proceeding with the quest without many obstacles. As Rukin was the one that knew about the quest the most on the surface, Ian and Harin silently followed his demands well and moved accordingly. ¡®The final stage of the quest is starting to show. Shall we slowly get ready?¡¯ Rukin was happy as he felt everything was going as he had planned. Soon the hidden boss, the Goblin Chief Priest would appear and after pretending to fight alongside them, he just needed to hit the two from behind and catch them at the end. Just by thinking of the artifact worth tens of millions of Won that would fall into his hands soon enough already made it hard to keep his face straight. On the other hand, Ian was also snickering on the inside in his own way. ¡®Since the boss will appear soon, I have to tell Harin.¡¯ Ian turned his gaze towards Harin slightly and sent a message. Ian: Harin, the boss is going to appear soon.Harin: Then what should we do? Ian continued to fight naturally as he followed through with his messages so that Rukin¡¯s party wouldn¡¯t notice. Ian: You see that place that looks like a prison, right?Harin: Yes.Ian: Around 5 seconds after someone takes a step into that entrance, the boss appears. Then that entrance gets blocked by a lattice. Harin listened to Ian¡¯s words as she continued to fight diligently, while Ian continued his words. Ian: The two of us need to be at the back of the party and once I give a signal, we need to escape from the back as fast as possible.Harin: Won¡¯t they be suspicious of us?Ian: I¡¯m going to send Ly to the very front so that they can¡¯t be suspicious. Harin was slightly taken aback at those words. Harin: Huh? Then what about Ly?Ian: As soon as the boss phase starts, I just need to Summon Release Ly, so don¡¯t worry. Ian had set up an incredibly detailed plan. Precise even in backstabbing! ¡®Reverse-bullying is more thrilling than picking up a Heroic-rank item.¡¯ Rukin¡¯s party, who hadn¡¯t caught onto Ian¡¯s elaborate reverse-scheme, was cheerily proceeding with the quest. ¡°It looks like we¡¯re almost done cleaning up the surroundings!¡± At Rukin¡¯s words, Ian agreed with matching enthusiasm. ¡°It seems so. Will the boss appear now?¡± ¡°Yes, Ian. You see over there, right? The Chief Priest and Berserkers will appear from there now.¡± ¡°Ah, I see!¡± It was all content that he knew but it was perfect acting as if it was really his first time hearing it. Ian was completely immersed in the scheme he had planned and was playing out the method. ¡°Now, get moving!¡± At Rukin¡¯s words, Ian nodded and gave Ly a command. ¡°Ly, let¡¯s go! You take the lead.¡± Grrr! Just as Ian commanded, Ly took the lead and began to move, while Rukin, Falcon, and Millun erased all their suspicions and followed Ly cheerfully. Every one of Ian¡¯s nerves was bristled up as he seized the moment that Ly stepped into the entrance of the prison. ¡®5¡­ 4¡­ 3¡­ Now¡­!¡¯ Ian: Harin, now! At the same time as Ian¡¯s message, Harin and Ian threw their bodies backward quickly and just as Ian planned, an iron bar gate dropped and lodged itself down on the prison¡¯s entrance, blocking it. Creak- Clang-! And along with a red light, three hidden monsters began to be summoned inside the prison. ¡°What, what the hell? Why didn¡¯t you come in?¡± At the unexpected situation, Rukin turned to look at Ian, taken aback, and exclaimed. It seemed as though he thought that the two ran outside on accident, as Ly was inside. ¡®I could proceed with the plan right away but since I¡¯m still a little suspicious¡­¡¯ Ian was sure of their intention, but there was still no evidence. He felt like he needed proof they were planning to PK him for him to truly feel justified in killing the two. Ian began to lay out an act again with his whole body. His way of speaking also changed. ¡°Hoho¡­ To be honest, I actually overheard the conversation you guys had earlier.¡± At those words, Rukin¡¯s expression stiffened. ¡°What, What¡­!¡± ¡°You went in, planning on PK-ing us and possessing the Summoning Magic Artifact, I already knew everything.¡± While speaking, Ian looked at Rukin and the two others¡¯ expressions. As there was no reaction yet, Ian threw in another word. ¡°We followed you here for EXP but there¡¯s no reason for us to play along with you guys until the end, haha. We¡¯ll be heading out now, so good luck to the three of you.¡± Rukin¡¯s attitude changed when he was convinced he was caught at those words. Rukin wore a nasty smile. ¡°Idiot.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°If you had heard those words, you should have already run away.¡± Ian pretended as if he didn¡¯t know and asked again. ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± ¡°It¡¯s your mistake that you don¡¯t know enough about this quest. For this quest, the outward passage doesn¡¯t open unless you kill the Chief Priest monster or the party wipes out. In other words, the only exit passage opens the place the Chief Priest monster was killed.¡± Of course, as it was content that he already knew about, Ian was overflowing with composure. ¡°So?¡± ¡°What do you mean ¡°so¡±? You truly are an idiot. Once we kill the Chief Priest and the prison doors open, it means we just need to kill you then, hehe.¡± Falcon, who was beside him, nodded his head and laughed. ¡°Hoho¡­ You idiot, Millun and I are over lv 50. Even without your guys¡¯ help, we can kill the Chief Priest with our strength.¡± Millun chimed in. ¡°Wash your necks and wait. After we kill the Chief Priest, we¡¯ll make sure to kill you!¡± However, Ian¡¯s reaction was not what they were hoping for. One of the corners of Ian¡¯s mouth curled upwards. It was a rotten smile. ¡°Haha, thanks for confessing.¡± ¡°What?¡± Ian immediately withdrew from the party. And Harin, who saw that, instantly left the party as well. Ian shouted as he pointed at Millun. ¡°Ly, bite him!¡± And Ly, who seemed like he was waiting, bit into the back of Millun¡¯s neck. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ dealt critical damage to ¡®Millun¡¯! ¡®Millun¡¯s Vitality decreased by 1077 (32% of its total Health).¡®Millun¡¯ has gone into ¡®Bleeding¡¯ state, so 215 damage will be dealt per second for 10 seconds. Millun, who was unprepared for the surprise attack, allowed Ly to deal a critical attack and suffered from heavy damage. Although he was over lv 50, the Defensive Power and Health were low as the Archer class¡¯s characteristic, so if Ly¡¯s Offensive Power was just a little stronger, he could have died from the ¡®Bleeding¡¯ damage. ¡°This crazy mutt¡­.!¡± As soon as the three, who were taken aback, lifted their weapons towards Ly, Ian immediately recalled Ly. ¡°Summon Release!¡± Just before Falcon¡¯s club could reach Ly, he turned into a white light and disappeared into the air and the three glared at Ian as if they would rip him apart and kill him. ¡°You bastard! Do you think we won¡¯t be able to kill the Chief Priest like this!¡± Before they knew it, Ian sat down, relaxed, as if he was watching the situation going on in the prison like it was a game. ¡°Yeah, I don¡¯t think you can?¡± As she felt that the situation was proceeding smoothly as Ian planned, relieved Harin approached his side and modestly(?) sat down. Just as Rukin was about to fume and swear, the summoning of the hidden monsters was completed. ¡°Let¡¯s see if you can be that relaxed a little later!¡± Millun did suffer from a little injury but Rukin thought that there was still hope if he recovered his Health with a potion and fought. Just then, a voice that made the three despair rang out. ¡°Blessings of the Wind! Barbaric Warrior¡¯s Blessing!¡± Then a grim system message rang out. ¡®Blessings of the Wind¡¯ has been invoked. ¡®Fallen Goblin Chief Priest¡¯s Agility will increase by 42%.¡®Fallen Goblin Berserker¡¯s Agility will increase by 42%.¡®Barbaric Warrior¡¯s Blessing¡¯ has been invoked. ¡®Fallen Goblin Chief Priest¡¯s Offensive Power will increase by 35%.¡®Fallen Goblin Berserker¡¯s agility will increase by 35%. Ian had buffed the hidden monsters! Rukin¡¯s expression, which was already pale, was now completely white. The monsters were already opponents that they couldn¡¯t fight against carelessly but they were now in a situation where Millun suffered from a surprise attack from Ly and the monsters had received buffs. ¡°This psy¡­ Psycho!¡± Falcon and Millun also fell into despair. ¡°Eu¡­Eeu¡­!¡± If a user over lv 50 died, they would be losing about one to two days¡¯ worth of EXP. On top of that, as they would lose the equipment that they had, it was an incredible loss. Falcon shook in rage and charged towards the Chief Priest. This was because, although their chance of winning was slim, he couldn¡¯t just die like that. However, at the bright words of Harin that followed shortly after, the three couldn¡¯t help but lose their will to fight. ¡°Ian, I just need to heal, right?¡± Of course, the target of the heal was not Rukin¡¯s party. @ ¡°Lala~.¡± Ian was heading towards the auction while humming. And beside him, Harin was riding Ly in a posture leaning forward to pet his head. ¡®Those good-for-nothings dropped quite good things.¡¯ Rukin and his party, who lost their will to fight, died without strength and left quite good items, and the Goblin Chief Priest and Berserkers that were hunted after each dropped one piece from the Chief Priest set and the Berserker set. It was a situation where he properly divided the gained items with Harin but to sell those items, they were headed to the auction right now. ¡°Ian, thank you. Because of you, I completed the quest¡­ and the earnings are good, too.¡± Harin, who seemed to be only nice and pure, enjoyed the image of Rukin¡¯s party suffering like a child. Ian, who saw that image, felt his back break out slightly in a cold sweat. ¡®Having done that with such a good-natured face was a little creepy¡­ but fair is fair after all.¡¯ ¡°Not at all¡­ You did a lot of work, as well, Harin.¡± Ian beamed. Compared to what he thought in the beginning, it was an incredibly eventful quest. However, based on the results, it was a kind quest that left him with more! ¡®I never expected the Goblin Chief Priest¡¯s Necklace to appear here. This one hurts my stomach a little¡­¡¯ The Goblin Chief Priest¡¯s Necklace was a top-grade necklace that was good enough for a Magician or a Priest class to use until lv 70. It¡¯s market price also started at minimum 70 million gold, making it one of the best lv 40 items. Ian wanted to sell it at the auction and take his share but he couldn¡¯t bear to turn away from Harin, who stared at him with sparkling eyes. ¡®Still, I did take most of the other items, so¡­ It¡¯s not a loss.¡¯ By talking about this and that while walking, they had arrived at the town in no time. Before the two completed the quest, they went to the auction. ¡°You don¡¯t have anything to sell, right, Harin? Wait one moment, please. I¡¯ll sell the items immediately.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Harin nodded her head. ¡°Yes, take your time. I also have cooking ingredients I need to buy, so it¡¯s alright.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± Ian began to sell the items that he obtained from this quest one by one. After putting up the items one by one and calculating the price, the sum was quite large. ¡®After selling everything and the auction fee is deducted¡­ its 66 million gold altogether.¡¯ It was the first satisfying sum he held in his hand since resetting. It was a profit mostly gained from the items the Rukin triangle dropped at the end after dying. Ian was satisfied. ¡®But what is this stone?¡¯ An item in the shape of a slightly big pebble with lingering yellow light was in Ian¡¯s hand. An unusual point was that a warm energy was flowing out of the stone. CH 30 TL: Haku Editor: Stealth An item in the shape of a slightly big pebble with lingering yellow light was in Ian¡¯s hand. An unusual point was that a warm energy was flowing out of the stone. ¡®Is it an item that I can use in place of a hot pack during winter?¡¯ It was one of the items that the three good-for-nothings left behind while dying but Ian couldn¡¯t assume what it was. Even when he opened the item information, it was only written that it was entirely unknown and he couldn¡¯t find a similar item in the auction either. But to just toss it, he was somewhat skeptical, so Ian put the stone within his chest. Ian, who roughly finished cleaning up the items, called Harin. ¡°I¡¯m finished, Harin. Let¡¯s go and finish off the quest now.¡± Harin, who had already bought all the items she needed and was standing nearby, scuttled over to Ian at his calling. ¡°Alright!¡± To complete the quest, the two went to vigilante leader Lapierre. ¡°Oh, Ian. I¡¯m glad you came. I heard about your performance from Hugo! As expected, you are reliable.¡± As he shook hands Lapierre, a system message popped up. You have completed the quest. You have contributed the most in the quest. Clear rank: SSYou have obtained 56,700 gold.You have obtained 1,743,200 EXP.You have leveled up. You have reached lv 32.You have leveled up. You have reached lv 33.You have leveled up. You have reached lv 34. Because of his incredible contribution for the quest, an excessive amount of EXP poured in. On top of that, the gold reward was also quite good. ¡®Ahuehue.¡¯ Ian¡¯s mouth hung from his ears. ¡°Oh, Ian, I leveled up!¡± Harin, who was already at lv 45, also leveled up to hit 46. It was another detail that confirmed how much EXP they had earned. ¡°Congratulations!¡± ¡°Did you not level up, Ian?¡± Ian had not yet revealed his level to Harin. That¡¯s why Harin assumed that Ian was around her level. In the beginning, because Ian¡¯s class was Summoner, she obviously thought his level was low but because of the image that he showed while fighting, she naturally thought it was higher. ¡°Yes, I also leveled up.¡± Ian, who thought it was too troublesome to explain this and that, spoke vaguely before talking to Lapierre again. This was because there was still a reward left for him to receive. ¡°But Chief.¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°I met the Goblin Chief Priest at the back of the camping ground.¡± While speaking, Ian pulled out the Goblin Chief Priest¡¯s headdress from his chest and handed it to Lapierre. Lapierre, who saw that, widened his eyes. ¡°No, this! Are you saying that you¡¯ve killed the Goblin Chief Priest!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Whoa¡­ You¡¯re amazing!¡± As soon as he finished saying those words, another system message about completing a quest popped up in front of Ian and Harin¡¯s eyes. You have completed the quest. Clear rank: B+You have obtained 674,000 EXP.You have leveled up. You have reached lv 35. As it took a long to kill the Chief Priest, the clear rank was only at B+ but Ian, whose level was incredibly low compared to the progressed quest, leveled up again. Lapierre continued his words to Ian, who was grinning from ear to ear. ¡°You are truly surprising. I really didn¡¯t know you would even find the Goblin Chief Priest and kill him for me. The vigilantes had been looking for him for months. How exactly did you find him?¡± Ian, who was in a good mood, spoke humbly. ¡°I was lucky.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not true, no.¡± Lapierre pulled something out from his chest and handed it to Ian. You have obtained ¡®Luspel Empire Mercenary Evaluation Recommendation¡¯. At the system message that popped up after, Ian nodded his head. Truthfully, Ian already knew that Lapierre gave a Mercenary Evaluation Recommendation if you completed the Chief Priest quest. ¡®When I have a reason to go to Myuran, I must get a Mercenary Card after getting the Mercenary Evaluation.¡¯ In Virtual Reality Kailran, there were five large continents. The areas open among them so far were two places, ¡®Colonar Continent¡¯, where most users were active, and ¡®Malakar Continent¡¯, which opened through the update not long ago but not even 10% of Malakar Continent has been developed. The place where Ian was currently active was, of course, Colonar Continent. In Colonar Continent, two enormous empires existed. One of them was the Luspel Empire and Myuran was the capital of Luspel Empire, which was a gigantic city named after the founding hero of the Luspel Empire. ¡®Although I don¡¯t have any reason to go to Myuran before I hit lv 50¡­¡¯ Ian, who took the Recommendation and put it away, shook hands with Lapierre. ¡°If you take this Recommendation, you can take the Mercenary Evaluation of Luspel Empire. As I see excellent mercenary qualifications in you, I¡¯m giving you this Recommendation, so make sure you go to Myuran and take the Mercenary Evaluation.¡± Ian nodded his head as he responded. ¡°Thank you, Chief. I will make sure to take the Mercenary Evaluation.¡± ¡°That¡¯s it, I hope you will continue to work hard for the public order of the Luspel Empire.¡± Harin, who cleared the quest as the same party member, was given the same reward. Harin, who cleared the Chief Priest Quest for the first time unlike Ian, asked Ian about the Recommendation. ¡°Ian, what is this Recommendation? Do you happen to know?¡± ¡°Yes, if you go to the Mercenary guild in Myuran with this, you can take the Mercenary Evaluation.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ What¡¯s the benefit of taking the Evaluation?¡± ¡°Based on your fighting power, you can get a Mercenary Card with a rank equivalent to your skill. If you have a Mercenary Card, it¡¯s easier to get quests from NPCs and you can get pretty good requests from the Mercenary guild.¡± Harin¡¯s eyes shone. ¡°Wow, it¡¯s a good thing. But since I¡¯m only going to be cooking for a while now¡­¡± ¡°Cooking?¡± ¡°Yes, until I¡¯m stuck on a Chef class¡¯s main quest, I¡¯m planning on just raising my cooking skill again.¡± Ian once again felt Harin¡¯s top priority was on cooking and admired her on the inside. ¡®All I know is that Harin¡¯s cooking level is definitely in the top ranks of Kailran.¡¯ The biggest reason why Ian thought this way was because he saw Ly¡¯s stats increase, although for only a short time, through the food that Harin gave him. ¡®Up until now, I had never heard anything about getting a stat buff when eating food even through the community.¡¯ Ian was suddenly curious of Harin¡¯s cooking proficiency. ¡°Harin, could I ask what your Chef class¡¯s proficiency is?¡± Ian was cautious as he was asking personal information but Harin responded while smiling as if it was nothing. ¡°Sure, there¡¯s no reason to kee[ it a secret, anyways. What was my current proficiency again¡­¡± As she was momentarily checking her information window, Harin paused before opening her mouth again. ¡°It¡¯s at High-rank lv 1. I must work hard so I can quickly learn better high-rank skills.¡± ¡°Whoa¡­!¡± He did hear last time by chance that her skills were high-rank but hearing her exact proficiency, he was once again surprised. From what Ian knew, in the case of the most popular production class, the Blacksmith, the most well-known person with the highest proficiency was at High-rank lv 3. As the Chef was a class with even less popularity, he was positive that Harin was a user in the top ranks. Ian¡¯s flattery skill that he used to raise his Affinity with NPCs, which he usually perfected, was invoked. ¡°I¡¯m rooting for you, Harin. I heard it¡¯s really hard to raise the proficiency of production classes¡­ You¡¯re amazing! If you need my help again next time, let me know.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Harin¡¯s face momentarily lit up. ¡°Thank you very much, Ian. Those words, you have to promise to keep!¡± Ian momentarily flinched. ¡®I didn¡¯t make a mistake with my words¡­ right?¡¯ He was slightly nervous that Harin would ask favours constantly and make it troublesome for him. However, as she was happy, Ian also became happy shortly after. ¡°Yes, of course.¡± As soon as he said those words, a system message popped up in Ian¡¯s view. ¡®Harin¡¯ has requested to list you as a friend. Ian of course accepted. ¡°Then see you next time, Ian. I¡¯ve played for too long, so I think I¡¯ll have to head out now.¡± It was approaching 8 hours since Harin and Ian began the Goblin Camping Ground Quest and had been together up until now. That much time was not a big deal to hardcore gamers like Ian but in the position of a normal user, that could be considered a long time to be logged on. ¡°Alright, Harin. I¡¯ll see you next time.¡± However, Harin, who was about to leave, seemed to have suddenly remembered something as she started to look through her bag. ¡°Ian, this is a gift.¡± Two lunchboxes were in Harin¡¯s hands. ¡°What is this?¡± ¡°This is a dish I made while waiting for you, Ian.¡± It was an instant meal that Harin, who was bored while waiting, swiftly made using her cooking skills. Truthfully, it wasn¡¯t amazing enough to call it a dish but Harin seemed to have been embarrassed saying that she ¡®cooked¡¯ as her face slightly reddened. ¡®What if Ian thinks this is weird?¡¯ Harin slightly covered her two reddened cheeks and slightly glanced at Ian. However, Ian¡¯s eyes only saw the lunchboxes that had steam rising from it. Ian¡¯s face shone. ¡®Just as I thought, Harin was an angel¡­!¡¯ ¡°The one on top is steak and that¡¯s for you, Ian. Ly will probably like if you give him the things that look like meatballs on the bottom. I thought Ly would like it if you gave him one every so often.¡± ¡°Alright, we¡¯ll eat it when we¡¯re hungry.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Harin shook her head. ¡°No, not when you¡¯re hungry, eat it before you fight. There are stat boosts.¡± At those words, Ian gave a bashful laugh. ¡°Ah¡­ right.¡± Harin laughed and nodded her head. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s not a lot of stats but they shouldn¡¯t be low enough to disregard.¡± Ian could agree enough with those words. He felt the difference in 200 Health was quite big while doing the Camping Ground Quest. ¡°Thank you. We¡¯ll eat it well, Harin.¡± ¡°What do you mean, it¡¯s nothing compared to how much you¡¯ve helped me.¡± After sharing a couple more words, Harin logged off. And Ian, who was now left alone, checked the time. ¡°There¡¯s still about 5 hours until it¡¯s time to go to sleep. Since I leveled up faster than I thought, I can probably eat dinner at least properly, right?¡± The Goblin Camping Ground Quest was a repeatable quest. Every time you received the quest, the location of the camping ground that was being attacked changed, but the quest content itself was similar. Ian was originally counting 2 days in order for him to hit lv 35. He thought it would have taken about two Camping Ground Quests. However, with his level of contribution and by engaging into even the hidden quest, he was able to reach his goal in one go, so he was incredibly satisfied. ¡°It¡¯s been a while, so I¡¯ll order chicken and eat that.¡± He felt he could give himself chicken as a reward for being so faithful today. @ Ian, who gobbled up one chicken by himself, hurriedly logged into the game. While eating the chicken, the second wasted Intermediate-level Training haunted him. ¡®Can¡¯t they make macros in virtual reality games? I want to rotate Training even when I¡¯m sleeping¡­¡¯ After Ian logged on, grumbling, he summoned Ly shortly after. ¡°Ly summon!¡± Grr- Grrr-! As soon as Ly was summoned, he rubbed his face against Ian¡¯s hip. His Affinity with Ly now was at its highest, to the point he could no longer raise it up anymore. Ian, who invoked the Intermediate-level Training skill shortly after, got on top of Ly¡¯s back. ¡°Ly, let¡¯s go to Abysmal Lake.¡± Grr-? Ian began to move after petting Ly, who tilted his head. ¡®As I know, the boat that went into Abysmal Lake came in every hour on the hour¡­¡¯ The Abysmal Island was an island that was in the middle of Abysmal Lake. And as it was a place that didn¡¯t have a reason for you to go to unless you were a Magician, it was also called the ¡®Magician¡¯s Island¡¯. ¡®We need to get there in 25 minutes. We¡¯ll have to hurry.¡¯ Ly¡¯s foot movement got faster with Ian on his back. ¡®I thought it was somewhere around here¡­ Am I right?¡¯ Thanks to Ly¡¯s fast movement with Ian on his back, he was able to reach the dock on time. ¡°Ly, it¡¯s over there, you just need to go there.¡± He was worried that since it had been a while, he would get confused but fortunately, he found it in one go and it wasn¡¯t a situation where he missed the boat. ¡°We made it just in time!¡± Ian hurriedly moved and approached the boat. At the dock, there were about four or five people that came before Ian and were getting on the boat. It looked as if the boat just arrived. ¡®There¡¯s fewer people than I thought.¡¯ Before Ian reset, he came to Abysmal Island to help Fiolan with her quest. Back then, it was immediately after the news that a quest related to freezing magic was at Abysmal Island, so the dock was always crowded but compared to then, it was incredibly quiet. Ian rode the boat with Ly. Creaak- Creak-. The sound of the wooden board dragging on was harsh to the ear and Ian grumbled to himself. ¡®I can never get used to this boat no matter how much I ride it. Can¡¯t they use a boat that¡¯s in better condition?¡¯ As this boat that went around Abysmal Lake always went on the same route unmanned, it was also called a ghost ship. Of course, the worn-out appearance also contributed to it gaining the name ghost ship. Ian complained to himself as he sat down on a spot. On the opposite side, there were two females and two males and it looked as though they were a party. As if he felt awkward since it was his first time on a boat, Ly wandered here and there before sitting next to Ian modestly shortly after. However, he kept on looking around and glancing here and there. As it was his first time seeing a lake this big, his eyes were full of curiosity. However, just then, one of the males of the party that was sitting on the opposite side approached Ian. ¡°Hello, do you happen to be a Summoner?¡± The male, who looked as though he was around his early 20s, looked at Ly with incredibly curious eyes. Ian found it a little troublesome but as it looked like the man¡¯s expression was that of pure curiosity, he responded. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m a Summoner. Aside from myself, it looks as though your all one party?¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right. My two friends over there are Magicians and I promised to help them with their freezing magic quest.¡± ¡°Ah-ha, I see.¡± Fortunately, after saying a couple more words, the male quickly lost interest in Ly and returned to his party. Ian slightly leaned his back against the wall of the pilothouse and closed his eyes. It took at least 1 hour to get to Abysmal Island. As there was nothing really to do until then, Ian decided to try to sleep. This was because, although not as much as sleeping in reality, sleeping in the game was quite helpful in recovering fatigue. However, Ian, who closed his eyes and was trying to sleep, heard the voices of the party riding the boat. Because their conversation was about Ian himself, he pricked his ears up. CH 31 Chapter 31: Ian¡¯s Plan (4) TL: Haku Editor: Stealth ¡°Hines, by the way, why is that Summoner user going to Abysmal Lake? Is there a Summoner quest on Abysmal Lake?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, either. It¡¯s not like I¡¯ve tried being a Summoner¡­¡± ¡°No, you could have seen it in the community, though. I just asked since it seemed like you were interested in Summoners lately.¡± ¡°Well¡­ I don¡¯t know. To be honest, there are probably no Summoners who are at the level to go to the Abysmal lake, so there¡¯s no way information about it would have been released.¡± Ian, who was momentarily curious as to what they were talking about, lost interest and tried to sleep. ¡®What the hell, they aren¡¯t talking about much anyways.¡¯ However, when Ian tried to turn his head, a conversation that caught his attention for the first time began. ¡°But Hines, you know my friend Loren, right? The friend that reset his lv 20 Warrior that he was raising and began to raise a Summoner again this time.¡± ¡°Yeah, I know Loren. You were bragging about a Summoner friend of yours that was raising their level incredibly fast. Why?¡± ¡°Ah, it¡¯s nothing else but Loren, was it yesterday? They were bragging that they discovered something called a Familiar¡¯s Egg.¡± ¡°Familiar¡¯s Egg?¡± As soon as he heard the word Familiar¡¯s Egg, Ian¡¯s gaze changed. This was because this was information he was encountering for the first time. Additionally, he developed a slight interest towards the Summoner called Loren, who supposedly was leveling fast. While Ian had both his eyes closed, he listened more carefully to the two peoples¡¯ conversation. The conversation continued. ¡°Yeah, a Familiar¡¯s Egg. He said it was probably the Egg of a Golden Serpent.¡± ¡°How do you know that?¡± ¡°He said he got it from the Golden Serpent Nest, so obviously¡­¡± Ian listened in on their conversation, in hopes of gleaning any more information about the Familiar¡¯s egg. However, no matter how hard he listened, there wasn¡¯t anything noteworthy so he became slightly upset. He lost interest, realizing that the user named Loren was probably not even at lv 30, no matter how fast they leveled. This was because the hunting ground where the Golden Serpent came out was a hunting ground suitable for someone in the mid-20 level range. ¡®But how did they found out something like that existed? I need to find out properly next time.¡¯ Aside from Ian¡¯s thoughts becoming more complicated, the two people continued to talk. ¡°But it seems like they haven¡¯t figured out how to hatch the egg.¡± ¡°Well, wouldn¡¯t it just hatch on its own over time?¡± ¡°Idiot, when you left an egg on its own, did you see it hatch?¡± Ian, who continued to listen to the conversation of the two quarrel with each other, mumbled to himself. ¡®Is it simply just a monster¡¯s egg? What is it exactly? If I find a habitat of a monster, I¡¯ll have to look through it carefully.¡¯ As expected, as it hasn¡¯t been long since the new classes had been released, Ian felt that not only himself but others were finding out new information one after another. ¡®Wouldn¡¯t they have made it possible to use a boss-rank monster that you normally can¡¯t tame as a Familiar if you gain something like an egg¡­?¡¯ Ian¡¯s experimental instinct was once again invoked. ¡®I must be on guard.¡¯ Ian resolved his heart once again. Leveling up was important as well but he thought that he couldn¡¯t just neglect to gather information. They continued their conversation about this and that again but Ian, who decided that there wasn¡¯t much to gain from it, turned his attention away now and turned his head. ¡°Ly, if you see an island over there, wake me up.¡± Grr- Grr-. Ian, who was tired after hunting for a long time, fell asleep immediately and the boat that he was riding on slowly approached Abysmal Island. When about 1 hour passed, a giant island of blue glacial ice slowly began to reveal itself from within the thick fog. Ly, who was looking around while fascinated by the sight he had never seen before in his life, slightly pushed Ian¡¯s shoulder when he clearly saw the large island. Grr-. Grrr-. ¡°Hmm¡­ Are we here now?¡± After Ian stretched, he stood up from his spot. ¡®Even though I¡¯ve already been here once, it¡¯s still fascinating.¡¯ Creaak- Creak-. The bow of the ghost ship slowly reached the island accompanied by an unpleasant creaking sounds. Bump-. Along with the light sound, the boat stopped and the users that boarded the boat, including Ian, got off the boat and observed their surroundings. ¡°Wow, this is my first timing coming to Abysmal Island but something about it is creepy. Since it¡¯s ice all around, it¡¯s also incredibly cold.¡± ¡°No kidding. I¡¯m freezing to death.¡± As the users that got off with him were cold, they began to shiver and were not much different. ¡®Er, should I have dressed more warmly?¡¯ As the other users went to go do the Magician quest, they hurried and headed towards the middle of the island. This was because the location for the Magician quest, Matab, was right in the centre of the island. Ian momentarily looked around before moving his feet. Unlike the other users, he began to move along the coastline instead of towards the middle of the Island. @ Ice Golems were monsters that existed anywhere on Abysmal Island. However, rather than the middle of the island, Ian knew that there were more towards the western coast. ¡°Shall we slowly start grinding?¡± Ian, who found a reasonable area to catch Ice Golems, momentarily sat on a rock. Before earnestly starting, he was planning on eating the food he received from Harin. ¡°Ly, eat this.¡± Ian threw Ly a meatball that Harin gave him. The meatball was very small in comparison to Ly¡¯s large build but he ate it deliciously. And shortly after, a system message popped up in Ian¡¯s view. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ ate the chewy meatball.For 40 minutes, his Health will increase by 100 and his Agility will increase by 20. Ian was in awe at the message that popped up. ¡°Whoa, this time even Agility increased by 20?¡± As he was only expecting Health increase, he was even happier at the extra 20 Agility. On top of that, the duration doubled. ¡°Should I try one, too?¡± Ian lifted a meatball but since a lot of raw meat was mixed in, it had a slightly fishy smell, so Ian gave up. ¡®There was a reason why she said to give it to Ly.¡¯ Ian abandoned all of his desire towards the meatballs and began to eat the steak that Harin gave to him. ¡®Wow¡­ It¡¯s delicious.¡¯ Ian was firstly in awe at the taste. And once he ate all the steak, another message formed. You ate the ¡®Tender, High-grade Steak¡¯.For 1 hour, your Health will increase by 500 and your Defensive Power will increase by 30. Another message that was more surprising popped up in the view of Ian, who was in awe of the effect that was higher than the meatballs. You have eaten a high-grade dish for the first time. All of your stats have permanently increased by 3. Ian had a dazed expression. ¡®My stats are permanently increased?¡¯ Ian checked his information window. Ian Lv?35: 179,540/700,000 (25.64%) Race: Human Class:?Summoner (Taming Master) Nickname:?Master of Hunting Fame:?7536?(if your?fame?drops below 0, it changes into?Infamy) Power:?67 (+15) Agility:?102?(+12) Intellect:?52 (+25) Health:?70?(+40) Affinity: 67 Taming?Ability: 108 Leadership: 105 Vitality:?2955 Mana:?1750 After checking the information window, Ian¡¯s face glowed. ¡®All my stats really increased by 3 each! Affinity, Taming Ability and Leadership increased by 3 each as well¡­!¡¯ Since seven different stats increased by 3 each, he had obtained a total of 21 stats. Simply based on the stats only, he had seen the same results as rising almost 4 levels! Ian suddenly missed Harin. ¡®I think I¡¯m going to have to grill Harin and get some food off of her¡­¡¯ Of course, it seemed as though his stats increased permanently because of the title of first but there was no way of knowing how Harin¡¯s dishes would help him. The taste that slowly melted into your mouth was a bonus. Ian, who was feeling much better, abruptly stood up from his spot. ¡°Let¡¯s go, Ly, to catch those blocks of ice!¡± Grr- Grr-! Ly, who was feeling better after eating a meatball as well, seemed to have felt the excitement along with him, as he began to wag his tail. @ Wiiing-. Trombone, one of Luspel Empire¡¯s major cities. Three users, who were in rags(?), appeared in Trombone¡¯s central square from thin air. The users nearby who saw them began to talk in whispers. ¡°Oppa[1], who are they? Why do they have nothing on? They must be perverts!¡± At the screams of a beginner female user, a male user next to her looked at them with a pitiful gaze and responded. ¡°Those people aren¡¯t perverts but unfortunate people¡­ they¡¯re probably people that died and logged on in 24 hours. You lose all your equipment and items if you die.¡± The female user who heard those words realized the mistake she made with her words and her expression turned apologetic. ¡°Ah¡­ I see¡­ I didn¡¯t know that was the case¡­¡± The users in rags that appeared in the square were none other than Rukin, Falcon, and Millun. They logged on, having lost all the items they had equipped after suffering from the Goblin Chief Priest, who received Ian and Harin¡¯s full support(?). Whether or not the users around them spoke in whispers, Falcon and Millun, who checked their inventories, cried. ¡°Waah¡­.! My Lizard Leather Armor! Do you know how expensive that was¡­!¡± ¡°Falcon, are you acting like that over just your Lizard Leather Armor? I lost my Halio¡¯s Necklace!¡± At the words that Millun had lost his Halio¡¯s Necklace, Falcon¡¯s two eyes widened. ¡°What? Halio¡¯s Necklace? You should have unequipped that first before you died!¡± The moment a user died, items that were equipped dropped at a 100% rate. However, items that were put into the inventory rarely disappeared unless you had really bad luck. Because of that, most users who thought they were going to die, took off their items and put it into their inventory, starting from their most expensive ones. However, at Falcon¡¯s words, Millun mumbled a response with an even weaker voice. ¡°No¡­ Of course I did that. I definitely put it into my inventory¡­ But I have rotten luck, how could it have dropped¡­¡± Halio¡¯s Necklace didn¡¯t particularly had good stats, but it had a distinct option known as range increase that was especially rare, making it expensive. That¡¯s why it was an even more precious item to Millun, who was an Archer. Just then, Rukin, who was just listening to the two peoples¡¯ conversation with a dazed expression, mumbled with a face as if he lived his whole life. He hadn¡¯t even been checking his inventory. ¡°Ha, at least you guys have items that you were able to save¡­ I was the Chief Priest¡¯s first target, so I died. I dropped all my items, unable to save even one, as I died without even a chance to use my hands¡­¡± The reason why he didn¡¯t look through his inventory was because, even if he checked, he had dropped all of his most expensive items. The three men who were surrounded by anger because of the lost items just barely pulled their emotions together and roughly wore any item. This was because they couldn¡¯t continue to walk down the street in their underwear, as even the beginners who had just made their character wore the clothes that were given to beginners. Eu-deu-deuk-! Rukin ground his teeth. And he balled his hands into tight fists, to the point his blood formed in the palm of his hand. He opened his mouth with a shaking voice. ¡°Falcon¡­¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°The assholes that PK-ed us¡­!¡± Falcon¡¯s face shook as he responded. ¡°Yeah, those PK-ers.¡± Already not caring that they were truthfully trying to PK them first, Ian had become an attacker to Rukin and them before they knew it. ¡°That guy, his name was Ian¡­ It was Ian, right¡­?¡± ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right.¡± ¡°And that female Priest¡¯s name was Harin¡­ right?¡± Millun responded next to Falcon in place of him. ¡°That¡¯s right, the pretty girl with the nice body, she said she was Harin.¡± At Millun¡¯s words, Rukin fumed. ¡°No, Millun, you shallow guy. Does it matter if the PK-er had a pretty face and a nice body in this situation?¡± This time, Falcon responded. ¡°Yeah but I think that is a little important.¡± Millun also nodded. ¡°That¡¯s right, it is important.¡± Seeing the two smile broadly at what seemed to be the recollection of Harin¡¯s pretty face, Rukin¡¯s fist trembled with rage. ¡®Ha¡­ I can¡¯t even beat these ones to death either¡­¡¯ Rukin settled down his bubbling rage again and thought cool-headedly(?). ¡®That dude was for sure lousy. If only we didn¡¯t get caught up in his scheme then he would have suffered, not us¡­!¡¯ As his anger subsided, the emotion that bubbled up in place again was greed. ¡®I must find that guy no matter what and take revenge¡­!¡¯ Rukin remembered his guild that belonged in the top 30%. Even if he picked out only the users in his guild that were over lv 70, there were well over twenty of them. If he got their help and placed a death order on Ian, even his bones would be indiscoverable! ¡®I¡¯ll make it so that he won¡¯t even be able to step foot into Kailran starting today!¡¯ Rukin mumbled to himself as he ground his teeth. However, whether his resolution would become a reality was something that needed to be seen in the future. [1] Oppa = a term that a younger female uses to call an close, older male; ¡°older brother¡± CH 32 Chapter 32: New Family Members (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Ugh, Ly, should we rest for a bit?¡± Ian, who checked the stats of the Ice Golem he just caught, shook his head and plopped onto the floor. He looked incredibly tired. Grr-, Grr-. It seemed as though it was tough for Ly too, as he quickly sprawled next to Ian as soon as he said let¡¯s rest. ¡°Ly, do you want to eat a meatball?¡± At the word meatball, Ly, who was lying down with his eyes closed, turned his head towards Ian, his eyes popping open. Ian laughed at that image and gave him a meatball that he pulled out from his bag. ¡°Here you go, eat it.¡± Ly, who took the meatball from Ian, instantly devoured it and licked his lips. And a courtesy message came up again. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ ate a chewy meatball. For 20 minutes, his Health will increase by 100, and his Agility by 20. As Ian watched Ly lick his lips, he held out another meatball. ¡°Compared to your size, the meatball is too small, right? Do you want one more?¡± Ly gazed at the meatball that Ian held out blankly, before pushing it towards Ian slightly. ¡°Why, do you not want to eat it?¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Ly shook his head. Grr- Grr-! Ian, who momentarily thought about what Ly was trying to say, understood Ly¡¯s intention and smirked. ¡°Oh, you want me to eat it?¡± Ly nodded. Gr- Gr-. Ian petted Ly¡¯s head and gave him the meatball again. ¡°Ha, you good fellow. You think about me as well. But I¡¯m going to eat something else, not this. This is yours.¡± It seemed as though he understood those words, as Ly took the meatball that Ian held out. This time, a system message didn¡¯t pop up. ¡®There¡¯s no point in eating two. Although I assumed so¡­¡¯ Ian blankly looked at Ly, who was lying down and resting, before opening the Familiar¡¯s information window. Aside from Ly, there were two other Ice Golems in the information window. The two Ice Golems¡¯ levels were 37, but as Ian¡¯s Leadership increased a lot since then, it was possible for him to carry three extras with him. ¡®They¡¯re both alright¡­ but I still feel greedy.¡¯ The stats of the two Ice Golems that Ian had caught were quite outstanding compared to the other, average ones. Because it had already gone over ten hours since he started catching only Ice Golems¡­ However, they didn¡¯t satisfy Ian. The reason was because of Ly. ¡®Aside from everything else, I want to catch one that is able to evolve¡­ Hmph.¡¯ It was possible that not all monsters had the ability to evolve. Ly could possibly be just a special one. In that case, that meant Ian¡¯s efforts were in vain. ¡®But I¡¯ll still trust my senses!¡¯ However, Ian¡¯s senses were telling him that there were Ice Golems that definitely could evolve. Ian, who had rested about 5 minutes, slowly lifted his body again. ¡°Ly, let¡¯s keep going a little more. We need to get a good one here, even for the sake of those valuable 10 hours!¡± As if he had understood all of Ian¡¯s words, Ly nodded his head and let his breath out. Grrr! ¡°This one seems to understand me more as time passes.¡± Ian often felt like he was raising a one- or two-year-old child while raising Ly. At first, he only understood very basic commands, but lately, he understood most of the difficult commands given to him. It was really amazing. ¡°Alright, I see an Ice Golem over there. But I don¡¯t think that one¡¯s it.¡± Because Ian had already grinded a ton when catching Ly, he had the title ¡®Golem Expert¡¯. That¡¯s why he was able to differentiate the ones that had a good chance. And after looking through a couple other places, he was able to discover one that¡¯s name shone in gold. ¡®There¡¯s one. It¡¯s a relief that a gold name popped out quickly.¡¯ Based on the intensity of the gold light, it didn¡¯t seem like it would be much better than the two he had with him but Ian turned his head towards Ly, deciding he would try and catch them first. And just when he was about to let out a command to Ly, something of a different nature caught his eye. ¡®Huh? What is that?¡± A small and cute turtle was crawling where Ian¡¯s eyes were focused on. It was even a turtle with a head that was incredibly big compared to its body. However, the thing that caught Ian¡¯s eyes was not its cute and ridiculous appearance. ¡®What the hell? Unique-rank?¡¯ Ian had forgotten the existence of the Golems and with slow footsteps, he approached the turtle. And he checked the turtle¡¯s information. Abyss Turtle / Lv 30 / Unique-rank ¡®Abyss Turtle? It¡¯s my first time hearing that name?¡¯ Based on how it looks, it was a turtle that looked like it had absolutely no use. It looked cute because its head was big but he felt that its fighting power would be really close to zero. However, as it was an unknown rare monster as well as a Unique-rank, he couldn¡¯t just stare at it. ¡®I should try and catch it first. There¡¯s definitely something.¡¯ Ian was about to let out an attacking command but hesitated. ¡®It looks like it¡¯ll die with one hit¡­ Since its head is so big, I wonder if it will even fit in his shell.¡¯ The turtle looked very weak. Bbook- Bbook- Bbook-. The turtle was even letting out a weird sound while crawling. Ian slowly approached the turtle and he lightly hit the shell. Tap- Tap-. Then the crawling turtle turned and looked at Ian. Glare! The turtle that glared at Ian once hid his body inside his shell in an instant. ¡°What is he?¡± At the ridiculous situation, Ian vacantly looked at the turtle shell that was situated near his feet. ¡®By any chance, could I capture him right away?¡¯ Ian immediately cast the Capture skill just in case. ¡°Capture!¡± And before the white light that spread out from Ian¡¯s hand could touch the turtle¡¯s shell, it bounced off and disappeared into thin air. ¡°What the hell? This has never happened before?¡± Although Capture didn¡¯t successfully happen the first time, normally the light at least lingered around the monster¡¯s body before bouncing off but this time, it clearly bounced off as if there was some wall. ¡®Do I need to cut down its Vitality a little?¡¯ Ian lifted his staff and hit the turtle¡¯s shell. Of course, he didn¡¯t hit him that hard. Puck-. And a system message popped up. You have attacked the ¡®Abyss Turtle¡¯. You have dealt 1 damage. ¡°Was it too weak?¡± Ian increased the intensity little by little and hit the turtle¡¯s shell. Puck- Puck- Puck-. You have attacked the ¡®Abyss Turtle¡¯. You have dealt 1 damage. You have attacked the ¡®Abyss Turtle¡¯. You have dealt 1 damage. You have attacked the ¡®Abyss Turtle¡¯. You have dealt 1 damage. ¡°What the hell is this?¡± Even though he had just hit quite hard, he had only dealt 1 damage, flustering Ian. And Ian, who developed a refusal to give up, hit the shell with all his strength. Puck-! You have attacked the ¡®Abyss Turtle¡¯. You have dealt 1 damage. However, as if the staff was to be blamed, it bounced off and the damage was still 1. ¡°What kind of guy is this?¡± Ly, who was watching from the side, tilted his head. Grrr? ¡°Ly, try biting him.¡± At Ian¡¯s command, Ly bit the shell but the result was no different. Rather, it seemed as though Ly¡¯s teeth hurt, as he whimpered. ¡®How high is their Defensive Power exactly?¡¯ Ian, who tried hitting for a while now, eventually discovered that there was no answer with this method. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Ian, who squatted down in front of the turtle and momentarily thought, suddenly stood up as if he thought of something. ¡®Huehue, shall we try tempting him with something to eat?¡¯ Ian took out a meatball that Harin gave him from his inventory and held it. And he left the meatball in front of the hole where the turtle¡¯s head went in. ¡°Hey, turtle, this is really delicious. You¡¯ll probably regret it if you don¡¯t come out?¡± In the end, it was Ian that was trying to talk to the turtle. ¡®Normally, it¡¯s the rule where you¡¯re supposed to open your door and leave when a chicken delivery comes even after fighting with your mom!¡¯ He didn¡¯t believe that the turtle could tolerate the smell of delicious food right in front of him. ¡®Even I can¡¯t tolerate it!¡¯ Would there have even been a chance where any country neighbourhood turtle that had seen this kind of special dish. Ian was confident and waited. And Ian¡¯s patience wasn¡¯t betrayed. Poke. The big-headed turtle finally let its head out slightly and studied Ian. And as Ian was still, the turtle began to eat the meatball little by little. Ian, who was watching that image, had a violent thought. ¡®If I suddenly hit his head, will I be able to catch him?¡¯ However, he shook his head. ¡®No. If I hit him while he¡¯s eating, he¡¯ll probably get peeved and never let me catch him.¡¯ When you walked in someone else¡¯s shoes, that was not mannerly. Thinking about someone striking a blow on the back of his head while he was eating chicken, it was a shameless action that should never be done. While Ian was thinking of this and that, the turtle had finished eating the meatball at some point and went back inside his home. Just then, Ian had a good thought. ¡®It¡¯s a little dirty, but oh, well.¡¯ Ian took out another meatball and left it in front of the turtle. This time, it was a little bit farther rather than right up front. Then, this time, the turtle¡¯s head immediately popped out of his house. ¡°Hey, turtle, if you want to eat this, you have to come here.¡± At those words, the turtle began to slowly crawl over. Bbook- Bbook- Bbook-. The weird sound was still the same. And just when the turtle had almost arrived, Ian grabbed the meatball that was in front of the turtle at once. Glare. The turtle glared at Ian again. However, Ian just grinned from ear to ear. ¡°If you want to eat this, come with me.¡± It was a plan that had nothing that was as comparably childish and cheap. The turtle shook its shell. Bbook- Bbook-! As if protesting, he let out a weird sound, but Ian was not that easy. ¡°Hey, turtle, come with me. I¡¯ll give you a lot of delicious things.¡± However, the turtle turned its head away. Ian snickered and cast the Capture skill. ¡°Capture!¡± However, as expected, this time as well, before the Capture skill could even touch the turtle¡¯s body, it flung off. ¡°Hey, turtle, don¡¯t you want to eat this?¡± As Ian grabbed the meatball with his hand and shook it in the air, the turtle¡¯s head slightly turned back again. ¡°Do you think you can find something more delicious on this barren ground?¡± Ian¡¯s attack continued. ¡°If you come with me, there¡¯s stuff that¡¯s even more delicious than this.¡± The pupils of the turtle shook lightly. Bbook- Bbookbbook-. And Ian¡¯s acting method continued again. ¡°Ha, this is a bit of a loss for me in this case.¡± Ian pulled out two more meatballs from his inventory. ¡°Firstly, the moment you make a contract with me, I¡¯ll give you three meatballs!¡± As soon as he saw three meatballs, the turtle lost all rationality. As if the short legs that crawled over suddenly got longer, the turtle ran over to Ian, standing in front of him and raising his head toward the meatballs. Bbook- Bbookbbook-! And Ian was assured that the contract was accomplished. ¡°Capture!¡± The light that flooded from Ian¡¯s hand flew to the turtle and this time, the turtle¡¯s body shone in a white light and was sucked in towards Ian. ¡°Okay!¡± Ian clenched his hand into a fist. ¡°This haughty, big-headed turtle. It would be easier trying to tempt a celebrity.¡± Ian, who mumbled nonsensically, quickly opened the Familiar¡¯s information window and checked the turtle¡¯s information. Abyss Turtle Lv: 30 Classification: ??? Rank: Unique Personality: Na?ve Evolution possible Offensive Power: 15 Defensive Power: 725 Agility: 5 Intellect: 55 Vitality: 3520/3520 Mana: 1005/1005 Inherent Ability Ruler of Water All water-based attacks will be absorbed and the equivalent amount of damage will be recovered as Vitality. Shell Hide When hiding in its shell, its Defensive Power increases by 5 times. This turtle inhabits the bottom of the abyss and appears once in a century. It cannot walk fast because its head is too big. After Ian read the information window, he firstly uttered a yell of delight. ¡®It¡¯s even possible for it to evolve!¡¯ As it was, Ian, who wasn¡¯t even able to see an Ice Golem that had the possibility of evolving for 10 hours, was very glad at the phrase evolution possible. However, happiness was only for a moment, as Ian was immediately flustered. ¡®No, but what¡¯s up with these stats?¡¯ Its Defensive Power and special abilities were especially something to see. ¡®It¡¯s because of this that no matter how hard I hit him, I didn¡¯t leave a mark.¡¯ His Defensive Power when he went into his shell was 3625. It was a similar Defensive Power to a decent lv 100 monster. ¡®Hah¡­ What the hell is 5 Agility¡­¡¯ Despite that, they were stats that absolutely could not be used in any way during combat. ¡®Shall we look at Potential at least?¡¯ Ian opened the detailed information window and looked. And he couldn¡¯t help but feel disappointment once again. ¡®What the hell, his Potential is even at 0? Its Affinity is at 10¡­¡¯ They were figures that naturally caused sighing. However, Ian comforted himself with the ¡®Unique¡¯-rank, the possibility of evolving and by looking at the plausible monster information. ¡®That¡¯s right, if I can make him evolve, he may become incredible!¡¯ He tried hard to ignore the explanation that ¡®it cannot walk fast because its head is too big¡¯. ¡®I saw it move really fast to eat a meatball earlier.¡¯ Ian let out a low sigh. ¡°Hoo.¡± Anyhow, this was the newest family member after Ly. Ian summoned the turtle. ¡°Summon!¡± And along with a white light, the big-headed turtle appeared in front of Ian. Bbook-! And a courtesy message came up. You have summoned ¡®Abyss Turtle¡¯ for the first time. You can give it a name. ¡°Hm¡­¡± Ian, who closed his eyes to focus his mind, decided on a name for the turtle after much consideration. ¡°Starting from today, you¡¯re Bbookbbook.¡± Bbook-? ¡°What, you little, Bbookbbook is cute and nice!¡± Bbook-! Bbookbbook does not like his own name. Your Affinity with Bbookbbook has dropped. Bbookbbook¡¯s Loyalty has dropped by 5. Ian shook his head. ¡°What a picky turtle.¡± And Ian, who hadn¡¯t forgotten the contract content(?), handed Bbookbbook three meatballs to keep his promise. Bbookbbook likes ¡®meatballs¡¯. Your Affinity with Bbookbbook has increased. Bbookbbook¡¯s Loyalty has increased by 10. ¡°Haha¡­¡± It was Ian, who felt that the personality ¡®Na?ve¡¯ written in the Familiar¡¯s information window was incredibly accurate. @ CH 33 TaMa Chapter 33 Chapter 33: New Family Members (2) TL: Haku Editor: Stealth Ian grumbled. ¡°Ugh, anyhow, why is it so hard to find an ice block that I like?¡± He did catch Bbookbbook but that was separate from the Ice Golems. His reason for coming to Abysmal Island from the beginning was to tame a new Familiar to raise his fighting power. Although Bbookbbook¡¯s Potential was unknown, because his current stats were at a level where they were absolutely no help in raising Ian¡¯s fighting power, Ian¡¯s goal was not yet achieved. ¡®An AoE skill is important but it¡¯s absolutely necessary to have a Familiar that can tank in the front.¡¯ In the Goblin Camping Ground Quest, Ian took on the role of tanking himself but he felt that not only did he not have an aptitude for it, but that it wasn¡¯t efficient. Therefore, Ian absolutely required an Ice Golem. He was forcibly ignoring the thought that Bbookbbook could possibly tank. Ian began to grind with Ly, with Bbookbbook released onto the field. In any case, if it¡¯s Bbookbbook¡¯s Defensive Power, there would be no situation where he would have to suffer from another monster. Bbook- Bbookbbook-. And just as Ian predicted, Bbookbbook poked around the field delightedly as he received no restraint from any other monster. After about 3 hours had passed just like that. Ian caught an Ice Golem with the ¡®evolution possible¡¯ option that he wanted. ¡°Alright!¡± As he had more difficulty compared to when he was catching Ly, Ian felt even more satisfaction. ¡®Shall we check its information?¡¯ Ian opened the information of the newly caught Familiar. Ice Golem Lv: 38 Classification: Golem Rank: Common Personality: Simple-hearted Evolution possible Offensive Power: 205 Defensive Power: 315 Agility: 66 Intellect: 125 Vitality: 5450/5450 Mana: 1275/1275 Inherent Ability Ice Wave When they stomp their foot down loudly, a cold shock wave will shoot out 15 m. 50% of their Offensive Power will be forcibly dealt to enemies within range and for 10 seconds, it will slow their movements by 30%. Cold Body The lower the surrounding temperature is, the higher their stats additionally increase, going up to 30% and receives twice the damage from fire-based attacks. This is a golem that¡¯s composed of ice that inhabits Abysmal Island. Ian, who read the explanation, had on a satisfied expression. He thought that he had obtained a Familiar that would be useful in many ways. Even checking the detailed window, its Potential was already at 75. ¡®Huehue, nonetheless, it was worth grinding that much. Since Ly¡¯s Potential is almost at 20, after granting a skill to Ly, I¡¯ll have to use the training skill on this one.¡± Ian, who was satisfied with the Ice Golem¡¯s stats, immediately summoned the Golem. ¡°Summon!¡± And the imposing figure of an Ice Golem appeared in front of Ian. Thud-! You have summoned ¡®Ice Golem¡¯ for the first time. You can give it a name. ¡®Oh, right, name.¡¯ The pain of creation returned to Ian once again. ¡®Since he¡¯s a big and strong guy¡­¡¯ Ian opened his mouth. ¡°I¡¯ll make your name ¡®Ddukdae[1]¡¯.¡± The ¡®Ice Golem¡¯s name has become ¡®Ddukdae¡¯. Different from Ly or Bbookbbook, Ddukdae had no reaction. ¡®Does he not understand my words very well?¡¯ Ian tried calling Ddukdae. ¡°Ddukdae.¡± Grr-. As soon as Ian called his name, Ddukdae turned his head and looked at Ian. ¡®Fortunately, he at least understands my words.¡¯ ¡°Summon Release!¡± For now, Ian summon released Ddukdae again. There was no problem when moving when he had Ly or Bbookbbook out but because Ddukdae had a large build, equivalent to the size of two adult males, the difficulty of movement would follow. Ian used the Intermediate-level Training skill on Ly once more and held Bbookbbook with one hand. ¡®Alright, it looks like I¡¯m pretty much all set¡­¡¯ He had used up two days trying to catch a golem. Now it was time to accelerate the delayed leveling up. ¡®To Crupia Snow Mountain!¡¯ Crupia Snow Mountain was a place located in the outskirts of the northern continent released along with this update. He had received information about the Crupia Snow Mountain from current Sub-Guild Master Fiolan and Ian thought it was a suitable location to level up. ¡®Although it is slightly unreasonable, if I just use my head a little while hunting, there¡¯s no reason for it to be impossible.¡¯ Amongst the northern continent, Crupia Snow Mountain was where the lowest level monsters appeared and it was a location where the monsters that inhabited there were approximately lv 50-60. Common-rank Ddukdae was still incredibly weak when compared to Ly but since the position, ¡®Tanker¡¯, was newly developed, he thought that the general fighting power had increased by a large amount. And as one of Ddukdae¡¯s inherent abilities had the effect to increase his stats when in a cold area, this was also one of the reasons why Ian chose this snow mountain. ¡®Firstly, let¡¯s go to the village and buy some things I need.¡¯ Because the northern continent was still an undeveloped land, a proper village did not exist. There was a need to prepare required potions and assisting items to help endure the cold beforehand. @ The value of YTBC, the game expert channel, was riding up a steep incline lately. Before virtual reality games had come out, they were in a pretty good position as they broadcasted the pro league of popular games and information on new games, but in no more than a couple months, the company had grown almost twice its size. And there was no need to say any more than that the foundation was none other than virtual reality game ¡®Kailran¡¯. The other world inside Kailran was a hidden treasure with infinite content that was broadcast-worthy. Now, people who normally didn¡¯t have interest in games were being sucked into this incredible virtual reality one by one and in the case of Korea, in particular, where people were enthusiastic about virtual reality games from the beginning, there were many users that enjoyed Kailran, to the point where it was not strange to call people who didn¡¯t know about Kailran a spy. Thanks to that, the planning team of YTBC was crazy busy. This was because competitors were increasing like bamboo shoots as YTBC expanded through broadcasts of Kailran. Because of that, the planning team was always in a frenzy in order to constantly find content that their viewers would like. Even today, Lee Hansung, the leader of the planning team, had to pick up an urgent call as soon as his lunch time was over. Team leader Lee, you know one of the users that are exploring the northern continent, was it the Blazing Knight? The ranking user with the hidden class. Director Park Moonsung, who was well-known for his pickiness even within the broadcasting station, was grilling the planning team lately. ¡°Oh, yes, Director. You¡¯re talking about Ceilron, the Blazing Knight, right?¡± Yeah, that user. That user is the Sub-Guild Master of the Titan guild, right? Titan guild was a huge guild that ranked within the top 5 guilds in the Korean server. And Ceilron, the Blazing Knight, was ranked the second-best Knight in the Korean server, and was also the Sub-Guild Master of Titan guild. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right.¡± How did the contacting that you said you would do go? The latest northern expedition that Ceilron had run was the hottest issue between the Kailran users. This was because a video of them killing a Mammoth, a Boss-rank monster that appeared for the first time in the northern continent was put up in the community. And in order to gain his personal video, YTBC had already contacted him multiple times. ¡°Yes, fortunately, we finished negotiating yesterday. It¡¯s going to start airing next week.¡± And the profit distribution? ¡°It¡¯s around 4:6.¡± Hmm¡­ It feels like you¡¯re giving him a lot but to grab a person like him, there¡¯s nothing much you can do. After speaking to Park Moonsung Director about a couple other things, Lee Hansung, who ended the call, grumbled. ¡°Ugh, let me rest as well. I also want to play Kailran but I can¡¯t find time to log on at all.¡± However, even though he was grumbling, his hands continued to move incredibly quickly. The quicker he moved, the earlier he would be able to head home. And he needed to head home earlier in order to play Kailran even a little longer. He checked the ratings of the programs that were already organized one by one while sipping his coffee. ¡®It must certainly be because it hasn¡¯t been long since the update, as the broadcasts related to new classes and undeveloped lands are high.¡¯ He began to check off list written in his notebook one by one. ¡®Now most liaisons should be finished, I just need to find one user that has star traits between Summoners¡­¡¯ It was a situation where he had already gained the videos after finding visibly ahead users that were Black Magicians and Assassins. He even heard that the Black Magician user was already over lv 30. Compared to that, because he had still not found a user that was a Summoner over lv 25, it was troublesome. ¡®Let¡¯s just keep looking for a little longer.¡¯ There absolutely had to be a user that was quietly ahead of the game even amongst the Summoners somewhere. It was his job to find that user before any other broadcasting station. @ Ting-. Jinsung, who sat at the table and ripped open the bag of flakes, turned on the TV. ¡°Will there not be any useful information?¡± Jinsung¡¯s TV supported all cable channels but the channel he watched was always fixed. That was exactly YTBC. ¡®Since this is the game channel that you can at least gain decent information from.¡¯ It was absolutely not because it was troublesome so he only kept it fixed on one channel. Hoo-roo-rook. Jinsung mixed his flakes with milk and ate it while he began to watch TV. ¡°Huh? Finally, information about Summoners are coming out?¡± Jinsung stopped his spoon and began to focus more on the TV. On the TV, one female Summoner user was being interviewed as she held a Red Fox. Wow, is this the exact fox that had called over countless Summoners to Kalymputh Hill? Yes, that¡¯s right. Call her Coco. Haha, the name is really cute as well. However, they say that Coco here is different from other foxes, is that the truth? The user within the screen had on a proud expression as she nodded. Yes, correct. I can¡¯t show you here, but on the information window for this one, it has the option ¡®evolution possible¡¯. Pu-ub! Jinsung momentarily almost spit out the cereal he was eating. He also felt like he suddenly couldn¡¯t digest his meal well. ¡°Ha, information about Familiar evolution is finally released.¡± Jinsung grumbled. He thought it was information that would eventually get released, but since such high-quality information was now shared, his stomach hurt. ¡®Still, it¡¯s a relief that the information was released much later than I thought.¡¯ The number of users that were class-changing into Summoners were increasing in arithmetical progression. Even if all those users had tamed one monster each, there would have been multiple Summoners that had tamed one that was able to evolve by now. In this kind of situation, as the information was released now, after 2 weeks had passed, it was actually quite late. This was because the users that had caught ones that could be evolved probably had kept quiet about that information like Jinsung. ¡®Still, without the Training skill, it won¡¯t be easy evolving them.¡¯ Based on the results of Jinsung¡¯s analysis up to now, even without the Training skill, if its Affinity towards you increased in the process of you taking it around, its Potential increased little by little. Other users could probably gain an evolved Familiar eventually. However, Jinsung thought that point would take over two weeks at the least. ¡°I should just eat my flakes quickly and log on.¡± As the interview related to Red Fox Coco ended, there wasn¡¯t much information that grabbed Jinsung¡¯s attention afterwards. The information that at least grabbed his information was about an interview with a user that had caught a Unique-ranking monster. The monster that he had caught was the Jet-Black Half-Moon Bear, which Jinsung had also encountered a week ago. ¡®It¡¯s a Jet-Black Half-Moon Bear. He really strained himself to catch that at lv 23¡­ He probably caught it with the help of his guild members or friends by the looks of it.¡¯ However, as it was a monster that he had hunted easily with Ly even before he evolved, he wasn¡¯t jealous. While looking at the bottom of the screen, where the caption said ¡®The very first Unique-ranking monster to be tamed¡¯, Jinsung grumbled. ¡°Now that I look at it, I had caught a Unique-ranking monster before him¡­?¡± For a moment, Jinsung remembered Bbookbbook¡¯s cute image. And Jinsung automatically let out a sigh, his reason unknown. ¡®Ha, I should just go and see Bbookbbook now.¡¯ Jinsung, who roughly threw the bowl that he ate his flakes from into the sink, hurriedly sat in the capsule. Iris recognition complete. Player ¡®Ian¡¯, welcome to the world of Kailran. Along with the system message, Jinsung¡¯s eyes slowly began to close. @ [1] Ddukdae = referring to the large size/build of one CH 34 Chapter 34: New Family Members (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Whew¡­¡± The kitchen of the Duke of Trepin¡¯s Castle. Harin was sweating profusely as she was cooking something. ¡°Is it a success this time?¡± A steaming cream soup in a luxurious bowl was in front of Harin. It was even a ultra luxurious soup as a lobster swimming in it. And a system message that her eyes were waiting for popped up. You have succeeded in cooking ¡®Lobster Cream Soup¡¯. You have succeeded in cooking a luxurious dish for the first time. Your Fame has increased by 1200. ¡°Alright!¡± Harin smiled brightly, enough to show her pearly white teeth. She wiped the beads of sweat that were trailing down her forehead, as she checked the information of the dish. Lobster Cream Soup Category ¨C Soup Dish Rank ¨C Luxurious Dish Score ¨C 275 Dish Value ¨C 9235 gold Satiation ¨C +80 It¡¯s a luxurious dish harmonizing the tender meat of a lobster and savoury cream. It was made through the influence of a wonderful chef, whose Cooking Proficiency has reached high-class. Inherent Ability After consumption, for 3 hours, your Vitality increases by 500 and your Offensive Power increases by 20%. As Harin read the information window of the dish, she felt it was worthwhile. A dish she liked was made. ¡®If I just work a little harder, I¡¯ll be able to make dishes that will be worth over 10,000 gold!¡¯ The Dish Value that was written in the Dish Information had something to do with the worth that it would be set around at when you set up a restaurant in Kailran and sold it. The Lobster Cream Soup¡¯s worth was 9235 gold. When converted into cash, it was a little less than 20,000 Won[1]. If its value went up a little more, there wouldn¡¯t be much difference in price from luxurious food you ate in reality. On top of that, since the Lobster Cream Soup¡¯s production cost was a little less than 4 thousand, she felt that she could survive just setting up a store and selling food in Kailran in the future. ¡°Shall I rest a little now?¡± It seemed as though Harin¡¯s throat was dry as she gulped down cold water, while she sat in the corner of the kitchen. ¡®But surely after coming into the kitchen of the Duke¡¯s Castle, my Cooking Proficiency is increasing quickly.¡¯ A satisfied smile formed on Harin¡¯s mouth. And naturally, she remembered Ian, who did the Camping Ground Quest with her. ¡®I wonder what Ian is doing right now.¡¯ However, just then, a message popped up in front of Harin¡¯s eyes. Ian: Harin, what are you doing right now? Are you busy by any chance? Harin was momentarily taken aback at the very excellent timing of the arrival of Ian¡¯s message but she responded hurriedly. Harin: I¡¯m currently cooking in the Duke¡¯s Castle. I just finished! Ian: Hm¡­ By Duke¡¯s Castle, do you mean the Duke of Trepin¡¯s Castle? Harin: Yes, that¡¯s right. I¡¯m in Trepin. And shortly after, Ian¡¯s message continued in a slightly cautious manner. Ian: I¡­ Harin. I¡¯m sorry but can I ask for a favour? Harin: Yes, of course! What¡¯s the favour? Ian: I¡¯m planning on going to the northern area but I wanted to carry some of your dishes with me. Harin¡¯s face lit up. As dishes could not be sold in the auction, she could only set up a restaurant or sell to users personally, but Ian had proposed first just in time. On top of that, while grinding to raise her Proficiency, there were mountains of food made by her. ¡®It¡¯s absolutely not because I miss Ian.¡¯ Harin forcibly denied her unknown(?) feelings as she sent a message to Ian. Harin: Sounds good! As a matter of fact, there¡¯s a lot that I have already made. Where shall I meet you? Harin, who sent the message, hurriedly began to clean up the kitchen. Ian, who met Harin in the square of the Duke¡¯s Castle, was fobbed off with all the food, the products of Harin¡¯s grinding from the past two days. ¡°I¡¯m really only taking the ingredient cost for all this.¡± At Harin¡¯s words, Ian laughed bashfully. ¡°Haha, I don¡¯t mind buying this at the full price¡­¡± ¡°No, Ian, I was able to complete a class quest that I was stuck on thanks to you, and even get this necklace, so I should at least do this for you.¡± While Ian looked at the food he received from Harin, he was in shock. This was because this was the first time he had seen dishes that were worth thousands of gold. Even by just adding up the value roughly written in the information windows, it seemed as though it was well over 200,000 gold. Quantitatively as well as qualitatively, it was an incredible amount. The payment of 30,000 gold that Harin was taking as the price for the dishes was so low that he was feeling apologetic. ¡°Thank you, Harin. How will I repay this grace¡­¡± At Ian¡¯s chatter, Harin¡¯s eyes slightly shone. ¡°Then, would you mind doing me two favours?¡± At Harin¡¯s words that were out of his expectation, Ian was momentarily taken aback. ¡®As¡­ As expected. There was no reason for her to give such expensive dishes so cheaply.¡¯ Ian blamed his thoughtless mouth but he couldn¡¯t go back now. ¡°Of, of course. Whatever it is, just say it.¡± Harin felt that Ian¡¯s pupil slightly quivered but she ignored it as she continued her words. ¡°Hm, my first favour is.¡± Harin pulled out a small memo pad from her chest. ¡°¡­?¡± Harin held out her memo pad to Ian. ¡°You said you¡¯re going to the northern area to hunt. The ingredients written here can only be found in the north. Please collect these as you see them.¡± Different cooking ingredients were jam-packed on the memo pad and written in very small letters. Ian nodded his head at the favour that wasn¡¯t too difficult. ¡°Well, something like that is no problem¡­¡± ¡°And my second favour is.¡± Ian was startled. ¡®What the hell, there¡¯s a second?¡¯ He was nervous. This was because Harin¡¯s way of speaking was unusual. ¡®What the hell? What kind of favour will she ask? Will she ask me to help her with another quest? Or, she won¡¯t make me an assistant chef or something like that, right?¡¯ There was only one thing that Ian was afraid of. That was exactly losing time to level up, as his heart was unsteady that he wasn¡¯t able to hunt for two days while trying to extend new family members recently. Harin opened her mouth towards Ian, who shook uneasily(?). The favour that was completely unpredictable. ¡°Help me with my next school assignment!¡± ¡°Huh?¡± At Ian¡¯s response that came out in an almost reflexive manner, Harin smiled pleasantly as she blinked her big eyes. ¡®School assignment? Is it not a favour that¡¯s in-game?¡¯ Harin¡¯s words continued. ¡°When I asked Carwin, I heard that you¡¯re attending Korea University.¡± Ian nodded with a bitter expression. ¡°I¡¯m also a student at Korea University. I¡¯m a second year in the Department of Hotel Cuisine.¡± Ian began to feel confused. ¡°Ah¡­¡± ¡°You like to eat delicious things, right, Ian?¡± Ian nodded with a bitter expression. ¡°That, that¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Our department has a vacation assignment and you just need to help me a little with that.¡± Ian was lamenting. ¡®I even need to get out of the house?¡¯ This unlucky feeling that he¡¯ll be sacrificing at least 1 level! ¡°What¡­ What¡¯s the assignment?¡± Harin smiled brightly. ¡°It¡¯s an assignment where we need to develop our own recipe during the break individually.¡± It was a Department of Hotel Cuisine-like vacation assignment. However, Ian wondered. ¡°Will I¡­ even be of help? I can¡¯t even cook ramen properly¡­¡± However, Ian¡¯s worry proved to be unfounded. From the beginning, there was no reason for Harin to expect anything related to cooking from Ian. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. You just need to eat.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°You just need to eat all the food I make and pick the most delicious one.¡± Harin added another word towards Ian, who was in a daze. ¡°You must help me, alright?¡± @ Ian, who separated with Harin, lastly headed towards the auction. ¡®Euh¡­ Why the hell did Harin exactly ask me to help her with something like that?¡¯ Ian began to think critically about the reason why Harin asked him for his help with her vacation assignment. ¡®Is it possibly because she has no friends that could eat her dishes for her? Since Harin is a little unique, she does seem like she might not have any friends¡­¡¯ Ian, who thought he was extremely normal, was troubled. ¡®Still, it¡¯s a relief. If it¡¯s just something like eating a couple dishes and coming back, it shouldn¡¯t take up that much time. She probably asked me to come to the school¡¯s lab, right?¡¯ In the meantime, Ian was diligently calculating the amount of time that would be used up. ¡®If I run out the rented room, 30 minutes should be enough to get there and back.¡¯ Ian¡¯s mind got complicated. Ian, who was already at 7125 days of solo life, could not even grasp the sense of what Harin¡¯s feelings were. However, as he reached the auction, before he knew it, he had completely forgotten what Harin had said and began to diligently change his items. There were many reasons why he had 20 years of experience living a solo life. Before he knew it, Ian¡¯s mind was so focused that it seemed like he would be sucked into the list of auction goods. ¡®This place is quite dangerous and there isn¡¯t a lot of information. I need to set myself up with just the best level equipment.¡¯ Ian switched out most of his equipment parts with a large sum of about 400,000 gold and lastly began to search for a weapon. As Ian had to cover his living expenses without the support of his parents, he normally had an incredibly scrooge-like mind. However, when purchasing items for hunting, he spent his gold incredibly liberally even before resetting. When buying a set of clothes to wear outside, he even found 10,000 Won[2] to be a waste but it was Ian, who purchased items with asking prices that were worth hundreds of thousands of Won without much thought. ¡®Could there possibly be a bow with an effect similar to the Mother Nature¡¯s set?¡¯ Because he realized that it was difficult to display his fighting power with a staff, he wanted to switch to a bow if he could. However, no matter how hard he looked, he couldn¡¯t find a bow with the option to reinforce Familiars. ¡®Let¡¯s broaden the search range.¡¯ Firstly, he didn¡¯t have a restriction on the weapon type and as he began to search through weapons that were related to options reinforcing Familiars, quite a lot of things popped up. And amongst them, Ian discovered a weapon with a modifier that really drew his eyes towards it. ¡®Ancient Summoner¡¯s Knuckle?¡¯ Ian hurriedly clicked on it. Ancient Summoner¡¯s Steel Knuckle Classification ¨C Knuckle Rank ¨C Heroic Equip Limit ¨C Over lv 38 Offensive Power ¨C 205-235 Durability ¨C 314/314 Option ¨C Strength +20 Agility +15% Leadership +40 All Vitality of Familiars that are summoned increases by 10% and their Offensive Power increases by 25%. The critical strike damage of the Familiars increases by 55%. When critical damage is dealt to an enemy, an inherent ability from one of the summoned Familiars will be invoked randomly. (An ability that cannot be activated by physical conditions will not be invoked.) A weapon used by incredible, ancient Summoners and has the ability to respond to Familiars. There was nothing to think about. ¡®I need to buy this no matter what!¡¯ Ian momentarily flinched at the high price of 900,000 gold but his finger was already pressing the purchase button. ¡°Euh¡­ it is a little expensive but with these kinds of stats, there should be no problem using it up to at least lv 50, so¡­¡¯ It was quite a big spending but it was that worthy of an item. Especially the ¡®when critical damage is dealt to an enemy, an inherent ability from one of the summoned Familiars will be invoked randomly.¡¯ part was appealing. ¡®It¡¯s a relief that there¡¯s an invoke restriction.¡¯ The restriction that an ability that cannot be activated by physical conditions will not be invoked¡­ Ian, who remembered Bbookbbook¡¯s inherent ability, momentarily had goosebumps. If it wasn¡¯t for that restriction, the ability to squeeze into Bbookbbook¡¯s shell may have manifested. ¡®If that skill was invoked, will my neck also go in like a turtle¡¯s neck?¡¯ Of course, that wouldn¡¯t have been the case, but as it was such an appalling thought even just by imagining it, Ian¡¯s body shivered. ¡®Now, let¡¯s go to Crupia Snow Mountain!¡¯ All preparations were complete. Now endless hunting awaited Ian. To use the portal that went to the northern continent, Ian moved towards the gate in the middle of the town. CH 35 Chapter 35: Crupia Snow Mountain (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Malona, the only town near the northern continent. Just before the new update, this town where only flies flew, it was becoming alive. This was because of the many expeditions that gathered in order to explore the northern continent that opened recently. The central square in the town of Malona was crowded with people that were looking for parties. ¡°We¡¯re looking for a tanker willing to go on a Gargoyle steeple expedition! Only Knights that are over lv 80, please message us!¡± ¡°We¡¯re gathering up attackers willing to go on the Mammoth raid! We have about 10 users that are over lv 90 and we¡¯ll head out immediately once we have two Priests and three long-ranged dealers!¡± Ian, who arrived at Malona town through the gate, was surprised when he saw all the people. ¡®They did say that there were more and more expeditions being dispatched for the exploration of the northern continent¡­ Damn, there¡¯s a lot of people.¡¯ However, as Ian had no interest in parties, he headed towards Crupia Snow Mountain shortly after. Also, there was no one here that would be willing to party a low-level like Ian. ¡®I hope there¡¯s not a lot of people on the snow mountain¡­¡¯ If Crupia Snow Mountain was as crowded with people as Malona was, then a big setback would have developed in his plans. Ian summoned Ly. Grr-! Ian, who petted Ly¡¯s mane once, got on top of his back nimbly. As Crupia Snow Mountain was quite a distance, he needed to ride Ly in order to save as much time as he could. ¡®And if it¡¯s here, then I probably won¡¯t draw as much attention.¡¯ Amongst the high-level users, there were a lot that had an artifact that had a Familiar sealed to it that they could ride. This was because an artifact with a Familiar that could only be ridden and didn¡¯t have high fighting power sealed to it was an expensive product but it was cheaper than an artifact with a combat-based Familiar. On top of that, there were a lot of cases where users, who went on the Mammoth raid that were top-level attackers, were boarded on extraordinary Familiars. Because of that, he didn¡¯t stand out too much when he rode Ly in the northern continent. ¡°Ly, let¡¯s go! That way!¡± Ian, who had now gotten a lot more used to riding Ly, was able to keep his balance securely on top of Ly¡¯s back. And because of that, Ly was able to run faster than before. Had it been 30 minutes since they started moving? Ian was finally able to arrive at Crupia Snow Mountain. And just like Ian was hoping for, Crupia Snow Mountain was empty with nobody there. ¡®What the hell? Why is there no one here? I only see a couple of parties?¡¯ Ian, who thought there would be quite a lot of users exploring no matter where he went as it was a hot new continent, was slightly taken aback. However, different from Ian¡¯s assumption, Crupia Snow Mountain was not a place that people would have interest in. This was because the users that were participating in the northern expedition were users that were over lv 80. A user that would find worth in coming to Crupia Snow Mountain had to be a user that was looking for a hunting ground ranging from lv 50-60 but there were already a lot of hunting grounds within that level range spread around. On top of that, Crupia Snow Mountain was incredibly cold and at the fault that it hadn¡¯t been long since it was opened, unknown monsters were also a variable in hunting. There was no reason to put up with the risk of leaving the good hunting grounds in the warm, southern regions and coming all the way over here. However, Ian was not trying to do such normal hunting. ¡®It¡¯s a little dangerous but in the case I find a new dungeon, there¡¯s nothing as satisfying as that EXP¡­¡¯ To the user who was the very first to discover an instant dungeon, they received a bonus that increased their EXP and item earning rate by double for 5 days. Ian had come all the way up to the new continent on purpose to aim for that. Of course, other normal users knew of this truth. However, in the case they overdid it and died even once, they would receive a huge penalty where they would be degraded 1 level and restricted from logging in for 24 hours, so they were just not taking the risk. The few parties that were seen on the snow mountain from time to time were the limited number of users that were different like Ian. ¡°Well, it¡¯s better for me.¡± Ian began to look for a location that was good for fighting. Eventually, he ended up in a deep location where there was absolutely no one. Ian, who found a spot that seemed alright, summoned Ddukdae. ¡°Ddukdae, Summon!¡± Along with Ian¡¯s command, Ddukdae let out a white light as he was summoned. ¡®Euh.. But do I have to summon Bbookbbook as well?¡¯ He contemplated this part a little. He was absolutely sure that Bbookbbook would be of no help in fighting and would just take some of the EXP. ¡®But he does have the option where evolution is possible and I can¡¯t just give up a rare monster that hasn¡¯t been known until now.¡¯ If it was a monster that he had set his heart on raising, evolving and using in the future eventually, he felt it would be better if he leveled it up together. ¡®That¡¯s right. Would there be that big of a difference whether we divide the EXP by 3 or by 4? We can just hunt that much more. If he really has no use, then I¡¯ll just use him as a monster decoy.¡¯ The method where you just fill up EXP by grinding. Ian, who had cleaned up his thoughts, lastly summoned Bbookbbook. ¡°Bbookbbook, Summon!¡± Bbook-! ¡®Why is it that this one always lets out a weird sound every time he¡¯s summoned?¡¯ As soon as Bbookbbook was summoned, he began to look around. And as soon as he found Ian, he crawled over. ¡°What?¡± Bbook- Bbookbbook-. Ian met eyes with Bbookbbook. And shortly after, he was able to find out what he wanted. ¡°Ha, wait a second.¡± The thing Ian pulled out was a meatball. ¡®It was a good thing I met Harin and got a good amount.¡¯ He had asked Harin on the spot for the meatballs that Ly and Bbookbbook liked and had even asked for extras. Thanks to that, he had an incredible amount of meatballs. Ian gave Ly a meatball as well. It seemed because Ddukdae was a golem, he wasn¡¯t able to consume food. As if Bbookbbook was in a good mood after eating the meatball, he ran around and crawled towards Ddukdae. It seemed he was glad to see a friend that was from where he originally lived. Ian, who saw Bbookbbook run around and crawl between Ddukdae¡¯s feet, smirked. ¡°Ddukdae, put him on your shoulders.¡± Deu-reu-reuk-. At Ian¡¯s words, Ddukdae placed Bbookbbook on top of his shoulders and slightly glanced at him. Laughter flowed from Ian, who watched that image. ¡®That Bbookbbook is pretty cute. I wonder what he¡¯ll become when he evolves.¡¯ And Ian remembered one more thing he had to do before he officially started hunting. ¡®Ly¡¯s Potential probably reached 20 now, right?¡¯ He was planning on granting a skill to Ly with the Familiar Skill Grant he learned when he reached lv 30. ¡®Shall we check the skill information once more?¡¯ As he didn¡¯t have any use for it since now, he couldn¡¯t remember the exact skill information. Before Ian used the skill, he decided to read it over again. ¨C Familiar Skill Grant Classification ¨C Active Skill Skill Level ¨C Lv 0 Proficiency ¨C 0% Cooldown Time ¨C 24 hours One random skill will be granted to a Familiar. Every time Skill Grant is casted, the targeted Familiar will consume 20 Potential, and in the case that Skill Grant is casted on a Familiar that was already granted with a skill, the existing granted skill will be transformed into the new skill. *The higher the level and the proficiency of Skill Grant, the higher the chance of the Familiar obtaining a high-class skill. ¡®Ha, now that I look at it, I needed to have raised the proficiency of this skill, too¡­¡¯ Ian reprimanded himself for slacking. As soon as he gained the skills, his mind was occupied because Rukin and his party approached him, so he made a fatal error(?) in reading the skill information roughly. ¡®But how am I supposed to raise the proficiency for this? Hm¡­ Will it work if I catch a monster that has some Potential every day and use Skill Grant on it before setting it free?¡¯ Because he couldn¡¯t waste the Potential of his main monsters thoughtlessly, the most logical method was to catch new monsters with Potential and use Skill Grant in order to raise its proficiency. ¡®As it¡¯s easy to find a monster that has Potential with the Expert title¡­¡¯ If he caught a monster that had a name shining in gold light among Wolves or Golems that had the Expert title, interestingly enough, they already had about 20 Potential. Ian, who set up a plan, called Ly over. Firstly, he needed to use Skill Grant on Ly. ¡°Ly, come over here.¡± Grr- Grr-. Ian, who petted Ly¡¯s head once, invoked the skill. ¡°Skill Grant!¡± Then a white light lodged into his body and disappeared in an instant. You have used ¡®Familia Skill Grant¡¯ on ¡®Ly¡¯. 20 of Ly¡¯s Potential has been consumed. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has obtained skill ¡®Berserk¡¯. Along with that, the information of the skill that Ly obtained popped up. ¨C Berserk Classification ¨C Active Skill Skill Rank ¨C Rare Cooldown Time ¨C 3 hours For 15 minutes, your Offensive Power and Agility will increase by 30%, while your Defensive Power decreases by 30%. *While in Berserk mode, if critical damage is dealt to the opponent, your Offensive Power additionally increases 30% for 5 seconds. Quite a good skill was created. It was simply a skill that had the option to maximize Ly¡¯s fighting style. ¡®The cooldown time is long compared to the duration of the skill, but this is a skill that could be used for a while. That¡¯s a relief.¡¯ It was truly a relief that a useless skill didn¡¯t come up. It was a skill that was created by consuming 20 Potential, so if a useless skill came up, that meant that other Familiars¡¯ skill creation or evolution would be delayed that much. Ian petted Ly¡¯s mane as he opened his mouth. ¡°Ly, you need to use this skill when I tell you to, alright?¡± Ly, who now understood Ian¡¯s commands perfectly, nodded his head. Grr- Grr- And along with that, he remembered the option of the knuckle that he purchased before coming. ¡®If the inherent effect of the knuckle pops up, Berserk could be invoked onto me, as well. This is really good?¡¯ Only now, he was curious as to how the skill¡¯s cooldown time would be invoked. He wished that when it was invoked through the item, he could invoke it indefinitely without a cooldown time, but he knew very well that there would not be such situations where the balance would collapse in such a way. Ian, who finished making a decision related to the Berserk skill, looked up to Ddukdae, who was standing still. ¡®I can use the Training skill on Ddukdae now.¡¯ Ian decided to use the Training skill on Ddukdae, whose Potential had reached 70. He slightly wished to fill up Bbookbbook¡¯s Potential and let him at least learn one skill. but Ddukdae¡¯s evolution was first. When Ly had evolved, how stronger he had gotten! ¡°Well, now it¡¯s time to hunt!¡± Ian, who roughly organized his plans, equipped the knuckle he purchased one hour ago from the auction and smirked. It was now time to hunt. It was Ian, who enjoyed hunting time to just level up without any thought as much as the time he experimented and analyzed. CH 36 Chapter 36: Crupia Snow Mountain (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Herz, what do you think about stopping here for a bit before going again?¡± At Fiolan¡¯s words, Herz momentarily thought about it before nodding. ¡°Shall we? Everybody is tired and I think we¡¯ll need some maintenance time.¡± Herz, who was pushing through the snow that was up to his waist, turned around and shouted. ¡°We¡¯ll rest for one hour here! Whoever needs to heal, heal and take the time to re-gear individually!¡± ¡°We¡¯ll rest here for one hour! Whoever needs to, should heal up and re-gear individually!¡± Just like a guild that was in the top 5% in the Korean server, the Lotus guild gathered up an expedition as soon as the new update happened and was exploring the northern continent. The level range of the expedition was around lv 90. As the expedition started, they gained a lot of levels, so in Fiolan¡¯s case, she was already lv 93. ¡°Who¡¯s on guard duty this time?¡± ¡°I am.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know what will happen, so don¡¯t loosen your guard!¡± ¡°Yes, Sub-Guild Master!¡± Their levels weren¡¯t low, but because after going over Crupia Snow Mountain, they were only going to face monsters that were over lv 90, so they needed to always be on guard and move accordingly. In the Ice Ogre¡¯s case, it was a monster that was close to lv 100 which appeared occasionally. ¡°Ha.¡± After Fiolan checked on the guard on duty, she comfortably sat down. The reason for periodically taking a break and having some maintenance time was also for a safe exploration. Herz, who made enough room to sit down after pushing the snow away, plopped down next to Fiolan. ¡°The northern continent, it¡¯s definitely tough.¡± At Fiolan¡¯s words, Herz nodded. ¡°No kidding. Nonetheless, this level of difficulty was predictable, so¡­ We gained a lot as well.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± At this expedition, everybody in the Lotus guild expedition overall leveled up 2-3 levels and gained quite a bit of good items. However, the biggest profit was not that part. At this expedition, the Lotus guild achieved a result that was incomparable to any item or level. ¡°It was a good thing we came on this expedition. Thanks to it, now our guild has a guild-owned base.¡± At Fiolan¡¯s words, Herz nodded and agreed. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± In Kailran, once a guild is over lv 50, they receive the rights to claim a guild-owned territory. There were two ways for a guild to obtain a territory, the first way being that they had to invade a territory that another guild or NPCs were controlling and take it from them, and the other way being that they had to go to an undeveloped land that hadn¡¯t been stepped on by anybody else and occupy that base. Before this update, there was no guild that owned a territory in Kailran. Even the guild famous for being the number 1 ranking guild, ¡®Dark Luna¡¯ guild, gained their first base after the northern continent opened this update. The reason was simple. There was no more remaining land in the southern continent. Most of the land in the southern continent, where users had been active in since the game first opened, was already the empires¡¯ territories, and the places that weren¡¯t an empire¡¯s territory were owned by small or medium-sized countries or noble NPCs. But to take the territory of the NPCs, the users¡¯ strengths were still too weak in comparison. The Lotus guild was no different with the other top-ranking guilds. Ever since they first planned the northern expedition, they were planning on occupying at least one base and they had succeeded. As the bases of the users were still barren land in the north, there was no big merit yet. However, if they grew it slowly, eventually it could become a large city, where they could collect taxes from the users and NPCs that resided there. Herz mumbled. ¡°Now, whether we can defend the base safely is crucial¡­¡± If a base was owned by a guild for the first time, for three months, they automatically sign a nonaggression pact. If a base was owned by a guild for the first time, a nonaggression pact would be automatically signed for three months. It was protection received from the game system. Lotus guild needed to develop the base they gained this time as fast as possible and within 3 months, make it sturdy enough of a territory, so that it cannot be attacked so easily. ¡°We need to guard it. For the next 3 months, I think we¡¯ll need to gather the strength of the guild members and focus on only developing the base.¡± At Fiolan¡¯s words, Herz nodded. It wasn¡¯t like the guild members¡¯ growths would stop just because they only worked on the base development. Rather, in the process of developing the undeveloped land and widening the area of influence, they could level up and had a good chance of obtaining good items. ¡°Seems like we were lucky, as we discovered quite a large-scale base, so I think we¡¯ll be able to save on our expenses for the early stage.¡± Bases were, simply put, towns without owners. The bigger the discovered town was and the more people it had, it was obvious that the beginning expenses would be saved. ¡°I want to occupy one more place¡­ but that¡¯s just greed, right?¡± At Fiolan¡¯s words, Herz wore a bitter smile. ¡°I wish to do that as well, if it was for my heart, but while trying to focus on two bases at the same time, we wouldn¡¯t be able to prepare enough in either location and could end up getting them both taken by another guild. Let¡¯s just focus on one place.¡± ¡°Yes, they were just words I tried saying.¡± Guilds that fought over ranks like the ¡®Dark Luna¡¯ guild or the ¡®Titan¡¯ guild already had occupied over three to four bases in good locations. However, this was only possible as they were guilds that truly had the best power, and to the Lotus guild, that was impossible. Herz pulled out a cup of hot coffee from his inventory and sipped it. ¡°As soon as this expedition is over, let¡¯s call over all our guild members to the base. Let¡¯s also hunt around the base.¡± There were a lot of monsters in the level range that were a bit much, but they had to take that risk. In order to grow the base quickly, it was most important that they suppress the monsters nearby and widen the territory. ¡°Aside from one person, most likely everybody will be able to come.¡± At Herz¡¯s words, Fiolan had on a strange expression. ¡°One person? Who?¡± Herz smirked. ¡°What do you mean who else, it¡¯s Ian. Ian needs to hunt in the southern continent a little more and raise his level before coming up.¡± However, Fiolan smirked and shook her head. ¡°Herz, did you know?¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Ian should probably be here in the northern continent about now? I¡¯m guessing he¡¯ll be at Crupia Snow Mountain.¡± The voice of Herz, who was taken aback, grew louder. ¡°Huh?¡± Fiolan laughed as she continued. ¡°A little while ago, I received a message and he asked me for some information on the northern continent.¡± ¡°What kind of information?¡± ¡°He said he was going to hunt on Crupia Snow Mountain, so he took all the information I had on that area.¡± Herz asked again with a dumbfounded voice. ¡°What level is he at now?¡± ¡°That I don¡¯t know for sure myself.¡± ¡°Ha¡­ He¡¯s my friend but he¡¯s a guy that¡¯s truly out-of-the-ordinary. It hasn¡¯t been long since he started raising a Familiar, how is already able to crawl into a hunting ground that¡¯s around lv 50-60?¡± The Ian that Herz knew was not someone that was that reckless. If he said he was going to hunt, it for sure meant that it was possible for him to hunt there. ¡°Well, if Ian grows quickly, doesn¡¯t that mean it will be better for us?¡± Herz could only laugh with a bitter expression. ¡°Well¡­ that is true, I guess?¡± @ While Herz and Fiolan were talking about Ian, he was doing some risky hunting, as if he was on a tightrope, on Crupia Snow Mountain. ¡°Ddukdae, Ice Wave!¡± Thud- Thu-Thu-Thu-Thud-! As Ddukdae stomped his foot down with all his might, a blue ice wave spread out around it. The Ice Troll has suffered 175 damage. For 10 seconds, the Ice Troll¡¯s movements will slow down by 30%. ¡°I¡¯ll attack from the front, Ly, you attack from the back!¡± While Bbookbbook watched the game(?), an intense battle centred around Ian was going on. Grr Grr-! As Ly jumped through the air and moved towards the back of the Ice Troll, Ian swiftly dug into the Troll¡¯s side. ¡®Weak Point Capturing¡¯ skill has beeninvoked. The weak point of the target will be indicated with the accuracy rate rising 19% and the chance to critical hit increasing 23.5%. If the weak point is hit, evasiveness will increase 97%. Along with the invoking of the Weak Point Capturing passive, the Troll¡¯s weak points were highlighted in red within Ian¡¯s sight. And Ian¡¯s right fist that was equipped with the knuckle quickly rushed towards the weak point of the Troll. Bam- Ba-Bam-! You have dealt 276 damage to the ¡®Ice Troll¡¯. You have dealt 293 damage to the ¡®Ice Troll¡¯. You have dealt critical damage to the ¡®Ice Troll¡¯. The Ice Troll¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 585. Ian¡¯s attacks went in one after another and there was no reason for Ly to miss the chance when the Ice Troll flinched. Ly bit the back of the Troll¡¯s neck, and the Troll¡¯s Vitality dropped almost 2000 in an instant. The ¡®Ice Troll¡¯ used the skill ¡®Body Regeneration¡¯. For 40 seconds, the ¡®Ice Troll¡¯ will recover 1% Vitality per second. Ian frowned. He had worked hard to beat it up and just dropped all its Vitality, but now it was trying to recover. Rooaaar! The Ice Troll let out a horrible shriek and swung around the gigantic club that it was holding. The club that was swinging with power was rushing towards Ian quickly. At this rate, it was a situation where he would receive the hit directly¡­ Just then, Ian cast the skill that he was thinking about. ¡°Space Distortion!¡± Space Distortion, the special Summoner skill that he learned along with Familiar Skill Grant when he reached lv 30, was invoked. With this skill that allowed you to switch positions with the Familiar of your choice, Ian switched positions with Ddukdae. Bang-! And the Troll¡¯s club was blocked by Ddukdae¡¯s right arm. Bang-! Familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯ has received 1375 damage from the ¡®Ice Troll¡¯. Ddukdae was a defensive-type monster, but after receiving an attack from the Ice Troll that was over lv 60, he received an incredible amount of damage that went over 1000 in one go. ¡®We need to catch him before he recovers no matter what!¡¯ The moment Ddukdae blocked the Ice Troll¡¯s attack, Ian, who moved to the back of the Ice Troll thanks to switching spots with Ddukdae, immediately dug into his back and shoved his knuckle into the Troll¡¯s weak point. You have dealt critical damage to the ¡®Ice Troll¡¯. The Ice Troll¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 596. And continuing, the system message that Ian had constantly been waiting for popped up. The ¡®AncientSummoner¡¯s Steel Knuckle¡¯ invoked the ¡®Response¡¯ skill. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s ¡®Berserk¡¯ skill will be borrowed. Momentarily, a wave letting out red light began to spread out from around Ian¡¯s body. For 15 minutes, your Offensive Power and Agility will increase 30%. For 15 minutes, your Defensive Power will decrease 30%. Ian felt power overflow in his body. However, along with that, the risk grew as well. ¡®In this current situation, I could die even if I allow one hit from him.¡¯ Ian was on edge. Even without it, he experienced multiple times being on the verge of death if he was hit one or two times. With his defense currently reduced by 30%, if he was hit right now, he could possibly die in a single strike. Ian focused his mind even more and avoided the Troll¡¯s attack that came after. And with monsters like the Troll, who had big movements when attacking, it was important to properly attack the opening that developed after they attack. ¡®Right now¡­!¡¯ Ian focused his mind as much as possible. He thought that if he could lodge one more critical on its weak point, he could kill it. There was also the effect where his Offensive Power additionally increased by 30% for 5 seconds if he could lodge a critical while in the Berserk state. And Ian was able to experience a proper hand technique. Pa-kak-! You have dealt critical damage to the ¡®Ice Troll¡¯. The Ice Troll¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 876. As you have dealt critical damage to the ¡®Ice Troll¡¯, your Offensive Power will additionally increase for 5 seconds! Ian¡¯s fists, which got even stronger, lodged into the Troll¡¯s weak point one after another. The Ice Troll¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 621. The Ice Troll¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 1388. And Ly attacked the Troll, who was on the verge of death, from behind, finishing it off. You have killed the Ice Troll. You have obtained 1060 EXP. CH 37 Chapter 37: Crupia Snow Mountain (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian, who obtained the miscellaneous items by placing his hand on the corpse of the Troll, grumbled to himself as he wiped the sweat that dripped from his forehead. ¡°Ugh, my EXP seriously isn¡¯t going up.¡± The EXP he gained when he hunted the Goblin Warriors were around low 900s. However, despite hunting Ice Trolls that were over 10 levels higher than Goblin Warriors, he was only gaining 1060 EXP, which wasn¡¯t a big difference. It made sense for Ian to grumble about it. ¡®After only sharing with Ly, it¡¯s definitely harder to level up now that there¡¯s four of us sharing.¡¯ As soon as they reached the Snow Mountain, despite having hunted for the whole day, he was only able to level up 1 lv. It was the same growth rate as other normal users that were in their late lv 30s but in Ian¡¯s case, who mass-leveled like crazy, it was stifling for him. ¡°Let¡¯s rest for a bit before we move again!¡± He wanted to move and find another prey immediately, but he needed to replenish Ddukdae¡¯s Vitality and Ian himself also needed time to catch his breath. Ian sat down on a boulder and glanced around while resting. And he discovered a lucky Bbookbbook, who was sleeping. Glare-. Ian glared at Bbookbbook. ¡®It must be a blessing to live as a turtle. To comfortably doze off and get EXP without much effort¡­¡¯ Ian shook his head. ¡®Still, if I put in effort in raising him, he¡¯ll probably at least make enough for a meal somehow later.¡¯ Ian forcibly reassured himself and turned away from reality. Whether Bbookbbook could make enough for a meal or not, he needed to wait for the future. @ And Ian¡¯s rigorous hunting schedule continued. Aside from thoroughly spending 30 minutes for eating, and 5 hours for sleeping, he didn¡¯t leave the capsule. He felt it had already been almost a week since he had left his house. However, he received that much of an outcome. With Bbookbbook as the last, he was able to get all of his Familiars within the lv 40 range. Ian and Ly were lv 42, Ddukdae was lv 43 and Bbookbbook was lv 40. ¡®Let¡¯s see¡­ It¡¯s about time for Ddukdae¡¯s Potential to have reached 100.¡¯ Ian opened Ddukdae¡¯s information window to also check the results hunting up until now. And shortly after, Ian had on a flustered expression. ¡®What the hell? Why is it like this?¡¯ Ddukdae¡¯s Potential had already reached 100. ¡®Why isn¡¯t he evolving? Weren¡¯t they supposed to evolve once their Potential reached 100?¡¯ Ian was baffled. ¡®I¡¯m certain one of the requirements to evolving was 100 Potential¡­ Could it be that there was another requirement aside from Potential in order to evolve?¡¯ But aside from that, there was nothing else that came to mind. ¡®Does he need to level up more? But in that case, I remember Ly being only lv 20 when he evolved.¡¯ For now, the only assumption he could make was that it was the level. As the level required to evolve could be different for every monster, he couldn¡¯t think that just because Ly evolved at lv 20, Ddukdae would be the same. ¡®Well, since this is something that I can¡¯t do much about right now¡­¡¯ Since this was something Ian could not find out about by thinking deeply right now anyways, he moved his thoughts on Ddukdae¡¯s Potential off to the side. ¡®Do I need to use the Training skill on Bbookbbook now?¡¯ Since he found out that they didn¡¯t just evolve once their Potential reached 100, he thought training Bbookbbook and using Skill Grant on him was top priority now. If Bbookbbook gained a decent skill, it meant that there would be one more skill that Ian could pull over with his knuckle¡¯s inherent ability, which would be a big help. Then next, he thought it would be most beneficial if he raised Ly¡¯s Potential again. Ian turned his head towards Bbookbbook. ¡°Bbookbbook.¡± Bbook-? ¡°Come over here.¡± Bbookbbook-. Bbookbbook turned his head away in a snap. It was clear rebellion that he would not listen to his instructions. Ian let out a deep sigh and approached Bbookbbook, casting the Training skill. You have used the ¡®Intermediate-level Training¡¯ skill. (Cooldown Time: 25 minutes) For 10 minutes, Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ will better understand and study its Summoner¡¯s commands. The more Training is repeated, the more your Familiar¡¯s ¡®Potential¡¯ increases. Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯s current Potential: 2 Even though he didn¡¯t train him, it seemed from constantly taking him around and hunting, his Potential rose a little. Ian threatened Bbookbbook, who was rebelling. ¡°If you¡¯re constantly like this, I won¡¯t give you anymore meatballs.¡± Bbook¡­? At Ian¡¯s sneaky attack, Bbookbbook was taken aback. Bbook- Bbookbbook-! Bbookbbook, who very clearly understood Ian¡¯s words because of the Training skill, became sullen. ¡°Bbookbbook, come here.¡± Kka-ddak-. At Ian¡¯s hand gesture, Bbookbbook quickly moved. His fast movements were similar to a recruit who had just been admitted to the beginner military training centre. ¡°If you had listened this well from the beginning, how good would that have been?¡± Bbook-. Ian, who instantly controlled Bbookbbook with meatballs, began to move his feet. As he had rested a bit, it was time to start hunting again. ¡°Ddukdae, you can see those Ice Trolls down there, right?¡± As Ddukdae slightly nodded his head, Ian continued. ¡°Go first and grab their attention, and then Ly and I will attack. Ly, you understood that as well, right?¡± Grr-. ¡°Ly, let¡¯s use Berserk this time. Since there are four more Trolls nearby, if we don¡¯t catch them fast, we could end up suffering instead.¡± Instructions of a detailed plan were laid out. When Ian let out a complex command, Ddukdae could not carry it out exactly as he wanted yet, but Ly understood Ian¡¯s words practically perfectly. Ian was planning to catch all the 5 Trolls that were nearby within the 15 minutes that Ly¡¯s Berserk would be kept. Thud- Thud-. As Ddukdae approached the Trolls with thuds, the trolls obviously charged towards Ddukdae and the battle began smoothly. You have killed the Ice Troll. You have obtained 1040 EXP. You have killed the Ice Troll. You have obtained 1076 EXP. Ian, who cleanly caught the five Trolls within 15 minutes as planned, got ready to move again. The Ice Trolls had died down in this instant. For them to regen again, he needed to wait at least 3 hours. ¡°Guys, let¡¯s go.¡± At Ian¡¯s calling, Ly and Ddukdae immediately came to where Ian was. However, one of them was nowhere to be found. ¡°Ah, did this Bbookbbook disappear off to somewhere within that short time?¡± Ian looked around for Bbookbbook. However, even though he ran around and wandered, the Bbookbbook that was always nearby did not appear in his sight. ¡®If he was attacked or attacked, a system message would have let me know¡­¡¯ ¡°Bbookbbook, where are you? I¡¯ll give you a meatball, so come over here.¡± It didn¡¯t seem like he was harmed in any way, but he couldn¡¯t help but worry. Since he didn¡¯t even appear at the temptation of the meatballs he liked so much, his worrying made sense. ¡®Do I need to Summon Release and then Summon him again? Where did he go?¡¯ It was impossible to Summon the same Familiar for 30 minutes once it was Summon Released. Because of that, Ian didn¡¯t Summon Release a Familiar unless needed. However, just then, a familiar-looking backside of a turtle appeared in Ian¡¯s sight. ¡°Bbookbbook, what are you doing there?¡± Ian called him, but Bbookbbook didn¡¯t even act like he heard him, as he continued to wriggle around and do something. ¡®What the hell is he doing?¡¯ After getting closer and taking a look, Bbookbbook was eating some sort of weird grass root. Ian shook his head and approached Bbookbbook. ¡°Bbookbbook, I told you that you can¡¯t just go around eating anything!¡± When Ian tried to lift up Bbookbbook, a system message that he had never even thought about appeared in his sight. Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ ate a ¡®Mandragora¡¯. Bbookbbook¡¯s Potential has increased by 10. All of Bbookbbook¡¯s stats have each increased by 5. ¡°Cough!¡± Ian, who checked the system message, freaked out. ¡°A Mandragora!¡± Ian and Bbookbbook¡¯s eyes met. ¡°And for you to have eaten it¡­!¡± Ian¡¯s stomach ached. The Mandragora was an incredibly famous elixir item. The elixir that was well-known to be a plant with roots in the shape of a human was a treasure that increased all stats by 5 points each when consumed, so it was a rare item that didn¡¯t even appear in the auction. If Ian had eaten that, it would have been the same as him gaining almost 5-6 levels of stats. He couldn¡¯t help but feel sad. ¡®Ah¡­ I should have been the one to eat that¡­¡¯ Even so, he couldn¡¯t say anything to Bbookbbook. As he didn¡¯t eat Ian¡¯s, and had eaten something that he had found. From another perspective, it was beneficial that Bbookbbook had found the Mandragora and at least his stats and Potential went up. Ian bent down and pet Bbookbbook¡¯s head. ¡°You did a good job, Bbookbbook. But next time, if you find something like that, bring it to me.¡± Bbook-? Bbookbbook shook his head. It wouldn¡¯t have been like Bbookbbook if he shared food. ¡°If you bring it to me from now on, I¡¯ll trade you for five meatballs.¡± However, if it was for five meatballs, it was a different story. Bbook- Bbookbbook-! Bbookbbook nodded his head vigorously. ¡®By chance, could it be that Bbookbbook¡¯s true ability is something like collecting medicinal herbs? Or some sort of searching ability?¡¯ Ian seriously thought about it. It seemed plausible. However, just then, Bbookbbook headed towards somewhere with confident footsteps. ¡°Bbookbbook, where are you going?¡± Ian followed a crawling Bbookbbook. He felt quite a bit of anticipation. ¡®Could he possibly have found place where there¡¯s another Mandragora?¡¯ Had it been about 5 minutes since he had followed Bbookbbook? Bbookbbook¡¯s footsteps stopped, and Ian¡¯s two eyes widened. ¡®This¡­ This is¡­!¡¯ The place he had so desperately wanted to find, but hadn¡¯t appeared, finally appeared in front of Ian. ¡®An undiscovered dungeon!¡¯ And a system message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. You have become the very first discoverer of this dungeon. For the next 5 days, all the EXP you obtain from the dungeon will double. For the next 5 days, the chance of obtaining items from the dungeon will double. Was the exact reason he pushed himself and came up to the northern continent not to discover new dungeons. As he had discovered a hidden dungeon thanks to Bbookbbook, Ian¡¯s smile hung from his ears. And another system message popped up as a continuation. Will you register this dungeon? If you register this dungeon, your Fame will increase by 500. ¡°No! Why would I register.¡± You have not registered this dungeon. You can register later on if you wish. 500 Fame was not a low value but he had absolutely no intention of sharing his doubled EXP and items right now. As soon as he registered this dungeon, the users that were hunting in the area would immediately swarm here. ¡®That can¡¯t happen.¡¯ Ian lifted Bbookbbook up and placed him on top of Ly¡¯s back, petting him a ton. ¡°Hahaha. Bbookbbook, good job! You finally did something that was praiseworthy!¡± Bbookbbook had on an expression showing his high spirits as he held his chin up high. Bbook-! ¡°Now, shall we go in?¡± Ian moved his feet towards the dungeon with excitement. He was in a good mood, as he felt that he could cover all the EXP he had to sacrifice(?) by having Bbookbbook summoned through this dungeon by double the amount. CH 38 Chapter 38: Mysterious Dungeon (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Sponsors: Kennedy P. and Anonymous The inside of the dungeon was a corridor-like structure that was neither that narrow nor was it an open expanse. ¡®I like that it¡¯s not complex and simple instead.¡¯ It was good to fight a narrow and complex dungeon with other party members, but because it was easier to get caught in traps and ambushes, so Ian didn¡¯t prefer that sort of configuration. ¡®But it feels a bit spooky¡­¡¯ Ian, who felt the same feeling as when he first went to a haunted house at an amusement park when he was younger, made Ddukdae take the lead and carefully moved his feet one step at a time. There was no way of knowing what kind of dangers lurked in an unidentified dungeon. Kyahhh-. A sound similar to a ghost-calling rang out, riding the long and wide corridor. ¡®Damn, since nothing is appearing, it¡¯s making me even more nervous.¡¯ Ian grumbled at his stifling heart. And just then, as if they had heard his complaints, the wall to his left broke down and monsters appeared. Koo-reu-reu-reung-. The monsters that appeared through the broken wall had a ghost-like form that matched the dungeon¡¯s atmosphere very well. An interesting point was that they were not ghosts with a human-like form, but ghosts with a drake-like form, like a lizard with wings. ¡°Ddukdae, Ice Wave!¡± As Ian did not let down his guard, he immediately reacted. Thud- Thu-Thu-Thud-! Along with Ian¡¯s command, Ddukdae stomped his foot with strength. And a blue ice wave spread out into its surrounding. The Ghost Drake has suffered 175 damage. For 10 seconds, the Ghost Drake¡¯s movements will slow down by 30%. The monster¡¯s name was ¡®Ghost Drake¡¯, just like how it looked. There were a total of three Ghost Drakes that appeared and they immediately charged towards Ddukdae, who had attacked them. ¡®Err, I still need to wait a little more for Ly to use Berserk¡­¡¯ Ian moved quickly as he thought about how he should fight. Familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯ has received 1466 damage from the ¡®Ghost Drake¡¯. Ian slightly flinched at the Ghost Drake¡¯s Offensive Power that was even stronger than the Ice Trolls. ¡®This could be a little harder than I thought?¡¯ If it was about one or two of them, he wouldn¡¯t have been as nervous as now, but as he had to face three at the same time, a cold sweat slid down his spine. However, it wasn¡¯t as if he was seized with fear because of that. Ian was discovering as he hunted up until now that the Summoner¡¯s fighting spirit had a big influence on their Familiars¡¯ fighting spirits as well. ¡°Ly, deal with the left one! It¡¯s alright if you can¡¯t attack, just buy as much time as you can and hold out!¡± Grr-! Ly, who understood Ian¡¯s words, immediately threw his body at the drake on the left. And Ian moved shortly after as well. Along with the invoking of his Weak Point Capturing skill, he lodged his fist exactly into the drake¡¯s weak point and landed a critical blow with his first hit. You have dealt critical damage to the ¡®Ghost Drake¡¯. The Ghost Drake¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 905. The ¡®Ancient Summoner¡¯s Steel Knuckle¡¯ invoked the ¡®Response¡¯ skill. As the steel knuckle¡¯s inherent ability, Response, was invoked, Ian let out a shout of delight on the inside. ¡®Alright! Lucky as well!¡¯ Familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯s ¡®Ice Wave¡¯ will be borrowed. He inwardly anticipated for Berserk to pop up but Ice Wave was just as helpful as well. Ian¡¯s fist lit up blue and a large wave spread out. Thu-Thu-Thud- Thud-! The Ghost Drake has suffered 635 damage. For 10 seconds, the Ghost Drake¡¯s movements will slow down by 30%. Thanks to Ice Wave popping up one after another, the slowing effect overlapped each other, and although it was only for a moment, the Ghost Drake¡¯s movements noticeably slowed down. And Ian knew very well that within that momentary time, he needed to successfully land as many hits as he could. ¡°Ly! Come over here and let¡¯s attack this one first!¡± After receiving a hit and also landing one, he roughly got a sense of what his opponent¡¯s stats were like. His opponent was an Offensive-type monster. Their Offensive Power was on the strong side, but he discovered that their Defensive Power and Vitality were low in comparison. ¡®I thought they were a lot stronger than the trolls because they dealt a shit ton of damage, so I freaked out.¡¯ The Ghost Drakes¡¯ Offensive Powers were significantly stronger than the trolls¡¯, but their Defensive Power was on the low side by quite a lot. And Ian, who confirmed this, chose the method to quickly remove one of them first. And right now, where the slowing effects were overlapped, was a good opportunity. Puck- Pu-Puck-! Ian and Ly¡¯s attack hit multiple of the drake¡¯s weak points in an instant and Ddukdae, whose fists looked like they were swinging around carelessly, were quite sharp. Screech-! The Ghost Drake let out a horrible shriek as it twisted its body. By the looks of how its name started to blink, it seemed like its Health dropped below half. However, just then, the other two drakes attacked from the back. Hweeek-! ¡°Ack-!¡± After Ian barely dodged the drake¡¯s tails that rushed towards him, he gasped for air. ¡°Huff¡­ Huff.¡± He only felt a difficult battle would continue if left like this. He needed to find a solution. Ian discovered Bbookbbook, who was dazing off in a corner. ¡®Bbookbbook¡­ Let¡¯s do at least something!¡¯ And he gave a command to Bbookbbook. ¡°Bbookbbook, attack those two and grab their attention!¡± He wasn¡¯t expecting much. It was simply a command he gave in the off-chance. Bbook! However, surprisingly, Bbookbbook crawled valiantly towards the two drakes. Bbook- Bboo-Bboo-Bboo-Bbook-! Because Ly disappeared from their sight, the two drakes, who were immediately looking for another opponent to attack, turned their heads shortly after at Bbookbbook¡¯s strange noise. Glare-! Bbookbbook glared at the drakes with a frightful(?) gaze and fortunately, the two drakes charged towards Bbookbbook at the same time. ¡®That¡¯s right. Good job, Bbookbbook!¡¯ Ian attacked the one drake altogether with Ly and Ddukdae, while glancing slightly at Bbookbbook. He did believe in Bbookbbook¡¯s incredible Defensive Power, but it was because he was concerned. However, Bbookbbook was doing an incredibly good job. Sook-. As the two drakes attacked, he quickly slipped into his shell. Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ has received critical damage. ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 1. ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 1. Despite receiving critical damage, he only received 1 damage, so Ian was completely reassured and was able to focus on the one drake. And the result, Ian was able to kill the drake shortly after. You have killed the Ghost Drake. You have obtained 3078 EXP. Ian wanted to cheer while seeing the EXP that was written. On top of its base EXP being higher than Ice Trolls, with the effect of being the very first discoverer of the dungeon overlapping, he had received an incredible amount. As he checked the EXP, the drakes that were burdensome just a moment ago, were looking like EXP lunchboxes. Ian, whose fighting spirit grew more, began to pour out his attacks more violently. You have dealt critical damage to the Ghost Drake. The Ghost Drake¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 912. The Ghost Drake¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 562. The Ghost Drake¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 557. Gaining strength from Bbookbbook¡¯s active role, Ian, who killed all three of the drakes in an instant, gasped for air. It was only for a moment, but since he moved with all his power, he was out of breath. ¡°Ha, ha.¡± In the middle, Ly allowed a couple of attacks on him, receiving enough damage to almost kill him, but because the reward was as sweet as honey, his fighting spirit lit up. ¡®But drakes are normally high-level monsters that are over lv 90¡­ Is it because these ones are ghosts, so they can¡¯t be that strong?¡¯ These Ghost Drakes were around lv 65. Another reason why Ian was first intimidated was because drake monsters in general were strong monsters that were hard to hunt before he had reset. ¡°First Aid!¡± While Ian collected his breath, he restored his Familiars¡¯ Vitality with First Aid. And he didn¡¯t forget to praise Bbookbbook. ¡°Good job, Bbookbbook. You just need to do things like this!¡± Bbook-! Bbookbbook¡¯s triumphant expression! Ian gave Bbookbbook another meatball for doing a good job for the day and started moving again. ¡®Huehue¡­ Good, good!¡¯ Ian grinned like a Cheshire cat. Battles repeated without end, but it seemed as though he got used to it as he went on, as he was able to go around the dungeon, exploring without hesitation. His hunting speed got faster as well. And shortly after, a delightful message popped up. You have leveled up. You have reached lv 43. ¡°Alright!¡± It was an alarm that was nice to hear whenever. Ian, who was having fun, made up his mind to abstain from eating and drinking and just hunt until his buff for being the very first discoverer of the dungeon ended. ¡®If I hunt like crazy until then, wouldn¡¯t I be able to reach about lv 49?¡¯ If he could maintain this pace, it seemed possible enough. Monsters that were a little stronger than the Ice Trolls appeared, but as their Vitality and Defensive Power were much weaker, his hunting speed was instead faster. In return, though, it was that much more dangerous¡­ Ian, who continued to hunt, discovered something and momentarily stopped. ¡®Oh? It wasn¡¯t a one-floor dungeon?¡¯ Normally, dungeons formatted like this, with wide corridors that continued windingly, finished with one floor in a lot of cases, but he had discovered an entrance that went down lower. ¡®There¡¯s still a lot of monsters leftover¡­ Should I go down after I¡¯ve wiped them all?¡¯ Ian momentarily thought about it, but shortly after he moved his feet towards the entrance to go down lower. ¡®Still, since clearing the dungeon is number one priority.¡¯ Because he could only focus his mind on hunting with a comfortable heart once he checked what was at the end of the dungeon and cleared it, Ian had the mind to clear the dungeon first and foremost. And along with the endless hunting, another day passed by. @ ¡°Wow, as expected, Himenes, you¡¯re amazing. You¡¯re already at lv 45¡­ Even though Black Magicians are supposed to be fast at leveling, that¡¯s really incredible.¡± Im Eunyoung, YTBC reporter, was logged onto her Kailran character ¡®Lucia¡¯ and was interviewing the Black Magician user Himenes, who made an exclusive contract with the broadcasting company. ¡°Haha, it¡¯s nothing. It was only possible because the Titan guild is fully supporting me. Of course, I didn¡¯t ride a bus[1] or something like that. Hoho.¡± Himenes was currently the highest-level user between the known Black Magicians. And Lucia received a bonus from the broadcasting company as the price for getting an exclusive contract with him. Even though Black Magician was a class that was faster in leveling up compared to the other classes, a lot of people¡¯s attention was on him for reaching lv 45 within 3 weeks since the server opened up. ¡®His snobby actions disgust me, but since I¡¯m even getting a bonus thanks to this guy, I¡¯ll endure this much.¡¯ Lucia knew that Himenes had leveled up quickly through the ¡®hunting ground gathering¡¯, which was not much different from bussing[2], but she didn¡¯t nitpick about it. ¡®It pays to be nice, so¡­¡¯ Lucia continued with a bright smile, just like a pro reporter. ¡°Well then, Himenes, please tell the many users that are watching this a tip or something of the sort that they should know in order to level up a Black Magician quickly.¡± ¡°A secret, right?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Himenes cleared his throat as he continued. ¡°Hmm, because I need to survive as well, I can¡¯t reveal all my know-hows, but starting now, I¡¯ll reveal some pretty good tips. Haha.¡± Lucia held back the urge to lodge a fist into Himenes¡¯ face and continued with a smiling face. ¡°Hoho, then viewers. Shall we now listen to the tips that Himenes, the number 1 ranking Black Magician, will tell us?¡± ¡°Firstly, Black Magicians, that is.¡± Himenes¡¯ self-praise began. However, while Himenes chatted excitedly, Lucia was thinking of something else. ¡®Was it Loren? The lv 37 Summoner, I need to find that person fast.¡¯ Loren was the name of the highest-level Summoner user that she had discovered from asking around. And if they were lv 37, there was a high chance they were the highest-level Summoner amongst the existing ones. Just like how she grabbed a contract with Himenes, she needed to find Loren before any of the other employees in the broadcasting company and clinch a contract with them. CH 39 Chapter 39: Mysterious Dungeon (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The first basement floor of the dungeon had a different configuration than the first floor. The interesting configuration with many small empty lots that were connected by an iron gat felt like a basement prison. The map worked in a system where when all the monsters in the small empty lot were caught, the door to the next area would open. Because of that, there was less need to move with consideration in battles compared to the first floor. The monsters¡¯ levels were 1-2 lvs higher than the ones on the first floor, but Ian could hunt more safely. ¡°Good, good. As expected, the first discoverer buff is like honey!¡± At the endlessly surging EXP, it was to the point where it was difficult for Ian to maintain his composure. He wasn¡¯t able to gain even one useful item yet despite the doubled item loot rate, but he wasn¡¯t very sad about it. Ian repeated battle after battle and slowly went to the deeper end of the dungeon. And he discovered an enormous iron gate different from the ones from before. ¡°Bbookbbook, it looks like there¡¯s something special in here, right?¡± Bbook-? Ian, who was about to open the door just like he did with the ones before, momentarily stopped. It was because he somehow felt that there would be a Boss-rank monster inside. ¡®I¡¯ll have to momentarily re-gear before moving.¡¯ Ian was someone who trusted his intuition. ¡®It¡¯s also almost time for Ly¡¯s Berserk skill¡¯s cooldown time to be over¡­¡¯ While Ian was checking the monsters¡¯ conditions, he discovered Bbookbbook¡¯s Potential had hit 20. ¡®Huh? Why is his Potential already at 20?¡¯ And after thinking about it for a bit, he was able to figure out the reason. ¡®Oh, right, he ate a Mandragora yesterday¡­¡¯ For a split second, he felt regret towards the Mandragora, but he quickly forgot about it. And since the situation was already like this, Ian decided to use Skill Grant on Bbookbbook before they opened the doors and went in. ¡°Bbookbbook, come here.¡± Bbook-? Bbookbbook crawled over to Ian. Through Ian¡¯s constant praise and meatball gifts, Bbookbbook was quite obedient now. ¡®It would be the best if an aggro skill came up.¡¯ By an aggro skill, he meant a skill that made all enemies surrounding the skill¡¯s caster turn their attention to them by force. It was a skill that you could call a necessity for a Tanker. ¡®Although, Bbookbbook¡¯s unique cry is a decent aggro skill as well¡­¡¯ As Bbookbbook¡¯s cry didn¡¯t pull attention forcibly, there were times monsters wouldn¡¯t even glance at him no matter how much Bbookbbook yelled and ran around. Because of that, Ian desperately wanted an aggro skill and cast Skill Grant. ¡°Familiar Skill Grant!¡± And as Ian cast that skill, a white bundle of light was sucked into Bbookbbook. And a system message popped up. You have used ¡®Familiar Skill Grant¡¯ on ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯. 20 of Bbookbbook¡¯s Potential has been consumed. Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ has obtained skill ¡®Shell Expansion¡¯. He did use Skill Grant without much expectations, but Ian felt an unknown nervousness at the name of the skill, which looked like it wouldn¡¯t have much use. And then the skill information popped up. Shell Expansion Classification ¨C Active Skill Skill Rank ¨C Common Requirement ¨C Can only be invoked when inside shell Cooldown Time ¨C None When in Shell Expansion state, Vitality and Defensive Power increases 100%, and becomes immobile. *For the duration of Shell Expansion state, perceived as an inanimate object. *When skill is used again, Shell Expansion state is released, and body returns to original size. ¡°¡­¡± Ian, who read the skill information, had a dejected expression. He did desperately want an aggro skill, but he thought any other normal skill wouldn¡¯t be that bad, either. Realistically, the chance of getting a skill related to aggro-ing amongst the many other skill types was not high. And if a decent skill came up, he could use it by pulling it with the knuckle¡¯s inherent ability, so he thought it would be helpful in his fighting power. However, this Expansion skill couldn¡¯t be invoked due to Ian¡¯s body condition, but even if it could be invoked, that would be a bigger problem. To Ian, who didn¡¯t fight by taking hits from his opponent, but rather opted for an agility-based combat style, dodging and moving fast to attack weak points, this skill was basically equivalent to a debuff instead. ¡°Ha¡­¡± A deep sigh left Ian¡¯s mouth. ¡°What the hell is perceived as an inanimate object as well. Is it the same as playing dead?¡± He felt that if Bbookbbook were to use Shell Expansion from now on, he wouldn¡¯t die no matter where Ian threw him. ¡®Is there nothing like Skill Deletion?¡¯ There was no way for him to have something like that. In order to delete Shell Expansion, the only way was to collect Bbookbbook¡¯s Potential again and use Skill Grant on him again. Ian thought deeply. ¡®Is there any way to make this Shell Expansion skill useful?¡¯ Ian gazed at Bbookbbook with a distant look. Bbook-? At Bbookbbook¡¯s expression that seemed to say he didn¡¯t understand the circumstances, Ian felt his strength drain automatically from him, but he still didn¡¯t give up. He wanted to find a way to use Bbookbbook in battle no matter what. ¡°Bbookbbook, let¡¯s try using the new skill you learned.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Bbookbbook nodded his head and cast the skill. Bbook-. The fact that Bbookbbook listened to commands well could at least be considered consolation. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± As Bbookbbook used the skill, Bbookbbook¡¯s head slipped into his shell first. And his body slowly got bigger, where the small body had become about as big as a large shield. Ian let out a deep sigh. ¡®It¡¯s exactly the size of a round shield.¡¯ However, just then, an idea flashed through Ian¡¯s mind. ¡®Wait¡­ Shield?¡¯ Ian¡¯s mind began to run violently. ¡®If Bbookbbook¡¯s inherent ability is also invoked, any decent damage won¡¯t even affect him. It would be perfect if I could use him as a shield.¡¯ Ian, who finally thought of a way to use Bbookbbook, snickered. ¡®Now the problem is that Bbookbbook is too heavy to carry with one hand in his bigger state and that my weapon is dual-wielding knuckles¡­¡¯ The problem was quickly solved. Ian had on a wicked smile as he approached Bbookbbook. ¡°Bbookbbook.¡± Bbook-? ¡°Shall we piggyback you?¡± @ ¡°Whew, we finally caught it.¡± Herz plopped down in front of the corpse of the enormous Ice Ogre and wiped the sweat that rolled down his forehead. ¡°Good work, Herz. Now we¡¯ve achieved the minimum requirement to upgrade to a village, right?¡± At Kroban¡¯s question, Herz nodded his head. ¡°Yes, hyung[1]. Now the territory¡¯s value is 1000.¡± Herz opened the Lotus Base¡¯s stat window and checked. Lotus Base. Classification: Territory Rank: Base (Upgrade Requirements Met) Dimensions: 3582 m2 Population: 175 people The Lotus guild¡¯s base. It¡¯s in a dangerous state because of the threat of the monsters, so it is isolated economically and culturally. Territory Value: 1007 Security Score: 12 Economical Score: 7 Technical Score: 4 Cultural Score: (Not opened yet.) Diplomatic Score: (Not opened yet.) When a base was gained for the first time in Kailran, the territory¡¯s rank is marked as the related guild¡¯s ¡®base¡¯. The most basic requirement for a village to be maintained was security, and when the territory¡¯s dimensions reached a certain standard, it was possible to upgrade to a ¡®Village¡¯. It was a system where whenever the higher-ranked requirements were satisfied, it was possible to upgrade to a higher level. Because a territory belonging to users that had upgraded above a Village didn¡¯t exist yet, the highest known rank so far after Village was the next rank ¡®Dominion¡¯. This was because it was currently possible to check up to the next rank right after the Village rank. ¡°Shall we upgrade it now?¡± The Lotus guild mobilizing their guild members for the past couple days and suppressing the monsters surrounding the territory resulted in just satisfying the requirements to upgrade to a Village. ¡°Territory upgrade!¡± Herz, who checked the information, immediately upgraded the territory, and as he did so, a system message popped up in the sight of all the guild members in the base. The ¡®Lotus Base¡¯ has upgraded to rank ¡®Lotus Village¡¯. While satisfaction appeared on all of their faces, another message popped up. Guild Master Herz has automatically been appointed to be the ¡®Lotus Village¡¯s village chief. Kroban, who saw the message, burst out in laughter. ¡°Haha, what the hell is this, Herz. You¡¯re apparently the village chief! Haha.¡± Carwin, who was beside him, also looked at Herz with a face that said he was dying of laughter. ¡°The leader of the village would be the village chief, hyung, what¡¯s wrong with that. Speaking of which, the village chief position kind of suits Herz hyung.¡± Fiolan also chimed in. ¡°Our guild master does look a little aged. Haha.¡± Herz shook his head. He did occasionally hear that he looked a little old, but to say he fit the image of a village chief¡­ ¡°Ah, Fiolan, chief head is a little too much. Even though I do look a little old, it¡¯s not like I look like a grandpa with wrinkles and a white beard¡­¡± It was a situation that seemed as though he would soon become sullen if they picked on him even a little longer, so Carwin and Fiolan quickly comforted Herz. ¡°Speaking of which, village chief, what¡¯s the next requirement to upgrade to a Dominion?¡± At Kroban¡¯s words that hinted playfulness, Carwin exaggeratedly waved his hand and spoke. ¡°Ah, hyung, if you keep making fun of him, Herz is going to become sullen!¡± However, as the old saying said, rather than the chastising mother-in-law, the sister-in-law that chipped in beside her was more hateful, so Herz glared at Carwin before letting out a deep sigh and opened his mouth as if he was resigning. ¡°To upgrade to a Dominion is going to be difficult for a while.¡± Fiolan asked. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Firstly, you need to have at least one user fundamentally that has the requirements to become a Lord, and to be one, you need at least have the Baronet¡¯ title.¡± At Herz¡¯s words, Carwin mumbled with a taken aback expression. ¡°Damn¡­ To get the Baronet title, you need to do the Empire Quest, but you probably need at least 400,000 Fame in order to even get the quest.¡± Herz nodded his head as he replied. ¡°That¡¯s right. 400,000 Fame. And you need to be over lv 90 in order to get the Empire Quest. There probably aren¡¯t a lot of people that can do the Empire Quest right now. At most, maybe about 20-30 people? And at this point, you could probably count the number of people that received the Baronet title within your five fingers.¡± At those words, Fiolan tilted her head as she asked. ¡°400,00 Fame isn¡¯t easy, but are the numbers really that low? I don¡¯t think there¡¯s that little number of people.¡± ¡°Of course, that¡¯s probably true if you just looked at the standard of 400,000 Fame. However, you¡¯ll need to be over lv 90 in order to even stand up to the level of difficulty of the Empire Quest¡­ There¡¯s probably very little users that have over 20,000 Fame and are over lv 90.¡± Just because they were a high-level top-ranker didn¡¯t mean they all had high Fame. Rather, highest-level users didn¡¯t have high Fame in comparison. There were multiple ways to raise Fame in Kailran, but the most common way was to do a lot of quests. However, because it was usually more efficient to level up by hunting rather than clearing quests, it wasn¡¯t like the highest-level users had the highest Fame as well. However, Kroban, who was listening to their conversation without a word, opened his mouth with a quizzical expression. ¡°Yo, but weren¡¯t people like Blazing Knight Ceilron or Red Flame Magician Remir doing the Empire Quest since way back? And they¡¯re some of the highest-level users.¡± At those words, Herz wore a bitter smile as he replied. ¡°I¡¯d prefer if you made an exception for those monsters, hyung.¡± The users that Kroban had mentioned were famous users that ranked within the top five of their respective classes. There were a couple users like them that were the highest rankers in their respective classes and also had monster-like high Fame, people that were out of the ordinary. Fiolan nodded her head and agreed. ¡°Well¡­ Exceptions always exist.¡± [1] hyung = what a younger male calls a closer, older man CH 40 Chapter 40: Mysterious Dungeon (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Just then, Carwin, who was checking the list of guild members, called Herz. ¡°Herz hyung, you¡¯re almost at lv 90, right?¡± Herz nodded his head. ¡°Yeah, by tomorrow, I should be able to hit 90.¡± ¡°What about your Fame?¡± ¡°My Fame¡­ is at 190,000.¡± Carwin scratched the back of his head. ¡°Damn, you¡¯re far from it.¡± This time, Herz looked at Fiolan and asked. ¡°Fiolan, what¡¯s your Fame at?¡± Even without him asking, Fiolan was checking her Fame out of curiosity and responded immediately. ¡°I¡¯m at a little over 160,000.¡± ¡°I see.¡± As expected, Fiolan, who was the ¡®Hunting Mania¡¯ in the guild after Ian, had comparably low Fame. ¡°But is there even a point in someone else other than Herz having high Fame? Doesn¡¯t the Guild Master have to end up meeting the requirements to becoming Lord?¡± Herz shook his head. ¡°As a matter of fact, I checked that part, they said that as long as there¡¯s at least one guild member that meets the requirement, they can become Lord. Even if they¡¯re not the Guild Leader.¡± ¡°Ah-ha.¡± ¡°The person with the highest Fame in our guild currently is¡­¡± Herz, who checked the guild information, had on a dumbfounded expression. ¡°What the hell, isn¡¯t this a mistake?¡± At Herz¡¯s violent(?) reaction, everybody¡¯s attention turned to him. Fiolan asked. ¡°Why? Is there a problem?¡± Herz responded with a dumbfounded expression. ¡°No, it¡¯s just that the person with the highest Fame in our guild is Kroban hyung.¡± Carwin and Fiolan had on surprised expressions as they spoke. ¡°What? Really?¡± ¡°Huh, that gangster-like hyung?¡± Herz scratched the back of his head as he replied. ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m saying. He looks like he¡¯d have the highest Infamy, but to have him be the one with the highest Fame¡­¡± At their teasing, Kroban glared at them. ¡°What? These little!¡± Kroban flew into a rage, but Herz continued his words without any attention. ¡°Hyung, your Fame is over 270,000. What exactly did you go around doing to have such high Fame?¡± His words were not to tease him this time. Herz¡¯s eyes truly showed shock. ¡°I thought you had only hunted¡­¡± Fiolan was just as surprised. While seeing their surprise, Kroban raised his shoulders proudly. ¡°Are all of you surprised at the Fame of this body?¡± Carwin teased him. ¡°Herz hyung, are you sure you didn¡¯t see Infamy as Fame?¡± ¡°What, you little punk?¡± While Carwin and Kroban squabbled with each other, Herz and Fiolan thoroughly looked at over 200 guild members¡¯ Fames one by one. However, there was no guild member that had a higher Fame than Kroban. Kroban explained why his Fame was so high. ¡°When I was around lv 50, I participated in the arena rookie league.¡± ¡°Oh, really?¡± ¡°Yeah, before I joined this guild, I was quite lucky with my opponents and reached up to the semi-finals. I got 50,000 Fame then, and the rest I got from working hard for my class quests.¡± As if they finally understood, all of them nodded their heads. ¡°Ah-ha, if it¡¯s the rookie league, then certainly¡­¡± The arena was a 1:1 pvp system that opened once at the beginning of every month. And there was a separate rookie league that only users below lv 50 competed in. Kroban wasn¡¯t a user that was part of the super high rankings, but he wasn¡¯t incapable of reaching up to the semi-finals of something like the rookie leagues. Herz opened his mouth as he looked at Kroban. ¡°Then, does that mean Kroban hyung has the highest chance of becoming Lord?¡± Fiolan nodded her head. ¡°Seems like so? Since the rest of the guild members have almost a 100,000 difference from him.¡± Herz agreed. ¡°No kidding¡­ How interesting. Even if you exclude the 50,000 Fame he gained from the rookie league, why is there such a big difference in our Fame?¡± Fiolan shrugged as she responded. ¡°Well, that¡¯s something only Kroban knows.¡± ¡°Ha, that hyung looks like a mountain bandit, but for him to have 270,000 Fame.¡± Herz shook his head. @ Meanwhile, Ian, who was carrying Bbookbbook on his back, fought the ghost monsters that endlessly appeared and wore a big smile. No matter how many he killed, the ghost lizards that appeared endlessly. Because they weren¡¯t Ghost Drakes, but Ghost Lizards that were slightly weaker than them at around mid-lv 50s, the EXP was a little lower, but instead, it was a better situation. Because of the large numbers, if they were Ghost Drakes, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to last long and would have had to retreat. Puck-! At the sound of the blunt impact, Ian slightly glanced behind him. Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ has received critical damage. ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 1. The attack of the Ghost Lizard, who was eyeing Ian¡¯s backside, was instead blocked by Bbookbbook¡¯s shell. Despite having invoked a critical attack, Ian had on a satisfied expression at Bbookbbook¡¯s status, which only received 1 damage. ¡®Hue, as expected, people need to use their brains.¡¯ Although his appearance was ridiculous, looking like a ninja turtle, he didn¡¯t care. Whenever an attack that was hard to dodge came up, if he turned his back slightly, Bbookbbook¡¯s shell perfectly blocked the damage. Bbookbbook showed off defense that was almost at the level of a bulletproof vest. Thanks to Bbookbbook¡¯s shell that was almost a perfect shield, Ian was able to move a little more aggressively and it helped a lot with his fighting power. The opponents¡¯ attacks that were focused only on Ddukdae were now divided and they were able to hunt more safely. An hour had already passed since he had entered within the enormous, strange-looking iron gate and during that time, only Ghost Lizards were endlessly created, but Ian had no intention of leaving. ¡®I need to see the end of this. I¡¯m positive this room isn¡¯t the end of the dungeon.¡¯ Ian glanced at the rock wall opposing the door that he entered from. There was an iron gate on that side as well that looked similar to the iron gate from where he came in from. He didn¡¯t know how long this endless amount of lizards would appear for, but he thought that eventually the door would open while he caught them. And before resetting, he had multiple experiences with dungeons like this one where waves of monsters would endlessly continue. And so, as he roughly knew how he needed to handle the situation, he was incredibly relaxed. ¡®It should be any time now for the wave of monsters to slowly end¡­¡¯ Ian, who saw the last ghost collapse after being bitten by Ly, re-adjusted his position. If the wave was not done, then new lizards would appear again. However, just then, the area started moving in a different pattern from before. ¡®Finally, the wave is over. I wonder what¡¯s going to appear?¡¯ Whoosh-! A loud noise rang through the inside of the stone chamber and a blue light started to flow along the ground. ¡®A Magic Summoning Circle?¡¯ This was usually a pattern that appeared when a dungeon boss was being summoned. Ian was on edge as he stared at the blue light that gathered in the centre of the stone chamber. ¡°Ly, prepare to attack!¡± Grr-! As the Magic Summoning Circle in the middle of the stone chamber was invoked, a silhouette started to slowly appear. However, while watching it, Ian¡¯s eyes slightly grew. From the Magic Summoning Circle that looked like an enormous boss monster would appear out of, a small elder appeared instead. With a body that was composed of the blue light and carrying a staff swaying with white light, it was a ghost that had the form of an elder. While Ian was flustered, the ghost elder(?) spoke. Ho¡­ I see you are a Summoner. Ian was momentarily flustered at the weird elder that appeared and even started talking, but he quickly collected himself and replied. ¡°That¡¯s right, but¡­ Who are you?¡± Still, it was Ian, who knew how to respect his elders, but as he first treated him with respect, he couldn¡¯t help but think that they could also be a monster. However, the elder showed no interest in Ian¡¯s question and mumbled on about things Ian didn¡¯t understand. For the first person to challenge this Oakley¡¯s test to be a Summoner¡­ Could this also be fate? ¡°Grandpa, is your name Oakley?¡± At Ian¡¯s blunt question, the elder finally nodded and responded. That¡¯s right. My name is Oakley. ¡°Why are you here, grandpa?¡± The elder, who momentarily thought about it, opened his mouth again. I cannot tell you that yet. ¡°What?¡± Ian was taken aback. As he suddenly appeared and spoke of a test and such that made no sense the more he spoke, Ian couldn¡¯t help but be flustered. However, just then, the elder, who just stared at Ian without speaking, raised the white staff he was holding onto and responded with a low voice. Challenger¡­ If you pass my test, you will learn of all the secrets of this structure. Ian, who felt something unusual, immediately got into a fighting stance. Thu-Thud- Thu-Thu-Thud-! The whole dungeon began to shake violently. ¡®What exactly is about to come out for this to be happening? It¡¯s making me nervous.¡¯ Oakley, who lifted his staff towards the nervous Ian, shouted out a summoning command with a loud voice. Drake of Chaos, answer my calling! And along with his words, a white light burst out from in front of him, and a gigantic drake appeared. The drake looked similar to the Ghost Drakes that Ian encountered on the first floor of the dungeon, but it was almost twice their size, and different from the Ghost Drakes that had a white body, it shone a dark grey light. The overwhelming glory intimidated Ian. However, its overbearing outer appearance was not all. ¡®Lv 75? On top of that, Heroic rank?¡¯ Ian was in despair. No matter how much Ian crawled or flew, he and his Familiars were only in their early lv 40s, and since Ddukdae, who was the highest level was at lv 45, there was almost no way for him to win a lv 75, Heroic rank monster. ¡®How does this make any sense? To have a Boss that¡¯s over lv 70 in a dungeon that¡¯s located in a lv 60-ranged hunting ground!¡¯ At the unexpected situation, swear words automatically came out of his mouth. Of course, this kind of situation wasn¡¯t nonexistent. There were cases of a dungeon that was interlocked with a quest connected to a high rank, or a dungeon that was related to a hidden piece, having lv 95 Boss monsters appear in a dungeon that was only about lv 60-70. However, no matter how unlucky, this was truly the bottom of it. ¡®Euh¡­ I tried to not die even once since I reset my character, but do I have to die here?¡¯ Ian slightly looked at Ly and Ddukdae. ¡®If I think I¡¯m going to die, I¡¯ll first recall my Familiars.¡¯ Familiars didn¡¯t completely cease to exist if they died. However, proportionate to their level, they couldn¡¯t be summoned again for a certain amount of time, so at around lv 40, it was only possible to re-summon them after about three days passed since they died. On top of that, it was obvious that Familiars received a level-down penalty as well. ¡®If death is inevitable, I¡¯ll make sure I¡¯m the only one that dies.¡¯ The game over penalty for characters was de-leveling 1 lv and for 24 hours, they couldn¡¯t log in, so even if Ian died, he needed to save his Familiars no matter what. It would hurt his heart if he had to die, but if he could just save his Familiars, he could hunt again as soon as the death penalty was over. And above all else, he didn¡¯t want to see the Familiars he bonded with dying. Roar! The Chaos Drake that the elder summoned cried out loudly. Compared to Dragon Fear, it was a joke, but to Ian, who was nothing more than around lv 40, it felt quite threatening. Your body constricted at the ¡®Chaos Drake¡¯s Fear. For 10 minutes, all of your stats will drop 5%. Ian tightened his fist. Even though he reached game over, he had no intention of dying easily. As Ian lit up his fighting spirit, the elder smiled brightly and put forth his staff. Drake of Chaos, attack him! Grrrrr-! At his command, the Chaos Drake inhaled deeply. Seeing that, Ian¡¯s eyes slightly widened. ¡®What the hell, that thing even uses Breath?¡¯ That preparation movement was surely to shoot out Breath. Ian ran forward and yelled at Ddukdae and Ly. ¡°Ddukdae, Ly, separate yourselves to the sides!¡± Along with those words, a black Breath gushed out of the Chaos Drake¡¯s mouth. Hwaaak-! And Ian quickly turned his body and placed his back against it. CH 41 Chapter 41: Mysterious Dungeon (4) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Bang- Bang-Bang-Bang-. Along with the loud explosive sound, system messages popped up one after another. You have been attacked by the ¡®Chaos Drake¡¯s Breath. Your Vitality has been reduced by 1795. Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ has received critical damage. Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 578. He did block the attack with Bbookbbook¡¯s shell, but he could only block so much, as the Breath¡¯s range was so wide. Despite Bbookbbook having blocked most of the attack, an incredible amount of damage that was over a third of Ian¡¯s total Vitality came in. ¡®He even reduced Bbookbbook¡¯s Vitality by 500?¡¯ Because the Expansion buff was also applied to Bbookbbook¡¯s Vitality, a damage of 500 wasn¡¯t threatening. However, to have 500 damage being dealt to Bbookbbook despite his crazy Defensive Power meant that he would have died immediately if he took the hit directly. ¡®If that thing is in a similar category as Ghost Drakes, his Defensive Power and Vitality is probably weak, right?¡¯ Ian gave out a command to his Familiars. Even if he gave up later, he decided to do his best until then. ¡°Ddukdae, Ice Wave! Ly, use Berserk and keep an eye on his backside!¡± And Ian charged towards the drake from the front to focus the drake¡¯s attention onto him. ¡®Weak Point Capturing¡¯ skill has been invoked. The weak point of the target will be indicated with the accuracy rate rising 19% and the chance to critical hit increasing 23.5%. If the weak point is hit, evasiveness will increase 97%. After using all the buffs and skills that he could use, Ian lunged towards the drake. And right then, the drake¡¯s enormous tail was swung harshly. Bang! Along with a loud boom, the large tail slammed into the front side of Ddukdae, who couldn¡¯t avoid the attack, and an incredible amount of damage came in. Familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯ has received critical damage. Familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 4782. ¡°Holy shit-!¡± Ian was taken aback. The drake¡¯s Offensive Power was much stronger than what he was expecting. ¡®This crazy¡­ This is too much, even if it¡¯s a lv 70 Boss monster!¡¯ If Ddukdae was hit one or two times more by an attack like that, he would be killed instantly. ¡®I¡¯ll have to Summon Release Ddukdae first.¡¯ As the drake was quite big, its movements were quite slow compared to its destructive power. For Ly and Ian himself, as they had high Agility, they could avoid the attacks to an extent, but with Ddukdae¡¯s slow movements, he wouldn¡¯t be able to avoid the drake¡¯s attacks no matter what. If he was going to die in one or two hits anyways, it was a situation where Ddukdae¡¯s tanking was pointless. Ian, who made the decision, immediately Summon Released Ddukdae. ¡°Ddukdae, Summon Release!¡± Along with his order, Ddukdae turned into a white light and disappeared into the air. And while Ian stood in place to Summon Release Ddukdae, Ly bit the Chaos Drake¡¯s shoulder joint. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has dealt critical damage to the ¡®Chaos Drake¡¯! The critical attack that was immediately invoked once the drake¡¯s weak point was attacked! Ly, who was the most familiar with Ian¡¯s Weak Point Capturing skill, there was never a time when he missed the highlighted weak point. The Chaos Drake¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 1776. Subsequently, Ly¡¯s inherent ability, Bleeding, was immediately invoked. The Chaos Drake has gone into ¡®Bleeding¡¯ state, so 355 damage will be dealt per second for 10 seconds. And that wasn¡¯t the end of Bleeding. Because Ly¡¯s Berserk skill was also activated, his Offensive Power was additionally increased. As Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has dealt critical damage to the ¡®Chaos Drake¡¯, ¡®Ly¡¯s Offensive Power will increase additionally for 5 seconds. Thanks to the overlapping of the buffs and the critical attack, Ly, who momentarily maximized his Offensive Power, continuously attacked the Chaos Drake. The Chaos Drake¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 1352. The Chaos Drake¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 2087. And the drake cried out with a voice full of pain. Roooaaaar! The drake had received over 5000 damage in an instant, but as if it was saying that was nothing, its violent counterattacks continued. Whoosh-! Along with the heavy sound of the wind that even caused goosebumps to form just from hearing it, the drake swung its tail again and Ly barely dodged the attack by throwing his body. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 217 from hitting the wall. He was able to avoid the attack, but Ly rolled along the ground from colliding with the wall, and the drake, who saw that, moved his body to make a second attack. ¡°Ly, careful¡­!¡± However, it looked like it would be difficult for Ly to avoid this attack. This was because before he could pull himself together, the drake¡¯s attack continued. If he was properly hit by the drake¡¯s attack, his Vitality would probably be gone in one hit. However, there was no way that Ian would just stand there, watching that happen. ¡°Space Distortion!¡± Along with Ian¡¯s shout, the Space Distortion skill was invoked, and Ly and Ian¡¯s position switched. And Ian thrusted Bbookbbook¡¯s shell towards the front paw heading for him. Kka-ka-kang-! As the Chaos Drake¡¯s claw and Bbookbbook¡¯s shell clashed, a screeching sound that was uncomfortable to hear rang out. Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ has received critical damage. ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 118. ¡®What the hell, this damned drake deals critical damage whenever he attacks!¡¯ Ian grumbled to himself, but on the other hand, after seeing that Bbookbbook¡¯s Vitality was only reduced by 100, he was relieved. As expected, Bbookbbook¡¯s Defensive Power was great. ¡°Ly, bite him!¡± While the drake¡¯s attention was diverted to Ian, Ly, who had positioned himself behind the drake at some point after switching positions with Ian, ran towards the back of his neck. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has dealt critical damage to the ¡®Chaos Drake¡¯! The Chaos Drake¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 2576. Ly had dealt critical damage again, but it seemed as though the Chaos Drake still had over half its Vitality, as it still looked fine. And right then, the drake¡¯s tail flew up again. This time it was an attack towards Ian. Pu-uck-! He narrowly managed to block its tail by turning his back, but Ian flew into the wall and had to roll around unpleasantly. Your Vitality has been reduced by 521 from hitting the wall. Ian closed his eyes tightly. As expected, a Heroic rank monster in the lv 70 range boasted unbelievable strength. ¡®Ha, as expected, winning is probably impossible, right? I don¡¯t want to die, though¡­¡¯ He felt the strength in his body drain from him as he thought of the EXP that would disappear and the 24-hour login restriction penalty that would come along with the game over. ¡®Still, I need to save Ly.¡¯ Ian spread out his hand in order to Summon Release Ly. He felt that he could deal a little more damage somehow, but he didn¡¯t want to lose even more things by pushing it. However, just then, a surprising situation appeared. Ly bit the back of the Chaos Drake¡¯s neck continuously. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has dealt critical damage to the ¡®Chaos Drake¡¯. As the wounded area was attacked, the amount of damage dealt will increase by 36%. The Chaos Drake¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 3269. ¡°¡­!¡± This was the first time he had seen this system message while playing Kailran until now. ¡®If you attack an area that¡¯s already been wounded, did you always deal extra damage? Why did I not know of this until now?¡¯ Truthfully, it was obvious that Ian didn¡¯t know, as this wasn¡¯t extra damage that was invoked just because you attacked the exact same area again. The system message didn¡¯t properly explain it, but it was an extra effect that was only invoked if you had the ¡®Bleeding¡¯ inherent ability. On the other hand, separate from Ian¡¯s shock, the drake, who received incredible damage, let out a shriek of pain. Roooaaar! And finally, the Chaos Drake¡¯s name started to blink slowly. It meant that its Vitality had dropped below half. However, Ian let out a sigh. This was because, if thought about from the opposite perspective, he only reduced its Vitality by about half now. Even after receiving that much damage, the thing that still had almost half its Vitality left looked even more monstrous. Ian decided level-headedly. There was no time to recover their Vitality using First Aid, and it would become impossible to avoid the drake¡¯s attacks continuously if the battle went longer and Ian¡¯s body grew heavy. ¡°Ly, good work, Summon Release!¡± Ian Summon Released Ly. Now it was time to minimize the damage as much as possible. Along with a white light, Ly also disappeared inside the dungeon. ¡®Euh, to have to de-level 1 lv and be restricted from logging in for 24 hours¡­¡¯ It was Ian, who kept on thinking about the death penalty he already knew about. To him, the 24-hour login restriction penalty was more critical than de-leveling 1 lv. This was because he was wasting a whole day of the very first dungeon discoverer buff. However, this moment was when Ian had experienced everything. Oh-ho¡­ You¡¯re truly amazing. The elder, who watched the battle, swung his staff in the air. As he did so, the Chaos Drake that was about to attack Ian turned into a white light and dispersed into the air. And a system message popped up. You have cleared the Dungeon of Chaos. You have obtained 174,320 EXP. You have leveled up. You have reached lv 43. Ian had on a dazed expression. ¡®Cl-Clear¡­?¡¯ And along with that, his head fell forward. That incredible Drake of Chaos didn¡¯t appear in the dungeon to be killed from the beginning. ¡®Speaking of which, the EXP is stingy. To not even reach 200,000 EXP even with the very first discoverer¡¯s buff.¡¯ He did level up, but rather than him leveling up because the dungeon clear EXP was a lot, it was more like it was time for him to level up, which is why it happened. ¡®It¡¯s about the same amount of EXP as killing about 50 Ghost Drakes.¡¯ Ian, whose tension was released, plopped down on the spot, and the elder slowly approached him. He had on an incredibly thrilled expression. Amazing, truly amazing. To put up this good of a fight with the Chaos Drake as your opponent! However, Ian, who felt suddenly drained, looked at the elder with tired eyes and mumbled. ¡°What¡¯s so amazing, I lost like this.¡± No, no. It was a Familiar that you couldn¡¯t beat from the beginning with your stats. At the elder¡¯s words, Ian had on a dumbfounded expression. ¡®To say that so casually right now¡­¡¯ This was because, from Ian¡¯s perspective, it only sounded like provoking words. However, the elder continued to speak, oblivious to whatever Ian was thinking on the inside. What¡¯s your name? Ian responded without much thought. ¡°Jinsung¡­ I mean, it¡¯s Ian.¡± I see, it¡¯s Ian. The elder stroked his beard as he continued. Congratulations. You have passed my test gloriously. Ian¡¯s blunt voice came after. ¡°A test?¡± The elder, Oakley, nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right, a test.¡± ¡°So?¡± Would you care to learn my teachings? At the unexpected words of the elder, Oakley, Ian was taken aback, and in front of his eyes, an even more flustering message popped up. CH 42 Chapter 42: Ian¡¯s Achievement (1) TL: Haku Editor: adkji The Dragon Tamer¡¯s Path The legendary Dragon Tamer Oakley was impressed by your summoning. He wishes for you to walk the Dragon Tamer¡¯s path. If you accept his proposal, you can class-change to ¡®Dragon Tamer¡¯. Difficulty Level: ¨C Reward: Class-change to Summoner (Dragon Tamer) Will you accept? *When the proposal is accepted, the existing class will disappear. ¡®Hidden class!¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes widened to twice its size. At the appearance of the new hidden class, his mind was chaotic. ¡®Could you obtain hidden classes in this way as well?¡¯ Ian, who was taken aback, was silently still, and Oakley asked once again. What do you think? Following me and walking the path of a legendary Dragon Tamer. ¡®Dragon Tamer¡¯ It was truly a cool class name that emanated swagger. Ian¡¯s pupils shook. ¡®Between Taming Master and Dragon Tamer, which one would be better?¡¯ It was times like this when he wished he could see at least a strategy book that someone else had written. ¡®Taming Master was a class I received quite easily in the beginning of the game, while Dragon Tamer, I earned by suffering, so¡­¡¯ Ian decided to trust his intuition. ¡°I want to walk the path of a Dragon Tamer, Oakley. I will class-change.¡± Oakley¡¯s face brightened up. Oh! You¡¯ve made the right decision, Ian. Dragon Tamer is truly an amazing class. You will not regret the decision you made today. Along with his words, Oakley spread out his hand towards Ian. And a blue light that spread out from his hand began to wrap around Ian. However, just then. You cannot class-change to a lower-ranking class. You have failed to class-change to Dragon Tamer. System messages popped up one after another. Ian was taken aback. ¡°Hu¡­ uh?¡± And along with the system messages, disappointment flashed across Oakley¡¯s two eyes. Hoho, so you were already a Summoner walking the path of a master. No wonder¡­ And he smacked his lips before continuing. I did think you were some sort of special Summoner when I saw your Blood-Red Maned Wolf, but to think you were walking the path of a master. Ian felt strange. He was sad that he couldn¡¯t obtain a class with a cool name like Dragon Tamer, but he was also in a good mood knowing that the Taming Master class was a higher-ranking class. Ian¡¯s eyes slightly shone. He felt he could gain pretty good information from this elder. ¡°Is my Ly a little special?¡± Oakley tilted his head. Ly? Ah, the wolf¡¯s name must be Ly. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Oakley¡¯s words continued. Ly is for sure a Rare-rank Blood-Red Maned Wolf, but the strength I felt from him was much higher. This is something that could never happen unless a Tamer raises their Familiar in a special way. Hearing the elder¡¯s words, Ian was inwardly surprised. Although he was an NPC, he saw Ly¡¯s rank and stats precisely. ¡®As expected, he did say he was the legendary Dragon Tamer.¡¯ Ian slightly looked at Oakley. ¡®Shouldn¡¯t there be more to gain from him?¡¯ ¡°But, Oakley, is it alright if I ask why you were waiting for a challenger here?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Oakley momentarily had on a flustered expression. Oh, right, how could I forget? I was distracted by your Familiar that I almost forgot about the most important thing. At the elder¡¯s words, Ian inwardly swallowed his resentment. ¡®As expected! There¡¯s no way that there was not even one reward after passing this crazy test! Because of this old man, I almost left without anything.¡¯ As he thought that the hidden class that Oakley offered did not count as a reward, Ian almost thought that there was no reward. ¡°The most important thing?¡± Oakley nodded his head. That¡¯s right. Follow me this way. Once Oakley finished speaking, his form slowly began to move. He floated as if he was sliding through the air, and went towards the iron door on the opposite side of the chamber. ¡®He¡¯s the definition of a ghost.¡¯ Ian hurriedly followed behind Oakley, and shortly after, the iron door, which was firmly closed, began to open with a boom. Keu-keu-keung- keu-keung-! Come in. As the two people went inside the iron door, the iron door let out another boom as it shut. Bang-! And the place Ian had entered was a dark cave that emitted a mysterious energy. If the place where he had just battled the Chaos Drake had a stone chamber-like feeling, the place he just entered had a similar feeling to a natural cave. Oakley slowly made his way more inside, standing in front of a spot where an enormous boulder was placed and turned to look at Ian. The boulder had a feeling similar to an altar where temples¡¯ ceremonies were held. One reward and one obligation is given to those who have passed the test. ¡°¡­?¡± Ian stared vacantly with an expression saying as if he didn¡¯t understand, and Oakley¡¯s words continued again. It means, along with receiving the test¡¯s reward, you will receive an obligation. ¡°Obligation?¡± That¡¯s right, obligation. Ian thought to himself. ¡®Is it like a quest?¡¯ And Oakley¡¯s words continued. First of all, if you receive the reward, you are forcibly granted an obligation along with it. You cannot refuse it. At those words, Ian¡¯s expression stiffened. ¡®This crazy!¡¯ It meant that he lost the right to refuse the quest after reading it. The risk for this was quite big. The risk to lose the right to refuse the quest after reading it was quite big. In the case that a quest was failed or given up on after receiving it, your Fame would drop proportionately to the quest¡¯s rank. There wasn¡¯t a big impact when dropping one quest that was ranked lower than D, but he heard that there were cases where when the quest¡¯s rank is high, their Fame was cut by the thousands. Before resetting, Ian had failed a C-rank quest before, and he remembered losing about 500 Fame. On top of that, depending on whether the quest was successful or not, he could lose his reward. So if he got a quest with a level of difficulty that was higher than he expected, he could end up losing just his Fame without gaining anything. ¡°By any chance, there¡¯s no way of knowing beforehand what kind of obligation it is, right?¡± He asked just in case, but it was as expected. I cannot let you know until you decide. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Oakley¡¯s urging towards Ian, who was contemplating, continued. What will you do? Will you give up the reward and not receive the obligation either, or will you receive the obligation along with the reward? Ian decided. ¡®It¡¯s not my style to give up here and leave.¡¯ Ian, who made up his mind, nodded his head as he opened his mouth. ¡°Yes, I will accept.¡± Ian¡¯s response. Along with that, a system message popped up. You have accepted Oakley¡¯s proposal. And as expected, the quest information popped up. Ring-. The Remnants of a Forgotten Ancient Monster. The legendary Dragon Tamer Oakley had sealed himself under Crupia Snow Mountain for over a thousand years. After receiving the God Dragon¡¯s Soul Stone, go find the Dimensional Enchanter. Quest Difficulty Level: B Quest Condition: A Summoner that has received recognition from Oakley. : Cannot be in a party for the duration of the quest. Time Limit: None Reward ¨C Unknown You cannot refuse the quest. You have accepted the quest, ¡®The Remnants of a Forgotten Ancient Monster¡¯. As it was a quest that couldn¡¯t be refused, a system message saying that he automatically accepted the quest popped up. And Ian, who read the quest information, was slightly relieved. ¡®Fortunately, there¡¯s no time limit.¡¯ It was a little surprising that he got a B-rank quest before he even reached lv 50, but the fact that it didn¡¯t have a time limit meant that it wouldn¡¯t matter even if he accepted the quest and didn¡¯t clear it. ¡®But if you cannot be in a party for the duration of the quest, does that mean you cannot do any party-plays at all until you finish this quest?¡¯ If it was a different user unlike Ian, it was a critical penalty. However, to Ian, who originally enjoyed solo-play, it couldn¡¯t really be considered a penalty. ¡®I probably can¡¯t finish a B-rank quest alone right now, but¡­¡¯ It was something he could do more safely after he raised his level and got a little stronger. While Ian was thinking of these things, Oakley approached him. And he handed to Ian a pitch-black lump of rock that emitted a mysterious energy. You have obtained the item ¡®God Dragon¡¯s Soul Stone¡¯. ¡®This is a soul stone¡­?¡¯ Oakley opened his mouth as he watched Ian tilt his head while holding the object that more closely resembled a piece of coal rather than a soul stone. Truthfully, I am a Summoner that existed a thousand years ago. Ian turned his head towards Oakley. If it was a quest that he had to do no matter what, he needed to hear Oakley¡¯s story as carefully as possible. And in the generation I lived, there were legendary monsters that do not exist anymore. As if Oakley was reminiscing his past, his words continued with a sentimental expression. And amongst them, one of them was a Familiar that had spent the most time with me and was my best friend, the War Dragon Karceus. At some point, Ian was immersed into Oakley¡¯s story. His story was quite interesting. A thousand years ago, I was the head of the ¡®Dragon Tamers¡¯, who have now disappeared, and Karceus was one of the five dragons that were called God Dragons. Oakley¡¯s story was incredibly long. This was the content of his story when summarized. Prilania Valley, the base of the northern continent¡¯s Dragon Tamers a thousand years ago, was invaded by evil dragons, and through that, many dragons and tamers were killed. Oakley¡¯s mission was to protect the War Dragon, Karceus, who was one of the five God Dragons and his companion, and because of that, he fled Prilania Valley and hid in the snow mountains. However, because of the evil dragons that followed behind him persistently, he had no choice but to bind Karceus¡¯ and his soul under the snow mountain, and had waited for a thousand year. ¡°But were the evil dragons so strong that they couldn¡¯t be blocked by the strength of you or the War Dragon that¡¯s called a God Dragon?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Oakley had on a bitter expression as he nodded his head. The number of evil dragons were far superior compared to us, and especially the Lord of the evil dragons, ¡®Khalifa¡¯, was even stronger than Karceus. Ian asked another thing he was curious about. ¡°What happens when I go and find the Dimensional Enchanter with this soul stone?¡± The Dimensional Enchanter will tell you the way to revive the War Dragon¡¯s soul back into this world. Ian tilted his head. ¡°Revive a soul?¡± Oakley¡¯s words continued. What do you think my reason is for enduring here in this underground, where not even a ray of light shines in, for such a long duration of a thousand year? ¡°¡­?¡± It¡¯s to revive the bloodline of the War Dragon Karceus that was cut off after that day. The existence of a ¡®God Dragon¡¯ cannot be ended off like that. If I could, I wanted to continue the existence of Dragon Tamers as well¡­ Ian finally understood. ¡®Ah¡­ Is that why he proposed that I class-change to a Dragon Tamer?¡¯ Oakley continued to speak. Originally, if the first person to have passed my test was a Summoner, I was planning on having them continue the existence of Dragon Tamers and hand them the soul of Karceus. But if that wasn¡¯t the case, I was thinking of asking them to take Karceus¡¯ soul to the Dimensional Enchanter through the soul stone. He continued speaking with a slightly irritated voice. But I never thought that there would be a Summoner like you, who had a higher-ranking class than a Dragon Tamer. Ian felt sorry for no reason at all. ¡°I¡­ see.¡± If you had continued the existence of Dragon Tamers, I would have been able to leave this world lightheartedly, and the War Dragon would have become your Familiar. Ian had on a slightly strange expression. ¡°Can a Dragon Tamer revive the soul stone of Karceus?¡± CH 43 Chapter 43: Ian¡¯s Achievement (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Oakley shook his head. No. Just because you bring Karceus¡¯ soul in the beginning doesn¡¯t mean that he¡¯ll be revived. There¡¯s an inherent ability that only Dragon Tamers have that could help Karceus¡¯ soul be reborn as a new War Dragon. ¡°You¡¯re also a Dragon Tamer, though, no?¡± I¡¯m in a sealed state, so I cannot activate the skill. Ian was momentarily caught up in the feeling of slight regret. ¡®It must have been an incredible Familiar if it had the modifier God Dragon attached, how unfortunate¡­¡¯ However, along with those thoughts, he felt a pride in the Taming Master class that was a higher-ranking class than Dragon Tamer. Anyways, you just need to get the soul stone to the Dimensional Enchanter. They¡¯re not a Dragon Tamer, but they should be able to continue the existence of the War Dragon some other way. Ian nodded his head. ¡°I understand. I will definitely give them the stone.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Oakley had on a satisfied smile. It¡¯s a relief that at least someone who can fulfill my wish finally appeared. And Oakley handed to Ian a white feather ornament. Since you heard the details of the obligation, I will give you your reward. A system message popped up. You have obtained the ¡®Dragon Tamer¡¯s Feather Ornament¡¯. And Oakley¡¯s words continued. It¡¯s an artifact that was passed down for generations to the head of the Dragon Tamers. Just from the first glance, it was an item that looked incredibly rare, and Ian¡¯s mouth gaped open. ¡°Ha, thank you.¡± But, you need to meet the Dimensional Enchanter and release the seals that are on the artifact in order to activate its original ability perfectly. Ian licked his lips at the words that it wasn¡¯t a perfect item yet, but nodded his head. He was planning on doing the quest anyways. ¡®I just need to find the Dimensional Enchanter or whatever.¡¯ Ian nodded his head as he responded. ¡°I understand. I will make sure to find the Dimensional Enchanter.¡± A smile spread across Oakley¡¯s mouth. It seems that now I can finally let down all my karma and rest peacefully. ¡°Where do I need to go to find them?¡± At the east end of the southern continent. A dimensional magic tower is over there. Along with the end of his words, Oakley¡¯s form that shone a blue light gradually faded, and slowly dispersed into the air. Please, revive the God Dragon¡¯s descendant onto this ground¡­ With these words as his end, Oakley disappeared into the air without a trace. ¡°Ha, it somewhat feels like I¡¯ve received an incredible quest.¡± Truthfully, he had experience clearing a couple of B-rank quests before resetting, but it was not something you could call amazing just by the rank. However, he thought that there would be something greater than the difficulty level of a B-rank judging from the content he heard from Oakley. ¡®This has to be a linked quest. The Dimensional Enchanter or whatever will probably ask me to do a couple of things.¡¯ The intuition of Ian, the sophisticated gamer, was telling him that. ¡®Since I¡¯m already this far, I¡¯ll get to the end!¡¯ Ian, who set his heart, took out the Dragon Tamer¡¯s Feather Ornament that he received from Oakley. ¡®He did say it was an item that was sealed¡­ but shall we firstly check?¡¯ The item information for the Dragon Tamer¡¯s Feather Ornament popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Dragon Tamer¡¯s Feather Ornament Classification ¨C Head Ornament Rank: Legendary (Sealed) Equip Limit -?None Defensive Power ¨C 36 Durability ¨C 150/150 Option ¨C All combat stats +15% Leadership +150 (Sealed) Affinity +200 (Sealed) *All summoned Familiars¡¯ stats increase by 20%, and their Critical Hit Chance increase by 25%. *When the head ornament is equipped, there is no Leadership restriction, allowing endless monster capturing. (But when the threshold is exceeded, they cannot be summoned to battle.) (Sealed) *When the head ornament is equipped, the Leadership required to manage a Dragon-class Familiar is reduced to half. (Sealed) *When the head ornament is equipped, Affinity with the Dragon-class Familiar increases. (Sealed) *This is an item belonging to user ¡®Ian¡¯. This item cannot be transferred to another user or be sold, and even if the character dies, it does not drop. This is a head ornament of an ancient legendary Summoner. Ian¡¯s mouth gaped open. ¡®What, how can such an item exist?¡¯ Firstly, the amount of stats increased by the option that was attached was an unbelievable amount. The +15% increase of all combat stats was big as well, but his Leadership and Affinity would almost increase by twice the amount. ¡®If the seals are just released, it¡¯s totally an item I can use until the end.¡¯ The parts where it was written ¡®Sealed¡¯ in red next to the stats really bothered him. ¡®Ability to capture endlessly without Leadership restriction, and on top of that, a reduced Leadership demand for a dragon Familiar¡­¡¯ If thought simply, the option for no Leadership restriction when hunting could seem useless. They couldn¡¯t be summoned to battle anyways, so just being able to capture a lot may look useless. On top of that, if it¡¯s just for capturing, Sealing Grimoires could be carried around. However, as soon as Ian saw the option, he knew how he could use it. ¡®If the Vitality of Familiars that are in battle drops, I could just Summon Release them and summon a different Familiar that¡¯s more energetic!¡¯ Simply put, using a sports match as an example, if the key players are out of energy, he was basically gaining other substitute players that could participate in place of them. On top of that, the option that reduced the required Leadership when managing a Dragon-class Familiar. Of course, it wasn¡¯t like Ian had a dragon Familiar at the moment, but it was something he was going to get eventually. Dragon Taming was in other words a Tamer¡¯s dream. ¡®Keu¡­ On top of that, belonging to the account.¡¯ Lastly, the belonging to the account option. Generally, there were a lot of bothersome times where a high-priced item was gained but because it had the belonging to the account option, it couldn¡¯t be sold. However, Ian felt that he would use this head ornament until he was done with this game. Because it was an item that he couldn¡¯t sell anyways, the part where the item wouldn¡¯t drop even if he died sounded like a big merit to him. ¡®I will succeed this no matter what!¡¯ Another reason to successfully complete this quest no matter what came up. Ian clenched his fist tightly. ¡®To try and do a B-rank quest right now would be idiotic, so firstly, I need to work hard and level up.¡¯ Ian felt his heart beat loudly. Even though Ian was much stronger compared to his level, he felt he needed to be at least lv 70 in order to clear a B-rank quest without a party. Ian quickly left the stone chamber. Currently, every minute, every second was precious. To Ian, time to hesitate was not an option. @ While fighting the Chaos Drake, he used up a lot of strength, but Ian didn¡¯t rest and began hunting shortly after. He had a fundamental reason as to why he needed to level up quickly, but the time limit for the very first dungeon discoverer buff made Ian restless as he wanted to make as much use out of it before it ran out. ¡°Euh¡­ My eyes are starting to get blurry now.¡± Since he hadn¡¯t slept more than 2 hours for the past five days, it would have been weirder if his body condition was normal. As Ian caught the last Ghost Drake that was in front of his eyes, he let out a shout. ¡°This is the last!¡± Ring-. You have leveled up. You have reached lv 50. Ability ¡®Summoning Magic¡¯ has been formed. Ability ¡®Spirit Magic¡¯ has been formed. An alarm noting his level-up rang. And along with that, Ian plopped down onto the ground. However, different from the actions of his drained body, a satisfied smile was lodged onto his mouth. ¡®Keuh, as expected, goals that are theoretically possible are possible in reality as well.¡¯ Ian was satisfied. This was because truthfully, hitting lv 50 before the very first discoverer buff ended was a hardcore goal that Ian himself couldn¡¯t confirm that he would be able to achieve. However, thanks to cutting more than half of even his sleep time, he was able to accomplish it. ¡®But what are the abilities Summoning Magic and Spirit Magic needed for?¡¯ Once lv 50, all classes form a new class-special ability. Summoning Magic and Spirit Magic were the class-special abilities for Summoners. ¡®Well, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s something I¡¯ll find out about by thinking about it now¡­ Shall I go sleep the sleep that I¡¯ve been lacking?¡¯ Ian, who decided to think about his questions towards two new abilities another time, let out a big yawn and stood up. He felt he could sleep really well tonight. Ian was just about to log out like that, but another system message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. You are the very first amongst the Summoner class to have reached lv 50. You have obtained 1500 Fame. ¡®Whoa¡­!¡¯ Ian was in such a good mood that his exhaustion momentarily left him. System messages continued to pop up one after another. A Summoner over lv 50 has been made in Colonar Continent, Luspel Empire. Building ¡®Tower of Summoners¡¯ will be made in Luspel Empire¡¯s capital, Myuran. ¡®Tower of Summoners¡¯ contributions has increased by 5000. Now, Summoners from Luspel Empire will be able to receive class-related quests from the Tower of Summoners. The 1500 Fame was good as well, but he was most satisfied that he was the very first to reach lv 50 in his class. On top of that, since a tower was being made for the Summoner class thanks to Ian himself, he felt as if he had accomplished something amazing. It felt like the grudges he had for not being able to play as soon as Kailran opened in the beginning were being released. And this wasn¡¯t the end. The Prophet of Summoning Quest has been activated. ¡®What? Is there such a quest?¡¯ With a dazed expression, Ian gazed at the quest information that popped up in front of his eyes. Prophet of Summoning (Empire Quest) Amongst the Summoners of the Luspel Empire, you are the prophet of Summoning that is taking the lead. Your reputation has been spread throughout the Luspel Empire. Along with that, Celias, the King of Luspel Empire, has found out about you, and wants to meet you, the prophet of Summoning. You must meet King Celias within three days. Quest Difficulty Level: ¨C Quest Condition: The very first Summoner to have reached lv 50. Time Limit: 3 days. Reward ¨C Unknown. If you reject the quest, your Affinity with King Celias will drop. (If you do not have any Affinity, your Hostility will go up.) Ian¡¯s two eyes rounded. ¡®Empire Quest!¡¯ Empire Quests were quests that you could only receive if you had over 400,000 Fame if you went the normal route. However, Ian¡¯s Fame had not even reached 15,000. And along with that, a question that Ian had momentarily in the past was answered. ¡®Right, was it Red Flame Magician Remir? There was a controversy when people found out that a user that had less than 200,000 Fame, far from 400,000 Fame, was doing an Empire Quest, and they called it a bug, right?¡¯ Red Flame Magician Remir was a user that was currently number 1 in the level ranking for Magicians. ¡®That girl, she definitely got the prophet of magic quest. Even if wasn¡¯t the prophet quest, she probably got a special quest in this kind of category.¡¯ Thinking of it that way, everything made sense now. And this was an opportunity that couldn¡¯t be better. This was because of the enormous Fame and reward, and the contributions you received for doing the Empire Quest. The most important part here was the contributions. This was because if your contributions towards the Empire pile up, you received a title of nobility from the king, and once you gained the title of nobility, depending on the degree of his title, he would be able to make an NPC with fitting abilities his subordinate. ¡®As expected, Kailran was a game where the benefits gained from being ahead of others were incredibly important like a lot of other games.¡¯ This was a truth that Ian had realized multiple times while growing as a Summoner after resetting. ¡®Firstly, let¡¯s go to sleep. I¡¯ll make sure to go to Myuran as soon as I log in when I wake up tomorrow.¡¯ This time, Ian actually logged out of Kailran. This was because he felt like he would fall asleep sitting inside the capsule if he tried to stay awake any longer. CH 44 Chapter 44: Ian¡¯s Achievement (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Myuran, the capital of Luspel Empire, and located on the eastern side of Myuran, Flinor Square. There were many users gathered at this location, where between the users it was also called the Class¡¯ Square, And while they spoke noisily with each other, they were watching something while standing to one side of the square. ¡°What the hell? Is this real?¡± ¡°Of course it¡¯s real, then is it fake?¡± ¡°This doesn¡¯t make sense! How can the Tower of Summoners, amongst the three new classes, be made first?¡± There wasn¡¯t any peculiar reason why the users were gathered here. This was because a new building was being built amongst the gathering of what could be called the flowers of each class, the Towers of Experts, in the Flinor Square, otherwise known as Class¡¯ Square. When the basic construction began in the beginning, they all came to watch the tower be built with a happy heart which said, ¡®Someone finally hit lv 50 between the users of the new classes.¡¯ However, right now, after an hour had passed and the lower floors were completed, it was surprisingly revealed to be the Tower of Summoners. In a situation where everybody was predicting for it to be the Tower of Black Magicians, it wasn¡¯t even the Tower of Assassins, but the Tower of Summoners being built, which was known to be the worst class to raise, so everybody couldn¡¯t help but be surprised. Most of them were surprised users, but on the other hand, there were also users that were happy about it. ¡°Wow, I never even imagined that the Tower of Summoners would be built first!¡± ¡°No kidding, I should wait here and grab a Class Quest as soon as the construction is completed!¡± ¡°I was hoping that we would at least build it before Kaimon Empire, but for it to be the first of all the new classes¡­¡± They were obviously Summoner users. Of course, when a class tower is developed, applicable users could gain useful information, but they could also gain quests related to their class as well. On top of that, if they did quests and raised their contributiveness quite high, they could gain high-quality skill books and items related to their respective classes, so it made sense why they were so excited. Separate from the users that were whispering amongst each other, the Tower of Summoners was being built quickly. The Tower of Summoners, which was being built floor by floor in an instant, began to exude greatness. And when about three more hours had passed, a system message popped up in front of all the users of the Luspel Empire. Ring-. A Summoner over lv 50 has appeared for the first time in Luspel Empire, Colonar Continent. Building ¡®Tower of Summoners¡¯ has been built in Myuran, the capital of Luspel Empire. And not just at Flinor Square, but all of the users of Luspel Empire began to bustle. ¡°What the hell, apparently, the Tower of Summoners has been built!¡± ¡°This is exciting! Let¡¯s stop hunting and go to Myuran first of all!¡± While there were Summoners that were happy, ¡°Did you just see the system message that popped up?¡± ¡°It just popped up for me as well. What is this? Is this possible?¡± ¡°What the, I just reached lv 20¡­ But a lv 50 already appeared? Isn¡¯t this crazy?¡± ¡°This has to be a system mistake. This doesn¡¯t make sense. There isn¡¯t even a lv 50 Black Magician.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a bug. I¡¯m positive. Let¡¯s go report the LB Sports bug bulletin board.¡± There were also people who couldn¡¯t believe the reality and were in denial, ¡°Who could it possibly be?¡± ¡°It has to be a user that received full support from a giant guild.¡± ¡°Ha, how sorrowful are the lives of ordinary users.¡± There were also jealous users. Most of the users that were jealous were users of other new classes. Now all Summoners of Luspel Empire may receive Class Quests from the Tower of Summoners. However, as the last message popped up, most of the users of Luspel Empire generally had turned happy. For one reason or another, it was good news for users of Luspel to have a new class tower before Kaimon Empire. And, that day. The official Kailran community was incredibly noisy. @ ¡°Ahh, what a good sleep.¡± Jinsung, who woke up after 10 am, stretched and headed towards the kitchen. The reason was to eat milk with flakes like usual. Different from normal, it was Jinsung, who woke up after sleeping almost close to 12 hours today, yet he was feeling refreshed. It was all thanks to the fact that he was the very first Summoner that had reached lv 50. ¡°Yawn.¡± Jinsung, who kept on yawning, grabbed the bowl with his flakes poured in and went towards his computer desk. Before logging onto the game, he was thinking of looking up some information on the official community. ¡°Huh? What the hell is this, why are there so many message regens today of all days?¡± As soon as Jinsung opened up the class bulletin board, he was taken aback. This was because there were dozens of pages with bulletin board messages that had a red n marked on them, meaning that it hasn¡¯t been over 24 hours since that post was registered. The class bulletin board was normally quite active, but there was never a time when message regens happened this quickly. And Jinsung was able to find out the reason for it shortly after. ¡®Huehue, everybody is moved at my achievement.¡¯ This was because most of the content on the Summoners¡¯ bulletin board was related to the Tower of Summoners that was built because of Jinsung. Jinsung began to read the bulletins excitedly and scrolled down. Originally, Jinsung was planning on going into the capsule as soon as he finished eating all his flakes, but before he knew it, he was being sucked into the monitor. ¡®Oh? What¡¯s this bulletin?¡¯ Jinsung, who had already scrolled down and read multiple pages of bulletin messages, discovered a bulletin message with an interesting title. I know the lv 50 Summoner protagonist that all of you are curious about. This bulletin message had been viewed over 20 times more than other posts. ¡®What the hell? They know me?¡¯ Jinsung knew that the chances for messages like this to usually be content-less clickbait was high, but he couldn¡¯t help but click it out of curiosity. Click- However, Jinsung, who clicked on the bulletin message, couldn¡¯t help but suck in a sharp breath of air out of surprise. ¡®What the¡­!¡¯ This was because as soon as Jinsung clicked on the post, the thing that popped up first on his screen was none other than a screen shot that was taken of Jinsung¡¯s character, Ian. Jinsung quickly scrolled down and read down the contents of the bulletin post. Hello, I am a mid-level user at about lv 60 that came to hang out from the Knight¡¯s bulletin board. You all came after seeing the screenshot that I posted at the top, right? There are probably a lot of you that think this post is clickbait, but you¡¯re wrong. This isn¡¯t clickbait. I am positive that the Summoner that you see in the above screenshot is the protagonist amongst all Summoners that hit lv 50 first. How am I so sure you ask? Gulp-. Ian gulped without him realizing as he continued to scroll down and read the post. Where do you think the location that is shown in the screenshot is? People who have already been there probably figured it out right away, but it is the newly opened northern continent. It¡¯s Crupia Snow Mountain of the northern continent. And do you happen to see the monster that the Summoner user is catching in the screenshot as well? Surprisingly, it is an ¡®Ice Troll¡¯ that is normally around the late lv 50s. Now then, what level would that Summoner be? What level do you need to be at least to catch a late lv 50 Ice Troll as a solo player? No matter how good equipment he has, and even if he has strong Familiars, shouldn¡¯t he be a Summoner that is already in his late lv 40s? Unfortunately, that user put all his personal information as private, so I couldn¡¯t find out his ID, the guild he¡¯s in, and his level, but I¡¯m positive. I even personally saw his hunting, and as if he had equipped all his items with only Heroic-rank ones, his hunting rate was faster than me when I¡¯m at lv 60. What do you guys think? I will leave it to the Summmoners to make the decision. At the logical statistics of the bulletin content and the screenshot that was for sure Ian himself, Ian was flustered. However, he recognized the reality of it shortly after and nodded his head. ¡®Ha, I disliked having to deal with annoying flies, so I put everything as private and went around secretively, but will my information be revealed like this in the end?¡¯ And an unknown feeling of satisfaction popped up at the same time. ¡®I became a celebrity now. Shall we look at the comments¡¯ reactions?¡¯ Ian scrolled down and began to check the comments that were attached to the bulletin post. However, his expression began to change strangely. Why did some Knight come to another person¡¯s bulletin board and lie? Everyone, isn¡¯t that a fabrication just from the looks of it? Yeah, the above person¡¯s right. Even if there is a Summoner that was in their late lv 40s, why would they go there? It¡¯s hard enough to believe that they¡¯re able to hunt there, but even if they could, the efficiency is probably terrible. Ian, who scrolled down reading the comments, began to get agitated without him even realizing it. ¡®What the hell are the saying? The hunting efficiency there is great.¡¯ Ha, they brought a composed picture from somewhere just to pull aggro. Everyone, just look at that Red Wolf. That wolf is almost the size of a Half-Moon Bear, how does that even make sense? Yeah, I was just about to say that, too. If you¡¯re going to compose a picture, at least do it properly, what the hell are you doing, bringing a picture that you composed weirdly? Tsk tsk, if you want to grab attention, at least use photoshop properly¡­ Ian didn¡¯t know why(?), but he was infuriated. ¡®These idiots! This is so stifling, I feel like I¡¯ll die, Argh¡­!¡¯ Ian was fuming as he turned off his computer and stood up. For some odd reason, he had on a depression expression. @ Ian, who logged into Kailran, was still depressed. ¡®Did kids these days catch a doubting disease, they said what about a normal picture? Composed?¡¯ Ian, who kept grumbling over his sorrow for not being able to become a celebrity(?), summoned Ly in order to cast the Training skill. ¡°Ly, summon!¡± Grr-! Only about 12 hours had passed since the hellish, gruesome five days of hunting had finished, but as if Ly was saying he was happy to see Ian, he growled and rubbed his body. Ian petted Ly, who acted like that. ¡°How nice would it be if Bbookbbook acted like you?¡± And while he thought of it, he summoned Bbookbbook as well. ¡°Bbookbbook, summon!¡± Bbook-! Sure enough, summoned Bbookbbook had on an incredibly ill-natured expression. ¡°Bbookbbook, did you not miss me?¡± Turn-. As Bbookbbook turned his head away, Ian let out a sigh. ¡°You little, you only like me when I give you a meatball, don¡¯t you? Do you want me to give you a meatball?¡± Bbook-! However, as if he was saying that a meatball is meaningless, Bbookbbook¡¯s expression was incredibly determined. Ian was taken aback. ¡®What the hell? Did Bbookbbook finally get sick of meatballs?¡¯ Ian glanced slightly at Bbookbbook. ¡®There¡¯s no way that¡¯s the case. There has to be a different reason¡­¡¯ After thinking about it deeply, something popped up in Ian¡¯s head. ¡®Ah, by any chance¡­ Is it because I carried him around on my back and used him as bullet bait?¡¯ If that was it, it made sense that he was hurt, as Ian also felt a little sorry. ¡®But it¡¯s so nice, so how can I not use him?¡¯ Ian crouched down in front of Bbookbbook. ¡°Bbookbbook.¡± Bbook-. ¡°Are you sulking because I carried you around on my back?¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Bbookbbook turned his head slightly and looked at Ian. ¡°Thanks to you, how many times did I survive?¡± Bbook-! However, as if Bbookbbook was saying that he didn¡¯t want to hear it, he turned his head away. Ian began to persuade Bbookbbook. ¡°Bbookbbook, listen carefully. It¡¯s a national loss for Luspel Empire to not use an incredibly magnificent, talented individual like you. Do you know that?¡± Ian¡¯s strangely persuasive words from what Bbookbbook heard continued. Bbookbbook¡¯s head slightly turned back to look at him. Ian continued his words as he wore a sad expression. ¡°If it¡¯s just you on my back, I have nothing to fear. Don¡¯t you think you could protect me a little?¡± Bbookbbook¡¯s large eyes began to shake. Bbook-? And as soon as Bbookbbook, who was soft-hearted, began to waver, Ian put out an appealing offer that was almost too good to turn down. ¡°Bbookbbook, if you keep protecting me, I¡¯ll give you three meatballs in the morning, and four meatballs in the evening everyday as a daily wage. How about it?¡± Bbook-! Bbookbbook contemplated it. It was a sweet offer that allowed him to eat tasty meatballs regularly. However, he seemed as if he was wavering, but he sharply turned his head away. As Ian watched Bbookbbook, who developed quite a level of immunity towards meatball temptations, he let out a deep sigh. And acting as if he was giving away more, he changed the offer again. ¡°Alright, then I¡¯ll give four meatballs in the morning, and three in the evening. How¡¯s that, good?¡± Bbookbbook, who momentarily thought about Ian¡¯s changed offer, slowly nodded his head. It meant that he would accept if it was an offer like that. Ian petted Bbookbbook¡¯s head. ¡°Bbookbbook, as expected, you¡¯re a smart and magnificent turtle.¡± Bbookbbook looked up at Ian with an arrogant expression as if he was asking if he just realized that. ¡°Hoho, this cute little.¡¯ And so, Ian, who succeeded in conciliating Bbookbbook with a deceptive offer(?), tossed him a meatball as a down payment before sitting down on a rock. ¡®Ugh, what to do with this picky turtle¡­¡¯ While watching Bbookbbook eat the meatball deliciously, Ian grumbled to himself. ¡®But he is pretty cute. He¡¯s also useful in combat now.¡¯ Ian, who momentarily sat down and watched Bbookbbook eat, checked a blinking message icon that was in his sight. Someone had messaged him while he was logged off. CH 45 Chapter 45: Ian¡¯s Achievement (4) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Sponsors: VT and MR Herz: Jinsung, is the Summoner that hit lv 50 you by any chance? It was precisely his best friend, Herz¡¯s message. Ian felt the momentary unknown(?) sadness that he experienced from the Summoners¡¯ bulletin board being washed away in one go. ¡®As expected, Yoohyun is the only one that knows me!¡¯ However, the blinking message mark still didn¡¯t disappear. ¡®Huh? Is there another one?¡¯ And as he checked his messages again, there was a message from Harin right below. Harin: Ian, what are you doing? When exactly did you hit lv 50?! Ian jjang[1]! It was a Harin¡¯s message full of confidence that, compared to Herz¡¯s message that was a question, had much higher credibility. Truthfully, the reason why Harin said with confidence that the lv 50 Summoner was Ian was because she already thought that while he did the Goblin Camping Ground Quest with her, she thought he was a higher level than her. Either way, Ian was touched. He even felt tears form in his eyes as well. ¡®Ah¡­ Harin was a good person.¡¯ The image of a scary girl that liked PK, Harin¡¯s image changed positively once through cooking and another time with this message. ¡®I should help her sincerely with her vacation assignment next time!¡¯ The time felt less wasteful as well. Ian sent a response to Harin shortly after. Ian: I just hit lv 50 and had passed out until now. I just logged in! However, it seemed Harin wasn¡¯t logged on, as a response didn¡¯t come back immediately, and Ian, who wanted to brag about his own achievements, became slightly sullen. ¡®Will Yoohyun be logged on?¡¯ Ian sent Herz a message. Ian: Yeah, it¡¯s me. I hit lv 50 yesterday and slept. I just woke up. And it seemed Herz was logged on, as a response came shortly after. Herz: Wow¡­ You monster-like dude. The conversation continued. Ian: Did you send me a message to ask that? Herz: Yeah¡­ There was that as well, but I also wanted to say something. Ian: Say something? What is it? Herz: Not long ago, our guild occupied a base in the northern continent. As soon as Ian heard the word base, Ian rejoiced. This was because he also knew how important of a part a base was to the guild. Ian: Oh, really? Where is it? Herz: If you go a little more northeast from Crupia Snow Mountain for about a quarter of a day, there¡¯s a place called Lokor Snowfield, it¡¯s there. Ian: How¡¯s the size of the base? Did you get a good place? Herz: Yeah, the size is pretty big and the location is good. Ian¡¯s mood got better. His mood was as if he had scratched a 500 Won[2] lottery ticket without much anticipation, but won 50,000 Won[3]. Ian truthfully wasn¡¯t even anticipating for the Lotus guild to take over a decent base through this expedition. This was because, firstly, he knew how fierce the guilds participating in the northern expedition were and secondly, it was true that the Lotus guild was a strong guild that was in the top 5%, but compared to the gigantic guilds that were in the top 10, their strength was nothing. Ian: That¡¯s good. I did hear that you guys were going on the northern expedition, but I didn¡¯t even expect you to get a good base. Thanks for your hard work. Herz: We were just lucky, I guess. And Ian was able to discover the biggest reason why Herz sent a message. Ian: Ah, then, did you contact me to ask for help with the base clearing operation? Herz: As expected, you¡¯re quick-witted. That¡¯s right. But not right this instant, as the level of the monsters over here are quite high. They¡¯re at least over lv 70. If you go a little farther out, there are also monsters that are close to lv 100. Ian: Then I could probably help out once I hit close to lv 70. Herz: Yeah. I think so. Ian: Okay, you don¡¯t have anything else to say, right? Ian stood up and brushed himself off in order to finish up the messages and to go hunt, but shortly after, another unexpected message arrived. Herz: Ah, right, I almost forgot. Ian: Huh? What? Herz: Can you stop leveling up for about a week and wait? Ian: ¡­? Why? To prevent Ian from leveling for a week, it was something that wouldn¡¯t happen with him. However, with the continued words from Herz, Ian couldn¡¯t help but be flustered. Herz: There¡¯s only a week left until the Empire Arena opens. What do you think about maintaining lv 50 and going out qualified as a rookie? Ian¡¯s eyes slightly grew. ¡®Ah, why wasn¡¯t I thinking about that? Even Herz, who didn¡¯t even reset his character, was thinking about it¡­¡¯ Truthfully, Herz only thought about it from Kroban¡¯s story not long ago about him participating in the rookie league and earning 50,000 Fame, there wasn¡¯t another reason. And because the first person Herz thought about when he heard that story was Ian, so he mentioned it to him. Kaimon Empire and Luspel Empire¡¯s Empire Arena opened on the first of every month alternatively. And as last month Kaimon Empire¡¯s arena opened, it was the Luspel Empire¡¯s turn to open their arena this month. When the arena opened, any user could apply to enter, and the strongest thirty-two that passed the preliminaries would be put in battle to decide the winner. After everything progressed to the finals, winners would earn a huge amount of Fame and strong items proportional to their rank, so many users who thought they were strong challenged the arena every month. And two leagues always opened at the same time for the Empire Arena. One of them was a combined league, where any user could participate in, and the other was the rookie league, where only users below lv 50 could participate in. Herz was suggesting Ian to maintain lv 50 for just a week and participate in the rookie league. Ian: Ah, right, arena1Urgh, why was a forgetting about the Empire Arena? Ian had on a tearful face, to tell him to hold off leveling up for a week was a big torture. Ian blamed himself. ¡®If it was going to be like this, why did I even sleep only one or two hours a day and hit lv 50?¡¯ Overlooking his depression, it was to the point he was sorry to the past him for not thinking further. Herz: Why else, it was because it was close to impossible to hit lv 50 before August 1st. Even I didn¡¯t think you could hit lv 50 this fast. Herz¡¯s words were extremely right. The point when Jinsung class-changed to Summoner was Kailran¡¯s update day, June 20th. And how could he have thought that Ian would hit over lv 50 in the short time of only one month and about ten days until the day that the Empire Arena opened on August 1st? Truthfully, it wasn¡¯t eve like Ian wasn¡¯t bearing in mind the Empire Arena while resetting. ¡®I was only thinking that I needed to level up as much as I could before the arena opened.¡¯ He didn¡¯t even think that he would hit lv 50 and have one week left free. Ian: Ergh¡­ One week is a little wasteful, but to not participate when I hit lv 50 at such a good timing would be idiotic, right? Herz: Don¡¯t ask when you already know the answer. Even if you go out and get in the top 8, you¡¯re getting 10,000 Fame and a Heroic-rank necklace related to your class. You know how many quests you need to do in order to raise your Fame 10,000, right? It¡¯s impossible with just one week. It was the truth that Ian also knew very well. He was just merely depressed. Ian: Ha, alright. One week is a little wasteful, but I¡¯ll rest from leveling up and do something else, I guess. Herz: Alright, wishing you good luck. Ian, who finished his conversation with Herz, felt his strength drain from him. Ian gazed vacantly at Bbookbbook, who had climbed onto his knees after eating his meatball without Ian even realizing, and let out a sigh. ¡°Bbookbbook.¡± Bbook-? ¡°What are we going to do for the next week?¡± Bbookbbook-? However, it was Bbookbbook, who wouldn¡¯t give an answer to Ian. ¡°Firstly, let¡¯s go do the prophet quest I was originally planning to do anyways.¡± Ian, who stood up and brushed himself off, slowly moved. His footsteps somehow seemed like he had no energy. @ Ian moved to Myuran shortly after. In order to progress with the prophet quest he needed to go to the imperial palace, but he wanted to see the Tower of Summoners before that. ¡®Keu, there¡¯s no way that I can¡¯t go and check my achievements.¡¯ Ian, who arrived in Myuran, headed towards the Flinor Square. And as he arrived at the square, he was able to find the Tower of Summoners easily. ¡°Hoho, seeing it like this is more satisfying.¡± The Tower of Summoners stood high alone a slight distance away from the already existing class¡¯ towers. Now, when the users of the other new classes reached lv 50, two other towers would develop next to it, but as it was showing off its splendor on its own at the moment, it looked even cooler. The bronze dragon statues that stood guarding either side of the tower¡¯s entrance was perfectly Ian¡¯s style. ¡®Hue, I like it. Since I have a lot of time to spare, I¡¯ll go in while I¡¯m already here.¡¯ He was always engrossed in leveling up, but while he was forced to rest from hunting now, Ian was more relaxed than ever since he had reset his character. Lala-. It was a situation where he automatically hummed to himself. At the entrance of the Tower of Summoners, there were quite a lot of Summoners coming in and out in order to receive class-related quests. ¡®For sure, if you¡¯re going to quest anyways, it¡¯s better in various ways to get quests from your class¡¯ tower.¡¯ Because Ian had two quests, the quest from Oakley in the dungeon and the prophet quest, filling his quest window, he had no intention of getting a Tower of Summoners¡¯ quest on top of that. However, when he had completed both those quests, he was planning on getting quests from his class¡¯ tower as well. ¡®The structure of the Tower of Summoners is also similar.¡¯ While thinking of the Tower of Archers that he went in and out of countless times before resetting, Ian mumbled to himself. ¡®Then they probably have an artifact clearing house on the fifth floor here, right?¡¯ There were a lot of things to do in the class¡¯ towers aside from getting quests. And the place that Ian was currently looking for was the Artifact Clearing House, where you could exchange contributions that you made towards the Tower of Summoners for items or skill books. Because the tower was first made thanks to Ian, it was a situation where he had received quite a lot of contributions. ¡®Since I¡¯ve received about 5 thousand contributions, I should be able to trade it for something decent¡­¡¯ Before resetting, if he thought about the almost 10 thousand accumulated contributions he gathered at the Tower of Archers, the 5 thousand was an incredible amount. ¡®It would be better to save it and use it when I¡¯m a bit of a higher level¡­ But if there¡¯s a good skill book, I¡¯ll trade it immediately.¡¯ In the case of items, he could obtain higher-ranking artifacts the higher the level he was, but to exchange right now when he was only lv 50 was not a good choice. However, skill books were different. This was because if there were good skill books, he needed to buy it as soon as possible in order to raise its proficiency sooner. ¡®Found it. As expected, it¡¯s in the same spot.¡¯ Ian, who found the contributions clearing house, moved with a fluttering heart. Ian¡¯s current expression was similar to the expression of a child who was walking into a toy store holding a 10,000 Won[4] bill for the very first time. As Ian approached the front of the clearing house, the NPC that was there smiled brightly and spoke. ¡°This is the contributions clearing house. How can I help you?¡± [1] jjang = Korean slang word meaning ¡°the best¡±, ¡°top of the top¡±, etc. [2] 500 Won = 0.43 USD [3] 50,000 Won = 42.69 USD [4] 10,000 Won = 8.54 USD CH 46 Chapter 46: Ian¡¯s Achievement (5) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda As Ian looked at the female NPC that had a beautiful appearance with long, pointed ears reminiscent of an elf, his mood lightened. ¡°I came because I wanted to see the artifacts that are inside.¡± ¡°I see. Could I know the name of the person entering? I will check the contributions you have.¡± Ian nodded as he responded. ¡°It¡¯s ¡®Ian¡¯.¡± ¡°Alright, Ian, please wait one moment.¡± And the NPC, who entered something into the magic ball that was floating next to the entrance, wore a surprised expression as she returned to Ian. ¡°Ah, you were the prophet!¡± While looking at the NPC, whose Affinity raised incredibly, Ian had on a bitter expression as he nodded his head. ¡°Yes¡­ That¡¯s right. How much contributions do I have?¡± ¡°You have 5 thousand in contributions.¡± ¡°Ah-ha, I see.¡± It was just as Ian remembered. Truthfully, because there was nothing that would have raised his contributions after receiving the 5 thousand contributions from reaching lv 50 first, it was an obvious fact. ¡°Come this way, Ian. There are many artifacts and skill books that you can trade for contributions inside.¡± ¡°Alright, thank you.¡± The NPC, who took Ian inside the clearing house, smiled as she slightly dipped her head. ¡°Ian, if there¡¯s an item you find that you like after you¡¯ve looked through to your heart¡¯s content, let me know.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± As the NPC returned to their seat, Ian began to look at the items inside the clearing house in earnest. As Ian¡¯s level wasn¡¯t that high yet, there was a limit to the items he could see, but despite that, it was quite an extensive amount. ¡°Since there wouldn¡¯t have been any users that traded their contributions for items yet.¡± As it had not even been two days since the tower was made, there could not be a user with contributions excluding Ian. No matter how simple the quest, class quests on average took over a day. Ian lifted the items that were on the display one by one and checked the options. ¡®Oho, this is in the same category as the knuckle I bought from the auction not long ago.¡± The item that Ian had picked up was the ¡®Ancient Summoner¡¯s Steel Sword¡¯. Starting from the item¡¯s name and level restriction to the option, it was an incredibly similar item to Ian¡¯s knuckles. Ian checked the required contributions that were written in front of the item. ¡®Hm, 350 contributions? This item¡¯s worth was around this, I see.¡¯ Normally amongst the quests that were given from class¡¯ towers, if you cleared one that¡¯s difficulty level was around a B-rank, you could gain about 200-400 contributions depending on several other conditions. If put like that, 350 contributions wasn¡¯t that large of an amount. Ian suddenly remembered the ¡®Dragon Tamer¡¯s Feather Ornament¡¯ item that he had equipped. ¡®Could there be an item amongst the ones that you could get through contributions that is as good as my feather ornament?¡¯ Aside from whether the Dragon Tamer¡¯s Feather Ornament¡¯s options are good or bad, it¡¯s rank itself was a Legendary-rank item. Legendary-rank items were so rare that he had only seen them a couple of times before resetting, and only about twice in the clearing house of the Tower of Archers. ¡®Was it around lv 80 when I first saw a Legendary-rank item in the Tower of Archers?¡¯ The higher your level, the more often higher-ranked items appeared in the clearing house. As expected, Ian dwelled on the thought that he needed to level up fast. He thoroughly looked through the items in the clearing house, but they were all items around the same level. As he was only lv 50, it was in a way an obvious thing. ¡°Hm, I¡¯m done here now¡­¡± He discovered a couple items that he liked, but he felt it would be better if he purchased them by looking through the auction if they were at that level. It seemed wiser to save his contributions and change to better items later. ¡®Time to go look at the next room.¡¯ The next room was a place you could trade for skill books. He wanted to trade for at least one decent skill book if there was one. ¡®Shall we look at the offensive skills first?¡¯ Summoners already lacked offensive skills from the beginning, but the skills of the ¡®Taming Master¡¯ class that Ian class-changed to were even more taming-based. That¡¯s why Ian was currently in a situation where offensive skills were almost nonexistent for him. It was fun to command the Familiars he raised well to fight, but it was just as fun for Ian to contribute to the fight personally as well. That¡¯s why he was thinking of purchasing an offensive skill first. ¡°¡¯Flame Tent¡¯? There¡¯s some Magician-exclusive skill, right?¡± Ian pulled out the skill called Flame Tent and read it. Flame Tent Classification ¨C Active Skill. Skill Lv ¨C lv 0. Skill Rank ¨C Rare. Proficiency ¨C 0%. Consumption Price ¨C 20 Spirit Magic. Cooldown Time ¨C 3 minutes. A flame spirit is summoned and temporarily makes a flame tent. If an enemy¡¯s attack is blocked with the created flame tent, damage equivalent to 350% of user¡¯s Summoning Magic is absorbed, and 200% of flame damage is returned. *Skill Acquisition Qualification: Can only be acquired if passive skill ¡®Flame Spirt Summoning¡¯ is already learned. Ian¡¯s eyes shone. ¡°Oho, this is how Summoning Magic and Spirit Magic were used?¡± This was the first time he discovered the use of the newly-made, special class skills that he got once he hit lv 50. Summoning Magic was a stat that influenced the offensive power of offensive magic, and Spirit Magic was a consumption price in order to use skills. In a Magician¡¯s case, it would be similar to Mana. ¡®Let¡¯s see here, what are my stats right now?¡¯ Ian opened his stat window for the first time in a while and checked his stats. ¡®My Summoning Magic is at 500? My Spirit Magic is at 100¡­ Hm, then if I use this skill, does that mean I¡¯ll absorb a maximum of 1750 damage, and deal 1000 damage? That uses up about 1/5 of my Spirit Magic.¡¯ It wasn¡¯t a bad skill. However, thinking about the 3-minute cooldown time, it wasn¡¯t that great of a skill either. ¡®Shall we look at the other skills as well?¡¯ Ian checked a couple of other skills. And shortly after, he was able to come to a conclusion. ¡®So the Spirit is basically the base for offensive magic for Summoners. What type of Spirit I choose from the beginning must also be important.¡¯ Before he chose an offensive magic, he needed to think about what elemental spirit Familiar he was going to choose as his passive skill. ¡®Fire and Ice are also good, but somehow I¡¯m drawn to Lightning.¡¯ Ian lifted the skill ¡®Lightning Spirit Summoning¡¯ and momentarily contemplated. ¡®I feel like it could cover the attacks of other elemental properties even as a Familiar.¡¯ Looking at Ddukdae, who Ian had with him right now, he was basically an Ice-type Familiar. And Ian could think of several monsters that he could tame and use immediately for Fire- or Earth-types, but there was nothing that really popped up for monsters that were Lightning-type. ¡®Alright, let¡¯s go to the Lightning-type offensive magic first.¡¯ As it wasn¡¯t like he couldn¡¯t learn other spirit types later because he learned Lightning-type, Ian immediately made up his mind. ¡®Hm, it requires 500 contributions. It¡¯s a little wasteful but¡­¡¯ Ian, who held the ¡®Lighting Spirit Summoning¡¯ skill book, began to look through the Lightning-type offensive attacks. And he was able to find a skill that he liked shortly after. Current Proliferation Classification ¨C Active Skill. Skill Lv ¨C lv 0. Skill Rank ¨C Heroic. Proficiency ¨C 0%. Consumption Price ¨C 15 Spirit Magic. Cooldown Time ¨C 1 minute. A Lightning Spirit is summoned and creates two spheres flowing with lightning on each hand. If the created lightning spheres are thrown and hits an enemy, 250% of the applicable damage from Summoning Magic will be dealt to the enemy and the spheres will divide into 4 and shoot out in every direction. If the shot-out spheres hit a nearby enemy or geographic feature, they will shoot out again, and after maintaining their state for 5 seconds, they disappear completely. Enemies suffering from the Current Proliferation have a 15% chance of going into ¡®paralyzed¡¯ state for 20 seconds. If gone into ¡®paralyzed¡¯ state, movements are slowed by 30%, and if hit by the Lightning-type attack, 50% of the damage will be received. *Skill Acquisition Requirement: Can only be acquired if passive skill ¡®Lightning Spirt Summoning¡¯ is already learned. *Skill Invoking Requirement: Skill can only be invoked when the Lightning Spirit is summoned. *If ¡®paralyzed¡¯ condition is invoked, the cooldown time is reset. Compared to the other ¡®Heroic¡¯-rank offensive skills, its offensive power was on the lower side, but Ian liked Current Proliferation the most. ¡®Its Offensive Power is a little weak, but my attacks aren¡¯t strong enough to be the main force of the fight anyways.¡¯ He needed to use Current Proliferation in order to find out, but he could deal damage to multiple enemies at once and because he could even paralyze them, he thought it would be the most useful. And if he was lucky and the paralysis was continuously invoked with the 15% chance, he felt he could fire the attack at random with the resetting of the cooldown time. ¡®If I hit multiple enemies at once, I could really fire at random continuously.¡¯ It was obvious as the chance to invoke the paralysis effect to at least one part went up every time he hit an enemy. In a lucky case where paralysis was constantly invoked, he could at least invoke the skill 6 times one after another. As he hadn¡¯t tried it out in reality, he couldn¡¯t get an exact sense of it, but he felt it was truly a good skill. ¡®The contributions don¡¯t feel like a waste.¡¯ It was a skill that required a whopping 1200 contributions. Despite that, though, Ian grabbed the skill book without hesitation. As Ian went out holding the two skill books, the NPC, who stood at the entrance, smiled brightly at him as she approached him. ¡°Oh my, have you chosen everything, Ian?¡± ¡°Yes, these two books here.¡± As Ian held out the two skill books, the NPC momentarily examined them and responded. ¡°Hm, let¡¯s see here. You need a total of 1700 contributions.¡± Ian nodded as he replied. ¡°Yes, I¡¯ll use them.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve truly picked out really good skills. Are there no more items that you would like to trade now?¡± As he intended to save the remaining 3300 contributions he had, there was nothing else for him to look at here. ¡°Yes. I¡¯ll come by next time.¡± ¡°Alright, come again!¡± Ian used up a total of 1700 contributions like that, and after trading for the two skill books, he left the Tower of Summoners. And shortly after, he used the skill book and learned both the skills. You have acquired the skill ¡®Lightning Spirit Summoning¡¯ by using a skill book. You have acquired the skill ¡®Current Proliferation¡¯ by using a skill book. Along with the two lines of system messages that popped up, a small spark began to appear in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. ¡°Huh? What¡¯s this?¡± Ian watched the yellow lights that made a static noise lump together with an interested expression. And the lumping lights slowly grew, it created one form. You have summoned the Lightning Spirit for the first time. You can give it a name. Ian momentarily stared at the Lightning Spirit that appeared before his eyes with a vacant expression. The spirit had a cute appearance reminiscent of a small sparrow. ¡°Hm, your name is¡­¡± While Ian was thinking of a name, the summoned spirit began to fly around, distracting Ian, and cry out. Chirp- Chir-Chir-Chirp- Chirpchirp-! At that moment, he decided what to name the spirit. ¡°Jjaekee[1], I¡¯ll make it Jjaekee.¡± As expected, it was Ian, who preferred names that were simple and easy to say. Ian this time as well named the spirit after the sound it made without difficulty. The ¡®Lightning Spirit¡¯s name has become ¡®Jjaekee¡¯. From the perspective of others, it was an incredibly half-hearted name, but Ian was incredibly pleased with his own naming sense. ¡®Jjaekee, it¡¯s an easy-to-say name and it¡¯s cute!¡¯ Ian called Jjaekee. ¡°Jjaekee, come here.¡± As he held out his hand while speaking, the small, yellow bird that flew around in the air without rest quickly flew over and sat on top of Ian¡¯s hand. Chirp- Chir-Chirp-. Whether it was from the influence of the sparks flying nearby, Jjaekee¡¯s cry had a bit of a more agitated sound compared to other normal baby birds¡¯ cries. ¡®Is it saying Zap- Za-Zap-[2]? As if it¡¯s making sure that everybody knows it¡¯s a Lightning Spirit.¡¯ While looking at Jjaekee, who was letting out a small cry in between its chirping and spark flying noise, Ian wore a satisfied smile. ¡°It seems like this one at least doesn¡¯t need any Leadership stats.¡± He liked that part the most. Ian checked the information of Jjaekee, who was looking at him with bright, beady eyes on top of his hand. Jjaekee (Lightning Spirit) Spirit Capacity: 0/1000. Type: Lightning. Rank: Low-rank Spirit. Summoning Duration: 375 minutes. (Cooldown time: 500 minutes) *Once Spirit Capacity reaches its max, it evolves to a higher-ranking spirit. (Whenever a Summoning Magic that requires Lightning-type is used, a fixed quantity of Spirit Capacity is filled.) *The higher the Summoner¡¯s Summoning Magic, the longer the Summoning Duration becomes. Ian let out a bitter laugh as he saw the comparably simpler information window. ¡®Then, that means it has no Offensive Power?¡¯ It seemed as though Jjaekee had no actual fighting ability. As its appearance was small and cute, Ian wasn¡¯t anticipating much, but he was still bitter. ¡®No wonder it didn¡¯t say you needed any Leadership stats¡­ So, I just need to think of Jjaekee as a medium that¡¯s required in order to use Lightning-type Summoning Magic.¡¯ There were some unfortunate parts, but there were also some parts that he was looking forward to. In any case, if it filled its Spirit Capacity up to the max, it says that it does evolve to a higher-ranking spirit, so it was possible that it could then develop another skill. ¡®Having a strong one from the beginning is nice, too, but as expected in games, you need to raise it at a low-level in order to taste some victory.¡¯ Ian thought in a positive way like this, and began to move. ¡°Now, shall we go meet King Celias or whatever it was?¡± Ian¡¯s footsteps that left the squire in order to meet the king were light. The imperial palace was not far from Flinor Square. CH 47 Chuck-. As Ian reached the entrance of the imperial palace, two guards blocked the front. ¡°For what reason did you come here?¡± Ian was momentarily taken aback. This was because he had never gone into the Luspel Empire¡¯s Imperial Palace even before resetting his character. ¡®Hm¡­ I don¡¯t even have a certificate or something like that to show them, so what should I do?¡¯ Ian who momentarily thought about it, said what first came to mind. ¡°I am the Summoner prophet, Ian. At the word that his Majesty the Emperor was looking for me, I came to see him.¡± Using the most courteous words he could, as it would become difficult if he even dropped the guards¡¯ Affinity towards him by speaking in a cocky way. On the other hand, the guards, who heard Ian¡¯s words, slightly tilted their heads as they scratched the back of them. ¡°Please wait a moment. I¡¯ll go ask the Guard Commander.¡± ¡°Alright, I will wait.¡± One of the two guards walked into the castle gate with fast footsteps and disappeared off to somewhere. And shortly after, a man hastily ran out from inside. Behind him was the guard that had just gone in. ¡°Oh, I see the prophet has come. I didn¡¯t tell the guards beforehand, so I have made a discourteous mistake.¡± It seemed the man was the Commander for the guards protecting the castle gate. At the unexpectedly kind(?) treatment, Ian did not know where to put himself. While playing Kailran, this was the first time he had seen an NPC showing such politeness before he could pile up some Affinity with them. ¡®Hm¡­ What is this? Are they reacting like this because of the king¡¯s quest?¡¯ Truthfully, from the perspective of the mere guards, it was obvious that they shouldn¡¯t be at ease as it was a guest that the king was looking for, but Ian didn¡¯t realize that. ¡°No, well¡­ It¡¯s alright. I can go in then, right?¡± The Guard Commander nodded their head hastily. ¡°Of course, Ian. I will show you the way inside.¡± As the Guard Commander took the lead, the castle gates that were firmly shut opened, and Ian slowly followed in. ¡®But I wonder what lv is that Guard Commander?¡¯ Vigilante leader Lapierre, who gave the Goblin Camping Ground Quest, was around mid-lv 90s. Ian, who was suddenly curious, slightly looked at the Guard Commander¡¯s information. Maolin Lv: 115. Duty: Guard Commander. Aside from his level and duty, all his information was put on private, but with just those, Ian¡¯s eyes widened. ¡®What the, why is the level of a Guard Commander that guards a castle in the outskirts 115? The number 1 level ranker probably hasn¡¯t even hit 120 yet¡­¡¯ Ian was taken aback. This was because he thought that his level would be similar to vigilante leader Lapierre at the most. ¡®Let¡¯s see here, then I wonder what level the guards are.¡¯ Ian, who checked the guards¡¯ information, was even more dumbfounded. This was because the guards that followed behind Ian were each lv 104 and 107. ¡®Ha, I think I now know the reason why the top-ranking guilds couldn¡¯t even dare touch the Colonar Continent bases despite their incredible power.¡¯ In the case that you irritated an Empire, where the mere guards were lv 100, it seemed that a whole guild would be obliterated. Thinking of it this way, the Lotus guild occupying a base through this northern expedition felt even more valuable. ¡®I¡¯ll have to level up fast and help them with broadening the base¡¯s domain.¡¯ While Ian thought of this and that, the party was getting closer and closer to the imperial palace. @ Crupia Snow Mountain¡¯s highest peak, Karon Peak. A man, who held in either hand weapons that looked like sharply bent daggers, was fighting an Ice Troll alone. Roar-! The troll let out a horrible shriek, and swung its enormous club towards the man. Bang-! However, the troll¡¯s large club couldn¡¯t even touch the lower ends of the man¡¯s clothes and only turned an innocent boulder into dust. However, when looking closely, the troll that the man was facing was not a normal Ice Troll. The troll, which was about 1.5 times bigger than a normal Ice Troll and was carrying a large club emitting a blue frost, was a Heroic-rank monster and was the Boss-rank monster of Karon Peak, the ¡®Ice Troll Warrior¡¯. Ta-tat-. As if toying with the troll with incredibly light footwork, the man poured out all of his attack and dug into the nearest points of the troll in an instant. However, as if the troll was waiting for that, with the other hand that was not holding the club, he grasped onto the shoulder blade of the man. No, it looked like he grasped it. Slip-. Momentarily, the man¡¯s body disappeared into the air like a mirage. The troll, who was taken aback at that, instantaneously became defenseless, and the man showed himself behind the troll before it realized. ¡°Just die already.¡± His two daggers that emitted a sharp energy sliced through the troll¡¯s back. Roaaar-! The troll let out a horrible shriek full of pain. And the man didn¡¯t let that moment slip by. ¡°Hah-!¡± Along with a short shout of concentration, his daggers began to absorb a smoke-like black energy. And the daggers that had absorbed all the smoke, they turned into a pitch-black colour that seemed as if it wouldn¡¯t reflect even a bit of light and dug into the troll¡¯s heart. Pook-! The complexion of the Ice Troll Warrior, who allowed the final attack, began to darken and die. And the black energy from the daggers that were lodged into the troll¡¯s heart exploded out in every direction. At the end of that, the troll¡¯s body turned into a grey light slowly disappeared. ¡°Whew, the one thing he really had was being able to take blows incredibly well.¡± The man, who collected the items from the troll¡¯s corpse, wiped the sweat that rolled down his forehead and mumbled. ¡°Will it take about another quarter of a day to hit lv 50 now?¡± Surprisingly, the man, who caught the lv 65 ¡®Ice Troll Warrior¡¯, was lv 49. And his class was the new class ¡®Assassin¡¯. ¡°I¡¯m only lv 49¡­ But you¡¯re saying that there¡¯s already a new class user that hit lv 50 a couple days ago, right?¡± One corner of his mouth slightly rolled up. ¡°And on top of that, a Summoner¡­ Hoho, I¡¯m looking forward to it.¡± The man fixed his hold on his daggers and began to slowly move. ¡°Since there¡¯s still around four days until the arena opens, I could probably relax a little.¡± He stopped in front of a steep cliff that looked like it was cut. And surprisingly, he threw his body towards the lower end of the cliff. It was at that moment. Hwa-reu-reuk-. The man¡¯s body turned into the form of a black hawk and leisurely flew between the peaks before disappearing. @ ¡°Oh, so you are Ian.¡± Ian, who met King Celias, was immensely nervous. As all of the king¡¯s information was put on private, he couldn¡¯t find out what level he was, but just standing in front of him he felt tremendously overpowered. ¡®I imagined a grey-haired, old grandpa, but he¡¯s really young.¡¯ Rather than an image of a king, King Celias, who at first glance looked like he was in his early 30s, had more of a similar feeling to an iron-willed ruler. ¡°Yes, sir. I heard that you were looking for me¡­¡± Before Ian¡¯s words even finished, Celias responded. ¡°That¡¯s right. When I heard the news that someone as remarkably talented as yourself was in the Luspel Empire, how could I have not looked for you?¡± Ian responded with a bitter expression. ¡°Is, is that so.¡± And a system message popped up in Ian¡¯s view. You have met King Celias within the time limit. You have completed the quest ¡®Prophet of Summoning¡¯. Your Fame has increased by 1250. He had simply just met the king, but his Fame had increased by 1250 in an instant. ¡®As expected, Empire Quests are different.¡¯ While Ian was inwardly in awe, King Celias¡¯ words continued. ¡°I find it very promising that a higher level Summoner appeared in our Luspel Empire before the Kaimon Empire.¡± The king lifted his cup of tea and took a sip, while Ian silently waited for his next words. ¡°That¡¯s because I¡¯ve been waiting for a capable Summoner since long ago.¡± Ian asked back before he even realized. ¡°Why?¡± At Ian¡¯s informal way of speaking, the royal knight that was next to the king glared fiercely. ¡°You, how dare you think it¡¯s safe to speak so shortly!¡± Ian momentarily flinched. ¡®Euh, I should have been more careful¡­¡¯ He glanced carefully at the king, but fortunately, he didn¡¯t have on a bad expression. ¡°Haha, Hellaim. It¡¯s alright, it¡¯s alright. Is he not an adventurer that doesn¡¯t know the etiquette of the imperial family?¡± ¡°But¡­¡± ¡°No buts, I said it was alright.¡± As the king held him back, the royal knight had on a displeased expression as he returned to his original spot. ¡®Whew, what a relief.¡¯ Ian felt relieved as he calmed his surprised heart. ¡®Even if he swung that bayonet around, I would probably die in one hit.¡¯ Ian¡¯s gaze momentarily stayed on the royal knight¡¯s bayonet. Just from the looks of it, it was a high-grade weapon that emitted dignity. Ian, who snapped back to reality, slightly dipped his head towards Celias. ¡°Because I didn¡¯t know the proper etiquette¡­ I apologize.¡± Celias looked at him with a warm smile and shook his head. ¡°No, it¡¯s alright.¡± And after momentarily taking a breath, his words continued. ¡°Anyways, I will tell you the reason why I was waiting for a capable Summoner to come.¡± Ian listened attentively to the king¡¯s words with an incredibly courteous(?) posture. ¡°Ian, do you happen to know what the emblem of Luspel Empire is?¡± Ian momentarily thought about it before nodding his head. This was because right behind the throne that the king was sitting in, a large embroidered animal immediately caught his eyes. ¡°Isn¡¯t it the Griffin?¡± The Luspel Empire¡¯s emblem was the Griffin. The Griffin was a legendary animal that had a head, wings and front legs that resembled a valiant eagle, while the tan-coloured body and back legs were of the form of a lion. ¡°Good, good. There are a lot that don¡¯t know, but it looks like you know well.¡± While looking at King Celias, who had on a satisfied smile, Ian was dumbfounded. ¡®Aren¡¯t you an idiot if you don¡¯t know, when it¡¯s so prominently drawn in the back over there?¡¯ However, he wasn¡¯t as stupid to make the same mistake of letting those words out of his mouth. ¡°Anyways, I will continue on with the story.¡± The king¡¯s words continued. ¡°About half a year ago, the royal court sent a delegation of royal knights to cross the Shikar Desert.¡± Shikar Desert was a desert region that was in the centre of Colonar Continent. Between the users, the place was also called the Land of Death. The reason why it was called the Land of Death was simple. This was because the average level of the monsters that appeared in Shikar Desert were over 130. It was to the point where any user couldn¡¯t dare go into Shikar Desert yet. Celias, who momentarily took a breath, opened his mouth again. ¡°However, then, Hellaim, the captain leading the delegation of knights, discovered a nest of Griffins in the centre of the Desert.¡± Ian, who heard those words, was taken aback. ¡®What? The Griffin was a monster that actually existed?¡¯ Separate from Ian¡¯s shock, Celias¡¯ words continued. ¡°The delegation of knights used all their power and in the end of fighting the Griffins, they were able to kill them and got its egg.¡± Ian gulped down air without him realizing. ¡®Holy, they even won¡­¡¯ Shikar Desert, also known as the Land of Death, and the legendary monster that was discovered in there. As the delegation of knights had caught the Griffin, which would have surely had unbelievable fighting power even without Ian seeing it with his own two eyes, he was able to realize the force of the Empire delegation of knights. ¡°I want to hatch the Griffin, which is our Luspel Empire¡¯s emblem, and raise it in the inner garden of the imperial palace¡­¡± Ian thought to himself. ¡®The king is not in his right mind. Why would you raise a monster like that inside the imperial palace?¡¯ Ian slowly began to feel nervous about what quest was about to come up. ¡°Despite having been over half a year, the Griffin egg has yet to hatch.¡± Celias, who lifted his teacup and took another sip, gazed at Ian and opened his mouth. ¡°I was hoping you could find a way to hatch this Griffin egg. How about it, would you give it a try?¡± As soon as the story about the Griffin egg came out, it was a quest content that he was already expecting a little. Ian wore a tearful expression. ¡®No, but, how am I supposed to know that? I¡¯ve never even seen anything like a Familiar¡¯s egg before.¡¯ However, whether Ian was flustered or not, the quest notification popped up in front of his eyes without doubt. Ring-. The Griffin Egg (Empire Quest) The Empire delegation of knights of King Celias were said to have found a Griffin¡¯s egg half a year ago in the centre of Shikar Desert. The delegation of knights brought the Griffin¡¯s egg to the imperial family, and King Celias wants to raise the Empire emblem, the Griffin, within the imperial family. However, nobody knows as of yet how to hatch the Griffin¡¯s egg. King Celias is hoping that you, an exceptional Summoner, will be able to hatch the Griffin¡¯s egg for him. Quest Difficulty Level: ¨C Quest Condition: None. Time Limit: Unknown. Reward ¨C one of the summoning skill books in the imperial palace¡¯s library. If you reject the quest, your Affinity with King Celias will drop. (If you do not have any Affinity, your Hostility will go up.) As he read the quest content, Ian¡¯s complexion started to darken. ¡®Ha¡­ It¡¯s not like I¡¯m a Griffin mom, how do they expect me to hatch this egg?¡¯ It was a mind-shattering quest where he didn¡¯t even have a sense of where and how to start. ¡®On top of that, it¡¯s not even that there¡¯s no time limit, but rather, it¡¯s unknown? What exactly is unknown mean?¡¯ The fact that he couldn¡¯t find out when the quest¡¯s time limit ended made Ian more nervous. It meant that even if he failed the quest right now, it wouldn¡¯t be a weird thing. However, there was no need to reject the quest because of that. This was because there was no difference in whether his Affinity with the king and his Fame dropped from rejecting the quest or failing the quest anyways. If that was the case, he needed to at least take it. ¡°Yes, I will give it a try.¡± You have accepted the quest. The system message that popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. ¡®Whew¡­¡¯ Ian let out a deep sigh inside CH 48 Chapter 48: First Death (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian, who received two unintended, quite large-scale quests, let out a sigh. ¡®At least I know where I need to go for The Remnants of a Forgotten Ancient Monster quest, I really have no idea for the Griffin Egg Hatching quest.¡¯ It wasn¡¯t like he could do anything right now about the two quests anyways. Ian chose to focus on the arena contents that would be starting in a couple days. ¡®The arena opens in exactly 5 days, but isn¡¯t there anything to do during that time aside from leveling up? Since I¡¯m already going for it, I want to get as high of a score as I can¡­¡¯ It was the truth that Ian currently was overwhelmingly stronger compared to other users at the same level. However, he couldn¡¯t lower his guard, because as much of an enjoyable game it was to countless users, there was no way of knowing what kind of variables may appear. Furthermore, as much as this was the first time that the new classes would fight user vs. user, until he actually fought against them, he didn¡¯t know the result. Ian couldn¡¯t predict what kind of score he would be able to receive at this rookie battle. ¡°Shall we go raise the Proficiency of my newly acquired skill?¡± Ian was exactly at lv 50 and had 0% EXP right now. ¡®I just need to make sure I¡¯m not lv 51, right? I guess I¡¯ll just hunt to raise my EXP to 99% at lv 50 while raising the skill level and the Proficiency of my newly acquired skills.¡¯ He was thinking of chatting away leisurely and taking a break for about five days, but it seemed like if Ian wasn¡¯t hunting, he felt like he would get a disease where thorns would sprout from his butt. ¡®What hunting ground would be best?¡¯ Ian thought through the decent hunting grounds that were located near Myuran one by one. And he was able to think of a good place shortly after. ¡®The Ant Tunnel¡­! Right, the Ant Tunnel was here.¡¯ The Ant Tunnel was not a place that real ants inhabited. It was a famous instant dungeon where monsters that had a similar form as ants inhabited together as crowds. Instant dungeons were dungeons where once the user or the party goes in, nobody else can go in until they¡¯re annihilated or until they come out themselves. That¡¯s why in the case of instant dungeons that were commonly popular, there were so many people gathered to the point where you needed to reserve them, so it was not a hunting ground that impatient Ian preferred. However, this Ant Tunnel was a bit different. Despite being an instant dungeon, because it had a dozen, similar dungeons gathered together just like its name Ant Tunnel, there was no situation where people needed to reserve spots even on a little bit of a crowded day. Instead, it was a situation where 30% of the dungeons were empty all the time. ¡®This ended up going well. If it¡¯s the Ant Tunnel, it should be ideal to practice the new skills.¡¯ The level of the Giant Ants that appeared in the Ant Tunnel were a little less than lv 50. However, as the population number was unbelievable, there were a lot of cases where truthfully the users hunting in the Ant Tunnel were over lv 60. The Ant Tunnel was a quite dangerous dungeon where cases of a decent lv 60 user helplessly dying while solo-playing were frequent occurrences. However, Ian, who cleared the Dungeon of Chaos, was confident. ¡®Alright, let¡¯s go!¡¯ Just when Ian was about to head to the dungeon after making up his mind, a message arrived from Harin. ¡®Hm? It¡¯s Harin.¡¯ Ian checked the message. Harin: Ian, what are you doing right now? Ian: Ah, I was in the middle of heading off to hunt. Harin: Huh? You¡¯re lv 50, though? Didn¡¯t you say you were joining the rookie league once the arena opens last time? Because Ian and Harin frequently sent and received messages, Harin knew quite a lot about Ian¡¯s recent state. Ian: Yeah, you¡¯re right. But since my EXP is still at 0%, I can raise it up to 99%. Harin: Damn¡­ At Ian¡¯s leveling up greed that was close to obsession cause Harin to momentarily lose what she was going to say. Harin: To be honest, I¡¯m actually seeing a friend today, so I came where our school is. Ian: School? Are you at school right now? No, that¡¯s not it, I¡¯m just nearby. I came to a nearby caf¨¦ in order to discuss our vacation assignment with a friend. Ian: Ah-ha, I see. Harin: I was wondering if you have time later, so we can have dinner together¡­ How about it?! You live by yourself nearby anyways. Ian momentarily contemplated it. ¡®Eating outside when it¡¯s been so long is a bit tempting¡­¡¯ Truthfully, if it wasn¡¯t for the situation where he could not level up past lv 50, he would have gone to hunt without even contemplating Harin¡¯s offer. However, because of, you could say in all of Ian¡¯s Kailran life, he very rarely had such relaxed situations, he slightly thought about it. ¡®However, I really want to use the Current Proliferation skill¡­¡¯ In the end, Ian, whose heart fluttered more at hunting with new skills rather than have dinner with Harin, turned down her offer. Ian: Hm¡­ Sorry, Harin. Let¡¯s have a meal together next time. It¡¯s an awkward time to leave as I just arrived at the hunting grounds. Ian was still in town, but he lied without hesitation. Ian, who forced the guilty feeling away, mumbled to himself. ¡®Since it¡¯s a well-intended lie so that Harin doesn¡¯t feel bad¡­¡¯ Harin: I see. Then send me a message when you¡¯re done hunting. Hm¡­ Since I won¡¯t be logged on, I¡¯ll give you my number. He wasn¡¯t sure when his hunting will be done, or if he¡¯ll put up with the trouble of going out after, but Ian firstly got Harin¡¯s phone number. ¡®Well¡­ If I die while hunting, I¡¯ll go out, I guess.¡¯ This was because there was a 24-hour login restriction penalty if he died, so it was something he was just saying. However, he was sure that there would be no deaths for him in the Ant Tunnel, it was basically the same as him saying that he had almost no intentions of leaving his house. As Ian finished his conversation with Harin, he hurried to the Ant Tunnel. @ ¡°Whew, as expected, it¡¯s teeming.¡± While Ian, who had entered the Ant Tunnel dungeon, stared at the Giant Ant unit, where there were at least 10-15 of them, in front of him, and wore a wide smile. Fortunately, he was even able to go into dungeon no. 7, which was known to have a larger population number compared to other tunnels. ¡°Keu.¡± Ian thought that this exact place would be where he could properly use his newly learned skill ¡®Current Proliferation¡¯. ¡®The more I read this skill, the more I feel like it would be suitable for battue.¡¯ The Current Proliferation skill was a skill that created two spheres running with electricity on each hand which were thrown at enemies. However, if a sphere hits an enemy, the sphere divides into four and flies out in all directions, dealing damage to multiple individual enemies. Compared to a AoE skill that a high-level Magician would use, its scope and skill invoking requirement was limited, but to Ian, it was a skill with an endless amount of possible ways to use. Ian summoned all his Familiars, including newly received Jjaekee, and finished preparing for battle. ¡°Alright, Ddukdae. Let¡¯s go in like we usually do.¡± Deu-reu-reuk-. Ddukdae, who had received Ian¡¯s command, slowly began to move towards the Gian Ants. Thud- Thud-. Because of the loud sound of his footsteps from his large size, the Giant Ants¡¯ focuses immediately turned to Ddukdae. Keu-reu-reuk- Keu-reuk-. The Giant Ants let out a strange sound as the approached Ddukdae. Ddukdae slammed a fist downwards. Bang-! Just like how they were monsters named Giant Ants, they were ants that were hideously large. However, compared to Ddukdae, they were small and as Ddukdae was a higher level as well, he wasn¡¯t intimidated at all. Familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯ has received 376 damage from the ¡®Giant Ant¡¯. Familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯ has received 201 damage from the ¡®Giant Ant¡¯. In an instant, several ants surrounded Ddukdae. Within a short time, he was attacked by quite a lot of them, but Ddukdae, whose total Health was approaching close to 20,000, it was just a tickle. And just then, Ian, who was waiting, let out a command. ¡°Ddukdae, Ice Wave!¡± As soon as Ian gave the command, a white blizzard began to rage around Ddukdae. Baaang-! You have dealt 298 damage to each of the 12 Giant Ants. For 10 seconds, the Giant Ants¡¯ movements will be slowed by 30%. And Ly, who had now reached the point where he knew what Ian was thinking even without him saying, immediately ran towards the ants. ¡°Ly, Berserk!¡± Along with Ian¡¯s command, Ly, who used his Berserk skill, began to rampage around the Giant Ants. There were a lot of them, but as it was Ly, who had faced much stronger enemies, he began to easily slaughter the Giant Ants, who were also a lower level than him as well. And Ian slightly glanced at Bbookbbook. Glare-. Bbookbbook, whose eyes met Ian¡¯s, gave an resigned expression as he used his Shell Expansion skill. At that image, Ian smirked and slung Bbookbbook onto his back. He also made a leather strap only for Bbookbbook in order to fasten him to Ian¡¯s back. It was now time to test out the new skills he gained. Ian invoked the skill with an anticipating expression. ¡°Current Proliferation!¡± Along with that, two spheres that shone a yellow light formed on either one of Ian¡¯s hands. Za-Zap- Za-Za-Zap-. ¡®Do I just need to throw it towards the ants?¡¯ Ian swung both his arms towards the Giant Ants that were closest to him. And the two spheres that left Ian¡¯s hands flew forward. However, just like Ian predicted, the Giant Ants didn¡¯t easily allow the spheres to hit them. ¡®Ah, why do these fly out so slowly? They¡¯re total slowpokes. Who even gets hit by these?¡¯ It was just as Ian complained about. The spheres that Ian threw weren¡¯t extremely slow, but if you could just check that the projectiles were flying towards you, it was to the point where anybody could dodge the attack. Piiing-. Ian¡¯s Current Proliferation skill ended up not hitting anything and disappeared into the air without even getting the chance to proliferate. ¡®Ugh, if this is the case, then I have no choice but to do it like this¡­¡¯ And Ian checked his consumed Spirit Magic¡¯s value. ¡®Fortunately, the regain speed of Spirit Magic isn¡¯t as slow as I thought.¡¯ His Spirit Magic fully recovered when the cooldown time for Current Proliferation was over. And Ian, who checked that the cooldown time was over, invoked the Current Proliferation skill again. And holding the two electric spheres in either hand, he ran towards the Giant Ants. And Ian¡¯s fists, holding the two electric spheres, exploded onto the Giant Ant¡¯s abdomen. Bam-! Za-Za-Zap-. ¡®Current Proliferation¡¯ skill has hit. You have dealt 1179 damage to the ¡®Giant Ant¡¯. Ian inwardly wanted the paralyzing effect to be invoked as well and reset the cooldown time, but obviously, the comparably low 15% chance didn¡¯t get invoked from the beginning. However, just then, the four balls of electricity flew out in all directions from Ian¡¯s hands and began to deal damage to the Giant Ants that were nearby. Za-Zap- Za-Za-Zap-! The proliferated current dealt an extra 359 damage to the ¡®Giant Ant¡¯. The proliferated current dealt an extra 317 damage to the ¡®Giant Ant¡¯. It seemed as though four or five Giant Ants were damaged by the Current Proliferation in an instant. The ¡®Giant Ant¡¯ has gone into ¡®Paralyzed¡¯ state. The ¡®Giant Ant¡¯s movements will be slowed by 30%, and will receive 50% additional damage if hit by Lightning-type attacks. The cooldown time for ¡®Current Proliferation¡¯ has reset. System messages popped up one after another. And as the cooldown time reset and two more electric spheres appeared in each hand, Ian felt a thrilling pleasure. ¡®Alright, that¡¯s what I¡¯m talking about!¡¯ From then on, Ian¡¯s grind to raise the Proficiency of Current Proliferation began. CH 49 Chapter 49: First Death (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda As the ants that were in the beginning of the Ant Tunnel dungeon were similar to the Goblins that were in the Goblin Camping Ground or were instead weaker, Ian, who had grown much more since then, found them to be perfect opponents to practice his skill. You have killed the Giant Ant. You have obtained 315 EXP. Compared to the EXP from hunting in the northern snow mountains, it was an incredibly small amount. This was because, as they were monsters that were a similar level to Ian or lower, the base EXP was low, and he couldn¡¯t use the effect of the ¡®Master of Hunting¡¯ title. However, because of the large number he was annihilating while hunting, the EXP was piling and piling, to the point where a decent amount came pouring in. ¡°Hoho, this is quite fun.¡± Ian was in the middle of discovering the method of application for the skill Current Proliferation more and more. At first, he used it ignorantly like a close-combat skill, but as he developed a trick for it, he discovered that he could use it in a method where he predicted the route of the monster¡¯s movements and hit them accordingly. Of course, the difficulty level of the predicted shots wasn¡¯t incredibly high. However, he felt he needed to get into the habit of using the skill from a long range in order to use the Current Proliferation skill more effectively even when he fought against stronger enemies. Ian was thinking of purposely making it difficult for him until his body got used to the skill completely. ¡®If I spend about two whole days grinding here like this, I could probably get to 99% EXP.¡¯ On top of that, if he used the Current Proliferation skill while even predicting where the balls would fly out to, he could hit some more monsters. It felt similar to playing billiards. If he was lucky, there were situations where one sphere bounced off multiple enemies and hit five or six of them. Just like the self-proclaimed game expert he was, Ian¡¯s skill understanding rate towards the Current Proliferation skill went up swiftly. And an hour later, he had gotten completely used to hunting, and even used quick-moving Ly, to gather the Giant Ants from one area to him. ¡°Ddukdae, Ice Wave!¡± After Ddukdae used Ice Wave, Ian¡¯s Current Proliferation was fired on top of that, and with the slowing effects of the two skills overlapping, the Giant Ants became complete slowpokes. Za-Zap- Za-Za-Zap-! If the effect attached to Ian¡¯s weapon activated and Ice Wave was overlapped, it was to the point where the Giant Ants¡¯ feet were practically stuck to the ground. Once the Giant Ants¡¯ were generally weakened through the AoE attacks, Ly went around, killing the ants one by one, starting with the ones with the lowest Health left. After firing off the Current Proliferation skill as much as he could until his Spirit Magic was completely used up, his Spirit Magic was fully recovered once the hunting of one group was done. ¡°Muahaha!¡± Ian let out an evil laugh out of excitement. ¡°As expected, the best kind of hunting is battue!¡± It was fun going up to the northern continent for the first time and leveling up while facing units that were stronger than him, but wiping such weak monsters in a wide area was a perfect stress-reliever. ¡®Since I¡¯ve leveled up a lot, the effectiveness of title Master of Hunting will slowly drop once I¡¯m over lv 60, too.¡¯ He had already greatly used the virtues of the Master of Hunting title, which gave him more EXP the more enemies he faced that were a higher level than him. However, because it become impossible to rapidly hunt high-level monsters the higher his level became, he needed to slowly change his fighting method. ¡°Keu, if only I had an destructive power-based AoE attack, that would be perfect¡­¡± Even now, his hunting speed was fast enough, but it lacked slightly to Ian. This was because the destructive power alone of his Current Proliferation skill was truthfully not that good. The power of skills like the one that Magicians at around lv 50 used, ¡®Flame Zone¡¯, depended on the equipment, but it boasted a powerful damage that was close to 2-3 thousand. Compared to that, even if Current Proliferation was considered a follow-up damage, it only dealt about half the damage of the other skill. The Current Proliferation skill felt more like a skill used to tie down the monster¡¯s feet along with Ddukdae¡¯s Ice Wave. ¡®If a couple of AoE magic skills were dropped on the monsters while they crawled around from the overlapped slowing effect¡­Keu.¡¯ However, he had no intentions of hunting with a Magician. ¡®I can¡¯t do things that are good for others.¡¯ If that was the case, he just needed to tame monsters that had destructive power-based AoE skills. ¡®Hoho, what should I tame? It would be really nice if I could use something like a Phoenix from the Flame Highlands as a Familiar.¡¯ However, that was just wishful thinking. The Phoenix was an unbelievable monster that¡¯s average level was known to be around 160-170. ¡®I must catch it sooner or later.¡¯ While Ian thought of this and that while working hard at hunting, the Giant Ants on the first floor disappeared without a trace. ¡°Ly, let¡¯s go to the second floor.¡± Grr- Grr-. Ian petted Ly¡¯s mane as he moved towards the entrance that went down to the second basement floor. ¡®The second floor is a little more dangerous because Striped Ants come out, but¡­¡¯ The Striped Ants were slightly smaller and slightly weaker than Giant Ants. However, they had an AoE skill that let them shoot out venom, they were a more annoying monster to hunt. However, Ian didn¡¯t worry too much. This was because it was a monster that he had a lot of experience hunting before resetting his character. ¡®Will I even die from them?¡¯ Ian walked down the stairs with confident footsteps. @ At the end of hunting all day, Ian was able to raise his EXP to 99% at lv 50. He already caught the boss of the Ant Tunnel, the Queen Ant, on the first day, and this was the result after wiping the ants for two days. ¡°Hue, now my EXP is at 99.9% now. I really leveled up tightly.¡± Ian was satisfied. While hunting, Ddukdae leveled up, and Ly was at lv 51 as well. And he was in an even better mood because the amount of EXP he perfectly calculated came in with the last wave. ¡°Kids, let¡¯s go back now.¡± Ian began to clean up the hunting grounds in order to leave the dungeon. He began to pick up the items from the corpses of the Giant Ants, which were collapsed onto the ground, and he organized his inventory. He let down Bbookbbook, whom he had on his back, and Jjaekee, whose summoning duration was also over, was recalled. Ian, who properly achieved his goal, began to move with light footsteps. However, it was then. Bbook- Bbookbbook-. Bbookbbook began to crawl around towards somewhere without Ian knowing. He had discovered an incredibly delicious-looking object. The place that Bbookbbook was headed towards was a pile of Giant Ants¡¯ eggs that were piled in the corner of the dungeon. And shortly after, a mysterious system message began to pop up in Ian¡¯s view. You have destroyed a ¡®Giant Ant¡¯s Egg¡¯. Your EXP has increased by 36. You have destroyed a ¡®Giant Ant¡¯s Egg¡¯. Your EXP has increased by 32. ¡°Wha, what is this?¡± Ian was taken aback. This was because he was in a situation where his EXP was already tightly at 99.9%. ¡°Ah¡­ No!¡± And this was a situation where he absolutely couldn¡¯t level up. ¡°Th, there¡¯s no way I¡¯ll level up now, right? No, it won¡¯t, it can¡¯t be.¡± However, despite Ian¡¯s desperate mumbles, the system messages helplessly continued to pop up. ¡°Wh, where is this coming from? Why exactly is my EXP going up?¡± Ian, who desperately looked around, soon discovered Bbookbbook, who was eating the ants¡¯ eggs. ¡°Ah, No! Bbookbbook, come back!¡± Ian let out a cry. And he desperately opened his mouth. ¡°Bbookbbook, Summon Release!¡± However¡­ Chomp-! While Bbookbbook shone a white light, he gulped down the last ant egg he was holding. You have destroyed a ¡®Giant Ant¡¯s Egg¡¯. Your EXP has increased by 45. And a bright light shone from Ian¡¯s centre. You have leveled up. You have reached lv 51. ¡°¡­¡± Plop-. Ian plopped down on the spot, drained, and Ly stared blankly at that image of Ian. And shortly after, Ian, who looked squarely into reality, cried out. ¡°Euaaaak¡­! There¡¯s no way!¡± Ian cried out. ¡®Ah, I was too greedy¡­ I should have stopped hunting at around 98%.¡¯ However, it was the same as trying to put back water that he had already spilt. ¡®Ah, Bbookbbook¡­¡¯ He wanted to summon Bbookbbook again and hit him, but he needed to wait 30 minutes in order to re-summon Bbookbbook, who was Summon Released. ¡°Euh, Euhh¡­¡± And truthfully, it was awkward to say it was Bbookbbook¡¯s fault. In the end, it was Ian¡¯s own fault for not being more attentive. Now, there was only one thing that Ian could choose. ¡°Ly.¡± Grr-? Ly tilted his head as he saw Ian¡¯s sad eyes. Even though it was Ly, who understood Ian¡¯s words well, it was a behaviour that showed that he couldn¡¯t understand Ian¡¯s current feelings. ¡°Rest a bit.¡± Ian let out a deep sigh and Summon Released all his Familiars. ¡°Whew.¡± And excluding the head ornament that belonged to his account, he took off all the items he was using as equipment and put them into his inventory one by one. In the end, the drastic choice that Ian had to make in order to de-level was ¡®suicide¡¯. @ Jinsung, who finished showering in the bathroom, mumbled with a weak voice. ¡°Heu, so I end up leaving the house this way. It¡¯s dangerous outside the capsule, though¡­¡± It wasn¡¯t time to pay for his rented room¡¯s maintenance cost, and there was enough food in the house. However, as he ended up leaving the house this way, Jinsung was somehow sad. ¡°Ha, for my first death after resetting to be suicide¡­¡± It was a development that he didn¡¯t even think of. He was a little resentful towards Bbookbbook, but he didn¡¯t have the justifications to blame Bbookbbook either. Bbookbbook just wanted to eat the delicious-looking Giant Ants¡¯ eggs. It wasn¡¯t like Jinsung told him he couldn¡¯t eat them either. ¡°Speaking of which, I am going to see a female human, so should I put something in my hair at least?¡± Jinsung rummaged through his drawer and pulled out his wax. It was the wax that he used once for his university¡¯s interview and shoved into a corner. Because it had been a long time since he went to a salon, Ian¡¯s hair had grown into a bush, so he needed to clean up his hair even roughly. You could call it the minimum etiquette towards a female human he was seeing for the first time. Jinsung¡¯s good feelings towards Harin was one reason why he thought this way. ¡®I need to look good in order to receive more dishes from Harin in the future.¡¯ They were words that showed his focus was out of line. Ian roughly finished getting ready to go out. As he was originally not that ugly, his aura of being a game freak slightly disappeared now that he had shaved and roughly dressed up. ¡°When should I go out?¡± Ian lifted his smartphone. A message from Harin had arrived. Harin: Ian, I¡¯m heading out now. I¡¯ll see you at the convenience store in front of the back gates! It was currently 1:30 pm. ¡°Will enough time have passed when I¡¯ve finished eating lunch with Harin and chat at a caf¨¦?¡± Less than 3 hours had passed since Ian had committed suicide(?). ¡°Hoo¡­¡± A sigh automatically came. As he still needed to wait over 21 hours until he could log on again, sadness flooded over him. ¡°I need to overcome this hardship.¡± Ian, who mumbled with a serious expression, sent Harin a message as he went out the door. Jinsung: Alright, I¡¯m also heading out now. I think it will take me about 10 minutes. As Jinsung headed towards the promised location, he thought about what he would talk about with Harin once he met her. CH 50 Chapter 50: First Death (4) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡®Hmm¡­ I feel like it will be really awkward.¡¯ Nothing came to mind. They were both students of the same school, but it was the first time he was meeting an acquaintance he found through gaming outside. On top of that, Jinsung had never done something with a female human that was around his age. Jinsung slowly began to worry about his meeting with Harin. ¡®What should I talk about with her when we meet? Should I ask for information or something about her cooking skills since we¡¯re meeting anyways?¡¯ It was Jinsung, the forever-alone gamer that concluded everything to Kailran. They were thoughts that would make someone else shake their head, but his expression was turning into a satisfied one. ¡®That¡¯s right, Harin will probably like it if I ask her about her favourite cooking skills when I meet her, and there will be more information for me to gain. It could be fun experimenting cooking skills together.¡¯ The promised location was incredibly close to his rented room, and Jinsung was able to arrive quickly. ¡®Hmm¡­ Did Harin not arrive yet?¡¯ However, Harin was nowhere to be seen at the promised location, and instead, an unfamiliar female university student wearing a pretty dress caught Jinsung¡¯s eyes. Jinsung was inwardly in awe as he saw the beautiful, flawless appearance and body of the female university student with white skin, deep collarbones and both shoulders slightly showing from the sleeveless, beige dress. ¡®Wow¡­ Did we have such a pretty girl at our school as well?¡¯ Despite Jinsung normally having no interest in girls, the female university student who stood in front of the convenience store was beautiful enough to rob looks. She had a pleasantly simple face that looked like she wasn¡¯t wearing much make-up, but her appearance was still to the point where it was too unrealistic. Jinsung mumbled to himself. ¡®How can someone be this pretty? Is she a celebrity?¡¯ An appearance that looked like it was shining more the closer he approached her, a good-natured impression could be felt even through her eyes that slightly drooped at the ends. Jinsung wanted to blatantly look at her face, but as he couldn¡¯t do that, he cleared his throat and turned his view. And he stood next to her without much thought. In order to wait for Harin. However, just then. ¡°Ian, it¡¯s you, right?!¡± Jinsung was flabbergasted. This was because the goddess(?) next to Jinsung spoke to him. Jinsung¡¯s eyes rounded. And he was speechless. Aside from his mom and the middle-aged mart lady, he had never spoken more than two words to a female person, but to speak with such a pretty girl when they had just met¡­ You could say that it felt like the universe stopped. Momentarily, Jinsung barely opened his mouth. ¡°Eu-ugh¡­! By chance, Ha¡­ Harin¡­?¡± Goddess(?) Harin smiled brightly as she greeted him. ¡°Wow, you look exactly the same in real life as you do in game! You must have not done any customizing when you made your character.¡± Jinsung was incredibly flustered. This was because Harin¡¯s real life appearance was very different from her character in Kailran. ¡®Her Kailran character was also really pretty¡­ But it was never to this point¡­¡¯ However, after thinking about Harin and looking closely, he felt he saw some of that face. Jinsung stammered as he just barely opened his mouth. ¡°Yes, I, I¡¯m not someone who really pays a lot of attention to the outer appearance¡­ so I didn¡¯t touch the customizing.¡± And inwardly, he wanted to ask Harin. Why exactly did she ruin(?) her face like that? And Harin gave the answer to Jinsung¡¯s question although he didn¡¯t ask. ¡°Hoho, I wanted to look a little prettier, so I touched a lot of the customizing here and there, so that¡¯s why you didn¡¯t recognize me, right?¡± ¡°¡­¡± To have customized to look prettier. Jinsung momentarily forgot his words. ¡°By chance, you¡¯re not disappointed, are you? I¡¯m nothing much compared to when you see me in game¡­ right?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡®By chance, is Harin¡¯s eyesight very poor?¡¯ Jinsung had absolutely no idea on how to respond, so he changed the topic. ¡°Ha, Harin. Shall we go eat lunch first? I had a light breakfast, so I¡¯m very hungry.¡± At those words, Harin smiled brightly and grabbed Jinsung¡¯s hand. ¡°Sounds good! There¡¯s a small restaurant over there that I know and it¡¯s really good. Let¡¯s go there!¡± And before he could react, Jinsung let his hand out for Harin. ¡®Aaack, what kind of offense(?) does Harin have against me to be like this!¡¯ Jinsung felt deeply ashamed of himself. This was because this was the first time he had ever touched the hand of a female human that was around his age. On top of that, it was Harin¡¯s hand that had a beautiful appearance incomparable to most actresses. Jinsung was imagining system messages pop up in his mind. You have gone into ¡®paralyzed¡¯ state. Your body is stiff and your movements will be slowed by 30%. You will stutter your words for 1 hour. ¡®Euuh¡­¡¯ Jinsung moved his feet as if he was almost getting dragged around by Harin. And the pedestrians who saw the two couldn¡¯t take their eyes off them. The sudden overflowing interest from others nearby! ¡®That guy has to have saved a universe in his past life.¡¯ ¡®Wow¡­ I wonder what it feels like holding the hand of a pretty girl like that.¡¯ The majority of the gazes belonged to all sorts of men who were jealous of Jinsung. ¡®I can¡¯t believe that guy that looks like a dried piece of jerky is holding the hand of such a goddess¡­!¡¯ And Jinsung¡¯s face, which had a handsome appearance that was above average, received an effect that made him look like a squid thanks to Harin. Even awkward Jinsung was aware of that after looking into a mirror that was along the street, and felt depressed without purpose. ¡®To put a de-buff on my face and use an AoE aggro onto passing pedestrians¡­. Damn, as expected, this is a tanker-like healer.¡¯ And as expected, gamer-like off-the-wall thoughts began inside of him. The heat from Harin¡¯s hand constantly caught Ian¡¯s attention, and he couldn¡¯t stay still. On the other hand, Harin, who saw stiff Jinsung, had on a quizzical expression as she asked. ¡°Ian, you don¡¯t happen to dislike boonshik[1], do you?¡± Jinsung reflexively responded while waving his hands. ¡°Ah, no! I love ddeokbokki[2]. Fried foods¡­ or Korean Sausage¡­ I like all of them.¡± ¡°As expected! There¡¯s nothing as delicious as ddeokbokki! You know a thing or two, Ian.¡± Whenever Harin laughed, Jinsung flinched. ¡®Ha¡­ This is a drag as well.¡¯ Like that, Jinsung went towards the little restaurant that was in front of the school, led by Harin¡¯s hand. @ ¡°Euh, Euuh¡­¡± Jinsung, who had returned to his house after his date(?) with Harin, plopped down into a chair drained. His health, which didn¡¯t wear out even if he gamed for a week without rest, was drained within barely a couple hours. ¡®Euh¡­ Female humans are truly scary beings.¡¯ Harin wasn¡¯t really a female that had a lot to say. However, because Jinsung, who had something similar to a fear of women(?), flinched every time Harin spoke, his energy usage was quite severe. As expected, Jinsung thought that his calling was gaming. ¡°Still, if it wasn¡¯t for Harin, when would I have gotten the chance to eat with a female human¡­ Even my female peers at school avoid me.¡± Truthfully, rather than Jinsung¡¯s female peers avoiding him, Jinsung was avoiding everybody else. Looking properly at the situation, Jinsung was a person capable(?) of making everybody else outsiders aside from himself. ¡®Euh, I feel like I¡¯ve said all the words I needed to in a month today¡­¡¯ Jinsung, who had nothing to talk about with Harin while eating ddeokbokki, talked about his story where he had to commit suicide thanks(?) to Bbookbbook from beginning to end. And Harin, who heard that story, laughed with an incredibly happy expression. ¡®I thought she was watching some comedy show if I didn¡¯t know better.¡¯ Still, the end was incredibly warm. Smart Harin mentioned a part to Jinsung that he hadn¡¯t thought of. ¡®As expected, I¡¯m still lacking. To have not thought about the part that Harin thought of¡­¡¯ If the content of what Harin spoke of was summed up, it would be this. Jinsung de-leveled because of the death penalty, but his Familiars¡¯ levels were still the same. That¡¯s why if got up to 99% again after re-logging on 24 hours later, wouldn¡¯t his skill¡¯s Proficiency and his Familiars¡¯ levels be even higher¡­ Jinsung blamed himself. ¡®There¡¯s a need to be more meticulous. I need to be grateful towards Bbookbbook instead this time. If it wasn¡¯t for Bbookbbook, I would have just fooled around until the arena opened after I hit 99% EXP.¡¯ After logging on once the death penalty was over, if he hunted the rest of the time, he could make his EXP come close to 99% again. It was instead a situation that was a blessing in disguise. Jinsung, who momentarily sat in his chair and rested, tottered towards the inside of the capsule. And¡­ ¡°Ah, right, I can¡¯t login yet.¡± Jinsung, who realized the truth that he still needed to wait over 15 hours until he could login, was devastated. ¡°Heu, still, sitting here calms my heart!¡± Despite not being able to login because there was still the death penalty, Jinsung didn¡¯t come out. ¡®Ha¡­ There¡¯s nothing to do. Shall I sleep instead?¡¯ Ian leaned back against the inside of the cushiony capsule. And shortly after, he fell asleep. @ Ian, who logged in on the dot as soon as 24 hours had passed, went straight to the hunting grounds. This was because he needed to pull up his lv 50 0% EXP to as close as 99% as possible. Because it was a situation where he was well-rested compared to any other day, his condition was extremely good. ¡®Alright, since it¡¯s already like this, I¡¯m going to raise the Current Proliferation skill¡¯s Proficiency as much as I can.¡¯ The Current Proliferation skill¡¯s current level was Beginner-level lv 2, and its Proficiency was up 15% until the next level. If he spent the two days left just hunting, he felt he could raise it at least to lv 3. ¡®Speaking of which, since the Training skill reached Intermediate-level, its Proficiency seriously isn¡¯t going up.¡¯ Right now, most of the skills that he got in the beginning after resetting his character had their Proficiency raised up to Intermediate-level. Ian had worried that his Proficiency would be low compared to his level because he had leveled up too fast from several conditions, but rather, his Proficiency belonged in the higher rank right now. This was the result of Ian¡¯s almost obsessive use of his skills continuously like a knife as soon as his skills cooldown time were over. Ian, who arrived at the Ant Tunnel, began to hunt shortly after. Because his body was used to the skill and he perfectly figured out the Giant Ants¡¯ attack patterns and the format of the map, his hunting was more effective and quick compared to before he had received the 24-hour death penalty. Another day passed like that. Current Proliferation¡¯s Proficiency has reached 100%. Current Proliferation skill¡¯s level has now increased to lv 3. Current Proliferation skill¡¯s total damage increased by 30% Current Proliferation skill¡¯s cooldown time has been reduced by 5 seconds. Ian smirked as he checked the system messages that made him feel good just by looking at them. ¡°Alright! It was worth just using Current Proliferation to death.¡± As Current Proliferation had a much shorter cooldown time compared to the other skills that Ian had, he was able to raise the Proficiency of it much faster in comparison. ¡®I wonder how much EXP I have now.¡¯ No matter what percent his EXP was at, it was time to move now. It was time for the arena to open. ¡°Wow, I¡¯m at 92%. Still, I¡¯m satisfied enough for recovering this much.¡± He couldn¡¯t make it to 99%, but 92% was enough to make him content. Ian, who achieved his intended goal, cleaned up his hunting and headed towards Myuran with a content heart. As Ly¡¯s level was almost at 52, Bbookbbook at lv 50, and Ddukdae was at a whopping lv 54, he couldn¡¯t help but be content. On top of that, it was a situation where Jjaekee¡¯s Spirit Capacity, which allowed it to evolve once it reached 1000, was over 300. It was a part that showed how much Ian used the Current Proliferation skill. ¡°This much preparation is satisfying¡­ Shall we go register now?¡± The location of the arena was in the Central Square of Myuran. Normally, it was a large vacant lot that was used by users as a resting spot, but for the duration of the arena, this place turned into a stage. Ian, who arrived at the arena early in the morning, registered to participate and grabbed a spot in the most ideal location. He didn¡¯t just come to the arena early for the sake of it. ¡®I need to know my opponents in order to prepare for them.¡¯ Ian was planning on watching starting from all of the preliminary rounds. To figure out the opponents he would be going against was the biggest reason why, but it was also because there would be a lot that he would gain aside from that. ¡®It¡¯s a good opportunity to gain a lot of information on how other Summoners nurture their Famliars and what method they use to fight, as well as see the pros and cons of the other new classes.¡¯ Ian, who claimed his seat by even marking the territory of his ideal spot, finished fully preparing to watch the battles. ¡®Ha, speaking of which, I have nothing to do for the next two hours.¡¯ Slowly, people began to take up spots next to him. As he realized there was nothing for him to do, exhaustion started to overcome him. ¡°Hoo¡­¡± And Ian began to doze off. [1] boonshik = Korean street food/fast food [2] ddeokbokki = spicy Korean rice cakes CH 51 Chapter 51: Ian¡¯s Performance (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Sponsor: VT ¡°Hello, viewers! This is YTBC reporter Lucia!¡± ¡°Nice to meet you, viewers. This is reporter Hines.¡± There was no way that Korea¡¯s game broadcast representative YTBC would overlook an event as big as the arena. A female and male YTBC reporter stood side by side at the scene of the arena and were emceeing the broadcast. ¡°Lucia, there are certainly a lot of people here, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. The excitement of the arena seems to be hotter compared to a month ago. Especially when this isn¡¯t even the major league, but the rookie league instead.¡± The two people continued emceeing skillfully. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t that be because it¡¯s the first arena that opened since the new classes became accessible?¡± At Lucia¡¯s words, Hines naturally took it and transferred it to the viewers. ¡°That¡¯s right. It seems that, because this is the first arena that opened since the new classes became accessible, there is a lot of interest towards the ¡®rookie league¡¯ than ever before. It¡¯s almost equivalent to the major league, where the best rankers compete for supremacy!¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right. As you can see from your screen, the arena is packed with thousands of people!¡± It was exactly as the two reporters¡¯ words. The seating area around the stadium, where the competition for the rookie league was being held, was completely packed to the point where it was impossible to step foot in there. This was, as expected, the proof of the interest towards the new classes. While the crystal ball sending out the broadcast shone on the stadium, the two people collected their breaths and read the script once more. And as the screen changed, Lucia¡¯s emceeing naturally continued. ¡°Hines, if there is a class amongst the new classes that would show the strongest fighting power in the arena, which class would you point out?¡± At Lucia¡¯s words, Hines¡¯ explanation began. ¡°As expected, the class that is being analyzed as the strongest class for an arena, where its matches are 1v1, is the ¡®Assassin¡¯.¡± ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± ¡°That¡¯s because it¡¯s generally a class with incredibly high attacking ability compared to Black Magicians and Summoners.¡± ¡°Is that so? However, Summoners and Black Magicians can manage a lot of undeads and strong Familiars, wouldn¡¯t an Assassin that¡¯s alone be at a disadvantage?¡± The two¡¯s friendly explanation in the form of a question continued. ¡°Haha, you do you have a valid point, Lucia , but a larger number isn¡¯t a big advantage when going against an Assassin class.¡± Hines momentarily paused to catch his breath as he had spoken a lot before he continued his words. ¡°The Assassin class has a lot of skills, such as moving short distances instantly or turning invisible for a short period of time, that could dishevel their opponent¡¯s focus. On top of that, their movements are incredibly agile, so they can close the gap between their opponent in an instant!¡± Lucia nodded her head. ¡°Ah-ha, so in the situation of the Assassin, they can just avoid the Familiars of the Black Magicians and Summoners, approach their opponent user in an instant and send them off with a single, powerful blow!¡± ¡°That¡¯s exactly it, Lucia. That¡¯s why many analysts think Assassins will be a strong candidate for this rookie league¡¯s winner.¡± Hines mainly explained, while Lucia stood in place for the viewers and asked questions that the viewers would most likely be curious about. ¡°Oh? But Hines. I have something else I¡¯m curious about.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Although the Assassin has unbelievable approachability and personal Offensive Power, I think that it could be weak to classes that already existed like the Warrior class or the Knight class.¡± Hines waited momentarily for Lucia¡¯s next words, and Lucia¡¯s words continued. ¡°Although Assassins have an unbelievable one-hit Offensive Power, once they pour out everything into an attack, they have a characteristic of their strength being drained. In that case, I think they would obviously be weak to Warrior classes that have both equally excellent Defensive and Offensive Power, or Knight classes that specialize in tanking.¡± Hines¡¯ explanation continued again. ¡°That¡¯s absolutely right, Lucia. Just like you said, the Assassin class isn¡¯t good against Warrior or Knight classes.¡± ¡°Then how is the Assassin the strongest winning candidate of the rookie league?¡± ¡°That¡¯s because it has been analyzed that all of the exceptional users in the already existing classes are over lv 50, and cannot participate in the rookie league. On the other hand, the top users amongst the new class users are close to lv 50.¡± The explanation made to meet the level of understanding of the viewers continued. Of course, there were a lot of viewers that were hardcore gamers, who had high knowledges about games, but there were a ton more people that weren¡¯t like that in comparison. That¡¯s why YTBC Media, where their explanations were excellent and their intelligibility towards games were high, boasted an incredible amount of shares that was incomparable to other game broadcasts. ¡°Oh, Hines, while you were talking, the preliminary rounds are finally starting!¡± Just like Lucia said, the first match in the arena was about to begin. ¡°Oh! It even looks like a new class is appearing for the first match!¡± ¡°Hines, that user wearing a black uniform on the other side is an Assassin-class, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Their ID is ¡®Limlong¡¯. The person opposing Limlong is Warrior ¡®Flio¡¯.¡± Lucia let out a commentary as she turned to the crystal ball. ¡°Alright, an exciting match! Viewers, please also turn your attention that way!¡± Along with her words, the crystal ball began to show the arena again, and the first preliminary match began. @ ¡®Hm, an Assassin¡­ There isn¡¯t a lot of information I know about on Assassins.¡¯ Flio was an average, lv 48 Warrior-class user. He loved Kailran as much as anybody else, but he was just a normal user that enjoyed it as a hobby. Just before he hit lv 50, the Luspel Empire¡¯s arena opened, so to participate in the rookie league, he came to Myuran. ¡®Still, isn¡¯t it rather a relief that it¡¯s a new class? Since there shouldn¡¯t be many users that are close to lv 50.¡¯ Three days ago, the Tower of Assassins, the last of all of the new class¡¯ towers, was finally built in Myuran. That meant that it was only now that Summoners, Black Magicians and Assassins all had users that were lv 50. However, the fact that the very first lv 50 Assassin appeared 3 days ago meant that there was a high chance that most general Assassin users hadn¡¯t even reached lv 40. And he didn¡¯t want to think that the opponent in front of him was the highest-level Assassin. ¡°Hoo.¡± Flio fixed his grip on his sword. As much as this was his first time participating in the arena, he didn¡¯t want to be defeated so easily. ¡®Let¡¯s not worry. It¡¯s not like I will die when I lose, I only get eliminated from the arena.¡¯ Users didn¡¯t die inside the arena. This was because if their Vitality dropped below 5%, as soon as the verdict in accordance with that, they were eliminated to outside the arena and all their Vitality is recovered. Aside from the fixed cost when participating, he realized that there was no risk, so Flio felt he slightly calmed his heart. ¡°Heup¡­!¡± As Flio let out a small shout, he inwardly collected his heart. He let go of some of his worries, but he couldn¡¯t do anything about his nervousness. On top of this being his first time participating in the arena, he was also part of the first match. While he was thinking of these things, a system message popped up for all the users inside the arena. In 5 seconds, the match will begin. 5¡­ 4¡­ 3¡­ Flio wrapped his fingers around the handle of his sword and raised it, positioning himself in order to lunge forward immediately. ¡®That¡¯s right, it¡¯s the majority opinion that the Assassin class isn¡¯t good against the Warrior class. There¡¯s nothing to be afraid of.¡¯ It bothered him that his opponent¡¯s expression looked incredibly calm, but he needed to rid of all stray thoughts in this moment and focus on the battle. 2¡­ 1¡­ Start! As soon as the countdown ended, Flio let out a shout as he ran forward as if he had been waiting. ¡°Heuaaaaat!¡± However, the Assassin opponent, whom Flio thought would surely throw his body towards him, stood still and just gazed at him. ¡®What the hell?¡¯ As Flio felt something was weird, the body of the opponent that was in front of him disappeared like a lie. ¡®Is this the Assassin¡¯s representative technique, Transparency?¡¯ Transparency allowed you to hide yourself for 10 seconds, and was a basic skill you learned as soon as you class-changed to Assassin, even being the class¡¯ representative skill. If the Assassin made an attacking motion or cast a skill, or even received some sort of damage from their enemy within the 10 seconds they were transparent, they would become visible. ¡®He¡¯s surely waiting for a chance nearby!¡¯ Flio, who concluded on his own, swung his sword around widely. It was a calculation to attempt a pre-emptive strike without giving the invisible enemy 10 seconds. Whooosh-. However, Flio¡¯s sword only sliced through the air along with the loud noise of the wind. However, just then, a black shadow unexpectedly appeared in front of Flio. Chwa-ra-rak-! Limlong was waiting for a chance to counter-attack Flio while he swung his sword. And catching that chance, Limlong scratched his side with his daggers. ¡°Keuk-!¡± And that wasn¡¯t the end. Almost as if he had read Flio¡¯s movements, he succeeded another attack by moving fluidly like water to Flio¡¯s back. ¡°Gasp-, gasp-!¡± It was a battle that happened within the blink of an eye. No, truthfully, it couldn¡¯t even be called a battle. As it was a situation where Flio was being one-sidedly beaten up by Assassin Limlong. ¡®This crazy¡­ I lost almost half my Vitality!¡¯ He was dumbfounded. He wasn¡¯t even an Offensive Power-based Warrior. He evenly raised his Offensive Power and endurance, and in fact, he was a tanking-based Warrior. However, no matter how strong of a personal attack an Assassin had, he had never imagined that he would lose close to 7 thousand Vitality unknowingly. ¡®This is a dude that was born with a sense for fighting¡­!¡¯ Cold sweat rolled down Flio¡¯s spine. As you played Kailran, you could sometimes see gifted fighters that showed Offensive Power that was multiple times higher than the stats that they received. He felt that kind of gifted sense of a gamer from his Assassin opponent. ¡®Still, I can¡¯t give up!¡¯ Flio got into position in order to cast his strongest skill ¡®Pok-ryu-cham¡¯. In order to get the skill book for this skill, he had given up close to 500,000 gold. Even though his opponent¡¯s Offensive Power was strong, their Vitality as an Assassin would be as light as a scrap piece of paper. If he was hit once by Pok-ryu-cham, Flio could turn the tables. If Flio was lucky and hit him squarely, he felt he could turn the Assassin into dust with one hit. ¡°Heuaaab-!¡± Flio swung his sword diagonally and drew a slightly tilted cross shape. As he did that, a red energy began to gather on his sword. And ¡®Limlong¡¯ watched him with an indifferent expression. ¡°Die!¡± Flio spread his hand holding the sword forward. As he did that, his large sword fired towards Limlong at an incredible speed. And a red energy began to condense around the sword. It was a moment that everybody watched in dead silence. Surprisingly, Limlong didn¡¯t avoid the sword and ran straight towards it. ¡°Oh¡­Ohh¡­!¡± All of the spectators without a doubt were watching the middle of the arena with gaping mouths. Tat- Ta-tat-! Surprisingly, Limlong stepped on top of the face of the sword that Flio shot with a light leap and jumped up high. It was an unbelievable movement that truly happened in that instant. The spectators, who saw an incredible scene that was closer to acrobatics, couldn¡¯t close their mouths. And Limlong spread his two hands towards Flio. Swiiiiish-! A sharp sound that split through the air rang out. With three silver daggers in each hand, Limlong shot a total of six daggers that rushed towards the defenseless Flio. Pak Pa-pak-! And there was no way that Flio could react to the unpredictable, almost acrobatic, attack. User Flio¡¯s Vitality has reached below 5%, and has been eliminated from the arena. User Limlong has won the match. As Limlong has won with a perfect score, he will gain two times the points. The match finished and system messages rang out, but the place was as still as death. This was because everybody had received a big shock. The most shocking thing was the fact that Assassin ¡®Limlong¡¯ hadn¡¯t used any special skills. The skills he showed in this match were skills ¡®Transparency¡¯ and ¡®Flying Knives¡¯, skills that any Assassin had, and nothing else. And shortly after, a large shout began to break out as if the arena was going to leave because of someone. ¡°Woooow¡­!¡± Within everybody¡¯s enthusiastic cries. The first preliminary match of the rookie league finished within 2 minutes since it started. @ CH 52 Chapter 52: Ian¡¯s Performance (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda For the whole duration of the first match, Ian couldn¡¯t take his eyes off the Assassin. ¡®Wow, for the first preliminary match to be this much¡­ That Assassin is quite strong. As expected, there are a lot of hidden masters in Kailran. I need to be on my toes.¡¯ While Ian was surprised by the Assassin, he looked at the user Flio, the Warrior that went against him, and shook his head. ¡®Wouldn¡¯t it be beneficial for that friend to quit gaming as soon as possible for his mental health? How could he think of swinging around his sword when the Assassin is invisible and he doesn¡¯t even know where his opponent is?¡¯ Amongst all weapons, the sword had the slowest attacking to blocking conversion rate and had the highest risk of attack failure. You could say that it was almost suicidal, swinging a sword mindlessly in front of an Assassin, who basically represented surprise attacks and assassination. ¡®I suddenly feel a little sorry towards Herz and Kroban hyung[1].¡¯ When Ian led guild hunts before resetting his character, he always made fun of Herz and Kroban for having terrible control. However, compared to the Warrior that he just saw, he felt they were masters¡­ However, all this assessment was from Ian¡¯s perspective, so it wasn¡¯t universal. Generally, users that enjoyed the game normally didn¡¯t game by thinking so meticulously like Ian. However, as Ian compared all users using himself as the standard, he could only be disappointed. Ian, who watched a couple more matches like that, could no longer keep his eyes open. This was because the standard of the matches was critical. ¡®Ah, my eyes. They aren¡¯t rotting by any chance, are they?¡¯ Ian just turned his head and mumbled to himself. ¡®Currently buying eyes that haven¡¯t seen the preliminary matches of the rookie league arena.¡¯ This was the first time Ian had watched the arena, including before he reset his character. This was because, although unknown for other parts, Ian, who was full of pride when it came to games, wouldn¡¯t have even thought of entering the competition if he didn¡¯t feel like he would be able to at least rank in the top-ranks. Before resetting, when he was around lv 50, his schedule didn¡¯t fit with the rookie league, and when he reached lv 90, he needed to go to the major league, but because it was obvious that he had no chance of winning with his strength against the top-rankers, he didn¡¯t even dare to think about the arena. ¡®It¡¯s probably at this standard because it¡¯s the rookie league, and the preliminary rounds right now on top of that, right?¡¯ Truthfully, Ian didn¡¯t really look at how others fought. Aside from the guild hunts that he went on periodically, Ian had only solo-played, so there weren¡¯t a lot of times that he had seen other users fight excluding his guild members. While Ian was thinking of this and that, a sound that called his name rang throughout the arena. The next preliminary match is ¡®Ian¡¯ and ¡®Himenes¡¯ match. The two users, whose names were called, please come down to the waiting room as soon as possible. Ian, who heard the message, slowly stood up and brushed his bottom. Finally, his turn had arrived. @ After standing on the stadium, Ian looked at his opponent. His opponent¡¯s class was Black Magician. Ian summoned Ly and Bbookbbook, and finished getting ready to fight. Jjaekee was also summoned and flew around Ian, distracting him. The only Familiar that wasn¡¯t summoned was Ddukdae. ¡®I¡¯ll have to use Ddukdae as a hidden card.¡¯ However, just then, a loud cry incomparable to anything before rang out all around. ¡°Wow!¡± ¡®Wha, what the hell? Have they all recognized this body?¡¯ Just when Ian was about to be content. The voices that came in all around threw a wet blanket over his anticipations. ¡°It¡¯s Himenes, the number 1 ranking Black Magician!¡± ¡°Himenes, crush the Summoners and the others!¡± Ian gazed at the opponent Black Magician and clenched his fist tightly. Suddenly, a childish competitive spirit gushed out and stirred him. ¡®He¡¯s the number 1 ranking Black Magician?¡¯ Ian wanted to shout ¡®I¡¯m the number 1 ranking Summoner!¡¯. It wasn¡¯t as bad as when he had to tell Professor Lee Jinook about resetting his character, but he was fuming on the inside. ¡®Black Magicians and what not!¡¯ However, even if his opponent was the number 1 ranking Black Magician, Ian was confident. ¡®Maybe if it was an Assassin, but there¡¯s no reason for me to not be able to compete with a Black Magician.¡¯ Ian began to think about all the information he knew about Black Magicians slowly. ¡®I just need to be careful of Bone Prison and AoE De-buff skills. I don¡¯t think I need to worry too much about Skull Warrior. Since I heard that there¡¯s only about 3 Skull Magicians maximum.¡¯ They were thoughts that would fiercely rage in his mind once the match started. It was known that the Black Magician¡¯s Vitality was lower than the Magician¡¯s or the Archer¡¯s. Before he could use the strength of his summoned Undeads and if he could avoid skills that hindered his movements like Bone Prison or ones like AoE Slowing Curse, Ian planned on completely eliminating his body. ¡°Hoho, Ian, I see. I¡¯m looking forward to this.¡± Himenes smiled with an arrogant expression as he held out his hand towards Ian. In a way, it could be that he looked so arrogant because his face was already unlikeable. ¡®How does anybody look so greasy?¡¯ Ian didn¡¯t really like Himenes, but firstly, he took his hand and slightly dipped his head. ¡°Yes, Himenes. I¡¯m also looking forward to this.¡± And a system message rang out. The match will begin in 5 seconds. Ian let out a command to Ly. ¡°Ly, as soon as the match starts, you just need to keep an eye on that Black Magician. Alright?¡± Grr- Grr- 5¡­ 4¡­ 3¡­ As soon as the match started, Ian¡¯s opponent surely would be thinking of the same thing as Ian. ¡®Needless to say, he¡¯ll probably focus all his firepower onto me.¡¯ Since the Summoner, like the Black Magician, was a class that would be effortlessly finished if their bodies were caught before they could use the strength of their Familiars. However, he had Bbookbbook, and he also had the Space Distortion skill as an emergency escape. ¡®If I paralyze using Current Proliferation, and Ddukdae uses Ice Wave on top of that, I can endure.¡¯ Ian finished his thoughts and prepared to run out. 2¡­ 1¡­ Start! ¡®Let¡¯s go¡­!¡¯ Along with the finishing of the countdown, Ian and Ly ran towards Himenes. ¡°Wha, what the hell?¡± Himenes, who thought that the beginning of the match would obviously be a tussle with the Familiars and Undeads, was taken aback as he watched Ian, who ran in the frontline. ¡°Bone Prison!¡± Along with Himenes¡¯ command, bones shot up here and there. However, Ian, who predicted that and ran while keeping an eye on the ground, saw the dark energy that formed from the ground and easily avoided the skill. Ian¡¯s movements were completely outside of Himenes¡¯ predictions. As Ian¡¯s combat stats, on top of being having superior stats compared to other normal lv 50 users, were mostly on Agility, he showed movements that were comparable to a decent Assassin. Before he knew it, Ian, who had gotten close to Himenes, focused his attention onto him. ¡®Weak Point Capturing¡¯ skill has been invoked. The weak point of the target will be indicated with the accuracy rate rising 20% and the chance to critical hit increasing 25%. If the weak point is hit, evasiveness will increase 110%. Now, without letting out a separate command, Ly knew what he needed to do. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has used the Berserk skill. For 15 minutes, Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s Offensive Power and Agility will increase by 30%. For 15 minutes, Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s Defensive Power will decrease by 30%. It was a situation where buffs were invoked beforehand. Now, they just needed to succeed in attacking their flustered opponent as planned. ¡°Block him! I said block him, you skull heads!¡± Flustered Himenes shouted out fiercely. And before Ian reached Himenes, 10 skulls were summoned in front of him. However, as it wasn¡¯t something outside of his predictions, Ian wasn¡¯t taken aback. ¡°Ddukdae, summon!¡± Ian drew out Ddukdae. As Ddukdae¡¯s movements were slow, Ian purposely summoned him after he got as close to Himenes as possible. If he had summoned Ddukdae from the beginning, he would have had to just watch vacantly Ly and Ian fight like a sack of barley that was shoved in. And Ddukdae was summoned perfectly in time with the timing of the skulls¡¯ shielding. ¡°Ice Wave!¡± As soon as Ddukdae was summoned, he let out an ice wave, and Ian used Current Proliferation above him like he always did. Thu-Thud- Za-Za-Zap! Through the Ice Wave and Current Proliferation that shot out into the surrounding, five or six of the skulls instantly turned into slowpokes. ¡°Whoaa!¡± Cries began to ring out from the stands here and there. This was because they were already engaged in battle without investigating each other first when 30 seconds hadn¡¯t even passed since the match started. On the other hand, Himenes, whose face was already pale, turned even paler. ¡°Aaack!¡± This was because, despite the skulls¡¯ obstruction, he could only hold down Ian¡¯s ankles, while Ly leaped off of Ddukdae¡¯s body and immediately charged towards Himenes. And Himenes, who had basically no physical combat capability, had no way of blocking or avoiding Ly¡¯s attacks. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has dealt critical damage to ¡®Himenes¡¯. As Himenes¡¯ weak points were attacked, critical attacks were effortlessly invoked. Himenes¡¯ Vitality has been reduced by 2576. Subsequently, Ly¡¯s Inherent Ability, Bleeding, was invoked shortly after, and because his Berserk skill was also already activated, his Offensive Power additionally increased. Himenes has gone into ¡®Bleeding¡¯ state and will receive 515 damage per second for 10 seconds. As Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has dealt critical damage to ¡®Himenes¡¯, ¡®Ly¡¯s Offensive Power will additionally increase for 5 seconds. The overlapping of the buffs and critical attacks continuously popped up. Himenes was taken aback. ¡®This cr¡­ crazy wolf bastard! What the hell, how can the wolf of a Summoner in the rookie league rip off close to 3 thousand damage?¡¯ It was an Offensive Power that was believable even if it was said to be the Offensive Power of a lv 70-80 Shadow Wolf. And it was too worthless for Himenes¡¯ Vitality and Defensive Power to block Ly¡¯s maximized Offensive Power. Himenes¡¯ Vitality has been reduced by 3157. Himenes¡¯ Vitality has been reduced by 3381. ¡°Ah, Ahh¡­!¡± At the fault of flustering, Himenes couldn¡¯t even try to properly resist. He couldn¡¯t even invoke one of the Black Magician¡¯s inherent skills, Dark Shield. In an instant, an unbelievable amount of Vitality of over 9 thousand was lost, and Himenes was kicked out of the arena without even a chance to try something. Even if he had invoked the Dark Shield, which absorbed damage in proportion to the amount of magic possessed instantaneously, he wouldn¡¯t have been kicked out. Player Himenes¡¯ Vitality has reached below 5%, and has been eliminated from the arena. Player Ian has won the match. As Ian has won with a perfect score, he will gain two times the points. And the close to 20 skulls that were summoned within the arena turned into dust and collapsed on the spot. The first preliminary match. Just like the match between Assassin Limlong and Warrior Flio, the place was as still as death. No, compared to then, the spectators¡¯ shock was even bigger. This was because number one ranking Black Magician Himenes was one of the strong winning candidate for this competition. ¡°No¡­way¡­¡± It was a situation that was so shocking that not only the spectators, but the operators of the game broadcasts, who came to the scene for the game, forgot their commentaries. [1] hyung = what a younger male calls a close, older male CH 53 Chapter 53: Ian¡¯s Performance (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Sponsor: Fullmetalj4cket Ah, what¡¯s this? Could it be that that Summoner has received an unbelievable hidden class? Truly unbelievable fighting power! Especially that giant wolf with the red mane, it eliminated number 1 ranking Black Magician Himenes within three attacks! Within the silence, the voices of the broadcast commentators, who gathered their senses first, rang out clearly. And the spectators began to get noisy. ¡°What the hell? Where can I catch that wolf? I need to stop watching the arena and go find information on that wolf.¡± There were people that left the other spectators to go and find the Red Maned Wolf as their hearts were stolen by Ly¡¯s unbelievable Offensive Power, ¡°That Summoner, he probably Possessed a Familiar that specialized in Agility, right? Did you see his movements? It was no joke.¡± ¡°No kidding, my level is a bit low, but even still, he moves more swiftly than me and I¡¯m an Assassin.¡± While there were also people that analyzed the movements Ian showed with the information they had. However, the people that had just watched the match had a common thought. ¡®The current Summoner class has been incredibly undervalued!¡¯ Summoners were undervalued compared to Assassins and Black Magicians and were recognized as a minor new class. However, the number one ranking Black Magician was thrown off guard by an unknown Summoner in front of their eyes. While everybody was in shock, Ian walked out of the arena with a leisurely expression. However, truthfully, Ian was equally as taken aback. ¡®What the hell? I thought they said he was the number one ranking Black Magician? Why is he so weak?¡¯ He did think that he could deal a large enough blow with Ly¡¯s pre-emptive strike, but he never imagined that he would be eliminated by the continued attacks in one go. ¡®And although Ly¡¯s Agility is fast, he looked as if he could at least avoid one of the follow-up hits well enough¡­¡¯ From Ian¡¯s perspective, the user¡¯s control ability was terrible. On the other hand, Himenes, who was kicked out of the arena, clenched his fist and trembled. ¡®Ah¡­ I was careless because it was a Summoner. Damn it.¡¯ He was so disappointed that he was eliminated from the arena without even getting the chance to do something that he didn¡¯t know what to do. ¡®He was even wearing knuckle-like things as weapons, so I thought he was a complete starter¡­.¡¯ Currently, the weapon that the normal Summoner favoured were crossbows or magic wands, which were weapons that comfortably allowed long-distance attacks to be operated. Even if they used Possession and raised their fighting power, there were almost no Summoners that favoured close-combat. ¡®What exactly are Summoners in guilds doing?¡¯ Truthfully, the biggest reason why Himenes looked down on Summoners was because he easily won a mock battle against a high-level Summoner a couple days ago. As the Summoner that belonged to his guild was at around lv 43, he had quite a big level difference with Himenes, but even if he considered that, he felt that the Summoner class itself was incredibly weak in pvp. ¡®Ha¡­ To be eliminated at the first preliminary round¡­¡¯ He felt incredibly embarrassed about having chatted about tips for Black Magicians on broadcast. ¡®Euh, if only I hadn¡¯t been so careless, I would have surely won!¡¯ However, he didn¡¯t think at all that in the end it was because he was weaker than Ian. He simply believed that he was eliminated because he was careless and because the wolf¡¯s attacks were all critical by luck(?). However, no matter how Himenes thought, the match was over and there was no way to change that. He hid his face from the arena, leaving only a forlorn backside. @ The official Kailran community was once again in chaos. This was because of a combat video of one Summoner user that was spread in the morning. The 3-minute combat video that was posted on the community¡¯s combat video bulletin board at around 10 a.m. took over as today¡¯s best video within only five hours, recording it as a hit. There were already over a thousand comments alone. SummoneroftheWind: Damn, what is that wolf? It¡¯s my first time seeing that monster. Is there anybody that can tell me where you can catch it? syw1203: Person above, it would be best to carefully read the comment at the very top first before coming here. Currently, the majority¡¯s opinion is that it¡¯s a monster that he gained through a Summoner class quest from the Tower of Summoners, or it seems to be leaning more towards that it¡¯s an evolution of a Wolf. Sharmir: But could there already be someone that had succeeded in evolution? I think there¡¯s a higher chance of it being a monster that he received as a reward from some sort of hidden quest within a class quest. DescendantofMyuran: I also agree with Sharmir. It¡¯s only been found out that there are Familiars with evolution possible options, no one knows anything about the requirements to evolve, so it doesn¡¯t make sense that someone¡¯s already evolved one. ShadowWarrior: I¡¯m an Assassin class, but I¡¯ll ask a question towards you Summoners. Do Summoners¡¯ Agilities go up that much when they use Possession? kka0707: The Summoner in that video looks to be in their late lv 40s at the least, and it also looks like they most likely Possessed a Familiar that¡¯s about 10 levels higher. I¡¯ve seen someone with an intermediate-level Proficiency with Possession, but they only take about 45% of the Familiar¡¯s stats. But in order to have that much Agility with Possession, I think they Possessed a lv 60-ish raptorial monster. The comment window was rampant of all sorts of speculations. Starting from comments saying that Ian used Possession, a skill that he didn¡¯t even have, to Ly being a special Familiar that could only be gained from a class quest, there were various kinds of hypotheses. And the Summoner class bulletin board was multiple times more worked up compared to the combat video comment window. Php0931: Ian, if you happen to be looking at the class bulletin board, please leave a comment! SummonersaretheBest: Anybody who knows where to obtain the Red Maned Wolf, please let me know, I¡¯m getting dizzy over it. Lullang: Guys, the lightning-type skill that Ian used was the Current Proliferation skill or something like that, right? I had read the information in the Class¡¯ Tower before! And videos that added to the fire of explosive interest towards Ian even more continued to be uploaded. Someone in the scene was taking videos of Ian¡¯s preliminary rounds and immediately uploading them into the bulletin boards. It wasn¡¯t as impressive as when he went against Black Magician Himenes, but these videos were a hot issue for a different reason. This was because no matter the opponent in the preliminary rounds, not one of them could face Ly before they dropped out. The users¡¯ interest towards Ly increased rapidly, and Ian, who wanted to become famous(?), was gradually becoming a celebrity without him knowing about it. @ Lucia and Hines, who relayed the preliminary rounds of the rookie league for a quarter of the day, were conversing as they took a short break. ¡°Hines, don¡¯t you think this rookie league is truly the best? Especially the Summoner named Ian and the Assassin named Limlong, I think they¡¯re truly amazing.¡± At Lucia¡¯s words, Hines nodded his head. ¡°I also think that way. It looked like those two users raised themselves using some sort of special method.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Their characters looked special, and their control level is unbelievable.¡± Hines, who lifted his water bottle and slightly quenched his thirst, slowly continued speaking again. ¡°But Lucia, there¡¯s something that¡¯s been bothering me since a while ago.¡± ¡°Huh? What do you mean bother you?¡± Hines slightly knitted his brows together as if he was thinking of something as he spoke. ¡°You know that Summoner user. Ian.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I think I¡¯ve met him before somewhere.¡± At those words, Lucia¡¯s eyes slightly rounded. ¡°Huh? Really? Where did you see him?¡± ¡°I feel like I¡¯ve definitely seen that red wolf somewhere¡­¡± Hines, who momentarily thought about it, finally clapped his hands. ¡°Ah, right. I remember now!¡± Lucia waited for Hines¡¯ next words with a curious expression. ¡°I went to the Abysmal Island a while ago to help my friend with the Magician¡¯s quest. There was a Summoner user then that rode the ghost ship with a giant red wolf, and I¡¯m positive that person was him!¡± Hines assured himself as he spoke. ¡®That¡¯s right, I¡¯m sure it¡¯s him. He probably caught that Ice Golem he used in the match at Abysmal Island.¡¯ He didn¡¯t know the identity of the strange turtle(?) he carried on his back, but as he matched up the Ice Golem, he could now confidently guess that it was him back then. ¡°Ooh, I see.¡± Lucia had on an expression saying it was cool, but that was it. Truthfully, it wasn¡¯t like he was acquainted with Ian, and just having seen him was nothing to fuss over. And rather, she thought it was a relief. This was because Lucia was secretly planning on snatching a contract with Ian herself. In the case that Hines was acquainted with Ian, she would be losing a chance to raise her performance. ¡®When the arena schedule is over, I have to go approach him.¡¯ Because the top-ranking Summoner ¡®Loren¡¯ that she tried to contact last time was acquainted with Hines, she had lost Loren to him, so this time, she wasn¡¯t planning on losing Ian. However, Hines had a secret plan of his own. ¡®Since his impression looked really nice back then¡­ I should be able to approach him a little easier if I say that I was the user that rode the boat with him then.¡¯ Hines, whose mood brightened thinking of the bonus he would receive after clinching a contract with Ian, grinned as he stood up to relay the next match. @ ¡°Huehue, Huehuehuet.¡± Ian, who won 5 matches with a perfect score one after another, passed the preliminary rounds early and watched the matches with an arrogant expression as he sat in the corner of the stands. There were quite a lot of people that now recognized him after the preliminary rounds, but no one could bother Ian. This was because the place that Ian was sitting at was the battalion sector, where only people who have passed the preliminary rounds could come into. Because even Limlong, who was driving towards complete victory like Ian, had only finished four of his listed matches, only Ian sat in the waiting room. ¡°Will there be no capable person that can block me from winning, hoho.¡± He already originally had strong self-pride in his own gaming skills, but as he hadn¡¯t met a worthy opponent in the preliminary rounds, he was holding his head even higher. ¡®It looks like the 100,000 Fame and lv 50 Summoner full-set items will soon belong to me. On top of that, they¡¯ll all be Heroic-rank!¡¯ Once he received the first-place reward of the rookie league, an easy journey towards level-grinding would be opened. A happy feeling came just imagining it. While Ian grinned and happily imagined to himself, the preliminary rounds of the rookie league came to an end, and lastly, 64 users remained in the arena¡¯s waiting room. Only a couple users that appeared to already be acquainted with each other were quietly conversing with each other, while the rest waited for the list of matches to appear with nervous expressions. ¡®Even if they were progressed with 50 matches at once¡­ Did less users participate than predicted? Or is it because it¡¯s the rookie league. If all goes well, it looks like we could finish all the matches in a day.¡¯ Just like Ian thought, there was the fault that only a few participated in the rookie league, but because the arena generally had a merciless rule that eliminated you even with one loss, the users were filtered out faster than expected. ¡®It¡¯s better for me. I could probably start hunting again right away tomorrow.¡¯ As Ian was expecting to have to continuously stay at the arena for 2-3 days without leveling, he really liked the forwarded schedule. While Ian thought of this and that, the arena¡¯s schedule was progressing incredibly fast. The list of matches came out instantly, as if corn was being popped with lightning, and shortly after, all of the matches for the 64 progressed. And Ian looked at the opponent in front of him. ¡®Huh, what is this Archer? I feel like I¡¯ve seen him before somewhere¡­¡¯ The opponent was glaring at him with the intentions of killing him. And Ian was able to figure out who he was shortly after. ¡®Ah¡­ It¡¯s that Goblin Chief Priest PK bum!¡¯ CH 54 Chapter 54: Ian¡¯s Performance (4) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The Archer that matched up against Ian for the 64-player round was none other than Millun. He was one of the three disgusting members that wanted to steal from Ian during the Chief Priest Quest. ¡®Wait. Was that Archer dude exactly lv 50? I¡¯m positive he looked like he was over lv 50 at the time, so how was he able to participate here?¡¯ Truthfully, Millun¡¯s lv was at lv 51 during the Chief Priest Quest. However, due to Ian¡¯s counterblow, he was de-leveled to lv 50, and since that was the case, he had waited and participated in the arena rookie league. And sure enough, Ian¡¯s opponent remembered him as well. ¡°Ian, you PK bum! You must be using my Halio¡¯s Necklace well!¡± Millun faced Ian and ground his teeth. The Halio¡¯s Necklace he lost back then haunted him. At those words, Ian smirked. ¡°Well, that¡¯s something I don¡¯t know about? Why are you looking for the Halio¡¯s necklace from me?¡± Of course, he remembered selling the Halio¡¯s Necklace at quite an expensive price in the auction, but Ian just said this to tease Millun. And Millun, who heard Ian¡¯s mocking, was enraged. ¡°Ergh¡­ This little! You may have killed us then using your sly wits, but today I¡¯ll beat you to a pulp with my own hands.¡± From Ian¡¯s perspective, it was a line that caused him to snort. ¡®What? Beat me to a pulp? He would have died even if we fought back then, too¡­¡¯ Since they had already met like this, Ian wanted to play with that disgusting dude a little more. ¡°Hey, you, this is a body that¡¯s gotten through the preliminary rounds with a perfect score. How exactly do you plan on beating me?¡± Even at Ian¡¯s quite rational provocation, Millun responded without losing, as if he was confident in that he could beat Ian. ¡°Is there anybody here that got this far without getting an all-win? Plus, I even know your secret.¡± Meanwhile, the spectators that were listening to the two people¡¯s conversation in real time at the stands had on faces full of curiosity. ¡°Yo, it looks like those two fought on the fields before!¡± ¡°Really? This looks interesting!¡± There were a total of 32 matches going on at the same time in the arena for the 64-player round, but most of the spectators were gathered at Ian¡¯s match and Limlong¡¯s match. That¡¯s why a lot of spectators were listening to Ian and Millun¡¯s conversation before the match started with interest. Meanwhile, Ian¡¯s eyes slightly rounded at Millun¡¯s words saying that he knew Ian¡¯s secret. ¡°What? What secret?¡± Millun ground his teeth as he responded. ¡°You can¡¯t be thinking that you passed the preliminary rounds with perfect games just purely with your strength, can you? Especially when you¡¯ve only reached this far because of your items?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Ian, who had on a taken aback expression, waited for Millun¡¯s next words. And at Millun¡¯s words full of rage caused not only Ian, but the spectators as well, to have a shocked expression. ¡°Your wolf Familiar! The secret that it¡¯s a Familiar that you didn¡¯t tame, but that you summon using a Sealing Magic Artifact!¡± The spectators began to talk noisily. ¡°No wonder¡­ It seemed too strong for just a lv 50 Summoner to logically have around.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Now the questions are answered. If I had a Summoning Magic Artifact like that, I probably would have won the rookie league as well.¡± ¡°Ha, in the end, the best is a rich dude.¡± At Millun¡¯s unexpected attack, Ian was incredibly taken aback. ¡®What? He thinks that Ly is a Familiar that I summon using an artifact? Did he really think that was the truth this whole time?¡¯ And anger started to bubble up inside him. One of the words that Ian hated to hear the most while gaming was ¡®rich noob¡¯. Millun¡¯s provocation continued. ¡°There¡¯s no need for long words, just come at me! It will be the end if I ignore the wolf and kill you first.¡± Ian was mad at the stupid guy in front of him, and he felt stuffy towards the spectators that believed Millun¡¯s words. ¡®Ha, do they really believe that dimwit¡¯s words?¡¯ And before Ian got a chance to explain, the system message that stated that the match would start began to ring out. The match will start in 5 seconds. Ian was enraged. ¡°Ha, this idiot. 30 seconds and you¡¯re done.¡± 5¡­ 4¡­ 3¡­ Ian was planning on going a little easy on Millun and play with him a little, since he had to wait for the other matches to end anyways, but his heart changed. 2¡­ 1¡­ Start! As soon as the match started, Ly used Berserk and began to charge towards Millun. Grr- Grr-! And as if Millun knew that would happen, he pulled himself back and drew his bow. ¡°Die!¡± The arrowheads of the arrows that Millun shot out had a white energy. And Ian, who had raised an Archer class character up to a ranker-level, knew exactly what that was. ¡®That¡¯s Induced Arrow. Still, that¡¯s a pretty good skill book, how did he get his hands on it?¡¯ Induced Arrow was one of the advanced skill books that Archers wanted to get. Although it was a skill with power that terribly dropped compared to other skills, once shot, it could be blocked, but it was almost impossible to dodge. Ian knew that there wasn¡¯t that big of a damage even if he just took the hit, but he had no intention of standing still and getting hit. ¡®I happen to have a bulletproof vest.¡¯ It was a strangely-shaped vest that was worn on the back, but Bbookbbook, who sufficiently fit the modifier bulletproof, protected Ian¡¯s back. Ta-tat-. Ian purposely began to run away with his back facing the Induced Arrows. Ian looked as if he was running away from the Induced Arrows. And Millun, who saw that, laughed out loud and moved his legs. This was because it was a situation where he couldn¡¯t allow Ly to intersect with him at any rate either. ¡°Keke, do you think you¡¯ll be able to avoid the Induced Arrows like that?¡± Millun, who had incredibly high Agility as he was an Archer class, was able to run away quite well from Ly and continue to shoot Induced Arrows. Induced Arrows were rated the strongest skill for Archers in 1:1 PVP. And as over ten Induced Arrows chased after Ian¡¯s tail, Millun let out a yell of delight. This was because, although he was also getting chased by Ly, he thought it would be faster for the Induced Arrows to catch Ian than for Ly to catch him. And he thought that if Ian, who wasn¡¯t a Warrior or Knight, was hit directly by the more-than-ten Induced Arrows, he wouldn¡¯t be able to survive. However, that was only Millun¡¯s delusions, and he could only fall into despair shortly after. Ting- Ting- Ti-Ting-! This was because as the Induced Arrows he shot hit Ian¡¯s back, a system message popped up. ¡®Induced Arrow¡¯ skill has hit ¡®Ian¡¯s Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯. 1 damage has been dealt. ¡®Induced Arrow¡¯ skill has hit ¡®Ian¡¯s Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯. 1 damage has been dealt. ¡®What, 1 damage? Argh! And what the hell is Bbookbbook?¡¯ And Millun, who ran away from Ly with a lot of effort, at the fault of the arena that was shaped like a circle, could only run into Ian, who was running towards him from the other direction. ¡®Weak Point Capturing¡¯ skill has been invoked. The weak point of the target will be indicated with the accuracy rate rising 20% and the chance to critical hit increasing 25%. If the weak point is hit, evasiveness will increase 110%. Along with the invoking of the Weak Point Capturing skill, Ian and Ly raided Millun at the same time from either direction. ¡°Aaack-!¡± And his fate was decided just like that. @ There was a momentary commotion(?) because of Millun, but Ian was able to make it without much difficulty to the 8-player round, winning the other rounds easily. Now, the semi-final matches were finally starting. ¡®Hmm, will I meet some strong opponents now?¡¯ Just then, the user that looked like his opponent stepped up to the arena. His opponent wore a full-body robe that was a solid grey as well as a dark black cone hat, and held quite a long staff decorated with a skull with one hand. They were typical Black Magicians¡¯ items no matter who saw it. ¡®It¡¯s been a while since I faced a Black Magician again. I wonder how this opponent will be.¡¯ Ian stared at his opponent as he remembered Himenes, whose level was only high and was a total nobody. As he checked his opponent¡¯s appearance a little more closely, he saw an incredibly short height that only came up to his chest and a baby face that still hadn¡¯t lost its baby fat. His appearance was even cute, holding a staff that was taller than his own height. ¡®Since it¡¯s the semi-finals starting now, their outer appearance might not be everything.¡¯ Still, the opponent¡¯s appearance couldn¡¯t help but soften Ian¡¯s wariness. Ian smiled as he opened his mouth. ¡°I¡¯m Ian. I¡¯m looking forward to this.¡± The child Black Magician, who was looking somewhere else, snapped his head towards Ian and lifted it as he stared at Ian. And he spoke with an incredibly serious expression and voice that was unfitting. ¡°Psh, in the end, I meet a strong opponent here. This match won¡¯t be easy.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± At the line that sounded like it would come out of a main character in a child¡¯s cartoon or a bitter boy, Ian was taken aback. The opponent that watched that image continued his words. ¡°However, if I, the strongest Magician in the continent, lost here, a lot of people will probably be sad. Summoner of the darkness! Your evil deeds will end today. Be prepared!¡± No, to call himself the Summoner of darkness when he¡¯s a Black Magician? Ian was at a loss for words. And to call himself the strongest Magician in the continent¡­ Ian flinched and took a step back without him realizing. ¡®Wha, what the hell? Is this the Grade 8 syndrome that I only had heard of?¡¯ To say that he had Grade 8 syndrome, he had too much of a baby-face that looked like he was only in elementary school. The Black Magician boy threw another word at Ian, who was in chaos at the mental attack. ¡°My name is ¡®Kanjihoonie¡¯. It would be best to remember my name. Although it is a name that is wasteful to let someone who¡¯s going to disappear soon know, keke.¡± On top of the continued mental attack, he spoke informally so incredibly naturally. ¡®Wha, what on earth¡­ What the hell is this guy?¡¯ Ian felt an unknown incompatibility. And while the two shared a heated conversation, a system message alerting the start of the semi-final matches rang out. The match will start in 5 seconds. It seemed because it was the semi-finals, the amount of spectators that were watching was incomparable to anything before. 5¡­ 4¡­ During the preparation time, Ian and Hoonie summoned all of their own Familiars. And as Ian saw Hoonie¡¯s Familiars, he had on a slightly surprised expression. ¡®Hidden class! For sure, he has a hidden class.¡¯ The skulls that Hoonie had summoned looked different to the skulls of a normal Black Magician. Firstly, the most prominent characteristic was that they were not skulls from a normal white bone, but skulls that were made from a pitch-black bone. And their sizes looked to be a little bigger than normal skulls. ¡®Instead, there¡¯s a smaller number of them.¡¯ Ian tucked away his heart that belittled him a bit. This was because as he couldn¡¯t get a sense of what kind of hidden class it was, he couldn¡¯t predict what kind of skills he¡¯ll use. ¡®Damn it, why didn¡¯t I see even one of this Black Magician¡¯s matches up until now?¡¯ Ian made sure to watch one match that was held at each timeslot, but Hoonie was a user that he was seeing for the first time. While Ian thought of this and that, the match began. 3¡­ 2¡­ 1¡­ Start! CH 55 Chapter 55: Ian¡¯s Performance (5) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda As soon as the match started, Black Magician Kanjihoonie immediately casted a skill. ¡°Pit of Darkness!¡± As expected, he casted a skill that was Ian¡¯s first time seeing. And the floor of the whole arena began to surge with black energy. You have received the effect of user ¡®Kanjihoonie¡¯s ¡®Pit of Darkness¡¯ skill. While receiving the skill¡¯s effect, your movements will be slowed by 20%. The slowing effect was applied to all of Ian¡¯s Familiars and himself. At that, Ian slightly frowned. ¡®Getting slowed by 20% is quite annoying.¡¯ Ian, who was planning on kicking out his opponent quickly in the early phase of the match using the same method that he used to beat Himenes previously, had to give up that plan. This was because the slowing effect was also a hindrance, but different from Himenes, Hoonie was moving his Familiars quickly as soon as the match started. If he lost the timing to attack swiftly, he needed to use standard tactics now. ¡°Ly, start by catching the ones at the front one by one!¡± Grr-! Ian placed Ddukdae and Ly at the front and had them face Hoonie¡¯s skulls. There looked to be roughly about ten skulls. Normal Black Magicians that were around lv 50 managed over 20 skulls and when you thought about it, it looked as if Hoonie¡¯s numbers were much lower, but because they were much bigger and they were black, they felt more menacing. As always, the skulls began to be tied down through Ian¡¯s Current Proliferation and Ddukdae¡¯s Ice Wave. Za-Za-Zap-! ¡®I need to tie as many of the skulls down as I can in order for Ly to be able to access the Black Magician.¡¯ The opportunity to catch the Black Magician with a swift attack went out the window, but that didn¡¯t mean Ian was planning on waiting until all of the skulls were caught. ¡°Current Proliferation!¡± Ian threw the lightning spheres that were in either hand into the air. And the bundles of lightning precisely hit two of the skulls. Za-Za-Zap- Bang-! And the bundles of lightning that had divided and now were a total of eight spread out and hit the surrounding skulls. User ¡®Kanjihoonie¡¯s Familiar ¡®Skull Warrior of Darkness¡¯ has gone into ¡®paralyzed¡¯ state. Their movements have been slowed by 30%. Amongst the ten skulls, a whopping seven skulls were hit by the Current Proliferation skill, and three of those went into a paralyzed state. Ian¡¯s control ability, calculating the directions of the divided Current Proliferation and even getting the follow-up attack correct, was almost close to marvelous. Hoonie, who saw Ian¡¯s active play, cast another skill in fear that he would lose. This time, it was the basic attack skill of Black Magician¡¯s that Ian also knew well. ¡°Judgment of Darkness!¡± A stream of a pitch-black beam shot out towards Ian from Hoonie¡¯s spread hand. The Judgment of Darkness was a skill categorized as a ¡®projectile¡¯ that had the highest speed amongst offensive skills, but Ian slightly twisted his waist and avoided the skill. He didn¡¯t avoid the projectile after seeing it, but rather it was possible because he predicted that a ray would be shot out while seeing Hoonie¡¯s hand movement. Ping-! The Judgement of Darkness only hit the innocent arena floor before disappearing into the air. Hoonie clenched his fist. ¡°As expected, you¡¯re an amazingly powerful person! However, you met the wrong opponent today! Muahaha!¡± Ian, who had now developed a bit of an immunity towards the cringe-y lines of the elementary-school Black Magician, fired Current Proliferation constantly. And after spreading the Current Proliferation skill a couple times, most of the skulls were in a paralyzed state, and Ly was almost done catching one of them. Just then, Ian¡¯s eyes shone. ¡®Now¡­!¡¯ As soon as Ian saw an opening between the skulls that surrounded and protected Hoonie without a gap, he commanded Ly without hesitation. ¡°Ly, go in!¡± Grrr-! And Ly, who leaped up higher, charged towards Hoonie, who was casting a skill in the back. In Hoonie¡¯s case, it was a situation where he could fully be taken aback. However, surprisingly, he pulled a foot backwards and cast a skill, as if he was expecting it. ¡°Revenge of the Dead!¡± Ian, who heard the skill words, momentarily felt nervous. This was because Revenge of the Dead was also a skill that he was hearing for the first time. And before Ly¡¯s teeth touched Hoonie, a black energy oozed from Hoonie¡¯s whole body. Grr-! However, Ly didn¡¯t care about Hoonie and attacked him. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has dealt critical damage to ¡®Kanjihoonie¡¯! ¡®Kanjihoonie¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 2272. Ly¡¯s critical attack that was invoked without hesitation! However, at that moment, another baffling message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. As user ¡®Kanjihoonie¡¯s skill ¡®Revenge of the Dead¡¯ has been invoked, 276% of the received damage will be reflected. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has received 6270 damage. Ian momentarily thought his eyes were fooling him. ¡®This crazy¡­ 6270 damage? That doesn¡¯t even make sense!¡¯ Continued, Ly¡¯s Inherent Ability, Bleeding, was immediately invoked, but that didn¡¯t even get registered to Ian. If he had received over 6 thousand damage, it was definite that Ly didn¡¯t have much Vitality left. On top of that, the effect of the Revenge of the Dead was applied after Ly¡¯s Inherent Ability, Health Absorption, was invoked. Because the point where Ly steals Vitality through Health Absorption was the maximum of his Vitality, he wasn¡¯t able to recover. ¡®Ly¡¯s maximum Vitality is probably not even 8 thousand!¡¯ And at that moment, Hoonie¡¯s attack continued. Pu-Puck-! His staff hit Ly¡¯s shoulder. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has received 759 damage. There was no time to hesitate now. Ian urgently recalled Ly. ¡°Ly, Summon Release!¡± Just when Hoonie was about to do a follow-up attack, Ly¡¯s body turned into a white light and disappeared into thin air. ¡°Keke, as expected, it was a wolf that had strong Offensive Power but takes blows terribly!¡± Hoonie mocked Ian, who was taken aback, but Ian wasn¡¯t in a state of mind to say something back. At the unexpected situation, cold sweat dripped down his back. It was now impossible to summon Ly for 30 minutes. In other words, that meant that he couldn¡¯t use Ly until this match was over. ¡®To think that I would have to fight without Ly. I should have safely eliminated the skulls in front instead¡­¡¯ However, there was no way for Ian to have known that Hoonie had a skill that returned damage. Anyways, ambushing Hoonie using Ly was the best choice for Ian. ¡®Ly became uncontrollable for the battle, but since he had received quite a large amount of damage as well.¡¯ He remembered Himenes¡¯ Vitality to have not reached even 10 thousand. Hoonie would have lost over 6 thousand Vitality from Ly¡¯s critical attack and the additional damage from Bleeding. He thought that it wasn¡¯t a complete loss on his side. And as the Bleeding effect continued as Ian predicted, Hoonie¡¯s name began to slowly blink. It was a sign showing that his Vitality had dropped below half. ¡®Since that Revenge of the Dead skill doesn¡¯t look like a skill that can continue on for a long time, I should cut his Vitality little by little with Current Proliferation.¡¯ Hoonie¡¯s current Vitality at most should be at around 4-5 thousand. Even if he continued to use Revenge of the Dead, Ian, who had over 10 thousand Vitality, was confident he could catch him. However, just then, Hoonie cast a skill that was unexpected again. ¡°Spirit Absorption!¡± ¡°¡­!¡± The new skill names that were continuously invoked, and the ¡®Spirit Absorption¡¯ skill that Hoonie used made Ian fall into despair. As Hoonie spread his hand out, four of the skulls were sucked into his hand, and his Vitality was recovered. ¡°Keke, now the wolf¡¯s gone, and my Vitality is completely recovered. Now how do you plan on facing me, muahaha!¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± It had definitely turned into an incredibly unfavourable situation. ¡®I could even lose.¡¯ This was the first time Ian had thought that he could lose since participating in this arena. However, there was a need to firstly do his best. ¡°Ddukdae, Ice Wave!¡± Hoonie consecutively shot out Judgment of Darkness, but Ian dodged or blocked them with Bbookbbook as he slowly began to face the skulls one by one. And for 15 minutes like that, Ian and Hoonie¡¯s intense battle continued. The spectators were in awe again at the surprising control that the two people were showing and were immersed in the match. The two people¡¯s battle was to the point it made everybody¡¯s hands sweat. ¡°Ddukdae, Summon Release!¡± And at the end of the intense battle, in the end, Ian had no choice but to Summon Release Ddukdae as well. However, as he had reduced the number of skulls during that time, it was a situation where there was only one skull left. The two people stopped their battle and momentarily faced each other. ¡°Persistent fellow!¡± At Hoonie¡¯s words, Ian smirked. ¡°Who you calling persistent, dude. And how dare you keep talking down to your hyung, kid?¡± ¡°Ki, kid? This villain!¡± Hoonie, who was enraged at the word kid, ran towards Ian. And Hoonie and his skeleton cornered Ian. ¡®Hm, this isn¡¯t good¡­¡¯ If he was cornered like this, it would become difficult to dodge Hoonie¡¯s black magic with control. It was right when Ian was momentarily contemplating. Squirm-. Bbookbbook, who was hanging onto Ian¡¯s back, moved. ¡°Huh?¡± Bbook- Bboo-Bbook-. And Bbookbbook, who came down from Ian¡¯s back, crawled over to Hoonie and blocked his way. Bbook! Bbookbbook-! For a moment, Ian was moved. ¡®This Bbookbbook! Just when I thought he only went around with me because of the meatballs!¡¯ In order to protect Ian, who fell into a crisis, Bbookbbook had valiantly stepped forward. Meanwhile, Hoonie, who saw Bbookbbook¡¯s form that blocked his way, sneered. ¡°What the hell is this turtle? You still had Familiars left?¡± Ian pretended to listen to Hoonie¡¯s cynical remark with one ear while he continued to plan a method to win the match. And Hoonie, who thought he had already won everything, continued speaking with an expression overflowing with confidence. ¡°Why don¡¯t you surrender now? You¡¯re a pretty amazing villain for coming this far facing the universe¡¯s greatest Magician.¡± He continued to try to provoke Ian, but as he had no reaction, Hoonie was enraged. ¡°I¡¯ll start by catching this big-headed turtle! Judgment of Darkness!¡± Judgment of Darkness was shot out of Hoonie¡¯s staff and it rushed towards Bbookbbook. Bbook-! However, Bbookbbook swiftly went inside his shell. ¡®Judgment of Darkness¡¯ skill has hit user ¡®Ian¡¯s Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯. 1 damage has been dealt. Hoonie¡¯s eyes slightly rounded. ¡°Chet, is it a barrier?¡± As Hoonie watched Bbookbbook, who had his head out again with a triumphant expression in front of him, Hoonie¡¯s expression scowled. ¡°Solid turtle, I¡¯ll punish you a little later.¡± Bbook-? And Hoonie began to attack Ian with the skull 2:1. And Ian turned his back and ran for his life. ¡°Puahahat! What the hell! What do you plan on doing by running around like that!¡± Hoonie chased after Ian in enjoyment. And Ian lured Hoonie, who was like that, towards the outer edge of the arena. ¡®Just a little, a little more!¡¯ From others¡¯ perspectives, it looked as if Ian was running away from Hoonie and the skull as he had no other choice by the turn of events, but truthfully, Ian had a plan. It was a clever scheme he thought of while Bbookbbook bought him some time. Ian and Hoonie continued their battle and had ended up just running around the arena. And the moment where Ian and Hoonie were passing by Bbookbbook, who was by the outer side of the arena. ¡®Now!¡¯ Ian used the great skill. ¡°Space Distortion!¡± As the skill was used, Ian and Bbookbbook¡¯s places were switched, and Hoonie, who chased right after Ian, was momentarily taken aback at Ian¡¯s disappearance. ¡°Wha, what the hell?¡± And Ian, who moved to Hoonie¡¯s back, used his running inertia and pushed Hoonie using all his strength. Puck-! ¡°Ack-!¡± Hoonie, whose body was fundamentally light and whose Strength stat was noticeably weak as it was a Black Magician class¡¯ characteristic, couldn¡¯t help but be pushed by Ian, and his foot was even caught on the shell of Bbookbbook, who had appeared in front of him as his position was switched. Bang- Bang-Thud-Bang-! Ian let out a shout of delight. ¡°It worked!¡± Hoonie, who fell, had rolled out of the arena. And a system message rang out in the arena. User ¡®Kanjihoonie¡¯ broke out of the arena. According to the rules of the arena, it is counted as an ¡®Off-course Loss¡¯. User ¡®Ian¡¯ has won the match. And at that moment, the spectators, whom were watching the match with an excited expression, let out a cheer. ¡°Wooow! That was unbelievable!¡± ¡°It was a come-from-behind win that I wasn¡¯t even thinking of!¡± ¡°Did you see that Summoner¡¯s control? He¡¯s crazy, how can he his skills so excellently?¡± Meanwhile, there were sounds that also touched Ian¡¯s mood in an odd way. ¡°That Summoner can win even without that wolf summoned from an artifact. I think maybe he is capable.¡± Ian was slightly teary-eyed, but because it was shortly after winning a match that he almost lost, he was in a good mood. Ian mumbled inwardly as he looked at Hoonie. ¡®It was definitely a difficult match. But of course, if we were to fight again, I¡¯m confident that I¡¯ll win more easily then.¡¯ Hoonie¡¯s control skill was definitely exceptional. However, the reason why Ian almost lost was not because of that. It was because he suffered properly by Hoonie¡¯s skill ¡®Revenge of the Dead¡¯ with Ly. If they were to fight again, he would leave Hoonie alone and just catch all the skulls first before slowly attacking Hoonie. Meanwhile, Hoonie, who had suffered from an unexpected Off-course Loss, shook his fist in sorrow. ¡°Euh¡­ Euhh¡­!¡± Ian, who saw that form, wanted to tease him for some reason. ¡°Kid, what should we do when I won?¡± Hoonie¡¯s two eyes were even filled with tears. ¡°Euaaah! I had won! I had won that!¡± He was a little strange of a kid, but Ian was inwardly agreeing that he almost lost by skill. ¡®For sure, his control as well, he was an incredibly amazing kid. Incomparable to the sloppy one that¡¯s supposed to be the number 1-ranking Black Magician.¡¯ At the form of the kid, who was even sorrowfully crying, Ian felt a tiny bit apologetic. ¡°Don¡¯t cry, kid. If you challenge again the next time, I¡¯ll accept it.¡± However, at Ian¡¯s sympathy, Hoonie¡¯s sorrow exploded even more. ¡°Heuaaang! This match is invalid! It¡¯s invalid! Do the match again! Again!¡± However, just because one kid begged, there was no way the semi-final results would be overturned. Like that, Ian overcame a large crisis, and was able to safely make it to the rookie league¡¯s finals. CH 56 Chapter 56: Powerful Enemy, as well as a Level-up (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian, who had won against Black Magician ¡®Kanjihoonie¡¯ and advanced to the finals, faced his predicted opponent. ¡®As expected, this user made it to the finals.¡¯ It was the Assassin user Limlong, who had shown outstanding fighting power since the first preliminary round. Ian was nervous. ¡®This round could really be difficult.¡¯ For the duration of this arena competition, whenever Ian didn¡¯t have a match, he always went looking for Limlong¡¯s matches and spectated. However, the more Ian spectated, the more he could only marvel. ¡®He didn¡¯t use any other skills aside from the basic Assassin skills to get up to here.¡¯ That was the scariest point. Despite having chased him around and seen all his matches, Ian didn¡¯t know a thing about Limlong¡¯s hidden cards. The only ting Ian learned was that Limlong¡¯s control abilities were unbelievable. On the other hand, Ian was in a situation where he had revealed everything in the match just before with Hoonie. ¡°Ian, I see. I watched your 8-player round match. It was impressive.¡± Limlong approached Ian first and extended his hand. And Ian nodded his head while shaking his hand. ¡°Nice to meet you. I also saw your matches well. I look forward to this match.¡± It was the final that would decide the rookie league¡¯s winner. The match was held on the biggest, centre arena in the middle of the empire stadium, and a huge crowd came in order to watch the two people¡¯s match. Since the beginning of Kailran, this was the largest number of spectators that had gathered for the arena¡¯s rookie league. And within the anticipation of the people, a system message alerting that the match would begin rang out. In a moment, the rookie league¡¯s last match, the finals for User ¡®Limlong¡¯ and User ¡®Ian¡¯ will begin. Cheers rang out here and there. ¡°Wow!¡± ¡°Somebody win!¡± ¡°Limlong, I¡¯m a fan!¡± ¡°Ian, show him the potential of a Summoner!¡± As it was the match between the two users who had shown the most outstanding ability in this arena rookie league, the anticipation of the spectators had reached its climax. After Ian had summoned his Familiars, he studied Limlong. Just like with all the previous matches, his expression showed no disturbance. The eyes that were visible between a cloth that was tightly wrapped around his head looked incredibly sharp. ¡®No matter how much I think about it, Summoners are not good against the Assassin class. Especially even more so in the case of the hidden class, Taming Master, which specializes in taming and raising Familiars¡­¡¯ The only way to deal with Limlong¡¯s Transparency skill was to maximize his senses to avoid his first attack using reflexes and reduce the amount of damage whatever way he could. And he needed to win no matter what before the cooldown time for Transparency was over. In 5 seconds, the match will begin.5¡­ 4¡­ 3¡­ 2¡­ 1¡­ Start! The match began, and Ian, in a very nervous state, kept his eyes fixated on Limlong. But rather than casting his Transparency skill as soon as the match started like the predictions, Limlong didn¡¯t use it and with slow footsteps, he was approaching Ian. ¡®What the hell? Is he saving his Transparency skill as much as possible?¡¯ The ¡®Transparency¡¯ skill that was no different from being an Assassin¡¯s life line was being evaluated as the best skill at least in 1:1 PvP. It was a hiding skill that was optimized for when aiming to land a deathblow, but it wasn¡¯t without its flaws. That was that its cooldown time was 10 minutes. Once they reached a high level, it could be that they received a high-ranking Transparency skill, and it could be that the cooldown time would be reduced significantly then. However, because an Assassin-class user that could learn a high-ranking skill still didn¡¯t exist, it was something they could not find out about. ¡®If I was him, I would also use the Transparency skill only when in the most danger. Since if I used the Transparency skill from the beginning and failed in assassinating, the risk would be incredibly big.¡¯ Because Limlong had used the Transparency skill as soon as the match started in all of his previous matches, he naturally assumed that he would do the same this time as well. ¡®If he had fought like that because he thought up until now, they were quite easy opponents¡­ Does that mean he considers me a little like a rival?¡¯ While Ian was thinking of this and that, the distance between the two users became smaller and smaller. And the one who initiated the fight was Limlong. Ta-tat-! As Limlong leaped into the air, Ian completely focused on his movements. And as Limlong reached near Ddukdae, Ian let out a command hurriedly. ¡°Ddukdae! Ice Wave!¡± Firstly, it was the top priority to tie down the Assassin¡¯s feet, as their movements were far faster compared to Ian. As his movements were so fast, it was hard to successfully hit him with Current Proliferation. Firstly, number one was using Ddukdae¡¯s AoE slowing skill. Thud-! Along with the stomping of Ddukdae¡¯s foot, an ice wave spread out in all directions. However, just then. ¡°Shadow Movement!¡± Pop! Limlong, who was suspended in the air, suddenly disappeared. ¡®Wha, what the hell?¡¯ Ian was taken aback. He knew that it wasn¡¯t the Transparency skill. If he had used the Transparency skill, his shadow should have disappeared as well, but the shadow on the ground remained as is. And a moment later, Limlong, who surprisingly disappeared from the shadow of the floor, popped out. ¡°Huk-!¡± Ian swallowed a gulp of air. ¡®He avoided Ice Wave?¡¯ Ice Wave was an AoE skill. It was a skill that couldn¡¯t be avoided at all if you were within its range. However, due to the sun¡¯s angle, Limlong instantly moved to a far-off shadow in the arena and dodged Ice Wave. And Ian realized. ¡®Shadows! It¡¯s a hidden class related to shadows!¡¯ Amongst the basic skills of an Assassin, he had never heard that there was something like that. He had predicted, but he was sure that Limlong had a hidden class. While Ian was shocked, Limlong was quickly approaching him again. ¡°Ly, Berserk!¡± Grr-! And as if Ly was waiting for it, he charged toward Limlong, who was drawing closer, on an equal level. Ian used the Current Proliferation skill and after making lightning spheres on each hand, he focused his vision onto Limlong¡¯s movements. While avoiding Ly¡¯s attacks, he could roughly predict the route of Limlong¡¯s movements, and he planned on throwing the lightning spheres towards that direction. Even if he couldn¡¯t hit him, if he could seal off Limlong¡¯s movements as much as possible, he felt a situation where Ly could bite him could be made. And the moment that Ly and Limlong collided with each other, Limlong¡¯s body disappeared as if it sunk into the ground again. ¡®Is it Shadow Movement again?¡¯ Ian slightly frowned. As the opponent had a lot of variables, it was an opponent that was very annoying to face. And as Limlong, who moved to the shadow on the ground, jumped up into the air, Ian threw a lightning sphere towards that direction. ¡®The cooldown time for Shadow Movement shouldn¡¯t have ended already.¡¯ If it wasn¡¯t for Shadow Movement, there was no way he could avoid this attack this time. Because no matter how high Limlong¡¯s Agility was, it was impossible to change his direction in midair. However, just then, Limlong spread his hand out towards the air. Chwa-ra-rak-! And seven flying knives were scattered in the air from his hands. ¡®What the hell is this now?!¡¯ Ian was flustered. This was because Limlong hadn¡¯t thrown the knives towards Ian or Ly but just as described, he scattered them in the air. To put it specifically, he had scattered them above Ian¡¯s head. ¡®Did he think that I would just get hit by the knives that drop from the air?¡¯ Ian hurriedly threw his body towards a location where the knives wouldn¡¯t fall. No, he tried to throw his body. However¡­ ¡°Huk!¡± The shadow of the knife right in front of him flew towards Ian, moving as if it was alive. It was a situation where he had no way of dodging it. Bang-! As you were directly hit by user ¡®Limlong¡¯s ¡®Flying Shadow Knives¡¯, you have received critical damage.You have received 4560 damage. Cold sweat dripped down Ian¡¯s spine as Ian suffered from the Flying Shadow Knives. ¡®What kind of Offensive Power is this?¡¯ It was indeed unbelievable Offensive Power. On top of that, at the fault of his restricted movements, he couldn¡¯t avoid the falling knives in its entirety. You have received 1075 damage.You have received 954 damage. Including the additional damage, an unbelievable damage close to 7 thousand came in. ¡®To have received this much damage from one move¡­¡¯ However, he hadn¡¯t suffered alone. Current Proliferation and Ly¡¯s attack also dealt damage to Limlong. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has dealt damage to ¡®Limlong¡¯.User ¡®Limlong¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 1795.¡®Current Proliferation¡¯ skill has hit.User ¡®Limlong¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 1085.User ¡®Limlong¡¯ has gone into ¡®paralyzed¡¯ state. Their movements have been slowed by 30%. If there was something that left much to be desired, it was that he couldn¡¯t use his Weak Point Capturing skill because he suffered from the Flying Shadow Knives, and so critical damage wasn¡¯t invoked with Ly¡¯s attack. ¡®Still, it¡¯s really a relief that paralysation was invoked¡­!¡¯ Ian invoked Current Proliferation again, creating two lightning spheres in either hand. And he threw his body towards Limlong, who was also running towards him. ¡®It¡¯s a head-on game. Since I still have about 40% Vitality, I¡¯ll act as a decoy and Ly¡¯s attack needs to go through accurately.¡¯ To properly deal damage to Limlong, who suddenly appears and disappears, there was no choice but to put up with some damage. It was a good opportunity as well as his movements were slowed through paralysis. ¡®Since an Assassin¡¯s Vitality is almost as low as a Black Magician¡¯s.¡¯ Ian was planning on giving some flesh in turn for bones. However, at that moment, Limlong¡¯s body that was running in front of Ian once again disappeared. ¡®What the hell? There shouldn¡¯t be a shadow that he could move to this time.¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes rounded. This was because, as Limlong was running against the ground this time, Ian thought that he wouldn¡¯t be able to use Shadow Movement. ¡®Is it Transparency magic?¡¯ But to say it was that, his shadow still remained. ¡®Where are you?¡¯ Ian stopped his movements. Suddenly, there was something that flashed through Ian¡¯s mind. ¡®Could it be my shadow?¡¯ Ian trusted his intuition. If that was the case, he had no time to be hesitating. Just like that, Ian invoked his Current Proliferation skill behind him. ¡®Current Proliferation¡¯ skill has hit.User ¡®Limlong¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 1217.User ¡®Limlong¡¯ has gone into ¡®paralyzed¡¯ state. Their movements have been slowed by 30%. His intuition was correct. Limlong, who was moving while riding Ian¡¯s shadow, was directly hit by the Current Proliferation skill. Chwa-ra-rak-! However, Limlong had already reached Ian, and he as well continued with his attack calmly. However, a variable that Limlong hadn¡¯t even thought of was hanging on Ian¡¯s back. Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ has received critical damage.¡®Bbookbbook¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 27. ¡°Huh!¡± For the first time, a flustered expression appeared on Limlong¡¯s face. However, his additional attack calmly went through successfully. You have received critical damage.Your Vitality has been reduced by 1740.Your Vitality has been reduced by 1577. Limlong¡¯s continued dagger attack had skillfully avoided Bbookbbook and dug into Ian. You have gone into ¡®Bleeding¡¯ state. You will receive an additional 315 damage per second. ¡°Damn it!¡± Ian, who gave a sigh a relief as Bbookbbook blocked the attack, changed his stance while watching Limlong, who persistently succeeded his additional attacks. ¡®His skill utilization ability is not normal.¡¯ Ian¡¯s Vitality had gone incredibly low due to the two critical damages that accompanied Bleeding. ¡°First Aid!¡± Ian urgently invoked his First Aid skill. However, it had barely recovered the continuous additional damage from ¡®Bleeding¡¯. Due to ¡®Bleeding¡¯ state, 315 of your Vitality has been reduced.Through ¡®First Aid¡¯ skill, you have recovered 843 Vitality. Limlong, who had successfully landed a critical attack, had distanced himself from Ian before he knew it, and was watching his movements. ¡°Damn it¡­¡± He had lost too much Vitality due to the momentary exchange of combat. He had checked the hidden cards of his opponent many times, but the difference between them had gotten too far to turn the tables around. ¡®But I still can¡¯t give up yet.¡¯ Ian had been placed on the defensive during his battle with ¡®Kanjihoonie¡¯ as well, but had he not switched the outcome using the base? Ian caught his breath again. And right then. Ta-tat-. As Ian didn¡¯t die just through the Bleeding damage, Limlong began to move again as if he planned on dealing the final blow. ¡®Now, what are you going to show me?¡¯ If he allowed even one hit, the match would be over. ¡®Now my opponent probably has no more hidden skills left.¡¯ There was a limit to how many hidden skills a lv 50 could possess. Now there were no variables. Ian focused his concentration even more. ¡®There¡¯s only once chance, at one of Ly¡¯s critical hits, I could turn everything around!¡¯ The two people¡¯s bodies grew closer and closer. And the two people ran towards each other at the same time. Limlong¡¯s sharp dagger came right in front of Ian¡¯s nose. At that instant. Ian¡¯s last move was invoked. ¡°Space Distortion!¡± After Ian¡¯s body approached Limlong as closely as possible, he planned on succeeding Ly¡¯s critical hit using that as a bait. Grr-! And Ly, who had switched positions with Ian, took the hit instead and bit into his shoulder. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has dealt critical damage to ¡®Limlong¡¯.User ¡®Limlong¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 3150. As Ian watched Ly¡¯s successful attack, Ian inwardly let out a shout of delight. ¡®Nice!¡¯ User ¡®Limlong¡¯ has gone into ¡®Bleeding¡¯ state. He will receive an additional 315 damage per second. Limlong¡¯s name began to flicker quickly. Ian thought as he saw that. Ever since he saw his shadow, he had predicted his opponent¡¯s skill to an extent, but it was a disadvantageous situation as he had received too large of an amount of damage from the skills he had never seen before. However, if he dragged out the time and let Ly¡¯s Bleeding damage fully go through, his opponent wouldn¡¯t have much Vitality left either. Now, Ian was confident in being able to deal with the attacks where he rode Ian¡¯s shadow and personally closed the distance like last time, and the only thing left was to not give him the distance. As if Limlong was showing that he knew that as well, he threw the blades that he was holding instead of using Shadow Movement. Cla-Clang-! And Ian, who had already predicted that, quickly turned his body and parried them. ¡®This persistent guy!¡¯ If he withstood a couple more seconds and let the Bleeding damage completely go through, then the last move would decide the winner. The situation that indeed caused sweaty hands continued. Ian clenched his teeth and focused his concentration. However, just then, Limlong¡¯s Flying Shadow Knives was invoked again. ¡°Flying Shadow Knives!¡± A dark shadow was cast over Limlong¡¯s knives that were flung away. And they changed their direction and shot out again. Whoosh-! They rushed towards Ian on either side of him. Clang-! Ian dodged one of the two knives and flung it away with Current Proliferation. He planned on blocking the other knife using Bbookbbook. Ly and Ddukdae also charged towards Limlong. In that split second, the slightly shaking knife suddenly let out a black light and moved into Ian¡¯s shadow. Puck-. You have been hit by user ¡®Limlong¡¯s ¡®Flying Shadow Knives¡¯.You have received 1375 damage. The system message that popped up. ¡®Ha¡­¡¯ Ian knew by intuition that the match was over. And along with Ian¡¯s bitter smile, a system message alerting Limlong¡¯s win popped up. As user Ian¡¯s Vitality has dropped below 5%, he is eliminated from the arena.User Limlong has won the match. And as Ian was kicked out of the arena, he slightly dropped his head. ¡®Ah¡­ If only I was 1 second faster, no, if only I didn¡¯t start at such a disadvantage from the beginning.¡¯ He fully admitted to his opponent¡¯s greatness, but regret couldn¡¯t be helped. ¡®I moved too offensively in the beginning.¡¯ Ian blamed himself at the thought that he should have played more defensively in the beginning of the match and force Limlong to pull out all his hidden cards. Of course, he did successfully counter, but because of the Assassin class¡¯ characteristic of drawing out explosive damage in one go, the damage he received in the middle was too big. ¡°Hoo.¡± A sigh filled with regret came out of Ian¡¯s mouth again. CH 57 Chapter 57: Powerful Enemy, as well as a Level-up (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The YTBC planning team was in a frenzy. This was because the YTBC service centre¡¯s phone rang as if there was a fire. And most of it was complaint calls from the viewers. Exactly when are you airing the semi-finals and the finals videos for the rookie league?How does it make sense that a whole day has passed since the match had finished yet the match video still hasn¡¯t been delivered? In the end, all arrows in the broadcast were turned towards the planning team. ¡°Team Leader Lee! Why exactly is it like this? The popularity for the rookie league every year wasn¡¯t much!¡± At Director Park Moonsung¡¯s question mixed with rage, Lee Hansung, the leader of the planning team, had on an embarrassed expression. This was because he knew the reason why he was mad at him. ¡®How would I have known that the rookie league matches would be this big of a hit?¡¯ When this arena opened, Lee Hansung invested all the members of the special effects team and the video editing team in the editing of the major league¡¯s important match videos like any other year. However, as soon as the arena came to an end, the viewers for some reason flooded with calls asking why the rookie league¡¯s match wasn¡¯t being aired. This was because, although personal videos of users went up in the community, the quality wasn¡¯t as good as a video that the broadcast took through their crystal ball, and more than ever, there were a lot of users that wanted an explanation. As the situation came to this, the YTBC planning team had to hurriedly turn members to start editing the semi-finals and finals videos. However, there was nothing they could do about the delay. ¡°That¡­ I believe it¡¯s most likely because of the users with the new classes, Director.¡± The major-league matches, where the highest-level users¡¯ matches were held, were obviously more extravagant and dynamic. However, the users that appeared in the major league were mostly users that were well-known. On top of that, because the major league, which had over ten times the number of participants compared to the rookie league, had just finished their preliminary rounds, it was a situation that even if you called it the main matches, they were only at the 64-player round. In this situation, the users¡¯ interests were gathered around the surprising rookie league¡¯s finals with the new classes rather than the obvious videos of the major league¡¯s preliminary rounds. ¡°Argh, do you call that an excuse?¡± Park Moonsung flew into a rage and yelled at Lee Hansung. ¡°Invest all manpower immediately and prepare to deliver the rookie league videos as soon as possible! Everything starting from the 64-player round!¡± ¡°Ev, everybody? Including the people that were in the middle of editing the major-league videos?¡± The Director had on a frustrated expression as he urged. ¡°That¡¯s right, idiot!¡± And Lee Hansung responded with a downcast voice. ¡°Yes, Director.¡± Park Moonsung¡¯s words continued. ¡°The day our broadcast goes up later than Ta Sa Channel, expect to write your resignation letter!¡± Bang-! Park Moonsung slammed the meeting room door harshly and left, while Lee Hansung, who remained, sighed deeply. ¡°Argh, this person¡¯s horrible company! I seriously need to write a resignation letter or something!¡± Despite his fuming, Hansung hurried out of the meeting room in order to give instructions to the planning team. @ The schedule for the arena¡¯s rookie league was completely over, and Ian, who even received his reward, quickly left the arena using a return scroll. This was because he didn¡¯t want to waste time through people that would only bother him. ¡®Surely, there would have been recruitment proposals from guilds here and there, and there¡¯s probably a lot of users who are curious about my hidden class as well.¡¯ And another reason was to reflect on himself for losing so easily. ¡®Hoo, I was too caught up in my opponent¡¯s pace.¡¯ Limlong was definitely strong. Even if Ian considered the fact that Summoners weren¡¯t a good match for Assassins, and that Ian couldn¡¯t deal with the hidden class skills that he hadn¡¯t known about at all, he was still an unbelievable opponent. Ian felt that the hidden class that used skills with shadows as their base was a high-tier class that certainly didn¡¯t lack in rank compared to his own hidden class. ¡®However, despite that, I shouldn¡¯t have lost so easily. Since I didn¡¯t know my opponent well, I should have dragged out the time a little and gotten used to his attacking pattern rather than counterattacking¡­¡¯ In another way, Ian had inversely suffered the method that he used against his opponent Himenes, where he caught his opponent up in a swift attack. Before he could even buy enough time to get used to Limlong¡¯s attacking pattern and style. ¡®I was too dependent on my Familiars up until now.¡¯ Truthfully, Ian¡¯s fighting method was extremely obvious for a Summoner. On top of that, as his ¡®Taming Master¡¯ class was more specialized in taming compared to other normal Summoners, his dependency towards his Familiars couldn¡¯t be helped. He had a big advantage in PvE (Player vs Environment) battles, but in PvP (Player vs Player) battles, it couldn¡¯t help but be a critical disadvantage. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± He was regretful that he didn¡¯t win, but Ian quickly brushed it off. It wasn¡¯t Ian¡¯s style to be a sore loser. ¡®I just need to win next time.¡¯ Ian fueled his fighting spirit even more. The time he spent waiting for days and preparing for the rookie league was regretful, but there were more important, new leagues as he became a higher level. ¡°Shall we go to open up these items then?¡± Ian, who sorted his regretful heart, opened his inventory in order to check the rewards for coming in second place. There were two things that Ian received as a reward. A total of 80,000 Fame and lv 50 standard, Summoner-exclusive, Heroic-rank equipment boxes. It was widely known that one Heroic-rank accessory and one weapon randomly come from the equipment boxes received for second place. Ian, who had gone to a desolate area, pulled out the equipment boxes from his inventory. ¡°It¡¯s most nerve-wracking opening stuff like this.¡± The nervousness when checking random rewards like this was separate from the regret towards not being able to win. ¡°What should I open first? The weapon box? Or the accessory box?¡± Ian, who was contemplating happily, decided to open the accessory box first. This was because, although it was time to change all of his equipment aside from the head ornament he received from the Dungeon of Chaos, the part he wanted to change the most was his accessory. Ian placed his hand on the accessory box. ¡°Open!¡± Then, a blue light emitted as the box opened wide. And a system message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. You have obtained the item ¡®Shining Summoner¡¯s Fighting Spirit¡¯. Then the information for the item gained popped up. Shining Summoner¡¯s Fighting Spirit Classification ¨C Ring Rank ¨C Heroic Equip Limit ¨C Over lv 50 Durability ¨C 255/255 Option ¨C Summoning Magic +100 Spirit Magic +30 Affinity +50 Leadership +15% *1 Spirit Magic is additionally obtained per equipped second. *For Familiars that have maxed Affinity and Loyalty, all stats will increase by 5%. *This is an item belonging to user ¡®Ian¡¯. This item cannot be transferred to another user or be sold, and even if the character dies, it does not drop. This is a luxurious ring bestowed to a Summoner who has received a high grade in the arena. ¡°Oh, not bad?¡± Ian, who checked the item information window, wore a satisfying expression and nodded his head. The increased stats as an option was incredibly nice as well, but what he especially liked was the inherent option, Spirit Magic recovery. ¡°There were actually a lot of times that I lacked Spirit Magic when using Current Proliferation, so this turned out well.¡± It seemed because it was an item with a lv 50 limit, there was a class-special ability that you gained at lv 50 attached to it. ¡°But, why is such a useless account restriction attached to it?¡± However, this time, he didn¡¯t like the account restriction attached on this ring. This was because this ring wasn¡¯t an item that was worth using continuously like the head ornament. He needed to sell it in the auction as he leveled up and gained a better ring, but as he couldn¡¯t sell an item that had an account restriction, he felt like it was a waste. He was certain that he could gain a large profit with this level of an item if he sold this later on. ¡°Then, shall we open the weapon box this time?¡± The ¡®Ancient Summoner¡¯s Steel Knuckles¡¯ that Ian was using up until now were weapons that were still extremely useful at lv 50. Especially because of the inherent ability, ¡®Induction¡¯, he had no plans of changing it unless he gained an exceptionally good weapon. ¡°Open!¡± And just like earlier, the box opened as a blue light spread out. You have obtained the item ¡®Shining Summoner¡¯s Longbow¡¯. ¡°Oh! Bow! It¡¯s a bow!¡± Ian, who was already incredibly excited at the fact that a bow came out, began to read the weapon¡¯s information. Shining Summoner¡¯s Longbow Classification ¨C Longbow Rank ¨C Heroic Equip Limit ¨C Lv 50 Offensive Power ¨C 205~395 Durability ¨C 600/600 Option ¨C Agility +65 Summoning Magic +30 Critical Hit Chance +15% Critical Hit Evasion +70% *Agility of all summoned Familiars will increase by 20%, while Offensive Power will increase by 30%. *If critical damage is dealt to enemy, 3 Spirit Magic will be recovered, and a ¡®Shining Mark¡¯ will be left on the enemy. The mark will last for 5 seconds, and if you hit the enemy before the mark disappears, the cooldown time for all skills will reduce by 5 seconds. *This is an item belonging to user ¡®Ian¡¯. This item cannot be transferred to another user or be sold, and even if the character dies, it does not drop. This is a luxurious longbow bestowed to a Summoner who has received a high grade in the arena. ¡°Hul¡­¡± Ian, who read all of the item information, contemplated deeply. This was because an item that was better than what he was expecting had appeared. ¡®If I switch my weapon, firstly, I won¡¯t be able to use the induction ability.¡¯ Aside from the induction ability, the Critical Damage Increase for all Familiars and the Leadership option attached to the knuckle would all disappear. However, because the options attached to the bow were also just as useful, it was hard to make a decision. ¡®Still, the Spirit Magic recovery and the cooldown time decrease options are too tempting¡­¡¯ The bow was far superior in Offensive Power compared to the knuckles when looking at just the weapons themselves, but truthfully, the weapons¡¯ Offensive Powers were not as big of a merit to Ian as before. As ¡®Summoning Magic¡¯ was a more direct influence to his skills¡¯ damages, and therefore a bigger influence to Ian¡¯s Offensive Power, compared to the Offensive Power of his weapon. And after a moment of contemplating, Ian made up his decision. ¡°I¡¯ll change my weapon to the bow, and until I get a new weapon that has an ¡®Induction¡¯ ability, I¡¯ll just hold onto the knuckles.¡± There was no particular reason why Ian made such a decision. At the moment, he preferred the bow¡¯s options a little more, but because in the case his Familiars gained an incredibly powerful Familiar Inherent Ability, there could be a situation where he needed to use a weapon with an Induction ability. Ian, who made up his mind, removed his knuckles and put it in his inventory, while equipping the longbow. ¡°Now every time I go for a round of hunting, my Training skill¡¯s cooldown time would have shrunk by a couple minutes, right?¡± Truthfully, the reason why Ian chose to use the bow was right here. The part that Ian thought was most important was precisely his Familiar¡¯s ¡®Potential¡¯ stat. And the option to reduce the cooldown time for the skill that influenced the stat, the ¡®Training¡¯ skill, was attached to the bow. ¡®Speaking of which, shall we check Ly¡¯s Potential?¡¯ After Ian granted Bbookbbook the ¡®Shell Expansion¡¯ skill, he continuously used the Training skill on Ly. Thanks to that, his Training skill had gone up to lv 8, and Ly¡¯s Potential was also over 50. ¡°Alright.¡± Ian had on a satisfied smile. Now, as he could use the Training skill even more, he could make Ly¡¯s Potential 100 even quicker. ¡°Now, now if I get a new, exceptional Familiar, I could probably raise him well.¡± Truthfully, in order to most effectively use the Potential stat from what he¡¯s analyzed, he needed to level-up his Familiars only after he¡¯s reached 100 Potential. It was obvious that the higher the Potential, the bigger the range in stat increase. However, Ian was currently leveling-up his Familiars continuously without worrying about what their Potentials are as leveling them as fast as possible made them stronger than if he were to worry about each increased stat range every time they leveled. ¡°Now my Affinity is over 300, and I would be happy if I could catch a Heroic-rank with an evolution possible option attached.¡± Because of his high Affinity, he could easily catch a decent Rare-rank monster now. Excluding Bbookbbook, he had yet to catch a Unique-rank monster, but he felt he could achieve even higher than that. ¡®Huehue¡­ Ly, who started as a Common-rank became this strong, so if I catch a Unique- or Heroic-rank and evolve them, then they¡¯ll probably become unbelievable, right?¡¯ It was an imagination that just lifted his mood effortlessly. ¡®If I gained a Heroic-rank, evolution possible monster and raised it with a full 100 Potential at lv 1¡­¡¯ In the case that just so happened, he felt he could raise an unbelievable Familiar. ¡°Eut-cha.¡± After Ian, who stretched, cleaned up his items neatly, he began to move his feet. ¡°Still, above all, I should just level up until the end of this break.¡± Because of the arena, he wasted a week of time. The bet Ian made with Professor Lee Jinook suddenly flashed through his mind. ¡®Err, right. Lv 93¡­ I need to make it before the break ends.¡¯ Ian inwardly counted the days. ¡®There¡¯s a month and ten days left until the beginning of class. And I can skip the first week for changing courses, while Professor Lee Jinook¡¯s first class is on Thursday¡­¡¯ Ian¡¯s mind began to violently rotate like never before. And as his calculations ended, the outcome was about 50 days remaining. ¡°I¡¯m screwed!¡± It was a short time that was almost impossible even from Ian¡¯s perspective. He needed to level almost 1 level per day in order to reach a level within range of his requirement. Right now, he thought it was possible to level about 2-3 levels in a day, but he knew well that once he went over lv 70, his EXP would be hellish to raise. ¡°Euaah, there¡¯s no time to be here like this! Hunting, let¡¯s go hunting!¡± Ian hurriedly moved his feet. Aside from his competitiveness, it was a bet that put Ian¡¯s future gaming life on the line. He had never once imagined losing. CH 58 Chapter 58: Powerful Enemy, as well as a Level-up (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Canoel, a lv 24 Summoner, was currently hunting in Nareuhan Swamp, a mid-lv 20s hunting ground, in order to raise his level. The average level of the swamp was around lv 26, and it was a hunting ground where a lizard-like monster called ¡®Peragon¡¯ appeared. For an average user, it was a hunting ground that¡¯s level of difficulty was slightly higher compared to their level, but even if Canoel put that into consideration, he was severely struggling. ¡°You dumb bear! What¡¯s the point of you swinging your arms over there? Argh!¡± As the Familiar¡¯s Loyalty is low, it has rejected the command. Grrr-. Canoel¡¯s Familiar was a lv 29 Half-Moon Bear. It was a monster that took a quarter of a day to catch, but as his Affinity and Loyalty was low, it didn¡¯t obey him and his fighting power was even worse. ¡®Ah, this one¡¯s really useless.¡¯ Canoel, who was narrowly making his way through hunting Peragons, chose to run away when he was surrounded by three Peragons. ¡°Summon Release!¡± He darted towards the village quickly after Summon Releasing the Half-Moon Bear. Because he had used his ¡®Possession¡¯ skill and maximized his Agility, fortunately, escaping was easy. It was thanks to Possessing a White Raven, which was famous for having high Agility even amongst flying-type monsters. ¡°Hoo, I can¡¯t hunt like this anymore.¡± Canoel shook his head. In real life, he was one of the heirs of SH Electronics. In other words, a so-called second generation chaebol, and because of that, his pride was incredibly strong as he was raised like a prince. That¡¯s why he didn¡¯t get any help from others, and he believed that you needed to play your own way in order to play the most enjoyably. That¡¯s why he chose the Summoner class. The Summoner that everybody believed was hard to nurture had stirred his desire to conquer. ¡®If you¡¯re a man, it should be done ¡®my way¡¯.¡¯ Because of that, he didn¡¯t even go into Kailran¡¯s official community. His reason was because he didn¡¯t want to see the way someone else worked through. However, his patience had finally run out to just watch his level not rise even after playing all day. And he sent a message to someone. Canoel: Ranma, send over 5 million gold to my account. Truthfully, to a normal user around lv 20, 5 million gold was a fortune that they haven¡¯t even gotten the chance to spectate. However, to Canoel, an amount like that was nothing. It was similar to buying a luxurious earmuff that was a little bit expensive from a street shop because it was a chilly day to him. And shortly after, a message came. Ranma: Oh, young master. Have you now decided to accept my help?Canoel: Yeah. I was planning on just doing it alone until the end, but it¡¯s too boring. Rather than it being boring, his incompetence and lack of information on Summoners was more at fault, but Canoel didn¡¯t think like that. Truthfully, it could be considered close to a miracle that with his impatient temper, he raised his Summoner to lv 24 without any help. Ranma: Yes, young master. Good choice. I¡¯ll send it right away. By any chance, if hunting is difficult, should I help you?Canoel: No, no. I don¡¯t need that. Just send me the money. ¡®Still, I can¡¯t ride a bus[1] as well.¡¯ That was his last bit of pride. Ranma: Yes, understood. If you ever need help, let me know.Canoel: alright, Ranma. Canoel, who finished with the conversation, returned to the village using his return scroll as soon as he escaped the swamp. And the place he headed towards was the auction house. ¡®Hoo, firstly, I need to buy a Familiar. 5 million gold isn¡¯t a huge amount, but I could probably buy a decent one to use for now, right?¡¯ In Kailran, Familiars were traded sealed to a Sealing-Magic Order Sheet. As the auction house system was updated a while ago, the volume of Familiars remarkably increased. Because it had changed to a method where once the Sealed Order Sheet went up into the auction house, the buyer could even check the Familiar¡¯s stat information, so the supply and demand had both increased. He cancelled his contract with one of his Familiars, the Half-Moon Bear, and sealed it to a Sealing Sheet. It was a monster that was hard to even get 3 thousand gold for, but the reason why he chose to seal it was nothing complicated. This was because, as its Loyalty was low, if he cancelled and let it go, it could attack him. ¡°I wanted to hunt with a monster I captured myself¡­ But I guess it can¡¯t be helped.¡± Canoel, who arrived at the auction house, immediately began to search through the Familiars. The Familiar that he first began to search were ¡®wolf¡¯-form Familiars. ¡°What, why are all the prices so low? The Red Wolf is even 100,000 gold?¡± Truthfully, the set price of 100,000 gold for a Red Wolf was not actually cheap, but rather a high price for something quite common. The Red Wolf was a Rare-rank monster, but because it was a monster that you could catch at a low-level field, it was quite common. Truthfully, the reason why the prices had inflated for wolf-type Familiars was because of Ian. Thanks to the active part of Ian¡¯s Red Maned Wolf ¡®Ly¡¯ in the rookie league, wolf Familiars¡¯ popularity skyrocketed. After the video of the rookie league arena of Luspel Empire was broadcasted, all wolf-form Familiars¡¯ prices increased over 20%. However, Canoel, who was nonchalant about information, had no way of knowing about Ian and Ly¡¯s active part, and as he had no sense of market prices, it was an incredibly cheap price to Canoel. ¡®I should have purchased a Familiar from the auction house in the first place.¡¯ Canoel, who slowly looked through the Familiars, shook his head shortly after and began to search for different Familiars. It seemed as if he didn¡¯t like their stats. ¡°Ha, it must be because they¡¯re so cheap, but how come all of them are lousy Familiars? Shall we look through the expensive ones from the beginning?¡± Canoel changed his search requirement and looked up the most expensive Familiars. As he did so, Familiars bearing an incredible price were listed. And Canoel opened the information of the Familiar that was listed at the very top. ¡°Hmm¡­ Lava Drake? What is this to bear the price of 15 million gold? Shall we take a look at it at least?¡± Canoel opened the information window only thinking of looking at it. Lava Drake Lv: 32 Classification: Drake Rank: Unique Personality: Violent Evolution impossible Offensive Power: 395 Defensive Power: 175 Agility: 125 Intellect: 105 Vitality: 4950/4950 Mana: 2470/2470 Inherent Ability: Flame Absorption Damage that is Fire-type will be 30% less effective. Breath of Lava As a Fire-type breath is launched, the front will receive a damage of 475% Offensive Power. (Cooldown Time 30 minutes) This is a ¡®Lava Drake¡¯ born from within hot lava. It specializes in Fire-type attacks, and boasts an incredibly strong Offensive Power. Canoel, who read through the drake¡¯s information window, momentarily lost his words. They were incredible stats that he couldn¡¯t understand with his general knowledge. ¡°Th, that doesn¡¯t make sense!¡± The Half-Moon Bear that he had been carrying around as a Familiar just a moment ago was insignificant compared to this drake. ¡°There¡¯s only a 3-level difference between this and the Half-Moon Bear, but how can its Offensive Power be over three times higher?¡± Its Defensive Power and Health weren¡¯t much different when compared with the Half-Moon Bear, but its 395 Offensive Power value was truly terrifying. ¡®I, I want it¡­¡¯ Canoel firstly closed the drake¡¯s information window and checked the other monsters¡¯ information one by one. However, no matter how much he searched, he didn¡¯t see a monster that had stats like the drake he just saw. His heart started to shift. ¡°It is a little expensive¡­ But it looks like it¡¯s worth that much of an investment¡­¡± Canoel was making an idiotic decision that could have caused Ian to form a disease from repressing his emotions of frustration. Truthfully, not even Ian, anybody could see that the Lava Drake¡¯s price was illogically expensive. Unfortunately, the Lava Drake that had snatched Canoel¡¯s heart could be called an item that was put up by the seller in order to snipe a pushover. Even if it was a Unique-rank, ones with ¡®Evolution impossible¡¯ weren¡¯t that expensive currently in the auction market. The most popular Familiars that went up in the auction house were ones with the option ¡®Evolution possible¡¯. Even though a user that had succeeded in evolving hadn¡¯t officially appeared, evolution possible monsters sold out like fire as soon as they were put up in the market. If 5 million gold was in the hands of a Summoner user that had his finger on the pulse of information unlike Canoel, they probably would have searched through the auction house to find a Half-Moon Bear or Golem-type evolution possible monster. As the highest-class monster with ¡®Evolution possible¡¯ that could be purchased with 5 million gold were the Half-Moon Bear and Golem-type ones. However, let alone such detailed information, Canoel didn¡¯t even know that there were monsters that had the evolution possible option. Canoel¡¯s heart was simply sold on the Lava Drake¡¯s cool visuals and strong Offensive Power. ¡®That¡¯s right, whether you use 5 million gold or 15 million, it¡¯s the same thing.¡¯ If a normal user heard such thoughts, they would have shaken their head with an exclamation, but Canoel sent a message to Ranma without hesitation to additionally receive the remaining needed amount. And shortly after, he had purchased the Order Sheet that the ¡®Lava Drake¡¯ was sealed into. ¡°Huehuehue.¡± With the corners of his lips hung onto his ears, Canoel hurriedly used the Sealing Order Sheet in order to make a contract with the Lava Drake he purchased. However, a hopeless message popped up in front of him. You cannot make a contract with the ¡®Lava Drake¡¯ as you do not have enough Leadership. ¡°Euh¡­Euaah¡­!¡± Canoel, who felt like all the strength in his body left him, plopped down on the spot. ¡°No, I bought it, but why can¡¯t I use it?!¡± After much consideration, he cancelled his contract with his last Familiar, the White Raven, and reused the Order Sheet. However¡­ You cannot make a contract with the ¡®Lava Drake¡¯ as you do not have enough Leadership. The unfortunate system message helplessly rang out again. ¡°Damn it.¡± Canoel stared at the sky blankly with unfocused eyes. Canoel, who gathered himself shortly after and stood up, opened the auction again. ¡°I¡¯ll just need to equip my whole body with items that raise my Leadership, right?¡± And he sent a message to Ranma again and ripped off an additional amount of money. It was hard to spend it the first time, but once started, his pocket opened like an automatic door. ¡®Err, father will probably say something at this sum¡­¡¯ However, he felt he wouldn¡¯t be satisfied if he couldn¡¯t use the Lava Drake in his hands right now. And Canoel, who spent a large fortune of close to 20 million gold in an instant, justified himself. ¡°Hm, still, if I can play this game more entertainingly after using this much money, then that¡¯s a gain. It¡¯s a good thing I bought it before someone else did.¡± It was an item that may have not been purchased by someone else if it wasn¡¯t for Canoel, but Canoel, who got his desired Familiar, was happy. You could say ¡®ignorance is bliss¡¯¡­ Like that, one user was satisfied by their rational(?) consumption today at Kailran¡¯s auction house. CH 59 Chapter 59: Second Evolution (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ring-. You have leveled up. You have reached lv 62. ¡°Alright!¡± A system message that made Ian happy popped up, letting him know that he had leveled up. Ian clenched his fist and wiped the sweat that ran down his forehead. ¡°Leveling up is still pretty decent. I need to level-up quickly though when it¡¯s like this¡­¡± It took Ian a little over a week in order to reach lv 62 from lv 50 at 90% EXP. If a normal user had heard, it was a crazy leveling-up speed that would have had them shaking their heads. However, Ian wasn¡¯t satisfied. No, he couldn¡¯t be satisfied. There was no time to rest until he reached lv 93. ¡®At least thanks to the class special skills I gained at lv 60, hunting is a little faster.¡¯ When Ian reached lv 60, he had gained two more class special skills. As expected, the skill with the highest Proficiency amongst all of Ian¡¯s skills was his Training skill, which was close to reaching ¡®high-class¡¯ rank, and because of that, another skill related to Potential was created. ¡®Shall we check to see how much Potential Capacity Explosion¡¯s Proficiency has increased?¡¯ Ian opened the information for his newly gained skill, ¡®Potential Capacity Explosion¡¯. Potential Capacity Explosion Classification ¨C Active Skill Skill Level ¨C lv 1 Proficiency ¨C 5% Cooldown Time ¨C 20 minutes Duration ¨C 1 minute 20 seconds Conditions for Use ¨C Can only be used on Familiars. Explosively increases one Familiar¡¯s Potential capacity. All fighting abilities of the Familiar with the awoken Potential capacity will increase as much as the stat ¡®Potential¡¯s %. *The higher the level and the Proficiency of the skill, the longer the duration of the skill. ¡®Potential Capacity Explosion¡¯ was a buff skill related to Potential. As it was a skill where the higher the applicable Familiar¡¯s Potential was, the higher the proportion of the raised stats, so it was only usable on Familiars. For example, if you used ¡®Potential Capacity Explosion¡¯ on a Familiar with 100 Potential, all stats would additionally increase 100%. As Ly¡¯s Potential was currently in a situation where it was over 80, although momentary, his fighting power would increase almost twice the amount if he received the Potential Capacity Explosion buff. ¡°Oh, when did it become lv 1? Its duration increased by 20 seconds.¡± Currently, Potential Capacity Explosion¡¯s duration was 1 minute 20 seconds. In some ways, it was an incredibly short amount of time, but if this time was used properly, hunting could become really efficient. On top of that, because Ian could reduce the cooldown time if he used the bow that he received as his arena award properly, he could use it around once every 10 minutes. ¡°Speaking of which, the Possession skill¡¯s effectiveness truly drops with my hunting method. Still, I was pretty happy when I got it¡­¡± The class special skill that Ian received with Potential Capacity Explosion was the ¡®Possession¡¯ skill. It was the most basic Summoner skill that, not the hidden class, but the normal Summoner class received from the beginning and started with, and allowed them to possess a spirit of one of their summon-able monsters and receive 30% of the applicable Familiar¡¯s stats. When Ian first received the Possession skill, he hunted, rotating using Possession between Bbookbbook and Ddukdae. However, the result of hunting like that for a quarter of a day, it was a situation where he decided that it was more effective to not use the Possession skill on one of his main-force monsters. ¡°Bbookbbook is now lv 61. Ly is lv 63, and Ddukdae is lv 64.¡± Ian slowly felt the need to move to a different hunting ground. The place where Ian was currently hunting was Ryuran Canyon, where the appearing monsters were around lv 65-68. It couldn¡¯t be considered such an easy hunting ground, but as Ian preferred a hunting ground that pushed the level of difficulty for hunting to the limits, it was obvious that he wanted to change to a different hunting ground. ¡®Hm¡­ I wonder where would be good?¡¯ Ian, who momentarily contemplated, suddenly remembered a place. ¡®Ah, should we just go to Forcal Mountains right now instead?¡¯ Forcal was a large range of mountains that was towards the east of the southern continent. The appearing monsters were known to be around lv 70-75, and it was a hunting ground with a reasonable level of difficulty that Ian wanted. On top of that, there was another reason why Ian was planning on going to this hunting ground. ¡®After I hit lv 70 at Forcal Mountains, I should immediately cross over the mountains and go to the Dimensional Enchanter.¡¯ He had decided to finish the B-rank quest that he had received from the Legendary Dragon Tamer, Oakley. If Ian reached a level at the Forcal Mountains that would allow him to fulfill the Even if there was a reason for him to stop by a different spot in the middle, he just needed to have a return scroll for a village within the vicinity prepared before hunting. ¡°Good, good.¡± It seemed he was satisfied even thinking about it himself, as he wore a happy smile and called Ly. ¡°Ly, let¡¯s go to Forcal!¡± Grr- Grr-! Ian got on Ly¡¯s back and began to move. ¡®I notice whenever I ride Ly lately, but it¡¯s become really comfortable.¡¯ Ian¡¯s skill in riding Ly also increased, but it seemed that Ly¡¯s skill in moving with Ian on his back also increased, as Ian wore a satisfied expression with the perfect riding quality. @ Ian, who momentarily logged off in order to eat lunch, was rummaging though the kitchen here and there. ¡°What the hell? Why are there no more corn flakes?¡± At the unexpected shortage of food, Ian was flustered. ¡°Err¡­ Then I wonder if there¡¯s leftover crumbs from a snack I ate.¡± He thoroughly looked through the small room for 5 minutes, but there was not even a slice of bread or a bag of chips left. It was a situation full of despair. ¡°There isn¡¯t even ramen¡­¡± In the end, Ian moved his feet while holding his wallet. However, just then, an item caught onto Ian¡¯s foot. Crinkle-. It was a plastic bag from his last grocery run that was rolling around the room ever since. And the mart¡¯s phone number written on the plastic bag caught Ian¡¯s eyes. ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± Ian, who saw the blue ¡¯24-hour delivery available¡¯ logo printed next to the mart¡¯s phone number, hit his knee. ¡®Ah, I¡¯m so stupid! Why hadn¡¯t I thought about this?¡¯ And he reproached himself. ¡®To have put in so much legwork buying groceries this whole time when I live in this kind of century¡­¡¯ Ian, who reflected on his idiocy while he called the mart and ordered the food he needed, turned his attention to the capsule. However, he immediately shook his head. ¡°Hm¡­ They said it would be delivered in about 30 minutes, and since its awkward to log on right now, shall we go search for some information as its been a while?¡± Ian, who sat at his computer, logged onto the Kailran community shortly after and clicked on the bulletin board with the phrase ¡®New Monsters¡¯ written in blue. Just like the name suggested, it was a bulletin board that handled information on new monsters that appeared after patches. Despite quite a lot of time having passed by now since the large patch, new information related to new monsters endlessly popped up on the bulletin board. This was because Kailran¡¯s developer, LB Sports, never released information related to the new monsters. All information related to Kailran were solely created through the sharing between users. ¡®Are there possibly any newly found monsters around Forcal Mountains?¡¯ Ian was searching for information related to the monsters of Forcal Mountains, the new hunting ground he was currently moving towards. He was well-informed on the already existing monsters, but if there were new monsters, it wouldn¡¯t be a bad idea to prepare beforehand. ¡°Let¡¯s see here¡­¡± The clicking of his mouse rang within Ian¡¯s quiet room. ¡®Eh, looks like there hasn¡¯t been any new monsters found in Forcal yet. They definitely are there, it¡¯s just probably that nobody has found them yet.¡¯ Ian, who had searched thoroughly for about ten minutes with the search word ¡®Forcal¡¯, wore a sad expression. However, the moment he was about to leave the bulletin board, a new post popped up at the top. ¡°Oh?¡± The title of the bulletin was written in a bold red that immediately caught the eye. The basement dungeon of Scorching Land.New Monster Lava Witch. The title caught Ian¡¯s attention in an instant. This was because, in addition to hearing the name of the monster ¡®Lava Witch¡¯ for the first time, ¡®Scorching Land¡¯ was the name of a map that appeared right after going over Forcal Mountains. Ian clicked on the bulletin without hesitation. As he did so, information related to the monster ¡®Lava Witch¡¯ popped up. Lava Witch Level: 72-75 Classification: Elemental-type Rank: Rare Personality: ??? Offensive Power: ???-??? (Estimated to be around 400) Defensive Power: ???-??? (Estimated to be around 200) Agility: ???-??? (Unknown) Intellect: ???-??? (Estimated to be around 1000-1100) Vitality: Around 12000 Mana: ??? (Unknown) Inherent Ability Domain of the Flame Continuous fire damage is inflicted over a wide scope (estimated to be around 3 m^2). There is a fixed chance to fall into a burned state, but it¡¯s presumed that the more it¡¯s overlapped, the more amplified the damage. ??? The Lava Witch¡¯s information was organized well to fit the style of the new monster information bulletin board. Most of it was filled with question marks, but that was obvious. Unless the monster was captured and the information window was checked, it was impossible to find out the exact stats. Despite that, Ian felt enough interest. ¡®Its inherent ability is an AoE attack.¡¯ The most common reason why normal users came to the new monster bulletin board was to find out how to easily attack a monster that they were encountering for the first time. However, Summoners, including Ian, visited the bulletin board in order to gain information related to Familiars they could capture and use in combat. And this Lava Witch was an AoE damage-dealer that Ian so wanted. Ian scrolled down to the bottom, reading the information related to the Lava Witch while doing so. And, a screenshot that the user who posted the information personally took was attached at the bottom. ¡®Oh, I even like its appearance!¡¯ The Lava Witch¡¯s appearance could be generally described as a ¡®ghost with lava flowing all over their body¡¯. Along with the floating form of the upper body composed of lava, flames twisted around it and mingled, emitted a mysterious aura, and it had quite a cool appearance. ¡®This skill shown in this video must be the skill Domain of the Flame.¡¯ Ian watched the Lava Witch cast the skill with excitement. And he attentively watched the Vitality of the user, who was hit directly by the skill, drop. ¡®If you consider the fact that it¡¯s an AoE attack, the damage it dealt is pretty handsome, too.¡¯ The information related to the Lava Witch ended off with a comment from the poster. I think this is all that I can find out on information related to the Lava Witch as a Knight. To find out the exact detailed stats, a Summoner would need to capture it and check the information, no? I don¡¯t think there¡¯s a Summoner user that¡¯s at a level where they could capture a Lava Witch yet, but I would be happy to hear the news that someone succeeded in capturing one in the near future. I would be happy for my information to be updated, but the Lava Witch monster itself was a ball of coolness from what I¡¯ve seen. I hope to see a Summoner that uses a Lava Witch in combat. Then, that¡¯s it for now! Ian, who read the comment, grinned wickedly. ¡°Keke, I will catch and use it.¡± He replayed the video two to three times again, but it was truly a charming Familiar. However, the part that slightly got to him was just about the ¡®Rare-rank¡¯. Of course, Rare-rank was not a bad thing. Ian, who had caught Common-rank Familiars up until now and evolved them to use them, definitely had a desire to catch a Rare-rank Familiar from the beginning and evolve it. The problem was time. ¡®How long will it take me to catch one that¡¯s a Rare-rank and evolution is possible?¡¯ The hardest one to find amongst the common monsters that scattered the fields were the ¡®evolution possible¡¯ ones. Much less for a Rare-rank monster that appeared occasionally even on the field. ¡®Eeuhh¡­ This is something to contemplate.¡¯ If it wasn¡¯t for the situation where he was pressed to level-up, he wouldn¡¯t have cared even if it took several days. This was because it looked like a Familiar that was worth that investment. ¡®Still, if I just properly catch one, I feel like my level-up speed will increase more than double the amount¡­¡¯ While thinking of this and that, he scrolled down and saw a lot of comments. And more than half of the comments were from Summoner users. Pts1120: Wow, the Lava Witch is explosively cool. I want to catch it and use it. T.TKimGundal: However, the reality is Half-Moon Bears.BarkTree: Previous commenter, what about Half-Moon Bears? T.T Do you know how strong our bears are? T.TLegendaryMagician: Ha, if there¡¯s a Summoner that catches a Lava Witch and uses it in combat, fire magicians will lose their job. Summoners are a scam! Please nerf!jjang123: Magician, how dare you call Summoners a scam. On top of that, even nerfing. That¡¯s killing Summoners twice. On top of the level-up speed being atrocious, just because you order a lot of Familiars, it doesn¡¯t mean that you can control all of them. There are a lot of cases where they were too focused on controlling their Familiars that they couldn¡¯t pay attention and suffer instant elimination because of it.1004yj1: Previous commenter, do you know how long ago that was. Summoners are the trend lately. You must not have seen the rookie league that happened a while ago. The very first class amongst the new classes that hit lv 50 was the Summoner class and by looking at Ian, they fly through PvP.AssassinBboongBboong: Still, he was immediately eliminated by Limlong in the finals. Hooray Assassins!1004yj1: Ha¡­ BboongBboong. That was just a terrible match-up. Truthfully, if a Summoner lasted that much against an Assassin as their opponent, I see it as Ian¡¯s win against Limlong just based on skill. Ian, who read through the comments, felt satisfaction as well as fury at the same time. ¡®Keuk, I should have won against that Limlong or Bingbong, whatever his name was. Ha¡­¡¯ And shortly after, he grabbed a post-it and wrote down a couple important information regarding the location of the Lava Witch and stuck it onto the top of his monitor. ¡®After I hit around lv 80, depending on the situation, I¡¯ll go catch a Lava Witch then.¡¯ If it was up to his heart, he wanted to catch it immediately, but on top of still lacking in level, in Ddukdae¡¯s case, because he received double the damage of fire-type attacks, it was definite that it would be a struggle unless he used Possession. And he stuck another small post-it that had a solid will written on it. Next time we meet, I¡¯ll win, Limlong. It was only until then did Ian wore a satisfied expression and closed his computer. ¡°Good, good. It was a time that was more profitable than mass-leveling.¡± And as if on que, Ian¡¯s food delivery from the mart arrived. Ian, who thought he efficiently spent the 20 minutes he almost wasted, was in a better mood. CH 60 Chapter 60: Second Evolution (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda At the end of riding on Ly¡¯s back for an hour, Ian, who had logged back into Kailran, was able to arrive at Forcal Mountains. ¡°Keu, long time, no see.¡± Forcal Mountains was a hunting ground that long-distance damage dealer users like Magicians and Archers enjoyed. ¡®I feasted well here before resetting.¡¯ Forcal was a rocky mountain with an incredibly rugged terrain covered kaleidoscopically with features that were closer to traps. If long-distance damage dealers positioned themselves on a propitious site and hunted, it was a location where hunting was possible even with a tanker and healer that are comparably weaker. Because of that, it could be considered a location that wasn¡¯t suitable for many Summoners to control and hunt at. However, there was a place that Ian was thinking of. ¡®If it¡¯s Forcal Mountains, it could become a decent hunting ground.¡¯ The field where Forcal Bandits lived on Forcal Mountains was like a dungeon. The bandits¡¯ average level was lv 68-72, and because they went around in packs as their AI was higher compared to other places in Forcal Mountains, they were human-like monsters that were a pain to go against. That¡¯s why it was not a hunting ground that many users preferred, but Ian had a plan. ¡®If I use the canyon near the back of the mountains, it¡¯s the most optimal place to solo-play with my current fighting power.¡¯ Towards the back of Forcal Mountains, there was a small rocky canyon. Ian was planning on luring the bandits to the canyon and fighting them there. ¡®If Ddukdae and Ly block the opening of the canyon like battle equipment, I¡¯ll have fun shooting arrows from the back.¡¯ However, as it was memories from at least two months back, Ian felt a need to check the topography once again. ¡°Ly, that way.¡± Grr-. Ian, who was riding Ly, was still able to move through the rough topography quickly. If he just sat on Ly¡¯s back well, Ly moved quickly here and there, avoiding the obstacles well. Thanks to Ly, Ian was able to arrive at the canyon soon, and after checking the topography, he wore a satisfied smile. ¡®It looks do-able enough.¡¯ He was sad that the canyon was a little wider than what he remembered, but it wasn¡¯t like there was no way. Ian, who thought of a good idea, nodded his head. Now he just needed to lure the bandits here. Ian also summoned Ddukdae in order to carry out his plan. ¡°Ddukdae summon!¡± Thud-! While looking at Ddukdae, who was summoned along with a heavy sound, Ian let out a command. ¡°Ddukdae, go over there and try and push that boulder over here.¡± Ddukdae nodded his head. Groan-. There was a large boulder that was close to Ddukdae¡¯s size leaning against the canyon where Ian was pointing at. And he went up to the boulder and began to move the boulder towards the canyon, groaning. ¡®I was worried that it wouldn¡¯t move because it was so big, but what a relief.¡¯ And this time, he turned his attention to Ly. ¡°Ly, you see those guards over there?¡± Grr-. Ly, who almost understood Ian¡¯s words at the same level as a human now, nodded his head. Ian¡¯s explanation for his plan continued. ¡°Go near them, moving very quietly, and don¡¯t get caught. Then, I¡¯ll shoot with my bow and paralyze them.¡± After changing his weapon to a bow, his Current Proliferation skill changed to a method where it was created at the end of his arrow. When he used the knuckle weapons that he equipped on each hand, he had two bundles of electricity be created on either hand, but as he changed to a bow, it had reduced to one. However, Ian was instead satisfied. This was because his range and accuracy had sharply increased to an incomparable level to before. And Ly, who received Ian¡¯s command, began to approach the guards of the mountains carefully. Ian, who momentarily watched Ly¡¯s movements, moved to a different position and took place, calculating their angle. ¡®In order to increase the chance for paralysis to happen, I need to hit both of them with one.¡¯ As his Current Proliferation skill¡¯s Proficiency had gone up since then, his chance of paralysis also increased about 20%. Despite that, though, it wasn¡¯t that high of a chance. However, if he hit both of them at the same time, by calculations, he had a 36% chance to paralyze one of the two. He needed to raise the chance even by a little bit. On top of that, if he paralyzed one of them, he could use the skill once more, it was most important that he hit multiple at once. ¡®Around now¡­!¡¯ Ian, who positioned himself, pulled his bowstring. ¡°Current Proliferation!¡± Along with the cast, electricity began to flow from the tip of the arrow. Ian carefully took aim. Because he wasn¡¯t an Archer class, he didn¡¯t have anything like accuracy rate revision, so he needed to make it solely with skill. Ian slightly glanced at Ly. And as soon as he saw Ly approach them at a good distance, he let go of his bowstring. Piiing-! The bow bundled with electricity left Ian¡¯s bowstring and lodged into the guard¡¯s back. Za-Za-Zap-! ¡®Current Proliferation¡¯ skill has hit. You have dealt 1479 damage to the ¡®Bandit Guard¡¯. Ian hoped that the four divided currents that spread from the point where Ian hit would hit the nearby guard as well. And just as he calculated, the additional blow hit the guard that was beside. Za-Za- Za-Za-Zap-! The proliferated current dealt an additional damage of 527 to the ¡®Bandit Guard¡¯. And the paralysis effect he waited for also appeared. The ¡®Bandit Guard¡¯ has gone into ¡®paralysis¡¯ state.The ¡®Bandit Guard¡¯s movements will be slowed by 30%, and will receive an additional 50% damage for ¡®electricity¡¯-type attacks.The cooldown time for ¡®Current Proliferation¡¯ has reset. ¡°Alright!¡± It was just like his scenario. As the cooldown time for Current Proliferation was reset, an electric sphere formed at the tip of his arrow again. Ian took aim without delay at the other bandit, who wasn¡¯t paralyzed, and released his bowstring. Puck-! Za-Za-Zap-! He hoped that paralysis would happen again, but that would have been too much of a lucky chance. However, as one of the two at least received paralysis and their movements were slowed, Ian was able to pull the battle just like how he planned. ¡°Ly, bite and kill the one that isn¡¯t paralyzed!¡± Along with Ian¡¯s Weak Point Capturing being invoked, Ly¡¯s attack continued. Ian as well wasn¡¯t fooling around. The cooldown time wasn¡¯t over for his Current Proliferation skill, but he continued to shoot arrows. Ping- Pi-Ping-! The ¡®Bandit Guard¡¯ has received 765 damage.The ¡®Bandit Guard¡¯ has received 804 damage. Through Ian and Ly¡¯s continuous attacks, one of the guards died in an instant. A Common-rank enemy that didn¡¯t have much of a level difference was easy. And as one died, the one that was left was taken aback and let out a shout. ¡°An enemy, it¡¯s an enemy!¡± And he hurriedly raised his club and hit a large drum, letting it ring out. Thump- Thump- ¡®Alright, that¡¯s it!¡¯ Ian purposely watched him hit the drum. And he let out a command to Ly. ¡°Ly, come over here now!¡± Grr-! And as Ly turned his body and ran towards Ian as if he was fleeing, the guard began to chase after Ly. ¡°Stop right there, you wolf!¡± And the bandit, who even discovered Ian, fumed and ran over. ¡°To have hid and shoot arrows, how cowardly!¡± Ian purposely provoked him more. ¡°I don¡¯t think you have the right to say that, considering you had gathered all your friends because you weren¡¯t confident enough.¡± As he said so, the rough-looking bandit¡¯s face turned bright red. ¡°Th, this!¡± The corners of Ian¡¯s mouth slightly rolled upwards. ¡®Now they¡¯ll probably all come crawling out from inside, right?¡¯ If it was a real human, there was no chance that they would fall for such a childish provocation, but because the bandits weren¡¯t set-up to have such a high AI, the effect was immediate. And as Ian¡¯s cooldown time for Current Proliferation was over, he paralyzed the guard. ¡°Ly, let¡¯s go back that way!¡± Grr-! Ian purposely ran at a controlled pace so that the bandits wouldn¡¯t lose Ly and him. And the place he was headed towards was the canyon. Ian, who arrived at the canyon first, looked slightly upwards. Ddukdae was standing blankly where Ian¡¯s attention was turned towards. ¡°Ddukdae, when I say so, jump down.¡± Groan-. As Ddukdae nodded his head, Ian additionally ordered. ¡°You need to crush a couple of bandits, not just jump down. Got it?¡± He could just have Ddukdae stand at the canyon, but since Ian had the room, he wanted to try something new. However, just then. Jjaek- Jjae-Jjaek-! Jjaekee, who was watching the instructions for the plan while sitting on top of Ian¡¯s head, was suddenly restless and began to fly around Ian. And meanwhile, Bbookbbook, who came down from Ian¡¯s back, protested at Ian while looking up at him. Bbook- Bboo-Bbook-! Ian stared at the two with a dumbfounded expression. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you two?¡± Bbook-! Ian couldn¡¯t tell, but Bbookbbook and Jjaekee were hurt that they couldn¡¯t be the lead of such a cool(?) plan. The two were envious of Ddukdae, who had such a cool entrance. ¡°Bbookbbook, stop complaining and just get on hyung¡¯s back.¡± Bbook¡­ Bbookbbook dropped his head deliberately as if he was hurt, but Ian easily ignored it and piggybacked Bbookbbook. As the bandits would barge through soon, he had no time to play with Bbookbbook. And shortly after, the sound of over a dozen bandits¡¯ footsteps began. Thump-Thump-Thump-. ¡°Who dares to challenge us at Forcal Mountains!¡± With a bandit who looked like the chief at the head, over a dozen bandits began to pass the canyon. However, as he didn¡¯t see the Boss-class bandit leader, he was relieved. ¡®Now!¡¯ Ian, who grasped the timing, let out a shout towards Ddukdae. ¡°Ddukdae, jump!¡± Thud- Thud-! As Ddukdae began to jump, because of his weight, the whole valley began to shake. Bang- Ba-Ba-Bang-! Along with a loud boom, Ddukdae threw his body above the bandits¡¯ heads. ¡°Euaaak-!¡± At the unexpected situation, the bandits shouted, and Ian was in a good mood as the battle went as he predicted. ¡®As expected, people need to use their head!¡¯ Ian was incredibly satisfied by showcasing the best resource(?) again since after deceptively conciliating Bbookbbook. ¡®Alright, if it¡¯s this much space, we should be able to fight even if there¡¯s extra troops!¡¯ Now it was time to fight freely. ¡°Ly, Berserk!¡± Along with Ian¡¯s command to Ly, Ddukdae, who jumped down, also arrived safely above the bandits¡¯ heads. Thud-! Familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯ has dealt 2340 damage to the ¡®Forcal Bandit¡¯. Ddukdae didn¡¯t have such a high Offensive Power, but as it was an attack that crushed after dropping from the air, it seemed from the influence of his weight, quite a bit of damage went in. ¡®That¡¯s pretty good.¡¯ But along with Ian¡¯s satisfaction, an unexpected message popped up. Familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯ has received 2892 damage from falling from a high point. Ian¡¯s expression immediately contorted. ¡®Ah, what the hell. If it¡¯s like this, then there was no point!¡¯ The damage he received was bigger, but Ian forcibly ignored the uncomfortable feeling he had in his heart by thinking about Ddukdae¡¯s high Health. ¡°Ddukdae, Ice Wave!¡± Thu-Thud-! As Ice Wave burst and the slowing effect also went through, the bandits began to panic. And Ian¡¯s Current Proliferation attack continued. Piing- Za-Za-Zap-! CH 61 Chapter 61: Second Evolution (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The bandits were far more superior in numbers, but as they were already in chaos, they weren¡¯t able to save that advantage. ¡°Euahh! Kill this pig-like golem first!¡± At the word pig, Ddukdae flew into a rage. Thud- Thud-! ¡°Aack-! Do something about this wolf!¡± Ly, who received the Potential Explosion buff from Ian, was practically flying. It was only for a moment, but Ly, who had was able to possess almost lv 100 stats, was able to send the bandits into a critical condition with one bite. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has dealt critical damage to the ¡®Forcal Bandit¡¯.¡®Forcal Bandit¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 5475.As ¡®Forcal Bandit¡¯ has gone into ¡®Bleeding¡¯ state, 1095 damage will be dealt per second for 10 seconds. Ly was indeed boasting explosive Offensive Power. While seeing that even the damage from Bleeding was a 4-digit number, Ian automatically wore a satisfied smile. ¡®Forcal Bandit¡¯ has died due to ¡®Bleeding¡¯. The bandits died in 4-5 seconds after getting bit by Ly once! For the 1 minute 30 second duration of the Potential Explosion buff, Ly got rid of six bandits. You have killed the ¡®Forcal Bandit¡¯. You have obtained 2440 EXP. The EXP was lower compared to what he received when hunting with the very first discoverer buff in the northern continent¡¯s Dungeon of Chaos, but since his hunting speed was so fast, an enormous amount of EXP came in. And while Ly played an active part, Ian was also pulling his bowstring without rest. You have dealt critical damage to the ¡®Forcal Bandit¡¯!¡®Forcal Bandit¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 1350.As you have successfully landed a critical attack, you have recovered 3 Spirit Magic.You have left a ¡®Shining Mark¡¯ on the Forcal Bandit. Along with the system message, a white mark formed above the bandit¡¯s head. Ian immediately aimed at the bandit with the mark, and hit him. The ¡®Shining Mark¡¯s effect has been invoked.The cooldown time for all skills have been reduced by 5 seconds. Ian continued the battle using the most out of his skills and their additional effects. He used all of his skills efficiently without wasting a single second. Because he did so, the bandits, whose numbers were over 30, had reduced to less than half at some point. However, Ian was suspicious. ¡®Was this all the bandits in Forcal Mountain? There has to be more¡­¡¯ And as soon as Ian mumbled to himself, additional support forces appeared like a ghost. ¡°This brat, how dare you use violence here!¡± Ian turned his attention to the bandits who were snarling at him. And he could only be immediately taken aback. ¡®Wha, what the hell! Why are they appearing here?¡¯ The almost mid-lv 70 ¡®Forcal Bandit Sorcerer¡¯ had caught Ian¡¯s eyes. On top of that, there was a reinforcement of about twenty normal bandits. Ian¡¯s expression contorted. ¡®No wonder, I was thinking that things were going too well.¡¯ Four or five Sorcerers additionally appeared, but he thought it was nothing to run away from. Ian fixed his stance. @ One of the offices of SH Electronics¡¯ Gangnam[1] Branch. Click-. Within the desolate office, the sound of a mouse clicking away restlessly rang through the room. ¡°Hm¡­ So, they judge a Familiar¡¯s grade like this.¡± A middle-aged man with glimpses of white hair. His name was Kim Chulwoo. ¡°I wonder then what¡¯s the grade of the Lava Drake that young master purchased not long ago.¡± Kim Chulwoo¡¯s job in SH Electronics was being the personal assistant for the chairman¡¯s second son, Lee Dongwoo. And because Lee Dongwoo, the young master he needed to serve, spent most of his time in Kailran, in order to assist(?) him, Chulwoo also always played Kailran. On top of that, because he was a user that originally enjoyed Kailran, he thought that having Dongwoo obsessed with Kailran was a better environment for executing his duty. No, he thought that was the case up until not long ago. ¡®I didn¡¯t know that young master would have absolutely no talent in gaming despite his young age.¡¯ His Kailran ID was ¡®Ranma¡¯, and his young master, Dongwoo¡¯s ID was ¡®Canoel¡¯. On top of playing games poorly, as Dongwoo¡¯s pride and stubbornness was incredibly wild, it wasn¡¯t easy helping him openly, making him the worst person to have to deal with. ¡°Let¡¯s see here, The stats of young master¡¯s drake¡­¡± Chulwoo, who barely managed to figure out the stats of Dongwoo¡¯s Lava Drake after a huge amount of effort, wrote them down in Excel. Lava Drake Level ¨C 32 Offensive Power ¨C 395 Defensive Power ¨C 175 Agility ¨C 125 Intellect ¨C 105 Vitality ¨C 4950 Mana ¨C 2470 ¡°There.¡± Chulwoo, who wrote down all the stats, looked at his opened Internet browser, where the formula to calculate a Familiar¡¯s growth that was available through the community was. ¡°So, I have to add up all the stats and divide it by the level, right?¡± Since a couple of days ago, many posts began being uploaded in the Summoner class¡¯ bulletin board of Kailran¡¯s official community because of a new issue. In order to judge the value of the Familiars they owned, the users decided to grade them, and because of that, users began to take screenshots of their Familiars¡¯ stats and post them. And a couple of users, who called themselves analysts and researchers, made a formula to judge the value of Familiars using the stats of Familiars that users uploaded as data, and creating a base with them. ¡°395 to 175, 125¡­ It¡¯s 800 all added up.¡± But, truthfully, it was only called a formula, it was actually just an incredibly simple calculation. After adding up all the combat stats of the applicable Familiar, aside from it¡¯s Vitality, the value once it was divided by its level was the method to judge whether the Familiar was good or bad. This method was incredibly simple, but it presented a clear answer to Summoner users. Arguments over whose Familiar was better had greatly reduced. The value derived from this formula was called the ¡®Growth Value¡¯ in the Summoners¡¯ bulletin board, and depending on the grade of this Growth Value, the Familiar¡¯s worth began to be decided. Chulwoo, who finished calculating, scratched the back of his head. ¡°Hmm, the Lava Drake¡¯s Growth Value is 25. It¡¯s not that good for a Unique-rank¡­ On top of that, its Vitality Growth Value at 154.6 means that its Vitality is at the worst.¡± Amongst the screenshots of the Familiars that were posted in the Summoner class¡¯ bulletin board, there weren¡¯t that many Unique-rank monsters. And amongst them, the monster with the highest Growth Value had a value of 28. Although a difference of 3 for the Growth Value looked small, if this piled and piled, there would be a difference of over 300 for stats when they reached over lv 100. On top of that, there were a lot of cases where, when looking at the Vitality Growth Value, Unique-rank Familiars¡¯ values were over 200. In the case of a difference of 50 in Growth Value, even at a level difference of just 20, it meant that they would have a difference of over 1000 in Vitality. Chulwoo¡¯s expression darkened. ¡°Ha¡­ For young master to have spent 15 million gold on something like this.¡± Because a Unique-rank Familiar with an evolution possible option was yet to be found, he could overlook that part, but as its stats didn¡¯t even look that good, he couldn¡¯t help but sigh. Chulwoo stood up from his spot and headed towards the capsule in the corner of the office. ¡°I should have assisted the young master more¡­¡± Rather than being regretful of the amount of money that was used, he pitied the ignorance of Dongwoo, the young master he served. Chulwoo took to heart his responsibilities and logged onto Kailran. @ ¡°Ha¡­ Why do those sorcerers have to be fire-type?¡± Ian let out a frustrated sigh as he saw the Forcal Bandit Sorcerers shoot bundles of fire at Ddukdae. He had reduced a lot of the normal bandits despite the large number, and there were only two more sorcerers left. However, the problem was that the type of offensive magic the sorcerers used was fire-type. This was because Ddukdae, who was blocking the canyon and playing the tank role, received twice the damage when hit by fire-type attacks. ¡®Do I need to pull him back for now?¡¯ Ian contemplated. Ddukdae currently had less than 10 thousand Vitality left. If it were up to his heart, he wanted to catch the remaining sorcerers before retreating even if it meant overdoing it, but to be safe, it would be best to Summon Release Ddukdae immediately. ¡®Hoo, it¡¯s a bit regretful, but is there no other choice? If I Summon Release, then it¡¯s just a 30-minute break, but if Ddukdae dies, I¡¯ll need to fight without him for almost a week¡­¡¯ Ian made up his mind and diverted his attention as his plan was to Summon Release Ddukdae. However, just then, something caught his eye. ¡®Huh¡­? Ddukdae¡¯s Potential is at 99.7%!¡¯ Instantly, Ian thought of something good. If he quickly caught the opponents with the least amount of Vitality left first and leveled Ddukdae up, his Vitality would be fully recovered. Ian quickly executed his plan. ¡°Ddukdae, back up a little!¡± Ian, who drew back Ddukdae a little in order to buy some time until he leveled up, quickly ran towards the inside of the canyon with Ly. ¡°Ly, Berserk! Kill the ones I hit first!¡± Grr-! Ian focused on the ones whose names were blinking because they didn¡¯t have much Vitality left and attacked them. Ping- Pi-Ping-! And at once, he used all his skills as their cooldown time was over, and was able to catch one of them shortly after as his Offensive Power was maximised. You have killed the ¡®Forcal Bandit¡¯. You have obtained 2440 EXP. He slightly glanced at Ddukdae as his EXP went up, but the level-up message that he awaited didn¡¯t pop up. However, just then, the form of a sorcerer casting a spell in order to perform fire magic caught Ian¡¯s eye. A bright red mark began to burn above the sorcerer¡¯s head. ¡®IF the casting time is that long, it means that it¡¯s an incredibly big skill¡­¡¯ Ian urgently pulled his bowstring. He felt that if that skill was invoked before Ddukdae leveled up, he wouldn¡¯t know if Ddukdae would survive or die. ¡°Ly, that one first!¡± The arrow that left Ian¡¯s bowstring quickly flew and lodged into the sorcerer¡¯s shoulder. However, the sorcerer¡¯s magic didn¡¯t get cancelled. Hwa-reu-reu-reu-! The flame that burned above the sorcerer¡¯s head scattered in every direction and disappeared, and a large flame pillar began to rise beneath Ddukdae¡¯s feet. Familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯ has received damage from the ¡®Forcal Bandit Sorcerer¡¯s ¡®Flame Spurt¡¯ skill.Familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯s Vitality will decrease by 745 per second. A volatile situation, Ddukdae had received too much damage due to his characteristic of receiving 2 times the damage of fire-type attacks despite the attack itself not being that strong. At this rate, Ddukdae would die in about 5 seconds. ¡°No!¡± Ian gave up trying to level up Ddukdae and spread his hand out in order to Summon Release. However, just then, the sorcerer died from Ly¡¯s attack and a system message rang out. You have killed the ¡®Forcal Bandit Sorcerer¡¯. You have obtained 3007 EXP. And Ddukdae¡¯s body began to shine in a white light. Familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯ has leveled up. It has reached lv 65. ¡®Alright!¡¯ Ian let out a shout of delight. Ddukdae had leveled up at an unbelievable timing. Of course, his Vitality had fully recovered. ¡°Shall we clear the remaining ones left now?¡± Ian invoked his Current Proliferation skill again and pulled his bowstring. However, he felt something was odd. ¡®Why isn¡¯t the white light disappearing from Ddukdae¡¯s body?¡¯ The white light that usually appeared when leveling up disappeared into the air after about 1-2 seconds. However, Ddukdae¡¯s white light didn¡¯t disappear, but rather slowly grew brighter. And Ian figured out what kind of situation it was shortly after. ¡®Evolution! Ddukdae¡¯s finally evolving! Does that mean Ddukdae will also become a Rare-rank?¡¯ He hurriedly checked Ddukdae¡¯s condition window and the word evolving caught his eye. As Ian watched Ddukdae evolving, the corners of his smile hung from his ears. ¡°Ly! Catch the ones that go after Ddukdae first!¡± Ian frantically blocked off the bandits that charged towards Ddukdae with Ly. However, he discovered that there was no need to do that. ¡°Keu-ack!¡± The bandits that charged towards Ddukdae flew backwards at an unknown repelling power. Ian, who saw that, was able to watch Ddukdae¡¯s evolution with a more relaxed heart. ¡®I wonder what he will become.¡¯ Just like when Ly evolved, Ddukdae¡¯s size began to slowly grow. For the first time in a while, Ian felt his heart pound. Thinking about the strength Ly, who was Kailran¡¯s lowest level monster, the ¡®Wolf¡¯, before evolving, showed after evolving, it was obvious Ian anticipated what kind of form Ddukdae¡¯s evolution would be as Ddukdae was quite a high-level monster. Thu-Thu-Thu-Thud-! Ddukdae¡¯s body, which was wrapped in a white light, had grown over 1.5x its size. On top of that, a blue aura clearly spread from around his body. And shortly after, the light slowly lifted and the message that Ian was waiting for popped up. The time he spent waiting wasn¡¯t that long, but to Ian, it felt very long. Ring-. Ice Golem ¡®Ddukdae¡¯ has evolved into Abyss Golem. CH 62 Chapter 62: Second Evolution (4) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian, who heard the name of Ddukdae¡¯s evolution, momentarily thought of something. ¡®Abyss? It sounds familiar¡­ Ah! Bbookbbook!¡¯ He had remembered that Bbookbbook¡¯s original name was ¡®Abyss Turtle¡¯. ¡®Ah-ha, does that mean that monsters related to the Abysmal Island gains the modifier abyss once they become a Unique-rank?¡¯ And while Ian was thinking of this and that, another system message that made him feel good popped up. As your Familiar has successfully evolved, the ¡®Intermediate-level Training¡¯ skill¡¯s Proficiency has increased.As ¡®Intermediate-level Training¡¯ skill¡¯s skill level has increased, it has upgraded to ¡®High-rank Training¡¯.¡®High-rank Training¡¯ skill has increased to Lv. 0. (98.7% left until the next level) The Proficiency of the Intermediate-level Training skill that didn¡¯t go up no matter what he did had gained EXP from the evolution and the skill finally turned into a High-rank Training skill. Ian wanted to enjoy his happiness and check Ddukdae¡¯s changed stats, but the bandits wouldn¡¯t let him be. ¡°Die!¡± Ian internally grumbled. ¡®Ah, I want to check Ddukdae¡¯s information window quickly, but these things are bothering me.¡¯ And Ian, who pulled his bowstring, had to observe a surprising sight. Bang- Ba-Ba-Bang-! Suddenly, Ddukdae had spread his fist. And as Ddukdae¡¯s fist as the centre, a incredibly large earthquake wave spread forward. On top of that, the bandits, who stood where the earthquake wave passed by, all began to be drawn towards Ddukdae. Specifically, they were drawn towards the blue vortex that appeared in front of Ddukdae. Familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯ has cast the ¡®Abyss Hole¡¯ skill.¡®Forcal Bandit¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 175.¡®Forcal Bandit¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 208. Ian¡¯s jaw dropped. This was because the floundering bandits, who were inflicted by the Abyss Hole that Ddukdae casted, were helplessly sucked in. Each of the damage values that popped up were only around 1-200, so it wasn¡¯t that high, but because the damage quickly went in 2-3 times per second, the attack had reduced their Vitality by over a thousand in an instant. And shortly after, along with a large boom, the vortex of the abyss that Ddukdae had created had spread out and caused a large explosion. ¡®Forcal Bandit¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 2508. ¡°Wow¡­¡± Along with the explosion, all the bandits that surrounded Ddukdae had turned into a grey light and disappeared. It was a spectacle that could be called magnificent. ¡®Of course, I had continuously fried them with Current Proliferation so they didn¡¯t have much Vitality left to begin with, but¡­¡¯ He still hadn¡¯t been able to check the information window, but he didn¡¯t doubt that the evolved Ddukdae¡¯s performance would exceed his expectations. ¡°Ly, let¡¯s catch the sorcerer!¡± Grr-! Ian and Ly easily caught the sole sorcerer, who was working hard in casting a fire-type magic skill. Only when there were bandits protecting it nearby was the sorcerer a pain to face; a sole sorcerer was actually an easier opponent to catch compared to the normal bandits. Like that, the battle was finished, and Ian plopped onto the ground. ¡°Hoo, tiring, I say, tiring. Still, Ddukdae even evolved, so I¡¯m satisfied.¡± Ian was incredibly pleased with the result of his hunting that was driven to its limits. ¡°Speaking of which, Ddukdae probably evolved because he leveled up, right? And the evolution requirement was to hit lv 65.¡± There was no other way to explain it besides that. If that was the case, that meant the evolution requirement for Ly, who evolved at lv 20, was below lv 20. ¡®Firstly, let¡¯s check Ddukdae¡¯s information window.¡¯ Ian opened Ddukdae¡¯s information window with an expectant heart. Ddukdae Level: 65 Classification: Golem Rank: Unique Personality: Simple-hearted Evolution impossible Offensive Power: 625 Defensive Power: 1464 Agility: 113 Intellect: 154 Vitality: 31,456/31,456 Mana: 4765/4765 Inherent Ability Abyss Hole Both arms are spread forward and a shock wave in the shape of a cone is shot out in a 20-metre scope. After the shock wave is shot out, a vortex of the abyss will be created for ten seconds, and enemies within its range will be sucked into the vortex for its duration. The enemies that are inflicted by the vortex will receive damage equal to 35% of their attack power every 0.4 seconds, and once the duration of the vortex is over, the vortex explodes and deals damage equal to 150% of the enemies¡¯ Defensive Power to every enemy within a 10-metre range. (Cooldown Time: 5 minutes) Protection of the Abyss Defensive Power increases in proportion to the reduced Vitality. Once Vitality reaches below 10%, a shield equivalent to 50% of the maximum Vitality will be invoked for 10 seconds. A guardian of the ancient times that protects the Abysmal Lake. Its enormous in size and has a strong destructive power. Ian, who saw Ddukdae¡¯s information, became slightly sullen. This was because the words ¡®evolution impossible¡¯ caught his eyes first. ¡®Ly still had an evolution possible option attached again even after he evolved, so it¡¯s a little disappointing.¡¯ However, the disappointment was truly for just a moment. This was because aside from that, all of his stats were truly magnificent. Firstly, for his rank, he had skipped the Rare-rank altogether and evolved straight into a Unique-rank. ¡®Kyah, his Defensive Power is crazy! It¡¯s not as much as Bbookbbook¡¯s¡­ But at this rate, even a decent Offensive Power won¡¯t be able to lodge an attack in.¡¯ It wasn¡¯t just his Defensive Power. As he evolved, his Vitality has gone over 30 thousand, and his Offensive Power was now useable. Ian suddenly wanted to compare with Ly¡¯s stats. ¡®Shall we open up Ly¡¯s information window?¡¯ And as he compared the stats, his surprise grew. ¡°Wow, its definitely incomparable now with a rank difference.¡± Of course, Ly¡¯s stats were incredibly magnificent as well. It was a situation where his Offensive Power was almost at 900, and his Agility was over 700. However, it was the truth that his Defensive Power at 1461 was comparably lower to Ddukdae¡¯s. ¡®And Abyss Hole? Was this the skill he just used?¡¯ Abyss Hole was the skill that appeared in place of Ice Wave, which had disappeared. He had already checked how powerful this skill was, but now that he saw the more detailed information, he liked it even more. ¡®The cooldown time isn¡¯t too long¡­ It looks like a skill that I can make good use of.¡¯ Finally, he was also pleased with the characteristics of Protection of the Abyss. As they were characteristics that further reinforced Ddukdae¡¯s already incredible tanking skills, he had created something like an insurance to withstand a truly important final moment. In other words, he would be able to use Ddukdae¡¯s tanking a little more comfortably. ¡°Keu¡­ Good, good.¡± Ian, who momentarily rested as he checked evolved Ddukdae¡¯s information, stood up from his spot. He felt he was surging with unknown strength. ¡°Now, shall we go wipe the military headquarters?¡± Since had lured and caught quite a large number of troops, there wouldn¡¯t be a lot of troops left in the headquarters now. Ian moved with immensely lightened footsteps. And Ian, who gained immensely improved fighting power thanks to Ddukdae, suppressed the headquarters in an instant. If it was according to his original plan, he should have continued to lure them to the canyon and defeat them one by one, but thanks to Ddukdae, he was able to opt for a more daring choice. ¡°Let¡¯s rest a bit and heal.¡± Ian, who caught all the bandits in one camp, casted the First-Aid skill and sat on a rock afterwards. As he did so, Bbookbbook, who was hanging onto Ian¡¯s back, came down and crawled over to sit in front of Ian. Bbook-! As Bbookbbook demanded with a raised head, Ian smirked and pulled out a meatball from his inventory. ¡°Bbookbbook, you know that this is the last meatball for this afternoon¡¯s quota, right?¡± At Ian¡¯s cold words, Bbookbbook became sullen. Bbook- Bbook- ¡°There¡¯s no point in making such a pitiful expression.¡± Ian passed him the meatball, and Bbookbbook approached the meatball with a broken-hearted expression. How sad those words were, that this was today¡¯s last meatball. Still, as Bbookbbook began to eat the meatball, Ian smirked as he watched Bbookbbook¡¯s expression immediately brighten. ¡®This cute thing, next time I meet Harin, I should ask her to make something a little more delicious.¡¯ It seemed as though the meatballs he received from Harin would be gone now within about a week. Ian thought that he should meet Harin once before he went over Forcal Mountains. ¡®Since I already bought a Return Stone to a village near the mountains.¡¯ Ian, who rotated the First-Aid skill and completely recovered all of his Familiars¡¯ Vitalities, started to move again. ¡°Firstly, before that, the top priority is to hit lv 70.¡± His destination was the centre. @ Ian, who headed towards the centre while hunting the monsters he ran into at random, was fortunately able to discover the Rare-rank monster ¡®Clopia¡¯ on the mountainside. It was truly a coincidental encounter that he wasn¡¯t even expecting. The Clopia was a large rapacious bird-like monster that had white feathers, and it was well-known as the monster that was hard to find as it only inhabited Forcal Mountains and its population was incredibly low. Originally the reason why the Clopia was well-known between users was because there was a special item that only Clopia dropped. That item was called the ¡®Clopia¡¯s Feather Ornament¡¯, which occasionally dropped when hunting Clopias, and on the feather ornament there was a special option attached that allowed Magicians¡¯ magic casting speed to quicken. Because the fact that the casting speed for magic quickening had something in common with the amount of damage dealt by Magicians increasing, there was a time when most Magicians searched for Clopias with fire in their eyes. ¡®Because there are a lot of other items that increased the casting speed besides Clopia¡¯s Feather Ornament now, its faded a bit.¡¯ Ian mumbled to himself as he caught the Clopia. As it was a Rare-rank monster that was over lv 70, he had a little bit of difficulty catching it, but at the end of wrestling with it for about 15 minutes, he succeeded in capturing it. ¡®Whew, now I don¡¯t have a lot of spare Leadership.¡¯ He always had sufficient Leadership for a while, but as it was a Rare-rank and a higher level than Ian, it needed quite a lot of Leadership. Then, he naturally thought of the stats of the sealed ¡®Dragon Tamer¡¯s Feather Ornament¡¯. ¡®I need to quickly release all of the seals attached to the head ornament¡­¡¯ Ian mumbled as he checked the information window of the Clopia. Clopia Level: 72 Classification: Rapacious bird Rank: Rare Personality: Timid Evolution impossible Offensive Power: 467 Defensive Power: 275 Agility: 1052 Intellect: 347 Vitality: 15,760/15,760 Mana: 7950/7950 Inherent Ability Wind-Riding Clopias have the ability to feel the texture of the wind. If they aren¡¯t attacked while flying for over 5 seconds, their movement speed increases by 70%. A rare bird that inhabits Forcal Mountains. It has beautiful, white feathers. CH 63 Chapter 63: Second Evolution (5) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian, who read down the Clopia¡¯s information window, smirked. ¡®As expected, it was as I assumed.¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes were fixed onto the Clopia¡¯s outstanding Agility. Half of its total combat stats belonged to its Agility stat, and because of this part, Ian had captured the Clopia. Ian summoned the Clopia. ¡°Clopia, summon!¡± Ian decided not to separately name it and just use the name Clopia. ¡®Since I¡¯m only going to use it for a while.¡¯ The reason why Ian caught the Clopia was because he needed a monster that he could use the Possession skill on to explosively raise his Agility. However, he couldn¡¯t use it for a long time. Because the level of the monster being Possessed couldn¡¯t be raised, when there was a large level difference, he needed to catch a new monster and use it as a Possession shuttle. ¡®By pointlessly naming it, I might get attached.¡¯ In other words, the Clopia was the perfect monster to raise his ¡®Possession¡¯ skill¡¯s skill level and to help him raise his Agility stat. Ian used the Possession skill on Clopia. ¡°Ooh, this is better than I thought.¡± Since he had just been using any monster and Possessing them to raise the skill level of Possession, he could feel the difference of Possessing a monster with handsome stats. ¡®Since it¡¯d better if it¡¯s more useful while I¡¯m raising the Proficiency anyways.¡¯ He proved that it was more efficient to have his main force Familiar directly fight rather than use Possession on them while hunting. However, he needed to constantly raise the Possession skill¡¯s Proficiency because it was effective in many ways. For example, he could use the Possession skill when his main force Familiar¡¯s Vitality is running low and help raise his character¡¯s stats, or when his character¡¯s Vitality is running low and it becomes dangerous, he could Possess a Familiar like Ddukdae and gain maximum Health and Defensive Power temporarily and evade the critical situation. Ian, who gained a decent Familiar unexpectedly, headed towards the centre mountain fastness again with lightened footsteps. @ Ku-ohhh-! A blue vortex began to rage around Ddukdae. His Abyss Hole skill was invoked. Ian quickly put the bow he was holding into his inventory and switched his weapon to his knuckles. ¡®Ever since Abyss Hole has been invoked, I feel like the knuckle¡¯s efficiency is definitely better.¡¯ There were two reasons why the knuckles were better compared to the bow. The first being that there were two electric spheres created when using Current Proliferation, and the second being that he could use his Familiars¡¯ skills with Induction. If he got lucky and was able to invoke Abyss Hole once more with Induction immediately after it was activated, then for 20 seconds, he basically invoked an AoE Mez (Originating from the term Mesmerize, in games, it defines an action or skill that incapacitates an enemy or opponent). An amazing synergy effect appeared if he threw the Current Proliferation in the centre of the enemies that were gathered together from being sucked into the Abyss Hole, because it was easy to hit multiple opponents with the follow-up attack, where the spheres spread out, and it threw the enemies into chaos. Just like now. ¡°Current Proliferation!¡± The spheres of electricity that Ian threw with both his hands flew into the centre of where the bandits were gathered and exploded. To Ian, who was already a pro at hitting the target with Current Proliferation, it was a piece of cake to hit targets, whose movements were restricted because of Abyss Hole. You have hit the target with the ¡®Current Proliferation¡¯ skill. You have dealt 1579 damage to the ¡®Forcal Bandit¡¯.The proliferated current has dealt 465 additional damage to the ¡®Forcal Bandit¡¯. Because it was a situation where the bandits were huddled together around the proliferated currents, the follow-up attack constantly exploded almost to its limits. The ¡®Forcal Bandit¡¯ has gone into ¡®Paralysis¡¯ state.The ¡®Forcal Bandit¡¯s movements will be slowed by 30%, and will receive an additional 50% damage towards ¡®electricity¡¯-type attacks.The cooldown time for ¡®Current Proliferation¡¯ has reset. Ian poured out Current Proliferation continuously until his Spirit Magic was completely consumed. Za-Zap- Za-Za-Zap-! Ian, who was happily wiping out the bandits, fell into narcissism. ¡®Keu, as expected, battue is the best kind of hunting.¡¯ He felt a pleasant sensation that he couldn¡¯t feel when hunting as an Archer before resetting, back when he had to frustratingly hunt one by one. Of course, there were attacks that he could deal AoE damage with as an Archer, and he could hunt multiple enemies by installing traps, but it wasn¡¯t a situation where he could hunt as large of a number in one go like now. ¡®Still, as expected, the lack of AoE damage-dealing is slightly disappointing.¡¯ Despite hunting this smoothly, Ian once again felt disappointment. And he suddenly thought of the Lava Witch that he saw in the New Monster Information. ¡®If it¡¯s according to my original plan, it was a monster that I wasn¡¯t planning on catching before I reached lv 80, but since Ddukdae also evolved, should I go to catch it once I wipe the mountain fastness?¡¯ Before you went all the way to the end after going over Forcal Mountains, a map called ¡®Scorching Land¡¯ appeared. And Scorching Land was a basement dungeon, and that place was where the Lava Witch was apparently discovered. Originally, Lava Spawns inhabited the Scorching Land basement dungeon. Just like its name, the Lava Spawn was a monster that you could call ¡®an egg that gives birth to lava¡¯. It was a zombie monster that normally deals long-distance, fire-type attacks, but once its Vitality drops below half, it divides into two and recovers about 1/4th of its Vitality. This Lava Spawn¡¯s level was around its early 70s, so it wasn¡¯t that much higher than the bandits, but it would have been hard to face them if it was before Ddukdae evolved. Since Ddukdae was incredibly weak to fire magic before evolving and received a large amount of damage even at the Bandit Sorcerer¡¯s low-rank fire skills. However, Ddukdae, who now evolved into an Abyss Golem, didn¡¯t have any weak point at fire magic, and because of that, he could easily penetrate through the Lava Spawns after just hitting lv 70 and try grinding to capture the Lava Witch. ¡°Eut-cha!¡± Ian, who got excited at the thought of catching a new monster, swept up the enemies, driven by his enthusiasm. ¡®Shall we change back to a bow right about now, then?¡¯ After smoothly hunting all of the bandits in one group, Ian changed his weapon again. Now he needed to lure the bandits that were scattered here and there in the mountain fastness, and he decided that it was more efficient to walk around with his bow and attack them from a far distance while luring them. In addition, he could quickly reduce the cooldown time. ¡°Ddukdae, Ly. Let¡¯s go this way.¡± Ian shot arrows at a couple of bandits that he could see from a distance, luring them, and began to move slowly towards the heart of the mountain fastness. And he was finally able to meet the creditor of the mountain fastness, the Boss Bandit. ¡®Found him!¡¯ Ian, who saw the words ¡®Forcal Bandit Boss¡¯ written in a distinct purple light, inwardly let out an exclamation. Shortly after he did so, Ian felt that something was strange. ¡®What the hell, why is his level like that?¡¯ Ian hesitated. For a moment, a cold sweat dripped down his back. The Bandit Boss¡¯s level was a whopping lv 80. ¡®No, I remember it definitely being around lv 75 when I caught it before resetting.¡¯ However, he was flustered only for a moment before he calmly decided. ¡®It¡¯s worth trying.¡¯ He felt he could quickly escape if need be as his character¡¯s reflexes increased a lot thanks to Possessing the Clopia that he gained while on the way to the centre mountain fastness. And Ian¡¯s attention turned towards the weapon of the Bandit Boss. The Bandit Boss was holding a bow. He was a long-distance type monster. ¡®If he appeared as a tanking-type boss, it would be better to escape here, but if it¡¯s a long-distance type monster, I just need to attack him first and catch him quickly!¡¯ The biggest characteristic of long-distance type monsters was their low Vitality. ¡®It is a boss monster at around lv 80, but since it¡¯s a long-distance type¡­ Its Vitality should approximately be about 30 thousand.¡¯ Ian, who decided to fight, let out a command to Ddukdae. ¡°Ddukdae, Abyss Hole!¡± Keu-reu-reung- As Ddukdae began to tie down the bandits with Abyss Hole, Ian fired Current Proliferation at random. Before he caught the Bandit Boss, he needed to tie down the feet of the normal bandits nearby that would bother him. And as the Paralysis skill was activated even on the Bandit Boss, Ian quickly let out the command he had thought of. ¡°Ly, jump over Ddukdae and let¡¯s catch the Boss first!¡± Ian let out the command, and Ly promptly threw his body towards the Boss. However, the Bandit Boss didn¡¯t just stay still either. ¡°These brats, you underestimate me!¡± As the Bandit Boss yelled loudly, a yellow wave spread out around him and an AoE buff was placed onto all the bandits. ¡®Damn it, I didn¡¯t know that he would have an AoE buff.¡¯ Because AoE buff skills were normally skills that mainly tanking-type bosses had, it could be considered a slightly unexpected situation. ¡®I need to catch him as quickly as possible.¡¯ If he just properly allowed an attack skill at a long-distance, lv 80 boss mob, its Vitality would instantly drop lump after lump. Ian invoked his Weak Point Capturing skill. ¡°Ly, Potential Capacity Explosion! Berserk!¡± Ian activated all buffs onto Ly. And Ly temporarily gained an unbelievable amount of Offensive Power. Through the ¡®Berserk¡¯ effect, Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s Offensive Power and Agility will increase by 30% for 15 minutes, and his Defensive Power will decrease by 30%.You have used the ¡®Potential Capacity Explosion¡¯ skill.In proportion to Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s Potential, ¡®Ly¡¯s stats will increase. ¡®Ly¡¯s stats will additionally increase by 92% for 1 minute 20 seconds. Ian slightly checked Ly¡¯s Offensive Power after receiving all those buffs, and saw a whopping value of 2260. ¡®Ly, show them!¡¯ In order to distract the Bandit Boss that Ly was targeting, Ian quickly pulled his bowstring. Whoosh-! Ian¡¯s arrow that split through the air lodged exactly into the wrist of the Bandit Boss, who was aiming for Ly. If the fact that he didn¡¯t have the Archer¡¯s Accuracy Rate Correction skill was taken into consideration, he had an almost fascinating ability. Grr-! And Ly wasn¡¯t one to lose that opportunity. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has dealt critical damage to ¡®Forcal Bandit Boss¡¯.The ¡®Forcal Bandit Boss¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 6018.As critical damage has been dealt to the ¡®Forcal Bandit Boss¡¯, Ly¡¯s Offensive Power will additionally increase for 5 seconds.Forcal Bandit Boss has gone into ¡®Bleeding¡¯ state. An additional damage of 1203 will be dealt per second. ¡°Alright!¡± Ian, who let out an exclamation while looking at the system messages that constantly popped up, dealt supporting fire from the back. If it was up to his heart, he wanted to change his equipment to his knuckles and help at a more closer proximity, but Ian, who didn¡¯t have a jumping ability like Ly¡¯s, couldn¡¯t penetrate the bandits and get inside. That was an issue different from his Agility. ¡°This mutt!¡± The Bandit Boss raged and swung his fist. However, Ly easily dodged him and succeeded in dealing his additional attacks. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has dealt critical damage to the ¡®Forcal Bandit Boss¡¯.The Forcal Bandit Boss¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 7823. Critical damage continuously popped up. Thanks to the additional Offensive Power increase due to Berserk, an even stronger amount of damage went through. Because Bleeding was an effect that didn¡¯t overlap, it wasn¡¯t additionally invoked, but Ly had dropped the Bandit Boss¡¯s Vitality by over half in an instant. CH 64 Chapter 64: Second Evolution (6) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian let out a shout of delight as he saw that things were going more smoothly than he expected. ¡®Alright, just a little more!¡¯ Ian fought the bandits that were in front of him along with Ddukdae while glancing over at Ly. However, the fight between Ly and the Bandit Boss that Ian thought would finish quicker than expected earlier began to take longer than he thought it would. Just like an Archer with a bow, the Bandit Boss, a Boss-monster, was incredibly agile. After getting hit twice in the beginning, it was a rare chance for the Bandit Boss to allow Ly to hit him. And shortly after, Ly ended up allowing the Bandit Boss to land a hit on him. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has received damage from the Bandit Boss.Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 5956. Ian, who saw the system message, sobered up immediately. ¡®It¡¯s not like he was hit by an arrow, but just from a close-proximity attack, he received 6 thousand damage?¡¯ Because Ly¡¯s Defensive Power dropped because of his Berserk skill, Ian expected a large amount of damage, but this was more dangerous than he thought. ¡®By the looks of it, I think that the AoE buff that the boss first used was a buff related to Offensive Power.¡¯ Ian urgently let out a command to Ddukdae. ¡°Ddukdae, throw me over there!¡± At the daring command, Ddukdae momentarily hesitated. ¡°Quickly!¡± However, at Ian¡¯s continued demand, Ddukdae spread out his hand, and as Ian got on, he threw Ian with all his strength. ¡®First, we¡¯ll catch him and then see!¡¯ Ian shot arrows while soaring through the air. Because the Boss Bandit was in a fierce battle with Ly, he wasn¡¯t able to pay attention to Ian¡¯s arrows. Puck- Puck-! The arrows hit the target, but Ian, who fell onto the ground defenselessly, received damage. You have received 2352 damage from falling from a high point. However, Ian wasn¡¯t flustered and rolled on the ground once before quickly changing his weapon to his knuckles. ¡®It would be great if the Induction ability was invoked¡­¡¯ Ian, who had casted his Current Proliferation skill and was holding two electric spheres in either hand, charged towards the Bandit Boss. If he dragged on the time a little longer, the nearby bandits would close in on him and create an incredibly tough situation. And at the end of the three¡¯s intense, free-for-all fight, the ¡®Induction¡¯ ability that Ian wanted was invoked. The ¡®Ancient Summoner¡¯s Steel Knuckle¡¯ has invoked the ¡®Induction¡¯ ability.Familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯s ¡®Abyss Hole¡¯ ability will be borrowed. Gooooh-! A large wave spread out from the end of Ian¡¯s hand. And not only did the Bandit Boss, but the bandits who came close to help him began to be sucked into that wave. It was truly an excellent timing. ¡®There we go!¡¯ And as the Bandit Boss¡¯s movements were restricted, Ly immediately charged and bit the back of his neck. Grr-! And that was the final mark of this neck-and-neck battle. ¡°Eu-ack!¡± You have killed the Forcal Bandit Boss. You have obtained 18,500 EXP. As expected of a Boss monster, it was a huge amount of EXP. Ian wanted to enjoy his satisfaction, but there was no time to delay. This was because Ly and Ian himself had received quite a large amount of damage while fighting the Bandit Boss, so they didn¡¯t have a lot of Vitality left. He quickly approached the corpse of the Bandit Boss that was turning into a grey light and collected the items. You have obtained 5914 gold from the Heroic-rank Monster, the ¡®Forcal Bandit Boss¡¯.You have obtained the item, the ¡®Forcal Bandit¡¯s Spirit¡¯. The ¡®Forcal Bandit¡¯s Spirit¡¯ item was an accessory of a set item that had the lowest drop rate amongst the Forcal set. It wasn¡¯t an item that Ian could use, but he had obtained a high-price item that he could sell at a high price to a Knight or a Warrior user. ¡®Now I just need to escape from here safely¡­!¡¯ Ian, who packed up the unexpected profit, broadened his view and planned for a way to escape. To fight the leftover bandits with the remaining Vitality he had was close to daredevilry. ¡°Ly, run towards where Ddukdae is!¡± As Ian let out that command, Ly began to run towards Ddukdae, and Ian began to run in the other direction. ¡®Now, if it¡¯s like this, they¡¯ll follow after me, right?¡¯ And just as Ian predicted, the AI of the bandits began to follow the user first. Slowly, the distance between Ly and Ian began to grow significantly. And shortly after, Ian, who felt that they secured enough of a distance, invoked the skill that he had thought of. ¡°Space Distortion!¡± Through Space Distortion, Ian and Ly¡¯s positions changed. However, Ian did not invoke that skill with the intention of sacrificing Ly. Ian shouted right after. ¡°Ly, Ddukdae, Summon Release!¡± As he did so, Ddukdae and Ly, who were stuck in the centre of the battlefield, were able to easily escape the spot. This was because Ly and Ddukdae, who disappeared into a white light at the same time, were immediately moved to space. After even Summon Releasing Bbookbbook, who was on his back, Ian began to run for his life with his lightened body. ¡®Thanks to Clopia, my body is lighter.¡¯ Ian¡¯s movements were incredibly fast due to him Possessing Clopia, who had over a thousand Agility. As he had Summon Released all of his main Familiars, he couldn¡¯t fight for at least 30 minutes now once he left the battlegrounds. ¡®I couldn¡¯t hit lv 70 yet, but I did make quite a profit.¡¯ Ian headed towards the village. He was planning on meeting Harin and receive his Familiars¡¯ feed before returning to Forcal Mountains again. Scorching Land (1) Ian, who arrived at the village, sent Harin a message. Ian: Harin, what are you doing right now? And fortunately, Harin, who was logged in responded instantly. Harin: Ah, I¡¯m in Myuran with Carwin right now.Ian: With Carwin? What are you doing in Myuran?Harin: Ah, I joined Lotus guild this time. That¡¯s why I¡¯m getting ready to go to the Northern base with Carwin. There are a lot of ingredients I need to buy before I go, so I¡¯m at the auction house. At Harin¡¯s words, Ian was slightly startled for a moment. ¡®Hm, I¡¯m sure with Harin¡¯s level-up speed, she wouldn¡¯t have hit lv 60 yet, so how did she get into the guild? Did she get in with her friendship with Carwin?¡¯ Ian was suspicious for a moment. As Herz wasn¡¯t the type to accept people into the guild just because they had an acquaintance. Even when Ian, who Herz considered his best friend, first started Kailran, he had only accepted him as a guild member once he reached a high enough level. However, Ian realized the reason shortly after. ¡®Ah, it must be because of the base. They said they needed a lot of users that had a high Production skill level when they made a base!¡¯ Ian naturally nodded his head. If restricted to just Production skill, a talented person like Harin was really hard to find. ¡®That¡¯s great.¡¯ Ian sent a message again. Ian: Wow, I see, Harin, that¡¯s good news. I was so busy hunting, I didn¡¯t even know you joined the guild.Harin: I know, right? It really is good news. Herz also said that he would help me with leveling up. Now I think I can really focus on just raising my cooking skill proficiency! He probably meant with helping her out that he would include her into the guild party. In other words, bus[1]. ¡®Herz thought well. Since all the guild members¡¯ level-up speed won¡¯t significantly drop just by adding in Harin into the guild party.¡¯ If you thought of it in another way, it wasn¡¯t completely a bus. Even if she just bought enough ingredients and continuously supplied dishes, Harin could become a decent buffer. On top of that, in the long run, raising Harin¡¯s level would be a profit for in the guild¡¯s perspective no matter what. If the amount of time needed for hunting, which Harin found no interest or talent in was reduced, she could raise her Cooking Proficiency, something she was actually talented in, even faster than before. Ian, who nodded his head, brought up his main point. Ian: But Harin, could you possibly spare some time for me before you go up North?Harin: Huh? Time? Ian quickly added onto his words in case Harin misunderstood. Ian: Yes. It¡¯s nothing important, but I ran out of all the meatballs you gave me. I still have a bit of meals that I can eat, but I¡¯m short on meatballs. Shortly after, a message from Harin, who seemed surprised, came. Harin: Hul[2]¡­ I thought I gave you a lot of meatballs then, but it looks like Ly really likes those meatballs. I thought you would be short on your meals instead. At Harin¡¯s words Ian automatically burst out laughing. This was because he remembered Bbookbbook. Ian: You see, I¡¯ve gained some new family members. There¡¯s a fellow here that really likes your meatballs. At the words that there was a Familiar that liked her cooking, Harin was delighted. Harin: Oh, really? I feel like I should come see you out of curiosity for what kind of Familiar it is.Ian: Thank you, Harin. Firstly, if you¡¯re taking care of business in the auction, then I¡¯ll come to Myuran.Harin: Sure, will do. @ Ian, who moved to Myuran using a Return stone, headed towards the auction shortly after. And he was able to find Harin and Carwin immediately. ¡°Yo, who could this be, it¡¯s Ian hyung[3]!¡± Carwin, who discovered Ian first, quickly ran over and expressed his joy. ¡°Yo, jokester. Long time, no see. How have you been?¡± And Harin, who was purchasing cooking ingredients from the auction, cheerfully approached him and greeted him. ¡°Wow, Ian, it¡¯s been even longer since we met in-game. I should have gone to watch the rookie league, but because of that assignment, I couldn¡¯t log in for that period.¡± ¡°Ah, no, it¡¯s alright, Harin. It was better that you didn¡¯t come. Even if you did, I probably wouldn¡¯t have been able to pay attention to you.¡± ¡°Either way, congratulations, Ian.¡± At her words, Ian, who suddenly thought of the semi-finals again, was slightly saddened. ¡°Thank you.¡± And Harin, who felt his sullen expression, laughed and added. ¡°Even the semi-finals is amazing. Don¡¯t be too disappointed.¡± However, Ian responded without being able to hide his disappointed expression. ¡°Hm¡­ That¡¯s right, isn¡¯t it?¡± However, just then, Carwin, who heard the two¡¯s conversation, had on a surprised expression as he asked. ¡°Huh, what do you mean by it¡¯s been even longer since in-game? Have you two actually met in real life?¡± At Carwin¡¯s question, Harin responded. ¡°Yeah. Last time, I needed to go to school, and I called Ian out for a bit then.¡± Carwin had on an expression full of jealousy. ¡°What? I still haven¡¯t met Harin noona[4], but you¡¯re telling me that hyung has met you first?¡± Harin smirked. ¡°Ian and I go to the same school.¡± ¡°Still!¡± ¡°Then come up to Seoul. I told you I¡¯d buy you food if you come to Korea University.¡± ¡°No, noona, what kind of money does a high-schooler have to come all the way up to Seoul! I¡¯m telling you, I don¡¯t even have enough money to pay for transportation.¡± This time, Ian picked up the scolding. ¡°Hey, stop being a crybaby, and tell me about the guild¡¯s recent condition. Did everybody raise their level up a lot?¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Carwin, who seemed embarrassed with his whining, scratched the back of his head. ¡°Hm, now everybody¡¯s over lv 95. Fiolan¡¯s also probably over lv 100?¡± Ian nodded his head. They were all at a level he was roughly expecting. ¡®The top-rankers are probably also over lv 120 now, right? I need to try harder!¡¯ Ian fired-up his fighting spirit inwardly. [1] bus = to carry someone [2] Hul = slang word usually used to show mild form of shock or surprise [3] hyung = term that a younger male calls a close, older male [4] noona = term that a younger male calls a close, older female CH 65 Chapter 65: Scorching Land (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda And after hearing the news about his guildmates, he also became curious as to whether the base was developing well. ¡°How about the base? Is the wiping around the area going well?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t even mention it. At first, we were just happy that the base was big, but since the village-effected range grew just as big as well, it¡¯s hard to raise the public order even by 1 unless you hunt an unbelievable amount of monsters.¡± ¡°I see. I want to see the base quickly now.¡± Carwin¡¯s lips curled as he added. ¡°Even if you had just not reset, we would have been able to work on the suppression operation more easily¡­ Why did you choose to reset¡­¡± ¡°Just wait a little bit, bro. This hyung[1] will soon restore all of his strength before he reset.¡± Ian thought that way without an ounce of exaggeration mixed in. Ian was currently lv 69, and even if he got close to around lv 80, he thought he could display stats that could be equal to the strength of his Archer before resetting. Although it could be a stretch to reach lv 80 in two weeks with his current hunting speed, he felt he could at least reach around there. Of course, Carwin didn¡¯t take him seriously. ¡°Talk big much¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯m not talking big. I¡¯m almost at lv 70 now.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Carwin and Harin both had on an incredibly surprised expression. ¡°No, I thought it¡¯s only been about a week now since the arena ended, but you¡¯re at lv 69?¡± As Ian shrugged his shoulders, Carwin shook his head. ¡°No, does this hyung not sleep and just level-up¡­ You leveled up more than 1 level per day, you¡¯re crazy.¡± Harin spoke with a worried expression. ¡°Ian, if you do that, you¡¯ll shorten your lifespan.¡± It seemed as if Harin suddenly remembered something while they momentarily caught up with each other, as she stared at Ian. ¡°But, Ian. Can you show me your new friend that you said likes my meatballs?¡± ¡°Ah, Bbookbbook?¡± At the word Bbookbbook, Harin wore a quizzical expression. ¡°Huh? Bbookbbook is its name?¡± Ian laughed as he responded. ¡°Yes. Once you see him, you¡¯ll know why his name is Bbookbbook.¡± And Ian let down Bbookbbook, who was hanging on his back. ¡°Bbookbbook, come out.¡± As Ian called, Bbookbbook, who was inside his shell, poked out his head. Bbook-. As Harin saw that, her eyes opened wide. ¡°Wow, he¡¯s super cute!¡± Harin, who fell in love with Bbookbbook at first sight, crouched down in front of him. ¡°Hello, Bbookbbook.¡± Bbookbbook turned his head away from Harin, whom he had just saw for the first time. It was a Bbookbbook-like reaction from such a haughty turtle. Harin, who was hurt by Bbookbbook¡¯s coldness, asked Ian with a sullen face. ¡°Ian, it seems that Bbookbbook doesn¡¯t really like me. Why is that so?¡± And Ian, Bbookbbook¡¯s owner, knew the answer. ¡°It¡¯s because Bbookbbook¡¯s hungry right now. If there¡¯s something that you have already made, try giving one to him. Do you have something like a meatball?¡± Harin rejoiced as she began to look through her inventory. ¡°Just a second, as a matter of fact, there was something I had made while grinding for Proficiency¡­ Let¡¯s see here¡­¡± And the thing that Harin pulled out was a meatball, yellowish in colour, that was slightly different from the previous meatballs. It was a visual that seemed as if it was coated in flour and fried once. ¡°Oh, the meatball¡¯s colour slightly changed?¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right. I improved the recipe so it¡¯s a little tastier.¡± The delicious smell emanating from around the meatball! Bbookbbook, having already discovered the meatball, could not turn away, and even Ian had a gaze full of anticipation. ¡°Ooh¡­¡± ¡°The improved meatball¡¯s name is ¡®Drug Meatball¡¯. The texture of the food should be good since I lightly spread a special sauce I created on the surface and coated it with one layer of flour before frying it. It will probably delicious to you now, too, Ian, since the fishy taste should be gone.¡± Harin, who confidently boasted her new menu, crouched down again. And she held out the meatball to Bbookbbook. Bbook-! As she did so, Bbookbbook snatched the meatball as if he was waiting for it. Bbookbbook, who took the meatball from Harin, began to munch it while all three, even including Carwin, watched him in amusement. And shortly after. Bbook¡­ Bbook! After Bbookbbook savoured the meatball¡¯s texture with closed eyes until the last moment, he shook his shell in delight. And with a happy expression, he approached Harin and rubbed his head against her. Bbook- Bbookbbook! The chic Bbookbbook disappeared without a trace. All that was left was a gluttonous turtle that longed for the Drug Meatballs. ¡°Bbookbbook must be in a better mood!¡± Harin, whose mood also brightened at the strong reaction from her customer, placed her hand on top of her bag in order to grab another meatball. However, just then, Ian restrained her. ¡°Harin, don¡¯t give him any more. He¡¯ll develop a bad habit.¡± That moment. Glare-! Bbookbbook glared at Ian with both his eyes as if lasers would shoot out from them. However, Ian was adamant. ¡°If you give them to me, I¡¯ll give Bbookbbook one whenever he gets hungry.¡± At those words, Harin nodded her head and pulled out the lunchbox from her bag before handing it to Ian. ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s do that, then. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll take care of Bbookbbook well.¡± The cruel scene of the lunchbox, which looked like it could fit at least a dozen Drug Meatballs, going into his owner¡¯s bag was played, and Bbookbbook could only helplessly watch. Bbook- At the horrendous scene that was hard to watch with wide-open eyes, it seemed as if Bbookbbook would start crying. As if Carwin, who was watching from the side, felt pity at Bbookbbook¡¯s expression, he said a word to Ian. ¡°Hyung, he looks like he¡¯s about to cry. Why don¡¯t you give him just one more?¡± At Carwin¡¯s words, Bbookbbook turned towards Ian again with eyes brimming with tears. To be exact, though, he looked at Ian¡¯s bag, where the lunchbox was. However, Ian firmly refused. ¡°No. One meatball becomes two, and two meatballs becomes three.¡± As he did so, Ian slightly glanced at Bbookbbook. ¡®I¡¯ll probably have to soothe him now, right?¡¯ And Ian, who slightly moved, sat in front of Bbookbbook. ¡°Bbookbbook.¡± Bbook-! Bbookbbook sharply turned his head away. It seemed as though he was as sullen as when he was used as a shield for the first time. ¡°Listen a little to hyung¡¯s words, Bbookbbook.¡± Bbookbbook didn¡¯t respond, but Ian¡¯s words continued. ¡°Bbookbbook, you, do you know who is the most handsome and coolest turtle in the world?¡± Bbookbbook was still, acting as if he hadn¡¯t heard, but he had already begun to listen carefully to Ian¡¯s words. ¡°There¡¯s a turtle named Bbakbbak in the northern continent, but apparently, they say that turtle is the coolest turtle in the world.¡± Bbookbbook slightly turned his head. And with a gentle voice, he continued his words towards Bbookbbook, who wore an expression as if he couldn¡¯t believe it. ¡°You see, this hyung. If only I could have restrained myself after hearing those words. From what I know, there¡¯s no other turtle that is as handsome and cool as our Bbookbbook.¡± The cool turtle story that came out from Ian¡¯s mouth had the magic to even suck in Carwin and Harin. ¡°So, this hyung thought about it carefully.¡± Gulp- Amidst the silence, the sound of Bbookbbook swallowing his saliva rang out. ¡°Could it be that you¡¯ve eaten too many meatballs and gained weight lately, so you¡¯ve been pushed aside by that Bbakbbak?¡± Bbookbbook was shocked. This was because, as a matter of fact, whether it was from him gaining weight recently, he felt that his shell was a little tight! ¡°That¡¯s why I can¡¯t give you a lot of these Drug Meatballs, Bbookbbook. You understand this hyung¡¯s heart, right?¡± Bbook¡­! Bbookbbook, who didn¡¯t know that Ian thought of him this much, rubbed his head against Ian¡¯s hand as he wore a deeply moved expression. ¡°So, hold back a little, Bbookbbook. This hyung will make you the most handsome turtle in the universe.¡± While watching the scene of the owner and Familiar¡¯s friendship blossom, Carwin and Harin shook their heads. And with a small voice, Carwin mumbled. ¡°That trickster¡­¡± @ Ian, who received enough support from Harin, rode Ly in order to go over Forcal Mountains again. It was a situation where he couldn¡¯t summon Ddukdae, whose movements were slow, but catching one or two sparsely appearing Forcal Mountains¡¯ monsters with just Ly while moving wasn¡¯t too difficult. ¡®But, will the Drug Meatballs that Harin gave me truly have an effect on the Lava Witches?¡¯ Harin said that the meatballs that she made could have an effect when capturing monsters. And she had a point to an extent. Considering the results he already had from feeding Bbookbbook, hadn¡¯t he already confirmed that they were meatballs of the devil? However, he couldn¡¯t tell whether the Lava Witch, whose body was completely covered in red lava, would like the meatballs or not. He also thought that they might not be able to eat the meatballs like Ddukdae. ¡°If we just go a little more, we¡¯ll be able to get out of Forcal.¡± It was a situation where he wasn¡¯t very far from lv 70 now, which was a result of the monsters he consistently caught while passing through Forcal. He felt he could even make everybody reach lv 70, even including Bbookbbook, who was the lowest level, if he hunted a couple of Sand Worms, which were an early lv 70 monster that appeared in Scorching Land, before he entered the dungeon. And just like Ian predicted, Forcal Mountains ended soon and the splendor of Scorching Land was revealed. ¡°Whew, it¡¯s so hard to dare step foot here.¡± The ruined land that was cracked here and there because of the dryness, Scorching Land was humid to the point that the heat haze was visible enough. ¡®Just looking at it makes me sweat. If I rode Ddukdae around before he evolved, it would have been a bit cooler¡­¡¯ Of course, if Ddukdae had heard, he would have freaked out. During his Ice Golem days, heat was practically equivalent to catastrophe for Ddukdae. Either way, Ian, who escaped Forcal Mountains, began to walk through Scorching Land. And Ian was able to discover about four to five large, scorpion monsters shortly after. It was the ¡®Sand Scorpion¡¯, a monster that Ian was familiar with as well. Ian momentarily contemplated. ¡®Hm, this will be difficult without Ddukdae. Should we just pass by or should we catch them and go?¡¯ As there was still a long way to go, he was planning on pushing Ddukdae¡¯s summoning as much as possible, but it would be a struggle to face several lv 70 monsters without Ddukdae. However, to just ignore and pass by EXP that he saw made him uncomfortable in a small corner of his heart. ¡°Ddukdae, summon!¡± Ian eventually made up his mind to fight. Thud- Along with a heavy sound, Ddukdae was summoned in the middle of Scorching Land. Because of his even larger build, the scorpions¡¯ attention turned to Ddukdae just from him being summoned. Screee-. Seu-Seu-Seu-Seut-. The scorpions that discovered Ddukdae busily approached Ian and his party with fast movements. ¡®If we¡¯re just careful of their deadly poison, then there¡¯s nothing major that would be a problem.¡¯ The scorpions¡¯ deadly poison attack was incredibly dangerous. The deadly poison was the upgraded version of the generally known poison attack, ¡®Poisoned¡¯, in Kailran, and if attacked by the deadly poison, there was even an additional consistent damage received. If gone into a general Poisoned state in Kailran, you received a damage equivalent to 1-2% of your maximum Health per second. However, the damage proportionate to your maximum health was a given; the scorpions¡¯ deadly poison dealt an additional fixed damage of 500 to 1500+ at most depending on the receiver¡¯s resistance to the poison. In other words, ¡®Deadly Poison¡¯ was a critical effect basically equivalent to having both the Poisoned stated and Bleeding state in effect at the same time. Because of that, if even a high-level user was careless, it was a dangerous monster that could send them kicking the bucket in an instant, however, a strategy existed as well. [1] hyung = what a younger male calls an older, close male CH 66 Chapter 66: Scorching Land (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡®You just need to make that tail go into combat-disabled state first.¡¯ By attacking the tail, which was the source of where the scorpion¡¯s deadly poison was shot out from, and dealing a fixed amount of damage, the deadly poison could no longer be shot out. Therefore, the scorpion could rather be an easier monster to face if you knew how to face them. Ian let out a command to Ly. ¡°Ly, since it would be a failure if you go in first and get hit by the poison, just be on standby for now.¡± Grr- ¡°And once the slowing effect is activated and Ddukdae¡¯s skill goes through, then attack the tail first. Understood?¡± Because of Ly¡¯s superior Agility, he wouldn¡¯t allow most of the deadly poison attacks to hit him, but as it would be a failure if he even allowed one hit, Ian decided to play safe and commanded accordingly. Grr- Grr- Ly nodded his head, and Ian pulled his bowstring. It was a situation where the scorpions had already reached within Ddukdae¡¯s proximity. Ian let out a command to Ddukdae. ¡°Ddukdae, Abyss Hole!¡± And an oscillating wave began to flow out from both of Ddukdae¡¯s arms. Thud- Thu-Thu-Thud-! Screech-! As soon as the scorpions began to be sucked into the Abyss Hole, Ian, who invoked Current Proliferation, let go of his bowstring. Ping-! Za-Za-Zap-! Za-Zap! Ian hit four out of the five scorpions with one shot of Current Proliferation, and two of the four immediately went into paralyzed state. This was possible because the scorpions were gathered together through Abyss Hole. The ¡®Scorpion¡¯ has gone into ¡®Paralyzed¡¯ state.The ¡®Scorpion¡¯s movements will be slowed by 30%, and will receive an additional 50% damage towards ¡®electricity¡¯-type attacks.The cooldown time for ¡®Current Proliferation¡¯ has reset. Ian continued to shoot his arrows. And as Weak Point Capturing was invoked, Ly quickly threw his body. ¡°Ly, the farthest one on the left first!¡± Ly cleverly moved according to Ian¡¯s command, because of the slowing effect and the gravitational pull of Abyss Hole, the scorpion, whose movements were restricted, wasn¡¯t able to avoid Ly¡¯s sharp teeth. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ attacked the scorpion¡¯s tail and has dealt critical damage.3007 damage has been dealt to the scorpion.The ¡®Scorpion¡¯s Tail¡¯ has lost the ability to fight. Ian wore a satisfied expression at Ly¡¯s Offensive Power, which had made the scorpion¡¯s tail go into combat-disabled state in one hit. ¡®When I fought as an Archer before resetting, I really struggled to hit that tail.¡¯ Ian thought that one of the advantages of Summoners was that he could combine the Summoner and the Familiars¡¯ skills to suit his taste to make a high synergy effect. And he felt this advantage could offset all the other many disadvantages. ¡°Current Proliferation!¡± The arrow that left Ian¡¯s bowstring skillfully drilled in between the scorpions and exploded on the body of the scorpion that was in the middle. The bundles of proliferated currents that naturally spread out hit all of the surrounding scorpions, and after bouncing around multiple times and dealing damage, they disappeared. Luck also followed him, but it was also Ian¡¯s Current Proliferation control, that had truly reached the stage of a master. And while Ian continued to shoot arrows, he let out detailed instructions to Ddukdae and Ly. ¡°Ddukdae, fall back a little, so you don¡¯t get hit by the poison needles, and Ly, that scorpion at the very front isn¡¯t in paralysis state, so attack it first!¡± Ian¡¯s multi-tasking skill was at a surprising level. The difficult control was one of the disadvantages of Summoners that many users picked out. Compared to the other normal classes, where the user character just needed to be well-controlled, there were a lot of things that needed to be considered when playing as a Summoner, and while doing so, there were many times when they weren¡¯t able to pay attention to their own character and blatantly died. However, this hard level of difficulty for the control aspect was something that Ian instead enjoyed, so it ended up not being a disadvantage. Ian quickly suppressed the five scorpions. ¡°Since I¡¯ve summoned Ddukdae as well, I should plan to catch all the monsters I see while moving.¡± After roughly reorganizing, he began to move again. And after about three hours, Ian was able to reach the basement dungeon of Scorching Land. @ ¡®Ugh, it¡¯s even hotter inside here. It¡¯s probably because of those Lava Spawns, right?¡¯ Ian came to the basement dungeon to catch Lava Witches, but the monster that inhabited most of the area of the basement dungeon was a monster called Lava Spawns. Ian, who arrived at the basement dungeon, checked the level of the Lava Spawns first of all. ¡®Their levels are 71, 73¡­ It shouldn¡¯t be too difficult facing them.¡¯ The spawns were around their early lv 70s, just as he remembered. ¡®Still, I can¡¯t be careless. If I make a mistake and lure over ten of them, they¡¯re capable of being fully dangerous.¡¯ The Lava Spawns were actually easier to get rid of compared to the Forcal Bandits when facing one by one. This was because, compared to the strength of their basic attack, which was a fire attack that shot out lava, their Vitality was basically paper-thin, and if they were attacked without given time to proliferate, they would die without being able to properly resist. However, the story was different if their numbers increased. If one of them began to proliferate while one or two other ones died, there was no way of knowing how many they would multiply to. For Ian, who currently had no strong AoE magic, he needed to avoid a situation like that at all costs. If the dozens of Lava Spawns shot out flames, even Ddukdae wouldn¡¯t be able to withstand their strong power. ¡®Firstly, they¡¯re in a situation where they go around in groups of about two to three.¡¯ After Ian checked every inch of the entrance with careful movements, he made a plan. ¡®First, I¡¯ll go to the lowest floor of the dungeon. Since the number of rare monsters will increase the lower the floor I go down to.¡¯ The floor, where Ian currently was, was the highest floor and not one Lava Witch could be seen. There was a chance that he could meet them if he went down to the lower levels. And as he had evolved even Ddukdae to a Unique-rank, he became a little greedier. ¡®Could there possibly be a Unique-rank or an even better monster, rather than just a Rare-rank Lava Witch?¡¯ In the New Monster Information bulletin of the community, only the Lava Witch¡¯s information was posted, but despite that, there was no guarantee that a new monster didn¡¯t exist. Ian began to move his feet full of anticipation. ¡°Ddukdae, follow behind carefully. If you grab too much attention at the front, all of the Lava Spawns could gather around us.¡± Deu-reu-reuk- With a slight nod, Ddukdae expressed his mind. And Ian put Ly at the front before slowly moving forward. Unless over five of them gathered, Ian planned on hunting without Ddukdae and just ambushing them to catch them instantly. Ian, who arrived within proximity of the Lava Spawns, quietly spoke to Ly. ¡°Ly, get ready. When I shoot my arrow, you have to kill the one that I hit first.¡± Grr- Grr- After Ian let out his command, he activated his buffs. And then, he slowly pulled his bowstring. ¡°Current Proliferation!¡± Electricity began to flow in the arrowhead, and Ian¡¯s well-aimed bow left his bowstring and began to fly through the air. Whoosh-! Ian¡¯s bow indubitably punctured through the Lava Spawn¡¯s chest. Keu-aaeek-! And Ian, who had let go of his bowstring, quickly used his Potential Explosion skill on Ly. ¡°Potential Explosion!¡± And Ly¡¯s stats explosively increased. ¡®Potential Explosion¡¯ skill has been used on Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯.Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s stats have increased in proportion to ¡®Ly¡¯s Potential.¡®Ly¡¯s stats will additionally increase by 98% for 1 minute 40 seconds. It seemed because he had raised his Training skill to a High-class level, Ly¡¯s Potential was reaching close to 100 before he even knew it. ¡®Once Ly¡¯s Potential hits 100, I need to quickly raise Ddukdae¡¯s Potential.¡¯ As Ian had used all of Ddukdae¡¯s Potential while evolving him, there was no point if he used the Potential Explosion skill on Ddukdae. Because of that, he had continuously used Potential Explosion on Ly despite Ddukdae having much higher stats. While Ian had such happy thoughts, he charged his Current Proliferation skill again as soon as the cooldown time was over. Ping- Pi-Ping-. While Ian¡¯s arrows continuously flew out, Ly, who received an enormous amount of Offensive Power thanks to the Potential amplification, caught tow of the three Lava Spawns in an instant. And shortly after, the last one turned into a grey light and disappeared after being hit by Ian¡¯s arrow. As they had eliminated the Lava Spawns with their explosive Offensive Power and gave them no time to proliferate, the Lava Spawns were incredibly lethargic. And Ian checked the duration of the Potential amplification skill that was activated on Ly. ¡®The remaining duration is 58 seconds. I could probably catch another group of Lava Spawns.¡¯ And taking that as a sign, Ly also followed him and charged towards the next group of Lava Spawns. Grr- Grar-! This time, rather than focusing on hitting the mark with Current Proliferation, Ian focused more on hitting the Shining Mark. This was because he needed to quickly reduce the Potential amplification skill to use on Ly as much as he could. Like that, Ian quickly cleaned up the Lava Spawns while going deeper into the dungeon. @ Each floor of the basement floors of the Scorching Land were not very wide, but it continued deeper down. Starting from around the 3rd basement floor, one or two Lava Witches started to appear, but Ian decided to go even further down to the lower levels. And just when he was about to reach around the 5th basement floor, Ian suddenly discovered something weird. ¡®Huh? Why are those ones¡¯ lava colour different?¡¯ If they weren¡¯t looked at carefully, it was unnoticeable, but the colour of the flames and lava enveloping the Lava Witch and the Lava Spawns were slightly different. And as he opened their information, there was a (Contaminated) modifier attached to the front of the monsters¡¯ names. ¡®What the hell? Contaminated?¡¯ Like a gamer whose dipped into dozens of games in the meantime, Ian¡¯s uncommon instincts were invoked. ¡®This, this. It smells like a quest.¡¯ He had smelled the scent of a quest from just one subtle difference. Ian, who became a little more interested in the dungeon, continued to catch monsters and go down to the lower floors. ¡®Was there a total of 10 floors for the Scorching Land¡¯s basement dungeon?¡¯ As he had not gone past the 5th floor even before resetting, his memory was a bit dim, but as he had already discovered the scent of a quest, he decided to go down to the very end. As he passed the 7th floor, there were quite a lot of Lava Witches, but Ian hunted them without hesitation and continued to move. He planned on momentarily pushing aside capturing Lava Witches until he checked the lowest floor of the dungeon. ¡®The lower the floor I go, the bigger the proportion of contaminated monsters there are.¡¯ His assurance that there was something grew stronger. As he continued to go down like that, Ian, who eventually reached the 10th floor, was slightly flustered. ¡®What the hell? The 10th floor wasn¡¯t the end?¡¯ Ian, who thought the basement 10th floor was the lowest floor, discovered another entrance to go down to another floor while thoroughly looking through the map to try and find the lead related to the quest. Ian, who went into the entrance that he discovered like that, checked the newly discovered map¡¯s name before his eyes shone. ¡®Source of Lava? This is totally my first time hearing a map with this name! Is this a newly developed place that appeared after the large update?¡¯ Even if it was a new map created from the large update, there was a low chance that this was a map first discovered by Ian. This was because a lot of time had already passed since the update. ¡®But, as it¡¯s a name I haven¡¯t seen in the community yet either, it¡¯s not a place that many know about¡­¡¯ The Source of Lava map was a little wider than the other maps of the upper dungeon floors. Ian hunted all of the monsters that appeared without missing a single one and slowly moved towards the centre of the map by following a maze-like path. Had about twenty minutes passed like that? A tremendous scene spread in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. CH 67 Chapter 67: Scorching Land (4) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡®What, What the hell?! What would you call this? A lava fall?¡¯ Just as described, in front of Ian¡¯s eyes, there was an enormous lava fall that was pouring down. It was such a magnificent sight that it reminded him of Niagara Falls, the gigantic waterfall that was in between the Canadian and American border. ¡®Err, but the heat is seriously awful. It¡¯s even hard to breathe.¡¯ It was already a hot dungeon to begin with, so it was obvious how hard it would be to breathe when he had the lava fall right in front of his nose. While Ian was standing in front of the fall, thinking of this and that, a system message popped up in front of his eyes out of the blue. Ring-. You are the first discoverer of the Source of Lava, the Blazing Explosion.Your Affinity with fire-type will increase by 5%.Your resistance to fire-type will increase by +10.From now on, your Affinity with fire-type monsters will not drop below 30. The system messages that rang out one after another. ¡®What the hell, I¡¯ve never heard of a situation like this ever happening before¡­¡¯ Ian was puzzled, but he felt good. ¡®On top of that, for me to be the first. Even if it was a map that newly appeared after the update, I thought that there would have been quite a lot of users that visited here¡­ Hmm¡­¡¯ However, that wasn¡¯t the end. Chwaah-! Suddenly, something in the corner of the enormous fall that was watching Ian squirmed and began to take some sort of form. ¡°Huh?¡± Ian gawked at the sight, and the lava slowly changed into some sort of gigantic form and began to approach Ian. ¡®This¡­ What, what is this? Should I be running away right now?¡¯ Ian was suddenly conflicted as to whether he should run at the image of the lava monster that was not only was gigantic in size, but also oozed an unbelievable overpowering feeling, yet his feet did not move. This was because, rather than feeling curious as to what would happen, he felt he would get caught anyways if he was to run. And the thing that had reached right in front of Ian shortly after slowly opened its mouth. Oh-ho! Finally, a Summoner with the qualifications has appeared in the Source of Lava! Ian, who was momentarily frightened that it would abruptly attack, let out a sigh of relief as soon as he heard its first words. ¡®As expected, is it a quest?¡¯ And as he heard its words, one of his questions was answered. ¡®Ah, so this was a hidden map that you can only enter if you are a Summoner!¡¯ If that was the case, it made sense as to why Ian was the first to discover the Source of Lava. Since a Summoner that was currently a higher level than Ian probably didn¡¯t exist. The lava monster that had reached its completed form before Ian realized, gave off a feeling similar to a Grim Reaper as it was floating in the air and held a weapon that looked like a gigantic scythe. ¡®It seems like a ghost, but it also seems like a devil¡­¡¯ With a nervous expression, Ian spoke to the NPC that appeared. As he had encountered so many NPCs now, it wasn¡¯t awkward for him to talk to them. ¡°Excuse me¡­ Is this place the Source of Lava?¡± And the enormous lava lump NPC continued his words. I am the Guardian of Lava, Helian. And yes, this place is the Source of Lava. The one who introduced himself as Helian continued to speak again. What is your name? ¡°I¡¯m Ian.¡± I see. After momentarily taking a breath, he opened his mouth slowly. Ian, do you have the mindset to solve the problem that has appeared at the Source of Lava? There was no reason to reject a situation that obviously led to an unknown hidden quest. ¡®Why reject when you don¡¯t even know what kind of quest will appear?¡¯ Ian immediately responded. ¡°Yes, Helian. If it is possible with my abilities, I will gladly help.¡± At Ian¡¯s polite words, Helian wore a satisfied expression as he nodded his head. Saying that you¡¯ll help, I¡¯m truly grateful. Then hear my story a little first. And a story related to the quest flowed out of Helian¡¯s mouth. It was a long story that took around 5 minutes, but to summarize it in one sentence, he was asking Ian for help in purifying the Source of Lava that was being contaminated. Ian, who heard the whole story, asked. ¡°Then, Helian, what must I do in order to purify the Source of Lava?¡± As Ian asked, Helian slightly let out a breath instead of a response. Hoo-! At the incredible heat, Ian was surprised. ¡®Whew, I thought he was shooting a flame thrower.¡¯ And Helian continued his words towards Ian, who was breaking out in a cold sweat. Firstly, I need to test your abilities before anything. ¡°Please continue.¡± Take this Sealing Stone and capture over 20 contaminated lava monsters before bringing it back. From the spot where Helian¡¯s breath was spurted out, a fist-sized stone shining a red light was floating around. And as he slightly lifted his hand, the bright red object moved towards Ian. The more you capture within the time limit, the better. Do you think you can do it? Along with the end of Helian¡¯s words, a quest window popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring-. Purification of the Contaminated Source of Lava Helian, the Guardian of Lava, has requested that you capture over 20 contaminated lava monsters in order to purify the Source of Lava. Receive the Sealing Stone of Lava from him and return after capturing as many lava monsters as possible. (The Sealing Stone of Lava can be used in the same way as using a Sealing Order Sheet, and with one Sealing Stone, many contaminated monsters can be captured.) Quest Difficulty Level: B Quest Condition: Over lv 50 Summoner. Time Limit: 3 hours. Reward ¨C 42,500 EXP for each contaminated monster captured. Ian¡¯s two eyes widened. ¡¯42,500 EXP for each monster?¡¯ The EXP that you gained from quests was different from the EXP you gained from hunting as it wasn¡¯t divided between the Summoner and their Familiars. Ian and all of his Familiars would be granted exactly 42,500 EXP. 42,500 EXP was equivalent to the EXP you gained when hunting around 12 monsters in a dungeon. Ian remembered when he captured his Clopia, which was a Rare-rank monster that was a similar level. ¡®It took around 15 minutes for me to catch one Clopia, right? Since the Clopia is a Rare-rank monster, assuming I only capture Common-rank Lava Spawns, it¡¯s going to take a little bit more time¡­¡¯ With the cooldown time for his Potential Capacity Explosion skill, it would take at least about 20 minutes in order for Ian to hunt around 12 Lava Spawns. Ian¡¯s head began to quickly spin. ¡®I should be able to catch three Lava Spawns in 20 minutes.¡¯ Even if he captured three, he would receive the same amount of EXP from the quest as he would be hunting almost 40 of them. It was a very average reward despite being a hidden quest, but the huge EXP was the sweetest reward for Ian right now. ¡°I¡¯ll capture as many as I can and return!¡± At Ian¡¯s brave response, Helian wore a slightly distrustful expression. I¡¯ll say it again, but you must capture a total of twenty within three hours. It won¡¯t be an easy task¡­ It was normal for an average Summoner to take over 10 minutes to capture a Familiar that was 3-5 levels higher than themselves. If calculated with those numbers, capturing 20 monsters within three hours was close to impossible. However, Ian¡¯s Affinity stat was at least 1.5 times higher than the average Summoner. This was because, basically, the ¡®Taming Master¡¯ hidden class was granted more of the Affinity stat in comparison to the average Summoner, and Ian also obtained Affinity little by little as a reward for being the very first achiever. Ian, who finished calculating, nodded his head. ¡°I can do it. Don¡¯t worry.¡± Alright, then I will try to trust you. As Helian responded, a system message rang out. Ring-. You have accepted the quest.Remaining time 02:59:59 As soon as the remaining time popped up, Ian hurriedly packed the Sealing Stone that Helian set afloat in the air. This was because every minute and every second was valuable right now when he needed to capture as many monsters as he could. ¡°Then, I¡¯ll be back!¡± While Helian watched Ian, who quickly ran out before even hearing his reply, he quietly mumbled to himself. I don¡¯t know why, but I can¡¯t seem to trust him¡­ Helian¡¯s eyes momentarily remained fixated on the spot where Ian disappeared from. @ With exactly about 2 minutes remaining, Ian returned to Helian. As soon as Helian saw Ian, who ran over gasping for air, he narrowed his eyes and asked. Have you captured over twenty monsters? ¡°Huff¡­ huff¡­¡± Ian, who arrived right in front of Helian, momentarily gathered his breath before responding. ¡°Yes, Helian. I¡¯ve caught a total of 31 monsters.¡± And Ian pulled out the Sealing Stone with the contaminated monsters sealed inside of it from his inventory and handed it to Helian. As he did so, Helian¡¯s two eyes widened. Oh¡­ Oh-ho! There are truly 31 monsters sealed within! He wore an expression of disbelief. This was because three hours was not enough time to capture 20 monsters to begin with. ¡°Haha, I told you I was confident, didn¡¯t I?¡± Ian wore a triumphant expression, and Helian passively acknowledged him. Truly surprising. I took you too lightly. I will apologize for that. And a notification saying that Ian completed the quest popped up. Ring-. You have completed the quest.You have caught a total of 31 contaminated lava monsters.You have obtained 1,317,500 EXP. As Ian saw the 1.3 million EXP, his jaw dropped wide open. This was because this amount of EXP could only be obtained if you solely focused on hunting like crazy for a quarter of a day. Looking at the EXP bar, he hadn¡¯t even realized that he had 10% EXP left until he reached lv 71. ¡®Alright, good.¡¯ Helian opened his mouth again towards a satisfied Ian. Good work, Ian. ¡°Thank you, Helian. Is there nothing left to do now?¡± Ian was having fun, so he asked Helian. If it was a honey-like quest like this, he felt he could do it ten times more. And Helian¡¯s words continued. Of course, there is more. Along with Helian¡¯s words that continued shortly after, a connected quest began to go on. And Ian was unable to realize this time that it was the literal beginning of the hell of fire. @ The Capital of Luspel Empire. And the master of the empire, King Celias, wore a serious expression as he had a conversation with one man. The man¡¯s name was Hellaim, the captain of the Luspel imperial family¡¯s royal knights. ¡°Hellaim, is there no report from that prophet of Summoners yet?¡± Hellaim bowed deeply while responding. ¡°That¡¯s right, Your Majesty. Should I ask around and find him to have him present himself to you?¡± Celias shook his head. ¡°No, this was something that the imperial family¡¯s great scholars couldn¡¯t find a solution to even with over a half a year¡¯s worth of time. I wasn¡¯t even expecting him to have already found an answer when it¡¯s only been around a month.¡± The understanding king, Celias. However, if he found out that Ian wasn¡¯t giving a bloody care about the Empire quest and was only leveling up, he would become infuriated. ¡°But, Your Majesty. Aren¡¯t you trusting him too much.¡± At Hellaim¡¯s words, Celias smiled and momentarily sipped his tea before opening his mouth. ¡°How much time is there left until the Empire Commemoration Day, Hellaim?¡± ¡°There are about four months left, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I see, four months¡­¡± Celias, who briefly thought of something, opened his mouth again. ¡°I want to see the Griffin¡¯s egg hatch before the Empire Commemoration Day. If we exposed the Empire¡¯s symbol, the Griffin, on the Empire Commemoration Day, it would raise the imperial family¡¯s dignity even higher.¡± Celias, who was imagining a Griffin protecting the imperial family¡¯s blue sky, wore a satisfied expression. ¡°What do you think, Hellaim. Do you think it¡¯s possible?¡± Hellaim bowed his head down. ¡°I will do as commanded.¡± Celias gazed at Hellaim as he added another word. ¡°If there is no report from him within the next two months, go and find him.¡± CH 68 Chapter 68: Result of the Bet (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda On the other hand, Ian, who had no idea what was going on in the imperial family, was grinding hard deep down in the basement of the Scorching Land. ¡®Damn it! What the hell is this?¡¯ From a cliff with a narrow angle as if it was chipped away, Ian was, more specifically, narrowly hanging just above a pit of lava, digging out something using a tool similar to a pickaxe. ¡®When will this crazy, endless gathering end?¡¯ The quest that he received just after the contaminated monster capturing quest was also quite satisfying. As it was a quest requiring him to kill 100 contaminated monsters. ¡®The reward was a little salty, but it was ok since it was a quest that I could do while hunting anyways.¡¯ However, after that quest, the connected quests up until now were quests that required him to poke around the dungeon and gather minerals or medicinal herbs. ¡®The quests I hate the most are these kinds of quests.¡¯ Ian morbidly hated quests like these where he needed to go around the dungeon and gather miscellaneous ingredients. It was simple grinding, where he couldn¡¯t gain EXP or raise the Proficiency of his skills, nor did he even get a lot of gold. Of course, depending on the reward he received at the end, his mental attitude could be different, but as he didn¡¯t even know what was at the end of the connected quests, a characteristic of quests like these, it was even more irritating. ¡®I dare you to try and give me something useless. Whether you¡¯re the Guardian of Lava or whatever, I¡¯ll destroy everything!¡¯ He had already come too far. Ian had already spent 24 hours in full unable to level and had only been doing quests. However, as he had already come this far, he needed to see the end of this. Ring-. You have succeeded in gathering the ¡®Root of Red Moss¡¯.Gathering of the Root of Red Moss (35/35)You have reached the requirement needed to complete the quest. As Ian looked at the message telling him he completed his gathering, he let out a deep sigh. ¡®Please tell me this is the end¡­¡¯ Ian, who had crawled up the cliff, headed towards the Source of Lava again. His footsteps that went towards Helian were out of energy. ¡®It¡¯s the end, right? It¡¯s probably the end, it has to be the end.¡¯ Ian, who mumbled this incantation as if he was memorizing it, handed the ingredients to Helian with shaking hands. ¡°Here, I¡¯ve brought the ingredients.¡± His voice was incomparably weaker than when he first started the quests. Helian smirked as he saw this Ian. Good work, wait here a moment. While watching Helian, who disappeared into the lava again with the items he was handed, Ian collapsed on the floor. ¡®Ha, it¡¯s the same pattern.¡¯ He was certain that the bright red lump of fire would come out again and give him another damn gathering quest. Ian gave out a deep sigh. ¡°Hoo¡­¡± It was to the point where Ian was seriously considering giving up the connected quests if another gathering quest was to come up. ¡®It¡¯s alright if there¡¯s still quests left to do, just please no more gathering quests¡­¡¯ Ian closed his eyes as he sat down. And he began to desperately pray even though he didn¡¯t even have a religion. ¡®God, Buddha, Allah. Please just listen to my prayer this once. You know that I usually don¡¯t expect much in life. Heuk-heuk¡­¡¯ The desperate prayer of Ian, the easygoing gamer; would his prayer reach the heavens? The lava of the fall that poured down in front of Ian began to rage left, right and centre. Kwaaah-! At the boom that rang out at an unbelievable loudness, which sounded as if the dungeon would collapse, Ian was frightened to death. ¡°What, what the hell?¡± And he felt despair. ¡®I don¡¯t want to become the first Kailran user that dies from a dungeon collapsing onto them¡­¡¯ Just when Ian was seriously considering logging out, the vibrations that violently shook the whole dungeon gradually began to calm down. And the lava that poured like a fall right in front of Ian¡¯s eyes disappeared, and a calm lake of lava appeared. Ian stared at it with a dazed expression. ¡®Is it finally the end?¡¯ Many things definitely changed. The heat was the same, but the gloomy energy that took over the whole Source of Lava map had brightened, and the blackish lavas that spilled here and there in the dungeon had recovered into a bright red colour. And lastly, the calm lake of lava shook and the Guardian of Lava, Helian¡¯s form was revealed. Thank you for listening to my requests up until now, Ian. ¡°Don¡¯t mention it.¡± Ian, who responded with a bitter expression, carefully asked. ¡°But is the purification of the Source of Lava completely finished now?¡± Helian nodded his head. That¡¯s right, it¡¯s thanks to you doing more work than I expected. Ian, who felt something was weird, asked again. ¡°What do you mean by I¡¯ve worked more than you expected?¡± ¡®I just did what he asked, though?¡¯ While looking at Ian, who wore a puzzled expression, Helian smiled brightly. I told you before, but there¡¯s an enormous nucleus of lava at the bottom of this lake of lava. Ian listened to Helian¡¯s story without saying a word. The ingredients I asked from you up until now were required to make an essence that would purify the nucleus of lava. Helian continued his words as he gazed at the bubbling lava. I was given exactly 24 hours to purify the nucleus of lava. Originally, if you just made one complete essence, then it possessed the qualifications to purify the lava. While listening to Helian¡¯s words, Ian¡¯s expression slowly began to contort. However, Helian, who didn¡¯t catch that, opened his mouth again wearing a touched expression. However, thanks to your diligent gathering, I was able to make five essences. Thanks to you, I¡¯ll be able to purify this nucleus of lava that periodically gets contaminated about 5 more times without any issues. Plop- As Ian¡¯s legs lost their strength, he immediately plopped onto the ground. ¡®Ah¡­ For it to have been a quest with a fixed time.¡¯ If it was based on Helian¡¯s words, it meant that he just needed to follow through with the quest until he made one essence. He felt like tears would fall from his resentment. ¡®No wonder, he made me gather the same ingredients multiple times¡­¡¯ Ian had simply just diligently gathered them in order to completely finish the connected quests as fast as possible. He didn¡¯t grind this hard to do a good deed for Helian. ¡®If I knew this was the case, I should have hunted in between instead of just gathering.¡¯ If he had done that, he felt he could have filled his EXP gauge at least up to around 40-50%. However, he couldn¡¯t get mad at Helian, asking why he deceived him here. As he couldn¡¯t throw away his Affinity with NPCs that he collected well up until now just before he received his reward. Strictly speaking, Helian hadn¡¯t deceived Ian, he had simply just not told him. And Helian, who wouldn¡¯t know Ian¡¯s current mental state, looked like he was in an incredibly good mood. Ho-ho, thanks to you, I won¡¯t have to worry about the Source of Lava for a while. My heart is truly at peace. Ian, who heard those words, mumbled inwardly. ¡®Then give me my reward now, dude.¡¯ And as if Helian had somehow heard those words, his words continued. You¡¯ve truly done a great job. This isn¡¯t much in comparison, but it¡¯s a gift to you from me. And a notification that notified the end of the connected quests rang out to Ian¡¯s ears. Ring-. You have completed all of the connected quests of the Source of Lava. Clear Rank: SSSYou have obtained 12,935,000 EXP.You have leveled up. You have reached lv 71. He had reached lv 71 and even had over 50% EXP filled up afterwards. In full it was 24 hours, but it had technically invested almost two days, yet the reward was amazing enough that it was worth investing that much time. Starting from the capturing quest, as he had completed each connected quest with his fullest potential, his clear rank was also a triple S. However, Ian¡¯s expression was sullen. ¡®If I had even hunted in between, wouldn¡¯t I have leveled up one more level?¡¯ While Ian shook with regret, another message popped up. You have obtained the ¡®Sealing Stone of Lava¡¯. ¡®Hm¡­ What¡¯s the Sealing Stone of Lava?¡¯ Ian, who read the system message, asked Helian before he even realized. ¡°What is this, Helian?¡± Helian smiled as he responded. It¡¯s one of the Guardians that protects the essence of this lava. Originally, I¡¯m supposed to give this to another guy as a reward, but as you have done so much for me, I¡¯ll give you my most prized one as a gift. ¡®Guardian¡­?¡¯ Ian opened his inventory with a thumping heart. And as he checked the Sealing Stone, a monster¡¯s stat window opened up largely in front of his eyes. Lava Drake King Level: 80 Classification: Drake Rank: Heroic Personality: Valiant Evolution impossible Offensive Power: 1975 Defensive Power: 975 Agility: 527 Intellect: 609 Vitality: 23,537/23,537 Mana: 9,750/9,750 Inherent Ability Flame Absorption Damage that is fire-type will be 30% less effective. Breath of Lava As a fire-type breath is launched, the front will receive a damage of 475% Offensive Power. (Cooldown Time 30 minutes) Ruler of Lava There is a 30% chance to invoke the ¡®Ruler of Lava¡¯ ability with a basic attack. If the Ruler of Lava ability is invoked, a flame is emitted and deals 175% Offensive Power to the opponents in the front. (It is sprayed out in a fan-like form 4 metres forward) This is the king of Lava Drakes that was born from within hot lava. It specializes in fire-type attacks, and boasts an incredibly strong Offensive Power. Ian, who read the monster information window frantically, was deeply moved. ¡®A Heroic-rank monster¡­ On top of that, its Offensive Power is almost at 2000.¡¯ As Ian saw the unbelievable number of 1975 Offensive Power, his jaw dropped. It was equipped with breath as a basic, an ability that most drakes had, and the passive skill called Ruler of Lava was also an AoE attack skill that Ian desperately needed right now. As expected, the ¡®evolution impossible¡¯ part was a little disappointing, but it was just a speck of dust in comparison. After all, as there was no user that had even seen a Legendary-rank monster yet, in reality, a Heroic-rank monster was the highest rank monster with the current standard. If he had expected an evolution possible option on top of this, it would have instead been considered theft. ¡®Because of the evolution impossible option, its limit is already decided, but for me right now, when leveling up urgent, it is truly the optimum Familiar.¡¯ He eagerly wanted to make a contract with the Familiar immediately and use it, but he lacked Leadership. ¡®I should go to the village immediately after and change all my items after purchasing items that raise my Leadership.¡¯ If all else failed, he even planned on clearing his contract with Clopia, his Possession shuttle[1]. Of course, he felt if he used a little bit of money, he could roughly raise his Leadership to accommodate even without clearing contracts. His guilty conscious that made him feel like he only helped others while wasting his time disappeared instantly. ¡®Even if I used the time I gathered to grind-capture Lava Witches, I probably wouldn¡¯t have been able to gain one better than this one.¡¯ He felt he could gain the EXP he lost from the time he spent gathering if he hunted with this ¡®Lava Drake King¡¯. Ian smiled brightly, acting as if he was never bitter, and showed his gratitude to Helian. ¡°Thank you, Helian. I¡¯ll use the drake well.¡± No, thank you. Thanks to you, the Source of Lava has returned to normal. I hope that one will be of use to you. Ian, who said goodbye to Helian, hurriedly used the return stone that would send him back to the village. Ian only wanted to quickly use the drake even for a moment right now. @ Around when Ian wore a happy smile as he looked at the Lava Drake he received as his quest reward, Canoel, who was another Lava Drake owner, was absorbed in leveling up with his other self. ¡°Yongyong, Breath!¡± Keu-oohh! The monster that was shooting out a bright red breath towards the front was precisely Yongyong, the Lava Drake. ¡®No matter which way I look at it, I think I¡¯ve named him well. Hoo-hoo.¡¯ Canoel was satisfied with his naming sense. The name Yongyong was a name that had quite some meaning(?). It was a name that took the first letter of lava and dragon and combined them together[2]. It was Canoel, who had an amazing(?) naming sense that was almost equal to Ian¡¯s. Hwaaaak-! The five Peragons that charged forward immediately turned into a grey light as Yongyong¡¯s breath burst out. Kyaak-! Yongyong, who felt triumphant, wore an arrogant expression as he let out hot smoke from his mouth. And Yongyong wasn¡¯t the only one wearing a conceited expression. ¡°Muahaha! How does that taste, you jerks?¡± While Canoel slaughtered the Peragons of Nareuhan Swamp, who made it hard for him a couple days ago, he let out a loud shout. It was the height of satisfaction. In comparison to the Half-Moon Bear who kept missing in the air, the lovable Yongyong was on an another level to it. ¡°Yongyong, good job!¡± Canoel¡¯s Affinity with Yongyong was also almost to the max. Different from the Half-Moon Bear he easily abused, it was thanks to the infinite affection he poured onto Yongyong. Truthfully, it was obvious that a Peragon, a Common-rank monster around lv 26, won¡¯t stand a chance against Yongyong, who was an Unique-rank drake that was over lv 30, but Canoel, who was very pleased with the current leveling-up speed and the result of the fights, had no self-awareness towards that. ¡°Hoo-hoo, now Nareuhan Swamp is too boring, Yongyong. Don¡¯t you think so?¡± Keu-reu-reu-reu-! It was a warm image of a Familiar and owner that got along well together. ¡®Hm¡­ It¡¯s about time to move hunting grounds now.¡¯ Thanks to wiping Nareuhan Swamp for 3 days already, Canoel had leveled 6 levels up and reached lv 30, and had also received the title ¡®Peragon Slayer¡¯. On top of that, Yongyong, who was at lv 32 when he first received him, was in a situation where he also had reached lv 36, so Canoel¡¯s confidence was sky-high. ¡®The Goblin Camping Ground should be suitable enough as my hunting ground now.¡¯ While thinking of going to a camping ground he wouldn¡¯t have even been able to dream of if it was before he received Yongyong, he automatically smiled. ¡°Yongyong, let¡¯s go to Saumur Canyon!¡± After Canoel Summon Released Yongyong, he went to the village using a return stone. If it was with Yongyong, Kailran¡¯s greatest drake(?), Canoel wasn¡¯t jealous of anyone. @ [1] shuttle = to carry [2] lava in Korean = yong-am and dragon in Korean = yong, so ¡®yong¡¯ from yong-am was combined with ¡®yong¡¯, or dragon, to make ¡®Yongyong¡¯ CH 69 Chapter 69: Result of the Bet (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda As the call cannot be picked up, please leave a voice recording in the system¡­ Beep- Beep-. After attempting multiple calls with his cellphone, Yoohyun frowned as he mumbled. ¡°No, why does this dude not pick up his phone. Isn¡¯t he supposed to come to school?¡± On the first day of classes, Yoohyun, who sat in the department room waiting for Jinsung to go to class together, eventually couldn¡¯t wait for Jinsung any longer and stood up. As he gathered his major¡¯s books while mumbling, Sewon, a classmate in the same program who watched him do so, asked him. ¡°Yoohyun, what¡¯s wrong? Are you waiting for someone?¡± Sewon was a classmate, but as he entered school late, he was a hyung[1] that was a year older than Yoohyun. ¡°Ah, hyung. You came?¡± ¡°Yeah, I just arrived, so I was on my way to class. Why are you here, though, and not going?¡± ¡°Jinsung hasn¡¯t come yet. For a couple of days now, I haven¡¯t even been able to get in proper contact with this dude either¡­¡± At his words, Sewon smirked. ¡°Aye, don¡¯t worry too much. He must have slept in. And truthfully, since this week is the course switching period, it doesn¡¯t matter if he attends or not, right?¡± Yoohyun nodded his head. This was because his words were correct. ¡°That¡¯s true, but I¡¯m just worried about whether Jinsung is dead or alive¡­¡± ¡°What? Why dead or alive?¡± Yoohyun shook his head as he spoke. ¡°Jinsung could possibly have passed out inside the capsule right now. I checked yesterday or so, and he had been logged in for almost 50 hours.¡± Sewon¡¯s voice expressed his fluster. ¡°Kailran is fun, but to be logged in for 50 hours straight, Yoohyun, are you sure you just saw it incorrectly?¡± ¡°No, I saw it clearly. The 50 hours that was written in red.¡± ¡°Huh¡­¡± In the case of a VR game like Kailran where they needed to log on through the capsule to play, it wasn¡¯t a system like a PC game, where they could log in and do other things. In fact, if they fell asleep inside of the capsule while they were gaming, it was set up so that they would automatically be logged out. If it decided that they were asleep after measuring the user¡¯s biorhythms, it automatically logged them out. This was a part that was established by the law for the users¡¯ health. To conclude, the fact that 50 hours was written as the time logged on for meant that Ian had truly played the game for 50 hours without rest. ¡°Whatever, he can take care of himself. I¡¯ll just have to try contacting him again later after classes are over.¡± Sewon had on a sour expression. ¡°Al, alright. It makes sense for you to worry.¡± The two talked about this and that together as they packed their bags and walked to the lecture room. ¡°Hyung, but did you level up a lot during the break? How is it?¡± Sewon was a latecomer user that started Kailran after the new update. And his class was Black Magician. ¡°Haha, I worked diligently during the break. My current level is¡­ it¡¯s probably at 65?¡± While looking at Sewon, who spoke proudly, Yoohyun wore a slightly surprised expression again. ¡®Whoa, this hyung is unexpectedly a fast leveler. As expected, is it because he¡¯s a Black Magician?¡¯ Currently, in the community, the highest level Black Magician that¡¯s officially known was in a situation where they were a little over lv 80. And there was a lot of talk going around that there could possibly be an unknown user that was almost at lv 90. However, truthfully, because the users in the highest level range were truly gamers that only gamed like crazy and were also individuals that had an extraordinary gift towards games, Sewon having reached lv 65 was amazing enough. ¡°Hyung, when you log on later this evening, let me know. I¡¯ll recruit you into the guild.¡± At Yoohyun¡¯s words, Sewon was delighted. ¡°Whoa, really? But isn¡¯t your guild¡¯s level requirement 70? That¡¯s why I was hunting diligently to hit lv 70.¡± At those words, Yoohyun smirked. ¡°That¡¯s right. The requirement is lv 70, but based on you leveling-up speed, I feel like you¡¯ll be able to hit lv 70 soon enough, and since your class is Black Magician, one of the new classes, there probably won¡¯t be a guildmate that will really object.¡± As the resources of the new classes was rarer in comparison to the already existing classes, the other guilds also relaxed the level requirement a little to accept them. There was no reason not to accept him just because he lacked 5 levels. At Yoohyun¡¯s compliance, Sewon¡¯s expression brightened. ¡°Keu, alright. I¡¯m finally able to join a guild with a base now as well!¡± There were a lot more benefits that could be received if they became a member of a guild that possessed a base than imagined. This was because, fundamentally, they could purchase several consumables at a much cheaper price at the base their guild possessed in comparison to other villages, and the NPCs of the base offered a lot of high-quality quests as well. Currently, the rank of the bases of most guilds, including the Lotus guild¡¯s, was at ¡®Village¡¯, and starting from this rank, guild members could have a house of their own in the base. The buffs that could be received through the Housing System were quite helpful when hunting, and the position of the top-ranking guilds that obtained a base couldn¡¯t help but get better. ¡®We were definitely lucky that we obtained a base from the northern expedition.¡¯ Yoohyun, who talked about stuff relating to Kailran with Sewon, suddenly became curious of Jinsung¡¯s level. ¡®Speaking of which, what level would this dude have hit by now?¡¯ As Jinsung went around with all of his information, including his level, always on private, even Yoohyun didn¡¯t know his exact level. ¡®I think the last time he told me when I asked was around lv 80¡­¡¯ Yoohyun remembered Jinsung, who just ended up putting up a post near the base and wiped the monsters nearby. ¡®It¡¯s good in the guild village¡¯s case, but he should take it easy. Why is he going so hard ever since the past couple of weeks? By looking at it from the long run, he should be taking care of his health while doing so¡­¡¯ As Jinsung, even if he gamed, always planned and took care of his health while gaming, Yoohyun couldn¡¯t understand his current playing style. Until Yoohyun found out about Jinsung¡¯s bet, that was an obvious question. @ ¡°Ly, lure them over here! Ddukdae, you wait to use Abyss Hole and tie them down.¡± Deep in some dungeon in the northern continent, Ian had hunted for a whopping three days straight in here without leaving. Once Ian completely cleared the dungeon all the way to the lowest floor, he repeated the process of going back up to the highest floor and wiping the monsters battue-style, having already done so numerous times. The Lava Drake King that Ian received from the Guardian of Lava in the Scorching Land was doing more than enough to cover the AoE damage dealing that Ian always lacked. The Lava Drake¡¯s name was ¡®Lake¡¯. It was a name that used the last three letters of Drake[2]. It seemed that Bbookbbook thought that only the new friend¡¯s name was cool as he constantly complained, but there was also the sad story that he shut his mouth due to the Drug Meatball Ian gave him. ¡°Lake, Breath!¡± Along with Ian¡¯s exclamation, ¡®Lake¡¯, the Lava Drake King, who was waiting in the corner for a command, inhaled deeply. Hwaaaak-! The Ruler of Lava, which was reminiscent of a lava vortex, passed by a dozen or so monsters that were tied down by Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss Hole. Kaeeek-! An amazing scene appeared as the Snow Gargoyles, which were a whopping early-lv 90 monster, turned into a grey light all at the same time and disappeared as if they were melting. Because the gargoyles were monsters whose stats were focused mainly on Agility, their Vitality itself was incredibly low. On top of that, because they were ice-type monsters, they couldn¡¯t help but be weak to the fire Breath of a Lava Drake. However, despite that, the scene that was happening was definitely worthy of gaping mouths. And as if it was stamping a period where the Breath passed by, Abyss Hole, which was done charging, exploded as it let out a boom. Baaang-! It was a battue-style hunting scene that exuded an unbelievable amount of pleasure, making anyone watching feel exhilarated. And Ian¡¯s commands continued. ¡°Ly, catch the ones that are running away.¡± Grr- Grrr-. The gargoyles weren¡¯t humanoid monsters, but because they were a part of the group with an exceptional AI, there were a lot of cases where they fled if they felt it was unfavourable. However, Ly quickly pursued them and bit the escaping gargoyles apart. Kwak-. And for the gargoyles that flew up into the air to a place where Ly couldn¡¯t reach them, Lake chased them down. Normally, Lake wouldn¡¯t have been able to fly faster than the small and agile gargoyles, but on top of the gargoyle not having much Vitality left, the paralysis effect from Ian¡¯s Current Proliferation still remained, so Lake was able to catch them easily enough. And Lake, who reached within the gargoyle¡¯s proximity, swing his large tail. Puck-. Along with the dull sound of impact, the gargoyle, who was properly hit with Lake¡¯s tail, plunged to the ground helplessly. Bang-. And along with the damage due to the fall, it turned into a grey light just like that. Along with that, the level-up message that Ian waited for popped up. You have leveled up. You have reached lv 90. ¡°Alright!¡± Ian cheered. ¡®Finally, lv 90!¡¯ There was significance alone in having leveled up, but there was a bigger significance for lv 90. As lv 90 was the important level where class special skills could be gained. ¡®Please, a skill that would be more helpful in leveling up needs to appear¡­¡¯ It was a situation where he only had 3 levels left until lv 93. Ian also knew that today was already the first day of classes. However, if he included all the time he could from the course switching period and until the day of the head of the department¡¯s class, he still had about ten days to spare. However, even if he used all of the ten days to the limit, it was a short amount of time that could never be considered sufficient. Ian was desperate for a new skill that would be able to help with his hunting speed even a little. ¡®I don¡¯t even expect a skill as good as Potential Explosion, so please just a skill that will help¡­!¡¯ Even though the Potential Explosion skill was one that he received at lv 60, from Ian¡¯s perspective, it was good enough to be seen as almost the best-ranked skill amongst buff-type skills. As Ian developed his character always using his Training skill as his focal point for everything, he was able to gain that kind of high-class skill at a low level in comparison because the focus of all his class skills were set to Potential. And a system message letting him know that he obtained class special skills rang out in front of Ian¡¯s eyes as he was waiting for the skills he gained with half worry, half anticipation. You have obtained the ¡®Assimilation¡¯ skill.You have obtained the ¡®Link¡¯ skill. And at the skills¡¯ names that popped up, Ian wore a puzzled expression. ¡®What?¡¯ This was because he couldn¡¯t really guess what kind of skills they were just based on the skills¡¯ names. Ian opened the skill window and checked the information of the newly obtained skills. ¡®Shall we look at the Link skill first?¡¯ Link Classification ¨C Active Skill Skill Level ¨C lv 0 Proficiency ¨C 0% Cooldown Time ¨C 180 minutes Duration ¨C Continued until target of Link is changed Conditions for Use ¨C It is only possible between the user or between Familiars that are within 10 metres of each other, and even though the distance between goes over 10 metres after applying Link, Link isn¡¯t removed, but its effect will not apply during that time. (Cannot be applied to other users or the Familiars of other users.) Links two individuals and makes them share the damage they receive. 70% of the damage received will be received by the individual who directly received the damage, and the leftover 30% will be shared with the individual that is also Linked. The first time Link is casted, the Health of the two Linked individuals will be adjusted to be the same ratio. *The higher the Proficiency, the shorter the Cooldown Time and the bigger the range for Link¡¯s possibility. [1] hyung = what a younger male calls a close, older male [2] Drake in Korean = Deu-Lae-ee-keu, so Ian has taken the last three letters in Korean, ¡®Lae-ee-keu¡¯, and has made that his familiar¡¯s name. However, to make it easier, I¡¯ve chosen to just spell it as ¡®Lake¡¯. Plus, Lake sounds cooler than Lae-ee-keu or Rake o3o CH 70 Chapter 70: Result of the Bet (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Even at first glance, it was a good skill. ¡®Now that I look at it, I remember seeing a skill like this on the Black Magician Class¡¯ bulletin board.¡¯ Because the Black Magician was also a class that commanded numerous Familiars, there were also users that had similar class skills to Summoners. Ian nodded his head. It was a skill that would make hunting more stable for him. But he could see there was a part he didn¡¯t really understand. ¡®But what does it exactly mean when it says the first time Link is casted, the Health of the two Linked individuals will be adjusted to the same ratio?¡¯ In order for Ian to understand the skill exactly, he decided to use the skill immediately. ¡®Just in time, my Familiars¡¯ Vitalities are uneven as they just finished fighting¡­¡¯ After Ian checked Ly and Ddukdae¡¯s Vitality, he invoked the skill. ¡°Ly, Ddukdae. Link!¡± As he did so, a red light circled around Ly and Ddukdae, and something like a hazy and translucent chain appeared in between the two Familiars. And Ddukdae¡¯s Vitality, which he only had about 30% left of, began to fill up. ¡°Huh?¡± On the other hand, the Vitality of Ly, who maintained an almost full Health thanks to Health Absorption, had dropped to around 60%. Once Ian saw that, he immediately understood the skill¡¯s explanation. ¡®Ah-ha, so that¡¯s what they meant by it matches to be the same ratio. Regardless of what the max Vitality is, it takes the average based on the percentage value.¡¯ In a more simple explanation, the average of the remaining Vitality ratios of the two linked Familiars was given to each of them. The cooldown time was a whopping 3 hours and the effect could only be applied the first time Link was casted, but depending on how it was used, he felt he could truly make good use of it. ¡®But, it is a double-edged sword. It was only beneficial now as the Vitality of Ddukdae, whose max Vitality was higher than Ly¡¯s, was currently lower than Ly¡¯s from a relative perspective, but on the other hand, if Ly¡¯s Vitality was hitting the floor and Ddukdae¡¯s Vitality was at max, the situation could turn out bad if I Linked them.¡¯ Ian carefully checked the points he should consider before using the skill, and turned to the next skill. ¡®I wonder what the Assimilation skill is.¡¯ And the skill¡¯s information window popped up. Assimilation Classification ¨C Active Skill Skill Level ¨C lv 0 Proficiency ¨C 0% Cooldown Time ¨C 60 minutes Duration ¨C 30 minutes Conditions for Use ¨C Only applicable to a Familiar currently summoned. If the Familiar is recalled or Summon Released, the Assimilation skill will be released as well. The Summoner is Assimilated with their Familiar. If ¡®Assimilation¡¯ is applied, the ratio of the Summoner¡¯s combat stats will become equal to the ratio of the relevant Familiar¡¯s combat stats, and additionally, they will gain 20% of the highest stat of the Familiar. *The higher the Proficiency, the shorter the Cooldown Time and the bigger the ratio of the stats gained. Ian, who read all of the skill¡¯s information, wore an interested expression. ¡®So, the ratio of my stats will be equally matched to the ratio of my Familiar¡¯s?¡¯ As expected, he couldn¡¯t just move on without trying it out. After momentarily thinking, Ian chose Bbookbbook as his target to use his Assimilation skill on. ¡®Since Bbookbbook¡¯s stats lean abnormally to one side the most.¡¯ Ian let down Bbookbbook, who was hanging on his back. ¡°Bbookbbook.¡± And at Ian¡¯s calling, Bbookbbook poked out of his shell and lifted his head. Bbookbbook-? At the image that always looked cute, Ian laughed. ¡°Stay there for a moment. I want to try a skill out.¡± Bbookbbook nodded his head. Bbook-. Ian, who received consent from Bbookbbook, placed his hand on top of Bbookbbook¡¯s shell and casted the Assimilation skill. ¡°Assimilation!¡± As he did so, a blue light was sucked out of Bbookbbook and was absorbed into Ian. And as the skill invocation was finished, Ian opened his stat window and checked his stats. And he let out a forced laugh. ¡°Kuck. My stats actually became like Bbookbbook¡¯s.¡± Including the extra Defensive Power from his equipment, he had received a Defensive Power that was close to 1500. ¡®I¡¯m almost at Ddukdae¡¯s level like this.¡¯ However, on the other hand, his Offensive Power and reflexes dropped almost to the floor. Just then. Bbook- Bboobbook-! Bbookbbook laughed out of enjoyment and began to crawl around Ian. ¡°What is it, Bbookbbook. What¡¯s wrong?¡± Bbook-! While watching Bbookbbook, who looked thoroughly entertained, Ian was suddenly nervous. ¡®What the hell? He¡¯s enjoying it more than when he eats meatballs.¡¯ And while he was nervous watching Bbookbbook¡¯s mysterious reaction, his hologram that was next to his stat window caught his eyes. ¡°What the hell is this?!¡± He let out a shout before he even realized. This was because the holographic image of him was incredibly shocking. ¡®Even if the carapace-looking thing on my back is taken into consideration, why did my head grow so big? On top of that, though, I¡¯ve shrunken in height¡­!¡¯ Stats weren¡¯t the only thing that he Assimilated from Bbookbbook. Bbookbbook¡¯s visuals were also Assimilated, so Ian¡¯s physical appearance had changed like Bbookbbook, the big-headed turtle. ¡®My excellent visuals¡­!¡¯ Ian urgently cleared the Assimilation skill. ¡°Clear!¡± Hoo-oong- And Ian, who returned to his original form, let out a sigh of relief. ¡°Whew¡­ I need to refrain as much as I can from using this skill on Bbookbbook¡­¡± Because he felt like he would his Assimilation skill on Ly or Lake when fighting normally, it didn¡¯t matter. He couldn¡¯t get a sense of what changes would be made to his outer appearance, but he felt it would at least be better than the shocking visual he saw just now. However, he felt there would be situations where he would be forced to use the Assimilation skill on Bbookbbook. ¡®No matter how much I don¡¯t want to die, I¡¯d rather use Assimilation on Ddukdae, I just won¡¯t use it on Bbookbbook.¡¯ Meanwhile, Bbookbbook, who was entertained after seeing his owner¡¯s ridiculous form, seemed to have lost his interest as Ian returned to his original form, as he turned sullen. Ian glared at Bbookbbook. ¡°What are you laughing at, kid.¡± Bbook-! At Bbookbbook¡¯s gaze, which was filled with hope that his owner would transform(?) once again, Ian frowned. ¡°Do you think this is funny?¡± Bbookbbook nodded his head without a moment of hesitation. Bbookbbook! Ian shook his head. ¡°Do you know why hyung[1] transformed like that?¡± Ian told the uncomfortable truth to Bbookbbook, who was staring at Ian as if he was curious. ¡°I took after you, you idiot.¡± Bbookbbook¡¯s pupils began to shake. There was no way a handsome turtle like him would have such a ridiculous outer appearance. Bbook-! Bbookbbook denied the reality. Ian, who momentarily played around with Bbookbbook, suddenly felt exhaustion wash over him. ¡°Hoo, should I shut my eyes for a couple hours now¡­?¡± Looking at the time he was logged on for, it was approaching 60 hours. And Ian was now reaching a limit to his mental strength. ¡°Still, in the end, I reached lv 90.¡± Ian knew how difficult it was to raise 3 levels from lv 90, but it was a different feeling from when he was at lv 89. Still, he felt like he gained some strength after changing the front number. ¡°I¡¯ll come back after I sleep about five hours.¡± Ian Summon Released all of his Familiars, including a disheartened Bbookbbook, before logging off. @ ¡®Hm, I¡¯m sure Yoohyun told me that the VR department was in this building¡­¡¯ After entering Lotus guild, Harin got even closer with the guild members. Even Jinsung and Yoohyun spoke a lot with Harin, especially since they went to the same school. Harin was one year above them, but because she was technically the same age as them as she was just born early[2], they were on friendly terms with each other. And she and Jinsung were at a stage where they comfortably spoke with each other after persuading him even though he flatly refused. ¡®Speaking of which, why is this Jinsung not even looking at his messages? Is he in class?¡¯ The first day of classes. It seemed because of the class changing period, Harin had some time to spare thanks to her first class ending early. That¡¯s why she had come to the VR department that Jinsung and Yoohyun were in. And many students glanced at her as she looked around the hallway of the VR department. ¡®Since when did we have a girl that pretty in our department?¡¯ ¡®What the hell, is she a student from the Theatre and Film department? Or a celebrity aspirant?¡¯ As she looked through the hallway while receiving attention from here and there, a familiar face caught her eyes. ¡°Oh, Yoohyun! Yoohyun, right?¡± Yoohyun, who was returning to the department room with Sewon after finishing his classes, turned his head, startled at the unfamiliar voice that called him. And once he discovered the owner of the voice, he was even more flustered. ¡°Uh¡­ Huh?¡± The voice of the opposite party that seemed like they definitely knew them. Yoohyun fell into a state of confusion as he met the incredibly hopeless situation where the other party knew them, but they didn¡¯t know the other party. ¡®But, there¡¯s no way that I know such a pretty girl¡­¡¯ He opened his mouth thinking that way, but suddenly there was something that popped up inside Yoohyun¡¯s head. ¡®By any chance, is it Harin?¡¯ And as she approached him, Yoohyun carefully asked. ¡°By any chance¡­ Harin?¡± At Yoohyun¡¯s voice that recognized her, Harin was delighted. ¡°Wow, Yoohyun, you recognized me right away!¡± And she seemed to be mumbling about a specific person. ¡°Tsk, as expected, it was weird that he didn¡¯t recognize me when I didn¡¯t even fix that much.¡± Truthfully, Yoohyun didn¡¯t recognize Harin by her face. He had just guessed as Harin had sent a message beforehand in the morning that she would visit the VR department. And separate from that, Yoohyun and Sewon were in a baffled state. This was because Harin was much more beautiful close up than when she was far away. Yoohyun, who pulled himself together from his surprised state, barely opened his mouth. ¡°You said you¡¯d come when your classes were done, are you already done with them?¡± At Yoohyun¡¯s question, Harin shook her head. ¡°No, my classes aren¡¯t done yet. I had quite a bit of time between my classes, so I decided to come.¡± After Harin responded, she looked around and spoke again. ¡°But, Yoohyun, what about Jinsung?¡± ¡°Jinsung didn¡¯t come to school today?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Harin was about to ask why, but she discovered the reason herself shortly after and shook her head. ¡°He must be gaming instead of coming to school since it¡¯s the class changing period.¡± At Harin, who had a good grasp on Jinsung, Yoohyun couldn¡¯t help but force out a laugh. @ A dark and somber grey robe, a black cone hat and a ridiculous image of one holding a staff larger than themselves. In some snowy field of the northern continent, Black Magician ¡®Kanjihoonie¡¯ was diligently leveling up. ¡°Judgment of Darkness!¡± Along with his order, the pitch-black beam that spread from his hands exploded against the body of a lv 90 White Ogre. Bang-! Along with the clear sound of impact, his prominent Offensive Power was displayed as it sliced through the Ogre¡¯s Vitality. The black skeletons that surrounded the Ogre moved altogether as if on que. Hoonie¡¯s fight was incredibly clean and systematic. Although his outer appearance may have been a little ridiculous, his control was admirable no matter who saw it. ¡°Alright, I should be able to level up soon enough.¡± Hoonie, who had cleanly killed three White Ogres, completely recovered his Vitality by sacrificing one of his skeletons using ¡®Spirit Absorption¡¯. And with one hand, he grabbed his hat and tilted it onto an angle. ¡°Ian, where is this jerk?¡± Hoonie hadn¡¯t forgotten, the sorrowful memory of the out-of-bounds situation during the rookie league. Bboo-deuk-. And he also remembered the turtle that he had caught his foot on and caused him to fall. Hoonie, who had clenched his fist tightly, continued to feed his fighting spirit. ¡°As this great Hoonie has reached lv 85, he¡¯s probably hit over lv 80 now, too, right?¡± And then he shook his head. ¡°No, he¡¯s a dirty Summoner. He possibly could have used a foul method and passed lv 85.¡± Hoonie, who was mumbling to himself, fished around for something in his chest and pulled something out. It was a doll that looked like a human. Hoonie glared at the doll as he gritted his teeth. ¡°Cowardly Ian jerk!¡± Puck- Hoonie, who had hit the doll with his fist, casted a curse skill as it seemed he wasn¡¯t satisfied. ¡°Curse of the Dead!¡± However, there was no way that the skill would be invoked onto a doll. Hoonie, who momentarily panted, put the doll back within his chest shortly after and started moving to hunt. ¡®In order to properly beat this cowardly Ian jerk, I need to get a little stronger.¡¯ Hoonie moved his feet with a resolutely determined expression. His leveling-up speed had slowed down significantly since his break ended. ¡®I need to try harder.¡¯ If he could not beat Ian, the time he spent hunting instead of even doing his vacation homework would have been spent in vain. Hoonie¡¯s footsteps grew a little faster. @ [1] hyung = what a younger male calls a close, older male [2] In Korea, the new school year starts several weeks after the new year, so people born before the start of the new school year tend to enter school with students that were born in the year before them CH 71 Chapter 71: Result of the Bet (4) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The main lecture hall of the VR department, which could accommodate up to 100 people. ¡°Koo Jaho.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°Kim Kahyung.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Lee Jinook, who read down the attendance, calling each name out one by one, momentarily paused on a particularly familiar name. ¡®Park Jinsung, come to think of it, this one, he didn¡¯t come out for the first week of classes.¡¯ Of course, as the first week was the class-changing period, there was no effect on the students¡¯ attendance marks even if they did not come out to class. However, as it was rare for a major-related course to be changed, it was normal to come out starting from the first class, so Jinook was in a bad mood. ¡®I even threatened him with a call during the break, so he probably came today, right?¡¯ Jinook scanned the lecture hall and called Jinsung¡¯s name. ¡°Park Jinsung-¡° However, the lecture hall was silent. Out of disbelief, Jinook called out his name again. ¡°Park Jinsung? Has he not come today?¡± However, just then, the back door of the lecture hall jerked open. Deu-reu-reuk-. ¡°Yes! I came!¡± All eyes in the lecture hall turned towards Jinsung. With a sunken expression and deep, dark circles that was all the way down to his chin, Jinook cluck his tongue at his form that was almost like a remnant. ¡°Don¡¯t make a fuss and go sit down quickly.¡± Jinook slightly glared at Jinsung before he began to call out the next person on the attendance. And it seemed as though Jinsung, who barely made it in time to the lecture hall, had ran all the way, as he breathed heavily while sitting next to Yoohyun. While looking at Jinsung, who sat down next to him, Yoohyun whispered in a small voice. ¡°Still, you attended today.¡± ¡°Hoo, I¡¯m not that crazy, dude.¡± However, Yoohyun replied with an expression saying as if he completely disagreed. ¡°Dude, for someone who¡¯s not supposed to be crazy, you even skipped four days of school this week.¡± As it was Jinsung, who hadn¡¯t showed up for four days of the week even after the class-changing period, Yoohyun¡¯s scolding was an obvious. However, Jinsung responded with a resolutely determined expression. ¡°There was a good enough reason for that.¡± ¡°What reason?¡± Instead of giving him a response, Jinsung pulled out his cellphone from his pocket. ¡°It was exactly for this reason.¡± And on the screen of Jinsung¡¯s cellphone was a screenshot of the stat window of Jinsung¡¯s character, Ian. ¡°Hm¡­?¡± And once Yoohyun checked it, his two eyes rounded. ¡°What the hell, you¡¯re lv 93?¡± Out of complete shock, he almost yelled it out, but Jinsung warned him, barely hushing him up. As it was mandatory major-related course that all of the students of the department had to take, the lecture hall was large, so fortunately, it seemed as though it didn¡¯t reach Professor Lee Jinook¡¯s ears. ¡°Can you not tell when you see it, man? This hyung[1] is this great.¡± Yoohyun couldn¡¯t even think of a response to Jinsung¡¯s arrogance and just blankly stared at the cellphone screen. ¡®Lv 93¡­ I just barely past lv 100 now.¡¯ Yoohyun was currently lv 103, and he as well was proud that he leveled-up quite quickly during the break. However, despite that, he was caught up to by Jinsung, as Jinsung and he now only had a 10-level difference. ¡®What level was I at when he reset?¡¯ He couldn¡¯t remember exactly, but he felt he was around the edge of hitting lv 80. Yoohyun shook his head. Even if the out-of-common amount of playing time and additional stat compensation due to resetting was considered, it was an unbelievable leveling-up speed. At this rate, he truly believed it was a matter of time until he caught up. ¡°This monster-like dude.¡± At Yoohyun¡¯s grumbling, Jinsung smirked. ¡°If you¡¯re jealous, then say so, dude.¡± Yoohyun meekly admitted. ¡°Sure, I¡¯m jealous. Whew¡­¡± And while Yoohyun and Jinsung bantered, Professor Lee Jinook had finished the attendance and started his lecture. And as soon as the lecture started, Jinsung went out like a light on top of the desk without a doubt. As it was a form that wasn¡¯t at all new, Yoohyun only smirked. ¡®It only makes sense that he¡¯s so tired, considering he even reduced his sleep to game like crazy.¡¯ However, just around when the class was ending. Jinsung, who only slept on top of the desk, miraculously(?) rubbed his eyes and woke up. ¡°What the hell, why did you wake up? Did you have a nightmare?¡± Jinsung pulled out his cellphone without regarding Yoohyun¡¯s sarcastic remark. And with an interested expression, Yoohyun watched Jinsung¡¯s actions. ¡®What¡¯s he doing?¡¯ Jinsung tapped his cellphone and opened his screenshot image again. ¡®Is he continuously looking at it because he¡¯s pleased?¡¯ However, just then. Wasn¡¯t Jinsung sending that image somewhere. And Yoohyun, who checked the recipient without intending to, was startled. ¡°Yo, dude! What the hell are you doing? Have you not woken up fully yet?¡± ¡°What the hell are you saying. I¡¯m completely sober.¡± ¡°This crazy, what kind of sane dude sends a game screenshot to their professor¡¯s number?¡± To Yoohyun, who wouldn¡¯t have known about Jinsung and Professor Lee Jinook¡¯s bet, Jinsung could only look like a crazy person. However, Jinsung, who was the person in question, just grinned. And right then, Professor Lee Jinook¡¯s cellphone, which lied on the platform, vibrated, and he momentarily paused his lecture and lifted his cellphone to check it. ¡°Yo, what are you going to do. I think the Professor saw his cellphone!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it and just pack your bags, dude. The class is over now>¡± Just as Jinsung said, the class was ending now. And 5 minutes later, Yoohyun, who heard Professor Lee Jinook¡¯s last words, couldn¡¯t help but let out a deep sigh as he looked at Jinsung. ¡°Alright, this is it for today¡¯s class. You are all dismissed. Student Park Jinsung will momentarily stay.¡± @ Jinsung, who was dragged(?) away to Professor Lee Jinook¡¯s office once the class was over, wore a triumphant expression as he sat on the couch. And Professor Lee Jinook was sitting across from him, sipping his teacup. A moment later, Lee Jinook¡¯s mouth opened first. ¡°The image you sent earlier. Explain.¡± ¡°That¡¯s the stat window of my Kailran character. As you said you were a Kailran user yourself, didn¡¯t you know as soon as you saw it?¡± ¡°Keu-heum¡­¡± As Lee Jinook cleared his throat, Jinsung added as if he was interrogating. ¡°By any chance, you haven¡¯t forgotten the bet you made with me, right?¡± Lee Jinook could feel the back of his neck straining. Truthfully, he had forgotten about the part related to the bet. As it was more of a threat telling him to be more devoted to class rather than a bet. He obviously hadn¡¯t even thought of the potential that Jinsung could succeed. Lee Jinook, who momentarily pondered, slowly opened his mouth. ¡°I haven¡¯t forgotten¡­¡± At those words, Jinsung wore a triumphant expression. ¡°Hoo-hoo, Professor, you wouldn¡¯t dare be double-tongued against a student, right?¡± Jinsung now thought that it was over. If he just received a definite answer, he could at least be relieved of Professor Lee Jinook¡¯s class. As he even had two major-related classes with Professor Lee Jinook, this was an incredible merit. However, different from Jinsung¡¯s expectations, Lee Jinook didn¡¯t immediately say the words that Jinsung wanted to hear. He was not such an easy person. ¡°But that bet. From what I remember, I believe the deadline was until ¡®before the first day of classes¡¯.¡± As Lee Jinook sharply pointed out, Jinsung flinched. Truthfully, this was because this was the part that bothered Jinsung the most. Flustered, Jinsung tried his best to lay out excuses. ¡°That¡­ I¡­ Professor.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°To be honest, I reached lv 93 before the first day of classes.¡± ¡°Oh, really? Then you should have showed me last week. From what I know, you didn¡¯t even come out to classes last week.¡± ¡°That¡¯s because I was sick up until yesterday¡­¡± It was a lame excuse that would have made an elementary school student that was just passing by laugh at him. However, there was no alternative but to just insist ¡®it¡¯s the truth¡¯. Until Professor Lee Jinook personally visited LB Co. and ripped apart character Ian¡¯s access log, he couldn¡¯t find proof that Jinsung was wrong. ¡°Are you expecting me to believe those words right now?¡± Since it was already like this, Jinsung decided to push on until the end. ¡°But, what can I do when it is the truth, Professor?¡± And meanwhile, he tried his best to appeal his innocence with an expression that looked like he was about to cry. This was because he knew very well the truth that stubbornly insisting too much could also cause a bad ending. ¡®Anyways, it wasn¡¯t like there was a contract, and if the Professor makes it so that it never existed, there¡¯s nothing I can do from my side even if it¡¯s depressing¡­¡¯ It was incredibly important that he also made sure to not make the Professor feel offended. ¡°Keu-heum.¡± And from the outside, Lee Jinook was wearing a displeased expression, but internally, he was in a greatly surprised state. ¡®If this screenshot isn¡¯t edited, then this guy is really incredible.¡¯ Although he was a light user, he was still also a respectable Kailran user that was raising a Summoner character. This meant that he knew well enough how incredible a lv 93 Summoner was at this point. On top of that, he remembered catching a glimpse of a scene not too long ago on a game broadcast where they were interviewing a lv 78 user, saying they were the officially highest level Summoner. ¡®If this guy isn¡¯t lying, I feel like I could use this guy a little in my data acquisition.¡¯ Lee Jinook, who was up to something, decided to postpone his decision for a bit. ¡°You, do you have a separate schedule for this Sunday?¡± Jinsung was taken aback at the somewhat unexpected question, but he responded shortly after. ¡°I¡­ will probably be on Kailran at home.¡± Lee Jinook nodded his head as he continued to speak. ¡°Then I¡¯ll see you on Kailran on Sunday.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Why are you so surprised? I¡¯ll see you 2 pm on Sunday at Robos Town.¡± Jinsung momentarily contemplated. ¡®Is this old man thinking that I¡¯m lying right now?¡¯ And he slightly glanced at Lee Jinook. ¡®Somehow, I feel like he thinks that the image I gave him is edited¡­¡¯ It seemed that he wanted to personally meet him in Kailran and check his level. Jinsung, who made his decision, nodded his head. ¡°Alright, Professor.¡± ¡°Good, then I¡¯ll see you then.¡± After responding, Jinook stood up from his spot and as Ian followed his actions, he reminded him of the bet once more. ¡°Professor, then I won the bet, right?¡± However, Lee Jinook did not give him the answer he wanted right away. ¡°We¡¯ll talk about that on Sunday when we meet.¡± Like that, Jinsung couldn¡¯t help but leave the Professor¡¯s office with an uncomfortable feeling. @ ¡°Keuh, finally, freedom!¡± Ian, who had logged into Kailran, was so thrilled he felt he would tear up. ¡®Now I can probably focus on Kailran more even during the semester!¡¯ How hard had he hunted in order to hit lv 93 within the time limit, even reducing his sleep? Now, he felt like he could breathe a little. It wasn¡¯t like he had received a definite answer from Professor Lee Jinook yet, but he believed that when Sunday came, it would naturally be resolved. After all, he had won the bet. ¡®Hoo, since I¡¯ve escaped from the pressure of having to level up a little now, should I start clearing up the quests that I pushed aside one by one?¡¯ There were two large quests that Ian was currently neglecting. One was the Dimensional Magic Tower quest that he had received from Oakley, the Dragon Tamer, and the other was the hatching of the Griffin Egg quest that he had received from Celias, the king of Luspel Empire. ¡®Well, firstly, I felt that it would be good to do the Dimensional Magic Tower quest first, which is why I went over Forcal Mountains¡­¡¯ There was no time limit for the Dimensional Magic Tower quest. Meanwhile, the time limit of the hatching of the Griffin Egg quest was ¡®Unknown¡¯. Just looking at these points, the hatching of the Griffin Egg was more urgent, but¡­ ¡®What can I do when there¡¯s nothing I can do at the moment to hatch the egg?¡¯ Whenever he had time while hunting, he went to places like the Tower of Summoners and tried hard to gain information related to hatching Familiar¡¯s eggs from the NPCs, but there wasn¡¯t any useful information. Characteristically of Ian, his heart leaned towards starting the quest that he could immediately progress in rather than a quest where he wasn¡¯t sure what to do. On top of that, if he cleared the Dimensional Magic Tower, he could release the seal of the Dragon Head Ornament, and he could possibly obtain the War Dragon, which was rightly called a God Dragon, as a Familiar. The expectation towards the quest¡¯s reward itself was completely different. ¡®Firstly, let¡¯s go to the Dimensional Magic Tower.¡¯ The Dimensional Magic Tower wasn¡¯t far past the Scorching Land. As the monsters that inhabited near the Dimensional Magic Tower were around lv 80-90, they were actually lower level monsters than the northern continent¡¯s, so they weren¡¯t an obstacle to Ian at the moment. Ian, who had made up his mind, ran for the Dimensional Magic Tower on Ly¡¯s back shortly after. CH 72 Chapter 72: Dimensional Magic Tower (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡®This is my first time personally coming here.¡¯ The Dimensional Magic Tower was a place that he had never visited even before resetting. It was a place where there was no reason to come unless it was for a Class Quest for the ¡®Dimensional Magician¡¯, a hidden class for Magician, and before Ian reset, there weren¡¯t a lot of people that even knew of the Magic Tower¡¯s existence. ¡®As expected, it¡¯s chilly. Well, how many users are there that have a reason to come here?¡¯ Ian mumbled to himself as he entered the entrance of the Magic Tower. And in front of his eyes, a mysterious space emitting a pitch-black light swayed. ¡°Is it a portal?¡± Ian took a slight step inside. As he did so, a system message popped up. Will you go up to the upper floor of the Magic Tower? ¡°Sure, why not?¡± As soon as Ian gave consent, his body was sucked into someplace. Hooong-. And along with a slight resonance, Ian arrived at the upper floor. And on the opposite space of that floor, Ian discovered another swaying portal similar to the portal he had just used. ¡®Do I just need to keep going up using those?¡¯ And just when Ian moved his feet thinking like that, the space in front of him distorted and a white light jumped out. At the sudden phenomenon, Ian flinched. ¡°What the hell?¡± And the thing that appeared in front of him were monsters that Ian knew well of. ¡®What the hell? Why have Trolls appeared here?¡¯ There were also closed blue curtains behind the monsters. Ian, who had seen that, suddenly understood the current situation. ¡®Those seem like dividers¡­ Do I need to catch the monsters that block my way in order to go up every floor?¡¯ Ian, who roughly understood the situation, summoned all his Familiars. Jjaekee, who was the last to be summoned, busily shook like normal and began to fly around Ian. ¡®Euh, this noisy one. Speaking of which, exactly how many more times do I need to use Current Proliferation in order to evolve this one?¡¯ Ian had blindly fired Current Proliferation continuously until he passed lv 90, but he was in a situation where he still hadn¡¯t evolved Jjaekee even once. Ian checked Jjaekee¡¯s information window while he remembered. Familiar Jjaekee ¨C Spirit Capacity: 975/1000 Based on the numerical value, it seemed like he wasn¡¯t far from reaching the max. However, Ian shook his head. ¡®How long ago was it when I passed 950, yet for it to still be at 975¡­¡¯ When he first obtained Jjaekee, his Spirit Capacity quickly increased even if he used Current Proliferation only a little. That¡¯s why Ian thought he would be able to evolve Jjaekee quickly, but as the numerical value of his Spirit Capacity increased, the slower the growth speed. ¡®Still, about 25 shouldn¡¯t take too long.¡¯ Ian, who closed Jjaekee¡¯s information window, let out a command to Lake and Ly. ¡°Lake, Ly. Quickly catch them and let¡¯s move on!¡± Grr-! Ly immediately got in combat stance, but Lake wore an unwilling expression. Pu-reung- Pu-reung-. It was reaction saying as if the Trolls in front of him were ridiculous. It made sense, though, as compared to Lake, who was at lv 95 on top of being a Heroic-rank, the Trolls in front of him were incredibly shabby. The Trolls¡¯ levels were barely around 55-60, and they were Common-rank monsters. However, Ian was not happy with Lake¡¯s reaction. ¡°Hey, you, stop holding your head so high, and go and catch them quickly. If you don¡¯t do your job, I¡¯ll send you back to Helian!¡± It was a truth he found out by chance, but despite being a Lava-type Spirit, he hated hot places with a passion. That¡¯s why Ian¡¯s threat, saying he¡¯d send him back to the humid Source of Lava, was quite effective. Of course, however, it wasn¡¯t as effective as threats with meatballs to Bbookbbook. Kaoh-. Lake, who had pulled himself together at Ian¡¯s threat, ran towards the Trolls shortly after. Even just thinking about the Scorching Land, where heat emitted in every direction, was horrendous. And along with him, Ly also lunged forward. Hwa-reu-reuk-. As Lake¡¯s Inherent Ability, ¡®The Ruler of Lava¡¯ effect was activated, the Trolls turned into a grey light in a instant and disappeared. They were weak opponents that weren¡¯t even worthy of having Ddukdae tank in the front. And as all of the Trolls disappeared, as expected, the blue curtains disappeared and the path opened. With a satisfied expression, Ian smiled as he moved his feet. ¡°Now then, shall we go up?¡± @ It took Ian just a little more than around 30 minutes in order to reach the highest floor, the 15th floor, of the Dimensional Magic Tower. The levels of the monsters that appeared at each floor slightly went up as Ian progressed, and on his way up to the last floor, he needed to fight and win against a monster that was over lv 90, but it wasn¡¯t that difficult of an opponent. ¡®This is only this easy because I raised my level a lot right now, if I had challenged this right away, I would have suffered.¡¯ When Ian received the quest, he hadn¡¯t even reached lv 50. Of course, because it was a B-ranked quest in terms of level of difficulty, there was no reason for him to go right away, but based on Ian¡¯s personality alone, he would have come to immediately challenge when he was just a little over lv 70. Because of his bet with Professor Lee Jinook, he wasn¡¯t able to do so at the fault of his time being tied down for leveling-up. ¡®Now then, the Dimensional Enchanter or whatever, will I be able to meet them?¡¯ And just as he predicted, the laboratory of ¡®Gripper¡¯, the Dimensional Enchanter¡¯, was located on the highest floor of the Magic Tower. Ian strode up to Gripper, who sat in a corner, absorbed in an experiment, and as Gripper discovered Ian, he stood up from his spot and greeted him with a welcoming expression. ¡°Oh-ho, how long has it been since I¡¯ve had a guest? Looking at the fact that you¡¯ve made it all the way up here, you must be quite a talented traveler.¡± At his sympathetic expression, Ian mumbled inwardly. ¡®He looks mean, but what a surprise.¡¯ And along with his first words, a system message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. You have completed the ¡®The Remnants of a Forgotten Ancient Monster¡¯ quest.You have obtained 567,500 EXP. Once Ian saw the quest completed message, he wore a satisfied expression even though it wasn¡¯t a lot of EXP, because he felt like he had received it for free. And he got straight down to business with Gripper. ¡°Nice to meet you, Gripper. I am Ian, a Summoner that came here due to a request I received from Oakley, the Dragon Tamer.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Gripper¡¯s two eyes slightly widened. ¡°Oakley¡­? You don¡¯t happen to mean the legendary Dragon Tamer Oakley, do you?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Ho-ho, to have thought that I would hear his name again while I lived.¡± ¡°Do you know Oakley well?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t say I know him well, but he¡¯s someone I respect.¡± Gripper grabbed Ian¡¯s hand and pulled him. ¡°Come over here. Let¡¯s sit down and talk.¡± Like that, the two people that sat across from each other in Gripper¡¯s laboratory began to share a conversation. Because Ian was an incredibly interesting being to Gripper with just the one truth that he had come due to Oakley¡¯s request, the conversation proceeded smoothly. And Ian meticulously memorized what Gripper said. ¡®He¡¯s a guy that truly has an ability that suits the modifier Dimensional Enchanter.¡¯ Gripper had the ability to bypass time and space and open up a dimensional door. Of course, it wasn¡¯t an ability that was possible without any conditions. It was only possible for a relevant time, and if he had a special item that was in that space. ¡°So, in order to awaken this Soul Stone, you¡¯re saying that your current experiment needs to be completed, right?¡± At Ian¡¯s question that summed up the main point, Gripper nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s exactly it.¡± As he actually pulled out the Soul Stone again and lifted it up, the anticipation towards the God Dragon that he had forgotten about slowly returned. Ian felt his desire pour through even more. ¡°Is there anything that I can help you out with?¡± Gripper smiled brightly and nodded his head. ¡°Of course. Why else would I have explained so diligently to you?¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°Of course, you¡¯ll take my request, no?¡± And along with his words, a quest window popped up in front of Ian. Ring-. Ancient Relic Dimensional Enchanter Gripper said that in order to awaken the God Dragon¡¯s Soul Stone, he needs to activate a magic equipment that he¡¯s experimenting with. In order to activate the magic equipment, he needs some material, and he wants you to seek them out and obtain them. Enter the Dimensional door that Gripper created, and obtain the pieces of the Ancient Relic he wants. There are a total of six different kinds of pieces, and one piece of each kind must be collected and brought to him. Quest Difficulty Level: A Quest Condition: Unable to party for the duration of the quest. Time Limit: 3 days Reward ¨C Unknown You cannot reject the quest. It seemed because it was a connected quest to the quest received from Oakley, the condition where Ian was unable to party anyone and the option where he could not reject the quest followed suite. Ian felt somewhat uncomfortable. ¡®I didn¡¯t have any intentions to give up anyways, but still, as expected, because of the condition that I cannot reject the quest, it¡¯s a little unsettling.¡¯ The quest¡¯s difficulty level also went up to an A-rank. It wasn¡¯t a difficulty level where it was terrifying to even challenge, but still, it wasn¡¯t a difficulty level that could be seen as an easy level. Ian scratched the back of his head as he responded. ¡°Well, alright. Then, I just need to gather the pieces of the relic, right?¡± Gripper nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± And hot-headed Ian immediately stood up. ¡°I¡¯ll head out right now, I guess. Where do I need to go?¡± At his form, Gripper laughed as he followed him and stood up. ¡°Whoa, whoa. Just wait a bit. Don¡¯t you not know how the relic even looks?¡± Ian almost blurted out past his lips that the game system would let him know anyways, so why did it matter, but he just barely held back. ¡°That¡­ That¡¯s true.¡± Gripper, who momentarily made Ian stand in his spot, went into the storage room of his laboratory and brought out an item with him that looked like a magnifying glass. ¡°Alright, take this.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a tool that will allow you to distinguish the ancient relic. You need to collect one of each relic for a total of 6 different kinds of relics, but they look almost identical. If you don¡¯t have this distinguishing tool, it will probably be difficult for you to distinguish them.¡± Ian put the item within his chest and responded. ¡°I see.¡± And Gripper, who momentarily took a breath, continued his words again. ¡°The portal that I open will probably connect to the basement dungeon of the Ancient Ruins of Arnovil Empire. You just need to go in there and catch a guy called the ¡®Tomb Raider¡¯s Spirit¡¯.¡± ¡°The Tomb Raider¡¯s Spirit must have the relic pieces, I assume.¡± Gripper nodded his head. ¡°Apparently so. Using the distinguishing tool I gave you, distinguish six different kinds of relics that are unique to each other from the ones the spirit gives you, and once you¡¯ve gathered them, you just need to return through the portal.¡± Ian nodded his head. From what he thought, it wasn¡¯t an overly-complicated, simple grinding quest. ¡°Understood.¡± Griffin added another word to Ian, who was about to go into the portal. ¡°Ah, as this portal closes after 3 days automatically, you need to make sure you return before then. 3 days should probably be enough for you, though.¡± Until he proceeded with the quest, he wouldn¡¯t know if it was enough time or not, but if there was a time limit, it was important that he moved as fast as possible. ¡°Yes, don¡¯t worry.¡± Ian, who responded concisely, stepped foot into the Dimensional Portal without hesitation. CH 73 Chapter 73: Dimensional Magic Tower (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡®From what I remember, Kaimon Empire was formerly Arnovil Empire¡­¡¯ Kaimon Empire was one of the two giant empires that controlled half of Colonar Continent, and formerly, it was known as Arnovil Empire. The reason why Ian knew about the Empire¡¯s former name that was within this continent¡¯s history was quite simple. This was because, users that were first starting Kailran had to watch a 15-minute video inside the capsule whether they wanted to or not. The video was quite entertaining, though, so there weren¡¯t a lot users that had complaints about it even in the early days of the game. ¡®Let¡¯s see here, what level are the monsters here¡­¡¯ All of the monsters that infested the basement dungeon of the ruins were in the forms of ghosts or skeletons. The only interesting point was rather than human-like figures, there were more ghosts and skeletons that had more monster-like forms. ¡®If they¡¯re around their early lv 90s, then they¡¯re perfect for hunting. They¡¯ll probably be similar to Snow Gargoyles.¡¯ Ian couldn¡¯t find any ¡®Tomb Raider¡¯s Spirits¡¯ that Gripper mentioned, but his body itched. The reason for that was because of the system message that popped up right in front of his eyes. You have become the very first discoverer of this dungeon.For the next 5 days, all the EXP you obtain from the dungeon will double.For the next 5 days, the chance of obtaining items from the dungeon will double. However, at that moment, Ian remembered the 3-day time limit for the quest. Ian licked his lips. ¡®If this was going to be the case, he should have given me a 5-day time limit for the quest as well.¡¯ He felt a little disappointed that he couldn¡¯t hunt for the full 5 days, but he was still very grateful for 3 days. Wearing a smile that went from ear to ear, Ian started moving in order to fight. @ ¡°Hm, no matter how much I look around, as expected, information related to the ancient ruins of Arnovil Empire is practically nonexistent.¡± Jinsung, who thoroughly searched the dungeon and wiped it all day, momentarily left his capsule as it was time to eat and so he could look for information while he was out anyways. ¡°Although I wasn¡¯t expecting much from a place where I received the first discoverer¡¯s message¡­¡± Jinsung was currently looking for information related to the ¡®Tomb Raider¡¯s Spirit¡¯, the monster that was most important in his quest. This was because he couldn¡¯t even find twenty ¡®Tomb Raider¡¯s Spirit¡¯ monsters while hunting for a quarter of a day. On top of that, as the drop rate for the quest item was incredibly low, he had barely obtained two ¡®Ancient Relic Pieces¡¯ at this point. However, they ended up being the same piece, so in addition, he experienced his anger bursting. ¡®Euh, at this rate, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be able to complete it in three days¡­¡¯ Jinsung continued to look around the bulletin board while clicking his mouse. However, just then, he finally discovered the word ¡®Tomb Raider¡¯ with his eyes. ¡®Huh? The name isn¡¯t the Tomb Raider¡¯s Spirit, but maybe?¡¯ The name in the bulletin post¡¯s title was not the ¡®Tomb Raider¡¯s Spirit¡¯, but the ¡®Cobalt Tomb Raider¡¯. However, Jinsung was grasping at straws, and clicked the bulletin post. Title: Ha¡­ I¡¯ve caught only Cobalt Tomb Raiders for about a week now.Content I¡¯m a user that received the ¡®Lost Relic¡¯ quest from ¡®Baron Suikan¡¯, the lord of Carlib Territory. It is a hidden quest, but on top of taking a lot of time, the reward wasn¡¯t that good, so I wonder if anybody else will do the quest after me, but as there¡¯s something that could be called a tip, I decided to write this. The quest I received was one where I needed to gather relic pieces and restore them. It was a method where the relics had a chance to drop if a Cobalt Tomb Raider was caught. Jinsung, who had read up to this point, inwardly let out a shout of delight. ¡®This quest¡¯s method is incredibly similar to the quest I received.¡¯ And he concentrated and began to read the rest of the content. Firstly, the damned point of this quest is that the same relic piece could drop. This was a quest that was cleared once you collected a total of 4 unique pieces and brought a completed relic. More simply explained, the 3rd piece will never appear. The drop rate of the pieces themselves are low, but on top of that, only the other pieces continuously come out, so it¡¯s an act that drives you crazy. As if Jinsung was saying he fully understood the feelings of the user who uploaded the bulletin post, he nodded his head and mumbled. ¡°It definitely is a damned quest.¡± This quest was truly a carbon copy of the quest that Jinsung was currently proceeding through. At the anticipation that he could possibly gain decent information, Jinsung continued to scroll down. However, this is the truth that I figured out after almost a week, but there is a reason why the drop rate of the Tomb Raider monster¡¯s quest item is so low. When you catch the monster, if you damage the pack that they carry on their backs, then the drop rate for the item decreases. I actually tested this out, but the quest item that dropped once almost every ten monsters, dropped once every 2-3 times if the pack wasn¡¯t damaged, showing a sharp increase. This was the truth that I discovered when I was almost finished with the quest, but if you proceed with the quest knowing this beforehand, I felt that it would be a great help, which is why I¡¯m posting this. Jinsung, who read the post up to this point, noticeably brightened. ¡°I thought so, as expected, there was some sort of secret.¡± Jinsung was certain. It wasn¡¯t the same quest, but he felt that it was a tip that could definitely be used in the quest that he was proceeding with as well. Jinsung, who almost had to encounter a crisis where he would have failed the connected quests from the beginning, let out a sigh of relief. ¡°I should test this out.¡± Originally, he was planning on going to bed for the day after finishing his meal, but he felt that he wouldn¡¯t be able to fall asleep until he checked the information he just received. Jinsung quickly finished his meal and hurriedly logged onto Kailran. @ Two days later. ¡°Argghh! I¡¯m seriously going to go crazy!¡± Ian, who had just analyzed the relic piece using the magnifying glasses that he received from Gripper, let out a shout before he realized. ¡°Argh, this percentage has to be a fabrication!¡± After receiving the information related to the Tomb Raiders from the community, Ian¡¯s quest progression was incredibly smooth for a while. He had collected five of the six pieces without overlapping in one day. However, on the last day of the quest, he had already obtained his fifth piece, but the piece that he needed, the 4th piece, did not come out even once. ¡®I¡¯ll actually go crazy. How much time do I have left?¡¯ Ian opened the quest window and checked the remaining time. Remaining Time 03:39:21 And he automatically let out a sigh. ¡®Wow, I don¡¯t even have four hours left.¡¯ From the looks of his current pace, he would only be able to obtain two pieces at most within three hours. It was truly unknown whether he would or would not be able to obtain the 4th piece, which hadn¡¯t appeared the past five times, within the remaining time. ¡®If I had known this would be the case, I should have pushed back hunting on the first day and spent it looking for the Tomb Raider¡¯s Spirit first¡­¡¯ It all started because of the first discoverer¡¯s buff, as he got excited and wiped every monster that his eyes landed on. However, as there was nothing he could do to change it just because he regretted it now, Ian began to diligently move again. ¡°Clopia, go that way and if you see a Tomb Raider, let me know immediately!¡± Kku-reuk- Kku-reuk-. Clopia, who was Ian¡¯s Possession shuttle, was quite a big help during this quest in finding Tomb Raiders. This was because, on top of having a fundamentally high Agility, as its inherent ability was Wind-Riding, its movement speed was incredible. ¡®Thank god this dungeon didn¡¯t have a long-distance damage-dealing monster.¡¯ Clopia¡¯s Wind-Riding ability was an ability that raised its movement speed by 70% if it doesn¡¯t get hit for over 5 seconds while flying. And if there were no long-distance damage-dealing monsters, then it was safe to say that Clopia wouldn¡¯t get attacked while flying in the air. However, Ian, who searched for a while in the opposite direction of where he sent Clopia off to, spotted a unique monster that he hadn¡¯t seen with his eyes yet. ¡®What¡¯s that?¡¯ As it had a human-like form, he momentarily mistook it for a Tomb Raider¡¯s Spirit, but it was a ghost that was shorter than a Tomb Raider and had a hunchback. ¡®Huh? But it¡¯s a Heroic-rank.¡¯ In this dungeon, there were no cases where Ian met Unique-rank monsters, let alone Heroic-rank ones. ¡®Ah¡­ Do I just pass by it? Or not?¡¯ Ian contemplated. He was definitely not contemplating on whether he should capture it or not. On top of being a human-like monster, it was impossible to capture an undead monster. He was also not worrying about if he would lose fighting it. He already had experience hunting lv 90 Heroic-rank monsters in the northern continent. The only reason he was worried was the remaining time for the quest. ¡®If it¡¯s a Heroic-rank monster that¡¯s over lv 90, it¡¯s going to take up about 30 minutes fighting it no matter how fast I am¡­¡¯ However, his confliction was only momentary. Because of the first discoverer¡¯s buff, it wasn¡¯t proper etiquette towards the Heroic-rank monster to just ignore it, especially right now, when he had doubled item drop rate and of course, EXP. ¡°Ly, let¡¯s catch it!¡± Grr-! Ian fell into temptation like that once again. @ ¡°Ugh, I never dreamt that on the topic of ghost monsters, it would also be a Summoner.¡± Ian, who caught the Heroic-rank ghost with more difficulty than expected, mumbled. The Heroic-rank ghost monster had the name ¡®Ancient Summoner¡¯, and befitting it, the ghost summoned several Familiars and stood against Ian. Because he focused his attacks on the main body in the end, he spent a shorter amount of time in combat than he expected, but as the opponent aimed for Ian first as well, there were several quite dangerous situations. ¡®Anyways, since I caught it, shall we check what kind of items dropped?¡¯ Ian raised his hand on top of its corpse, and collected the items. You have obtained the item ¡®Ancient Summoner¡¯s Staff¡¯.You have obtained the ¡®Ancient Monster¡¯s Guide¡¯. As he saw the system message, Ian¡¯s eyes shone. ¡®Huh? How long has it been since I¡¯ve seen a Heroic-rank item?¡¯ The item called the Ancient Monster¡¯s Guide seemed to be a Common-rank, as its name was in white, but the Ancient Summoner¡¯s Staff¡¯s name clearly shone a purple light. It had been a long time since he received a Heroic-ranked item, but on top of that, he was sure that it was an item that was exclusive to Summoners based on the name. With a nervous heart, Ian opened up the staff¡¯s information. Ancient Summoner¡¯s Staff Classification ¨C Staff Rank ¨C Heroic Equip Limit ¨C Lv 91 Offensive Power ¨C 497-605 Durability ¨C 820/820 Option ¨C Intellect +124 Leadership +30 Summoning Magic +42 Spirit Magic +20 *The Offensive Power of all summoned Familiars will increase by 32%, while the amount of critical damage dealt will increase by 46%. *A magical ball can be launched forward with the consumption of 5 Spirit Magic. The magical ball gains a destructive power equal to 250% Summoning Magic, and if the opponent is hit, the consumed Spirit Magic will be recovered. *If the staff is equipped, Affinity with Ancient Monsters will not drop below 30. It is a staff that an ancient Summoner with a name used. The more exceptional the ability of the Summoner, the more strength they can display. ¡°Alright!¡± Ian clenched his fist. Even the little remaining quest time was momentarily forgotten for now. ¡®It¡¯s the same as having gained another damage skill proportional to Summoning Magic. It looks like I¡¯ll be dealing quite a bit of damage now, too.¡¯ As the Offensive Power of the weapon itself didn¡¯t greatly impact the character¡¯s damage-dealing no matter how high it was anyways, Ian picked his weapons solely based on the option, regardless of the level limit. ¡®However, this is different.¡¯ Simply put, the option attached to this staff changed Ian¡¯s normal attacks proportionately to Summoning Magic and not to Offensive Power. It was truly a golden item to Ian. The item ¡®Ancient Monster¡¯s Guide¡¯ was a miscellaneous item, and as there wasn¡¯t any information that could be helpful right now even when he opened it, he was slightly disappointed. However, Ian thought that he did a good job not overlooking the Heroic-rank monster just based on the staff alone. ¡°Now, I just need to successfully complete this quest.¡± Ian, who returned to reality, inwardly shouted out the 4th piece as if he was memorizing an order, and moved his feet busily in order to find Tomb Raiders. CH 74 Chapter 74: Dimensional Magic Tower (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Ah, Herz hyung[1]! Why haven¡¯t we seen Ian hyung for a couple days now?¡± Carwin, who was busily hunting today as well in order to raise the Public Safety of the base, seemed to have suddenly remembered Ian, as he grumbled. ¡°He¡¯s been busy lately doing the quests that he put off. He said he¡¯ll come back as soon as he finishes those. Just wait a little.¡± While trying to reach lv 93, Ian only hunted around the base like crazy. As the Public Safety of the base, which was so hard to raise, went up by 1 with a day¡¯s worth of hunting from Ian, it only made sense that his absence left a big hole. ¡°Ah, since this hyung is not here, our speed has significantly decreased.¡± It wasn¡¯t that lv 93 Ian¡¯s hunting speed was overwhelmingly faster than his guildmates, who were over lv 100, yet. However, as his playing time was overwhelmingly long, he had hunted without rest like a machine, so he had been doing the work of 3-5 people. ¡°Still, if we just raise around 15 more points for Public Safety, we meet the next set of requirements, so let¡¯s work hard a little more.¡± The reason why the guildmates were focused on the Public Safety of the base was because it was the value that was most directly connected to the territorial expansion. Once a base was first gained, it was possible to take any surrounding land without an owner as territory at a certain cost in Kailran¡¯s guild base system. Depending on the size of the extra territory gained this way, it¡¯s graded a level, and it was a system where every time the territory was expanded to the next level¡¯s stage, the Public Safety limit would rise by 50. The Public Safety of the Lotus guild¡¯s base was currently at 185. Since gaining their very first base, they were intending to get the territory to the 3rd expansion. When thinking of the Public Safety when they first promoted the base to a Village, which was 12, they had made rapid progress. ¡°Alright. Well, still, once we reach 250 Public Safety, we won¡¯t have to waste energy on here for a while¡­¡± Once they reached the 5th expansion of the base after they made their Public Safety up to 250, it was impossible to increase their territory any more until the base¡¯s rank increased to ¡®Domain¡¯. Carwin was talking about that. ¡°That¡¯s right. Speaking of which, I wonder if Kroban hyung is raising his Fame well. Even if we work hard and meet the promotional requirements, if that hyung¡¯s title-gaining gets pushed back, then that¡¯s a real bummer¡­¡± At Herz¡¯s words, Carwin agreed. ¡°Right. That hyung technically should have reached 400 thousand Fame and started the Empire Quests by now, so I¡¯m curious as to whether he¡¯s doing alright.¡± The two people that momentarily bleated and rested, stood up again shortly after and prepared to fight. There were already over five guilds that had promoted their bases to Domain-rank. Based on the information that came from them, it was safe to say that it was the true start of the guild base once it reached Domain-rank, and a lot of new guild content opened up. There was no time to relax in order to promote the base even one day faster. @ ¡°Whew¡­ That was a close call.¡± Ian, who had barely gathered all of the relic pieces within the time limit, let out a sigh of relief after returning to the Magic Tower through the dimensional portal. He had completed the quest with just 15 minutes remaining. ¡®If I hadn¡¯t gained the information from the community, it was a quest I probably wouldn¡¯t have been able to complete.¡¯ When Ian first began hunting in the dungeon of the ruins, he thought that the monsters that appeared were quite weak in comparison to the A-rank difficulty level. He thought that it was an easy quest in comparison to the difficulty level. However, compared to right now, where he had completely finished the quest, those thoughts completely disappeared. ¡®As expected, there was a reason why the difficulty level was high. Although, I wasn¡¯t very fortunate, either¡­¡¯ Either way, Ian, who had narrowly succeeded in gathering all of the relic pieces, went to Gripper holding the pieces. ¡°Gripper, here, I have gathered all of them.¡± ¡°Ooh, good, good. As expected, you didn¡¯t let me down. I was a little worried as it was getting close to the time limit¡­¡± And as Gripper received the pieces, the message that notified Ian that he had completed the quest popped up. You have completed the ¡®Ancient Relic¡¯ quest.Clear Rank: CYou have obtained 8,757,500 EXP. Ian, who had never received a C-rank before, grumbled internally as he looked at the substandard quest rank. ¡®Ha¡­ This rotten, unlucky quest.¡¯ If he was only lucky, then it was a quest he could have finished not just a couple hours earlier, but yesterday. If that was the case, he would have at least received a B-rank, or an A-rank. Ian held a grudge in vain. Meanwhile, Gripper, who received the relic pieces from Ian, just told Ian to wait for a second before he slipped into his laboratory. ¡°Hoo, I should sit down for a bit and rest.¡± Ian, who agonizingly progressed through the quest because of the insufficient time, seemed to have been tired, as he plopped down on his chair and began to doze off. Just as Ian was about to be forcibly logged out from falling asleep, Gripper, who had carried the relic inside his lab with him, luckily came out and woke Ian up. ¡°Thanks to you, the magical equipment is finally completed. Thank you.¡± ¡°It was nothing. It¡¯s a relief to hear that the research finished successfully.¡± And with an expression full of anticipation, Ian asked Gripper. ¡°Since the magical equipment is finished now, does that mean we can revive the God Dragon¡¯s Soul Stone that I brought?¡± Inwardly, he was thinking that ¡®there¡¯s no way that it would be completed this easily¡¯, but he asked just in case. However, as expected, there was no way that was it. ¡°No, because we don¡¯t know if the machine is properly running yet, that¡¯s dangerous. Wouldn¡¯t it be a big problem if the machine malfunctions and the God Dragon¡¯s Soul Stone was lost?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡®That¡¯s right. If the God Dragon¡¯s Soul Stone were to disappear, I may not be able to sleep for a while because of the disappointment.¡¯ From what he heard from Oakley, the God Dragon was a Familiar that¡¯s fighting power was truly unbelievable. ¡®It might be a Legendary-rank.¡¯ While Ian was thinking of the God Dragon that he would be able to summon soon and letting his imagination run wild, the next connected quest left Gripper¡¯s mouth. ¡°So, wouldn¡¯t you say that it needs to be tested with a different Soul Stone of an ancient monster first? Then, if it¡¯s confirmed that it operates properly, then I¡¯m thinking of using the God Dragon¡¯s Soul Stone that you brought.¡± The quest notification rang out. Ring-. Restoration of an Ancient Monster Dimensional Magician Gripper said that he needed to test his magical equipment with a different monster first in order to wake up the God Dragon¡¯s Soul Stone. If the Soul Stone pieces of the ancient monster that Gripper wants is collected, he¡¯ll revive the ancient monster using his magical equipment. You must enter the dimensional portal that Gripper creates, and gather the Soul Stone pieces of the ancient monster he wants. The pieces are made up of a total variety of ten, and you must gather one of each kind of piece and bring it back. Quest Difficulty Level: A Quest Condition: Unable to party for the duration of the quest. Time Limit: None Reward ¨C An ancient Familiar equal to the Clear Rank can be gained. The quest cannot be rejected. And Ian, who slowly read down the quest content, couldn¡¯t help but internally scream. ¡®Aaaack! For this one to also be piece-gathering.¡¯ He felt faint while remembering the horror of the 4th piece. ¡®Still, it¡¯s a relief that there¡¯s no time limit this time.¡¯ After sleeping and waking up, before he knew it, it was Sunday now. It was the day that ne needed to visit the village momentarily to meet with Professor Lee Jinook. If he used a Return Stone, it would be an instant trip back and forth, but as he didn¡¯t know if there would be some sort of variable, he would have felt uncomfortable if there was a time limit. On the other hand, there was an interesting part as well. ¡®I¡¯m anticipating the part that says I can obtain an ancient Familiar a little.¡¯ As he went over lv 90, his Leadership value had gone up during that time. He could afford to increase his Familiars by one or two more now. Ian, who roughly finished organizing, responded to Gripper. ¡°Yes, I will find them and bring them back.¡± Gripper smiled brightly as he nodded his head. ¡°Thank you, Ian. I¡¯ll put my trust only in you.¡± @ Sunday evening. Ian, who arrived at Robos Town at the promised time after lightly finishing his lunch, looked around in order to find Professor Lee Jinook. ¡®Now that I think about it, I didn¡¯t ask the Professor for his ID.¡¯ Ian, who had hit the fan, wondered if he needed to at least log off and call him. However, just then, a user with the form of a middle-aged man caught Ian¡¯s eyes. And after Ian checked his ID, he flinched. ¡®His ID is¡­ Lee Jinook?¡¯ At the unknown disharmony, Ian broke out in a cold sweat, and he carefully looked at various sides of the person. It was due to the fact that he looked much younger than Professor Lee Jinook. ¡®By the looks of it, I think it is the professor¡­¡¯ As he seemed to have played around with the customizing quite a bit, he also looked a bit different, but it was an outer appearance that definitely looked similar to Professor Lee Jinook. Ian carefully approached him. ¡°By any chance, are you Professor Lee Jinook?¡± And after discovering Ian, he nodded his head and responded. ¡°That¡¯s right, Student Park Jinsung. You¡¯ve come right on the promised time.¡± ¡°Yes, Professor. You¡¯ve come early.¡± And Lee Jinook looked at Jinsung here and there before wearing a quizzical expression. ¡°But, why isn¡¯t your ID and level visible?¡± And Ian, who heard those words, knew by intuition that his predictions were right. ¡®As expected, he wasn¡¯t able to believe my screenshot.¡¯ ¡°Ah, one second, Professor.¡± After responding, Ian changed his ID and level, which were set to private, as public. As he did so, Professor Lee Jinook wore a surprised expression. ¡°Oh-ho, you actually are lv 93. No, you must have leveled up within then. Lv 94, huh¡­¡± At the reaction of the Professor, who was truly in awe, Ian wore a pleased expression. ¡°Yes, Professor. I suffered a little during the break.¡± Lee Jinook nodded his head. ¡°Truly acknowledgeable.¡± Ian followed through and carefully asked. ¡°Then, now¡­ I¡¯ve won the bet, right?¡± Even while Ian spoke, he was inwardly nervous, but surprisingly, Professor Lee Jinook responded coolly. ¡°Sure. You¡¯ve clearly won the bet. I will acknowledge it.¡± Along with those words, a smile spread across Ian¡¯s face. ¡®It feels like a ten-year indigestion finally went down.¡¯ And Ian, who reached his goal, felt he could go and do the quest without regret now. ¡°Professor, then it¡¯s alright for me to go now, right?¡± However, it seemed as though Lee Jinook still had something to say to Ian. ¡°No, follow me for a second. It¡¯s not going to take long. There¡¯s something I have to show you.¡± And taking the lead, Lee Jinook headed towards somewhere. However, because it was a situation where Ian had for sure won the bet, he obediently followed with a relaxed heart. ¡®By the looks of it, it seems he¡¯s a Summoner, so is there something he wants to ask me?¡¯ If that was the case, he even had thoughts to respond sincerely. Since Ian was currently in an excellent mood. However, the place that the two people arrived at shortly after was a place of a kind that Ian was seeing for the first time. On top of that, it was a place that aroused interest. ¡®What the hell? Was there such a place? A monster breeding ground?¡¯ [1] hyung = what a younger male calls a close, older male CH 75 Chapter 75: Dimensional Magic Tower (4) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda A building that was blatantly standing on the outskirts of the town. Ian wasn¡¯t able to suppress his curiosity and asked Professor Lee Jinook. ¡°Professor, how did you find out about this place?¡± Robos Town was a town that wasn¡¯t that far from Myuran, the capital of Luspel Empire, but because it was located at a remote place and there were no decent hunting grounds nearby either, it was always tranquil. If the normal leveling-up route was taken, it was a town that you would have had no reason to come to. ¡®By the looks of how it hasn¡¯t popped up on the community either, it means that it hasn¡¯t been long since its been created¡­¡¯ Professor Lee Jinook responded. ¡°The owner of this Monster Breeding Ground is an NPC named ¡®Ralph¡¯, and I was luckily able to meet him when I first went to the Tower of Summoners.¡± Ian wore an interested expression. ¡®Somehow, I think this is a hidden quest, since if it was a quest that anybody could receive, it would have already been known in the community.¡¯ And Lee Jinook¡¯s words continued. ¡°Even when I first met him, the Monster Breeding Ground was still being built. And I received a quest from him, and the quest was to capture monsters, whether it be wolves, foxes, bears or others.¡± Ian, who heard up to this point, suddenly remembered something. ¡®I remember hearing that if you carry out a quest that involves helping the completion of a facility, then you can use that facility once its built.¡¯ This was usually a quest that users who were nurturing their production classes received. If the quest was carried out successfully, the smithy, restaurant, etc. would build a facility themselves and allow it to be used. ¡®Come to think of it, Harin also said she needed to do a quest if she wanted to build a restaurant in the base.¡¯ While Ian was thinking of this and that, Lee Jinook¡¯s words continued. ¡°Anyways, I¡¯ve finished the quest, so this Monster Breeding Ground is completed, and now I¡¯m working here.¡± Ian asked about a part he was curious about. ¡°By any chance, professor, after you completed the quest, didn¡¯t you get something like a system message saying that you could build a Monster Breeding Ground?¡± And at his question, Lee Jinook wore a surprised expression once again. ¡°No, how did you know that?¡± ¡°Usually quests where Production Class users gain a related facility operation qualification are like this.¡± Lee Jinook nodded his head. ¡°Since you know about it, it will be easier to talk. Just like you said, I¡¯ve gained the qualification to build a Monster Breeding Ground. However, as I haven¡¯t met all of the conditions yet, it¡¯s impossible right now. ¡°What conditions do you need to meet?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Lee Jinook pulled out an item that looked like a unique booklet from his chest. ¡°This book is an item called a ¡®Monster Guide¡¯, which I¡¯ve gained from Ralph, and I need to register at least 50 kinds of monsters in here in order to gain the right to build a breeding ground.¡± As soon as Ian saw the item that was called the Monster Guide, he remembered something. ¡°Uh, I think I gained something similar to that while doing one of the Magic Tower quests.¡± And as he opened his inventory, he looked for an item with the name ¡®Ancient Monster Guide¡¯. However, starting from how it looked, it was definitely a different item from the Monster Guide that Lee Jinook was holding. ¡®There¡¯s no function or something that allows me to register monsters on here¡­ It must be a different kind of item.¡¯ Lee Jinook handed Ian the Monster Guide that he was holding and continued his words. ¡°In order to fill the Monster Guide with new monsters, you need to capture the relevant monster, but with my abilities, my limit was about 30 kinds. That¡¯s why, I was hoping that you could take this item and fill it up with the information of monsters that I couldn¡¯t capture.¡± Ian, who received the guide, checked the information of the item first. Monster Guide Classification ¨C Miscellaneous Rank ¨C Common *Captured monsters can be registered into the guide. Whenever one kind of monster is registered, Fame will increase by at least 100, and the rarer the monster, the more the increase range for Fame rises. And while he was reading the item information, Lee Jinook opened his mouth again. ¡°If you help me, I¡¯ll offer you the Monster Breeding Ground that I will build in the future for free. How about it?¡± Ian firstly wanted to know about the function of the Monster Breeding Ground. ¡°But, professor, what can you do with the Monster Breeding Ground?¡± Lee Jinook responded readily. ¡°If a user entrusts their Familiar at the Monster Breeding Ground, they can train their Familiar. As the breeding ground¡¯s rank rises, apparently other functions will be created as well, but firstly, I think it¡¯s a facility where you can train your Familiar.¡± ¡°Train?¡± Instead of a response, Lee Jinook summoned one of his own Familiars. ¡°Neukttol, summon!¡± And a large black wolf was summoned in front of him. As Ian saw that, his eyes rounded. ¡°Huh¡­?¡± The reason why he was surprised was because it was the first time he had seen a wolf of its kind. ¡®Amongst the Common-rank wolves, there is a Black Wolf, but this is my first time seeing one as big as that one. It¡¯s almost as big as Ly.¡¯ Lee Jinook wore a satisfied smile as he saw how surprised Ian was, and he opened his mouth again. ¡°Haha, have you evolved a Familiar yet by any chance?¡± Ian¡¯s two eyes grew a little wider. ¡®As expected, it¡¯s a Familiar that was evolved! But how?¡¯ It wasn¡¯t because this was the first user he had seen that had evolved their Familiar besides him. As he had already assumed that there would be a user that had succeeded in evolving their Familiar by now. However, because Professor Lee Jinook¡¯s level was not yet at 30, Ian was taken aback. ¡®What the hell? Does the Professor have a Training skill as well? Ah¡­ By any chance?¡¯ Ian had realized something. And while looking at a surprised Ian, Lee Jinook confirmed his assumption. ¡°I trained my Neukttol at the Monster Breeding Ground, and a few days later, he had evolved to a species called ¡®Black-Clawed Wolf¡¯. Although, I don¡¯t really know the exact reason why he evolved.¡± However, different from Lee Jinook, Ian felt he knew the answer to it. ¡®Just like my Training skill, you could probably develop a monster¡¯s Potential through the training done here.¡¯ Ian¡¯s head spun quickly. ¡®Since I¡¯ve come this far anyways, it might be a good idea to tell Yoohyun and help the professor build the Monster Breeding Ground on our base.¡¯ Nobody may know about it yet, but once the truth that through the Monster Breeding Ground Familiars could evolve got out, the Monster Breeding Ground would cause a huge sensation. ¡®I don¡¯t know whether it will raise Potential as fast as my Training skill, but since my Training skill also has a cooldown time, it would definitely be a big help for me as well if I entrust Familiars that I won¡¯t be using immediately.¡¯ Even though he had constantly used his Training skill on rotation until he reached lv 93, Ian was still unable to make all his Familiars¡¯ Potentials reach 100. Soon, all of his Familiars¡¯ Potentials would reach 100 with Ddukdae being the last one, but if he used Skill Grant on him, his Potential would drop again. And if the breeding ground¡¯s rank goes up, there was no way of knowing what kind of function would be created. To Ian, a Summoner, its possibilities were incredibly appealing. On top of that, fundamentally, building a new Production building on the base itself would help with the base¡¯s growth value, so acquiring a Monster Breeding Ground would definitely be a big profit from the guild¡¯s perspective. Ian decided to help Professor Lee Jinook. ¡°Professor, I will help.¡± At Ian¡¯s response, Lee Jinook was delighted. ¡°Oh, would you really?¡± ¡°Yes, professor. But can I also ask for a favour?¡± ¡°Favour?¡± At Ian¡¯s unexpected words, Lee Jinook momentarily hesitated, but shortly after, he nodded his head passively. ¡°Tell me.¡± And Ian¡¯s words continued. ¡°Instead of the condition of providing the breeding ground for free to me, could I replace it with the condition that you build the breeding ground on our guild base?¡± @ Ian, who safely completed the deal(?) with Professor Lee Jinook, returned to the Dimensional Magic Tower shortly after in order to proceed with his quest. As a result, Professor Lee Jinook accepted everything, even Ian¡¯s condition. Truthfully, what Ian suggested couldn¡¯t even be considered a condition. Since from Professor Lee Jinook¡¯s perspective, it wouldn¡¯t have been an easy task looking for a site to build his building. It was simply a deal that could be considered a win-win situation. ¡®It was an unexpected harvest. To think that the Professor would have had such talent.¡¯ In reality, Professor Lee Jinook was a professor, but he was also a wild animal lover that liked hiking and animals. That¡¯s why he immediately picked the Summoner class in Kailran as well. Ian once again recalled the story of how Lee Jinook even gained the quest and nodded his head. ¡®As expected, it¡¯s difficult to obtain a hidden quest by going the normal route.¡¯ Different from normal users, he felt a communion with his Familiars and played the game as if he was raising a pet rather than hunt with them. Because of that, he was even able to receive the monster training ground quest as a connected quest. Ian pulled out the Monster Guide that Professor Lee Jinook lent to him from his inventory. ¡®Before I start the quest, should I register the Familiars that I have right now first?¡¯ He was also curious as to how the guide worked. Ian registered his Familiars just how Lee Jinook told him to. ¡°Register held Familiars!¡± As he did so, a system message popped up one after another in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Monster information registered: Red Maned Wolf ¨C Rare-rankMonster information registered: Abyss Turtle ¨C Unique-rankMonster information registered: Abyss Golem ¨C Unique-rankMonster information registered: Clopia ¨C Rare-rank Monster information registered: Lava Drake King ¨C Heroic-rank And continued, a message telling him that his Fame went up popped up. As the ¡®Red maned Wolf¡¯ monster was registered, your Fame has increased by 1200.As the ¡®Abyss Turtle¡¯ monster was registered, your Fame has increased by 53,700.As the ¡®Abyss Golem¡¯ monster was registered, your Fame has increased by 5,600. Ian, who happily checked the messages that told him his Fame rose, was momentarily taken aback. ¡®What the hell? Why did Bbookbbook give the most Fame?¡¯ Compared to Ddukdae, who was also the same Unique-rank, it was an enormous Fame difference of almost as much as 10 times the amount. ¡®It¡¯s even to a point where it¡¯s over two times the amount in comparison to Lake, who is a Heroic-rank.¡¯ However, Ian had no way of knowing the reason why it was like that. ¡®Have I found the potential for Bbookbbook to become an incredible Familiar once he¡¯s evolved?¡¯ However, as soon as he thought of na?ve Bbookbbook, who couldn¡¯t even use his four limbs properly when it came to meatballs, that illusion immediately shattered. ¡®It may even be a system error¡­¡¯ And he scanned over the information of the monsters that were registered in the Monster Guide, but it seemed that there wasn¡¯t a special part. ¡®I should go and do the quest now.¡¯ Anyways, Ian, who had gained 100 thousand Fame in an instant, stepped foot into the dimensional portal with a good mood. Combined with the Fame that he obtained from being runner-up at the rookie league and the Fame he gained in small amounts until now caused him to suddenly have over 300 thousand Fame. ¡®Now if the dungeon¡¯s first discoverer buff pops up once more from within this portal, then today would be a perfect day¡­¡¯ With a pounding heart, Ian entered the portal. You have entered the field ¡®Arnovil Plateau¡¯.You have become the first discoverer of the field.Your Fame has increased by 100,000.For the next ten days, all the EXP you obtain from the field will double.For the next ten days, the chance of obtaining items from the field will double.You have gained the title ¡®Time Traveler¡¯. After reading all of the messages, Ian wore a smile that hung from ear to ear. To Ian, the first discoverer of the field was a benefit that he experienced for the first time. ¡®Jackpot¡­!¡¯ CH 76 Chapter 76: Ancient Summoner (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda There was no time limit to finish the quest, but there was also not a lot of information given to Ian in order to carry out the quest. ¡®In the end, I need to just go at it myself.¡¯ Although it was a quest that didn¡¯t have a time limit, the fact that the reward will change depending on the clear rank meant that there was a high chance that the Soul Stone of the monster that Ian found was related to the clear rank and the reward. ¡®I should gather the Soul Stones of the monster that looks the strongest in this field.¡¯ The drop method of a monster¡¯s Soul Stone was incredibly simple, as expected. The ancient monsters that appeared in the field all had a ghost-like form, and the method was that once a relevant monster was hunted, a piece of that monster¡¯s Soul Stone would drop. Simply put, to just carry out the quest quickly, it meant that the weakest-looking monster in the field just needed to be constantly hunted and that monster¡¯s Soul Stone pieces needed to be gathered as quickly as possible before returning. ¡®There¡¯s no way that¡¯s happening.¡¯ However, there was no way Ian¡¯s greed would permit that. ¡®Since I also got the first discoverer¡¯s buff for ten days, I should comb through the whole map completely.¡¯ After examining the monsters that appeared in the field, it was composed of monsters that were 3-5 levels higher than the dungeon he needed to carry out his previous quest in. ¡®If the monsters at the field¡¯s entrance are around this rate¡­ Then that means the Boss-rank monsters could be over lv 100¡­¡¯ If that was the case, then a strong opponent for even Ian could appear. ¡®Since it¡¯s already like this, I¡¯ll level-up!¡¯ As if he was sweeping the yard with a broom, Ian gathered all of the monsters from corner-to-corner starting from the entrance of the map, and he got down to search for the strongest monster in this field. @ ¡°Herz! The community bulletin board is in an uproar right now, have you seen it by any chance?¡± While seeing Fiolan, who hastily ran to the base, Herz wore a quizzical expression. This was because it hadn¡¯t been 15 minutes since Fiolan logged off, saying she would eat before coming back. ¡°Have you already finished eating?¡± ¡°No, I went into the community and was so surprised that I logged back on.¡± Herz¡¯s two eyes slightly rounded. ¡°Huh? What happened? I¡¯ve just been diligently hunting, so I haven¡¯t been able to check the community¡­¡± Fiolan, who took a moment to catch her breath, opened her mouth again. ¡°The northern expedition of the Titan guild found a new map called the ¡®Forlan Basin¡¯, and a time attack dungeon was discovered here.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± As time attack dungeons universally existed in other normal games, there was nothing new about the method of these dungeons. However, as it was the first time that a time attack dungeon was discovered in Kailran, that was the reason why Herz was surprised. ¡°There¡¯s two dungeons that were discovered in the basin, the level limit for one of them is 100, while the other seems to be 120.¡± At her words, Herz was delighted. ¡°Oh-ho, so our guildmates could go into the one with the lv-100 limit and attack it?¡± Fiolan nodded her head. ¡°Yes. I also thought it was possible, which is why I came running as soon as I heard the news.¡± Herz momentarily thought about it. ¡°Hmm, then should we first push off the Public Safety task and go attack the dungeon? What do you think, Fiolan?¡± ¡°I think it would be best if just you and I go together first. The rest will remain at the base.¡± At the unexpected words, Herz was slightly taken aback. ¡°Huh? What are we going to do with just the two of us when it¡¯s a dungeon attack?¡± ¡°That¡­ Apparently, the entrance limit for the dungeon is 2, strangely enough. The lv 120 dungeon is a 3-4-person dungeon, and the lv 100 dungeon is a 2-person dungeon.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± If that was the case, then Fiolan¡¯s suggestion made sense. The highest-level user currently in the guild was Fiolan, who had reached lv 110 before they knew it, while for the other high-rank guild members¡¯ levels, it was a situation where they were around the same level as Herz. The class that best fit well with Fiolan, a Magician, in a 2-person party would be Knight, and since Herz was also the guild master, it was the wisest decision for the two to go into the dungeon first in addition to the two bringing back more information. ¡°We don¡¯t even know what kind of dungeon it is yet, so wouldn¡¯t it be too big of a risk for all of our guild members to gather there?¡± Herz nodded his head in agreement. ¡°You¡¯re right, Fiolan. Just the two of us will go first.¡± ¡°Shall we go right now?¡± At impatient Fiolan¡¯s words, Herz laughed and shook his head. ¡°Fiolan, you need to eat before we go.¡± ¡°Euh¡­ That¡¯s true.¡± After checking the time momentarily, Fiolan opened her mouth again. ¡°Let¡¯s meet at Forlan Basin in 30 minutes, Herz. There¡¯s probably dungeon battle videos up in the community by now, so I think it will be a good idea to watch the videos as well before going.¡± ¡°Okay, sounds good. Then, I¡¯ll see you in a bit.¡± @ The ¡®Time Traveler¡¯ title that Ian received from first discovering the Arnovil Plateau was quite useful. ¡®As a matter of fact, the Master of Hunting title was losing a lot of its effectiveness, so this is definitely better.¡¯ The effect of the Time Traveler title was ¡®the cooldown time of all skills will be reduced by 15%¡¯. The ¡®when facing high-level opponents, all combat stats will increase by 5%¡¯ effect, and the ¡®EXP increase¡¯ effect that were attached to the existing Master of Hunting title were also definitely good. However, because his dependence on his Familiars during battle increased the higher the level he reached, it was a situation where the 5% combat stat increase for his character didn¡¯t really mean much, and since it was impossible to hunt opponents that had a significant level difference from him now, the EXP increase effect was also insignificant. On the other hand, the cooldown time of all skills being reduced by 15% was incredibly useful. Of course, it would be useful for the new skills he gained as a lv 90, but as the cycle of his pre-existing skills would also be one tempo faster, he would surely be able to feel that his hunting speed had increased. Ian, who had enjoyed hunting for a couple days like that using the new title and the first discoverer¡¯s buff, had leveled-up by 2 before he realized, and had reached lv 96. ¡®As expected, the first discoverer¡¯s buff is like honey.¡¯ He had fully gathered the Soul Stone pieces for three different kinds of ancient monsters, but Ian had no intentions to return to clear his quest. It was now time for him to hunt the monster that he had kept his eyes on. ¡°Hoo, shall we slowly go down the cliff now?¡± The field that Ian discovered, Arnovil Plateau, was divided into two large parts. With the location where the portal first opened as a reference point, south of it was the hilly section where around lv 95-98 monsters appeared. To the north, down the cliff, the monsters of the lowland were composed of monsters that were over lv 100. ¡°Ly, do you see that one?¡± Grr- Grr-! Downward of the cliff, a Heroic-rank monster could be seen at a distance. As the distance was far, the monster¡¯s name and level couldn¡¯t be checked, but even from the far distance, the aura that seeped out from the large, tiger-like form let Ian know that it was a strong monster. ¡°We could probably beat that one now, right?¡± In return, Ly howled energetically towards the air. Awhoooo-! And as if he was saying he wouldn¡¯t lose, Lake, who was beside him, let out a bright red breath towards the air as well. Hwa-reu-reuk-! It was a situation where Lake, who would be the very first to hit lv 100 amongst Ian¡¯s family soon, had an Offensive Power that was close to almost 2,500. ¡®Speaking of which, I think it¡¯s about time for our Ly and Bbookbbook to evolve now¡­¡¯ It had been a long time since he had made their Potential reach 100. However, whatever condition needed to be met in order to evolve, whether it be not high enough of a level or something else, the two had no thoughts to evolve. ¡®Well, since the two still do their own part well enough.¡¯ Ly was still doing the part of a proper single-target dealer with his high Agility and Offensive Power, while Bbookbbook was being incredibly useful ever since his Link skill was gained. As Bbookbbook always maintained Vitality that was close to 100% thanks to his abnormally high Defensive Power, whenever there was a dangerous situation, if Ian activated his Link skill, Bbookbbook carried out a potion-like role as he recovered 50% of their Vitality immediately. The damage dispersion effect was just an addition. ¡°Guys, let¡¯s go down.¡± Accompanied by his Familiars that made him feel reassured even just by looking at them, Ian slowly headed down to the lower side of the cliff. ¡®Since I haven¡¯t fought with any of the monsters that appear here yet, let¡¯s get accustomed first.¡¯ After Possessing Clopia, Ian used his Assimilation skill on Ly. As he did so, Ian¡¯s body grew and changed into a werewolf-like outer appearance. ¡®As expected, I think using the Assimilation skill on Ly in terms of my outer appearance and other reasons was a good idea.¡¯ When he first gained the Assimilation skill, he used it on Lake, who had the highest Offensive Power, but ever since he gained the Ancient Summoner¡¯s Staff, he always used his Assimilation skill on Ly. This was because the damage dealt from the magic spheres Ian shot out from his staff were proportionate to his Summoning Magic, not his Offensive Power. He couldn¡¯t raise his Summoning Magic or Spirit Magic by using Assimilation on his Familiars, so in that case, it was most effective to revive Ian¡¯s original fighting method by maximizing his Agility. ¡°Ddukdae, take the lead!¡± Deu-reu-reuk-! Ddukdae, who nodded, took the lead and headed towards the opponents. Thud- Thud- And whenever Ddukdae took one step, his loudly ringing footsteps always effectively grabbed the attention of the opponents. Du-Du-Du-! The monsters that discovered Ddukdae began to quickly approach him. The monsters that Ian was to first face below the cliff were enormous monsters that had a pill woodlouse-like form. ¡®Clopsys¡¯ Spirit¡­ As far as their appearance goes, it seems like their Defensive Power will be massive.¡¯ Even at first glance, the exoskeleton of the giant pill woodlice, which headed towards Ddukdae all rolled-up, looked incredibly tough. ¡®If it¡¯s a Defensive Power-based monster, then I could probably fight a little boldly.¡¯ It wasn¡¯t easy to cut down the Vitality of a Defensive Power-based monster, but on the other hand, because their Offensive Power was weaker in comparison, even if they allowed some attacks, the damage wasn¡¯t that big. As soon as Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss Hole was invoked, he immediately let out commands. ¡°Ly, go in and bite them as much as you want!¡± Grr-! And even without a word, Lake, who adapted to Ian¡¯s fighting style perfectly, shot out his Breath towards the pill woodlouse that were tied down by Abyss Hole. Keu-ooooohhh-! A blast of bright red lava that spread forward! A cooldown time of 30 minutes could be considered a long time, but its effect was that definite. Keu-aaaeeek-! The pill woodlouse that received a direct hit from the breath let out a horrible shriek. And Ian, who attentively studied the pill woodlouse, licked his lips. ¡°Tsk, as expected, it seems that their Defensive Power is high, as we haven¡¯t been able to cut their Vitality down to even half.¡¯ If their Vitality had dropped below the halfway mark, then their names would have started to blink slowly, but not one of them showed that kind of sign. ¡®If they were the gargoyles, then they would have melted in one shot¡­¡¯ He inwardly complained, but Ian¡¯s body was busily moving. Whoong-. A blue, magic sphere slid down Ian¡¯s staff before it was launched, and it hit the Clopsys. Pung-! You have hit the target with the magic spheres, and have dealt 2770 damage to ¡®Clopsys¡¯ Spirit¡¯.As the opponent was successfully hit, 5 Spirit Magic was recovered. Because Ian regained the consumed Spirit Magic when he hit with the magic balls that could be used as an option for the staff, if he just made sure to hit his opponent, it was basically the same as having no consumption cost restriction. It was an ability that could be called a basic attack in proportion to Summoning Magic, and it was also an ability that rapidly increased Ian¡¯s fighting contribution. However, while looking at the damage value in the system message that popped up, Ian slightly frowned. ¡®Euh, the damage is really bad.¡¯ When using the magic balls on the monsters of the hilly section that had weaker Defensive Power, they were able to deal close to 5 thousand damage, but it was a situation where the damage had dropped to almost half the amount. ¡°Current Proliferation-!¡± The Current Proliferation that spread out from Ian¡¯s staff was lodged exactly into the middle of the pill woodlouse and scattered. The connection of Abyss Hole and Current Proliferation, and as Lake¡¯s AoE passive, the Ruler of Lava effect consecutively popped up, no matter how high the Clopsys¡¯ Defensive Powers, one to two of their names started to blink. And along with the invocation of Current Proliferation again, pieces of yellow current were sucked into Jjaekee. It was a sign that meant that Jjaekee had gathered 1 Spirit Capacity. ¡®Oh, from a couple of days, it looks like Jjaekee will also be able to evolve now.¡¯ Ian, who slightly checked Jjaekee¡¯s Spirit Capacity, wore a smile that showed his good mood. Jjaekee¡¯s Spirit Capacity had reached 993 before he realized, and there were only 7 points left until he evolved. The hands and feet of Ian, who felt a surge of energy, began to move even faster. CH 77 Chapter 77: Ancient Summoner (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Herz, buy me 15 more seconds!¡± Whooong-! Fiolan started casting ¡®Frozen Hell¡¯, the highest-ranking ice magic skill amongst the skills she was mastering. As she did so, with her staff as the centre, a bright blue chill drew a large arc and began to be sucked in. And Herz blocked the dungeon¡¯s boss monster, the ¡®Forlan Giant¡¯, which was headed towards her. Bang-! Along with a boom, the giant¡¯s club struck Herz¡¯s shield. And although he succeeded in blocking it properly, Herz¡¯s body was pushed back 1 meter. Even from looking at it, it was a tremendous destructive power. After checking his Vitality gauge, Herz¡¯s complexion slightly darkened. ¡°Euh, that might be pushing it a little.¡± He clenched his teeth as he watched his blinking Vitality. If he allowed just one more hit like this, his Vitality would hit the floor. Fiolan shouted with an urgent voice. ¡°Just 7 more seconds now. If this attack just explodes properly, I think we¡¯ll be able to catch it!¡± Herz was momentarily conflicted. ¡®If I dodge this attack here right now, Fiolan¡¯s magic will be cancelled, and then clearing the dungeon would have gone down the drain anyways¡­¡¯ The time limit was the problem. If it was a normal situation, it would have been right to back off one tempo, but because there wasn¡¯t even 1 minute left until the time limit was over, they would have failed to clear the dungeon anyways if they missed this chance. ¡®Let¡¯s try to hold out. If I die, well, then I¡¯ll have 24 hours to rest.¡¯ And at that moment, the giant¡¯s club rushed towards Herz once again. Swaaeeek-! A blow accompanied by a sound that was terrifying just from what could be heard exploded. Herz calmly checked the route of the club that was flying towards him and lined his shield up. Users who didn¡¯t know much about Kailran often said that the ¡®Knight¡¯ class didn¡¯t need a lot of control, but that wasn¡¯t the truth. To calculate the angle of which the opponent¡¯s attack was rushing at, its destructive power, etc. and minimize the amount of damage was a high degree of skill that demanded an incredibly detailed control. And depending on the level of that control, the amount of damage received was different by the thousands even if it was the same attack. Because of that, Herz focused all of his mind for this moment unlike any other time before. Baang-! Along with another large boom, Herz¡¯s body was pushed back. And Herz¡¯s expression brightened shortly after. ¡®I survived!¡¯ He survived with barely 1500 Vitality, but his leftover Vitality didn¡¯t matter anyways. After Herz threw his body and escaped the giant¡¯s attack range, he turned his gaze towards Fiolan. As he predicted, a large chilly whirlpool was beginning to erupt from Fiolan¡¯s staff. While Herz was blocking the giant¡¯s attack, the casting for the magic skill was completed. And her magic attack spread forward. Ba- Ba- Bang-! ¡°Okay!¡± The chilly beam that shot out lodged exactly into the giant¡¯s body. The giant wavered and within that time, Fiolan quickly shot out low-rank magic attacks that had a short casting time continuously. Pung-! Fiolan held her breath. It was an attack done with her whole body, as she had poured out all of her Mana. If this monster died with this attack, then they finally would have cleared the dungeon. And it seemed as though the two people¡¯s desperation went through, as the body of the boss monster, the ¡®Forlan Giant¡¯, slowly started to collapse. They had succeeded in cutting down all of the monster¡¯s Vitality. Thu- Thu- Thu- Thud- As the gigantic monster collapsed, the whole dungeon vibrated greatly. And in front of it, Herz and Fiolan breathed heavily. ¡°Whew, we finally cleared it, Fiolan.¡± ¡°No kidding. How much time did we have left before the time limit was up?¡± ¡°I wonder. Won¡¯t we know if we check the result window?¡± And shortly after, the result window that notified the two that the dungeon was cleared popped up in front of their eyes. Ring-. Grave of the Forlan Hero Time Limit ¨C 00:50:00 Clear Time ¨C 00:49:43 Clear Rank ¨C D Obtained EXP ¨C 3,356,000 Obtained Gold ¨C 35,250 gold Obtained Items ¨C Piece of the Forlan Hero¡¯s Armor x2 After checking the result window, a cold sweat broke out on Herz¡¯s forehead. ¡°Wow¡­ We made it with just 20 seconds left.¡± Fiolan smirked and corrected his words. ¡°There was 17 seconds left, to be exact.¡± Herz smirked. ¡°Keu, still, we did pretty good since we made it in five tries.¡± ¡°No kidding. From what I saw outside, there was a party that came out after already failing their tenth try.¡± Fiolan, who thoroughly read through the dungeon clear result window, opened her mouth again with a slightly surprised expression. ¡°Oh, but this EXP is nicer than I thought.¡± Herz, who also was checking the EXP part at that moment as well, was surprised over the EXP that was higher than expected. ¡°No kidding. I was just thinking of the same thing. If it¡¯s 3 million EXP for about a 50-minute investment, then it¡¯s effectiveness is similar to hunting.¡± Fiolan nodded her head. ¡°That¡¯s right. As our clear rank was the lowest rank, if we get a little more used to the dungeon and clear with a high rank, then it might be more effective than hunting.¡± ¡°If we collect the pieces and make a set item, then we¡¯ll be able to obtain a decent item that must for sure be at least a Heroic-rank as well.¡± However, the problem was that the clear success chance was not 100%. The monsters that appeared in the time attack dungeon didn¡¯t give anything when hunted, whether it be EXP or items. That meant, if they failed to clear, then they would be throwing away all of their 50 minutes without any reward. If they failed in clearing even once, then the hunting effectiveness of the dungeon would drop remarkably. ¡°Fiolan. I think it would be best if first you and I together finish our attack perfectly before we call over our other guildmates.¡± ¡°I agree. After the two of us are completely familiar with the dungeon, we should take one person each and attack separately, then our other guildmates will probably be able to clear a little easier.¡± After making up their minds, the two left the dungeon quickly. Once the dungeon was cleared, they could challenge it again after 10 minutes. Until then, they needed to finish all of their maintenance. @ ¡°Hoo¡­¡± A short sigh passed through Ian¡¯s mouth. It was already almost a week since he had come down to the lowland of the ¡®Arnovil Plateau¡¯ field. Including the 5 days that he spent hunting in the hilly section, Ian hadn¡¯t left the field for 12 days already. Two days had already passed since the first discoverer¡¯s buff had ended as well. ¡®I want to leave here now!¡¯ Ian ground his teeth while looking at the large tiger-like monster that growled in front of him. ¡®How many have I hunted now? Let¡¯s be humane this time and drop it!¡¯ The reason why Ian wasn¡¯t able to leave the field yet was because of the Heroic-rank monster, ¡®Hallikan¡¯s Spirit¡¯, which he was in a fierce battle for a while with now. ¡®7th piece¡­ Please!¡¯ In the previous quest, the 4th piece was a troublemaker, but this time, the 7th piece was testing Ian¡¯s patience. A bundle of electricity filled with Ian¡¯s anger shot out towards the Hallikan. ¡°Current Proliferation!¡± Za-Za-Zap-! Ian was facing the Hallikan easily as if he was basically playing with it. His opponent was a strong monster, but because he had already gone through a countless amount of battles against it, he had memorized all of its attack patterns. Using the surrounding terrain features and monsters, Ian reset his Current Proliferation¡¯s cooldown time multiple times and shot out Current Proliferation and Magic Spheres. It seemed he had worn down the Hallikan¡¯s Vitality quite a bit, as its name was flickering quickly. ¡®I should be able to catch it any minute now.¡¯ However, just then, a completely unexpected situation appeared in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ba- Ba- Bang-! Along with the sound of a large explosion, the currents that Ian had shot out exploded altogether. And a flash that was so strong it caused his vision to turn all-white filled up in front of his eyes. ¡°What the hell?¡± Ian, who was taken aback, instinctively threw his body and widened the gap between the Hallikan and him. It was so that he wouldn¡¯t be attacked while he lost his vision. However, far from the Hallikan¡¯s attack being continued, an unexpected system message rang out. You have killed the Hallikan¡¯s Spirit. You have obtained 128, 500 EXP. Ian was flustered. ¡®What the hell? It was time for it to die, but it wasn¡¯t enough for all of its Vitality to disappear with this attack. And what the hell was that sudden flash as well?¡¯ While Ian was in confusion, his vision that turned all-white returned to normal, and system messages continuously appeared in front of his eyes. The Spirit Capacity of Lightning Spirit ¡®Jjaekee¡¯ has been completely filled.Lightning Spirit ¡®Jjaekee¡¯ has evolved from a low-level spirit to an intermediate-level spirit. ¡®Oh, Jjaekee evolved. Was the explosion that happened just a moment ago generated while Jjaekee evolved?¡¯ Ian, who understood it as an explosion that occurred during the evolution process, only then nodded his head. Jjaekee¡¯s outer appearance, which was small in size and looked like a sparrow, transformed into the form of a quite cool-looking rapacious bird. However, before Ian opened up the evolved Jjaekee¡¯s information, he wanted to check the corpse of the Hallikan that was collapsed in front of him first. ¡®Jjaekee also evolved¡­ Now, if just the 7th piece drops from this monster, I feel like I¡¯ll be able to leave this place without any regret¡­¡¯ Once hunted, the Hallikan was a monster that took at least an hour before it appeared again. The drop rate of the Soul Stone piece was around 30% from experience. Even if he was to gather all ten pieces at once without any overlapping, he would have had to hunt around 30-35 Hallikans. However, there was no way that Ian¡¯s item luck would be that good, and because of the countless overlapping pieces, he had already caught over 50 Hallikan¡¯s Spirits. It was a situation that even Ian, who enjoyed grinding, would be tired enough of. Ian closed both his eyes tightly and placed his hand on top of the Hallikan¡¯s corpse. And he didn¡¯t forget to chant a meaningless incantation. ¡°7th piece!¡± And a system message popped up. You have obtained 13,845 gold from the Heroic monster ¡®Hallikan¡¯s Spirit¡¯.You have obtained ¡®Piece (9) of the Hallikan¡¯s Spirit¡¯.You have obtained ¡®Piece (7) of the Hallikan¡¯s Spirit¡¯. Ian, who checked the system message, let out a shout without him realizing. ¡°Done! It finally came out!¡± This was the first time two pieces came out at once. ¡®I might have cried if I didn¡¯t get the 7th piece this time as well.¡¯ With an even lighter heart, Ian plopped down onto the ground. As he had achieved his goal, his knees gave in. ¡®Shall we check Jjaekee¡¯s information now?¡¯ Ian called over Jjaekee, who had become quite cool after evolving. ¡°Jjaekee, come over here.¡± Chir- Chirp-! However, at the unchanged cry, he burst out laughing without realizing it. ¡®Why is his cry just as is?¡¯ And Ian opened Jjaekee¡¯s information window. Jjaekee (Lightning Spirit) Spirit Capacity: 0/5000 Type: Lightning Rank: Intermediate-level Spirit Summoning Duration: 525 minutes. (Cooldown time: 800 minutes) *Once Spirit Capacity reaches its max, it evolves into a higher-ranking spirit. (Whenever a Summoning Magic that requires Lightning-type is used, a fixed quantity of Spirit Capacity is filled.) *The higher the Summoner¡¯s Summoning Magic, the longer the Summoning Duration becomes. Inherent Ability ¨C Charge *10% of the damage dealt by Lightning-type Spirit Magic will be taken as Vitality. ¡®Ooh¡­ It developed an inherent ability as it became an Intermediate-rank. On top of that, isn¡¯t this the same as Health Absorption?¡¯ Jjaekee, a spirit, didn¡¯t have a notion of ¡®Vitality¡¯. In that case, the ¡®recovered Vitality from taking it away¡¯ definitely had to mean the character¡¯s Vitality. ¡®It¡¯s a little disappointing that Current Proliferation doesn¡¯t have a strong Offensive Power since it¡¯s not a damage-dealing skill.¡¯ Still, by roughly calculating, he thought that it was quite a decent recovery skill. ¡®Since it¡¯s like this already, if I have a reason to stop by Myuran, I should go to the Tower of Summoners and buy a lightning-type Spirit Magic attack that is a little more offensive.¡¯ Ian, who was excited over the thought of using the newly developed inherent ability, abruptly stood up and called Ly over. ¡°Ly, let¡¯s go back!¡± Grr-! Ian, who Summon Released all of his Familiars excluding Ly, got on Ly¡¯s back. Without a moment¡¯s delay, he wanted to restore the Hallikan¡¯s Soul Stone that he had such difficulty collecting. CH 78 Chapter 78: Ancient Summoner (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°What is¡­ all of this?¡± While looking at all of the Soul Stone pieces that Ian had poured on top of the table, Gripper wore a dumbfounded expression. Ian smirked while looking at him. ¡°Well, it¡¯s just as it looks.¡± Truthfully, the reason why Gripper was surprised was very obvious. From the beginning, the requirement for the quest itself was to bring all of the Soul Stone pieces of one spirit with no restriction on what kind of spirit. However, by just counting the pieces that completed a Soul Stone, it looked like there were about 50 different Soul Stones from the pieces that Ian poured out. If each of the pieces were counted individually, it was an enormous amount easily over several hundred pieces. The reason why he had gathered this many Soul Stones was simple. This was because Ian had grinded to complete the Hallikan¡¯s Soul Stone, but as the Hallikan was scarce, it required a certain period of time before it appeared again once it was hunted, so Ian had spent the leftover time hunting any other monster he confronted. ¡°This, this many, though¡­¡± Gripper was momentarily at a loss for words. However, he wore a broad smile shortly after and spoke. ¡°To have sincerely completed my request above my expectations, I see the reason why Elder Oakley sent you!¡± And a system message notifying Ian that the quest was completed popped up. You have completed the ¡®Restoration of an Ancient Monster¡¯ quest.Clear Rank: SSSYou have obtained 20,457,500 EXP. Ian wore a broad smile while seeing almost 30% of his exponentially increased EXP requirement since reaching the second-half of his lv 90s get filled up in one go. ¡®Keu, it was worth suffering!¡¯ While looking at a happy Ian, Gripper wore a satisfied smile as well. ¡°Follow me inside. Let¡¯s start the restoration operation with the Soul Stones you found now.¡± ¡°Sounds good.¡± Ian was so excited he followed Gripper inside. While thinking of the ancient Familiar that he would receive as written in the reward column of the quest, Ian was already expectant. ¡®If I can gain the Hallikan, it would be really nice.¡¯ He only faced the Hallikan easily in the end, but it was still a Heroic-rank monster that was a whopping lv 103. When he first faced it, it was a strong opponent that drove him to the brink of death multiple times. ¡®It seemed like its fighting style was similar to Ly, so would its fighting stat ratio be between Ly and Lake?¡¯ Gripper dragged Ian, who was counting his chickens before they hatched(?), into the deepest part of his laboratory. In there, a gigantic magic equipment that looked complicated even at first glance was installed. ¡°Well, shall we start now?¡± Gripper began to combine the Soul Stone pieces that Ian brought and sincerely complete the Soul Stones. And he grabbed one of the completed Soul Stones and raised it up to the magic equipment. Ian, who secretly checked the Soul Stone¡¯s information mumbled to himself. ¡®That¡¯s the Clopsys¡¯ Spirit.¡¯ The ancient monster Clopsys, which annoyed Ian with its high Defensive Power. Ian carefully watched Gripper with an expression full of anticipation as to what kind of form the monster that existed as a spirit would look like once it was restored. Whoong-. As Gripper activated the equipment, blue lights here and there in the equipment swayed and began to release a resonance. ¡°Ooh¡­¡± Ian let out a low exclamation without him realizing. This was because the Soul Stone that was placed in the centre of the equipment wafted in the air. Rays of light that bloomed here and there in the magic equipment slowly began to permeate the Soul Stone. As it did so, the Soul Stone let out a bright blue light as well and began to wriggle. ¡°Now, what kind of monster is it?¡± With eyes full of anticipation, Gripper watched the rays of light that made up the form of the large monster. And shortly after, the feast of the bright blue lights died down and one large ¡®Clopsys¡¯ monster revealed itself in front of the two people. ¡°Success! We succeeded!¡± Apart from Gripper, who was positively thrilled while petting Clopsys, Ian was checking the system message that popped up in front of his eyes. You have succeeded in restoring the ancient monster ¡®Clopsys¡¯.As you have succeeded in restoring an ancient monster (Common-rank), your Fame has increased by 500.From now on, the ¡®Clopsys¡¯ monster will appear in Colonar Continent. ¡®Oh, if you succeed in restoring an ancient monster, then it emerges on the field?¡¯ Ian felt a strange happiness. ¡®For a new monster to emerge in Colonar Continent because of me¡­ This feeling is strange.¡¯ And Gripper¡¯s restoration operation continued. You have succeeded in restoring the ancient monster ¡®Lakainu¡¯.You have succeeded in restoring the ancient monster ¡®Felis¡¯. There were quite a lot of monsters that were the same kind, but as there was such a large quantity, there were a total of fifteen different kinds of new monsters that was birthed into Colonar Continent. As an assortment of restoration operations from Common-rank to Unique-rank were completed, Ian¡¯s Fame had increased by an extra whopping 50 thousand. ¡®I¡¯m pretty sure it originally wasn¡¯t this easy to raise Fame¡­¡¯ After checking his Fame, which had reached close to a whopping 500 thousand, Ian wore a sour expression. ¡®As expected, the Fame system was a privilege of the users who were ahead of the curve.¡¯ Ian understood the insanely high Fame of the existing classes¡¯ top-ranking users. And shortly after, as the last restoration operation began, Ian¡¯s eyes were fixated on the Soul Stone that was on top of the magic equipment once again. ¡®Hallikan¡­!¡¯ How could he have forgotten? He had used up several days in just finding the 7th piece of the Hallikan¡¯s Soul Stone. The Soul Stone pieces that he carried around tediously, to the point he could tell what piece number it was just from looking at it¡­ Whoong-. And inside Ian and Gripper¡¯s anticipation, the restored Hallikan slowly revealed its splendor. You have succeeded in restoring the ancient monster ¡®Hallikan¡¯.As you have succeeded in restoring an ancient monster (Heroic-rank), your Fame has increased by 30,000.From now on, the ¡®Hallikan¡¯ monster will appear in Colonar Continent. The Hallikan was quite cool even when it existed as a ghost monster with its great tiger-like appearance, but after its restoration, its coercion poured out even more. ¡®Kya, it was even a white tiger!¡¯ To describe the appearance of the Hallikan in one word, it was a white tiger with a body that was as large as a house and pure white fur with crimson stripes. ¡°Ooh¡­ A Hallikan. To think that I would see such a legendary mystical creature!¡± Gripper wore an ecstatic expression, and Ian was the same as well. ¡®I want it¡­!¡¯ And as if he had heard Ian¡¯s private speech, Gripper turned his attention towards Ian and opened his mouth. ¡°Truly a great job, Ian. Thanks to you, this elderly man was able to meet the ancient monsters he had only seen in books up until now.¡± In order to get even a slightly better reward, Ian let out an empty flattery. ¡°It was nothing, Gripper. It was great because I was able to have such a special experience as well thanks to you.¡± And as Gripper spread out his hand, the Hallikan was sucked into his hand and changed into a white seal stone. Ian¡¯s eyes slightly grew. ¡®Is it because he¡¯s an NPC? To be able to do something like that, too¡­¡¯ Gripper¡¯s words continued. ¡°This is my first time seeing a Summoner as exceptional as you. So, I want to entrust this one with you. Do you think you can take care of it?¡± Those were simply the words that Ian wanted to hear. As soon as his words ended, Ian quickly nodded his head. ¡°Yes, Gripper!¡± Gripper smiled as he handed Ian the seal stone which the Hallikan was sealed into. ¡°Here, take it.¡± You have obtained the Hallikan¡¯s seal stone. Ian, who received the seal stone, was all smiles and immediately opened the Hallikan¡¯s information. Hallikan Level: 1 Classification: Ancient Fortune Rank: Heroic Personality: Violent Evolution impossible Offensive Power: 20 Defensive Power: 10 Agility: 16 Intellect: 5 Vitality: 376/376 Mana: 125/125 Inherent Ability The basic attack ¡®Smash¡¯ has a 10% chance of stunning the enemy for 1 second.Guardian of the Wind: for 2 minutes, the combined amount of stats of Offensive Power, Defensive Power, Intellect will be added to Agility. (Cooldown time 20 minutes) Rage of the White Tiger If the ¡®Smash¡¯ ability is invoked and the enemy is stunned, all status conditions will be cleared and for 10 seconds, movement will increase up to 50%. A fortune that appeared in the myth of the ancient Arnovil Empire. As it rides on the energy of the wind, it has a swift and valiant nature. As it has a foundation of white fur with crimson stripes, it is also called the ¡®Blood Tiger¡¯ because it looks as if blood is dripping down its fur. ¡®Oh, it¡¯s at lv 1?¡¯ Because the first thing that was printed on the very top of the information window was its level, the first thing that caught Ian¡¯s eyes was its level. However, Ian was not disappointed that its level was low. Rather, his eyes were shining. ¡®Will I finally be able to raise it by the nurturing method that I¡¯ve been thinking of?¡¯ The most ideal nurturing method that Ian had been thinking of was to maintain a full 100 Potential every time it leveled up. He had known for a long time that the higher the Potential, the bigger the stat increase range for each level-up. That was impossible for monsters that were already a high level from when he first obtained them, but if it was the lv 1 Hallikan, it truly was a possible nurturing method. ¡®Until its Potential is filled up to 100, I¡¯m going to maintain its level at lv 1 while only using my Training skill.¡¯ Ian checked the Hallikan¡¯s base Potential. ¡®Oh-ho, it¡¯s already at 70.¡¯ Around 30 Potential was a value that could be filled up in about one week with the rotation of the Training skill. While he was at it, Ian summoned the Hallikan in order to use his ¡®High-rank Training¡¯ skill. ¡°Hallikan, summon!¡± You have summoned ¡®Hallikan¡¯ for the first time. You can name it. ¡®Ah, right. I need to name it again.¡¯ The painful naming time that came without doubt. At the end of Ian¡¯s momentary contemplation, he named it ¡®Halli¡¯ as it was easy to say. ¡°Halli, I¡¯ll call you Halli.¡± Grr- It was a bit unexpected, but fortunately, Halli liked his name. Halli likes his own name.Your Affinity with Halli has increased. Halli¡¯s Loyalty has increased by 5. Ian, who had used his High-rank Training skill on Halli, read down the rest of Halli¡¯s information again. ¡®To find out how much his stats will grow, that¡¯s something I¡¯ll find out by raising him.¡¯ Possessing three Inherent Abilities, Ian liked every single one of them. ¡®It¡¯s only 1 second, but now I also have a stun skill.¡¯ Stuns that were invoked at the most excellent timing could influence the flow of battle greatly. Especially if it was activated appropriately during the timing of when the opponent¡¯s skill was being invoked, it could also cancel their skill. To cancel a skill was different from preventing them from using it. In Kailran, even if a skill was cancelled, the moment the motion was made, it was regarded as being invoked. In other words, it meant that the cooldown time was applied. The longer the cooldown time of the skill, the more critical the skill cancelling through stunning. ¡®Alright, I need to raise it properly.¡¯ Ian wore a satisfied smile. He had already roughly predicted that he would be able to obtain an ancient Heroic-rank monster ever since he diligently gathered the Hallikan¡¯s Soul Stone pieces. However, he never thought that he would be able to gain a Heroic-rank monster that was at lv 1. ¡®I¡¯ll look after it well for a week while raising just its Potential so that I don¡¯t accidentally level it up by having it out on the hunting ground.¡¯ There was the trouble of not being able to use it in combat immediately and having to raise it up starting from a low level, but if it grew just as Ian¡¯s expectations, then it was definitely worth enduring. ¡®If I just summon both Lake and Halli and wipe lv 80 monsters, I¡¯ll probably be able to raise it up to around lv 70 in an instant, so¡­¡¯ And Gripper approached Ian, who swelled with expectation while looking at Halli¡¯s information. ¡°Hoho, as expected, it seems because you are a Summoner as well, you are incredibly happy when you gain a magnificent Familiar.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. I think it¡¯s a cool monster that fits the title fortune.¡± Ian responded while petting Halli. While watching him do so, Gripper reminded Ian of what he momentarily forgot about. ¡°Then will you pull out the God Dragon¡¯s Soul Stone that was our original goal now?¡± CH 79 TaMa Chapter 79 Chapter 79: Forest of Love (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Both of Ian¡¯s eyes lightly shook. ¡®Finally! Finally, I can see the God Dragon!¡¯ Ian pulled out the God Dragon¡¯s Soul Stone that had already been sleeping in his inventory for almost two months. ¡®It must be an enormous monster, right?¡¯ If they just succeeded in the restoration, he did not doubt that it would become his Familiar. Since Oakley, who gave him the Soul Stone, said he would entrust the God Dragon with him for sure. Whoong-. The God Dragon¡¯s Soul Stone that came from Ian¡¯s chest lightly resonated. ¡®Starting from how it looks, it¡¯s surely different from the other Soul Stones.¡¯ The size of the God Dragon¡¯s Soul Stone was over twice as large as the other Soul Stones. And the energy of purple light that coiled within it looked incredibly mysterious. ¡°Here it is, Gripper.¡± Gripper, who was handed the Soul Stone from Ian, carefully placed it on top of the magic equipment. Whoong-. As the equipment started to run, Ian and Gripper began to watch the sight with fluttering eyes. If it was a God Dragon, then it for sure had to be a rank that was never seen before. Not just as a Familiar, but as a field monster that had yet to appear in Kailran with a ¡®Legendary¡¯ rank. Ian thought that there was enough possibility for it to be a Legendary-rank if it was the War Dragon, ¡®Karceus¡¯. ¡°Hoo¡­¡± While watching the restoration process that took double the amount of time when compared to when the other ancient Familiars were restored, Ian swallowed dryly. ¡®Why is it taking so long, it¡¯s making me nervous.¡¯ Each second felt as long as an eternity for Ian. And just then. A flash of purple light from the floating God Dragon¡¯s Soul Stone burst out as if it was an explosion. Flash-! ¡°Ah!¡± Ian let out a short exclamation without him realizing. And shortly after, the rays of light died down, Ian¡¯s exclamation turned into confusion. ¡°Huh?¡± Meanwhile, Gripper was happy. ¡°Ooh, the restoration was successful!¡± The thing that was in front of the two people¡¯s eyes was not the God Dragon that Ian was anticipating. It was merely an incredibly huge ¡®Egg¡¯. A slightly interesting fact was that a bright, purple light was oozing from the translucent shell of the egg. Gripper gave a word of congratulations to Ian, who was watching the egg with a dumbfounded expression. ¡°Congratulations, Ian. The restoration has been successfully completed. Once this egg hatches, you will become a God Dragon-handling Summoner that hasn¡¯t been seen for 100 years.¡± Gripper carefully handed Ian the ¡®God Dragon¡¯s Egg¡¯. However, just then, Gripper, whose elbow had gotten caught on the table, dropped the egg. Ian let out a shriek with an expression that turned pale. ¡°No!¡± If the God Dragon¡¯s Egg that he restored through all those hardships were to break, Ian¡¯s mentality could crumble along with it. However, his worries were needless. Thud-! The egg that dropped to the floor with a heavy sound. Cra-Crack-! And surprised by the sound of something splitting, Ian crouched down before wearing a dumbfounded expression. ¡°What the hell, how can this break?¡± The thing that split while letting out such a noise was not the God Dragon¡¯s Egg, but the marble floor of the laboratory. Gripper, who almost caused a huge accident, wore an embarrassed expression. ¡°Sor, sorry. It almost ended up turning into a huge problem.¡± Ian carefully collected the God Dragon¡¯s Egg that had fallen to the ground and put it into his inventory. ¡®I¡¯m doubtful that it¡¯s an item that needs caution, but still, since it is a rare monster¡­¡¯ And as soon as Ian put the God Dragon¡¯s Egg into his inventory, the system message that notified him that he completed the quest popped up. You have completed all of the connected quests of the ¡®Remnants of a Forgotten Ancient Monster¡¯ quest. Ian, who saw that, licked his lips. ¡®Eh, there¡¯s no EXP reward. Does that mean that the God Dragon¡¯s Egg is the best reward?¡¯ However, the system messages that immediately popped up after cleanly ended Ian¡¯s dissatisfaction. The seal on the ¡®Dragon Tamer¡¯s Feather Ornament¡¯ (Legendary) has been cleared.]As the seal has been released, its stats have increased.]Leadership has increased by 150.]Affinity has increased by 200.]From now on, monsters can be endlessly captured without any Leadership restriction. (However, when the threshold is exceeded, they cannot be summoned to battle.)]The Leadership required to manage a Dragon-class Familiar has been reduced to half.]Affinity with a Dragon-class Familiar will increase.] Indeed, the honey-like options were cleared of their seals. Unaware of the strange gaze Gripper was giving him, Ian snickered. ¡°Kya¡­¡± Even looking at it again now at almost lv 100, they were high-class options that only caused him to marvel at them. ¡®I¡¯ll probably still have some Leadership leftover even if I recruit two more Heroic-ranks as Familiars.¡¯ Ian, who momentarily looked at the information window of the head ornament with the seals cleared again and was infatuated by them, opened the information window of the God Dragon¡¯s Egg this time, which had gone into his inventory. Karceus¡¯ Egg Level: ? Classification: Egg Rank: ? Personality: ? The egg of Karceus, one of the five legendary God Dragons that protected the ancient Arnovil Empire. Karceus was destructive enough to be called the ¡®War Dragon¡¯, and even amongst the five God Dragons, it has the strongest Offensive Power. After the day of the fight with evil dragon Khalifa, it was known to have hidden its whereabouts. Ian, who read down through all of the information window, felt his happy mood drop down again. ¡®For it to be an egg¡­ How nice would it have been if it just came out perfectly?¡¯ As a matter of fact, Ian was always looking for information related to a Familiar¡¯s egg in order to complete the Griffin¡¯s Egg hatching quest, which was an Empire Quest, and now his head pounded even more. This was because the hatching of a Familiar¡¯s egg was information that he looked for whenever he got the chance, but it was a part that he had not yet received a lead on. ¡®No, rather, is it a good thing¡­?¡¯ Since he took on the God Dragon¡¯s Egg on top of the Griffin¡¯s Egg, he needed to find out a way to hatch the Familiar¡¯s Egg no matter what. From an optimistic perspective, it was a chance for him to hatch them at the same time. Gripper approached Ian, whose head was bothered by the egg hatching problem. ¡°Everything has been resolved, so why are you wearing such a complicated expression?¡± With the heart to clutch at any straw, Ian asked Gripper. ¡°Gripper, do you know of a way to hatch a Familiar¡¯s Egg by any chance?¡± However, unexpectedly, wasn¡¯t Gripper readily nodding his head? ¡°Of course, I know. How do you not know that as a Summoner?¡± At the completely unexpected response, Ian was excited. ¡°Wha, what¡¯s the method? Could you tell me?¡± However, at the Gripper¡¯s connected reply, Ian felt his spirits fall. ¡°What do you mean the method? If you give the egg to the Familiar that was the mother of the egg, it will hatch.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian firmly held down the bursting anger that boiled in him. It was advice that even an elementary school student that didn¡¯t pay attention to Science class could think of. ¡®No, is this elderly being serious? Where in the world is there a person that couldn¡¯t even thinking of something like that?¡¯ Whether it was the Griffin or Karceus, where exactly would he find a Familiar that could be the mother? ¡®There may be Griffins if you go to Shikar Desert, but going there right now is just a suicidal act.¡¯ In the Shikar Desert field, merciless monsters that were over lv 130 appeared starting from the entrance. As it was a place where someone saw up to a lv 150 monster, the level of the Griffin couldn¡¯t even be estimated. ¡®I wonder if the guy that was the Knight Leader or whatever would know if I asked.¡¯ However, his grumbling was only momentary. Ian calmly asked Gripper again. He needed to find out as much as he possibly could if there was anything he could somehow find out. ¡°Gripper, it¡¯s not possible to find the monster that would be the mother of a God Dragon¡¯s Egg, no? By any chance, is there another method aside from the method of having the mother care for the egg?¡± As Ian spoke, did Gripper then clap his hands. ¡°Ah-ha, after hearing that, there is.¡± Ian clicked his tongue inwardly. ¡®No, how exactly is this man a magician? This is too much, even for a NPC.¡¯ Ian grumbled on the inside, and Gripper¡¯s words continued. ¡°Hmm, I don¡¯t know a method aside from that, either¡­ but I do know a Summoner that would know.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± For once, Ian¡¯s gaze was full of anticipation. If it was an acquaintance of Gripper, the magician who had the grand modifier of Dimensional Enchanter. And if that acquaintance was a Summoner, then they would probably have truly helpful information. ¡°By any chance, could you tell me where that person is?¡± Gripper nodded his head. ¡°Hmm, they passed away in the Capital of Arnovil about 300 years ago.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Just before a swear word popped out of Ian¡¯s mouth, Gripper¡¯s words continued. ¡°Since you¡¯ve also helped me more than I expected, as a reward for that, I¡¯ll open up a dimensional portal for you to meet their spirit.¡± After barely swallowing down the swear words that had reached up to his neck, Ian bashfully smiled. ¡°Ha, haha, thank you very much, Gripper.¡± Gripper sent a doubtful look towards him as he spoke. ¡°It looked like swear words were about to pop out of your mouth just a moment ago.¡± Ian, who was freaked out by Gripper¡¯s expert-like senses, waved his hands. ¡°Not, not at all. You¡¯re mistaken.¡± ¡°Hm-hm, if not, whatever.¡± And after momentarily taking a breath, Gripper¡¯s words continued. ¡°That person¡¯s name is ¡®Iriel¡¯. If I open the dimensional portal, you¡¯ll be able to teleport to the place where she¡¯s located.¡± Ian, who heard the name Iriel, tilted his head inwardly. ¡®Iriel? For some reason, it seems like a woman¡¯s name¡­¡¯ From Gripper¡¯s description, Ian thought they would be an incredibly old elder. Gripper¡¯s words continued. ¡°Iriel was the best Summoner in the ancient Arnovil Empire. They will probably be able to solve your questions.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°And while you¡¯re off to see her, could you do me a favour?¡± Ian asked back with a slightly flustered expression. ¡°Yes?¡± And at a very unexpected timing, a quest window popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring-. Ancient Monster Mating Dimensional Enchanter Gripper is hoping that the ancient monsters you¡¯ve restored don¡¯t go extinct again in Colonar Continent. In order to do that, the restored monsters must mate. Gripper wants you to learn how to mate monsters from the ancient extraordinary Summoner, ¡®Iriel¡¯. Quest Difficulty Level: A Quest Condition: Must be a user who has completed at least a pair of a male and female ancient monster Soul Stones from the ¡®Ancient Monster Restoration¡¯ quest. Time Limit: None Reward ¨C ¡®Hatching of a Familiar¡¯s Egg¡¯ skill book (Summoner Exclusive) ¡®A message saying that the restored monsters will be birthed into Colonar Continent already popped up, so what¡¯s this about?¡¯ It was a strange, but Ian just went with it as it was the quest content and continued to read down. And as he grumbled while reading down the quest content, Ian¡¯s eyes stopped at the ¡®Reward¡¯ tab that was at the very bottom of the quest window. Ian internally cheered. ¡®Oooh!¡¯ The words ¡®Hatching of a Familiar¡¯s Egg¡¯ made Ian¡¯s face glow. ¡®The Game God is helping me!¡¯ The Hatching of a Familiar¡¯s Egg skill book was an item that Ian earnestly needed more than anything else, and just in time, it had come to save Ian like this. ¡®If I just succeed in this quest, then I can also cleanly succeed the Empire Quest as well!¡¯ Ian immediately accepted the quest. ¡°Of course, I need to help you!¡± As the connected quests were all done, the no-partying option for the duration of the quests and the unable-to-reject option for the quests disappeared, but that didn¡¯t even catch his eyes. Ian just wanted to meet the NPC ¡®Iriel¡¯ quickly. CH 80 Chapter 80: Forest of Love (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The Summoner Class¡¯ bulletin board was once again in chaos. And that was because of Ian. cho0111 ¨C The system message related to the ancient Familiars, it didn¡¯t just pop up for me, right everyone?dodo9099 ¨C If you¡¯re talking about the notification of the appearance of new monsters, then yes. That was a global system message.lhj7777 ¨C No, but there was no announcement about some sort of patch, yet it¡¯s possible for new monsters to just suddenly update? I don¡¯t really know much since I am a new user, but were there cases like this in the past as well?CoCoMunee ¨C Well, I don¡¯t know if there were cases like this in the past¡­ImaginationGeneral ¨C No, that¡¯s not what is important right now, by any chance, is there anyone that has discovered a new monster? Since they are ancient monsters, I feel like they¡¯ll burst with coolness.dodo9099 ¨C I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve seen any screenshots uploaded yet.lhj7777 ¨C People above, go to the screenshot bulletin board. 5 minutes ago, was its name Hallikan? It¡¯s a screenshot that Titan guild¡¯s northern expedition uploaded, and they have screenshots there of the newly created ancient Heroic monsters.CoCoMunee ¨C That¡¯s right. It¡¯s a gigantic white tiger, and its level is close to 150. It looked as if Titan guild gave up on attacking as well.dodo9099 ¨C Oh? Really? I must go see it right now! And Ian, who was eating a light lunch while reading the comments, grinned. ¡°Keu, lv 150? Halli might be an even greater monster than I thought.¡± It was strong even when it existed as a ghost monster, but since they say it has appeared in Colonar Continent almost a whopping 50 levels higher, he became curious of its dignity. Ian immediately went over to the screenshot bulletin board. And he let out an exclamation. ¡°Kya!¡± It looked as if the Hallikan appeared in the northern continent as a Boss-rank monster. ¡®It¡¯s actually lv 150!¡¯ Once Ian checked the Hallikan¡¯s dignity, he felt even prouder. If it wasn¡¯t for the quest, how would Ian have used a monster that appeared as a lv 150 Heroic-rank at this point as his Familiar? Of course, it was just a little child Hallikan that was endlessly weak at lv 1 at the moment. ¡®I¡¯m itching to raise it quickly.¡¯ After roughly taking care of his lunch, Ian hurried into the capsule. He wanted to raise Halli quickly, and he also wanted to quickly meet Iriel, who had the skill book that would save him. * * * Ian firmly finished his battle preparations and stood in front of Gripper¡¯s dimensional portal. ¡®Since I won¡¯t know what kind of monster will pop out again.¡¯ While hoping for a new field or a new dungeon to appear again, Ian stepped in. Whiiing-. His vision dimmed and the world turned upside down. It was a phenomenon that happened whenever he stepped into Gripper¡¯s dimensional portal. ¡®I need to stay on my toes.¡¯ Last time, as soon as he went through the dimensional portal, he remembered taking quite a critical amount of damage after being attacked from a monster before his dizziness even went away. Ian was nervous. ¡°Huh?¡± After checking ahead with his brightened view, Ian blinked both his eyes. This was because it was almost embarrassing how alertly he entered, as the scene in front of Ian¡¯s eyes was an incredibly peaceful(?) sight. ¡®What the hell? This feels like I came to some children¡¯s amusement park.¡¯ A pink sunset with fluffy clouds that were cutely lumped together, and along with the image of small and cute animals playing around here and there, the place that Ian stepped foot into was a sight that without a doubt seemed to be from a children¡¯s story. ¡®How do I find an NPC named Iriel here?¡¯ However, a system message suddenly popped up in front of a contemplating Ian¡¯s eyes. You are the first discoverer of the ¡®Forest of Love¡¯.Your Fame has increased by 1000.You have obtained a pair of the Forest¡¯s Wedding Rings. As a matter of fact, Ian, who was flustered at the discomforting environment, was even more puzzled. ¡°The map¡¯s name is the Forest of Love?¡± As he opened the map window that was hidden, the name Forest of Love was actually written on it clearly. ¡®On top of that, wedding rings¡­ What the hell is this now?¡¯ Ian examined his inventory. And he was able to discover a pair of rings that had entered his inventory before he even realized. Ian opened the information of one of the two rings. Forest¡¯s Wedding Ring (F) Classification ¨C Ring Rank ¨C Heroic (Growth possible) Equip Limit ¨C A female user Durability ¨C 175/175 Option ¨C Charm +30 All Combat Power +20% (Sealed) All Class Ability +30% (Sealed) All skills¡¯ cooldown times -1 second (Sealed) (Not applied to skills with a cooldown time lower than 1 second.) When worn, favorability with the ¡®Elf¡¯ race increases.When worn, Affinity with all monsters will increase by 50%.This is an item belonging to user ¡®Ian¡¯. This item cannot be transferred to another user or be sold, and even if the character dies, it does not drop. (Can only be transferred for the first time once.) Rings left by Elmorff, the owner of the Forest of Love, a legendary place that appeared in the mythology of ancient Elves. A male and female must wear the pair of rings together in order for the seal to lift and display its strength. If even one of the two were to destroy their ring, the remaining ring will also lose all its abilities and become a normal ring. Once it becomes a normal ring, it cannot find its original abilities. After checking the tremendous stats attached to the ring, Ian¡¯s jaw dropped. ¡®Growth possible? This is my first time seeing an item with this kind of option attached.¡¯ On top of that, the 1-second reduction for cooldown time option was incredibly unique. Cooldown time reduction options were always attached as a percentage value, so it was his first time seeing an item with a fixed value attached like this. ¡®Its effectiveness must be incredibly good with skills like Current Proliferation that have a short cooldown time.¡¯ Ian checked the other remaining ring. It also had the same stats perfectly. The gender equip limit was just different. ¡®What the hell is this? Although it¡¯s not at the same level as the Dragon Feather Ornament, its stats are no joke.¡¯ As Ian still had the rings that he received as a reward at lv 50 from the rookie league equipped, the options of this ring were very tempting. However, Ian wore a gloomy expression shortly after. This was because of the requirement in order to lift the seals. ¡®But who exactly am I supposed to give the female ring to? Ha¡­¡¯ At the sorrow of being forever alone, Ian¡¯s two fists shook. ¡®For even game items to discriminate solos.¡¯ The only stat attached to the sealed ring right now was Charm +30. Though, the Charm stat was a rare stat that couldn¡¯t be gained from a normal method. The higher the Charm stat, the easier it was to receive favourability from NPCs, and as it had a lot of other benefits, such as gaining a little more when buying or selling items, there were quite a lot of users that preferred the Charm option. It was for sure a stat that would help a lot when it came to playing Kailran, but it would be a little unreasonable to equip a ring with no combat stats at the moment just for the +30 Charm. ¡®Ha, I need to release the seal no matter what for stats like this¡­¡¯ Ian firstly moved his feet. He could think about the ring later, as right now his priority was to find Iriel. ¡®Maybe that way?¡¯ Fortunately, there was only one path in front of Ian. Ian followed the path and headed into the forest. Chirp- Chir-Chirp-! It seemed as if Jjaekee liked the clear air and the cozy atmosphere of the forest that was like a fairy tale, as he flapped his outstretched wings around distractedly. It looked as if their personalities didn¡¯t change even after evolving. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Meanwhile, Ian didn¡¯t have the time to enjoy the atmosphere of the forest. ¡®I should have at least asked Gripper for the features and clothes of the NPC Iriel. Just from the name, I feel like it will be a woman, but since he also said they were an ancient Summoner, I feel like they could be an elder with a long, white beard as well¡­¡¯ As Ian was walking while thinking of this and that, some sort of large, white thing suddenly jumped out in front of his eyes. Rustle-! ¡®Monster?¡¯ Ian quickly prepared for combat. However, in the next moment, he couldn¡¯t help but break out into a cold sweat after checking the monster(?) that appeared. ¡°Huck¡­!¡± The monster that had appeared in front of Ian was a pair of large, pure white and incredibly beautiful horses. A slightly interesting point was that they had a long horn protruding from their forehead. And Ian knew their identity. ¡°U, Unicorn!¡¯ The identity of the monster that had appeared in front of Ian was the Heroic-rank monster, the Unicorn. And their level was a whopping 170. ¡®Euh¡­ What should I do about this?¡¯ Ian slowly stepped backwards. No matter if it was Ian, even if he got on the wrong side of a lv 170 monster, it was obvious that not even a bone of his would remain. However, fortunately, it looked as if the Unicorns had no intention of attacking Ian. Neigh- Neeiigh-! Instead, hadn¡¯t they looked at Ian with pity and shook their heads before they disappeared into the forest? ¡®What the hell? What¡¯s up with them?¡¯ Ian, who had no idea what they meant, was bewildered. He turned his head toward Bbookbbook, who crawled along next to him. ¡°Bbookbbook.¡± Bbook-? ¡°What do you think was up with them? Is there something on my face?¡± Bbookbbook momentarily thought about it. He needed to show something as a turtle that represented the brains in Ian¡¯s party. Bbookbbook-. However, Bbookbbook couldn¡¯t help but shake his head. Smart turtle Bbookbbook couldn¡¯t understand the behaviour of the Unicorns either. As the level of the first monster Ian met was such a high-level that it completely exceeded his expectations, he momentarily thought about it. However, to give up the quest just like this, the Hatching of a Familiar¡¯s Egg skill book wavered in front of his eyes. ¡®I did meet a monster that¡¯s level was unbelievable, but since it looked like it had no intention of attacking me¡­ Shall we go in more?¡¯ Ian continued to move forward bravely. He believed that the quest came about because it was for sure a quest that could be cleared. The quest¡¯s difficulty level was definitely an A, meaning that there was no way that in comparison to the rank, he would need to fight a ridiculously high level monster that was at lv 170 as his opponent. Had he gone in about another 5 minutes like that? This time, a pair of deer jumped out from in between trees in the right corner. Ian, who momentarily tensed up, tilted his head after looking at their level. ¡®What the hell? These ones are actually just deer. They¡¯re not even at lv 10. How can a lv 170 monster and a lv 10 monster appear in the same map?¡¯ The ¡®Forest of Love¡¯ was a map that Ian could not understand at all with his common sense. However, what was even more flustering was that the behaviour of the deer was no different from the Unicorns that passed by earlier. On top of that, it felt as if he was also somewhat sneered at this time. ¡®These little¡­!¡¯ Outraged Ian contemplated if he should throw his Magic Spheres right now and kill the deer, but he was afraid of the consequences, so he couldn¡¯t do that. If the Unicorns were to even appear to take revenge for the deer, he knew he would die on the spot. ¡®Ha, let¡¯s go look for Iriel quickly instead.¡¯ The path that Ian took was quite long. Despite having walked at a fast pace, the path continued windingly for over 30 minutes. Ian met a lot of monsters while walking the forest path, and he was able to find out what they had in common soon enough. ¡®Damn it! Come to think of it, on the topic of monsters, all of them were couples!¡¯ CH 81 Chapter 81: Forest of Love (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda And as soon as he realized this, the name of the map popped up. ¡®For the meaning of the Forest of Love to be this. I feel like I¡¯d be more comfortable fighting an endless surge of monsters instead¡­¡¯ Ian, who was forever alone, was receiving pain. Ian was only able to reach the end of the forest path after receiving about 10 more minutes of pain. And an incredibly large tree waited for Ian there. ¡°Wow¡­¡± The tree was big enough to almost equal Gripper¡¯s Dimensional Tower, and boggled by its magnificence, Ian momentarily stood still and admired it. However, just then, an unfamiliar voice called Ian. ¡°Are you the one named Ian, who has come with a favour from Gripper?¡± A clear, beautiful voice like a jade marble rolling by. As if he was possessed by something, Ian turned his head and stared in the direction he heard the voice from. ¡°Hm? I am Ian, but¡­¡± The person that called Ian was an incredibly beautiful woman. At the very least, she was the most beautiful NPC that Ian had ever met in Kailran. Ian¡¯s gaze slightly moved to the side towards her ears. ¡®If it¡¯s ears that pointy and long¡­ She must be an Elf.¡¯ Ian just found out for the first time that Elves existed in the world of Kailran. No, not just Ian, but it was a truth that nobody knew of. As the ¡®Elf¡¯ race had never appeared in Colonar Continent. ¡®Come to think of it, wasn¡¯t one of the options of the ring from earlier an option that raised the favourability with the Elf race?¡¯ With the intuition that the woman in front of him was ¡®Iriel¡¯, the one he was searching for, Ian pulled out the ring from his inventory and secretly equipped it. He needed to raise her favourability even by a little for the quest. The Elf woman, who stood in front of Ian before he realized it, held out her hand towards him while smiling. ¡°Nice to meet you. I am Iriel.¡± Ian took her hand and slightly bowed his head. ¡°Nice to meet you as well, Iriel. I heard you were an exceptional Summoner.¡± ¡°Exceptional Summoner, I¡¯m flattered. I am just someone in charge of looking after the Forest of Love.¡± Ian, who shared a light greeting with her, was about to ask about the quest right away when he momentarily paused. This was because he suddenly remembered something he was curious about while walking through the forest path. ¡°But Iriel.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°You see¡­ I met a lot of monsters in the forest on my way here.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°It seemed like the monsters here in the Forest of Love were somewhat avoiding me. Why is that?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Iriel was slightly hesitant. However, her expression looked as if she knew the answer for sure. Ian pressed her. ¡°I¡¯m just curious.¡± And shortly after, Ian was able to hear a shocking response from her. ¡°That¡­ Is probably because they couldn¡¯t feel an aura of love from you.¡± Ian¡¯s pupils shook. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Hm. In other words, you could say you have the scent of a solo¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian cried and Bbookbbook cried as well. * * * Crunch- Crunch-. The current largest of the snow mountains of the colonized northern continent, the Norman Mountains. In a deep area of those mountains, Harin was diligently gathering something. ¡°Noona[1], how much longer will it take?¡± And next to Harin, Carwin kept on complaining. Because Harin, who was a little over lv 80 now, couldn¡¯t come alone to Norman Mountains, where the average level for the monsters was over 100, Carwin came with her. ¡°Just wait a little longer. I¡¯m almost done.¡± Harin came to Norman Mountains in order to get the ingredients she needed to cook, and thanks to that, Carwin was acting as a guard and porter. ¡®There is definitely a lot of gathering ingredients that raise my seasoning level in Norman Mountains.¡¯ In order to get to a higher cooking level, she needed more high-quality ingredients, but in order to get them, she needed to gather in more dangerous hunting grounds, or even hunt. Harin wanted to bring Ian, but she couldn¡¯t forcibly drag him when he couldn¡¯t even help with the Public Order operation for a while because of an urgent quest. ¡°No, but why do you need so much ingredients? Exactly how much are you planning on making?¡± While watching Harin, who had already been gathering just ingredients for several hours here and there on the snow mountains, Carwin wore an expression saying as if he didn¡¯t understand. ¡°It¡¯s because I have a lot of dishes I need to make.¡± ¡°Why? There¡¯s enough food made for the buffing purpose of the guildmates to last for a while now.¡± Carwin¡¯s wonder was obvious. In Kailran, a week after a dish has been made, its quality gradually starts to drop. There was no change in the taste or the satisfaction part, but the stats of the buff gradually drop with a week as its starting point. That¡¯s why there was no need to make more food after making enough for the guild members to intake for about a week, but as Harin was still gathering ingredients, he had just questioned about it. On top of that, Harin was gathering a larger variety of ingredients compared to when she made food for the guild members. ¡°By any chance, is it because you¡¯re grinding for your Proficiency?¡± Harin responded with an apathetic expression. ¡°None of your business.¡± ¡°Ah, what the hell. I¡¯m escorting you and this is how you¡¯re going to be?¡± Carwin tried to wear a pitiful expression. However, Harin didn¡¯t even blink an eye. ¡°You didn¡¯t come because you wanted to. Taking credit when it was just your turn today.¡± The Lotus Guild was fully receiving the hunting buff effects from the food, and because of that, the highest-level guildmates were helping Harin¡¯s gathering on rotation. Truthfully, as her words that it was just Carwin¡¯s turn were right, he couldn¡¯t think of a counter and just pouted. ¡°You¡¯re too sassy to this dongsaeng[2] lately, noona.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Truthfully, you¡¯re trying to make me something more delicious, so that¡¯s why you¡¯re continuously gathering right now, right?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Harin silently continued to gather ingredients without giving a response. Carwin pressed Harin for a response. ¡°Ah, noona, why aren¡¯t you responding? I¡¯m the person you¡¯re closest with in the guild, no?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Harin once again did not respond, and Carwin had an ominous feeling. ¡®No way, she wouldn¡¯t have already gotten close with Herz hyung[3] and Ian hyung just because they go to the same school, right?!¡¯ Carwin and Harin¡¯s relationship was not only from Kailran. While playing a different game before Kailran with Harin, he had developed a friendship with her. It was to the point that Carwin¡¯s influence was the biggest reason why Harin played Kailran as well. The duration that he spent with her was also several hundred times longer than the duration Herz or Ian knew her. Because of that, he couldn¡¯t believe that Harin was already closer to the hyungs. ¡®For a while now, this noona has been really taking care of Ian hyung, by any chance, could it be that she likes Ian hyung?¡¯ Carwin momentarily developed a hypothesis, but he shook his head shortly after. ¡®There¡¯s no way noona would like a slow-witted hyung who only games like a crippled everyday. And it¡¯s not like Ian hyung is super good-looking either. Then who is it exactly?¡¯ However, just then, something suddenly popped up from his memory. ¡®By any chance, is it that turtle from before?¡¯ Carwin recalled his memory from about a month ago. As he did so, he remembered Harin, who was happy while giving Ian¡¯s Familiar Bbookbbook a drug meatball. And as soon as he remembered that scene, Carwin started to understand everything. ¡®It¡¯s obvious that noona likes the big-headed turtle named Bbookbbook or whatever. That¡¯s why she was so nice to Ian hyung as well!¡¯ Carwin¡¯s jealousy burned brightly. ¡®To lose to the likes of a big-headed turtle with a head as big as its shell, although it is a little cute¡­¡¯ Whether Carwin was like this or not, Harin just gathered her cooking ingredients diligently. * * * ¡°So then, what do I need to do?¡± Ian asked Iriel with a dejected voice. And next to him, Bbookbbook was also wearing a gloomy expression. Bbook- For the first time, Ian felt a sense of kinship with Bbookbbook. ¡®Bbookbbook, this hyung will at least make you a girlfriend.¡¯ As his owner, he felt a tinge of responsibility that Bbookbbook didn¡¯t have a girlfriend. However, whether Iriel knew of their sadness or not, she began speaking about the quest. ¡°What was it that Gripper wanted from me?¡± Ian was in a state where his sadness had not yet left, but as the quest in front of him was more important than the pain of being a solo, he set aside his thoughts. ¡°He wanted me to learn how to crossbreed Familiars from you.¡± ¡°Hm¡­ If it¡¯s related to crossbreeding Familiars, then it¡¯s a part I can for sure help you with. However, may I first know the reason why you need to crossbreed Familiars?¡± Ian told Iriel of the quests he received from Gripper as well as the procedures. He also added the truth that Gripper wanted to crossbreed the ancient Familiars. And as Ian¡¯s explanation ended, Iriel nodded her head. Her expression had brightened. ¡°If it¡¯s for that reason, then surely you¡¯ll need my abilities.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, Iriel.¡± ¡°Ian, you¡¯ve done an admirable job.¡± She was talking about the operation where he restored the extinct ancient monsters into Colonar Continent. After taking a breath, Iriel¡¯s words continued. The reason why I asked for your reason, Ian, was because I was worried my abilities would be misused.¡± ¡°Misused?¡± Iriel nodded her head. ¡°If you receive my abilities, you will be able to gain the ability to safely crossbreed Familiars. However, that would change the providence of nature.¡± Ian, who didn¡¯t fully understand what Iriel was saying, waited for her next words. ¡°Originally, all animals can naturally crossbreed through the love of a male and female pair, which is a fact that you already know as well.¡± ¡°Well, yes.¡± ¡°However, that process requires a lot of time. I can give you the ability to reduce that time and process.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± To shorten the crossbreeding time, at Iriel¡¯s explanation that caused one to have an incredibly strange(?) imagination depending on their thoughts, both of forever alone Ian¡¯s cheeks slightly reddened. ¡®What, what the hell¡­ This is too hard for me!¡¯ Separate from Ian, who was in confusion, Iriel¡¯s explanation continued. ¡°And I asked for the reason why you need this ability in case you misuse this ability and raise Familiars like livestock.¡± Regarding this explanation, Ian also understood. Certainly, if the ability to crossbreed Familiars at your own will developed, he felt that there could be thoughts to raise Familiars like livestock. Ian nodded his head with a sour expression. ¡°I¡­ see. Anyways, does that mean that you¡¯ll teach me that ability now?¡± However, there was no way that he would be able to gain the ability that easily. Iriel, who shook her head, continued her words. ¡°However, for you to learn that ability from me, your abilities are still lacking, Ian.¡± ¡°My abilities are lacking?¡± Iriel nodded her head. ¡°It¡¯s certain that you are an exceptional Summoner, but you need to understand more about relationships.¡± Iriel killed Ian once more with a cutting remark. And a quest window popped in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring-. Missionary of Love Iriel, the caretaker of the Forest of Love and an exceptional Elf Summoner, wants you to understand the feeling of love more. And just in time, there¡¯s a burning desire that she had for a long time now. To link two sprites in the Forest of Love that are the only ones without a couple! If you link two sprites as a couple and are enlightened towards the feeling of love, Iriel will gladly give you her abilities. Quest Difficulty Level: ¨C Quest Condition: Only a user that has completed at least a male and female pair of ancient monster Soul Stones from the ¡®Ancient Monster Restoration¡¯ quest. (Restricted to Summoners) Time Limit: None Reward ¨C ¡®Familiar Crossbreeding¡¯ skill (Exclusive to Summoners) CH 82 Chapter 82: Forest of Love (4) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian, who received the quest from Iriel, blindly moved in order to find the sprite¡¯s home first. ¡®For the quest¡¯s difficulty level to not be indicated¡­ It has to be because it¡¯s a difficulty level that makes no sense and cannot be indicated with a rank.¡¯ Ian was certain it was a quest with an unbelievable difficulty level that he had never heard of in his gamer life of 20 years. Next to Ian, who dragged his feet, Bbookbbook sent him a message of support. Bbook- Bbookbbook! However, it wasn¡¯t very helpful. ¡®Since she said that a dude named Wisseun lived near the top of the hill, let¡¯s go there first.¡¯ The names of the two sprites that Ian needed to connect were ¡®Wisseun¡¯ and ¡®Carol¡¯. ¡®It will definitely be easier to talk to a male than a female.¡¯ Exactly how it seemed from their names, Wisseun was the name of a male sprite, and Carol was the name of a female sprite. And because he felt his mentality would shake before he even attempted to do the quest by talking to a girl about relationships, which he already had trouble talking about, he had no choice. ¡®Alright, well, things will turn out one way or the other!¡¯ The place that Ian arrived at shortly after was a log cabin on top of a small hill in the corner of the Forest of Love. * * * ¡°Huh? You¡¯re going to help me?¡± After hearing Ian¡¯s whole story, both eyes of Wisseun, a sprite of the forest, rounded. Standing at a short height that only came up to about Ian¡¯s chest, Wisseun had a baby-faced appearance that looked like he was only about a 12-13-year-old boy. Ian nodded his head while responding. ¡°Yes. I will help you so that you can get together with Carol.¡± Wisseun has had a crush on Carol for a long time. However, Carol didn¡¯t like Wisseun. At least, that¡¯s what it approximately seemed like from Wisseun¡¯s situation. ¡°But, do you think you¡¯ll be able to help me, Ian?¡± ¡°Probably¡­?¡± Weren¡¯t relationships the area that Ian lacked the most confidence in? Ian couldn¡¯t hastily respond. Wisseun asked again with an expression full of doubt. ¡°I can feel the sense of a solo from you as well, Ian.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°How many days have you been a solo for?¡± Forever alone Ian thought of his birthdays. And he responded with a bitter expression. ¡°About 7 thousand days¡­?¡± He didn¡¯t want to calculate the specific number of days. ¡®Wisseun won¡¯t be able to trust me¡­ Have I spoken needlessly?¡¯ However, what is this, hadn¡¯t Wisseun¡¯s expression suddenly brightened? ¡°Wow, really? It hasn¡¯t been long! Counting today, I¡¯ve been a solo for 55,027 days. Surely, you¡¯ll be better than me, Ian!¡± Sprite Wisseun would be 150 years old this year, and he had mistaken Ian as a sprite as well, so he thought that Ian at least had some experience with relationships. Ian realized that Wisseun had misunderstood something, but he decided to not particularly point it out. ¡®Since whatever is good is better¡­¡¯ Ian decided to firstly listen to his story a little more. ¡°Wisseun, have you recently met with Carol?¡± Wisseun nodded his head. ¡°Hm¡­ We met about a week ago. And I¡¯m supposed to be meeting with her exactly tomorrow as well.¡± ¡°Tomorrow?¡± ¡°Yes. We¡¯re supposed to go mushroom picking during the day together.¡± Ian thought. ¡®Firstly, I need to see how the relationship of the two is.¡¯ And he responded. ¡°If that¡¯s the case, by any chance, is there a way for me to hear your conversations with her from afar?¡± Wisseun, who contemplated for a bit, went inside his storage room in the corner and brought something out. ¡°Here, if you place this next to your ear, you should be able to hear Carol and my voice.¡± Ian took the item that looked like an earplug and held it up. ¡°Is it alright even if I¡¯m far away?¡± Wisseun nodded his head. ¡°It will be okay as long as you¡¯re not more than 200 metres away.¡± ¡°I see.¡± If it was about 200 metres, it was enough to naturally hide and eavesdrop on the two people¡¯s conversation. Ian and Wisseun first decided to wait for tomorrow. * * * Chirp- Chir-chirp-! Blue skies, and clear weather. It was impossible to imagine gloomy weather in the Forest of Love, which was like a fairy tale, but Ian was firstly thankful that the weather was nice. ¡®If there was even rain, it would have been difficult, so that¡¯s a relief.¡¯ The place that Wisseun and Carol were to meet was a spacious mushroom farm that was located around the outskirts of the Forest of Love. And from a distance, Ian hid up in a tree and was observing the two people. ¡®Ooh, they¡¯ve met now!¡¯ As he was far away, he couldn¡¯t see exactly, but Carol had a pretty girl-like image. Bbook- Bboo-Bbook-! Bbookbbook, who was on top of Ian¡¯s shoulder, was also watching the two people¡¯s meeting with an excited expression. Ian didn¡¯t know the reason why, but because Bbookbbook also insisted, it was a situation where he had received an earplug from Wisseun as well and was wearing it. And the conversation of the two people, Carol and Wisseun, began. ¡®Alright, Wisseun. Quickly, talk to her first now.¡¯ Ian was fixated on Wisseun¡¯s movements. However, surprisingly, different from Ian¡¯s expectations, hadn¡¯t Carol spoke to Wisseun first? Wisseun, you¡¯ve come on time. The weather today is so nice, no?Yes, it is. However, as soon as they heard Wisseun¡¯s response, Ian and Bbookbbook felt an unknown disharmony. ¡®Hm¡­ What the hell? I don¡¯t know why, but I feel like Wisseun¡¯s done something wrong.¡¯ Bbook- And the conversation didn¡¯t continue any further. This was because the two began to just silently pick mushrooms. ¡®What, what the hell is this? Are they seriously just going to pick mushrooms?¡¯ Ian had even made Wisseun promise beforehand to try and converse with her as much as possible once he met her. However, far from sharing a conversation, wasn¡¯t Wisseun even stealthily avoiding Carol while picking mushrooms? In the end, while watching that, Ian ultimately started dozing off. ¡°Euh, at this rate, there¡¯ll be no answer¡­¡± However, just then, Carol spoke to Wisseun first again. Ian and Bbookbbook listened closely to the two people¡¯s conversation. Wisseun, the weather¡¯s hot, isn¡¯t it? Aren¡¯t you tired?I¡¯m alright.Wisseun, how many mushrooms have you picked?3452.¡­ Wisseun, an impregnable man that boasted a powerful Defensive Power that could stand in comparison with Bbookbbook¡¯s shell. To be honest, aside from Wisseun being too nervous with the situation itself of picking mushrooms together with Carol, he was only counting the number of mushrooms. There were a couple more conversations after that, but all of them were similar to the previous. And the hellishly boring time passed by, and the silent mushroom picking that took a tedious three hours was completely finished. Great work today, Wisseun.You as well, Carol.Then, rest well! While listening to the two people¡¯s conversation, Ian felt an illusion that cancer cells were growing within his chest. ¡°Euh¡­ What should I do with this?¡± However, there was nothing that Ian could currently do, so he returned to Wisseun¡¯s house first of all. * * * ¡°Wisseun.¡± ¡°Yes, Ian.¡± Wisseun¡¯s dejected voice. Ian let out a deep sigh while looking at him. ¡°Why did you give such short responses? Even Carol was the one to talk first.¡± Wisseun¡¯s two eyes became filled with tears. ¡°My mouth¡­ wouldn¡¯t open, so what could I do, sniffle.¡± Ian felt his head hurting. ¡®Ha¡­ This dude is worse than I am.¡¯ Ian had absolutely no idea where he needed to start from with the two people¡¯s relationship. However, just then, some sort of distinct sound rang out from the corner of Wisseun¡¯s place. Whoong-. And once he detected that, Wisseun¡¯s expression turned pale. ¡°I, Ian, Uhh¡­ A message came from Carol!¡± ¡°Huh?¡± As soon as he heard that, Ian felt his head, which was momentarily gloomy from a thick fog, brighten a little. ¡®What the hell, NPCs can send messages to each other, too?¡¯ Ian hurriedly checked the message that popped up on the crystal ball with Wisseun. Wisseun, did you make it home safely? And towards Wisseun, who was hesitating, Ian pressed him without realizing. ¡°Wisseun, what are you doing? You need to respond quickly!¡± ¡°Th, that¡­. How should I reply?¡± Ian worked hard to somehow get his equally stiffened mind turning again. ¡°Fir, firstly, try and say that you¡¯ve arrived safely.¡± And Wisseun¡¯s message continued. Yes, I¡¯ve arrived safely, Carol. And it seemed as if he felt a bit of courage since they weren¡¯t in a face-to-face situation, as he added on. Knowing that you¡¯ve arrived safely reassures my heart a little as well. Ian shook his head. ¡®No, what do you mean your heart is reassured? It¡¯s not like there are monsters that would attack sprites here in this forest.¡¯ However, he decided to be a little comforted that Wisseun had at least sent a message with some content. ¡®That¡¯s right, at least he said something.¡¯ However, just then, Carol¡¯s message immediately returned. If you were that worried, you should have taken me home¡­ And for a moment, silence continued. As Ian didn¡¯t even know what kind of response Wisseun should give, he fell into a state of chaos. ¡°Ian¡­¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°How should I respond?¡± Ian was thinking hard internally. ¡®It wouldn¡¯t look very good if he just apologized, right? What should he say here¡­¡¯ However, while Ian was thinking, Wisseun had already sent a message first. You¡¯re right. At the sight that was hard to believe with his own two eyes, Ian couldn¡¯t repress his astonishment. Ian asked Wisseun. ¡°Why exactly did you send it like that, Wisseun.¡± Wisseun¡¯s head dropped. ¡°You¡¯re right¡­¡± And the two waited for Carol¡¯s reply again, but there was no way a response would come back in that kind of situation. ¡°Wisseun, first, send any other message.¡± ¡°One second.¡± And gathering the courage, Wisseun sent a message again. Carol, are you asleep? Ian despaired. ¡®No, this person, it¡¯s 4 p.m. right now. The sun is up in the sky.¡¯ However, just then, a response surprisingly returned. Uh, I was about to take a little nap because I was tired, how did you know? ¡®What the hell, are the heavens helping us?¡¯ However, Wisseun immediately kicked away that opportunity, which was like finding a thousand pieces of gold. Ah, then go to sleep quickly! As if he couldn¡¯t bear to watch this with both eyes anymore now, even Bbookbbook closed both his eyes tightly, and Ian went into a state of resignation. ¡®This quest¡­ It was a quest that couldn¡¯t be completed from the beginning.¡¯ With shaking eyes, Ian began to watch the two people¡¯s conversation that continued. I don¡¯t even know now¡­ You go to sleep instead, Wisseun.I¡¯m not tired! The two people¡¯s conversation showed absolutely no answer. However, just then, Wisseun began to diligently write something. Carol! Oyster mushrooms are said to be good at preventing obesity. Enoki mushrooms are good at preventing arteriosclerosis, and pine mushrooms reduce cholesterol, so they¡¯re very effective against adult diseases. Lastly, shiitake mushrooms are the most delicious, so you must eat them all by yourself! Got it?I¡­ knew that as well? ¡°¡­¡± Now this couple had left Ian¡¯s hands. At least, that¡¯s what he thought. ¡°Uhh, Wisseun?¡± ¡°Yes¡­?¡± ¡°Since we¡¯ve come this far, how about you try and at least confess once?¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Wisseun wore a flustered expression. ¡°Ack, a confession? My friend Palkom said that confessing through a crystal ball message would truly be the worst method¡­¡± ¡°Still, give it a try first.¡± Ian barely swallowed back the words, which almost came out, that if it wasn¡¯t now, he didn¡¯t think Wisseun would get the opportunity to confess. ¡®Since she¡¯ll probably cut all means of connection after today anyways¡­¡¯ Wisseun, who didn¡¯t know of Ian¡¯s thoughts, clenched both his fists tightly and nodded his head with solemn determination. And he began to diligently send a message. Uhh, Carol, do you know why I keep sending messages?Hm¡­ Because you¡¯re bored?No. And Wisseun¡¯s fatal confession continued. Do you want to go out with me? ¡°¡­¡± Ian could do nothing but watch the truly hellish development that had never been seen or heard of. ¡®Ah¡­ This is the first time I¡¯ve been so powerless in all twenty years of my life. At the end of this confession, this couple¡¯s future will also end.¡¯ The conversation continued. Huh? Hm¡­ Wisseun, did you send that by mistake right now?Ah¡­ I was just kidding. Don¡¯t worry about it!Were you truly just kidding?Yes, probably? Starting from the tips of his fingers to the tips of his toes, Ian felt as if he was curling up from the embarrassment right now. ¡®Ah, why is being shameful my share?¡¯ It seemed as if Bbookbbook received mental damage to the point he could no longer bear to watch with a sober mind, as he crawled over to the wall and banged his head against it. No, I¡­ Carol. I seriously wanted to say these words. I really like you, Carol. I keep on saying weird things because I¡¯m so nervous, but I feel like it has already been 3 thousand days since I¡¯ve liked you. I really, really like you. Please go out with me! Ian couldn¡¯t believe the truth that there was a relationship idiot that was worse than him. ¡®From now on, Wisseun, it¡¯s your domain. No, although there was nothing I could do from the beginning¡­¡¯ Whether Ian was receiving pain or not, the two people¡¯s conversation surprisingly continued. Were you just kidding again?No! I¡¯m very serious. It¡¯s the truth.You¡¯re going to tell me you were joking later, aren¡¯t you?No. I¡¯m telling you it¡¯s the truth. Please go out with me. And shortly after, finally, Carol¡¯s unbelievable message arrived. Alright. The silence that momentarily filled Wisseun¡¯s house. The first one to open their mouth was Bbookbbook. Bbook¡­? And Wisseun, who checked Carol¡¯s reply two to three more times, let out a cheer. ¡°Wooow, Ian! It¡¯s thanks to you, Ian!¡± Ian literally wore a puzzled expression. ¡®What, what the hell? What the hell is this? Did he actually succeed in confessing right now? And what exactly is he saying is thanks to me?¡¯ This was a development that was even more shocking than a situation where Bbookbbook gave up a meatball to Ly. Wisseun hugged Ian, who was wearing a dazed expression while looking at the crystal ball with unfocused eyes. ¡°I really liked Carol, but whenever I approached her, I could never speak to her¡­ That¡¯s why I was going to confess to her with a crystal ball message, but that Palkom idiot told me not to¡­¡± While watching Wisseun, who was sobbing from happiness in the end, Ian couldn¡¯t say a word. ¡®To be able to succeed even after confessing like this¡­¡¯ No matter how much it was within a game, wasn¡¯t it too unrealistic? Ian felt the urge to kill Wisseun out of jealousy. ¡®Ha¡­ This quest, the difficulty level wasn¡¯t indicated because it was so high, but because it was a quest that would be succeeded no matter what.¡¯ Ian was able to learn a lesson from this quest. ¡®As expected, relationships weren¡¯t divided between people that were good at it or bad at it. It was simply divided between people that could and people that couldn¡¯t¡­¡¯ CH 83 Chapter 83: Empire Quest (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Sponsor: Fullmetalj4cket Whatever the process, Ian, who had safely cleared the quest, returned to Iriel. ¡°Oh, Ian. I see you¡¯ve returned?¡± ¡°Yes. I helped Wisseun as you¡¯ve asked.¡± Iriel nodded her head. ¡°Yes, I heard from Wisseun. Thanks for your hard work.¡± Ian mumbled to himself. ¡®That¡¯s right, it was a lot of trouble. I never want to do a quest like this again.¡¯ There were no physical troubles. He had just returned after an incredible amount of mental labour. While Ian complained inwardly, a system message notifying him that he completed the quest popped up. You have completed the quest ¡®Missionary of Love¡¯.Your ¡®Charm¡¯ stat has increased by 20. And Iriel stood in front of Ian. ¡°As promised, I will give you part of my abilities. I hope that you can help Gripper and succeed in crossbreeding the ancient monsters at any cost.¡± Iriel lifted her beautiful hands and spread it out. As she did so, a marble of white light appeared in front of her palm, and it began to be absorbed into Ian. You have learned the skill ¡®Familiar Crossbreeding¡¯.From obtaining the skill ¡®Familiar Crossbreeding¡¯, you are now able to differentiate the gender of the monsters. ¡®I¡¯ll be able to differentiate the gender of the monsters?¡¯ It was a little bit of a strange message, but Ian accepted it shortly after. Now that he thought about it, he felt that he had never seen any information relating to the monster¡¯s gender in the monster information window up until now. Ian was suddenly curious of his Familiars¡¯ genders. ¡®Does it just appear in the information window now?¡¯ Starting from Ly, Ian began to check the genders of all his Familiars. ¡®Yeah, it does, it appears in the information window. Ly is a male.¡¯ And Ian, who had checked all of his Familiars¡¯ genders, was slightly taken aback. ¡®What the hell, why are all of my Familiars¡¯ genders male?¡¯ Now that he thought about it, he felt that he didn¡¯t have any Familiars that had a feminine personality. Ian asked Iriel. ¡°Iriel, is there originally a higher ratio of males than females with monsters?¡± At the random question, Iriel blinked her large eyes and asked back. ¡°Sorry? No. From what I know, all monsters have a 1:1 gender ratio aside from a couple special ones.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian felt uncomfortable for some reason. ¡®Well, it probably just happened to turn out like this.¡¯ Anyways, since he was done working with Iriel, it was time to return to the Dimensional Tower. ¡°In any case, thank you for your help, Iriel.¡± ¡°Yes, Ian. Please let me know if you ever need my help again.¡± Iriel handed Ian something that looked like a blue crystal ball. At the somewhat familiar visual, Ian felt puzzled. ¡°What¡­ is this?¡± Iriel laughed while she responded. ¡°If you have this crystal ball, then you can send me messages.¡± ¡°Huh? Why are you giving this to me¡­¡± ¡°I cannot tell you yet, Ian, but I feel like I¡¯ll have to ask a favour from you soon. Could I contact you then?¡± And it was a little random, but a quest window with content which had a strangely familiar part appeared in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring- The Shadow of Evil Dragon Khalifa (Hidden) Iriel, the caretaker of the Forest of Love and an exceptional Elf Summoner, has been worried about something for a long time. Once your abilities are stronger, you will be able to listen to her worry. Quest Difficulty Level: ? Quest Condition: A Summoner with a God Dragon¡¯s spirit. Summoner Master lv 3. Time Limit: None Reward ¨C ? *If you do not take the crystal ball from Iriel, then the quest will automatically be rejected. If the quest is rejected, your favourability with Iriel will drop, and your Charm stat will drop by 20. The Evil Dragon Khalifa part caught Ian¡¯s eyes first. ¡®That, that¡¯s a name I¡¯ve heard somewhere before¡­¡¯ And shortly after, he was able to remember that it was a name that he heard from the Legendary Dragon Tamer Oakley. ¡®It¡¯s not like I can always get hidden quests, and there¡¯s no time limit, so there¡¯s no reason for me to reject it.¡¯ And while reading down the quest window, his gaze stopped at the ¡®Quest Condition¡¯ part. The fact that it was a quest related to the God Dragon¡¯s spirit was parallel to saying that it was a quest that no one else would be able to receive besides Ian. Ian was even more pleased. And at the same time, a strange part also caught his eye. That was exactly the Summoner Master lv 3 part. ¡®But what is this? Even after becoming a Master, was it possible to raise the Class Proficiency further?¡¯ ¡®Summoning¡¯ was the Proficiency value that was the foundation of the growth of all his skills. In the case of a Warrior or Knight, a Proficiency value called ¡®Martial Arts¡¯ existed, for a Priest, ¡®Faith¡¯, for a Magician, ¡®Magic Power¡¯, and for an Archer, they had ¡®Archery¡¯. However, as there was no user with any class in Kailran that had raised their Class Proficiency to a Master, Ian had never heard how it worked after that. ¡®I only vaguely thought that once you became a Master, your Class Proficiency didn¡¯t go any higher¡­¡¯ Based on the phrase Master lv 3, it seemed like it was saying that even after becoming a Master, the Proficiency value could still be raised. It was possible that there could be another stage after that. ¡®Hm, it¡¯s still far away. My Summoning is now at High-class lv 2, so to become a Master, I¡¯ll have to reach almost lv 150.¡¯ Ian, who finished thinking, firstly received the crystal ball from Iriel. You have accepted the quest. ¡°Of course, if I could be of help, I will gladly do so.¡± Iriel smiled brightly. ¡°Thank you, Ian!¡± * * * As Ian returned to the Dimensional Tower, Gripper greeted him with a welcoming expression as if he was waiting for him. ¡°Oh, Ian. Welcome back. Did you resolve everything well?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°Yes, firstly, I¡¯ve received the ability related to Familiar crossbreeding.¡± Gripper wore a pleased smile. ¡°Good job. As expected, I knew that if it was you, Iriel would like you as well.¡± Gripper took Ian to the low and spacious hill behind the Tower. While Ian was gone, that area was changed to look just like a farm, and the ancient monsters that Ian had restored were huddled together. ¡°Oh, but Gripper. Aren¡¯t there some monsters missing?¡± Even if the Hallikan was excluded, as Ian had received him, there were a couple of monsters that made Ian suffer which he didn¡¯t see. At Ian¡¯s question, Gripper nodded his head as he responded. ¡°I just have the herbivorous ones gathered here. I¡¯ve separated the carnivorous monsters and left them somewhere else.¡± ¡°Ah, so there are problems like that as well.¡± The quest proceeded with lightning speed. Ian checked the genders of the monsters in the field one by one and picked two of them that were the same species but different genders before bringing them out. And to use the crossbreeding skill, he needed to first make them his Familiars, so he registered the two as his Familiars. ¡®Hm¡­ Do I just need to use the skill now then?¡¯ While looking at the two ancient Clopsys monsters that blankly stared at each other, Ian gulped. And Bbookbbook, who was next to him, watched with eyes full of anticipation. Bbook-! ¡®Euh, this won¡¯t be X-rated, will it?¡¯ Ian slightly covered both his eyes with one hand and casted the skill. ¡°Familiar Crossbreeding!¡± However, the thing that Ian was imagining didn¡¯t happen. A white light flowed out from the chests of the two Clopsys, and shortly after, a large, white egg appeared in front of them. ¡°Whew, I worried for no reason.¡± Ian, who was worried that he would have to see an embarrassing image, let out a sigh of relief, while Bbookbbook wore an expression that looked somewhat disappointed. And a message popped up. You have succeeded in ¡®Familiar Crossbreeding¡¯ for the very first time.You have obtained the title ¡®Familiar Breeder¡¯.Your Fame has increased by 25,000.Your understanding of the Familiar¡¯s ecosystem rose.You have learned the skill ¡®Hatching of a Familiar¡¯s Egg¡¯. Ian clenched his fist. ¡®Done. Finally, I¡¯ll be able to do the Griffin Hatching Quest!¡¯ He checked the title he received. Familiar Breeder Rank ¨C None If you have more Affinity than a set standard, you can use the crossbreeding skill on Familiars that are not your Familiars as well.Formation of Affinity with all monsters will become a little easier.The younger the monster, the faster Affinity forms. *All effects are applied even though title is not equipped. It was a useful title. It wasn¡¯t a title that helped him become stronger immediately, but it could be considered a title that opens a lot of opportunities to raise a good Familiar. The rank was written as ¡®None¡¯, but it was most likely because there was no part that raised combat-related stats. ¡®I like the fact that you don¡¯t need to have it equipped the most.¡¯ Ian used the Crossbreeding skill on the rest of the ancient monsters where pairs existed. As there were monsters that couldn¡¯t be crossbred amongst the ones with at least two restored because their genders were either all male or all female, there were a total of 5 kinds of monsters that succeeded in crossbreeding. ¡®There are some monsters that produce an egg after succeeding in crossbreeding, while there are cases where a baby monster appears from the start.¡¯ Because the cooldown time for the Crossbreeding skill was 30 minutes, three hours had flown by once Ian succeeded in crossbreeding all five kinds of the monsters. However, it seemed that Ian felt that he had overcome a large obstacle, as his expression was brighter than ever before. * * * ¡°Good work, everyone. We¡¯ll finish today¡¯s lecture here.¡± At the end of the Professor¡¯s last words notifying the end of the lecture, the students started to stand up in small numbers. Of course, Jinsung, who had already packed his bags, was the first to stand up. No, he tried to stand up. ¡°Jinsung, wait. Why are you in such a rush?¡± While looking at Yoohyun, who had grabbed his arm, Jinsung slightly frowned. ¡°What do you mean why am I in a rush, it¡¯s because I have to quickly go do this quest now.¡± Yoohyun shook his head. ¡°No, what kind of quest are you doing for you to not even show yourself once at the base lately?¡± The reason why Yoohyun had grabbed Jinsung was nothing in particular. As the preparations for the base promotion were almost complete, he felt he needed to know how Ian, the most talented individual of the guild, was getting along. Jinsung scratched the back of his head. ¡°There¡¯s a lot of work I¡¯ve left lying around, so I¡¯m busy trying to patch it up. Please be a little understanding.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t tell me what kind of quest it is?¡± ¡°No, why wouldn¡¯t I be able to? I have one more quest left, but it¡¯s an Empire Quest. On top of that, I have no idea how much time I have left, so I need to do it as fast as possible.¡± Ian spoke without much thought and moved to head out of the lecture hall quickly, but at Jinsung¡¯s words of an Empire Quest, Yoohyun¡¯s eyes rounded. Yoohyun quickly caught up with Ian and asked again. ¡°What? An Empire Quest? What¡¯s your Fame right now?¡± ¡°Ah, it has nothing to do with Fame. Unrelated to my Fame, I received this Empire Quest when I was the very first lv 50 Summoner before. Because I had no way of clearing it back then, I had it lying off to the side.¡± Although Jinsung also had Fame that already passed the fulfillment requirement, because he didn¡¯t want to particularly explain that, he didn¡¯t mention it. This time, Jinsung wore a quizzical expression instead and asked. ¡°Yo, but why are you so shocked at the words Empire Quest? What else is good about Empire Quests besides the fact that your Fame goes up well when you do them? Ah, I think I¡¯ve heard that you can place NPCs under your order and command them if you gain the Aristocrat title.¡± However, Yoohyun wasn¡¯t surprised because of the advantages that Jinsung mentioned. He was surprised because he realized that it was a situation where Jinsung could become the core key to the promotion of the base. ¡°Yo, dude, did you have any idea that Kroban hyung has been desperately going around doing quests in order to get the Empire Quest?¡± ¡°What? Why is Kroban hyung?¡± ¡°That hyung had the highest Fame in our guild. Unless it¡¯s a special case like yours, you know that you need to have 400 thousand Fame in order to get the Empire Quests, right? That hyung probably barely reached 400 thousand Fame yesterday or the day before.¡± However, as Jinsung had no idea of the fact that there needed to be a guild member with an Aristocrat title for the base promotion, his questioning continued. ¡°Yeah, so, why? If you adequately did the required quests while leveling up, you would have eventually reached 400 thousand Fame anyways¡­ I don¡¯t really understand. Are the Empire Quests that important to that hyung at this point?¡± Yoohyun nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right, dude, it¡¯s not important to Kroban hyung, but it¡¯s important for the sake of our guild right now. One of the requirements in order to promote the guild base into a Domain is ¡®a guildmate with an Aristocrat title¡¯.¡± ¡°Hm¡­?¡± After a moment of silence passed by, Jinsung was able to understand everything soon enough. And he wore a bitter expression. ¡°What the hell? That¡¯s why Kroban hyung had gone around just doing quests continuously in order to meet that requirement?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯ve been saying.¡± Jinsung wore a wry smile. ¡®If I also told him right now that it¡¯s been a while since I¡¯ve had over 500 thousand Fame, I¡¯ll probably get hit, right?¡¯ He realized he had only diligently solo-played for the meantime while in a state where he had cut himself off from the guild too much. ¡®Once I succeed in the Griffin hatching, I should pay more attention to the guild from now on.¡¯ There was now another reason why he needed to clear the Griffin Hatching Quest as quickly as possible. CH 84 Chapter 84: Empire Quest (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The very first thing that Ian did after returning home and logging onto Kailran was open his inventory. ¡®Keuheuheu it¡¯s a God Dragon, a God Dragon!¡¯ Originally, he was going to try and hatch the God Dragon¡¯s Egg before he logged out yesterday, but he had crossbred an ancient monster and used the Hatching skill on the egg he gained from them instead as a test. At the fault of that, he couldn¡¯t use it right away because of the cooldown time. Ian, who pulled out the God Dragon¡¯s Egg as if he was holding a treasure box, grinned as he placed both his hands on top of the egg. ¡°This bright light! It will definitely be a Legendary-rank.¡± They said that the War Dragon Karceus had the strongest destructive power even amongst the God Dragons. ¡®If this isn¡¯t a Legendary-rank, what else would be?¡¯ Ian hummed as he used the Hatching skill. ¡°Familiar Hatching!¡± And a warm energy gushed out from Ian¡¯s hand. Whoong-! And the sparkle of the purple light that squirmed within the God Dragon¡¯s Egg shone out and began to twist around its surrounding and spin. ¡®Ooh, as expected, its hatching is somewhat different since it¡¯s a God Dragon!¡¯ Out of excitement, Ian began to watch the transformation of the egg. The Common-rank egg that Ian hatched yesterday cracked open as soon as he used the Hatching skill and a monster was born, but this God Dragon¡¯s egg didn¡¯t immediately hatch, suiting its name, and made Ian nervous. After 5 minutes had passed like that, Ian felt that something was weird. ¡®What the hell? Why is it taking so long?¡¯ A sparkle of purple light continued to violently rotate around the egg. However, there wasn¡¯t any other change. Ian carefully checked the information of the egg. Karceus¡¯ Egg Level: 0 Classification: Egg Rank: Legendary (Inherent) Personality: Unknown Hatching (0%) The egg that Karceus, a God Dragon that existed in ancient legends, left behind. Karceus¡¯ Egg has begun to hatch. For War Dragon Karceus to break out of the eggshell, it needs the strength of a powerful war. Whenever the Summoner possessing the egg defeats a strong opponent, Karceus will gain a little bit of strength and eventually break out of the egg. ¡°Whew.¡± As soon as he checked the information of the egg, Ian firstly let out a sigh of relief. He was anxious that there would be another quest or preparations needed in order to hatch the egg. ¡®I can¡¯t hatch the egg immediately, but it must mean that if I hunt comfortably, it will eventually hatch, right?¡¯ And the word ¡®Legendary¡¯, which was very prominently embedded as the rank, was more pleasing than anything else. ¡®But what is the ¡®Inherent¡¯ thing that¡¯s written next to Legendary?¡¯ He didn¡¯t have an idea about it right now, but based on the meaning of the word, he felt it would have a good meaning, not a bad one. ¡°Shall we go to Myuran now?¡± Ian carefully put Karceus¡¯ Egg inside of his chest. And he opened the quest information. The reason he did so was to thoroughly look at the quest content once more before he went to the king. However, while looking at the quest content, Ian¡¯s expression slightly twisted. ¡°Huh, what¡¯s this? Since when was there a time limit?¡± The time limit of the Griffin Egg Hatching Quest, which was for sure ¡®Unknown¡¯ from what Ian remembered, had changed to about 3 weeks. The moment that King Celias had given a command to Guard Leader Hellaim, a time limit had appeared for the quest, but Ian wouldn¡¯t have known. ¡®Euh, I would have been in big trouble if I took any longer.¡± Ian hurriedly returned to the capital of Luspel Empire, Myuran. If he just successfully cleared the Empire Quest now, her felt his heart would become completely relieved. ¡®I need to move as fast as possible.¡¯ Truthfully, the quest that always troubled Ian was this Empire Quest. This was because it was the quest that had the biggest damage if he were to fail it. He relaxed the moment he received the Familiar Egg Hatching skill, but seeing that Karceus¡¯ Egg didn¡¯t hatch immediately, he realized that he didn¡¯t know what kind of requirement there would be for the Griffin Egg¡¯s hatching either. If that was the case, the remaining 3 weeks or so may not be enough time. Ian headed towards the Imperial Capital. * * * ¡°Alright, Ian. Have you returned with the way to hatch the Griffin¡¯s Egg?¡± The front of the king. Ian broke out into a cold sweat while looking at the Guard Leader Hellaim, who was glaring at him next to the king. ¡®No, why does it seem like that crazy monster has become stronger?¡¯ The strength that could be felt from Hellaim was indeed overwhelming. Ian had no idea whether it was because he could sense Hellaim¡¯s strength more as he was a higher level now or because Hellaim had actually grown, but it was definite that he was so strong he wouldn¡¯t be overlooked. Ian gulped before he responded to the words of the king. ¡°Yes, king. I have gained the ability to hatch the egg of a Familiar.¡± At the form of Ian, who confidently spoke, Celias wore a satisfied smile. However, while speaking, Ian had made a loophole that he could escape from. He had not exactly mentioned that he could hatch the Griffin on purpose. ¡®If I use the Hatching skill, there will be some sort of result, but in the rare case that it doesn¡¯t, I¡¯ll need at least one excuse¡­¡¯ Ian, Celias and Hellaim moved to the inner garden of the Royal Palace accompanied by a couple of the royal guards. And after moving for about 5 minutes, Ian was able to discover the Griffin¡¯s Egg. A whirlwind of powerful light wriggled within the Griffin¡¯s Egg just like the God Dragon¡¯s Egg. Hellaim opened his mouth. ¡°Alright, Ian. A Summoner like you probably knew as soon as you saw it, but that is precisely the Griffin¡¯s Egg.¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°I see.¡± Without a word, Celias stared back and forth between Ian and the Griffin¡¯s Egg. ¡®He probably means he wants me to try.¡¯ Ian, who understood his mind, slowly approached the egg. ¡®Please, I wish it would happen in one go without a hitch¡­¡¯ Ian placed both of his hands on top of the Griffin¡¯s Egg. And Ian invoked the skill. Whoong- Just like when he awakened the God Dragon¡¯s Egg, a warm energy flowed from Ian¡¯s hands. And the bright yellow energy that was within the Griffin¡¯s Egg began to gush outwards. Celias, who watched that, let out a small exclamation. ¡°Ooh¡­ The Griffin must be hatching.¡± Hellaim also watched the scene with a reserved expression. It was due to the fact that the hatching of the Griffin¡¯s Egg was being accomplished by Ian, who Hellaim wasn¡¯t able to trust up until now, when there had been no one else that was able to within the imperial family, so he saw Ian differently now. Whoosh-! As the skill was finished casting, Ian took a step back. A yellow energy was raging around the egg, but just like the God Dragon¡¯s Egg, it didn¡¯t look like it would hatch immediately. ¡®As expected, it¡¯s not hatching right away. Shall we check the information of the egg?¡¯ Ian opened the information window of the Griffin¡¯s Egg. Griffin¡¯s Egg Level: 0 Classification: Egg Rank: Legendary Personality: Unknown Hatching (0%) The egg of a Griffin, a legendary fortune. The Griffin¡¯s Egg has begun to hatch. In order for the Griffin to break out of its egg, it needs the strength of a powerful wind. If it absorbs the strength of the wind from the place with the strongest winds in Colonar Continent, the Griffin will be able to hatch. The rank that was written as Legendary caught his eyes first. ¡®As expected, the Griffin is also Legendary¡­ But although the Griffin is a Legendary-rank, it doesn¡¯t have the Inherent option. I wonder what the difference is.¡¯ Ian, who had read through all of the information shortly after, let out a low sound. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± ¡®The place with the strongest winds in Colonar Continent? Where is that?¡¯ And Celias asked Ian, who was pondering. ¡°Ian, how is the Griffin¡¯s hatching going? Is the hatching happening right now?¡± Ian slightly bowed his head and responded. He didn¡¯t forget to be careful so that his tongue didn¡¯t slip. He felt that if his tongue accidentally slipped, Hellaim¡¯s sword would come flying towards him. ¡°Yes, king. I have lit the embers for the hatching.¡± ¡°Ooh, I see.¡± While looking at Celias, who wore a pleased expression, Ian momentarily thought. He needed to wrack through his brain to find a way to tell the king the truth that the egg couldn¡¯t immediately be hatched without offending him. ¡®I can¡¯t be flustered. Naturally, as if it was content I knew from the beginning.¡¯ Ian quickly finished his thoughts. ¡®Since it¡¯s an Empire Quest anyways, it will probably be a good idea to use the strength of the king properly, right?¡¯ And he slowly opened his mouth. It was a fact that he learned after checking the information window of the Griffin¡¯s Egg, but there was a need to act as if it was information that he in fact knew from before. ¡°But there is a requirement in order to hatch the Griffin¡¯s Egg.¡± ¡°Requirement? What is the requirement?¡± ¡°The Griffin is a fortune born with wind properties. In order to completely hatch the Griffin¡¯s Egg, it needs to absorb the energy of the place with the strongest winds in Colonar Continent.¡± Ian slightly glanced at the king. Fortunately, it seemed as if Celias understood the situation as Ian intended for. ¡°Ha¡­ as expected, as it¡¯s a legendary fortune¡­¡± Celias turned his attention to Hellaim. ¡°Hellaim, do you happen to know the place with the strongest winds that Ian is talking about?¡± Ian also stared at Hellaim with expectant eyes. If it was someone that was the guard leader of the imperial palace, he would have certainly gone around Colonar Continent, suppressing areas here and there, so there were enough chances that it was a place he would know of. And Hellaim¡¯s mouth slowly opened. ¡°If it¡¯s the place with the strongest winds¡­¡± All eyes were focused on his mouth, and Hellaim¡¯s mouth opened again. ¡°I believe he is talking about the Sky Highlands, Your Majesty. If it¡¯s the Sky Altar towering in the centre of Sky Highlands, the energy of the wind there will be stronger than any other place.¡± And as soon as he heard those words, the person that was most surprised was Ian. ¡®What? Sky Highlands?¡¯ Sky Highlands was a place that Ian knew well of as well. This was because, although he had never been there, if the Colonar Continent map was opened, it was a place that was marked in the middle of the continent. However, the reason that Ian was surprised was not because of the familiar name. The problem was the Wasteland that surrounded Sky Highlands. ¡®No, this crazy, how are you supposed to go there? From what I¡¯ve heard, the level of the field monsters of the Wasteland are the same as Shikar Desert!¡¯ The Wasteland was a field where the level of the monsters at least started from lv 130, while the maximum level was unpredictable. For Ian to go through this Wasteland alone was simply suicidal. No, not just Ian, but no user or even guild had abilities that could go through the Wastelands and reach Sky Highlands. Ian¡¯s eyes immediately turned towards Celias. ¡®This requires the strength of the royal guards no matter what.¡¯ To use the strength of the king was no longer an option but a necessity. Ian opened his mouth towards Celias. ¡°Your Majesty. I don¡¯t have the strength to go to Sky Highlands with the Griffin¡¯s Egg yet.¡± Ian considered it a time to speak honestly rather than to pointlessly bluff. ¡°The strength Your Majesty has is required.¡± And his choice was right. ¡°I also think that way. To be honest, even if it wasn¡¯t for that reason, I cannot leave the Griffin¡¯s Egg with just you and have you leave the imperial city.¡± Along with the words that he would help Ian, he also meant that he couldn¡¯t fully trust him yet. However, for Ian, they were words that were more welcoming than anything else. Celias turned his attention towards Hellaim. ¡°Hellaim.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± The king¡¯s words slowly continued. ¡°Go and help Ian. For Ian and the Griffin¡¯s Egg to reach Sky Highlands safely.¡± And Hellaim bowed his head without an inch of hesitation and submitted to the king. Clunk-. ¡°Your command will be honoured, Your Majesty.¡± CH 85 Chapter 85: Empire Quest (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Celias¡¯ drive was amazing. As soon as the decision to dispatch the royal knights to Sky Highlands was made, an expedition with Hellaim as the head was packed up. Ian began to move along with the party. ¡®What the hell, we¡¯re already heading out faster than the blink of an eye.¡¯ Ian, who thought the expedition would start a day later at the least, was astonished. ¡®Is it because it¡¯s a game? It¡¯s nice that it¡¯s straightforward and the progress is fast, but¡­¡¯ He was a little worried as it felt like he was moving along with the party without any preparations. The place that they were headed for was a hunting ground with the highest level range amongst the ones known, to the point that it had never been attacked before, so it would have rather been strange if he wasn¡¯t worried. No matter if he was with the royal knights of the imperial family, he had no idea what kind of dangers lied ahead. ¡®But the number of people is much smaller than expected.¡¯ The size of the expedition wasn¡¯t that big. However, while Ian looked at the information of the members, he broke out into a cold sweat. ¡®For the lowest level royal guard to be lv 150¡­¡¯ Among the higher-level knights, Ian could see a couple monsters that were over lv 170. ¡®Then what level is Hellaim exactly?¡¯ Ian was suddenly curious of Hellaim¡¯s information, which was put as private. ¡®Is he over lv 200?¡¯ While Ian was thinking of this and that, the expedition continued to move and it didn¡¯t take them too long to arrive at the outskirts of the Wasteland. The location of the Wasteland was on the border of Luspel Empire and Kaimon Empire. It was a location that was quite far from the capital Myuran, but because they were able to immediately teleport to the Empire¡¯s outskirt field by borrowing the strength of the imperial family¡¯s magicians, the time it took for the expedition to reach the Wasteland took less than an hour. ¡°So this is the Wasteland.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Hellaim nodded his head and responded. ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s time for monsters to slowly start appearing now, so prepare yourself.¡± Hellaim¡¯s attitude towards Ian had slightly changed in a friendlier way. Ian thought that was a relief. ¡®If that wasn¡¯t the case, I might have died of suffocation before we arrived at Sky Highlands¡­¡¯ Ian summoned his Familiars one by one and prepared for combat. Since Ian now was at a three-figure level, even though they were monsters that were over lv 130, he thought that he could be at least a bit of help in the battle. And there was a part that he was aiming for. ¡®They said that NPCs that are fighting during the quest will be considered party members¡­¡¯ The EXP that he would gain while hunting the highest-level monsters of the Wasteland with the powerful knights of the imperial family¡¯s royal guards in order to reach Sky Highlands would be quite savoury. Ian looked at Halli, who followed behind him. ¡®Just in time, this one¡¯s Potential is at 100 as well.¡¯ While he was questing in the Forest of Love, he couldn¡¯t hunt, but he had used the Training skill diligently and thanks to that, Halli¡¯s Potential was also at 100. ¡®Are all of my Familiar¡¯s Potential at 100 now?¡¯ Ian checked his Familiar¡¯s information thoroughly one by one. And just like Ian remembered, all of them were at 100 Potential. ¡®It¡¯s been a while since I¡¯ve used Skill Grant as well, so it¡¯s about time I use it now.¡¯ As the Familiar¡¯s he had gained up until now all had decent Inherent Skills, he couldn¡¯t find the need to use Skill Grant on them. This was because it would be a failure if he used Skill Grant on a Familiar that had a good skill and gained a useless skill instead. However, to not use Skill Grant when all of their Potentials were at 100 would also be a waste. ¡®Who should I use the Skill Grant on?¡¯ Ian, who thought about it for a moment, eventually decided to use Skill Grant on Ly. ¡®Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss Hole and Lake¡¯s Breath of Lava are skills that are necessary right now, and since Bbookbbook¡¯s Shell Expansion is doing its part satisfactorily¡­¡¯ But to use Skill Grant on Halli was a little awkward. It was unknown how many levels Halli would gain in an instant once a monster in the Wasteland, which would soon appear, was killed, and he couldn¡¯t cut down the Potential he had brought up to 100. Ian called Ly over. ¡°Ly, come here.¡± Grr-. As Ly approached him, Ian put his hand on top of Ly¡¯s head. He was still a little indecisive until the end, but using Skill Grant on Ly now seemed like the most appropriate. ¡®The Berserk skill is also good, but I should hope for a better one to come out.¡¯ Ian, who had organized his thoughts, invoked the skill without hesitating anymore. ¡°Skill Grant!¡± And a white light sunk into Ly¡¯s body. You have used ¡®Familiar Skill Grant¡¯ on ¡®Ly¡¯.20 of Ly¡¯s Potential has been consumed.The ¡®Berserk¡¯ skill that Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ had will be deleted.Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has obtained skill ¡®Dance of Frenzy¡¯. Along with that, the information of the skill that Ly obtained popped up. Dance of Frenzy Classification ¨C Active Skill Skill Rank ¨C Rare Cooldown Time ¨C 30 minutes For 10 minutes, Offensive Power and Agility will increase by 50%, and Defensive Power will be reduced by half. Ian, who checked the skill, was slightly disappointed. ¡®Euh, this is a standard that isn¡¯t any better than Berserk¡­¡¯ It was a buff skill that had similar abilities to the Berserk skill, but the stat¡¯s width of increase and decrease rose together. The cooldown time drastically decreased, but as the additional option where Ly¡¯s Offensive Power would increase with critical damage disappeared, it was hard to say it was better than Berserk. Ian, who momentarily thought about it, decided to use the Skill Grant once more. ¡®That¡¯s right, since we¡¯re doing it anyways, let¡¯s get a proper skill.¡¯ If the gained skill wasn¡¯t much different after even consuming Potential, he somehow felt it was a loss on his part. Ian used Skill Grant on Ly again. However¡­ ¡°Ha¡­¡± This time, a Common-rank skill had appeared. Ian¡¯s hands shook. ¡®Have I touched it in vain?¡¯ However, Ly still had 60 Potential left. He didn¡¯t want to just leave him with a useless Common-rank skill like this. Could you say that this was a mentality that was a similar feeling to, rather than gambling 1 million Won[1] and losing all 1 million Won, gambling 2 million Won[2] and gaining at least 900 thousand Won[3]? Ian invoked the skill again. ¡®This time, please¡­!¡¯ And a system message rang out. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has obtained skill ¡®Thirst for Blood¡¯. Ian hurriedly checked the skill¡¯s information. Thirst for Blood Classification ¨C Active Skill Skill Rank ¨C Heroic Cooldown Time ¨C 15 minutes For 3 minutes, Offensive Power and Agility will increase by 30%, and all movement speed will increase by 40%. While in ¡®Thirst for Blood¡¯ state, all damage dealt to opponents whose Vitality has dropped below 30% will be applied once more, and whenever an opponent is killed, 20% of the max. Vitality will be recovered. (However, the attack of the Familiar in Thirst for Blood state must be the final attack that decides death for the opponent in order for it to be invoked.) Ian barely held back the cheer that almost came out from his mouth. ¡®Alright! 60 Potential wasn¡¯t a waste for something like this.¡¯ It was a buff skill that matched its whopping Heroic-rank well enough. Ian was incredibly pleased. ¡®Since Ly¡¯s role was a single damage-dealer that finished off the opponents that were in a dying state after getting hit by the AoE attacks, this is a skill that¡¯s perfect for Ly.¡¯ It seemed that Ly was pleased as well, as he rubbed his head against Ian¡¯s hip. Grr- Grrr-! ¡®Now I need to make sure I don¡¯t change this skill for a while.¡¯ Ian let out a sigh of relief, and he petted Ly¡¯s head. And while staring ahead, he mumbled. ¡°I really want to use the new skill quickly¡­¡± However, just then, the head of the party sent out a signal that an opponent appeared. Brrr-! The sound of the horn rang out, and all royal guards and knights got into a combat stance. Hellaim approached Ian. ¡°Ian, do you think you¡¯ll be able to fight as well?¡± At Hellaim¡¯s question, Ian checked the opponents first. ¡®Thunder Hawk¡­ It¡¯s around lv 132. Have around ten appeared?¡¯ If he was alone, it was a fighting power that he would have had to run away from without even a glance backwards, but if it was with the imperial family¡¯s knights, Ian felt he could take care of his own body. Ian responded. ¡°Yes, leader. I¡¯ll be alright.¡± Hellaim nodded while wearing a slightly worried expression. ¡°I will trust you. However, don¡¯t overdo yourself too much. Us knights might get caught up instead because of you.¡± They were words that could hurt his pride, but from Hellaim¡¯s perspective, it was an obvious worry, and his words were correct enough. Ian agreed while responding. ¡°Understood.¡± Finally, the battle began. Ian let out a command to Ddukdae like how he always did. ¡°Ddukdae, try and tie down as many as you can with Abyss Hole.¡± Deu-reu-reuk- Ddukdae, who received Ian¡¯s command, approached the Thunder Hawks and casted Abyss Hole. Keu-ohhhh- The range of Abyss Hole was quite large, but the Thunder Hawks, which were high-level monsters specializing in Agility, didn¡¯t enter the range of Abyss Hole so easily. The fact that Ddukdae¡¯s Agility was substantially lower than the opponents played a part as well. The number of Thunder Hawks that could be tied down by Abyss Hole were just two before it died down. However, even that was quite a big help. ¡°Lake, Breath!¡± Lake¡¯s Breath raked through the tied Thunder Hawks, and after that, the royal guards of the punitive force jumped in. Ian quickly let out a command to Ly. ¡°Ly, Thirst for Blood!¡± Grr-! Ly¡¯s body, which was already red in colour, started to shine a bright red even more. And with an incredible speed, Ly¡¯s body leaped through the air. Ly ran towards the Thunder Hawk, whose name began to blink from being attacked by the royal guards before they knew it. And he bared his white teeth. Kwa-deu-deuk-! Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has dealt critical damage to ¡®Thunder Hawk¡¯!¡®Thunder Hawk¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 7,250.Through the effect of ¡®Thirst for Blood¡¯, an additional 7,250 damage has been dealt. While watching Ly, who applied the skill perfectly at a surprising level, Ian wore a pleased expression. ¡®He dealt damage that was close to 15,000 in an instant. Considering Lake¡¯s Breath damage is about 20,000, it¡¯s a level that¡¯s satisfying enough.¡¯ Lake¡¯s Breath was an AoE attack, and because its cooldown time was also long, it was hard to compare with Ly. However, it could be an indicator to a certain extent. And as Ly¡¯s attack succeeded, the Thunder Hawk¡¯s neck was pierced by the continuous lance attacks of the royal knights. The level of the Thunder Hawk was high, but since the royal knight¡¯s level was at a situation where it was close to a whopping 170, the Thunder Hawk¡¯s remaining Vitality had all disappeared in one hit. And while looking at the system message that popped up, the corners of Ian¡¯s mouth hung from his ears. You have killed the Thunder Hawk. You have obtained 10,500 EXP. ¡®Keuhh, even though it¡¯s EXP that¡¯s distributed, for it to be a situation where it¡¯s over 10 thousand.¡¯ It seemed that as they were NPCs, the amount of EXP that was distributed was lower than he imagined, so EXP that was higher than what he expected came in. It was a situation where the EXP he gained was higher than the amount he gained while hunting alone in the ancient Arnovil Ruins. On top of that, he was certain that the hunting speed was incomparably faster than then. Ian wanted to give a deep bow to Hellaim. ¡®Thank you for the bus[4].¡¯ [1] 1 million Won = ~887.91 USD [2] 900 thousand Won = ~799.12 USD [3] 2 million Won = ~1775.82 USD [4] bus = carrying CH 86 Chapter 86: Hatching of the Griffin (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The imperial family¡¯s knights were strong. And amongst them, Hellaim¡¯s active part definitely stood out. ¡®Wow¡­ How can a lv 136 Thunder Hawk disappear from one cut.¡¯ Ian¡¯s job during combat was practically acting as a support. At first, he tried to do this and that in order to do something. However, it didn¡¯t take him long to realize that it was more effective to buff even one more person within that time instead. ¡®At least Ddukdae and Lake are quite active.¡¯ Just the fact that Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss Hole could tie down opponents was a big help, and since Lake¡¯s Offensive Power was so strong, he was dealing quite a large amount of damage with his AoE. Within that, Ly, who had learned a new skill, was also actively participating, but his damage was insignificant, and the only thing that Halli, who had just reached lv 50 now, could do was snoop around and avoid monsters. Combining all the active roles of Ian and his Familiars was equivalent to the active role of about one or two royal guards. Of course, Hellaim rated Ian highly from even just that. ¡°You, you were more of an exceptional Summoner than what I expected.¡± ¡°Haha, is that so?¡± To Hellaim, it seemed as though he thought Ian, who was only lv 100, wouldn¡¯t have been any help in combat. And as the battles repeated, Ian was smiling from ear to ear. ¡®Keu-heu-heu, this is how you truly get EXP without much effort!¡¯ They had only been fighting for around 3 hours, but lv 100 Ian¡¯s EXP was filled up to 25%, and Ly had reached lv 101, while Halli, who was lv 1¡­ Familiar ¡®Halli¡¯ has leveled up. Halli has reached lv 57. He was leveling up at a truly unbelievable speed. ¡®Ever since he¡¯s gone over lv 50, his leveling-up speed has slowly decreased, but he should be close to lv 80 by the end of this quest.¡¯ Ian was in high spirits and shot out his Magic Spheres here and there. However, shortly after, Hellaim lifted his hand and stopped the progress. ¡°We¡¯ll take a moment to standby and have some maintenance time.¡± Ian wore a slightly confused expression. ¡®Hm¡­? They shouldn¡¯t have received significant damage yet, so why are they suddenly going through maintenance?¡¯ Ian¡¯s question was obvious. Since Hellaim¡¯s knights had advanced as if they were almost slaughtering the monsters up until now. And Hellaim resolved Ian¡¯s question immediately. ¡°Once we go over that ridge, it¡¯s Sky Desert. And starting from there, Monk Mummies that are over lv 150 will appear.¡± Ian, who heard those words, became nervous as his heart fluttered. ¡®A lv 150 monster¡­ It¡¯s at a level where I haven¡¯t seen it as a screenshot either.¡¯ It was definitely going to be an incredibly dangerous place. However, along with that, the EXP would be even more savoury. Hellaim requested once more. ¡°It won¡¯t be an easy battle, so prepare yourself properly.¡± * * * ¡°Herz.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°How much longer do we have left now on our base protection?¡± At Fiolan¡¯s question, Herz checked the base information window immediately. And he scratched the back of his head. ¡°Wow, it seems that two months have already passed since we¡¯ve obtained the base. We only have one month left on our base protection now.¡± ¡°Euh, we seriously don¡¯t have much time left. A month from now and the northern continent will probably be a complete mess, right?¡± Herz nodded his head. ¡°By the looks of it, it seems so.¡± The point in which the Lotus Guild obtained their base was less than a week from when the northern continent¡¯s update happened. In other words, it meant that the point in which the other high-ranking guilds obtained their bases wouldn¡¯t be far off from the date the Lotus Guild gained theirs. The Titan Guild, who had gained their base the fastest, had gained it in 3 days of the update, so it could be predicted that, most likely, most base protections of the guilds would be released before and after the date the Lotus Guild¡¯s base protection was released. Fiolan wore an expression full of worry. ¡°If a giant guild decides to attack, it will be impossible to block them¡­ This is worrying.¡± However, surprisingly, Herz seemed relaxed. ¡°No, Fiolan. If we just raise the base rank to a Domain before the protection duration is over, we will be able to protect it as well.¡± ¡°Really?¡± At Fiolan¡¯s cross-question, Herz nodded his head. ¡°Yes. Right now, since it¡¯s a Village-rank, we can¡¯t train soldiers, but once it becomes a Domain-rank, we can train soldiers made up of NPCs. We can also make a decently thick bulwark.¡¯ ¡°Ah, I didn¡¯t know about those.¡± Herz¡¯s words continued. ¡°I also heard that you can install facilities such as defensive towers as well.¡± ¡°Ah, I think I¡¯ve seen a glimpse of that in the community. But I heard that the installation fee is unbelievably high¡­¡± As that part was a fact that Herz also knew about, he responded immediately. ¡°That¡¯s right. That¡¯s why, once we reach a Domain-rank, we¡¯ll most likely need to invest all our guild resources into the enhancement of our domain¡¯s Defensive Power. Even if it¡¯s a bit of a stretch, there¡¯s nothing else we can do.¡± Fiolan¡¯s expression slightly darkened. ¡°Hm¡­ Then in the case we fail in protecting our base, wouldn¡¯t the damage be too big? Even if we can protect it once or twice, if we continuously get attacked, then it will be difficult¡­.¡± Herz shook his head. ¡°No. I think that if we can just last for a while, it will probably calm down again. If we can just endure until then, we will be able to settle in.¡± By the looks of it, since Herz was the guild master, it seemed that he had done quite a lot of research for the base. ¡®Even if it¡¯s the top guilds contending for first and second place, they won¡¯t be able to easily attack our base. That is if we can get to the level that I¡¯m thinking of before then.¡¯ The bigger the guild, the more there was that they needed to protect. The top 10 guilds already had possession over two to three bases, and because there was the danger that they could lose their own territory instead if they hastily removed their troops and attacked a different territory, they wouldn¡¯t be able to move thoughtlessly. The high-ranking Lotus Guild just needed to properly prepare their Defensive Power enough so that the highest-ranking guilds wouldn¡¯t be able to attempt to take over them. Rather than having an awkward Defensive Power and barely protect the base, it was Herz¡¯s intentions to invest in the defensive aspect completely and make it so that they can¡¯t even consider attacking. ¡®However, bases that haven¡¯t been able to upgrade from a Village will indeed become good prey.¡¯ Even just a week ago, Herz was in a quite nervous state. This was because the requirements for the promotion of the base were almost completed, but he had absolutely no idea when Kroban¡¯s aristocrat promotion would be possible. However, he was able to relax once he heard a couple days ago that Ian was in the process of an Empire Quest. ¡®I really hope that Jinsung quickly completes the quest safely. Since we¡¯ll be able to have all the other requirements met by tomorrow or the day after.¡¯ He had told the truth to Kroban as well, but he didn¡¯t tell him to stop gathering Fame. It was in the case that Ian failed his Empire Quest, but it was also because it was more advantageous for the guild if there were more users with the aristocrat title. ¡®Since we¡¯ll need even more guild members that have the aristocrat title in order to meet the next Great Domain promotion requirements, and above all, if Kroban hyung also gets the title, we¡¯ll be able to handle knights belonging to the Domain immediately.¡¯ Herz¡¯s plan slowly proceeded. Thanks to pouring in effort into developing the base without rest once they gained it, the guild¡¯s rank had gone up much higher than before, so they were in the top 500. ¡®We¡¯ll protect the base no matter what.¡¯ The more they developed the base, the more the content perfectly fit the modifier ¡®The Golden Goose¡¯. Herz clenched his fist tightly. * * * It had been over a day since Ian and Hellaim¡¯s expedition just entered the Wasteland. As he wasn¡¯t able to sleep properly for that duration, Ian¡¯s two eyes were incredibly sunken. ¡®Euh, it would have been alright for me to have slept 5 hours or so before logging back on¡­ I was too timid.¡¯ The NPCs also slept at night. Because of that, Hellaim¡¯s knights set up a camping ground as night came and went to bed. Of course, Ian also logged off during that time and slept before coming back. However, as he was nervous that he would be left behind in the middle of the Wasteland because he logged in late, the problem was that he had logged back on after sleeping only three hours. Thanks to that, he needed to wait with his eyes wide open for four hours until the knights headed forward again. ¡®Hoo, just be patient for a little longer. Since I can just go to sleep once the quest is over.¡¯ To be honest, this rate of exhaustion was nothing compared to when he hunted like a cripple in order to hit lv 93. Ian collected his heart again. Whoosh- A fierce wind began to blow from everywhere. Ian had a hunch that this place was the Sky Highlands that Hellaim spoke of. ¡®Shall we check the map?¡¯ And just as he thought, the name ¡®Sky Highlands¡¯ was printed onto the map. Ian closed the map and it was the moment that he turned his attention forward again. Neigh-! Hellaim stopped his horse. As he did so, the party naturally stopped in order. ¡°We¡¯ve finally arrived.¡± Hellaim mumbled in a low voice and he turned the head of his horse towards the expedition. ¡°Sky Highlands is incredibly dangerous. Especially the monster Teranodone are incredibly powerful.¡± At those words, Ian couldn¡¯t hold back his curiosity and opened his mouth. This was because in addition to this being the first time he had even heard the name of a monster called Teranodone, it was also the first time he saw Hellaim warn of a monster to this extent. ¡°What level is the Teranodone?¡± After thinking for a moment, Hellaim opened his mouth. ¡°From what I remember, I think it was about lv. 190. You can think of it as a lizard the size of an elephant.¡± Ian was at a loss for words. ¡°¡­¡± He could die. That was the first thought that came to mind. As Ian had already come close to death after allowing two to three hits from the lv 150 Monks, a cold sweat broke out on his forehead. Hellaim¡¯s words continued again. ¡°This place is an incredibly dangerous place that could annihilate us all from one mistake even with our strength. Because of that, we will move differently from before.¡± Everybody listened intently to Hellaim¡¯s words. ¡°After going in for about 10 minutes, you¡¯ll be able to see a towering altar in the centre of the sky.¡± It seemed his throat was dry, as Hellaim swallowed before his words continued. ¡°We will fight the least amount of opponents possible and move to the front of the altar in the shortest distance. And Ian will go up the altar with the Griffin¡¯s Egg.¡± Hellaim¡¯s attention turned towards Ian. ¡°While Ian is hatching the Griffin¡¯s Egg on top of the altar, we will surround the altar and protect it by just facing the opponents that approach us. We will not succeed rashly. Understood?¡± ¡°Yes, understood!¡± Hellaim looked more serious than ever before. Ian felt through his skin the danger of Sky Highlands again and collected his heart. ¡®I cannot afford to fail when we¡¯ve come this far.¡¯ Ian¡¯s attention turned towards Sky Highlands. And the expedition began to move again. It was a movement that was different from before. It was an advance that was slow and as careful as possible. CH 87 Chapter 87: Hatching of the Griffin (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Sponsors: J.G. and Z.W. It seemed that luck was on their side, as not one Teranodone appeared as they approached the Sky Altar. Only monsters that were in the lv 150 range, which could be faced easier by the knights, appeared once in a while. However, there was a problem even aside from the Teranodone. An incredible sandstorm blew from all directions, to the point it was impossible to keep their eyes open. ¡®They said that it was the place where the wind¡¯s strength was the most powerful¡­¡¯ Even while grumbling, Ian kept alert in all directions. Since he couldn¡¯t fixate his eyes on anything properly, there was a high chance that they could be ambushed. And one mistake would directly lead to the failure of the quest. Just then, a strange cry was heard ahead. Kyaaaoooh-! It was the cry of a different monster that they had never met before. ¡®Is it the monster that¡¯s called the Teranodone or whatever?¡¯ And Hellaim¡¯s command was rapidly made. ¡°Prepare for combat! Carry out matters as carefully as possible so that you do not grab the attention of other opponents in the vicinity!¡± Shortly after, the identity of the cry appeared. It wasn¡¯t the Teranodone. ¡®Pachyao?¡¯ The thing that cut through the sandstorm and appeared was a monster that was named ¡®Pachyao¡¯. It was a giant tiger that had a similar look and feeling to Ian¡¯s Familiar Halli, but while Halli was a white tiger, Pachyao was a red tiger with yellow stripes. On top of that, its level was also 180. Although it wasn¡¯t a Teranodone, it was an opponent no less powerful than one. ¡°Pachyaos never roam around alone. There will definitely be over four or five together nearby.¡± Hellaim turned his attention towards Ian and continued his words. ¡°Ian, spare your body as much as you can, while we will kill them one by one as fast as possible.¡± Hellaim unsheathed his sword and raised it. And he directly faced the Pachyao that ran towards him and threw his body at it. Kuoooh- As Hellaim ran straight forward, a large vortex began to form around him. And his sword began to turn into a bright red light. ¡®What the hell, he looks super cool.¡¯ For a moment, Ian watched Hellaim absentmindedly to the point that he suddenly forgot that it was such a dangerous situation. And. Ba-Ba-Bang-! Red beams that exploded from his sword in multiple sections slashed through the Pachyao. Roaar-! The Pachyao that charged at them was knocked out by that one hit and rolled along the ground. And it seemed as its Vitality had dropped by half, as its name began to blink. ¡®As expected¡­ The true monster is Hellaim¡­¡¯ Ian shook his head and got into a fighting stance. Just as Hellaim predicted, several Pachyaos surrounded the party and approached them. And a free fight begun. ¡®Even just by looking at it, you can tell the Pachyao is an Agility-based monster. Its movements will be much faster than me. I must be more careful.¡¯ Ian purposely didn¡¯t use a buff skill. It would be hard to stay alive if he was targeted from using a skill in an attempt to help them in vain. Ian focused on defense the most and hid his existence. Shortly after, Hellaim approached Ian, who was keeping an eye on the battlefield carefully. It looked as if he had killed the Pachyao he was facing before Ian realized it and returned. He lifted his sword and pointed towards somewhere. ¡°Ian, do you see the stairs that go up to the altar over there?¡± At Hellaim¡¯s question, Ian turned his head towards the direction that he was referring to. As he did so, he could see the entrance of the altar that was vaguely visible within the sandstorm. ¡°Yes, I see it.¡± ¡°Once discovered by a Pachyao, we cannot last much longer. The monsters will smell the blood and flock here.¡± Ian slightly glanced at the knights that were fighting five Pachyaos as their opponents. It seemed they were relaxed as of yet, but if the numbers were to increase, the damage would definitely become continuous. Hellaim¡¯s words continued. ¡°I will cover you, so go up to the altar as fast as you can. Once you hatch the Griffin, we will leave this place quickly.¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°Understood.¡± ¡°Follow me this way.¡± Hellaim, who finished speaking, took the lead and moved, while Ian quickly followed behind. However, just then, a gigantic roar rang out through the sandstorm. It was different from the sound of the Pachyao. Kyaao! And Hellaim, who heard that noise, raised his sword high. ¡°All knights over here!¡± As expected of knights that were under Hellaim¡¯s immediate control, the expedition¡¯s knights moved at lightning speed. It looked as if the Pachyaos that they were facing each only had a little bit of Vitality left, but while watching them show no reluctance to give up the battle and move quickly, Ian was astonished. ¡®They¡¯re certainly systematic.¡¯ And shortly after, a large shadow pierced through the sandstorm and appeared. It was a daunting silhouette that reminded Ian of an ancient carnivorous dinosaur. ¡®It¡¯s even bigger than Ddukdae.¡¯ It was an image that made him feel as if a dinosaur that he saw from his science books as a child would pop out. However, there was no time for him to just admire it. ¡°Ian, you run up!¡± ¡°Understood!¡± Ian ran for his life before Hellaim¡¯s words even finished. ¡®This crazy, that¡¯s the end of a life if that monster¡¯s tail just brushes you!¡¯ The level of the Teranodone that Ian could now see was not 190, but 200. Ian had gone up 2 levels and had become lv 102 thanks to Hellaim¡¯s bus[1], but compared to the Teranodone that boasted a level twice his, his level could be considered a joke. Ta-Ta-Tat- Ian even used the Assimilation skill on Ly and after raising his Agility to the maximum, he ran with all his strength. Fortunately, the attention of the monsters was all focused on Hellaim, and none of them charged towards Ian. Behind him, it seemed as it was the height of the battle with the Teranodone, as a roar rang out without rest, but Ian just focused ahead and ran. Ian, who safely arrived at the entrance of the altar, quickly ran up the stairs. ¡°Huk¡­ Huk¡­¡± The altar was roughly as tall as the fifth floor of a building. As Ian ran up the long staircase that wrapped around the altar at full speed, he felt it becoming harder to breathe. ¡®Hoo, just a little more¡­!¡¯ And thanks to running as fast as he could, Ian was able to stand at the top of the altar shortly after. ¡°Finally, I¡¯m here!¡± The most surprising thing was that as he arrived at the top of the altar, the sandstorm that blew so violently didn¡¯t blow up on the top at all. Completely tranquil, the Sky Altar had a similar feeling to the eye of a storm. And after catching his breath for a moment, a system message rang close to Ian¡¯s ear. You are the first discoverer of the Source of Wind, the ¡®Sky Altar¡¯.Your Affinity with wind-type will increase by 5%.Your resistance to wind-type will increase by +10.From now on, your Affinity with wind-type monsters will not drop below 30.Your Fame has increased by 15,000. They were a type of system messages that he had heard somewhere before. Rather than the Fame he obtained, the other system messages caught Ian¡¯s eye first. ¡®This, these system messages are similar to the ones that appeared when I discovered the Blazing Explosion or the Source of Lava.¡¯ They weren¡¯t just similar, but truthfully, they were almost the same. The only thing that was different was the type that was involved. ¡®If that¡¯s the case, then I may need to go to the Scorching Land when I¡¯m hatching a fire-type Legendary-rank egg later.¡¯ It was an unexpected gain. Since there was no information that was as precious as a clue like this. However, above all else, it was important to quickly hatch the Griffin¡¯s egg. If he moved slowly and the damage towards the knights became bigger, he may gain the king¡¯s anger even if he succeeded the quest. If that happened, it would become incredibly difficult. ¡°Is that it?¡± Ian¡¯s attention turned to the platform in the middle of the altar that came up to about his waist. And he moved towards it. ¡®Let¡¯s try putting the Griffin¡¯s Egg on top of there.¡¯ Ian, who quickly ran to the platform, pulled out the Griffin¡¯s Egg with nimble fingers. And he placed it on top of the platform carefully. ¡®Alright, now hatch!¡¯ Could you say that someone had heard Ian¡¯s desperate wish? Surrounding the platform, rays of yellow light began to get sucked in like a tornado. ¡°It worked, it¡¯s working!¡± Ian, who was staring at the Griffin¡¯s Egg with a nervous expression, let out a shout before he realized. And he checked the information of the Griffin¡¯s Egg. Hatching¡­ 11% The hatching percentage that was stuck at 0% was slowly going up. Hopefully, the Griffin would hatch without mistake once the hatching percentage reached 100%. And once the Griffin¡¯s Egg hatched, he just needed to escape this altar quickly. Finally, it seemed as if he could see the end of this Empire Quest in front of his eyes. ¡®Hurry¡­ Hurry¡­!¡¯ Ian¡¯s gaze was completely fixed on the hatching percentage of the egg, which went up little by little. However, just then, something began to wriggle within Ian¡¯s chest. As soon as Ian felt it, he turned his head and looked down. ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± A fist-sized object that wriggled little by little and shone a yellow light was within his chest. Ian pulled that out. ¡®What the hell? I had something like this?¡¯ Ian carefully went through his memory. And shortly after, he was able to remember the identity of the rock-like item. ¡®This, this is the hot pack that the Chief Priest PK bums dropped!¡¯ As it always gave off a warm energy, it was an item that Ian kept within his chest whenever he hunted in the northern continent. It was an item with an identity he had absolutely no idea of, but because of that, he was unable to throw it out and had just kept it. ¡°But why is this right now¡­?¡± With a puzzled expression, Ian blankly stared at the stone. However, at that moment, the stone that was held in Ian¡¯s hand floated in the air. ¡°Huh, Uh?¡± And before Ian could use his hands, rays of white light wrapped around the stone, and just like that, it was sucked into the Griffin¡¯s Egg. An unexpected system message also popped up. You have used the ¡®Essence of Wind¡¯ item. ¡°Exactly what kind of situation is this?¡± Ian approached the Griffin¡¯s Egg with widened eyes. ¡®I never said that I¡¯d use it!¡¯ And the moment he opened the information window to check the hatching percentage of the Egg, along with the sound of a cracking noise, a yellow light exploded out in all directions. And along with that, a powerful energy spread out in every direction, and it was so powerful to the point that Ian was pushed back and thrown onto the ground. From the centre of the altar, that unknown energy continued to gush out, and Ian grasped onto a groove on the end of the altar and barely supported his body. ¡®Hoo¡­ That was a close one.¡¯ If he was pushed back even a little further, he would have almost fallen off the altar. ¡®If that happened, I would have become the Teranodone¡¯s food.¡¯ And shortly after. While Ian was calming his surprised heart, the system message that he looked most forward to finally popped up. You have hatched the mystical ¡®Griffin¡¯.You have hatched a Legendary-rank Familiar for the first time.Your ¡®Leadership¡¯ stat has increased by 100.Your ¡®Affinity¡¯ stat has increased by 50. Ian, who checked the system message, felt as if all his sufferings disappeared in that moment. ¡®For my Leadership to go up by 100!¡¯ The Leadership stat was the hardest stat amongst Ian¡¯s class stats to raise, but once he saw that it had gone up by 100 at once, his happiness was immeasurable. However, more than the happiness from the stat increase, the safety of the Griffin that just hatched was more important. As the rays of white light died down and the force that pushed Ian back disappeared, he hurriedly ran to the centre of the altar. And the form of the Griffin, which was born after breaking through its egg, leaving pieces of the shell here and there, caught Ian¡¯s eyes. ¡°It¡¯s a success!¡± However, at that moment, Ian¡¯s expression became confused. ¡®Huh, what the hell? It¡¯s twins?¡¯ In front of Ian, two Griffins sat with their heads drooped, their eyes not yet open. CH 88 Chapter 88: Hatching of the Griffin (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡®Will these guys grow as their level goes up? It seems that since they¡¯re young, they¡¯re really small.¡¯ Anyways, the part that Ian was most curious about was the Griffins¡¯ stats. Ian opened the information of one of the two Griffins. Griffin Level: 1 Classification: Mystical Creature Rank: Legendary Personality: Tenacious Evolution impossible Offensive Power: 23 Defensive Power: 10 Agility: 28 Intellect: 8 Vitality: 475/475 Mana: 265/265 Inherent Ability Guardian of the Wind If a wind-type attack is received, Offensive Power will increase by 30% for 3 minutes. Roar of the King The roar of the Griffin has incredible strength. If the Griffin roars, the Agility of all allies within a 50-metre radius will increase by 30%, while the movement of all opponents will be slowed by 30%. The effect lasts for 10 minutes. (Cooldown time 30 minutes) Crush With strong flaps of its wings, a giant whirlwind is created to slash through its opponents. It lasts for 10 seconds, and every 0.5 seconds, 125% of its Offensive Power will be dealt as damage to its opponents. (15 metres ahead, it¡¯s shot out in a fan-like shape.) (Cooldown time 10 minutes) A legendary mystical creature as well as ruler of the sky. As it rides the energy of the wind, it is incredibly agile and strong. As soon as Ian checked the stats of the Griffin, he naturally wanted to compare it with his Hallikan. ¡®What were the stats of a Hallikan at lv 1 again¡­ I wrote it down somewhere.¡¯ Ian, who had found the notebook where he had written it down shortly after, compared the stats of the Hallikan and Griffin. ¡®Aside from Defensive Power, the Griffin is higher in everything.¡¯ Especially in the case of Agility, the Griffin¡¯s was almost twice the Hallikan¡¯s. Ian gulped loudly. ¡®Ah¡­ Why am I being tested like this¡­¡¯ If it was just one instead of two, he would have returned it to the king without regret. No, it would be more correct to say that he had no choice but to return it. However, for twins to be born. The temptation of the mystical creature Griffin was too strong to return both just as is. ¡®Let¡¯s check the stats of the other one as well.¡¯ Ian began to compare the stats of the two Griffins. It seemed that since they were both Griffins, their Inherent Abilities matched with each other. If a difference was really being looked for, there was about a 2% difference in the value of their Crush skill. However, for their combat stats, the Griffin that was checked second was lacking about 2-3 points in every part. ¡®Just because you¡¯re twins doesn¡¯t mean your stats will be the same.¡¯ And it seemed they were fraternal twins, as their genders were also different. Ian completely liked each and every Inherent Ability. Especially, the ¡®Roar of the King¡¯ skill was an excellent AoE skill that buffed allies and de-buffed opponents at the same time, while the ¡®Crush¡¯ skill was an offensive AoE skill that boasted an exceptional attack value higher than Lake¡¯s Breath. Ian calculated the value of the Crush skill. ¡®If it¡¯s a 125% value every 0.5 seconds for 10 seconds¡­¡¯ Ian¡¯s jaw dropped. ¡®This crazy¡­! That means its attack value is 2500%!¡¯ Simply put, it was an AoE skill that could deal a frightening amount of damage that came close to 25 times its Offensive Power. Considering the value of Breath, Lake¡¯s skill, was about 500%, Crush was an AoE skill that could only be described as tremendous. Of course, because Lake¡¯s Breath was a skill that devoured his opponents in an instant, while the Griffin¡¯s Crush skill was a channeling skill that required it to last 10 seconds, the comparison standards were a little uncertain, but it was definitely a powerful skill anyways. ¡®It¡¯s cooldown time is shorter than Breath as well¡­¡¯ Ian closed his eyes tightly. His heart had already leaned to one side. Right now, there was no one else on this altar besides Ian. As long as Ian just kept his mouth locked shut, no one would know of his secret except for the game system. This could possibly be a chance given by the gods. ¡®That¡¯s right, there¡¯s no way I¡¯ll get caught.¡¯ Ian slightly placed his hand on top of the head of the first Griffin that had higher stats. Although he didn¡¯t really like that the one with higher stats had to be male of all things. ¡®Still, since stats are more important than gender.¡¯ As Ian¡¯s hand touched the top of his head, the Griffin wore a happy expression while flapping his wings. Kkuruk- Kkuruk-! As he was a Griffin hatched from the egg that depended on Ian, his Affinity with Ian was simply at the maximum. Once Ian just made up his mind, the Griffin would become his Familiar right away. Ian recited with a low voice. ¡°Capture!¡± Hoong-. At the same time that Ian casted the skill, the Griffin¡¯s body turned into a white light and was sucked into his hand. ¡®Now I can¡¯t go back.¡¯ Ian held the remaining Griffin in his arms and quickly left the altar. It was now time to return to the Capital. * * * Ian¡¯s Griffin Egg Hatching Quest successfully finished like that. Of course, there was a secret that Ian only had¡­ ¡®Euh, I¡¯m itching to quickly raise the Griffin, but why isn¡¯t the king coming?¡¯ Ian was currently sitting in the reception room of the king waiting for Celias to come. As he was with the imperial family¡¯s knights up until now, Ian, who hadn¡¯t been able to summon his newly obtained Griffin even once, wanted to complete the quest as quickly as possible and run away to the northern continent. This was because he wanted to quickly raise the Griffin, but there was also another reason. ¡®If I get caught, then I won¡¯t even have a bone remaining.¡¯ Even just standing in the imperial house made Ian very nervous. There was no way that the king would know of the truth that Ian had taken one of the two Griffins, but there was nothing he could do about his nervousness. ¡®I wish I could finish everything quickly and leave this place¡­¡¯ Deu-reu-reuk- And as if Celias had read Ian¡¯s mind, he opened the doors of the reception room and entered. ¡°Oh, Ian. Good work. You did well.¡± As soon as the king discovered Ian, he approached him and held out his hand for a handshake. And it seemed that because Ian had committed a sin, he took his hand with even more respect than he usually did. ¡°No, Your Majesty. As Your Majesty¡¯s knights were so strong, I¡¯ve benefitted from them.¡± As his words weren¡¯t wrong, Ian was able to suck up to the king without hesitation. ¡°Good, good. The Griffin you have brought back will be well looked after by the imperial palace¡¯s Summoners from now on. Thanks to you, it looks like we¡¯ll be able to boast our Luspel Empire¡¯s mystical guardian creature in front of the entire nation on the commemoration anniversary.¡± Celias wore an incredibly pleased expression. And Ian, who saw his bright expression, was quite relieved. ¡®Hoo, what a relief.¡¯ ¡°If the nation finds out the truth that a living Griffin is protecting the imperial family, they will truly be happy.¡± Ian¡¯s flattery continued. When he usually flattered NPCs, it was to get a better reward, but his flattery right now was from his instinct to survive. Celias nodded his head with a satisfied expression. ¡°Hmm, indeed. Great work.¡± And as he was done speaking, a pleasing message that notified Ian that he had completed the quest popped up. You have completed the ¡®Griffin Hatching¡¯ Luspel Empire Quest. Clear Rank: SYou have obtained 19,912,000 EXP.You have leveled up. You have reached lv 103.You have obtained 100,000 Fame. Ian was moved by the enormous reward appropriate for an Empire Quest. And he barely held back the laughter that slipped past his lips. ¡®Kya, to have gone up 3 levels in just two days. On top of that, they give 100 thousand Fame as well? No wonder the top-ranking players all have over 1 million Fame.¡¯ The Fame level of the top-ranking players that didn¡¯t make sense to him at all before resetting now made sense. Since they monopolized the best rewards as well as the Empire Quests for each class like this, their Fame was so high. On the other hand, he once again felt that one of the hardest things to raise when playing normally was Fame. As a value of 100 thousand Fame from doing normal quests was impossible unless a player slaved themselves away. Lastly, Ian didn¡¯t forget to lay down the bait for the next quest. ¡°If there¡¯s anything that I could help with again, please feel free to contact me.¡± If it was a quest with a reward like this, he felt he could do ten more of them. ¡°Sure, alright. If it¡¯s you, I¡¯ll be able to trust you with a job in the future as well.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± The king slowly stood up from his spot. Ian also lifted his butt. ¡®It¡¯s finally over.¡¯ However, different from Ian¡¯s expectation, there was still something left to do. ¡°And for raising the status of the Luspel imperial family, there is a present I want to give to you.¡± At the word present, Ian was delighted. It was to the point that his desire to quickly leave the imperial palace subsided for a moment. ¡®What is it? Is he planning on giving me a Legendary-rank item? If it¡¯s a present from the king, it will probably be something like that, right?¡¯ Ian was inflated with anticipation. However, Celias¡¯ gift was completely different from Ian¡¯s expectation. Whoong- Along with a low resonance, Celias¡¯ right hand began to shine brightly. ¡®What? What is this?¡¯ Ian was slightly nervous at the situation that he was encountering for the first time. And Celias spread his hand towards the stiffened Ian. As he did so, a fancy symbol in a gold light began to be engraved in the air. It was none other than the Luspel Empire¡¯s symbol, a figure of the Griffin. And the Griffin of light that came from Celias¡¯ hand was slowly sucked into Ian. Ring- As you have completed the Empire Quest with an S-rank, you have been presented with the ¡®Baron¡¯ title. (If a fixed quantity of Fame is consumed, you can promote your title to a higher rank.)From now on, you can make up to 20 NPCs your subordinates. (If an NPC that has already been made your subordinate is eliminated, your Fame will drop by at least 100 thousand, so you must decide carefully.)You have become an aristocrat of the Luspel Empire. Unless you gain ¡®Sovereign¡¯ status or stripped of your title, you cannot change your citizenship.From now on, you will have a hostile relationship with Kaimon Empire. At the system messages that popped up without rest, Ian was about to go into a state of confusion. ¡®This, this is supposed to be a good thing, right?¡¯ There was not much that Ian knew about when it came to information related to the aristocrat title. The content from just roughly reading looked incredibly good, but Ian wanted to check each one thoroughly. The part that got to him was that he would have a hostile relationship with the Kaimon Empire. ¡®Once I leave the Capital, I should firstly log off and do some research on this.¡¯ Celias slowly approached Ian, who was in chaos mentally from trying to meticulously memorize the system messages. He opened his mouth while laughing. ¡°Huhu¡­ How is it, Ian, no, Sir Ian? Do you like my present?¡± And separate from Ian¡¯s will, his body moved on its own and began to adopt the manners of an aristocrat in front of King Celias. Chuck-. Ian was flustered. ¡®What, what is this? Why is my body moving on its own?¡¯ Ian struggled to try and move his body with all his might, but far from moving his own body, now his mouth began to move on its own. ¡°I am honoured, Your Majesty. I will be loyal.¡± ¡®What the hell? Is the game system just making me move on its own?¡¯ Certainly, for Ian, who didn¡¯t know about manners towards the imperial family, etc., he even thought that this was more comfortable instead. ¡®Whatever. As long as it ends well.¡¯ Like that, Ian¡¯s first eventful Empire quest safely finished. CH 89 Chapter 89: Territory Management (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ring- The status of user ¡®Ian¡¯, member of the ¡®Lotus¡¯ Guild, has upgraded to ¡®Baron¡¯ rank.The Guild Fame of the ¡®Lotus¡¯ Guild has increased by 150 thousand.The ¡®Lotus¡¯ Guild¡¯s base has met all requirements in order to be promoted from ¡®Village¡¯ rank to ¡®Domain¡¯ rank. (However, the promotion can only be possible once a user with the aristocrat title becomes a Lord.) Herz, Fiolan and Carwin, who were selling random items at the general merchandise shop in the base that they had obtained while hunting, simultaneously stopped what they were doing and looked at each other. Because they were guild system messages that were sent to all of the guild members, the messages popped up at the same time for the three people. The person that first opened their mouth was Carwin. ¡°Keu, this hyung¡¯s timing is the best!¡± The reason why the three people were at the general merchandise shop was to sell the random items that they had gained after hunting for a quarter of a day to meet the requirements for rank promotion. In other words, it meant that as soon as all criteria for the next base was met, Ian¡¯s promotion was completed. Fiolan, who had hurriedly opened the guild information and checked Ian¡¯s information as soon as she heard the system message, shook her head and grumbled. ¡°But I have no idea why Ian had put all of his information to private. I went in to see the new aristocrat title that appeared, but everything is marked as not available.¡± Carwin also complained. ¡°No kidding. I¡¯m also curious of Ian hyung¡¯s level, but I can¡¯t find it out?¡± Herz spoke with a joking voice. ¡°Ay, are you sure you¡¯re not like that because you¡¯re worried that he¡¯s caught up to you?¡± Carwin momentarily flinched, but he snorted as he spoke shortly after. ¡°Don¡¯t say such nonsense, hyung. How could he have already caught up to me when it hasn¡¯t even been that long since he hit lv 90? Wouldn¡¯t he have hit around lv 95 now?¡± Fiolan, who was next to him, carefully stated her opinion. ¡°Couldn¡¯t it be possible that he¡¯s close to lv 100?¡± ¡°Ay, no way. Your level seriously doesn¡¯t go up once you¡¯re over lv 95.¡± Herz, who heard the two people¡¯s conversation, smirked. ¡°He probably set up those privacy settings when he was a low-level and hasn¡¯t changed it because he¡¯s too lazy. And Ian was at lv 98 or something like that the last time I asked him.¡± Carwin wore a flustered expression out of astonishment. ¡°Huh? When exactly did he raise it up again like that?¡± If they had found out that Ian was already at lv 103, the three would have probably fainted from shock. Since Fiolan, who had the highest level, had barely reached lv 113 now, while Herz was at lv 107, and Carwin at lv 103. In Carwin¡¯s case, Ian had already caught up to him. ¡°Either way, he¡¯s amazing, seriously.¡± At Fiolan¡¯s words, Carwin and Herz both nodded their heads at the same time. And Herz¡¯s mumbling continued. ¡°But exactly what kind of quest did this guy do to get the Baron title from the start?¡± At those words, Fiolan asked back. ¡°Huh? What do you mean? Isn¡¯t the first title that you can get from the beginning originally Baron?¡± At her words, Herz shook his head. ¡°No, not so.¡± This time Carwin asked. ¡°Then what do you normally start with?¡± Herz¡¯s response continued. ¡°From what I¡¯ve heard, when you first clear the Empire Quest, you get the Baronet or Knight title.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yeah. That¡¯s why I was secretly hoping for Ian to start with a Baronet title. It¡¯s possible to promote to a Domain with a Knight title as well, but there are a lot of restrictions. You could consider starting from the Baronet is when you¡¯re a true aristocrat.¡± Fiolan added on. ¡°Oh, now that you mention it, that¡¯s right. I also roughly looked for information, but I never thought that Baronet and Baron were different. Since they were just Barons, I just assumed so¡­ So then, Ian has received a title that¡¯s higher than a Baronet, right?¡± Herz nodded as he responded. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right. I¡¯ve never heard of a circumstance like that¡­ But either way, it¡¯s better in our case, I guess.¡± Carwin pouted as he complained. ¡°No, why is this hyung so lucky, too?¡± While looking at that appearance, Herz smirked. ¡°At first, I also thought that he was just lucky, but lately, I feel like that¡¯s not it.¡± Herz took a breath before he opened his mouth again. ¡°Is there anybody amongst us that plays as hard as him?¡± Fiolan and Carwin shook their heads at the same time. The amount of time Ian¡¯s spent gaming was to the point it was hard for anybody in the guild to even follow. They weren¡¯t referring to the time spent just logged on in the game. Since there were quite a lot of guild members that were logged on all day. However, Ian didn¡¯t just stay logged on, he hunted or did quests without rest. That was the difference. ¡°Anyways, he¡¯s seriously amazing. From what I know, there¡¯s not even twenty users that have received the Baron title.¡± And amongst the new class users, Ian was probably the first. On top of that, there was no user with the Viscount or Count title, which were a higher-rank than Baron. This as well would become a good stepping stone for the rise in the guild¡¯s ranking. ¡°No kidding. It seems like he¡¯s completed all his quests now, too, so Ian will probably come to the base soon, right?¡± Herz nodded his head. ¡°I think so. I told him about the Domain promotion, so he¡¯ll probably come up here soon. Once Ian comes up here, I think we should take care of the Domain promotion immediately.¡± ¡°Sure. Speaking of which, I¡¯m wondering, shouldn¡¯t I be giving this sub-guild master position back to Ian?¡± However, at those words, Herz and Carwin shook their heads at the same time. Carwin spoke. ¡°No-no, let¡¯s just keep it so that you remain the sub-guild master, Fiolan.¡± Herz agreed as well. ¡°That¡¯s right. I also think that it would be a lot more helpful towards the guild if you stayed the sub-guild master, Fiolan¡­¡± In the guild beginnings, the role of the sub-guild master wasn¡¯t much, but compared to then, the guild¡¯s scale had more than doubled, and there was a lot for the sub-guild master to do especially with a base. And rather than Ian, who just continuously hunts, the two people thought that Fiolan, who was a little more meticulous and good at taking care of tasks, fit that position better. Fiolan wore a bashful expression. ¡°Still¡­ Wouldn¡¯t Ian be hurt?¡± Carwin smirked as he answered. ¡°You know that hyung doesn¡¯t care about stuff like that. Why is someone who has known Ian hyung for months now already acting like this?¡± * * * Meanwhile, just like how the three predicted, Ian was headed towards the base. On top of the shoulder of Ian, who walked with incredibly light footsteps and was even humming, sat a baby Griffin that let its gold feathers hang down. Kkuruk- Kkuruk-! ¡°Pin, are you hungry?¡± Nod. Ian named his newly obtained Legendary-rank Familiar, the Griffin, ¡®Pin¡¯. And the Training skill that he was using on Ly was now completely being used on Pin. ¡®Since Pin¡¯s Potential will probably be able to hit 100 in about three days¡­ I¡¯ll just use Training on Ly after, I guess.¡¯ Pin¡¯s Potential was at 90 from when he first obtained him. Just like Halli, because he planned on having Pin reach 100 Potential as well before Ian leveled him up, the top priority was to raise Pin¡¯s Potential first. ¡°Let¡¯s see here, where did I put the drug meatballs?¡± As Ian began to search through his inventory, Bbookbbook, who was hanging from his back and dozing off, snapped back to reality. To Bbookbbook, there was no better alarm than the word meatball. Bbookbbook¡¯s eyes widened whenever he heard the eight-letters of meatball. Bbook-! Ian, who saw that, smirked. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll give you one, too, just wait.¡± Bbookbbook, who had already eaten his morning meatball quota, wasn¡¯t anticipating much, but he was moved while looking at Ian, who willingly handed him a meatball for whatever reason. Bbook¡­! ¡°Alright, here you go. Eat well.¡± Ian, who handed the meatballs to his Familiars, perched on a boulder for a moment. And while looking at his two Familiars eating their meatball, he organized his thoughts. ¡®Firstly, once I return to the base, I probably need to start with the territory management, right?¡¯ Including Herz, most of the guild members thought that Ian had no interest in the territory, but that was wrong. As he was in mental chaos from trying to complete the quests that he spread out up until now, Ian just wasn¡¯t able to focus on the territory, but he was feeling an incredibly big interest in the new content that was the territory. Could he say that it felt like he had something new to research? Ian had invested about two to three hours and did quite a lot of research on the base. As he had received the Baron title, he would become the Lord and the base would be promoted, and if that was the case, he needed to draw out the highest effectiveness of all of the territory¡¯s contents. ¡®Since Yoohyun did well alone up until now, there was no need for me to pay much attention¡­ But since I¡¯ll actually have to take care of the territory¡¯s management now, I should try and grow it as best as possible.¡¯ As there were not a lot of guilds that had successfully promoted their base to a Domain-rank, there wasn¡¯t a lot of information released, but despite that, there was quite a lot of interesting information. Especially, the system that allowed them to raise soldiers grabbed Ian¡¯s interest the most. ¡®The hunting effectiveness will definitely be good if we raise soldiers well and manage a large-scale punitive expedition.¡¯ As Ian had raked in an unbelievable amount of EXP thanks to the NPCs this time, he was even more expectant. ¡®Since Halli is over lv 80 now, too, if I just get Pin¡¯s level up to a certain level¡­ Huhu.¡¯ At the thought of wiping monsters with Pin¡¯s Crush skill, Ian automatically wore a smile. It was now time to concentrate on raising the Familiars he possessed. He didn¡¯t even have any extra Leadership to recruit a new Familiar anyways. It seemed since Pin¡¯s rank was Legendary, Ian¡¯s Leadership was completely taken up thanks to Pin taking up a huge amount of it. That was also only barely possible because of the extra Leadership he gained from being the very first to hatch a Legendary Familiar. ¡®I have no idea when the God Dragon¡¯s Egg will hatch, but there will probably be a way to raise my Leadership again then, too, I guess.¡¯ Ian stood up from his spot. It seemed like his Familiars¡¯ meals were roughly finished. However, he spotted Bbookbbook glancing at something that was in front of Pin. Bbook- Bbook- From Ian¡¯s examination, Pin had just eaten half his meatball and left the rest in front of him. Bbookbbook desired that specifically. Pin glanced at Bbookbbook, and slightly pushed the meatball with one foot. Kkuruk- Kkuk-kkuk- Pin¡¯s haughty and prim expression seemed as if he was saying, I¡¯m already full so, whether you eat it or not is up to you. And Bbookbbook swiftly crawled over and gobbled up Pin¡¯s meatball in one bite. Bbook- Bboo-bbook-! While looking at Bbookbbook¡¯s happy expression, Ian burst out laughing. If a system message were to pop up for Pin as well, Ian felt that a message saying, ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯s Affinity towards you has increased by 200%¡¯, would have popped up. ¡®It looks like Pin isn¡¯t that greedy for food.¡¯ Pin was elegantly cleaning the oil from the meatball off his beak using his feathers, while on the other hand, Bbookbbook, who had eaten the meatball that Pin left in an instant, wore a satisfied expression as he ran around. ¡®It looks like Bbookbbook will really like Pin.¡¯ Could you say the situation for Bbookbbook was like going to a chicken restaurant with a friend who doesn¡¯t like chicken drumsticks? Before he knew it, Bbookbbook was next to Pin, rubbing his head against him. Bbookbbook wore an expression as if he had basically found a soulmate. It looked as if Pin didn¡¯t hate Bbookbbook, though, either. Ian smirked before wearing a smile. To see his Familiars getting along closely was a pleasant sight for him. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go, kids. We should be able to arrive soon.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Pin immediately flew and sat on his shoulder, while Bbookbbook moved his short legs quickly and stood in front of Ian. Ian petted Pin¡¯s head once before beginning to move again. CH 90 Chapter 90: Territory Management (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Sponsors: AJB and Fullmetalj4cket The outskirts of the Lotus Guild¡¯s base. Thanks to expanding the territory quite a bit in order to meet the promotion requirement of the base quickly, the outskirt land of the base generally looked empty. However, on this wide land, a solitary facility, which was reminiscent of a zoo with the image of several monsters running around, was built. That was exactly the ¡®Monster Breeding Ground¡¯ that Professor Lee Jinook had built. It had only been a couple days since Professor Lee Jinook¡¯s Monster Breeding Ground was built. Even that was only possible because Ian had caught new monsters whenever he had time in between his quests and updated the guide¡¯s information. ¡°Whew, it was difficult, but this is quite satisfying.¡± While looking at the Monster Breeding Ground that had taken shape quite a bit, Lee Jinook wore a happy smile. There were still a lot of empty spaces, but once he diligently captured monsters and started accepting customers, it would hopefully become filled with tons of monsters soon. Jinook sat down on a wooden chair in the breeding ground¡¯s office and wiped his sweat. ¡°Hmm, why isn¡¯t this kid coming when I need to leave soon?¡± He mumbled as if he was waiting for someone, and at that moment, the office¡¯s door opened. Creak-. ¡°Professor, I¡¯ve brought what you asked for.¡± And the person that opened the office door and entered was none other than Harin. ¡°Oh, great. Harin. Thank you.¡± Harin beamed as she replied. ¡°It was nothing. It¡¯s something I just make while raising my Cooking Proficiency, anyways. Jinsung said that the work you¡¯re doing is also going to help the guild a lot.¡± The thing that Harin handed to Jinook was a large lunch box. And inside of it, there was a lot of food that the monsters would like. Different from other users with the Chef class, Harin made a lot of food for monsters because of Jinsung¡¯s influence. Because of that, she had developed a special cooking skill that was related to that. That¡¯s why Harin¡¯s cooking was a big help to the Monster Breeding Ground as well. Lee Jinook, who had received Harin¡¯s cooking and set it in the corner of the office, wore a pleased expression. ¡°It smells great. I can¡¯t tell if this is something I should eat when I¡¯m hungry, haha.¡± At Jinook¡¯s words, Harin laughed as she shook her head. ¡°You can¡¯t, Professor. The food I brought this time was made with a lot of raw ingredients, so if you eat it, you¡¯ll probably get sick.¡± ¡°Huhu, I was just saying.¡± Jinook, who let out a hearty laugh for a moment, seemed to have remembered something, as he opened his mouth towards Harin again. ¡°Ah, right. Harin. I noticed that Jinsung returned to the base a while ago, did you know about that?¡± At Jinook¡¯s words, Harin¡¯s large eyes rounded even more. ¡°What? Really?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. I saw him walk in with Yoohyun earlier, and that was probably about 15 minutes ago.¡± At his words, Harin¡¯s expression turned slightly prim. ¡°Without even contacting me!¡± Harin wore a bashful expression towards Jinook and spoke. ¡°Professor, may I be excused?¡± At her words, Jinook laughed as he nodded his head. ¡°Sure, go on your way.¡± ¡°Thank you!¡± While watching Harin, who quickly opened the door and left, Jinook laughed. ¡°Huhu, it¡¯s their prime time, I say, their prime time.¡± * * * Meanwhile, Ian, who had just arrived at the base, was preparing for the promotion of the base with Herz and Fiolan. All the requirements necessary to promote were already met, they were just organizing their information thoroughly as their final step. This was because they could make a mistake if they just blindly went into the base promotion and the internal affairs were a mess. ¡°So, Ian, what you¡¯re saying is, why don¡¯t we raise the ¡®Human Resource Centre¡¯ as our first internal building?¡± At Herz¡¯s words, Ian nodded his head. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right. I¡¯m planning on raising the Human Resource Centre first and then raising the Military Facility after that.¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t that be too dangerous? Our protection period is almost over now, so wouldn¡¯t it be better to properly raise the Domain¡¯s Defensive Power first?¡± The moment they promoted the base to a Domain, they would of course get to build their very first internal building without any cost, and be able to build it right away without any construction period. There were a lot of different kinds of internal buildings, and for Herz, whose priority was on the base¡¯s defense, was planning on building the Military Facility first, while Ian suggested to him that they built the Human Resource Centre first. Of course, it was a decision that Ian had made after thoroughly investigating. ¡°No. Even if we were to build the Military Facility right now, the soldiers that we could train in a lv 1 Military Facility will only be around lv 30 at most. Even if we were to train several hundred lv 30 soldiers, they¡¯ll all disappear from one hit by an AoE skill of a high-level Magician.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true, but¡­¡± Ian¡¯s words continued. ¡°To pick out soldiers from the Military Facility with enough fighting power that would be useful enough, we need to raise the level of the facility to at least lv 3, and in order to reach lv 3, we need a martial arts instructor that¡¯s over lv 100 anyways.¡± Fiolan, who was just listening from the front without a word, opened her mouth. ¡°So, Ian, you¡¯re saying that we should first raise the Human Resource Centre and nurture an NPC that would become the martial arts instructor first, and then quickly raise the Military Facility?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. And we can continuously train people in the Human Resource Centre that will be needed in other internal affairs aside from just the martial arts instructor. If we were to work hard to raise the Military Facility in preparation for the end of our protection period, our guild resources will also run out if we don¡¯t have any of the other internal facilities properly going.¡± ¡°But our production buildings will still run even if we don¡¯t appoint a NPC in-charge.¡± ¡°However, I heard that there¡¯s a huge difference in effectiveness if you put an NPC with good stats in charge. It seemed like there was almost 2-3 times the difference.¡± ¡°Re, really?¡± Ian¡¯s information was much more detailed than what Herz was expecting. ¡®No, I wasn¡¯t able to find information like this no matter how much I searched the community, so where exactly did he find this much?¡¯ Fiolan asked Ian again. ¡°So are we just defending with our guild members?¡± Ian shook his head. ¡°No, that¡¯s not it. We need to build a defense tower, and extend our rampart. The NPCs that are appointed to the Human Resource Centre will also be of help for our defenses to an extent.¡± ¡°Will that be enough?¡± ¡°And there¡¯s something else that I¡¯ve thought of.¡± At Ian¡¯s words that there was still more that he had planned out, Herz and Fiolan turned their full attention back to his mouth. And Ian turned his gaze towards Herz. ¡°From what I¡¯ve researched, if you build a Class Guild, there¡¯s quite a bit of useful fighting power that you can gain from there.¡± ¡°What? Class Guild? You can build those on our base?¡± If a Class Guild was to form, NPCs of that class whom are related to the guild would automatically come along with it. And amongst them, the NPC that would be formed as the person in charge of the whole Class Guild was a lv 120 NPC. On top of that, if a Class Guild existed, it was also possible to train the troops of the related class in the Military Facility, and there was a higher chance for a person talented in the relevant class to appear in the Human Resource Centre. The Class Guild was a building that was helpful in many ways. However, these Class Guilds couldn¡¯t just be built on any base. ¡°Yeah, we can build it. I meet the construction requirements.¡± ¡°Requirements? What are the requirements?¡± Ian, who brought up the idea, slowly opened his mouth. ¡°Firstly, you need to be over lv 100 of the relevant class. And your Fame has to be over 800 thousand, and lastly, if a user with a title that¡¯s higher than Baronet is the Lord, you can construct the Class Guild of that Class on the base.¡± Fiolan and Herz, who had heard Ian¡¯s words from start to finish, were dumbfounded. It was fascinating how he had also found out about these requirements, but there was another reason why they were so surprised. ¡°Ian, you¡¯re telling us you meet all those requirements?¡± ¡°Ian, you¡¯re over lv 100? No, your level could be considered, but 800 thousand Fame?¡± At the two people¡¯s strong reaction, Ian calmly nodded his head as he responded. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m lv 103 right now, and my Fame, let¡¯s see here, it¡¯s currently at 890 thousand.¡± ¡°¡­¡± At Ian¡¯s words, the two people wore a dumbfounded expression. After a moment of silence passed, Herz opened his mouth first. ¡°Yo, have you been playing a different game from us until now?¡± ¡°Ian, you haven¡¯t used some kind of cheat, right? Or a bug¡­¡± ¡°No way.¡± The two people¡¯s strong reactions were obvious. First of all, to be lv 103 already was appalling enough, but to have 890 thousand Fame, it was close to a fraud for them. As Kroban, who had worked so hard questing to try and gather Fame was barely at 430 thousand Fame, while Ian, whom they thought had only continuously leveled, had double Kroban¡¯s Fame¡­ Meanwhile, Ian, who had noted the content they had discussed, opened his mouth again without being fazed by their reactions. ¡°Then, shall we start the Domain promotion now? We can proceed like this, right?¡± Herz still wore a bitter expression, but he nodded his head readily. It was a little different from the plan he originally had, but it seemed like Ian was more informed than him, and he was also putting down a plan that was reasonable enough, so there was no reason for him to object. ¡®I¡¯m a little worried since we aren¡¯t raising the Military Facility as our first internal building, but I think we can trust Ian when he¡¯s researched this thoroughly¡­¡¯ Herz pulled out the base¡¯s emblem from his inventory and lifted it up. And he invoked the starting words. ¡°Base promotion!¡± As he did so, a system message popped up in front of Herz. All requirements for base promotion have been met.The ¡®Lotus¡¯ Guild¡¯s base will be promoted from ¡®Village¡¯ rank to ¡®Domain¡¯ rank.Will you promote? ¡°We will promote.¡± Base promotions will proceed. This time a system message popped up for all the guild members. The ¡®Lotus¡¯ Guild¡¯s base has successfully been promoted to ¡®Domain¡¯ rank. Along with that message, the space that they stood on began to transform quickly. The base guild building that was built with logs completely disappeared, and a new stone building was starting to be built. The three people watched, gawking at it. ¡°Wow, this is truly a great view.¡± At Fiolan¡¯s words, Ian also nodded his head in agreement. ¡°No kidding. Seriously, how are they able to materialize something like this?¡± Another system message popped up for Herz, who was surprised. User Ian, the Guild¡¯s only user with the ¡®Baron¡¯ rank will inherit the Lord position. Will you allow the inheritance? (As there is only one user with an aristocrat title, the guild¡¯s promotion will be cancelled if rejected.) Herz obviously nodded his head. ¡°I will allow the inheritance.¡± As he did so, a light that gushed out of the guild¡¯s seal was absorbed into Ian¡¯s body. And before they realized, a magnificent manor began to show its splendor in the spot where the log house stood. A system message popped up in front of Ian, who was watching the new transformation of the base. You have become the Lord of the Lotus Domain. The foundational set-up will now begin. It was a slightly sudden message, but Ian wasn¡¯t caught off guard. ¡°Shall we start then?¡± Ian, who had collected all the information beforehand, continued the internal affairs of the Domain fluidly. ¡°Okay, this can go like this, and the tax rate can be maintained at the lowest level for now¡­¡± Of course, each and every set value was just as he had discussed with Herz and Fiolan already. All of the Lotus Domain¡¯s foundational set-up has been completed.The Domain¡¯s internal affairs will begin. As the foundational set-up was completed, an Internal Building Construction tab appeared. And Ian constructed the Human Resource Centre without hesitation. A ¡®Human Resource Centre¡¯ will be built on the Domain¡¯s West B-124 site.Once a day, 20 new talented individuals will appear in the ¡®Human Resource Centre¡¯, and they can be appointed by spending the Domain¡¯s resources with the authority of the ¡®Lord¡¯ and ¡®Sub-Lord¡¯. (Every 24 hours, the list of talented individuals will be renewed.)To construct more, new internal buildings, you can open the internal tab whenever and construct them. He wanted to build more buildings, but as they lacked resources, Ian moved onto the next step immediately. You have entered the Specialty Facility Construction tab. Which building would you like to build? For specialty facilities as well, no resources or time was consumed for the first construction. Ian immediately selected the Summoner Guild building. A ¡®Summoner Guild¡¯ building will be built on the Domain¡¯s East A-89 site.From now on, you can class-change to the ¡®Summoner¡¯ class in the Lotus Domain.From now on, NPCs with the ¡®Summoner¡¯ class will appear in the Human Resource Centre.From now on, the soldiers of the Military Facility¡¯s ¡®Summoning¡¯ branch can be trained in the Military Facility.The class stats of all the Lotus Guild¡¯s Summoners will increase by 5%. There were a lot of other unimportant internal affair systems that popped up, but as most of them were parts that couldn¡¯t be touched, it was just a situation where he checked and passed through it, so all internal affairs were completed within less than 5 minutes. A bit of time was consumed for the resource distribution required for the growth of the Domain part, but as Ian also researched that part beforehand, that was completed easily as well. Herz and Fiolan, who were watching what Ian was doing next to him, were astonished. ¡°Herz, did Ian always have this kind of side to him?¡± ¡°May, Maybe? I don¡¯t really know either¡­¡± As the two were people that had just watched Ian raise his level like a crippled, their surprise was increased. ¡°This should be good enough¡­¡± Ian, who had finished the general set-up of the Domain for now, wore a satisfied expression and turned his attention towards Herz and Fiolan. Ian spoke to Herz with a voice that was as excited as possible. ¡°Shall we go in to spectate the manor?¡± ¡°Su, Sure?¡± However, just then, Ian and Herz heard a familiar voice. ¡°Jinsung, you should have come to see me first when you arrived!¡± CH 91 Chapter 91: Territory Management (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The four people, including Harin, took a look around the newly built manor chaotically. It had become wider and more luxurious, to the point it was incomparable to the ¡®Village¡¯ rank guild building. Ian went around thoroughly checking the locations of the NPCs here and there in the manor as well as its functions. And it seemed that process was boring, as Fiolan and Herz said something came up for them in the middle and had disappeared off to somewhere. Naturally, just Harin and Ian remained in the manor. And the last place that the two people found was the kitchen of the manor. The manor¡¯s kitchen was still empty. This was because Jinsung, the Lord, didn¡¯t distribute the guild¡¯s resources. Harin questioned with an excited voice. ¡°Wow, can I really use this place?¡± Ian nodded his head as he responded. ¡°Yeah, I purposely left this place empty so I could set it up after I discussed with you.¡± If Ian had distributed the guild resources, starting from the NPCs, a lot of different content would have been automatically set up, but unless there was an individual more talented in cooking than Harin, rather than an automatic set-up, Ian thought that it would be more effective if he entrusted the authority to her, which is why he went with that method. For Harin as well, there would be no better place to raise her Cooking Proficiency if it was a facility like the manor¡¯s kitchen. ¡°Alright, nice! I¡¯ll have to move my tools and ingredients over here.¡± ¡°Yeah, go ahead. I¡¯ll toss the manor¡¯s kitchen set-up authority to you later.¡± ¡°Alright! This is exciting!¡± Harin wore an expression showing genuine happiness. This was because, aside from everything else, the bigger the brazier, the more helpful it truly was to try wider variety of dishes. The more variety of attempts she took, the more recipes she could create, and that was a shortcut to raising her cooking level quickly. Harin, who entered the kitchen, spoke to Ian. ¡°Wait for me so I can take a closer look around. That¡¯s okay, right?¡± ¡°Yeah, go ahead.¡± As Ian nodded his head, Harin went around, thoroughly looking around here and there, from the kitchen to the restaurant. During that time, Ian waited for her by using his skills which the cooldown times were over for, such as his Training skill. And shortly after, Ian and Harin, who had completely finished the manor visit with the kitchen as the last stop, stepped outside together. Harin asked Ian with a quiet voice. ¡°Jinsung, what are you going to do now, then? Do you still have any quests left that you need to do? ¡°No, I¡¯ve finished all my quests now.¡± ¡°Then hunting?¡± Ian shook his head. ¡°No, I said I¡¯d go to the 2-player dungeon with Fiolan later.¡± ¡°Ah, I see. As a matter of fact, I think I remember hearing her say that she was going to go to the 2-player dungeon with you when you returned last time.¡± Fiolan and Herz were a given, but now, most of the guild members that were over lv 100 had cleared the 2-player dungeon, the Grave of the Forlan Hero, that was discovered in ¡®Forlan Basin¡¯. And whenever they had time, they made groups of 2 and went to the dungeon. It was possible to enter the Grave of the Forlan Hero five times in a day, and the biggest merit of that dungeon was rather than the items that could be obtained, it was the incredibly savoury EXP. Because of that, it was to the point that it had become a part of the northern continent user¡¯s daily task. However, the difficulty level of the dungeon was so high that there was yet any guild members that had gotten anything above a B-rank, but Fiolan was determined to renew the record once Ian, who was naturally talented in PVE, returned. ¡°Yeah, based on what I¡¯ve heard, the EXP-obtaining structure is incredibly advantageous for Summoners as well. It¡¯s not a method where you gain EXP based on the monsters you hunt in the dungeon, but rather, it¡¯s a method where the EXP comes in like a reward once the dungeon is cleared, so I think I won¡¯t have to divide my EXP with my Familiars.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Harin, who was planning on going on a date relying on ingredient gathering with Ian, wore a slightly sullen expression. And as she suddenly turned sullen when she was wearing an incredibly bright expression just a moment ago, Ian was slightly flustered. ¡®Why is she suddenly like this? Is there something I forgot?¡¯ Ian carefully thought about whether there was a cooking ingredient that Harin had asked from him which he had forgotten. This was because he had heard a decent amount of scolding when he had forgotten ingredients that Harin asked from him before as well. However, he felt there wasn¡¯t any ingredients he had forgotten about. ¡®But although it¡¯s not an ingredient, I feel like there¡¯s something I¡¯m forgetting about.¡¯ And just then, there was something that suddenly brushed through his memory. ¡®Right! That, ring that I received as a reward for discovering the Forest of Love! I forgot about that!¡¯ He remembered the pain that he received from the Forest of Love every time he saw it whenever he opened his inventory, but as the options were too good, he couldn¡¯t throw them out. ¡®Since there¡¯s an option that raises Class stats a ton, too, it is perfect for Harin¡­¡¯ When he first received the ring, because of the burdensome name of wedding rings, Ian wondered who he should ask to wear it. However, because there weren¡¯t a lot of female users around Ian in the first place, the selection range could only be reduced instantly, and in the end, he thought of Harin. He felt that if it was kind Harin, she would listen to his request, and he had completely forgotten that he was going to ask her when he met her. ¡®She doesn¡¯t look too happy right now¡­ Would it be alright to ask?¡¯ Jinsung momentarily hesitated, but he eventually opened his mouth. ¡°But, Harin. I have a request.¡± Harin, who was in the middle of thinking of ways to persuade Ian and accomplish the northern continent date, was startled by his sudden words. ¡°Hmm? What kind of request?¡± ¡°One second.¡± Ian pulled out the wedding rings of the forest from his inventory. He didn¡¯t forget to check that it was the female ring. ¡°Uh¡­ Do you think you could wear this by any chance?¡± And Harin, who had discovered the ring that was on top of Ian¡¯s hand at the most unexpected time, was incredibly flustered. ¡®What, what the hell?¡¯ Harin glanced at Jinsung¡¯s expression to check it. However, his expression showed no change whatsoever. It just seemed like he was eyeing Harin¡¯s reaction the most. ¡®What exactly is this situation supposed to be?¡¯ Jinsung was showing a reaction that made her question whether it was truly possible to be so ignorant even if he was expressing his fond feelings towards her so blatantly. Which was why this situation was truly unrealistic, and thanks to that, Harin¡¯s head started to become a mess. ¡®Is it just a useless item he¡¯s giving me since he just got it? I feel like I¡¯m just giving it a meaning in vain¡­¡¯ As Harin hesitated, Jinsung¡¯s expression turned sullen. ¡°If it¡¯s too burdensome, you don¡¯t have to¡­¡± As Jinsung was about to put the ring back in, Harin quickly grabbed it before she even realized. ¡°N, no! What do you mean burdensome, who said it was.¡± Harin, who impulsively took the ring, momentarily wore an awkward expression. ¡®Euh, I didn¡¯t take this too suddenly, right?¡¯ And after checking the information of the ring she received, Harin couldn¡¯t help but be surprised once again. ¡®What, what the hell? The options on this is incredibly good! On top of that, its name is wedding ring? By any chance¡­ Couple rings?¡¯ Harin had slightly(?) distorted Jinsung¡¯s intentions. In order to check once more, Harin asked him carefully. ¡°This¡­ Do you have one as well?¡± And Jinsung didn¡¯t let her down and pulled out his ring. ¡°Yeah. Mine¡¯s here.¡± As she confirmed that they were couple rings, both Harin¡¯s already red cheeks had flushed even redder. ¡°Th¡­anks. I¡¯ll wear it well.¡± With a fluttering heart, Harin placed the ring on her finger. And with a slightly different meaning(?), Ian¡¯s heart was also fluttering. ¡®Keu, I¡¯ll finally be able to get rid of my lv 50 ring now!¡¯ As the ring was placed on Ian¡¯s finger as well, a system message popped up for both people at the same time. The seal lifting requirement of the ¡®Wedding Rings of the Forest¡¯ has been met.Elmorff¡¯s blessing will be given.All combat stats will increase by 20%.All class stats will increase by 30%.All skills¡¯ cooldown times will be reduced by 1 second. (Not applied to skills with a cooldown time lower than 1 second.)From now on, once every day for each person, you can summon your partner with Elmorff¡¯s abilities. After checking his increased stats, the corners of Jinsung¡¯s smile hung from his ears. And he felt somewhat weird as well. ¡®Since I¡¯m wearing this like a couple ring with Harin, it even feels like I have a girlfriend.¡¯ It wasn¡¯t such a bad feeling. Meanwhile, Harin, who watched a grinning Jinsung, had a similar, yet slightly different thought from Jinsung. ¡®Have I just been troubling my heart in vain up until now? I thought he seriously had no interest in me¡­¡¯ A slight misunderstanding caused her pretty lips to turn into a smile. * * * Ian, who had parted from Harin, headed to Forlan Basin with Fiolan in order to go into the dungeon. ¡°Ian, first of all, it might be hard to clear the first round, so make your goal trying to get as familiar as possible.¡± ¡°Yes, well¡­ Understood.¡± ¡°That, you watched the dungeon attack video before coming, right?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°Yes. I¡¯ve replayed it one or two extra times before coming.¡± ¡°Okay, then it will be easier to explain.¡± Fiolan, who arrived at the entrance of the dungeon a moment later, began to explain. ¡°Firstly, the key point of the first phase is to overcome it quickly. It¡¯s not like we get more EXP the more monsters we catch, so we need to overcome it as fast as possible and run to the ¡®Sanctum of the Hero¡¯ in the centre.¡± It was content that Ian became well-informed of from watching the community, but he listened intently to her words to re-organize his thoughts. ¡°And once the second phase starts, monster waves from a total of five locations will come flooding in. If the Sanctum of the Hero gets destroyed, you will get kicked out of the dungeon, so protecting the sanctum is the most important.¡± ¡°The phase is over once a total of about 200 monsters are caught, right?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Fiolan nodded her head. ¡°That¡¯s right. And once the monster waves are over, 3 middle-class boss monsters called ¡®Giant of Hatred¡¯ will appear. Its Offensive Power isn¡¯t that strong, but the biggest one amongst the three has an AoE skill that stuns, so you need to be careful of that. If, by accident, you begin to get caught in a stun link, you will die helplessly.¡± ¡°Okay, got it.¡± ¡°Lastly, the ¡®Forlan Giant¡¯, which is the final boss, will appear, and its specialty is that its level of immunity to status conditions is incredibly high and even one attack from it is unbelievable. In return, its movements are incredibly slow, so I think the best method would be for me to deal as much damage as I can if you could grab its attention.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°The attack pattern of this monster that you need to be most careful of is when he suddenly stands in place and begins to gather a blue energy on each hand.¡± Ian nodded his head. It was a skill that he had seen in the videos. ¡°You¡¯re talking about the monstrously big water cannon-like skill, right?¡± ¡°Yes. That one. Last time, Herz blocked it incorrectly and we were kicked out after he received three hits. The speed of the projectile is also incredibly fast, so it won¡¯t be easy to avoid or block it as expected.¡± However, despite her warning, Ian just smirked. This was because there was something he had planned as soon as he saw that skill through the video. ¡°Alright, then end of the explanation?¡± Fiolan still wore a leery expression, but she nodded her head reluctantly. ¡°Well, for now?¡± ¡°Then, let¡¯s go in now. The time limit is 50 minutes, so within how many minutes do you need to clear the dungeon in order to get an S-rank again?¡± While looking at Ian, who was thinking of clearing with an S-rank before even entering, Fiolan smirked. ¡°S-rank? There hasn¡¯t been even one party that has succeeded in getting an S-rank for their clear rank. To clear with an S-rank, you need to clear it within 25 minutes, which is about half the original time limit. You¡¯ll know if you went into the official homepage¡¯s hall of fame, but there isn¡¯t even a handful of parties that have succeeded in clearing with an A-rank yet. I think the cutline was 35 minutes for an A-rank?¡± At Fiolan¡¯s explanation, Ian wore a quizzical expression. ¡°Huh¡­? Is it that hard? From what I saw in the video, it didn¡¯t seem that hard¡­ What are all the rankers doing?¡± Ian had thought that if it was a dungeon that early lv 100 users could enter and clear, then the users in the rankings would have definitely been able to clear with an S-rank. Fiolan added an elaborated explanation. ¡°That¡­ One of the reasons why is because its difficulty level is high, but it¡¯s also because the top-rankers can¡¯t enter here. You can¡¯t enter this dungeon if you¡¯re over lv 120.¡± ¡°Ah, that¡¯s why¡­¡± ¡°When the strongest players that were in the top 50s first found this place, they were already over lv 120, so they probably couldn¡¯t have even tried this dungeon.¡± Ian, who had finally understood everything, nodded his head. ¡°Well, then, shall we actually go in now?¡± ¡°Okay, you¡¯re all set, right?¡± ¡°Yep.¡± Fiolan grinned as she added on. ¡°Come to think of it, this is the first time you¡¯re joining a hunting party since resetting your character, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°Yes, it is.¡± ¡°Summoner, I can expect much, right?¡± Ian confidently nodded his head. He had become so strong that it was incomparable to before he reset. ¡°Of course.¡± And as Fiolan, who was the party leader, placed her hand on top of the crystal in front of the dungeon, a short system message popped up in front of both people. You have entered the ¡®Grave of the Forlan Hero¡¯. CH 92 Chapter 92: Hall of Fame (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Ian, that way!¡± As soon as they entered the dungeon, Fiolan immediately pointed in the direction where the Sanctum of the Forlan Hero was. The entrance of the dungeon had a canyon-like vibe, with towering cliffs on either side. Ian nodded his head. ¡°Okay!¡± And firstly, he summoned just one of his Familiars. He wasn¡¯t planning on summoning his other Familiars until he reached the sanctum. This was because if Halli used his ¡®Guardian of the Wind¡¯ skill, none of his other Familiars would be able to keep up with Halli¡¯s speed. Ian was planning on getting on Halli¡¯s back and summoning all his Familiars once he reached the sanctum. Fiolan also prepared for combat while reminding him of the content she was well-informed on. ¡°In a moment, Ice Gargoyles will start pouring out from either side. Ice Trolls will appear from the front.¡± At her warning, Ian nodded his head and called Halli. ¡°Halli, come here!¡± Grr-! And Ian got on Halli¡¯s back. ¡°Fiolan, first, just stay there, and once I arrive there first, catch up using your Spatial Movement skill.¡± The Spatial Movement skill was a compulsory Magician skill that could be obtained with contributions at the Tower of Magicians, and allowed them to teleport to one party member. It was a skill with a low mana consumption, but as it required a long casting time of 5 seconds, it was also a skill that was hard to use during combat. However, as she would be waiting at the dungeon entrance where there were no monsters and then using it, it was possible enough. Fiolan asked with a slightly worried expression. ¡°Do you think you¡¯ll be able to get through to the sanctum alone?¡± Ian ran forward as he shouted with a confident voice. ¡°Absolutely!¡± Fiolan¡¯s worry was obvious. This was because, no matter how exceptional Ian was, this was his first time in this dungeon. However, it wasn¡¯t like Ian¡¯s confidence had no ground either. Quite a lot of monsters were pouring down into the canyon, but as they were all Ice Gargoyles or Trolls that were only about lv 90-100, they were monsters that he had caught until he was sick of them in the northern continent when he was around lv 90. And if it was Halli¡¯s Inherent Ability, it was nothing to leave those monsters in the dirt. ¡®Speaking of which, Halli¡¯s not even at lv 90, but his Agility is higher than Ly¡¯s. Since there is a two-level rank difference between them, their stat difference is definitely big.¡¯ Halli¡¯s Agility boasted an outstanding value of over 1300 already. It was a value that was unequalled when compared to the Ice Trolls and Gargoyles, which were Common-rank monsters. As Ice Trolls began to block Ian¡¯s way, he quickly let out a command to Halli. ¡°Halli, Guardian of the Wind!¡± Roar-! Along with Halli¡¯s large roar that shook the valley of the dungeon, a white ray of light wrapped around Halli¡¯s four legs. Familiar ¡®Halli¡¯ has used the skill ¡®Guardian of the Wind¡¯.Familiar ¡®Halli¡¯s Agility will increase as much as the total value of the rest of his combat stats.Familiar ¡®Halli¡¯s Agility will increase by 4484 for 2 minutes. Combined with the Agility he already had, it was an unbelievable stat value that was close to 6000. Ian firmly grabbed onto Halli¡¯s back. It was time to break through. ¡°Halli, just ignore everything for now, and run to there!¡± Grr-! With Ian on his back, Halli¡¯s body truly began to move like the wind. The Trolls, whose movements were slow enough as it was, were unable to even swing their clubs before Halli passed by them, and they stood there, watching with a dazed expression. And Fiolan, who watched from the back, wore a dumbfounded expression. This was because Halli¡¯s movements were overwhelmingly faster than any monster that she had ever seen before. Ta-Tat-! Meanwhile, Ian, who was on Halli¡¯s back, felt like he was basically on a rollercoaster. Halli¡¯s incredible speed was one, but when he moved in a zigzag between the monsters, Ian felt that he could even get motion sickness. Ian slightly glanced back. And while looking at the number of monsters that multiplied as time passed, he thought. ¡®The quantity will pile up incredibly if we run to the sanctum without catching even one, but¡­¡¯ He was confident that he could wipe them in one go with Abyss Hole and Breath, as well as the powerful AoE damage that the Breath of Lava dealt. And as there was also the presence of Fiolan, who could command numerous high-level AoE magic skills, he wasn¡¯t worried that there would be a lack of damage. Thump-! Halli¡¯s hind legs kicked away a giant boulder and he leaped through the air. At the sudden direction change, Ian felt a cold sweat drip down his back. ¡®Euk, let¡¯s just focus on trying not to fall off his back for now.¡¯ Thanks to his monster-like Agility, Halli moved as if he was flying through the sky. Although there was almost a 10-metre difference between the two walls of the canyon, Halli¡¯s jumping abilities were outrageous enough to let him run to the other wall in one leap. Ian needed to focus completely on not falling off of Halli¡¯s back. ¡®Whew, since Halli¡¯s running at full speed, it¡¯s seriously fearsome.¡¯ Shortly after. The 2-minute duration period of the ¡®Guardian of the Wind¡¯ skill, which felt long, ended. And the movement speed of Halli, whose Agility stat had returned to its original value, had slowed down a lot. However, as they had already left most of the monsters in the dirt, it didn¡¯t matter. Ian had a moment to catch his breath. ¡°Over there!¡± And shortly after, Ian was able to arrive at the Sanctum of the Forlan Hero. The time it took Ian to break through the canyon was just little over 3 minutes. He immediately sent a party message. Ian: Fiolan, come now!Fiolan: Alright! Along with her response, a vortex of grey light started to squirm on Ian¡¯s right. Fiolan¡¯s Spatial Movement casting had begun. Without delay, Ian summoned all of the rest of his Familiars. Of course, he excluded Pin, who he wasn¡¯t leveling as his Potential wasn¡¯t completely filled yet. Thud-! As Ddukdae was summoned, a heavy, loud noise rang through the dungeon, enough to shake the whole place. Ian turned his attention towards the canyon where he had just escaped from. Tons of monsters that chased Ian in the canyon were pouring out from there. While looking at the tons of Trolls and Gargoyles that endlessly poured out of the narrow canyon like a swarm of ants, Ian let out a command to Ddukdae. ¡°Ddukdae, Abyss Hole!¡± Geu-reu-reuk- Thud- Thud- Ddukdae, who moved his body about four to five steps forward, spread both his hands out towards the canyon. And a large vortex started to rage in front of him. Whoong-! It was incredibly excellent timing and position. From the 20-metre range forward, it perfectly blocked the entrance of the canyon, and all the monsters that escaped the canyon were tied down by Abyss Hole. Ian let out a shout of delight at Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss Hole, which had went through more elaborately than he was expecting. His commands continued. ¡°Lake, Breath!¡± As it was a hunting pattern they had always done, Lake positioned and prepared himself beforehand before letting out his flames without hesitation. Hwaaak-! And Fiolan, who had used her Spatial Movement skill before Ian realized and had flown over behind him, quickly casted a skill as well. ¡°Frozen¡­ Hell!¡± Bang- Ba-ba-ba-ba-bang-! Excellent timing, as well as a picture-perfect connection of skills! Along with Fiolan¡¯s AoE magic that boasted a force similar to Breath, and with Abyss Hole¡¯s shock wave spreading out, there was no way that the monsters, which were only lv 90-100, could withstand the damage. Jju-ju-jung-! On top of that, thanks to the freezing status condition effect of Frozen Hell, a top-class Ice magic skill, the few remaining monsters were tied down to the spot. And those monsters were up to Ly and Halli. An exclamation left Fiolan¡¯s lips. ¡°Wow¡­ Ian, this is crazy.¡± She was unable to close her gaping mouth. It took around 10 minutes to arrive at the Sanctum of the Forlan Hero through the original method. However, it hadn¡¯t even been 5 minutes since the two people had entered the dungeon. A happy smile hung from Ian¡¯s mouth as well. ¡°Hoo-hoo, but this time we were a bit lucky. Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss Hole went in absolutely perfectly.¡± However, Ian was confident that he could draw the same picture with skill and not luck starting from the second time unless he successfully perfected it like this. And within the time that the two people shared a short conversation, the dungeon¡¯s second phase began. Whoong-! The Sanctum of the Hero shone in a blue light. ¡°Ian, prepare yourself!¡± ¡°Alright.¡± Shortly after, five caves made up of ice that surrounded the Sanctum of the Hero let out a boom as they began to open. Geu-geu-geung- Geu-geu-geu-geung-! Ian turned his attention to Fiolan as he asked her a question. ¡°Fiolan, you had the Glacial Curtain skill, right?¡± Glacial Curtain was a skill that created a cold protective layer within a fixed range, but as its cooldown time was incredibly long, it was a minor skill that a lot of users didn¡¯t use. However, Ian had seen Fiolan use the Glacial Curtain often before he reset, which is why he asked. Fiolan nodded her head and responded. ¡°Yes, I have it. But I haven¡¯t used it much after hitting lv 90, so its Proficiency is low.¡± And immediately understanding Ian¡¯s intention, she added on. ¡°If I was to cover this sanctum, then I think it should be able to last around 3-4 minutes.¡± 3-4 minutes was a prediction that Fiolan made from the experience she gained while clearing dungeons. As Ian was thinking that even if the Glacial Curtain lasted about 2 minutes that would be enough, his face brightened. ¡°Okay, that would be enough!¡± Ian, who finished speaking, let out a command to Ddukdae. ¡°Ddukdae, stay as close to the sanctum as possible and protect it, alright?¡± Geu-reuk- Geu-reuk- The cooldown time was 5 minutes for Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss Hole skill. Ian was planning on gathering as many monsters as he could while buying time until then. ¡®Since the cooldown time on Lake¡¯s Breath is 30 minutes, it will be a little hard to use it until we¡¯re almost at the end¡­¡¯ After gathering as many monsters as possible and tying them down with Abyss Hole, they needed to deal as much damage as they could with Current Proliferation and Lake¡¯s Passive Skill, Breath of Lava. ¡®I¡¯m sure Fiolan will take care of any leftover damage needed.¡¯ If they could just buy enough time for Fiolan to cast about two to three AoE skills, they could expect AoE damage that would be more powerful than Lake¡¯s Breath. Ian assigned a cave each to Ly and Halli, while he ran to the closest door with Lake. Then just the two southern caves remained. Ian turned his attention back to Fiolan. ¡°Fiolan, please take care of just those two caves with Ddukdae!¡± Fiolan asked back. ¡°We just need to buy some time, right?¡± ¡°Yes, save your AoE skills, and just drag out the time with mainly slowing skills!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± It had been a while since hunting like this, but as Fiolan had worked with Ian a ton, they were able to figure out what they each wanted with even just simple conversations. Like that, the second phase began proceeding smoothly as well. ¡®It probably won¡¯t be easy shortening the time during the third phase and the boss phase.¡¯ Ian¡¯s current hunting method was specialized to AoE group-hunting. Because of that, parts where he needed to face a lot of monsters like this was more favourable, and reducing the time as much as possible here was a must. ¡®If I also raise Pin well, it will definitely be a sight to see.¡¯ Pin¡¯s ¡®Crush¡¯ skill, which was stronger than Lake¡¯s Breath skill, and only had a cooldown time of 10 minutes. He was sure that he would be able to reduce the time even more if he had that skill. CH 93 Chapter 93: Hall of Fame (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Sponsor: Fullmetalj4cket ¡®Let¡¯s just think about the skills I can use right now.¡¯ Ian, who had put aside his thoughts on Pin¡¯s skills for now, slightly glanced at Ly and Halli, who were each moving in order to carry out their roles. Grrr- Grr-! As Ly had always soundly taken on the role of a chaser in Ian¡¯s hunting starting from some point, he was gathering the monsters skillfully, while Halli quickly learned from watching Ly and was doing his part as well. While looking at Ian, who was returning after successfully gathering the monsters in all three directions like that, Fiolan urgently yelled. ¡°Ian, come quickly! The Glacial Curtain will break soon!¡± As long as the sanctum¡¯s Health wasn¡¯t completely gone, it would have been fine if the Glacial Curtain broke, but as they were gathering over such a large amount of monsters, the sanctum could break in vain at the slightest mistake. ¡®Euh¡­ We¡¯re cutting it closer than I thought.¡¯ With a slightly nervous expression, Ian checked the cooldown time of Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss Hole. ¡®3, 2, 1, now!¡¯ ¡°Ddukdae, Abyss Hole!¡± Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss Hole, which the cooldown time was over, was invoked for the second time. However, because it wasn¡¯t in a narrow canyon this time, Ddukdae wasn¡¯t able to tie down all of the monsters. Both of Ian¡¯s hands began to move busily. It was in order to fire Current Proliferation towards the remaining monsters and paralyze as many as he could. Za-Zap- Za-Za-Zap-! And he didn¡¯t forget to let out commands to his Familiars with his mouth as well. ¡°Ly, Halli! You two kill the monsters that are the farthest away with joint attacks!¡± Grr- Grr-! The two Familiars that received Ian¡¯s command quickly charged towards the monsters, and Ian fired his Current Proliferation skill without rest again. Of course, he didn¡¯t forget to maintain his Spirit Magic well so that he didn¡¯t run out. Lake was fighting well even without Ian having to give him a separate command. Familiar ¡®Lake¡¯ has invoked their Inherent Ability ¡®Breath of Lava¡¯. The tied down monsters began to be quickly wiped out from the combination of Lake¡¯s Breath of Lava, Ian¡¯s Current Proliferation, and Fiolan¡¯s Ice-type AoE magic. Even after Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss Hole effect was finished, with the overlapping of the additional effect attached to Ian¡¯s Current Proliferation, paralysis, and the additional effect attached to Fiolan¡¯s Ice-type magic, freezing, a synergy formed and the monsters couldn¡¯t help but be continuously tied down. Thanks to that, Fiolan was able to cast AoE magic skills more safely than when she was protected by Herz. Bang- Ba-Ba-Bang-! And before 10 minutes had passed since the second phase had started, a system message notifying that the phase was over rang out. You have succeeded in protecting the ¡®Sanctum of the Hero¡¯. As the message rang out, both Fiolan and Ian¡¯s attention turned to the elapsed time. 00:13:24 At the second phase that finished in an unbelievable time, Fiolan was astonished. ¡®We¡¯re more than two times faster than when I entered with Herz!¡¯ It was because Ian proceeded with the phase at an extraordinary method, but it was also because Herz¡¯s damage was remarkably lower compared to Ian, which was a characteristic of the ¡®Knight¡¯ Class. Fiolan braced herself. ¡®We might even be able to get a rank higher than B from the first go.¡¯ If this speed was maintained, arithmetically, S-rank wasn¡¯t impossible, either. However, the reason why this speed was possible, was because the two peoples¡¯ skill combinations were specialized for AoE group-hunting, and starting from the third phase, as it proceeded with a different condition, it was realistically impossible to maintain this speed. And shortly after, the dungeon¡¯s third phase began. The ¡®Giants of Hatred¡¯ have woken up from their sleep. Fiolan urgently spoke. ¡°The biggest one among the three is the one that uses the stun skill! It will probably be the one in the middle.¡± ¡°Is there nothing to be cautious of for the other two?¡± Fiolan¡¯s response continued. ¡°The one on the left carrying an iron mace lets out a shock wave, but as its activation speed isn¡¯t on the fast side, it¡¯s easy to avoid. However, if you can¡¯t avoid it, you can get caught in a slowing effect, and since you could get stunned as well on top of that, you need to be careful of that.¡± ¡°What about the right?¡± ¡°The one on the right holding the hammer is just a monster with an outrageous amount of Offensive Power. However, I remember its Vitality being the lowest.¡± Ian, who roughly finished understanding, nodded his head as he organized his thoughts. ¡®The most dangerous-looking one even when I watched the video seemed to be the one in the middle. I need to tie him down with Halli¡¯s stun skill as much as possible¡­¡¯ Thanks to ¡®Smash¡¯ one of Halli¡¯s Inherent Abilities, he had a 10% chance of causing the opponent to faint with normal attacks. And if he used the ¡®Guardian of the Wind¡¯ skill and maximized his Agility, Halli¡¯s attack speed would have more than doubled. If that happened, he would be able to make it so that the fainting effect continued to the point it would be difficult for the giant to even properly move. This was what Ian was aiming for. If he could constantly give the fainting effect to the giant, no matter how dangerous of a skill it was, it wouldn¡¯t matter as it wouldn¡¯t be invoked at all. However, as he had used the Guardian of the Wind skill during the first phase already, he needed to wait 6-7 more minutes in order to use it again. ¡®Since the final boss will have a strong immunity to status conditions anyways, I¡¯ll use the Guardian of the Wind skill for this phase.¡¯ While looking at the giants that approached them slowly with loud footsteps, Ian asked Fiolan. ¡°Fiolan, does that middle one use the stun skill from the beginning?¡± Fiolan, who had caught onto the intention of Ian¡¯s question, quickly responded. ¡°No, not from the beginning. I realized that it uses its stun skill after half of its Vitality is consumed. That¡¯s why we killed that one last whenever we did a dungeon attack up until now.¡± ¡°Okay, then let¡¯s attack the right one first.¡± ¡°Alright!¡± Ian drew a rough picture in his mind. ¡®We¡¯ll catch the one on the right as fast as possible. Then, we¡¯ll attack the one in the middle until the cooldown time of Halli¡¯s Inherent Ability is over.¡¯ The one on the left was the one that Ian thought was the lowest threat. Although the slowing status condition could be a threat, if the activation time was slow, wasn¡¯t there no reason to get hit by it? Not just Ian, but Fiolan, whose control ability was quite good as well, wouldn¡¯t get hit by a skill like that either. It could get annoying if a shock wave kept on flying towards them from the side while the monster in the middle started using its stunning skill, but Ian was planning on preventing that threatening element with Halli¡¯s continuous stun. If they could kill the middle one within the 2-minute duration of Halli¡¯s ¡®Guardian of the Wind¡¯ and then attack the remaining one on the left, a perfect scenario would be completed. Ian, who had completed the map(?) in his head, placed Ddukdae at the front and began to move towards the Giant of Hatred on the right. ¡°Everybody, focus your attacks on that one!¡± Because the cooldown time of most of the Familiars¡¯ Inherent Abilities weren¡¯t over, they needed to attack with just normal attacks, and Ian needed to face the opponent with as much control over each Familiar¡¯s movements. ¡®I¡¯ll save Ly¡¯s Thirst for Blood skill for a bit.¡¯ He was planning on invoking Thirst for Blood once the cooldown time of Halli¡¯s Guardian of the Wind skill was over. Just then, Fiolan yelled. ¡°Ian, please buy me some time!¡± Ian realized that Fiolan was planning on casting a high-ranking attack skill, and let out a command to Halli. ¡°Halli, grab the attention of those two!¡± Roar-! Even if Halli¡¯s damage was momentarily excluded, because the amount of damage that would be dealt by Fiolan if her magic attacks were successful was much greater, there was no hesitation in Ian¡¯s command. And as Halli threw his body, Ian shot out a magic sphere towards the giant on the right. ¡°Over here!¡± Continued, Ian¡¯s ¡®Weak Point Capturing¡¯ skill was invoked. ¡°Fiolan, you remember this skill, right?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Fiolan smirked as she nodded her head. ¡°Of course. This was your bread and butter before you reset. I see you¡¯ve somehow gained it even after resetting?¡± ¡°It just happened.¡± Fiolan began to cast her magic towards the giant¡¯s weak points, which were highlighted by Ian¡¯s Weak Point Capturing skill. And slowed the movements of the three giants as much as possible using Current Proliferation. Za-Zap- Za-Za-Zap-! As the three giants were in close range, Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss Hole was once again invoked. ¡°Ddukdae, now!¡± Whoong-! Ddukdae successfully got all three giants within the activation range of Abyss Hole, but as they were Boss-rank monsters with large and heavy bodies, the effect wasn¡¯t as good as when they faced normal monsters. However, because they were within the expected range, Ian wasn¡¯t flustered. ¡®Since I just needed to buy Fiolan time to cast her skill.¡¯ And just like Ian anticipated, Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss Hole was enough to buy that much time. ¡°Ha!¡± Along with a short shout, large ice spheres began to launch from Fiolan¡¯s staff. ¡°Ice Storm!¡± Bang- Ba-Ba-Ba-Bang-! The projectiles that flew out while drawing a raging spiral lodged exactly into the weak points of the giants. ¡®Now!¡¯ There was no way that Ian would not catch the giants that momentarily stumbled from Fiolan¡¯s attack. Whoong- A blue magic sphere slid down Ian¡¯s staff and was launched into the weak points of the giant continuously. Pung- Pu-pung! As the Magic Spheres have hit the target, 4973 damage has been dealt to the ¡®Giants of Hatred (3)¡¯.As the opponent have been successfully hit, 5 Spirit Magic has been recovered. Fiolan, who had succeeded in hitting the opponent with her strong, high-rank magic skill, continued shooting out magic attacks that were a lower-rank with no cast time and attacked the giants. Swaaeek-! And at the two people¡¯s perfect connected attack, the giant¡¯s Vitality disappeared in an instant. Thud-! As the big figure of the giant collapsed, the two people quickly changed their target. Fiolan naturally, like she did her previous runs, left the middle one and tried to attack the one on the left. However, Ian stopped her. ¡°Fiolan! The big one first!¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Fiolan was taken aback for a moment, but she thought that Ian had some sort of idea, and followed his words without any other questions. Ian checked the cooldown time of Halli¡¯s skill. ¡®Nice, 2 more minutes and the cooldown time for Guardian of the Wind is over!¡¯ Ian and Fiolan gnawed at the middle giant¡¯s Vitality little by little similarly to how they dealt with the right giant. As time passed, the two people¡¯s control became more refined. ¡®Alright, the cooldown time is over now¡­¡¯ There was still more than half of the giant¡¯s Vitality left. If that was the case, using the skill immediately would be inefficient. ¡®Since it¡¯s almost time for this one to start using its skill, once I see that it¡¯s moving to use its stunning skill, I should invoke Guardian of the Wind then.¡¯ And just like Ian predicted, one of the giant¡¯s fists started to shine a bright red shortly after. ¡°Halli, Guardian of the Wind!¡± After that, everything proceeded smoothly just like how Ian planned. No, rather, as Halli¡¯s stunning started to burst continuously, they were able to get rid of the giant easily as if in vain. Puck- Pu-puck-! Familiar ¡®Halli¡¯s Inherent Ability, ¡®Smash¡¯, has been invoked.The ¡®Giant of Hatred¡¯ will go into a ¡®stunned¡¯ state for 1 second. As the largest, second giant also collapsed, they were able to finish off the remaining one very easily. This was because, aside from when they used skills, its attack pattern was very similar to the other two. ¡°Okay!¡± Fiolan, who had knocked down the last giant, clenched her fist. Shortly after, the two were able to check the system message that notified them that they had successfully cleared the third phase. You have killed all the Giants of Hatred. Around 23 minutes had passed. Fiolan let out a dispirited laughter after checking that. ¡°Wow, even though we¡¯ve done this much, 23 minutes have passed. How exactly do they expect us to clear with an S-rank?¡± They needed to kill the boss within the remaining 2 minutes in order to succeed in clearing with an S-rank. She had said this because it was impossible. At Fiolan¡¯s complaining, Ian smirked as he replied. ¡°I think we¡¯ll be able to shorten it even more.¡± ¡°Huh? Really?¡± Ian nodded without a word. Soon now, the Sanctum of the Hero will scatter in the air and the dungeon¡¯s boss, the ¡®Forlan Giant¡¯, will appear. The two caught their breaths as they stared at the ¡®Sanctum of the Hero¡¯. ¡°It¡¯s the end. Let¡¯s focus a little more.¡± ¡°Sure. Even though we don¡¯t get an S-rank, we need to get an A-rank, right?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± As the concise conversation of the two people finished, a system message popped up in front of both of them as if it was waiting. The Hero of Forlan will now awaken. CH 94 Chapter 94: The Grave of the Forlan Hero (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The Lotus Guild¡¯s Lord was Ian. However, Herz, who had received the sub-Lord title, also had internal authority over almost everything. While Fiolan and Ian were attacking the Forlan dungeon, Herz was in the Human Resource Centre with Carwin. ¡°Hyung, you said you could pick three people in a day, right?¡± Herz nodded his head. ¡°Yeah. I noticed you could pick up to three. But you don¡¯t need to always pick all three, if there¡¯s no one with stats that you like, then I guess you don¡¯t need to pick any.¡± Carwin tilted his head. ¡°Still, wouldn¡¯t it be better to pick all three for now? We lack manpower.¡± ¡°For now, yes.¡± Right now, Herz was planning on picking someone with ¡®construction abilities¡¯. This was because, although there was no time or materials required to build the first internal building, starting from the second building, that wasn¡¯t the case. If they appointed someone with a high construction ability level as the person in charge, the construction time would be reduced based on their stats, and there were cases where the required costs were also reduced. Because of that, right now, while it was the beginning of the Domain promotion and some of the primary internal buildings weren¡¯t even built, people with construction abilities were the highest priority. ¡®Firstly, I think we¡¯ll have to pick this one named Mohan¡­¡¯ Herz carefully looked through the information window of the person with the name ¡®Mohan¡¯. Mohan Lv. 87 Race: Human Occupation: Architect Title: (None) Strength: 375 (+5) Agility: 153 (+12) Intellect: 235 (+15) Health: 295 (+20) Occupational Stats Architecture: 87 Artistry: 69 Leadership: 80 *Construction Speed +7% *Construction Costs -3% Combat Stats (Open) Specific Abilities (Open) Currently, Mohan was the only person with the Architect occupation amongst the people that appeared in the Human Resource Centre. Herz appointed them for now. Individual ¡®Mohan¡¯ will be appointed.Will you deploy ¡®Mohan¡¯ into the construction site immediately? ¡°Sure.¡± As Herz responded, a message popped up. Please select the construction site that Mohan will be deployed to. The internal buildings that were being built in the Lotus Domain right now were the ¡®Military Facility¡¯ and the ¡®Resource Management Facility¡¯. Herz selected the Military Facility. ¡°I¡¯ll deploy them to the Military Facility.¡± Individual ¡®Mohan¡¯ will be deployed to the construction site of the ¡®Military Facility¡¯.The construction speed of the ¡®Military Facility¡¯ building will increase by 7%.The construction costs of the ¡®Military Facility¡¯ building will decrease by 3%. After appointing Mohan, Herz appointed two more people that at least had satisfactory stats amongst the remaining people before exiting the Human Resource Centre. And he had also deployed them all to the construction sites. Carwin mumbled. ¡°The internal content of the Domain is seriously complicated, and not to mention, there¡¯s a lot.¡± At those words, Herz grinned as he replied. ¡°Yeah. That¡¯s true, but it¡¯s more fun for me than just hunting.¡± ¡°Of course. Since it is a little new.¡± Carwin, who stretched, continued speaking while looking at Herz. ¡°Hyung, since it seems that everything that needs to be done on the base is roughly finished, should we go to Forlan as well?¡± ¡°You mean the two of us?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± At those words, Herz wore a slightly concerned expression. ¡°Hmm¡­ Will we be able to clear it?¡± ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t we be able to? Now, even if Kroban hyung and I go together, we can clear it with 5 minutes left.¡± ¡°No, Kroban hyung and you are both Warriors, so you guys can deal enough damage. If you go with me, fighting will be safer, but I lack damage, so I think it will be hard to meet the clear time.¡± The ¡®Warrior¡¯ class was a class with a balance of both Offensive Power and endurance. In comparison to that, the ¡®Knight¡¯ class was a class with stats focused on Defensive Power and Vitality, giving it the role of a pure tanker. As the Forlan dungeon was a time attack dungeon, it was obvious why Herz had such worries. ¡°Hmm¡­ I¡¯ll try hard to deal more damage. As long as we don¡¯t die, there¡¯s no big penalty even if we fail at clearing, right? We¡¯ll just be wasting time, I guess.¡± At Carwin¡¯s words, Herz couldn¡¯t help but laugh as he nodded his head. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s give it a try, then.¡± ¡°Speaking of which, will Fiolan be able to go in and clear with Ian hyung? I can¡¯t even take a guess since I don¡¯t really know the combat methods of Summoners.¡± Ever since resetting, Ian had yet to join a party hunt with his guildmates. But Carwin hadn¡¯t seen any other Summoners battle aside from Ian either. Since it was incredibly rare to see high-level Summoner users that could hunt in the northern continent, it could be considered an obvious. At Carwin¡¯s question, Herz, who momentarily thought about it, slowly opened his mouth. ¡°Hmm¡­ That I¡¯m not sure about either. I heard that the Summoner was a class that specialized in PVE, but we have no idea of knowing whether their synergy with Magicians like Fiolan would be good or bad. Still, if Ian is able to protect Fiolan well with his Familiars so that she could cast her magic skills, then I think they¡¯ll definitely be able to clear.¡± Carwin added on. ¡°But it is Ian hyung¡¯s first time. It won¡¯t be easy.¡± Herz nodded his head in agreement. ¡°That¡¯s also true.¡± However, the two people¡¯s worries were utterly groundless. * * * ¡°Fiolan, careful!¡± As soon as Ian¡¯s words left his mouth, the giant¡¯s club dropped down on top of Fiolan¡¯s head. Bang-! The force was so incredible that it could have put a Magician like Fiolan on the brink of death if she was hit by it! However, fortunately, it was after Fiolan had quickly dodged it. ¡°Ian, just 1 more minute and the cooldown times of all my skills will be over!¡± At Fiolan¡¯s exclamation, Ian nodded his head. ¡°Okay!¡± After responding, Ian began to busily let out commands to his Familiars. ¡°Halli, go around to the back and attack as much as you can!¡± Roar-! In order to have Halli¡¯s passive ability, ¡®Smash¡¯, to explode, it was important to successfully hit multiple times even if he missed a couple rather than give one strong attack. And Halli faithfully fulfilled Ian¡¯s command. Puck- Pu-Puck-! Halli¡¯s front paws continuously hit the giant. And just like Ian¡¯s intentions, the giant fell into a stunned state. Thud- However, the moment that the stun was invoked, the giant was immediately released, and while watching that, Ian¡¯s eyes slightly narrowed. ¡®Ugh, they did say that its immunity level to status conditions was high, but why does he get released from them so fast like that?¡¯ It was a stun skill that originally only lasted 1 second, but far from 1 second, while looking at the giant, who didn¡¯t stay stunned for even 0.5 seconds, Ian busily moved. On top of that, it seemed that the higher the immunity level, the lower the chance of even being stunned, so Halli¡¯s stuns didn¡¯t even activate much. ¡°Ly, grab its attention from the front and watch for chances, while Ddukdae, take as many hits as you can!¡± Thud- Thud-. Whenever the huge giant, which was more than twice Ddukdae¡¯s size, moved, it felt as if the whole dungeon was vibrating. Ian and Fiolan moved as quickly as they could and continuously attacked the giant. And shortly after, the giant¡¯s name started to slowly blink. ¡®It seems that there¡¯s about half its Vitality left.¡¯ Ian slightly checked the elapsed time. ¡¯28 minutes. We¡¯ve already failed at trying to clear with an S-rank, but it looks like it will be possible to clear with an A-rank.¡¯ They said that if they just cleared before an elapsed time of 35 minutes, it was an A-rank. And with the remaining 7 minutes, it looked as if there would be no problem trying to exhaust all of the giant¡¯s Vitality. ¡°Ian, please grab its attention!¡± At Fiolan¡¯s exclamation, Ian nodded his head. As the cooldown times for all of her magic skills were over, Ian needed to buy Fiolan time in order to cast her skills. Whoong-! A blue chill started to gather around Fiolan. And Ian, who had seen that, fired a string of magic spheres towards the giant. Pung- Pu-Pung-! As he did so, the giant, who was attacking Ddukdae, turned its attention back to Ian. ¡°Over here!¡± In order to provoke the giant, Ian shouted loudly. However, the giant, who had momentarily turned its attention towards Ian, turned back to where it was originally focused on. And right then, one of the giant¡¯s hands started to shine a bright blue light. ¡®That¡­! The water cannon!¡¯ It was the strongest skill of the giant, which could be considered its most lethal move, and it was invoking it now, when it had not invoked it once yet. Ian began to run at full speed. ¡®Ah, of all people, why did it have to target Fiolan?¡¯ Fiolan was in the middle of casting a magic skill. While casting a magic skill, she could not move her body. More simply put, if she didn¡¯t stop casting, she would have no choice but to helplessly get hit by the water cannon. Fiolan, who discovered that the giant¡¯s hand was facing towards her, was about to stop casting, when Ian yelled. ¡°Fiolan, don¡¯t stop casting!¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll block it!¡± And along with a large boom, a stream of blue water began to shoot out from the hand of the giant. Kwaaah-! It was almost as thick as a tree measuring more than both arms¡¯ span around. Ian, who quickly ran and shielded Fiolan, turned around and took the stream of water. Pung- Pu-Pu-Pung-! In order to not fall forward, he didn¡¯t forget to support himself with one foot either. And the Inherent Ability of Bbookbbook, which Ian had already been aiming for, began to activate. Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯s Inherent Ability ¡®Ruler of the Water¡¯ was invoked.Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ has absorbed the Water Cannon of the ¡®Forlan Giant¡¯ and has recovered 3749 Vitality.Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ has recovered 0 Vitality.Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ has recovered 0 Vitality. While looking at the system messages that popped up continuously, Ian let out a shout of delight internally. ¡®Alright, as expected, it works!¡¯ The ¡®Ruler of the Water¡¯, a skill that absorbed all Water-type attacks and recovered the amount of damage dealt as Vitality! As he had not yet had the chance to use it, Ian, who was able to finally use Bbookbbook¡¯s Inherent Ability well, wore a satisfied smile. As the large stream of water ended, Cannonballs of Water were also thrown towards Fiolan in continuation. However, Ian moved quickly and took all of the hits. Pung- Pu-Pung-! Fiolan wore an astonished expression. ¡°Ian, what exactly is that? How are you fine when you¡¯ve taken all those hits?¡± Ian grinned as he replied. ¡°I¡¯ll explain that later, but for now, just fire your magic attacks!¡± ¡°5 seconds left!¡± Shortly after, Fiolan¡¯s magic was invoked. As her connected magic began to hit the giant one by one, Ian also rallied all of his Familiars and carried out a full-scale attack. Grr-! Ian slightly checked the speed at which the giant¡¯s name blinked. ¡®That blinking speed means that its Vitality has dropped below 30%, right?¡¯ Ian let out a command to Ly. ¡°Ly, Thirst for Blood!¡± Grr- Grr-! As the Thirst for Blood skill was invoked, Ly¡¯s red mane started to shine an even brighter red. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s Offensive Power and Agility will increase by 30% for 3 minutes.Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s movement speed will increase by 40% for 3 minutes.From now on, whenever an opponent with Vitality lower than 30% is attacked, all damage dealt by ¡®Ly¡¯s attack will double. Ian clenched his staff and watched the giant. ¡®We¡¯ll catch it this time!¡¯ It seemed that Fiolan had the same mindset as Ian, as she also fired her magic with all her strength. Ian and Fiolan focused all of their skills towards the giant. It was to the point the large body of the giant was pushed back little by little from the constant hits of their attacks. Bang- Babang-! And shortly after, the large body of the Forlan Giant slowly started to collapse. CH 95 Chapter 95: The Grave of the Forlan Hero (4) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Keu-reu-reung-! Fiolan, who had confirmed that, cancelled the magic skill that she was casting and let out a cheer. ¡°Alright! We caught it!¡± And both of their attentions instinctively turned to the message window where the elapsed time was shown. 00:31:29 They had a whopping 18 minutes and 30 seconds left. They had succeeded in clearing the dungeon at an incredibly fast speed. Ian gulped loudly. It was a record that had him looking forward to the reward. ¡®It¡¯s probably an A-rank, right?¡¯ Thud-. As the giant completely collapsed, an information window that notified the two that they cleared the dungeon popped up in front of their eyes. Ring-. The Grave of the Forlan Hero Time Limit ¨C 00:50:00 Clear Time ¨C 00:31:29 Clear Rank ¨C A Obtained EXP ¨C 13,252,000 Obtained Gold ¨C 141,514 gold Obtained Items ¨C Piece of the Forlan Hero¡¯s Shoes*8 After checking the clear window, Fiolan¡¯s jaw dropped. ¡°Wow, to have cleared with an A-rank!¡± It wasn¡¯t like they had just barely cleared in time for an A-rank, they had received an A-rank with quite a bit of leeway. On top of that, the EXP and gold reward that they obtained was enough to leave them speechless. Fiolan thought back to the reward she received when she cleared with a D-rank and thoroughly calculated. ¡°It¡¯s almost 4 times the reward that you get for clearing with a D-rank. That¡¯s truly incredible.¡¯ Ian was just as surprised. In just 30 minutes, he had gathered over 13 million EXP and 140 thousand gold. ¡®You could probably level up more than one level every day as long as you just went through this dungeon constantly.¡¯ It was a little disappointing that there was a entry limit of 5 per day, but even if he went through the dungeon all 5 times and cleared it, Ian felt he could fill up 80% of the maximum EXP he would need. Ian, who had roughly calculated the reward, asked Fiolan. ¡°Fiolan, how many of these item pieces do I need in order to turn it into a complete product?¡± Fiolan responded immediately. ¡°You need a total of 40 pieces. Thanks to you, Ian, it looks like I¡¯ll be able to complete one this time.¡± If it was possible to continuously clear with an A-rank, exactly 40 pieces could be gathered in the 5 tries for a day. ¡°Looks like I¡¯ll be able to cleanly make one each day.¡± However, at his words, Fiolan laughed as she shook her head. ¡°That¡¯s not how it works. Since it¡¯s not like the same part always comes out. The only reason why it was possible for me to make a complete product this time was because I was lucky and had just received primarily shoes up until now.¡± At those words, Ian licked his lips. ¡°Tch. I see. Still, though, if I keep doing it, I¡¯ll probably gather enough soon.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Once you start building up pieces after grinding for a couple of days, you¡¯ll eventually be able to continuously make about one each day.¡± Ian nodded his head as he continued speaking. ¡°The Forlan set goes for about 5 million gold each piece, right?¡± ¡°Yes, since items are continuously being released, I feel like the market price will drop soon, but right now, its market price should be around there.¡± ¡°Keu, I should grind a little with this and make some money to pour into the guild¡¯s finance.¡± ¡°There¡¯s no equipment you need, Ian?¡± ¡°Yes, well, there¡¯s nothing I need immediately.¡± While the two were sharing a conversation with broad smiles on their faces, unexpected system messages additionally popped up consecutively. Ring-. You have cleared the ¡®Grave of the Forlan Hero¡¯ dungeon with the highest score.You have been recorded in the ¡®Hall of Fame¡¯ of the Grave of the Forlan Hero dungeon.You have taken 1st place.Unless your rank drops, you will obtain 3000 Fame every day. There were no words to say about the even better mood of the two people. Hall of Fame (1) ¡°Whew, we barely cleared it.¡± ¡°Good work, Limlong. Thanks to you, I think we were able to clear easily.¡± ¡°Ay, not at all. Because you carried the second phase, Celine, we were able to narrowly meet the time limit.¡± The two users that cleared the 2-player dungeon of Forlan and came out with a white light shared a warm conversation while leaving the dungeon. The two people¡¯s conversation continued. ¡°Either way, since you have experience clearing now, it should be easier to join a party.¡± ¡°No kidding. From now on, even if you¡¯re not here, I should be able to try.¡± It was normal for users that weren¡¯t in a guild to find parties in the community. However, since the difficulty level of the dungeon was so high, there were a lot of cases where they didn¡¯t even give users that didn¡¯t have clearing experience a chance. Because of that, it was incredibly important to have experience clearing at least once. ¡°But why aren¡¯t you joining a guild, Limlong? A powerful person like you should be able to easily join a top-ranking guild.¡± Celine was a fire-based Magician at lv 109. Compared to Limlong, who had just barely reached lv 100, her specs alone were much better. However, Limlong was an Assassin, one of the new classes, and since he was assumed to be the number 1 user for the Assassin class currently, comparing the two was impossible. Limlong responded while laughing. ¡°I just really like solo-playing. However, since this newly found Forlan dungeon¡¯s efficiency is so good, I¡¯m slowly starting to realize there¡¯s now a limit to solo play.¡± ¡°I see!¡± ¡°If the opportunity was to arise in the near future, I might even join a guild.¡± At his words, Celine¡¯s eyes shone. ¡°By any chance, if you would like, what do you think about our guild?¡± At her words, Limlong asked back. ¡°Oh, you were in a guild, Celine?¡± ¡°Yes, I put it on private, so you probably had no idea. One second.¡± A moment after she finished speaking, a guild insignia popped up above Celine¡¯s head. A ray of light made of the five cardinal colours was wrapped around the border of the insignia. It was a marking that could only be seen on the insignias of the guilds that were in the top 100 rankings. Limlong, who saw that, wore a slightly surprised expression. ¡°Oh, I see it¡¯s a Challenger class? If it¡¯s the Kaiser Guild, isn¡¯t it a guild in the top 10?¡± At his words, Celine smiled with a pleased expression as she responded. ¡°That¡¯s right. We¡¯re currently ranking at the 13th, but we had gone up to 8th before as well.¡± ¡°I see.¡± With a courteous voice, Celine egged him on. ¡°What do you think, Limlong? Are you interested?¡± At her words that pressed him for a response, Limlong laughed as he responded. ¡°Yes, if it¡¯s a guild like that, I¡¯d also be very thankful.¡± Celine was delighted. ¡°Ooh, then, should I send a message to our Guild Master right now?¡± However, Limlong slowly shook his head. ¡°No. For now, I¡¯ll just take the offer. I don¡¯t really have any thoughts to join a guild yet¡­¡± ¡°Ah, that¡¯s disappointing.¡± ¡°Instead, if I do change my mind and want to join a guild, I¡¯ll contact you first, Celine.¡± At those words, Celine, who wore a slightly sullen expression, smiled brightly. ¡°Sounds good! That¡¯s a promise, right?¡± ¡°Yep.¡± ¡°Then, Limlong, I¡¯ll be off now. There¡¯s a guild meeting soon, so¡­¡± ¡°Please do, then. I need to go to the village for maintenance as well.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s meet again next time!¡± ¡°Alright. Thank you for today.¡± As Celine disappeared using her return stone, Limlong scratched the back of his head as he mumbled. ¡°Ha, it has definitely become time for me to join a guild now, but¡­¡± He didn¡¯t tell Celine, but Limlong had already received a recruitment offer from one of the top 5 guilds, the Valiant Guild, as well. However, his criteria for a guild was not just simply its ranking. ¡®If I go into a guild that has already grown as much as it can, won¡¯t I just be treated like a consumable?¡¯ He wanted to join a guild where he could play a leading role in once he joined. If that was the case, a guild with adequate awareness and strength, and was composed of users that were almost the same level, was most suitable. That meant the Kaiser Guild, which was close to the top 10, was also a little burdensome. However, he wasn¡¯t lying when he said that he would contact Celine first either. Since he was planning on contacting her after he raised his abilities enough to play a leading role in a guild that ranked in in the top 10. ¡°Well, since I¡¯m not in a rush with that¡­¡± Limlong mumbled as he moved his feet. Because he still had three more chances to enter the dungeon for the day, he needed to go for maintenance and find a decent party member. ¡°Ha, but, this Forlan dungeon is pretty intense. I thought it would be easy to beat, but to have barely cleared with just 20 seconds left. On top of that, we even failed once.¡± Just when he was about to leave Forlan, the large crystal ball suddenly caught Limlong¡¯s attention. It was the location that showed the hall of fame, where the rankings of the users that cleared the dungeon were written. ¡°Shall we see what the highest record is?¡± He was curious as to how fast of a record the users that had cleared this hard dungeon left. As Limlong stood in front of the ball and placed on hand on top of it, a record of the rankings was listed in front of his eyes. The Hall of Fame of the Grave of the Forlan Hero Rank 1 Challengers: Ian (Lotus Guild), Fiolan (Lotus Guild) Record: 00:31:29 Rank: A Rank 2 Challengers: Semus (DarkRuna Guild), Cho (DarkRuna Guild) Record: 00:34:49 Rank A Rank 3 Challengers: Zion (DarkRuna Guild), Malcolm (Titan Guild) Record: 00:34:52 Rank: A After checking the ranking list, both of Limlong¡¯s eyes slightly rounded. ¡°What the hell, it was a dungeon that could be cleared in 30 minutes?¡± A characteristic of the Assassin class, which was weak in PvE, Limlong was aware that it would be harder to clear compared to other classes, but even if that was considered, the records of the top ranks was at a surprising level. And amongst those, the record that took the number 1 rank without a doubt caught his eye. ¡®Who exactly are these guys? This is my first time hearing of a guild called Lotus Guild¡­¡¯ What was even more surprising was that there was over a 3-minute difference from the 1st place record and the 2nd place record. Judging by the fact that the records starting from 2nd place and below were close together, the 1st place record was truly overwhelming. And in the case of the DarkRuna Guild that was 2nd place, and the Titan Guild that ranked starting from 3rd place, they were both guilds that were each competing for 1st and 2nd place. There were no other guilds as unfamiliar as the Lotus Guild no matter how far he looked down the list. ¡®But I feel like I¡¯ve heard the user ID Ian from somewhere¡­¡¯ Limlong¡¯s eyes were momentarily fixated on the name ¡®Ian¡¯. And he was able to figure out shortly after where he had seen Ian before. ¡°Ah, that dude that I met at the finals of the rookie league back then!¡± Limlong¡¯s voice burst out of his mouth before he realized. The arena finals with Ian popped up in his head. He did win, but as it was a battle with some dizzying moments, it was a fight that still remained in his memory. ¡®But if it¡¯s that guy from back then, he would have barely passed lv 100 now, so how did he reach 1st place? Is the user named Fiolan in their early lv 110s?¡¯ Limlong felt an unknown competitive spirit activate within him. ¡®I should reflect on the clearing process properly and shorten down the time as much as possible. No matter how much of a disadvantage the Assassin is in PvE, it doesn¡¯t make sense that there¡¯s over a 10-minute difference in the clear times with a guy that¡¯s a similar level to me.¡¯ Even with his class that was far superior in PvP, he had only won with a small difference, so to justify himself while thinking of the superiority of his opponent¡¯s class hurt his pride. On top of that, a clear time with a difference of 1.5x was also too big of a gap. ¡®I should quickly go for maintenance and try again.¡¯ Limlong set ablaze his competitive spirit and moved to the village with his return stone. CH 96 Chapter 96: Hall of Fame (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Sponsors: Fullmetalj4cket and J.G. After Ian and Fiolan cleared the dungeon together, the guild¡¯s chat window was filled with the same content everyday. Guild Member ¡®Ian¡¯ has logged on.Fiolan: Ian, when are you available today? We need to go-go to Forlan today, no?Herz: No, Fiolan, aren¡¯t you being unreasonable? You¡¯ve gone in twice out of the five times yesterday as well, yet for you to go after him immediately today, too!Fiolan: What do you mean unreasonable, isn¡¯t it because Ian has the highest record when he goes in with me, no?Kroban: No, Ian promised to go in with me today. Let¡¯s follow the order.Carwin: Ha, why is everybody like this? I gave up my chance yesterday as well. Today, I¡¯m going to go in twice with Ian hyung.Harin: Can, can I be included as well?Carwin: Noona, you¡¯re not even at lv 100 yet. You can¡¯t go in yet.Harin: T.T¡­Ian: Alright, alright, everybody, calm down. Today, I¡¯ll go in with people that haven¡¯t played with me yet.Fiolan: No fair¡­Carwin: Ah¡­ I¡¯ve only been able to go three times!Kroban: It¡¯s only been three times for me as well!Mishyal: I¡¯m a newcomer to this guild, but¡­ May I raise my hand?Ian: Mishyal, what¡¯s your level and class?Mishyal: I¡¯m a lv 106 Fire-type Magician.Ian: Okay!Mishyal: I have no experience clearing the dungeon, is that okay?Ian: Yep, that¡¯s alright.Fiolan: Ah¡­ Ian, why are you like this? You need to go in with me and set a new record.Ian: Even if I die and come back to life, I won¡¯t be able to get an S-rank anyways, so Fiolan, please give the others a chance. I¡¯m going to try and get an S-rank tomorrow or the day after, so let¡¯s go together then.Fiolan: Oh, S-rank! Alright, I¡¯m pumped! Currently, no matter who Ian entered the dungeon with amongst his guildmates that were able to enter, it was to the point he was able to just make an A-rank almost all the time. He had attempted to get an S-rank with Fiolan using all the power they had, but their best record was about 29 minutes, which was nowhere near 25 minutes. That¡¯s why he had decided that it would be impossible to get an S-rank until he raised Pin and went in. Because of that, Ian was entering the dungeon with all of his guildmates evenly. ¡®Since Pin¡¯s Potential will be at 100 soon enough now¡­¡¯ Ian, who checked Pin¡¯s Potential, clenched his fist. Through the Training skill he just activated again 5 minutes ago, it was a situation where Pin¡¯s Potential was at 99, and it would reach 100 within a quarter of a day. After that, if he went through the dungeons and hunted like crazy for the next two days, a relaxed estimation, Ian thought that he would be able to make Pin reach around at least lv 60-70. ¡®Even if Pin reaches around at least lv 70, he¡¯ll be able to deal around the same damage as Lake¡¯s Breath with his AoE skill.¡¯ Of course, he wasn¡¯t just going through the dungeon either. Whenever he went into the dungeon, in order to reduce his clear time by even 1 second, he tried out different methods while experimenting as well. Because of that, in the Grave of the Forlan Hero¡¯s Hall of Fame, from 1st place to 10th, all of them were filled with Ian¡¯s name aside from two to three rankings. Rank 1 Challengers: Ian (Lotus Guild), Fiolan (Lotus Guild) Rank 2 Challengers: Ian (Lotus Guild), Kroban (Lotus Guild) Rank 3 Challengers: Carwin (Lotus Guild), Ian (Lotus Guild) Rank 4 Challengers: Semus (DarkRuna Guild), Cho (DarkRuna Guild) Rank 5 Challengers: Herz (Lotus Guild), Ian (Lotus Guild) Rank 6 Challengers: Zion (DarkRuna Guild), Malcolm (Titan Guild) Thanks to that, for the first time since the arena rookie league, Ian began to rapidly rise as a topic of conversations in the community recently, and the popularity of the Lotus Guild also suddenly rose. Ian, who decided he would try first with Mishyal amongst the pouring love calls as soon as he logged on, busily walked. ¡®I¡¯ll use all 5 of my dungeon entries right away now, and by then Pin¡¯s Potential will be filled up, so from then to 7 pm tomorrow, I¡¯ll just hunt.¡¯ In order to map out the most efficient plan possible, his mind raced. ¡®And starting from 7 to 12, I¡¯ll exhaust all my entries for tomorrow, and if I also go out hunting the next day after, I¡¯m sure Pin will be worth using in the dungeon as well.¡¯ Ian, who had piled up an outrageous amount of EXP these past couple of days, was at lv 107 before he even realized it. While Ian had leveled up 4 levels, Fiolan, who had entered the dungeon with Ian the most, had also leveled up 2 levels and was now at lv 115, while Carwin and Herz also leveled up 1 level each and had become lv 103 and lv 108. There was a reason why the Ian-bus¡¯s popularity was nowhere near dying down. Before Ian met Mishyal and entered the dungeon, he left one more word in the guild chat. Ian: People who are next in line to enter after Mishyal, decide on your order beforehand! The next person just needs to wait at the Forlan entrance around 30 minutes from now. After Ian had made the guild chat room chaotic once again, he entered the dungeon without delay. * * * ¡°How is it, how is it? What about today¡¯s menu? It¡¯s delicious, right?¡± ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s really delicious. Is this a recipe you made for your practical assignment this time?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s for my midterm.¡± A corner of Korea University¡¯s student restaurant. Jinsung and Harin were out to have lunch in between their classes. The menu consisted of two drinks purchased with meal tickets at the student restaurant and a lunch box that Harin had packed. Harin¡¯s eyes twinkled while she watched Jinsung eat the lunch box deliciously. ¡°Harin, but what about Yoohyun? Weren¡¯t you going to come with Yoohyun? I heard that you were both taking a cultural studies class together.¡± ¡°Uh, that¡­ Yoohyun said that there were some assignments he had piled up, so he would be in the department room.¡± ¡°Ah, really? That¡¯s weird, from what I know, I don¡¯t have any assignments, did I miss it because I was sleeping during class?¡± At Jinsung¡¯s lack of sense, Harin developed an impulse that made her want to truly hit him hard in the pit of his stomach. However, the meal that they were spending alone together was the first in a long time and it was enjoyable, so she calmly settled down her rage. ¡®It is the first time that we¡¯re eating together outside of the capsule in two weeks¡­ So, I should hold back a little. On top of that, it¡¯s the first time we¡¯re eating together since that day!¡¯ After the historical day that Harin received the ring from Jinsung, she was thinking that Jinsung and her could have started dating. At first, she contemplated it a lot, but after seeing Jinsung diligently wear around the couple ring(?) that was also given to her as well, her heart had leaned in that direction. She was diligently rationalizing that Jinsung simply was quite senseless and was a simpleton, so he was unable to tell her straightforwardly. Harin glared at Jinsung once again. ¡®But I can¡¯t just ask him ¡®are we dating now?¡¯¡­¡¯ As Harin also had never dated up until now, it was a situation where she couldn¡¯t laugh. ¡®Hah, there¡¯s truly not much difference with reality and Kailran, but still, I want to go on a date outside of the capsule as well¡­¡¯ Since promoting to a Domain, because a restaurant had been made inside of the manor, Ian always came to eat Harin¡¯s food, which he could gain a nice buff effect from, before he went out to fight. Because of that, they almost always ate every meal together in-game, and whenever Ian was looking of internal affairs in the manor, Harin was always by his side. The problem was that it was difficult to simply even see a sign of Jinsung outside of the game. ¡®No, why exactly did Professor Jinook excused him from his classes?¡¯ While just internally blaming innocent Jinook, Harin grabbed a steaming spoonful of seafood cream risotto. ¡°Jinsung, try this, too.¡± Harin, who had steadily scooped up a spoonful of risotto along with a plump, stuffed shrimp, moved the spoon towards Jinsung¡¯s mouth. At that, Jinsung was startled and pulled his head back before he realized. ¡°Uh, uh?¡± For a moment, Jinsung felt the numerous gazes that turned towards him and could only break out into a cold sweat. ¡®No, what does such a pretty girl like that find attractive in that lackluster dude to be meeting him?¡¯ ¡®Choke on that shrimp and go to hell, you evil dude!¡¯ At the arrows of rage that were shot towards him from here and there, Jinsung impulsively ate the food that Harin had pushed towards him on a spoon. Hoo-roo-rook-! The nutty cream that spread in his mouth along with the soft texture of the plump shrimp! However, Jinsung was in a flustered state where he didn¡¯t even know if the food that tasted delicious was going through his mouth or his nose. ¡®What, what kind of situation is this? Why is Harin suddenly like this?¡¯ Now at this point, even Jinsung, the forever alone and a dreamer to become the greatest magician, could only sense that there was something weird. ¡®What could it be? Is she hoping for me to quickly eat the risotto as well and tell her it¡¯s delicious?¡¯ Jinsung¡¯s imagination started to expand little by little. ¡®It can¡¯t be that she¡¯s protesting because I snuck out some drug meatballs that were in the kitchen, right?¡¯ And a worry that had popped up from the beginning, however, as it was too unrealistic, he had forcibly overlooked it, eventually filled Ian¡¯s mind. ¡®By any chance¡­ Does Harin like me?¡¯ In order to solve this incredible dilemma, he decided that he would consult in Yoohyun. It bothered him a little that Yoohyun as well had no proper dating experience, but there wasn¡¯t exactly another person better than Yoohyun that popped up. * * * ¡°Millun, Millun! If you¡¯re logged on, come over here for a second!¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Rukin, I told you that I need to go hunt now.¡± ¡°No, hunting isn¡¯t important right now! I¡¯m telling you, come here quickly!¡± At Rukin¡¯s demand, Millun, who had packed up his hunting equipment and was about to use his return stone, approached him with an annoyed expression. ¡°No, what exactly is it, then?¡± ¡°I received a message this morning from Falcon.¡± ¡°Uh, what did he say? Did he at least pick up a Heroic-rank equipment?¡± While looking at Millun, who answered with an incredibly impatient expression, Rukin opened his mouth clearly. ¡°Ian, he figured out what guild that guy is in!¡± ¡°Ian? Guild? What are you talking about all of a sudden?¡± With a frustrated expression, he opened his mouth for the second time. ¡°Ah, you know that PK bum Summoner from that Chief Priest Quest! The one that you met during the rookie league! Do you not remember?¡± The moment he heard up to that point, Millun¡¯s eyes widened. He had remembered the nightmare of the turtle shell that had blocked the Induced Arrows in vain. ¡°What? That guy? Falcon found out that guy¡¯s guild?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. That¡¯s what I¡¯m telling you!¡± ¡°What guild is that guy in? No, how exactly did you find it? That guy always went around with his information on private.¡± Rukin swallowed loudly before he responded. ¡°That, you know the northern continent¡¯s Forlan Basin that¡¯s been hot lately, right?¡± ¡°Yeah, of course I know. I¡¯m mass-leveling like this right now because I want to go there. I just need to level up 10 more levels and I can go there.¡± ¡°Yeah, in the Hall of Fame for that dungeon, that Ian dude¡¯s name came up, and by looking at it, the name of his guild is Lotus. Falcon even checked through the community as well, and he¡¯s positive it¡¯s him.¡± ¡°Community? How can you check there?¡± ¡°It looked as if other users had found out that the Ian that was up on that Hall of Fame was the same person that was the runner-up for the rookie league.¡± This much information was trustable. Millun ground his teeth. ¡°Finally, it looks like we¡¯ll be able to find this dude. But, Rukin, around what rank is that guild called Lotus?¡± Rukin slightly frowned as he replied. ¡°That¡­ It¡¯s quite high. It looked like it was around a Diamond-rank.¡± ¡°If it¡¯s a Diamond-rank, it¡¯s the same rank as our guild, right?¡± The rank of the ¡®Polaris¡¯ guild that Rukin and Millun had moved into not long ago was also similar to the Lotus Guild in that it just barely didn¡¯t reach the top 400. The only way that the two people, who weren¡¯t even at lv 90 yet, could enter the Polaris Guild was through connections and the strength of Robby. Rukin nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. It looked like it was around 430th place.¡± Millun wore a slightly taken aback expression. He did think that Ian¡¯s guild could be quite highly ranked, but he never thought that it would be a top-rank guild in the top 500. ¡°It¡¯s higher than I thought? This is a little worrisome¡­¡± The fighting power of the two guilds were probably similar, but it wasn¡¯t a guild that they could face so easily, and the problem was that the leading members of the guild wouldn¡¯t just move because they asked. This was because they had gathered almost 0 influence in order to wield the Polaris Guild. However, different from Millun, who was sighing, Rukin opened his mouth again with a furtive voice. ¡°I have a method.¡± CH 97 Chapter 97: Hall of Fame (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Seriously? What kind of method?¡± ¡°From what I¡¯ve found out, Lotus Guild has a base in the northern continent.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°On top of that, the size of the base is on the larger side. It¡¯s almost equivalent to the base of a Challenger class guild. Although they only have one base.¡± Millun was still as he waited for Rukin¡¯s next explanation. A decent picture was being drawn in his head as well. ¡°On top of that, I found out their base protection will be released in 2 weeks. It must be a base they earned in the beginning after the northern continent was opened.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°This much is quite excellent bait, no?¡± Their guild, Polaris Guild, was not able to obtain a base during the northern expedition. Because of that, as a matter of fact, the executives of the guild were looking for an easy guild amongst the ones that would be losing their base protection soon. Of course, amongst the targeted guilds that they had looked for, there were guilds that were weaker than the Lotus Guild. However, most of them were cases where the bases were incredibly shabby. There was no other easy-looking guild that had a such a well-packed base like the Lotus Guild. ¡°But if it¡¯s a battle between guilds with similar fighting powers, wouldn¡¯t the defending side have an advantage? I feel like the Guild Master won¡¯t want to move?¡± At Millun¡¯s words, Rukin nodded his head and spoke. ¡°That¡¯s right. They¡¯ll probably be very hesitant. We need to make it so that they¡¯re not hesitant.¡± ¡°Then what kind of method do you have?¡± Rukin¡¯s words continued. ¡°I¡¯m going to hire a mercenary. I have a couple acquaintances that I know in the top-ranking guilds. If we just even call over about ten users that are all over lv 110, it should be enough. If I support this much, the Guild Master will probably not hesitate and move.¡± For sure, in a guild war between guilds that had similar fighting powers, if about ten top-ranked users that were over lv 110 were added, the scale of strength would definitely tip. However, Millun still wore an unsatisfied expression. ¡°Will they obediently follow? They¡¯ll demand quite a large amount of money.¡± ¡°There will probably be a lot of people that are willing to come even if without a big cost.¡± ¡°How come?¡± ¡°That¡¯s because there are a lot of high-level users that want to experience a territory war beforehand. Because the Lotus Guild¡¯s Domain belongs to the group where their protection is being quickly released, from the perspective of the top-ranking guilds who don¡¯t have much time left on their base protection, it will be a proposal that will tug at their appetite. It will be even more so if it¡¯s a territory war where their chances of winning are even higher.¡± It was a plausible enough story. Millun¡¯s face brightened. ¡°That¡¯s definitely true. There will be a ton of guilds that will be scared to death if there¡¯s not a lot of days left on their base protection, so if there was a chance for them to experience a territory war beforehand, even I would want to go.¡± The two people grinned as they looked at each other. Now, if the guild executives spilled the information, then it would proceed on its own one by one. ¡°Alright, Rukin. Then you spill the information slightly to the Guild Master.¡± ¡°Then what about you?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll go look for more information on the Lotus Guild.¡± The two people moved their feet busily in order to execute their own plans. * * * ¡°Finally, Pin, it¡¯s time to raise you!¡± While looking at Pin, whose Potential was filled up to 100, Ian wore a big smile. Kkuruk- Kkuruk-? Ian petted Pin¡¯s golden feathers and spoke. ¡°Pin, for now, sit here and just watch.¡± As Ian tapped his shoulder, Pin quickly flew over and sat on top of it. ¡®Then, shall we start?¡¯ If they moved a little to the east from Forlan Basin, a map called ¡®Forlan Mountains¡¯ came up. It was a map with mountains in its name, but with strange rock and stone formations and blocks of ice, and was also permanently covered with snow, being a place where even one tree was hard to find. This was the place that Ian was currently in. ¡®As expected, there are a few people in the lowlands where it is easier to hunt. I should go up.¡¯ Ian busily moved his feet and began to go up the mountain. He also met a couple Yetis that were over lv 100 while going up, but he got rid of them easily and continued to move forward. ¡®Oh, there¡¯s a decent spot over there?¡¯ Having discovered a terrain that was suitable for hunting, Ian¡¯s eyes were filled with stars as he moved towards that area. Meanwhile, from catching four or five Yetis, Pin¡¯s level was over lv 20 now. This was because he had received an enormous amount of EXP compared to his level. Pu-deu-deuk-. Pin flapped his wings as he energetically flew up into the air. Seeing that, Ian¡¯s eyes slightly rounded. This was because in that short span, Pin¡¯s form had changed. ¡°Uh, so his body grew if he leveled?¡± Pin, whose body was the size of Ian¡¯s fist at lv 1, had grown to the size of an average child in that short span. His small beak also grew, and now, he was beginning to show a decent form of a rapacious bird. Ian wore a pleased expression. ¡®Keu, once he¡¯s all grown, I wonder how big he¡¯ll get?¡¯ Ian had never seen an adult Griffin before. That would probably be the same for any user in Kailran. Because of that, he was anticipating the form of an adult Griffin even more. Before Ian started hunting, he used all of his buff skills. And then he called Pin. ¡°Pin, Roar of the King!¡± Kyaoh-! Along with Pin¡¯s loud cry, which seemed to rip through the sky, a system message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Familiar ¡®Pin¡¯ has used the Roar of the King skill.For 10 minutes, the Agility of all allies within a 50-metre radius will increase by 30%.For 10 minutes, the movement of all opponents within a 50-metre radius will decrease by 30%. It was still impossible for Pin, who was in the lv 20 range, to directly participate in fighting the monsters of the northern continent, but he could use buff skills like this. And that was quite a big help in hunting as well. ¡°Shall we have some fun now?¡± Before Ian¡¯s words were even properly finished, Ddukdae began to move. Thud- Thud-. As he did so, tons of Ice Trolls and Gargoyles, as well as Yetis, began to gather where Ian was. The other Familiars that had hunted countless of times with Ian, began to carry out their roles themselves before Ian¡¯s commands came out. The corners of Ian¡¯s mouth rolled upwards. It was the start of their hunt. * * * Ring-. An internal building of the Domain, the ¡®Military Facility¡¯ (Facility Lv 1) has been completed.From now on, ¡®Low-rank Infantryman¡¯ can be trained at the Lotus Domain.In order to train ¡®Low-rank Infantryman¡¯, 5 units of food and 15 gold is required every day, and if training is completed, 2 units of food will be consumed every day until the soldier is discharged. (To complete training, it takes a total of 3 days worth of time.)Through the influence of the ¡®Summoner Guild¡¯ that was built on the Domain, ¡®Low-rank Summoner Soldiers¡¯ can be trained.In order to train ¡®Low-rank Summoner Soldiers¡¯, 5 units of food and 30 gold is required every day, and if training is completed, 2 units of food will be consumed every day until the soldier is discharged. (To complete training, it takes a total of 5 days worth of time.)The number of soldiers that can be trained at once is restricted to 30 people.Currently, the maximum number of troops that can be possessed by the Lotus Domain is 500 people. Ian and Herz, who stood in front of the Military Facility, timing it so that they were there as soon as it would be completed, thoroughly read through the system messages that were listed. ¡°Yoohyun, we have enough guild resources, right?¡± Herz nodded his head and replied. ¡°Yeah, there was hardly any need to use our food supply up until now and have quite a bit gathered, so we have nothing to worry about. With this much money as well, we won¡¯t be struggling for a while. Since we¡¯ll be getting taxes as well once the month changes.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a relief.¡± Ian opened up the information windows of the Summoner Soldiers and the normal Infantrymen and began to compare their pros and cons. ¡®Unrelated to their branch, all soldiers that are trained in the lv 1 Military Facility are lv 30.¡¯ An interesting point was that the soldiers ranks and stats were formed randomly within a set range. While looking at that, Ian instinctively felt that there was a relation to the NPC that was appointed as the person in charge and the stats of the soldiers. ¡®As expected, it was definitely a good idea to have built the Human Resource Centre first.¡¯ The basic combat stats of the soldiers of the Summoner branch were generally slightly lower than the infantrymen. However, because they could summon 1-2 Familiars that weren¡¯t more than 5 levels higher than their level, they could make use of more diverse tactics. Ian, who had thoroughly looked through the functions of the completed Military Facility, immediately appointed an individual that he had already promoted as the person in charge. Individual ¡®Roman¡¯ has been appointed the person in charge of the Military Facility. Roman was probably inside the manor right now, but just appointing alone could be done in the system settings even without calling them over. And continued, a system message popped up. The requirements to upgrade the facility to lv 2 has been fulfilled. Will you upgrade? Because they had found an individual that fit the lv 2 requirement beforehand in the Human Resource Centre while the Military Facility was being completed, they were able to upgrade immediately. Ian nodded his head. ¡°Sure. We¡¯ll upgrade.¡± As he did so, the Military Facility building changed into a ¡®Completing¡¯ state again. The time left until completion. 23:59:58 Herz, who was watching him, was astonished. ¡°Yo, this is seriously perfect. Where did you find information like this?¡± Ian grinned as he spoke. ¡°Well, if you search around hard enough, it actually comes up. I went into places like top-ranking guild caf¨¦s and secretly watched. There are a lot of guilds that have promoted to a Domain weeks before us.¡± Herz¡¯s mouth slightly dropped open. ¡°Ah, there was that kind of method¡­¡± Ian, who grinned while looking at Herz like that, checked Roman¡¯s information window before grumbling. ¡°But we probably won¡¯t be able to raise the facility to lv 3 right away.¡± ¡°Why? Is there a new requirement aside from a person in charge?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not like that, but the level of the person in charge is too low.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Herz checked the level of Roman, the person in charge. Roman¡¯s level was 95. Herz, who had understood what Ian meant, nodded his head. ¡°Ah, you said the level requirement was lv 100, right? There¡¯s a day left until completion, so can¡¯t we make Roman¡¯s level reach 100 before then?¡± ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right. Well, unless a martial arts instructor that¡¯s over lv 100 appears in the Human Resource Centre before then, but there¡¯s almost no chance that will happen.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± NPCs could also level up. They just needed to take them on guild parties and hunt together with them to raise them. On top of that, after more troops were developed and there were more NPCs that were able to fight, NPCs could be sent off to hunt together as well. Ian was trapped in his thoughts for a moment. ¡®There¡¯s not even a week left for the base protection period now. I wanted to for sure make the Military Training Centre reach lv 3 at least¡­¡¯ As the guild base¡¯s rank was promoted to ¡®Domain¡¯, a lot of complex content here and there suddenly appeared, but Ian and Herz were going through them one by one in a calm and orderly way. Herz opened his mouth, mumbling. ¡°In about 3 days from now, the base protections will start to be released one by one.¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right. We need to keep a watch on what aspect it will turn into then.¡± ¡°Right. Fortunately, we don¡¯t have many guilds surrounding our base that are affiliated with the Kaimon Empire.¡± Starting from the ¡®Domain¡¯ rank, guilds became affiliated with either the Luspel Empire or the Kaimon Empire. This couldn¡¯t be helped because the Lord needs to receive a title from one of the two empires. And obviously, Domains that were affiliated with the same empire couldn¡¯t engage in a territory war. This was because if a guild attacked a Domain that was affiliated with the same empire as them, they were automatically stripped of their aristocrat title and they would be attacked by the relevant empire. If they could even defend the attack of the empire, then it was also possible to become a Domain that was not affiliated with any empire, but as it was impossible to even try blocking them, it could only be considered that there was no chance to do so. In conclusion, in order to become independent of an empire, they needed to raise the rank of the guild base to the same rank as them, the ¡®Empire¡¯. In other words, it could be considered an incredibly distant story. ¡°Anyways, we need to raise the Domain¡¯s Defensive Power as much as possible until then, and we need to research a lot of information. There aren¡¯t any Domains that are affiliated with the Kaimon Empire around us, but a guild with no base at all could come and attack us.¡± Herz nodded his head in agreement. ¡°That¡¯s right. I noticed that amongst the guilds that were a higher rank than us, there are ones without bases as well.¡± The two people began to organize their future plans one by one. And as their organization was roughly finished, Ian stood up from his spot in order to level up again. ¡®Almost 90% or more is going as I planned.¡¯ While thinking of Pin, who had leveled up to lv 50 before he realized, Ian wore a pleased smile. ¡®If I use all 5 of the dungeon entries that I haven¡¯t used at all today, I could probably make him roughly reach close to lv 70.¡¯ And it looked as Ian¡¯s level could also reach 110 if all went well. While thinking of Pin, who was getting stronger at an incredible speed expected of a Legendary-rank, Ian¡¯s mood brightened. Ian turned his attention towards Herz. ¡°Yo, Yoohyun.¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°Do you want to go to Forlan?¡± And at Ian¡¯s suggestion, Yoohyun wore a broad grin. With the corners of his mouth still hanging from his ears, Yoohyun abruptly stood up. ¡°Alright!¡± Like that, three days passed by quickly. CH 98 Chapter 98: Prelude of the Territory Wars (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Chicken delivery!¡± ¡°Yes, you accept card, right?¡± ¡°Yes. Enjoy your meal!¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± After receiving the delivered chicken, Yoohyun called Jinsung, who was diligently watching the TV while lying on the bed. ¡°Yo, dude, come here. Let¡¯s eat first.¡± ¡°One second, I¡¯m telling you, it¡¯s important right now.¡± As Jinsung, who was usually crazy about chicken, didn¡¯t move an inch, Yoohyun checked the television screen before shaking his head. This was because, surely enough, the Kailran broadcast was on the screen which Jinsung¡¯s eyes were glued to. ¡°Yo, the territory war relays haven¡¯t even started. Let¡¯s quickly eat before then.¡± At Yoohyun¡¯s persuasion, Jinsung, who finally tottered down from his bed, grabbed a drumstick. However, his eyes were still on the television. ¡°Yo, focus right now and watch the TV for a moment. There¡¯s still some time until the relays, but they said a reporter is going to organize stuff like the territory war rules.¡± At those words, Yoohyun¡¯s attention also turned to the television again. Truthfully, the reason why Yoohyun came to Jinsung¡¯s rented room today was to watch the territory war relays while eating chicken together. This was because today was the exact day that the base protections of the guilds who obtained their bases first were released. In three days, the Lotus Guild¡¯s Domain would also lose their base protection, so they needed to study about the territory wars beforehand. The two people¡¯s attentions were fixated on the TV to the point it seemed like they would be sucked in. ¡°Hello, this is YTBC reporter Lucia.¡± ¡°Nice to meet you, everyone, reporter Hines here.¡± Lucia and Hines, who could be considered the billboard reporters of YTBC, were proceeding with the broadcast as skillfully as usual on the TV. ¡°Yes, Hines. Do you think you could briefly explain where we are right now?¡± With a smooth tone, Hines looked around as he kept the broadcast going. ¡°Of course, Lucia.¡± And his attention moved towards the viewers that were on the outside of the screen. ¡°The place where we currently are is called the ¡®Valliant Battleground¡¯. As many of you viewers know, it is the place that guild wars are held.¡± After taking a breath, Hines¡¯ words continued. ¡°Today! Finally, because the first ¡®Territory War¡¯ will be held in this place, we have come here for the first time in a while.¡± And next to him, Lucia made an additional explanation. ¡°An additional explanation for the viewers that don¡¯t really know about the Valliant Battleground, this Valliant Battleground is an imaginary space that cannot be found anywhere on the Kailran map. It¡¯s a method where whenever and wherever a guild war is invoked, a number of people that will be participating in the guild war will be warped to the Valliant Battleground. Users that aren¡¯t related to the guilds can also enter the Valliant Battleground after paying a slight fee and watch the battle.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Lucia has explained it well.¡± As Hines gave a thumbs-up and smiled, Lucia¡¯s eyes crinkled as her words continued. ¡°Alright, then, before we relay the territory war of the number 1 ranking guild in the Korean server, the DarkRuna Guild, and the number 4 ranking guild, the Oaklan Guild, shall we find out about the territory war rules first?¡± Hines received Lucia¡¯s words and continued the broadcast. ¡°Yes, starting now, I will explain the regulations of the ¡®Territory War¡¯, which will be new content to most of you viewers.¡± And Hines¡¯ incredibly clean explanation was continued. Yoohyun turned his attention towards Jinsung. ¡°Yo, Jinsung. Do you not have something like a memo?¡± At those words, Jinsung, who suddenly came back to his senses, quickly went to his desk and grabbed his research notebook before returning. Jinsung began to organize Hines¡¯ explanation into his notebook without any exceptions. Territory War RegulationsIn order to take the Domain of an opponent guild, a territory war must be held.There was a total of two different kinds when it came to territory wars. One was a field match in the ¡®Valliant Battleground¡¯ that was the same as a normal guild war, While the other was a ¡®Siege Warfare¡¯ method of battle, where the defending guild defended the Domain and the attacking guild must seize it. The Siege Warfare took place in a map called the ¡®Battleground of Protection¡¯, and because this Battleground of Protection was an imaginary map that took the exact topography of the real related Domain, the topography changed every territory war. In all territory wars, if all the users on one side of the two were annihilated, or if the given battle time of 1 hour was all up, the war was over, and the side with the most number of survivors won. In the case of the Battleground of Protection, along with the start of the battle, a Crystal of Protection formed inside the Domain of the defending side, and if that was also destroyed, the battle ended. Domains couldn¡¯t be taken just from one win in territory wars. It was a method where once the attacking guild won 3 times in the Valliant Battleground, then the map changed to the Battleground of Protection, and they must win in this Battleground of Protection in order to take the Domain. On the other hand, if the defending guild just won a total of 3 times in either the Valliant Battleground or the Battleground of Protection, they would succeed in defending. Territory wars took place every 24 hours, and once all the territory wars were finished and the winner was decided, the related Domain will go into a ¡®Base Protection¡¯ state for a week.In all territory wars, only 30 users may participate in each camp. (If the scale grew to a war between countries, the number restriction of participating users increased to 100, and there was no number restriction with the NPCs related to the Domain.)Once a user participated in the same territory war twice, they could no longer participate. The rules of the territory wars could look complicated at first glance, but after organizing everything, Jinsung thought the developers¡¯ efforts to balance the game out could be felt. While reading down the content that Jinsung had organized, Yoohyun spoke, almost mumbling. ¡°Wow, this, it¡¯s way more complicated than just guild wars.¡± Jinsung nodded his head as he answered. ¡°They didn¡¯t have much of a choice. There¡¯s nothing else besides losing some Fame in normal guild wars even if you lost. You just drop one or two ranks and that¡¯s it. The weight of a territory war is completely different.¡± ¡°True.¡± Hines did explain the rules very well for easy understanding, but thanks to Jinsung organizing it well, the two people were quickly able to grasp the rules of the territory war. Yoohyun opened his mouth again. ¡°So, let¡¯s say, for example.¡± ¡°Go on.¡± ¡°If, let¡¯s say, I was an attacking guild and you were a defending guild, I need to win 4 times in a row in order to take over the Domain in the shortest amount of time, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°On the other hand, you just need to win 3 times in a row and you¡¯ll succeed in defending.¡± ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right.¡± Yoohyun, who thought about it for a moment, continued his words. ¡°Then in the case I win 3 times in a row in the Valliant Battleground, and we went to the Battleground of Protection. And I lose for the first time in the Battleground of Protection. Then where is the fifth territory war held?¡± Jinsung replied without hesitation. ¡°That¡¯s definitely the Valliant Battleground. Firstly, if the attacking guild wins 3 times in the Valliant Battleground, from then on, it will continuously be a siege warfare.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± Yoohyun nodded his head as if he understood. ¡°It¡¯s definitely a rule that¡¯s advantageous to the defending guild.¡± ¡°It only makes sense. Since it¡¯s a battle where the defending guild has more to lose than in comparison to the attacking guild. For the attacking guild, similar to a normal guild war, they¡¯re just losing Guild Fame, right? Even if they were to lose a little of that, there are a lot of ways to restore it, but once you lose your guild Domain, the damage is seriously huge.¡± Moreover, an interesting point of territory wars was the part that one user couldn¡¯t participate in the same territory war more than three times. In order to win the territory wars, the division of the players was incredibly important every battle. While reading this part, Ian mumbled. ¡°I think the part where 30 is the number restriction of players that can participate in the battle is the same as normal guild wars, and the rule where one person cannot participate in more than three matches is an installation they made so that one strong person can never carry the territory war alone.¡± ¡°I think so, too. Even if we assumed that there was a person strong enough to carry the territory war to victory every time no matter what, the number of wins that they could bring alone is a maximum of 2¡­ In the case of the attacking guild, they have 2 more matches, while the defending guild has 1 more, where they have to bring the win with the strength of the remaining users.¡± The two that approximately finished organizing, began to hurriedly rip through the chicken. Soon, the territory war of the two guilds that were at the top of the Korean server, the DarkRuna Guild and the Oaklan Guild, would begin. The defending guild was the Oaklan Guild, while the attacking guild was the DarkRuna Guild. With an excited expression, Yoohyun asked Jinsung. ¡°Yo, who do you think will win?¡± ¡°Hmm, I¡¯m not sure.¡± ¡°By the looks of it, I think that the DarkRuna Guild has a slight higher chance of winning. Their fighting power is so overwhelming.¡± ¡°That is true, but Oaklan recruited Remir recently. That¡¯s why, truthfully, I don¡¯t really know how it will go.¡± Yoohyun wore a slightly surprised expression. ¡°Red Flame Magician Remir? The number 1 ranking Magician?¡± ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right. It popped up in the community yesterday or so.¡± ¡°Kyah, then again, it¡¯s unknown. If Remir¡¯s AoE attack is dealt properly just even once, everything will seriously melt. Somehow, I feel like Magicians will be the ultimate card in a siege warfare¡­ Plus, the defending side is at an advantage.¡± The two people began to focus even more on the TV while they ripped through the chicken. The territory war of the two giant guilds was about to begin now. While looking at the levels of the users, Jinsung mumbled inwardly. ¡®I can soon catch up to them as well now!¡¯ The levels of the rankers that looked distant after he reset now looked close enough that he felt he could reach them if he extended his arm out far enough. The highest-level user amongst the users whose levels were revealed on the screen was around the late 120s. ¡®The top 10 users will probably be around their early 130s now.¡¯ Ian¡¯s level was now 111. He had now greatly closed the gap to about a 20-level difference. In some ways, it could be thought of a distant difference, but if it was Ian¡¯s current leveling up speed, he felt he could catch up to them sooner or later. Ian ignited his fighting spirit even more. * * * The territory war of the two giant guilds ended with a score of 3:3. The score was the same, but the winner was the Oaklan Guild. In the end, they had succeeded in defending. At the fighting power of the DarkRuna Guild, who had easily won two battles in the Valliant Battleground at first, people predicted DarkRuna Guild¡¯s win. However, the DarkRuna Guild, who had invested their main fighting power in a full force attack for the first and second match, lost by a whisker in the third battle. As predicted, Red Flame Magician Remir showed incredible strength on the defending side. And Ian, who had watched that battle from the beginning to the end without missing anything, realized something. ¡®The abilities of the guild members are important as well, but in a territory war, the NPCs are truly important.¡¯ Especially since the NPCs were able to continuously participate as long as they didn¡¯t die, they became an important part when planning a tactic. ¡®In the broadcast, they weren¡¯t properly noted, but rather than the Oaklan Guild winning thanks to Remir, I think it¡¯s the victory of the tactic¡­¡¯ The Oaklan Guild used the first two matches as cards they were discarding. They hardly invested any of the NPCs that could not be revived once dead in the first two matches, and the most important rankers were all excluded as well. Red Flame Magician Remir, who was their strongest card, was revealed twice on the defending side and brought 2 definite wins, and with the remaining fighting power all invested, they had brought back 1 win during the field match. ¡®Although it could be more of how you interpret it¡­¡¯ After Yoohyun returned, Ian, who had logged onto Kailran, felt that he should hurry and register the subordinate NPCs that he had been pushing off. Ian, who had the Baron title, could register a total of 20 NPCs as his subordinates. However, as Ian¡¯s Fame would decrease by 100 thousand Fame if he was to remove a registered NPC, he was cautious up until now. And there was another reason. ¡®The reason why I was hesitant until the end was because I didn¡¯t know what kind of penalty there would be if a subordinate NPC was to die during battle, but since I found out the fact that an NPC that was registered as a subordinate of a user revived after a week, there¡¯s no reason to hesitate anymore now.¡¯ It was information that wasn¡¯t released in the community yet as there weren¡¯t many users that had the Baron title, but it was information that was revealed through the territory war this time as many NPCs appointed as personal subordinates died. Ian quickly moved to the ¡®Summoner Guild¡¯ in the Domain. The NPC that Ian had his eye on from a few days ago to appoint as his subordinate was there. CH 99 Chapter 99: Prelude of the Territory Wars (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Lord, you¡¯ve arrived.¡± As Ian entered the Summoner Guild, the two NPCs that guarded the entrance bowed to Ian respectfully. Ian lightly dipped his head towards them and went inside. ¡®Since they¡¯re all our guild¡¯s assets, I should be nice to them.¡¯ The system of Kailran was incredibly detailed, so the attitude that Ian had towards the NPCs within the Domain reflected onto the Popularity of the Domain. The Popularity was also a stat of the Domain. Because of that, although there may be NPCs that didn¡¯t look like much, he couldn¡¯t disregard them. Ian, who had gone up to the 2nd floor of the Guild, spoke to the NPC that was taking care of business at his seat. ¡°Good work.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, he was startled, and standing up, he bowed respectfully. ¡°Ah, Lord, you¡¯ve arrived.¡± ¡°Yes, I just came.¡± At Ian¡¯s formality, he opened his mouth while wearing an expression as if he was unsure of what to do. ¡°Lord, you don¡¯t have to speak so formally towards me.¡± He still wore an apologetic expression as he continued speaking. ¡°If you told me that you were coming beforehand, I would have at least prepared a bit¡­¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s alright. That¡¯s not necessary, I just have something I wanted to ask you.¡± ¡°Go ahead.¡± ¡°By any chance, do you know where the Summoner named ¡®Celia¡¯, who always sits there, currently is?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, he nodded his head and responded. ¡°Yes, of course I know. From what I know, Celia has currently gone to the Familiar Breeding Ground that¡¯s on the outskirts of the Domain.¡± At the slightly unexpected development, Ian wore a satisfied expression. ¡°Oh-ho, at the Familiar Breeding Ground? Do you happen to know why she went?¡± ¡°Celia obtained a young Blue Wyvern not long ago. She left it at the Breeding Ground, and she probably went to go get it.¡± The Breeding Ground that Professor Lee Jinook was managing. As he was so busy for a while, he had forgotten about it, but from the unexpected location and situation, he was able to hear something about her. ¡°Thank you.¡± After replying, Ian quickly turned his footsteps around and moved to find the Familiar Breeding Ground. * * * ¡°Oh, Jinsung, what brings you here? Did you come to leave a Familiar here as well?¡± Discovering Ian, who had come to the Breeding Ground, Jinook greeted him warmly. ¡°Ah, Professor, you were here. Has the Breeding Ground gotten into a little more shape?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Jinook let out a hearty laugh as he nodded his head. ¡°Yes, of course. Thanks to you, it¡¯s going really well. It seemed that because a lot of Summoners had formed on the Domain after the Summoner Guild was recently built, there are a lot of customers that come find this place.¡± As the more customers he had, the more money he made, so Jinook was all smiles. ¡°There haven¡¯t been any customers that are users yet, right?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve seen any users yet. Once users start to learn about the advantages of the Breeding Ground, there will for sure be a lot of people gathering.¡± Ian agreed with Jinook¡¯s words completely. But because he hoped that the information related to Potential and evolution wouldn¡¯t be revealed yet, he just wasn¡¯t actively promoting it. There also weren¡¯t a lot of Summoners that were at a level where they could come to the northern continent either. ¡®In order to effectively let it out at the most optimal time, I need to wait a little longer.¡¯ However, he also wasn¡¯t planning on monopolizing that information forever. Not long ago, a couple users that succeeded in monster evolution started to appear, and there would soon be users that figured out about the relationship between Potential and evolution. If he extensively promoted it in the community around then, he felt he could bring tons of users to the Lotus Domain. If there are more users, there would automatically be a bigger floating population, and it would be a big help to the economical development of the Domain. Lee Jinook¡¯s Familiar Breeding Ground would become an amazing foundation for the Domain¡¯s development. ¡®Even for that, we need to protect the Domain perfectly.¡¯ Ian, who pledged once more to himself, asked Jinook. ¡°Professor, by any chance, didn¡¯t a NPC named Celia come here?¡± ¡°Ah, if you¡¯re talking about that pretty, young lady, she should be over there. The Blue Wyvern she left here is over there, so.¡± ¡°Ah, thank you, Professor.¡± After Ian dipped his head towards Jinook, he walked towards Celia. Jinook, who saw that, wore a slightly suspicious expression. This was because Celia was a NPC that came to the Breeding Ground often, and from his perspective, she was completely ordinary. ¡°Hm, does that young lady NPC at least have some sort of quest?¡± And in order to faithfully carry out the request of Harin, who asked Jinook to let her know whenever he saw Ian, he sent her a message. Lee Jinook: Harin, Jinsung is at the Breeding Ground right now. A message returned immediately. Harin: Really? Thank you, Professor. But what is Jinsung doing there? Jinook continued and sent a message without any thought. Lee Jinook: Hmm¡­ He¡¯s talking to some pretty, young lady over there right now.¡­ Harin read Lee Jinook¡¯s message, but she didn¡¯t reply back. Jinook realized that he had made a mistake. However, he felt that it was too bothersome to personally explain. ¡°Kkul-kkul, well, I¡¯m sure something will happen.¡± On the other hand, Ian, who would have had no idea what kind of terrifying situation just occurred, was checking Celia¡¯s information with a bright expression. Celia Level: 108 Race: Human Class: Summoner Position: Commoner Personality: Cheerful Talent Rank: (Unknown) Combat Stats (Expand) Specific Abilities (Expand) Owned Abilities Familiar Healing 20% of maximum Spirit Magic will be consumed, and the target Familiar¡¯s Vitality will recover by 60%. (Cooldown time 5 minutes) Blessing of the Spirit All combat stats of ally Familiars within a 20-metre radius will increase by 5%. (Passive) Familiar Cloning (I) Amongst ally Familiars, one will be cloned and will participate in combat. The cloned Familiar will have 50% of the combat stats of the main body, and has a 30-minute duration period. (Even if the duration period is not over, if its Vitality reaches 0, it will disappear.) (Cooldown time 20 minutes) An apprentice Summoner that has outstanding talent. Has a bright and cheerful personality. Ian, who had read through all of the information, wore a pleased expression. ¡®As expected, she¡¯s satisfying. It will probably be hard to find an NPC like her.¡¯ Ian, who had approached Celia, spoke to her. ¡°Celia, hello. You remember seeing me before, right?¡± As Celia looked like she was only in her late 10s at most, Ian spoke comfortably. Celia, who was crouched down and was absorbed in her Blue Wyvern, turned her head around in surprise. And as she wore a flustered expression, she dropped her head. ¡°Ah, Lord. Sorry, I didn¡¯t even know you had come¡­¡± Ian, who watched Celia hesitate in a cute way, smirked and continued speaking. ¡°That¡¯s okay. Well, it could happen.¡± As Ian¡¯s expression wasn¡¯t bad, Celia instantly smiled brightly and opened her mouth. ¡°Lord, have you also come to leave your Familiars here?¡± ¡°Hm? No, nothing like that¡­¡± ¡°Then?¡± Ian answered with an awkward expression. ¡°I came because I had some business with you¡­¡± At those words, a slight blush appeared on both of Celia¡¯s cheeks. ¡°Huh? M, me?¡± ¡°Yeah. One second.¡± Ian rummaged through his chest and pulled out a seal of the Lord, which shone with a gold light. In Kailran, a favourable NPC could be taken in as a subordinate by handing their aristocrat seal to them. By handing the seal to Celia, it was a recruitment offer to become Ian¡¯s retainer. And with an expression full of curiosity, she watched Ian. ¡°I was hoping that you would help me from now on.¡± While saying that, Ian handed the seal to Celia. As he did so, a system message popped up at the same time. You have offered the chance to become a ¡®Retainer¡¯ to apprentice Summoner ¡®Celia¡¯ And Celia took the seal of the Lord. She wore a slightly surprised expression. ¡°I¡­ Will be able to be of help to you, Lord?¡± While looking at Celia, who asked back carefully, Ian relaxed a little. This was because he was a little worried, since if his Affinity with the subject NPC was low, he could fail in appointing, but Celia¡¯s reaction didn¡¯t look that bad. However, truthfully, it was a situation where Ian¡¯s chance of failure was incredibly low. He hadn¡¯t met Celia that much, but as he was the Lord of the Domain that Celia was affiliated with, his basic Affinity with her couldn¡¯t help but be incredibly high. ¡°Of course, that¡¯s why I¡¯m offering like this.¡± Ian smiled and continued speaking. ¡°What do you think, will you help me out a little?¡± Along with a bright smile, Celia nodded her head. ¡°Alright, Lord!¡± And the seal of the Lord that was in her hands turned into a white light and permeated into her wrist. You have gained apprentice Summoner ¡®Celia¡¯ as your Retainer.Retainer ¡®Celia¡¯s Talent Rank is ¡®Heroic¡¯-rank, and her current abilities are ¡®Rare¡¯-rank.¡®Ian¡¯s current Retainers: 1/20If Retainer ¡®Celia¡¯ is removed, 170 thousand Fame will be reduced. (If your Fame drops below 0, it will turn into Infamy.) After checking the system messages that popped up one after another, Ian¡¯s face lit up. This was because Celia¡¯s Talent Rank was Heroic-rank. He could see the NPC¡¯s abilities before appointing, but Talent Rank could only be checked afterwards. On top of that, which could also be told from the words that her abilities were ¡®Rare¡¯-rank, he couldn¡¯t figure out the Talent Rank just from her abilities. There was a bit of an inclination to gamble to an extent. Ian, who received a talented individual with a Heroic-rank, wore a pleased expression, but after seeing the message right underneath, he was a little taken aback. ¡®Huh? Wasn¡¯t it that my Fame drops by 100 thousand if I removed her?¡¯ After checking the explanation of the talented individual appointing content, he noticed the words that said at least 100 thousand. ¡®Depending on the abilities of the Retainer, it looks like there¡¯s a difference in the decreased Fame.¡¯ He felt it was a system made to prevent players from appointing any NPC unlimitedly until they found a NPC with a high Talent Rank. Celia approached Ian, whose mind became complicated from all of those thoughts, and bowed deeply towards him. ¡°Thank you, Lord. Please take care of me.¡± Ian held out a hand towards Celia. And her white and lovely hand took Ian¡¯s hand lightly. ¡°Please take care of me as well, Celia.¡± Both of Celia¡¯s large eyes blinked as she asked Ian. ¡°Lord, then, what do I need to do from now on?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ For now, just keep joining the punitive forces and level up. If there¡¯s something I need you for, then I¡¯ll call you.¡± Once the base was promoted to a Domain rank, it was possible to organize a self-governed group that was run by the Domain itself. The organized self-governed group went on their own and suppressed the nearby monsters surrounding the Domain daily. And most of the fighting-type NPCs that were affiliated with the Domain belonged to that self-governed group, and Celia was no exception. Even though she was now Ian¡¯s direct retainer. ¡°Yes, understood!¡± ¡°Go on your way now then.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± While looking at Celia, who responded with a cheerful voice, Ian automatically wore a pleased smile. He couldn¡¯t help but be in a good mood as not only were her abilities good, but Ian now had a pretty and kind subordinate. Ian, who sent Celia off on her way, moved his feet in order to appoint another retainer. However, as he turned to look another way, the form of someone who looked incredibly familiar to Ian caught his eyes. And not knowing of the reason why, he felt a chill. CH 100 Chapter 100: Prelude of the Territory Wars (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°So¡­ You¡¯re telling me it¡¯s an NPC?¡± Ian quickly nodded his head. ¡°That, that¡¯s what I¡¯m saying! She¡¯s a Summoner NPC that I appointed as my Retainer this time.¡± While Ian made excuses(?), he kept studying Harin. And with a sullen expression, she opened her mouth again. ¡°But why of all people did it have to be a young, pretty and cute girl?¡± Ian couldn¡¯t tell why, but he felt himself breaking out into a cold sweat. This was because he felt a bizarre atmosphere from Harin¡¯s tone that he had never felt before. ¡°That¡­ Since that NPC¡¯s abilities were the best¡­?¡± Ian¡¯s voice, which automatically grew faint! As Harin heard that voice, she felt her heart weaken a little bit. Harin swallowed down her jealousy and began to hypnotize herself. ¡®That¡¯s right, would a guy that only knows about games and doesn¡¯t have any interest in girls purposely choose a pretty NPC? He probably picked her just by her abilities.¡¯ As she finished thinking there, she became a little embarrassed as well. ¡®To have felt jealousy towards not even a human, but a NPC in a game.¡¯ As she felt that she would actually be seen as a girlfriend with a narrow-minded attitude who even felt jealousy towards a NPC in a game if she pressed him any further, Harin forced a smile. ¡°That¡¯s¡­ That¡¯s what it was, right?¡± Feeling Harin¡¯s voice slightly soften, Ian¡¯s expression slightly brightened. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m telling you!¡± ¡°Alright. Then, I¡¯m only letting you go this time!¡± While looking at Harin, who spoke as if she was being incredibly kind-hearted, Ian smiled brightly. Of course, he had no idea what he was at fault for nor what she was letting him go for. * * * The place that Ian, who had barely calmed Harin down, was headed for was the Dimensional Tower. If it was Dimensional Enchanter Gripper, who was at the Dimensional Tower, there was no mistake he would be a NPC with an incredibly high rank, and so he had come with the hope that by chance he could appoint him. ¡®It probably won¡¯t happen¡­ But since it doesn¡¯t hurt to try.¡¯ And Ian, who had arrived at the Tower, received a warm welcome from Gripper. ¡°Oh, Ian. Long time, no see. I heard the news about you, so I know of it.¡± At Gripper¡¯s words, Ian wore a quizzical expression as he asked back. ¡°Huh? What news?¡± ¡°What do you mean what news, it¡¯s obviously the news that you had become a respectable Baron.¡± Ian was taken aback. ¡°Where, where did you hear that?¡± Gripper¡¯s wrinkled eyes crinkled as he responded. ¡°I have an acquaintance in the imperial family of the Luspel Empire.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ I see.¡± Ian felt something was weird. ¡®What is this, how does Gripper have an acquaintance in the imperial family? By any chance¡­?¡¯ Ian hastily checked Gripper¡¯s information. Gripper Level: ? Race: Human Class: Magician (Dimensional Enchanter) Position: Earl Personality: Full of curiosity Talent Rank: (Unknown) Combat Stats (Expand) Specific Abilities (Expand) Owned Abilities (Unknown) A Dimensional Enchanter who succeeds the legends. And before he realized, he sucked in a breath of air. ¡®What the hell, for his level to be marked as a ?, how high is it?¡¯ He had seen this kind of case before. ¡®Hellaim, is he at a similar level to that monster?¡¯ On top of that, his position was an Earl. It was an aristocrat rank that was higher than Ian¡¯s. There was no way that a Baron could have an Earl as their retainer. Ian slightly pushed in the seal of the Lord that he was about to pull out. ¡°Haha, so you were an aristocrat of the Luspel Empire as well, Gripper?¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Gripper let out a hearty laugh as he nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. It happened a long time ago, but the king of the previous generation had bestowed the title of the Earl upon me. From then onwards, there were cases where I helped the Magicians of the Luspel Empire¡¯s imperial palace from time to time.¡± ¡°As expected¡­ Gripper, you were an amazing person.¡± Gripper, who was in a good mood from Ian¡¯s flattery, laughed, and after conversing with him for some time, Ian ended up unable to say a word about the retainer-part and could only return to the Domain. Ian decided to rid of some of his greed. ¡®Later¡­ If I raise my title to a Marquis or Duke title someday, I¡¯ll try again.¡¯ While he was thinking of it, Ian checked the requirements that were needed in order to go up to the next title. The next title after Baron was ¡®Viscount¡¯. User Title Rank Current Rank: Baron Next Rank: Viscount Fame consumed for promotion: 800 thousand Authority: 25 NPCs can be appointed as subordinates. ¡°Tsk¡­¡± Ian licked his lips. The amount of Fame that Ian currently had was a little over 900 thousand. He could immediately be promoted to a Viscount title, but the only considerable advantage he would be gaining would be that the number of NPCs he could appoint as subordinates would increase just by about 5. If his Fame dropped, the Affinity of the Domain NPCs dropped, and as several different benefits from Fame, such as item discounts, would be reduced as well, there was absolutely no reason for him to be promoted right now. ¡®After Viscount is Earl, and after that, it¡¯s Marquis, and then after that, it¡¯s Duke, so I¡¯ve still got a long way to go.¡¯ Ian checked his retainer list, which was practically empty, and let out a deep sigh. ¡®That¡¯s right, even though they aren¡¯t as good as I¡¯m hoping for, let¡¯s just appoint about four or five more guys between the Human Resource Centre or the NPCs in the Domain that look good enough.¡¯ As he still had enough space left until the retainer appointing limit anyways, and he also checked that the limit also increased once his title went up. Ian now headed towards the Human Resource Centre. * * * The Lotus Domain, the conference room of the manor. It had been a while since the individuals that could be considered the leading members of the guild were all gathered in the conference room. As the members of the Lotus Guild had increased quite a bit, the guild had about 150 total guild members. Amongst them, over 100 of them were made up of users that were over lv 100, so they could be considered to have quite a strong fighting power. Fiolan, who still maintained having the highest level within the guild, was a whopping lv 118, and several, including Herz, were hot on her tail at lv 115. Even Ian, who leveled up at a monstrous speed, was already at lv 114. ¡°As expected, a territory war request came in as soon as the protection was released.¡± At Fiolan¡¯s words, Herz nodded his head. ¡°Well, it can¡¯t be helped. Since our guild is definitely holding onto a good Domain in comparison to our guild rank, there will be a lot of guilds that want it.¡± Kroban, who was next to him, also opened his mouth. ¡°Well, however, it¡¯s something we were all expecting, and our guild just hasn¡¯t done a guild war recently, but we¡¯ve grown much stronger, no? On top of that, we¡¯re defending, so we shouldn¡¯t have to worry too much. Our opponent is the Polaris Guild and there¡¯s not much of a rank difference between us either.¡± ¡°Kroban is right. In reality, amongst the territory wars that have taken place up until now, about 70% of them ended with the defending side winning.¡± The minute the Lotus Guild¡¯s base protection was released, the Polaris guild were the ones that asked for a territory war. The current meeting was to plan out the tactic of the territory war. ¡°By any chance, is there anybody that knows anything about the Polaris Guild¡¯s fighting power?¡± At Herz¡¯s question, Carwin responded. ¡°Hmm, there was an acquaintance of mine that had went into the Polaris Guild for a bit before, but, how to put it¡­ Over there, it seemed like they changed their guild members frequently, different from us.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yeah. Aside from the Guild Master and the Sub-Guild Master, the leading members apparently change a lot as well. The number of guild members there is close to 200 members, but I heard that only about ten members have been there since the beginning.¡± Fiolan, who was listening next to them, asked. ¡°What help is that to find out about that side¡¯s fighting power?¡± This time, Ian, who was just silently listening, responded. ¡°The fact that their members keep on changing means that their party-playing proficiency can¡¯t help but be incredibly low.¡± ¡°I see. That is true.¡± Carwin agreed as he continued his explanation. ¡°Ian hyung is right. That¡¯s also true, and there, the structure is that a couple of them, including the Guild Master, are strong, while the rest of the guild members are nobodies. I heard that there are also a lot of members that donated gold and entered in order to wear the halo of a giant guild on their back.¡± Herz¡¯s expression slightly brightened. ¡°Then that means we could win a lot easier than I thought.¡± At those words, Ian shook his head as he spoke. ¡°No, we can¡¯t just take them lightly because of that. Since they still are a guild that ranks in the Diamond-class. If the other guild members are a motley crew, then the fighting power of the main members is probably higher than the average fighting power of a Diamond-class guild.¡± Ian was working hard and planning a strategy inside his head. Rather than a guild with bland fighting power, it looked like it was instead easier to plan a strategy when facing a guild with a fighting power that had characteristics like this. Ian¡¯s words continued. ¡°If you look through all the territory wars that took place recently, most of the defending guilds used the battles at the Valiant Battleground as cards they were throwing away, and in order to bring back a solid victory at the Battleground of Protection, they focused all their fighting power then, right?¡± At those words, most of the people in the conference room nodded their head. This was because they also watched the important territory wars without missing one. Herz grabbed Ian¡¯s words. ¡°They did. Since it¡¯s a typical strategy, and definitely a strategy where the risk is low. The defending side just needs to win three matches including the defending matches anyways, so they don¡¯t need to waste their strength at the Valiant Battleground.¡± Just like Herz said, there were also cases where in some territory wars, the side of the defending guild practically tossed the first three matches as withdrawals. They were up front about going all-out in the Battleground of Protection. Fiolan spoke. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be right for us to use a strategy like this in the end as well?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Wouldn¡¯t it be much wiser to focus our fighting power during the advantageous defending matches?¡± It was an atmosphere where it looked like most agreed, but Ian thought differently. After Ian thought for a moment, he grinned as he opened his mouth. ¡°How about we use this inversely?¡± * * * ¡°Are we really¡­ going with this?¡± While looking at Ian, who was registering the troops in the territory wars, Herz asked with a worried voice. ¡°Yeah. I¡¯ve continuously explained up until now. Trust me.¡± Ian grinned, but Herz¡¯s worry didn¡¯t disappear. This was because, once the participants were registered for the battle that would immediately happen as well as the next battle, it was impossible to change it in the middle. ¡°No, your strategy definitely has a point and it¡¯s all good¡­¡± ¡°Then?¡± ¡°Despite that, isn¡¯t it a bit irrational to have just you as the only user participating in the first two matches?¡± ¡°We¡¯re putting in all our NPC troops. It¡¯s alright.¡± ¡°Even though, it¡¯s not like there are a lot of them, and they¡¯re levels are all around 60.¡± However, Ian wasn¡¯t fazed, and he deployed the fighting power without hesitation. Herz, who saw that, let out a deep sigh. ¡°I don¡¯t even know now. I need to pray that the war situation will move as you think.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I will bring back 2 wins.¡± Ian¡¯s prediction was this. If thought of from the perspective of the attacking guild, since the chances that the defending guild would use the Valiant Battleground as cards they were throwing out were high, they would try to pick up the trashed cards with the least number of troops. After conserving most of their troops until the siege warfare, they would most likely try to take victory by going all-out. If that was the case, then they just needed to counterplot that. Ian was planning on participating in the first and second match with just him, the strongest fighting power of the Lotus Guild currently, leading just all of the NPCs. It was a tactic with a counter method that planned on wrecking the opponent guild, whom entered with a half-assed military force to pick up wins. In the case that this plan succeeded, there was an effect that was higher than bringing back the two matches. Once they inversely picked up the first two matches like that, the opponent attacking guild, now pressed by the situation, would have no choice but to deploy quite a lot of troops starting from the 3rd match. ¡®Then starting from the 3rd match, we¡¯ll give the matches to our opponent instead.¡¯ Because from the perspective of the attacking guild, if they were defeated once more now, the would lose the territory war, so even though they know the tactic of their opponents, they wouldn¡¯t be able to send out a half-assed military force. And after that, once their opponents deployed all their troops in the first siege warfare, they would be able to easily block the attack of the opponent guild, who wouldn¡¯t have many troops left. The other guild members were astonished at the detail of Ian¡¯s strategy after hearing it, but it looked as if their worries still couldn¡¯t be helped. Since they couldn¡¯t ignore the risk if they were to fail as well. ¡°Anyways, fighting[1], Ian. If it goes just as you said, it looks like we¡¯ll be able to defend really easily.¡± ¡°Yep. Believe me, Fiolan.¡± Shortly after, a couple system messages popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. ¡®Ian¡¯ has been set up as a participant in the first match of the territory war between the ¡®Lotus¡¯ Guild and the ¡®Polaris¡¯ Guild.Exactly 20 minutes from now, you will be teleported to the Valiant Battleground, so please have all preparations done before then. One corner of Ian¡¯s mouth slightly rolled upwards. ¡®This¡­ It¡¯s been a while since I felt such a thrill.¡¯ Along with it being a battle with a scale so big that it was incomparable to the arena, it was an important fight that had a lot of things at risk. And the biggest weight was on Ian¡¯s own shoulders. After inspecting the state of his Familiars, Ian lastly checked the state of his ¡®Retainers¡¯ that he appointed. There was a total of five retainers that Ian appointed. Celia Level: 110 / Class: Summoner / Rank: Heroic Mallaim Level: 107 / Class: Warrior / Rank: Rare Tenpus Level: 114 / Class: Priest / Rank: Common Cerius Level: 109 / Class: Magician / Rank: Unique Loreuten Level: 110 / Class: Warrior / Rank: Rare Luckily, he was able to gain another talented individual with a Unique-rank named Cerius, but the abilities of the other retainers were so-so. Still, as they were all quite a high level, they would be a big help. ¡®Now I need to control not just my Familiars, but my retainers, as well as all of the troops, so the control difficulty level will be really high.¡¯ However, he wasn¡¯t nervous. Ian was confident. As he finished inspecting even all of the equipment of the retainers, a system message popped up again. 1 minute from now, you will be teleported to the Valiant Battleground. And shortly after, Ian¡¯s form disappeared in front of everybody¡¯s eyes, which were full of worry. The first territory war of the Lotus Guild had begun. [1] fighting = commonly used word of encouragement, as well as a cheer. CH 101 Chapter 101: The Ruler of the Battlefield (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Sponsors: AJB, Crotty and B.G. Whoong-. The Valiant Battleground that boasted a majestic grandeur reminiscent of a giant colosseum. And on the end of either side, the fighting power of the Polaris Guild and the Lotus Guild began to be summoned in order. Ian was summoned right in the middle of the camp on the Lotus Guild¡¯s side. It was an obvious as he was the only participating user of the Lotus Guild. ¡®It¡¯s been a long time, Valiant Battleground.¡¯ Before resetting, when they had done guild wars during the height of their efforts to raise the guild rank, he had entered this place two to three times a week and had become familiar with it. However, as that was something that already happened months ago, it was a new experience for Ian. 30 seconds from now, the war will begin. The system message that popped up. Ian began to observe each and every one of the users that were being summoned in the enemy camp on the other side. As he couldn¡¯t even move a finger before the battle began anyways, the only thing he could do was figure out the fighting power on the opponent¡¯s side. ¡®Those idiots entered without even putting their levels on private¡­¡¯ Ian, who saw a couple users with their levels set up to be revealed, cluck his tongue inwardly. It was a part that showed how much the guild on the opponent¡¯s side thought the battle in the Valiant Battleground would be easy. ¡®First of all, amongst the twelve whose levels are visible, there isn¡¯t even one that is over lv 100. Is the highest level around lv 95?¡¯ The problem was the remaining fifteen or so users whose levels weren¡¯t visible. Amongst them, a strong person could be mixed in. ¡®Since they¡¯ve seen that I¡¯m the only user, they probably let down their guard, right?¡¯ And Ian¡¯s assumption was right. The Polaris Guild, who studied the Lotus Guild¡¯s camp from afar, were already certain of their victory. ¡°Millun, I was right, no?¡± At Rukin¡¯s words, Millun grinned as he nodded his head. ¡°You really were. I never expected for the Lotus Guild to trash the Valiant Battleground this blatantly.¡± ¡°Huhu, I¡¯m itching because I want to run in right now.¡± ¡°The last hit is mine. Look for someone else.¡± ¡°Very funny. Try if you can.¡± Rukin and Millun had asked their Guild Master to let them participate in the 1st match and entered as volunteers. The reason was obviously because they thought that the Lotus Guild would use the Valiant Battleground as a card they were throwing away. On top of that, seeing that there was only one user in the camp of their opponent¡¯s side right now, the two people¡¯s bodies were itching. This was because, if they won in the Valiant Battleground, depending on the level of contribution, they received a Fame reward, and if there was only one opponent user, they would be able to gain 100% of the level of contribution as soon as the judgement was made that they killed that one person. If one consumed 100% of the level of contribution for victory in a Diamond-class guild war, in all probability, they would probably be able to obtain an outrageous amount of Fame. Staring at Ian, who was far away, Rukin mumbled. Of course, he hadn¡¯t recognized Ian. ¡°Speaking of which, that dude is really pitiful.¡± Millun also agreed. ¡°No kidding, he¡¯s the definition of a meat shield.¡± Because they were far away, they couldn¡¯t check Ian¡¯s face, and to have only one user participating from the opponent guild meant he was a card they were throwing away, so they thought that they wouldn¡¯t have had a strong user participating. In the two people¡¯s eyes, Ian was just an excellent prey. ¡°We would have seriously regretted it if we had invested even one hired soldier in the first match.¡± At Rukin¡¯s words, Millun nodded his head as he agreed. ¡°That¡¯s right. If we did that, it would have truly been a waste. Since we wouldn¡¯t have been able to take the level of contributions.¡± Separate from the two people, who were happy thinking of the enormous Fame they would gain, Ian was thinking over how he should fight in order to minimize the damage he would receive and win. While he was doing so, the NPCs and the spectators began to be summoned in the arena on either camp. Whiing- Whing-. Herz and Fiolan, who had entered the arena, hurriedly checked the fighting power of the Polaris Guild. ¡°Most of them are around lv 90, Herz.¡± At Fiolan¡¯s words, Herz nodded his head as he wore a worried expression. ¡°Yeah. From the looks of the equipment they¡¯re carrying, it doesn¡¯t look like there¡¯s a high-level user amongst the ones with their levels on private either¡­ But as there are a lot more than I was expecting, I¡¯m not sure if Ian will be able to cover everything on his own.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll find out if we keep watching, I guess. Ian fights really well in a one-vs-all battle like a demon, so I think he has a chance of winning.¡± At Fiolan¡¯s words, Herz, who remembered Ian¡¯s active part in the Forlan dungeon, was able to shake off some of his uneasiness. Herz¡¯s gaze turned towards Ian. ¡®I believe in you, Jinsung.¡¯ And shortly after, a system message began to pop up in front of all of the users that entered the arena. The battle will begin 5 seconds from now.5, 4, 3. Ian focused all of his mind and calmed his heart. ¡®Let¡¯s think of it like I¡¯m group hunting.¡¯ Ever since Pin had grown, Ian was able to easily gather and kill even the monsters in the northern continent that were over lv 110. Of course, users would be stronger than Common-rank monsters, but if they weren¡¯t even at lv 100, then there was no need to worry too much. 2, 1, Start! As the battle began, Ian quickly summoned his Familiars first. ¡°Ly, Lake, Pin, Halli, Summon!¡± Ian, who had summoned all of his Familiars besides Ddukdae, turned his head towards the NPCs that were lined up behind him. And amongst his retainers, he called over the two whom were Warrior-classes and spoke to them. ¡°They probably just have their eyes on me and will lunge at me crazily. Loreuten, Mallaim. You two lead the soldiers and line up on either side, and once I start the battle, raid them from both sides.¡± He wasn¡¯t expecting much from the lv 60-range soldier NPCs anyways. It was enough if they could just rush into the battleground and increase the opponents¡¯ confusion. The two retainers bowed deeply at the same time as they replied. ¡°Yes, Lord!¡± ¡°Your command will be honoured!¡± And to Tenpus, who was a Priest-class, Ian commanded him to concentrate only on recovering his Vitality. Because the moment they got Ian, it would be their defeat in the battle, so they needed to be as careful as possible. To Cerius, the Magician, and Celia, the Summoner, he gave the same command to the two. ¡°You two, after Ddukdae uses Abyss Hole, pour out all of your attacks then, understood? Especially Cerius, you need to use your AoE magic first.¡± ¡°By Ddukdae, you mean that Abyss Golem, right?¡± At Celia¡¯s question, Ian nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± While Ian gave out commands, the users of the Polaris camp began to recklessly rush towards Ian. Because they were all just targeting Ian, naturally, the formation became clustered. And that was also what Ian was aiming for. ¡®If Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss Hole just hits properly, we¡¯ll be able to wipe all of them without much bleeding.¡¯ That was the reason why Ian was waiting without summoning Ddukdae. He was planning on summoning Ddukdae at the point where the best angle for Abyss Hole would be and tie down as many individuals as he could with Abyss Hole. Ian held his breath and waited for his opponents to come right up to his nose. ¡®I need to at least tie down all of the close-ranged combat-type classes.¡¯ Even though his opponents entered the range where he could shoot his Magic Spheres, Ian stood still and waited. This was because of his calculation that he could be alerting his opponents with the destructive power of his spheres if they were directly hit. ¡®Just a little more¡­¡¯ Ian¡¯s concentration had reached its height. This was because depending on how the start of the battle was opened up, it was something that could influence the war situation. ¡®Now¡­!¡¯ Ian, who caught the timing, summoned Ddukdae. ¡°Ddukdae, Summon!¡± As he did so, Ddukdae, who was gigantic in size, appeared while letting out a heavy sound in front of the users of the Polaris Guild who were at the head. Thud-! At the unexpected situation, the Polaris users flinched. ¡°What the hell? This. That dude was a Summoner?¡± ¡°This is a Familiar I¡¯m seeing for the first time!¡± Because Ddukdae was an Abyss Golem that was born through evolution by Ian, it was obvious that it was their first time seeing one. However, as one of them yelled loudly, all of them began to charge towards Ian again. ¡°Ignore the golem and just beat that dude to a pulp!¡± Their decision that looked reasonable at a glimpse. However, to them, who didn¡¯t know that Ddukdae had an Inherent Ability called ¡®Abyss Hole¡¯, that was their worst mistake. ¡°Ddukdae, Abyss Hole! Pin, Roar of the King!¡± Along with Ian¡¯s shout, a giant vortex began to spew from both of Ddukdae¡¯s arms, and Pin, who had fully grown to an adult now, cried towards the air. Kyaaoh-! And as the slowing effect that the Roar of the King had and the effect of the Abyss Hole overlapped, the fifteen or so users that ran towards him at the head were tied down. ¡°What the hell is this!¡± ¡°This crazy, what kind of slowing effect is like this?¡± As the users who were sucked into the range of the Abyss Hole began to be flustered, Ian lifted his hand straight up in the air. ¡°Everyone, attack!¡± The minute that Ian¡¯s words finished, Lake¡¯s Breath attacked them first, and Pin flew up into the air. Hwaaak-! The firepower of Breath that came out of lv 117 Lake¡¯s mouth was enormous. ¡°This crazy! My Vitality has been cut down to half from just one hit!¡± ¡°Fuck! It¡¯s a trap!¡± The users of the Polaris Guild, who finally realized that something was weird, began to run about in confusion, and the flaps of Pin¡¯s wings, who was flying through the air, was poured down on them. Kwaaah-! The wind that spewed out of the large, golden wings of Pin, who was now over lv 100, created a violent whirlwind, and that began to mercilessly rage towards the users of the Polaris Guild. Familiar ¡®Pin¡¯s Inherent Ability, ¡®Crush¡¯, has been invoked. It was a catastrophe. Bang ¨C Ba-Bang-! As the situation turned like this, the long-range class users that were a bit far off and didn¡¯t enter the range of the Abyss Hole began to focus their firepower towards Ddukdae. It looked as if they thought that it was most urgent to cut off Abyss Hole first. It was perhaps an obvious decision as Abyss Hole needed to be cut off first in order for Ddukdae to move and avoid the AoE attacks. And as a concentrated fire was poured out, the Vitality of Ddukdae, who boasted an incredible resilience, dropped to almost half in an instant. Ian, who saw that, let out a command to Celia. ¡°Celia, heal Ddukdae!¡± ¡°Alright!¡± Celia¡¯s Inherent Ability, ¡®Familiar Healing¡¯, was invoked. Retainer ¡®Celia¡¯ used ¡®Familiar Healing¡¯ and has recovered 60% of Familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯s Vitality. The users, who were taken aback as a matter of fact since Ddukdae was holding out for quite a long time, fell into a panicked state as the Vitality that they struggled to cut down was completely recovered. ¡°Ah, I¡¯m going to go insane!¡± The cries of the Polaris Guild users, which sounded like a cry with their feelings intact, could be heard. Unable to do this or that, the close-range class users, who were helplessly mangled by the AoE attacks, began to die off one by one. Amongst them, there was also Rukin, a Warrior-class. ¡°Damn it! What the hell is up with this damage!¡± And Ian¡¯s form caught the flustered Rukin¡¯s eye. ¡°Ian! It was you!¡± And at his shout, Ian¡¯s attention turned. Ian was dumbfounded. ¡°What the hell, why is that idiot here again?¡± And a Magic Sphere was shot out from Ian¡¯s staff. Pung-! As Ian¡¯s ability to accurately hit with projectiles was close to superhuman skill, hitting Rukin, who was right in front of him, was basically equivalent to eating cooled down porridge. You have hit the target with the Magic Sphere and have dealt 7720 damage to ¡®Rukin¡¯.As you have successfully hit the opponent, 5 Spirit Magic has been recovered. The Summoning Magic of Ian, who had reached lv 114, had become so strong that it was difficult to even compare with before, and the Magic Spheres of Ian, who were like that, had enough destructive power to get rid of Rukin, who didn¡¯t have much Vitality left. You have killed user ¡®Rukin¡¯. You have obtained 3.7% of the contributions towards the battle. ¡°Ack-!¡± While looking at Rukin, who disappeared into a grey light with a resentful expression, Ian shook his head. ¡°Why am I constantly getting involved with this imbecile? Putting me in a bad mood.¡± However, just then. A purple energy flowed out of Rukin¡¯s dying corpse and was absorbed into Ian. ¡®Hmm¡­? What is this?¡¯ Ian, who was nervous that it was an attack of a type that he was seeing for the first time, began to focus back to the battle as nothing else happened. And Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss Hole, which the charging time for was fully completed in that duration, let out a boom as it exploded out. CH 102 Chapter 102: The Ruler of the Battlefield (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Pung-! As Pin¡¯s AoE attack, Crush, swept through the battleground once, four or five users died at once. However, just like when Rukin died, didn¡¯t energies of purple light leave the corpses and absorb into Ian? Ian¡¯s eyes slightly rounded. ¡®What is this? This is my first time seeing a phenomenon like this.¡¯ Ian, who was taken aback, momentarily hesitated. However, it wasn¡¯t like it was influencing the war situation. This was because, separate from his surprise, the users of the Polaris Guild were scattered here and there and were beginning to panic. That was thanks to the soldiers of the Lotus Guild, who had rushed in towards them just like how Ian had commanded beforehand. And the scattered users were good prey for Ly and Halli. Ian, who set aside his curiosity, gave a command to Ly. ¡°Ly, Thirst for Blood!¡± Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s Inherent Ability, ¡®Thirst for Blood¡¯, has been invoked.For 3 minutes, ¡®Ly¡¯s Offensive Power and Agility will increase by 30%, while his movement speed will increase by 40%. A situation where the Vitality of most of the opponents that were scattered along the battleground was less than 30%. Ly literally began to leap around crazily. Ly¡¯s sharp teeth dug into the back of the necks of the panicking users in the battlefield. Chomp-! Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has dealt critical damage to ¡®Kei¡¯!User ¡®Kei¡¯s Vitality has decreased by 9150.As the ¡®Thirst for Blood¡¯ effect was invoked, the damage was applied once more.User ¡®Kei¡¯s Vitality has decreased by 9150.You have killed user ¡®Kei¡¯. You have obtained 3.6% of the contributions towards the battle. Ly was lv 115. Because Ly¡¯s Vitality was remarkably lower compared to his level stat ratio, his Vitality was cut down in chunks even from the attacks of lv 90-range users. However, thanks to the additional effects of ¡®Health Absorption¡¯ and ¡®Thirst for Blood¡¯, his Vitality, which dropped below half, was filled up to its maximum again after attacking once or twice. Ly, who became vigorous and flew around again just when they felt they almost had him, couldn¡¯t help but make the Polaris Guild members fed up with him. They literally began to suffer helplessly. Ian, who glanced at the war situation, pulled the soldiers towards the back. ¡®Since we¡¯ve definitely won now, the damage needs to be reduced as much as possible.¡¯ Rather than personally fighting, he focused more on directing the battlefield. It wasn¡¯t an exaggeration to say that they already won this battle. If that was the case, he needed to concentrate on saving at least one more soldier now. That would be even a little bit of help in the next battle. However, just then, one user charged towards Ian. ¡°Die, you vile enemy!¡± He narrowly approached right in front of Ian, but there was no way Ian¡¯s retainers would have just stood by and watched him. ¡°How dare you come at the Lord!¡± At the combined attack of Mallaim and Loreuten, as well as Celia, who had approached them in no time, he collapsed helplessly. They were NPCs that had weaker stats in comparison to users, but because there was almost a 20-level difference and it was a combined attack of the three, he actually died without being able to do anything. It was at this point that the Polaris users could only lose all their fighting spirit. With almost thirty of them, their fighting power had been reduced to less than ten of them remaining. ¡®It ended more boringly than I expected.¡¯ Ian looked around the battleground with a satisfied expression. However, just then, a familiar user diligently shooting out Induced Arrows from far away caught his eye. It was Millun, the Archer that was in Ian¡¯s memory. ¡°Ha¡­ That idiot was here as well?¡± In the end, Millun and Rukin had never directly dealt any damage to Ian. It also wasn¡¯t like Ian felt greatly angered or anything by them. However, that was separate from disgust. Ian called over Pin, who was on a rampage through the battleground and playing an active part expected of a Legendary-rank Familiar. ¡°Pin!¡± Kku-ru-ruk-! ¡°Over there, you see that guy, right? Go and beat him up to a pulp!¡± Kku-ruk-! Pin, who had received Ian¡¯s command, flew with lightning speed towards Millun, who was struggling while facing the soldiers of the Lotus Guild. Swaaeek-! And Millun, who only then discovered Pin, turned deadly pale. ¡°What the hell is this now?¡± Millun, who would have never seen a Griffin before, used the strongest skill he had after discovering the monster-like, golden eagle that flew towards him at a outrageous speed. ¡°Storm Arrow!¡± Storm Arrow, a high-class skill that was quite hard to find! However, to have used that on ¡®Pin¡¯ of all possibilities, it returned to him after resulting in a situation where he had driven a nail into his own coffin. Familiar ¡®Pin¡¯ has received a Wind-type attack.Inherent Ability ¡®Guardian of the Wind¡¯ has been invoked.Pin¡¯s Offensive Power will increase by 30% for 3 minutes. Amongst Ian¡¯s Familiars, Pin¡¯s level was the lowest, but the insane ¡®Legendary-rank¡¯ covered more than ten levels easily. In the Valiant Battleground right now, the one with the highest Agility was Pin. Pa-Pa-Pak-! Before Millun could even try anything, Pin¡¯s sharp claws raked through the back of his neck strongly. You have killed user ¡®Millun¡¯. You have obtained 3.8% of the contributions towards the battle. The fighting power of the Polaris Guild became completely devastated due to just Ian alone! Although they were only lv 90-100, but even though it was an advanced unit that was made up of comparably lower level users, Ian¡¯s active part was truly surprising. Herz and Fiolan, who were sitting in the spectators¡¯ area, were watching the battle, dazed, without even realizing that their mouths were gaping open. Herz felt that he was going to end up drooling soon. However, the new guild members, who had never hunted with Ian before, were even more surprised. Excited voices flowed from here and there in the spectators¡¯ area of the Lotus Guild¡¯s camp. ¡°Wow, they did say that Ian was the number 1 ranking Summoner, but this is truly tremendous.¡± ¡°I was wondering how he monopolized the Forlan rankings, but there was a reason for that.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t Summoner a balance breaker then?¡± ¡°No-no, what are you saying. I have one lv 80 Summoner friend, but he can¡¯t even properly control the three Familiars that he has. And it didn¡¯t even look like his Familiars were as strong as Ian¡¯s Familiars.¡± ¡°It looks like it¡¯s just Ian that¡¯s a balance breaker.¡± On the other hand, the spectators¡¯ area of the Polaris Guild¡¯s side was just flowing with silence. The Guild Master of the Polaris Guild, Lockram, murmured to himself. ¡°How can a Summoner be like that?¡± At his words, a guild member that stood next to him, carefully responded. ¡°That¡­ It looks like it¡¯s the user named Ian, who became famous lately because of the Grave of the Forlan Hero¡¯s Hall of Fame.¡± ¡°Ian?¡± ¡°Yes, Guild Master. I¡¯m talking about the user who wiped that Forlan Dungeon¡¯s top rank. That user seems to be that person.¡± Lockram, who was momentarily trapped in his thoughts after hearing his words, asked Hansen, the Sub-Guild Master as well as his best friend. ¡°Hansen, how is our disposition of men for our second match right now?¡± Hansen responded. ¡°There¡¯s probably not much difference from the first match.¡± Lockram¡¯s face slightly creased. ¡°Damn it, will that monster-like guy come out in the second match as well?¡± Hansen nodded with a grim expression. ¡°He probably will, no? With a fighting power like that, he¡¯s even probably a user that¡¯s part of Lotus Guild¡¯s strongest¡­ I think that side read our strategy and inversely strategized to beat us.¡± Lockram felt his head spinning. Once this match finished now, he needed to plan the disposition of men for the next, next match, which was the third match. Originally, he didn¡¯t really feel burdened, but because if they were going to helplessly hand over the second match just like the first one, in the case that they lost the third match, they would lose the territory war just like that, so he was unable to send out a half-assed fighting power. ¡°Hansen, I think we¡¯ll need to invest about two mercenaries for the third match.¡± At Lockram¡¯s words, Hansen sighed deeply as he spoke. ¡°If I was the Lotus Guild, I feel like I would use the third match as a card I was throwing out¡­¡± ¡°I also think the same way. However, there¡¯s nothing we can do, right? There¡¯s no other place that we can withdraw to.¡± While the two people racked their throbbing brains and discussed about the disposition of men for the third match, Ian cleaned up all of the rest of the fighting power of the Polaris Guild. Bang-! You have killed user ¡®Fire56¡¯. You have obtained 3.6% of the contributions towards the battle.You have killed user ¡®Cleans¡¯. You have obtained 3.9% of the contributions towards the battle. And like that, the first battle of the two guilds¡¯ territory war, ended. Of course, the result was the Lotus Guild¡¯s victory. All of the participating individuals of the ¡®Polaris¡¯ Guild have died.You have contributed 100% towards the victory of the battle.Based on the fighting level of contribution, you have obtained 63,500 Fame. It was an enormous amount of Fame that could only be obtained by succeeding a decent- A-rank quest. A pleased smile hung from Ian¡¯s mouth. The Valiant Battleground, in the first battle, the Lotus Guild has won against the Polaris Guild as their opponent. The whole battleground began to be wrapped in a white light, and at the same time, all of the users that were spectating in the Valiant Battleground were warped to their original position. And Ian, who remained in the battleground alone, disappeared from his spot along with a white ray of light as well. * * * ¡°Kyah, Ian hyung, you¡¯re seriously amazing!¡± ¡°Wow, I seriously wasn¡¯t sure about this¡­ But this is like you were just playing with them.¡± The users that had gathered in the guild conference room again after the battle ended had all gathered in front of Ian. As it was the first territory war, and their first victory, they all had elated expressions. Ian tousled Carwin¡¯s hair and laughed. ¡°Dude, what did this hyung tell you. I told you to believe in me.¡± Carwin pouted as he replied. ¡°No, of course I believed in you. But hyung, did you know?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°We only lost five soldiers as well.¡± Because the moment Ian was sure of victory, he had pulled all of the soldiers back, he had made the damage almost nonexistent. Five soldiers couldn¡¯t even be considered damage. Kroban, who was standing next to them, also wore a broad smile as he opened his mouth. ¡°Keu, Ian carried our first territory war. By bringing back 1 victory like this, our hearts are much lighter now.¡± Fiolan nodded her head in agreement. ¡°That¡¯s right. And just like Ian thought, won¡¯t he be able to bring back the second battle easily most likely as well?¡± ¡°No kidding. Since they needed to finish the disposition of men for the second match as well before the first match started, those guys won¡¯t be able to reinforce their military now.¡± At the two people¡¯s words, all of the guild members nodded their heads. The guild members were surprised at Ian¡¯s fighting abilities, but more than that, they were even more in awe at his perfect strategy that had almost put them at a loss for words. Ian opened his mouth. ¡°I probably won¡¯t be able to win the second match as easily as I did this one.¡± At his words, everybody¡¯s attention was gathered towards Ian¡¯s mouth. Ian¡¯s words continued. ¡°This time, they were completely caught off-guard, so I was able to win easily. Since they probably ran in after seeing that our side only had one person participating and thought our side was withdrawing.¡± Herz nodded his head as he agreed. ¡°That¡¯s right. In the beginning, it looked like they were just running in blindly without getting their lines or camp in order at all.¡± ¡°Yeah. Thanks to that, I was able to get in all my AoE attacks at their maximum effectiveness, so I was able to grab the victory as soon as it started. However, since they suffered once already, they¡¯ll probably try to fight a little more carefully.¡± Harin, who was just listening to their conversation in the corner without much to say, asked Ian carefully. ¡°Then, is it possible that you might lose the second battle, Jinsung?¡± Ian¡¯s attention turned towards Harin. He smirked as he responded shortly to her. ¡°No, there¡¯s no way.¡± CH 103 Chapter 103: The Ruler of the Battlefield (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The second match of the ¡®Valiant Battleground¡¯ that was continued at the same time the next day was given to the Lotus Guild without much difficulty as well. Of course, the Polaris Guild users that had checked Ian¡¯s active part in the first match fought as best as they could. However, as a weaker fighting power than the first match was dispatched for the second match instead, they were able to bring back victory without much difficulty just like Ian¡¯s first plan. Over thirty soldiers and his retainer ¡®Mallaim¡¯ had died during battle, but to have brought back despite that, it was an incredible advantage. ¡®Since retainers revive again after a week anyways.¡¯ And more than anything, Ian obtained an incredible advantage from the two battles. That wasn¡¯t the over 100 thousand Fame, nor the 2 victories he easily obtained. ¡®I didn¡¯t know that the hatching rate of the Karceus¡¯ Egg, which I seriously struggled to raise, would go up by 5%.¡¯ The hatching rate of the God Dragon that seriously only went up as much as a chicken¡¯s tear despite all of the dungeon rotations and hunting he did crazily in the meantime had increased by 5% from just two battles. Thanks to that, the hatching rate of the God Dragon Karceus¡¯ Egg was more than 11% right now. Ian assumed that the currents of purple light that was sucked in every time he killed an opponent was energy that raised the hatching rate of this Karceus¡¯ Egg. The Dragon of War modifier wasn¡¯t just attached for no reason. ¡®However, the burden of risk is a little high to initiate territory wars at random¡­ Isn¡¯t there another way?¡¯ This was now the end of Ian¡¯s role in this territory war. If they moved according to the strategy planned, it wouldn¡¯t be hard to defend. Because he participated in all 2 matches, he couldn¡¯t participate anymore anyways. Originally, once they successfully finished defending, Ian was planning on putting aside territory wars for a while and shut himself just in the Forlan dungeon until he reached lv 120. The Forlan dungeon was a dungeon that had a lv 100 requirement, but it was a dungeon that was very effective for Summoners. Even right now, when he was close to lv 115, he couldn¡¯t find a hunting ground that¡¯s effectiveness was better than the Forlan dungeon. However, because of the God Dragon¡¯s Egg, Ian¡¯s plan was completely modified. ¡®Once we finish defending in this territory war, I should suggest we go and hit a couple of nearby bases with a Village-rank.¡¯ It was something that was originally not in his plans, but it was a choice that couldn¡¯t be helped in order to awaken the God Dragon Karceus. Ian, who made several different plans and finished organizing his thoughts, logged out and left his capsule in order to go to his afternoon class. * * * ¡°I noticed you weren¡¯t sleeping and instead listening diligently to class today. What¡¯s up?¡± At Yoohyun¡¯s words, Jinsung let out a deep sigh as he responded. ¡°No, Professor Jinook threatened me, saying he¡¯d put me back in all of the classes he let me go in if I kept falling asleep. There¡¯s nothing I can do, I guess I just have to listen¡­¡± At his weak voice, Yoohyun smirked as he spoke. ¡°No wonder¡­ There was a reason.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, dude.¡± The conversation of the two people, who shared a couple silly words and laughed, eventually began to continue with Kailran as their topic. Since the two people¡¯s biggest interest was Kailran, it was a sequence that couldn¡¯t be helped. ¡°Yo, then starting from our territory war tomorrow, are we seriously going to just give them three matches now?¡± At Yoohyun¡¯s words, Jinsung nodded his head. ¡°Yeah. Just give it to them without regret. That¡¯s gaining an advantage.¡± ¡°Once we give them all three matches, even if it is a siege warfare, it will become a single-round for both our side and their side. I¡¯m just saying, since I feel like it would be good to just keep pushing through since we¡¯ve already brought back 2 wins.¡± Jinsung thought that there was some truth in Yoohyun¡¯s words as well. ¡°Then since we¡¯ve already finished registration for the third and fourth match already anyways, you can try concluding with everything we have in the fifth battle. That could also be a surprise attack strategy.¡± Yoohyun nodded his head. ¡°We should think carefully about this. Even if I was that side, if we were to just give them two matches, then they could lower their guards a little for the fifth match. I think it¡¯s definitely a good strategy.¡± Thanks to the late afternoon class, Yoohyun and Jinsung were able to walk in the middle of the empty sidewalk to their home from school and continue sharing their conversation without any disruptions. Jinsung, who was just talking about Kailran up until now, seemed to have suddenly remembered something, as he changed the subject. ¡°Yo, Yoohyun.¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°There was something I wanted to ask you.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± The reason was unknown, but Jinsung hesitated to speak. At Jinsung¡¯s expression, which Yoohyun had never seen before, Yoohyun gulped and waited for Jinsung¡¯s next words to continue. ¡°Have you ever dated before?¡± And at the unexpected and truly out of the blue words of Jinsung, Yoohyun was flustered. ¡°Ah, no. I did have a girlfriend for a little bit in high school¡­ but to call it dating is a little¡­¡± Yoohyun, who was just barely a 20-year-old freshman and played games all day long, was an individual that was distanced from dating as well. However, at the words that he had a girlfriend even for just a moment, Jinsung glowed. ¡°Yo, then in any case, you¡¯re still not forever alone!¡± ¡°You, you think so? That¡­ For now, let¡¯s say that¡¯s true.¡± Thanks to that, Jinsung, who felt a bit of hope, got to the point. ¡°That¡­ The thing that I want to ask.¡± ¡°Yeah, tell me.¡± ¡°A couple days ago, I had eaten with Harin in the school cafeteria.¡± ¡°So?¡± Yoohyun, who was listening to Jinsung¡¯s story, wore an expression that showed more and more interest. ¡°I went to go grab a meal ticket, but she said she packed a lunch and started pulling it out. Of course, she did say that she made it because of her midterm assignment.¡± ¡°Oh, and?¡± ¡°And that day was the day Harin and you had your cultural studies class together, so I thought she would definitely be coming with you, but I heard that you needed to do an assignment so you left first?¡± Yoohyun, who thought about it for a moment, shook his head as he replied. ¡°I¡¯ve never said anything like that before.¡± At that, Jinsung slightly frowned and answered. ¡°Harin said so. You¡¯re probably just forgetting. Why would she just lie like that?¡± Yoohyun wore a confused expression. ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ Why would she have lied like that. Anyways, just keep talking.¡± Jinsung¡¯s words continued. ¡°Anyways, so, the two of us began to eat the lunch she packed, but Harin suddenly¡­¡± As Jinsung paused to take a breath, Yoohyun pressed him on. ¡°Suddenly what?¡± ¡°She suddenly just scooped a spoonful of risotto and fed me it.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± After hearing the somewhat shocking words, Yoohyun¡¯s expression stiffened on the spot. ¡°What, what the hell? So, Harin fed you?¡± Jinsung nodded his head as he responded. ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m telling you!¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that, like, something that couples¡­ are supposed to do?¡± Jinsung¡¯s voice slightly grew. ¡°Right? I don¡¯t even remember eating food that my mom fed me!¡± ¡°So, what happened after that?¡± At the interesting story, Yoohyun pressed him on to hear the next part quickly, but unfortunately, there was nothing much after that. ¡°What do you mean what happened after. I almost had an upset stomach while eating.¡± ¡°¡­¡± While looking at Yoohyun, who wore a dull expression, Jinsung¡¯s words continued again. ¡°So, my ultimate question is.¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± Jinsung, who took a breath for a moment, opened his mouth. ¡°Could it be that Harin is interested in me by any chance?¡± Yoohyun was trapped in his thoughts. Even if it wasn¡¯t for this story that he heard from Jinsung right now, he remembered seeing Harin, who stuck to Jinsung¡¯s side even inside of Kailran. Shortly after, Yoohyun responded. ¡°I¡­ Think that it¡¯s a possibility.¡± * * * The warm sun. A leisurely afternoon! While Ian went to the Domain manor in order to take care of internal affairs, Ian¡¯s Familiars were spending an incredibly leisurely time at Lee Jinook¡¯s Breeding Ground. Bbook- Bboo-Bbook-! The time that hunting addict Ian had to spend handling internal affairs was time that was as sweet as honey to his Familiars. Bbookbbook was having a delicious snack with his best friend, Pin. Bbookbbook was happier than ever right now. This was because, while his Satan-like owner went inside the Domain manor in order to take care of internal affairs, Harin was instead giving him his lunch. ¡°Bbookbbook, do you want to eat another one?¡± Harin¡¯s voice, which was more mellow than any other noise that existed in the world, and even with a line that shook Bbookbbook¡¯s heartstrings stronger than any lyrics! Bbookbbook hadn¡¯t even finished the meatball that was right in front of him yet, but he nodded his head crazily. Bbook- Bboo-Bbook-! If it wasn¡¯t for a case like this, when else would he ever be able to eat drug meatballs until he was full. If it was Ian, his evil owner, even at the most, he never gave him more than 2. Bbookbbook rubbed his face against Harin¡¯s hand with a happy expression. ¡°But, Bbookbbook.¡± Bbook-? ¡°Can you eat all of this before Ian comes back?¡± Bboo-Bbook! Bbookbbook wore a confident expression as he nodded his head energetically. However, Harin spoke again with a worried expression. ¡°If Ian sees that I¡¯ve given you this many meatballs, I¡¯m going to get punished¡­¡± Bbookbbook, who had discovered Harin¡¯s large eyes brimming with tears, shook his shell as he was trapped in sadness. Bbook. For his evil owner to dare punish this beautiful and kind meatball goddess¡­ That was something that simply must not happen. ¡°So, Bbookbbook, you need to eat it quickly. Okay?¡± Bbook-! Harin, who had received Bbookbbook¡¯s promise, turned her attention towards Pin this time. Different from Bbookbbook, the thing that Pin was eating was not a meatball. The thing that Harin gave Pin was a rib eye steak that she had carefully prepared. Harin asked Pin, who was ripping through the steak gracefully along with a coy expression. ¡°Pin, what about you? Is it delicious?¡± Harin was incredibly careful. This was because Pin was different from Bbookbbook. Different from Bbookbbook, who had an elementary school student¡¯s palate, Pin¡¯s palate was incredibly luxurious. Kku-ru-ruk-. As if Pin was savouring the taste of the steak, he gently closed his eyes. ¡°How is it, do you want to eat more, Pin?¡± Harin was nervous as she studied the reaction of Pin, the eagle with a luxurious diet. When she first met Pin, in order to gain points from him, Harin tried to prepare a variety of different drug meatballs. She liked Pin, the cute, baby eagle, but since he was also Ian¡¯s Familiar, there was a need to gain points from him at all costs. However, Pin was nonchalant. That¡¯s why Harin just thought that Pin had no gluttony and was disappointed. This was because cooking was the easiest and the fastest way for her to gain points from Ian¡¯s Familiars. However, that was a misunderstanding. It was just simply that the stimulating drug meatballs didn¡¯t fit Pin¡¯s palate. If it wasn¡¯t a certain luxurious recipe, she couldn¡¯t satisfy Pin¡¯s palate. Right now, it was the nerve-wracking moment where Harin¡¯s recipe was judged. And shortly after, Pin opened his eyes and nodded his head. Kku-ruk- Kku-ruk-! This was definitely Pin¡¯s communicative expression that he wanted to eat more. Instantly, Harin¡¯s expression brightened. ¡°Wow! Pin, then this time, this one! Try eating this one!¡± Harin pulled out a new dish again from her inventory. Because, as she tried to fit dishes to Pin¡¯s palate, she had raised her Cooking Proficiency incredibly well, so lately, Pin was Harin¡¯s main customer. It was even to the point where she had to beg him to please eat it. At around this point, Bbookbbook could also become jealous, but Bbookbbook liked the stimulating flavour of the meatball more than any other food. For Bbookbbook, who had a mission to eat all of the meatballs in front of him before Ian came, there was no way that there was a chance for Pin¡¯s steak to catch his eye. CH 104 Chapter 104: The Ruler of the Battlefield (4) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda However, just then, in the Lotus Domain¡¯s Breeding Ground that was this peaceful, a dark shadow appeared. ¡°Harin, I¡¯m done!¡± The moment he heard that voice, Bbookbbook put the whole meatball that was right in front of him into his mouth. Bboo-Bbook- And in order to cut off Jinsung¡¯s attention, Harin quickly stood up from her spot. ¡°Oh, Jinsung, you came?¡± She smiled brightly as she approached Ian. However, despite her efforts, Ian¡¯s attention was focused completely on something else. ¡°Bbookbbook.¡± Ian¡¯s voice dropped lowly. Bbookbbook, who was biting onto a mouthful of meatball, had frozen on the spot like ice. Ian slowly approached Bbookbbook. ¡°Are you not going to answer? Bbookbbook?¡± It wasn¡¯t that Bbookbbook wasn¡¯t responding, but that he ¡®couldn¡¯t¡¯ respond because of the piece of meat that filled his mouth. Bbookbbook desperately tried to somehow swallow the meatball that was in his mouth whole before Ian got to him. However, since he had shoved down five meatballs at once, there was no way that would be easy. ¡°Our Bbookbbook, did you eat your lunch well?¡± As if Bbookbbook had heard the voice of the Grim Reaper, he shut his eyes tightly. As Ian¡¯s voice could be heard coming closer and closer, Bbookbbook became more anxious. And as Ian stood right behind him, Bbookbbook used his last resort. Bbook-! He tried to hide inside his shell. However, because of the meatball that filled his mouth, his head, which was already big enough as it was, caught onto his shell and couldn¡¯t go in. Ian, who saw that, smirked. ¡°What are you doing, dude.¡± After approaching Bbookbbook, he picked up his shell and shook him side to side mercilessly. ¡°What exactly have you stuffed your mouth with? There¡¯s no way that you¡¯ve eaten everything without leaving this hyung anything, right, Bbookbbook?¡± Bbookbbook felt that the meatball that was in his mouth would drop to the ground any moment now, but he desperately swallowed the meatball. Because if he swallowed the whole thing, he hoped that Ian would also let it slide as he would have no evidence. However, just then. A situation outside of Bbookbbook¡¯s prediction was unfolded. Ian suddenly put Bbookbbook down. And the words that came out of his mouth made Bbookbbook fall into despair. ¡°Hmm, Bbookbbook, I think you weigh about 200 grams more than usual, so you must have eaten about five more meatballs.¡± As if he was a scale, it was a calculation of the exact number. From the mouth of Bbookbbook, who was taken aback, a hiccup came out before he realized it. Bboo-Kkook-. After following Ian and coming out to the world, Bbookbbook had seen his many abilities, but by far, there was never a time that he had felt Ian¡¯s abilities to be as mysterious as right now. At Ian¡¯s ¡®superhuman skill¡¯, even Harin wore a flustered expression as she stared at him. Of course, Ian had just made a rough estimation. ¡°Bbookbbook.¡± As Ian called Bbookbbook, Bbookbbook, who had swallowed all of the meatballs before he realized, responded with a sad expression. Bbook¡­ Ian¡¯s words continued. ¡°Since you¡¯ve eaten five more meatballs, one meatball will be deducted each meal for 5 days.¡± At Ian¡¯s cold-blooded and heartless judgement, both of Bbookbbook¡¯s eyes were filled with tears. Bboo-Bbook! Bbookbbook tried once to defy him timidly, but Ian was cold-hearted. ¡°If you don¡¯t listen to me, I¡¯ll deduct another meatball each time.¡± At the terrible threat, Bbookbbook eventually dropped his head with a dejected expression. Bbookbbook. Bbookbbook was depressed. He was very regretful that he couldn¡¯t even savour the flavour and just swallowed hastily in order to eat it quickly. If he knew that this was going to be the case, he would have eaten about two meatballs slowly as he savoured it. If that had happened, it would have ended off as a happy lunch. Ian, who had finished Bbookbbook¡¯s lesson(?) as usual, turned his head towards Harin. ¡°Where to today, Harin?¡± ¡°Uh¡­ Uh? One second!¡± Harin, who was watching Bbookbbook and Ian with a dazed expression, was taken aback as Ian called her. This was because she didn¡¯t have any thoughts up until moments before. After thinking about it for a moment, Harin responded. ¡°Hmm¡­ Let¡¯s go to Norman Mountains today.¡± ¡°Norman Mountains?¡± ¡°Yeah!¡± Truthfully, the reason why Harin was waiting for Ian right now was because today Ian was on duty to be Harin¡¯s gathering guide. Harin chose Norman Mountains, where there were a lot of ingredients she needed from and where the route was long. This was because she was determined to make the most out of her time with Ian. After thinking about it for a moment, Ian opened his mouth. ¡°Harin, instead of there, how about Forlas Plateau? Would there be no ingredients there?¡± ¡°Where was Forlas Plateau again?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a plateau that¡¯s right after you pass through Norman Mountains, but it¡¯s probably a place you haven¡¯t been to yet. The average monster level is around 120.¡± At those words, Harin answered with a flustered expression. ¡°Huuuh? Would it be okay for us to go to such a dangerous place like that?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s alright. Over there, their level range is high, but the number of monsters is quite on the low side, so there should be no problem for me to protect you even with just me.¡± Harin, who felt butterflies in her stomach for some odd reason at the words ¡®protect¡¯, didn¡¯t think about it anymore and nodded her head energetically. ¡°Alright, cool! Let¡¯s go!¡± Harin was around lv 90 now. She could end up being kicked out of the game in an instant if she was caught properly by a lv 120 monster, but whether she had even realized that, she just wore a broad smile. ¡°Can you go right now?¡± Harin nodded her head without hesitation. ¡°Yeah!¡± Like that, the slightly dangerous date(?) of the two people began. * * * YouCast, a video-sharing site that is the most famous and largest in size in the world. In YouCast, there are a lot of vast and diverse videos that pop up, but amongst them, the videos that take up most of the shares are the game ¡®Kailran¡¯ videos. This was because Kailran, which was reaching its first-year anniversary since opening, was spreading rapidly throughout the world, and had become a game so famous that there was nobody that didn¡¯t know it. Even in South America, where it was the latest area that the service opened, Kailran had taken up over 50% of the game shares there already, there was no way it couldn¡¯t be a truly amazing figure. ¡°Hmm¡­ Are there no good sources lately anywhere?¡± Sojin, a named uploader in YouCast, was a freelancer that usually dealt professionally with video editing and CG. However, ever since starting Kailran, she began to professionally edit Kailran¡¯s videos and upload them onto YouCast, and amongst the videos that she uploaded, was a video that exploded, causing her to decide to change her job into a YouCast uploader. Of course, even amongst games, she was a specialty uploader in the Kailran category. ¡°I thought that I¡¯d be able to make some money with the giant guild territory wars this month, but there aren¡¯t as many good ones as I expected.¡± After obtaining the information that the base protections of the giant guilds¡¯ domains would be released all at once, Sojin was full of expectancy to edit the videos that would come out from there and upload them. As she also had an exclusive contract with the Valiant Guild, which was ranked at 5th place in the guild rankings, she was exclusively provided with the videos of the Valiant Guild¡¯s war. And in the beginning, just as she predicted, because the giant guilds were at each other¡¯s throats, she was able to get a hold of a couple good videos, and she had made a decent amount with them. However, as about a week passed by, just like before the base protection was released, all of the guilds had become quiet. Especially the fights amongst the giant guilds, which Sojin wanted most, rarely happened. This was because, unless there was a decent power gap, it was decided from the result of the territory wars that happened within a couple days that it was hard for the attacking guild to win against the defending guild. That¡¯s why after losing her enthusiasm, she had lowered her expectations and was currently searching for different videos. ¡°Are there no sources anywhere that could be made into an issue right away¡­¡± However, just then. While searching videos diligently with the keyword ¡®territory wars¡¯, a quite interesting title caught her eye. Kailran Diamond-Class Territory War (Lotus Vs Polaris) Mad Movie (1 VS 30)Two days ago.View Count ¨C 58,291A mad movie on the Summoner user ¡®Ian¡¯ of the Lotus Guild, who was famous for sweeping up the top ranks of the lv 100 Forlan dungeon.This is a personal cam that was shot in-person at the Valiant Battleground.Please watch and enjoy^^ Sojin, who read the content that popped up on her screen, mumbled with a slightly dumbfounded expression. ¡°It¡¯s a Diamond-class territory war, yet how did they fight 1 vs 30? If they won against 30 opponents alone, did a user at around lv 130 slaughter users that are in the lv 80-range?¡± However, after seeing the part saying ¡®Summoner¡¯, her expression turned into a frown. This was because, if it was a Summoner-class, from what she knew, there weren¡¯t a lot of users that were over lv 100, let alone lv 130. ¡®It must be a video watching beginners that are under lv 50. Lately, anything and everything is being labelled a mad movie.¡¯ However, still, as it had been a while since a title that was interesting enough caught her eye, she couldn¡¯t just skip it. ¡®Well, since I¡¯ve got nothing to lose, shall we give it a click?¡¯ She wasn¡¯t expecting much for it to be an amazing video, but the part stating 1vs 30 was very charming. ¡°Oh-ho?¡± The video quality and structure looked quite good for one that an ordinary person in the spectators¡¯ area took. However, as the video started, both eyes of Sojin, who studied the camps on either side, slightly widened. ¡°Huh? The levels of the side where there are 30 are still over lv 90.¡± The couple of users that had left their levels on public had caught her eyes. The other users were also users that weren¡¯t at a beginner-level either. Moved by excitement, she began to focus on the video even more. ¡®What the hell? Are they really going to win against that fighting power alone?¡¯ As the battle soon began, the Summoner that stood alone on the other side started to summon monsters that looked like his Familiars. And the eyes of Sojin, who checked each and every one, rounded. This was because, they were mostly monsters that she was seeing for the first time, but the monster that looked like a white tiger with red stripes was one that she also knew. ¡®That¡­ Isn¡¯t that a Hallikan?¡¯ The Hallikan, a Boss monster ranking at a Heroic-rank that users of a top-ranking guild just barely succeeded in killing it in a raid in the north. On top of that, as she remembered seeing a video where they had received almost annihilating amounts of damage and just luckily cleared it, it made sense as to why she was so taken aback. It looked as if it was a little smaller in size than the Hallikan that appeared as a boss monster, but the outer appearance was still definitely a Hallikan. ¡®This crazy! How exactly did he obtain a Heroic-rank monster that¡¯s over lv 150? Catching it would have been absolutely impossible¡­¡¯ However, no matter how curious she was, because there was no way for her to know, she put aside her curiosity for now and began to focus on the video. And in the video, Ian¡¯s one-sided slaughtering began. ¡°Wo, wow¡­!¡± Before she even realized it, Sojin let out an exclamation. Her jaw had automatically dropped while looking at the excellent connection of the AoE skills that made her have chills and the control of the Familiars, as well as Ian¡¯s battlefield command that didn¡¯t leave any NPC carelessly idle. Because of Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss Hole and Lake¡¯s Breath from the beginning, as well as the connection of Pin¡¯s AoE skill Crush, it was a fight that already started off with more than half the fighting power slaughtered, but the battle that continued after was still elaborate and impressive enough to cause Sojin to automatically let out exclamations. ¡®No, why is this video still buried away?¡¯ Sojin, who watched the video that was slightly over 20 minutes long while holding her breath, hurriedly checked the view count of the video. The view count was about 50 thousand. It was hard to say that it was an extremely low view count, but it was definitely not a lot. ¡°I need to buy the copyright to this video immediately!¡± Sojin quickly clicked the ID of the uploader of the video, and found out their contact information. With an incredibly excited expression, she was quickly typing the numbers onto her smartphone. ¡°This¡­ Is truly a jackpot!¡± After editing this video incredibly well and getting it up in the top ranks first, a plan to find the user named ¡®Ian¡¯ and make an exclusive contract with him was quickly mapped out in her head. Because the top-ranking rankers already had an exclusive contract with companies or experts, for her, as she started later, she didn¡¯t have a ranker that she traded videos with 1 on 1. At the harvest that was larger than expected, her two eyes shone with anticipation. CH 105 Chapter 105: The Secret of Forlas Plateau (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°All done now. There¡¯s nobody here now, so you can gather at ease.¡± ¡°Yep, okay!¡± After killing a couple of large lv 120 yetis, Ian let Bbookbbook down from his back. There was no large-scale battle, but as they had been moving constantly without rest, they were quite exhausted. ¡°Bbookbbook, shall we also rest a bit?¡± Bboobbook-! As Ian let him down on the ground, Bbookbbook, who had come out of his shell, ran around before he began moving towards some place. Different from an exhausted Ian, it looked as if Bbookbbook, who had been in his shell the whole time, was full of energy. Harin, who saw that, wore a worried expression as she asked Ian. ¡°Jinsung, is it alright for Bbookbbook to run around freely like that? Won¡¯t it be dangerous?¡± At her words, Ian shook his head and smiled. ¡°No, it¡¯s not dangerous at all. Even if he gets hit all day by monsters here, only half of his Vitality will probably be gone.¡± ¡°Huuuh? How?¡± ¡°Bbookbbook¡¯s stats are all piled up on his Defensive Power. It¡¯s hard to deal even 10 damage with a decent attack.¡± ¡°I see, Bbookbbook is amazing.¡± It seemed he had heard Harin¡¯s words saying he was amazing, as Bbookbbook let out an energetic, witty reply. Bbook- Bboobbook-! While seeing that, Ian burst out laughing. ¡°Bbookbbook, if you find a monster while playing around, just go hide well like you usually do. Understood?¡± Bbook-! After Bbookbbook nodded his head energetically, he disappeared off to somewhere. During break time while hunting, etc., Ian let Bbookbbook run free like this. Whether Bbookbbook¡¯s sense of smell was amazing or if he had some sort of special secret, either way, he had a special ability that allowed him to find rare gathering ingredients, minerals, etc. Because of that, Ian positively encouraged his slacking(?). If Bbookbbook was to meet a monster while energetically running around and received damage, a system message would alert Ian, so he just needed to move to find him then. Harin, who was watching Bbookbbook¡¯s form that was getting farther away momentarily, turned her attention towards Jinsung and opened her mouth. ¡°But Jinsung.¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°I¡¯m just curious, but why do you not give Bbookbbook a lot of meatballs? Is there a specific reason?¡± Whenever she saw cute Bbookbbook¡¯s sullen face because he couldn¡¯t eat more meatballs, Harin¡¯s heart hurt, so she was really curious of Ian¡¯s intentions. ¡°That¡­¡± As Ian momentarily hesitated, Harin pressed him on. ¡°What is it, tell me. Or by any chance¡­?¡± ¡°By any chance what?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not because you have no reason except that it¡¯s fun to bother Bbookbbook or something like that, right?¡± At those words, Ian slightly flinched. ¡®That isn¡¯t the reason, but for some reason, it stings a little¡­¡¯ Because it was the truth that his mood brightened whenever he saw Bbookbbook act cutely in order to eat one more meatball. However, the true reason was different. ¡°No way. Do you know how much I like Bbookbbook for me to do such a thing?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, right?¡± Harin, who was relieved(?) that Ian didn¡¯t have a personality disorder, asked again with an expression as if she was truly curious. ¡°Then why are you like that?¡± ¡°That¡­ At first, since I couldn¡¯t get meatballs from you often, so it was to save them¡­¡± Ian, who paused for a moment to take a breath, continued. ¡°But as this one ate a lot of meatballs, Bbookbbook slowly started to gain weight.¡± At the unexpected response, Harin wore a slightly sour expression. ¡°Huh? Then, were you doing that because you were really worried that Bbookbbook would become an obese turtle? I think that even if Bbookbbook was to gain a little weight, he would be come a little rounder and cuter.¡± Ian shook his head. ¡°No, it¡¯s not that. Since he gained a little weight, he was too heavy to go around with him on my back¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡± While looking at Ian, who responded embarrassedly, Harin became speechless. Ian¡¯s excuses continued. ¡°Bbookbbook needs to be light in order for me to be able to move a little more quickly even in battle. It¡¯s not like Bbookbbook¡¯s weight is related to his Defensive Power anyways¡­¡± Harin, who found out about the truth anyways, wore an awkward smile as she nodded her head. ¡°If it¡¯s for that reason, then, well, there¡¯s nothing we can do about that.¡± Harin, for some odd reason, felt more pitiful towards Bbookbbook. ¡®Because he met a hunting-addicted owner, our poor Bbookbbook can¡¯t even eat a lot of meatballs¡­¡¯ Harin, who solved her curiosity anyways, stood up from her spot and began to gather all of the cooking ingredients that were in the vicinity. It definitely seemed because it was a high-level hunting ground that only top-level users could hunt at, as she was able to gather a lot of high-class cooking ingredients, so she wore a satisfied expression. Had about 20 minutes passed like that? Ian, who sat on top of a rock, suddenly stood up and called Harin. ¡°Harin. Are you done gathering?¡± ¡°No, there¡¯s still a little left.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Just leave the ones remaining for now and let¡¯s move.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Harin, who wondered if monsters had at least appeared and looked around, wore a confused expression. This was because she couldn¡¯t see anything nearby. ¡°Why? Did something urgent suddenly come up?¡± Ian scratched the back of his head as he responded. ¡°It¡¯s not really something urgent, but it seems that Bbookbbook met some monsters. I wanted to go over there and help him.¡± At those words, Harin flung away the ingredients she was gathering and immediately stood up. ¡°Ah, then we must go.¡± Ian, who thought that somehow, Harin instead cherished Bbookbbook more than he, the owner, did, wore an awkward expression and moved his feet. He even slightly felt the pangs of his conscience. * * * The place that the two people had arrived at was a snowy field where Bbookbbook, who had cast Shell Expansion, was in the middle of it, and surrounding him, a couple of giant yetis were roaming around. ¡°Over there, there¡¯s Bbookbbook. But a really dangerous situation isn¡¯t happening.¡± At Harin¡¯s words, Ian nodded his head. ¡°I told you. That there would be no reason for Bbookbbook to be in danger.¡± Far from a dangerous situation, Bbookbbook didn¡¯t even grab the attention of the monsters. Bbookbbook was basically receiving the same treatment as a geographic feature. The reason for that was none other than because of the ¡®Shell Expansion¡¯ skill. It was because of one of the additional effects of the Shell Expansion skill, ** For the duration of Shell Expansion, you will be recognized as an inanimate object. That the monsters didn¡¯t recognize him as an opponent. That was one of the reasons why Bbookbbook was able to properly take on the role of a reconnaissance agent. Ian, who had checked all of the levels of the yetis, momentarily thought of an effective strategy in order to fight properly. ¡°Hmm¡­ If it¡¯s about four of them, it¡¯s a little dangerous to gather them all at once and hunt them.¡± Firstly, Ian firmly warned Harin to be careful. ¡°Harin, I¡¯ll say it again, but use all of your buffs and heals just on yourself, alright?¡± Harin had already allowed herself to be properly hit by a yeti. After seeing over half of her max Vitality disappear from one hit, she was already well-aware. ¡°Yep, got it. Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll keep my shield up constantly, so I won¡¯t be able to die easily. I don¡¯t know what you take me for, but I am a Priest.¡± Ian grinned as he responded. ¡°Yeah, alright. Be careful.¡± Ian, who finished speaking, moved towards the yeti with his Familiars. And he slowly started to catch the ones that were the most isolated from the rest first. Because yetis had outrageously high Health, outstanding Offensive Power, as well as a Health regeneration skill, although it wasn¡¯t as good as a troll¡¯s, they were amongst the fussy monsters to hunt. They were monsters that instantly recovered the Vitality that you¡¯ve cut down with difficulty if your hands and feet were momentarily tied and you hesitated, allowing them time to recover. On top of that, as they were over an outrageous lv 120, the danger burden was too big for Ian to do group hunting, which was even his forte. Ian¡¯s strategy for hunting yetis was to use Smash, the Inherent Ability of Halli, whose reflexes were maximized, and with short, single hits, he stuns them and focuses damage as much as possible for that duration to kill them one by one. Because his Griffin, which was now over lv 100, was beginning to reveal an appearance that was expected of a Legendary-rank Familiar, Ian¡¯s party boasted an incredible firepower. Thud-. You have killed the ¡®Glacial Yeti¡¯. You have obtained 128,500 EXP.You have obtained 3845 gold from the ¡®Glacial Yeti¡¯.You have obtained the ¡®Thick Yeti¡¯s Pelt¡¯. The reward that was obtained from an over lv 120 yeti was quite savoury as well. Ian wore a pleased expression as he mumbled inwardly. ¡®The current market price for gold isn¡¯t as high as before, but it¡¯s still about 5 thousand Won[1] for each yeti.¡¯ As Ian had put all his focus on raising his level and played accordingly up until now, he always spent his money lavishly on the highest-grade equipment. It seemed because of that, compared to the money he earned, there wasn¡¯t much he had saved up. ¡®I need to slowly start saving up money again as well.¡¯ Ian diligently hunted the yetis with the thought that he could make enough money for a day¡¯s worth of meals if he killed all of the yetis in front of him. On top of that, there was something he wanted to buy recently as well. ¡®Once this term is over, I should also change my capsule to a new model.¡¯ His heart was sold on the new capsule that was recently released from LB Corporations that he saw on an advertisement on TV while eating. Of course, it was possible to control the temperature inside of the capsule even if you didn¡¯t turn on the AC or the heater in the room, and as you could even control the humidity and create the most optimal gaming environment, the new capsule was the dream for Kailran users. On top of that, they said that they had succeeded in increasing the synchronization of the VR aspect by a whopping 2%, it was impossible for Ian to not want it. 2% Synchronization may not be considered much in other people¡¯s eyes, but for Ian, who obsessed over each and every numerical value, he felt he was at a loss for some odd reason. It somehow felt like his leveling-up speed would be 2% slower than users that used the new capsule. ¡°Whew, I caught all of them.¡± It had been a while since he had such miscellaneous thoughts, but still, Ian had wiped the yetis and succeeded in rescuing Bbookbbook, and had approached Bbookbbook, who still had no intentions of coming out of his shell. Knock-knock-. ¡°Is Mr. Bbookbbook here by any chance?¡± At Ian¡¯s knock Bbookbbook poked out his head from his shell. Bbookbbook-! And Ian turned his back towards Bbookbbook. ¡°Alright, get on my back now. So we can hunt those guys down there as well.¡± However, for some reason, Bbookbbook shook his head and started to walk towards somewhere. Bbook- Bbookbbook-! ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± And because Bbookbbook always discovered something whenever he moved like this, Ian began to follow Bbookbbook with anticipation. ¡°Harin, you come this way, too.¡± Harin, who was hiding herself in a slightly more secluded spot, quickly stood next to Ian, and followed behind Bbookbbook. ¡°Jinsung, where is he going right now?¡± At Harin¡¯s question, Ian shrugged his shoulders. ¡°That I don¡¯t know either.¡± ¡°Then why are we following him?¡± ¡°Bbookbbook sometimes finds rare medicinal herbs or stuff like items. I think he¡¯s found something right now as well, so I¡¯m just following him.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± Had they had moved like that for about 5 minutes? The place that Bbookbbook had stopped and stood in a valley where an incredibly high and grand cliff that was endless was spread in front of them. And in the middle of that cliff, Ian discovered something. ¡°Oh, there¡¯s a cave there. Bbookbbook, is that where you want to go?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Bbookbbook nodded his head without hesitation. Bbook-! Even at a glance, it looked like a cave that had something to it. And Ian¡¯s sixth sense was telling him that he would be able to find something special inside there. However, there was a problem. ¡°But, how do we get up there?¡± Just like Harin¡¯s question, the cave was kind of in the middle of the high cliff. It was a height that couldn¡¯t be reached by just a normal method. However, there was a way for Ian. ¡°We just need to ride Pin and go up. Wait one moment.¡± Firstly, after calling Pin, Ian slowly got onto his back. The upper half of Pin was an eagle, but his body had the form of a lion. Because of that, if they were to move carefully, it was possible enough to ride Pin and move. Of course, Ian couldn¡¯t ride Pin as he pleased like he could with Ly yet, but a short distance like this wasn¡¯t hard. Ian, who had gotten on Pin, called for Harin. ¡°Harin, you come here, too.¡± ¡°Huh? You want me to get on with you?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± Harin asked again carefully. ¡°Wo, won¡¯t it be too heavy?¡± This time, instead of Ian, Pin nodded his head and responded. Kku-ruk- Kku-ruk-. He meant for her to have no worries. Harin, who had received Pin¡¯s consent, carefully sat in front of Ian, and Ian¡¯s arm wrapped around her waist as he hugged her. Taken aback for a moment, Harin¡¯s pale face had flushed a bright red. ¡®Huh, huh?¡¯ This was because she had no idea that her relationship with Ian, whom she hadn¡¯t even held hands with yet, would progress(?) so suddenly like this. However, on the other hand, Ian wore an expression that showed little thought. ¡°Pin, take us there slowly.¡± Kku-ru-ruk-! Pin, who had Harin and Ian on his back, slowly flew up towards the cave in the cliff with careful wing movements. And as Pin¡¯s wings started to flap, Harin grasped tightly onto Ian¡¯s hand before she even realized it. Shortly after, Harin, who had become familiar with holding her balance, laughed as she slightly turned her head and looked at Ian. ¡®Hehe, this is actually quite nice. I should ask him to give me a ride again next time.¡¯ Of course, she had no intentions of being able to ride(?) him alone, it was always with Ian. Meanwhile, Ian closely studied Pin¡¯s movements as he contemplated internally. ¡®I should also practice riding Pin a bit more¡­ If I could definitely ride him freely like with Ly, it will truly be of help in battle.¡¯ After Pin reached over lv 80, Ian tried riding on Pin¡¯s back every now and then. This was because, starting from lv 80, he had grown to a size big enough to carry around Ian. However, as expected, in comparison to Ly, a ground monster, it took much longer to adjust. Before long, Pin arrived at the destination, the cave of the cliff. Kku-ruk-! ¡°Harin, get off slowly.¡± As they arrived in front of the cave, Ian held onto Harin¡¯s hand so she could get off easily. ¡°Heave-ho.¡± And the two people, who had gotten off Pin¡¯s back, slowly started heading towards the inside of the cave. As they did so, as if it was waiting, a system message rang out. Ring- You have become the very first discoverer of this dungeon.For the next 5 days, all the EXP you obtain from the dungeon will double.For the next 5 days, the chance of obtaining items from the dungeon will double. It was an obvious that the corners of Ian¡¯s mouth hung from his ears. [1] 5 thousand Won = ~$4.43 USD CH 106 Chapter 106: The Secret of Forlas Plateau (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Sponsors: Igor Philippov and B.G. While Ian was exploring Forlas Plateau with Harin, the defending battle of the Lotus Guild ended smoothly. Just like Ian predicted, the Polaris Guild had used over half their fighting power in the 3rd, 4th, and 5th match. And with Polaris Guild like that, the Lotus Guild fought against them with almost all of their fighting power, excluding Ian, preserved. On top of that, as it was a defending battle that the Lotus Guild could only be at an advantage with, no matter if the Polaris Guild had hired mercenaries, there was no way that they could win against the Lotus Guild which was at a similar rank as them. In the end, just like Ian¡¯s strategy, the Lotus Guild had won their first territory war with the sixth battle as their last one. ¡°With this, we¡¯ve guarded it for another week for now.¡± At Fiolan¡¯s words, Herz smiled happily as he responded. ¡°In a week, our Military Facility will probably be at lv 3, and the Defense Tower that we¡¯re building now will also be mostly completed, so even if a stronger guild tries and raids us, we should be able to block them off.¡± In Kailran, a Domain that has gone through a territory war will change into a base protection state for a week. There was an exception, though, that if they were to attack a different Domain while they were in the duration of base protection, the base protection of the Domain would automatically be released, but as they had no intentions, it was just something they were saying. ¡°This¡­ I feel like we¡¯ve won when I haven¡¯t done anything, so I feel a little embarrassed.¡± As Fiolan spoke with a bashful expression, Herz also nodded his head. ¡°Well, I¡¯m feeling the same way. It¡¯s all something that Ian made alone. In the end, we went with the strategy that Ian planned out as well. At least you got to take play in the last defending battle with an AoE attack, so you¡¯re a little better than I am. Since I¡¯m a Knight class, there¡¯s seriously nothing that I¡¯ve done.¡± It was hard for close-combat classes to play an active role in defending battles. Especially, in a battle that was won as easily as this, it was even more so. The troops of the opposing side needed to break through the exterior and get inside for the close-combat classes to get a chance to fight, but as the Polaris Guild didn¡¯t have much troops left, they weren¡¯t even able to get over the exterior. ¡°Well, anyways. Thanks to that, the guild¡¯s rank has gone up by two, so it put me in a good mood.¡± ¡°No kidding.¡± ¡°But, once the base protection for the week is over, do you think another guild will declare a territory war against us?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± At Fiolan¡¯s question, Herz, who momentarily thought about it, slowly responded. ¡°I think that the chances for it to happen are quite high. Everybody has become more careful in declaring territory wars now compared to the beginning, but our Domain is very desirable.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°And when the protection duration is about to end, Ian said let¡¯s try and declare territory war on a couple of places¡­¡± ¡°Huuuh?¡± Fiolan, who was only thinking about defending the Domain, was taken aback at Herz¡¯s words. Her words continued. ¡°Would we have enough strength to spare for that?¡± Herz shrugged his shoulders as he responded. ¡°Well, it¡¯s not something that¡¯s been decided, and I do think it could be dangerous¡­ But Ian also probably said it with thought put into it, right?¡± While in a territory war, if another guild was to even raid the Lotus Domain, that would be a problem. This was because, even if they were two different territory wars that happened at the same time, guild members that were registered for one battle couldn¡¯t participate in any other battle. Fiolan, who thought about it for a moment, mumbled. ¡°Hmm¡­ Let¡¯s just trust the Lord.¡± As Fiolan shook her head, Herz laughed as he agreed with her words. ¡°That¡¯s right. And for now, for the next week, we should also hunt a little diligently. If it continues like this, I feel like Ian will catch up to our levels.¡± As he said so, Fiolan grinned as she answered. ¡°Didn¡¯t he already catch up to you, Herz?¡± Herz let out a sigh as he responded. ¡°I¡¯m still 1 level higher than him. Probably¡­¡± Fiolan snickered as she added on. ¡°Are you sure?¡± * * * The dungeon that Ian discovered first in the Forlas Plateau was a place with the name ¡®Bloody Way¡¯. And fitting of that name, the dungeon¡¯s structure was just one long, winding passageway, and was stained with blood here and there. When they first entered the dungeon, because of the slightly frightening atmosphere, Harin was petrified, but as the battle started, she instead found stability immediately. For now, this was because the monsters that appeared weren¡¯t much different from the ones outside of the dungeon. On top of that, as the passageway wasn¡¯t that wide, it was instead possible to hunt more securely than when they fought in the field. Because the passageway was structured so narrowly, if there were about two Ddukdae¡¯s, they would be able to block it off perfectly, so unless Ian, who fought at the front, didn¡¯t die, there was no reason for Harin to be in danger. Like that, Harin, who had hunted with Ian like that for some time now, mumbled as she spoke. ¡°Speaking of which, this passageway is quite long.¡± At her words, Ian nodded his head. ¡°No kidding. It¡¯s not even a structure that can go down or up to some other floor, so it must just continue straight like this.¡± ¡°Yeah. I wish there was a little bit of change¡­ Will a brighter place not appear?¡± At her words, Ian replied and grumbled. ¡°First, shouldn¡¯t we have to reach the end of this passageway in order for a brighter map to appear? In the meantime, I wish that a lot of monsters will appear, but why are there only small amounts of them? I need to hunt a ton while I can get double the EXP¡­¡± Harin shook her head before she even realized it. From her perspective, the hunting level was quite difficult even now, but while looking at Ian complain, she automatically let out a sigh. ¡°It¡¯s enough even now, Jinsung.¡± At Harin¡¯s scolding, Jinsung turned his head in order to reply. However, just before Ian was about to open his mouth, a familiar cry was heard from deep within the dungeon, in a place that couldn¡¯t be told. Awoooo-! It was none other than the howling of a wolf. It was even similar to Ly¡¯s. The atmosphere of the place was already eerie, but as the howls of wolves rang through on top of that, Harin wore a slightly petrified expression. ¡°Yo, it looks like more monsters were made because you complained.¡± While looking at Harin, who stuck like glue to his side and glanced around, Ian smirked. ¡°If you just think of them as lumps of EXP, you¡¯ll be at ease.¡± Ian got into stance. Based on the senses felt from deeper within the dungeon, he felt that there would be quite a large number of monsters that would appear. ¡°Ddukdae, get ready!¡± Deu-reuk- Deu-reu-reuk-. Because of the constant little appearance of two to three monsters, Ian wasn¡¯t able to use any AoE skills, and as a matter of fact, his body was itching. ¡°Lake, Pin. You guys as well, once I give you the signal, prepare to use your skill right away. Understood?¡± At Ian¡¯s words, the two Familiars responded at the same time. Grr-. Kku-ruk- Kku-ruk-! And shortly after, from the dark depths of the cave, the forms of monsters began to appear. Grr- Grrr-! However, Ian, who had checked each and every one of the monsters, was considerably flustered. ¡°What the hell, they¡¯re Ly!¡± Harin was just as surprised. ¡°Ehh? The same kind of species as Ly existed in the field as well?¡± The name ¡®Blood-Red Maned Wolf¡¯, which was just above the heads of the monsters, confirmed the two people¡¯s words. Ian made a hand action towards Harin as spoke. ¡°Harin, I think we¡¯ll need to be a bit more careful this time. Stand a little farther back.¡± ¡°Okay, understood.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, without hesitation, Harin hid in a spot a little far-off. In the case of the yetis or Ice Trolls that had appeared up until now in the dungeon, since they were big in size and their movements were slow, if Ian guarded her from the front, it wasn¡¯t dangerous at all, but it was a different story if it was a Blood-Red Maned Wolf, whose base reflexes were far superior. On top of that, there were a lot of them, so he had no idea when they would find the chance and attack Harin. If she was properly bitten and received critical damage, Harin would have to instantly see a grey screen. ¡®On top of being around lv 125, they¡¯re all Rare-rank monsters¡­¡¯ There wasn¡¯t a big difference in their levels with yetis alone, but the problem was that they were a higher rank than them. Ian, who was personally nurturing his Familiars, was well aware of how much one rank difference made a difference in the stats. ¡®A total of about seven¡­ And during battle, any amount of them could additionally appear.¡¯ Ian felt nervous for the first time since coming to hunt at Forlas Plateau. And the wolves that discovered Ian quickly began to charge towards him. ¡°Ddukdae, forward first!¡± Just like he always did, Ddukdae moved forward in order to find the most optimal angle to cast Abyss Hole. And Ian shot his Magic Spheres cleverly and induced the charging wolves to move towards one side of the passageway. ¡°Now!¡± As Ian yelled, without hesitation, Ddukdae spread both of his arms forward. Kuoooh-! And amongst the total of seven wolves, five of them began to be sucked into the range of Abyss Hole. ¡°Pin, Lake!¡± As Ian made a hand action, the two Familiars¡¯ AoE skills burst out without fail as well. Kwaaah-! Ian, who had checked that the AoE skills were invoked properly, got on top of Halli¡¯s back. ¡°Halli, Ly. Let¡¯s go!¡± Ian, who was on Halli¡¯s back, and Ly quickly charged towards the remaining two wolves. Familiar ¡®Halli¡¯ has used the skill ¡®Guardian of the Wind¡¯.Familiar ¡®Halli¡¯s Agility will increase as much as the total value of the rest of his combat stats. Wind energy charged with a white light wrapped around Halli and Ian and began to blow violently. Ian held onto Halli firmly. For the next 2 minutes, if he was to try and not fall off the back of Halli, who was moving like a crazy wind, he couldn¡¯t let even a little bit of his nervousness go. Kyaooh-! Ian, who put strength in his legs in order to not fall off, fired Magic Spheres from the back of charging Halli. Pung- Pu-pung-! And with his recovered Spirit Magic, he invoked Current Proliferation right after. Za-Zap- Za-Za-Zap-! Even on top of Halli, who was moving at a fast speed, there was no way for Ian¡¯s attacks to miss. The Current Proliferation that had exactly hit the wolves had also dealt additional blows and after bouncing around a couple of times, they disappeared into the air. The ¡®Blood-Red Maned Wolf¡¯ has gone into ¡®paralyzed¡¯ state.The cooldown time of ¡®Current Proliferation¡¯ has been reset. Meanwhile, owing to Ian¡¯s active part on his back, Halli was also able to approach the subject he had targeted. Crunch-! Halli, who had succeeded in yanking the shoulder joint of one of the monsters, roughly ripped through its neck. Familiar ¡®Halli¡¯ has dealt critical damage to the ¡®Blood-Red Maned Wolf¡¯!The Vitality of the ¡®Blood-Red Maned Wolf¡¯ has been reduced by 8125. The Blood-Red Maned Wolf had low Vitality and Defensive Power, but as their levels were at 125, they didn¡¯t die easily from a couple attacks. ¡®So, their levels are gangsters?¡¯ Ian was a little surprised. This was because even the five wolves that couldn¡¯t avoid any of the AoE attacks were still breathing. If the power of Lake¡¯s Breath and Pin¡¯s Crush skills were considered, it was quite surprising. However, Ian, who saw that the names of the wolves were quickly flickering, gave a command to Ly without hesitation. ¡°Ly, Thirst for Blood!¡± It was the most optimal time to invoke the Thirst for Blood skill! Grr-! A bright, blood-red aura began to gush out from Ly¡¯s body. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has used the ¡®Thirst for Blood¡¯ skill.Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s Offensive Power and Agility have increased by 30% for 3 minutes.Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s movements have increased by 40% for 3 minutes.From now on, whenever an opponent with Vitality lower than 30% is attacked, all damage dealt by ¡®Ly¡¯s attack will double. Ly charged towards the wolves without hesitation. And seeing that, Ddukdae and Lake, as well as Pin moved intelligently and blocked off the route of the wolves. Kyaooh-! Pin, who had cried in the air once, helped Ly and subdued the wolves one by one with incredible reflexes. You have killed the ¡®Blood-Red Maned Wolf¡¯. You have obtained 142,300 EXP.You have obtained 4122 gold from the ¡®Blood-Red Maned Wolf¡¯.You have obtained ¡®Slice of Blood¡¯. Ian, who had discovered the item called ¡®Slice of Blood¡¯, which he was seeing for the first time, from the corpse of the wolf, wore an expression full of curiosity. ¡®What¡¯s this? Is this like a quest item?¡¯ CH 107 Chapter 107: The Secret of Forlas Plateau (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Because there was not much content even when he checked the item information, he had absolutely no idea where it was used just from looking at the name. However, Ian put aside his curiosity for now and focused on cleaning up all of the wolves in the hall first. And he was able to wipe all of the seven wolves without much difficulty. ¡°Alright! The EXP is savoury.¡± However, on the other hand, he also felt even more alert. This was because, compared to the Common-rank monsters that he had fought against up until now, he could definitely feel that the Offensive Power and Agility of the Blood-Red Maned Wolves were far superior. The fact that his Familiars¡¯ Vitalities had dropped to quite a dangerous level was proof of that. ¡°Harin, please heal my Familiars.¡± ¡°Sure!¡± Ian smacked his lips inwardly. ¡®I should have brought my retainers. Even if I had Celia, she would have been a big help in recovering my Familiars¡­¡¯ Celia¡¯s Familiar recovery skill and cloning skill was a big help in hunting. However, there was a reason why he also left them behind. This was because they needed to lead the Domain police and hunt the nearby monsters in order for the hunting effectiveness of the police to be good. ¡®Next time, I should just bring even Celia. Since even with the other retainers, they should be enough to lead the police.¡¯ While Ian was thinking of this and that, he didn¡¯t forget to continuously use his First-Aid skill. This was because, compared to Harin¡¯s recovery skill, its effect could be considered a drop in the ocean, but for when he hunted alone, he needed to consistently raise its Proficiency. As maintenance was completed, Ian stood up from his spot. ¡°Alright, shall we go deeper inside now?¡± ¡°Yeah, sounds good!¡± As Harin responded with a beaming expression, which was completely different from her expressions up until now, Ian asked her with a quizzical voice. ¡°Hm? Did you get something good, Harin?¡± Harin shook her head as she responded. ¡°No, nothing like that, but I did already level-up 2 levels since entering this dungeon. Although, I was already over 90% EXP before we entered¡­¡± Because Ian had only now barely gained about 15% EXP, his stomach hurt a little. However, it was obvious that there would be a difference in the leveling-up speed of Harin, who was now at lv 93, versus Ian, who was at lv 116. ¡®Well, since it¡¯s good on the guild¡¯s part if Harin levels up¡­¡¯ He was a little disappointed that he had to share the EXP with Harin, but because he was able to hunt even a little faster thanks to her heals and buffs, he couldn¡¯t really say it was a big loss. The two people moved their feet and began to go deeper into the dungeon. * * * ¡°Huh? What¡¯s this?¡± As Ian stopped walking and raised his hand to keep everybody back, Harin, who was following from behind, asked with a quizzical expression. ¡°Why, is there a problem?¡± ¡°There isn¡¯t a problem, but the path is blocked.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, she came forward, and after seeing the inside of the passageway that was curved, both of Harin¡¯s eyes grew. And she scolded Ian. ¡°The path being blocked is a problem, you idiot.¡± ¡°Is, is it?¡± Ian scratched the back of his head as he approached and stood in front of the blocked passageway. ¡°But I think that this wasn¡¯t always blocked off.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yeah. If the passageway was just always blocked off, then the walls would have naturally narrowed down, but here, if you look at the ceilings and the walls, they¡¯re completely perpendicular to the wall blocking the path.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right.¡± At Ian¡¯s explanation, Harin also approached the wall and checked the blocked-off section. On top of being dark, the wall was black, so it wasn¡¯t clearly visible, but looking at it from a closer perspective, the wall was not just flat. It was symmetrically made up with a rough shape that had an artificial feeling. ¡°Oh, this is completely covered in dust.¡± As Harin placed her hand on the wall that blocked the path, black dust completely covered her hand as she pulled it away. And from the spot where the dust was cleared, a stone wall made up of worn-out marble was revealed. It was a little unusual, but at the giant stone gate-like image, Ian nodded his head and mumbled. ¡°As expected¡­ There was no way that a dungeon would end in vain like this. There wasn¡¯t even some sort of Boss.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Harin also nodded her head. ¡°That¡¯s right. But, first, I feel like we need to clear some of the dust in order for us to see something.¡± At those words, Ian turned his head towards Bbookbbook, who was on his back. ¡°Bbookbbook, can you not shoot out something like a water cannon?¡± He seemed to have heard Ian¡¯s words, as Bbookbbook, who was inside of his shell, poked his head out and wore a puzzled expression. Bbook? While looking at Bbookbbook, who wore a na?ve expression while tilting his head, Ian shook his head. ¡°It will be faster to ask Pin.¡± And Ian made all of his Familiars and Harin stand far back. ¡°Pin, try using your Crush skill on there.¡± Kku-ruk- Kku-ruk-! At Ian¡¯s command, Pin, who slightly flew up into the air, began to flap his wings towards the stone wall covered in dust. Kwaaah-! And the giant vortex of wind that appeared in front of Pin swept past the stone wall. Harin took a couple more steps backwards as she squinted her eyes. ¡°Whew, look at the dust.¡± This was because, just like she said, a thick cloud of dust formed in the inner side of the passageway. The party turned their back towards the dust wind and escaped out of the passageway. This was because it was obvious that if they were to just get directly hit by it, their whole body would be covered with dust just like black coal. And shortly after, once the dust had calmed down, Ian and Harin approached the stone wall. ¡°Wow, this is cool.¡± Harin let out an exclamation. This was because the violent wind that gushed out from Pin¡¯s wings had removed the dust that was piled on the stone wall very cleanly, and the form of the wall that was previously unknown was revealed intact. And the thing that had caught the two people¡¯s eyes first was the large sphere, which was about 4-metres in length and width, that was lodged in the centre of the stone wall. To be more specific, it was a clear, glass marble that was in the wide-opened mouth of a wolf that was carved right in the middle of the stone wall. ¡°What could this be?¡± Harin asked, but there was no way that Ian would know about it. ¡°I¡¯m not sure. It also seems like some sort of entrance to a religious altar¡­¡¯ While speaking, Ian let down Bbookbbook, who he was carrying on his back, and beat his waist. ¡°Ow, my waist. First, let¡¯s think about this while resting a little.¡± Harin, who saw him, grinned. ¡°Is he really heavy?¡± ¡°Well, not that much¡­¡± As soon as Bbookbbook was on the ground, he poked his head out, and indubitably started to run around. Harin laughed as she called Ian. ¡°Jinsung.¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°By any chance, the reason why Bbookbbook is gaining weight¡­¡± Bbookbbook, who had heard up to this point, stopped walking and suddenly turned his head as he glared at Harin. Glare-! Even if it was Harin, the meatball angel, he couldn¡¯t forgive her if she was going to give him stress about dieting. Harin¡¯s words continued. ¡°Could it be that it¡¯s not because he eats a lot, but maybe because lack of exercise?¡± ¡°Hm? Lack of exercise?¡± Harin nodded her head as she continued. ¡°Yeah. Since he¡¯s just always on your back, he never gets the chance to move around. Even if he eats a lot, if you make him exercise, I feel like he won¡¯t gain weight¡­¡± ¡°Hmm. That could also be right.¡± Ian turned his attention towards Bbookbbook. ¡°Bbookbbook, what do you think? Do you want to just eat as much as you want and exercise a little?¡± Bbookbbook, who met eyes with Ian, closed his eyes and wore a distressed expression. Bboo-ook¡­ Truthfully, Bbookbbook wasn¡¯t just a gluttonous turtle, he was also incredibly lazy. To the point he was enjoying getting piggybacked by Ian quite a bit. He was happy when he occasionally came down from his back and ran around, but for some reason, if it was his evil owner Ian, Bbookbbook felt Ian would exercise intensely. Bbookbbook, who was contemplating it, ended up postponing his decision. Bbook-! While watching Bbookbbook, who crawled off towards somewhere, Ian shook his head. ¡°See. He doesn¡¯t even want to exercise either right now. I¡¯m positive.¡± At the cutting remark of Ian, who had perfectly grasped his mental condition, Bbookbbook momentarily flinched. However, he acted as if he hadn¡¯t heard anything, and began to crawl again. Harin wore a bitter expression as she mumbled. ¡°No kidding¡­¡± The two people rested for a moment as they inspected their equipment. Even during then, Ian¡¯s attention continuously lingered on the clear, glass marble. ¡®What could that be? If I figure out the secret of that glass marble, I feel like the stone wall will open up¡­¡¯ Ian slowly stood up and approached the stone wall. And before he realized it, he placed his hand on top of the glass marble. However, just then, a completely unexpected system message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring- You are able to use the ¡®Blood¡¯ item. Will you use it? At the unexpected situation, Ian momentarily flinched, but without hesitating, he used the blood. This was because there was quite a lot of blood that he had gained from catching Blood-Red Maned Wolves up until now. ¡°I¡¯ll use it.¡± As soon as Ian was done speaking, one blood that was within Ian¡¯s chest jumped out and was absorbed into the clear marble. You have used the ¡®Blood¡¯ item.2% of the ¡®Blood Vessel Jade¡¯ has been restored.The current restoration rate of the ¡®Blood Vessel Jade¡¯: 2/100 Ian, who saw that, was immediately able to get an idea. ¡®This place must open once this is filled.¡¯ First of all, Ian used up all of the bloods that he had without exception. 1.2% of the ¡®Blood Vessel Jade¡¯ has been restored.2.3% of the ¡®Blood Vessel Jade¡¯ has been restored. As the restoration rate was different depending on the size of the bloods, despite having used a little more than twenty of them, it only amounted to a restoration rate of 30%. Harin, who was watching a red light from Ian¡¯s hand endlessly being sucked in, seemed to have grown curious as she approached him. ¡°Jinsung, what are you doing?¡± ¡°Ah, I think I¡¯ve found the answer to this. Harin, there were bloods that you gained while hunting, right?¡± Jinsung assumed that Harin would also have a similar amount of bloods, and he thought if he used all of those as well, he would be able to almost fill the restoration rate. However, Harin wasn¡¯t able to respond right away and hesitated. ¡°Uh¡­ That¡­ Jinsung.¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t have enough space for my cooking ingredients, so I threw out all those bloods or whatever¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡± Jinsung was a little flustered, but he decided to think positively of it. ¡®Well, that¡¯s okay, since we have the first discoverer¡¯s buff as well¡­ It¡¯s good if we hunt a lot, I guess.¡¯ If they went back a little from where they came from, the Blood-Red Maned Wolves that they had hunted before would have all regenerated. Ian called over Bbookbbook, who had crawled into a corner of the passageway and was wriggling. ¡°Bbookbbook, let¡¯s go hunt.¡± However, Bbookbbook acted as if he hadn¡¯t even heard him. Ian, who saw that, grumbled as he approached Bbookbbook. ¡°Hey, what have you picked up and are eating now?¡± As it wasn¡¯t an everyday occurrence for Bbookbbook to be eating moss-like stuff that grew in fields here and there, Ian approached Bbookbbook without much thought. However, Harin, who had approached Bbookbbook before Ian, shouted with a surprised voice. ¡°Jinsung, this is Bloody Salty Grass!¡± ¡°Huh? What¡¯s that?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a cooking ingredient, but, how do I explain this¡­¡± Harin, who thought about it for a moment, seemed to have thought of something, as her words continued. ¡°Uh, you know capsaicin, right? You should be able to understand what it is if you think of it like a cooking ingredient that¡¯s used similarly to capsaicin?¡± And Jinsung¡¯s two eyes rounded. ¡°What? Capsaicin?¡± Jinsung was well aware of the terror(?) of capsaicin. When he first began living alone, while cooking Ddukbokki[1], he had put a good amount of capsaicin in it without thinking. He still hadn¡¯t forgotten hellishly spicy flavour that he had tasted then. As his butt was on fire for almost two days, it was something he couldn¡¯t forget even if he wanted to. ¡°Harin, then, is it okay for him to take a proper bite out of that?¡± Ian wasn¡¯t able to continue what he was going to say next. This was because Bbookbbook, who had eaten the capsaicin(?), began to jump around here and there. While watching him, Harin let out a deep sigh. ¡°Whew, his stomachs probably going to flip inside out even from just eating one leaf¡­¡¯ Ian watched Bbookbbook with a pitiful expression as he sympathized. ¡°That¡¯s why hyung told you not to just go around eating anything, Bbookbbook¡­¡± A horrible shriek(?) that they had never heard of from Bbookbbook up until now came out from his mouth. Bboo-roo-roo-rook-! [1] Ddukbokki = Spicy Korean rice cakes CH 108 Chapter 108: Liberated Fenrir (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda YouCast, the world¡¯s largest video-sharing site. In the upper left corner on the main page of YouCast, there was a ranking chart called ¡®The Ranking of the Rapidly Rising in Popularity¡¯. Hanjoon, a company employee in his 30s, always watched YouCast before he went to bed as his last daily task everyday. This was because even by just making sure to watch YouCast everyday, he could find interesting incidents and videos in all sorts of categories from the entertainment world, sports, games, etc. At first, Hanjoon mainly watched videos on the bulletin board of the Best, which were of videos with a high number of total views, but for some time now, he always checked the top-ranking bulletin board of videos rapidly rising in popularity first in order to mainly see the latest videos. ¡°Ha, so tired.¡± Hanjoon, who suffered all day from hard work, changed into his PJs and turned off his lights before he lied down on his bed and opened his smartphone. Drowsiness overcame him, but he had no plans of skipping his time to watch YouCast before he went to bed. ¡°Let¡¯s see here, I wonder what kind of fun video there will be today.¡± Hanjoon, who had gone into YouCast¡¯s bulletin board of videos rapidly rising in popularity with just a couple taps, scrolled down. ¡°Hm, most of them are videos I watched yesterday¡­ Are there no new ones?¡± He mumbled when suddenly, both his eyes shone. ¡°Huh? The increase quotient is 940%? Isn¡¯t this a mistake?¡± A video with an increase quotient so high that it was incomparable to the other videos had caught his eyes. The title of the video was incredibly long, and it seemed because it was a global version, as it was written in English. However, because it was translated in Korean after it, he had no problem in reading it. Kailan[1] Diamond Class Dominion Battle (Lotus Vs Polaris) Summoner User Ian¡¯s Mad Movie (1 VS 30) Server ¨C Korea Hanjoon, who read the title, wore a surprised expression. ¡°Huh? It seems to be a Kailan video, but it¡¯s a Summoner user¡¯s mad movie?¡± Hanjoon was even more interested. Because of his work life, he didn¡¯t have time during the weekdays, but during the weekends, he was user that always played Kailan. On top of that, he was a Summoner-class. Because he had never seen a video uploaded that was a mad movie of a Summoner user up until now, Hanjoon tapped the video without hesitation. And a video that was edited with an incredibly luxurious design began to be played. ¡°Oh, this is a video that Sojin has edited.¡± Hanjoon, who had discovered the words ¡®Made by Sojin¡¯ on the bottom of the video began to be immersed with an even more excited expression. This was because he also knew of the uploader with the ID Sojin, as they were quite famous. ¡°Keu, are they really fighting 30 to 1?¡± As the video started, Hanjoon began to focus. And shortly after, as if he had been sucked into his smartphone, he wasn¡¯t able to take his eyes away from it for even a moment. The video was not inferior to any videos that he had seen up until now in terms of extravagance. ¡°Wo, wow¡­¡± He kept on blurting out exclamations no matter what part he was watching. Hanjoon, who had watched the 30-minute video until the end without skipping over even one part in his dark room, pressed the ¡®replay¡¯ button before he even realized it. Hanjoon mumbled with a dazed voice. ¡°Does¡­ This even make sense?¡± To him, a Summoner that was currently around lv 50, Ian¡¯s territory war battle video was the definition of shocking. From what he saw, this video had completely flipped over the established theory that ¡®Summoners were the worst for PVP¡¯. Even just last weekend, he was feeling doubtful of the ¡®Summoner¡¯-class and was contemplating resetting his character, but his mind was now filled with an incredible sensation. ¡®Exactly how many Familiars does he have? One, two¡­ You¡¯re telling me that it¡¯s possible to control five Familiars so elaborately like that?¡¯ Bbookbbook, that hung on Ian¡¯s back, was not classified as a Familiar in Hanjoon¡¯s eyes. Because of that, he had counted a total of five. ¡®No, and that Familiar that looks similar to an eagle has an image similar to a Griffin that appears in myths¡­ There¡¯s no way that¡¯s a real Griffin, right?¡¯ When he first played the video, he was distracted by the extravagant battle and had no chance to even develop a curiosity towards the Familiars that Ian operated, but as he replayed the video, his eyes started to focus on each and every Familiar. ¡®For the Blood-Red Maned Wolf, there are quite a bit of users that had evolved to one, so that¡¯s doesn¡¯t really matter, but the other Familiars are ones that I¡¯m completely seeing for the first time. By any chance, is that white tiger a Hallikan?¡¯ Hanjoon was incredibly confused. He had seen the specs of the Summoner rankers that popped up in the community every now and then, but he had definitely never seen such nonsense specs. ¡®An edit or a fabrication¡­ This isn¡¯t one, right? Or by any chance, a system administrator?¡¯ While Hanjoon was deeply thinking about it, the video had ended, and he was about to press the replay button without thinking again when he stopped. ¡®Shall we take a look at the comments instead?¡¯ He scrolled down and began to read through the comments. Comments in various languages of different countries were attached, but as they were all translated into Korean, there was no problem reading them. Kpi0900 ¨C This crazy! You¡¯re telling me this is a Summoner? Are you expecting me to believe this right now?Holyaai ¨C What is the identity of that blue golem? Is there by chance anybody that knows that channeling skill that sucks in with that opponents with that whirlwind?CoCo1123 ¨C For crying out loud! I¡¯m positive that¡¯s a Griffin. I¡¯m telling you, I¡¯ve definitely seen it drawn on the walls of the Luspel Empire¡¯s main castle!KailanHolic ¨C Summoner God. Where are all the dudes that dissed Summoners? I want to bring them over and show them. Speaking of which, what exactly is that dude¡¯s level? Even if it was the Korean server that opened up first, how does it make sense that he can easily take down thirty people in the lv 90 range? Has he hit lv 130 or something?Pts1120 ¨C Commenter above, I think you¡¯ve got the wrong idea. Summoner is a class that came out after all servers were opened. No matter if it was the Korean server that opened the quickest, if it¡¯s a Summoner-class, there¡¯s no difference. There were already over hundreds of comments. If there was a common feature of all of these comments, they were all plastered with exclamation and question marks. It showed that most of the reactions weren¡¯t able to believe this. Hanjoon, who read through the comments, couldn¡¯t help but nod his head automatically as well. ¡®This is an obvious reaction. If it¡¯s a user that had played Summoner even a little, then they should be able to know how nonsensical that battle is.¡¯ As a Summoner himself, he had experience losing to a user that was almost 5-10 levels lower than him in PVP from a bad match-up. Because of that, he couldn¡¯t understand Ian¡¯s fighting power at all. Hanjoon abruptly got up from his bed and turned on his computer. ¡®Ah¡­ I was planning on going to bed early, but that¡¯s too late now.¡¯ If he didn¡¯t search up on the user ¡®Ian¡¯, he felt he wouldn¡¯t be able to get any sleep. Sitting in front of the computer, the sound of the mouse that was clicking in his hands began to ring out constantly. * * * ¡°All done!¡± From the marble that Ian had his hand on top of, a red light began to ooze. 100% of the ¡®Blood Vessel Jade¡¯ has been restored. And the bright red light that oozed from the marble began to flare out from the whole stone gate that was blocking the passageway. In the end of going around the dungeon and hunting without rest for about an hour, they had succeeded in raising the restoration rate to 100%. The ¡®Gateway of Blood¡¯s seal has been released. A system message popped up in front of Ian and Harin¡¯s eyes, and the giant stone gate that looked to be over 4-metres in length and width slowly began to open up. At that sight, an exclamation flowed out of Harin¡¯s mouth before she even realized. ¡°Wow¡­¡± On the other hand, Ian instinctively grabbed and pulled Harin¡¯s hand as he backed up. ¡°Harin, let¡¯s take a step back a bit. Since we have no idea what will be inside.¡± ¡°Yeah, got it.¡± Keu-keung- Keu-keu-keung-! As the stone gate opened from the left and right, a boom rang out in every direction, and Ian looked into the inner part behind the stone gate attentively. And Ian, who had checked the inner part, got into fighting stance. ¡°Harin, stay far back. I think there¡¯s a boss monster inside.¡± A strong light oozed out from the inner part. Because of that, he couldn¡¯t see the monster inside well, but the silhouette from the backlight looked similar to a giant wolf. A slightly interesting point was that the wolf was standing on two legs. Shortly after, the light died down, and the shape of the wolf was completely revealed. ¡°Wow, is that a werewolf? It¡¯s incredibly cool.¡± Harin let out an exclamation with a na?ve expression, but meanwhile, a cold sweat broke out on Ian¡¯s forehead, who had had immediately checked the information of the monster. Bloody Fenrir ¨C Lv 128 (Heroic-rank) ¡®Fenrir? Euh, I knew that it would be a Heroic-rank since it is a boss monster, but lv 128, though¡­¡¯ Fenrir was a legendary monster that appeared in Northern European myths. There was no chance for a monster created with the name of a legendary creature that appeared in myths to be weak. Ian grew even more nervous. ¡®But, on the topic of wolves, why is that thing so big.¡¯ The wolf, which looked to even be a little bigger than white tiger Halli, had red fur on its back that looked as if it was on fire and with even its two eyes tinged a dark red, it had an incredibly overpowering image. Keu-reu-reu-. It seemed that the Fenrir had discovered Ian as well, as both its eyes shone and it began to move its body. With an expression of complete madness, it started to turn its body. Ian, who saw that, controlled his Familiars calmly. ¡°Ddukdae, go forward first!¡± Deu-reu-reuk-. Along with the loud sound of Ddukdae¡¯s steps, he began to move. And the Fenrir also started to run in equally. The movements of the Fenrir were incredibly agile, and in an instant, the space in between began to shrink. ¡®If I slip up, I could end up kicking the bucket.¡¯ Ian got on Halli¡¯s back. Even at a glance, the opponent had Agility that was far superior to Ian. In case the Fenrir was to ignore the Familiars and charged towards Ian, there would be no way for him to avoid it. However, if he was riding Halli, that was a different story. ¡°You can¡¯t lose its movements!¡± Fortunately, the opponent that Fenrir charged into first was Ddukdae. Ian closely watched how much damage Ddukdae received from the Fenrir¡¯s attack. And the Fenrir¡¯s teeth, which shone a bright red, directly impacted Ddukdae¡¯s chest. Ba-bang-! Familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯ has received critical damage from the ¡®Bloody Fenrir¡¯.Familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 12740. Ian, who checked the damage, gulped inwardly. ¡®Even if it was a critical hit, for the damage to be over 10 thousand¡­¡¯ The Vitality of Ddukdae, who was close to lv 120 now, was over 60 thousand. However, even if his Vitality was that high, if damage being dealt was going to be 12 thousand, he wouldn¡¯t be able to last five hits before he died. If Ddukdae¡¯s Defensive Power of over 25 hundred was considered, it was truly outrageous Offensive Power. Ian hurried and invoked Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss Hole. ¡°Ddukdae, Abyss Hole!¡± If he was to have invoked Abyss Hole from the beginning, there was the risk of the incredibly agile Fenrir avoiding the attack, so even if he was to allow one hit, he purposely used it later. Kuoooh-! And no matter how agile the Fenrir was, there was no way that it could avoid the AoE Abyss Hole that was in close-range. Kyaaoo-! The Fenrir that began to be sucked into the range of the Abyss Hole let out a horrible shriek. Ian, who had confirmed that the Fenrir¡¯s feet were tied down, quickly yelled. ¡°Charge in now!¡± [1] The author had written the game title ¡®Kailan¡¯ in English for the first time in this chapter, and as the name has been confirmed, ¡®Kailan¡¯ will now be used, and has already been edited for the previous chapters CH 109 Chapter 109: Liberated Fenrir (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda At those words, the other Familiars charged towards the Fenrir. The one that first attacked the Fenrir was none other than Ly. Chomp-! Familiar ''Ly'' has dealt critical damage to the ''Bloody Fenrir''. The ''Bloody Fenrir''s Vitality has been reduced by 5876. Ian, who saw that Ly''s critical damage had only dealt about 6 thousand damage, slightly squinted his eyes. ''Ha¡­ It''s definitely not a Defensive-type monster, it''s level is seriously a gangster.'' Compared to the almost 9 thousand damage that Ly''s attack dealt on a normal Common monster, only about 60% of his damage was applied. However, just then, an unexpected counterattack from the Fenrir burst out. Pu-puck-! The Fenrir had quickly swung both of its front legs towards Ly, who had bit its shoulder joint. Familiar ''Ly'' has been attacked by the ''Bloody Fenrir''. Familiar ''Ly''s Vitality has been reduced by 9760. Familiar ''Ly''s Vitality has been reduced by 8958. Ly, who was struck in an instant by the Fenrir''s front legs, was thrown through the air. Kkae-kkaeng-! Ly''s Vitality was just under 20 thousand. From that one set of attack, Ly was on the brink of death. ''If there was even a critical attack, he would have died!'' Ian felt his heart sank as he hurriedly Summon Released Ly. "Ly, Summon Release!" And from the spot where Ly disappeared from, Lake and Pin''s AoE skills rained down. Kwaaah-! Hwa-reu-reuk-! Along with that, the Fenrir''s Vitality also began to drop quickly. Familiar ''Pin'' has used Inherent Ability ''Crush''. The ''Bloody Fenrir''s Vitality has been reduced by 2439. The ''Bloody Fenrir''s Vitality has been reduced by 2399. The ''Bloody Fenrir''s Vitality has been reduced by 2501. The Crush skill that dealt 125% of his Offensive Power every 0.5 seconds literally boasted an incredible destructive power. On top of that, as Lake''s Breath overlapped with it, even if the Fenrir was almost lv 130, it could only receive an enormous amount of damage. And the name of the Fenrir, who was directly hit by the two Familiars'' powerful skills, began to blink without a doubt. Ian was also firing off Magic Spheres and Current Proliferation from a further distance away. Pung- Pu-pung-! And lastly, Ddukdae''s Abyss Hole exploded with a deafening boom. Baaang-! The Fenrir''s name began to blink even quicker. Ian, who saw that, let out a shout of delight. ''Despite being a boss monster, it''s Vitality isn''t much.'' It was normal for Boss monsters that appeared in dungeons or fields to have several times the amount of Vitality of a Common monster, regardless of their rank. In the case of a Defensive-type or Health-type boss, with a little bit of exaggeration mixed in, there were ones that you needed to knock out all day. Of course, the Offensive Power of Crush and Breath were powerful, but even taking that into consideration, he couldn''t help but feel that the Fenrir''s Vitality dropped quickly. ''I did Summon Release Ly, but we might be able to catch him more easily than I expected.'' The Familiars that used up all of their AoE skills charged towards the Fenrir with ferocious spirits as if they planned on ending this battle. However, as the slowing effect of Abyss Hole was over now, the Fenrir quickly leaped into the air and avoided all of the attacks. Ta-tat-. The Fenrir stood on two feet when it was on the ground, but as it began to run along the walls of the passageway, it used all of its four feet naturally and began to move at an incredible speed. "Pin! The right-!" The Fenrir, who had gone around behind Lake before he realized, raised his front paws that shone a bright red. However, after seeing the front paws of the Fenrir, Ian''s eyes widened. ''What the hell is that?'' This was because, from the raised paws of the Fenrir, bright-red claws that looked long enough to be 1-metre long had grown out. Chwaak-! And the next moment. Ian couldn''t help but doubt his two eyes. Familiar ''Lake'' has received critical damage from the ''Bloody Fenrir''. Familiar ''Lake''s Vitality has been reduced by 29,760. It was an outrageous attack that was hard to believe even after checking it with both eyes. Moreover, that wasn''t the end. The ''Bloody Fenrir'' has absorbed ''Lake''s Vitality and has recovered 44,640 Vitality. The dying Fenrir had revived through its Health Absorption effect. As it revived an incredible ratio of almost 150% of the damage it dealt, Ian couldn''t help but be taken aback. ''What kind of monster like this actually exists?'' Of course, it wasn''t like it completely recovered its Vitality to the maximum just by recovering 44 thousand Vitality. Based on the fact that its name was still blinking, it meant that less than half its Vitality remained. However, in a situation where the Familiars had poured at most of their skills, the Fenrir, which had recovered over 30% of its Vitality, was an incredibly dangerous existence. ''We can''t allow him to attack as much as possible!'' He was positive that the Fenrir''s attack just a moment ago was an Inherent Ability. Since when they were normally attacked, the Health Absorption effect wasn''t invoked. If in the case that Health Absorption was applied even for normal attacks, there would be nothing that was as much of a pain in the ass as that. ''Is that at least a relief?'' Ian withdrew Lake without hesitation as well. "Lake, Summon Release!" Lake''s Inherent Abilities were specialized to AoE attacks. And compared to his powerful Offensive Power, Lake''s reflexes were on the quite low side, so there was no way that Lake would be able to avoid the Fenrir''s attacks. There was no reason to keep Lake summoned when it was certain that if he allowed one or two more hits, he would die. Ian slightly turned his head and glanced at Harin. From a far distance, Harin was recovering Ddukdae''s Vitality. ''If Harin just keeps healing, Ddukdae should be able to withstand that outrageous Offensive Power.'' Now, the remaining Familiars on the battleground were Pin and Halli, as well as Ddukdae and Bbookbbook. ''We''ll go for the speediest battle possible. We need to catch it before it recovers its Vitality.'' If they were slow and dragged out the time, and the Health Absorption effect was invoked one or two more times, then there would be no chance. The Familiars began to move quickly and accurately according to Ian''s commands. Fortunately, because Pin and Halli''s Agility didn''t fall back at all compared to the Fenrir, they were able to prevent it from easily attacking them. The Fenrir chased after Ian, who was continuously on top of Halli, but eventually changed its target. It had its eye on Ddukdae, whose movements were slow, first. Kka-ka-kang-! The Fenrir''s claws raked through Ddukdae''s sturdy exterior and a bang reminiscent of the sound of metal scraping against each other rang out. Familiar ''Ddukdae''s Vitality has been reduced by 6760. Familiar ''Ddukdae''s Vitality has been reduced by 7312. Two attacks lodged in one after another, but fortunately, it wasn''t a critical attack, and Harin quickly recovered Ddukdae''s Vitality. And Ian didn''t let that chance go. ''The moment that dude focuses on Harin, Harin will immediately be kicked out of the game.'' As Harin was hiding her body behind Ddukdae, it was a situation where the Fenrir could definitely discover her. He couldn''t leave the situation to happen like that. Halli, who had Ian on his back, and Pin violently rushed towards the Fenrir. Puck- Pu-puck-! Pin''s front feet, that reached the Fenrir first, raked through the back of the Fenrir''s head. And continued, Halli lodged his front feet strongly into the chest of Fenrir that turned around. Along with that, Ian yelled. "Halli, Guardian of the Wind!" As Ian let out the command, Halli''s Inherent Ability, Guardian of the Wind, was invoked, and Halli, whose Agility had increased in an instant, hit the Fenrir continuously. Bang- Ba-bang! And the system message that Ian was waiting for popped up. Familiar ''Halli''s Inherent Ability, ''Smash'', has been invoked. For 1 second, the ''Bloody Fenrir'' will go into a ''stunned'' state. ''Alright!'' Halli and Pin mercilessly attacked the Fenrir, which flinched backwards in its stunned state. 7192 damage has been dealt to the ''Bloody Fenrir''. 4823 damage has been dealt to the ''Bloody Fenrir''. 6859 damage has been dealt to the ''Bloody Fenrir''. And as soon as the Fenrir was about to recover from its stunned state, Halli''s Smash had miraculously invoked again. Bang-! Ian poured the rest of his remaining Spirit Magic towards the Fenrir. As the purple Magic Spheres and Pin''s wind attacks, as well as Halli''s attacks were focused, the Fenrir''s large body slowly began to crumble. Kyaooh-! Ddukdae approached the Fenrir, who let out a horrible shriek as it collapsed, and brought down his large fist. Puck-! Normally, the Fenrir wouldn''t have been struck by the attack of Ddukdae, whose Agility practically hit the floor, but as it had been surrounded from all directions and also had a stunned effect, it couldn''t help but be struck. Plop-! And shortly after, the Fenrir''s body turned into a grey light and completely collapsed. "Alright!" Ian clenched his fist tightly. He hadn''t withdrawn his Familiars even once recently, but after having fought a powerful opponent to the point he had to Summon Release two Familiars, he felt completely drained of energy. You have killed the ''Bloody Fenrir''. You have obtained 997,710 EXP. It was an enormous amount of EXP that was close to 1 million. However, Ian didn''t think that it was a lot of EXP by a long shot. "Whew, that was seriously close." If he had given the Fenrir even a little bit more time, Ian would have suffered instead. Harin, who diligently filled up Ddukdae''s Vitality while hiding in the corner, seemed to also have been quite tense, as she let out a sigh of relief and approached Ian. Harin carefully opened her mouth towards Ian, who had caught his breath. "Whew, Jinsung, shall we go back now?" Harin felt that Jinsung was just suffering more for nothing because of her, so she was apologetic. However, having even caught a boss monster, there was no way that Jinsung would think of going back without seeing the end of the dungeon. "No. There''s still a continuing path that way. We need to reach the end of the dungeon before going back." With a bitter voice, Harin opened her mouth. "You also Summon Released Lake and Ly. You can''t summon them right away again, can you?" "Yeah. I can only summon them after 30 minutes, but with the current fighting power, we can move forward while catching Common monsters, don''t worry." Eventually, at Ian''s stubbornness, Harin couldn''t help but nod her head. "Alright, well¡­ If you say so." Ian got down from Halli''s back and approached the corpse of the Fenrir. And he placed his hand on top of it. Just as difficult as it was to hunt it, Ian was anticipating the reward as well. You have obtained 32,145 gold from the ''Bloody Fenrir''. You have obtained the ''Bloody Fenrir''s Necklace''. You have obtained the ''Fenrir''s Revengeful Spirit''. After checking the necklace, which the name for was written in a purple light, Ian''s mouth turned into a broad smile. This was because it had been a while since he had received a Heroic-rank item. However, just when Ian was about to open his inventory and check the items he obtained. The blood-red marble that Ian was holding in his hand floated into the air and began to shine a strange light. And a system message popped up in front of his eyes. You have liberated the ''Fenrir''s Revengeful Spirit'' that was devoured by madness. "Huh, huh¡­?" The blood-red marble that left Ian''s hand whisked around here and there and began to take some sort of form. The two people watched that with a dazed expression. Continuing, a ghost with a colourful, translucent shape floated in front of Harin and Ian. CH 110 Chapter 110: Liberated Fenrir (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Where is this¡­? ¡°Sorry¡­?¡± And who are you? This is quite confusing. The Fenrir that was killed because of Ian. Its ghost had risen and began to speak to Ian. Beside him, Harin also stared at that form with amazement. ¡°Wow, the wolf is talking.¡± At Harin¡¯s words, the Fenrir flew into a rage. I am Shallos, the leader that protects the kin of blood. Don¡¯t compare me to a lowly life form. At the Fenrir¡¯s spirit, Harin flinched. ¡°Al, alright. Well¡­¡± And Ian, who was watching the two people¡¯s conversation, introduced himself with a bitter expression. ¡°I¡¯m Ian.¡± Ian? Ian, you say¡­ Before Ian was even done speaking, the Fenrir, who introduced himself as ¡®Shallos¡¯, opened his mouth again. So, you are a Summoner. At his words, Ian nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right, I¡¯m a Summoner.¡± Shallos, who took a moment to scan the area, glanced once at his collapsed corpse and turned his head towards Ian again. Ian slightly tensed up. Since in any case, he was the one that killed him. However, different from Ian¡¯s expectation, the Fenrir said something unexpected. Hmm, firstly, I want to say thank you. ¡°¡­?¡± I¡¯m expressing my gratitude for saving me as I was snared by the chains of madness. Shallos¡¯ words to Ian, who wore a dubious expression as he had no idea on how to respond, continued. My strength was apparently sealed, but still, to have beaten me¡­ I will express my respect to your strength. At the words that his strength was sealed, Ian shook his head. ¡®No, if those were his sealed stats, exactly how strong is he normally?¡¯ Ian, whose mind was on something else on the inside, nodded his head for now as he responded to his words. ¡°Thanks wo- no, Shallos.¡± Shallos¡¯ gaze turned to the Familiars that were standing behind Ian like posts. And after scanning them once, he continued speaking again. However, it¡¯s disappointing. Ian reflexively asked back. ¡°What is?¡± If there was a kin of ours amongst your Familiars, I would have been able to be of big help to you. ¡°What kind of help?¡± It¡¯s different depending on the qualifications of the kin, but I have the ability to strengthen a child of our kin. Once he heard those words, there was something that flashed through for an instant. ¡®By any chance, could it be possible I gain a clue to evolve Ly through this dude?¡¯ Truthfully, this was a speculation that was closer to assurance than a guess. Ian opened his mouth urgently. ¡°My Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ will probably be one of your kin. Blood-Red Maned Wolf, right?¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Shallos¡¯ two eyes slightly rounded. Hmm? From amongst the Maned Wolves, if it¡¯s a relative of blood, then it is my descendant. However, I don¡¯t see one amongst your Familiars¡­ Currently, as Ly suffered from Shallos, who was held captive by madness, it was a situation where he was withdrawn to a different space. Ian spoke. ¡°Ly¡¯s currently in a Summon Release state. If you just wait about 20 more minutes, I can call him back.¡± Shallos nodded his head as if he finally understood. I see, that¡¯s why I didn¡¯t see him. As a matter of fact, I felt the presence of a relative of blood, but because I couldn¡¯t see him, I was just wondering. ¡°That¡¯s right, just wait a little bit longer. I¡¯ll summon him again soon.¡± However, different from Ian¡¯s expectations, he shook his head as he continued speaking. However, it¡¯s disappointing. Ian¡¯s two eyes slightly narrowed. ¡°What is it now? I told you, I can call back Ly in 20 minutes.¡± That¡¯s because I¡¯ll disappear before then. Before I go to the spirit world, the time I can spend here as a substance will not go over 10 minutes. I only have 9 minutes left. As soon as he heard those words, Ian wore a dumbfounded expression. ¡°¡­¡± At this miserable situation, Ian barely held back the swear words that almost left his mouth. ¡®This, damn it! Why exactly did they make this game like this?¡¯ While looking at Ly, who had no intentions of evolving no matter how diligently he leveled him up, Ian was thinking that he needed to fulfill some sort of requirement. However, as he couldn¡¯t even make use of the situation despite having found the clue in such an unexpected place like this, it was indeed grievous work. While looking at Ian, who let out an incredibly deep sigh from his depression, Shallos added on. Anyways, since my spirit has been freed from confinement thanks to you, I should give you a reasonable pay. As he finished speaking, a system message alerting Ian that he obtained a message popped up. You have obtained the item ¡®Bloody Hole¡¯. Based on the name that was written in purple, it was a definite that it was a Heroic-rank item. However, there was no way that Ian¡¯s mood would brighten from just that. ¡®Ha, how am I going to evolve Ly now¡­¡¯ In order to express his gratitude at the reward no matter what kind of mood he was in, Ian slightly dipped his head. This was an action that had become naturally embedded in Ian¡¯s body after playing Kailan up until now in order to get along in this world. ¡°Thanks, I¡¯ll use it well.¡± It¡¯s an item that is also the symbol of the kin of blood. I ask that you treat it with care. He hadn¡¯t checked what kind of item it was yet, but Ian nodded his head. ¡°Sure, I will do so.¡± Ian, who thought that he finished all of his business now, moved his feet towards the opposite passageway. However, just then, Shallos¡¯ mouth opened again. Ah, by any chance, are you going to pass through this passageway and exit out the other side, Ian? ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± Because he had no idea from the beginning that the passageway even connected to somewhere else, there was no way he would have had such intentions, but Ian nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. We¡¯re going to go out now through this opposite side.¡± As he planned on checking the end of the dungeon anyways, he wasn¡¯t exactly saying a lie. As expected, I see. If that¡¯s the case, do you think you could do me a favour? A NPC¡¯s request would be a quest. Ian¡¯s eyes slightly shone. ¡®If I could gain a clue related to Ly¡¯s evolution through even this quest, that would be nice¡­¡¯ ¡°What kind of que- no, favour?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Shallos¡¯ words immediately continued. I have a brother whose spirit has also been restricted. And a quest window popped up. Ring-. *Bloody Fenrir ¡®Shallos¡¯ request Bloody Fenrir Shallos, the protector of the kin of blood, has been freed from the restraints on his spirit through your help. He is incredibly grateful towards you. However, his brother has not been able to be freed from the restraints on his spirit and is suffering. With the information received from Shallos as the foundation, let¡¯s liberate the restraints of the spirit of ¡®Orvil¡¯, Shallos¡¯ brother as well as a Dark Fenrir, a kin of the night. Quest Difficulty Level: S Quest Condition: User that has liberated the spirit of Bloody Fenrir ¡®Shallos¡¯ Time Limit: None Reward ¨C Unknown Ian¡¯s two eyes rounded as soon as the quest window opened. ¡®S-rank? This is an S-rank¡­?¡¯ At the difficulty level that he was seeing for the first time while playing Kailan, Ian was momentarily engulfed by confliction. ¡®If it¡¯s an S-rank quest¡­ I think I¡¯ve read somewhere in the community not long ago that a lv 130 ranker failed a quest as well.¡¯ However, to just reject it, his regret for having lost the chance to evolve Ly just a moment ago was too big. At the end of a moment of hesitation, Ian ended up accepting the quest. ¡®That¡¯s right, there¡¯s no time limit either, so might as well give it a try.¡¯ ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll try and help.¡± As Ian accepted the quest, Shallos¡¯ expression brightened noticeably. Thank you, Ian. I hope that you¡¯ll liberate my poor brother, who has been suffering by restraints for over a century. ¡°Sure, well¡­ I¡¯ll try.¡± ¡®Although I don¡¯t know if I¡¯ll be able to do it. And Shallos¡¯ words continued. If you walk about 10 more minutes following this passageway, you¡¯ll be able to pass the Forlas Cliff and be able to go outside. The Forlas Cliff that he was talking about was the endless cliff that unfolded in front of Ian¡¯s eyes before he entered the passageway. If you go outside of the passageway, it will probably connect to a waterfront. And if you follow that waterfront and move north, Ollibus Village should appear. 100 years have passed, but the topography shouldn¡¯t have changed much. Ian listened intently to Shallos¡¯ words. As there was no significantly complicated content, though, there was no need to write it down. Once you arrive at Ollibus Village, find ¡®Ikael¡¯ there. Since he will probably know about the whereabouts of my brother. Ian, who felt doubtful, asked. ¡°Ikael? Is he human?¡± Shallos responded. That¡¯s right. He is Orvil and my sole human friend. ¡°I see. But didn¡¯t you say that you guys have been locked up for over 100 years? Will a human still be alive?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Shallos slowly nodded his head. He will probably be alive. That¡¯s because¡­ After taking a moment to catch his breath, he slowly opened his mouth. He is the ¡®One that has changed his fate¡¯. * * * Ian and Harin left Shallos and walked to the end following the passageway. ¡°But Jinsung, wouldn¡¯t it be better to just keep hunting here for now until our first discoverer¡¯s buff is over?¡± At Harin¡¯s extremely justifiable question, Ian nodded his head as he responded. ¡°That¡¯s right. That¡¯s also what I was planning on doing. He said that there¡¯s a place called Ollibus Village once we get out of this passageway. I¡¯m going to go there and buy a Return Stone as well as do maintenance before coming back to hunt again.¡± ¡°I see.¡± About ten minutes later, at the end of quickly hunting the monsters that appeared in the latter half of the passageway and moving accordingly, the two people were able to exit out of the place. ¡°Wow! It actually was a coast!¡± As they came out of the passageway, the endless sea and horizon caught the two people¡¯s eyes. Ian was no different in admiration. ¡°Wow¡­ Is even the sea actually materialized?¡± Because Colonar Continent, the land that you first step on when you first start Kailan, was closed off on three sides as it was surrounded by maps, there was not one user in Kailan that had seen the ¡®sea¡¯ yet. Before the northern continent was open, all four sides were cut off from the beginning, but from the last patch, the map opened up and the north had become accessible. On top of that, even the fact that the northern continent was connected to the sea was first discovered through Ian. And sure enough, the first discoverer¡¯s reward popped up in front of Ian and Harin¡¯s eyes. Ring-. You are the first discoverer of the ¡®sea¡¯.Your Fame has increased by 50,000.Your Affinity with ¡®water¡¯-types has increased by 5%. Instead of her type Affinity increasing, Harin¡¯s understanding on seafood cooking ingredients increased by 5%. The two people, who had gained Fame and stats for free, followed the waterfront and moved north while in a good mood. And just like Shallos said, they were soon able to discover ¡®Ollibus Seashore Village¡¯. ¡°Whoa, there¡¯s actually a village here in such a secluded area.¡± At Ian¡¯s words that he said to himself out loud, Harin agreed. ¡°No kidding. On top of that, the village¡¯s size is also on the quite large side.¡± At her words, there was something that suddenly flashed through Ian¡¯s mind all of a sudden. ¡®By any chance, if it¡¯s a village that hasn¡¯t been discovered yet, could it be that it doesn¡¯t have an affiliated nation or guild?¡¯ If it was a village that was in an independent state, it basically meant that it corresponded with the words that he could immediately register this place as the Lotus Guild¡¯s new base. Ian immediately checked the information of Ollibus Village. *Ollibus Category: Seashore Village (Independent) Rank: Village Area: 5582 m2 Population: 1995 people Ollibus is a village at the north end of the seashore. Shipbuilding and fishery is well-developed here. Value of Territory: 2758 Detailed Information (Expand) ¡®Independent! It¡¯s actually independent!¡¯ Ian¡¯s expression was full of complete excitement. This was because, amongst the independent bases that had been discovered in the northern continent up until now, there was no place that was as big in size and as developed as this one. On top of that, as it¡¯s rank was also at the ¡®Village¡¯-rank, if they could just take it in, it would become a big help to the guild. Ian hurriedly pulled out the Seal of the Lord from his inventory. ¡°Base occupation!¡± However, unexpected system messages popped up in order in front of Ian¡¯s eyes, who was grinning from ear to ear as he spread out his seal. You cannot occupy the ¡®Ollibus¡¯ Seashore Village.In order to occupy ¡®Ollibus¡¯ Seashore Village, the requirements must be satisfied.Requirement 1. You must possess a Domain higher than the ¡®Village¡¯-rank. (Satisfied)Requirement 2. You must have military power stronger than the relevant village. (Unsatisfied)Requirement 3. Your friendship with the relevant village must be over 70%. (Unsatisfied) CH 111 Chapter 111: Ollibus Seashore Village (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian, who checked the system message, mumbled while wearing a disappointed expression. ¡°Euh, as expected, there was no way I would be able to take this so easily.¡± Harin approached him while he grumbled. ¡°Jinsung, what are you doing instead of going in?¡± At her question, Ian shook his head as he responded. ¡°Ah, it¡¯s nothing. I was just thinking about something for a bit.¡± Ian moved with Harin, and he first compared the military power of the Lotus Domain and Ollibus Village. He couldn¡¯t take it for free, but he wanted to occupy this bonanza-like village no matter what. Before any of the other giant guilds discovered it. ¡®Hmm¡­ There¡¯s not much of a difference between the military power. It seems because the rank of the village is low, the levels of the soldiers are much lower in comparison to their numbers.¡¯ The fighting power of the soldiers and fighting-type NPCS of the Domain were all digitized and added up to mark the Domain¡¯s military power. Ollibus Village had over two times more the number of soldiers than the Lotus Domain, but as the soldiers¡¯ levels and rank weren¡¯t high, their fighting power was similar. ¡®The military power requirement is a value that we can satisfy in a few days if we put our mind to it¡­¡¯ Lastly, Ian¡¯s gaze turned towards the message that was written as ¡®Requirement 3¡¯. ¡®So, ¡®Your friendship with the relevant village must be over 70%¡¯, huh¡­¡¯ There were several ways to raise friendship. On a Domain level, you could try to trade with them or support them, or you could do the quests of the NPCs in the village. ¡®Firstly, I should think about this after I figure out the quest I received now. Since our friendship will go up a little from this quest as well.¡¯ Currently, his friendship with Ollibus Village was a little over 20%. Because he had never worked on raising his friendship with a village before, he didn¡¯t even have an assumption as to how long it will take. ¡®I should find the most effective method after trying this and that.¡¯ While Ian organized his tangled thoughts, the two people arrived at the general merchandise store of Ollibus Village. ¡°Jinsung, I¡¯ll be organizing a bit of my random items!¡± ¡°Okay! Got it.¡± Jinsung opened his inventory. ¡®Then, while Harin is organizing her items, shall we check the items that I gained earlier?¡¯ Ian first checked the Heroic-rank item with the name ¡®Bloody Fenrir¡¯s Necklace¡¯. ¡®Ooh, this necklace is perfect for an Assassin. I could probably sell it for quite a high price.¡¯ Ian, who wore a satisfied smile at the options of the magnificent item, checked the information of the item called ¡®Bloody Hole¡¯ that he received from ¡®Shallos¡¯ this time. *Bloody Hole Category ¨C Charm Rank ¨C Heroic Equip Limit ¨C Can be equipped onto one ¡®Familiar¡¯. Durability ¨C 55/55 Option ¨C All Combat Stats +35% Cooldown times of all Inherent Abilities -15% *If equipped onto a ¡®Wolf¡¯ species, their Offensive Power will increase an additional 15%. *If equipped onto a ¡®Wolf¡¯ species, their movements will speed up by 30%. *This is an item belonging to user ¡®Ian¡¯. This item cannot be transferred to another user or be sold, and even if the character dies, it does not drop. (Transferrable only once for the first time.) This is a charm that Bloody Fenrir Shallos had made by taking a part of his soul. It retains an extremely powerful ability. Ian, who checked the information of the item, was incredibly surprised. This was because this was a type of item that he had never once seen before. ¡®Are you seriously telling me it¡¯s a Familiar-exclusive item?¡¯ If he was curious, he just needed to confirm it right now. Ian immediately summoned Ly. ¡°Ly, Summon!¡± This was because, after reading the item¡¯s options, it was indubitably an item for Ly. Grr- Grrr-! It seemed while he was Summon Released, Ly felt quite stifled, as he approached Ian and growled happily as he rubbed his head against him. ¡®But how do you equip this?¡¯ Firstly, Ian pulled out Bloody Hole for his inventory and lifted it up. And as if he was using a normal item, he first tried to use it. As he did so, a message popped up. Ring- Please select the Familiar that you wish to equip ¡®Bloody Hole¡¯ with. Ian, who saw that system message, nodded his head at last. ¡®Ah, I just need to do it like this.¡¯ After Ian placed his hand on top of Ly¡¯s head, he used the item again. As he did so, a system message popped up again. Item ¡®Bloody Hole¡¯ will be equipped onto Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯. (To Equip Release, you just need to recall the command ¡®Equip Release¡¯ after selecting the Familiar.) And the Bloody Hole that was held in Ian¡¯s hand turned into a bright-red light and floated into the air before it was sucked into Ly¡¯s forehead. ¡°Oh-ho. It¡¯s equipped with this kind of method.¡± The Bloody Hole was originally an item that had a small, marble-like form, but as it was sucked into Ly¡¯s forehead, it was engraved onto his forehead like a tattoo with an interesting design. Ian opened Ly¡¯s information window. And after checking the changed stats of Ly, Ian wore a pleased expression. ¡®This is really good! But is there no other way to find Familiar-exclusive items? If I go to the auction house, will it be up there?¡¯ While Ian was thinking of this and that, Harin approached him. It seemed she had disposed of items at the general merchandise store and finished organizing, as she wore a much lighter expression. ¡°Jinsung. I have to go now, so I¡¯ll be heading out first.¡± At her words, Jinsung nodded his head. ¡°Thanks for your hard work today, Harin.¡± Harin smiled brightly as she responded. ¡°Pfft, what do you mean hard work? You¡¯re the one that seriously suffered.¡± And shortly after. Jinsung, who sent off Harin, stood up from his spot. There was a lot of work that had to be done, but firstly, he planned on finding the NPC named ¡®Ikael¡¯, whom Shallos talked about. ¡°If Harin didn¡¯t leave, I would have felt a little bad about proceeding through the quest alone, but it worked out well.¡± Harin was there with him when he took the quest from Shallos, but because Harin¡¯s level was too low, she couldn¡¯t receive the quest, so it was something he was just saying. Ian returned to the entrance of the village, and starting from the NPCs he saw first, he spoke to them one by one and began to collect information. ¡°Over there, handsome mister!¡± ¡°Hu-hu, you¡¯re a youngster I haven¡¯t seen before, but you have an sharp eye for people. What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°By any chance, do you know a person named ¡®Ikael¡¯?¡± ¡°Ikael? Ikael, huh¡­ I¡¯m not sure. It does seem like a name that I¡¯ve heard somewhere, but I don¡¯t really know.¡± Ian was a ranking aristocrat with a baron title, but it seemed because they were NPCs of a village that didn¡¯t have an affiliated nation, they weren¡¯t able to see that Ian was an aristocrat. Because of that, it was instead easier to gather information without constraint. ¡®Hmm¡­ He is in this village, though, right?¡¯ He went around for some time now, but as the information he wanted didn¡¯t appear, Ian slowly began to get irritated. ¡®Ah, seriously, he should have told me the exact location. I had no idea that the village was this big!¡¯ Had he wandered around for about 40 minutes like that? Ian eventually obtained information about Ikael from an elder that was in the corner of the village. ¡°Ikael? If it¡¯s that person, then he lives in a small cabin in the west of the village.¡± Ian¡¯s expression immediately brightened. ¡°There seemed to be several cabins in the west of the village, so by any chance, could you tell me which house it is?¡± ¡°That¡¯s nothing difficult. The cabin that Ikael lives in is the northernmost house.¡± ¡°Ah, thank you!¡± Following the information he received from the elder, Ian headed towards the west of the village. ¡®It looks like it¡¯s that house.¡¯ Ian, who found the cabin without difficulty, carefully opened the house and entered. Creak-. ¡°Anyone here?¡± As he opened the door and entered, the backside of a grey-haired elder caught Ian¡¯s eyes. He sat at his desk and was diligently doing something. ¡®What¡¯s this? Did he not hear me?¡¯ Ian called the elder once again. ¡°Excuse me, by any chance, are you Ikael?¡± He seemed to have only then heard Ian¡¯s voice, as the elder slowly turned around. ¡°Keu-heum, it looks like a visitor has come in.¡± And Ian, who met eyes with the elder, couldn¡¯t help but be taken aback for a moment. ¡®What the hell? He looks exactly the same as Gripper!¡¯ * * * ¡°So¡­ In other words, it could be considered a Dungeon Attack King Event?¡± At Fiolan¡¯s words, Herz nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. You know the attack bulletin board in the official community, right?¡± ¡°Yes. Of course, I know.¡± ¡°In the low-rank group of the attack bulletin board, they said that they were going to make a new bulletin board that was event-exclusive. On there, once they put up the attack posting, they¡¯re going to evaluate after a week and based on the order that was most recommended, they¡¯re going to give prizes.¡± ¡°What is the prize?¡± ¡°You¡¯re probably going to be surprised once I tell you.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Herz took a breath before he opened his mouth. ¡°You know the newly released capsule model from LB Sports, right?¡± ¡°That of course I know of. Lately, whenever I turn on the TV, its ad always comes up.¡± After responding, Fiolan¡¯s two eyes rounded. ¡°Ah¡­ So, by any chance, is the prize¡­?¡± Herz laughed as he nodded his head. ¡°That by any chance is right. This event¡¯s prize is exactly that new capsule model. They¡¯re going to select up to 10th place and give it apparently.¡± According to the comments of the early adapters, the new capsule model truly allowed for a new-worldly experience. Despite the price being close to 30 million Won[1], there was no word that it was a waste, and at the word that the capsule of all Kailan users¡¯ dreams was going to be a handed out as a prize, both of Fiolan¡¯s eyes shone. ¡°Keu¡­ I really wanted that.¡± ¡°I did as well.¡± ¡°But you said that this is an event that you need to participate with your Guild name, not individually. There¡¯s no way that they¡¯re going to give all the members of the guild a capsule¡­¡± Herz nodded his head as he added his explanation. ¡°That¡¯s right. Of course, there¡¯s no way that they would do that. For the 1st place guild, they¡¯ll get 3 new capsule models, and for all guild members, they¡¯ll be giving out ¡®Mystery Item Boxes¡¯. And for the guilds that have ranked, they will automatically get publicized.¡± ¡°Wow, 3? And by the Mystery Boxes, do you mean the ones from the last event, where some user pulled out a Legendary item?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s exactly that!¡± However, Fiolan, who was elated, immediately wore a tearful expression. This was because, if such a generous prize was on the line, she felt that everybody would run in and participate in the event. ¡°But I¡¯m not sure if I¡¯ll be able to write an attack or something of the sort well. Are you confident, Herz?¡± As expected, Herz shook his head. ¡°I¡¯m also quite distant with that kind of meticulousness and scrupulousness¡­¡± ¡°Then what should we do?¡± At Fiolan¡¯s question, Herz grinned as he opened his mouth. ¡°We have the Lord.¡± And once she remembered Ian, Fiolan¡¯s expression immediately brightened. ¡°Ah, definitely, if it is Ian¡­!¡± ¡°You saw last time, right?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°The notebook where he had written and organized all of the internal building¡¯s cooldown times, saying that he¡¯s taking care of internal affairs.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ That!¡± The two people remembered seeing Ian¡¯s notebooks full of his notes not coincidentally and being shocked. Starting from the time that it took for soldiers that went into training to turn out to the time it took to complete construction for each building, Ian¡¯s note was jam-packed with writing. It was a note that was filled with a level of obsession that could only be thought of a job that no human should be doing. Herz¡¯s words continued. ¡°What do you think, Fiolan? We also have a chance of winning, no?¡± Fiolan energetically nodded her head. ¡°Of course!¡± And with a highly enthusiastic voice, she added on. ¡°This time, when Ian returns, we decided to challenge for a S-clear rank in Forlan Dungeon. I think we should be able to experiment then and write it.¡± ¡°Good. Nice.¡± Herz and Fiolan firmly shook hands. ¡°One of the three capsules will definitely be Ian¡¯s, while the remaining two can be returned to the Guild Master and the Sub-Guild Master, right?¡± At Herz¡¯s quiet question, Fiolan nodded her head as she agreed. ¡°Definitely.¡± ¡°Huhu, now we just need to convince Ian well.¡± As if she had already accepted 1st place as a fact, Fiolan wore a happy expression. ¡°Keu! The new capsule model, even just thinking about it makes my heart flutter.¡± And Herz added on. ¡°But that, will it really show icons and stuff inside?¡± [1] 30 million Won = ~$ 26742.90 USD CH 112 Chapter 112: Ollibus Seashore Village (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°So, you¡¯re telling me¡­ that you are the older twin brother of Gripper?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, hul-hul. Why would I lie to you?¡± However, Ian couldn¡¯t believe it. ¡®No, Gripper looks like he¡¯s around his 50s at most, but this grandpa is basically a mountain wizard. How is this possible?¡¯ To call them twins, the age difference in the two people¡¯s physical appearances looked too severe. If Gripper had the image of a good-looking middle-aged man, Ikael¡¯s appearance, with grey hair and a white beard that reached his waist, had a similar feeling to a mountain god that would definitely appear in a fairy tale. Ian wore a bitter expression. ¡°Compared to Gripper¡­ you are much more elderly.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Ikael roared with laughter as he responded. ¡°Is that guy not the Dimensional Enchanter? Since he can completely control time as he wishes, he was less affected by time.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± Finally, Ian understood. ¡®No wonder¡­ There was some sort of reason.¡¯ Ian and Ikael began to talk about this and that. And in that process, Ian¡¯s friendship with Gripper was an incredibly big help to him. ¡®Thanks to Gripper, it¡¯s incredibly easy to raise my Affinity with Ikael. It¡¯s an unexpected profit.¡¯ The two people¡¯s conversation continued. ¡°Because I also have the strength to change fate, I am able to live a much longer life compared to others. However, I wasn¡¯t able to prevent myself from aging.¡± ¡°I see. But is it not an amazing ability that many people truly desire? The power to change fate, I mean.¡± At Ian¡¯s flattery, Ikael grinned. ¡°That may be so. However, since I have received a heavy mission suitable for such power, it¡¯s not only a good thing.¡± Ikael wore a bitter smile as he opened his mouth again. ¡°Speaking of which, what was the reason you came looking for me?¡± At his question, Ian quickly explained the situation where he met Bloody Fenrir Shallos, and the favour he received from him. As the short explanation ended, Ikael nodded his head and organized everything. ¡°So, Shallos has been freed.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°And he told you that I would know about Orvil¡¯s whereabouts?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± As if he was thinking about something, he was momentarily silent, but soon opened his mouth again. ¡°Firstly, I should thank you.¡± ¡°Sorry?¡± ¡°I meant for freeing Shallos. He was a saviour of this village, and has been an appreciative friend of mine for a long time.¡± As Ikael slightly bowed his head, Ian also equally dipped his head on impulse. ¡°And as for Orvil¡¯s liberation¡­ Definitely, if it is you, who has won against Shallos that has been blinded by madness, then it¡¯s possible that you could put Orvil to rest as well.¡± And Ikael began to release the story related to Shallos and Orvil. As words related to the quest began to come out, Ian concentrated even more as he listened to his words. ¡°Truthfully, Shallos and Orvil are heroes that have saved this village from Sorcerers of Darkness a long time ago.¡± The story was quite long. About 100 years ago from now. There was a time when a questionable ghost ship had docked at Ollibus Village. On the ghost ship, over a dozen Necromancers and Sorcerers of Darkness were boarded, and they began to destroy the village. Ikael, who had failed to protect the village with just his own strength, requested the help of the two Guardians of Forlas Plateau, Shallos and Orvil, and the two, who maintained a friendly relationship with Ollibus Village, willingly helped Ikael and protected the village. However, before the head of the Sorcerers of Darkness died, in pledge of their life, they placed a curse to restrict the spirits of the two Fenrir, and the two were blinded by madness. As Shallos and Orvil¡¯s consciousness weren¡¯t controlled, they shut themselves up deep inside of Forlas Plateau themselves. This was because if they didn¡¯t do that, they wouldn¡¯t be able to control their murderous intent. And time had passed by like that up until now. ¡°Orvil is stronger than Shallos. If you are not confident in beating him, I cannot tell you where he is.¡± Ian let out a low groan. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± The reason was because Shallos was also outrageously strong, but since Orvil was supposed to be stronger than him, he was worried. ¡®Alright. Well, since I wasn¡¯t expecting an S-rank quest to be easy to clear.¡¯ Ikael wore an incredibly worried expression as he continued talking. ¡°In the case that Orvil¡¯s seal was released, and you are unable to defeat him and he is released into the world while engulfed with madness, then starting from Ollibus Village, it will most likely become devastated.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°I definitely know the place where he is confined, but because of those reasons, I cannot readily tell you his location.¡± This was because, to Ikael, the liberation of his appreciative friend Orvil was important, but the safety of the people of the village was even more important. Ian asked. ¡°If that¡¯s the case, then what must I do in order for you to be able to believe me? No, will I definitely be able to suppress Orvil?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Ikael closed his eyes and was submerged in his thoughts for a moment. ¡°Firstly, since I know that you are strong enough to win against Shallos, if there was just something that could make you a little stronger, I¡¯ll be able to relax¡­¡± And suddenly, he seemed to have thought of something, as he abruptly stood up from his spot. ¡°Ah, you said you were a Summoner, right?¡± ¡°Yes, so?¡± ¡°Just recently, an elder skilled in Summoning from the eastern continent crossed the sea with a trading ship and came here.¡± ¡°Oh¡­?¡± Once hearing those words, Ian¡¯s head started to rotate quickly. ¡®The eastern continent? A trading ship? By any chance, is it related to the new update that they are apparently doing next month?¡¯ Anticipation filled Ian¡¯s expression. This was because he felt that he could gain some sort of special skill or opportunity for Summoners that hasn¡¯t been released yet. ¡°If you go find that person and learn a little bit of that mysterious ability, then I think I¡¯ll be able to believe in you and tell you the place where Orvil is sealed.¡± Ikael stroked his long beard once and stared at Ian. ¡°What do you think? That person is most likely entrusting himself at the chief¡¯s place. Will you try to go and see him?¡± Of course, without an inch of hesitation, Ian nodded his head. On top of intending to do the quest no matter what anyways, there was a chance that he would be able to obtain a new Summoner skill, so it was an obvious choice. ¡°Yes. I will try and go see him.¡± At his response, Ikael also wore a satisfied expression. ¡°Good, good. Thank you. That person¡¯s name is ¡®Damcheon¡¯. Go to him and tell him that I¡¯ve sent you, and if you tell him the whole story, he will probably help you.¡± * * * Because the house of Ollibus Village¡¯s chief was located right in the heart of the village, he was able to find it without much difficulty. And inside of the chief¡¯s house, there were quite a lot of NPCs, but Ian was able to immediately figure out at a glance who the Damcheon that Ikael was talking about was. ¡®He did say he crossed over here from the eastern continent, and he¡¯s wearing something like a modernized hanbok[1].¡¯ It seemed that the eastern continent in the world of Kailan made the actual East their motif. On top of that, it seemed as LB Sports, the developers of Kailan, was a Korean company, he was an NPC that dressed strongly exuding a Korean vibe. For some reason, Ian felt some sort of kinship(?) and approached him. ¡°Are you¡­ Damcheon?¡± Sitting by the window and fanning himself while he stared outside the window, he slowly turned his head at Ian¡¯s calling. ¡°That¡¯s right. Who are you?¡± Ian slightly bowed his head and continued speaking. ¡°Ah, I am a Summoner named ¡®Ian¡¯.¡± At the word Summoner, it seemed that perked Damcheon¡¯s interest, as he changed into a more assertive posture. ¡°I see, so you are a Summoner. But what business do you have to see me for?¡± Ian began to explain the whole story to him. ¡®Euh, since I have to say the same words multiple times, it¡¯s a little bothersome.¡¯ However, because it was a quest where he could possibly gain a clue related to Ly¡¯s evolution, and he could also gain an ability that hasn¡¯t been revealed to Summoners, so he told the story with sincerity. And fortunately, Damcheon listened to Ian¡¯s story with incredible interest. ¡°They are truly pitiful souls. To have received that much pain for over 100 years, I mean.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I need your help, Damcheon.¡± Ian, who spoke, focused even more on his words now as he thought that a story related to the quest would come out. However, different from his expectations, as soon as he heard his next words, he couldn¡¯t help but become a little dejected. ¡°Hm, if that¡¯s the case, could you tell me about the abilities of this continent¡¯s Summoners? I need to know the abilities you have in order to figure out what part I can be of help to you.¡± ¡®Ah, what the hell, I have to explain again?¡¯ Ian was a little annoyed, but because it was a quest worth the labour, he nodded his head without unnecessary remark. On top of that, there was some truth to his words. ¡°Of, of course. That much, well¡­¡± Ian began to briefly explain the abilities that he had. However, different from what he first thought, quite a lot of time had passed by from talking about this and that. ¡®Aho, how tiring. It would have been better if he made me fight instead.¡¯ Still, fortunately, Damcheon was incredibly satisfied with Ian¡¯s explanation. Damcheon, who heard all of his explanation, slowly opened his mouth. ¡°I can definitely be of help to you.¡± As he heard the positive response, Ian¡¯s expression immediately brightened. ¡°Oh, is that so?¡± Damcheon nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± And he added on. ¡°Truthfully, amongst the fighting abilities I have, there¡¯s nothing that would be of big help to you.¡± Ian, who had heard up to this point, felt the spirit of disappointment fall. However, after hearing the next words of his, he was able to grab a string of hope. ¡°However, I have an ability that will truly be of big help to you in a different part.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Ian was going to ask about that ability, but suddenly, a large system window popped up. Ring-. *Pass down the ability of Summoner ¡®Damcheon¡¯- *Production Class (Hidden) Class-changing Quest. Damcheon, a Summoner that came from the eastern continent, has a special ability. The special ability that he has is exactly the ability to produce ¡®Talismans¡¯ and ¡®Incantation Patterns¡¯. If you are to learn the ability from him, you will be able to produce Talismans and Incantation Patterns. Also, Talismans and Incantation Patterns will sharply increase the abilities of your Familiars. Once you receive acknowledgement on your qualification, then you will class-change to ¡®Diviner (Psychic)¡¯. Quest Difficulty Level ¨C Unknown Reward ¨C Class-change to Diviner (Psychic) Will you accept this quest? ¡°Huk¡­!¡± Ian let out an exclamation with his voice before he could even realize it. This was because he was that surprised. He had obtained a class-changing quest for his production class in a truly unexpected location at such an unexpected time. And even to a hidden class. Ian grinned broadly. ¡°If you will just teach me, I will learn diligently.¡± And a message popped up. You have accepted the Production Class Class-changing Quest. Damcheon nodded his head as he opened his mouth. ¡°Alright. Of course, it¡¯s not going to be an easy path, but if it¡¯s a Summoner as outstanding as yourself, I think you will definitely be able to learn.¡± [1] hanbok = Traditional Korean clothing CH 113 Chapter 113: Ollibus Seashore Village (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°No, what kind of super-grinding like this exists?¡± The good mood that Ian had when he started the production class class-changing quest vanished completely. Only Ian, who was diligently hunting with sunken eyes, remained before he even realized! No, rather than hunting, it was a situation where never-ending capturing fit the description better. ¡®Still, it¡¯s a relief that I don¡¯t have a capturing limit thanks to my head ornament. If it was a normal Summoner, wouldn¡¯t they have had to go back and forth from the village whenever their Leadership was full?¡¯ The first content of the class-changing quest was a task to gather 100 white spirit marbles. These white spirit marbles could be gained by capturing Common-rank monsters and taking them to Damcheon for him to make them into spirit marbles, but no matter how bromidic of a Common-rank monster it was, Ian¡¯s back was breaking trying to catch 100 of them. On top of that, as he said that the higher the level of the captured monster was the better, characteristically of Ian, he didn¡¯t want to capture low-level monsters. That¡¯s why the monsters that Ian was in the middle of capturing were the northern monsters in their early-lv 120s that inhabited the area around Ollibus Village! Since he was capturing high-level monsters that weren¡¯t even easy to just simply hunt, this indeed couldn¡¯t be anything other than incredible grinding. ¡°Capture!¡± You have succeeded in capturing the ¡®Ice Troll¡¯. While looking at the Ice Troll that was sucked into his hand, Ian wiped the beads of sweat on his forehead. ¡°Whew¡­ Is everything approximately done now¡­?¡± Ian opened the list of Familiars and counted the captured monsters one by one. After doing so, he shook his head as he let out a deep sigh. This was because this task was so difficult that even Ian, who was confident in grinding, didn¡¯t want to do this ever again. ¡®It¡¯s not like you could just catch any monster for this, but I bought his words and now I¡¯m suffering, right¡­?¡¯ Ian set back the unknown nervousness that swept over him and turned back. ¡°Alright, shall we go back now?¡± Ian used a return stone and returned Ollibus Village. Still, having finished grinding, he felt satisfied. ¡®That¡¯s right, it¡¯s because of this rewarding feeling that grinding is fun.¡¯ After Ian comforted his weary mind and body through self-justification, he went looking for Damcheon. And after discovering Ian, who had returned, Damcheon asked with a quizzical expression. ¡°No, why did it take you so long?¡± At the unexpected reaction, Ian wore a flustered expression. ¡°Sorry?¡± ¡®No, how is he expecting me to do it faster than this? If it took me two days to catch 100, then that¡¯s fast!¡¯ However, that was Ian¡¯s misunderstanding. Because Damcheon didn¡¯t know that Ian had an artifact that got rid of the capturing restriction, he had thought that he had returned after catching about 5-6 at most. However, no matter how long he waited, he didn¡¯t return, so he thought that was weird. ¡°How many have you captured?¡± ¡°What do you mean how many, obviously I¡¯ve captured 100.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Ian firstly Summon Released Ly and Bbookbbook, as well as Pin, who were all summoned, and sent them off to Subspace. And he began to pull out the monsters of the northern area that he just caught in order. You have summoned Familiar ¡®Ice Troll¡¯.You have summoned Familiar ¡®Yeti¡¯.You cannot summon anymore Familiars as you lack Leadership. As he pulled out about 20 of them, a message saying that he lacked Leadership popped up, and Damcheon nodded his head as he spoke. ¡°Your Leadership is incredibly high. To be able to capture 20 monsters that are over lv 120¡­ No wonder it took you this much time.¡± Damcheon, who finished speaking, absorbed the spirits of the monsters that Ian pulled out one by one and began to turn them into white spirit marbles. And whenever Damcheon removed one, Ian continuously summoned one. ¡°Ho-ho?¡± As a new Familiar continued to be summoned from Ian¡¯s hand, Damcheon, who had become wide-eyed, looked as if he was expecting some sort of explanation, but as Ian couldn¡¯t be bothered, he glossed over it roughly. ¡°I have an artifact, so I have no capturing restriction.¡± ¡°I, I see.¡± As about 30 minutes passed, all of the monsters that Ian had captured had turned into spirit marbles and were collected in Damcheon¡¯s basket. As the task was finished, Damcheon wore a pleased expression. ¡°Excellent. They are incredibly good quality spirits. If this is the case, you will be able to make quite a good talisman.¡± Along with Damcheon¡¯s words, a system message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring- You have completed the ¡®Gather White Spirit Marbles¡¯ quest.You have obtained the ¡®Spirit Seal¡¯ skill. *Spirit Seal Classification ¨C Active Skill Skill Level ¨C Lv. 0 Proficiency ¨C 0% Mana Consumption ¨C None The spirit of a captured Familiar is sealed and turned into a ¡®Spirit Marble¡¯. Depending on the rank of the Familiar that will turn into the material, the colour of the Spirit Marble will be decided, and depending on its abilities, the amount of magic that is inside the marble is decided. * A Familiar that has been turned into a marble cannot be restored. * Spirit Marbles are the basic material for all Diviner¡¯s production skill. * Using the ¡®Spirit Reinforcement¡¯ skill, the marble can be reinforced into a higher rank. Ian, who read through all of the skill information, wore a confused expression. ¡®Then, if I seal a Rare-rank or Unique-rank monster, then will a green or blue marble come out? Also, what the hell is the Spirit Reinforcement skill. He¡¯ll probably let me know now, right?¡¯ And sure enough. As if he had read Ian¡¯s thoughts, Damcheon¡¯s words continued. ¡°Alright, since you have learned how to Spirit Seal now, I will teach you about Spirit Reinforcement.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Damcheon¡¯s words continued. ¡°Watch my hand well. Since I won¡¯t be showing you a second time.¡± Once he finished speaking, his hand began to move slowly. A pale, white light shone at his fingertips. Ian¡¯s gaze followed Damcheon¡¯s fingertips on either hand and moved accordingly. ¡®What is he doing?¡¯ The ray of light that remained after Damcheon¡¯s hand moved drew out a complicated pattern and embroidered the air. And once the pattern was completed, Spirit Marbles were lodged into the five corners of the pattern as if it was going to be sucked in. ¡®There¡¯s no way that I need to draw this out myself right now and do this, right?¡¯ Ever since he was young, Ian had no ties with dexterity. During art time in high school, whenever he drew, he produced a bizarre creature whose form was unknown, so there was no way that he would be able to draw out such a complicated pattern like this exactly. While he was dripping in a cold sweat, Damcheon approached him after completing the Spirit Reinforcement before he realized it. ¡°What do you think. Will you give it a try? Of course, it won¡¯t be easy, though.¡± Ian swallowed dryly before he realized it. ¡®No, how exactly is he expecting me to re-enact such a complicated thing? I seriously don¡¯t remember a thing¡­¡¯ While Ian was so flustered as he had no idea what to do and was hesitating. Suddenly, a white light began to shine from his fingertips. ¡®Uh¡­ Uh?¡¯ And just like the situation when he received his noble title in front of the king, wasn¡¯t his body moving on its own?! His hand was re-enacting the exact pattern that Damcheon had just shown him a moment ago. Only then Ian was able to let out a sigh of relief for the first time. ¡®Whew¡­ What a relief. I was about to give up on the quest halfway through.¡¯ Either way, the hand of Ian, who received the help of the system, completed the pattern splendidly, and Damcheon, who was watching that, clapped with a surprised expression. ¡°Hu-hu¡­ What a surprise, to have completed this right away! It¡¯s truly surprising!¡± And a system message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring- You have completed the ¡®Draw Reinforcement Pattern¡¯ quest. Ian, who saw the message, mumbled inwardly. ¡®I didn¡¯t even do anything this time¡­ Well, still, what¡¯s good is good.¡¯ And a message that alerted him that he learned a skill appeared. You have obtained the ¡®Spirit Reinforcement¡¯ skill. *Spirit Reinforcement Classification ¨C Active Skill Skill Level ¨C Lv. 0 Proficiency ¨C 0% Mana Consumption ¨C None At least two, and a maximum of five Spirit Marbles are combined to reinforce them into a higher-stage Spirit Marble. The higher the Proficiency, the chance of failing to reinforce is reduced, and the chance for a Spirit Marble with an even higher rank and one with Spirit Magic to appear is increased. *If reinforcement is failed, all Spirit Marbles that were used will disappear. And the successfully reinforced Spirit Marble that was made from Ian¡¯s hand just now lied all alone. Ian stared at it in wonder. ¡®Oh¡­ It was a white marble, but after reinforcing it, it changed to a blue marble.¡¯ He had succeeded in raising its rank. Towards Ian, who stared at the marble here and there in wonder, Damcheon opened his mouth with a satisfied voice. ¡°Good work, Ian. You were a much more outstanding Summoner than what I expected.¡± On the other hand, Ian was thinking it was a relief as the class-changing quest finished much easier than what he was expecting. ¡®Of course, the capturing-grind was definitely not easy, though¡­¡¯ ¡°Thank you, Damcheon. Thanks to you, I feel like I¡¯ve obtained a magnificent ability.¡± ¡°Because you think that way, I¡¯m even more thankful.¡± ¡°Now what do I need to do next?¡± At Ian¡¯s form overflowing with will, Damcheon grinned as he replied. ¡°If it¡¯s like this, you have fulfilled all basics in order to become a Psychic. Congratulations, Ian. You have received the right to become a Psychic.¡± And system messages began to unfold in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. You have succeeded in being the first to class-change into the production class ¡®Diviner (Psychic)¡¯.A new ability, ¡®Dexterity¡¯, has been created.A new ability, ¡®Luck¡¯, has been created.Skill window ¡®Beginner-level Talisman Production Lv. 1 (Proficiency 0%)¡¯ has been created.Skill window ¡®Beginner-level Incantation Pattern Production Lv. 1 (Proficiency 0%)¡¯ has been created.You have learned basic active skill ¡®Produce¡¯.As you have discovered hidden class ¡®Psychic¡¯, abilities ¡®Dexterity¡¯ and ¡®Luck¡¯ have increased by 30 each. As he read down the system messages, Ian had his fill of happiness. ¡®Kya, I don¡¯t really know what it is yet¡­ But seeing something being created is putting me in a good mood.¡¯ However, this wasn¡¯t the end. From now on, a Class Guild that allows class-changing into ¡®Diviner¡¯ will be created in Luspel Empire and Kaimon Empire.All Summoners of Colonar Continent are praising you.You have obtained 100,000 Fame.From now on, whenever you hunt a monster, Familiar-exclusive items ¡®Talismans¡¯ and ¡®Incantation Patterns¡¯ will drop. ¡°Keu¡­¡± Having completely forgotten the fact that Damcheon was in front of him, Ian let out an exclamation. It was something he felt whenever a first discoverer message and the reward popped up, but as he felt that he was going down in Kailan¡¯s history, he felt incredibly good. Towards Ian, who was checking his newly formed skill window and abilities related to the class with a happy expression, Damcheon opened his mouth. ¡°In order to become an outstanding Psychic, a lot of trials and errors as well as effort is required. You can make Talismans and Incantation Patterns of even higher ranks the better your abilities are, so be patient and devote yourself.¡± To Ian, his lengthy words was heard compressed into one word. ¡®So, isn¡¯t he telling me to grind diligently?¡¯ Ian nodded his head with an expression overflowing with confidence. ¡°When it comes to grinding, no, effort and patience, I am confident. Don¡¯t worry.¡± CH 114 Chapter 114: Beginner Diviner (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian had finally(?) obtained a production class after almost reaching lv 120. Ian took Ikael¡¯s advice and went looking for Damcheon after safely succeeding in class-changing to the hidden class Psychic, but for now, he momentarily postponed returning to Ikael. ¡®I think the quest will proceed even I go back now, but¡­¡¯ In order to face Orvil, a Fenrir that is apparently even stronger than Shallos, more preparations were needed. Truthfully, since he had just obtained a production class as of now, his fighting power didn¡¯t increase. ¡®If I was to return to Ikael to quickly proceed onwards and a quest time limit was to appear, that would be a pain¡­¡¯ Ian decided to return to Ikael after he produced the best Familiar items and equipped them onto all of his Familiars. ¡®He said that all Familiars can equip a Talisman and an Incantation Pattern each, right?¡¯ Ian opened the new explanation tab that formed after class-changing and thoroughly read through the information related to production. Ian, who had carefully read the explanation for about ten minutes, opened the skill window. ¡°Alright, shall we try making it now? Starting with the Talisman first¡­¡± Ian, who was about to use the produce skill, was momentarily taken aback. ¡®What the hell? Hanji[1]? Brush? Where am I supposed to find all of this? Is it something they sell at the general merchandise store?¡¯ In order to make a Talisman, he needed a material item called ¡®Hanji¡¯. Ian hurriedly went to the general merchandise store in Ollibus Village and checked the sale catalogue. And fortunately, he was able to buy the items that he needed. ¡®How come I didn¡¯t know that there were such things when it¡¯s not like I¡¯ve only been to the general merchandise store once or twice?¡¯ Items such as ¡®Hanji¡¯ or ¡®Brush¡¯ appeared in the general merchandise store¡¯s sale catalogue after Ian had class-changed to a Psychic, so the fact that Ian was seeing this for the first time was an obvious. Anyways, Ian, who had bought all the items that he needed, found a spot in the corner of the village and sat down. And he used the Produce skill. ¡°Produce!¡± You have used the Produce skill.Select the item that you will produce.Current items that are able to be produced: Talisman/Incantation Pattern Ian chose Talisman like his original plan. ¡°Talisman.¡± As he did so, a system message continued. Will you produce a ¡®Talisman¡¯ item?Items required for production: Hanji(1)/Brush/Ink Stick Ian seemed to have felt fascination and interest in the production content that he was encountering for the first time, as he was immersed in it in no time. ¡°I will produce it.¡± ¡®Hmm¡­ If I just stay like this, will it be produced on its own now?¡¯ However, Ian couldn¡¯t help but be flustered in the next moment. This was because, he thought that if he used the Produce skill, then his hand would move on its own just like before when he used the Spirit Reinforcement skill and would draw a Talisman, but an unexpected message popped up. Please draw your desired pattern on top of the Hanji (It must be drawn in one go without the brush being removed).Production is possible no matter what kind of pattern is drawn (The artistic grade and sincerity in the drawn pattern will reflect the stats of the Talisman). Ian despaired. ¡®Ah¡­ Can I not refuse this degree of freedom? What exactly am I supposed to draw?¡¯ Ian, who momentarily thought about it, lifted his brush without much thought and began to draw a picture(?) on top of the Hanji. And the drawing he completed in 5 seconds was the Sauna mark that he saw on the way to school this morning. As Ian removed his brush, a system message popped up. Ring-. Will the Talisman be completed? He didn¡¯t really like the design of the pattern, but for now, Ian nodded his head. ¡®Since it¡¯s practice, anyways¡­¡¯ ¡°Yeah. I¡¯m done.¡± As Ian¡¯s response ended, a system message continued again. Artistic Grade: -10/Sincerity: 1Please select three Spirit Marbles that will be used in the Talisman production (The higher the rank of the used Spirit Marbles, the higher the rank of the created Talisman). ¡®Hmm¡­ Since all of the Spirit Marbles I have right now are Common-rank, anyways¡­¡¯ Ian randomly pulled out three marbles from his inventory and lifted them up. As he did so, the three Spirit Marbles that Ian held in his hand were sucked into the Talisman. Whoong-. While looking at the three streams of white light that were being absorbed into the Sauna mark that he drew with his own hands, Ian swallowed dryly. Ring-! You have failed in producing a Talisman.You must draw with more sincerity. Along with the message that pupped up, the Spirit Marbles became powder and scattered in the air. ¡°What¡­?¡± Ian was enraged at Kailan¡¯s system as it didn¡¯t recognize his aesthetic sense. ¡°No, what, you said to draw with sincerity¡­¡± Like that, Ian¡¯s painful drawing study began. * * * ¡°Mallaim! Please take care of that side!¡± ¡°Yes, Celia.¡± ¡°Cerius and I will support you from the back together.¡± A flag with the words ¡®Lotus¡¯ written on it. And below that, Ian¡¯s five retainers led about what looked like a dozen soldiers and were making an effort(?) for the public safety of the Domain. And the retainer that was leading all of them was Celia, the one that Ian had appointed as his retainer first. If a user with a ¡®Baron¡¯ title appointed a retainer, they needed to nominate at least one and up to a maximum of five retainers as ¡®Knights¡¯, and Ian had nominated Celia, whose stats were the most outstanding, for now. He could have nominated all five of them as Knights, but to give Common-rank or Rare-rank retainers such a title felt wasteful. Thanks to that, the hierarchy amongst Ian¡¯s retainers was in good control, so the regulation of the police was being well maintained. Of course, this part wasn¡¯t also part of Ian¡¯s intentions. The fortunate part was that the other retainers followed Celia, who was the only woman as well as being on the younger side. The primary reason was because Celia¡¯s stats were overwhelmingly higher in comparison to the other retainers. And a characteristic of the Summoner-class, it seemed as her Leadership stat was high, she was quite steadfast in purpose. ¡°Tenpus, what areas now remain that haven¡¯t been suppressed in this vicinity?¡± Tenpus was a blonde-haired young man that was a Priest-class. At Celia¡¯s question, Tenpus slightly bowed his head as he answered. ¡°If we just suppress Tullan Canyon now then this zone is complete.¡± ¡°I see. Has Loreuten returned from patrolling Tullan Canyon earlier?¡± Instead of Tenpus, a voice from behind them was heard. It was Loreuten. ¡°Yes, I just returned. Celia.¡± ¡°How is it? Would we be able to fight in that area with our current fighting power as well?¡± At her question, Loreuten nodded his head. ¡°Yes. It¡¯s not much different from this side.¡± ¡°I see. Then let¡¯s move over there right away.¡± However, Loreuten opened his mouth towards her as she was about to turn her footsteps. ¡°Uh, but Celia. There¡¯s something that I have to report.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°I have discovered a dungeon in Tullan Canyon.¡± At those words, Celia¡¯s large eyes shone. ¡°A dungeon?¡± ¡°Yes. You told us that if we discovered a dungeon to not go in and report it first instead¡­¡± Truthfully, that command was not Celia¡¯s command. It was just a command that Ian had given through Celia. However, Celia showed the same expression of happiness as Ian would. ¡®The Lord will probably be incredibly happy!¡¯ This was because she remembered the expression of a very happy Ian after discovering a hidden dungeon while hunting with him last time. ¡°Then, today we will just secure the location of the dungeon, and return back. I will give the report to the Lord.¡± At Celia¡¯s words, the rest of the retainers simultaneously bowed their heads and responded. ¡°Your command will be honoured.¡± * * * ¡°Whew¡­¡± Ian wiped the sweat that dripped down his forehead and plopped down onto the ground. Around him, there were a ton of failures that had been created from his hands sprawled around him in disorder. ¡°Ha¡­ The pain of creating¡­¡± It had been two hours since he had started the Talisman production. Ian had succeeded in using all hundred of the Spirit Marbles that he made with Damcheon. ¡°Still, to have succeeded with five sheets, I¡¯m quite pleased.¡± He had tried a dozen times and had barely saved five Talisman sheets, but somehow, he was in a good mood. Ian laid out the Talismans in order. The logos of famous companies were drawn on two of the Talisman sheets, while on the remaining three sheets, the three letters of Jinsung¡¯s name[2] was written in Chinese characters. That was the limit of Jinsung¡¯s creativity. ¡°Do I at least need to go to an art academy¡­¡± In any case, Ian began to check the stats of the successful Talismans one by one. *Synthetic Talisman (Name change possible) Classification ¨C Talisman (Charm) Rank ¨C Common Equip Limit ¨C Can be equipped onto one ¡®Familiar¡¯. Durability ¨C 55/55 Option ¨C Offensive Power +10% (-3%) Vitality +3% (-1%) A Talisman produced by beginner Diviner ¡®Ian¡¯. As it was produced with a bizarre pattern, its full capacity cannot be demonstrated. ¡°¡­¡± Ian, who checked the option, licked his lips. ¡°Tsk, is the minus part behind that because the artistic grade is low?¡¯ Still, it seemed because the Spirit Marbles used in the production held the spirits of quite high-level monsters, the options were more handsome than he expected. ¡°It will probably still be better than having nothing¡­¡± Ian evenly divided the Talismans that he produced with his own hands to his Familiars. Of course, there was backlash. Bbook-! Kku-ru-ruk- Kkuk-kkuk! Bbookbbook and Pin didn¡¯t like the designs and momentarily rebelled. However, there was no way that would get through to Ian. Ian, who ignored the resistance of the two easily, let out a sigh and mumbled. ¡°Euh¡­ I need to make Incantation Patterns, too, but I¡¯ve used up all of the Spirit Marbles!¡± Ian had no choice but to make preparations to go hunting. It was an effect that increased the stats by about 5-10%, but still, if it could be equipped onto all of the Familiars, hopefully it would be a little better. It was Ian¡¯s plan to equip a Talisman and Incantation Pattern each on all of his Familiars. ¡°Do I need to go catch Ice Trolls again? Or, since I¡¯m producing anyways, should I look for Rare-rank monsters and try producing?¡± However, Ian, who finished his hunting preparations and was leaving Ollibus Village, was taken aback after seeing a message window that he was seeing the first of its type of pop up. This was because a message with the name ¡® Celia¡¯ written in green had caught his eyes. ¡®Huh? Retainers could also send messages?¡¯ Ian opened the message window in fascination. Celia: Lord, apologies for contacting you first so rudely. You weren¡¯t at the Domain Manor. At the message where her careful tone could be felt, Ian grinned and mumbled. ¡°No, why is she so courteous?¡± And he sent a responding message. Ian: Ah, I¡¯m currently outside. If I knew that such a good method existed, there was no need for me to have told you to come all the way to the Domain Manor in order to report. From now on, send the regular reports through message, Celia.Celia: Ah, no, Lord! I will personally give you the regular reports!Ian: But, what¡¯s going on?Celia: Ah¡­ During the police assignment today, we discovered a dungeon in Tullan Canyon. I remembered that you said that if we discovered a dungeon to not go in and report it first. A broad smile formed on Ian¡¯s face after he saw that message. Because, as a matter of fact, he was just getting the feeling that the first discoverer¡¯s reward for the dungeon in Forlas Plateau was wasted, so his delight was even bigger. ¡®I wasn¡¯t expecting much¡­¡¯ And he put his brain to work and quickly made a hunting plan. ¡®Since it¡¯s ended up like this, I should hunt all the Common-rank monsters and just capture the Rare-rank monsters that are inside the dungeon.¡¯ Even if he captured a monster, an EXP amount equivalent to if he was to hunt it came in. However, because it would take too long if he tried to just capture all of them, he had no intentions of hunting so inefficiently with the first discoverer¡¯s buff on his back. Ian quickly sent a response message. Ian: Oh, really? Great work, Celia!Celia: No. There¡¯s nothing I¡¯ve really done, anyways. Loreuten was the one that found the dungeon.Ian: Really? Anyways! I¡¯ll head over there right now.Celia: Right now?Ian: Yeah, Immediately, right now! Could you give me the coordinates?Celia: Yes, here is¡­ Tullan Canyon, East 156, South 879! Ian, who received the coordinates of the dungeon from Celia, pulled out his return stone without hesitation. ¡®Since I¡¯m hunting anyways, it¡¯s better to get twice the dungeon EXP, right?¡¯ Lv 120 was just around the corner. Because the EXP required to get to lv 120 from lv 119 was enormous compared to before, it took quite a bit of time, but if he received the dungeon first discoverer¡¯s buff and hunted for about two days, he felt it would be possible to level up. ¡®I¡¯ll hit lv 120, and complete all of the Talismans and Incantation Patterns as Rare-ranks.¡¯ ¡°Return!¡± Whoong-. As Ian used the return stone, a blue light wrapped around Ian¡¯s body, and shortly after, Ian¡¯s body was sucked into the air. [1] Hanji = Traditional Korean paper handmade from mulberry trees [2] Each syllable of Jinsung¡¯s name counts a letter in Korean. Park(1) Jin(2) Sung(3). CH 115 Chapter 115: Beginner Diviner (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°What? Dungeon Attack King?¡± ¡°Yeah. That¡¯s what I¡¯m telling you! From what I see, this is an event perfectly made for you. This is Park Jinsung¡¯s type.¡± At Yoohyun¡¯s words, Harin, who was next to him, also nodded her head in agreement. ¡°That¡¯s right. I¡¯m thinking exactly the same as Yoohyun! Jinsung, you¡¯re the possessor of Forlan dungeon¡¯s best record. Since Forlan dungeon is one of the most popular dungeons, I think if you wrote the attack, then we¡¯ll be first place no doubt.¡± Truthfully, there was no need for the two people to persuade him so diligently. Since Jinsung¡¯s two eyes were already fixed on the homepage where the event content was explained. While looking at Jinsung, who read down the notification with enough spirit to be sucked into the monitor, Yoohyun grinned. ¡°What do you think? It¡¯s definitely tempting, right?¡± Jinsung nodded his head as he asked back. ¡°But, the deadline for this¡­ Is there about ten days left now? Right?¡± At Jinsung¡¯s words, Yoohyun replied. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± While looking at Jinsung, who was suddenly submerged in his thoughts, Yoohyun carefully asked. ¡°Jinsung, by any chance, do you have some sort of important quest that you were doing?¡± Jinsung nodded his head. As it was a quest where he could possibly gain a clue related to Ly¡¯s evolution, it couldn¡¯t help but be important. On the other hand, as Jinsung nodded his head, Yoohyun wore an even more nervous expression. ¡°Is it a quest that will take long? If we plan on making a proper attack, we need to consider at least 3 days¡­¡± Whether Yoohyun was nervous or not, Jinsung was internally calculating the amount of time that it would take to do the quest. ¡®If I just need to catch Orvil, then it shouldn¡¯t take that long. However, if there¡¯s even some sort of connected quest as well, that¡¯s a pain¡­¡¯ However, he couldn¡¯t just give the new capsule model up. Rather than the various convenient functions of the new capsule model, the thing that Ian wanted most was the additional 2% synchronization. Since that would raise the efficiency of Ian¡¯s hunting even more. Ian decided to participate in the Attack King event even if he needed to halt the quest momentarily halfway through. ¡°Alright, since I also wanted the new capsule model, I need to do this no matter what.¡± At the positive response, Yoohyun¡¯s face glowed. ¡°Fiolan said let¡¯s try for a S-class clear while we¡¯re participating in the Attack event anyways once you returned after finishing your quest. What do you think, is it possible?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ For sure, if we were to attach a video of a S-class clear in Forlan dungeon, I think our chance of winning will increase significantly.¡± Ian and Fiolan¡¯s best record was about 26~7 minutes. The S-rank cut of Forlan dungeon was 25 minutes. It was just a minor difference of not even 2 minutes, but right now, where they had already reached the limit of their clear speed, trying to cut down 2 more minutes was definitely not an easy task. ¡®I should catch Orvil as fast as possible and obtain a clue related to Ly¡¯s evolution. If I could evolve Ly, the 25-minute cut will not be impossible.¡¯ He was originally greatly motivated, but as a slight motivation was created even more, Jinsung¡¯s will burned brightly. * * * ¡°Celia, have you raised the level of the Blue Wyvern quite a bit?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ It¡¯s at lv 90 now. I raised it quite quickly, right? Hehe.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right. You¡¯re equipping all of the items I gave you last time well, right?¡± ¡°Of course! I also recently obtained a Heroic-rank ring that raises my Leadership a ton.¡± Celia proudly showed the ring she obtained. ¡®Huh? What¡¯s this? It¡¯s incredibly good!¡¯ Ian needed to make an effort in order to maintain his expression. ¡°Ye, yeah it¡¯s really good. For your Leadership to go up 15%¡­¡± Of course, the wedding ring that Ian wore was a better item, but because you could equip a ring on each hand, he also wanted Celia¡¯s ring. ¡®Must resist¡­¡¯ He couldn¡¯t just become a Lord and take the items of his retainers. Innocent Celia, who didn¡¯t even catch onto Ian¡¯s internal thoughts, smiled brightly and continued to talk. ¡°Right, right! As expected, I told you that it was a good item!¡± And as Ian¡¯s ring caught her eyes, Celia¡¯s round eyes opened wide as she asked. ¡°Oh, but what¡¯s the ring that you¡¯re using, Lord? It¡¯s incredibly beautiful! What¡¯s the name of the item?¡± Ian awkwardly smiled as he answered. ¡°Ah, this, uh what was it, was it the Forest¡¯s Wedding Ring¡­¡± At the words wedding ring, Celia¡¯s two eyes became bleary. ¡°Wedding ring? Lord, from what I knew, you hadn¡¯t married yet.¡± Celia stared at Ian with tearful eyes! Ian didn¡¯t know what the reason was, but a stream of cold sweat dripped down his back. ¡°Oh¡­ That¡­ Could you say that it¡¯s just a good item, so I¡¯m wearing it?¡± Before entering the dungeon. While looking at Celia who stuck to Ian¡¯s side while she continuously chatted, the other retainers wore a dazed expression. ¡°Did Celia always have that kind of side to her?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, this is also my first time since after the territory war where the Lord is also hunting with us¡­¡± There was a momentary tussle before the real hunting began, but as they entered the dungeon, Ian¡¯s gaze was the first to change. And the hunting in the dungeon proceeded incredibly rapidly. This was because it wasn¡¯t that high-level of a dungeon. It seemed it was because the area where the dungeon was discovered was a place that wasn¡¯t too deep into the northern continent and was in the vicinity of the Lotus Domain. The monsters that appeared were Snow Gargoyles that were in the lv 110 range, which Ian wouldn¡¯t have had any trouble hunting them even alone. On top of that, since he had his retainers, in other words, it couldn¡¯t help but be a piece of cake. ¡°Celia! You can¡¯t kill anything that¡¯s a Rare-rank or above!¡± ¡°Alright!¡± Amongst the tons of Snow Gargoyles, a gargoyle with bluish-white skin occasionally appeared. That was a monster with the name ¡®Frozen Gargoyle¡¯ and because the Frozen Gargoyle was a Rare-rank monster, it was a good ingredient in order for Ian to make higher-rank Spirit Marbles. ¡°Mallaim.¡± ¡°Yes, Lord!¡± ¡°Just stand in the front and find the locations where the Frozen Gargoyles are beforehand while we move.¡± ¡°Understood!¡± As the hunting proceeded onwards, Ian¡¯s party began to go around the dungeon even more systematically and quickly. Like that, the hunting in the dungeon continued for over two days. * * * ¡°Whew¡­ Let¡¯s see here. How many Spirit Marbles have I gathered?¡± As Ian opened his inventory, the remnants of his grinding for two days filled the space. ¡°Hmm, 58 white Spirit Marbles, 16 blue Spirit Marbles. There¡¯s 3 green Spirit Marbles.¡± If it wasn¡¯t for Ian¡¯s horrible one-brushstroke drawing skill, it was an amount of Spirit Marbles where he could definitely make the items of the remaining Familiars! However, different from several days ago, Ian was full of confidence. Ian had something he was counting on. ¡®Hu-hu, as expected, people need to use their heads.¡¯ Ian snickered as he remembered yesterday¡¯s incidents. Ian: By any chance, is there anyone in the guild that has majored in Design?Fiolan: Huh? Why a Design major?Herz: What is it. Why are you looking for a Design major now?Ian: Ah, it¡¯s nothing else, but our guild has gotten quite high in the rankings as well now and I thought that we should have a guild mark. If there¡¯s a guild member that¡¯s majored in Design, I was planning on requesting a guild mark.Carwin: Ooh, Ian hyung! That¡¯s a really good idea. As a matter of fact, it also bothered me to wear the guild mark that Kailan offered by default.Fiolan: No kidding. Come to think of it, our guild mark was still the diamond-shaped mark that they provided by default.Mishyal: Uh, Ian. I do happen to be a Design major¡­Ian: Ooh! Mishyal, really?Herz: Ooh! You were a Design major, Mishyal?Carwin: Mishyal, talent donation go-go!Ian: Since a donation is still a bit iffy no matter if you¡¯re a guild member, if you make a cool design, I will give you a Heroic-rank Magician-exclusive robe that I obtained recently.Mishyal: Oh! Really?Ian: Of course. So, would it be alright for me to request a cool design?Mishyal: Just leave it to me! Like that, Ian decided to use the guild mark that he obtained from Mishyal on his Talismans and Incantation Patterns from now on. ¡®It pricks my conscience¡­ But, since I did give him quite a good robe as a gift.¡¯ Ian, who finished his self-justification like that, opened the guild window and displayed the guild mark in the top where he could see. ¡®Keu, as expected, a Design major is different.¡¯ The golden eagle pattern drawn with Ian¡¯s Familiar, Pin, as the motif was a cool shape that all of the guild members really liked. Luspel Empire¡¯s emblem was also a Griffin, but because the pattern of Luspel was a pattern where the whole body of a Griffin was drawn, while the pattern of the Lotus guild was a design drawn with a raised Pin¡¯s head magnified and changed to a more simplified version, so they didn¡¯t look similar. Above all, Ian liked the simplicity of the pattern. ¡®If it was complicated, then I wouldn¡¯t have been able to copy it¡­¡¯ With a determined expression, Ian pulled out a piece of Hanji[1] and firstly began to practice looking and copying the pattern. ¡°Whew¡­¡± After practicing for about thirty minutes like that, Ian, who was able to draw it quite decently, wore a satisfied expression as he plopped down on the spot. ¡°Ah¡­ The path of a production class is long and difficult.¡± Ian suddenly felt the greatness of Harin, who raised her cooking Proficiency to High-class lv 5. ¡°Still, if it¡¯s this much, failures won¡¯t pop up now, right?¡± It was a little sloppy, but it was a magnificent quality that was incomparable to the Talismans that Ian drew a couple days ago. At this point, Ian compromised and began to produce the items. Success! / You have produced a Synthetic Talisman (Name change possible)! ¨C Rank: CommonGreat success! / You have produced a Synthetic Talisman (Name change possible)! ¨C Rank: RareSuccess! / You have succeeded in producing a Synthetic Incantation Pattern (Name change possible)! ¨C Rank: Common And the conclusion was better than the standard that Ian expected. ¡°Euh-ha-hat! To have not failed even one¡­!¡± As his Artistic Grade lacked a little, there were a couple of Talismans where the stats dropped a little, but at least there was no situation where he failed and wasted Spirit Marbles. On top of that, as a ¡®Great Success¡¯ message even popped up for a couple of them, Ian was in an incredibly good mood. ¡®Shall we take a look at the items that had great success?¡¯ Ian displayed the information of the item. *Synthetic Talisman (Name change possible) Classification ¨C Talisman (Charm) Rank ¨C Rare Equip Limit ¨C Can be equipped onto one ¡®Familiar¡¯. Durability 55/55 Option ¨C Offensive Power +15% (+5%) Agility +12% (+3%) Vitality Regeneration +2% (+0.5%) *3% of the damage dealt for every attack is recovered as Vitality. A Talisman produced by beginner Diviner ¡®Ian¡¯. It¡¯s a magnificent Talisman where the spirit of a glorious Griffin can be felt. ¡°Keu¡­!¡± Ian was deeply moved. But then again, the options were so good to the point it was truly incomparable to the Talismans he made several days ago. On top of that, it seemed because of the effect of ¡®Great success¡¯, it was produced into a ¡®Rare¡¯-rank item despite having been made with white Spirit Marbles. ¡®Mishyal, thank you!¡¯ At the words ¡®magnificent Talisman¡¯ that were written on the information window last, his heartstrings were touched. ¡®Hmm¡­ A Common-rank item has two options, but a Rare-rank item has 3 options? Additionally, on the bottom, an Inherent Ability has also formed¡­¡¯ As he heated the fire of passionate production, Ian, who used all of the Common-rank Spirit Marbles, opened his inventory again. And with shaking hands, he grabbed the Rare-rank marbles, which he didn¡¯t have much of, and raised them up. ¡®If I¡¯ve practiced this much, then I could probably use some of the High-class marbles now, right?¡¯ ¡°Hoo!¡± Ian, who took one deep breath, focused all of his mind onto the end of the brush and went to draw the pattern. Because he only had 16 of the blue Spirit Marbles, different from the white Spirit Marbles, which he had more than 50 of, he was soon able to use all of the marbles and finish production. Of course, he didn¡¯t fail any of them, and also succeeded in getting a ¡®Great success¡¯ once more. ¡®This production is a lot more fun than I thought.¡¯ Different from several days ago, as it began to go well, Ian, who was excited, hummed as he checked the performance of the items he made. The result was huge satisfaction. ¡°Is this the last now?¡± Ian mumbled as he pulled out the green Spirit Marbles, which he could only find 3 of from the dungeon. ¡®Great success, let¡¯s go!¡¯ Lifting the brush, Ian¡¯s fingers shook. Since the greatly successful item made from blue Spirit Marbles was produced into a ¡®Unique¡¯-rank, an item made with green Spirit Marbles could be produced into a ¡®Heroic¡¯-rank. It was an incredible tension similar to when the last number of a lottery ticket is checked! After swallowing dryly once, Ian began to slowly draw out the pattern on top of the white Hanji. And shortly after¡­ Great success! / You have succeeded in producing a Synthetic Incantation Pattern (Name change possible)! ¨C Rank: HeroicAs you have succeeded in producing an outstanding item in comparison to your Proficiency, your Proficiency in ¡®Production¡¯ has drastically increased!As you have succeeded in producing a Heroic-rank Incantation Pattern, your ¡®Beginner-level Incantation Pattern Production Lv. 1¡¯ Proficiency has drastically increased!The level of your Beginner-level Incantation Pattern Production has increased to Lv. 2. Still holding the brush with his shaking hands, Ian wore a broad smile. ¡°Euh-ha-hat, a Heroic-rank!¡± And shortly after. A couple lines of system messages additionally popped up. As you have continuously perfected the same pattern, the ¡®Artisan Mind¡¯ has been invoked.You have obtained ¡®Spirit Sensitivity¡¯, a special ¡®Psychic¡¯-class skill.The related pattern has been registered as an ¡®Inherent Pattern¡¯. (Pattern Rank: Common)You have succeeded in perfecting the ¡®Inherent Pattern¡¯. Please set a name for the pattern. [1] Hanji = Traditional Korean paper handmade from mulberry trees. CH 116 Chapter 116: Beginner Diviner (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian¡¯s eyes slightly rounded. ¡®Inherent Pattern? What is an Inherent Pattern? Have I already read it, but am not able to remember it?¡¯ Because this was his first time hearing of information related to ¡®Inherent Pattern¡¯ now, Ian hurriedly opened the information tab. And as expected, right next to the information related to ¡®Inherent Pattern¡¯, there was a N mark, meaning that it was new. *Inherent Pattern ¡®Inherent Pattern¡¯ is a system that is invoked if a Diviner repeatedly perfects one pattern and exceeds a certain result. Whenever a Diviner that has obtained ¡®Inherent Pattern¡¯ makes an item with the relevant pattern, the name of the relevant Inherent Pattern will be written next to the name of the item, and depending on the rank of the Inherent Pattern, an Inherent Ability will additionally form on the item. The type of additional Inherent Ability will be decided the moment the Inherent Pattern is first made, and the higher the pattern¡¯s rank, the value will increase. *The more users there are that use the item with the Inherent Pattern, the higher the rank of the relevant pattern. If you become an outstanding Diviner and many people use your pattern, the ability of the pattern will grow stronger. The explanation wasn¡¯t long, but because the content within was quite complex, Ian could only perfectly understand the content after reading it about two times. ¡®So basically, they¡¯re saying that the kind of ability that will be granted is decided when an Inherent Pattern is made for the first time.¡¯ In order to check the Inherent Pattern, Ian opened his pattern that had formed in the Diviner-class¡¯s skill window. Please decide the name of the pattern. Ian, who thought about it momentarily, opened his mouth shortly after. ¡°The name is Lotus, I will go with Lotus.¡± Is ¡®Lotus¡¯ correct for the name of the Inherent Pattern? ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right.¡± After all, the pattern was designed for the Lotus guild, and because of that, he thought that the most fitting name would also be Lotus. And the information related to the formed ¡®Lotus¡¯ pattern popped up. *Lotus Classification ¨C Inherent Ability Rank ¨C Common Fame Experience ¨C 0% (When 100% is reached, it is promoted to the next rank.) Inherent Option ¨C All combat stats +100 This is the first Inherent Pattern of beginner Diviner ¡®Ian¡¯. It embodies a strong Griffin. Ian, who checked the information of the pattern, checked the items he just made again. And he was able to see that the Inherent Option, ¡®all combat stats +100¡¯, was attached to all of the items. ¡®If it¡¯s about +100 on all combat stats, it¡¯s not really an amazing value for me right now¡­¡¯ Ian thought quickly. ¡®Oh, but come to think of it¡­ This is an item that doesn¡¯t have a level restriction.¡¯ If he thought on the basis of the data of the items he made through production up until now, there was no concept of a level restriction on Familiar-exclusive items. Instead, all stat options increased as a percent value. This was because a fitting level restriction needed to appear if there was a fixed stat value attached in order for the balance to not collapse. However, the additional effect of Ian¡¯s current Inherent Pattern, the Lotus Pattern, was added as a fixed value to the stats of a Familiar. About 100 additional stats could be considered a measly difference to Ian¡¯s Familiars that were around lv 120, but it was different for low-level Familiars. Especially if it was thought about for Familiars that were about lv 10-20, the lowest level, it was a standard that almost doubled their stats. Ian felt that it was an item he would really want even if he was a low-level user as well. ¡®If I just use this well, I feel like I¡¯ll be able to make a fortune.¡¯ At the thought of gathering the pocket money of beginner users that weren¡¯t at lv 50 yet, Ian became excited. ¡®On top of that, if the rank goes up, won¡¯t the stats also go up even more as well?¡¯ At first, this would be greatly popular between users that were below lv 50, and eventually, the users that used Ian¡¯s pattern would naturally exponentially increase. ¡®Then the rank will probably shoot up, right?¡¯ As it was a system where the more users there were that used it, the higher the value of the pattern went up and therefore the rank, so rank increase was in fact an obvious sequence. He didn¡¯t have an idea of how much of a stat increase there would be whenever it went up a rank, but even if the current value of 100 went up to about 500, it would become an incredible option. If it was a standard where all stats went up about 500 each, it could be considered the best option for even Ian to use right now. ¡°Keu-heu-heu.¡± Ian snickered as he began to make plans to run a business. ¡®Firstly, since I have no idea about the price, let¡¯s register just one with the auctioning method.¡¯ Ian immediately headed to the auction house. And he selected a decent Common-rank Talisman and made a bid on it in the auction house. ¡®Hmm¡­ shall we start with about 50 thousand gold?¡¯ 50 thousand gold sounded incredibly cheap, but it was not a small amount of money for low-level users. ¡®If I register it and go do the Orvil quest before coming back, it will probably have sold then, right?¡¯ He didn¡¯t have an exact idea of how much it would sell for, but he felt he just needed to see the price it was auctioned off at and release a certain quantity in the auction house. ¡°Since the preparations are all done, do I just need to go do the quest now?¡± However, Ian felt some sort of uncertainty. ¡®I feel like I¡¯m forgetting about something¡­¡¯ And shortly after, he was able to remember what it was. ¡°Ah, I didn¡¯t check the Spirit Sensitivity skill.¡± As he was researching on Inherent Patterns and all of his attention was on that, he had forgotten about the Spirit Sensitivity skill he had obtained at the same time. Ian opened the Spirit Sensitivity skill. *Spirit Sensitivity Classification ¨C Active Skill Skill Level ¨C Lv. 0 Proficiency ¨C 0% An Inherent Ability can be granted to one random item amongst all the ones that you have personally produced. In order to use the ¡®Spirit Sensitivity¡¯ skill, five Spirit Marbles that are the same rank or of a higher rank than the item is required, and if failed, there is a chance for the item to be destroyed. *The Inherent Ability that can be granted through the Spirit Sensitivity skill is limited to Inherent Abilities that were granted to items that were successfully produced previously. *As the skills¡¯ Proficiency and level goes up, the chance for Spirit Sensitivity to succeed will increase, and in case of failure, the chance for the item to be destroyed will also decrease. *Spirit Sensitivity can be attempted up to three times on one item. *If Spirit Sensitivity was used on a item with an option that was already granted through Spirit Sensitivity, the option that was originally there is erased and a new option is formed. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Ian, who read through all of the skill¡¯s content, fell into deep contemplation. ¡®I do want to try and use this skill to add another option¡­¡¯ However, because it would be a predicament if the item broke while he tried without purpose, he was a little reluctant. ¡®I don¡¯t even know what the success rate of Spirit Sensitivity is yet, and in order to use it, I¡¯ll need to use the skill multiple times on production items that I don¡¯t need, but to do that, I¡¯m a little short on time.¡¯ In the end, Ian pushed off using the Spirit Sensitivity skill for a little later. ¡°That¡¯s right, firstly, let¡¯s finish the quest.¡± He needed to complete the quest as quickly as possible and try for an S-clear rank with Fiolan in Forlan dungeon. There was not much time left before the Dungeon Attack King event opened up. ¡®The new capsule model is waiting for me!¡¯ Ian, who was excited because everything he was doing was working out well, headed to Ikael with light footsteps. He wanted to see his strengthened Familiars in an actual fight as quickly as possible. * * * ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± Summoner Canoel, who was peeping around the auction house, discovered an item he had never seen before and had his eyes fixated on it. ¡°What¡¯s this? Familiar-exclusive item? There was such a thing?¡± As Canoel mumbled, Ranma, who stood behind him, approached him and explained it for him. ¡°Young Master, they say that Familiar-exclusive items have begun to drop because of some user a couple days ago. A production class called ¡®Diviner¡¯ has also newly appeared.¡± Canoel asked with an interested expression. ¡°Diviner? What does that class do, Ranma?¡± ¡°Hmm, from what is known so far, it¡¯s a class that can produce Talismans and Incantation Patterns that are Familiar-exclusive items. As there aren¡¯t many people that have succeeded in class-changing yet, not a lot of information has been released.¡± ¡°Oh-ho, is that so?¡± This time, Ranma asked. ¡°Well, by any chance, did a Familiar-exclusive item pop up in the auction house?¡± Canoel nodded his head. ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s up here.¡± At his words, Ranma wore an expression full of wariness. ¡®What is the Young Master trying to buy now¡­¡¯ Because it was quite difficult to prevent Canoel¡¯s impulse buying, Ranma was nervous. ¡®On top of that, it¡¯s not even a well-known item, and it hasn¡¯t been long since it has appeared, so for it to be a Familiar-exclusive item that doesn¡¯t even have much information, either¡­¡¯ Ranma forcibly put aside his ominous thoughts and approached the auction information window that Canoel was looking at. As he did so, Canoel, who was diligently reading the information window, turned his head and spoke. ¡°Do you also want to see, Ranma?¡± ¡°Yes, Young Master.¡± And Ranma, who checked the very top of the information window, let out a sigh of relief. ¡®Whew, at least it¡¯s an item that came up through the bidding method.¡¯ The reason why Ranma was relieved was simple. This was because there were a lot of cases amongst the items that came up with a fixed price where an extravagant price was set, but with items that came up through the bidding method, it was normally reasonably priced through the competition of the people. Even if the merchandiser set the minimum price extravagantly high, the bidding method was a reasonable system where the price automatically went down if there were no bids for a certain time. Ranma slowly began to read down the information. *Lotus Synthetic Talisman (Name change possible) Classification ¨C Talisman (Charm) Rank ¨C Common Equip Limit ¨C Can be equipped onto one ¡®Familiar¡¯. Durability ¨C 55/55 Option ¨C Offensive Power +11% (+3%) Vitality Regeneration +2% (+0.5%) *All combat stats +100 (This is the Inherent Ability of the ¡®Lotus¡¯ pattern. / Rank: Common) A Talisman produced by beginner Diviner ¡®Ian¡¯. It¡¯s a magnificent Talisman where the spirit of a glorious Griffin can be felt. After reading through all of the item information, his two eyes rounded. ¡®What the hell, the options on this are incredibly good!¡¯ Ranma wasn¡¯t a Summoner-class, but in order to assist Canoel, the Young Master he served, he normally studied information related to Summoners. That¡¯s why, even though it was a Familiar-exclusive item he was seeing for the first time, it was possible for him to make a decision up to an extent. ¡®Let¡¯s see, the equip limit¡­ If it¡¯s possible to equip on one Familiar, then that means that there¡¯s nothing like a level limit.¡¯ Towards Ranma, who was diligently thinking about the value of the item, Canoel asked with a quiet voice. ¡°What do you think, Ranma? If it¡¯s something like this, wouldn¡¯t it be an incredibly good item?¡± It seemed that Canoel¡¯s heart was already moved. Firstly, Ranma calmed Canoel down and checked the price of the item. *Date and time of registration ¨C 1 hour 17 minutes ago. Immediate purchase price ¨C (None) Current bid ¨C 105,000 gold Time left until end of auction ¨C 3 days Ranma, who checked the price, fell into deeper contemplation. If it was instead an extravagant price, he would have been able to cut him off and speak bluntly, but if it was about 100 thousand gold, the item looked cheap compared to its worth even from what he saw. ¡®Of course, there¡¯s still a lot of time left, but it probably won¡¯t be bad to try and bid.¡¯ The percent increase value that was attached as the basic option was good, but he felt that the all combat stats +100 that was attached as an Inherent Option would be a big help to Canoel. ¡®The Young Master is at about lv 60 now. Normally, the total stat average of Familiars in the lv 60-range are a little less than 2 thousand¡­¡¯ If all of their combat stats were to go up by 100 each, it meant that there was a total increase of 400, and if calculated like that, they would be able to see about an additional 20% stat increase effect. Ranma, who made up his mind, turned his attention towards Canoel. ¡°Young Master, let¡¯s also bid.¡± And after hearing the positive response, Canoel¡¯s face glowed. ¡°Ooh, alright! As expected, Ranma, you have a good eye. From what I see, it seems like a really good item this time!¡± While looking at Canoel, who was as happy as a child, Ranma shook his head. ¡®Whew¡­ Still, since it¡¯s a decent item this time, it¡¯s a relief.¡¯ After momentarily thinking about it, Ranma decided on the price and bid. The price that he put up was 125,000 gold, about a 20 thousand gold increase. CH 117 Chapter 117: Ruler of Darkness (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian, who had returned to Ollibus Village again after many twists and turns, immediately went to Ikael¡¯s house. Ikael warmly greeted Ian, who had returned. ¡°That¡¯s right, I definitely think preparations are complete.¡± After checking the pattern that was engraved on Ly¡¯s forehead, Ikael wore a satisfied expression. ¡°Yes. I think I¡¯ve done everything that I can do.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Ikael nodded his head. ¡°Good work, Ian. I should show you the place where Orvil is now.¡± Ikael paused a moment to take a breath, and Ian waited patiently for his next words. His words continued. ¡°Orvil is sealed at the top of Moonlight Peak.¡± ¡°Moonlight Peak?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Moonlight Peak is at the southernmost part of Forlas Plateau.¡± Ikael, who paused to take a breath, opened his mouth again. ¡°Have you never seen the peak that rises above the clouds, which is so sharp it¡¯s incomparable to any other peak?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± There was a place that Ian roughly assumed was correct. He already knew the geography of Forlas Plateau well because of Harin¡¯s cooking ingredients. ¡®I think it¡¯s that place that Harin and I needed to turn around from last time after trying to go up because there was no path¡­¡¯ Of course, he could go up if he just rode his Griffin, but at that time, because there was no reason to go up there like that, they had just passed by. ¡°Then if I go there, will I be able to find Orvil right away?¡± Ikael shook his head. ¡°No, of course not. Wait a moment.¡± After speaking, Ikael pulled out a small pebble that let out a dim light from his chest and handed it to Ian. ¡°If you go up the peak and into the centre of the open space at the very top, there is an altar that will go up to about your waist. If you stick this stone in the middle of that, the barrier that surrounded the whole peak will lift.¡± Ian received the white pebble from Ikael and lifted it up. The interesting thing was that he could barely feel a weight from the pebble. ¡°But do you have a way to go up there? It won¡¯t be easy to go up by climbing the wall.¡± Ian nodded his head. He had Pin. ¡°Yes. I have a method, so you don¡¯t have to worry about that.¡± ¡°Good, good.¡± ¡°Anyways, by any chance, is there anything that I should be cautious of?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Things you should be cautious of¡­¡± After thinking about it for a moment, Ikael spoke. ¡°First of all, you¡¯ll need to go as fast as possible.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Ikael pointed to the sky. As it was the evening, they could see the round moon that hung high in the sky all by itself. ¡°That¡¯s because two days from now, it will be a full moon. Once it¡¯s a full moon, all of Orvil¡¯s abilities will increase by almost double.¡± ¡°I see.¡± It was definite that he was an opponent that would be a burden to face just as is, but for his stats to increase double the amount. ¡®I need to finish this before then no matter what.¡¯ Ikael¡¯s words continued. ¡°However, don¡¯t go this instant, but go after the sun rises tomorrow morning.¡± ¡°I¡¯m assuming he gets stronger when it¡¯s just night as well.¡± At Ian¡¯s assumption, Ikael nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s not necessarily that his stats become stronger at night, but he has an Inherent Ability that he can only use in darkness. If possible, fight him during the daytime.¡± ¡°What is that ability that you¡¯re talking about?¡± ¡°It¡¯s an ability called ¡®Darkness Encroachment¡¯ that turns his whole body into pitch black fog. If Orvil goes into Darkness Encroachment state, it nullifies 70% of the attacks received.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± Ian, who heard those words, grumbled to himself. ¡®I have no idea how long the duration is, but isn¡¯t this a fraud skill? Can I get this skill somewhere? This Darkness Encroachment or whatever¡­¡¯ Ian, who heard a couple more matters that he needed to be careful of afterwards, firstly moved towards Forlas Plateau. He had no intentions to fight him immediately right now, but because he was planning on going right up to the location and log out to try to fight him right away after logging in tomorrow morning. ¡®Orvil or whatever, I¡¯m going to catch him quickly.¡¯ * * * ¡°What? A festival?¡± ¡°Yeah, a festival.¡± ¡°What does that have to do with me?¡± While looking at Jinsung, who stared at him blankly with a puzzled expression, Yoohyun wore a dumbfounded expression. ¡°What do you mean what does that have to do with you, dude, are you not a student at this school?¡± Jinsung slightly frowned. ¡°Is attendance mandatory? The time I spend attending classes is a waste for me right now as well, so do I really have to attend such a thing?¡± At Jinsung¡¯s complaining, Yoohyun wore a troubled expression. ¡®What should I do? I don¡¯t know about the other guys, but I need to make Jinsung attend no matter what¡­¡¯ The festival went on for three days, and although there was a lot of different things going on, there was one event that Jinsung was absolutely needed for. That exactly was the E-sports competition that was opening on the second day during the track meet. The E-sports competition was an event where departments were ranked based on their score with a total of ten different types of games, and there was an awards ceremony depending on the highest-ranking departments, with the prize money and benefits being quite big. ¡®Even if we don¡¯t get the prize, the expectations of the professors is quite big as well¡­¡¯ As much as it was the first year that the department was formed, the professors were hoping for the existence of the VR department to become widely known in the school through the festival. Yoohyun began to slowly persuade Jinsung. ¡°They¡¯re doing a E-sports competition on the second day at that festival, and if we win there, then a portion of scholarships will come out for the next semester¡­¡± Had about ten minutes passed like that. At Yoohyun¡¯s long and persistent persuasion, Jinsung eventually promised to come to the festival just on the second day. ¡®Still, since I¡¯m a little interested in the E-sports competition.¡¯ From hearing the explanation, there was not one game amongst the ten events including Kailan that Jinsung hadn¡¯t played. With the intentions of playing the games from his past for the first time in a while, Jinsung also accepted Yoohyun¡¯s suggestion. After actually thinking about it positively, he was looking quite forward to it. * * * ¡°You could say all of the darkness cleared at this rate, right?¡± Ian, who quickly ran home and logged onto Kailan as soon as his morning classes ended, mumbled as he looked up at the sky once. It was about 11 o¡¯clock in the morning, and the sun was already high up in the sky. ¡°Alright.¡± Amongst his Familiars, Ian summoned just Pin for now. ¡°Pin, Summon!¡± Kku-ruk- Kkuk-kkuk-! Pin, who was summoned, happily flew up to Ian and sat down. As he was now bigger in size than even Ian, he couldn¡¯t sit on his shoulders or anything like that, but Ian still thought Pin was cute. ¡°Pin, please take me up to the top there.¡± Kku-ruk-! As Ian got on top of his back, Pin carefully began to flap his wings. Flap- Flap-. He wasn¡¯t as skilled in riding on Pin¡¯s back yet, but still, compared to before, his posture had become more stable. ¡°Pin, do you want to try flying with a little more speed?¡± As if Pin was waiting for Ian¡¯s words, he began to flap his wings faster little by little. ¡°Umph!¡± At the strong wind that suddenly blew in front of him, Ian quickly lowered his posture. ¡®Whew, Pin is really fast once he starts gaining speed.¡¯ As the wind that blew from the opposite direction was too strong, he thought that he could just fall like that at the slightest slip up. ¡®If I fall from this height, then I will immediately fall to death.¡¯ Ian moved the balance of his body here and there as he tried to adjust riding on Pin¡¯s back. And shortly after, he was able to step foot on top of the incredibly high mountaintop. ¡°When you look at it from the bottom, it looks really sharp, but coming up here now, it¡¯s quite spacious. That¡¯s a relief.¡± From Ian¡¯s perspective, where he needed to manage multiple Familiars, it couldn¡¯t help but be unfavourable the narrower the space. It was even more so at a place where it was immediately a thousand-mile cliff if they broke away from each other. Ian summoned all of his Familiars. And from his chest, he pulled out the pebble that he received from Ikael. ¡®So, this is the key that will lift the seal, huh?¡¯ Ian strode up to the centre of the empty space. And just like Ikael said, an altar-like thing that was short in height was there. And as he approached it and checked the top of it, Ian was able to know the place that the pebble went into right away. ¡®It must be here, right?¡¯ As he placed it in a small, round, groove-like place, the pebble rolled and was sucked into a place like a helix-type hole in the middle of the altar. Keu-Keu-Keung-! As a mechanical noise rang out from within the altar, Ian became slightly nervous. However, as nothing else happened, he wore a flustered expression. ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± However, just then¡­ A white light began to ooze out from within the altar. The Sealing of Forlas Darkness is invoked. Whoong-! ¡®What the hell? The seal is not lifted but invoked?¡¯ Something was a little weird, but Ian, who checked the system message, took a couple steps backwards. ¡°Everybody prepare for battle!¡± As he did so, in the next moment, a completely unexpected phenomenon began to arise. Crack- Cra-cra-crack-! Beneath Ian¡¯s feet, it began to crack. ¡°What the hell is this?¡± And didn¡¯t the high-rising mountaintop begin to collapse downwards? Thud- Thu-thud-! Ian couldn¡¯t help but firstly Summon Release Ddukdae. Ly, Lake, and Halli could ride the collapsing boulders here and there and not fall, but in Ddukdae¡¯s case, not only was his Agility too low to do that, but he was too big in size. ¡°Ddukdae, Summon Release!¡± Ian, who Summon Released Ddukdae, hurriedly got on Pin¡¯s back. And he diligently watched the Familiars, who jumped around frantically on top of the collapsing altar. It was in order to immediately Summon Release them if they looked like they were going to even accidentally fall. Ba-ang- Bang-! As the giant peak collapsed, incredibly loud booms and clouds of dust spread out in every direction. However, even despite that, Ian couldn¡¯t lose his mind. ¡®Since the seal has been lifted, the Orvil will definitely appear from somewhere!¡¯ It was a situation where it was truly a relief that he could ride on top of Pin. Ian eventually couldn¡¯t help but be forced to even Summon Release Lake, who was unable to move as nimbly as Halli or Ly and was falling between the boulders. ¡®Whew, this is a big problem. To have to fight Orvil without Ddukdae or Lake¡­¡¯ And had about ten minutes passed like that? The peak that had completely collapsed to the point that even its shape was unrecognizable had become a giant hill made of piles of stones. ¡°Pin, let me down.¡± And Ian also came down from Pin¡¯s back and stepped foot on top of the pile of stones. ¡®No, but when exactly is Orvil coming out?¡¯ It was at that moment. Whoong-! As a bizarre sound rang out, incredibly strong beams of purple light began to be sucked into the middle of the pile of stones. Kwaah-. ¡®¡­?¡¯ With a dazed expression, Ian watched that scene. This was because the beams of light that were being sucked in from every direction was presenting a grand sight much like a meteor shower. The beams of light gathered in the middle of the boulder pile and formed a giant sphere. And in the giant sphere of light, a dark shadow began to faintly appear. ¡®Is that¡­ Orvil?¡¯ Just when Ian was about to strengthen his eyesight and check the identity of the dark shadow within the light, the rays of light burst out in every direction while letting out a loud boom. Ba-ang-! The boulders that flew out in all directions because of the explosion continuously smashed into Ian and his Familiars. You have received a large impact. Your Vitality has been reduced by 970.You have received a large impact. Your Vitality has been reduced by 1225. It wasn¡¯t a large amount of damage, but as his Vitality was cut down even before the battle began, Ian frowned. ¡®Damn it, what the hell?¡¯ However, that wasn¡¯t the end. Awhooo-! A giant shadow rose from the spot where the pile of stones burst out from. As Orvil¡¯s howl rang through the air, a shock wave exploded out in all directions. Pung-! ¡®Dark Fenrir Orvil¡¯ has used Inherent Ability ¡®Darkness Emission¡¯.As you have been afflicted by ¡®Darkness Emission¡¯, your Vitality has been reduced by 6718. Ian shouted before he even realized. ¡°No, what kind of crazy damage is this?!¡± Ly had gone into a critical condition from just one hit. Because Halli and Pin didn¡¯t have as paper-like bodies as Ly, they still had over half of their Vitality left, but they had still definitely received a huge amount of damage. And lastly, a system message that was just one line long additionally popped up. The world has been encased in darkness. CH 118 Chapter 118: Ruler of Darkness (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda "No, what''s this? Why did it suddenly get dark?" The largest village in the northern continent as well as the domain that the number 1 guild possessed, the DarkRuna Domain. As the sky suddenly darkened in broad daylight, even before noon, everybody had become flustered. "Could it be that some sort of large update quest has been invoked?" "No, if that was the case, then a system message would have at least popped up, right? There''s nothing of the sort. Did some sort of system error occur?" "Probably not. My friend is currently hunting in the southern continent, but apparently there''s nothing abnormal there." The square, where over hundreds of users were gathered, was suddenly in an uproar, and all sorts of assumptions at this weird phenomenon went rampant. "It''s almost the second large update. Could it be something that''s related to that?" "Damn, because it just suddenly got dark, I feel uncomfortable." However, the uproar was just for a moment. As time passed and nothing happened, the users soon returned to their daily routines. * * * "No, if this is the case, then there was no reason for me to have come during the day!" Ian complained towards Ikael, who uselessly gave him the wrong information(?). ''Truthfully, this, well¡­ Even if I knew about this beforehand, there would be no method.'' Seu-seu-seu-. While looking at Orvil, who emitted a dark fog while letting out a strange sound, Ian slowly moved step by step. ''It would be difficult to win currently in this state.'' He felt that he needed to summon Ddukdae and Lake at least in order to be able to fight that monstrous dude. Grr-. Orvil, who had slowly approached Ian, growled as he glared at Ian. However, after checking Orvil''s level, Ian suddenly wore a quizzical expression. ''Huh? What''s this? He''s only at lv 120?'' His performance was incredibly fancy, but if he was only about lv 120, Ian thought that he could somehow fight him. However, in the next moment, he couldn''t help but let out a deep sigh. Dark Fenrir Orvil - Rank: Legendary "¡­" A Legendary-rank monster that had appeared only twice on the field up until now. As soon as he saw the word ''Legendary'', it had an effect that made Orvil, who stood in front of him, suddenly look 2 times stronger. ''No, still, our Pin is also a Legendary-rank!'' Ian collected himself and began to think of ways to face the monster-like dude in front of his eyes. ''Firstly, I need to last about 20 minutes somehow.'' 20 minutes was the time it took until he could summon Lake and Ddukdae again. However, Orvil didn''t give Ian any more time to think. Kyaaooh-! Orvil, who let out a horrible shriek towards the air, charged towards Ian. Ta-tat-! Dodging Orvil, who charged towards him with a fog that glowed a strange black, Ian quickly got on Halli''s back. "Ly, you stay far back until your Vitality has recovered enough!" Ly was in a dangerous situation, but because it was a situation where even one couldn''t be spared, he couldn''t Summon Release. Ian, who was on Halli''s back, shot out Current Proliferation towards Orvil. Za-zap- Za-za-zap-! However, because the projectile''s speed of Current Proliferation was slow in comparison, Orvil was able to avoid them easily, and he spread his hand towards Ian. Kka-kang-! As Ian''s staff and Orvil''s long claws afflicted each other, a frictional sound that was uncomfortable to hear was made. Kka-ka-ka-kak-! And while Ian and Orvil faced each other, Pin, who stood back, didn''t stay still either. Kyaa-! The front claws of Pin, who let out a high-pitched shout and charged, strongly hit Orvil''s back. Pung-! Pin''s head was shaped like an eagle, but his body resembled a large lion. As Pin''s front claws that were like a caldron lid hit, Orvil''s body was thrown far. Familiar ''Pin'' has dealt critical damage to ''Orvil''.''Orvil''s Vitality has been reduced by 13,250. While looking at Orvil, who allowed a blow more easily than he expected, Ian slowly began to find his confidence little by little. ''Alright. If it''s this much, it''s worth a try.'' Ian picked up his staff again, and shot out Magic Spheres. If it was Magic Spheres, which was far superior in projectile speed compared to Current Proliferation, he thought that he could hit Orvil. Whoong-! The spheres of purple magic that shot out from Ian''s staff precisely flooded the movement route of Orvil, who charged towards Ian again. ''Alright!'' However, while looking at the spheres that flew towards him, Orvil roared loudly instead of dodging. Awhoo-! And a system message that made Ian fall into despair popped up. Dark Fenrir ''Orvil'' has invoked Inherent Ability ''Darkness Encroachment''.Orvil''s movement speed has increased by 50%.From now on, all of Orvil''s attacks will be applied as critical damage.From now on, Orvil will neutralize 70% of all damage.''Darkness Encroachment'' will last for 3 minutes. Ian was so dumbfounded that words didn''t even come out. He had never seen such an outrageous buff like this before. ''No, how do they expect me to face something like this?'' And Ian''s Magic Spheres were absorbed by the black fog that wrapped around Orvil as if it was being sucked in. Through Orvil''s ''Darkness Encroachment'', ''Magic Spheres'' have become neutralized. The somewhat fortunate thing was that because Halli and Pin''s reflexes were so fast, they didn''t fall too far behind from Orvil when it came to speed. And it looked like Ly, who was far off, was outside of Orvil''s interest. It seemed because he was devoured by madness, Orvil only attacked the target right in front of him that he considered an opponent. Bang- Ba-bang-! Familiar ''Bbookbbook'' has received critical damage.''Bbookbbook''s Vitality has been reduced by 527. It was a huge Offensive Power that dealt damage with a value that was 3-figures to even Bbookbbook, who boasted an outrageous Defensive Power. ''Even if I just receive one proper blow, it''s death!'' Fortunately, he could face him while enduring this much because Orvil charged in haphazardly, if by chance he had to fight him while he was in a state with a proper AI, it may have been game over for Ian. "Halli, Guardian of the Wind!" In order to last until the duration of the Darkness Encroachment skill was over no matter what, Ian grasped onto Halli''s back tightly. Whoong-! As Halli''s reflexes were maximized, although it was only for a moment, Halli began to overpower Orvil when it came to reflexes. "Halli, try and buy some distance!" Grr-! Because Orvil stuck like glue to them, he wasn''t even able to use Pin''s Crush skill. This was because even allies that were within the range of the Crush skill also received damage. He had no idea that he would use this skill of Halli''s to make a getaway, but for now, Ian quickly bought space between Orvil and him. And as he gained enough distance, Ian let out a command to Pin. "Pin, Crush!" And Pin''s flapping began. Kwaaah-! As Crush, the strongest AoE attack of Pin''s, was invoked, a giant wind storm raided Orvil, who ran squarely into it. Through ''Darkness Encroachment'', the damage has become neutralized.''Orvil''s Vitality has been reduced by 1745.''Orvil''s Vitality has been reduced by 2301.Through ''Darkness Encroachment'', the damage has become neutralized.Through ''Darkness Encroachment'', the damage has become neutralized. There was a lot of damage that was neutralized because of Darkness Encroachment, but because it was an attack that went through continuously without rest like a DoT, Orvil couldn''t help but receive quite a lot of damage. And there was an effect that Ian hadn''t even thought of, but the fierce wind that raged along with the Crush skill had an effect on the broken piles of stones here and there. The tons of stones that had broken into sharp pieces had flown towards Orvil and dealt quite a bit of additional damage. Keu-reu-reu-reu-! Ian invoked all of the skills that he could use, and nibbled away at Orvil''s Vitality. Fortunately, it seemed like he didn''t have any skills like the Bloody Fenrir where he could absorb Vitality or regenerate, as there was no incident where he recovered. ''A little bit more now¡­!'' If he lasted a little bit longer, he would be able to summon Lake and Ddukdae again, and Ly would have recovered a decent amount of his Vitality as well. Ian gritted his teeth. * * * "Hmm¡­" While looking at the strange sky that was dyed black even though the sun was up, Ikael let out a noise. "I can''t believe it¡­ While a hundred years have passed, has Orvil become a Legendary-rank?" This phenomenon was an incredibly fascinating and strange phenomenon to most of them, but to Ikael, it wasn''t so. He knew about this phenomenon. ''Darkness Emission. It''s probably that.'' There were tribes of Fenrir that succeeded the three powers, the Blood clan, the Dark clan, and the Moon clan. And amongst the leaders of the three clans, the Fenrir that received the most powerful strength would absorb the strength of the remaining two clans and would be re-awakened in their completed form, and this Darkness Emission was an Inherent Ability that could only be obtained if a trinity is successfully formed. ''However, ever since the Moon clan fell a hundred years ago, there has never been a time that a completed form was born. Even if they lacked one of the three different strengths, it was impossible to reach the completed form, so in a sense, it was obvious why a completed form wasn''t born in the meantime. "Either way, if Orvil has reached his completed form, Ian, he won''t be able to face him with his strength¡­" Ikael slowly closed his eyes. If Ian couldn''t block Orvil, then he needed to find a way to block Orvil, who would have released his seal and escaped, no matter what. * * * "Huff, huff¡­" Ian''s whole body was covered with dirt and wounds. ''This dude¡­ Is there no way to win against him?'' Orvil''s Vitality gauge bar was blinking a bright red. His Vitality had dropped below half. However, compared to Orvil, Ian''s condition was even more critical. When it came to Vitality itself, Ian still had over half, but Lake, who he was barely able to summon back, was attacked by Orvil and he couldn''t do anything else but Summon Release him, while Ddukdae''s Vitality had completely run out and was recalled before he could even Summon Release. Halli''s Vitality was also almost gone now, while Pin, who at least could fly through the air, was on the more vigorous side, but it wasn''t a situation that could be thought of so positively. The most hopeful part was that, surprisingly, Ly, who hadn''t received any attacks of Orvil, was maintaining almost full Vitality, ''Soon now, the cooldown time for Darkness Encroachment might be over¡­'' Because Orvil wasn''t in Darkness Encroachment stat right now, they were able to deal at least this much damage to him. If the dark fog that neutralized 70% of the damage began to wrap around Orvil''s body, then there would seriously be no answer. ''Let''s get to the end right now no matter what!'' Ian climbed up on top of a pile and continuously fired Magic Spheres towards a roaring Orvil. As he did so, Ly, Halli and even Pin all charged towards Orvil. ''Even if it''s game over for my Familiars, there''s nothing I can do. I need to catch that guy first!'' If the battle condition was going to go on like this anyways, until they cut all of Orvil''s Vitality down, Ian''s side would be annihilated. If that was going to be the case, it could be better to gamble. Keu-ahhh-! Orvil, who let out a horrible shriek, lunged towards Ian face to face. Once he saw that, Ian''s eyes slightly shone. ''That means he''s targeted me, right¡­?'' This was because it was a better situation if he aimed for Ian himself rather than his other Familiars. Since he still had Bbookbbook as his reliable shield. Truthfully, because Orvil, who didn''t have proper decision-making abilities, had no thoughts to avoid Bbookbbook and attack Ian, that was the reason why Ian was able to last this long. However, shortly after. Ian''s eyes, which was a little relaxed, was tinged with shock. ''What, what the hell is that?'' This was because two dark masses that looked like large Magic Spheres began to form on Orvil''s two front feet. Because this was an attack pattern that he was seeing for the first time, he was taken aback, but he could also feel the incredible power within the masses even if he wasn''t hit by them. "Euaaah-!" A shout flowed out of Ian''s mouth. This was because it looked like it would be hard to avoid Orvil''s attack now. No matter how strong that attack was, Bbookbbook''s Vitality probably wouldn''t be completely exhausted, but if it was an attack with a range like that, even if he blocked with Bbookbbook, it was obvious that Ian would receive an immense amount of damage. In any case, Orvil was only a short distance away from him before Ian could even use his hands, and the giant sphere of darkness slammed into Ian''s back. Baaang-! You have received critical damage.Your Vitality has been reduced by 17,850. The immense amount of damage that came through in an instant. If it wasn''t for Bbookbbook, it was an attack where he could have instantly died. Ian catapulted through the air and tumbled onto the ground. "Whew¡­" Halli and Pin, who saw that, ran towards Ian in order to protect him, but because they were too far away compared to Orvil, they couldn''t block him off. Ian closed his eyes. ''Ah¡­ My 24 hours¡­'' As he thought of death, as expected, the first thing that popped up into his mind was being unable to log on for 24 hours. And the thing that he thought of next was failing the quest. ''Damn it. We need to evolve Ly, though¡­'' However, just then. An unexpected shadow jumped out from behind Ian and blocked off Orvil. Ian, who saw that, shouted out of surprise. "You idiot, get out of the way!" This was because the identity of the shadow was none other than Ly. If Ly, who had the weakest Vitality amongst his Familiars, was to directly face Orvil''s attack, then it would be impossible for him to survive. Grr-! However, Ly wasn''t even fazed by Ian''s command, and Ian Summon Released Ly as he had no other choice. No, he tried to do that. This was because, right now, when Ddukdae also received a death penalty, if Ly also received a penalty, the damage would be too big. "Ly, Summon Release!" However, didn''t a system message that even Ian couldn''t understand pop up?! You cannot Summon Release Familiar ''Ly''. As he was so taken aback, Ian wore a dazed expression. And like that, the two wolves tangled up in the air. CH 119 Chapter 119: Ruler of Darkness (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Bang-! Familiar ''Ly'' has received critical damage.''Ly''s Vitality has been reduced by 26,794. Of course, it wasn''t like Orvil hadn''t received any damage. Since Ly also bit him that desperately. However, Orvil definitely hadn''t received enough damage to lose himself to death, while Ly collapsed onto the floor just like that and turned into a grey light. "Hoo, Ly, why did you do that¡­ You couldn''t have won anyways." Ian felt that he was tearing up a little in vain. In the end, it was just a game, but still, it was because Ly''s loyalty was quite touching. Futility rapidly rushed in. ''Hmm, but why is a message saying he died not popping up?'' Ly''s remaining Vitality was definitely 0. His red mane was also turning into a grey light, and he was sure that he had died, but a message didn''t pop up. However, just when Ian felt something was strange. Rather than a message alerting of his death, a different system message popped up. The hidden energy of the ''Bloody Hole'' has been opened. Ian wore a puzzled expression. ''What is this? The Bloody Hole they''re talking about¡­ I think it was the charm that I received from Bloody Fenrir Shallos.'' It was that item that Shallos said was the emblem of the blood-red kin. At the unexpected situation, Ian wore an expression full of anticipation. Familiar ''Ly''s Vitality has been fully recovered through the strength of the Bloody Hole. Grr-. And when he thought he had died, Ly''s body began to slowly rise into the air. Whoong-! And Ly''s body, which was dyed a grey light, slowly began to be filled with a white light. This was a scene that Ian had seen many times before as well. ''No way¡­!'' Ian hurriedly checked Ly''s condition. And after seeing the one-line long phrase that popped up in a golden light, he let out a shout of delight. Evolving. Ian stared at Orvil, who gazed at Ly from a distance, with nervous eyes. ''But what will happen if he''s attacked while evolving and dies?'' It was a thoroughly worrisome situation. However, for some reason, Orvil didn''t move and watched Ly''s evolving form with blank eyes. Like that, for a moment, the nerve-wracking situation continued, and shortly after, Ly''s risen body shone brightly and the light exploded out in every direction. Blood-Red Maned Wolf ''Ly'' has evolved into a Bloody Fenrir. Awhoo-! Ly, whose body was completely wrapped in a red light, howled towards the air and glared at Orvil. Ly''s name was shining in a purple light. ''To have evolved straight into a Heroic-rank without passing through Unique-Rank¡­!'' Ian was deeply moved. Because the situation was like this, he didn''t have time to open up the information window and thoroughly rip through everything one by one, but just by looking at the force that could be felt from Ly, he could truly feel its strength. Grrr-. After discovering Ly, who was approaching him, Orvil''s eyes returned to focus. And he began to emit an even more ferocious spirit. Shallos¡­ Shallos, is that you¡­ As Orvil opened his mouth for the first time, a raspy voice that made a low, scratching noise flowed out. However, the surprising part was that a voice not of a wolf''s cry but of a voice that Ian could understood flowed out of Ly''s mouth. I am not Shallos, brother. Kyaaoh-! And at Ly''s words, the brightness of Orvil''s eyes burst a bright blue. In that case, die here! Ta-tat-! Orvil closed the gap between Ly and him in an instant. However, Ly, instead of dodging him, also growled and began to face Orvil. Bang- Ba-bang-! The two front feet of the wolves made a sound similar to that of an explosion, and Ian''s two eyes rounded in disbelief. ''No, even if Ly had evolved, he''s just a Heroic-rank, so how is he that strong?'' The dealt damage that was seen in the system messages that popped up as well as his combat abilities far exceeded Pin or Halli. However, Ian was able to figure out soon enough after seeing the buff icon that popped up in Ly''s condition window. Buff/Altar of the Fenrir: All combat abilities +150% Only then did it also explain Orvil''s nonsensically strong abilities. ''It must be a buff restricted to Fenrir that is only activated in this area.'' Ian, who understood the situation, quickly let out a command to Pin and Halli. "Pin, Halli, help Ly!" It was a situation where the buff was equally received, and Ly and Orvil were both Fenrir. On top of that, their levels were the same, but either way, because Orvil was a Legendary-rank, which was one rank higher compared to Ly''s, he decided that it would be hard for Ly to win. And as Halli and Pin also joined in, even Orvil, who overflowed with confidence, began to be pushed back little by little. Keu, I can''t believe it¡­ In no time, Orvil''s Vitality was almost completely cut down, and evidence of that, Orvil''s name was flickering quickly. For the Kin''s Absolute to be a pathetic guy blinded by madness, I cannot acknowledge it! Ly''s two eyes began to shine a bright red. And a system message rang out in front of Ian''s eyes. Familiar ''Ly'' has used Inherent Ability ''Judgment of Blood''.The lower Ly''s Vitality goes, the stronger all of his abilities become, and if his Vitality drops below 50%, 50% of all damage dealt on the opponent will be recovered.''Judgement of Blood'' will last for 5 minutes. Bang- Ba-bang-! It was a new Inherent Ability of Ly''s that even Ian didn''t know of. And at the combined attack of the three Familiars, Orvil eventually collapsed. Thud-. You have killed ''Dark Fenrir Orvil''. You have obtained 1,127,423 EXP. As the system message popped up, only then was Ian able to let out a sigh of relief for the first time. "Whew, that was seriously no joke. I thought this time I was really going to die helplessly¡­" Ian seemed to be drained of energy, as he approached Orvil''s corpse with slow footsteps. And he put his hand on top there. You have obtained 87,886 gold from ''Dark Fenrir Orvil''.You have obtained the ''Greatsword of the Dark Fenrir''.You have obtained the ''Fenrir''s Revengeful Spirit''. "Huh¡­?" After checking the list of items he obtained, Ian''s two eyes rounded. And amongst them, his eyes were fixated on the name of the item called the Greatsword of the Dark Fenrir. "Its name is in red." The colour of the item''s name was decided depending on its rank. And the red was the same colour as the Legendary-ranked item, the head ornament that Ian was wearing on top of his head. ''If that''s the case, then¡­!'' Ian opened the information of the item. *Greatsword of the Dark Fenrir Classification - Two-handed sword Rank - Legendary Equip Limit - Over 650 Strength Only ''Warrior''-class can equip Offensive Power - 2585-3730 Durability - 175/175 Options - All combat abilities +85% Agility +5 Inherent Ability *Darkness Emission In the event of an attack, there is a 30% chance for darkness to be released within a 5-metre radius all around. The released darkness will deal an equivalent damage of 250% of your Offensive Power to enemies, and will reduce their Defensive Power by 30% for 3 seconds. *Indelible Wound It will be impossible to recover 10% of damage received from the Greatsword of the Dark Fenrir for 30 minutes. *Bound to account This is an item belonging to user ''Ian''. This item cannot be transferred to another user or be sold, and even if the character dies, it does not drop. A greatsword filled with the revengeful spirit of a legendary Fenrir. If held in the hands of a tenacious Warrior, they will be able to cut through anything. "¡­" Ian wore a dejected expression. The options of the item were so ridiculous only laughter came out. But the problem was that it was an item that Ian couldn''t equip. ''Ha¡­ For it to be an item exclusive to Warrior-class¡­'' On top of that, because of the bound to account option, it was a situation where he couldn''t even sell it off. ''Apparently Legendary-rank items mostly drop as account-bound, and it seems that''s correct. Still, well, there''ll probably be a chance for me to use it somehow.'' For now, Ian set aside his disappointment and grabbed the Fenrir''s Revengeful Spirit before lifting it up. And just like with Shallos, a message began to pop up. You have liberated the ''Fenrir''s Revengeful Spirit'' that was devoured by madness. The black marble that left Ian''s hand whipped through the air here and there and began to make a dark shadow. And just like what Shallos said, a ghost that had a translucent shape floated gently. The only difference was that if Shallos'' revengeful spirit was multicoloured, then Orvil''s revengeful spirit was a light grey colour. Thank you, human. At Orvil''s words, Ian nodded his head and wore a bitter smile. "I almost died." Orvil''s words continued. I can''t believe the truth that the one who saved me from the shackles of madness is a human. And his gaze turned to Ly, who stood by Ian. Are you the one that inherited the will of Shallos, kin of the blood? Ly responded. That''s right. I inherited his will. Orvil stared at Ly with a piercing gaze. And shortly after, his mouth opened again. You are¡­ strong. Perhaps even stronger than the past Shallos. The gaze of the two Fenrir met halfway in the air. At Ly''s figure that was full of fighting spirit, Orvil let out a low laughter. Ho-ho, good. If you are a kin of blood, you must at least have a fighting spirit like that. Orvil returned his gaze back to Ian and continued his words. Human, what is your name? Ian, who received shock from the truth that Ly spoke and was wearing a dazed expression, was startled before he replied. "I am Ian." I see. Ian, thanks to you, my spirit was able to be freed. Thank you. "It was nothing." He spoke like that, but Ian stared at Orvil with an expression filled with anticipation. ''Since I''ve already evolved Ly, I wonder what I''ll be able to receive from this dude.'' The thing that Orvil handed to him was a sphere that looked similar to the item that Shallos gave to Ian, as well as what allowed Ly to evolve. You have obtained the item ''Dark Hole''. Ian reflexively mumbled. "This¡­" Orvil''s mouth opened again. This is the item that represents us kin of the dark. So far as my observation goes, it seems that you have already received the item of the kin of the blood from Shallos. Ian nodded his head. "Yeah, that''s right." Orvil stared at Ly, who just stood there, and grinned. Perhaps¡­ It may be possible that, in the true sense of the word, you may become the Kin''s Absolute for the first time in 100 years. "Hmm¡­?" As Ian, who didn''t understand what he was saying, tilted his head, Orvil pointed to somewhere. And there, a pure white and round object was floating in the air. "What''s that?" You''ll know when you see it, human. The round item began to go up to the sky little by little, and a bright light shone from between the piles of collapsed stones and began to be sucked into the round sphere. "Ooh¡­" It wasn''t even 1 o''clock in the afternoon yet, but thanks to Orvil, the sky was still dark, and the white object that floated in the black sky was reminiscent of a bright white full moon. For the first time in 100 years, the three powers have gathered in one place. Ian, who still hadn''t understood what he was saying yet, stared at Orvil with a blank expression, and Orvil just laughed. ''What the hell? So, what about it?'' However, just then. A large howling sound that was incomparable to anything from before rang out from beside Ian. Awhooo-! Ian, who was startled, turned his head. And Ly, who began to emit a white light in all directions, stood there. I was nothing more than half, but it looks like this one will become the true one. Orvil mumbled with a self-mocking voice. And a strong light from the white sphere that floated in the air began to pour onto Ly. "Oh, oh¡­!" Ian slightly squinted at the blinding light. However, a system message that he couldn''t believe appeared in front of his slightly opened eyes. Bloody Fenrir ''Ly'' has evolved to ''Sovereign Fenrir''. CH 120 Chapter 120: Ly¡¯s Performance (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ba-ang-! As soon as the message that Ly¡¯s evolution was complete rang out, a large explosion with Ly as the centre of it formed and a pure white surf spread out in all directions. ¡°Hul¡­¡± Ian felt his mind go blank. ¡®To have continuously evolved¡­¡¯ If Ly, who evolved to a Heroic-rank, evolved once more, then he would at least be a Legendary-rank. Ian wore an excited expression as a couple of system messages continuously popped up. The item ¡®Bloody Hole¡¯ has been absorbed by Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ and has disappeared.The item ¡®Dark Hole¡¯ has been absorbed by Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ and has disappeared.The item ¡®Lunatic Hole¡¯ has been absorbed by Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ and has disappeared. The three rays of light were sucked into Ly. And finally, the whole field of vision turned white. Chwaaak-! The darkness that completely filled the area cleared, and Ian could see Ly¡¯s form, which was covered by the light and couldn¡¯t be seen properly. The first thing that caught his eye was his straightened back in comparison to other Fenrir, the long and sharp claws that stuck out of his front feet, and lastly, the fact that his body burned without rest as if he was engulfed by flames. And the flames weren¡¯t just a normal bright red light, but pure white in colour. ¡®He is standing on two feet, but to call him a werewolf¡­ His face is also perfectly of a wolf¡¯s¡­¡¯ While momentarily admiring Ly¡¯s form, which had evolved that imposingly, a new system message additionally popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. You have obtained a ¡®Completed Form¡¯ Familiar for the first time.You have obtained 100,000 Fame. ¡®Huh? What is Completed Form?¡¯ Orvil¡¯s husky voice was heard through the ear of Ian, whose mind was all over the place because so many different events happened all at once. Greetings, Lord. As he was a ghost, the lower half of his body was missing so he couldn¡¯t kneel, but Orvil courteously bowed his head and showed respect towards Ly. And a message alerting Ian that he completed the quest popped up in front of his eyes. Ring-. You have completed the favour quest of Bloody Fenrir ¡®Shallos¡¯.Clear Rank ¨C SYou have obtained 28,978,900 EXP.You have obtained 279,000 gold. At the enormous reward for an S-rank quest, Ian felt as if he won the lottery. This was because, although he needed to put in a lot of effort, the things that he received was immense in comparison. Of course, he liked the EXP and the gold reward, but the biggest present to Ian was that Ly had evolved twice at super speed in one stretch. Ian opened Ly¡¯s stat window with a broad smile. *Ly (Sovereign Fenrir) Level: 120 Classification: Predatory Animal Rank: Legendary Personality: Valiant Completed Form Offensive Power: 3660 Defensive Power: 1458 Agility: 2154 Intellect: 1214 Vitality: 51,022/51,022 Inherent Ability *Health Absorption 25% of the damage dealt on the opponent will be absorbed as his own health and if critical damage is dealt, 70% of that damage will be absorbed as his own health. *Rage of the Fenrir (Cooldown time 10 minutes) Will go into an ¡®Enraged¡¯ state for 3 minutes, and all combat abilities will increase by 50% and critical attack chance will increase by 20%. Whenever critical damage is dealt on an opponent by an attack, the cooldown time of the ¡®Rage of the Fenrir¡¯ goes down by 5 seconds. *Darkness Encroachment (Cooldown time 30 minutes) Will go into a ¡®Darkness Encroachment¡¯ state for 3 minutes. When in Darkness Encroachment state, all attacks will be applied as critical attacks, and 70% of all damage will be neutralized. While Darkness Encroachment is maintained, all movement speed will increase by 50%. (Can only be invoked in darkness.) *Heir of the Moon (Passive) If moonlight is received, all movement speed will increase by 30%, and 3% of maximum Vitality will be continuously recovered per second. The Sovereign Fenrir is the ruler of all wolves and is the only Fenrir in the world. ¡®Wow¡­¡¯ The outrageous abilities made him speechless, and of all the magnificent Inherent Abilities, none were wasteful. ¡®Now I wonder if I should sleep during the day now and game at night.¡¯ The Darkness Encroachment skill could only be used in darkness as well as the passive, Heir of the Moon, which was only invoked during the night. Because these two Inherent Abilities were too great, Ian was seriously contemplating whether he should change the time he games. ¡®Besides Health Absorption, all of the Inherent Abilities he had before evolving have disappeared. Still, well, since the most important one remained¡­¡¯ The Health Absorption skill that revived part of the damage dealt as Vitality was an important skill that reinforced Ly¡¯s biggest flaw, his weak Vitality. His Vitality was now at 50 thousand, but it was hard to say it was enough if the fact that he was a Legendary-rank and lv 120 were considered, so the Health Absorption skill would cover this part enough. And in order to figure out the meaning of the ¡®Completed Form¡¯, which he had been curious about, he opened the help tab. ¡®What could Completed Form be? It probably isn¡¯t a bad thing, though.¡¯ And ¡®Completed Form¡¯ was newly formed in the evolution-related help tab. *Completed Form Familiar All monsters have a final form. When a monster is captured, the phrases ¡®Evolution Possible¡¯ or ¡®Evolution Impossible¡¯ are written in the information window, but if one of these two phrases are written, it means that there is a higher-ranking species that exists within same kind of species as the relevant monster. In the case of ¡®Evolution Impossible¡¯, a higher-ranking species exists, but it means that the relevant individual cannot evolve to it, and in the case of ¡®Evolution Possible¡¯, it means that it can evolve into the higher-ranking species. Lastly, in the case of ¡®Completed Form¡¯, it means that there is no other higher-ranking species within the relevant species that can be evolved to. In other words, the meaning of the Completed Form monster is that it is the highest-ranking individual of the relevant species. ¡®So, it means that Ly has completely evolved into the highest stage that he can as a wolf!¡¯ As his thoughts finished there, he developed a curiosity towards the ¡®Mythological¡¯-rank, which was a rank that was still completely covered in a veil in all aspects. ¡®If Ly, a Legendary-rank, is the Completed Form, then within the wolf species, does that mean that there is no individual that can evolve into a Mythological-rank?¡¯ Orvil approached Ian, who was swamped by different thoughts. Then, I think my part is over up to here now, human Summoner. At Orvil¡¯s words, Ian nodded his head and responded. ¡°Alright, thanks.¡± I¡¯m the one that is thankful for receiving freedom as a gift. As he spoke, Orvil¡¯s ghost dispersed in the air. After Orvil disappeared, Ian turned his head towards Ly again. And Ian, who suddenly thought of something, opened his mouth towards Ly. ¡°But, Ly, can you talk now?¡± Ian stared at Ly with eyes full of curiosity. Ly satisfied his expectations. That¡¯s right, owner. Ly¡¯s expression and way of talking that somehow felt arrogant. However, in the eyes of Ian, who had been through a lot with Ly since his younger days(?), he just looked cute. Rub-rub- Ian, who had petted Ly¡¯s head once, hurriedly used his return stone. The place that he was headed for was Ollibus Village. ¡®Since there might be some crumbs that could fall from that elder Ikael, I should at least go and visit him.¡¯ Truthfully, quest progress-wise, there was no reason for him to go and find Ikael again, but Ian¡¯s instinct was telling him to go and visit Ikael once for some odd reason. * * * The first thing that Ian, who had arrived at Ollibus Village, did was check the information of the village. Ian hadn¡¯t forgotten about the operation to make the village Lotus¡¯. ¡®Hmm¡­ Our Friendship is over 30% now.¡¯ Since his Friendship when he first discovered it was at around 20%, it had increased by more than 10%. In order to impute Ollibus Village as Lotus¡¯, he needed to raise it up to about 70% so it could look like it was still pretty far off, but Ian didn¡¯t think that was the case. ¡®Since I¡¯ve confirmed that the Friendship goes up quickly with quests, I should reveal the location of the village to the guild members and tell them to do quests over here.¡¯ They probably wouldn¡¯t have as big of an influence on the Friendship as much as Ian, who had succeeded an S-rank quest, but if tons of guild members committed, then he felt they could fill up 70% quickly. ¡®The military power requirement is now almost satisfied. The troops that are currently in training just needs to be formed.¡¯ As a rough plan was made, Ian¡¯s mood went up and with light footsteps, he walked towards Ikael¡¯s house. And Ikael, who met Ian, welcomed him incredibly warmly. Ikael¡¯s first reaction was exactly this. ¡°Hu-hu, to handle the ruler of the Fenrir as your Familiar. Congratulations, Ian.¡± ¡°Thank you. Thanks to Ly, I was also able to successfully complete the quest. In various ways, luck followed me a lot.¡± At Ian¡¯s humble words, Ikael shook his head and heartwarmingly smiled. ¡°Not at all. All of this was through your abilities. There¡¯s nothing that¡¯s given for free in the world.¡± And Ikael, who asked Ian this and that about the fight with Orvil, changed the topic. ¡°Ah, speaking of which, Ian.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°From what I heard from Gripper, he said you¡¯re also an aristocrat of Luspel Empire¡­. Is that right?¡± Ian nodded his head and replied. ¡°That¡¯s right. But what about it¡­?¡± Instead of a reply, Ikael pulled out a scroll made of a red leather that was rolled up from his chest and handed it to Ian. ¡°This is a letter that I¡¯m sending to His Majesty. By any chance, if you have a reason to go to the imperial palace, will you give this to him?¡± Ian barely forced down the grin that formed by his mouth. ¡®Huehue! As expected, I knew that there would be something that would appear!¡¯ A letter being sent to the king. Even at a glance, it gave off the smell of a new Empire Quest. ¡°Of course. I will go and see His Majesty at the quickest time possible and give him the letter.¡± ¡°Thank you, Ian. However, as it is an incredibly important letter, you must be the one that personally gives it to him.¡± Ian nodded his head and took the letter. ¡°Understood.¡± And just as Ian predicted, an Empire Quest window popped up in front of his eyes. Ring. *Ikael¡¯s Favour Ikael is appraising you incredibly high after winning against an awoken Orvil. He has left a very important empire document with you. Give this document to the king of the Luspel Empire. Quest Difficulty Level: None Quest Condition: A user that has received acknowledgement from Ikael Time Limit: None Reward: Unknown ¡®I like the part that there¡¯s no time limit the most.¡¯ Firstly, because there was something that Ian needed to do, he had no intentions of going to the imperial city right away. The new capsule model began to waver in front of his eyes. ¡®I should contact Fiolan.¡¯ Ian¡¯s footsteps were headed towards Forlan Basin. CH 121 Chapter 121: Ly¡¯s Performance (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Ian, you seem confident today.¡± The two people that stood in front of the Forlan dungeon. At Fiolan¡¯s words, Ian grinned. ¡°I have some back-up that I¡¯ve formed.¡± ¡°Back-up?¡± Because Fiolan had never seen Ian talk like this before, she wore a slightly surprised expression. ¡°Yes, hu-hu.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°That I will show you once we go in.¡± Before Ian went into the dungeon, he checked the dungeon clear ranking list. Because it had been a while since he had come to Forlan, he was curious of the records that were set during that time. ¡®Let¡¯s see, is there someone that has beaten my record?¡¯ And Ian, who checked the record, wore a relaxed expression. This was because the ranking window wasn¡¯t completely filled with Ian¡¯s name like before, but Ian and Fiolan¡¯s names were still shining at 1st place. ¡®There¡¯s still almost a 3-minute difference with 2nd place. I should make a proper difference between us today.¡¯ Ian turned his attention towards Fiolan. ¡°You can do five rounds one after another today, right?¡± At those words, Fiolan nodded her head as if she was waiting for it. ¡°Of course. If it¡¯s not now, when will I be able to monopolize you all to myself?¡± Fiolan winked as she spoke. Ian grinned as he started walking. And a system message that alerted the two people of the entry popped up in front of their eyes. You have entered the ¡®Grave of the Forlan Hero¡¯ dungeon. * * * Ian and Fiolan hadn¡¯t just gone through the Forlan dungeon once or twice. On top of that, the two people had hunted hundreds of times up until now and adjusted to each other through that. As if they were proving that they were the party that currently held the highest record, Ian and Fiolan moved adeptly from the beginning. As usual, Ian used Halli to quickly pierce through the canyon and get to the hole where the main phases progressed, while Fiolan used Spatial Movement and followed Ian. Up to this point, it unfolded no differently from before. However, as soon as Ian summoned all of his Familiars, Fiolan¡¯s eyes rounded. Grr-. She had discovered Ly, whose appearance had completely changed. ¡°Ian, Ly, did he evolve?¡± Ian laughed as he nodded his head. ¡°Yes, he evolved after our recent quest. You can look forward to him.¡± Ian turned his head towards Ly. ¡°Ly, let¡¯s wipe them all.¡± Understood, owner. The first phase, which was the monsters of the canyon, Lake and Pin wiped them in an instant with their combined attack like before. They had spotlessly cleaned the monsters that poured out of the narrow canyon by using their AoE attacks. However, once they used all of their AoE skills like this before, their hunting speed couldn¡¯t help but drop until the cooldown times were over, but Ian was planning on leaving this section with Ly. Awhoo-! Ly¡¯s howling rang out loudly. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has used Inherent Ability ¡®Rage of the Fenrir¡¯.All combat abilities of Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has increased by 50%.The critical attack rate of Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has increased by 30%. The white flames that flared out of Ly¡¯s body began to burn even stronger. And as soon as the second phase began, Ly started to leap around. ¡°Ian, do I just need to protect the sanctum of the hero like before?¡± At Fiolan¡¯s words, Ian shook his head. ¡°No, you just need to fight. Don¡¯t think about the sanctum and just deal damage. I think we can prevent them from even reaching here, anyways.¡± It was just like Ian said. As if Ly was facing children, he faced the monsters that poured out from every direction. ¡°Then I¡¯ll just use Glacial Curtain.¡± ¡°Okay!¡± As all combat abilities of Ly, who already had incredible stats even without it, increased by 50%, he literally had monstrous fighting power. Chwaak-! Whenever Ly clawed down with his large front paws, monsters with weak Vitality like the Snow Gargoyles were killed instantly. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has dealt critical damage to the Snow Gargoyle.The ¡®Snow Gargoyle¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 20,795.As Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s attack has dealt critical damage to the opponent, the cooldown time of Inherent Ability, the ¡®Rage of the Fenrir¡¯, has been reduced by 5 seconds.You have killed the ¡®Snow Gargoyle¡¯.You have obtained 17,492 EXP. The cooldown time of the Rage of the Fenrir skill was 10 minutes. And the duration of it was 3 minutes. Then that meant once it was over, it couldn¡¯t be used for 7 minutes, but thanks to the additional effect attached to the Rage of the Fenrir, ¡®5 second cooldown time recovery whenever critical damage is dealt¡¯, he could recover almost all of the cooldown time in 3 minutes. In the end, it meant that it was an ability that could be used unlimitedly. ¡°Ly, let¡¯s use Darkness Encroachment later when the boss comes out.¡± I will do that, owner. Ly¡¯s performance was most remarkable, but Ian¡¯s other Familiars were also doing their part well. Excluding Ly, the thing that stood out most amongst the Familiars was the fighting power of Pin, who had leveled up a lot and was close to lv 110. As if Pin was proving that he was also a Legendary-rank Familiar, he was slaughtering the monsters that were pouring out without discriminating one. ¡®If this is the case, there¡¯s not even a reason to gather them before catching them.¡¯ As if they were eating popcorn popped by lightning, Fiolan wore a dazed expression as she looked at Ian, who had organized even the second phase in an instant. ¡°I didn¡¯t even cast three skills, but the second phase is already done.¡± The second phase had ended before it was even 10 minutes. Even Ian, who checked the record, wore a satisfied expression. 00:08:15 ¡°Just the time that we¡¯ve reduced here is over 3 minutes. Even if we just continue like we usually did, it should be enough to get an S-rank.¡± It was just like Ian said. If he thought of the record that was 13-minutes up to the second phase when he first challenged this with Fiolan, it was truly a tremendously fast speed. ¡°Hul¡­ Are you sure we won¡¯t hit 20-minutes like this?¡± The time limit for an S-rank was 25 minutes. However, if they continuously reduced the time with this force, they felt that it would be possible to clear under 20 minutes. Ian grinned and got into stance again. ¡°Shall we try?¡± And during the two people¡¯s conversation, the third phase began. The ¡®Giants of Hatred¡¯ have awoken from their sleep. Ian organized his thoughts. ¡®This was originally a phase that I relied on Halli¡¯s infinite stun for, but now I should be able to melt them down one by one without doing that.¡¯ It was a plan that was possible thanks to the Offensive Power of his Familiars that had gotten so strong. As soon as the giants appeared, Ian began to attack the giant on the right, which had the weakest Vitality amongst the three. ¡°Ddukdae, tie down the other two with Abyss Hole for a moment!¡± Deu-reu-reuk-! At Ian¡¯s words, Ddukdae moved and used Abyss Hole, which he was saving up, and the two were sucked right into the range of Abyss Hole. ¡°Fiolan, the strongest single-target attack magic you have!¡± ¡°Alright!¡± If it was a normal monster, then he would have been able to have them tied down for quite a long time, but because the three giants were semi-boss rank monsters, their resistance to status conditions were strong, so they would be released any minute. Ian used all of the methods he could and poured out his attack. Bang- Ba-bang-! Evolved Ly, as well as Pin, who had leveled up a lot. And as he had generally equipped Familiar-exclusive items, Ian¡¯s Familiars, whose fighting powers had rapidly increased, had eliminated one of the giants in an instant. Thud- You have killed ¡®Giant of Hatred (Yakram)¡¯. Timed with that, Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss Hole burst out, and Ian quickly changed his focus towards huge middle giant, which was the most threatening. ¡°Ian! To the side!¡± At Fiolan¡¯s words, he didn¡¯t forget to move his body. This was because even allies received quite a large amount of damage if they were improperly hit by AoE magic. Ba-ba-bang-. Fiolan¡¯s ice magic directly hit the giants, and as the invoking of the magic was finished, Ly, who was closest to the front, lunged at the giant as if he was waiting. Chwa-ra-rak-! Ly, who closed the space between the giant and him that looked to be about 5 metres in an instant, pierced through the guard of the giant and dug in towards the inner part. And as Ly¡¯s long claws lodged into the abdomen of the giant, the giant seemed to have been in pain as it let out a horrible shriek. Keu-aah-! And as Ly was exposed to the path of the giant¡¯s right hand, which came down in the next moment, Ian shouted with an urgent voice. ¡°Ly, to the right!¡± Ian commanded with the meaning for Ly to avoid the attack, but for some odd reason, Ly had no intentions on avoiding the attack. Instead, didn¡¯t he raise his right arm and blocked the attack of the giant?! Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has been attacked by Giant of Hatred (Karahan) and has received critical damage.Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 15,892. He did block it, but Ly, whose Defensive Power itself wasn¡¯t that high to begin with, couldn¡¯t help but receive quite a bit of damage. Ian was taken aback. ¡®He could definitely avoid it, so why did he get hit?¡¯ However, his questioning was only for a moment. While looking at Ly¡¯s next attack that continued, Ian couldn¡¯t help but nod his head. Ly had recovered all of the damage that he received in an instant through two or three linked attacks. It was the power of his Inherent Ability ¡®Health Absorption¡¯. ¡®I had forgotten about Health Absorption. But then again, in the case that happened just now, if he backed up, then there would have been quite a lot of damage that he would have lost. Ly¡¯s decision was right.¡¯ Like that, Ian and Fiolan¡¯s party was even able to finish the third phase instantly. You have killed all of the Giants of Hatred. Along with the pop-up of the message, Fiolan and Ian turned their gaze in order to see the elapsed time. 00:14:29 Fiolan¡¯s jaw dropped. ¡°For such a nonsense record to have been possible¡­¡± Now, it was a situation where S-rank wasn¡¯t even work. They would for sure be able to see the 20-minute clear that they spoke of in a half-joking manner. And lastly, the boss monster of the Forlan dungeon began to appear at the end of the dungeon. Now the hero of Forlan is awakening. * * * Deu-reu-reu-reu-reuk- The practice room, where the sound of the dough machine noisily rang out. In order to do her baking class assignment, Harin was diligently kneading the dough. In the practice room, Harin and her best friend, Yejung, were together. ¡°Harin, are you almost done?¡± ¡°Yeah. I just need to pour it into the pan and put it in the oven. What about you?¡± Yejung lifted her arm straight up with a smile. ¡°I¡¯m done!¡± ¡°Uhh, already?¡± ¡°Huh? What do you mean already, you¡¯re just slow.¡± Yejung, who pulled out her bread from the oven, approached Harin after packing hers to look nice. And after looking at the muffins that were on top of Harin¡¯s practice table, she was astonished. ¡°Yo, no wonder you¡¯re so slow.¡± ¡°What.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve made almost double the amount I did. Why did you make so many? Are you planning on giving it to someone?¡± Yejung spoke without much thought, but as Harin hesitated, she wore a mischievous expression. ¡°What¡¯s this, it seems like there¡¯s actually someone you¡¯re giving this to?¡± Harin, who was flustered, quickly waved her hands and spoke. ¡°N, no, it¡¯s not like that.¡± ¡°What do you mean it¡¯s not like that. Just from looking, I can see that¡¯s the case. When did this one get a boyfriend? Without even a word to me!¡± While looking at Yejung, who snapped at her like rapid fire, Harin let out a deep sigh. ¡°Yejung, to be honest, I have a little problem.¡± Yejung, who was slightly taken back at the unexpected development, hesitated as she pulled out a chair next to Harin and sat down. ¡°Problem? What¡¯s the problem?¡± And Harin, who momentarily hesitated, began to pour out her story. Harin¡¯s problem was none other than her ambiguous relationship with Jinsung. Yejung, who heard Harin¡¯s story for a long time, wore a dumbfounded expression as she opened her mouth. ¡°So, by Jinsung, you mean¡­ That guy from the VR department that you ate lunch with before? You¡¯re dating him?¡± At that, Harin wore a sullen face as she nodded her head. ¡°Yeah¡­¡± At Harin¡¯s form, where there was no end to her cuteness, Yejung barely held back the laughter that almost burst out of her. ¡°Yo, you idiot. How is that dating? No matter how I see it, you two aren¡¯t dating yet.¡± At those words, Harin wore an even more tearful face. ¡°Is¡­ that so? Then what should I do?¡± Yejung shook her head. ¡°Ugh, Harin really doesn¡¯t live up to her looks. If I looked like you, I would have lived at least three times more dissipated, baby.¡± At those words, Harin glared at Yejung. ¡°Stop talking nonsense. If you have a good idea then tell me quickly, Lee Yejung.¡± To be honest, Yejung wasn¡¯t ugly either. No, rather, she had a pretty outer appearance to the point she didn¡¯t fall far behind from Harin. On top of that, different from Harin, who was close to a fool, she had dated quite a bit, so Harin was inwardly expecting Yejung to present a decent solution. ¡°Hmm¡­ A good idea, huh¡­¡± Yejung, who momentarily paused to take a breath, continued speaking. ¡°Ask him to hold your hand on your way home from school because you¡¯re cold.¡± ¡°What? It¡¯s October right now, though?¡± ¡°Is October such a big deal? I can do it even in the middle of the summer.¡± ¡°Not a chance. That.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Harin¡¯s face flushed. ¡°It¡¯s¡­ embarrassing.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Yejung, who was speechless for a moment, made a different suggestion. ¡°Then how about this?¡± ¡°Tell me.¡± ¡°Go watch something like a horror movie, and when there¡¯s a scary scene, just hug him.¡± ¡°That¡¯s harder¡­¡± Yejung, who gave different kinds of suggestions before becoming worn out, sighed deeply as she spoke. ¡°From what I¡¯ve heard, that Jinsung dude. I¡¯m positive he just got into university now and had never dated before.¡± Harin nodded her head. ¡°That¡¯s right. That¡¯s probably the case.¡± ¡°On top of that, he definitely came out of an all-boys¡¯ middle and high school, right?¡± Harin¡¯s eyes slightly grew. ¡°How, how did you know?¡± There was something that she remembered hearing from Jinsung a long time ago. Towards a flustered Harin, Yejung shrugged her shoulders as she continued speaking. ¡°That I can see with one glance. Anyways, if you don¡¯t want to suffer anymore, you need to make the first move. If you just do as I told you, it will all work out!¡± Yejung spoke with confidence. On the other hand, Harin still had no assurance. ¡°Won¡¯t I be dumped by doing that?¡± At those words, Yejung wore a dumbfounded expression as she replied. ¡°What kind of man will say that he hates it when a girl as pretty as you makes the first move?¡± ¡°Still¡­¡± ¡°Unless he¡¯s an eunuch, then you will succeed no matter what.¡± Harin suddenly felt a cold sweat drip down her back. ¡®By any chance, Jinsung¡­ isn¡¯t an eunuch, right?¡¯ CH 122 Chapter 122: Ly¡¯s Performance (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Just like the word giant, the hero of Forlan had a body that boasted an incredible presence. Violent in desperation, the last boss of the dungeon swung around his club. Bang- Bang-! However, because Pin, Ly and Halli, with Ian on his back, all had incredible Agility, the slow body of the giant couldn¡¯t help but continue to cut through the air. ¡°Fiolan, are you almost done casting?¡± ¡°Yes, 5 seconds!¡± The moment that Fiolan¡¯s magic bursts out this time, Ian also planned on firing off all of the Inherent Abilities of his Familiars at once and finish the dungeon attack. Ian counted to himself. ¡®4¡­ 3¡­ 2¡­¡¯ And as soon as both hands of Fiolan, who was casting magic, shone a bright blue, Ian jumped off from Halli¡¯s back and yelled. ¡°Attack!¡± As he did so, the Familiars that were already prepared, altogether charged towards the giant. Of course, the giant didn¡¯t stay still, and in order to counterattack, it twisted its body, and Ian¡¯s eyes shone sharply. ¡®As expected, just as I predicted¡­!¡¯ Ian quickly shouted towards Ddukdae. ¡°Ddukdae, take that one!¡± Deu-reu-reuk- Because he had Ddukdae stand in the back for a bit instead of tanking for this moment, Ddukdae¡¯s Vitality was completely full. And no matter how strong the counterattack of the giant was, Ddukdae had enough endurance to withstand two to three hits. While looking at the club of the giant that flew towards him, Ddukdae crossed his two arms and got into a defense stance. And in order to not get pushed back, he spread one leg out backwards. Bang-! An impact sound that was loud enough to make the whole dungeon vibrate rang out. Familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯ has received critical damage.Familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 19,789. For a single blow that was dealt with all the strength of a dungeon boss, it wasn¡¯t a light amount of damage, but for Ian, who had experienced outrageous attacks during his fight with Orvil, it was laughable. ¡®What the hell, he could have fought him after taking a couple of hits before.¡¯ Ian was diligently putting in each and every movement of the giant, as well as each and every attack pattern, into his head. It was a process that was required in order to cut down the record time, but above all, it was a process that was absolutely necessary in order to write out a perfect attack for the Attack King event. ¡®That¡¯s right. In that situation a moment ago, if Ddukdae took about two hits, we would have been able to deal a lot more damage. If we did that, then we would have cut down the time about 20 more seconds.¡¯ As he checked the time thoroughly, Ian checked the Vitality gauge of the giant. After using all of the magic that she could use, Fiolan, who was discharged, approached Ian. ¡°Whew, I¡¯ve now done everything that I could. It should be over now, right?¡± ¡°Yes. Probably.¡± And just like the two people¡¯s conversation, the Vitality gauge of the giant was worn out and only a sliver remained. It seemed that Ian¡¯s Familiars also noticed that, as they began to pour out attacks even more violently. Ba-ba-bang-! Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has dealt critical damage to the ¡®Forgotten Hero of Forlan¡¯. The ¡®Forgotten Hero of Forlan¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 25,798. With Ly¡¯s single blow, which lodged in properly, as the last, the Forlan giant¡¯s massive figure slowly began to collapse. Thu-thu-thud- You have killed the ¡®Forgotten Hero of Forlan¡¯. Ian and Fiolan quickly moved towards the elapsed time. 00:19:35 It was indeed a phenomenal record. An exclamation flowed out of Fiolan¡¯s mouth. ¡°Kya! To have finished the Forlan dungeon in 20 minutes!¡± Ian likewise was pleased. ¡°No kidding. I knew that we could cut down a lot of the time, but I had no idea that it was possible to cut down close to 30%.¡± Considering that the 2nd place record is about 30 minutes, it was easily recognizable how incredible the two people¡¯s record was. Ian¡¯s gaze turned towards the collapsing giant. Once that giant¡¯s body completely turned into powder and crumbled onto the floor, the dungeon clear result window would pop up now. Ian and Fiolan had eyes full of anticipation. This was because, although it was already certain that it was an S-clear rank, the better their results, the better the reward in proportion to it even if they received an S-rank. And the information window that the two people waited for popped up along with a notification sound. Ring-. *Grave of the Forlan Hero. Time Limit ¨C 00:50:00 Clear Time ¨C 00:19:35 Clear Rank ¨C SS Obtained EXP ¨C 20,112,000 Obtained Gold ¨C 273,122 gold Obtained Item ¨C Piece of the Forlan Hero¡¯s Armor *20 Fiolan was an obvious, but a broad smile hung even from Ian¡¯s mouth. ¡°Wow¡­ Wow¡­!¡± As Fiolan was deeply moved to the point she became speechless, Ian grinned as he opened his mouth. ¡°S-rank is for sure different, don¡¯t you think?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. The EXP for an A-rank was around 13-14 million, but for it to be over 20 million just from going up a rank¡­ The gold reward jumped by double.¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°No kidding. I¡¯ve also completed a Forlan chest piece. Hu-hu¡­¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Fiolan, who also checked her inventory in case, wore a flustered expression. ¡°Huh? I¡¯ve also completed one! What is this?¡± And after checking the reward information window again, she nodded her head as she mumbled. ¡°Ah¡­ There were 20 pieces.¡± The number of pieces that were required for a complete product was a total of 40. Since half the number of pieces that were required was given at once, they had unexpectedly completed it. The corners of Fiolan¡¯s mouth hung from either ear. ¡°Then, let¡¯s try a little harder.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Fiolan asked back as if she was wondering what he was talking about. ¡°Huh? Why try harder? It¡¯s an S-rank.¡± At that, Ian clicked his tongue and spoke jokingly. ¡°This, this, you¡¯ve still got a long way to go, Fiolan.¡± ¡°For what?¡± ¡°Take a closer look at the reward window. Whether we are just an S-rank right now.¡± And after checking the rank again, Fiolan¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Huh? You¡¯re right. It wasn¡¯t an S but a double S. Was there even such a rank?¡± Ian smirked as he replied. ¡°Why are you asking me that? When it¡¯s right in front of your eyes.¡± ¡°I see, that¡¯s why the rewards jumped this much. I thought the reward was too big for just a one-rank difference.¡± Ian¡¯s words continued. ¡°So¡­ The fact that there¡¯s a double S rank, shouldn¡¯t that mean that there¡¯s also a triple S rank?¡± At Ian¡¯s unexpected words, she was astonished. ¡°No, is this record not even enough for you?¡± At that, Ian wore a bashful expression as he replied. ¡°No, rather than it isn¡¯t enough, I feel like it¡¯s possible to cut down the time a little more¡­¡± ¡°Hmm, the cut for an S-rank was 25 minutes, and it seems the cut for a double S-rank is 20 minutes, then I think we need to clear in under 15 minutes in order to achieve triple S-rank¡­¡± Fiolan¡¯s gaze turned towards Ian. ¡°Will that be possible?¡± ¡°Well, I do see parts that we can cut down time for a little more¡­ But we¡¯ll need to try to know.¡± For now, the two people, who finished organizing their rewards, came out of the dungeon. And while checking their proud record that was engraved in the ranking list, they wore a satisfied expression. However, just then. Ian suddenly opened his mouth with a flustered voice. ¡°Ack, I didn¡¯t even think of this¡­ Fiolan, this is a serious matter!¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Fiolan, who was happily checking the rewards that came in once again, instinctively turned her head. ¡°Huh? What¡¯s a serious matter?¡± Ian¡¯s words continued. ¡°It¡¯s nothing else, but too much EXP came in from this¡­¡± ¡°Sorry?¡± Fiolan, who didn¡¯t understand what Ian was talking about, momentarily wore a confused expression. However, she was soon able to figure out the meaning of Ian¡¯s words as well. ¡°Ah¡­ By any chance, is it because of your level?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°Yes. I won¡¯t level-up right away right now, but if we go for about three more rounds, I¡¯ll be lv 121. It looks like I won¡¯t be able to fill up all five times today¡­¡± And Fiolan wore a taken aback expression. This was because she totally wasn¡¯t expecting for Ian¡¯s level to already be that high. ¡°No, Ian, what have you done to be the same level as me already?¡± ¡°That, well, I¡¯ve just gamed diligently¡­¡± Ian shrugged his shoulders. Fiolan shook her head as she opened her status window. Because she was also lv 120, there was a need for her to check how much EXP she had left. And shortly after, Fiolan, who checked her EXP, wore an even more sullen expression. ¡°Ian¡­¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°If I¡­ do one more run, I¡¯ll level-up¡­¡± At those words, Ian smirked. ¡°Good work, Fiolan. It looks like our next try will be our last attack at Forlan dungeon.¡± ¡°Sniff¡­¡± Fiolan, who blew away over half of this honey-like chance, let out a deep sigh. While looking at her as she did so, Ian added on. ¡°Well, if you want to run it again, go level-down once and come back.¡± He meant for her to purposely go and die once and go down a level before coming back. Fiolan went into a fit of rage and glared at Ian. ¡°If I level-down and rest a day before coming back, you probably would have leveled-up and wouldn¡¯t be able to go in.¡± Ian knew that, but as if he hadn¡¯t thought of that, he wore a spunky expression as he made fun of Fiolan. ¡°Ah, that¡¯s also true.¡± Fiolan gave a sidelong scowl as she mumbled. ¡°So mean, really¡­¡± * * * After completing his maintenance before going back into the dungeon again, Ian thoroughly flipped back through his memory from just now and reflected on the battle. ¡®If I do this at this part, then I feel like I¡¯ll be able to reduce the time a little more¡­ As for Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss Hole, it would be better to use it beforehand here rather than saving it. Since I think in the third phase, it should be coverable to control the battlefield even without Abyss Hole, anyways.¡¯ During that time, Fiolan returned to the Domain and brought back buff potions that could bump their stats up even by a little. She also didn¡¯t forget to visit Harin and bring back high-class dishes. ¡°Alright, everything¡¯s ready. Ian. I think we¡¯ve seriously done everything we can do to prepare.¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°Good work.¡± ¡°Speaking of which, it¡¯s truly disappointing that we only have one chance.¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright, since we just need to hit 15 minutes this time.¡± The two people that went in for their last dungeon attack were resolutely determined that they would be able to obtain the result they wanted in the end. The record that the two people gained was a truly close call. 00:14:58 With just 2 seconds remaining, they were able to achieve the 15-minute cut record that truly looked impossible. And like the two people expected, on their rank, there was a triple S. ¡°Huff, huff, seriously good work, Fiolan.¡± ¡°Whew¡­ No. What did I do¡­ You did everything.¡± As they were short on time at the end, in order to deal as much damage as they could no matter what, Ian and Fiolan attempted to personally attack the giant in a physical manner with the staffs that they were carrying. The two people who both weren¡¯t close-range classes from the beginning, in order to cover the section where there was a deal loss whenever they were short on mana or had a cooldown time for their skill, they had even brought out ignorant methods. However, as a reward big enough for how much they suffered had followed through, the two people¡¯s bodies were filled with satisfaction. And they were also able to obtain an unexpected title. Ring-. You have set a phenomenal record in the ¡®Grave of the Forlan Hero¡¯ dungeon.You have obtained the title, ¡®One That Challenges the Limits¡¯. Ian seemed be excited, as an exclamation popped out of his mouth automatically. ¡°Oh yeah!¡± And he immediately checked the option that was attached to the nickname. *One That Challenges the Limits Rank ¨C Heroic The more you cut down your record in a Time Attack dungeon, the amount of EXP you additionally obtain will increase by 50%.The Fame that you obtain as the ranking reward of a Time Attack dungeon will increase by 50%.All class stats will increase by 15%. And Ian liked the title that he obtained as a reward very much. Fiolan, who checked the title, opened her mouth. ¡°It¡¯s called the ¡®One That Challenges the Limit¡¯. I think it¡¯s truly a title with a name that suits your challenging spirit.¡± At those words, Ian grinned. ¡°You think so? Huehue¡­¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know who made it, but they really made the name well. That¡¯s that, but from looking at the fact that we even obtained this kind of nickname means that there¡¯s no higher rank above triple S, right?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s probably right. If there is a higher-rank than this, we would need to clear within 10 minutes, but maybe unless we can challenge it as a higher rank, I think it is impossible for a user below lv 120 to create a record higher than that.¡± ¡°Even 15 minutes right now was impossible enough, Ian¡­¡± ¡°Is, is that so?¡± Ian wore an embarrassed expression as he scratched the back of his head. Fiolan organized the rewards she obtained and asked Ian. ¡°Now you need to go do your remaining two runs, right, Ian?¡± ¡°I should.¡± ¡°Huehue, I should take a screenshot of this reward window and boast about it in the guild messenger chat room.¡± At those words, Ian waved his hands as he stopped Fiolan. ¡°Don¡¯t do that, please, Fiolan¡­ Is there a reason for you to harass me so much again?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll reach a level where you won¡¯t be able to enter here after today anyways. It¡¯s alright.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ Still¡­¡± After Ian, who had a comfortable tussle for a moment, sent Fiolan off, he called Herz. And he momentarily logged out of Kailan and came out of the capsule. ¡®Since what I need now is a detailed analysis for the attack.¡¯ Now he had no lingering attachment towards the record. If that was the case, even if it took a little longer to clear, it was more important to gather as much information as possible on the dungeon and analyze it. Since that way he would be able to write a perfect attack. ¡°For now, shall we organize the information obtained from trying up until now.¡± Ian¡¯s eyes began to shine. For some reason, Ian burned with an even stronger will than when he challenged for a 15-minute clear. CH 123 Chapter 123: Unexpected Fame (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The Dungeon Attack event that was officially being held by LB Sports. This event¡¯s rankings were decided based on the score calculation method chosen by LB Sports. That standard was the same as the next part. *1. Total number of participating users. (300 points max.) User group evaluation score. (100 points max.)LB Sports judge panel score. (100 points max.) With 500 points as the maximum score achievable, the rankings were based on the attacks with the highest scores, and there were a variety of standards of the user group evaluation and the judge panel that were applied for giving scores, such as the actual possibility of being able to use the attack, the amount of sincerity and effort that went into making it, the legibility of it, etc. However, as expected, the most important part was the number of participating users, where the most points were assigned. For the attack plan with the most participating players, the maximum was 300 points, and below that, depending on the number of participants in comparison to the first-place attack plan, scores were given accordingly. Mina, who recently had found entertainment in dungeon attacks during its peak point, was very interested in this Attack King event. Of course, it was not an interest towards making an attack, but rather one on the information that popped up as attack plans. ¡°It would be nice if there was a lot of decent information¡­¡± Mina, a 1st year student in the VR Department of Korea University, was quite a high-level user. She was now in the early-lv 100s. Much like the other users in the lv 100 range, her biggest interest lately was the Forlan dungeon. As she had tried the Forlan dungeon for the first time now, she had failed all five of her attack chances with a deficient score that was nowhere close to the requirement. Truthfully, there was some fault in her abilities and lack of experience for that, but as the partner whom she challenged with was at a level that wasn¡¯t much different from hers, it was a sequence that was already expected. ¡°I need to have experience clearing once at least in order to find a decent partner¡­ There will probably be a lot of the Forlan dungeon attacks uploaded in the Attack King event, right? If I at least look at attacks, will it be a little better¡­¡± Just in time, she had quite a lot of free time between her classes, so Mina opened up her laptop in the department room and began to scan through the attacks that were up on the event bulletin board. ¡°As expected, the dungeon with the most attack plans is the Forlan dungeon. This place is the hottest, though.¡± Because it was almost a year now since Kailan was released, there wasn¡¯t a small number of users that were around lv 100. It was an obvious for the initial users, but even the hard users in the last runners were all over lv 100. Because of that, the Forlan dungeon, which took responsibility for a considerable amount of the outrageous EXP that was required from lv 100-120, couldn¡¯t help but be the interest of many people. ¡°Shall we take a look?¡± After glancing through the titles of the attacks like that, a title that was exceptionally catchy grabbed her attention. Title ¨C The Forlan dungeon was the easiest.Subtitle ¨C Everything about the Forlan dungeon as told by the first-place clearing ranker.15-minute clear video attached. ¡°A 15-minute clear video?¡± Both of Mina¡¯s eyes rounded. ¡°Did a first-place ranker come and sweep through the dungeon? No, from what I know, this is a dungeon that you can¡¯t enter once you¡¯re lv 121.¡± For her, who hadn¡¯t even been able to see the third phase within the 50-minute time limit, the 15-minute record was too unrealistic. Truthfully, from what she felt, a record of 15 minutes was even impossible for a first-place ranker. Either way, in order to confirm the authenticity of it, Mina¡¯s mouse moved towards the title of the bulletin board post. Click- And as soon as she went into the bulletin board post, she clicked on the ¡¯15-minute clear video¡¯ that she was most curious about first. ¡°Shall we take a look?¡± However, she couldn¡¯t help but be taken aback shortly after. This was because she accidentally hadn¡¯t reduced the sound on her laptop and so an incredibly loud sound rang through the department room. That was exactly¡­ You have entered the ¡®Grave of the Forlan Hero¡¯. As the main character of the video entered the dungeon, the system message that rang out had spread out just like that throughout the department room. Mina was so flustered that she hurriedly lowered her volume, but it wasn¡¯t like she could pick up and store away the sound that had already rang out. And embarrassment that swept over her. ¡®Ah, this is really embarrassing.¡¯ However, separate from her embarrassment, the many students that were in the department room as it was time between their classes slowly approached Mina¡¯s seat after hearing that noise. If you were a user that played Kailan, the Kailan¡¯s system message was very familiar. ¡°Yo, Lee Mina. You played Kailan as well?¡± ¡°Yeah, now that you mention it. Although, there aren¡¯t many people that don¡¯t play it in our department.¡± As her colleagues approached her while saying a word each, Mina wore a bashful expression as she scratched the back of her head. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m also playing Kailan.¡± ¡°What¡¯s your class?¡± ¡°I¡¯m a Magician.¡± ¡°Oh, what about your level?¡± ¡°I hit three figures recently.¡± ¡°Whoa!¡± At Mina¡¯s level that was unexpectedly high, everybody had gazes of surprise, but as users that were as high-level as that were quite common, their attention turned back to the video that was playing on the laptop. ¡°Yo, what is that video?¡± ¡°Ah, it¡¯s a Forlan dungeon attack video that was uploaded for this Attack King event, but it seems the first-place ranker uploaded it. Apparently, it¡¯s a 15-minute cut.¡± At those words, Yoohyun¡¯s jaw dropped, he being the only one amongst the people surrounding Mina that had gone into the Forlan dungeon before. ¡°What? 15 minutes?¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°That¡¯s possible?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know either. We¡¯ll find out if we keep watching this now.¡± As there was no chance that their other friends would have experienced the Forlan dungeon, they had no idea what the two people were talking about, but they began to watch the video with excited expressions. Everybody¡¯s gaze was fixated on Mina¡¯s laptop, and the video soon began. ¡°Huh? Yo guys, that person there, isn¡¯t that a face we¡¯ve seen a lot before?¡± ¡°Who? The girl?¡± ¡°No, not that female Magician, but that male Summoner.¡± At those words, Mina¡¯s gaze turned towards the Summoner. And shortly after, she was able to figure out where she had seen that face before. ¡°Isn¡¯t that Jinsung?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, Park Jinsung.¡± ¡°That¡¯s the dude that always sits at the very back of the lecture room and sleeps, right?¡± ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right.¡± Because the number of people in the VR department was a little less than 50 per year, most of the colleagues were close with each other. However, just as there was always an outsider in any group, one of the few outsiders of the VR department was Jinsung. Besides a couple including Yoohyun, they didn¡¯t even know that Jinsung played Kailan. Either way, as the main character of the video was revealed to be a student in the same major, their excitement increased even more. And for the 15 minutes that the video played, they couldn¡¯t remove their eyes from the video even for a moment. * * * ¡°What the hell, you¡¯re going to go do another quest?¡± ¡°Yeah. I got caught with an Empire Quest.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Herz, who was taking care of the neglected internal affairs of the domain with Ian, wore a flustered expression after hearing Ian¡¯s words, saying that he was going to go down to the southern continent because of an Empire Quest. ¡°Yo, you¡¯re the Lord. I feel starting from some point, you¡¯ve left all of the internal affairs to me¡­¡± ¡°Still, I bring anything that will be of help back to the domain, dude. That goes for Ollibus Village, too.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, where there was no part that was false, Herz wore a bitter expression as he licked his lips. ¡°That¡¯s true, but¡­¡± The more they looked at Ollibus Village, the hidden seaside town that Ian found while questing, the more precious it was. The village¡¯s rank was just a ¡®Village¡¯, but it was bigger than most decent territories, and it was a perfect place holding a value that even exceeded the Lotus domain when looking at several aspects, such as population, security, etc. Because the Lotus guild members were greatly invested into the friendship process of Ollibus Village and the Lotus Domain, they would soon be able to merge together. ¡°Anyways, since I¡¯m planning on immediately going down to the southern continent in a little bit, if there¡¯s something that we need to discuss, let¡¯s talk about everything now.¡± ¡°Well, there¡¯s nothing like that right now¡­¡± Herz, who mumbled his last words and was thinking of something, opened his mouth again as if he suddenly remembered something. ¡°Ah, come to think of it, today¡¯s the start.¡± ¡°What is?¡± ¡°That Attack King event.¡± At those words, Ian nodded his head. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right. I uploaded a bulletin board post earlier right on time.¡± Herz asked carefully. ¡°What do you think we¡¯ll rank?¡± And Ian smirked as he responded shortly. ¡°Why do you even ask? Of course, 1st place.¡± * * * Whiiiing-. Jinsung, who finished getting ready for bed and had turned on his computer to check the bulletin board post that he uploaded for the Attack King event, wore a confused expression while looking at his smartphone that was suddenly ringing. ¡°Huh? There shouldn¡¯t be anyone calling me¡­ Who is it?¡± Nowadays, Harin called occasionally, but checking the number, it was an unknown one. Jinsung contemplated for a moment. ¡°A loan call, maybe? Should I not pick it up?¡± However, because it would be somewhat disappointing to just ignore a welcoming(?) phone call when it had been a while, Jinsung picked up his smartphone and took the call. ¡®I should bombard them with swear words if it¡¯s a spam call.¡¯ ¡°Hello?¡± And just as expected, he heard an incredibly graceful and beautiful voice of a female through the phone. Yes, hello. Is this Park Jinsung? Jinsung slightly frowned. ¡®As expected, is this a spam call?¡¯ ¡°Yes, why?¡± While Jinsung, who had decided that it was a spam call, was thinking about how he should swear, heard unexpected content. Ah, so you are Jinsung. Then your Kailan player ID is ¡®Ian¡¯, right? Jinsung wore a flustered expression. ¡®What the hell? How does she know that?¡¯ Jinsung cleared his throat before he replied. ¡°Ahem, yes. I am Ian, but what¡¯s the matter?¡± Then her words continued with a brighter voice. Oh, I¡¯ve found the right person. Nice to meet you, I am a named uploader of YouCast called Sojin. ¡°Sorry?¡± Ah, do you not watch YouCast regularly? He somewhat felt like he was getting entangled with a drug peddler-like person, but as conversation about Kailan came out, Jinsung decided to talk a little more with this person. ¡°Well, I do watch it occasionally, but I don¡¯t enjoy watching it. But what business with me did you have¡­?¡± It¡¯s nothing else¡­ But someone had taken a direct shot of the 1:30 territory war battle scene that you showed a couple weeks ago and uploaded it, and I reprocessed that and re-uploaded it. At her words, Ian was absorbed in his thoughts. ¡®By the 1:30 territory war¡­ Does she mean the first match that we had with the Polaris Guild? Firstly, I should hear what the business is.¡¯ Jinsung opened his mouth again. ¡°So?¡± I have earned quite a big profit from that video, so I wanted to deposit some of it to you as well. ¡°Huh?¡± And the explanation of the girl that introduced herself as Sojin momentarily continued. It was quite a detailed explanation that lasted about 10 minutes, but if it was directly summarized, the content would go something like this. Because she received everything from the shoot as well as copyright, there would be no problem even if she didn¡¯t give Jinsung a share, but because she wanted to continuously work with Jinsung, she ended up contacting him like this. It was an offer asking him if he wouldn¡¯t mind signing an exclusive contract with her and continue working with her. Jinsung wore a slightly bitter expression. ¡®No, how many views did she get on the YouCast video for her to say that she gained quite a big profit?¡¯ Because Jinsung knew nothing about the profit structure of YouCast, he asked Sojin again. ¡°So, how much money comes to me as my share from the earnings you made from this video?¡± At Jinsung¡¯s words, Sojin, who seemed to be momentarily thinking as she was silent, carefully opened her mouth. Around¡­ A little less than 2 million Won[1] will be deposited. It¡¯s around 10% of the total revenue. ¡°¡­?¡± Jinsung, who suddenly wore a dumbfounded expression, couldn¡¯t say anything while he held the receiver. ¡®What the hell, 2 million Won? If 10% is 2 million Won, she made a profit close to 20 million Won[2]through one video?¡¯ More specifically, the profit was about half of that at 10 million Won[3] and that meant the revenue was 20 million Won, but even with that, Jinsung was stunned. And as Jinsung was silent for a moment, Sojin¡¯s voice was heard again through the phone. If by chance you think that 10% is too salty, it¡¯s an obvious. This time, because I didn¡¯t legally make a contract with you and worked, the distribution ratio is small, but if you begin to officially work with me, about 30% will return to you as your share. My share will be about 20%, and the rest goes to production costs and expenses taken by YouCast. However, different from Sojin¡¯s worries, Jinsung was unable to say anything out of happiness at the unexpected profit. This was because, to Jinsung, one of Kailan¡¯s highest-ranked players, 2 million Won was not a large sum, but he didn¡¯t expect for this much money to come in with just having one video uploaded. Either way, he had just gamed, but hadn¡¯t 2 million Won of unexpected money just appear. ¡°Then, if I was to make a contract with you, then how will it proceed from now on?¡± At Jinsung¡¯s positive reaction, Sojin quickly responded. Whenever you play the game from now on, you always need to activate the player camera that is built into the capsule and just game. Every week, you just need to transfer the camera videos to me, and I will edit them and upload to YouCast. A YouCast page will also be set up with your name. Jinsung¡¯s mind began to race. ¡®So, there¡¯s nothing for me to lose, no?¡¯ To transfer files once a week was not a difficult task, and aside from that, he just needed to game diligently. Sojin¡¯s words continued. If you continuously upload videos regularly, I think you¡¯ll be able to take about 5 million Won[4]every month. Of course, I¡¯m also expecting this to be the minimum value. If you become an even more famous player in the future, there will definitely be room for your profit to increase. Jinsung let out a shout of delight internally. The reason for Jinsung¡¯s happiness was nothing else. ¡®With this, I could live while gaming for the rest of my life!¡¯ Of course, even if he sold the items and goods he obtained within the game, it turned into quite a large sum of money. However, within the game, Jinsung¡¯s expenses were quite big, and because he used all the money that he saved up to buy better equipment or use it for content within the game, an offer like this from Sojin couldn¡¯t help but feel incredibly charming. Jinsung, who was about to immediately accept her offer, hesitated momentarily and calmed his excitement. ¡®But still, I can¡¯t decide everything just with this one phone call.¡¯ Jinsung cleared his throat as he continued his words. ¡°Ahem-hem, sounds good. I can¡¯t give you a definite answer right now, so then, I wish to meet you and talk more specifically about things like the contract conditions.¡± And Sojin¡¯s response returned immediately. Alright! As a matter of fact, I wanted to ask you for a favour. What time is best for you, Jinsung? [1] 2 million Won = ~$1768.82 USD [2] 20 million Won = ~$17688.20 USD [3] 10 million Won = ~$8844.10 USD [4] 5 million Won = ~$4422.05 USD CH 124 Chapter 124: Unexpected Fame (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Sunghoon, who was part of the planning team of LB Sports, was looking over user ¡®Ian¡¯s attack, which was showing the hottest response for this event. To be honest, it seemed that the expression ¡®admiring¡¯ was more appropriate than ¡®looking over¡¯. Since for the whole time Sunghoon was reading through the attack, he was far from assessing it and was instead just admiring it. ¡°No, seriously, what does this guy do?¡± The total aggregation period of the Attack King event was three days. Starting from the results, right now, when two full days have passed by, Jinsung¡¯s attack was overwhelmingly taking 1st place. After achieving a 15-minute clear record with Fiolan, Jinsung experimented with all of the components of the dungeon while using all 50 minutes every run. He dug through the Forlan dungeon so thoroughly, it was close to obsession, doing things such as analyzing each and every stat of the monsters that appeared, the number of monsters that appeared according to the phase, the attack patterns, etc. So, with the statistics that were made, Jinsung analyzed the minimum stats, etc. that were required for the dungeon attack for each class and organized it, and this part caused an explosive reaction from tons of users. A countless number of attacks were uploaded onto the event bulletin board, but there was no attack as detailed, to the point it was almost perverted(?), as Jinsung¡¯s attack. ¡°There was a reason why it was claiming 1st place in recommendations so dominantly, really.¡± In Jinsung¡¯s attack, there were a lot of factors for users that already had decent specs, but there was also quite a lot of information for beginner users whom have continuously failed the attack. If it was a user that was interested in the Forlan dungeon, it was an attack that they couldn¡¯t help but read carefully. ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you? That writer is really a pervert. There¡¯s no mistake.¡± The current number of views was over 100 thousand for Jinsung¡¯s bulletin board post, and the recommendations were over 30 thousand. Considering that the number of views for the 2nd place bulletin board post was 70 thousand, and the recommendations for that were 8 thousand, it was a result that was truly dominant. ¡°Sunghoon, would there even be a meaning for us to even grade this? The recommendations of the 2nd place attack post is 23% of the 1st place one¡­ If we wait until the last day like this, the amount of recommendation points that the 2nd place post can receive is only 70 points out of 300.¡± Hyein, who was examining the other attack posts next to Sunghoon, grumbled. This was because, just like she said, no matter how high of a score the other attack posts received from the LB Sports judge panel and the user group evaluation, it was no different from saying that 1stplace was already decided. Even if 2nd place was to receive a perfect 100 points in both of the group evaluations, their total score would only amount to 270 points, and there would be no way for them to beat the 300 recommendation points of 1st place. ¡°Still, well¡­ For now, since work is work, we¡¯ll need to do it.¡± While looking at Sunghoon, who replied with a bitter smile, Hyein shook her head. ¡°That attack post, though, I also saw it earlier, but we wouldn¡¯t be able to help but give it 100 points. Even if the planning team that planned out the Forlan dungeon wrote an attack post, I doubt that they would be able to write one out better than that person.¡± ¡°¡­ Agreed.¡± Of course, the quality of the attack also accounted for a large part of the reason why Jinsung¡¯s attack was dominating 1st place, but it was also because of the synergy of the provocative title that said 15-minute clear and the video that it was able to reach an even more explosive result. ¡°The guild of the user Ian was Lotus Guild, right?¡± ¡°Yes, Hyein.¡± Hyein scratched the back of her head as she continued her words. ¡°Please at least find the contact information of the Lotus Guild¡¯s Guild Master.¡± ¡°What for?¡± ¡°Because I think the 1st place reward will be sent over there anyways.¡± Sunghoon grinned as he nodded his head. ¡°Ah, got it.¡± * * * Meanwhile, Ian, who had logged onto Kailan, was headed towards the southern continent with a peaceful heart. This was because, with just the result that he checked yesterday evening, he thought he was already so dominant that 1st place for the event was an established fact. ¡°I should have bought a return stone beforehand¡­¡± Ian complained as he rummaged through his inventory. As he had spent such a long time only in the northern continent, he didn¡¯t have one return stone for any place amongst the villages of the southern continent. Celia, who followed behind him as he grumbled, smiled brightly as she opened her mouth. ¡°Ehh, Lord, still, since you¡¯re going with me, you¡¯re not bored, though, right?¡± While looking at Celia, who trotted right up next to him and suddenly stuck out her face, Ian was taken back and stuttered. ¡°Uh¡­ Su, sure, Celia. It definitely isn¡¯t boring.¡± Amongst his retainers, Ian just brought Celia down with him to the southern continent. The reason for that was because, amongst the five retainers, Celia was definitely the biggest help. ¡®Since it¡¯s a little bothersome to go around dragging the other dudes around, too¡­ And they¡¯re not that big of a help, either.¡¯ Rather than her combat abilities, Celia¡¯s Inherent Ability, the Familiar Healing skill, was truly a big help when hunting. ¡®I even regretted not bringing Celia with me when I went to go fight Orvil multiple times.¡¯ The other retainers couldn¡¯t even demonstrate a fighting power equal to one of Ian¡¯s Familiars and died instantly when they met a decently strong opponent. However, Celia was able to give a lot of help while taking on a support role. If he just had Celia¡¯s Familiar Healing ability, there would have been no incident of Ddukdae dying either. ¡°But, Lord, where are we going right now?¡± At Celia¡¯s question, Ian blinked and responded. ¡°Huh? Did I not tell you where we¡¯re going?¡± ¡°Nope!¡± ¡°¡­ Then, you didn¡¯t even know where I was going, yet said you¡¯d come along?¡± ¡°Yep! Since I¡¯m good with wherever you go!¡± ¡°¡­¡± While looking at Celia, who made a dangerous(?) statement with a bright expression, Ian shook his head. ¡®If Harin saw, it would have probably been hard for me to survive, right?¡¯ Recently, Ian also began to realize that his relationship with Harin was no longer simply just one as ¡®friends¡¯. But it wasn¡¯t like he could define what kind of relationship it was more of¡­ ¡°We¡¯re going to the Luspel Capital right now, Celia.¡± ¡°The Luspel Capital? Wow, then, will we be able to see His Majesty, the king?¡± Either way, at Celia¡¯s cute form, Ian grinned and nodded his head. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right. We¡¯re going to go see His Majesty, the king.¡± * * * ¡°So, Emily, what you¡¯re saying is that the central continent will open up this second large update?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m telling you. My source is definite, so you can trust the information.¡± ¡°No, but it can¡¯t be that special of information if it¡¯s just that the central continent is opening up. That can¡¯t be it for the information you have for me, right? There¡¯s nothing we can find out with just that.¡± ¡°Of course, there¡¯s even more important content.¡± The Domain ground of the Titan Guild, who were 2nd place in the Korean server¡¯s guild rankings. Ceilron, the Sub-Guild Master of the Titan Guild, and Emily, his closest personal and one of the leading members, were having a conversation privately. ¡°What is the more important content that you¡¯re talking about?¡± Emily continued her words with a secretive tone. ¡°Firstly, you¡¯ve probably already speculated that the central continent is also covered with bases that don¡¯t have owners just like the northern continent.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Something that could probably be considered the biggest deal is¡­¡± After momentarily taking a breath, her mouth slowly opened. ¡°That the central continent is a PK zone.¡± ¡°¡­ A PK zone?¡± ¡°Yeah, a PK zone.¡± It was silent for a moment. The words PK zone were words that made one think that much. It was the same for any game, but ¡®PK zones¡¯ were incredibly sensitive content. Since if this content was poorly implemented, the balance of the game would crumble and there were also a lot of cases where games lost their users instantly. ¡°When you say PK zone, does that mean the Infamy penalty that you gain from killing a player completely disappears?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. However, that¡¯s not all. If you succeed in killing a player in the central continent, then instead of gaining Infamy, your ¡®Specialty¡¯ points will go up. It seemed like you could change these Specialty points to Honour and exchange for items as well.¡± Colonar Continent was currently majorly divided into two. Kaimon Empire occupied the west side of the continent, while Luspel Empire occupied the east side. The reason that there was no big dispute between the two enemy empires for this whole time was because the central continent, the blocked-off land behind the Wasteland which was not yet open, put a plug in that dispute. As the northern continent opened up, a form of contact began to appear between the two empires, however, as the territory wars that still periodically appeared were ceasing, the fact that the central continent was being opened up as a PK zone was no different than saying they were going to light a powder keg on fire. ¡°For them to not just remove the penalty, but to even give us a new reward as well, it¡¯s definitely high-rank content, so it¡¯s not like the rewards are going to be lame.¡± ¡°Correct. I wasn¡¯t able to gain information on that, but from what I just heard by chance, there¡¯s something called the ¡®Imperial Seal¡¯ as well.¡± Emily¡¯s tone slightly rose, and the face of Ceilron, who maintained his composure up until now, changed completely. ¡°Imperial Seal, eh? The Imperial Seal that¡¯s required in order to be promoted to a Nation-rank?¡± Emily nodded her head as she responded. ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s that Imperial Seal. Specialty points are that necessary, and I have no idea what other requirement will also be attached, but anyways, that¡¯s how it is.¡± Ceilron¡¯s mouth slowly began to open after he was silent for a moment. ¡°Ha, seems like it will get crazy. Imperial Seal, huh¡­ As soon as the central continent is opened, we¡¯ll need to seriously fight like no tomorrow. Looks like there won¡¯t even be much time to go out and hunt or such.¡± ¡°Probably. There probably won¡¯t be a reason to go out hunting at all.¡± ¡°Why so?¡± ¡°It looked like you could obtain quite a lot of EXP even by killing a user or NPC that¡¯s affiliated with an enemy empire.¡± As much as the two people were both top-rankers, they immediately began to draw out how this update will influence the gaming direction of the future in their heads. ¡°Even if a war broke out, since the pre-existing continents will still maintain the No-PK setting anyways, the beginner zones won¡¯t be in danger. In the end, in order to enter the west, they¡¯ll need to get through the Wasteland and Shikar Desert, so unless a path is completely made, it will be a war between the top-rankers that are over lv 120.¡± At Ceilron¡¯s words, Emily nodded her head. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Amongst the guilds affiliated with Luspel Empire, are the guilds that will be somewhat of a burden just the Splendor Guild and the Oaklan Guild?¡± Currently, amongst the top 5 guilds of the Korean server, the guilds quarreling over 1st place and 2ndplace, the DarkRuna Guild and the Titan Guild, were both affiliated with Kaimon Empire. However, the guilds occupying 3rd-5th place, the Splendor Guild and the Oaklan Guild, as well as the Valiant Guild, these three guilds were affiliated with Luspel Empire, so just based off the rankings, it summed up to a decent balance. Ceilron stroked his greatsword, which shone a white light, as he mumbled. ¡°If we just grab this chance well, we may be able to create a foothold that will allow us to overtake the DarkRuna Guild.¡± ¡°Agreed. We need to secure at least three bases in the central continent and secure a couple strategic locations, and this time, we seriously need to beat the DarkRuna guild.¡± To be honest, the guilds that were affiliated with the Luspel Empire weren¡¯t even in the two people¡¯s minds. This was because, in comparison to the two guilds of Kaimon Empire that were quarreling over 1stand 2nd place, the guilds of Luspel Empire were lacking significantly in fighting power. ¡°We need to get a hold of the Imperial Seal first no matter what. It¡¯s still far off until we can immediately promote to the Nation-rank, but whether we have that or not is a big factor.¡± Ceilron and Emily basically saw Luspel Empire as just a foothold for the growth of their guild. Their target was always the guild that was affiliated with the same empire as them, the DarkRuna Guild. ¡°Speaking of which, Emily, where has the Guild Master gone to the point that I haven¡¯t seen them at all lately?¡± Shyakran was the Guild Master of the Titan Guild as well as the one that was unmatched in the Korean server¡¯s Warrior class, being 1st place in rankings. He was the only user that Ceilron respected within Kailan. ¡°Shyakran has most likely gone to the Capital of Kaimon Empire.¡± ¡°The Capital? Why there?¡± ¡°Well, probably because of an Empire Quest.¡± ¡°I see. Do you know what kind of quest it Is as well, by any chance?¡± And Emily¡¯s words continued. ¡°Who knows. I¡¯m not too sure, but maybe there could be a relation to this upcoming large update as well, no?¡± CH 125 Chapter 125: Pascal Islands (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda As he went to the Capital carrying the letter he received from Ikael, he was able to get in without much difficulty. After checking Ikael¡¯s writing that was printed on the outside of the red letter, the palace guards immediately let Ian through. ¡®Ikael, Gripper, these twin magicians must have quite an influence on the Luspel imperial family.¡¯ However, once inside, Celia was unable to continue, so Ian met the emperor alone. And King Celias warmly greeted Ian. ¡°Sir Ian, it¡¯s been a while.¡± ¡°Long time, no see, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Yes, so you brought a letter that Sir Ikael has sent?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± As Celias lifted his hand, Hellaim, who always stood guard next to him, approached Ian and took the letter. And while looking at Celias, who spread the letter out and read it, Ian gulped. ¡®What the hell, why is the king¡¯s expression so serious again? What is he planning on making me do¡­¡¯ He already assumed that the quest wouldn¡¯t be an easy one, but seeing his serious expression, he felt even more nervous for nothing. With a small voice, Celias mumbled. ¡°I see, so he¡¯s in the Pascal Islands, you say¡­¡± After reading through the whole letter, Celias turned his attention towards Ian. ¡°Sir Ian.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°By any chance, do you know a place called the Pascal Islands that¡¯s in the southwest?¡± ¡°Pascal Islands, huh¡­.¡± Ian racked through his brain and desperately tried to remember a place with the name Pascal Islands. ¡®An island? I don¡¯t think it¡¯s a famous place¡­¡¯ However, no matter how much he went through his brain, he had never heard of a place with that name. ¡°I¡¯m not too sure, Your Majesty.¡± And Celias¡¯ words continued. ¡°I see. But then again, no matter how outstanding of an adventurer you are, there¡¯s no way you would have gone to an enemy country. At those words, Ian sucked in a sharp breath of air unintentionally. ¡®Enemy country? You¡¯re telling me it¡¯s part of an enemy country¡­? It¡¯s not part of Kaimon Empire, is it?¡¯ Ian hurriedly opened the continental map that was at the top of his interface. And he was able to discover the name ¡®Pascal Islands¡¯ above an area of small islands gathered together towards the southwest coast of the continent, or in other words, in Kaimon Empire¡¯s southernmost sea. Ian began to grow more nervous. This was because if his nationality was discovered while he was in an enemy country, he could be stabbed to death in an instant. Celias¡¯ words continued. ¡°Pascal Islands is made up of a total of eighteen different islands. And Ikael is saying he has found out that amongst them, an island called ¡®Pascal Prison¡¯ is where Kaimon Empire¡¯s jail is built.¡± Ian, who couldn¡¯t really think of how to respond, listened to his words quietly. ¡°And there are prisoners of the Calabius War from ten years ago that are locked up in that place by the Kaimon Empire¡¯s men.¡± The words Calabius War were incredibly unfamiliar, but either way, Ian had a hunch on what kind of quest he would receive. ¡®Is the quest for me to go and save the war prisoners?¡¯ Celias¡¯ words continued. ¡°An oracle that the pitch-black fog cast around the Calabius Canyon would clear soon has been made.¡± ¡°Calabius Canyon¡­?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Celias nodded his head and explained. ¡°Calabius Canyon is a land of darkness that¡¯s a little deeper past the Sky Highlands that you, Ian, went to in order to hatch the Griffin.¡± As soon as Ian heard that, there was something that he remembered. ¡®Ah, he must be talking about that long canyon that¡¯s dividing the continent in half.¡¯ But then a question formed. ¡®The role of the pitch-black fog that is cast over Calabius Canyon is probably to block off the path that connects to the central area of the continent, which isn¡¯t open yet¡­ But that¡¯s being lifted?¡¯ Separate from Ian¡¯s cluttered mind, Celias continued speaking. ¡°The moment the fog that¡¯s cast over Calabius Canyon is lifted, we will probably have to go into war with Kaimon Empire again. Before then, we must retrieve the war prisoners no matter what.¡± Hellaim, who had stood next to him without a word, added on. ¡°We especially need to save at least a warrior with the name ¡®Kaizar¡¯, Sir Ian. He is one of the strongest swordsman we have within our Luspel Empire. If Ikael¡¯s information isn¡¯t wrong, he will also be imprisoned there.¡± Ian, who organized all of the information he heard from Celias and Hellaim inside of his head, slowly opened his mouth. ¡°By any chance, was the date the fog of Calabius Canyon would be cleared mentioned with the oracle?¡± Ian asked without much expectation, but surprisingly, Celias nodded his head and responded. ¡°It has. Exactly two weeks from now, the oracle stated that the fog of Calabius Canyon would be cleared.¡± For a moment, Ian felt the information that floated around in his head click together like a puzzle. ¡®Two weeks from now¡­! That¡¯s the date for the new update. For this large update, the central continent will be opened!¡¯ Having found out unexpected information, Ian¡¯s expression slightly glowed. ¡®Once the central continent opens up, Kaimon Empire and Luspel Empire will be connected¡­ Then war will be inevitable.¡¯ Ian, who had a feeling that he was going to be dealing with the central aspect of the large update, felt pleased. ¡°Anyways, Ian, I was hoping you¡¯d go to Pascal Islands and rescue the prisoners. How about it, do you think you can do it?¡± Along with Celias¡¯ words, a quest window popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring-. Rescue the War Prisoners Recently, King Celias of Luspel Empire had received an oracle that the ¡®black fog of Calabius Canyon¡¯ would be lifted. The black fog was a restriction that was formed immediately after the Great War of Calabius about 10 years ago through a supernatural phenomenon. If this restriction was cleared, a war will inevitably rise up between the two empires again, and Celias is expecting you to rescue the prisoners of Luspel Empire that are being held captive before then. Amongst them, a swordsman with the name ¡®Kaizar¡¯ is especially important, as he is a required individual in order to lead the empire to victory. Within two weeks, rescue the prisoners and return to the Capital safely. Quest Difficulty Level: S Quest Requirement: A user that is an aristocrat of Luspel Empire. A user that has Affinity higher than 500 with the King. Time Limit: 15 days (Time limit to rescue the prisoners) Reward ¨C Specialty Points 2000 Imperial Family Contributions (Depending on the clear rank, the amount will vary) Fame (Depending on the clear rank, the amount will vary) Ian, who read through all of the quest content, wore a puzzled expression after discovering a new word. ¡®Apart from the other stuff, what are Specialty Points?¡¯ This was because he had never seen the words ¡®Specialty Points¡¯, which were written in the Reward tab. However, whatever the reward, he was planning on proceeding with the quest no matter what, so Ian accepted the quest without hesitation. And if it was an S-rank quest, as he had already cleared one before, he was confident enough. ¡°I will try, Your Majesty.¡± And at Ian¡¯s acceptance, Celias wore a satisfied expression as he nodded his head. ¡°As expected, if it¡¯s you, Sir Ian, I thought that you wouldn¡¯t fail to meet what I anticipated.¡± Celias, who turned his head towards Hellaim, continued speaking. ¡°Hellaim, please provide three galleon ships for Sir Ian.¡± ¡®Galleon¡¯ ships were large ships with 3-4 levels of decks that stemmed from ¡®galea¡¯, which were active in the Mediterranean Sea in the medieval times. And it was a warship that made up the main force of the Luspel Empire¡¯s naval forces. Hellaim responded with a voice showing discipline. ¡°Understood, Your Majesty.¡± * * * ¡°Come this way, Baron Ian.¡± Isreun, Luspel Empire¡¯s southernmost seaside town. Ian, who arrived at this place instantly through a warp in the Capital, wore a puzzled expression. ¡®What the hell, it was possible to move around like this as well?¡¯ This was because the magicians of the imperial family used mass-teleportation and moved Ian immediately. After hearing that he would need to go to the southernmost part of the continent in order to get on a boat, Ian, who thought that it would take quite a long time, wore a pleased expression. ¡®The time that I would spend moving around was the most wasteful, but this is a relief.¡¯ The guy that was guiding Ian was a high-ranking knight of the imperial family¡¯s royal guards whom Hellaim provided. His name was Paulean. He was a whopping lv 170. After checking his level, Ian freaked out. ¡®I should get along with him¡­¡¯ Using a bright(?) voice, Ian struck up a conversation with Paulean. ¡°So, there was a town like this as well. It¡¯s my first time seeing it.¡± At those words, Paulean wore a quizzical expression as he asked back. ¡°You¡¯re saying this is your first time coming here? It¡¯s one of the most famous towns in the southern part of the empire.¡± Ian wore an embarrassed expression. ¡°Ah, it must be because I¡¯m usually in the eastern or northern parts.¡± Fortunately, the awkward(?) time between the two wasn¡¯t that long. This was because the harbour where the fleet of Luspel Empire were stationed wasn¡¯t far off from the place they were warped to. It seemed the king had already contacted them, as the three ships that would be moving with Ian were on standby at the dock. The captain, who discovered the party of Ian and Paulean, as well as Celia, approached them. ¡°Salute! You¡¯ve arrived, Baron Ian.¡± Ian, who became awkward at the respectful salute of the captain, slightly bowed his head before checking his information slyly. ¡®This person that¡¯s called the captain¡­ No wonder he looked more amazing than Paulean.¡¯ His basis for that was none other than his rugged physique and appearance. He was the officer of Luspel Empire¡¯s fleet, but his appearance almost outshone a pirate¡¯s. Laurent Level: 195 Position: 3rd Captain of the Isreun fleet. ¡®¡­¡¯ And Ian had grown speechless. As he checked his outrageous level of 195, his already tough-looking appearance looked almost brutal. ¡°Ni, nice to meet you. I¡¯m Ian.¡± Ian, who shook hands with the captain, moved his feet in order to get on the ship. And Celia, who followed right beside him, whispered in Ian¡¯s ear with a very quiet voice. ¡°Lord, that person is a little scary¡­¡± As expected, Ian strongly agreed with her words. ¡°I think so, too¡­¡± Like that, Ian loaded his body onto a ship for the first time while playing Kailan. This was even Jinsung¡¯s first voyage of his life. * * * Keu-keu-keung-! A basement prison where a dark and damp energy rose. Iron gates opened sideways along with sound of metal that was uncomfortable to hear. ¡°Kaizar. Isn¡¯t it time for you to give up now? Luspel has forgotten about you.¡± Sitting in the middle of limestone was a man whose legs and arms were tied, and a man who had armed his whole body in silver armour approached him as he started a conversation. The man in silver armour was named Lacromyu and he was the leader of Kaimon Empire¡¯s knights. ¡°Funny. There¡¯s no way that¡¯s the case, but even if it was true, I don¡¯t care.¡± Kaizar replied with a husky voice while remaining seated, and Lacromyu sat down on the stone pedestal that was just lying around next to him. ¡°Ten years have passed. And not long ago, an oracle that the fog of Calabius Canyon will be cleared was made.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± At the word oracle, Kaizar, who hadn¡¯t even budged in a while, slightly lifted his head. As his grey hair, which had grown long, covered his whole face, his expression wasn¡¯t properly visible, but a strange light shone from his eyes, which were visible between the strands of his hair. ¡°Will a bloody war be opening up again¡­¡± Kaizar mumbled with a self-mocking voice. Lacromyu opened his mouth again towards him. ¡°If you help us, you may even be able to unify the Colonar Continent through this opportunity, Kaizar.¡± Lacromyu persuaded Kaizar with a passionate desire. However, Kaizar just smirked. ¡°Don¡¯t make me laugh, Lacromyu. The battleground is not a place that can be controlled with the strength of just one or two people.¡± And the corners of his mouth slightly rolled upwards. ¡°Even if Luspel doesn¡¯t have me, they have Hellaim, as well as Gripper. It is not as easy of a place as you think it is.¡± CH 126 Chapter 126: Pascal Islands (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Swaaah-. The refreshing sound of water being cleaved through was heard. The sea that connected with the south of Colonar Continent was called ¡®Collon Sea¡¯. And right now, in the middle of Collon Sea, three ships floated above the waters. Originally, they were warships that had sails with the Luspel Empire¡¯s symbol drawn largely on it, but right now, the three galleon ships were camouflaging as merchant ships. Amongst them, a man sat on the deck of the lead galleon ship with a drained, pale face. ¡°Euh¡­ Euhh¡­¡± It was none other than Ian. Ian¡¯s face was completely drained of colour because of his extreme seasickness. Bbookbbook, who approached his side, mocked Ian. Bbook- Bboo-bbook-! ¡°What, dude¡­ Hyung doesn¡¯t even have enough energy to get mad right now, so go away for now.¡± As Ian waved his hand around as if he couldn¡¯t be bothered, Bbookbbook wore a prim expression as he glared at Ian. Bbook! ¡°You¡¯re fine now because I just summoned you, but in a bit, you¡¯ll probably feel seasick, too.¡± Despite Ian¡¯s curse, Bbookbbook wore an arrogant expression as if he was saying that there was no way he would feel seasick as a sea turtle. Bboo-ook-! While looking at Bbookbbook, who crawled around the deck here and there out of excitement, Ian let out a deep sigh. ¡®No, why the hell does this crazy game even have seasickness implemented in it?¡¯ Just in case, Ian called over a crewmember that was standing at the stern. ¡°Excuse me.¡± ¡°Yes, Baron.¡± ¡°By any chance, do you have something like medication for seasickness?¡± Even as he asked, Ian didn¡¯t have high expectations. ¡®There¡¯s no way that there would be such a thing.¡¯ However, didn¡¯t the crewmember nod his head? ¡°Ah, yes, of course, we have some. Please give me one moment.¡± ¡°Th, thank you.¡± Ian¡¯s complexion slightly brightened. However, the moment he checked what the crewmember had brought back, the colour in his face couldn¡¯t help but turn blue again. ¡®Isn¡¯t this¡­ Ginger?¡¯ Ginger was medication for seasickness that sailors traditionally used since long ago in order to avoid seasickness. However, to Ian, who had the appetite of an elementary school student, ginger was no different from poison. While looking at Ian, whose complexion had gotten worse, the crewmember asked with a worried expression. ¡°Baron, are you alright?¡± ¡°Do, don¡¯t worry, and be off on your way.¡± For now, he did receive the ginger, but as Ian wasn¡¯t mentally prepared yet, he sent back the crewmember and fell into agony. ¡®Should¡­ I eat this, or not?¡¯ However, just then. Splash-! A large wave crashed into the ship, and the ship sloshed around. In an instant, Ian felt a vomit rise up from deep within his body. ¡®I¡¯m in trouble!¡¯ Throwing up on the deck, especially as a baron, was something he couldn¡¯t do. With all the strength he could muster, Ian ran to the washroom. And after retching a little, he felt his seasickness calm down a bit. ¡®Whew, to have my first seasickness in Kailan, who would have thought¡­¡¯ And as he came up to the deck, he saw the captain, Laurent, standing outside. ¡°Captain, how much longer do we have to go now?¡± ¡°Ah, Baron. We¡¯re almost there now. About half a day more, and we should be there.¡± At the words half a day, Ian despaired again. ¡®Do I¡­ need to eat the ginger at least?¡¯ In the end, Ian chewed on the ginger he received from the crewmember and sat around the middle of the hull of the ship, where it wobbled the least. However, crawling over with a sallow face, Bbookbbook, who played on the deck excitedly earlier, caught Ian¡¯s eyes. Ian smirked. ¡®You did crawl around out of excitement¡­¡¯ While looking at Bbookbbook, who approached Ian¡¯s side with a drained expression, for some odd reason, Ian grew energetic(?). ¡°Bbookbbook.¡± Bbook¡­? ¡°Tired?¡± Bbookbbook-. ¡°I¡¯m also tired¡­¡± * * * The three galleon ships were able to arrive in the vicinity of the Pascal Islands in half a day. However, carrying onwards from his seasickness, a new difficulty found its way towards Ian. ¡°You¡¯re telling me I have to go alone from here on out?¡± ¡°Not alone, as the maximum amount of people that can get on that infiltration transport ship is five, so you can take four more people.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian grumbled to himself. ¡®I was hoping I would get a bus[1] just like the Griffin Hatching Quest¡­¡¯ Remembering Hellaim¡¯s Knights, who wiped monsters that were over lv 150 in the Wasteland, Ian licked his lips. ¡®Firstly, I need to take Celia, so there are three remaining spots¡­¡¯ Ian first picked Paulean. This was because, excluding Captain Laurent, there was no crewmember aboard the ship that had a higher level than Paulean. And Ian¡¯s gaze turned towards Laurent, but Laurent shook his head. ¡°Not me, Baron. I have other work I need to do here.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Excluding Laurent, as the rest of the crewmembers were around the lv 130-140 range, Ian selected two crewmembers that looked the most intimidating(?) amongst the members he could see and got into the infiltration transport ship. ¡®There¡¯s no way that they aren¡¯t fighters when they look like that.¡¯ That was Ian¡¯s basis for selecting his crewmembers. ¡°Here, this is a map of the Pascal Islands.¡± Laurent, who handed over the map, explained the Pascal Islands in detail. And fortunately, the exact location of the Pascal Prison was marked on the map. ¡°But, Captain, what do I do after I save the prisoners? I won¡¯t be able to bring back the prisoners in this small transport ship, no?¡± Ian¡¯s question was very reasonable. Laurent nodded his head as he replied. ¡°Of course. After you¡¯ve released as many of the prisoners that are locked away somewhere within the prison, you just need to shoot this flare up into the air.¡± Ian received an item that looked like a small mechanical crossbow from Laurent. You have obtained item ¡®Laurent¡¯s Flare¡¯. And Laurent¡¯s words continued. ¡°Once the signal goes up, I will go to pick you up.¡± ¡°Ah, understood.¡± Ian, who had an approximate idea of how this quest will proceed now, nodded his head and had the boat depart. While looking at Ian, who grew farther away, Laurent slightly bowed his head. ¡°Then, I pray for your success in battle, Baron.¡± ¡°Yes, well¡­¡± * * * Ian made the best use of his Familiars. There were two Familiars that Ian could use on top of the ship as scouts. One was Ian¡¯s Familiar Pin, and the other was Celia¡¯s Familiar, the Blue Wyvern. ¡°Pin, can you go higher up and guide us to a location that would be good enough to anchor the ship?¡± At Ian¡¯s command, Pin warbled before he flew up into the air. And Paulean, who saw that, wore a surprised expression. ¡°No, Baron. By any chance, is that¡­ The legendary Griffin?¡± For an instant, Ian wore a stung expression as he nodded his head. ¡°Ah, yes, it is. I was able to obtain it by mere chance.¡± At those words, Paulean nodded his head. ¡°As expected, so cool, the Griffin. I had the chance to see the Griffin that the King is raising from a distance, but that one wasn¡¯t as big as that yet¡­¡± Different from Ian¡¯s Pin, the King¡¯s Griffin was most likely raised sheltered within the comfortable environment of the imperial property. Because of that, its growth would have been slowed. Ian internally let out a sigh of relief. ¡®If their sizes were even similar, I might have been misunderstood. I should be more careful of summoning Pin in front of NPCs that are affiliated with the empire.¡¯ Either way, through the help of Pin and the Blue Wyvern, Ian¡¯s party was able to arrive safely to the island that was marked on the map and anchor their ship. The place that the party had landed was towards the back, on a shoreline with a dense forest. ¡°It must be over there, Lord.¡± Celia, who had gotten off the boat first, spoke while pointing towards a large fortress that could be seen between the grass thickets. And Ian, who saw that, wore a slightly dumbfounded expression. ¡®I thought that it would be hidden so that it was hard to find, but it¡¯s just out in the open.¡¯ Continuing, a feeling of nervousness swept over him. ¡®When it¡¯s this easy, there¡¯s always some sort of trap¡­¡¯ Paulean, who got off the boat next, opened his mouth. ¡°Baron, I think cutting across this forest and going in through the back should work.¡± Paulean pointed towards a part of the map with his finger as he continued speaking. ¡°Based on how the contours overlap inversely, if we go up this way, I think we¡¯ll be able to go up the rampart easily.¡± Ian admired Paulean¡¯s intelligent AI(?) as he led the party and began to go up the forest. * * * The results of the Attack King event had come out. And of course, the Lotus Guild overwhelmingly took 1st place. The score for the Lotus Guild¡¯s attack was a whopping perfect 500 points, and the score for the 2ndplace¡¯s attack was only about 260 points, so the score difference was almost double the amount. Fiolan and Herz, who sat across from each other in the Domain Manor, received their prizes from the Attack King event with happy expressions. This was because, of course, the capsules, which were the most important prizes of 1st place, were delivered directly to the addresses that were already received, but aside from that, the other prizes were sent to the manor of the relevant guild. ¡°Wow, 300 thousand Guild Fame and Mystery Boxes. This as well is quite terrific.¡± At Fiolan¡¯s words, Herz nodded his head. ¡°No kidding, I thought that it was one Mystery Box per person, but they give out two.¡± ¡°Yes, but one is an item box, while the other is a gold box¡­¡± Herz opened up the information of the Mystery Box. Magical Mystery Box (Gold) A box that holds an amount of gold anywhere between 100 gold~5 million gold. Amount is unknown until opened. And his face wrinkled. ¡°This is too much, no? Between 100 gold and 5 million gold¡­ Isn¡¯t this gap too big?¡± At Herz¡¯s grumbling, Fiolan grinned as she answered. ¡°There¡¯s no way you¡¯ll get 100 gold, right?¡± ¡°No, still, though¡­¡± ¡°The item box is even more ridiculous than that. A while ago, it looked like Carwin received bread from opening this.¡± ¡°He already opened it?¡± ¡°Yes, it seemed he immediately opened it as soon as he received it. Still, because he received 1.3 million gold from the gold box, he was happy.¡± Herz gulped. ¡®1.3 million gold¡­ If I also got around just that much, then I would have no other wish.¡¯ Herz pulled out the gold box from his inventory first. ¡°Fiolan. I will open it up first.¡± ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll open mine after seeing you open yours.¡± And Herz placed his shaking hand on top of the Mystery Box. ¡°Open!¡± As he did so, a white light engulfed the Mystery Box and it floated into the air. Fiolan and Herz¡¯s eyes were fixated on the box. And¡­ Ring-. User ¡®Herz¡¯ has opened the ¡®Magical Mystery Box¡¯ and has obtained 1240 gold. After seeing the system message, a horrible shriek popped out of Herz¡¯s mouth. ¡°Aaaah!¡± Fiolan, who saw that, was nervous because it didn¡¯t seem like it was some other person¡¯s matter, but she still couldn¡¯t stop the laughter that continuously slipped out of her mouth. ¡°Pu-hu-hut, Herz, you seriously have no luck. 1200 gold. How, amongst all the numbers between 100 and 5 million, you got a thousand two hundred¡­¡± And continued, Fiolan opened her box. Herz couldn¡¯t help but despair even more. User ¡®Fiolan¡¯ has opened the ¡®Magical Mystery Box¡¯ and has obtained 3,974,505 gold. This was because the amount of gold Fiolan obtained was thousands of time more than Herz¡¯s at close to 4 million gold. At the letdown, Herz collapsed onto the ground. ¡°Ha¡­¡± And Fiolan reassured Herz. ¡°Cheer up, Herz¡­¡± However, there was no way that the reassurance of Fiolan, who received 4 million gold, would have an effect. ¡°Damn it, they need to change the salary system for the LB Sports game planners.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°They need to make something like a Magical Kailan Salary Box and give their salary randomly.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Something like 20 thousand Won[2]~10 million Won[3]. They need to receive about 20 thousand Won as their salary in order to pull it together. [1] bus = to get carried [2] 20 thousand Won = ~$17.64 USD [3] 10 million Won = ~$8822.50 USD CH 127 Chapter 127: Pascal Islands (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The Pascal Prison had an incredibly complex structure. At the three divided paths that appeared as soon as they snuck into the prison, Ian thought deeply for a moment before opening his mouth. ¡°Let¡¯s try going through the right path.¡± At those words, Paulean wore a confused expression as he asked. ¡°Baron, do you know the way?¡± ¡°No, of course not.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°If we go through each one, well, we¡¯ll eventually find the right path.¡± At Ian¡¯s nonchalant words, the party shook their heads, but because it wasn¡¯t like they really had a clever scheme, they moved according to Ian¡¯s words for now. However, soon, they were able to figure out that was the wrong choice. ¡°This¡­ Isn¡¯t even supposed to be a maze, so isn¡¯t this a little too much?¡± Ian¡¯s mumbling spoke for everybody¡¯s feelings. Divided paths had continuously showed up one after another. As there became too many possible cases, it had become a situation where it was impossible to check each and every one until they found the right path like Ian said. ¡°Let¡¯s sit down for a moment and think about it a little.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Paulean sighed deeply. ¡°Will something even come up if we think about it?¡± ¡°That I don¡¯t know.¡± Ian let down Bbookbbook, who was on his back. And as soon as he saw Bbookbbook, Ian thought of something. ¡°Ah, if we need to find our way through with our instinct anyways, shall we try following Bbookbbook?¡± This time, Celia, who had been silent, asked. ¡°Bbookbbook? Oh, that big-headed turtle!¡± At Celia¡¯s words, Bbookbbook, who poked his head out from his shell, glared at Celia. Glare-. However, Celia wasn¡¯t the least bit fazed and opened her mouth again. ¡°But does this turtle usually find the right paths?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ He occasionally finds things like undiscovered dungeons unexpectedly.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± Ian crouched down in front of Bbookbbook and opened his mouth. ¡°Bbookbbook.¡± Bbook-. ¡°Hyung has lost his way right now.¡± At the words that he was lost, Bbookbbook sneered at him. Bboo-bbook-. ¡°Find me the right path, Bbookbbook. If you do a good job finding it, I¡¯ll feed you as many meatballs as you want. How about it?¡± At Ian¡¯s blank cheque for meatballs, which he had never proposed before, both of Bbookbbook¡¯s eyes rounded. Bbookbbook-! While seeing that form, Ian mumbled to himself. ¡®If there were at least a pile of meatballs where the prisoners were confined, Bbookbbook would have smelled it and found them immediately.¡¯ Just then, Paulean, who was much smarter than Celia in comparison, made an objection. ¡°But, will this turtle even know what he needs to find?¡± ¡°No, of course, he probably doesn¡¯t know.¡± ¡°Then how¡­?¡± ¡°I have an idea.¡± Ian turned his attention back towards Bbookbbook. ¡°Bbookbbook, find me a place where other people are besides us. You just need to find anybody.¡± Bbook-. Ian¡¯s intentions couldn¡¯t be understood, but either way, for now, the party that left Bbookbbook to lead them began to move. Had about 10 minutes passed like that? Whether it was through Bbookbbook¡¯s ability or luck, a group of soldiers that were wearing armour with the Kaimon Empire¡¯s symbol drawn on it appeared in front of them at a distance. ¡°He did end up finding some people, although he didn¡¯t find the prisoners¡­ By the looks of it, I think it will be hard to just pass by them quietly, Baron.¡± At Paulean¡¯s words, Ian nodded his head. ¡°It seems so.¡± Ian¡¯s purpose for having Bbookbbook find someone, of course, the most ideal scenario was if he found the prisoners. However, he didn¡¯t think that he would be able to find the prisoners from the start, and this was a development that Ian was predicting. ¡®Alright, shall we get started then?¡¯ The soldiers that were checked were above lv 130. They were generally a higher level than the party, but because Paulean¡¯s level was so high, he decided that it would be worth fighting against them. Since it was hard to say that Ian¡¯s fighting power was of a normal early-lv 120 player as well. ¡°Celia, don¡¯t join in on directly attacking, but prioritize healing the Familiars. Understood?¡± Celia grinned as she nodded her head. ¡°Yes, Lord!¡± And Ian spoke to the two crewmembers that had been quietly following up until now. ¡°Once the battle starts, there will definitely be one or two people that break away in order to alert others about our trespass. You two, please follow them.¡± ¡°We just need to make sure they don¡¯t get away, right?¡± At the words of one of the crewmembers, Ian shook his head. ¡°No, let them run away and please follow them while you leave markings as you go.¡± This was exactly the plan that Ian was aiming for. And this was a plan that Ian had thought of since they first infiltrated the prison. He was planning on following the escaping soldiers and find the location where the prisoners were locked in. As not even one NPC affiliated with Kaimon showed up until now, there was no way to use this method, which was why he told Bbookbbook to find anybody. The two crewmembers, who immediately understood Ian¡¯s words, nodded their head as they replied. ¡°Yes, Baron!¡± Paulean, who finally understood Ian¡¯s thoughts, also nodded his head. ¡°As expected, there was a reason why you received His Majesty¡¯s trust. That¡¯s a good plan.¡± And shortly after, the battle began. Ian couldn¡¯t summon Ddukdae, who was large in size, as the space in the prison was too narrow, but after summoning the rest of his Familiars, he immediately charged towards the soldiers. ¡°Intruder!¡± And the soldiers that discovered Ian¡¯s party attacked as well shortly after. ¡°Ly, Halli! Dig through them to the middle!¡± Because he was certain that if the soldiers, who outnumbered them in comparison, got into formation, it would become a nuisance to face them, Ian thought that he needed to first make the battleground a dogfight. Grr-! As expected, amongst Ian¡¯s Familiars, the one that showed the most outstanding presence was Ly. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has dealt critical damage to the ¡®Pascal Prison Guard¡¯.The ¡®Pascal Prison Guard¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 15,640. Ly stirred up the guards, who were a mess because of the sudden attack, to his heart¡¯s content. Although Pin, who couldn¡¯t fly around as much as he wanted at the fault of the low ceiling, wasn¡¯t able to take such an active part as expected, but despite that, they were dominating the battle situation. After pouring at all of his Spirit Magic towards the front, Ian¡¯s gaze turned towards Paulean. ¡®Shall we see how well a lv 170 royal guard fights?¡¯ And the fighting power of Paulean that Ian checked was simply overwhelming. At the greatness of the royal knight, who swung around a long lance and treated the lv 130 soldiers like he was dealing with kids, an exclamation automatically flowed out of Ian¡¯s mouth before he even realized. ¡°Whoa¡­¡± ¡®If I could just have one NPC like that as a retainer¡­¡¯ He wasn¡¯t enough to be compared to Hellaim, but at the form of Paulean, who lived up to his level, Ian licked his lips. However, just then. The yellow light that was lodged in Paulean¡¯s lance glowed largely and a large energy began to surge through. ¡°Hmph!¡± And as Paulean smashed his lance against the ground, the golden energy flew out in all directions. Baaang-! A large boom followed by silence. This was because all of the guards of Kaimon Empire that were hit by the AoE attack that spread out from the end of Paulean¡¯s lance had turned into a grey light. Of course, it was a situation where the battle had advanced quite a bit, so there was no soldier who had max Vitality, but to have annihilated all of them with one hit was enough of a surprising scene. ¡®Isn¡¯t¡­ this a fraud?¡¯ He couldn¡¯t figure out exactly how much damage went through, but while Ian looked at a rough estimate of over 30 thousand Vitality of the soldiers being carved off, he was astonished. And Paulean, who was the very person that made this incredible scene, approached Ian with a bashful expression. ¡°Uh¡­ Baron. I killed all of them, so what should we do?¡± At Paulean¡¯s voice, Ian, who was in a daze, snapped back to reality. And the two crewmembers that stood awkwardly caught his eyes. ¡°Baron, the guards that survived and ran away are gone!¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian, who was momentarily taken aback at the unexpected situation, turned his head towards Bbookbbook. And he let out a deep sigh. ¡°Whew¡­ Bbookbbook, let¡¯s look again.¡± Bbookbbook-. Bbookbbook took lead with an expression overflowing with confidence, and the party began to follow Bbookbbook as they moved again. His plan was slightly thrown off, but still, having found out that Paulean¡¯s fighting power was more incredible than he expected, that comforted him quite a bit. * * * Jinsung¡¯s house. ¡°Whoaa¡­!¡± While looking at the new capsule model that came to his studio apartment, Jinsung wore an ecstatic expression. ¡°Are you that happy?¡± Amongst the three capsules that were received as a reward for the Attack King event, the one that was delivered first obviously arrived at Jinsung¡¯s house. Because the size and weight of the capsule was hard to move alone, Yoohyun had come with Jinsung to his house in order to help him install it. Harin was an addition, as she came along, saying she was curious of the new capsule model. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m happy, then should I not be? Be grateful to me, dude.¡± ¡°Of course. Thanks to you, I also get to obtain an ultra-luxurious capsule like this, Huehue.¡± One of the two remaining capsules went to Yoohyun, the Guild Master, while the last one went to Fiolan, who contributed a large amount while running the dungeons with Ian. Because of that, he spoke like this. Harin also spoke with an envious expression. ¡°Lucky. I wish I could at least have the older model capsule¡­¡± At those words, Yoohyun wore a puzzled expression. ¡°Huh? Harin, you don¡¯t have a capsule?¡± ¡°Yeah, I don¡¯t.¡± ¡°Then have you always been gaming at a capsule room[1]?¡± Jinsung wore quite a surprised expression as well. This was because, considering she only played in a capsule room, it felt like Harin was an incredibly high level. ¡°Eh¡­ Really? But it seemed like your login time was quite long considering you only play in a capsule room¡­¡± At the two people¡¯s words, Harin laughed as she shook her head. ¡°No, I didn¡¯t just go to capsule rooms, but there are two capsules at my younger cousin¡¯s place, so during the day, I usually go and use it. One of them is my aunt¡¯s. During the day, my aunt has work, so she¡¯s not home.¡± As if they finally understood, Jinsung and Yoohyun nodded their heads. ¡°Then again¡­ The rate for capsule rooms are very high. You might as well buy a capsule instead of paying that much money and using one in a capsule room. For heavy users like us, that is.¡± And while looking at Harin, Jinsung opened his mouth. ¡°Harin, then, do you want the capsule I originally used?¡± At Jinsung¡¯s extreme offer, Harin and Yoohyun both wore slightly surprised faces. This was because, even though it was an older model, if Jinsung sold the capsule that he had been using as second-hand, he could still receive about 2-3 million Won[2]. However, to Jinsung, who was in an extremely happy mood because of the newer model capsule that was worth tens of millions of Won, the 2-3 million Won that he could gain from selling the second-hand capsule didn¡¯t feel like that big. ¡®It will be more beneficial to hunt in the time spent snooping around to try and sell this at a second-hand marketplace.¡¯ It was possible that the bothersome aspect of it was a bigger factor. Meanwhile, Harin, who was momentarily flustered at the unexpected offer, asked back with a deeply moved expression. ¡°Really? Can I have this?¡± For a moment, Jinsung contemplated the slightest bit, but he coolly nodded his head. ¡°Sure, you use it, Harin.¡± As he did so, Yoohyun, who was standing next to him, made fun of Jinsung with a mischievous expression. ¡°Oh, Park Jinsung! Are you looking out for her because she¡¯s your girlfriend?¡± Jinsung slightly flinched at the word girlfriend, but he covered up the awkwardness with an embarrassed laugh. ¡°Ha¡­ Haha¡­¡± However, just then, Harin said something unexpected. ¡°I¡¯m grateful, but now that I think about it, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be able to accept this capsule.¡± Jinsung and Yoohyun, who became flustered at that, asked at the same time. ¡°No, why?¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Hmm, That¡­ The reason why we don¡¯t have a capsule in our home is because my father doesn¡¯t like me gaming. Not because I don¡¯t have enough money to buy one¡­¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± At Harin¡¯s pitiful words, Jinsung and Yoohyun nodded their heads out of sympathy. Especially Jinsung deeply related as he nodded his head. ¡®I know that feeling well.¡¯ In one perspective, the reason why Jinsung persistently studied to go to university was because he wanted to break free from his parents, who hated games, so Jinsung deeply sympathized with her. ¡°Then what to do¡­ Do I need to sell this?¡± Jinsung mumbled. Just then, Harin slyly approached Jinsung¡¯s side and pulled his arm. ¡°No, don¡¯t sell it.¡± ¡°Eh¡­ Then?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s just leave both capsules in your room. The room is so big, so there¡¯s enough space.¡± ¡°Hmm? What do I do with two? It¡¯s not like I can run two characters alone.¡± At his question, Harin sneakily hooked her arm with Jinsung¡¯s and responded. ¡°So that I can come here to game from now on instead.¡± Along with that, a voice filled with shock burst out. ¡°Aack!¡± That was Yoohyun¡¯s voice. ¡°No, Harin. S, so, you¡¯re saying you¡¯ll come to Jinsung¡¯s house every day and game?¡± Jinsung was just as taken aback. ¡°Yo, if you just come like¡­ that to a house where a guy just lives on his own¡­¡± However, in the next moment, the two couldn¡¯t help but become speechless. This was because Harin stood right in front of Jinsung¡¯s nose and pushed her face forward. ¡°Why, so what if I do? Then are you going to pounce on me?¡± [1] Capsule room = just like PC Rooms/PC Bangs, where one goes in and pays an hourly rate to use a computer, one pays an hourly rate to use a capsule. [2] 2-3 million Won = ~$1767.64 to ~$2651.46 USD CH 128 Chapter 128: Ian, as well as the Supreme Beings (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The closer they got to the centre of Pascal Prison, the more guards there were, and stronger opponents began to be mixed in the middle as well. Especially when chief guards or officer-rank NPCs appeared, there were quite a lot of cases where they had a harder time dealing with their opponents. However, Ian was humming. ¡°The EXP is killer.¡± For some odd reason, the NPCs in Pascal Prison didn¡¯t drop items or gold. Instead, they poured out EXP that reached several times the amount that would have been received from common monsters that were the same level. Thanks to that, Ian was lv 122 before he knew it. Despite having repeatedly fought battle after battle and not yet reaching their goal, it was the reason for Ian¡¯s good mood. ¡®On top of that, this new capsule model¡¯s assimilation rate is definitely noticeable.¡¯ The virtual reality assimilation rate for the new capsule model was known to be 2% higher than the older capsule model. It may just be his imagination, but Ian could feel that his movements had definitely gotten lighter. ¡®Although I¡¯m a little worried about Harin, who is probably gaming right next to me¡­¡¯ After finishing the capsule set-up, Yoohyun returned home, while Harin, who said she would game on Jinsung¡¯s older capsule model for a bit before leaving, just logged onto the game. It was an impossible act to just ignore Harin, who was with him in his house where he had always been alone. ¡®Still. For some reason, it feels better than when I was just alone. Should we eat dinner together later as well?¡¯ Just when he was thinking of this and that, and was proceeding with the quest in a good mood due to a variety of reasons, Paulean stopped in his tracks as if he had discovered something. ¡°Baron, I think we¡¯ve finally found it.¡± And as they turned the corner, the giant iron gate that was blocking the entrance into the prison caught Ian¡¯s eyes as well. The iron gate looked to be almost 10 metres high, and in front of it, there were NPCs wearing uniforms with Kaimon Empire¡¯s symbol drawn on them who were wandering around it. ¡°Three high-ranking guards, as well as two officers¡­ The fighting power has definitely gotten stronger than before, Lord.¡± At Celia¡¯s words, Ian nodded his head. ¡°That is true. But it doesn¡¯t matter.¡± Ian grinned as he pointed to the ceiling. ¡°Since I can even summon Ddukdae now, and Pin will be able to fight properly as well.¡± As they entered the middle of the prison, the space opened up. The inner court wasn¡¯t just opened up, but rather, its structure was similar to a giant colosseum, so his Familiars would be able to demonstrate their own strengths. Thanks to that, Ian was confident. ¡°Paulean, just like how we¡¯ve fought up until now, please tie down the strongest opponents down. Then I will take care of the remaining enemies as quickly as possible and then help you out.¡± ¡°Understood, Baron.¡± As Ly¡¯s force became overwhelmingly powerful, Ian¡¯s fighting power in personal battles had become quite strong as well, however, still, Ian¡¯s abilities shone even more when he fought against many opponents. ¡°And I think from now on, we¡¯re probably going to have to dig through the front¡­¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Paulean nodded his head. The minute a battle occurred in this open space, they wouldn¡¯t be able to hide the fact they had broken into the prison from being known. ¡°By the looks of it, probably.¡± ¡°If that¡¯s the case, an intensive surprise attack!¡± Ian handed over the flare that he received from Laurent to the two crewmembers. ¡°The moment we pierce through here, I¡¯m going to break into the inside and begin the operation of releasing the prisoners. Then please shoot this flare up into the air.¡± ¡°Understood, Baron.¡± Ian summoned all of his Familiars, excluding Halli. He was planning on summoning Halli a little later, when he broke into the inside. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Along with Ian¡¯s short signal, the party got into their respective positions just like how they had done up until now and moved swiftly. ¡°Ly, get the guards first!¡± Understood, owner. Lake¡¯s Breath struck the opponents first, and Ly charged in afterwards and started to slaughter the guards, whose Vitalities had been greatly reduced. Chwaaak-! The leather armour that the guards were wearing was brutally torn by Ly¡¯s sharp claws, and Paulean was doing a good job in facing the officer-rank NPCs, whose fighting powers were stronger in comparison. ¡°Current Proliferation!¡± As the opponents were a much higher level than Ian, the damage from Current Proliferation didn¡¯t get embedded in very effectively, but the ¡®paralyze¡¯ effect was still terrific. You have hit the target with ¡®Current Proliferation¡¯. You have dealt 4172 damage to the ¡®Pascal Prison Guard¡¯.The ¡®Pascal Prison Guard¡¯ has gone into ¡®paralyzed¡¯ state.The ¡®Pascal Prison Guard¡¯s movement speed has slowed by 30%, and they will receive an additional 50% damage from ¡®lightning¡¯ type attacks.The cooldown time for ¡®Current Proliferation¡¯ has been reset. The Current Proliferation skill was invoked more effectively the higher the number of opponents because the number of additional occurrences went up. With the guards¡¯ feet tied down from the activation of paralysis, the one-sided slaughter began. ¡®Should I push off completing the quest and just hunt more here?¡¯ At the terrific EXP, it was to the point Ian even thought of pushing off the quest for a bit. However, it wasn¡¯t like Ian was able to fight this easily from the beginning as well. He got used to the movement pattern of the guards through repeated battles, and above all else, he balanced well with Paulean the more he progressed with him, and a synergy appeared from it. On top of that¡­ Familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯ has received critical damage.¡®Ddukdae¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 8764. Whenever his Familiar¡¯s Vitality dropped because of a concentrated attack¡­ ¡°Familiar Healing!¡± ¡®Familiar Healing¡¯, the Inherent Ability of Celia, who buffed and supported from the back, was invoked. Retainer ¡®Celia¡¯ has cast ¡®Familiar Healing¡¯.Familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯s Vitality has been recovered by 60% (47,398). Ddukdae¡¯s tanking, which felt like it lacked a little whenever they faced a high-level monster that was over lv 120, became significantly sturdier through Celia¡¯s healing. Of course, there was a cooldown time of 5 minutes for Familiar Healing, but even with just that, it was an incredible help to the fighting power. You have killed the Pascal Prison Guard. You have obtained 134,215 EXP.You have killed the Pascal Prison Guard. You have obtained 321,132 EXP. While looking at the opponents that were taken care of at the blink of an eye, Celia was astonished. ¡°It¡¯s definitely much easier with Pin and Ddukdae here.¡± Especially Ddukdae, whose Vitality was close to 80 thousand, by receiving Celia¡¯s healing and holding out, they could definitely notice that the battle had gotten easier. ¡°I told you so.¡± Ian wore a pleased expression as he nodded his head. However, just then. A loud sound of a drum began to ring out from within the prison. Boom- Boom- Boom-. At that, Paulean¡¯s complexion slightly hardened and he asked Ian. ¡°It seems that they¡¯ve detected us from the inside. Baron, what should we do?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Ian was momentarily trapped in his thoughts. However, he wasn¡¯t flustered. Since it would have been weirder if they didn¡¯t know from the inside when such a noisy battle happened this close. ¡®It¡¯s a little early, but I should get through to the inside just like I planned.¡¯ And Ian called over Pin and got on top of his back. Seeing that, Celia¡¯s two eyes slightly grew. ¡°Lord, what are you planning on doing?¡± ¡°While you buy some time on this side, I¡¯m going to go inside and rescue the prisoners. Since whenever a prisoner gets rescued, our fighting power will increase.¡± Paulean nodded his head as he agreed. ¡°If it just goes as you say, Baron, then the work will definitely be resolved easier.¡± Ian was planning on leaving Ly, Lake and Ddukdae. This was because, although Paulean was strong, he was too worried to go inside with all of his Familiars. ¡®It should be good enough with just Halli and Pin, as their Agilities are the highest. Since the goal is rescuing anyways.¡¯ Ian, who roughly finished preparing, spoke to Paulean. ¡°Paulean, please try and grab as much of their attention as possible.¡± ¡°Understood, Baron. However, I don¡¯t know how many troops there will be within¡­ You must rescue the prisoners as fast as possible.¡± ¡°Yes, got it.¡± And Paulean added on. ¡°As long as Kaizar is rescued, the situation will probably come to an end.¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°Kaizar, huh¡­ I will try to remember.¡± Ian, who was on top of Pin¡¯s back, carefully flew up to the bottom of the prison¡¯s fortress wall. As he did so, Paulean yelled loudly. ¡°The royal guard Paulean of Luspel Empire has come to rescue the prisoners!¡± Paulean¡¯s roar loudly resonated throughout the whole prison. In an instant, all of the attention of the soldiers poured onto Paulean. ¡®Now!¡¯ Ian, who checked to see that Ly, Lake and Ddukdae charged towards the front with Paulean, quickly flew into the inside of the prison while on Pin¡¯s back. And while looking at the watch towers that were set up all over the prison, Ian let out a sigh of relief. ¡®Whew, if we infiltrated through the air, it would have been like a beehive.¡¯ When they first arrived at Pascal Islands, he seriously contemplated getting inside the prison through the air. However, Pin wouldn¡¯t be able to carry all of them at once, and because there was too big of a risk for Ian to just go in by himself, so they didn¡¯t attempt it, but after coming inside and taking a look like this, he was able to realize how good of a choice that was. ¡°Pin, I think it¡¯s that way.¡± Ian was now quite used to Pin¡¯s back. Even though Pin¡¯s speed had quickened quite a bit, his form was quite stable. Boom- Boom- Boom- Bbooo-! It seemed that the battle now started from the front, as the loud sound of a drum and bugle continuously rang out from within the prison. As that happened, naturally, Ian and Pin were also exposed to the enemies. ¡°Pin, go as deep within as possible and drop me off!¡± No matter if he was a Griffin, it was impossible for the Pin¡¯s characteristic to fly vertically downhill when his structure was to fly straight using his wings. But to slowly fly down diagonally right now, when their position was exposed, they would helplessly suffer an arrow baptism. Kku-ruk-! Pin cried with a worried expression, but Ian, who arrived at the location he wanted, jumped down from Pin¡¯s back without hesitation. And at the same time, he summoned Halli. ¡°Halli, Summon!¡± Roar-! Halli, who was summoned near the spot where Ian would fall to, quickly climbed the structures and caught Ian onto his back. Puck-! It wasn¡¯t like there was no impact, but Ian, who succeeded in getting on Halli¡¯s back in a quite steady position, wore a satisfied expression. Since this was the reason why he didn¡¯t summon Halli up until now and saved him. ¡°Okay, good!¡± Ian¡¯s gaze turned towards the front. The deepest part of the dungeon. He felt that if he just destroyed that stone gate, Kaizar would be there. ¡°Pin, block the soldiers so they can¡¯t get close to us!¡± No matter how large of a number of soldiers there were, while Pin used his Crush skill, it would be hard for them to get close. And right on cue, the shouts of the soldiers, who swarmed from all directions, was heard. ¡°Intruder! The intruder is trying to get into Area A!¡± At the right time, Pin¡¯s Crush skill poured out onto the battlefield. Kwaaah-! Ian, who checked that the soldiers were unable to easily get close and were flinching, hurriedly shot his Magic Spheres onto the stone gate continuously. Bang- Ba-bang-! And with Halli¡¯s continuous attacks as well, the giant stone gate began to crumble while letting out a boom. Ku-reu-reung- Pu-ung-! ¡®Alright, it¡¯s not as thick as I thought.¡¯ And as he broke through the stone gate, a giant circular stone chamber was revealed within, and an unidentifiable white-haired mystery man, whose legs and arms were tied down, sat right in the middle. A background that felt as if a boss monster would appear and a strange atmosphere was created. Ian, who saw that, was convinced. ¡®That person is definitely Kaizar¡­!¡¯ Ian hurriedly approached him. He felt as if the end of the quest was right in front of his eyes. ¡®If it¡¯s just like the words of Hellaim, he said he was an incredibly strong swordsman, so if I just rescue this dude¡­!¡¯ However, just then, a different voice rang close to Ian¡¯s ear. ¡°Whoa, whoa. Wait a minute. This is somewhat interesting.¡± And a figure walked out of the shadows. Ian¡¯s gaze naturally turned towards that direction. Stomp- Stomp-. Footsteps that rang through the silence. As they had completely come out of the darkness, their figure was revealed, but their whole body was still covered with a dark red light. Ian, who saw that, let out a deep sigh as he grumbled. ¡°Ha, I was wondering if it would end a little easy, but as expected, there¡¯s no way that would be the case.¡± Ian studied the man with a nervous gaze. He was planning on immediately getting out of this place using Space Distortion if he felt it wouldn¡¯t turn out well. Since he wouldn¡¯t be able to face the incredibly strong looking opponent in a situation where he only had Halli. The guy, who had approached Ian and stood in front of him before he realized, unsheathed his sword from his waist and lifted it up. Seu-reu-reung-. And with a voice that gave the illusion like it was ringing, he asked Ian. ¡°What¡­ the hell are you?¡± CH 129 Chapter 129: Ian, as well as the Supreme Beings (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The crewmember shot the flare that was received from Laurent into the air. Peeew- Boom! A baptism of fireworks embroidered the sky red. After killing all of the enemies that charged towards him, Paulean¡¯s gaze slightly turned to the air. ¡°Hmm¡­ It does seem like the Baron is a little late¡­¡± It had been about 10 minutes since Ian had entered the inside while riding Pin. Despite it being past the time that some sort of result should have come out, as no word came from within, Paulean wore a slightly worried expression. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Sir Paulean. The Lord is probably doing well.¡± At the words of Celia, who was diligently supporting from the back, Paulean smirked and replied. ¡°Well, I do hope that¡¯s the case¡­¡± His gaze turned towards the inside of the prison. ¡®Either way, since the flare has been shot, the reinforcements will be here.¡¯ If the reinforcements come, a conclusion will be made no matter what. ¡®We¡¯ll need to rescue as many prisoners as we can before then¡­¡¯ While looking at the group of soldiers that charged towards him again, Paulean quickly swung his lance. * * * ¡°What¡­ the hell are you?¡± ¡°What the hell are you to be like that?¡± At the mystery man¡¯s question, Ian replied with a curt tone. Because, for an NPC, he was too arrogant, Ian became bitter. To be honest, rather than his arrogance being the problem, the expression that he didn¡¯t like that the opponent was raining down on his parade was more fitting. However, the moment he heard the mystery man¡¯s next words, Ian couldn¡¯t help but be a little taken back. ¡°How entertaining. Based off my observations so far, it seems that you¡¯re a user that¡¯s affiliated with Luspel Empire, but to have come all the way to Pascal Islands. Did you receive an Empire Quest from them?¡± Firstly, the word user. And the word quest. If you were an NPC, these were two words that you never used. For that reason, it meant that his opponent was a user. ¡®Damn it, what the hell is this? Is it possible to get this complicated¡­?¡¯ On top of that, it was obvious that he was user of the enemy empire, Kaimon Empire. If the user from the opponent camp was planning on completely interfering, it would become a serious pain in the neck. Firstly, in order to get a feeling of his opponent, Ian opened his mouth again. ¡°Then, you there, it seems that you¡¯re a user affiliated with the Kaimon Empire¡­ Is this an Empire Quest for you, too?¡± One corner of the mystery man¡¯s mouth curled upwards. ¡°And if so?¡± Ian continued his words again carefully. Firstly, it was most important that he safely completed the quest. ¡°Then, how about we go with a way that will be good for both sides? Even if we don¡¯t fight, if we can just complete our quests, isn¡¯t that good enough?¡± Even while he spoke, Ian was nervous. Since it was strongly possible that the opponent¡¯s quest would be that he needed to end up blocking him. However, the mystery man¡¯s response was outside of Ian¡¯s expectations. ¡°Well. To be honest, even if I just pass by right now, it won¡¯t affect my quest at all¡­¡± The long great sword that he was holding in his hands pointed toward the middle of Ian¡¯s forehead. ¡°But for some reason, I don¡¯t want to do that.¡± And a swear word automatically popped out of Ian¡¯s mouth. ¡°Damn it, I¡¯m telling you let¡¯s go for a bit of a win-win situation.¡± It seemed like they wouldn¡¯t be able to avoid fighting now. Ian got into a fighting stance and checked his opponent¡¯s information. However, it seemed that he put all of his information on private just like himself, he couldn¡¯t even check his level or his name. ¡°It¡¯s been a while, shall we have some fun?¡± After he finished speaking, he charged towards Ian. And Ian attacked him with Halli as well. This was because his pride would be hurt for some reason to just run away immediately with Space Distortion. ¡®It¡¯s possible that he¡¯s a weaker guy than I expected.¡¯ However, Ian was well aware that the possibility of that was close to zero. Clang- Cla-clang-! As Ian¡¯s staff and the opponent¡¯s sword clashed with each other, a metallic sound rang out. You have been attacked by a user from Kaimon Empire (Unknown) and have received damage.Your Vitality has been reduced by 12,985. And Ian, who succeeded in blocking one of the opponent¡¯s attacks, quickly got on Halli¡¯s back. ¡®As expected, he¡¯s a powerful enemy. By roughly looking, it seems he¡¯s a Warrior-class¡­ If that¡¯s the case, the only way is to overpower him with Agility.¡¯ ¡°Halli, Guardian of the Wind!¡± At Ian¡¯s command, Halli cried out loudly. Roar-. Familiar ¡®Halli¡¯ has used skill ¡®Guardian of the Wind¡¯.Familiar ¡®Halli¡¯s Agility will increase as much as the total value of the rest of his combat stats.For 2 minutes, Familiar ¡®Halli¡¯s Agility will increase by 5725. Thanks to having raised his level quite a bit, after using Guardian of the Wind, Halli¡¯s Agility was close to almost 8 thousand. The eyes of the opponent shone once he saw the white energy of the wind that wrapped around all four of Halli¡¯s legs. ¡°Oh-ho, a Hallikan, huh. For there to be a Summoner that handles a Hallikan as their Familiar.¡± As of now, the officially known level of a wild Hallikan was 150. It was not unreasonable for him to be surprised. This was because the current, officially known, highest-level user was at the edge of lv 140. However, whether his opponent was surprised or not, Ian gave no attention at all. ¡°Current Proliferation!¡± Ian began to fire Current Proliferation and Magic Spheres towards the mystery man. Pung- Pu-pung-! However, the mystery man easily avoided Ian¡¯s attacks. ¡®What the hell? It seems that even for a Warrior-class, his Agility stat is quite high¡­¡¯ The opponent, who avoided the attacks, quickly rushed towards Ian. ¡°Hwanleenchamgyuk!¡± The great sword of the mystery man shone red. Ian instinctively felt that he shouldn¡¯t get directly hit by it. ¡°Halli, dodge it!¡± And Halli, who had fraudulent-like reflex abilities, was fortunately able to avoid that attack easily. Baang-! The red swords that rose from the mystery man¡¯s great sword were sprayed into the air in streams, and passed by while finely slicing the stone wall. Jjuh-juh-juk-! Ian, who saw the stone wall crumble to the ground in pieces as if they were pieces of tofu, was appalled. ¡®Even if Breath or Crush exploded, it probably wouldn¡¯t have a destructive power like that¡­¡¯ The duration that Halli¡¯s Guardian of the Wind lasted was 2 minutes. Ian, who decided he needed to win within then no matter what, jumped down from Halli¡¯s back and immediately lunged towards the mystery man. And Halli, who figured out Ian¡¯s intentions, quickly turned around towards the backside of the mystery man and swung his front paws. Ian and Halli attacked quickly and cleanly on opposite sides of the man. Pu-ung-! Familiar ¡®Halli¡¯ has dealt critical damage to ¡®Ghost of Emptiness¡¯.¡®Ghost of Emptiness¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 9685. Although it was only for a short duration, the mystery man was unable to avoid the attack of Halli, who obtained an incredibly high reflex stat to the point it almost didn¡¯t make sense, and from that one attack, he couldn¡¯t help but be thrown towards the wall. And Ian wore a slightly confused expression. ¡®What the hell, Ghost of Emptiness? Why is the target subject¡¯s name coming up as something like that? Was he not a user?¡¯ If he was a user, then a name, or if his information is put on private, then the words ¡®Unknown¡¯ would normally pop up, but as a strange name called Ghost of Emptiness popped up, he was taken aback. And the fact that he was unexpectedly thrown towards a wall weakly at Halli¡¯s attack was a little questionable as well. ¡®If he was that strong of a master that he could apply that much Offensive Power earlier as a Warrior-class, then their physique shouldn¡¯t be this weak¡­¡¯ The form of the mystery man, who was lodged into the wall after being thrown into it just now by Halli¡¯s attack, felt like the physique of a Black Magician, an Archer, or an Assassin. Just when Ian was about to try to attack again, the mystery man, who dusted himself off and stood up, grinned as he mumbled. ¡°You¡¯re better than what I expected, I¡¯ll say. Even though it wasn¡¯t my main body, it has been a really long time since I was attacked this helplessly.¡± However, Ian didn¡¯t have any time to respond to his words. This was because he needed to deal as much damage as he could before Halli¡¯s Inherent Ability, ¡®Guardian of the Wind¡¯, was up. ¡°Acting composed, my ass!¡± Projectiles shot out from Ian¡¯s staff again. And that was an attack that was done after thoroughly calculating the mystery man¡¯s movement route. Ta-tat-! The mystery man, who moved his body to dodge the projectiles that flew towards him, had no choice but to bump into Halli head-on again. Roar-! Halli roared loudly as he struck with his front paws. However, this time, the mystery man didn¡¯t get hit so easily either. Chwaaak-! Because Halli¡¯s Agility was so high, he wasn¡¯t able to completely avoid it, but it ended off with it just grazing his side. On top of that, instead, the guy¡¯s weapon lodged into Halli¡¯s shoulder joint. Familiar ¡®Halli¡¯ was attacked by ¡®Ghost of Emptiness¡¯ and his Vitality has been reduced by 8982.Familiar ¡®Halli¡¯ has fallen into ¡®Bleeding State¡¯.Familiar ¡®Halli¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 2196. The guy¡¯s counterattack continued like flowing water. Ian, who checked that form, wore a greatly surprised expression. ¡®His skills¡­ are the real deal.¡¯ He wasn¡¯t surprised at the damage that Halli received. Since an Offensive Power of about 9 thousand wasn¡¯t that amazing in a sense. However, the guy¡¯s movements just now were truly like art. He avoided the front paws of Halli, whose reflexes were close to 8 thousand, with the least amount of movements, and even succeeded in counterattacking. ¡®However, unless his stats are at an overwhelming level, it¡¯s definitely worth trying¡­!¡¯ In Kailan, the strength of a user was decided with two elements. One was obviously the huge amount of stats and special skills that was gained through an outrageous level and items with good performance. And the other was the user¡¯s fighting ability. Ian was guessing that his opponent was a Warrior-class user that was a similar level as him, and invested a lot into his Offensive Power in comparison to his Health and Defensive Power. ¡®If it¡¯s control abilities, then I¡¯m also confident enough to not fall behind.¡¯ Rather, if it was a late-lv 130 user that placed as a two-figure number in the rankings, it would have been hard to face them even for Ian. Since there was a limit to the stat difference that could be overcome by control. However, after clashing with him once, Ian instead developed confidence. ¡°So annoying, because of you my quest is being delayed!¡± Ian filled himself up with genuine rage(?) and charged towards his opponent again with Halli. And seeing Ian¡¯s movements that were filled with confidence in comparison to just earlier where he was a little passive, the guy smirked as he firmly grasped his sword. ¡°You¡¯re not thinking that I¡¯ve shown you everything just now, right?¡± The mouth of the guy opened again. ¡°Chain Attack¡­!¡± For an instant, Ian felt an illusion as if the image of the guy, who was right in front of his nose, stretched out on either side of him. ¡®What, what the hell?¡¯ And his sword attack continued. Bang- Ba-ba-bang-! As expected of a skill named Chain Attack, his attack didn¡¯t deal a large amount of damage at once, but like Pin¡¯s Crush skill, it came in as a DoT[1]. System messages began to roll in at an incredible speed. You have received critical damage from (Unknown).Your Vitality has been reduced by 1892.Your Vitality has been reduced by 1827.Your Vitality has been reduced by 2191. Ian, who saw an outrageous amount of close to 20-30 thousand Vitality drop down in an instant, became flustered. ¡®Whew, did I look down on him?¡¯ However, it wasn¡¯t like his movements froze just because he became flustered. The control sense ingrained into his body, which was similar to his instincts, automatically controlled Halli and Ian. Pung- Pu-pung-! In return for allowing a skill to hit properly, Ian¡¯s skills and Halli¡¯s attacks hit the target perfectly as well. Familiar ¡®Halli¡¯s Inherent Ability, ¡®Smash¡¯, has been invoked.¡®Ghost of Emptiness¡¯ has fallen into a ¡®stunned¡¯ state for 1 second. And fortunately, Halli¡¯s Inherent Ability, Smash, had been invoked. And it wasn¡¯t like Ian to lose this chance. [1] DoT = Damage over Time CH 130 Chapter 130: Ian, as well as the Supreme Beings (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Magic Spheres!¡± Magic Spheres rode down Ian¡¯s staff and continuously shot out. Pung- Pu-pung-! As Halli¡¯s attack also went through on top of that, the guy¡¯s Vitality also dropped over 20 thousand in an instant. ¡°Whew¡­¡± Ian, who had poured out all of his Spirit Magic in an instant, took a step back. Thanks to the Spirit Magic that was restored through Magic Spheres, his Spirit Magic filled up to about half shortly afterwards, but it was to prevent the opponent from counterattacking. And the mystery man, who got out of the short stunned state of 1 second, glared at Ian with a sharp gaze. ¡°Surprising. Truly surprising.¡± At those words, Ian curtly replied. ¡°What is?¡± ¡°The fact that a Summoner can be this strong.¡± ¡°¡­¡± The Summoner was a class that was created much later in comparison to the pre-existing classes. To be honest, the fact that Ian had reached over lv 120 as a Summoner class itself was nonsensical, and because Ian¡¯s fighting power was higher than a lv 120¡¯s, the shock that the man felt was much bigger. On top of that, wasn¡¯t the Summoner the class that was the weakest in PvP even amongst the new classes? ¡°However, since I as well am not a case that grew from normal common sense¡­ So, in that sense, do I need to think that it¡¯s a possibility for a Summoner to show this much fighting power?¡± Ian slightly frowned. This was because, of course, he was strong, but he thought that it wasn¡¯t to the point that he could praise himself like that. ¡®For a guy who would have already experienced a game over if I just had Ly and Pin has a lot to say¡­ What? Not common sense?¡¯ Ian got back into stance again. His Vitality had dropped below half, so his gauge was blinking, but that was the same for the opponent as well. ¡°Get over yourself, and let¡¯s finish this quickly. The path that this hyung has to go is a little busy.¡± At those words, the mystery man burst out into laughter with a twisted expression. ¡°Huhu, get over myself, huh¡­ It is you that seems to be misunderstanding something.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°The opponent that is in front of you right now. That is not me.¡± At the unexpected words of the mystery man, Ian¡¯s eyebrows knitted together. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± And the mystery man¡¯s words continued. ¡°The thing that you are facing is just my ghost.¡± ¡°¡­?!¡± ¡°Speaking of which, how unfortunate. I thought that I could easily take care of one laughable Summoner with just my ghost¡­ It looks like this have to be the end for today. I have a quest that I was proceeding with as well, you see.¡± It was only then that Ian felt something was weird. ¡°Come to think of it, the guy¡¯s whole body was constantly shining a dark red light.¡¯ At first, as he thought it was because of a skill or buff effect, so he didn¡¯t pay much attention to it, but after hearing the words that it was a ghost and looking at it again, he started to see weird points. At that point, the mystery man¡¯s sword suddenly swung towards Ian. Ba-ang-! Swords were quickly shot out. However, Ian, who remained alert, leisurely avoided the attack of the mystery man. Ian frowned. ¡°Coward.¡± At Ian¡¯s accusation, he smirked. ¡°I would have been disappointed if you were hit.¡± And the form of the mystery man began to grow more and more faint. ¡°It¡¯s disappointing, but we¡¯ll end it off here today.¡± Ian¡¯s expression wrinkled. ¡°He just does everything as he likes.¡± Ian, who was planning on killing his opponent and pick up the dropped items since the situation was like this anyways, felt as if he wasted his time as he watched the disappearing ghost. ¡°Huhu¡­ Thanks to you, it was fun. It looks like I¡¯ll see you again soon.¡± As the mystery man¡¯s body was completely erased from the air, Ian wore a dejected expression. ¡°Argh, if this was going to happen, then you shouldn¡¯t have come at me from the beginning!¡± As he wasted his time and depleted his Vitality for nothing, it was obvious in Ian¡¯s perspective, that he was annoyed. However, on the other hand, there was also a curiosity towards the opponent. ¡®But what exactly is that guy? Since I can¡¯t tell how much fighting power of the main body the ghost has¡­¡¯ If the main body is much stronger than the ghost, then he couldn¡¯t exclude the chance that it was the top-ranker of Kaimon Empire. Since the force of the mystery man¡¯s skill was that amazing, and his fighting sense was exceptional. Either way, Ian moved hurriedly and ran towards the place that Kaizar was tied down. He did gain an unexpected interference, but the quest was his first priority. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± However, just then, the white-haired man, who had raised his head before Ian realized and was watching him, opened his mouth. The key is hanging behind that stone wall, kid. And their gazes momentarily met. At his piercing, blue eyes, Ian slightly flinched. ¡°A key?¡± That¡¯s right. You¡¯ll need that in order to release this. As he spoke, the man shook the heavy lump of metal that handcuffed his hands. You¡¯ll need to bring the key quickly. There¡¯s no time. Even if he didn¡¯t say that, Ian was moving quickly. This was because he already lost a lot of time with that guy whose identity was unknown and had no idea what was going on outside. Click-. And as the large lock was released using the key that he brought over, the lump of metal dropped to the ground with a heavy sound. Thud-. The man repeatedly opened and closed both hands that had become free and mumbled with a low voice. Hmm¡­ Has it been ten years¡­ Ian asked. ¡°Uhh, old man, how can I release the chain that¡¯s tied around your waist?¡± His two hands had become free, but there was still a metal chain wrapped around his waist. After hearing Ian¡¯s words, he smirked, and grasped the chain with both of his hands. Ooh-deu-deuk-. While looking at the man, who surprisingly crushed the chain with both hands and escaped out of it, Ian wore a flustered expression. ¡®What, how can such a monster exist?¡¯ The man, who approached a taken aback Ian, asked a question towards him. Kid, give me any weapon that you have. If it¡¯s a sword, that¡¯s the best. Ian gulped loudly. ¡®Isn¡¯t this practically highway robbery?¡¯ However, he couldn¡¯t find the courage to talk back to the monster that crushed a metal chain with his bare hands. ¡°Just, just one second. I probably have one.¡± He remembered the Legendary-rank greatsword that he obtained from Orvil a while ago, but not only would he have regretted giving it, it was an account-bound item anyways. Ian pulled out a Unique-rank greatsword from his inventory that appeared while he was hunting recently, and handed it over to him. Quite a decent sword if it¡¯s like this. And the man nodded his head before speaking to Ian. From hereon out, I will take care of it, so go out and rescue the other prisoners. ¡°Sorry, what¡­?¡± Ian, who thought that he was going to be able to proceed with the quest a little easier now through to a strong NPC, wore a flustered expression as he stared at the man. However, just then, an iron gate opposite to the stone wall that Ian came in from opened while making a loud noise. Bang-! And a man appeared. He wore a fishy smile as he looked at the two people back and forth. Tsk, tsk. A rat snuck in. Silver armour engraved with the symbol of Kaimon Empire. And a greatsword that shone blue. As the man wearing silver armour, Lacromyu, glared at Ian and raised his sword, the man, who had been standing still up until now, pulled out the sword that he received from Ian and blocked Lacromyu¡¯s path. Your opponent is me, Lacromyu. The man, Lacromyu, smirked at Kaizar¡¯s words, and responded. It would be different if it was ten years ago, but do you think you¡¯ll still be able to face me, Kaizar.Not ten, but even if a hundred years passed, you won¡¯t be able to beat me, Lacromyu. Whoong-! At the same time that the two people¡¯s conversation progressed, a large echo strong enough to make all of the stone prison vibrate spread out with the two people as the centre of it, and Ian made the most of that chance and quickly escaped to outside of the stone prison. ¡®I don¡¯t really know what it is, but first, let¡¯s rescue the rest of the prisoners and then think about it.¡¯ And as Ian escaped to the outside of the stone prison, a system message alerting of the progress situation of the quest popped up. Ring-. ¡®Rescue the War Prisoners¡¯ QuestProgress Rate ¨C 1/77 (1.29%)Required Condition Achievement Rate ¨C 1/2 (50.00%) ¡°Team Leader Lee, we need to start airing the trailer now, so get ready quickly!¡± ¡°Yes, we¡¯re almost done setting up now. But, are we really going to send out what¡¯s transferred from LB exactly as it is without any post-processing?¡± ¡°Where is the time to edit the video and stuff right now? Just send it out immediately as soon as it comes in. The viewers curious about the 2nd update will all gather at the channel that delivers it the quickest anyways.¡± YTBC was the broadcasting company that had the highest stock price lately amongst the game-broadcasting channels. This was the busiest day within the month for the staff in the broadcasting company. This was because today was the day that they received the trailer from LB Sports for the 2nd large update of the game ¡®Kailan¡¯. The interesting part was that usually in the case of trailer videos for games, it was normally that the cinematic video the game company personally produced was sent out, but the trailer video for this 2nd large update took a completely different method. That method was that several different versions of videos filming the point of view of the NPCs within the game that were the centre of the 2nd update¡¯s scenario will be broadcasted. The videos that LB Sports was sending out to each broadcasting company were each all points of views of different NPCs, and as this was the first time for a method like this, the economic operators of the broadcasting company were also flustered. ¡°We¡¯ll start sending it out in 20 seconds¡­!¡± ¡°Okay! Start the countdown!¡± ¡°13¡­ 12¡­ 11¡­¡± * * * To think that the first Empire War in ten years would start with a naval battle. Isn¡¯t your heart fluttering, Roster.It is, Admiral. I think the time has come for us to show our navy¡¯s potential, which we¡¯ve been polishing up since. What looked to be easily about a dozen battleships filled the sea with black. And on the anchors of those battleships, the symbol of Kaimon Empire was stamped on. Roster, how many Luspel battleships did you say were coming close to the Pascal Islands?Three galleon ships, Admiral. The commanding ship boasted an imposing splendor in the middle of a fleet as it split the waters. Swaaah-! The two people who stood on its deck shared a conversation with relaxed expressions. The one that stood a little back and was receiving the words was Roster, the captain of the 1st fleet of Kaimon Empire, and the black-haired man that stood in front of him was Harwin, the Navy Admiral of Kaimon. Three galleon ships, huh¡­ The reason why the guys, who were silent up until now, are moving is obvious.It¡¯s most likely because of the oracle, no? ¡°Oooh¡­!¡± It was a fiery Friday evening. Hansoo, who came to a chicken restaurant to celebrate not working over time for the first time in a while, let out an exclamation as he watched the TV that hung on the restaurant¡¯s wall. ¡°Isn¡¯t that Kailan? What video is that?¡± To the friend who asked while he sat next to him, sipping his beer, Hansoo quickly responded. ¡°That¡¯s right, it¡¯s a Kailan video. It¡¯s the YTBC channel. Apparently, they were going to broadcast the trailer video for this 2nd large update, so I think it¡¯s that?¡± Mingyu, who sat on the opposite side of them, turned his head at the two people¡¯s conversation and stared at the TV. ¡°Keu, this looks like some sort of movie scene. Looking at that flag, it must be Kaimon Empire warships.¡± Battleships of majestic splendor. And while looking at the high-quality video of Kailan that implemented each and every minor detail of the battleships perfectly, they had completely forgotten to tear through their chicken and began to be immersed in the video. ¡°Are they planning on having a naval battle with Luspel Empire?¡± ¡°It looks like it¡­ Err, I¡¯m a Luspel citizen, but will that war outcome affect the normal users as well?¡± ¡°Probably not, no? If the balance is destroyed then the game will become boring¡­ There¡¯s no way that the game company would make it like that.¡± The battleships within the screen gradually began to enter between the numerous islands, and soon after, they began to anchor down at one island. And the battle that began. Before they even realized, it wasn¡¯t just them, but all of eyes of the people sitting in the chicken restaurant were glued to the TV. CH 131 Chapter 131: Undefeated Swordsman Kaizar (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda In an instant, the Pascal Islands became a madhouse. Through the fight of Kaizar and Lacromyu, two Supreme Beings, that whole area was reduced to ashes. Taking that chance, Ian was able to proceed with his quest easier. Chul-kung- ¡°Alright, come out this way, everybody! If you go down towards the south, galleon ships should be anchored there!¡± As Ian opened the door of the prison with the key that he obtained after catching the guard, the prisoners that were locked inside swarmed out. Ooh, thank you.His Majesty has not forgotten about us! Ian, who was riding Halli, quickly went around to every corner of the prison as he rescued the prisoners of Luspel Empire. In order to get to the centre of the prison, they needed to pass through a path that was setup as complicated as a maze, but as the structure of the centre area was circular and simpler in comparison, so it didn¡¯t take that long to find the prisoners. Ring-. ¡®Rescue the War Prisoners¡¯ QuestProgress Rate ¨C 52/77 (67.53%)Required Condition Achievement Rate ¨C ? (50.00%) While looking at the message that popped up, Ian mumbled internally. ¡®For the Progress Rate, I knew that it was proportionate to the number of prisoners rescued¡­ But what is the required condition? Is there something else besides rescuing Kaizar?¡¯ Even while moving hurriedly, Ian continuously checked the war situation. At first, because of their inferiority in numerical strength, the war situation looked unfavourable, but through the joining of the rescued prisoners and the three galleon ships, the tables were turning. Pung- Pung-! The sound of cannons burst from all directions. ¡°Charge! Shoot the dregs to death!¡± ¡°Waaa¡­!¡± The supporting troops of Luspel Empire pushed into the prison like a flood, and thanks to that, even Ian, who was isolated position-wise, was able to breath easy. ¡®Alright, did everybody succeed in breaking into the inner area?¡¯ Ian turned his gaze and checked the faces of his Familiars, Celia, and Paulean. And lastly, as he checked the face of Laurent, the Captain, Ian felt relieved for the first time. ¡®Whew, is it almost over now?¡¯ Ian, who was focused on rescuing the prisoners for a while, slightly checked his Progress Rate. Progress Rate ¨C 72/77 (93.50%) There were only five prisoners left now. Just when Ian, who was able to relax a little now, was about to let out a sigh of relief, a system message that whipped(?) him popped up for the second time. Irregular event activation! A support fleet of Kaimon Empire is approaching Pascal Prison.The time remaining until the support fleet of Kaimon Empire arrives ¨C 00:12:54Before Harwin, the Admiral of Kaimon Empire¡¯s Naval Forces, arrives at Pascal Prison, all prisoners must be aboard the galleon ship in order for all of the required conditions to be fulfilled. The identity of the required condition Ian didn¡¯t know of that was needed in order to complete the quest was revealed. ¡°¡­ A support fleet of Kaimon Empire? We didn¡¯t come here secretly?¡± Ian grumbled ¡®there¡¯s no way that it would have been this easy¡¯ dozens of times to himself, as he immediately got on top of Halli¡¯s back and ran like crazy towards the last jail that could be seen at the end of the corridor. ¡®Euaah, how do they expect me to board five people onto the ship within 12 minutes?!¡¯ There would be no problem rescuing them. The problem was, no matter how quickly he moved the prisoners from the jail to the southern seashore where the ship was anchored, it would take over 15 minutes. However, it wasn¡¯t like there was no method. Ian just needed to block the support fleet of Kaimon himself. ¡®Will I be able to block them off¡­?¡¯ If he was to block off the naval forces of Kaimon Empire from reaching the Pascal Prison for 5 minutes, the prisoners should be able to safely escape the prison and board the galleon ship that was anchored. ¡®Since I have no idea how to big the size of the opponent¡¯s support fleet is.¡¯ To be honest, it was possible that there wouldn¡¯t be a big meaning in knowing the size of the support fleet. Since it would be impossible for Ian to buy enough time alone even if the fleet was just one or two ships anyways. However, just then¡­ A good idea flashed through his mind. * * * You coward¡­! Lacromyu¡¯s body slowly collapsed. Ian, who stealthily approached Kaizar and Lacromyu¡¯s tight, close battle, infiltrated from the back and continuously shot out Magic Spheres. And its effect was incredibly successful. Because Kaizar and Lacromyu¡¯s fighting powers were at such a similar level, despite having tilted the weight with additions only slightly, the war situation was turned around in an instant. Of course, the fact that Lacromyu¡¯s strength was quite drained due to the long battle was also one of the reasons why he collapsed this easily. ¡°Coward, my ass. You idiot, since when was there such a thing as being a coward in a war? As long as you win, that¡¯s the best thing.¡± After sneering at Lacromyu, who was dying, Ian urgently spoke to Kaizar. ¡°Kaizar, please help me a little.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Kaizar asked with a puzzled expression. It seemed he was disappointed that he couldn¡¯t finish off with a win on a proper one-on-one battle, as his voice was low. What do you mean? ¡°My que¡­ No, a Kaimon Empire fleet from the east is trying to land. We must block them until the prisoners get on the ship safely.¡± At those words, both of Kaizar¡¯s eyes slightly widened. No, how did Kaimon Empire know and already send reinforcements¡­? ¡°As the size is quite big, it¡¯s impossible for me to take care of alone. I need your help, Kaizar.¡± The plan that Ian was thinking of was exactly this. If he could have Kaizar, who was so strong that his fighting power couldn¡¯t be guessed, with him, he thought that there was a decent chance of winning. Captain Laurent, and Royal Guard Paulean. And with the support troops as well, they should be able to buy enough time with their opponent as the Kaimon fleet. Kaizar willingly nodded his head. Alright, I will go. By the way, by any chance, do you not have another sword besides this one? ¡°Sorry?¡± Kaizar slightly lifted the Unique-rank sword that he received from Ian as he smiled embarrassedly. As you can see, it broke. During the fierce battle with Lacromyu, the Durability of the item had completely depleted and had broken. Ian wore a dumbfounded expression. ¡®No, I didn¡¯t repair it beforehand, so there wasn¡¯t much Durability left¡­ But it definitely wasn¡¯t to the point that it would deplete this quickly¡­¡¯ In Kailan, as long as the Durability of an item isn¡¯t completely depleted, it could be continuously repaired and used, but if it is completely depleted once, it became impossible to restore it. In other words, it meant that the sword that was held in Kaizar¡¯s hands had become a completely useless lump of scrap metal now. ¡®Euh¡­ Still, if I put that up in the auction house, it was an item I could have received about 200 thousand gold for¡­¡¯ A sigh automatically came out of the mouth of Ian, who suddenly wasted money. ¡°Whew¡­¡± However, no matter how frustrated he was, the one that was disappointed now was not Kaizar, but Ian. Ian began to thoroughly dig through his inventory. ¡®Amongst the items leftover, was there a sword that useful enough?¡¯ However, no matter how much he looked, the only greatsword he had amongst his items was the Legendary item that he received from his battle with Orvil, the ¡®Greatsword of the Dark Fenrir¡¯. ¡®Eh, what the heck. Who knows, there might be some sort of method.¡¯ As the Greatsword of the Dark Fenrir was an account-bound item, Kaizar would definitely not be able to use it, but Ian first pulled out the item. ¡°I do happen to have this¡­¡± Ian slurred the end of his sentence as he held up the greatsword. And both eyes of Kaizar, who saw the Legendary-rank item that gushingly overflowed with glamour, shone. Ooh¡­ It has truly been a while since I¡¯ve seen a sword as good as this. ¡°But there¡¯s one problem.¡± Problem? ¡°This sword is an item that is bound to me. You probably won¡¯t be able to use it, Kaizar.¡± Disappointment flashed through both of Kaizar¡¯s eyes. Hmm¡­ Is there really no way? If it¡¯s that sword, it definitely won¡¯t lack in slaughtering the rookies of Kaimon¡­ Ian replied without much thought. ¡°There is a method.¡± What is it? ¡°You just need to come in as my retainer. Since retainers can also use the items that are bound to me.¡± Oh, really? ¡°¡­?¡± Ian wore a dumbfounded expression. ¡®Really? What, is he saying that he would be willing to come in as my retainer or what?¡¯ Kaizar was an important NPC to the point that the leader of the royal guards, Hellaim, even said that he was someone that was absolutely necessary in order to win the war. On top of that, he was an amazingly super strong being to the point that his fighting power examined with both eyes couldn¡¯t even be estimated. There was no way that he, who definitely had to be a high-rank aristocrat or a knight affiliated with the imperial family, could be Ian¡¯s retainer. However, at that moment, a system message that Ian couldn¡¯t believe popped up right in front of his eyes. ¡®Undefeated Swordsman Kaizar¡¯ wishes to be your retainer. ¡°¡­?¡± Ian turned his head towards Kaizar with a dazed expression. Kaizar pressed Ian. What are you doing instead of accepting it? There¡¯s no time. ¡°Kaizar, you weren¡¯t an aristocrat?¡± Ian thought that Kaizar would definitely be a higher-ranking aristocrat than him. However, his response that followed was a highlight. I¡¯m a commoner. ¡°¡­¡± ¡®No, what kind of commoner speaks informally to an aristocrat so naturally?¡¯ Ian grumbled to himself, but in order to accept Kaizar¡¯s proposal quickly, he pulled out the Seal of the Lord. ¡°You can¡¯t return it later.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Kaizar answered with a disgruntled expression. That depends on how well you do. ¡°Ha¡­¡± A sigh automatically escaped his mouth, but as he couldn¡¯t kick away the chance to gain such an incredible retainer like him, he immediately proceeded with the contract. Whoong- A light shone from the seal that Ian held in his hand and seeped into Kaizar¡¯s wrist. You have gained ¡®Undefeated Swordsman Kaizar¡¯ as a retainer.As retainer ¡®Kaizar¡¯s Talent Rank is ¡®Mythological¡¯-rank, his current stats are ¡®Legendary¡¯-rank.Current situation of ¡®Ian¡¯s retainers: 6/20 And Ian, who checked the system message, let out a shout of delight internally. ¡®My, Mythological-rank? This crazy¡­!¡¯ As Celia¡¯s Talent Rank was Heroic-rank, he vaguely expected Kaizar¡¯s rank to be over a Legendary-rank, but after actually checking the words Mythological-rank, it didn¡¯t really hit him yet. ¡®How high are his stats exactly?¡¯ The moment he was about to check Kaizar¡¯s stats with a fluttering heart, Kaizar immediately snatched the Greatsword of the Dark Fenrir that was held in Ian¡¯s hands and threw his body outside of the prison. You have given the item, the ¡®Greatsword of the Dark Fenrir¡¯, to retainer ¡®Kaizar¡¯. At the following system message that popped up, Ian couldn¡¯t even be dumbfounded, and went to the point of dejection. ¡®No, give to him, my ass! This is robbery, how could it be giving!¡¯ However, right now, there was no time for Ian to even be mad. And with one Legendary-rank item, he had obtained a Mythological-rank NPC, so to be honest, it wasn¡¯t a loss on his part. Lord guy, you said there was no time. Move quickly. At Kaizar¡¯s scolding(?), Ian followed him with a flabbergasted expression. ¡®No, in what country is a retainer like that?¡¯ Ian followed Kaizar as he kept complaining to himself. However, Ian, who belatedly checked Kaizar¡¯s level, couldn¡¯t help but follow behind him without a word. Undefeated Swordsman Kaizar, Lv 246 CH 132 Chapter 132: Undefeated Swordsman Kaizar (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Hmm, look who it is, isn¡¯t it Kaizar?¡± Roster, the Captain of the 1st fleet of Kaimon Empire. His two eyes slightly narrowed. This was because he saw an unexpected face as soon as he landed on Pascal. ¡°Huhu, long time, no see, Roster.¡± While staring at Roster¡¯s dangling left arm, Kaizar grinned. Roster, who became one-armed due to Kaizar¡¯s sword ten years ago, loathed him incredibly. ¡°The fact that you are standing here¡­ Must mean that we are one step too late.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, not just one step, but you¡¯re very late.¡± ¡°Has the bladesmith died ¡­¡± Roster spoke to himself. The bladesmith he spoke of was referring to Lacromyu, who was killed by Kaizar. And Ian, who belatedly arrived at the seashore behind Kaizar, came down from Halli¡¯s back. Ian stopped by the battlefield on his way, and brought Pin and Ly with him as well. ¡°Hmm, who is that punk kid, Kaizar?¡± At Roster¡¯s question, Kaizar smirked as he replied. ¡°He¡¯s our Lord guy.¡± The face of Ian, who heard that from the back, wrinkled, but it wasn¡¯t like Kaizar to pay attention to such things. ¡°¡­?¡± Roster stared at Ian with a quizzical expression. Regardless of that, Kaizar unsheathed his sword and lifted it. Seu-reu-reung-! The black blade of the Legendary-rank greatsword began to shine white as the sunlight reflected on it. Roster glared at Kaizar. ¡°Even if it is you, it will be too much for you to face this many troops¡­¡± However, Kaizar didn¡¯t show any interest and walked forward one step at a time. Stomp- Stomp-. And after raising his sword high, he swung it in the air with all of his strength. Baang-! A sound similar to that of an explosion followed after. In the sandy beach in front of the Kaimon Empire fleet, a large furrow was dug deep laterally. Kaizar grinned. ¡°If you cross over this, you¡¯re going to die, Roster.¡± While looking at that form, Ian, who stood towards the back, gulped instead. ¡®Our retainer is bursting with energy¡­!¡¯ However, just then, a man got off of a Kaimon Empire ship that anchored late. Accordingly, Kaizar and Ian¡¯s gaze naturally turned towards him. This was because Kaizar knew him, while for Ian, it was because his appearance was so remarkable. ¡®What the hell, that person is so cool!¡¯ A bright-red navy uniform and white hair that grew stylishly, as well as a white mustache. At the form of the man, whose aura could be felt even from a distance, Ian watched him with an interested expression. The one who opened his mouth first within the silence was Kaizar. And different from up until now, Kaizar¡¯s expression looked quite serious. ¡°Harwin¡­ Based on the fact that even you came, old man, this was intended.¡± At Kaizar¡¯s words, Roster bristled. ¡°Don¡¯t talk so thoughtlessly, Kaizar. He is the admiral.¡± ¡°That, he¡¯s your admiral, that has nothing to do with me.¡± Harwin slowly walked out to the front. Paulean, Celia, and so on, who lead the battle in the prison to victory during that time, as well as the support troops of Luspel Empire, gathered behind Ian one by one. An explosive situation occurred. Ian¡¯s gaze turned towards the troops of Kaimon Empire, who roughly looked to be about an estimate of thousands. ¡®They¡¯re numerous indeed. It looks like they have about ten times our troops¡­¡¯ The fortunate thing was that the path towards the prison from the seashore was not that wide, so there wouldn¡¯t be a situation where a lot of troops clashed into each other at once. It was a topography that couldn¡¯t help but be a disadvantage to the others. In the middle of all this, Ian remembered Karceus¡¯ Egg, which he had kept in his inventory well. ¡®If all those troops are caught, then the God Dragon¡¯s egg could possibly hatch.¡¯ And for the first time in a while, he checked the information of Karceus¡¯ Egg. * * * Karceus¡¯ Egg Level: 0 Classification: Egg Rank: Legendary (Inherent) Personality: Unknown Hatching (28%) The egg that Karceus, the God Dragon that existed in ancient legends, left behind. Karceus¡¯ egg has begun to hatch. For War Dragon Karceus to break out of the egg, it needs the strength of a powerful war. Whenever the Summoner possessing the egg defeats a strong opponent, Karceus will gain a little bit of strength and eventually break out of the egg. It¡¯s clearly stated that its with strong opponents, but the hatching rate definitely went up much higher when he won against human-like opponents rather than when he caught monsters. This could be told just from looking at the hatching rate that went up over 5% when it was in its early 20% up until before the battle with the guards of the prison finished. Ian developed a greed. ¡®I feel like I just need to last 5 more minutes¡­ It¡¯s such a waste to just leave¡­¡¯ On the other hand, while Ian was thinking of this and that, Harwin, who walked out to the front, slowly opened his wrinkled mouth. ¡°Kaizar, today seems to be your memorial service day.¡± ¡°Huhu, I don¡¯t know. We¡¯ll have to see about that.¡± Harwin¡¯s mouth twitched. ¡°You, your lack of mannerisms hasn¡¯t changed.¡± ¡°Then what about you, old man, based on the fact that you dragged your old bones and personally appeared, are you implying that you¡¯ll carry out a full-out war?¡± Rather than a response, Harwin raised his right hand straight up. ¡°Attack! Dispose of the dregs of Luspel without leaving a single one!¡± ¡°Aaah!¡± A loud war cry. Along with that, the fierce battle began. As this was the first time Ian fought in such a large-sized battle, he also felt himself get a little excited. ¡°Ddukdae, tie down as many as you can with Abyss Hole!¡± Deu-reuk- Deu-reu-reuk-. Ddukdae, who nodded his head at Ian¡¯s command, slowly walked forward. Thud- Thud- And as soon as the opponent troops drew close, Ddukdae spread both of his arms forward with strength. Kwaah-! A whirlwind of abyss formed at the centre of the ends of both of Ddukdae¡¯s fists. A rough estimate of what looked to be about dozens of soldiers got sucked into the current. The average level of the soldiers was around 120-130, but it seemed that as their ranks were low, their resistance to status condition effects was incredibly low. Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss Hole and Ian¡¯s continuous Current Proliferation was incredibly effective to the opponents like that. Za-zap- Za-za-zap-! The dozens of Kaimon Empire soldiers¡¯ feet were tied down in an instant. Just like he always did, Ian tried to let out a command for Lake¡¯s Breath to be poured on top of that. However, just then, a shadow, who was one step faster than Ian, jumped in from the air. ¡°Haaat!¡± The identity of the shadow was Ian¡¯s retainer(?) Kaizar, and after jumping into the middle of the opponents, whose feet were tied down, he exploded darkness in every direction. Baang-! And Ian knew the identity of that skill very well. ¡®That, that¡¯s the Inherent Ability attached to the sword I gave him!¡¯ There was an additional effect called ¡®Darkness Emission¡¯ attached to the Greatsword of the Dark Fenrir, the Legendary-rank weapon that Ian passed over to him. When attacking with Darkness Emission, there was an additional effect with a 30% chance to emit darkness in all directions, and that effect was fearsome. Retainer ¡®Kaizar¡¯ has used ¡®Darkness Emission¡¯ and has dealt 27,598 damage to the ¡®Soldier of Kaimon Empire¡¯.Due to the effect of ¡®Darkness Emission¡¯, the Defensive Power of the ¡®Soldier of Kaimon Empire¡¯ will decrease by 30% for 3 seconds. Darkness Emission fundamentally gained damage of 250% of the caster¡¯s Offensive Power. On top of that, as the additional effect of Defensive Power reduction also burst, the soldiers of Kaimon Empire began to melt down like butter on a hot pan. Kaizar¡¯s additional attack followed. Kaizar, who landed right in the middle of the enemy camp, held the greatsword with both hands and chanted lowly. ¡°Pok-ryong-cham-!¡± Bang- Ba-ba-bang-! Smoke from the bright-red sword spread out in all directions with Kaizar as the centre. And at that moment¡­ The party of over a dozen Kaimon Empire soldiers turned into black smoke and dispersed into the air. Ian let out an exclamation before he even realized. ¡°Keuh¡­!¡± The pleasant feeling when a countless number of system messages notifying him of his obtained EXP fill up all at once! Kaizar¡¯s words lodged into the ears of Ian, who was feeling happiness. ¡°Alright, our Lord, that was nice just now.¡± Ian, whose fortune box was broken, replied bluntly. ¡°What was?¡± ¡°The thing that the lump of rock just used. What is that, you know, that Abyss whatever.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Worst of all, Kaizar didn¡¯t see his Current Proliferation, which hit artistically, and just praised Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss Hole. For a moment, Ian was almost offended, but while looking at the EXP gauge bar that was still going up, he soothed his heart. ¡®That¡¯s right, still, at least he didn¡¯t call me Lord guy.¡¯ Following that, the streams of purple light that sucked into Ian¡¯s inventory made him go into a happy mood again. ¡°Ly, Pin! That way for us!¡± Understood, Owner. Kku-ruk- Kku-ruk-! Even while Ian faced the empire soldiers, he glanced in Kaizar¡¯s direction. And every time he did, he needed to swallow his exclamations down. ¡®There seriously is no other monster¡­¡¯ Suh-guk-! At one swing of Kaizar¡¯s sword, the empire soldiers turned into a grey light and disappeared. His fundamental attack itself was strong as well, but if Darkness Emission burst out two or three times one after another, the party was completely ruined in an instant. ¡®I can¡¯t just stay still as well.¡¯ It was just because Kaizar¡¯s active role was so amazing, but Ian was also quite splendidly distinguishing himself in the war with soldiers in the lv 130 range as his opponents. ¡°Familiar Healing!¡± And along with Celia, who was magnificently supporting the Familiars from the back, and Paulean, who boasted incredible endurance expected of a knight from the imperial family¡¯s knights and was blocking the opponents from the front, he smoothly faced the soldiers of Kaimon Empire. However, it wasn¡¯t like the whole war situation was good. This was because the number of Kaimon Empire soldiers was so high. As the troops of a numerical difference of over ten times endlessly pushed in, the soldiers of Luspel Empire eventually began to be pushed back little by little. Ian slightly checked the quest time. ¡®It should be time for the prisoners to have slowly arrived at the ship now¡­¡¯ It seemed that Ian¡¯s thoughts were read. A system message that Ian was waiting for popped up in front of his eyes. Ring-. You have completed the ¡®Rescue the War Prisoners (1)¡¯ Quest.Clear Rank ¨C AYou have obtained 2000 Specialty Points.You have obtained 24,859,000 EXP.You have obtained 15,000 Fame.You have leveled up. You have reached lv 124. At the message that notified him of his level-up that came up along with the enormous amount of EXP, Ian wore a broad smile. He had already leveled up 2 levels since coming to Pascal Islands. ¡°Huehue¡­ Our retainer is a goose that lays golden eggs¡­!¡¯ His sorrows towards the retainer who treated him roughly melted away and disappeared like snow, and he acted as if it never existed. Ian needed to slip away from the enemies now and return to the ship, but as the EXP in front of his eyes felt wasted, he wasn¡¯t able to easily turn his feet. ¡®Ah¡­ I want to fight a little more, though¡­¡¯ However, Ian¡¯s contemplation couldn¡¯t continue any further. This was because a following quest popped up. Ring-. Rescue the War Prisoners (2) Connected quest. You have succeeded in safely boarding the war prisoners onto the ship. However, a Kaimon Empire fleet unexpectedly appeared at Pascal Islands. Slip away from them and safely return the prisoners to the Capital of Luspel. Quest Difficulty Level: SS Quest Requirement: A user that has successfully completed Rescue the War Prisoners (1) Quest. Time Limit: 10 days Reward ¨C Specialty Points 2000 Imperial Family Contributions (Payment depending on the clear rank) Fame (Payment depending on the clear rank) CH 133 Chapter 133: Undefeated Swordsman Kaizar (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The trailer videos of the new update. Those were driving a large effect. This was because it wasn¡¯t just the five major game broadcasting companies, but LB Company had sent out trailer videos from the point of views of different NPCs each for even in places like small internet broadcasting companies. Thanks to that, the users selected different channels as they watched, and they were able to experience entertainment in their own way for each one. The excitement could be felt even from looking at the hundreds of chatting rooms that were being created in the official community. Wow, this is my first time seeing such a large-scale war like this. It¡¯s no joke.No kidding. The soldiers that seem to roughly look to be in the hundreds in numbers¡­ However, I heard that the empire soldiers¡¯ levels are also really high, whether in Kaimon Empire or Luspel Empire, is that true?Yes, it¡¯s true. From what I know, the soldiers should all be at least over lv 120 as well. I¡¯m carefully guessing that the officers or knights are probably even over lv 150¡­The words of the person above is right. I received an Empire Quest recently for the first time and carried it out, but the executive knight that gave me the Empire Quest then was about lv 170. Truly enormous.What, really? I¡¯m really jealous of you, too. Empire Quest¡­ I¡¯m a loser that hasn¡¯t even been able to hit lv 80 yet¡­My level is also only two digits. Haha I was just able to receive the Empire Quest early because I was a little lucky. Anyways, it¡¯s tremendous. If a weak Warrior like me squeezed into there, it looks like I¡¯ll be able to meet the black screen right away. For this 2nd large-scale update, it wasn¡¯t like the 1st large-scale update, where the method was to close the server at a specified time and proceed with it. Along with the large-scale trailer videos, specific events will be invoked here and there, and while sending out those videos, Kailan as a whole will naturally go into its new state. On top of that, it was a situation where the contents of the update weren¡¯t announced beforehand. Content related to the new update could only be found out by watching the trailer videos, so to say almost all of the Kailan users¡¯ eyes were on the trailer videos wasn¡¯t an exaggeration. However, it wasn¡¯t like the tons of videos that were recorded had evenly high views. The videos where most of the users¡¯ interests were on could be summarized to about three of them. The first was a video with the start being the fog of the central continent clearing up, and Luspel Empire and Kaimon Empire leading their own punitive forces and passing through Sky Highlands for the full-scale war. The second was a video of a siege warfare between a large army of Luspel Empire that had advanced into Kaimon Empire through the northern continent and the Kaimon defending army that was protecting Fort Yokram against them. The last was a video filled with the naval battle between the two Empires happening in the Collon Sea that was south of the continent. Like this, the views of the three videos were overwhelmingly higher in comparison to the other videos. Especially, without consideration of the camp, the video of the naval war of Collon Sea, which showed the most liveliness and the fresh beauty of the video could be appreciated, recorded the highest views even amongst the three videos. Keuh, for real, where could the limit of virtual reality be? Take a look at that splashing water against the sides of the boat.Is that really important right now? That soldier just jumped into the sea and is even swimming.Wait a minute, but guys, where did Ian, who was fighting at Pascal Islands just a moment ago, go? I suddenly don¡¯t see him in the video. You¡¯re right, even just a moment ago, he was riding his Griffin as he flew around. And inevitably, Ian couldn¡¯t help but become a tremendous celebrity. With the lv 50-range rookie league as the start, as his active role video in the territory war went public on YouCast, Ian, who began to quickly gain fame, completely became a celebrity with the Attack King event and the recent trailer videos. Ian¡¯s fame had expanded to the point he was no less than the named users that were within the top 20 of the Korean server ranking before he even realized. Especially, amongst the Summoner users that frequented the official community, it was to the point you were a secret agent if you didn¡¯t know about Ian. Where has our Ian¡¯s Pin and Ly gone? I want to see them¡­ The NPC that YTBC channel 1 is showing seems to have suddenly gone far off, as Ian has disappeared.Hey, go to channel 3. It¡¯s practically a firsthand camera of Ian there.Hul, really? I should go there right away. Thank you. Especially, because, in the opening part of this video, Ian¡¯s every movement was all shot, and even each scene where Ian managed his Familiars was all spread out, users even learned about the names of Ian¡¯s Familiars. On top of that, Ly and Pin, who handled the lv 130-range soldiers almost like children as they showed their overwhelming fighting power, couldn¡¯t help but be a big topic in the conversations amongst the Summoner users. Guys, but, you know, Ly amongst Ian¡¯s Familiars. That¡¯s the Blood-red Maned Wolf that appeared in the rookie league a long time ago that has evolved, right?It seems that everybody is guessing that¡¯s the case¡­ But we can¡¯t be sure. Firstly, I¡¯m seeing it as a negative. There¡¯s no way that he could have evolved it into such a nonsensically strong Familiar from a normal wolf.I agree with the words of the person above. To be honest, I¡¯m also raising a Blood-red Maned Wolf. I¡¯m not boasting, but I raised to over lv 90 right now, and it¡¯s a Familiar that I¡¯m pouring my affection towards, but it still has no intentions of evolving. For it to be a Rare-rank even up to lv 90¡­ I wonder if it¡¯s really going to even evolve¡­Hul, your Blood-red Maned Wolf popped up as evolution possible? For me, as soon as I evolved it, it popped up as evolution impossible from a Rare-rank¡­ TTYes, it¡¯s at least popped up as evolution possible for me. Though, the problem is that it has absolutely no intentions of evolving¡­ If it had popped up as evolution impossible like you instead, then I would have changed after using it a little, but this is basically just false hope.Speaking of which, what level exactly could Ian be? He definitely looks to be over lv 110¡­ Could it be possible that he¡¯s close to lv 120?No-no, how could a Familiar already hit lv 120. No matter how high he is, wouldn¡¯t he be at about 115?No, then how do you explain that fighting power? It¡¯s to the point that it would be hard to believe even if you said a lv 130 was as strong as that.That¡­ is true as well. All sorts of assumptions towards Ian began to go rampant, and Ian, who was a deity in just the Summoner¡¯s bulletin board for a while, was slowly becoming a topic between the users of other classes. The effect of the trailer videos was that enormous. On the other hand, Ian, who had absolutely no idea on this situation, was showing a battle that was basically similar to balancing on a tightrope, and was sweating hard. The battle itself being so numerically disadvantageous and being a dogfight on top of that played its part. However, above anything else, they were fighting without rest for about four hours because of that. ¡°Current Proliferation!¡± Za-zap- Za-za-zap-! Ian¡¯s Current Proliferation grazed by the soldiers of Kaimon Empire. However, just then, an unexpected system message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Intermediate-rank Lightning Spirit ¡®Jjaekee¡¯s Summoning Duration Time has completely been used up so it has been withdrawn.From now on, Lightning-type spirit skills cannot be used. ¡°Hul, what the hell, all 9 hours have already passed by?¡± The Summoning Duration Time of Jjaekee, an Intermediate-rank spirit, was about 9 hours. The fact that Jjaekee has been withdrawn meant that 9 hours of combat that started from the prison had passed. ¡®Ha, this is annoying¡­ Do I need to slowly learn another skill besides Current Proliferation now?¡¯ There was a reason why Ian didn¡¯t learn a different attack skill besides Current Proliferation this whole time. This was because he knew that he needed to use only one skill all the time to raise the skill¡¯s Proficiency quickly, and bring out even more efficient DPS (Damage Per Second). The result of that was the level of Current Proliferation was in the early phase of lv 9 right now. Because he just had 1 level remaining until he hit the max level, which was lv 10, he hadn¡¯t learned a different attack skill, but he felt that it was slowly getting to the point where he needed to consider a different attack skill. ¡®But then again, its Proficiency is only going up as much as an eyelash now anyways¡­ Since it¡¯s not like the destructive power between lv 9 and lv 10 have that big of a difference, so I should look for a different skill as well.¡¯ Until lv 90, new skills were formed by units of 30 levels. However, after lv 100, in order to obtain new skills, a special quest needed to be cleared or new skill books must be gained through monsters. Or, there was also the method of raising contributions towards their specific class tower and purchase skills in the tower with contributions. ¡®But, first, after I escape here¡­¡¯ The following connected quest was incredibly hard befitting of a double S-rank Difficulty Level. The content of the quest itself was quite simple, as he just needed to lead the three ships and return to Isreun Harbour, but if they accidentally got caught by the Kaimon Empire fleet, who were persistently following them and were continuously pouring out attacks, he wouldn¡¯t be able to help but fail the quest just like that. ¡°Baron, there¡¯s a Kaimon Empire flag to the front of the starboard!¡± The shout of a crewmember from the deck could be heard. Ian¡¯s face immediately contorted. ¡°Ahoo, I don¡¯t know about chasing us from the back, but how exactly did they appear from the front there? We headed out first.¡± To Ian, who was grumbling to himself, Kaizar, who was next to him, scolded him. ¡°That, we went the wrong route as we continued to fight, while they cut across and came straight, so it makes sense.¡± At those words, a sigh automatically escaped from Ian¡¯s mouth. ¡°Whew¡­¡± Kaizar¡¯s last harsh criticism lodged into Ian¡¯s ear. ¡°Do some work, Lord guy!¡± * * * A clear sky with not one cloud. Along with the greeting of Fall, the season of ¡°high sky and plump horses¡±, the festival at Korea University also began. And today was the first day of the festival. The students of the virtual reality department were moving busily. ¡°Yoohyun, there¡¯s a box of beer over there, right?¡± ¡°Yes, hyung[1]!¡± ¡°Come over here carrying that!¡± For the duration of the festival, the virtual reality department decided to leave the lecture room open as a bar. The opening time of the bar was 6 o¡¯clock in the evening. Because of that, the department students were all moving busily during the day. ¡°Mina, did you buy all of the bar snacks that I told you to buy earlier?¡± ¡°Yes, oppa[2]. I just took Sucheol and Miyoung with me and were just returning from the mart.¡± ¡°Good, good, alright!¡± The one in charge of the VR department¡¯s bar was the eldest hyung Sewon. After rallying the male students and setting up the table, as well as covering up messy areas with a white tent, the form of a quite plausible bar began to appear. ¡°Yo, Yoohyun.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°But why did this Jinsung say that he wasn¡¯t coming out to the festival at all?¡± The department bar was an event that the whole department was participating in, but participation itself wasn¡¯t a requirement. On top of that, because there were a lot of people that weren¡¯t participating even aside from Jinsung, there wouldn¡¯t really be a problem with him not coming out. Since it was a system where the people who didn¡¯t participate couldn¡¯t receive their share of the profits earned from the bar, it wasn¡¯t unfair either. However, the people that weren¡¯t participating were just not assisting with the bar preparations, but were already at the school and enjoying the festival, but as they saw nothing of Jinsung yet, Sewon had just asked. ¡°Hmm¡­ I did already convince him, so he¡¯ll probably come out tomorrow¡­¡± ¡°Tomorrow? What is tomorrow¡¯s event again?¡± ¡°The E-sports competition against the departments. Amongst the game events there, from what I know, there¡¯s five that Jinsung dug through like a cripple alone.¡± Sewon was delighted. ¡°Ah, really? Then, can our department aim for a box of hard liquor this time?¡± Sewon, who remembered the hard liquor that was the comprehensive prize for the winners of the E-sports competition, licked his lips. ¡°Probably? If Jinsung just comes out¡­¡± ¡°Well, if he said he¡¯d come, then he probably will. He¡¯s not a guy that doesn¡¯t keep his promises, no?¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± ¡°But, he should have come out to school on a day like this and have some fun, that Jinsung is quite a nasty cripple.¡± At those words, Yoohyun smirked. ¡°Did you just find that out?¡± ¡°Well, not just now¡­ But what is he doing lately in Kailan? He hasn¡¯t even appeared in the Manor much.¡± The moment that Yoohyun was about to respond, Mina, who abruptly appeared from the back, opened her mouth instead. ¡°Oppa, do you not watch game channels lately?¡± ¡°Huh? What game channel?¡± ¡°Just any game channel. Whether it¡¯s YTBC or ATN or¡­¡± ¡°What about it?¡± And unknown words continued from Mina¡¯s mouth. ¡°Jinsung is enhancing our department¡¯s prestige lately.¡± ¡°Enhancing our department¡¯s prestige? What¡¯s that? It¡¯s not even enhancing national prestige¡­¡± While hearing the two people¡¯s conversation, laughter suddenly flowed from Yoohyun¡¯s mouth. He understood the meaning of Mina¡¯s words. ¡°It¡¯s exactly as I said, oppa. He is raising the status of our department, Lord Ian!¡± [1] Hyung = what a younger male calls his elder brother or a close, slightly older male [2] Oppa = what a younger female calls her elder brother or a close, slightly older male CH 134 Chapter 134: Title Promotion (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda In conclusion, Ian¡¯s quest finished successfully. At the risky last moment, the naval forces of Luspel Empire that were stationed at Isreun came out to meet Ian¡¯s ship. The navy of Kaimon, who persistently chased after Ian, chose to turn the bow of their ship for now, and immediately, Ian, who was worried that a full-scale war would occur, was able to let out a sigh of relief. The reason that Ian was relieved was not because of the dangers that occurred through a full-scale war. ¡®Whew, if a full-scale war happened right away, how many more hours would I have had to game from now on?¡¯ Ian¡¯s continuous game time was already passing 38 hours. Even now, because of the surging fatigue he felt throughout his whole body, his eyes were half-closed. More than anything else, Ian wanted to close his eyes for a bit after quickly returning to the Capital and completing the quest. Swaah-. With the galleon ship that Ian was on as the head, the fleet of Luspel Empire was able to safely arrive at the harbour of Isreun. Clunk-. The anchor of the ship, which docked at the harbour, went down, and Ian led his heavy body and walked out of it. Paulean, who had gotten off first, wore a satisfied smile as he pulled Ian¡¯s hand. ¡°Good work, Baron. You¡¯ve truly done a great job.¡± At Paulean¡¯s words, Ian weakly nodded his head as he replied. ¡°Whew, great work as well, Paulean. We still somehow managed to return.¡± At Ian¡¯s drooping words, Kaizar, who got off behind him, smirked. ¡°What, how much did you fight to have absolutely no energy, when I was that age, I was still lively even if I fought without resting for a couple days and nights.¡± At Kaizar¡¯s scolding, Ian wore a dumbfounded expression. ¡®No, how big of an age difference do we have for him to say that?¡¯ This was because, from the outside, Kaizar only looked to be in his early 30s at most. At their first encounter, he couldn¡¯t guess his age because of his shaggy, tangled white hair, but right now, where he even had on proper attire, he looked to only be about the same age as Ian. As even his white hair was straightened up well, rather even a mysterious aura was being displayed. ¡°Then, how old are you, retainer? It looks like you don¡¯t have that much of a difference with me¡­¡¯ At Ian¡¯s grumbling, Kaizar replied with a poker-face. ¡°I¡¯m 120 years old.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± As Ian stared at Kaizar with an expression of disbelief, he smirked as he continued his words. ¡°Ah, there might be a 5-year margin of error. It¡¯s already been over several decades since I¡¯ve roughly counted my age.¡± Ian couldn¡¯t help but accept it with a bitter expression. ¡°I, I see¡­¡± And he mumbled internally. ¡®Sure, well, it¡¯s a game, so it¡¯s possible¡­¡¯ Catching a glimpse of his retainer, who was monster-like in many ways(?), Ian shook his head. ¡°Take good care of your retainer from now on, Lord guy.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Paulean, who watched the two people bicker for a moment, laughed as he opened his mouth. ¡°Alright, either way, let¡¯s go to the Capital right away. His Majesty is probably waiting.¡± At Paulean¡¯s words, the two people nodded and moved their feet. ¡°Yes, alright.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll do that.¡± * * * The Capital of Luspel Empire. And in the very centre was the office of King Celias. Celias greeted Ian, who returned, incredibly warmly. ¡°Oh! Good work, Sir Ian. I heard that you¡¯ve carried out the duty brilliantly.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, Your Majesty. We¡¯ve rescued all of the prisoners of Pascal and returned.¡± It was the same as last time, but when it was time to report the results of an Empire Quest, Ian¡¯s body moved on its own regardless of his will. Chak- Cha-chak-! While staring at his body that showed courteousness towards the King with disciplined actions, Ian, barely grasping onto his tired mind, waited for the quest to be completed. ¡®Why is this imperial family¡¯s etiquette so complicated? There¡¯s no reason for such realism¡­¡¯ When Ian played a game, he looked more at the general planning ability rather than the fine details. Because of that, to him, small details like this were even to the point of being bothersome. ¡°In our plan to rescue the prisoners of Pascal Prison this time¡­¡± He even began to report the content of the quest on his own now! Ian was a little dumbfounded, but it seemed as his mind was blank, he couldn¡¯t even think of anything. ¡®Still, since everything is being done for me, it is comfortable¡­¡¯ However, it was something that wasn¡¯t much of a merit to just Ian, but to be honest, there were a lot of users that were enthusiastic about Kailan¡¯s perfect detail that was perverted-like. ¡°Remarkable, remarkable indeed. Good work. You¡¯ve done much better than I expected. As expected of you, Sir Ian.¡± ¡°Thank you, Your Majesty.¡± Celias, who heard all of Ian¡¯s report content, smiled brightly, and a notification alerting Ian of the completion of the quest popped up in front of his two eyes. Ring-. You have completed the ¡®Rescue the War Prisoners (2)¡¯ Quest.You have succeeded all connected quests.Clear Rank ¨C SYou have obtained 5000 Specialty Points.You have obtained 42,349,000 EXP.You have obtained 25,000 Fame.You have leveled up. You have reached lv 126.You have successfully carried out your first connected Empire Quest.Your contributions towards the imperial family of Luspel Empire have increased by 1000. Even for the two eyes of Ian, which were saturated with exhaustion, causing them to be sunken in, life returned to them whenever the reward list popped up. ¡®It was tiring, but to have leveled up like crazy in the 120 level-range¡­ If it¡¯s this much, I think it¡¯s worth doing.¡¯ A satisfied smile hung from his lips. However, the two eyes of Ian, who had checked that everything including the quest reward came in, slowly started to close. The fatigue that was being suppressed with his mental strength swarmed in an instant the moment he saw the words ¡®quest completed¡¯. ¡®Ah¡­ I need to go lie down in my bed¡­¡¯ However, regardless of Ian¡¯s will, Ian slowly began to lose his hold on his mind. The analysis result of user ¡®Ian¡¯s body signal has been decided as ¡®Sleeping¡¯ state.Following the policy of the game service, user ¡®Ian¡¯ will be logged out. And Ian could faintly hear Celias¡¯ voice. ¡°Listen, Sir Ian! Pull yourself together!¡± * * * The front of Jinsung¡¯s studio apartment. Harin carefully pressed the doorbell. Ding-dong-! However, even after quite some time, not even a trace could be felt from Ian¡¯s house. ¡®Where has this dude gone¡­ Is he asleep? There¡¯s no reason for him not be home at this time¡­¡¯ Harin, who heard the word that a bar would open at the virtual reality department for the school festival, went to have fun with her friend. However, after hearing that Jinsung didn¡¯t come to school today, she immediately got up from her spot and had come to Jinsung¡¯s house. ¡®It¡¯s only 9 o¡¯clock in the evening right now¡­ Is he already asleep?¡¯ Because it was set-up that even if he was gaming inside the capsule, if the doorbell was pressed, a notification would go in, but the fact that there wasn¡¯t an indication of a person¡¯s presence meant that Jinsung was actually not home or he was asleep. As Jinsung was quite a light sleeper, Harin, who made the decision that he had gone out somewhere momentarily, opened the door lock and began to press the passcode[1]. Beep- Bee-beep- After last time, where they decided to leave the extra capsule at Jinsung¡¯s place and have Harin use it, Jinsung told Harin the house passcode as well. To be honest, she had just pressed the bell once ¡®out of courtesy¡¯. ¡°He seems to have gone out for a moment¡­ Should I at least make dinner?¡± Harin somehow felt like she had become a wife, and while humming, she entered Jinsung¡¯s house. Bee-reep- Bee-ree-reep-! As Harin closed the door, the door lock automatically locked, and the sensor lights in the entrance turned on. ¡°From what I saw last time, for someone who lives alone, he seemed to have bought quite a lot of different things¡­¡± Harin put her bag down off to one side of the room and headed to the kitchen. However, the blue light of Ian¡¯s capsule that was turned on caught her eyes. ¡®Huh¡­? That¡¯s a light that turns on only if a person is sitting inside that capsule.¡¯ Harin, who wore a slightly flustered expression, slowly approached Ian¡¯s capsule. ¡°It seems that the game is turned off¡­ But why is he like this? Is the new capsule model already malfunctioning?¡± Harin mumbled as she pressed the open button of the capsule. As she did so, the capsule let out a hissing noise as its door tilted open upwards. And shortly after, Harin swallowed a gulp of air before she even realized. This was because Jinsung, who was in an unconscious(?) state inside the capsule, had his eyes closed while his body was stretched out. ¡°What, what the hell? Jinsung, why are you sleeping here like this?¡± Harin shook Jinsung¡¯s shoulder to try and wake him up. However, Jinsung didn¡¯t even move an inch. Her large eyes grew even wider. ¡°Jinsung, are you unwell? Are you sure you haven¡¯t gotten sick from gaming for so long?¡± As Jinsung didn¡¯t wake up no matter how much she shook him, a flustered Harin contemplated whether she needed to at least call the emergency room. However, the moment she turned on her smartphone and was about to press the number¡­ Deu-reu-rung- Pheeew-. Soon, the sound of Jinsung snoring could be heard, and while smirking, Harin put down her smartphone. ¡°Ha¡­¡± Holding in her laughter, Harin wrapped Jinsung¡¯s neck with one of her arms in order to pull him out of the capsule. ¡°Jinsung, if you sleep here, you¡¯ll get an intervertebral disk¡­ Get up! You need to go sleep in your bed.¡± With a heart of a mom seen when watching the TV who woke up a young, sleeping child that had fallen asleep on the couch, Harin strained to pull Jinsung out of the capsule. However, there was no way that Harin, a female, would be able to easily pull out Jinsung¡¯s body, which was stretched out limply. ¡®Euh, he¡¯s heavier than I thought.¡¯ However, just then. Jinsung¡¯s arm, which was placed on the armrest, wrapped around Harin¡¯s waist. ¡°Uh¡­ Ohh!¡± The Harin, who was leaning towards Jinsung, instantly lost her centre of gravity and her body collapsed forward. Plop-. Along with the sound of air escaping a cushion, Harin¡¯s body slightly lied on top of Jinsung¡¯s. The pale face of a flustered Harin was tinged red like a beet. ¡®What, what the hell? He wasn¡¯t asleep?¡¯ Shortly after slightly turning her bright red face and looking at Jinsung, she couldn¡¯t help but smirk at Jinsung¡¯s snoring that rang out again. ¡®No, how long did he game for to sleep like a log?¡¯ Because Harin also saw Jinsung appear on the YTBC channel, she knew that he was doing some sort of large-scale Empire Quest. She just merely couldn¡¯t even assume that he hadn¡¯t logged off once for almost about 40 hours. ¡°Hmm, ahem.¡± Harin, who cleared her throat lowly at the awkwardness, lifted one of her legs and slightly pushed her body into the capsule. As she did so, the plush cushions of the capsule opened up and her body slipped in right next to Jinsung, and Harin, who nestled in Jinsung¡¯s arms more stably(?) than before, smiled timidly. ¡°Hehe¡­ Shall I stay here like this for a moment¡­?¡± Harin was about to slightly press her lips to Jinsung¡¯s cheek when she paused and turned her head, placing it on top of Jinsung¡¯s chest. She wanted to give Jinsung a chance(?). ¡®Still, the guy should kiss first.¡¯ Harin, who wore a satisfied smile, slightly closed her eyes. Because she had already told her family that she would be a little late at it was a festival day, she still had about one hour left. And¡­ Jinsung¡¯s new model capsule was even just as comfortable as a bed. [1] In Korea, rather than a key, there are locks with number pads, where you input the passcode to unlock the door. CH 135 Chapter 135: Title Promotion (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°For it to be a quest shared with the whole guild. This is my first time seeing something like this.¡± ¡°On top of that, it¡¯s an Empire Quest. And the Difficulty Level is double S-rank.¡± A large flag with the symbol of Kaimon Empire embroidered magnificently, and below it, the flag of Titan Guild flapping along with it. And at the head of the flag, over two hundred members of the Titan Guild were headed towards somewhere. ¡°Get ready, Emily. We¡¯re almost at Shikar Desert.¡± ¡°Yes, Shyakran.¡± Dark blood-red armor, as well as two long greatswords that hung on either side of his waist. Shyakran, who was famous as the number 1 ranker for the Warrior-class in the Korean server, entered Shikar Desert. Shikar Desert, where the common monsters¡¯ average levels were in the 130-range, was still considered a place of non-aggression for most of the users, but there was no hesitation in Shyakran¡¯s footsteps. ¡°Shyakran.¡± ¡°What.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know about Shikar Desert, but do you think that we will be able to pass through Sky Desert that will appear right after with this fighting power?¡± At Ceilron¡¯s question, Shyakran was momentarily submerged in his thoughts. ¡°Hmm.¡± Sky Desert was an area that Ian broke through with the knights of the empire during his Griffin Hatching Quest. Sky Desert was a wide desert area that surrounded Sky Highlands. Compared to Sky Highlands, it was an area with a lower rank, but despite that, as it was a tremendously dangerous place where the average level was over 150, Ceilron¡¯s worry wasn¡¯t irrational. Currently, the average level of the Titan Guild¡¯s expedition was in the late 120s. Shyakran, the Guild Master, was at an incredibly high level at over lv 140, and Ceilron, who was 2ndplace in the Knight rankings, was also at an outrageous level that was in its late 130s, but still, Sky Highlands, where it was teeming with monsters ranging from lv 150, couldn¡¯t help but be menacing. Shyakran, who finished thinking, slowly opened his mouth. ¡°Even if we detour slightly, we need to break through here. Since we need to pass through there in order to go to the central continent.¡± Emily, who was next to them, spoke with a worried expression. ¡°I think that it may have been better to have just gone over the border through the northern continent instead. If that was the case, we may have been attacked by the Luspel Empire soldiers, but I think that they could be weaker than the mummies or monks that appear in the Sky Desert instead¡­¡± At Emily¡¯s words, Shyakran shook his head. ¡°No, then it would be too late. And if we were to even get caught by a high-ranking guild of Luspel while moving, it will become troublesome.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± While walking through the desert path, where his feet sunk down to his ankles, Shyakran thought to himself. ¡®The first guild that steps onto the land of the central continent will be the Titan Guild.¡¯ Ever since the beginning when Kailan first opened, he had always dominated all of the content. He wasn¡¯t the first user to have class-changed to Warrior-class, but the one to have reached lv 50 and build the Warrior-class Tower was him, and he had even monopolized tons of fields and dungeons¡¯ first discoverers¡¯ rewards. Shyakran was a user that knew better than anyone else how big ¡®dominating¡¯ as well as the effect of ¡®good profit¡¯ that came from it was in a game. Because of that, this large update was another chance for him. ¡®Thanks to the Empire Quest I completed a couple days ago, I even collected 2 thousand Specialty Points already. We need to dominate the central continent quickly and grab benefits for the guild¡¯s level as well.¡¯ And suddenly, a user popped up in his thoughts. It was a Summoner user that recently was becoming an explosive topic of conversation within the community. And although for just a moment, it was a user he had butted swords with when he stopped by at Pascal Islands because of a quest. While thinking of Ian, the corners of Shyakran¡¯s mouth curled upwards. ¡®Ian, huh, Ian¡­ It would be nice if I could meet him again¡­¡¯ Before he met him, Shyakran had thought that the ¡®Summoner¡¯-class alone was generally a useless PvE-exclusive class. Since most of the Summoners he had met up until now were absolutely weak. However, Ian was different. Even though he had faced him with his clone that could only display half of his actual abilities, he still cornered him. ¡®It would be nice if I could meet him in the central continent. Of course, if we were to properly fight, he wouldn¡¯t be a match for me.¡¯ However, there was a part that Shyakran was thinking incorrectly on. Since the Ian that Shyakran fought at that time was also not in his complete state. At that spot, amongst Ian¡¯s Familiars, only Halli was in the battleground. In a sense, that was a penalty that was no less than Shyakran, whose main body was missing. While Shyakran was lost in his thoughts, the shout of someone in the rear-end of the guild party was heard. ¡°Enemies have appeared at the right!¡± Shyakran¡¯s head instinctively turned. And the thing that had caught his gaze was a group of monsters at around lv 140. ¡°We¡¯ll face them and then move. Everybody, get into combat formation!¡± At Shyakran¡¯s words, the users of Titan Guild moved in perfect order. And Shyakran¡¯s body shot forward quickly. ¡®Let¡¯s see, shall we warm up¡­?¡¯ ¡°Heu-aam¡­!¡± Jinsung, who woke up from his sleep, was slightly taken aback at how incredibly dark it was. This was because, no matter whether it was in the middle of the night, the lights of the streetlights should have at least leaked in, so it would be normal for him to see even a little bit in front of him, however, his view was completely pitch-black. ¡°Ah, did I fall asleep in the capsule yesterday?¡± Jinsung, who had recognized that he was inside the capsule, felt around with his hand and after finding the button, he pressed it firmly as he mumbled. ¡°I do roughly remember¡­ As soon as quest completed popped up, I think I lost consciousness right away¡­¡± Jinsung, who came out of the capsule, spread both of his arms out and stretched. ¡°Euaah- But what time is it right now? Dawn?¡± He checked the time to see it was 5 o¡¯clock in the morning. As he thought about the time that he fell asleep at yesterday, he even roughly understood. ¡°Still, I slept over 12 hours. No wonder I felt refreshed¡­¡± Jinsung¡¯s gaze momentarily turned towards the new capsule model. The interior of the old capsule model was quite comfortable as well, but the new capsule model felt as refreshing as if he actually slept on his bed and woke up. Jinsung turned his gaze towards his bed that was in one corner of his room, and mumbled to himself. ¡®Should I¡­ get rid of my bed?¡¯ Jinsung seriously contemplated. However, because he somehow felt that if he did that, he would become an undo-able(?) cripple, he decided to hold back. Jinsung, who instinctively wanted to check the rewards of the succeeded quest, was about to go back into his capsule again but stopped and stood. This was because his stomach rumbled. ¡°Ah¡­ It¡¯s even been over two days since I¡¯ve eaten¡­¡± Jinsung closed the capsule again and headed towards the kitchen. The moment he realized his hunger, an emptiness in his belly that couldn¡¯t be held back descended upon him. ¡®Hmm, but what is this smell?¡¯ Jinsung, who looked into a questionable shopping bag that was on top of the table, was momentarily flustered. This was because it contained a lunchbox that still had a slight bit of heat to it. And on top of it, there was also a memo with lovely handwriting on a small post-it note. The soup in the flask can just be eaten, while for the fried rice, heat it up for about 3 minutes in the microwave and then eat it! ¡°¡­¡± Jinsung, who read the memo, was flustered. ¡®Is it mom? No, there¡¯s no way that mom would have come and gone¡­ But if she did come and go, there¡¯s no way that I would still be alive¡­¡¯ And soon, he was able to remember Harin. ¡®It seems like Harin came and left. Did she game a little before she left?¡¯ Come to think of it, he felt like he could slightly smell Harin¡¯s perfume inside the house. Creak-. Jinsung, who pulled out a chair and sat down, opened the lunchbox and began to eat. On the note, it said to heat it up before eating, but Harin¡¯s fried rice was delicious enough even to eat on its own. ¡°Wow¡­ This is really delicious!¡± The meal that he ate for the first time in 48 hours was simply delicious, and after finishing the lunchbox in the blink of an eye, Jinsung wore a satisfied smile as he lied down on his bed. Jinsung, who grabbed his smartphone that was just thrown on the head of his bed, sent a message to Harin. Harin, I ate well! Seriously thank you¡­ T T I¡¯ll see you later at school! And before Ian even put down his smartphone. Harin¡¯s response arrived right away. I expect you to come and get me in front of the station by 3:30 in the afternoon! ¡°¡­¡± Jinsung, who saw the message, was taken aback, but he then smirked as he nodded his head. ¡°Sure, well¡­ I even got such a delicious meal like this, so why couldn¡¯t I even do that much?¡± Jinsung, whose mood brightened as much as possible, went into the capsule with light footsteps. There was still close to 9 hours left until it was 3:30 in the afternoon. * * * Welcome to the world of Kailan. Ian, who listened to the familiar login notification as he logged onto the game, looked around. ¡®It¡¯s the personal bedroom of the Lord. Since I was forcibly logged out, it looks like I was moved over here.¡¯ Ian, who got up, opened his information window first of all and began to check the rewards. The first thing that caught his eye was his Fame. ¡®Keu, my Fame is now over 7 digits now.¡¯ His fame that he had accumulated up until now was at 1.2 million. Ian wore a pleased expression. ¡®If it¡¯s this much, shouldn¡¯t it be alright to promote up to a viscount now?¡¯ The amount of Fame that was consumed when a baron promoted to a viscount was 800 thousand. However, to promote himself when he had exactly about 800 thousand Fame was not a good choice. This was because if the Fame that the Lord had was low, the Loyalty of the retainers would drop, and their public sentiment value would decrease. Before he did this Empire Quest, Ian¡¯s Fame was nothing more than 850 thousand. However, because he still had 200 thousand Fame remaining even after promoting right now where he had over 1 million Fame, he felt there wouldn¡¯t be a big problem. Ian opened his information window and went into the title promotion tab. ¡®Yeah, let¡¯s promote.¡¯ Either way, the viscount title was mandatory even for the promotion to Large Domain, which was the next level after Domain-rank. Ian pressed the promotion button without hesitation. Along with that, a system message popped up. As he saw that it popped up as a green message, it looked as if it was one that was sent to all of his guild members. User ¡®Lord¡¯ Ian¡¯s title has been promoted from ¡®Baron¡¯ to ¡®Viscount¡¯.As the title of the Lord has been promoted a level higher, the guild¡¯s Fame has increased by 10 thousand.As the title of the Lord has increased, the Territory¡¯s public sentiment has increased by 5. The system messages were listed all at once. And as the green messages ended, white messages that appeared only for Ian popped up. As your title has been promoted, the maximum number of NPCs you can register as your retainers has increased by 5.As your title has increased, the Loyalty of your retainers has increased by 5. Ian, who read through the messages, suddenly became curious about something after seeing the content that the Loyalty of his retainers had increased. ¡®What were the Loyalties of my retainers originally at?¡¯ Ian opened the information window that was in his retainer list, and began to check each Loyalty. Retainer List (Loyalty) The maximum for Loyalty is 100. Celia Level: 110 / Class: Summoner / Rank: Heroic Loyalty: 98 Mallaim Level: 107 / Class: Warrior / Rank: Rare Loyalty: 85 Tenpus Level: 114 / Class: Priest / Rank: Common Loyalty: 82 Cerius Level: 109 / Class: Magician / Rank: Unique Loyalty: 90 Loreuten Level: 110 / Class: Warrior / Rank: Rare Loyalty: 85 Kaizar Level: 246 / Class: Warrior / Rank: Mythological Loyalty: 5 ¡®As expected, the more you pay attention to them, the higher the Loyalty¡­¡¯ The retainer that Ian paid most attention to before he appointed Kaizar was Celia, who had the highest rank. And as expected, Cerius, who was the next highest rank, had the highest Loyalty after Celia. Ian, who saw that, was stung internally. ¡®Was I a little materialistic?¡¯ While slightly self-reflecting(?), the expression of Ian, who checked the last of the retainer list, couldn¡¯t help but wrinkle immediately. ¡°¡­ As expected, he wasn¡¯t just calling me Lord guy without a reason.¡± The Loyalty of his new retainer, Kaizar, was at 5. Even this was Loyalty that formed because Ian was just promoted to Viscount, so his original Loyalty was at 0. Ian suddenly became nervous. ¡®What should I do if Kaizar even wreaks havoc by chance?¡¯ If his Loyalty was at about 5, it was a value low enough that it wouldn¡¯t be weird if he was to strike a blow onto the back of Ian¡¯s head in the middle of hunting. For a moment, a cold sweat dripped down Ian¡¯s spine. ¡®If Kaizar was to strike a blow onto the back of my head, it will probably be game over for me right away¡­¡¯ Kaizar, the retainer that was more fearful than smallpox! Ian shook his head as he moved his feet in order to leave the room of the Lord. Creaak-. And the moment he opened the bedroom door. ¡°Viscount, are you feeling alright?¡± Ian heard a familiar voice, and Ian¡¯s gaze naturally turned towards the direction it came from. ¡°Hmm?¡± The person that called Ian was none other than Paulean. ¡®No, why is Paulean here?¡¯ Wearing a puzzled expression, Ian asked Paulean. ¡°No, Sir Paulean, why are you here¡­?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Paulean lightly showed his manners as he courteously held out a scroll made with red fabric towards Ian. ¡°This is a letter that His Majesty said to give to you once you woke up.¡± And as Ian took it, Paulean¡¯s words continued again. ¡°And His Majesty has commanded for me to serve you from now on.¡± Chuk-. Paulean showed his manners again with a disciplined motion. Following that, a system message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring-. ¡®Thunder and Lightning Knight Paulean¡¯ wishes to become your retainer. CH 136 Chapter 136: Title Promotion (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Wiiing-. Jinsung, who roughly dried his hair with a blow-dryer, quickly changed his clothes and left the house in order to meet with Harin. ¡®As expected, I think it was a blessing to have been born a guy.¡¯ The time it took for Jinsung to get ready to go out including his shower was a short time of a little less than 15 minutes. If he was a girl, it was a short time where he wouldn¡¯t have even been able to wash out all the shampoo bubbles in his hair. If that was the case, Jinsung may have not even moved a foot from inside the capsule at all. ¡®It looked like the weather has gotten quite chilly¡­¡¯ Jinsung, who rummaged through his closet and threw on the department jacket he was pressured to buy in the beginning of the year, walked towards the station with light footsteps. There was still quite a bit of time left until the time he was supposed to meet with Harin. ¡°Shall I buy some custard cream buns on my way there?¡± Suddenly remembering the custard cream buns that Harin liked, he went into a bakery that was at the entrance of an alleyway before he arrived at the station. Ding-ding-. However, at that place, Jinsung was able to meet an unexpected person. ¡°Caught you!¡± It was no other than Yoohyun. He had run into Yoohyun, who happened to stop by the bakery on his way to school. ¡°What? What do you mean you caught me? What are you talking about?¡± While glaring at Jinsung, who asked with a flustered expression, Yoohyun¡¯s words continued. ¡°I¡¯m going to kidnap you to school no matter what today. Don¡¯t even think about going back home again.¡± At Yoohyun¡¯s determined words, Jinsung smirked. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, dude. I came out to go to school anyways.¡± However, Yoohyun¡¯s doubt didn¡¯t disappear so easily. ¡°Don¡¯t make me laugh. Do you think I don¡¯t know? Based on the fact that you came to the bakery, you¡¯ve run out of bread. You got hungry while gaming.¡± Yoohyun¡¯s reasoning was quite sharp, but Jinsung was really dejected. ¡°Ah, no. I¡¯m telling you, I¡¯m supposed to meet with Harin at the station. I¡¯m going to school with Harin. Don¡¯t worry.¡± Yoohyun¡¯s two eyes, which were bleary, immediately rounded. ¡°Huh? You¡¯re meeting up with Harin?¡± And the corners of Yoohyun¡¯s mouth slyly turned upwards. ¡°This, this. So you came out to pick up Harin?¡± Jinsung responded with a bitter expression. ¡°That, that¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Ooh¡­¡± Yoohyun carefully approached Jinsung¡¯s ear and asked carefully. ¡°Are you guys dating now?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ That¡­¡± Jinsung wore an embarrassed expression. At that, Yoohyun shook his head and clucked his tongue. ¡°Tsk, tsk, be honest now.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You¡¯re¡­ an eunuch, right?¡± At Yoohyun¡¯s attack that was sharp enough to go to the heart, Jinsung became as dumb as an oyster. ¡°How can you say such¡­!¡± ¡°You can¡¯t deny it.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s because I¡¯m so dumbfounded. Why are you making a normal person an eunuch?¡± ¡°No, if you¡¯re not an eunuch, then why are you still not able to confess when a girl as pretty as Harin treats you so well?¡± For a moment, Jinsung wasn¡¯t able to find the words to retort back. ¡°Ha, what to do with this stifling dude.¡± While looking at Yoohyun, who sighed as if it was his job as they left the bakery, Jinsung flew into a rage. ¡°Yo, then what about you? On the topic of you, a solo as well. Solos shouldn¡¯t be like that to each other.¡± At Jinsung¡¯s words full of depression, Yoohyun wore a smile of satisfaction. ¡°What? Who did you say was a solo?¡± ¡°You. I¡¯m talking about you.¡± ¡°Hoo-hoot.¡± Yoohyun, who wore the smile of a winner, took the lead as he walked and laughed at Jinsung. ¡°Hyung[1] is no longer a solo now, dude.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Those were indeed words that was the same as a bolt out of the blue. However, it was then. From far away, he saw a somehow familiar-looking silhouette headed towards them. ¡°Yoohyun!¡± A voice dripping with honey. Jinsung, who checked the main character of the voice was shocked. ¡°No¡­ No way?¡± ¡°Huhu, I¡¯ve been dating Mina since a couple of days ago, Jinsung.¡± For a moment, at the sense of loss that surged forward like a tsunami, Jinsung dropped the bread bag that he was holding onto the ground. Plop- Mina, who was a colleague in the same VR Department, and Yoohyun, who he thought was in the same solo unit as him, weren¡¯t satisfied with just being a couple, and had become a department CC[2]. ¡°¡­¡± To Jinsung, who stood with a dazed expression, Yoohyun distanced himself after leaving one last word. ¡°Hyung¡¯s going to go ahead first, dude. You need to come to school holding Harin¡¯s hand! You can¡¯t go back home!¡± Yoohyun didn¡¯t forget his request until the end. Jinsung mumbled with a dispirited expression. ¡°For Yoohyun to have left¡­¡± * * * The two eyes of Carwin, who was in charge(?) of greeting for the Lotus Guild, had become sunken in from checking all of the application for admission, which were piled high, ¡°Wow, the influence of the trailer videos was seriously big. No matter how many I see, there¡¯s no end.¡± The Lotus Guild, which had gotten to quite a high rank now, usually had gotten an endless amounts of applications for admission. However, just from the last couple of days, they had received 2 thousand applications for admission. The fact that they went as far as raising the level restriction to 90, which was quite high, was even more surprising. ¡°Should I just raise the level restriction to about 110?¡± First cutting off all users that were below lv 100, Carwin sighed continuously while staring at the applications for admission mails, which there were still hundreds of remaining. However, because Carwin himself, who was in the executive team, was in the lv 110-range, that would be unfair. ¡°Let¡¯s see here, the number of remaining spots in the guild now is¡­¡± The total number of people in Lotus Guild (225/250) Before the territory system opened up, unrelated to whether a guild¡¯s rank was high or low, a guild¡¯s total number of people was limited to 200 people no matter what. However, with the creation of the base system, whenever there was an additional base possessed by a guild, the maximum number of guild members that could be accepted expanded. Of course, the maximum number of guild members expandable wasn¡¯t just with the number of bases owned, but also applied with the rank. Currently, the Lotus Guild¡¯s base was one place, the Lotus Domain, at a ¡®Domain¡¯-rank. A base at a Domain-rank increased the maximum number of guild members by 50, and because of that, the maximum number of guild members that could be recruited into Lotus Guild right now was 250 people. ¡°Since we¡¯ll be able to merge Ollibus Village tomorrow or the day after as well¡­¡± If Ollibus Village, which was a Village-rank, became a base belonging to the guild, the maximum number of people would increase by 25 more people, and if that was the case, then there would be quite a bit of leeway. Carwin rubbed his bleary eyes as he began to thoroughly read through each and every mail. ¡°Whew¡­ I should ask Fiolan to help with interviews.¡± Once they filtered through for the last time, the majority remaining would be users in the lv 100-110 range, and with a level difference like that, it was more important to figure out whether they were a user that would fit with the guild well rather than if they were one or two more levels higher. Because of that, an interview was essential. Carwin, who became even more exhausted at the thought of interviews, let out a deep sigh as he mumbled. ¡°This break, I¡¯m going to go up to Seoul and get the hyungs to buy me food no matter what.¡± ¡°Park Jinsung, Park Jinsung!¡± ¡°Whoaa, it¡¯s Ian! Ian went to our school!¡± The auditorium of Korea University. And in that large auditorium, ten VR capsules were arranged in the middle. That incredible cheer poured out to Jinsung, who went in and was preparing for the game. ¡°No, how do they know my ID?¡± To Jinsung, who still didn¡¯t know the fact that his face was prominently sold to the game broadcast, it was a flustering enough situation. ¡°Ha, because it¡¯s so loud, I wonder if I¡¯ll even be able to focus on the game.¡± Jinsung grumbled as he closed the lid of the capsule. Whooo-! The incredible excitement could be felt even inside the sealed capsule. Of course, it wasn¡¯t like the excitement of the E-sports competition against the departments was this incredible. Someone began to recognize Jinsung¡¯s expanded face that popped on the main screen of the auditorium, and with that as the beginning, the atmosphere began to bubble up. The VR Department students, who were sitting on one side of the auditorium, wore pleased expressions as they began to watch the match. ¡°Yo, Yoohyun, what number is this match?¡± ¡°Right now¡­ Since we¡¯ve beat the Physical Education Department and the Business Administration Department, it¡¯s the third one.¡± ¡°Then if we just win this one, is it the semi-finals?¡± ¡°Yes. I think so.¡± ¡°Keu¡­¡± Sewon¡¯s gaze turned towards the box of spirits that were piled on one side of the auditorium. ¡°Then we can have a hearty drink, right, Yoohyun?¡± Yoohyun nodded his head as he clenched his fist tightly. ¡°Of course. From what I see, Jinsung, that dude, he hasn¡¯t even warmed up.¡± ¡°What? Really?¡± Right now, the game that Jinsung was out playing as a representative of the VR Department was an AOS[3] genre game that was an incredible sensation for a while. The first AOS game that had VR systems grafted into it, League of Chaos. AOS games were games that proceeded with the method of five users on each team, ending up with a total of ten users, and they had to attack their opponents camp within a fixed map, but the AOS genre in VR had a different feeling from when it was the pre-existing PC AOS game. When AOS games were PC games, there was a limit when a user controlled a character. No matter how exceptional of a user they were, it seemed like they were gaming while using a mouse and keyboard, and unrelated to the user¡¯s abilities, it was a structure where if they used the same skill, it couldn¡¯t help but deal the same amount of damage. However, AOSs in VR weren¡¯t like that. With combat in VR, depending on the development of one powerful person¡¯s control, the ¡®control¡¯ element acted that importantly that they could even win matches 5:1. Even if they were to use the same attack skill, depending on where they hit and how exactly they timed it, the damage dealt varied incredibly. And in the last two matches that were just held, Jinsung showed his simply overwhelming abilities. He was literally carrying a game that involved 5 people with just his own strength. However, at Yoohyun¡¯s words, who thought that he was still not completely warmed up even now, Sewon turned his gaze towards the screen with an expression full of anticipation. ¡°Alright, show them what you¡¯ve got this time as well, Jinsung!¡± Their opponent this time was the Computer Science Department, who were known as quite a strong team. However, thanks to Jinsung, who showed the difference with his overwhelming abilities in the last two matches, no one in the VR Department was thinking of losing. ¡°I was a little anxious because Seungchan is a hole, but Jinsung even covers that hole and more.¡± At Sewon¡¯s excited words, Yoohyun nodded his head. ¡°You bet. He¡¯s a dude that even received an offer to play pro in high school. Of course, his mother flatly cut him off¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡± While the two people talked, the game started, and the atmosphere of the auditorium began to burn up even more. Jinsung¡¯s position in the AOS game was mid. As he was the core attacker of the team, who could move up or down whenever he wanted while he cared for the team, it was the position that shown the most in the AOS game. And as if he was trying to meet the expectations of the VR Department¡¯s students, within just 3 minutes of the game starting, Jinsung grabbed the first kill point. Perfect blood! User ¡®Jinsung¡¯ of the Undead Team has gotten the first kill point! Along with that, Jinsung¡¯s face showed up on the screen for a moment, and cheering voices burst out from all directions! However, that was just the beginning. ¡°What, what the hell? How are such movements possible there?¡± ¡°No, how can someone¡¯s reflexive speed be like that? Is that a human?¡± Exclamations full of astonishment popped up from here and there. Jinsung easily showed plays that were only theoretically possible as if he was eating a meal as he began to oppress the opponent team. Triple kill! User ¡®Jinsung¡¯ is running amuck! The hero that Jinsung was playing was one that had a skill format with a feeling similar to a mixture of a Magician and Assassin if compared to classes of an RPG game. With a teleportation skill with a comparably short cooldown time, as well as a time restoring skill that could make a ton of variables. However, as its Vitality was incredibly low, if there was even a slight control miss, it was also a weak character that could die just like that. ¡®However, if I don¡¯t get hit, that¡¯s all.¡¯ While remembering the words that Jinsung lived off of while they played League of Chaos, Yoohyun smirked. ¡°Woow, he climbed that wall and went over there!¡± ¡°No, how did he know that they were there and shoot a prediction shot? Are you sure he¡¯s not map-hacking?¡± Jinsung stirred the battlefield like a fish that met water. The game was entering the middle phase before they realized, and through the kill points that he collected so far, Jinsung had become an incredibly strong person to the point he was untouchable. Double kill! Triple kill-! Whenever Jinsung¡¯s skill shot out, the Computer Science Department¡¯s players turned into a grey light without doubt. Quadra kill! As the ¡®Quadra kill¡¯ message, which appeared when four out of the five opponent heroes were killed one after another, popped up, the students of the VR Department¡¯s students stood up simultaneously. Yoohyun shouted out of excitement. ¡°Let¡¯s go, Penta kill!¡± And the white ray of light that shot out from both of Jinsung¡¯s hands penetrated through the back of the neck of the last remaining Computer Science Department¡¯s player before it passed by. Penta kill! ¡®Jinsung¡¯, he is a legend. [1] Hyung = what a younger male calls a related or close, older male. [2] CC = ¡°Campus Couple¡± [3] AOS = Aeon of Strife. The more well-known acronym/definition would be MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena), which is a game genre including DOTA, League of Legends, etc. I wasn¡¯t sure how many people would know, as I definitely didn¡¯t, so I thought I would just include it here even though it kind of gives an explanation in the chapter. CH 137 TaMa Chapter 137 Large Ferocious Battle (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Kaizar and Paulean¡¯s existences were merits that were close to a ¡®cheat key¡¯ in a package game given to Ian. However, it wasn¡¯t like there were no problems either. ¡°Retainer, we need to go do a defensive territory battle¡­ Can you not help us?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to. It¡¯s too bothersome.¡± Kaizar lied on the pavilion in the backyard of the Domain Manor and was taking a nap. In order to persuade him, Ian spread out his logic diligently. ¡°No, if we get our territory taken from us, you can¡¯t even lie down there. Mustn¡¯t we defend it?¡± However, it was inadequate in moving Kaizar. ¡°Go, Lord guy. Go quickly, and protect my sleeping spot.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Like a plaster cast that was displayed in a museum, he didn¡¯t even budge an inch from his original posture as he remained lying down. In the end, Ian couldn¡¯t help but give up and leave for the defensive territory battle. ¡°Preparations are complete, Lord.¡± Still, while looking at Paulean, who faithfully completed his commands, Ian was comforted. ¡®That¡¯s right, At least I have Paulean. Even if just Paulean helped, there probably won¡¯t be a case where we lose in a territory war.¡¯ Ian, who was buoyant with the dream that he would sweep up territory wars with the central continent¡¯s bases accompanied by Kaizar, nodded his head with a disappointed expression. ¡°Alright, Paulean, let¡¯s go.¡± * * * It was the first defensive territory war in a while. Without having to drag it on long, the Lotus Guild succeeded in defending their territory within just three matches. Their opponent guild was a guild that was even weaker than the Polaris Guild from a while ago, and the Lotus Guild, who had gathered up a lot of strength in the meantime, had succeeded in defending without even getting the chance to use all of their fighting power. On top of that, the day that the defensive territory war ended, the requirements for Ollibus Village were met and the merge happened together as well. You have succeeded in absorbing Ollibus Village (Rank: Village) as a territory of the Lotus Guild.You can decide the name of the base. (If you do not decide a name, the name ¡®Ollibus¡¯ will automatically be kept.) Ian momentarily thought about what to name it. Herz, who saw that, fired a needle. ¡°Yo, don¡¯t. The name Ollibus is fine, so why are you trying to make a new name for it? You trying to give it a name like Bbookbbook?¡± At Herz¡¯s words, Bbookbbook, who was lying down like a bump on a log, turned his gaze. Glare-. However, Herz wasn¡¯t fazed, and Ian frankly agreed as he nodded his head. ¡°Alright. Then we¡¯ll leave the name as is, I guess.¡± As he confirmed the name as Ollibus, system messages continuously popped up. A leader of ¡®Ollibus¡¯ Village is required.Please select a user amongst your guild members who will become the leader of Ollibus Village. Ian turned his head to look at Herz. ¡°Yo, do you want to do it?¡± At those words, Herz shook his head as he replied. ¡°No, let¡¯s give it to Kroban hyung[1]. It¡¯s still going to take me a little bit to get a title. Since Kroban hyung is the only one with a title right now, if we appoint that hyung as leader, then we¡¯ll be able to raise Ollibus to a Domain-rank soon as well.¡± ¡°Oh, you haven¡¯t received a title yet?¡± ¡°Yeah. I think it will most likely happen within the next few weeks.¡± After completing a couple more smaller settings outside of that, along with Kroban¡¯s appointment as Ollibus¡¯ village head, reward messages popped up. As the Lotus Guild¡¯s base size has expanded, the guild¡¯s Fame has increased by 10 thousand.As there are two bases that belong to Lotus Guild, the Lotus Domain has been designated as the ¡®core base¡¯.The trade between Lotus Domain and Ollibus Village has been invigorated.Culture Points have increased by 15.Economy Points have increased by 15. While looking at the variety of supplementary productivity improvements that additionally continued, Ian wore a pleased expression. ¡®Shall we check the requirements needed in order to promote to a Large Domain?¡¯ And as he opened the information tab, the promotion requirements in order to become a Large Domain popped up. [Box] Requirements for the Promotion to ¡®Large Domain¡¯ status The level of the core base¡¯s leader user must be 130 or higher. The title of the core base¡¯s leader user must be ¡®Viscount¡¯ or higher. There must be 3 or more bases affiliated with the guild. All of the bases affiliated with the guild must be ¡®Domain¡¯-rank or higher. The guild Fame must be 500 thousand or higher. Herz, who checked the promotion requirements with Ian, examined them one by one. ¡°How picky. Firstly, the first requirement is¡­¡± Herz turned his gaze towards Ian. ¡°That you need to be lv 130 or higher, so what level are you at right now?¡± ¡°127. I think I¡¯ll most likely reach 128 soon.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Herz, who was about to appeal that they weren¡¯t even close with the first requirement yet, wore a flustered expression. ¡°Yo, it hasn¡¯t even been that long since you hit lv 120, so how are you already lv 127? How exactly do you level up?¡± And Ian responded with an expression as if it was no big deal. ¡°I rolled around a little doing an Empire Quest¡­ Anyways, I just need to hit lv 130 soon, so let¡¯s think about the other requirements instead.¡± Herz momentarily wore a dumbfounded expression. ¡°Sure, well, it isn¡¯t the first or second time that I¡¯ve been thrown off because of you, anyways¡­¡± However, shortly after, he accepted the situation and continued his words. ¡°Since you¡¯re a Viscount, we¡¯ve satisfied the second requirement.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ If we combine the third and fourth requirements, we need to have three bases that are all Domain-rank or higher, so if we just expand with one more place, then this one¡¯s all set. Since Ollibus will become a Domain-rank soon.¡± Ian nodded his head as he replied. ¡°That¡¯s right. The most urgent thing right now is increasing our bases by one more, and the second thing that we need to do is raise our guild Fame. What is our guild Fame at right now?¡± ¡°It¡¯s at 420 thousand.¡± ¡°For about 80 thousand, will doing about 20 guild wars be enough¡­?¡± While looking at Ian, who spoke as if it was insignificant, Herz wore a dumbfounded expression. ¡°Yo, it¡¯s not if we do it 20 times, but could you correct it to that we need to win 20 times consecutively?¡± However, there was no change in Ian¡¯s expression. ¡°That, well¡­ We just need to win.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°And I also have another method of raising our guild Fame.¡± ¡°What kind of method¡­?¡± Ian grinned as he opened his mouth. ¡°Advancement into the central continent.¡± ¡°What¡­? You need to be able to get through the Wasteland and Shikar Desert in order to get there.¡± At Herz¡¯s counter-question, Ian rummaged through his inventory as he pulled something out. And the thing in his hand was a luxurious scroll that was made with red cloth. As he opened it up, Ian added on. ¡°If it¡¯s with the royal guards of the empire, then it¡¯s possible.¡± * * * ¡°Lord, the Guild Master is calling for you.¡± The Oaklan Guild, who were fiercely competing with the Splendor Guild for 3rd and 4th place in the Korean server¡¯s guild rankings. Because the DarkRuna Guild and the Titan Guild, who held 1st and 2nd place, were affiliated with the Kaimon Empire, in reality, the Oaklan Guild was no different from being the strongest guild amongst the guilds affiliated with the Luspel Empire. And ¡®Limlong¡¯, the one in 1st place in the Assassin user rankings, was in the executive team of this Oaklan Guild. As he was only in the early lv 120s, he was over 10 levels lower in comparison to the top users in the Oaklan Guild, but thanks to the fact that he was 1st place in the rankings for one whole class, and he was born with a combat sense, Limlong took position as a user that was quite influential even within the Oaklan Guild. ¡°Understood. I will go immediately.¡± ¡®Samuel Jin¡¯, the Guild Master of the Oaklan Guild, was a high-level user that shone as 1st place in the Archer-class rankings. If the style of Shyakran, the Master of Titan Guild and 1st place in the Warrior-class rankings, was leading the guild with his natural-born combat sense and charisma, then Samuel Jin was a person that was almost opposite that. It didn¡¯t mean that he had a lower combat sense, but rather than internal gaming abilities, Samuel Jin¡¯s abilities made him a leader that lead his guild using his insight and intelligence, as well as his strategies. And Limlong had received high praise from Samuel Jin, who was like this, and was being taken in. This was a part that could be realized just from seeing the fact that he gave a leadership position for one of the five bases that were affiliated with Oaklan Guild to Limlong. ¡°Jin, I heard you were looking for me.¡± After discovering Limlong, who had entered the manor, Samuel Jin greeted him with a welcoming expression. ¡°Oh, Limlong, you¡¯ve come.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that the departure for the expedition is two hours from now? Did something happen¡­¡± At Limlong¡¯s words, Samuel Jin shook his head as he spoke. ¡°It¡¯s not like there is something going on. I just obtained some information. ¡°What kind¡­?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the information that the expeditions of DarkRuna Guild and Titan Guild have already approached the central continent.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± In order to enter the central continent, they needed to get through Shikar Desert and Sky Highlands. That was no different for the guilds affiliated with Kaimon Empire entering from the east, or the guilds affiliated with Luspel Empire that were entering from the west. Since the desert spread out endlessly on either side of the central continent. ¡°How were they able to get through in such a short time?¡± ¡°It looks like they entered by force even if they had to put up with some damage. No matter how strong their fighting power is, I believe that they would have received quite a bit of damage.¡± The Oaklan Guild had proceeded to thoroughly prepare earlier in order to enter the central continent. They had prepared enough food for all of the guild members to withstand over a month, and in the meantime, they released all of the goods that they had stocked up and set up all of the equipment of their guild members to the highest level. On the other hand, the Titan or DarkRuna Guild most likely entered immediately after the Large Update finished. ¡°Hmm¡­ For preoccupancy, it seems they put up with the risks.¡± Samuel Jin nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. Their choice was also quite a good choice, but if looked at in the long run, they will regret it.¡± Limlong asked with a puzzled expression. ¡°Why¡¯s that? Firstly, if they have at least penetrated into the central continent, couldn¡¯t they preoccupy the bases in the central continent and just allocate resources including food there?¡± Samuel Jin grinned as he shook his head. ¡°No, they will probably not be able to do that.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°The ground in the central continent is incredibly barren. In order to allocate resources there, it will at least take a couple months.¡± However, even despite that explanation, Limlong still had questions. ¡°The northern continent was cold and barren at first. However, I remember it being able to supply and demand quite a bit of resources in its own way¡­¡± Samuel Jin shook his head. ¡°The northern and central continents are different.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°It¡¯s similar in infertility, but in the northern continent, there were NPCs that resided there originally, while on the other hand, in the central continent, there¡¯s absolutely nothing.¡± Limlong, who was finally convinced by his words completely, nodded his head. ¡°Ah-ha¡­ In that case, there will definitely be a problem.¡± ¡°Most likely, both the Titan guys and the DarkRuna guys. They will suffer a little, huhu.¡± ¡°Then, how do you plan on moving now?¡± Samuel Jin¡¯s words continued. ¡°We will move much later than our plan. To be honest, I called you over in order to say this.¡± Limlong wore a confused expression again. Samuel Jin¡¯s words continued. ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± ¡°This is because other guilds in the Luspel camp have begun to quickly move after hearing the information that the Kaimon Empire camp has arrived first.¡± After taking a moment to breath, his words continued. ¡°We will follow right behind the path that the other guilds have created, and minimize the damage received as much as possible, while entering the central continent. This is because no matter how quickly we move at this point, we won¡¯t be able to arrive quicker than the DarkRuna guys or the Titans anyways.¡± Simply put, he was saying that in a situation where first profit was impossible that they shouldn¡¯t overdo it and go with a method where they could be more relaxed and minimize the damage. However, there were two variables that Samuel Jin didn¡¯t think of. The first was the existence of the new commodity called ¡®Specialty Points¡¯. The second was the fact that there could even be a user that arrived in the central continent before the Titan Guild and the DarkRuna Guild. [1] Hyung = what a younger male calls a related or close, older male. CH 138 Chapter 138: Large Ferocious Battle (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Inside the imperial estate of Luspel Empire, the imperial family¡¯s magic tower that the imperial family¡¯s magicians resided in existed. And right in front of that magical tower, there was a large empty lot, and this spot was the location where the imperial family¡¯s magicians tested large-scale magic as well as the place where they cased AoE Teleport magic. And currently at this spot, including Ian and the Lotus Guild members, hundreds of royal knights of the imperial family stood there. ¡°So, you¡¯re saying only a total of 100 people can be moved, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, Viscount Ian.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a little iffy¡­¡± AoE Teleport was high-rank magic that could teleport several people to a designated coordinate all at once. The fact that it needed an enormous amount of mana was an obvious, and because whenever the number of people that needed to be moved increased or if the distance grew further, the required mana increased exponentially, so it was also restrictive magic. ¡°Still, I think it was a great idea that we found out the coordinates of Sky Highlands that time.¡± At Hellaim¡¯s words, Ian nodded his head. ¡°No kidding. Since it is an advantage that we can even move to Sky Highlands all at once.¡± After promoting to a Viscount, even Hellaim, the leader of the royal knights of the imperial family, he treated Ian like an aristocrat. That was quite satisfying. Ian turned and looked at Herz. ¡°Yoohyun, by the looks of it, I think it would be best to just stick in about 10 people from our guild.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Then do the rest of the people need to join with the empire expedition and come as the second party?¡± If there was a limit of 100 people for moving, then it was definite that it should be formed with the strongest fighting power. Since they have no idea what kind of dangers will lurk in the central continent. The guild members of the Lotus Guild that applied for the expedition were mostly over lv 110, but by the look of it, compared to the lv 150-range royal knights of the imperial family, it was the truth that they were weak. Ian was planning on taking a couple executives including Herz and Fiolan that were close to or over lv 120. ¡®If I join the advance party this time and go over, then I¡¯ll be able to obtain a huge amount of EXP¡­ But since there¡¯s no meaning if I just grow alone now.¡¯ Ian and Herz carefully selected the ten people that would join the advance party in the AoE Teleport. This was because if all of the executives just joined, then there would be no one to lead the second party. ¡°Let¡¯s have Kroban hyung[1] and Carwin lead the second party then.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Kroban nodded his head. ¡°Okay, we¡¯ll do that.¡± ¡°And drag over all the soldiers that are over lv 100 amongst the soldiers in Ollibus Domain and Lotus Domain as well.¡± At those words, Kroban asked back with a slightly worried expression. ¡°Then wouldn¡¯t it be a little dangerous for the domains?¡± ¡°No. Since there isn¡¯t a single domain affiliated with Kaimon Empire around us anymore now anyways, and even so, the Defensive Power of the domain isn¡¯t weak enough to suffer from a weak guild that doesn¡¯t even have a territory.¡± When the northern continent first opened up, because guilds affiliated with either empire took over bases all at the same time, a couple of territories affiliated with Kaimon Empire existed even around the Lotus Domain. However, as time passed, eventually all of the territories closely located with Luspel Empire were taken over at last by high-rank guilds affiliated with Luspel Empire or the Luspel Empire¡¯s expedition and had found stability. You could say that something like an empire border had formed even in the northern continent. In a situation like this, the territory wars that Lotus Guild needed to be careful of were challenges from guilds that were affiliated with Luspel Empire as well who didn¡¯t have territories yet, but the Defensive Power of the Lotus Domain had gotten to a point that it could block off a challenge like that without much difficulty. At Ian¡¯s words, Kroban nodded his head as he replied. ¡°Alright. Then, take care, Viscount Ian.¡± Kroban grinned as he responded, and the slightly untidy premises were organized quickly and accurately. ¡°Alright, then shall we go now?¡± As about 100 people were evenly lined up in the vacant lot, Ian sent a signal to the chief magician, and along with that, a large magic square began to be drawn. Whoong-. Because it was a marvelous scene that the Lotus Guild members, excluding Ian, were seeing for the first time, all of their eyes rounded. ¡°Ooh, this is cool.¡± At Herz¡¯s words, Ian burst out into laughter. ¡°It won¡¯t be that cool in a moment.¡± ¡°What do¡­?¡± However, before he could finish speaking, Herz was able to find out what Ian¡¯s words meant. Piiing-! Their sight was engulfed in a white flash of light as it began to spin. In the middle of the dizziness that hit him without a forewarning, Herz cried. ¡°Argh, you should have told me sooner!¡± And shortly after. The advance party of 100 people that were lined up in the wide, open space disappeared from the spot like a mirage. * * * The place that the advance party had teleported to was the Sky Altar that the Griffins were hatched at. The advance party of 100 people began to appear one by one on top of the altar, and the ones that arrived first were Ian and Kaizar. ¡°It feels so new. To think that I would step foot on this land again.¡± To Kaizar, who was looking around his surroundings and mumbling in a low voice, Ian asked with a puzzled voice. ¡°Retainer, it seems you¡¯ve come here before.¡± Ian¡¯s words had grown slightly shorter and shorter. Ian, who was slightly nervous even after speaking, examined Kaizar¡¯s reaction, but it looked as if he didn¡¯t care much. ¡°10 years ago. Before the judgment of the Kailan Goddess was made, this place was hell.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± ¡°Each and every day was a series of war, and Luspel and Kaimon struggled in order to swallow each other up. The result of that, there was even a time their Capitals were in danger as well.¡± Ian had asked without much thought, but after hearing Kaizar¡¯s story, he was moved by interest. ¡°But retainer, didn¡¯t you say you were a commoner? How did you end up fighting for Luspel Empire¡¯s side?¡± After Kaizar unsheathed his sword and held it up, he moved forward with big strides as he answered. ¡°I was a mercenary.¡± ¡°I see.¡± However, at that moment, while looking at Kaizar who was about to jump down out of the altar, Ian was taken aback. ¡°No, retainer! How can you just move alone like that? I¡¯m telling you, this is Sky Highlands.¡± Ian had already experienced the fears of Sky Highlands. Ian, who remembered the Pachyao, the lv 180-range giant desert tiger, and the Teranodon, the lizard that was close to lv 200, stopped Kaizar, but Kaizar wasn¡¯t fazed. ¡°Lord guy, do you know?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°That the meat of the Pachyao is that delicious. I¡¯ll grill it for you a little later.¡± ¡°¡­¡± With a whoosh, Kaizar jumped down outside of the altar, which was about 3-4 floors high of a building. Ian shook his head, and during that time, all of the people arrived at the altar. Hellaim approached Ian as he asked. ¡°Viscount, where did Kaizar go?¡± At that, Ian let out a deep sigh. ¡°He says that he wants to eat Pachyao meat.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Kaizar wasn¡¯t someone that Ian could control anyways, and as Hellaim also knew that well, he didn¡¯t say anything else. ¡°But, Sir Hellaim.¡± ¡°Please ask, Viscount.¡± ¡°Kaizar¡­ It wouldn¡¯t be dangerous for him to go out alone, right?¡± Ian speculated that Kaizar and Hellaim¡¯s forces were similar. As he wasn¡¯t able to check Hellaim¡¯s level yet, it wasn¡¯t accurate, but based on the two people¡¯s relationship and circumstances, he was able to speculate like that. However, from what Ian remembered, even Hellaim moved carefully in this Sky Highlands, he had asked. Hellaim, who figured out Ian¡¯s mind, laughed as he replied. ¡°There probably will not be an existence that is dangerous enough for Kaizar or me in Sky Highlands at the least. Relax. Last time, I needed to protect the Griffin egg, so I just moved carefully.¡± ¡°Ah-ha¡­¡± And Hellaim, who had turned around, let out a command to the knights that were lined up before they realized. ¡°We will enter the central continent as fast as possible.¡± * * * ¡°Huhuhut, Euhahahat!¡± A black robe that was long enough to drag along the ground, as well as a staff with a dark light at the end that let off a dark energy. Kanjihoonie, who calls himself the strongest Black Magician, wore a nervous expression as he stepped foot into the Sky Desert that was in front of his eyes. ¡®The first one to have discovered Sky Desert is probably me, right? Keuheuheu¡­ I wonder what will come up as the reward for the field¡¯s first discoverer.¡¯ Kanjihoonie, who was way ahead of himself, calmed his pounding heart and checked the message window. And a system message popped up. However¡­ You have entered Sky Desert.Due to the hot and dry climate of the desert, your movements have been slowed by 1%. Hoonie wore a flustered expression. ¡°I¡¯m¡­ Not the first?¡± In an instant, a sense of loss flooded in. ¡°No, I even timed it with the update and received a hidden quest like this, but how could there be someone that has come here before me?¡± However, just then, a dark shadow slithered and appeared next to a complaining Hoonie. What are you doing, Hoonie? The master of darkness is waiting. There is no time. ¡°Understood. Don¡¯t rush me, Ballam.¡± Surprisingly, the thing that appeared next to Hoonie was an undead of a Black Magician¡¯s dreams, one that took on the form of a Death Knight. However, a slightly different point was that the normal Death Knight¡¯s body was a dark light, whereas the shadow that appeared next to Hoonie was one that was equipped with dark and gold light at the same time. ¡°I just need to find the ancient grave of Shikar, right?¡± At Hoonie¡¯s words, Death Knight ¡®Ballam¡¯ nodded his head. That¡¯s right. ¡°What about the location?¡± The ancient ruins of Shikar. You need to enter the central continent. Hoonie nodded his head. ¡°Understood. Let¡¯s go quickly.¡± However, Ballam, who was about to move forward, suddenly stopped in his tracks. Hoonie, enemies have appeared at the front. ¡°No kidding. They¡¯re monks.¡± Exactly like their name, monks were monsters that took on the form of a Buddhist monk. But that didn¡¯t mean they were actual Buddhist monks, or in other words, human-like monsters, but rather monsters that had the appearance of a mummy. Seu-seuk- Seu-seu-seuk- Tons of monks shot up from within the desert sand. The monks were strong monsters that started from lv 130 and were as high of a level as the latter half of the lv 140s, but Hoonie didn¡¯t look like he was even the least bit intimidated. While fidgeting with the black bracelet that was on his wrist, he shouted out the starting words. ¡°Revengeful spirits of the resentful deceased¡­ Beg for the strength of the desert and dedicate yourself!¡± As he did so, as if they had become living organisms, the sand of the desert rose up into the air and began to take shape. And that became the form of a ton of skull soldiers and they began to fill up the desert. ¡°Keuheuheut, as expected. The power of the Immortal is great.¡± While looking at the hundreds of desert skull warriors that charged towards the monks, Hoonie laughed darkly. A fixed play that felt so cringeworthy. However, Death Knight Ballam, brilliantly did his part in Hoonie¡¯s such fixed play. That¡¯s right. The strength of the Immortal is great. Hoonie, I believe that you will build the empire of darkness up again. Hoonie nodded with a determined expression. ¡°Of course, Ballam. I, Hoonie, will continue the maintenance of the Immortal and tinge this ground with darkness.¡± While the two master and servant(?) seriously held a theatre of situations, the skull soldiers of the desert that were summoned with the power of the Immortal were magnificently facing the monks. Hoonie watched that scene with a pleased expression as he began to move his feet. And behind him, Death Knight Ballam followed him quietly. However, they didn¡¯t know. That soon, an incredible disaster(?) named ¡®Ian¡¯ would approach them¡­ [1] hyung = what a younger male calls a close and/or related, older male CH 139 Chapter 139: Large Ferocious Battle (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Compared to when they came as an expedition with Ian for the Griffin Egg hatching, Hellaim and the knights had become even stronger. And that was the same for Ian as well. He was still no match against the Pachyao, which was over lv 180, and the Teranodon, which was close to lv 200, but he had gotten to a point where he could do the work of one of their arms. On top of that, with Kaizar, who was a strong person to the point it was hard to differentiate who was superior between Hellaim and him, joining them, the terrifying hunting ground, Sky Highlands, transformed into a honey-like bonus dungeon. ¡°Wow¡­ Ian, you¡¯ve been hunting in an environment like this all the time?¡± Along with admiration, Fiolan sent him a look of jealousy. Ian scratched the back of his head. ¡°No, it¡¯s also been a while for me¡­¡± However, Ian¡¯s excuse(?) was dismissed by Herz¡¯s words that followed. ¡°This dude. To have been sucking on honey like this alone¡­ No wonder you level up so fast.¡± Fiolan also nodded her head while agreeing. ¡°I agree. Ian, this is too much. Please look after your guild members a little as well, please.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right!¡± All of a sudden, Ian had become a selfish Lord that doesn¡¯t take care of his guild members. ¡°¡­¡± Either way, through their smooth hunting, Ian¡¯s party had made their way through Sky Highlands in an instant and were approaching the central continent. And shortly after, a white curtain appeared in front of the party. That was a dimensional border that could be seen whenever a field was crossed. It was proof that they had arrived at the central continent. Fiolan, who had moved to stand right in front of it, asked Ian with a fluttering expression. ¡°Could it be that we¡¯re the first, Ian?¡± ¡°Who knows. If the giant guilds have moved quickly, then it¡¯s possible that they arrived first¡­¡± And the one that answered the two people¡¯s conversation was Kaizar, who appeared from behind. ¡°We are probably the first. Since there isn¡¯t anybody that knows the geography of this place better than me.¡± At those words, Ian nodded his head internally. ¡®Definitely¡­ We did arrive incredibly quickly.¡¯ The section from Sky Desert to Sky Altar was a desert so desolate the horizon could be seen. However, once they passed the Sky Altar and got closer to the central continent, boulder canyons lined up closely together, and for sure, if it wasn¡¯t for Kaizar, they would have wasted a lot of time trying to find the right path. ¡°Then¡­ Let¡¯s go in and see.¡± With a fluttering expression, Ian moved his feet with big strides. Because the first discoverer¡¯s reward was shared with all party members that were in the same area, it didn¡¯t matter who went in first. And as soon as Ian passed through the current of light, system messages popped up in front of all of the Lotus Guild¡¯s members. Ring-. You are the first discoverer of the central continent, ¡®Shikar¡¯.Your Fame has increased by 100 thousand.The reward obtained from all monsters in Shikar continent will increase by double (If you are the first discoverer of a dungeon, then the EXP reward obtained will overlap).The Guild Fame of the Lotus Guild has increased by 100 thousand. At the system messages that poured out, all of the guild members, including Ian, were all smiles. ¡°Keu, we even filled up the Guild Fame by 100 thousand! We¡¯ve also met the requirements for promotion all of a sudden.¡± At Herz¡¯s words, Ian nodded his head. ¡°No kidding. It looks like we won¡¯t have to go around doing territory wars so annoyingly.¡± And the sentence that caught Ian¡¯s eyes first was, as expected, the increased reward obtained for hunting. On top of that, at the friendly explanation that the dungeon first discoverer¡¯s buff would even overlap, Ian¡¯s eyes shone. ¡®Let¡¯s go, lv 130! If I just find one dungeon, I¡¯ll hit it immediately!¡¯ Ian¡¯s gaze naturally turned to Kaizar, the excellent bus driver[1], and Kaizar, who met eyes with Ian, gruffly opened his mouth. ¡°Why are you giving me such a greasy look, Lord guy.¡± Ian seemed to be in a good mood even at the words Lord guy, as he responded while snickering. ¡°You don¡¯t need to know, heuheu.¡± And Ian pulled out the Royal letter that he received from the king and read it again. It was just called a Royal letter, but in Ian¡¯s case, it was similar to instructions where the quest content was just explained kindly. Exploration of the Historical Site of Shikar In the historical site of Shikar, ¡®Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail¡¯ is hidden there. The holy water that is inside Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail makes the growth of the bases of the central continent two times faster, and it reduces the time that it takes to occupy a base by half. Let¡¯s put our hands in Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail before Kaimon Empire does and use it as a foothold to occupy more bases. Quest Difficulty Level: SS Quest Condition: Unknown Time Limit: None. *If a user of Kaimon Empire obtains the Holy Grail first, the quest is failed. ¡®Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail, huh¡­ It says there¡¯s no time limit, but it¡¯s a structure where we can¡¯t help but move as quickly as possible.¡¯ Ian asked Kaizar. ¡°Retainer, do you know where the historical site of Shikar is?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Kaizar nodded his head without delay. ¡°Of course. The historical site of Shikar is right in the core of the central continent.¡± ¡°Then what about Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail?¡± Kaizar¡¯s expression slightly showed change. ¡°Hmm? Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail, huh¡­ I do know of Holdream, but this is my first time hearing the name Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail.¡± Ian was a little disappointed, but he nodded his head. Since even just the fact that he knew the location of the historical site was a big help. ¡°Understood.¡± Kaizar opened his mouth with a curious expression. ¡°The item called Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail, is it an incredible artifact?¡± Kaizar¡¯s two eyes shone. At his gaze, which was similar to when he wanted the Greatsword of the Dark Fenrir, Ian was startled as he waved his hands. ¡°It, it¡¯s nothing like that. It¡¯s an item that His Majesty has told me to find.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ I see.¡± Only then did Kaizar turn his interest away. While looking at that form, Ian mumbled to himself. ¡®By any chance, could it be that if I find a good item and give it to Kaizar, I could raise his Loyalty?¡¯ Ian somehow strongly felt that it was possible. * * * ¡°The fact that the first discoverer¡¯s reward didn¡¯t pop up means that someone has already stepped foot into the central continent first.¡± At Shyakran¡¯s words, Ceilron, who was following behind, nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right, master. I have no idea how they were able to arrive quicker than us¡­ But it seems that there are users who have arrived first.¡± And Emily, who followed them, added on. ¡°Isn¡¯t the chance that it was the DarkRuna Guild the highest?¡± Just like the Titan Guild, the DarkRuna Guild dispatched an expedition to the central continent as soon as the large update finished. True to their name of being the number 1 guild, Emily¡¯s thoughts were obvious in a way. ¡°Hmm¡­ Were we one step late this time as well¡­¡± Shyakran¡¯s expression slightly wrinkled. He had rushed that much in order to step foot onto the central continent first before the DarkRuna Guild, but having to think that he was late in the end made him a little angry. ¡°What will we do now? It would be best for us to first find a base and occupy it, no?¡± At Ceilron¡¯s words, Shyakran shook his head. ¡°No, there¡¯s something we must do before then.¡± The corners of Shyakran¡¯s mouth curled upwards. ¡®We may have lost the continent¡¯s first discoverer buff to the DarkRuna Guild, but we should be able to receive the Holy Grail first.¡¯ The reason why Shyakran was sure was simple. This was because the one who received the Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail Obtaining Quest was him. Empire Quests were different from normal quests, so the same quest wasn¡¯t given to multiple users. And it was rare for a quest that already occurred to happen again. In other words, it meant that the DarkRuna Guild didn¡¯t even know of the existence of the Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail. ¡®As long as we just have the Holy Grail, then we can turn around the loss for not having received the first discoverer¡¯s reward.¡¯ On top of that, soon, the Kaimon Empire Knights who were sent to support them by the Kaimon king would arrive at the central continent soon. Shyakran turned around as he opened his mouth towards Ceilron and Emily. ¡°We will move to the core of the central continent.¡± At that, Emily asked back with a flustered voice. ¡°Huh? Then what about the abundance of bases that are lying around?¡± Ceilron also stared at Shyakran with a puzzled expression, and Shyakran¡¯s mouth opened again. ¡°As long as we just find the Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail in the historical site first, rehabilitating bases won¡¯t even be a task.¡± It seemed the guilds of the enemy country Luspel Empire weren¡¯t even on Shyakran¡¯s mind. * * * Bang- Ba-bang-! Along with the Abyss Hole that exploded out of both of Ddukdae¡¯s arms, Lake¡¯s Breath ferociously covered on top of it. And at Pin¡¯s Crush that followed after, the tons of monsters turned into a sandstorm and dispersed. You have killed the Revengeful Spirit of the Desert War. You have obtained 128,910 EXP.You have obtained 5 Specialty Points. The monsters that appeared after they entered the central continent were instead much weaker than the Pachyao and Teranodon that appeared in the Sky Highlands. The monsters that usually appeared were called the ¡®Revengeful Spirits of the Desert War¡¯, and their appearances were of gladiators made of sand. The level of the monsters was in the early 150s. They were monsters that were in the similar level range as the Prison Officers that Ian fought in the Pascal Islands too many times. ¡®As expected, roundup hunting is the best!¡¯ They were lower-level monsters than the Pachyao and the Teranodon, but as their numbers were higher, if comparing the difficulty level, there wasn¡¯t that big of a difference. However, as Ian was originally specialized in hunting with many as his opponents, he stirred up the battleground like a fish that met water. ¡°Celia, please heal Ddukdae!¡± ¡°Yes, Lord!¡± And thanks to Kaizar, who without a doubt appeared whenever it seemed like it was becoming too difficult and cleared up the situation before disappearing again, Ian¡¯s party was able to advance without a hitch. ¡®But what could Specialty Points be? I¡¯ve collected little by little ever since the completion of the last quest, and now I¡¯m almost at about 20 thousand now.¡¯ Specialty Points were a new commodity that began to gather at the top of his inventory. At the moment, he had no idea where this commodity could be used yet, but he was sure that it would play an important role in the future. ¡®Speaking of which, even though I¡¯m fighting with Pin out, there¡¯s not much word on it.¡¯ Ian glanced slightly at Hellaim. When he first summoned Pin, he pulled him out without much thought, but while hunting, he remembered the existence of Hellaim and the Empire knights. ¡®Was I just too worried? But then again¡­ Who would think that there were twins in that egg?¡¯ While Ian was thinking of this and that, a gang of monsters appeared again in front of him. And the monsters looked like nothing more than lumps of EXP in Ian¡¯s eyes. ¡°Paulean, please buy some time from the front!¡± ¡°Yes, Lord!¡± After becoming a retainer, Paulean¡¯s title for Ian also changed. From the title ¡®Viscount¡¯ to the title ¡®Lord¡¯. His Loyalty was also so high to the point it couldn¡¯t even be compared with Kaizar¡¯s, as it had already gone up to about 80. On the other hand, Kaizar¡¯s Loyalty had dropped by 1 in the meantime and had become 4. A deep sigh escaped from Ian¡¯s mouth again. ¡®It would be great if I could even just move Kaizar as I wish¡­¡¯ Because Kaizar really moved as he pleased as he poked around the map here and there, Ian somehow felt like he was losing EXP. This was because even if it was someone in the same party or a retainer, if they hunted in a place that was a certain distance apart, they couldn¡¯t share the EXP. And whenever they were almost done with the monsters that appeared, as if he had read Ian¡¯s mind, Kaizar suddenly appeared within his sight. ¡°I think I¡¯ve found it, Lord.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­? You¡¯ve found the ruins?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± And as he followed behind Kaizar, giant architecture that spread below a steep, high canyon appeared. And that was a grand stone building that was reminiscent of pyramids. A slightly different point from pyramids was that there were several small peaks surrounding a giant peak. Ian¡¯s expression brightened. ¡°Alright, then let¡¯s go over there quickly.¡± The other party members that had killed the remaining monsters behind before he realized and approached them were also looking down at the historical site. However, just then, unexpected words flowed from Kaizar¡¯s mouth. ¡°However, there¡¯s a problem, Lord.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Kaizar pointed towards somewhere as his words continued. ¡°Over there is the entrance to the grave, but I saw someone go inside there first.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± For a moment, Ian felt like his whole world was collapsing. ¡®What the hell? How could there be someone that has arrived here faster than us?¡¯ Rather than the sense of crisis that someone could claim the Holy Grail first, the rage(?) that he lost the dungeon¡¯s first discoverer¡¯s reward washed over him. Towards Hellaim, who approached Ian¡¯s side late, Ian turned his gaze as he opened his mouth. ¡°Let¡¯s move quickly. We cannot lose the Holy Grail.¡± [1] bus driver = carry CH 140 Chapter 140: Scramble for the Holy Grail (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°We¡¯ve arrived at the correct place, right, Ballam?¡± At Hoonie¡¯s words, Death Knight Ballam slowly nodded his head. That¡¯s right. This gloomy atmosphere, and the bleak tremors. This is definitely the place I was looking for. The one that had arrived at the historical grave site dungeon first was not Ian nor Shyakran, but instead Kanjihoonie. Hoonie was the last at entering the central continent, but the Power of the Immortal and Ballam, who knew of the exact location, had made that possible. If the Power of the Immortal was used, it was possible to move three times faster on sand. ¡®It was the Crown of Holdream, right?¡¯ However, the thing that Hoonie was looking for was a different item from the one Ian and Shyakran were after. Hoonie¡¯s goal was to complete his hidden quest. And in order to do so, he needed the ¡®Crown of Holdream¡¯. However, just then, Ballam stepped forward as he warned Hoonie. There¡¯s an enemy, Hoonie. Prepare yourself. As soon as those words ended, monsters appeared along with a strange sound in front of them. They were monsters that looked like mummies wrapped in a black smoke. Hoonie wore a determined expression as he spread his staff forward. ¡°The puppet of the Forgotten Holdream, huh¡­ Are you unable to recognize your new owner of darkness?¡± No matter what kind of situation it was, Hoonie never left out his immersion in his role. And Ballam stared at that Hoonie with a satisfied expression. This was because from his perspective, it was a magnificent speech. Hoonie¡¯s words continued. ¡°The strength of darkness, and the Power of the Immortal¡­ Show yourself!¡± As Hoonie, who diligently let out the starting words from his mouth that weren¡¯t really necessary, swung his staff around, tons of skeleton warriors appeared from the ground. Cre-creak- Cre-cre-creak-! Keu-haeeel-. Along with a rough estimate of a dozen-looking Skeleton Warriors, and about half of that number of Skeleton Mages. On top of that, Kanjihoonie, who had summoned two more Death Knights that were over lv 130, spread his staff towards the front with a smug expression. ¡°Punish all of the arrogant heretics!¡± And like that, the battle began. The levels of the monsters called the ¡®Puppet of the Forgotten Holdream¡¯ were over 150 and there were over ten of them. However, Hoonie¡¯s army of darkness was strong, and he was able to catch all of the monsters without taking a lot of damage. Hoonie slightly stared at the Power of the Immortal item as he ignited his will again. ¡®I must succeed in finishing this quest. If I want to make the power solely mine¡­¡¯ Hoonie was currently at lv 129. Even considering the fact that Black Magicians had a fast leveling-up rate, he was a high level that could be argued as the server¡¯s first or second place amongst the Black Magicians. However, despite that, the scale of the undead that Hoonie summoned was a level that a Black Magician at that level could never summon. Especially the fact that he could summon two Death Knights was thanks to the Power of the Immortal that continuously charged his dark magic. Bang- Ba-bang-! And Death Knight Ballam looked completely different from the two Death Knights that Hoonie summoned. Ballam, who was close to a whopping lv 170, easily faced the monsters inside the dungeon. ¡°It seems like we¡¯re finished.¡± That¡¯s right, Hoonie. ¡°Then shall we go inside?¡± However, just then, Ballam blocked off Hoonie, who finished speaking and walked towards the inside. Someone came into the dungeon, Hoonie. ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± At the unexpected situation, Hoonie contemplated for a moment. ¡®There are probably a ton of artifacts aside from the Crown of Holdream inside the ruins¡­¡¯ He had no idea exactly what kind of items would be there, but it was a definite mentality of a human to not want to share even one artifact. ¡®And they said that there was no PK Penalty in the central continent, right?¡¯ On top of that, if it was a situation where it wouldn¡¯t matter at all if that ¡®someone¡¯ that came into the dungeon was a user or an NPC¡­ The corners of Hoonie¡¯s mouth rolled upwards. ¡°Ballam.¡± Why are you calling me, Hoonie? ¡°We have no choice. It hurts my heart, but if it¡¯s for the greater deed, then it looks like we¡¯ll have to murder them.¡± Hoonie became serious as he turned around, and at his words, Ballam nodded his head as he agreed. Good idea. As expected of the heir of darkness. Hoonie turned around as he prepared to face the unwelcome guest, and Ballam pulled out his sword and got into a fighting stance as well. And shortly after, Hoonie, who encountered a familiar face, wore a flustered expression. ¡°You, you¡¯re¡­?¡± Of course, that ¡®familiar face¡¯ was Ian. ¡°Oh my, who is this, hey kid, long time, no see?¡± For a moment, Hoonie, who remembered the nightmare at the arena rookie league, clenched his fist tightly. It was an unexpected encounter, but Hoonie was yelling in delight instead. ¡®This is a chance given by God to take revenge for that time! To meet this dude in a PK zone!¡¯ ¡°This is great, Ian! I had no idea I would have met you here, but since the situation is like this anyways, I will pay back the humiliation from last time!¡± ¡°¡­¡± At Hoonie¡¯s lengthy words, Ian was momentarily speechless. And Kaizar, who entered late, asked Ian. ¡°That weird kid, is it someone you know?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°Yeah, it is someone I know, but¡­¡± Ian took a step forward as he opened his mouth towards Hoonie. ¡°How come there¡¯s nothing that¡¯s changed about you?¡± Hoonie was not outdone and came with a comeback. ¡°You coward! I¡¯m not as bad as you!¡± Following that, Hoonie raised his staff as he shouted. ¡°Exterminate them all!¡± Ian didn¡¯t think that Hoonie would risk attacking without reason, but despite that, it wasn¡¯t like him to just stand there and get hit. Ian quickly fell back as he put Ddukdae in the front and began his counterattack. ¡°Ddukdae, Abyss Hole!¡± Kuoooh-! The spiral air currents that rode down Ddukdae¡¯s crossed arms and poured out. And Ian momentarily stopped Kaizar, who was about to charge towards Hoonie. ¡°Kaizar, one second.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Hoonie, don¡¯t kill that guy.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Ian grinned. ¡°There¡¯s stuff that I need to get out of him.¡± * * * 15 minutes later. ¡°Hoonie, boy. I understand that you¡¯re happy to see me after so long, but why did you mess around with hyung[1]?¡± Ian walked up with big strides to Hoonie, who was wearing a resentful expression as he was surrounded by the empire knights and Ian¡¯s Familiars. ¡°Don, don¡¯t come any closer!¡± ¡°What if I don¡¯t want to?¡± Ian, who approached Hoonie with a sly expression, suddenly held out his staff. ¡°You, I think if you get hit just once more, then you¡¯ll die.¡± While looking at Ian, who openly threatened him, both of Hoonie¡¯s pupils shook. ¡°Ah, no¡­ Don¡¯t be like that!¡± There was a separate reason why Hoonie convulsed(?) to this point. This was because the moment Hoonie died while proceeding with the hidden quest, he would have to return as a fail. Of course, the penalty for dying itself was quite big, but if it was a situation where it would end just with death, he wouldn¡¯t have been this afraid. ¡®It¡¯s a quest I worked so hard to obtain!¡¯ To be honest, Hoonie didn¡¯t even imagine in his dreams that he would be overpowered this easily by Ian. Ian himself was stronger than he expected, but that white-haired swordsman holding the black greatsword was truly a catastrophe. Even Ballam, who he was trusting in, helplessly suffered by that white-haired swordsman. ¡®For Ballam, who is over lv 170, to have suffered in an instant¡­¡¯ Collapsed onto the floor, Hoonie let out a deep sigh as he looked at his Vitality gauge bar that was blinking. ¡°Whew¡­¡± And secretly seeing that Hoonie wore a resigned expression, Ian secretly started. ¡°Yo, should I let you live?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± At Ian¡¯s tempting proposal, Hoonie momentarily flinched. ¡®Should I let you live, he says¡­ How humiliating!¡¯ However, there was too much for him to lose through death right now to stand on pride. Hoonie was a little sad, but he set aside his pride a little and asked Ian. ¡°There are conditions, right?¡± At his counter-question, Ian grinned as he nodded his head. ¡°Man, you¡¯re smart. Of course, there are conditions.¡± Ian, who took a moment to breath, continued his words. ¡°Firstly, you need to come into our party.¡± If he joined the party, the dungeon¡¯s first discoverer¡¯s reward would become shared. Because Hoonie also knew what Ian¡¯s condition meant, he meekly nodded his head. Up to this point, there wasn¡¯t much for him to lose. ¡°And?¡± Ian¡¯s words continued. ¡°All artifacts that appear in the dungeon, including the Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail, are mine.¡± At those words, Hoonie slightly flinched. ¡°I can¡¯t do that.¡± This was because, if he couldn¡¯t obtain the Crown of Holdream, there was no point in surviving and helping them with the dungeon. Ian wore a puzzled expression. ¡°Why? On top of you not dying, you¡¯ll even gain an incredible amount of EXP if you party hunt with us, but you can¡¯t even do that much?¡± Hoonie continued his words with a timid expression. ¡°The Crown of Holdream. Just give me that.¡± At Hoonie¡¯s words, Ian¡¯s two eyes shone. While looking at Hoonie, who pointed out a particular artifact that he didn¡¯t even know existed, Ian nodded his head. ¡®As expected, this guy, it¡¯s positive that he knows information about this dungeon.¡¯ Ian, who thought that he did a good job letting Hoonie survive, opened his two eyes blearily. ¡°Why do you need that?¡± Hoonie spoke honestly. ¡°I need it for my quest. If you just give me that, I¡¯ll give up all of the rest.¡± Ian who answered with an apathetic expression. ¡°How can I believe you?¡± However, as even Hoonie couldn¡¯t give up any more than that, he replied without losing. ¡°If I¡¯m greedier than that, then you can just kill me, no? Are you going to just stand there when I¡¯ve taken an item and was carrying it around?¡± ¡°That¡¯s not true¡­¡± Ian, who thought momentarily, finally nodded his head. ¡°Alright. Then, in return, find us Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail first. And cooperate in finding the other artifacts excluding the crown. Then I will also help you find your crown.¡± Because there was no other choice no matter how much he scratched his head, Hoonie let out a deep sigh as he slowly nodded his head. ¡°Whew¡­ Alright, understood.¡± * * * Meanwhile, the eastern part of the central continent. The Titan Guild expedition, who had succeeded in killing the flooding monsters at a fast speed and making it to the central continent, were having trouble finding the historical site easily. ¡°No, where exactly is the historical site?¡± Ceilron, who had killed the charging monks and mummies one after another, complained towards Emily, who was casting magic next to him. ¡°If I knew that, do you think I would be like this?¡± In a sense, because they had entered the central continent blindly without any thorough preparations, no matter if the Titan Guild boasted the strongest fighting power, their health was depleting over time. The only consolation was probably the large amount of EXP that couldn¡¯t even be compared with any other hunting ground. And the commodity, ¡®Specialty Points¡¯, which they didn¡¯t know about yet, also comforted them. ¡°It should be around here somewhere. Everyone, stay strong just a little bit more.¡± Shyakran, who encouraged his guild members, began to slaughter the monsters in the front line. Bang-ba-ba-bang-! The large explosive sound made from three clones crossing mid-air was heard. And the incredible wave of energy that arose for a moment scattered the front. Chwa-ra-rak-. Emily, who saw that, shook her head. ¡°Shyakran seems to have gotten stronger again.¡± Ceilron nodded his head as well. ¡°I think he¡¯s definitely gotten stronger than before. Has he gotten a new item or something?¡± While sharing a conversation on this and that, it was right then while they were facing monsters. A Titan Guild member that was in the back of the line yelled towards Ceilron. ¡°Ceilron, there¡¯s something over there!¡± At that sound, the eyes of all of the people, including Ceilron, turned towards the direction that they pointed at. And Emily, who saw that, shouted with a happy voice. ¡°Shyakran, it seems we¡¯ve found the ruins!¡± A tall spire that shot up in the middle of the desert, as well as glittering structures that wrapped around it¡­ However, Shyakran, who saw that, shook his head. ¡°No, Emily. That is not the historical site.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± However, different from Emily¡¯s expression of disappointment, Shyakran wore an exited expression. ¡®If the information I have is right, then that is the Tower of War. Since the situation is like this anyways, instead of the Holy Grail¡­!¡¯ [1] Hyung = what a younger male calls a close and/or related, older male CH 141 Chapter 141: Scramble for the Holy Grail (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The exact name of the ancient historical site¡¯s dungeon was the ¡®Grave of Holdream¡¯. When they first entered the dungeon, the name of the dungeon that popped up as the ¡®Grave of ???¡¯ changed as they went into the middle and the event was activated. Ian and Hoonie, as well as their party, were standing in front of the giant spirit of Holdream. Holdream¡¯s roar started. Foolish people that are greedy for the treasures¡­ Kuoooh-! Holdream was an ancient king that ruled this central continent. And his revengeful spirit remained and guarded the grave. Hellaim shouted. ¡°Knights, forward!¡± Chuk- Chu-chuk-! With perfect movements, the royal knights fully guarded the party. And shortly after, the sandstorm that spurted from around Holdream raided the party, and a strong DoT dealing over 2 thousand damage per second began to come through. ¡°Healers, please heal!¡± At Ian¡¯s words, the healers of Lotus Guild that were on standby in the back quickly came forward and cast heals. ¡®Should I have mainly brought healers¡­¡¯ Amongst the 10 Lotus Guild users that were included in the party, there were just four healers. He even thought that he had brought enough, but he definitely felt that the healing amount was lacking as they went on. This was because there were only the most minimum healers within the royal knights. On top of that, because those healers weren¡¯t Priests, but Paladins, a healer-slash-tank, it couldn¡¯t help but be difficult to care for everybody in a group of close to 100 people. I shall see if you have the right to enter this place! Along with Holdream¡¯s furious shout, a shock wave shot out in all directions, and an incredible amount of damage blasted out at the same time. The ¡®King of the Desert Holdream¡¯ has used the ¡®King¡¯s roar¡¯.You have received critical damage!Your Vitality has been reduced by 29,845. To call it an AoE attack, its Offensive Power was too enormous. Fortunately, no one had died, but most of the gauge bars of the party, where everybody¡¯s Vitality was at the maximum, were blinking. And the users of the Lotus Guild, whom were at a comparably lower level, were in a critical condition. Keuhahahat! If you pass my test, then we should be able to meet again shortly. After letting out a crazy sound for the last time, the spirit of Holdream disappeared into the air, and a bleak energy began to linger in the air. The ¡®King of the Desert Holdream¡¯s test has begun.The ¡®Descendants of the Desert¡¯, who were asleep in the basement, have begun to awaken. Thu-thud- Thu-thu-thud-. As if boulders were rolling around, the whole dungeon began to vibrate along with clamorous noises. ¡°That¡¯s so scary¡­¡± Herz held up his sword and shield as he stared at the front, and Fiolan also finished preparations so that she could cast her magic whenever necessary with a nervous expression. ¡°It¡¯s seriously tremendous. I almost met a black screen with just one hit from that AoE skill just a moment ago.¡± At Fiolan¡¯s words, Ian smirked as he nodded his head. ¡°From now on, if you think that a slightly big-looking skill is about to explode, use your shield first. Since it¡¯s not like we¡¯re lacking damage right now, your survival is more important, Fiolan.¡± ¡°Okay, I will do that.¡± While the two spoke with each other, the centre of the grave, which was similar to a vacant ground that had nothing, cracked open laterally as a new space was revealed. Below, there were tons of golden coffins that were laid out. The bleak, yellow energies of light that remained in the spot that Holdream disappeared from were sucked in through the cracks in the ground as if they were being absorbed, and along with that, the lids of the coffins began to move. Keu-reuk- Keu-keu-keuk-! Along with a fricative sound that was hard to listen to, the coffin lids began to open up one by one. Hoonie, who just hunted without a word, opened his mouth towards Ian. ¡°You¡¯ll need to be careful.¡± At those words, Ian¡¯s gaze automatically turned to Hoonie. ¡°What?¡± At Ian¡¯s cross-question, Death Knight Ballam, who stood next to him, responded instead. The Descendants of the Desert are strong. And they each have their own characteristics. Hoonie knew of them. This was because, although it was his first time coming into the central continent, he had hunted them until he was sick and tired of them while progressing through a preceding quest in Shikar Desert. Of course, the descendants of Holdream in Shikar Desert were much weaker than these ones. Ian asked. ¡°How do you deal with it?¡± Hoonie wore a sour expression, but he still explained with quite a bit of detail. ¡°The ones holding axes share their Vitality. It¡¯s best to catch them with an AoE attack.¡± ¡°They share their Vitality?¡± ¡°Yeah. So, no matter how much you beat up one of them to a pulp, the Vitality of the others will come in and fill up that spot. So, you need to catch them all at once with an AoE attack.¡± If it was an AoE attack, it was an area that Ian was most confident in. Ian nodded his head. ¡°Alright, and what about that one?¡± There was an interesting-looking warrior, holding a spear and a sword in each hand, opening the coffin and coming out where Ian was pointing to. ¡°That one is an ignorant one that shoots that spear its holding by pulling it against a bowstring. Getting hit by one spear doesn¡¯t hurt that much, but the more it overlaps, the more the damage is amplified.¡± Ian, who heard a couple more tips from Hoonie aside from those ones, approached Hellaim. ¡°Leader, please entrust the authority to command for a moment just in here.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± ¡°I just heard how we can deal with those, but to explain it right now¡­¡± Hellaim, who momentarily contemplated at those words, nodded his head. ¡°I will do so, then. I will try and trust you this time, Viscount.¡± Because Hellaim had never seen Ian command a battleground yet, he wore a slightly doubtful expression, but still, thanks to the faith Ian had piled up until now, he did hand over the authority to command. Ian, who received the authority to command, moved quickly. ¡°Let¡¯s drive into the left quickly! Attack the ones holding bows first!¡± ¡°Yes, sir-!¡± At any rate, because he did receive Hellaim¡¯s authority to command exactly as it was, the royal knights quickly moved according to Ian¡¯s order. ¡°Kaizar!¡± At Ian¡¯s calling, Kaizar replied with a brusque expression. ¡°Why are you calling me?¡± ¡°You see that one wearing the gold lion mask in the back there, right?¡± Kaizar nodded his head. ¡°Please catch that one, retainer.¡± Because Kaizar had followed his words well up until now without refusing, he spoke without much thought this time as well, but he shook his head. ¡°I don¡¯t want to, it¡¯s too bothersome.¡± At that, Ian couldn¡¯t help but be thrown aback. ¡®Kaizar or Hellaim need to take care of that one, though¡­¡¯ It was an epic monster wearing a gold lion mask and holding two swords. Because its level was close to a whopping 190, Ian couldn¡¯t even conceive the idea of coming forward himself. ¡®It seems that Hellaim needs to move with the royal knights in order for his fighting power to increase more¡­ What to do.¡¯ In the end, there was no alternative that popped up who could take care of that monster besides Kaizar. ¡°Retainer.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°If you catch that one, I¡¯ll give you the Heroic-rank armour that I got last time. You know what I¡¯m talking about, right?¡± He wasn¡¯t certain that it would work, but he just shouted it out first. However, Kaizar¡¯s indifferent expression slightly changed. ¡°For¡­ real?¡± Ian let out a shout of delight internally. ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m telling you! It¡¯s the one that I picked up while hunting with you back then. The one with the phoenix drawn on the stomach.¡± Kaizar nodded his head. ¡°I know. That one¡¯s cool.¡± Ian, who thought that it was all set, quickly continued his words. ¡°The minute you catch that one, I¡¯ll hand over that, so do me a favour, Retainer.¡± However, Kaizar was still hesitant. Using his last move, Ian slightly scratched his pride. ¡°Retainer, by any chance, it¡¯s not because you don¡¯t think you¡¯ll be able to win against him, right?¡± And at those words, Kaizar instantly stood up. ¡°Who do you think I am? Like that insignificant spirit!¡± While looking at Kaizar, who unsheathed his sword in an instant and stood up and stomped forward, Ian wore a pleased smile. ¡°I like him because he¡¯s simple-minded¡­¡¯ As the image to face the enemies generally appeared, Ian let out commands to each of his Familiars as well. ¡°Ddukdae, go over there and buy some time as the opponent of the warriors, and Pin, Lake, you guys save your AoE skills. Later, when the warriors are gathered onto one side, you just need to pour it out then.¡± At his words, the Familiars nodded their heads and after expressing their minds, they headed to the front. Kku-ruk- Kkuk-kkuk-! Deu-reu-reuk-. Lastly, after Ian got on Halli¡¯s back, he ran towards the side of the enemies that the royal knights infiltrated through with Ly. ¡®But to shove Kaizar around from now on, do I need to make a tribute of one item each time¡­?¡¯ Even the armour that he said he would give to Kaizar was an expensive item that would sufficiently equal hundreds of thousands of gold if it was sold in the auction house. Ian¡¯s stomach hurt a little, but there was nothing he could do about it. ¡®Still, I¡¯m giving it to my retainer, so in the end, it¡¯s mine, I guess.¡¯ Ian, who comforted himself with such plausible reasoning(?), quickly charged towards the battleground. * * * You are the first discoverer of the Tower of War.Your Specialty Points have increased by 3000.With the obtained Specialty Points, you can exchange for goods in the tower.You can only enter the Tower of War for 30 minutes once a day. Will you enter? While looking at the messages that popped up one after another, Shyakran let out a shout of delight internally. ¡®As expected! It was the Tower of War¡­!¡¯ There was a reason why Shyakran was able to find knowledge on the Tower of War and Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail beforehand. It was related to the Empire Quest of Kaimon that he was progressing with. ¡®This, should I be thankful towards Lacromyu¡­?¡¯ Lacromyu was the leader of the knights of Kaimon Empire, who suffered and died from Kaizar and Ian¡¯s combined attack. Shyakran had gained such information from him. Although, due to Ian and Kaizar, Lacromyu died and he couldn¡¯t carry out the quest until the end, but instead, through that, Shyakran was able to obtain a lot of information related to the central continent. ¡®Since Lacromyu died, I was able to swallow up all of the material in the command and control centre at Pascal Islands¡­¡¯ While thinking of this and that, Shyakran stepped foot into the Tower of War. ¡°I will enter.¡± And Shyakran, who momentarily turned around, spoke towards his guild members. ¡°You can only enter this place once a day. Only people who have over 5000 Specialty Points, come in.¡± As he completely went inside once he completed his words, most of the guild followed him and went inside. As the Titan Guild had just hunted continuously ever since coming into the central continent, mostly everybody had quite a bit of Specialty Points. On top of that, as the first discoverer¡¯s effect just now was shared, they even obtained 3 thousand Specialty Points, so there weren¡¯t a lot of guild members whose total points weren¡¯t at 5 thousand. And amongst them, the one with the most Specialty Points was obviously Shyakran. ¡°Let¡¯s see here¡­ Are there any good items?¡± The Tower of War reset every two days. It meant that all of the items displayed inside completely changed into new items every two days. And there was an item that Shyakran was looking for. ¡®The Flag of the Pharaoh¡­ That needs to be here¡­¡¯ The Flag of the Pharaoh wasn¡¯t as good as Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail, but it was an important item. This was because the number of soldiers that were trained in a base in the central continent with the Flag of the Pharaoh raised in it doubled. Shyakran, who concentrated and studied each of the items as he went up, discovered a book that caught his eye. ¡®What¡¯s this¡­?¡¯ And the item that he checked out of curiosity, was none other than a Legendary-rank Warrior-class skill book. Will of the Desert Warrior Classification: Skill book (Passive Skill) Skill Rank: Legendary Consumption Price: None Cooldown Time: None The Warrior to succeed the Will of the Desert Warrior, will be able to focus their mind and create a curtain of swords. The chance of the curtain of swords attacking is made up of 15% rate. It blocks off damage as much as 300% of the skill user¡¯s Offensive Power, and returns 150% of the damage. *Skill Acquisition Condition: The Proficiency of Swordsmanship must be Master lv 1 or higher in order to acquire it. *Whenever the curtain of swords is cast, your Offensive Power will increase by 10% for 15 seconds, and this effect overlaps up to 10 times. ¡°¡­!¡± It was a passive skill book with an incredible option expected of a Legendary-rank. Shyakran quickly checked the amount of Specialty Points that were required in order to purchase the skill book. Required Specialty Points: 12,000 It was a value that he could even pay if he used up all of the Specialty Points he possessed. ¡®Do I need to buy this¡­?¡¯ Shyakran was conflicted. This was because it was a skill book that was so good that the 12,000 Specialty Points was definitely not a waste, but at this point, where a large-scale war was going to happen soon, it could be extravagant to use his Specialty Points for a personal item. A momentary contemplation. ¡°Haa¡­¡± However, Shyakran ended up grabbing the book. You have purchased the ¡®Will of the Desert Warrior¡¯ skill book.You Specialty Points will be deducted by 12,000.Remaining Specialty Points: 375 Shyakran rationalized with himself internally as he turned around and came out of the Tower of War. Because he didn¡¯t even have points now anyways, in order to not have any lingering attachments, he paid no attention to the other items on purpose. ¡®That¡¯s right, since by having me get stronger the guild will get stronger soon¡­¡¯ However, Shyakran had no idea. The fact that in the spot that he turned and left, there was an item that could completely determine the structure of the early phase of the power war of the central continent¡­ CH 142 Chapter 142: Scramble for the Holy Grail (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian¡¯s commanding abilities were surprising. The Summoner special stat, ¡®Leadership¡¯, displayed a large effectiveness suiting its name when controlling a lot of people, and Ian, who was also normally skilled in multitasking with multiple Familiars, delivered commands to the right man in the right place and was leading them to victory with the least amount of damage. While continuously fighting, Herz glanced at Ian. ¡®This Jinsung, he¡¯s probably really smart. The problem is that he uses that smart head of his in just gaming¡­¡¯ Figuring out the situation of a messy battleground correctly and moving calmly is not an easy task in any game. However, in VR games, that difficulty level increased even more. As if he was looking at a marvelous animal, Herz kept on glancing at Ian continuously. ¡®How is he able to pay attention to multiple things at once like that?¡¯ Different from PC games, in a VR game, it wasn¡¯t like you could see the surroundings of your character within the monitor, so in order to figure out your surroundings, you truly needed to rely on your five senses. Explosions rang out here and there, and it was a chaotic battleground where if you took your eyes off the situation for even one moment, an AoE attack could appear beneath your feet. In here, you needed to maintain a cool head and being calm was a definite in order to come out with the best results, and at the same time, you needed to pay attention to several things at once. Herz was always amazed at the form of Ian, who normally looked like he was distant from cool-headedness and intelligence, when he showed a completely different side whenever a battle began like this in the game. ¡°Ly, Pin! You two go and take care of that tougher one!¡± Understood, owner. Kku-ru-ruk-! Ian tied Ly and Pin into one group and made them face the Unique-rank leader-class monsters that appeared in between. The level of the leader-class monster was around 150-160. To be honest, as Ly and Pin¡¯s levels were similar to Ian¡¯s level at the second half of the 120- range, when just looking at their levels, it was a level difference that they wouldn¡¯t be able to face even if the two charged in. It was a level difference of a whopping 20-30 levels. However, even though they were in the same lv 120-range, because the abilities of Legendary-rank Ly and Pin exceeded lv 150 Common or Unique-rank monsters, they couldn¡¯t be judged from a normal standard. Especially, amongst the Inherent Ability that Ly had, the ¡®Rage of the Fenrir¡¯ which increased the combat stats by 50% was an ability that was basically no different from a passive skill. This was because although there was a cooldown time, the cooldown time was reduced every time he got in critical damage. On top of that, the Darkness Encroachment ability that he could use once every 30 minutes almost made Ly invincible. When the day became dark and his passive ability, ¡®Heir of the Moon¡¯, was invoked as well, Ly practically became a zombie. While looking at Ly, who overpowered the enemies that were over 20 levels higher than him at most, Ian wore a pleased smile. ¡®Now I¡¯ve even completely adapted to utilizing Ly¡¯s abilities.¡¯ That didn¡¯t mean that the battle itself was easy. With this one battle, amongst the 90 royal knights, five had gone into incapable-to-battle state. As the war situation tilted over enough and they were able to relax, Hellaim approached Ian. ¡°Good work, Viscount. I didn¡¯t know your commanding abilities were this astounding.¡± At Hellaim¡¯s compliment, Ian wore a sheepish expression. ¡°Haha, well, since the result is good, it¡¯s a relief. As soon as we¡¯re finished here, shall we go down to the basement?¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Hellaim nodded his head. ¡°Yes, I think that would be best. Since our priority is to put the Holy Grail in our hands as quickly as possible.¡± Ian¡¯s party, who had succeeded in killing all of the ¡®Descendants of the Desert¡¯, immediately went down the stairs and began to move to the basement. The inside of the grave was incredibly large as expected from the scale seen outside, and because it had a complex structure, it wasn¡¯t easy finding the right path. Ian glanced at Hoonie, who followed right behind him, and asked. ¡°Hoonie, by any chance, do you know which room Holdream is sleeping in?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Hoonie responded with a blunt tone. ¡°How would I know that?¡± Ian pointed to the Death Knight floating next to Hoonie as he continued his words. ¡°I somehow feel like this friend could possibly know.¡± A response came from Ballam instead of Hoonie. I don¡¯t know the exact location either. I can just feel the energy of darkness. ¡°Is that so?¡± However, what¡¯s certain is that the direction we are heading towards is right. We are getting closer and closer to him. Ian nodded his head. Even knowing the fact that they were headed towards the right direction was enough. ¡°I see. Understood.¡± As Ian, who discovered monsters that appeared at the front line, moved his feet and stood far off at the front, Ballam opened his mouth towards Hoonie. I think he¡¯s an uncourteous human, Hoonie. To have such arrogant words and actions towards the successor of darkness. At those words, Hoonie also nodded his head. ¡°I agree, Ballam. To think that having no power like this would be such a sad situation¡­¡± Hoonie, who wore a bitter smile like the protagonist of misfortune in a movie, thought to himself. ¡®Ian, this dude, if I get a hold of the Power of the Immortal with my hands, I will take revenge on you no matter what!¡¯ However, to see if that revenge went well was something that needed to be watched. * * * It was about a thousand years ago from now. Holdream was the king of a group of giant, god-like people who governed the ancient central continent. And he had two faces. One was the good and wise king Holdream, who lead the reign of peace in the central continent. And the other one was tainted by the power of darkness and became corrupted as the Monarch Holdream that ruined a nation and destroyed himself. In his last years, Holdream became a puppet of the Immortal and conceived the seeds of darkness in the central continent, and the Immortal recovered his strength little by little through Holdream and dreamt of his revival. And through that process, there was a medium that the Immortal used in order to control Holdream, and that was his crown. The Crown of Holdream was also called the Cursed Crown as another name. In order to recover the strength that the Immortal lost, the Crown of Holdream needed to be found. Since the power of darkness he had gathered was accumulated in the Crown of Holdream. ¡®Finally¡­ I can see the end of the quest!¡¯ The main body had appeared in front of their eyes. While looking at the Crown of Holdream that was exactly on top of his head, Hoonie grinned. ¡®I had no idea that losing my way in the Shikar Desert would return to me as a hidden quest.¡¯ While proceeding with a different quest, Hoonie lost his way in the Shikar Desert, and by coincidence, he was able to meet the revengeful spirit of the Immortal. The name of the hidden quest that Hoonie received by doing that was the ¡®Cursed Crown¡¯. ¡®If I can just obtain the power of the Immortal, I would be able to beat someone like that Ian dude¡­¡¯ Hoonie glimpsed at Ly, who was the strongest amongst Ian¡¯s Familiars. Because he diligently observed Ian¡¯s fighting power while in combat as if he was investigating, he could feel through his skin how strong Ly was. ¡®That Fenrir looks a little strong, but since I have Ballam.¡¯ Hoonie, who wouldn¡¯t have expected that Kaizar was Ian¡¯s retainer even in his dreams, grinned broadly at the thought of winning against Ian. And separate from Hoonie, who was dreaming of his revenge(?) against Ian, the large-scale Boss battle was about to begin. So you¡¯ve ended up coming here, you foolish souls! Holdream let out a furious sound that came from his chest. The party kept an eye on the movements of Holdream in a tense state. I shall send you all to hell! A white light and black fog began to wrap and twist around Holdream¡¯s spirit. As it did so, the ghost of Holdream that had a translucent appearance became richer in colour little by little and began to take a tangible form on the ground. Thud-! As if they were seeing the giant of Forlan dungeon, Holdream had a giant body. And the moment he saw the level that popped up above his head, Ian couldn¡¯t help but break out into a cold sweat. ¡®Insanity! He¡¯s level 270? He¡¯s even higher than Kaizar!¡¯ The level written in gold that was shining next to Holdream¡¯s name definitely stated an tremendous value of 270. ¡®Still, I never thought of losing¡­ But it seems there will be quite a bit of damage.¡¯ Ian slightly glared at Hoonie. It somehow felt like he was doing the little brat a favour. If it wasn¡¯t for him and the royal knights, how would he have thought of attacking Holdream? However, just when Ian¡¯s stomach was hurting, suddenly, Hoonie stepped forward to the front and lifted his hand straight up. ¡°Holdream, you haven¡¯t forgotten the Pledge of the Darkness, right?¡± While shouting loudly, Hoonie pulled out a round plaque with a skull drawn on it from his chest and lifted it up. And discovering that, Holdream¡¯s expression turned pale as he froze. Why, why is this item here¡­? With an expression clearly showing his bewilderment, Holdream stepped backwards while looking at Hoonie. ¡°I am the descendant of the Immortal, Kanjihoonie. I will carry out the pledge from a thousand years ago right here!¡± Hoonie, who let out a powerful(?) dialogue that was so cringeworthy it felt like their hands and feet would shrivel up and all disappear, approached Holdream one step at a time. Stomp- stomp-. The rest of the party, who stopped the attack that they were about to do, watched Hoonie with an interested expression, and a gloomy energy began to flow out of the wooden plaque with the skull design on it that Hoonie was holding. Screee- screech-! Noises so strange that it made goosebumps rise all over their bodies filled the air, and wearing a pained expression, Holdream shrieked. Keu-aaah! This brat¡­! And shortly after. A system message popped up in front of all of the people within the premise. The Pledge of the Immortal, the Sovereign of Darkness, has been implemented.The energy of darkness has flowed out of the Crown of Holdream.For the next 10 minutes, all of Holdream¡¯s abilities will decrease by 40%.For a moment, Holdream will lose his eyesight. Through the Pledge of the Darkness, an outrageous de-buff was placed on Holdream. As soon as the system message popped up, Ian immediately lifted his staff up. ¡°Everybody, attack!¡± And as if they were waiting, the knights simultaneously charged towards Holdream. And even amongst them, the one that definitely stood out was Kaizar. Bang- Ba-ba-bang-! A giant wave of darkness spewed out from the black Greatsword of the Fenrir. Retainer ¡®Kaizar¡¯ has used ¡®Darkness Emission¡¯, and has dealt 27,684 damage to ¡®Holdream¡¯.Through the effect of ¡®Darkness Emission¡¯, ¡®Holdream¡¯s Defensive Power has decreased by 30% for 3 minutes. As the de-buffs overlapped and powerful attacks struck Holdream consecutively, his Vitality gauge bar began to drop quickly. These¡­ Little¡­ Brats! Holdream, who let out a roar full of rage, began to swing his sword in every direction. Bang- bang-! And despite having an enormous de-buff that reduced all of his abilities by 40%, Holdream was not weak. Familiar Ddukdae has received critical damage from Holdream.Ddukdae¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 41,209. Of course, it was a critical hit, but he had just been hit by a sword that was swung around, and a large amount of 40 thousand Vitality was hacked off. At Holdream¡¯s incredible Offensive Power, Ian gulped loudly. ¡®If he didn¡¯t have a de-buff, he would have seriously been incredible. That weird brat was an unexpected help.¡¯ Ian¡¯s gaze automatically turned to Hoonie, and Hoonie was diligently fighting against Holdream. A slightly interesting point was that Holdream seemed to be avoiding the protective coat of dark purple light that wrapped around Hoonie. ¡®He said he was in the middle of a quest and it seems that was true. But then again, if he wasn¡¯t, he wouldn¡¯t have even been able to use the Pledge of Darkness or whatever.¡¯ Ian cut off his attention on Hoonie, and began to focus on facing Holdream that was in front of him. They needed to catch Holdream within the 10 minutes before the de-buff was released no matter what. Since, if they didn¡¯t do so, he couldn¡¯t promise that the war situation wouldn¡¯t turn around. ¡°Paulean! Be careful behind you!¡± At Ian¡¯s shout, Paulean barely avoided the fireball that dropped from the air, and shortly after, his counterattack followed. Retainer ¡®Paulean¡¯ has used Inherent Ability ¡®Judge of Thunder and Lightning¡¯.¡®Holdream¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 17,649. It wasn¡¯t as much as Kaizar, but still, compared to Ly and Pin, Paulean showed an Offensive Power that was not the least bit lacking. While Ian thought that he should at least gift admirable(?) Paulean with equipment if there was a need for him to go to the auction house, he began to shoot Magic Spheres towards the front. Pung- pung- pung-! And had about 5 minutes passed like that? The body of Holdream, who was surrounded by about a hundred people and suffered concentrated attacks, slowly began to crumble. Even if he was a lv 270 boss monster, he didn¡¯t have enough skill to withstand hundreds of attacks while in a critically restricted state. Thud-. As Holdream¡¯s heavy build collapsed onto the ground, a large sound rang out, and a system message notifying of Holdream¡¯s death popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. You have killed Holdream. You have obtained 3,485,910 EXP.As you have punished the monarch of an ancient corrupted group of giant, god-like people, your Fame has increased by 50 thousand. Even if the NPCs were excluded and despite it being EXP divided between a party of almost 10 people, while looking at the huge amount that was over 3 million, Ian wore a satisfied smile. ¡®Keu, it looks like I¡¯ll even be able to hit lv 130 soon, too.¡¯ However, just then, another message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. The power of darkness that resided in the Crown of Holdream was lifted. The crown that was on top of Holdream¡¯s head floated in the air, and the current of dark purple light that circled around it came out and was sucked into Hoonie¡¯s wooden skull plaque. And continuing that, a flustering system message popped up. The Crown of Holdream has selected a new owner that has the strongest power.The Crown of Holdream has selected retainer ¡®Kaizar¡¯. Hoonie¡¯s complexion turned completely pale. CH 143 Chapter 143: In the Middle of the Scramble of the Holy Grail (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°This, this¡­!¡± With a devastated expression, Hoonie stared at Kaizar. Holdream had turned into an ashy colour as he scattered in the air. And the Crown of Holdream which floated up towards Kaizar¡­ Hoonie couldn¡¯t believe the condition message that popped in front of his eyes at all. The Crown of Holdream has selected ¡®Undefeated Swordsman Kaizar¡¯. At the one line-long message that made all of his efforts up until now into foam, Hoonie cried out. ¡°Euaah! My quest¡­ My quest, though¡­!¡± Separate from that, Kaizar, who received the Crown of Holdream before he realized, wore a satisfied expression as he looked at the crown. ¡°Keuh, the item has an eye for people.¡± And Kaizar turned his head towards Ian. ¡°Did you see, Lord guy? I am this great.¡± ¡°¡­¡± With a dumbfounded expression, Ian stared back and forth at Kaizar and Hoonie. How this situation went, even Ian didn¡¯t really understand. ¡®This¡­ Is it right to be happy?¡¯ He felt even more sorry at Hoonie¡¯s expression that looked like he would cry any moment now. And Hoonie, who didn¡¯t know that Kaizar was Ian¡¯s retainer, couldn¡¯t do anything else but swear at the development side of Kailan. ¡®Damn it. This is toying with the users. This is user insulting! I need to call LB Sports and complain.¡¯ However, Hoonie knew well that even if he did that, nothing would change. With a devastated expression, Hoonie mumbled. ¡°What the hell! How can it be so twisted like this?¡± But that didn¡¯t mean that he could even conceive the idea of charging at Kaizar and taking the crown. This was because he hadn¡¯t forgotten that imposing figure that knocked down Death Knight Ballam in just a couple of attacks. With a pitiful expression, Ian spoke to Hoonie. ¡°Yo, what should we do with this?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°This is an uncontrollable force.¡± Hoonie glared at Ian. ¡°Are you trying to pick a fight with me?¡± ¡°No, well, not a fight.¡± Hoonie found Ian detestable, but because it wasn¡¯t like a situation where he could say anything to Ian, he couldn¡¯t do anything else but swallow his anger internally. Since it was a situation that was completely unrelated to Ian¡¯s will. However, just then, Ballam opened his mouth. Hoonie, there is another way to accomplish the duty of the Immortal. Along with those words, Hoonie¡¯s gaze automatically turned. ¡°What, what is it?¡± Ballam¡¯s words were the same as a ray of light in pitch-black darkness to Hoonie. Ballam spoke while slightly staring at Kaizar. For 100 days from now, you must stay near the owner of the crown and obtain the dark energy that leaks out into the wooden plaque. And Ballam pointed to the wooden skull plaque that was in Hoonie¡¯s hands. Fortunately, because the seal of darkness on the crown has been released, the dark energy that was saved up will continuously flow out. It takes about twenty days to gather all of that. At those words, Hoonie¡¯s expression slightly brightened. If he could just successfully complete the quest, losing one artifact was nothing. A duration of twenty days was quite long, but since the ¡®Power of the Immortal¡¯ was a charming ability, that much time wasn¡¯t a waste. ¡°What a relief¡­¡± However, just then, an indifferent voice was heard from behind them. ¡°Who decided that? Don¡¯t even appear briefly near me, weird child.¡± The owner of the voice was none other than Kaizar. Hoonie¡¯s face turned pale again. ¡°No, exactly why? I¡¯m just saying that I¡¯ll obtain the dark energy that pours out!¡± Kaizar waved his hand as he replied. ¡°Kanjihoonie, you¡­¡± Everybody¡¯s gaze focused on Kaizar¡¯s mouth. And at his words that followed, Hoonie despaired. ¡°Are too unlikeable.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Kaizar¡¯s words were firm. On top of that, because his words were to his liking(?), he couldn¡¯t even rebut, and Hoonie was at a loss for words. Out of shock, Hoonie stuttered. ¡°Un, unlikeable, you say! To the next sovereign of darkness that will continue the Power of the Immortal¡­!¡± Kaizar shook his head. ¡°As expected, you¡¯re weird.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian barely held back the laughter that was about to come out of his mouth, and spoke to Kaizar. For some reason, he wanted to help that poor child brat. ¡°Retainer.¡± ¡°What, Lord guy.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be like that and help him out once.¡± As Ian unexpectedly stood on his side, Hoonie¡¯s complexion slightly brightened. However, Kaizar¡¯s expression was still lukewarm. ¡°Why do you say so?¡± ¡°Him, if you get to know him, he¡¯s a poor kid. Look, just from looking at how he talks, he doesn¡¯t seem like a normal kid.¡± Kaizar slightly gazed at Hoonie. And as if he was saying he understood, he nodded his head. ¡°There is some truth to your words.¡± While looking at the two people that treated him like a weird person, Hoonie was infuriated, but he couldn¡¯t express it. Since the most important thing to him right now was the quest. ¡°Yo, child brat.¡± At Kaizar¡¯s calling, Hoonie reflexively replied. ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°If you accept my proposal, then I will consider it.¡± Hoonie quickly asked. ¡°Proposal? What is it?¡± And Kaizar¡¯s words continued. ¡°You just need to become my subordinate from now on. Since I can¡¯t shove around the Lord guy, I need one person to shove around.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Out of humiliation(?), Hoonie¡¯s fist shook. ¡°A person you can shove around, you say¡­!¡± Kaizar opened his mouth again. ¡°However!¡± The gazes of Hoonie and Ballam, as well as Ian, were on Kaizar¡¯s mouth. ¡°If you become stronger than me, I will give you freedom. How about it? If you are the heir of the Immortal, then shouldn¡¯t you have at least that much audacity?¡± The gazes of Hoonie and Kaizar collided in the air. And at this unpredictable development of the situation, Ian wore an excited expression. Hoonie closed both of his eyes while he was submerged in his thoughts. ¡®Ha, what should I do with this?¡¯ Hoonie slightly opened his eyes and slyly stared at Kaizar. ¡®If I obtain the Power of the Immortal, will I be able to beat him?¡¯ Hoonie didn¡¯t know what Kaizar¡¯s exact level was. Because Ian put all settings on private, the levels of all of Ian¡¯s retainers, including Kaizar, were not revealed. He could only guess Kaizar¡¯s strength with just the fighting power he saw from the outside. ¡®Alright. No matter how high his level is, would it be over 200? The levels of NPCs don¡¯t go up easily, so if I just have the Power of the Immortal, then I should be able to catch up soon.¡¯ Just like Hoonie thought, unless it was a special circumstance, the levels of NPCs never went up. However, the problem was that Kaizar wasn¡¯t a normal NPC. Kaizar was Ian¡¯s retainer, and he was still continuing to grow. Conclusively, Kaizar¡¯s level was at 247. The problem was that it was much higher than the level that Hoonie was thinking of to the point it was incomparable. The mouth of Hoonie, who didn¡¯t know of these facts, slowly opened his mouth. ¡°Alright! I¡¯ll do it.¡± Kaizar stared at Hoonie with a bleary look. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yeah. However, keep your promise.¡± ¡°What promise are you talking about?¡± ¡°If I beat you, then this contract will nullify.¡± At Hoonie¡¯s words, Kaizar smirked. ¡°Of course. I, Kaizar, am a man of my word. Trust me.¡± And as Hoonie nodded his head, Kaizar opened his hand towards Kaizar. At that, Hoonie stared at Kaizar with nervous eyes, and surprisingly, a message window popped up in front of Hoonie¡¯s eyes. Ring-. Master and Servant Contract Undefeated Swordsman Kaizar wants to appoint you as his subordinate. If you accept, you will become the subordinate of Undefeated Swordsman Kaizar, and until you meet the conditions, you cannot cancel the contract. Requirement: Victory against Kaizar in a 1:1 battle. *If you violate an order, Kaizar may attack you. *If Kaizar destroys the contract before you meet the requirements, your Fame will decrease by 100 thousand. Will you accept the contract? And Ian, who was watching that scene from the side, looked at Kaizar with surprised eyes. ¡®NPCs that have become retainers could give quests, too?¡¯ Ian wasn¡¯t able to know what kind of message window popped up in front of Hoonie¡¯s eyes, but the effect that was floating above Hoonie¡¯s head was definitely the same one that popped up when one received a quest. Ian pitied Hoonie even more. ¡®No way¡­ It¡¯s not like he¡¯ll accept, right? It¡¯s just called a conditional contract, but with a condition like that, it¡¯s alright to see it as a life-long contract.¡¯ However, he had no intentions of stopping him. This was because, even from Ian¡¯s stance, he thought that it was the same as him gaining another subordinate that he could shove around. ¡®Since the more subordinates there are, the better. And that guy is quite useful as well.¡¯ And just like Ian was anticipating, Hoonie accepted Kaizar¡¯s proposal. ¡°Alright, I will accept.¡± While looking at Hoonie, who was still shaking his tightly held fist, Herz, who was standing next to him, whispered to Ian. ¡°Yo, isn¡¯t he in big trouble?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s become serious.¡± Fiolan, who was nearby, also added on. ¡°That kid, I feel bad for him. A little later, when he realizes the reality, he might even delete his character.¡± Even Bbookbbook, who came down by Ian¡¯s feet, shook his head. Bbook- Bboo-bbook-. Even Bbookbbook looked at Hoonie with a pitiful expression. In Bbookbbook¡¯s eyes, his vicious owner Ian, who was cheap with meatballs, and Kaizar looked the same for some odd reason. However, no matter what people nearby thought, Hoonie burned up his fighting spirit. ¡°I will raise my skills quickly to the point that I will be able to beat you, you arrogant guy, and then challenge you. You won¡¯t avoid me then, right?¡± Of course, the thing that returned to Hoonie, was Kaizar¡¯s sneer. ¡°Fix your words first, kid. To be talking so rudely to your master like that.¡± Ian, who heard Kaizar¡¯s words, was dumbfounded. ¡®What? When he¡¯s a retainer guy that calls his Lord a Lord guy!¡¯ Separate from Ian¡¯s thoughts, Hoonie let out a deep sigh as he nodded his head. ¡°Understood, Master.¡± ¡°Your words are short.¡± ¡°Under¡­stood[1].¡± While grabbing his staff from the ground, Hoonie was swallowing his pent-up anger. ¡°Keuk. For me, the next sovereign of darkness to be in such a state!¡± And Ballam comforted him. It was a choice that couldn¡¯t be helped for the revival of the Immortal, Hoonie. You will be able to overcome this hardship then. On the other hand, Ian, who heard the two people¡¯s conversation, wore an aghast expression. ¡®Huh, really, how could anyone be like that?¡¯ In no time, Hoonie had moved into this situation and role. Ian shook his head and slowly moved his feet. There were complications, but either way, since they succeeded in killing Holdream, they needed to secure the treasures of Holdream. ¡®Behind that door, the artifacts will probably be piled there, right?¡¯ Excluding the Holy Grail, they would need to divide the items evenly, but even considering that, Ian didn¡¯t doubt that he would be able to obtain an incredible reward. ¡°The Holy Grail is probably inside there, right?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Hellaim nodded his head. ¡°Probably so, no?¡± Holding the doorknob, strength went into Ian¡¯s hand, and the steel door that was firmly shut creaked and began to slowly open. [1] In Korean, there was a difference between the two ¡®understood¡¯, with the first one being informal and the second being formal. CH 144 Chapter 144: In the Middle of the Scramble of the Holy Grail (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ring-. The ¡®DarkRuna¡¯ Guild has succeeded in occupying the first base in the central continent.The Guild¡¯s Fame has increased by 100 thousand.Base Rank: NoneThe desolate base must be developed, and the base rank must be raised.Suppress the surrounding monsters, and begin internal affairs. The Guild Master of the DarkRuna Guild, Ilahan, was the strongest person in the Korean server of Kailan both in name and reality. Ilahan, who put in the first flag in the middle of the central continent, wore a satisfied expression. ¡°Good. It looks like us DarkRuna Guild will be able to preoccupy this large update as well.¡± Ilahan¡¯s class was known to be the hidden class ¡®Magic Swordsman¡¯. However, because there was no other user besides Ilahan that had this ¡®Magic Swordsman¡¯ class, there was very little known information on it. No one even knew besides Ilahan whether it was a hidden class derived from the Magician-class or a hidden class derived from the Warrior-class. Because even Ilahan put all of his information on a private setting like Ian, he didn¡¯t pop up on the ranking list either, so no one even knew of his level. If Ilahan¡¯s exact class was revealed, the users speculated that between Red-Flame Magician Remir, who was first place in the Magician rankings, and Shyakran, the Titan Guild Master who was first place in the Warrior rankings, one of them would be pushed back a rank. ¡°Ilahan, it looks like we will be able to expand to about two more bases soon. Shall I command them to expand more?¡± At the words of the man that looked like he was one of the people in the executives of the DarkRuna Guild, Ilahan shook his head. ¡°No, I don¡¯t think there will be a need for that. Since even if we were to increase our bases more, we don¡¯t even have enough power to spare to protect it. For now, just suppress the surrounding of the occupied base, and put strength into growing it.¡± ¡°Yes, understood.¡± As the man that responded turned around and went out of the base station, Ilahan opened his mouth towards a female user that stood next to him. ¡°Sollin, have you found a lead related to Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail?¡± At Ilahan¡¯s words, the female user called Sollin nodded her head as she replied. ¡°Yes, I¡¯ve found it, Master.¡± Ilahan asked again with a pleased expression. ¡°Good. What about the location?¡± ¡°The grave of Holdream is inside the ancient ruins that are near the middle area of the central continent. I presume that you will be able to obtain the Holy Grail there.¡± Ilahan nodded his head. ¡°Okay. Sollin, I will pack up about 30 people and head over first. Follow us immediately.¡± At Ilahan¡¯s words, Sollin momentarily hesitated as she opened her mouth. ¡°However, Master, there is one problem.¡± ¡°What problem?¡± ¡°That¡­ There seems to be users that went into the ruins before us. Looking at their flag, I think they are Luspel Empire users.¡± The moment he heard those words, Ilahan¡¯s eyes shone. Ilahan opened his mouth with an interested expression. ¡°Oh-ho¡­? Were there any guys that had enough ability to enter the middle area of the central continent this quickly amongst the Luspel Empire users?¡± Sollin asked carefully towards Ilahan. ¡°What shall we do, Master? Don¡¯t you think we should move as quickly as possible right now? If we lose the Holy Grail, our plans will be quite twisted.¡± However, different from Sollin, who wore a slightly impatient expression, Ilahan was wearing an incredibly relaxed expression. Ilahan grinned as he spoke. ¡°There¡¯s no need to rush, Sollin.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± The corners of Ilahan¡¯s mouth slightly curled upwards. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter if we go slowly. We just need to make sure we don¡¯t lose them.¡± ¡°That means¡­¡± ¡°If they come out carrying the Holy Grail, we just need to steal it from them, so I¡¯m saying that there¡¯s nothing to be worried about. Instead, it has become more interesting. I was worried that it would be too boring, too.¡± Ilahan untied a sack holding a blue sword that he had wrapped around his waist and handed it to Sollin. ¡°Head over first with this sword. Don¡¯t go into the dungeon, just guard the front. So that you can hit them as soon as they come out, that is.¡± Sollin took the sword and asked. ¡°What kind of item is this sword?¡± ¡°It¡¯s an item the king has given. It¡¯s Offensive Power and Options themselves aren¡¯t that good, but it has Summoning Magic on it, so you¡¯ll be able to use it quite well.¡± Sollin nodded her head as she replied. ¡°Understood.¡± Ilahan called Sollin. ¡°Sollin.¡± ¡°Yes, Master.¡± ¡°Luspel scraps, you¡¯ll be able to face them even though I don¡¯t go there personally myself, right?¡± Sollin smiled coldly as she replied. ¡°Of course, Master.¡± The place that Ian¡¯s party came into was a place that was the same as a treasure house with glittering gold light decorated everywhere. However, the problem was that the space was just showy, and in reality, there weren¡¯t many luxurious items to be seen. Even the piles of gold looked like a lot at first, but after distributing it, each person could only take about a little over 50 thousand gold. Hiding his disappointed heart, Ian moved his feet towards the innermost platform. ¡®Still, there¡¯s the Holy Grail, fortunately.¡¯ On the platform, the golden Holy Grail, which was about the size of a winning trophy of a sports competition, was perched there, and Ian grabbed that. Since the most important thing right now was Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail. Ring-. You have obtained ¡®Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail¡¯.You have satisfied the clear requirements of the ¡®Exploration of the Historical Site of Shikar¡¯ Quest.Clear Rank: S As you have successfully cleared the quest, you have obtained 25 million EXP.As you have successfully cleared the quest, you have obtained 100 thousand Fame.A new connected quest has activated. And following that, a quest window popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Base Occupation Using Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail. You have successfully killed Holdream and put the Holy Grail into your hands. The holy water inside Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail makes the growth of central continent bases 2 times faster, and it reduces the time it takes to occupy a base by half. Using the abilities of the Holy Grail, occupy a base. Quest Difficulty Level: None. Quest Condition: Unknown. Time Limit: 7 days *If the Holy Grail is lost or stolen, the quest will be failed. *In the case that the stolen Holy Grail is recovered, the quest can be restarted. Ian read through the message that popped up in a calm and orderly way as he nodded his head. And for a moment, he was submerged in his thoughts. ¡®Looking at the fact that there¡¯s a precondition in case the Holy Grail is stolen, that definitely means that there is another power existing that is after this Holy Grail¡­ Are there NPCs or monsters that are after the Holy Grail?¡¯ Ian, who had no idea that quests related to the Holy Grail were activated here and there, firstly assumed that there were NPCs or monsters that had their eye on the Holy Grail. Since it was impossible for a normal user to know of the existence of the Holy Grail if it wasn¡¯t for the quest. And that wasn¡¯t exactly a wrong assumption either. Even if other users were deducted, NPCs that were after the Holy Grail like Ian thought existed. Ian asked towards Hellaim. ¡°Leader, how are you going to move now?¡± With the king¡¯s command, the royal knights were to help Ian just up to the Exploration of the Historical Site of Shikar quest. As he had no idea whether they would continue to help him even afterwards, he had asked. And it was just as Ian thought. ¡°Us royal knights must meet the second party and build the front line of the front now, Viscount.¡± ¡°I see. Where will the front line be built?¡± Hellaim¡¯s words continued. ¡°We do not know yet. By tossing and turning with the Kaimon Empire Army, the front line will probably be formed.¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°I see.¡± And he diligently put his brain to work. ¡®Then we need to occupy a base closest to the place the army of the empire is staying at in order to protect it safely¡­¡¯ The Lotus Guild had grown at a blinding rate during that time and was strong enough to be close enough to the top 100 guilds now, but despite that, it wasn¡¯t a fighting power that could enter this quickly into the central continent. Since, compared to the guilds in the top 10, it was still the difference between an adult and a child. ¡®No, rather than overdoing it and proceeding with the quest, it might even be better to concentrate on growing.¡¯ Ian, who finished organizing his thoughts, quickly organized his equipment, and in order to move again, he called his guild members over. ¡°Fiolan, from now on, it could be really dangerous.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Fiolan asked with a puzzled expression. ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± ¡°It seems that it will most likely be difficult to receive the help of the royal knights now.¡± And Fiolan suddenly wore a flustered expression. ¡°Hul¡­¡± Herz was just as surprised. ¡°Yo, there¡¯s only ten of us and there¡¯s no way that we can occupy and guard a base with this fighting power. It will be hard enough to even just hunt the field monsters with the guild¡¯s fighting power.¡± Herz¡¯s words were an obvious. Since the average level of the ten guild members here right now was around the mid-120s, but the levels of the field monsters were at 140 no matter how low it was. Ian had an outrageous PvE ability, but the fact that it wasn¡¯t enough was the reality. ¡°That¡¯s why, I think for now we need to raise our levels a bit while hunting.¡± Fiolan asked with a quizzical voice. ¡°Hunt? The quest was shared with us as well right now, so we saw it pop up¡­ Don¡¯t we need to occupy a base as quickly as possible? There¡¯s even a time limit.¡± However, Ian shook his head. No matter how much he thought about it, running around so rashly right now was too dangerous. He decided instead that it was better to grow as much as they could inside this grave, where, on top of becoming familiar with it, their first discoverer¡¯s buff overlapped twice, and they could obtain 4 times the EXP. ¡®It¡¯s the same whether we fail the quest 7 days later, or get the Holy Grail stolen from us and fail the quest.¡¯ Ian opened his mouth. ¡°Fiolan. You know that with this fighting power, if we go out and meet a Heroic-rank field boss, then we will be annihilated immediately, right?¡± If it was a Heroic-rank boss monster of the central continent, its minimum level would be at least lv 170. Fiolan sighed deeply. ¡°Whew¡­ That is true.¡± ¡°To be honest, even if we were lucky and somehow were able to go to an empty base, with just a couple monster attacks, it will all be game over for us like that.¡± If the base was established, the monsters in the surrounding gathered together in large-scale sizes and raided the base. The fighting difficulty level itself would increase significantly in comparison to just wandering around the field and hunting. If they had a defensive wall to at least attempt in a defensive battle, it would be a different story, but in a base with desolate land, there was no way that such a thing would exist. Herz, who was silent, asked towards Ian. ¡°So, what are you saying we should do? Are we giving up on the quest?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°Yeah, I think you would have to consider giving this up for now. Since we¡¯re going to be hunting in here for a full week, and if we do that, then we¡¯ll just have a day left within the time limit¡­ Occupying a base within that time is going to be difficult by the looks of it.¡± Fiolan licked her lips. ¡°Hm, that¡¯s a little disappointing. My heart was fluttering because I thought that if we succeed with the quest, then we will be able to get hit by another EXP bomb.¡± Ian smirked. ¡°Rather than that, you will probably gain 100 times more EXP hunting in here for a full week while gaining 4 times the EXP. Since there are no boss monsters that are Heroic-rank or more in here, even if we move with just ourselves carefully, we should be able to hunt continuously.¡± Fiolan also agreed with Ian¡¯s words. ¡°That is true. Based on the fact that I¡¯m already at lv 129¡­¡± And one of the guild members that had gathered nearby before they realized and heard what they said asked Ian. ¡°Then what level are you at now, Ian?¡± Ian grinned as he replied. ¡°I just leveled up one level, so I hit 132.¡± Herz opened his mouth with a baffled expression. ¡°132? Are you sure you¡¯re not going into the top 10 of the general rankings like this?¡± Ian shook his head. ¡°No, probably not that. Wouldn¡¯t the top 50 users probably all be over lv 140 by now?¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°They probably are. Since when I checked the rankings before we started this quest, the user that was about 50th was at lv 138 or so.¡± Fiolan mumbled as she spoke. ¡°But it¡¯s basically a definite that Ian is first place in the Summoner rankings¡­ then who could be in second place? Looking at the Summoner ranking list that popped up in the community last time, first place was marked as a lv 115 user.¡± Because Ian¡¯s information was placed as private, his name had never gone up in the Summoner ranking list. And because they couldn¡¯t guarantee that there wasn¡¯t a Summoner user that maintained private settings up until now like Ian either, Ian shrugged his shoulders as he replied. ¡°Well, there could be another Summoner that¡¯s a similar level as me. Since that we don¡¯t know.¡± However, Herz shook his head wearing an expression as if it didn¡¯t make sense while he shook his head. ¡°Crazy, there couldn¡¯t be anyone that exists like that. There¡¯s no way that there¡¯s another lucky wacko like you.¡± ¡°Yo¡­ To call me a lucky wacko¡­¡± Fiolan also nodded her head as if she was agreeing with Herz¡¯s words. ¡°His expression was a little extreme¡­ But I also completely agree.¡± Ian replied with a sullen expression. ¡°Ha, even you, Fiolan¡­¡± However, while they murmured and shared a conversation¡­ Plop-. Bbookbbook, who ingested all of the meatballs that he received from Ian before he realized, came down to the ground and crawled towards somewhere. Bbook- Bboo-bbook-! However, because close to about 100 people were in maintenance, the grounds were incredibly noisy, so no one could discover the disappearing Bbookbbook. And just when about 10 minutes passed. Ian was able to discover the fact that Bbookbbook had disappeared. CH 145 Chapter 145: In the Middle of the Scramble of the Holy Grail (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°What the hell, is a war actually starting then?¡± At the line of empire soldiers that connected endlessly to the point that they could connect from one town to another, the users looked at the empire army with excited expressions as they whispered to each other. ¡°Wow, for it to be a war that¡¯s on a scale like this. I want to participate in the war, too!¡± ¡°What do you mean participate, this friend¡¯s dreams are even big. I just want to be able to even get close and watch. It will probably be really amazing, right?¡± ¡°Cut it out, guys. With our level we can¡¯t even go into the Wasteland, let alone the central continent. You¡¯ll probably die after getting hit by a random Shikar Desert mob a couple times.¡± ¡°Yo, still, I¡¯m at lv 90, do you really think I¡¯ll die in one hit?¡± ¡°Yes, for sure.¡± ¡°¡­¡± The war declaration of the Kaimon Empire and the Luspel Empire was produced into a cool video and was being broadcasted through the game broadcasting companies, and the attention of all the users that played Kailan was leaning towards the central continent. It was the first all-time large-scale battle happening between the two giant empires in Kailan. And high-ranking users of the small minority, who received a quest related to the battle or were personally participating, couldn¡¯t help but be the subjects of envy. Since at this point, in order to step foot into the central continent, you needed to be at least lv 120 or higher. However, there were a lot of voices of complaint. ¡°No, how is it that the update they did saying it was for new content just a banquet for the small minority of top-rankers?¡± ¡°No kidding. I was anticipating, while wondering if new classes were coming out this time as well. But forget about new classes, there¡¯s absolutely nothing new for a lv 50 user like me.¡± ¡°Excuse me, people. You¡¯re complaining right now after having finished all the content, right? I still have a ton to do, so I found I didn¡¯t really have much to complain about¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡± In some ways, this was an obvious sequence. In Kailan, the users that were lv 120 or higher merely made up a small minority of about 0.1% of the top rankings. As the server that opened up first, the Korean server, as well as the Europe and North America server were at this rate, the complaining was more severe in the foreign servers that opened late. Since in the case of the new server, there was not even one user that could step foot into the central continent. However, after a couple days passed, the complaints of the users instantly blew over. This was because quests related to the war that anybody could do began to appear all over the empire. Look here, youngster. Soon after, my one and only son, who is an empire soldier, will be dispatched to the central continent. I want to make some marvelous equipment for my son¡­ By any chance, would you be able to find and bring me 7 Iron Ores? From material gathering quests that gave quite a generous reward¡­ Hey, you, seeing that you have a strong build¡­ If you just learn a little, you look like you could fight well. How about it, coming into the Guards of the Luspel Empire and showing off your skills? If you work hard, you could even skip over Decanus and Centurion, and become an Officer. To having the opportunity to find employment as a soldier of the empire. As there was even the opportunity to be promoted, it wasn¡¯t a proposal that could be ignored as a soldier. At the new quests and content that were continuously created like this, the users immediately wore a broad smile again. Especially the chance to get employment(?) affiliated with the empire as an empire soldier, blacksmith, magician, or knight took centre stage with a lot of the users. The rank or occupational group given was all different depending on the user¡¯s abilities, but if you obtained a job position(?) related to the imperial family, because you could gather contributions little by little, and above everything else, the Fame reward was so good to the point it was incomparable to other quests, it was to the point that within the users, the employment craze hit everybody. It was even to the point that in the real time chatting room of the community, heated discussions related to the jobs arose. Everybody, soon, I will be promoted to a Decanus. To be a Decanus when I¡¯m a lv 40, isn¡¯t that so freaking awesome?Person above, so far as my observations go, you¡¯re not affiliated with the central royal guards. Based on the fact that you hit Decanus at lv 40¡­ It seems that you¡¯re affiliated with the local small manor vigilante, so I¡¯m not one bit jealous.Ha, this person is sharp¡­What do you mean sharp. It¡¯s weird if you don¡¯t know.Huhu, everyone, don¡¯t be surprised. As soon as I took the test, I was immediately given a job as a Decanus affiliated with the central royal knights. The weekly pay is 400 thousand gold, Keu-ha-hat!Hul, above person, by any chance, could you share your class and level? I¡¯m curious.I¡¯m currently a lv 107 Warrior-class user.Hul! No way. I¡¯m a lv 112, but I failed the Decanus real match interview¡­!Huhu, this would be the physical difference, no?Until you upload a picture for proof, I cannot believe you.Haha, these people. Please wait a moment, I will bring a screenshot. Through this new update, Kailan stood on a new phase overall, and although having already claimed 1st place with an overwhelming share of the VR game market, Kailan began to rise even more. No matter what game channel was turned on, information and stories related to the war happening in the central continent were being shown, and despite being a game that had almost been released for a year, new users were constantly flowing in. And Ian and the Lotus Guild were standing right in the centre of that. * * * ¡°Bbookbbook, I¡¯ll give you a meatball, so don¡¯t hide and come out!¡± ¡°Park Bbookbbook, where are you?¡± ¡°What the hell is Park Bbookbbook?¡± ¡°You said you¡¯re Bbookbbook¡¯s hyung. So, I thought his family name was also Park like yours.¡± ¡°¡­¡± The empire knights, who finished maintenance, had all left, and before the Lotus Guild members buckled down to start hunting, they began to go around the dungeon looking for Bbookbbook, who disappeared. At first, Ian thought that he would be able to find him immediately like any other time, so he didn¡¯t think much of it, but as time passed by, he began to grow worried. What was even worse was¡­ Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ has denied Summon Release. Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ cannot be Summon Released. Ian wore a flustered expression. ¡®What the hell? He denied Summon Release? Did he at least discover something that¡¯s more delicious than meatballs?¡¯ The time that went to no good purpose felt wasteful, but still, as the priority was finding Bbookbbook before hunting, Ian diligently looked for Bbookbbook with his guild members. And it wasn¡¯t like they weren¡¯t hunting at all either. Since they needed to catch the monsters that they ran into while wandering around before continuing. ¡°Lord guy, why are you looking so hard for that ugly turtle?¡± At Kaizar¡¯s words, Celia, who was beside him, replied in place of Ian. ¡°What do you mean ugly! Do you know how cute Bbookbbook is?¡± ¡°Ha¡­ I think that turtle and my subordinate guy looks similar. Their body proportions seem to be similar as well¡­¡± At Kaizar¡¯s words, Hoonie, who followed next to him, scowled. ¡°To compare me to that big-headed turtle¡­ I think that¡¯s too much, Master.¡± ¡°Your words are short again[1]. Do you want to get hit?¡± ¡°¡­¡± At the unbearable humiliation(?) that he had never experienced up until now, Hoonie shook his fist. ¡®This too shall pass¡­¡¯ And he thought. ¡®If I feel like I won¡¯t be able to beat that monster-like dude¡­ Once I¡¯ve just absorbed all the dark energy, I should throw away 100 thousand Fame and terminate the contract.¡¯ However, this thought of Hoonie was an incredibly incorrect idea. No, rather than incorrect, it was more like impossible. This was because Hoonie had read the contract content incorrectly. Specifically, the contract content that said, ¡®if Kaizar destroys the contract before you meet the requirements, your Fame will decrease by 100 thousand.¡¯ If the content was read, it could be understood, but breaking free from Kaizar at the cost of 100 thousand fame was not a situation that Hoonie could make. In the case that Kaizar lost interest in Hoonie and he destroyed the contract, it meant that 100 thousand Fame would also be thrown away with it. However, Hoonie, who read that part incorrectly, thought of the 100 thousand Fame as the last resort as he stubbornly endured. However, just then, one of the guild members called Ian with a loud voice. ¡°Oh, Ian! What¡¯s that over there?¡± ¡°What?¡± And everybody¡¯s gaze turned to the place that they were pointing towards. ¡°That thing shining brightly over there. I think in that corner over there, a light is glowing softly?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s take a look.¡± The party, including Ian, walked towards the place that the light was shining from with careful footsteps. They had no idea what would appear in the inside where their range of vision was dark, and since this area was the beginning of the high level hunting grounds, where the average level range was over 140, carelessness must be avoided. And as they slowly turned the corner, a familiar backside caught the eyes of the party. ¡°What the hell?¡± ¡°Bbookbbook, what are you doing here?¡± That was the backside of Bbookbbook. What was more baffling was the form of the monster(?) that was standing face to face with Bbookbbook. Ian mumbled with a dumbfounded expression. ¡°What the hell, he¡­ Looks the same as Bbookbbook.¡± The monster that was face to face with Bbookbbook in front of a narrow passageway was a sea turtle that had a similar appearance to Bbookbbook. However, different from Bbookbbook, who had a dark, navy blue shell, the opposing turtle was a golden turtle whose whole body shone with a golden light. As Bbookbbook¡¯s large head, which already stood out enough, shone with a golden light, that appearance truly took the cake. However, Ly, who followed beside Ian without a word, asked Ian all of a suddenly. Owner. ¡°Ly, what¡¯s wrong?¡± By any chance, is that turtle the one that you talked about last time¡­ The coolest-looking turtle in the world, Bbakbbak[2]? ¡°Huh¡­?¡± It seems his name is Bbakbbak because his head shines that brightly. But why is that turtle here? Owner, didn¡¯t you say last time that Bbakbbak was in the northern continent? ¡°¡­?¡± At Ly¡¯s words, Ian momentarily wore a flustered expression. And Fiolan, who was next to him, asked. ¡°Ian, what is Bbakbbak now? Was there a turtle like that as well?¡± Herz showed interest with an excited expression. ¡°What is this, Bbookbbook even had a friend? That golden turtle, is that a turtle you know?¡± At the two people¡¯s questions, Ian, who was momentarily in a daze, suddenly remembered the story of the ¡®Good-looking Turtle Bbakbbak¡¯ that he made up last time without much thought. ¡®What, what the hell is this¡­?¡¯ Ly¡¯s mumbling continued. Come to think of it, I think he truly is more good-looking than Bbookbbook. It¡¯s to the point I want to touch that shining head once. It seemed that he heard Ly¡¯s words, as Bbookbbook, who was in the middle of confronting the golden turtle with a serious expression, turned his head and glared. Glare! ¡°Jinsung, his expression is really serious. This is the first time I¡¯ve seen him this serious besides when he eats meatballs.¡± ¡°Same¡­¡± Ian replied. ¡°Same goes for me.¡± Bbookbbook, who glared every so often at the party that only said offensive things, began to crawl over towards the golden turtle. And they didn¡¯t know why, but the party all held their breath as they watched that scene. It was an expression that the protagonist of a martial arts book or movie met a mortal enemy on top of a single log bridge! Bbookbbook wore a resolutely determined expression, and even Kaizar began to watch the combat of the two big-headed turtles with an interest as well. Bbook- Bboo-bbook-! What he was saying was unknown, but Bbookbbook pompously shouted. And Bbakbbak(?) stood up to him and also opened his mouth. However, surprisingly, Bbakbbak knew how to speak in the human language. Bbakbbak stared at Ian instead of Bbookbbook and opened his mouth. Human, do you know of me? ¡°Huh¡­?¡± Bbakbbak, huh¡­ For me to have such a cool name! ¡°Pfft¡­!¡± In order to hold back the laughter that burst out in such a serious(?) situation, Ian had to use all of his strength. [1] Similar situation as before, where Hoonie is speaking informally, and this cannot be expressed in English properly. [2] For those wanting to read the chapter where Bbakbbak is first unofficially introduced, please refer back to chapter 65! ^^ CH 146 Chapter 146: The Final of the Scramble of the Holy Grail (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Bbook, bboo-bbook!¡± ¡®I feel a strong energy from somewhere bbook!¡¯ Bbookbbook, who was deliciously eating a meatball right after battle like any other time, suddenly jerked his head up. He had felt a strong energy that he had never felt before up until now calling him. After shoving all the meatballs that were in front of him into his mouth, Bbookbbook nodded his head at Ian. ¡°Bboo-bbook!¡± ¡®Owner, I¡¯m just going to take care of some business for a moment bbook!¡¯ Of course, there was no way that Ian, who was distracted, would have heard Bbookbbook¡¯s report(?), but Bbookbbook didn¡¯t care. Since reports were just formalities anyways. With excited footsteps, Bbookbbook began to crawl off. ¡®Energy as strong as this means that there¡¯s probably quite a delicious elixir bbook!¡¯ Was it ever since he obtained Halli and Pin? At some point, there were a lot more cases when Ian left Bbookbbook alone during battle. Since he had a lot more Familiars, and they mostly fought battles using long-ranged skills, unless it was a very dangerous situation, he hunted without putting Bbookbbook on his back. ¡®Because it¡¯s been awhile since I¡¯ve been hanging on his back for such a long time, I feel stifled to death bbook!¡¯ However, ever since they came to the central continent, because the hunting grounds themselves were incredibly high-level and there was no leeway to be careless for even a moment, Ian had Bbookbbook on his back constantly. Because of that, it was the first time in an incredibly long time that Ian had let Bbookbbook down, and Bbookbbook, who received freedom for the first time since entering the central continent, couldn¡¯t help but feel excitement. ¡®My heart is fluttering bbook! I hope it¡¯s something more delicious than meatballs bbook!¡¯ Ian didn¡¯t really know about this, but once Bbookbbook obtained freedom(?), he went out without Ian knowing and dug out and ate elixirs. And in this giant dungeon that Bbookbbook came to for the first time in his life, elixirs that he would desire were scattered here and there. The scents of the unknown that could be sensed more strongly as Bbookbbook moved made his short legs move even faster. ¡®I¡¯ve found one for now bbook!¡¯ Bbookbbook, who successfully crawled up the wall with his chubby body, dug out the multi-coloured grassroot that was growing out of the cave wall and began to eat it. ¡°Bbook! Bboo-bbook!¡± ¡®Hm, this aroma! This texture that can be felt on my tongue is beyond comparison bbook!¡¯ To Bbookbbook, tasting all the elixirs that scattered here and there across the continent was an incredibly enjoyable job. Of course, it was hard to find something that satisfied Bbookbbook more than meatballs, which had a stimulating taste that filled his mouth, but there was a different charm in tasting medicinal herbs. ¡®I feel the energy of Mother Nature in my stomach bbook!¡¯ Whenever he ate medicinal herbs, a new energy blew vigor into Bbookbbook¡¯s whole body. After completely gobbling up the large medicinal herb root, Bbookbbook started walking again. However, an annoying message popped up in front of Bbookbbook¡¯s eyes. You have ingested the Thousand-Year Multi-coloured Grass. The information can be shared with Owner ¡®Ian¡¯. This annoying message popped up every time he ate a medicinal herb. With a flat expression, Bbookbbook shook his head. ¡®I don¡¯t want to bbook! If my owner knows, then he¡¯ll tell me to bring him one for himself as well bbook! I¡¯m going to eat it all by myself bbook!¡¯ As he did so, the message disappeared, and Bbookbbook began to move his feet quickly again. ¡®Soon, my owner will figure out that I¡¯ve disappeared and come looking for me bbook. I need to eat as much as I can before then bbook!¡¯ Bbookbbook moved quickly to the point it was hard to believe that a speed like that could come from such short legs, and he went around consuming medicinal herbs inside of the dungeon. And shortly after. Just like Bbookbbook worried, an unknown strength began to wrap around Bbookbbook¡¯s body. His owner Ian had let out a command to Summon Release him. Bbookbbook began to stubbornly resist the powerful, unknown strength. ¡®I don¡¯t want to bbook! I¡¯m going to eat more bbook!¡¯ As he did so, surprisingly, the blue light that wrapped around Bbookbbook began to disperse into the air. And Bbookbbook, who had successfully rejected Ian¡¯s Summon Release command, began to move his feet again. ¡®Nobody can stop me bbook!¡¯ With a confident appearance, Bbookbbook began to ingest the elixir he found again. At first, Bbookbbook originally had no strength to reject Ian¡¯s command. However, as he ingested elixirs and slowly became stronger, it became possible for him to reject this unknown energy. Bbookbbook also had a small dream. ¡®If I consume more elixirs, it¡¯s possible that I could run away from this wicked owner bbook!¡¯ Bbookbbook was a turtle labourer that dreamed of escaping his wicked owner that was cheap with his wage payments. In many ways, gathering elixirs was an incredibly important(?) job for Bbookbbook. However, just then, a different kind of voice was heard. And the content couldn¡¯t help but pull Bbookbbook¡¯s attention. Who are you, this is the first time I have seen a turtle that has such a cool appearance ever since I was born! At the appearance compliment, which could even make whales dance, Bbookbbook forgot about the medicinal herb he was chewing on and turned his head. ¡®No, I never knew there would be someone that would recognize my handsome appearance from such an out-of-the-way spot bbook!¡¯ And at the gaze that met his own, Bbookbbook couldn¡¯t help but become taken aback. This was because for an instant he was blinded by whatever was shining gold in colour. ¡°Bbook- bboo-bbook-!¡± Shortly after, Bbookbbook¡¯s vision, which was clouded, returned to normal, and after checking the other, Bbookbbook¡¯s two eyes rounded. ¡®Bbook! This is my first time seeing such a cool turtle bbook!¡¯ In front of Bbookbbook, a golden turtle that had a shell shining gold and a large, beautiful head was crawling towards him. Even for Bbookbbook, the narcissist turtle, it was a perfect appearance that he couldn¡¯t help but acknowledge. There was one word that hit Bbookbbook¡¯s memory hard for a moment. Bbookbbook, you, do you know who is the most handsome and cool turtle in the world? It was the story he heard from his wicked owner a couple months ago that he had a hard time believing. There is a turtle called Bbakbbak in the northern continent, and apparently, that turtle is the coolest turtle in the world. Bbookbbook, who remembered the cool turtle story that he heard from Ian, wore a determined expression as he glared at the golden turtle. His opponent was for sure the Bbakbbak that Ian spoke of. ¡®Bbakbbak¡­! I had no idea that I would meet you in a place like this bbook!¡¯ Bbakbbak was the wicked turtle that introduced Bbookbbook to the world of dieting and portion control. Bbookbbook couldn¡¯t forget that name. And internally, he hardened his determination. ¡®If I can just eliminate that greasy-looking turtle guy, then I should be able to eat meatballs to my heart¡¯s content again bbook¡­!¡¯ And just before the two turtle¡¯s combat was about to begin. Ian and his party had appeared behind Bbookbbook. * * * The central continent¡¯s ancient historical site was in the middle of the desert. Because of that, tons of sand hills existed around it, and on the corner of one of those hills, a large flag was flapping. It was a guild flag with a white background and a black crescent moon drawn on it. That was the flag of DarkRuna, the guild that was 1st place in rankings. ¡°Sollin, how long must we wait until?¡± At the words of the user next to her, Sollin placed her index finger against her lips as she replied with a quiet voice. ¡°Let¡¯s wait a little bit more. It¡¯s best to not act rashly until Master arrives.¡± Sollin was a high-level female Warrior user that was the group leader of scouting team no. 1 of the DarkRuna Guild. She was lv 139. And at this current moment, lv 139 was a high enough level to be close to the top 50 in the general rankings. ¡®I feel like it¡¯s time for them to come out now¡­¡¯ Sollin searched the information of the dungeon. Grave of the Ancient, Giant, God-like People Dungeon Rank: Heroic Dungeon Level: 170 Dungeon Boss: Holdream Lv 270 Cleared or Not: Dungeon that has been cleared First User that Cleared: Unknown The grave of ¡®Holdream¡¯, the leader of the ancient, giant, god-like people. If the boss is killed, the treasures of Holdream can be obtained with a low rate. *¡¯Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail¡¯ has been obtained the first time it was cleared. *Item ¡¯Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail¡¯ is only dropped in the very first clear. Sollin, who checked through the information thoroughly, wore a puzzled expression. ¡°What the hell? Why is the First User that Cleared popping up as Unknown?¡± Usually, for a dungeon¡¯s First User that Cleared, the name of the user that hit the boss last before the boss died popped up. Because, even if it was a user that left their information on private, it was marked down similarly to something like ¡®*** (Private)¡¯, Sollin was taken aback. And a different guild member that was nearby solved her question. ¡°Ah, if an NPC dealt the last hit on a boss, it seems that it gets written down like that. I¡¯ve seen it before.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± Sollin, who finally understood, nodded her head. ¡®Either way, since it¡¯s popped up as a dungeon that has been cleared¡­ whether it¡¯s an NPC or a person, someone will probably come out.¡¯ And her expectations weren¡¯t off. ¡°Sollin, there is someone coming out from over there.¡± At a guild member¡¯s words, Sollin¡¯s gaze turned towards the exit of the historical site¡¯s grave. ¡°Shall we attack right away?¡± At that question, Sollin lifted one of her hands and stopped them. ¡°Let¡¯s wait a bit. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s a user.¡± Royal knights began to come out one by one following the exit of the grave. And Sollin, who checked the symbol drawn on the armor of the knights, could figure out immediately that they were knights affiliated with Luspel Empire. ¡®No wonder¡­ There¡¯s no way that a guild affiliated with Luspel Empire could enter this quickly into the central continent alone.¡¯ Splendor Guild, the guild that was the highest rank amongst the ones affiliated with Luspel, was ranked 3rd place. However, compared to DarkRuna Guild or Titan Guild, who quarrelled over 1st and 2nd place, their fighting power was much lower. This was because most of the users that were in the top 50 were affiliated with the two giant guilds. Sollin momentarily contemplated. ¡®If they are royal knights, then they¡¯ll at least be over lv 140¡­ Will we be able to fight them with our current fighting power?¡¯ However, she didn¡¯t take long to think about it. Because there was no room for selection. ¡®If we just send them off here, then we will definitely not be able to get the Holy Grail.¡¯ It wasn¡¯t even a normal guild, but the royal knights, and if they lost the Holy Grail to them, there was no way to find it back. Sollin thought that the royal knights would definitely have the Holy Grail. She wasn¡¯t even able to think about the fact that someone was remaining inside a completed dungeon and was hunting. ¡®With a guild fighting power of about 50 people now¡­ And since Ilahan will be coming with the main force soon¡­¡¯ It seemed there was roughly about 100 Luspel royal knights, and if that was the case, she felt they would even be able to fight them somehow with numerical superiority. Since, if the main force all arrived, there would be about over 200 users even just counting the users that were over lv 130. ¡°How long did Master say he would take?¡± ¡°He said he would arrive in about 10 minutes.¡± Sollin nodded her head. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s fight them, then.¡± At Sollin¡¯s words, the guild members that were sitting down, hiding their bodies, simultaneously stood up. ¡°Understood.¡± Seu-reu-reung-. As she unsheathed and lifted the long greatsword from her waist, from the back of the line, the loud sound of a horn rang out. Blare-! Through the ¡®Morale Support¡¯ effect of the ¡®Horn of Victory¡¯, the combat abilities of all of the guild members will increase by 5%.The movement of all of the guild members will increase in speed by 10%.The ¡®Morale Support¡¯ effect will last for 10 minutes, and whenever an opponent is killed, the duration time will increase by 5 seconds each time. And the gazes of the Luspel royal knights, who heard the sound of the horn, turned towards the top of the sand hill at the same time. ¡°Charge¡­!¡± Waaah-! Like that, the first battle between both empires in the central continent began with the battle between the DarkRuna Guild and the Luspel royal knights, and in the future, it was the beginning of the disaster called the ¡®Nightmare of the Central Continent¡¯ amongst the DarkRuna guild members. CH 147 Chapter 147: The Final of the Scramble of the Holy Grail (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Bbook- Bboo-bbook-!¡± The golden turtle Bbakbbak(?) paid no attention to Bbookbbook, who circled around him as he picked a fight, and slowly approached Ian. Bbakbbak opened his mouth. To meet a human that knows about my past, I¡¯m moved. Did you say you were Ian? On impulse, Ian nodded his head. ¡°Huh? Yeah¡­¡± Thank you for finding my name, Ian. To show my gratitude, I will give you a present. ¡°¡­¡± Of course, Ian wore a dazed expression. ¡®What exactly is even happening? Then was his actual name Bbakbbak? For real?¡¯ Ian didn¡¯t know the reason why, but he held out his hand for now at the word that he would receive a gift. Since, even if he didn¡¯t know what kind of case this was, there was no reason to turn down free things. To be honest, it was an obvious that Ian didn¡¯t know, but a quest took effect as soon as Bbakbbak(?), a hidden NPC, was named by the first Summoner user he met. More specifically, you could call him a NPC-monster. However, for Ian, who would have had no way to find out that truth, couldn¡¯t help but be taken aback. This is one of the most valued possessions. I hope that you will handle it with care. And as Bbakbbak opened his mouth, a sphere that shone brightly popped out and floated in the air. It was a brilliant sphere that was the size of a fist of an adult male. Ian grabbed it and lifted it up. As he did so, a message rang out. Ring-. You have obtained the item ¡®Turtle Spirit¡¯. ¡®Turtle Spirit? What¡¯s this? It¡¯s Chinese characters I don¡¯t know¡­¡¯ Firstly, as he didn¡¯t know what kind of item it was used as just from looking at it on the outside, Ian opened his inventory and checked the item information. Turtle Spirit Classification: Talisman (Charm) Rank: Legendary Equip Limit: Can be equipped onto one ¡®Familiar¡¯. Durability: 55/55 Option: All combat abilities +55% Cooldown times for all Inherent Abilities -15% *If equipped onto an ¡®Ancient Turtle¡¯ species, Defensive Power will additionally increase by 50%. *If equipped onto an ¡®Ancient Turtle¡¯ species, 0.5% Vitality will be recovered per second. *If equipped onto an ¡®Ancient Turtle¡¯ species, Inherent Ability ¡®Curtain of Water¡¯ can be used. Curtain of Water is made 30m wide and 10m high within range, and no kind of projectile will be able to pass through the curtain. Curtain of Water lasts for 15 seconds. (Cooldown time: 1 minute) *This is an item belonging to user ¡®Ian¡¯. This item cannot be transferred to another user or be sold, and even if the character dies, it does not drop. (Transferrable only once for the first time.) This is a marble that has part of the spirit of Golden Turtle ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯, a turtle from ancient legends, placed within it. It is an item that has the secret required to ascend an ancient turtle into a turtle dragon. Ian, who read through the explanation on the Turtle Spirit item, felt his mind snap into place. ¡®It ascends an ancient turtle¡­ Into a turtle dragon?¡¯ Ian¡¯s gaze immediately turned towards Bbookbbook. ¡®Based on their appearance, I¡¯m certain that Bbookbbook is of the same species(?) as Bbakbbak, so then?¡¯ This could perhaps be the clue to the method on evolving Bbookbbook, which he had no idea on until now. Ian was almost certain. ¡®Bbookbbook, I was wondering what you would become to be eating so much, but you were to become a dragon!¡¯ Towards Ian, who was thinking of this and that, Bbakbbak opened his mouth again. Ian, by any chance, could you do me a favour? I have been asleep for too long. I want to find my forgotten memories. Following that, a quest window popped up. This time, the quest window popped up in front of all the users that belonged to Ian¡¯s party. Ring-. Golden Turtle ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯s Request (Hidden Quest) Golden Turtle Bbakbbak, who had been asleep in the grave of the giant, god-like people in the ancient ruins, had woken up from a long sleep. However, Bbakbbak, who had been asleep for too long, is not able to remember his past. In order to find his memories again, the ¡®Cintamani of the Golden Turtle Dragon¡¯ that is hidden somewhere in the grave must be found. Find the Cintamani of the Golden Turtle Dragon and return to Bbakbbak. Quest Difficulty Level: SS Quest Condition: A user that has obtained the trust of Golden Turtle ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯. A user that has succeeded in killing Holdream. Time Limit: None. Reward: Egg of the Golden Turtle (Can only be obtained by one person amongst the party members) Scale Armour of the Turtle Dragon (Given to all party members) Fame (Graded payment given depending on the clear rank) Ian¡¯s pupils expanded. He needed to have obtained information from Bbakbbak to solve Bbookbbook¡¯s evolution secret anyways, but as he was even granted a hidden quest like this, he at least wanted to dance. ¡®If I successfully complete a hidden quest like this, then my Affinity with the NPC will probably go up a lot, right?¡¯ As it was obvious that the higher the Affinity, the more information you could obtain, Ian couldn¡¯t help but be in a good mood. And it wasn¡¯t as much as Ian, but the expressions of the other users also became incredibly bright. ¡°Ian, have you clicked on this Scale Armour of the Turtle Dragon item?¡± ¡°No, why?¡± ¡°This is a freaking Legendary-rank item!¡± As Fiolan spoke with excitement, Ian tabbed the Scale Armour of the Turtle Dragon item that popped up in the quest window. As he did so, an armour with a fancy design drawn on it appeared in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. ¡°Keu, it is cool.¡± At Ian¡¯s mumbling, Herz added on with a glowing tone. ¡°Yo, the problem isn¡¯t that it¡¯s cool right now! It¡¯s a freaking Legendary-rank. I haven¡¯t even been able to look at a Legendary-rank item yet, even in the auction house!¡± At those words, Ian wore a puzzled expression. ¡°Oh, really? You don¡¯t have even one Legendary-rank item yet?¡± Herz asked back. ¡°Do you have one to be like that?¡± ¡°Of course. Let¡¯s see here¡­ I think I have about three.¡± ¡°¡­¡± For an instant, everybody¡¯s gazes filled with jealousy were aimed at Ian, who wore a sheepish expression. Ian was flustered, so he stuttered as he smiled awkwardly. ¡°Ha, haha, I thought everybody at least had one¡­¡± To be honest, Legendary-rank items were rare, but still, a user that has obtained one uploaded a proof shot in the community every now and then. The only reason why it was hard to find a Legendary-rank item in the auction house was because most items starting from Legendary-rank were obtained as bound items. For a moment, silence flowed. The one that broke that silence was none other than Kaizar. ¡°Lord guy.¡± ¡°What, retainer.¡± ¡°You know that you have to give me that Scale Armour of the Turtle Dragon or whatever, right?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± At Kaizar¡¯s unexpected words, Ian became speechless. ¡°Why, why do I have to?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Kaizar responded lightly. ¡°If you don¡¯t give it to me, I won¡¯t work. Lord guy.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Because the fighting power of Ian¡¯s party was already too weak to make it through this dangerous dungeon, he couldn¡¯t do anything else but cry as he bit the bullet and nodded. ¡°Ah, understood.¡± In case their items would also be taken from them, Herz and Fiolan quickly turned away from Ian, and he wore a sullen expression. * * * Because of Bbookbbook¡¯s affair(?) that was not part of the schedule and the meeting with Bbakbbak that followed, they were momentarily delayed, but after receiving the quest, Ian¡¯s party proceeded with hunting like planned. It wasn¡¯t easy to hunt with high-level monsters that were around lv 150-170, but because Kaizar, who was to receive his daily wage(?), worked diligently, their hunting speed was getting faster little by little. Before they realized, it had been 5 hours since they had begun hunting. Bang- Ba-bang-! Retainer ¡®Kaizar¡¯ has attacked the ¡®Ancient Forgotten Revengeful Spirit¡¯ and has dealt critical damage.The ¡®Ancient Forgotten Revengeful Spirit¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 24,875.The ¡®Ancient Forgotten Revengeful Spirit¡¯ has been killed.You have obtained 248,590 EXP.You have leveled up. You have reached lv 133. Along with the system messages that popped up one after another, Ian¡¯s whole body was covered in a white light. As he felt the pleasure of leveling up, Ian wore a satisfied smile. ¡°Keu, as expected, you need to go hardcore.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Herz, who stood in the front holding his shield as he blocked the projectiles, grumbled. ¡°Yo, let¡¯s rest from time to time while hunting. Do you think everybody else is like you as well? Everybody¡¯s utterly exhausted now.¡± At those words, Ian turned his head as he looked around. And just like Herz said, everybody¡¯s shoulders were drooping. Ian, who saw that, licked his lips. ¡°Jjup, then shall we rest a bit?¡± As soon as Ian said those words, everybody plopped down on the spot. Fiolan, who sat next to Ian, shook her head as she opened her mouth. ¡°Ha, after I hunt with you, Ian, I become completely drained, but because my EXP goes up so well, I can never turn you down.¡± At those words, Herz smirked as he spoke. ¡°It¡¯s not that you cannot turn him down, but that you hang onto him to go with you, Fiolan.¡± ¡°Did, did I now? Still, thanks to you, I¡¯m already at lv 131. Hehe.¡± ¡°I¡¯m a bit jealous about that.¡± Before Ian sat down, he rotated through all of his buff skills before beginning his break. ¡°Speaking of which, how should we do the quest? This Cintamani of the Golden Turtle Dragon or whatever¡­ I have no idea as to where we even need to be looking for this.¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Fiolan replied without much thought. ¡°That, well, since it¡¯s the Cintamani of the Golden Turtle Dragon, shouldn¡¯t it come out if we can catch that Turtle Dragon or whatever?¡± Herz also added on with a soulless voice. ¡°What could a Turtle Dragon be? Is it a dragon that looks like a ghost?[1] Ghost dragon?¡± At Herz¡¯s words, Ian scolded him. ¡°You idiot, the ¡®Gwi¡¯ is turtle in Chinese characters. Such ignorant words.¡± ¡°Really? Then it¡¯s a Turtle Dragon? Is it something like Hyunmu[2]¡­¡± However, Ian¡¯s conceited act was derailed by Fiolan. ¡°Ian, I saw Hoonie teach you earlier already.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Ian laughed embarrassedly, while Herz turned his head with a surprised expression towards Hoonie, who was wearing an arrogant expression. ¡°Oh, kid! You¡¯re smarter than you look.¡± Hoonie grinned with a triumphant expression. ¡°Huhu, this is the body that will become the Black Magician of the legends. It would be weird if I wasn¡¯t smart.¡± Ian smirked as he made a sarcastic remark. ¡°He must have learned it from his worksheet that he solved yesterday.¡± At Ian¡¯s taunt, Hoonie flew off the handle. ¡°Are you looking down on the heir of the darkness right now?¡± However, this fuss was immediately cleared by Kaizar. Smack-! Kaizar had lifted his sheath and hit the back of Hoonie¡¯s head. ¡°You¡¯re too loud, Subordinate guy!¡± Unable to say anything, Hoonie wore a sullen expression as he just spun his head around. For some reason, Ian felt sorry towards Hoonie. ¡°Suddenly, that kid looks a little pitiful.¡± There was a momentary fuss during the break after hunting, but the limp party had recovered enough of their strength, and they stood up from their spot in order to begin hunting again. However, just then. The sound of a weak vibration began to be heard from a stone wall on one side of the grave. Ku-reung- Ku-reu-reung-. And Bbookbbook, who heard that weak vibration sound, began to crawl towards the direction that sound was coming from. Bbook- Bboo-bbook-! ¡®Yo, Bbookbbook, where are you going now?¡± Ian hurriedly grabbed Bbookbbook and put him on his back, and during that time, the vibrations grew bigger and bigger. Ku-reu-reu-reung- Ku-gu-gung-! ¡°Everybody, be careful! Rocks are falling from above!¡± Baang-! As soon as Fiolan¡¯s words ended, quite a large rock fell between the party, and Ian, who saw that, was startled. ¡°If you couldn¡¯t dodge a size like that, you would end up kicking the bucket.¡± While the party busily moved as they escaped the dangerous area, one of the stone walls of the grave began to split, and Ian hurriedly began to activate all of the buffs as the cooldown times ended. ¡°I think something will come out from over there. Everybody, get ready for combat!¡± And shortly after. Ping-! A strong light that made it hard to even open their eyes exploded from between the cracked stone wall, and enveloped the party¡¯s vision. [1] In Korean, Turtle Dragon is ¡®Gwi-Ryong¡¯. ¡®Gwi¡¯ alone means two things depending on the Chinese character it is derived from. One meaning is ¡®ghost/spirit¡¯, which is what Herz thought it meant, and the other is ¡®turtle¡¯, which is the correct meaning. [2] Hyunmu = The Black Tortoise; a mythical creature that is a hybrid of many animals, much like a Griffin. Also known as Xuanwu in Chinese and Genbu in Japanese. CH 148 Chapter 148: Golden Turtle Dragon (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Bang- Ba-bang-! There was a large explosive sound that rang out as well as a white flash of light that covered the desert zone. Leader of Luspel Empire¡¯s Knights ¡®Hellaim¡¯ has used skill ¡®Flash of Destruction¡¯.Critical damage has been dealt!Vitality has been reduced by 28733!Defensive Power has been temporarily reduced by 40%. The DarkRuna Guild members, who pompously charged towards the Luspel Empire¡¯s knights, truly began to fall apart. ¡°Sollin, by the looks of it, I think we¡¯ve made a mistake!¡± Sollin¡¯s expression crumpled. ¡°Damn it, how are empire knights this strong?¡± Of course, if they were the average standard of empire knights, the DarkRuna Guild wouldn¡¯t have been slaughtered this gruesomely. No, they would have almost been equal. However, the problem was that the ones they disturbed were not normal empire knights, but the royal guards that were under direct control from the King. On top of their average level being 170, Hellaim, who, although they didn¡¯t know his exact level, was definitely well over lv 200, was simply a disaster to the DarkRuna Guild users. ¡°I was a little disappointed to just return like this, but to have met some Kaimon rookies, this turned out well just in time!¡± Like a fish that met water, Hellaim went around the battleground swinging his greatsword around. Whoong- Whoong-! Even just from hearing, the horror of the sound of the air splitting could be felt. The moment they were struck with the outrageous lump of metal, which was as almost as tall as an adult male, the DarkRuna Guild members, who were not yet even lv 140, turned black just like that and disappeared. Bang-! A sound too extreme and blunt to be considered something coming from being hit by a sword could be heard, and the guild members that were attacked were blown far back and turned into a grey light. Plop-. While looking at about five or six of her guild members die in an instant right in front of her eyes, Sollin fiddled with the sword she received from Ilahan. ¡®Even if I were to use the Summoning magic right now, there probably wouldn¡¯t be any use, right?¡¯ No matter how high of a level the Summoning Magic that was on the sword was, it seemed inadequate to face that monster-like knight that ran around wildly carrying a greatsword the size of a tree-trunk. Sollin opened her mouth. ¡°Leo, I think we have no choice.¡± ¡°What are you saying?¡± ¡°Even if we were to run away right now, we¡¯ll be annihilated.¡± The guild member called Leo nodded their head. ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± Sollin unsheathed the sword as she continued her words. ¡°Since it¡¯s already like this, we¡¯ll kill a couple of them at least and die in battle cleanly.¡± At her words, Leo sighed deeply. ¡°Ha, in order to restore a level, it will take on average a couple of days¡­ However, there¡¯s nothing we can do.¡± Ta-tat- Tat-! Sollin quickly charged forward and began to face the knights of Luspel, and following her, Leo also ran into the battlefield. However, Hellaim¡¯s knights were too strong for them to face. 10 minutes later from then. There was not one DarkRuna Guild user that remained on top of the desert, and the battle ended blandly. ¡°They had quite dogged spirits. Based on the fact that they weren¡¯t afraid of death.¡± Hellaim mumbled as he carried his greatsword. Stomp- Stomp-. The dozen people of the DarkRuna Guild were annihilated like that without having been able to kill even one knight. However, this was an obvious result. On top of the difference in fighting power for each individual being far superior, there were close to two times the number of knights, so in a way, it was to the point that even lasting 10 minutes was admirable. * * * Keu-reu-reu-reu-reu. A growl so loud it gave off the illusion that the whole dungeon was shaking was heard. The thing that appeared in front of Ian¡¯s party was literally a giant, golden lizard. At the enormous presence that didn¡¯t lack in size even when compared to King Holdream of the giant, god-like people, Herz swallowed audibly as he opened his mouth. ¡°What, what the hell is that, Jinsung? I think that dragon is the Golden Turtle Dragon that Bbakbbak was talking about earlier.¡± Jinsung nodded his head, as his gaze turned towards the mouth of the lizard that appeared in front of him. The Cintamani was being held in the mouth of the giant lizard. Kyaoooh! The yellow lizard that bore through the stone wall and appeared roared loudly, and the party flinched as they took a step back. However, just then, Kaizar opened his mouth. ¡°That isn¡¯t the Golden Turtle Dragon.¡± Ian¡¯s head naturally turned towards him. ¡°Hm? You¡¯re saying it¡¯s not the Golden Turtle Dragon? Is it a monster that you know, retainer?¡± Kaizar nodded his head. ¡°It¡¯s much larger than what I remember, but if my memory is right, this is a Sand Drake. It¡¯s a central continent monster that¡¯s about lv 200.¡± However, because the presence felt was incredible, Ian tilted his head. ¡°It looks much stronger than the Teranodon that¡¯s a lv 200 monster.¡± Kaizar opened his mouth again. ¡°That probably¡­ I think is because of the Cintamani that¡¯s being held in its mouth.¡± ¡°The Cintamani?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. I think it wanted to absorb the energy of that Cintamani and become a dragon. Based on its size, it seems it has absorbed quite a bit of its strength already.¡± Kaizar unsheathed his sword as he walked forward. As he did so, Ian wore a flustered expression. ¡°Retainer, this is too reckless! If you just go in like that!¡± At that, Hoonie, who was standing in the back with a sour expression, mumbled. ¡°Is he worrying about that monster because he has no person to worry about?¡± Ballam, who stood next to him, nodded his head in agreement. Unless Immortal presents himself in a tangible form, I think it¡¯s impossible to kill that guy, Hoonie. ¡°Hmph!¡± Either way, as Kaizar stepped forward, the lizard got into an even more offensive stance, and even the rest of the party, including Ian, couldn¡¯t do anything else but prepare for battle. And the drake, who discovered the party getting closer and closer, opened his mouth wide. Whooong-! Fiolan, who discovered that, shouted. ¡°It¡¯s Breath! Dodge it!¡± A large vortex swirled inside the drake¡¯s mouth as the desert sand began to be sucked in. Ian quickly let out a command to Bbookbbook. ¡°Bbookbbook, Curtain of Water!¡± Bboo-bbook-! As Ian spread out his hand while shouting, a stream of water poured out from Bbookbbook¡¯s mouth. Kwaaah-! The stream of water flew out and formed a large curtain right in front of the drake. And the drake¡¯s breath spurted out. Hwaaak-! However, the drake¡¯s Sand Breath was completely blocked off by the Curtain of Water that Bbookbbook spread out, and it dispersed into the air on the spot. The talisman item ¡®Turtle Spirit¡¯ that was received from Bbakbbak was already equipped onto Bbookbbook, and because of that, it was an Inherent Ability that he could use. ¡°Ooh¡­!¡± Herz gave a thumbs-up as he let out an exclamation. Kaizar also grinned as he lifted his sword. ¡°Good job, Lord guy. You were quite useful.¡± Ian¡¯s expression scrunched up as he responded. ¡°What do you mean I was useful? It was perfect!¡± Bbook- Bboo-bbook-! After smirking, Kaizar stomped his foot as he powerfully jumped forward. And with that as the trigger, the battle with the Sand Drake began. ¡°Yoohyun, go up front first!¡± ¡°Got it!¡± Herz shot forward as he started up his most top-ranked defensive skill. User ¡®Herz¡¯ has used skill ¡®Divine Protection¡¯.User ¡®Herz¡¯s Defensive Power and Vitality has tripled temporarily.For the duration of ¡®Divine Protection¡¯, the Vitality and Defensive Power of nearby party members of User ¡®Herz¡¯ will increase by 20%. Ian¡¯s command continued. ¡°Healers, please focus all heals on Herz, and Fiolan, please start casting magic!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± Herz, who was already close to reaching the drake, followed up with a provoking skill. User ¡®Herz¡¯ has used skill ¡®Rage of the Knight¡¯.User ¡®Herz¡¯s Defensive Power has increased by 1200.All monsters within a 50-metre radius have begun to attack User ¡®Herz¡¯. Following that, the gaze of the drake, who was facing Kaizar, moved towards Herz. Bang- Ba-bang-! A type of sand wind that was shot out from the mouth of the drake hit Herz¡¯s shield. The Sand Drake has used Inherent Ability ¡®Sand Spear¡¯.User ¡®Herz¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 12,650. The message that popped up was a system message that Ian, the party leader, could only see. While looking at the damage value that was seen in the message, Ian was astonished. ¡®Wow¡­ Even though he coated himself with Defensive Power buffs like that, over 10 thousand damage still comes through.¡¯ Starting from when Bbookbbook¡¯s Curtain of Water was used to block off the breath, the battle proceeded effectively like flowing water, but it didn¡¯t finish that easily. The drake¡¯s Offensive Power was strong as well, but it seems as it appeared as a boss-type monster, its Vitality was incredible, to the point it made them speechless. Retainer ¡®Kaizar¡¯ has dealt critical damage to the ¡®Sand Drake¡¯!The ¡®Sand Drake¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 27,767.The ¡®Sand Drake¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 15,755. Even Fiolan, who continuously poured out her magic, was astonished. ¡°Wow, how can its endurance be so strong? My mana¡¯s going to be depleted soon¡­¡± Herz also agreed. ¡°My buff effects will end soon as well! I¡¯m still continuously getting healed, but once my defensive buffs disappear, I think I¡¯m going to die horribly from just a couple hits¡­¡± While attacking the drake¡¯s flank with Ly, Ian mumbled internally. ¡®If the royal guards were here, then we would have already caught him.¡¯ However, as it was more important to attack even once more during the time he spent being disappointed over Hellaim, who had already left to face the Kaimon Empire army at the front, Ian worked his hands without rest. Pung- Pu-pung-! The battle continued on narrowly. Herz¡¯s Vitality continuously went back and forth from 20-30%, and if even one of the Vitality recovering skills of the healers were cancelled, the battle cycle that could completely collapse continued on like that. However, not one of the party members lost their focus and diligently endured it. ¡°We¡¯re almost there!¡± Just like the shouts of someone, the Sand Drake¡¯s Vitality gauge bar began to blink faster and faster, and Ian squeezed out as much attack speed as he could. The ¡®Sand Drake¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 9824.The ¡®Sand Drake¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 915.The ¡®Sand Drake¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 4975. At the attacks that were constantly poured out, the drake seemed to be distressed as it roared towards the air. Kyaaooh! And shortly after, the body of the giant lizard slowly crumbled to towards the sand floor. Along with that, the body of the Sand Drake slowly turned into a grey light. In the end, they had succeeded in killing the Sand Drake. Thud-! Along with a heavy sound that was enough to shake the ground, a system message popped up in front of all of the guild members. You have successfully killed the Hidden Boss Monster, the ¡®Sand Drake¡¯.You have obtained 5,587,798 EXP.As you are the first to kill the ¡®Sand Drake¡¯, your Fame has increased by 30 thousand.You have obtained the title ¡®Drake Slayer¡¯. As the difficult battle, where they could have truly been annihilated from even just one mistake, ended, a reward fitting of that returned to the party members, and they all wore broad smiles. ¡°Wow, look at the EXP. It¡¯s incredible!¡± Fiolan obtained a Heroic-rank magic wand and was all smiles. ¡°I won a prize, jackpot!¡± ¡°Fiolan, what did you get?¡± ¡°A wand that¡¯s better than the staff that I was using!¡± ¡°Ooh!¡± While everybody was excited over the success of the boss monster hunt, a couple more messages popped up additionally for Ian. You have successfully interrupted the evolution of the Sand Drake.The Cintamani of the Golden Turtle Dragon has found its strength again. Along with the message, the Cintamani floated up into the air. And as the giant body of the Sand Drake shrunk, a white light came out of it and was sucked into the Cintamani. And the Cintamani, which had a hazy glow, began to shine brightly. Ian walked towards the Cintamani. Both of his eyes were shining. ¡®I¡¯ve interrupted the evolution, you say?¡¯ Judging from the system messages, it seemed like that Cintamani was the medium to evolution. Ian¡¯s gaze turned towards Bbookbbook. ¡®Then that means¡­?¡¯ Bbookbbook stared back at Ian, who was staring at him with a sticky gaze, with an expression saying as if he didn¡¯t understand his reasoning. Bboo-ook-? CH 149 Chapter 149: Golden Turtle Dragon (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Beep- Beep-beep-beep-beep-! Harin, who arrived in front of Jinsung¡¯s studio apartment, pressed the code of the door lock[1] with skillful(?) hand movements and opened the door. Because she already knew that Jinsung would be in the middle of gaming either way, she didn¡¯t even press the bell on purpose. Creak-. Harin, who opened the door and entered, plopped down on Jinsung¡¯s bed that was in the corner. And she began to stare piercingly at the capsule that Jinsung was definitely in. ¡®Our Jinsung, it¡¯s about time he comes out to eat now¡­¡¯ Harin dressed quite differently than usual in a pretty dress. Of course, she didn¡¯t just come out dressed up just to cheer her mood up. ¡®Today, without fail, I will drag out this gaming cripple and go on a date.¡¯ She normally didn¡¯t go out wearing whatever either, but Harin, who paid attention to her makeup and even sprayed some perfume on for the first time in a while, stared at the clock hanging on the wall with a determined(?) expression. 12:47 Because Jinsung had a regular eating habit different from normal gaming cripples, around 12:50 everyday, he came out of his capsule without fail to eat lunch. Harin was waiting for that. ¡°Shall I take a look in the mirror instead? I even feel like my makeup looks good today too¡­¡± Harin hummed as she looked at her face here and there with her hand mirror. And shortly after, no different from any other day, as it passed 12:50, Jinsung¡¯s capsule began to open. Whiiing-. Harin, who was sitting on the bed, abruptly stood up from her spot, but Jinsung seemed to have not noticed her, as he walked to the table sluggishly. ¡®Ha, how can he not even realize that someone came into his house? That dense guy¡­!¡¯ To be honest, Jinsung¡¯s denseness was also at fault, but as he came out after being in the capsule for such a long time, the fact that his surrounding perception ability had dropped was the actual fault. Harin hurriedly ran over to Jinsung¡¯s side and linked arms with him. And Jinsung, who was wearing a half-dazed expression, was surprised by Harin¡¯s unexpected appearance and shouted. ¡°Aaah!¡± While looking at Jinsung who almost threw a fit, Harin smiled brightly as she pulled on his arm. ¡°Why are you so surprised? I thought you said that I could come over whenever?¡± ¡°That, that is true, but¡­¡± Jinsung, who barely settled his surprised heart, asked Harin again. ¡°But when exactly did you come? If you were going to come, you should have at least sent me a message beforehand.¡± Harin grinned as she shrugged her shoulders. ¡°Surprise!¡± ¡°¡­¡± The two people turned their footsteps that were headed towards the table away and sat down side by side on the bed. ¡°Did you come to eat lunch together with me?¡± At Jinsung¡¯s question, Harin replied. ¡°There¡¯s that, too¡­¡± ¡°There¡¯s something else as well?¡± ¡°Today¡­¡± Harin, who momentarily paused to take a breath, continued her words. ¡°I¡¯m planning on dragging you out of Kailan at any cost.¡± ¡°What?¡± Harin stood up from her spot and faced Jinsung as she smiled brightly. ¡°What do you think? Don¡¯t I look pretty today?¡± Jinsung looked at Harin with a sour expression. Come to think of it, Harin¡¯s appearance, which looked even more put-together than usual, felt incredibly beautiful. Jinsung stuttered as he nodded his head. ¡°Y, yeah, pretty.¡± ¡°How much?¡± With an awkward expression, Jinsung¡¯s words continued. ¡°A lot?¡± However, it was just his expression that was awkward, but Jinsung¡¯s words were sincere. It was just because this was his first time experiencing a situation(?) like this, so he just had no idea how to react. Harin glanced at the computer that was next to Jinsung¡¯s new capsule model as she spoke. ¡°I¡¯ll be on the computer looking at the internet while I play a little, so go shower and get ready quickly.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Then do you actually think I came dressed so prettily just to game with you?¡± The words that he needed to go complete the quest almost came out of Jinsung¡¯s mouth, but he narrowly swallowed them back. ¡°So suddenly¡­¡± However, as Harin came so firmly determined, such excuses wouldn¡¯t work. Harin cut off Jinsung¡¯s words as she opened her mouth. ¡°This is a date request, Park Jinsung. I originally wanted to give you a chance, but having you request a date from me seemed impossible until Kailan goes bankrupt.¡± As Jinsung couldn¡¯t refute that, he became as dumb as an oyster. ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Anyways! Hurry up and go shower, quickly!¡± Harin quickly approached Jinsung and pushed his back, and Jinsung, flustered, sat her down on the chair. ¡°Al, alright. I got it. I¡¯ll go shower, so just go on the computer, alright?¡± Harin wore a playful smile as she replied. ¡°If you take too long, I¡¯m going to pick open your door and come in, so shower quickly!¡± Jinsung wore the most decent clothes he had at home, and left the house with Harin. However, there was no real point to that. Since next to Harin, who boasted a shining appearance, Jinsung was covered by her shadow and didn¡¯t catch any gazes. ¡°But where are we going, Harin?¡± At Jinsung¡¯s question, Harin smiled as she answered. ¡°Just follow me, Jinsung. You don¡¯t have a choice today.¡± ¡°O, okay.¡± Jinsung, who flinched at Harin¡¯s energy(?), began to follow her without saying a word. The Cintamani that would still be in his inventory bothered a corner of his heart a little, but still, looking at Harin, who was holding tightly onto his hand, a smile automatically formed. ¡®Harin is seriously pretty.¡¯ Jinsung thought that the only person that he could give up his gaming time, which was the most important(?) of all his daily tasks, for was Harin. Since right now, while holding Harin¡¯s hand and walking with her, his heart fluttered more than when he won a luxurious item as a prize. Like that, the place that the two people were headed for was the largest amusement park in the suburbs of Seoul. ¡°You wanted to come to an amusement park?¡± At Jinsung¡¯s question, Harin nodded her head. ¡°Yeah, I really like going on rides!¡± With quite an excited expression as well, Jinsung looked around at the rides. And he said something shocking(?). ¡°This is my first time coming to an amusement park.¡± ¡°What? How is that possible?¡± ¡°Just¡­ It just happened to end up like this.¡± ¡°What do you mean it just happened to end up like this, it¡¯s because you thought it was a waste to use the time you game on something else.¡± Harin had already figured out Jinsung perfectly. Jinsung, who couldn¡¯t argue against Harin¡¯s words, scratched the back of his head without a word. Like that, the two people that bought a free pass to the amusement park, began to go on the rides in a good mood. However, shortly after, a critical(?) problem formed. Jinsung, who boarded the high-speed train, the A-Express, which was also the pride of the amusement park, began to break out into a cold sweat. Rattle- Rattle-. Deu-reu-reu-reuk-. As the chain was slowly winded up, the ride moved towards an even higher spot. Jinsung¡¯s voice came out shaking. ¡°Ha, Harin.¡± ¡°Hm? What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°Th, this is too¡­¡± Jinsung, who was too embarrassed to say in front of Harin that he was scared when she was having the time of her life, stammered, but Harin immediately caught onto his state. ¡°What the hell, are you scared right now?¡± Jinsung refuted as he responded. ¡°Sca, scared, pfft! I just feel like this is too high¡­ Aaack!¡± Rattle-. The train that was dragged up to the highest point stopped along with the rattling sound, and a shout reflexively came out of Jinsung¡¯s mouth. And Harin, who saw that, shook her head. ¡°I can¡¯t believe it.¡± Jinsung¡¯s eyes trembled slightly. While looking at Jinsung, who grasped the safety bar tightly with an expression seized with fear, Harin laughed. However, it wasn¡¯t like there was a way for Jinsung to escape this situation. Like that, Jinsung¡¯s nightmare began. Swaaeeek-! The high-speed train split the wind as it began to plummet downwards. While squeezing his eyes shut, Jinsung yelled. ¡°Aaaauuuuk!¡± On the other hand, with an expression full of thrill, Harin cheered. ¡°Waaaah!¡± With completely opposite forms, the two people enjoyed the ride. With his eyes closed, Jinsung thought of his Familiars. ¡®I miss Bbookbbook! Pin, Halli, Ly, guys, save me, heuk-heuk.¡¯ It was a line that Harin would have made fun of him about for the rest of his life if she had heard it, but it was the truth for Jinsung. His mind was filled with the thought hoping that this painful time quickly passed by. ¡®For dating to be as scary as this! There was a reason why I was forever alone!¡¯ Because he wouldn¡¯t be able to withstand this if he didn¡¯t at least have such ridiculous thoughts, Jinsung continued to think about other things, and after the 15 minutes that felt like 15 hours passed by like that, Jinsung was able to step foot onto land again. ¡°Euh, euuh¡­¡± His face was completely pale, and his two legs shook. While looking at Jinsung, who was almost worn-out, Harin laughed at him. ¡°Yo, how can a man be that scared? You even went up so pompously when you went up to get on.¡± However, Jinsung let out an excuse of his own. ¡°Harin, do you know why I¡¯m so good at VR games?¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°My space perception ability is outstanding.¡± With a dumbfounded voice, Harin replied. ¡°How is that related to you having so much fear right now?¡± ¡°That¡¯s why, when I¡¯m up there, I¡¯m several times more scared than others. Where I am right now, how dangerous of a place I¡¯m up on, I am too well-aware of that.¡± While looking at Jinsung, who spread out a strange situation that didn¡¯t make sense, Harin shook her head. ¡°Very funny. Then is my space perception ability dull, so that¡¯s why I¡¯m not scared?¡± Jinsung nodded his head as he replied. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s it. Even when you¡¯re up there, you don¡¯t realize where this is and how dangerous of a place it is.¡± With quite a serious expression, Jinsung spread out his logic. However, with Harin¡¯s next words, Jinsung¡¯s insistence was immediately dismissed. ¡°You¡¯re being noisy, old man. I¡¯m hungry, so let¡¯s just go eat something.¡± ¡°Su, sure¡­¡± At the fact that Harin didn¡¯t suggest that they immediately go on a different dangerous ride, Jinsung was quite relieved. * * * ¡°So, Emily, you¡¯re saying that it¡¯s practically impossible to produce food here?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, Shyakran. Truthfully, rather than impossible, to be more specific, the efficiency is too poor. Since it requires almost ten times the resources that was needed to produce our main Domain.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ It¡¯s to that extent, huh. It¡¯s a more serious state than I expected.¡± The Titan Guild, who had successfully occupied the first base in the central continent after the DarkRuna Guild, ran into an unexpected challenge. Firstly, once a base was occupied, it must be developed, but as it was a base on top of the desolate desert, they couldn¡¯t produce any resources. The one thing that they could really do was raise the public order group to hunt the monsters in the surrounding and obtain the loot, but even if they obtained the loot, as there was no place to sell it, there was no real meaning. Even though it was a little cold in the northern Domain, as it was possible to network within the empire with the basic agricultural system and the surrounding Domains, if they just set up a base to a certain point, it was possible to grow it quickly. However, in the central continent, there was seriously no answer. Ceilron, who was next to them silently, opened his mouth. ¡°Then there¡¯s no other choice but to haul over the resources from the main base and pour it out onto here.¡± Emily nodded her head. ¡°Exactly. In order to quickly grow right now, there¡¯s only that method¡­¡± Shyakran smiled bitterly. ¡°This was something I was expecting to an extent, but I didn¡¯t know it would be this bad.¡± However, it wasn¡¯t like there were no advantages to the base in the central continent. Even if the level of the base was low, the quality of the troops that could be fundamentally produced were far superior to the Domain in the northern continent, and even the basic level of the individuals that could be appointed began from 130. On top of that, it seemed since it was an area that specialized in war, once the level of the base went up, because you could create an agency that trains Heroic NPCs that had equipment shops that were related to all kinds of battle or had special abilities, it was incredibly appealing. It was just really difficult to settle in with the base in the central continent in the beginning, but once they got the groundwork going somehow, it was definite that it would be completely worth it. The mouth of Shyakran, who was submerged in his thoughts for a moment, slowly opened up. ¡°The time has come to pour out all of the funds that were saved up until now.¡± At Shyakran¡¯s words, Emily nodded her head in agreement. ¡°That¡¯s right, Master. We must pull together as much funds as we can right now, and if we can properly raise up about two or three bases in the central continent, then it will definitely become a big help.¡± As the opinions were gathered, Shyakran immediately opened the guild chatting room and convened an executive meeting, and quickly proceeded with everything. Like that, about the time the two giant guilds that had each occupied a base slowly began to get a foothold, the top guilds of the Luspel Empire were finally beginning to advance into the central continent one by one. From the outside, it looked as if the guilds of the Kaimon Empire were already overwhelmingly beginning to take dominance in the central continent, but there was always a way for there to be a variable anywhere. [1] In Korea, instead of keys, there are passcode locks. CH 150 Chapter 150: Golden Turtle Dragon (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian, who returned safely from his date with Harin, logged onto the game as soon as he finished washing up. And the moment Ian logged on, the guild chatting room became chaotic. Herz: Yo, did you come? And did your date go well?Fiolan: Harin was determined to do this for a couple days now, and it seems she finally succeeded in dragging Ian out and going on a date. I¡¯m jealous¡­Kroban: Fiolan, how about a date with me? I can treat you like a princess.Fiolan: Ah, I will just go on dates with the monsters¡­Kroban: So harsh T.T.Mishyal: Since Ian has logged on, are we going to start hunting again now?Herz: That¡¯s right, but we must finish the quest first. We must go meet Bbakbbak. Ian, who read through the guild chatting room that bubbled up so crazily, smirked as he posted something in the chat window. Ian: Everyone has rested well, right?Mishyal: Those words¡­ I¡¯m not the only one that feels they are somewhat scary, right?Herz: Mishyal, you are not the only one like that. I¡¯m also a bit fearful.Fiolan: Shall we charge forward now? Is probably what he¡¯ll say, no?Ian: If you¡¯ve rested, shall we charge forward now?Herz: As completely expected¡­Mishyal: ¡­ Even though everybody was making such a big fuss, they immediately used the Base Return Stone and returned to the dungeon. The Base Return Stone was an item that only guild members who had a base could use, and if used during hunting, it was possible to teleport to the Domain of the guild they were affiliated with, and if used again, it was an item that returned the user to their original spot. Normally, it was impossible to use the return stone inside a dungeon, but it was possible to activate the return stone in a dungeon that has already been cleared like this. The guild members, who were enjoying their break in the Domain for the first time in a while due to Ian¡¯s absence, began to return to the dungeon one by one. Ian: But when is our second party arriving at the central continent again? The second party that Ian was talking about were the guild members that couldn¡¯t board the magical square and were coming the central continent joined with a line of the imperial army¡¯s expedition. Carwin and Kroban were leading them. Kroban: I think we¡¯ll also be arriving around tomorrow now.Carwin: Kroban hyung¡¯s right. If we¡¯re fast, we¡¯ll be there around tomorrow morning, and if we¡¯re late, it will be around lunch time.Ian: Carwin, how many people are there in our second party?Carwin: About¡­ 150 people? No, it¡¯s probably about 170 people.Ian: Okay. Contact us immediately once you arrive. Since we need to meet up.Carwin: Understood, hyung. Ian, who got a rough understanding of the situation through the chat, began to organize his plans internally. ¡®Firstly, once we return to Bbakbbak and complete the quest, there will be about two days left of the dungeon buff, and once we join up with the second party, does that mean we just need to go up now to occupy a base?¡¯ It was a situation where he had basically given up on the Base Occupying Quest due to lack of time, but that didn¡¯t mean that he had even given up on obtaining a base. Even though their fighting power was a little lacking compared to the top-ranking large guilds, he was planning on obtaining even one base that was in a hidden area at all costs and defending it. ¡®Originally, it would even be difficult to defend a base in the central continent, but since we have Kaizar.¡¯ Kaizar, who had leveled-up through the hunting they did for a couple days and was now at lv 249, was an incredibly big help to Ian. ¡®His Loyalty did drop more and is now at 3, but since he hasn¡¯t hit me yet¡­¡¯ While Ian was thinking of this and that, all of the guild members that weren¡¯t even logged on returned and the party was able to all get together, and that party began to head towards Bbakbbak. As the dungeon was so wide and rough, it took a lot of time to even return. While looking at the Cintamani that was in his inventory, Ian mumbled to himself. ¡®If it was up to my heart, I would want to use it on Bbookbbook¡­¡¯ Ian opened up the information of the Cintamani that he read at a glance in the morning again and checked it. The Cintamani of the Golden Turtle Dragon Classification ¨C Miscellaneous (Unknown) Rank ¨C Legendary Equip Limit ¨C Unable to Equip Durability ¨C 55/55 Option ¨C In the case a Familiar possesses it, all combat abilities of dragon-affiliate Familiars will increase by 3%. *Item Able to Use: If used on an ¡®Evolution Possible¡¯ Familiar, it has the strength to forcibly evolve the applicable Familiar. It is possible to use on an irrelevant species, but there may be side effects. *Quest Item: This is an item filled with the memories of Golden Turtle ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯. If used or lost, you will automatically fail the quest and you will receive Bbakbbak¡¯s rage. *This is an item belonging to user ¡®Ian¡¯. This item cannot be transferred to another user or be sold, and even if the character dies, it does not drop. (Transferrable only once for the first time.) This is a rare and precious Cintamani holding a bright golden light. If sold, it¡¯s possible that one could gain an incredibly high price for it. As could be seen even from the explanation, the Cintamani was an item that could evolve a Familiar as Ian expected. Of course, it was only possible on a Familiar that had the ¡®Evolution Possible¡¯ option attached to it, but to Ian right now, this was an ability that was quite a big merit. This was because Bbookbbook, who had yet to evolve even once, was constantly on his mind. The reason why he didn¡¯t consider the other monsters was simple. Since right now, when even Ly had evolved into a Legendary-rank, there was no other evolution possible Familiar besides Bbookbbook for Ian. ¡®I think this is a chance¡­ But somehow it feels a bit leery.¡¯ Of course, it wasn¡¯t because he was afraid that he would receive Bbakbbak¡¯s rage(?). This was because, although he was an interesting turtle that was a little more mystical and could even talk, a turtle that looked similar to Bbookbbook didn¡¯t look that strong. The part that pulled at Ian the most to use the Cintamani was because of the thought that the reward that Bbakbbak would give once the quest was completed could possible be something incredibly good. If that was the case, then his worry was just one. ¡®Will the reward that Bbakbbak will give be a bigger merit than Bbookbbook¡¯s evolution?¡¯ However, as Ian grew closer to Bbakbbak, he hardened his heart. ¡®It¡¯s a little disappointing, but since if this quest finished without me knowing what the reward is, I feel like I won¡¯t even be able to sleep out of curiosity.¡¯ And as the other party members wouldn¡¯t be able to receive the quest reward because of Ian, that part also pulled at him. And shortly after, Ian¡¯s party was able to meet Bbakbbak again. As soon as Bbakbbak saw Ian, he crawled over with a welcoming expression. Oh, Ian, you¡¯ve returned! Ian, who met eyes with Bbakbbak, burst out laughing. ¡®He looks exactly like Bbookbbook, yet exceeds Grandpa Oakley¡¯s way of speaking[1].¡¯ Ian, who momentarily thought that Bbakbbak was cute, pulled out the Cintamani from his inventory and handed it to him. ¡°Here, I brought it back.¡± And Bbakbbak, who received that and bit it with his mouth, wore a satisfied smile as he opened his mouth. Ian, you are truly a trustworthy human. ¡°Huh? Why?¡± For you to have returned this expensive Cintamani to me just as I requested without being greedy. ¡°Ah¡­ Well, that, since it was yours originally.¡± Even if one knows it, it is not easy to control the desires within one¡¯s heart. Ian, I¡¯m truly grateful for your help. Ian, who absentmindedly shared a conversation, suddenly developed something he was curious about. ¡°But Bbakbbak.¡± What is it? ¡°How much is that Cintamani worth for you to be like that?¡± Bbakbbak, who momentarily thought about it, slowly opened his mouth. I do not know exactly, but amongst the ancient, giant, god-like people, this Cintamani traded for about 50 gold bars. Right now, I don¡¯t know what it would be worth. At Bbakbbak¡¯s words, Ian, of course, but the eyes of even the other guild members that were next to him rounded. ¡°5, 50 gold bars?¡± ¡°We didn¡¯t hear this incorrectly just now, right? It¡¯s not gold coins but gold bars, right? For sure?¡± Their surprise was not an exaggeration either. Since one gold bar was worth 1 million gold. 50 gold bars meant that it was 50 million gold. Even if they sold it and split it into ten shares, it was an item worth an incredible amount to the point that one could take at least 5 million gold. Ian suddenly felt his legs lose strength as he lurched to one side. ¡°I, I see.¡± However, there was no use crying over spilt milk. The Cintamani was being held in Bbakbbak¡¯s mouth, and the quest proceeded onwards. Ring-! You have successfully completed the Golden Turtle ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯s Request (Hidden Quest)Clear Rank ¨C SYou have obtained 12,000 Specialty Points.You have obtained 39,456,000 EXP.You have obtained 10,000 Fame. He had obtained an incredible amount of rewards, but Ian felt an unknown emptiness as he checked the system messages that popped up. However, just then, right in front of everyone, the Cintamani that was held in Bbakbbak¡¯s mouth began to shine brightly. And along with that, Bbakbbak began to open his mouth as if he was mumbling, and his voice could be heard clearly by everybody¡¯s ears. It seems now I¡¯ll be able to find my forgotten honour. Whooong-. While in Bbakbbak¡¯s mouth, the Cintamani began to vibrate strongly. Ian¡¯s party began to watch that scene with excited expressions. And shortly after, the golden light that poured out of the Cintamani wrapped around Bbakbbak¡¯s whole body and began to violently spin. Hwa-reu-reu-reu-! The wave of golden light wrapped around Bbakbbak¡¯s surrounding, looking like a blazing flame. Bbakbbak¡¯s body, which was already golden as is, began to shine even more, and eventually, Bbakbbak¡¯s whole body was covered in a white light. No matter who saw it, it was an incredibly mysterious scene. Different from the others, who were watching that scene with a blank expression, Ian thought that it was a familiar scene he had seen many times. ¡®This¡­ It seems similar to the scene when a Familiar evolves¡­¡¯ Bbakbbak¡¯s body began to grow bigger and bigger while wrapped in light, and at last, he turned into a larger size than Lake or even Halli. The size of his shell just grew larger and his shape was the same; however, his short neck stretched out like a snake, and two more heads grew on each side, so he looked like a Hydra. ¡®What the hell, he might even grow bigger than Ddukdae!¡¯ And just like Ian said, Bbakbbak¡¯s body continued to grow. His four legs with sharp claws grown on them became sturdy. His giant shell had unknown ancient patterns embroidered on it majestically. And even the round face that was originally there disappeared and turned into three heads with sharp and cool appearances. The light that was wrapped around Bbakbbak completely disappeared, but Ian still hadn¡¯t come to his senses and was staring at him with a dazed expression. The first one to break this silence that existed for a moment was Bbakbbak. Ian, thanks to you, I was able to find my past honour. Thank you. With a bewildered expression, Ian opened his mouth. ¡°Ye, yeah¡­ Well. It turned out well, haha¡­¡± Ian slightly glanced at Bbookbbook, who was hanging on his back, before he stared back once more at the appearance of Bbakbbak again. ¡®If I used the Cintamani on our Bbookbbook, would he have become that cool?¡¯ He felt like his stomach was slowly hurting again. However, in the next moment, Ian¡¯s stomach ache was completely cured in an instant. Bbakbbak¡¯s three heads approached Ian as they opened their mouths. Ian, while protecting the riches of Holdream, I have spent over a thousand years in this dark basement. ¡°So?¡± Since the revengeful spirit of Holdream has also left this grave, I want to find freedom as well. ¡°¡­?¡± Bbakbbak and Ian¡¯s gazes met. I want to be with you. Could you accept me? A system message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Golden Turtle Dragon ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯ wishes to become your Familiar.Will you take in ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯ as your Familiar? (You are lacking Leadership, but through the effect of the ¡®Dragon Tamer¡¯s Feather Ornament¡¯ item, you may obtain Familiars without the restrictions of Leadership). CH 151 Chapter 151: War Friend (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Oaklan Guild¡¯s flag flapped in the middle of the desert. And along with about over a hundred users, there were hundreds of guild soldiers that were entering the central continent underneath that flag. ¡°Whew, the level of the monsters is completely different from the ones in other zones for sure. I thought that we thoroughly prepared ourselves, but for us to already have lost ten people.¡± At the words of the female Knight user, who was leading the line at the head, Limlong nodded his head quietly as he replied. ¡°That¡¯s right, Rihina. Since the monster level range itself is so high in comparison to other hunting grounds we have.¡± Rihina was one of the founding members of the Oaklan Guild as well as a ranker, and was also part of the guild¡¯s executive members. And she was in charge as the main leader of the first expedition for the central continent. Limlong¡¯s role was to assist her. ¡°Speaking of which, Limlong, you¡¯re certainly different from other Assassin-class users. There was a reason why the Master put his trust in you.¡± ¡°Hoo-hoo, what points make you say that?¡± ¡°The fact that Assassin-class users cannot properly display their abilities in PVE is a truth that has already been proven. They hardly have any AoE attacks, and as their body is practically as weak as paper for being a close-combat class¡­¡± Just like she said, the Assassin-class was the class that was most excluded from PVE. Even in this central continent expedition, the fact that a lot of Assassin-classes were excluded was the counter evidence of that. Limlong smiled as he spoke. ¡°Is it not all up to each person? There are some disadvantages, but since there are also ways to overcome them.¡± However, while these two people were talking about this and that, just then, a scout from far away returned running. ¡°Ma¡¯am! Rihina, I¡¯ve returned after patrolling.¡± Rihina nodded her head as she replied. ¡°Good work. Give us the reports.¡± The words of the soldier, who paused for a moment to collect their breath, continued. ¡°If you head towards the front for about 10 minutes, there is the news of the Scorpion Queen. The average level of the monsters is about 160. If you are to face them, there is a high chance that you will win, but as the exact level of the Scorpion Queen cannot be figured out, it¡¯s dangerous.¡± ¡°If that¡¯s the case, then even if we win, the damage will be enormous.¡± At Rihina¡¯s words, the soldier nodded their head. ¡°That¡¯s right, Rihina. It seems like it will be better to detour and advance.¡± Limlong, who stood next to her, assisted her. ¡°The dungeon first discoverer¡¯s reward feels wasteful, but right now, we must save as much of our fighting power and occupy a base first, Rihina.¡± Rihina also agreed with his words. ¡°I also think that way.¡± Her gaze turned back to the soldier. ¡°Aside from the Scorpion nest, we should be able to proceed to our destination without a lot of difficulty, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°If we take a detour, what is the expected time that it will take to arrive?¡± ¡°I think it should take about a quarter of a day.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± As the report of the scout was finished, the troops of the Oaklan Guild began to move again. Their destination was a base on the front line that they had looked at beforehand. * * * ¡®I just completely got lucky!¡¯ Ian, who was checking the information of his Familiar ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯ that he obtained during an unguarded moment, couldn¡¯t hide both corners of his mouth, which were rolling upwards, as he smiled broadly. But then again, this was because Bbakbbak was an outrageous ¡®Legendary¡¯-rank Familiar. Bbakbbak (Golden Turtle Dragon) Level: 150 Classification: Mystical Creature Rank: Legendary Personality: Prudent Evolution Impossible Offensive Power: 2730 Defensive Power: 3825 Agility: 1575 Intellect: 2355 Vitality: 183,300/183,300 Inherent Ability *Guardian of the Desert (Passive) Once every minute, a protective film made from sand will be created and it will absorb damage. The protective film will absorb 30% of the damage of the maximum Vitality, and will last for 20 seconds. *Absolute Defense (Cooldown Time 2 minutes) Will go into ¡®Invincible¡¯ state for 10 seconds. When in ¡®Invincible¡¯ state, no damage will be received, and will become ¡®immune¡¯ to all status conditions. However, for the duration of Absolute Defense, no actions can be made. *Blessing of the Turtle Dragon (Cooldown Time 10 minutes) For 2 minutes, the damage that a designated target would have received will be taken personally instead. The Turtle Dragon will receive 150% of the original damage that the designated target would have had to receive, and if the Vitality of the Turtle Dragon drops below 10%, this skill will automatically be cleared. *Roar of the Turtle Dragon (Cooldown Time 2 minutes) Opponents within a wide range will be provoked and it will make them attack the Turtle Dragon. The ¡®Provoke¡¯ state will last for 30 seconds, and the movements of the opponents that are afflicted with provoke will slow down by 40%. (When facing users, the effect will drop by half.) An ancient mystical creature that had protected the relics in the grave of the ruins for a long time. It is incredibly powerful. As expected, Bbakbbak boasted overwhelming stats that were similar to Ly and Pin. The only disappointing part was the fact that he was ¡®Evolution Impossible¡¯. ¡®If he was evolution possible on top of being a Legendary-rank, I would have been able to make a Mythological-rank¡­¡¯ In Ly¡¯s case, a ¡®Completed Form¡¯ title was attached. It meant that amongst the wolf-type Familiars, there was no phase higher than Ly¡¯s that could be evolved into. If those words were thought of the other way, in the case of the Turtle Dragon or the Griffin, it meant that it was possible that there was an even higher phase that they could be evolved into. It was because of that, he was disappointed. ¡®Either way, I felt like tanking with just Ddukdae alone was lacking, so it¡¯s turned out really well.¡¯ An outrageous amount of Vitality at 180 thousand, and Defensive Power that was close to 4 thousand. As expected, they were overwhelming stats even if the fact that he was a high level of 150 was considered. ¡°Wow, congratulations, Lord. Bbakbbak is so cool!¡± The eyes of Celia, who walked up to Bbakbbak, shone as she petted the side of the giant shell. Ian also wore a satisfied smile as he replied. ¡°Thanks, Celia.¡± And Hoonie, who was watching from the back, grumbled. ¡°Lucky dude. The reason why he grew so unbelievably quickly was because of his luck.¡± Even at Hoonie¡¯s sarcastic remark, Ian just shrugged his shoulders. ¡°Luck is also a skill, kid.¡± ¡°Hmph.¡± And there was also a turtle that wore a displeased expression. Bbook- Bboo-bbook-! Bbookbbook glared at Bbakbbak with an expression full of jealousy. He seemed to have realized that it had now become too far-off for him to become more good-looking than Bbakbbak no matter how much he dieted as Bbookbbook wore an incredibly sullen expression. Ian, who saw that, smirked as he petted Bbookbbook¡¯s head. ¡°This cute guy.¡± Bbook- Bboo-bbook-! Bbookbbook grouchily went into his shell, and Ian slowly approached Bbakbbak, who had an imposing figure. However, there was one problem. ¡®Speaking of which, from now on, I can¡¯t summon all of my Familiars in battle.¡¯ His Leadership, which he didn¡¯t know he lacked up until now due to his items and hidden stats, had reached a limit. Thanks to the Dragon Tamer¡¯s Feather Ornament that makes the Familiar Possession Limit infinite, there was no problem in obtaining, but summoning was impossible. Ian began to put his brain to work. ¡®Even if I use up all my money to change all of my items, I feel like it will still be hard to cover for it¡­¡¯ However, just then, Celia, who was happily talking with Bbakbbak, caught Ian¡¯s eyes. ¡®Ah, by any chance, if it¡¯s Celia, then¡­!¡¯ Ian called Celia over. ¡°Celia!¡± ¡°Yes, Lord!¡± ¡°By any chance, do you have some leftover Leadership?¡± Ian¡¯s idea was simple. He was planning on transferring one of his Familiars to Celia. As Celia was also Ian¡¯s retainer, if he did that, he would be able to manage all of his Familiars. ¡®Since Celia is close to lv 130 now as well, she¡¯ll definitely have some Leadership remaining. Since the only Familiar that Celia manages is the Blue Wyvern.¡¯ And as is Celia was fulfilling Ian¡¯s expectations, she nodded her head. ¡°Yes, Lord. I have a lot of leftover Leadership. Why?¡± Ian smiled brightly as he spoke to Celia. ¡°Celia, then from now on, could you take care of Ddukdae? If it is you, I feel like I could count on you, that is.¡± If he transferred Ddukdae to Celia, he felt like he could switch out some equipment to increase his leadership and it would become possible to manage all of his Familiars. And of course, Celia nodded her head out of excitement. ¡°Sounds good, Lord! Thank you so much!¡± With a happy expression, Celia looked at Ddukdae, who was standing as dumb as a post. Ian, who had transferred Ddukdae to Celia, finished maintenance and began moving again. It was now time to start the advance work in order to occupy a base. * * * ¡°Sollin, you¡¯ve made such a reckless move.¡± At Ilahan¡¯s words, Sollin dropped her head as she replied with a low tone. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Master. I didn¡¯t know they were the royal guards directly belonging to the king.¡± Ilahan shook his head. This was because it wasn¡¯t that he didn¡¯t understand her decision, but despite that, the loss received was too big. The massacre of about a dozen guild members. The fact that there was a gap created in their fighting power for a day was an obvious, but as their levels even dropped by one in general, this was an incredible loss. On top of that, the fact that they couldn¡¯t even kill one knight angered him the most. ¡°Ha¡­ There¡¯s nothing we can do now. Except to stay alert starting now at least.¡± As a setback developed in his plans already from the beginning, Ilahan¡¯s head pounded. ¡®I was planning on occupying at least three bases before starting¡­ But if it¡¯s like this, then even if we overdo it, we¡¯ll only be able to take care of two.¡¯ Their rival guild, the Titan Guild, had already succeeded in occupying two bases, and as he obtained information that they were increasing the number by one more additional base, his stomach hurt even more. ¡®Still, as the Luspel Empire Guild guys haven¡¯t even found a spot properly yet¡­ That at least is a relief.¡¯ Ilahan, who completed his thoughts there, clicked his tongue internally. The representative guilds of the Luspel Empire were Splendor, Oaklan, and Valiant Guild. They themselves had pride that they were one of the top 5 guilds, but Ilahan never thought of them as their rivals. Their decisions were always one step behind, and their objective fighting power also dropped in comparison. Because the nations that they were affiliated with were different, they had yet to meet in the arena, but if they were to go against each other, he thought that the result would be clear. For the territory wars, because of the advantage that the defending guild had, they weren¡¯t able to win easily, but he was confident in completely destroying all of them in the field wars that would occur in the central continent now. Towards Ilahan, who was thinking of this and that while closing his eyes, Sollin opened her mouth with a careful voice. ¡°Uh¡­ But, Master.¡± Ilahan replied with his eyes still closed. ¡°Speak.¡± ¡°While I was coming here after the time I couldn¡¯t log on was over, I discovered an interesting location.¡± Ilahan slightly opened his eyes. ¡°An interesting location?¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right. As the Titan Guild guys were gathered around it, I couldn¡¯t go inside, but it was a structure that definitely looked like there was something in there.¡± Ilahan¡¯s expression slightly changed. ¡°Oh-ho, a structure¡­ And you saw what the name was?¡± Sollin nodded her head. ¡°Yes, I checked the name. It was a building with the name the ¡®Tower of War¡¯.¡± And the moment he heard those words, Ilahan suddenly stood up from his spot. ¡°This, damn it!¡± Sollin, who flinched at his form, where he burst out in anger, asked. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Ilahan¡¯s eyes glinted. ¡®Shyakran, this jerk, so he¡¯s saying he won¡¯t even share information now, huh?¡¯ The Titan Guild and the DarkRuna Guild were rival guilds, so obviously, they kept each other in check up until now. However, as the advance into the central continent was a battle between the empires, the Guild Masters agreed to share information related to this, but Shyakran had violated that. Ilahan turned his gaze towards Sollin again. ¡°Sollin.¡± ¡°Yes, Master.¡± ¡°We must move immediately. Go get ready.¡± As she already guessed where Ilahan was planning on going, Sollin nodded her head as she replied. ¡°Yes, understood. Master.¡± Ilahan added on as he moved his feet. ¡°Gather all of the executive members. Since all of us will need to move together.¡± CH 152 Chapter 152: War Friend (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda After the quest was completed, in order to tune-up momentarily, Ian¡¯s party scattered. As they hunted so intensely for such a long time, the durability of their equipment had almost reached the end, and they were also all out of Recovery Potions. However, it wasn¡¯t a matter that was applicable to Ian. This was because his Familiars mostly fought for him, and for recovery, Familiar Healing and the healers took full charge of that. The only thing he really used was Spirit Magic Recovery Potions, but even those, he still had quite a bit of. Even after Ian sent off his guild members, he continued to hunt alone, and thanks to that, his EXP even filled up quite a bit. ¡®Soon, I¡¯ll probably be able to hit lv 136.¡¯ Ever since the central continent opened up, because a lot of high-level hunting grounds that give a lot of EXP appeared, the top-ranking users¡¯ leveling-up speeds had grown quite fast compared to before. However, it wasn¡¯t comparable to Ian¡¯s leveling-up speed, and the result of that was a situation where Ian was almost caught up to the top-ranking group. ¡®When I checked yesterday or so, it looked like the level cut for the top 100 was 141¡­¡¯ The ranking that Ian was talking about was not just the class-specific ranking, but the general user level ranking cutline of the Korean server. In front of the eyes of Ian, who started as a latecomer, the end of the top 100 rankings was finally visible. ¡°Keu, shall we keep the steam up and hunt again?¡± However, just then, a system message that drained Ian of his strength popped up. All 7 days for the dungeon¡¯s first discoverer¡¯s buff has passed.From now on, all reward values will return to normal. After his guild members left for maintenance, Ian had been hunting inside the grave dungeon again. Ian, who even checked that the buff icon at the top of his view disappeared, licked his lips. ¡°Tsk¡­ I guess it can¡¯t be helped.¡± At Ian¡¯s mumbling, Hoonie, who was in the back, immediately asked. ¡°Are we finally done hunting?¡± Because Hoonie was affiliated with Kaizar, he basically came attached like a 2-for-1 set menu in Ian¡¯s hunting, and thanks to that, the dark circles of Hoonie, who completely went through Ian¡¯s hard hunting schedule, reached down to the end of his chin. ¡°Hmm¡­ We¡¯ll need to go out and hunt instead now, I guess.¡± Hoonie sighed deeply, ¡°Haa¡­.¡± And Death Knight Ballam let out a sigh next to him as he helped out. Ah¡­ As expected, an evil human. However, Ian didn¡¯t even cast a look towards their complaints, and he moved his feet towards the exit of the dungeon. Kaizar, who saw that, smirked as he mumbled. ¡°Our Lord guy, even though he lacks in other aspects, his spirit alone is acknowledgeable.¡± Hoonie just shook his head. * * * While he was out on the ground anyways, Ian thought that he should explore here and there as he searched for a base that they could occupy before the other guild members returned. ¡°But where should I start¡­¡± An area with a lot of complicated paths was a pain as well, but maps that were completely open like this to the point the end wasn¡¯t visible were also a structure that also easily brought difficulty in choosing for the users. While Ian was contemplating like that, Bbakbbak, who was next to him, opened his mouth. Hm, I do remember. I came out on the ground for the first time in a while, but it¡¯s as familiar as if it was just yesterday. Bbakbbak raised his three heads with his long necks as if he was stretching. Ian, who turned his gaze towards him, asked. ¡°Then, Bbakbbak, you probably also know the geography quite well, right?¡± Bbakbbak nodded his head as he replied. That¡¯s right, owner. I don¡¯t know all of the central continent, but I remember almost all of this middle area. Ian¡¯s eyes shone. This was because the thing that he needed immediately was information on the geography. ¡®I wish there was a honey-like base hidden somewhere¡­¡¯ Ian asked Bbakbbak with eyes full of anticipation. ¡°Bbakbbak, then by any chance, do you know where a base is near here?¡± However, Bbakbbak wasn¡¯t able to meet Ian¡¯s expectations. Base? I don¡¯t know what that is, owner. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Ian scratched the back of his head. ¡®Is it because base is a word only used by users? Then how should I explain it so that Bbakbbak will understand?¡¯ While Ian was contemplating like that, Bbakbbak opened his mouth again. By any chance, is the place called a base somewhere where a lot of people are gathered and it¡¯s noisy? At Bbakbbak¡¯s question, Ian quickly nodded his head. ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s exactly that. I think it¡¯s right!¡± While looking at Ian, who was happy, Bbakbbak slowly nodded his head. If it¡¯s a place like that, there is a place that I remember that isn¡¯t far off. I don¡¯t know if it will still be there, though, as so much time has passed. However, Ian was basically sure that the place that Bbakbbak was talking about was a base. ¡°Let¡¯s go there, Bbakbbak. Show us the way!¡± After Bbakbbak nodded his head, he began to slowly move his large body. Understood, owner. * * * ¡°Is it not awkward to go about like this, Shyakran?¡± At the entrance of the Tower of War that stood majestically, two men shared a conversation while facing each other. The two people were none other than Ilahan, the Guild Master of the DarkRuna Guild, and Shyakran, the Guild Master of the Titan Guild. From the outside, it looked like they were sharing a quiet conversation, but between them, severe nervousness flowed. Since this was the central continent, and in the central continent, there was no restriction on PK amongst users of the same nationality. If even one of the two sides were to attempt to attack first, an uncontrollable large-scale battle would occur. And as much as it was a battle between the 1st place and 2nd place guilds, the aftermath would be incredible. Shyakran was overly chatty as he opened his mouth. ¡°Haha, Ilahan. This is a misunderstanding. This is a place that we just discovered in the morning today as well, so we were about to give you the information shortly after as well.¡± ¡°Ahem¡­¡± They both knew of each other¡¯s intentions, but as they were Guild Masters that needed to move based on thorough relations of gains and losses, they paid close attention to their actions and words. Ilahan slightly looked at the Tower of War as he asked Shyakran. ¡°Then, it would certainly be alright for us to use it right about now, right? The Tower of War, that is.¡± While looking at Ilahan, who spoke with strength in his words, Shyakran could do nothing else but nod his head. This was because if they were to clash with the DarkRuna Guild right now, there was too much to lose. ¡°Of course, Ilahan. You probably also have a lot of Specialty Points that you¡¯ve saved up until now, so you should use it quickly.¡± As Shyakran made a hand motion, the guildmembers of the Titan guild opened up a path on either side, and the entrance to go into the Tower of War entered Ilahan¡¯s field of vision. ¡°Ahem.¡± Ilahan, who stared at Shyakran for a while, slowly started moving his feet, and following him, the guild members of the DarkRuna Guild entered the Tower of War quickly. * * * ¡°Bbakbbak, is the place that you were talking about¡­ here?¡± That¡¯s right, owner. As expected, as too much time has passed, there¡¯s no one left. A thousand years ago, it was an incredibly crowded place. Either way, the place that I remember is here. The place that appeared in front of Ian¡¯s eyes was a building large in size that was wide from side to side. ¡®Even just by looking, it¡¯s not a base, but¡­ What is this?¡¯ Ian checked the information of the building. War Trading Post A trading post that warriors of the ancient central continent traded and sold goods. Goods in the trading post can be purchased using ¡®Specialty Points¡¯, and artifacts or food, as well as gold and so on can also be purchased with ¡®Specialty Points¡¯. And Ian¡¯s two eyes widened. ¡®What, what the hell, there was such a place? I was wondering where I was supposed to use Specialty Points, but it was to use it here!¡¯ Ian didn¡¯t know of the existence of the ¡®Tower of War¡¯ yet. Because of that, this was the first time he discovered a place where he could use his Specialty Points. With the middle area of the central continent, where both sides of the empire army were facing each other, as the reference point, the Tower of War was in the west, while the War Trading Post was in the east. Because of that, the DarkRuna Guild and the Titan Guild, who came in through the west, discovered the Tower of War, while Ian was able to discover the War Trading Post. ¡®Let¡¯s just go in first.¡¯ Ian, whose heart became elated at the exciting discovery, moved his feet and stepped foot into the entrance of the trading post. As he did so, a system message rang out. Ring-. You have discovered the War Trading Post for the first time.Your Specialty Points have increased by 3 thousand.With the Specialty Points obtained, you can trade it with goods inside the trading post.You can only enter the War Trading Post once per day for 30 minutes. Do you wish to enter? Ian nodded his head as he opened his mouth. ¡°I¡¯ll enter.¡± And following behind Ian, Hoonie also entered. Kaizar and Celia, as well as Ballam and others entered as well, but aside from Kaizar, because they weren¡¯t able to gather much Specialty Points, he didn¡¯t think there would really be a meaning. ¡®Is this a place that you can purchase things like items with Specialty Points?¡¯ As he had a time limit of 30 minutes, Ian began to poke around the inside of the building as quickly as possible. And he was able to conclude one thing through that. ¡®They don¡¯t sell stuff like artifacts. It¡¯s mainly made so that you can trade food and war goods.¡¯ The Specialty Points that Ian had gathered up until now was a tremendous amount close to 50 thousand. He didn¡¯t know exactly, but with this much, he was anticipating that he could possibly buy something like a decent artifact, yet was slight disappointed. However, as it was an obvious that a lot of resources would be lacking in order to grow a base in this barren central continent, he was sure that the War Trading Post, where food could be received through battle, would be a big help. While Ian was thinking of this and that, Hoonie, who looked around the trading post, opened his mouth. ¡°How disappointing. I was hoping it was the Tower of War.¡± At Hoonie¡¯s words, Ian asked with a quizzical expression. ¡°Tower of War? What¡¯s that?¡± It was only then Hoonie wore an expression showing that his tongue slipped. Ian approached Hoonie and began to interrogate him. ¡°What is that? By any chance, you aren¡¯t trying to hide it, right?¡± However, before Hoonie even replied, a voice that resolved Ian¡¯s curiosity was heard from somewhere else. That was Kaizar¡¯s voice. ¡°The Tower of War was a place where you can purchase ancient artifacts or items with Specialty Points from war. It¡¯s a little different from this place.¡± ¡°I see, why are you telling me this only now, retainer?¡± At Ian¡¯s complaining, Kaizar smirked as he replied. ¡°Even if you knew the location of the Tower of War, it¡¯s in a place where you cannot go.¡± ¡°Why is that?¡± ¡°That¡¯s because it¡¯s in the west side, where the Kaimon Empire army is stationed.¡± ¡°I see.¡± For now, disappointment is just disappointment, and Ian began to think about what would be the best way to use this War Trading Post. ¡®For every 100 Specialty Points, it¡¯s 50 Food Points¡­ If I pour in all of the Specialty Points I have right now, how many soldiers can I produce? If it¡¯s in reference to the northern continent, then I think I¡¯ll be able to make close to about 200¡­¡¯ For now, Ian decided to hold off using his points. He felt like he should first occupy a base before checking the cost and mapping out a plan. ¡®Since I¡¯ll be able to come back tomorrow again anyways.¡¯ Ian looked around his surroundings. Thanks to the geography, where it was surrounded by tall sand hills, he felt like it wouldn¡¯t be discovered by other guilds for a while. Since if it wasn¡¯t for Bbakbbak, Ian wouldn¡¯t have been able to find it either. ¡®If I knew this was the case, should I have occupied a base first instead of hunting as soon as I finished the quest? If I did that, then I wouldn¡¯t have failed the Base Occupying Quest either.¡¯ However, if he had moved that quickly, he knew well that he would have already become a target of the Kaimon Empire soldiers and guilds, so Ian quickly set aside his lingering attachment. ¡®For now, let¡¯s wait until the others log back in.¡¯ Ian came out of the trading post and began to move towards the place that the guild members and he decided on meeting up at. However, just then. A world message that was sent to all users in the same continent popped up at the top of Ian¡¯s view. Ring- User ¡®Ilahan¡¯, the DarkRuna Guild Master, has obtained the ¡®Mark of Magenta¡¯.From now on, ¡®Desert Warriors¡¯, which have appeared as ¡®Neutral NPCs¡¯ have formed an amicable relationship with the ¡®DarkRuna¡¯ Guild.As the nationality of the ¡®DarkRuna¡¯ Guild is the Kaimon Empire, the Desert Warriors will now have a hostile relationship with the Luspel Empire. CH 153 Chapter 153: War Friend (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The central continent was incredibly wide. And although it may be an obvious, it was a completely empty, ownerless mountain. However, it wasn¡¯t like there was a plentiful number of empty bases either. This was because if certain requirements weren¡¯t fulfilled in the beginning, then base points didn¡¯t form at all, and there weren¡¯t a lot of places that met population and resource number, which were one of the requirements. Currently, the number of bases that existed in the central continent were about 50 that formed as the central area as the reference point. Truthfully, in the case of the Lotus Guild, which was barely in the top 100, occupying a base and maintaining it could be considered an incredibly difficult task. ¡°Jinsung, wouldn¡¯t it be better if we just look next time after the number of bases have expanded a little instead?¡± At Herz¡¯s question, Ian shook his head. ¡°It will be too late. At that point, the gap between the top-ranking guilds and us will probably become incredibly wide.¡± Just like Herz¡¯s words, once time passed, the number of bases grew. This was because when the existing bases developed, the population density will naturally grow, and as the resources become abundant, it also influenced the surrounding. However, Ian had no intentions of waiting until then. Since, to be honest, he thought that they had waited enough even now. And there wasn¡¯t even a guarantee that they would be able to take over a base easily just because they waited until then. ¡®If we can just last somehow, there will be no better opportunity than this to jump up.¡¯ If they increased their bases with one in the central continent, they would be able to promote the rank of the Lotus Domain in the northern continent to a Large Domain. From multiple perspectives, a base in the central continent was incredibly charming. Fiolan asked Ian. ¡°Is there a place that you were thinking of?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°There¡¯s a decent base near the front area where both empires are facing each other.¡± At those words, both of Fiolan¡¯s eyes rounded. ¡°Huh? Isn¡¯t that tooclose to the front? If by mistake we were to be even swept into the large-scale battle that is occurring between the two empire armies, then we¡¯ll reduced to ashes¡­¡± However, as Ian had thought about this part enough as well, he frankly nodded his head as he opened his mouth. ¡°The risk is certainly high. However, there is an advantage as well.¡± Herz asked. ¡°What is the advantage?¡± ¡°Firstly, because of the risk that Fiolan just mentioned, the competition rate amongst guilds is incredibly low. Even the Titan or the DarkRuna Guild probably won¡¯t want to use up fighting power in order occupy such an uncertain Domain. As a result, we just need to block off the empire soldiers of Kaimon Empire.¡± Fiolan slowly nodded her head. ¡°You certainly got a point there. However, with just that kind of advantage, isn¡¯t it still lacking merit? Since if we frequently get attacked by the empire soldiers, then it will almost be impossible to even develop the base. It will be reduced to ashes all the time, so will there be time for crops to grow and for the population to increase?¡± Herz agreed with her words as he nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right, we might just be wasting resources to no purpose. Since if we don¡¯t have resources, it¡¯s impossible to produce troops.¡± The two people¡¯s worries were truthfully an obvious. It wasn¡¯t the end just because they occupied a base. After occupying, they needed to maintain it, and in order to create a higher value than the expenses they invested, they needed to guarantee stability. However, Ian had a plan. Ian slowly opened his mouth. ¡°We just need to supply resources with Specialty Points.¡± The existence of the War Trading Post that he found thanks to Bbakbbak allowed Ian to have such ideas. Herz and Fiolan, who didn¡¯t know about the War Trading Post wore puzzled expressions, and Herz asked. ¡°How are you going to supply resources with Specialty Points? Have you found a way to use Specialty Points?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°Yeah, just before I came here.¡± And Ian explained the possibilities of the War Trading Post to the two people. Fiolan, who heard all of the explanation, nodded her head. ¡°Indeed, it is a strategy worth trying. If there is just more supply of Specialty Points than there is consumption of food.¡± Ian nodded his head as he replied. ¡°That¡¯s right. That part is the biggest key point. However, by constantly blocking off the Kaimon Empire soldiers in the front line, I think that we will not lack Specialty Points.¡± From Ian¡¯s experience, a larger amount of Specialty Points could be obtained from catching users or NPCs that were affiliated with the enemy empire than with normal monsters. Because of that, he spoke confidently. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± The three people that found a general direction of where they should go further began to build a detailed plan. And shortly after, the members of the guild¡¯s second party, which had joined a line of the Luspel Imperial Army and successfully entered the central continent, all arrived, and with all of their fighting power gathered, the Lotus Guild slowly began to move. Their destination was the base at the front lines. * * * ¡°Sollin, do you know what flag that is?¡± While looking at a quite large group of users move below a low hill, Ilahan wore a quizzical expression. This was because if it was a guild that could come into the central continent at this point, it was definitely a top-ranking guild, but it was a guild symbol that he was totally seeing for the first time. ¡°I¡¯m also¡­ Not sure, Master. What I¡¯m sure of is that there is no guild in the top 20 with that flag.¡± The flag that Sollin and Ilahan were looking at was none other than the flag of Lotus. And the Lotus Guild had taken place at the base in the front lines and was immersed in the occupying process. Ilahan wore an interested expression. ¡°Open up the guild list right now and find them. As they¡¯ll at least be in the top 30, you¡¯ll probably find it immediately.¡± ¡°Yes, understood, Master.¡± However, it took Sollin quite a long time to find the guild mark of the Lotus Guild. This was because the rank of the Lotus Guild was 100th place. ¡°Uh¡­ Master.¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°That guild mark¡­ It¡¯s the guild mark of one called the Lotus Guild.¡± Ilahan¡¯s two eyes slightly grew. ¡°Lotus?¡± ¡°Yes, Master.¡± ¡°This is my absolute first time hearing about them.¡± ¡°That can¡¯t be helped. Since they are currently ranked at 107th place in the guild rankings.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ilahan wore a flustered expression, but soon after, the corners of his mouth rolled upwards again. He had developed an interest. ¡°Shall we try raiding them? What do you think, Sollin?¡± Currently, the main fighting power of the DarkRuna Guild was out protecting their own base, but Ilahan thought that they could easily wipe out a 107th place guild with even just their scout party. And that wasn¡¯t a completely incorrect thought either. However, Sollin shook her head. ¡°For now, I think it will be better to restrain ourselves right now, Master.¡± Ilahan smirked. ¡°Because of the Luspel Imperial Army behind them?¡± In the direction that Ilahan pointed towards with his chin, the Imperial Army of Luspel were stationed, and Sollin nodded her head. ¡°That¡¯s right. At the slightest provocation, it could end up as a large-scale battle. For now, I think it would be better to be cautious until we perfectly make three bases safe.¡± Ilahan smiled as he nodded his head. His thoughts weren¡¯t different from hers either. ¡°But then again, since there isn¡¯t any benefit even if we were to steal that base. For it to be a base in the middle of the battlefield¡­ I have no idea who the Guild Master is, but whether he¡¯s incompetent or rash¡­¡± However, different from Ilahan, who clicked his tongue, Sollin¡¯s eyes shone. ¡®If it¡¯s a guild at 100th place, it will be impossible for them to obtain a proper base anyways, so were they targeting the niche market? However, even if they did that, there really won¡¯t be anything they could obtain from there.¡¯ Ilahan opened his mouth towards Sollin, who was thinking about this and that. ¡°Sollin.¡± ¡°Yes, Master.¡± ¡°Since it seems it will be a bit irrational for us to personally interfere, shall we then test the Mark of Magellan during this opportunity?¡± At Ilahan¡¯s unexpected words, Sollin¡¯s large eyes slightly widened. ¡°Are you planning on using the Desert Warriors?¡± Ilahan nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. If it¡¯s just like I plan, it looks like we should be able to reduce them to ashes even with just the Desert Warriors.¡± ¡°I think that¡¯s a good idea, Master.¡± Sollin smiled brightly as she bowed her head. She also wanted to see how powerful the ¡®Desert Warriors¡¯ that had become their new fighting power were. * * * ¡®Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail¡¯ has been used.The holy water filled with the spirit of the king of the giant, god-like people, Holdream¡¯ has made the barren earth fertile.The time taken for base occupation has drastically decreased.Time remaining until base occupation: 05:24:33 While looking at the messages that popped up one after another, Ian wore a satisfied smile. ¡°It is truly a remarkable artifact.¡± And on the other hand, he was also disappointed. ¡®If our guild was as strong as a guild in the top 10, we would have been able to occupy about three or four additional bases through the Holy Grail¡­¡¯ Still, the fact that the Holy Grail didn¡¯t go to the enemy empire¡¯s hands alone could be truly considered a relief. Ian turned his gaze towards Bbookbbook, who was playing next to him. ¡°Bbookbbook, you¡¯re living the life lately.¡± Bbook-? ¡°Your unemployed lately. Since I rarely go for close combat, that is.¡± Bbookbbook nodded his head with a happy expression. Bbook- Bboo-bbook-! ¡°Hyung is sorry. I need to give you a job quickly¡­ Just wait a little more, Bbookbbook, I¡¯ll create a job for you soon.¡± With shaking eyes, Bbookbbook fiercely shook his head. Bbook- Bboo-bbook-! Bbakbbak, who was watching him do that beside him, called Ian. Owner. ¡°Yes, Bbakbbak.¡± How much do you know about Bbookbbook? ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± Ian, who was momentarily taken aback at the unexpected question, scratched the back of his head as he replied. ¡°Well¡­ Basically that he¡¯s a big-headed turtle that lets out a weird sound?¡± Bbookbbook, who raged at that response, charged towards Ian. Bbook- Bboo-bbook-! Bbookbbook headbutted Ian¡¯s shin with a fearsome spirit, but there was no way there would be any damage. Ian, who smirked, asked Bbakbbak. ¡°Bbakbbak, do you know a bit about him?¡± Bbakbbak nodded his head. I¡¯m not too sure myself, but because he is still a brother species, there are a couple of things I know. Ian¡¯s eyes shone. ¡°Oh, what are they?¡± Bbakbbak¡¯s words continued. I am a species of the desert, but Bbookbbook is a species of the abyss. In order for a species of the abyss to become a turtle dragon, I know that there are two ways. At the words ¡®turtle dragon¡¯, Ian¡¯s expression completely changed. ¡®If it¡¯s about becoming a turtle dragon, he¡¯s probably talking about evolution for sure, right?¡¯ Ian quickly asked Bbakbbak again. ¡°What are the methods? Tell me quickly. I need to evolve that good-for-nothing quickly and shove him around, I¡¯m telling you.¡± Glare-. Bbookbbook glared at Ian, but Ian wasn¡¯t fazed. Bbakbbak¡¯s words continued. The first method is to obtain the Cintamani of the Turtle Dragon and use it just like how I evolved. However, if you use the Cintamani of the Turtle Dragon to evolve, you cannot ascend. ¡°Ascend¡­?¡± That¡¯s right. In order to ascend, you must succeed in evolving without the help of the power of the Cintamani. This is because it is only possible to use the Cintamani once in a lifetime, but in the case that you use Cintamani when evolving, then you cannot use it when ascending. However, Ian wore a confused expression. This was because he didn¡¯t know what the concept of ¡®ascension¡¯ was. ¡°What is ascension? What happens when you ascend?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Bbakbbak slowly responded. As this is a story that was passed down through legends, I don¡¯t know for sure myself, but I heard that a turtle dragon that has succeeded in ascension will become the king of turtle dragons as well as a god-like being. If Bbookbbook, a species of the abyss, was to succeed in ascension, I think he will become a water dragon that will be able to freely use the power of water. ¡°Oh¡­!¡± He didn¡¯t know exactly what it was, but even if he heard Bbakbbak¡¯s instruction without really understanding, Ian could feel the incredible scale of it, and his mouth gaped open. Bbook? On top of that, even Bbookbbook, who at first wasn¡¯t that interested, began to take quite a bit of interest in Bbakbbak¡¯s words. ¡°Then tell me a way that Bbookbbook can become a turtle dragon without the Cintamani.¡± At Ian¡¯s urgency, Bbakbbak¡¯s mouth opened up again. Owner, by any chance, do you remember the item called the ¡®Turtle Spirit¡¯ that I gave you? Ian immediately nodded his head. This was because the Turtle Spirit was a talisman item that he had equipped onto Bbookbbook and was using well. ¡°Yeah, of course I remember.¡± You can call that Turtle Spirit an ¡®essence of energy¡¯ that I have made over the past several hundred years. If you gather a total of three of these Turtle Spirits and find a place called the ¡®Altar of Water¡¯, then Bbookbbook should be able to become a turtle dragon. Ian¡¯s expression slightly hardened. This was because if he said he needed to level up or do a quest, then he would evolve Bbookbbook somehow, but he didn¡¯t even have an idea as to where to obtain the item called the Turtle Spirit. ¡°Where can you obtain the Turtle Spirit?¡± Bbakbbak stared at Bbookbbook as he replied. Bbookbbook can make it himself. Or he must find one of the same race as him that has a relic like me and receive it. Ian¡¯s gaze turned to Bbookbbook. ¡°Yo, Bbookbbook, do you have a relic?¡± For a moment, Bbookbbook wore a startled expression. Bboo-ook? Ian, who felt something through that form, began to press Bbookbbook. ¡°Yo, if you have one, spit it out quickly. He says you can evolve. You can become as cool as Bbakbbak.¡± However, Bbookbbook wore a sorrowful expression as he shook his head. However, just then, he saw a guild member run over hurriedly from afar. ¡°Ian, there¡¯s a huge problem!¡± ¡°Sorry?¡± ¡°Desert Warriors have appeared from the west!¡± Ian¡¯s gaze turned towards the direction that guild member pointed towards, and there, dozens of Desert Warriors were heading towards the base. Ian¡¯s expression slightly hardened. CH 154 Chapter 154: Isolation, and a Crisis (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Prepare for battle! Hurry and call all of the guild members that aren¡¯t logged on, quickly!¡± At Ian¡¯s urgent shouts, the guild¡¯s chat room began to light up like it was on fire. It was no wonder, though, as the number of Desert Warriors looked to be quite high. ¡®If it was after base occupation, it¡¯s a fighting power that we would be able to face without a lot of difficulty, but to have to protect that while fighting¡­¡¯ At the place that Ian¡¯s gaze landed on, there was a shining giant crystal that was letting out a blue light floating. That was the ¡®Blue Crystal¡¯, which could be called the heart of the base. In order to occupy a base, the process of engraving the guild¡¯s pattern into the Blue Crystal was required, but despite having shortened the time using the Holy Grail, it was a situation where they still needed 5 more hours. While looking at the Desert Warriors that were approaching, Ian summoned all of his Familiars. ¡°Ly, Halli, Pin, summon!¡± And Celia, who approached from him from behind, also summoned Ddukdae and her Blue Wyvern. Ly, who was summoned, stretched as he opened his mouth. Owner, is it a battle? At Ly¡¯s question, Ian nodded his head as he replied. ¡°Yeah, you see them swarming over here, right?¡± While looking at the approaching Desert Warriors, Ly growled lowly. It looks like it will be a fun battle for the first time in a while. At Ly¡¯s words, Bbakbbak, who was standing next to him, spoke as if he was dumbfounded. You haven¡¯t already forgotten the vicious fight that you were just in a little while ago, right? Ly nodded his head. Of course. However, we¡¯ve rested a whopping 3 hours. To have rested this long aside from when we sleep, this is something that shouldn¡¯t have happened. My body is itching.¡­ Ly let out a remark that was expected of a Familiar that had been with Ian the longest. No wonder Bbookbbook was staring at Ly with a pitiful expression, while on the other hand, Ian was wearing an incredibly pleased expression. ¡®I¡¯ve truly raised Ly alone really well.¡¯ And shortly after, as the leading group of the Desert Warriors were close to the base, Ian began to let out commands. ¡°Yoohyun, firstly, lead the Knight-class people that are logged on right now and pull aggro please!¡± ¡°Okay.¡± And he turned his gaze towards Bbakbbak. ¡°Bbakbbak, it looks like you¡¯ll have to stand your ground at the very front.¡± Understood, Owner. I will do that. Thud- Thud-. As Bbakbbak moved his heavy build and went out to the front, Celia also let out a command to Ddukdae and made him follow him. And Ian began to bang on the giant war drum that had the Lotus Guild¡¯s symbol drawn on it. The loud sound of a drum rang out through the air. Thud- Thud- Thud-! And shortly after, all of the Lotus Guild users were buffed. The War Drum of Courage has rung out.The fighting spirit of all soldiers affiliated with the Lotus Guild has increased by 20%.The combat abilities of all users affiliated with the Lotus Guild have increased by 15% for 20 minutes. Ian, who had invoked everything including the guild buff, now began to move his Familiars around busily. Of course, invoking all of the buffs he held was first on his list. Since the larger the scale of the battle, the bigger the effect an AoE buff had in battle. ¡°Pin, Roar of the King!¡± As soon as Ian¡¯s command dropped, Pin, who surged quickly up into the air, cried out loudly towards the sky. Kyaaoh-! Familiar ¡®Pin¡¯s Inherent Ability ¡®Roar of the King¡¯ has been invoked.The Agility of all allies within a 50-metre range will increase by 30% for 10 minutes.The movement speed of all enemies within a 50-metre range will decrease by 30% for 10 minutes. With Pin¡¯s roar as a reference point, the literal dogfight began. Rather than running into battle in person, Ian continuously looked at the progress of the battle as he began to conduct the battleground. ¡®The damage received must be minimized. Since just blocking them off doesn¡¯t mean it¡¯s the end.¡¯ In comparison, the Desert Warriors had a simple battle pattern, but as their levels alone were 20 levels higher than the general fighting power of the Lotus Guild, the condition of the battle was progressing incredibly tightly. Clang- Claang-! Riding on horses, the Desert Warriors swung their scimitars that shone white here and there. Whoong-! How dangerous their destructive power was could be heard just from hearing the sound, and the Lotus guild members faced their opponents in their tensest state. ¡°Fiolan, please support the front to the right!¡± ¡°Alright!¡± ¡°Carwin, keep your position, and Kroban hyung, please block them so that they can¡¯t get close to the crystal!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± Still, it seems thanks to the buffs that were granted on top of one another and Ian¡¯s fast and accurate command, the Lotus Guild was blocking off the Desert Warriors quite magnificently. And even through this dogfight, Ian¡¯s Familiars were outstandingly playing an active part. Especially, the abilities of Bbakbbak, who was newly recruited, was to the point they were shocking. Familiar ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯s Inherent Ability Guardian of the Desert skill has been invoked.Familiar ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯ has created a protective film that can absorb damage of up to 30% of his maximum Vitality for 20 seconds. As a matter of fact, the Vitality of Bbakbbak, on top of boasting an outrageous amount of Defensive Power that was close to 5 thousand when including his buffs, hardly went down as he even created a protective film through his passive skill. Familiar ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯ has dealt critical damage to the Desert Warrior.The ¡®Desert Warrior¡¯s Vitality has decreased by 9870. However, it wasn¡¯t like his Offensive Power was weak either. He was indeed a splendid dealer-slash-tanker. With a satisfied expression, Ian watched Bbakbbak¡¯s performance. ¡®It may be because his level is high as well as his rank, but he definitely lasts much better in comparison to Ddukdae.¡¯ On top of that, thanks to the ¡®Blessing of the Turtle Dragon¡¯ ability that receives damage in place of a designated target, Ly was also flying around the middle of the battlefield. Familiar ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯ has used Inherent Ability ¡®Blessing of the Turtle Dragon¡¯ on Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯.For 2 minutes, ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯ will instead receive ¡®Ly¡¯s damage (¡®Bbakbbak¡¯ will receive 150% of the original damage, and if his Vitality drops below 10%, the skill will automatically be cleared). Ian shouted towards Ly. ¡°Ly, go deeper inside and stir it up even more!¡± Understood, Owner. Despite Ian¡¯s active engagement, there couldn¡¯t help but be continuous damage in the beginning of the battle. This was because the users, who hadn¡¯t been in the central continent long ever since arriving, seemed to not have been fully accustomed as they ran about in confusion. However, as the battle proceeded, the users of the Lotus Guild began to find stability more and more, and the number of Desert Warriors began to shrink one by one. However, just then, Ian heard a familiar voice. ¡°Blessing of the Goddess!¡± Guild member ¡®Harin¡¯ has used skill ¡®Blessing of the Goddess¡¯.All level of immunity has increased by 20%. At that voice, Ian slightly turned his head. And in that spot, there was Harin. Ian slightly wore a taken aback expression. ¡°Huh? Harin, you were here as well?¡± This was because Harin¡¯s level was too low to come to the central continent. That¡¯s why he told Harin to stay at the Lotus Domain, and he thought she would only be there for sure. While looking at a surprised Ian, Harin puffed out both her cheeks. ¡°Hey, if I don¡¯t follow when all the guild members are moving, would there have been a way for me to come here? Then I would have at least have had to gamed alone boringly for several weeks.¡± Ian scratched the back of his head as he mumbled. ¡°Still, it¡¯s dangerous¡­¡± Harin hit Ian¡¯s back with the staff that she was holding as she spoke. ¡°Forget it, I¡¯ll take care of myself, so focus on the battle quickly instead. Carwin¡¯s in a bit of danger over there right now.¡± At Harin¡¯s words, Ian reflexively moved, and he gave a command to Halli and Ly, and Carwin, whose Vitality had almost hit zero, barely saved himself. While looking at Ian, who was now instead on Halli¡¯s back and was running around the battleground crazily, Harin shook her head. ¡°Ha, how nice it would be if he invested even a quarter of the energy he uses in gaming into me.¡± While looking at Harin, who was mumbling, Fiolan, who was casting magic next to her, smirked. ¡°Aren¡¯t you being a little too greedy, Harin?¡± At her words, Harin had daggers in her eyes. ¡°No, not even half, but a quarter is being greedy? Is this how you¡¯re going to be as well, Fiolan?¡± While looking at Harin¡¯s tearful face, Fiolan burst out into laughter. ¡°It looks like almost 100% of Ian¡¯s life is gaming, but a quarter of that is 25%. At that rate, that is being greedy.¡± At Fiolan¡¯s reasoning that was quite persuasive(?), Harin couldn¡¯t help but become speechless for a moment. ¡°Is, is that so?¡± There was a small disturbance(?), but either way, at the end of the battle that lasted about 1 hour, the Lotus Guild succeeded in blocking the Desert Warriors without taking a lot of damage. They did lose a lot of soldiers, but the number of guild members that died were only about thirty, and that much damage was a much favourable amount in comparison to what was initially expected. And as the battle ended, while looking at the purple rays that were sucked in from the corpses, Ian¡¯s two eyes slightly grew. ¡®Huh? Ever since the territory war, there was never a case when purple rays were made like this.¡¯ Ian hurriedly opened his inventory and checked the information of Karceus¡¯ Egg for the first time in a while. Karceus¡¯ Egg Hatching Rate: 57% And his two eyes rounded. ¡°¡­!¡± This was because, just when he checked a couple days ago, the hatching rate, which was just below 40%, had gone up close to 20%. ¡®What exactly is the criteria? What kind of battle do I need to do in order for the hatching rate to go up quickly?¡¯ While looking at God Dragon¡¯s Egg that was shining brightly, Ian felt his heart pound. ¡®If this one just hatches¡­ I could probably actually face top-ranking players now.¡¯ Ian, who momentarily set aside his anticipation towards the god dragon, began to straighten out the grounds after putting the egg back into his inventory. As it was a battle big enough that even Ian could count into a handful of large-scale battles ever since coming into the central continent, the spoils of the war were also quite big. Lastly, Ian, who checked the state of the Blue Crystal, mumbled to himself. ¡®Speaking of which, the time is passing by really slowly. To still have over 4 hours left¡­¡¯ While hoping that there are no other hitches until the base was completed, Ian began to heal his Familiars. * * * Battlegrounds here and there, which were quiet for a while even after the central continent opened up, finally started to have large-scale battles. This was because all of the follow-up troops of the armies of either empire were gathered in the central continent, and high-ranking guilds that were decent enough had also entered. Thanks to that, the main page of the community was plastered with articles that were related to the battle results of the central continent everyday. The DarkRuna Guild lead by Magic Swordsman ¡®Ilahan¡¯ is letting out a crushing force.Mark of Magellan, dispute over the balance-breaking item.Luspel Imperial Army¡¯s line of defense, countdown until it collapses. Jinsung, who was sitting in front of his computer while eating cereal, mumbled as he looked through the community. ¡°Hmm¡­ The imperial army¡¯s line of defense can¡¯t collapse.¡± Even after they blocked off the Desert Warriors that attacked on a large-scale, there were invasions of small monsters, but the Lotus Guild was eventually able to succeed in occupying the base. However, as expected, the major reason for the base occupation was Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail. If it wasn¡¯t for the Holy Grail, they would have been attacked by the Kaimon Imperial Army before they even succeeded in occupying the base. Jinsung, who continued to read down the article, mumbled again. ¡°Should I now leave the base defense to Yoohyun, and go out to the front lines and help defend the defensive line¡­¡± As mentioned in the main community article, the Kaimon Empire¡¯s fighting power was showing overwhelming superiority. And in that background, there was an item called the ¡®Mark of Magellan¡¯ that Ilahan possessed. The Mark of Magellan made the Desert Warriors, which were neutral NPCs, stand with the Kaimon Empire¡¯s side, and due to them spreading out a guerilla tactic in battlegrounds here and there, the Luspel Imperial Army began to lose every battle that they fought. The fighting power of the Desert Warriors were much lower in comparison to the fighting power of the Luspel Imperial Army, but as the fighting power of the Luspel and the Kaimon Imperial Army were evenly matched to the point it was tight, the addition tilted the weight. ¡®The base defense can only be spoken about when the line of defense hasn¡¯t collapsed, if the line of defense collapses and we¡¯re isolated in the middle of the enemy camp, then there will definitely be no solution then.¡¯ Ian, who quickly ate all of his cereal, hurriedly went into his capsule. He had no intentions of helplessly losing the base he worked so hard to get. CH 155 Chapter 155: Isolation, and a Crisis (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Alright, alright, please gather over here in an orderly way. The battle will begin soon.¡± At the front-line base of the Luspel side of the central continent, there were hordes of users affiliated with the Luspel Empire that gathered to participate in the battle. Front line battles were dangerous to the point that it was quite difficult to avoid death, but despite that, there was an obvious reason why many users looked for this battleground. That reason could be organized largely into two, and first, as expected, it was because of the enormous amount of EXP that was difficult to obtain through just normal quests, and the second was because the easiest way to obtain ¡®Imperial Family Contributions¡¯, which were required to obtain good artifacts or quests, was fighting in the front lines. Of course, because for users that were affiliated with giant guilds, there were more benefits in fighting while affiliated with their guild, so there weren¡¯t many that came, but for users who didn¡¯t have an affiliated guild or were part of a small guild where it would be difficult for them to enter the central continent, yet were still over lv 100, it wasn¡¯t an exaggeration to think that most of those users gathered at this front-line base. And because there was a huge crowd gathered, the noisiness was an obvious. ¡°Yo, but, what if you die as soon as the battle starts? Then you¡¯ll just lose a level without even being able to obtain much Fame or Contributions, no?¡± ¡°That probably won¡¯t happen, but even if you were to die as soon as it started, it¡¯s not that big of a loss. Since, on average, you obtain 10 thousand Fame and 1 thousand Contributions even just from participating. A ranking Warrior-class person that I know caught a couple dozen soldiers yesterday alone and obtained over 50 thousand Fame. And I think they obtained almost 10 thousand Contributions as well?¡± ¡°Pfft, are you sure they didn¡¯t randomly hit knights and not just soldiers? You¡¯re saying that they just caught soldiers, yet got 50 thousand Fame?¡± ¡°No, that person is about lv 130, but they said that they couldn¡¯t touch the knights. They said that Kaimon knights are almost lv 140.¡± ¡°Keu, then how much Fame would a knight give? They probably give a lot of EXP too, right?¡± And while they individually talked about this and that, Ian also stood in line amongst the empire users that were waiting to register as a mercenary. ¡®For crying out loud, the procedure is incredibly complicated. Should I have just gone looking for Hellaim right away?¡¯ If he had went straight to Hellaim, he probably would have been able to register as a mercenary quickly, but the front-line barracks were too wide, and the problem was that there was no way to find out where Hellaim was. Ian stretched out his neck, and after checking the front of the long line, he grumbled to himself. ¡®Ugh, how much longer do I have to wait? I¡¯m dying because of how wasteful this time is.¡¯ However, just then, A familiar voice called Ian. ¡°Excuse me¡­ By any chance, aren¡¯t you Viscount Ian?¡± Ian reflexively turned his head at the voice that called his name, and in that spot, there was a knight affiliated with the Luspel Empire that was staring at Ian while on a horse. Ian was momentarily taken aback. ¡®Who is this? How do they know me?¡¯ He felt like he saw him somewhere, but he didn¡¯t really remember. Ian erased his taken aback expression and asked him. ¡°Yes, it is, but¡­ Who are you?¡± And Ian¡¯s question was immediately solved. ¡°Ah, so it is you, Viscount! The fact that you cannot remember me, I¡¯m a little disappointed, haha. I am ¡®Valtor¡¯, an adjutant serving the leader of the royal guards, Hellaim. Did we not participate in the hunting of Holdream just a couple days ago together?¡± After hearing his explanation, Ian began to remember the other¡¯s face. No, truthfully, even though he didn¡¯t remember, he needed to act as if he remembered. ¡®Alright, I got lucky!¡¯ Ian brightened his face, and held out his hand towards him. ¡°Ah-ha, Sir Valtor! I¡¯ve made a big mistake; how could I have not remembered? When thanks to you, Sir Valtor, we were able to hunt so easily in the basement dungeon, haha!¡± Valtor immediately got down from his horse, and while taking Ian¡¯s hand, he showed his mannerisms, and in an instant, their surroundings began to buzz. ¡°What the hell, that user is acquainted with a knight of the imperial family¡¯s royal guards!¡± ¡°Who exactly are they? Rankers or celebrities are all affiliated with giant guilds, so there¡¯s no way that they¡¯re here. If they are able to act that close with a royal guard, then aren¡¯t they an incredibly important figure?¡± ¡°On top of that, the imperial family knight spoke first!¡± While jealousy towards Ian and assumptions about his identity were rampant here and there, someone yelled loudly. ¡°I know that person!¡± ¡°Who is it?¡± ¡°You see, the Summoner that came out on the trailer videos of this large-scale update, it¡¯s that person!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, Ian, it¡¯s Ian!¡± At the unexpected situation, Ian flinched. However, this was an obvious sequence. Since, before Ian realized, his popularity had gone up to the point it was comparable with decent rankers. However, because his stake of popularity was mainly gathered around Summoner users or new class users, in this battleground, where high-level users that were above a fixed standard, a person that recognized him had just appeared a little later. The number of new class users that could enter the central continent was truly a small minority. Especially in the case of Summoners, who had difficulty leveling up, the number of users that had the ability to enter the central continent could be counted within ten fingers. No matter the reactions of the people, Ian brazened his expression and continued his conversation with Valtor. ¡°Sir Valtor, by any chance, could I ask you for a favour?¡± ¡°Please tell me, if it is something that I can do, I must definitely do it.¡± Ian was slightly surprised at the reaction that was more favourable than expected, but he soon nodded his head. ¡®It¡¯s an obvious that my Affinity with the imperial family¡¯s royal knights is high since I¡¯ve done multiple quests with them up until now.¡¯ Starting from the Griffin Hatching Quest, Ian had completed weighty empire quests such as the War Prisoner Rescue Operation. Especially, as Ian had conducted the knights magnificently inside the ancient ruins, the dungeon of Holdream¡¯s Grave, his Affinity with Valtor, whom he was currently with, was close to maximum. ¡°I also want to help the knights at the front line and fight, that is, I want to face as many opponents as I can at the head. Could you, Sir Valtor, guide me to Leader Hellaim?¡± He had cleverly packaged up the words that he didn¡¯t want to wait and wanted to jump the line. Of course, Valtor was delighted as he nodded his head. ¡°Oh, from what I heard, I heard that the Lotus Guild also had to defend their base, but to run over to the offensive unit at the front like this for the imperial family, your loyalty towards His Majesty is truly enormous, Viscount.¡± While being as brazen as possible, Ian let out a hearty laugh. ¡°Haha, once the front defensive line of the empire collapses, what good would our guild base be? I will lead the first line in blocking off the Kaimon guys.¡± Valtor wore a pleased expression as he nodded his head. ¡°Keu, as expected, there was a reason why His Majesty favoured you. Follow me, Viscount. I will guide you to the leader. The Leader will also probably be delighted.¡± Ian slightly bowed his head towards Valtor as he showed his gratitude. ¡°Thank you, Sir Valtor.¡± Like that, Ian finished his short conversation with the knight of the imperial family, Valtor, and following behind him, he disappeared into the barracks. In the spot that he disappeared from, the remaining users grumbled as they let out their dissatisfaction. ¡°Wow, for personal connections to be important even in games, too¡­ How sad this is!¡± ¡°But still, no matter how much of a named user he is, how much of an active role could a Summoner play in the ferocious front-line battlefield for them to take him away like that?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m saying. The fact that it is incredibly difficult to level up a Summoner is something that everybody knows¡­ That Ian person wasn¡¯t even in the ranking list, so would he have even hit lv 110?¡± ¡°Hul, these people really don¡¯t know much. Have you at least watched one combat video of Ian¡¯s?¡± ¡°No. Well, even if I didn¡¯t watch one, isn¡¯t it obvious? It¡¯s not like I¡¯ve seen a Summoner only once or twice.¡± However, just when dispute towards Ian began to thicken, one female user, who had been still up until now, opened her mouth with a quiet voice. And the rippling effect of her words were quite big. ¡°I am not an acquaintance, but I believe that Ian is at least lv 130.¡± Shortly after, opposing voices immediately burst out from here and there. ¡°No, what kind of nonsensical words are those? From what I know, the current 1st place Summoner user in the rankings is lv 122 or something like that.¡± ¡°Exactly what I¡¯m saying. There aren¡¯t even five Black Magician users that are over lv 130 either.¡± However, at her words that followed afterwards, everybody couldn¡¯t do anything else but shut their mouths. ¡°I am that lv 122 Summoner that is currently in 1st place in the Summoner rankings. And from the result of watching Ian¡¯s combat video, he is much stronger than me.¡± The users, who had gathered together to chat away up until then, wore flustered expressions. ¡°But how could he not pop up in the rankings¡­¡± And she continued her words. ¡°He probably set up all of his information up until now to 100% private. Aren¡¯t there also a couple of users like that amongst the unofficial rankers?¡± ¡°Th, that¡­¡± They were words that were hard to believe easily, but as the character information that popped up above her head added a weight to her words, people stared at the spot that Ian disappeared from with jealous expressions. Loren/Lv. 122/Summoner * * * So¡­ You¡¯re saying that you¡¯ll be going in as a spearhead in a war that will break out between the empires 1 hour from now? Jinsung sat on his chair in front of his desk and was currently on call with someone through his smartphone. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right. And I will record all of the battle process with the internal camera in the capsule. As my capsule is the new model with the best specifications that hasn¡¯t been out long, the quality will probably be fantastic.¡± A clear, female voice continued to be heard through Jinsung¡¯s smartphone. Excellent. No wonder, the video quality of the basement dungeon of Holdream¡¯s Grave last time was also really good, and as expected, you had the newest capsule model. ¡°That¡¯s right. Anyways, I hope you¡¯ll also edit this video well this time, Sojin.¡± Of course. Don¡¯t worry. The video itself is really good, but you also know my abilities. ¡°Of course. Then once the video is finished, I will immediately send it to you.¡± Jinsung, who finished with his business, was about to end the call, but Sojin¡¯s voice flowed through again. Oh, right, Jinsung. ¡°Yes?¡± When should I upload that Holdream¡¯s dungeon clear video? At that question, Jinsung was momentarily submerged in his thoughts. ¡®Hmm¡­ If that video spreads, it could still possibly be a little dangerous. Since giant guilds will pay more attention to me¡­¡¯ The biggest problem was that once the video spread, the fact that Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail was under Jinsung had a high chance of spreading together as well. Of course, the scene where they obtained the Holy Grail will be edited and uploaded, but still, it was a fact that could be guessed at any time. Jinsung¡¯s words continued. ¡°Please wait a little more. As information that cannot be known yet is inside¡­ I think it should be alright after about two weeks. I will contact you again then.¡± At those words Sojin licked her lips. Tsk¡­ I¡¯m itching because I want to upload it quickly¡­ Well, either way, I understand. Then, please contact me again soon, Jinsung! ¡°Sounds good!¡± Jinsung, who ended the call, opened up the internet and searched up the list of videos on YouCast where his combat scenes were included in before he began to look through them. There were videos starting from as little as a couple hundred thousand views to ones that were even close to about ten million views. Jinsung mumbled with a satisfied expression. ¡°Alright, with about this many views, I¡¯ll probably get even more money than last month, right?¡± With a broad smile, Jinsung checked each and every video. Thanks to having passed on quite a lot of combat videos to Sojin, now, if you searched Ian¡¯s name, almost close to twenty videos could be searched up. ¡°What should I buy as soon as money comes into my bank? As expected, you earn money to spend it!¡± At the thought of splurging on things with the money that would roll into his bank account, Jinsung became happy. However, Jinsung¡¯s next words were the highlight. ¡°Should I be changing all of my armour into top-class items? Or is it time for me to change my staff? Hmm, as Magic Spheres is still useful, it¡¯s a little wasteful to change it¡­¡± If it were others, they would have thought about buying a car or moving into a better house with the money they earned, but Jinsung just thought of trading the money he earned into game items. If his parents saw this scene, it would have been hard for him to even salvage his bones, but Jinsung was all smiles as he moved his feet towards his capsule again. ¡°Still, let¡¯s not use all of it, I should leave a little and at least go eat beef or something with Harin.¡± Still, fortunately(?) now, Harin¡¯s stake seemed to have appeared a little in Jinsung¡¯s mind. CH 156 Chapter 156: Isolation, and a Crisis (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The all-time largest war in size in Kailan. No, this was not just simply in Kailan, but it could be considered the largest war in scale even including the history of all VR games. Just counting the number of soldiers on either empire¡¯s side, there were about 30 thousand on each side. On top of the number of knights being close to a thousand on each side, there were even over thousands of users that were participating in the war. And a scene with a scale this large when counting the number of people could easily be called a grand spectacle. ¡°Cut down all Kaimon Empire people!¡± ¡°There is no retreat! Raise the dignity of the Luspel warriors!¡± ¡°Whooo!¡± The users that were participating in the battle were feeling the utmost thrill inside the large-scale battle that was materialized perfectly to the point it was realistic. ¡°It really feels like I¡¯m participating in war!¡± ¡°No kidding. It¡¯s more tiring than hunting in the field, but there¡¯s a completely different nervousness from hunting as well!¡± The position of the users in this battleground could be considered the middle of the soldiers and the knights. This was because the levels of the soldiers were around 110-130, while the levels of the knights were around 150-180. Of course, there were also users that were a lower level than the soldiers, but they died out immediately and couldn¡¯t help but be reduced to ashes. Baaang-! You have been directly hit by the sword attack of the Kaimon Empire Knight, and have received critical damage.Your Vitality has been reduced by 36,478.As your Vitality has been completely exhausted, you have died. You have left the battleground. Especially in the case of Magicians or Archers, which were classes with low Defensive Power, even if they just got hit once by a high-level knight, they couldn¡¯t help but face game over just like that. However, even if they were hit by the same attack, depending on the Defensive Power of the person that was hit, that force was different in an infinite number of ways. Familiar ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯ has received damage from the Kaimon Empire Knight¡¯s Inherent Ability, Soul Penetration.Familiar ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 5768. The greatness of Bbakbbak, whose Defensive Power was close to 4 thousand, was showing. Looking at the fact that only about 5 thousand damage came through even though he was hit with not just a normal attack, but a skill attack, Ian wore a pleased expression. ¡®I should attach a Vitality regeneration option no matter what on the talisman that I¡¯ll be giving to Bbakbbak. Although it doesn¡¯t appear often, that is.¡¯ If he gave Bbakbbak, whose Defensive Power and Vitality were overwhelmingly high, a talisman that had the high-ranking regeneration option attached to it, it was obvious that the effectiveness of it will be incredible. Because he even formed a protective film once every minute thanks to his passive skill, if he had a good regeneration option, he felt like he could even recover all of the Vitality he lost for the duration of the protective film. ¡®Once the battle ends, I should just grind talismans for a couple hours.¡¯ Because he didn¡¯t rest from producing talismans whenever he got the chance up until now, now he could even make talismans that were over Heroic-ranks as well. He had even equipped an item onto Bbakbbak that was decent enough amongst the talismans he had made up until now, but it wasn¡¯t at a satisfying level. Ian, who was riding on top of Bbakbbak¡¯s wide back, let out a command. ¡°Bbakbbak, use Blessing of the Turtle Dragon on Ly!¡± Understood, Owner. And the golden current of light that spurted out from Bbakbbak¡¯s body shot out towards Ly as it dyed the air yellow. Familiar ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯ has used Inherent Ability ¡®Blessing of the Turtle Dragon¡¯ on Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯.For 2 minutes, ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯ will receive ¡®Ly¡¯s damage instead (¡®Bbakbbak¡¯ will receive 150% of the original damage, and if his Vitality drops below 10%, the skill will automatically be cleared). Ian, who checked that the skill was invoked, turned around and let out a command to Celia. ¡°Celia, have Ddukdae step back a little, and please focus the Familiar Recovery skill onto Bbakbbak!¡± ¡°Yes, Lord!¡± Even if it was Bbakbbak, because his Vitality dropped in an instant if he was to receive the damage that Ly received instead, for the duration that the Blessing of the Turtle Dragon skill was invoked at least, they needed to focus the recovery skill on Bbakbbak. And even though Ian didn¡¯t command him, Ly charged into the battlefield and began to slaughter the enemies. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has dealt critical damage to the Kaimon Empire Soldier.The Kaimon Empire Soldier¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 27,638.You have successfully killed the Kaimon Empire Soldier!You have obtained 198,079 EXP.You have obtained 3000 Fame.You have obtained 500 Contributions towards the Imperial Family of the Luspel Empire. Ian, who slightly checked the overloading amount of system messages that popped up whenever Ly killed a soldier, turned his head again and looked around at the battleground. ¡®It¡¯s important that we catch a lot, but since the most important thing is leading the battle itself to victory no matter what!¡¯ As the biggest purpose for Ian participating in the battle was to maintain the front lines, Ian focused more on the flow of the whole battleground. And from afar, a familiar backside caught Ian¡¯s eyes. ¡®Ugh, why is he over there again? He should listen a little to what I say!¡¯ The main character of that backside was none other than Kaizar. Kaizar was in the battlefield that Ian was participating in with him, but as he just did as he pleased, he didn¡¯t listen to Ian¡¯s commands at all. Since it was to the point that if Ian told him to move towards the east, he purposely moved to the west. It was to the point that he felt like the common empire knights that Ian had high Affinity with listened to Ian¡¯s words better than Kaizar instead. ¡®Ah, I don¡¯t know. Still, since all of the EXP and Fame is coming in, I should just be satisfied with that.¡¯ He felt as if even Kaizar was inserted into the west front lines, which were slowly collapsing, the balance would return again, but Kaizar was excitedly fighting the knights in the central front line. ¡®I should adjust to Kaizar¡¯s movements instead and move accordingly.¡¯ Ian called over Pin, who was spreading out his Crush skill towards the soldiers. ¡°Pin, come over here!¡± Kku-ruk- Kku-ruk-! At Ian¡¯s command, Pin approached him at lightning speed. After Ian petted Pin¡¯s head for some time, he got on Pin¡¯s back with skilled movements. ¡°Celia, I¡¯ll leave it up to you here. Try to last while healing Bbakbbak and Ddukdae well. Halli will also help.¡± ¡°Yes, Lord, just leave it to me!¡± Ian also let out a simple command to Paulean, who was diligently fighting at the front. ¡°Paulean, since protecting this line is the most important, don¡¯t go in too deep to dig through the front and just maintain the line.¡± Paulean nodded his head energetically as he replied. ¡°Yes, Lord, understood!¡± Ian, who left the battleground up to his reliable retainers, flew up into the air on Pin¡¯s back like an arrow. Kkyaaooh-! As expected of the emperor of the blue sky, Pin cried out with a resounding voice. Ian looked down at the battleground as he began to diligently spray Magic Spheres and Current Proliferation. ¡®As expected, I don¡¯t think there¡¯s any AoE status condition skill that¡¯s as effective as Current Proliferation in a large-scale battle. On top of that, if it¡¯s a dogfight like this, it¡¯s better!¡¯ Like that, Ian began to direct the whole battleground effectively. He wasn¡¯t directly letting out commands to the NPCs or users, but while he sprayed debuff skills or status condition attack skills to the right man in the right place, he began to grab the battlefield in an indirect way. And the ones that felt threatened by Ian¡¯s form first were the users of the Kaimon Empire. ¡°What is that? Was there even a NPC riding a Griffin amongst Luspel Empire¡¯s combat-type NPCs?¡± ¡°What the hell, this is my first time seeing that too. There really is a Griffin Rider?¡± Users who didn¡¯t really know about Ian thought that Ian, who went around the air and disturbed the battle little by little, was an NPC, but there were also users amongst them that knew him. ¡°That user, it¡¯s Ian! I¡¯ve watched a video of him riding a Griffin and spraying lightning!¡± ¡°It¡¯s the truth! If you get hit by those purple spheres, it hurts quite a bit, so everybody, avoid them!¡± Pung-! The effect that the fighting power of one user has on this big of a battleground couldn¡¯t help but honestly be meager, but no matter who saw, Ian exerted a great amount of effect onto the overall battle. Ian properly used his strong allies, and he skillfully isolated threatening enemies and made it difficult for them to display their full strength. As the battle proceeded like that, the battleground slowly began to lean towards the Luspel Empire¡¯s side. It seemed that the users affiliated with Luspel that were still alive and were diligently fighting felt that as well, as they began to chatter out of excitement. ¡°Wow, are we finally going to win for once as well?¡± ¡°I know, right? I feel like we¡¯re really going to win today!¡± ¡°I heard that we just lost three days in a row since the war started, but how exactly did we win today?¡± ¡°Do you not see that Griffin rider over there? I think that person is really great. Thanks to that person, I survived twice earlier.¡± ¡°What do you mean that person? That person is Ian, who is 1st place in rankings for Summoners. I told you that I saw a combat video before. He¡¯s freaking awesome. If I¡¯m still alive by the end of the battle, I¡¯m thinking of even getting an autograph at least.¡± ¡°Oh, really? That person is that Ian you were talking about?¡± The users looked at Ian, who sometimes rode on Pin and flew in the air or other times rode Halli and went around the battleground, with jealous gazes. ¡°Yo, if I look at that Ian person, I think that the Summoner class is actually a cheat class, but then why whiners always whining in the Summoner bulletin board?¡± At one user¡¯s word, a Knight user, who seemed to be his friend, shook his head as he replied. ¡°You, does that play look easy to you right now? As Familiars themselves have AIs, they do fight up to an extent even if you just leave them alone, but unless you consistently give them commands, then you can¡¯t get that much control. That Ian person is amazing. I¡¯ve been watching him for a while now, but he doesn¡¯t have one Familiar that is just muddling around. On top of that, I even think the ranks of his Familiars are at least Heroic-rank.¡± Like that, after Ian poured out all of his concentration without rest and went around the battleground, Luspel Empire was in the end able to perfectly claim victory. The fact that the Desert Warriors that had contributed quite a bit in the victories of Kaimon Empire up until now hadn¡¯t showed up could be considered luck, but despite that, it wasn¡¯t like Ian¡¯s active role faded away. ¡°Hooray! I never thought that I would still be alive by the end of the battle!¡± ¡°Jackpot! I also survived, hahaha!¡± ¡°Yo, you¡¯re not even lv 120. How were you able to survive up until now?¡± ¡°Hehehe, well, I just followed behind Ian. Ian saved me three times! God Ian!¡± The number of Luspel Empire users that survived at the end of the battle was only about 900, which was about 30% of the 3 thousand that participated in the battle in the beginning, but to be honest, that was also an incredible standard. Since even if it was the victorious camp, up until now, there was never a case when over 10% of the users survived. In other words, today¡¯s battle could be considered a great victory. ¡®How far could we push in with today¡¯s battle?¡¯ Ian opened his map and after checking the newly formed front confrontation line and the distance between that and the base, Ian let out a sigh of relief. If in the case they had lost today as well, the base would have really been in danger. ¡®Alright, if we can just win continuously the next two days or so, it looks like our base could avoid the danger zone.¡¯ After Ian checked the fact that his abilities displayed a bigger effect than expected even in a large-scale battle, he was incredibly pleased. ¡®The EXP is terrific as well. I should run as a mercenary in the front lines for a couple days.¡¯ However, Ian¡¯s plans, which just looked smooth, couldn¡¯t help but be immediately shattered the next day. * * * Ian: What? The base was attacked?Herz: That¡¯s what I¡¯m telling you. While you were gone, the Desert Warriors came and attacked. The scale was smaller than last time, but it seemed because you were gone, the damage was quite big.Ian: No, how is that possible? With today¡¯s battle, we increased the distance from the front lines by over 3 kilometres, so then how were the Desert Warriors able to invade us?Fiolan: By the looks of it, it seems like the DarkRuna Guild personally moved the Desert Warriors. Or, the Mark of Magellan has some sort of special ability¡­Ian: Special ability? What kind¡­?Fiolan: For example, something like summoning Desert Warriors within a certain distance to a specific place¡­?Ian: Ah, this is beyond my expectations. Then starting tomorrow, I should also return to the base.Herz: By the looks of it, I think that would be best. Since whether you¡¯re here or not, the difference is quite big. The expression of Ian, who went into the chatroom in order to boast about the victory in battle and instead heard unexpected news, hardened. ¡°Ah¡­ The Mark of Magellan or whatever, is there no way to see the details of what kind of item that is? I¡¯m going crazy.¡± The central continent base of the Lotus guild was currently raising buildings quickly and was in the middle of development. The resources and goods that were needed in raising those buildings were, of course, things that were supplied through the War Trading Post. ¡®If attacks continuously come in, it looks like we¡¯ll have to build a defense tower first, not the production buildings. We¡¯ll have to invest a lot more in the labour force as well¡­¡¯ But then again, as it was too big of a waste to cancel the production buildings that were being built, they needed to supply additional resources from somewhere. Ian¡¯s head began to become incredibly complicated as he closed the chat window and headed towards the base. ¡®If it¡¯s like this, in the end, it means that we¡¯ll need to pull resources from the northern continent¡­¡¯ Ian, who momentarily organized his thoughts, sent a personal message to someone. Ian: Professor, it¡¯s Jinsung. By any chance, are you finishing up the thing that I asked as a favour from you before now? CH 157 Chapter 157: Base Defense War (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Jinook¡¯s message came immediately after a couple seconds since Ian sent his message. Lee Jinook: Yes, Jinsung. As a matter of fact, I was planning on contacting you.Ian: Yes, Professor, is the training ground now on the final stage?Lee Jinook: The upgrade finished yesterday afternoon. Starting today, we can now take in customers. The thing that Ian had requested from Jinook was none other than an upgrade on the Domain¡¯s training ground. At the end of several months since the training ground was first built, it had finally been upgraded to the final stage. ¡®The training ground could truly become an amazing bonanza at this point. Now, it seems even information related to Potential has slowly been releasing, and the time has come.¡¯ The training ground was a unique place that could quickly raise the Potential of a Familiar. That is, if Ian¡¯s special skill, ¡®Training¡¯, was excluded. ¡®I don¡¯t know how much of a ripple effect it will have, but at least amongst Summoners, it won¡¯t be able to help but become the greatest issue.¡¯ To Summoners, the ¡®evolution¡¯ of a Familia was an incredibly important part. Because of that, in order to solve the secret related to the evolution of a Familiar, a dispute occurred periodically on the Familiar bulletin board. However, there hasn¡¯t been a person that knew about the relationship between Potential and evolution almost as exactly as Ian did yet. It could be that there was a user that found out, but hasn¡¯t released the information like Ian, but at least in the community, the information had not yet been released. At this time, when there was almost no one that knew about the correlation between Potential and evolution, if the role of the training ground also became known, a truly enormous wave would rise. Ian: Then, how many Familiars can be accommodated in the training ground right now, Professor?Lee Jinook: Hmm¡­ It looks like a total of 50 large Familiars, and for medium and small Familiars, 100 each could be accommodated. I expanded it completely using all of the allotted land you gave me.Ian: Oh, the number of accommodatable Familiars is larger than expected. Thank you for your efforts.Lee Jinook: Then, are you planning on now releasing the information outside starting today?Ian: Yes, Professor. I think it is the right time now. Users that have almost found out the secret of Potential will probably already exist, and soon, the information will also be released in the community. We will release the information before then and dominate the market in advance. There probably won¡¯t be a Domain that possesses a training ground that has been upgraded to the maximum level anywhere in Kailan. Ian¡¯s calculations were simple. If he released the information into the community that within the correlation of Potential and a Familiar¡¯s evolution, the higher the Potential, the higher the range that the Familiar¡¯s abilities grew to, almost all Familiars within Kailan would gather at the Lotus Domain. If that was the case, naturally, with the Lotus Domain as the centre, there will be an explosive economic growth, and there will also be Familiars that will begin to just put their roots down and settle in the Domain. As the level of the monsters around the Domain were 70 at the lowest and 100 at the highest, the hunting ground would be charming enough to Summoners in the mid-level range as well. Lee Jinook: Alright, student Jinsung. Then, how are you planning on going with the promotions? Ian, who thought for a moment, sent a short response. Ian: I will take care of it, Professor. Just thoroughly prepare to take in customers. * * * Jinsung, who finished his conversation with Professor Lee Jinook, logged out of the game for now and came out of his capsule. He was planning on not logging on for about a quarter of a day now. ¡®Let¡¯s think that I¡¯m writing an attack piece for the first time in a while and write something as diligently as possible.¡¯ Ian, who first opened up his internet browser, began to scrape together information related to his Familiars. Gathering large amounts of information on evolved individuals that Ian didn¡¯t know, yet the information has been released for, was first priority. ¡®It is most important to write it so that it looks as good as possible, and also for it to be easily readable.¡¯ Of course, it was no mistake that even if he wrote the information that when Potential was 100 after other evolution requirements are met, they would evolve and that they needed to raise their level when their Potential is high in order for their abilities to grow up to a higher range in a condensed form, it would be an incredible amount of information, but he couldn¡¯t be pleased with just that. He wanted to write something like a Summoner¡¯s bible, something that if you were a Summoner, you needed to read at least once. Ian was planning on analyzing all Familiars and their evolutions, and organizing everything he could from their ranks, the maximum and minimum rate of growth based on each rank¡¯s abilities, so that it was easy to look at. ¡®I¡¯ll promote the bulletin board link by posting it up at the end of the video that Sojin will be uploading, and since my ID also has become quite famous, if I sell my name a little, the number of hits will probably go up in an instant.¡¯ Ian, who sat in front of the computer, began to be absorbed like crazy into it. * * * The Lotus Base in the Central Continent. In the barracks of the centre of the base, Fiolan and Herz were sharing a conversation with serious expressions. ¡°What? We¡¯re already building several buildings right now, but we¡¯re going to raise more on top of this?¡± ¡°Yes, Fiolan. This is something I just discussed with Ian about. With the defense tower as the main, we decided to build everything we could that could go around it.¡± At Herz¡¯s words, Fiolan wore an incredibly flustered expression. ¡°No, there¡¯s no big problem in starting construction now, but if we go on like this, are you sure we won¡¯t be able to complete anything and just hit the bottom with our resources? If that¡¯s the case, we really won¡¯t be able to do anything, and just fail¡­¡± The process of building a building in Kailan was incredibly similar to the real one. For example, just because a building worth 5 million gold was being built, it didn¡¯t mean that 5 million gold just went in straight from the beginning. If just the basic construction costs were there, then the construction could begin whenever, and for any additional costs, as long as they were covered then, the building was continuously built. As the Lotus Guild had quite a bit of resources, it was possible to begin building all defense buildings at the same time just like Ian¡¯s plan, but because it wasn¡¯t to the point that they could continuously pour in resources until it was completed, Fiolan was worried. At her words, Herz nodded his head as he replied. ¡°I¡¯m also quite worried. However, after hearing what Ian said, it doesn¡¯t seem like it¡¯s completely impossible.¡± Fiolan rejoiced as she asked back. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes, firstly, we have the War Trading Post. Starting around tomorrow, we¡¯ll be able to produce desert foot soldiers, and once we start producing soldiers, we will be able to supply a large amount of Specialty Points to the point it will be incomparable.¡± ¡°Hmm, I feel like it will still be lacking even with that¡­ But for now, since we¡¯ve never suffered a loss following Ian¡¯s words, let¡¯s proceed with it.¡± As there were not many parts that made sense commonsensically amongst Ian¡¯s events, Fiolan agreed with it just like that. And Herz, who saw her do so, smirked as he nodded his head. ¡°Okay, then let¡¯s start raising the buildings immediately.¡± However, Fiolan, of course, but even Herz wasn¡¯t even able to guess the large-scale business(?) that Ian was thinking of with the northern domain as the foundation. ¡°But where is Ian at this important time?¡± At Fiolan¡¯s question, Herz scratched the back of his head as he shook his head. ¡°I, I¡¯m not too sure. He just told me that he¡¯s going to go make money.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Like that, while the two people were extending the defense buildings of the base diligently with the guild members. Ian was diligently sitting in front of his computer and pounding his keyboard. * * * ¡°Loren, have you seen the community?¡± Loren was the user currently ranking 1st place in the Summoner level rankings. She wasn¡¯t affiliated with any guild, but she was affiliated with a small-scale ¡®team¡¯ that was made up of just Summoner users. The name of the team was the ¡®Golden Summoners¡¯, which was incredibly famous in the Summoner community. The Golden Summoners was a team made up of a total of about twenty Summoner members, and they were people that didn¡¯t proceed with PVP or quests, but mainly just PVE or even actively in capturing monsters. Every single one of them were exceptional in their skills and their ranks were also high, so it was to the point that many Summoners wanted to get into this Golden Summoners team, but there was one person who they had as their idol. That was an obvious, but this was Ian. ¡°Millian, what is it?¡± At Loren¡¯s question, the lad called Millian responded quickly. Million was also one of the top-rankers in the Summoner rankings that was close to lv 120. ¡°The community is in complete chaos right now. It¡¯s to the point that the amount of people logging onto the Summoner bulletin board is so high that the server is down.¡± At his words, Loren¡¯s already two large eyes widened even more. ¡°What, an incident must have occurred, I assume?¡± Millian nodded his head as he replied. ¡°An incident it is. Since Ian has uploaded an attack piece onto the Summoner bulletin board.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± At those words, Loren stood up abruptly. ¡°Ian has uploaded an attack piece? Have you read the content?¡± ¡°I just read it and came here. I wasn¡¯t able to read all of it. That is, because it was so long. I read a little, but thought that it would be better to read it after letting you know first, Loren¡­ I glanced over it roughly, but the quality alone was the best. As expected of Ian!¡± At Millian¡¯s words, Loren smiled brightly as she responded. ¡°Thank you so much, Millian. I¡¯m going to go out right now and come back after I read the piece on the community!¡± ¡°Go ahea¡­¡± Before Millian even finished responding, Loren seemed to have logged off as she disappeared into thin air. While looking at her, Millian shook his head. ¡°As expected of the president. I¡¯m also a fan of Ian, but I can¡¯t keep up with Loren.¡± Ian had no idea, but about a month ago, so about the time that Ian¡¯s videos regularly began to be spread on YouCast, Ian¡¯s fan club was created. And the president of that fan club was none other than Loren. Loren directly contacted Sojin, the uploader that is in full charge of Ian¡¯s videos and uploads them, and she made the existence of Ian¡¯s fan caf¨¦ known, and was directly receiving the videos as well. For Sojin, the fact that there was a fandom being created for Ian was an incredible gain for her business-wise, so she willingly supported it, and the number of members in Ian¡¯s fan club was increasing exponentially. At this current moment, the number of members in the fan club was close to 150 thousand people. Truthfully, if the fact that even the fan club of Ilahan, the Guild Master of the DarkRuna Guild who was known as the 1st place ranker in the combined rankings, was not quite at 200 thousand members, this was an incredible number. ¡°I should also quickly log off and put up the address of the attack piece on the bulletin board of LoveLeeAn. Would someone have already put it up?¡± LoveLeeAn was the name of Ian¡¯s fan club. In English it was LoveLeeAn. It was the naming sense of Loren. ¡°Speaking of which, then does that mean the hunting schedule for today is automatically cancelled?¡± Millian opened up the party chatroom and checked the number of people logged on. He felt that the others had already heard the word that Ian¡¯s attack piece had gone up on the community from somewhere and logged off. As every member in the Golden Summoners were huge fans of Ian, this was truthfully an obvious sequence of moves. After uploading an announcement in the chatroom, where there was no one, Million logged off. Announcement: Today¡¯s hunting schedule will be postponed until the next day. Everybody, carefully read Ian¡¯s attack piece ten times by tomorrow and analyze it for sharing. CH 158 Chapter 158: Base Defense War (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda As expected, the ripple effect of the attack that Ian uploaded onto the community was enormous. Before even 30 minutes had passed since it was uploaded, it moved to the Best of Best Attacks bulletin board, and even before a quarter of a day passed, it had gone in the top 10 for the most hits in the Best of Best bulletin board. This was a result that was able to appear because at the same time that Ian uploaded the YouCast video, he tactically promoted it through his guild members, but that wasn¡¯t the only reason. Even if they promoted it well in the beginning and it gathered strength, if the quality of the content that was inside wasn¡¯t good, it wouldn¡¯t be able to do anything but be buried away. However, Ian¡¯s attack was one that was higher quality than any of the attack pieces related to Summoners that had come up until now. After he had completely made an attack piece for exceptional readability, he asked Sojin, who was a design graduate, for a favour, and the meticulousness of Ian, who left the final editing up to her, had shone through. And as for the aftereffect of Ian¡¯s attack, posts were coming up at an incredible speed to the point that whenever the Summoner bulletin board was refreshed, the page would change. Wow, I just read Ian¡¯s attack piece carefully, but there was a reason why that he was showing such unbelievable growth as a Summoner. Seriously, all the information that was inserted was just completely honey-like information¡­Agreed. Especially for Potential, there was a lot of word around it, but through this attack piece now, it seems that will be the end of that dispute. Ian even took screenshots of the ability growth of his own Familiar Ly and took them at different levels before making a numerical formula, so who would criticize that?Keu, Ian is truly the hope of Summoner users. It looks like I can now evolve my Ice Golem as well! I was having a mental breakdown because it still wasn¡¯t evolving even at lv 70, but for the solution to be Potential¡­Everybody, now is not the time to be here like this, but to hurriedly go to the Lotus Domain. Apparently, the waitlist for booking the training ground is already full. If you¡¯re late, who knows, you might actually be pushed to the thousands on the waitlist.Huhu, person above. It seems you are slow. The people that are hanging around here probably have already run to the Lotus Domain and left their Familiars there, or have put their name up on the booking waitlist.No kidding. To be planning on going to the Lotus Domain only now, my condolences. It seems like it will be your turn around next year¡­No, but is there only a training ground in the Lotus Domain right now? Why is everybody going to the Lotus Domain?Ah, the Lotus Domain isn¡¯t the only one with a training ground itself. From what I¡¯ve found, there¡¯s one built in every region. However, the other training grounds haven¡¯t been active after they were built, so the facility level is incredibly low.Is the difference in effectiveness that big depending on the facility level?Yes, as big of a difference as the sky and the ground¡­ When I went to the Summoner bulletin board earlier, apparently a wolf with 60 Potential hit 100 Potential within a quarter of a day and evolved. On the other hand, even if you left a Familiar all day at a normal training ground, its Potential only goes up about 5.Hul¡­ How does that even make sense?It is also because the lower the rank of the Familiar the easier it is to raise its Potential.Hul.And large-size monsters cannot be trained in low facility level training grounds.Ah¡­ So then, my Golem and Mammoth must go to the Lotus Domain no matter what.That¡¯s right. To Summoners who had, with great difficulty, caught a Familiar with the ¡®evolution possible¡¯ option and were waiting all day and night for the day that it evolved, the training ground of the Lotus Domain that was at its max facility level was close to a blessing. Because of that, the price of 100 thousand gold per hour, which was not a small price whatsoever, there was not one voice that complained about it. However, complaints came from a different place. Wow, then doesn¡¯t this mean Summoners have to create a character in the Luspel Empire no matter what?That¡¯s what I¡¯m saying. What are you saying the Kaimon Empire Summoners do then in this case?What are you talking about, Kaimon Empire Summoners should give their all into one training ground starting now at least and quickly raise the facility level. Since the Lotus training ground, which is already at the max facility level, won¡¯t get any better, so won¡¯t you guys catch up eventually?No, no, person above, you¡¯re missing something. About the time that a max facility level training ground appears in the Kaimon Empire, the Lotus Domain training ground will probably just get rebuilt to a higher-level building instead. It looks like you haven¡¯t seen the person that posted about their forge that hit the max level a while ago.What do you mean?After maxing out the facility level and continuously piling up the facility EXP, it looked like it was possible to remodel to a higher-level building instead. In the case of the forge that came up in the post last time, it was upgraded to a ¡®Weapon Laboratory¡¯.I see! As the Lotus Guild was a guild affiliated with Luspel, the Domain as well was obviously a domain affiliated with the Luspel Empire. Because of that, unless the domain was taken, it was impossible for Kaimon Empire users to use the training ground of the Lotus Guild. That¡¯s why, in the case of beginner Summoners that weren¡¯t lv 30 yet, they actually just even made new characters instead, and there were also Summoners that spent a fortune and purchased an Empire Changing Item, and changed their nationality instead. And there was one person that was monitoring these series of situations while wearing a pleased smile. ¡°Huhu, as expected, the reaction is as good as I thought.¡± That was, of course, Ian. ¡°If this is the case, even if we were to build some defense towers now, the guild¡¯s vault won¡¯t be lacking, right?¡± Ian, who was continuously browsing the bulletin board and the chat windows, lifted his smartphone and called someone. The standard ringing of the smartphone rang out, and shortly after, the deep voice of a man was heard. It was Professor Lee Jinook. ¡°Professor, it seems like it¡¯s going well as planned. How is the situation at the domain?¡± Haha, what do you mean how is it. The number of people on the waitlist right now are filled up to four digits right now. ¡°And there¡¯s no problems?¡± There is one. At the words that there was problem, Jinsung¡¯s two eyes slightly grew. ¡°What kind¡­?¡± We¡¯re understaffed. The guild members remaining in the northern continent are helping out, but its to the point that it¡¯s nowhere near enough. At Lee Jinook¡¯s words, Jinsung scratched the back of his head. This was a part that he hadn¡¯t thought of in advance. ¡°Professor, I will appoint workers and deploy management as fast as I can. I didn¡¯t think of that part.¡± Oh, would you do that? Then I would be grateful. And Ian got to the point as to why he called Lee Jinook. ¡°Ah, Professor, there¡¯s actually a different reason as to why I called you.¡± Sure, tell me. What is it? ¡°As soon as the reinforcements are there, I was hoping you would go to the Ollibus Domain, Professor.¡± Oh-ho, if it¡¯s the Ollibus Domain, you¡¯re talking about the seaside village, right? ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right.¡± Professor Lee Jinook figured out the intentions of Jinsung¡¯s words immediately. Okay, understood. As soon as everything is organized here, I will immediately go to the Ollibus Domain and build a new training ground there. The Ollibus Domain was the same village that was hidden towards the eastern seaside. Because they had completely hidden the existence of the external Domain, it was a village that nobody even knew existed besides the Lotus Guild members, but he wasn¡¯t planning on leaving it like that. ¡®If the territory of the Ollibus Domain just expands a little more, we¡¯ll be able to secure a bigger site than the Lotus Domain, so we should build something as big as a large-scale farm there instead.¡¯ As the demand was overflowing, there was a need to expand the supply quickly. Ian, who organized his thoughts, slowly opened his mouth. ¡°Either way, thank you so much for your efforts, Professor. Thanks to you, we were able to get passed a large obstacle.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Lee Jinook laughed as he replied. Haha, if it¡¯s hard work like this, I welcome it anytime. I wonder if it¡¯s time for me to retire from being a Professor now. At Lee Jinook¡¯s unexpected joke, Ian wore a flustered expression. ¡°Sorry?¡± However, as he heard his next words, he couldn¡¯t help but nod his head right away. Why are you so surprised? Even I just exchanged the gold that I obtain as commission from maintaining the training ground into money, it¡¯s to the point that I could make 10 times more than my salary as a professor. I¡¯m about 10 percent serious about resigning from my position as a professor right now. Jinsung, who was momentarily silent, replied with a serious voice. ¡°Don¡¯t do that, Professor. If you¡¯re not here, then I have to take a leave of absence¡­¡± ¡­ * * * Ian, who had spread out an incredible amount of work, was welcomed warmly by his guild members as if he was practically returning home in glory as he returned to the base. ¡°Yo, this is really amazing. How were you able to think of such things?¡± ¡°No kidding. We seriously won¡¯t have any reason to worry about funds for a while.¡± Ian, who received each and every welcome that poured out with Herz and Fiolan as the head, entered the barracks of the base and began taking care of the internal activities of the base that had been put off. Because Herz usually dealt with everything, the work that Ian needed to do was examine the progress situation and plan for further technical plans. ¡®The only real concern now is if the front line gets pushed back again close to our base¡­¡¯ The day after Ian left. The battle between the two empires ended with an overwhelming victory for the Kaimon Empire without a doubt. The distance that Ian worked hard to create had been restored within a day again. But it wasn¡¯t like Ian could leave right now. This was because, while Ian was gone, the damage received from the Desert Warriors was quite big, so if additional damage came in, it would be a situation that would be impossible to block off without Ian. On top of that, as it was a situation where they had spent a fortune and began building all defense buildings and production buildings, the defending of the base had to be thought of as the highest priority even over other things. ¡®And truthfully, because the Kaimon Empire didn¡¯t have additional support troops either, we were able to win, if even the Desert Warriors or a couple high-ranking guilds came in as support, it would be impossible to win with my strength.¡¯ Ian, who organized his thoughts, opened his mouth towards Herz, who followed him into the barracks. ¡°Yoohyun, it looks like we¡¯ll have to play defense for a while.¡± ¡°Huh? What are you saying all of a sudden again?¡± ¡°I expect that within the next couple days from now the empire defense line will be pushed back all the way to our base.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Fiolan, who came in late, wore a flustered expression as she asked. ¡°Hul, really? I did hear that we were continuously losing¡­ But still, it looked like starting tomorrow the Splendor Guild and the Oaklan Guild would also be entering the war, so wouldn¡¯t it be a little better if that¡¯s the case?¡± There was a point in Fiolan¡¯s words. In the background as to why the Luspel Empire was being pushed back one-sidedly right now was because there was the power of the Titan Guild and the DarkRuna Guild, who had settled down into the central continent one step quicker and had begun to support the Kaimon Empire troops. However, the problem was that compared to the Titan or the DarkRuna Guilds, the strength of the top-ranking guilds of the Luspel Empire were, to be honest, substantially lower. Ian shook his head as he replied. ¡°Of course, it¡¯s possible that we might not lose so one-sidedly like we are now, but there¡¯s no change in the fact that it will be pushed back. Since, whether it¡¯s Oaklan or Splendor, compared to Titan or DarkRuna, their fighting power is much lower.¡± Herz nodded his head as he agreed. ¡°Jinsung¡¯s right. On top of that, it¡¯s possible for dudes that are as cunning as Samuel Jin to just withdraw instead if they think that they are starting to get pushed back.¡± When talking about Samuel Jin, he meant the Guild Master of the Oaklan Guild. Fiolan asked Ian with a worried expression. ¡°Then what do you think we should do, Ian?¡± And Ian looked back and forth at the two people as he opened his mouth. ¡°From how I see it, it will take roughly about ten days for the line of defense to be pushed back to here. If they¡¯re fast, it could be about a week, and if it takes longer, it will be two weeks.¡± The gazes of all the guild members that were inside the barracks, including Herz and Fiolan as well, were focused on Ian¡¯s mouth. ¡°Since we¡¯ve expanded our resources quite sufficiently, let¡¯s halt the hunting of all guild members for a week and gather everybody together to build a proper rampart.¡± Fiolan asked back before she even realized. ¡°Sorry?¡± ¡°I¡¯m saying let¡¯s scrap up all the guild gold and expand our workforce as much as possible, and if we¡¯re lacking, we¡¯ll even post up a help-wanted ad in the community and build an impenetrable fortress.¡± Herz, who understood Ian¡¯s words, wore an interested expression as he opened his mouth. ¡°Ah, so when you said we¡¯ll have to play defense, is this what you meant?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. Let¡¯s play defense properly. To the point that we¡¯ll be able to block everything off even if the line of defense is pushed completely back and just our base is isolated in the middle of the enemy camp.¡± However, even at this point, Ian had no idea that these words would actually become the truth. CH 159 Chapter 159: Base Defense War (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The Guard Tower of the Desert (Lv 1) has been completed.Through the exceptional construction abilities of a skilled architect, all combat abilities have increased by 20%.The public order of the base has increased by 5.From now on, ¡®Elemental Magic Defense Towers¡¯ can be built.Do you wish to check the information of the Guard Tower of the Desert (Lv 1)? Ian, who stood in front of the Guard Tower that was wrapped in a white light and stood tall towards one side of the rampart, read through the messages that popped up along with the completion of the construction as he nodded his head. ¡°I will check.¡± As he did so, information related to the Guard Tower popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring- Guard Tower of the Desert Lv 1 (0/98,500,000) (The requirements needed to level up have not been met.) Offensive Power: 6500 (+1300) Defensive Power: 4500 (+900) Vitality: 200,000 (+40,000) Attack Speed: 0.85/Sec (+0.05) Field of Vision: 2652 m Inherent Ability *Steel Catapult When attacking, a steel catapult with a 15% chance of ignoring 50% of the opponent¡¯s Defensive Power is launched. The destructive power of the steel catapult is 150% of its basic Offensive Power. It is the most basic defense building the desert tribes can build on a base. Although its Attack Speed is on the slower side, if hit, there will be an unavoidably large amount of damage. ¡°Keuh!¡± After reading through the explanation, an exclamation naturally flowed out of Ian¡¯s mouth. This was because, although it was a normal defense tower that was exceptional in single targeting and couldn¡¯t even have an Inherent Ability, its abilities were tremendous. ¡®As expected¡­ Even though it is a basic tower, is it like this because it¡¯s the central continent?¡¯ As the map where the base was built itself was a different class from the northern continent from the beginning, even the basic towers had such incredible combat abilities. On top of that, thanks to having brought over an exceptional architect NPC who was in charge of almost all of the construction in the northern continent domain, they were even granted additional stats, so it had outrageous stats to be calling it a basic defense tower. ¡°They¡¯ll be completed in order now, right?¡± Ian mumbled as he surveyed the defense towers that were being built along the rampart. And shortly after, just like he said, they began to be completed in clockwise order. The Guard Tower of the Desert (Lv 1) has been completed.The Guard Tower of the Desert (Lv 1) has been completed. Ian wore a pleased expression. ¡°The money that was poured in wasn¡¯t a waste!¡± At the thought that they could now block off the attacks of Desert Warriors even with their eyes closed, laughter continuously flowed from Ian¡¯s mouth. Fiolan, who stood next to Ian and watched the grand sight of the defense towers being completed with him, asked him. ¡°Ian, then are you planning on building higher-ranking towers now? Thanks to the training ground, we do have enough funds¡­¡± Ian nodded his head as he replied. ¡°We should. The performance of the basic guard tower is satisfying, but still, as it is a single target-type and on top of that, its attack speed is slow, if they come in floods, there will definitely be a limit.¡± The Elemental Magic Defense Tower, which was the defense tower that was just one step above the basic tower, was a defense tower that could attack using AoE magic. As they had arranged enough single target-type towers, it was definitely now time to build AoE attack towers. Ian continued his words. ¡°And as we build elemental magic towers, let¡¯s extend the rampart more as well. I think that we¡¯ll need at least three layers for the defense wall to be at ease, for me that is.¡± At those words, Fiolan¡¯s two eyes slightly rounded. ¡°Three layers? If you plan on doing that, the resources and the labour force that is required will be tremendous.¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. Since we¡¯re going to build it twice from the outer wall, the volume will also increase more than the pre-existing rampart. However, it is necessary. I have too much of a bad feeling right now.¡± ¡°About what?¡± ¡°I¡¯m talking about how we don¡¯t know how far the Luspel Empire¡¯s Line of Defense will be pushed back.¡± Fiolan scratched the back of her head as she spoke. ¡°Pfft, still, it probably won¡¯t be pushed back further than the line that our base is on. I think that since other guilds are also building a line of defense on the line that our base is on, if the line of defense is formed around here, we should be able to block them off, no?¡± However, Ian was incredibly pessimistic. ¡°I¡¯m not sure¡­¡± Fiolan opened her mouth again. ¡°But even if we set aside the resources, we lack manpower. In order to extend the rampart as well, even if we employ all of the manpower we have, I think it will take a couple months.¡± Truthfully, Ian was also worried about this part the most. This was because there was even a limit to pulling over manpower from the outside using money. However, just then, Herz, who was just silently listening to the two people¡¯s conversation, opened his mouth. ¡°Jinsung, I have a good idea.¡± And Fiolan and Ian¡¯s gazes turned towards Herz at the same time. ¡°What kind of idea?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Herz grinned as he replied. ¡°Let¡¯s ask your fan club to help out a little.¡± ¡°Fan club? What are you talking about?¡± Instead of Ian, who wore a puzzled expression as he didn¡¯t know the English words, Fiolan agreed enthusiastically as she raised her voice. ¡°Ah, right. There¡¯s that method. If it is them, they may be a little willing to gladly help us.¡± ¡°Huhu, as long as we prepare a small reward in return for their work, that is.¡± While Herz and Fiolan excitedly mapped out their plans, Ian, who had absolutely no idea on the existence of the fan club, couldn¡¯t do anything else but continue to be puzzled. ¡°Anyways, Yoohyun, so then are you saying that you can take care of the manpower problem?¡± Herz nodded his head energetically. ¡°Yeah, definitely!¡± Ian wore a slightly doubtful expression, but as Herz nodded his head with an expression full of such certainty, he decided to trust him. ¡°So then, the process of making a blueprint for the fort for perfect defense only remains now.¡± This time Herz wore a confused expression as he asked Ian back. ¡°What blueprint? Do we even need a blueprint for building stacking up the outer wall? We can just stack them.¡± Ian shook his head as he replied. ¡°No, no, I have no intentions of making such a simple rampart. We¡¯re going to make it like a fort.¡± Fiolan asked Ian with an excited expression. ¡°Then are you planning on personally drawing the blueprint, Ian?¡± Ian wagged his index finger. ¡°No, no, why would I draw the blueprint?¡± ¡°Then?¡± ¡°We¡¯re going to bring an expert.¡± ¡°An expert?¡± ¡°Yes. Professor Lee Jinook has already requested him.¡± Herz wore a dumbfounded expression as he asked. ¡°What are you saying now?¡± Ian grinned as he replied. ¡°The architecture professor at our school is also a Kailan user. Professor Lee Jinook has gone to give him a recruiting offer.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°It is VR, but if it was a job where he needed to plan a blueprint for such a large-scale fort like this, he said that he will definitely want to do it, so not to worry.¡± ¡°I, I see.¡± Herz and Fiolan could only be astonished at Ian¡¯s detail. * * * The middle of the desert zone towards the east of the central continent. In the middle of where three giant guild flags were flapping, three men sat in front of the round table of the temporarily-built barracks. They were each the Guild Masters of the 3 largest guilds in the Luspel Empire, the Splendor Guild and the Oaklan Guild, as well as the Valiant Guild. And the expressions of the three people were incredibly serious. ¡°The fighting power of the Titan Guild and the DarkRuna Guild are incredibly stronger than expected. We are somehow still holding up, but the loss towards our guild is also too big. We may even end up having to give more than 2/3 of the central continent to our opponents if this continues.¡± At the words of Samuel Jin, who was the Guild Master of the Oaklan Guild, the Guild Master of the Splendor Guild, Martin, replied. ¡°But it¡¯s not like we have another choice, no? We need to hold up the front line no matter what. By any chance, we may not know. That is, that we could obtain an artifact that comes close to the Mark of Magellan from the mysterious shop.¡± The mysterious shop was a merchant NPC that appeared at a random coordinate once every so often in the central continent. An item that inclines gambling could be purchased by using up Specialty Points from him, and recently, Martin had obtained a decent item from the mysterious dealer. Samuel Jin slightly frowned as he replied. ¡°You were lucky, Martin. Excluding you, I¡¯ve never heard of someone obtaining a good artifact from the mysterious shop.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true, hm¡­¡± The Master of the Valiant Guild, Roy Chen, who had just been listening to the two people¡¯s conversation while remaining still, opened his mouth. ¡°Then how about this method?¡± ¡°What kind of method?¡± ¡°From what I¡¯ve found out, high-ranking guilds in the top 50s occupied bases at the front lines, which had low competition in comparison, and were building a line of defense. After we intentionally retreat up to where their base is and form a front line, how about we use their defensive wall and their defense towers and proceed with the war in defense-mode?¡± At the words of Roy Chen, who had a point, the two remaining people were momentarily submerged in their thoughts. The silence continued for quite a long time, and the first person to open his mouth was Samuel Jin. ¡°It is a good idea, but I think even that is dangerous.¡± Roy Chen asked back. ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± ¡°Even if they are guilds ranking in the top 50s, aren¡¯t their fighting power obvious? It¡¯s not like a penny or two goes into building defense towers and a rampart, and the chances that even they temporarily occupied a base at the thought of ditching and retreating if they slip-up are high. They probably won¡¯t even be able to play the role of our line of defense properly either. From what I¡¯ve seen, there are guilds that are even close to the outside of top 100, not top 50.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± As expected, his words did prove a point. Samuel Jin, who momentarily organized the thoughts inside his head, opened his mouth again. ¡°In my opinion.¡± ¡°Go ahead.¡± ¡°I think that it would be better to sturdily build a line of defense with the mid-back area where the bases of the guilds that are in the top 10-20 have mainly formed and block off opponents there instead.¡± Martin, who sat there wordlessly, nodded his head as he agreed with Samuel Jin¡¯s words. ¡°My thoughts are the same as Jin¡¯s. We won¡¯t be able to block off the attack of the empire¡¯s military and the giant Kailan guilds with a line of defense that the guilds in the top 100 built.¡± The more rear of an area it was, where a base could be grown more safely in comparison, guilds that were higher in ranking had preoccupied, so naturally, the bases of the giant guilds had formed in the back. At the two people¡¯s words, Roy Chen fell into a conflict. This was because it was an opinion that could look sensible at a glance, but it was also an incredibly selfish thought as well. ¡®What to do¡­ If we just let go now instead, most small guilds that have settled down at the front lines will all be annihilated¡­¡¯ However, as expected, the most important thing was their own profit, and in the end, Roy Chen also nodded his head. ¡°Let¡¯s do that, then. It can¡¯t be helped, but it looks like this is the best choice.¡± At Roy Chen¡¯s consent, Samuel Jin nodded his head as he grinned. ¡°Okay, then we will take it as everybody here has agreed and starting tomorrow, we will start pulling back guild members that are supporting the front lines.¡± Martin nodded his head as he opened his mouth. ¡°As we may not have time to build a defense base in the back if the line of defense collapses too quickly, let¡¯s pull our troops slowly.¡± Roy Chen nodded his head with a slightly leery expression. ¡°¡­ Let¡¯s do that.¡± CH 160 Chapter 160: A Dangerous Gamble (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Loren: Will we really be able to meet Bbookbbook and Ly?Fiolan: Of course. And in addition, you can also meet Ian. On top of that, Ian said that he would give a talisman that he has personally produced to the people that have high contributions.Loren: Oh, such a¡­! If it¡¯s a talisman that Ian has personally produced, it¡¯s one that can¡¯t even be sold because it¡¯s not even in the auction house¡­! After learning the production skill, Ian had made talismans whenever he had the chance. And he was putting up all of the talismans with abilities that he was uncertain about using into the auction house and was selling them at a fixed price, but as their popularity was incredible, as soon as the word went out of them being up in the auction house, they sold out immediately. However, as there were so many talismans that Ian made, the selling of the talismans was completely entrusted to Ian¡¯s retainer, Celia, and so, Fiolan contacted Celia and had secured the presents(?) that she would be giving the members of the fan club beforehand. And this present definitely had an effect. Fiolan: Huhu, there are talismans that we have set aside beforehand in our guild. There are even Bbookbbook design and Ly design talismans, which are new products, that are prepared this time.Loren: Re, really? They, they¡¯re new products?Fiolan: How about it, Loren. If it¡¯s like this, the hearts of the LoveLeeAn members will be moved quite a bit, right?Loren: Of course! There are probably a ton of members of the fan club that would come running just even at the chance of seeing Ian¡¯s face and Bbookbbook¡¯s bbook noise, but for a chance to even obtain a new talisman that Ian has personally produced with his own two hands¡­!Fiolan: Alright, as expected, Loren! Thank you! Then, I will just trust in you, president.Loren: It looks like I¡¯ll have to thank you instead, Fiolan. Once this revolution ends, I will raise your member ranking.Fiolan: I¡¯m honoured, president. There was a reason why Fiolan knew well of the situation of Ian¡¯s fan club like this. This was because she was also a member of LoveLeeAn. It was a fan caf¨¦ that she joined at first out of curiosity, but now, she was a named fan that was as passionately active as any other. Fiolan, who achieved her goal, mumbled with a satisfied expression. ¡°Huhu, good. As expected, I knew it would work.¡± If the members of LoveLeeAn were to swarm over, they would have no reason to worry about the workforce. Because the majority of the users of the fan caf¨¦ also included high-level users, even if there were low-level users that would have difficulty coming to the central continent, they would be able to receive their help and come over. ¡°Speaking of which, I need to talk Ian into doing this now¡­¡± However, there was still one more mountain that she needed to get over. It was the fault of Fiolan, who cast a kite out of excitement. ¡°Still, it was a method to obtain manpower effectively, so he will probably do it without much complaint, right?¡± The problem was exactly the talismans that had Bbookbbook and Ly¡¯s design. This was because it was an item that didn¡¯t exist in the first place. ¡®Was it something I said too spontaneously? It¡¯s not like it¡¯s impossible to make a talisman with Bbookbbook¡¯s design on it, right?¡¯ Fiolan wore a slightly anxious expression, but soon, she shook her head and ran to the barracks that Ian was in with short and quick steps. * * * ¡°So¡­ You¡¯re saying that I have a fan club, right?¡± ¡°How many times are you asking that, Ian? That¡¯s what I¡¯m telling you.¡± ¡°And those fan club people are willingly helping us?¡± ¡°Yes. That¡¯s right.¡± Ian let out a deep sigh. ¡°It looks like I¡¯ll just have to draw talismans all day from now on.¡± While looking at Ian, who became sullen at the thought that he wouldn¡¯t be able to participate in the guild hunting that was scheduled starting from the morning, Fiolan wore a sheepish smile. ¡°Ha, haha¡­ Since you¡¯ve hunted like crazy for the last couple days, think of it like you¡¯re taking a break¡­¡± Ian turned his head towards Herz, who sat to the right and was snickering as he watched the two people¡¯s conversation. ¡°Yoohyun.¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°How far has the front lines been pushed back now?¡± Herz, who pulled out a map from his chest and momentarily checked something, replied slowly. ¡°Hmm¡­ It¡¯s been pushed back towards the east about 1500 metres compared to when I checked the day before yesterday.¡± Ian slightly frowned. ¡°Ha, it¡¯s getting pushed down faster than I expected. What¡¯s the present condition of nearby Desert Warriors or neutral NPCs? Does it look like there won¡¯t be an attack today?¡± There were a lot of neutral NPCs that didn¡¯t have a friendly relationship with either camp across the central continent here and there. Desert Warriors were also one of those kinds of tribes, but because of the Mark of Magellan, they had turned into a tribe that was friendly to the Kaimon Empire, but even aside from them, there were quite a bit of neutral NPCs that were known, such as the Crow Bandits or the Scorpion Witch Doctors. They were still in the safe zone from the army of the Kaimon Empire, but as they had no idea when they would even be attacked by neutral tribes, Ian had asked. ¡°Yeah, there are no neutral NPCs that have been discovered nearby. We¡¯ve already blocked them off once now. And even if an attack was to return, as we¡¯ve built so many defense towers, we can easily block off a decent-sized attack, so don¡¯t worry.¡± Realizing Ian¡¯s hidden intention of trying to escape from the swamps of grinding by making some sort of excuse, Fiolan quickly assisted. ¡°That¡¯s right. We can block them off even without you, Ian, so don¡¯t worry.¡± ¡°Ha¡­¡± While looking at Ian, who sighed, Fiolan added to her words. ¡°Think of it like you¡¯re raising the Proficiency of your production skill for today, and crank up the energy.¡± Ian, who momentarily thought of something, opened his mouth again. ¡°Then, Fiolan.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Please pull out Mishyal from today¡¯s guild hunting.¡± At Ian¡¯s out-of-the-blue words, Fiolan asked back with a questioning voice. ¡°Huh? Why Mishyal? Mishyal¡¯s fire magic is a lot of help when we¡¯re AoE hunting¡­¡± However, Ian absolutely needed Mishyal. ¡°I need Mishyal in order to make a Bbookbbook design or a Ly design.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°If I designed the symbol, then the Ly design will probably be completed to look like a puppy that is suffering from mange.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ Well, if it¡¯s for that reason.¡± Fiolan, who then finally remembered that Mishyal was a design major, nodded her head, and Herz, who was next to her, smirked as he said something. ¡°Then, spend some quality time with Mishyal.¡± Ian pulled out the talisman materials from his inventory one by one as he nodded his head weakly. ¡°Alright.¡± * * * After that, the fortification operation of the base of the Lotus Guild proceeded with lightning speed. The special event(?) that spread through Ian¡¯s fan club passed through and spread quickly in the official community, and even content that Fiolan hadn¡¯t mentioned once were falsely spread. For example¡­ Apparently, the talismans with Bbookbbook¡¯s design is a limited edition that Ian especially created in order to just give to the users that participated in this operation!There¡¯s word that users that participated in the rampart building operation will be taken in by the Lotus Guild! ¡­ Things like these. Either way, tons of crowds began to gather at the site where the Lotus Guild¡¯s rampart building took place, and even people that weren¡¯t part of Ian¡¯s fan club, but were just hunting in the vicinity of the central continent and out of curiosity, they had come looking for the base of the Lotus Guild. And in the middle of the construction site, Ian was sharing a serious conversation with someone. ¡°Professor, so, you¡¯re saying that we just need to build this part like this method, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s nice that a young one understands instructions well. You need to leave this place open like this so that even if opponents were to enter, you can isolate them easily.¡± One of the two people was Ian, and the other person was the architecture professor of Korea University who had received Professor Lee Jinook¡¯s invitation. ¡°An expert is truly different, Professor. As long as it just gets completed like this, it looks like we¡¯ll be able to block off even a large army of a million.¡± ¡°Keu-ha-hat, I like you. Did you say you were a VR Department student?¡± ¡°That¡¯s correct, professor.¡± ¡°What do you think about changing your major into architecture when this project ends? I want to take in a clever and capable person like you as a student, that is.¡± Ian wiped his cold sweat away as he replied with a faint voice. ¡°That, that¡¯s a little¡­¡± As it was an incredibly large-scale construction site that was unparalleled, small problems even occurred here and there, and the plentiful funds of the Lotus Guild began to shrink quickly as well, but while Ian looked at the fortification, he couldn¡¯t hide his satisfaction. ¡®The construction speed is faster than I was expecting. It looks like we¡¯ll definitely be able to complete construction before the front lines get pushed down here.¡¯ Ian went up to a hilly section where he could see everything, and looked at the rampart that continued in a long line to the west. And the corners of his mouth rolled upwards. ¡®Huehue, now if we can just put the War Trading Post within the rampart, it will be perfect. If the second outer wall also gets built, I feel like it will come into our range enough¡­¡¯ There was a big significance if the War Trading Post came into the base¡¯s internal area. Firstly, it was that the Lotus Guild could monopolize the advantages of the War Trading Post, and secondly, even if the base was completely surrounded by opponents and they were isolated, the self-supplying and demanding of resources would become possible. ¡®Even if we just continued to do defensive wars, our Specialty Points would pile until they overflowed, that is.¡¯ In the central continent, as a reward in all battles, Specialty Points could be obtained. Even if enemy NPCs or users were faced, the reward grew bigger, so it meant that an endless war would immediately end up as supplying and demanding resources. ¡®Occupying a base that was close to the War Trading Post was truly a great move.¡¯ At the time, he selected a base that was close just so it was easy to get to, but he didn¡¯t know that it would be used like this. While Ian was thinking of this and that as he looked around the construction site, he heard a voice calling him from behind. ¡°Ian!¡± Ian¡¯s gaze reflexively turned so that he was looking back, and Loren, who was on a wyvern¡¯s back, flew quickly to Ian¡¯s side. ¡°Ah, hello, Loren.¡± Loren, who jumped down from the wyvern¡¯s back, took Ian¡¯s outstretched hand as she replied. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right! I¡¯m Loren. How did you know about me?¡± While looking at her, who was boring holes into him with her sparkling eyes, Ian wore an awkward expression. ¡°Ha, haha. Of course I remember you, Loren. How could I not know of the 1st place Summoner in the Summoner rankings? I¡¯ve known since long ago, Loren.¡± Ian¡¯s words weren¡¯t just a lip service. He really knew Loren ever since a really long time ago. There was even a time when he was looking for her. ¡®The name of the Summoner that apparently obtained information about the eggs of Familiars first was Loren.¡¯ Ian¡¯s memory was to the point it was unrivaled. Ever since a long time ago, he had remembered the name that he had heard briefly on top of the boat that crossed the Abysmal Lake. And at his words that he knew her, Loren¡¯s large eyes became even more lively. ¡°I really didn¡¯t know that you knew about me, Ian! Speaking of which, what do you mean I¡¯m the 1stplace Summoner in the Summoner rankings. Everybody knows the truth that you are 1st place.¡± While looking at her, who was glued to his side to the point it was burdensome as she chattered, Ian wore an expression saying as if he had no idea what to do. ¡°Is, is that so?¡± Just then, while he was sharing a momentary conversation with Loren like that and walking, An incredibly familiar silhouette of a female from afar caught Ian¡¯s gaze. ¡°Park Jinsung, what are you doing here right now¡­?¡± And he didn¡¯t know the reason why, but Ian¡¯s complexion began to turn white. CH 161 Chapter 161: A Dangerous Gamble (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Jinsung¡¯s rented room where clouds of war hung in the air. ¡°That¡­ Harin. I¡¯m telling you, it¡¯s a misunderstanding.¡± ¡°What¡¯s a misunderstanding?¡± ¡°Loren is just a person that I met today for the first time. She¡¯s a person we¡¯re grateful for as she came saying that she would help us out in our guild¡¯s fort extension operation. We were just having a ¡®conversation¡¯, a conversation!¡± ¡°I see, so you were having a conversation. It looked like you were having a conversation with her completely stuck to your side. Doesn¡¯t it feel good having a pretty girl stuck right by your side?¡± ¡°Ah, no, that¡­!¡± ¡°Sniff, sniff, I don¡¯t know who Park Jinsung¡¯s girlfriend is, but I pity her a ton¡­ Sniff, sniff. I wonder how sad she must be¡­¡± ¡°Euaah.¡± Truthfully, Harin knew Jinsung better than anybody else. A game quest would be 20 thousand times more important than a pretty girl to the Jinsung she knew. Because of that, she already had figured out that there was nothing going on between Loren and Ian even if she didn¡¯t hear his excuses. ¡®Still, isn¡¯t it a disgrace? I need to catch onto his weak point at times like this, so that when I say let¡¯s go out the next time, he¡¯ll follow without much remark.¡¯ Although she was a little apologetic, she rationalized it by saying it couldn¡¯t be helped in order to advance in her relationship with Jinsung as Harin continued to act with a sullen expression. ¡°Sniff, sniff, I¡¯m so sad¡­¡± As she did so, Jinsung began to be restless. ¡°Why are you like that, Harin. I¡¯m telling you, it¡¯s seriously nothing like that.¡± ¡°What do you mean it¡¯s nothing, sniff, sniff. You¡¯ve never even told me once that you like me, and there was a reason for it.¡± Harin sneakily induced the words that she wanted to hear. However, Jinsung wasn¡¯t a different relationship eunuch. ¡®Is Harin sulking at me because she wasn¡¯t able to raise her cooking proficiency after coming to the central continent?¡¯ Jinsung, who interpreted it in a creative way to the point it was surprising, carefully opened his mouth. ¡°Euh, I¡¯ve been so busy lately, sorry. You¡¯ve been really bored lately, right? I will make you a kitchen facility in the central continent base as well. Cheer up, hmm?¡± Harin was so stunned that her body staggered for a moment. ¡°What¡­?¡± Jinsung continued his words. ¡°Next time when I go hunting, I¡¯ll gather a lot of cooking ingredients as well. There will probably be a lot of rare cooking ingredients that you haven¡¯t used yet in the central continent as well.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Harin barely settled her seething anger as she shut her eyes tightly. ¡®Ha, how should I deal with this idiot?¡¯ On the other hand, as Harin calmed down, Jinsung wore a satisfied expression as he thought to himself. ¡®As expected, that¡¯s why she was sad! Harin also knows that I was forever alone, so there¡¯s no way she would have been sulky over a girl!¡¯ Shortly after, Harin, who narrowly calmed her anger, opened her mouth again. ¡°You, are you sure you like me?¡± It was a question that was at least ten times more profound and difficult than any decent philosophical subject. The gaze of Jinsung, who thought that Harin¡¯s anger had subsided, shook. Jinsung replied with a calm voice. ¡°Of, of course! Do you know how much I like you?¡± Harin sighed deeply as she continued her words again. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°I¡¯m telling you, it¡¯s the truth.¡± ¡°Then, prove it.¡± ¡°Uh, how?¡± Harin closed her eyes as she lifted one hand and pointed to her cheek. ¡°Try to kiss¡­ Here once.¡± Jinsung, who was taken aback, asked back reflexively. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Hurry up and do it. Then I¡¯ll let you go this time.¡± Jinsung was flustered at the unexpected development of the situation, but Harin was being sincere. Harin urged Jinsung, who hesitated. ¡°What are you doing, are you not going to do it? Then were the words that you liked me a lie?¡± ¡°Ah, no! I¡¯ll do it, I¡¯m going to do it!¡± Jinsung abruptly stood up and went next to Harin before sitting down. And he slightly closed his two eyes as he touched his face towards Harin¡¯s cheek. Even for Jinsung, there was no way that he would dislike pressing his lips against Harin¡¯s cheek. However, as he was not prepared, the problem was that his heart was pounding. ¡®Get a hold of yourself, Jinsung!¡¯ However, shortly after. Peck-! As if Jinsung was hit by lightning, he felt his whole body freeze up. This was because his lips had met with Harin¡¯s lips, not her cheek. ¡°¡­!¡± However, he didn¡¯t want to separate from those lips, and before he even realized, Jinsung lifted his two arms and slightly wrapped them around Harin¡¯s back. As he did so, he felt Harin¡¯s body slightly shiver. After a while like that, as if time had stopped, the lips of the two people that met lightly, didn¡¯t know how to come apart. * * * As the fighting power of the top 3 guilds that could be considered the representative giant guilds affiliated with the Luspel Empire was pulled from the front lines, the front line of defense that was already being pushed back as it was began to move towards the east at an even faster pace. As the front line of defense began to be pushed down faster than expected, the Lotus Guild, who needed to buy as much time as they could until the fort was completed, also helped out the front lines with their remaining fighting power, but it was inadequate. Ian also entered the war twice, but even if he was constantly on the move, just like the last time, they couldn¡¯t win. ¡®If it continues like this it will really be a close call¡­¡¯ Fiolan approached next to Ian, who was perched on the castle with a troubled expression. ¡°What are you thinking about, Ian?¡± Ian sighed shortly as he replied. ¡°Well, I was just thinking about what we could do to buy even a little bit of time.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± Ian stood up from his spot as he opened his mouth again. ¡°Fiolan, how did the thing you went for turn out? Have you received some cooperation?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Fiolan shook her head weakly. ¡°No matter how much I persuade them, they won¡¯t even budge.¡± ¡°What did they say?¡± Fiolan scratched the back of her head as she replied. ¡°Hmm¡­ They just keep playing innocent. That they are doing the best they can from their guild as well, but they needed manpower in the back, so they just pulled the guild members that were in the front lines, that is.¡± Ian¡¯s brows furrowed. ¡°Hmm, they¡¯ve really brazened themselves. Even just from looking, it¡¯s a move to ditch the front lines and fall back¡­¡± ¡°Exactly. That¡¯s why I also said that if they buy us a little bit more time, we would be able to block the advanced base with our base and to help us out, but there was no use.¡± At Fiolan¡¯s words, Ian nodded his head as he replied. ¡°Probably. Since they didn¡¯t want the front base to form at the front lines from the beginning.¡± Fiolan asked back with a quizzical expression. ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± ¡°If the front line was formed at the front where awkward-sized guilds like ours are mainly concentrated, for them, they wouldn¡¯t be able to help but become envious. Since the more they distinguish themselves during battle, the greater the amount of rewards, including Specialty Points, could be earned.¡± ¡°No, are we the only ones fighting? Don¡¯t they just also have to station their main-force units here?¡± Ian shook his head as he began to explain again. ¡°Of course, that¡¯s true, but guilds who have bases at the front lines could also use their defense towers to attack the opponents.¡± ¡°I see!¡± ¡°You probably know since you¡¯ve seen the defense towers that have been built on our base, but their power is seriously tremendous.¡± ¡°Since with even just the most basic defense tower, it has the same power as two or more decent top level-ranking users. If the fort is properly completed, and the front lines continue to form around our base, then we will probably gain an incredible advantage.¡± Fiolan nodded her head as she replied. ¡°It would really turn out like that. On top of that, when there is no battle, it would also create a profit while the participating NPCs and users stay here.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Since if the users use the shops or auction house on our base, that will return as tax shortly after.¡± Fiolan looked at Ian with a gaze full of admiration as she opened her mouth. ¡°Wow, then, Ian, have you thought this far ever since we occupied this base that others were reluctant about?¡± At that question, Ian smirked as he shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s not like that. At first, I was just after a niche market.¡± ¡°Pfft, aren¡¯t you being too humble?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not being humble, I¡¯m saying the truth. How could I have known beforehand that the defense towers and the soldiers that could be produced in the central continent base would be this strong? We just somehow ended up getting lucky.¡± ¡°That is true.¡± Ian continued his words. ¡°And truthfully, if it wasn¡¯t for the Holy Grail, we wouldn¡¯t have even been able to proceed with such a large-scale construction right now. This much was only possible since the Holy Grail makes the development speed of the base two times faster.¡± Ian turned his head and while studying the fort that didn¡¯t have much left until completion, he was submerged in his thoughts. ¡®Everything really happened perfectly. Between Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail and the War Trading Post, if we didn¡¯t have even one of the two, we wouldn¡¯t have been able to make such plans.¡¯ Fiolan asked Ian, who was submerged in his thoughts, with a worried voice. ¡°Still, it looks like we won¡¯t be able to relax. If the Luspel Empire Army and the other smaller guilds somehow endured, then the front line could form with our base as the starting point, but if that doesn¡¯t happen, we would fail, right?¡± At Fiolan¡¯s words, Ian cut her off and replied. ¡°The front line will continue to push towards the east.¡± ¡°Sorry?¡± ¡°We will probably become isolated.¡± While the giant guilds conspired and pulled back their fighting power, no matter how much the smaller guilds and the normal users tried, the front lines wouldn¡¯t be able to help but be continuously pushed towards the east. ¡®If that¡¯s the case, our base will remain alone in the middle of the enemy camp.¡¯ Ian also didn¡¯t believe it at first, but now, he was almost certain that it would happen. He was even more sure after having personally participated in the battle a couple days ago. If that was the case, the key point was how long the fort that they poured all their resources into making could last from a concentrated attack. ¡®I wonder how long it will be able to last?¡¯ He had no idea how long it would last in the middle of Kaimon Empire territory, but Ian was planning on trying as hard as he could. ¡®Two months? No, even if we just last one month, we¡¯ll be able to get our money¡¯s worth for sure.¡¯ Even if they blocked off the Kaimon Empire Army that surged from every direction once, they would be able to obtain an enormous reward. It would be difficult for sure, but the more they endured, it was definite that the Lotus Guild would grow exponentially. Fiolan opened her mouth again. ¡°Then, Ian, did you build a fort with the idea of lasting in the middle of the enemy camp?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right, Fiolan.¡± Fiolan shook her head. ¡°Ha, I knew that you were reckless, Ian, but this is really the greatest one of all the things you¡¯ve ever done.¡± Ian laughed as he replied. ¡°I also acknowledge that.¡± Fiolan also laughed. ¡°No, aren¡¯t you being too bright for such a serious situation?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Fiolan. Since this is still a gamble with quite a good chance of succeeding.¡± Ian, who momentarily paused to take a breath, slowly opened his mouth again. ¡°At the least, we¡¯ll get our money¡¯s worth, so just trust me.¡± * * * Three days from then, in the base of operations of the Kaimon Empire. Officers of the empire sitting on either side with knights lined up behind them were having an operation meeting with serious expressions. However, inside this operation meeting filled with a total of about thirty people, there were just five users. They were DarkRuna Guild¡¯s Guild Master Ilahan, and Titan Guild¡¯s Guild Master Shyakran. And three ranking users that individually entered the Kaimon Empire knights and succeeded in getting promoted to a high-ranking knight. Ilahan and Shyakran weren¡¯t affiliated with the empire knights, but as they were the only users with the high aristocrat title of Marquis, they were allowed to be there. The commander, who sat at the upper seat in the middle, slowly opened his mouth. ¡°Owing to you gentlemen¡¯s courage, our Kaimon Empire has defeated the weak army of Luspel and consecutively won.¡± Taking a moment to breathe, after looking around the whole assembly, he continued his words. ¡°The result of that is today! We were able to put the central desert area in its entirety into our hands.¡± The central continent was mostly barren land that had gone through desertification. However, even amongst that, they meant the central desert area that was the absolute core of the continent, which was a bleak area where not even one base existed, and in this place up until now, both empires had a keen, tight match. In other words, it meant that the Kaimon Empire army had arrived up to right around the corner of the Lotus base, which was nestled in the front lines. CH 162 Chapter 162: A Dangerous Gamble (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The words of the commander continued. ¡°It¡¯s predicted that the resistance of our opponents will most likely be more violent than ever before, carelessness is forbidden.¡± Standing up from his spot, he turned his gaze toward Ilahan. ¡°Marquis Ilahan, come up here and give us an analysis on the opponents that our army will have to face.¡± Using the Mark of Magellan, Ilahan consistently made contributions, and because he did that, he was able to obtain the trust of the commander. Ilahan, who wore a satisfied smile as he stood up, went up to the front and while pointing to the map, he began to explain. ¡°This is the area that the main force of the Luspel Army is stationed. It¡¯s exactly the geography where we can meet if we move forward just 1 kilometre.¡± The gazes of the whole assembly were fixated on the map. ¡°However, as the geography is east high west low, if we were to fight here, we would have to fight unfairly where we would be forced to have to look up to our opponents.¡± The commander nodded his head in agreement. ¡°It definitely would end up like that.¡± Ilahan¡¯s words continued. ¡°On top of that, as the entrance is not that wide, it is also not a suitable geography for a lot of troops to enter at once.¡± ¡°That is also correct.¡± Ilahan, who approached the map one step closer, went back and forth putting red ink on the parts above and below the section he was pointing to with his finger. ¡°That¡¯s why we must divide our military troops and enter through these three places.¡± One officer, who was listening to Ilahan¡¯s words, opened his mouth with a puzzled expression. ¡°Hmm¡­ If we do that, wouldn¡¯t we lack too much with military troops compared to the Luspel Empire military that is stationed in the middle area?¡± Ilahan nodded his head. ¡°That would definitely be the case. That¡¯s why, in the middle area, we¡¯re just going to ¡®act¡¯ like we¡¯re fighting.¡± ¡°What do you mean act like we¡¯re fighting¡­?¡± ¡°In the middle area, we will attract the gaze of the main force of Luspel with the least number of troops, while sending the main force troops from the top and bottom and penetrate through the line of defense at once.¡± The commander, who silently listened to his explanation, slowly opened his mouth. ¡°It¡¯s a good tactic. However, in the area that you marked, bases of guilds affiliated with the Luspel Empire are blocking it off at every strategic point. The tactic that you talked about will only be possible if those bases are first occupied, so do you have a plan?¡± As if he was waiting, Ilahan nodded his head as he replied. ¡°Of course. Our DarkRuna Guild and Marquis Shyakran¡¯s Titan Guild will take responsibility and attack the bases.¡± This was a part that he had already talked about with Shyakran beforehand. The two giant guilds had peacefully agreed to divide the awkward bases of the Luspel guilds, which definitely wouldn¡¯t even have proper Defensive Power. The commander turned his gaze towards Shyakran as he asked. ¡°Marquis Shyakran, is it alright for me to believe in you?¡± Shyakran slightly bowed his head as he showed his manners. ¡°That¡¯s right, Commander. We will not disappoint you.¡± After the strategy meeting was done, Shyakran and Ilahan, who were in charge of attacking the guild bases of Luspel Empire, were slowly walking around the camping ground as they shared a conversation. It was in order to organize how the two guilds will share the troops and divide everything up. ¡°So, the DarkRuna Guild will attack the north¡­ Is that what you¡¯re saying?¡± At Shyakran¡¯s words, Ilahan nodded his head as he replied. ¡°That¡¯s right. We will take care of the north area.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± With a suspicious look, Shyakran slightly stared at Ilahan. ¡®Exactly what does he have up his sleeve? The access way to the north will be much harder than attacking the south¡­¡¯ The Lotus Guild¡¯s base blocked off the access way to the north. It was a situation where the word that the Lotus Guild had invested a large sum of money and was building an impenetrable defense was already widespread, and because of that, Shyakran couldn¡¯t help but be puzzled. ¡®Of course, compared to other bases, there are a lot more buildings already built, so it would be nice to obtain the Lotus base, which has already been established, but I don¡¯t think it¡¯s enough to endure the risk¡­¡¯ It was definite that Ilahan also collected information beforehand and had already investigated the Defensive Powers of the front-line bases of the Luspel Empire. ¡®Of course, no matter how many defense towers the Lotus Domain has built, it won¡¯t be to the point it will be impenetrable, but the damage will probably be quite big, so there¡¯s definitely something that I don¡¯t know¡­¡¯ For now, Shyakran hid his thoughts and nodded his head. Since, on the surface, it was more beneficial to take care of the access way to the south, which was obviously easier to attack. The Defensive Power of the bases that blocked the south access way were so weak to the point it could be considered ownerless compared to the base of the Lotus Guild. ¡°Well, if the DarkRuna Guild will take care of the more difficult attack route, we would be grateful.¡± Ilahan wore an indulgent smile as he opened his mouth. ¡°Haha, thanks to the Mark of Magellan, we gathered quite a lot of troops, and wouldn¡¯t it be the honour of the number 1 ranking guild to sacrifice once at a time like this? Huhu.¡± Shyakran felt his mood turn unpleasant, but he wasn¡¯t a na?ve-enough person to show that. ¡°Then, good luck to you, Ilahan. Penetrate the northern access way safely and let¡¯s see each other three days later.¡± Ilahan nodded his head. ¡°Yes, I also pray for good fortune in battle for the Titan Guild.¡± Shyakran smirked as he turned his footsteps. ¡°As the access way to the south is just going to be filled with scarecrows¡­ Anyways, thank you.¡± As Shyakrans form slowly grew more distant as he walked towards the camp of the Titan Guild, Ilahan, who momentarily watched his backside, mumbled with a low voice. ¡°Huhu, he¡¯s probably wondering why I¡¯m insistent on the access way to the north.¡± Truthfully, Ilahan was also planning on a bloodless victory with the access way to the south at first. However, through a spy that he had implanted in the Luspel Empire camp, he had heard incredible information. ¡®I had no idea that a scrappy guild that¡¯s not even in the top 100 of the guild rankings would be monopolizing the War Trading Post.¡¯ It was the information that the War Trading Post was located in the inside of the base of the Lotus Guild. Despite having obtained the Mark of Magellan, as the Titan Guild was practically monopolizing the Tower of War, the fact that he wasn¡¯t able to create a huge gap between them was constantly a frustration of his. In a situation like this, the opportunity to obtain the War Trading Post, which was a neutral facility that came close to the Tower of War, was worth more than a thousand pieces of gold. ¡®Huhu, the Lotus Guild, was it? Foolish people. No matter if they build a rampart and defense towers, a guild in the top 100 will not be able to overcome the difference in fighting power, tsk.¡¯ Because the building of the Lotus Guild¡¯s defensive wall had become an issue even in the community quite a number of times, Ilahan also knew of it. However, to Ilahan, it just looked like cute tricks. The corners of Ilahan¡¯s mouth rolled upwards as he mumbled. ¡°It looks like I¡¯ll have to properly show them the difference in our strength.¡± * * * Ring-! All requirements needed to promote the rank of the Lotus Village to ¡®Domain¡¯ have been satisfied.Because the name ¡®Lotus Domain¡¯ already exists, a new name of the Domain must be set up.Based on the name of the place, the name ¡®Pyro Domain¡¯ can be assigned. Will you assign it/ Ian nodded his head. ¡°We¡¯ll do ¡®Pyro¡¯.¡± The name of the base has been set to ¡®Pyro¡¯.In order to promote the base rank to ¡®Domain¡¯, a lord with an aristocrat title is required. Because it was a Village rank up until now, a normal user had been taking charge of the village leader position temporarily, but now, a lord that would take care of the domestic affairs of the domain continuously needed to be appointed. Ian turned his head towards Herz and Fiolan, who stood next to him, as he asked. ¡°Herz, do you want to be the lord here?¡± After entering the central continent, because they consistently received empire quests from the empire army, it was a state where several executive members, including Herz, have received at least Baron title. ¡°Or do you want to do it, Fiolan?¡± As Ian looked back and forth at the two people while asking, after contemplating for a moment, Herz opened his mouth. ¡°Hmm¡­ Wouldn¡¯t it be better if Fiolan did it? It¡¯s already a pain in the neck for me to take care of guild business.¡± The fact that the number of things that the Guild Master had to do the bigger the size of the guild got couldn¡¯t be helped. Because of that, Herz didn¡¯t want to be greedy for the lord position as well. ¡°Then Fiolan?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Fiolan slowly nodded her head as she replied. ¡°Sure, I¡¯ll do it. Since I¡¯m definitely freer than Herz.¡± As soon as he heard the reply, Ian nominated Fiolan as the lord of Pyro Domain. Ring-! The base rank of Pyro Village has elevated to ¡®Domain¡¯.User ¡®Fiolan¡¯ has been nominated as the Lord of Pyro Domain.As three bases that are ¡®Domain¡¯ rank have been retained, the Guild Fame has increased by 50 thousand.One of the requirements to promote to a ¡®Great Domain¡¯ has been satisfied. Fiolan read through the messages that popped up one after another as she smirked. ¡°Still, I feel good since I have an important title. Although I don¡¯t know how long I¡¯ll have it.¡± She said that as it would become useless if they lost the Domain to the Kaimon Empire Army. And Ian also knew what the meaning of her words were, so he burst out into laughter. ¡°Don¡¯t be so negative about it, Fiolan. You should be thinking about protecting it until the end.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true, but since the troops on that side are so incredible, I was just saying it.¡± Along with Fiolan¡¯s words, the three people turned towards the flag of Kaimon Empire that could be seen from far away. Even by looking at the army of the Kaimon Empire, who were encamped like a colony of ants, from far away, their dignity was incredible. Herz opened his mouth. ¡°But, why are they just staying still all day there? If they raided us like that during the evening without rest, the battle would have begun without us even having completed constructing the fortress.¡± Like Herz¡¯s words, thanks to the Kaimon Empire Army not having moved for a day, the fortress of the Pyro Domain was able to complete construction safely. Ian replied. ¡°Well, either way, it¡¯s better for us.¡± However, just then, in the eyes of Ian, who was studying the camp of the Kaimon Empire Army from far away, a large-scale movement began to be captured. Ian abruptly stood up as he opened his mouth. ¡°Oh, it looks like they¡¯re moving now?¡± At the place that Ian was pointing at with his finger, sandy clouds of dust were rising up. As it was too far, he couldn¡¯t see exactly, but it looked like the first groups have begun to move. Fiolan, who checked that, quickly ran to the telescope that was installed on the rampart and shoved her eye against it. ¡°You¡¯re right, they began to move.¡± Herz asked. ¡°Fiolan, by any chance, do you see their flag?¡± ¡°Hmm, one second.¡± Fiolan, who moved the telescope here and there as she looked for the flag, slowly opened her mouth after fixating the telescope on one location. ¡°Hmm¡­ I think that¡¯s the DarkRuna Guild flag.¡± This time, Ian opened his mouth with a quizzical expression. ¡°Huh? Are you sure it¡¯s not the flag of the Kaimon Empire Army¡¯s commander?¡± Fiolan nodded her head. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s definitely the flag of the DarkRuna Guild. They¡¯re coming towards our Domain.¡± Ian wore a strange expression. ¡®Why¡¯s that? I did think that rather than attacking the geography where the Luspel Empire Army is defending, they would attack easy guild bases, but I had no idea that the guilds, not the empire army, would move first.¡¯ However, because it would be easier to face the fighting power of a guild rather than the empire army, Ian let out a sigh of relief. ¡®I can only interpret it as the DarkRuna Guild wants our Domain¡­ Well, it doesn¡¯t matter.¡¯ While looking at Herz, Ian opened his mouth. ¡°Yoohyun, please contact everybody to get ready for battle, and call back the guild members that are logged off right now. It probably won¡¯t take them over thirty minutes for them to reach here from there.¡± ¡°Okay, understood.¡± And he turned his head towards Fiolan. ¡°Fiolan, please let the outside users that are still inside the Domain that a battle will begin soon.¡± Because not a lot of time had passed since the construction of the fortress was finished, most of the users that had participated in the construction were still within the Domain. In order to not bring such thankful people harm, there was a need to give them a pledge to escape the Domain beforehand. ¡°Got it. But, by any chance, if there are users that want to participate, what should I do?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Ian, who hadn¡¯t thought that far, was slightly taken aback, but he opened his mouth immediately again. ¡°I don¡¯t know how many users there would be that would want to enter this dangerous battle, but we¡¯ll employ them as mercenaries.¡± ¡°Alright!¡± Fiolan, who responded shortly, immediately turned her footsteps and disappeared, and Ian, who was left alone on top of the watchtower, closed his eyes and became submerged in his thoughts. ¡®Our opponent is the number 1 guild in the Korean server rankings¡­ It won¡¯t be easy.¡¯ It would be nice if there could be ¡®rules¡¯ like in territory wars of the northern continent where there was a limit on the number of people or could create some other variable, but there was no such thing in the central continent. Everything was divided only on the outcome of the battle. However, had about ten minutes had passed like that? A message popped up in front of the eyes of Ian, who was racking his brains for an effective battle. Hello, Ian. I am Lee Hansung, the leader of the YTBC broadcasting station¡¯s planning team. I am contacting you like this after hearing the information that there would be a siege warfare between the DarkRuna Guild and the Lotus Guild soon. Ian, who saw the message, wore a flustered expression. ¡®No, why are they so fast? How did a broadcasting station find out already?¡¯ Ian had no idea, but amongst the users that participated in the fortress extension construction, there were users affiliated with the YTBC broadcasting station. ¡®Well, since there¡¯s nothing bad about being broadcasted.¡¯ Ian instantly replied. Yes, Team Leader Lee Hansung, continue.You¡¯ve probably already guessed, but us YTBC broadcasting station would like to create an exclusive video on this siege warfare. From camp of the Lotus Guild, that is.Rather than a guild in the top 100 like us, wouldn¡¯t it be more beneficial to be filming it from the DarkRuna camp, who has a higher chance of winning? Why did you contact me?I¡¯m not sure. The DarkRuna Guild is for sure superior in fighting power, but as much as it is a siege warfare, there could be many variables, and above all, we wanted to create a video on the battle where the attacks of the opponents would be blocked from the defensive fortress of the Lotus Guild, which was a big issue this time.Hmm¡­ I see. Lee Hansung immediately sent a message again. We will deposit the incentives that tag along with advertisement earnings and other additional earnings to the guild bank account of the Lotus Guild. You probably know, but because our YTBC channel has an overwhelming share compared to other game broadcasting channels, it will also be a big help to the Lotus Guild. Ian nodded his head as he thought. ¡®That will definitely be the case.¡¯ Ian, who organized his thoughts, opened his mouth again. Well, understood. We will do that. However, there is a condition.A condition?Yes, I will allow an exclusive broadcasting, but for my personal battle video, I will manage that separately and distribute it.Hmm¡­ It seemed for a moment he was either thinking about it or he was receiving approval from the head office as a message didn¡¯t return, and Ian slowly walked down from the watchtower to prepare for battle. And had about 5 minutes passed? A message came again from YTBC¡¯s side. Sounds good, Ian. We will make a contract accordingly. With a satisfied expression, Ian sent a message. Yes, then I hope that you will make a good video, Team Leader.Of course. For the contract, I will save the contents that I sent back and forth with you, Ian, and prepare it. CH 163 Chapter 163: Impenetrable Fortress (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The military strength of the DarkRuna Guild was too incredible to believe that it was a military strength that was mobilized from one guild. ¡°Sollin, advance the soldiers that are comparatively lower in level to the front. Since the defense towers will most likely all be single-target attackers, we¡¯ll press them with our numbers.¡± ¡°Yes, Master!¡± The number of troops of the DarkRuna Guild that were advancing towards the Pyro Domain was a tremendous number close to 5 thousand. The reason that was possible was fundamentally thanks to the Mark of Magellan. Thanks to the advantage that they could use the troops of the Desert Warriors, which were neutral NPCs, however they wished, the DarkRuna Guild was able to put a lot more bases into their hands in comparison to other guilds, and from those bases, they continuously produced soldiers. Amongst the total troops of 5 thousand, the number of users was a little less than 1 thousand, so the troops were mainly composed of soldiers. ¡®Huhu, at this point, it must be blood curdling for them while they look at the troops that are advancing in like a black wave.¡¯ Even if they were the lowest-ranking soldiers, because fundamentally, it was the central continent, it was at the point that the average level range was over 130. It was a standard where they absolutely could not look down just because they were soldiers. ¡°We¡¯re within the range. Be careful of the projectile that will come flying from the defense towers!¡± Along with Ilahan¡¯s shout, the commanders of each unit passed on the command. And as if they were waiting for those words, from the top of the tall rampart, projectiles poured down like rain. Swaaeek-! ¡°Avoid it!¡± The cries of the horses could be heard from here and there. However, despite having given them a warning beforehand, about 70% of the pouring projectiles perfectly hit the targets they were aiming at. Bang-! And in front of the eyes of each commander, system messages that the soldiers under their commandment died popped up one after another. The Vitality of the ¡®Desert Warrior¡¯ has been reduced by 67,859 after being hit by the attack of the ¡®Guard Tower of the Desert¡¯.As all of the Vitality of the ¡®Desert Warrior¡¯ has been exhausted, it has died.As all of the Vitality of the ¡®Desert Warrior¡¯ has been exhausted, it has died. From one hit, the soldiers oxidized into a grey light and disappeared. On top of that, even a couple users who commanded the soldiers from the front got hit by the projectiles and died. Ilahan¡¯s eyes widened. ¡®What, what the hell? Why are there so many defense towers? There¡¯s over a dozen of them!¡¯ The number of ¡®Guard Towers of the Desert¡¯ that were built on the Pyro Domain was a total of 100. The DarkRuna Guild, who expected a dozen or so defense towers at most, couldn¡¯t help but be taken aback. This was because from just one attack, they had lost about seventy soldiers. Ilahan pulled together his flustered heart and let out a command again. ¡°The reloading time for the guard towers is long! Get close to the rampart quickly! If you get close enough, you can avoid the attacks of the tower!¡± Just like Ilahan¡¯s words, if you got close enough to the point you were right in front of the rampart instead, because the angle didn¡¯t come out, you could avoid the attack range of the guard towers. However, the DarkRuna Guild had to come face with another unexpected variable. Ooh-deuk- Ooh-deu-deuk-! ¡°What the hell? What is this noise?¡± ¡°The ground is splitting?¡± ¡°Fall back! You can¡¯t come over to this side, ack!¡± The identity of that was the trench that they had dug out right in front of the rampart. Hundreds of soldiers had fallen into the trench that they had covered with illusion magic and plausible camouflage. ¡°Come out quickly! Magicians with weight-lightening magic, cast those skills!¡± However, that wasn¡¯t the end. Keu-keu-keung-! The stone gate that was installed in line with the outer wall of the rampart moved as the form of a round gun port appeared. ¡°What the hell is that now? Avoid it!¡± And a total of about ten gun ports let out a fire simultaneously. Hwa-reu-reuk-! That was the defense tower that was one rank higher than the guard towers, the Fire-Element Magic Tower. ¡°Euaaak-!¡± The Offensive Power alone of the elemental magic tower was weaker than the guard towers, but opponents in a wide range could be attacked at once. On top of that, there was no way that the soldiers of the DarkRuna Guild, who had fallen into the trench, could escape. Ilahan, who watched that scene while standing a little back, was to the point he was dumbfounded. ¡®What the hell is that? Was there such a tower? There wasn¡¯t anything like that amongst the defense towers that were possible to build.¡¯ The DarkRuna Guild had secured close to ten bases, but proper development hadn¡¯t been established in most of them. It was the fault that he didn¡¯t have enough energy to pay attention to all of them. There were one or two bases that he had even developed to a Domain-rank, but its nature was completely different from the Pyro Domain. While the Pyro Domain had mainly developed facilities that were required for base defense, the Domains of the DarkRuna Guild, who didn¡¯t need to worry about base defense, had mainly developed facilities that would increase their supply and demand. ¡®Did I look down on them too much just because they¡¯re a guild only in the top 100? But then, I can¡¯t even take back the troops that I have right now¡­¡¯ They had gotten too deep in to turn the heads of their horses around. If he took back the troops he had right now and go through with retreating, their loss would be even bigger. Ilahan shouted. ¡°Just get over the rampart! Do whatever it takes to enter inside and open the stone gate!¡± The magicians even used mobilized their flying magic and attempted to enter through the air, but as soon as they floated in the air, they became hedgehogs and dropped to the ground. It wasn¡¯t that they were attacked by the catapults of the guard towers, but rather, the archer soldiers that were within the fortress had shot out arrows. However, 5 thousand was truly an enormous number of troops, and eventually, the soldiers of the DarkRuna Guild pressed them ignorantly with their numbers and one by one, they began to get over the rampart. It could indeed be considered a truly ignorant, human-wave strategy. While looking at that, Ilahan let out a shout of delight internally. ¡®Alright. If we can just enter inside first¡­!¡¯ Ilahan also moved quickly himself and ran towards the rampart. As expected of the title ¡®Magic Swordsman¡¯, Ilahan granted all body reinforcing skills, including a weight-lightening skill, onto him, and with wind-like speed, he began to climb up the rampart. Clang- Cla-clang-! There were a couple soldiers that were standing guard at the top of the rampart, but there was no way that they would be a match to Ilahan, who was within the proximity of lv 150. Claang-! Ice-type sword energy that shot out from Ilahan¡¯s sword hit the lower part of the rampart hard, and using that rebound, Ilahan jumped above the rampart lightly landed above it. ¡°Open the fortress gate! Everybody, enter inside¡­!¡± However, Ilahan, who shouted with a resounding voice with his sword held high, couldn¡¯t help but become speechless in the next moment. ¡®What the hell is that? Why is there another rampart in the inside?¡¯ Within the inside of the rampart that he barely made over after losing almost a thousand soldiers, another even higher and stronger-looking rampart had appeared. Ilahan let out a swear word without even realizing. ¡°Wow, motherfucker, they really play dirty!¡± While he had lost an incredible number of troops of over a thousand, he hadn¡¯t even seen a glimpse of one user of the Lotus Guild yet. Ilahan, who was infuriated to the max, gritted his teeth. ¡°Alright, while it¡¯s like this anyways, let¡¯s get to the end of this and see who wins!¡± In his original plan, there was nothing about consuming up this many troops, nor was that supposed to be allowed. However, Ilahan, who developed an unyielding spirit along with his unknown rage, gritted his teeth as he jumped down to the inner side of the rampart. * * * Everyone, now is not the time to be playing around in the chat room!Why¡¯s that? Is there something wrong?Yeah, no kidding. I even completely finished the quest that I was doing right now and had nothing to do, so that¡¯s why I came to the chat room to pass some time¡­ But did something happen?Ha, how frustrating, these people. Go and quickly turn on YTBC right now. The DarkRuna Guild¡¯s siege warfare has begun.Ah, the siege warfare? Well that, it was about time for them to attack bases, since the Kaimon Empire Army had completely entered towards the east. I also heard that they were going to broadcast that, but I thought it would be no fun, so I¡¯m not watching it. From what I¡¯ve seen, the defending camp was a scrappy guild that is even after the top 100. It¡¯s obvious that they¡¯re probably suffering to the point of disappearance by the DarkRuna guys.Person above, let¡¯s get this straight. How is a guild in the top 100 a scrappy guild? When the top 100 means they¡¯re in the top 0.1%.I¡¯m just saying. Compared to the number 1 guild, isn¡¯t it correct to be calling them scrappy?That¡¯s true, but¡­Ha, these people, I¡¯m telling you, forget the small talk and just turn on the channel first. That guild in the top 100 is fighting the DarkRuna Guild in a close match. The siege warfare is no joke right now. If you don¡¯t watch this right now, you¡¯ll regret it.Huh? Really? How does that make sense?The name of that guild in the top 100 is the Lotus Guild, and they made their base almost into some sort of fort practically. Seriously, there¡¯s no other universal defense.Hul, the defending guild was the Lotus Guild?What¡¯s wrong? Do you know of the Lotus Guild? It¡¯s the guild of Ian, the number 1 ranking Summoner. Ah, if I knew that was the case, I would have watched the broadcast from the beginning! I¡¯m off to go watch it, then.Ooh, I should go and watch it. Would it have a similar feel to a defense game? Of course, as word spread not only through the official community, but by several other routes as well, the ratings of the YTBC channel began to continuously go up. Firstly, because of the title that it was the siege warfare of the number 1 guild, the DarkRuna Guild, there was a basic interest leaning towards them, and as the information that the Lotus Guild that they were facing was the guild of Ian also spread, that interest amplified even more. It was to the point that users that wanted to watch the battles of Ian, who had recently gained a lot of popularity, even halted the quests they were doing and logged off the game in order to watch the broadcast. And Reporters Hines and Lucia, who could be considered the faces of the broadcasting station for the YTBC channel, were broadcasting the siege warfare. Hines, currently, the main force users of the Lotus Guild have yet to move from within the fortress yet, and what do you think the reason for that is?That I think is because the fighting power of the users of Lotus are fundamentally much lower than the users of DarkRuna. The average level of the DarkRuna Guild¡¯s attack unit is over 140, but from what I know, there aren¡¯t even five users that are over lv 140 in the Lotus Guild. On top of that, they even lack in numbers just with their absolute users. I think that they will attack after making the DarkRuna Guild climb over the defensive walls and drain their strength as much as possible.Ah-ha, I see.The DarkRuna Guild will probably be incredibly infuriated right now.Why¡¯s that?Since it will feel like they¡¯re being toyed with by a guild with a much weaker fighting power, that is. Since they have yet to even see the Lotus users, and they¡¯re constantly just fighting with the defense towers.That is also true. However, it seems that the DarkRuna Guild is definitely strong. Since amongst that many towers, over half have been demolished already.Agreed.The full-fledged fight hasn¡¯t even started yet, but it¡¯s already exciting. Just like the two people¡¯s conversation, the battle began to take on an even more exciting aspect. It looks like the second rampart will be broken through soon now! Are the Lotus Guild users planning on giving them the second line of defense just like that as well?Oh, the troops of the Lotus Guild that were within the fortress have begun to move.I see, it looks like the full-fledged battle will begin now!The DarkRuna Guild did lose over half their troops, but most of them were soldiers and Desert Warriors, while most of their users are alive and well. I wonder much of a good fight the Lotus Guild will be able to put up with them as their opponents¡­! In the real-time chat room of the YTBC channel, comments were popping up without rest, and arguments over the result of the siege warfare continued. However, most were still predicting the victory of the DarkRuna Guild. However, just then, in the sky of the Pyro Domain, the resounding roar of a Griffin rang out. Kyaaooh-! And on the back of that Griffin, one man, who had an English longbow on his back and a staff in one hand while dressed in an interesting attire, looked down at the battleground. CH 164 Chapter 164: Impenetrable Fortress (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian, who flew up to the sky of the battlefield and used Pin¡¯s AoE buff-slash-debuff skill, began to give out commands quickly through the guild chat. Ian: It¡¯s now, everybody. Once the crossing gate goes down 20 seconds from now, the troops of the DarkRuna Guild will gather in the middle. At that moment, please pour out your AoE attacks first. Meanwhile, the Archers of the DarkRuna Guild, who had discovered Ian flying in the air, simultaneously shot arrows towards Ian. However, as it was a situation that he had already predicted, Ian wasn¡¯t taken aback and flew up quickly. He had shot up so that he was outside of the range of the Archers. Ian internally counted to himself. ¡®5¡­ 4¡­ 3¡­¡¯ As Ian looked down while being so high up, he could see the location of his opponents all at once, and his eyes shone. This was because the troops of the DarkRuna Guild were displaying movements that were over 90% accurate with his predictions. ¡®2¡­ 1¡­ Now!¡¯ As soon as Ian finished counting, the crossing gates on either side of the fortress went down while letting out a heavy sound. Thud- Thu-ud-! On behalf of that, the fortress gate of the second defensive wall let out a boom as it began to open up. Keu-keuk- Keu-keu-keuk-! Someone, who had discovered that, shouted loudly. ¡°We¡¯ve succeeded in opening the door! Everybody, advance forward to the inside!¡± ¡°Ahhh!¡± Truthfully, the one that had shouted loudly towards the DarkRuna Guild members was none other than Herz. The Lotus Guild had tactically opened the fortress gate to lure in their opponents, but through Herz¡¯s shout, they would have mistakenly thought that one of the guild members of the DarkRuna Guild had gotten over the rampart and opened the door. The influential power of this one phrase was bigger than expected. In a situation where thousands of people were engaged in a dogfight, not one person was able to think that Herz¡¯s words were planned to throw them into confusion, and as the fortress gate opened, the troops of the DarkRuna Guild began to run towards the fortress gate like a wave. Ian, who was watching that scene in the air, wore a smile of satisfaction. ¡®Okay, they bought it better than expected.¡¯ Far from the ground, Ian suddenly began to chant a summon incantation from the air. ¡°Bbakbbak, Summon!¡± As he did so, a white light violently swirled in the air as Bbakbbak, who had a giant build, was summoned. Of course, Bbakbbak began to drop towards the ground, and he wore a flustered expression. Own, owner! Are you intending on killing me! Of course, Ian had an idea. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, since there¡¯s a plan.¡± However, Bbakbbak continued to wear a nervous expression. But then again, the location where Ian dropped Bbakbbak was an incredibly high place to the point that people just looked like black dots. On top of that, Bbakbbak was incredibly large, and he was that heavy. Even if Bbakbbak had outrageous Defensive Power and Vitality, if he fell from this height, he wouldn¡¯t be able to escape instantaneous death. And Ian was counting the time that Bbakbbak took to fall. ¡®A little¡­ A little more!¡¯ Meanwhile, the users and soldiers of DarkRuna, who were on the ground, wore appalled expressions after discovering the giant shadow that hung above them from the air. ¡°Euak!¡± ¡°What, what the hell is that?!¡± ¡°Avoid it!¡± At that exact moment. Ian invoked Bbakbbak¡¯s inherent ability. ¡°Bbakbbak, Absolute Defense!¡± This was exactly what Ian was aiming for. If Absolute Defense was invoked, for 10 seconds, Bbakbbak wouldn¡¯t receive any damage, and he would become immune to all status conditions. For the duration of Absolute Defense, he couldn¡¯t move at all, but that was no problem. Since with the damage that Bbakbbak would deal from dropping, he would turn the whole vicinity into ashes. Whoong-! As Absolute Defense was invoked, Bbakbbak¡¯s whole body was wrapped in a current of gold light while a giant shield was created, and as soon as his inherent ability was invoked, Bbakbbak¡¯s four legs lodged into the ground. Baang-! Along with the rising cloud of dust coming up in all directions, a loud boom rang out. At that moment, system messages popped up one after another in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Familiar ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯ has dealt 759,840 damage to the ¡®Desert Warrior¡¯ of the DarkRuna Guild.The ¡®Desert Warrior¡¯ has been killed.You have obtained 879,899 EXP.You have obtained 1500 Fame.You have obtained 350 Specialty Points.The ¡®Desert Warrior¡¯ has been killed.The ¡®Desert Warrior¡¯ has been killed.DarkRuna Guild User ¡®Hanjoon¡¯ has been killed.DarkRuna Guild User ¡®Rutan¡¯ has been killed. The spot that Bbakbbak had dropped down to was right in front of the fortress gate where the troops of the DarkRuna Guild were gathered, and thanks to that, dozens of troops turned into a grey light and it was game over for them. As at least 500 thousand damage went through at once, there was no way an organism that could outlast that existed. Amongst them, a considerable number of high-level DarkRuna Guild Users, who were over lv 140, were included. On top of the pile of bodies that were a grey light, Bbakbbak stood while putting on an air of elegance much like a golden statue. And following Bbakbbak, who dropped down before anybody realized, to a lower altitude, Ian let out a command to Pin. ¡°Pin, Crush!¡± Kku-ruk- Kku-ru-ruk-! The users of DarkRuna, who had been frightened to death along with Bbakbbak¡¯s appearance, weren¡¯t able to avoid Pin¡¯s AoE skill and received it as is. On top of that, that wasn¡¯t the end. The users of the Lotus Guild, who were hiding their bodies above the fortress of the second defensive wall, showed themselves. They began to pour out their attack skills towards the DarkRuna users who were concentrated into an area. Bang- Ba-bang-! With that as the trigger, the full-fledged battle between the DarkRuna Guild and the Lotus Guild finally began. Ian also summoned all of his Familiars, and he began to go full-out and stir around the battleground. ¡°Magicians, snipe the Archers mainly first! You need to deal as much damage onto them before they regain their senses!¡± Following Ian¡¯s command, the Lotus Guild members moved quickly and accurately, and Fiolan, who had become the Lord of the Pyro Domain, began to direct the soldiers that had been produced on the Domain. ¡®Good, for now, it looks like we could say that we almost succeeded in today¡¯s defensive battle¡­¡¯ Behind the second defensive wall, the third defensive fortress, which could be considered the last fort, held up strongly. However, if the second defensive wall dealt this much damage, he felt as though there was no need to show the third defensive fortress to the opponents. Clang- Cl-clang-! The sound of metal clashing together rang out endlessly from every direction. While looking at the soldiers of the Lotus Guild that inversely poured out from the opened fortress gate, Ilahan gritted his teeth. ¡®Damn it, how exactly were they able to construct this much Defensive Power? Is this a part that is possible with the funds of a guild only in the top 100?¡¯ Truthfully, funds weren¡¯t the only problem. With Ilahan¡¯s common sense, even if they had infinite funds, based on time, it looked like it was impossible to make as many forts and defensive towers as this no matter what. ¡®Did they receive funds from the Luspel Empire level? What exactly is it?¡¯ So long as they didn¡¯t know of the existence of the Holy Grail that Ian had, for Ilahan, these thoughts couldn¡¯t be helped. ¡°Sollin, focus all firepower towards the fortress gate. There¡¯s no other method besides frontal breakthrough.¡± ¡°Yes, understood, Master.¡± Ilahan added on another word towards Sollin, who unsheathed her sword and went forward. ¡°Sollin, the sword that I gave you last time, you still have it, right?¡± Sollin, who thought about it for a moment, nodded her head. ¡°Yes, Master.¡± ¡°Once you reach the front of the fortress gates, use the summoning magic that¡¯s enchanted onto the sword.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± Ilahan, who finished speaking, sheathed the twin swords that he had been swinging around until now onto either sides of his waist, and unsheathed the greatsword that he had on his back. Seu-reu-reung-! And with a loud voice, he delivered an impassioned speech. ¡°We¡¯ve received a lot more damage than expected as we failed in figuring out the fighting power of the opponents, but to lose to a guild on the frontier whose name we DarkRuna has never even heard of is something that cannot happen!¡± As Ilahan threw his greatsword into the air, a blue light began to shine out from the sword. ¡°If we just get over that fortress gate, I expect that seizing the inside will not be hard! From now on, I¡¯m going to take the lead, so we¡¯re going with a frontal breakthrough!¡± Ilahan, who finished speaking, spread his hand out in front of him and the greatsword began to spin in circles, and it began to fly in the direction that Ilahan pointed to while ripping through the air. Swaeek-! And at the end there, Bbakbbak, who was shining a gold light, was situated. ¡°Die!¡± Ilahan considered eliminating Bbakbbak, who firmly guarded the front of the fortress gate, as the top priority, and because of that, he invoked the strongest long-distance hitting skill that he had. For Bbakbbak, who was as slow as he was big-bodied, it was a situation where he would be directly hit by the skill without having even moved an inch. However, just then, Ian, who flew around while riding his Griffin right above, quickly spread his hand out towards Bbakbbak. ¡°Bbookbbook, Curtain of Water!¡± Bboo-bbook-! He had invoked Bbookbbook¡¯s inherent ability, Curtain of Water, that was attached to the ¡®Turtle Spirit¡¯ item. As Ian shouted while spreading out his hand, a stream of water poured out from Bbookbbook¡¯s mouth¡­ Kwaaah-! The stream of water flew out to land right in front of Bbakbbak and it formed a giant curtain. And the greatsword of Ilahan that flew in at the same time clashed with the front of the curtain. Pu-ung-! Along with a loud boom that rang through the eardrums, Ilahan¡¯s greatsword bounced off into the air, and the Curtain of Water that safely carried out its role also dropped to the ground shortly after. Swaah- While looking at the water that sunk and permeated into the sand on the ground, Ilahan wore a flustered expression. ¡®What, what the hell?¡¯ As it was simply something that had happened in an instant moment, it was to the point that even Ilahan, who casted the skill, didn¡¯t properly understand the situation. It was a part where one could find out how fast Ian¡¯s reflexes were. And the soldiers and users of the Lotus Guild, who moved into high gear, began to challenge the DarkRuna Guild. ¡°Aaah!¡± Getting a head start in battle was important. It could be considered the same context as the fighting spirit of the soldiers in war being important as well. With that meaning, the spirit right now brought an effect that puffed up the fighting power the Lotus Guild by double. ¡°Damn it, what are we doing? I¡¯m telling you, there are a ton of guys that aren¡¯t even at lv 130 amongst them as well!¡± Just like what that person of the DarkRuna Guild shouted, most of the members of the Lotus Guild were composed of lv 120s. On the other hand, the DarkRuna Guild was lined up with many rankers that were around lv 140. However, based on the spirit of battle, as they were completely intimidated, they began to helplessly collapse at the Lotus Guild¡¯s attack. And as the battle condition continued onto a dogfight, Ian¡¯s battleground controlling abilities began to shine even more. ¡°Ly, attack the opponents that don¡¯t have much Vitality left first and kick them out!¡± Understood, Owner! Before they realized, the sky began to turn dusky, and as the moon, which had gathered strength, began to hang above the battleground, Ly began to leap around like a fish that met water. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has dealt critical damage to the DarkRuna Guild affiliated ¡®Desert Warrior¡¯.The ¡®Desert Warrior¡¯s Vitality has decreased by 21,640.The ¡®Desert Warrior¡¯ has been killed. And Paulean, who had perfectly adjusted to battle with Ian, also let out thunderbolts in all directions as he began to crush his opponents. Bang- Ba-ba-bang-! Paulean¡¯s exploding thunderbolts scorched the users of the DarkRuna Guild, who charged towards him without a clue, black. Retainer ¡®Paulean¡¯ has dealt critical damage to DarkRuna Guild Member ¡®Halibo¡¯.¡®Halibo¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 29,980.¡®Halibo¡¯ has been killed. Paulean, who was almost at lv 180, and Kaizar, who was close to lv 250, had stronger fighting powers than anybody in the DarkRuna Guild. Let alone, as it was an advantageous battle where their spirit had gone up this much, there was nothing to talk about when it came to how exceptional their active roles were. Just then, Ian, who had discovered Ilahan, asked Kaizar for a favour. ¡°Retainer, you see that guy over there, right? Can¡¯t you face that guy, please?¡± As expected of the 1st place ranker in the unofficial server rankings, Ilahan slaughtered numerous soldiers of the Lotus Guild as he showed his presence. Ian poked Kaizar¡¯s side. ¡°I¡¯m absolutely not asking you for a favour because I feel like I¡¯m going to lose¡­¡± Despite Ian¡¯s pathetic request, Kaizar spun his head around before he threw his body towards a different battleground. While looking at Kaizar, who didn¡¯t even reply, Ian let out a deep sigh. ¡®Argh, damn it, then do I need to double up on that monster-like dude with Paulean and then catch him?¡¯ While looking at Ilahan, who spun his fearsome sword in all directions, Ian gulped audibly. He couldn¡¯t figure out why exactly, but based on his feeling, Ilahan even looked stronger than Paulean, who was in the second half of the lv 170 range. ¡®The soldiers dying off are a little bit of a waste, but there¡¯s a need to understand the dude¡¯s skill pattern.¡¯ Ian got on Halli¡¯s back and faced easy opponents nearby while he continuously kept an eye on Ilahan¡¯s movements. However, just then, a giant wave of energy gushed out from the front of the fortress gate. Whoong-! Most gazes, including Ian¡¯s, turned towards the fortress gate. ¡®What the hell¡­ Is that?¡¯ After checking the giant shadow that hung in front there, Ian¡¯s eyes widened. CH 165 Chapter 165: Impenetrable Fortress (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda After the base of the Lotus Guild was built-up in the central continent, Harin leveled up quite a bit while following her guildmates. Thanks to that, even Harin¡¯s level, which felt like it would forever be a two-digit figure, had increased to a three-digit figure to the point she was facing lv 110, but to participate in the defensive battle with the DarkRuna Guild was irrational. ¡®Well, still, since I¡¯ve maxed out my cooking and supplied it, I¡¯ve also probably helped!¡¯ Before the defensive battle began, Harin had supplied the buffed foods that she made diligently one by one. Just like she was thinking, the buffed food was a big help to the Lotus Guild members. Since when it came to her cooking level, it was so high to the point it was unrivaled in Kailan. Harin, who completed all of her tasks, logged out and sat on the sofa in the room while turning on the TV instead of directly participating in the battle. Tiiing-! As the giant TV screen, which hung on the wall, turned on, Harin quickly switched the channels until YTBC¡¯s channel was on. ¡°Although I can¡¯t be with them inside, I should cheer them on.¡± This was because she heard that YTBC was monopolizing the broadcast for this siege warfare of the DarkRuna Guild and the Lotus Guild. ¡°Where did my keyboard go again?¡± The TV that was inside Harin¡¯s room was a smart TV that was connected to Harin¡¯s computer desktop. The smart TV was an incredibly convenient product that could be used with the TV and PC linked together. Harin, who settled into the sofa after finding her wireless mouse and keyboard, began to diligently watch the siege warfare with even the lights of her room turned off, so that it felt like she was watching a movie. Harin ripped open the chip bag that she had saved in the corner of her room as she mumbled. ¡°When will our Jinsung come out? DarkRuna, they said that they were the 1st place guild, but are they sure they aren¡¯t going to get annihilated after just destroying the towers?¡± Harin, who watched the siege warfare while munching on her potato chips, beamed as she watched Jinsung, who appeared coolly along with Bbakbbak, who dropped to the ground. ¡°When it comes to games alone, our Jinsung is amazingly good.¡± As if she was fighting right behind Jinsung, Harin began to be immersed in the screen. ¡°Ah, shall we open up the viewer¡¯s chat room?¡± Harin typed on the keyboard and opened up the viewer¡¯s chat room that was hidden on the right side of the screen. And the two eyes of Harin, who saw the chat window that popped up, rounded. ¡°What, what the hell? Why are comments coming up this fast?¡± Comments were coming up so fast to the point it was difficult to follow with her eyes. It was even to the point that comments endlessly popped up although the channel was behind the chatting channel that was over three-digit figures. Wow, what is that golden turtle over there? It looks like Hyunmu[1]. Is there someone that knows? I want to go to catch that!No kidding, the golden turtle¡¯s swagger is explosive. Does anybody know what that is?Guys, it says so right there. That it¡¯s Bbakbbak¡­No, you there, Bbakbbak is the name of that Familiar that Ian gave to it. We¡¯re saying that we want to know what that monster¡¯s species is.I see! Sorry, I¡¯m a game newbie, so¡­ Harin, who read down the chat, smirked. ¡°Our Bbakbbak is pretty cool and dashing.¡± Harin, who was in charge of the food of all of Ian¡¯s Familiars, had become quite close with Bbakbbak as well. There was no way there was a Familiar that hated pretty Harin, who served them delicious food three times a day. Wow, goddamn, you guys just saw Ian use the curtain skill just now, right? His real reflexive speed is crazy.Huh? Did he just invoke a curtain-type skill just now? No wonder, I was wondering why the greatsword suddenly bounced back.Hul, I just thought that golden turtle used a defensive skill.No, no, I think he just invoked the Curtain of Water skill. I¡¯ve seen a fire-type curtain skill, but this is my first time seeing Curtain of Water.Keu, I wet my pants a little. I¡¯m going to go change my underwear.Person above, you don¡¯t even have the basics down. When you¡¯re watching Ian¡¯s battle video, you should come wearing a diaper. Fundamentally, Ian¡¯s combat method, where he hit with non-target projectiles from far away, was also flashy, but the battle content that a guild in the top 100 rankings was putting up a good fight while facing the number 1 ranking guild alone was making the users go wild. Are you sure that the Lotus Guild isn¡¯t actually going to win like this? If Lotus wins, this will seriously be crazy.Pfft, no way. They were truly amazing enough even up until now but take a look at Ilahan fighting. That person is also truly a monster. Soldiers in the lv 130 range melt down at one swing of his sword. Harin, who was reading the chat, squinted her eyes for the first time. ¡°What the hell, our guild is obviously going to win, so then why are they talking like we¡¯re going to lose?¡± The basis for why Harin was sure of victory was simple. Since up until now, there was not one time that she saw a battle with Ian turn into a loss. Harin, who mounted reasonable logic in her own way, pounded her keyboard. Look here, guys, how exactly are you saying that the DarkRuna Guild will win? Lotus will win this battle no matter what.Person above, you¡¯re saying something that¡¯s completely fabricated. Lotus has put up an incredibly good fight up until now, but close to half of DarkRuna¡¯s troops are still alive and well. It looks like they still have over 1 thousand in just soldiers, so what are you talking about? Harin pouted her lips as she pounded her keyboard again. In any case, they¡¯ll win. If you watch, you¡¯ll know.Wow, this, just forcing zero logic. No matter how you look at it, I think DarkRuna is a little more superior so far.It seems that person is a member of Ian¡¯s fan club. Just leave them. After feeling severe exhaustion from the momentary keyboard battle, Harin closed the chat window. ¡°Idiots.¡± Harin, who had shortly judged the keyboard warriors with one word, began to focus on the screen again. However, just then, the commentators of YTBC began to chatter with excited voices. What, what is that? * * * Thu-ud-! Along with a heavy, loud noise, dense clouds of dust blew in every direction. Within the clouds of dust that were so thick that the vision of everybody nearby turned grey, a giant shadow hung. The users of the Lotus Guild, including Ian, wore flustered expressions. ¡®What exactly is this monster-like dude?¡¯ A bronze giant, whose body was even bigger than Bbakbbak, had appeared in front of them. The greatness of the giant, who grasped a blue spear that looked even taller and more aggressive than himself, overwhelmed the whole assembly. Keu-rwah-rwah-rwah-rwah-! With a bizarre voice, the giant let out a loud roar towards the front before swinging around the steel spear. Baaang-! ¡°Damn it, avoid it!¡± However, there weren¡¯t that many places that they could run away to in front of the narrow fortress gate, and about four or five users of the Lotus Guild, who were directly hit by the aggressive spear, turned into a grey light in an instant and disappeared. After Ian checked the information that was above the giant¡¯s head, he shook his head. ¡®Where exactly did he suddenly appear from? How is he lv 220?¡¯ Charging Leader of the Giant, God-like People Lv 220 Ian frowned. ¡®Ilahan, that monster-like dude, alone is already hard enough, so how do we face that?¡¯ Meanwhile, Ilahan¡¯s expression also darkened. It was because even though they had even used their trump card, the Summoning Magic Artifact, the progress of the battle didn¡¯t look so easy. ¡®I swear I think that dude has control over the whole Lotus military strength.¡¯ Still, as expected of the head of a giant guild, Ilahan had figured out the flow of the battle instantly. ¡°You, your opponent is me!¡± Ilahan pulled out the twin swords that were sheathed on either side of his waist and charged towards Ian, and Ian, who discovered that, quickly let out a command as he grabbed and held up the English longbow that was hanging behind him. ¡°Kaizar, please take care of that bronze giant over there!¡± Because there was no one that could face that outrageous monster if it wasn¡¯t Kaizar, Ian couldn¡¯t do anything else but put his hope on him for the last time, and fortunately, Kaizar nodded his head as he threw his body towards the giant, god-like person. ¡°Understood. If it is a giant, god-like person, they have the right to become my opponent.¡± At his peculiar narcissism, Ian wanted to add on something else, but there was no time to do that. It was because Ilahan was very close. ¡°Die!¡± Ilahan¡¯s swords, which were engulfed in a blue energy, were aimed at Ian¡¯s heart and they seized forward, but Ian barely dodged the sword attack as he called over Halli, who was nearby. ¡°Halli!¡± Because of the inertia from when Ilahan charged forward, he stopped a little further away, and Ian, taking that opportunity, invoked Current Proliferation and pulled his bowstring. Piiing-! In an instant, like flowing water, Ian¡¯s continuous motion spread out. However, Ilahan¡¯s combat senses were also formidable. Ta-tat-. Ilahan, who quickly twisted his waist as he kicked a small mound and turned his direction, swung his twin swords towards Ian again. Whoong-! The energy that spewed out of the twin swords flew out towards Ian in an X-form, and Ian quickly got on Halli¡¯s back as he avoided the sword energy. And as soon as he got on Halli¡¯s back, the first thing that Ian did was invoke Halli¡¯s inherent ability. ¡°Halli, Guardian of the Wind!¡± The Guardian of the Wind buff of Halli, who was now close to lv 140, exponentially increased his reflexes to an outrageous amount, and on top of Halli, who flew around like wind, Ian shot out arrows one after another. Ping- Pi-ping-! And, the users affiliated with the DarkRuna Guild, who witnessed that form from nearby, wore flustered expressions. ¡°What the hell, wasn¡¯t that dude a Summoner?¡± ¡°This crazy, how is a Summoner that good at fast firing?¡± When Archer-class users compete on physical abilities, one of the events that they look at the most was fast firing. The most important virtues of an Archer-class were the accuracy rate of their non-target skills and their fast firing abilities. However, even the Archers of the DarkRuna Guild, whom were in the rankings, thought that the fast firing that Ian had command over right now was at an incredible level. Since the moment his arrow left the bowstring, a new arrow was placed against the string before they realized. On top of that, the time that it took to aim and launch, it went by so fast to the point that they were suspicious as to whether he even was taking aim. At the fault that Ilahan¡¯s movements were so fast, one to two arrows missed, but considering the fact that he didn¡¯t even have the Accuracy Rate Correction of the Archer-class, his accuracy rate was also at a surprising level. On the other hand, the physical abilities of Ilahan, who Ian was facing, was also incredible. With Ian on the back of Halli, who was elusive, Ilahan faced him directly while dodging or cutting down over 70% of Ian¡¯s arrows that continuously flew towards him. The two people¡¯s battle was so showy and elaborate to the point that if they said that they got in sync beforehand and were performing acrobatic movements instead, it could be believable. ¡®Damn it, Halli¡¯s Agility is probably over 10 thousand right now, so then how is he able to follow this closely?¡¯ Ian was seriously admiring Ilahan¡¯s tremendous Agility stats. ¡®As expected¡­ Is he showing that he is the unofficial number 1 ranking user?¡¯ On top of that, he had a battle sense that was no less even when compared to anybody that he had fought face-to-face up until now. Ian was slowly falling behind against Ilahan, but as Ly and Pin, and even Bbakbbak, joined in, they were able to continue onto a somewhat even battle. At this point, the one that was dumbfounded was Ilahan. ¡®What exactly does this guy do?¡¯ When he first charged towards Ian, he was planning on eliminating him in an instant and turn the tables of the war situation. He never even thought for a moment that he would struggle this much against a user who was affiliated with a guild that he had never even heard the name of and on top of that was a ¡®Summoner¡¯, which was famous for being the weakest at PvP. If in the case that Ian had put some of his personal information as public and made it possible for his ID to be seen, Ilahan would have also recognized him. Since the Summoner named ¡®Ian¡¯ was so famous to the point that there wasn¡¯t a person that didn¡¯t know of him in the community. However, Ilahan, who didn¡¯t have much interest, wasn¡¯t able to recognize Ian¡¯s face. For about almost 10 minutes, the offensive and defensive battle continued. Even Paulean joined in to attack Ilahan, but as time passed, Ian began to fall behind little by little. Ian grumbled internally. ¡®This is seriously just a difference in stats! I definitely think I¡¯m more superior when it comes to control.¡¯ Just then, when Ian was putting his brain to work to figure out how he should continue with the battle. As a deafening roar rang out behind the two people, a loud shout was heard. ¡°Wooow, the giant has been slain!¡± It seemed he was taken aback by the noise, as for an instant, Ilahan¡¯s movements ceased. And it wasn¡¯t like Ian to lose that opportunity. ¡°Where are you looking, you idiot!¡± The Magic Spheres that Ian, who hung his bow onto his back and pulled out his staff before anybody realized, shot out lodged into Ilahan¡¯s chest. Bang- Ba-bang-! [1] Hyunmu = The Black Tortoise; a mythical creature that is a hybrid of many animals, much like a Griffin. Also known as Xuanwu in Chinese and Genbu in Japanese. CH 166 Chapter 166: Impenetrable Fortress (4) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda You have dealt critical damage to DarkRuna Guild Master ¡®Ilahan¡¯!Ilahan¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 10.349. As his stance faltered, Ly also didn¡¯t lose that chance, and he drove through and bit down on Ilahan¡¯s shoulder joint. Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has dealt critical damage to DarkRuna Guild Master ¡®Ilahan¡¯!Ilahan¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 21,554. In an instant, Ilahan¡¯s Vitality Bar had been reduced to below half. Ilahan quickly stepped back as he got into a defensive stance. He looked at Ian with a dumbfounded expression as he asked. ¡°Where did you exactly jump out from? To think that there was a guy that could fight this well in the Luspel Empire¡­¡± Ian smirked as he replied. ¡°Who knows. More than that, I want to open up your stat window once. I¡¯m curious as to how high your stats are exactly, that is.¡± Ian, who thought that Ilahan was buying time by talking to him, moved his body without rest even while replying, and he charged towards him again. However, there was a part that Ian hadn¡¯t thought about. Pu-ung-! Suddenly an armoured knight, that jumped out from behind, blocked Ian¡¯s way as they collided their body with Ian¡¯s. Ian, who narrowly regained his balance and stepped back, checked the information of the armoured knight. ??? Lv 175 However, aside from their level, all of their information was set to private, so Ian wasn¡¯t able to check the identity of the armoured knight. The one thing that he could figure out was that they were not a user. ¡®What the hell is this now?¡¯ Ilahan lightly sneered at Ian, who wore a flustered expression. ¡°Why do you think you are the only one with a retainer?¡± Ian, who immediately figured out the identity of the armoured knight as soon as he heard those words, wore an embarrassed expression as he scratched the back of his head. The armoured knight was Ilahan¡¯s retainer. And the forms of about five or six NPCs that looked like they were the retainers of Ilahan appeared behind him. The average level of the retainers was at a point it was almost equivalent to Paulean¡¯s level. ¡°Ahem.¡± If this was the case, it was definitely beyond Ian¡¯s capability to face Ilahan with his strength alone, and Ian began to think of a stunt he could pull. ¡®In this case, we¡¯ll need the help of our gangster-like retainer over here as well¡­¡¯ Ian slightly glanced at the place where Kaizar was. Kaizar was jumping around on top of the bronze giant that had turned into a black boulder as he agitated the troops of the DarkRuna Guild. ¡®Do I need to lure Ilahan to over there?¡¯ However, shortly after, there was no need for Ian to contemplate it anymore. This was because Ilahan suddenly pulled back his retainers. His mouth slowly opened. ¡°I truly never imagined it to unfold like this, but it looks like today, we¡¯ll have to leave it here.¡± Ian sneered at him. ¡°Who said we¡¯re just going to send you off?¡± There were still over a thousand troops and high-level users of the DarkRuna Guild, who were over lv 140, remaining. In a battle that they had won, because they looked the same as EXP and Specialty Point lumps, Ian had absolutely no intentions of just sending them off. ¡®When leveling-up is just around the corner right now, that¡¯s nonsense.¡¯ However, Ilahan looked as relaxed as ever. ¡°I had no idea that I would even have to use this expensive scroll here, but we¡¯ll see each other next time, then.¡± Ilahan pulled out a scroll that was glowing purple from his chest and ripped it open as he chanted the incantation, and all of the bodies of the troops that were affiliated with the DarkRuna Guild who were on the battleground at that moment began to glow purple. And rays of purple light surged up into the air simultaneously. Shwoong-! The pillars of purple light that filled the air disappeared shortly after, and along with that all of the troops of the DarkRuna Guild disappeared without a trace from the battleground. Ian mumbled with a dispirited expression. ¡°Hul, to have used an AoE Return Scroll, this billionaire.¡± The AoE Return Scroll was a high-priced item that was close to 1.5 million a piece. Truthfully, in the case of the DarkRuna Guild, it was much more advantageous to use a return scroll instead of getting completely annihilated, but that was because the DarkRuna Guild was the highest-ranking guild, it wasn¡¯t from a general situation. Even for a decently high-ranking guild, that return scroll was not an item that could be used rashly. The reason for that was simple. Since it was to the point the scroll cost so much, it was better to just die. The AoE Return Scroll was an item that even Ian didn¡¯t have a need to purchase it for. ¡°Either way¡­ Then did we win?¡± Ian turned his head as he looked around the battleground. All of the users and soldiers that were standing with their two feet inside the fortress were affiliated with the Lotus Guild. Ian lifted his bow straight into the air as he shouted. ¡°We won!¡± And as if they had been waiting for it, a loud cry burst out from every direction. The confused guild members had properly figured out the situation at Ian¡¯s shout. ¡°Whooo!¡± ¡°We won against the DarkRuna Guild!¡± It was the fruit of grinding with blood and sweat for two weeks for the construction of the defensive fortress. At the pride that they blocked off the attack of the number 1 ranking guild, the guild members were all deeply touched. They had received quite a bit of damage but compared to the number of opponents they had killed, it was to the point it could be considered insignificant, and the rewards that they received through this battle was truly tremendous. For example, the level of Ian, who was at lv 140, had increased by two. ¡®My gauge was over 90% full from the beginning, but still, to have gained enough EXP for more than one level increase, that¡¯s incredible.¡¯ However, just then, a purple energy floated above the corpses that were strewn all over the grounds. Ian¡¯s two eyes shone. ¡®By any chance, is it possible¡­?¡¯ The purple energies that could only be seen with Ian¡¯s eyes were quickly sucked into his inventory. Ian quickly opened his inventory and checked the hatching rate of the Karceus¡¯ Egg. Karceus¡¯ Egg ¨C Hatching Rate: 93% And he lightly licked his lips. ¡°Tsk, still, it¡¯s not hatching yet.¡± However, as he saw the hatching rate, which was in its early 60s, go over 90%, his mood brightened incredibly. ¡®Will it be possible for me to see a God Dragon after one or two more defensive wars now then?¡¯ He wondered exactly what kind of loveable Familiar would be inside the Egg of the God Dragon. Ian felt his heart already pound. * * * The official community of Kailan was in such chaos to the point that the giant server was lagging. This was because the full version of the siege warfare video that was broadcasted by YTBC had been uploaded to the main bulletin board of the community. The title of the bulletin post was the same as the following. Goliath, who was collapsed by David. Subtitle ¨C DarkRuna, who couldn¡¯t overcome Ian. The title was incredibly exciting no matter who saw it. The guild name ¡®Lotus¡¯ wasn¡¯t that famous, but the user name ¡®Ian¡¯ was famous to the point it was no less than a decent high-ranker. Indeed, if you were a user that played Kailan, it was a title that must be clicked on. The number of views passed by the million-mark in an instant, and the video even spread out to the Kailan communities of foreign countries immediately. Wow, this is crazy! Ian basically just carried this on his own. The title is not an exaggeration, for real.No, by any chance, does anybody know what level Ian is at? How can a Summoner fight like that with Ilahan as their opponent?If you look there, he¡¯s attacking with a lv 170-range knight. It seems off to say that Ian fought him alone.I think that knight named Paulean is Ian¡¯s retainer¡­?Either way, as Ilahan fought without a retainer, when it comes to a battle between just the two of them, I think it will be more accurate to say that Ilahan won.No, why are these people fighting over something so obvious? Ilahan is probably at least 20 levels higher than Ian, so do you think he would be weaker than Ian?Oh? Come to think of it, that¡¯s true. No matter how high Ian¡¯s level is, he probably isn¡¯t at lv 140 yet, so how exactly did he fight that evenly with Ilahan?Ah, I don¡¯t know, Summoner is a cheat class! Development team, nerf Summoners!Aye, nerf Summoners!What are these idiots talking about?No kidding. It seems like they¡¯ll have to nerf Ian, not nerf Summoners.I agree with the person above. Ian¡¯s reflexive senses and his ability to adapt to circumstances are scams. As soon as I saw him kill dozens with the Bbakbbak meteor, I already wet my pants.Ha, but, this was shot from so far away that I can¡¯t see Ian and Ilahan¡¯s battle scene properly. Is Ian¡¯s personal battle video not going to come up? I want to see it¡­Won¡¯t Sojin edit that soon and upload it? I noticed that Sojin, Ian¡¯s video uploader, took full charge and continuously uploaded them.Ah, really? Good, good. I should go immediately to watch that as soon as it comes up. Through this siege warfare, Ian had reformed into a complete celebrity now. Up until now, if he was considered an existence that only received adoration from Summoner-class or new class users, now, the ID Ian began come out here and there even from the mouths of established users. It was to that extent that the loss of the DarkRuna Guild had come as a shock to many people. * * * ¡°Ugh, this restoration process is also a task itself.¡± Ian was sweating hard to restore the destroyed defensive towers along with his guildmates. This was because, although it was much easier than when they first built it, and it was possible to re-build it quickly, the amount of labour was still incredible. Herz, who was next to him, laughed as he spoke. ¡°Yo, still, isn¡¯t this seriously a profitable business?¡± ¡°What is?¡± ¡°Even if we just change the Specialty Points that we obtained with this siege warfare to resources, it¡¯s to the point that we¡¯ve earned more than we lost. On top of that, amongst the defensive towers, there were even quite a bit that had filled up on EXP and had leveled up.¡± Ian nodded his head as he replied. ¡°That¡¯s true. Since this was my plan from the beginning.¡± The War Trading Post that was within the domain was indeed a goose that had laid a golden egg. Since the more battles they went through, it would immediately turn into resources and return to them. Every time the Pyro Domain succeeded in defending, their defensive power will continue to become stronger. As time passed, they would be able to create more technical defensive towers, and when they had enough resources and funds, they would even be able to raise the facility level of the Combat Unit Production Building. As time passed, the Pyro Domain would continue to reform as a sturdier impenetrable fortress. ¡°Speaking of which, for us to have really won against DarkRuna, I didn¡¯t even dream that a day like this would come.¡± Ian smirked as he opened his mouth. ¡°It¡¯s too early to relax yet.¡± At those words, Herz grumbled. ¡°Who said they¡¯re relaxing? I¡¯m just expressing my mood since for now, we¡¯ve won.¡± Ian¡¯s words continued. ¡°However, if we just block them for sure a couple more times from now, then I think we¡¯ll actually be able to relax.¡± ¡°A couple of times?¡± At Herz¡¯s question, Ian nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. However, the next couple of times may be an even harder battle than this time.¡± ¡°Why? Because of the Kaimon Empire Army?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°Correct. As the DarkRuna Guild has failed the siege and returned this time, it¡¯s most likely that normal guilds won¡¯t try and attack our fortress so rashly.¡± ¡°That is true. Since at this point in time, a guild that has a stronger fighting power than DarkRuna doesn¡¯t exist.¡± Ian¡¯s words continued. ¡°It will probably continue to be quiet for a few more days, and once they¡¯ve occupied all the other bases that are at the front lines, our domain will probably become their target again.¡± Herz, who figured out what Ian¡¯s words meant, let out a deep sigh. ¡°Hoo, opponents will probably be pouring in from all directions then.¡± For this defensive war, it was still at least a war where they just needed to face the opponents that poured in from the front. As that was the case, the Lotus Guild also stationed all of their defensive towers at the front, and even focused their troops at the front and blocked the attack of their opponents. However, if it was after all of the bases of the front lines were occupied, the Pyro Domain will indeed just be left alone in the middle of the enemy camp, and they will have to receive endless attacks from all directions. Ian opened his mouth again. ¡°We still have time until then. We need to do everything that we can before then.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Herz nodded his head with a stern expression. ¡°Alright, just like you said, this is truly an opportunity that doesn¡¯t come twice.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. If we just guard this fortress until the end, we can also develop the guild to the point that we will be able to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Titan or DarkRuna.¡± They were not empty words. If they continued to obtain victories while facing the Kaimon Empire Army, which boasted an outrageous level range and size, in the central continent, the Lotus Guild would be able to grow at an incredible speed. The two people, who were finished with their conversation, moved their bodies for the defensive tower repair operation again. By looking at the movements of their opponents, it didn¡¯t look like there would be a situation where they would be attacked for a while, but still, they had no idea when there would be a raid, so they needed to finish building the line of defense as soon as possible. CH 167 Chapter 167: The Summoner of the Central Continent (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Hmm, as expected, on a hot day like this, the best thing to do is lying down underneath shade and getting a nap.¡± Kaizar, who used Bbookbbook as a pillow while in a gazebo that was built on top of a hill in the corner of the Pyro Domain, was humming as he took a nap. And next to him, Hoonie was pouting as he sat down. ¡°To say it¡¯s hot on a chilly fall day. As expected, I¡¯m saying you¡¯re not normal.¡± Kaizar, who heard Hoonie¡¯s grumbling, clouted his head with his knuckles like a lightning bolt. Thud-. ¡°Ow!¡± Hoonie glared at Kaizar. However, with both of his cheeks puffed out, Hoonie was unable to say anything before he dropped his head. ¡°If you have time to say such useless words, go and level up at least before you come back, kiddo. You¡¯re so scrappy that I don¡¯t even have the desire to face you.¡± At Kaizar¡¯s sarcastic remark, Bbookbbook, who was by his head, also agreed. Bbook- Bboo-bbook-. However, despite having heard insulting(?) words, Hoonie was unable to give any reply. And there was a reason for that. Just 10 minutes ago, Hoonie had lost to Kaizar brutally. What was even worse was the fact that Kaizar fought without any weapon, just with his bare hands, was a bigger shock. On top of that, Hoonie wasn¡¯t able to cut down even 10% of Kaizar¡¯s Vitality. ¡®Monster-like jerk, if I just put the Power of the Immortal in my hands, I will return this humiliation at all costs!¡¯ While looking at Hoonie grinding his teeth with rage, Bbookbbook seemed to enjoy something as he laughed while going bbookbbook. At that, Hoonie¡¯s expression twisted. ¡°Why are you laughing? When you¡¯re just a turtle with a big head!¡± Hoonie, who flew off the handle, threatened Bbookbbook, but Bbookbbook didn¡¯t even blink. This was because he trusted his guardian, Kaizar. ¡°You¡¯re being noisy, useless subordinate guy.¡± Hoonie opened his mouth with a resentful expression. ¡°No, owner! Why are you sticking up for such a stupid turtle? What is he good for?¡± However, without even giving him a glance, Kaizar replied with a lingering voice. ¡°Do you know how cooling it is to my head to use Bbookbbook as a pillow? On top of that, he provides cool water when I¡¯m thirsty.¡± After he was equipped with the inherent ability Curtain of Water, Bbookbbook had gained an ability to make water. Kaizar¡¯s words continued. ¡°On the other hand, you kiddo, are good for absolutely nothing.¡± ¡°Ha¡­¡± Bbookbbook, who clicked his tongue as he looked at Hoonie, stuck out his tongue as Hoonie glared at him before retreading into his shell. At that, Hoonie¡¯s patience burst. ¡°Damn it¡­ Just you wait, owner. I will get strong in an instant and return!¡± With a gaze burning like a flame, Hoonie spun his body around and began to walk towards somewhere, and Kaizar threw a word at him as he did so. ¡°Return within a week, kiddo. The Lord guy said that the Kaizar dudes will raid us again in a week.¡± Hoonie stopped in his tracks and while turning his head, he opened his mouth. ¡°You said I was useless! Why are you telling me to come back?¡± ¡°Still, when we¡¯re fighting, it¡¯s less boring when you¡¯re next to me.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°I think I¡¯ve finally found a use for you kiddo.¡± Hoonie, who felt his mood brighten for some odd reason at Kaizar¡¯s words, furiously shook his head as he began to move his feet again. ¡®I need to obtain the Power of the Immortal quickly even just for the fact that he plays dirty!¡¯ While looking at Hoonie, who was getting conditioned by Kaizar little by little before he even realized, Bbookbbook wore an expression full of pity. Bbook- Bboo-bbook-. And Kaizar, who turned his gaze towards Bbookbbook, suddenly opened his mouth. ¡°But, Bbookbbook, you, don¡¯t you have to go to the Lord guy?¡± Bbookbbook¡¯s gaze began to slightly quiver. Bboo-ook¡­? Kaizar¡¯s words continued. ¡°Your friends are all carrying bricks over there right now, so is it okay for you to just be playing here like this?¡± Bbookbbook, who felt attacked, glared at Kaizar. Bbook- Bboo-bbook-! Kaizar, who was also guilty, pretended to be indifferent. ¡°Oh, me, well, my manpower is too high-class to be carrying bricks, and I usually don¡¯t listen to what the Lord guy says, so it¡¯s okay, but if you continue like this, your meatball supply may be cut off, no?¡± Kaizar, who watched Bbookbbook¡¯s eyes shake, lied down splayed out. ¡°I¡¯m just going to sleep a little more instead.¡± * * * The temporary barracks of the rear Luspel base. A total of about six or seven people were sitting around the round table with serious expressions. They were none other than the Guild Masters of the giant guilds that were affiliated with the Luspel Empire. Of course, the Masters of the 3 Guilds, Samuel Jin, Martin and Roy Chen, who had an emergency meeting the other day, were also included in there. Roy Chen looked around at the whole assembly as he opened his mouth. ¡°Assuming that you all are well-aware of the current situation¡­¡± Roy Chen¡¯s gaze turned towards Samuel Jin. ¡°Samuel. What do you think about the DarkRuna Guild losing?¡± At that question, Samuel Jin¡¯s expression slightly darkened as he replied. ¡°What is the reason for asking me that?¡± At that, Roy Chen hardened his expression as he replied. ¡°Are you acting like that because you don¡¯t know? It¡¯s because the person that first proposed this plan is you, Samuel.¡± ¡°What kind of relation does that have to this situation¡­?¡± While looking at Samuel Jin, who played innocent, Roy Chen opened his mouth again. ¡°As you probably know from watching the Lotus Guild put up a good fight, if we had actively supported them, we would have definitely been able to protect the bases of the mid-upper-ranked guilds on the front lines while blocking off the Kaimon Empire Army.¡± While looking at the Lotus Guild¡¯s recent battle, Roy Chen was regretting that he hadn¡¯t stopped Samuel Jin and Martin a couple days ago. ¡®Even if we didn¡¯t make a strategy that was as selfish as this, there was certainly a different method to have blocked them off.¡¯ The reason why he was regretting this was because there was definitely a feeling of apology towards the mid-upper-ranked guild that would be sacrificed at the front lines also included, but the biggest reason was loss on the empire¡¯s part. Right at this instant, the strategy of Samuel Jin didn¡¯t look like there were many problems, but eventually, through their choice this time, the mid-upper-ranked guilds of the Luspel Empire have lost their foothold to grow in the central continent. In that case, because the mid-upper-ranked guilds of the Luspel Empire wouldn¡¯t be able to help but continuously slow down compared to the mid-upper-ranked guilds of the Kaimon Empire, this would soon result into a critical weakening of the fighting power of the Luspel Empire. As of now, as the fighting power of the users were much weaker than the empire army, it wasn¡¯t that noticeable, but as time passed, the influence of the users would grow more and more. Roy Chen thought that there would certainly be a day that they would regret not having the fighting power of the mid-upper-ranked guilds, who were comparably weaker at the moment. Samuel Jin, who was silent for a moment, stared at Roy Chen as he opened his mouth. ¡°Of course, I think that the Lotus Guild having blocked off the troops of the DarkRuna Guild is incredible. I also admit that it was a part that I hadn¡¯t predicted.¡± The gazes of the whole assembly were gathered towards Samuel Jin¡¯s mouth, and his words continued again. ¡°However, if we exclude the domain of the Lotus Guild, there was not one army that had defensive power like theirs. No, if another guild had constructed even half of the defensive power that the Pyro Domain had, I would have thought of a different method.¡± There was definitely some reason to Samuel Jin¡¯s words as well. That could be figured out even just by looking at the war situation of the front lines right now. Despite the bases of the other guilds having not received such a large-scale attack as the Pyro Domain, they were seized altogether without having even tried to resist. A low sigh flowed out from Roy Chen¡¯s mouth. ¡®Hoo, Samuel¡¯s words aren¡¯t wrong, but we should have looked for a different method¡­¡¯ The words that they should lead their troops out to the front lines and recapture the stolen bases even now were on the tip of his tongue, but Roy Chen couldn¡¯t do anything else but wear a bitter smile in the end. ¡®Now it is truly too late.¡¯ Roy Chen¡¯s mouth opened. ¡°I think it is all of our faults from the beginning. I think we should have unified the guilds affiliated with the Luspel Empire much sooner. We should have used our strength to help with the construction of the defensive power of the guilds that had possession over the front-line bases before we lost the central zone altogether to the Kaimon Empire Army¡­¡± At those words, everybody nodded their head. If they had even moved a little faster, then they wouldn¡¯t have given the central zone of the continent as a whole to them like this so easily. Samuel Jin wore a bitter smile as he opened his mouth. ¡°We need to make the rear line of defense even stronger just like our original plan. If we continuously block off our opponents, I think we will get the chance to turn the tables around.¡± Martin agreed with his words. ¡°Samuel Jin¡¯s words are right. When the chance comes, we must not lose it and just grab it.¡± It was an atmosphere where it seemed like everybody was nodding their heads at the two people¡¯s words, but Roy Chen shook his head internally. ¡®A gap that had begun to grow will just increase more like a snowball as more time passes, so how are they able to have such complacent thoughts¡­¡¯ The guilds affiliated with the Kaimon Empire, who captured a perfect victory, will now roll up a snowball while definitely creating an even bigger gap. Roy Chen shortly sighed as he came out of the temporary barracks. ¡®But then again, since we¡¯ve handled things so complacently up until now like this, that¡¯s why we¡¯ve been pushed back by the guilds affiliated with the Kaimon Empire continuously.¡¯ The 3 guilds of the Luspel Empire always showed movements that were one step too late compared to the DarkRuna Guild and the Titan Guild, who were first and second place in the overall guild rankings. And that gap continuously piled, and, in the end, this current situation seemed to have occurred. Roy Chen moved his feet towards the guild base. The only thing that he could do right now was raise his internal stability even by a little before the Kaimon Empire Army drew close. * * * Meanwhile, as they were almost going into the finishing stage of the construction of the collapsed line of defense, Ian left the domain alone. It was the fault of his body itching as he had rested from battle for two days. ¡®Before we¡¯re surrounded by the Kaimon Empire Army, I should hunt as much as possible.¡¯ As not all of the bases surrounding them were seized, if he was just careful, it was possible to go around the field while hunting. However, once they were completely surrounded by the empire army, they wouldn¡¯t be able to budge and just be shut into the domain. ¡®Before the next defensive war occurs, if I could hatch the God Dragon, that would really hit the spot.¡¯ Ian, who moved his feet while thinking of this and that, turned his head towards Bbookbbook, who followed right beside him, as he opened his mouth. ¡°Bbookbbook.¡± Bbook-? ¡°By any chance, is there anything like an undiscovered dungeon around here?¡± As Bbookbbook had shown a surprising exploration ability to the point Ian wondered if he was sometimes a hidden-piece hunter, Ian stared at him with slight anticipation. However, Bbookbbook shook his head. Bbook- Bboo-bbook-. Just then, as Ian sighed deeply with a disappointed expression. Kaizar, who was following behind Ian with an apathetic expression, said something that was unexpected. ¡°Lord guy.¡± ¡°What is it, retainer?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know about anything like undiscovered dungeons, but I know of a place that you would be interested in.¡± As they were the words of Kaizar, who whisked through the central continent battleground like it was his stage ever since a long time ago, Ian was delighted as he asked. ¡°Oh, retainer! Is there something you know about?¡± Kaizar nodded his head as he replied. ¡°It was a place that I had also forgotten about, but I suddenly just remembered.¡± Ian¡¯s curiosity amplified even more. ¡°Where, where is it? Tell me quickly.¡± As Ian continuously pressed him, Kaizar, who paused for a moment to take a breath, frowned, blasting him away. ¡°I won¡¯t tell you if you keep annoying me.¡± At that, as Ian, who recoiled in surprise, wore a sullen expression, Kaizar smirked as he continued his words. ¡°If you continue north-west from the Grave of Holdream, there is a giant rocky mountain.¡± Including Ian, even Paulean and Celia, who were next to him, began to listen carefully to Kaizar¡¯s words. ¡°And if you clear the giant boulder that is halfway up the rocky mountain, there is a place called the Altar of Selamus.¡± ¡°Selamus?¡± Ian tilted his head at the name that he felt like he heard somewhere before, and from somewhere out of the blue, an exclamation burst out. The owner of the voice was Bbakbbak, who had been following behind Ian quietly. Selamus! Oh, to have thought that I would hear the name Selamus again! CH 168 Chapter 168: The Summoner of the Central Continent (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian was delighted as he asked. ¡°Oh, is it someone you also know, Bbakbbak?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Bbakbbak nodded his head as he replied. I know them well. However, Selamus is not the name of a person. ¡°Then?¡± Bbakbbak¡¯s words continued. It is the name of one of the neutral tribes of the ancient central continent. Ian, who thought about it for a moment, asked again. ¡°Are they like¡­ The desert warriors?¡± This time, Kaizar replied. ¡°That¡¯s right, Lord guy. If the name of the tribe of desert warriors that are helping the Kaimon Empire right now is ¡®Magellan¡¯, then you can think of it as another desert tribe called ¡®Selamus¡¯ existed before as well.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Ian¡¯s two eyes rounded. Since if he could earn an artifact that was similar to the ¡®Mark of Magellan¡¯ from the Altar of Selamus, it would be an incredible help. Ian opened his mouth again. ¡°Then, is there nothing like the Mark of Selamus or something like that?¡± Kaizar, who figured out what Ian was thinking of, smirked as he replied. ¡°Huhu, unfortunately, there¡¯s probably nothing like that. Since it¡¯s known that the people of Selamus were exterminated a long time ago.¡± Ian licked his lips. ¡°Tsk, it was good until that. But, why are you saying that it¡¯s a place that I will be interested in?¡± ¡°Since even though there may not be an artifact that brings the strength of a neutral tribe like the Mark of Magellan, you may be able to find other artifacts with different abilities.¡± At Kaizar¡¯s words, Ian nodded his head as he thought to himself. ¡®But then again, if it¡¯s a place that I¡¯m the first discoverer of, at least there will probably be some kind of first discoverer¡¯s reward.¡¯ And Bbakbbak made an additional remark. The content of it was enough to tempt Ian. And amongst the powerful neutral tribes that ruled over the ancient central continent, the Selamus tribe was the only tribe that was composed of Summoners. Ian¡¯s head turned towards Bbakbbak. ¡°What, really?¡± And he slightly glared at Kaizar. ¡°Retainer, why didn¡¯t you tell me such important information?¡± However, Kaizar just shrugged his shoulders. * * * ¡°Alright, from now on, you¡¯re on your own now! People who want to remain at the front and fight head-on with the Kaimon Empire Army can go to the barracks over there and sign up to become a mercenary, and if that¡¯s not the case, it would be best to entrust your body in a domain affiliated with the empire.¡± At the words of the chief knight of the imperial family, the party that stood in a line began to disperse here and there. They were the reinforcements of the Luspel Empire that departed from the eastern continent and arrived at the central continent. And the users of the Luspel Empire that came over to the central continent by joining the line of reinforcements also began to move busily. ¡°Hoo-hoot, finally, entry into the central continent!¡± Canoel[1], who left the party, wore a pleased expression as he looked around at his surroundings. ¡°Keu, such a romantic desert. I heard that the monsters of the central continent give that much EXP, so then does that mean I just have mass-leveling left?¡± Canoel grinned as he turned his head towards the red drake that followed his side. ¡°Yongyong, you also like it here, right?¡± The drake was Yongyong, who could be considered a duplicate of Canoel¡¯s spirit. Keu-reu-reu-reu-! The drake nodded its head with a happy expression, and while petting the drake¡¯s head, Canoel mumbled. ¡°Hmm, but I have no information related to the hunting grounds here¡­ Do I have to log out and look around the community first?¡± However, just then, from Canoel¡¯s field of vision, two men walked out as they shared a conversation. Canoel listened carefully to the two people¡¯s conversation. This was because he felt like he could obtain the information he needed from them. ¡°What are you going to do now? Are you going to sign up as a mercenary and fight on the front lines?¡± ¡°Why are you saying such stupid things? We¡¯re losing every battle against Kaimon right now, so participating in the battle at the front lines is an act of suicide.¡± ¡°Still, I heard that the reward was really good, so it¡¯s not bad to participate.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about. In the beginning it may have been like that, but as we¡¯ve been pushed back too much, apparently you don¡¯t get a lot of rewards either.¡± While listening to the two people¡¯s conversation, Canoel nodded his head internally. ¡®Hmm¡­ I did hear that we were losing in the war, but it looks like the situation is much more serious than expected.¡¯ The conversation between the two men continued. ¡°Hmm¡­ Really?¡± ¡°I¡¯m telling you, that¡¯s the case.¡± ¡°Then what are you going to do?¡± ¡°I¡¯m thinking of going to a giant guild¡¯s domain that¡¯s in the back and save there before hunting nearby.¡± ¡°Oh-ho, that sounds pretty good as well. But I want to go visit the Pyro Domain once. Let¡¯s stop there before we go.¡± ¡°Pyro Domain? Ah, you must be talking about the Lotus Guild¡¯s domain. I also want to go there, but that might be a little dangerous.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°The Kaimon Empire Army has probably seized most of the bases that are around it by now. It will be okay if we¡¯re lucky and don¡¯t run into the Empire Army¡­ But if we run into them, we¡¯ll end up instantly suffering a terrible death.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Is that so?¡± Canoel, who was listening to the two people¡¯s conversation, began to move his feet. It was because he had decided on his destination. ¡®That¡¯s right, how could I have forgotten that! I came all the way to the central continent, so I can¡¯t just not go to meet my idol!¡¯ The idol that Canoel was talking about was none other than Ian. After Canoel watched a couple of Ian¡¯s combat videos on YouCast, he had become a complete fan of Ian. Ian¡¯s combat abilities, where he was able to rule over the battleground while managing his Familiars quite freely, was his idea of a perfect utopia. ¡®Alright, then it looks like I just need to find out where the Pyro Domain is now!¡¯ After discovering a Knight user that was walking towards him from the front, Canoel approached him with quick footsteps. Different from the other users, whose appearances were clean as they just arrived at the central continent, his armour was completely covered in sand. Even just by looking at him, he could sense that he was a user that had been in the central continent for a long time already. ¡°Excuse me, sorry, but could I ask you something?¡± ¡°Yes, go ahead.¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing much, but I was wondering if you knew which direction you had to go in order to go to the Pyro Domain by any chance.¡± At Canoel¡¯s words, the man, who had looked over his appearance, wore a puzzled expression as he asked back. ¡°The Pyro Domain? You¡¯re talking about the Domain of the Lotus Guild, right?¡± ¡°Yes. That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Your level is too low¡­¡± The man¡¯s gaze was on Canoel¡¯s ID and level. Summoner Canoel ¨C Lv 100 As Canoel, who was taken aback, hesitated, the man¡¯s words continued. ¡°Well, still, you¡¯ve equipped yourself completely with top-class gear. As long as you¡¯ve got some control, I think you¡¯ll be able to manage getting there.¡± To Canoel, who was the heir of SH Electronics in real life, his lv 100 top-class gear was basically the price of gum to him, and it may be obvious, but he had plastered every part on him with just the top-class items. Canoel smiled brightly as he opened his mouth. ¡°Ah, what a relief. My control is actually not that bad, so, huhu.¡± The man, who smirked, pointed in the direction with his finger as he began explaining. ¡°Go straight out that way¡­¡± Seu-reu-reuk-. ¡°What, what the-?¡± Ian, who was walking, became flustered after seeing the sand underneath his feet move. ¡°Kaizar, are you sure we¡¯re able to go this way?¡± Kaizar nodded his head as he replied with an expression like it was no big deal. ¡°Yes. Why would I lie to you?¡± Kaizar, who finished speaking, walked forward with big strides. And shortly after, Ian¡¯s two eyes couldn¡¯t help but widen. Swaaah-! That was because the sand blew up into a vortex-like shape as it sucked in Kaizar. And Kaizar vanished completely from his spot. The expression that he sunk into the ground was a little more accurate. ¡°Huk!¡± While Ian was taken aback, Bbakbbak, who was next to him, opened his mouth. Owner, I feel Kaizar¡¯s strength from inside there. I think that¡¯s the entrance of the altar that Kaizar was talking about. ¡°You, you think so?¡± Because the scene where he was swallowed by the sand was quite shocking, his feet didn¡¯t move easily, but Ian slowly began to move. ¡°It¡¯s not like there¡¯s a weird desert monster underneath and I¡¯ll end up getting eaten or something, right?¡± And before Ian could even take five steps¡­ ¡°Aaack-!¡± Along with a single cry, Ian¡¯s body was sucked into the desert sand. And Paulean and Celia, who followed behind him, also moved their feet. Seu-seu-seuk-. Shortly after, the pile of sand that had swallowed the whole party, returned to its calm state as if nothing had happened. ¡®The Altar of Selamus¡¯, which holds the history of ancient summoning, has been discovered for the first time.Your Fame has increased by 10 thousand.All combat abilities have permanently increased by 10.Your Leadership and Affinity have permanently increased by 50 each. Along with the sound of the system messages that rang out one after another, Ian fell into the dark, secret cave. Thud-. Due to a fall in a defenseless state, your Vitality has been decreased by 175. Ian, who plummeted onto the ground after being completely covered in sand, grumbled to himself. ¡°Ah, this, does it have to be this mentally disorganizing and inhospitable?¡± However, aside from his complaining mouth, he was all smiles. Since the reward that he received as the first discoverer was better than what he expected. ¡®It¡¯s a gift from the gods! I don¡¯t know about anything else, but increased Leadership and Affinity alone are already like honey.¡¯ Once the whole party gathered after a moment, Ian began to move his feet again. ¡°Kaizar, is this place that altar that you were talking about?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Kaizar nodded his head without hesitation. ¡°That¡¯s right. This is also a place that I found by chance while wandering the battleground back then.¡± With Kaizar at the head, the party slowly began to walk towards the inside, and the dark, secret cave began to brighten little by little. ¡®Hmm, it definitely does look like there will be something in there¡­¡¯ However, just then, an unwelcoming system message popped up. This is a sealed underground area with limited oxygen.Your movements have been slowed by 10%, and 0.1% of your maximum Vitality will be decreased per second.Your Vitality has been reduced by 127. Ian frowned. ¡°What the hell, you could even die through lack of oxygen?¡± If 0.1% of his Vitality was reduced per second, then it meant that his Vitality would be completely depleted in about 17 minutes. Of course, he could endure it through Vitality recovery items or skills, but because everybody¡¯s Vitality was reduced, there was no mistake that it was an incredibly fussy circumstance. Kaizar laughed at Ian. ¡°You lack training. I don¡¯t receive any damage with just this much oxygen.¡± And amongst the party members, only Kaizar was fine. Ian shook his head. ¡®As expected, a monster.¡¯ As they slowly entered while managing their Vitalities, the secret cave widened little by little. And shortly after, an open space appeared in front of the party¡¯s eyes, and in the middle of it, a giant, golden bronze statue stood. The statue looked like a monster serpent that was flying up into the air as if it was ascending, and in front of that an elder with a giant greatsword on his back. Ian asked Kaizar with a puzzled expression. ¡°Retainer, do you know that elder?¡± Kaizar nodded his head. ¡°Of course, I know him.¡± Kaizar, who paused for a moment to take a breath, grinned as he slowly opened his mouth. ¡°You could say he¡¯s the only elderly still alive after facing me with a sword.¡± [1] Canoel is the son of a wealthy family and heir of SH Electronics, who spends a ton of money in-game without really researching how to properly play the game. CH 169 Chapter 169: The Summoner of the Central Continent (3) TL: Haku Editor: SlowAsLightning At Kaizar¡¯s words, Ian looked at the elder with a renewed gaze. ¡®If they had survived after fighting Kaizar, does that mean that they are at least the same level?¡¯ Either way, it was clear that they were a fearsome person, and Ian checked the cooldown times of his skills so they could start fighting immediately. However, different from Ian who was careful, Kaizar approached the elder with long strides and spoke to him. ¡°Long time, no see, old man.¡± And the elder, who slightly glanced at Kaizar, frowned as he opened his mouth. You scoundrel, speak properly. Am I alive right now? I¡¯m dead. I wouldn¡¯t be a ghost if I didn¡¯t die by your hands ten years ago. While looking at him grumble, Kaizar smirked. ¡°Ah, is that how it works?¡± While the two spoke, Ian approached the two until he was right in front of them, and the gaze of the elder turned towards Ian. Who is this child? Did you take in a disciple? Ah, that probably isn¡¯t it. That is, since you wouldn¡¯t have taken in a Summoner as a disciple. Kaizar, who burst out laughing, replied shortly. ¡°He¡¯s the Lord guy that I serve.¡± Ian protested with a quiet voice. ¡°Could you just call me Lord instead?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t want to. You¡¯re too weak to do that.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Kaizar pointed to the elder as he opened his mouth again. ¡°Once you become as strong as that senile old man, I¡¯ll consider it.¡± ¡°Ahem¡­¡± Ian¡¯s gaze turned towards the elder, and he met the two eyes of the elder, who was also naturally looking at him. Ian opened his mouth towards the elder. ¡°What¡¯s your name, mister?¡± Who you calling mister? I am the Guardian of the Selamus Tribe, Eclipse. Speaking of which, for you to be the Lord with Kaizar as a retainer. To think such thing was possible. Even if I don¡¯t know how you talked that ignorant guy into it, you¡¯re quite skilled. ¡°¡­¡± Eclipse shot out words without rest like rapid-fire. The words ¡®you just need to pay tribute one Legendary-rank item¡¯ were on the tip of his tongue, but he barely swallowed them back before opening his mouth. ¡°It just happened¡­ But, then are you also a Summoner, mister?¡± Eclipse suddenly burst out as he replied. I¡¯m telling you, it¡¯s not mister! Call me Eclipse! It is my honorable name. Ian sighed as he spoke. ¡°Ah, understood, Eclipse. Just answer me.¡± That¡¯s right, I¡¯m a Summoner. However, I¡¯m also a valiant Warrior as well. At Eclipse¡¯s words, Ian wore a puzzled expression. ¡®What the hell? Is he saying that dual-classing is possible?¡¯ The moment that Ian, who wore an interested expression, was about to ask something, Kaizar opened his mouth first. ¡°Eclipse, what do you think?¡± About what? ¡°I¡¯m asking if it is our Lord guy, do you think that he has the right to face the Test of Selamus.¡± It was obvious, but Ian, who didn¡¯t understand what he was talking about, stared back and forth at the two people with a dumbfounded expression, and shortly after, Eclipse¡¯s mouth slowly opened. Hmm, certainly¡­ The words of Eclipse, who had thoroughly looked up and down at Ian, continued. He¡¯ll certainly be better than an ignorant guy like you. He¡¯s not satisfying, but it¡¯s worth giving him a chance if his standards are like this. Kaizar was grinning, and with an expression showing that he didn¡¯t know the reason, Ian asked Paulean, who stood next to him. ¡°Paulean, do you understand what they¡¯re talking about?¡± However, there was no way that Paulean would know. ¡°No, I have no idea.¡± However, just then, a quest notification window suddenly popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring-. Test of the Selamus Tribe (Hidden, connected quest) Many neutral tribes existed in the ancient central continent. Even amongst them, the Selamus, a tribe that showed incredible power that was in the top, were exterminated after fighting against the giant, god-like people, who were infected with the Curse of the Immortal, and just their leader remained through the underground altar. Eclipse, the Guardian of the Selamus Tribe, has discovered the potential to regain the glory of Selamus and the glory of Summoners within you. He is planning on testing you. If you pass all of his tests, you can obtain the power of the Selamus Tribe, which had been buried in the sand of the central continent. Quest Difficulty Level: SS Quest Condition A Summoner User that has obtained over a fixed amount of Specialty Points in the central continent. Time Limit: None. Reward: A Skill Book Containing the Vision of Selamus (Random) The Spirit King¡¯s Judgment Item (Random Weapon) Ian thoroughly read through the quest window. However, truthfully, even just from the part on the very first line that read that it was a hidden, connected quest, Ian had already made up his mind. ¡®Just from reading that, I have no idea what the reward even is, But surely it must be something incredibly good, right?¡¯ Eclipse slowly opened his mouth towards Ian. Summoner from the eastern continent, will you accept the Test of Selamus? His voice and way of speaking were heavier than any other time before, to the point it was hard to adjust to. Ian immediately nodded his head as he replied. ¡°Hmm, I¡¯ll give it a try, I guess.¡± * * * ¡°Goddammit, what exactly am I supposed to do in order to beat that monster dude?¡± Hoonie, who talked big to Kaizar and stormed out of the Pyro Domain, was running through nearby dungeons as he diligently hunted. ¡®However, it¡¯s going to be difficult to go up even 1 level like this¡­ The EXP that I got while participating in the siege warfare with Ian was truly like honey.¡¯ Just yesterday. Hoonie had succeeded in collecting all of dark energy that was within the crown of Holdream that Kaizar had into a wooden tag. And in order to obtain freedom, he challenged Kaizar. However, the result was an overwhelming loss to the point it was embarrassing to mention. Hoonie tried to forcibly destroy the contract by using the 100 thousand Fame that he had been saving as his trump card, but there was no way that would have worked. That was because, from the beginning, the destruction of the master and servant contract was only possible along with the 100 thousand Fame if Kaizar wanted it. Ballam, who was next to Hoonie, spoke to him. The only way is to obtain the Power of the Immortal entirely, Hoonie. You cannot beat Kaizar with a normal method. At Ballam¡¯s words, Hoonie nodded his head. However, it wasn¡¯t like he could proceed with the Immortal quest right away anyways. Since the three days that Kaizar gave him were too short to even start the Immortal quest. It was because of that he resorted to randomly hunting like this. ¡°Once the Pyro Domain is safe, I should get Ian involved and get him to do the Immortal quest with me.¡± Ballam nodded his head in agreement. Yeah, that¡¯s a good idea. If Lord Ian helps, it will probably become much easier to even successfully complete the quest. ¡°But will mean Ian actually help¡­¡± However, just then, one boy caught the gaze of Hoonie, who was grumbling while he spoke with Ballam. It was a Summoner and a red drake, and they were struggling with a Sand Scorpion that looked to be about lv 130. Hoonie, who became interested, slowly approached him. ¡°What is he doing? Why exactly is a lv 100-ish Summoner in the middle of the central continent like that?¡± Even by roughly looking from far away, he had poor control and combat abilities. Of course, as the only Summoner he had been constantly seeing recently was Ian, Hoonie¡¯s standards were high. However, the fact that the Summoner in front of him was weird was also not wrong. Ballam tilted his head. I¡¯m not sure¡­ Anyhow, that drake looks similar to the drake Lord Ian has. It¡¯s just a little smaller, that is. Meanwhile, the boy of question, who the two people were watching, was none other than Canoel. ¡°Yongyong, I think we¡¯ll have to attack the tail first!¡± Grr-! ¡°I¡¯ll try and properly block the attack from the front!¡± Canoel was fighting desperately against the giant scorpion with every ounce in him to the point he had no idea that Hoonie had gotten so close that he was right behind him. However, shortly after discovering something, Hoonie¡¯s eyes rounded. ¡°That, that¡¯s!¡± Ballam asked with a puzzled expression. What¡¯s wrong, Hoonie? ¡°Ballam, do you see that belt by any chance?¡± At that, Ballam¡¯s gaze turned towards the belt that Canoel had equipped. ¡­! ¡°That¡¯s it, right? That¡¯s the Pledge of the Monarch of Darkness, for sure!¡± The Pledge of the Monarch of Darkness was one of the necessary items required for Hoonie to proceed in the Immortal Quest. ¡®I have no idea why someone like him has that equipped on when he¡¯s not even a Black Magician, but¡­¡¯ Hoonie pulled out the staff hanging on his back without hesitation as he charged towards the scorpion. At that, Ballam, who was taken aback, asked out of surprise. What are you doing, Hoonie! Hoonie cast his black magic as he shouted. ¡°We need to save that guy first before we can ask, no?¡± * * * Whoong- Thu-thud- Keu-keu-keung-! Along with a low resonance and a loud fricative sound, the boulder in the back of the wide-open space moved to the side as a new space appeared. Eclipse walked slowly as he entered the space. Come in here, Ian. ¡°Sure.¡± Ian, who followed behind Eclipse without much thought, couldn¡¯t help but become flustered shortly after. Ring-. This was because, along with a notification sound, a truly unexpected system message had popped up. You have entered the first territory of the Selamus Test¡¯s Gateway.This is a space Familiars cannot be handled.All Familiars that are summoned have been withdrawn.The abilities of all equipment have been incapacitated.All possessed skills have been sealed.Only the equipment and skills given within the gateway of the Selamus Test¡¯s Gateway may be used. It was truly an outrageous penalty where all of his hands and feet were tied together. Even if the other parts were set aside, the penalty of not being able to summon his Familiars was incredibly critical to Ian. ¡®No, what are they expecting a Summoner to do without their Familiars?¡¯ Ian stared at Eclipse with a flustered expression. ¡°What¡­ Is this?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, which was full of a lot of different meanings, Eclipse smirked as he replied. What do you mean ¡®what is this¡¯? It¡¯s exactly as you saw just now. Our Selamus Tribe only acknowledges one as a true warrior when they know how to make their way through a difficult hurdle even without the help of any equipment or Familiars. ¡°What the hell¡­¡± Ian, who opened his skill window and item window with a dumbfounded expression, couldn¡¯t help but let out a deep sigh. All of his skills were sealed, and all of the stats of his items were replaced with 0. Eclipse opened his mouth. ¡°No, setting aside the other parts, what are you expecting a Summoner to do without a Familiar?¡± Eclipse grinned as he continued his words. That is something that depends on your abilities. For your information, I¡¯m also a Summoner, but I passed the whole test with all of these penalties. Eclipse, who finished speaking, walked out through the back side of the space. Ian barely held back the slur of swear words that were about to pop out of his mouth as he suppressed his anger. ¡®No, that was only possible for you, since you¡¯re an NPC that the developers made!¡¯ And as soon as he left, a blue curtain that was about 20 metres in diameter formed with the place that Ian was standing as its centre. ¡®Is it similar method to when we had to go through the Dimensional Magic Tower to meet Gripper?¡¯ Ian, whose state was no different from a completely naked body, slowly relaxed and began to prepare to fight the opponents that would appear soon. However, just then, another system message popped up. You may select one weapon to use for this gateway. Amongst the messages that he had seen after entering this flustering space, it was the first positive message that had appeared. However, in the next moment, Ian¡¯s expression, which had brightened, couldn¡¯t help but turn into a frown again. Different kinds of weapons are inside each box, and until you select one, you will not know the content of them. Along with the message, five black boxes appeared in front of Ian. ¡®How could there be such a cruel system like this?¡¯ Internally, his stomach hurt, but as there was no other method. Ian slowly placed his hand on one of the boxes. CH 170 Chapter 170: The Summoner of the Central Continent (4) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian, who had placed his hand on the third box, hesitated for a moment. ¡®Sure, well, since it¡¯s completely random anyways. Still, it would be great if something like a bow or a magic wand appeared.¡¯ Ian, who finished his momentary contemplation, nodded his head. ¡°Sure, I¡¯ll go with this.¡± Weapon selection has been completed. Along with the message, the weapon floated in the air. However, unfortunately, it was not one of the kinds of weapons that Ian wanted. ¡®What is this? A greatsword?¡¯ A giant, dark-coloured greatsword, which was comparable to Hellaim¡¯s greatsword, had appeared in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. As Ian grasped the handle of the greatsword, a message popped up again. You have selected the weapon, ¡®The Judgment Sword of the Spirit King¡¯. And along with the message, a bright white glow permeated the greatsword, which looked black in colour, as its blinding figure was revealed. Ian took in a sharp breath of air without realizing. ¡°Hut!¡± It was because the outer appearance of the greatsword was incredibly beautiful. The golden pattern that was inlaid into the white blade gave off a very luxurious feeling. Ian instinctively checked the information of the item, but he couldn¡¯t help but be disappointed. That was because all of the options were sealed. The only fortunate thing was that the weapon¡¯s Offensive Power still remained at least. ¡®How is the Offensive Power of a greatsword 1500? This is crazy. It must be at least a Legendary-rank item.¡¯ And while Ian was having such thoughts, Eclipse¡¯s ghost appeared next to Ian. You have selected the greatsword. I don¡¯t know if you¡¯ll be able to properly use the Judgment Sword with such a weak-looking body, but good luck to you. Ian turned his gaze towards Eclipse as he asked. ¡°What do I need to do now, though?¡± Eclipse¡¯s words continued. And his explanation was quite long. The warriors of our Selamus Tribe are divided into a total of five ranks depending on one¡¯s combat abilities. The lowest rank being a D-rank, and from there, it goes up in the order C, B, A, and S. After pausing for a moment to breathe, his words continued. Starting now, an imaginary Selamus warrior with the exact same condition as you will appear. Starting with the D-rank, a warrior one rank higher will appear in order. Ian asked. ¡°If it¡¯s someone that is the exact same rank as I am, does that mean our combat abilities are the same as well?¡± Eclipse nodded his head. A Selamus warrior that has been set to have all the same stats as you will appear. Internally, Ian let out a sigh of relief. ¡®If our stats are completely the same, whatever comes out, I¡¯ll chew them up.¡¯ As Ian had never thought that he fell behind anyone in VR when it came to control, it was confidence that he could have. ¡°I see. Please continue to explain.¡± Eclipse opened his mouth again. I have no idea how high of a ranked warrior you will be able to win against, but the rank that you succeeded in winning against will be set as your rank, and afterwards, the gateway will match the difficulty level according to that rank. ¡°I see.¡± Ian felt a desire to win bubble up from deep within his heart. ¡®If I¡¯m not an S-rank, who else would receive an S-rank?¡¯ He had already forgone taking into account the penalty that he had picked a greatsword, which he had barely even used before. He just felt interest towards the new combat condition that he had never experienced before. ¡®Well, since I¡¯ve used a greatsword in other VR games a lot before too.¡¯ Eclipse¡¯s words continued again. For now, I will continue the explanation on the next gateway after you are graded a rank. ¡°Understood.¡± At Ian¡¯s expression that looked like it was full of confidence, Eclipse smirked as he spoke. Good luck to you. I hope that Kaizar¡¯s discernment will not disappoint me. As Ian slightly turned his head, he could see Kaizar, who was watching him with an interested expression from outside of the arena. ¡®If I can¡¯t even pass a low rank, Kaizar will probably ignore me even more than he already does, right?¡¯ On the other hand, at the thought that Kaizar¡¯s attitude might even change a little if he at least gained an S-rank, Ian fired up his will even more. Let¡¯s start. Eclipse¡¯s ghost disappeared as a blue light slowly appeared in its place. And soon, that light took on a form and became a burly-looking, adult male. He was holding the same weapon as Ian. ¡®I just need to beat him, right?¡¯ The corners of Ian¡¯s mouth slightly rolled upwards as he tightened his hold on the greatsword. And in the next moment, he charged forward like an arrow. ¡®First attack leads to unfailing victory.¡¯ Because of the heavy weight of the greatsword, it was impossible to control it unless both hands were used. Ian bent his body back like a bow, and he swung down the greatsword which he had pulled up from behind his right shoulder. Cla-ang-! Along with a weighted noise, the two greatswords clashed. The Selamus warrior blocked Ian¡¯s sword in a relaxed manner as they attempted a counter-attack. ¡®I knew this would happen.¡¯ When it came to any attacks using a greatsword, the movements couldn¡¯t help but inevitably be large. That¡¯s why if you weren¡¯t careful with all of your attacks, it was easy to get hit by a counter, so it also happened to be a difficult weapon to handle. The Selamus Warrior that lifted his sword and blocked Ian¡¯s attack immediately shot out forward towards Ian¡¯s chest. Cla-cla-cla-clang-! Ian slightly twisted the course of his sword that was swinging downwards and pushed his opponent¡¯s sword away. ¡°Hmph!¡± In the next moment, along with a short shout of concentration, Ian jumped up into the air. He forced the greatsword that was being pushed down into the ground, and Ian, who used that rebound to jump, dodged the sword in a relaxed manner as he moved behind the Selamus warrior. ¡®Now it¡¯s my turn!¡¯ A counter-attack to a counter-attack. Ian, who lightly landed, diagonally swung his greatsword, which was naturally laying low to the ground, upwards. Chwa-reu-reuk-! He moved his body quickly, but the Selamus warrior, who got a long gash to his side, frowned as he regained his stance again. And Ian also tightened his grip on his sword again as he began to focus on the opponent. ¡®I couldn¡¯t deal as much damage as I hoped for. It seems that since he took my stats exactly as they are, his reflexes are quite high.¡¯ Amongst his combat abilities, Ian¡¯s reflexes were the highest. And fitting of that stat, his opponent¡¯s movements were incredibly agile. Stomp- Stomp-. Ian and the Selamus warrior moved little by little by taking small sidesteps as they watched for a weak point in their opponents. While the Selamus warrior was expressionless, Ian¡¯s expression was incredibly serious. That was because it had truly been a while since he had fought one-on-one only with control like this and without any other advantage or disadvantage. Setting aside whether he succeeded in the quest or not, Ian was truly enjoying this battle on its own. Sweeeek-! Piercing through the momentary silence, the Selamus warrior¡¯s sword attack flew through. Both of Ian¡¯s hands, which reacted quickly, met with his opponent¡¯s attacks as they began to dance here and there. Clang- Cla-clang- Clang-! The offensive and defensive battle continued. However, as the engagement grew longer little by little, Ian slowly began to find his groove. ¡®You¡¯re basically just going to keep jabbing and testing the waters, huh?¡¯ While looking at his opponent, who just continuously went with qualitative motions with his greatsword, Ian slightly rolled up a corner of his mouth. ¡®You¡¯ve made a mistake.¡¯ Thanks to his opponent, who had a defensive combat tendency, Ian was able to find his groove much easier in comparison. Ian wagged his finger towards his opponent. ¡°Are you just planning on continuously testing the waters like that? You should try and properly attack me now.¡± As his imaginary opponent definitely didn¡¯t have any emotions, he didn¡¯t think that his provoking would actually work, but it seemed it did this time, as his opponent began to charge at him. Grabbing the handle of his greatsword with one hand, Ian hung low against the ground. It was a situation where it seemed like he would just be directly hit if he didn¡¯t lift his sword up quickly and block the attack, but Ian was relaxed. ¡®Shall I gamble a little?¡¯ Focusing his gaze on the white sword that rushed towards his forehead, Ian instead threw his body forward. ¡°¡­!¡± It seemed that the Selamus warrior was slightly surprised at the unexpected action, as his expression slightly wavered, but he swung down his sword without hesitation. Whoong-! However, his greatsword couldn¡¯t help but let out an empty sound as hit ripped through the air. ¡°So long, dude!¡± Ian, who avoided the sword that dropped down by a whisker, spun his greatsword with all of his fighting power. Whoong-! Ian wasn¡¯t even holding the greatsword with both hands. While holding the greatsword¡¯s handle with his right hand, he had swung the sword that he had laid flat with all of his strength. It was indeed a dangerous attack with no backing, and the moment he failed at attacking, he would end up showing all of his weak points. However, if he succeeded in attacking, it was a different story. Koo-deu-deuk- Bang-! The greatsword that Ian was holding had directly hit the back of the Selamus warrior. In a completely defenseless state, the Selamus warrior had allowed a huge attack to hit him. ¡°Kuh-huk!¡± Even letting go of the sword that he was holding, he was thrown onto the ground and just lied there like that. Ian grinned as he lifted his sword and aimed it at his opponent. ¡°You¡¯re supposed to use the greatsword for this feeling.¡± As its movements were huge, it wasn¡¯t easy to successfully land an attack, but once a big attack lands, the weapon that could deal an enormous amount of damage was the greatsword. If it was an attack like the one that Ian just successfully landed, he could deal over ten times the amount of damage compared to the damage he would normally deal with the same stats. Ian stared at the opponent as he mumbled. ¡°Hey, you, you probably still have some Vitality left, yet you¡¯re just going to keep lying down like that?¡± As soon as Ian¡¯s words were done, the Selamus warrior slowly stood up. However, shortly after, he turned into a faint light and disappeared into the air, and in that spot, Eclipse¡¯s ghost appeared again. Clap- Clap- Clap-. Eclipse, who appeared while clapping his hands, opened his mouth with a satisfied expression. How surprising. I was truly surprised because your fighting senses are greater than I expected. At his genuine compliment, Ian replied with a pleased expression. ¡°Huhu, the greatsword is indeed a truly charming weapon.¡± At his words, Eclipse wore a broad smile as he replied. Oh, son, you know something. That¡¯s right, the greatsword is the weapon that you could call the symbol of a valiant warrior. While looking at the greatsword hanging on Eclipse¡¯s back, Ian laughed to himself. ¡®Now that I look at it, that man¡¯s weapon is a greatsword.¡¯ Eclipse¡¯s words continued. There is a reason why the sword is called the king of ten thousand weapons. Since the sword is the weapon that is the basis of all weapons, that is. Ian nodded his head as he replied. ¡°You¡¯re right, Eclipse. I also agree.¡± And shortly after, the greatsword that was in Ian¡¯s hands disappeared into the air like a mirage. At that, Ian wore an interested expression as he asked. ¡°Oh-ho, does my weapon change each time?¡± Eclipse nodded his head. That¡¯s right. Are you disappointed that you cannot use a greatsword? Eclipse had thought that the weapon that Ian mainly used was the greatsword. But then again, it was because Ian used the greatsword so proficiently. However, Ian was not disappointed at all. ¡°No, rather, it¡¯s fun.¡± Eclipse, who thought that Ian¡¯s confidence was a bluff, burst out laughing. Let¡¯s see if you can continue to maintain that confidence. Eclipse disappeared into the air while laughing loudly, and in his spot, five black boxes began to appear again. And along with that, a system message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. You have successfully suppressed the D-rank Selamus warrior.As you have succeeded in suppressing them overwhelmingly in a short amount of time, you have jumped straight over the C-rank. ¡°¡­?¡± At the unexpected message, Ian¡¯s two eyes slightly grew. The messages continued. Please select the weapon that you will use in battle. The weapon that you used in the last battle is excluded. Ian grumbled to himself. ¡®What do you mean select. You don¡¯t even show me what they are.¡¯ However, Ian couldn¡¯t help but be surprised in the next moment. This was because the black boxes became faint and in their spots, different kinds of weapons appeared. CH 171 Chapter 171: The Strongest Selamus Warrior (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Canoel¡¯s sparkling eyes were watching Hoonie. ¡®He¡¯s an incredibly powerful person. This is my first time seeing such a strong Black Magician!¡¯ Hoonie had lost his sense of existence as he was hidden by the shadow of Ian, or more specifically, the shadow of Ian¡¯s retainer, Kaizar. However, to be honest, Hoonie was one of the strongest Black Magicians in the Korean server. Hoonie¡¯s level was a whopping 145. He had the ability to eliminate a Sand Scorpion around lv 130 in an instant. Of course, the fighting power of lv 170 Death Knight Ballam, who was next to him, also played a part. With a curt tone, Hoonie spoke to Canoel. ¡°No, why did a low-level like you come to the central continent? At that level, it will probably be faster leveling up by finding a party in the northern continent and run through dungeons.¡± ¡°Huh? But the EXP given here is over 10 times more than what you receive in the northern continent.¡± ¡°No, that¡¯s only when you stay alive and hunt properly. Looking at you fight, it¡¯s like you¡¯re walking on thin ice. You¡¯ll probably die every time you raise your EXP by 1%. Ah, no. Will you be able to even catch a monster?¡± At Hoonie¡¯s cold words that struck home, Canoel slightly flinched, but he regained his composure shortly after and replied. ¡°I¡¯m not as strong as you, but still, I raised my EXP quite I bit while coming all the way over here.¡± Hoonie stared at Canoel with a doubtful look. ¡®Hmm¡­ I don¡¯t really believe him after seeing him struggle with a Sand Scorpion¡­¡¯ However, as such things weren¡¯t that important, Hoonie nodded through before continuing his words. ¡°Well, if that¡¯s the case, that¡¯s a relief.¡± Hoonie¡¯s gaze turned back to the Pledge of the Monarch of Darkness that Canoel had equipped on his waist. ¡°By the way, where did you get that belt?¡± At Hoonie¡¯s words, Canoel, who checked his belt once, shrugged his shoulders as he replied. ¡°Ah, this. I joined a Puppet of the Immortal dungeon attack just the day before I came here.¡± Hoonie¡¯s gaze began to slightly shake. ¡°And¡­ So?¡± The Puppet of the Immortal dungeon was an incredibly famous dungeon amongst the users. It was a dungeon that users between lv 80-100 usually went to, and because the main monsters were Skeleton Soldiers, which gave a lot of EXP in comparison to their weak fighting power, it was popular. Especially for Black Magicians, as there were a lot of related quests as well, so it happened to be a course that they absolutely needed to pass through. And Hoonie knew that the epic monster that appeared in the last floor of the puppet dungeon dropped the belt, the ¡®Pledge of the Monarch of Darkness¡¯, which Canoel had equipped on. ¡®However, the change to obtain the Pledge of the Monarch of Darkness from there is seriously the same rate as winning the lottery¡­ Was the drop rate 0.1%?¡¯ Hoonie had cleared the Puppet of the Immortal dungeon dozens of times. However, as he thought about how it was an item that he had never received despite his efforts, yet that dumb Summoner received it, his stomach began to hurt. However, it was now just the beginning of Canoel rubbing it in. ¡°Was it the Skeleton Mage on the last floor there that I was hunting? I received it after hunting a lv 75 skeleton. This looks really cool, right?¡± As Canoel boasted about the belt as he smiled brightly, Hoonie almost collapsed onto the ground as he lost strength in his legs. ¡°A, a skeleton just gave it to you?¡± Canoel nodded his head as he replied. ¡°Yes. It gave it to me. I didn¡¯t think that you could receive Legendary-rank items from normal mobs either¡­ But anyways, I was really happy.¡± Hoonie tightened his fist before he realized it. ¡®This dimwit, should I kill him¡­?¡¯ Coincidentally, the central continent was a PK zone, where it was possible to kill players without receiving any penalties, and Hoonie began to seriously consider it. ¡®Then that belt could even drop, right?¡¯ However, as soon as he heard Canoel¡¯s following words, he had to modify his plans. ¡°At that time, a Black Magician in the party told me to sell this, but I noticed it had an account-bound option attached to it. So, I couldn¡¯t sell it.¡± ¡°Ah, I see¡­¡± The words that it was an account-bound item meant that it was of course impossible to trade, but it was also was an item that didn¡¯t drop just because one died. ¡®I¡¯ve seen it come up in the auction house, so I thought it wasn¡¯t an account-bound item¡­ But it looks like the option is given randomly.¡¯ Hoonie internally began to feel sorry for himself. ¡®Ah, if I just have that, I can immediately start the Immortal quest¡­¡¯ Meanwhile, Canoel, who didn¡¯t know of the fact that the words that he just said saved(?) his life, continued to blabber out of excitement. ¡°I realized there was a reason why the Pledge of the Monarch of Darkness was expensive. I feel like after equipping this my skill damage has definitely gotten stronger and my casting speed has gotten faster as well.¡± And Hoonie¡¯s sight thickened. ¡®Hoo¡­ That idiot, should I just kill him?¡¯ The reason why the Pledge of the Monarch of Darkness was expensive was because it had a special option where it made the casting speed of dark magic faster by 2 times. In other words, to Canoel, a Summoner, it meant that it was a completely useless item. ¡®Is this the ¡®idiots that don¡¯t even know the game¡¯ buff that I¡¯ve only heard of¡­¡¯ It was something that spread amongst gamers like a legend. The superstition that the more one didn¡¯t know how to play a game, the better their luck with item drops, Hoonie was finally able to totally believe it. ¡®As expected¡­ It was that. I had no item luck up until now because I¡¯m a master.¡¯ While looking at Hoonie, who had a depressed expression, Canoel opened his mouth carefully. ¡°But, you, what¡¯s your ID?¡± Because Hoonie¡¯s information was on private just like Ian, his nickname was not exposed. Hoonie replied bluntly. ¡°What are you going to do by knowing my ID?¡± ¡°Still, you¡¯re my saviour, so I wanted to know your ID at least. And this is my first time seeing such a strong Black Magician while playing this game up until now.¡± As he said that, the expression of Hoonie, who became proud at the one compliment, brightened again. ¡°Keu-ha-hat, you have an eye for character. I am Kanjihoonie.¡± It seemed that Ballam felt bashfulness for some odd reason at Hoonie¡¯s words as he slightly turned his head. I don¡¯t really know what the word ¡®Kanji[1]¡¯ means, but whenever I hear that word, I get goosebumps, Hoonie. At Ballam¡¯s words, Hoonie shrugged his shoulders as he replied. ¡°It¡¯s because it¡¯s so cool, Ballam.¡± Is, is that so¡­ It must be right if that¡¯s what you say. And in front of the two, Canoel¡¯s eyes shone. ¡°Ooh¡­ As expected, your ID is cool as well.¡± At Canoel¡¯s genuine flattery, Hoonie let out a loud laughter. ¡°Keu-ha-hat, now that I look at it, you were someone that knows something.¡± ¡°Huhu, thank you.¡± Canoel¡¯s real age was 15. The reason why he could only be on the same page as Hoonie was because he was at that age. Canoel opened his mouth again. ¡°By the way, Hoonie, by any chance, do you need this belt?¡± At Canoel¡¯s words, Hoonie nodded his head as he let out a deep sigh. ¡°Yes. There¡¯s a hidden quest that I¡¯m in the middle of right now, but I can only proceed in it if I have that belt.¡± Canoel nodded his head as he responded. ¡°Hmm¡­ For such circumstances.¡± Canoel, who thought about something for a moment, opened his mouth again towards Hoonie. ¡°Hoonie.¡± ¡°Yes, Canoel.¡± ¡°Since you have graciously saved my life in the middle of the desert like this, I shall repay you for that.¡± ¡°How¡­?¡± Hoonie¡¯s shaking gaze turned towards Canoel, and Canoel slowly opened his mouth. ¡°This belt, I will buy a new one from the auction house for you.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± To Hoonie, who hunted by even saving money on potions, it was a shocking offer that he wouldn¡¯t have even been able to imagine. Hoonie suddenly grasped Canoel¡¯s hand. ¡°Hyungnim[2]!¡± * * * The five kinds of weapons that floated in front of Ian¡¯s eyes were twin daggers, a staff, knuckles, an English longbow, and a long spear. Ian wore a slightly puzzled expression. ¡®What the hell? The most standard weapon isn¡¯t here.¡¯ There was no sword, which he thought was a weapon that would have definitely appeared. Ian contemplated. ¡®If I pick the bow this time, I won¡¯t be able to use this during a harder level¡­¡¯ The bow was the weapon that he was most confident in, but for Ian, who was planning on passing through the highest rank, there was a need to save the bow. Ian asked Eclipse. ¡°After succeeding this level, will I be picking amongst the four weapons excluding the weapon that I pick this time?¡± Eclipse shook his head. No, it¡¯s not like that. 5 different kinds of weapons excluding the weapon you picked will appear at random again. Ian slightly frowned. ¡®Then that means in the next selection, a bow may not appear¡­¡¯ Because there were a variety of different weapons to the point that all eighteen weapons used in Chinese martial arts existed in Kailan, the chance for a bow not to appear in the next selection wasn¡¯t low. ¡®Sure, it would be best to grab it when I can actually use it.¡¯ Ian eventually spread his hand out towards the bow. Whoong-! As a resonant sound rang out, the longbow was paced into Ian¡¯s hand as if it was going to get sucked into it. You have selected the weapon, the ¡®Judgment Longbow of the Spirit King¡¯. Just like with the Judgment Sword, the longbow boasted a magnificent and luxurious appearance as well. Ian licked his lips while looking at that. ¡®It would be great if this one came out as my quest reward.¡¯ As the options on the item were sealed, he couldn¡¯t check them, but he had a feeling that there were tremendous additional abilities attached for sure. And along with that, the quiver that appeared in the air naturally secured onto Ian¡¯s back. Eclipse lightly laughed towards Ian as he disappeared. Then, I pray for your success in the battle. And at the blue human shadow that slowly formed in his spot, Ian quickly pulled out an arrow and placed it against his bowstring. A B-rank Selamus warrior will appear.The battle will begin 3 seconds from now. ¡°Heup.¡± Ian, who took one deep breath, slowly pulled his bowstring as he aimed at the Selamus warrior. 3¡­ 2¡­ 1¡­ And as soon as the message stating that the battle had begun rang out, he let go of the bowstring immediately and threw his body. Piiing-! The arrow ripped through the air as it flew quickly. The arrow flew directly for the head of the Selamus Warrior, but the opponent had also shot out an arrow. Saaeek-! The arrows crossed each other in the air by a whisker and flew through¡­ However, both arrows didn¡¯t hit their target and just split through the air. And the two people, who had rolled in different directions each and avoided the arrows, took aim at each other again. Ping-. Piiing-! Arrows continuously flew towards each other. Not even one arrow touched either one of them, but the space between the two grew smaller little by little. ¡®He even predicts shots and avoids them quite well. The Agility of this dude¡¯s body is so high that it¡¯s hard to hit him.¡¯ The two moved forward little by little as they continuously shot out arrows, and Ian put his brain to work. ¡®Our accuracy rate and our evasion abilities are at about the same level¡­ I think my rapid-firing abilities are a little better.¡¯ Ian coolly analyzed his opponent. ¡®If that¡¯s the case, then I should get to the outcome with the part I¡¯m better at.¡¯ After organizing his thoughts, Ian immediately moved to carry them out. Tat-! He suddenly knelt down on the ground in one corner of the arena as he got into a proper stance. While looking at Ian¡¯s unexpected actions, the Selamus warrior momentarily wore a confused expression, but he went through with his attacks again shortly after. This was because there was no easier opportunity than now to hit Ian, who had stopped in one spot and settled down there. Piing-! However, of course, Ian didn¡¯t act without any thought. ¡®At the fastest speed that I can move¡­!¡¯ Ian, who focused his mind to its extremes, shot out the arrow that was placed against his bowstring. And the arrow that he had pulled out in no time, began to shoot out following that track. [1] Kanji = Korean slang for ¡®swagger¡¯, ¡®cool¡¯, etc. [2] Hyungnim = the direct translation would be ¡®Big Brother¡¯, but ¡®hyungnim¡¯ has more of a formal and respectful ring to it in my opinion X) CH 172 Chapter 172: The Strongest Selamus Warrior (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡®There we go!¡¯ As soon as the arrow left the bowstring, Ian felt certainty from the sense he felt at the tips of his fingers. ¡®If I can¡¯t win against this guy with speed anyways, then the right way to go is maximizing my accuracy rate and rapid-firing abilities.¡¯ The fact that it was difficult to aim and hit a moving target was an obvious truth. On top of that, if the target was an arrow that was flying at a tremendous speed of over 200 km/hr, there was nothing more to say. However, Ian was thinking of hitting the arrows that flew towards him. Bang-! As the arrows filled with a powerful strength met in the air, those plans became a reality. And the arrow that followed right behind that pierced through the boom and flew through to graze the side of the Selamus warrior. He wasn¡¯t able to deal critical damage, but because of the powerful strength that was attached to the arrow, the Selamus warrior that received a bit of damage let out a low groan from his mouth. ¡°Euk¡­¡± Eclipse, who was watching that scene from the outer area of the arena, was also staring at Ian with an interested expression. Oh, to have thought he would use such a tactic. It was a method that couldn¡¯t even be attempted if one didn¡¯t have enough guts and confidence. Truthfully, aside from gravity, the arena didn¡¯t allow any other factors to affect the trajectory of the arrow, and as it was a VR game which was more generous than reality when it came to the shot judgment, it was a method that was possible, but either way, there was no change to the fact that Ian¡¯s archery skills were to the point that they were wizardry. Ping- Pi-ping-! With his stance locked down, Ian continuously shot out arrows. As he didn¡¯t move his body even one step, his accuracy rate increasing by hundred-fold was a definite, but his shooting speed also increased even more. Of course, Ian also couldn¡¯t hit all 100% of his opponent¡¯s arrows and drop them. However, he succeeded in intercepting over half of them, and for the rest, he was avoiding them by twisting his body or avoiding them with the least amount of movement possible. As the situation was like this, thanks to their similar abilities, the two people¡¯s match that was too close to call began to lean towards Ian¡¯s side more and more. Kaizar, who was watching the battle silently, opened his mouth towards Eclipse. ¡°What do you think, Eclipse?¡± At Kaizar¡¯s question, Eclipse slowly nodded his head as he replied shortly. It looks like I will have to acknowledge it this time. And Eclipse¡¯s body, which was floating in the air, slowly began to fade. It seems my turn will come soon. I should prepare. After staring back and forth at Eclipse and Ian, Kaizar grinned as he began to watch the battle again. * * * ¡°Hmm, so this is the fortress that blocked the attack of the DarkRuna Guild last time, huh?¡± The defensive fortress of the Pyro Domain. One man, who stood a little bit away from the defensive wall, slowly began to walk towards the fortress. It seemed he had put all of his personal settings to private, as no information popped up. On top of that, as he was wearing black shamanist clothing and even a black mask, he had completely hidden his identity, and with careful movements he melted into the crowd. ¡°I need to go inside and take a look at the structure¡­¡± Anybody was allowed to enter the Pyro Domain as long as you were a user of the Luspel Empire. However, the defensive fortress that was made up of three tall layers of defensive walls controlled entry rigorously. It was a measure taken so that the internal structure of the fortress that was complexly built for impenetrable defense wasn¡¯t revealed to the outside. To go inside of the fortress, you had to be a guild member of the Lotus Guild or you needed the permission of the Guild Master Herz. However, it seemed this man was indifferent about that as he approached the rampart without hesitation. And shortly after. Seu-reu-reuk-. As if the man¡¯s body melted into the darkness, he became transparent. He had used the ability Hide, which could be considered the representative ability of the Assassin. After having become invisible from using hide, he quickly climbed up the rampart. ¡®I just need to be careful of the field of vision of the defensive towers with the Detector ability.¡¯ Amongst the defensive towers, there were ones loaded with a detecting ability that could percept invisibility as well. Because defensive towers were much more expensive than compared to their fighting power, normally not a lot of them are built. Still, because they were placed all over the Pyro Domain fortress, his movements were incredibly careful. ¡®How exactly were they able to prepare a Defensive Power at this scale in such a short amount of time?¡¯ With proficient movements, the man dug through each corner of the fortress as he began to capture the structure into his eyes. His movements of hiding his body in places where the eyes of the guards couldn¡¯t reach whenever the duration of his invisibility ended were as nimble and quiet as an alley cat. ¡®Hmm¡­ It looks like I won¡¯t be able to go in there no matter what kind of method I use.¡¯ After successfully investigating all of the fortress aside from a couple of places that were completely surrounded by detecting towers, he threw his body out of the fortress with quiet footsteps. Ta-tat-! The man threw his body down from incredibly high rampart without hesitation. It was an incredibly high height to the point that it would have been hard to escape instantaneous death if he was to hit the floor just like that, but he had such a relaxed expression. However, shortly after. Seu-reu-reuk-. A black fog burst out from the body of the falling man, and he suddenly transformed into the form of a crow. Caw- caw-! The crow, who had such black feathers that it looked glossy, flapped its wings towards darkness as it disappeared leisurely. * * * As Ian was using a bow, which was the weapon he was most confident with, he easily won against the B-rank Selamus warrior. You have successfully suppressed the B-rank Selamus warrior.As you have succeeded in suppressing them overwhelmingly in a short amount of time, you have jumped straight over the A-rank. The opponent that he faced next after even jumping over the A-rank with an overwhelming difference was none other than Eclipse. Ian narrowed his eyes as he asked. ¡°Hmm¡­ Were you the S-rank judge?¡± And at that question, Eclipse nodded his head. That¡¯s right, Ian. Despite the one ranking battle finishing, the ¡®Judgment Longbow of the Spirit King¡¯ was still in Ian¡¯s hands. And over Eclipse¡¯s shoulder, the Judgment Sword shone a bright white light. Ian stared back and forth at the Judgment Bow in his hands and Eclipse¡¯s Judgment Greatsword as he opened his mouth again. ¡°It looks like this battle will not proceed with the same conditions as before.¡± Eclipse nodded his head. You¡¯re sharp. Whoong-. While looking at him draw the greatsword hanging on his back and swing it back and forth in the air, Ian broke out into a cold sweat. ¡®What the hell? How high is his Strength stat for him to be able to swing that so easily with one hand like that?¡¯ Eclipse¡¯s words continued. This last battle it will be a battle that I will end up winning no matter what. ¡°¡­?¡± No matter how good your fighting sense may be, it¡¯s not enough to overcome the level difference between you and me with tricks. At Eclipse¡¯s information that popped up above his head as soon as he was done speaking, Ian blinked his eyes, dumbfounded. Eclipse (Summoner) ¨C Lv 250 It was the first lv 250 he was seeing after Kaizar. Ian barely held back the string of swear words that almost came out. ¡®No, what the hell, he should have given me a quest that I would be able to get through, how can there be such an unbalanced stage setup?¡¯ Just like Eclipse¡¯s words, no matter how much Ian flew and crawled, it would be impossible for him to overcome a 100-level difference. Ian let out a deep sigh as he opened his mouth. ¡°It¡¯s just as you said, mister. A fight that the result is already decided for anyways¡­ Is there a reason to do it?¡± Eclipse laughed as he replied. The result of the battle is decided, but there is still a reason for you to fight. ¡°What is it?¡± There¡¯s no need for you to defeat me here. As long as you are just acknowledged by me, you will receive the qualification for an S-rank. At those words, Ian¡¯s disappointed expression slightly brightened. ¡°Oh, if that¡¯s the case¡­!¡± To be more precise, I should probably say that it is not my acknowledgment, but the acknowledgment of the ancestors. ¡°Whatever it is, I got it. I¡¯ll just do my best for now.¡± Ian spun the English Longbow that was in his hand in circles as he grinned. And at that overflowing confidence that he was showing, Eclipse also wore a satisfied expression as he replied. Alright, then shall we get started? As soon as Eclipse¡¯s words ended, a countdown that notified of the battle began to ring through the arena. 3¡­ 2¡­ 1¡­ Ian quickly placed an arrow against his bowstring. Piiing-! With Ian¡¯s arrow leaving the bowstring as the start, the two people¡¯s battle began. It looks like I¡¯ll be able to warm up my body for the first time in a while. Eclipse swung the giant greatsword back and forth as he countered Ian¡¯s arrow. Just like Eclipse forecasted, the combat stat difference between Ian and him was indeed overwhelming. However, it wasn¡¯t like Ian was easily allowing his attacks to land on him either. Whoong-! This was because when it came to battles against someone powerful, Ian¡¯s stat composition, where his combat abilities were accumulated on Agility, shone. Bang-! As Eclipse¡¯s greatsword hit the ground of the arena, a boom rang out, and crushed rocks flew out in all directions. Ting- Ti-ting-! Ian evaded Eclipse, who charged at him, as he placed two arrows against the bowstring at once before shooting. When maintaining a steady distance while battling, the tactic of placing two or more arrows against the bowstring was something even Ian didn¡¯t really use. This was because this brought an extreme drop to one¡¯s accuracy rate. However, when one needed to battle within a very short range like now, it was a different story. Ian had the ability to hit a target that was 1-2 metres in front of him even if he was to place two, no, even three arrows against the bowstring. Ta-tang-! As Ian¡¯s arrow hit the face of Eclipse¡¯s sword, a metallic sound rang out, and he opened his mouth while slightly frowning. So, you use petty tricks, Ian. Ian continuously moved his body as he shortly responded. ¡°It is, however, a high-class skill.¡± The two people¡¯s offensive and defensive battle proceeded fiercely for over 10 minutes. Ian was fighting well against an opponent whom he had a 100-level difference with. Ian¡¯s exceptional control ability exerted the most influence as to why this was possible, but there were other reasons as well. Firstly, because they didn¡¯t have any other equipment equipped aside from each of their weapons, nor could they even use any skills aside from their basic attack, it was thanks to that, that his pure control ability shone even more. However, as time passed, Ian ended up allowing Eclipse to land a proper hit. Bang-! ¡°Euk-!¡± From just one of Eclipse¡¯s hits, Ian was pushed completely back before he rolled along the ground. It wasn¡¯t as big of a skill like the one that Ian displayed when fighting the D-rank Selamus warrior, but because Eclipse¡¯s stats were so high, the damage of even an attack with a short track was incredible. While looking at his Vitality gauge bar that began to blink, Ian grumbled. ¡°No, how are you so ignorantly strong?¡± Eclipse tightened his grip on his sword as he slightly glanced at Kaizar. I¡¯m probably weaker than that dude. And Eclipse charged forward again. While looking at his spirit, which was different from before, Ian internally let out a deep sigh. ¡®As expected, he was taking it easy on me up until now.¡¯ While Eclipse showed a little faster and stronger movements little by little, he continuously suppressed Ian. From Ian¡¯s perspective, Eclipse could immediately finish the battle. However, he just continued to corner Ian to his limits, and didn¡¯t go ahead with the deciding attack. Had they fought about another ten minutes like that? Ian somewhat felt like he was being toyed with, but still, he wasn¡¯t completely in a bad mood. This was because he was moving his body crazily while battling one-on-one without borrowing the strength of his Familiars for the first time in a while. It felt as if he was reawakening the senses he was losing. However, just then, as Ian felt a foreign energy sink into his body, he widened his eyes. ¡®What the hell is this now?¡¯ Along with that, a couple system messages popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. The Ancient Selamus Warriors have acknowledged your combat abilities.Your Potential that was imprisoned inside of you has been released.All of your combat abilities have increased by 50%. CH 173 Chapter 173: The Strongest Selamus Warrior (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°So¡­ You¡¯re saying it¡¯s not a fluke, right?¡± At Samuel Jin¡¯s question, Limlong nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right, Jin. From all of the domain defensive fortresses that I¡¯ve seen up until now, they have the most exceptional standard of Defensive Power.¡± ¡°Ahem¡­¡± ¡°It is understandable considering the fact that their Defensive Power has probably gotten stronger than before.¡± At Limlong¡¯s words, Samuel Jin frowned. ¡°Are you sure you¡¯ve thoroughly looked everywhere?¡± ¡°Hmm, you could say that I¡¯ve checked out about 70-80 percent of the place. I wasn¡¯t able to approach a couple places where detecting towers were built close together.¡± Samuel Jin closed his eyes without a word, and Limlong waited for his next words. And shortly after, Samuel Jin¡¯s words continued again. ¡°Then, Limlong, how many more days from now do you predict the Pyro Domain will be able to last?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Limlong recalled the levels of the defensive towers that were built within the fortress and the scale as he was momentarily submerged in his thoughts. And his mouth slowly opened. ¡°All of the bases in that whole area will soon fall into the clutches of the Kaimon Empire Army now.¡± ¡°Right?¡± ¡°I¡¯m guessing that day will roughly be two days from now¡­¡± Samuel Jin nodded his head. ¡°As expected, your thoughts are similar to mine.¡± Limlong¡¯s words continued. ¡°If that¡¯s the case, there will probably be a large-scale attack on the Pyro Domain in about three days.¡± Limlong grasped the map that was on top of the round table with his hands as he continued his words. ¡°As the physical aspect of the Pyro Domain¡¯s eastern topography is rugged, it would be iffy to attack through there, so the attacks will most likely go in through the west, south, and north direction¡­¡± Limlong closed his eyes for a moment and rubbed his chin. ¡®The number of defensive towers is important, but I also saw quite a bit of high-rank tank defensive towers which I couldn¡¯t find out the grade for.¡¯ Limlong opened his eyes again, and the two people¡¯s eyes met. ¡°I believe that they will be able to last about a week. It¡¯s quite possible that they could last about two weeks at most.¡± At Limlong¡¯s words, the two pupils of Samuel Jin, who appeared indifferent, began to shine with unrest. ¡°No, are you saying that the Lotus Guild will have enough resources to last even a week of the Kaimon Empire Army¡¯s total attack?¡± Samuel Jin¡¯s pride was hurt. Even his guild and the Splendor Guild, which were the guilds that occupied the highest ranks amongst the greatest guilds affiliated with the Luspel Empire, didn¡¯t even have enough confidence to last more than three days against the empire army¡¯s total attack. Yet to say that they could last a week, or two weeks at most. With a slightly flushed voice, Samuel Jin opened his mouth. ¡°It¡¯s hard to believe, but if that is the truth, this is a big problem.¡± This time Limlong wore a puzzled expression. ¡°A big¡­ Problem? Why¡¯s that? Wouldn¡¯t it be easier for us to block them in the future if the Lotus guild lasted a long time and left even a little blow on the opponent¡¯s military power?¡± At Limlong¡¯s words, Samuel Jin smirked as he shook his head. ¡°Limlong, you are able to see one, but not two.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Will you check the guild rankings of the Lotus Guild right now?¡± At Samuel Jin¡¯s words, Limlong was confused but he immediately opened the ranking list and checked the Lotus Guild¡¯s ranking. And he could do nothing else but doubt his own two eyes. Lotus Guild ¨C Ranking: 37th ¡°This¡­?¡± The Lotus Guild¡¯s ranking, which was for sure outside of the top 100 just even before their battle with the DarkRuna Guild, had jumped to as high as within the top 40. Not being surprised at this was impossible for Limlong. Samuel Jin, who paused for a moment to take a breath, parted his lips again. ¡°The Lotus Guild has grown by more than two times through leading their fight with the DarkRuna Guild to victory. This is thanks to the EXP and Specialty Points, as well as the Fame they obtained while killing the 5 thousand troops of the DarkRuna Guild, that is.¡± Limlong mumbled to himself without even realizing it. ¡°Im¡­possible.¡± Samuel Jin wore a bitter smile. ¡°I also think like that. However, just as much as a sudden rapid growth of over twice the original doesn¡¯t make sense, the fact that the Lotus Guild had blocked the 5 thousand troops of the DarkRuna Guild is also unrealistic.¡± To be honest, the Lotus Guild hadn¡¯t immediately grown to reach the 37th place from just the rewards they received from the DarkRuna Guild. Of course, it was true that the victory of the defensive battle had become the biggest growth power, but in the meantime, they had even raised the rank of the Lotus Domain¡¯s Domain Rank and made it into a Large Domain, and through the resources they obtained from the training ground, they had consistently progressed the domains they possessed. Limlong asked Samuel Jin. ¡°Then, by any chance, Samuel, do you think that the Lotus Guild could grow to the point that they could become a threat to our guild?¡± Samuel Jin nodded his head. ¡°Just from looking at their growth speed right now, wouldn¡¯t it be weirder if you didn¡¯t have such thoughts?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± ¡°If in the case that the Lotus Guild lasts against Kaimon Empire¡¯s Allied Forces for a week, no, two weeks, they will be able to obtain an even bigger reward than compared to the one they received while blocking off the DarkRuna Guild this time.¡± Limlong, who had heard everything, wore a grave expression. ¡®Samuel is also right. No, the Lotus Guild would definitely grow rapidly every time they succeeded in defending.¡¯ If they were to block off the Kaimon Empire¡¯s Allied Forces for two weeks, even if the Lotus Guild were to lose the Pyro Domain, they would have obtained enough Specialty Points and EXP, as well as Fame to the point that it wouldn¡¯t have been a waste. ¡°Why do you think I purposely asked a high-class volunteer like you to scout, Limlong?¡± Limlong nodded his head. ¡°It was definitely a scout that was worth it.¡± Samuel¡¯s words continued. ¡°The structure of the Pyro Domain¡¯s fortress¡­ You brought it back inside your head well, right?¡± ¡°As a matter of fact, I briefly organized it and jotted it down.¡± Samuel wore a pleased expression as he stared at Limlong. ¡°Save all your memories as much as possible, and, no, even if you risked spying a couple more times if you need to, please make an internal fortress map.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± The two eyes of Limlong, who figured out what Samuel Jin¡¯s intentions were, grew. ¡°No way¡­?¡± Samuel nodded his head. ¡°I¡¯m planning on handing it over to the Titan Guild.¡± Limlong wore an expression full of uncanniness. ¡°Still, isn¡¯t that a little too excessive?¡± However, Samuel¡¯s expression was stern. ¡°We need to cut them off before they grow even more.¡± For a moment, confliction crossed Limlong¡¯s face, but soon, he nodded his head. ¡°Understood, Master.¡± * * * The additional 50% of combat stats that Ian received through the release of his Potential increased his fighting power explosively. Pung- Pu-pung-! The fact that the explosive power that burst out from the tip of the arrow had become so strong that it was incomparable to before was a definite, but now his Agility stat at the least was higher than Eclipse¡¯s. And at this point, Ian was able to fight Eclipse almost evenly. Your fighting power is surprising, Ian. Eclipse had lost over half his Vitality, and his gauge was blinking. He was truly admiring Ian¡¯s fighting sense. ¡°This buff called the Potential Release or whatever¡­ I don¡¯t know how long it¡¯s active for, but I must finish this battle within that duration.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Eclipse burst out into laughter. Your desire for winning at least is truly amazing. However, you have no need to worry. Since that buff will not disappear until the battle between you and I is over, that is. Even while the two people shared a conversation, they didn¡¯t take a break from the battle. Eclipse charged forward threateningly while swinging his greatsword. However, Ian increased the distance between himself and Eclipse as he constantly dealt damage. Ting- Ting-! While smacking down Ian¡¯s arrows that flew towards him quickly, Eclipse raised his greatsword. This is the last, Ian. If you can block this attack, I will acknowledge your win. ¡°¡­!¡± If the current combat condition continued, it was a situation where Ian would slowly gain an advantage. Because of that, at Eclipse¡¯s form, where he had gotten into a new stance, Ian couldn¡¯t help but become discontent. ¡®Just when I found the perfect angle to win¡­ As expected, there was no way that it would end this easily.¡¯ He had no idea what kind of attack he was going to go through, but Ian shot out arrows without rest in order to distract Eclipse¡¯s attack. Ping- Pi-ping-! Eclipse, who lifted his greatsword in front of him and blocked an arrow, stood on his tiptoes at the front as he let out a shout of concentration. Haab! And at that moment, Eclipse¡¯s body shook in disorder, and in that process, his form began to split up more and more. At the unexpected situation, Ian was frightened as he moved his body. ¡®What the hell, is he using a replicating skill? No, it¡¯s somewhat different to be calling it replication¡­ Is he using super speed movements that you see in martial arts books or movies?¡¯ Shortly after, Eclipse¡¯s body, which had been divided into a total of three, raised their swords at the same time and they charged towards Ian. Heu-aab! Ian internally let out a string of swear words as he pulled out an arrow and lifted it up. ¡®No, I thought it was impossible to use a skill! Isn¡¯t it foul play to use a weird ability like that?¡¯ However, as Ian knew better than anyone else that no matter how much he grumbled, nothing would change, so he busily moved his body. ¡®Damn it, it¡¯s hard enough to hit even one of him if he moves that randomly, so then what are they expecting?¡¯ Thanks to having distancing himself as much as possible, he still had about a 20-metre margin, but a distance like that was short enough that it could be reduced in an instant. Ian let go of the bowstring without delay. ¡°Damn it, I¡¯ll hit everything, alright!¡± Ian¡¯s rapid-firing started for the second time. Ping- Ping- Ping-! It would be best if he hit all three of Eclipse¡¯s replications precisely with just three arrows, but Ian, who decided that was close to almost impossible, continued to shoot out arrows. Ping- Ping-! Despite it looking like he had perfectly hit the replication, Ian¡¯s arrow passed through the shadow in vain as it flew by. Ian was also not just standing still while he shot them out, but the movement speed of Eclipse, who used the replication skill, had become two times faster than before, and the distance between Eclipse and Ian couldn¡¯t help but grow smaller and smaller. It had truly become a volatile situation. ¡®Argh, just get hit!¡¯ Ian plucked the bowstring without rest, while Eclipse constantly reduced the distance between them while he skillfully squeezed by them. However, just then, a replication that suddenly moved quickly caught Ian¡¯s eye. ¡°¡­!¡± And at that moment, he felt a chilly energy behind him. Ian reflexively twisted his waist as he threw the arrow that he was holding behind him. Puck-! A blunt sound rang out, and that meant that the arrow that Ian threw struck something. Ian quickly placed a new arrow against his bowstring and shot it out. Bang-! As the explosive power that was on the arrowhead burst out, a roar rang out. Whoong-! Along with a loud resonating sound that shook the whole arena, the replications that lunged towards Ian turned into white smoke on the spot and disappeared. ¡®Did I¡­ Hit him?¡¯ As there was nothing that was certain yet, Ian reflexively stepped backwards as he increased the distance between Eclipse and him. However, in the next moment, the system messages that popped up told Ian of his victory. Ring-. You have successfully suppressed the S-rank Selamus Warrior ¡®Eclipse¡¯.The Selamus Hall of Fame has been updated.The name of User ¡®Ian¡¯ has been engraved in the highest point of the Selamus Hall of Fame.You have obtained 15.6 million EXP.You have obtained 300 thousand Fame.You have leveled up. You have reached lv 151. CH 174 Chapter 174: The Strongest Selamus Warrior (4) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Definitely for Eclipse, but even for Kaizar, who was the very person that brought Ian to the altar, a completely unexpected result occurred. Eclipse, who was shattered, turned into a blue light and appeared in that same spot again, while Ian checked his information window while grinning. Kaizar, who looked back and forth at the two people, slowly opened his mouth. ¡°How surprising, Ian. To think that it was even possible for you to have beaten that old man.¡± At Ian¡¯s combat abilities, Kaizar wore a genuinely surprised expression. Since Eclipse was one of very few strong people that Kaizar acknowledged. And with an arrogant expression, Ian opened his mouth towards Kaizar. ¡°Huhu, this is how good I am. Don¡¯t look down on me anymore now, retainer.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Kaizar wore an expression showing that he was not pleased. However, Ian was satisfied in his own way. Since he had escaped from his sneers at the least. ¡°Psh, so picky.¡± Eclipse, who completely revealed himself again, approached Ian. How surprising. I express my respect towards your combat abilities. While looking at Eclipse, whose way of speaking first off had changed, Ian wore a pleased smile. ¡°thank you. I was lucky.¡± Ian let out a humble comment that clashed with him. ¡®The quest isn¡¯t done yet. I need to raise our Affinity as much as possible.¡¯ This was the same as the instinct of a gamer, who had become over sophisticated. Huhu. I had no idea that this would be the case, but either way, you have passed the first test as an S-rank. Congratulations. As Eclipse¡¯s words ended, a system message that alerted Ian that the quest was completed popped up in front of his eyes. Ring-. You have successfully carried out the ¡®Test of the Selamus Tribe (1)¡¯.Clear Rank: SSYou have obtained 12.25 million EXP.You have obtained 100 thousand Fame.You have obtained the ¡®Vision Magic Scroll¡¯ of the Selamus Tribe.You have obtained the ¡®Weapons of Judgment Box¡¯. Ian, who checked the message, hurriedly opened his inventory and checked his reward, and in the next moment he immediately frowned. ¡°No, Eclipse, this is too much, no?¡± Eclipse tilted his head as he replied. What do you mean? ¡°Setting aside skills, you should at least let me pick the type of weapon!¡± The magic scroll that Ian received was an item that allowed him to randomly obtain a vision skill of the Selamus Tribe, while the Weapons of Judgment Box, suggested from its name, was an item that allowed him to randomly obtain one of the ¡®Judgment¡¯ weapons. While looking at Ian, who had a tearful face, Eclipse slowly shook his head. Ahem¡­ That¡¯s not something that I can help you with. As it is a treasure that has been passed down from the ancestors¡­ To be honest, Eclipse wasn¡¯t much different. If he wanted to blame someone, he should have blamed the development team, as there would be nothing that would change if he blamed Eclipse. Ian let out a deep sigh as he firstly pulled out the magic scroll. ¡®I wonder what kind of skill will come out.¡¯ The corners of the mouth of Ian, who held the magic scroll in his hand, curled upwards again. He did complain, but at least while he used a random reward item, he couldn¡¯t help but always feel his heart flutter. ¡°Open!¡± Ian¡¯s mouth parted, and along with that, the information of the newly obtained skill popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring-. Will of the Selamus Warrior Classification: Active Skill Skill Level: Lv 0 Skill Rank: Legendary Proficiency: None Consumption Cost: None Cooldown Time: 30 minutes For 20 minutes, all combat stats will increase by 40%, and one combat stat of choice may be granted the total combined stats of the caster¡¯s non-combat stats. Also, for the duration of the ¡®Will of the Selamus Warrior¡¯, the Proficiency of all weapons will increase by ¡¯15 levels¡¯, and the caster may receive all of the combat compensation effect that occurs through the weapon Proficiency increase. *For the duration of the ¡®Will of the Selamus Warrior¡¯, no other skill can be used. *Skill acquisition condition: Only a Summoner who has been acknowledged by the Selamus Tribe may master the skill. After thoroughly reading the skill, Ian¡¯s head became a little chaotic. ¡®It definitely is a good skill¡­ But I¡¯ll need to use it really wisely.¡¯ Firstly, the skill¡¯s rank was Legendary. This was the first Legendary-rank skill that Ian possessed. And fitting of the rank, it had an incredible buff effect. ¡®For it to boost combat stats by 40% and even turn non-combat stats into a combat stat¡­¡¯ Ian¡¯s non-combat stats were incredibly high. Because he had been grinding and producing talismans whenever he had time ever since he had obtained a Production Class, even if he was to deduct his class stats, such as Affinity, etc., he had obtained a ton of miscellaneous stats such as Dexterity, Luck, Endurance, etc. Their numerical values alone weren¡¯t high, but as there were so many different kinds, if he combined them all, the level of that ability couldn¡¯t be disregarded. ¡®Let¡¯s see here, if I add them all¡­¡¯ Ian began to diligently add his stats together one by one, and after he checked the result, he couldn¡¯t help but be surprised. ¡®If I add it all and invest it into my reflexivity, it will be close to twice my current stats.¡¯ On top of that, as he could turn those stats over to his Offensive Power or Defensive Power when needed, the application methods were endless. However, the additional effect that was written underneath was even more of a scam than the stat buff. ¡®The Proficiency of all kinds of weapons will increase by 15 levels.¡¯ In other words, this meant that even if he used a weapon that he was holding for the first time, he would fundamentally receive a Proficiency of Intermediate-rank Lv 5. This was because Proficiency was divided into four stages, which were Beginner-rank, Intermediate-rank, High-rank, and finally Master, and each stage was made up of 10 levels. ¡®Even with just this skill, it¡¯s the same as having accomplished my reason for coming here.¡¯ From Ian¡¯s judgment, this skill was definitely a tremendous buff skill that he had yet to have even seen up until now. ¡®Rather than a buff skill, should I be calling it a set-shifting skill?¡¯ This time, Ian¡¯s gaze turned towards the bottom of the scroll. For the duration of the ¡®Will of the Selamus Warrior¡¯, no other skill can be used. Just as much as it certainly had amazing buffing abilities, the penalty was definitely just as critical. For the 20-minutes that the Will of the Selamus Warrior state lasted, depending on the situation, the fact that he couldn¡¯t use any skill could be truly critical. ¡®Before I use the Will of the Selamus Warrior skill, I¡¯ll first need to go through all my other buff skills, so I¡¯ll need to manage the skill cooldown times even better¡­¡¯ If he accidentally used the Will of the Selamus Warrior skill first, he would have to go into battle without having received any other buffs for 20 minutes. Ian diligently put his brain to work. ¡®It probably means that I can¡¯t even summon or withdraw any Familiars for 20 minutes either, right?¡¯ To be honest, this part pulled at Ian¡¯s heart the most. Up until now, if he saw a Familiar that was in a dangerous situation during battle, he always protected his Familiars by withdrawing them. However, if he was in a state where the Will of the Warrior was invoked, he wouldn¡¯t be able withdraw his Familiars even if they were in a situation of death. ¡®However, one thing that is for certain is that even if the penalty is considered, I won¡¯t be able to do anything else but use this skill.¡¯ Ian figured out the exact use for this skill. To put a Summoner in the most optimal state so that they could personally play an active role in the battle, that was the role of this skill. Different from other classes, Summoners could use any kind of weapon freely. The Summoner was the only class that could use any kind of weapon without a penalty, but on the other hand, it was also the only class that didn¡¯t have anything like an exclusive weapon where they could obtain any class compensation. Of course, attack skills that were related to a weapon¡¯s characteristics didn¡¯t exist, and if that was the case, inability to use a skill was not that big of a penalty when it came to a ¡®Summoner¡¯s personal battle¡¯. Eclipse asked Ian, who was still submerged in his thoughts. What are you thinking about for such a long time? Ian, who was thinking about the skill application method frantically, became surprised as he replied. ¡°Ah, I was thinking about how to use the new skill I obtained during battle.¡± Hmm¡­ I see. However, as you aren¡¯t done with the things that you have to do yet, I need you to hurry a little. Ian, who only then remembered that this quest was a connected quest, scratched the back of his head. ¡°Ah, understood. One moment.¡± Ian, who roughly organized his thoughts on the skill, pulled out the weapon box this time. ¡®It would be best if a bow came out from here¡­¡¯ Ian, who placed his hand on top of the box, recited with a low voice. ¡°Open.¡± As he did so, the box that was packaged with a luxurious-looking pattern floated into the air, and while letting out a golden current, it opened. Ring-. You have opened the ¡®Weapons of Judgment Box¡¯.You have obtained the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯. Judgment of the Spirit King Classification: Long Spear Rank: Legendary Equip Limit: S-rank Selamus Warrior Offensive Power: 1825-2005 Durability: 105/105 Option: All combat abilities +150 Leadership +200 Affinity +150 The Vitality of all Familiars summoned will increase by 15%, while their Offensive Power will increase by 35%. *Sensitivity If critical damage is dealt to an opponent, one of the Inherent Abilities of the summoned Familiars will have a 20% chance of being invoked. (Abilities that are impossible to invoke based on bodily conditions will not be invoked.) *Lightning of Judgment An attack has a 10% chance of summoning the ¡®Lightning of Judgment¡¯. The ¡®Lightning of Judgment¡¯ deals a greater amount of damage the higher one¡¯s ¡®Spirit Magic¡¯ is, and with the point that the lightning was summoned as the standard, 50% damage will additionally be dealt to opponents within a 5m radius. *This is an item belonging to User ¡®Ian¡¯. This item cannot be transferred to another user or be sold, and even if the character dies, it does not drop. This is the weapon of the Spirit King, who protected the ancient Selamus Tribe. Amongst all of the weapons of the Spirit King, this is the strongest and most precious. The ¡®Judgement of the Spirit King¡¯ shone brightly. While holding the spear handle, Ian read the item¡¯s information, dazed. ¡®This¡­ It¡¯s to the point that I need to polish up on my spearmanship starting now.¡¯ To be honest, the additional option that was attached was incredibly similar to the ¡®Ancient Summoner¡¯s Steel Knuckle¡¯ that Ian used a long time ago. The part that it boosted the Vitality and Offensive Power of summoned Familiars was also similar, and you could especially consider ¡®Sensitivity¡¯, which could invoke an Inherent Ability of a Familiar, a perfect carbon-copy ability. However, the basic Offensive Power of the weapon itself was tremendous to the point that it was incomparable to the knuckle, and as he especially wanted to invoke the Lightning of Judgment immediately, it was to the point his body itched all over. ¡®Its outer appearance is totally my style, too.¡¯ Just like the snake spear, which was a weapon with the name ¡®Snake¡¯ as the end of the blade was bent like a snake, the blade of the spear, which was bent beautifully in the shape of a lightning bolt, drew Ian¡¯s gaze perfectly. Eclipse, who approached Ian¡¯s side, also threw in a word. Ian, you¡¯re incredibly lucky. Ian, who didn¡¯t understand what he was saying, blinked both eyes as he asked back. ¡°Sorry? What do you mean?¡± Eclipse¡¯s words continued. The weapon that you¡¯re holding right now, that is. ¡°¡­?¡± It is a legendary weapon that is known as the strongest weapon amongst the Judgment weapons. You can think of it as the weapon that represents the Judgment weapons. Ian wore a renewed expression as he fidgeted with the spear. ¡®Is that the reason why the name of the type of weapon is not mentioned separately like the Judgment Sword or the Judgment Longbow?¡¯ Whoong- Hoong-! Ian, who swung the spear here and there, nodded his head with a satisfied expression. ¡°It indeed feels like I¡¯ve obtained an amazing weapon. I will use it well.¡± Eclipse grinned as he opened his mouth. Of course, that spear is a weapon that still has an incredible force, but if you pass through the last gateway as well, you may be granted a couple more abilities. ¡°¡­!¡± Ian felt his will burn up even more. ¡®If I can be granted additional abilities on top of this, I will be able to move on to the next stage.¡¯ While looking at Ian, who overflowed with motivation, Eclipse smirked. Since you¡¯ve obtained a good item now as well, it looks like I¡¯ll have to let you know about the next gateway. With a voice overflowing with confidence, Ian replied. ¡°Of course. Whatever gateway it is, I will try to pass it.¡± However, in the next moment, Ian couldn¡¯t help but be greatly surprised. However, you won¡¯t be able to challenge it right away now. ¡°Huh? What does that¡­?¡± That¡¯s because the S-rank gateway is not here. ¡°¡­?¡± A new quest notification window popped up in front of the eyes of Ian, who was wearing a puzzled expression. Ring-. The Test of the Selamus Tribe (Hidden, Connected Quest) You have received acknowledgement from Eclipse, the Guardian of the Selamus Tribe, as an S-rank Warrior, which is the best rank, and you have obtained the best-ever results. Now you must challenge the mission that no one has ever challenged before. If you wake up the Flying Dragon of the Altar of the Selamus Tribe, they will guide you. Quest Difficulty Level: SSS Quest Requirement: An S-rank Selamus Warrior acknowledged by Eclipse. A Summoner User that is over lv 200. Time Limit: None. Reward: Evolution of the weapon ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯. ¡®Spirit King Summoning¡¯ Magic Square. CH 175 Chapter 175: Enemies on Every Side (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The Lotus Domain was considered the hottest place in the northern continent recently. And even inside there, the biggest pivotal topic was the Lotus Training Ground. The only training ground amongst the ones in Kailan that had maxed out their facility level, this place was the biggest source of funds for the Lotus Guild. ¡°Huhu, this is truly interesting information, that is.¡± An old man with speckled hair petted two baby wolves back and forth in one corner of the Training Ground¡¯s office as he wrote something into his notes. He was none other than Professor Lee Jinook. ¡°To think that experimentation on the Familiar Breeding System would be this fun.¡± Lee Jinook continuously resided within the Lotus Training Ground as he managed the Training Ground, and as he constantly butted heads with Familiars, he was able to obtain the ¡®Familiar Breeding¡¯ skill. And after he obtained the breeding skill, he conducted experiments on that all day. ¡®Even when Jinsung first offered, I had no idea that it would be this fun, that is.¡¯ Meanwhile, he received the experimental notes on Familiar stats from Ian, and with that as the foundation, he was analyzing how the stats of new individuals that could be obtained through breeding formed. ¡°Let¡¯s see here, the growth rate of Wolf A¡¯s Offensive Power is about 3.25, while the growth rate of its Defensive Power is about 1.7.¡± His note was completely filled with the stats and growth rates of the Familiars based on their levels. The growth rate was the average of the increased stats whenever a Familiar leveled up. ¡°You take after your mom¡¯s Offensive Power and Reflexes.¡± Lee Jinook petted the baby wolf as he mumbled. The content of his words was enough to cause someone who heard him to wear a dumbfounded expression. ¡°It looks like you take after your dad¡¯s Defensive Power, and your personality and Potential are also from your dad, huh?¡± Just when Lee Jinook mumbled as he continuously analyzed his notes, the door burst open as someone came in. And in the quiet room, a pleasant, silvery voice rang out. ¡°No, Professor, it¡¯s not even that their facial features look alike, but to say that they¡¯re Defensive Powers are similar. Professor, are you taking after Jinsung as well?¡± The heroine of the voice was Harin. ¡°Huhu, have you come, Harin?¡± While looking at Lee Jinook, who even guffawed at her scolding as he didn¡¯t tear his eyes away from the note, Harin let out a deep sigh. ¡°I¡¯ve come to see you for the first time in a while, and you¡¯ve become one step more like Jinsung. There¡¯s no other game addict.¡± At Harin¡¯s words, Lee Jinook smirked. ¡°I¡¯ve still got a long way to go until I can follow Jinsung. I¡¯ve just started opening my eyes to the enjoyment of game experiment now, Kkul-kkul.¡± Harin shook her head as she turned her gaze. And the place that her gaze fell on was the wall where Lee Jinook had jotted down unknown codes and pasted them densely. ¡°Professor, what are all of these?¡± At Harin¡¯s question, Lee Jinook put down his pen as he slowly turned his head. ¡°Huhu, could you call it big data in order to pick the most amazing individual amongst the same type of Familiars?¡± At his words, Harin wore a puzzled expression. ¡°Sorry? What does that mean? Can the same Familiar have different stats?¡± As Harin was a Priest and Cook, she obviously couldn¡¯t help but have no specialty knowledge on the Summoner class. Lee Jinook¡¯s words continued. ¡°Just like how each person has different abilities, the Familiars in Kailan also have different stats. The experiment that I¡¯m doing right now, you could call it an experiment to find the most remarkable individual through breeding.¡± Out of excitement, Lee Jinook began to release all the content that he had experimented on up until now. ¡°Oh, really?¡± At first, Harin also began to listen to his explanation with interest. However, after not even 5 minutes had passed, she shook her head as she couldn¡¯t help but stand up. ¡®Ha¡­ Professor, it looks like he¡¯s really intending on writing a paper with Familiar Breeding.¡¯ In some aspects, Lee Jinook had a more intense tenacity than even Ian. And his experiments were truly gathering quite a large outcome. Lee Jinook pulled out a notebook from his drawer as he opened it up. With flush writing and even numbering, the information in the note were listed. The stats of Familiars born through breeding certainly receive influence from the stats of the individuals which would be their parents.Amongst the combat abilities of Familiars born through breeding, they will receive two kinds of stats from their parents randomly, and the remaining two kinds of stats will receive influence from the breeding environment.Familiars through breeding will receive their Potential from the male individual at a steady rate. That was the notebook where the principles of breeding that Lee Jinook discovered were organized into. However, Harin sharply spun her head away. ¡°Euh, Professor. It feels as if I¡¯m looking at what¡¯s going to be on a midterm test.¡± Lee Jinook just guffawed. ¡°Huhu, is that so? You¡¯re saying that the things on a midterm test for a cooking class are filled with such interesting content, huh?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Harin, who was at a loss for words, just shook her head back and forth, and Lee Jinook mumbled on his own with an excited voice. ¡°Speaking of which, when is our Jinsung going to visit here? I really want to show him this notebook as soon as possible. He will definitely like it a lot, that is.¡± Harin wanted to refute by saying that there was no way Jinsung would like that, but she shut her mouth tight. ¡®I somehow feel like he¡¯ll really like it, that is.¡¯ Harin¡¯s plan of asking Professor Lee Jinook to try and reduce Jinsung¡¯s game playing time even by a little, failed even before she could even start it. * * * ¡°Haaa¡­¡± Jinsung, who stretched as he got up from his bed, squinted his eyes after checking the time. ¡°Euah¡­ Because of an unexpected quest, I used up too much time.¡± He obviously was unable to even start the additional connected quest of the Test of the Selamus Tribe. Since even if he was to deduct the other conditions, the level restriction was 200. Based on Eclipse¡¯s words, the difficulty level of the connected quests was decided on the obtained warrior rank, but as Ian had received such a high rank, apparently that was why he had such a nonsensically high-level requirement. ¡®It may have actually turned out for the better, since even if I could immediately proceed with the quest, I wouldn¡¯t have had enough time.¡¯ If the connected quest was to proceed, it would have taken at least a couple more days. And there was no way that the Kaimon Empire¡¯s Allied Forces would wait until Jinsung was finished with his quest. Jinsung¡¯s heart grew urgent. ¡®It¡¯s about time for the Allied Forces to come barging through now¡­¡¯ It was definite that the Allied Forces¡¯ full-scale attack would happen today or tomorrow, and Jinsung wanted to inspect the overall part of the domain¡¯s line of defense with his own two eyes before then. ¡°Sure, well, since a person won¡¯t die just because they skip breakfast once.¡± Jinsung, who was planning on at least eating cereal for a light meal, changed his mind and entered the capsule. As Jinsung skillfully went and lied down in the capsule, the door of the capsule softly closed. Welcome to the world of Kailan.Summoner ¡®Ian¡¯, please enjoy your time. The comments subtly changed every time he logged on. Jinsung, who suddenly felt that it was cool, smirked as he mumbled to himself. ¡®Even each NPC has a different AI, so something like this is probably nothing to them.¡¯ Ian, who logged into the game, looked around his surroundings. The place that Ian had logged into was a campground that was temporarily made. And a familiar voice that greeted Ian was heard. ¡°Are you awake now, Lord guy?¡± At the familiar voice that he heard from behind him, Ian slightly frowned. ¡°When are you going to call me Lord, Retainer?¡± ¡°Well¡­ Will the day that I call you that even come?¡± Ian, who was about to fly off the handle at Kaizar¡¯s sarcasm, suddenly became curious of his Loyalty. ¡®Would it have gone up a little through this quest?¡¯ Ian opened the retainer information window. And he let out a deep sigh internally. ¡®It went up, but only by an ant¡¯s footstep.¡¯ Kaizar¡¯s Loyalty was 10/100. ¡®Still, this is the first time that it¡¯s reached a two-digit number, so should I be satisfied?¡¯ The reason why it had even gotten up this much was probably because he put up a good fight against Eclipse. ¡°Alright, shall we return to the domain now?¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Celia and Paulean responded at the same time. ¡°Yes, Lord!¡± Ian began to move quickly while leading his retainers. He needed to return to the domain even one minute faster and inspect the fortress. ¡®I wonder what the other guild members are doing right now.¡¯ Without a moment to rest, Ian opened the guild chat window while moving his feet. Ian: Everyone, there wasn¡¯t much that happened yesterday, right?Fiolan: Yes, well. There wasn¡¯t much. Speaking of which, Ian, were you just doing a quest all day yesterday? You didn¡¯t even attend the evening guild hunt either¡­Ian: Yes. The quest took a little longer than I expected. Speaking of which, is there movement from the Kaimon Empire Army¡¯s side yet?Kroban: It seems quiet so far. However, they¡¯ll attack soon now. They¡¯ve seized all of the bases at the front besides our domain now.Ian: Ah-ha, I see. Everybody who is seeing the guild chat window right now, please tell the guild members who are not logged on to all log in. We must maintain a logged-in state as much as possible for today and tomorrow.Carwin: Alright, understood.Herz: I also just logged in. Come back to the domain quickly. There are some things that we must discuss.Ian: Okay. Ian, who closed the chat window, checked the map as he headed for the domain within the shortest distance possible. Because the campground where he logged in at and the Pyro Domain was not that far away from each other, Ian was able to arrive at the domain soon. However, just then, a suspicious shadow caught Ian¡¯s eyes. ¡®Who is that? How are they able to appear on that side? Are they a guild member?¡¯ The black shadow appeared underneath the steeple of the fortress rampart in the corner and leisurely disappeared off to somewhere. ¡®There shouldn¡¯t be a passageway that way, though¡­?¡¯ Ian, who personally participated in the construction of the Pyro Domain¡¯s fortress, knew of the whole structure of the fortress. Because that was the case, if it was a normal situation, he knew that there would never be someone that appeared near the steeple. Ian, who sensed something suspicious, immediately summoned Halli. ¡°Halli, Summon!¡± Grr-! Ian, who quickly got on Halli, spoke towards Kaizar. ¡°Kaizar, go inside the domain with Paulean and Celia first.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Kaizar nodded his head with an unbothered expression. ¡°Understood. We¡¯ll do that.¡± And before he even heard Kaizar¡¯s response, Ian got on Halli and began to run. ¡°Halli, Blessing of the Wind!¡± Ian, who had invoked Halli¡¯s Inherent Ability which maximized his Agility, quickly reduced the distance between them and the black shadow. And the shadow that was headed towards somewhere seemed to have felt that Ian was following them, as they stood tall in that spot. As he grew closer, the shadow of a man emerged. ¡®What the hell? Are they an Assassin?¡¯ Beginning with their black uniform and mask, the man, whose whole body was covered in a black light, stood tall while facing Ian. Tat-. Ian, who felt that the man had no intentions of running away, got down from Halli¡¯s back as he glared at the man. ¡°You are?¡± Ian pulled out the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯, which he had obtained as a reward for battling against Eclipse. While looking at Ian, who let out a threatening spirit that felt as if he would swing his spear around at any moment, the man burst out laughing. ¡°A Summoner that rides a Hallikan around¡­ You must be that famous ¡®Ian¡¯.¡± The man smirked as he spread his hand behind him and pulled out his weapons. The things that were held in both his hands were large wind and fire wheels, which shone a white light because of the sunlight that reflected off of them. Ian took one step forward as he opened his mouth again. ¡°I would like if you responded to the question first.¡± However, his opponent, who wasn¡¯t the least bit intimidated even by Ian¡¯s threat, lowered his stance as he stared back at Ian¡¯s two eyes. ¡°Try to find it out through your abilities if you¡¯re curious.¡± CH 176 Chapter 176: Enemies on Every Side (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian¡¯s mind raced in order to grasp any information on his opponent. ¡®Firstly, just from looking at the equipment they have on, I can tell that they are for sure an Assassin¡­¡¯ The Assassin stood in a relaxed state even despite having figured out Ian¡¯s identity. From what Ian knew, there were not a lot of Assassins in Kailan whose abilities were high enough. Truthfully, that was the reason why he sent off his retainers first. Because he was sure that there wasn¡¯t a user amongst the Assassins, which was a new class, that could face him. Since he was already confident that he could face them alone anyways, if his opponent was to run away because he dragged his retainers along with him, there was no way for Ian to catch an escaping Assassin. ¡®Firstly, I think there¡¯s just one in the Luspel Empire¡­ The dude that beat me in the rookie league before, was his name Limlong?¡¯ However, as Ian thought that there was no reason for an Assassin affiliated with the Luspel Empire to spy on the defensive fortress of the Pyro Domain, he quickly set aside his thoughts on Limlong. ¡®If it¡¯s an Assassin of the Kaimon Empire, I heard that a user affiliated with the Titan Guild was famous¡­¡¯ The current official first-place in the Assassin rankings was affiliated with the Titan Guild, and from what Ian knew, he was in the early lv 140s. ¡®If it¡¯s that dude, he has a right to be confident even in front of me.¡¯ Ian was over lv 150, but it was not known externally. And no matter how exceptional Ian¡¯s fighting ability was, if it was an Assassin that had the upper hand in PvP, it could be obvious that they didn¡¯t feel intimidated even if they were slightly lower in level. Just when Ian was searching for his opponent while thinking of this and that, the Assassin swung his wind and fire wheels as he charged towards Ian. Ta-tat-! With light footsteps, he shrunk the distance between Ian and him in an instant. If this happened before, Ian would have prioritized increasing the distance between them, but he had something to count on now. ¡°Summon!¡± Ian, who firstly summoner all of his Familiars quickly and casted his buff skills, used the new skill he obtained, ¡®The Will of the Selamus Warrior¡¯, without delay. You have used the skill, ¡®The Will of the Selamus Warrior¡¯.For 20 minutes, all combat stats will increase by 40%.You may concentrate all your production stats onto one combat stat. Please select the stat. Clang-! Blocking off the attack of the Assassin, who had charged through in the meantime, stepped back as he finished setting the skill. ¡°I¡¯ll invest it into Agility!¡± Your ¡®Agility¡¯ stat has increased drastically.Your Proficiency towards all weapons have increased by 15 levels.The level of ¡®Spearmanship¡¯, which is the Proficiency related to the weapon that is being used, has been set to Intermediate-rank level 5. Along with the message popping up, a golden ray of light began to wrap around Ian¡¯s whole body. While looking at Ian, who held up the spear shaft firmly, the man sneered at Ian. ¡°You¡¯re deciding on close combat even though you¡¯re a Summoner?¡± Ian nodded his head as he grinned. ¡°And if that¡¯s the case?¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to regret it.¡± Responding shortly, he charged towards Ian again, and while swinging his spear around, Ian began to fight him face-to-face. Clang- Cla-clang-! As the blade of the wheels and pole of the spear clashed against each other, a metallic sound rang out. In an instant, the two people exchanged multiple attacks and blocks. Pung-! As the distance increased between the two people from engaging with strong attacks and rebounding against each other, all of the Familiars beginning with Ly began to attack the man. With a big body and slow attack speed, Bbakbbak wasn¡¯t able to deal much damage onto the Assassin, but on the other hand, the combined attack of Ly and Pin was incredibly elaborate and threatening. Chwaaak-! Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has dealt critical damage to (Unknown).(Unknown)¡¯s Vitality has been decreased by 13,253.Familiar ¡®Pin¡¯ has dealt damage to (Unknown).(Unknown)¡¯s Vitality has been decreased by 10,233. And the two eyes of Ian, who gave and received attacks, narrowed. ¡®What the hell? He¡¯s a Luspel Empire user.¡¯ Through the system message that popped up, he was able to figure out the nationality of the Assassin. If he was a user that was a citizen of the Kaimon Empire, it would have popped up as ¡®A Kaimon Empire User (Unknown)¡¯ in the system message, but the fact that there was no mentioning of that meant that it was counter evidence that he was a Luspel Empire user. ¡®Since you can¡¯t set your nationality as private, he¡¯s definitely affiliated with the Luspel Empire, but why exactly is a Luspel Empire user attempting to spy? Are they planning on building a fortress following our domain?¡¯ The theory that Ian thought had the highest possibility was that he was a ¡®secret agent¡¯ who received an offer from the Kaimon Empire¡¯s side. Since it was the truth that a user who was a citizen of the Luspel Empire, who could freely enter into the domain, would have an easier time approaching the fortress. Meanwhile, while Ian was thinking of this and that, the battle charged towards the final stage. The Assassin¡¯s Vitality gauge bar had slowly started to blink. On the other hand, the damage that Ian received was almost nonexistent. The Assassin, who stepped back and created distance between Ian and him, spoke as if he was mumbling. ¡°How surprising. To think that you would be this strong. I thought that there would be a lot of parts that were exaggerated, that is.¡± Ian clicked his tongue as he replied. ¡°Tsk, tsk, well, if you¡¯ve figured it out, why don¡¯t you obediently surrender now? I want to know where you¡¯ve come from.¡± Truthfully, because Ian didn¡¯t use all of his fighting power, he was dumbfounded. ¡®For a dude that looks like he wouldn¡¯t be able to even handle Ly alone properly, he¡¯s bluffing hard.¡¯ His nimbleness and fighting sense seemed exceptional, but because he didn¡¯t use any special skills or irregular attacks, he was too easy to face. The Assassin stared at Ian as he opened his mouth again. ¡°Unfortunately, it looks like this will be the end for today.¡± At those words, Ian grinned. ¡°Who said I¡¯m just going to let you go?¡± As Ian¡¯s words finished, his Familiars surrounded him. However, the man was still relaxed. ¡°It looks like you have at least a Detecting Potion.¡± A Detecting Potion was an item that allowed one to see their opponent that was hiding for a fixed time after intaking it, and Ian had that. Ian pulled out the potion from his inventory and showed it as he nodded his head. ¡°Of course. So, it would be best for you to voluntarily reveal your identity. By the looks of it, it looks like your equipment is good, too, so wouldn¡¯t it be depressing if you died and dropped even one?¡± However, as if he was sneering at Ian, he pulled out a magic scroll as he waved it. ¡°Sorry, but you won¡¯t be able to catch me today.¡± And before Ian could take action, he ripped open the scroll. ¡°Damn it.¡± His body was wrapped in an energy of purple light as he disappeared into the air leisurely, and Ian licked his lips. ¡°Tsk, literally everybody and their mother have been using rare scrolls lately.¡± The scroll that the man used was of the same kind as the scroll that Ilahan, the Guild Master of the DarkRuna Guild, used. Of course, as it wasn¡¯t an AoE Return Scroll, it was much cheaper than the item that Ilahan used, but it still wasn¡¯t cheap. ¡°This is upsetting. By the looks of it, he¡¯s probably a secret agent, right?¡± At Ian¡¯s words, which he almost mumbled, Ly, who was next to him, replied. I think so. Something is definitely weird, Owner. ¡°What is?¡± I think his combat abilities are incredibly exceptional, but he didn¡¯t use anything aside from the most basic common Assassin attacks. At those words, Ian nodded his head. ¡°I felt that, too. He was probably trying to hide his identity. Since if it was a dude that had a hidden class, the moment he used his main force skills, his identity would be revealed.¡± Ian, who turned his steps, hurriedly went into the domain. ¡®So, there¡¯s a power that¡¯s trying to figure out the internal structure, huh? We need to guard more thoroughly. In that case, should we build more detecting towers?¡¯ * * * The day that Ian hurriedly entered the domain. The attack did not start immediately like he feared, but the Allied Forces of the Kaimon Empire slowly began to move. Amongst the many siege warfare that were held within Kailan up until now, it was definitely the largest in size. As Ilahan¡¯s movements were captured, it was a situation where the official community and the broadcasting stations were already going crazy. Especially on the main page of the official community, there were already posts on the condition of the battle or analyses of the fighting power on both sides uploaded with provocative titles. The last hope of the Luspel Empire! Will the Pyro Domain be able to block off Kaimon¡¯s large army of 50 thousand?The top 3 guilds of Luspel who powerlessly handed over the Pyro Fortress, which is the ¡®Ansi City¡¯ of the Luspel Empire, to Kaimon.The biggest siege warfare in the history of VR games! That background has been dug up in detail. Definitely, if you were a user that played Kailan, you couldn¡¯t help but have interest in this large-scale siege warfare, and in places like the bulletin board or the chat window, arguments for and against issues related to the large-scale siege warfare that would happen soon were arising. And the hottest amongst those issues were on the ¡®incompetence¡¯ of the giant guilds of the Luspel Empire. No, guys. I¡¯m a Kaimon citizen, so it doesn¡¯t matter to me, but truthfully, what are Luspel¡¯s giant guilds doing? They preoccupied practically all of the content in the eastern continent, but as the central continent opened and a proper fight occurs, they¡¯re just bumming around.Ha, exactly. That¡¯s my point¡­ They¡¯re good-for-nothing.Speaking of which, it¡¯s really weird. The Lotus Guild, whose ranking is much lower in comparison, is enduring well like that, so then why exactly did the pigs, whose scale is much bigger, fall back into the rear and are hiding? I don¡¯t understand.Person above, we will only find out if Lotus is enduring well after this siege warfare is over.No, to have even blocked off DarkRuna shows that they are enduring well enough. Even if about three or four other guilds guarded like Lotus, wouldn¡¯t we have not been pushed back this much in the central area?Ha, I wish they would help the Lotus Guild out even now and blocked them off somehow¡­It¡¯s too late now. The Pyro Domain will get taken anyways, and I think the pivotal point is how well they will block them off in the rear.I still wish that Lotus will block them off for as long as possible. Ian, fighting[1]! Meanwhile, the guild members of the Lotus Guild within the Pyro Domain were moving incredibly busily. This was because there was a need for them to raise their Defensive Power even a little bit more before the defensive battle began. Herz approached and asked Carwin, who came out of the management office of the barracks. ¡°Yo, Carwin. The troops that are being trained in the barracks right now, do you think their training will finish within today?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ I think it will be tight. I feel that it will probably finish before the sun rises tomorrow.¡± Herz slightly frowned. ¡°Hmm¡­ that¡¯s a little troubling.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°The Kaimon Empire Army has almost finished with their formation now. If they¡¯re fast, I feel like the siege warfare might even start tonight¡­¡± Just when the two people were conversing, Ian, who had approached them without their knowledge, butted in. ¡°No, I don¡¯t think there¡¯s a need to be worrying about that.¡± ¡°Huh? How come?¡± Ian checked the time as he continued his words. ¡°Based on the current situation, the fastest time that they could attack would be 10 or 11 o¡¯clock, but if the siege warfare was to start then, what will the office workers do tomorrow when they have to go to work? They¡¯ll need to assume that this will last at least 5 hours.¡± ¡°Oh¡­?¡± Ian¡¯s logic was quite persuasive, and while nodding his head, Carwin added on. ¡°It¡¯s the break for us at least, but since office workers don¡¯t have breaks¡­¡± Of course, over half of the top rankers were white-collar workers whose job itself was gaming, but still, from looking at it generally, there was a higher ratio of people that weren¡¯t like that. Herz opened his mouth. ¡°Anyways, if the battle doesn¡¯t start today like you say, then that¡¯s a relief. I really want to use the mounted troops no matter what even if we¡¯re going to lose.¡± The soldiers in training that Herz asked Carwin about were the soldiers that had finished up to the 3rdupgrade and could be produced from the barracks as mounted troops. As the average level of the mounted troops were close to 170, they were strong troops that could cover for at least one decent user. Ian asked Carwin. ¡°Carwin, what is the total number of troops that are being produced this time?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ It will probably be about five hundred.¡± Ian¡¯s gaze turned over to Herz this time. ¡°Then if we were to combine them with the already existing troops, do we have about three or four thousand now?¡± Herz shook his head. ¡°No, if my calculations are right, I think there should be about seven thousand?¡± ¡°Huh? How exactly do we have that high of a number?¡± At the unexpected response, Ian wore a dumbfounded expression. And Fiolan gave a response related to that. ¡°We have formed quite solid auxiliary troops.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Including Ian, who wore a puzzled expression, all three people¡¯s gazes turned in the direction that Fiolan¡¯s voice was heard from. And in that spot, a couple other people even aside from Fiolan stood. Ian¡¯s gaze fixated on one man, who stood closest to them amongst the others. ¡®Who is that? He seems like someone I¡¯ve seen somewhere before¡­¡¯ The man had a luxurious armour that shone a navy blue colour covering his whole body. He walked forward as he held out his hand towards Ian. ¡°Nice to meet you, Ian.¡± At the greeting of the man, who definitely looked like he was a top ranker even from a rough glance, Ian grasped his hand on an impulse as he asked him. ¡°Who¡­ Are you?¡± Just when he was about to open his mouth and reply, Carwin, who was in the back, opened his mouth first. ¡°Roy Chen? Roy Chen, it¡¯s you, right?¡± The man laughed as he slowly nodded his head. ¡°As I¡¯ve received permission from Master Herz, we, the Valiant Guild, have decided to assist in this defensive battle.¡± Roy Chen slightly bowed his head. And while looking at him do so, Ian¡¯s two eyes shone. ¡®Valiant! If all goes well, this defensive battle¡­ We might actually be able to last even until the end!¡¯ Feeling as if he had obtained thousands of troops and horses, Ian bowed his head towards Roy Chen as well. ¡°Thank you very much for making such a difficult decision, Roy Chen.¡± [1] Fighting = word of support or encouragement CH 177 Chapter 177: Enemies on Every Side (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda It was a situation where the giant guilds of the Luspel Empire had multiple meetings and came to the implicit conclusion to hand over the Lotus Guild¡¯s Pyro Domain to Kaimon. However, in the end, Roy Chen couldn¡¯t agree to that decision. ¡®I don¡¯t know when it will be, but until at least one guild overcomes being a Great Domain and a Dukedom, and grows to the level of a Kingdom, the war composition between the two giant empires will continue.¡¯ While the conflicting composition between the two giant empires lasted, if they were to continuously be pushed back in the fight over power, they wouldn¡¯t be able to help but continuously be at a disadvantage. If they were to especially lose most of the central continent, which was a neutral area, it was definite that in the development aspect, the difference between the Kaimon Empire and them would continuously grow. ¡®If even the Lotus Guild and the Pyro Domain was to be thrown away like this, the mid-upper rank guilds of the Luspel Empire will probably lose all of their faith in the top-ranking guilds.¡¯ That will eventually lead to a division within the empire, and if that happened, it would result in the worst situation. ¡®Our guild at the least needs to step forward and help Lotus.¡¯ Roy Chen opened up a general guild meeting, and after fully explaining the current situation, he gathered the opinions of his guild members. This was a battle with a composition where the chance of a loss was fundamentally high, no, a loss was almost certain. There was no way that the guild members would be happy at the idea of supporting such a battle, but eventually, Roy Chen was able to succeed in persuading all of his guild members. Of course, he didn¡¯t persuade them 100% fully with just the reason that it was for the greater good. There were a couple reasons why Roy Chen was able to persuade his guild members. The first was that the Valiant Guild was usually not on good terms with the other two guilds. This was because most of the guild members of the Valiant Guild were made up of users whose goal was purely to enjoy the game, while the Oaklan Guild and the Splendor Guild were mainly formed of occupational gamers who calculated the gains and losses thoroughly as they played. Of course, that wasn¡¯t a bad thing, but usually, the guild members of the Valiant Guild didn¡¯t like the sly practical life of Oaklan and Splendor. The second was ¡®justification¡¯. If they were to support this battle, although there wouldn¡¯t be any substantial gain, the recognition of the Valiant Guild would go up even more within the Luspel Empire. They would also be able to avoid the criticism towards giant guilds that was currently spreading with the community as the center. Lastly, it was the ¡®fighting power¡¯ of the Lotus Guild, which was stronger than expected. The level of the defensive fighting power built in the Pyro Domain that he learned about through Herz moved the hearts of the Valiant Guild¡¯s guild members. They felt that even if they were to lose, it wouldn¡¯t be in vain. If they could keep up a close battle for a decent amount of time, there would be a lot that they could even earn from a large-scale battle like this, and if that was the case, even if they were to receive a death penalty, the calculation that they felt they would be able to break even was possible. Since they could just obtain the spoils of the war through fighting when it came to the items and the EXP that they would lose from dying. ¡®It could become a truly entertaining battle. Either way, the decision has been made, so there¡¯s no need to quibble over reconsiderations.¡¯ It was also a situation where he even gave a notification to the other guilds. Just Samuel Jin, the Guild Master of the Oaklan Guild, showed concern, but no one actively stopped the Valiant Guild. Rather, the guilds who thought that the Valiant Guild, their rival guild, would instead receive damage by helping Lotus gave their hearty support in a welcoming atmosphere. Like that, the elite forces of the Valiant Guild dramatically joined the Pyro Domain, and the ones that held out their hands, stating that they would help Lotus, was not just Valiant. The users of the tons of mid-upper guilds that had lost their base in the front lines also gathered one by one at the Pyro Domain in order to help Lotus. The troops that had gathered like that was close to 10 thousand, and as the night went on, the number of people continuously increased. * * * Thud- Thud- Thud-. A morning where the scorching desert sun blazed down. A loud noise rang out across the battleground as the large-scale siege warfare that the attention of all of Kailan was on began. Just before the battle began, the number of troops of the Allied Forces gathered on the Kaimon Empire¡¯s side was a total of 130 thousand. The number of defending soldiers gathered at the Pyro Domain was not a small number by any means at 15 thousand, however, compared to 130 thousand soldiers, it was to the point it was truly shabby. Stomp- Stomp-. The image of the army of 100 thousand marching at the same pace could easily be called a grand sight, and in the desert sky, where anxiety hung, tons of filming crystals were floating in the air. Whiiing-. Because the nature of this battle couldn¡¯t be considered a battle between a specific guild and another, there wasn¡¯t really a limit to filming. Because of that, even users who wanted to personally shoot videos had sent up their filming crystals. Filming crystals were incredibly expensive, and there was a risk of it being destroyed while overdoing it and attempting to shoot in the middle of a battle. However, this battle was worth saving it as a video even if that was considered. The tallest guard tower of the Pyro Domain Fortress. Ian, who stood on top of it, looked around at the approaching Kaimon Empire Army as he swallowed audibly. ¡°It¡¯s incredible indeed. For it to be a siege warfare at this kind of scale.¡± Roy Chen, who stood next to Ian, smiled as he responded. ¡°No kidding. As expected, we made the right choice to come. For a battle like this, setting aside the outcome, it¡¯s worth participating in.¡± Glancing slightly at Roy Chen, who stroked his sword that shone a white light, Ian responded shortly. ¡°Why set aside the outcome?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Ian smiled equally. ¡°When we¡¯re going to win.¡± At Ian¡¯s response that was full of spirit, Roy Chen wore a happy smile. ¡°Huhu, that kind of confidence is good. I will be anticipating your active participation.¡± Roy Chen originally didn¡¯t have much interest in Ian. There was no way that he would have interest in someone who wasn¡¯t even visible on the ranking list when he himself was within the top 10 for the overall rankings. However, during the process of deciding to take part in this battle, he looked at a lot of Ian¡¯s combat videos, and he realized that Ian was a much more amazing person than he expected. ¡®It would be difficult to find someone with a better heading ability in a large-scale battle like this than this man right now at least.¡¯ He didn¡¯t think that he was lacking compared to Ian when it came to one-to-one fighting power, but the leadership that he showed in the siege warfare against the DarkRuna Guild was definitely at a level that was higher than his. Ian nodded his head as he replied. ¡°Thank you for giving me the full commanding authority. You will not be disappointed.¡± After Ian looked at the great army of Kaimon that grew closer and closer once, he turned his head to look behind him. And in that spot, Kaizar was there. ¡°Kaizar.¡± ¡°Why do you call me?¡± ¡°Just like I told you before, I would like if you took care of the armoured mounted troops.¡± Kaizar obediently nodded his head. ¡°Leave it to me. I¡¯ll properly massacre the Kaimon guys.¡± Kaizar instead grinned, even showing enthusiasm. To be honest, there was Ian¡¯s painful expense. ¡®Hoo¡­ Exactly how much money did I have to spend in order to buy that Ferghana horse or whatever.¡¯ In order to make Kaizar do what he wanted him to do, he bought the most expensive horse with the best stats amongst the horses that were up in the auction house and gave it as a tribute. And the flattery of asking him to lead 500 of the most elite cavalrymen with an exceptional steed was enough to move Kaizar. ¡°Thanks, Kaizar. I¡¯ll put my faith in you, retainer.¡± ¡°Huhu.¡± Kaizar went down the guard tower while whisking his hands. Roy Chen, who smirked while looking at the strange master-servant relationship, opened his mouth towards Ian. ¡°Then I will also move to my spot.¡± Ian slightly bowed his head. ¡°Thank you. I look forward to your kind cooperation, Roy Chen.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a pleasure.¡± Like that, Ian, who had entrusted certain roles to the leading figures that were on top of the guard tower, turned his gaze towards the front again. ¡®It won¡¯t be easy, but I need to manage each and every troop as perfectly as possible. Since this battle is one where one person has to handle ten in order for us to win.¡¯ However, just then, an interesting scene captured Ian¡¯s gaze. ¡®What¡¯s that?¡¯ There were what looked to be about hundreds of shadows floating in the air behind the advancing Allied Forces of the Kaimon Empire. Ian focused intently and looked at them more carefully. ¡®What the hell, by any chance, are they Griffins?¡¯ He saw archers that held bows riding on top of flying objects that had an outer appearance which looked similar to an eagle. At first Ian was taken aback, as he thought that over hundreds of Griffins would appear, but as they grew closer, he was able to find out that wasn¡¯t the case. ¡®Whew, I was really flustered. It would have been a serious issue if they were Griffins.¡¯ As they were a type of troops that he was seeing for the first time, he had no information, but Ian felt even more moved by interest. ¡°An air battle, huh¡­¡± Ian summoned Pin. ¡°Pin, Summon!¡± Kku-ruk- Kku-ru-ruk-! Pin, who was summoned, energetically cried out as he rubbed his head towards Ian, and with proficient dexterity, he got on Pin¡¯s back. ¡°I¡¯m not the least bit scared of fake Griffins, etc.¡± Ian petted Pin as he opened his mouth again. ¡°Pin.¡± Kku-ru-ruk-! ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡± Kku-ruk- Kku-ruk-! At Ian¡¯s command, Pin flapped his wings with energy as he ran out of the guard tower. And the gazes of all the people standing in the battleground were gathered onto Ian. ¡°Woow, it¡¯s Ian!¡± ¡°It¡¯s a Griffin!¡± The great army of Kaimon had now reached right in front of Ian, who floated above in the fortress sky, and the rampart. Ian pulled out a scroll from his inventory. That was a magic scroll that allowed one to effectively deliver commands to allies for a certain time in large-scale battles. As expected, it was an expensive item, but Ian ripped that scroll without hesitation. You have used the magic scroll item, the ¡®Dignity of the Commander¡¯.For the next ¡¯02:59:59¡¯, you can send messages to all allies. (You can designate the command messenger through the on/off ability.) ¡°Ahem!¡± Ian, who cleared his throat, invoked the dignity of the Trinity. Everyone, including the Lotus Guild members and to the many Luspel Empire users who have come to help our Pyro Domain. As Ian began to open his mouth, the Pyro Domain, which was a little noisy, became so quiet it was as still as death. As he did so, the footsteps of the Kaimon Empire Army that grew closer and closer to the domain began to be heard more loudly. Ian¡¯s words continued. Before the siege warfare begins, there is something I want to say. Du-du-du-du-. As if they had started running now, the sound of footsteps coming from outside the rampart became louder, and Ian opened his mouth again. We are not here in order to lose today. Ian¡¯s words struck home for a lot of them. This was because, of course for the users who came to help them, but even for the users of the Lotus Guild, there was almost no one who thought that they could win this battle. I have never even started a battle that I thought that I would lose, and I have never lost in a battle that I thought that I would win. Ian¡¯s words strangely touched their hearts. Ian raised his spear that was shining brightly from the reflection of the sun and threw in another final word. We will win. A moment of silence occurred and as if it was a promise made, resonant cheers rang out through the whole fortress at the same time. ¡°Waaaa!¡± ¡°Ian, you¡¯re so cool!¡± ¡°So handsome!¡± Flap- Flap-! Ian, who flew up to an even higher point, pointed his spear towards the front as he let out his first command. Archer unit, all members¡­! Chuk- Chu-chuk-! It was an Archer unit mostly made up of the soldiers that were trained in the Lotus Domain, but quite a lot of users were placed with them, and they also followed Ian¡¯s command and pulled their bowstrings. Attack! Shyook- Shyoo-shyoo-shyoo-shyook-. With the start of the arrows that covered the sky of the fortress and turned it black, the most intense and gruesome battle of Kailan history began. CH 178 Chapter 178: Enemies on Every Side (Middle) (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The first thing that the invader had to overcome in order to win in a siege warfare was obviously the rampart that shot up high. Because of that, on the side of the Empire¡¯s Allied Forces, they had proper siege weapons prepared in order to attack the steadfast rampart of the Pyro Domain. It was a completely different image from the attack of the DarkRuna Guild, who looked down on the Lotus Guild. ¡°Stone-throwing battalion, be on standby to attack!¡± Clu-clunk- Clu-clunk-. As the wheels made of wood let out a noisy sound, the giant catapults moved towards the front as they stood in a line. ¡°Load them up!¡± Creak- Creaaak-! As the sound of the wood bending backwards and the sound of the string being pulled taut rang out, large boulders were placed on top of the catapult. ¡°Fire!¡± As the signal to fire went off, the soldiers holding swords cut the taut ropes simultaneously. Shyook- Shyoo-shyook-! The giant boulders cut through the air as it flew towards the fortress rampart. Bang- Baaang-! ¡°Ground-type Magicians, concentrate on filling the trenches with dirt!¡± Different from the attack of the DarkRuna Guild, who were engrossed in blindly climbing up the rampart, the empire army moved quickly and accurately depending on the commander¡¯s direction. While containing the defending army that was on top of the rampart mainly with long-ranged attacks, they were steadily proceeding with the preparational operation to climb the rampart. The Magicians began to form a team with the soldiers as they began to carry over bags of dirt. They blocked off the long-ranged attacks with shield magic as they protected the soldiers, and the trench in front of the Pyro fortress that was dug deeply began to fill up little by little. Ian, who watched that form while on top of his Griffin, quickly let out a command. Carwin, after you count to five starting now, open the canal!Okay, got it! And Ian turned back the long-ranged firepower that was pouring towards the trench back to the rear side of their opponents. Soon, as the floodgates open up, the trench will become flooded. Just leave the soldiers that get close. Since they need to get doused with water after as many troops go into the trench. As it hadn¡¯t been long since the siege warfare started, it wasn¡¯t directed into a greatly urgent situation yet. Because that was the case, Ian elaborated on his explanations with as much detail as possible as he gave out his commands. There is still no movement of them climbing up the rampart. Please cut down as much of the Vitality of the enemies that are approaching from the rear side as possible! Above the rampart of the Pyro Domain, an endless arrow baptism was being shot out. That number was surprisingly a lot compared to the size of the defensive troops that defended the Pyro Domain, but this was also thanks to Ian¡¯s meticulous prearranged plan. As Ian had amply prepared extra bows and arrows in the fortress beforehand, he made it so that even users, who weren¡¯t Archers, could all have bows. Before their enemies got over the fortress gate, there was not much that troops who used close-combat weapons could do. The loss of damage that forms through this is bigger than expected, and in order to minimize this, it was Ian¡¯s thought that they needed to use bows even if they weren¡¯t an Archer-class. ¡®Since they can just switch to close-combat weapons again once they start climbing over the rampart.¡¯ However, just then, a couple arrows flew towards Ian. Clang- Cla-clang-! However, because the location where Ian was in-flight was a spot outside of the range of a normal Archer, the arrows had lost their strength, and Ian was able to parry them away easily. ¡®I thought I was outside of their range, but they still fly all the way here, huh?¡¯ After Ian parried a couple more arrows that flew towards him, he flew even higher up. And shortly after, a loud voice began to ring out. Kwaaah-! The streams of water that poured out from within the fortress flooded towards the trench. ¡°Euaak, dodge it!¡± ¡°The trench is being flooded with water! Escape to the back!¡± However, as their numbers didn¡¯t consist of just one or two, there was no way that the advance and retreat of the troops would proceed that smoothly, and most of the soldiers were submerged into the water. ¡°Cough, Co-cough-!¡± The soldiers of the Kaimon Empire, who were submerged in the water, were tormented as they flailed about. The Magicians who were inside the Pyro Domain cast ice magic towards them. ¡°Glacial Spike!¡± ¡°Frozen Hell!¡± The levels of the ones that had participated in the war were at a level where they were at least over 130, regardless of whether they were an NPC or a user. Because that was the case, they couldn¡¯t easily kill them with just dropping them in water, but if it was connected with ice magic, it became a different story. Crack- Cra-cra-crack-! The sound of water freezing up and the sound of ice cracking rang out from here and there. Rockslide attack, commence! The attack team that was already on standby on top of the rampart rolled down large boulders over top of them. Bang- Ba-bang-! In an instant, the surroundings of the fortress with the trench as the pivot became a madhouse. As the amount of water that was poured towards the trench was so large, the surface of the water began to freeze first and before most of the soldiers that were inside of the trench could escape the water, they became entrapped within the ice. Soldiers tried to escape through the couple parts that were cracked because of the rockslide, but the boulders that continuously dropped gruesomely squashed them. Bang-! The world message window that popped up above the battleground was being renewed without rest. The Kaimon Empire Soldier has died from the rockslide.The Kaimon Empire Soldier has died from continuous damage occurring from lack of oxygen.The rampart of the Pyro Domain at the southeast point (255, 304) has received a large amount of damage. And Ian began to pour out his AoE skill towards the isolated enemies as well. As summoning his other Familiars, who couldn¡¯t fly yet, would be straining, Pin¡¯s Crush skill became the main point. Kwaaah-! Like a heavy rain, the DoT damage of the ¡®Crush¡¯ skill poured out. The Vitality of the opponents that were inflicted with multiple status conditions while being submerged underwater dropped down in an instant. As you have killed the Kaimon Empire Soldier, you have obtained 658,909 EXP.As you have killed Kaimon Empire-affiliated user ¡®Orian¡¯, you have obtained 1,028,789 EXP.You have obtained 1200 Fame. ¡®Alright!¡¯ Not even having the time to check the system messages that popped up, Ian quickly surged upwards towards the air again. It was because as Ian came down close to the ground in order to use Pin¡¯s Crush skill, the bombardment of long-ranged attacks poured out towards him like rain. Shyoo-shyoo-shyook-! The black arrows that poured out was a definite. Pung- Pu-pung-! Even the elemental magic that the Magicians shot out burst out from here and there. ¡°Pin, that way!¡± Ian, who discovered a fire sphere in front of him that was rushing towards him as if he was being sucked in, hurriedly pulled one of Pin¡¯s shoulders. Baaang-! Pin quickly turned laterally in a circle, and the two, who narrowly dodged the fire magic, avoided the long-ranged attacks as if they were doing acrobatics and went to the top of the rampart again. Plop- Ian, who had gotten down from Pin¡¯s back, pulled out his longbow from his inventory and hung it on his back. Ian¡¯s eyes scanned the great army of Kaimon, who were drawing near. ¡®Now they¡¯ll probably get over the trench that¡¯s frozen solid to get close and begin to climb the rampart.¡¯ Ian hurriedly activated the Dignity of the Commander effect and opened his mouth. The enemies will start climbing the rampart now. Close-combat class users, please re-equip your original weapon, and Magicians, please prepare to cast your AoE magic. Ian, who busily let out commands here and there, grabbed the longbow that hung on his back before he slowly pulled his bowstring. ¡®Shall I demonstrate my sniping abilities for the first time in a while?¡¯ With a careful expression, Ian took aim towards the enemy camp. If he still possessed the skills of his past Archer class, he would have been able to hit the enemies from an even further distance than now, but right now, he needed to shoot with his bow using just his basic stats. Ian waited for the opponents that he had targeted to come within his range before carefully letting go of his bowstring. Piiing-! The arrow that left Ian¡¯s bowstring cut through the air as it quickly shot towards the enemy camp. * * * There were two fortress gates in the Pyro Domain. One was the southeast fortress gate where Ian and most of the troops were engaging in a defensive war, and the other was the small northwest back gate, which the entryway for was narrow as it was surrounded by rugged mountainous areas. And within this back gate, a group of troops were lined up evenly. ¡°Kaizar, are you ready?¡± At Herz¡¯s question, Kaizar slowly nodded his head. ¡°I¡¯m done preparing. Open the fortress gate now.¡± Kaizar was Ian¡¯s retainer, but nobody treated him with contempt. Although, to be honest, it would be more accurate to say that it wasn¡¯t that they ¡®didn¡¯t¡¯ but that they ¡®couldn¡¯t¡¯. Herz lifted his head towards the air as he opened his mouth. ¡°Roy Chen, would it be alright now?¡± At Herz¡¯s question, Roy Chen, who was in the middle of diligently commanding the defensive troops on top of the rampart, raised one hand instead of giving a response. ¡°All Magicians, fire your AoE magic!¡± Bang- Ba-ba-bang-! It was a command to force the Kaimon Empire Army, who were approaching the fortress gate, to back off and secure the space. Herz, who recognized Roy Chen¡¯s intentions, spread his hand out towards the fortress gate. ¡°Fortress gate, open!¡± ¡°Yes, master!¡± Creaaak-! Along with Herz¡¯s command, the fortress gate that was firmly shut began to slowly open, and Kaizar pulled out the greatsword that was hanging on his back. Seu-reu-reung-! Kaizar had on shining equipment, including his Ferghana horse, which was purchased with all of Ian¡¯s fortunes. As about half the fortress gate opened, Kaizar let out a command with a resonant voice. ¡°Everybody, advance!¡± Thud- Thud- Thud-! Along with the sound of the war drum ringing out, the cavalrymen, who held their reigns taut, began to run out simultaneously. Du-du-du-du-. There wasn¡¯t anything like a loud cry, but 5 hundred cavalrymen ran out of the fortress gate along with the clean sound of hoofbeats. Roy Chen, who checked that image from on top of the rampart, asked Herz. ¡°Herz, isn¡¯t this a bit irrational?¡± At Roy Chen¡¯s question, Herz asked back with a puzzled expression. ¡°Sorry?¡± ¡°No, I just think in a battle like this where we¡¯re inferior in numbers, this situation of opening up the fortress gate and sending out troops seems a little ironic in itself, that is. Of course, this side isn¡¯t an open space like the southeast side, but¡­¡± As Roy Chen spoke with a worried expression while slightly glancing at the cavalrymen, who went out with a fierce spirit, Herz smirked. ¡°There¡¯s nothing to worry about, Roy Chen. They¡¯re going to return after digging them up enough.¡± ¡°Even if they¡¯re the highest-ranking cavalrymen over lv 170, numerically, there¡¯s almost ten times the difference¡­¡± Herz, who had climbed up to the top of the rampart, pointed to the head of the mounted troops as he opened his mouth. ¡°We just need to believe in Kaizar.¡± ¡°What¡­? I did hear that Kaizar¡¯s level was high, but even considering that, isn¡¯t he just an NPC?¡± Roy Chen knew that Kaizar was an NPC whose level was a little higher, but he didn¡¯t know about the specific details. As that was the case, he didn¡¯t understand Herz¡¯s words. This was because even if the level of an NPC was high, there were a lot of cases where they were weaker than users that were 10-20 levels lower than them. ¡®No matter how high the level of an NPC that is a retainer has, would their level be over 200? Assuming it is as high at about 190, he won¡¯t be able to have a huge influence on the general trend.¡¯ However, shortly after, Roy Chen had to modify his overall decision. ¡°Keuhaaa!¡± Kaizar, who had let out a cry, had begun to stir up the battleground. Bang- Ba-bang-! While swinging the Greatsword of the Dark Fenrir, which was the first item he had stolen from Ian, here and there, Kaizar burst out black energy. Roy Chen¡¯s two eyes rounded. ¡°Tha, that¡­?¡± This was because whenever Kaizar¡¯s sword was swung, five to six empire soldiers turned into black ash before they crumbled down. While looking at Roy Chen, who was surprised, Herz burst out laughing. ¡°Didn¡¯t I say that there was no need to worry? Don¡¯t worry about there, we just need to defend the rampart diligently.¡± Herz moved again and began to swing his sword towards the opponents that climbed the rampart and were getting over it. However, for a while, Roy Chen¡¯s gaze was fixated on Kaizar¡¯s backside. ¡®It¡¯s not just his Offensive Power that¡¯s exceptional, but his Unit Leadership is incredible as well. Where exactly did Ian obtain an NPC like that?¡¯ Kaizar¡¯s mounted troops whisked around the camp of the Kaimon Empire¡¯s Allied Forces, which was crowded with a ton of troops to the point it was black, like it was left for taking. No matter how many enemies surrounded them, with Kaizar at the head, the speed of the mounted troops, who created a triangle-formation as they violently rushed forward, did not slow down. This was because Kaizar, who was the vertex of the triangle-formation, just shred through the defensive line instead. On top of that, as it was a situation where they had charged into the middle of the enemy camp with a small-scale of troops, the Magicians couldn¡¯t even use their AoE magic hastily. If they used it incorrectly even with the slightest slip, the Kaimon troops would receive more damage instead. ¡°You pest-like Kaimon dudes, I will turn you all into dust!¡± As his rage towards the Kaimon Empire, who locked him up for ten years, was added onto his divine, monster-like abilities, Kaizar stirred up the battleground as if he had been possessed by a War God. He was uprooting the base of the column of Ian¡¯s game life, but Kaizar definitely earned his keep. CH 179 Chapter 179: Enemies on Every Side (Middle) (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Ha, they¡¯ve seriously built that one rampart really high.¡± While looking at the battleground from afar, Ceilron slightly frowned as he grumbled. ¡°I made fun of the DarkRuna Guild because they had failed their attack, but to think that they¡¯re line of defense would be this solid.¡± Emily, who was next to him, agreed with his words. ¡°No kidding. Quite a lot of troops have been sacrificed, but they still have yet to properly break through the 1st rampart.¡± At Emily¡¯s words, Ceilron¡¯s two eyes grew a little bigger. ¡°Wat? The 1st rampart? Then are you saying that there¡¯s also a 2nd defensive wall?¡± ¡°What were you doing during the last Allied Forces meeting? It seems you were sleeping?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°I¡¯m talking about when the DarkRuna Guild was briefing on the information of the siege warfare.¡± ¡°Oh! That, well¡­ Since you would have listened intently, there wasn¡¯t really a reason for me to listen carefully as well, no? Huhu.¡± The two people, who were part of the executive team of the Titan Guild, were top-class rankers, and because of that, they were labeled as part of the main fighting power. That¡¯s why they were to join the battle after, when the 1st defensive wall completely collapsed. However, just then, Shyakran, who was submerged in his thoughts while looking at the battleground without a word in front of them, slightly turned his head as he opened his mouth. ¡°Ceilron, Emily, start getting ready to move now.¡± ¡°Yes, Master.¡± ¡°Are we finally going to move?¡± Shyakran nodded his head as he replied. ¡°It seems like the western wall is starting to break down, so we must immediately prepare to enter.¡± The three people¡¯s gazes turned towards the battleground. At just a glance, it seemed like they were tied when it came to the progress of the war situation at the front line. However, Shyakran thought that the moment the defensive wall collapsed, the story would become completely different. ¡®We just look tied right now because of their tall and solid defensive wall, but the moment that one place opens up, their balance will crumble in an instant.¡¯ If their balance was to crumble, a one-sided massacre will begin with that place as the starting point, and in that timing, they needed to enter the battleground even 1 second faster and wipe out their opponents. This was because the users and NPCs of the enemy country killed on the battleground would give a tremendous amount of EXP and rewards. ¡°I hope it¡¯s not too boring¡­¡± At Ceilron¡¯s words, Shyakran smirked as he scolded him. ¡°It is the fortress that defeated DarkRuna. And they definitely would have prepared much more than then.¡± ¡°That¡¯s probably true, right?¡± Emily also added in. ¡°They also have a four-digit number of troops. Since there will be an overflow of prey for today at least, it probably won¡¯t be boring.¡± Shyakran grinned as he began to move his feet. ¡°Huhu, then shall we head over?¡± ¡°Yes, Master.¡± With Shyakran as the head, the troops of about one thousand that were gathered under the Titan Guild¡¯s flag, began to move quickly. Their aim was the west wall that was collapsing. ¡®Will I be able to fight against that Summoner dude from back then again?¡¯ A couple months ago, he had gone to the Prison of the Pascal Islands because of an empire quest. And Shyakran recently found out that the Summoner user that he briefly competed with there was the same person as Ian. ¡®Huhu, I¡¯m already looking forward to how surprised he¡¯ll be.¡¯ As he was an opponent that was even with his clone, which only had half of his abilities, he didn¡¯t think of him as an opponent that was a proper match against him from the beginning. However, despite that, Ian strangely grabbed his interest. ¡®I would like to grab him with my own hands¡­¡¯ At the thought of showing Ian the overwhelming difference in their strength, he was already excited. However, to find out how it would turn out, it was something to be watched. * * * As it was winter break, Korea University was incredibly quiet. However, the department room of the VR department was incredibly noisy. ¡°Yo, Sucheol. You ordered the chicken a while ago, right?¡± ¡°Yes, hyung! It¡¯s been about 20 minutes since I¡¯ve ordered it, so it should arrive soon now.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± ¡°Mina, what are you doing, not turning on the projector quickly?¡± ¡°Dude, you turn it on then. Why are you making me do it and causing a fuss?¡± Today was the day that the students of the VR department decided to meet up for the first time in a while during their break and hang out. It was a little ironic that the place that they were hanging out at was the school, but there wasn¡¯t a place that was as cozy as the department room. And decisively, there was a separate reason as to why they chose to meet up at the school. Tiiing-! As Mina turned on the projector, a large white screen popped up on one of the walls of the department room. ¡°Which channel should I change it to?¡± At Mina¡¯s question, Sewon quickly replied. ¡°What do you mean which channel, of course you should change it to YTBC. I¡¯m telling you, their video quality is the best.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, and the casters there present our guild the best, so I like them the most.¡± ¡°Understood, okay!¡± The students that had gathered at the department room were all guild members of the Lotus Guild. It was just that their levels were too low, so they were members that couldn¡¯t participate in the siege warfare in the central continent. Amongst them, Sewon was at a state where he was close to lv 130, but at Yoohyun¡¯s jab that he thought he wouldn¡¯t be much help, he had decided to comfortably watch instead. The channel came on shortly after, and as the video began to be broadcasted, Mina wore a flustered expression. ¡°What the hell? It looks like it¡¯s been quite a while since the battle started.¡± Sucheol asked back with a puzzled expression. ¡°What? You¡¯re right. No, the broadcast was scheduled to start at one o¡¯clock, so why did it start already?¡± ¡°It must be because the empire army moved quicker than expected, I guess.¡± Sucheol, who poured himself a glass of Sprite from the fridge in the corner of the department room and drank it, continued his words. ¡°Still, from the looks of it, the 1st defensive wall remains undiminished as of now. Since they¡¯ll start full-out fighting now, so it¡¯s alright. We just need to watch from now.¡± As the video started, the six students huddled on the sofa before they realized and began to be immersed in the screen. As all the lights were off and they were watching the video through the large projection that was shot on the whole wall, it felt as if they had come to a small movie theatre. Bang- Ba-bang-! Ah, is the first defensive rampart finally breaking down there? Along with the voice of the excited caster, the giant boulders were poured out towards the collapsing rampart. Babang! It seems that¡¯s the case, right? Now with that much space, it seems like it will be enough for the troops to enter.That¡¯s right. If you look over there, you can see the combat unit charging in as if they had been waiting for it, right?That flag, I think it¡¯s the flag of the Titan Guild. As expected, Shyakran, the Master of the Titan Guild is at the head. Mina, who was watching the screen, asked Sewon. ¡°But Sewon oppa[1].¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Did they always break down the rampart itself like that in a siege warfare originally? I don¡¯t think we did that when we had domain defending wars in the northern continent before, right?¡± Sucheol, who was next to her, also added on. ¡°You¡¯re right. That time we piled dirt or used something like a ladder to crawl up it.¡± At the two people¡¯s words, Sewon also wore a quizzical expression as he tilted his head. ¡°You¡¯re right. As the rampart HP is ridiculously high, it would be incredibly inefficient to break it like that.¡± And as if they had been waiting for their conversation, the casters solved their question. The 1st defensive wall has finally been broken through, but already close to two hours has passed, right?That¡¯s right. The Defensive Power of the Pyro Domain¡¯s resistance was a truly crazy level. They¡¯re showing us a defensive war to the point the nickname, the Ansi City of the central continent, is not lacking.Why else would they have given up on climbing the rampart and chose to destroy it? There is the fault that the rampart is so high, but their defensive tactic is truly methodical. As rockslides are falling without rest and traps are set up all over the middle of the rampart, they had decided to just destroy it instead. Sewon, who heard the explanation, mumbled with a low voice. ¡°Ah, I see. Ignorant dudes¡­¡± Mina also opened her mouth as she added on. ¡°That¡¯s really gross.¡± ¡°But Sewon hyung, if they choose to destroy the 2nd, even the 3rd defensive wall like that, wouldn¡¯t the defensive institutions we put so much effort building all become useless?¡± At Sucheol¡¯s words, Sewon shook his head as he replied. ¡°No, that probably won¡¯t be the case. For at least the 1st defensive wall, the catapults would be able to attack from a long range, but starting from the 2nd defensive wall, for it to be within the range of the catapults, they would have to get the catapults passed the 1st defensive wall.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°The catapults will probably burn down from just one fire-type magic spell, so our guild members probably won¡¯t just stand there watching them get that close, right?¡± Mina nodded his head as she replied. ¡°You¡¯re right.¡± While they spoke, the angle of the camera, which was focused on the destroyed rampart, rapidly moved and began to show the inside of the fortress. And at that spot, a full-scale battle had begun. Just then, the voice tone of Mina, who had discovered something, went up slightly. ¡°Oppa, that¡¯s Jinsung over there, right? There!¡± At Mina¡¯s words, everybody¡¯s gazes gathered towards the direction that she pointed to, and in that spot, Ian, who was on Halli¡¯s back, was fighting against the guild members of Titan. ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s Jinsung.¡± While the two people were glad to have discovered Ian, Sucheol tilted his head. ¡°But that Jinsung, when did he change his weapon again? He¡¯s holding a spear.¡± Clang- Cla-clang-! The western area of the collapsed 1st defensive wall of the Pyro Domain. As only one part of the rampart had crumbled, troops of a couple thousand units couldn¡¯t enter at once, but still, quite a lot of troops entered the fortress. ¡®Although it¡¯s been broken down, if it¡¯s a space this narrow, we need to block them off as long as we can.¡¯ As soon as Ian received the report that the western area of the rampart was broken through, Ian moved quickly and moved to the western battleground. And he also summoned all of the Familiars that he wasn¡¯t able to summon because he had been shouldering the general commanding alone from on top of the rampart up until now. ¡°Paulean, Celia, you guys will also have to help me.¡± ¡°Understood, Lord.¡± ¡°Yes, Lord!¡± Ian, who had even brought all of his retainers excluding Kaizar, began to fight the Kaimon Empire Army that entered through the collapsed rampart. ¡°Ly, just like you¡¯ve always done, please focus on getting rid of Magicians, Archers and Priests.¡± Understood, Owner. Ly was a Familiar that specialized in dealing explosive damage to single targets. Because of that, he was also the Familiar whose abilities shone the most in a dogfight like this. On the other hand, neither Lake or Pin could demonstrate their strength greatly in a dogfight like this. This was because they could not use their AoE skills, which were their main attack abilities. ¡°Pin, Lake. You guys just fight and when the cooldown times for your Inherent Abilities are over, please go outside and use your AoE skills.¡± Kku-ruk- Kku-ru-ruk-! Ian, who had lastly put Bbakbbak and Celia in one team, got on Halli¡¯s back. ¡°Alright, shall we try to block them as much as we can?¡± Ian used all of his buff skills, but he didn¡¯t use his ¡®Will of the Selamus Warrior¡¯ skill yet. ¡®Until an opponent that¡¯s hard to face appears, I should save the Will of the Selamus Warrior.¡¯ Compared to the duration of the Will of the Selamus Warrior skill, the cooldown time was not that long. Rather, it could be considered on the shorter side, so truthfully, the words that he would save it didn¡¯t really fit. It was because of the penalty that Ian wouldn¡¯t be able to use any other skill while this skill lasted that he was trying to use it carefully. And as Ian ran into the battle, many users charged towards Ian. ¡°It¡¯s Ian!¡± ¡°It¡¯s really Ian! If we catch that dude, the reward will probably be enormous, right?¡± The reward received when catching a user from the enemy country was proportionate to the opponent¡¯s level and Fame as well as the Specialty Points they possessed. As that was the case, if someone succeeded in killing Ian, they would truly be able to obtain an enormous reward. Since now Ian was in a situation where he had caught up to the level of the top-ranking group by 10 levels, and in the case of his Speciality Points and Fame, his were much higher than Ilahan or Shyakran. While looking at the users of the Kaimon Empire that charged towards him, the corners of Ian¡¯s mouth curled upwards. ¡®Ha, what a waste of your levels, you idiots.¡¯ Ian, who had faced a ton of users within virtual reality, could now get an estimate of his opponents¡¯ strength just by roughly looking at their movement pattern. And at the least, amongst the users that were after Ian, there was not one that looked like a proper heavyweight. Ian began to spin the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ round and round. ¡°It hasn¡¯t been long since I¡¯ve been using a spear, but I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll lose to you guys.¡± It was a clear provocation. And at that provocation, the faces of the Kaimon Empire users turned bright red at once. ¡°Now that you¡¯re a little famous, have you lost your mind?¡± ¡°Crazy, even in a situation like this, is performance important? It looks like he¡¯s really going to be fighting against us with a spear.¡± Traditionally, the greatest provocation for guys were the words that they were bad at games. It could be considered to the point that it was at least ten times more effective than the words that they were ugly. On top of that, a provocation that adds fuel to the flames of one¡¯s opponent could be considered a better CC (Crowd Control, a skill used to restrict the movements of an opponent) than a status condition skill. CC was inflicted on the character, but because a provocation that rattled the pride was inflicted on the player¡¯s brain, it was something that couldn¡¯t even be undone with a clearing skill. Ian grinned as he threw in another word. ¡°Come at me all at once. Since we don¡¯t have time, that is.¡± [1] Oppa = what a younger female calls a related and/or close older male CH 180 Chapter 180: Enemies on Every Side (Middle) (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda His opponents were high-level users that were in their mid-lv 140s, but in the eyes of Ian, who was now over lv 150, the lv 140 users that didn¡¯t have proper control abilities looked nothing more than children. ¡°Crazy guy, let¡¯s kill him!¡± ¡°Scrap Summoner that¡¯s all bark and no bite!¡± Firstly, the Warrior user and the Knight user, who were closest to Ian, swung their swords as they charged towards him. And while riding Halli, Ian lunged towards them equally as well. ¡®Let¡¯s see, shall we warm up a little?¡¯ The Warrior user, whose movements were faster in comparison, ran into Ian first, and the two people¡¯s weapons moved quickly as they began to clash with each other. Clang- Cla-clang-! However, before they could even exchange a couple clashes, Ian¡¯s spear stabbed deeply into the man¡¯s shoulder. Shove-! As he was pierced by the sharp blade of the spear, which was twisted into a zigzag shape, the Vitality of the man decreased significantly in a moment. ¡°Euk-!¡± And Ian spun his spear in a circle before immediately dealing a consecutive blow! On top of that, as his Inherent Ability, the ¡®Lightning of Judgment¡¯, was also invoked, the man was thrown backwards. Boom- Crash-! Inherent Ability, the ¡®Lightning of Judgment¡¯, has been invoked.You have dealt critical damage to Kaimon Empire User ¡®Servicon¡¯.Kaimon Empire User ¡®Servicon¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 27,980.Due to the AoE explosion, ¡®Servicon¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by an additional 13,780. Towards the guy, who was thrown backwards after his Vitality hit the floor in an instant, Ian threw his spear. Swaeek-! Before his body even hit the floor, Ian¡¯s spear pierced through his chest. You have killed Kaimon Empire User ¡®Servicon¡¯.You have obtained 1252 Fame.You have obtained 679 Specialty Points. With the spear piercing through his chest, he turned into a grey light. Ian quickly ran over and pulled out his spear before spinning it in the air. ¡°Why so weak?¡± Ian continued to cast an AoE provoke as he raised his spear towards the flustered Knight, who was frozen in place. As he did so, the hesitant guy lifted his sword and shield again as he slowly approached Ian. The Warrior user that charged in with him had suffered before being able to make any sort of move. ¡®Keu, as expected, even the experience is different with good items.¡¯ Of course, for such a result to come out, the biggest reason was that the skill difference between Ian and the guy was too great. On top of that, a spear had a longer range compared to a sword, and as there was also a positional advantage as Ian was attacking from on top of Halli, this overwhelming difference was created. It was indeed a situation where the expression ¡®fleeting moment¡¯ perfectly fit. The Knight user that had now stood right in front of Ian glared at him as he opened his mouth. ¡°That dimwit was just careless. Don¡¯t mistaken it as your skills, Ian.¡± ¡°Is that so? Then you should try and prove it.¡± From Ian¡¯s stance, they were just words that made him laugh. ¡®Who¡¯s the one that dares being careless in front of who?¡¯ Ian clenched down on his spear as he charged towards the man. In this current situation, where he needed to quickly reduce the numbers by even one, there was no time to relax. Clang- Cla-clang-! The guy blocked Ian¡¯s restless attacks quite well. ¡®Is he trying to show that he¡¯s at least a Knight?¡¯ However, that was only for a moment. Ian¡¯s spear harshly dug into the gap that appeared in between his shield and sword. Shove-! Ian clicked his tongue internally. ¡®The Kite Shield looks cool, but aside from horseback battles, it can¡¯t help but drop in efficiency, so I have no idea why people use it.¡¯ The Kite Shield, which looked like a kite[1], had a shape where it stretched down at the bottom. Compared to the light and spherical Round Shield, it was a shape that couldn¡¯t help but limit the movements of the user. From the beginning, the Kite Shield was a shield that was designed to be long in order to cover the lower-half of the body, which became defenseless when on a horse. It was not a piece of defensive equipment to be used in close combat. Clang- Cla-cla-clang-! As he allowed one attack, the guy began to continuously get cut by the blade of the spear. Crash-! At the Lightning of Judgment that burst out consecutively, he was scorched black. Plop-. Within a short time of not even 3 minutes, Ian made it game over for two lv 140-ranged users. The Luspel Empire users that watched that form cheered as the Kaimon Empire users swallowed audibly. ¡°Wow¡­ Do, dope.¡± ¡°This crazy, is he really a Summoner? How can the damage he deals from stabbing with his spear be that nonsensical?¡± ¡°That¡¯s because his attacks went in properly. And it seems his items are good, too. If the blade of a spear was lodged into someone¡¯s chest like that, even if it was a spear that was pierced through by a Magician or Priest and not a Summoner, I feel like they would deal critical damage.¡± However, that was just the beginning. Ian dug up the battleground from the start as he began to massacre his enemies. The ones that were mainly Ian¡¯s targets were high-level users that were over lv 140. This was because, even if it wasn¡¯t Ian, users that were in the lv 130-range or any normal empire soldiers could be taken care of by the ones that participated in this battle, but users that were over lv 140 were a little dangerous. ¡°This crazy, do a combined attack! Catch that guy first!¡± ¡°Kill him! What are the Magicians doing? At least cast some AoE magic!¡± ¡°You idiot, this is the central continent! If an AoE attack is invoked, we¡¯ll also be caught in it!¡± The collapsed rampart. And while stepping on the remains of the rampart that were piled like mountains below it as he ran here and there, Ian slaughtered the Kaimon Empire users without rest. Roar-! Ever since Ian jumped down from his back, Halli also began to run around like a fish in water, while Ly was showing an even more menacing fighting power than Ian. ¡°Goddamn, what is that lightning that¡¯s falling? Was there such a thing amongst the Summoner¡¯s skills?¡± ¡°Well, it could be possible. It could also be a Familiar¡¯s Inherent Ability, or an Inherent Ability attached to a Legendary-rank item.¡± ¡°He really hit the jackpot. He¡¯s seriously doing everything alone.¡± Even despite being busy because of their own battles, the users glanced every so often at Ian, and the filming crystals that went around here and there in the air as they shot battle videos were gathered in a huddle around Ian before they realized. ¡°Whew¡­ I¡¯m sweating a little.¡± As his Vitality dropped down below half, Ian, who pranced around the battleground like crazy, fell back and received treatment from the Priests. And while Ian had fought for quite a long time, about two more places also crumbled besides the west rampart. ¡®It looks like we should endure for a little more now before returning to behind the line of defense.¡¯ It was only because of the narrow space right now that they could block them off as not a lot of enemies could trespass through, but if more holes appeared, it would be difficult to block them off like now. This was because the absolute difference of their troops was too great. Ian scanned the battleground as he turned his gaze towards the line of defense that looked like it was in the most danger. However, just then, the loud roar of a lion burst out from one side of the battleground. Ian, where do you think you¡¯re escaping to! In an instant, all gazes in the battleground gathered in the direction that the roar of a lion burst out from, and that was the same for Ian as well. ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± And Ian¡¯s gaze met the eyes of a man holding twin swords. The man had a domineering image, with a red light rising from his dark red armor¡­ For some reason, Ian thought that he looked familiar. ¡®What the hell? I feel like I¡¯ve seen him somewhere¡­¡¯ The man¡¯s lion-roar burst out once again. Don¡¯t you think we should finish the battle that we weren¡¯t able to finish in the Pascal Islands! It was only then through the roar that burst out weightily from the man¡¯s mouth that Ian realized who it was. ¡®Ah, that Kaimon Empire user that I met inside that prison¡­!¡¯ Ian grasped his spear tightly. Along with a strange competitiveness, he felt himself become excited. Ian¡¯s footsteps moved towards him. ¡°Haha, long time, no see. I was taken aback because you disappeared so suddenly back then.¡± Amongst the users that remained in Ian¡¯s memory, he was one of the small handful of users that showed exquisite control and fighting abilities. Ian was genuinely glad to see him. ¡°Huhu, that attitude overflowing with confidence is one thing that hasn¡¯t changed.¡± The two people stood facing each other in the middle of the battlefield. And from the mouth of someone, a quiet exclamation burst out. ¡°It¡¯s Shyakran! Shyakran and Ian ran into each other!¡± Despite it being a situation where the siege warfare was continuing, the gazes of many people poured towards the two people. It was an interesting scene being displayed, to the point that it prevented others from turning their gazes away despite the pressing situation. As Ian also heard the words that it was Shyakran, he became even more excited. ¡®No wonder, I thought he was strong¡­ He was a top-class ranker!¡¯ Shyakran, the Guild Master of the Titan Guild, was a named user that Ian also knew well of. ¡®An opponent I can¡¯t fight properly if I don¡¯t use all of my fighting power¡­¡¯ Ian, who contemplated momentarily, ended up using the ¡®Will of the Selamus Warrior¡¯ skill. You have used the ¡®Will of the Selamus Warrior¡¯ skill.For 20 minutes, all combat stats will increase by 40%.Your ¡®Agility¡¯ stat will drastically increase.Your Proficiency towards all weapons will increase up to lv 15.The level of the Proficiency that is related to the weapon currently in use, ¡®Spearmanship¡¯, has been set to Intermediate lv 5. A golden aura began to rise from Ian¡¯s body. Shyakran, who saw that, smirked. ¡°Huhu, within the time I didn¡¯t see you, you¡¯ve obtained a interesting skill.¡± Ian also smiled equally as he replied. ¡°You¡¯re also probably different from back then.¡± Shyakran nodded his head. ¡°Of course!¡± The gazes of the two people became quite serious. And shortly after, without one going before the other, the two lunged for each other. * * * Separate from the western area of the fortress, where Ian was playing an active role, the general progress of the battle began to turn a little unfavourable to the Lotus Guild. Amongst the large army of a hundred thousand, close to half of their fighting power had succeeded in getting over the first line of defense. Even so, that was only possible because there was Ian stopping the western area well, as well as Kaizar sweeping the northern area. As Herz thought that the first line of defense in the southeast location was no longer blocking off the enemies as well as they should be, he hurriedly let out a command. Everybody in Zone 1 of the line of defense must gradually retreat back starting now. Exactly 3 minutes from now, the circuit breaker will come down. During the time when Ian and Herz designed the fortress, besides the northeastern side, where it was perfectly blocked by geographical features, they divided the remaining three zones before designing. And the zone that was allowing the most enemy infiltration right now was Zone 1 where Herz was. Herz escaped backwards little by little as he began to slowly take back the defending army. The circuit breaker will come down soon! Once the circuit breaker comes down, the elemental towers will begin to operate, so you must all escape to the back before then! Different from the basic guard towers, the elemental towers were towers that dealt AoE-type damage. Especially if you were within the range of the flame tower, which had the strongest firepower, you could become a roasted turkey whether you were an enemy or an ally. Herz began to countdown while looking at the time. ¡°5¡­4¡­3¡­¡± And in accordance with the countdown that Herz gave, the defending army began to move diligently. However, not all of the defending army retreated to the back. Users that were in a difficult position to escape from to get to the back instead moved forward more aggressively as they moved in order to kill even one more opponent. Since if the line at the front overdid themselves and escaped to the back, their opponents could get a wind of their plan. Shortly after, as Herz¡¯s countdown ended, a deafening roar began to ring out in the fortress. [1] Repetitive, I know, but in the original Korean version, the author called it ¡®ka-ee-teu sheel-deu¡¯ before stating that it was in the shape of a kite in Korean. CH 181 Chapter 181: Enemies on Every Side (Final) (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°2¡­ 1¡­ Open!¡± Keu-keung- Keu-keu-keung-! The sound of boulders scratching against each other rang out. As the circuit breaker that was blocking one side of the fortress went up, the battleground began to welcome in a new condition. ¡°What is that?¡± ¡°There¡¯s more towers inside!¡± ¡°Damn it! No wonder, I was thinking that there were less defensive towers than what we heard from the DarkRuna Guild members!¡± Almost all of the guard towers that were along the first line of defense were already in a state where they were destroyed by the Kaimon Empire¡¯s Allied Forces. The users, who were thinking of fighting in a more relaxed state now, began to run about in confusion after discovering the newly emerging defensive towers. ¡°Damn it! On top of that they¡¯re elemental towers! Fall back!¡± ¡°The back is blocked off as well! I¡¯m telling you, it¡¯s hard to escape!¡± And above the heads of the Kaimon users, who didn¡¯t know what to do, the attack of the elemental towers sprayed out. Hwa-reu-reuk-! Ba-ba-ba-bang-! On top of that, each of the Magicians, who had escaped to the back in advance, began to cast the strongest AoE magic amongst the ones they knew. Whoong-! The sound of mana vibrations rang out from here and there. At the constantly pouring AoE magic baptism, the Kaimon Empire Army that was filling up the southeast area of the fortress to the brim turned into black ashes in an instant and crumbled on the spot. Za-za-zap- Bang! In the blink of an eye, a tremendous number of thousands of troops evaporated, and the executive members of the Kaimon Allied Forces, who had escaped to the back, wore dazed expressions. ¡°Ha¡­ How do we have to attack those now?¡± It wasn¡¯t as high as the 1st line of defense, but they still had the 2nd line of defense, which was not low at all, and in between the two, there were elemental towers that were commencing fire¡­ The executive members of the empire army, who lost too many troops to go in and attack immediately, weren¡¯t able to make a decision right away. However, just then, Ilahan, who returned from the battleground, suddenly sheathed his sword back into place as he opened his mouth. ¡°Let¡¯s leave it at here for now.¡± ¡°Huh? Are you saying let¡¯s step back just like this?¡± Ilahan nodded his head as he continued his words. ¡°The north and west side still haven¡¯t been able to even get through the 1st line of defense. Let¡¯s support those sides first and then get through the 2nd line of defense.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Would that be better?¡± ¡°Of course, there¡¯s nothing that we wouldn¡¯t be able to do if we were to push them on like this, but the damage would be tremendous. Did you not see the destructive power of the AoE towers, everybody? And in about a quarter of a day, we will have to stop the battle¡­ There¡¯s no guarantee that we will be able to get over those ignorant towers by then.¡± Even if it was a virtual reality game, it definitely wasn¡¯t like there wasn¡¯t the fatigues of the real world. And no matter how much of a game cripple they were, they needed to digest the most minimum of their schedule in the real world. Starving one meal was not that difficult but proceeding through the siege warfare while making all of these people stay up all night was overdoing it. ¡°Hmm¡­ Then you¡¯re saying that we should at least end today off at a point where we¡¯ve gotten completely through the 1st defensive wall for now, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. I¡¯m saying that there¡¯s no need to rush.¡± At Ilahan¡¯s words, everybody slowly nodded their heads. ¡°Whew, now that you mention it, you do have a point, Ilahan.¡± ¡°I thought that with a fighting power of over a hundred thousand, it would be possible enough to reclaim the Pyro Domain within today, but I didn¡¯t know that their resistance would be this violent.¡± In the end, the executive members of the Allied Forces accepted Ilahan¡¯s opinion, and they began to move quickly. * * * Because they were on private mode, it didn¡¯t show on the outside, but Shyakran¡¯s level was around 162, and Ian¡¯s level was 153. It was a situation where in reality, there was about a 10-level difference between the two. A 10-level difference was quite a big difference as well, but the general public thought that the two people¡¯s level difference was much greater. ¡°This crazy! Does Ian have some sort of cheat key? How is he able to fight against Shyakran on equal terms?¡± ¡°Since the highest level range that¡¯s been officially made public is around 160, Shyakran¡¯s level is probably about 160, too¡­ I wonder what level Ian is at about.¡± ¡°Loren, who is registered as 1st place on the Summoner ranking list right now, is at lv 134.¡± ¡°Hul, so then, no matter how high we consider Ian¡¯s level to be at, it¡¯s only at about 140, no?¡± ¡°I guess so? Even 140 is really stretching. I think that no matter how high it is, it will only be at about 136.¡± Ian was currently almost 20 levels below Shyakran, and on top of that, he was facing him with the Summoner-class, which was considered the weakest class in man-to-man combat if Priests were excluded. The two people¡¯s battle that was seen by the normal users was interpreted as what was written above, and that called forth an incredible wavelength. Since it was to the point that the words that the Summoner-class needed to be reanalyzed. And through this unconditional excitement, the people that were fighting around these two people had completely forgotten about their own battles and were watching the two¡¯s battle while gawking. Ba-ba-bang-! The red bundle of sword energy that Shyakran shot out hit Bbakbbak¡¯s body as it was absorbed. ¡°Whew, is it a short-term invincibility skill this time?¡± Ian smirked as he replied. ¡°Well, you could say that¡¯s the case.¡± Shyakran frowned as he gripped his twin swords. ¡°This part about Summoners is quite fussy. Since the skills that each Familiar has is all different, it takes quite a bit of time just trying to adjust to the battle. There¡¯s also a lot of variables.¡± ¡°Huhu, that could definitely be the case.¡± Ian rubbed his spear as he fixated his eyes on Shyakran¡¯s movements again. ¡®The clone that he¡¯s using, I can¡¯t think of them as clones. It has a fighting power with almost no difference in comparison to the main body.¡¯ Because what Shyakran¡¯s hidden class was hadn¡¯t been revealed yet, he couldn¡¯t find out, but judging from his skills, he felt like it would have some sort of name like the ¡®Phantom Warrior¡¯. Including his main body, Shyakran used a total of five clones, and he didn¡¯t know what kind of conditions applied, but he was almost swapping the position of his main body and his clones freely. ¡®Does this mean I¡¯ll only be able to kill him unless I end up eliminating the clones in time?¡¯ Around fifteen minutes had now passed by since the two people¡¯s battle had begun. Within that time, Ian had succeeded in eliminating two of the five clones, and amongst Ian¡¯s Familiars, Shyakran had succeeded in putting Halli in a state where he was incapable of fighting. From the outside, it looked like it was a situation where they were even or rather Ian was at an advantage, but Ian was well aware that it was slowly becoming more disadvantageous for him. ¡®I have no idea how long the cooldown time is for his clone skill¡­ But once that cooldown is over, the two clones that I struggled to eliminate will be restored again.¡¯ On the other hand, in the case of Halli, who was forcefully withdrawn as all of his Vitality was exhausted, he wouldn¡¯t be able to summon him again until the penalty was over. He wasn¡¯t able to withdraw him just before he died because of the penalty of the ¡®Will of the Selamus Warrior¡¯ skill. ¡®It looks like I¡¯ll have to hold out a little more and then depending on the situation, I¡¯ll have to fall back.¡¯ Ian, who had made the decision that it was still impossible to catch Shyakran with just his own strength, organized his thoughts and checked the war situation. ¡®Since we put up a good fight just even having defended the 1st defensive wall for almost half a day.¡¯ Bang Ba-bang-! Ian and Shyakran continued to crash into each other. To be more specific, as Ian and his Familiars as well as Shyakran and his clones entangled with each other, a party battle-like feeling was displayed. As the battle persisted, Ian and Shyakran admired each other even more. ¡®Those clones¡­ They probably have AI to an extent, but it¡¯s probably at the same level as a Familiar. In the end, in order to show that level of control abilities, it means that the user is letting out a combat battle one by one¡­.¡¯ Ian was surprised at Shyakran¡¯s clone control, and Shyakran was surprised at Ian¡¯s Familiar regulating ability. As they each were controlling with a similar level of difficulty, they understood the combat abilities of their opponent even more precisely. ¡°Whew, it¡¯s been a while since I¡¯ve had an entertaining battle like this.¡± At Shyakran¡¯s words, Ian also nodded his head as he replied. ¡°Same goes for me.¡± After Ian had checked through the cooldown times and the durations, his expression slightly darkened. ¡®In about 2 minutes now, it seems the duration of the Will of the Selamus Warrior will be over. It¡¯s a bit disappointing, but it looks like I¡¯ll have to shelter myself.¡¯ As Ian was thinking of slowly falling back, a message arrived from Herz just in time. Herz: Jinsung, the defensive walls to the east and the west have been completely broken through, so I¡¯ve put the 2nd defensive wall into operation. You¡¯ll slowly need to fall back. All of the troops that were stationed at this side have all moved to the west. If you¡¯re hemmed in, it¡¯s dangerous. At the message that had just arrived at the perfect time, Ian momentarily felt dizzy. ¡®Whew, now wasn¡¯t the time for this when I should have been continuously checking the general war situation¡­ This personal battle was so fun that I had gotten too absorbed into it.¡¯ After Ian momentarily left Bbakbbak, Ly and Lake with Shyakran, he quickly escaped to the back. As he did so, Shyakran shot out his sword energy towards Ian as he shouted. ¡°Where are you running off to! You should at least finish the battle!¡± Ian reflexively twisted his waist and dodged the sword energy before he got on top of Pin with nimble movements. ¡°If we stay like this, we¡¯ll be hemmed in, so I can¡¯t do that.¡± Ian, who had gotten on top of Pin, quickly surged up into the air, and just in time, system messages rang out. The duration of the ¡®Will of the Selamus Warrior¡¯ skill is now over.All effects have disappeared. Immediately after seeing the system messages, Ian withdrew all of his Familiars excluding Pin. ¡°Withdraw!¡± As he did so, Ly, Bbakbbak, and Lake, who were blocking off Shyakran, turned into white lights and disappeared. Ian, who had risen to the sky of the battleground in an instant, turned on the Dignity of the Commander effect and began to busily let out commands. We will invoke the 2nd defensive wall soon now! Everybody, please escape to the back! The troops of the Lotus Guild followed Ian¡¯s command and moved in perfect order. The users of other guilds, who had never coordinated with Ian, were a little confused just in the beginning, but they immediately adjusted and began to move. Shortly after, all of the 1st line of defense of the Pyro Domain completely opened up, and all defensive troops moved to the inside of the 2nd line of defense. And naturally, the battle became lull. ¡°Wow, damn, hasn¡¯t 8 hours passed now since we¡¯ve started this battle?¡± ¡°This is insane. What kind of siege warfare goes on for 8 hours? On top of that, it¡¯s not even over.¡± The users on either camp who were worn out to the max went limp as they began to take a break, and in the end, the Allied Forces of the Kaimon Empire turned the heads of their horses for now and headed to the campsite. The users of the Kaimon Empire, who each turned back to the village to repair their equipment, respectively shook their heads as they said something. ¡°I¡¯m appalled right now. With a military power of over a hundred thousand, how are we not able to get through that defensive fortress when they¡¯ve only got one-tenth of our troops?¡± ¡°My point exactly. Seriously, why did they invest so much in the defensive fortress like that? I¡¯ve participated in dozens of siege warfares at this point, but this is my first time with a defensive fortress like this.¡± As expected, it was a situation where the atmosphere of the executive team was generally flustered, but still, as there was the result that they had broken the 1st defensive wall, they came to the optimistic conclusion that it would be possible to seize them in a day or two now. Like that, the first day of the Pyro Domain¡¯s siege warfare passed. * * * ¡°It¡¯s already the third day. Samuel.¡± The Great Domain of the Oaklan Guild, which was at the far east side of the central continent. And the two people faced each other inside of the castle of the lord as they shared a conversation with serious expressions. The two people were Samuel Jin, who was the Guild Master of the Oaklan Guild, and Martin, who was the Guild Master of the Splendor Guild. ¡°Whew, that¡¯s what I¡¯m saying. This is an unexpected situation.¡± Martin slightly frowned. ¡°No, why exactly are the dimwits of the Kaimon Allied Forces struggling like that when they have ten times the military strength¡­¡± Three days had already passed since the Allied Forces had begun their attack on the Pyro Domain. On the first day they did get through the first defensive fortress, but the second defensive fortress was still going strong. And the longer the Pyro Domain lasted, the giant guilds that were the establishment of the Luspel Empire grew more nervous. Since the profit that the Pyro Domain obtained each day they lasted was enormous. Through the sturdy defensive fortress, the Lotus Guild was continuously putting up a good fight against enemies that were much bigger in size than them, and the already big war reward was increasing even more. ¡°Hmm¡­ I saw that on the basis of today, the Lotus Guild had entered the top 20 of the guild rankings.¡± The guild ranking system was renewed with every midnight as the beginning point. And on the basis of today, the Lotus Guild was in 19th place. ¡°No kidding, I told you that we should have stopped Roy Chen when he said he would help them then, tsk.¡± Samuel Jin clenched his fist tightly. ¡®Who knew that this would be the case?¡¯ Samuel Jin had put his brain to work in his own way. When Roy Chen said that he would help the Lotus Guild with the fighting power of the Valiant Guild, pretending that he wouldn¡¯t win was part of his strategy that was planned in his head to be honest. ¡®A battle that was hopeless anyways, I was hoping for the Valiant Guild to run in and burn up some of their guild¡¯s fighting power¡­¡¯ The fighting power of the top 3 guilds of the Luspel Empire were similar. That¡¯s why with even a slight difference, the rankings flipped over right away, so Samuel Jin was hoping that the fighting power of the Valiant Guild would be weakened even the least bit. However, far from weakening, the Valiant Guild, who had participated in the siege warfare, had instead received a lot of profit and had seized the highest ranking amongst the three guilds. In Samuel Jin and Martin¡¯s case, it had become the worst situation. Samuel Jin, who had closed his eyes and was submerged in his thoughts, slightly stared at Martin as he opened his mouth slowly. ¡°I¡¯ll try to work things out.¡± At that, Martin¡¯s two eyes slightly shone. ¡°Do you have some sort of method?¡± Instead of a response, Samuel Jin slightly nodded his head as he closed his eyes. And his mind began to race. CH 182 Chapter 182: Enemies on Every Side (Final) (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°So¡­ Are you saying that you will help us?¡± A moonlit night where the darkness deepened, and the quiet barracks that was on the outskirts of the camp of the Kaimon Empire¡¯s Allied Forces. Inside there, a couple of people were sitting in a circle and were sharing a conversation. An unusual point was that while the rest of the people were wearing cloaks with the Kaimon Empire¡¯s design embroidered onto it, one man wore black clothes with no kind of decoration. The man in black clothes opened his mouth. ¡°That¡¯s right. To be specific, we¡¯re not helping you.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± ¡°It should be called a ¡®deal¡¯ for it to be a more accurate expression.¡± ¡°A deal, huh¡­¡± The man that was sitting across from the man in black clothes lightly rubbed his temple as he opened his mouth. ¡°If it is a deal, then that means that your side has something that you want from us as well, so what is that?¡± At that question, the man in black clothes slowly opened his mouth. ¡°The thing that we want is for you to open up the Tower of War for about a week to us.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± At his words, without any exceptions made, the expressions of all of the men inside of the barracks hardened. ¡°That¡­ Ahem¡­¡± As they showed hesitation, the man in black continued his words again. ¡°It shouldn¡¯t be an offer that¡¯s a great loss on your side, though? We¡¯re just saying that we¡¯ll use the Specialty Points that we had collected up until now. In return, you¡¯ll be able to get through the 2nd line of defense easily¡­¡± However, nobody was able to respond easily, and the man¡¯s words continued again. ¡°If you look at the recent war situation, it looked like it would be hard for the Allied Forces to get through the 2nd defensive wall without my help. Are you planning on confronting them this ignorantly, while consuming troops and resources up without any sort of promise?¡± With those words as the end, he closed his mouth, and for quite a long time, the silence continued. And the silence that continued like that was broken as one man stood up from his spot. ¡°That offer, we will accept it.¡± * * * Amongst the bases in the central zone of even the central continent that were interlocked in the power of the two empires, there was almost no place that was properly developed despite having a guild flag standing up. This was because they didn¡¯t know when the siege warfare would break out, and they also didn¡¯t know when the owner of the base would change either. As that was the case, the users affiliated with the Kaimon Empire that were hunting in the vicinity of the central zone didn¡¯t have a place to rest. ¡°Ha, seriously, the EXP in the central continent is awesome, items also drop well, and everything else is great, but there¡¯s no domain or village good enough to go to after hunting to repair our equipment.¡± ¡°I know, right? I feel like even when I¡¯m selling random items, I¡¯m being ripped off, so it¡¯s annoying.¡± However, the users in the Luspel Empire were different. This was because the Pyro Domain, the only giant domain within the zone that had gotten their base level to a Great Domain, was firmly guarding the middle of the central zone. As that was the case, most of the users and NPCs that were affiliated with the Luspel Empire couldn¡¯t help but use the Pyro Domain, and that became an incredible driving force to the growth of the Pyro Domain. ¡°Hyah, how exactly is the Pyro Domain¡¯s development this fast in the middle of this battleground?¡± ¡°I know, right? Soon now, they might get much better than the decent domains of the northern continent.¡± On top of that, at this point, where the siege warfare had been proceeding for a couple days now, the inside of the Pyro Domain was crowded with users. Truthfully, because if they felt the domain would fall to the enemy, they could just log out or use a return stone and evacuate to a different place, so there also wasn¡¯t a big risk. The return stone could be used whenever as long as you weren¡¯t in the middle of a battle. Whiiing-. As the siege warfare will start soon, for users that are on the outskirts of the domain, please shelter yourselves quickly. As the sun rose to the middle of the sky, the siege warfare began again without doubt, and the users that were on the outskirts of the domain moved to the core of the domain. ¡°It starts again today.¡± ¡°I know, right? Will they be able to last today as well?¡± ¡°Probably, no? The 2nd defensive wall hasn¡¯t even been broken yet. From what I know, they even have a 3rd defensive wall.¡± The users murmured and shared a conversation as they moved their feet. However, while all of the users were going into the domain, one man moved the opposite way towards the outside of the domain. The man wore a black uniform and even covered his face with a bandana and mask. It was Limlong, who was inside of the Lotus Domain beforehand. ¡®It has started. Speaking of which, I truly had no idea that I would have to go as far and use this method¡­¡¯ Limlong moved as unnoticeably as possible and headed to the outer rampart of the domain. And as soon as he arrived at the rampart, he used his Hide skill. Seu-reu-reuk-. His body disappeared from the air like a bandit. With proficient movements, he quickly began to climb up the wall. ¡®Let¡¯s see¡­ I just needed to move this way from here, right?¡¯ Limlong spread open a map from his chest and swiftly checked his location once. The result of having infiltrated multiple times and drawn a map, the map of the Pyro Domain was drawn almost completely accurately within his hands. ¡®Down here, there was a detecting tower¡­¡¯ Limlong narrowly moved along the outskirts of the visual field of the detecting tower as he dug around the inside of the fortress. And as he moved around like that for about ten minutes, a clamorous sound could start to be heard from the front. ¡®Huhu, I¡¯ve found it. Now, if I just get over that, I¡¯ll be able to approach the fortress gate.¡¯ Limlong, who finished grasping the route perfectly, placed the map inside his chest and while jumping lightly, he approached the vicinity of the 2nd defensive wall. And having arrived right into point-blank range, he hid his body into a place where the gazes of the Lotus Guild users didn¡¯t reach. ¡®It¡¯s easier than I thought. Is it because everybody¡¯s attention is on the siege warfare?¡¯ Despite there being a lot of intervals where his movements could be revealed in between, Limlong was able to move to the location he was aiming for easily. It was possible because all of the defensive troops¡¯ minds were distracted by the Allied Forces that were attacking. While hiding his body, Limlong waited for an opportunity. ¡®There are too many eyes that are watching right now. I should start when the gazes are dispersed the most.¡¯ With slow and careful movements, he pulled out his wind and fire wheels from his chest and held them. And as if he was a plaster figure, he didn¡¯t budge even an inch and stood still. Had about ten minutes passed like that? Limlong¡¯s body jumped up quickly to the point it could be questioned if he was the same person that was as still as a rock. Ta-tat-! The blade of the wind and fire wheels held a bright red light. And the purple current that blazed around that began to embroider the air. ¡°Heub!¡± With the shortest breath possible, Limlong got rid of the two Lotus soldiers that were standing in front of the management office of the 2nd defensive wall. Chwaak-! At Limlong¡¯s blades that dug into the backs of their necks along with clean movements that had no unnecessities, the security guards that were around lv 130 went limp without being able to even resist against him once, and Limlong was able to quickly enter the management office. ¡®Huhu, success.¡¯ With big strides, Limlong moved his feet and approached the lever that was inside of the management office. And after placing his hand on top of the handle, he pulled it without hesitation. Deu-reu-reuk-! Shortly after the handle let out a light sound as it dropped down, a roar began to ring out from the whole defensive wall. Kwaaah-! After checking the outside of the management office once, Limlong wore a satisfied smile. ¡°This should be enough.¡± He lifted his wind and fire wheels and swung it quickly towards the lever. Crunch-. The rope was cut cleanly, and while mumbling, Limlong moved his feet towards the outside of the management office. ¡°They probably won¡¯t be able to close the door again now.¡± * * * The main chatroom of the official Kailan community. Truthfully, starting from a couple days ago, it had been a while since this place had turned into a real-time discussion page for the viewers that were watching the siege warfare of the Pyro Domain. This was because all of the users that were watching the siege warfare video that was played back live on the main screen of the community were gathered in the main chatroom. This was because with battle videos, it was fun just watching them, but it was more exciting to watch while sharing trivial stories with someone else. Kya, even today, the spirit hasn¡¯t gone down even a little.I know, right? Will the Pyro Domain protect the 2nd defensive wall today as well?Their Defensive Power is seriously insane. Those elemental towers are so strong that climbing the wall itself is impossible, but the space is too narrow to crumble the wall with catapults.I agree with the person above. Even if I was an executive member of the Allied Forces of Kaimon, I seriously have no solution for that.No, still, their numbers are that high, so then why aren¡¯t they able to get through that?Dude. You¡¯ll be able to sense it if you watch the screen, but the fortress design itself is done too well. If they somehow succeed in climbing up that wall, the door opens from the bottom and the defending army runs out and slaughters everybody.Still, the defending army that does come out all dies, so if they keep on reducing the Lotus troops like this, I feel like the Allied Forces, who are superior in numbers, will eventually win, no?I also think like that. It¡¯s amazing that they lasted this far alone, but soon, the Pyro Domain will be short on numbers and their resources will be completely depleted, and they¡¯ll eventually fall to the enemy. Out of excitement, the users were arguing back and forth about the siege warfare. However, just then, someone seemed to be flustered, as they began to type rapidly. Guys! Look at Channel A right now!Huh? Why? Is there something there?Hurry, everybody, change to Channel A! It¡¯s seriously crazy! Why is that like that right now?What is it, what is it?! Channel B was fun for some time now, though. Since you¡¯re acting like that, I feel like I should go and see! The battleground where the siege warfare was being held was incredibly wide. As that was the case, even on the official community, they put up filming crystals in multiple places, and because of that, there were a total of five channels where the siege warfare¡¯s video was being broadcasted on. Even amongst them, the Channel A filming crystal was the filming crystal that was shooting the central zone where the siege warfare largest in size along the 2nd defensive wall was. Wow, this crazy! Why is that opening up right now?What the hell? Did the Allied Forces succeed in infiltrating into the fortress?No, if that opens up right now, what will happen? Oh my god! The reason the users were flustered was nothing different. As the largest fortress gate, which was right in the middle of the 2nd defensive wall of the Pyro Domain, was slowly going up, the gate was opening. And as if they were waiting for it, a ton of the troops of the Allied Forces ran towards the door like crazy. There were even users that were being killed off by elemental towers and long-ranged attacks, but it seemed that they thought they needed to enter the inside first, as the Kaimon Empire users didn¡¯t stop and continued to continuously flood through the main gates. Wow, damn, what exactly is this? If this is the case, the 2nd defensive wall will be broken through just like this today!This is insanity, seriously. I never even imagined that the main gates would open up!Hul¡­ Guys, by any chance, are you sure there wasn¡¯t a spy on the inside? Where maybe a user affiliated with the Kaimon Empire made an alt and infiltrated the Lotus Guild or something like that¡­Person above, are you an idiot? Where are alts in a virtual reality game?Well, if that¡¯s not it, they could have wound them up with money as well. While tons of speculations went rampant, the siege warfare within the video rushed towards an unknown direction more and more. * * * ¡°What exactly happened?¡± Ian, who was in the middle of directing the peak of the battleground, was surprised out of his wits at the unexpected situation. The main gates of the defensive wall, which should be firmly shut, were opening up on their own accord. If there is a guild member that is closest to the management office, please pull up the lever quickly and shut the door! The main door is opening up right now! Ian urgently let out a command, but the reply that returned to him through the guild chatroom shortly after was incredibly despairing. Ian! The lever is broken, so it¡¯s a situation where the door cannot be shut! It looks like someone intentionally opened the door and broke the lever!Huh? As Ian was so flustered, he was at a loss for words. However, Ian, who pulled himself together soon after, quickly began to deliver commands. Guild members in each position, aside from about 20%, please all come to support the middle side! If the main gates were to open up either way, their enemies wouldn¡¯t overdo it and try to climb up the rampart. If that was the case, they needed to deploy as much military strength in front of the opened middle door and block off the opposing troops that were flooding through. ¡®Damn it, who exactly was the dude that did this?¡¯ However, figuring out the culprit was not important right now. The most important thing was getting rid of the urgent fire right now. The support troops at the rear, head to the 3rd defensive wall quickly and start preparing to defend! As quickly as possible! The defending army, who thought that there would be no problems protecting the 2nd defensive wall for a while, had not made any defensive preparations on the 3d defending wall. ¡®If they flood through to the 3rd defensive wall just like this, the defensive facility over there will be destroyed without being used once.¡¯ They just needed to prevent that case no matter what it took, and Ian desperately moved his body. ¡®Damn it, I will protect it no matter what!¡¯ Including Kaizar, Ian gathered all of his retainers and high-level users. While slightly glancing at the rear unit that was urgently heading towards the 3rd defensive wall, Ian clenched his fist tightly. ¡®One hour, we just need to last one hour.¡¯ CH 183 Chapter 183: Enemies on Every Side (Final) (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Truthfully, the operation where an Assassin infiltrated and opened the fortress gate was a method that was already used in a couple recent siege warfares. And its effect was also outstanding each time. That¡¯s why the Pyro Domain was in a state where detecting towers were densely packed in so that an Assassin couldn¡¯t infiltrate them easily as well. ¡®The problem is that I didn¡¯t know that an Assassin affiliated with the Luspel Empire that¡¯s on the same side as us would do such a crazy thing.¡¯ Ian was sure that the culprit was an ally. Since the detecting tower placement at the front of the fortress was truly perfect to the point that no matter how exceptional of an Assassin one was, it would be impossible to get through. And there was one person that came to mind. ¡®It¡¯s definitely that dude from back then.¡¯ He was thinking of the Assassin that he had encountered outside of the fortress while returning after completing the Selamus Quest. Ian ground his teeth. ¡®I was too complacent. I should have been a little more doubtful back then.¡¯ To be honest, rather than be doubtful, it was too chaotic of a situation. The time that Ian had returned was during a situation where the siege warfare was seriously just about to break out, and to pay attention to a questionable Assassin whose identity was unknown, there was just too much to prepare for before the siege warfare. ¡®Let¡¯s last through this situation first, and then think about the rest afterwards.¡¯ No matter how densely packed the detecting towers were placed, they weren¡¯t accurate enough to find every movement of an Assassin who had infiltrated inside of the domain, and thanks to that, this disaster had occurred. However, Ian didn¡¯t blame himself any more. Since it wasn¡¯t over until they reached the actual end. ¡®How much time is there remaining until I can re-summon Bbakbbak?¡¯ Ian checked the cooldown times of all of his skills and how much time there was left until it was possible for him to summon his Familiars. And shortly after, Ian, who had gotten on top of Pin, burst up into the air quickly. ¡°Pin, let¡¯s go as high as possible above the fortress gate!¡± Kku-ru-ruk-! Ian, who had gotten to a point so high that he basically became a black dot in the sky, dropped Bbakbbak in the same method that he did last time. Swaaeeek-! Along with the course sound of wind being split through, Bbakbbak¡¯s large physique fell from above the fortress gate. Shortly after, just before he reached the fortress gate, Bbakbbak¡¯s body turned into a golden light as a deafening roar rang out across the battleground. Baang-! ¡°This crazy, what the hell is this?¡± ¡°I thought that a meteorite was falling!¡± In a curled-up stance, Bbakbbak had fallen on top of the rampart just like that. Ian, who had followed him down in no time, swallowed audibly as he mumbled internally. ¡®Please collapse!¡¯ And as if Ian¡¯s prayer was being answered, the rampart slowly started to crack. Crack- Cra-cra-crack-! ¡°It¡¯s collapsing! Get out of the way!¡± The users of the Allied Forces of the Kaimon Empire that were entering through the fortress gate were frightened to death and began to scatter. However, it seemed that there were too many people gathered compared to the width of the passageway, as over half the users couldn¡¯t shelter themselves and were crushed just like that. Thu-thu-thu-thud-! Ian, who confirmed that image, let out a short sigh of relief. ¡®Whew, still, what a relief.¡¯ The fortress gate that was wide open was now blocked, but the troops of the empire army still flowed in from the top where it had collapsed. Still, as it was a level that was much more favourable than before, the defending army could breathe again. ¡°Ian, how did this happen? Why is it such a mess over here?¡± Kaizar, who had appeared before anybody realized, wore a dumbfounded expression as he asked Ian, and Ian shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s too long to explain. Let¡¯s block them first.¡± Ian held his spear from the very end of the handle as he jumped down towards the battleground. And following him, Kaizar also unsheathed his greatsword as he charged towards the enemies. ¡°It looks like I¡¯ll be able to go all out and fight. Rather than a fortress-defending battle, hand-to-hand combat is far more entertaining.¡± It seemed that he was bored of having to face enemies that were crawling from on top of the rampart for a while, as Kaizar began to leap around out of excitement. Like that, the defending army began their difficult battle against their flooding opponents. * * * The students of the VR department, who had been watching the siege warfare while chattering noisily, were staring at the screen with tense postures in silence starting from some point. ¡°Ah¡­ Please¡­¡± Crunch! At the sound of the cracker breaking that was heard from Mina¡¯s mouth, Sewon reflexively glared at her. ¡°Yo, dude, eat a little quieter. At such an important time like this!¡± ¡°Ah, understood, sorry¡­¡± Sucheol, who was quiet, also added in a word. ¡°Euh, I really hope they block them.¡± Had about twenty minutes passed as they watched while holding their breath? Mina suddenly pointed towards the screen as she opened her mouth. ¡°Oppa! Over there! What is that?¡± ¡°What is it?¡± In an instant, the gazes of all of the students that were in the department room turned towards the place that Mina was pointing at, and in that spot, there was Ian. ¡°Yo, dude, that¡¯s Jinsung. What do you mean what is that?¡± At Sewon¡¯s scolding, Sucheol, who was closely watching the screen, tilted his head as he replied. ¡°Some kind of purple ray of light from the battleground is constantly being sucked into Jinsung.¡± And Sewon, who checked the screen again, also widened his eyes as he opened his mouth. ¡°Huh? You¡¯re right.¡± Purple bundles of energy began to constantly get sucked into the lower abdomen of Ian, who was diligently swinging his spear as he grappled with the Allied Forces, and so far, that energy gathered and created a sphere. And in the next moment, an exclamation rang out from inside the department room. ¡°Wow, what the hell is that?!¡± * * * ¡®What the hell? The God Dragon?¡¯ Ian, who was unable to pay attention to the changes that were happening to him because he was frantically fighting, widened his eyes as he saw the currents of purple light that were suddenly gathering near his waist. Baang-! Ian, who got rid of the enemies that charged towards him, fell back slightly as he checked his inventory. Karceus¡¯s Egg ¨C Hatching Rate: 99.99% (Hatching) ¡°¡­!¡± It was indeed the hatching of the Familiar that Ian long-awaited for. However, Ian¡¯s expression wasn¡¯t really good. That was because the fact that the God Dragon was hatching itself was something that was worth welcoming with open arms, yet there would be no aspect that would be of immediate help. ¡®No matter how incredible this thing may be, where would I use a lv 1?¡¯ On top of that, there was no way of even knowing how much Potential it would have once it was born. Even if the God Dragon was born, as he had no intentions of leveling it up even by one level until its Potential was at 100, the hatching of the God Dragon was indeed meaningless in the current situation. At a very rare chance, it could be an individual that was born with a Potential of 100 but expecting that was greedy. ¡°Damn it, let¡¯s just fight for now!¡± Ian clutched his spear and charged into the battleground again. It was more important that he kicked even one more user immediately out of the game in the time that he had to worry about the hatching of the God Dragon right now. Bang- Ba-bang-! Ian asked a question towards Celia, who was supporting him from behind. ¡°Celia, do you think you could find out how prepared the 3rd line of defense is?¡± ¡°Yes, Lord! I will find out and let you know right away!¡± After she responded, Celia quickly got on top of her Wyvern and flew away. After checking his remaining Vitality gauge again, Ian clenched his teeth. ¡®I have about 50 thousand Vitality left. It¡¯s a little risky with this much, but since I can¡¯t fall back right now.¡¯ Ian spun the Judgment of the Spirit King around like a windmill as he jumped into the middle of the group of enemies. Ian, who was a little awkward with the spear, now showed a form where he was completely adapted to it. Chwa-ra-ra-rak-! ¡°Over there, it¡¯s Ian! Get that dude first!¡± However, just then, unexpected system messages began to pop up one after another in front of the eyes of Ian, who was fighting crazily. Through the bravery that you showed on the battleground, the God of War is awakening.The hatching rate of the egg of God Dragon Karceus has reached 100%. And this time, a message that was one sentence long popped up not just in front of Ian, but in front of every user as well. The first dragon of the seven God Dragons of the ancient legends has revealed itself into the world. Kuoooh-! Along with a deafening roar, a strong wind began to rage around with Ian as the core. ¡®What the hell? What exactly is happening?¡¯ Users that were within about 10-20 metres of Ian were pushed back from the raging wind, and the users of the Kaimon Empire who discovered that form were frightened as they shouted. ¡°That crazy dude is doing something weird again!¡± ¡°Get away! There¡¯s no way of knowing what he¡¯ll do again!¡± It seemed that the Bbakbbak meteor still had a deep impact on them, as the Kaimon Empire users slowly backed away from Ian at the bizarre scene that occurred around him. However, the one that was actually flustered was Ian. ¡®Huh? Why is my body now suddenly doing this?¡¯ It was because his whole body was out of his control. Ian¡¯s body began to float up into the air little by little, and naturally, all eyes were gathered on him. ¡°It¡¯s Ian! What are the Archers and Magicians doing? Fire at him first!¡± The Kaimon users that discovered Ian, who was floating up into the air in a defenseless state, simultaneously attacked Ian from a distance. Bang- Ba-bang-! However, for some reason, before the projectiles could even reach near Ian, they dissipated into the air. Whoong-! Currents of purple light that were from all over the battleground were continuously being sucked into Ian, and that itself was indeed a grand sight. ¡®What exactly is going on?¡¯ Ian wore a puzzled expression, but as he was able to properly drag on the time thanks to this, he thought it was a relief. ¡®That¡¯s right, since, soon now, the defensive preparations of the 3rd line of defense will be all finished.¡¯ Ian began to meditate on the current situation with a completely relaxed heart. And the egg of the God Dragon that popped out of Ian¡¯s inventory on its own accord floated in front of him. Whoong- The egg of the God Dragon let out a loud resonant sound as it began to vibrate on the spot, and its size, which already wasn¡¯t small from the beginning, began to increase more and more. ¡®It seems that because it is a God Dragon, its hatching is also really uproarious.¡¯ As Ian had already seen the hatching scene of his Legendary-rank Familiar Pin with his own two eyes before, he wasn¡¯t greatly surprised. Since the form of the Griffin hatching was flashy enough that it wasn¡¯t greatly lacking in comparison to now. ¡®Oh, but is the egg itself changing form this time?¡¯ Ian, who thought that a baby dragon would break through the egg and appear, wore an amused expression while watching the outer appearance of the egg that was shining brightly itself squirm as it changed. However, just then, a flustering message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Due to your lack of Leadership of Familiars, all Familiars aside from the Dragon of War Karceus have been forcefully withdrawn. Without even realizing it, Ian choked on a breath of air. ¡°Wha, what?¡± A completely unexpected critical situation unfolded itself. If the Familiars that were fighting well were withdrawn, Ian¡¯s fighting power would drop by more than half. ¡®No, even if it appears now, it¡¯s just a little baby at lv 1!¡¯ The Leadership that he needed in order to control his Familiars obviously increased in proportion to the relevant Familiar¡¯s level. Because that was the case, even if it was a God Dragon, Ian never even once thought that he would be lacking in Leadership. ¡®Still, should then be happy that if I bring together all of my Leadership, I can summon the God Dragon?¡¯ To be honest, Ian didn¡¯t know, but even if he brought together all of his Leadership, it was truthfully impossible to summon the God Dragon. The thing that made it possible was actually the ¡®Dragon Tamer¡¯s Feather Ornament¡¯ item that reduced the Leadership that was required in order to summon a Dragon-type Familiar by half. If he was lacking in Leadership, it probably wouldn¡¯t have hatched in the first place. Meanwhile, as Ian was thinking of this and that, the egg of the God Dragon that was around the size of a large watermelon had changed into the form of a dragon that was bigger in size than Lake, the Drake King, before he even realized. And the dark-coloured gaze of the dragon, who was wrapped around in a white light, slowly turned towards Ian. Are you¡­ The human that has awoken me¡­? This battleground was being broadcasted in real time throughout the whole nation. On top of that, as he was in front of the dragon that was overflowing with dignity, Ian wanted to give an equally dignified response. Ian internally thought hard about what he should say. ¡®What should I say in order to look like I have swag?¡¯ However, there was no need for Ian to have such thoughts. Since just like when he completed the quest of the King, Ian¡¯s mouth was already moving on its own accord. ¡°That¡¯s right, War Dragon Karceus.¡± Whoong-! At the response of Ian, or more specifically, the response of the system that was ruling Ian¡¯s body, Karceus shook his body as he roared towards the sky. Kyaaooh-! And Karceus¡¯s words continued. Huhu, this is a battleground. This sticky smell of blood, and the valiant cries. Karceus, who looked down at the battleground once, slowly opened his mouth. This is exactly the place that I need to be. However, the level of Karceus, who boasted a grand dignity as he raised Ian¡¯s expectations, was obviously 1. Even in this situation where his body didn¡¯t move, he was still able to check the information of his Familiars, so Ian already glanced through Karceus¡¯s information window. ¡®Ha, this idiot. What do you mean the place that you need to be?¡¯ And it may be an obvious, but the Offensive Power of lv 1 Karceus was barely a three-digit number. However, separate from Ian¡¯s true mind that was dumbfounded, Ian¡¯s mouth spoke to Karceus with a solemn voice. ¡°That¡¯s right. This is exactly the place you need to be. This place is the same as the hometown of your heart.¡± Kuoooh-! Karceus, who roared towards the sky once more, pushed his head towards Ian as he showed his sharp teeth. This battle, I will lead it to victory. ¡°I will trust you.¡± A cool scene that almost seemed like a scene from a movie unfolded. Of course, separate from the cringy lines, Ian was clicking his tongue. ¡®Sigh, this over-pretentious dragon dude. Why does he have so much to say? I wish that it would finish quickly.¡¯ However, just then, there was an unexpected twist. The companion of my spirit is here. As I have not recovered all of my strength yet, I will borrow his strength. ¡°Do as you wish.¡± Along with the response of Ian, which had nothing to do with his own will, Karceus¡¯s body slowly began to grow. And the purple chains that shot out from Karceus¡¯s body began to roughly wrap around one man¡¯s body. That man, his name was Kaizar. CH 184 Chapter 184: God Dragon Karceus (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Kaizar was strong enough that even amongst all of the NPCs, he was in the top few. Would Kaizar, who was like that, have then become a retainer of Ian at the cost of just one Legendary-ranked weapon? That didn¡¯t make sense from the start. From the beginning Kaizar had felt the strength of the God of War that resided in Ian. And that made Kaizar feel an unknown sense of kinship. Although, to be specific, it wasn¡¯t the strength that resided in Ian, but the egg of the God Dragon that Ian carried with him. ¡®Will I finally be able to see the truth of the unknown source of power that I felt?¡¯ Kaizar accepted the purple chains that wrapped around his body without any resistance. And his body, which was wrapped in chains, floated up in the air. ¡°Euahh! What the hell is that? He summoned a dragon!¡± ¡°Is it really a dragon? From what I know, dragons haven¡¯t even appeared as monsters yet, so how exactly has he tamed one?¡± At the sudden appearance of a dragon, the users were frightened out of their wits. However, just then, after seeing the level information that was above the dragon¡¯s head, someone shouted. ¡°But that dragon, it¡¯s only a lv 1!¡± ¡°Huh? It seriously is. I got scared for no reason!¡± The users that were scared to death pulled themselves together again and began to attack the God Dragon. However, that also was only for a moment. Keu-rwah-rwah-rwah-rwah-! Karceus, the Dragon of War, roared powerfully towards the sky. As he did so, Kaizar¡¯s body was engulfed in a purple light before being sucked into the dragon, and the dragon¡¯s level changed. War Dragon Karceus ¨C Level 128 Karceus, who had grown to almost three times his original size, raised his head towards the sky. Keu-ohhh- And purple steam and a ray of light began to gather at his mouth. The users of the Kaimon Empire that had a hunch what that meant began to be terrified out of their wits. ¡°This crazy, it¡¯s his breath! Get away!¡± ¡°I thought the dragon¡¯s level was 1! Even if we get hit, won¡¯t it not hurt?¡± ¡°No, some idiot must have seen it incorrectly! Its level is written down as 128!¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Still, it¡¯s 10 levels lower than me. Won¡¯t it be alright even if we get hit?¡± ¡°Then why don¡¯t you get hit, you blockhead! Euak!¡± Karceus let out a hot breath towards the place where tens of thousands of soldiers were gathered. And that was the same as a calamity to the Kaimon Empire. Kwaaaah-. An incredible amount of purple current poured out from Karceus¡¯s mouth, and the users of the Kaimon Empire who were hit by the breath began to melt down like ice cream. The only users that could survive after standing in the spot where this breath struck like a tsunami were Knight-class users that were over lv 140. ¡°Keu-euk! How is the damage like this?¡± ¡°Wow, the durability of my shield was destroyed from one blow.¡± However, that wasn¡¯t the end. Standing on top of the dragon¡¯s head, someone was jumping down while holding their giant greatsword up. Everybody, get down on your knees in front of me! The whole body of that one figure was burning purple. And while swinging around his giant greatsword, he began to massacre the users of the Kaimon Empire that had survived. Whoong- Whoooong-! A slightly interesting part was that the hearts of the purple man that was swinging the sword and the black dragon were connected with a purple chain. And whenever he opened his mouth, two voices rang out simultaneously. Kaizar and Karceus had unified. Kyaaaohh-! The appearance of the God Dragon had changed the atmosphere of the battleground in an instant. And it wasn¡¯t like Ian to lose this opportunity. Knights, advance forward! If it¡¯s now, we¡¯ll be able to drive them all out! At Ian¡¯s shout, the defending army, who stood in a daze, began to drive out the Allied Forces of the Kaimon Empire, and the empire army, who was completely drowned in spirit, walked backwards hurriedly. Ian examined the God Dragon and Kaizar attentively as he turned his head. ¡®He¡¯s definitely strong, but it seems because his level is only at 128, he¡¯s not overwhelming to the point that the enemies can¡¯t even face him.¡¯ If that¡¯s the case, for what reason were the empire army that frightened out of their senses? The answer was simple. Firstly, his breath was too strong, and they also were being pressed down by the spirit of the overpoweringly-large dragon they were seeing for the first time. It may be obvious, but breath was an Inherent Ability with an incredibly long cooldown time. And if it was Karceus right now, where he didn¡¯t have breath, even if a couple of the highest-level rankers of the Kaimon Empire stepped in, they would have been able to stop him. However, there was no way that the Allied Forces of the Kaimon Empire that had already fallen into such chaos would have such judgmental abilities, and as they began to be pushed out once, they just helplessly handed over their victory. Like that, the Pyro Domain was able to overcome their desperately dangerous situation. * * * It had been almost a week. Depending on one¡¯s opinion, it could be a long or short time, but within that duration the siege warfare let down their curtain. The duration that the siege warfare was held for was not much different from other normal siege warfares, but the result and content of that was not like that at all. The Lotus Guild and the Pyro Domain was able to succeed in creating a result that truly nobody was able to estimate. With about 20 thousand troops, they had blocked off the troops of the Allied Forces that were almost ten times in their size. If they were able to bet on the results of this siege warfare, the distribution would have probably been in the millions. Wow, damn, then has the Pyro Domain blocked off the whole Kaimon Empire?We¡¯ll have to see it like that, I guess. The Kaimon Allied Forces is seriously incompetent. How were they not able to get through with a military strength which was over ten times in size?I know, right? If they weren¡¯t able to push through even after opening the door, then well, they have nothing to say.People above, you¡¯re speaking incredibly carelessly. Have you even seen the siege warfare properly? It¡¯s not that Kaimon is incompetent, but that the Lotus Guild is really amazing.No, it¡¯s not that Lotus is amazing, it¡¯s that Ian is freaking awesome. From the looks of it, Ian had done everything alone.Keu, speaking of which, guys, what was that dragon that appeared in the last battle? Is that actually Ian¡¯s Familiar?No idea. There are a lot of different opinions on that. There¡¯s even words that Ian used a special one-time use summoning scroll. Either way, there¡¯s a lot of chatter.Is that so? Either way, because of the God Dragon or whatever, a lot of hidden quests have even formed. It wasn¡¯t just the official Kailan community, but various kinds of related communities were all in chaos, and even the presses from foreign countries were dumping the videos of the siege warfare into their own country. Especially, the last battle where the war situation completely turned around through God Dragon Karceus and Kaizar¡¯s active role. The video of this battle that showed the height of dynamics was being spread throughout the internet with several versions as it was drawing in popularity. However, there was no video that recorded an exceptionally high view count yet. A quiet caf¨¦ built with multiple floors that was near Jinsung¡¯s one-room apartment. In one corner of the caf¨¦, a guy and a girl sat across from each other with a laptop on the table and were discussing something seriously. The two people were none other than Jinsung and Sojin. ¡°Jinsung, so then you¡¯re saying let¡¯s cut this part separately and make it into a special video, right?¡± ¡°Yes. If I was a subscriber, I won¡¯t appreciate the whole thing continuously from the beginning because it¡¯s bothersome. We¡¯re just beating each other up, so who would watch it from the beginning to the end when it¡¯s not fun? If you just leave this on, it will last 30 hours alone.¡± Jinsung and Sojin were discussing how they should edit and upload Ian¡¯s personal video. Usually Sojin just edited and uploaded them on her own and Jinsung didn¡¯t really care much, but as much as this battle video was the talk of the town, they decided to work on it more carefully. Sojin was planning on seriously making the best quality video this time and uploading it. ¡°No, that¡¯s just what you think, Jinsung. There will definitely be people that want to watch this video from the beginning to the end as well.¡± Jinsung asked back with a puzzled expression. ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± ¡°That is because your fighting scenes that can be seen through your personal screen are so showy that they make even a beginner like me gasp. There are even a lot of users lately that want to learn by watching your movements, Jinsung.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± While rubbing his chin, Jinsung mumbled to himself. ¡®It¡¯s not like you can do it just from watching, though¡­ You have to feel it with your body.¡¯ Those words would have been enough to make Sojin think he was full of himself if she had heard him. Jinsung slowly nodded his head as he opened his mouth again. ¡°Then, let¡¯s go with this for now. Since it will take a lot of time to edit the whole video, let¡¯s pull out the most important 50 minutes of the last siege warfare separately, and edit it first so that it is high-quality.¡± Sojin nodded her head as she replied. ¡°You¡¯re saying let¡¯s release that first, right?¡± ¡°Yes. Right now, while the timing is hottest, the video must be uploaded as quickly as possible for the effect to be at its best.¡± ¡°I also agree with that. Let¡¯s do that then.¡± ¡°Okay, then let¡¯s just have it so that you do the rest on your own like you usually do¡­ So, when will the video be out around then?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Sojin grinned as she replied. ¡°By tonight if I¡¯m quick. At the latest, it will be out within tomorrow morning.¡± At that, after Ian¡¯s eyes rounded, he asked back. ¡°Huh? How are you able to work that fast? Didn¡¯t it take you almost a week up until now?¡± ¡°Huhu, I¡¯ve finally pulled together a team. I don¡¯t work on my own now. Thanks to you, Ian, I¡¯ve gathered quite a bit of money, so I¡¯ve just made a business instead this time.¡± ¡°Oh-ho!¡± The two people, who shared a couple warm well-wishing remarks, separated after drinking all of the coffee that was on the table. Ian, who was heading to his house, laughed and talked as he thought of the money that he would be earning soon. ¡°Huehue, how much will I be able to make this time? There isn¡¯t even really an item that I want to buy by trading in real money now¡­¡± Ian scratched the back of his head. This was because there were even less items(?) that he wanted to buy in reality. ¡°Should I put some money into my parents¡¯ bank account?¡± However, he shook his head soon after. This was because it was certain that they would question where he got that money as they treated him like a thief. ¡°Hmm, I¡¯ll save it for now, I guess. I should go eat something delicious with Harin.¡± * * * The Kaimon Allied Forces had completely withdrawn. It wasn¡¯t that they didn¡¯t have any more energy to fight, but that the executive members had made the decision that they were using up too much time and resources just to seize the Pyro Domain. Thanks to that, the Pyro Domain was crowded with even more people than before. ¡°Bring all of the leftover building stones over here! I think it will be best to repair here first.¡± ¡°Okay, understood, wait one moment!¡± Starting with the architects who received a certain amount of compensation from the Lotus Guild for helping with the repairing construction of the Pyro Domain¡­ ¡°Selling the Deadly Poison of Sand Scorpions, starting from small quantities to large quantities! Although it may be easy to catch a scorpion, you all know that the drop rate of the deadly poison is incredibly low, right?¡± ¡°Selling the Scimitar of the Desert Warrior! I have two Unique-rank ones and even one Heroic-rank one!¡± To merchants gathered at the plaza in the centre of the domain that were running a business. The Pyro Domain was causing more excitement than any of the domains in the northern continent. On top of that, through this siege warfare, the Lotus Guild was able to accumulate an incredible amount of capital and strength, and as all of these elements brought forth a synergy, they began to grow steeply. However, for Ian, despite all of the situations flowing well to the point that they were perfect, there was a hard feeling set inside of him. ¡®Since I¡¯m not the type to live on with a debt either.¡¯ He hadn¡¯t been able to completely reveal who it was, but he meant the Assassin that infiltrated the fortress whom he was certain was affiliated with the Luspel Empire. He felt he needed to reveal his identity and affiliation and take proper revenge in order to feel satisfied. ¡®And since if I was to go over this without even knowing his identity, he¡¯ll definitely become an obstacle again sometime.¡¯ Bringing together his memory and all the information he could rally up, Ian began to look for him. CH 185 Chapter 185: God Dragon Karceus (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The first thing that he did was obviously collect information on high-level Assassins that were affiliated with the Luspel Empire. ¡®Firstly, a fact is that he is an Assassin. And that he is affiliated with the Luspel Empire. I remember his weapon being Wind and Fire Wheels, but since Assassins can change their weapon whenever they want and use it, that would be hard to count as a clue.¡¯ Once he made a list of all the things he thought of, there was not a lot of fundamental information. ¡®Although there aren¡¯t a lot of clues, since there aren¡¯t a lot of high-level Assassins either, it could actually be easier to find him than expected.¡¯ Ian slowly put his brain to work. ¡®How should I go about this in order to find out the identity of that dude in the easiest way possible?¡¯ He had asked his guild members to take care of the information gathering, and as he also told Carwin about the compiling of that information, Ian was thinking of digging into a different part. ¡®The organization that would receive the most profit if the Pyro Domain was to fall, or even a person.¡¯ Ian figured out what was the thing that he needed to do immediately. ¡®Firstly, it¡¯s definitely a fact that it would be most profitable for the Allied Forces of the Kaimon Empire, so now the important thing is whether the Kaimon side made the offer to the mysterious Assassin first or a certain kind of power that¡¯s affiliated with the Luspel Empire made a proposal to the Kaimon side first¡­¡¯ Ian thought that the part that there was some sort of deal between the Allied Forces of the Kaimon Empire and the mysterious Assassin was an established fact. This was because even if the Assassin had a different kind of reason, he wouldn¡¯t have caused trouble without demanding any sort of reward from the Kaimon side. Since if they offered to play such a critical spy part, they would certainly be able to receive an incredible reward. Ian, who took a moment to organize his thoughts, messaged Herz. Ian: Yo, Yoohyun, are you busy? And a reply immediately came. Herz: No, I was returning to the domain after just finishing hunting. Why? Is there something going on?Ian: No, there¡¯s nothing going on, but I have a favour to ask.Herz: What is it? So randomly.Ian: By any chance, is there a named user that you know from the Kaimon Empire side?Herz: Hmm¡­ I don¡¯t think so? Why¡¯s that?Ian: That punk that stabbed us in the back during this siege warfare, we have to catch him, no? I needed someone in order to get clues.Herz: Hmm, I don¡¯t have an acquaintance, but I think I might be able to find one.Ian: Really? How?Herz: I heard that there¡¯s someone amongst our guild members who was originally affiliated with the Kaimon Empire before they reset their character after the update and changed their nationality to the Luspel Empire.Ian: Ooh!Herz: I don¡¯t know how high of a level they were when they were affiliated with the Kaimon Empire, but still, they probably have more acquaintances on the Kaimon side than us.Ian: That¡¯s right. Even if they were a low-level, if it was before the large update, they would have been an early Kailan user, so it¡¯s possible that they have connections.Herz: Either way, I¡¯ll find out and contact you then.Ian: Okay! Ian, who finished his conversation with Herz, leaned his body against the comfortable chair that was inside the Lord¡¯s castle as he closed his eyes. And he slowly began to organize his plan. ¡®There¡¯s also the method where I just ask the executive members of the Kaimon Empire¡¯s Allied Forces myself, but if I ask them so directly, there¡¯s no way that they¡¯ll tell me.¡¯ If they were to formally acknowledge the fact that they screwed around with the siege warfare by planting a spy in the opposing nation, the status of their guilds would greatly drop even from their position. It was even possible that they would be ripped a new one. Since it was an act that literally broke the commercial morality of the game. ¡®However, I just need to make it so that they can¡¯t help but bite the bait.¡¯ So, the method that Ian thought of was letting some misinformation slide into the executive members of the Kaimon Empire¡¯s Allied Forces. ¡®The Lotus Guild knows that the Assassin that opened the fortress gate of the Pyro Domain was on the same side. So, the Lotus Guild is desperate in order to find him right now. At this point, if you slightly slide in information to Ian and slowly get on his nerves, a division will occur in the Luspel Empire, and from the position of the Kaimon Empire, you will be able to inversely gain a profit. Even if this much slides through, it will be a paste bait that¡¯s delicious-looking enough.¡¯ Of course, Ian had no intentions of making the mistake of blindly following. Even if he was to find out which power within the Luspel Empire committed such an act, there was no need to act rashly. Ian, who organized all of his thoughts, suddenly stood up from his chair and mumbled. ¡°Alright, so for now, I just need to wait until a result comes out of this.¡± Ian grinned as he opened his Familiar information window. ¡°Then should I go raise this dragon until then?¡± The one that revived Ian and the Pyro Domain from the edge of the cliff, that Familiar was the equivalent of a treasure. After the siege warfare was completely over, Ian opened the information window of Karceus for the first time. Ring-. Karceus (War Dragon) Level: 85 Classification: God Dragon Rank: Legendary Personality: Destructive Evolution possible Offensive Power: 2992 Defensive Power: 1318 Agility: 1420 Intellect: 1658 Vitality: 89,250/89,250 Inherent Ability *God of War (Passive) Proportionate to the number of enemies that are within a 150-metre radius, the Offensive Power of all allies within that radius will increase by a fixed rate. *Dragon Skin (Passive) Damage from all magic attacks will be reduced by 40%, while damage from physical attacks will be reduced by 10%. If you remain unharmed for 10 seconds, you will recover 2% of your Vitality every second. *Dragon Fear (Cooldown Time 10 minutes) All enemies within a 50-metre radius with yourself as the centre will all fall into a ¡®Fear¡¯ state. The higher your level is compared to the enemy, the chance of falling into a ¡®Fear¡¯ state will increase, and once in ¡®Fear¡¯ state, they will not be able to attack Karceus for 100 seconds. (Applied disregarding the immunity level of the enemy.) *Dragon Breath (Cooldown Time 120 minutes) Within a 50-metre range towards the front, the powerful breath of a dragon will be emitted in a fan-shape. It has the force equivalent to 2370% of Karceus¡¯ Offensive Power, and additionally, for 10 seconds, 40% of that force will be dealt as continual damage. (The effect will decrease to half when facing a user.) *Polymorph (No Cooldown Time) Using Polymorph, Karceus can transform into the form of a human. Once in the form of a human, all combat stats will decrease by 30%, and amongst his Inherent Abilities, Active Skills cannot be used. One of the seven legendary God Dragons, War Dragon Karceus was given his abilities from the God of War. As he has not found all of his strength yet, he is in an incomplete state. The information window expected of a dragon was so fancy that it was truly jaw-dropping. However, there was an aspect that Ian was a little disappointed in. ¡®I needed to have leveled him up when his Potential was in a state where it was at 100¡­!¡¯ Karceus¡¯s Potential at birth was 98, and because of that, up to until almost lv 60-70, he had leveled up in a state where he lacked 2 Potential. ¡®It couldn¡¯t be helped, but¡­¡¯ Against Ian¡¯s will, he had leveled up while he fought inducted to Kaizar. Either way, the difference between 100 and 98 Potential was minor, and based on the calculations that Ian did like a pervert in order to find out how much stats he had lost, it was a minor level where he lost less than 10 stats even if they were all added together. However, Ian was pointlessly leery, and thanks to that, Karceus¡¯s nickname became ¡®Mojilee[1]¡¯. He wanted to actually name him Mojilee, but because he was an individual that already had a name before he was even born, that was impossible. ¡°Mojilee, summon!¡± Familiar ¡®Karceus¡¯ refuses the summoning command. While looking at the system message that popped up, Ian grumbled. ¡°As expected¡­ I needed to have named him Mojilee. If I did that, then he wouldn¡¯t have been able to refuse my commands.¡± Ian, who smirked, invoked the summoning command again. ¡°Karceus, summon!¡± Whoong-. And in front of Ian, a muscular man with dark purple eyes and hair appeared. His expression looked incredibly displeased. I am Karceus, the War Dragon, owner. ¡°I know.¡± Then I would like for you to not call me by such a nickname. However, Ian, who found Karceus¡¯s sulky form cute, grinned as he shook his head. ¡°What can I do when you¡¯re still a mojilee?¡± Whew¡­ I am not lacking. I am a perfect dragon! ¡°No, your Offensive Power is lacking about 3, while your Defensive Power and Reflexes are each lacking about 2.¡± ¡­ While looking at Karceus, who was at a loss for words, Ian smirked. ¡°Mojilee, should we go to level up instead?¡± Don¡¯t want to. I¡¯m not a mojilee. While looking at Karceus, who frowned intently with his sharp-looking face, Ian smirked. ¡°Sure, well, got it. Karceus, let¡¯s go hunt.¡± As Ian opened his door and left, Karceus acted as if he couldn¡¯t win against him and followed him out. Karceus was a dragon that loved fighting most. * * * ¡°What do you think, Ilahan. Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s quite a decent idea?¡± The temporary barracks of the Allied Forces of the Kaimon Empire. The guild masters of the top-ranking guilds affiliated with the empire were gathered in one spot inside the barracks and were discussing about something. ¡°Hmm¡­ It certainly is a good idea. If all goes well, we¡¯ll be able to blow our noses without even placing a hand¡­¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know if Ian will be able to use that dragon that he showed during the siege warfare again, but even without that, the fighting power of the Lotus Guild is exceptional.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°If we can come between them through this opportunity, and make Ian attack Splendor or Oaklan, we should be able get through the rear line of defense easily, no?¡± After they returned with the attack on the Pyro Domain as a failure, the Allied Forces of the Kaimon Empire changed their route entirely. While ignoring the Pyro Domain that stood alone in the middle of the central area, they chose to go with the method where they advanced towards the east continuously. The Lotus Guild without the defensive fortress of the Pyro Domain wasn¡¯t that threatening either way, but as there wasn¡¯t much they could do in a state where they were isolated, they decided to just completely ignore them. While the masters of many guilds were sharing a variety of conversations, Shyakran, who watched that image quietly from one corner, slowly stood up from his spot. ¡°Shyakran, where are you going?¡± At Ilahan¡¯s question, Shyakran stretched for a moment as he replied. ¡°By the looks of it, I don¡¯t have an aptitude for fights like these that require a lot of brainwork, that is. Ceilron will listen instead of me.¡± ¡°Ahem¡­¡± Shyakran whisked his arm around as he headed towards the outside of the barracks. ¡°Decide on your own and just notify me. Then, I¡¯ll be on my way.¡± As Shyakran left the barracks, Ilahan momentarily wore a displeased expression, but shortly after, he began to focus on the meeting instead. And after about thirty minutes. The meeting proceeded in the direction that Ian predicted, but instead, a variable that he didn¡¯t even think of appeared. This small seed conceived a large change in the composition of the continent in the future. [1] Mojilee = Someone who is lacking just 1-2% from being perfect (ex. A guy who has the looks and money, but is a little lacking in the brain department) Sorry for the romanization, it just sounded weird to call someone just by ¡°Lacking¡± ^^;;; CH 186 Chapter 186: God Dragon Karceus (3) TL: Haku Editor: Oer In the beginning of Kailan, a total of seventeen gods who each had different powers existed. And exactly a thousand years from then. In order to block the attack of the devildom, five of the seventeen gods came down to the world of mortals. However, the gods could not directly get involved with the world of mortals. Due to this, the five gods used each of their own powers and helped humans that were invaded by the devils, and in order to help block off the Evil Dragon Khalifa, they each sent a dragon that was granted a portion of their power down to the human world. Amongst them, the dragon that was born through the power of ¡®Kailes¡¯, the God of War, was the God Dragon of War, ¡®Karceus¡¯, and the human hero that he divided that strength with was the Undefeated Swordsman, ¡®Kaizar¡¯. The times that the two were active were the same, but there was nothing they knew about each other. This was because Karceus was protecting the Prilania Valley of the northern continent as he fought face-to-face with the evil dragons, while Kaizar was playing an active part as he faced the devils in the central continent. As the war with the devils was coming to an end, Karceus was hit by a big crisis by the Evil Dragon Khalifa and he was sealed into the state of a spirit, and as Kaizar¡¯s memories were sealed by the God of War, he began to wander the human world. Kaizar and Karceus both had the same stem as the God of War ¡®Kailes¡¯. In some ways, they were no different than brothers, but the two, who didn¡¯t even know of each other¡¯s existence up until now, had met for the first time in a thousand years through Ian. Because that was the case, the two just felt a strong sense of kinship towards each other, but they were in a state where they didn¡¯t know much about each other. A dungeon in the outskirts of the central continent. Ian, who was diligently hunting alone, mumbled towards Karceus. ¡°Yo, Mojilee[1]. Can you not combine with the retainer like last time?¡± Thanks to having diligently leveled up for a couple days, Karceus had grown close to lv 100 in no time. However, because he wasn¡¯t able to properly show an active role within the dungeon of the central continent, where lv 150-180 ranged monsters were standing close together, Ian was sighing deeply. It was only possible to have borrowed his strength because it was a special situation. It is impossible right now. At Karceus¡¯s words, Ian licked his lips. ¡°Tsk¡­ When will I even get you on the edge of my level at this rate?¡± When Karceus fought unified with Kaizar, he was at lv 128, but his stats were at a much stronger level than that. Of course, even lv 90 Karceus right now was strong to the point that it was nonsensical when compared to his level, but Ian was frustrated. ¡°Retainer, let¡¯s sweep this place up quickly and move on to the next dungeon.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Kaizar nodded his head as he replied. ¡°Let¡¯s do that. Because of that mojilee, our hunting speed is incredibly slow.¡± At Kaizar¡¯s words, Karceus spun his head around as he wore a serious face. It¡¯s just because I am in the body of a human right now. If I return to my main body, monsters and such like this¡­! However, Karceus¡¯s excuses were brushed aside by Ian¡¯s one statement. ¡°If your main body was of any help, you would have remained as your main form.¡± That, that¡¯s not so! I¡¯m¡­! Ian threw another statement towards Karceus, who was trembling. ¡°Since it doesn¡¯t make a difference on the fact that you¡¯re of no help either way, I was just telling you to stay in your human body as it¡¯s easier to move around in. Anyways, stop the small talk and just follow us. Since Kaizar and I will carry you.¡± Just wait a little bit, owner¡­ I will become stronger than that ignorant human in no time. Karceus ignited his competitive spirit while looking at Kaizar. Ian, who glanced back and forth at the two, smirked as he moved his feet. ¡°I really hope that happens.¡± ¡°I agree. Mojilee dragon dude.¡± ¡­ On the outside, they squabbled with each other, but Kaizar and Karceus got along quite well. As his level was low, he lacked stats, but as expected for one who has the modifier the Dragon of War, Karceus¡¯s combat AI was absolutely exceptional. And the most encouraging part was that ever since Karceus was awoken, Kaizar¡¯s Loyalty had increased by a whopping 20. ¡®For Kaizar¡¯s Loyalty to be at 27¡­ Now I don¡¯t have to worry about suffering a team kill.¡¯ As Kaizar even listened to Ian¡¯s orders when he was in a good mood, it couldn¡¯t help but simply be a tremendous advancement. Bang- Ba-bang-! While looking at Kaizar and Karceus diligently whip through the dungeon, Ian firmly grasped his spear and charged into the battlefield. Ian, who used the Will of the Selamus Warrior skill, may not be as strong as Kaizar, but he was able to demonstrate a stronger fighting power than Karceus currently. ¡®Speaking of which, it¡¯s about time that the Kaimon dudes start nibbling, yet why is it so quiet?¡¯ Ian momentarily thought about the situation he had caused, but shortly after, he began to focus on the hunt. It wasn¡¯t an extremely urgent issue anyways, and the most important thing right now was to get Karceus¡¯s levels back on the rails immediately. ¡®And I also need to find a way to raise my Leadership by any means¡­¡¯ If Karceus was over lv 100, he was planning on doing the Summoner-class quests that he had lying idly for a while. This was because there were a lot of cases where class quests generally gave class-related stats as rewards. * * * Yoohyun, who had escaped the world of Kailan and had spent a relaxed weekend for the first time in while by going on a date with his girlfriend, turned on his computer as soon as he arrived home and laid down on the couch. ¡°Hmm¡­ Was there not much going on in Kailan today?¡± However, Yoohyun, who realized he thought of Kailan as soon as he returned home, shook his head. ¡°Whew, well, am I also a hopeless game maniac?¡¯ Yoohyun, who logged onto the official community shortly after, began to look around the bulletin board here and there. And shortly after, his two eyes slightly grew. ¡°Hmm¡­ What the hell? Is something going on? Why is there suddenly such a high post count here?¡± The ¡®Today¡¯s Issues¡¯ bulletin board that normally had about 50 new posts per hour at most had as many as over five times the amount of bulletin posts uploaded onto it. It was not really a bulletin board that he went into often, but out of curiosity, Yoohyun clicked on it. Click-. And after reading the content, he couldn¡¯t help but become even more flustered. ¡°What the hell? This is about our guild!¡± Yoohyun, who muttered audibly before he even realized, slowly began to read through the bulletin posts. Wow, seriously, Luspel¡¯s top-ranking are actually rotten. I never even dreamed that the Pyro Domain¡¯s door opening back then was actually them back-stabbing.No kidding. They¡¯re seriously crazy. But I still don¡¯t know why they did such a thing, so is there someone that could explain this so that it¡¯s understandable?Well, I also don¡¯t know the exact situation, but the content that¡¯s been known so far, I will try to organize the content that I¡¯ve seen and heard.As the siege warfare at the Pyro Domain went on for longer than expected, the establishing guilds of Luspel that were just sucking their thumbs in the safe zone in the back could have become anxious that they wouldn¡¯t come down to the back. This is because as war is eventually money and amazing, it is the characteristic of the central continent, which is an amazing resource.Even if the Pyro Domain was expected to fall to the enemy in a couple days, their stomachs probably hurt at the profit the Lotus Guild obtained for that duration. Since truthfully, the Lotus Guild had jumped up about 70-80 rankings compared to before this siege warfare and after. From what I know, the Lotus Guild should have now entered the top 20 of the guild rankings.Lastly, the longer the siege warfare went on for, they would have been afraid of the criticism they would receive from the general public from an ethical side. This was because the longer the Lotus Guild lasted in the Pyro Domain, their popularity wouldn¡¯t be able to help but drop as they didn¡¯t help them and hid in the back. Since the fact that Lotus lasted for a long time corresponded to the words that if the top-ranking guilds backed up Lotus, they would have been able to block them off for sure. Although, of course, Lotus blocked off the Allied Forces without their help, that is.Kya, person above, your insight is seriously no joke. Now that you actually mention it now, it¡¯s plausible. Splendor, Oaklan¡­ Truly bad guys. I knew from the moment they monopolized the dungeons in the northern continent before.I agree with everything the person above wrote but let me be clear about one thing. We, the Valiant Guild, helped Lotus with our fighting power. Juhu, of course, the Lotus Guild and Ian played an amazingly active role, but I wish that everybody knew about the fact that our assistance also took up a big portion.Keu, person above, you must be affiliated with the Valiant Guild. You must be pleased. I noticed that the popularity of Valiant also went up an incredible amount through this siege warfare. I noticed that you¡¯ve gone up in the ranking as well and am firmly defending 1st place. I¡¯m jealous, to be in Valiant, ha¡­Huhut, borrowing the intermission to promote once, the doors of our Valiant Guild are always open. Come and join us whenever! Although, of course, the level limit has gone up to 130, that is. Dozens of bulletin board pages were filled to the brim with criticism towards the establishing guilds including the Splendor Guild, and Herz, who slowly read down, abruptly got up from his spot. ¡°Now is not the time to be like this. Jinsung, this dude, is probably cooped up in a dungeon and just hunting, so I should go quickly and let him know.¡± Yoohyun hurriedly turned off his computer and went into the capsule. It was a little late at night, but as it was not time for Jinsung to log out yet, It was much faster to log onto the game rather than send him a text message. * * * Jinsung, who received Yoohyun¡¯s call, immediately went into the Lord¡¯s castle of the Pyro Domain. And with even Fiolan, who was logged on in case of an emergency, the three began a meeting. ¡°So, the word that Splendor Guild was the one behind this is spread here and there, right?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Herz shook his head as he replied. ¡°No, it¡¯s not like that. I didn¡¯t read everything, so I can¡¯t say exactly how it is, but I think it¡¯s just vaguely being stated that the ¡®top-ranking guilds are the ones behind this¡¯.¡± At Herz¡¯s words, Fiolan asked with a serious expression. ¡°What are the chances of it being a rumour?¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯m not sure. It could just be a rumour, but the ripple effect of this is too big. I¡¯m also a little confused right now. I wish that all of this content was all rumours instead and it¡¯s just the scheme of the executive members of Kaimon in order to induce an internal conflict amongst the Luspel Empire guilds¡­¡± Ian let out a short sigh as he spoke. ¡°Ha, unfortunately, both are probably right.¡± At Ian¡¯s words that were out of the blue, Herz widened his eyes as he asked back. ¡°What are?¡± ¡°The fact that they are the masterminds that back-stabbed us is probably right, and the fact that it¡¯s the scheme of Kaimon in order to induce an internal conflict in Luspel is also probably right.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± The two people, who momentarily chewed over the words that Ian said thoroughly, were able to understand shortly after. ¡°So, you¡¯re saying that the side of the Kaimon Allied Forces intentionally poured out the truth, right?¡± At Fiolan¡¯s question, Ian nodded his head. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right. As a matter of fact, on the basis of the information that Herz gave, as I¡¯ve almost secured the identity of the Assassin, I had assumed over 90% of the things would have happened. And this situation, to be honest, the Kaimon side had just bitten the bait that I had let out.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Although it is a development that is slightly unexpected¡­¡± Ian¡¯s expression slightly darkened¡­¡± This was because he didn¡¯t think that the situation would snowball this much. ¡®I thought that if the word that they planted a spy was found out, it would land a blow on the image of the Kaimon dudes, so I didn¡¯t think that they would be like this so openly¡­¡¯ However, if it was like this, all of the arrows of criticism would be shot towards the ranked guilds of the Luspel Empire, so naturally, the Kaimon Allied Forces would be able to avoid the arrows of criticism. This was a part that Ian hadn¡¯t thought about. ¡®If things don¡¯t go well, the whole Luspel Empire might waver.¡¯ If it becomes issued like this, even if Ian and the Lotus Guild didn¡¯t directly hold anything against the establishing guilds of the Luspel Empire, the public sentiment would turn away. And if they could not receive the support of the mid-upper level users, the chance that they would helplessly fall to the Allied Forces of the Kaimon Empire was high. Since the Kaimon side was quite superior when it comes to fighting power. Ian¡¯s mind began to race quickly. ¡®Perhaps this could be a chance to draw a new picture¡­¡¯ [1] Mojilee = Someone who is lacking just 1-2% from being perfect (ex. A guy who has the looks and money, but is a little lacking in the brain department) CH 187 Chapter 187: A Sign of Downfall (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The tactic of the executive members of the Kaimon Empire that induced internal conflict within the users of the Luspel Empire worked really well. The controversy that started to spread through the community grew to the point it was uncontrollable, and it was publicized throughout all of Kailan. The forces of the establishing guilds of the Luspel Empire were strong, but when looking at the whole empire, the fighting power of the mid-upper level users could be considered the strength that was almost the foundation of the empire. Simply put, as the establishing power wasn¡¯t able to receive the support of the middle class, the Luspel Empire began to shake from its roots. There were even cases where amongst the users that were affiliated with the top-ranking guilds, there were some that were disappointed and walked away from their guilds. Articles related to this began to continuously pour out from all mediums including the official community. The uneasy balance of Kaimon and Luspel begins to crumble.The Korean Kailan server, will the two giant countries crumble for the first time in the world? At first, there was a lot of people saying that the press was pouring out articles that were too provocative. They were doubtful that the giant empire that was Luspel would collapse so easily. However, as time passed, more people began to predict the fall of Luspel. The Allied Forces of the Kaimon Empire, who took the opportunity, began to push through the east side at an incredible speed. As that speed was amazing to the point it was truly terrifying, dozens of central continent bases that were affiliated with the Luspel Empire were handed over to the Kaimon Empire in an instant. And the Allied Forces of the Kaimon Empire strategically excluded the Pyro Domain from the beginning. The thought that if they continuously knocked on their door, they would eventually be able to take over, but to do that, the time and expenses that went in were too big. Summarized into one word, the expression ¡®chicken ribs¡¯ was most correct. Their existence was the same as the rib meat of a chicken as there was too little meat to go through all the trouble of eating, but it didn¡¯t sit well to give it to someone else either. Leaving enemy territory alone right behind their back itself could be discomforting, but the Kaimon Empire moved aggressively. As about one month passed like that, close to 80% of the territories were handed over into the hands of the Kaimon Empire, and the front line was pushed down to the very back where the giant guilds of the Luspel Empire were guarding. Experts predicted that the giant guilds of Luspel would collapse immediately, but they still desperately endured on. This was because if all of the central continent went into the hands of the Kaimon Empire, then the eastern continent, which was the mainland of the Luspel Empire, would be in danger next, and in the position of the established guilds that possessed multiple large-scale domains in the outskirts of the continent and the northern area, they needed to block it at all costs. And during that time, Ian and the Lotus Guild began to expand their territory in the central continent little by little. They had occupied several bases that surrounded the Pyro Domain. * * * The Lord¡¯s office of the Pyro Domain. Ian and Herz, as well as Fiolan, the Lord of the Pyro Domain, were sitting down and sharing a conversation. ¡°Jinsung, if you use all of your Fame, how high can you raise your noble title?¡± At Herz¡¯s question, Ian, who took a moment to check his information window, began to diligently calculate his Fame. ¡°Hmm, since I have about 5.2 million Fame right now¡­¡± Fiolan was completely flabbergasted as she asked back. ¡°Huh? 5.2 million? No, exactly what must you do in order to collect that much?¡± ¡°This is just my opinion¡­ But I probably collected about 200 thousand Fame just from my dragon letting out his breath in the siege warfare that we went through against the Allied Forces two months ago.¡± ¡°Now, now that you mention it, you do have a point there¡­¡± ¡°On top of that, since I¡¯ve been constantly poking here and there around the central continent and hunting, if you look at it, 5.2 million is not that large of an amount.¡± Ever since the moral controversy of the establishing guilds of the Luspel Empire stuck out, the general public thought that Ian and the Lotus Guild would take revenge on them no matter what method it took, but surprisingly, the Lotus Guild did not make any sort of move. They just quietly developed their strength in the middle of the central continent. And during that time, Ian poked around the middle of the central continent like it was his home as he continuously raised his level. This was because right now, when most of the rankers that were affiliated with Kaimon were gathered at the front line in the eastern zone, even if they were inside the territory of the Kaimon Empire, no user that could stop Ian existed. On top of that, because Ian¡¯s level was almost at 170, even most decent Kaimon NPCs couldn¡¯t even stop Ian. Whether it was a dungeon or a field hunting ground, Ian hunted whatever he confronted, and if a Kaimon Empire user or NPC existed in the hunting ground, he even massacred them indiscriminately. The result of that was that he had gathered this enormous amount of Fame. ¡°Seriously, even in games, the rich get richer while the poor get poorer.¡± ¡°Rather than that, wouldn¡¯t the phrase some people have everything going their way be more accurate?¡± Ian lightly ignored the two people, who were grumbling, as he substituted his Fame to the promotion requirements. And he opened his mouth shortly afterwards. ¡°Since I need 1.2 million in order to become a Marquis, and 2 million in order to become a Duke, it looks like I can go up to a Duke in one go. However, since I have too little Fame left once I go up to a Duke, it¡¯s too irrational to become a Duke yet.¡± At those words, Herz scratched the back of his head as he spoke. ¡°Euh, so there was also Duke after Marquis.¡± ¡°Yeah, idiot. But why do you ask about that?¡± ¡°I thought that you might even be able to raise your title to ¡®Archduke¡¯.¡± ¡°Archduke?¡± As Ian asked back, Fiolan responded instead. ¡°If you raise your title to Archduke, we could combine the domains of our Lotus Guild and declare them as a ¡®Dukedom¡¯.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Herz grinned as he added on. ¡°For the first time in all of Kailan, we could become a dukedom.¡± Currently there were a total of seven domains that the Lotus Guild owned. The Lotus Domain and the Ollibus Domain in the northern continent, and including the Pyro Domain, they had an additional five domains. Of course, as the rest of the domains in the central continent excluding Pyro had the risk of being taken whenever, they didn¡¯t place a high importance on them, but either way, the profit they could earn from the creation of the seven total domains was tremendous. If considering the fact that the Titan Guild and the DarkRuna Guild, who were quarreling over first and second place in the overall guild rankings, didn¡¯t quite have 15 domains that they possessed, it could be considered a surprising level. Thanks to that, the Lotus Guild had met almost all of the requirements in order to become the very first ¡®Dukedom¡¯ in Kailan if Ian just obtained the ¡®Archduke¡¯ title. It wouldn¡¯t be the Lotus Guild but would become the ¡®Lotus Dukedom¡¯. However, Ian¡¯s reaction wasn¡¯t that positive. ¡°If I went all-in for about a month to gather Fame, it should be more than enough for me to get to archduke. However, I have no intentions of doing that yet.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Fiolan widened her eyes as she asked back. ¡°Why¡¯s that? The fact that we become a dukedom, it means that we will be a nation. We can obtain a power that¡¯s incomparable to before.¡± Firstly, once they become a nation, quality of the people and the military power that they could train itself changed. It would become possible to build a facility that could foster knights that were the same as the public knight academy, and the various contents of magic towers or special defensive towers would open up. Fiolan was talking about that. However, Ian shook his head. ¡°The moment we declare ourselves a dukedom, the arrows of Kaimon that are aimed at the unification of the continent will return to us again. You even know the reason why I¡¯m not expanding the number of bases in the central continent right now.¡± A total of seven domains. And currently, the Lotus Guild was ranked at 11th place in the guild rankings. To be honest, this figure was a figure that Ian cleverly made. He wasn¡¯t increasing any indexes that could be appeared on the outside. It would be accurate to see it as consideration to reduce the awareness towards the Lotus Guild from the top-ranking guilds of Kaimon. Since the Lotus Guild that was being seen on the outside was not enough to be of threat towards the Titan or DarkRuna Guild yet. Herz nodded his head as he opened his mouth. ¡°Hmm¡­ But then again. If we suddenly declare dukedom, they¡¯ll probably come to nip the bud. Then, Jinsung, what is your thought?¡± Ian slowly opened his mouth. ¡°Now is the time to increase the internal strength. Until the Kaimon Empire Army is right in front of Myuran, let¡¯s continuously grow our strength and wait for the chance.¡± This time Fiolan asked. ¡°And then what about afterwards?¡± Ian¡¯s gaze turned towards Fiolan. ¡°We will lead all of the troops that we have gathered up until then and return to the Lotus Domain.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± The Lotus Domain he was talking about was the base in the northern continent that the Lotus Guild first obtained. At Ian¡¯s unexpected statement, the two people¡¯s gazes gathered at his mouth at the same time. Ian¡¯s words continued. ¡°We will return to the Lotus Domain and swallow up all of the domains of the guilds affiliated with the Luspel Empire that have grown weak nearby, and we will proclaim dukedom then.¡± This was the first time that Ian was explaining his giant picture that he had continuously thought of for the past two months. ¡°And the users of the Luspel Empire that would soon fall, we will take in all of them. Since above everything else, we have ¡®justification¡¯.¡± Herz slowly nodded his head with a dazed expression. ¡°That¡¯s right, we¡¯re the only guild that endured until the end against the Kaimon Allied Forces in the middle of the central continent.¡± ¡°Yeah. We just need to maintain that image until then. And we¡¯ll bring up a new nation in the northern continent.¡± At Ian¡¯s words that poured out without rest, Fiolan felt chills all over her body. ¡°Wow¡­ I didn¡¯t know that you were thinking that far ahead. Up until now, I thought the reason we were gathering strength was to back-stab the Kaimon Allied Forces.¡± Herz agreed with Fiolan still wearing a dazed expression. ¡°Me, me, too¡­¡± Fiolan opened her mouth again. ¡°That¡¯s why I thought that we were declaring ¡®dukedom¡¯ at an unexpected time and plot so that the tables turn with the troops we gathered until then¡­¡± Ian smirked. Since at the beginning, he had the same thought as Fiolan as well. ¡®However, if that¡¯s the case, then even if we become a dukedom, we¡¯ll just be a subject country affiliated with a large empire known as Luspel.¡¯ It was a golden opportunity to escape the fence of the empire and independently raise a nation. Ian thought that this opportunity was a chance given by the gods. On top of that, there was another reason. ¡®If we back-stab the Kaimon Empire Army with the strength we¡¯ve gathered together up until now, we¡¯ll just be helping those shrewd guys, Splendor and Oaklan, so we can¡¯t be doing that, no?¡¯ If the empire fails, then it would be no different than them, the first establishing guilds, failing as well. Of course, amongst them, he was planning on taking the same route as the Valiant Guild. Ian opened his mouth towards the two people. ¡°Either way, we must continue to increase our fighting power, but we must hide that. You could see it as our goal is to suffer devaluation as much as possible from outsiders.¡± Herz and Fiolan nodded their heads at the same time. ¡°Okay, I understand what you mean. It looks like we¡¯ll have to keep everybody quiet inside of the guild as well.¡± ¡°No kidding, if it¡¯s as Ian¡¯s plan is, it looks like it will be quite a long-term plan.¡± And Ian added on. ¡°Oh, there¡¯s also something else I remembered.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± The corners of Ian¡¯s mouth slightly curved upwards. ¡°Samuel Jin will most likely request for assistance soon.¡± Herz was startled as he spoke. ¡°Huh? With what sense of honour will that crazy dude request for assistance?¡± Ian smirked. ¡°Since we haven¡¯t taken any stand up until now. He might think that we don¡¯t know the exact situation, or he might even try to make a deal with us.¡± With an expression full of anger, Fiolan asked Ian. ¡°Then how do you plan on responding?¡± ¡°We must say that it¡¯s difficult enough for us to just protect the Pyro Domain. What will they do from that side when we say that we don¡¯t have energy to spare?¡± However, even at Ian¡¯s response, Fiolan wasn¡¯t wearing a satisfied expression. ¡°That¡¯s it?¡± At her question, Ian grinned as he replied. ¡°No way. We must take as much revenge as we suffered.¡± CH 188 Chapter 188: A Sign of Downfall (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian, who went hunting every day for two months, had grown quickly to the point he was close to lv 170. However, other users weren¡¯t just fooling around during that time either. The level of the users who were officially registered on the ranking were already over 170. Ian¡¯s information was still on private, so his name wasn¡¯t up in the level rankings, but if he substituted himself into the ranking chart with his current level, he could predict that he was around 10th-15thplace. If the other hidden rankers that had their information on private like Ian were calculated for as well, he would be around 15th-20th place. ¡®Hmm¡­ Still, I¡¯ve caught up a lot now.¡¯ Even if he was within the top 20, it was a situation where he didn¡¯t even have a 5-level difference now with the rankers that were quarreling over 1st and 2nd place. Considering the fact that he made and started a new character during a situation when the top-ranking users were about lv 100-110, it was a truly splendid achievement. On top of that, if just Ian was excluded, as the level of Loren, who was ranked 1st place in the official Summoner ranking, was at mid-140s, even within the same Summoner group, he could be considered truly unrivaled. ¡®Now Karceus¡¯s level is over 140¡­ It¡¯s slowly reaching the time for me to go and do class quests.¡¯ Because the level limit of the connected quest of the Selamus Warrior, which was a hidden quest, was 200, it was still remote, and Ian was planning on clearing it up all the class quests that he had been pushing back up until now at once. ¡®Now that I think about it, it¡¯s really interesting. It¡¯s probably because the Taming Master is a hidden class, but my leveling up process up until now is really different from the general development route.¡¯ Generally, once over lv 50, the users received quests in the towers of their respective classes. And while solving those quests one by one, they slowly leveled up, but in Ian¡¯s case, as he was swept up by all sorts of unusual quests and events, he ended up not having done any class quests that could be obtained from the class towers. ¡®Once I do all of the class quests, I should have some leniency in my Leadership.¡¯ Despite doing all that he possibly could in order to raise his Leadership during that time, Ian was only able to summon one more Familiar after he summoned Karceus. Whenever a class quest was cleared, the related class stats could be obtained as a reward, so to Ian, that was most important. ¡®Alright, that¡¯s that, but I am almost there now?¡¯ Ian raised his head and looked at the flags that were flapping from afar. And he grinned. ¡°Now it¡¯s time for revenge.¡± Ian¡¯s gaze turned towards Karceus. ¡°Mojilee[1], you¡¯re ready, right?¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Karceus frowned as he nodded his head. ¡°Well, if you¡¯re asking if I¡¯m ready to fight, I¡¯m always ready.¡± However, an unusual point was that the human form that Karceus had polymorphed into was not his regular form. His original outer appearance of a black-haired swordsman with a sharp-looking face had turned into the form of an archer with a more thinner appearance. And that outer appearance was none other than Samuel Jin¡¯s form. Karceus had polymorphed into Samuel Jin¡¯s image. Kaizar said something from the back. ¡°Yo, dragon. Do you even know how to use a bow?¡± At those words, Karceus glared at Kaizar. ¡°Of course. There isn¡¯t a weapon that I don¡¯t know how to use.¡± While looking at Karceus, who wore an expression full of confidence, Ian pulled out the weapon that he was carrying on his back. That weapon was not a spear or a bow, but a greatsword. That was in order to hide Ian¡¯s identity. ¡°Then¡­ Shall we get started?¡± Ian and Kaizar, along with Karceus. The place that the three people were headed for was none other than Splendor Guild. After making Karceus polymorph into the form of Samuel Jin, the Guild Master of the Oaklan Guild, Ian¡¯s plan was to wreak havoc on the Splendor Guild¡¯s camp and create division between the two guilds. While wearing a mask over his face, Kaizar asked Ian. ¡°But, Lord guy. If those guys aren¡¯t idiots, they¡¯ll figure out that something is weird, so will they really fall for this so easily?¡± Ian smirked as he replied. ¡°Well, truthfully, I don¡¯t think that they¡¯ll fall for this either.¡± ¡°Then?¡± ¡°I just want to let it out and wreak havoc. The momentary division is a bonus.¡± While staring at the flag of the Splendor Guild, Ian continued his words. ¡°If they instead really fall for it and a proper division arose, that¡¯s more difficult. Since then this front line of defense will shatter too easily.¡± Ian was estimating it would take at least about 4 months to half a year in order for the Luspel Empire to collapse. ¡®If Luspel collapses too quickly, we lack too much time to develop our strength.¡¯ Because that was the case, Ian was planning on making them angry to an extent while squandering around before running away. ¡°Today, it¡¯s Splendor, tomorrow, it will be Oaklan.¡± Of course, when poking around the Oaklan Guild camp, the plan was to have Karceus play an active role with the outer appearance of Martin, the Master of the Splendor Guild. * * * Thud- Thud- Thud-! The Lord¡¯s castle of the Oaklan Guild. And sitting at the Lord¡¯s room, which was at the highest point in the castle, Samuel Jin narrowed his eyes at the sound that shook the ground as he stood up. ¡°What the hell? Who¡¯s the guy making such a fuss¡­!¡± However, his words could not be continued any more. Gulp-. While opening the door of the Lord¡¯s room wide open, Martin stepped inside. And as soon as he walked in, he slammed down on the table of the Lord¡¯s room. Bang-! ¡°Samuel, what do you think you¡¯re doing!¡± While looking at Martin, who was fuming as he exploded in rage, Samuel Jin, who was taken aback, widened his eyes. ¡°No, Martin, what happened? What did I do¡­?¡± Samuel Jin was incredibly flustered, but he responded calmly, and Martin soon settled down and continued his words. ¡°Yesterday evening, close to half of our domain¡¯s advance barrack guards were massacred.¡± At that, Samuel Jin¡¯s two eyes rounded as he asked back. ¡°Huh? But there definitely wasn¡¯t any movement from the Kaimon camp yesterday evening¡­¡± Martin nodded his head as he replied. ¡°That is true. Since the ones that killed our soldiers were not the Kaimon Empire.¡± ¡°Huh? Then who exactly would do such a thing¡­!¡± Martin pointed his finger at Samuel Jin as he opened his mouth. ¡°Exactly, you. The soldiers and users that survived the site said they saw the face of you, Samuel Jin.¡± * * * When he first made this plan, in order to move as carefully as possible, Ian was just accompanied by Kaizar and Karceus and began to poke around the two camps back and forth. However, as there were not many difficulties, he was accompanied by all of his retainers instead to pack up a small-scale raid and he systematically bothered them. Ian had employed quite a lot of high-ranked retainers from the Human Resource Centre up until now, and thanks to that, even with just his retainers, he was able to create a twenty-people-sized raid. After setting up a chatroom that just the retainers could be in, Ian systematically let out commands. Archers now fall back, and just like we¡¯ve done up until now, just go around on the outside and cut them down! Ian¡¯s goal was not to break down the two guilds. That was also obviously something that was impossible to do with Ian¡¯s fighting power alone. Ping- Ping-! The arrows that flew out pierced through the necks of the guards and users that were guarding the outside of the guild barracks ruthlessly. Healers heal the injured ones, and ones that are fine, pierce through beforehand with bows so that there¡¯s no case of being surrounded! The goal of this attack was to bother the two guilds until they got tired, and it was incredibly successful. It was already the fifth time. The rear troops of the Splendor and Oaklan Guild just helplessly suffered without being able to even properly resist once. However, this wasn¡¯t because they were weak. Most of their fighting power was invested in the front lines against the Allied Forces of the Kaimon Empire, and in the rear end, guild members and soldiers that were a lower level in comparison were just placed there. But to pull main force troops to the back just because of Ian was also impossible. If the fighting power of the two guilds, who were the strongest in the front lines of the Luspel Allied Forces, pulled out, the defensive front line of the Allied Forces of the Luspel Empire, who were already hopelessly outnumbered, would collapse immediately. Either way, because of Ian¡¯s bothering, Splendor and Oaklan fell into a dilemma, and Ian could truly take out all that was bothering him about the two guilds to his heart¡¯s content. * * * ¡°Huff, huff¡­ Aoo-nim[2], this is the limit now. How about we rest for a little bit?¡± ¡°Understood, Hyung-nim[3]. Then let¡¯s rest for a moment before we move again.¡± After all of the siege warfares of the Pyro Domain were finished, Hoonie received half of his freedom from Kaizar. Although, truthfully, rather than receive freedom, Kaizar had just lost interest in Hoonie. ¡®Hmph, once I get the Power of the Immortal, I¡¯ll go catch that Kaizar guy first!¡¯ Cutting the shackles that tied him to Kaizar was the very first challenge that Hoonie needed to complete. And Hoonie was confident. This was because at the end of months of desperate effort, he was seeing the end of the Immortal Quest. Of course, Hoonie still didn¡¯t know about Kaizar¡¯s outrageous level, which was now over 260. Canoel, who was next to Hoonie, opened his mouth. ¡°Keu, still, thanks to you, Aoo-nim, I¡¯m at lv 130 as well.¡± ¡°Huhu, I¡¯m over lv 160 now, Hyung-nim.¡± Ever since Canoel bought Hoonie the Pledge of the Monarch of Darkness item, the two became incredibly close. Hoonie called Canoel, who was about three years older, Hyung-nim, while Canoel called Hoonie Aoo-nim as they became a brother-like relationship. Including Death Knight Ballam, who was always right next to Hoonie, the three like this relied on each other while sharing the Immortal Quest as they overcame the rugged journey. ¡°That¡¯s that, but I think that your control abilities have definitely gotten better compared to the past as well.¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it all be thanks to you, Aoo-nim?¡± He had a little bit of bluffing, but Kanjihoonie was one of the few big shots of Kailan that Ian acknowledged. Of course, the ability spoken of here was about pure control ability excluding stats and items. And Canoel, who was a dude that seriously had no idea about games let alone play them, received teaching from Hoonie and was slowly gaining human-like abilities. The two people, who finished repairing their items while resting about ten minutes, began to continue through the dungeon. ¡°Ballam, please kill the Sand Skull Archers that are gathered in the back!¡± Understood, Hoonie. ¡°Yongyong, Breath!¡± Kyaaooh-! The two people worked quite well together now. At first, rather than a party member, Canoel was the same existence as a serious ¡®baggage¡¯ to Hoonie. However, now, he was at least not baggage. And had about one hour passed by like that? The end of the long dungeon finally appeared. ¡°Whew, Aoo-nim. We probably found the right dungeon this time, right?¡± Glancing at Canoel, who spoke with a trembling voice, Hoonie breathed deeply once before nodding his head. ¡°It should be. This time, there should be no mistake.¡± Stomp- Stomp-. Hoonie slowly walked and placed his hand on the slab that was placed at the end of the dungeon. And he shut his eyes as he placed the crystal ball that had the Power of the Immortal sealed into it on top of the slab. And the incantation to make the slab work rang out from Hoonie¡¯s mouth. ¡°Power of the Darkness¡­ Awaken!¡± Whoong-! The moment Hoonie¡¯s words ended, a loud resonant sound rang out throughout the dungeon. Within the black crystal ball, a light slowly began to leak out and the two people held their breaths as they watched that scene. And shortly after, following the light that spread in streams, a black smoke appeared and that began to create some sort of giant shape. Do you truly have the right to become the Monarch of Darkness! A voice that was loud and strange enough to ring throughout the whole dungeon was heard, and at the same time a quest window popped up in front of Hoonie. Ring-. The Monarch of Darkness Immortal (Hidden, connected quest) A thousand years ago. All requirements have been met in order to awaken the Power of the Monarch Immortal, the one who built the empire of the undead in the subterranean. You have honorably carried out all of the missions received from the Spirit of Immortal, and you have received acknowledgement to challenge the Monarch of Darkness to become the next Immortal. Now, awaken Immortal, who is asleep on the 100th floor of the subterranean dungeon, and control him to reform as the Monarch of Darkness. Quest Difficulty Level: SSS Quest Condition: A user that has received acknowledgement by the Spirit of Immortal. Time Limit: None. Reward: Class-change to Black Magician (Monarch of Darkness) (The reward may change depending on the class of the user participating in the quest.) However, in front of the eyes of Hoonie, who was reading through the quest content chaotically, one system message sentence additionally popped up. The quest is automatically shared with ¡®Ian¡¯, the user that is established in the master and servant relationship. ¡°¡­?¡± [1] Mojilee = Someone who is lacking just 1-2% from being perfect (ex. A guy who has the looks and money, but is a little lacking in the brain department) [2] Aoo-nim = What an older male calls a close, younger male with a bit more respect [3] Hyung-nim = What a younger male calls a close, older male with a bit more respect CH 189 Chapter 189: A Sign of Downfall (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda After completing his successful squander(?), Ian, who returned to the Pyro Domain and was in the middle of repairing his equipment, was taken aback after seeing an unexpected system message. A quest has been shared by ¡®Kanjihoonie¡¯ through the master-servant relationship.Will you check the quest information? Ian, who read the message, wore a dumbfounded expression. ¡®What the hell, since when was I in a master-servant relationship with this kid? Is it because Kaizar¡¯s my retainer that the master-servant relationship of my retainer is also applied to me?¡¯ Ian, who mumbled to himself, smirked as he opened the quest information. He didn¡¯t expect for it to be a good quest or anything like that. ¡°Quest check.¡± Ring-. -The Monarch of Darkness Immortal (Hidden, connected quest)- Omitted¡­ Quest Difficulty Level: SSS Quest Requirement: A user that has received acknowledgement by the Spirit of Immortal. Time Limit: None. Reward ¨C 200 thousand Fame, Legendary-rank Summoning Equipment Box. (The reward may change depending on the class of the user participating in the quest.) The eyes of Ian, who read through the whole quest window, rounded. ¡°Eh¡­ What the hell?¡± A hidden connected quest with a whopping triple S-rank difficulty level! Even Ian had only seen a triple S-rank difficulty level once. ¡®The difficulty level is the same as the Selamus connected quest that has a level restriction of 200!¡¯ On top of that, the ¡®Legendary-rank Summoning Equipment Box¡¯ was incredibly attractive. Since the rank of the item was set as a ¡®Legendary¡¯-rank, and on top of that, it meant that he could obtain an item related to the Summoner-class. ¡°This¡­ Is incredible.¡± Ian, who received a high-quality quest from an unexpected place for free, wore a wide smile. ¡°if this is the case, I can¡¯t just overlook this!¡± Ian immediately opened his friend list and sent a message to Hoonie. Ian: Hoonie, where are you right now? It¡¯s been a while, so this hyung wanted to see your face. And shortly after, Hoonie¡¯s response returned. Hoonie: Err¡­ This evil enemy! Ian smirked as he sent a message again. Ian: Why are you being like this? Calling me an evil enemy. Aren¡¯t those too uncourteous of words to be using towards your master?Hoonie: Master, my ass! Who exactly is my master?Ian: Acting like you don¡¯t know when we know you do. Isn¡¯t this hyung your master? The system message just now kindly let us know.Hoonie: ¡­Ian: Forget the small talk, and just call out your location. Looking at the difficulty level, I noticed it was a triple S-rank. You can¡¯t do it alone, anyways.Hoonie: That¡¯s not the case! I can do it myself!Ian: Very funny. I received a quest with a triple S-rank difficulty level just once, but the level restriction is 200. How are you going to do this on your own? Stop the small talk and take the help when it¡¯s offered.Hoonie: Err¡­ Errr.Ian: If you keep on acting like this, forget helping, but I¡¯ll just come swooping in at the last moment. As much as it was a shared quest anyways, if Ian just put in a little bit of effort, finding the location of the quest wasn¡¯t even work. ¡®Tsk, did I needlessly say that I would help? Now that I¡¯ve said it, I could just go in at the last moment.¡¯ However, Ian, who felt the shadow of his conscience scolding(?) him, decided to help Hoonie, and shortly after, Hoonie also sent a message of submission. Hoonie: Hoo, sure, well¡­ Since if a guy like you will help then the success rate of the quest will certainly go up more.Ian: Good thinking, kid. This hyung will raise you well from now on.Hoonie: Pfft, it¡¯s the central continent 477, 6543. Come over here.Ian: Okay. You get ready to fight as well. Since it definitely looks like we¡¯ll be facing dudes that won¡¯t be easy. Ian quickly finished his battle preparations and headed towards the coordinates that Hoonie told him. Ian moved on his own, but as he was accompanied by his retainers, it almost looked as if a party was moving. ¡°I didn¡¯t know that there was such a place in the central continent.¡± As they got closer to the coordinates that Hoonie gave them, the colour of the desert sand slowly changed to grey. And as they went in deeper, the grey sand changed so that it felt like a crumbly cement ground from the beginning. While looking at Ian, who looked here and there as if he was amazed, Kaizar opened his mouth. ¡°This place¡­ It¡¯s the land of Immortal.¡± At Kaizar¡¯s words, Ian reflexively asked back. ¡°Huh? Retainer, is there something you know about Immortal? It seemed like you didn¡¯t know about it earlier.¡± Kaizar slowly nodded his head. ¡°It was a memory I originally didn¡¯t have, but looking at the landscape of this place, they¡¯re coming back one by one.¡± Ian pressed Kaizar. ¡°Say everything that you remember. It would be good if we have a little information in advance.¡± At that, Kaizar slowly began to explain. ¡°If we start talking about the conclusion, Immortal is an ally.¡± ¡°Huh? What are you saying all of a sudden?¡± ¡°Ahem¡­¡± It seemed the memories that he suddenly remembered were confusing, as Kaizar rubbed his temple as he slowly continued his explanation. And that content was incredibly fresh. ¡°Immortal is the name of the monarch of darkness that manages the undead like his own limbs. His true colours are incredibly evil. However, a thousand years ago, humanity and the undead stood on the same side and fought against the devils.¡± ¡°Devils?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, devils. You could call them the demons of the devildom.¡± ¡°Oh-ho¡­¡± Kaizar lightly rubbed the crumbling ground with his feet as he remembered the past. ¡°The main base of the undead could be called the subterranean, but either way, the fact that they needed to protect this land was the same as with humans. Since the demons were trying to colonize this dimension.¡± Not just Ian, but the other retainers were also listening to Kaizar¡¯s story with interest. ¡°And during the process when humans and the undead were cooperating, the ¡®Black Magician¡¯ class was created for the first time. You could say the roots of the current Black Magicians are Immortal.¡± Kaizar lifted his sword and pointed towards a far away place in front of him. And in that spot, hidden within the fog, a bizarre-looking steeple stood tall. ¡°That spot exactly is where Immortal is sleeping. And now that I think about it, the human called Hoonie, who is my subordinate, seems to be a Black Magician with quite a bit of skill. To have been acknowledged by Immortal, that is.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian somehow felt apologetic towards Hoonie ¡®Tsk, he is my retainer, but to have been caught by such an outrageous monster like him¡­ Poor kid.¡¯ As Kaizar had begun to get interested again, it seemed the day that Hoonie would receive freedom(?) grew distant again. While Ian and Kaizar were talking about this and that, the party pierced through the fog and arrived right in front of the steeple. And in that spot, Hoonie, who was waiting for Ian, stood there. ¡°Long time, no see, Ian.¡± However, just then, a boy that stood next to Hoonie rushed over and grabbed Ian¡¯s hand. ¡°Ian, I¡¯m a fan!¡± * * * Meanwhile, in another outskirt area of the central continent. In the exact opposite location of the point where Ian and Hoonie arrived for their quest, the cloak of one woman flapped as she walked. Wearing a luxurious robe, the woman held an oddly-shaped staff that was burning red on one end. She was Red-Flame Magician Remir, who was famous for being ranked 1st place on the Magician-class rankings. Previously, there was a time when she was recruited by Samuel Jin and was momentarily affiliated with the Oaklan Guild, but currently, that wasn¡¯t the case. Because Remir was originally a user with an incredibly strong individualistic tendency, ever since the central continent opened up, she left the guild and began to play solo again. ¡°The Temple of the Sun should be near here¡­¡± After thoroughly checking the coordinates that she wrote and the coordinates that were marked on the map, Remir tilted her head. ¡°What the hell? This is definitely the spot¡­¡± She slowly began to get irritated. As she had cleared a hidden quest with a whopping triple S-rank difficulty level over the course of several months, the quest¡¯s last stop, where she could receive her reward for clearing the quests, was nowhere in sight for her. However, just then, a giant shadow began to hang over her head, and sensing that, Remir lifted her head and looked up to the sky. And her two eyes, which were void of any emotions, began to slightly tremble. ¡°Dr, dragon?¡± Just like the one word that slipped past her small lips, the giant creature that filled Remir¡¯s pupils was definitely a dragon. It was a red dragon covered in red scales that made it seem like his whole body was burning. With a spirit like she would shoot magic out immediately, Remir raised her staff, but the dragon had no intentions of fighting her. The dragon, who slowly approached her, lightly sat down and pushed his giant head towards her. He slowly opened his mouth. You¡¯ve come looking for the Temple of the Sun. At the voice of the dragon, which was dynamic enough to give off the feeling that the world was shaking, Remir felt her head go blank for a moment, but she soon snapped back to reality and opened her mouth. ¡°That¡¯s right. I received the calling of the Sun God and came here.¡± While looking at Remir, who spoke without being intimidated even the slightest bit in front of him when he was a giant dragon, he wore a warm smile. Indeed, you are the type of human that I would have expected Hellena to choose. As soon as his words ended, the giant body of the red dragon was covered in a white light, and its size slowly shrunk. Whoong- Along with a low resonant sound, a man appeared in front of Remir. With bright red hair, he was a handsome man with a beautiful face. He opened his mouth. ¡°I am Ranohel, the Sun Dragon that inherited the power of Hellena.¡± Once he finished speaking, he spread his hand out towards the air, and at the same time, a bright white ray of light began to shoot out from his hand. ¡°¡­!¡± The ray of light that shot out from his hand embroidered the sky white and Remir watched that scene with surprised eyes. Shortly after. As the light that blanketed the space in white died out, in front of the eyes of Remir, who thought that it was just the middle of the desert, a grand temple appeared. Ranohel, the Sun Dragon, grinned as he opened his mouth. ¡°Congratulations on becoming the Monarch of the Red Flame.¡± The moment that Ranohel¡¯s words ended, Remir¡¯s whole body began to be engulfed in a bright red flame. However, Remir didn¡¯t feel the heat. ¡°Finally¡­ Is it the end?¡± While thinking of the long journey, she smiled brightly. And system messages began to pop up one after another in front of her eyes. You have successfully cleared the ¡®Power of the Sun God¡¯ quest.You have obtained 300 thousand Fame.You have obtained the ¡®Staff of the Sun God¡¯.You have obtained 82.5 million EXP.You have leveled up. You have reached lv 177.You may class-change to the hidden class ¡®Monarch of the Red Flame¡¯. Will you class-change? Remir, who carefully read through the system messages that popped up, nodded her head as she opened her mouth. ¡°I will class-change.¡± As she did so, the bright red flame that was wrapped around Remir was sucked into her heart. Whoong-! You have successfully class-changed from the hidden class ¡®Red Flame Magician¡¯ to the higher-rank class, the ¡®Monarch of the Red Flame¡¯. And shortly after. In front of the eyes of all of the users that were logged on in the central continent, one system message additionally popped up. The first legend of the central continent has awoken. CH 190 Chapter 190: The Monarch of Darkness (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda As expected of a location where Immortal, the Monarch of Darkness, was sleeping, a bleak energy hung inside of the steeple. The average level of the monsters that appeared inside the steeple were between 150-170, and considering it was a hidden dungeon in the central continent, it was on the low side. However, as there were over two times more the number of monsters compared to other dungeons, the difficulty level was instead harder. This was a characteristic of dungeons mainly infested with undeads. ¡®This is totally a jackpot dungeon.¡¯ However, this did not hold true for everybody. As Ian¡¯s characteristic was optimized to group hunting and many-to-many battles, dungeons like these, where the average level was lower, and the total population was high, were the most optimal hunting grounds for him. On the other hand, for Assassin-classes that specialized in 1:1 battles, this would most likely feel like a hellish hunting ground. ¡°Hoonie, don¡¯t try to be greedy about dealing damage, and just try to pull in as many together as possible. Because you keep trying to deal damage, the line breaks up. And the effectiveness of hunting drops as well.¡± At Ian¡¯s scolding, Hoonie¡¯s expression twisted. ¡°Tsk, alright.¡± After checking the damage gauge of the party members that was open in the corner of his vision, Hoonie jutted out his lip. This was because DPS was a definite, but even when looking at the accumulated damage, he didn¡¯t even reach half of the damage that Ian had. DPS was the abbreviation of Damage Per Second, and in other words, it was the ¡®average damage dealt to an enemy per second¡¯. Hoonie glanced at Ian as he mumbled to himself. ¡®Exactly how much stronger did that monster get during this time? From what I know, the damage caused from the attacks of retainers shouldn¡¯t be included in DPS¡­¡± Summoners were known as the strongest class when it came to PVE, however, Black Magicians were also formidable competitors. As that was the case, Hoonie also tried to be greedy and attempted to compete against Ian for the amount of damage dealt, but because there was such an overwhelming difference, he cleanly gave up. As he just thought that he was a being from a completely different territory, his pride wasn¡¯t even hurt. ¡®As expected, I need to put the Power of Immortal into my hands.¡¯ Hoonie, who decided to push his competition with Ian until he became the Monarch of Darkness, quickly controlled his skulls and gathered together the monsters that were spread across the map. And Canoel watched the two people hunting with a gaping mouth. ¡®Wow look at my EXP go up. This is a proper bus[1], seriously.¡¯ The thing that Canoel was doing was to match the timing of when Ian invoked his AoE skills and place Yongyong¡¯s Breath once on top of his attacks. Although even that, when compared to the Breath that Ian¡¯s Lake let out, wasn¡¯t even equivalent to half that power. ¡°Abyss Hole!¡± Kuoooh-! As Celia¡¯s controlling abilities also increased quite a bit while hunting with Ian, she invoked Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss Hole well at the right time and right location. And whenever Abyss Hole was invoked, the AoE dealing skill covered on top of that without doubt. Baaang-! You have killed the Sorcerer of Darkness.You have killed the Magic Swordsman of Darkness.You have obtained 1,547,989 EXP.You have obtained 1,772,534 EXP. While looking at the EXP that filled up by the millions despite multiple dividing it, Ian also wore a satisfied smile. ¡®Before we meet Immortal or whatever, it looks like I could hit lv 170 if all goes well.¡¯ The EXP required to level up was astronomical, and because that was the case, whenever he leveled up, he was pleased each time. Especially when the tenth digit changed, he was even happier than when he just leveled up. Could you say that it felt like he upgraded to the next stage? ¡°What floor are we on right now?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Hoonie replied immediately. ¡°The 36th floor.¡± Canoel, who was beside him, shook his head as he mumbled. ¡°Ha, exactly how many floors do you think there are? Will we have to reach the 50th floor in order for it to end?¡± Ian smirked as he spoke. ¡°I feel like that there will probably be that much, but if it were up to me, I wish there were up to 100 floors.¡± ¡°Huh? Why exactly?¡± ¡°It¡¯s hard even finding a hunting ground as good as this. We even have the first discoverer¡¯s buff right now. While we¡¯re finishing the quest, we¡¯re piling up on EXP as well, so it¡¯s good.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Canoel wore a terrified expression, and Hoonie shook his head back and forth. While diligently controlling the undead, Hoonie mumbled to himself. ¡®No way there¡¯s 100 floors¡­ That can¡¯t be the case. It¡¯s horrible just thinking about it.¡¯ However, that actually became the case. * * * ¡°Euah, I can¡¯t go anymore! No more, I tell you!¡± Hoonie, who killed the last of the monsters that were on the map, plopped down right where he stood. ¡°Ha¡­ Ian, what do you think about resting a little before going on?¡± Canoel also plopped down next to Hoonie and he looked up at Ian with tearful eyes. Ian smirked as he replied. ¡°Why are you so weak? I feel like it¡¯s only been about ten hours since we¡¯ve started hunting now.¡± As they had suffered for over ten hours while hunting, Ian had even grown quite close with Canoel and spoke comfortably to him. Because Canoel had a five-year difference with Ian as well, there was not much hesitation. ¡°¡­¡± Canoel and Hoonie, who were at a loss for words, both fell into silence, and Ian¡¯s words continued. ¡°Well, then let¡¯s rest for a bit. Since we don¡¯t know how many floors there are up to, it should be good to rest for a moment. We don¡¯t know if the 100th floor will even be the end, right?¡± The floor that the three people were on was the 87th floor. At the words that the 100th floor might not even be the end, the two people freaked out. ¡°No way¡­! That can¡¯t be the case! When I looked from the outside, it didn¡¯t look that high!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, that doesn¡¯t even humanly make sense¡­¡± The only hope for the two people was that after they were passed the 50th floor, the map continuously grew smaller. Since the fact that the map was growing smaller meant that they were reaching the pointed part of the steeple. ¡°Alright, if you¡¯re all rested, let¡¯s move quickly. We need to catch Immortal or whatever before we go to sleep today, no?¡± Still, Hoonie, who received strength at the word Immortal, suddenly stood up. ¡°That¡¯s right. We need to catch Immortal. You have no idea how many months I¡¯ve already suffered because of that dude.¡± However, it seemed that Canoel still didn¡¯t recover any strength, because he grabbed his shaking legs as he slowly stood up. ¡®Euh¡­ Euh¡­¡± Had about two hours passed like that? At the end, when the party climbed up the top without rest, they were finally able to reach the 100thfloor. Fortunately, there was no path to go upwards, and a large magic square was drawn in front of them. Hoonie, who approached the magic square, pulled out a strangely-shaped item made of wood from his inventory and lifted it up. Hoonie, who lifted the unknown object that was a little short to call a staff and too long to call a wand, walked over to the centre of the magic square and stuck that item into the ground. ¡°Alright, are you going to summon Immortal now?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Hoonie replied. ¡°Rather than summon¡­ Should I say that I¡¯m going to awaken him?¡± And Hoonie, who stepped away from the magic square, slowly began to let out the incantation with a serious expression. Immortal, the Monarch of Darkness, your descendant, who has finished all preparations, has reached the Shrine of Darkness. Based on the fact that his voice rang out in all directions while he droned on, it looked like the system was dominating Hoonie¡¯s body, but as he had also shown many forms where he was absorbed in his role with such a serious attitude, there was no sense of disharmony. ¡°Anyhow, I¡¯m telling you, he¡¯s an interesting dude.¡± Ian and Canoel watched that sight from a short distance away, and shortly after, following the magic square that was complexly engraved into the ground, a hazy light began to leak out. Whoong- Whooong-! And at each vertex of the lines that drew the magic square, a light began to bundle into a round-shape before that light shot up into the sky. ¡°Ooh¡­¡± Hoonie, who had recovered his senses before they realized and was watching that scene, let out an exclamation with a low voice, and Ian and Canoel also watched that with interested expressions. Shortly after. The light that shot up into the air began to make one large portal. ¡°By the looks of it, it looks like we just need to go in there, right?¡± The moment when Hoonie was about to respond to Ian¡¯s question, a ringing voice could be heard in the air. Have you ever seen true death and the world of darkness? The cold and husky voice continued to ring throughout the whole map. If you pass my test, I will give my all to you. And along with that voice ringing out, the portal of darkness swallowed up the whole party. * * * Seuaaah- The wind sounded gloomier and more grotesque than they had ever heard before. The party, who fell into this space which was covered in darkness, looked around at their surroundings as they were taken aback. ¡°What the hell, do we have to fight in a place like this where we can¡¯t see anything?¡± At Hoonie¡¯s words, which weren¡¯t clear as to whom it was being directed to, Ian responded shortly. ¡°Pull it together, dude. This is a quest with a difficulty level no less than a triple S-rank. This is a difficulty level where it wouldn¡¯t be weird if you suddenly died within a short moment.¡± At Ian¡¯s warning, Hoonie and Canoel heightened their concentration and kept alert of their surroundings. As they began to grow familiar with the darkness, they started to see little by little. And that voice was heard again in a courteous manner. Did you say it was ¡®Kanjihoonie¡¯? ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± At the unexpected attack(?), laughter almost leaked out of Ian¡¯s mouth, but after narrowly holding it in, he mumbled to himself. ¡®Oh right, that guy¡¯s ID was Kanjihoonie[2]. Why haven¡¯t I still gotten used to that even though I¡¯ve heard it multiple times?¡¯ The two people¡¯s conversation continued. To challenge my test with just this much fighting power. I will think highly of that gutsiness alone. At that voice, which seemed to be mocking him, Hoonie didn¡¯t back down and replied. ¡°I thought that I needed to pass your test with the least amount of fighting power in order to become the true Monarch of Darkness. This is my pride as the Enchanter of Darkness.¡± While looking at Hoonie, who spat out a speech that was expected of a main character in a B-list animation without a change in his expression, Ian and Canoel were astonished. ¡®Ah, shit, why is being embarrassed our share?¡¯ This time, it was even definite that he wasn¡¯t being steered by the system either. Ian clenched and released both hands back and forth as he barely calmed down his curling fingers. Separate from him, Hoonie was already immersed in his role by 100%. Keuhahahat! What an amusing human. I like you. No wonder I felt like this would be an enjoyable match. As the words of Immortal ended, a misty grey light from within the black darkness began to approach the party. That ray of light, which was so dim that it was hard to tell what kind of shape it took, turned into the shape of a giant skull mage shortly after. On top those thin bones, a purple robe was wrapped around it, slightly lifted from them. That thing that had such a grotesque form that it evoked fear into anybody that saw it reminded one of the Lich King. He slowly moved his thin jaw as he roared with a low voice. Alright, from now on, I will test you to see if you indeed have the abilities to become the Monarch of Darkness! Meanwhile, Ian, who had stared at the domineering form of Immortal thoroughly, withdrew all of the Familiars he had summoned excluding Ly. And he summoned Karceus, whom he hadn¡¯t summoned up until now. Keuoooh! As he had raised his Leadership quite a bit now, he was able to summon Karceus and Ly at the same time. And Immortal, who had discovered the giant dragon, gave a sharp look. [1] bus = carry [2] Ian is making fun of Hoonie¡¯s name because ¡®kanji¡¯ is slang for ¡®swag¡¯ in Korean, so his ID means something like ¡®Swaggy Hoonie¡¯. CH 191 Chapter 191: The Monarch of Darkness (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ever since a couple of days ago, a rumour, which its authenticity was unknown of, began to circulate. That was the story related to the hidden classes linked with the heroes that existed a thousand years ago in the world of Kailan. And the beginnings of that rumour were the message that popped up as a world message, saying ¡®the first legend of the central continent has awoken.¡¯ Many users wondered about and began to research on what the legend of the central continent was about, and as one ranker stated that they were also doing the quest related to that, it became an even bigger issue. And the netizens, who self-proclaimed themselves to be cyber investigators, were finally able to reveal who the first legend was. Truthfully, that could be something that actually wasn¡¯t too hard. This was because Remir was such a famous named user, and she was also one of the few amongst the named who had her settings on public. The fact that her class changed from the Red Flame Magician to the Monarch of the Red Flame was captured within less than a quarter of a day and uploaded onto the site. Guys, the legend of the central continent or whatever, if you just obtain that hidden class, is it possible to the turn the tables of your life around?Dream on, idiot. Do you think you become almighty just by having a hidden class? It¡¯s more important that you have a class that fits you best.No, but guys, it¡¯s not just a hidden class, but a hidden class linked with the legends of the central continent. I don¡¯t think you can think of it the same as a normal hidden class.The words of the person above are right. People don¡¯t really know, but apparently there is a tier that exists even for hidden classes. Classes like the Sniper, the Berserker, the Enchanter, etc. that many people know about are Tier 1 hidden classes.That¡¯s right. I believe that Remir¡¯s original class, the ¡®Red Flame Magician¡¯, was a Tier 2 hidden class.Oh, then the Monarch of the Red Flame must be a Tier 3 hidden class, right?Well, we don¡¯t know for sure, but that¡¯s probably the case, no?Wow, then in the end, should we have gotten a hidden class no matter what and then have started? Where did the dude who posted that it was useless to have a hidden class a while ago go?Ha¡­ I was also just trusting those words. Is this where we¡¯ll need to delete our character and raise it up again?No, no, guys, don¡¯t get so heated. They say there are tiers for hidden classes, but the Tier 1 hidden classes that are common around you really aren¡¯t that different from normal classes, and it seems that it gets a little better starting from Tier 2, but you don¡¯t have to have a lower tier hidden class in order to get a higher tier hidden class.Oh, really? So, then, is it possible for users with normal classes to immediately obtain Tier 3 hidden classes like Remir?Well, if you just pick up the related quest well from somewhere, it seems possible.Ooh¡­! There were many cases where the information that always popped up in front of all users through the world message were related to a huge branch or a thick update. Because this was the case, many users reacted sensitively to this, and the dispute about hidden classes, which was a hot issue once but was then forgotten, was awoken again from its slumber. Guys, but how do I check what tier my hidden class is?That¡­ From what I know, a separate way to check hasn¡¯t been revealed yet. Why? Do you have a hidden class?Yes, I do have a hidden class, but¡­Ooh! What is it? What is it?Oh, I smell the scent of a silver spoon! A hidden class, he says!Ah, I¡­ Changed classes the other day, but the name of the class is the Priest of Light or something like that.Pfft, what the hell. Priest of Light, he says.Ah, I thought there would be something because he was setting the mood.Huh, what¡¯s wrong? Is it not a hidden class?No, it¡¯s not like that, but it¡¯s definite that it¡¯s Tier 1. The Priest of Light is¡­I think I¡¯ve seen the Priest of Light at least 150 times while hunting up until now.Same, same.¡­ Just when the attention of the users began to gather more and more like that as the topic grew. Sure enough, the LB Sports, the developers of Kailan, uploaded thirteen bomb-like trailer videos onto the official site at once. Each of the videos had quite a long running time of 50 minutes, while they each had the life story of each of the different Kailan heroes. From the LB company¡¯s side, they had just revealed the thirteen videos without even any text or explanation, but the reaction of the users was explosive. Wow, damn, this is tremendous. They could even just make this into a movie.No, at this rate, isn¡¯t it already a video? It¡¯s more entertaining than any decent movies that are on the screen lately, no? And there¡¯s nothing to say about the quality.Insanity, this is freaking awesome. From the looks of it, it seems like these are videos relating to the heroes of the central continent or whatever¡­I started watching the videos as soon as they were uploaded and just finished watching all of them, but I think this is a paste bait related to the hidden classes.Oh, really? You¡¯ve already watched all of them?Yes. But I realized that it isn¡¯t the heroes of the central continent, but the heroes of the continent that played an active part in ancient times. From the looks of it, there are five from the central continent, and three each from the east and the west. And two from the north. It¡¯s a total of thirteen like this.Since the central, east, and west are in the end land that is affiliated with the Colonar Continent, if we tie them up together, we can organize it so that there is a total of eleven from the Colonar Continent, and two from the northern Malaka Continent.Hul, thanks for the information!Thanks to the prophet, we¡¯re finding out fresh information. And on the top right corner of the screen for each of the videos that were posted, the title of the video was hidden in small letters, but those names were the same as the following. The Twilight Gladiator Rapei ¨C The Forgotten Hero of Malaka.Dragon Tamer Oakley ¨C the Bloody Battle of Prilania Valley.The Monarch of the Red Flame Siddhartha ¨C The Devil Hunter and Siddhartha.The Monarch of Darkness Immortal ¨C The Canyon of the Dead. * * * Immortal, who discovered Karceus, stared at Ian with surprised eyes. You¡­ Are you the hero that came down from the northern continent? ¡°¡­?¡± Ian, who didn¡¯t understand what Immortal had said, blinked his two eyes as he asked back. ¡°What are you talking about? All of a sudden.¡± However, ignoring Ian¡¯s words, Immortal continued his words. Hmm¡­ It doesn¡¯t look like you¡¯re the Summoner of the northern continent. But how do you have ¡®his¡¯ dragon? Ian, who was more interested in the items that Immortal would drop rather than his recollection, swung his spear and shot out his Current Proliferation. Pang-! ¡°Just come at us. Since we¡¯re running out of time.¡± At that, Immortal scowled as he growled. Such an arrogant human. I will help you understand how much of a worthless existence you were. The moment those words ended, Hoonie and Ian, as well as Immortal charged towards each other at the same time, and Canoel joined in the battle while stealthily studying the situation. Bang- Ba-bang-! Immortal, who blocked the Magic Bullet of Darkness that Hoonie shot out with just one hand movement, spread his hand out into the air as he began to let out a summoning incantation. Sing, souls of the world, respond to the calling of the Monarch of Darkness! The moment his words finished, purple energy began to shoot up here and there on the pitch-black map, and in those spots, one or two black shadows appeared. And Ian, who discovered that, spoke to Hoonie with an interested expression. ¡°Oh, the skeletons with the coal-like material that you summoned are from Immortal?¡± The skeletons that Hoonie summoned were different from the white-boned skeletons that other regular Black Magicians summoned as they were black, and Ian was always fascinated by that. Hoonie frowned as he responded. ¡°What do you mean coal? Have you ever seen coal that is as smooth and glossy as that?¡± ¡°Glossy, my ass, they just look crumbly.¡± Even while the two bickered, they continuously moved their bodies. And shortly after, nothing else could be heard but the sound of Immortal and Hoonie¡¯s party exchanging blows on the battleground. Immortal was not an opponent that could be faced while being relaxed. The fussiest point about Immortal especially was that even if they struggled and cut down his Vitality, if he absorbed an undead that he summoned, he recovered his Vitality again. This was a skill that many Black Magicians had, but there was a limit to the number of undeads that the regular Black Magician could summon. Because that was the case, it wasn¡¯t a skill where they could recover their health unlimitedly, so it wasn¡¯t that much of a threat, but Immortal was different. Immortal continuously summoned undeads without end no matter how much they killed them off, and thanks to that, it was torturous for Hoonie and Ian. ¡°No, damn it. If this is the case, how exactly are we supposed to kill him?¡± At Hoonie¡¯s complaining, Ian replied shortly. ¡°Isn¡¯t this also all EXP?¡± ¡°¡­ You¡¯re seriously too much.¡± Ian glimpsed at the Vitality gauge of Immortal. He was constantly recovering his Vitality, but fortunately, it seemed there was a cooldown time on his skill, because if they looked at the bigger picture, he felt like his Vitality was indeed dropping little by little. ¡®Euh, if we lacked even a little bit of damage dealt, we wouldn¡¯t have been able to catch him.¡¯ If the amount of damage dealt by Ian¡¯s party was less than the recovered amount of Vitality that Immortal absorbed from the undead, Immortal would have still maintained full HP. Ian, who focused all of his mind as he fought against Immortal, suddenly sent a message to Hoonie. Ian: Yo, Hoonie, you still have the skill that you used on me a long time ago during the rookie league, right? Hoonie was slightly taken aback, but he soon responded calmly. Hoonie: What are you talking about?Ian: You know, that one. The skill that reflects damage.Hoonie, Ah, Revenge of the Dead? Pang-! Ian quickly dodged the purple beam that was shot towards the ground at his feet and sent a message again. Ian: Yeah, that one. For a moment, the two people¡¯s eyes met briefly, and they soon understood what kind of movement they wanted from each other. Ian quickly let out commands to Ly and Karceus. ¡°Karceus, fall back a little, and Ly, go in with me.¡± Up until now, Karceus, whose Vitality and Defensive Power were better in comparison, was playing the role of a damage dealer-slash-tanker in the front, but Ian boldly pulled him back. And his Familiars immediately moved according to Ian¡¯s commands without any doubtfulness. Understood, owner.Will do. Ian and Ly quickly drove into either side of Immortal, and Hoonie pulled back his skulls as he sent a short message to Ian. Hoonie: You can last one hit, though, right?Ian: Of course! The Revenge of the Dead skill was, simply put, a skill with an incredibly fraudulent ability that returns the damage that the receiver received back to the attacker. However, in fact, there weren¡¯t many Black Magicians that used this skill in an actual battle. ¡®With Hoonie¡¯s control, he could probably get the timing right, no?¡¯ The Revenge of the Dead only lasted for an incredibly short time that wasn¡¯t even a second long, and because it had to be used at the exact moment when the damage was dealt in order for the effect to be activated, it was an incredibly fussy skill. On top of that, if the damage receiver died in one hit, the skill effect was not invoked, so he was not able to use it on his Familiars up until now. Since Hoonie¡¯s skeletons crumbled without even being able to last one of Immortal¡¯s attacks. Keuaaah! You humans seem to have lost all fear! While looking at Ian and Ly, who was charging towards him, Immortal wildly swung his two skinny hands that burned purple. However, Ly and Ian, who specialized in reflexivity, avoided his attack with ease as they continuously dealt damage into Immortal¡¯s open spots. ¡®Not yet. I need to wait for an even bigger hit than this.¡¯ In Kailan, once a user used one attack pattern, the AI of the boss monster studied that pattern. Because that was the case, it would be difficult to have him use such a high difficulty level attack method starting from the second one, and Ian wanted to use the Revenge of the Dead on the largest skill possible. And just then, Immortal¡¯s movements started to change. Kooooh-! Ian, who caught onto the dark energy that started to form at the end of his staff, sent a short signal to Hoonie, and Hoonie nodded his head as he finished preparing to cast his magic. ¡®Casting time is 1.5 seconds. Since it takes about another 0.5 seconds for it to be invoked¡­¡¯ Ian saw a chance and lunged towards Immortal¡¯s staff, and as if he had been waiting for it, a blue flame blazed from the staff. Keuaah! Die, human! And at the same time as that, one ray of light that came from the tip of Hoonie¡¯s outspread hand quickly shot out towards Ian. CH 192 Chapter 192: The Monarch of Darkness (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Bang-! You have received critical damage from the Monarch of Darkness Immortal!Your Vitality has decreased by 86,772. Ian really took Immortal¡¯s attack with his whole body. As he took in a tremendous amount of damage close to 100 thousand from one hit, Ian¡¯s Vitality almost bottomed out. ¡®Whew, I was surprised because the damage was even greater than what I expected. Fortunately, I didn¡¯t die.¡¯ Keuhahahat, you fool! However, of course, that wasn¡¯t the end. Hoonie¡¯s Revenge of the Dead skill had succeeded in activating at the perfect time. The black energy that burst out from Ian¡¯s body like a flash proved that. Pung-! Immortal wore a flustered expression for the first time ever since the battle started. This, this¡­!User ¡®Kanjihoonie¡¯s skill, the ¡®Revenge of the Dead¡¯, has been activated and 562% of the damage received has been returned to the enemy.The Monarch of Darkness Immortal has received 487,658 damage! After seeing the amount of damage that popped up with the system message, even Ian¡¯s jaw dropped before he even realized it. ¡®Wow, that¡¯s crazy! 480 thousand? This is my first time seeing more than 200 thousand damage go through with one hit!¡¯ No matter how much of a named boss-rank monster it was, as they dealt close to 500 thousand damage in an instant, he lost over half of his Vitality gauge. And through that impact, Immortal¡¯s body staggered. Ian quickly let out commands to Karceus and Ly and ordered them to deal follow-up attacks, while he pulled back a little. He did succeed in invoking the Revenge of the Dead, but as expected, it was also at the fault that he had just enough Vitality left to the point it was risky. While glancing at Hoonie, who stepped forward and managed his undead, Ian mumbled to himself. ¡®I don¡¯t think his damage amplification factor was to this point during the rookie league, so he must have raised his Proficiency a ton since then.¡¯ From what Ian could remember, when he suffered from the Revenge of the Dead during the rookie league, the damage amplification factor then was about twice the original amount. He had increased the power of the skill by almost twice that. ¡®If I ever end up in a PVP match against him later on, I should seriously be careful of this skill at the least.¡¯ Meanwhile, Immortal, who didn¡¯t even have about 10% Vitality left, began his final struggle, and while avoiding the AoE skill of Immortal that burst out in all directions by moving here and there, he diligently recovered his Vitality. Ian had his First-Aid skill that he had raised the Proficiency for diligently without rest ever since he was lv 10 up until now. You have used the ¡®First-Aid¡¯ skill.Your Vitality will recover by 1.25% per second with an additional recover of 537 Vitality. The duration is 30 seconds. Considering the fact that when he first learned the First-Aid skill, where the percent recovery rate was 0.2% and the fixed recovery rate was about 10, he had made tremendous strides. On top of that, because Ian even had a couple of Priest-class retainers, his Vitality had recovered to its max not long afterwards. ¡°Let¡¯s end it this time!¡± Ian, who completed his recovery, swung his spear as he charged towards Immortal at a fast speed. The death knights that Immortal had summoned blocked Ian¡¯s way, but Ian ignored them as he dodged them. ¡®Since it¡¯s the end if we just kill this dude anyways!¡¯ The death knights that Immortal summoned were even stronger than the death knights that the regular Black Magician managed. Even if it was Ian, they had a fighting power great enough that it was beyond his capacity to fight more than two or three. So, if he lost time while facing the death knights and Immortal recovered his Vitality, it would become difficult. ¡°Karceus, prepare your Breath!¡± Understood, Owner. After Karceus swung his giant tail and got rid of the undead that charged towards him, he began to breathe in. And Immortal, who discovered that, felt a sense of crisis. You ridiculous dragon! A dark energy began to circle around Immortal¡¯s body, and that became a shield as it wrapped his body. And Immortal spread his hand out towards the death knight in front of him. The body of the death knight floated up into the air. ¡°No way I¡¯m just going to let that happen!¡± Ian, who figured out that he was trying to absorb the death knight and recover his Vitality, moved his body together at the same time as Ly. Ta-tat! And the attack of the combined fighting power of the two drove in towards the death knight that was in a defenseless state. Chwa-ra-rak-! Ba-bang-! The Inherent Ability of the Monarch of Darkness Immortal, the Life Drain skill, has been cancelled. While looking at the system message that popped up, Hoonie gave a thumbs-up. ¡°Nice timing!¡± If they had seriously been even a little late, the skill would have been invoked and the Vitality of Immortal would have been restored again, but they had succeeded in stopping that by a whisker. If the distance between them was even a little bit greater or if the reaction speed was even a little bit slower, a dispiriting situation would have been produced. Keuaaack-! Immortal, who got the sense that something went wrong, widened both of his eyes as he let out a horrible shriek. Keuaaohh! Karceus, who flew in close so that he was just a foot away, let out his powerful Breath right up to his nose. Hwa-reu-reuk-. The destructive power of Breath, which was the symbol of a dragon and was basically the same as a lethal move for them, was truly amazing. Familiar ¡®Karceus¡¯ has invoked his Inherent Ability, Dragon Breath.Familiar ¡®Karceus¡¯ has dealt critical damage to the Monarch of Darkness Immortal.The Vitality of the Monarch of Darkness ¡®Immortal¡¯ has been reduced by 157,989. Chiiiik-! Immortal, who directly suffered from the purple breath of the dragon, melted down on the spot where he stood. Keuaaoh! As Karceus flapped his large wings, he roared towards the sky, and including Immortal, all of the undead he summoned turned into smoke as they disappeared into the air. To think¡­ That I would have suffered¡­ And the system notification that Ian and Hoonie had waited for rang out. Ring-. You have successfully killed the ghost of the ¡®Monarch of Darkness Immortal¡¯.The dimensional system of the darkness has collapsed. At the same time that the message popped up, the darkness that surrounded them in all directions slowly started to lift, and the form of the 100th floor of the steeple that they saw before they entered the portal came into view for the party. However, the thing that changed was that that a ghost dyed with darkness floated in the spot where the portal was. Hoonie and Ian slowly approached him. Huhu, how surprising. To think that I would have suffered so helplessly. The battle was quite a pain in the neck to say he was helpless, but still, as it was the truth that they had finished things more easily than what they expected, the two people nodded their heads. Hoonie spoke to Immortal. ¡°Huhu, then do you acknowledge me now?¡± While looking at Hoonie, who fell into the world of role-playing again, Ian slightly flinched. ¡®Still, I feel like I¡¯m starting to get a little used to this now¡­¡¯ While Ian shook his head, the conversation between the two continued. I do. You have enough qualifications to carry on my power. ¡°Keu-keuk, I will become the Monarch of Darkness and make the name Immortal known widely.¡± Sounds good, human, I like that. As the Monarch of Darkness, you need at least that much spirit. I will anticipate much from you. Immortal spread his thin hand towards Hoonie, and the pitch-black energy that formed at the tips of his fingers began to wrap around Hoonie¡¯s body. Whoong-! Along with that, a system notification rang out. Ring-. You have successfully cleared all of the ¡®Monarch of Darkness Immortal¡¯ (Hidden, connected quest).Clear Rank: S.You have obtained 300 thousand Fame.You have obtained the item, the ¡®Power of Immortal¡¯.You have obtained 82.5 million EXP.You have leveled up. You have reached lv 167.You may class-change to the hidden class ¡®Monarch of the Darkness¡¯. Will you class-change? Hoonie, who checked the system message that spread out in front of his eyes, let out a loud laughter. ¡°Keuhahahat!¡± Ian, who was next to him, slightly frowned. ¡°Just hurry up and finish the quest, dude. You need to finish up in order for me to get my reward, too, no?¡± The host of the main quest needed to finish receiving all of their quest reward in order for the users that were shared the quest to also received their rewards. Hoonie, who jutted out his lip at Ian¡¯s scolding, opened his mouth again. ¡°Tsk, stop ruining the flow. Just when the immersiveness was good.¡± After glancing once at Immortal, who still stood floating in front of his eyes, Hoonie continued his words. ¡°I will class-change to the Monarch of Darkness.¡± At the same time as those words ended, the energy of darkness that wrapped around Hoonie¡¯s body created a fierce tornado as it was sucked into his heart. Whoong-! You have successfully class-changed from the hidden class the ¡®Magician of Darkness¡¯ to the higher-rank class, the ¡®Monarch of Darkness¡¯. And shortly after. In front of the eyes of all of the users that were logged on into the central continent, one system message popped up just like when Remir class-changed to the Monarch of the Red Flame. The second legend of the central continent has awoken. * * * As Hoonie finished receiving his reward, the pleasant time of receiving their rewards also arrived for Ian and Canoel, who cleared the quest with him. ¡°Heu-heut, has the time to open up a proper box-like box come for the first time in a while?¡± After checking for the ¡®Legendary-rank Summoning Equipment Box¡¯ that was in one corner of his inventory, Ian wore a broad smile. And he also turned his head towards Canoel that was next to him. ¡°Yo, since you¡¯re also a Summoner, you must have also received an equipment box, right?¡± However, different from Ian¡¯s expectation, Canoel shook his head. ¡°N, no? My reward is different.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Ian wore an amused expression, and Hoonie, who was unrelated to Summoners, also stared at Canoel with an expression full of interest. ¡°Eh¡­ I received some sort of Earring of Leadership. And I¡¯ve also received some sort of quest.¡± Ian instinctively asked again. ¡°What? An Earring of Leadership?¡± ¡°Yes. But I don¡¯t think this is that good. It doesn¡¯t have any other option attached to it besides just the 1500 Leadership.¡± ¡°¡­¡± The words ¡®hand it over¡¯ rose to the back of Ian¡¯s throat, but he narrowly didn¡¯t forget his rationality as he nodded his head. ¡°I¡­ See. Then what¡¯s the quest?¡± Canoel smiled brightly as he spoke. ¡°Ah, the quest? I¡¯ll share it with you, one moment!¡± ¡°There, there¡¯s no need to go that far¡­!¡± Ian, who was taken aback, waved his hands, but Canoel¡¯s sharing was one step faster than him. Canoel shared his quest with both Ian and Hoonie. Ring-. The Wish of Dragon Tamer Oakley (Hidden, connected quest) A thousand years ago, in the Prilania Valley that surrounded the north of the Malaka Continent, the nest of the Dragon Tamers existed. However, at the end of the bloody battle with the army of the Evil Dragon Khalifa, they had reached extermination, and not one Dragon Tamer remained in the world. Go look for the Spirit of Oakley, who is wandering somewhere in the Malaka Continent (northern continent) and pass his test. Quest Difficulty Level: SSS Quest Requirement: A user acknowledged by the Spirit of Immortal. Time Limit: None. Reward: 200 thousand Fame, Legendary-rank Summoning Equipment Box. (The reward may change depending on the class of the user that is participating in the quest.) Ian¡¯s eyes slightly grew as soon as he saw the quest window. ¡®Huh? This is a bit of a familiar quest.¡¯ However, separate from that, as soon as he saw the same reward as Immortal¡¯s quest, he decided to accept the quest for now. ¡°I accept the quest!¡± However, Ian¡¯s plan to also leech off of Canoel returned as a fail. This is a quest that you have already proceeded through before.You have failed at accepting the quest share. ¡°Damn it¡­¡± Out of his disappointed heart, Ian thought of Oakley, who was at no fault, without reason as he complained. ¡°Hmph, such a cheap, old man. The difficulty level even changed to a triple S, so is it too much to let me do it once more?¡± Meanwhile, Hoonie, who read through the quest, rounded his eyes as he turned his head towards Canoel. ¡°Hyung, you¡¯ve hit a jackpot!¡± Canoel asked back with a confused expression. ¡°Hmm? Really? Is it an amazingly good quest?¡± Hoonie began to kindly explain to Canoel, who asked back with a pure expression. ¡°Ah, hyung, I told you to speak comfortably with me.¡± ¡°Sh, should I?¡± Hoonie continued his words again to a sour-faced Canoel. ¡°Hyung, you haven¡¯t gone into the Kailan community recently, right?¡± ¡°Yes. No, yeah. I don¡¯t think so.¡± ¡°If you clear this connected quest, you¡¯ll be able to receive a hidden class, too, hyung. It¡¯s the quest of Oakley, who is one of the two heroes of the Malaka Continent.¡± ¡°Ooh, I have no idea what that is, but that¡¯s cool!¡± ¡°¡­¡± While listening to the conversation of the two people that sounded like they had a screw loose somewhere, Ian licked his lips. ¡°Euh, what a bummer that I have to let go of that equipment box and the 200 thousand fame. It definitely would have been a quest that gave a tremendous amount of EXP.¡± Ian grumbled as he asked Immortal, who gave the quest, a question. ¡°Yo, but, old man Oakley told me last time that he would put down his karma and leave. Is he still in Malaka, that old man?¡± At those words, Immortal, who had been wearing an expressionless face, reacted immediately. Hmm¡­ You, how do you know Oakley? At Immortal¡¯s words, Ian roughly explained his encounter with Oakley, and Immortal wore a surprised expression. Hoo, no wonder. The moment you handled the dragon, I did think that you weren¡¯t any ordinary human, but¡­ Come to think of it, I can feel the energy of Iriel from you as well. Wearing an expression saying as if he didn¡¯t understand English, Ian blinked both his eyes. ¡®Who the hell is Iriel now? I do feel like I¡¯ve heard that name from somewhere¡­¡¯ Immortal, who paused for a moment, stared at the two eyes of Ian as he slowly opened his mouth again. It looks like you¡¯ll have to take up a request from me, human. ¡°Huh?¡± Ian was flustered at the sudden statement that he had a request, but he couldn¡¯t help but become even more surprised after seeing the quest that popped up afterwards. Ring- The Beginnings of the Devils (Hidden) The Monarch of Darkness Immortal stated he has started to feel the presence of devils here and there in the central continent for a while now. In order for the tragedy that happened a thousand years ago to not repeat itself, the cause of it must be found out beforehand and the strength of the heroes of the continent must be combined. However, not all of the heroes have appeared, and right now is the time to collect information on the devils. Go find Iriel, the administrator of the Forest of Love, and obtain information from her. Quest Difficulty Level: S Quest Requirement: A Summoner that has the spirit of a God Dragon. Summoning Master Level 1. Time Limit: None Reward: ? *This is a quest related to ¡®The Shadow of the Evil Dragon Khalifa (Hidden)¡¯ Quest that you currently possess. CH 193 Chapter 193: The Monarch of Darkness (4) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Immortal and the Monarch of Darkness Quest. The one that actually obtained the greatest profit from this quest was Canoel. Since Canoel had obtained the Heroes of the Continent Quest that others suffered to the extreme to get just by placing his spoon on top of the table, that being Hoonie¡¯s quest. If this was the case, it was to the point that it was not even a loss on his part to spend a fortune and buy Hoonie equipment he needed. ¡°Keu, Hoonie, will I become like that grandpa that¡¯s in that community video then?¡± At Canoel¡¯s words, Hoonie replied. ¡°Probably, no? A Dragon Tamer, huh, something¡¯s cool about that. Ian hyung, aren¡¯t you jealous?¡± As the three people had gotten quite close while doing this quest, they now called each other hyung and dongsaeng[1] as they comfortably spoke with each other. It was a little strange, but Ian also didn¡¯t hate the two dongsaengs. On top of that, as Ian insisted that they continue hunting until the first discoverer¡¯s buff of the ¡®Steeple of Darkness¡¯ dungeon ended, their Affinity with each other went up even more as they suffered a couple more days together. ¡°I, well, I¡¯m not really that jealous. I¡¯m already satisfied enough with my hidden class.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Hoonie nodded his head. ¡°But then again, I don¡¯t know what it is, but you probably have an amazing hidden class. Since if that wasn¡¯t the case, this preposterous development wouldn¡¯t make sense.¡± Ian, who additionally wiped out the high-level undead army that was inside the steeple, was now even past lv 170. He was even a higher level than the Black Magician, a class known for their fast leveling-up speed, who was number 1 in that class¡¯s rankings. The word preposterous truly made sense when describing this growth speed. The three people arrived at the Pyro Domain shortly after. ¡°Whew, it¡¯s my first time at the domain in quite a while. I need to take care of some things at the Lord¡¯s castle after I go sell some random items. What are you two going to do?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Canoel slightly glanced at Hoonie, and Hoonie replied while smirking. ¡°I¡¯m also going to repair my equipment a little, and then follow this hyung to the northern continent. He¡¯s such a pitiful hyung, so this Monarch of Darkness should help him.¡± ¡°Sure¡­¡± Because it was a quest that Ian had already proceeded through, he couldn¡¯t receive the offer to share it, but Hoonie was able to receive the offer to share Canoel¡¯s quest. As that was the case, the words that he would help weren¡¯t wrong, but it was a case where Hoonie would also receive enough of a profit. ¡°Anyways, I¡¯ll see you guys later then.¡± ¡°Okay!¡± And just when Ian was about to turn around, Canoel hesitated as he opened his mouth towards Ian. ¡°Ian hyung, I¡¯m seriously grateful. Thanks to you, I think I finally know a couple of things now. You¡¯re truly my teacher.¡± At those words, Ian smirked. While being stuck together for almost a week, Ian nagged at Canoel without rest. ¡®I seriously thought that I was developing cancer cells while watching this blockhead play.¡¯ In the end, he couldn¡¯t do anything about his physical aspect like his control or reaction speed, but he had developed quite a bit of practical parts. ¡®Still, since he at least applies skills like a human being now.¡¯ Ian smiled as he replied. ¡°Sure, when we meet next time, if you¡¯re still in this state, I¡¯ll expel you, kid.¡± ¡°Al, alright¡­¡± At the end of their momentary tussle, Ian, who had parted ways with the two people, moved quickly. ¡®Thanks to that, the class-tower quests have been pushed back again, but the things I¡¯ve received were a lot of quests still.¡¯ Firstly he obtained a huge amount of Fame and EXP, and he received a new hidden quest in addition to that. Just even this much made it a profitable trade, but quite a decent item had even come out of the Legendary Class Item Box. The name of the item was the ¡®Ring of the Spirit King¡¯. It didn¡¯t raise his Leadership by an outrageous amount like the Earring of Leadership that Canoel received, but it had a decent Leadership stat option attached and most of all, it had a honey-like option attached to it. ¡®As it had just a little bit of Leadership considering the fact that it¡¯s a Legendary-rank item, I was disappointed, but I had no idea that such a honey-like option was attached.¡¯ That option was one that reduced the Leadership consumption of a Familiar with maxed Loyalty and Affinity by 15%. Thanks to that, even with Karceus summoned, Ian could also summon Ly, Bbakbbak and Halli. If he just leveled up one or two more levels, he felt he could even summon Pin instead of Halli. ¡°Alright, shall we start moving for our new quest now?¡± After getting rid of his random items, Ian, who lastly put the ring he was originally using up into the auction house, left the marketplace. As expected of a domain with the fastest development and the most people in the central continent, the marketplace of the Pyro Domain was buzzing with tons of people. In order to proceed with his quest, Ian opened his quest information again and slowly read through it. ¡°By the way, I need to go to Iriel¡­ But how did you go to the Forest of Love again?¡± The Forest of Love was a space that transcended above time and space. It was a place where the modification ¡®different field¡¯ fit best. Shortly after, after Ian remembered the way to get to the Forest of Love, he let out a deep sigh. ¡°Ha, I need to go all the way to the Magic Tower of Gripper again.¡± In order to go to the Forest of Love, he needed the help of Gripper. However, just then, Ly, who was following Ian, asked him. Owner, before that, why don¡¯t you contact her first? At Ly¡¯s unexpected words, Ian reflexively asked back. ¡°Huh? What are you talking about? With what means do I contact Iriel?¡± Ly shook his head as he replied. Before you came out of the Forest of Love, I remember her giving you a crystal ball of communication to you, owner. ¡°¡­!¡± Ian, who only then remembered the existence of the crystal ball of communication, clapped his hands as he opened his inventory. ¡°Oh yeah! I did have that, right?¡± That¡¯s right, owner. Ian seemed to have found Ly praiseworthy as he diligently petted his back. ¡°Keu, Ly, you¡¯re incredibly smart.¡± At those words, Ly wore a proud expression. However, it seemed that Kaizar didn¡¯t like that amicable atmosphere, as he spoiled it with a curt voice. ¡°From what I see, it¡¯s not that Ly¡¯s smart, but you, Lord guy, are an idiot.¡± Ian was able to arrive at the Forest of Love easier and faster than he expected. The crystal ball that Iriel gave him not only had a communication feature but also a feature that allowed it to generate a portal that opened up a path to the Forest of Love. Ian, who had arrived at the Forest of Love for the first time in a long while, seemed to remember his nightmare(?) as his whole body trembled. ¡°This place¡­ As expected, it¡¯s an unpleasant place.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Kaizar, who had looked around at the map, nodded his head in agreement. ¡°Agreed. This is definitely a place that gives off a bad feeling. I think Immortal¡¯s somber steeple was much more tasteful and better instead.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian, who slightly stared at Kaizar for a moment, sent him a look of sympathy. ¡®At least I¡¯ve escaped from being solo now, but is our retainer still forever alone?¡¯ Kaizar was a virgin that had protected his pure love for over a thousand years. Kaizar had never shared that story with Ian, but even just from his quivering gaze, Ian could guess. ¡®Since Kaizar said that he played an active role even a thousand years ago, that means he¡¯s at least a thousand years old¡­¡¯ Stomp- Stomp-. The path that lead to Iriel was exactly the same as when he visited the Forest of Love a long time ago, and Kaizar¡¯s expression hardened more and more. Since to Kaizar, who was an even more ripe(?) forever alone than the past Ian, the Forest of Love was truly a hell-like place. ¡°Lord guy.¡± ¡°What, retainer?¡± Kaizar pulled out his sword and pointed to a herd of deer on the other side of the forest that were passing by as he asked. ¡°Should we hunt a little as we go?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t your body itch?¡± ¡°Not, not really¡­¡± Ian broke out into a cold sweat as he mumbled to himself. ¡®If Kaizar had to do the Fairy Matchmaking Quest that I had to do back then, that fairy dude would have probably had to bid farewell to the world on the spot.¡¯ Ian still remembered the name of that fairy who personally showed him that some people have all the luck. He wasn¡¯t as bad as Kaizar, but Wisseun was a life senior who had been forever alone for 150 years himself. ¡®Wisseun¡­ Is he doing alright? They haven¡¯t broken up, right?¡¯ Even if they had broken up, Iriel would have brought them back together again no matter what. Since this place was the Forest of Love, where love overflowed. Excluding one person that was full of a murderous spirit, that is. ¡°Lord guy, don¡¯t you want to try unicorn meat?¡± ¡°Ah, no. I feel like it will taste bad¡­¡± Of course, different from the past, because current Ian was strong, if he wanted to hunt a unicorn, it was possible now. The unicorns were in the lv 170 range, and Ian had hunted many monsters that were even stronger than them. However, there was a different issue. That was Iriel, the NPC of ancient times, whose level Ian couldn¡¯t even estimate. ¡®If we mess up here, forget the quest, Iriel might kill us instead. No, if Kaizar and Iriel grab each other by the collar and start fighting, only I, as an innocent bystander, am going to get hurt.¡¯ Ian, who narrowly calmed Kaizar down, moved as quickly as possible and headed to the place that Iriel was at. The Forest of Love¡­ As expected, it was an incredibly dangerous place. * * * For a normal game, there were many cases where the development team couldn¡¯t catch up with the content consumption speed of the users. Especially in the case of Korean users, who made development teams from all over the world tremble in fear at their game content consumption speed, there was nothing more to even be said. However, LB Sports, as well as Kailan, were different. Ever since LB Sports had released Kailan, they had regularly done a large-scale update every six months, but the interesting fact was that new things were constantly being created in a situation where the pre-existing content wasn¡¯t even properly consumed. While the users were frantically enjoying the extensive content of Kailan, that time came upon them again without a doubt, and the users swelled with anticipation. Since to have an overflowing amount of content was always a pleasant thing for gamers. And LB Sports did not fall short of that anticipation. Exactly two weeks before half a year was over, they sprinkled bait around called ¡®The Heroes of the Ancient Continent¡¯ before they revealed the official update schedule today, which was a week before the update. Wow, this is insane, I haven¡¯t even gone to the central continent yet, but something new is coming out again?Same for me. I thought that I was now barely catching up to the content, but something is coming out again.Keu, this is why I love Kailan. There¡¯s seriously no other game where there¡¯s an overflowing amount of things to do even though you¡¯ve played all day besides this game.I know, right? My friend ditched fighting completely and is just diving into production classes, but they say that there¡¯s still too much to do.Heu, at this rate, it¡¯s to the point that the users will get tired of it instead.What do you mean get tired of it, you¡¯re talking high and mighty. You just need to do enough to enjoy it. Unlike other games, you cannot run wild to try and touch on all of the content in this game.I agree with the person above. When I played a different game before, I had hit the Master stage of both my combat class and my production class, but in Kailan, I can¡¯t even conceive the thought of doing that. The title of this large-scale update was the ¡®Dimensional War¡¯. There was a somewhat brief explanation that including the Devildom, gates of several dimensional worlds would open up in order, and through those places, they would fight against the tribes of other dimensional worlds. The firstly revealed different field was just the ¡®Devildom¡¯, and in addition to not specifically mentioning when and how it was going to proceed, it was explained in an incredibly inattentive way, but users were wildly excited. That was because of none other than a 50-minute teaser video. Inside of that, there was content about a ¡®Dual Class¡¯ that could be additionally obtained in the Devildom for each class inside of it. Of course, it wasn¡¯t something that was possible for everyone, as it was content that was only available for users that were ¡®strong enough to explore the Devildom¡¯, but this did not lack in making many users, who hadn¡¯t been able to obtain a special class up until now, become enthusiastic. Wow¡­ What class could that be?Which one?There was some sort of skill that let some sort of red lightning-like thing down like rain. The class that uses that.By the looks of it, I think it¡¯s a class that is compatible with Magicians.Keu, it¡¯s exploding with swagger!That looks cool to me as well, but I was shocked after seeing the Warrior-class that had five swords floating in the air as they fought. This was truly a visual shock.Guys, but I¡¯m a Summoner, but why did it seem like a Summoner didn¡¯t have a related class?Really? Now that you mentioned it, that¡¯s true.No, it did show up for a moment in the middle. It seems like everybody missed it because it was a little ordinary. I noticed that they just tamed evil spirits that appeared in the Devildom and fought.Ah, now that you¡¯ve said it, I remember.Tsk, why is LB corp. just discriminating against Summoners again?Kekekekekeke, person above, I think that in the beginning of the update, there will be a lot of people asking for Summoners to be upgraded, but when God Ian appears, everyone will become silent.Kekeke, I also agree. Keke I feel like Ian will tame something crazy again like a Balrog and appear. Like that, within the anticipation and speculations of tons of users, the update date started to grow closer and closer. [1] dongsaeng = what an older person would call a close, younger person CH 194 Chapter: 194: The Beginnings of the Devils (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Iriel, who met Ian, smiled brightly as she welcomed him. ¡°Welcome, Ian. It¡¯s truly been a while.¡± ¡°Long time, no see, Iriel.¡± Ian tried to force himself to maintain a calm expression while the corners of his mouth curled upwards, but that was not easy. ¡®Wow, to actually be this pretty on the topic of VR graphics. Although, of course, Harin is prettier!¡¯ Ian, who thought of Harin as he pulled himself together, opened his mouth again to continue on with the quest. ¡°I already roughly explained to you even through the crystal ball, but I came after receiving a request from Immortal.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Iriel deliberately wore an angry expression as she answered jokingly. ¡°You move in order to fulfill Immortal¡¯s request quickly like this, but why haven¡¯t I heard anything about my request yet?¡± At Iriel¡¯s anger(?) that Ian couldn¡¯t tell at all whether she was joking or being serious, he broke out into a cold sweat as he replied with a faint voice. ¡°Th, that¡­ I haven¡¯t hit Master Level 3 yet.¡± The quest requirement to progress in the ¡®Shadow of the Evil Dragon Khalifa¡¯ Quest that Iriel gave Ian was Summoning Master Level 3. Ian¡¯s current ¡®Summoning¡¯ entered into the Master stage, but it was still only at Master Level 2. He was lacking one level. ¡®I never thought that I wouldn¡¯t even be able to hit Master Level 3 when I¡¯m past lv 170.¡¯ When he first received this quest, he had thought that it would be a quest that he could proceed with when he was about lv 150. At Ian¡¯s excuse, Iriel laughed as she replied. ¡°I know. That your abilities are still a little lacking. I was just joking.¡± However, Ian was more afraid of the words that it was just a joke. ¡®What the hell¡­ Even NPCs know how to play jokes?¡¯ And after the two people shared a couple more words, Iriel started the conversation that was related to the main quest. ¡°Speaking of which, Ian. You said that you wanted to know information about the devils, right?¡± Ian immediately nodded his head. ¡°Yes, based on the words of Immortal, he said that he had been sensing the energy of the devils that invaded the continent a thousand years ago ever since some time. He said that I needed information in order to face them, and that I would be able to obtain that information if I came to you.¡± Even after he said it, Ian became a little doubtful. ¡®But exactly what kind of information is she supposed to be giving me? Well, is she going to be telling me the weaknesses of the devils at least? Like a method on how to easily hunt them¡­ If that was the case, that would be great. And if I obtain that information, then I¡¯ll be completing the quest just like that.¡¯ However, the ¡®Beginnings of the Devils¡¯ Quest that he received from Immortal was also a quest that undoubtedly had an S- rank difficulty level. Of course, there was no way he would obtain that so easily. Iriel smiled as she opened her mouth. ¡°One moment, I¡¯m going to go look for a couple items inside. As it is content that has been recorded a long time ago, it might take me some time to find it.¡± ¡°Huh? Sure, well¡­¡± Ian scratched the back of his head as he sat down on a boulder that was next to him, and Iriel went inside her house. And shortly after, she came out carrying an unknown item in either hand. The item that she was carrying in her left hand was an item that had the shape of a worn scroll, and the thing she had in her right hand was shaped like a gourd with a cork stopping the spout. ¡°Alright, take these from me.¡± Ian took those items with a very confused expression and after looking at each of the items once, he asked Iriel. ¡°What are these items used for?¡± With a calm voice, she continued her explanation. ¡°Firstly, within that parchment, there¡¯s information on the devils that was collected during the war with them in the past.¡± At Iriel¡¯s words, Ian immediately tried to open up the rolled-up parchment. ¡°Hmm¡­ Do you just open it up like this?¡± However, Iriel instantly stopped him. ¡°No, don¡¯t open it up now.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°Because there¡¯s no point even if you open it up now. The content written inside it is sealed right now.¡± ¡°Ah-ha!¡± And Ian had a hunch for how this quest would proceed now. ¡®It looks like she¡¯ll ask me to go and collect something into this gourd again. Based on the fact that it¡¯s an awkward single S difficulty level, I don¡¯t think she¡¯ll give me something that difficult. The size of this quest is exactly a gathering quest.¡¯ Ian¡¯s prediction hit the mark. However, there was a bit of a difference from other regular quests. ¡°That gourd is an artifact that is produced with ancient magic. If you hunt evil spirits while holding that bottle, you can store the hunted evil spirit into that bottle.¡± ¡°Ooh¡­¡± The word ¡®evil spirit¡¯ immediately triggered Ian¡¯s curiosity. ¡®What¡¯s that? Will I be the first person to be able to go into the Devildom?¡¯ The two people¡¯s conversation continued. ¡°Ian, do you know that this Forest of Love some sort of different field?¡± ¡°Yes, I¡¯ve heard about it from Gripper before.¡± ¡°Then this will be easier to explain.¡± Iriel, who paused for a moment, continued her words. ¡°You can say the Devildom is also a different field like this Forest of Love. And I can open the dimensional door that leads to the outskirts of the Devildom with my current abilities.¡± Ian¡¯s eyes slightly grew. ¡°Ooh!¡± ¡°Of course, with my lacking abilities, I cannot maintain the dimensional door for a long time. At the longest, it will probably about a quarter of a day.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Iriel nodded her head as she finished her explanation. ¡°Go into the dimensional door that I have created and hunt a low-class evil spirit ¡®Lakoum¡¯. If you collect 200 Lakoum spirits into this gourd, you¡¯ll be able to release the seal that¡¯s on the parchment using that.¡± And the notification of the quest in question popped up. Ring-. ¨C The Beginnings of the Devils I (Hidden) (Connected) Iriel, the administrator of the Forest of Love as well as an exceptional Elf Summoner, has the ability to open a dimensional door that leads to the Devildom. She has handed over the magic gourd that has been passed down from a thousand years ago as well as the ancient parchment that the information related to the devils is contained in. However, as the parchment has a seal on it, the content inside of it cannot be checked, and in order to release the seal, the ¡®Lakoum¡¯ spirits are required. Collect 200 ¡®Lakoum¡¯ spirits into the gourd and return to Iriel. Quest Difficulty Level: S Quest Requirement: Summoner with the God Dragon Karceus Summoning Master Level 1. Time Limit: None Reward: ? *This quest cannot be rejected. * * * Amongst the game developers that existed in Korea, the company that boasted the biggest size was the developers of Kailan, LB Corp., by far. And different from other game developers, LB Corp. was incredibly unique. This was because normally for the business aspect of Korean games, it was serviced with a method where large publishers published the games of small and large developers and took care of the marketing and launching as well, but with LB Corp., they just developed one game called Kailan, and even while managing it, they were bigger than any company that was in the Korean game business. And the answer to that lied in the game share of ¡®Kailan¡¯. Of course, even when Kailan first appeared, it received an amazing amount of interest, but right now, when it was way past even a year, Kailan had taken over 95% of the VR game shares. On top of that, the most encouraging part was that it made even people who didn¡¯t enjoy games play and so the general pie of the VR game share itself was growing. The head office of LB corp. that stood firmly on the outskirts of Seoul. In the conference room that was at the top of the building, a presentation was progressing in the middle of silence. And the content of that was related to the new update that would be released this time. ¡°Above all, the presentation of the development team that was involved in the 3rd update is complete.¡± The man that stood in front of the large screen bowed as he finished his presentation, and neat and proper clapping noises rang out. Clap-clap-clap-. And one old-aged man that sat at the highest seat of the conference room. Go Woonchan, the CEO of LB Corp. as well as the godfather of the VR game business world, slowly opened his mouth. ¡°I enjoyed your announcement content, Department Head Kim.¡± ¡°Thank you, CEO.¡± Go Woonchan slightly pushed up his glasses that slipped down past the bridge of his nose as he continued his words again. ¡°So, based on your thoughts Department Head Kim, what do you think is the most distinguishing aspect from this update in comparison to the past two updates?¡± At Go Woonchan¡¯s words, the man called Department Head Kim began to cautiously open his mouth. Go Woonchan was someone who made his name famous as a part of the planning team more than ten years ago, and because of that, he was sensitive to planning to the point he personally took part in each content every update. ¡°The most prominent part is that different from now, it is content that changes depending on the users.¡± ¡°Changes¡­ You say.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Although the degree of freedom for the pre-existing content was also high, eventually the board itself that was laid out made them move in a fixed range, and no matter how someone played the game, the only difference was that the time and the result was different, but the direction itself was the same. However, the content this time is not like that. Depending on the capability of the user, the board itself changes.¡± Go Woonchan nodded his head, as he opened his mouth briefly. ¡°Good, continue.¡± Department Head Kim continued his words. ¡°For instance, in the case of the Devildom content that will be the first to open, depending on how the users solved the preliminary quests that are spread across the continent, where the war with the devils will start will be decided.¡± It seemed he was parched with thirst as he paused a moment before opening his mouth again. ¡°There is an infinite number of cases that could occur to the point that our Planning team and Development team can¡¯t state an exact number, but in the case that the users succeeded with the quests in an ideal direction, the first war will begin as the users¡¯ ¡®invasion of the Devildom¡¯. Go Woonchan received his words. ¡°If they aren¡¯t able to do that, then inversely the war will start with a situation where they must defend the invasion of the Devildom, right?¡± Department Head Kim nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right, President. And depending on how that start proceeds, the properties of the content itself will completely change.¡± ¡°I see. This part is definitely fresh.¡± Go Woonchan, who rubbed his beard for a moment, threw a new question. ¡°Then, when can the users start encountering those preliminary quests?¡± Department Head Kim immediately responded. ¡°We¡¯ve already spread related quests across the continent, and from what I know, there are even a couple users that have already proceeded with them in accordance with that. However, I believe that it will take a week at the least in order for quests related to the Devildom to be officially created¡­¡± However, at that exact moment, when Department Head Kim was diligently briefing, the doors of the conference room suddenly opened as someone came in. Bang-. All of the gazes of the people sitting inside turned in that direction, and the man that sat at the entrance shouted at the one that entered. ¡°Who are you? How dare you burst in like this during a meeting!¡± However, the man that entered as he panted didn¡¯t even respond to that as he shouted towards Department Head Kim, who was in the middle of briefing, while gasping. ¡°There¡¯s a huge problem, Department Head Kim!¡± ¡°What is it, Manager Yoo, what happened?¡± Despite it being a game company, where the internal atmosphere was freer on average than other businesses, as this was the first time this happened, everybody was flustered. However, Go Woonchan watched the two people¡¯s conversation with an interested expression. And shortly after, Manager Yoo, who took a deep breath, urgently opened his mouth. ¡°The doors of the Devildom have been opened!!¡± CH 195 Chapter 195: The Beginnings of the Devils (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Meanwhile, Ian, who had entered the dimensional door that Iriel had made, was having an incredibly unusual experience. A kind of system message that he had never seen before had popped up. You have entered Zone 127 of the Devildom, a temporarily open zone.For an easy new area test run, you have temporarily received 99 points for your ¡®Resistance Magic¡¯ abilities.From now on, 99% of the damage received from all enemies of the Devildom will be absorbed. Ian narrowed both of his eyes. ¡®What¡­ Is this?¡± Ian¡¯s mind began to spin quickly. ¡®A temporarily open zone, huh¡­ On top of that, a test run? Something about this smells like honey.¡¯ Up until now, Kailan was a unique VR game where a bug or a hole in the system was never discovered despite the large amount of users using it. However, the discovery of bugs or system errors in other VR games excluding Kailan was frequent, and Ian was a user who had played a lot of those games as well. ¡®Were the opening preparations of this area not fully completed yet?¡¯ Ian began to reason out things one by one. ¡®I think that the fact that I¡¯ve received a stat called Resistance Magic for a test run means that they¡¯ve drastically reduced the difficulty level of the map for the QA of the game¡­¡¯ (QA, the abbreviation for Quality Assurance, stood for the task of various tests as well as inspection operations before the releasing of the product in order for the game to have a certain level of quality.) While checking the stat called Resistance Magic that newly appeared in his character information window, Ian grinned. He wasn¡¯t sure if it would be the same in other places, but he was sure that this stat was an incredible cheat stat at least in this Devildom. Ian checked the stats of his retainers, including Kaizar, as well as his Familiars. And after seeing that the phrase ¡®Resistance Magic +99¡¯ was written in all of the information windows, the corners of his mouth slightly rolled up. ¡®If this is the case, will I be able to reign over the Devildom for at least a quarter of a day?¡¯ This current situation was definitely not one where it was possible to play normally. Ian definitely recognized that. ¡®Keukeu, I truly thought Kailan was a perfectly monster-like game, but for it to show a hole like this.¡¯ However, Ian had no intentions of leaving this place obediently. He was instead planning on squandering to the limit. ¡®With a buff that reduces the amount of damage received by 99%, shouldn¡¯t we be able to even catch Satan?¡¯ If someone saw him, they could criticize him saying he was cheating, but he didn¡¯t care about such things. Since no matter how unjust this was, if they became the beneficiary, anybody would be happy. Ian hummed as he began to move his feet. The map, which was colourful and strange, fostered an incredibly terrifying atmosphere, but such things didn¡¯t even catch his eyes. ¡®I really hope that this Resistance Magic stat properly works¡­¡¯ And shortly after, Ian was able to discoverer his first monster within the Devildom. Lakoum ¨C Lv 205/Low-class Evil Influence The Lakoum, which was a whopping level 205, was an evil influence that took on the shape of a giant, dark-red rat. After checking his surroundings, Ian carefully initiated a battle with the monster. ¡®Since in case the Resistance Magic doesn¡¯t activate, it¡¯s an opponent that I¡¯ll only be able to catch if I use all of my fighting power.¡¯ As Ian¡¯s party approached it, the Lakoum glared at them as it charged towards Ian, and Ian purposely exposed one of his arms to the Lakoum¡¯s attack. Kwa-kwak-! The Lakoum bit Ian¡¯s arm as if it had been waiting to do that¡­ You have received the attack of the Low-class Evil Influence ¡®Lakoum¡¯.Through strong Resistance Magic, 9405 damage has been absorbed.Your Vitality has been reduced by 95. Ian, who checked the system messages that popped up one after another, clenched his fist tightly. ¡°Alright!¡± And Kaizar, who was fighting with the Lakoum, tilted his head as he called Ian. ¡°Lord guy.¡± ¡°What, retainer.¡± Ian grinned as he replied. Kaizar wore an expression showing that he didn¡¯t understand the reason as he continued his words. ¡°Are you sure this place is the Devildom? The evil influences that I know are not this weak.¡± At that, Ian grinned as he replied. ¡°Retainer, by any chance, do you happen to know about Resistance Magic?¡± Kaizar slowly nodded his head. ¡°Yes. I do know about Resistance Magic. From what I know, whenever you receive over a fixed amount of damage from a devil, the tolerance that you build up against it is called Resistance Magic.¡± Ian quickly swung around his spear and after killing the Lakoum, he slowly opened his mouth. ¡°We have 99 points of that right now.¡± Kaizar wore a surprised expression as he asked again. ¡°¡­ How come?¡± Ian let out a loud noise. ¡°Keuhahahat, how would I know that? For now, let¡¯s think about that after we wipe this place up completely!¡± * * * In the basement of LB Corp.¡¯s head office, there was a giant monitoring room that took up an incredibly large amount of floor space. As Kailan was such a massive game, the number of people required just for monitoring was over 500, and because that was the case, hundreds of computers were laid out in the monitoring room. However, despite it being filled with over hundreds of people, because the characteristics of the job didn¡¯t require words to go back and forth, the monitoring room was always quiet. However, for some odd reason, the atmosphere was incredibly unsettling today. And the source of the noise was the testing zone monitoring section that was in the corner of the monitoring room. ¡°Wow, I never even imagined that there would really be a lunatic who even got through the Devildom Entry Quest at this timing.¡± The section leader wore a dumbfounded expression as he bore holes into the large screen that was attached to the wall with his eyes while he had a hand placed on his forehead. And the ten or so people nearby were staring at the screen together with uneasy expressions. ¡°Section leader, what do we do? Shouldn¡¯t we contact the server team right now and forcibly shut it down at the least? Or even just forcibly kick out that user¡­¡± At the words of one of the junior staff members, the section leader glared at them as they responded irritated. ¡°Ha, Manager Park, if that was possible, do you think I would be in this state? Kailan is a VR game, a VR game I tell you! If we forcibly kick out users in this situation, it¡¯s possible that the body of the player may be damaged. Of course, it¡¯s not to the point where it¡¯s greatly dangerous, but if the player was to get hurt even the slightest bit through a small slip-up from this event, have you ever thought about how much of a blow it would be on the company?¡± While looking at the section leader, who poured out his words like rapid-fire, the woman called Manager Park bowed her head forward. She had been working for over a year underneath him, but this was the first time she was seeing him this irritated when he was always mild. The section leader stared at the person in the screen without a word as he continued to break out in a cold sweat. ¡®How exactly did that user already get a quest related to the Devildom?¡¯ The fact that the user had no idea that he was this close to new content meant, in some ways, that the biggest fault fell on the monitoring team out of all of the departments. And because he was the one in a position where he needed to take all of that responsibility, he was extremely nervous. He pulled out the smartphone that was in his pocket and called someone. ¡°Ah, Team Leader Lee! By any chance, is it okay for me to call you right now?¡± And a rough, male voice was heard through the phone. Is this the section leader of the monitoring team? ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right.¡± You¡¯ve called because of the incident where the Devildom was broken through, right? At those words, the section leader momentarily flinched. This was because he had no idea that this had spread throughout the whole company already. And shortly after letting out a deep sigh, he replied. ¡°Hoo, yes. It looks like the word has already spread even to the administration team. That¡¯s right. You are correct that I called because of that incident.¡± The reason why the section leader called the content administration team was simple. It was because he wanted to know what profit that damn nuisance of a user would obtain while he went around wiping the Devildom as he wished. He felt like he needed to know that in order to consult the planning team and take countermeasures. The section leader continued to keep his eyes on the screen as he thoroughly explained the course that the user was taking as well as the situations that were occurring in the Devildom into his smartphone, and shortly after, a response from the leader of the administration team came through. Hmm, for now, the part that is the biggest relief is that the monsters that appear in the Devildom right now do not give EXP. No matter how much the user ¡®Ian¡¯ hunts, he will not gain any EXP. At those words, the expression of the section leader brightened. ¡°Ah, is that so?¡± However, at the same time, a question popped up. ¡°Then why exactly is that user fighting the monsters as he sees them?¡± There was a moment of silence that passed by before through the smartphone, a serious voice was heard. That¡­ Is most likely because of the Magic Stone. * * * You have killed the Low-class Evil Influence ¡®Lakoum¡¯.You have obtained 0 EXP.You have obtained 0 Fame.You have obtained the ¡®Low-class Magic Stone¡¯ Item. Ian, who read down the system messages, clenched his fist as he shouted. ¡°Alright, it came out again!¡± Ian, who checked the Magic Stone that was in his inventory, wore a satisfied smile. This ¡®Magic Stone¡¯ was a charming item that made it worth the endless grinding where there wasn¡¯t even one EXP given. Low-class Magic Stone Classification ¨C Miscellaneous Goods Rank ¨C None Durability ¨C 50/50 A rare and precious item filled with highly pure energy from the Devildom. If the Magic Stone is used, equipment can be made even stronger. *The Low-class Magic Stone can only be used on equipment that is below +5 fortification. *The chance of succeeding at fortifying equipment is incredibly low, but the equipment will not be damaged even if the fortification failed. This was the fortification content of Kailan that first appeared. Despite not being able to obtain any EXP or Fame, the reason that Ian was wiping the evil influences with fire in his eyes lied here. While lifting the Magic Stone, Ian used it on the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ as he kept mumbling to himself. ¡®Please¡­ Work, please! I¡¯ve already used fifteen of them, it will work this time!¡¯ As he used the Magic Stone, Ian¡¯s spear, the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ floated in the air. Ian covered his eyes with both hands while he constantly glanced at the fortification scene through the gaps between his fingers. And shortly after, the message that Ian wanted rang out. Whoong-! You have succeeded in fortifying the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ item!The ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ has been fortified from +2 fortification to +3 fortification. Fortification Result Offensive Power: 2190-2406 -> 2372-2606 All combat abilities +180 -> All combat abilities +195 Leadership +240 -> Leadership +260Affinity +180 -> Affinity +195 CH 196 Chapter 196: Ian¡¯s Devildom Travel Journal (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian raised both of his hands as he cheered. ¡°Alright!¡± The ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ shone brilliantly while it floated in the air. Ian thought that he was going to start crying because he was so happy. ¡°Keu, for it to have taken two hours just to fortify it by 3!¡± Even during this time, Ian was jotting down all of the stats whenever he fortified. And the result of that, he was able to roughly understand the fortification rate. ¡°It increases by 10% of the initial stats whenever it is fortified. So, then if we fortify it by 10, then that means the original stats of the weapon will be doubled¡­¡± It was possible that the amount increased whenever it was raised up one fortification phase grew, but as there was no chance that it would decrease, it meant that a weapon fortified by 10 was at least twice as strong as it normally would be. Ian grinned as he moved his feet again. He had no intentions of wasting even one hour. The thing that he needed to do right now was just hunt and hunt again. Before this bug(?) was released, he needed to take in as much profit as possible. ¡°Ly, Karceus! Attack boldly towards the front! Since you should have memorized all of the attack pattern of those guys by now, try to avoid their attacks as much as possible.¡± At Ian¡¯s command, Karceus replied with a confused expression. Hmm¡­ I¡¯m dodging the attacks because you¡¯re telling me to, but I don¡¯t exactly understand why we have to dodge. It¡¯s just ticklish even when I¡¯m hit. At Karceus¡¯s question, Ian replied kindly. ¡°Right now, because of the Resistance Magic, proper damage isn¡¯t being dealt on us, but when we come next time, we¡¯ll need to fight against those monsters without any Resistance Magic. If we identify their attack pattern beforehand, it will be more comfortable then, don¡¯t you think, Mojilah[1]?¡± Ly, who was next to him, nodded his head. As expected, our owner is smart. Karceus shook his head instead. ¡­ I think he¡¯s worse than death, not smart. Either way, with Kaizar, who ran amok, as the lead, Ian¡¯s party continued to catch Lakoums as they advanced forward. Thanks to the cheat-like Resistance Magic stat that made it so that they received almost no damage even when they were hit, Ian was able to play even more boldly. ¡®It looks like the Lakoum¡¯s weak point is their left eye. And I was wondering why just one of their eyes shone bright red¡­¡¯ Ian avoided the Lakoum¡¯s attack like flowing water as he twisted his spear and stabbed it into the left eye of the Lakoum. And the Judgment of the Spirit King, which exerted 130% of its original stat, truly boasted incredible stats. Bleeegh-! The horrible shriek of the evil spirit, which was unsettling to hear, rang out. From Ian¡¯s single attack, close to 40% of the Lakoum¡¯s Vitality was reduced. As he even found out the weak point of the Lakoum, his hunting speed increased even more. ¡°If the weak point is attacked, over 20 times the damage goes through. No wonder, I was thinking that their Defensive Power was insanely high.¡± Continued after Ian¡¯s attack, the combined attack of Kaizar and Karceus, as well as Ly went through, and the body of the Lakoum collapsed just like that. Thud-. You have killed the Low-class Evil Spirit ¡®Lakoum¡¯.You have obtained 0 EXP.You have obtained 0 Fame.You have obtained the ¡®Lakoum¡¯s Tooth¡¯ item. Ian packed the Lakoum¡¯s Tooth carefully into his inventory. The Lakoum¡¯s Teeth were a whopping Unique-rank Production Material. If he sold it to Blacksmiths, he was certain that he would be able to receive a high price for them, so he was saving each one of them up. ¡°Good, good. It would be even better if my EXP went up as well, but that¡¯s probably too greedy of me.¡± However, Ly, who was listening to Ian¡¯s mumbling while standing next to him, suddenly turned to look at him as he opened his mouth. Owner, but have we not gathered 200 Lakoum spirits yet? I feel like we¡¯ve already caught hundreds of them¡­ It¡¯s probably just what it feels like, right? At Ly¡¯s question, the corners of Ian¡¯s mouth rolled upwards as he replied. ¡°No, we¡¯ve already filled up the gourd about two hours ago.¡± This time, Karceus approached them as he whined. This is so boring, Owner. If we¡¯ve reached our goal, what do you think about going back now? However, of course, Ian had absolutely no intentions of returning. ¡°I don¡¯t want to. Until I naturally close my eyes and am logged out, I¡¯m not going to leave this place.¡± With an expression showing how sick of this he was, Karceus let out a deep sigh. Ha¡­ Meanwhile, Ly showed his sharp teeth as he wore a pleased smile. Sounds good, Owner. I like this place. And these comments of Ian were incredibly damaging to someone outside of this virtual reality. * * * ¡°Section Leader, you heard what I just said now, right?¡± ¡°I heard you, ha¡­¡± The New Zone Monitoring Team, who had just been monitoring Ian for 10 hours already, were about to collapse on the spot. It was a situation where they were already way past their clock-out times by 2 hours. As they had no idea what that dude named Ian, who was worse than death, would do, the monitoring team needed to stay in their spots until he logged out. If it was going to be exactly like how Ian jabbered on about within the screen just now, the clock-out time of the monitoring team had become distant. ¡°Ha, how can a person be that robot-like?¡± ¡°I agree, Section Leader. He¡¯s been continuously hunting in the same pattern without proper rest for 5 hours now. I think his total hunting time is even over 10 hours as well.¡± ¡°At this rate, are you sure it¡¯s not like we won¡¯t be able to clock out today? This is a big problem, at least today¡¯s dinner plans fell through, but tomorrow¡¯s the weekend¡­¡± At the words of one of the employees, everybody¡¯s expression suddenly darkened. The thought that they could lose their weekend completely because of that one dude named Ian had popped up. The section leader wrapped one hand around his pounding head while he mumbled. ¡°Still, since the portal closes in 1-2 hours, let¡¯s just wait until then.¡± ¡°Oh, really? But if the portal closes in an hour, doesn¡¯t he have to come out then no matter what?¡± The section leader sighed lowly as he replied. ¡°For any normal person, that would be the case. Since if the portal closes, there¡¯s no way to get out of the Devildom unless one dies. However, I somewhat feel like that dude won¡¯t even be bothered whether the portal closes or not.¡± ¡°¡­¡± The atmosphere of the monitoring room, which almost brightened a little immediately darkened again. They turned their gazes towards the screen again. * * * Kku-ruk- Kku-ru-ruk-! Ian, who rummaged through the map as if he was combing through it while hunting diligently, waved his hand welcomingly as he saw Pin fly in from afar. ¡°Pin, over here.¡± And Pin, who flew towards Ian, flapped his wings in the direction that he flew in from as he shook his beak. Kku-ruk- Kku-kkuk-! ¡°Have you found the gate that leads to the next map?¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Pin nodded his head. Kkuk- Kku-kkuk-! At that, Ian smiled brightly as he got on Pin¡¯s back. And he turned his gaze towards Karceus. ¡°Mojilah, let the others get on your back.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Karceus frowned. Ahem, there¡¯s too many¡­ ¡°What do you mean there¡¯s too many? Do you know how wide your back is? You can¡¯t even let Ly and Kaizar get on?¡± Kaizar got on Karceus¡¯s back without a word, and Ly also followed on. And as Pin, who had Ian on his back, flew up, Karceus¡¯s large build followed behind him. However, just then, a system message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring-. The dimensional door that leads to the ¡®Forest of Love¡¯ will close in 5 minutes.If the dimensional door disappears, you cannot return to the Forest of Love, and in order to return, you must die in the Devildom.Remaining Time ¨C 00:04:58 Ian, who checked the message, flinched for a moment. ¡®Oh, right. Iriel said that she could maintain it for a quarter of a day, right?¡¯ As he had been hunting frantically, he had forgotten about Iriel¡¯s details of caution. However, as expected, Ian was incredibly calm even despite seeing the warning message. ¡®If I leave this place now, it¡¯s possible that a chance like this will never come back again. I could never let that happen.¡¯ The words that he could only leave the Devildom if he died didn¡¯t exactly mean that there would soon be no way out. Because their Resistance Magic absorbed 99% of their damage, it wouldn¡¯t be easy trying to die either, but aside from that, there was a option that Ian was relying on. ¡®As soon as I log out, the development team will probably pull my character out on their own.¡¯ Ian already had the development team wrapped around his finger. As long as his body lasted, Ian had no intentions of logging out at all. ¡®I¡¯ve now fortified one weapon, two rings and my head ornament up to their 3rd fortification¡­¡¯ It was written that it was possible to fortify up to the 5th fortification with the Low-class Magic Stone, but the chance was too low. As that was the case, Ian was in the middle of fortifying all of his items which were at least Legendary-rank up to their 3rd fortification for now. ¡®Fortifying is important, but I also need to collect as much information on the Devildom as I can. Until my eyes close, that is.¡¯ Ian almost incubated a tragedy that was on par with Admiral Yi Sun-shin, who was at the front for the Battle of Myeongnyang. And Pin, who had him on his back, quickly flew towards the outskirts of Zone 127 of the Devildom. Different from Zone 127, which was incredibly wide, the width of the map itself shrunk more and more the deeper they went in. And Ian, who hunted everything that he ran into at first, prioritized reaching the deepest place of the Devildom over hunting more now and moved accordingly. ¡®So, the smaller the number that¡¯s attached to the zone is, more higher-rank maps appear.¡¯ At the end of having moved while hunting for almost 10 hours, the zone that Ian had arrived at was Zone 121 of the Devildom. Different kinds of evil spirits appeared for each of the areas, but thanks to the cheat-like stat called Resistance Magic, Ian continuously hunted smoothly. The evil spirits that appeared in Zone 121, where he was currently in the middle of hunting in, were fussy monsters that flew around in the air with a pterodactyl-like appearance, but with Pin and Karceus¡¯s active role, they were able to immediately wipe them. ¡°Let¡¯s see here, if we go over there, I feel like Zone 120 will come up.¡± Ian discovered a red light that was glowing from afar, and he began to move quickly towards that direction. A couple of Low-class Magic Spirits blocked his way, but since discovering the gate, he just completely ignored them. ¡®I also feel like I¡¯m slowly getting sleepy¡­¡¯ That made sense, as it was a situation where Ian had already been logged onto Kailan for over 20 hours. Gaming continuously for 20 hours was a hardcore play-time that wouldn¡¯t have been strange at all if a normal person already crashed, but Ian couldn¡¯t care even the least bit. ¡®Should I try renewing my best record for continuous gaming at this chance? Was my record 50 hours from when I made a bet with the professor before?¡¯ He opened his eyes even wider instead as he strengthened his resolution. And shortly after, the transportation gate that shone red appeared in front of the eyes of Ian¡¯s party. Ian, who discovered that, tilted his head as he mumbled. ¡°Huh, shape of the gate is slightly different from the ones up until now.¡± The gates that Ian had entered in order to go to the next zone were mostly small gates shaped like an oval that floated in the air. However, the gate that was in front of the party right now had an odd shape where it was spread widely across the ground. Kaizar, who approached Ian¡¯s side, opened his mouth. ¡°It¡¯s as if it¡¯s a Summoning Magic Square as well¡­¡± And Karceus, who had transformed into his human form before anybody realized, agreed with Kaizar¡¯s words. ¡°Kaizar¡¯s words are right. This is a Summoning Magic Square.¡± In the world of Kailan as well, the dragon race was a race that was proficient in magic, and so, Ian turned his gaze towards Karceus. ¡°Is that so? Then is this not a gate that leads to the next map?¡± Karceus replied. ¡°I¡¯m not sure about that. Since there are so many odd Summoning Magic Squares in the Devildom.¡± However, just then, the gate that was spread across the ground with an odd shape, let out a loud resonant sound as it began to shine an even brighter red. Kuoooh-. Ian and his party reflexively stepped back slightly from the gate, and they began to watch the process of the gate being operated. ¡°Will the portal open up there now?¡± Ian mumbled. However, the thing that was summoned was different from Ian¡¯s expectation of a portal. Keu-rwah-rwah-rwah-. How dare a life form of the human world step foot into this place! You have lost your sense of fear! [1] Mojilee/Mojilah = Someone who is lacking just 1-2% from being perfect (ex. A guy who has the looks and money, but is a little lacking in the brain department) CH 197 Chapter 197: Ian¡¯s Devildom Travel Journal (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The thing that had appeared in front of Ian was a human-shaped monster that had an incredibly large build. With a rough-looking face, the devil had two horns attached to his head while his muscular body was covered in red fur. On top of that, the opponent with an overpowering image held big axes in each hand that looked like it would be troublesome for a normal human to even lift one of them as he glared at Ian. Keu-rwah-rwah-rwah-! How exactly did you come this far with such a weak-looking body, human? Ian replied with an apathetic expression. ¡°What do you mean how did I get here, I knocked out the evil influences and came.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, the devil widened both of his eyes as he asked back. What? You¡¯ve actually knocked out the evil influences? This time Ian asked. ¡°Who are you to be like that?¡± While looking at Ian, who wasn¡¯t the least bit intimidated and replied with such a calm tone, the devil raged. I am Yankoun, one of the Twelve Chosen Generals that guard the entrance of the Devildom. If you¡¯ve come this far, you must have heard about the Twelve Chosen Generals, right? However, Ian¡¯s expression was just lukewarm. While he had the Resistance Magic stat that absorbed 99% of the damage he received, whether it was the general of the Devildom or the grandfather of Satan himself, he had nothing to fear. ¡°That¡¯s what¡¯s in my stomach[1]. I had no idea that there was such a thing in the Devildom as well.¡± At Ian¡¯s reply Yankoun exploded. Keu-rwah-rwah-rwah-! You are the one that needs to be punished badly in order to get it together! Yankoun began to swing around the axes that he was holding in either hand crazily. Ian slightly checked the level that appeared above his head. ¡®Level 350, huh¡­ It¡¯s been quite a while since we¡¯ve encountered a monster that¡¯s a higher level than Kaizar.¡¯ Kaizar was now at lv 270. Even when compared to him, the level of the opponent was overwhelmingly higher. It had truly been a while ever since Holdream¡¯s Holy Grail Quest that they¡¯ve met a monster of such a high level. Ian provoked his opponent even more. ¡°Come at me, monkey.¡± And Yankoun immediately reacted. Keuaaah-! As Yankoun let out a horrible shriek, a red beam shot out from his whole body as he began to burn everything around him. Bang- Ba-bang- Bang-bang-! Ian examined the pattern of the beam that shot out while he dodged them like this and that, and he couldn¡¯t help but allow the rays that were dense and shot out quickly to attack him. The God General of the Devildom ¡®Yankoun¡¯ has used Inherent Ability Burst-Tear-Break.You have received critical damage from the God General of the Devildom ¡®Yankoun¡¯.Due to your strong Resistance Magic, 88,605 damage has been absorbed.Your Vitality has been reduced by 895. Ian, who checked the system messages that popped up, was slightly taken aback. ¡®What the hell, it felt like he just slightly grazed me, but he deals this much damage?¡¯ Of course, the actual amount of damage he received was a ticklish amount that didn¡¯t quite come out to 1 thousand, but if he had just gotten hit without any Resistance Magic, it was an enormous amount of damage that was close to 100 thousand. If it was how it originally should have been like, with Ian¡¯s current Vitality, it was a force where he would have died in three hits. Whoo- Whoo-! Yankoun, who randomly shot out destructive red beams with his head bowed down for a while, gathered his breath as he slowly turned his head. Ahem, have you already died? However, Yankoun, who immediately met eyes with Ian after turning his head, couldn¡¯t help but be flustered. What the hell? How were you able to survive within the range of my Burst-Tear-Break? The corners of the mouth of Ian, who met eyes with Yankoun, curled upwards. ¡°Man, you¡¯re quite strong.¡± ¡­? Yankoun, who wore a flustered expression for a moment, wore a menacing expression shortly afterwards as he toyed with his axe. I don¡¯t know how you survived, but since it has come to a situation like this, but I will just split your skull with my axes instead. I will send you to heaven. If it was as it originally should have been, it would have been a line that would have been heard as incredibly threatening, but Ian just snorted. ¡°You¡¯re in big trouble, man.¡± ¡­? ¡°I¡¯ll smack you until you beg me for mercy.¡± Human, what the hell are you saying? Ian slightly turned to look at Kaizar and his Familiars as he opened his mouth again. ¡°Guys, beat him to a pulp!¡± * * * 23 hours since they had been exclusively monitoring Ian. With bloodshot eyes, the Section Leader was watching Ian and Yankoun¡¯s battle. To be exact, the expression that he was glaring at them was more appropriate. ¡°Department Head Kim, what is he doing right now?¡± At the Section Leader¡¯s question, the man that was dozing off next to him suddenly lifted his head as he stared at the screen. And with a very hoarse voice, he replied weakly. ¡°It seems like he¡¯s fighting against a devil.¡± ¡°Really? Do you really think he¡¯s fighting?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± The Section Leader sighed deeply towards the other, who rubbed his eyes and looked at the screen again, as he opened his mouth. ¡°It looks to me like he¡¯s group lynching one pitiful boss monster¡­¡± There was a moment of silence. The two stared at Yankoun, who was getting beaten up by Ian, for a while before they stared at each other. ¡°I pity Yankoun, Section Leader.¡± ¡°I pity us more.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°How exactly is that Ian dude still lively to this point?¡± ¡°I have no idea.¡± The Section glanced around at the junior staff members, who were sprawled all over the monitoring room here and there, as he mumbled weakly. ¡°By any chance, does no one here know that game cripple¡¯s house? So we can go and push down the circuit breaker at least.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Everybody was silent, but that was only because they had no strength to do such a thing right now. At the words of the Section Leader, they were in the middle of intensely sympathizing with him internally. * * * The Devildom could be considered the field with the highest difficulty level that existed in Kailan. And Yankoun was a monster that was in the top 100 within a Devildom like that. That Yankoun was getting beaten to a pulp to the point dust would have flown around even on a rainy day. And the one that was beating up Yankoun ruthlessly was obviously Ian. Keu-rwa-aak! How exactly can a human be this strong? ¡°You¡¯ll figure it out eventually from getting hit.¡± Puck- Pu-puck-! Yankoun was currently in a state where his Vitality was already reduced to its minimum and he had lost all strength in his body. However, Ian attacked him without mercy. Yankoun let out a groan as he glared at Ian. Keu-euk! I was just careless! You, you¡¯re lucky! As he said that, Ian suddenly stopped attacking. ¡°Is that so?¡± At the unexpected reaction, Yankoun was momentarily taken aback, but soon after, he nodded his head as he replied. That¡¯s right, human. I will acknowledge the fact that you are strong. Since there is not a devil even in our Devildom that can endure my attacks to that point. However, if I hadn¡¯t been careless, I would have easily beaten someone like you! To be honest, from the perspective of Yankoun, who was lv 350, Ian¡¯s level was to the point it was truly trivial. As that was the case, Ian¡¯s attacks also didn¡¯t deal much damage to Yankoun and Yankoun couldn¡¯t help but look down on Ian. However, although it wasn¡¯t a small amount of damage, as he accumulated damage that was dozens of times greater than what Ian, who absorbed 99% of the damage received, took, he was eventually close to death. Ian momentarily stared at Yankoun, who justified himself diligently, before he took a step back. What the hell, human! After Ian pulled back all of his Familiars, he opened his mouth again. ¡°I want to compete against you when you aren¡¯t being careless.¡± ¡­! At that, Yankoun wore an expression saying as if he was dumbfounded. And that was the same for Kaizar and Ian¡¯s Familiars as well. Owner, why are you doing that? Let¡¯s kill him quickly and move onto the next map.That¡¯s right, owner. Why are you doing something so useless? Lord guy, did you eat something bad this morning? However, Ian stared at Yankoun with an unwavering expression. And Yankoun faced Ian¡¯s such gaze squarely as he slowly nodded his head. Keu-heum¡­ Such an arrogant human. However, I will think highly of that competitiveness and spirit at least. Ian replied with a resolute expression. ¡°I am the greatest Selamus Warrior. This time, I will face you without anybody else¡¯s help and just my own strength.¡± Ian even casted his First-Aid skill on Yankoun as he healed him. And as the Vitality of the two were completely recovered, the battle began again. That arrogance will kill you! Even at Yankoun¡¯s roar, Ian just laughed. ¡°Until you truly acknowledge me, I will continue to fight.¡± Like that, the battle urgently began. This time, with even his Familiars pulled back, it was a battle just between the two. Yankoun¡¯s twin axes and Ian¡¯s spear began to clash intensely in the air. Bang- Ba-bang- Bang! However, the interesting part was that as time passed by, the battle became one one-sided. Keu-aaak! You rat! Ian had begun to evade almost 100% of the swings that Yankoun made with his axes! To be honest, the reason why Ian had done such a weird thing was right here. ¡®My play right now is a bugged play anyways. Even if I catch this dude right now, he doesn¡¯t give me any EXP or Fame, so there¡¯s no way I¡¯ll just kill him easily. Even if I was to obtain things like items, there¡¯s no guarantee that LB Corp. won¡¯t withdraw it.¡¯ Ian was planning on completely familiarizing himself with the attack pattern of his opponent, whom he was sure was a boss monster, and attack him without Resistance Magic once the Devildom formally opened up. And the reason this was possible was because Yankoun¡¯s reflexivity was on the lower side compared to his level. Yankoun was a monster that had incredible endurance and Offensive Power in place of how slow he was. ¡®There¡¯s also another plan¡­¡¯ Ian provoked Yankoun again. ¡°Bring it up a notch, friend. Your abilities are lousy!¡± Keu-aaah! Had about thirty minutes passed like that? Yankoun was completely covered in wounds and he collapsed in front of Ian again. ¡°Pfft, do you want to go for another round?¡± Keu¡­ I¡¯m furious! I want to fight once more again! ¡°Okay, let¡¯s go-go!¡± Ian continuously repeated the fight with Yankoun. ¡°Yo, you¡¯re lousier than before. Do you want to do it again?¡± Euaaah! You, this time I¡¯ll actually show you the taste of heat! 20 minutes later. ¡°I feel like you¡¯re doing worse as we continue. I only got hit twice this time. Are you exhausted?¡± Keu-rwah-rwah-rwah-! 15 minutes later. ¡°Yo, this is too boring.¡± No more, just kill me. ¡°Don¡¯t want to.¡± 10 minutes later. ¡°Dude, get up. How come the chief gatekeeper of the Devildom has no guts like this?¡± I want to protect my honour as the chief gatekeeper of the Devildom! I will acknowledge your strength. ¡°Is that so?¡± That¡¯s right. In the Devildom, strength is basically the law. I worship the laws of the stronger person, and I respect strong people. I will acknowledge my defeat. Now stop and cut off my head! ¡°No.¡± 10 more minutes later. Keu-huuung, please kill me! ¡°Don¡¯t want to. Let¡¯s fight just two more times.¡± What exactly is the reason as to why you¡¯re doing this! ¡°I haven¡¯t gotten my full share of enjoyment yet.¡± ¡­ Had about one hour passed by like that? Yankoun, who still faced Ian with all of his fighting power each time, just kneeled in front of him. Ian asked back with a puzzled expression. ¡°What are you doing? I filled up your Vitality. I¡¯m telling you, let¡¯s fight again.¡± Yankoun put down the two axes that he held in his hands as he bowed his head down towards Ian. I will serve you as my master. ¡°Huh¡­?¡± Ian, I am impressed by your power. I want to follow you. A smile of satisfaction appeared at the corners of Ian¡¯s mouth. [1] The ¡®Twelve Chosen Generals¡¯ and the ¡®duodenum¡¯ is the same word in Korean. Ian is making a play on words here. CH 198 Chapter 198: Ian¡¯s Devildom Travel Journal (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian¡¯s entry into the Devildom, so to speak, was a sort of ¡®accident¡¯. In order for the Devildom Entry Quest to occur, one needed to clear quests that were related to at least two of the heroes of the continent. On top of that, in order for the quests to be invoked, one needed to meet the outrageous requirement of having a Class Proficiency that was ¡®Master Level 2¡¯, and they also needed to have maximum Affinity with an ancient NPC that could open a dimensional door from the human world. The manager had never even imagined that there would be a user that already met all of these requirements. Luckily for Ian, as soon as the northern continent opened up, he cleared the quest related to Oakley, and thanks to Kanjihoonie, he was even able to freeload the last of Immortal¡¯s quest. Thanks to Gripper, he was acquainted with Iriel for a long time now, and his Class Proficiency was now to the point it was reaching Master Level 3 now. All of these gears fell into place like a lie, and this situation where it was hard for them to laugh was created. LB Corp. was completely turned upside down because of Ian. They already had the large-scale update approaching closer as a matter of fact, but it was a situation where they had hundreds of more things to do than normal. On top of that, as Ian hadn¡¯t logged off even though it was coming close to two full days since he¡¯s been on and was wreaking havoc, forget a throbbing head, the manager¡¯s head was about to explode. ¡°For now, it¡¯s most important that we have none of the employees speak about this fact so that it doesn¡¯t slip out externally.¡± ¡°that¡¯s right. There¡¯s no greater shame than this.¡± ¡°Ha, how could the monitoring team not know about this until the dimensional door actually opened up?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not just the monitoring team¡¯s fault. Since this situation was something that none of us was able to predict.¡± ¡°No, but still¡­¡± The conference¡¯s discussion was focused on finding out how they could solve this problem as gently as possible. A middle-aged man, who sat at the highest seat of the round table where about fifteen or so people were sitting, stroked his beard as he opened his mouth. ¡°In my opinion, that is, I think it would be good to make a deal with user Ian.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. I think it would be best to send a message to user Ian through a GM account right now and propose a deal.¡± ¡°Ahem, don¡¯t we just need to collect all of the items and goods that he obtained after entering Devildom? It¡¯s already been stated that his EXP won¡¯t go up anyways¡­¡± The man shook his head as he replied. ¡°This is not a problem that will be solved that easily. Since either way, this situation was our mistake, and this occurred while user Ian was gaming perfectly normally.¡± ¡°So, are you saying that we should acknowledge the profit that user Ian obtained up to an extent, but instead ask him to log out right now?¡± The man nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. I don¡¯t know how long user Ian won¡¯t log out and continue to endure this, but even if he lasts about one more day, it is really critical to us.¡± ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± ¡°Since if user Ian doesn¡¯t come out of there, we cannot proceed and finish the large-scale update as scheduled.¡± ¡°Oh¡­¡± ¡°Pfft, still, he¡¯s been playing for almost two full days already, so wouldn¡¯t he log out soon even if we leave him alone now?¡± At those words, one female, who was just listening quietly to the conference from one of the corners, opened her mouth with a voice that was mixed in with a sigh. ¡°I¡¯ve checked the data on user Ian¡¯s gaming record, but there was even a record where he had played continuously for, I think it was 73 hours, before.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°In many ways, he is an¡­ amazing player.¡± ¡°Ha.¡± Had about 30 more minutes passed by like that? The members that sat in the conference room slowly began to stand up. And the gazes all gathered towards one man. ¡°Then, I will log onto the game this way and try to secretly contact user Ian.¡± As the man packed up the notepad where he jotted down the contents of the conference and stood up, the middle-aged man that was sitting in the highest seat nodded his head as he spoke. ¡°I will hand over all power over this incident to you, so talk well with the user named Ian and come to a conclusion.¡± ¡°Yes, understood, Department Head.¡± * * * Meanwhile, Ian, who had no idea about the situation of LB Corp., was met with a difficulty(?) in his own way. This was because, unrelated to the intentions of Yankoun, he was unable to take him in as a Familiar nor as a retainer. You cannot take in Chief Gatekeeper of the Devildom ¡®Yankoun¡¯ as your retainer.In order to take in a devil as a retainer, you need the title the ¡®Ruler of the Devildom¡¯. ¡°Keu-heum¡­¡± You cannot capture the Chief Gatekeeper of the Devildom ¡®Yankoun¡¯.It is impossible to capture humanoid monsters. Ian¡¯s expression distorted. ¡®Damn it, I never even thought of such a case.¡¯ Ian had appointed over twenty retainers now at this point. Amongst them, there were wanderer NPCs of the central continent, as well as NPCs that he appointed from the Human Resource Centre of the Pyro Domain. Of course, he also had interesting cases where he had obtained them while in the middle of a quest like Kaizar or Paulean, but the one with the greatest ratio was directly appointing them. And by appointing all of those retainers, Ian was able to realize something. ¡®As expected, there¡¯s no other medication that¡¯s as definite as spanking regardless of the age and country.¡¯ As Ian¡¯s Fame was so high, he was able to appoint most outstanding individuals without difficulty. However, when he needed to appoint any exceptional retainers that exceeded Paulean¡¯s rank, he always pressed them down with his strength. By beating them, and beating them, and beating them up again, they became his retainer in no time. Because of that, he applied that same method to even Yankoun, and as expected, it was successful. ¡®Damn it, if it only wasn¡¯t for this damned condition, I would have had a retainer that¡¯s stronger than Kaizar.¡¯ Ian was incredibly disappointed, but there was nothing he could do. ¡®After this place is formally opened later, I¡¯ll find him again and take him in as my retainer once I obtain the Ruler of the Devildom or whatever the title was.¡¯ Ian licked his lips as he spoke to Yankoun. ¡°Tsk¡­ I can¡¯t take you in as my retainer at the moment.¡± At that, Yankoun wore an incredulous expression. What¡¯s the problem? By any chance, do you think I¡¯m lacking too much for you to take in as a retainer? While looking at Yankoun, whose face turned bright red with one breath, Ian waved his hands. ¡°Ah, no. That would never be the case. I think it¡¯s probably because I¡¯m not a devil.¡± At Ian¡¯s explanation, Yankoun¡¯s wrinkled expression straightened out as he slowly nodded his head. Keu-heum¡­ I see. ¡°Later, after I¡¯ve obtained the qualification to take you in as a retainer, I¡¯ll come find you again.¡± Yankoun nodded his head. Understood, Ian. I will wait until then. And as soon as he was done speaking, a giant gate appeared behind Yankoun. If you go in through that, you will be able to see the true Devildom now. Ian grinned as he replied. ¡°Thanks, Yankoun.¡± And since it¡¯s come to such a situation anyways, do you think you¡¯ll be able to do me a favour? At Yankoun¡¯s unexpected proposal, Ian¡¯s two eyes slightly rounded. ¡®What the hell, I came into a testing zone, but I can still receive quests?¡¯ However, different from his surprise, from Ian¡¯s perspective, there was no reason to turn down the quest. ¡°Sure. I¡¯ll help you.¡± Thank you. Along with Yankoun¡¯s response, a system notification on the matter he was talking about rang out as a quest window popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring-. The Request of the Chief Gatekeeper of the Devildom Yankoun (ch. 198) Yankoun, one of the Twelve Chosen Generals as well as the Chief Gatekeeper that guards the gateway that leads to the Devildom. For a long time now, Yankoun has felt troubled. In the Devildom territory that he was in charge of, abnormal ¡®Contaminated Evil Spirits¡¯ had begun to appear. Yankoun consistently hunted them, but their numbers did not decrease, but rather increased more and more. At first, he thought that it was nothing important, but as the multiplication speed of the evil spirits grew faster as time passed by, it began to turn into a grave danger. Yankoun has been deeply moved by your force. He believes that if it is you, you will be able to solve his concern. Quest Difficulty Level: SS Quest Requirement: A user that has been acknowledged by the Chief Gatekeeper Yankoun. Time Limit: None. Reward: Intermediate-class Magic Stone x20, Pure Blood of the Devil. *If rejected, your Affinity with the ¡®Devildom Chief Gatekeeper Yankoun¡¯ will decrease drastically. Ian, who thoroughly read down the quest content, tilted his head. This was because there wasn¡¯t anything that he didn¡¯t understand from the content of the quest, but he didn¡¯t have even the slightest idea on what the item called the ¡®Pure Blood of the Devil¡¯ could be. ¡®In the time that I¡¯m thinking about it, it would probably be faster to ask.¡¯ Ian¡¯s gaze turned towards Yankoun. ¡°Yankoun, what is the Pure Blood of the Devil?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Yankoun replied immediately. Just as the name suggests, it is a devil¡¯s clean blood. ¡°What good would it be for me to obtain such a thing?¡± If a human drinks the Pure Blood of the Devil, they can become half-human, half-devil. ¡°¡­!¡± For a moment, Ian¡¯s mind began to race. ¡®Half-human, half-devil? By any chance, is this not something that¡¯s related to the duel classes of the Devildom that appeared in the trailer videos?¡¯ This was just a guess, but he had a good feeling about this to the point he was almost sure of it. ¡¯20 Intermediate-class Magic Stones itself is amazing enough, but that Pure Blood of the Devil is a necessity.¡¯ The Intermediate-class Magic Stone was a fortification material that he assumed could only be obtained by hunting a higher-rank evil influence. It was a rare and precious material that Ian yet had a chance to obtain. On top of that, as he had even obtained the condition that he assumed was related to dual classes, he felt like he was on cloud nine. Ian grinned as he spoke to Yankoun. ¡°Alright, Yankoun. I will try to solve it.¡± At that Yankoun¡¯s face glowed. Oh, thank you so much, Ian! And in front of Ian¡¯s eyes, a new system message popped up. Your Affinity with the ¡®Chief Gatekeeper of the Devildom Yankoun¡¯ has maxed out.You have obtained the ¡®Premium Seal of the Devil¡¯ from the ¡®Chief Gatekeeper of the Devildom Yankoun¡¯.You have obtained the ¡®Devildom¡¯s Zone 100~Zone 120 Map¡¯ item from the ¡®Chief Gatekeeper of the Devildom Yankoun¡¯. While looking at the red globe that had appeared in his hands before he even realized it, Ian wore a confused expression. ¡°Yankoun, what is this now?¡± Yankoun replied wearing an arrogant expression. It represents that you have been acknowledged by a higher-rank devil. As long as you have this seal, both intermediate-rank and low-rank devils will not be able to touch you. ¡°Ooh!¡± Because this is not an item that I can just give to you however I wish, I will temporarily lend it to you until you kill all of the modified evil sprits. Ian, who still hadn¡¯t properly realized the weight of this yet but was certain that he had obtained an item that would be useful in the Devildom, was in an even better mood. ¡°Alright. I will try to uphold your request for sure.¡± The mutated evil spirits exist in all of the zones, but they inhabit Zone 115 and Zone 107 the most. It should be enough if you investigate those areas centrally. ¡°Understood.¡± Ian, who finished his conversation with Yankoun, walked with big strides as he moved towards the gate. ¡®Alright, my eyelids feel really heavy, but I¡¯m going to endure it until I complete this quest no matter what!¡¯ Ian clenched his fist tightly as he solidified his determination. However, the moment he passed through the gate, a system message that felt different popped up in front of his eyes. GM Chulwoo: Ian, are you available to talk for a moment right now? CH 199 Chapter 199: A Secret Deal (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The east edge of the central continent. At the most rear defensive line, which could be considered the final bastion of the Luspel Empire, there was a fierce battle that had already been going on for over a month. The close match between the Allied Forces of the Kaimon Empire and the Allied Forces of the Luspel Empire was still going on. To be honest, the reason why it was possible to maintain this battle for a month was because the top rankers affiliated with Kaimon were not participating in the battle. Along with the announcement of the large-scale update, there were newly spread NPCs and quests all over the continent. For rankers in the top ranks, it was a situation where they obviously wouldn¡¯t be able to help but have interest in that area, and the rankers of Kaimon, who were in a more relaxed situation in comparison to the rankers affiliated with Luspel, broke away from the full force battlefield attack. ¡°Well, even if we were to break away, there¡¯s no way that we would get pushed back by the Luspel Allied Forces or others, no?¡± ¡°No, even if we were pushed back, we can just reclaim it again later. Even if we¡¯re pushed back, it¡¯s clear that they won¡¯t even be able to come close to the central area.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. I feel like I should prepare for the new content for now.¡± As quite a lot of users left the battleground like that, the Luspel Empire Army was able to narrowly defend the last front line. However, even if that was the case, it was also impossible to inversely fight through and move upwards. That was because Kaimon had an overwhelmingly greater number of bases and domains that they possessed in the central continent. Military power that was being produced from a ton of bases and domains were being continuously deployed into the battleground, and the Luspel camp, which had a little less than twenty domains altogether in contrast, couldn¡¯t help but be busy blocking off that. The war barracks of the Luspel Allied Forces. The Masters of the top-ranking guilds affiliated with Luspel were sighing deeply as they repeated their conference. ¡°Ha, there¡¯s not even a week left until the large-scale update now.¡± At Martin¡¯s words that had a mixture of complaint, Samuel Jin replied with a low voice. ¡°That¡¯s right. There¡¯s five days left to be exact.¡± As the two people, who were the most central members of the Allied Forces, began to speak, mouths began to open here and there. ¡°Martin, until how long must we just be continuously tied down to here?¡± ¡°My point exactly. Our fighting power is being pushed back completely by the Kaimon dudes as a matter of fact already, but if they preoccupy all of the new content as well, then at that point, we really do not have a chance.¡± ¡°Ahem, still, if we keep filling the fighting power here and continuously block the Kaimon Army, we¡¯ll be able to consistently earn EXP, etc. as well as goods, so wouldn¡¯t our income and expenditure match up enough?¡± ¡°Of course, it¡¯s possible that we feel that way right now. Since the goods that we can obtain in the central continent aren¡¯t a small amount either. However, don¡¯t we not know what will come out in the new content? And in almost all cases, it¡¯s normal for new content to be added on as higher-rank content compared to the pre-existing content.¡± As if a dam had exploded, a variety of opinions poured out from here and there. Samuel Jin, who just quietly heard them for a moment, silenced the whole assembly as he opened his mouth. ¡°Alright, everybody, please be quiet for now. Have we not gathered you all in order to devise a method for that right now?¡± At Samuel Jin¡¯s words, the inside of the hall, which was noisy, became silent, as all gazes gathered towards him. And he opened his mouth again. ¡°Martin and I have grappled over this for several days, and the result of that is that we discussed splitting up our fighting power into 3 groups.¡± At these words, small exclamations poured out from here and there. ¡°Oh-ho.¡± ¡°Indeed, if it¡¯s with a method like that¡­¡± Samuel Jin, who exchanged looks once with Martin, opened his mouth again. ¡°Even just from hearing up to this point, I believe that most of you Guild Masters have an assumption as to what kind of method this will be.¡± Samuel Jin spread open the sheepskin that he had prepared beforehand and hung it on the wall. And at the top, the names of the guilds and names of the users were organized to fill it up. ¡°Just as you are all thinking, we will divide our fighting power into 3 groups from now on. So, we are planning this so that each group will be able to breakaway from the central continent in order to proceed with the quests that are for the new contents for a week each.¡± Martin, who was sitting next to him, added on. ¡°So, while Group A and Group B are blocking off the Kaimon Empire Army, Group C will move for the new content, and when Group C returns, Group A will go. Again, when Group A returns, it means that we will proceed in a method where Group B will then move.¡± As it was a method where there wasn¡¯t really anything complicated, the Masters, who checked over the group table that Samuel Jin had assembled once each, immediately approved of it and nodded their heads. ¡°It¡¯s a good method. Even if just 2/3 remain, I certainly think there won¡¯t be any problems defending.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. It seems that because the main force rankers of the Kaimon guys have all fallen out, their Offensive Power has gotten much weaker lately.¡± Samuel Jin looked around the inside of the hall as he opened his mouth again. ¡°Please check which group that the guild you are affiliated with is in, and once you¡¯ve checked, please sit back down in your seats.¡± And shortly after, the inside of the hall, which was noisy, was organized and all of the members sat down in their seats again before Samuel Jin¡¯s words continued. ¡°We are planning on proceeding with this system right away starting tomorrow, and we will start with Group A.¡± Martin opened his mouth. ¡°We¡¯ll manage this for the first week, and if we can comfortably defend ourselves with even 2/3 of the troops, we may even change into a 3-shift system instead.¡± In order to construct the defensive front line with the members that were newly assembled like that, the executive members of Luspel began their meeting again, and after taking quite a long time, in the end, the meeting was finished. Like that, just when it was around the final stage of the meeting, one man asked Martin. ¡°But, Martin. Is the Valiant Guild taking a completely different route from us now?¡± At that question, the expressions of Martin and Samuel Jin couldn¡¯t help but sharply become contorted. The Valiant Guild had completely left the central continent ever since a couple weeks ago already. Martin gave a bitter smile as he nodded his head. ¡°I think that is the case.¡± ¡°No, from what I know, there are even a couple domains of the Valiant Guild in the rear area¡­¡± Samuel Jin spoke. ¡°It seems they think of them as lost domains.¡± ¡°Ahem¡­¡± Samuel Jin was displeased at the Valiant Guild, who took on a different route, but he didn¡¯t think that this situation right now was that discouraging. ¡®Even if the large-scale update was just one or two more months late, forget the central continent, it¡¯s possible that even the mainland of Luspel would have been completely taken over.¡¯ If that had been the case, it was certain for his guild, Oaklan, but he himself would have also received a scathing blow. ¡®With this large-scale update as the starting point, this situation has to be reversed again no matter what.¡¯ Samuel Jin¡¯s mind began to race quickly. * * * The entryway of Zone 120 of the Devildom. Two men sat on a large boulder that was in the corner as they shared a conversation. One of the men was obviously Ian, and the other man was Chulwoo, a GM that came from the Kailan development team. Ian opened his mouth towards Chulwoo with a curt voice. ¡°Ha, as I¡¯m in a situation right now where every minute, every second is precious, I can¡¯t talk for long.¡± It had been a long time since he started to fall asleep. Ian, who was enduring this with superhuman willpower, was displeased with Chulwoo, who was in front of him. ¡®Argh, just when I¡¯m limited in time to even proceed with this quest right now¡­¡¯ However, to just ignore Chulwoo and continue this quest, Chulwoo was too strong. ¡®No, even if they¡¯re a GM, still, isn¡¯t lv 500 a bit too much?¡¯ As Chulwoo was not a devil, Ian¡¯s Resistance Magic stat wouldn¡¯t be activated against him, and Ian strongly felt that if Chulwoo hit him a couple times with his bare hands, he would have to face game over right on the spot. ¡°I will not take a lot of your time. Just give me a moment¡¯s worth.¡± Ian replied with an apathetic expression. ¡°Continue.¡± Chulwoo, who organized his thoughts for a moment at that, opened his mouth. ¡°Firstly, LB Corp. would like to state that we are incredibly apologetic to you, Ian. The fact that you had to proceed with such an abnormal game route due to our inadequate content management, we are truly sorry.¡± To be honest, it was a natural thing to do in the position of the development team, but at Chulwoo¡¯s form, where he was being respectful to the point it was burdensome, Ian flinched instead. ¡®If this is the case, I¡¯ll feel bad and it won¡¯t be easy for me to be thick-skinned.¡¯ Ian was originally thinking of hurting his feelings and turn the atmosphere around so that they wouldn¡¯t be able to communicate at all. However, Ian couldn¡¯t bring himself to open his mouth with Chulwoo, who spoke this politely, in front of him. ¡°Uh, uhm¡­ So, you¡¯re saying you¡¯re sorry?¡± Chulwoo nodded his head as he spoke. ¡°Yes, Ian. On behalf of LB Sports, I will apologize.¡± Ian blearily opened his two eyes as he stared at Chulwoo. ¡°Hmm¡­ So, what do you plan on doing? There¡¯s no way that it would just end off with you stating that you¡¯re sorry, no?¡± Chulwoo nodded his head. ¡°Of course. There¡¯s no way that would just be the case. We, LB Corp., acknowledge our negligence, and following that, we have agreed to give a proper reward to you, Ian, as you have received the loss.¡± Ian¡¯s eyes shone. ¡°Oh? Please continue on.¡± Chulwoo¡¯s words continued. ¡°In return for us resolving this with you and giving you a proper reward, Ian, we want to receive your cooperation.¡± ¡°By cooperation, you mean¡­?¡± Chulwoo, who met eyes with Ian, let out a short sigh as he replied. ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s because we are facing an incredibly embarrassing situation right now.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± ¡°You probably also know that there are only a couple days left until the large-scale update.¡± Ian replied shortly. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Chulwoo truthfully stated the situation of LB Corp. ¡°Our development team needs to work on the final operation lastly in order to open up the new content, but because you have been inside the Devildom, it has turned into a situation where that operation hasn¡¯t been able to be finished.¡± ¡°Ahem.¡± Ian scratched the back of his head as he thought about this. ¡®Ha, if it was just up to my heart, I want to say couldn¡¯t they just push the update schedule, but¡­¡¯ As Ian also had something similar to a tinge of conscience(?), he couldn¡¯t bring himself to say that. ¡°So, our manager is hoping that you log out immediately right now.¡± Ian instantly responded. ¡°Then what is the reward that comes back to me?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Chulwoo, who paused to take a breath for a moment, opened his mouth. ¡°We will leave 5% Resistance Magic on your character. What do you think?¡± At Chulwoo¡¯s proposal, for a moment, Ian almost failed at maintaining his expression. ¡®What the hell, they¡¯ll leave me with 5% Resistance Magic? This reward is better than what I expected.¡¯ If he could take 5% Resistance Magic with him, it meant that he could absorb 5% of the damage received when he faced any species in the Devildom from now on. Because the value itself wasn¡¯t that much, one could think that it wasn¡¯t much of a reward at a glance, but this was incredible. ¡®However, there is a need to be a little more careful.¡¯ Ian opened his mouth again. ¡°This thing called Resistance Magic, isn¡¯t this a stat that can be raised from fighting devils anyways? Will there be much meaning with 5% Resistance Magic?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Chulwoo¡¯s expression slightly distorted for the first time. This was because he felt like Ian was asking for the impossible when he was certain he was a user that understood what 5% Resistance Magic meant. ¡°Ahem, of course, just like you said, you can raise your Resistance Magic by battling devils, or even through quests. However, Resistance Magic is incredibly hard to raise by even 1%. 5% is not in the slightest bit a small value.¡± Even with Chulwoo¡¯s explanation, Ian stubbornly clung on. ¡°But just like with other resistance stats, it seems that there¡¯s a limit that one can have of Resistance Magic¡­ Is that correct?¡± ¡°Yes. From what I know, the maximum for Resistance Magic is 30%.¡± As soon as Ian heard those words, he immediately opened his mouth. ¡°Then the Resistance Magic that will be granted to me, please change it so that my maximum value is increased. Then I will also cleanly log out.¡± At Ian¡¯s unexpected offer, Chulwoo¡¯s expression hardened for a moment. And his mind began to race like crazy. ¡®If the maximum amount of his Resistance Magic was increased, then his maximum would become 35%¡­ Since Resistance Magic is a stat that is difficult to even raise up to the max value anyways, should I just accept his offer?¡¯ Chulwoo, who organized his thoughts for a moment, slowly nodded his head. He was calculating that even if he increased the maximum amount, Ian wouldn¡¯t be able to raise his Resistance Magic up to that value. ¡°Sounds good. We will do that then, Ian.¡± And at the consent that came through much easier than expected, Ian slightly became leery. ¡®What the hell? I didn¡¯t know that he would consent this easily¡­¡¯ However, what¡¯s fair is fair. Ian nodded his head as he replied. ¡°Thank you, Chulwoo. Then I will know it as having been settled like this.¡± Chulwoo also bowed his head as he answered. ¡°Thank you for cooperating.¡± As the deal was accomplished, Ian asked Chulwoo about the things he was curious about. ¡°Then, Chulwoo, what happens to all of the goods that I obtained in the Devildom?¡± At that, as if he had been waiting for it, Chulwoo began to explain politely. ¡°Firstly, all goods and items will disappear as soon as you log out. Because this place is a test zone, the item code will be erased from the system, so there¡¯s nothing we can do about it either.¡± He only emphasized the words that this couldn¡¯t be helped. Ian was a little suspicious, but he opened his mouth again. ¡°Then, what happens to the items that have already been fortified by Magic Stones?¡± Chulwoo¡¯s explanation continued. ¡°We will maintain the items you fortified already as is. And the quest that you were proceeding with will also most likely be maintained as well.¡± He spoke as if he was being incredibly generous. Ian slowly nodded his head. ¡®Well, better than nothing. I can¡¯t even guess how much time it would take trying to gather all of the fortifying stones that I had been collecting since a couple days ago again through the normal route.¡¯ Ian smiled as he held out his hand towards Chulwoo. ¡°Thank you for your concern, Chulwoo.¡± Chulwoo took Ian¡¯s hand as well as he nodded his head. ¡°No worries. Apologies for hindering your gaming experience.¡± However, despite having said goodbye, the two people hadn¡¯t moved since standing up from their spots. Ian scratched the back of his head as he spoke towards Chulwoo. ¡°Please go on ahead. I have a couple of things that I need to organize¡­ I will log out right away.¡± Chulwoo, who was planning on checking that Ian logged out before logging out himself, sighed deeply as he responded. ¡°Hmm¡­ Understood. However, you must log out within 10 minutes.¡± Ian quickly nodded his head as he replied. ¡°Of course. Once you leave, Chulwoo, I will log out within 10, no, 5 minutes.¡± ¡°I¡¯m trusting you.¡± Like that, as soon as Chulwoo logged out, Ian hurriedly opened his inventory and hastily pulled out the Magic Stones that he had piled in there. ¡®I need to at least use up everything that I¡¯ve saved up before logging off.¡¯ And shortly after. In the Devildom where Ian remained all by himself, world messages began to ring out. User ¡®Ian¡¯ has succeeded in fortifying to +5, and has obtained Transcendent-rank equipment.User ¡®Ian¡¯ has succeeded in fortifying to +5, and has obtained Transcendent-rank equipment.User ¡®Ian¡¯ has succeeded in fortifying to +5, and has obtained Transcendent-rank equipment. CH 200 Chapter 200: A Secret Deal (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian, who made all of his equipment +5 fortification right before the five-minute mark, quickly logged out of the game. This was because when he was enduring with the thought that he would keep going for several more hours, he couldn¡¯t really feel his exhaustion flooding over, but as he started to have thoughts that he would be logging out soon, his eyelids had become maddeningly heavy. ¡®At this point, I think I¡¯ve received enough of a profit to the point I¡¯m satisfied.¡¯ The fact that he learned from fortifying was that once equipment reached a fortification of 5, it began to shine a white light. And he also found out the fact that as soon as it reached a fortification of 5, it gained another option at random instantly. Ian especially liked the transcendence option that was attached to his ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ item. Transcendence option: In the case that the attack of an enemy is evaded, there is a 15% chance that 30% of your Offensive Power will be dealt as electric damage, and there is a 30% chance that your Vitality will be recovered by 10%. ¡®It¡¯s an option that fits perfectly with my playing style. Although it¡¯s a conditionally activated option, for that option to be evasion¡­¡¯ There was no separate stat called Evasiveness in Kailan. Whether one had evaded the attack of the enemy was solely determined depending on high Agility and the controlling abilities of the user. Because that was the case, to Ian, who played while dodging most attacks, it could be considered a truly perfect option. ¡®If it¡¯s a lighting attack that¡¯s 30% of my Offensive Power, it won¡¯t be that strong, but still, if it accumulates, it will take over quite a large amount of DPS, and the 10% Vitality recovery is seriously amazing.¡¯ Especially if it was a scuffle where he would be receiving attacks from a ton of enemies, he would be able to dodge all of those attacks in a short time. In other words, if he succeeded in fluking them, it meant that his Vitality, if it was almost hitting the bottom, could possibly be filled to the max in an instant. However, despite having items that were in a total of ten different parts all fortified to +5, there was only about two or so that had options as good as the Judgment of the Spirit King. ¡®I feel like the better the item, the higher the chance of obtaining a better transcendence option¡­¡¯ Since his pants, boots and belt, which were Heroic-rank items, had just received combat stats or class stats. Stats with a fixed value that was around 100-200, or even a % value that was just one digit. ¡®But if you think about it, even that isn¡¯t a small amount.¡¯ Since in the case of Leadership, it was a truly amazing option. Whiiing-. Jinsung, who stepped out of his capsule for the first time in a whopping 53 hours, looked out the window as he shook his head. This was because the sky was shining brightly towards dawn. ¡°Whew, I believe I logged on at around midnight¡­ Does this mean I¡¯ve passed straight through two days and the morning sun has risen again?¡± Jinsung launched his body onto his bed without even enough brain power to wash up. And he conked out just like that. He knew from many experiences that it was wisest to rest as much as one can in situations like these. * * * Ring-. Welcome to the World of Kailan.Due to the fluctuation of the system, your login location has been changed.Your character has been moved from ¡®Zone 120 of the Devildom¡¯ to the ¡®Forest of Love¡¯. ¡°Keu-ah, how refreshing.¡± Ian, who had slept for over 20 hours, immediately logged onto the game again. And after looking around at his surroundings once, he grumbled. ¡°Bleh, I liked the gloomy Devildom more; I¡¯m telling you, this place is too pinky-pinky that it always makes me feel uncomfortable.¡± Either way, as he was pleased with the fact that he was moved to the Forest of Love instead of the central continent, Ian moved his feet in a good mood. This was because, although he was deported from the Devildom, he had satisfied the quest requirements, so he needed to meet Iriel anyways. However, just then, there was something that suddenly flashed through Ian¡¯s mind. ¡°Oh, right! If they¡¯ve withdrawn all of my items, by any chance, would they have withdrawn the Lakoum Spirits as well? My gourd!¡± Ian hurriedly opened his inventory and checked the gourd. And he was able to let out a sigh of relief. ¡°Whew, still, it seems that since the gourd wasn¡¯t an item that I had obtained in the Devildom, it wasn¡¯t withdrawn.¡± The gourd was something that Iriel gave him, and as he had put all of the Spirits of the Lakoum into the gourd, fortunately, they weren¡¯t withdrawn. Ian headed towards Iriel again with light footsteps. ¡°Ian, you¡¯ve returned.¡± As soon as Iriel discovered Ian, she approached him with a welcoming expression. ¡°Yes, Iriel. I¡¯m very sorry that I¡¯m late. It was because things got a little complicated within the Devildom¡­¡± Iriel slowly nodded her head as she answered with a kind expression. ¡°That¡¯s alright. Since it wasn¡¯t an easy assignment. The Devildom is a truly dangerous place.¡± Ian, who had easily hunted the Lakoum that were in the starting point as if he was bagging rabbits due to the cheat stat called Resistance Magic, wore a bitter smile as he nodded his head. ¡°There were a lot of monsters that were certainly stronger in the Devildom. Haha¡­¡± Iriel smiled brightly. ¡°It¡¯s truly a relief that you¡¯ve returned safely. Because you didn¡¯t return even though my gate closed, I really thought that something had happened to you.¡± Ian shrugged his shoulders as he replied. ¡°Fortunately, I am unscathed.¡± ¡°Then, Ian, have you gathered all of the Spirits of the Lakoum?¡± At Iriel¡¯s question, Ian pulled out the gourd from his inventory. And he held out the gourd towards her as he grinned. ¡°Here, I brought it.¡± At that moment, the system message that notified him that he had completed the quest rang out. Ring-. You have successfully completed the ¡®Beginnings of the Devils I (Hidden) (Connected)¡¯ Quest.Clear rank: CYour Fame has increased by 50 thousand.You have obtained 100 thousand gold.Because the clear rank is below a B-rank, Iriel¡¯s Affinity towards you has dropped by 3. While looking at the system messages that popped up, Ian¡¯s expression slightly wrinkled. ¡®No, why is the clear rank only a C-rank? Is it because I returned so late?¡¯ It wasn¡¯t a quest that had a separate time limit, but the portal that Iriel maintained had just been maintained for a quarter of a day. Because that was the case, it would be safe to consider the criteria time to be a quarter of a day, and so, it was obvious that the clear rank of Ian, who took almost three times the time to complete the quest, was this low. ¡®Tsk, well, still¡­ Since I¡¯ve obtained more than I¡¯ve lost. And since there shouldn¡¯t even be a difference just because Iriel¡¯s Affinity towards me has dropped by about 3, either.¡¯ Meanwhile, Iriel, who received the gourd from Ian, continued her words with a pleased expression. ¡°You¡¯re amazing, Ian. You¡¯ve gathered and brought back exactly 200 spirits.¡± Ian scratched the back of his head as he responded. ¡°Don¡¯t mention it¡­¡± ¡°Please give me the parchment now. I will proceed with the restoration process and return it to you.¡± ¡°Sure, one moment.¡± Ian nodded his head as he pulled out the parchment from his inventory, and he handed it over to Iriel. And Iriel placed the parchment on top of the table before she started to chant out an incantation that couldn¡¯t be understood. Ssdlknf Adknk Qdlksndgkvv assosk¡­ Whoong-. As she did so, the parchment that was being held in her hands floated up into the air, and the gourd that was on top of the table began to vibrate little by little. ¡°Ooh¡­¡± Ian watched that scene with interest, and shortly after, a red current began to flow out of the gourd. And that current was sucked into the parchment faster and faster. Pung-! At the same time that a low explosion burst out into the air, a book with a red cover floated in the same spot that the parchment was floating in moments ago. Iriel glanced at that as she spoke to Ian. ¡°Ian, take it.¡± Ian slowly approached the book and at the same time, a system message popped up. Ring-. You have obtained the ¡®Ancient Illustrated Book of Evil Influences¡¯. Ian¡¯s gaze turned towards Iriel again, and Iriel, who met his eyes, began to give an explanation on the item. ¡°I will briefly explain the Devildom to you.¡± Ian¡¯s eyes shone brightly as he replied. ¡°Understood.¡± Since information on the new content that hasn¡¯t even been updated yet, that is, was more valuable than anything else at this current point. Iriel¡¯s words continued. ¡°Firstly, I don¡¯t know if you know this yet, Ian, but largely, devils and evil influences exist in the Devildom.¡± While listening to her explanation, Ian thought to himself. ¡®I thought that devils were humanoid monsters, but is that not even it?¡¯ ¡°However, just because they are devils doesn¡¯t mean that they are stronger than evil influences, and in turn, it doesn¡¯t mean that because they are evil influences doesn¡¯t mean that they are weaker than devils. As even amongst evil influences, the top-ranking devils cannot carelessly face the evil influences of a high-rank that are the same as evil dragons or Balrogs.¡± Her explanation was quite long, but to sum it up, it was like this. Devils and evil influences were different beings. You must not think that evil influences were creatures that were a lower rank than devils.Largely, the devils were divided into five ranks. The devil with the highest rank was designated as Royalty, and continued, they were classified as Noblesse, High-rank Devils, Common Devils, and Low-rank Devils. However, the ranking of the devils was not decided at birth, and their notarized Devildom rankings were decided through an official duel. The devils that had a fighting power that was within the top 100 were royalty, while the devils that had a fighting power that was within the top 1000 were Noblesse, and below that, the devils that had a fighting power that was within the top 30% were High-rank Devils. By default, most devils were designated as Common Devils, but devils that had a fighting power that was in the bottom 20-30% were classified as Low-rank Devils. Evil influences also had a ranking system. Evil influences were graded by their rankings identically to the monsters that were in the human world, and evil influences that were a Legendary-rank or higher were able to have their own ego and could converse with humans as well.Any species that had the ¡®Pure Blood of the Devil¡¯ in their hands could become ¡®Half-Human, Half-Devil¡¯, and once they become Half-Human, Half-Devil, they could control a new energy called ¡®Devil Energy¡¯, and could also communicate with evil influences that were Heroic-rank or lower. Also, through duelling of the devils, you could participate in the ranking battle of the devils. Ian, who diligently listened to her explanation as he organized the information into his head, slowly chewed over it. ¡®There¡¯s a lot of interesting content. The part that I knew about was just the information on the Pure Blood of the Devil¡­¡¯ At the information that was much more detailed and amazing than Ian expected, he wanted to at least jot it down somewhere. ¡°I¡¯m parched. Let me just grab a gulp of water¡­¡± Iriel, who spoke without rest, sipped on the water that was on top of table before she opened her mouth again. ¡°So, you¡¯ve probably already have an assumption, but the item called the ¡®Ancient Illustrated Book of Evil Influences¡¯ that you have obtained now, Ian, is an item that has data on all kinds of evil influences.¡± ¡°Oh-ho, I see.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a piece that Cervian, an Elf Summoner that had become half-devil using the Pure Blood of the Devil in the past, left behind.¡± Ian¡¯s eyes slightly rounded. ¡®As expected¡­ Summoners could also tame evil influences.¡¯ On top of the the Low-rank evil influences that appeared in the entrance of the Devildom having unlikeable appearances, Ian lacked Leadership, so he didn¡¯t try taming them, but it was a fact that he had presumed to an extent. For confirmation, Ian spoke to Iriel. ¡°As expected, it was possible to tame evil influences.¡± Iriel nodded her head. ¡°That¡¯s right. Just like the monsters in the human world, evil influences can also be tamed.¡± ¡°Ooh¡­¡± However, just then, Iriel smiled as she added on. ¡°However, a condition must be met.¡± CH 201 Chapter 201: A Secret Deal (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda At the words that there was a condition, Ian slightly frowned. ¡°A condition? What kind of condition is required?¡± ¡°You need a stat called ¡®Magical Beast Affinity¡¯.¡± At the name of the stat that he was hearing for the first time, Ian¡¯s two eyes slightly rounded. ¡°Magical Beast Affinity?¡± Iriel nodded her head as she continued her explanation. ¡°Yes, Magical Beast Affinity. You can just think of it as a stat that plays a similar role as the Affinity stat that normal Summoners have.¡± Affinity was a stat that was required in order to capture higher-rank monsters. There were even cases where with some high-ranked monsters, if your Affinity was too low, it was impossible to even try capturing them. In Ian¡¯s case, as most of his Familiars were individuals that he had obtained through quests or a special route, he was able to obtain Familiars that were even Legendary-ranks with his comparatively low Affinity up until now. ¡°I see, so then, in order to obtain that stat, what do I need to do? Do you know how to get it, Iriel?¡± Iriel smiled. ¡°Of course.¡± And Iriel began her explanation on ¡®Dual Classes¡¯. ¡°Firstly, Ian, you need to become Half-Human, Half-Devil. Once that¡¯s the case, you can obtain something called Dual Classes.¡± ¡°Dual Classes, huh¡­¡± Ian already had somewhat of an understanding on the content related to Dual Classes from the patch note that came attached to the new update announcement, but he focused even more and listened intently to Iriel¡¯s words. ¡°Yes. And if you go to the City of Rage that exists in Zone 100 of the Devildom, there is a Class Guild where you can obtain all sorts of classes of the Devildom. You just need to obtain the class called ¡®Devil Summoner¡¯ there.¡± ¡°Zone 100 of the Devildom¡­ The City of Rage¡­ Devil Summoner¡­¡± Ian diligently mumbled as he shoved all of the information that came out of Iriel¡¯s mouth into his brain. As the information that came out on the patch note was incredibly fragmentary, this information that Iriel was passing over to him felt even more like the sweetest essence. ¡®No matter what, as soon as the large-scale update is finished and the Devildom opens up, I should clear the quest of Yankoun, the Chief Gatekeeper of the Devildom, first. It¡¯s a system where you need the Pure Blood of the Devil first in order for everything to start.¡¯ While Ian was thinking diligently, Iriel¡¯s words continued. ¡°That ¡®Ancient Illustrated Book of Magical Beasts¡¯ I gave you will probably be of big help to you, Ian.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± While responding, Ian slightly opened the Illustrated Book of Magical Beasts. And both of his eyes shone. ¡®There is as much of a variety of magical beasts as there are monsters that exist in the human world as well. Once I succeed in class-changing, I should read it carefully.¡¯ Iriel once again opened her mouth towards Ian, who was skimming through the illustrated book. ¡°And Ian, it¡¯s time for you to obtain information on the devils now.¡± At Iriel¡¯s words, Ian, who remembered that the Beginnings of the Devils Quest was a connected quest, nodded his head. ¡°Please continue. If it is something that I can do, I will help you.¡± ¡°Thank you, Ian.¡± As Iriel¡¯s response ended, a new quest window popped up in front of Ian at the same time a quest notification sound rang out. Ring-. The Beginnings of the Devils II (Hidden) (Connected) Iriel, the administrator of the Forest of Love as well as an exceptional elf Summoner, has put a large amount of faith into you as you have succeeded in restoring the ¡®Ancient Illustrated Book of Magical Beasts¡¯. She wants you to sneak into the Devildom and survey their movements. Infiltrate into the ¡®City of Rage¡¯ that is in Zone 100 of the Devildom, and go and meet, ¡®Seraphim¡¯, the ¡®Half-Devil¡¯ and Noblesse-rank devil. Find out about the movements of the devils through him, and by helping him, you must block the plans of the devils to move into the human world. Quest Difficulty Level: SS Quest Requirement: A user that has successfully carried out the ¡®Beginnings of the Devils I (Hidden) (Connected¡¯ Quest. Time Limit: None Reward: *This quest cannot be rejected. Ian, who read through all of the quest content, had a part that he didn¡¯t understand at first sight. ¡®What the hell? I¡¯m supposed to block the beginnings of the devils, but I have to get the help of a devil that¡¯s even a Noblesse-rank?¡¯ However, it seemed that Iriel caught onto Ian¡¯s question, as she immediately explained. ¡°Seraphim, is a hero of the human world that drank the Pure Blood of the Devil and became a devil by turning into a ¡®Half-Human, Half-Devil¡¯ 100 years ago.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± ¡°And it was like this a thousand years ago as well, but not all devils want to invade the human world. Amongst the devils, there is a section of them with destructive tendencies that enjoy invading the human world. We call them ¡®destructive devils¡¯.¡± Ian wore a puzzled expression. ¡®What the hell? I thought that devils were no different from monsters that have a fundamentally hostile attitude towards humans just like magical beasts¡­ But is that incorrect?¡¯ Iriel¡¯s words continued. ¡°Ian, what you must do now is help Seraphim and I and rally together the regular devils that want peace, and then prevent the invasion of the ¡®destructive devils¡¯ into the human world.¡± At the feeling that he received an incredible mission where he somehow needed to save the human world, Ian wore an extremely shocked expression for a moment. ¡°This is something tremendous.¡± Iriel laughed. ¡°If you succeed, you basically become a hero that has saved the human world from the destroyers of the Devildom, so it certainly is an amazing task.¡± ¡°Ha¡­ Haha¡­¡± Iriel stood face-to-face with Ian, who was laughing awkwardly. ¡°And if the destructive devils can be completely uprooted through this opportunity, it¡¯s possible that an exchange between the human world and Devildom could form for the first time.¡± Ian thought to himself. ¡®Is it possible that this quest could change the playing board of all of Kailan?¡¯ An exchange between the human world and the Devildom. Ian had a hunch that a lot of exciting content would come out somehow from this part. And it was an incredibly enjoyable fact that he stood right in the middle of the change in this giant game. ¡°How interesting. I will make sure that I do not disappoint you no matter what, Iriel.¡± ¡°Alright, I will trust in you, Ian. If an exchange is to form with the Devildom, we will be able to influence each other incredibly positively. As the Devildom is a body that has a newer civilization than we think.¡± ¡°How interesting. Either way, then, will you open up the portal this time as well, Iriel?¡± While looking at Ian, who was overflowing with drive to the point it seemed like he was going to move right away for the quest, Iriel shook her head. ¡°No. Originally, I was going to do that, but it seems that there is some sort of problem in the Devildom right now, Ian.¡± ¡°Huh? A problem?¡± Iriel nodded her head. ¡°Yes. The dimensional space that heads to the Devildom has been completely cut off. Occasionally, situations like this happen.¡± Ian, who only then realized himself that the update had not yet been completed, smiled embarrassedly. ¡°Ah-ha, I see.¡± ¡°However, it should most likely be normalized in a couple days not far from now. At most, a couple days? When that day comes, I will contact you through the crystal ball.¡± Ian nodded his head as he replied with emphasis. ¡°Alright, Iriel. I will be waiting.¡± * * * Ian, who had rested thoroughly for a whole day, felt his body overflowing with energy. ¡°Ugh, I feel a bit under the weather, but still, since I¡¯ve rested, I feel like I¡¯m going to survive now.¡± For the first time in a while, Ian moved his feet towards the Pyro Domain. He decided that it would be best to concentrate on maintenance first at least until the Devildom opened up. ¡®Since a whole day has passed by, about three days are left until the update day now, but no matter how crazily I behave and work on leveling up within that time, it will be difficult to even level up by 1 level.¡¯ He decided that it would instead be better to sell some miscellaneous items and high-class equipment that he had obtained through hunting up until now, and spend some time on the administrative aspects of the domain while resting a bit. Whiing-. The vacant lot of the Pyro Domain. A portal opened up along with a resonant sound, and as Ian appeared in the middle of the square, the gazes of many users turned towards him. This was because the only users that could open up a portal in the middle of the square were users that were affiliated with the Lotus Guild, and the Lotus Guild was the object of envy to many users. However, just then, through someone¡¯s outcry, that interest burned up even more. ¡°Wow! Ian, it¡¯s Ian!¡± ¡°Really? That person is Ian?¡± ¡°Oh, you¡¯re right! It¡¯s really Ian!¡± ¡°Now I see it, it¡¯s the same face that I saw on the screen! He looks completely normal!¡± While looking at the users that crowded around him, Ian was slightly taken aback. ¡®To say that I look completely normal¡­ I¡¯m confident I¡¯ve lived while rejecting normality.¡¯ Ian had such silly thoughts as he walked towards the Lord¡¯s Castle. He even shook hands with the fans that latched onto him in order to maintain his popularity in his own way. ¡°Excuse me, Ian! Where did you obtain this item? It¡¯s overflowing with swagger.¡± ¡°Tha, that, well, I don¡¯t really remember myself either¡­¡± ¡°Wow, but Ian, did you make all of your items a completed set? All of them are shining brightly in the same white colour. This is my first time seeing an item like this¡­¡± ¡°Now that you mention it! This is seriously crazy. I take pride in how I look, but this is my first time seeing a look that has this much swagger. What must you do in order to make this shine that much? I don¡¯t think this will happen just by rubbing dye on¡­ Do you have to enchant it with effect magic?¡± Of course, Ian¡¯s popularity was to the point that it could be arguably ranked within the Korean Kailan server now, but Ian¡¯s equipment played the biggest role as to the reason why their interest was overflowing this much. This was because as his equipment was already high-quality stuff, the colour and charm was nice, but as he had succeeded in fortifying them up to 5 recently and turned them all into transcendent equipment, all of his equipment shone a white light. ¡°Ha, haha, everyone, I have some business to take care of, so I have to go now. Sorry!¡± Ian, who had narrowly pushed through the throng of people and entered the Lord¡¯s Castle, shook his head. ¡°I think this is more exhausting than hunting, ha¡­¡± Ian, who returned to the Lord¡¯s Castle, roughly looked over the internal affairs system once. Either way, since the Lord of the Pyro Domain was Fiolan, it wasn¡¯t like Ian had all of the rights, and in about 20 minutes, he finished all internal affairs that he could do. ¡®I should probably pass on the information about the new content to the guild members now, right?¡¯ Whenever new content appeared, the most important thing was always information. Since information soon became power and money, and whenever new content appeared, it¡¯s value increased even more. Ian entered the Lord¡¯s room and summoned the executive members such as Fiolan and Herz. ¡®Blocking off the information is important as well. New content has come out several times, but there was never a chance like this where we could dominate the information.¡¯ The Pyro Domain stood in a large section in the middle of the central continent and boasted its splendor. Thanks to the Pyro Domain, the Lotus Guild was able to grow dazzlingly within a couple of months. As for the rankings, they still remained in the top 10, but Ian assumed that the actual strength of the guild could bear comparison to the top 5 guilds. ¡®And through the Devildom content this time, we should develop into the dominant 1st place guild. And the information I have will become an amazing foundation in order to do that.¡¯ The fact that the war of the central continent had come to a lull was already something that Ian also heard and knew about. And at the same time that all of the content of this 3rd large-scale update was consumed, he believed that the last front line of the Luspel Empire would collapse as well. ¡®The timing of the large-scale update was truly unbelievable. If Luspel was to have collapsed now, it would have been too early of a timing¡­¡¯ They still lacked a little power in order to go into the spot of the collapsed Luspel and raise up a new independent nation yet. ¡®Before all of the content of this update is consumed, I will make the Lotus Guild have at least 2-3 times the fighting power of the giant guilds.¡¯ Ian clenched his fist tightly with determination. The fact that there was a difficult goal always became the largest driving force that made Ian move. CH 202 Chapter 202: Entry into the Devildom (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Finally, the large-scale update day that had the new content called the ¡®Devildom¡¯ in it came. In preparations for the update, Kailan¡¯s server was abnormally shut down for a whole day, and thanks to that, Ian was even able to enjoy a date with Harin for the first time in a while. And just in time, it was the very day of the update. With a determined expression, Ian sat on the couch and was looking at the clock. Tick- Tock-. Next to Ian, Harin sat with her arm linked in his. As Harin also didn¡¯t really have any plans either, she decided to game with Ian in the extra capsule that was in his home. While looking at Ian, who just waited for the opening time, Harin complained. ¡°Do you like the game that much?¡± In an instant, a drop of cold sweat dripped down from his forehead and down his spine. ¡°Huh? That, well¡­¡± Ian was nervous. He was seized with the ominous premonition that Harin would ask ¡®do you like me more or the game?¡¯. ¡®If she asks that , how should I respond?¡¯ To Ian, it was a harder dilemma than ¡®do you like mom or dad more?¡¯. Fortunately, however, Harin didn¡¯t ask that. ¡°Oh my. You love it to death, seriously.¡± While looking at Harin, who shook her head, Ian let out a sigh of relief. It fortunately seemed like she wasn¡¯t upset. Ian used this interval to bring over a notebook that was on his desk, and he began to teach Harin. ¡°Harin, I investigated the content related to cooking in the Devildom and gathered it together, so you just need to follow this and go through the quests. Understood?¡± Harin listened intently to Ian¡¯s explanation as she nodded her head with a serious expression. While looking at Harin, who was now moving at almost the same speed, Ian wore a satisfied smile. ¡®There probably isn¡¯t any other girlfriend like this¡­¡¯ While thinking of Yoohyun, who was called over all the time by his girlfriend¡¯s summoning in the middle of guild hunts, Ian felt deeply grateful(?) towards Harin. ¡°Anyways, Harin. Once you complete all of the quests here and receive the Devildom Quest, send me a message right away. Got it?¡± ¡°Yup! Got it.¡± ¡°Up until then, I¡¯ll be gathering up as much information as I can inside the Devildom.¡± ¡°Okay!¡± And shortly after it was time for the Kailan server to open up, and Ian immediately went inside the capsule and sat down. ¡®I should go to Iriel straight away first.¡¯ Ian was in high spirits as he logged onto Kailan. Right now, at this moment, there was probably no other user that would be able to go into the Devildom. Since as soon as he went and spoke to Iriel, the entry portal would open up for him instantly. * * * Hoonie and Canoel were in the middle of diligently proceeding through the Hero Quest after finding Oakley in the northern continent. ¡°Canoel hyung, now if we just go around one or two more places, that¡¯s it, right?¡± ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m actually seeing the end now. Whew.¡± Canoel patted Hoonie¡¯s back as he passed on his genuine gratitude. ¡°Hoonie, if it weren¡¯t for you, I seriously wouldn¡¯t have even been able to think about doing this quest. To think I would be able to obtain one of the ancient hidden classes when there¡¯s only thirteen of them in each server thanks to you.¡± At his words, Hoonie shook his head as he replied. ¡°What are you talking about? I also obtained the quest to enter the Devildom thanks to you. I obtained a generous amount of rewards, too. On top of that I was able to properly test out the Power of Immortal that I just newly gained.¡± Although it was a warm scene, Hoonie was not just saying empty words either. While helping Canoel with his Dragon Tamer Class-Changing Quest, he had received the quest that was a clue to entering the Devildom. ¡®Huehue, to think that I would have obtained this quest so luckily. There probably isn¡¯t another person that will be entering the Devildom as early as me, right?¡¯ However, just then, when Hoonie was having such feel-good thoughts internally¡­ A system message popped up largely in red in front of the eyes of all the users that were logged onto Kailan. Summoner user ¡®Ian¡¯ has succeeded in being the first to enter the Devildom. Of course, as soon as he read that, Hoonie¡¯s expression turned rotten. ¡°What, what the hell?¡± On the other hand, Canoel mumbled with an expression full of admiration. ¡°Wow, as expected, Ian hyung, he¡¯s amazing. He went into the Devildom within 3 minutes since the server opened.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Hoonie felt the wall that he wasn¡¯t able to overcome today either as he couldn¡¯t help but feel gloomy. * * * You have succeeded in being the first to enter the ¡®Devildom¡¯ amongst all of the users.You have obtained 300 thousand Fame.You have obtained the title ¡®Prophet of the Devildom¡¯.For a week, you will obtain double all EXP and goods.For 24 hours, the drop rate of items that are Heroic-rank or higher will increase by 50%.You have permanently obtained 2% ¡®Resistance Magic¡¯ stat.You have permanently obtained 1500 ¡®Devil Energy¡¯ stat.You have permanently obtained 5% ¡®Devil Energy Activation Rate¡¯ stat.Due to the heavy concentration of Devil Energy, all of your stats have been decreased by 30%.Due to the heavy concentration of Devil Energy, your movement speed has been reduced by 20%.(Reduced stats will be recovered little by little over the span of 24 hours.) While looking at the system messages that endlessly popped up, Ian wore a pleased smile. It wasn¡¯t like all of the system messages had just positive aspects to them, but still, because generally, there were a lot of rewards that had incredible merits, he couldn¡¯t help but grin from ear to ear. ¡®As expected, the first discoverer¡¯s reward for a dimension is tremendous to the point it¡¯s incomparable to dungeons or fields.¡¯ Ian, who saw the system messages, felt his drive grow rapidly. ¡®Since my Resistance Magic has additionally increased by 2%, is it now at 7%? This is really sweet as well.¡¯ While checking each and every one of the system messages, Ian discovered a stat that he saw for the first time. ¡°Huh? What do the Devil Energy and Devil Energy Activation Rate stats do?¡± Ian immediately opened the information window. And he checked the two stats that had newly formed next to the character information. Because one could see an explanation on all of the stats when they opened up the detailed information, it was in order to check the roles of the specific stats. Devil Energy A fixed amount of damage will be given with all attacks that a user deals onto an enemy with a consistent chance. Unrelated to the Defensive Power and Resistance of the victim, damage will be applied exactly as the numerical value shown, and the chance is decided based on the ¡®Devil Energy Activation Rate¡¯. It is possible to obtain the relevant stat through quests or the additional options of items. (It is not applied to the attacks of Familiars and retainers.) Devil Energy Activation Rate It defines the chance of Devil Energy being activated during a hit. Devil Energy Activation Rate can be increased to the maximum 100%, and it is possible to obtain the stat through quests or the additional options of items. After seeing the explanation on Devil Energy and Devil Energy Activation Rate, Ian was slightly disappointed. ¡°It is an incredible stat, but it¡¯s a stat that¡¯s unfavourable to Summoners.¡± As for Ian, because the portion of his personal participation in battle had increased after he became a Selamus Warrior, he was still able to make good use of it, but for normal Summoners, it was indeed a pie in the sky. ¡®As it¡¯s a stat that¡¯s more advantageous the faster your attack speed is¡­ It¡¯s the best stat for Warriors or Archers that have been raised prioritizing attack speed.¡¯ Ian, who finished his inspection on the new stats and buffs that he obtained, began to move hurriedly. ¡®I can¡¯t be wasting EXP buff time at the least.¡¯ It would be best if he could immediately proceed with the quest, but currently that was impossible. ¡®Since my Resistance Magic is not 99% anymore¡­¡¯ Even the lv 200-range Lakoums, which he knocked out like flies just a week ago, had now become powerful monsters that he needed to face with all of his fighting power. Ian summoned his Familiars altogether. ¡°Summon!¡± By fortifying his equipment up to the 5th fortification, the Leadership option that was attached to the items also increased by 1.5 times. Thanks to that, with Karceus summoned, Ian was able to also summon Ly and Pin, and even Bbakbbak. ¡®If I just raise my level up a little more, I should be able to summon Halli as well.¡¯ Ian suddenly felt sorry towards Bbookbbook. Because Bbookbbook¡¯s effectiveness in battle dropped in comparison to the Leadership required in order to summon him, it had been an incredibly long time since he had summoned him. ¡®Sorry, Bbookbbook. This hyung will raise his Leadership a ton and summon you.¡¯ Ian, who completed all preparations for battle, checked the Zone number of the map that the portal had opened to. And the corners of his mouth curled upwards. ¡®Alright, it¡¯s the map that I ran around until I was tired of it last week.¡¯ Ian had memorized all of the attack patterns of most of the low-rank magical beasts. Of course, he needed to be much more careful than when he had the cheat stat that was 99% Resistance Magic, but he was confident that he would be able to hunt any low-rank magical beasts that were within the 200-230 level range without much difficulty. ¡°Ly.¡± Did you call, owner? ¡°Shall we go and hunt like crazy for the first time in a while?¡± Grr, sounds good, owner! At Ian¡¯s words, Ly smiled brightly. And with a satisfied expression, Ian stroked Ly¡¯s mane. Karceus and Bbakbbak watched that scene with horror-struck expressions. Karceus, I think we¡¯re in big trouble. At Bbakbbak¡¯s mumbling, Karceus nodded his head with a depressed expression. I know. I think the owner dude is revved up again.What do we do? I think we won¡¯t be able to rest for at least a week. Karceus¡¯s expression became even gloomier. I¡¯m jealous of Bbookbbook.Same. I want to rest. At Bbakbbak¡¯s words, Karceus glared at him. Still, at least you¡¯ve basically rested for the past couple weeks. You¡¯re talking high and mighty for someone whose been summoned for the first time in a real long time. I¡¯m constantly the 1st one to get summoned, so I have to work. At that Bbakbbak turned his head as if he didn¡¯t know what he was talking about. Normally, if you work after having not worked for a while, there¡¯s a saying that you don¡¯t want to do it even more. You can say it¡¯s a similar logic to the ¡®Monday blues¡¯.What are the Monday blues?The owner dude¡¯s girlfriend told me, but apparently, humans rest on Saturday and Sunday. So, on Monday, the next day after they¡¯ve rested, they don¡¯t want to work even more, and apparently that¡¯s called the Monday blues. Karceus nodded his head. If it¡¯s the owner dude¡¯s girlfriend¡­ Is it Harin? Now that I think about it, here is a point to it. Even if I was a human, I feel like that would be the case for me, too. Bbakbbak, the turtle with the Monday blues, looked up to the sky with a lonely expression. The sky of the Devildom is a truly sad red shade.Keu¡­ Ian, who was listening to the two¡¯s conversation, spoke with a dumbfounded expression. ¡°Isn¡¯t hunting fun? To call this work.¡± Karceus and Bbakbbak wore even more dumbfounded expressions. Have you gone mad, owner?Ha¡­ Monday blues is a truly difficult illness to handle. Ian shook his head as he stroked Ly¡¯s head. ¡°You guys need to take Ly as an example. Look at our Ly. He enjoys hunting.¡± At that, Bbakbbak recited one line with an even sadder expression. Ly¡­ Our poor Ly has caught an illness called the ¡®workaholic¡¯. ¡°¡­¡± Like that, the momentary tussle ended, and Ian¡¯s party began to move in order to hunt the magical beasts. ¡®For now, we¡¯re only going to breathe as we hunt for a week! I¡¯m going to hit lv 180 before the buffs end no matter what.¡¯ At the frightful promise that he would raise his level up by a whopping 5 levels within a week, Karceus and Bbakbbak dragged their heavy bodies and followed behind Ian. CH 203 Chapter 203: Entry into the Devildom (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The tremendous buff, which was the first discoverer¡¯s reward for a dimension, made Ian blaze up even more. ¡°Celia, you just separately collect items that are Heroic-rank and higher, while following me. Got it?¡± ¡°Yes, Lord.¡± ¡°Paulean! From now on, you concentrate on gathering over magical beasts. Since it seems you don¡¯t lack in the amount of damage you deal.¡± ¡°Your command has been received.¡± Ian assigned the most efficient positions to each and every retainer and Familiar as they madly wiped out the low-rank magical beasts. Kaizar, one of the main force dealers of Ian¡¯s party, asked Ian with an expression as if he was bored. ¡°Lord guy, but why exactly aren¡¯t we not moving onto the next map? It¡¯s so boring here.¡± Fortunately, Kaizar loved to hunt as much as Ly. Because that was the case, there has never been a time when he expressed any discontent at Ian¡¯s infinite hunting. However, it seemed he was displeased with having to fight opponents that were too weak compared to his standards, as he complained to Ian. ¡°Look, look, Kaizar, we did fight a couple of intermediate-rank magical beasts earlier as well, right?¡± Kaizar nodded his head as he replied. ¡°We did. That was thrilling and fun. Low-rank magical beasts are too weak now.¡± At Kaizar¡¯s words, Ian calmly began to explain. ¡°Of course, I also find it more fun fighting intermediate-rank magical beasts. Since their level range is in the second half of the 200s, it was thrilling whenever I was able to dodge each attack. However.¡± Kaizar still stared at Ian with a dissatisfied expression, and Ian¡¯s words continued. ¡°I¡¯ve calculated, and it seems that the supply and demand of EXP we get per minute from hunting low-rank magical beasts is 1.3 times more. Of course, if we move onto the next map and get a little used to hunting intermediate-rank magical beasts, we could get faster¡­¡± ¡°Ahem¡­¡± At the words of Ian, who explained everything one by one, Kaizar nodded his head slowly. ¡°If you have even calculated like that, I have nothing to say.¡± Recently, Kaizar¡¯s greed to level up had increased to the point that it was no less than Ian¡¯s greed, and there was a reason for that. ¡°Retainer, you¡¯re going to level up again soon. You need to level up as soon as possible and hit 280.¡± Kaizar nodded his head as he rubbed the handle of the greatsword that he had on his back. ¡°That¡¯s right, I need to raise my level up quickly.¡± The reason for that was none other than the level limit on an item. The Legendary-rank greatsword with a level limit of 280 that Ian bought after finding by chance in the auction house was completely to Kaizar¡¯s liking. Because that was the case, Kaizar had no choice but to follow Ian, who had leveling up effectively down to a science. ¡°I feel like if you swing around that greatsword, you¡¯ll be overflowing with swagger.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Kaizar tilted his head. ¡°What is swagger, Lord guy?¡± At that, Bbakbbak, who was next to him, abruptly cut in and replied. ¡®Swagger¡¯ is the similar to like a halo, Kaizar. I know it as a word that is usually used a lot to humans that are overflowing with coolness. At Bbakbbak¡¯s explanation, Kaizar wore a satisfied expression. ¡°Ooh! For there to be such a beautiful word! Swagger¡­ It can¡¯t not be a word that suits me well.¡± Ian, who looked back and forth between the two, stared at Bbakbbak with a dumbfounded expression. ¡°Bbakbbak, where did you hear that from now? Is this also from Harin?¡± Bbakbbak shook his head as he replied. No, owner. Fiolan taught me what the word ¡®swagger¡¯ means. Ian shook his head as he replied. ¡°Whew, in the time that you have to learn such useless things, just hunt, Bbakbbak.¡± Bbakbbak wore a depressed expression. Us, kin of the turtle dragon, are turtles overflowing with intelligence that always craves for new knowledge, owner. Rather than a macho turtle that only ignorantly hunts, I want to become an intellectual turtle with a sexy brain. ¡°¡­¡± Ian, who was at a loss for words, let out a deep sigh as he grasped his spear. ¡°Starting now, we¡¯re going to take down one monster per minute. If we can¡¯t finish off 60 of them within 1 hour, you better believe that there will be no lunch for you today.¡± At Ian¡¯s cruel declaration, Bbakbbak and Karceus both wore an expression that they were dying. That¡¯s overdoing it, owner!Ha¡­ However, there was no way that their plea would have gone through to Ian. Like that, Ian¡¯s party hunted without rest as if they were wiping out all of the low-rank magical beasts that were in the outskirts of the Devildom for a week. * * * Whoong-! A vacant lot in the outskirts of the Devildom. As a dark red energy that was a characteristic of the Devildom ripped apart, a portal burning red slowly began to open up. Whoong-. At the same time that the portal opened up, a whirlwind raged intensely. And from the inside of the opened portal, one woman slowly walked out of it. ¡°Hmm, so is this the place called the Devildom?¡± Exactly one week after the large-scale update ended, the second user entered the Devildom. ¡°The atmosphere is my style.¡± The woman, who slowly looked around her surroundings, grinned with a pleased expression. With long, loose, red hair, she was wearing a robe and cloak plastered entirely in red. She was none other than Remir, who was famous as the Red Flame Magician. No longer the Red Flame Magician, but the Monarch of the Red Flame now, she was the greatest fire-type Magician in the Korean Kailan server. ¡°I should probably collect information first, right?¡± Remir whisked her right hand, which was holding her wand, in the air, and along with a low resonant sound, her body floated up. Whoong-. ¡°Where could the dude named Ian, who was the first to come in, be?¡± She couldn¡¯t forget the system message that popped up 3 minutes after the content was opened up on the first day that the server was opened. ¡®I don¡¯t know with exactly what means he was able to enter the Devildom that quickly, but¡­¡¯ While floating in the air, Remir¡¯s body flew forward quickly. ¡°There cannot be a situation where this Remir is falling behind someone.¡± * * * Meanwhile, Ian, who had finished all of his hunting schedule for a week, was checking his information window with a pleased expression. ¡°In the end, I wasn¡¯t able to hit lv 180, but this much is still a decent result.¡± Ian¡¯s level that was printed on the information window was 179. Within a week, he had leveled up a whopping 4 levels. If any other user that was in the rankings heard that, it was a leveling up speed that would have startled them. While he was thinking about it anyways, Ian opened up the overall rankings as well and checked them. ¡°Hmm¡­ I¡¯ve caught up to the official 1st place ranking spot now. I just need to level up 1 more level.¡± The level of the current user that was officially up on the rankings as 1st place was 180. He was a famous warrior user of the DarkRuna Guild, but Ian, who had checked the ID of the 1st place user, wore a slightly puzzled expression. ¡°Huh? But on the 1st place spot of the official rankings, Remir was always there¡­ Where could Remir have gone?¡± Even though he flipped through a couple pages of the ranking list just to be sure, he didn¡¯t see Remir¡¯s ID. If that was the case, then the answer was that she had changed her information settings to private. ¡®Why would she have suddenly changed her settings to private?¡¯ Ian shrugged his shoulders as he closed the ranking list that he had opened up. ¡°Remir¡¯s probably at least one or two more levels higher than lv 180, right?¡± Ian had now actually succeeded in catching up his level to the standard of the top-ranking players, but overtaking them was not an easy task as expected. Even in Kailan, where there were hundreds of thousands users in just the Korean server enjoying the game, it was obvious that the users holding down the highest positions wouldn¡¯t be good-for-nothings. It was just that the higher your level went up to the top levels, the EXP received exponentially increased, and it was because of that it was possible for him to reduce the level difference so quickly like this. As he believed that he would be a higher level than the official 1st place in the rankings, Ian wore a slightly disappointed expression. ¡°Did I think of them too easily? I should work even harder.¡± Ian, who lastly checked on the stats that he newly obtained once more, closed all of his information windows. ¡°Resistance Magic is now at 7.08%, Devil Energy is at 1549, and Devil Energy Activation Rate is at 5.22%¡­¡± Ian had no idea in the beginning, but it wasn¡¯t just Resistance Magic, but any stats related to the Devildom were going up little by little whenever he hunted magical beasts. ¡°Resistance Magic is certainly a hard stat to bring up. I hunted that much over a week, but for it to have only gone up by 0.08%.¡± Either way, as it was a stat that would accumulate the more he grinded, Ian felt as satisfied as when he felt gathering EXP. ¡°Kaizar, should we head deeper into the Devildom now?¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Kaizar was delighted as he nodded his head. ¡°Sounds good, Lord guy. I was just getting sick and tired of even seeing Lakoum¡¯s face.¡± Ian brought up the two quests that he was proceeding with right now. ¡®One of them is the quest that Yankoun gave me, and the other is the quest that Iriel gave me¡­¡¯ For Yankoun¡¯s quest, he needed to face the contaminated magical beasts in the outskirts, and for Iriel¡¯s quest, he needed to go to the central area and to the City of Rage. Whether it was the position or the difficulty level, it was obvious that he needed to proceed with Yankoun¡¯s quest. ¡°Alright, shall we go to Zone 120?¡± ¡°Alright, Lord guy.¡± Ian walked slowly. However, different from his footsteps overflowing with confidence, there was one thing that Ian was worried about. ¡®I¡¯m a little scared to meet Yankoun¡­¡¯ Yankoun was a high-rank devil that was a whopping lv 350, as well as the Chief Gatekeeper of the Devildom. When he had 99% Resistance Magic, there was nothing for him to be afraid of, but right now, if he used all of his fighting power, it was an opponent he couldn¡¯t even predict the outcome. ¡®Thanks to his low Agility and strong Offensive Power fighting style, if I just remember his attack pattern properly, I feel like I should be able to beat him, but¡­¡¯ Even if he just allowed one proper hit from him, it was definite that he would have to experience his vision darkening just like that. ¡®As they said that the quest would be maintained, his Affinity towards me will also probably be completely maintained as well, I guess.¡¯ After he prepared his heart enough, Ian began to move. His goal was the outskirt zone numbered 110, which he wasn¡¯t able to go in until now because of the intermediate-rank magical beasts. * * * Rustle- Rustle. Zone 121 of the Devildom that Ian disappeared from. From within a yellow grass thicket that was completely dry, a constant rustling noise rank out. And shortly after. An organism pierced through the grass thicket and appeared. Bbook, why is the air in the Devildom so thick bbook. A round shell that was a dark navy colour, a head so big to the point it was suspicious how it was maintaining its balance, and four legs so plump that it looked like its fat would fold whether it moved back or forth. Surprisingly, that organism was none other than Bbookbbook. There¡¯s no mistake that the owner dude has gone to another map bbook! On top of that, Bbookbbook wasn¡¯t just letting out bbookbbook noises, but was actually saying words. I can sense a mouth-watering energy coming from there bbook. Bbookbbook dug through the grass thicket in a toddling manner when he began to dig through the ground. Pook- Pook- Pook-! With his short legs, he dug the ground skillfully to the point it was hard to believe. Bbookbbook, who had dug the ground deep enough that almost all of his body could go in, pulled out a dark red grassroot from within and began to munch on it. Bbook- Bbook- Bboo-bbook-!You have consumed the ¡®Grass of the Devil Spirit that has put up 30 years¡¯.All of your stats have increased by 20.Your Spiritual Rate has increased by 150 points. At the same time that the messages popped up, a red light was sucked into Bbookbbook¡¯s body. Bbook! I¡¯m gaining energy bbook! Bbookbbook, who cleanly ate every root hair of the Grass of the Devil Spirit without leaving a single piece behind, started to move his feet again. There were several magical beasts with frightful appearances wandering the field here and there, but Bbookbbook paid them no attention. This strong turtle Bbookbbook is not afraid of magical beasts or anything of the sort bbook! On the other hand, the magical beasts didn¡¯t even cast Bbookbbook a look for some reason as well. Grr- Grrr- It¡¯s an ugly turtle.Grr! This is my first time seeing a turtle with such a big head like that! Either way, thanks to that, Bbookbbook wandered here and there on the field as he began to consume medicinal herbs to his heart¡¯s content. I wish the owner dude will continue to not summon me bbook! With a happy expression, Bbookbbook was enjoying his freedom. However, there was one person that he was missing himself. I want to see Harin bbook! The food in the Devildom is not comparable to the drug meatballs bbook! However, as it was obvious that Harin would tell on him to Ian if he went looking for her, intelligent Bbookbbook couldn¡¯t go meet Harin. I will find something that is more delicious than the meatballs no matter what bbook! Bbookbbook swayed his shell as he began to crawl towards some other place once again. CH 204 Chapter 204: Entry into the Devildom (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian was slightly suspicious as to whether Yankoun¡¯s Affinity with him would continued even after the patch, but different from his concern, there was no situation where he was to encounter Yankoun again. There was no one guarding the corner that lead to Zone 120. ¡®What the hell? Isn¡¯t Yankoun supposed to be here?¡¯ Ian opened the quest list and checked the location of Yankoun. The last recipient NPC of the quest ¨C Yankoun (Location: City of Rage/Zone 100 of the Devildom) Ian slightly tilted his head, but there was nothing that would change. Since the City of Rage was a place he needed to go to anyways. ¡°Alright, then, shall we go to catch the contaminated evil spirits or whatever they¡¯re called?¡± Based on the content of the quest, it didn¡¯t end just simply by hunting the contaminated evil spirits. It was Ian¡¯s task to find the reason why the contaminated evil spirits were appearing. ¡®Well, wouldn¡¯t I find an answer eventually by catching them?¡¯ The content of the quest could look extensive at a glance, but Ian wasn¡¯t too worried. That was because this was not his first time doing a quest like this. ¡°He said that the zones they inhabited the most were Zone 115 and Zone 107, right?¡± He wasn¡¯t completely sure, but he felt it was some sort of quest where he needed to find the source of the contamination or something like that and destroy it. Ian, who had entered Zone 120, had begun to move incredibly carefully, which was different from before. This was because, starting from about the middle of Zone 120, it was a map that Ian was also stepping foot in for the first time. ¡°Bbakbbak, protect Ly and take as much of the damage as you can for him instead. Celia will heal you.¡± Understood, owner. Because quite a number of intermediate-rank magical beasts began to appear starting from Zone 120, the difficulty level had increased incredibly. Because amongst the high-leveled individuals of the intermediate-rank magical beasts, monsters in the 290-range existed as well, so it was even to the point that Kaizar couldn¡¯t fight them recklessly. Especially, a monster called the ¡®Traccus¡¯, which looked like a lizard that was holding something like scythes in either hand was incredibly menacing. Clang- Cla-clang-! Ian, who had successfully blocked the attack of the Traccus, took a step back as he avoided its follow-up attack. Whoosh-! The moment that the Traccus¡¯s attack grazed past Ian¡¯s side at such a fast pace it gave goosebumps, the transcendence option that was attached to Ian¡¯s weapon was invoked. The transcendence option of the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ item has been invoked.A ¡®Lightning¡¯-type elemental attack has been invoked, and has dealt 8798 damage to the intermediate-rank ¡®Traccus¡¯. If he allowed the Traccus to land a hit, he would have received close to 40-50 thousand damage. However, Ian dodged almost all of their attacks, and the Vitality Recovery transcendence option was invoked whenever he needed it. The transcendence option of the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ item has been invoked.A powerful energy of life can be felt.You have recovered 14,908 (10%) Vitality. ¡®As it¡¯s a system where the lightning attack activates separately from the Vitality recovery, it¡¯s even better.¡¯ Ian, who checked his filled-up Vitality with a happy mood, stabbed his spear into the side of the Traccus that lost its balance. Puk- And a horrible shriek came out of the mouth of the Traccus. Kreeeek-!You have dealt critical damage to the intermediate-rank ¡®Traccus¡¯.The Vitality of the ¡®Traccus¡¯ has been reduced by 23,890. Continued, Ly and Pin¡¯s combined attack was unfolded. Chwa-ra-rak-! The two aimed exactly for the weak points of the Traccus as they poured out heavy attacks. Ba-ba-bang-! The Vitality of the ¡®Traccus¡¯ has been reduced by 12,890.The Vitality of the ¡®Traccus¡¯ has been reduced by 9890.The Vitality of the ¡®Traccus¡¯ has been reduced by 14,890. The Traccus, who especially gave away all of its weak points as they were to Ly¡¯s continuous attacks, fell flat on its face weakly just like that. Keuaaohh!All of the Vitality of the intermediate-rank ¡®Traccus¡¯ has been exhausted.You have successfully killed the ¡®Traccus¡¯.You have obtained 3,879,809 EXP. Starting from Zone 120, the inhabiting magical beasts usually banded in groups of 2-3 intermediate-rank magical beast and about 10 low-rank magical beasts. Because that was the case, despite having successfully killed one Traccus, there were still two Traccuses and many low-rank magical beasts remaining. Ian checked the Vitality of Bbakbbak, who was facing one Traccus on his own. ¡®It seems like he has about 1/3 of his Vitality left now. In about 20 seconds, the cooldown time of Celia¡¯s recovery skill will probably be over now, right?¡¯ Ian hurriedly opened his retainer information as he checked the cooldown time of Celia¡¯s inherent ability. ¡¯13¡­ 12¡­ 11¡­¡¯ And with perfecting timing, just as an attack was headed for Bbakbbak, she invoked her inherent ability. ¡°Bbakbbak, activate Blessing of the Turtle Dragon on Kaizar, and invoke Absolute Defense!¡± Absolute Defense was the greatest defensive skill that could turn all damage into nothing for a whopping 10 seconds. However, Bbakbbak couldn¡¯t perform any actions during that time, which is why he had invoked the ¡®Blessing of the Turtle Dragon¡¯ ability first in order to maximize the effectiveness of Absolute Defense. This was because if it was a state where the ¡®Blessing of the Turtle Dragon¡¯ was on Kaizar, Bbakbbak would take in all of the damage that Kaizar would have been receiving instead, and Bbakbbak, who was in an Absolute Defense state, would absorb all of that damage. Of course, Kaizar, who had fighting with Ian down to a science, began to leap around like crazy as soon as the Blessing of the Turtle Dragon was on him. ¡°Go and die, you scoundrels!¡± As he had given Kaizar, who already had an incredibly aggressive tendency, a shield that was no different from invincibility, his movements had become even more daring and violent. Bang- Ba-ba-bang-! Ian, who had quickly looked around at Kaizar¡¯s movements and the battle situation of his other retainers, called Celia. ¡°Celia, you know, right? Before Bbakbbak¡¯s Absolute Defense is over, you need to cast the recover skill on him.¡± ¡°Yes, Lord!¡± And the moment the protective film that was guarding Bbakbbak¡¯s surrounding became faint, Celia¡¯s inherent ability was invoked immediately. ¡°Familiar Healing!¡± Retainer ¡®Celia¡¯ has used ¡®Familiar Healing¡¯ and has recovered 79.5% of Familiar ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯s Vitality.Bbakbbak¡¯s Vitality has been recovered by 228,595. Bbakbbak¡¯s Vitality, which was almost hitting the bottom of the bar, filled up at once. When he first employed Celia, her Familiar Healing skill was an ability that recovered 60% of the Vitality of Familiars, but as she had raised her proficiency a lot during then, the value had increased to 79.5%. ¡°Kaizar, Paulean, take care of the left dude with me. Ly and Pin, you guys help Bbakbbak and continue to tie that dude down!¡± Understood, owner. Just leave it to us. Kku-ruk- Kku-kkuk-! Ian faced the magical beasts on the battleground quickly and accurately. Because that battle scene was falling exactly into place so systematically like perfectly aligned gears, if someone who didn¡¯t know what was going on saw, it was to the point that it looked like an incredibly easy battle. However, in reality, that was not the case at all. ¡®Whew, even if the cooldown time of Absolute Defense was even the slightest bit late, it would have gone downhill.¡¯ Currently, Ian¡¯s party was incredibly offensive. Aside from Ian¡¯s Bbakbbak and Ddukdae, who Celia was controlling, the rest of the members were in an attacking position where they poured in damage. On top of that, the only healers available were the two or three retainers that Ian had. A regular party in Kailan had a ratio of 4:4:2 or 3:4:3 of tankers, dealers and healers accordingly. However, Ian¡¯s current party was at a ratio of 2:7:1. From the outside, it was a party that interlocked and ran well like a machine, but the moment that Bbakbbak, the main force tanker, collapsed, the party itself could be destroyed. ¡®Hmm, it does feel like I am relying too much on Bbakbbak and Celia¡­¡¯ Ian, who cleanly finished the battle, rubbed his chin as he began to analyze the battle just now. ¡®If the opponents become even just a little stronger, it looks like I¡¯ll have to reinforce with some proper healers.¡¯ The biggest reason why the party could be maintained despite the lack of healers right now was because of Celia. This was because the main force tanker of the party was a Familiar, and Celia had a cheat-like healing ability that was restricted to Familiars. ¡®Even though our hunting speed may become a little slower, if I was to change Paulean into a defensive-type position and recruit one or two decent priests¡­ It should be possible to have a little more difficult battles.¡¯ Ian enjoyed hard hunts, but that didn¡¯t mean he enjoyed irrational hunts. It was different if it was a battle that was being held outside of his predictability range, but he was the type to reject going for a method where he would be recklessly proceeding through the quest with the rise in the fighting power of opponents that he could predict like this in front of him. ¡®Let¡¯s just endure with this party until about Zone 118, and then we¡¯ll go down to the central continent and after employing two decent healers, we¡¯ll come back up.¡¯ During the time that Ian was having such thoughts, Celia collected all of the items and approached Ian. ¡°Lord, I¡¯ve picked up all of the items! A whopping two Heroic-rank equipment were dropped!¡± Smiling slightly towards Celia, who spoke out of excitement, Ian quickly checked the options of the equipment. ¡°Alright, quite decent stuff came out.¡± Ian, who had passed on a head ornament for Summoners that was one of the items to Celia, began to move in order to hunt again. ¡°Let¡¯s keep at it, since if we just proceed through one more map, we¡¯ll rest a bit before hunting.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, life returned to the eyes of Bbakbbak and Karceus, and Paulean also wiped away the sweat that was dripping down his forehead as he wore a faint smile. Of course, the expression of Celia, who had received an item as a gift from Ian, was the brightest. * * * It had now been 10 days since the opening of the 3rd large-scale update now. Even aside from Ian and Remir, quite a lot of ranking users had stepped foot into the Devildom. However, different from Ian, the rankers that were experiencing the Devildom for the first time were not able to pass through the section that was between Zone 120-130 easily. ¡°Damn it, it seems like their levels are similar to the top-ranking dungeon monsters of the central continent, but why are they this picky to face?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, it even seems like their stats are stronger separately from their level¡­¡± ¡°No, I don¡¯t think that¡¯s the case. If you look at the fact that the damage that goes through for each hit is similar.¡± ¡°Is that so? Then will it be alright if we get used to it?¡± And as many users began to step foot into the Devildom, information related to the Devildom slowly started to be released onto the community as well. Amongst the top rankers, there were a couple of named users that obtained popularity as they organized the information of the new content and posted it onto the community, and they had begun to post attacks. Also, users that liked to brag posted screenshots of the Heroic-rank items that they obtained through hunting the low-rank magical beasts onto the bulletin board as they acted conceited. Wow, Jiwoong. Is this one-handed sword an item that come out after you caught a Devildom monster?Yes, that¡¯s right, huhu. It¡¯s an item that I obtained after catching an magical beast called Lakoum, but the Offensive Power is no joke. I feel like the price will be all up to the seller.Wow¡­ When will I be able to obtain an item like that¡­Pfft, how dare you deceive an innocent beginner user. The level limit of this sword is 170, but with an Offensive Power like this, you can¡¯t get that high of a price. Even just by looking at it, it¡¯s clearly an item that everybody has.T.T No, but still, saying it¡¯s an item everybody has is too much. When something like this is a high-rank one-handed sword.Dude, if it was a one-handed sword that wasn¡¯t even a high-rank, I wouldn¡¯t have even said it was an item that everybody has. I would have just said it was rust at the forge. In the midst of all these different issues related to the Devildom stimulating the community, the one that was the biggest issue was the existence of Magic Stones. Magic Stones were covered by the game press corps., and it was new content so incredible to the point it largely decorated the main page of the community. Finally, a fortification system has even been created on ¡®Kailan¡¯!Let¡¯s expose the ¡®Magic Stone¡¯, the equipment fortification material that can only be obtained in the Devildom. On the screenshot bulletin board, a couple of bragging posts from users that had succeeded in fortifying their items to a certain point with the Magic Stones were already starting to pop up. ¡®Boasting Warning¡¯ Screenshot of successfully fortifying a Legendary-rank two-handed greatsword by +3.No way, I heard that the fortification success rate of low-rank Magic Stones is incredibly low, but for there to already be a person that succeeded in fortifying up to 3¡­ ShiversI am a level 65[1] Archer user. Starting from yesterday, I¡¯ve continuously just caught Lakoums and am in the middle of grinding for Magic Stones, but including yesterday, I¡¯ve gathered eleven. I¡¯ve used all of those and barely succeeded in fortifying it by 1, so with what means did you get to 3 this quickly?Huhu, don¡¯t be surprised. When I also used 7 Magic Stones, failed at fortifying all seven times, but on the 8th try, I succeeded once, and then I succeeded consecutively with my 14th and 15th stone.Wow, it seemed like the estimated fortification success rate wasn¡¯t even 10%, so man, your luck is no joke.It seems that¡¯s the case. On top of that, it seemed that the higher the fortification number, the lower the success rate¡­ If the equipment window of Ian, who had fortified all of his equipment for every part up to 5, was revealed onto the community, everybody would go crazy, but fortunately, Ian wasn¡¯t interested in such things. Ian just wanted to find Priest-class retainers that were at least Heroic-rank or higher in order to get through the inside of Zone 118. ¡°Damn it, why can I only find Archers and Warriors in the Human Resource Centre today?¡± [1] Although it actually says 65 in Korean, I believe it¡¯s a typo and the author meant to say 165¡­ CH 205 Chapter 205: Magical Beast Transmuter (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Err¡­ It looks like I¡¯ll have to be satisfied with just this for now and proceed with the quest, as there¡¯s no other choice.¡± Ian appointed two more Priests and after filling the maximum number of retainers he could possess besides one spot, he left the Human Resource Centre. The current maximum number of retainers that Ian could appoint was 40. As Ian¡¯s aristocrat title was ¡®Marquis¡¯, he was given slots that was equivalent to that. ¡®Ugh, I do see a couple of ones that I want to cut out¡­¡¯ Ian checked the list of his retainers as he wore a leery expression. It was the fault that the stats of a couple of retainers that he appointed in urgent situations in the beginning when he first became an aristocrat weren¡¯t to his liking. However, because there was quite a deadly disadvantage if he was to eliminate a retainer, it wasn¡¯t an issue that he could decide on so easily. ¡®If we¡¯re really lacking fighting power, I¡¯ll just go up to the Duke title, I guess.¡¯ If he became a Duke, he could appoint an additional 10 more retainers. The Fame that he needed in order to be promoted from the Marquis title to the Duke title was 3 million, and if it was with the Fame that Ian possessed, even after he promoted his title, he would still have a ton of Fame remaining. The current amount of Fame that Ian possessed was close to ten million. ¡®For now, I¡¯ll get at least through the quest that Yankoun gave me with this fighting power no matter what.¡¯ Despite having enough Fame, the reason why Ian was not promoting his title was simple. This was because the more Fame he possessed, the more game play benefits there were. The role of the ¡®Fame¡¯ stat in Kailan was endless. If that content was simply organized, it would be as followed. The higher the fame, the higher the basic Affinity of NPCs. If his Affinity was high, the chance of quests to occur increasing was a definite, but also the price of items that he could buy at shops would go down.The basic rank of the NPCs that he could meet in the Human Resource Centre went up. For example, during the days that his Fame wasn¡¯t even at a million, Ian, who first went to the Human Resource Centre, could basically only meet individuals that were Common-rank or Rare-rank, but right now, when his Fame was close to 10 million, he was able to meet individuals that were at least higher than Unique-rank. Of course, the ranks of the individuals that appeared in the Human Resource Centre was also affected by the facility level of the centre, but despite that, it was a fact that the influence of Fame was unconditional Even Ian himself hasn¡¯t found one yet, but there were special areas that one could only enter if they possessed a high amount of Fame. That area could be a hunting ground or an area that one needed to pass through in order to proceed on with a quest, or it could even be an area like a treasure storage space where one could obtain a hidden artifact. After a user was first granted an aristocrat title, they could self-raise the rank of the title by using up their Fame. An aristocrat title was one of the vital requirements necessary in order to raise the rank of the domains possessed, and a high Fame was also required in order to maintain the Loyalty of retainers and the people of the of the domain. In Ian¡¯s case, he was currently maintaining a ¡® Marquis¡¯ title, and the Duke title that was one step higher than that as well as the Archduke title were the only titles that he could be promoted to with just Fame, and in the case of the King title or the Emperor title, which were even higher levels, he needed to meet other requirements as well. Outside of that, there was a variety of contents where there were Familiars that one could only capture if they had high Fame or retainers where one needed to use up a fixed amount of Fame in order to appoint them, and there was also a lot more content scheduled with the updates. LB Corps. had declared that there would even be content like a Fame shop where items could be purchased with Fame. Because that was the case, Fame was a stat more valuable than any other in Kailan. And as Ian was certainly feeling the power of Fame the more he gathered, he didn¡¯t quite feel inclined to do the title promotion where he needed to consume a tremendous amount of 3 million Fame. Ian, who moved quickly and entered the Devildom again, headed towards Zone 115 immediately. Because a minority of not even one thousand users that had succeeded in entering the Devildom, the users could rarely meet in the large Devildom field. Ian, who finally arrived at Zone 115 after moving across fields for several hours, slowly looked around at his surroundings. ¡°If it¡¯s as Yankoun said, a lot of contaminated magical beasts will appear starting here.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Kaizar, who was next to him, nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. It looks like it will be quite a thrilling battle.¡± Kaizar stroked his greatsword as he grinned, and Paulean approached Ian as he asked. ¡°Lord, how should we position the newly appointed Priests?¡± Ian replied without delay. ¡°From now on, Paulean, you need to take on the role of the sub-tanker. I¡¯m going to make the newly recruited Priests take full charge of recovering your Vitality. All holy magic will be focused on you.¡± Paulean nodded his head. ¡°Understood, Lord. Then it looks like I¡¯ll have to move in the front a little more.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Please move without going outside of the range that the Priests¡¯ holy magic can be invoked in.¡± ¡°Yes, Lord.¡± Ian¡¯s party, who changed their formation to be a little more defensive, began to explore Zone 115 a little more carefully, which was different from their approach up until now. And before long, they were able to meet a contaminated magical beast. ¡®The level range and the number of magical beasts are overwhelmingly higher than before for sure.¡¯ It looked like there were almost 20-30 contaminated magical beasts. Because even the one with the highest level was over 290, Ian began to approach them cautiously. ¡°We just need to move calmly as I said before. If we scatter even a little bit, it¡¯s possible that the side that is annihilated is our side, so be on the ball.¡± ¡°Yes, Lord.¡± ¡°Understood!¡± Understood, owner. Even Karceus, who had been fighting in his human polymorphed state to prevent drawing attention, had turned back into the body of a giant dragon. Owner, as it¡¯s been a while since I¡¯ve returned to my main body, my mouth is itching. Would it be alright for me to start with one hit of Breath? At Karceus¡¯s question, Ian nodded his head willingly. ¡°Okay, let¡¯s start with a refreshing fume!¡± All of the Vitality of the Contaminated Intermediate-rank Magical Beast ¡®Traccus¡¯ has been exhausted.You have successfully killed the ¡®Traccus¡¯.You have obtained 3,879,809 EXP.You have obtained a ¡®Contaminated Intermediate-rank Magic Stone¡¯.You have obtained the ¡®Contaminated Tooth of the Traccus¡¯. The expression of Ian, who checked the system message, wrinkled. ¡®No, what the hell is a Contaminated Intermediate-rank Magic Stone now? This is just my third time seeing an Intermediate-rank Magic Stone now, but for a contaminated magic stone to come out.¡¯ He had no idea how to purify a contaminated magic stone, but until it was purified, it was just a useless stone. Ian grumbled as he whipped through Zone 115. ¡®Whew, in the meantime, where exactly am I supposed to find a lead on the quest?¡¯ The cause for the development of contaminated evil spirits. As there was no progress in the quest even after over a quarter of a day, Ian, who simply thought that he needed to find that and destroy it, was starting to get irritated. ¡°Bbakbbak.¡± Why do you call me, owner. ¡°What could be the reason why the magical beasts are contaminated?¡± At Ian¡¯s question that came out of the blue, Bbakbbak came back with an apathetic expression. I think they are less contaminated than you, who is filled with a greed for EXP, owner. ¡°¡­ I shouldn¡¯t have opened my mouth.¡± However, just then, Pin, who was flying through the air to scout the area, flew over to Ian and flapped his wings towards the front. Kku-ruk- Kku-ru-ru-ruk-! And as soon as he heard that, Ian had a hunch that Pin had discovered something. ¡®Finally¡­!¡¯ Following Pin¡¯s guidance, Ian¡¯s party moved quickly, and shortly after, they were able to discover a giant crystal that was shining a bright red. With a quizzical expression, Ian approached the crystal as he began to look at it here and there. ¡°What exactly is this?¡± Just from looking at it on the outside, there was absolutely no way of figuring out what the structure did. Just then, Kaizar, who was next to him, abruptly stepped forward. ¡°Lord guy, this colour that gives off a bad feeling¡­ Can you not tell just from looking at it? I think this is the source of the contamination.¡± And without delay, he swung the greatsword towards the crystal ball. Ian, who felt somewhat doubtful, was about to stop him, but that was after Kaizar¡¯s greatsword already flew towards the side of the crystal mercilessly. ¡°Wait!¡± Bang-! Kaizar looked back at Ian with a blank expression. ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Ian? Should I not break this?¡± Meanwhile, Ian was reading the system messages that had popped up all of a sudden. Retainer ¡®Kaizar¡¯ has attacked the Sealed Crystal of the Devildom.The durability of the Sealed Crystal has been reduced by 68,749 (2%).3,368,701 (98%) of the total durability of the Sealed Crystal remains.The Vitality of ¡®Cervian¡¯, the NPC that is sealed within the Sealed Crystal, has been reduced by 27,948.¡®Cervian¡¯ has 14,382 Vitality left. Ian hurriedly grabbed Kaizar¡¯s shoulder as he spoke with an urgent voice. ¡°Wait, it seems like there¡¯s something inside of here. I don¡¯t think we should be just hitting like that to break it.¡± Ian felt like he had heard the name ¡®Cervian¡¯ from somewhere. ¡®Cervian¡­ It¡¯s definitely a name that I¡¯m familiar with. It¡¯s for sure a name that I heard not long ago, so why can¡¯t I think of it?¡¯ And shortly after, Ian was able to remember it. ¡°Oh, right! It was the name that Iriel mentioned!¡± Ian immediately opened up his inventory and opened the Illustrated Book of Magical Beasts that he obtained from Iriel. And he was able to discover the name ¡®Cervian¡¯ from within it. Cervian was the Half-Devil Summoner that Iriel had mentioned. Ian turned his gaze towards Kaizar again. ¡°Kaizar, it seems that there¡¯s a person inside of that.¡± ¡°A person?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. There¡¯s for sure someone stuck inside.¡± This time, Bbakbbak asked. How do you know that, owner? Ian replied bluntly. ¡°There¡¯s nothing I do not know, you turtle dude.¡± Woow¡­ Don¡¯t lie, owner. With a sharp gaze, Ian looked up and down at Bbakbbak. ¡°I also know that you had thoughts of wanting to go inside of your shell right now and just sleep for one hour.¡± Cough¡­! Ignoring Bbakbbak, who wore a flustered expression, Ian diligently began to cut through the outside of the crystal. You have attacked the Sealed Crystal of the Devildom.The durability of the Sealed Crystal has been reduced by 7984 (0.23%).3,360,717 (97.77%) of the total durability of the Sealed Crystal remains.The Vitality of ¡®Cervian¡¯, the NPC that is sealed within the Sealed Crystal has been reduced by 155.¡®Cervian¡¯ has 14,227 Vitality left. Ian wore an expression showing he was sick and tired of this already as he mumbled to himself. ¡®Ugh, how can this thing ignorantly have durability that¡¯s over 3 million? How am I going to cut this all down at this rate?¡¯ And the Vitality of Cervian, who he was sure was stuck inside, going down little by little bothered him quite a bit as well. ¡°Lord guy, will we be able to find the source of the contamination if we save the person inside of here?¡± At Kaizar¡¯s question, Ian shook his head. ¡°No, I don¡¯t know about that, but firstly, we need to save the person that¡¯s stuck in here no matter what.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Ian, who was suddenly at a loss for words at that, frowned as he responded. ¡°Just, if I say that¡¯s the case, just accept it as is, retainer guy.¡± Half-Devil Summoner Cervian would definitely have the core information related to Summoner dual-classes or even be the hidden key itself. Rescuing Cervian from within the crystal right now was more important to Ian than finding the source of the contamination. Kaizar grumbled as he began to help Ian cut down the crystal, and Paulean and Ly started to help out as well. Had about 30 minutes passed like that? Cra-cra-crack-! A general crack formed on the red crystal as the durability that was over 3 million finally reached 0. Thud-! At the same time as that, one system message sentence popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. And within that message, content that made Ian widen both of his eyes was written inside of it. The Devildom¡¯s Dual-Class Open Quest has been invoked.Class name: Devil Summoner ¨C Magical Beast TransmuterClass rank: Hidden CH 206 Chapter 206: Magical Beast Transmuter (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Jackpot¡­!¡± An exclamation automatically flowed out of Ian¡¯s mouth. He was thinking that it would be great if he could even just find a lead on dual classes, but a whopping quest where he could obtain a hidden class had invoked. ¡®Magical Beast Transmuter¡­ Even the name itself is already interesting.¡¯ It was possible to think at this point that Ian¡¯s luck was incredible, but the quest related to the hidden class being invoked at the least was not luck. Starting from the beginning of Kailan¡¯s opening, most of the users who were the first to proceed with quests related to any of the classes were able to find clues relating to the hidden classes. In other words, the reason why Ian was able to invoke the quest for the hidden class called Magical Beast Transmuter was not because he was lucky, but because he was proceeding with a quest related to dual classes faster than anybody else. Thu-thu-thu-thud- Meanwhile, in the spot where all of the broken crystals fell from, a spirit shining brightly was floating. With pointy ears and a ton of wrinkles, there was an elf man in the form of a long-bearded old man. He was ¡®Half-Devil¡¯ Cervian, an elf as well as a high-ranking devil. Human¡­ Are you the one that has rescued me? Ian, who was grinning because of his happiness for having obtained a hidden class quest, pulled himself together when he heard Cervian¡¯s voice and nodded his head. ¡°Ah, yes. That would be one way to put it.¡± Cervian¡¯s words continued. Thank you. Thanks to you, my spirit, which had been asleep for a long time, was able to awaken. My soul has finally received freedom now after over a thousand years since the spark of my life went out. Ian quietly waited for his words to end. Thank you, do you think you could tell me your name? ¡°I¡¯m Ian.¡± And shortly after, Cervian finally began to pull out the conversation that Ian wanted to hear. Alright, Ian. It¡¯s shameless of me, but by any chance, do you think you could listen to my story? Ian nodded his head as if he had been waiting for it. ¡°Of course, Cervian.¡± However, for a moment, Cervian asked with a flustered expression. Uh, how do you know my name? ¡°You, you just told me?¡± Hmm, did I? There¡¯s nothing left of me besides my spirit, but for my memory to have deteriorated this much¡­ Either way, that¡¯s not important, so I¡¯ll start with my story. Ian internally let out a sigh of relief as he mumbled. ¡®Whew, I spoke ambiguously, but he believed me.¡¯ As he couldn¡¯t say that he found out his name due to the system message, it was obvious why Ian was taken aback. Either way, separate from that, Cervian¡¯s words started again. You already know my name, but to introduce myself again, I am Cervian, the first Elf Summoner to have succeeded in becoming a Devil Summoner. ¡°I see, Cervian.¡± After becoming a Devil Summoner, I succeeded in capturing tons of magical beasts, and by taming them and collecting information, I proceeded with many experiments. There was a wider variety of magical beasts than I thought, and the more I experimented on magical beasts, I developed a desire to obtain an even stronger magical beast. Cervian¡¯s story was quite long. And if that was summarized, it could be organized roughly into a couple of things. Cervian wanted to overcome magical beasts higher than top-ranking ones and tame ones that were at least Legendary-rank, but he experienced a miserable failure.In the end, the highest-ranking magical beast that he could succeed in taming was a high-rank magical beast called the ¡®Hell Hound¡¯, but as he still wanted a higher-ranking magical beast, he began an ¡®experiment¡¯.His ¡®experiment¡¯ was synthesizing two or more magical beasts together and give birth to a new magical beast. After having poured in a long time of over a hundred years into this experiment, Cervian was able to eventually succeed in synthesizing magical beasts together. However, the first magical beast he had succeeded in synthesizing was an entity that wasn¡¯t particularly exceptional in comparison to the other magical beasts that were the ingredients to the synthesis, so Cervian continued to fall deeper into experimenting in order to produce an entity that was exceptional.Cervian eventually synthesized two magical beasts that were the same rank, and succeeding in creating a magical beast that was one rank higher, he successfully synthesized a Cerberus, the highest-ranking magical beast that he had, as well as a Kaion, which was the same ranking as it, and created a top-ranking magical beast.After having made multiple top-ranking magical beasts with the same method, he synthesized those to obtain a Legendary-rank magical beast, and for the first time, he succeeded in creating a Legendary-rank magical beast called the ¡®Devil Dragon¡¯.However, Cervian¡¯s greed did not stop here. In order to create a ¡®Mythological¡¯-rank magical beast that had yet to be discovered by any devil, a magical beast that could only be found in legends, he once again synthesized the Devil Dragon with another Legendary-rank magical beast, and the result of that was the birth of the monster called ¡®Khalifa¡¯, the Evil Dragon. As soon as Evil Dragon Khalifa was born, he confined Cervian inside of a giant ¡®magic stone¡¯, and after completely destroying Cervian¡¯s laboratory, he leisurely disappeared. After hearing the whole story, Ian wore a dazed expression. ¡®Wow, The Evil Dragon Khalifa that Cervian talked about¡­ It¡¯s probably that same evil dragon that Oakley talked about a long time ago, right?¡¯ It was to the point he was forming respect for LB Corp. from this. ¡®How exactly was LB Corp. able to create this incredible world?¡¯ In the ear of Ian, who was wearing a dazed expression, Cervian¡¯s voice blended with scorn for himself was heard. My excessive greed brought too large of a disaster. If I had just not been so greedy, a monster like Khalifa would have never escaped into the world, that is. Ian carefully asked Cervian, who was blaming himself. ¡°Then, Cervian, by any chance, is there a part that you speculate is the reason for why contaminated evil spirits keep on forming in this vicinity?¡± By contaminated evil spirits, you mean¡­? Ian quickly opened his inventory and pulled out the ¡®Contaminated Tooth of the Traccus¡¯ that he had as he showed it to him. ¡°This is the item I obtained while hunting the contaminated evil spirits.¡± Cervian closely investigated the tooth of the Traccus before he opened his mouth while widening his eyes. Hmm, this¡­! Ian asked with shining eyes. ¡°Oh, do you have an idea?¡± Cervian immediately nodded his head. By the looks of it, it seems that the problem is my laboratory that Khalifa destroyed. ¡°Your laboratory, Cervian?¡± That¡¯s right. For the synthetization of the magical beasts, an item called the ¡®Seed of Chaos¡¯ is required in order to forcefully control their devilishness, but if they receive the influence of a Seed of Chaos that was not refined, the magical beasts go insane. ¡°The Seed¡­ of Chaos?¡± To be honest, the Seed of Chaos is the name I gave it, but the mineral that is the raw material of it is a substance called the ¡®Chaos Stone¡¯. I had purified that and created the Seed of Chaos. Ian quickly organized the information in his head as he spoke to Cervian. ¡°So, you¡¯re saying that, before the Seed of Chaos is created, its substance called the Chaos Stone does not influence the magical beasts in a good way, and thanks to that, contaminated evil spirits are forming, right?¡± Cervian nodded his head. That¡¯s exactly it. Since right behind my laboratory, there was a mine where a great quantity of Chaos Stones existed. When I was alive, because I thoroughly managed the mine, magical beasts could not carelessly approach that area, but after Khalifa destroyed my laboratory and sealed me away, there¡¯s a big chance that magical beasts went in and out of that place as they wished. Ian scratched the back of his head as he thought to himself. ¡®Then, if I close off the mine where that Chaos Stone exists, can I solve Yankoun¡¯s quest?¡¯ However, it wasn¡¯t a problem that he could think so simply of either. Since hearing Cervian¡¯s story, the Chaos Stone was an item that was relevant to the hidden class that Ian needed to obtain. Ian cautiously asked Cervian. ¡°Then what needs to be done in order to block off the contaminated magical beasts from forming?¡± Cervian approached Ian and he met his gaze equally as he opened his mouth. I¡¯ll teach you that method, so do you think you could do me a favour? Of course, Ian nodded his head without hesitation as he replied. ¡°I will do that.¡± And at the same time as that, a notification sound that alerted him of the activation of a quest struck his ear. Ring-! The Beginning of Magical Beast Alchemy (Hidden) (Connected) Devil Summoner Cervian, who was the first elf to become half-devil, hopes that you will follow his steps and experiment on synthesizing magical beasts. However, magical beast alchemy is not something that anybody can do, and only an exceptional Summoner can inherit Cervian¡¯s study. Cervian is planning on testing your abilities. Find ¡®Cervian¡¯s Destroyed Laboratory¡¯, which is in Zone 107 of the Devildom, and wipe out all of the contaminated evil spirits that guard that place. Quest Difficulty Level: SS Reward: ? Will you accept this quest? After thoroughly reading the quest, Ian, who accepted the quest without delay, asked Cervian. ¡°Then, Cervian, after I¡¯ve wiped out all of the evil spirits that are in the laboratory, do I just need to return to this place?¡± Cervian shook his head. No, there¡¯s no need to do that. Since I¡¯m going to follow you. ¡°¡­?¡± Ian wore a slightly dumbfounded expression. ¡®No, if he¡¯s going to go anyways, he could just wipe them out himself, so why is he making me do it?¡¯ Ian¡¯s question was an obvious. Since if it was the ability of Cervian, who had made magical beasts exceeding the top-rank and were Legendary-rank, the task of wiping out contaminated magical beasts in the lv 290 range that inhabited Zone 107 would be easier than flipping his hand over. It seemed that Cervian felt Ian¡¯s question, as he opened his mouth while smiling. If it were up to me, I would want to wipe them out myself and restore my laboratory, but I do not have a body. There¡¯s nothing that I can do in my spirit state. ¡°Ah, I see.¡± That¡¯s why I need your help. Since you¡¯ve already originally wanted to erase the cause of the creation of the contaminated evil spirits anyways, couldn¡¯t you think of it as you¡¯re moving while helping me out as well? The corners of Ian¡¯s mouth curled upwards. ¡°Of course. I will not disappoint you.¡± Ian was in an incredibly good mood. ¡®Everything¡¯s going really well. It looks like I¡¯ll be able to clear 2 quests in one go.¡¯ Based on the circumstances, it looked like Cervian¡¯s laboratory as well as the Chaos Stone mine that was supposedly behind that were the sources of the contaminated evil spirits. While conducting Cervian¡¯s quest, if he could block off the source of the contamination, he was intending on completing the 2 quests at the same time in one go. ¡®If I succeed up to there, I should go to the City of Rage immediately and look for Yankoun. And after using the Pure Blood of the Devil that Yankoun will give me and turning into a half-devil, I just need to class-change to the hidden class called the Magical Beast Transmuter.¡¯ As commonly said, with the situation that fell in place just like a puzzle piece, Ian moved his feet out of excitement. ¡°Then, let¡¯s go, Cervian.¡± Thank you for helping me, Ian. Ian replied with a broad smile. ¡°No, not a problem. I¡¯m rather the one that¡¯s thankful.¡± CH 207 Chapter 207: Magical Beast Transmuter (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian, who was accompanied by Cervian, slowly pushed through Zone 110-115 of the Devildom as he headed towards Zone 107. However, that was not an easy task. This was because the deeper he moved in, the ratio of low-rank magical beasts shrunk, and those spots were filled with intermediate-rank magical beasts. ¡°Whew, there are a lot of strong magical beasts. Especially the fact that although they are the same magical beast, the fact that contaminated magical beasts seem to feel stronger, it¡¯s not just my imagination, right?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Cervian nodded his head as he replied. That¡¯s right. In the case of the same magical beasts, the fighting power of the contaminated magical beasts cannot help but be stronger for sure. ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± If they are addicted to the unrefined Chaos Stone, although they lose Devil Energy, they instead go apeshit. If explained with humans or common monsters, you could say that they¡¯re in a state where they¡¯ve been medicated with drugs. ¡°Ah, no wonder¡­¡± Cervian stroked his beard as he continued his explanation. The scariest fact is frenzied magical beasts do not know fear. They are not fazed by the damage they receive, and move even more aggressively. Ian nodded his head as he thought. ¡®It might possibly be easier instead to face them if I thought of them as crazy dogs. Since with that attack pattern where they ignore defending like that, they¡¯re incredibly weak to counter attacks.¡¯ Taking about a quarter of a day, Ian¡¯s party succeeded in running through Zone 110. And Cervian was a big help here. He wasn¡¯t personally participating in the battle of course, but through his knowledge, it had become easier to face magical beasts. As expected of a researcher, who had stayed in the Devildom for hundreds of years just studying magical beasts, his knowledge on magical beasts was incredibly vast indeed. The back of the Laupros is their weak point. As their spine is incredibly weak, if you apply a large impact to that part, they¡¯ll writhe in great agony.When facing the Hecaroun, you must keep an eye on both their eyes. If the two eyes of Hecaroun shine a bright red, it means that their Offensive Power has been maximized. Even while Ian swung his spear without rest and fought, he was carving Cervian¡¯s words diligently into his head. ¡®It looks like he¡¯s an old man that seriously has a lot to say, but¡­ Still, as most of it is sweet information, I can¡¯t listen to it carelessly.¡¯ Like that, Ian eventually succeeded in reaching the end of Zone 110. However, having discovered something then, Ian¡¯s body suddenly halted straight on the spot. ¡°¡­!¡± Kaizar, who was next to him, asked Ian. ¡°Why are you suddenly stopping?¡± Ian lifted his finger and pointed to the front as he opened his mouth. ¡°It¡¯s the summoning magic square that we found in Zone 120.¡± At that, Ian¡¯s whole party, including Kaizar, turned their gazes in that direction, and they all had nervous eyes. ¡°Hmm¡­ Is one of the Twelve Chosen Generals or whatever going to pop up again?¡± At Kaizar¡¯s mumbling, Ian nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s probably the case, no?¡± Cervian, who was listening to the two people¡¯s conversation, slowly opened his mouth. You young men are right. In order to enter inside Zone 110, you must face one of the Twelve Chosen Generals and win. ¡°Whew¡­¡± At the unexpected challenge, Ian slightly knit his brows together. ¡®If it¡¯s one of the Twelve Chosen Generals like Yankoun, he¡¯ll for sure be someone monster-like with fighting power that¡¯s equal to him, so would I be able to beat him with my fighting power?¡¯ The level of Yankoun, who Ian met, was 350. Ian thought that there was a higher chance for the chief gatekeeper guarding Zone 110 would be a higher level than him and that there was no way that he would be a lower level instead. ¡®If it was Yankoun instead, I might have a chance against him. Since I¡¯ve memorized all of his attack patterns. As long as I just don¡¯t make a mistake, I might even be able to win.¡¯ However, it popped up that Yankoun¡¯s location was currently the City of Rage, so of course, there was no way he would appear here. Cervian opened his mouth towards Ian, who swallowed loudly while he fell into deep contemplation. You, how did you get through the chief gatekeeper that guards Zone 120? Ian, who was flustered by the unexpected question, slightly stuttered. Since he couldn¡¯t say that he had a cheat buff that was 99 Resistance Magic. ¡°I, I had a bit of luck back then.¡± Cervian¡¯s eyes shone. Is that so? Then you¡¯re saying that you¡¯re certain you defeated him? Ian nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s¡­ Right?¡± Then, by any chance, was there nothing you obtained from him? ¡°Something I obtained, huh¡­¡± For example, like a Premium Seal of the Devil¡­ If you have been acknowledged by him, you would have been able to have obtained that. At Cervian¡¯s words, Ian rejoiced as he immediately looked through his inventory. The Premium Seal of the Devil was definitely an item he had received from Yankoun. ¡®Found it!¡¯ Ian, who pulled out the seal, held it out towards Cervian. ¡°Here. Is this the right item?¡± The two eyes of Cervian, who checked the Premium Seal of the Devil that Ian held out, rounded. Ooh¡­ To think that you really obtained that! It was not a simple meaning for a devil to hand over the seal that they possessed to someone else. The Devildom was a world where the law of the strong was most perfectly applied. Devils only gifted their seal to a ¡®strong person¡¯ who has genuinely moved them. The fact that he had been acknowledged, not by a common devil, but a high-ranking devil, and even amongst them, it was the chief gatekeeper of the Devildom as well as one of the Twelve Chosen Generals, was amazing. The way that Cervian looked at Ian changed. Looking at the seal, it seems this is the seal of Yankoun. ¡°Oh, it seems that the appearance of the seal for each devil is different.¡± Of course. Since the seal means the same thing as like an identification to devils, that is. While floating, Cervian approached the summoning magic square. And at the suddenly occurring situation, Ian was so taken aback he shouted. ¡°Ah, Cervian! I¡¯m telling you, we¡¯re haven¡¯t finished our battle preparations yet. If you go over there, the chief gatekeeper will be summoned.¡± Cervian smiled as he spoke to Ian. If it is you, who has even been acknowledged by Yankoun and received the seal of a devil, then wouldn¡¯t you be able to face the chief gatekeeper that guards Zone 110 surely enough as well? ¡°Ah¡­ That, well¡­¡± While looking at Ian, who hazily ended off his sentence, Cervian smirked. However, if you have that seal, you can pass through here even if you do not fight the chief gatekeeper, so there will probably be no reason for you to fight. At Cervian¡¯s words, Ian¡¯s expression instantaneously brightened. ¡®As expected! I know that there would be such a method. It would be irrational to fight another chief gatekeeper with this fighting power right now.¡¯ Ian followed behind Cervian, and Cervian halted in front of a small monument that was next to the summoning magic square. You can you see this groove? ¡°Yes, Cervian.¡± Stick that Premium Seal of the Devil into here. Ian hurriedly held up the seal and stuck it into the groove just as Cervian said to do. ¡®He said it was like an identification, so it seems that it¡¯s also an item that plays the role of a pass.¡¯ If he had not luckily gotten into the testing zone two weeks ago and fought Yankoun, at least a month would have to pass before he could challenge this gateway. No, if it weren¡¯t for that accident(?) from the beginning, Ian wouldn¡¯t even have been able to get this far. Ian was profiting heavily from his preliminary visit into the Devildom in many ways. Whoong-. The summoning magic square began to vibrate slightly, and shortly after, instead of one of the Twelve Chosen Generals being summoned in that spot, a red portal was summoned to move to the next zone. Ian pulled out the seal from the groove with a broad smile and put it back into his inventory. ¡°Then, shall we go in?¡± At Ian¡¯s words, instead of giving a reply, Cervian moved his body towards the portal. Ian grinned as he let out a command to his retainers and Familiars. ¡°Alright, everybody, follow us in!¡± ¡°Huhu, I may not have been the one that entered the Devildom first, but I should be the first to have entered inside of Zone 120. Isn¡¯t that right, Cassandra?¡± It was a beautiful woman who had a red robe and cloak draped over her. Remir, the Monarch of the Red Flame, stared at her palm as she spoke in a mumbling manner. However, although that was her tone, she was definitely saying something to someone. And on Remir¡¯s palm, a white flame blazed up before a round sphere floated up. Inside of it there was the face of a devil lady with dark red skin. Hoho, unfortunately, I don¡¯t think that¡¯s the case, Remir. As the devil burst out laughing, Remir¡¯s beautiful face immediately contorted. ¡°Hmm, you¡¯re saying that¡¯s not the case? Are you saying that there¡¯s another human that has reached this far before me?¡± At Remir¡¯s question, the devil lady called ¡®Cassandra¡¯ nodded her head. That¡¯s right. It¡¯s exactly as you said. Someone has already passed through here. On Remir¡¯s contorted face, this time instead of irritation, curiosity popped up. ¡°Is that so? But, how do you know that? Cassandra, do you have some sort of ability or something where you can find out incidences that occur in the Devildom?¡± However, different from Remir¡¯s expectations, Cassandra shook her head. No, it¡¯s not like that. There¡¯s just a very definite evidence that someone has passed through this place first. ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± Cassandra opened her mouth towards Remir, who tilted her head, again. Originally, the gate that you just passed through. That was a gate that Yankoun, the chief gatekeeper of the Devildom as well as one of the Twelve Chosen Generals, guarded. Remir reflexively opened her mouth and asked back. ¡°Yankoun?¡± That¡¯s right. There¡¯s a high-rank devil who¡¯s just ignorantly strong named Yankoun. At her words, Remir, who immediately understood, asked again. ¡°So, you¡¯re saying that someone has already defeated that chief gatekeeper named Yankoun and has entered inside?¡± Cassandra nodded her head. Yes, that¡¯s correct. If someone hadn¡¯t defeated Yankoun, there¡¯s no way that you would have been able to pass through like this without a devil seal or anything like that. Remir frowned again. ¡°To have been late again¡­ This hurts my pride quite a bit.¡± While looking at her inflaming her fighting spirit, Cassandra made sarcastic comments with a mischievous voice. I don¡¯t know who the human that passed through this place first is, but by chance, if you are turning them into an enemy of yours, it would be best not to. As expected, Remir had no intentions of turning ¡®them¡¯, the unknown person, into her enemy. However, it seemed that her pride was hurt at Cassandra¡¯s words, as she snapped her head around and asked back with a sharp voice. ¡°And why¡¯s that?¡± Cassandra shrugged her shoulders as she replied. It¡¯s because if it¡¯s someone who has defeated Yankoun with their strength alone, the possibility of it being someone you could face is close to zero. You see, Yankoun is incredibly strong. ¡°Real¡­ly? How strong is he for you to say that yourself? Is he stronger than you?¡± At Remir¡¯s question, Cassandra thought about it for a moment before she opened her mouth with a serious expression. Well, I¡¯m not exactly sure. As it¡¯s been too long since I¡¯ve returned to the Devildom myself, that is. However, if I was to guess with the information I know from before as my foundation, I think he¡¯s an opponent that I can only defeat once I¡¯ve found all of my strength back. At Cassandra¡¯s words, Remir received quite a bit of shock. ¡®If all of the seals are released, Cassandra would be close to lv 400, but a user defeated a devil with fighting power close to that just with their own strength? Is that even possible at this point?¡¯ No matter how much she thought about it, it was impossible for Remir to understand. The opponents that she could face right now at most were ones with a level range around the late 200s or early 300s. Even that was truly risky, too. However, based on Cassandra¡¯s words, a user had defeated a monster-like devil that was close to lv 400, so obviously, she couldn¡¯t help but find it hard to believe. ¡®That¡¯s right, there¡¯s no rule saying that a human has to be a user, no? It could be some monster-like NPC, or perhaps, it¡¯s a user that got lucky and obtained a sweet quest where they were able to temporarily obtain an NPC teammate that was close to lv 400.¡¯ However, no matter how she thought about it, she couldn¡¯t help the feeling that she was going in already losing. Cassandra, who saw Remir shut her mouth tightly, coyly laughed as she made fun of her. Hohoho, I think it¡¯s truly been a long time since I¡¯ve seen the Monarch of the Red Flame this irritated. I don¡¯t know who that human is, but for them to give me such enjoyment, I¡¯m thankful. Remir frowned as she replied coldly. ¡°Don¡¯t make fun of me, Cassandra. Since whoever they are, they are merely just an opponent that I will eventually have to overcome.¡± Cassandra laughed as she replied. Sure. I like this personality of yours. ¡°Thank you, I¡¯m pleased to have received acknowledgement from a Devildom aristocrat.¡± Cassandra, who smirked while looking at her making a sarcastic remark, opened her mouth again. Either way, thanks to that unknown human, we¡¯ve ended up being able to pass through this difficult gateway for free, so get through it fast at least. If you want to overcome them, you don¡¯t have time be procrastinating like this, no? Remir, who nodded at Cassandra¡¯s words, hurriedly threw her body passed the gate. She wanted to at least obtain the dual class faster than any of the users. CH 208 Chapter 208: Magical Beast, Rakyel (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian and Cervian hit it off quite well. The biggest reason for that was because the characteristics of the two were similar. They both endlessly studied and analyzed Familiars. With just this one topic, the two people¡¯s conversation could continue without end. Although it was mainly a structure where Cervian solved Ian¡¯s curiosities, that is. ¡°So, Cervian. You¡¯re saying that there¡¯s something that exists in a similar form as ¡®Potential¡¯ with magical beasts as well, right?¡± That¡¯s right. There is not much difference in the bigger context with magical beasts and the Familiars that you have managed up until now. ¡°What if you were to pick out a couple of points that were most prominently different?¡± Hmm¡­ Cervian, who stroked his beard, slowly opened his mouth. Firstly, the fact that they have ¡®Devil Energy¡¯. And the fact that although they are the same level, their fighting abilities are about 10-15% more exceptional than normal Familiars. However, as they lack a considerable amount of intellect, they will be harder to control. Ian slightly knitted his brows as he asked. ¡°What do you mean when you say that they lack intellect? So then¡­ Are you saying that they may not be able to really understand my command?¡± Cervian immediately shook his head as he replied. No, it¡¯s not like that. Rather, they react more quickly and surely than normal Familiars when it comes to precise commands. However, the problem is that they don¡¯t have any flexibility. As you are an amazing Summoner yourself, you probably know well, but even if a Summoner doesn¡¯t give commands one after another to Familiars that have exceptional intellect, don¡¯t they fight well on their own for you? On the other hand, it would be fine to think that magical beasts lack quite a bit of activity and flexibility compared to normal Familiars. Simply put, he meant that their AI dropped compared to common Familiars. This could approach other Summoners as a considerably critical weakness, but to Ian, that was not the case. ¡®It¡¯s possible that they fit my fighting style better instead.¡¯ Ian¡¯s style was to give commands to all of his Familiars one by one while controlling precisely. To Ian, a battle was a process where he needed to activate a giant algorithm that was well-knit without any empty spaces and arrive at the result he wanted. To Ian, who needed to have all of his Familiars movements under his control in order to be satisfied, the lack of AI for a Familiar wasn¡¯t that big of a shortcoming. ¡®Magical beasts¡­ Huh. The more I learn about them, the more I like them.¡¯ The magical beasts that appeared in Zone 100-110 had another level of power that was different from the magical beasts that appeared in Zone 110-120. As that was the case, it was a situation where they couldn¡¯t help but continue on with even harder hunts, but whenever they took a break, Ian was always sharing a conversation with Cervian. ¡®For the duration that I can be with Cervian, I should absorb all of this old man¡¯s knowledge as mine.¡¯ Of course, Ian also had the Illustrated Book of Magical Beasts that Cervian wrote himself, but it felt different yet again hearing the explanation of the writer or author than for him to read the recordings that were made into a book. Ian¡¯s party, who proceeded through the map little by little like that, was finally able to arrive at Zone 107, where Cervian¡¯s laboratory apparently was. ¡°Cervian, which direction is your laboratory in? Zone 107 seriously looks like a maze.¡± Different from Zone 108, which was open in all directions, Zone 107 had a structure like a narrow and complicated cave. While looking at Ian, who asked for directions with an embarrassed expression, Cervian slowly stepped forward. The structure of Zone 107 is incredibly complicated. I have no idea why they made it into this structure, but it¡¯s because of this complicated structure that I made my laboratory in here. ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± It¡¯s because I could be under the radar of the devils quite easily. The top-ranking devils didn¡¯t really like me, when I was only Half-Devil yet was stronger than most decent Noblesse-ranking devils. There was even a need to hide my laboratory deliberately. Cervian passed through the passageways adeptly as he began to guide Ian¡¯s party to the laboratory. Ian followed behind Cervian as he shook his head. ¡®Ha¡­ It will be easier memorizing the whole Illustrated Book of Magical Beasts or whatever than memorizing this path. If I was asked to find my way back out just on my own without Cervian, will I be able to?¡¯ Ian still tried to memorize the path as much as possible, and while he did so, Cervian was able to arrive at his laboratory. Although, of course, rather than a laboratory, it had a visual that was closer to ¡®ruins¡¯, that is. We¡¯ve arrived, Ian. This place was where my laboratory was. Ian laughed as he asked back. ¡°Why do you say it in past tense?¡± At that, Cervian replied with a sullen expression. As you can see, hasn¡¯t it been completely destroyed? It has now turned into a visual where it would suit being used as a junk yard or warehouse now instead. As Cervian¡¯s sullen expression was quite cute, Ian snickered. ¡°Anyhow, it is quite amazing.¡± What is? ¡°Starting from the entrance of Zone 107, it seems like we¡¯ve been on the move for 30 minutes until we got here, but we haven¡¯t discovered even one magical beast.¡± Ah, that? ¡°How exactly is that possible?¡± Cervian explained with a proud expression. That¡¯s since Zone 107 is basically like my front yard to me. It¡¯s because we¡¯ve only gone through shortcuts that magical beasts usually don¡¯t go through and entered inside. Ian nodded his head as he thought to himself. ¡®In various ways, I¡¯m proceeding through the quest easily thanks to Cervian. It¡¯s to the point that I¡¯m nervous instead because everything is going too smoothly.¡¯ While the two were having a chat, the party arrived at the deserted house that was disguised as the laboratory, and Ian walked inside of there with big strides. Careful, Ian. There¡¯s no knowing what kind of monster is inside the laboratory. ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± Cervian warned him again. One of the biggest reasons why we didn¡¯t meet any magical beasts on our way here was truthfully because of the existence of my laboratory. ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± It¡¯s because it¡¯s definite that the many magical beasts that would have smelled the Chaos Stone that is in my laboratory would have all gone inside of it. ¡°Ahem¡­ That thing called the Chaos Stone, is it a substance that magical beasts like?¡± Cervian, who thought about it for a moment, responded shortly. Rather than a substance that magical beasts like¡­ If compared to humans, you could think of it as a substance similar to drugs. It destroys our body, but it¡¯s a substance that has an incredibly high addiction level, that is. Ian, who immediately understood Cervian¡¯s words, began to carefully enter the laboratory. And sure enough, before it had even been 3 minutes since he entered, Ian¡¯s party was able to meet a group of intermediate-rank magical beasts made up of about five or six of them. Ian immediately began to busily let out commands. ¡°Move calmly! We just need to do as we¡¯ve been doing up until now. Firstly, Bbakbbak, move forward!¡± As he did so, Celia, who was next to him, instantly summoned Ddukdae and had him follow right behind Bbakbbak. And with that movement as the trigger, Ian¡¯s Familiars and retainers began to move quickly and accurately. While floating in the air, Cervian, who watched Ian do that, mumbled with a quiet voice. His Familiar commanding abilities are to the point it is amazing every time I watch him do it. As expected of the source of the contamination, the magical beasts that appeared in the laboratory were all magical beasts that had a high level of contamination. It was because of that they were also opponents that were even more fussy to face as well. ¡°Ly, you¡¯re going to ambush magical beasts that other Familiars or retainers are fighting with me. Since they¡¯re easily distracted because of their madness, the effectiveness of stabbing them will be even better.¡± Grr- Grr-! Understood, owner! A moon was always up in the sky of the Devildom 365 days a year. Thanks to that, Ly¡¯s passive skill was shining incredibly brightly ever since they entered the Devildom. That was one of the inherent abilities of the Sovereign Fenrir, the Heir of the Moon. The inherent ability the ¡®Heir of the Moon¡¯ was a high-quality passive skill that made all movement speed increase by 30% and had them recover 3% of their maximum Vitality every second whenever they received moonlight. However, the number of moons that were up in the sky of the Devildom was not just one, but three, and surprisingly, the effect of the Heir of the Moon was being applied with the overlap. The top-ranking passive skill that was being tripled could simply be considered a cheat. Ly¡¯s movements had increased by 90% while he was in the Devildom, and his Vitality was recovering by a whopping 9% every second. The description of a zombie assassin that didn¡¯t die truly fit him. While in the Devildom at least, Ly was showing off a fighting power that wasn¡¯t the least bit inferior even when compared to Karceus. Grrr-! I can sense the thick scent of the magical beasts¡¯ blood. With Ly, who was leaping around like crazy, at the head, Ian slowly began to clean up the laboratory starting from the entrance. ¡®Whew, even though it takes a bit of time, we need to proceed through safely. It looks like this place is swarming with strong monsters that can cause instant annihilation with just one mistake.¡¯ If he just somehow successfully cleared this laboratory and completed all of the connected quests, he would be able to obtain a dual class. Once that was the case, it was definite that Ian¡¯s fighting power would be strengthened towards a level higher, so it would even be possible for him to enter into even deeper places in the Devildom then. ¡®Alright. Let¡¯s be cautious for a little longer and get through this place.¡¯ Ian demonstrated his greatest concentration and began to hunt the magical beasts that swarmed the laboratory one by one, and he was eventually able to enter into the core part of the laboratory. And as he arrived at the core, Cervian, who just watched Ian¡¯s battle for a while without a word, finally opened his mouth. Ian, you see that blue light that¡¯s leaking out from between the crack of that door over there, right? At Cervian¡¯s words, Ian¡¯s gaze suddenly turned, and discovering the blue light, Ian nodded his head. ¡°Yes, I can see it over there. Should I go over there?¡± Cervian nodded his head. Open that door and go inside. Inside there, the Chaos Stone gemstones that I had gathered before should be piled up there. Ian slowly approached that door. ¡°But that thing called Chaos Stone, is it an item that is no danger to my Familiars or myself?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Cervian nodded his head as he explained. That¡¯s right. That item is one that only reacts to ¡®Devil Energy¡¯. There¡¯s nothing for you to be careful about. ¡°I see.¡± Just, as it is possible that the strongest magical beasts amongst the ones that you¡¯ve encountered up until now are inside there, I think you¡¯ll have to be careful of that. ¡°Understood, Cervian.¡± At Cervian¡¯s warning, Ian stopped in his tracks and swept up all of the magical beasts nearby first. To prepare for the ones inside that were difficult to handle to pop out, he had cleaned up all of the small fries that were nearby. ¡°Alright, shall we go inside now?¡± Ian, who had gently put his hand between the ajar door, slowly pulled the door open and threw it back. As he did so, a blue light that was bright to the point that it blinded his eyes leaked out, and within the wide space that was about as big as a small auditorium, a giant magical beast was coiled up. With a size that was almost comparable to Karceus, it was a giant pterodactyl that was covered completely in black feathers. Ian, who momentarily flinched at that sharp gaze and intense pressure, took a step back as he got into a battle stance, and Cervian, who was next to him, rounded his two eyes as he looked at the pterodactyl. Un, unbelievable! Ian, who heard Cervian¡¯s slightly out-of-the-blue words, wore a puzzled expression as he asked. ¡°When you say unbelievable, what is?¡± Cervian slowly opened his mouth with a dazed expression. That one is¡­! Is a magical beast that I barely got my hands on thousands of years ago at the end of my persevering efforts called ¡®Rakyel¡¯. ¡°Rakyel¡­?¡± Towards Ian, who still had on a perplexed expression, Cervian added to his explanation. On the topic of high-ranking magical beasts, they¡¯re ones that are as rare as any decent Legendary-rank magical beast. At the words high-ranking magical beast, Ian asked back with a little more nervous expression. ¡°If it¡¯s a high-ranking beast, it must be incredibly strong, right?¡± However, the response that returned to Ian¡¯s question was one that was completely unexpected. The problem is not that one¡¯s strength right now, Ian. ¡°Then?¡± While the two conversed, the two eyes of the Rakyel, who was asleep in front of the Chaos Stone, slowly opened up. The spirit of the Rakyel is a magnificent ingredient in order to reconstruct magical beasts into Legendary-ranking ones! CH 209 Chapter 209: Magical Beast, Rakyel (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda At the unexpected words, Ian was incredibly flustered. ¡°They¡¯re a magnificent material for magical beast reconstruction¡­ Is what you¡¯re saying?¡± That¡¯s right. And the Rakyel is such a rare breed that if you do not catch it now, there¡¯s no way of knowing when you will meet one again. ¡°¡­!¡± Ian¡¯s face changed into a greedy expression. ¡®Euh¡­ This would be such a waste if I lost the opportunity, what am I supposed to do?¡¯ However, no matter how much he wanted to catch it, it wasn¡¯t a situation where current Ian could capture magical beasts. In addition to not knowing what kind of mechanism reconstruction proceeded with yet, he didn¡¯t even know what kind of meaning the ingredient called Rakyel had, but just from Cervian¡¯s words alone, he could sense how important of a monster it was. ¡®Ha¡­ You were supposed to have appeared after I obtained dual classes, why exactly have you appeared now?¡¯ Magical beasts were Familiars that you could fundamentally only handle if you had the blood of a Half-Devil and had the dual-class, the Devil Summoner. However, Ian couldn¡¯t give up easily. Kyaaooh-! The Rakyel flapped its large wings as it slowly got up. And Ian, who met eyes with this giant monster, quickly checked its information. ¡®I can¡¯t see anything specific, but for it to be a high-ranking magical beast at lv 320¡­¡¯ Ian tightened his grip on his Judgment of the Spirit King. ¡°Cervian, by any chance, are there any weak points or anything like that for that thing?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Cervian immediately responded. It¡¯s a monster that doesn¡¯t have anything like a weak point really, but there¡¯s something that you must be careful of. ¡°What is that?¡± After Ian sent Bbakbbak and Karceus to the front and bought himself some time, he listened attentively to Cervian¡¯s words. Whenever 15% of the Rakyel¡¯s maximum Vitality is consumed, its feathers burn up. ¡°Please speak a little faster! The battle has started now!¡± At Ian¡¯s urgency, Cervian immediately continued his explanation. Its feathers will burn for about 5 minutes, but while its feathers burn, the Rakyel will be immune to all magical attacks. And while it burns a blue flame, it will be immune to physical attacks. ¡°Does the colour of the flames change back and forth?¡± That I don¡¯t exactly know either. However, I think it is random. Ian, who heard up to this point, charged towards the Rakyel without delay. ¡®To face a high-ranking, lv 320 Familiar, a certain amount of sacrifice is unavoidable.¡¯ Up until now at least he had been maintaining his fighting power perfectly without losing even one retainer or Familiar, but he didn¡¯t think that was possible while facing a lv 320 monster as well. ¡®By trying to fight without any sacrifices, we might end up getting annihilated instead.¡¯ Ian began to calmly control his Familiars and retainers. ¡®And that monster, I can¡¯t just kill it off.¡¯ Ian still hadn¡¯t given up on the impossible task of ¡®capturing¡¯ the Rakyel. * * * ¡°Whew, have I finally entered the Devildom?¡± There was a man with a long English longbow hanging on his back. The man, who was wearing white leather armour, was looking around Zone 128 of the Devildom in front of the entry portal. His identity was none other than Samuel Jin. He, the Guild Master of the Oaklan Guild, had succeeded in entering the Devildom now, when quite a long time had passed since the large-scale update had opened up. Being someone in the top 10 of the overall rankings, this was an incredibly shameful result. However, he had enough reason for this. ¡®Although most of the rankings had escaped to the Devildom, I had no idea that Kaimon would be that strong.¡¯ The west end of the central continent. The defensive front line of the Luspel Empire that continuously wavered had tied down Samuel Jin by his feet up until now. At first it seemed that the tactic of organizing groups and taking turns defending was quite effective, but in the end, a crack formed and Samuel Jin, who had the most on the line, had no choice but to continue to support the defense. ¡®Whew, I am a little late, but if I move on a tight schedule, I should be able to make up some of the difference that¡¯s been made.¡¯ Samuel Jin was incredibly disgusted with Martin, who had completely ignored the defensive front line and stepped foot into the Devildom on his own. ¡®Martin, as expected, is too sly to continuously go in the same boat as him.¡¯ It seemed he didn¡¯t know that he could also be seen in the same light as that from Martin¡¯s perspective, as Samuel Jin ground his teeth while he slowly walked. ¡®Let¡¯s quickly obtain dual classes first. It seems like there¡¯s no one that has obtained that yet, so I will receive it quickly.¡¯ Samuel Jin¡¯s out-of-the-blue spirit showed. However, to be honest, because information related to dual classes was basically nonexistent, it could be considered something like ¡®brute courage¡¯. The Rakyel was strong. Fitting of its ¡®high-ranking magical beast¡¯ title. It even showed stats that were beyond that as it made Ian struggle. ¡®Why is this crazy birdbrain so strong?¡¯ On top of it having an outrageous level of 320, as its Devil Energy leaped around due to the Chaos Stone, its destructive power was truly astronomical. ¡°Damn it, its wings are starting to burn again! Fall back for now!¡± At Ian¡¯s shout, his Familiars and retainers immediately took a step back. The flame that was emitted from the Rakyel¡¯s wings didn¡¯t just give the Rakyel immunity, but as it also temporarily dealt AoE damage, they just needed to dodge it first. And by a whisker¡¯s difference, the Rakyel¡¯s wings emitted a blue flame as it began to burn up. Hwa-reu-reuk- Ian, who checked the colour of the fire that burned up, made a face. ¡®Ugh, why is it a blue flame again?¡¯ The difficulty level of the battle itself was hellishly hard, but especially when this thing let out a blue flame, it was a situation where they truly couldn¡¯t do anything else but suffer helplessly. This was because, aside from the inherent abilities of a couple Familiars, Ian¡¯s main force attack was all ¡®physical¡¯-type attacks. While the wings of the Rakyel were wrapped in a blue flame, Ian couldn¡¯t deal any damage to it. ¡°Damn it, concentrate on dodging the most! Just Pin and Karceus make little diversions as you deal damage!¡± Right now, Ian¡¯s party overflowed with physical-type dealers. Because that was the case, it was a situation where Karceus had polymorphed into his human form. Since when he was in his human form, he could take on the role of quite an amazing Magician. Baaang-! Pin¡¯s Crush skill and Karceus¡¯s magic swamped the Rakyel, but the Rakyel didn¡¯t even blink its eyes as it continuously attacked Bbakbbak and Ddukdae. ¡®It¡¯s probably addicted to the drug called the Chaos Stone, which is why it is showing such movements.¡¯ The attacks of the Rakyel, who seemed to not care at all about defending or protecting itself, continued. Ian continued to gnaw at the Rakyel¡¯s Vitality little by little. ¡®It should slowly start to be time for this hellish flame to die down¡­¡¯ With sharp eyes, Ian checked the Vitality gauge of the Rakyel once. The Vitality gauge of the Rakyel had finally dropped below the halfway point. ¡®Whew, that hellish Vitality gauge bar is finally blinking.¡¯ Ian pulled together his scattered mind and he began to focus on the battle even more. This was because, although he was on his way to almost achieving his goal, this was not an opponent that he could be careless about even until the very last moment. Kyaaooh! The Rakyel spread open its giant beak as it let out a horrible shriek towards the air. And as it did so, for a moment, a ton of system messages popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. High-ranking Magical Beast ¡®Rakyel¡¯ has cast its inherent ability, ¡®Cry of Darkness¡¯.Your Vitality has decreased by 26,849.Due to the Devil Energy of the High-ranking Magical Beast ¡®Rakyel¡¯, you have received an additional 10,500 fixed damage.Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s Vitality has been decreased by 29,847.Familiar ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯s Vitality has been decreased by 12,983. For an AoE attack that didn¡¯t have that long of a cooldown time in comparison to other skills, the amount of damage it dealt was outrageous. Ian clenched his teeth as he began to cast the recovery skills in order. ¡°Priests, start by filling up the Vitalities of the dudes that are receiving damage at the front first! Celia, continue to just recover Bbakbbak¡¯s Vitality.¡± ¡°Yes, Lord! But Ddukdae doesn¡¯t have much Vitality left either¡­ Should I just save Bbakbbak first for now?¡± It hurt Ian¡¯s heart(?), but he nodded his head without hesitation. ¡°Do that. Since it¡¯s most important that we save our definite fighting powers first!¡± ¡°Understood!¡± Eventually, at the Rakyel¡¯s continued attacks, Ddukdae couldn¡¯t help but have his Vitality completely exhausted, and Bbakbbak¡¯s Vitality was also continuously being maintained at a near-death state. ¡°Kaizar, keep maintaining your Vitality while dodging around a little more! Its physical immunity will be released in about 30 seconds from now!¡± ¡°Got it, Lord guy. You hurry up and prepare yourself, too.¡± ¡°Prepare? Prepare for what?¡± ¡°I¡¯m telling you to prepare to charge in with your spear in hand!¡± Ian, who momentarily hesitated at Kaizar¡¯s words, soon clenched his Judgment of the Spirit King and stood up. ¡®That¡¯s right, it could be a little dangerous, but I should personally go out myself. My hunting efficiency in the Devildom will cut by half if I was to throw away over half my Familiars and retainers and just remained alive alone.¡¯ The high-ranking magical beast Rakyel whisked its burning wings here and there as it desperately struggled with Ian. Likewise, as expected, Ian spent close to almost a quarter of a day as he was in the middle of his desperate battle with the Rakyel. And finally, he was starting to see the end of this intense battle. Baaang-! As the physical damage shield made up of blue flames cleared, Ian and Kaizar charged in as if they had been waiting for this. Chwa-ra-rak-! And at Ly¡¯s fierce attack that followed afterwards, the Vitality gauge of the Rakyel had dropped to the bottom. Ky-aeeeek-! The black bird Rakyel thrashed about in pain. Just at that moment, when the battle was about to end with the Rakyel¡¯s death like that, Ian suddenly pulled back his Familiars and retainers. ¡°Everybody fall back, now!¡± It was a sudden shout that not one of them expected, but Ian¡¯s Familiars and retainers quickly fell back. What¡¯s wrong, owner?! ¡°No kidding. If we just push a little bit more like this, we would have been able to finish that monster-like thing.¡± Towards Kaizar and Ly, who asked with a puzzled expression, Ian approached the Rakyel with big strides after responding shortly. ¡°That thing, I¡¯m planning on capturing it alive.¡± At the form of Ian, who responded with his teeth clenched, Cervian asked with a surprised expression this time. No, how are you going to tame a magical beast when you don¡¯t even have the Pure Blood of the Devil in your hands yet? However, Ian pretended to have not heard Cervian¡¯s words as he lunged for the Rakyel on his own. ¡°Healers, focus all recovery skills onto me!¡± ¡°Yes, got it!¡± ¡°Understood, Lord!¡± Ian slightly glanced at Bbakbbak, who had fallen back, as he followed through with a command. ¡°Celia, you recover Bbakbbak¡¯s Vitality to the max, and Bbakbbak, you keep watching me, and if it looks dangerous, cast the Blessing of the Turtle Dragon skill onto me immediately, got it?¡± Bbakbbak wore a slightly petrified expression, but he nodded his head as he carried out Ian¡¯s command. Understood, owner. Be careful. While watching the human that charged towards it alone, the Rakyel viciously cried out, and like that Ian¡¯s reckless challenge began. CH 210 Chapter 210: Magical Beast, Rakyel (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda All kinds of battles that were held in the Devildom were mostly large-scale ones. This was because unless you were a top-class ranker like Ian, it was fundamentally impossible to hunt on your own. The number of users that were able to play solo in the Devildom was just about 10 to 20 of them including Ian. On top of that, even though it was a user that had a character with strong fighting power, if their Fame was low, it was impossible to play solo. This was because the fact that their Fame was low eventually corresponded with the fact that their noble title was low, and if that was the case, it would mean the qualitative and quantitative aspects of the retainers that they could employ would be low as well. This was the case for ¡®Kaseil¡¯, a Warrior user in the lv 180-range that was currently ranked 8th in the official rankings. At least in his case, as he could be counted in the top three just based on his character¡¯s fighting power, it was possible for him to play solo in Zones 120-130. However, the moment that an intermediate-rank magical beast appeared, it was impossible to hunt even that on his own, and so, in the end, he was hunting on his own in Zone 120. ¡°Hul, look over there. It¡¯s Kaseil.¡± ¡°Gasp! You¡¯re right! Even a ranker in the one-digit rankings can¡¯t get through Zone 120?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure, if it¡¯s someone like Kaseil, if he partied up with another ranker, it would surely be possible. He must be here to play solo.¡± ¡°Euh¡­ Impressive. If it¡¯s to that point, that¡¯s an illness as well.¡± From the beginning, he was famous in Kailan for being a maverick, and he was a battle-addicted user that just hunted to death all day. It was to the point that many users thought it was a mystery how he had settled into the top 10 even up until now when he hadn¡¯t joined any guilds nor accepted any quests. Kwa-deu-deuk-! Kaseil¡¯s giant ax crushed the head of the low-ranking magical beast of the Devildom, the Lakoum. You have successfully killed the Low-Ranking Magical Beast ¡®Lakoum¡¯.You have obtained 2,549,800 EXP.You have obtained the ¡®Lowest-grade Magic Stone¡¯. A faint smile formed on the mouth of Kaseil, who read the system message that popped up. ¡°Okay, I¡¯ve finally added one.¡± Kaseil diligently gathered magic stones. When it at least came to repeated hunting, Kaseil was more confident than anybody else. To him, grinding for magic stones was just a process in order to move onto the next map ¡®alone¡¯. You have succeeded in fortifying the ¡®Battle Ax of the Red Flame Dragon¡¯ item!The ¡®Battle Ax of the Red Flame Dragon¡¯ item has been fortified from +4 to +5. The moment the messages popped up, Kaseil clenched both of his fists. ¡°Finally¡­!¡± And at that moment, a world message rang out through the whole Devildom. User ¡®Kaseil¡¯ has succeeded in +5 fortification and has obtained a Transcendent-rank equipment. At the new phrase ¡®Transcendent-rank equipment¡¯, Kaseil¡¯s two eyes slightly grew. And after checking the Transcendence option that was newly formed on his item, he was able to wear a broad smile. ¡°Euhahahat, it¡¯s definite that I¡¯m the first person to have succeeded in fortifying to the 5thfortification!¡± Kaseil stepped foot onto Devildom ground within a week since the opening of the Devildom, and up until now, he had stationed himself here for almost all of his time as he hunted low-rank magical beasts. As this was the case for him, since he didn¡¯t remember seeing a world message of someone else succeeding in fortifying up to +5, he had naturally thought that he was the first. And that was the same for the other users as well. ¡°Wow, they did say that Kaseil was the real king of grinding, and fitting of that, he¡¯s already reached the 5th fortification.¡± ¡°No kidding, that¡¯s dope. I just reached 3rd fortification.¡± ¡°Keu¡­ Speaking of which, if it reaches 5th fortification, it looks like a new modifier called Transcendent-rank is attached. There¡¯s swagger to that, seriously.¡± While feeling the envy-filled gazes of the users around him, Kaseil shrugged his shoulders. ¡®Huhu, wouldn¡¯t this taste be the reason why I grind?¡¯ And to be honest, as Kaseil put it on private, nobody knew, but he was a user with a hidden class. It was a valuable hidden class that made the current Kaseil just with endless solo play and grinding. The name of the hidden class that Kaseil had was the ¡®Lonesome Warrior¡¯. ¡®Keukeu, I may not be able to go into a deeper place in the Devildom, but since I shouldn¡¯t be falling behind just by infinitely grinding here.¡¯ The biggest characteristic of the Lonesome Warrior was its fraudulent passive skill that amplified his stats and increased the amount of EXP he received from enemies the greater the number of opponents he faced alone. However, there were a penalties as well, one being the EXP-increasing effect was only applied to the EXP that was obtained through hunting alone and the other being that whether it was a user or an NPC, the moment that one person entered his party, all aspects of his passive would be cleared. It was indeed a perfect passive that fit the modifier called the ¡®Lonesome Warrior¡¯. ¡®After I fortify all of my equipment to 5, I should try to get through Zone 119.¡¯ Kaseil, who momentarily admired his Transcendent option as he took a break, stood up again and began battling. ¡®Since I¡¯m the first to have the Transcendent option, the reporters will definitely catch on and request for interviews, right?¡¯ Kaseil smiled brightly. While thinking of the fact that his name would be engraved in the main page of the official community for a couple days, he was already feeling pleased. ¡°Alright, hand over those magic stones, you brats!¡± The normal users stared at Kaseil¡¯s shining ax with envious gazes. However, nobody knew that there was a mysterious user that had set everything, even up to his last accessory, to +5 fortification. * * * ¡°Bbakbbak, get ready to use the Blessing of the Turtle Dragon!¡± Got it, owner. Ian smacked away each of the black balls of fire that was spewed out of the Rakyel¡¯s mouth with his spear. Bang- Ba-bang-! As Ian knocked away all of the black fireballs that flew in his direction consecutively, the Rakyel flew into the air as it roared with a voice full of rage. Kyaaoh! At the same time, the Rakyel spread open its giant mouth towards Ian. Hwa-reu-reuk-! A flame that resembled the breath of a dragon was sprayed out of the Rakyel¡¯s mouth, and Ian urgently rolled away as he gestured to Bbakbbak. ¡°Now!¡± Understood! As he did so, Bbakbbak¡¯s body glowed a golden light, and a golden chain shot out towards Ian. Whoong-! The golden chain that was shot wrapped around Ian¡¯s waist just before the Rakyel¡¯s flame reached him, and immediately, a yellowish protective film formed around Ian. Bang- Ba-ba-bang-! And the ray of fire that hit the protective film let out a boom as it scattered into the air. Kyaaak-! The Rakyel huffed as if it was furious, and Ian let out a sigh of relief. ¡°Whew, if it was even a little late, it would have been a serious issue.¡± The Blessing of the Turtle Dragon skill was a skill that allowed Bbakbbak to receive the damage his connected target would instead for a fixed amount of time, so Bbakbbak had absorbed the damage caused by the Rakyel¡¯s breath instead. Of course, because he received damage that was more amplified than what Ian would have received, Bbakbbak received critical damage as well. However, Celia, who was waiting, immediately cured Bbakbbak again, and as a result, they had magnificently blocked the Rakyel¡¯s attack. Due to the effect of the ¡®Blessing of the Turtle Dragon¡¯, an inherent ability of Familiar Bbakbbak, 107,368 damage has been absorbed.Familiar Bbakbbak has instead taken 138% of the damage, equalling to 148,167 damage.Familiar Celia has used inherent ability ¡®Familiar Healing¡¯ and has recovered Bbakbbak¡¯s Vitality.Bbakbbak¡¯s Vitality has been recovered by 148,167. The skills were invoked one after another like well-turning gears. Thanks to that, Ian was able to negate one of the Rakyel¡¯s strongest skills. ¡°Huff, huff.¡± Ian breathed heavily as he gasped for air while he glared at the Rakyel. ¡°You punk. You surprised this hyung. How dare you use 2 skills like that one after another?¡± As he said that, the Rakyel flapped its wings as it scowled at Ian. And just then. The Rakyel¡¯s feathers began to burn a blue light. At the same time, Ian¡¯s two eyes shone. ¡®Okay! I will enjoy beating you to a pulp again!¡¯ The Rakyel¡¯s feathers burning a blue light was proof that it was in a ¡®physical-damage immunity¡¯ state. As soon as he saw that, Ian¡¯s counterattack began. Puck- Pu-puck-! Ian¡¯s spear that was zigzaggedly bent like lightning that struck down from the sky mercilessly dug into the wing joint of the Rakyel. You have dealt critical damage to the High-ranking Magical Beast ¡®Rakyel¡¯.The ¡®Rakyel¡¯s Vitality has been reduced by 0. There was naturally a reason as to why Ian¡¯s attacks began as soon as the Rakyel was in a physical-damage immunity state. This was because the Rakyel¡¯s Vitality had already dropped to a state where the gauge bar couldn¡¯t be seen, and if two or so of Ian¡¯s attacks went through, it was definite that the Rakyel would die. ¡®This squirt, although there¡¯s no damage going through, getting hit is still going to be painful, right?¡¯ All of the attacks that Ian made when he swung his spear and struck the Rakyel were ¡®physical¡¯-type attacks. In other words, the Rakyel in a physical-damage immunity state was in a state where it couldn¡¯t die no matter how much Ian hit it. Kaek-! Ki-aeek-! The Rakyel, who had begun getting mercilessly beaten up by Ian¡¯s spear, let out a horrible shriek. Karceus, who was watching that scene, opened his mouth towards Bbakbbak. Bbakbbak, that scene¡­ For some reason, it¡¯s not unfamiliar. At that, Bbakbbak¡¯s head trembled as he replied. Same goes for me. I am suddenly reminded of the guy named Yankoun. Karceus¡¯s two eyes began to shake. Our owner wouldn¡¯t hit us like that, right? Bbakbbak shook his head to the left and right rapidly. There¡¯s no way he would do that. I am a good turtle. I have no reason to get hit by our owner.Same. I am also an incredibly good dragon. Even Ly, who was standing next to them, agreed quietly. I am also¡­ A good Fenrir. Separate from the Familiars that were trembling in fear, the battle between Ian and the Rakyel continued to proceed. The Familiars quietly turned away from the Rakyel that sent a gaze that seemed like it was asking for them to kill it. Only Karceus sent a pitiful gaze as he gave one piece of advice. Hurry up and surrender, magical beast dude. I have never seen a situation where our owner gives up on something that he wants. Had about 15 minutes passed like that since the beating(?) started? The blue flame that was wrapped around the Rakyel¡¯s body died down, and Ian quickly stepped back as he took aim at towards the Rakyel with his spear. Ian grumbled with a voice that was slightly mixed in with irritation. ¡°Argh, seriously, you¡¯re an amazing punk as well. You almost died again just a moment ago.¡± It may have looked like a normal beating scene from the outside, but that wasn¡¯t quite the truth. Each and every attack that the lv 320 high-ranking magical beast Rakyel swung randomly couldn¡¯t help but be powerful, and although he only allowed just two or so attacks, Ian hovered between life or death multiple times. Keu-reuk- Keu-reu-reuk-! The Rakyel flapped its wings weakly as it glared at Ian. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s stop this now. Bird-brain.¡± Unable to say anything, the Rakyel drooped its wings as if it was angry. Ian calmly shouted the spell towards the Rakyel that was like that. ¡°Capture!¡± The ray of light that spread out from the tip of Ian¡¯s hand began to wrap around the Rakyel¡¯s giant body. It was a tense moment. ¡®Please¡­ Seriously!¡¯ To be honest, Ian had shouted the Capture spell a countless number of times up until now. And historically, there was never a time he had failed to capture a monster that he had made up his mind to make his up until now. However, for this to have been the case, there was never a situation where it was impossible like this, and so, a miracle did not occur. The blood of the devils does not flow within your body.Until you obtain the blood of the devils, you cannot tame monsters that have Devil Energy.You have failed in capturing the High-ranking Magical Beast ¡®Rakyel¡¯. Along with the three system messages, the ray of light bounced off. It was already the fifteenth or so capturing attempt of Ian, and from the mouths of the ones that were watching, a low exclamation flowed out. Cervian shook his head as he mumbled. A tough cookie he is, a tough cookie indeed. I¡¯ve even explained that until he becomes Half-Human, Half-Devil, he wouldn¡¯t be able to capture magical beasts¡­ It was to the point the Rakyel, whose whole body was shaking like an aspen leaf, was pitiful. Everybody slightly glanced at Ian with expressions that seemed to say, ¡®Isn¡¯t it now time to stop¡¯, but Ian just grasped tightly onto his spear again. Ian¡¯s expression was more determined than ever before. ¡°It looks like it¡¯s still not enough. A little more devotion is required.¡± It looked like his choice of words were somewhat inappropriate, but no one could tackle Ian¡¯s words. Since for some reason, it seemed like if they tackled his words in the wrong way, the target of the beating would change. ¡°Yo, bird-brain. Attack me again. Let¡¯s fight.¡± At Ian¡¯s provocation, the two eyes of the Rakyel, which were half-closed, glared fiercely again at him. It seemed like the battle would begin again like that, but the Rakyel that took one step forward suddenly bowed its head deeply in front of Ian. And the two, wrinkly, small eyes of Cervian, who was watching that scene, grew to twice their original size. No, this¡­! A situation had occurred that even he, as someone who had researched magical beasts for over hundreds of years, couldn¡¯t believe. However, Ian nodded his head as if there was nothing to really be surprised about as he mumbled. ¡°Alright, good idea. It would have just grown more difficult for both of us even if you were to endure longer.¡± The Rakyel that had exhausted all of its energy drooped down in front Ian, and at that moment, system messages popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. High-ranking Magical Beast ¡®Rakyel¡¯ wishes to become your Familiar.However, as the blood of the devils does not flow within your body, you cannot summon and handle the Rakyel.Will you still accept the ¡®Rakyel¡¯ as your Familiar? One corner of Ian¡¯s mouth slightly curled upwards. CH 211 Chapter 211: Magical Beast, Rakyel (4) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡®Huhu, goal accomplished!¡¯ Of course, Ian¡¯s response was a positive. This was because he wasn¡¯t planning on summoning the Rakyel and use it in battle. ¡°I will accept it as a Familiar!¡± Whoong-! Along with Ian¡¯s response, the Rakyel¡¯s giant body turned into a red light and gathered together in the air, and shortly after, it was sucked into Ian¡¯s hand. It was an incredibly bloody battle where Ian had fought the Rakyel alone for almost 10 hours. In the end, Ian won, and he obtained what he wanted. Cervian, who had continuously watched all of the situations unfold up until now, mumbled with a low voice. Ha, are you saying that the answer that I couldn¡¯t find with even hundreds of years of research, you solved with violence¡­ At Cervian¡¯s mumbling that somewhat had a blend of self-deprecation, Ian replied with a voice that showed his good mood. ¡°It had just been moved by my earnestness.¡± Cervian¡¯s wrinkled eye rim trembled. Earnestness¡­ Earnestness, huh. Sure. You seriously did beat it up earnestly. If it was a normal bird instead of a high-ranking magical beast, it would have lost all of its feathers without a single one remaining. However, while the two people shared an idle conversation, unexpected messages began to pop up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. You have succeeded in training a monster that was impossible for you to tame.You have satisfied the hidden class seal release condition.Your hidden class ¡®Taming Master¡¯ has evolved up by one stage.The tier of the ¡®Taming Master¡¯ class has evolved from tier 2 to tier 3.You have obtained a new hidden skill, ¡®Communion I¡¯.You have obtained a new hidden skill, ¡®Sacrifice I¡¯. Ian, who saw that, stopped his conversation with Cervian and immediately read through the messages. ¡®The tier of hidden classes evolve?¡¯ The information that was in Ian¡¯s head was being readjusted with the messages he just checked. ¡®I was speculating that the Taming Master was at least a tier-3 hidden class.¡¯ The reason why Ian had assumed that the tier of the Taming Master was tier 3 was simple. The hidden class that Ian could have originally obtained, the ¡®Dragon Tamer¡¯, was known to be a tier-3 hidden class. Even within the same tier, a ranking difference between the classes existed, so then, the Taming Master, which Oakley said was a higher-class than the Dragon Tamer, was calculated to at least be over tier 3. ¡®Alright, then if we organize this, the concept of high-ranking classes that Oakley talked about, is it decided based on the standard of the maximum tier where evolution is possible?¡¯ If it wasn¡¯t this concept, the fact that the Taming Master, which was a tier-2 hidden class up until now, being a higher ranking class than the Dragon Tamer, which was fundamentally a tier-3 hidden class, didn¡¯t make sense. However, there was even less of a chance that Oakley stated false information to Ian. ¡®I heard that Red Flame Magician Remir had evolved her class to the Monarch of the Red Flame through a specific class quest. However, in the case of the Taming Master, do you have to meet a specific condition instead of a quest in order for it to evolve? This is somehow really confusing.¡¯ However, there was a part that Ian knew mistakenly. The Red Flame Magician, which was the past hidden class of Remir, and the Monarch of the Red Flame, which was her current class, truthfully just had similar names, but they weren¡¯t class evolutions of each other. Remir had just newly class-changed to a high-ranking class through a quest. If you wanted to obstinately find a correlation, it was just the fact that the condition to receive the quest to class-change into the Monarch of the Red Flame was to have the class called the Red Flame Magician. However, Remir had understood this as that she had evolved into a higher-ranking class than her original one, and so that was why it had been widely known as that being the case. There was no rule that there wasn¡¯t another class like the Taming Master where it self-evolved its tier, but it was at least certain that it was the only one so far. ¡®Firstly, I need to check the new skills that I obtained a little, and now I have a lot that I have to organize.¡¯ As his hunting method could change depending on what the new hidden skills he obtained were, Ian hurriedly began to clean up the laboratory. He wanted to quickly finish up Yankoun¡¯s purification quest and Cervian¡¯s quest, and check the new skills he obtained. Ian turned his head towards Cervian. ¡°Cervian, where do I have left now?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Cervian, who was blankly thinking about something else, was surprised as he replied. Where do you have left now, what do you mean by that? ¡°You asked me to wipe out all of the contaminated magical beasts that were in the laboratory. I¡¯m asking so that I can sweep up the all of the remaining areas quickly.¡± Cervian was astonished as he spoke. Ho, don¡¯t you think you should rest a little? ¡°I¡¯m alright. I want to rest after I¡¯ve quickly finished this up.¡± Ho, is being young good¡­ No, this is tremendous willpower that cannot be explained with the word youth. Cervian, who was in awe at Ian¡¯s infinite stamina, pointed out each and every one of the areas where the magical beasts were not wiped out yet. And the retainers and Familiars of Ian, who had been sitting and resting comfortably while Ian fought desperately with the Rakyel, also couldn¡¯t help but step foot into the world of hunting hell again now. Ugh¡­ I liked watching the owner fight on his own.Whew, still, as we rested for quite a long time, I do feel energized. They did grumble, but the Familiars began to move based on Ian¡¯s commands without any particular complaints as well. And the retainers that had a maximum sense of Loyalty to Ian due to his high Fame were obeying Ian¡¯s commands exactly as he stated them without a murmur. It was to the point that even Kaizar had a sense of Loyalty that was over 30 now. ¡°Alright, there¡¯s not much left now! Let¡¯s keep going strong a little longer!¡± The retainers and Familiars moved along to Ian¡¯s encouragement without flaws, and as about three or four more hours passed like that, the system message stating that they had killed all of the magical beasts that were in the laboratory finally popped up. Ring-. You have succeeded in killing all of the contaminated magical beasts that were in the ¡®Destroyed Laboratory of Cervian¡¯. (375/375)You have achieved all the conditions of clearing the ¡®Beginning of Magical Beast Alchemy (Hidden) (Connected)¡¯ quest.Find ¡®Cervian¡¯ and talk to him. It was only then that it seemed that Ian relaxed, as he plopped down into the chair that was in the corner of the laboratory. Of course, without needing to go separately and find him, Cervian floated right next to Ian. Ian¡¯s head turned towards Cervian. ¡°Cervian, it seems that they¡¯ve all been taken care of now.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Cervian nodded his head as he replied with a pleased expression. Huhu, great job, Ian. Young man, you were an individual far more outstanding than what I expected. You have spite, as well as perseverance¡­ I like you. As Cervian¡¯s words ended, the quest completion message popped up. Ring-. You have successfully cleared the ¡®Beginning of Magical Beast Alchemy (Hidden) (Connected)¡¯ quest.Clear Rank: SSSYou have obtained 57,989,900 EXP.You have obtained 400 thousand Fame.Cervian has started to put great trust in you. Ian needed to put in effort into maintaining his expression. ¡®I thought that because I spent a lot of time battling the Rakyel, my clear rank would be about an A at best.¡¯ The time that it took Ian to proceed through the quest was definitely quite longer than the standard time. However, because Cervian constantly watched Ian¡¯s battles while following him, and in that process also saw him succeed in capturing the Rakyel, he received an incredibly high execution grade. Ian slightly bowed his head towards Cervian as he responded. ¡°Thank you for the excessive compliment. I, well¡­ I just diligently knocked out the magical beasts, I guess.¡± You¡¯ve suddenly become unfittingly modest. At Cervian¡¯s sharp comment, Ian slightly flinched, but he soon shook his head with a brazen expression. ¡°No way. I¡¯m always like this.¡± ¡­ Either way, the Beginning of Magical Beast Alchemy quest was a hidden quest as well as connected one, so following that, a new quest window popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring-. The Beginning of Magical Beast Alchemy II (Hidden) (Connected) Devil Summoner Cervian, the first Half-Devil Elf, has acknowledged your Leadership, which is the first qualification of a Summoner. He is in awe at your fighting abilities, and will now begin the second test. The second qualification that Cervian thinks a Summoner needs is the ability to tame Familiars. After capturing at least three low-ranking magical beasts, return to Cervian. Quest Difficulty Level: S Quest Requirement: A user that has passed Cervian¡¯s first test. A user that is ¡®Half-Human, Half-Devil¡¯. Time Limit: None Reward: Chaos Stone x10, Low-ranking Magic Alchemy Stones x10 Will you accept the quest? Ian, who read through the quest content, slightly frowned. ¡®What the hell? The quest requirement is a user that is Half-Human, Half-Devil. If I want to continue to proceed through, then I need to go visit Yankoun first in the end, no?¡¯ While wiping out all of the contaminated magical beasts of the laboratory, he naturally found the source where contaminated evil spirits came from. Because that was the case, if he just went to the City of Rage now and looked for Yankoun, Ian could put the Pure Blood of the Devil into his hands and become Half-Human, Half-Devil. ¡®Okay. Then for now, after I¡¯ve slept, it looks like I¡¯ll have to go to the City of Rage first. As I have a Premium Seal of the Devil, there probably won¡¯t be a case where I¡¯ll need to meet a chief gatekeeper even up to Zone 100, right?¡¯ While Ian was having such thoughts, Cervian opened his mouth all of a suddenly. In order to test your qualifications a little more, I was originally going to give you a capturing assignment. ¡°Huh?¡± I was going to give you an assignment where you were to capture low-rank magical beasts once you obtained the Pure Blood of the Devil and became Half-Devil. Ian narrowed his eyes as he asked back. ¡°But?¡± But as I have seen the scene of you capturing a Rakyel, which is a high-ranking magical beast, in a state where you haven¡¯t even obtained the power of a Half-Human, Half-Devil, what meaning would this assignment have? ¡°¡­?¡± In front of the eyes of Ian, who was wearing a puzzled expression, a system message popped up again. You have successfully cleared the ¡®Beginning of Magical Beast Alchemy II (Hidden) (Connected)¡¯ quest. For a moment, he let out a ¡°Eh?¡± noise before he even realized it himself. Clear Rank: SSSYou have obtained 35,482,300 EXP.You have obtained 200 thousand Fame.You have obtained 10 of the ¡®Chaos Stone¡¯ item, and 10 of the ¡®Low-ranking Magic Alchemy Stone¡¯ item. Ian felt like he was on cloud nine. ¡®What the hell? I lucked out on this quest.¡¯ He had cleared one of the connected quests just like that. Amongst the items that he obtained as a reward, he had no idea where the ¡®Low-ranking Magic Alchemy Stones¡¯ were used, but he decided to ask Cervian that later. Since for now, in this situation, it was more important to figure out how the quest would proceed from now on. ¡°Cervian, then what do I need to do now?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Cervian furrowed his brows as he replied. Are you really asking because you don¡¯t know? ¡°Sorry?¡± Of course, you must obtain the Pure Blood of the Devil. ¡°Ah¡­¡± If you return after obtaining the Pure Blood of the Devil and turning into a Half-Human, Half-Devil, I will give the next assignment to you. I have no idea how long it will take, but if it is you, Ian, you¡¯ll probably obtain it within a couple months. The statement ¡®I think I could obtain it by tomorrow, though?¡¯ almost reflexively popped out of Ian¡¯s mouth but he held it back for now. ¡®Well, since it¡¯s not late even if I told him after obtaining it first.¡¯ Cervian¡¯s words continued. While you are obtaining the Pure Blood of the Devil, I will normalize this laboratory again. ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that you couldn¡¯t exert force because you¡¯re in a spirit state?¡± Of course, that¡¯s true. ¡°Then how¡­?¡± There¡¯s a way for me to repair the laboratory even though I do not personally move. As Cervian wagged his finger, a low-ranking devil suddenly popped out of the corner of the laboratory. ¡°Keu, long time, no see, owner.¡± Towards Ian, who was looking back and forth at the devil and Cervian with a quizzical expression, Cervian shrugged his shoulders as he spoke. As you can see, I have an assistant here. CH 212 Chapter 212: The City of Rage (1) TL: Haku Editor: ren Ian, who had completed Cervian¡¯s quest, logged back into Kailan again after coming out of the capsule and resting. ¡°Am I finally going to the City of Rage now?¡± Before Ian headed to the City of Rage, he thought that he needed time for some self-maintenance. ¡®There¡¯s a lot of random items, and I also need to check the new skills I obtained¡­¡¯ Because he had hunted a ton of magical beasts during this time, it was a situation where he had gathered over hundreds of Magic Stones alone. He had gathered over three hundred or so Lowest-grade Magic Stones, and especially after seeing that he had 36 Low-grade Magic Stones and even 3 Intermediate-grade Magic Stones, Ian wore an incredibly satisfied expression. Lowest-grade Magic Stones and Low-grade Magic Stones were items that had clearly different rankings. ¡°Whew, I feel like I¡¯ve caught hundreds of intermediate-ranking magical beasts as well, though. It looks like the higher the rank of the Magic Stone, the more atrocious the drop rate is for them.¡± Ian opened up the information of the Low-grade Magic Stone first. Low-grade Magic Stone Classification: Miscellaneous goods Rank: None Durability: 50/50 A rare and precious treasure that contains highly-purified energy of the Devildom. Equipment can be made stronger if the Magic Stone is used. *Low-grade Magic Stones can only be used on equipment that are below +10 fortification. *The chance of succeeding in fortifying equipment is incredibly low, and in the case that fortification fails, the fortification rank will drop by 0-2 levels. ¡®It looks like the 10th fortification is the limit with Low-grade Magic Stones, and differently from Lowest-grade Magic Stones, the level even drops if in case fortification fails. Then, is the Intermediate-grade Magic Stone an item that can be used up to the 15th fortification?¡¯ Ian, who finished figuring things out, opened the information of the Intermediate-grade Magic Stone. Intermediate-grade Magic Stone Classification: Miscellaneous goods Rank: None Durability: 50/50 A gemstone containing highly-enriched magic that only devils who are Intermediate-rank or higher carry around. Equipment can be made stronger if the Intermediate-grade Magic Stone is used. *Intermediate-grade Magic Stones can only be used on equipment that are below +15 fortification. *The chance of succeeding in fortifying equipment is incredibly low, and in the case that fortification fails, the fortification rank will drop by 1-3 levels. ¡®Hmm? If I fail in fortifying Intermediate-grade Magic Stones, then the fortification level could even drop by 3 levels.¡¯ In other words, this meant that even if he worked hard to reach the 14th fortification, if a critical failure popped up, he would slide down to the 11th fortification again. ¡®I can¡¯t even imagine how many Intermediate-grade Magic Stones I would need in order to raise it up to the 15th fortification.¡¯ Ian decided to try fortifying the Judgment of the Spirit King more for now. ¡°Since it¡¯s not like my items are going to be destroyed anyways. As I have enough Lowest-grade Magic Stones, even if the fortification level drops a little, I should be able to bring it back up to the 5thfortification again.¡± After taking a deep breath, Ian pulled out the Low-grade Magic Stones and used it on the Judgment of the Spirit King. ¡°Hmph!¡± You have succeeded in fortifying the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ item!The ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ item has been fortified from +5 fortification to +6 fortification.Fortification result Offensive Power: 2730-3008 ¡ú 2912-3208 All Combat Stats +225 ¡ú All Combat Stats +240 Leadership +300 ¡ú Leadership +320 Affinity +225 ¡ú Affinity +240 Ian, who had succeeded in raising it to the 6th fortification with just one try, checked the fortification result with a pleased expression. ¡°Keu, the maximum Offensive Power has gone over 3 thousand! I wonder what the stats of the Judgment of the Spirit King were before I fortified it.¡± Ian pulled out his notebook and checked the stats that he had jotted down. ¡°The maximum Offensive Power, which was 2005 at first, has gone up to 3208. I¡¯m now certain that even if the fortification level increases, it continuously goes up by 10% of the beginning stats.¡± Ian checked all of the other stats, as he was so excited, and he discovered the fact that it was applied in the same manner to all stats. ¡°Good, good. Then shall I keep going until the 10th fortification?¡± Ian took a deep breath again, and activated the Low-grade Magic Stone. ¡°Please!¡± However, Ian¡¯s luck didn¡¯t continue to follow through. You have failed in fortifying the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ item!The fortification level of the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ item has dropped from +6 fortification to +4 fortification. ¡°¡­¡± Contrary from the successful fortification, where it was engulfed in a golden light and shone brightly, when it failed, a somber grey light radiated from it. Somehow, Ian felt like he was going to cry. ¡°Ha, how could it drop 2 levels, and in one go, too¡­¡± However, because he had hundreds of Lowest-grade Magic Stones anyways, getting back up to the 5th fortification was not hard. ¡°Let¡¯s see who wins this!¡± Ian began to smear on the fortification stones. You have succeeded in fortifying the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ item!The ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ item has fortified from +4 fortification to +5 fortification.You have failed in fortifying the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ item!The fortification level of the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ item has been maintained at +5 fortification.You have succeeded in fortifying the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ item!The ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ item has fortified from +5 fortification to +6 fortification. Like that, when he had only 2 of the 36 Low-grade Magic Stones left, he was able to make his Judgment of the Spirit King item reach +9 fortification, fortunately with constant successful fortifications. ¡®Ha, ha, why is the mental power consumption greater for this than it is for when I hunt?¡¯ The number of Low-grade Magic Stones he had left were 2. Ian began to feel conflicted. ¡®Should I just go for it like a man?¡¯ Much like a patient with hand tremors, Ian¡¯s hand, which was holding the Magic Stone, began to tremble. ¡®No. If I was to drop by even 2 levels here¡­ I seriously might want to cry.¡¯ Ian normally was far from being someone who was indecisive, but this current situation brought forth an incredible conflict, even to Ian. And Kaizar, who stood next to him watching him, spoke with a dry voice. ¡°Lord guy. Why are you agonizing over something like this, it¡¯s so unlike you.¡± At that, Ian immediately flew off the handle. ¡°Retainer guy, think about it. If the item that I was fortifying was your weapon, do you think you could be that comfortable?¡± ¡°Ahem¡­¡± It was a situation where the Offensive Power of the weapon went back and forth between an extra 200-300 or not from just one fortification. Kaizar¡¯s pupil, who thought about that, trembled slightly. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Lord guy. I didn¡¯t think of that thoroughly.¡± ¡°Whew¡­ Inner peace.¡± Ian, who calmed down his heart, eventually opened his mouth again. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s just go for it! That¡¯s just life, right? If I fail, I fail!¡± Ian, who had finally succeeded in emptying his heart, lifted the Low-grade Magic Stone and covered his eyes with his left hand. ¡°Lord guy, why are you covering your eyes when you said you¡¯ve emptied your heart?¡± ¡°Shut up!¡± Ian shut his eyes tightly and he used the remaining 2 Magic Stones, one after another. Since if he was to succeed in fortifying with the first Magic Stone, because he would reach the 10thfortification, the remaining one Magic Stone wouldn¡¯t be used either way. However, unfortunately, all 2 of Ian¡¯s Low-grade Magic Stones let out a white light as they disappeared. You have failed in fortifying the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ item!The fortification level of the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ item has dropped from +9 fortification to +8 fortification.You have failed in fortifying the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ item!The fortification level of the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ item has been maintained at +8 fortification. The result of both tries were all failures. However, Ian let out a sigh of relief. ¡°Whew, still, it hasn¡¯t dropped past the 8th fortification. What a relief¡­¡± Ian, who almost collapsed the moment that grey light oozed out, was relieved after seeing that it was still maintained at the 8th fortification. Kaizar, who watched him, comforted Ian. ¡°Still, at least you¡¯ve raised it up to the 8th fortification, Lord guy. Now fortify my weapon.¡± At Kaizar¡¯s words, Ian nodded his head weakly. ¡°Sure. Since I have a lot of Lowest-grade Magic Stones, I¡¯ll fortify everything to at least the 5thfortification.¡± Ian smeared the Lowest-grade Magic Stones onto Kaizar¡¯s equipment as he mumbled internally. ¡®Now, until I have a pile of at least 50 Low-grade Magic Stones, I shouldn¡¯t even glance at it¡­ As expected, fortifying items is not good for your mental health.¡¯ * * * ¡°Alright, we¡¯ve also finally entered the Devildom!¡± A boy jumped down from the portal as he clenched his fist tightly. Kanjihoonie smiled brightly as he looked at Canoel, who followed behind him. ¡°Hyung, we¡¯ve also finally entered the Devildom. Although, it did take a little longer than I expected.¡± At that, Canoel smiled bashfully as he replied. ¡°Well, that¡¯s because I¡¯m a burden. If you proceeded with the quest on your own, you would have already entered two weeks ago, so I¡¯m sorry about that, yo.¡± It had almost been a month since the Devildom had opened. And just as Canoel said, if Hoonie had moved on his own, he probably would have stepped foot into the Devildom about two weeks ago. ¡°Huhu, it¡¯s alright, hyung. The greatest Black Magician of Kailan can¡¯t go around hearing from others that he has no loyalty, right?¡± ¡°Keu, as expected, Hoonie, I have no one but you to turn to.¡± ¡°Huhuhut, even from now on, you just need to believe in this Hoonie.¡± Hoonie slowly looked around at his surroundings. And he was able to discover his first group, which was fighting Low-rank magical beasts from afar. ¡°Hyung, shall we slowly get moving now as well?¡± At Hoonie¡¯s words, Canoel asked back with a devious expression. ¡°We should¡­ But what are you planning we do first?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ We should probably get past Zone 120 for now, right?¡± The current place the two people were located was Zone 129 of the Devildom. As it was quite a long and rough path up to Zone 120, Canoel wore a slightly surprised expression. ¡°Eh? Are you planning on proceeding through the quest first? Don¡¯t you think it would be best that we spend a little time getting used to here for now?¡± Canoel¡¯s words were words that had enough of a point, but Hoonie shook his head as he wagged his finger. From the beginning, he had not been saying that they should get through Zone 120 for the quest. ¡°No, hyung, before we proceed through the quest, there¡¯s something else we must do.¡± ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Hoonie wore a significant smile as he replied with a low voice. ¡°We need to go look for Ian hyung. We need to stick right next to him in order for a large amount of crumbs to fall.¡± ¡°Ian hyungnim[1]?¡± Hoonie nodded his head vigorously. ¡°I have no idea what that hyung did, but he¡¯s a monster that entered the Devildom within 3 minutes from when it opened. It could even be possible that he made a devil his retainer by now and is commanding them around.¡± ¡°¡­¡± When thought about rationally, Hoonie¡¯s words didn¡¯t even make sense. Since based on the information that was revealed onto the community by LB Corp., they wouldn¡¯t be able to even take a look at the toes of the devil until they entered through Zone 100. However, for some reason, Canoel was strongly flooded with the feeling that Hoonie¡¯s joke may be the reality. ¡®Seriously, that hyung seemed like someone that was born to game.¡¯ Either way, Canoel also wanted to see Ian, who had made him into a human-like Familiar user. ¡°Sure, let¡¯s go, Hoon. Since my fighting power has gotten quite strong as well, I should also be enough help. If we combine our strength, we should be able to get through Zone 120.¡± After Canoel finished talking, her turned his head slightly and looked to his left. ¡°That¡¯s right, no, Orden?¡± And in that spot, a young black dragon that hadn¡¯t fully grown yet let out a breath through its nose towards Canoel. ¡°Grr-.¡± [1] Hyungnim = used when someone is trying to show even higher respect to someone older that they are quite close to. CH 213 Chapter 213: The City of Rage (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda From Zone 107 of the Devildom, where the laboratory was, to Zone 100, where their destination, the City of Rage, was, Ian¡¯s party passed through freely. Fundamentally, the smaller the number attached to the zone was, the more the monsters of the Devildom became stronger. However, when the first digit changed, it wasn¡¯t to the point that it really hit them, but whenever the tenth digit changed, it was a system where they drastically grew stronger by one phase. Because that was the case, with the fighting power of Ian, who broke through Zone 107 without any difficulties, they could get through Zone 100 easily as well. On top of that, the fact that he used all of his magic stones and grew another step stronger also played a big part. His ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯, which had become a monster-like weapon with over 3 thousand Offensive Power, pierced through the skin of the magical beasts as if he was cutting through tofu. ¡®And the skills that I¡¯ve newly obtained are incredible as expected, too.¡¯ After Ian had succeeded in raising the tier of his ¡®Taming Master¡¯ class by one step, he had obtained two new hidden skills. The ¡®Communion I¡¯ skill, which was one of them, had a function close to a utility skill, while ¡®Sacrifice I¡¯, the other one, had the characteristics of a battle assisting skill. However, both skills were the same in that they were skills that assisted in increasing Ian¡¯s fighting power immensely. Ian firstly looked at the ¡®Communion I¡¯ skill. Communion I Classification: Passive skill Skill level: Lv 0 Proficiency: 0% Cooldown time: None Duration: No limit (In the case that the distance between the Familiar and the Summoner is greater than the span of control of the Summoner, a 300-minute restriction time will form. If the Familiar is still outside of the span of control of the Summoner even after the restriction time is over, the Familiar will forcibly be Summon Released.) Conditions for Use: This is a passive skill that can only be applied to Familiars with maximum Affinity with their Summoner. Exceptional Summoners are able to deeply commune with their Familiars. If your Communion skill develops past a limit, Summoners will be able to handle their Familiars in a place that they aren¡¯t even in as well. Also, even if the Summoner is to log off, their Familiars can be kept in a summoned state for a fixed time. *The higher the Proficiency of ¡®Communion I¡¯ grows to, the greater the span of control of the Familiars, as well as the longer the time the Familiars are kept outside of the span of control. *Once the Proficiency of the ¡®Communion I¡¯ skill reaches its maximum potential, the ¡®Communion II¡¯ skill may be opened. Just at a glance, the ¡®Communion I¡¯ skill had content that was hard to understand. However, Ian, who had a higher degree of understanding of Summoners more exceptional than any other, was able to immediately understand exactly how to use the skill and its point the moment he read the content of the skill. ¡®If you read it without much thought, you could understand it just as a passive skill that increases the range to control Familiars, but the true value of this skill is not there.¡¯ The range that a Summoner can control a Familiar is fundamentally proportionate to their ¡®Leadership¡¯ stat. However, to be honest, that doesn¡¯t have a lot of meaning. This was because the control range itself was fundamentally enough. The maximum range that Ian could control his Familiars in was almost 800-900 metres, and even Ian hardly had any cases where he used all of this range and lead a battle. In other words, it meant that the range growing bigger wasn¡¯t much help in battles. ¡®From the beginning, it¡¯s hard to even see an opponent that is close to a kilometre away with the naked eye, so why would you send a Familiar that far away and control them.¡¯ As that was the case, the core ability of this skill was a different part. ¡®The ability that allows Familiars to move even after the Summoner logs out. This is the truly sweet function.¡¯ This skill had the ability to allow Familiars that were outside of the control range of the Summoner or when the Summoner was not logged onto the game to continue battling for a maximum of 300 minutes. To Ian, who found even the time that passed by for situations where he needed to leave the game unavoidably like when he slept or ate, this skill presented an ability that was the same as an incredible treasure. ¡®Now, even when I¡¯m lying on my bed sleeping, my Familiars will be able to level up!¡¯ Ian thought of the time that he spent raising the God Dragon Karceus from level 1. Because he just leveled up Karceus without being able to summon any other Familiar as he lacked Leadership, right now, the level of Ian¡¯s Familiars was quite low compared to Ian¡¯s character. Since there was a difference of at least 3 levels to a maximum of even 15 levels. However, with this ability, it would be an instant for the Familiars to catch up to Ian¡¯s level again. ¡®I¡¯ll work them hard.¡¯ Ian¡¯s plot would be enough to make his Familiars freak out indeed if they found out. ¡®For now, after I¡¯ve finished the quests that I¡¯m currently proceeding with, I should designate a hunting ground to each Familiar.¡¯ Ian hummed to himself. Kaizar approached Ian, who was thinking about this and that while laughing. ¡°It seems like we¡¯re almost at the end of Zone 101 now as well.¡± At Kaizar¡¯s words, Ian nodded his head. ¡°You¡¯re right. We might be able to enter Zone 100 before I log out today if we¡¯re lucky.¡± Kaizar, who slightly started a conversation with Ian, lifted his greatsword and pushed it towards Ian as he got to the point. ¡°But Lord guy, can¡¯t you fortify my greatsword a little more? Raise my sword up to the 8th fortification like your spear.¡± ¡°I¡¯m lacking magic stones, retainer guy. Later, when I have a lot more magic stones, I¡¯ll do it for you.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t lie. I saw you put over 5 Low-grade Magic Stones into your bag.¡± ¡°¡­ Either way, not now. Later.¡± ¡°Tsk.¡± ¡°Go over there and help Ly and Bbakbbak instead. How can you be relaxing when you¡¯re the strongest?¡± ¡°Alright, Ian. But you have to fortify my sword when we arrive at the City of Rage or whatever.¡± Ian nodded his head reluctantly as he replied. ¡°Ah, alright. So, hurry and go work, retainer guy.¡± As Kaizar, who was excited at the words that he would fortify his weapon, bolted forward like lightning, Ian shook his head. ¡®Ha, Kaizar has a greed for items greater than most users. Well, still, should I just find comfort that his Loyalty goes up little by little every time I fortify his equipment¡­?¡¯ Kaizar was still the greatest fighting power of the party. For the Loyalty of Kaizar, who was like that, to be going up indirectly meant an increase in Ian¡¯s fighting power. Of course, even if he doesn¡¯t listen to Ian¡¯s words, Kaizar knocked out opponents severely, but since if his Loyalty went up and he could use him strategically, he would become an even more amazing fighting power. ¡®Speaking of which, when does Halli¡¯s unable to battle state end?¡¯ Ian opened the Familiar window and checked the state of Halli. Familiar Halli ¨C Rank: Legendary / State: Unable to battle (Remaining time: 02:49:23) Halli was in a state where he couldn¡¯t be summoned for close to another 3 hours. However, Halli hadn¡¯t gone into an unable to battle state from receiving damage during a battle. Ian had used ¡®Sacrifice I¡¯, another hidden skill he newly obtained, on Halli, so that was why he was in an unable to battle state. ¡®The disadvantage of having to down-level by 1 is definitely big, but since there¡¯s no other buff like this amongst the ones I have.¡¯ The ¡®Sacrifice I¡¯ skill was a skill where one Familiar that the Summoner possessed was ¡®sacrificed¡¯ as the name stated, and for a fixed amount of time, an enormous buff was given to the whole team. The skill information was the same as the following. Sacrifice I Classification: Active skill Skill level: Lv 0 Proficiency: 0% Cooldown time: 320 minutes Duration: 300 minutes Conditions for Use: A Familiar that is currently summoned, or it is even possible to use on the Summoner themselves. This cannot be used on other users or NPCs, or the Familiars of other users. The sacrifice of a fellow Familiar brings sadness and anger at the same time to the party. The party will obtain a powerful buff proportionate to the fighting power of the Familiar (Or the Familiar themselves). Movement speed: +(The level of the sacrificed Familiar/3)% Cooldown time ¨C(The level of the sacrificed Familiar/5)% Combat abilities: +(The level of the sacrificed Familiar/2)% *The sacrificed subject will receive the same penalty as when they die on the battlefield. *The buff is applied to the Summoner themselves, all of the Familiars they possess, as well as their retainers. (It is not applied to other users or NPCs that are in the same party.) *If the Sacrifice ability is used on the Summoner themselves instead of a Familiar, the Summoner will float around the battleground in a spirit state for the duration of the battle. (Opponents cannot be attacked when in a spirit state, and not one skill can be used.) Once the spiritual state is over, the Summoner will automatically be logged out of the game, and just like if they were to die, they will not be able to log on to the game for 24 hours. Also, if the Summoner uses the Sacrifice ability on themselves, the coefficient of all buffs and the duration time will be applied as double the amount. *The higher the Proficiency of ¡®Sacrifice I¡¯, the greater the buff coefficient grows little by little, and the duration time will increase by a lot. *Once the ¡®Sacrifice I¡¯ skill reaches maximum Proficiency, the ¡®Sacrifice II¡¯ skill will be opened. As much as it was there was a lot to lose, it was indeed a skill that had a buff effect that was more amazing than any other ones. Ian used the Sacrifice skill on Halli as a test, and he saw great results from its power. ¡®For the 5-hour duration of the buff, it seriously felt like my fighting power had gotten twice as strong.¡¯ Halli was a Familiar that specialized in reflexes, and as the other Familiars and retainers obtained 50% of all of the stats of Halli, who was like this, its effectiveness was incredible. Even Bbakbbak, who had the slowest reflexes, was able to possess a reflexivity that was higher than an Upper Intermediate monster. ¡®On top of that, the cooldown time of all skills were reduced by 34%. All movement speed has increased by 56.6%.¡¯ Because Halli was a lv 170, a coefficient of 34%, which was one-fifth of the value, was applied to decrease the cooldown time, and their movements speed quickened to 56.6% from the one-third of the value. ¡®The penalty of a decrease by 1 level is tremendous, but still, it¡¯s an ability that I¡¯ll use every now and then.¡¯ It was a skill that he needed to use when he was in a boss battle where he was facing a boss that would be difficult to handle or when he was in an important territory war. Ian organized his thoughts and looked around at his Familiars that were in the middle of a battle with the magical beasts. ¡°We¡¯ll rest for about 2 hours as soon as we catch all of the ones that you¡¯re facing right now!¡± At Ian¡¯s words, the Familiars rejoiced. Ooh, I think the owner has eaten something weird!There¡¯s no way. We¡¯ve only hunted for 5 hours, but we¡¯re resting for a whole 2 hours!It¡¯s hard to believe. However, the real reason why Ian was trying to rest was not because he truly wanted to. It was because of his thought of wanting to enter Zone 100 after the duration of Halli¡¯s unable to battle state was over. ¡®Since there¡¯s no way of telling what kind of dangers will be in Zone 100 as well¡­¡¯ Ian pulled out and held the Judgment of the Spirit King that he had on his back as he headed towards the front. ¡°Let¡¯s wipe out all of them quickly and go rest, guys!¡± The Familiars, who had obtained strength from Ian¡¯s shout, ignited their fighting spirit even more as they began to hunt the magical beasts. Understood, owner! Karceus opened his mouth widely as he began to suck in a breath. Alright, I will barbeque all of them! CH 214 Chapter 214: The City of Rage (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Before anybody realized, it had been 30 days since the Devildom had opened. The users¡¯ interest in the Devildom grew even more to the point that a separate bulletin board related to the Devildom was made in the official Kailan community. Now, even most decent top-ranking users had succeeded in receiving related quests and had entered the Devildom, and because of this, the number of users that had entered the Devildom far surpassed a couple ten thousand. On top of that, because Yankoun, who guarded the point to get into Zone 119 through Zone 120, was defeated, there were even over thousands of users that had entered into the 110-range Zones. To be honest, besides Ian, not one user knew of the existence of the chief gatekeeper that guarded Zone 120. However, the portal of Zone 120 didn¡¯t remain a free pass forever. Ack, what exactly happened here? I finally got through Zone 121 today, and entered Zone 120, but there¡¯s a chief gatekeeper at the portal that¡¯s at the end of Zone 120!Huh? What are you talking about? I just passed through Zone 120 yesterday and am in the middle of hunting in Zone 119 right now.Hul, guys, this is a serious problem. Apparently, a chief gatekeeper suddenly appeared at the portal in Zone 120 this morning.Huh¡­? Was there always such a thing?Person above, you¡¯re behind on information. The fact that Zone chief gatekeepers exist already emerged a week ago. Several rankers already reached Zone 110 as well, but because the chief gatekeeper there is incredibly strong, apparently nobody has been able to pass through yet. They say that the best rankers are forming a raid party in order to catch the chief gatekeeper of Zone 110¡­ To think that a chief gatekeeper would appear in Zone 120 as well.Aaack! Then will the latecomers not be able to get through Zone 120 now?That¡¯s right. Not only will they not be able to enter through, but if you use a return stone and go back to a village, you won¡¯t be able to return to your original hunting ground again.Ha¡­ Will nobody catch the chief gatekeeper here?Apparently, they¡¯re at lv 350 or something like that, so who would catch a monster like that? They could maybe be brought down if a full party of 20 top-ranking players went after it¡­Pfft, person above. I don¡¯t think it will be to that extent. Even if it¡¯s a monster that¡¯s in the lv 350-range, I feel like even if just four of five users in the top 10 gathered, they¡¯ll be able to catch it.Is it easy pulling together four or five of the top 10 users then?But then again¡­ That would be difficult as well. Exactly in the spot that Yankoun disappeared from, a new chief gatekeeper had appeared. Thanks to that, the price of Low-grade Magic Stones, which only dropped from Zone 120 and onwards, began to skyrocket. Of course, Ian, who didn¡¯t really have much interest in what the market price of Magic Stones were, just melted all of his Magic Stones on fortifying his weapon as soon as he obtained some. ¡°Whew, I¡¯ve failed at making it reach the 10th fortification this time as well.¡± Along with the message that stated that the fortification failed, Ian wore a disappointed expression as he looked at the Judgment of the Spirit King, which had stopped at the 9th fortification. ¡°For crying out loud, I asked for my sword to be fortified as well, but he keeps fortifying for himself.¡± Ian assured Kaizar, who grumbled next to him. ¡°Once I just make this spear reach 10th fortification, I will give you all of my Low-grade Magic Stones to fortify your greatsword, retainer. Just be patient.¡± ¡°Ahem, if that¡¯s the case, then¡­¡± While Ian bickered with Kaizar, the party was able to enter into a deep part of Zone 100 before they realized. And shortly after, a giant fortress appeared before Ian¡¯s eyes. ¡°Ooh, it looks like it¡¯s over there.¡± At Ian¡¯s mumbling, Paulean, who followed behind him silently, replied. ¡°It looks like that¡¯s the case, Lord. I think this is the first time I¡¯ve seen a fortress in the Devildom.¡± Having discovered his destination, Ian¡¯s footsteps grew quicker, and as he got closer to it, exclamations naturally poured out of the mouths of the party members. The giant and grand fortress, which had pointed protrusions shooting up out from here and there, showed off a visual of a demon fortress that seriously looked like it would only exist in hell. ¡°Keu, it actually seems like we¡¯ve come to the Devildom.¡± At Ian¡¯s exclamation, Celia, who was next to him, carefully picked on his words. ¡°Lord, this actually is the Devildom.¡± At that, Ian wore an embarrassed expression as he scratched the back of his head. ¡°Ah¡­ That, that¡¯s right.¡± The party that had been walking along the fortress that sheltered the City of Rage was able to discover the entrance which led to the inside at the end of their roughly 10-minute long fast walking. The entrance was blocked off by a giant fortress gate that seemed to easily be about 10-metres tall, and in front of it, rough-looking devils guarded it. ¡®It looks like they are guards¡­¡¯ Ian, who checked the information of the devils, gulped loudly as he approached them carefully. This was because although they may have been guards, the levels of devils were close to 300. ¡°Ah, ahem.¡± As Ian, who had approached them, cleared his throat, the gazes of the guards gathered towards Ian. ¡°Who are you? This is not a place where other races besides devils can carelessly enter.¡± As one of the devils said that, his large eyes glared at Ian as he looked up and down at him. Ian, who studied every face, let out a sigh of relief internally. ¡®Whew, still, they didn¡¯t just attack immediately. I was worried about what to do if they swung around their spears before I showed them the seal.¡¯ Ian checked the information of the devil that spoke to him again. The General of Public Order of the City of Rage Heiska / Level: 325 ¡®No wonder, the ugliest one is the roughest one amongst them.¡¯ Ian¡¯s mouth slowly opened. ¡°I am Ian, a user that has received a request from Yankoun, one of the Twelve Chosen Generals of the Devildom.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, the expression of Heiska, who was wearing an incredibly hostile face, changed completely. ¡°Hmm¡­! Human, how do you know Yankoun?¡± Ian contemplated if he should explain the content of the quest in detail, but for now, he pulled out the seal from his inventory. ¡°I feel like it will be too long to explain all of that, so I will just show you the Seal of the Devil that I obtained from Yankoun.¡± Heiska, who received the Premium Seal of the Devil that Ian handed to him, wore an even more surprised expression a moment later. ¡°No, this is¡­ The Premium Seal of the Devil!¡± Along with the words of Heiska, who was flustered, the devil soldiers that were guarding the entrance of the City of Rage bowed their heads towards Ian all at once. ¡°I¡¯ve disrespected such a nobleman. I hope you will forgive me¡­¡± As he said that, Ian wore an even more flustered expression at the excessive reaction instead. ¡®Hmm? Was this thing this great of an item?¡¯ Ian didn¡¯t exactly know this, but the Premium Seal of the Devil was not an item that could be obtained so easily. Truthfully, the Premium Seal of the Devil, which Ian had just perceived as an item that anybody could obtain once they defeated a chief gatekeeper, was an item that could only be obtained if one received proper ¡®acknowledgement¡¯ from a devil that was at least a high-ranking one. It was an incredible item that allowed one to receive treatment from the low-ranking devils in accordance with high-ranking devils until the one that handed over the seal retrieved that ability again. Either way, Ian, who felt everything was going smoothly, headed towards the inside of the fortress gate without further delay. ¡°Either way, I can go inside then, right?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Heiska immediately nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. You can go in right away.¡± Ian headed towards the inside of the door as soon as he heard his response, and Ian¡¯s retainers also followed Ian and moved. However, just then, Heiska suddenly blocked off Ian. ¡°Wait!¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± Heiska blocked off Kaizar, who was following behind Ian, with his spear as he continued his words. ¡°Only you, Ian, can enter inside here.¡± As he was a little taken aback, Ian asked back. ¡°They are my retainers, so can¡¯t they?¡± ¡°No. Since the one that was acknowledged by Yankoun is you, Ian, not your retainers.¡± ¡°Tsk¡­¡± Ian was somewhat leery, but he couldn¡¯t do anything else but enter while leaving his retainers outside. ¡°Kaizar, I¡¯ll be back soon, so depending on the situation, if you see any weak magical beasts, just hunt carefully.¡± ¡°Got it, Lord guy. I will hunt down every last magical beast in this area.¡± ¡°This bluffing, though.¡± Kaizar was strong, but as it wasn¡¯t easy hunting magical beasts that were Intermediate-rank and higher without his Familiars, Ian just smirked. Heiska gave a couple more precautions towards Ian, who headed towards the inside of the fortress gate. ¡°Ah, lastly, if I was to give a couple more precautions, first of all, Yankoun is no longer one of the Twelve Chosen Generals now. I¡¯m okay with it, but as the people within the City of Rage may take it sensitively, please be careful of your words.¡± ¡°Ah, I see.¡± ¡°And if you are looking for Yankoun, he will be in the Tower of Punishment that stands in the middle of the central plaza.¡± Ian, who heard the name the Tower of Punishment, wore a quizzical expression as he mumbled internally. ¡®The Tower of Punishment? It gives off a prison-like feeling¡­ Either way, it looks like I¡¯ll have to meet up with Yankoun firstly.¡¯ After Ian slightly bowed his head towards the hospitable Heiska, he moved again. ¡°Thank you for the information. Then, I¡¯ll be off.¡± And system messages popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring-. You are the first to discover the ¡®City of Rage¡¯.Your Fame has increased by 500 thousand.You have obtained the title the ¡®Devildom Citizen¡¯.For a week from now on, the prices of all items that can be purchased in the City of Rage will be discounted by 15%.The Affinity of the citizens of the City of Rage has increased by 10. * * * Ian, who had entered into the inside of the City of Rage, immediately headed towards the central plaza that was in the middle of the city like Heiska advised. However, but because there was no reason for Ian to rush, he looked around the city as he walked slowly. Rather, the atmosphere of the City of Rage was generally tranquil to the point it was not much different from the cities of humans. ¡®Speaking of which, there are an incredibly large amount of devils that I didn¡¯t even get to glance at outside.¡¯ There were all sorts of devils starting from the ones giant in size and with rough-looking expressions that were reminiscent of golems to devils that had clean features like a good-looking man and even ones that boasted an incredible beauty to the point it caught his eyes. However, Ian wasn¡¯t just checking out the outer appearance of the devils. He was in the middle of checking the information of each and every one of the devils that he passed by nearby. ¡®Most of the devils that you can see here are Low-rank devils. Their level range is almost about mid- to late- 200s¡­¡¯ Although he even occasionally saw Common devils that were in their early lv 300s, it wasn¡¯t to the point that Ian was surprised. ¡®Now that I see this, I can certainly feel that Yankoun was amazing even amongst the devils.¡¯ And as he observed each and every one of the members, he was able to find out a new truth as well. ¡®There¡¯s not only devils inside of the city.¡¯ Of course, aside from Ian, there was not one human, but he occasionally saw Half-Devils, or even elves or races with interesting outer appearances that he had yet to see up until now. ¡®Is this why the devils don¡¯t really care about me even though I pass by them?¡¯ While thinking of this and that, Ian continued walking at a slow pace. ¡®It looks like there¡¯s an incredible amount of content even inside of the City of Rage, so once I complete my quests, it looks like I¡¯ll have to come back here again and look around each corner. I¡¯ll preoccupy all of the content that I can.¡¯ Ian, who had walked like that for about thirty minutes and arrived at the central plaza, was able to find the ¡®Tower of Punishment¡¯ without much difficulty. This was because the giant tower that stood the tallest in the middle of the plaza was the Tower of Punishment. ¡®Hmm, but the atmosphere is a little interesting here, different to up until now. It almost seems like a market area as well¡­¡¯ Before he stepped foot into the Tower of Punishment, Ian looked around at his surroundings as he mumbled to himself. ¡®What the hell? Is this like¡­ A slave market?¡¯ However, just then, a first discoverer¡¯s system message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes again. Ring-. You are the first to discover the ¡®Tower of Punishment¡¯.Your Fame has increased by 100 thousand Fame.You have obtained the ¡®Slave Contract¡¯ item. CH 215 Chapter 215: Encounter with Yankoun (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian, who discovered the item with the name ¡®Slave Contract¡¯, rounded both of his eyes. ¡®What the hell? A slave contract?¡¯ Ian looked around at his surroundings again. ¡®At a slave marketplace, the tower that¡¯s in front of my eyes somehow has a prison-like feeling¡­ By any chance, will I be able to form a contract with Yankoun as my slave just like this and shove him around?¡¯ However, he thought about it again and realized that wouldn¡¯t be the case. ¡®If Yankoun had dropped to a slave class, there¡¯s no way that Heiska, a Common Devil, would have shown respect towards him.¡¯ Ian firstly opened the Slave Contract item and checked the information. Slave Contract Classification: Miscellaneous goods Rank: Rare Durability: 50/50 The biggest slave marketplace in the Devildom exists in the central plaza of the City of Rage. In order to contract slaves in the slave marketplace of the Devildom, one must have a Devildom class that is at least a High-rank Devil. However, if you have this slave contract, you can obtain the authority to contract one slave once no matter your Devildom class. *In the case that the user¡¯s Devildom class is a High-rank Devil or higher, the cost to contract one slave once will be reduced by half. *This is an item belonging to user ¡®Ian¡¯. It cannot be transferred or sold to another user, and even if the character dies, it will not be dropped. (Can be transferred only once initially.) ¡®Hmm¡­ Right now, when I don¡¯t even know exactly what kind of content this slave content is, it seems like it¡¯s an item I¡¯ll just have to keep for now.¡¯ This was a conditional account-bound item. In other words, it was a bound item that could be transferred once, but with Ian¡¯s personality, there was no way that he would sell or transfer an item that he had obtained for the first time to someone. ¡®Firstly, top priority is finding Yankoun.¡¯ The Tower of Punishment was, as Ian expected, a place where the word ¡®prison¡¯ suited it the most, and inside the tower, tons of prisoners of the Devildom filled the prison to the brim. Ian looked around the inside of the Tower of Punishment as he walked slowly. Because Yankoun¡¯s outer appearance was so unique, just as long as he was in a visible area, he was certain that he would stand out to him. However, 30 minutes later, Ian was able to realize that such a decision was an incredibly wrong choice. ¡®Euh¡­ Why are there so many convicts?¡¯ Ian eventually gave up on looking for him on his own, and he approached a prison guard that was dozing off in the corner and held out his Premium Seal of the Devil as he struck up a conversation. ¡°Uh¡­ I¡¯m looking for ¡®Yankoun¡¯, by any chance, do you know where he is?¡± The guard, who was startled at Ian¡¯s words, wiped away the saliva that was dripping from the corner of his mouth as he replied hurriedly. ¡°If it¡¯s Sir Yankoun you¡¯re looking for, he will be in the central prison on the 10th floor.¡± At the guard¡¯s response, Ian wore a puzzled expression. ¡®What the hell? Exactly what kind of situation is this, where a guard is using an honorific title to a prisoner?¡¯ However, whatever the situation was, as he was certain that all of his curiosities would be solved once he met Yankoun, after Ian nodded his head, he walked quickly. ¡°Thank you. Then, I¡¯ll be off.¡± Because he had already gotten to the 6th floor while looking around the tower for 30 minutes, he just needed to go up 4 floors in order to get to the 10th one. The footsteps of Ian, who went up the stairs, grew faster and faster. ¡°Keuhahahat, humans! You¡¯re quite strong for humans!¡± Like a rhino¡¯s horns, large wing bones were bent in a long manner in both directions on either shoulder joint. There was a largely-built devil with dark red skin all over its body as fire arose here and there. ¡®Selakuma¡¯ scowled towards the five users that were in front of him. ¡°Huff, huff¡­ At this point, shouldn¡¯t it be time for you to give up? You are not enough to be our opponent.¡± The one standing at the frontmost, aiming his long spear towards Selakuma, was Ceilron, who was famous for his hidden class called ¡®Blazing Knight¡¯. Also, the users that stood behind him were all top-ranking players of the Korean Kailan server whose names were distinguished as well. Especially, Shyakran and Remir, who stood right behind Ceilron, were top-level users that were known to be within the top five when it came to their fighting power. And Selakuma, the one that this ultraluxe fighting power was facing with their combined strength, was the chief gatekeeper of the Devildom that was guarding Zone 110. Chief Gatekeeper of the Devildom (Twelve Chosen Generals) Selakuma/Level: 360 Selakuma¡¯s level was at 360, 10 levels higher than Yankoun¡¯s level, and he was a strong opponent to the point that five rankers within lv 180-190 needed to use all of their strength in order to face him. However, at the end of the intense battle that lasted over 3 hours, Selakuma¡¯s Vitality was eventually completely used up. For a moment, Selakuma glared at the party before he slowly opened his mouth. ¡°Alright, I will acknowledge you. You have the right to enter inside of here.¡± Selakuma wore a slightly furious expression. However, Remir, who had been quiet up until now, asked Selakuma. ¡°Saying that we have deserved the ¡®right¡¯ to enter inside of Zone 110¡­¡± Seeing Remir¡¯s fingertips, which flared up with flames, Ceilron spoke to her with a slightly flustered expression. ¡°Remir, what¡¯s wrong?¡± Remir responded with a cold expression. ¡°Wait a moment.¡± And taking large strides, she approached Selakuma one step at a time. ¡°If I kill you here right now, what would happen? If I kill you anyways, we will be able to pass through here, and we¡¯ll be able to obtain an enormous amount of Fame as well¡­¡± After hearing Remir¡¯s words, one corner of Shyakran¡¯s mouth curled upwards. ¡®I hadn¡¯t thought that far¡­ As expected, Remir, she¡¯s no ordinary person.¡¯ The party watched Remir and Selakuma¡¯s conversation with interested expressions, and Selakuma¡¯s conversation continued. ¡°Well, then, I don¡¯t care if you even fight to the end with me.¡± Even at Remir¡¯s threat, Selakuma¡¯s tone was unexpectedly composed. ¡°Like you said, if it continues like this, the one that would be defeated would definitely be me, not you, and having succeeded in killing me, you would be able to obtain an enormous amount of Fame and rewards.¡± Selakuma passively acknowledged Remir¡¯s words, but this wasn¡¯t the end of his words. ¡°However, you will have to think carefully about which side this is an advantage for. If you kill me, a different chief gatekeeper will be newly appointed in order to guard this portal, and at the latest, they will start to guard this place again within a week. Then in order to pass through here, you will have no choice but to battle them again.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± At Selakuma¡¯s unexpected words, Remir¡¯s large eyes rounded. ¡°Well then, what will you do, daring lady? Will you have a battle with me until the end? Then I will face you with all the power I have as well.¡± Along with his response, Selakuma¡¯s Devil Energy began to blaze up powerfully around him. Ceilron, who stood in the back, quickly called Remir. ¡°Remir, by the looks of it, there is a lot to lose if we fight until the end with him.¡± Remir narrowed her eyes as she asked. ¡°Why¡¯s that? Of course, the fact that we have to face another chief gatekeeper the next time is a little annoying, but we don¡¯t know what kind of reward we would receive from someone that¡¯s a chief gatekeeper of the Devildom. Even if it¡¯s cumbersome, killing this one and making a new party the next time to hunt once more¡­¡± Shyakran, who just watched them without a word, abruptly butt into their conversation. ¡°That¡¯s not the case, Remir. Just like what Ceilron said, ending it off here this time and passing through seems like it will be an advantage to us in multiple ways.¡± Remir turned her head towards Shyakran as she spoke. ¡°Could you explain why that would be the case?¡± Shyakran nodded his head as he replied. ¡°If you just think of the immediate advantage, just as you said, Remir, it might be better to catch him and obtain a reward. However, we must consider our relative advantage as well.¡± ¡°Our relative advantage?¡± Shyakran¡¯s words continued. ¡°That¡¯s right. If we leave him just as is here right now and go, Zone 110 will become a place that no other user besides us will be able to go through for a while. If other users were to create a party excluding the rankers that are here right now, a fighting power strong enough to face Selakuma will not form easily.¡± At Shyakran¡¯s explanation, Remir slowly nodded her head. ¡°Hmm¡­ I was short-minded. Relative advantage¡­ It¡¯s certainly an important aspect.¡± The passing or failing of getting through Zone 110 was especially more important than Zone 120. This was because the first city that could be encountered in the Devildom, the ¡®City of Rage¡¯, was settled in Zone 100. As the information that the City of Rage was in Zone 100 was a part that was officially mentioned in the patch note from LB Corp. already, it was a fact the party all knew about. Remir, who gathered the opinions of the party, turned her head towards Selakuma as she opened her mouth. ¡°Alright, we will end the battle here like you said.¡± Selakuma grinned as he replied. ¡°Good idea. That is an excellent decision that¡¯s beneficial to both you and me.¡± Remir nodded her head as she replied. ¡°Let¡¯s think that this is a win-win for the both of us.¡± At the same time as that, a system message that the party was waiting for popped up in front of their eyes. You are the first to have won with the chief gatekeeper guarding Zone 110 as your opponent.You have obtained 400 thousand Fame.From now on, while ¡®Selakuma¡¯, a chief gatekeeper of the Devildom, is guarding the gateway, you can use the portal of Zone 110 as you wish. The corners of Remir¡¯s mouth curled upwards. ¡®Alright.¡¯ The five users that had finished their successful deal with Selakuma like that walked towards the portal that was open towards Zone 109 without hesitation. And Remir quietly opened her mouth towards someone as if she was whispering and spoke to herself. ¡°Cassandra, what about this time? This time I¡¯ve definitely passed through this place before ¡®them¡¯, right?¡± Along with Remir¡¯s mumbling, a white flame burned from her palm before a round sphere appeared floating. And Cassandra, who showed her face within it, grinned as she replied. Who knows. That could be the case, it could not. The face of Remir, who definitely thought that she was the first this time, immediately twisted. ¡°What the hell? How is that possible? I¡¯ve even checked that we¡¯ve received the message that we were ¡®the first¡¯ to have won with the chief gatekeeper guarding Zone 110 as our opponent this time, too.¡± Cassandra wagged her finger as she answered. Of course, your party is the first to have won against Selakuma. However, if they have the ¡®Premium Seal of the Devil¡¯, that¡¯s a different story. Remir stepped foot into the portal door that was headed towards Zone 109 as she continued her words. ¡°¡®Premium Seal of the Devil¡¯? What¡¯s that?¡± Simply put, it¡¯s an item that allows you to receive treatment from the High-rank Devils of the Devil race. If you have that, you can freely pass through the sections that chief gatekeepers with High-rank Devil ranks or lower guard. ¡°¡­?¡± If in the case that ¡®they¡¯ have received the Premium Seal of the Devil from Yankoun, they would have just been able to pass through Zone 110 freely. Whoong-. As they passed through the portal and entered Zone 109, the party noisily chattered as they were busy complimenting each other¡¯s hard work and celebrating the fact that they were the first(?) to have stepped foot into Zone 109. However, Remir couldn¡¯t do that. ¡°Why are you telling me this now? Then if we were to have killed Selakuma as well, wouldn¡¯t we have also been able to receive the thing called the Premium Seal of the Devil?¡± Cassandra shook her head as she replied. No, if that was the case, I would have given that tip to you beforehand. The Premium Seal of the Devil isn¡¯t something you can obtain that easily. If you wanted to obtain the seal from Selakuma, you need to obtain complete acknowledgement from him. ¡°¡­?¡± Cassandra grinned as she added on. You would have had to at least obtain a perfect victory in a 1:1 battle in order to receive acknowledgement from him. CH 216 Chapter 216: Encounter with Yankoun (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian, who had gone up to the 10th floor of the Tower of Punishment, was able to find Yankoun without much difficulty. This was because right in the middle of the 10th floor, which looked like giant circular jail, he immediately saw Yankoun sitting cross-legged. An interesting point was that Yankoun was not locked up. There were no such things as anything like bars, and instead, with the spot Yankoun was sitting on as the center, there were just five pillars standing in five different directions. Ian carefully approached Yankoun. ¡®He probably still remembers me, right?¡¯ Because their relationship was formed through an abnormal method before there was the large-scale patch, Ian was a little nervous. ¡®However, well¡­ Since the quest remained as it originally was¡­¡¯ Ian, who stood right in front of Yankoun, slowly opened his mouth. ¡°Yankoun, I¡¯ve resolved your favour and returned.¡± However, even at Ian¡¯s words, Yankoun didn¡¯t react the slightest bit. ¡®What the hell? Is he asleep?¡¯ Just when Ian was about to nudge Yankoun¡¯s body, his eyes snapped open. ¡°You¡¯ve returned faster than I was expecting, Ian.¡± In other words, this meant that Yankoun still remembered Ian. Despite having thought that would be the case, Ian was able to let out a sigh of relief. ¡®Whew, it looks like my master plan can proceed without any setbacks.¡¯ Yankoun¡¯s words continued. ¡°When you say that you¡¯ve resolved my favour, does that mean that you¡¯ve found out the reason why contaminated evil spirits form?¡± Ian nodded with a grin. ¡°Huhu, that¡¯s right. Not only did I find out the reason for them, but I¡¯ve uprooted the source itself.¡± At Ian¡¯s response, Yankoun¡¯s two eyes shone, and Ian slowly began to explain. ¡°So, the cause for why magical beasts began to become contaminated were ¡®Chaos Stones¡¯.¡± Ian briefly explained the incidents he experienced while resolving the quest to Yankoun. And as his explanation ended, at the same time, a system message notifying him of the success of the quest popped up. Ring-. You have successfully cleared the ¡®Request of the Devildom Chief Gatekeeper Yankoun I (Connected)¡¯.Clear Rank: SSSYou have obtained 100 thousand Fame.You have obtained 157,688,900 EXP.You have obtained 20 Intermediate-grade Magic Stones.You have obtained the ¡®Pure Blood of the Devil¡¯ item.As you have achieved a triple S-rank for your clear rank, your Affinity with ¡®Yankoun¡¯ has increased by 5. And amongst the system messages that popped up one after another, the first thing that caught Ian¡¯s eyes was definitely the ¡®Pure Blood of the Devil¡¯. ¡®Keuh, finally! I finally have the Pure Blood of the Devil in my hands.¡¯ The Pure Blood of the Devil was a key for Ian that was the same as the core of all of the quests and assignments he needed to achieve. As that was the case, Ian felt like he was on cloud nine. Meanwhile, separate from Ian, who was happy, Yankoun¡¯s mouth slowly opened again. ¡°Ahem¡­ So there was such an incident. To think that the power of the Chaos Stone was contaminating the evil spirits up until now¡­¡± Yankoun continued his words while maintaining his cross-legged position without even the slightest budge. ¡°Anyways, thanks to you, it looks like I¡¯ll be able to reduce my sentence quite a bit.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± At Yankoun¡¯s words, Ian asked back with a quizzical expression. ¡°What do you mean by that now? Reducing your sentence.¡± Yankoun smiled as he replied. ¡°As you can see, I¡¯m now locked up here. Originally, I wasn¡¯t able to leave this place for at least two months, but as you have solved one of my offenses, it seems like I¡¯ll be able to leave this place in about a month.¡± At his words, Ian whisked his hand around the area that Yankoun was sitting in and checked to see if there was anything like a limiter. However, nothing collided with Ian¡¯s hand. ¡°Huh? You¡¯re locked up right now? Can¡¯t you just stand up and leave this place?¡± Yankoun smirked as he shook his head. ¡°Although it may seem like that on the outside, I¡¯m currently in a state where I cannot even move one limb.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± ¡°The only parts that I can move right now is basically from my neck up. Even that, I can only move a little.¡± Ian pointed to the pillars that were raised around Yankoun as he asked. ¡°Is that associated with the pillars that are raised around here?¡± Yankoun responded. ¡°That¡¯s right. Those pillars have sealed my Devil Energy and are controlling the movements of my body.¡± At those words, Ian pulled out the Judgment of the Spirit King that was on his back as he swung it around. Whoosh-. ¡°Then what if I destroy all of those?¡± Yankoun wore a bitter smile as he shook his head. ¡°Then you and I both will most likely not be able to see tomorrow. The moment that you attack the pillars, the owner of the tower will probably go through a portal and come down to here.¡± ¡°The owner of the tower? Is there a separate owner for this Tower of Punishment?¡± Yankoun narrowed his eyes as he replied. ¡°It is Lusika, the Devil of Hatred that holds the 15th place in the Devildom rankings. He is the owner of this place. You, Ian, who has made me surrender, you are also strong, but that devil is a powerful being that cannot even be compared with me.¡± At Yankoun¡¯s explanation, Ian grumbled to himself. ¡®Devil of Hatred or whatever, I don¡¯t have any intentions to fight against him either when his name alone sounds terrifying.¡¯ Yankoun continued. ¡°Even if it is you, you are lacking to the point you are nowhere near sufficient to face him yet.¡± ¡°Well, I see.¡± ¡°So, this is shameless of me, but do you think you could do me another favour?¡± And the window of the connected quest of the ¡®Request of Yankoun¡¯ quests popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring-. The Request of the Devildom Chief Gatekeeper Yankoun II (Connected) One of the Twelve Chosen Generals of the Devildom, Yankoun was also a chief gatekeeper that guarded the gateway that led to the Devildom. Yankoun received a 100-day sentence from the elders of the Devildom and was locked up in the Tower of Punishment. His offenses were that he didn¡¯t properly fulfill the commands he received from the elders of the Devildom. He was locked up in the Tower of Punishment for his offenses of not guarding the gateway of Zone 120 of the Devildom from other species, and for not accomplishing the assignment of finding out the source of the contaminated evil spirits. However, the gateways outside of Zone 50 of the Devildom were places that High-rank Devils didn¡¯t pay much attention to up until now, and because that was the case, it was common for others to be able to get through Gateway 120, which was the farthest gateway amongst all of them. Also, as expected, many devils failed at the assignment of finding the source that was contaminating the magical beasts up until now, but they didn¡¯t receive a large punishment. As that was the case, Yankoun is assuming that there was some sort of dark secret as to why he was locked up in the Tower of Punishment. Help Yankoun resolve his false accusation and pull him out of the Tower of Punishment. Quest Difficulty Level: SS Quest Condition: A user that has received acknowledgement from Chief Gatekeeper Yankoun. A user that has successfully cleared the ¡®Request of the Devildom Chief Gatekeeper Yankoun I (Connected)¡¯ quest. Time Limit: None Reward: Low-grade Magic Stones x30, Intermediate-grade Magic Stones x15 *You will be able to take in High-rank Devil ¡®Yankoun¡¯ as a retainer. (However, this only applies to users that have obtained the Pure Blood of the Devil and have succeeded in becoming Half-Human, Half-Devil.) *If you reject the quest, your Affinity with the ¡®Devildom Chief Gatekeeper Yankoun¡¯ will drop drastically. As this quest had the longest story of all time amongst the quest windows that he had seen up until now, Ian read it thoroughly. ¡°So¡­ Yankoun, you¡¯re saying that you think you¡¯ve been framed, right?¡± Yankoun nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. I¡¯ve been framed, or I¡¯ve been sacrificed by someone of concern.¡± Ian shrugged his shoulders as he replied. ¡°Sure, well, I¡¯ll help you. But I have something that I¡¯m curious about.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Ian pointed to the pillars that surrounded Yankoun as he continued his words. ¡°A sentence of 100 days, that means you need to be locked up in this Tower of Punishment for 100 days, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°But is that such a big punishment?¡± For Ian, it was content that he could be curious about. This was because even in the human world, a punishment of having to be put behind bars for 100 days, which was a little over 3 months, could not really be seen as severe, so for devils, who let alone have been known to have a much longer life span than humans, it looked like an even lighter punishment to him. However, he was curious because it was described as a heavy punishment in the quest window. ¡°Hmm¡­ It seems you don¡¯t know much about this Tower of Punishment. But then again, it is quite reasonable.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± Yankoun smiled bitterly as he continued his words. ¡°Proportionate to the time that a devil is locked up in this Tower of Punishment, they lose Devil Energy.¡± Ian¡¯s eyes slightly grew. ¡°You lose Devil Energy?¡± Yankoun nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. After I¡¯ve completely fulfilled my sentence of 100 days, I would have lost a tremendous amount of Devil Energy that¡¯s about 1/5 of the Devil Energy that I had been collecting up until now.¡± Ian wore a puzzled expression. ¡°What meaning does that have?¡± Yankoun just stared at Ian for a moment before he opened his mouth again. ¡°To think that you wouldn¡¯t know about the concept of Devil Energy. Although weak, I even feel Devil Energy from you, but you¡¯ve been carrying it around without even realizing what it is?¡± It was only then that Ian remembered that he had obtained a stat called ¡®Devil Energy¡¯. ¡®Oh, right. That stat that dealt a fixed amount of damage was Devil Energy.¡¯ Ian hadn¡¯t been putting a great emphasis on Devil Energy, which was a stat that he had received as a reward for being the first discoverer of the Devildom, despite having constantly invoking it in battle up until now. ¡°Oh, I remember now. I have a little over 2500 Devil Energy right now.¡± After hearing Ian¡¯s words, Yankoun¡¯s explanation on ¡®Devil Energy¡¯ continued. ¡°Yeah, you just have about 2 thousand Devil Energy, but before I came into this place, I possessed an enormous amount of close to 50 thousand Devil Energy.¡± At those words, before he even realized, Ian sucked in a sharp breath. ¡®Huk! What the hell, if he has 50 thousand Devil Energy, it¡¯s an incredible amount even if the activation rate is just 10%! If you think about having a fixed amount of damage of 50 thousand come in at once, it¡¯s seriously terrifying¡­¡¯ Yankoun¡¯s words continued. ¡°However, while I¡¯m locked away in this Tower of Punishment, 100 of my Devil Energy evaporates each day. That¡¯s why, after I¡¯ve completely fulfilled my sentence of 100 days, I¡¯ll lose a tremendous amount of Devil Energy that amounts to 10 thousand.¡± ¡°¡­¡± After he had heard up to this point, he certainly felt that Yankoun¡¯s punishment was severe. ¡°I¡¯ll have to pull you out as quickly as possible.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Yankoun nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. I need to get out of here as quickly as possible in order to preserve my Devil Energy even the slightest bit. On top of that, the part that enraged me was that before I came here, I was just around the corner from hitting 50 thousand Devil Energy.¡± ¡°What kind of meaning does the value of 50 thousand hold?¡± ¡°There¡¯s a huge meaning to it.¡± Yankoun, who paused for a moment to take a breath, opened his mouth again. ¡°If you have over 50 thousand Devil Energy, a High-rank Devil can obtain the right to challenge to become a Noblesse.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Ian¡¯s head began to spin quickly. ¡®So¡­ Let¡¯s organize this.¡¯ Starting from the content that was written in the quest window, to the content he heard from Yankoun, he organized it in his head. ¡®Once I properly succeed in this current connected quest, I can for sure recruit Yankoun as my retainer¡­¡¯ There was the requirement of having to become Half-Human, Half-Devil, but as Ian had the ¡®Pure Blood of the Devil¡¯ item, it was basically the same as it already being an achieved requirement. ¡®Guessing from what Yankoun said, this dude¡¯s current Devil Energy is probably around 46-47 thousand, right?¡¯ Yankoun stated that before he was confined in the Tower of Punishment, his Devil Energy was close to 50 thousand, and as it had been about a month since Yankoun had been confined, he was able to make an approximate calculation. ¡®If I rescue this dude as quickly as possible from here and take him in as a retainer, then I can obtain a Noblesse-rank devil after helping him out a little more, no?¡¯ The expression of Ian, who had thought up to this point, turned even more enthusiastic. ¡°Alright, Yankoun!¡± While looking at Ian, who suddenly called him with a voice full of spirit, Yankoun wore a bewildered expression. ¡°What are you suddenly saying?¡± Ian grinned. ¡°I will pull you out of here as fast as possible.¡± As Ian fired up his will while even clenching his fist tightly, Yankoun wore a touched expression. ¡°Ooh¡­ It was a shameless favour, but for you to do this much for me. I will repay this kindness no matter what.¡± And one system message popped up. Your Affinity with High-rank Devil ¡®Yankoun¡¯ has additionally increased by 5. As the Affinity with an NPC had a direct correlation to their Loyalty once they were appointed a retainer, Ian was all smiles. ¡°Yankoun, then, what do I need to do first?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Yankoun immediately responded. ¡°If you look around the outskirts of the City of Rage, you¡¯ll be able to discover the second-largest mansion.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± ¡°That place is where ¡®Seraphim¡¯, the castellan of this part of the City of Rage, as well as one that has high-ranking fighting power even amongst the Noblesse, resides.¡± Ian, who heard the name ¡®Seraphim¡¯, tilted his head as he quickly opened his quest window. ¡®Seraphim? I¡¯ve heard that name before somewhere¡­¡¯ And he was able to discover that name in the ¡®Beginnings of the Devils II¡¯ quest that he received from Iriel. ¡®Ah-ha, it was someone that I needed to visit anyways!¡¯ Yankoun¡¯s words continued again. ¡°Ian, I hope that you will go to Seraphim to tell him of the fact that I¡¯m locked up in here, and pass on to him the fact that the source that was contaminating the magical beasts has been disposed of.¡± ¡°Then is that the end?¡± ¡°After that, Seraphim will probably handle things on his own. Ian, you may have to fulfill some sort of assignment for him¡­¡± Ian¡¯s expression slightly crumpled. ¡®Of course, there¡¯s no way that a double-S ranked quest would finish that simply.¡¯ Ian slowly nodded his head as he stood up from his spot. ¡°Alright, Yankoun. Then I¡¯ll go find him and start moving immediately.¡± ¡°Thanks, Ian.¡± ¡°But, the mansion that Seraphim is living in¡­¡± ¡°Hm?¡± Ian let out a sigh as he continued his words. ¡°Do you not have any other information besides the clue that it is the second-largest mansion in the City of Rage?¡± The City of Rage was tremendously wide to the point that it was equivalent in size to having combined multiple decently-sized zones of the Devildom together. As that was the case, a sigh escaped Ian¡¯s mouth. This was also because as he had even left all of his retainers on the outside of the fortress, it was even harder to thoroughly look through such a wide area. ¡°Ah, unfortunately¡­¡± ¡°Well, it can¡¯t be helped. Besides looking diligently.¡± However, just then, it seemed like Yankoun remembered something, as he said something towards Ian. ¡°Ah, right, Ian. On your way into the City of Rage, by any chance, did you meet Heiska?¡± ¡°By Heiska¡­ Do you mean the Common Devil dude that was guarding the door to get into the city?¡± Yankoun nodded his head. ¡°Yes, exactly him.¡± At the same time, a small scroll fell out from within Yankoun¡¯s chest before it floated in front of Ian. Yankoun¡¯s words continued again. ¡°If you go find him with this in hand, he will probably help you.¡± Ian rejoiced as he asked. ¡°Oh-ho, it looks like Heiska is like your subordinate, huh?¡± ¡°Well, something similar.¡± Ian, who took the scroll that he received from Yankoun and put it away into his chest, turned around without any lingering feelings. ¡°Then, I¡¯ll be off.¡± Yankoun responded with a voice full of strength. ¡°I pray for your success, Ian.¡± Ian grinned. ¡°Don¡¯t worry and just wait. Since I¡¯ll solve this soon and return.¡± The footsteps of Ian, who left the Tower of Punishment, grew faster and faster. And as Ian moved his feet, he pulled out the one red marble that was sitting in his inventory and lifted it up. That was the ¡®Pure Blood of the Devil¡¯ item that he had received from Yankoun. CH 217 Chapter 217: Half-Human, Half-Devil (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian, who pulled out the ¡®Pure Blood of the Devil¡¯ item, firstly checked the information of the item. Pure Blood of the Devil Classification: Miscellaneous goods Rank: Rare Durability: 50/50 A pill that was made by refining the clean blood of a devil from a pure lineage with no blood from other species mixed in for a hundred years. If another species swallows this pill, they will become ¡®Half-Devil¡¯ and will be able to use the abilities of the devils, and at one time, it also happened to be an item that was sold at an expensive price amongst tons of humans. However, if a human, who lacks abilities, uses it, they will be able to obtain the abilities of a Half-Devil, but they will not be able to obtain the abilities of High-rank Devils. This is because the moment they swallow the pill the spirit of the devil will test the size of their bowl. If want to swallow the Pure Blood of the Devil and obtain the abilities of a Half-Devil, you must thoroughly prepare your heart. With just one mistake, your Devil Rank may be a Low-rank Devil. *Depending on the user¡¯s Devil Rank of the Devildom that is lastly decided once the Devil¡¯s Test is over, they will be able to obtain additional points for their Devil Energy and their Devil Energy Activation Rate stats. *This is an item belonging to user ¡®Ian¡¯. It cannot be transferred or sold to another user, and even if the character dies, it will not be dropped. (Can be transferred only once initially.) Amongst items classified as ¡®Miscellaneous goods¡¯, this was his first time seeing an item that had this much information, but Ian read each and every word thoroughly. This was because, of all the content of the Devildom, this could possibly be the most important moment. ¡®Hmm¡­ I thought that it was an item that would allow me to immediately become Half-Human, Half-Devil if I just use it, but it¡¯s more complicated than I thought. Should I have gotten a little more information from Yankoun?¡¯ However, even if Ian asked Yankoun, there was no way that Yankoun would know about the process of becoming Half-Human, Half-Devil. Since he was a devil from a pure lineage from the beginning. Before Ian used the Pure Blood of the Devil, he checked his physical state first. He didn¡¯t have an exact idea as to what the Devil¡¯s Test could be, but he thought that something like an imaginary battle would occur. ¡®Hmm, we¡¯re fully set for equipment, and all of the cooldown times for our skills are over as well. The Familiars are all in a state where they can be summoned immediately¡­¡¯ Ian, who sat in the corner of the central plaza of the Devildom, gulped audibly while holding the Pure Blood of the Devil. ¡®So, based on how it¡¯s written in the item information, if I just do well in the Devil¡¯s Test or whatever, is it possible for me to become the Devil King at once?¡¯ With a determined expression, Ian used the Pure Blood of the Devil. ¡°Activate item!¡± As he did so, a couple of system messages popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. You have successfully used the ¡®Pure Blood of the Devil¡¯ item.The pure blood of the devil has seized your whole body.Powerful Devil Energy has begun to engulf your whole body. At the same time, Ian¡¯s vision began to grow darker and darker. The Devil¡¯s Test will begin. Ian¡¯s vision was completely engulfed in perfect darkness. * * * Shikar Desert. The central continent, which was the name it was more well-known as than the name Shikar, looked like it was growing further away from the interests of many users including the community ever since the 3rd large-scale update. Even most of the game media that was focused on the central continent had all turned their interest towards the Devildom, and over 70% of the posts that were being posted in the bulletin boards, including in the attack bulletin board, were also posts related to the Devildom. By looking at just these circumstances, it seemed like the central continent was almost forgotten. However, the reality inside of the game was different. Shikar Continent was instead bustling with more users compared to before the Devildom was opened. Due to the update of the Devildom, most of the top-ranking users moved their hunting grounds to the Devildom, but during that time, even more of the middle-low class users had leveled up and succeeded in entering the central continent. Once they¡¯re over lv 100, most users slowly move their bases to the central continent, and right now, in the Korean Kailan server, lv 100 was around the standard for the middle-class. In other words, it meant that close to half of the users of the Korean Kailan server were settled in the central continent. On top of that, the fact that the high-ranking users had escaped to the Devildom instead had a good effect, as the central continent, where the war wasn¡¯t ending, had even turned into a peaceful state. It meant that it had become an even better environment for normal users, who weren¡¯t interested in the guild wars, to hunt. To be honest, the central continent was in the middle of enjoying the greatest boom. And the Pyro Domain, the largest domain that was positioned right in the middle of the continent, had grown so big to the point it was hard to cope with it now. It¡¯s domain rank still remained as a ¡®Great Domain¡¯, but even if they were to proclaim it as a ¡®Dukedom¡¯ right now, it had grown to the point that not one part was lacking, and all of the domain stats were over-qualified. Following that, Fiolan, who was the Lord of the Pyro Domain, was so busy that she barely had time to eat. Despite becoming a top-ranking user that was even over lv 170, she had no time to proceed with her Devildom-related quests, and had yet to even enter the Devildom. ¡°Ha¡­ I am pleased when I see the Domain grow, but¡­¡± Fiolan, who had come back from leading the public safety team and hunting for close to a quarter of a day, went limp in the Lord¡¯s office and let out a deep sigh. ¡°I want to go to the Devildom as well¡­¡± Whenever she saw the fortified items that were uploaded onto the item boasting bulletin board of the community, she was incredibly jealous. However, her thirst for the new content couldn¡¯t be helped. Just when Fiolan was taking a momentary break while complaining about this and that, the door of the office opened up as someone entered. Deu-reu-reuk-. Fiolan, who automatically turned her head at that, smiled brightly as she greeted ¡®her¡¯ warmly. ¡°Oh, Harin! You said you had some place you had to stop by, but you¡¯re already back?¡± Harin and Fiolan were always already on good terms, but recently, they had grown a lot closer. This was because most of the executive members of the guild had run off to the Devildom in order to enjoy the new content, while the remaining two were constantly together. Harin nodded her head as she sat in the chair across from Fiolan. ¡°Yes, to be honest, Jinsung said that he sent something to me, so I was on my way back after going all the way to the plaza.¡± The two eyes of Fiolan, who heard the unexpected name, grew slightly bigger. ¡°You mean Ian?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± This was because there was almost no cases where Ian, who had left to go do the Devildom-related quests before anybody else, had shown his face at the Pyro Domain after that. ¡°Hul, what did Ian send you? No, rather than that, what do you mean when you say he sent something to you? Did he at least send it through a delivery service?¡± At Fiolan¡¯s words, Harin smirked as she replied. ¡°No, he had sent a retainer.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Fiolan, who nodded her head as if she finally understood, shook her head afterwards. ¡°I may forget what Ian looks like at this rate. He¡¯s still our guild mascot, but Ian¡­¡± Harin giggled as she mumbled. ¡°I see his face everyday, so I won¡¯t forget¡­¡± Harin seemed to be thinking about something, as both of her cheeks turned slightly red, and while looking at her, Fiolan¡¯s face slightly puckered. ¡°I¡¯m not jealous!¡± ¡°Hehe, I wasn¡¯t really showing off.¡± Fiolan let out a really deep sigh. ¡°Ha, this makes me so sad to the point I think I should find a man somewhere and start dating¡­¡± Harin laughed as she replied. ¡°Amongst our guild members, is there no decent guy that you find satisfactory enough to your standards, Fiolan?¡± At her words, a sigh escaped from Fiolan¡¯s mouth again, who thought of a couple faces. ¡°Whew¡­ I don¡¯t know. Whatever will be, will be, I guess.¡± Fiolan, who spread out her complaints for some time, turned her gaze towards Harin¡¯s hands this time. This was because Harin was struggling to pull something out of her inventory. ¡°Speaking of which, what is the stuff that Ian sent?¡± ¡°One second!¡± And Fiolan, who saw the giant package that popped out from Harin¡¯s inventory, blinked as she spoke. ¡°What is all this?¡± Harin wore an embarrassed expression as she replied. ¡°I don¡¯t really know what it is, but he said they were Magic Stones. Something about them being items that were required for item fortification¡­ He said that he finished fortifying everything up to the 5thfortification, so he sent what he had leftover to use them with the guild members, but I don¡¯t know how to use them, so I brought them to ask you.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± At Harin¡¯s words, the Fiolan¡¯s expression, which was sullen up until now, immediately brightened. ¡°They, they¡¯re Magic Stones?!¡± ¡°Yes. He definitely said that they were Magic Stones, but¡­ Let¡¯s see here¡­¡± Harin, who pulled out one of the dark-red stones that was inside the package, checked the information of the item before she nodded her head. ¡°Yep, Magic Stones. It¡¯s written as ¡®Lowest-grade Magic Stones¡¯.¡± Fiolan, who stood up from her spot and went next to Harin at once, cheered after she checked the information of the Magic Stone. ¡°Whooo! Ian is the best!¡± Harin nodded her head next to her as she agreed. ¡°I don¡¯t know what they are, but my boyfriend is the best¡­!¡± Fiolan was a little bothered by the word ¡®boyfriend¡¯, but as she was in a good mood, she decided to overlook it. ¡°Speaking of which, Harin, it seems like you don¡¯t go into the community at all, huh? How do you not know about Magic Stones?¡± All of the Magic Stones that Ian sent through Harin were Lowest-grade Magic Stones, but currently, Magic Stones were an expensive item to the point that the market price for them is simply all up to the seller. This was because the supply was still lacking quite a bit compared to the demand. Even most of the users that had entered the Devildom had not been able to make all of their items reach the 5th fortification. Fiolan was so excited that she explained the instructions(?) of the Magic Stones to Harin, and the two sat in the Lord¡¯s office and began to fortify their items one by one. * * * The ¡®Devil¡¯s Test¡¯ was incredibly simple. Just like Ian expected, it tested the ¡®fighting power¡¯ of the user that absorbed the Pure Blood of the Devil. In a sense, it was a similar feeling to the Test of the Selamus Warrior. However, it wasn¡¯t completely the same. The fact that he needed to defeat the opponents that appeared one after another was the same, but different from the Test of the Selamus Warrior, where he needed to fight with all of his skills sealed, in the Devil¡¯s Test he could use all of his skills and his Familiars. Also, the opponents that appeared in the Devil¡¯s Test were continuously devils that were the same level. They were the same level as Ian at lv 188. Bang- Ba-bang-! Ring-. You have successfully defeated the 17th Devil.You have been given a 5-minute break.If you wish, even if the whole 5-minute break is not over, you may proceed to the next battle immediately. Ian slightly checked on his remaining Vitality as well as the remaining Vitality of his Familiars. ¡®Will they start to add strength now? Opponents that were the same level as me constantly appeared, but the difficulty level has gone up little by little for sure.¡¯ Ian, who inhaled deeply, immediately proceeded to the next battle. Ian and his Familiars¡¯ Vitalities had been worn down by over half, but such things didn¡¯t matter. Since the moment a new opponent appeared, the Vitalities of Ian and all his Familiars filled up to the maximum again, and the cooldown times of all skills were reset. ¡°I¡¯ll proceed with the next battle.¡± The 18th devil will appear. Whoong- Along with a low resonant sound, a sharp-looking devil appeared while ripping apart the space in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ian quickly checked the information of the devil that appeared, and his eyes slightly shown. ¡®Finally¡­ Is it a High-rank Devil?¡¯ With a slightly more nervous expression, Ian put strength into the hand that he was holding his spear with. ¡®I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s possible, but I want to at least meet a Noblesse.¡¯ As Ian let out a fighting spirit, the devil that appeared let out a horrible shriek as it glared at Ian. Keuaaooh-! And without a need to say who went first, the devil and Ian charged towards each other at the same time. CH 218 Chapter 218: Half-Human, Half-Devil (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda If their levels are the same, would the outcome of the battle simply be decided by the difference in their abilities? In conclusion, that wasn¡¯t the case. This was because especially in a situation where the opponent was not a user, but a monster or even an NPC, their stats were not directly proportionate to their level. For example, wasn¡¯t that case seen even just by looking at the Familiars that Ian was raising? Suppose there are two Familiars that are the same lv 100. When one of the Familiars is a Rare-rank Blood-Red Maned Wolf, and the other Familiar is a Legendary-rank Sovereign Fenrir, even if a rough estimate was made, there would be over two times the difference in their stats. And that was the same for devils as well. Although they were also the same level, the higher the rank of the devil, the more exceptional the stats. The devils that appeared as the opponents of Ian, were all the same at lv 188. However, it wasn¡¯t like that for their stats. In the case of devils, because the difference in their stats was even greater the higher their rank, there was close to three times the stat difference between a Low-rank Devil and a High-rank Devil that were the same level. As that was the case, the Low-rank Devils that Ian met when he first started the Devil¡¯s Test were easy opponents to the point that even Ian was taken aback. Since it was to the point that up to even almost the 5th one that appeared, he could defeat them within 10 seconds. However, even amongst the same Low-rank Devils, stronger and stronger ones began to appear, and starting from when the Common Devils appeared, Ian couldn¡¯t just remain relaxed either. And right now, he was facing High-rank Devils. Ian was seriously squeezing out all of the abilities he had. ¡®The fact that their stats have gotten stronger is for certain, but the level of the AI is also improving the higher the rank they are.¡¯ The AI of the monsters or NPCs in a VR game could be considered the ¡®controlling ability¡¯ of a user. Simply put, it meant that the opponent¡¯s stats and controlling ability got better and better as he moved on. ¡°Bbakbbak, Roar of the Turtle Dragon!¡± Before the attack of the opposing devil drove into Ly¡¯s back, he invoked Bbakbbak¡¯s skill. The Roar of the Turtle Dragon was a CC skill that temporarily provoked the opponent and slowed their movements by 40%. Thanks to that, the movements of the devil instantly faltered, and Ly, who took that chance and leaped into the air, shoved the long claws on his foot into the lower abdomen of the devil. Shooove-! Keu-eoook! And Karceus charged towards the devil that collapsed while letting out a horrible shriek. Keu-rwa-rwa-rwa-rwa-! Karceus spread open his mouth widely as he aggressively ripped through the shoulder of the devil. Familiar ¡®Karceus¡¯ has dealt critical damage to the ¡®Spirit of the High-rank Devil¡¯.The Vitality of the ¡®Spirit of the High-rank Devil¡¯ has been reduced by 39,877. The spirit of the devil was unable to pull itself together due to the critical damages that burst out one after another as it began to collapse. Ian¡¯s Judgment of the Spirit King hit the spirit of the devil that had almost reached a defenseless state. Kwa-reu-reung-! The ¡®Lightning of Judgment¡¯, the inherent ability of the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ item, has been invoked. With the point that Ian had struck down on with his spear as the center, several bolts of lightning continuously came down in all directions. Boom- Boo-boom-! The Vitality of the ¡®Spirit of the High-rank Devil¡¯ has been reduced by 9870.The Vitality of the ¡®Spirit of the High-rank Devil¡¯ has been reduced by 14,210. With that as the last, the body of the devil began to be dyed a grey colour. Ring-. You have successfully defeated the 25th devil. Ian gasped for air. ¡°Huff, huff-.¡± While looking at the corpse of the devil that faded after turning into a grey light, he thought to himself. ¡®I think I¡¯ve almost reached my limit now. Since I¡¯ve even lost Pin in this battle as well.¡¯ Of course, even Familiars that had gone into an unable-to-battle state were revived when the next devil appeared. However, separate from that, Ian was certain that if a Noblesse-rank Devil appeared as his opponent, he wouldn¡¯t be able to win. ¡®If the buff effect was maintained when I moved onto the next phase, I would have been able to do something with the overlapping of the Sacrifice buff, but¡­¡¯ Ian, who thought of such things that didn¡¯t make sense, smirked. Because the cooldown times of his skills were reset, and his Familiars were revived once the battles were over, he was able to use the ¡®Sacrifice¡¯ skill every time. However, not only was the cooldown time reset, but because the duration of the buff effect was reset as well, he couldn¡¯t overlap the buff effect. ¡®Either way, I need to go as far as I can.¡¯ The fact that he even came this far could be thanks to the buff effect of the Sacrifice skill. Ian got into position and waited for the next opponent. ¡°I will proceed to the next battle.¡± However, the system message that popped up following his response was a completely different message than what Ian was anticipating. You have completely passed the Devil¡¯s Test. The ¡®Examination Room¡¯ has been closed.You have been moved to ¡®Zone 100 of the Devildom¡¯. ¡®Huuuh¡­?¡¯ At the same time that the messages popped up, Ian¡¯s vision turned black again. Ian felt strange. ¡®What the hell? Was it impossible to obtain a Noblesse-rank or higher at once through the Pure Blood of the Devil?¡¯ The feeling of satisfaction for having received a Devildom rank that was the greatest rank possible with the Pure Blood of the Devil, as well as the feeling of disappointment for not having been able to face a Noblesse-rank Devil both arose within him. ¡®I¡¯m a little disappointed, but still, fair is fair after all, I guess. Since the one that I faced last almost felt like my limit anyways.¡¯ To be honest, Ian wouldn¡¯t be able to know, but it wasn¡¯t that Noblesse-rank Devils or higher didn¡¯t appear at all in the Devil¡¯s Test. Depending on the case, the fact that it was even possible to meet the Devil King with the Pure Blood of the Devil was correct. However, with the Pure Blood of the Devil that Ian had, it was impossible. Since Ian¡¯s Pure Blood of the Devil was made with the blood of Yankoun, who was a High-rank Devil, and the Pure Blood of the Devil that was made with the blood of a High-rank Devil couldn¡¯t call over the spirit of a higher-ranking devil. And it would be safe to say that the High-rank Devil ranking that Ian had received in one go was the limit for the highest Devildom rank that a user could first obtain. This was because, not only was it even impossible for a normal user to defeat a Devildom spirit that was a Noblesse or Devil King-rank, from the beginning, it was impossible to obtain the blood of a devil that had a Noblesse-rank or higher at all. The Pure Blood of the Devil that users could obtain through a normal route was one that was made with the blood of a Common Devil at best. Anyhow, Ian¡¯s vision, which was black, brightened up little by little again, and in front of his eyes, the view of the central plaza of the City of Rage was spread out again. And in front of Ian¡¯s eyes, new system messages began to pop up one after another. You have successfully carried out the Devil¡¯s Test.The Final Breakthrough Phase: 25The Devildom Rank of User ¡®Ian¡¯ has been set as a ¡®High-rank Devil¡¯.You have been additionally given 15,000 ¡®Devil Energy¡¯, which is a new stat of the Devildom.You have been additionally given 3% ¡®Devil Energy Activation Rate¡¯, which is a new stat of the Devildom.You have succeeded in becoming ¡®Half-Human, Half-Devil¡¯.You are the first to have become ¡®Half-Human, Half-Devil¡¯.You have obtained 500 thousand Fame.Your Devil Energy Activation Rate has increased by 2%.Your Resistance Magic has increased by 5%. ¡°Keu¡­!¡± An exclamation flowed out of Ian¡¯s mouth before he even realized it. He had obtained the rank of a ¡®High-rank Devil¡¯, which he had not yet seen anybody else ranked as besides Yankoun, at once. On top of that, as expected, it was with the first achiever¡¯s reward that was endlessly savoury. ¡®But Yankoun said that he had close to 50 thousand Devil Energy¡­. But why was I only given 15 thousand?¡¯ Ian wouldn¡¯t have been able to know, but the value 15 thousand was the least amount of Devil Energy that he needed to have in order for a Common Devil to be promoted to a High-rank Devil. ¡°Alright.¡± Ian, who stood up from his spot, moved his feet again. ¡®Now, after I¡¯ve met Seraphim, do I just need to go to Cervian and obtain the hidden class?¡¯ Ian organized his future plans as he headed towards Heiska, who guarded the entrance of the City of Rage. However, from the posterior view of Ian, who was walking, a red afterimage remained and was dizzily spreading out. That was the same as some sort of sign that only appeared once one obtained a Devildom Rank that was a ¡®High-rank Devil¡¯ or higher. ¡°There¡¯s no time to rest, no time at all!¡± And in front of the eyes of all of the users that were logged on in the Devildom, one world message popped up. Ring-. User ¡®Ian¡¯ is the first to have succeeded in becoming ¡®Half-Human, Half-Devil¡¯. * * * Heiska showed an even higher level of courtesy to Ian, who had met with Yankoun and returned. Even if it wasn¡¯t because of the pledge that he received from Yankoun, it was because Ian himself was now giving off the dignity of a High-rank Devil. Ian now comfortably spoke in an informal manner towards Heiska. ¡°So, you¡¯re saying that if I go up north from the east gate a little more, Seraphim¡¯s mansion is there, right?¡± Heiska nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right, Ian. As it¡¯s an interestingly-looking mansion with a pointy roof, it shouldn¡¯t be that hard to find.¡± ¡°Okay, got it. Then I¡¯ll see you again later.¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± Ian, who had turned around and was about to go back into the City of Rage like that, seemed to have remembered something as he turned his head towards Heiska again. ¡°Oh, right, Heiska.¡± ¡°Yes, go ahead.¡± ¡°By any chance, my retainers¡­ Can I still not bring them inside with me?¡± Heiska nodded his head. ¡°That¡­ I think will be difficult, Ian.¡± Ian licked his lips. ¡°Tsk, it can¡¯t be helped then, I guess.¡± ¡°My apologies.¡± And there was something else that Ian remembered. ¡°And Heiska, by any chance, do you know anything about the item called the Slave Contract?¡± At Ian¡¯s words, the expression of Heiska, who was wearing a straight face, turned into a slightly surprised expression. ¡°Slave Contracts?¡± Ian nodded his head as he replied. ¡°Yeah. I obtained one somehow, but I don¡¯t really know how the item is supposed to be used, that is. Is it something where I need to go to the slave marketplace in the central plaza and just use?¡± Heiska replied with an embarrassed expression. ¡°The Slave Contract is a privilege of the high-ranking devils that is only possible for use only if you have a Devildom rank of a High-rank Devil or higher. And that Slave Contract is a rare item that allows that privilege to use any slave once.¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°I know up to that much. But it¡¯s that I don¡¯t know where and how I¡¯m supposed to use this. I looked around at the slave marketplace while passing by it earlier, but I don¡¯t really know what kind of structure it¡¯s built as.¡± Heiska¡¯s words continued. ¡°Hmm¡­ Because I am a Common Devil, I don¡¯t really know as I have not yet contracted a slave before. However, in my opinion, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s an item that you, a High-rank Devil, greatly need. If you sell it away in the auction house, you¡¯ll be able to sell it at an incredibly high price, so I think you should consider even selling it¡­¡± However, Ian didn¡¯t have any intentions of selling the Slave Contract away yet. ¡®Even if I was to sell it for a high price, how high would that price even be? As for money, even with just the stuff that comes out of the Domain and guild, it¡¯s overflowing¡­¡¯ It was a statement showed the relaxed state of a bourgeois lord. ¡°Well, either way, I got it, Heiska. Thanks.¡± Heiska smiled lightly as he replied. ¡°No problem. If you ever need my help, just come find me. Oh, and¡­ If you¡¯re curious about information related to the Slave Contract, it might be a good idea to ask Seraphim while you¡¯re visiting him anyways. Since if it is Seraphim, who has defended his Noblesse-rank for over a hundred years, he would have had at least a dozen slaves, that is.¡± CH 219 Chapter 219: Half-Human, Half-Devil (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The bulletin boards of the official community related to the Devildom were in a frenzy. The bulletin boards were already originally lively with posts regenerating in real time, but right now, posts were being uploaded to the point it was reminiscent of a real-time chatroom. And of course, the source for that was because of the world message that Ian uploaded. User ¡®Ian¡¯ is the first to have succeeded in becoming ¡®Half-Human, Half-Devil¡¯. This one statement did not lack in making all of the users that were in the Devildom look for Ian. By any chance, is there not one person that has seen Ian even once in the Devildom?Why do you ask? Is it to at least ask how to become Half-Human, Half-Devil?Of course.Hul, do you guys not even know that yet?Eh? Then do you know to be saying that?Of course.Huk, how do you do it? Please tell me.It¡¯s written in the attack page of the official Kailan homepage that you can become Half-Devil if you obtain the Pure Blood of the Devil¡­ Yet none of you have even read that?Ha¡­ Who doesn¡¯t know that? It¡¯s the fact that we want to obtain information on where we can obtain the Pure Blood of the Devil.Ah-ha¡­ To be honest, the information that the ¡®Pure Blood of the Devil¡¯ was an item that was required in order to become Half-Human, Half-Devil was already released through the developer¡¯s note on the official homepage. However, not one clue about the route of obtaining the Pure Blood of the Devil had appeared yet. But guys, aren¡¯t you being too na?ve? If you were Ian, do you think you would just obediently release information to other users? If it was me, I think I would block the information from being known by other users by any means possible and just savour it as much as possible.Ha, it¡¯s because we want to obtain even a hint somehow even if we don¡¯t expect a method.But, person above, I¡¯ve been hunting in Zone 112-115 for several days now. The zone that I¡¯m in right now is the deepest zone that has been broken through to at the moment, but there¡¯s not one person here that says they¡¯ve seen Ian.Hmm¡­ Based on the fact that the Chief Gatekeeper of Zone 110 is still standing strong means that no one has yet to go beyond Zone 110, but then exactly where could Ian be? When the message that Ian was the first to enter the Devildom popped up, or even when the message that another user was the first to have succeeded in fortifying their equipment to a Transcendent-rank, the bulletin board wasn¡¯t burning up as much as this. Others were jealous of Ian then as well, but those were goals that other users could achieve as time passed, and as that was the case, it just ended with jealousy. However, this time, it was different. Becoming Half-Human, Half-Devil was an essential prerequisite in order to obtain dual classes, which was the core of the Devildom content. However, despite that, not one piece of information was released into the community yet. At this point, where it had been far past a month since the Devildom opened up, it couldn¡¯t be helped that normal users were agonizing over this for not having captured even a clue to become dual-class. However, out of the blue, it wasn¡¯t like someone found a clue, but a user that had succeeded in becoming Half-Human, Half-Devil from the start appeared. And the shock from this was even greater the higher the user¡¯s ranking was. Especially the top-ranking users, who were in the top 100 of the rankings from the beginning of Kailan, couldn¡¯t help but be incredibly disgusted by Ian. In their eyes, Ian was a user that was nothing more than a latecomer whose class was significantly lower than theirs. This was because Ian¡¯s level was not revealed on the ranking list once. Ian, that dude, I think he¡¯s seriously lucky.That¡¯s right, no matter how much he flies or crawls, from a new class perspective, and a Summoner, which the leveling up speed for is hell, at that, no matter how high we consider his level, we would more likely not choose that he was lv 160 than that he was, so is he at least using some sort of cheat, because he¡¯s been constantly dominating new content like a ghost.Yeah, yeah, there¡¯s definitely something. It¡¯s certain that he¡¯s either incredibly lucky or he¡¯s bribed LB Corps.But I¡¯m seriously curious as to how Ian is running through the Devildom. Even quite named rankers amongst the new classes died without having properly run through Zone 120 although they¡¯ve entered the Devildom¡­Ah, that¡­ Looking at the last broadcast, one of his retainers is an incredibly high level. It seems that he got lucky somewhere and picked up a high-level retainer, and is barely running around the Devildom.Euh, this Ian, if he even came out to the arena once, I would have beat him to a pulp.Person above, keke, I don¡¯t think that would be the case. During the central continent war before, I saw Ian face Ilahan and Shyakran momentarily, but Ian¡¯s combat abilities are seriously enough to wet your pants.No, no, I personally heard from Ilahan, but then, Ilahan was not fighting with all of his fighting power either. To be honest, it¡¯s true. How does it make sense that a Warrior-class with even a level difference of 20-30 levels is similar to a Summoner, which is a PVP pushover class?That¡¯s true but¡­ As Ian¡¯s active role and awareness increased, the rankers¡¯ jealousy towards him just grew more severe. Aside from a couple of rankers that directly fought against Ian one-on-one, most of the users that were in the top-rankings believed that the rumour about Ian¡¯s abilities was very overinflated to the reality. And to be honest, the fact that Ian intentionally concealed his stats played a part in that as well. At first, he just didn¡¯t reveal his information because it was bothersome, but after he made the ambitious goal of creating a new nation, he was thoroughly concealing his abilities. Ian was meticulous to the point he purposely devalued his abilities and thoroughly made sure that even the Lotus Guild would say that so a rumor would spread accordingly. Either way, thanks to that, the image that the rankers had of Ian was being perceived as ¡®just a user with luck and not much to him¡¯. However, recently, there was a user that was raising their wariness towards Ian consistently. * * * The Request of the Public Order General of the City of Rage II (Hidden) (Connected) Loros, the Public Order General of the City of Rage, has been given an important assignment from the elders of the Devildom. (Omitted) Take Loros¡¯s two subordinates and sweep up the Sanctum of Darkness that is on the outskirts of Zone 100 of the Devildom before returning. Quest Difficulty Level: SS Quest Condition: A user that has successfully carried out the ¡®Request of the Public Order General of the City of Rage I (Hidden) (Connected). Time Limit: None Reward: The Pure Blood of the Devil, Intermediate-grade Magic Stones x5 *This is a quest that cannot be rejected. A beautiful woman wearing a red robe. The Monarch of the Red Flame Remir read through the quest window that had popped up in front of her eyes while she wore an expression full of mixed emotions. ¡°Whew, I¡¯ve finally found it.¡± And while she mumbled to herself with a small voice, next to her, a devil spirit appeared and snickered. Keke, congratulations, Remir. Now you¡¯ll soon be able to use the abilities of a devil. Of course, though, no matter how quickly you accomplish the quest, you won¡¯t be the first, that is, kekeke. At Cassandra¡¯s words, Remir¡¯s lovely eyebrows suddenly pinched together. ¡°Quiet, Cassandra. I already know that.¡± After Remir got through Zone 110 in alliance with the other rankers, she proceeded to the map quickly and arrived at the City of Rage first before any of them. This was because she was certain that she would be able to find a clue to the Pure Blood of the Devil in the City of Rage. ¡®And I found it like this right now.¡¯ Up to this point, it was incredibly smooth. However, if there was a problem, exactly 5 minutes before she received the quest, she read the world message that Ian had become Half-Human, Half-Devil. Remir, who had been running around while burning up her competitive spirit without rest, couldn¡¯t help but feel dejected after all her efforts. ¡®Whew, this dude named Ian. I want to at least see what this dude does.¡¯ If her expectations were correct, she was certain that Ian, who had succeeded in becoming Half-Human, Half-Devil just now, would also be in a place that wasn¡¯t far off from the City of Rage. ¡®Samuel Jin and Martin think that Ian¡¯s abilities are nothing much, but there¡¯s no way that¡¯s the case. Instead, I think Shyakran judged Ian the most accurately.¡¯ Originally, because Remir was affiliated with the Luspel Empire, rather than Shyakran or Ilahan, who were affiliated with the Kaimon Empire, she was acquainted with Samuel Jin or Martin, who were rankers affiliated with Luspel. That¡¯s why, when she was hearing of information related to Ian at first, she heard it through them, and that¡¯s why right up until she was about to enter the Devildom, she looked down on Ian. ¡®I need to modify all judgments I made of Ian.¡¯ Remir slightly tightened her grasp on her staff that was shining brightly as she began to move in order to proceed with the quest. ¡®Perhaps, more so than the imperial family of the Luspel Empire that¡¯s falling, or even the Titan Guild, the person that could help me most in achieving my goal could possibly be Ian.¡¯ * * * Bbook- Bboo-book-! A deep dungeon in the outskirts of the City of Rage. Some big-headed turtle was waddling around. ¨C Bbook, Bboo-bbook! There are lots of food filled with power in the Devildom bbook! They aren¡¯t delicious, but they¡¯re still satisfying bbook. Big-headed turtle Bbookbbook was endlessly travelling the Devildom with just his gluttony. His owner, who had summoned him periodically even up until a month ago, had recently been quiet. Thanks to that, Bbookbbook was truly running around the Devildom cheerfully. ¨C I don¡¯t know why, but I miss my owner a little bbook. However, I still like my freedom more right now bbook. It wasn¡¯t like this from the beginning, but lately, Bbookbbook began to instinctively feel where Ian was. Could you say that he could automatically know the direction that Ian¡¯s energy was moving towards? He occasionally missed his meatballs, so he even wanted to go look for Ian, but he thought that it wasn¡¯t the time yet. ¡®Once the owner dude summons me, I can go see him then bbook. I should wait until then bbook.¡¯ Even if Ian didn¡¯t summon him, he had the ability to go look for him, but if that was the case, it was certain that he would most likely lose his freedom. Since if Ian found out the fact that Bbookbbook could run around even without him summoning him, it was obvious that he would continuously keep him by his side and shove him around. Bbookbbook was an exceptionally intelligent turtle. ¨C Euh, still, I want to brag that I can speak the language of the humans like Bbakbbak. To be honest, the reason why Bbookbbook became perverse was because of his sense of inferiority to Bbakbbak. This was because, from Bbookbbook¡¯s perspective, Bbakbbak was an elite turtle that spoke coolly and had a cool outer appearance that shone. ¨C Bad owner dude! Hurry up and summon me quickly bbook. As I¡¯ve eaten a lot of medicinal herbs lately, my head has gotten bigger and my shell has gotten firmer as well bbook. I want to quickly show it off bbook! Bbookbbook, a turtle who requires affection, began to move his feet as he found another delicious Devildom medicinal herb. Bbook- Bbook- Bbook-. He was able to speak the language of humans, but still, whenever he walked, it was along with the sound of him going bbookbbook. It seemed that such aspects of Bbookbbook was constantly irritating a Intermediate-rank magical beast that was seeking a nap in the corner of the dungeon as he glared at Bbookbbook. Glare-. A rugged-looking ox. To be more precise, after having felt the gaze of the giant magical beast, which had an outer appearance like a minotaur that appeared in ancient mythology, Bbookbbook spun his head around. Bbook-! Bbookbbook, who met eyes with the minotaur, suddenly became angry. ¨C I¡¯m in quite a terrible mood right now bbook! If you have any issues with me, come at me bbook! I will punish you bbook! ¨C Pu-reung- Pu-reu-reung-! However, surprisingly, the Intermediate-level magical beast that momentarily had a psychological war with Bbookbbook, let down its tail shortly afterwards and slowly turned its head away. And Bbookbbook, who saw that, began to walk with a triumphant expression again. ¨C A dude that¡¯s not much is bothering me bbook. I should quickly gather more power and become as cool as Bbakbbak as well. Bbookbbook thought that the magical beasts bothered him because his outer appearance looked weak. And instinctively, Bbookbbook felt that if he continuously gathered strength, he could become like Bbakbbak. ¨C Bbook! I found another one bbook! Bbookbbook, who found a medicinal herb of the Devildom that was growing in the corner of the dungeon in a short moment, hurriedly ran over and after digging up the surrounding, he began to chew on the medicinal herb. Bbook- Bbook-. And shortly after, Bbookbbook¡¯s shell began to shine a bright blue light. Whoong-. However, whether he knew this or not, Bbookbbook was focusing his mind on digging out and eating the medicinal herb. CH 220 Chapter 220: Seed of Trouble (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Gulp-. Ian, who had found the mansion of Seraphim through Heiska¡¯s help, gulped loudly as soon as he entered the front gate. ¡®Wow¡­ How is this a mansion? When it looks like a devil king¡¯s castle.¡¯ In the spot where Ian came to while looking for Seraphim¡¯s mansion, knowing clearly that it was a mansion he lived in alone, a building that was almost the same size as the Lord¡¯s castle that was in the Lotus Domain of the northern continent stood. Ian was intimidated by its grandness and moved carefully. ¡®If I go inside following this path, will I be able to meet Seraphim?¡¯ The path was laid out following the garden in a winding manner. An interesting point was that within the City of Rage, which was entirely dark and filled with a dull, dark-red light, a pretty garden that didn¡¯t suit it existed. That scenery was somewhat disparate, yet created a dreamlike atmosphere. Ian turned his head slightly towards Karceus, who was following behind him. ¡°Karceus, do you feel something like somebody¡¯s presence inside of here, by any chance?¡± Karceus, who momentarily stopped walking to close his eyes and focus his concentration, slowly shook his head. ¡°Well, I¡¯m not sure, owner. I think there¡¯s a powerful seal-like thing over this whole garden.¡± Within the City of Rage, Ian was just accompanied by Karceus polymorphed into his human form when he moved. This was because his other Familiars excessively stood out. ¡°Hmm¡­ What the hell? This eeriness without reason is a little scary.¡± Ian mumbled as he began to walk again, and Karceus started following behind him again. However, just then, a low and rough voice sharply drove through into the two¡¯s ears. A human, and a dragon, huh¡­ An interesting combination that is hard to come by. Oh, on top of that, you weren¡¯t a normal human, but Half-Devil. It¡¯s my first time in a long while seeing a Half-Human, Half-Devil, huhu. At that voice, Ian reflexively turned his head and he began to look for the owner of the voice, and the voice continued. There¡¯s no need to look around, human. Since I¡¯m in a place that you cannot see. Ian, who wore a sheepish smile at that, scratched the back of his head as he opened his mouth towards the sky. ¡°Are you Seraphim?¡± That¡¯s right, I am Seraphim, the second-in-command lord of the castle of the City of Rage. Have you come looking for me? Ian nodded his head as he replied. ¡°That¡¯s right, I¡¯ve come to see you, Seraphim.¡± What for? Ian opened the quest window of the quest he received from Iriel again and he opened his mouth after he slightly skimmed over it. ¡°I¡¯ve come because Iriel has sent me. I want to talk about the destructive devils.¡± ¡­! At Ian¡¯s words, a tranquil silence lingered in the garden of the mansion for a moment. And Seraphim¡¯s words continued again. You were more important of a guest than I expected. I don¡¯t think this is a problem that we can be talking about like this, so we shall talk inside. The moment that Seraphim¡¯s words ended and Ian was about to retort something, a red light began to shine in a circular form beneath the feet of Ian and Karceus. ¡°What is this?¡± Karceus replied. ¡°I think it¡¯s a magic circle.¡± ¡°Can magic circles also originally be drawn from a distance?¡± ¡°That I don¡¯t really¡­¡± And the bodies of the two people, who stood on top of that, floated in the air before they disappeared without a trace a moment after. * * * ¡°Huhu, there¡¯s probably no one that knows that there¡¯s another route to obtaining dual classes other than the method of becoming Half-Human, Half-Devil, right?¡± The northern district of the City of Rage. The man that stood in front of a gloomy dungeon that was outside of the northern gates in Zone 100 of the Devildom smirked as he mumbled. ¡°Sure, Ian, I know for sure that your luck and skills are truly amazing. However, I will show you that there is still a wall that you cannot overcome.¡± The man led over dozens of retainers and entered the dungeon. At his waist, a greatsword that gave off a blue light was tied to it, and that item was like a token of the most famous Magic Swordsman in Kailan. He was none other than ¡®Ilahan¡¯, the guild master of the DarkRuna Guild. ¡°Master, preparations have been fully completed.¡± ¡°Good work.¡± Ilahan was a top-ranking user to the point that he was originally assumed to be closest to 1st place in the rankings combining private users. On top of that, as the war of the two empires in the central continent ended off with the Kaimon Empire¡¯s overwhelming victory, naturally, the influence of the DarkRuna Guild, who had the power of the Kaimon Empire, grew even more. For Ilahan, the Guild Master of the DarkRuna Guild, to have obtained even more power was a natural sequence. Amongst the videos that were uploaded in the community a while ago, there was a video of Ilahan breaking through the Temple of Holdream, which was the hardest dungeon of the central continent. At the time, that video was an incredibly hot issue, and the biggest reason for that was because Ilahan had broken through the dungeon not with the power of a guild party, but his strength alone. The scene of a user easily breaking through the dungeon with just their retainers using their strength only couldn¡¯t help but bring forth admiration from a lot of users. This was because originally, the Temple of Holdream was known to be a place that was only possible to attack if there was a full party of 20 users that were all over lv 160. That was why Ilahan¡¯s confidence was sky-high lately. However, there was just one being that bothered him, and that being was none other than Ian. This was because the one that experienced Ian¡¯s combat abilities properly during the siege warfare of the Pyro Fortress was none other than Ilahan. ¡®I was a little slower than Ian at entering the Devildom, but since I have a hidden quest¡­ Huhu.¡¯ If Ilahan just successfully completed the quest that he was currently proceeding with right now, he believed that he could become an unrivaled being. ¡®Huhu, a Half-Devil will never be able to overcome a True Devil.¡¯ A reddish, evil light flashed through Ilahan¡¯s two eyes. * * * The place that Ian had teleported to with the red magic circle was Seraphim¡¯s office. Seraphim¡¯s office was embroidered with ornate pieces that were reminiscent enough of the fancy patterns of the Baroque and Rococo age of Europe. A massive-figured man sat on the stone pedestal in the middle of that room and was looking down at Ian. He was Seraphim. ¡°Alright, child, you¡¯re saying that you¡¯ve heard about the destructive devils from Iriel, right?¡± At Seraphim¡¯s words, Ian nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. Iriel told me that the destructive devils are trying to move again, so she told me to ask for help from you, Seraphim.¡± ¡°Hmm, my help, huh¡­¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know exactly, but she said that the anger within the Devildom needed to be blocked in order for a full-scale war between the human world and Devildom to be avoided.¡± Seraphim slowly nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. That child Iriel is truly fascinating, that is. How she figured out the internal situation of the Devildom from that far of a place¡­¡± Seraphim gently closed his eyes. He was a person that appeared to be a Warrior with a rough and large build, but within his clear blue pupils, there was the image of a wise man that was filled with kind wisdom. ¡°Either way, you¡¯ve come at the right time. Iriel has sent you to me exactly when you were needed.¡± ¡°Is¡­ That so?¡± Ian carefully asked in return as he waited for Seraphim¡¯s next words. ¡®Is it time for the quest to pop up now?¡¯ And like Ian predicted, a quest window popped up in front of his eyes without doubt. Ring- The Beginnings of the Devils III (Hidden) (Connected) ¡®Seraphim¡¯ is a ¡®Half-Devil¡¯ as well as a devil that is of a Noblesse rank. Because he was a person whose origin was a human hero before he became a devil, he does not want a full-scale war between the Devildom and the human world to occur. However, recently, with the destructive devils as a key role, a portion of the power of the Devildom was plotting an attack on the human world, and they began to purge power that was on the opposite side of that plan one by one. They have yet to spread their magical beasts to devils that were Noblesse-rank or higher, but a couple of High-ranking Devils had fallen to the scheme of the destructive devils and were beginning to get locked up in the Tower of Punishment or were assassinated. Before the power of the destructive devils grows, the power of the Common Devils must be gathered together as fast as possible and a power that can counteract them must be formed. Go to the ¡®Fortress of the Devil¡¯ that is in Zone 80 of the Devildom and convey this fact to Devil King ¡®Ricardo¡¯. Quest Difficulty Level: SS Quest Condition: A user that has successfully carried out the ¡®Beginnings of the Devils II (Hidden) (Connected)¡¯ quest. Time Limit: 30 days Reward: ? *This is a quest that cannot be turned down. Ian, who read through the whole quest content, slowly nodded his head. ¡®It¡¯s a simple traveling quest where I just need to find an NPC this time as well. Of course, getting through to Zone 80 will not be that simple at all, that is.¡¯ On top of that, there was a time limit of 30 days. The time limit was not short, however, still, even that alone was enough to put pressure on Ian. Ian asked Seraphim. ¡°Is Devil King Ricardo the castellan of the Fortress of the Devil?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Seraphim nodded his head as he replied. ¡°That¡¯s right. You¡¯ll just need to pass on the letter that I give you to him.¡± At the same time that Seraphim¡¯s words ended, a yellow paper scroll completely rolled up appeared in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. You have obtained the item ¡®Seraphim¡¯s Letter¡¯. Seraphim¡¯s words continued again. ¡°You cannot be too late, but as it is not a matter where you¡¯re tight on time, it would be best to move after preparing thoroughly. It seems that with your current abilities, Zone 80 will be an incredibly dangerous place for you.¡± As expected of a Noblesse-rank Devil, Seraphim perceived Ian¡¯s Devildom rank from one look. Ian nodded his head as he replied. ¡°Yes, as a matter of fact, I was planning on moving after at least obtaining a dual class.¡± ¡°Sure, that¡¯s a good idea as well. If you are a Half-Devil with quite a high rank of a High-ranking Devil, you¡¯ll be able to obtain a dual class without much difficulty as well, that is.¡± Seraphim pointed to the tower that stood tall outside the window as he continued his words. ¡°That building over there is the Class Tower. If you go over there, you should be able to obtain a dual class that you want.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Ian did respond, but of course, he had absolutely no intentions of obtaining a dual class from the Class Tower. ¡®I should go to Zone 107 first and visit Cervian¡¯s laboratory.¡¯ At the thought of obtaining a hidden class from Cervian, Ian felt himself become excited already. ¡°Oh, also, Seraphim.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Do you know a High-ranking Devil named ¡®Yankoun¡¯?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Seraphim wore a slightly surprised expression. ¡°Of course I know Yankoun. However, how do you know him?¡± Ian concisely picked out the incidences he had with Yankoun and explained the situation to him. Of course, Ian didn¡¯t forget to fluff up his own performance little by little as he told him either. ¡®Since building up Affinity with a Noblesse-rank Devil will definitely be of help eventually.¡¯ Seraphim, who heard all of Ian¡¯s story, wore a bitter smile as he opened his mouth. ¡°Huh-huh, for such an incident¡­ So, you¡¯re saying that Yankoun has been locked up in the Tower of Punishment before even I was aware of it, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. However, I never thought that you, the second-in-command lord of the castle of the City of Rage, would have had no idea about this.¡± Seraphim let out a low sigh before he opened his mouth. ¡°This is because the destructive devils have already almost dominated this City of Rage. They are covering my eyes and ears.¡± ¡°The destructive devils are?¡± Seraphim slowly nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. It has been a long time since Devil King Hikiondo, the castellan, has fallen into the ways of the destructive devils.¡± At those words, Ian¡¯s expression slightly hardened. ¡®What the hell, then isn¡¯t it possible that Yankoun may not be released even with Seraphim¡¯s strength as well?¡¯ Yankoun¡¯s liberation would influence Ian¡¯s fighting power incredibly. Since if Yankoun, a High-ranking Devil who was also lv 350, was to join Ian¡¯s fighting power, he would bring an effect where the fighting power would increase by about 1.5-2 times at the least. And as if he had read Ian¡¯s thoughts, Seraphim continued his words. ¡°However, once the truth is known, I will be able to liberate Yankoun from the Tower of Punishment at least with my power, so don¡¯t worry.¡± Ian let out a sigh of relief. ¡°Whew, that¡¯s a relief. I think I need to obtain his help in order to safely reach Zone 80 of the Devildom at least.¡± Seraphim nodded his head. ¡°I will pull Yankoun out within three days at the earliest and five days at the latest. You could obtain a dual class within then and return.¡± ¡°I will do that.¡± Ian¡¯s mind began to race quickly. ¡®Have I now finished everything that I needed to go to Seraphim for? There¡¯s nothing else I need to do besides leaving this place and coming back from visiting Cervian¡¯s laboratory within three days, right?¡¯ However, a feeling like he was forgetting something remained, and shortly after, Ian was able to remember the cause of that. ¡®Oh, right. The slave marketplace! I should stop by the slave marketplace as well.¡¯ He wasn¡¯t sure what kind of role a slave could play in the Devildom, but still, having one would definitely be better than not having one. Ian immediately asked Seraphim for information on the slave marketplace. ¡°Seraphim, before we move, there¡¯s one more thing that I¡¯m curious about.¡± ¡°Continue.¡± Ian pulled out the slave contract that he had been keeping in his inventory and held it up as he continued his words. ¡°I want to obtain information on the slave marketplace that is in the central plaza of the City of Rage.¡± Ian turned his gaze towards Seraphim. However, for some reason, Seraphim did not respond whatsoever. ¡°Seraphim¡­?¡± However, with his gaze fixated somewhere, he didn¡¯t react even a tiny bit despite Ian calling him. Ian turned his head to the place that his eyes were on. And the place that Seraphim¡¯s gaze was on was the slave contract that was within Ian¡¯s hands. ¡®What the hell? Why is he staring that intently at this?¡¯ Ian called Seraphim again. ¡°Seraphim!¡± And Seraphim, who only pulled himself together then, was surprised as he smiled sheepishly. ¡°Ha, haha. Sorry. I was distracted by the item that you were holding in your hand for a moment, that is.¡± Ian looked back and forth at the slave contract that was in his hand and at Seraphim as he mumbled to himself. ¡®Has he read the content that¡¯s written in the contract from that distance?¡¯ And while Ian was tilting his head, Seraphim¡¯s words continued. ¡°You, truly your luck is incredibly good.¡± CH 221 Chapter 221: Seed of Trouble (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The story that he heard from Seraphim was quite long, but if it was summarized briefly, it would be like this. ¡®Dice¡¯, a Noblesse-rank Devil that was the owner of the slave marketplace of the City of Rage, was urgently looking for a slave contract, and to the person that brought him a slave contract, he declared that he would open up the lowest floor of the slave marketplace just once.Normally, there was a rule that the lowest floor of the slave marketplace was only open to Devil Kings, and was only opened to devils that were Noblesse-rank or higher once a year for just a quarter of a day.The lowest floor of the slave marketplace was a place where a lot of slaves were sold that were so rare to the point that even Seraphim, who was a Noblesse-rank Devil, wanted them. After hearing Seraphim¡¯s explanation, Ian felt that this was some sort of amazing opportunity, but at the same time, had a question. ¡°No, but¡­ What is a slave contract for someone who is the owner of the slave marketplace to let out such a great bonus? On top of that, a Noblesse-rank Devil, who is also the owner of the slave marketplace, doesn¡¯t even have one slave contract?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Seraphim smirked as he replied. ¡°You know much less about the worth of the slave contract than I expected.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°The ability itself that the slave contract item has certainly isn¡¯t that valuable.¡± Originally, the usefulness of the slave contract was an item that was only valuable to devils that were Common Devils or lower as they were unable to employ slaves. There was also a merit for devils that were High-rank Devils or higher, where it could reduce the price of the slave that they wanted to employ by half, but it wasn¡¯t to the point that it could be considered amazing. To be honest, for Ian to find this puzzling was obvious. ¡°So?¡± ¡°However, the slave contract is incredibly rare.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Because it is an item where only three of them are issued every year in all of the Devildom, its rarity is beyond our imagination.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± From time to time, there were items like that. There were items that couldn¡¯t be considered amazing, yet just by their rarity alone, their value went up incredibly. Despite that, as his questions were not all resolved yet, Ian¡¯s mouth opened up again. ¡°Hmm¡­ Even if that is the case, why exactly would the owner of the slave marketplace, who is supposed to be a Noblesse-rank, need the slave contract? Isn¡¯t it an item that is completely useless to him?¡± Seraphim laughed as he replied. ¡°That is because he is a dullard father with a pretty daughter.¡± At the unexpected response, Ian wore a flustered expression. ¡°Sorry¡­?¡± ¡°Dice is a Noblesse, but ¡®Sasha¡¯, his daughter, is still a Common Devil. And for her twentieth birthday present, she said that she wanted a slave.¡± It was then that the current situation started to settle into shape clearly in Ian¡¯s head. ¡®So¡­ He needed the slave contract because of his daughter¡¯s birthday present?¡¯ Either way, in accordance with Seraphim¡¯s explanation, the ¡®lowest floor of the slave marketplace¡¯ was definitely a place that was greatly worthy enough to the point it was fine to call it a hidden piece. ¡®And an opportunity to go into such a place has formed.¡¯ Ian¡¯s gaze turned towards Seraphim again. ¡°Then, do I just need to go find Dice with this?¡± As Ian spoke while shaking the slave contract, Seraphim nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Ian, who had a lot of things he had to do including his quests, had a lot on his mind. ¡®Well, it should be fine as long as I go through everything gradually one by one.¡¯ However, despite that, he didn¡¯t even have the least bit intention to do them sloppily. Ian opened his mouth towards Seraphim again. ¡°Anyhow, Seraphim, you¡¯ve gone in the lowest floor of the slave marketplace before, right?¡± ¡°Of course. I always visit the slave marketplace every year on the one day that the lowest floor is open to the public without failure.¡± Ian curled up the corner of his mouth as he spoke. ¡°Then give me some information.¡± At first, Seraphim found it incredibly bothersome, but as Ian continuously asked earnestly, he slowly began to open his mouth. And different from the beginning, when he found it bothersome, he explained the information that he knew in quite a lot of detail. ¡°Firstly, I¡¯ll tell you the most important point in order to pick a good slave.¡± ¡°Point?¡± ¡°As this is high-quality information that not everyone knows about, don¡¯t miss even one word and remember it.¡± The first piece of information that Seraphim told him about was that fundamentally, the lower the floor, the higher the chance for there to be higher-ranking slaves. There were not a lot of people that knew about this because aside from the lowest floor, that difference wasn¡¯t big, but this was quite important information. ¡°The ¡®lowest floor¡¯, which is where you will be going, is tied together with the name lowest floor, but is a multi-level space that is made up of 3 floors, and naturally, there is a higher chance that the slaves on the lowest floor of the three are higher-ranking slaves.¡± ¡°I see, this is certainly useful information for me. However, is this that high-quality of information? It is information that I think most would know if you are a devil that has used the slave marketplace before¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s not true. This is because there are a ton of cases where they don¡¯t know how to distinguish good slaves despite even having employed slaves before.¡± The information that Seraphim told him next was how to distinguish the information of the slave. According to what he said, there was no way of finding out the rank of the slave before purchasing it in the slave marketplace. ¡°If you are a High-ranking Devil or higher, anybody can check the information of the slave. However, almost half of the information will be hidden from you. And it may be obvious, but you will not be able to check the ¡®rank¡¯ of the slave, which is the most important information, until you stamp the contract.¡± The reason for that was because there was a capped price and a bottom price set for the fixed price of the slave. This was because if the price of the slave was freely priced depending on its rank and stats, the slave marketplace would follow the principles of the market economy and move on its own accord. However, if there was not a big difference in the prices of high-ranking slaves and low-ranking slaves, no one would try to purchase low-ranking slaves. ¡°So, when checking the information of the slave, the thing that the purchaser must definitely check is the species of the slave.¡± ¡°I see. It seems the slaves are not devils?¡± ¡°No, there are devils amongst the slaves as well. There are even devils that are High-ranking Devils or greater. However, such cases are extremely rare, so mostly other various species from another dimension come in as slaves.¡± ¡°It seems like a similar concept to war slaves due to an invasive war of the Devildom.¡± ¡°You could say that is the case. More precisely, they could be considered war slaves of the past.¡± ¡°War slaves of the past?¡± ¡°Right now, the Devildom is not participating in any invasive wars, but in the past, they invaded tons of dimensions. And the species and dimensions that had completely surrendered to the Devildom at the time have become colonies of ours. You could say that the ones that are coming in as slaves right now are species of the dimensions that have become colonies of ours a long time ago.¡± ¡°I see. So in the case that the human world completely surrendered in a war between the Devildom and the human world, humans would become slaves and appear in the slave marketplace.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Right now, I may be enjoying my authority as a devil, but fundamentally, I was human. And as that is the case, I am trying to prevent a dimensional war with the human world right now at all costs.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± ¡°Our conversation has suddenly gone off in a different direction. Going back to the root of our conversation again¡­¡± Seraphim told Ian a couple of species that had the highest chance of being high-ranking slaves. ¡°If you discover a Moon Elf or a Dark Phantom, or even a Kargon, you shouldn¡¯t have a case where you will be at a loss if you contract them.¡± ¡°Oh-ho¡­¡± While looking at Ian, who jotting this down diligently, Seraphim added on. ¡°Moon Elves have an appearance of an elf with a bright purple skin tone, and you can think of Dark Phantoms as ghosts that have an almost opaque, hazy body. Lastly, also called half-dragon, a Kargon is a human that looks like a dragon.¡± ¡°A human that looks like a dragon¡­? What exactly do they look like?¡± ¡°You will know when you go and see one for yourself.¡± ¡°¡­¡± And the information that Seraphim told him lastly was on the skills of the slaves. ¡°When people that don¡¯t really know much about slaves contract a slave, they unnecessarily compare the combat stats of a slave and pick the one that has the strongest Offensive Power, but please don¡¯t do that.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± For a moment, Ian felt a sting. This was because if it wasn¡¯t for Seraphim¡¯s words, he felt like he would have done that. ¡®I might have even compared the combat stats of all of the slaves that are in the lowest floor and picked the one with the highest stats¡­¡¯ Ian scratched the back of his head as he asked why. ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± ¡°This is because using a slave as a normal fighting power in a battle is truly the worst choice. Could you say that the effectiveness is close to zero?¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°This is because, fundamentally, no matter how exceptional the combat stats of a slave, there won¡¯t be any one that is strong enough to beat a High-ranking Devil, and even in the case that there is one, the inherent abilities of the slaves that only slaves can have are much more charming.¡± Ian felt himself grow even more interested. ¡®What the hell? Is it some sort of new content again?¡¯ Of course, it was important to add powerful fighting power, but there were also many other ways of satisfying that by selecting retainers, capturing Familiars, etc. Because of that, Ian was even more interested with the fact that there was something special for just the slave content. ¡°Oh-ho, could you give me an example?¡± Seraphim¡¯s words continued. ¡°Firstly, in the case of Moon Elves, there are a lot of cases where they have conditional AoE passive skills that are related to ¡®night¡¯ or the ¡®moon¡¯.¡± As soon as he heard the ability of the Moon Elves, there was someone he immediately thought of. ¡®Oh, will I be able to obtain something like the passive ability that Ly has as an AoE?¡¯ If that was the case, it was for certain that it would be an incredible help. ¡®Especially in this Devildom, where there are three moons, it would be even more of a help.¡¯ Seraphim opened his mouth again. ¡°In the case of Dark Phantoms, their combat abilities are truly convergent to 0, but they have a hiding ability that puts me at a loss for words.¡± Ian asked back with a quizzical expression. ¡°What meaning does a hiding ability have when they don¡¯t have combat abilities?¡± ¡°There is almost no place that a Dark Phantom cannot go to, and aside from Devil Energy and Holy abilities, they do not receive damage from any attack. On top of that, as they can make their bodies transparent for a fixed amount of time, they are incredibly specialized in scouting dangerous areas.¡± Ian, who heard up to this point, tilted his head. ¡®It certainly is a good ability, but they seem like they are somewhat lacking in comparison to Moon Elves¡­¡¯ However, Seraphim¡¯s words weren¡¯t over. ¡°And amongst Dark Phantoms, occasionally there are ones that have an inherent ability called ¡®The Realm of Darkness¡¯, and that is what is truly amazing.¡± ¡°¡¯The Realm of Darkness¡¯¡­ It seems like it is cool somehow.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not just cool. If the Realm of Darkness is cast, for a fixed amount of time, the vision of all enemies within range disappears. At most it¡¯s just about 15 seconds, but in a large-scale battleground, this ability has a powerful effect that can flip the tables around. On top of that, it ignores all status condition immunity.¡± For a moment, Ian¡¯s expression changed. As Ian knew more about large-scale battles than anybody else, he figured out the real worth of that ability immediately. ¡®It¡¯s a truly horrific ability. If the ability to see disappeared as an AoE during a scuffle, 15 seconds will probably feel like 15 years.¡¯ Lastly, an explanation on the inherent abilities of the Kargon continued. ¡°Kargon, this is a species that even I have yet to use as a slave, but they are ones that you must contract as soon as you discover them.¡± At those words, Ian¡¯s expectations increased even more. ¡°What kind of abilities do they have?¡± Seraphim responded. ¡°The ability to distort space.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± ¡°They are ones that can fold and open up space as they wish. If you have one of them, you can think of it as being able to contract space by magic as a group.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Of course, there will probably be something like a cooldown time or consumption value¡­ But still, I saw them use their abilities continuously to the point you can¡¯t really notice such things. Although I don¡¯t know exactly since I didn¡¯t use it personally, that is.¡± In the mind of Ian, who had been diligently organizing the information on the inherent abilities of the recommended species up until now, had turned white like a sheet of paper for a moment. And within that space, there were just the seven letters that spelt Kargon. ¡®Alright, Kargon. I¡¯ve decided on you!¡¯ However, up until then, Ian had no idea. Of the disaster that would approach him a quarter of a day later¡­ Normally, life did not flow as one wished. CH 222 Chapter 222: Seed of Trouble (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda After hearing a couple more precautions from Seraphim, Ian immediately headed towards the slave marketplace. And not long after he arrived, he was able to meet Dice, the owner of the slave marketplace, without much difficulty. This was because Seraphim, who was acquaintances with Dice, had informed Dice beforehand. Dice, who met Ian for the first time, greeted him welcomingly. ¡°Ho, as he said a High-ranking Devil would be coming, I just thought that would be the case¡­ But you were a Half-Devil.¡± Different from Seraphim, who was a little large in body size, Dice had the image of a small elder. However, the aura that he gave off was nothing of the sort. As expected of a Noblesse-rank Devil, the aura that spread out from him was incredibly overpowering. ¡°Yes, nice to meet you, I¡¯m Ian.¡± ¡°Huhu, on top of that, a Summoner¡­ A truly special guest, keul-keul.¡± While looking at Dice, who figured out what class he was at once, Ian was a little surprised, but he nodded his head shortly after. ¡®Did he figure it out because Karceus is standing next to me?¡¯ Either way, as the part that was important right now was not that, Ian quickly pulled out the slave contract from his inventory and held it out to Dice. ¡°I¡¯ve brought the item.¡± Dice immediately spread his hand out towards Ian, and as he did so, the contract that was in Ian¡¯s hand flapped as it flew towards Dice. And Dice, who received and checked the contract, wore a pleased smile. ¡°Alright, the item is legitimate. I am a little curious as to how you obtained such a rare item, but¡­ Well, since that¡¯s not what¡¯s important.¡± Dice, who obtained the item that he wanted, wore a satisfied smile, and his yellow teeth slightly appeared between his lips. Ian equally smiled as he spoke. ¡°Well, I was able to obtain it somehow.¡± Dice smirked. ¡°You got lucky today.¡± After finishing his words, Dice¡¯s small body floated up in the air. ¡°Follow me. I will guide you to the lowest floor.¡± As Dice began to move while floating in the air, Ian quickly followed behind him. The head of Ian, who was walking diligently, was full of the information that he heard from Seraphim before he came here. * * * Ziiing-. The southernmost area of the spacious Zone 100 of the Devildom. And a giant portal that was in that place. The red portal that floated all by itself in a terrain that was like a desolate wilderness gave off an image that was overflowing with incredible coercion. It seemed like it was a space where not one person existed, but shortly after, one man flew out of the red portal. Baang-! Along with a loud booming sound, the man flew backwards quite far, and he rolled around the ground a couple times before he went limp. ¡°Damn it, it¡¯s seriously terrifyingly strong.¡± The man that dusted his armour, which had almost become rags, and stood up was Shyakran, the Guild Master of the Titan Guild. ¡°I didn¡¯t have any intentions of entering Zone 90 for a while anyways, but¡­ This seems like it would be more troublesome than expected.¡± As Shyakran slowly began to turn his footsteps around, the guild members of the Titan Guild, who were hiding nearby, jumped out and helped him. The one that jumped out closest from the front and supported Shyakran¡¯s shoulder first was Blazing Knight Ceilron. ¡°Shyakran, what happened? You¡¯ve come out alive, though.¡± At his words, which had a strange nuance that had a suspicious(?) intention depending on how it was heard, Shyakran frowned as he answered. ¡°You punk, are you discontent with the fact that your Guild Master came back alive?¡± At that, Ceilron faltered slightly as he replied. ¡°Ah, no, why are you like this again? You know well that was not what I meant.¡± At Ceilron¡¯s whining, Shyakran¡¯s frown deepened. ¡°You little- You¡¯re being gross, punk.¡± And Shyakran, who pulled out a water bottle from his inventory and quenched his thirst, slowly opened his mouth again. ¡°You see, this portal that enters into the two-digit range zones.¡± At Shyakran¡¯s words, the gazes of the Titan guild members all gathered onto his mouth, and his words continued. ¡°Its character is a little different from the gateways up until now.¡± ¡°What is it like?¡± ¡°Firstly, it¡¯s not a structure where many can try to pass through at the same time.¡± Shyakran slightly recalled the monster-like creature that was hunching its body within the portal as he continued his words. ¡°Even if ten, no, even if a hundred people go in, all of the people that entered will each enter a different examination room¡­ And inside of the room, a Heroic-rank Magical Beast is coiled up.¡± All of the guild members that were listening to Shyakran¡¯s story were concentrating with expressions saying as if they wouldn¡¯t miss even one word of his. This was because the words of Shyakran, who was the first to challenge the gateway of Zone 100, was incredible information. Ceilron asked Shyakran. ¡°So, then, Master, have you caught the creature?¡± Shyakran asked back with a dumbfounded expression. ¡°Do you think then that I would have been thrown back out here? I would probably be heading towards Zone 99.¡± Ceilron pouted as he responded. ¡°No, since you returned alive¡­ Then, are you saying that the magical beast let you turn back out alive even after defeating you?¡± Shyakran shook his head. ¡°No, I suffered horribly from it. There was no such thing as it going easy on me. However, as my Vitality dropped below 10%, I was automatically thrown back out.¡± As if they had finally understood then, the users of the Titan Guild, including Ceilron, nodded their heads. ¡°I see. How was the creature? Still, if it was you, Master, you probably fought on par, right?¡± At one user¡¯s words, Shyakran wore a bitter smile as he shook his head. ¡°No. I was brutally broken down with a crazy difference. Even up to the last moment, I wasn¡¯t able to bring down the Vitality of the monster close to its halfway point.¡± At those words, the users gulped audibly. Who was Shyakran? Was he not the strongest user that grabbed 1st place alongside Ilahan in the Kaimon Empire arena? The fact that someone like him had suffered like this with such a big difference wasn¡¯t much different from it meaning that it was to the point that others wouldn¡¯t even be able to try and attack. ¡°I¡¯ll have to challenge it again after I¡¯m over lv 200.¡± At Shyakran¡¯s words, the other users nodded their heads as they turned their footsteps around, but Ceilron¡¯s eyes shone as he stared at the portal. ¡°Ceilron, what are you doing? Or you not coming?¡± At Shyakran¡¯s question, Ceilron grinned as he replied. ¡°You said that you are thrown back out with 10% of your Vitality left.¡± ¡°So?¡± ¡°While we¡¯re here anyways. If I won¡¯t die, I want to face it once before coming back out.¡± At Ceilron¡¯s words, Shyakran smirked. ¡°Whatever you wish.¡± If there was no penalty, it wouldn¡¯t be a bad idea to feel the powerfulness of the outrageous ¡®creature¡¯ at least once as well. Shyakran pulled out a potion from his inventory as he handed it to Ceilron. ¡°Suck on this at least before you go in.¡± At that Ceilron¡¯s two eyes shone. ¡°Ooh, such a rare item!¡± Shyakran let his snickers flow out as he replied. ¡°Don¡¯t you think you¡¯ll have to at least use a drug in order to do something before you come out? Once you¡¯re done fighting, return to the City of Rage. We¡¯ll be repairing our equipment inside.¡± Ceilron¡¯s eyes sparkled as he nodded his head. ¡°Understood, Master. Thank you for your consideration.¡± Ceilron, who finished speaking, threw his body inside of the portal without delay, and the rest of the party members of the Titan Guild turned their footsteps around and began to move towards the City of Rage. Shyakran turned his head for a moment and stared at the inside of the portal, where Ceilron disappeared to. ¡®Even hitting lv 200 is not enough. Will it be worth trying after I¡¯ve at least obtained a dual class¡­¡¯ It seemed that a lot of his strength that he exhausted from facing the ¡®creature¡¯ had returned, as Shyakran¡¯s heavy footsteps grew lighter little by little. And shortly after, as the party of the Titan Guild disappeared, the front of the portal of Zone 100 had transformed into a bleak, empty lot where there was not one person. To be honest, even up to Zone 110 of the Devildom, the front of the portal where the gateway was had a similar feeling to a basecamp where tons of users were gathered. The reason why users began to gather there at first was because the number of people that were waiting for their turn to try to get through the gateway was increasing, but as time passed, it had just turned into a meeting point where users traded or formed parties with each other. This was a case that had occurred because it was a outskirt zone of the Devildom that didn¡¯t have even one base or village-like place. However, the number of users that had passed through Zone 110 was a small number to the point that it was not quite a three-digit figure yet, and on top of that, the number of people that had reached Zone 100 wasn¡¯t even half of that quite yet. As that was the case, the front of the gateway of Zone 100 was so quiet. Whiiing-. The gloomy Devildom¡¯s wind brushed passed the portal¡¯s surroundings. However, just then¡­ Rustle-. A bush that was near the portal rustled, and a small shadow jumped out all of a sudden. Bbook-. And then a turtle with a dashing figure that had a large head and short legs appeared. The identity of the shadow was none other than Bbookbbook. Bbook- Bbook- Bbook-. Bbookbbook, who let out a bbookbbook sound whenever he took a step as he slowly approached the portal, diligently turned his head to the left and right as he checked to make sure that there was no one nearby. Bbook, the humans have all probably went back, right, bbook¡­? Bbookbbook didn¡¯t want to run into even one human being. This was because it would be troublesome if he had run into a human and they had recognized him as he was a famous turtle. It was a little dangerous in Zone 117 last time bbook! Bbookbbook appeared in Ian¡¯s battle videos often, and also, as his appearance was so unequaled(?), he was Ian¡¯s mascot-like Familiar that had become known to many users. Thanks to that, while wandering the Devildom without much thought, there was a time when he had been caught in the hands of fans and was almost dragged back to Ian, so ever since then, Bbookbbook avoided humans. A place where there are no humans¡­ I¡¯ll have to go to an even deeper part of the Devildom bbook! With manly footsteps, Bbookbbook headed towards the portal step by step. Bbook- Bbook- Bbook-. And at the moment that he thrust his head into the door of the red portal! Thud-. While letting out a dull sound, Bbookbbook¡¯s head was blocked by the portal as it bounced back. At the strange phenomenon, which he had never experienced up until now, Bbookbbook wore an incredibly flustered expression. Bbook! This portal is broken bbook! Why is it like this bbook? However, as he couldn¡¯t give up just like this, Bbookbbook thrust his body into the portal with all his strength once again. Boing-! However, the thing that returned along with the pain that rang through his whole head was just one system message. You cannot enter a map that the steps of Owner ¡®Ian¡¯ haven¡¯t reached yet. Bbookbbook, who checked the message, wore an incredibly cranky expression. Bbook! Lazy owner dude! What are you doing, not having gone in here yet bbook? However, Bbookbbook was not a stupid turtle that spent time on cases that would not work. Bbookbbook turned his footsteps around without any lingering attachment and began to walk towards some place again. Bbook- Bbook- Bbook-. Our Ly is probably alive and well, right, bbook? Bbookbbook brought up a longing face. As he recalled Ly, he also recalled the face of Pin, who gave away his meatballs to him, at the same time. Bbook¡­ I miss my teammates that are probably suffering underneath our evil owner bbook¡­ Bbookbbook wore an expression more serious than ever before while mumbling as if he had become determined about something. Just wait a little more bbook. Once I become a turtle that¡¯s cooler than Bbakbbak, I will return then bbook. Bbookbbook began to take lonesome footsteps today as well. Today of all days, the shell on his back felt particularly heavy. CH 223 Chapter 223: Slave Marketplace (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Creak- Crea-crea-creak- Thud-! After a fricative sound that was uncomfortable to hear and a heavy sound that was loud enough to make the whole basement ring rang out, the giant iron door that was blocking off Ian and Dice began to go up slowly. Keu-keuk- Keu-keu-keuk-. And inside, a golden, shining staircase greeted Ian. ¡®What kind of entrance that leads to a slave shop looks this showy?¡¯ The door did open, but the two eyes of Ian, who didn¡¯t know what to do, blinked as he stared at Dice. At that, Dice smiled as he opened his mouth. ¡°If you go down through these stairs, there will be the lowest floor of our slave marketplace of the City of Rage.¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°I see.¡± Dice¡¯s words continued. ¡°This is not applicable to other places, but in the case of this lowest floor, when you enter, there is a rule set that you cannot contract more than one slave each time you enter.¡± Ian nodded his head as he replied. ¡°I¡¯ve heard quite a decent amount of content from Seraphim, so I know about it.¡± ¡°Is that so? Then, it will be easy to explain.¡± Dice slowly began to go down the stairs, and Ian followed suit. ¡°You have a quarter of a day. Within a quarter of a day, you must decide on the slave that you want to contract and contract them. In the case that your time is up or if you¡¯ve contracted a slave, you will automatically be warped to the top floor of the slave marketplace.¡± Ian, who remembered one of Seraphim¡¯s precautions, mumbled to himself. ¡®He said that I¡¯ll be tight on time, but they give more time than I expected.¡¯ Ian responded shortly. ¡°Understood.¡± As they finally went all the way down the stairs, an open space appeared, and Ian¡¯s two eyes slightly grew due to surprise. ¡®They said that it was the lowest floor where only rare slaves are gathered together, so I thought that it would be smaller in size compared to the other floors that we passed by, but¡­ It¡¯s even bigger instead!¡¯ And he began to scan the space quickly. A quarter of a day was not a lot of time at all if he wanted to check all of the information of the slaves inside of here. While watching Ian, who looked around as soon as he entered the lowest floor, Dice grinned. ¡°Then, I pray for your success. I truly hope that you find a slave that¡¯s at least a Heroic-rank, Ian.¡± Just like retainers or Familiars, or even items, the rank of a slave was a system that was divided from Common-rank to Mythological-rank. However, when it came to their rarity, it was a different story. In the case of slaves, most of them were Common-rank, and Rare-rank ones were, literally speaking, rare, so starting from the Unique-rank, their rarity was incredibly high to the point that they were hard to find. As that was the case, a Heroic-rank slave that Dice spoke of was at a level where it was questionable if they even existed. Ian grinned as he nodded his head. ¡°Thank you, Dice. I will make sure that is the case.¡± Dice smiled back as he responded. ¡°Alright. Still, in this lowest floor, as there are only slaves that are Rare-rank or higher at the least, there won¡¯t be a case where you will be completely devastated. Hahahat.¡± Dice, who finished speaking, disappeared as if he was being blown out, and Ian quickly walked towards the prisons of the slaves, which were lined along everywhere. * * * A small, 2-floor building in the southeast of the City of Rage. In the hall of the 1st floor of that building, what roughly looked to be around fifteen people were sitting in a circle. And the man that was standing in the middle of that circle was Shyakran. ¡°You may all know, but¡­ This guild quest is an opportunity like no other to us, the Titan Guild.¡± The gazes of everyone were on Shyakran¡¯s mouth, and he continued his words. ¡°We are the first ones to have received a guild quest in the Devildom, and thanks to this quest, twenty people from just our Guild have been able to enter this City of Rage, where not many have even been able to step foot in yet.¡± Thanks to the Premium Seal of the Devil, Ian was able to step foot into the City of Rage without any particular obstacle. However, in order for the other users to enter the City of Rage, they needed to complete the quest of the public order of the city. And as the difficulty level of the public order quest boasted a tremendous difficulty level to the point that most couldn¡¯t even conceive the idea of doing it unless you were a decently top-ranking user, even just a couple days ago, the City of Rage was a space where not even five users could enter. From the beginning, as there weren¡¯t even ten users that had passed through Zone 110, it could be considered obvious. On top of that, as it was a quest with a condition where it could only be done on your own or with one other as a duo, it was a situation where multiple rankers could combine their strength like when they faced the chief gatekeeper of Zone 110. Even Shyakran, who was the strongest of the Warrior-class users, and Ceilron, who quarreled over top place in the Knight-class rankings, needed to squeeze out all of the strength they had in order to narrowly clear it. However, in that process, an unexpected piece of luck came and found the two people. If there was the Guild Master and Sub-Guild Master of the same guild within a party that was proceeding with the public order quest of the City of Rage, a system that would invoke a hidden quest was hidden within it. On top of that, that hidden quest was the first guild quest of the Devildom. And the payment they received as their first guild quest activation reward was enormous. A somewhat small, guild-affiliated party was all summoned into the City of Rage, and at the same time as that, they earned the right to enter the city. As the maximum number of people that could be in a party was twenty members, that many members were transferred and had entered. At a glance, as they didn¡¯t even receive substantial goods or anything like that, it could seem like nothing much, but to be honest, it was incredible. Since, within the City of Rage, which was full of an infinite amount of new content, only the Titan Guild was able to enter with a fighting power that could make up a full party, that is. ¡°We must not throw away this opportunity no matter what.¡± The eyes of the users that were affiliated with the Titan Guild shone brightly. As they were the ones that were always labeled as the 2nd place guild because of DarkRuna, they didn¡¯t want to lose this chance even more. ¡°Understood, Master!¡± As the energetic response of someone rang out, shouts burst out from here and there. Shyakran, who slowly looked around at his guild members, grinned as he unsheathed his sword and lifted it up. Chuk-! ¡°The instant that Ceilron returns, we will move in order to finish the quest.¡± * * * Ian had already been checking the information of the slaves for 2 hours now. ¡°Hmm¡­ It looks like it would be best to pass on this one. It is the first Moon Elf species that I¡¯ve found in a while, but there¡¯s no Racially Specialized Option attached to its inherent ability.¡± The structure of the lowest floor of the slave marketplace was a little unusual. There was not much difference with the upper floor when it came to the fact that there were a countless number of prisons that slaves were locked away in, but the slaves of the lowest floor all had their own rooms. On top of that, it wasn¡¯t normal bars, but something like a transparent magic wall that was keeping them in. However, despite it being a structure so transparent that the inside could be seen very clearly, based on the fact that they didn¡¯t even glance at Ian when he passed by right next to them, it seemed like it was a magic wall that prevented those inside from seeing the outside. ¡°Ha, as expected, just like what Seraphim said, it seriously isn¡¯t easy to find a slave.¡± The species that Seraphim recommended Ian were Moon Elves, Dark Phantoms, and Kargons. Even amongst the tons of slaves, the number of slaves of these three species was so low to the point that Ian seldom found them. On top of that, it wasn¡¯t like he could just pick those species either. ¡®Since there¡¯s no point if it¡¯s not one that has a racial inherent ability¡­¡¯ The reason why the species that Seraphim recommended were good was because of the inherent abilities that their specific species could only have. However, it wasn¡¯t like they had a Racial Inherent Ability no matter what just because they were of that species. The information that Ian could check in a slave¡¯s information window was for example, like this. Irela Level: 105 Race: Moon Elf Classification: Slave Rank: Unknown Personality: Meticulous Offensive Power: 2125 Defensive power: 1455 Agility: 2512 Intellect: 3312 Vitality: 132,450/132,450 Inherent Ability A (Racially Inherent) Unknown Inherent Ability B Unknown A fairy of the night that receives the energy of the moon and creates beneficial effects to its teammates. The fairy of the night is an incredibly rare species, and although small and cute, they are powerful, so it is known that even vampires, the aristocrats of the night, cannot take them lightly either. The part that Ian was checking carefully one by one were the slaves¡¯ race as well as the words that were within the parenthesis next to their inherent abilities. There were a total of five different kinds of phrases that were within the parenthesis, and the meanings that they had were as followed. Racially Inherent ¨C Meant that the relevant inherent ability is an inherent ability related to the slave¡¯s race.Racially Specialized ¨C Meant that when a race related to the relevant inherent ability used it, the inherent ability was invoked twice as powerfully.Rare Ability ¨C Meant that the relevant inherent ability was a rare inherent ability.Fortified Ability ¨C Meant that the relevant inherent ability was an inherent ability that was fortified up one level.Evolving Ability ¨C Meant that the relevant inherent ability was an ability that could develop depending on the levelling up of the slave. The 3rd, 4th and 5th phrases were definitely options that would be nice if they were there, but the phrases that Ian was looking for carefully were the 1st and 2nd ones. The 2nd phrase especially, which was the Racially Specialized one, was only significant when as its preceding condition, the 1st phrase, the Racially Inherent one, was attached no matter what. Simply put, when a slave whose race was a Moon Elf had an inherent ability that was not related to its race, no effect would be applied even if the ¡®Racially Specialized¡¯ option was attached. He was able to learn about all of this information through Seraphim, and Ian, who was quick-witted in these things, had understood the system completely after hearing it just once. However, as that was the case, the process of Ian picking a slave couldn¡¯t help but become even more painful. ¡®Goddammit. I will pick a slave that satisfies all of my conditions no matter what!¡¯ The slave that Ian currently wanted was a slave that at least had one inherent ability with the ¡®Racially Inherent¡¯ as well as the ¡®Racially Specialized¡¯ options attached, and additionally had an inherent ability with at least the ¡®Racially Inherent¡¯ option attached. ¡®Or even if there was just the Fortified Ability option attached to a Racially Inherent one, it wouldn¡¯t be bad.¡¯ Compared to the ¡®Racially Specialized¡¯ option, the amount that an inherent ability would be fortified with a ¡®Fortified Ability¡¯ option instead made it lack about one level, but still, it was much better than not having it. ¡®But, by any chance, would there be one that has at least 3 options attached altogether?¡¯ He had seen cases where there were 2 options attached next to an inherent ability at the same time. However, as he hadn¡¯t seen a case where there were three options attached, Ian shook his head even after thinking about it himself. ¡°If I raise my standards too high, I may not be able to even properly pick one slave before my time is up.¡± Since Ian needed to find a rare slave that satisfied all of the conditions that he made himself as well as being one of the three species that Seraphim pledged to. However, as long as he just found one, Ian did not doubt that it would definitely be a slave with a high rank. ¡°I still have 3 hours! I will find one within that time no matter what!¡± Ian opened his eyes wide and began to walk again. And shortly after, a slave with a black, murky body caught his eyes, which were full of determination. ¡®Oh, is it the first Dark Phantom I¡¯ve seen in a while?¡¯ Ian quickly ran up to the wall that it was within and hurriedly checked the information of the slave. However, in the next moment, Ian¡¯s two eyes rounded. This was because of the information of the slave¡¯s race that popped up in the top part of the slave¡¯s information window. Race: Karga Phantom CH 224 Chapter 224: Slave Marketplace (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡®A Karga Phantom¡­? What is this?¡¯ It was definitely not one of the three species that Seraphim had recommended. Because that was the case, if it was like any other normal situation, the moment he checked the race, it was one that he should have overlooked. However, Ian couldn¡¯t do that. ¡®Its appearance looks incredibly similar to a Dark Phantom!¡¯ To be honest, there was nothing he could call a part of their appearance. Since Dark Phantoms didn¡¯t have anything like a fixed outer appearance. The form of a regular Dark Phantom was shaped as if thick, dark clouds rose up and floated in the air. When Ian said that they looked similar to each other, he meant that their texture(?) and the feeling they gave off were similar. And a slightly interesting point was that different from other Dark Phantoms, the Karga Phantom had some sort of definite shape. And that shape was like¡­ ¡°This is my first time seeing such a cute dragon, owner.¡± Just like the words of Karceus, who suddenly popped out from behind Ian¡¯s back and opened his mouth, the Karga Phantom was shaped like a small and cute lizard. ¡°Dra, dragon?¡± However, from what Ian saw, the outer appearance of the Karga Phantom felt more like a dinosaur with small wings attached rather than a dragon. After Ian looked back and forth at the phantom and Karceus several times, he asked Karceus. ¡°Karceus, when you were young, were you this big-headed? On top of that, with a stomach that protrudes out like a water balloon and wings that are the size of a palm¡­¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Karceus momentarily flew off the handle. ¡°Owner, there¡¯s no way that a God Dragon like me was that ugly when I was younger!¡± While looking at Karceus, who fumed, Ian smirked. ¡°You said that it was cute just now, though.¡± Karceus hesitated for a moment before he replied. ¡°Cu¡­ Cutely ugly.¡± ¡°¡­¡± For a moment, Ian stared at the one with the race called the ¡®Karga Phantom¡¯ with a dazed expression. ¡®I feel like it would match well with Bbookbbook for some odd reason¡­¡¯ Ian, who went out of it for a moment as he was fixated on the Karga Phantom¡¯s appearance, was startled as he immediately opened up its information window. ¡®Oh, right, there¡¯s no time to be like this!¡¯ It wasn¡¯t the race he was looking for, but for some reason, he wanted to even check all of this one¡¯s detailed information at least. And in front of Ian¡¯s eyes, the information window of the Karga Phantom opened wide up again. Caca Level: 145 Race: Karga Phantom Classification: Slave Rank: Unknown Personality: Fainthearted Offensive Power: 135 Defensive Power: 77 Agility: 97 Intellect: 7812 Vitality: 2334/2334 Inherent Ability A (Racially Inherent) (Racially Specialized) (Fortified Ability) Unknown Inherent Ability B (Rare Ability) Unknown Inherent Ability C (Racially Inherent) (Racially Specialized) (Evolving Ability) (Fortified Ability) Unknown Now a forgotten ancient species. There are theories that this species is the origin of the Dark Phantom, as well as theories that they are the ancestors of the Kargon race, but nobody knows the truth. As its head is big and body is small, it looks as if it didn¡¯t finish fully growing. However, surprisingly, it is a fossil-like existence that has lived at least 3 thousand years. It hates when it is called cute the most. Ian, who read through all of the information window, wore a dazed expression. ¡®What the hell is this incredible creature¡­?¡¯ Ian¡¯s two eyes were fixated on the inherent abilities. He was looking at the incredible options that were plastered next to the inherent abilities. Before he even realized it, Ian almost spread out his hand towards the contract that was right in front of the transparent wall. ¡°This, this is the devil¡¯s temptation!¡± While babbling on about something puzzling, he grasped his head with both hands. Karceus stared at Ian with a dumbfounded expression, and Ian thoroughly looked at the information of the Karga Phantom again. ¡®Why are you such a weird species? If you were a Dark Phantom or a Kargon, I would have contracted you immediately without a need to think about it¡­¡¯ Despite that, Ian was not able to give up on this one so easily. His game senses were constantly telling him to pick this one. ¡®Whew, let¡¯s pull it together first and look around a little more.¡¯ However, the information window of the Karga Phantom was a sight to see the more carefully he read it. The most shocking part was its combat abilities especially. ¡®Why is its stat window like this now? Bloody hell! Its Intellect is more than triple its Vitality! What kind of a situation is this?¡¯ He seriously thought he had seen the stat window incorrectly. This was the first time Ian met an abnormal organism while playing Kailan that was lv 145, but its Vitality didn¡¯t even reach 10 thousand. ¡®Wow¡­ Goddamn, it seriously might be instantly killed even by being nibbled by Bbookbbook¡¯s mouth.¡¯ Aside from his Defensive Power, all of Bbookbbook¡¯s combat abilities crawled along the ground, but after looking at the Karga Phantom, he was able to realize that Bbookbbook was a saint. ¡°No, what¡¯s the point if its Intellect is high? When the other stats have to be good in order for its high Intellect to support it¡­¡± In the case of a user character, the higher their Intellect stat, the higher the Magic-related Offensive Power, mana, as well as the mana recovery amount, etc. As that was the case, to be honest, aside from Magicians, Intellect was the stat that was not that important. However, in the case of one that is not a user, such as a monster, NPC or Familiar within the game, it was different. To them, aside from the combat stat increasing effects of their Magical Offensive Power, mana, mana recovery amount, etc., Intellect was the element that influenced their AI the most. ¡®No matter how high the AI is¡­ With cotton ball-like stats like this, there¡¯s probably nothing that it could do.¡¯ The combat abilities of the Karga Phantom could be considered stats that fit the outer appearance of a dragon looking like it was made out of cotton bundles. Ian slightly turned his gaze that was fixated on the information window and stared at Karceus. ¡°What should I do, Karceus?¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°That. What do you think of it? Should I recruit it?¡± ¡°Ahem¡­¡± Karceus, who momentarily narrowed his eyes and stared at the baby dragon that looked like a cumulus cloud, slowly nodded his head as if he had decided. ¡°Owner.¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°It will not do at all.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Why?¡± ¡°It¡¯s too ugly. It somehow feels like a disgrace to my radiant younger days.¡± However, despite Karceus¡¯s serious opinion, Ian shook his head. ¡°No, let¡¯s think about it again. Still, I think it¡¯s a fellow with incredible inherent abilities.¡± ¡°No way, it¡¯s ugly.¡± ¡°No, still¡­¡± Karceus glared at Ian. ¡°Owner!¡± While looking at Karceus, who burst out suddenly, Ian slightly flinched. ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± ¡°Owner, you¡¯re like that!¡± Towards Karceus, who was talking nonsense, Ian asked back again once more. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± ¡°That¡­ Dapjungnuh[1]! Owner, you were a dapjungnuh!¡± At Karceus¡¯s unexpected attack, Ian was taken aback. ¡°What?¡± ¡°You performed ¡®The answer is decided, and you just have to respond!¡¯ just now!¡± Ian let out a deep sigh as he shook his head. ¡°Did Bbakbbak teach you that as well.¡± Karceus nodded his head. ¡°When I first studied it, I had a hard time understanding what it meant, but I realized after seeing you just now, Owner.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Karceus had sad eyes as he stared at Ian. ¡°What now?¡± Karceus¡¯s words continued. ¡°Bbakbbak said that dapjungnuh was a critically terminal illness.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Our owner has caught a terminal illness¡­¡± While ignoring Karceus, who stared at the air with eyes full of gloominess, Ian immediately spread his hand out towards the contract. As he did so, the contract of the Karga Phantom flapped as it flew over and landed in Ian¡¯s hands. Like that, Ian had obtained an unexpected slave. * * * The City of Rage was a wide and large city that was almost the size of a decent zone of the Devildom. And right in the middle of it, there was a huge castle. The giant ramparts of that castle had a bizarre shape that looked like it was covered in colourful flames, and the devils called them ¡®Hell¡¯s Flames¡¯. ¡°Huhu, to finally step foot inside of this place.¡± As Shyakran¡¯s party, so the guild members of the Titan Guild, entered the open doors of the castle, a system message popped up in front of their eyes. Ring-. You are the first to have entered the Devil King¡¯s Castle of Rage.You Guild Fame has increased by 150 thousand.Each individual¡¯s Fame has increased by 50 thousand.Your Resistance Magic has increased by 0.5%. While looking at the messages that popped up one after another, Shyakran couldn¡¯t hide the corners of his lips curling upwards. ¡°Huhu, it looks like our Titan Guild will be able to completely preoccupy the Devildom content this time.¡± The Titan Guild members headed deeper into the Devil King¡¯s castle without delay. The Devil King of Rage, who would give them the connected guild quest, would be waiting deeper inside. Shyakran wore a triumphant expression, while the footsteps of the Titan Guild members were just as buoyant. However, shortly after, much like a rice cake that was completely smooshed by an elephant¡¯s foot, their expressions couldn¡¯t help but crumple miserably. * * * ¡°So¡­ Are you saying that one user from every class has to all be included in the party?¡± The Devil King¡¯s office, which was at the top of the Devil King¡¯s castle. Shyakran faced Hikion, the Devil King of Rage, with a flustered expression, and the other guild members behind him that were lined up also wore expressions that were no less dazed in comparison. However, the Devil King wore a relaxed expression as he spoke to Shyakran. ¡°That¡¯s right. You must complete my assignment by making a party that is consisted of one of each of the classes, which would be a total of eight member.¡± Shyakran stepped back as he cleared his throat. ¡°Ahem!¡± It was a quest condition that he couldn¡¯t help but be flustered about. ¡®It was going so well, yet, what this bolt out of the blue now?¡¯ The reward of the quest that Shyakran was proceeding with allowed them to register the guild of the members proceeding with the quest at the guild management office of the City of Rage. At a glance, this could look like a lame reward. However, the moment they were registered as a formal guild in the city, the additionally granted benefits were more diverse and effective than expected. Fundamentally, the commission that was attached when they sold random items or when they bought something from the city shop decreased drastically. Also, they would be able to get buffs from the Devildom shrine that was in the central plaza of the City of the Rage, as well as even use the warp gates that were right next to the shrines. Of course, because the warp gates were not connected to the gates outside of the Devildom, at the moment, they weren¡¯t that useful. However, if he was to consider the future, it was certain that it would be incredibly useful. ¡®But for the quest to be stopped like this¡­!¡¯ However, in the quest where everything was going so well, an outrageous condition was suddenly attached. The one where he needed to create a party that included all classes when proceeding with the quest and solve the task of the Devil King. For the Titan Guild currently, this was an impossible condition. This was because if it was with all of the classes, it definitely included the new classes as well. ¡®Sure, still, an Assassin that is just around the corner from lv 160 is in the guild at least. In the case of Black Magicians, there¡¯s someone that is even over lv 170, so if I bring them to the Devildom somehow, they should be able to come.¡¯ However, the problem was, as expected, Summoners. ¡®But, bloody hell¡­ Where in the world am I supposed to find a Summoner?! I noticed that the Summoner currently in 1st place in the rankings is lv 165 or something like that¡­ Goddamn!¡¯ What was worse was that amongst the Summoner users that were within the Titan Guild, he was aware that the user with the highest level wasn¡¯t even quite at lv 140 yet as well. If it was lv 140, from Shyakran¡¯s standard, even if they came into the Devildom, it was a ridiculously low level that wouldn¡¯t be any help to the fighting power. Just when Shyakran¡¯s head was beginning to ache, as if the Devil King Hikion had even gone in and out of Shyakran¡¯s mind added on. ¡°If even one ridiculous user is included, it will be close to impossible to pass my test. You see, I¡¯m not that worthless of a Devil King.¡± A long sigh leaked out from Shyakran¡¯s mouth. [1] Dapjungnuh = Was basically already explained by Karceus himself, but it is Korean slang for someone who has already decided on the answer, but expects that answer from the other and waits until that answer comes out CH 225 Chapter 225: Slave Marketplace (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Wow¡­!¡± ¡°Hey, kid, you¡¯re doing great! Just a little more!¡± ¡°Healers, what are you doing? I¡¯m telling you, focus all heals on the Black Magician!¡± Selakuma, the chief gatekeeper that is blocking the way to the 100-range zones, or in other words, the chief gatekeeper that is guarding the portal of Zone 110, was in the middle of facing a full party composed of twenty users. And outside of that invisible barrier, there were tons of users, and while watching the battle, they were cheering on the challengers passionately as if they were cheering on a sports match. That, of course, was because of the thought that if the challenging party succeeded in killing Selakuma, the gateway would open up. And there was a Black Magician that was leading that party, and it was none other than Kanjihoonie. ¡°Canoel hyung! Cut off the AoE skills!¡± ¡°Okay! Orden, Dragon Fear!¡± Keuoooh-! As expected, next to Hoonie, Canoel was with him, and the Black Dragon that had become Canoel¡¯s Familiar had grown in size quite a bit before he realized and had an imposing image. Summoner ¡®Canoel¡¯s Familiar, ¡®Orden¡¯, has used ¡®Dragon Fear¡¯.For 10 seconds, Chief Gatekeeper ¡®Selakuma¡¯ has fallen into ¡®Silent¡¯ state, and for 3 seconds, he has fallen into ¡®Fear¡¯ state.The Vitality of Chief Gatekeeper ¡®Selakuma¡¯ has decreased by 17,998. Without rest, Hoonie let out commands to the party members and his undead. ¡°Ballam, now!¡± Understood, owner! ¡®Ballam¡¯, a Death Knight that always followed Hoonie by his side, raised his sword up high as he began to make his horse run towards Selakuma. And along with the two Death Knights that followed behind Ballam, they charged forward. As Hoonie¡¯s level and Proficiency in Black Magic went up, he was able to summon three Death Knights in no time. ¡®Whew, as long as I just catch this guy, I¡¯ll be able to level up one level, right?¡¯ A sharp flash passed through Hoonie¡¯s eyes. This was because Selakuma¡¯s Vitality gauge bar was beginning to blink quickly. ¡®If I just go up 1 more level, I¡¯ll be lv 180. Maybe I¡¯ll even obtain a new skill as well.¡¯ Amongst the Black Magicians that were putting their name up in the official ranking list, the highest level user was lv 177. Originally, Hoonie¡¯s level was on the high side, but with his original level, he wasn¡¯t able to overcome the 1st place user in the Black Magician rankings, but now he was able to. Hoonie dodged the attacks of Selakuma, which scattered as an AoE, this way and that way as he moved his hand without rest. Pung- Pu-pu-pung-! And the dark-looking rays that shot out from Hoonie¡¯s wand pierced through the body of Selakuma. Keuaaoh! For the likes of mere humans to¡­! Selakuma was filled with insanity, but it seemed that the condition of the battle was already leaning towards a victory for Hoonie¡¯s party. Hoonie shot out all of the offensive magic he had that could be considered offensive magic as he checked the cooldown times of his active skills quickly. ¡®Keu, as expected, the Power of Immortal is really good. Even though I randomly fire skills like this, my Dark Mana is not drying out.¡¯ At the same time as that, he controlled his undead as he showed his incredible multi-tasking abilities. While looking at such abilities of Hoonie, the audience was in great awe. ¡°Ooh¡­! Who is that kid? He¡¯s incredible!¡± ¡°No kidding, I don¡¯t think there was a kid like that in the Black Magician¡¯s ranking list!¡± ¡°No, there¡¯s no way that¡¯s the case. This dude over here is 20th place in the Black Magician¡¯s ranking, but I think that dude is two times stronger than this one here!¡± ¡°Hey now, what do you mean two times? It¡¯s not to that point!¡± Had about 10 or so minutes passed by like that? Kyaaooh! Selakuma blocked off the attacks that poured towards him without rest with an AoE shield as he raised one of his hands up high. And seeing that, Hoonie¡¯s two eyes shone. ¡®This is it! If I just bounce back this properly, this battle will be over!¡¯ This was the first time Hoonie was challenging Selakuma, but while staying in Zone 110 for about a week, he had seen the battles of other users that challenged him a countless number of times. That¡¯s why he already knew all of Selakuma¡¯s attack patterns well. ¡®Come! I will time it properly and send you to your end!¡¯ From Hoonie¡¯s right hand, a black energy began to surge as well. The thing that Selakuma was trying to use right now was a skill that had the strongest destructive power amongst all of his skills, and Hoonie was planning on inversely defeating Selakuma with ¡®Revenge of the Dead¡¯, which was a skill that returns the damage back. This was also the method that he used with Ian when facing Immortal. Hoonie and Canoel¡¯s eyes met for a moment. ¡°Hyung, you know!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± Because the two were in a state where they had already coordinated enough before they came into battle, even just by exchanging glances, they were able to understand each other¡¯s roles. ¡°Yongyong, now!¡± ¡°Grr!¡± At the same time as Canoel¡¯s command, Yongyong, a Red Drake that was his Familiar, spread its wings out as it charged towards Selakuma. Keuaaaah! A bright red ray shot out from the hand of Selakuma, who discovered Yongyong. Kwaaah! And at that moment, the current of darkness that shot out from Hoonie¡¯s hand wrapped around Yongyong. ¡°Revenge of the Dead!¡± Bang- Ba-ba-bang-! The timing was so incredibly precise to the point that it created an illusion as if the red ray and the current of darkness met mid-air. It may be obvious, but the red ray returned back from the path that it came and pierced through Selakuma¡¯s heart. Keu-ack- Keu-aack! And Selakuma, who was directly hit by the ray that was shot out of his hand, had exhausted all of his Vitality like that. Thud- Boom-! Selakuma¡¯s large body collapsed onto the ground. ¡°Whooo!¡± ¡°Whoo! Kid, you¡¯re so cool!¡± ¡°You¡¯re so handsome!¡± At the same time, the cheers of the audience burst out. ¡°Alright!¡± Hoonie clenched both of his fists as he grinned, and Canoel ran over and hugged him tightly. ¡°Wow, Hoonie, you were seriously amazing!¡± Hoonie bumped fists with Canoel as he grinned with an arrogant expression. ¡°Since I¡¯m the strongest Black Magician of the universe.¡± After Hoonie and his party members exchanged a couple words, saying great work to each other, they headed towards the portal that led to Zone 109. And as they disappeared, the invisible barrier disappeared while the way to Zone 109 opened up, and as if they had been waiting for it, tons of users poured through into the space like flowing water. While riding the portal, Hoonie thought to himself. ¡®From what I know, several rankers have already gone into Zone 100, including Ian hyung¡­ So then why was the chief gatekeeper of Zone 110 still there? Did they disappear once like Zone 120 and appeared again?¡¯ Hoonie wouldn¡¯t know, but if it wasn¡¯t for the Revenge of the Dead that Hoonie casted at the end, Hoonie¡¯s party would have also been able to go to Zone 109 without having killed Selakuma. However, as such a large amount of damage went through at once, Selakuma had died without having any time to spare to stop the battle. Thanks to that, tons of users were able to profit. ¡®Well, whatever it is, it doesn¡¯t matter. I guess I should go find Ian hyung for now instead.¡¯ The competitive spirit of Hoonie, who remembered Ian, began to burn up again. * * * ¡°Owner, where are we going now?¡± ¡°We¡¯re going to Zone 107 now.¡± ¡°Why are we going there?¡± ¡°None of your business!¡± Ian was in a state where he was incredibly upset. ¡®Goddammit! I shouldn¡¯t have been so stubborn and should have listened to Karceus¡­!¡¯ And the reason for that was because of the new family member ¡®Caca¡¯, who was floating behind Ian right now. Caca was the name of the Karga Phantom that Ian had newly obtained as a slave. ¡®All possible additional options were attached, but if the main option is in this state, what am I supposed to do¡­!¡¯ As soon as Ian contracted with Caca, he immediately checked the inherent abilities that were blurred out, and he couldn¡¯t help but immediately become disappointed. Caca¡¯s inherent abilities were as followed. Descendant of Darkness (Racially Inherent) (Racially Specialized) (Fortified Ability) The Karga Phantom, a descendant of darkness, has an immunity to all attacks excluding Light-type attacks. However, with Light-type attacks, it receives 50 times the damage. Greedy Night Hag (Rare Ability) The night hag is a devil that can make incidences that happened in a dream into reality. Caca, a night hag with a lot of greed, will appear with a rare item from its dreams whenever it has one. Sealed Ability (Racially Inherent) (Racially Specialized) (Evolving Ability) (Fortified Ability) Unknown (It is an ability that cannot be used unless awoken.) ¡®Ha, how can it not even have one ability that can be used somehow.¡¯ The ¡®Descendant of Darkness¡¯, which was its first inherent ability, was similar to the ability that Dark Phantoms had. While the Dark Phantom was immune to all attacks excluding Holiness and Devil Energy, it meant that this one only received damage from Holiness, so up to just this point, it was a standard that was instead better. However, the problem was the part that was attached at the end that said, ¡®With Light-type attacks, it receives 50 times the damage.¡¯ ¡®Goddammit! It will probably die even if I just turn on a baby lightbulb in front of its face!¡¯ In Kailan, Light-type attacks were not able to deal much damage unless they were undead. To be honest, as that was the case, the Dark Phantom¡¯s passive had a purpose. ¡®Since the activation rate of Devil Energy itself is incredibly low anyways, and if wasn¡¯t the Devildom, there wouldn¡¯t be any opponents that had it. Also, Dark Phantoms are not undead, so that means that they wouldn¡¯t receive that much damage from Light-type attacks.¡¯ Even the ¡®Territory of Light¡¯, which was the highest AoE attack of Priests, if you considered that it was difficult to deal even 2 thousand damage with that to ones that aren¡¯t undead, Light-type attacks were in reality to the point they could be ignored. However, if it was multiplied by 50, it was a different story. ¡®From what I know, the basic damage of the Holy Light skill that Priests learn as soon as they class-change is 50¡­ But if this one gets hit by that, it will die in one hit, right?¡¯ ¡®Caca¡¯s maximum Vitality was currently about 2300. The 50-damage Holy Light would go through after jumping up to 50 times the damage, and Caca, who would have received 2500 damage, would die just like that. A long sigh slipped past Ian¡¯s lips. ¡®Haa¡­¡¯ On top of that, the second inherent ability was a bigger problem. At first, Ian was somewhat anticipating the second inherent ability, but with just one conversation, that anticipation was mercilessly trampled over. ¡°Caca.¡± ¡°Why are you calling me, owner?¡± ¡°When do you sleep?¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Amongst your inherent abilities, there¡¯s an ability called ¡®Greedy Night Hag¡¯. I¡¯m asking because you need to sleep in order to use that. Isn¡¯t an item formed when you wake up after sleeping?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Excuse me, owner.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know how to sleep.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Us kin of the darkness do not sleep. I have not slept once in 3 thousand years.¡± ¡°Hul¡­¡± ¡°I also want to try what is called sleeping. I heard that it¡¯s really nice.¡± ¡°¡­¡± As this is the case, how could Ian not get super angry? He had indeed brought along a wad of cotton only for seeing that didn¡¯t have even one part that could be used right now. ¡°Yo, Caca.¡± ¡°Why do you call, owner?¡± ¡°Why exactly do you even have that night hag skill?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, owner. I also want to know.¡± ¡°Euh¡­¡± However, Caca was just an existence that received ostracism from Ian, as it was so popular within Ian¡¯s party besides Ian himself. The two eyes of Celia, who looked at Caca, were especially to the point that it gave off the illusion that they were filled with hearts. ¡°Oh my, take a look at how its wings move! It¡¯s so cute! How its stomach sticks out, it¡¯s totally my style!¡± Even Kaizar was infatuated with Caca¡¯s cute charms. ¡°Hm-hm, I see. Looking more closely, whenever it flaps its wings its stomach moves up and down, too.¡± They were all absorbed in observing Caca, who floated behind Ian. ¡°But how exactly is it flying around? It moves such small wings so slowly¡­ So how is it floating in the air?¡± Caca, who heard Karceus¡¯s question, snapped his head back for a moment as it completely stopped flapping before responding. ¡°I originally can just fly.¡± ¡°¡­ So the wings were just for show.¡± Celia shot out hearts with her two eyes as she let out a exclamation again. ¡°Oh my, what do I do? It¡¯s so cute!¡± Caca glared at Celia as it warned her. ¡°I hate hearing the word cute the most. I would appreciate it if you were more careful from now on!¡± However, there was no way that such methods would go through. Imagine if a five-year-old child said something like that! How cute would that have been? Caca scowled heavily towards Celia. ¡°Ergh¡­!¡± And only Ian, who slightly looked back at that scene, shook his head as he trudged forward. ¡°Whew¡­ I suddenly feel cancer cells are growing.¡± Either way, Ian¡¯s party, who had obtained a new energizer(?), quickly headed towards Zone 107. It seemed that because of their fighting power that had gotten one level stronger, they were able to arrive in Zone 107 before less than a quarter of a day passed. And the corners of the mouth of Ian, who found Cervian¡¯s Laboratory without much difficulty inside Zone 107, curled upwards. ¡®Either way, it looks like I¡¯ll be able to obtain a dual class faster than anybody else at least.¡¯ Ian, who walked towards the laboratory with heavy footsteps, opened the doors of the laboratory energetically. CH 226 Chapter 226: The First Dual Class (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Cervian, who was expecting a couple months until Ian returned, couldn¡¯t help but wear a shocked expression as soon as he discovered Ian. ¡°This¡­ Monster-like guy!¡± This was because as soon as Cervian saw Ian, he was able to find out that he had succeeded in becoming Half-Human, Half-Devil, and even reached the level of a High-rank Devil in one go. Ian grinned as he replied. ¡°Isn¡¯t your greeting too extreme when it¡¯s been a while since you¡¯ve seen me?¡± However, to be honest, Cervian¡¯s response could be considered refreshing instead. Since he was just blinking both eyes as he was so surprised. He wasn¡¯t able to believe the result that Ian had achieved within the short duration of not even ten days even though he was seeing it with his own two eyes. ¡°Excuse me, Cervian? Why aren¡¯t you saying anything? You¡¯re supposed to let me class-change now.¡± ¡°Huh? Ri, right.¡± Cervian, who barely got to his senses at Ian¡¯s demand, continued his words again. ¡°But what am I supposed to do when I feel so sorry¡­¡± ¡°Huh?¡± At the words that he didn¡¯t know what to do as he felt so sorry, Ian momentarily had an ominous feeling, but he was able to let out a sigh of relief shortly afterwards. ¡°As I had no idea that you would return this quickly, my laboratory is not ready yet.¡± ¡°Oh, well, then, if it¡¯s something like that. But how long do I have to wait?¡± Cervian wore a bitter smile as he continued his words. ¡°I¡¯m not sure¡­ I think it will take at least about another week.¡± Ian¡¯s expression slightly crinkled. ¡®A week? You¡¯re telling me to wait a week? I can¡¯t let that be. By then, I might even lose the title of being the first to obtain a dual class.¡¯ Ian, whose became impatient, spoke again. ¡°By any chance, if I help you, Cervian, would it be possible to finish this a little sooner?¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Cervian rejoiced as he responded. ¡°Oh, I would be grateful if you would help.¡± And before Ian could say anything, a quest window suddenly popped up in the air. Ring-. The Beginning of Magical Beast Alchemy III (Hidden) (Connected) Devil Summoner Cervian, the first Elf to become a Half-Devil, is in complete awe at your abilities and talent. Because that is the case, he wants to take you in as his apprentice as soon as possible. However, at the fault of you having accomplished his assignment too quickly, preparations are not yet complete. Provide your strength in restoring Cervian¡¯s Laboratory and complete the restoration as quickly as possible. Quest Difficulty Level: S Quest Condition: A user that has completed Cervian¡¯s second test. A user that is ¡®Half-Human, Half-Devil¡¯ as well as a Summoner. Time Limit: None Reward: Chaos Stone x20, Low-ranking Magic Alchemy Stones x20 *Once the quest is completed, you will obtain the chance to class-change into a Devil Summoner ¨C Magical Beast Transmuter. Will you accept the quest? Of course, Ian immediately accepted the quest, and as if every minute and every second passing was time wasted, he quickly asked Cervian. ¡°Then what am I to do?¡± ¡°No, why are you rushing so much?¡± ¡°Oh, forget it and just tell me quickly, please.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Then, firstly, do you think you¡¯ll be able to get me 70 feathers from Low-Rank Magical Beasts called Shyupulee?¡± As soon as Cervian¡¯s words were over, a quest message popped up. Ring-. Quest ¨C Collection of Shyupulee feathers: 0/70 Ian, who turned around and was about to leave as soon as he saw the message, turned his head around again and spoke to Cervian. ¡°Tell me everything that you need all at once. So that I can get everything in one go without having to go back and forth.¡± Cervian seemed to be taken aback a little, as he broke out into a sweat on his forehead as he slowly began to recite. ¡°Is, is that so? Then¡­¡± And quest messages began to pop up one after another in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Quest ¨C Collection of Beager molars: 0/35Quest ¨C Collection of Katro claws: 0/95 Ian, who checked all of the messages, left the laboratory again without even glancing behind him. While watching him do that, Cervian couldn¡¯t help but shake his head. ¡°He¡¯s unpredictable.¡± And the corners of his mouth slightly rolled upwards. ¡°However, I like him, that is.¡± Cervian also turned his footsteps around and entered his workshop. As it was certain that the monster-like fellow would return after accomplishing the assignment in an instant again, he needed to finish up the other tasks as quickly as possible. * * * ¡°Ceilron.¡± ¡°Yes, Master.¡± ¡°Is this something that is utterly impossible?¡± ¡°If you mean that¡­¡± The party of the Titan Guild, who had failed the Devil King¡¯s test three times in a row, had a gloomy atmosphere. They had gathered just the most exceptional users of each class within their guild and had proceeded with the quest; however, they had failed mercilessly without getting anywhere near accomplishment. ¡°Argh, seriously! I feel like this will work somehow, though!¡± Shyakran looked around at the new class users before he let out a deep sigh. This was because, even excluding the Summoner, which he worried about in the beginning, the Black Magician user and the Assassin user were also giant holes. ¡®As I had only recruited high-level users with high fighting power, I feel like I¡¯ve neglected recruiting new class fighting power in comparison.¡¯ The fact that the levels of the new class users being low was not the only problem. They were all users with high levels within their respective classes, but their abilities were absolutely terrible. In Kailan, although they may be the same level, because there was a huge difference in their fighting power depending on their controlling abilities, the situation was even more serious. ¡®Whew, what should I do¡­¡± To be honest, he already knew the answer. Instead of just making the quest members out of users of the Titan Guild, if he accepted users from other guilds into the party and tried with the highest fighting power of each class, it would work. However, despite that, Shyakran couldn¡¯t give up yet. ¡®How could I when this is a guild quest I worked so hard for¡­! There¡¯s no way that I can share this with other guilds!¡¯ Shyakran clenched his fist, as he abruptly stood up. ¡°Ceilron, let¡¯s try a little bit more.¡± Ceilron sighed as he responded. ¡°I¡¯m saying this as it¡¯s too hard, but¡­¡± ¡°Still, we absolutely cannot stick other guilds in!¡± ¡°I also wish that we could do that.¡± ¡°If it seriously isn¡¯t working out even afterwards, we¡¯ll try recruiting users without guilds amongst the ranking users of the new classes at least and then proceed.¡± However, the moment he heard Shyakran¡¯s last words, Ceilron suddenly stood up from his spot. ¡°Oh, Master, there¡¯s something I suddenly remembered!¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Was it yesterday? I had heard interesting news through a guild source.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Ceilron grinned as he continued his words. ¡°The Devildom Chief Gatekeeper of Zone 110 was killed, but there¡¯s word that the driving force of that party that succeeded in that killing was a Black Magician user. On top of that, apparently he¡¯s not affiliated with any guild.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± Ceilron nodded his head, and a broad grin formed on Shyakran¡¯s face. ¡°Push forward a recruitment right away!¡± * * * Within a whopping day, Ian completely carried out the assignments that Cervian gave him and returned. And of course, Cervian¡¯s jaw dropped. ¡°Just when I thought that there was no longer anything that would surprise me anymore¡­¡± Ian, who endlessly hunted magical beasts without even sleeping properly in order to accomplish the quest, had sunken eyes. ¡®Damn It, I feel dead tired. Still, until I check the message that I succeeded in class-changing to a dual-class, I cannot close my eyes comfortably!¡¯ Nothing could stop Ian¡¯s will towards a dual class. ¡°Whew, anyways, everything¡¯s actually complete now, right?¡± Cervian, who flinched after seeing Ian¡¯s gaze, hurriedly nodded his head. He thought that if he gave him some sort of other quest here, it was possible that he would mutilate his body with the spear that he was holding. ¡°That, that¡¯s right. Great work, Ian! You¡¯re truly amazing!¡± And the message that Ian had waited for so much spread out in front of his eyes. Ring-! You have successfully cleared The Beginning of Magical Beast Alchemy III (Hidden) (Connected) Quest!Clear Rank: SSSYou have obtained 85,000 Fame.You have obtained 20 of the ¡®Chaos Stone¡¯ item.You have obtained 20 of the ¡®Low-Ranking Magic Alchemy Stone¡¯ item.Half-Devil ¡®Cervian¡¯ proposes a class-change into the ¡®Devil Summoner ¨C Magical Beast Transmuter¡¯ class to you.The ¡®Devil Summoner ¨C Magical Beast Transmuter¡¯ class is a dual class that can only be obtained in the Devildom.Because with dual classes, you can class-change while maintaining the original class you had at the same time, there is no impact to the original class.Will you class-change to the ¡®Devil Summoner ¨C Magical Beast Transmuter¡¯ class? Cervian and Ian¡¯s eyes met. ¡°Will you try learning magical beast alchemy?¡± A broad grin appeared on Ian¡¯s face. ¡°Okay, of course! I will class-change right away!¡± ¡°Good thinking. You will for sure be able to become an excellent Transmuter.¡± The messages that Ian worked so hard to see appeared in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. You have succeeded in class-changing to a ¡®Devil Summoner ¨C Magical Beast Transmuter¡¯.You have succeeded in being the first to obtain a dual class!For a week from now, the Proficiencies of all of the skills of the dual class will increase by 1.5 times the original speed. You have obtained 200 thousand Fame.You have obtained the ¡®Egg of an Unknown Magical Beast¡¯ item. * * * ¡°Whew, the difficulty level is not greater than I had expected. It was easier to clear up to the last phase than I thought.¡± Remir mumbled as she looked at the red spheres that were absorbed into either of her hands. And Cassandra, who floated in front of her while she was like that, nodded her head as she spoke to Remir. Your abilities are certainly outstanding, Remir. I didn¡¯t know you would clear the Devil¡¯s test this easily even up to the last phase. Although the Pure Blood of the Devil itself was that of a Common Devil, that is. While looking at the glowing red energy underneath her feet, Remir nodded her head. ¡°However, I¡¯m disappointed. According to your words, if the Pure Blood of the Devil was that of a High-ranking Devil, I would have been able to obtain the rank of a High-ranking Devil in one go, right?¡± Cassandra nodded her head. That¡¯s true. However, where would you have gotten the Pure Blood of a High-ranking Devil? What you¡¯ve accomplished now will almost probably be the best you could do. On top of that, because you defeated up to the last test opponent with an overwhelming difference, you received an incredibly high evaluation even within the Common Devil rank. ¡°Is that so?¡± Yeah. Since you have 10 thousand Devil Energy from the moment you became Half-Devil¡­ If you just gather 5 thousand more, you¡¯ll be able to become a High-ranking Devil. It was only then that Remir was able to wear a pleased expression. ¡°I see. If that¡¯s the case, then I should quickly become a High-rank Devil.¡± Before that, wouldn¡¯t it be better to obtain a dual class first? If you were to obtain a dual class, then your hunting speed will probably grow 1.5 times faster than now, too. A slight smile spread across Remir¡¯s red lips. ¡°I should probably do that then, right?¡± However, her smile couldn¡¯t help but disappear instantly. Of course, the reason for that was because of the world message that popped up across the whole Devildom. User ¡®Ian¡¯ has succeeded in being the first to obtain a dual class! Remir¡¯s beautiful face suddenly contorted. CH 227 Chapter 227: The First Dual Class (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian, who had succeeded in being the first to obtain a dual class, immediately logged off without even checking anything about the class and left to go to bed. This was because he had not slept properly in order to complete all of Cervian¡¯s assignments as quickly as possible. However, in the midst of that, there was something that Ian didn¡¯t forget about, and that was the hidden skill that he obtained as his Taming Master class¡¯s tier went up called ¡®Communion I¡¯. The Communion skill was a fearsome skill that allowed Ian to make his Familiars hunt even while he¡¯s logged off. Because of this, lately Ian¡¯s Familiars seriously wanted to die. ¡°Keu-huuung, owner, why are you making us hunt when you¡¯re resting!¡± ¡°Just hunt for 5 more hours and go rest. I also want to hunt without resting, but there¡¯s nothing I can do as my eyes are closing.¡± ¡°Eu-uh! Owner, we¡¯re also sleepy¡­!¡± ¡°Once I return after leaving, I¡¯ll let you rest.¡± ¡°Lies!¡± As if he was chasing out a cheating wife, Ian logged off after chasing all of his Familiars out of the laboratory. And Ian¡¯s Familiars bit the bullet and began to hunt the magical beasts in the front yard of the laboratory. ¡°Heu-uung, our owner is mean. I hate him!¡± At Bbakbbak¡¯s complaining, Karceus agreed. ¡°That¡¯s right, it¡¯s definite that our owner jerk is a pervert.¡± Kku-ruk- Kku-kkuk-! Even Pin, who couldn¡¯t speak, also protested strongly, and Grr- Grrr-! Halli wore a weeping face as well. However, there was just one Familiar that was in the midst of silently hunting¡­ ¡°Grr, I truly think I¡¯ve met the right owner. Keu-keuk.¡± It was Ly, the King of the Fenrir, who had fallen into a hunting addiction. Bbakbbak wore a petrified expression. ¡°Ly is weird, Karceus.¡± At Bbakbbak¡¯s words, Karceus nodded his head. ¡°I also think that is the case. I also feel like perhaps another ego of the owner jerk is even inside of Ly.¡± ¡°Still, as we have Ly, we¡¯re able to play a little, so it is nice.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. We should be thankful towards Ly.¡± Thanks to that, Bbakbbak and Pin were able to hunt while helping Ly lightly. And towards the Low-rank Magical Beasts that Halli diligently gathered over, Karceus spewed out his breath. Hwa-reu-reuk-! There were a lot of complaints, but Ian¡¯s Familiars were hunting systematically in their own way even without Ian. Ian¡¯s hunting method had become engraved into the Familiars¡¯ bodies in the meantime, so without thinking about it separately, they moved based on each of their roles. However, different from Ian¡¯s Familiars, there were other people that were excited about them being inputted for work outside of their working hours like this. ¡°Keu, the Lord guy is truly amazing.¡± They were Ian¡¯s retainers including Kaizar. Because retainers weren¡¯t a concept that were summoned separately or something like that, they had always hunted even when Ian wasn¡¯t there. They were incredibly happy that they had formed comrades. ¡°Wow, I was disappointed as we lacked targets for me to use my healing skill when we just hunted on our own, so this turned out for the better.¡± From Celia, who liked Ian¡¯s Familiars from the beginning¡­ ¡°Hmm, if Bbakbbak endures from the front, the battle will certainly be much easier!¡± To Paulean, who usually didn¡¯t say much, they were incredibly happy about the Familiars¡¯ joining. However, there were a pair of eyes that were watching that scene of sad night overtime work. ¡®Bbook¡­! As expected, I shouldn¡¯t go back bbook!¡¯ The protagonist of that gaze was poor turtle Bbookbbook, who had return to nearby Ian and his friends as he missed them. ¡®As expected, our owner is scary bbook! Now he forces them to work even when he¡¯s not here bbook!¡¯ Bbookbbook turned his footsteps again. He did feel a slight scolding from his conscience as it seemed like he was the only one that was relaxing while his friends were all suffering from such hard labour, but he couldn¡¯t go back even if that was the case. ¡®Bbook¡­! I probably won¡¯t even be of any help if I try and stick myself in there bbook. I should quickly eat more medicinal herbs to get stronger, and return after I become a cooler turtle than Bbakbbak bbook!¡¯ Bbookbbook¡¯s shell, which bounced up and down whenever Bbookbbook walked, disappeared into the darkness silently. * * * Ian, who had returned after a good night¡¯s rest of over 10 hours for the first time in a while, opened his class information window as soon as he logged on. Originally, as soon as he logged on, he summoned Karceus so that he had someone to talk to, but he decided to give him a little more time to rest as well. ¡®I should let them rest well until we have to go out hunting again.¡¯ It was Ian¡¯s own way of showing consideration towards his Familiars, who worked hard. To be honest, rather than that, because he couldn¡¯t use the Communion skill if his Affinity with them dropped, he was just being conscience of the Familiars¡¯ feelings. ¡®Alright, shall I open the information window of the dual class instead?¡¯ While looking at the new ¡®Magical Beast Transmuter¡¯ window that had formed right below the part that said ¡®Taming Master¡¯ in his class information window, Ian wore a satisfied smile. ¨C Devil Summoner ¨C Magical Beast Transmuter ¨C Class Classification: Dual Class of the Devildom Class Rank: Hidden Class Class Proficiency: Beginner Level (0%) List of Stats Related to the Class Devil Energy ¨C Required in order to control magical beasts. In order to summon many high-ranked magical beasts, an enormous amount of Devil Energy is required.Magical Beast Affinity ¨C Required in order to capture high-ranked magical beasts.Dexterity ¨C Related to the chance of succeeding in magical beast alchemy. List of Skills Related to the Class that is Being Possessed Magical Beast Summoning (Open Detailed Information)Mind Concentration (Open Detailed Information)Magical Beast Alchemy (Open Detailed Information)Magical Beast Disassembly (Open Detailed Information) A hidden class that Devil Summoner Cervian, who is also the first Elf to become a Half-Devil, created at the end of hundreds of years of efforts. Cervian created the forbidden secret art called ¡®Magical Beast Alchemy¡¯, and through that he made incredibly powerful magical beasts. If you master Magical Beast Alchemy, you¡¯ll be able to create magical beasts that are so powerful they are even hard to imagine. The part that caught Ian¡¯s eyes first in the information window was, as expected, ¡®Stats Related to the Class¡¯. ¡®In Devil Summoner classes, it looks like Devil Energy is used instead of Leadership.¡¯ In order for a Summoner to summon many high-ranked Familiars, they needed the ¡®Leadership¡¯ stat. And the thing that intended to have the same role as Leadership for Devil Summoners, a dual class, was Devil Energy. However, because Devil Energy was not a stat that was consumed like mana, it wasn¡¯t like the fixed damage of Devil Energy was reduced because a magical beast was summoned. ¡®It looks like I can just think of Magical Beast Affinity as the Devildom version of the Affinity stat I originally had¡­¡¯ After checking the Dexterity ability that was listed just below the Magical Beast Affinity, Ian let out a deep sigh. ¡®Euh¡­ My Dexterity is hopeless, but the Dexterity stat is needed even in Magical Beast Alchemy?¡¯ Currently, Ian¡¯s Dexterity stat was a little over 500. Even this he had increased quite a bit while consistently producing Familiar-exclusive items, but it was still a figure that was significantly lower than his other stats. ¡®Whew, there isn¡¯t another way. It can only be overcome through grinding.¡¯ Ian promises to himself that he would grind more diligently in his spare time as he looked at the skill list this time. ¡°Hmm? With Magical Beast Summoning, I can tell what it is just by looking at it, but what is Mind Concentration?¡± Magical Beast Summoning was most likely a skill that had the same role as Summoning that existed for the Summoner class. As that was the case, Ian skipped over Magical Beast Summoning and immediately opened the detailed information of Mind Concentration, which was right below it. ¨C Mind Concentration Classification: Active Skill Skill Level: Lv 0 Proficiency: 0% Cooldown Time: 60 minutes Duration: None Conditions for Use: All skills that have less than half their maximum cooldown time left. The Devil Summoner will concentrate their mind and reset all of the cooldown times of all of their skills, excluding the ¡®Mind Concentration¡¯ skill, and all of the inherent abilities of the Familiars in battle. The moment that Mind Concentration is used, all skills that have less than half their cooldown times left will go into a revitalized state. This is a support skill that will be a big help in battle if the remaining cooldown times of all the possessed skills are considered well. *If the Proficiency of the skill goes up, the cooldown time of Mind Concentration will decrease little by little. *If Mind Concentration is used, the Devil Summoner themselves won¡¯t be able to perform any actions for 30 seconds. (The higher the Proficiency of Mind Concentration goes up, the shorter the duration that the Devil Summoner can¡¯t move for.) ¡®Hmm, it seems like this skill isn¡¯t just a skill that exists for the hidden class, the Magical Beast Transmuter, but is a skill that all Summoners who obtain a Devil Summoner class as a dual class get.¡¯ Ian, who intensively read the Mind Concentration skill, quickly went through his skill build in his head once. ¡®It certainly is a useful skill. The fact that I can¡¯t move at all for 30 seconds is a big risk factor, but¡­ After I raise my Proficiency a lot, it will truly be a big help in battle.¡¯ To Ian, who opened up the truth to rotating all skills most effectively, the Mind Concentration skill was a skill that had an incredible merit. Ian, who roughly finished understanding Mind Concentration, now opened the detailed information of the ¡®Magical Beast Alchemy¡¯ skill that was below that. ¡®This skill, that is, will be the reason itself for the existence of my hidden class.¡¯ The skill information of Magical Beast Alchemy popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Magical Beast Alchemy Classification: Active Skill Skill Level: Lv 0 Proficiency: 0% Cooldown Time: None Duration: None Conditions for Use: Two or more magical beasts with over 50 Affinity must be possessed. Magical Beast Alchemy is a forbidden secret art that transmutes two or more magical beasts and can create a stronger magical beast. The higher the Dexterity of the caster, the higher the chance of the transmuted magical beast to be born as a higher rank, and the success rate of Magical Beast Alchemy will also increase. Fundamentally, for Magical Beast Alchemy, a main magical beast that will become the main body of the magical beast born from alchemy is required, as well as one or more magical beasts that will be the additional ingredients is also needed. If successful in Magical Beast Alchemy, a magical beast that has been strengthened up one level from the base, which is the main magical beast, can be obtained. *The magical beast that is to become the main body must always be a higher rank, or even the same rank, as the magical beast that will become the ingredients. *If Magical Beast Alchemy fails, the magical beasts that are to become the ingredients will disappear. However, the magical beast that is to be the main body will not disappear. *The skill level of Magical Beast Alchemy can be grown to a maximum of 10, and depending on the skill level, the rank of the magical beasts that can be handled varies. Skill Level 0-1: Magical Beast Alchemy possible up to maximum ¡®Intermediate-rank¡¯Skill Level 2-3: Magical Beast Alchemy possible up to maximum ¡®High-rank¡¯Skill Level 4-5: Magical Beast Alchemy possible up to maximum ¡®Heroic¡¯-rankSkill Level 6-8: Magical Beast Alchemy possible up to maximum ¡®Legendary¡¯-rankSkill Level 9-10: All ranks possible for Magical Beast Alchemy Just when Ian was diligently reading the information of Magical Beast Alchemy, Cervian suddenly opened up the door from within the workroom and came out. ¡°Have you rested well and come back, Ian?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s the case.¡± ¡°It seems like you are studying about Magical Beast Alchemy.¡± As Ian nodded his head once again without a word, Cervian continued his words. ¡°You¡¯ll need to raise your Proficiency in Alchemy immediately. While your Proficiency is in a low state, you won¡¯t be able to properly transmute even low-rank magical beasts.¡± The ranks of the magical beasts were not greatly different from Familiars. It was easiest to understand if one just thought that the titles of the ranks of regular Familiars called Common, Rare and Unique were changed to Low-rank, Intermediate-rank, High-rank. Ian asked Cervian. ¡°When I check the information, it says that it is possible to transmute up to intermediate-rank magical beasts even at a skill level of 0-2, so what do you mean when you say that it¡¯s even hard to transmute Low-rank Magical Beasts?¡± Cervian smirked as he replied. ¡°Of course, even now, you¡¯ll be able to ¡®attempt¡¯ to transmute an Intermediate-rank Magical Beast. However, if it¡¯s a hundred tries, you¡¯ll just fail all hundred of them.¡± Ian¡¯s question followed through immediately. ¡°Even if I fail, shouldn¡¯t you continuously transmute higher-ranked magical beasts for your Proficiency to go up faster?¡± Cervian shook his head. ¡°That¡¯s not the case. If you fail at transmuting, your Alchemy Proficiency will not go up even a little. However, of course, the more you succeed in transmuting a higher-rank magical beast, the more your Proficiency will go up¡­ If you want to raise your Proficiency quickly, it will be more advantageous to continuously transmute low-rank magical beasts in the beginning.¡± Ian¡¯s head grew busy again. ¡®Then it looks like there won¡¯t be any case of me using the High-rank Magical Beast Rakyel that I captured and left last time.¡¯ And while looking at such an Ian, Cervian continued his words with a serious expression. ¡°The path of a Magical Beast Transmuter will not be easy by a long shot. You must have endless patience and effort in order to become an exceptional Transmuter. On top of that, you also need a research spirit that is no less than a Magician¡¯s. This is because, in order for Magical Beast Alchemy to succeed, the Proficiency of the skill or your Dexterity are also acting as important elements, but what kind of magical beasts you put in as your main body and ingredients also act as incredibly large element. You will most likely have to find researching magical beasts amusing.¡± Cervian said this in order to instill fear into Ian, but the expression of Ian, who heard those words, completely didn¡¯t show any fear at all. Rather, Ian¡¯s expression turned into a broad grin. ¡®Researching and studying, as well as grinding¡­! It¡¯s completely my style!¡¯ The two eyes of Ian, who perfectly drew shots on his style, began to shine even more. CH 228 Chapter 228: The First Dual Class (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The thing that Ian heard an explanation for from Cervian next was content related to ¡®Magical Beast Disassembly¡¯. ¡°Magical Beast Disassembly is also a skill no less important than Alchemy. This is because your Disassembly must be high in order to obtain magnificent ingredients from the disassembled magical beast.¡± Cervian first opened up the skill window of Magical Beast Disassembly. Magical Beast Disassembly Classification: Active Skill Skill Level: Lv 0 Proficiency: 0% Cooldown Time: None Duration: None Conditions for Use: Depending on the skill level, the ranks of the magical beasts possible for disassembly is decided. (The current magical beast rank possible for disassembly: Intermediate-rank and below.) Magical Beast Disassembly is a skill that disassembles magical beasts and is required in order to obtain the ingredients for alchemy. Fundamentally, it is possible to proceed with Magical Beast Alchemy just as long as there are two or more magical beasts, but because the ingredients for alchemy obtained through Magical Beast Disassembly must also be added in together to obtain a stronger magical beast, Disassembly could also be considered an essential ability. Depending on the rank and level of the disassembled magical beast, as well as the inherent abilities it possessed, the kinds of ingredients that could be obtained will completely change, and the stronger the disassembled magical beast, the more magnificent the ingredients obtained. *Ingredients that are at most two levels higher than the rank of the disassembled magical beast can be obtained, and the higher the level and proficiency of Disassembly, the higher the chance of obtaining ingredients of a higher rank. *In case of failure of Magical Beast Disassembly, the magical beast will, of course, disappear, but not one ingredient will be obtainable as well. *The skill level of Magical Beast can be grown to a maximum of 10, and depending on the skill level, the rank of the magical beasts that can be handled varies. Skill Level 0-1: Magical Beast Alchemy possible up to maximum ¡®Intermediate-rank¡¯Skill Level 2-3: Magical Beast Alchemy possible up to maximum ¡®High-rank¡¯Skill Level 4-5: Magical Beast Alchemy possible up to maximum ¡®Heroic¡¯-rankSkill Level 6-8: Magical Beast Alchemy possible up to maximum ¡®Legendary¡¯-rankSkill Level 9-10: All ranks possible for Magical Beast Alchemy ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Different from Alchemy, just from reading the information of the Disassembly skill, he couldn¡¯t get a proper sense of it. As Ian repeatedly read the information window of Disassembly multiple times, Cervian slowly began to explain. ¡°There is an incredibly large variety of items that you could obtain through Disassembly.¡± ¡°How many kinds are there?¡± ¡°You cannot count all of them. Since even I don¡¯t know all of the varieties. EXP Marbles, Magic Stones, etc., all sorts of items appear. However, I will explain a couple of the most representative ingredients that will be used in Alchemy.¡± Both of Ian¡¯s eyes shone as he waited for Cervian¡¯s next words. And at that image, Cervian wore a slightly terrified expression. ¡®I thought that he was a fellow that just simply liked to battle, but what is that greasy expression?¡¯ Cervian, who just perceived Ian as a hunting addict, was instead worried that Ian would be bored of such a theoretical explanation. However, as Ian¡¯s attitude was completely opposite to what he was thinking, he became flustered. ¡°Ahem, good attitude. Anyways, I will start the explanation.¡± Cervian introduced a couple of the most representative ingredients that could be obtained through the Disassembly skill. ¡°Firstly, there is an item called ¡®Devil Spirit Stone¡¯. This item is an item where, in most cases, at least one will undoubtedly appear in the case that Disassembly succeeds.¡± ¡°As its name is similar to Magic Stone, it¡¯s confusing.¡± Cervian nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. However, their roles are completely different. Since, simply put, the Devil Spirit Stone is an item that increases the chance of succeeding in Magical Beast Alchemy.¡± ¡°Ooh¡­¡± The two eyes of Ian, who was listening without much enthusiasm as he stated that it was an item that was easily obtainable, shone again after hearing the role of the Devil Spirit Stone. This was because raising the success rate of Alchemy was a part more important than anything else. ¡°And ranks also exist for Devil Spirit Stone, and naturally, the higher the rank, the success rate value that increases will rise greatly.¡± Ian asked. ¡°Then, well, if I put an ingredient like a Legendary-rank Devil Spirit Stone, is it like succeeding in transmutation with almost a 100% chance or something like that?¡± At Ian¡¯s sudden question, Cervian, who thought about it for a moment, responded. ¡°Hmm¡­ It¡¯s not exactly like that. This is because the amount that the success rate goes up changes relative to the rank of the magical beasts that will go into the Alchemy.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± ¡°For example, if you use a Heroic-rank Devil Spirit Stone, you will probably succeed with almost a 100% rate in Magical Beast Alchemy using ingredients with a magical beast that¡¯s Intermediate-rank or lower. However, if you transmute magical beasts that are a high rank of a Heroic-rank or higher, at the most, the success rate will only go up to about 10-20%.¡± It was a little complicated, but Ian was immediately able to understand those words. ¡®As expected¡­ That¡¯s necessary in order for the skill to be properly balanced. Since if the chance went up as an absolute value, the balance will break and the fun in experimenting would decrease as well.¡¯ Ian was having thoughts that fit his commonly acknowledged name of ¡®Game Researcher¡¯ as he nodded his head, and Cervian, who saw him do so, smiled as he began his explanation again. ¡°And the next item I will explain is an item called ¡®Magical Beast Ability Stone¡¯, and different from the Devil Spirit Stone, this one is an item that has an incredibly low chance of appearing.¡± ¡°Magical Beast Ability Stone, huh¡­¡± As expected, Ian was unable to figure out the item¡¯s use just from hearing its name. Ian began to focus on Cervian¡¯s words again, and his words continued. ¡°The Magical Beast Ability Stone drops at a low chance of not even fully 1% when you disassemble a magical beast, and it contains one of the inherent abilities of the related magical beast at random.¡± ¡°What do you mean when it says that it contains an inherent ability?¡± ¡°So¡­ For example, do you remember the Rakyel that you beat the crap out of and captured last time?¡± Ian nodded his head. How could he forget the one that he narrowly caught at the end of a bloody battle that lasted a whole day? Cervian opened his mouth again. ¡°Rakyels are usually born with about three inherent abilities, but the most representative one amongst them is an inherent ability called ¡®Gust of Magic¡¯.¡± ¡°Hmm, I think I¡¯ve seen it. I believe it was an AoE damage-dealing skill.¡± Cervian nodded his head as he spoke. ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s an AoE attack magic skill. Anyways, that¡¯s not what¡¯s important, but it means that if you were to disassemble the Rakyel with Magical Beast Disassembly, you could obtain an ability stone that contains the ¡®Gust of Magic¡¯ skill if you were lucky.¡± The two eyes of Ian, who had heard up to this point, slightly grew. ¡®By any chance, this thing called an ability stone, is it an item where if I was to use it on a Familiar, it would add another inherent ability or change up with one of the pre-existing ability?¡¯ If that happened to be the case, it would be an incredible cheat item, but unfortunately it wasn¡¯t anything like that. ¡°Let¡¯s say that you have an ability stone that contains Gust of Magic, and if in the case that you use this ability stone in the process of Magical Beast Alchemy, the magical beast that is to be born will be born with an incredibly high chance of having the skill contained in the ability stone.¡± ¡°Ooh¡­¡± He was a little disappointed that it wasn¡¯t an item that he could use on his pre-existing Familiars, however, even if it was just this much, it was certain that it was an item that would be an incredible help. Ian asked Cervian. ¡°If that¡¯s the case, it would be the best to perform Magical Beast Alchemy using a magical beast with fundamentally exceptional stats as the base, and transmute it by putting in a Magical Beast Ability Stone containing a good inherent ability, right?¡± Cervian nodded his head with a pleased expression. ¡°That¡¯s exactly it. On top of that, the greatest advantage of Magical Beast Ability Stones is that even if you put in an ability stone, the ability doesn¡¯t just blindly appear.¡± Ian asked with a questioning expression. ¡°How is that a good thing?¡± Cervian smiled as he replied. ¡°If in the case that the original inherent abilities that the magical beast is to have is better than the inherent ability that you put in with an ability stone, the ability of the ability stone will automatically be dissipated. Do you understand?¡± Of course, Ian immediately understood. ¡°Ooh, it¡¯s really good. So the risk is reduced.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. On top of that, as the weakest inherent ability amongst the inherent abilities that the magical beast was to get would disappear and the ability contained in the ability stone would go in its place, this also can¡¯t help but be an incredible merit.¡± Ian and Cervian¡¯s were in perfect sync. With just the keyword ¡®Experiments about Magical Beasts¡¯, the two continuously discussed for over two hours. ¡°Keu, Cervian, I see that the world of magical beasts is incredibly profound.¡± Cervian nodded his head with a serious expression. ¡°That¡¯s right. Huhu, I thought that there wouldn¡¯t be many people that could understand this world, but it looks like that I¡¯ve truly met a good disciple.¡± Ian also replied with a sparkling gaze. ¡°Same goes for me. Thanks to you, master, I¡¯m learning many good things.¡± Cervian grinned as he continued his words. ¡°However, it is difficult if you think that the things that you learned today is the end of Magical Beast Alchemy. If your class Proficiency goes up even more, there are many new skills that will be waiting for you again. For example, ones like ¡®Magic Weapon Producing¡¯¡­¡± At the appearance of a new skill name that stimulated his interest, Ian¡¯s tone went slightly higher. ¡°Ooh, what¡¯s that now?¡± However, Cervian smirked as he wagged his finger. ¡°That I will tell you later. After you¡¯ve achieved all of things that you¡¯ve learned from me right now and become a higher level Magical Beast Transmuter, that is.¡± Ian was a little disappointed, but he burned his fighting spirit even more. ¡°Keu, understood. Then, I will diligently raise the Proficiencies of the skills that I¡¯ve learned for now.¡± Cervian nodded his head with a pleased expression. ¡°Alright, That kind of attitude, it¡¯s very good.¡± Ian abruptly stood up from his spot as he added on. ¡°This disciple will devote themselves even more and show you the end of Magical Beast Alchemy. I will prove and show you what a pupil excelling his master is.¡± * * * Zone 107 of the Devildom was a place where quite powerful magical beasts still appeared amongst the outskirt areas. This was because, although it wasn¡¯t to the level where high-rank magical beasts appeared on the field, still, about 30% of the field monsters were comprised of intermediate-rank magical beasts. ¡°Ly, fall back! It looks like it will die if you hit it once more!¡± ¡°Understood, owner.¡± ¡°Bbakbbak, go be a bit of a meat shield at the front, while Halli and Pin, grab the attention of the other magical beasts so that they can¡¯t approach us!¡± Grr- Grr-! Ian slowly moved forward as he captured all of the magical beasts that he could see. ¡°Capture¡­!¡± You have succeeded in capturing Low-Rank Magical Beast ¡®Beager¡¯.The Class Proficiency of dual class ¡®Devil Summoner ¨C Magical Beast Transmuter¡¯ has increased by 0.15%. Ian, who had additionally captured a magical beast, opened up the magical beast information window as he looked through the magical beasts he currently possessed. Because the magical beast information window was made separately from the Familiar information window, it was convenient to manage. ¡®Will I be able to catch about one or two more now?¡¯ The amount of Devil Energy required in order to capture one magical beast was approximately between 500-1000. Because the current amount of Devil Energy that Ian possessed was about 17 thousand, he was able to capture about 20-25 low-rank magical beasts at once. After Ian captured the maximum amount of magical beasts that he could with the Devil Energy he possessed, he settled down near the portal that led to Zone 106 and began Magical Beast Alchemy. ¡°Alright, shall we raise the Proficiency of Magical Beast Alchemy now?¡± There was no way the magical beast that would be created from transmuting low-rank magical beasts would be an exceptional one to the point that it satisfies Ian anyways. This was because Ian felt like it needed to be at least like the Rakyel, a high-rank magical beast that he captured the other day, in order for it to be helpful to Ian¡¯s current fighting power, but with his current transmuting abilities, making a magical beast of that level was definitely impossible. As that was the case, Ian was literally grinding. ¡®I need to raise my inherent ability to over level 3 quickly.¡¯ Level 3 was what Ian was thinking of as the minimum, while, to be honest, his goal was level 5. This was because he needed to reach level 5 in order to properly transmute Heroic-rank magical beasts and higher. Of course, because it was possible to handle high-rank magical beasts as ingredients even if he just became a level 3, he could transmute Heroic-rank magical beasts as well. However, it was just that the chance would be hellishly bad. ¡®Since Cervian said that it would be best to see it as almost impossible if I borrowed his words¡­¡¯ Either way, Ian, who had sat down, used his alchemy skill and after the window popped up, he put in two low-rank magical beasts as the ingredients. ¡®Magical Beast Alchemy¡¯ will start now.Will you set Low-rank Magical Beast ¡®Shyupulee¡¯ as the main body? ¡°Okay.¡± Will you set Low-rank Magical Beast ¡®Beager¡¯ as Ingredient 1? ¡°Sure.¡± After setting up the magical beasts that were to become the ingredients of the transmutation, a message popped up again. You may additionally set up items that are needed in the transmutation. Along with the message, Ian¡¯s inventory window popped up. Ian thought about it for a moment before pulling out one of the Low-rank Devil Spirit Stones that he received from Cervian. ¡®Sure, well, since it¡¯s important to see how the system works first.¡¯ And as he added the Low-rank Devil Spirit Stone as a transmutation ingredient, a message popped up again. You have added a ¡®Low-rank Devil Spirit Stone¡¯ as a transmutation ingredient.Your alchemy success rate has increased by 20%. Ian¡¯s eyes slightly rounded. ¡®Ooh, still, it seems that because it¡¯s the lowest-ranking Magical Beast Alchemy or whatever, even with a Low-rank Devil Spirit Stone, the rate goes up quite a bit.¡¯ And as all of the steps were completed, Ian¡¯s first Magical Beast Alchemy began. If you have set up all of the ingredients needed in the transmutation, the Magical Beast Alchemy will begin. The two magical beasts that Ian selected floated up into the air, and the Devil Spirit Stone that was in his hand shone a white light as it floated up into the air as well. ¡°Ooh¡­¡± And Ian¡¯s retainers watched that scene with excited expressions. ¡°What are you doing here, Lord guy?¡± Kaizar asked with an expression that looked as if he was interested, but Ian, who was focused on the transmutation, didn¡¯t give any response with his eyes closed. Instead, both of Ian¡¯s hands slowly lifted into the air, and the Devil Energy that came out his hands wrapped around the two magical beasts as the two began to combine together into one. Kuoooh-! A mysterious scene was created as the red current and white light combined together. And shortly after, the white light burst out in the air as a new magical beast was born in that spot. Ring- You have successfully completed ¡®Magical Beast Alchemy¡¯!The Proficiency of ¡®Magical Beast Alchemy¡¯ has increased by 1.5%.Alchemy Rank: B+As the Alchemy Rank is over a B-rank, the rank of the magical devil has increased by one level.Intermediate-rank Magical Beast ¡®Kairoph¡¯ has been born.You are the first to succeed in Magical Beast Alchemy.You have obtained 100 thousand Fame.The Proficiency of ¡®Magical Beast Alchemy¡¯ has additionally increased by 10%. Kairoph Level: 1 Classification: Magical Beast Rank: Intermediate-rank Personality: Timid Evolution impossible Offensive Power: 17 Defensive Power: 15 Agility: 8 Intellect: 10 Vitality: 225/225 Inherent Ability *Frenzy (Passive) When a normal attack is successful, there is a 5% chance of going into Frenzy state for 10 seconds. If in Frenzy state, Defensive Power will decrease by 30%, while Offensive Power will increase by 50%. *Continuous Onrush (Cooldown Time 2 minutes) Magical Beast Kairoph will violently charge through about 30 metres towards their opponent and deal 170% damage. If successful in dealing damage to the opponent with Onrush, the skill has a 30% chance of being invoked once more. A magical beast born due to user ¡®Ian¡¯, a Magical Beast Transmuter. A magical beast with the form of a savage beast that has powerful teeth and large claws, and different from its nimble-looking appearance, its Agility is a little poor. CH 229 Chapter 229: God of Grinding (1) TL: Haku Editor: Super Hungry Panda Ian liked grinding. ¡®Grinding would never betray me.¡¯ Different from reality, in games, how much effort you gave was digitized and appeared as stats. This was the reason why Ian loved games. ¡®Just because I study English in reality for two hours doesn¡¯t mean that my English skill increases by two hours worth, no? Even if it did increase, there¡¯s no way to check it.¡¯ However, in Kailan, if he hunted, the thing called ¡®EXP¡¯ was digitized and increased, and if he used a skill, the figure called ¡®Proficiency¡¯ increased. How rational of a system was this? But that didn¡¯t mean that Ian¡¯s style was to idiotically grind without thinking. Since the saying, ¡®Grinding that cannot pull the greatest efficiency is not true grinding¡¯, was the same as Ian¡¯s game motto. ¡®Instead of raising the skill proficiency of a useless skill or fortifying an item with poor efficiency, I¡¯d rather shovel the air.¡¯ That¡¯s why Ian always researched and researched again. Digging into the weak point of the system that others cannot find and obtaining the greatest profit, as well as the pleasure in finding a faster path than other users and growing were the driving forces of why Ian gamed. If in the case that there was a course called ¡®Kailan¡¯ amongst the courses in school, he would have had more than enough passion to reach 1st place within the whole school. However, unfortunately, there was no such course in reality. As that was the case, the grade that was printed on Ian¡¯s report card was incredibly terrible. Ian¡¯s credit average of one semester was a whopping 0.55 out of a perfect score of 4.5 points. Surprisingly, it was a standard that was lower than the eyesight of a grandpa who was heading into his eighties. ¡®It¡¯s okay, since the professor said that he would save me from academic probation.¡¯ Remembering his grade, which was so low that it wouldn¡¯t be weird if he didn¡¯t only just receive academic probation but expulsion if it wasn¡¯t for Professor Lee Jinook, Ian shook his head violently in order to dismiss such distracting thoughts. ¡°Whew, on that note, should I just catch four more and rest?¡± The Familiars that heard Ian¡¯s mumbling began to move even more passionately. ¡°Guys, owner guy said that if we just catch four more, he¡¯ll rest.¡± Kku-ruk- Kku-ruk-! ¡°Halli, what are you doing over there? Don¡¯t dawdle over there and move quickly!¡± And the retainers, who also got a hint of the situation, were no different. Even Celia, who was endlessly passive in battle normally, suddenly turned aggressive. ¡°Kaizar, where is there time to rest right now? Move quickly. Paulean, you also come here!¡± And through the tearful efforts of the party, Ian was quickly able to reach his goal. You have succeeded in capturing Low-rank Magical Beast ¡®Beager¡¯.The Class Proficiency of dual class ¡®Devil Summoner ¨C Magical Beast Transmuter¡¯ has increased by 0.15%.You have succeeded in capturing Low-rank Magical Beast ¡®Shyupulee¡¯.The Class Proficiency of dual class ¡®Devil Summoner ¨C Magical Beast Transmuter¡¯ has increased by 0.15%. ¡°Whew, great work, everyone, we¡¯ll have a short break now!¡± As soon as Ian said those words, all of his Familiars plopped down on the spot. ¡°Huff, huff¡­ Finally, a break!¡± And as soon as Bbakbbak collapsed on the spot, the retainers quickly approached him and sat down leaning against Bbakbbak¡¯s giant shell. ¡°As expected, Bbakbbak is the best.¡± ¡°Bbakbbak, we¡¯ll be borrowing a bit of your shell.¡± After looking at that scene for a moment, Ian smirked before he opened the magical beast information window. Ian¡¯s Magical Beast Alchemy grind began again. Until he used up all of the ingredients he had caught, he wasn¡¯t planning on standing up from his spot. You have successfully completed ¡®Magical Beast Alchemy¡¯!The Proficiency of ¡®Magical Beast Alchemy¡¯ has increased by 1.0%.Alchemy Rank: C+You have successfully completed ¡®Magical Beast Alchemy¡¯!The Proficiency of ¡®Magical Beast Alchemy¡¯ has increased by 1.2%.Alchemy Rank: B-You have failed at ¡®Magical Beast Alchemy¡¯.The Affinity of the main ingredient, the ¡®Beager¡¯, has decreased by 5.The sub-ingredient, the ¡®Shyupulee¡¯, has been extinguished. A rank of B+ came out at once for Ian¡¯s first Magical Beast Alchemy, but alchemy didn¡¯t always go that well. ¡®It¡¯s probably because I had a probability calibration as it was my first try at alchemy.¡¯ After the dozens of tries he attempted after that, the number of times that Ian had succeeded in transmutation with a rank B or higher and received a High-rank Magical Beast was a total of 5 times. Still, because the higher his Proficiency, the higher his success frequency was getting, Ian¡¯s grinding was gaining more momentum. ¡®I wonder what my Proficiency is at now¡­¡¯ Ian opened his skill window and checked the Proficiency of his Magical Beast Alchemy skill. Magical Beast Alchemy: Lv 0 (Proficiency ¨C 73.3%) ¡®Alright, if I just grind a little harder until tomorrow morning now, I think I should be able to reach lv 1.¡¯ However, just then, Kaizar approached Ian¡¯s side, who was being satisfied while grinding. ¡°Lord guy.¡± ¡°Why do you call me, retainer guy.¡± Because he had gathered quite a lot of Affinity with Kaizar and even his Loyalty was over 50 before Ian had realized, he had been confronting Kaizar openly. ¡°Where is it that we¡¯re going to right now, though?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°We¡¯re continuously going deeper into the Devildom. As there¡¯s no destination, the retainers are curious.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± ¡°By any chance, are you thinking of continuously grinding and returning to the laboratory again?¡± The current place that Ian¡¯s party was located in was Zone 103 of the Devildom. As they were moving while basically capturing or hunting all of the magical beasts that were seen, the speed that the party was moving at was incredibly slow. However, even if that was the case, as they were moving to a lower number zone little by little, Kaizar had asked. ¡°While continuously hunting like this, we¡¯re going to move to the City of Rage.¡± At Ian¡¯s unexpected words, Kaizar asked back immediately. ¡°The City of Rage?¡± Ian nodded his head as he replied. ¡°Yeah, there¡¯s a new family member that we need to bring from over there.¡± The retainers, including Kaizar, couldn¡¯t go into the City of Rage. As that was the case, they had absolutely no idea as to what happened inside there. Of course, there was no way that they would know about the part on the case with ¡®Yankoun¡¯. ¡°New family member? Are you going to obtain a new magical beast or Familiar?¡± At that, Ian just smirked without any response. ¡®Keu-keu, this Kaizar guy is now going to have a master¡­¡¯ Kaizar¡¯s level also increased by an incredible amount compared to when Ian first let him in as a retainer. It was to the point that currently, Kaizar¡¯s level was even over 280. Of course, compared to Ian, who hadn¡¯t quite yet hit lv 200, it was a colossal level, but compared to Yankoun, it could be considered the standard of a child. ¡®I¡¯m anticipating the two¡¯s meeting.¡¯ Ian grinned as he continued his Magical Beast Alchemy grind, while Kaizar, after he shrugged his shoulders once, returned to Bbakbbak¡¯s side. Even while Ian was grinding, he constantly thought about his future plans. ¡®Now that my Summoning is over Master Level 4¡­ And since I¡¯ve also succeeded in obtaining a dual class, I feel like it¡¯s time for me to visit Iriel.¡¯ Ian had not been able to proceed with the hidden quest, the ¡®Shadow of the Evil Dragon Khalifa¡¯, which he received from Iriel a long time ago. This was because the condition to proceed in the quest was for him to have a Master level 3 in Summoning. ¡®Whew, it¡¯s even been over half a year since I¡¯ve received the quest, but to only be able to do it now¡­¡¯ If it was anybody else, more than enough time had passed for the quest to have been forgotten, but there was no way that meticulous Ian would have forgotten something as incredible as a hidden quest. Once the quest that Ian received from Seraphim was completed, he was planning on doing the Evil Dragon Khalifa quest before he proceeded with the next connected quest. ¡®It is probably an incredibly important quest, for sure. Perhaps, it could be related to Karceus¡¯s awakening.¡¯ Even now, Karceus was an incredibly powerful Legendary-rank dragon. However, once he was awakened, it was certain that he would become a Mythological-rank. ¡®Keu¡­ A Mythological-rank, huh. It¡¯s a rank that I have yet to even see. Even just thinking about it puts butterflies in my stomach.¡¯ Ian¡¯s assignments were piled up like a mountain to the point that it was not weird with normal users as the standard to be overloaded, but he was slowly resolving them and moving on one by one. Like that, a day in the Devildom passed by quickly today as well. * * * Hoonie and Canoel were able to pierce through to Zone 100 within a comparably faster time. There was the fact that their abilities were exceptional, but that reason wasn¡¯t all of it. The biggest reason was the fact that the two people had killed the chief gatekeeper of Zone 110. Because of that, tons of people poured in at once, and as hundreds of people moved towards Zone 100 at the same time, they were much faster than when a couple of rankers pierced through individually. And in front of the eyes of the two people, who arrived at Zone 100, there was the giant castle of the City of Rage. ¡°Keu, it looks like that¡¯s the City of Rage, hyung.¡± At Hoonie¡¯s words, Canoel nodded his head with a pleased expression as he replied. ¡°It seems so. Are we also finally able to enjoy the full-scale content of the Devildom now?¡± With deeply moved expressions, the two people began to walk quickly towards the City of Rage. ¡°Hoonie, you said that we needed to do the public order quest in order to go into the City of Rage, right?¡± Hoonie nodded his head. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right. Someone had uploaded the attack to the community. Was it Ceilron of the Titan Guild? The Blazing Knight or whatever.¡± Normally, the user that first discovers content doesn¡¯t release the attack or information on it immediately into the community. However, after a period of time passes, it was normal for someone in accordance with a guild to upload the attack before someone else did. This was because that was a big help to the image of the guild, and if the view count of the attack went up, there was a reward in accordance with the official community. As that was the case, as soon as Ceilron heard that the chief gatekeeper of Zone 110 was killed, he had quickly uploaded the attack in the name of his guild. Canoel asked with a worried expression. ¡°I also read through all of the attack that was uploaded, but don¡¯t you think that it will be a little difficult to do it with just the strength of us two? I heard that even the Titan Guild proceeded with a full party¡­¡± Hoonie nodded his head. ¡°I also saw that. But it seems that the Titan Guild full party cleared the quest quite leisurely in comparison¡­ I think that even if we just gather about 5-10 more people, it will be possible to clear.¡± Canoel rubbed his chin as he mumbled. ¡°Hmm, do we have to at least whisper to the people who fought the chief gatekeeper of Zone 110 with us?¡± Just then, while the two people were contemplating about the public order quest, a message popped up in front of Hoonie¡¯s eyes. Ring-. Ceilron: Hello, this is ¡®Kanjihoonie¡¯, correct? Hoonie couldn¡¯t help but be startled out of his wits. ¡°What the hell, this guy! Speak of the devil¡­!¡± Meanwhile, Canoel, who couldn¡¯t see the message, answered with a perplexed expression. ¡°What are you suddenly talking about, Hoonie?¡± And before Hoonie even sent a response message, another message arrived from Ceilron. Ceilron: I believe that you would have arrived near the City of Rage now¡­ We will help you with the public order quest. What do you think? * * * Ian, who had arrived at the City of Rage, immediately stopped by Seraphim¡¯s and checked on the news about Yankoun. ¡°Seraphim, I¡¯ve returned after obtaining a dual class.¡± ¡°Ooh, you¡¯ve arrived sooner than I expected.¡± ¡°What happened to Yankoun? Has he been released from the Tower of Punishment?¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Seraphim nodded his head as he replied. ¡°Of course. I immediately took action.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Not at all. To be honest, rather than my strength, it was mostly thanks to you. You had already solved all of the problems that were crimes of Yankoun, so how hard could it have been to release him?¡± Ian slightly bowed his head. ¡°Either way, thank you for your hard work. Then, I will go and meet Yankoun. Where is he right now?¡± ¡°Please do. Yankoun is probably staying at the giant inn that¡¯s in front of the east gate of the City of Rage. He is probably waiting for you.¡± ¡°Understood!¡± The corners of Ian¡¯s mouth curled upwards. ¡®Keu! Am I finally obtaining a High-rank Devil¡­ No, a soon-to-be Noblesse subordinate with stellar specs now?¡¯ Ian turned around and began to walk with a broad grin, and towards his backside, Seraphim added on. ¡°You now have 18 days left!¡± At Seraphim¡¯s random and groundless words, Ian momentarily stopped his footsteps. ¡°Sorry?¡± ¡°I¡¯m talking about you having to meet Ricardo and handing him my letter. I¡¯m saying that you need to do it within 18 days from now on.¡± Ian smiled as he nodded his head. This was because he had been thinking about it. ¡°Ah¡­ Of course! After I meet with Yankoun, I¡¯m going to head off immediately, so do not worry.¡± With those words as the end, Ian left Seraphim¡¯s house quickly, and he headed towards the inn that Yankoun was apparently staying at. ¡®Let¡¯s see here¡­. He said that it was the biggest inn from the front of the east gate, right?¡¯ Because that place was located in an area that was not far from Seraphim¡¯s house, Ian was able to arrive soon. Creak-! ¡®Let¡¯s see here¡­ Do I just need to ask the owner of the pub where Yankoun¡¯s room is?¡¯ Ian entered the pub and looked around. This was because, as the pub was quite large, he couldn¡¯t even really see the location of the counter. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± However, just then, a husky voice could be heard from behind Ian. ¡°Have you returned, Ian?¡± Ian reflexively turned his head. And the owner of that voice that was incredibly familiar was also ¡®him¡¯, who Ian had been looking for. CH 230 Chapter 230: God of Grinding (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Keu-heu-heu, have I finally cleared it¡­?¡± While staring at the giant magical beast that was collapsing in front of Ilahan¡¯s eyes, he let out a laugh showing his good mood. He had finally completely cleared the quest that had taken a lengthy 2 weeks. And Ilahan¡¯s retainers that had scattered due to the tussle lined up in front of him after quickly organizing themselves again. ¡°Great work, master.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve done a great job, Lord!¡± Ilahan accepted the greetings of his retainers with a good mood as he stared at the quest completion messages that popped up afterwards. Ring-! You have successfully cleared the quest the ¡®Path to the Shim-ma-yeon[1]¡¯.Clear Rank: AYou have obtained 250 thousand Fame.You have satisfied the qualification requirement in order to enter the ¡®Shim-ma-yeon¡¯.Will you enter the ¡®Shim-ma-yeon¡¯? If the name was literally translated, Shim-ma-yeon meant the ¡®deep pond of the devil¡¯. And Ilahan nodded his head without hesitation. ¡°I¡¯ll enter!¡± Following that, a message popped up again. You will enter the ¡®Shim-ma-yeon¡¯.A high concentration of Devil Energy has begun to wrap around your body.Your body has gotten heavier. Your movement speed has decreased by 30%.You are the first to discover the ¡®Shim-ma-yeon¡¯.You have obtained 150 thousand Fame.You have obtained 3000 Devil Energy.Your Devil Energy Activation Rate has permanently increased by 2.5%. * * * A big and sturdy-looking physique that looked to be a little over 2 metres tall. The devil with red skin and black hair, as well as sharp-looking eyes, was ¡®Yankoun¡¯, exactly who Ian was looking for. ¡®I¡¯m certain it is Yankoun, but¡­¡¯ However, as soon as Ian saw Yankoun, he couldn¡¯t help but tilt his head. This was because Yankoun¡¯s outer appearance had changed a lot. ¡°What a relief, Yankoun. You¡¯ve been released quicker than expected.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Yankoun grinned as he nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right, I was able to be released within a couple of days thanks to you. Thanks to that, I was able to preserve as much of my Devil Energy as possible.¡± Ian asked what he was curious about. ¡°But Yankoun, did something happen for your outer appearance to change so much?¡± Originally, Yankoun had an incredibly giant build. Even now, at over 2 metres, his physique wasn¡¯t small, but compared to his previous build, it was a small physique that was only about 70% his original size. On top of that, the hair that grew thickly all over his body had completely disappeared as well. Fortunately, his facial features were still the same, so Ian was able to recognize him immediately. Yankoun wore a pleased smile as he responded. ¡°Seraphim had helped me.¡± At Yankoun¡¯s out-of-the-blue response, Ian wore a puzzled expression. ¡°Huh¡­?¡± ¡°At the time when I was released from the Tower of Punishment, my Devil Energy was at about 45 thousand. However, thanks to Seraphim giving me a Highest-ranking Grass of the Devil Spirit, I was able to reach 50 thousand Devil Energy.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± The two eyes of Ian, who realized the meaning of the words Yankoun said, slightly grew. ¡®I believe I heard for sure back then that if his Devil Energy was over 50 thousand, he would obtain the right to become a Noblesse¡­¡¯ And as if he had read Ian¡¯s thoughts, Yankoun continued his words again. ¡°Thanks to that, I have met the qualification requirements in order to advance to a Noblesse. Although, of course, in order to become a true Noblesse, I need to take the promotional round.¡± ¡°Is that the reason why your outer appearance has changed?¡± Yankoun nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. As the bowl within me grew big enough to control the overflowing Devil Energy, my outer appearance has also turned over a new leaf into a more refined image.¡± Ian internally let out a shout of delight. ¡®Keu! To think that he would appear after growing on his own like this!¡¯ Even though he didn¡¯t know what the process of the promotional round was, because the fact that the path to becoming a Noblesse had sped up alone, Ian wanted to dance joyfully. ¡®But from what I noticed during the Devil¡¯s Test was that the difference in fighting power with just one difference in rankings of the devils I faced was incredible, though¡­¡¯ If Yankoun, who was immeasurably powerful as a matter of fact, became even stronger, he would be able to feel a force just like when he first obtained Kaizar in the central continent. And just when Ian was thinking of this and that, Yankoun¡¯s mouth opened up again. ¡°Ian, the reason that I was able to overcome this wall, let alone be released from the Tower of Punishment, is all thanks to you.¡± The sound of Ian gulping audibly rang out. Gulp-. Yankoun¡¯s words continued again, and they were the exact words that Ian was waiting for. ¡°I was already deeply moved by your strength, and I¡¯m also greatly indebted to you.¡± Ian and Yankoun¡¯s gazes met in the air. ¡°I want to be with you from now on. I want to become your retainer and pay off the debt I owe you, as well as support you on your journey.¡± A system message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring-! High-rank Devil ¡®Yankoun¡¯ wants to become your retainer.Will you accept ¡®Yankoun¡¯ as your retainer? Of course, Ian immediately nodded his head without having to think about it. ¡°Thanks, Yankoun, please help me out a lot from now on.¡± Following that, a message popped up. You have accepted High-rank Devil ¡®Yankoun¡¯ as a retainer.Retainers Currently Owned: 40/40The maximum number of retainers that a ¡®Marquis¡¯-title aristocrat can have is ¡¯40 people¡¯.In order to additionally have retainers, you must be promoted to a ¡®Duke¡¯-title.The amount of Fame required to be promoted from a ¡®Marquis¡¯ ¡ú ¡®Duke¡¯ title: 3 million.The current amount of Fame possessed: 18.3 million.You possess enough Fame to be promoted.Will you proceed with the promotion to a ¡®Duke¡¯ title? ¡®Huh¡­? A message like this pops up now that I¡¯ve maxed out my retainers.¡¯ Ian rubbed his chin as he contemplated for a moment. Because he filled up his retainer holding amount, a message suggesting a title promotion had popped up. ¡®The amount of Fame needed for a Duke title is 3 million, and the additional amount of Fame needed in order to be promoted once more to an Archduke is 5 million¡­¡¯ Even if he was to be promoted straight to an ¡®Archduke¡¯ title at once, he would still have a whopping ten million Fame left. However, Ian shook his head. ¡°No, I will not be promoted now.¡± You have rejected the title promotion.Your ¡®Marquis¡¯ title will be maintained. This was because it wasn¡¯t a title he needed immediately, and he was currently experiencing the incredible power of Fame. ¡®To be honest, even the reason why I was able to obtain such an unbelievably powerful retainer like Yankoun may also be thanks to my outrageous amount of Fame.¡¯ Of course, thanks to the bugged play due to a system error, it was true that he was able to have tremendously powerful Yankoun submit to him. However, even if there was a system error, if it wasn¡¯t for the enormous amount of 18 million Fame, it would have been hard to obtain him as a retainer at least. ¡®I¡¯ll take advantage of the Fame a little more, and promote myself later when I need it.¡¯ Ian, who organized his thoughts on Fame, opened up the information of ¡®Yankoun¡¯, his newly obtained retainer. Yankoun Level: 351 Classification: Devil Class: Combat Devil (Berserker) Position: High-rank Devil Personality: Valiant Talent Rank: Heroic Combat Stats (Expand) Detailed Abilities (Expand) Possessed Abilities Devil Energy Eruption As his giant greatsword is pierced into the ground, powerful Devil Energy erupts in its vicinity. All opponents within a 20-metre range will receive 8927 (17.9% of his maximum Devil Energy) damage per second for 10 seconds. While Devil Energy Eruption is in use, Yankoun will not be able to move at all, so if he faints or falls into a status condition like paralysis, the activation of the skill will be stopped. (Cooldown Time 5 minutes) Devil Energy Concentration ¡®Destructive Devil¡¯ Yankoun can focus all of his Devil Energy every time he attacks and deal the maximum amount of damage possible. His Devil Energy Activation Rate will permanently increase by 20%, and the damage dealt by a normal attack will permanently increase by 30%. However, his movement speed will permanently decrease by 20%. (Passive) Battle of Fury For 15 minutes, ¡®Yankoun¡¯ will be in a state where he is engulfed in madness. While he is engulfed in madness, Yankoun¡¯s Defensive Power will decrease by 30%, while his Offensive Power will increase by 50%. As well, his movement speed will increase by 30%, and his Devil Energy Activation Rate will increase by 15%. (Cooldown Time 30 minutes) A powerful High-rank Devil that was one of the Twelve Chosen Generals of the Devildom in the past. He is an exceptional ¡®Berserker¡¯ who is valiant and has a combative tendency. Ian, who read through Yankoun¡¯s information window, felt himself automatically nod his head. ¡®As expected, as all of his inherent abilities are like this, his Devil Energy constantly burst out when I fought him.¡¯ The part that Ian didn¡¯t understand the most when he had fought Yankoun was the fact that his Devil Energy Activation Rate was incredibly high. This was because in Ian¡¯s case, he needed to attack about ten times for a possible chance of his Devil Energy bursting out, but Yankoun had burst out Devil Energy with a normal attack almost once every two times. ¡®His passive, as well as his buff raises his Devil Energy Activation Rate tremendously.¡¯ His AoE attack called ¡®Devil Energy Eruption¡¯ also looked incredibly powerful, but he thought that Yankoun would be a card that could display an even more powerful ability in a boss battle. ¡®To be able to deal a fixed amount of damage that is Devil Energy at such a high success rate¡­ He¡¯ll be just the right person to use when catching a sturdy defensive-type boss.¡¯ Overall, Yankoun¡¯s stats made Ian incredibly pleased. However, there was just one part that he was disappointed in, and that was his Talent Rank. ¡®I thought that for sure his Talent Rank would be Legendary-rank or higher, but it¡¯s a Heroic-rank.¡¯ Amongst the 40 retainers that Ian possessed, he had as many as 15 retainers whose Talent Ranks were Heroic-rank. However, for Legendary-rank retainers, he only had Kaizar, so he was secretly anticipating Yankoun¡¯s rank. ¡®Well, still, since his level is so high and even his Devil Rank is a High-rank Devil¡­ I should be satisfied with what I have although it¡¯s disappointing.¡¯ Taking Yankoun, who had now become his retainer, Ian headed out of the inn. ¡®Whew, alright. Shall I head over to the Fortress of the Devil now?¡¯ The Fortress of the Devil was apparently in Zone 80 of the Devildom. Ian began to move quickly in order to proceed with Seraphim¡¯s quest. He needed to meet Devil King Ricardo who was supposed to be in the Fortress of the Devil. ¡®Who knows how much time it will take to get through until I reach Zone 80. I still have quite a bit time remaining until I reach my time limit, but I need to move as quickly as possible.¡¯ As he had finished preparing for all sorts of things, it was time for him to pierce through the gateway of Zone 100. ¡®I wonder how many gateways I can freely pass through with the position of a High-rank Devil¡­¡¯ Ian desperately prayed that he would be able to freely pass through all of the gateways up to Zone 80. [1] Shim-ma-yeon = As written in the chapter, Shim-ma-yeon is Chinese/traditional Korean for ¡°deep pond of the devil¡±. CH 231 Chapter 231: God of Grinding (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda You have successfully completed the Devil¡¯s Test.Highest Stage Broken Through: 17The Devildom Rank of User ¡®Ilahan¡¯ has been set as ¡®Common Devil¡¯.You have been given an additional 10,500 of a new Devildom stat, ¡®Devil Energy¡¯.You have been given an additional 3% of a new Devildom stat, ¡®Devil Energy Activation Rate¡¯.You have succeeded in becoming a ¡®True Devil¡¯.You are the first to become a ¡®True Devil¡¯.You have obtained 500 thousand Fame.Your Devil Energy Activation Rate has permanently increased by 3%.Your Resistance Magic has permanently increased by 5%. The fist of Ilahan, who read the messages that popped up one after another, trembled from ecstasy. ¡°Finally¡­!¡± On top of that, this wasn¡¯t the end for the messages. User ¡®Ilahan¡¯s race has been changed from ¡®Human¡¯ to ¡®Devil¡¯.All combat abilities will increase by 20% within the ¡®Devildom¡¯.The amount of Devil Energy that you obtain when killing a devil or magical beast will increase by 50%.The amount of EXP that you obtain when killing a devil or magical beast will increase by 50%.From now on, even if you kill a ¡®Human¡¯ race in any field, you will not obtain Infamy.As the ¡®DarkRuna¡¯ Guild that you were affiliated with is a guild of the ¡®Human¡¯ race, you have been automatically withdrawn.As your race is now ¡®Devil¡¯, your Affinity with all NPCs in the mortal world has dropped by 50.As your race is now ¡®Devil¡¯, the Human race class that you had, the ¡®Magic Swordsman¡¯, has been erased. Through the hidden quest, Ilahan had succeeded in becoming not a ¡®Half-Devil, Half-Human¡¯, but a ¡®True Devil¡¯. He had succeeded in becoming not just half, but a complete devil. Fundamentally, in terms of fighting power, there was no aspect where a True Devil was better than a Half-Devil, Half-Human. However, within the field called the Devildom, a True Devil had the conditions to grow much faster than a Half-Devil, Half-Human. Since the fact that the amount of EXP and the amount of Devil Energy they obtained was 1.5 times higher compared to other users, it would become a magnificent foothold for high-speed growth. However, of course, there was a large loss as a trade-off. ¡®Tsk, it¡¯s nice, but still, as expected, I¡¯m a little disappointed that I¡¯ve blown away my Magic Swordsman class. And that I had to give up the guild as well¡­¡¯ The ¡®Magic Swordsman¡¯ class, which had allowed Ilahan to grasp onto 1st place in the unofficial rankings up until now, had disappeared as his race changed. Obviously along with that, all of his skills and class-related proficiencies also disappeared, so this was incredibly fatal. On top of that, he even had to give up on the ¡®DarkRuna¡¯ Guild, the strongest guild of the Korean server, which had been his funds up until now. This could possibly be a critical loss to the point that it was impossible to compare even if all of the advantages he obtained from becoming a devil were combined. However, it looked like Ilahan didn¡¯t really care. This situation was already all within his calculations. Since he had even already handed over the Guild Master position of the DarkRuna Guild to another user. ¡°Then, shall we now obtain a new class?¡± Ilahan, who had been standing still in the darkness, began to walk forward with heavy footsteps. It was an abysmal darkness where he couldn¡¯t see in front of his nose, but there was not a touch of hesitation in his footsteps. ¡°Hmm¡­ It should be about time for it to appear now.¡± The second Ilahan¡¯s words ended, the sight in front of him began to brighten. And the thing that had appeared in front of his eyes was a pool of lava that was stretched thin to the point it was as thick as half a handspan. The line made of lava let out a pale light within the darkness as it drew a complex pattern. Ilahan¡¯s eyes shone. ¡®Alright, it¡¯s that way! I¡¯m certain!¡¯ Having found his destination, his footsteps grew faster and faster. And the place that he had reached was a low peak-like place that reached around his waist. A giant sword was lodged into the middle of it as lava poured out from where the sword was at the pivotal point. Ilahan¡¯s two eyes sparkled. ¡°The sealed sword¡­! I¡¯ve finally found it!¡± Ilahan, who had mumbled with a quiet but powerful voice, grasped onto the handle of the greatsword that was lodged into the lava tightly. As he did so, a system message popped up in front of Ilahan¡¯s eyes. You have discovered the ¡®Sealed Sword of Devil King Ricardo¡¯.Warning: If you pull out the sealed sword, the magic square will be invoked and the Evil Dragon will awaken.If the Evil Dragon is awoken, the invasion of the destructive devils into the mortal world will quicken by 30 days, and their power will become bigger and stronger. Simply put, it meant that the ¡®monster wave¡¯ of the Devildom that would approach the users would quicken by 30 days as the difficulty level would increase even more. In other words, it meant that if Ilahan was a normal user, it was a sword that he should absolutely not pull out. ¡°Huhu, that¡¯s great.¡± However, Ilahan immediately pulled out the sword without even a tinge of hesitation. Cla-cla-clang-! Along with a heavy, ringing sound, the sealed sword was pulled out. At the same time as that, messages began to pop up again. Ring-. You have pulled out the ¡®Sealed Sword of the Devil King Ricardo¡¯.The ¡®Sealed Magic Square of Murkiness and Darkness¡¯ has begun to operate. And the streams of lava that was spread around Ilahan began to let out an even redder glow. Kuoooh-! The light that gushed out from those lava streams were sucked into the sealed sword that Ilahan held up with a terrifying force, and Ilahan¡¯s hand, which was holding the sword, began to tremble violently. ¡°Euh¡­!¡± Whoong-! Had about 5 minutes passed like that? The light that was wrapped around Ilahan¡¯s sword suddenly spurt out a strong flame into the air. Hwa-reu-reuk-! And once again, a system message popped up. You have satisfied all conditions required to class-change into a ¡®Combat Devil (Berserker)¡¯.The sealed magic square that was spread out on top of the murkiness and darkness has been successfully cleared. Ku-reu-reu- Following that, a giant crack formed in the grey peak that Ilahan stood on top of as it started to split. Cra- Cra-crack-! And shortly afterwards, one system message additionally popped up. ¡®Evil Dragon Khalifa¡¯ has been awoken from the darkness. * * * Ian, who had come out of the City of Rage, met up with his retainers that were waiting outside of the fortress gate and began to head towards the gateway of Zone 100. And Kaizar, as expected, wore a flustered expression as soon as he saw Yankoun. ¡°What happened, Lord guy? How exactly did this devil become your retainer?¡± At Kaizar¡¯s flustered image, Ian wore a pleased expression as he responded. ¡°Huhu, that, well, don¡¯t you think it was possible because this body is so amazing?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± And towards Kaizar, who was dumbfounded, Yankoun approached him and held out his hand. ¡°I look forward to your kind cooperation. I see that you are the warrior that fought against me back then.¡± ¡°That, that¡¯s right.¡± Kaizar slightly flinched, but he took his outstretched hand and slowly shook it. He was instinctively feeling that Yankoun was stronger than him. Ian watched that form with an expression full of laughter, as Yankoun slowly got acquainted with Ian¡¯s retainers. However, just then, a creature with a different-looking outer appearance that made it look like cotton candy caught Yankoun¡¯s eyes. Yankoun rounded his eyes as he spoke to Ian. ¡°Oh¡­! Ian, how did you find this fellow?¡± At that question, the one that was taken aback was Ian instead. ¡°Huh? You know this useless creature?¡± As he said that, Kaka, the wad of cotton that was lodged in between them, pouted with a dissatisfied expression. ¡°What do you mean useless creature, that¡¯s too much, owner.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not wrong, though. Aside from the fact that you¡¯re a little cute, what do you have?¡± Kaka¡¯s expression contorted even more. ¡°I am not cute!¡± And while the two squabbled with each other, Yankoun approached Kaka until he was right in front of him. ¡°It seems you are a kin of darkness. A Karga Phantom¡­ Right?¡± Kaka replied with a triumphant expression. ¡°Huhu, finally, someone who has recognized me has formed in the party. That¡¯s right, I am a great kin of darkness¡­ A Karga Phantom.¡± Yankoun nodded his head as he spoke as if he was mumbling. ¡°As expected¡­ Just like I¡¯ve heard, you¡¯re incredibly cute.¡± ¡°Eek!¡± Meanwhile, Ian wore an expression full of anticipation as it seemed that Yankoun knew about Kaka. ¡°Yankoun, is there any information that you know about on the Karga Phantom?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Yankoun nodded his head. ¡°I don¡¯t know that well either, but I have read about their race in an old book before.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± At Ian¡¯s counter-question, Yankoun¡¯s words continued. ¡°That¡¯s right. Their appearance is incredibly cute, and I heard that as they are a kin of darkness, they do not sleep.¡± Ian¡¯s expression suddenly contorted. ¡°Yeah, is there no way to make this guy sleep a little?¡± ¡°Why do you want to do that?¡± ¡°Amongst the abilities that this guy has, there¡¯s an inherent ability called the ¡®Greedy Night Hag¡¯.¡± ¡°¡­ How did the ability of a hag, which is a devil of dreams, go to a completely incompatible Karga Phantom?¡± ¡°Whew, my point exactly¡­¡± Ian glared at Kaka, and Kaka pouted as he flew around Ian. However, just then, unexpected words came out of Yankoun¡¯s mouth. ¡°He is a little bit of an interesting guy, but this ability, it¡¯s not a completely useless ability, Ian.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Yankoun looked at Kaka as he opened his mouth again. ¡°If only you can awaken this fellow, that is.¡± ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± ¡°The Karga Phantom, which is a kin of darkness, becomes a kin of the night if it is awoken. A kin of the night can sleep.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± He wasn¡¯t incredibly happy or anything like that, but Ian received comfort in his own way. ¡°How can you awaken them?¡± ¡°That I don¡¯t know.¡± Ian stared at Kaka, but Kaka shook his head as well. ¡°I don¡¯t know either, owner.¡± ¡°Whew¡­¡± Ian, who had shared an unsatisfactory conversation with Yankoun and Kaka like that, was able to arrive at the gateway of Zone 100 without taking too long. And Ian, who had arrived in front of the gateway, gulped loudly as he mumbled. ¡°I should be able to just pass through here with the authority of a High-rank Devil, right¡­?¡± However, before Ian even went into the gateway, Yankoun gave a response to that. ¡°You cannot just pass through the gateway of Zone 100 even if you were a Devil King, let alone a High-rank Devil. If you want to pass through, you must pass the test.¡± Ian¡¯s expression crumpled again. * * * ¡°Hmm¡­ So, are you saying that I must help you with that quest called the Devil King¡¯s Test or whatever?¡± At Hoonie¡¯s question, Ceilron nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. Amongst the conditions of this quest, there¡¯s a part that says that we must include one user of every class all into this party, so¡­¡± Hoonie and Canoel had received the help of the users of the Titan Guild, including Blazing Knight Ceilron, and were able to easily clear the City of Rage Entry Quest. However, of course, they did not help them for free. As soon as the quest was over, they had requested Hoonie¡¯s help. And he couldn¡¯t really call it a selfish proposal either. It was an offer where, even from Hoonie¡¯s perspective, there was nothing bad as he would be able to get a free hidden quest. Hoonie asked again. ¡°What¡¯s the running time for the quest?¡± Ceilron responded instantly. ¡°The time that it took for each try was about a quarter of a day. And even if you fail the quest, there are no incidences where you will die or anything like that, so there¡¯s nothing for you to worry about in this aspect as well.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Hoonie thought about it for a moment. ¡®It isn¡¯t a bad proposal, but¡­ I want to quickly meet up with Ian hyung first¡­ I need to stick next to that monster in order for even one more crumb to fall of the table, that is.¡¯ While looking at Hoonie, who hesitated, Ceilron slightly added on to his words. ¡°We desperately need the help of an exceptional Black Magician. Despite being the 2nd place guild of the server, there is not one Black Magician user that is as exceptional as you, Hoonie.¡± And Ceilron¡¯s attack(?) worked perfectly. People that were weak to compliments as much as Hoonie were rare. ¡°Alright, sounds good. You¡¯ve even helped us out like this with the public order quest, so I will show you my abilities.¡± Ceilron¡¯s expression brightened at once. ¡°Ohh, thank you. By any chance, if it is alright with you, how about just joining our Titan Guild completely?¡± However, this time, Hoonie also flatly refused. ¡°That I apologize for. I prefer being alone, so¡­¡± ¡°Ahem, that¡¯s a little disappointing, but I guess it cannot be helped.¡± ¡°My apologies.¡± Ceilron, who licked his lips, slowly opened his mouth again. ¡°Alright, then firstly, I will share the quest with you.¡± Hoonie nodded his head. ¡°Yes, please share it with me.¡± And at the same time that Hoonie¡¯s words ended, a system message popped up. Ring-. The ¡®Test of the Devil King Hikion (Hidden)¡¯ Quest has been shared with you. However, the moment he read the message that the quest was shared with him, Hoonie suddenly remembered the nightmare of the Immortal Quest from last time. ¡®No¡­ No way that this is shared with Ian hyung just like then, right?¡¯ And this time as well, as expected, the proverb that saying no way could ruin a man came true without a doubt. The quest has been automatically shared with ¡®Ian¡¯, the user that you have established a master and servant relationship with. CH 232 Chapter 232: Bbookbbook and Kaka (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda ¡°Whew! That was difficult.¡± Ian stared at the giant magical beast that was collapsing in front of his eyes as he calmed down his rough breathing. ¡®I feel like this is my first time meeting one that is immune to all status conditions. Would there be no way to transmute a magical beast that¡¯s similar to that one?¡¯ The gateway of Zone 100. The opponent that Ian met inside there was a Heroic-rank Magical Beast that had the outer appearance of a giant golem. It was fundamentally a tanker-type magical beast, but its Offensive Power was not weak by a long shot either, and on top of having complete immunity to all status conditions, it was a picky opponent that could even recover its Vitality on its own. ¡®Bbakbbak is also an amazing tanker, but if I had one more tanker like that, it would become much easier to manage the party¡­¡¯ Usually when Ian raided a boss-type monster, the first task he did was to use the status condition effects of the Familiars he had and tie down the feet of his opponents as much as possible. And after he had buffed his reflexes and maximized the difference in reflexivity, he was the type that preferred to progress through a battle with that as the base. However, as not a single crowd controlling skill worked on his opponent, his struggle certainly made sense. ¡°Well, it¡¯s fine since I¡¯ve won anyways.¡± While thinking that he should ask Cervian about the alchemy information of that golem the next time he had something to meet with him for, Ian slowly stepped forward. This was because the gate had opened up above the corpse of the golem that had collapsed. Juh-buk- Juh-buk-. And as Ian went into the gate, his surroundings became pitch black again. Ring-. You have successfully cleared the gateway of Zone 100.You will be transported to ¡®Zone 99 of the Devildom¡¯. In front of the eyes of Ian, which had turned completely black, two system messages popped up in white lettering, as the dark world brightened up again shortly afterwards. And new messages popped up. Ring-. You have entered ¡®Zone 99 of the Devildom¡¯.You are the first to have passed through the gateway of Zone 100.You have obtained 150 thousand Fame.Powerful Devil Energy can be felt everywhere.Your movement speed has slowed down by 5%. The place that Ian was transported to through the gateway was on top of a steep, tall cliff. The wide Devildom plains that spread out below were so open to the point that it could be all be seen from his view. After slightly looking around at his surroundings, the corners of Ian¡¯s mouth slightly curled upwards. ¡°This place¡­ It¡¯s totally my style.¡± The reason that Ian¡¯s mood brightened was simple. This was because plains were teeming with an incredibly large amount of magical beasts. He liked that there were magical beasts that had appeared back in Zone 100 as well as other kinds of magical beasts, and that he could just see magical beasts that weren¡¯t a higher stage, but ones of a similar rank. ¡®It¡¯s the perfect map to raise the proficiency of Magical Beast Alchemy.¡¯ On top of that, the thing that Ian liked most was group hunting. The footsteps of Ian, which headed downwards of the cliff, began to grow faster and faster. * * * Hoonie swallowed audibly. ¡®What, what the hell? Why is there no reaction?¡¯ Hoonie¡¯s mind began to race rapidly. ¡®He isn¡¯t the type of hyung to stay still if he saw the message that the hidden quest has been shared, though¡­¡¯ Characteristically of Ian, it would have been normal for him to have sent Hoonie a personal message as soon as he saw the system message. However, although a whopping 30 seconds had passed, there was no reaction from Ian. ¡®What the hell? By any chance, is he not logged on?¡¯ If that was the case, this would be incredible luck. The sun was up in the middle of the sky at this time. This was because there was a lower chance of Ian not being logged onto Kailan than the chance to succeed in fortifying a weapon five times in a row. ¡®The gods have helped me!¡¯ Hoonie wanted to send a message to Ian and check whether he was logged on or not. However, if Ian ended up seeing the message that he had been missing by doing that¡­ He felt like he would cry out of sorrow. ¡®Alright, before Ian hyung sees the message, I¡¯m going to finish this quest!¡¯ To be honest, Hoonie¡¯s prediction was only about half right. Ian was logged on, but he was not able to see Hoonie¡¯s message. Hoonie¡¯s message that the quest was shared with him had flown over to Ian while he was in the middle of a bloody battle in the gateway of Zone 100. However, whenever Ian had to participate in an important battle with a high difficulty level, he turned off all of the different kinds of system messages that weren¡¯t related to the battle. This was because he wanted to prevent himself from being distracted while in battle. Either way, to Hoonie, it could be considered a situation where luck was indeed on his side. ¡®I can only hope that Ian hyung opens his quest information window as late as possible¡­¡¯ Canoel nudged Hoonie, who was diligently putting his brain to work. ¡°Hoonie, what are you doing? Ceilron is waiting.¡± Hoonie, who only then came back to reality from his thoughts, wore a bashful expression as he turned his head. ¡°Ah, there was something that I needed to think a little about¡­ My apologies, Ceilron.¡± Ceilron wore an indulgent smile as he nodded his head. ¡°Not a problem.¡± After slightly staring at Canoel, Hoonie turned his head towards Ceilron again. ¡°But, Ceilron.¡± ¡°Please continue.¡± ¡°By any chance, if you do not have an exceptional Summoner, would it be alright if Canoel hyung here also came with us in the party?¡± At Hoonie¡¯s words, Canoel was slightly surprised, and Ceilron¡¯s gaze moved towards Canoel. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Hoonie¡¯s words continued. ¡°This hyung¡¯s level isn¡¯t on the high side at about 150, but he¡¯s quite talented. He¡¯s also strong as he has one of the hidden classes that had appeared as the Devildom content opened up this time.¡± At those words, Ceilron¡¯s complexion brightened. If he was at lv 150, it was a normal standard where there were no differences with him and the other Summoners of the guild, but if he was the owner of one of the new hidden class that had formed along with the 3rd update, it was a different story. ¡°Oh, is that so? If that¡¯s the case then, we¡¯ll welcome him warmly.¡± Canoel stared at Hoonie as if he was portraying his gratitude, and Hoonie grinned. Canoel¡¯s gaze turned towards Ceilron again. ¡°Then, I look forward to your kind cooperation, Ceilron.¡± Ceilron shook Canoel¡¯s hand as he nodded his head. ¡°It is us who look forward to your kind cooperation instead, Canoel.¡± * * * The ¡®True Devil¡¯ literally meant that they were not half, but a true devil. The ¡®Combat Devil¡¯ Class that Ilahan obtained was one of the dual classes that users could obtain in the Devildom, but for Ilahan, it was no longer a dual class, but it had become his main class. And he had even obtained it as a hidden class called the ¡®Berserker¡¯. ¡®Huhu, because of the class proficiency, I may have become much weaker compared to the other rankers for now, but since my growth rate will be different from now on, I should be able to catch up to them in an instant.¡¯ While looking at the Devil Energy that had piled up due to several hours of hunting, Ilahan wore a satisfied expression. At this speed, although he was unsure about a Noblesse rank, but he felt that he would at least be able to be promoted to a High-rank Devil without difficulty. ¡®The Evil Dragon Khalifa has also awoken now¡­ So, while the destructive devils are invading the mortal world, do I just need to quietly raise my strength in the Devildom?¡¯ Releasing the seal of Evil Dragon Khalifa was one of the conditions in order to class-change into the ¡®Berserker¡¯ Class. However, even if it wasn¡¯t a class-changing condition of the hidden class, Ilahan would have still done this quest. That¡¯s because he wanted the mortal world to be consumed by the Devildom. ¡®Huhu, if only that were to happen, it would completely become my world.¡¯ The reason for that was simple. Ilahan was a devil, and as it was a situation where his growth in the Devildom was much faster, he couldn¡¯t help but want the mortal world to be absorbed by the Devildom. However, it wasn¡¯t like Ilahan selected the path of a True Devil from the beginning. At first, he was extremely hesitant about proceeding with the quest. He was uncertain because, of course, there was the penalty that he would lose the Magic Swordsman class, but also the fact that all advantages that he could obtain after becoming a True Devil were just effective within the ¡®Devildom¡¯. However, there was a powerful opportunity that made him have a change of heart. The mortal world will eventually be absorbed by the Devildom in any case. That¡¯s because I¡¯ll make that the case. That was because of the persuasion of powerful destructive devil ¡®Mahamyu¡¯, who was ranked 10thplace of the Devil King rankings. Mahamyu explained the detailed plan on the invasion of the human world to Ilahan, and if Ilahan was to carry out the role he was given here magnificently, he promised that he would even give him an enormous reward. And from what he felt, it was a perfect opportunity where he couldn¡¯t ask for more. ¡®It¡¯s a perfect chance to prevail over other guys and leap forward.¡¯ To normal users, they still knew Ilahan as the unofficial 1st place ranker in the Korean Kailan server. This was because he was the one that had won the arena PvP event that opened up last right before the central continent opened up. However, Ilahan knew better than anyone else that he was no longer 1st place in the rankings now. ¡®Although the others don¡¯t know¡­ Shyakran and Remir are truly powerful.¡¯ As the strength of the users that were within the top 20 were so similar to the point that it could be said the difference between them was paper-thin anyways, it could be that the title of 1st place in the rankings didn¡¯t have a huge meaning. However, Ilahan hated that. He wanted to dominate over everybody with an overwhelming 1st place in the rankings. Juh-buk- Juh-buk-. Ilahan, who completely wiped through and hunted a dungeon that was in Zone 105 of the Devildom, slowly moved his feet. If he wanted to reclaim the difference that took place between the other users due to the loss of his Magic Swordsman class, there was not even a moment to rest. ¡®Keu-keu¡­ Just wait. I will show you an overwhelming difference soon.¡¯ * * * Zone 95 of the Devildom. Within a day, Ian completed the whole course from Zone 99 to Zone 96, and had entered into the field of Zone 95. It was a speed that was only possible because he didn¡¯t hunt all of the magical beasts that were in the field, but rather just hunted the magical beasts that were there on his way as he moved onwards. ¡®If it was up to my wishes, I would want to hunt all of the magical beasts that catch my eye as I go, but it would seriously become a hassle if I was late by doing that.¡¯ He needed to reach the Devil¡¯s Castle that was in Zone 80 and meet Devil King Ricardo within ten days. In order to do that he definitely had no time to relax. The time limit of ten days was not short, but even if there was some time remaining, it would be proper for him to hunt after reaching Zone 80. Ian, who had discovered the portal that led to Zone 94, sat down on a boulder that was in the vacant lot in front of it for a moment. ¡°Whew, let¡¯s rest for a moment before we continue, guys.¡± Ian saying that they should rest before moving onwards was always a sweet proposal for the party, and as soon as he was finished saying those words, his retainers and Familiars began to find spots here and there across the vacant lot as they began to rest. While he sat, Ian stared at Kaka, who was floating in front of him. As he did so, an uncontrollable laughter suddenly poured out. ¡®Rather than a slave, this one feels more like a pet.¡¯ The more he saw him, the more he thought that he was like Bbookbbook. And it seemed he felt Ian¡¯s gaze, as Kaka slightly glanced at Ian. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you, owner?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You just sneered at me!¡± ¡°How did you know?¡± Kaka glared at Ian. Glare-. ¡°As expected, you¡¯re smart, Kaka. You¡¯re worthy of your 7 thousand IQ.¡± ¡°¡­.¡± When he said 7 thousand IQ, he was being sarcastic and making fun of the fact that Kaka¡¯s intellect was 7 thousand. Ian, who fooled around with Kaka using wordplays, suddenly seemed to remember Bbookbbook, who he hadn¡¯t seen for over two months already. ¡®Speaking of which, this Bbookbbook, exactly where is he and what is he doing?¡¯ Ian never forgot about Bbookbbook. How could he forget about that big-headed, ugly-looking turtle? It was just that he tried to summon him whenever he had the chance, but Bbookbbook had rejected his summoning. ¡®Well, it¡¯s possible that he would have been summoned if I just tried to summon him a little more persistently¡­.¡¯ To be honest, at the fault that he lacked Leadership, it was one of the reasons why Ian hadn¡¯t even seen Bbookbbook¡¯s face to use him as a shield. ¡°Now that I think about it, I feel like I¡¯ll have leftover Leadership now, too¡­¡± During this time, Ian raised his level up a lot. Ian¡¯s level was currently at a whopping 195. Naturally, his Leadership should have gone up a lot as well. ¡°Let¡¯s see here¡­¡± And Ian, who checked his information window, grinned. He had formed exactly enough Leadership to spare to summon Bbookbbook. ¡°Alright, shall we see the face of our dear turtle for the first time in a while?¡± At Ian¡¯s mumbling, Kaka, who was next to him, asked. ¡°What is your dear turtle now, owner?¡± At that, Ian smirked as he replied. ¡°I have a friend that¡¯s just a little bit more useful than you.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Both of Kaka¡¯s cheeks blew up out of pettiness, but Ian didn¡¯t care even the least bit. And he shouted out the summoning spell for the first time in a while that he missed(?). ¡°Bbookbbook, Summon!¡± CH 233 Chapter 233: Bbookbbook and Kaka (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Whiiing-. Wind that sounded dreary brushed by. Bbook- Bbook-. And between that, one turtle cut through the wind of the cold Devildom as he walked slowly one step at a time. Bbook- Bboo-bbook-. Bbookbbook, the turtle of the lonely Devildom, was staring at something with the gaze of a savage beast that was staring at its prey. ¡®There, there¡¯s definitely a delicious devil spirit grass over there bbook!¡¯ Pak Pa-pak-! Bbookbbook¡¯s front feet quickly tore through the grass thicket as he dug up the cold ground of the Devildom. Whoong-. As he did so, he could hear a low resonance from within there. ¡®As expected! I¡¯ve found it bbook!¡¯ Bbookbbook, who became excited, used his front feet quickly and dug out the devil spirit grass with skilled abilities. The leaves of the devil spirit grass were delicious, but because the thick roots were more appetizing, he needed to dig it out carefully. Chomp- Chomp-. Bbookbbook, who finished everything deliciously starting from the purple leaves, began to carefully eat up the roots of the devil spirit grass. ¡®Bbook¡­ This smell¡­!¡¯ The sweet roots of the devil spirit grass melted in his mouth. Based on the thickness and scent, the devil spirit grass that had gone into Bbookbbook¡¯s mouth right now was for sure top-grade stuff that had survived over 100 years. And as if it had been waiting, a system message popped up in front of Bbookbbook¡¯s eyes. Ring-. You have ingested a High-ranking Grass of the Devil Spirit.The Training Value of the ¡®Turtle Spirit¡¯ has increased by 2.58%.The current level of the Turtle Spirit: 99 / Proficiency: 81.94% Sure enough, the devil spirit grass that Bbookbbook consumed was a high-ranking devil spirit grass. ¡®Bbook, I still can see the legendary-rank devil spirit grass that I had eaten a couple of days ago bbook. If I just eat a couple more of those, I feel like I¡¯ll be able to fill up my Turtle Spirit Training Value bbook¡­!¡¯ The legendary-rank devil spirit grass raised up Bbookbbook¡¯s Turtle Spirit Level up a whopping 17.5% at once. Bbookbbook could not forget about that sweetness. ¡®Now, if I just consume some more sacred herbs for a couple more days, I should be able to hit the maximum level with my turtle spirit bbook¡­!¡¯ The higher his turtle spirit level, the more Bbookbbook felt the energy that was inside of him grow stronger. ¡®I will for sure evolve into a turtle that¡¯s cooler than Bbakbbak bbook!¡¯ To be honest, in the beginning, it wasn¡¯t like the system messages popped up in front of Bbookbbook¡¯s eyes or anything like that just because he ate the sacred herbs. However, as Bbookbbook¡¯s turtle spirit grew stronger, Bbookbbook had continuously changed. The change that came to Bbookbbook first was the fact that he was able to speak, and the change that came to him second was that he was able to check the system messages and information window related to his turtle spirit. And Bbookbbook, who checked the information window related to his turtle spirit, was able to discover an incredible truth. The level of the turtle spirit can be grown if sacred herbs, mystical creatures, spiritual powder, etc. is consumed.The more the turtle spirit grows, the turtle dragon will obtain an even stronger potential, and if the turtle spirit¡¯s level is over 50, evolution is possible once a particular condition is met. ¡®Evolution¡­! I¡¯m going to evolve bbook!¡¯ Bbookbbook was a very intelligent animal, but there was no way for him to even know about the information that hadn¡¯t appeared in these system messages. As that was the case, the task that Bbookbbook could do for now was just to continuously raise the proficiency and level of his turtle spirit. ¡®I will become a handsome turtle and crop Bbakbbak¡¯s feathers bbook!¡¯ Bbookbbook momentarily remembered Karceus, who was one of his teammates. From Bbookbbook¡¯s perspective, the Familiar with the most handsome outer appearance was God Dragon Karceus. ¡®Bboo-ook! I want to become as handsome as Karceus bbook!¡¯ And as he remembered the Familiars that were his teammates, he suddenly missed Ian¡¯s embrace. ¡®My wicked owner is probably doing well, right bbook¡­? He does make me do a lot, but¡­ Still, especially today, I miss the owner guy bbook.¡¯ Could he have thrown away his hatred towards Ian? Lately, Bbookbbook missed the fierce battles that he faced with Ian. ¡®Ah, still, the one sweet meatball after a 17-hour battle was truly delicious bbook.¡¯ The time he had spent away from his owner was two months. The evil thing called ¡®glamorizing the past¡¯ began to fabricate Bbookbbook¡¯s memories. ¡®But, lately, the owner guy doesn¡¯t even send a summoning message bbook. There¡¯s no way that he¡¯s forgotten about me, right bbook¡­?¡¯ Just then, while Bbookbbook was having such heartrending thoughts, an unexpected message popped up in front of Bbookbbook¡¯s eyes. Owner ¡®Ian¡¯ is summoning you.Will you accept the summoning? It was Ian¡¯s summoning message that had come for the first time in over a month. ¡°Bbook¡­!¡± Aside from being extremely happy, Bbookbbook, who almost made the mistake of accepting the summon immediately, calmed himself down. ¡°Bbook¡­! If I accept the summon here right away, I will become too easy of a turtle bbook.¡± Bbookbbook, who calmed down his excited heart, rejected Ian¡¯s summoning with a coy expression. ¡°I don¡¯t want to bbook! I¡¯m not going to go bbook!¡± You have rejected Owner ¡®Ian¡¯s summoning. Bbookbbook, who glanced at the message that popped up again, wore a restless expression as he began to stare that the message window. ¡®There¡¯s no way that he¡¯s just going to summon me once and give up, right bbook¡­? The owner will probably want to see me for sure as well bbook!¡¯ However, even as a minute, 2 minutes passed by, Ian¡¯s summoning message did not come again. Bbookbbook, who became nervous, felt like the devil spirit grass that had gone into his stomach was not digesting properly. ¡®Owner guy, summon me quickly again bbook!¡¯ Had about another 5 minutes passed like that? Just before sorrowful tears dropped from Bbookbbook¡¯s two large eyes, Ian¡¯s message that he had been waiting for came again. Owner ¡®Ian¡¯ is summoning you.Will you accept the summoning? Bbookbbook couldn¡¯t hold back and nodded his head quickly. ¡°Bbook! I will go bbook!¡± And the moment that Bbookbbook finished what he said, his body began to shine a bright white light as he disappeared into the air. Whoong-. You have accepted Owner ¡®Ian¡¯s summoning.You will be transported to Zone 95 of the Devildom. * * * Ian stared at the silhouette of the big-headed turtle that had appeared in front of him along with a ray of white light as he mumbled. ¡°This punk, acting like you¡¯re all that.¡± Whiiing-! A big-headed turtle appeared along with a low resonant sound. Ian crouched down in front of Bbookbbook and stroked his head as he asked. ¡°Bbookbbook, have you been well?¡± And as soon as he saw Ian, Bbookbbook¡¯s two eyes were brimming with tears. ¡°Bbook! Owner, I missed you bbook!¡± It was a touching moment that was reminiscent of a dramatic reunion of a separated family due to war. Different from Bbookbbook, who was emotional, Ian couldn¡¯t help but be flustered. ¡°Yo, Bbookbbook. Since when were you able to talk?¡± This was because this was the first time Ian was seeing Bbookbbook talk. ¡°I don¡¯t know about that bbook. However, I was suddenly able to talk bbook!¡± Ian momentarily thought to himself. ¡®What the hell? By any chance, did Bbookbbook evolve in the meanwhile?¡¯ With sharp eyes, Ian scanned over Bbookbbook. However, to say that he had evolved, Bbookbbook was in a form where not one thing had changed. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Ian opened Bbookbbook¡¯s information window. ¡®Since there¡¯s a chance that something has changed¡­¡¯ However, no matter how much he looked, there was not one thing that had changed about Bbookbbook to the point it was truly fascinating. ¡®What the hell¡­?¡¯ Either way, as the fact that Bbookbbook was able to talk wasn¡¯t a bad thing, Ian momentarily put aside his thoughts about that. ¡°This punk, either way, it¡¯s good to see you again after a long time. You¡¯ve rested well in the meantime, right?¡± For a moment, Bbookbbook¡¯s body stiffened like ice. ¡°Bbook¡­? I wasn¡¯t able to rest much bbook. To be honest, I¡¯m tired now as well bbook. Since I¡¯ve seen your face, owner, it looks like I¡¯ll have to go back bbook.¡± With one hand, Ian grasped onto the shell of Bbookbbook, who began to crawl towards somewhere and pulled him straight back. Bbook- Bbook- Bboobbook- As if he was being dragged to a slaughterhouse, Bbookbbook sent a pitiful gaze to Ly. However, even Ly, who was a long-time friend of his, looked away from Bbookbbook¡¯s gaze. ¡°Grr-! I¡¯m glad that I¡¯ll be able to battle with Bbookbbook again.¡± This time he looked at Bbakbbak, but Bbakbbak outsmarted him instead. ¡°My cool friend has returned. I¡¯m happy that a fellow soldier that can share the pain of working all night has formed.¡± In front of the eyes of Bbookbbook, who wore a tearful expression, Ian wagged his finger as he crouched down. ¡°You may have come whenever you wished, but you won¡¯t be able to go whenever you wish.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Bbookbbook made a small protest. ¡°Even when I came, I didn¡¯t come whenever I wished bbook! I was only able to come because you summoned me bbook!¡± At his ill-mannered Familiar that talked back to him, Ian punished him with a light clout. Thud-. ¡°Quiet. Either way, since you¡¯ve come for the first time in a while, let¡¯s work now, Bbookbbook.¡± ¡°Bboo-ook¡­¡± Bbookbbook sat down for a moment with gloomy eyes before he suddenly seemed to have remembered something as he knocked on Ian¡¯s bag. ¡°Owner, then, before I work, at least give me a meatball bbook. I feel like I need to at least eat that for me to have the strength to work bbook!¡± At that, Ian smirked as he opened his inventory. And for the first time in a while, he pulled out a drug meatball that was saved in one corner of his inventory and handed it to Bbookbbook. ¡°Sure, I¡¯ll be a little generous. Eat this and cheer up, Bbookbbook.¡± At the expenditure of Ian, who gave him a whopping three meatballs, Bbookbbook was touched. ¡°Bboo-ook-¡­! As expected from our cool owner bbook¡­!¡± Bbookbbook began to crazily chow down on the meatballs, which he was eating for the first time in a whopping two months. The stimulating flavour of this meatball that ran along his tongue starting from the tip made Bbookbbook ecstatic. ¡°Bboo-oo-ook, I¡¯m happy bbook!¡± While looking at Bbookbbook, who was a simpleton to no ends, Ian burst out laughing, when just then. Kaka, who was watching the two from the back, flew over to them and stared at Bbookbbook. ¡°Owner, is that idiot-like turtle¡¯s name Bbookbbook?¡± ¡°Yeah, he¡¯s Bbookbbook.¡± For a moment, the gaze of Bbookbbook, who was eating a meatball, sharply turned towards Kaka. Glare-! And Kaka, who received that intense(?) gaze, flinched. ¡°¡­?¡± At that, Ian wore a flustered expression. ¡°Yo, Kaka, no way, you¡¯re scared of him? Well¡­ With your stats, you¡¯ll probably kick the bucket in one go even if you were bitten by him.¡± Kaka, who momentarily stared at Bbookbbook with a dazed expression, shook his head as he turned his gaze towards Ian. ¡°That¡¯s not it, owner.¡± At Kaka¡¯s serious words, which he had never heard before, Ian reflexively asked again. ¡°Huh? What is it then?¡± Kaka¡¯s words continued. ¡°That turtle is definitely¡­!¡± ¡°¡­?¡± As Kaka paused for a moment to take a breath, all gazes that were around him focused on his mouth. ¡°The last piece to the seven legends!¡± At Kaka¡¯s out-of-the-blue words, Ian wore puzzled expression once again as he asked back. ¡°What? What exactly are the seven legends?¡± However the response to Ian¡¯s question came not from Kaka, but a different place. ¡°That I will tell you.¡± Ian¡¯s gaze moved towards the place where the voice came from, and in that place, there was none other than Kaizar sitting. ¡°Hmm? You know what the seven legends are?¡± Kaizar nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. And to be honest, it¡¯s not just me, but even you, Ian, have heard of it before.¡± Ian¡¯s curiosity grew even more. ¡°Eh? What¡¯s that?¡± Kaizar¡¯s gaze slowly turned towards Karceus. ¡°The seven legends that the wad of cotton is talking about is most likely about the Legend of the Seven God Dragons that Karceus is affiliated with. If that punk¡¯s words are right, it means that Bbookbbook is of the same bloodlines as one of the remaining six God Dragons excluding Karceus.¡± All eyes that were in the surrounding rounded. And Bbakbbak, who was excitedly listening to the conversation right next to them, tilted his head as he mumbled. ¡°Hmm? That¡¯s a little weird¡­ Bbookbbook is definitely one of our kin.¡± The party, who had formed even more curiosity at Kaizar¡¯s words, turned their heads towards Kaka, who was the source of ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯s God Dragon Theory¡¯, once again. At that, Kaka slowly shook his head as he continued his words. ¡°Kaizar¡¯s words are¡­ Half right, half wrong.¡± CH 234 Chapter 234: Bbookbbook and Kaka (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Devil King Ricardo¡¯s Seal has been lifted.Evil Dragon Khalifa, who was sealed in a dark abyss, has been awoken from a deep sleep.The invasion of the Devildom will begin soon. (Time remaining until the invasion: 29 days/23:59:59)Once the invasion of the Devildom begins, three portals will appear in the central continent and the northern continent each, and through the portal, a large-scale monster wave will start.The monsters of the Devildom are powerful. In order to stop them, full preparation will be needed. Immediately after Ilahan had cleared the seal of the dark abyss. In front of the eyes of all of the users that were in the middle of playing Kailan at the moment, the message shown above popped up. The time that the message popped up was at dawn, and because of that, many users weren¡¯t able to see that message firsthand, but this message couldn¡¯t help but immediately become an issue. This was because the users that were playing during the dawn immediately uploaded it onto the community along with a screenshot. On top of that, because the content that was within this message was not light by a long shot, conversations about the monster wave began to spread around significantly between the users. The stance of the users on the monster wave were divided. ¡°A monster wave from the Devildom is going to begin?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m telling you! Apparently 30 days from now, three portals will open up in the central continent and the northern continent each.¡± ¡°Euh¡­ Isn¡¯t that dangerous? I heard that even for the lowest-ranking monster of the Devildom, the monsters¡¯ levels are over lv 150¡­!¡± ¡°For the central continent, as there isn¡¯t a huge level difference, it¡¯s possible that it will be alright, but¡­ It looks like the users that are hunting in the northern continent will receive some damage.¡± ¡°I know. The users that are currently hunting in the northern continent are mostly going to be beginners who haven¡¯t even hit lv 100 yet¡­¡± While there were users that were worrying over the monster wave like this, on the other hand¡­ ¡°Wow, then, doesn¡¯t this mean we¡¯ll be able to hunt Devildom monsters even if we didn¡¯t receive the quest to be able to enter the Devildom?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m saying! It was a little bothersome for me to go up to the Devildom as I liked the hunting grounds of the central continent, but¡­ I think this has turned out for the better!¡± ¡°Keu, it¡¯s supposed to be happening in 30 days from now, right? I should get over lv 150 before then. So that I can see some profit once the monster wave starts.¡± ¡°Huhu, I¡¯m already over lv 150, but¡­ Still, I should raise up my level a little more. Since there are apparently also a lot of monsters that are over lv 200, with my current fighting power, it¡¯s still very dangerous.¡± ¡°We should set up a party beforehand. I want to hunt evil spirits and quickly fortify my weapons as well.¡± There were also users that were delighted at the thought that they would be able to enjoy the Devildom content even without entering the Devildom instead. However, no matter what side the users positioned themselves on, they all thought alike that a thorough countermeasure must be planned for the Devildom monster wave. A meeting on a countermeasure for the monster wave began to proceed in each guild, and the meetings proceeded in an even more serious manner for guilds that had domains. The Lotus Guild was not an exception either. ¡°So, you¡¯re saying that the portals where the monsters of the Devildom will be summoned from will open up in 30 days from now, right?¡± At Kroban¡¯s words, Carwin nodded his head as he responded. ¡°That¡¯s right. I don¡¯t know what kind of monsters will be summoned, but even with just the lowest-ranking evil spirits, they¡¯re stronger than most decent field monsters in the central continent.¡± This time, Fiolan opened her mouth. ¡°To be honest, I¡¯m not too worried about the Pyro Domain, but I¡¯m concerned about the domains that are in the northern continent. If evil spirits attack those domains, won¡¯t they lack the power to stop them?¡± Kroban, the Lord of the Ollibus Domain of the northern continent, slowly nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right, the Lotus Guild is still a little better, but in the case of our Ollibus Domain, there are almost no defensive facilities. Since there are no other guild domains at all that would be a threat around us.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Carwin grumbled. ¡°Speaking of which, this Ian hyung, has he smeared honey all over the Devildom¡­? Lately, he hasn¡¯t come out of there at all. Fiolan, have you contacted Ian hyung recently?¡± Fiolan shook her head. ¡°No, it¡¯s been quite a long time since I¡¯ve seen Ian as well.¡± Kroban rubbed his chin as he mumbled. ¡°Hmm¡­ People that know about the Devildom as much as Ian are probably rare, too.¡± ¡°As he was the first user to ever enter into the Devildom, that would definitely be the case, right?¡± Harin, who was quietly listening to their conversation from the corner, intervened. ¡°Ian probably knows about the news on the monster wave as well. Even if it seems like he¡¯s absorbed with hunting and his quests, whenever he logs off, he does go into the community bulletin board regularly and checks it.¡± Herz nodded his head as he added on. ¡°That¡¯s right. That¡¯s Ian¡¯s habit.¡± Harin¡¯s words continued again. ¡°From what I saw last time, he had packed an excel document with something like the information on the Devildom monsters and organized it¡­ Fiolan, try talking to him and asking him to give that to you.¡± ¡°¡­¡± At Harin¡¯s words, everybody wore expressions that looked like they were terrified. Carwin opened his mouth first. ¡°As expected¡­ They say that people don¡¯t change. I knew ever since he wrote down the stats of his Familiars whenever they leveled up one by one and compared them.¡± Fiolan smirked as she spoke. ¡°Well, thanks to that, we¡¯ve received a lot of help.¡± At Fiolan¡¯s words, everybody slowly nodded their heads. Since, no matter what anybody said, when it came to the making of the current Lotus Guild, Ian¡¯s contributions were the biggest. ¡°Alright, then, let¡¯s make a plan to effectively get defensive troops to the northern continent for now. As for how we will battle, I believe that is something we can think about after we obtain information on the Devildom from Ian.¡± * * * ¡°What do you mean when you say that he is half-right, half-wrong?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Kaka wore a serious expression. As he wore a serious expression with a cute, round outer appearance, it was even slightly ridiculous, but for now at least, that image of Kaka wasn¡¯t funny or anything like that. Since to Ian, Bbookbbook¡¯s hidden secret(?) was an incredibly important issue. ¡°Owner, about the Legend of the Seven God Dragons, you know that it¡¯s a story related to the God Dragons that played a critical role in stopping the invasion of the Devildom a thousand years ago, right?¡± Ian nodded his head immediately. Since this was content he had even heard from Kaizar and knew about. ¡°I do know about it. Since Kaizar was one of the human warriors that was present in that scene.¡± Kaka, who glanced at Kaizar once at Ian¡¯s words, continued his words again. ¡°Then, by any chance, do you know the story about the five God Dragons that existed in the beginning?¡± Ian wore a puzzled expression as he asked back. ¡°Five¡­ God Dragons?¡± Kaka nodded his head up and down as he continued his words. ¡°Yeah, the five God Dragons.¡± Ian¡¯s mind raced quickly. This was because he felt like he had heard this from somewhere. However, even this time, while Ian was submerged in his own thoughts, Kaizar¡¯s mouth abruptly opened up first. ¡°You do know, kiddo. That¡¯s why I¡¯ve always been curious about that. From what I know, there were five God Dragons that existed in the beginning, but how were there seven God Dragons that stopped the invasion of the Devildom?¡± At Kaizar¡¯s words, Ian stopped thinking and turned his attention towards Kaka again. And the other Familiars and retainers that were nearby were also staring at Kaka with an interested expression. ¡°That¡¯s simple. It¡¯s because amongst the seven God Dragons, there were only five real dragons.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Everybody wore confused expressions, and amongst them, even Karceus, who was one of the members of the God Dragons, was included. Ian asked Karceus. ¡°Yo, how can you know less than him when you¡¯re a God Dragon?¡± At that, Karceus flew off the handle. ¡°I was not the God Dragon that was present at the time! Although our names are the same, I am not ¡®him¡¯, I am just his descendant¡­ Wouldn¡¯t it be weird if I did know about it, owner?¡± Ian scratched the back of his head as he replied. ¡°That, that¡¯s true.¡± Either way, Kaka¡¯s explanation continued again. ¡°The five God Dragons that existed in the beginning had never gathered together in one spot before the dimensional door of the Devildom opened up.¡± Everybody¡¯s gazes were focused again, and Kaka¡¯s lengthy(?) explanation continued. ¡°The summoning gates of the Devildom were opened, and tons of magical beasts and devils invaded the human world. At first ,the battle between the human world and the Devildom proceeded looking as if they were on par with each other, but after the Evil Dragon Khalifa appeared, the aspect of the battle completely flipped over.¡± The content was incredibly interesting, and in the case of Ian, it felt like the puzzle pieces of what he knew were being pieced together so he began to be immersed even more. ¡°The Evil Dragon Khalifa first showed himself to the human world through the dimensional door of the northern continent, and Oakley, the hero of the northern continent, and War Dragon Karceus struggled against him in order to stop him at the time. However, he was an opponent that the two weren¡¯t able to stop alone, and in the end, they suffered from Khalifa.¡± As names that weren¡¯t unfamiliar appeared, Ian internally began to search through his memories. ¡®Now that I think about it¡­ When Oakley first explained about Karceus, I definitely feel like he explained that he was not one of seven God Dragons, but one of five God Dragons.¡¯ Kaka¡¯s words continued again. ¡°Solare, who was a man of great wisdom that was leading the battle against the Devildom at the time, felt a sense of crisis, and he thought that in the end, the remaining four God Dragons that were scattered across each continent must be gathered in one spot for Khalifa to be stopped.¡± The more that Kaka¡¯s story continued, it seemed as though Kaizar was remembering something as he wore a complicated expression that became more and more defined. ¡°That¡¯s why, in order to find a solution to that, he went searching for his master, who was also the owner of the Magical Tower of the Abyss.¡± Ian asked shortly. ¡°Who was that?¡± ¡°His name I don¡¯t know either. However, that¡¯s not important, as that magical tower owner, what he laid out as the solution to that was exactly¡­¡± Kaka¡¯s head turned towards Bbookbbook, and naturally, everybody¡¯s gaze gathered towards Bbookbbook. ¡°The Abyss Turtle.¡± The two eyes of Ian, who heard those words, rounded. ¡°Huuuh? You¡¯re saying Bbookbbook was that solution?¡± Kaka replied. ¡°More specifically, it wasn¡¯t Bbookbbook, but rather the ancestor of Bbookbbook, but anyhow, the Abyss Turtle was the key to gathering the scattered four God Dragons.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°The Abyss Turtle is a race that has the ability to instinctually find ¡®energy that is asleep¡¯. Especially if they ascend and become an Abyss Dragon¡­ They can awaken the sleeping God Dragons and gather them in one spot. I don¡¯t know exactly with what strength they are able to do that, but anyways, I just know that is the case.¡± This time, Bbakbbak, who was just silently listening, opened his mouth. ¡°The race of the abyss is the only race amongst our races that can grow their Turtle Spirit on their own. That¡¯s why they are the only race that can become a Turtle Dragon without borrowing the strength of a cintamani.¡± Bbakbbak, who paused for a moment to take a breath, continued his words. ¡°You can only use the cintamani once in your lifetime, so from what I know, if a kin that had evolved into a Turtle Dragon without borrowing the strength of a cintamani was to borrow the strength of one afterwards, at the same time as their ascension, they can become a dragon that has strength equivalent to a god.¡± Ian¡¯s mind began to race quickly. ¡®That story is content that I¡¯ve already heard from Bbakbbak previously before¡­¡¯ Bbakbbak¡¯s words continued. ¡°And if an Abyss Dragon succeeds in ascension like that, the dormant abilities of the sleeping God Dragons will awaken all at the same time.¡± Kaka, who had heard up to this point, nodded his head as if he realized something as he added on. ¡°Ah, so that¡¯s how the God Dragons gather around the Abyss Dragon once their dormant abilities are awakened!¡± Ian began to get goosebumps. This was because the information of Kaka and Bbakbbak, as well as Kaizar, was coming together and completing a perfect picture. ¡®This¡­!¡¯ Separate from Ian being astonished, Kaka¡¯s story continued. ¡°Anyhow, the four God Dragons that gathered like that and the Abyss Dragon, as well as the War Dragon Karceus, who was killed during the war in the northern continent, are the members of seven legends that had protected the human world from the invasion of the Devildom a thousand years ago.¡± However, there was a strange part. ¡°Huh¡­? Then with the five God Dragons and the Abyss Dragon¡­ Shouldn¡¯t it be a total of six legends then? Why is it seven legends?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ That, amongst those seven legends, the last one was a human hero. I also don¡¯t know his exact name, but I noticed that he was also called a Dragon Knight.¡± At that moment, there was someone that Ian remembered. ¡°¡­!¡± Kaizar, who was listening to Kaka¡¯s story with a complicated expression, slowly stood up as he opened his mouth with a heavy expression. ¡°I remember¡­ Everything.¡± Kaizar slowly continued his words. ¡°The name of that Dragon Knight¡­¡± Kaizar and Ian¡¯s gazes met. ¡°Is Kaizar.¡± CH 235 Chapter 235: The Night Before the Storm (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda You have succeeded in class-changing to a ¡®Devil Chief ¨C Magician of the Devil¡¯.You have succeeded in being the first to class-change to a ¡®Devil Chief¡¯.Your Fame has increased by 100 thousand.As you have succeeded in class-changing to a ¡®Devil Chief¡¯, a dual class has been created.The information related to the ¡®Devil Chief¡¯ class has been additionally created in the class information window.You have learned the skill ¡®Maelstrom of Magic¡¯, which is a basic skill of the ¡®Devil Chief¡¯ class.You have learned the skill ¡®Devil Energy Reversion¡¯, which is a basic skill of the ¡®Devil Chief¡¯ class. While looking at the system messages that popped up, Remir wore a pleased expression. ¡°Although with my previous class as the standard, I did lose the title of being first, but by the looks of it, it seems as though I am the first to obtain a dual class amongst the Magicians.¡± While staring at Remir, who spoke as if she was mumbling, Cassandra giggled. Could be. However, is that something that¡¯s new at this point? You were always the most exceptional Magician. Rather, weren¡¯t you cranky because you kept on losing the title of being first to the dude named Ian when you were the one that grew the fastest out of all the humans? At Cassandra¡¯s words, which struck home, Remir slightly scowled. ¡°I will be ahead again soon. I told you not to worry.¡± Remir diligently read through the information of the new skills and stats she obtained from obtaining a dual class. She was drawing out a plan in her head as to how she needed to combine her dual class and her pre-existing class to create the greatest efficiency. Since, even if she had obtained a new power, the fighting power that could be displayed varied heavily depending on how it was used. Cassandra just blankly stared at Remir during this time. Still, you definitely have a talent that makes me surprised, Remir. ¡°What do you mean?¡± I didn¡¯t know that you would succeed in becoming a ¡®Devil Chief¡¯ this quickly. On top of that, for it to be a Magician of the Devil. Remir shook her head as she opened her mouth. ¡°I don¡¯t need such consolation or the like when it¡¯s too late now, so just tell me the location where the Gem of the Sun is resting instead, Cassandra.¡± Ho-ho, so impatient¡­ ¡°If you don¡¯t tell me quickly, I¡¯m going to consider it as though there was no contract or anything!¡± At Remir¡¯s defiance, Cassandra waved her hands as she wore a obsequious expression. Ehh, isn¡¯t this too much when I was just joking around a little? ¡°Tsk, I should just¡­¡± Whoa, whoa, okay. I¡¯ll tell you, I¡¯ll tell you. Cassandra paused for a moment to take a breath before she slowly opened her mouth. Firstly, you know why I told you to obtain a dual class quickly, right? Remir nodded her head. ¡°You told me last time. You said that I absolutely needed a dual class in order to enter the Fortress of the Devil that¡¯s in Zone 80 or something like that.¡± That¡¯s right, then, why would I have said that? Remir, who thought about it for a moment, asked Cassandra back. ¡°Is the Gem of the Sun sleeping within the Fortress of the Devil?¡± Cassandra grinned as she replied. Bingo. That¡¯s exactly it. To be a little more specific, should I say that the person that knows the location of the Gem of the Sun is locked up inside the Fortress of the Devil¡­? With a quizzical expression, Remir asked Cassandra. ¡°Huh? Who is that then?¡± If I say the name, you might know him. Since he was a hero of the human world. ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± His name is Solare. From what I know, he was a hero of the human world that was taken as a prisoner during the battle between the Devildom and the mortal world a thousand years ago. ¡°¡­!¡± Like Cassandra¡¯s words, Remir certainly knew about the name Solare. ¡®What the hell, if it¡¯s the Solare that played an active part in the battle against the Devildom a thousand years ago, then I think it¡¯s that Great Magician Solare¡­¡¯ Unrelated to Remir¡¯s reaction, Cassandra¡¯s words continued. Anyhow, if you know of him, then you should for sure be able to at least guess that he would know some information related to the Gem of the Sun, right? The name the ¡®Great Magician Solare¡¯ was a name that appeared very often while doing Magician class quests. He was a legendary Magician that was the first amongst humans to have command over the Magic of 8 Circles. He was one of the human heroes that had played the biggest part in the war against the Devildom a thousand years ago. And as Remir¡¯s class right now was a Magician, there was no way for her to have not known about him. ¡®They said there was 30 days left until the monster wave of the Devildom, right? Will I be able to obtain the Gem of the Sun within then?¡¯ This was the core quest in order to obtain the power of the Sun God. Remir¡¯s heart became a little hastier. * * * It was complicated in Ian¡¯s mind. Now that he looked at it, there weren¡¯t just one or two corners that were doubtful in Bbookbbook¡¯s walk of life up until now. ¡®It was this guy that first discovered the dungeon where Oakley was resting in the northern continent.¡¯ At the time, he just thought it was a coincidence, but after hearing Kaka¡¯s story, even that was not a coincidence. The reason that Bbookbbook was guided by Karceus¡¯s spirit was really similar to his instinct. ¡®For Bbookbbook to be such an important dude¡­¡¯ It was the moment where the image of Bbookbbook that was drawn in Ian¡¯s head upgraded from ¡®a gluttonous turtle that just freeloads meatballs¡¯ to ¡®an important dude¡¯ in one go. Bbookbbook blinked his two large eyes as if he was stating he didn¡¯t know what kind of situation this was, while he chewed on his meatball diligently. ¡°What is a cintamani bbook? Will I be able to evolve if I have that bbook?¡± It was unknown as to how much content that was just said went into one ear of his and right out the other, and while looking at Bbookbbook, who let out such frustrating sounds, Kaka let out a deep sigh. ¡°What have you even heard from the explanation up until now?¡± Bbookbbook explained right away. ¡°I wasn¡¯t able to listen because I was too busy savouring the flavour of the meatball bbook. As expected, drug meatballs are delicious bbook.¡± ¡°Ha¡­¡± For this to be the meeting between Kaka, who was the brain(?) with absolutely no buffs or item compensation effect and purely just had over 7 thousand Intellect, and Bbookbbook, whose Intellect was only a two-digit number despite being over lv 170¡­ For some odd reason, Ian thought that the two suited each other, while he diligently organized the information that he had heard up until now inside of his head. ¡®So, in conclusion¡­ Doesn¡¯t this mean that amongst the seven legends that were the driving force in stopping the invasion of the Devildom a thousand years ago, I have three of them?¡¯ Karceus and Kaizar, as well as Bbookbbook. Ian began to become incredibly excited. ¡®Then that means that even in this monster wave of the Devildom, my stake can¡¯t help but be the biggest!¡¯ If he even gave Bbookbbook a cintamani, it was possible for Karceus to be awoken as well. It was a situation of killing two birds with one stone as of course, Bbookbbook would finally evolve, but even Karceus would be awoken to a Mythological-rank. ¡®On top of that, if the rest of the God Dragons also gathered in one spot, by any chance, who knows if I may even be able to tame those dragons as well¡­!¡¯ Just then, while Ian was counting his chickens before they had hatched, Kaka put an end to the delusions within Ian¡¯s mind. ¡°Owner, since you¡¯re smart, differently from Bbookbbook, you understand what you have to do now, right?¡± Bbookbbook glared scarily at Kaka, but there was no way that Kaka would be fazed by that. ¡°Hmm¡­ If it¡¯s something that I¡¯m supposed to do first, then¡­¡± Ian¡¯s gaze turned towards Bbookbbook. ¡°That I have to evolve him and make him into a Turtle Dragon?¡± Kaka nodded his head as he responded. ¡°That¡¯s right. As expected, owner is smart.¡± Ian scratched the back of his head. ¡®What the hell? Although it is a game, this feeling of receiving praise from a slave¡­ There¡¯s something very strange about it¡­¡¯ Kaka¡¯s words continued. ¡°Firstly, Bbookbbook must evolve into a Turtle Dragon in order to ascend by obtaining a cintamani, so naturally, that must be done first.¡± ¡°And once Bbookbbook evolves, I need to obtain a cintamani first?¡± Kaka nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°But then how do I evolve him?¡± ¡°That, ask Bbakbbak, owner.¡± Before Ian could even open his mouth again, Bbakbbak cut in as if he had been waiting as he answered. ¡°For Bbookbbook to evolve, he needs a sacred herb that has a powerful energy that has been stored for over hundreds of years. ¡°Hmm¡­ A sacred herb, you say?¡± Ian¡¯s gaze turned to Bbookbbook again. ¡°If it¡¯s something like that, he already finds them and eats them on his own, though.¡± Bbakbbak responded with a slightly flustered expression. ¡°That, that¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Then, if I just leave him alone, will he evolve on his own?¡± As Bbakbbak hesitated, Bbookbbook, who was next to him, responded energetically. ¡°That¡¯s right bbook. I¡¯m going to evolve soon now bbook. My Turtle Spirit level is already at lv 99 bbook.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian, who would have had no idea as to what Bbookbbook¡¯s words meant, momentarily set aside his thoughts related to this, and asked Kaka about other parts he was curious about. ¡°Momentarily setting aside Bbookbbook¡¯s evolution for now¡­ I have something that I¡¯m curious about, Kaka.¡± ¡°Sure, tell me, owner.¡± ¡°Then, just like in the past, if Bbookbbook ascends and becomes an Abyss Dragon, will the God Dragons that have retired to different areas gather around Bbookbbook? To stop the invasion of the Devildom?¡± Ian had asked thinking that it would definitely be that case, but Kaka shook his head. ¡°No, owner.¡± ¡°Huh? Why¡¯s that?¡± ¡°That¡¯s because the current situation is different from back then.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Kaka¡¯s explanation followed through, and if that was briefly summed up, it was like this. If a Turtle Dragon ascends and becomes an Abyss Dragon, the God Dragons that haven¡¯t been awoken yet will gather around the Abyss Dragon in order to awaken.The dragons that have gathered around the Abyss Dragon will receive a share of the power of the cintamani, and reform into a true God Dragon.Because the four God Dragons aside from the God Dragon of War were in a phase before they were awoken a thousand years ago, they had felt the strength of the cintamani and had appeared. However, right now, because excluding Karceus, the remaining four God Dragons were already in a state where they had been awoken, even if Bbookbbook was to become an Abyss Dragon, they would not appear. Ian, who heard the whole story, licked his lips. ¡°Tsk¡­ What the hell, how disappointing.¡± While looking at Ian, who was disappointed, Kaka snickered. ¡°Owner, aren¡¯t you being too greedy?¡± ¡°What, what are you talking about?¡± ¡°You wanted to tame all of the five God Dragons, no?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Ian, who was stabbed right on the mark, momentarily couldn¡¯t control his facial expressions and cleared his throat. ¡°Ahem, hem. It wasn¡¯t anything like that. I just formed a question, that¡¯s it.¡± Kaka wore a puzzled expression as he asked back. ¡°A question? What is it? I feel like I¡¯ve explained it well, though.¡± Ian waved his hands as he replied. ¡°No, it¡¯s not a question related to the things you just said.¡± ¡°Then?¡± ¡°In the past, they stopped the invasion of the Devils as the strength of the God Dragons gathered together, so then, this time we must stop them without their strength. And if that is the case, I¡¯m curious as to whether we would be able to stop them even without the strength of the God Dragons.¡± As Kaka had such extensive knowledge, Ian asked everything that he was curious about without thought. And Kaka¡¯s expression became quite serious. ¡°Hmm¡­ There¡¯s no way for me to know that either. Since I just have knowledge on the past, and not an ability to foretell how the future will change.¡± Ian scratched the back of his head. ¡°Hmm, that is true.¡± ¡°However, I do know that.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°That the power of the remaining four God Dragons will appear in order to stop the attack of the Devildom with whatever means possible.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± For Ian, who wore an expression showing that he didn¡¯t understand, Kaka added on a couple more words. ¡°I meant that they have always made an effort to protect the human world from any sort of invasion from a different world, and if they were to know about the fact that the Devildom had invaded the human world, they will provide more power with whatever means.¡± Ian wore a dumbfounded expression. ¡°What the hell, then, in the end, you¡¯re saying that they will also appear.¡± Kaka shook his head. ¡°That there¡¯s no way of knowing. Whether they will give their power to someone else.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­? The power of a God Dragon¡­?¡± Kaizar, who was just silently listening next to him, smirked as he told off Ian. ¡°Do you think that you were the only distinguished person amongst humans?¡± ¡°What?¡± Kaizar¡¯s words continued. ¡°They are probably each helping an exceptional human that they believe is fitting of their standards so that they can give their power to them to protect the human world.¡± Kaka also nodded his head as if he agreed. CH 236 Chapter 236: The Night Before the Storm (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The gateway of Zone 90 of the Devildom. Fortunately, the gateway of Zone 90 was a section where he could pass freely with his position as a ¡®High-ranking Devil¡¯. Thanks to that, Ian was able to go straight down all the way to Zone 85. ¡®I can feel the difficulty level going up little by little, but it¡¯s still doable.¡¯ While Ian went down to Zone 85, he naturally continued to capture and transmute magical beasts without rest. Thanks to that, the level of his Magical Beast Alchemy had reached lv 2 in no time. The speed that his EXP was increasing at was atrocious, but after he changed the rank of the magical beasts that he transmuted to a little bit of a higher rank, his EXP would go up decently again. ¡®Although ingredient supply and demand will become much more difficult, that is.¡¯ Ian slightly looked at Bbookbbook, who was dilly-dallying in front of his feet while he diligently ate a meatball. ¡®Speaking of which, after I called this one back again¡­ It somewhat feels like an incredibly large amount of things occurred.¡¯ To be honest, not one thing had changed about Ian¡¯s party from the outside. It wasn¡¯t like the party¡¯s fighting power increased or their destination changed, nor did he obtain a new quest or a new artifact. However, instead, an incredibly large amount of information was poured into Ian¡¯s mind. ¡®Hmm¡­ In order to evolve that punk quickly, do I have to buy all of the sacred herbs available in the auction house and feed them to him?¡¯ Truthfully, the ones with the most power in the Luspel Empire was the Lotus Guild. And because Ian was the owner of the Lotus Domain, which was the domain with the greatest economic power amongst the Lotus Guild¡¯s domains, it was a situation where Ian couldn¡¯t help but be overflowing with money. However, there wasn¡¯t much gold that Ian could use on himself. ¡®Should I just pull out about 1% of the budget that I had been saving up for the construction of the defensive tower and buy some sacred herbs to give to Bbookbbook¡­¡¯ He had been investing most of the money that he earned through taxes back into the domain in order to advance it more. ¡®Either way, right now, going to the Fortress of the Devil that is supposed to be in Zone 80 is first.¡¯ Ian began to move again in order to do his main quest of the Devildom, which he was in the middle of carrying out. He was internally dying as he wanted to quickly evolve Bbookbbook as well, but it was because there was truly not much time left now until the due date of the quest. ¡°Alright, everybody stand up! Let¡¯s quickly move onto the next map.¡± At Ian¡¯s command, his Familiars grumbled as they stood up from their spots, and his retainers immediately finished preparing for battle and aligned themselves to stand in line in front of Ian. ¡°We don¡¯t have much left until we reach Zone 80. When we arrive at the Fortress of the Devil, I¡¯ll let you rest, so let¡¯s keep it up a little longer.¡± * * * The giant domain that was settled firmly in the middle zone of the central continent. The Pyro Domain had become a famous base to the point that it wasn¡¯t just known by the users that were staying in the central continent, but there was not one person that didn¡¯t know of it if they were a user that played Kailan. Amongst the reasons for that was because the growth speed of the Pyro Domain was fast, but the biggest reason was because it was a sturdy fortress with a defense building more perfect than any base in the central continent. The words that it was a ¡®safe zone¡¯ to the point that it came close to the giant domain of the empire compared favourably. Even in the central continent, there were a lot of safe domains that were located in the eastern and western areas, which were locations close to their respective empires, but there wasn¡¯t any place that could really be called a safe zone in the middle area, where it was the heart of the battleground and also where a lot of the most dangerous monsters inhabited. Only the Pyro Domain indeed could be considered a safe zone. ¡°Whew, if it wasn¡¯t for the Pyro Domain, it would have been really difficult for me to raise my Explorer proficiency.¡± Lilson, who was an Archer in his early lv 100s as well as someone who had a production class called ¡®Explorer¡¯, was getting rid of his items at the general merchandise store in the Pyro Domain. Different from most of the Kailan users, he enjoyed the other content of Kailan rather than fighting, and even amongst that, the thing that he liked most was ¡®exploration¡¯. ¡®Finding mysterious artifacts in this wide continent, and discovering hidden ancient relics as well as pieces of the past that were unknown is what is truly exciting.¡¯ As that was the case, he was a user that had invested much more into his production class rather than his combat class, and because of that, despite having played Kailan since its early days, he had a low level that was still only in the early lv 100s. And that level was to the point that his level was incredibly lacking for him to explore the central continent. However, because he had reached a situation where it was difficult to raise his Explorer proficiency any more in the northern continent, he had no other choice. In order to not lose his title of being in 1st place in the Explorer proficiency rankings, he had reached a situation where he couldn¡¯t help but go to the central continent even if he would be overdoing it. ¡®When I first came to the central continent, I was truly lucky to have met the Lotus Guild members.¡¯ The place he had selected as soon as he, who was like that, arrived at the central continent was the Pyro Domain. Ditching the western area, he boldly moved to the middle area. He had thought that rather than the western area, where it was endlessly peaceful, the Pyro Domain, which could be considered right in the middle of a monster field, was more suitable when it came to raising his Explorer proficiency. And his choice was outstanding. ¡®After I entered the public order of the Pyro Domain, I feel like my Explorer proficiency has seriously gone up a lot.¡¯ The public order of the Pyro Domain started to explore the dungeons in the vicinity with the Lord, Fiolan, as the head everyday when it reached a fixed time. The relics or the explorer EXP he obtained in that process was seriously incredibly terrific. And Lilson was able to obtain an unexpected relic during the dungeon exploration that happened just that morning. ¡®Keu¡­ If I succeed in appraising this thing, I seriously can¡¯t even imagine how much my Explorer EXP will go up.¡¯ Lilson stared at the weighty book that was in his hands with an affectionate gaze. Unknown Ancient Record/Relic Rank: Legendary While playing the game up until now with his pride as 1st place in the Explorer ranking, this was his first time touching an item with a ¡®Legendary¡¯ relic rank. He went into a small inn that was in a corner place of the Pyro Domain, and he placed the ancient record on top of the table. ¡°Whew, alright. As I¡¯ve even prepared thirty Highest-rank Appraisal Stones¡­ I should be able to succeed in appraising with this much, right?¡± The level of Lilson¡¯s ¡®Relic Appraising¡¯ skill was a whopping High-rank level 8. Considering that it was a production class skill level, that was indeed tremendous. However, despite that, the appraisal of a Legendary-rank relic would not be easy. After taking a deep breath, Lilson began the appraisal of the record. ¡°Appraisal!¡± You have failed the appraisal of the ¡®Unknown Ancient Record¡¯ relic.You have consumed 1 Highest-rank Appraisal Stone. (Remaining Appraisal Stones: 27)You have failed the appraisal of the ¡®Unknown Ancient Record¡¯ relic.You have consumed 1 Highest-rank Appraisal Stone. (Remaining Appraisal Stones: 26) ¡°Euh¡­¡± Despite the continuous failures, Lilson continued to attempt an appraisal while sweat poured down profusely from his forehead. And the result of that. It was only when he didn¡¯t have many appraisal stones left that he was finally able to succeed in the appraisal of the Legendary-rank relic. Ring-! You have succeeded in the appraisal of the ¡®Unknown Ancient Record¡¯.Your Explorer EXP has increased by 985,740.The proficiency EXP of your ¡®Relic Appraisal¡¯ skill increased by 191,824.The level of your ¡®Relic Appraisal¡¯ skill has increased from a High-rank level 8 to a High-rank level 9.You are the first to have succeeded in appraising a Legendary-rank relic.You have obtained 400 thousand Fame. While looking at the messages that popped up one after another, Lilson sunk into an overflowing amount of emotions. ¡®Keu, this is it! I go through such trouble to dig out a relic for this feeling!¡¯ He felt like the sorrow from always being disregarded in a party as they stated he was no help when hunting was disappearing all at once. However, just when Lilson was deep into his feelings of being touched, a world message that shone a purple light popped up in front of his eyes. Ring-. User ¡®Lilson¡¯ is the first to have succeeded in excavating a Legendary-rank relic.The ¡®Record of the Devildom War I¡¯ relic, a history book where the dimensional war between the human world and the Devildom a thousand years ago was recorded, has been discovered.10 seconds from now, the history of a thousand years ago will appear in front of your eyes.If you wish to skip the video, please close the messages. Lilson stared blankly at the messages as if he had been possessed by something, and shortly after, his vision grew dark. * * * Ian tilted his head after reading the world messages. ¡®Hmm¡­? A record of the Devildom war? What is this?¡¯ Every so often, when a new dungeon was discovered, or if some sort of ancient record was discovered, such messages appeared as world messages. However, Ian, who always thought that there wasn¡¯t even enough time to hunt, erased those messages whenever he saw them without a tinge of hesitancy. ¡®But, this one¡­ I feel like I have to watch it.¡¯ He had even finished hunting just in time, and because information related to the Devildom could be an incredibly important part right now, Ian didn¡¯t erase the messages. ¡®Should I watch some videos in addition to while I rest?¡¯ The vision of Ian, who sat down like that, began to darken little by little. * * * The first scene that appeared in front of Ian¡¯s eyes was the image of an incredibly beautiful woman, who was holding a red staff that was burning a bright red, and a red dragon, who boasted an imposing figure that was much greater than Karceus¡¯s size. ¡°Have you awoken, Ranohel?¡± The woman with the red staff had a clear and cool voice. However, somehow, an overpowering presence could be heard from her voice. ¡°Yes, God of the Sun¡­¡± And surprisingly, the dragon was bowing its head in front of her. ¡°The fact that the awakening of a God Dragon has occurred at this point¡­ Perhaps it is fate.¡± At the words of the woman, who was called the God of the Sun, the red dragon dipped its head again as it responded. ¡°That¡¯s right. I can feel where I must go, where I am needed, Hellena.¡± That woman, who was called ¡®Hellena¡¯, spread her hand out forward without a word. Hwa-reu-reuk-. As she did so, a giant portal that shone a red light opened up right in front of her. ¡°Go and come back.¡± ¡°Yes, Hellena.¡± ¡°I ask that you end this long and endless dimensional war without fail.¡± ¡°Understood. I will not disappoint you.¡± With that conversation as the end, the red dragon disappeared inside the portal, and the scene turned pitch black again. And shortly after. A new scene spread out in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Within that scene, one jet black dragon and two people, who radiated a dreary atmosphere, stood. And surprisingly, one of the two people was someone who even Ian was familiar with. His name was Immortal. ¡°Immortal, do you think you will be able to help Lugarix?¡± As, amongst the two people, the white-haired man wrapped in a black robe opened his mouth, Immortal respectfully bowed his head. ¡°No question about it, God of Darkness.¡± At Immortal¡¯s response, the man nodded his head as he turned his gaze. And in that spot, a giant black dragon sat. ¡°Lugarix, you can do a good job as well, right?¡± As expected, the black dragon called ¡®Lugarix¡¯, respectfully bowed his head as it responded. ¡°Of course, Kades. I will not disappoint you.¡± This time as well, a giant portal formed behind the two. And the bodies of both Immortal and Lugarix disappeared into the portal as if they were being sucked in. Ian, who had watched up to this point without a word, mumbled to himself. ¡®Like Kaka said¡­ They must be two of the remaining four God Dragons.¡¯ The scenes that followed up next were similar. There was a dragon named ¡®Norpis¡¯ that appeared along with the God of the Wind, as well as a dragon named ¡®Milaika¡¯ that appeared with the God of the Earth. As these two scenes passed by, a different kind of scene appeared again. This time, different from the previous ones, a dragon could not be seen anywhere in the scene. Rather, one person that Ian knew incredibly well was there. ¡°Oakley has disappointed me, but¡­ I believe that you will not be the case, Kaizar.¡± That man was none other than Kaizar. CH 237 Chapter 237: The Night Before the Storm (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian¡¯s party always pursued hardcore hunting. As the break, which were always around 10 minutes long, grew longer, Kaka, who sat leisurely found it strange. ¡°Yo, Bbookbbook.¡± ¡°Why did you call me bbook.¡± ¡°Haven¡¯t we been resting for too long?¡± ¡°You do have a point bbook. I feel like 15 minutes have already passed bbook.¡± Kaka glanced at Ian, who sat in the corner and quietly meditated(?), as he opened his mouth again. ¡°The owner dude is acting a little weird.¡± ¡°What¡¯s weird bbook?¡± ¡°He¡¯s sitting there completely still without the slightest movement. To be honest, I¡¯m saying that ever since our break time went longer than 5 minutes, our owner dude isn¡¯t being his normal self.¡± Bbookbbook nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s true bbook. Now that you mention it, it is weird bbook.¡± Kaka scratched his head as he kicked up from the ground with all his strength and jumped up. To be honest, rather than kicking up from the ground, he pretended to jump, but his body was already floating. ¡°Since something is unsettling about this, shall I try waking up the owner?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Bbookbbook and Kaka were suspicious that Ian¡¯s condition was not normal because their break time was 5 minutes longer. If they were Familiars of normal users, they wouldn¡¯t have had any suspicions and would have enjoyed their break, however, unfortunately, they were already trained to Ian¡¯s hunting pattern already. ¡°Then¡­ I¡¯m going to go try waking him up once, okay?¡± Bbookbbook¡¯s pupils trembled slightly. ¡°Bbook¡­ Are you seriously going to wake him up bbook?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± ¡°Bbakbbak and Karceus are going to hate you, Kaka bbook.¡± He said that because Ian waking up meant nothing different from the fact that hunting would start again. ¡°Still, it can¡¯t be helped. What if the owner dude is sick somewhere?¡± A small sigh slipped past Bbookbbook¡¯s mouth. ¡°Whew, I guess it really can¡¯t be helped then bbook. Then go try waking him up once bbook.¡± Kaka, who gained a little bit more confidence at Bbookbbook¡¯s permission(?), wagged his short, fluffy tail as he flew towards Ian. And floating up so that he was in front of Ian¡¯s face, he began to dilly-dally. ¡°Owner dude, are you sleeping?¡± However, Ian was just silent. ¡°You¡¯re not sick anywhere, are you? Just give me a response and then you can go back to sleep again. There¡¯s no need for you to completely get back up again.¡± It seemed that he couldn¡¯t hear Kaka¡¯s proposal at all, as Ian meditated in a completely still state without even a quiver, and Kaka, who felt something was weird about him, stared intensely at Ian¡¯s closed eyes. ¡®Hmm, what is going on?¡¯ Kaka slowly grew closer to Ian until he was right in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. However, just then, Kaka¡¯s body suddenly began to shine a white light. ¡®What, what the hell? This¡­!¡± And Kaka, who discovered the change in his body, was soon able to figure out what kind of phenomenon this was. ¡°Is¡­ This a momentary awakening?¡± And shortly after, as Kaka looked at Ian again, he was able to see a pitch black smoke rise up from around Ian¡¯s body. That was, to be honest, a phenomenon that only Kaka could see. ¡®This is definitely the ability of the night hag! To think that I would actually be able to manifest this ability!¡¯ And in front of Kaka and Ian¡¯s eyes, a system message simultaneously popped up. Ring-! Inherent Ability ¡®Greedy Night Hag¡¯ has been awoken to the next level.From now on, ¡®Kaka¡¯ can go into the dreams of others at a low success rate. As if Kaka was possessed by something, he was sucked in towards the pitch-black fog that was rising up around Ian. Following that, another message additionally popped up. ¡®Kaka¡¯ is entering User ¡®Ian¡¯s dream. A new world began to unravel in front of Kaka¡¯s eyes. * * * The ¡®Greedy Night Hag¡¯, one of Kaka¡¯s inherent abilities, was an ability that allowed him to pull out one item that he wanted from a dream. And that was a fact that Kaka was aware of more than anybody else. ¡®It¡¯s a dream. This is definitely the owner dude¡¯s dream.¡¯ In the dream, Kaka was floating above a wide site in the air. And below him, tons of soldiers and knights, as well as combat mercenaries and magicians formed a large army. ¡®What the hell? Is the owner dude dreaming of a war?¡¯ Kaka thought that he was currently inside Ian¡¯s dream using the ability of the night hag, but to be more specific, the world that Kaka was currently in was not Ian¡¯s dream. The place that Kaka was in was the world of the ¡®Record of the Devildom War¡¯ that was connected to Ian¡¯s mental world. Into an outlook on the world that happened a thousand years ago, which was shared with all the users along with a world message, Kaka was also sucked in on an impulse. And it may be obvious, but Kaka, who would have had no way to know that was the case, began to diligently understand the situation in the dream. ¡®I need to grab the most valuable item within here before I leave!¡¯ If Ian were to wake up from his dream, Kaka would also be thrown out of this world by force. He needed to find the most valuable and rare item that was also still something that he really liked before that. ¡®Euh, why of all the dreams that he could have dreamt, he¡¯s dreaming of something like this, this owner dude! I thought something was weird when he did nothing but battle without rest like a demon who was holding a grudge as they couldn¡¯t fight¡­¡¯ Kaka recalled his owner¡¯s face as he grumbled internally. This was because in this current situation, where he needed to leave after grabbing the most valuable and rarest item possible, a war environment like this was of no help at all. Exactly what kind of rare item was he supposed to find and carry out in a war like this? ¡®Still, there¡¯s no way of knowing when I¡¯ll have a chance like this ever again.¡¯ Kaka began to flap his wings with all of his might. It was unknown as to whether his flight speed itself actually quickened from him flapping his wings fast, but still, whenever he became hasty, Kaka always moved his wings quickly. ¡®Speaking of which, from what I remember, the skill of the night hag is displayed only when you are not conscious of the fact that you are in a dream world, but is that not applied when you go into someone else¡¯s dream?¡¯ Normally, when a night hag came out of a dream with an item, they were not able to recognize that it was a dream. It could be considered the same thing as when most normal people dream, they don¡¯t realize that the situation is a dream. As that was the case, to be honest, even if the skill was displayed, it wasn¡¯t like the night hag came out carrying a valuable item every time. This was because they cannot recognize that it was a situation where their abilities were being displayed. Then every so often, in cases like those there were times where they didn¡¯t wake up despite becoming conscious of the fact that it was a dream, and that was called ¡®lucid dreaming¡¯. ¡®Alright, if I cannot find a valuable item, I need to at least find a Magician¡¯s artifact or an ancient weapon and take it with me before I leave.¡¯ After Kaka steeled his heart, he slowly began to head down to the ground. Despite it being a dream, the expressions of the people going out to war were incredibly serious and wild. ¡®Speaking of which, what kind of war could this one be? Despite having lived over three thousand years, I feel like I haven¡¯t seen this large-scale of a war very many times, that is.¡¯ Just when Kaka was wandering around the humans like that, searching for a decent item, suddenly, at the front of the unit, an incredibly large cry began to ring out. Aah- Aaah-! Kaka, who formed a curiosity over that, began to float up to the air again. And in the next moment, he was able to discover a shocking scene. ¡®What the hell? This¡­ Was the Devildom War?¡¯ The scene that appeared in front of Kaka¡¯s eyes was one where a giant portal ripped through the sky as it opened up, and from within it, magical beasts began to pour out of it. It was the exact form of the massive war¡¯s opening act that happened a thousand years ago, the one that he had personally experienced. ¡°How could such a thing¡­!¡± Kaka, who mumbled out his shock with his voice, recoiled with fright. This was because if the humans, who were in the middle of a war with the devils, were to discover him when he had a strange outer appearance like a sooty smoke, there was no way of knowing how they would harass him. It was possible that they would just abruptly strike down their swords. However, Kaka was able to be relieved shortly after. It seemed as though none of the humans that were in this world could see him. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± And the mind of Kaka, who roughly cognized the situation, began to race. ¡®In this battleground right now, what exactly could be the most valuable item that I could take out with me?¡¯ Kaka began to strain himself in order to drag out his ancient memories. It was a historical situation that he had already experienced, and so, as that was the case, it could be considered a situation where Kaka was incredibly advantageous, but that wasn¡¯t exactly the case. This was because of the variable that was ¡®time¡¯. The fact that he didn¡¯t know when Ian, who was dreaming(?), would wake up was the biggest reason as to why Kaka was so restless. ¡®Owner, just wait, since I will properly show you during this opportunity that I am not useless!¡¯ While imagining Ian¡¯s expression, where his two eyes would have rounded, Kaka began to snicker. * * * Lilson, who was 1st place in the Explorer rankings, was quite a famous user in the official community as well. He liked to share any information or special stories he obtained through exploring with other users, and naturally, because that was the case, his threads couldn¡¯t help but become a topic of conversations. Although he may have been a pitiful explorer who was outcasted when there were hunts, at least in the community, Lilson¡¯s popularity was quite high. He was a famous named user to the point that his ID had its own personal channel in the official community, and thanks to that, quests related to the new relic that Lilson opened recently were interlocked with that channel as well. And the view count of the ¡®Record of the Devildom War¡¯ as well as the video overflowing with spirit that was inside of the record began to go up in an instant. The video that only Lilson¡¯s subscribers, which amounted to a little less than a couple hundred, were watching at first had reached a view count of over hundreds of thousands before even a full 10 minutes passed. Guys, what kind of video is this? Did at least a new story related to the Devildom pop up?I¡¯m not sure, but what is this for everybody to be in such a frenzy like this? Is it a video related to some sort of patch note just like the videos relating to the hidden classes last time?Oh, no. It¡¯s nothing like that, but it does seem like there is some sort of relation to the Devildom. It especially seems like a video related to the Devildom monster wave that is to open in a couple weeks from now¡­The person above¡¯s words are almost correct, but to be more specific, it is apparently a story related to the dimensional war between the Devildom and human world that had happened a thousand years ago.Ooh, how do you know that so well?That is because I watched this video from the beginning. The users watched the video of the Record of the Devildom War with interest as they chatted boisterously. Regardless of whether they were a high-ranking user who had already stepped foot into the Devildom, or were a low-ranking user that hadn¡¯t seen even the shadow of a low-ranking magical beast yet, all of the users couldn¡¯t help but be interested in the content that popped up in the video. Along with the behind story of the dimensional war, as the stories related to the 5 God Dragons, which had not been told up until now, were being aired through a realistic video, to be honest, that was natural. Wow, that green dragon has some serious swag. It¡¯s totally my style.Pfft, for me, rather than the green dragon, the red dragon that came out at first looked really cool.Whoa now, guys, they¡¯re not the green dragon and red dragon, they are the Dragon of the Earth and the Dragon of the Sun).Huff, isn¡¯t that the same thing? How picky.Keu, anyhow, if you could tame a dragon like that and handle it, it would be worth being a Summoner¡­Hey, are you a Summoner?Yes, why?No, just, how to put it¡­ Snap out of it.¡­ While they idly conversed like that through the chat window as they watched the video, suddenly someone just said something totally unexpected. Hul, wait, guys! That guy over there, I know who that is!Hmm? Who even is this dude? Ever since he said that he wanted to tame a dragon, he continuously keeps shitposting.No, I¡¯m being serious with this! I¡¯m telling you, I know that white-haired swordsman carrying the greatsword over there. At the random words of one user, the users attentively looked at the video once again. In the video of the channel, the two people faced each other. There was ¡®Maress¡¯, a handsome, black-haired man who was the God of War, and a man with his white hair let down as he carried a giant greatsword on his back. Kaizar! That¡¯s right, it was Kaizar!No, dude. How do you know that person? They say he¡¯s a person from a thousand years back.No, I remember for sure. That man is Kaizar, one of Ian¡¯s retainers.Huh? By Ian, you mean¡­ Are you talking about Ian, the 1st place in the unofficial Summoner rankings?Yes, you see, I¡¯m a fan of Ian. That¡¯s why, amongst the retainers and Familiars, I have the names of the famous ones memorized.Hul, now that I look at him, I feel like that¡¯s actually right! I did notice that there was an incredibly famous dude named Kaizar amongst Ian¡¯s retainers¡­ They seriously even look the same! The uproar that had started due to an out-of-the-blue words of someone like that had begun to spread out significantly in an instant. The fact that the NPC of the main story of a large game like this was only a user¡¯s retainer was enough of an issue. Wow¡­ Seriously unbelievable! God Ian! As expected, the rumour that he even tamed NPCs was true!Keu, seriously amazing. Kaizar? That NPC is really cool. I feel like he¡¯ll be hella strong. However, separate from such a small uproar, the story within the video continued to proceed. And shortly after, just when the story within the video that was almost an hour long was ending, most of the users couldn¡¯t help but be in shock. CH 238 Chapter 238: The Beginning of the Devildom War (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The Matonk Desert Zone was the field that was known as the widest field of the central continent. Above the desert, which was so open to the point that the horizon could be seen, there were five dragons. And it was a situation where the biggest and most strange-looking dragon was standing face-to-face with the remaining four dragons. Next to that strange-looking dragon, a magician holding a jet-black staff was floating in the air. Pitch-black smoke was rising up from his whole body, and a purple flame was circling around him. He slowly spoke. Huhu, for four out of the five God Dragons to have appeared to stop this body, what a true honour. That magician had an outer appearance that could be defined by the symbols[1] ¡®evil¡¯ and ¡®devil¡¯, while opposite of him, a magician on the back of the blue God Dragon wearing a white robe, who could be defined by the symbol ¡®good¡¯, was glaring at him. Exactly here today, this meaningless dimensional war will end. At those words, the black magician smirked as he responded. Really¡­? The God Dragons are powerful, but in a state where the strength of all 5 of the gods is not gathered, do you think you¡¯ll be able to stop Khalifa and these Balrogs, as well as ¡®me¡¯? Just like the words of the black magician, beneath where he and the evil dragon stood floating, hundreds of legions of the Devildom were displaying an overwhelming battle. However, the white magician looked calm. Huhu, who said that the power of all 5 of the great gods were not gathered? And at the words of the white magician, the black magician wore an agitated expression for the first time. Hmm¡­ What do you mean? I¡¯ve definitely killed ¡®Karceus¡¯ personally with my own hands¡­ You! What kind of bluff is this?Do you truly think I am bluffing? As even this scene was played back through the video, the chatrooms of the users began to bubbled up again. What the hell? That Devil Magician just said ¡®Karceus¡¯, right? Hul, I also just heard it as that. As Karceus.Guys, why? What is Karceus for you to be like that?Keu, the fact that you don¡¯t know Karceus. Karceus is the name of the giant black dragon that Ian has. That dragon that suddenly appeared at the end of the video on that famous Pyro Domain defensive battle and crushed the Kaimon Empire!Ah, really? That dragon¡¯s name was Karceus?Yes, that¡¯s right.Ooh, then, on top of Ian¡¯s retainer, even his Familiar is appearing in this tremendous video right now?That¡¯s exactly it. The users were indeed immeasurably flustered. How could the influence that one user had over a whole game be this big? However, that wasn¡¯t the end of their shock. Wait, guys, I just got goosebumps.Why? Why! What is it now?Based on the conversation content that came out of that video right now, they¡¯re saying that amongst the five Great God Dragons, only four of the God Dragons appeared right now, no?Yes, that¡¯s right, so?And seeing that the evil magician there has said that Karceus has been for sure killed¡­Huk, I understood everything just now!I¡¯m just going to go change my underwear momentarily first.Keuaah, so what you¡¯re saying is that Karceus, Ian¡¯s Familiar, is the Dragon of War, the remaining God Dragon?Bingo, that¡¯s exactly it.Ah¡­ That¡¯s why that had happened during the Pyro Defensive War!Hmm, what did?On the last day for the Pyro Domain, you know how Karceus appeared at the end?Yes, that happened.Back then, Kaizar and Karceus were connected through a pitch-black chain sort of like thing as they began to crazily massacre the soldiers of the Kaimon Empire.Right. It also seemed like the two activated some sort of buff¡­Analogizing it a little more, because Kaizar was the emissary of the God of War, and Karceus was the God Dragon of War, it¡¯s possible to think that such a phenomenon occurred.Such¡­! As the users started to see the story within the video, they began to become even more excited. Even when you normally watch a video, doesn¡¯t the video become twice as entertaining when you find things like hidden pieces? Just like that, the fact that they had discovered a secret related to Ian, who was a user so famous to the point that there wasn¡¯t a person that didn¡¯t know about him in the Korean Server, was quite a big enjoyment for the users. Despite all this, the story of the video was continuing to proceed. The giant mouth of the evil dragon slowly opened as a baritone voice overflowing with an imposing feeling flowed out. There¡¯s no need to fall for the words of those bluffers, Shyacan[2].I see, Khalifa. I feel like I¡¯ve just pointlessly worried. The corners of the mouth of the white magician slightly rolled upwards. Think however you please. Whether my words are the truth or not, the results will tell you. The black magician called ¡®Shyacan¡¯ ground his teeth. Eu-deu-deuk¡­ Alright, if that¡¯s the case, prove it! Shyacan raised his staff up high as he shouted. I commence the war! The whole army, forward! Let¡¯s trample over all of those weak humans!Aaah-! As soon as Shyacan¡¯s words were over, the Devildom army simultaneously let out a vicious cry as they began to storm forward. Starting from the magical beast ¡®Balrog¡¯, which was known as the most ferocious and powerful even amongst the Legendary-rank magical beasts, to highest-ranking magical beasts like the ¡®Chaos Drake¡¯, ¡®Soul Eater¡¯, etc., terrible magical beasts at the frontlines were beginning to rush forward towards the troops of the human world. However, just then. A loud boom suddenly rang out throughout the sky. Rumble- Bang- Bang-! What the hell? What is this suddenly¡­! With a flustered voice, Shyacan looked up to the sky where the boom came from, and surprisingly, the sky, which was blue and clear, was noisily thundering. Bang- Ba-ba-bang-! A storm cloud that suddenly appeared from nowhere began to fill up the sky, Swaaah-! And on top of the hot desert, an unreasonable rain streak began to pour down. And shortly after, the storm cloud split in the middle in the shape of a circle as a white ray of light came down through that spot. The sky was completely covered in black by a storm cloud, and in the middle of it, there was a white ray of light that poured down. At such a bizarre and mysterious scene, for a moment, everybody had fallen into a trance, and shortly after, an even more surprising situation occurred. Keu-aaooh-! A blue dragon was leisurely riding that light as it came down. The appearance of that dragon was a little different from the four God Dragons. It had a long neck and a lean-looking head. It also had a pointy-looking promontory was perfectly covering its back. It had an outer appearance that looked as though it was a mix of Hyeonmu[3] and Cheong-nyong[4], two of the Four Symbols of eastern mythology. Towards Shyacan, who looked slightly taken aback, the man in white grinned. What do you think, are you able to realize now that it was not a bluff, Shyacan? Shyacan gritted his teeth. It definitely wasn¡¯t a bluff. I acknowledge that. However, even the Abyss Dragon won¡¯t be able to fill the empty spot of Karceus, right? I know that the Abyss Dragon is powerful, but despite that, it¡¯s not like that one can complete the power of the 5 Great Gods, no? The white magician, ¡®Solare¡¯, pointed to the Abyss Dragon as he opened his mouth again. If it is the man that is riding on the back of the Abyss Dragon, I feel like he should be able to fill up that empty spot. The exact moment that Solare¡¯s words ended, the ¡®Abyss Dragon¡¯, who had flown over so that he was right in front of the God Dragons in no time, roared loudly. Kyaaooh! And the man that was standing on his back jumped up into the air. The man, ¡®Kaizar¡¯, shouted loudly. I will invoke the Pledge of the 5 Great Gods now! Kuoooh-! And Shyacan wore a pale expression out of fright. Wha¡­ What is this! With Kaizar as the pivot, the four God Dragons began to spin around him. As he did so, a white energy began to form on the greatsword that Kaizar was holding, and the white light that had formed on that greatsword shot out like chains and wrapped around the body of the four God Dragons. Whoong-! With them as the centre, a loud resonant sound began to ring out. As the deputy of the God of War, Maress, I, Kaizar, will fulfill the pledge of the 5 Great Gods.As the deputy of the God of Darkness, Kades, I, Lugarix, will fulfill the pledge of the 5 Great Gods.As the deputy of the God of Wind, Miro, I, Norpis, will fulfill the pledge of the 5 Great Gods.As the deputy of the God of the Sun, Hellena, I, Ranohel, will fulfill the pledge of the 5 Great Gods.As the deputy of the God of the Earth, Sandyena, I, Milaika, will fulfill the pledge of the 5 Great Gods. The white light of judgment, which was so blinding to the point that you could not open your eyes, fell upon the wide desert. Baaang-! And in the spot where the light that had fallen disappeared from, the bodies of the tons of magical beasts and devils that were covering half of the desert began to burn away. Solare, who saw that, raised his staff up high. Today, exactly in this spot, you will see the end of this long dimensional war! * * * Within the cries that filled the whole place, Kaka was moving quickly towards some place while holding a piece of yellowed parchment. ¡°Dream, if I wanted to leave from this dream, what was I supposed to do?¡± Kaka was wrapped up in his thoughts. He had the power of the night hag, but it was his first time invoking it. Because that was the case, when it came to using the ability, he couldn¡¯t help but be bad at it. In order to leave this dream, he needed to remember the content on the abilities of the night hag that he saw in ancient books. ¡°Soon now, the owner dude will for sure wake up from this dream. If I do not leave this place before that happens¡­¡± Kaka gripped the parchment in his hands tightly as he glared fiercely. ¡°Then this will just disappear.¡± Kaka, who repeatedly agonized over this for a moment like that, seemed to have suddenly remembered something just in time as he flew up to the sky. ¡°That¡¯s right, I just needed to go there!¡± Kaka began to fly towards the place that he had seen when he first entered the dream. He needed to arrive at that spot as quickly as possible. * * * Through Explorer ¡®Lilson¡¯, the one video popped up prominently in the official community called together an incredibly large butterfly effect. This was because this video was a story that was over an hour long, and tons of information related to the Devildom was released within it. There was an incredibly large and vast amount of information, but even amongst it, if just the most weighted ones were put together, it was like this. In order to stop the last monster wave of the Devildom, the power of all 5 Great Gods needed to be gathered in one spot.If the monster wave of the Devildom was not stopped, the central continent and the northern continent would become ¡®Devildom-ized¡¯.Also, as the ¡®destructive devils¡¯ got a hold of the authority of the Devildom, the Devildom continent that the users were enjoying up until now was a definite, but they wouldn¡¯t be able to even enjoy the content of the central continent and the northern content for a while. As the eyes of Ian, which had been closed, shot open, he mumbled with a low voice. ¡°That can¡¯t happen.¡± Ian smirked. ¡°When I¡¯ve invested so much in the Pyro Domain, that is.¡± One corner of Ian¡¯s mouth curled upwards. [1] Symbol meaning traditional Korean/Chinese lettering [2] Pronounced similarly to ¡®Shyakran¡¯. I spelt it with a ¡®c¡¯ instead of a ¡®k¡¯ in hopes of preventing confusion. [3] Hyeonmu = Black Tortoise; one of the four symbols of the oriental constellation [4] Cheong-nyong = Azure Dragon; one of the four symbols of the oriental constellation CH 239 Chapter 239: The Beginning of the Devildom War (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda You have failed in passing through the 17th gateway of the Test of ¡®Hikion¡¯, the Devil King of Rage.All of the members of the party have been warped to the 1st gateway.The number of times challenged up to now: 7 times (7/10)You have 3 more chances remaining. In the case that you fail all chances, you will completely fail the quest, and your Affinity with Devil King Hikion will drastically decrease.The Fame of all party members have been reduced by 100 thousand. While looking at the messages that popped up one after another, Shyakran wore a dejected expression. ¡®Damn it, how could a quest with such a nonsensical difficulty level exist?¡¯ Shyakran looked around at his team members once as he slightly let out a sigh. If it was instead a quest that he could do on his own, he would have done it by any means, but the problem was that amongst the 8-member party, there were too many black holes. It was a party that boasted the highest level users excluding the Assassin and Summoner user, but the problem was the control aspect. ¡®Whew, aside from Ceilron and the Black Magician kid, there are too many holes. Even the Summoner punk called Canoel is better than our guild members, but he¡¯s still a black hole¡­¡¯ Currently, the number of times they had failed at challenging was a total of 7 times. Due to them losing 100 thousand Fame each time they failed, they had even lost an enormous amount of Fame of 700 thousand. Shyakran no longer could figure out a solution as to how to go about this. ¡®Whew, if this is the case, then there¡¯s no answer¡­¡¯ Ceilron carefully spoke to Shyakran, who had fallen into agony. ¡°Master, what will you do now? We only have 3 more chances left.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± ¡°By the looks of it, don¡¯t you think we¡¯ll need to request the help of other rankers?¡± ¡°Euh¡­¡± Shyakran agonized over this again, but with this party, there was absolutely no solution. Shyakran opened his mouth. ¡°If we were to, who would we need to recruit?¡± After thinking about it for a moment, Ceilron spoke. ¡°Firstly, I believe that the best card would be Remir, who isn¡¯t affiliated with any guild.¡± ¡°Whew, alright, sure. Let¡¯s recruit Remir no matter what¡­ Are there no other cards? I don¡¯t think this is a problem that will be solved with just Remir alone tagging along, that is. Of course, Remir is strong, but we¡¯ve only barely gotten through up to the 17th gateway out of 30 gateways.¡± Ceilron nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. I certainly have a feeling that it will be insufficient with just Remir.¡± ¡°What class is the biggest black hole in our party?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ I think that the biggest hole is the Assassin. However, no matter what kind of ranker we call over for the Assassin, I don¡¯t think it will be much help. As the class itself is a class that is most disadvantageous in PVE from the beginning¡­¡± Shyakran nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s certainly true. Even if the 1st place user of the Assassin rankings was to come, there probably won¡¯t be much change.¡± Ceilron scratched the back of his head. ¡°But even so, to recruit Samuel Jin, who is 1st place in the Archer rankings, it¡¯s a little uncomfortable as he is the Master of the highest guild of the enemy nation.¡± ¡°He can¡¯t. Aside from everything else, he¡¯s too full of himself.¡± Ceilron, who momentarily rubbed his chin as he thought about it, continued his words. ¡°Then, in the end, there¡¯s only one remaining card.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Ian, it seems we¡¯ll need him.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± A bitter smile formed around Ceilron¡¯s mouth. This was because Ian was someone he had thought of from the beginning, but he purposely strained to disregard him. ¡®There certainly isn¡¯t a user that is as exceptional with controlling as much as Ian and could become a solid fighting power. On top of that, since he¡¯ll fill in the spot of the Summoner, who is a black hole, while doing the work of at least two people.¡¯ However, Ian was affiliated with the Lotus Guild, which was a guild of the Luspel Empire that was recently rocketing up to the top rankings. If they were to recruit him, the Lotus Guild would be shared the reward of this first hidden guild quest of the Devildom, that was too much of a pain in the stomach. ¡®Still, it will probably be better than throwing away a hidden quest just like this.¡¯ Shyakran slowly nodded his head. ¡°As expected¡­ Can it not be helped?¡± However, just then, Hoonie, who was silently listening to the two people¡¯s conversation beside them, spoke with a tearful expression. ¡°In the end, do you need Ian hyung?¡± Hoonie wore an expression that looked as if he had lost everything. ¡®Ha¡­ I thought that I was going to complete a hidden quest behind Ian hyung¡¯s back, but in the end, am I just going to be handing him another quest like this¡­?¡¯ Ian seemed to be busy with something as he had not checked his list of missed messages, and thanks to that, he had not accepted the quest sharing message that Hoonie had sent. That¡¯s why, inwardly, Hoonie was planning on finishing the quest before Ian saw it. However, that prosperous(?) plan was foundering like this. ¡°Hmm, Ian hyung? It seems as though you personally know User Ian.¡± Ceilron asked Hoonie, and Canoel, who was next to him, responded instead. ¡°Yes, we are acquainted with Ian hyung.¡± And he continued his words with a bitter expression. ¡°I¡¯m certainly lacking too much to cover the Summoner position with my abilities. If you are to request Ian for help, you will definitely be able to complete this quest.¡± Shyakran replied with a leery expression. ¡°Definitely¡­? We¡¯ve only gotten through the 17th gateway so far. There¡¯s still 13 gateways left, but isn¡¯t it a little too much of a jump to say that we could definitely clear it just by recruiting Ian alone?¡± However, Canoel¡¯s expression was unwavering. ¡°No, if you just have Ian hyung alone, you will be able to clear this quest without even the need to recruit Remir.¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± Hoonie also nodded his head weakly as he added on. ¡°If it¡¯s Ian hyung, a clear may be guaranteed. Although I didn¡¯t want to call that hyung again¡­¡± Even after that, the party tried to look for all sorts of alternatives, but in the end, they couldn¡¯t find an alternative that was as good as Ian. Shyakran, who made his decision, opened his mouth towards his party members. ¡°Then for now, since it seems like we have a conclusion, Ceilron, you try to contact Remir.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± Shyakran looked at Hoonie as he spoke. ¡°And to Ian, Hoonie, why don¡¯t you send him a message?¡± Hoonie let out a deep sigh as he replied. ¡°Whew¡­ Understood.¡± * * * In front of Ian, who woke up from his sleep(?), Kaka was floating. ¡°Whew, owner. If you had woken up even a little earlier, we would have been in big trouble.¡± Ian tilted his head as he asked. ¡°Hmm? What are you saying now? You have to explain it to me and not cut out the context.¡± At those words, Kaka wore a proud expression as he began his explanation. ¡°Huhu, to explain it from the beginning, I succeeded in awakening.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I¡¯m talking about awakening the ability of the night hag. I¡¯ve also become useful now, owner.¡± A burst of laughter came out of Ian¡¯s mouth. ¡®No, has the fact that I nagged him, saying he was a useless punk, become that much of a scar?¡¯ To be honest, Kaka was not useless. Ian nagged at him all the time, but in the meantime, he was magnificently playing the role of a scout even in battle, and the part that Kaka was the most help in was his knowledge. To Ian, who thought that ¡®information¡¯, was incredibly important while playing a game, Kaka¡¯s knowledge was more amazing than any other kind of assistance. However, he didn¡¯t show his feelings as he retorted. ¡°Alright, so how did that ability awaken?¡± Kaka was pleased as he answered. ¡°Now I can go into the dreams of other people. So just now, I went in and came out of your dream, owner, Kya-ha-hat.¡± Ian was puzzled. ¡®Huh? I haven¡¯t slept, though, so what¡¯s he saying?¡¯ Kaka added on/ ¡°Owner, you dreamt of quite a spectacular dream. I didn¡¯t think that the dimensional war that happened a thousand years ago would be reproduced exactly like how it was.¡± At those words, Ian immediately understood what the situation was right now. ¡®Ah-ha, he understands it as me having dreamt when I was watching the video just now.¡¯ Ian, who completed his thoughts to that point, instantly opened Kaka¡¯s information window and checked his inherent ability. Greedy Night Hag (Rare Ability)(Awoken) The night hag is a demon that has the ability to materialize the events that happened in the dream. Kaka, who is a night hag with a lot of greed, will appear with one rare item from within a dream whenever he has one. *This skill has succeeded in awakening. From now on, slave ¡®Kaka¡¯ will be able to use the ability of the night hag even in the dreams of others. In the information window of Kaka, next to the title of the inherent ability ¡®Greedy Night Hag¡¯, the word ¡®awoken¡¯ was additionally attached, and below that, the additional effect for awakening it was explained. Ian¡¯s expression brightened up to the point it was evident. ¡®Ooh, if this is the case, then even if Kaka doesn¡¯t fall asleep, it¡¯s possible for the skill to be used, right?¡¯ Ian¡¯s mind began to race quickly. ¡®And if he had just went in and came out of the world of a thousand years ago just now, then by any chance¡­!¡¯ The brilliant cintamani that the Abyss Dragon was holding in its mouth. Ian immediately thought of that. ¡®Kaka, please!¡¯ Ian asked Kaka. ¡°So, did you go into my dream and fish something out?¡± Kaka nodded his head as if he had been waiting as he boasted. ¡°Of course!¡± Kaka shot his hand up high and shoved the parchment that he was holding in his hand up to Ian¡¯s face. ¡°Huhu, how about this, owner.¡± And in front of Ian¡¯s eyes, the item information popped up. An Unknown Ancient Record/Rank: Legendary Just like what was written in the title of the item, it was unknown, but the rank of ¡®Legendary¡¯ immediately caught Ian¡¯s eyes. However, Ian¡¯s expression became sullen. ¡°You punk, why did you bring that?¡± Kaka, who was anticipating praise, asked back as he was so flustered. ¡°What¡¯s the matter, owner?¡± ¡°If you¡¯ve come in and left my dream, you should have come out carrying the cintamani!¡± Kaka, who only then realized the reason for why Ian was disappointed, grinned as he replied. ¡°You idiot-like owner dude! How could I have come out of there with the cintamani?¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°The cintamani that existed during that time was already being held in the mouth of the Abyss Dragon, so with what talent do I steal that?¡± Ian¡¯s face became sullen. ¡°Is there just that one cintamani?¡± ¡°That I don¡¯t exactly know either, but if in the case, a cintamani was somewhere, with what method would I have looked for it in this short amount of time?¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s true¡­¡± While Ian was licking his lips with an expression that seemed like he was disappointed, Kaka continued his words. ¡°However, it¡¯s too early to be disappointed, owner.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± While Ian asked back with a quizzical expression, Kaka responded with a triumphant expression. ¡°Since this item exactly is the map where the place that the cintamani is hidden is marked!¡± ¡°Ooh!¡± At those words, Ian quickly took the parchment and opened his item information. However, just one message was up in his information window. This is an item that has not been appraised yet. Ian instantly tried to appraise the item. ¡°Appraise!¡± However, an unexpected message popped up. This is a high-ranking relic that cannot be appraised with the basic appraisal skill. Ian looked at Kaka with a flustered expression. ¡°Yo, how do I appraise this?¡± ¡°Can it not be appraised with the appraisal skill?¡± ¡°Yeah, it can¡¯t be appraised. It says that it¡¯s a high-ranking relic.¡± At that, Kaka, who momentarily thought about it, slowly opened his mouth. ¡°Hmm¡­ By the looks of it, I think you¡¯ll have to ask a high-level Explorer.¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°People who have the Explorer class have a special appraisal skill, owner.¡± At that, there was one thing that flashed through Ian¡¯s mind like lightning. ¡®Then, by any chance, wouldn¡¯t the user named Lilson, who excavated that Devildom War Record, be able to appraise this map?¡¯ The fact that the class that excavated relics was the Explorer class was basic information that Ian also knew about. And if he was an Explorer that excavated that legendary relic, he felt he would definitely be an Explorer that achieved the highest level possible. Ian¡¯s face slightly brightened up. ¡®That¡¯s right, I¡¯ll have to look for him!¡¯ Just when Ian¡¯s mental plan was calmly being organized, an unexpected friend message flew over. Kanjihoonie: Ian hyuuung¡­ By any chance, are you busy? CH 240 Chapter 240: Fortress of the Devil and Ricardo (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda While looking at the message that came from Hoonie for the first time in a while, Ian smirked. ¡®What¡¯s up with this squirt now?¡¯ Ian immediately sent a response message. Ian: Why, what¡¯s wrong now? And what the hell is ¡®hyuuung¡¯? So unlike you. Hoonie¡¯s message returned sharply. Kanjihoonie: Hyung, did you not see the quest sharing message that I sent? ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± Before Ian responded to the message, Ian opened his quest window once. And he was able to discover the quest sharing message that came from Hoonie shoved in the bottom corner of his quest window. ¡®Would you look at this squirt?¡¯ Reading the quest content, he found out on top of it being a whopping hidden quest, it was even a guild quest that hadn¡¯t ever appeared once before in the Devildom. There was no way that quick-witted Ian didn¡¯t realize what kind of situation this was. With an expression full of playfulness, Ian sent a response message. Ian: A sharing message that you sent?Kanjihoonie: Yeah, I shared a quest with you, hyung! On top of it being a whopping hidden quest, it¡¯s a guild quest!Ian: It¡¯s not that you sent it, but that ¡®it was sent¡¯.Kanjihoonie: Huh¡­?Ian: This punk, if you got a quest like that and it was shared, and on top of that, if it seems like I wasn¡¯t able to see it, then you should have promptly sent me a message and let me know. Were you hiding it, acting like you didn¡¯t realize, so that you could do the quest alone? How cheap! Momentary silence. And shortly after, Hoonie¡¯s reply returned. Kanjihoonie: Ah, hyung¡­ It¡¯s not like that¡­ An uncontrollable laughter poured out of Ian¡¯s mouth. Ian: Anyways, why are you looking for me now after hiding it like that?Kanjihoonie: Hey now, I told you that I wasn¡¯t hiding it, but you¡¯re still like this. It just took a bit of time getting a party together. Hoonie gave a plausible excuse, however, there was no way that Ian would believe in that. Ian: Why? Are you sure you haven¡¯t already failed the quest about four or five times because it¡¯s so hard?Kanjihoonie: ¡­ And at Ian¡¯s insight, which was beyond just sharp as it dug a hole into his chest, Hoonie had completely lost all his words. Kanjihoonie: Whew¡­ Yeah, hyung, help us out a little. I¡¯m telling you, if we just have you right now, hyung, then we can clear this quest right away. You would have figured it out if you read the quest information, but even from your position, it¡¯s a quest that could only be incredibly good. At Hoonie¡¯s persuasion, Ian continued to show the grudge he held. Ian: Of course that¡¯s probably the case. That¡¯s also probably why you hid it like that, punk.Kanjihoonie: Ah, hyuuung, I admit that I made a mistake. So, let¡¯s go do the quest, hmm? Are you doing something right now? Are you busy? Even while he was sending and receiving messages with Hoonie, Ian was thoroughly reading through the information of the quest that was shared with him. ¡®It certainly is a good quest. Especially the fact that I can register the Lotus Guild as a guild in the City of Rage is for sure an incredible merit.¡¯ And Ian¡¯s decision on the quest was finished. Ian firmly(?) replied. Ian: Ye.Kanjihoonie: Huh¡­?Ian: What do you mean ¡®huh¡¯? I¡¯m telling you that this hyung is busy, dude.Kanjihoonie: Ah, why?! What are you even doing?! We all already know that you¡¯re just hunting in the Devildom all day anyways!Ian: As I am in the middle of doing a quest that is about 3.5 times more important than the one that you gave me, I am busy. Good luck finding someone else. If you need a Summoner, you have Noel, no? Take him instead.Kanjihoonie: ¡­ You¡¯re too harsh, hyung.Ian: You¡¯re harsher. Ian, who had coldly rejected Hoonie¡¯s request, hummed as he thought to himself. ¡®Possibly, if this Hoonie punk had even sent me a message yesterday, I may have accepted it, that is.¡¯ The reason why Ian didn¡¯t accept Hoonie¡¯s proposal was simple. ¡®It said that the moment the Devildom monster wave opened up, we wouldn¡¯t be able to enter the Devildom for a while anyways, so what use would that quest be if I was to clear it right now?¡¯ The information that he found out after watching the view of the world of the ancient dimensional war just a moment ago was a big help to Ian¡¯s decision. ¡®When there¡¯s no way of knowing when we¡¯ll be able to return to the Devildom again once the monster wave opens up¡­ It was a truly useless quest.¡¯ The biggest merit of being registered as a formal guild in the City of Rage was the fact that the guild members could use the portal that was in the City of Rage. This would be a great help when it came to hunting inside the Devildom, and it would definitely be an amazing foothold in allowing the guild to settle down in the Devildom. However, on top of it being the beginning when the Devildom first opened up, it was only a big merit as it was a time where even decent high-ranking users couldn¡¯t conceive the thought of hunting in the Devildom right now, so later, once the Devildom monster wave was also over, it was obvious that it would become a truly useless reward. It seemed his body felt stiff, as Ian stretched. ¡°Aah! Alright, then, shall I go to the Fortress of the Devil now?¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Kaka, who was floating silently next to him, asked with a puzzled expression. ¡°Owner, weren¡¯t you going to go look for an Explorer that could appraise this record for you?¡± Ian shook his head as he answered. ¡°That¡¯s for a little later. Since going to the Fortress of the Devil within three days is first for now.¡± ¡°Then are we going to look after that?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Ian, who thought about it for a moment, slowly responded. ¡°No, for now, before the Devildom monster wave starts, I¡¯m not going to even take one step outside of the Devildom. Since I need to dig through the content here as deeply as I can and benefit from this as much as possible.¡± Kaka whined. ¡°Hiing, owner. I want to see the Abyss Dragon quickly. I¡¯m curious as to how cool of a dragon Bbookbbook will become.¡± Bbookbbook, who was eating a meatball nearby, seemed to have heard that a conversation about him was coming out, as he crawled over. ¡°Bbook! That¡¯s right bbook. I¡¯m going to become a cool dragon bbook!¡± Ian stared back and forth at Bbookbbook and Kaka as he smirked. ¡°Even if we have a cintamani immediately right now, anyways, we can¡¯t evolve him. He needs to become a Turtle Dragon or whatever with his own efforts first in order for a need for a cintamani next.¡± Kaka nodded his head with a bitter expression. ¡°That, that is true, owner.¡± Ian asked once more towards Bbookbbook. ¡°Isn¡¯t that so, Bbookbbook?¡± ¡°Bboo-bbook, I think so bbook!¡± Either way, Ian, who had roughly sketched out his future plans, began to move his feet quickly. ¡°Let¡¯s move quickly, there¡¯s no time. If we are trying to go into the Fortress of the Devil within three days, we¡¯re tight on time.¡± As soon as Ian¡¯s words ended, Yankoun, who was resting in the corner, suddenly stood up and followed right behind him, and the other party members also followed behind the two. And after two days. With a day remaining until the quest¡¯s time limit was over, Ian¡¯s party was finally able to enter the Fortress of the Devil that was in Zone 80 of the Devildom. * * * ¡°Huh? You¡¯re saying that he rejected the offer?¡± Ceilron wore an incredibly flustered expression. And Shyakran, who was behind him, was also just as taken aback. ¡°Oh-ho, if a quest share had flown over to him, then he definitely would have even been able to check all of the reward content as well, yet he rejected it¡­?¡± Hoonie let out a deep sigh as he responded. ¡°Yes, he rejected it without even a smidge of hesitancy.¡± Ceilron asked Hoonie. ¡°Why exactly did he say he was rejecting it?¡± ¡°He said he was busy¡­¡± ¡°Busy doing what?¡± ¡°According to Ian hyung¡¯s words, he said that he was in the middle of proceeding with a quest that was about three and a half times more important than this quest, so he said to not bother him.¡± Next to being flustered, Shyakran was at a loss for words. ¡°¡­¡± Ceilron mumbled with an expression that seemed like he was dumbfounded. ¡°No, how important of a quest could it be? And what the hell is three and a half? It¡¯s not even two times or even three times.¡± One party member, who was proceeding with the quest with them, carefully opened their mouth. ¡°By any chance, could it be that he presumed that the difficulty level of this quest was incredibly hard and so he¡¯s trying not to even give it a go?¡± Ceilron rubbed his chin as he mumbled. ¡°Hmm¡­ Now that I hear it, that could be the case. Since although the rewards is big, it is a quest where the risk is also no joke.¡± However, Hoonie could never agree to the two people¡¯s conversation. ¡®No. He¡¯s definitely not a hyung to pass a hidden quest like this just because the difficulty level looked too hard.¡¯ From what Hoonie saw up until now, that didn¡¯t suit Ian at all. Since Ian fired his will up even more and did quests the harder they looked instead. ¡®Then exactly what could it be? Is it possible he¡¯s actually proceeding through an incredible quest?¡¯ If even one of the members of the party had watched the video, they would have been able to understand Ian¡¯s choice. However, unfortunately, there was no way that they checked the video when all of their interest was on clearing the quest. ¡®Hmm¡­ What exactly could be a quest that¡¯s three times more important than this quest? Could it be possible that there is some sort of meaning behind the number 3.5 as well? Since he is a hyung that usually likes to put a value to anything and classify it.¡¯ Hoonie felt himself being sucked into a mental labyrinth more and more. ¡®Damn it, well, I¡¯m sure something will work out.¡¯ * * * You are the first to have entered Zone 80 of the Devildom.You have obtained 100 thousand Fame.For the next week from now, all of the Devildom-related stats that you obtain will increase by one and a half times.For the next week from now, you will receive double the amount of EXP, and the drop rate will double as well. While looking at the messages that popped up as soon as Ian entered Zone 80, Ian grumbled to himself. ¡®Euh, what a waste, what a waste, what a waste!¡¯ Ian was currently the user deepest into the Devildom amongst everybody in the Korean Kailan Server. As that was the case, due to the characteristic of the Devildom map structure, he couldn¡¯t help but obtain all of the first discoverer titles in all of the maps. The central continent, for example, was one open map where the map itself was wide and vast. As that was the case, even if he was the first person to had arrived at the central continent, he couldn¡¯t be the first discoverer of all of the areas. This was because the direction one could proceed with and the number of cases were endless. However, in the case of the Devildom, as the structure of the map was a vertical structure, the route was limited. As that was the case, Ian had obtained all of the first discoverer titles of all of the zones in the Devildom. ¡®Euh, seriously, even if it wasn¡¯t for the time limit on this quest, I would have sucked each of the maps dry until the first discoverer buffs were all over.¡¯ Ian grumbled as he followed behind Yankoun. Yankoun, who belonged to the upper rank even amongst the High-ranking Devils, naturally had come to the Fortress of the Devil many times. ¡°Yankoun, how much further do we have to go now?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Yankoun responded with a heavy voice. ¡°There¡¯s not much left to go now. I think we¡¯ll just need to keep going for about 10 more minutes.¡± Still, Ian didn¡¯t disregard the monsters that appeared on the path they were going. This was because as they reached about Zone 80, most of the magical beasts that appeared on the field were intermediate-rank magical beasts, and they gave incredible amounts of EXP. ¡®At first, it seemed like they were a little too burdensome to face¡­ But we¡¯ve completely adapted to it now for sure.¡¯ Ian swung his Judgment of the Spirit King this way and that way as he killed the magical beasts calmly. And just like Yankoun said, as they had moved for about 10 minutes, a magnificent fortress that was built near the top of a giant boulder mountain caught their eyes. ¡°Is that it, Yankoun?¡± As Ian, who discovered the castle, asked, Yankoun nodded his head as he answered. ¡°That¡¯s right, master.¡± Ian¡¯s face brightened up a notch. ¡°Nice! Then let¡¯s go in immediately!¡± Ian, who finished speaking, was about to take a step, but Yankoun¡¯s hand stopped him from the front. ¡°Wait.¡± ¡°What is it, Yankoun?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Yankoun lifted one hand as he pointed towards one side of the fortress. ¡°Something is weird, master. By the looks of it, it seems that something has happened in the Fortress of the Devil.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± And in front of the eyes of Ian, who was wearing a puzzled expression, system messages suddenly popped up one after another. Ring-. With the invoking of a specific condition, the hidden piece of the ¡®Beginnings of the Devils III (Hidden)(Connected)¡¯ quest.The ¡®Fortress of the Devil¡¯ is being attacked by the destructive devils.In order to meet Devil King ¡®Ricardo¡¯, you must defeat the destructive devils that are attacking the Fortress of the Devil.The more destructive devils you defeat, the drastically higher your Affinity with Devil King ¡®Ricardo¡¯ increases. Fortress of the Devil, Present Battle Condition Obtained Points: 0 Points Obtained EXP: 0 (x250%) * The current amount of destructive devils defeated. Low-rank Devils: 0/Low-rank Magical Beasts: 0 Common Devils: 0/Intermediate-rank Magical Beasts: 0 High-rank Devils: 0/High rank Magical Beasts: 0 Noblesse: 0/Highest-rank Magical Beasts: 0 CH 241 Chapter 241: Fortress of the Devil and Ricardo (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Zone 120 of the Devildom. This place was where out of all of the zones in the Devildom, the weakest magical beasts appeared, and as the map was incredibly open and there were a lot of magical beasts, it was a place that was good for beginners that just entered the Devildom to hunt in. And Zone 120 of the Devildom was bustling with more users than ever before. ¡°Guys, there¡¯s no time to be resting right now. In the time that you¡¯re resting here, we need to be digging up even at least one more magic stone!¡± ¡°Yo, I¡¯m telling you, this hunting ground behind this giant boulder over here was where our party was continuously hunting! If you don¡¯t keep the commercial ethics like this, things will become difficult!¡± ¡°Alright, a magic stone! With this, I¡¯m at my fifteenth one!¡± Even originally, Zone 120 of the Devildom had quite a lot of people compared to the other zones of the Devildom. However, there was never a time where it was crowded to the point that there was a lack of places to hunt, but the reason that the hunting grounds became like this was simple. More than anything else, a reason to prioritize their obsessing over the Devildom¡¯s contents had formed. 25 days from now, the monster wave of the Devildom will begin.Once the monster wave of the Devildom begins, until the wave is completely stopped, all portals that lead to the Devildom will shut down, and all users that are in the Devildom will be forcibly summoned to the human world. For the fifth time already, this message rang out throughout the whole server every night as soon it was past midnight. If the contents of the message was broken down, the moment that the monster wave of the Devildom began, it meant that they could not use the Devildom content anymore, and so the users couldn¡¯t help but fire up their determination for hunting magical beasts until then. Especially, the ¡®fortification¡¯ system, which could blow up the stats of all equipment, was the thing that could give the most certain fighting power reinforcing effect amongst all of the content of the Devildom. As that was the case, most of the users were just hunting all day in order to dig up magic stones. ¡°Wow, damn, from what I saw in the auction house a little while ago, there were quite a lot of transcendent equipment that was fully fortified to 5, so then why I am I constantly slipping down from the 3rd fortification?¡± ¡°Yo, how many magic stones have you used up until now then?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure. If I was to combine everything, I still should have used about 40-50, no? With my hunting speed, I dig up about 10 magic stones a day, and since it has been about five days from when I started hunting, that is.¡± ¡°Ha, if you¡¯ve used about 50, it¡¯s obvious as to why you haven¡¯t made a transcendent equipment yet.¡± ¡°Really? Is the success rate originally this atrocious?¡± ¡°Yeah, rather than thinking about raising up one equipment to a transcendent-rank, make it your goal to get all your parts up to the 3rd fortification. Since you don¡¯t have that much time left, that is.¡± However, it wasn¡¯t like all of the users that were on the hunting grounds were hunting just to fortify their items. A portion of the users amongst them were planning on firmly securing a portion through the magic stones. ¡°Keu-heut, it looks like I¡¯ll soon be able to fill up my magic stone count so that it reaches a three-digit number.¡± ¡°Really? You¡¯ve already gathered that many?¡± ¡°Yeah. They continuously dropped one after another from three magical beasts just now. How many have you gathered?¡± ¡°One moment¡­ I¡¯ve gathered about 90 now.¡± ¡°Huhu, with this pace, we should for sure be able to gather about 500-600 if we keep digging them up for the remaining 25 days.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. If we combine what we have together, we should be able to get about a thousand.¡± ¡°Keu, even if we just sell all of that, we should seriously be able to firmly secure a cut, right?¡± ¡°Of course. Even now, magic stones are expensive, so if the Devildom was closed on top of that, don¡¯t you think the price will jump up by triple the current amount?¡± ¡°It certainly could. But, just wondering¡­¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°In the case that the monster wave starts and the monsters of the Devildom that come pouring through from there also drop magic stones, what will happen?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, there¡¯s no way that will happen.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Why¡¯s that?¡± ¡°It¡¯s even up in the announcement on the official homepage, dude.¡± ¡°What does it say?¡± ¡°¡®Once the Devildom monster wave begins, until the wave ends, you cannot obtain any item related to the Devildom.¡¯ Is what it says.¡± ¡°I see!¡± Based on such situations, no matter who it was, one thing for sure was that it was a self-evident fact that the moment the Devildom opened up, the prices of the magic stones would skyrocket. ¡°Whew, the top-ranking users that came in ever since the Devildom first opened up are so lucky.¡± ¡°No kidding.¡± ¡°A while ago, I saw the equipment window of some Warrior user within the top 30 who revealed his stuff, and he had gotten all of his parts to transcendent equipment. On top of that, there was even a part where it was fortified to +7.¡± ¡°Keu.¡± ¡°On top of that, apparently they have about 300-400 Low-grade magic stones rolling around in their inventories.¡± ¡°How lucky. On top of that, as soon as they saw what was up in the announcement, they would have also begun to hunt, no? As they¡¯ll even be hunting in a higher-level zone, the drop rate will be much higher as well.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± And amongst the users of the Kailan Korean Server, the user with the most magic stones rolling around in their inventory was none other than Ian. * * * Bang- Ba-ba-ba-ba-ba-bang-! The giant fortress that was in the outskirts of Zone 80 of the Devildom. And in front of it, an incredibly large-scale battle that was hard to find in the Devildom was unraveling. Familiar ¡®Karceus¡¯ has used inherent ability ¡®Dragon Breath¡¯.176,598 damage has been dealt on Low-rank Magical Beast ¡®Maristo¡¯.Critical damage has been dealt to Intermediate-rank Magical Beast ¡®Coilan¡¯.The Vitality of Intermediate-rank Magical Beast ¡®Coilan¡¯ has been reduced by 249,803. Ian poured out all of the AoE skills including Breath at once. Ian, who had wiped out the magical beasts that had crowded together due to Bbakbbak¡¯s provoking in one go, slightly checked his EXP gauge. Ian/Summoner/Lv 199 (96.54%) ¡®Alright! If we truly just do a good job, I might even be able to finally hit lv 200 before this sweet EXP wave is over!¡¯ For the first time in a while, Ian poured his eagerness related to leveling up into his whole body as he massacred the devils and magical beasts. Up until now, he had leveled up a ton of times, but when it came to the number of the hundredth digit changing, Ian thought that even that alone held a symbolical meaning. On top of that, the meaning of lv 200 did not just remain there. ¡®From what I¡¯ve checked a while ago, the 1st place in the overall level rankings of the whole server was for sure lv 199! It¡¯s not like they would have hit lv 200 within that time frame, right?¡± The moment that Ian reached lv 200, it would be the first time that he would win the 1st place position of the level rankings. On top of even being a user of one of the ¡®new classes¡¯ that launched 2 months later, if considering the fact that he was a ¡®Summoner¡¯ user, which was a class that was known to have the most atrocious difficulty level when it came to leveling up, this was truly an incredible incident. ¡®Well, there could be a couple of guys that are over lv 200 amongst the unofficial rankers, but¡­¡¯ Either way, Ian, who was excited as could be, visited here and there of the battleground as he leaped around crazily. ¡°Halli, over here! Pin, go and help Ly over there a little! Kaizar, you stay here with me!¡± Already quite a bit of time had passed since Ian had even come to the Devildom. However, the enemies that Ian had faced in the field up until now were mainly ¡®magical beasts¡¯, and this was the first time he was battling against devils. That¡¯s why, until the first battle began, he was a little worried about the large amounts of devils that he would suddenly have to face as enemies, but that concern didn¡¯t last too long. After having become familiar with their battle patterns, it was rather easier facing the devils than the magical beasts. ¡®Instead, when it comes to combat stats alone, it feels like the devils have less compared to magical beasts.¡¯ The combat AIs of the devils were obviously far superior than the magical beasts. However, when thinking from the standard of devils and magical beasts with the same rank, when it came to their combat stats alone, it instead felt like the magical beasts were higher. If, in the case of a user who didn¡¯t prefer large-scale and didn¡¯t have a lot of experience with them either, it would have been much harder for them to face devils no matter what, regardless of their combat stats. However, Ian was a user who had large-scale battles down to a science better than anybody else. To him, who was like this, a tactical battle was not a battle obstacle whatsoever. ¡°Kaizar, go over there and switch spots with Yankoun. Yankoun, you come over here!¡± ¡°Got it, Lord guy.¡± ¡°Understood, master.¡± And shortly after, Yankoun, who had switched positions due to Ian¡¯s command, pointed his finger towards some place as he opened his mouth towards Ian. ¡°Master, I think we¡¯ve gotten through most of them now. At this point, backup forces will slowly start to appear from the Fortress of the Devil now as well, so I feel like we¡¯ll just need to go into the internal part of the castle and meet the Devil King.¡± At those words, Ian slightly turned his head and stared at the place that Yankoun pointed to. And in that spot, there was a giant fortress gate that led to the internal area of the Fortress of the Devil. ¡®Hmm¡­ If we just break through a little more, we¡¯ll definitely be able to go inside there. I do need to meet the Devil King dude called Ricardo or whatever quickly.¡¯ However, there was no way that Ian, who saw all this EXP piled up in front of him, would just walk away. ¡®Just a little more, no, I¡¯ll just hunt a quarter of a day more and then go in.¡¯ As a matter of fact, the low-rank devils and low-rank magical beasts that were in the early lv 200s gave quite a decent amount of EXP. On top of that, as these magical beasts that constantly poured out like a colony of ants gave two and a half times more EXP than usual, it was a situation where it wasn¡¯t much different from being in heaven for Ian. Ian opened his mouth towards Yankoun. ¡°Yankoun, just wait a little more.¡± ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t we still have a lot of reserve power to fight?¡± At Ian¡¯s unexpected words, Yankoun nodded his head with a slightly puzzled expression. ¡°That¡¯s¡­ right.¡± ¡°And since we¡¯ve already begun fighting like this anyways, don¡¯t you think the Devil King will be happier if we kill as many enemies as we possibly can before we go in?¡± With a plausible excuse, Ian made up a justification in order to enjoy hunting some more. And at Ian¡¯s thoughtful consideration(?) towards the Devil King, Yankoun wore a pleased expression. ¡°That certainly is true as well. Then I will put in as much strength as I can in order to kill as many devils as I can.¡± The exact moment that his words ended, Yankoun threw the big axes that were in either of his hands towards a giant magical beast that was in front of his eyes with power. Bang- Bang-! Yankoun¡¯s axes lodged into the forehead and the chest of the magical beasts to the point that it was unbelievable, and his opponent couldn¡¯t help but instantaneously die. Retainer, Yankoun¡¯, has dealt critical damage to Intermediate-rank Magical Beast ¡®Kerco¡¯.The Vitality of Intermediate-rank Magical Beast ¡®Kerco¡¯ has been reduced by 225,938.Intermediate-rank Magical Beast ¡®Kerco¡¯ has been defeated. However, this was not the end. Yankoun, who saw the enemy in front of his eyes turn into a grey light and disappear, unsheathed and held up the giant greatsword that he had slung across his back diagonally instead of retrieving the axes that had dropped to the ground. Keu-reu-reung-! Yankoun¡¯s greatsword that was unsheathed along with a heavy fricative sound looked like it was easily about three times bigger than a greatsword that a normal human warrior would use. Yankoun slightly bent his knee before he jumped up into the air like lightning. And in that moment, a system message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Retainer ¡®Yankoun¡¯s inherent ability, ¡®Battle of Fury¡¯, has been invoked for a duration of (00:14:59).While he is engulfed in lunacy, Yankoun¡¯s Defensive Power will decrease by 30%, while his Offensive Power will increase by 50%.Yankoun¡¯s movements will increase by 30%, while his Devil Energy Activation Rate will increase by 15%. Different from Summoners, retainers fundamentally used their inherent abilities on their own even if the user didn¡¯t control them directly. As that was the case, for retainers, their combat stats were important as well, but their combat AI was a part that was more important than that. Since there was nothing more infuriating than when a user had to employ a frustrating retainer with a stupid AI. In that sense, Yankoun, who was exceptional when it came to skill use and also had a combat sense, made Ian incredibly pleased. ¡°Alright, nice!¡± A satisfied smile formed around the mouth of Ian, who watched Yankoun momentarily, and in the next moment, Yankoun, who was floating in the air, raised the handle of the sword with both hands and he held the sword upside down. In that exact position, Yankoun lodged his greatsword into the ground. Ba-bang-! Retainer ¡®Yankoun¡¯s inherent ability, ¡®Devil Energy Eruption¡¯, has been invoked. The moment he saw the message, Ian slightly fell back as he watched Yankoun¡¯s inherent ability being invoked. ¡®As his level is tremendously high, amongst my Familiars, there is certainly no AoE skill that can beat Yankoun yet, that is.¡¯ And in the next moment, in between the crack that formed in the ground due to Yankoun¡¯s greatsword, a red energy with the name ¡®Devil Energy¡¯ began to gush out from there. Baaang-! Along with a colossal impact that could rival the time when Bbakbbak fell almost 200 metres from the sky, with Yankoun¡¯s greatsword as the pivotal point, all enemies within a 20-metre range were just reduced to ashes in a flash. ¡°Keu, there we go!¡± While looking at the messages about the increase in his EXP that popped up one after another, Ian wore a broad smile. ¡°Ly, come over here! Over there, there are guys that are stumbling after getting hit with the AoE skill, right?¡± ¡°Yes, owner.¡± ¡°Before they pull themselves together, go and wipe down all of them with Halli before coming back!¡± ¡°Understood. Just leave it to us.¡± Ly, who received Ian¡¯s command, opened both of his eyes with a sharp glint as he ran towards the enemies, and Ian got on the back of Pin, who had flown over just in time. ¡°Don¡¯t go too high up, Pin.¡± Kku-ruk- Kku-ruk-! Ian looked around at the battlefield as he checked the surrounding situation once every so often. This was because, although hunting was nice as well, if the understanding of the surrounding situation in a large-scale battle like this was done lazily, there was no way of knowing when one would be sieged and face a game out. The more that it was a larger-scale battle, selecting a good location was the biggest point that left the most profound impact on the battle result. ¡®Ha, but there seriously are a lot of monsters. I think this is my first time since going into war with the Kaimon Empire guys in the central continent that I¡¯ve faced this many enemies in one map.¡¯ However, just then, Ian, who was looking down at the battleground, discovered a fortress gate, which was firmly shut, open up. ¡°Hmm¡­ What is this? If they open that now, the magical beasts will all pour in through that, though.¡± However, such concerns of Ian couldn¡¯t help but disappear in the next moment completely. Creaaak- Thud-! This was because as the giant fortress gate opened, from within it, a monster that emitted an incredible presence had appeared. Thud- Thud- Thud-. Whenever it took a step, a heavy sound rang out from the path to the point that the earth¡¯s axis were shaking. As soon as he dashed out from the fortress gate, he shook his giant horns as he began to trample over the destructive devils, and Ian, who checked his information, widened both of his eyes. ¡®A Legendary-rank Magical Beast!¡¯ It was a Legendary-rank Magical Beast that he had not been able to see ever since he entered the Devildom. The name of this monster, that emitted a crazy aura as soon as it appeared on the battleground as it began to massacre the enemies was, ¡®Balrog¡¯/Classification: Magical Beast/Level: 325/Rank: Legendary The ¡®Balrog¡¯, a legendary magical beast that was also called the tyrant of the Devildom. CH 242 Chapter 242: Fortress of the Devil and Ricardo (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda There were a countless number of different magical beasts that existed in the Devildom. At this point, where it had not been long since the Devildom had opened up, even if the number of different magical beasts were counted, it was to the point that there were over a hundred of them. On top of that, from the LB Corp. side, an official stance was revealed that there were a ton of different magical beasts that had yet to be known. However, there was one interesting truth amongst the content revealed that was related to the information on magical beasts from the LB Corp. side. That was the information related to the ¡®Legendary¡¯-rank magical beasts. Amongst all of the ranks of magical beasts, just in ¡®Legendary¡¯-rank magical beasts, it was specified that exactly fifteen kinds existed. The opinions of the users were incredibly divergent about this. In particular, the interest of the young Summoners who were dreaming of obtaining a dual class in the Devildom in the future was truly immense. Keu, how strong must a Legendary-rank magical beast be? When even Low-rank magical beasts are this strong.Person above, the reason that Low-rank magical beasts are strong is just because their levels are high.No, no, even if their levels are considered, apparently Low-rank magical beasts are for sure much stronger than Common-rank monsters that are in the human world.I see. Is that truly the case?But amongst the 15 species of Legendary-rank magical beasts, is there even one species that has been revealed?Yes, there¡¯s just one, I think?Oh! What species is that? Exactly where did it appear? I still have yet to even see any material related to High-rank magical beasts being uploaded in the bulletin board yet, that is.Yes, that is obvious. Since even High-rank magical beasts have had yet to appear.Then¡­ What do you mean when you say that a Legendary has appeared?Do you not remember the video from when the Devildom update first occurred?Hmm, a video? I¡¯ve definitely seen it, but my memory¡­Keu! How can you not remember that video overflowing with swag? Can you even call yourself a Summoner when that¡¯s the case?Ah, what is it, just tell me.Balrog. Do you not remember the Balrog? It appeared with a truly incredible force in the video, too¡­That¡¯s right. Now I remember it very vividly. That¡¯s because back then I fell in love with the Balrog as soon as I saw it.Huhu, that¡¯s right. It¡¯s truly worthy enough to fall in love with.Yes, that scene when it ran out of that fortress gate and slaughtered the other magical beasts¡­ Kya!That¡¯s right. It¡¯s energy was seriously no joke. It even dealt damage by the hundreds of thousands¡­ There weren¡¯t even that many Summoner users that had succeeded in entering the Devildom, yet they were rapidly raising their dreams(?) related to the Devildom. While looking at the information of the magical beasts that were popping up on the Devildom bulletin board, they were diligently debating as to which magical beasts would be good for them to tame later. However, just then, one user revealed a question. Huh? But, guys. Now that I think about it, wasn¡¯t the scene where that Balrog came out a little weird?Why? What was weird? It was just cool.No, that¡¯s not what I meant¡­ The Balrog was fighting with the other devils. From what I remember, it wasn¡¯t a fight with humans or another race, but a fight between devils.Oh, now that you mention it¡­!That¡¯s right. I definitely remember that scene. In front of an incredibly strange-looking rampart that was the colour of blood, it was a scene where the Balrog was slaughtering Low-rank magical beasts. And that blood-red rampart was the ¡®Fortress of the Devil¡¯, which was currently right in front of Ian¡¯s eyes right now. * * * Thud- Thud- Baang-! Red hair that looked like it was on fire covered its whole body. A giant monster, whose ruggedly-grown horns even shone a dark-red colour, began to whisk through the battleground. Whenever the monster swung its humongous fists, a low-rank magical beast tumbled onto the ground one by one, and each time that attack took place, all magical beasts that were in the surrounding area were sucked into a cosmos-destroying conflagration. The Balrog was a Legendary-rank magical beast, one of just fifteen species that existed in all of the Devildom. The greatness of the Balrog was indeed tremendous. ¡®How can damage worth 300 thousand be popping up? On top of that, its splash damage is even dealing over a hundred thousand or so damage.¡¯ Whenever the Balrog, which had hands so enormous that it could easily grasp a decently-sized adult male with one hand, swung those hands, fragments of hellfire that were sucked out of hell itself embroidered its surrounding in disarray. Baang- Bang-! When it came to combat, the Balrog had no technical skills. No, it didn¡¯t need any technical skills at all. The battle method of the Balrog was to just crush and demolish everything in sight. Ian was overwhelmed by its presence. ¡®Its level is definitely lower than Yankoun, however, it feels like its fighting power far exceeds Yankoun¡¯s. Is this the difference between their inherent rank?¡¯ Yankoun was strong. Since the one with the strongest fighting power currently amongst Ian¡¯s party was him. However, it wasn¡¯t always going to stay like that. ¡®If the stat growth value per level is calculated, Yankoun has stats that Kaizar will also catch up to soon enough.¡¯ Currently, Yankoun was at lv 362. Meanwhile, Kaizar was at lv 295. There was a 70-level difference, but the difference between the two¡¯s combat abilities was just around 10%. When the stats were tallied up, it was at a level where Yankoun had about 110% of Kaizar¡¯s combat abilities. This was a standard that Kaizar could easily catch up to even if he just reached about lv 320. Ian found the reason for this was in the difference in the inherent rank that the two had. ¡®Kaizar¡¯s inherent rank itself is a Legendary-rank. Meanwhile, Yankoun is a Heroic-rank retainer.¡¯ And Ian believed that the one-rank difference was definitely what was creating the difference in the two¡¯s stat growth rate. ¡®In that sense¡­¡¯ Ian¡¯s gaze slightly turned towards Balrog. ¡®That means that thing will have as much potential as Kaizar, no, it will have more potential than Kaizar¡­¡¯ Ian licked his lips before he even realized it. ¡®I want one!¡¯ Of course, Ian already possessed a lot of Legendary-rank Familiars. Karceus and Pin, as well as Ly and even Bbakbbak. These Familiars definitely had exceptional potential that was not lacking whatsoever even when compared with the Balrog, but Ian couldn¡¯t help but be itching for the Balrog. This was because it wasn¡¯t an issue with the Potential stat, but based on its current fighting power, the Balrog couldn¡¯t help but be overwhelmingly powerful. ¡®Euh¡­ The level difference is truly big, though.¡¯ Ian¡¯s other Familiars just reached the edge of lv 190, but on the other hand of that, as the Balrog¡¯s level was over 300, if there was no difference in fighting power, that instead would have been weirder. ¡®Keu, seriously, if I got a Legendary-rank Familiar that was over lv 300, my fighting power will probably grow stronger by at least 1.5 times, right?¡¯ To reinforce with a Legendary-rank Familiar was yet another meaning from obtaining a retainer. This was because, while retainers perfectly fought with their own AIs, Familiars moved depending on Ian¡¯s controls. As that was the case, Ian felt a bigger merit from Familiars than retainers. If a powerful magical beast like the Balrog moved according to 100% of Ian¡¯s wishes, he truly felt that he would be able to battle comfortably. ¡®Is there a way to capture one somewhere?¡¯ Just then, when Ian was licking his lips while he watched the Balrog, Yankoun, who had elatedly wiped down his opponents, approached him so that he was in front of him. ¡°Ian, I see that this is your first time seeing a Balrog.¡± Ian slowly nodded his head as he replied. ¡°Yeah, this is my first time seeing them in real life. Truly incredible fighting power.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Yankoun grinned as he replied. ¡°The Balrog is indeed a tyrant. Since it¡¯s a creature that even a decent Noblesse devil cannot face thoughtlessly.¡± While attentively studying the form of the Balrog, Ian asked Yankoun about parts that he was curious about. ¡°But how did something like a Balrog come out from within the Fortress of the Devil? Is the Balrog different from other common magical beasts?¡± Yankoun, who didn¡¯t properly understand Ian¡¯s question, tilted his head as he asked back. ¡°What do you mean by that, master?¡± ¡°So, you know how magical beasts are normally free beings that inhabit places all over the Devildom, right? But since it jumped out from within a fortress for devils, I was just wondering what that¡¯s all about.¡± One corner of Yankoun¡¯s mouth curled slightly upwards. ¡°As expected, master, I see that you also want a Balrog.¡± Ian shrugged his shoulders. ¡°I won¡¯t deny it. Isn¡¯t it weirder that you don¡¯t want one after seeing that greatness?¡± Yankoun nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. The dream of mostly all ¡®Devil Summoners¡¯ is to tame a Balrog.¡± And Yankoun, who stared at the Balrog once more, continued his explanation. ¡°Going straight to the conclusion, the Balrog is definitely a being that can be tamed.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Yankoun smiled as he pointed at the Balrog with his finger. ¡°Isn¡¯t the evidence of that right there?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Ian carefully looked in the direction that Yankoun¡¯s hand was pointing towards. It seemed like his finger was pointing at the Balrog, however, after looking more carefully, he was pointing at someone who was floating behind the Balrog. Yankoun¡¯s mouth slowly opened again. ¡°That person is the owner of the monster-like Balrog that is in front of our eyes right now.¡± Ian widened his eyes. This was because the black silhouette of a shadow that floated in the air was peculiar. ¡°Who is that devil?¡± Yankoun responded shortly. ¡°The reason for why you came all the way here.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Ian¡¯s gaze turned towards the black shadow again. And the shadow grew closer and closer towards Ian¡¯s party. ¡®If it¡¯s the reason for why I came all the way here then¡­¡¯ As the shadow grew closer and closer, Ian was able to closely check the image of the other person. With a light grey cloak, it was a man wearing a reddish steel armour and a silver head ornament. ¡°That devil is¡­ The owner of the Fortress of the Devil?¡± Yankoun slowly nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. That person is Devil King ¡®Ricardo¡¯, ranked at 7th place in the Devildom hierarchy.¡± It was then that Ian began to understand the whole situation. ¡®So that Balrog¡­ He¡¯s saying that it¡¯s a magical beast that the Devil King has tamed, right?¡¯ Ian stared back and forth at the Balrog and Devil King. And he felt his mood slightly go up. ¡®Then, that probably means that the class of Devil King Ricardo is a Devil Summoner, right?¡¯ The eyes of Ian and Ricardo met. ¡®No wonder, it looked like there was a ton of things that I could take from that Devil King dude, that is.¡¯ Ian, whose mood brightened, began to grin, and during that time, Devil King Ricardo had approached Ian so that he was standing in front of him. Looking at him more closely, Ricardo had an incredibly good-looking outer appearance. He didn¡¯t look wild like Yankoun at all, and if a comparison had to be made, he had a bloody and pale appearance that was reminiscent of a vampire. Ricardo, who stood in front of Ian, opened his mouth with a slow tone. ¡°It¡¯s been a while since I¡¯ve seen a Half-Devil.¡± It wasn¡¯t deep, but at the weighty voice with an imposing aura that could dominate a whole assembly, Ian quietly gulped as he replied. ¡°That¡¯s right. Are you Devil King Ricardo?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Ricardo slowly nodded his head as he replied. ¡°That¡¯s correct. It seems you know of me already.¡± Ian continued his words. ¡°I have come because Seraphim sent me.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, the face of Ricardo, which was only cold and emotionless, changed for the first time. ¡°Hmm¡­ Seraphim did? For what reason?¡± Ian calmly replied. ¡°It¡¯s content related to the ¡®destructive devils¡¯. There¡¯s a letter that Seraphim has sent, so if you took a look at that¡­¡± ¡°¡®Destructive devils¡¯, huh?¡± As expected, Ricardo immediately reacted to the words ¡®destructive devils¡¯. However, as Ian tried to pull out the letter from his inventory, he lifted one hand and stopped Ian as he opened his mouth again. ¡°Wait.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Firstly, after we¡¯ve completely wiped away the small fries that are crowding in over here, we¡¯ll finish our conversation. We can¡¯t be talking about such important matters here, no?¡± At those words, Ian wore an embarrassed expression. ¡°Ah¡­ That is true.¡± And as Ricardo slightly turned his gaze and stared at the Balrog, which was still leaping around like crazy, he continued his words. ¡°That thing is strong, but it¡¯s too much for him to face all of them on his own. I should quickly go help him.¡± At those words, Ian nodded his head as he carefully spoke. ¡°By any chance, would it be alright if I helped?¡± And near the mouth of Ricardo, who heard Ian¡¯s words, a faint smile appeared. ¡°Of course. With your combat abilities, you will be quite helpful.¡± Along with Ricardo¡¯s words ending, new system messages began to pop up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring-. Devil King ¡®Ricardo¡¯s Affinity with you has increased by 15.Devil King ¡®Ricardo¡¯ is requesting to form a party with you.In a party with NPCs, you can only obtain 50% the amount of EXP that you would normally be able to obtain in a user party.Will you accept Devil King ¡®Ricardo¡¯s party request? Something like a slight warning sentence popped up, but Ian immediately accepted the party without even giving a little bit of thought. ¡®No, are there even idiots that would kick away such a sweet chance?¡¯ Ian, who had a chance to be carried by powerful NPCs starting from the royal knights a long time ago, had a feeling of wanting to bow down to Ricardo. ¡®This is no different than a confirmation that I will reach lv 200 with this!¡¯ Towards Ian, who wore a broad smile, Ricardo held out his hand. ¡°Thanks for helping me protect my castle.¡± Ian took his hand as he politely responded. ¡°This is something that I should definitely help with.¡± At Ian¡¯s reply, Ricardo wore a satisfied smile, and a message that pleased Ian popped up once again. Devil King ¡®Ricardo¡¯s Affinity with you has increased by 1. The increase of Affinity soon meant that there would be much more that Ian would be able to extract from the relevant NPC. Ian¡¯s mind raced as he began to create a conspiracy. ¡®How do I need to extract that Devil King dude in order to maximize the amount I receive from him?¡¯ Ian was prepared to annoy his senior Devil Summoner NPC, who was even a whopping Devil King. CH 243 Chapter 243: The Secret of the Balrog (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The warp gate that was at the starting point of Zone 89 of the Devildom. Remir, who had arrived at that spot, wiped the sweat that was dripping from her forehead as she mumbled. ¡°Whew, I just barely made it through.¡± And Cassandra, who was next to her, spoke with a slightly surprised expression. Good work, Remir. Although the gateway of Zone 90 is a gateway that is favourable to Magicians, even considering that, there¡¯s no way that I can¡¯t acknowledge that your abilities are outstanding. However, Remir was not even the least bit satisfied. She slightly frowned as she responded. ¡°Forget it. I will decline such flattery.¡± At her reaction, Cassandra snickered. Ho-hot, as expected, it looks like the fact that you weren¡¯t the first to clear it is weighing on your mind. Remir nodded her head without a word. ¡®For the first discoverer¡¯s reward to not pop up even in Zone 89¡­ Ian, exactly how far has this dude gone?¡¯ The most fundamental reason as to why she needed to go to the Fortress of the Devil that was in Zone 80 was in order to proceed with her hidden main quest, ¡®The Power of the Sun God¡¯. However, if it was not for that reason, she would have used all her fighting power in order to quickly get through the gateways of the Devildom. Since whenever new content came out, being the first to break through it until she reached a limit on the difficulty level was something she had always done. However, this time, in the Devildom content, a user that was ahead of her had basically appeared for the first time. ¡®Even up to the central continent, I had thought that I had gotten through most of the areas, but for the Devildom content, I¡¯ve completely lost.¡¯ Remir internally gritted her teeth. On top of that, when she thought about how the opponent that beat her was a new class, let alone the Summoner class, which the growth difficulty level was atrocious, she became even more frustrated. ¡°Whew, either way, since I¡¯ve gotten through it, I should probably get to Zone 80 quickly now, right?¡± Cassandra nodded her head as she replied. Of course. Even if we are to go to the Fortress of the Devil, there¡¯s no guarantee that we will be able to find ¡®that item¡¯ right away, and there¡¯s not a lot of time until the Devildom closes, that is. Remir nodded her head as she lifted the staff that she was holding. ¡°Alright, then for now, I should ignore everything else, and make entering Zone 80 my first priority.¡± And as she swung around her staff once, several strengthening buffs wrapped around Remir¡¯s body in an instant as her body floated up in the air. Whiiing-. Skill ¡®Haste¡¯ has been used. Your movement speed has increased by 77.45%.Skill ¡®Glacial Barrier¡¯ has been used. For the time duration of (00:5:49), a shield that absorbs as much as 300 thousand damage has been formed.Skill ¡®Explosive Spell Field¡¯ has been used. For the time duration of (00:29:59), the range of all normal attacks will increase by 2.5 metres, and opponents that are hit by an attack will be forced back 3 metres in the opposite direction from the direction of the shot (Opponents that have been forced back will have a 17% chance to fall into a black out state). The body of Remir, who casted the magic incredibly proficiently, flew forward quickly. Her destination was the ¡®Fortress of the Devil¡¯, which was in Zone 80 of the Devildom. * * * The attack of the destructive devils, which they thought would end quickly, continued on for a longer time than expected. Thanks to that, a broad smile hung across Ian¡¯s face the whole day. ¡®Kya! It¡¯s a gift from the gods! I¡¯ve already gone up 2 levels.¡¯ Even considering the fact that he was lv 199 and his EXP was filled up to 96% when he first began to kill the destructive devils, as he had purely gone up over 1 level, this was an incredible outcome. ¡®As of lately, this is the first time my EXP gauge filled up this quickly. It¡¯s similar to the leveling up speed of when I was almost a two-digit level.¡¯ The reason this was possible was because several situations were overlapping each other. Fundamentally, on top of having a double EXP buff due to being the first to discover the map, there was an additional buff worth x2.5 that had formed due to the activation of the hidden piece. Lastly, while in a state like this where he had such an enormous buff, as the active roles of Devil King Ricardo and Balrog, as well as the devil warriors, who were handpicked soldiers that directly belonged to him, were also added on, a simply outrageous hunting speed was possible. ¡®Roughly calculating the EXP that is coming in, it doesn¡¯t seem that the overlapping of the buffs is a multiplication of the two. Tsk, how disappointing.¡¯ As this was also the first time that Ian had two EXP buffs overlap like this, he was curious as to how it was applied. What he thought it was at first was 2¡Á2.5. He thought that five times the EXP was coming in, but unfortunately, that wasn¡¯t the case. It was being calculated as 2+2.5, so a total of four and a half times the EXP was coming in. ¡®Well, since 450 percent is an incredible EXP buff as well¡­ I will be satisfied with this much.¡¯ Either way, like that, the battle that lasted over a quarter of a day continued, and for the first time in a while, Ian was able to ride a bus[1] with maximum comfort. And during the whole time he fought, Ian stayed near the Balrog and carefully observed his battles. ¡®Speaking of which, what exactly could it be? Why exactly is that thing¡¯s damage dealing that tremendously powerful compared to its level?¡¯ The Balrog was at lv 325. No matter how much of a Legendary-rank it was, the fact that it was overwhelmingly more powerful than Yankoun, who was at lv 360, didn¡¯t make sense. ¡®Is it a creature that has all of its stats gathered on its Offensive Power? But to say that, it looks like its tanking abilities and reflexes aren¡¯t that bad either¡­¡¯ As Ian had a personality where he couldn¡¯t hold back when he found something he was curious about, he constantly watched the Balrog. ¡®Later, when the quest proceeds, I should ask Ricardo.¡¯ Ian, a Summoner full of curiosity, was meticulously organizing his list of questions that he wanted to ask Ricardo inside of his head. * * * Due to Ian¡¯s decline, the hidden guild quest of the Devildom that Hoonie was proceeding through was temporarily suspended. On top of that, because of the words of Ian, who stated that he was in the middle of proceeding through a quest that was a whopping three and a half times more important, Hoonie was incredibly jealous. ¡°Tsk, tsk-tsk! Such a dirty hyung!¡± At his complaining, Canoel smirked as he said something. ¡°Hyung must just have something that¡¯s keeping him busy, Hoonie. There¡¯s nothing to be so upset about.¡± At Canoel¡¯s words, Hoonie frowned deeply. ¡°Grr, let¡¯s see if I go and help that dirty hyung next time.¡± ¡°What did you even help Ian hyung with?¡± ¡°Do you have any idea how much I helped Ian hyung out with quests, while following him around ever since the time we were in the central continent? I even shared my hidden quests continuously with him!¡± However, Canoel shook his head. ¡°Hoonie, let¡¯s be honest.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°To be honest, rather than Ian hyung, there are a lot more things that you obtained while following around Ian hyung. If you hadn¡¯t continuously stuck by his side, do you think you could have become this dominant of a Black Magician that¡¯s 1st place with levels right now?¡± Currently, Hoonie was at about lv 195. When considering the fact that the Black Magician that was registered in the ranking list as 1st place was at about lv 190, it was an incredibly overwhelming level difference. This was because, for there to be a 5-level difference in the level 190-range, there was a tremendous EXP difference. Hoonie, who was at a loss for words, sputtered. ¡°St, still~!¡± Canoel¡¯s logical(?) words continued. ¡°On top of that, you¡¯re sharing quests because you don¡¯t have any other choice. Pretending like you¡¯re being generous when it¡¯s automatically shared, huh?¡± ¡°Hmph¡­¡± Hoonie, who was sorrowful either way, trudged along with his shoulders drooping down as he lost his energy. While watching him do that, Canoel gave him words of encouragement. ¡°To be honest, once the monster wave opens up, the rewards of that quest didn¡¯t even really have a meaning anyways. Don¡¯t be so disappointed. Thanks to that, we were able to save time and even do the Pure Blood of the Devil Quest!¡± Hoonie nodded his head as he replied. ¡°Hmm, that is true.¡± This was because, as soon as the two gave up on the quest and entered the City of Rage, they began by obtaining the Pure Blood of the Devil, and had succeeded in becoming Half-Devils. Hoonie, who barely won over his gloominess, opened his mouth towards Canoel again. ¡°Then, hyung. For now, let¡¯s both class-change to a dual class on our own and then meet up again afterwards. We both have quests that we¡¯ve received.¡± At those words, Canoel nodded his head as he replied. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s probably best. Since we don¡¯t have much time left by the looks of it, if we continue going around together and help each other out with our quests, I feel like it might even be difficult to obtain a dual class before the Devildom closes.¡± In any case, the two people, who decided their future course, headed towards their own respective class guild buildings. Hoonie, who parted ways with Canoel, headed towards the eastern area of the City of Rage in order to obtain the ¡®Devil Spirit Magician of Death¡¯, a dual class that Black Magician class users could obtain. ¡°I will obtain a dual class before the Devildom closes with whatever means it takes no matter what!¡± And as he parted ways with Canoel, it felt like his rage towards Ian, which had settled, was shooting up again. ¡°Damn it, that mean and nasty hyung probably already obtained a dual class and is flying around somewhere in the Devildom, right? Since he¡¯s an insane hyung, who entered the Devildom within 3 minutes of it opening, it¡¯s possible that he¡¯s in Zone 80 right about now.¡± Hoonie¡¯s intuition was so sharp to the point it was scary. However, just then, a dark shadow approached the side of Hoonie, who walked while fuming. * * * Ring-. You have successfully completed the hidden assignment of the ¡®Beginnings of the Devil III (Hidden) (Connected)¡¯ Quest.Clear Rank: SSYou have obtained 200 thousand Fame. Fortress of the Devil, Present Battle Condition Obtained Points: 19,784K Points Obtained EXP: 15,3751K (x250%) *The current amount of destructive devils defeated. Low-rank Devils: 358/Low-rank Magical Beasts: 399 Common Devils: 132/Intermediate-rank Magical Beasts: 107 High-rank Devils: 12/High-rank Magical Beasts: 25 Noblesse: 0/Highest-rank Magical Beasts: 0 You have leveled up. You have reached level 202. Ian, who magnificently digested the hidden piece, wore a satisfied smile while looking at the reward window that was in front of his eyes. ¡°Kya, this is my first time seeing such an outrageous EXP value.¡± Ian¡¯s gaze lingered on the obtained EXP part that was in the result window. ¡°Are we finally going to see values change to K in this game as well?¡± Commonly, the ¡®K¡¯ was a number of units that was used in order to conveniently mark numbers by the thousands. It was read as ¡®kilo¡¯, and this unit, which defined 10 cubed, was a notation that was normally used in order to reduce the unit when a value in a game was too high, so, as the EXP that Ian had obtained was too enormous, the unit ¡®K¡¯ had appeared. ¡°Let¡¯s see here¡­ If it¡¯s 153,751K, then I¡¯ve obtained about 150 million EXP. Keu-heu-heu!¡± His math grade was so bad to the point he failed, but when it came to aspects like this, the speed that Ian¡¯s mind raced at was perfect. However, just when Ian was rejoicing while looking at the rewards he obtained, unexpected system messages additionally popped up in front of his eyes. Ring-! The total amount of quest points that ¡®Ian¡¯ has obtained from fulfilling the hidden assignment of the ¡®Beginnings of the Devil III (Hidden) (Connected)¡¯ Quest is 19,784K.Points can be exchanged for ¡®Special Abilities¡¯, or even ¡®Items¡¯.Points can be exchanged for stats such as ¡®Devil Energy¡¯, ¡®Devil Energy Activation Rate¡¯, ¡®Resistance Magic¡¯, and more, the exchange rate applying differently depending on the stat.Points can be exchanged for boxes such as ¡®Magic Stone Box¡¯, ¡®Devildom Weapon Box¡¯, ¡®Devildom Armour Box¡¯, ¡®Devildom Accessory Box¡¯, and more, the amount of points consumed per item applying differently. Ian wore a dumbfounded expression as he began to calmly read through the messages. [1] ride a bus = to get carried CH 244 Chapter 244: The Secret of the Balrog (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The Lord¡¯s office of the Pyro Domain. Inside of the office, Harin and Fiolan were enjoying a delicious brunch as they chatted. Because the afternoon battle of the public order team of the Pyro Domain started at about 12 o¡¯clock, it had become a daily routine for the two to always meet at the Lord¡¯s office at around 10:30 and have brunch. ¡°Unni[1], how is the ¡®foie gras¡¯ that I made today? It was my first time making it, so I¡¯m a little worried, but¡­ When I tried a piece earlier, it seemed that it didn¡¯t taste too bad.¡± Foie gras was a luxurious dish from France using goose liver, which had a clean taste to it. In the real world, goose liver was an incredibly expensive ingredient that cost close to 500 thousand to 1 million Won[2] per kilogram. However, in Kailan, goose liver was incredibly affordable. Ian, who started at lv 1 with stats that were around what a lv 20 would have, skipped over this, but if it was a normal user, there was the ¡®Hunting Ground of the Beginner¡¯ that had to be gone through. This was because it was an ingredient that ¡®Giant Geese¡¯, which appeared there, dropped at a low rate. The chance of it dropping wasn¡¯t that high, but because there were just so many beginners that hunted the geese, there was an overflowing supply of them, and thanks to that, it was able to become a cheap dish. The two eyes of Fiolan, who took a bite of the lustrous foie gras, rounded. ¡°Wow! It¡¯s so delicious!¡± It seemed like she was saying the truth, as she stomped her feet repeatedly while she was at a loss, and Harin, who was moved by her extreme reaction, clapped her hands as she also became happy. ¡°Right? It¡¯s delicious, right?¡± ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m telling you, it¡¯s seriously delicious! Our Harin¡¯s cooking skills are seriously improving rapidly day by day.¡± ¡°Those aren¡¯t just empty words to make me feel better, right?¡± Fiolan cut off another piece with her fork and ate is as she shook her head fiercely. ¡°I¡¯m being serious! You would know if you ate it as well, no? Why are you especially lacking confidence today?¡± At those words, Harin responded with a crestfallen voice. ¡°Well¡­ This Carwin punk said that it was like the liver that comes with Korean sausages they sell at snack bars on the street¡­¡± Fiolan responded with a dumbfounded expression. ¡°Exactly what kind of snack bar-level Korean sausage comes served with liver that tastes like this? I want to know as well.¡± ¡°I know, right? My point exactly!¡± Anyhow, Harin, who regained her confidence thanks to Fiolan, mumbled internally. ¡®So, it definitely tastes good, right? I¡¯ll have to buy ingredients in the afternoon later and make it myself in the real world. Since Jinsung said that he was going to eat dinner exactly at 8 o¡¯clock today as well¡­¡¯ One of Harin¡¯s biggest interests lately was to buy luxurious ingredients in the real world and cook to her heart¡¯s content. Because the restaurant in the Pyro Domain that she ran was doing incredibly well business-wise, she was obtaining quite a profit. Due to that, even expensive ingredients weren¡¯t that big of a burden. Harin, who was excited over the thought of having a luxurious dinner with Jinsung, hummed as she began to eat her portion of the foie gras. However, just then, the sound of the door opening could be heard from behind the two people. Creak-. At that, the two people¡¯s heads automatically turned in that direction. ¡°What¡¯s this noise, unni? Was there someone that was supposed to come?¡± At Harin¡¯s question, Fiolan shook her head. ¡°No, I don¡¯t think so? Carwin said that he would log in on time at 12 o¡¯clock as well. There shouldn¡¯t be anybody coming.¡± And in the corner, where the two people¡¯s gazes remained on, one woman appeared. ¡°Excuse¡­ Me¡­ Hello.¡± Both Harin and Fiolan couldn¡¯t help but wear dumbfounded expressions. This was because she was someone that the two people were completely seeing for the first time. Fiolan asked with a stiff expression. ¡°Yes, hello. But, how did you get here?¡± At her question, the woman wore a bashful expression as she answered. ¡°Are you Fiolan, the Lord of the Pyro Domain?¡± Fiolan coolly nodded her head as she replied. ¡°Yes, why?¡± And at her next words, Harin and Fiolan couldn¡¯t help but be even more surprised. ¡°Ah, so I have come to the right place. As the Lord¡¯s castle was so big, it seems I had wandered a bit. Nice to meet you, I am Levya.¡± She was none other than ¡®Levya¡¯, the 1st place user of the official Priest-class rankings, who was hidden up until now. * * * ¡°Devil Energy goes up by 3 every 10 thousand points, while Devil Energy Activation Rate goes up 0.1% every 1 million points, huh¡­¡± The amount of points that Ian had obtained after finishing his quest was 19,784K points, or in other words, about 1.98 billion. The things that you could exchange these points for were not just all sorts of stats, but items as well, however, in the end, Ian decided to raise his stats. ¡®It¡¯s not a good choice to pick a random box that doesn¡¯t even say exactly what kind of items you could be given.¡¯ Ian didn¡¯t really like anything that was outside of his prediction to happen while he was gaming. Ian, who made up his mind with certainty looked carefully at the system window. And the stats that you could obtain with that value were each like this. Devildom Stats Devil Energy ¨C Devil Energy 3:10,000 P Devil Energy Activation Rate ¨C Activation Rate 0.1%:1,000,000 P Resistance Magic ¨C Resistance Magic 0.1%:2,500,000 P General Stats Combat Stats ¨C All Stats 1:400,000 P Class Stats ¨C All Stats 1:800,000 P And of course, Ian began to compare the effectiveness of each of them. ¡®Hmm¡­ firstly, assuming that I¡¯ll invest all my points into one thing, will I be able to raise my Devil Energy by about 6 thousand, my Devil Energy Activation Rate by about 2%, or my Resistance Magic by about 1%?¡¯ The effectiveness of the general stats below it wasn¡¯t that bad either, but still, Ian was thinking of mainly raising the Devildom stats. ¡®Since there are a ton of ways to raise my general stats even if isn¡¯t in the Devildom.¡¯ Ian diligently thought about which stat he needed the most right now. ¡®No matter which stat I invest in amongst the three, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll ever regret it, but the one I need the most right now is¡­!¡¯ Ian eventually decided to invest all of his points and raise his ¡®Devil Energy¡¯ stat. ¡°I will use all of my points and raise my ¡®Devil Energy¡¯ stat.¡± As he said so, a system message popped up. The total amount of points that you, User ¡®Ian¡¯, possess is 19,784K. If you use all of your points, you will be able to obtain a total of 5934 Devil Energy, and you will have 4288 points remaining.Will you proceed? (Y/N) Ian nodded his head without hesitation. ¡°Yes!¡± You have exchanged your points.Your ¡®Devil Energy¡¯ stat has increased by 5934, turning into a total of ¡¯22,764¡¯. Ian, who saw the message, wore a pleased expression. ¡®It took at least a couple weeks for me to gather about 3 thousand Devil Energy, that is.¡¯ Considering that, having obtained 6 thousand Devil Energy in a quarter of a day was tremendous. ¡®I wanted Devil Energy Activation Rate or Resistance Magic as well, but for now, filling up my Devil Energy in order to be promoted to a Noblesse-rank is first.¡¯ The biggest reason as to why Ian ultimately selected Devil Energy lied here. This was because, although Ian already had a rank of a ¡®High-ranking Devil¡¯, which was a rank that was hard to be promoted to as a Half-Devil, he wanted the next level, which was the ¡®Noblesse¡¯-rank, badly. As he had yet to properly see a Noblesse-rank Devil battle, he had no way of knowing their exact strength, but from looking at the difference in the fighting power of the devils based on their rank, he was able to at least speculate that the Noblesse were truly colossal. Anyhow, after Ian finished with his point consumption, he closed the combat result window and naturally, the quest followed through behind hit. Ring-. You have successfully cleared the whole hidden assignment.Your Fame has increased by an additional 100 thousand. And Devil King ¡®Ricardo¡¯, who had been cleaning up the battleground from afar, approached Ian. ¡°Ian¡­ You said it was, right?¡± At Ricardo¡¯s question, Ian slightly bowed his head as he answered. ¡°That¡¯s right, Ricardo.¡± Ricardo scanned over Ian once before he opened his mouth again. ¡°A Half-Devil, as well as a High-ranking Devil. To think that I would meet a human, who selected their Devildom class as the ¡®Devil Summoner¡¯ on top of that, here.¡± With an interested expression, Ricardo stared at Ian as he continued his words. ¡°But, Ian, why do you have yet to handle a magical beast when you¡¯re a Devil Summoner?¡± At that, Ian replied with a sheepish expression. ¡°It is because it¡¯s still easier to handle Familiars for now. Soon, if I end up taming a magical beast that I like, I am planning on handling one.¡± At Ian¡¯s words, Ricardo smirked as he responded. ¡°Nice, good idea. You cannot become an exceptional Devil Summoner just because you thoughtlessly handle many high-ranking magical beasts.¡± It seemed as though Ricardo was liking Ian. ¡°I am a devil that reveres power, and a king that rules over them as well .¡± Ricardo and Ian¡¯s eyes met. ¡°It is also because you are a ¡®Devil Summoner¡¯ who is walking the same path as me, but above all, I like your strength.¡± At that, Ian responded with a puzzled expression. ¡°I am not so strong. Instead, wouldn¡¯t the devils that you, Ricardo, have under you be much stronger than me?¡± Ian¡¯s question was obvious. This was because even amongst the subordinates of Ricardo, who participated in the battle just now, there were several devils that were High-ranking or higher with monster-like power. At Ian¡¯s question, Ricardo shook his head as he replied. ¡°I am not talking about such one-dimensional power. I am talking about your potential.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Ian, who momentarily hesitated as he didn¡¯t know what to say, eventually decided to ask about parts that he was curious about before he proceeded with the quest. ¡®Firstly, since it seems like his affinity towards me is quite good, I should be able to ask a couple questions at the least.¡¯ Ian opened his mouth. ¡°But, Ricardo, there¡¯s something I¡¯m curious about, so is it alright if I ask you about them?¡± Near the mouth of Ricardo, who wore a pale, poker face from the start to the end, a very light smile formed. ¡°Sure, what are you curious about?¡± Ian immediately responded. And in some ways, it was a bit of a random question. ¡°How is your Balrog that strong?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Naturally, Ricardo wore a flustered expression, and Ian¡¯s words continued. ¡°In the middle of the battle just now, I continuously watched the form of the Balrog fighting, but some parts that I couldn¡¯t really understand could be seen a little.¡± ¡°What part is that?¡± Ian answered. ¡°The Balrog is a Legendary-rank magical beast. And fundamentally looking at the stats that the Balrog has, it has a similar standard of stats as other normal Legendary-rank Familiars and magical beasts.¡± As the Balrog was not Ian¡¯s magical beast, he couldn¡¯t check its detailed stats. However, after all of the buffs were applied, as it was possible to check the Offensive Power value that was exposed on the outside by simply opening the information window, Ian had kept an eye on them beforehand. On top of that, a fragment of information on the ¡®Balrog¡¯ was written in the Illustrated Book of Magical Beasts that he had received from Iriel before he came to the Devildom, and that had become most crucial instrument as to why Ian developed a curiosity towards the Balrog. If Ian didn¡¯t normally have a hobby of experimenting and analyzing Familiars and magical beasts, he would have never even developed such a curiosity or anything like it. Ian slightly glanced at the Balrog that stood still behind the Devil King as he opened his mouth again. ¡°But your Balrog, Ricardo, has shown abilities so powerful to the point that compared to its stats, it¡¯s strange. I do not understand this part.¡± Meanwhile, Ricardo, who heard Ian¡¯s explanation, wore an expression that was once again different from earlier. If his gaze was just one that seemed like he was looking at Ian like a bit of an interesting toy, you could say he wore a bit of a surprised expression now. ¡°Oh-ho, so you¡¯re saying you¡¯ve caught onto that, huh?¡± Ricardo grinned as he wagged his finger towards the Balrog. As he did so, the Balrog, which stood behind him, approached Ricardo¡¯s side while letting out a thumping noise, and the corner of Ricardo¡¯s mouth slightly curled upwards. ¡°That¡¯s right, Ian. Like you said, although the Balrog is a Legendary-rank magical beast, he has a slightly special ability compared to the other Legendary-rank magical beasts.¡± Ian pricked his ears as he began to listen to Ricardo¡¯s words. However, just then, Ricardo suddenly lifted one of his hands as he spread it open. As he did so, a powerful Devil Energy gushed out from his clutch, and that Devil Energy was sucked into the Balrog as it began to burn a bright red. Hwa-reu-reuk-. And the Balrog, which had just been standing still with both of its eyes closed, flashed open his eyes as it suddenly began to roar. Kyaaooh-! Ian, who slightly flinched at that, looked back and forth at the Balrog and Ricardo. And Ian¡¯s gaze became fixated on the red marble that floated above Ricardo¡¯s hand. ¡°What¡­ Is this?¡± Ian waited for Ricardo¡¯s mouth to open up in order to hear an answer to his question. However, an answer to that burst out from an unexpected place. ¡°That is¡­ A Devil Spirit Orb!¡± And in that spot, Kaka sat on the shoulder of Kaizar wearing a dazed expression. [1] Unni = what a younger female would call a close, older and/or related female [2] roughly about $440-$885 USD CH 245 Chapter 245: The Secret of the Balrog (3) TL: Haku Editor: bait Magical beasts were organisms that didn¡¯t fundamentally have what was called ¡®reasoning power¡¯. Although they had spirits, as they were filled with Devil Energy, in the end, they were just organisms that just had instinct left. However, even these magical beasts, if the rank of their spirit went up, their ego, which had been eaten away by the Devil Energy, awakened little by little. Therefore, starting from ¡®High-rank¡¯ magical beasts, they gradually developed hints of emotions, while Highest-rank (Heroic-rank) magical beasts were able to ¡®think¡¯, and starting from Legendary-rank magical beasts, at the least, they had intellect that was equal to or more advanced than a young child¡¯s. And the ¡®Balrog¡¯, which was one of the Legendary-rank magical beasts, was known to have the most exceptional intellect even amongst the magical beasts of the same rank. ¡°The Balrog has an ability that allows it to handle the spirit of magical beasts that are weaker than it.¡± At Ricardo¡¯s explanation, Ian asked back. ¡°An ability¡­ that allows it to handle spirits?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. They don¡¯t just call the Balrog ¡®The King of Magical Beasts¡¯ for no reason. The only being that can control magical beasts besides Devil Summoners are Balrogs.¡± The reason Balrogs were also called by another name, the ¡®King of the Magical Beasts¡¯. Ricardo was talking about that. ¡°Is that related to the reason why the Balrogs are more powerful than other Legendary-rank magical beasts?¡± Ricardo nodded his head. ¡°Of course.¡± After pausing for a moment to take a breath, he continued his words. ¡°The reason that the Balrog can handle the spirit of other magical beasts is because it has an inherent ability called ¡®Devil Energy Sharing¡¯.¡± Ian was quietly listening to Ricardo¡¯s words, and before he realized it, Kaka, who flew over to his shoulder and sat on it, was also focusing on Ricardo¡¯s story. ¡°Kaka, it seems like this is knowledge that you don¡¯t even know either, huh?¡± Kaka nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right, owner. Since even if it¡¯s me, it¡¯s not like I know everything there is to know about the world.¡± Ricardo, who heard the two¡¯s brief conversation, smirked as he continued his words. ¡°Anyhow, continuing with the explanation, this ability called Devil Energy Sharing is an ability that allows a Balrog to inject their own Devil Energy into a target, as well as borrow the Devil Energy of their targets. And if the target that they¡¯ve shared Devil Energy with or received Devil Energy from is weaker than them, they are able to control it.¡± And shortly after, the Devil Spirit Orb that was in Ricardo¡¯s hand floated up in the air. As it did so, surprisingly, the Balrog began to be controlled according to Ricardo¡¯s will. ¡°Exactly like this, that is.¡± Ian spoke with a puzzled expression. ¡°Weren¡¯t you just explaining that ability as the Balrog¡¯s ability? How is it that you are able to use that ability?¡± This time, Kaka suddenly jumped in out of nowhere and responded to Ian¡¯s question. ¡°That¡¯s because of that Devil Spirit Orb over there, owner.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°That Devil Spirit Orb is an item that allows you to put one inherent ability into it, and it looks like the inherent ability of the Balrog, ¡®Devil Energy Sharing¡¯, is contained inside of that item.¡± At Kaka¡¯s explanation, the corners of Ricardo¡¯s mouth slightly curled upwards. ¡°Indeed¡­ I see that you¡¯re a ¡®Karga Phantom¡¯, a species from the legends. I didn¡¯t think there would be someone who knew about Devil Spirit Orbs.¡± However, Ian didn¡¯t resolve all of his questions yet. ¡°So, how exactly does that inherent ability called Devil Energy Sharing make a Balrog strong?¡± Ricardo¡¯s explanation continued. ¡°It¡¯s because the more magical beasts a Balrog takes care of, the greater the amount of Devil Energy that it can borrow, and it can temporarily use that enormous strength in battle.¡± It was only then that Ian began to understand. ¡®So, he¡¯s saying that this creature pulled in the strength of the magical beasts that were nearby and used it, right? Hmm¡­ so that¡¯s why it was that strong.¡¯ However, Ricardo¡¯s words did not end there. ¡°On top of that, the reason why my Balrog is especially strong is because I lent my Devil Energy to it through the ability of the Devil Energy Sharing.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Even after that, Ian asked about a couple more things he was curious of to Ricardo, and Ricardo responded with quite a lot of detail to his questions. ¡°Thank you, Ricardo. Thanks to you, I received a large amount of help.¡± ¡°Not at all. It¡¯s only fair that I respond this much when you¡¯ve significantly helped me in guarding my castle.¡± Ian, who was finished with the conversation, slightly glanced at the Balrog that stood while boasting an imposing appearance next to Ricardo. ¡®Ah¡­ I want one.¡¯ Ian¡¯s gaze turned towards Ricardo again. ¡°Ricardo, would it be alright if I asked you just one more last thing?¡± Ricardo responded. ¡°What is it?¡± Ian slightly glanced at the Balrog as he replied. ¡°What must you do in order to obtain a Balrog?¡± Ricardo, whose eyes slightly grew as soon as he heard those words, soon let out a loud laugh. ¡°Keu-ha-hat, are you saying that you want a Balrog?¡± Ian replied with a slightly stiff voice. ¡°That, that¡¯s right.¡± Ricardo laughed uncontrollably as he slowly responded. ¡°What a truly entertaining character you are. Sure, the Balrog¡­ it¡¯s certainly the dream of Devil Summoners to handle a Balrog as a magical beast familiar.¡± He shook his head as he continued his words. ¡°However, the Balrog is not a stage that you can dream of yet. You are a rookie that was recently introduced to the path of the Devil Summoner, no?¡± Ian, who was at a loss for words, scratched the back of his head. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± ¡°Even if you were to go to ¡®that place¡¯ in order to capture a Balrog, you would instead just be eaten up.¡± ¡°Sorry?¡± Ricardo grinned as he replied. ¡°I¡¯m saying that your spirit would be eaten away by the Balrog.¡± ¡°Tsk¡­¡± Fundamentally, to have your spirit eaten away meant the same as becoming a Balrog¡¯s puppet. Of course, there was no way of knowing what would happen to Ian¡¯s spirit if it was eaten away, but he didn¡¯t really want to find out. Ian licked his lips out what seemed to be disappointment. ¡°Do you think you could at least tell me where ¡®that place¡¯ is?¡± Ricardo responded frankly as if there was no problem in answering that. ¡°If you go to the ¡®Grave of the Forgotten Spirit¡¯ in Zone 15 of the Devildom, you will be able to meet them without much difficulty.¡± * * * The Lord¡¯s office of the Pyro Domain. The three women sat in a circle around the round table in the middle of the office, and a tension, which the reason for was unclear, was hanging around that round table. Harin asked Levya in a cold tone. ¡°So¡­ you¡¯re saying that you¡¯ve come here in order to meet with Ian, right?¡± Levya honestly nodded her head. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m currently in the middle of an important quest, but I need him in order to continue with this quest.¡± Harin looked up and down at Levya. ¡®Hmm, why is he getting entangled with such a pretty girl like this again, this Jinsung punk!¡¯ Harin was currently in a foul mood. As a woman, whom she was seeing for the first time, was looking for Ian with the excuse(?) of a quest, there was no way that she would be in a good mood. However, she was not really anxious about the fact that she was pretty. This was because the criteria that Ian was looking for from a girl was different from normal guys. ¡®Now that I think about it, the fact that she¡¯s pretty doesn¡¯t really matter, but if it is a user that¡¯s ranked 1st place in the Priest rankings, doesn¡¯t that mean that she¡¯s incomparably better at gaming than I am?¡¯ Harin was troubled about the fact that a woman, who was so good at gaming to the point that she was even able to obtain the title of being 1st place in a class¡¯s rankings, was looking for Ian. With a slightly trembling(?) voice, Harin opened her mouth again. ¡°Would it be alright if I knew what kind of quest it was as well?¡± At Harin¡¯s question, rather, Fiolan, who was next to her, was startled. ¡®Hmm¡­ this could be a sensitive question for rankers.¡¯ Fiolan was having completely different thoughts from Harin. ¡®The fact that the first place user of the Priest rankings, who was covered in a veil of mystery until now, came looking for our guild on her own two feet, if it¡¯s possible to scout her, she would become an incredible addition to our fighting power, but it¡¯s not like Harin is putting her in a foul mood, right?¡¯ However, contradictory to Fiolan¡¯s concerns, Levya openly nodded her head as she replied. ¡°Yes, well, there¡¯s nothing difficult about that.¡± And in the next moment, in front of the eyes of Hari and Fiolan, an unexpected system message popped up. Ring-. You have been shared ¡®The Calling of Sandyena, God of the Earth (Hidden) (Connected)¡¯ quest through User ¡®Levya¡¯.Will you accept the quest sharing? (Y/N) * * * After Ian obtained information about Devil King Ricardo and the Balrog, he immediately proceeded with the quest. He had delivered the letter that he received from Seraphim to Ricardo. And Ricardo, who read that letter, wore an incredibly grave expression. ¡°Hmm, so such incidents had occurred. That¡¯s why the destructive devils are suddenly being strong-minded.¡± Ricardo began to briefly explain the situation of the Devildom to Ian. ¡°Largely, there are two forces that exist within this Devildom.¡± If his explanation was roughly summarized, it was like this. Largely, the devils that made up the Devildom were divided into the moderates and the hardliners.The common devils that made up 50% of the devil population were moderates, while about 10% of the population were neutral, and the destructive devils that made up the remaining 40% of the population were affiliated with the hardliners.The destructive devils wish to go against the reason of the dimension and plunder the other dimensions by invading them, and the common devils opposed that.Meanwhile, a couple of the Devil Kings, who were affiliated with the destructive devils, recently succeeded in getting it promoted to a higher grade, and due to those devils, an indication of a dimensional war was beginning to become plausible again. Ian asked about the parts that he was curious about. ¡°Then why is it that the destructive devils are trying to proceed with a dimensional war?¡± Ricardo answered. ¡°The reason for that is simple. It is because whenever devils can make a group of spirits go extinct, they are able to obtain a portion of the strength that the spirits had as Devil Energy. They want to raid other dimensions that are weaker in comparison to the Devildom to become stronger a little more easily and quickly.¡± Ian, who understood Ricardo¡¯s words, nodded his head. However, as this was the case, another question formed. ¡°Hmm¡­ then what¡¯s the reason for the moderates to oppose that?¡± Ricardo responded simply. ¡°That¡¯s because that is an act that goes against the providence of the God.¡± ¡°Sorry?¡± ¡°In the end, if the Devildom attacks other dimensions and takes them in as their colony, they can¡¯t help but become enemies of the public towards the tons of other dimensions out there. If that is the case, then the existence of the Devildom will become dangerous instead, that is.¡± Ian rubbed his chin as he spoke. ¡°Hmm¡­ then the destructive devils must have taken a stance where they believe that they are confident enough to defeat the other dimensions even if they were to form an alliance against them.¡± ¡°That¡¯s exactly it.¡± Through this conversation, Ian was able to obtain a decent understanding about the outlook of the world of the Devildom. ¡®As expected, it¡¯s just like the devils to regard power as the greatest value.¡¯ Ian, who managed to organize his thoughts, slowly opened his mouth again. It was now time for him to accept the next connected quest. ¡°Then what must I do now in order to stop them from invading the human world now?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Ricardo, who momentarily paused, wore a bitter smile as he responded. ¡°Hmm¡­ unfortunately, the way to stop them has now disappeared.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°That¡¯s because the Evil Dragon Khalifa, whom I had sealed up deep inside of the dark abyss a thousand years ago, has awoken.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Ian, who didn¡¯t quite understand what he meant, stared at Ricardo without a word, and he finished his explanation. ¡°Originally, in order to open the dimensional door to invade the human world, at least five Devil Kings, who are powerful enough to be ranked within the top 10 of the grading system, must combine their strength.¡± After pausing for a moment, he continued his words. ¡°However, currently, amongst the Devil Kings that rank within the top 10 of the grading system, there is only a total of 4 destructive devils.¡± Ricardo was also ranked 7th in the grading system, and he was one of the devils that had enough power to qualify. ¡°That¡¯s why they were unable to open the dimensional door as they liked up until this point. However, now, a being that can fill up the last remaining spot has been released from the seal.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± At those words, Ian couldn¡¯t help but be greatly surprised. ¡®Evil Dragon Khalifa was that powerful of a being?¡¯ Ian had received the quest related to Devil King Khalifa before he had even reached lv 100. Because of that, naturally, he had slightly looked down on Khalifa. ¡®Euh¡­ what do I do then if the quest that Iriel gave me is to kill Khalifa or something?¡¯ Towards Ian, whose mind had become a mess, Ricardo continued his words. ¡°Anyhow, now, the method in order to stop the destructive devils from invading the human world has even disappeared for us as well.¡± ¡°I¡­ See.¡± And as Ricardo¡¯s words ended, a system message popped up. Ring-. As you have not been able to satisfy a specific requirement, the activation of the ¡®Beginnings of the Devil III (Hidden)(Connected)¡¯ Quest has been cancelled.You have completed the ¡®Beginnings of the Devil III (Hidden) (Connected)¡¯ Quest.Clear Rank: AYou have received 250 thousand Fame. Ian wore a bitter expression. ¡®Damn it, why did that Khalifan or whatever punk suddenly awaken? I need to clear all of the connected quests in order for the final reward to be enormous¡­¡¯ However, in front of the eyes of Ian, who was licking his lips, a new message additionally popped up. As a specific requirement has been satisfied, a new hidden quest has been activated. CH 246 Chapter 246: The Beginning of the Devildom Monster Wave (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda A new quest window popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring. Destruction of the Devil Summoning Stone (Hidden) Seraphim knew about the fact that the destructive devils were trying to release Evil Dragon Khalifa from its seal. The destructive devils were planning on opening the dimensional door that would allow them to invade the human world using Evil Dragon Khalifa, and Seraphim was trying to stop that at all costs. That¡¯s why he was trying to seek Devil King Ricardo¡¯s help. However, before his letter reached Ricardo, Evil Dragon Khalifa had awoken. Now, there was no way to go back. The destructive devils obtained the power they needed, and ten days from now, they would succeed in opening the six dimensional doors that would lead to the human world. The destructive devils will be opening the dimensional doors through a medium called ¡®Devil Summoning Stones¡¯, which were in Zone 50 of the Devildom. Before ten days pass, destroy at least one Devil Summoning Stone and minimize the invasion of the destructive devils. Quest Difficulty Level: SSS Quest Condition: Completion of the ¡®Beginnings of the Devil III (Hidden) (Connected)¡¯ Quest./Release of the seal of Evil Dragon Khalifa. Time Limit: 10 days Reward: High-grade Magic Stone x50/Blessing of the Devil x10 *This quest cannot be rejected. The eyes of Ian, who read through the quest with an interested expression, was fixated on the reward tab. ¡®What the hell, the reward is High-grade Magic Stones? On top of that, 50 of them?¡¯ It was an incredible reward that was enough to make him doubt his own two eyes. High-grade Magic Stones were even exactly what Ian needed right now. ¡®As a matter of fact, soon, my Judgment of the Spirit King item will reach its 2nd transcendence!¡¯ The 2nd transcendence was talking about an item that had reached +10 fortification. Currently, all of Ian¡¯s equipment were in a state where they had reached +8~+9 fortification. He had yet to succeed in reaching 2nd transcendence with anything, but he had a countless amount of Intermediate-grade Magic Stones that had piled up through hunting this whole time. ¡®Let¡¯s see here¡­ How many Intermediate-rank Magic Stones do I have? This time, there¡¯s 450, and since I¡¯ve left about 300 in the village, it¡¯s about a total of 750 it seems.¡¯ Even if the fortification rate was so poor that it made him want to cry, if he had 750 Intermediate-grade Magic Stones, it looked like it would definitely be possible to reach 2nd transcendence in about two or so equipment. Then he could immediately fortify them more with the High-grade Magic Stones. ¡®Keu, I will clear this no matter what!¡¯ Before the Devildom monster wave started, Ian, who formed an assignment that he needed to complete unconditionally, began to get fired up. The tremendous difficulty level of an SSS-rank didn¡¯t even catch his eye, and what was worse was that it was to the point that he had even momentarily forgotten about the Balrog, which was the Legendary-rank magical beast that he had been completely fixated on just a moment ago. While looking at Ian, who clenched both of his fists tightly as he fired up his fighting spirit, the corners of Ricardo¡¯s mouth slightly curled upwards. ¡°Huhu, do you think you can do it, Ian?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°I can do it. No, I must do it.¡± Ricardo, who mistook Ian¡¯s passion towards magic stones as a passion to stop the dimensional war, wore a pleased smile. ¡°Good, your attitude is great.¡± ¡°Thank you!¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s get a move on right away. Since there¡¯s not a lot of time left.¡± At those words, Ian¡¯s expression became even brighter. ¡®If this monstrously powerful Devil King is going to be moving with me, then this SSS-rank difficulty level quest will probably be a piece of cake.¡¯ However, there was a part that Ian had thought of incorrectly. The fact that the difficulty level of the quest was a triple S-rank meant that it was a rank that was calculated after taking into account all of the circumstances of the quest. * * * The main announcement window of the official Kailan homepage as well as the official community. On that bulletin board, where not one post had been uploaded onto it ever since the Devildom opened up, a new post had popped up for the first time in a while. And the content of it was enough to excite the users. Although they already knew about the fact that the monster wave was going to start, detailed content on it was just vaguely known, but in this announcement, it was described in incredible detail. The content of the announcement was as followed. Episode I The Invasion of the Devildom At noon on October 1st, which is exactly a week away from now, a dimensional door from the Devildom will open. Currently, the number of expected dimensional doors is a total of 6, and 3 each will open in the northern continent and the central continent as the monster wave begins. It is expected that the monster wave will proceed for the whole month of October with a total of 10 levels, and if you do not win against the monster wave, the central continent and the northern continent will be converted into a part of the Devildom. The Schedule of the Devildom Monster Wave 1st Wave Term: 10/1-10/15 Difficulty Level: Phase 1-3 Appearing Monsters: Low-rank ~ Intermediate-rank magical beasts/Low-rank devils 2nd Wave Term: 10/16-10/25 Difficulty Level: Phase 4-7 Appearing Monsters: Low-rank ~ Intermediate-rank magical beasts/Low-rank ~ Common devils 3rd Wave Term: 10/26-10/30 Difficulty Level: Phase 8-10 Appearing Monsters: Intermediate-rank ~ Legendary-rank magical beasts/(Unknown) *During the duration of the episode, starting from 9:00 AM everyday, monsters will be summoned a total of 5 times with an interval of 3 hours in between. *If you go to the capital of each empire starting from 6:00 PM today (9/24), you may register for the Devildom punitive force. (Level limit: 100) *If you register for the punitive forces, you cannot leave the punitive force of each empire for the duration that you have registered for. *If you register for the punitive forces, you will receive a base pay of at least 10 thousand gold everyday, and directly proportionate to the contribution value you have collected, you can additionally obtain an enormous benefit. *The current expected area for the summoning of the dimensional door St. Ville Plateau (The middle area of the central continent) Yoohyun, who checked the announcement of the official homepage as he ate his lunch, rounded his eyes. This was because in the spot where the expected area for the summoning of the dimensional door was written, an area name that he had seen often before caught his eye. ¡°What the hell? It¡¯s¡­ St. Ville Plateau?¡± St. Ville Plateau was a field that was incredibly close to the Pyro Domain, which was the domain of the Lotus Guild. On top of that, because that place had a topography where it was surrounded by a mountain range behind it, it was certain that the magical beasts that would be summoned there would pour out towards the Pyro Domain no matter what. Yoohyun gulped audibly. ¡°This¡­ should I be happy about this or not?¡± For Yoohyun, this was a situation that he couldn¡¯t really judge. ¡®If in the case that it¡¯s a wave level that can be stopped with the Defensive Power of our Pyro Domain, then this is truly an incredible chance!¡¯ However, if it is the opposite case, the Pyro Domain, which they had grown with great effort up until now, would become completely devastated. Yoohyun read through the hundreds of comments that were already attached to the bottom of the announcement post. Wow, only now do they launch a proper announcement.No kidding. But, to be honest, up until now, the operation was too negligent. This is seriously my first time seeing a game company that gives this little announcements while updating new content.Hul, isn¡¯t that base pay of 50 thousand gold too cheap?Person above, aren¡¯t you just trying too hard to luck out? If it¡¯s 10 thousand gold, even if you were to convert it with the current market price, it¡¯s about 12 thousand Won[1] in cash, so if it¡¯s just where 12 thousand Won rolls in just from registering, isn¡¯t it a very good profit?Is it¡­? But if a user that¡¯s over lv 100 plays for a day, they could very easily make over ten thousand gold, so¡­Well, then, the additional benefit must be pretty good. Have you ever seen Kailan disappoint us?Well, that is true. Yoohyun looked through the comments, but he wasn¡¯t really able to find a comment that was useful. ¡°Hmm¡­ It looks like I¡¯ll have to log on for now and go to the Pyro Domain first.¡± Yoohyun, who hadn¡¯t visited the domain for a while as he had recently been doing a personal quest, thought that he should meet up with Fiolan and somewhat take countermeasures against the monster wave. ¡°Speaking of which, Jinsung, this punk, exactly when is he going to come out of the Devildom?¡± Yoohyun, who roughly cleaned his dishes after eating, hurriedly logged onto Kailan. * * * Thump-. ¡°Hu-uff, hu-uff.¡± After lodging his spear into the ground and supporting his body with it, Ian slowly began to catch his breath. ¡®Argh, how can such an intense quest exist?¡¯ It had been three days since he had started to proceed with the Destruction of the Devil Summoning Stone Quest. Ian was confident that he had experienced all of the quite exhausting quests, however, even he felt that this quest¡¯s difficulty level was tremendous. ¡®No, is it a little off to call it the difficulty level?¡¯ To be more exact, rather than the actual difficulty level of the quest being high, the problem was that the proceeding pace of the quest was so fast to the point it was beyond his imagination. Ricardo, who had the greatest armed force level even amongst the Devil Kings, didn¡¯t cut Ian any slack, and he had broken through the gateways of the Devildom at a truly ignorant speed. This could be seen even from the fact that within just three days of the quest starting, he had succeeded in breaking through the gateway of Zone 80 to Zone 50. ¡®Damn it, wouldn¡¯t it be nicer if he just let me ride his Balrog¡¯s back as well?¡¯ It wasn¡¯t even like Ricardo opened up the paths so that it would be easier for Ian to break through them. Using his authority as the Devil King, he reached Zone 50 much sooner than Ian, and the only thing that he had helped Ian with was just the fact that he had cleared the two gateways that were in Zone 60 and Zone 70 beforehand. ¡®Well, it¡¯s possible that I should be thankful for even this, but¡­¡¯ Either way, Ian, who had broken through to Zone 50 at an ignorantly fast speed that was spartan-like, was able to meet up with Ricardo who was waiting for him in front of the portal of Zone 50. ¡°Slow, too slow. You seriously barely arrived just on time.¡± At Ricardo¡¯s scolding, Ian caught his breath as he responded slowly. ¡°Huff, huff, still, I was not late!¡± Ricardo nodded his head. ¡°Well, it is possible that I had made too unreasonable of a demand to you when you just make the High-ranking Devil standard¡­¡± Hearing what Ricardo said to himself, Ian gritted his teeth. ¡®Euh, if you know that, then you shouldn¡¯t have ditched me!¡¯ It didn¡¯t matter how Ian sincerely felt, as the quest continued to proceed separate from that. The quest moved urgently without even a moment of rest. ¡°Alright, then you will now move in that direction with me. It looks like it would be best to destroy that Devil Summoning Stone in the southern area over there first.¡± As soon as Ricardo finished speaking, he began to walk in the direction that he had pointed to, however, Ian momentarily called him and stopped him. ¡°Wait, Ricardo.¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Ian?¡± The reason why Ian had called over and stopped Ricardo was not just because he wanted to rest a moment, but to be honest, it was because of another reason. ¡°By any chance, is there a way of finding out where the six different Devil Summoning Stones will summon a dimensional door in the human world?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± The reason why Ian had asked this was because of the announcement matter, which he had checked on the official homepage. ¡®St. Ville Plateau! I need to stop the dimensional door that opens there no matter what.¡¯ Ian, who had encountered the most magical beasts and devils in the Devildom, knew just well how powerful the monster waves that had a difficulty level of at least 5 phases or higher could be. ¡®Although it may be possible that we can make something work for up to about phase 6, once High-ranking Devils start to appear, no matter how sturdy the Pyro Domain is, it will become completely devastated.¡¯ As two more dimensional doors would additionally open up in areas of the central continent anyways, the Pyro Domain, which was located in the middle of it couldn¡¯t help but face the Devildom troops no matter what. However, there was just a need to stop from becoming the first target. ¡®And if I do have a little bit more flexibility, it would be nice if I could even stop about one more dimensional door that was to open in the northern continent¡­¡¯ This was a choice made not just for the Lotus Guild, but also for all of the guilds that had a domain in the northern continent. In the central continent, the users themselves were powerful, and due to the war between the empires, which had proceeded for quite a long time, the Defensive Power of the domains were solid. Meanwhile, this was because it was certain that the central continent, which had been left alone peacefully for a long time, was currently in a completely defenseless state. And Ricardo, who heard Ian¡¯s question, thought about it for a moment before he slowly responded. ¡°Hmm¡­ There¡¯s no way that I know the name of the places in the human world, but if you were to show me a map, I feel like I will be able to point out the approximate location. Since it should be the same locations as a thousand years ago, that is.¡± At Ricardo¡¯s words, Ian¡¯s expression slightly brightened. [1] 12,000 Won = ~$10-11 USD CH 247 Chapter 247: The Beginning of the Devildom Monster Wave (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ring-. You have succeeded in freeing Great Magician Solare.You have successfully completed the ¡®Power of the Sun God II (Hidden) (Connected)¡¯ Quest.Your Fame has increased by 300 thousand.From now on, Great Magician Solare will begin to follow you around.If you satisfy the specific conditions (Over 5 million Fame and at least a duke title), then you will be able to take in Solare as a retainer. While reading the system messages that popped up, Remir wore a pleased expression. ¡®Finally! With this, I¡¯ve overcome at least one crisis.¡¯ The difficulty level of this quest, where she needed to free Solare in order to obtain the Gem of the Sun God, was truly atrocious. Considering that it was a quest with a difficulty level of a triple S-rank, the time that it took her to clear it was quite short, however, just like having to walk on top of thin ice, it was a quest where she needed to narrowly overcome very risky moments. ¡®I was also lucky.¡¯ There were critical situations in between where it was almost game over for her, but Remir had succeeded in safely clearing the quest, and now she stood staring at a white-headed magician that appeared in front of her. ¡°Are you Solare?¡± At Remir¡¯s question, Solare, who had his eyes closed, slowly opened his eyes. ¡°That¡¯s right. My name is Solare.¡± Solare, who had responded, carefully studied Remir. And shortly after, he opened his mouth with a surprised expression. ¡°Egad! Please forgive my rudeness.¡± As Solare was startled and bowed his head, Remir wore a puzzled expression and asked. ¡°What¡¯s the problem?¡± Solare responded. ¡°I didn¡¯t recognize the envoy of the Sun God and have acted rudely.¡± Remir, who only then understood Solare¡¯s reaction, waved her hands as she responded. ¡°No, there¡¯s no reason for you to be like that.¡± And at that moment, the two people¡¯s conversation began to proceed regardless of Remir¡¯s will. From the main system¡¯s side, the moment that a new quest was activated, it had begun to control Remir¡¯s character. ¡®Hmm, I always have this feeling, but seriously, it¡¯s somewhat peculiar.¡¯ Remir began to contemplate the conversation. ¡°Huh-huh, for the envoy of the Sun God to have appeared in front of me, it must be because a sign of the dimensional war occurring again was visible.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, Solare. Your strength is needed, which is why I¡¯ve come looking for you here.¡± And for roughly about 5 minutes, the two people¡¯s conversation continued. The content of it was mainly about the fact that the dimensional war was about to start and an explanation to Solare about the quest that Remir had proceeded through up until now. ¡°As expected¡­ it seems the destructive devils have not yet been able to throw away that ambition.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. And soon now, the dimensional doors will probably open.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Solare, who let out a low groan, suddenly gathered both of his hands together as he closed his eyes. As he did so, along with a white light that shone around his hands, a wave of energy began to rise. Whoong-! And shortly after, Solare, who opened his eyes again, recited with a low voice. ¡°Indeed! I feel the energy of the ¡®Devil Summoning Stones¡¯ again.¡± ¡°By Devil Summoning Stones, you mean¡­?¡± ¡°The medium that opens the dimensional doors, they have begun to operate again.¡± ¡°Then what must we do? Please help us, Solare.¡± ¡°I failed a thousand years ago, but as we know about their ambitions beforehand like this, we must reduce the number of dimensional doors as much as possible.¡± ¡°Is there something for me to help out with?¡± Solare slowly nodded his head as he closed his eyes again. From his wrinkly forehead, he started to sweat profusely as if it was raining, and shortly after, the white light that was wrapped around his hand began to embroider the air in thick clouds. ¡°Heu-ab!¡± Whiiing-! Along with Solare¡¯s shout of concentration that rang out in the silence, a giant portal opened up in front of the two people. And Remir¡¯s character, which had been released from the control, returned into her control again. Remir quickly asked Solare. ¡°What is this portal?¡± Solare responded. ¡°This is the portal that will lead us to Zone 50 of the Devildom, the place where the six Devil Summoning Stones are summoned.¡± Remir, who heard Solare¡¯s words, was startled. ¡®What the hell? We¡¯re only in Zone 80 here right now, but this is a portal that will transport us to Zone 50 at once?¡¯ Remir, who couldn¡¯t even make a guess as to how the difficulty level of Zone 50 would be, momentarily contemplated. However, there was no reason for her to reject this offer anywhere. ¡®Well, even if the monsters are stronger, how much stronger could they really be? At most, only about High-ranking magical beasts will probably appear.¡¯ And as she also had ¡®Solare¡¯, whose level she couldn¡¯t even estimate, as a strong reinforcement, Remir immediately nodded her head. ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s get moving right away.¡± And as this was the case, she remembered the existence of Ian, who had always proceeded through the maps one step ahead of her. ¡®If I go through this portal, then I should for sure be able to get ahead of that punk now, right?¡¯ The corners of the mouth of Remir, whose mood went up a little at that thought, slightly curled upwards, and Solare nodded his head as he slowly moved his feet. ¡°I will go in first, and you, the ¡®Envoy of the Sun God¡¯, please follow behind me.¡± ¡°Yes, I will do that.¡± As soon as he heard Remir¡¯s response, Solare disappeared into the portal instantly, and Remir also followed behind him without hesitation. * * * ¡°Hmm, so you¡¯re saying let¡¯s destroy the Devil Summoning Stones in these two areas here, right?¡± Towards Ricardo, who spoke while pointing to the map with his finger, Ian nodded his head. ¡°Yes, I think we just need to do as you said.¡± At that, Ricardo, who looked around at the fighting power as he thought about it, pointed to one side of the map as he continued his words. ¡°I¡¯ll destroy the devil stone that¡¯s over here, so you go there.¡± ¡°Huuh?¡± Ricardo¡¯s words couldn¡¯t help but make Ian become flustered. ¡®No, weren¡¯t we going to be moving together?¡¯ Ricardo had told him that the magical beast guarding the dimensional devil stone was a Heroic-rank magical beast that was close to lv 400. On top of that, even with just the lv 300 High-rank magical beasts that guarded the surrounding, there were apparently at least ten of them, so as he told Ian to take care of one area on his own, he was stunned. ¡°Why are you fooling around the stump? There¡¯s not much time left.¡± However, for this once, Ian¡¯s feet didn¡¯t move so easily. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be best if I move with you, Ricardo?¡± However, Ian¡¯s appeal still didn¡¯t work. ¡°If we move like that, we will never be able to stop the two spots. I¡¯m telling you, there¡¯s not enough time.¡± At those words, in the end, Ian couldn¡¯t help but nod his head. ¡°Then¡­ I guess it can¡¯t be helped.¡± * * * You have entered the ¡®Unchanging Dark Abyss¡¯.You are the first to discover the ¡®Unchanging Dark Abyss¡¯ dungeon.For the next 7 days, all of the EXP you obtain will double.You have obtained 100 thousand Fame. The two fists of Remir, who saw the messages that popped up, automatically clenched. ¡®Alright! Have I finally gotten ahead?¡¯ Ever since the Devildom opened up, Remir¡¯s pride was hurt from the sorrow of always being behind one step. At the satisfaction that she had finally gotten ahead of Ian, her mood automatically got better. And towards her, while she was like this, Solare spoke. ¡°This is a place that is made up of a total of 3 floors, Remir.¡± ¡°I see. Then is the Devil Summoning Stone on the 3rd basement floor?¡± Solare nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right. I feel like we¡¯ll need to go down to that spot as fast as possible and destroy the devil stone. Because I had opened the portal, there¡¯s a high chance that the destructive devils have noticed, so if we drag on the time, it¡¯s possible that a Noblesse or a Devil King-rank destructive devil will appear in order to interrupt us.¡± Remir nodded her head. ¡®Devil King-rank, huh¡­ It¡¯s horrendous to even think about it.¡¯ However, just then, from the door of the place that was opposite to Remir, a resonant sound began to ring out. Keu-keuk- Keu-keu-keuk-! At that, Remir became flustered, and Solare as well wore a startled expression. ¡°No! There¡¯s no way that they¡¯ve already noticed and have appeared, right?¡± At Remir¡¯s words, Solare broke out into a cold sweat as he replied. ¡°There¡¯s¡­ no way that¡¯s the case. Even if they were to have noticed the wave of energy, there¡¯s no way that they could have come this quickly¡­!¡± The two people quickly began to cast a magic spell, and they stared at the door of the place that opened slowly. However, shortly after, the two just became even more flustered. Remir was especially even more dumbfounded than Solare. ¡®How could such an incident¡­?¡¯ The man that opened the door of the place and appeared tilted his head while looking at Remir as he opened his mouth. ¡°Huh? How did someone already arrive here? And on top of that, a user?¡± He was none other than Ian, and wearing a completely dumbfounded expression, Remir glared at him. ¡®This crazy! Is that something for you to say?¡¯ She had transported from Zone 80 to Zone 50, the advanced zones of the Devildom, with one portal, which was basically a cheat key. However, as her opponent had reached Zone 50 at a similar time as her without any sort of portal, the fact that she was flustered made sense. Remir stared at Ian as she opened her mouth. ¡°Are you ¡®Ian¡¯?¡± At Remir¡¯s question, Ian, who wore a slightly surprised expression, responded. ¡°You know my name? That¡¯s right, I¡¯m Ian. Who are you?¡± Remir became incredibly despondent. ¡®What the hell, this punk doesn¡¯t even know my name right now?¡¯ Remir¡¯s outer appearance was incredibly unique. She wore a long and exposed red robe. With pale skin that contrasted with it, her appearance also consisted of holding a flame staff. She was also an incredibly famous ranker even in the official community, so she couldn¡¯t help but be shocked at the fact that Ian didn¡¯t recognize her. ¡°Ha¡­¡± Remir, who let out a short sigh, slowly opened her mouth again. ¡°I am Remir.¡± ¡°Ah-ha, I see.¡± Meanwhile, Ian, who heard Remir¡¯s name, tilted his head. ¡®Hmm? Remir, huh¡­ It¡¯s somewhat of a familiar name.¡¯ And shortly after, he was able to remember where he had heard that name. ¡®That¡¯s right! The ID of the 1st place user in the unofficial Magician rankings was Remir!¡¯ Remir asked Ian again. ¡°Speaking of which, for what reason have you come here, Ian?¡± At that, Ian, who was momentarily thinking about Remir¡¯s identity, scratched the back of his head as he responded. ¡°Ah, for me, it¡¯s because of a quest. I need to destroy a Devil Summoning Stone. I feel like you also have a similar quest as I do, though¡­¡± At that, Remir wore a bitter smile as she nodded her head. ¡°That¡¯s right, I also received the quest telling me to destroy a Devil Summoning Stone.¡± As soon as he heard Remir¡¯s response, Ian immediately requested to party together. ¡®This works out well. As a matter of fact, the difficulty level on the inside will seriously be hellishly difficult, but if she¡¯s a magician ranked 1st, she¡¯ll still be more than just a little helpful.¡¯ You have requested to party with Magician User ¡®Remir¡¯. However, different from Ian, Remir, who wouldn¡¯t have heard from Solare about the difficulty level on the inside of the dungeon, was momentarily engulfed in a conflict. ¡®Would it be a gain to party with this punk?¡¯ However, just then, Solare, who was behind her, seemed to have discovered something as his eyes rounded. ¡°No¡­ You, you¡¯re!¡± At that, Remir and Ian¡¯s gazes naturally turned towards Solare, and his words continued. ¡°Kaizar! Kaizar, how are you here?!¡± At Solare¡¯s words, Kaizar, who stood behind Ian, strode forward. ¡°Hmm¡­ Old man, do you know me?¡± At Kaizar¡¯s words, Solare was taken aback. ¡°This punk¡­ Based on the fact that your way of talking is exactly like it was before, you¡¯re for sure Kaizar. Have you lost your memory?¡± Kaizar nodded his head as he replied. ¡°That¡¯s right. I¡¯ve gathered a lot of fragments of my memory, but I haven¡¯t been able to recover all of it yet.¡± Solare suddenly grasped Remir¡¯s hand, and he opened his mouth out of excitement. ¡°Remir, we must be with them no matter what!¡± CH 248 Chapter 248: The Beginning of the Devildom Monster Wave (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda In the end, Ian and Remir decided to move as one party. And that was a truly outstanding choice. ¡°Bbakbbak, use provoke as you fall back! Ly, you cut off the enemies that approach near Remir!¡± ¡°Understood, owner.¡± Bang- Ba-bang-! Remir was an extremely Offensive-type Fire Magician. So to someone like her, the existence of Bbakbbak, a provoking tanker that endured attacks while she casted her magic, as well as Ly, who took care of any enemies that didn¡¯t have a lot of Vitality left after getting hit by her AoE magic, brought forth an incredibly synergy. ¡°Ember!¡± Hwa-reu-reuk-! Ember was an AoE fire-type magic skill that was normally hard to even use as the casting time required was so long. As Ember, which was one of the greatest fire-type magic skill that Remir had, was activated, everything in the front began to burn. Zz-zzt Zz-zz-zzt-! The effect of Ember was very different from normal fire-type skills. All subjects that were within the range of Ember began to turn bright red. Compared to other skills that had a showy effect such as a giant explosion or a fire burning powerfully, Ember showed an incredibly simple effect, however the effectiveness of it wasn¡¯t. All opponents that were within the range of Ember have received powerful fire-type magic for the time duration.The Vitality of the High-rank Magical Beast, the ¡®Dark Hound¡¯, has decreased by 129,840.The Vitality of the High-rank Magical Beast ¡® the Dark Hound¡¯, has decreased by 131,120. It was a extreme fire skill that forced in an incredible amount of DoT damage to the point that the Vitality of the Dark Hound, which was a High-rank magical beast, dropped down to close to half in an instant. While Ian was battling, he glanced every so often at the form of Remir battling, as he weighed up her fighting power. ¡®Ember is a skill that I¡¯m seeing for the first time amongst Magician skills¡­ It looks like it¡¯s a special skill that only Remir¡¯s hidden class can learn.¡¯ Ian was in quite a bit of awe at Remir¡¯s strength. ¡®Even considering the fact that it¡¯s a skill that has a long casting time, that¡¯s an incredible amount of damage. It¡¯s almost equal to Karceus¡¯s Breath¡­¡¯ If the two skills were compared, the fact that Karceus¡¯s Breath was a skill that was close to a prompt skill as it was invoked in about 2-3 seconds made it better in that aspect, however, it seemed that Remir¡¯s Ember had a shorter cooldown time than Breath. ¡®Anyhow, she¡¯s good enough to be called the 1st place ranking Magician for sure.¡¯ On top of that, how was Solare the Magician as well? He boasted a greatness to the point that the fact that he was much stronger than Kaizar could be felt. Solare¡¯s combat abilities were to the point that they didn¡¯t lack whatsoever even when compared to High-rank Devil Yankoun. ¡®I don¡¯t think that he¡¯s her retainer¡­ Is he just an NPC that is temporarily with her because of the quest?¡¯ Ian checked Solare¡¯s information. Solare/Level-325/Class-Magician/Rank-Mythological And his two eyes rounded. ¡®No wonder¡­ For him to be a Mythological-rank NPC. No wonder he¡¯s this strong. If his level was just higher, he would probably be much stronger than even Yankoun.¡¯ As he finished his thoughts there, his expectations over Kaizar¡¯s awakening grew even higher. ¡®If Kaizar also found all of his memories and awakened so that he became a Mythological-rank¡­ He will probably become even stronger than Solare, right?¡¯ Ian let his happy imaginations go wild. Meanwhile, while looking at Ian battle, Remir was beyond awe; she was shocked. ¡®What, what the hell? Was the Summoner originally this powerful of a class?¡¯ Ever since she saw him break through the zones of the Devildom from the beginning while constantly getting ahead of her, it had been a long time since Remir had tossed away her belittling heart towards Ian. This was because Ian¡¯s fight continued on for too long to regard it as anything like ¡®luck¡¯ or ¡®coincidences¡¯. However, despite that, the Ian in front of Remir¡¯s eyes had a fighting power that far exceeded her imagination. ¡®Even with just that griffin or Fenrir, I feel like they have a fighting power that is equivalent to any other decent ranker-grade Summoner¡­¡¯ However, Ian had about four or five Familiars that were that strong. On top of that, how were his retainers as well? Kaizar was also strong enough for it to be shocking, but the greatness of High-rank Devil Yankoun was so tremendous to the point that it was questionable as to whether it was real or not. Bang- Ba-bang-! And the most surprising fact was that even in this incredible dogfight, Ian was displaying perfect movements and Familiar control. ¡®It¡¯s seriously to the point that it¡¯s incomprehensible. How exactly is he able to handle a High-rank Devil as a retainer, and on the subject of him being a Summoner, how exactly is his own fighting power that strong as well?¡¯ Anyhow, Remir and Ian¡¯s party created an incredibly powerful synergy, and they quickly broke through the dungeon and made their way down. However, just when they went down to basement level 3, where the Devil Summoning Stone was. Ian¡¯s party, who broke through the dungeon violently, couldn¡¯t help but halt in their tracks for a moment. In that spot, they had met a Legendary-rank magical beast that they were seeing for the first time. * * * ¡°So, in the end, Khalifa has awoken.¡± Long, straight hair and pointed ears. From the mouth of Iriel, an elf with a beautiful outer appearance that looked as if she was carved from the goddess of beauty, who was also the owner that guarded the Forest of Love, a long sigh escaped. And next to her, Gripper, a Magician with the bombastic modifier of the ¡®Dimensional Enchanter¡¯, sat. ¡°That¡¯s right, Iriel. However, wasn¡¯t this, in the end, a sequence that was expected?¡± Iriel slowly nodded her head. ¡°It certainly is. If Ian had just grown a little faster, it may have even been possible to have stopped Khalifa from awakening, however, unfortunately, he has awoken faster by a second.¡± The ¡®Shadow of the Evil Dragon Khalifa¡¯ Quest that Iriel had given to Ian a long time ago. To be honest, this quest was a quest in order to stop the sealed Khalifa from awakening. Ian had managed to achieve the quest conditions, which were ¡®Summoning Master Level 3¡¯ and ¡®Acquisition of the God Dragon¡¯s Soul¡¯, however, as he was proceeding through the other quests, he didn¡¯t have a chance to go and find Iriel, so in the end, within that time, Khalifa had awoken. There was no way for Ian to know of these facts, but somewhere along the line, each and every one of his steps have been influencing the outlook of the Kailan world as a whole. Gripper spoke to Iriel. ¡°However, the biggest problem is that Khalifa has awoken much faster than expected. Ian had grown even faster than our expectations.¡± Iriel slowly nodded her head. ¡°That¡¯s right, however, I can¡¯t help but be disappointed.¡± The mouth of Iriel, who momentarily closed her eyes and was submerged in her thoughts, slowly opened again. ¡°If we cannot change the dimensional war, then we must find the best way besides that, right?¡± Gripper responded with a low voice. ¡°That¡¯s right, Iriel.¡± Iriel looked up to the blue sky, as she quietly chanted. ¡°I¡¯ll have to assign ¡®that new task¡¯ to Ian.¡± Gripper nodded his head. ¡°Please do.¡± And shortly after, in front of the eyes of Ian, who was in the middle of diligently grappling somewhere in the far Devildom, a questionable system message rang out. Ring-. You have failed the ¡®Shadow of the Evil Dragon Khalifa (Hidden)¡¯ Quest.Your Affinity with Iriel has dropped by 10.The ¡®Shadow of the Evil Dragon Khalifa (Hidden)¡¯ Quest has been updated into a new quest.You must go and find Iriel as soon as possible.Remaining Time ¨C 9 days 23:59:59If you do not look for Iriel within the time limit, your Affinity with Iriel will drop drastically. * * * Meanwhile, Ian, who was in the middle of a bloody battle with a ¡®Devil Dragon¡¯, which was a Legendary-rank magical beast that was so powerful to the point that it was outrageous, couldn¡¯t hide his perplexity at the lengthy message that popped up unexpectedly in front of his eyes. ¡®Damn it, what is this suddenly now? I shouldn¡¯t have a quest that I failed now, so then what is it saying that I¡¯ve failed?¡¯ However, there was no way that he could continue his thoughts about the message. This was because the mouth of the Devil Dragon that was in front of him began to wriggle. ¡°Damn it! It¡¯s Breath, dodge it!¡± As Ian, who discovered the invocation sign of the Devil Dragon¡¯s AoE Breath the quickest, shouted, Remir and Solare swung their staves at the same time. ¡°Shadow Shield!¡± ¡°Chaos Hole!¡± As they did so, a white protective film formed around the whole party that was facing the Devil Dragon, and in front of the Devil Dragon, who was preparing to let out its Breath, a giant, black vortex was created. Kyaaoh! And in that moment, the Devil Dragon, who had finished with the charging of its Breath, opened its mouth wide. Kwaaaaaah-! The dragon¡¯s breath poured out fearsomely to the point that even just the sound was frightening. And that breath wrapped around the whole party that was on the premises before it passed by. The Chaos Hole that Solare summoned had sucked in a portion of the Breath and had canceled out some of the damage, and the Shadow Shield that Remir had summoned absorbed the damage once more on top of that from there, however, despite that, it was an incredible Offensive Power. Bang- Ba-bang-! Since the Breath¡¯s destructive power was to the point that the whole dungeon shook. You have been directly hit by the inherent ability of the Devil Dragon, ¡®Dragon Breath¡¯.You have received a critical amount of damage!Your Vitality has been reduced by 464,798.You have fallen into a ¡®Burned¡¯ state.For an additional 10 seconds, you will receive 57,980 damage every second. Ian was dumbfounded when his Vitality, which was almost filled to the maximum, had dropped down to about 10% left at once. ¡®No, why is its damage like this?¡¯ With this amount of damage, amongst his Familiars, he had lost both Halli and Pin, who had died at the same time, while with Ly, Ian had withdrawn him autonomously. This was because there was only about 20% originally remaining with Ly¡¯s Vitality, so as soon as Ian saw the breath, he had withdrawn him. ¡®If I knew that this would be the case, I would have also withdrawn Halli and Pin¡­¡¯ However, to regret now was too late, and he could not let everything go like this. Ian had Bbakbbak, who was the only one that had maintained 100% Vitality due to his inherent ability, ¡®Absolute Defense¡¯, step forward and stand up. ¡°Bbakbbak, Roar of the Turtle Dragon!¡± Keu-aaaooh! As Bbakbbak cast an AoE provoke, the gaze of the Devil Dragon was momentarily tied to Bbakbbak, and Remir and Ian did not miss this moment. Ta-tat-! Ian quickly darted forward towards the Devil Dragon. ¡®This is the last chance, if not this one, there¡¯s no chance of winning!¡¯ And as Ian moved, Kaizar and Yankoun, as well as even Solare, swung their weapons towards the Devil Dragon at the same time. Bang- Ba-bang-! Yankoun¡¯s big axes as well as Kaizar¡¯s greatsword dug into the nape of the dragon¡¯s neck at the same time, and seizing that opportunity, Solare and Remir began to cast their magic. Whoong- Whooong-! And Ian, who had stepped on the wing of the dragon and leaped up into the air before anybody realized, raised up his Judgment of the Spirit King high up in the sky. ¡°Please, go die!¡± Squelch-! You have dealt critical damage to the Legendary Rank Magical Beast, the ¡®Devil Dragon¡¯.The Vitality of the Devil Dragon has been decreased by 398,709. The Devil Dragon, who had taken all of the attacks of Ian, Yankoun and Kaizar on its weak points, let out a roar filled with pain. Kyaaaak-! And in that moment, the magic of Remir and Solare directly hit the abdomen of the dragon. Pu-ung-! CH 249 Chapter 249: Searching for the Miraculous Medicine (1) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Again, the magical beast ¡®Devil Dragon¡¯ was a ¡®Legendary¡¯-rank. And whether it was an item, a familiar or a retainer, it was a characteristic of Kailan for them to become exponentially stronger the higher the rank. In other words, it meant that the ¡®Devil Dragon¡¯, which was a magical beast that was two ranks higher than a High-rank magical beast, was a on an entirely different level from the High-rank magical beast ¡®Rakyel¡¯, whom Ian had forcibly captured by beating it to near death last time. It meant that with Ian¡¯s current specs, it was not a monster that he could recklessly catch like the Rakyel. ¡®But I want it so bad!¡¯ Even while he was shoving his spear into the crown of the Devil Dragon, Ian was licking his lips. However, the reason for that was not just because he wanted to handle the Devil Dragon, a Legendary-rank magical beast, as his magical beast familiar. ¡®This monster was one of the ingredients to make the Evil Dragon Khalifa, which is outrageously strong to the point it is as powerful as a Devil King-rank, but is there no way to tame it?¡¯ The reason why he wanted the Devil Dragon was because he remembered that this exact monster was one of the ingredients that was needed in order to make Mythological-rank. Ian had remembered the whole synthesis formula that Cervian had told him in a passing manner. ¡®He said that a Devil Dragon could be made if a Kaion and a Cerberus, which are High-ranking, so Heroic-rank, magical beasts, were combined and he stated that he made Khalifa by adding one more Legendary-rank magical beast to the Devil Dragon.¡¯ The memory that Ian had, which was to the point it was surprising, was a power that came from his obsession towards the game. Kyaaoh! Kyaaaooh-! In the end, Ian couldn¡¯t put his life on the line to satisfy his pride of capturing this monster. Since, if he lost this chance, forget about the Devil Dragon, everybody would be annihilated. ¡®Disappointing, but so long! This hyung will come back next time to catch you for sure!¡¯ Pu-pu-puk-! Without mercy, Ian drove into the weak point of the Devil Dragon, and in the end, the Devil Dragon began to turn into a grey light. Baaang-! You have successfully killed the Legendary-rank Magical Beast, the ¡®Devil Dragon¡¯.You have obtained 15,000 Fame.You have obtained 98,979,881 EXP. Seu-reu-reuk- Thud-! The heavy body of the Devil Dragon collapsed onto the ground just like that, and it was only then that the faces of the party members brightened. ¡°Whew, ah, how could there be a monstrosity like this one?¡± At Remir¡¯s words, Solare wore a bitter smile as he responded. ¡°Since it¡¯s a Legendary-rank magical beast with not a large population even within the whole Devildom. However¡­ I also never thought that a Legendary-rank magical beast was going to be guarding the Devil Summoning Stone.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Still, it¡¯s a relief. We were able to take down that monstrosity of a creature because Ian was here.¡± Ian, who heard the two people¡¯s conversation, shook his head. ¡®That¡¯s right, it¡¯s probably because they didn¡¯t know that a Legendary-rank magical beast would be guarding, which is why they came in here with that fighting power. Same goes for Devil King Ricardo. If he knew that it was a Legendary-rank magical beast, he wouldn¡¯t have sent me here alone, no?¡¯ He had to admit, meeting Remir and Solare at the entrance of the dungeon at the perfect time was the skill of God. As Ian grumbled internally, he approached the corpse of the Devil Dragon and spread out his hand. Because in Kailan, different item rewards were each given to all users that contributed in killing the monster, there were no incidences where they fought against each other over a dropped item. ¡®Alright, this is my first time taking down a Legendary-rank magical beast¡­ so I wonder what I¡¯ll get.¡¯ After calming his fluttering heart, he checked the items that dropped. ¡®Keu-heu-heu, at the least, a Heroic-rank item or higher will probably come out, right?¡¯ However, in the next moment, Ian couldn¡¯t help but become flustered. ¡°¡­!¡± You have obtained the ¡®Spirit Stone of the Devil Dragon¡¯ (Rank: Legendary) (Classification: miscellaneous goods) item x7. Normally, in the case of a boss-rank monster that guarded the last point of a hidden quest, a truly enormous amount of items and gold dropped when they were defeated. So usually, it was certain that their gazes would be overflowing with system messages once they were killed, but¡­ ¡®What the hell, how did only one system message just pop up?¡¯ Just one sentence for an item with an unknown identity popped up. With a sour expression, Ian opened his inventory. Since he needed to check the information of the items he obtained anyways. ¡®Based on the fact that its classification shows that it is a miscellaneous good, I feel like it¡¯s a random item, but still, since it is a Legendary-rank, there¡¯s again no way of knowing.¡¯ Ian tried really hard to hide his disappointed expression, as he opened the information of the ¡®Spirit Stone of the Devil Dragon¡¯ item. Spirit Stone of the Devil Dragon Classification ¨C Miscellaneous Goods Rank ¨C Legendary *This is the Spirit Stone of the ¡®Devil Dragon¡¯, which is a magical beast of the legends that states they only inhabit Zone 30 of the Devildom, where the concentration of Devil Energy is high. Amongst the magical beasts that existed, the Devil Dragon boasts the biggest size, and if the Devil Energy that was within its Breath even just grazes by something, it is said that it will even melt metal. If enough of these spirit stones that the Devil Dragon had left behind just before dying are collected, a Devil Dragon can be summoned someday. *This is an item that is exclusive to Devil Summoners. *This item can be sold at a high price if you go to the ¡®Altar of the Devil¡¯ that¡¯s in Zone 30 of the Devildom. Just when Ian was blinking as he read down the information of the item. In front of his eyes, a couple more system messages that were new had additionally popped up. Ring-. You have obtained the ¡®Spirit Stone of the Devil Dragon¡¯ x3.Once the spirit has been completed after gathering all of the pieces of the spirit stone, you can summon a Devil Dragon.The current number of spirit stones gathered: 7/200 (3.5%) Ian¡¯s face brightened rapidly. ¡®What the hell is this¡­! Was there such a system?¡¯ With an excited expression, Ian¡¯s mind began to race rapidly. ¡®If this is the case, then obtaining a Devil Dragon is not completely impossible, no?¡¯ And his gaze slightly turned towards Remir. ¡®By any chance, would Remir have also obtained the spirit stone?¡¯ ¡®As there was an additional item stating that it was a ¡®Summoner-exclusive item¡¯, he did think that Remir may have not even been able to obtain it, however, Ian couldn¡¯t just not check. ¡°Excuse me, Remir.¡± At Ian¡¯s calling, Remir, who was checking her inventory, reflexively turned her head. ¡°Yes, why are you calling me?¡± Ian scratched the back of his head as he responded. ¡°It¡¯s nothing, but¡­ By any chance, did something drop for you just now from taking down this monster?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Remir responded. ¡°Well, I¡¯ve obtained an item called the ¡®Spirit Stone of the Devil Dragon¡¯. 3 of them dropped.¡± At that, Ian, who almost reflexively cheered(?), calmed down his heart as he opened his mouth again. ¡°By any chance¡­¡± As Ian began to talk, Remir smirked. This was because his intentions could be too easily seen. Remir pulled out the faintly shining stone pieces from within her chest as she spoke. ¡°You need this, right?¡± With a sheepish expression, Ian replied. ¡°That, that¡¯s right, I guess¡­¡± Although it would be obvious to Remir the fact that this was an item that Ian wanted even if she just looked at the information window, there was also no reason for him to hide his intentions for nothing. ¡°By any chance, could you¡­ Sell me those?¡± At Ian¡¯s question, Remir beamed as she responded. ¡°Hmm, let¡¯s see here. From what I¡¯ve read, it¡¯s an incredible item that allows you to even summon a Devil Dragon if you gather multiple of them, no?¡± At Remir¡¯s words, Ian broke out into a cold sweat. ¡°That, that¡¯s correct.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Then at what price should I sell this at?¡± Remir¡¯s eyes turned into crescents. If he had seen her smile on any regular day and not in a situation like this, he would have thought that she was incredibly beautiful, however, that smile looked evil at the most. ¡®She wasn¡¯t the Monarch of the Red Flame, but a witch, a witch I tell you!¡¯ For an instant, Ian remembered the items that were filling up his storage. He was in the middle of remembering each of the Magician-exclusive weapons or armour pieces amongst the items that he had obtained up until now while hunting. ¡®Let¡¯s see here¡­ There will definitely be an item that Remir would want.¡¯ Just then, when Ian was wrapped up in his head, Remir¡¯s words continued again. ¡°Exactly how good of a proposal are you planning on making that you¡¯re thinking that diligently?¡± A flustered Ian stuttered. ¡°One, one moment. Just wait a little bit!¡± ¡°There¡¯s no time to be like this, Ian. We must destroy the Devil Summoning Stone quickly and leave this place.¡± ¡°One moment¡­!¡± Remir, who couldn¡¯t bear to watch Ian wring his mind out anymore, burst out into laughter as she opened her mouth again. ¡°Ian, then, I will make an offer.¡± ¡°Yes, tell me.¡± Remir suddenly turned around and with her finger, she was pointing towards some place from afar. And in that spot, there was a giant ¡®crystal¡¯, which was wrapped up in a purple energy. ¡°Firstly, please let me destroy the Devil Summoning Stone.¡± At her unexpected suggestion, Ian wore a puzzled expression. ¡°Sorry?¡± ¡°It¡¯s exactly as I said. That Devil Summoning Stone, I¡¯m asking you to let me destroy with my own hands.¡± Ian wore a sly expression. ¡®What the hell? Is there content in her quest where it says that she must destroy the stone no matter what? Or does she want something like the Fame that you can obtain if you destroy that stone?¡¯ Ian couldn¡¯t exactly figure out Remir¡¯s intention, but he soon nodded his head. This was because this was a proposal with nothing for Ian to lose. ¡°Well, I¡¯ll do it. And based on the fact that you said ¡®firstly¡¯, I feel like there are additional conditions as well¡­¡± Remir immediately nodded her head. ¡°That¡¯s right. There¡¯s one more condition.¡± ¡°¡­ Continue.¡± Just when Ian, who thought that the time had finally come, was shaking(?), Remir¡¯s words continued. ¡°After this quest, for the remaining three days or so until the Devildom closes, you must remain in a party with me and hunt without rest.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± At Remir¡¯s offer, Ian¡¯s two eyes rounded. This was because that was simply the offer that Ian wanted to make as well. ¡®Remir¡­ She was an incredibly good woman!¡¯ Ian quickly nodded his head as he responded. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll do that then.¡± Remir also nodded her head with a pleased expression as she held out the spirit stones. ¡°Hu-hut, then, the deal has been established!¡± At Remir¡¯s cool proposal, Ian had become extremely happy. ¡®Keu, what a welcome windfall!¡¯ Meanwhile, separate from Ian, who was grinning, Remir also was flying towards the Devil Summoning Stone while wearing a broad smile. ¡®Heu-heut, to have been able to make such a perfect deal by just giving three miscellaneous items that aren¡¯t even that useful!¡¯ To be honest, there was just one reason why Remir had asked to leave the destruction of the Devil Summoning Stone to her. If looked at as a result, the destruction of the Devil Summoning Stone could be considered a tremendous achievement to stopping one of the Devildom waves. If that was the case, then a sentence about something like first to accomplish would for sure spread throughout the server as a world message, and she didn¡¯t want to lose that to Ian. ¡®On top of that, I¡¯ll even be able to shove around an incredibly high-quality personnel for three days, no?¡¯ Although it wasn¡¯t clear who was going to be shoving around who, either way, Remir had approached the Devil Summoning Stone with a grin until she was right in front of it. And without hesitating, Remir spread her head towards the summoning stone. Pu-ung-! A bright red flame spread out from her hand and shattered the Devil Summoning Stone, and as she expected, system messages began to pop up. You have successfully destroyed the ¡®Devil Summoning Stone¡¯!You have successfully completed the ¡®Strength of the Sun God III (Hidden)(Connected)¡¯ Quest!You have obtained 350 thousand Fame. However, the world message that popped up throughout the whole server of Kailan in the next moment. User ¡®Ian¡¯ and ¡®Remir¡¯ have successfully stopped the monster wave of Area 4. Remir¡¯s expression turned sour in an instant. CH 250 Chapter 250: Searching for the Miraculous Medicine (2) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda The fourth Devil Summoning Stone has been destroyed.Due to user ¡®Ian¡¯ and ¡®Remir¡¯, the monster wave portal that was scheduled to open in ¡®St. Ville Plateau¡¯ of the central continent has been cancelled.The second Devil Summoning Stone has been destroyed.Due to Devil King ¡®Ricardo¡¯, the monster wave portal that was scheduled to open in ¡®Lolangka Mountains¡¯ of the northern continent has been cancelled. Many users, who were in the middle of hunting in various places across Kailan, wore dumbfounded expressions after checking the world system messages that suddenly popped up. ¡°What the hell? How did this happen?¡± ¡°My point. Exactly what is happening in the Devildom?¡± Information on the internal situation of the Devildom was a fact that only a small number made up of just the top-ranking users knew. Even though a user who entered the Devildom now was considered quite good, there were only about 100 users that were actually carrying out their quests at most. Excluding them, as all the rest were just hunting in around Zone 120, there was no way for them to know about the destructive devils, Khalifa, and such. As that was the case, it was hardest for them to understand the fact that Devil King Ricardo had destroyed a monster wave. ¡°What exactly could it be? Is some sort of internal conflict occurring within the Devildom?¡± ¡°No kidding, there are so many strange things happening. This is also my first time seeing a monster wave being destroyed on its own.¡± And the biggest interest of the public was the part related to whether the monster wave being destroyed would be an advantage to them or not. ¡°Anyhow, as 1/3 of the monster waves have been destroyed, isn¡¯t it a good thing?¡± ¡°How?¡± ¡°If we cannot stop the monster wave, we would lose even the central and northern continent. If that¡¯s the case, the amount of content loss is enormous. While Ian and Remir have stopped that.¡± ¡°Ehh, I don¡¯t think that¡¯s the case. Would the development team have really planned the monster wave so that the users wouldn¡¯t be able to stop it?¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± ¡°Think about it. If the central and northern continents were to be Devildom-ized just like you said, it might not be the case for the true beginner users that are hunting in the eastern and western continents, but that would mean that the base of the mid-upper level users that are between lv 70-150 would disappear. That means the balance will collapse.¡± ¡°You do have a point there as well.¡± ¡°So that¡¯s why I think that Ian and Remir have instead done something useless.¡± ¡°Why¡¯s that now?¡± ¡°Since they¡¯ve made two of the monster waves useless, our hunting grounds have shrunk.¡± ¡°Hul¡­ Is that what it ends up meaning?¡± Tons of opinions between the users went rampant, and in the official community, a fierce battle came and went everyday. This was because the opinions were half and half, one side backing up Ian and Remir, while the other side criticizing them, stating that they were acting selfishly for their personal quests. However, of course, the people directly involved had absolutely no interest in that sort of reaction from the official community. * * * ¡°Wait, wait a second.¡± ¡°Why? What¡¯s wrong?¡± Remir had red hair that flowed with sheen, as well as skin as pale as a doll¡¯s. She, who was like that, looked as haggard as a slave that was dragged over from a shrimp boat before anybody realized it. ¡°Let, let¡¯s rest a little.¡± ¡°We already rested five hours ago, though.¡± ¡°No, but, but that¡­!¡± ¡°Out of the four days, only half has passed by! I¡¯m telling you, if this Devildom closes now, there¡¯s no way of knowing when we¡¯ll be able to find such sweet hunting grounds like these again.¡± ¡°Euh, eu-euh¡­¡± Between Remir¡¯s slightly parted lips, a light sigh escaped. ¡®I think he¡¯s seriously crazy. How can a human be like this?¡¯ After they had each cleared all of their own quests once the Devil Summoning Stone was destroyed, Remir had pompously spoken to Ian. Ian, shall we now go hunt right away?Huh? One moment, I have a couple of miscellaneous items that I have to organize¡­Where is there time for that right now? I¡¯m telling you, there¡¯s no way of knowing when we¡¯ll be able to hunt here once the Devildom closes. Forgetting about everything else, we need to dig up as many magic stones as possible!You¡¯re right, Remir, now that I think about it. Alright. Let¡¯s begin hunting right away. However, right now in this moment, Remir was seriously regretting not giving Ian time to sell his miscellaneous items back then. ¡®Euh¡­ This is seriously hell. Hell, I¡¯m telling you!¡¯ Even just when they started hunting in the beginning, Remir was incredibly happy. Since she clicked with Ian more than anybody else up until now when it came to party hunting. When she watched her EXP and magic stones pile up, her exhaustion was automatically forgotten. However, even that was momentary. As 4 hours, 5 hours, and even 6 hours passed by, Ian had not told Remir that they should rest even once. However, because Remir was also a user that prided herself as quite a decent game cripple, she continued to endure with her pride. ¡®However, gaming without sleeping up until 30 hours have passed is too much!¡¯ Because of Ian, who just hunted madly to the point that anybody who saw would think that the Kailan server would be closing in three days, Remir was endlessly receiving pain. ¡°Ian, then just 10 minutes. Let¡¯s just rest 10 minutes and then start again. So that I can reset the cooldown times of my skills once and check my inventory.¡± It was only then that Ian nodded his head with a displeased expression as if he was saying there was nothing that could be done. ¡°Then¡­ Let¡¯s do that.¡± ¡°Alright!¡± ¡°However.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Just 10 minutes.¡± ¡°Oh, alright.¡± Remir grumbled internally. ¡®Euh, let¡¯s see if I ever party with this ignorant punk ever again!¡¯ However, to be honest, even right at this moment, if Remir just firmly made up her mind, she could leave this party. Because, anyhow, the reason why this party was being maintained was because party hunting with Ian had an addiction similar to drugs. ¡®It is painful, but still, when will I ever be able to hunt this hard if it isn¡¯t a situation like now?¡¯ It was to the point that the EXP, gold, items and such that she was obtaining almost seemed to have a double-buff event being given by Kailan autonomously. Whenever Remir wanted to collapse with her trembling body, if she just checked her inventory and the system messages, as well as her EXP gauge, she felt her mental state recovering again. ¡®Sure, just this once! Just this time, for three full days, I will party hunt with this punk. I will never do it again!¡¯ However, whether this would really be Remir¡¯s finally party hunt with Ian, even she couldn¡¯t confirm it. And like that, three days just flew by. * * * ¡°Psst, Remir.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Remir, are you asleep?¡± A vacant lot in the corner of Zone 57 of the Devildom. A woman wearing black rags was sprawled across the floor, and a man, who stood in front of her, was scratching the back of his head. Of course, the two people were none other than Ian and Remir. With a serious expression, Ian spoke while looking at Bbakbbak. ¡°Bbakbbak, it looks like Remir is sleeping.¡± Bbakbbak nodded his head as he responded. ¡°I think that¡¯s the case, owner. I think she¡¯s forcibly fallen into a sleeping state.¡± Ian rubbed his chin as he mumbled. ¡°Hmm¡­ We¡¯ve rested a lot in between while hunting, so why is she like this? We¡¯ve even logged back on again after sleeping 3 hours yesterday.¡± At Ian¡¯s mumbling, Ly, who was next to him, shook his head as he spoke. ¡°As expected, Magician punks are soft. To have given out after just this much hunting.¡± Bbakbbak made a counterargument. ¡°No, Ly. Our owner is just too much of a wicked owner. I have never seen a human hunt for this long.¡± However, Ly¡¯s rebuttal was also serious business. ¡°No. Think about it seriously, Bbakbbak. Setting aside how he is normally, this time, we¡¯ve rested 5 minutes every 3 hours, and yesterday we¡¯ve even slept 3 hours. It¡¯s certain that this girl is soft.¡± Bbakbbak¡¯s pupils began to tremble. ¡°Is, is that so?¡± Ian¡¯s familiars were becoming familiar with his hunting pattern before they even realized. Even Karceus nodded his head in agreement. ¡°That¡¯s right. I was also satisfied with this hunt. It would be nice if the owner let us rest just this much all the time. It was an incredibly pleasant circumstance.¡± While Ian was talking about Remir behind her back with his familiars, the body of Remir, who was lying down, started to grow more and more faint. Ian, who saw that form, scratched the back of his head. ¡°It looks like it¡¯s a compulsory log out.¡± And as soon as Ian¡¯s words ended, a system message popped up. Party member ¡®Remir¡¯ has logged off.The party has disbanded. Ian licked his lips as he checked the time once. ¡°Let¡¯s see here, how much time is now left until the Devildom closes?¡± Time remaining until the monster wave (03:47:22) Ian, who had checked the time, mumbled internally. ¡®Hmm, 3 hours and 50 minutes, huh¡­ This is so disappointing.¡¯ Ian slightly turned his gaze. ¡°Shall we break up after hunting for just 3 more hours?¡± Ly responded first. ¡°Sounds good, owner. We can even do 4 hours.¡± Karceus followed through and responded. ¡°I think exactly 3 hours would be best, owner.¡± Ian, who actively gathered the opinions of his familiars, gave a clear-cut(?) conclusion. ¡°Alright, then we¡¯ll hunt for exactly 3 hours and 30 minutes before we rest.¡± Ian prepared for battle again as he checked on each and every one of his familiars and retainers. However, just then, a round backside caught Ian¡¯s gaze. Bbook- Bbook- Bboo-bbook-. He had discovered Bbookbbook stealthily crawling towards somewhere. Ian shouted with daggers in his eyes. ¡°Bbookbbook, you punk, where are you running away to again?¡± And Bbookbbook, who was startled at Ian¡¯s shout, instantly stopped in his tracks. Bboo-kkuk-! And Bbookbbook even hiccupped out of shock. Bbookbbook turned his head as he spoke with a sorrowful expression. ¡°Owner, I¡¯m depressed bbook. I felt the energy of a sacred herb filled with vigor over there, so I was just going momentarily to find it bbook.¡± Ian narrowed his eyes as he interrogated him. ¡°Don¡¯t play with me, you punk. I know you go crawling stealthily away like that all the time to go find something to eat and once we start battling, you just disappear off somewhere once again.¡± Instead of a response, a hiccup came out of Bbookbbook¡¯s mouth. Bboo-kkuk-! And Ian, who pitied that form for some reason, said something that made it seem like he was being generous. ¡°Hmm¡­ Well, still, since I¡¯ll let you go eat the thing that you said you found over there right now, come back quickly afterwards. And don¡¯t go any farther than that.¡± At Ian¡¯s permission, Bbookbbook, who looked sullen, immediately brightened. ¡°Owner, thank you bbook! I will go find just that quickly and come back after eating it bbook!¡± The moment he was done speaking, Bbookbbook turned his footsteps back again and began to crawl away. Bbook- Bboo-bbook- Bbook-. While watching him do so, Ian smirked. ¡®Ha, seriously, when it comes to that punk there, I¡¯m telling you, it feels like I¡¯m raising a pet rather than raising a familiar.¡¯ Ian, who momentarily left Celia to keep an eye on Bbookbbook, took his gaze off the turtle and began to check the state of his other familiars. ¡®Alright, as soon as the cooldown time for Karceus¡¯s Breath is over, we¡¯ll go hunting immediately!¡¯ And had about 5 minutes passed like that? The moment that they were about to start battling again, the flustered voice of Celia could be heard from afar. ¡°Lord, Bbookbbook¡­ Bbookbbook is acting strangely!¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Ian reflexively turned his head in the direction that Celia was. ¡°What¡¯s the problem?¡± ¡°That, that, well. You need to come here and see to¡­!¡± However, just then. A couple system messages unexpectedly popped up in front of Ian¡¯s gaze. Ring-! Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ has consumed a Heroic-rank Devil Spirit Grass.The ¡®Turtle Spirit¡¯ stat of Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ has increased by 7.12%.Current Turtle Spirit Level 99/Proficiency: 100.00%The Turtle Spirit level of Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ has increased.The Turtle Spirit level of ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ has reached its maximum! And from the shell of Bbookbbook, who could be seen from afar, began to glow a blue light. CH 251 Chapter 251: Searching for the Miraculous Medicine (3) TL: Haku Editor: Hungry Panda Ian¡¯s two eyes rounded. ¡®Fi, finally! This good-for-nothing is evolving!¡¯ Aside from being deeply moved, Ian almost let out a tear. ¡®Keu, nobody has any idea how much I¡¯ve suffered up until now raising this punk! Is this the heart of an adult watching their kid finally grow up?¡¯ While having thoughts that Bbookbbook would have extremely denied if he had heard them, Ian continuously stared at Bbookbbook, who was shining. Whoong-! The blue light that glowed from his shell grew stronger and stronger, and as it did so, Ian¡¯s anticipation grew more and more. ¡®Is he becoming an Abyss Dragon? No. As they said that he needed a cintamani to become an Abyss Dragon, he must be becoming a Turtle Dragon, which is the phase just before that one.¡¯ However, just then, Ian discovered a strange point. ¡®Huh? But why is only this kid¡¯s shell glowing and not his whole body?¡¯ Ian¡¯s gaze began to investigate Bbookbbook thoroughly. ¡®What the hell? This uneasy feeling, that is¡­¡¯ Generally, when a familiar evolved, their whole body didn¡¯t shine from the beginning. Starting from one place on a part of their body, the light spread and in the end, it was normally the case where their whole body became a white light. However, the light that spread up to all of Bbookbbook¡¯s shell didn¡¯t expand any more from there. Ian stealthily approached Bbookbbook¡¯s side as he whispered. As he felt he might be disturbing Bbookbbook¡¯s evolution, he couldn¡¯t even speak loudly. ¡°Bbookbbook, are you in the middle of evolving?¡± Ian, had evolved tons of familiars up until now, however this was his first time initiating a conversation with a familiar that was in the middle of evolving. With an anxious expression, Ian waited for Bbookbbook¡¯s answer. However, just then, from Bbookbbook, who was heavily tensed up throughout his whole body, a very quiet sound that could only be heard if you really listened carefully flowed out. Bbook- Bbook- Bboo-bbook-. Ian wore a flustered expression. ¡°Yo, are you even going ¡®bbookbbook¡¯ while you¡¯re evolving?¡± As Bbookbbook gave no response, Ian, who was relieved, turned his head. However, shortly after, Ian couldn¡¯t help but frown. ¡°Bbook, owner. What are you talking about bbook? I didn¡¯t evolve bbook.¡± At the indescribable despondency that crashed into Ian along with Bbookbbook¡¯s response, he just fell to the ground on the spot. It felt as though the exhaustion that was piling up due to hunting without rest for a couple days was crashing into him in an instant. ¡°Whew, what the hell, Bbookbbook. You weren¡¯t evolving?¡± At that, Bbookbbook munched on the remaining Devil Spirit Grass that was in his mouth and swallowed before he responded. ¡°Not yet bbook. However, I feel as though I can finally evolve now bbook.¡± At that moment, the expression of Ian, who had become depressed from the despondency, brightened up like a lie, as if he was questioning when he ever was depressed. ¡°Keu, is that so? That¡¯s right, right? You can evolve, right?¡± Bbookbbook nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right bbook. I can evolve bbook.¡± Ian¡¯s words followed through right after. ¡°Then what are you doing, not evolving right now? Hurry up and evolve, Bbookbbook.¡± And Bbookbbook vigorously nodded his head. ¡°Understood bbook! Just believe in me bbook!¡± However, there was no way that Bbookbbook, the biggest rising star(?) in Ian¡¯s summoner life, would evolve that easily. A system message popped up unexpectedly in front of Ian¡¯s gaze-. Ring-. You have satisfied all conditions in order for Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ to evolve. Up until now, it was good, however¡­ The Evolution Quest of the ¡®Abyss Turtle¡¯ has been invoked. A quest window formed in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring-. The Descendant of the Water Dragon (Hidden) After trying for a long-suffering time, your familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ has finally met all evolution conditions. Bbookbbook, who has completed his ¡®Turtle Spirit¡¯ after gathering hundreds of years of the energy of the nature, is finally trying to evolve from an ¡®Abyss Turtle¡¯ to a ¡®Turtle Dragon¡¯. Find the ¡®Seal of the Abyss¡¯, which is the last key that is required in order to evolve into a Turtle Dragon, and give it to ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯. Quest Difficulty Level: Unknown Quest Requirement: A user that possesses an ¡®Abyss Turtle¡¯/Maximum ¡®Turtle Spirit¡¯ level of the ¡®Abyss Turtle¡¯ Time Limit: None Reward: The evolution of the Abyss Turtle *If you reject, Bbookbbook will be disappointed. ¡°¡­¡± Aside from being flustered, not one word came out of Ian. ¡®No, what the hell is this exactly? This Bbookbbook punk even gives me quests now? No. Is it not that this punk gave me a quest, but rather normally a process that you just need to go through in order to evolve an Abyss Turtle?¡¯ On top of that, the last sentence that came attached at the end of the quest window was easily the highlight. ¡®For it to say that Bbookbbook will be disappointed if I reject¡­¡¯ As Ian turned his head around, Bbookbbook was staring at him with sparkling eyes. ¡°Owner, I need the Seal of the Abyss bbook.¡± A low sigh escaped from Ian¡¯s mouth. ¡°Whew, alright. This hyung can¡¯t disappoint you again, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right bbook. My owner will not disappoint me bbook.¡± Ian narrowed both of his eyes. ¡®As expected, this feeling that this punk is the one that gave me the quest¡­¡¯ Ian slowly nodded his head as he responded. ¡°Sure, that Seal of the Abyss or whatever, well, I¡¯ll get it one way or another. Who knows? Whether it might even be up in the auction house.¡± Bbookbbook gave a cheeky response. ¡°You probably won¡¯t be able to obtain it that easily bbook.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Anyways, as there was a saying that fair is fair, Ian decided to think positively. ¡®That¡¯s right, at the least, since it is even written in the reward section of this quest of Bbookbbook¡¯s evolution, if I just find that seal or whatever, he¡¯ll for sure evolve this time.¡¯ Ian, whose despondency settled down a little, mumbled to himself. ¡°Speaking of which, where exactly should I go to find the Seal of the Abyss?¡± As he said so, Kaka, who was floating next to Ian, opened his mouth with a clear voice. ¡°Owner.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°What do you think about looking for that explorer from back then?¡± ¡°What do you mean an explorer?¡± Kaka nodded his head as he continued his words. ¡°You know, that explorer. The one that allowed you to dream of a dream that occurred a thousand years ago¡­ The explorer that is supposed to be the most excelling amongst humans.¡± Ian, who momentarily thought about Kaka¡¯s words, soon clapped his hands as he stood up. ¡°Oh, that¡¯s right! Was it Lilson? If it is that person, then it is possible that person knows something about the Seal of the Abyss.¡± If it was in order to raise their class proficiency, most of the people with the ¡®Explorer¡¯ class had a case of wanderlust where they would rummage thoroughly through every corner of the continent. And if it was Lilson, the 1st place ranker who was the most prominent figure amongst them, Ian felt as though he would even have information on the Seal of Water as well. Kaka opened his mouth. ¡°You need to meet him no matter what even at least once in order get that ¡®relic¡¯ I brought home before back then, owner.¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°No kidding. He was someone that I needed to go looking for anyways.¡± Ian began to organize his complicated mind. ¡®In the end, the user named Lilson will probably become a hidden card that¡¯ll carry Bbookbbook¡¯s evolution.¡¯ The relic that Kaka carried out from Ian¡¯s dream as well, it was an ancient map that held the location of the ¡®cintamani¡¯ anyways. By finding Lilson and appraising the ancient map, and if he could also find out information about the Seal of the Abyss from him, it was possible that he could evolve Bbookbbook into an ¡®Abyss Dragon¡¯ in one stretch. ¡°If even that just happened, then I wouldn¡¯t hope for any more¡­¡± In front of Ian, who was mumbling, Bbookbbook tilted his head. ¡°What are you saying bbook?¡± Ian shook his head. ¡°Ah, it¡¯s nothing much. I was thinking about how I should find the Seal of the Abyss that I am to give you.¡± Bbookbbook¡¯s words continued. ¡°As expected, I only have you, owner! Let¡¯s quickly go and find the seal bbook. I quickly want to evolve bbook!¡± At the cute form of Bbookbbook, who pressed him urgently as he approached Ian¡¯s feet and rubbed his head against Ian¡¯s calf, Ian burst into laughter. ¡°Just wait a minute, man. There¡¯s a place that we need to go to first before then.¡± Bbookbbook responded brightly. ¡°Bbook, got it bbook!¡± Ian rubbed Bbookbbook¡¯s head once before he opened his quest information window. ¡®Let¡¯s see here, where was the Evil Dragon Khalifa quest again?¡¯ Ian was planning on visiting the Forest of Love where Iriel was first before he went looking for Lilson. ¡®There¡¯s no way that I can lose a hidden quest twice.¡¯ There was no way that he could know the reason as to why this happened, but despite there not being a separate time limit, he failed the Evil Dragon Khalifa quest. However, fortunately, that quest didn¡¯t cease to exist, and instead turned into another quest, and a time limit of ten days was attached. ¡®Let¡¯s see here¡­ Now I have about three days left.¡¯ Ian, who had a lot to do, began to hurriedly move his feet. * * * ¡°Euh¡­ This dungeon, why is it this creepy?¡± Just a couple days ago. Ropley, the top-ranking user of the Warrior-class who hit lv 180, was running an ancient dungeon that was in the corner of the central continent. And, of course, he was not alone. As it was a dungeon that was known for being infested with the strongest monsters of even the middle area of the central continent, even if he was a lv 180, playing solo for this dungeon was too much. ¡°No kidding. Our party, I feel like we¡¯re already trying for the fifth time, but it¡¯s somewhat of a different feeling from the other runs up until now.¡± At the words of Heria, who was the only Priest-class of their group, the party members all nodded their heads. ¡°Hmm, it¡¯s an atmosphere that¡¯s bleak enough that it feels like a portal that leads to the Devildom will open¡­¡± ¡°The Devildom? I feel like it¡¯s more like a graveyard instead. This feeling like even a zombie might pop up¡­¡± There was an illusion that seemed like, for some reason, a spooky energy was hanging in the air, and it even felt like the general hue of the dungeon, which originally was a yellowish colour, had turned reddish, but the party continued to hunt. This was because there was absolutely nothing different from the monsters that appeared. Bang- Ba-bang-! ¡°Heria, please send some heals over here!¡± ¡°Got it, one moment!¡± ¡°Rample, please take care of the mummies that are in the back!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± And as they hunted like that, had about 1 hour passed by crazily? The party, who stood in the secret room that was in the latter half of the dungeon, wore flustered expressions. ¡°Huh? Where exactly has the boss that is supposed to be here gone?¡± ¡°Hmm? This is the first time that this has happened¡­ Didn¡¯t we for sure reset the dungeon?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m saying.¡± ¡°By any chance, couldn¡¯t it be that the party that ran the dungeon before us just left after taking the boss?¡± ¡°That¡¯s impossible. If that was the case, then there¡¯s no way that the normal monsters that we faced on our way here would have been fine, right?¡± However, just then, when the party was at a loss at the unexpected situation. From the centre of the secret room, where the boss was supposed to form, a bright red current began to form out of nowhere. Ropley mumbled with a flustered expression. ¡°What the hell? a portal to the Devildom seriously opening just like I had said?¡± Either way, as they didn¡¯t know what was going to happen, the party all began to stare at the red current while grasping onto each of their weapons as they stood anxiously. Shortly after, that red current began to make the form of a giant devil. ¡°What, what the hell¡­?¡± An incredible greatness began to fill the whole boss room. However, just then, the devil that appeared right in the middle of the secret room began to slowly open its mouth with a low voice. Weak humans. The party stealthily exchanged glances with each other. ¡°Just saying¡­ But wouldn¡¯t it be best to get out of here quickly?¡± ¡°No, no kidding. I can barely take down even a Low-rank magical beast, but that thing looks like some sort of Devil King. Our party will probably get annihilated.¡± And the words of the devil continued. If you trust your soul with me, I will give you a powerful strength. Following that, one system message popped up in front of the eyes of the party. Ring-. The ¡®Promise of the Devil¡¯ Quest has been invoked.If you succeed in completing the quest, you may become a ¡®True Devil¡¯, which is a full devil, and once you accept the quest, you cannot give it up.Will you accept the quest? (Y/N) CH 252 Chapter 252: Searching for the Miraculous Medicine (3) Ian¡¯s two eyes rounded. ¡®Fi, finally! This good-for-nothing is evolving!¡¯ Aside from being deeply moved, Ian almost let out a tear. ¡®Keu, nobody has any idea how much I¡¯ve suffered up until now raising this punk! Is this the heart of an adult watching their kid finally grow up?¡¯ While having thoughts that Bbookbbook would have extremely denied if he had heard them, Ian continuously stared at Bbookbbook, who was shining. Whoong-! The blue light that glowed from his shell grew stronger and stronger, and as it did so, Ian¡¯s anticipation grew more and more. ¡®Is he becoming an Abyss Dragon? No. As they said that he needed a cintamani to become an Abyss Dragon, he must be becoming a Turtle Dragon, which is the phase just before that one.¡¯ However, just then, Ian discovered a strange point. ¡®Huh? But why is only this kid¡¯s shell glowing and not his whole body?¡¯ Ian¡¯s gaze began to investigate Bbookbbook thoroughly. ¡®What the hell? This uneasy feeling, that is¡­¡¯ Generally, when a familiar evolved, their whole body didn¡¯t shine from the beginning. Starting from one place on a part of their body, the light spread and in the end, it was normally the case where their whole body became a white light. However, the light that spread up to all of Bbookbbook¡¯s shell didn¡¯t expand any more from there. Ian stealthily approached Bbookbbook¡¯s side as he whispered. As he felt he might be disturbing Bbookbbook¡¯s evolution, he couldn¡¯t even speak loudly. ¡°Bbookbbook, are you in the middle of evolving?¡± Ian, had evolved tons of familiars up until now, however this was his first time initiating a conversation with a familiar that was in the middle of evolving. With an anxious expression, Ian waited for Bbookbbook¡¯s answer. However, just then, from Bbookbbook, who was heavily tensed up throughout his whole body, a very quiet sound that could only be heard if you really listened carefully flowed out. Bbook- Bbook- Bboo-bbook-. Ian wore a flustered expression. ¡°Yo, are you even going ¡®bbookbbook¡¯ while you¡¯re evolving?¡± As Bbookbbook gave no response, Ian, who was relieved, turned his head. However, shortly after, Ian couldn¡¯t help but frown. ¡°Bbook, owner. What are you talking about bbook? I didn¡¯t evolve bbook.¡± At the indescribable despondency that crashed into Ian along with Bbookbbook¡¯s response, he just fell to the ground on the spot. It felt as though the exhaustion that was piling up due to hunting without rest for a couple days was crashing into him in an instant. ¡°Whew, what the hell, Bbookbbook. You weren¡¯t evolving?¡± At that, Bbookbbook munched on the remaining Devil Spirit Grass that was in his mouth and swallowed before he responded. ¡°Not yet bbook. However, I feel as though I can finally evolve now bbook.¡± At that moment, the expression of Ian, who had become depressed from the despondency, brightened up like a lie, as if he was questioning when he ever was depressed. ¡°Keu, is that so? That¡¯s right, right? You can evolve, right?¡± Bbookbbook nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s right bbook. I can evolve bbook.¡± Ian¡¯s words followed through right after. ¡°Then what are you doing, not evolving right now? Hurry up and evolve, Bbookbbook.¡± And Bbookbbook vigorously nodded his head. ¡°Understood bbook! Just believe in me bbook!¡± However, there was no way that Bbookbbook, the biggest rising star(?) in Ian¡¯s summoner life, would evolve that easily. A system message popped up unexpectedly in front of Ian¡¯s gaze-. Ring-. ? You have satisfied all conditions in order for Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ to evolve. Up until now, it was good, however¡­ ? The Evolution Quest of the ¡®Abyss Turtle¡¯ has been invoked. A quest window formed in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Ring-. ? The Descendant of the Water Dragon (Hidden) After trying for a long-suffering time, your familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ has finally met all evolution conditions. Bbookbbook, who has completed his ¡®Turtle Spirit¡¯ after gathering hundreds of years of the energy of the nature, is finally trying to evolve from an ¡®Abyss Turtle¡¯ to a ¡®Turtle Dragon¡¯. Find the ¡®Seal of the Abyss¡¯, which is the last key that is required in order to evolve into a Turtle Dragon, and give it to ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯. Quest Difficulty Level: Unknown Quest Requirement: A user that possesses an ¡®Abyss Turtle¡¯/Maximum ¡®Turtle Spirit¡¯ level of the ¡®Abyss Turtle¡¯ Time Limit: None Reward: The evolution of the Abyss Turtle *If you reject, Bbookbbook will be disappointed. ¡°¡­¡± Aside from being flustered, not one word came out of Ian. ¡®No, what the hell is this exactly? This Bbookbbook punk even gives me quests now? No. Is it not that this punk gave me a quest, but rather normally a process that you just need to go through in order to evolve an Abyss Turtle?¡¯ On top of that, the last sentence that came attached at the end of the quest window was easily the highlight. ¡®For it to say that Bbookbbook will be disappointed if I reject¡­¡¯ As Ian turned his head around, Bbookbbook was staring at him with sparkling eyes. ¡°Owner, I need the Seal of the Abyss bbook.¡± A low sigh escaped from Ian¡¯s mouth. ¡°Whew, alright. This hyung can¡¯t disappoint you again, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right bbook. My owner will not disappoint me bbook.¡± Ian narrowed both of his eyes. ¡®As expected, this feeling that this punk is the one that gave me the quest¡­¡¯ Ian slowly nodded his head as he responded. ¡°Sure, that Seal of the Abyss or whatever, well, I¡¯ll get it one way or another. Who knows? Whether it might even be up in the auction house.¡± Bbookbbook gave a cheeky response. ¡°You probably won¡¯t be able to obtain it that easily bbook.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Anyways, as there was a saying that fair is fair, Ian decided to think positively. ¡®That¡¯s right, at the least, since it is even written in the reward section of this quest of Bbookbbook¡¯s evolution, if I just find that seal or whatever, he¡¯ll for sure evolve this time.¡¯ Ian, whose despondency settled down a little, mumbled to himself. ¡°Speaking of which, where exactly should I go to find the Seal of the Abyss?¡± As he said so, Kaka, who was floating next to Ian, opened his mouth with a clear voice. ¡°Owner.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°What do you think about looking for that explorer from back then?¡± ¡°What do you mean an explorer?¡± Kaka nodded his head as he continued his words. ¡°You know, that explorer. The one that allowed you to dream of a dream that occurred a thousand years ago¡­ The explorer that is supposed to be the most excelling amongst humans.¡± Ian, who momentarily thought about Kaka¡¯s words, soon clapped his hands as he stood up. ¡°Oh, that¡¯s right! Was it Lilson? If it is that person, then it is possible that person knows something about the Seal of the Abyss.¡± If it was in order to raise their class proficiency, most of the people with the ¡®Explorer¡¯ class had a case of wanderlust where they would rummage thoroughly through every corner of the continent. And if it was Lilson, the 1st place ranker who was the most prominent figure amongst them, Ian felt as though he would even have information on the Seal of Water as well. Kaka opened his mouth. ¡°You need to meet him no matter what even at least once in order get that ¡®relic¡¯ I brought home before back then, owner.¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°No kidding. He was someone that I needed to go looking for anyways.¡± Ian began to organize his complicated mind. ¡®In the end, the user named Lilson will probably become a hidden card that¡¯ll carry Bbookbbook¡¯s evolution.¡¯ The relic that Kaka carried out from Ian¡¯s dream as well, it was an ancient map that held the location of the ¡®cintamani¡¯ anyways. By finding Lilson and appraising the ancient map, and if he could also find out information about the Seal of the Abyss from him, it was possible that he could evolve Bbookbbook into an ¡®Abyss Dragon¡¯ in one stretch. ¡°If even that just happened, then I wouldn¡¯t hope for any more¡­¡± In front of Ian, who was mumbling, Bbookbbook tilted his head. ¡°What are you saying bbook?¡± Ian shook his head. ¡°Ah, it¡¯s nothing much. I was thinking about how I should find the Seal of the Abyss that I am to give you.¡± Bbookbbook¡¯s words continued. ¡°As expected, I only have you, owner! Let¡¯s quickly go and find the seal bbook. I quickly want to evolve bbook!¡± At the cute form of Bbookbbook, who pressed him urgently as he approached Ian¡¯s feet and rubbed his head against Ian¡¯s calf, Ian burst into laughter. ¡°Just wait a minute, man. There¡¯s a place that we need to go to first before then.¡± Bbookbbook responded brightly. ¡°Bbook, got it bbook!¡± Ian rubbed Bbookbbook¡¯s head once before he opened his quest information window. ¡®Let¡¯s see here, where was the Evil Dragon Khalifa quest again?¡¯ Ian was planning on visiting the Forest of Love where Iriel was first before he went looking for Lilson. ¡®There¡¯s no way that I can lose a hidden quest twice.¡¯ There was no way that he could know the reason as to why this happened, but despite there not being a separate time limit, he failed the Evil Dragon Khalifa quest. However, fortunately, that quest didn¡¯t cease to exist, and instead turned into another quest, and a time limit of ten days was attached. ¡®Let¡¯s see here¡­ Now I have about three days left.¡¯ Ian, who had a lot to do, began to hurriedly move his feet. * * * ¡°Euh¡­ This dungeon, why is it this creepy?¡± Just a couple days ago. Ropley, the top-ranking user of the Warrior-class who hit lv 180, was running an ancient dungeon that was in the corner of the central continent. And, of course, he was not alone. As it was a dungeon that was known for being infested with the strongest monsters of even the middle area of the central continent, even if he was a lv 180, playing solo for this dungeon was too much. ¡°No kidding. Our party, I feel like we¡¯re already trying for the fifth time, but it¡¯s somewhat of a different feeling from the other runs up until now.¡± At the words of Heria, who was the only Priest-class of their group, the party members all nodded their heads. ¡°Hmm, it¡¯s an atmosphere that¡¯s bleak enough that it feels like a portal that leads to the Devildom will open¡­¡± ¡°The Devildom? I feel like it¡¯s more like a graveyard instead. This feeling like even a zombie might pop up¡­¡± There was an illusion that seemed like, for some reason, a spooky energy was hanging in the air, and it even felt like the general hue of the dungeon, which originally was a yellowish colour, had turned reddish, but the party continued to hunt. This was because there was absolutely nothing different from the monsters that appeared. Bang- Ba-bang-! ¡°Heria, please send some heals over here!¡± ¡°Got it, one moment!¡± ¡°Rample, please take care of the mummies that are in the back!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± And as they hunted like that, had about 1 hour passed by crazily? The party, who stood in the secret room that was in the latter half of the dungeon, wore flustered expressions. ¡°Huh? Where exactly has the boss that is supposed to be here gone?¡± ¡°Hmm? This is the first time that this has happened¡­ Didn¡¯t we for sure reset the dungeon?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m saying.¡± ¡°By any chance, couldn¡¯t it be that the party that ran the dungeon before us just left after taking the boss?¡± ¡°That¡¯s impossible. If that was the case, then there¡¯s no way that the normal monsters that we faced on our way here would have been fine, right?¡± However, just then, when the party was at a loss at the unexpected situation. From the centre of the secret room, where the boss was supposed to form, a bright red current began to form out of nowhere. Ropley mumbled with a flustered expression. ¡°What the hell? a portal to the Devildom seriously opening just like I had said?¡± Either way, as they didn¡¯t know what was going to happen, the party all began to stare at the red current while grasping onto each of their weapons as they stood anxiously. Shortly after, that red current began to make the form of a giant devil. ¡°What, what the hell¡­?¡± An incredible greatness began to fill the whole boss room. However, just then, the devil that appeared right in the middle of the secret room began to slowly open its mouth with a low voice. ? Weak humans. The party stealthily exchanged glances with each other. ¡°Just saying¡­ But wouldn¡¯t it be best to get out of here quickly?¡± ¡°No, no kidding. I can barely take down even a Low-rank magical beast, but that thing looks like some sort of Devil King. Our party will probably get annihilated.¡± And the words of the devil continued. ? If you trust your soul with me, I will give you a powerful strength. Following that, one system message popped up in front of the eyes of the party. Ring-. ? The ¡®Promise of the Devil¡¯ Quest has been invoked. ? If you succeed in completing the quest, you may become a ¡®True Devil¡¯, which is a full devil, and once you accept the quest, you cannot give it up. ? Will you accept the quest? (Y/N) CH 253 Chapter 253: Searching for the Miraculous Medicine II (1) ? At 00:00, which is 10 minutes away from now, the Devildom server will close completely. ? Once the server closes, all users who are currently logged on at the time will be logged out by force, so we hope that you will log off beforehand. ? Remaining time (00:09:58) Along with the world system message, a countdown to the shutting down of the Devildom server began. The users that remained in the Devildom hunted with all of their strength in order to obtain even one more magic stone for those 10 minutes, and it was only when there was about 1 minute left on the countdown before they began to log out one by one. "Whew, it''s a little disappointing, but¡­ Sure, this much is certainly enough." "That''s right, even just by selling these magic stones, we won''t have to worry about gold for a while." "I''m going to fortify everything and go around with all of my equipment having reached full transcendence! If I go running around with shiny equipment then I think I''ll have more motivation to hunt." Like that, the Devildom server finally closed¡­ ? The Devildom server is closing. ? Effective immediately, all of the dimensional doors that are open to move to and from the Devildom will cease to exist, and for the time being, Devildom content cannot be used anymore. ? Also, 12 hours from now, as the Devildom monster wave is going to begin in the four locations that were announced beforehand, we expect you users to prepare everything you possibly can in order to face the monsters of the Devildom. ? Remaining time (11:59:59) The time that the Devildom monster wave would open was announced. Each of the users headed towards the locations of the monster waves that they would be participating in, and they signed up for the punitive forces that were in each of the locations as they registered their IDs. About the time when everybody else was moving around crazily in order to participate in the monster wave like that. Instead of registering for the monster punitive forces, Ian was heading towards the Forest of Love. * * * "Long time, no see, Ian." Ian, who had arrived at the dwelling of Iriel, smiled sheepishly as he took her outheld hand. "No kidding, I had been quite busy." And Ian was able to discover another familiar face besides Iriel. "Oh, Gripper, you were here, too!" He was none other than Dimensional Enchanter Gripper, who had given a lot of quests to Ian a long time ago. "Long time no see, Ian. It seems you have grown to the point of being unrecognizable." Ian wore a satisfied smile as he nodded his head. "Since a lot of time has passed since then." Iriel spoke towards Ian. "Let''s sit down first. There is a lot to talk about." Ian nodded his head as he sat down, and Gripper as well took a seat next to them. "Unfortunately, Evil Dragon Khalifa ended up awakening." At Iriel''s words, Ian nodded his head as he spoke. "Apparently so. They even said that the reason why this dimensional war is happening is because Khalifa had awoken as well¡­" At Ian''s words, Iriel and Gripper''s eyes rounded. "No, how do you know that fact?" "Right? Ian, how exactly did you find that out?" Iriel was the very person that sent Ian to the Devildom. However, even she couldn''t ever imagine that Ian would have gotten all the way into the central area of the Devildom either. She thought that Ian would have just floated around the outskirts of the Devildom and obtained information, and so, that was why she couldn''t help but be surprised of the fact that he knew about the connection with Khalifa and the dimensional war. Ian wore a bitter smile as he opened his mouth. "So, you see¡­" Ian began to give a brief summary of the incidences that had happened in the Devildom up until now. ''If I spread some information about the Devildom like this, then I''m sure even a little bit of information will come out. Since they are definitely both Legendary-rank NPCs or higher, that is.'' And once the two NPCs heard all of Ian''s active role, their reactions were beyond his imagination. Iriel especially couldn''t help but be appalled. "So¡­ You''re saying that amongst the two Devil Summoning Stones that were destroyed recently, you were behind the destruction of one of them?" Ian frankly nodded his head. "That''s right. I broke one, and the other Devil King Ricardo broke." He momentarily thought about whether he should lie and say that he had accomplished breaking both of them himself, but as he felt a little guilty, he decided to be honest. ''I feel like even if I lie to an NPC, they''ll know.'' Gripper spoke to Ian with a glowing expression. "Oh, Ian, you were an individual much more outstanding than I expected! After hearing the news that two of the Devil Summoning Stones were destroyed this time, I was incredibly curious as to how that had happened¡­" Iriel was also wearing a deeply moved expression. "I didn''t even know about that and instead, I just momentarily resented you Ian, as you didn''t contact me until Khalifa had awoken." A system message popped up in front of Ian''s eyes. Ring-. ? Your Affinity with ''Iriel'' has increased by 20. ? Your Affinity with ''Gripper'' has increased by 10. ? Because your Affinity with Dimensional Enchanter ''Gripper'' is already at max, you have obtained an additional reward. Ian wore a confused expression. ''What the hell is this? An additional reward? Is this even possible? But they said that they would give me an additional reward DMF, yet why isn''t another message popping up?'' Just then when Ian was wondering like that, Gripper began to pull something out from his chest. "As I''ve confirmed that you are a hero more exceptional than I had thought of up until now, it looks like I''ll be able to leave this item with you now." Ian held out his hand and took the small pouch that Gripper gave him. As he did so, a message additionally rang out. Ring-. ? You have obtained the ''Dimensional Bead'' item. ''What the hell is this? The Dimensional Bead¡­?'' Out of curiosity, Ian immediately checked the information of the item. ? Dimensional Bead Classification: Miscellaneous goods Rank: Legendary *The owner of this bead will be able to frequent dimensions. *A particular condition must be satisfied in order to use the bead. *This is an item belonging to user ''Ian''. "¡­" Ian, who checked the explanation of the item, wore a flustered expression as he asked Gripper. "Gripper, how should I use this item?" "That, you will probably¡­ Figure out when the time is right." "Huh?" As it seemed like he wouldn''t tell him any more even if he asked, Ian nodded his head for now. "Anyways, thank you, Gripper." And while the two people conversed, Iriel, who was momentarily silent, slowly opened her mouth. "So, I''m wondering, Ian." Ian''s gaze turned towards Iriel. "What is it?." "In order to stop Khalifa, there''s something that we were hoping you would do¡­" The second that Ian nodded his head, a quest window popped up. Because of the information window that sequentially popped up as soon as he closed his item window, Ian felt like he was losing his mind. Ring-. ? ''The Shadow of the Evil Dragon Khalifa II (Hidden)(Connected)'' For some reason, Evil Dragon Khalifa was released from his seal much quicker than expected. Thanks to that, just like a thousand years ago, a dimensional war has begun, and soon, tons of destructive devils including Khalifa will overcome the dimension and come to attack. However, humans have become weaker compared to a thousand years ago, and the destructive devils have become even stronger than then. In order to stop them, you need the ''Chief Soldier Treasure'', one of the ''Seven Treasures'' of the ''Wheel-Turning King'', which is filled with ancient wisdom. Enter the capital of the Wheel-Turning King through the dimensional door that Gripper opens, and borrow the Chief Soldier Treasure, which is one of his seven treasures. Quest Difficulty Level: SSS Quest Condition: Unknown Time Limit: None Reward: Unknown *This is a quest that cannot be rejected. The head of Ian, who read through the whole quest, began to hurt. ''What the hell is this? As a matter of fact, I have to evolve Bbookbbook and do a lot of other things as well, but¡­ I feel like I''ve somewhat obtained an incredibly large-scale quest.'' The only fortunate thing was the fact that there was no time limit. ''Even the quest difficulty level is a Triple-S rank¡­ For now, I should do this quest after I''ve evolved Bbookbbook.'' There was no way of knowing if the quest would fail on its own again and come to smack him in the back of his head, but right now, the most urgent thing for Ian was to evolve Bbookbbook. "Understood. I will try to do it." At Ian''s response, Gripper and Iriel''s expressions brightened. "Oh, as expected. We knew that if it was you, you would respond like that." Ian smirked as he asked back. "Even I said I wouldn''t do it, you would have made me, though." Gripper wore a flustered expression. "No, how did you¡­!" Ian shook his head. ''How do you think I knew? It says blatantly that it is a quest that cannot be turned down¡­'' Either way, Ian, who received another large-scale quest, left the Forest of Love with a heavier heart. "Then, come to the magic tower as soon as you''re done preparing." It seemed like Gripper was talking about his Dimensional Magic Tower that is at the east end of the continent. Ian nodded his head as he responded. "Understood, Gripper. Then, I will see you soon." "Got it." The next thing that Ian, who left the Forest of Love, did was head towards the central continent. ''Let''s see here, from what I saw in the official community, Lilson or whatever that Explorer''s name was is in the central continent, right?'' As Ian searched the user''s name without hesitancy, he was able to find Lilson. ''Fortunately, he didn''t leave his messages on private like I did.'' Ian smirked as he sent a message to Lilson. ? Ian: Hello, Lilson. I contacted you because I had something that I needed to ask, so by any chance, do you have some time right now? And before not even 5 minutes passed since Ian sent that message, Lilson''s response returned. ? Lilson: Ian¡­? By any chance, are you that famous Summoner user Ian? Ian, who became embarrassed at the word ''famous'', scratched the back of his head as he sent a response message. ? Ian: Yes, well¡­ I don''t know if I''m famous, but I am the Summoner named Ian. Since there cannot be duplicate IDs in Kailan, I believe there isn''t an Ian besides myself. ? Lilson: Oh, Ian! I always wanted to meet you once! If it is you, then I must make time even if I don''t have any and see you! Lilson''s strong reaction was a little burdensome for Ian, but he wasn''t in a bad mood. ''It looks like I''ve become a little famous for sure. Well¡­ Would it be weirder that I wasn''t famous after achieving several first achievements?'' Either way, Ian, who became pleased, sent a message to Lilson and set up a meeting place for them to meet. ? Ian: From what I saw on the official community, it looked like you were currently in the centre continent right now, so are you still there? ? Lilson: Oh my god, Ian, did you go into my personal channel and see? ? Ian: Y, yes? ? Lilson: Keu, it''s an honour! Of course I''m still in the central continent! No, even if I was in the northern continent or in some frontier of the eastern continent somewhere, I would run to the central continent! ? Ian: Ah¡­ Tha, thank you. Either way, if you are currently in the central continent, do you think you could come to the Lord''s Manor of the Pyro Domain? ? Lilson: Of course! I will head over there right away! ? Ian: Yes, then I will see you at the Lord''s Manor of the Pyro Domain 1 hour from now. ? Lilson: Yes! He couldn''t tell why, but following his spine, cold sweat poured down. CH 254 Chapter 254: Searching for the Miraculous Medicine II (2) Ian, who had immediately headed for the Pyro Domain, entered his room, which was in the Lord''s castle. ''I still have roughly about 45 minutes left until the time that I''m supposed to meet Lilson at.'' There was one thing that Ian had to do until then. ''Keu-heu-heut, it''s time for me to blow all of the magic stones I''ve gathered ever since.'' Ian was literally rich with magic stones. He had so many low-grade magic stones to the point it was truly impossible to count all of them, and he had also gathered close to a thousand intermediate-grade magic stones. On top of that, it was a situation where he had even obtained thirty high-grade magic stones through the last quest. As the high-grade magic stone was an item that he even had yet to see with his own eyes while hunting all of those magical beasts up until now, Ian''s face was glowing. Ian took a seat and began the operation after he pulled out every piece of his equipment. "Let''s go! I''m going to hit at least +15 fortification today. I''m going to get through the 2nd transcendence and go straight to the 3rd transcendence!" Amongst Ian''s equipment, the one with the highest fortification level was his Judgment of the Spirit King, which was currently at +9 fortification. On top of that, because the other items were also a 7-8 fortification, he was planning on making all of his equipment reach +10 fortification at the least. To be honest, it was alright to see up to this point as an established fact. This was because +10 fortification was a value that was possible with low-grade magic stones, and he had enough low-grade magic stones to the point that they were endless no matter how many he used. It was a situation to the point that no matter how atrocious the percentage was, it would be difficult to fail. ''And with the roughly 800 intermediate-grade magic stones that I have in total, I should be able to make at least 2-3 equipment reach +15 fortification.'' It was Ian''s goal to use a couple of the high-grade magic stones on the equipment that would have reached +15 fortification afterwards. "Hoo-oo-oob!" After taking a deep breath, Ian began to dump his magic stones onto his equipment diligently. And like that, 40 minutes, which could be a short amount of time, or a long amount of time, passed by in an instant. * * * "Whew¡­" There was a deep sigh that rang out from some corner of the Pyro Lord''s Castle. With a sunken expression, Ian scanned the equipment that was on the table. ''No, how could there not even be one equipment that has reached 3rd transcendence when I''ve used up all 800 of my intermediate-grade magic stones?'' Ian wore an expression filled with sadness. The magic stones, which looked as if there was an endless amount of them, evaporated much quicker than what he first expected, and the result was much worse than what Ian expected. "I have four that are at +13 fortification, and one that is at +12 fortification. The one that jumped up the best is my Judgment of the Spirit King at +14 fortification¡­" Ian inwardly was hoping for 3rd transcendence of all of his equipment. As not even one equipment did not reach 3rd transcendence when he was thinking that his expectations were quite possible, he couldn''t help but become dispirited. ''This is troublesome if this continues¡­'' To be honest, there was nothing troublesome about the situation he was in. Since currently, there was only a handful of equipment that had reached 2nd transcendence. Considering the fact that the equipment with the highest fortification that has been uploaded in the official community is a +11 fortification equipment, Ian''s items could be considered ultra-luxury items. However, Ian couldn''t be satisfied. And his gaze slightly turned towards the corner of the room. There were the 30 high-grade magic stones that he was not planning on using if he didn''t have to. They filled Ian''s pupil. ''Since it''s like this already¡­ Should I just do it?'' High-grade magic stones were used for +16 fortification to +20 fortification. They were fortification stones that were supposed to be used in order to make items reach 4th transcendence. However, it wasn''t like you couldn''t use those on items just because they hadn''t reached 3rd transcendence. It was just that the fortification rate wasn''t good. At this point, where there was a hundred-fold difference in the price every time the grade of the magic stone went up, Ian''s thoughts were incredibly dangerous. However, Ian was already focused on this dangerous gamble. ''That''s right, what is there to life, anyways? Let''s just go all the way.'' With trembling hands, Ian held up a magic stone. "Let''s go!" Ian shut his eyes tightly. Ian, who stood in front of the Judgment of the Spirit King that was on top of the table, dumped all of his high-grade magic stones onto it at once. ? You have failed at fortifying the ''Judgment of the Spirit King'' item! ? The fortification rank of the ''Judgment of the Spirit King'' item has dropped to +13 fortification. ? You have succeeded at fortifying the ''Judgment of the Spirit King'' item! ? The fortification rank of the ''Judgment of the Spirit King'' item has increased from +13 fortification to +14 fortification. ? You have succeeded at fortifying the ''Judgment of the Spirit King'' item! ? The fortification rank of the ''Judgment of the Spirit King'' item has increased from +14 fortification to +15 fortification. ? As user ''Ian'' has succeeded in +15 fortification, you have obtained a 3rd transcendence-rank equipment. After Ian checked the message that he had succeeded in reaching the 3rd transcendence that had popped up with the system messages, he closed his eyes with a little calmer heart. ''Still, if it''s this much, I''ve at least gotten my money''s worth!'' Firstly, if successful in getting to at least transcendence, it was quite difficult to drop to the fortification level below it. As that was the case, Ian was able to relax a little. While he still had his eyes closed, he continued to grab the high-grade magic stones and dump it onto his Judgment of the Spirit King without even checking the results. Just then, shortly after, Ian felt that something was off. ''Huh? Why aren''t the magic stones being used? Have I miscounted? I should have about three or four left still¡­'' Ian opened his tightly closed eyes little by little. And just then, when he had carefully checked the system message. He almost collapsed onto the ground out of shock. ? As user ''Ian'' has succeeded in +20 fortification, you have obtained a 4th transcendence-rank equipment. ? You can no longer use high-grade magic stones on weapons that are at +20 fortification or higher. ? You are the first to have produced a 4th transcendence weapon! ? Your Fame has increased by 300 thousand. The system message shone a golden light. And the Judgment of the Spirit King floated in front of him while letting out a brilliant sparkle¡­ Even though he saw it with his own two eyes, he couldn''t believe the current reality. ''What, what the hell? Did I really reach +20 fortification with just 30 stones?'' Ian read through the system messages that had passed by. And he was able to find out what had happened. ''At the end, I hit the jackpot! In one go, it was fortified up by 3 levels!'' Ian felt like he could fly. ''Should I check the fortification result at least?'' ? Fortification Result Offensive Power: 5278-5815 ¡ú 5460-6015 All combat abilities +435 ¡ú All combat abilities +450 Leadership +580 ¡ú +600 Affinity +435 ¡ú Affinity +450 "¡­" After checking the performance of the fortified Judgment of the Spirit King, Ian froze on the spot. This was because this was indeed a nonsensical numerical figure. ''This crazy, before I first fortified the Judgment of the Spirit King, its Offensive Power was for sure just slightly above 2 thousand, yet¡­'' The Offensive Power of the non-fortified Judgment of the Spirit King was exactly 2005. However, right now, when it was at +20 fortification, a monstrous value of over 6 thousand was born. ''This is a planet destructing weapon!'' Ian grasped the Judgment of the Spirit King which was floating in the air. If Ian''s guess was right, this weapon that was currently in front of his eyes was an item that would be sold at a much higher price than a decent house in Gangnam[1] if it weren''t bound to his account. ''Keu, with my current mood, I feel like I could even hunt Balrogs one-on-one!'' Of course, there was no way that could be possible, but there was no mistake that Ian''s current Judgment of the Spirit King was the best weapon in the whole server. Based on the fact that the Offensive Powers of the weapons that were currently up in the hall of fame of the official community were not even at 4 thousand, let alone 6 thousand, that was almost certain. On top of that, this Judgment of the Spirit King was an evolutionary, legendary weapon that could be evolved to a higher-level item once the additional quest of the Selamus Warrior was also completed. Ian carefully placed the three remaining high-grade magic stones back into his inventory before he left his room while humming. "Alright, shall I go visit Lilson now?" Ian had become full of happiness more than ever before. It could be considered the same feeling as when you for sure ordered one full chicken, but three or more drumsticks came out. Meanwhile, Ian had absolutely no idea, but because of the world message that popped up just a moment ago, all of the users in the central continent of Kailan were in a frenzy. This was because the fact that a 4th transcendence item had appeared had popped up as a world message. * * * Manager Lee, who was currently on duty at the customer service centre of the Kailan head office, was to the point he was almost delirious because of the sudden overflow of the hundreds of phone calls. "Sorry? What did you say? What was a bug?" ? I''m asking you to check and see if the 4th transcendence weapon that Ian had apparently made wasn''t a bugged weapon. "Sorry? There''s no way that would be the case. Our Kailan system is¡­" ? No, this person, this is seriously frustrating. I''m telling you, that weapon is definitely a weapon that he obtained through a bugged play. The fact that a 4th transcendence weapon has appeared at this point in time does not make sense. Others are barely even making 1st transcendence weapons, and right now, if it''s a 2nd transcendence weapon, it''s being considered top-rank equipment, but for him to have not even a 3rd transcendence, but a 4th transcendence weapon, that doesn''t make sense. However, there was not much of a response that Manager Lee, who was just a consultant in the customer service centre, could give. ''Ah, damn it! What do you exactly expect me to do? I''m telling you, I don''t know, either!'' Manager Lee ground his teeth. ''This Ian or whatever, last time, this punk sucked the soul out of the planning team, now this time, he''s setting the customer service centre on fire, argh!'' Still, as he needed to give some sort of response, Manager Lee spoke while almost at the verge of tears. "It, it seems he''s just lucky." ? What do you mean lucky, this person! Just leaving this kind of bugged play is playing with the users! You know that? Helplessly, Manager Lee had no choice but to bite the bullet as he cried. "Un, understood, sir. We will check it as soon as possible." ? Whew, these LB corp. punks aren''t doing their jobs properly! The user, who raged, ended the call with a snap, and Manager Lee suddenly felt drained. "Damn it, that Ian punk, exactly what does he do?" However, Ian was just a good user that just gamed diligently. * * * Ian, who wasn''t properly aware of what kind of situation he created just a moment ago, was meeting with Lilson at this point where chaos had erupted. "Hello, are you Lilson?" Ian, who discovered Lilson, greeted him warmly. And Lilson, who snapped his head around towards him, approached Ian hectically with an expression as if he was possessed by something and grasped his hand. "Nice, nice to meet you, Ian. I am Lilson." "Ha, haha, nice to meet you. Thank you for making time for me like this." Ian offered a seat to Lilson. "Alright, shall we go sit over here." However, instead of sitting in his spot, Lilson asked Ian a question as if he was diving in on him. "But, but, Ian, I just saw the world message that popped up just a moment ago¡­" "Huh?" "Have you seriously created a weapon that has reached 4th transcendence just a moment ago?" At those words, Ian wore a sheepish expression. ''Oh, right. A world message saying that I was the first to have succeeded in that fortification popped up, right?'' Ian nodded his head as he responded. "Yes, why?" Wearing an expression that looked as if he was deeply moved, Lilson hurriedly asked. "By, by any chance, could I see that weapon?" Lilson was an Explorer. Explorers were not just interested in ancient relics, history or special items, but they also had a much higher interest in exceptional equipment compared to other users. As that was the case, Lilson, wanted to check the planet destructing weapon that was the first to be made with his own two eyes. Without reserve, Ian held out the Judgment of the Spirit King, which had successfully reached 4th transcendence, and held it out towards Lilson. "This is it here." At the sparkle of the planet destroying weapon that shone brilliantly, Lilson wore an ecstatic expression. "Oh¡­ This is exactly that¡­!" As Lilson held out his hand, Ian smirked as he shook his head. "You cannot take the item from me. As this is an account-bound item." "Oh, I see¡­" Ian, who momentarily suffered Lilson''s annoyance even after that, was only able to get to the main point after almost 20 minutes or so passed. "Excuse me, Lilson. There''s something that I want to ask a favour from you for¡­" "Oh, whatever it is, tell me! If it is something that I can uphold, I will help you no matter what!" Ian didn''t seem to hate that exaggerated expression of Lilson, as he held back his laughter while responding. "Thank you, then, just one moment¡­" And Ian opened his inventory and pulled out worn-out parchment piece that he had left in the corner. That was none other than the map that held the location of the ''cintamani'' that would turn Bbookbbook into an Abyss Dragon. [1] Gangnam = A wealthy district is Seoul, South Korea. Basically the equivalent to the Beverly Hills of America. CH 255 Chapter 255: Searching for the Miraculous Medicine II (3) Lilson''s two eyes slightly grew. "What¡­ Is this?" With a low voice, Ian responded. "This is a map that holds the location of where an item that I absolutely need is. As it is an ancient relic, I wasn''t able to appraise the item with my abilities." And at Ian''s short explanation, it seemed Lilson understood right away, as he nodded his head. "Oh, I think I''ll need to see what kind of relic it is, but it is incredibly exciting. Could you pass it to me?" At Lilson''s words, Ian didn''t say anything else and just pulled out the parchment before handing it over to Lilson. While receiving that, Lilson thought to himself. ''Hmm¡­ At best, could it be a relic that''s about a Unique-rank? Even if it is a normal user, if it''s to the point that a user that''s at Ian''s level cannot appraise it, it means that it''s quite a high rank¡­'' Ian was a top-ranking user that was even over lv 200 now. It was a value that was almost double the level difference with Lilson, who was just over lv 100. However, Lilson did not expect much out of the relic that Ian handed over to him. This was because in order to unearth a high-rank relic, the class proficiency of the Explorer was much more important than the level of the character. With a somewhat apathetic expression, Lilson received the parchment from Ian. ''Shall we take a look here?'' Lilson was momentarily elated over the thought of him solving Ian''s problem in the blink of an eye and receiving praise from him. However, shortly after, he couldn''t help but be flustered. ''What the hell, this is a Legendary-rank?'' Lilson succeeded in appraising a relic that was a Legendary-rank for the first time last time. Thanks to that, fragmentary information of the relic that wasn''t visible to Ian was visible to him due to his raised appraisal level. ? ''Wishful Treasure Map''/Classification: Miscellaneous Goods (Relic)/Rank: Legendary "¡­" As Lilson was frozen with a dazed expression, Ian asked him. "What''s wrong? Is there some sort of problem¡­?" Lilson was flustered as he responded. "This item¡­ Exactly how did you obtain it? If it isn''t for a user with an Explorer class, this is a Legendary-rank relic that cannot be obtained whatsoever." Ian just shrugged his shoulders. "I''m not sure. Just somehow¡­" Anyhow, Lilson felt he came into a windfall. ''Keu, it''s a gift from the gods! For another legendary relic to have rolled in like this on its own feet when not that much time has passed since I first appraised a Legendary-rank relic!'' Even to Lilson, who was at a standard where he was the highest-leveled Explorer in Kailan, the EXP that he could obtain through the appraisal of a Legendary-rank relic was tremendous. As that was the case, he was this happy. Lilson momentarily touched the relic that he received from Ian before he placed it on the table and spoke. "Excuse me, Ian." "Yes?" "I''ll be right back after I visit the auction house." Ian asked with a puzzled expression. "Why the auction house?" "Oh, to purchase some item appraisal stones." "If it is because of that, I have a lot as well¡­" Lilson shook his head. "It won''t work with just normal appraisal stones. I need highest-grade appraisal stones. If you just wait one moment¡­" However, Ian pulled out a bundle of the highest-grade appraisal stones, which were on Lilson''s order list, before Lilson even finished speaking and placed it in front of him. "Here." And Lilson wore a flustered expression. "So, so much of this expensive item¡­!" Highest-grade appraisal stones were costly consumables that sold at about 30 thousand gold per piece. As Lilson was able to raise his Explorer EXP thanks to Ian, he was planning on purchasing the appraisal stones at his own expense as his repayment for that. However, as Ian unexpectedly held out the appraisal stones like this, he wore a disturbed expression. ? You have obtained ''Highest-grade Item Appraisal Stones'' x300. Lilson received his order of appraisal stones with trembling hands. ''Th, three hundred? This is almost 9 million gold! Yet he''s giving this to me so willingly? What will he do if I just log out after receiving this?'' To Lilson, 9 million gold was not a small amount. However, as it was an amount that was covered if Ian just sold lumps of low-grade magic stones, it was a level that wasn''t too burdensome in Ian''s perspective. Ian asked Lilson. "It''s possible with this much, right? I heard that a ton of highest-grade magic stones went into appraising a Legendary-rank relic. So that''s why I purchased an ample amount of them¡­" "This is enough! There will definitely be a lot left. I will succeed in appraising them as quickly as possible and return them to you." At Lilson''s words, Ian shook his head as he smirked. "You take all the remaining appraisal stones." "Se, seriously?" "You can just consider it commission." Lilson, who momentarily thought about it, studied Ian''s expression as he stealthily responded. "No¡­ Take-backs." Lilson''s drive towards relic appraising began to fire up even more. * * * Meanwhile, in the small meeting room that was at the highest floor of the Pyro Lord''s castle. Three men that had gathered together for the first time in a while sat around a round table and shared a serious conversation. "So, here and here. If a monster wave opens up in these two spots, you''re saying that at the latest, the aftermath will reach our domain, right?" At Carwin''s words, Herz nodded his head. "That''s right. Based on the difficulty level of the monster wave that was announced on the official homepage, up to the first difficulty level, it will be stopped a decent amount by the punitive forces. Even if the wave were to reach our domain, it will probably just be a couple of small fries that happened to slip away here and there. However, starting from the 2nd wave, it will probably be a different story." Kroban asked Herz. "Yo, I also read that announcement, but it looked like the only thing that changed with the 2nd wave from the 1st wave was just the fact that they were intermediate-rank magical beasts. Are intermediate-rank magical beasts that strong?" Herz slowly nodded his head. "Yes, hyung. The fighting power of intermediate-rank magical beasts itself are completely different from low-rank magical beasts. From what I''ve felt, it seemed like they were almost 1.5-2 times stronger at the same level¡­" "Aheum¡­ Is that so?" Amongst the three people, only Herz was the one that had experienced up to the Devildom zone where intermediate-rank magical beasts appeared. As that was the case, they were depending on Herz''s information to judge the difficulty level of the monster wave. Like that, the three people were having a meeting over preparations related to the monster wave for a long time. And in the midst of that, it seemed that Carwin suddenly remembered something, as he abruptly opened his mouth. "But Herz hyung." "Yeah?" "What is Ian hyung doing lately? No, is he even alive? I''ve basically seen nothing of him lately." Herz smirked as he replied. "Well, since he is regularly sending me information related to the Devildom, he probably is alive at the least." Kroban shook his head as he mumbled. "I feel like it would be best if that punk also came here before the monster wave began¡­" Before anybody realized it, based on the fighting power that was visible from the outside, the Lotus Guild had become a supersized guild that was fighting for around 6th-7th place. Even while Ian didn''t pay attention to it, with Herz and Fiolan as the heads, the domains had rapidly grown thanks to the constant maintenance of them. However, despite the Lotus Guild having become such a giant guild like this, the presence of Ian was incredibly big. This was because no matter what anybody said, Ian was the one that had exerted the biggest effect on the Lotus Guild growing this big. Herz, of course, but the executive members including Kroban, Carwin and Fiolan, were all hoping that Ian quickly finished all of his quests before returning and led the guild again. Herz slightly smiled towards Kroban as he opened his mouth. "Just wait a little more, hyung. As a matter of fact, he said that he would visit the domain within the next couple of days." Kroban grumbled. "This punk, if he''s flying through the Devildom like that, he should come visit his hyung every so often and even share his magic stones with me a little as well, no? Acting like some cheap punk." Carwin agreed enthusiastically next to him. "My point exactly! What was it, a 4th transcendence weapon, for himself? After making something so ridiculous!" The three people who talked behind Ian''s back for a moment, began to talk about the preparations for the monster wave again¡­ Without even knowing the fact that Ian was sitting on the floor right below them. * * * ? You have failed the appraisal of the ''Wishful Treasure Map'' relic. ? You have consumed 1 Highest-grade Appraisal Stone. (Remaining Appraisal Stones: 77) ? You have failed the appraisal of the ''Wishful Treasure Map'' relic. ? You have consumed 1 Highest-grade Appraisal Stone. (Remaining Appraisal Stones: 15) Each time the number of appraisal stones was reduced by one, Lilson''s expression grew paler and paler. ''It, it can''t go on like this! No, even last time, when I appraised a legendary relic, I feel like about 120 highest-grade appraisal stones went into it, but what exactly is this item for it to not be appraised yet even when I''m close to using 300 of them?'' However, fortunately, when there were about seven appraisal stones left, the ''Wishful Treasure Map'' that he had received from Ian began to let out a brilliant light. Ring-! ? You have succeeded in the appraisal of the ''Wishful Treasure Map''. ? Your Explorer EXP has increased by 1,272,500. ? The proficiency EXP of your ''Relic Appraisal'' skill has increased by 331,512. ? The level of your ''Relic Appraisal'' skill has increased from a High-rank level 9 to a High-rank level 10. ? As you have succeeded in appraising a Legendary-rank relic, you have obtained 100 thousand Fame. To Lilson, rather than the Legendary-rank relic that he had succeeded in appraising, the appraisal stones, which he only had 7 of, caught his eyes first. ''Euh¡­ How disappointing. I thought that I would have been able to leave a lot more.'' Because his appraising level had gone up a lot from succeeding in appraising a Legendary-rank relic before once already, Lilson had thought that he would have been able to succeed in appraising this legendary relic with just about 50 appraisal stones . Lilson''s ambitious dream of leaving 250 appraisal stones and pocketing 7.5 million gold downgraded to 210 thousand gold like that. Lilson lifted the Wishful Treasure Map, which he had succeeded in appraising and handed it over to Ian. Because in the case of ancient relics which were done being appraised, their durability was incredibly weak, his hand gestures were incredibly careful. "Here, take a look at it." Lilson was incredibly curious of the information of the item, but still, as it was first for Ian, the owner of the relic, to check the content, he did not check the information beforehand. "Thank you!" Ian, who received the ''Wishful Treasure Map'' from Lilson, hurriedly opened the information window of the item. ? Wishful Treasure Map Classification ¨C Miscellaneous goods (Relic) Rank ¨C Legendary *The cintamani is a mystical existence that brings luck to the one that carries it, and it eliminates evil and natural disasters. Also one of the treasures that are required in order for a monster serpent to ascent into a sky dragon, this cintamani was a beaded treasure, which was one of the ''Seven Treasures'' that the Wheel-Turning King originally possessed. The Wheel-Turning King made treasure maps that held the locations of his Seven Treasures and entrusted each one of them with his seven most trusted lieges, and this Wishful Treasure Map happens to be one of the seven treasure maps. *This is an item bound to user ''Ian''. *If this item is used, the map that has the location of the cintamani marked can be checked. Ian, who read through the information of the item, slightly frowned. ''What the hell? Why are there so many difficult words?''[1] After roughly reading the explanation above that was full of difficult Chinese characters, his gaze turned to the two lines that were written at the very bottom. ''So¡­ I just need to use this map and see where the cintamani is, right?'' Ian grumbled as he immediately used the treasure map. ''Alright, shall we see where the cintamani is now?'' And a giant full image of all of the continents of Kailan spread out in front of Ian. However, shortly after, Ian couldn''t help but wear an incredibly flustered expression. "No, what the hell is this?" At Ian''s taken aback voice, Lilson, who was next to him, was startled and asked. "What''s wrong? Is there some sort of problem¡­?" "No, no, it''s nothing like that¡­" Ian thoroughly checked the map that popped up in front of him again. ''What the hell, was this a fake?'' However, the location of the cintamani was not marked anywhere on the map. [1] In the original Korean text, there were a lot of Chinese characters used, which many Korean people no longer know how to fully read. CH 256 Chapter 256: Bbookbbook and the Seal of the Abyss (1) Ian fell into a state of despondency. ''Ah¡­ Is this how Bbookbbook''s evolution becomes distant again?'' And he snapped his head around towards Kaka, who was blinking his eyes while floating behind him. "Yo, Kaka." "Why do you call me, owner?" "This is a fake!" "What are you talking about?" Ian pressed him with a menacing(?) expression. "This map that you brought me! I''m telling you it''s a fake!" At Ian''s words, Kaka tilted his head. "There, there''s no way that''s the case." "There''s no way that''s the case, my ass! I just opened the map, but it was a weird map that didn''t even have the names of places marked down, let alone the location of the cintamani." Kaka mumbled with a flustered expression. "Hmm¡­ That, there''s no way that''s the case, I''m positive that it''s the exact map¡­" Kaka flapped his small wings as he flew so that he was in front of Ian and held out his hand. "Give it to me, owner. I will check it." "Sure, whatever." Lilson was watching the conversation of the odd master and servant with a dazed expression, and Kaka received the map from Ian before he began to check each and every corner. And shortly after. Kaka handed over the map to Ian as he spoke. "Owner." "Yeah?" "I found out the reason why the location of the cintamani is not marked on this map." Ian''s two eyes rounded. "What''s the reason?" "It''s because the cintamani is not an item of this current time period." "Not an item of this time period?" "That''s right. As that''s the case, there''s no way that it''s marked on this map." Ian wore a dumbfounded expression. ''No, if it is not an item of this time period, then how exactly are they telling me to find it?'' And there was a flustering part as well. "That''s right, let''s say that it''s not an item of this time period. But that map is an item that was made during the time period that the cintamani was made, no? Then it should be marked on that map." At Ian''s words, Kaka shook his head. "No, this map is not a normal map." "Huh?" "It is a mysterious and marvelous item that shows the map of the continent that the owner of the map is standing on no matter where they are." To Ian, who was taken aback, Kaka continued his explanation again. "In order to find the cintamani through this map, you must first go to the continent of the place that the cintamani existed in. Then this item will show you the map of that place, and there, the location of the cintamani will probably be marked." "So, where''s that?" "The Mauria Empire." "¡­" There was a moment of silence. Meanwhile, the attitude of Lilson, who stood there like a fish out of water next to the two, changed a little. At first, he watched the two with a soulless expression, but right now, he began to concentrate incredibly hard. ''If it''s the Mauria Empire, then it''s the name of the ancient empire that existed thousands of years ago?'' In accordance with Lilson''s class, he had excavated and researched a countless number of relics up until now. Even if they weren''t Legendary-rank, amongst the ancient relics he encountered, there were a lot of items that were from thousands of years ago, and if those types of relics are discovered, naturally, a lot about the history of Kailan could be learned. As that was the case, he had even heard stories about the Mauria Empire before as well. Kaka continued his words again. "The Mauria Empire was an ancient empire that existed in a generation that occurred even before the dimensional war from a thousand years ago had happened." "So what, are you saying that I need to time travel and go to that place?" Kaka nodded his head. "That''s right. Go to the Mauria Empire, which the Wheel-Turning King ruled over, and if you open this map up there, you will certainly be able to find the cintamani." However, just then, there was one thing that flashed through the mind of Ian, who heard the last words of Kaka,. ''Wait, the Wheel-Turning King, huh¡­ The Wheel-Turning King¡­ It seems like a name that I''ve heard of somewhere.'' And not long after, Ian was able to remember where he had heard the name ''the Wheel-Turning King''. "Yeah, that''s right! The item that Iriel told me to obtain as well, it was one of the treasures of the Wheel-Turning King!" Kaka grinned as he agreed enthusiastically. "That''s right, owner. If there''s one thing that I think our owner is good at, it is definitely memorization." Ian''s mind began to race. ''There''s an answer to this! Iriel and Gripper said that I needed to obtain the Chief Soldier Treasure, which is one of the treasures of the Wheel-Turning King, and in order to obtain that, obviously I have to go to the Mauria Empire where the Wheel-Turning King is.'' If he went to Gripper''s Magic Tower after finishing all preparations, he would open a portal that would lead to the Mauria Empire. Ian stared at Kaka as he clenched his fist. "Alright, Kaka, then it looks like we''ll have to go see Gripper right away now." Kaka nodded his head. "As expected, you have fast understanding skills. I''m glad that you aren''t frustratingly dense." And Ian''s words continued. "If I destroy all of the Devildom monsters by finding the Wheel-Turning King and evolve Bbookbbook, and also bringing back the Chief Soldier Treasure or whatever that was, then it will be game over!" "That''s right!" Kaka asked Ian. "Owner, then are we going straight away right now to the Dimensional Tower that''s in the eastern continent?" Ian shook his head. "There''s one thing that we have to do before then." Kaka asked with a puzzled expression. "What thing?" Ian''s gaze slightly turned towards the back of him. And in that spot, Bbookbbook was crawling around. "We need to find the ''Seal of the Abyss'' that we need to give to Bbookbbook." "Bbook¡­?" Bbookbbook tilted his head as he looked up at Ian. At the same time as that, the gazes of Kaka and Ian turned towards Lilson. "Excuse me, Lilson." At Ian''s calling, Lilson, who was in a daze, was startled as he responded. "Y, yes?" "By any chance¡­ Do you know anything about an item called the ''Seal of the Abyss''?" "The Seal¡­ Of Abyss?" * * * There were not much clues that Ian had about the Seal of the Abyss. This was because there was almost nothing that Bbookbbook knew about when it came to the Seal of the Abyss. It seemed that Bbookbbook just knew about how the seal looked. Rather, he obtained a little bit of information from Bbakbbak, but even that was not much help. - The Seal of the Abyss is an item that holds the energy of water and cold, owner. The one carrying it around receives resistance against all cold energy, and in the case of a Magician, it''s known that the fighting power of any water or ice-type increases by about 10%. - Wow¡­ If sold to Magicians, it will probably be crazy expensive. Especially if ice-type Magicians like Fiolan saw it, they''ll go completely crazy. - If you have ice-type Magicians nearby, it would be best not to show them, owner. - Why? - If in the case I was an ice-type magician, and I happened to see you with the Seal of the Abyss, I think I''ll want to even attempt to assassinate you. - ¡­ Ian, who momentarily remembered his conversation with Bbakbbak, shook his head as he began to explain the shape of the seal to Lilson. This was content he heard from Bbookbbook. "The Seal of the Abyss is a teardrop-shaped gem that gives off a bright blue colour." It was an incredibly precise description of the outside, however, as soon as he heard this brief explanation, Lilson flinched. "If it''s a teardrop-shaped blue gem, then¡­" Lilson suddenly began to dig through his inventory, and at that, Ian wore an expression full of anticipation. ''What the hell? They did say he was 1st place ranking Explorer, but no way, does he have the Seal of the Abyss?'' And shortly after, Lilson held out an item that truly looked similar to Ian''s description. It was a bright teardrop-shaped gem that was the size of a thumb of an adult male. Rather than a blue light, the gem let out a bit more of a dark navy colour, but as soon as Ian saw that, his jaw dropped. "Th, that! Is that right, Bbookbbook?" "Bbook?" At Ian''s question, Bbookbbook crawled over and stood in front of Lilson. And he began to stare intently at the blue gem that was on top of Lilson''s hand. Lilson spoke to Ian. "The name of this gem is not the ''Seal of the Abyss'', Ian. However, it has a similar name, and as it seemed that your description was talking exactly about this item¡­" Ian asked. "Huh¡­? Then what is the name of that gem?" "It''s an item called the ''Fragment of the Abyss''. It was an item that I obtained by chance while going into the Magical Tower of the Abyss to help out a Magician-class friend with a quest a long time ago." And as Lilson finished that response, Bbookbbook shook his head as he spoke to Ian. "Bbook, I don''t think this item is it bbook. Owner, it has to be a gem that''s a little bigger than this one and lets off a clear, sky blue colour bbook." Ian wore a disappointed expression. ''Ha, I thought that this was going to get solved a little more smoothly, but as expected¡­" If he borrowed Gripper''s power and was to go to the Mauria Empire, he would definitely be able to obtain the cintamani. Because of that, Ian wanted to go to the Dimensional Tower after he completed Bbookbbook''s 1st evolution. "Hmm, how disappointing. If it was the Seal of the Abyss, I would have tried to buy it from you no matter the price¡­" At Ian''s mumbling, Lilson, who wore an expression that showed he was tempted, asked. "Ian, why do you need that item?" Ian pointed to Bbookbbook without much thought and responded. "It''s an item that this good-for-nothing here needs to evolve." "Bbook! I am not a good-for-nothing bbook!" And at those words, Lilson''s jaw dropped. "Oh my god! You''re going to evolve Bbookbbook!" The one who was surprised was Ian instead. "Eh? You know Bbookbbook? How do you know this punk''s name?" Bbookbbook also rounded his eyes and spoke. "Bbook! How do you know me bbook!" Words poured out of Lilson''s mouth like rapid fire. "How could I not know about Bbookbbook, who is the mascot of your familiar party, Ian? I''m even a fan of Bbookbbook." Bbookbbook''s pupils trembled. "Bboobbook! I even have a fan bbook!" Lilson crouched down and continued his words as he kept petting Bbookbbook''s shell. "To be trying to evolve such a cute turtle like this¡­ If Bbookbbook also evolves, then won''t he become rough-looking like Bbakbbak?" Ian wore a stiff expression. "Prob¡­ Probably? But you know Bbakbbak as well?" "Yes, I''m telling you, I''m your fan, Ian! Of course I know all of your familiars. I''ve re-watched each of your combat videos dozens of times alone." Lilson couldn''t move his gaze from Bbookbbook as he spoke. "By any chance, could you not evolve Bbookbbook, Ian?" However, Ian''s response was flat with no leeway whatsoever. "No." "¡­!" "No, I can''t. That punk needs to quickly earn his keep, too, when there''s so many meatballs that he''s eaten up until now." "¡­" "But what''s the point if I want to evolve him when I don''t have the Seal of the Abyss. I need to obtain that in order to have a decision as to whether I''ll evolve him or not." "I, I see." Ian sighed deeply as he plopped down in the seat that was next to the table. "Ha, this. If you don''t even know where it is, Lilson, then where am I supposed to obtain information about it?" However, just then, Lilson, who seemed to be hesitating about something, carefully opened his mouth again. "Excuse me¡­ Ian?" "Yes?" "If in the case that I help you find the Seal of the Abyss, could you do me a favour?" "¡­!" At Lilson''s words, Ian shot up as if he had been waiting for that. "Of course! If it is a favour that I can uphold, I will uphold anything!" To be honest, Ian was convinced to an extent that Lilson knew some information related to the Seal of the Abyss. Although those grounds were incredibly weak. ''He has such a similar-looking gem like that, so wouldn''t he obviously know where the Seal of the Abyss is? When even the name is the Fragment of the Abyss, that is.'' Ian''s way of thinking was sometimes incredibly simple. However, there were a lot of times where his simple intuition was quite accurate. "Hmm, then¡­!" Lilson suddenly stood right in front of Ian and he took his hand as he spoke. "Please put me into the Lotus Guild! Is that¡­ Possible?" Lilson''s two eyes sparkled like a little child''s. Lately, Ian, who had constantly just been playing solo, wasn''t really aware of it, but the Lotus Guild had become a target of envy with many users. The Lotus Guild had become a popular guild to the point that Lilson, who was at about lv 100, had no way of signing up to join with a normal route. While looking at Lilson, who spoke shyly, Ian wore a broad grin. This was because it was an unexpected request, however, something like that was a deed that Ian could fulfill whenever he wanted with his discretion. "Got it. I will recommend you to the Guild Master, Lilson." "Ooh!" Ian narrowed his eyes as he pressured(?) Lilson. "So, please hurry and give me the information on the Seal of the Abyss that you have!" And at that pressure, Lilson slowly began to open his mouth. "I''ll be honest, to be exact, this Fragment of the Abyss was not an item that I obtained from the Magical Tower of the Abyss." "Huh¡­?" "There''s a small, secret dungeon right behind the Magical Tower of the Abyss, and I discovered it in there while helping my friend with a quest." Ian focused on Lilson''s words, and his explanation slowly continued. "Having discovered that dungeon, I hunted diligently all day. Because I normally didn''t hunt very much as I''m exploring, I needed to pile up as much EXP as I could while I had the first discoverer''s buff. You know, right?" Ian couldn''t agree that much, but he didn''t pick on his words. ''With hunting, you need to do it diligently normally, and when you have an EXP buff, you must hunt twice as more diligently.'' No matter what Ian''s thoughts were, Lilson continued to talk. "Like that, as I went deeper into the dungeon and hunted diligently, I was finally able to reach the lowest floor. And there, I was able to discover this beautiful gem called the Fragment of the Abyss spread across here and there. From what I remember, I think there was at least three to four hundred of these piled on the floor." Lilson, who discovered the beautiful gems, obviously began to shove them into his inventory, and while collecting those gems, he said that he had discovered a beautiful and large teardrop-shaped gem that was incomparable to them. "However, I wasn''t able to touch that item as there was some sort of incredibly powerful energy that was wrapped around it." Ian, who had heard up to this point, asked with a urgent voice. "So, was that gem the Seal of the Abyss?" Lilson shrugged his shoulder as he replied. "That I don''t know either. Because all that I did was look at that gem from afar, I was not able to check the information of the gem." Ian clenched both of his fists tightly. ''This is it! This is definitely the Seal of the Abyss!'' CH 257 Chapter 257: Bbookbbook and the Seal of Abyss (2) As the result, Lilson''s information wasn''t exactly accurate, but Ian had decided to listen to him for the time being. "According to my intuition, that thing is definitely the Seal of Abyss. If it isn''t that... I should still be accepted by the 1st rank guild for this." Ian immediately talked to Herz about Lilson joining the guild and, without any delay, started to move towards the Abyss. "This¡­ I haven''t been here in quite a while¡­" Ian was murmuring to himself, while Bbookbbook, who was beside him, had a very happy expression. "Yes, Bbook. It has really been a very long time." This Abyss Lake was a place that held a lot of memories. Excluding Ly, this was the place where Ian had spent the longest time to meet Bbookbbook and the others. Ian and Lilson climbed into the anchored boat, while Bbookbbook crawled into the lake with a¨CPlop! Bbookbbook started to immerse its body into the lake, and once it was completely immersed, it started to swim around. "This is my hometown after all. I missed this cool and clear water." BBookbbook seemed like a person who was longing to eat meat for a long time. Ian, upon seeing this, couldn''t help but smile at it. "Apart from having meatballs, that punk never looks that happy, I guess this is a first." Ly, which was beside Ian, nodded its head in agreement. "Yes, master. I never knew there was anything Bbookbbook liked apart from meatballs." This was the second time for Ly to come to the Abyss lake, yet it seemed very refreshing. If this place was a general hunting ground, it wouldn''t have taken such a long time to come back to this place. The view of this Abyss was so beautiful even Ian started to feel pleasant. "Ku, fresh air, clear water! This is such a perfect virtual reality game, but I never thought a thing like overseas travel would have been possible. I don''t think that I can, in any possible way, find another landscape better than this." Ian''s string of thoughts were filled with praise for this Kailin game and how it worked. After about thirty minutes or so, Ian and his party got to the middle of the Abyss. Lilson, as soon as he got off the boat, started to guide the road they were supposed to take. "Okay, so¡­ come this way, Mr. Ian." However Ian felt something was off in the direction Lilson was taking them. "Umm¡­? Lilson, that direction doesn''t lead to the centre, it is the route that takes us to the Northern coast isn''t it?" Lilson smiled and answered, "Yeah. That''s right" "¡­ Mr. Lilson thinks the secret dungeon is located behind the tower." Lilson nodded and after a brief pause, he explained. "Yes, the secret dungeon is exactly right behind the tower, but it isn''t a place that can be accessed so easily. If it wasn''t for me and my friend no one would have probably been able to find that dungeon." Ian was still uncertain about it, but he decided to walk in the direction Lilson was guiding. "Hmm¡­" The direction Ian and his party were moving was that of the hunting ground, it was famous for having the most monsters on the Island of Abyss. However, there weren''t any monsters in sight. Lilson muttered with a strange look on his face. "Uhm¡­? Why isn''t there a single monster over here?" Ian smiled at his question and answered, "For a second, think about the level the monsters in here are. If they can''t go against Kaka who has attack ability, they possibly cannot fight the other ones. Will they try to fight us? I wouldn''t mind it." At the end of the words from Ian, Kaka who was flying beside him, glanced at him, but Ian just shrugged his shoulders off. Lilson just shook his head. "Hmm¡­ this is the first to hear something like that." To be completely honest, Ian''s hypothesis is half-right and half-wrong. Monsters would never try to escape even if there was a huge difference in the party passing by. However, Ian had the power of a dragon Carusus, and the energy of the dragon was oozing out from the monster. If the level difference between the monster and the dragon is more than 100, the monsters were designed to avoid that particular scenario. Despite not summoning the Carusus, the presence of the dragon was enough to frighten the lower level monsters. Thanks to that, Ian was able to proceed on his path without any trouble and Lilson led them on through the complicated road which kept on dividing. It was like 20 more steps far? There was an empty ground in front of Ian''s party, which had three circles drawn in it. "Well, what could this be?" At the question from Ian, Lilson moved his hand towards the circle and said. "Come over here. It is a wrap gate that leads to the secret dungeon." "Hmm¡­?" Lilson looked around at the members of the party and was muttering something that couldn''t be comprehended. "2,1,4,3,2,3,1,1,2,3,1¡­" Ian was curious about it and asked, "What are you doing now? Is there a password needed to be memorized to enter the dungeon?" Lilson replied briefly after shaking his head, "No, nothing of that sort. If you come along, you will find out soon. For now, don''t cut my words, I cannot afford to forget what I memorized." "Is that so..." "Just keep on moving and follow me." Once the conversation between them had ended, the magic circle started to get into action, and the party members were warped to somewhere. Wheeing! The moment they had arrived, Ian looked around the place he was warped to. He was flustered with what he saw in front of him. "Uhm¡­? What''s this? There are four more circles this time?" On the other hand, Lilson moved onto another circle without a speck of hesitation while Ian was confused. "Come this way!" Ian, who had gone through this process a number of times, now managed to realize what the numbers Lilson was memorizing actually meant. "Ah, the number was the number of magic circles¡­!" Ian and his party continued to change circles and moved to another place. The numbers Lilson was memorizing was meant to be the number of circle he had to take. Ian looked Lilson once again. "Wow! How did you managed to find this?" Though he didn''t want to try it. Ian couldn''t help but wonder how as he was playing this from the beginning. Just one wrong circle or a wrong route, the player could end up meeting a very dangerous monster or a strange trap. Ian, who was thinking like a crazed person, suddenly had that thought cross his mind. "Having Bbookbbook as the dungeon detector and Lilson, there was a possibility to find more secret dungeons¡­!asked,n turned his gaze and looked at Lilson. It was a moment when Lilson''s value in the team was upgraded from ''a person who was just needed to find the Seal of Abyss and a reporter'' to ''a talented person whom one would like to carry on working with''. "Lilson, aren''t we almost done?" Lilson nodded with a confident look. "Yes, Mr. Ian. I think its only two more moves we''ll have to do." After continuously moving through the magic circles for 10 times to 20 times, finally, Ian''s party managed to reach the destination. Wheeing! Suddenly, wind started blowing from all directions. Ian felt a chill run through his body, so he looked around. ""Umm¡­? Here¡­! Is this really the place behind the tower near the rocky mountain? In the centre of the Island of Abyss, there was a very steep and high mountain. The tower rose to the highest peak, and the place Ian and his party had moved through the circles was to the peak of it. Ian shook his head and shrugged his shoulders. "Uhm, I know where we are, so the next time we are needed to move, it would be nice to not move around in these circles." Said Ian. Lilson asked, "Um¡­ What''s this? There is no defined path to move from up here¡­" Ian replied to him, "I have a griffin with me, so I think I will be able to move up with him, I don''t know if I''ll be able to move again, but¡­" Lilson shook his head. "Oh, this is not the place we are supposed to come Ian." "Sorry?" "I''m not able to see much, but space is really bound up. I don''t think it will be visible from the outside at all." "Ah ha¡­" The peaks of a high mountain. A group of people who were walking around on the narrow path around the periphery, to found a giant stone gate at the top. Lilson who was in front of the stone gate looked around and talked to Ian. "Mr. Ian." He had a nervous expression, and Ian, too, had the same expression. "Yes?" Lilson''s words continued, "When you open this stone gate, there will be a gatekeeper that will be guarding the dungeon. The last time I was here with my friend, we ended up dying many times, and after many trials he barely managed to get past it." "Ah¡­" "Of course, you Mr. Ian would be able to win it without much difficulty, but I think that it would be better if you summon all your familiars before entering. Any there aren''t much familiars here apart from Bbookbbook¡­" Ian nodded his head and asked Lilson. "What kind of a guy is the boss monster that resides inside?" Lilson spoke with a low voice, "the level of it is over 130, and it is a huge Golem uses a wide range skills of the Bing class system. This isn''t a joke, it used a magic power called ''Abyss Hall''." "¡­" Ian turned over to look at Bbookbbook. "Bbookbbook, ah." "Bbook?" "The monster inside, by any chance, could he be related to you?" Bbookbbook nodded his head. "Bbook, yes. Somehow, it is Bbook." Lilson clapped his hands and replied, "That''s right! It is similar to the familiar that Mr. Ian has. It was probably twice as big as it." Bbookbbook added something else. "It could be a father one Bbook." "Hmm¡­" Ian started to walk forward little by little. "Lilson?" "Yes?" "This stone gate, how is this supposed to be opened? Please open." Lilson looked a little flustered at this request from Ian. "What? Open it?" "Yep." "Mr. Ian, you haven''t summoned your familiars yet. No matter how strong you are, a summoner can''t catch a level 130 monster without a familiar¡­" At the Kaka who was floating around, Ian gave an answer. "Don''t worry. No matter how huge it is, there is no way it could ever touch our master who is stunning." "Hmm.." Ian shrugged his shoulders, and Lilson felt a little relieved and turned his head. "Then¡­ I will open the door." "Yes. Do it." "In case you think its too much, summon a familiar!" Once Lilson was done speaking, Ian nodded his head, and Lilson approached the stone gate. Lilson took something out of his inventory and brought it to the front of the stone gate. Then a blue light began to shine, and a roaring sound started to come from the giant stone gate. Kung- KkuKkuKung-! The stone gate began to open slowly. In the time being, as the bright light started to shine from it, Ian''s party went in without any slight hesitation. But at that moment. From the inside of the stone gate, a strong mechanical voice started to come. [Who¡­ dares¡­ to enter the¡­ the Abyss!!!] Kung-KkuKkuKkung-! The light was filled all the way into the stone room that they had entered into! The light began to weaver then past the light came a figure that could be seen. One the other hand, Ian who had no expression looking at these events that were unfolding in front of him, pulled out The Judgment of the Spirit King and started to move forward. Lilson, looked at him, he shrieked and shouted, "I, Ian! No! Even if it is you, It is still very dangerous¡­!" However, Lilson''s scream couldn''t be heard on the other end. Shuerk! Came some sound which was bewildering, and at the same moment Lilson''s mouth which was speaking had spread out wide. "This¡­ this is¡­" In front of Ian and Lilson a system message had popped up. [ You have successfully defeated the ''Guardian of Abyss''.] CH 258 Chapter 258: Bbookbbook and the Seal of Abyss (3) Lilson was awestruck. "What¡­ just¡­happened¡­" However, it wasn''t just Lilson who was flustered at what had happened. Ian also had a similar look on his face. "What the hell is going on?" In fact, from the moment he had heard about a boss monster, Ian was in deep thoughts. ''I''m a little skeptical about the first attack with the 20 strength, but I will try to go all the way and do it right the first time.'' Ian had activated the Buff skill, which he had possessed, and had activated the weakness acquisition skill on the boss monster as soon as it came into his line of sight. And the moment, he had discovered the red dot on the chest of the monster, Ian''s planet-destroying weapon had penetrated the chest of the Golem. Kreuung! Krrr! That one attack. With just one stab, the pieces of rocks and ice that were covering the body of the Golem split into pieces, it fell onto the floor. They could see the incredible damage that had happened right in front of their eyes. [Catastropic damage has been done to '' The Guardian of the Abyss''!] [''Abyss Guardian'' health has been decreased by 5238775.] [You have successfully defeated the '' Guardian of the Abyss''.] Ian started at the Judgment of the Spirit king in his hand and stared at it with great admiration. ''This is¡­ crazy attack power...!'' In Kilian, the interaction between the attack ability and defense ability wasn''t designed in a simple manner. For example, if a user of 200 ATK attacks a monster with DEF of 50, it wouldn''t be minus of 200, minus 50, 150 DEF, it wasn''t like this. Even Ian, who was so into the concept of research, was also not able to comprehend the design structure, he only knew it vaguely. ''In Kilian the more the difference between the attack and the defense power the more damage will be amplified.'' The Judgment of the Spirit King that was made through the +20 fortification by Ian had an enormous attack power of over 6000. ''The level I possessed is 200 and had a basic attack power, and the opponent has a level difference of 70. Compared to the Golem, my defense is comparatively weaker than my attack power'' In this manner, Ian had first amplified his damage. However, this wasn''t the end. ''There was the attack buff, and the defense buff of the enemy and the damage has been amplified three times more due to the weakness capture¡­.'' With all these in force, as soon as the attack came from Ian who was determined, the 130th level Boss monster fell down in a single strike. Ian had laughed at the big mouth that he had possessed. ''Ku¡­ temptation took over me.'' Ian had opened his mouth to speak with Lilson as he was staring at the Golem who was still yet to fall into a blank expression. "Lilson, what are you doing? One can go inside, right?" Once Ian was done talking, Lilson nodded his head and approached Ian. "Ah, yes! You can go." As both the men had entered the dungeon, a system message had popped up. [Enter the secret dungeon, '' Vibe of Abyss''.] Ian, who had entered the secret dungeon and had taken down the guardian of it, had started to follow the guidance of Lilson and began to move further into the dungeon. It was very quiet and serene inside the dungeon. "Lilson, I think that it would be better for you to let me know the directions from here on now." "I understand." With Ian in the front of Lilson, Ian was wielding the spear the Judgment of the Spirit King every time a monster had appeared. Phuk! [''Snow Wolf'' has faced catastrophic damage.] [Vitality of ''Snow Wolf'' reduced by 8974398.] [You have successfully defeated the ''Snow Wolf''.] Sheuk- [You have successfully defeated the '' Ice Gargoyle''.] [You have successfully defeated the ''Ice Golem''.] Each time Ian had wielded the spear, the monsters lurking in the dungeon just vanished. Although it was an easy dungeon as there was a large level difference from the beginning, the speed at which Ian was conquering the dungeon and proceeding was enormous. Ian was almost poking his way into the dungeon! ''It feels this good to relieve the stress?'' Ian''s body started to feel stiff. ''What would happen if we come across to fight with the masters, what is meant to happen? I don''t think that the power would be that great as this¡­ but it won''t be so pitiful, it would probably twice less than my current ability.'' Ian''s attack power that now had millions of deaths at its tip, might have fallen in half from the distance that where Ian stood. However, even then, they weren''t a thing that could be taken lightly. ''Huph, if only the magic system had opened again. Devil dragon could hunt! Balrog could hunt...! I could have collected the souls and recruited the legendary monsters to hunt.'' The Abyss was not a very wide dungeon. It was a narrow field, and it was less than half the size of a dungeon field. However, because the number of floors was many, it took some time to reach the lowest floor. Lilson who was walking right behind Ian and constantly guiding him, spoke to himself. "Oh. Oh¡­?" "What''s wrong?" "Nothing, it looks like the dungeon has changed a bit." "Umm...?" "Well, I haven''t gone to a lot of dungeons other than one." "And?" "Uhm. Does a dungeon evolve...?" However, it didn''t matter much, so Ian continued to do down through the dungeon. ''I''m sure the Seal of Abyss wouldn''t have run away on its known.'' How long had it been? Ian now started to sense that the monsters were getting stronger. "Um... I remember the monsters at the beginning of the dungeon didn''t even reach the hundredth level, but now, they are around level 150." At these words from Ian, Lilson tilted his head and answered. "I''m not so sure about it either. It is not an original dungeon. When I came, the highest level of monsters we came across were only level 120." Ian nodded his head and summoned his familiars. He managed to move at a nice pace even without the help of his familiars, but now, Ian ted to reach to the end of it. Since entering the Dungeon of Abyss, the level of monsters had been growing as they went further down the dungeon. Lilson turned pale and busy, avoiding the monster appearing here and there. He fell into confusion. ''Were the rankings always like this?'' This was the first time for Ian to encounter such monsters, but he felt embarrassed at how easily he was able to hunt them down. Ian, who had been able to clear out a whole floor, held the spear close to him and mumbled. This was the first time he had a serious expression. "Hmm¡­ This shouldn''t be done¡­?" Lilson who stood beside Ian asked him with a sour-faced expression. "Wha, what is it?" Ian touched his chin and answered. "No, it is okay for now, but if the monsters continue to rise in their level, then we will be in deep shit." "Then¡­?" "Normal monsters will be able to reach a level of 250, but if they get that stronger, it could be troublesome for me too. I don''t know much about the trail you have brought me but¡­" "¡­" Lilson lost track of his words as soon as he heard the thing about level 250. ''No, could there be any monsters in this field that could reach the level of 250?'' Lilson responded with an awkward smile to hide his embarrassment. "Ha¡­ Ha ha ha, I don''t think it is possible. No matter how strong they get to be, you will not see a field monster over level 200." Miraculously, Ian and his party were able to clear out the filed where monsters of level 200 started to appear, the end of the long, long dungeon had attracted the party. Lilson, with a sigh of relief, said to Ian, "Ian do you see the blue light that is coming from there." At these words from Lilson, Ian turned his head to the direction that Lilson was pointing at, and there was steady ray of light that was coming out from narrow gaps. "Any sign of Abyss from there?" Lilson nodded his head and answered. "From here, it is the same terrain of the dungeon as when I was here before. I can''t be sure if that really is the Seal of Abyss, but when I got in, I''m sure it will be there." "It better be¡­" As his words reached the end, Ian began to move towards the direction from which the light had been coming, and Lilson followed him from behind. However, at that time, Bbookbbook, who had been behind Ian for a long time, bend its head and spoke the back of the people. "Bbook! It is in there! Bbook!" Ian turned his head in a reflexive manner. "Hmm? It''s there? What is? The Seal of Abyss?" Bbookbbook nodded its head. "Yes. There is the Seal of Abyss in there, I''m sure Bbook...!" Ian''s face bloomed like a flower. It was then that he had felt relieved. Ian''s intuition told him that there would be some kind of sign regarding the Seal in there, but still, there was slight anxiety lingering around. "Okay then, I''ll go inside first and see what this Seal of Abyss thing is, and try to find it." Ian spoke out with a strong tone and started to move in the direction of the light. Bbookbbook, who had gotten down from Ian''s back, started to move along with him. Kung- kukuKung-Kukukukung-! At this sound, Ian screamed. "What? Did an earthquake take place?!" "I mean. What is this?" In front of the two flustered people, a system message popped up. Tring- [All the conditions needed for waking the Seal of Abyss have been met.] [The power of Abyss that was asleep has awoken.] Ian''s eyes were shimmering. "Oh¡­ Oh¡­ Finally¡­!" The message continued. [A monk of the Abyss, who was in a deep sleep for a thousand years, has shown up.] Kung-KuKuKung-! The floor of the dungeon where Ian was standing on started to shake more and more. ''Oh... Shit¡­ it doesn''t really break, does it?'' If the dungeon decides to cave in, there is no way Ian could stay alive, this made Ian a little worried. ''Should I log out now¡­?'' However, there was no way that could happen. This was the source of evolution he had been longing for, for Bbookbbook. There was no way he could log out because he was afraid of the dungeon collapsing. Chok- chok-! The floor was shaking a while back, now it began to split, and the gap from where the light was coming now became divided and strong bright light began to shine. Ian and Lilson were able to hold their ground, but they didn''t let their fear take over. ''Boss Monster will come out any second now¡­'' And suddenly a huge explosion took place. Kaboom!! The wall in front of Ian was exploded, and several small explosions took over the place, and the light was getting stronger than ever. The ceiling of the dungeon wasn''t very high, so it blew out due to the explosion that had happened and there were dust and debris all over the floor. "Surely¡­!" Ian''s guess was right. In the large and vacant space, there had emerged in front of Ian and his party a monster that resembled a giant they had met in the Central Continent. [Monarch of the Abyss/ Lv: 350/ Rank: Legend.] Ian''s eyes drifted towards the droplet that was floating behind the monster. ''Fine, I wouldn''t mind if there wasn''t much of an event¡­!'' Ian had grabbed his Judgment of the Spirit King. Now it was the time to take the monster down and evolve Bbookbbook. CH 259 Ian approached the Monarch of Abyss, looking at it as a precious thing for him to consume. ¡®Did I take it too lightly because Level 100 players were able to clear it?¡¯ Ian, who thought the dungeon was easy, didn¡¯t have many trails of thoughts after that. However, unlike his thoughts, he didn¡¯t show a speck of hesitation or concern on his face. ¡®It is a Legendary one at level 350¡­ boss monster because it is stronger than Yankun.¡¯ Ian examined the Monarch of Abyss. ¡®A large hammer chain¡­ can it compete in a fast pace?¡¯ On the other hand was Lilson, who had no intention of going against the boss, he had almost lost his soul. From the mouth of the frightened Lilson, a few soulless words started to come out. ¡°This¡­ Ian, no matter what I would opt to runaway¡­¡± However, because of all the commotion happening because of the explosions, the words from Lilson couldn¡¯t go through Ian¡¯s ears, so Lilson just sat down. ¡°Huu, confirmed that one level is down¡­¡± In fact, Lilson¡¯s resignation from action was an obvious act. It was his sense that it would be impossible for any player to take down a boss of level 350 all by himself. Lilson couldn¡¯t escape from the dungeon from the back as he would have to clear out the monster of level 190, and it was impossible to log out of a dungeon before clearing it out. Lilson and Ian were like thrown away rats. At least, that was what Lilson thought. ¡®I¡¯m so sorry, Ian. If you had known beforehand that this was such a strong dungeon to clear, you probably would have brought your guild members too¡­¡¯ Though these were Lilson¡¯s thoughts, he still thought he should watch the battle that would happen. He believed if he knew what was happening, he could at least not be hit from it. Lilson¡¯s blurred eyes were now shining like lanterns. ¡®It is a big monster, but when will a day come for one to witness a match of Ian¡¯s this close.¡¯ Lilson hurriedly started to record a personal video. ¡®I need to put this on video.¡¯ Lilson¡¯s mind cleared. The battle between Ian and the Monarch of Abyss had begun. Keuahh! The Monarch of Abyss, an ancient giant, roared wildly. [You deserve the Power of Abyss!!!] Ian just nodded at it and laughed. ¡°Sure.¡± [If so, check it out right away!] After the words stopped appearing, the Monarch of Abyss, lifted a hammer in both of his hands and swung it with a huge force towards the place where Ian was. Kwang! The size of the hump on the hammer was so huge it was bigger than Ian¡¯s whole body. When such a tremendous hammer hit the floor of the dungeon, the entire area began to shake as though an earthquake had occurred. Kwa-Kwa-Kwang! The boss was continuing to swing its weapon at Ian, but there was no way such a slow-paced attack could hit Ian. . ¡°Carsus, Breath cooldown time, we will talk when you get back. Ly and Harley attack with me¡± Ian had deliberately pulled Bbookbbook back. No matter how high the vitality and the armor defense of Bbookbbook were, he didn¡¯t pay such price for the familiar to die. ¡®It is not a kind of monster that can be taken down by tank.¡¯ If in a case, the level of Bbookbbook and the Boss monster was even a little bit similar, it might have a little worth to try out, but the level 150 difference was not something to be taken lightly. Ian had immediately used Pin¡¯s wide range buff and Harley¡¯s power buff. ¡®I have to maximize the difference of power..!¡¯ Moreover, when Ian walked over to the giant, he managed to make the overwhelming giant with a difference of level 150 move. Dang! Ian barely leaped into the air to avoid the giant hammer. ¡°Harley, this way!¡± Harley, who moved quickly after the hand gesture Ian made, picked him up on his back. Tta-tta! Well, at the moment, apart from Bbookbbook, Harley was the lowest ranked among Ian¡¯s familiars. However, it had the agility much greater than the others, probably because it had a power buff which converted its other stats. [Kuaah! You cockroach!] Ian and Ly along with Pin, these three started to take down the vitality of the giant. Kakakang-Kang-! While attacking the giant, Ly¡¯s long claws dug into the chain armor that was on him. [The familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has done tremendous damage to the ¡®Monarch of Abyss¡¯.] [The health of the ¡®Monarch of Abyss¡¯ is reduced by 187698.] At that moment, the giant¡¯s gaze moved to the wound done to him. In this small gap, Ian had taken his Judgment of Spirit King and struck the giant to the ground. Puak! Ian¡¯s spear sharply went and pierced the layers of chain and armor! [Tremendous damage has been done to ¡®The Monarch of Abyss¡¯.] [Health of ¡®The Monarch of Abyss¡¯ is decreased by 448739.] The spear had gained another +20 power, and it began to shine. [¡®Lightening of Judgment¡¯ was summoned.] [Added an additional 224368 light damage to the lord of Abyss.] [Decreased the movement speed of the ¡®Monarch of Abyss¡¯ by 20% (-30%).] The ¡®Lightening Judgment¡¯ was a unique ability attached to the Judgment of the Spirit King. The lightning judgment was capable of putting in action with a 10% chance, but with the Judgment of Spirit King power now grown to 30%, it was now activated to a 30% chance. Whenever the strength goes up, it wasn¡¯t just the attack power that rises, but the innate strength too. Thought it didn¡¯t increase the attack count, but it truly is a tremendous destructive power. The only regretful part was that debuff of speed that was supposed to be caused because the lightning shock didn¡¯t play a major role because the boss monster had great immune ability. ¡®Too bad¡­ even if it was just an electric shock, wasn¡¯t able to completely use it.¡¯ Ian and the familiars were now taking the battle more seriously and nervously. Specifically Ian, who was watching the giants movements with utmost concentration. The more the battle continued, the more alone Ian had felt. ¡®Uh¡­! It would have been a whole lot easier if I called out Kaizer or Yankun or Celia.¡¯ Celia¡¯s ability to heal the familiars in the battle would have been a tremendous help to this one, the most lingering thoughts of Ian¡¯s were on Kaizer and Yankun. If all my familiars would have been there, I would have caught the boss. ¡°Ooh, uhh.¡± Ian¡¯s breathing started to pick up a pace. In this meantime, the vitality of the giant was decreasing. ¡°Master, be ready!¡± At these words from Carusus, Ian jumped into the air to avoid the movement made by the giant. ¡°Now!¡± A growing purple light began to be emitted from the mouth of Carusus. Grrrr-! The strong breath of a powerful dragon that was about to attack. It took a little time before the breath was blown, but it was a short time gap in which the giant couldn¡¯t escape. If it had a debuff, it wasn¡¯t truly known, but in the present situation, the giant had no place to take guard to avoid the breath. Without any doubt, the breath of Carusus passed and engulfed the whole body of the giant. Hwarhh! Ian¡¯s gauge automatically moved into the direction of the giant¡¯s vitality gauge. ¡®Hu, so now you¡¯re half was done?¡¯ The Monarch of Abyss¡¯s life gauge began to flicker after being hit by the breath of Carusus. Ian had stopped attacking and retreated. ¡®I¡¯m not sure what kind of new attack pattern will emerge, so I need to be at my utmost caution.¡¯ Many of the boss monsters in Kilian had various kinds of attack patterns. Patterns were very different from each boss monster, so there was no possible way to assume they had a common pattern. The attack pattern changed once life points hit 50% and another change when it hit 20%. Ian watched the giant¡¯s movements with nervousness. ¡®Now what will you do? Magic? A recovery skill?¡¯ The pattern Ian hated the most was of the Ly¡¯s kind, who restored their life to the fullest. The fact that a monster managed to fill its vitality in an instant proved that mac can be used. In addition to it, there was a case that until it replenishes, it would be in an immune state, and if such cases did appear, it would be hard to push one¡¯s luck. Fortunately, the Monarch of Abyss didn¡¯t fill its life. Instead, its body was gleaming with light, and all kinds of buffs were imposed on it, with awesome stats. [Increase of all battle abilities of ¡®Monarch of Abyss¡¯ by 30%] [Increase of health recovery state of ¡®Monarch of Abyss¡¯ by 15%] [¡®Monarch of Abyss¡¯ special ability ¡®Abyss¡¯ has been activated.] [For the next 15 minutes, the defense of the ¡®Monarch of Abyss¡¯ is increased by 27.5% and reduced the opponent¡¯s movement by 30% when hit. (The slowing effect can¡¯t be overdone.)] As he read the system message, Ian¡¯s expression faded. ¡®Hu, isn¡¯t it a little harsh¡­?¡¯ Ian carefully checked the buff effects on the giant and held the Judgment of the Spirit King tightly in his hands. ¡®Just one single mistake, and it is game over.¡¯ If the hammer could be blocked, the hammer looked like something seen on screen. Ththa! Ian was rushing towards the giant. * * * Gulp! Lilson swallowed his dry spit. ¡®This¡­ This is the real fighting style of Ian¡­!¡¯ As mentioned before, Lilson was a huge fan of Ian. Of course, he was still recording the video of the combat, the player and the familiars moving around. However, even then, he thought Ian¡¯s fighting ability was fabricated a little bit. ¡®I thought the video was just edited in an astonishing manner.¡¯ The image editing that was done dedicated to the image of Ian and most users thought Ian¡¯s combat style was outstanding because of the editing technique. The images online on the internet were stunning because of the bloody scenes in it. However, Lilson, who was witnessing the battle in front of him, had to change his opinion. ¡®This¡­ those videos are lacking.¡¯ Ian looking great was never the product of image editing. Now, Ian¡¯s combat was so awesome all the picture would turn out well regardless of the angle. ¡°Huh! I shouldn¡¯t die now. Even if Ian doesn¡¯t manage to catch the monster, the video alone will be enough for me to win the tournament.¡± Lilson though after a painless death, he would go back to the castle and show Ian the video he had taken. ¡®If the guild is included in this for promotional purpose, the income will be good, but the publicity effect it creates would be enormous.¡¯ Lilson was getting delusional in his head, but he was constantly moving to take the footage in a much greater manner. As time went by, Lilson¡¯s expressions were starting to appear stronger. ¡°Uh-huh!¡± Lilson¡¯s gaze was fixed on the gauge of the monsters¡¯. Lilson started to get excited as he saw what was flickering on the life gauge of the monster. ¡°Are you¡­ trying to catch it?¡± However, at that time¡­ Kuaahhhh! The giant roared and attacked out of the blue. Whoo-Ohh-Woo! The huge hammer he had was now in the direction of Ian. According to Lilson¡¯s point of view, it wasn¡¯t something one could avoid, and he closed his eyes shut. CH 260 ¡°Damn it¡­!¡± Ian saw the flying hammer coming and couldn¡¯t help but curse. ¡®I don¡¯t want to be attacked by such a worthless move¡­!¡¯ At this point, it wasn¡¯t the time for a boss monster to change its pattern of battle. Moreover, such an anonymous attack pattern, this was a first for Ian. ¡®Should predict the attacks according to the monster¡­!¡¯ Ian was putting a lot of concentration. One thing that was definite was he would die if he was hit by the reckless moves of the monster. Thath! In the middle of a jump, Ian avoided what came at him! However, nevertheless, he didn¡¯t manage to avoid the attack of the flying hammer. ¡®Hum¡­! It could be just a little scratch, but¡­ but wouldn¡¯t the vitality drop a little bit?¡¯ Then¡­ Right in front of Ian, a huge quantity of water rose in the form of a tent. Shah! Ian¡¯s eyes grew bigger as he saw what happened in front of him, the veil of water that had risen from the ground absorbed all the destructive power of the hammer coming in the direction of Ian, and the hammer fell to the floor. ¡®What is this? Has Bbookbbook¡¯s AI triggered this skill?¡¯ One thing was definite, the timing at which that water veil choose to come was indeed very awkward. This being the power of Bbookbbook, Ian was pretty surprised at it. Bbookbbook didn¡¯t have much of a high stats of the intelligence. If Ian hadn¡¯t given him a job command, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to summon such a thing at the perfect timing. ¡°Hu-uh¡­ hu-uh¡­!¡± It wasn¡¯t sure if this was luck or not, but Ian, who had been able to come out of the crisis either way and chose to breathe and look at the Monarch of Abyss. Of course, he didn¡¯t forget to praise Bbookbbook. ¡°Good work, Bbookbbook! You¡¯re the best!¡± Bbookbbook laughed and wiggled his butt. ¡°Bbook- Bbookbbook! This is nothing Bbook! I¡¯ll protect my master the next time too, Bbook!¡± Ian was a bit stingy with his praise. Because of such a thing, small praise of that level was enough to get the familiars to feel pleased. Ian regained his breath, got back up, and bumped into a familiar. He fell down. ¡®Let¡¯s concentrate for now, even a little mistake will end everything!¡¯ The attack now was as vague as before, but it came from a foreseeable range. Such an attack pattern made anyone look helpless. However, for Ian, it was because he wasn¡¯t perfect in thinking this through. The battle was getting much longer and their concentration was decreasing. ¡¯20 minutes for now¡­! I should catch that jerk in 20 minutes and clear the dungeon¡­!¡¯ Ian had made up his mind, grabbed the spear in his hand, and ran towards the Monarch of Abyss. The Monarch¡¯s life gauge bar was now less than 30%. * * * One of the largest desert in the central continent map was the Moakan desert. There was a massive battle going on here. As the monster wave began, there was a bloody battle between the infamous low-level players and the monsters ouring out from the open portals. This was a tremendous scale of beings that were pouring out, a few hundreds of thousands of imperial players that came out of the central continent. However, the mood of the battle was different from the past because there was no proper commander to lead or guide the players. If the battle between the empires in the central continent seemed like a reminiscent system war, the present battle was just a continuation of the past. Kang!- Kang Kan-! All the players from the Kailin gathered there along with stared players. ¡°Damn! Why aren¡¯t the 150 level ones coming to replace?¡± ¡°Get out of the way! You won¡¯t make it with half-life!¡± ¡°Ha, this bastard, what did you say? Didn¡¯t you see me cut them in half?¡± ¡°No, why not go further in¡­? If it wasn¡¯t for you butting in, I would have done twice as more, don¡¯t you think? Ha¡­ No answer, a real battlefield. What about having a high level? My ass¡­¡± The name ¡®Anise Etting¡¯ was a thing meant to divide the players. ¡°God¡¯s shield!¡± Wheing! Wheing! ¡°Don¡¯t, this idiot! Why are you putting a shield on him? Euahk!¡± Not intending to do it, a player put a shield on the monsters and gave a rough time to the players on the same side. ¡°Ka, Khak. This is always fun .¡± This was really a battlefield, and many lunatic players were running around dealing with little passive moves. ¡°Fire Barrier.¡± ¡°Holy Light¡± However, one thing that all the users had in common, was that this wave of monsters was a lot difficult than they had imagined. Of course, when the first monster wave was launched, the players were dominating the monsters with a big difference, but the problem was today was the ¡®first wave¡¯. Despite the lack of level and difference, there were a lot of low-level players who came to this battlefield thinking they would face the lowest level of monsters, and in less than an hour after the battle started. With higher level players out in the other yard, there was no player to protect them. By this time, the community divided and moved to one side. The public was rooting for Ian and Remir who destroyed the two monster wave portals and gave strength to the players. ¡°Where is the Burrow team who blamed Mr. Ian?¡± ¡°Yeah! Crazy bastard! Imagine if there were two more difficult waves. It is even horrible to think.¡± ¡°Right, I¡¯m a level 170 player, and I almost died around three to four times during the hunt today.¡± ¡°No. Why are you so pessimistic about the wave? It is said that the monster wave was much harder than expected, out of the four waves, this is the first wave. The next waves need to be stopped.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t this the first wave, that happened today? There was a wave that lasted for a month, but this wave today is harder than that.¡± ¡°Shit, shi¡­ I¡¯m sure you haven¡¯t seen the monster wave today.¡± Due to the monster wave on the first day, more information about the monsters was beginning to be released, and the players started to respond to them. The battle of the first wave was an ignorant struggle with no plans, no strategy, only parties that started to go in. The top players who realized the seriousness of the monster wave started to play a role in the front. However, when all the players in the Kilian were busy with the monster waves, there was a single player who was in a dungeon doing a completely unrelated quest. Kwarung! Kwag-! Kwag-! Giant ice cubes were pouring down like heavy rain! Ian instinctively murmured by avoiding them. ¡®What is this!? I don¡¯t know whether I¡¯m playing an RPG game or shooting games now!¡¯ Thanks to the uplifted intelligence of Bbookbbook, Ian had been able to avoid a crisis and managed to go into the battle much smoothly. However, from the moment the Monarch of the Abyss¡¯s health fell to 5%, the difficulty of the battle had increased. The giant shouted with a very high voice and the large ice masses were moving around. Because of it, Ian had no choice but to quickly summon Casrusus. ¡®Now will be the real end of this critical battle.¡¯ Ian, who had quickly grasped the pattern in which the ice was moving around, controlled Ly, and Harley gradually narrowed the distance between the monster. ¡®I¡¯m aiming for the timing when the pattern changes after 10 seconds.¡¯ Ian circled the giant and concentrated to the highest of his ability to create a perfect opportunity. After a while, the ice drops spread all over the floor. ¡°Harley and Ly, Now!¡± Graang! Ian and his familiars rushed to the giant at the same time. Of course, the giant wasn¡¯t keeping still as Ian was getting ready for the attack. [Foolish Human! Die¡­!] Suddenly, a bright light started to appear from both the hands of the Monarch of Abyss, and Ian, being aware of what it was, twisted his body in the air. ¡°Harley! This way!¡± As soon as Ian had commanded, Harley received the buff and ran towards Ian in a flash. Kwaing! The ray of cold air poured out of both his hands passed through the place into the direction on Ian. Ian, on the other hand, avoided the giants due to its ability to perform a non-targeting skill and ran towards the giant as he climbed onto Harley¡¯s back. ¡°This is the end¡­!¡± Ian pushed the Judgment of Spirit King into the air and threw it at the giant. Unless one believed that the giant could be killed unconditionally, it was a reckless attack one should not be trying. However, Ian¡¯s calculation of the damage was exactly on point. Puahk! Weakness acquisition skill, that skill displayed the weakness of the giant. [Done catastrophic damage to ¡®The Monarch of the Abyss¡¯.] [Health of ¡®The Monarch of the Abyss¡¯ is reduced by 463782.] The vitality of the giant, who fell onto the floor due to the attack, was almost down, and Ly finished it off and came back. [The familiar Ly has done damage to ¡®Monarch of Abyss¡¯.] [¡®Monarch of Abyss¡¯ health decreased by 273687.] [You have succeeded in defeating ¡®Monarch of Abyss¡¯.] [You have cleared the Dungeon of Abyss.] [You have earned 35,000 fame points.] [You have earned 7687 million experience points.] Kung-! The secret dungeons boss monster ¡®Monarch of the Abyss¡¯. The monster fell onto the floor with a loud thud, and Ian wiped his sweat that ran down his forehead. ¡®This wasn¡¯t an easy fight.¡¯ The corner of Ian¡¯s mouth went up. The Seal that was being guarded by the Monarch of the Abyss was a seal indeed, but the reward Ian had gotten from killing him was so different. ¡®Well, I¡¯ve killed the 350 level legendary boss, the rewards seem a little weird.¡¯ Ian collected the items given out from the bloody corpse of the monster and approached the floating Seal of Abyss which had bright layers of light behind it. The Seal of Abyss was a jewel in the shape of a droplet, it was exactly howLilson had described it, with a beautiful color. Ian, before even reaching it, instinctively spread out his hand towards the Seal. However, at the next moment, an unexpected message popped up. [This item cannot be acquired.] Ian couldn¡¯t help but display a strange expression. ¡°What now¡­? This is a first for me to see a thing not being able to be acquired.¡± But then¡­ Bbookbbook which was behind Ian had now started to crawl towards the Seal of Abyss. CH 261 Bbookbbook stood in front of the shining jewel as if it was paralyzed. ¡°Bbook¡­ Bbookbbook¡­¡± Ian took a step back and observed what was going on. ¡®Come on, Bbookbbook-ah!¡­. lets do it now, please.¡¯ Did the desire of Ian find its way to Bbookbbook? The shell on the back of Bbookbbook began to shine¡ªit was a bright blue light. Whoong¡ª Wowooong! From the corpse that was lying in the back, a light had come out of its body and made its way to the Abyss Seal. And that blue light¡¯s shape became more and more similar to that of a human, and the light filled human opened its mouth. [Incredible. It still hasn¡¯t been more than 30 years since the previous Abyss dragon had left this world¡­. and yet a new Abyss turtle has met all the necessary conditions¡­] The light spoke in a language that Ian couldn¡¯t comprehend. After which, the light turned toward Ian and spoke a little more. [This is the first time for someone to be able to do this task alone¡­. This surely is a surprise.] Ian wasn¡¯t sure what he was supposed to say. With a questioning look, he looked to the back and spoke, ¡°Yah! Kaka. What is this thing saying?¡± Kaka, being the living encyclopedia for Ian, came rushing towards him. But Kaka, the kind of one who like to show off his knowledge, frowned and spoke, ¡°The Abyss dragon is known to ascend from the heaven only after a thousand years.¡± ¡°So?¡± ¡°It seems like it has only been 30 years since the last Abyss dragon has passed away. And an Abyss Dragon being a god-like creature can¡¯t exist in more than one dimension, so the new turtle will be born if the Abyss dragon has died for over the period of time.¡± ¡°Ah-ha¡­¡± ¡°And, it is all thanks to Bbookbbook that I got to know this. It takes a minimum of a hundred years for a new abyss creature to form. But in the case of Bbookbbook, it hasn¡¯t been more than 30 years, this truly is astonishing.¡± ¡°Is it so¡­.¡± As Kaka had explained it perfectly, Ian rewarded it by stroking its head, which made Kaka very pleased. ¡®Kaka, I knew that you were always smart, but it seems like you¡¯re reaching the master level.¡¯ As far as the third party was concerned, it looked like Kaka was a true slave who gave Ian all the knowledge that he possessed. On the other hand, the blue soul didn¡¯t care about the conversation between Ian and Kaka. It slowly reached its hand towards Bbookbbook. [I could never think of it¡­ maybe this is truly the act of God for an Abyss Dragon to come this quickly.] Wowowong! From the palm of the soul, a pure white light flowed out and began to wrap around the Seal of Abyss. Soon, it started to get brighter with each passing minute, and in no time, it engulfed the whole room. [As the Monarch of Abyss who protects it¡­ let the new Abyss Dragon be born!] At the moment the Monarch stopped speaking, the seal that was floating in the air began to come down. The droplet-shaped jewel began to break, and the cracks that were formed also emitted a strong light. ¡°Bbook¡­Bboobbook¡­!¡± Bbookbbook looked at the light with its mouth wide open. And the fragments of the jewel that were in the air were sucked into BBookbbook¡¯s mouth. Phuu-! Ian was looking at this very intently with his fists tight. ¡®At last!¡¯ In front of Ian¡¯s eyes, the system message that he had long since waited for had finally popped up. Tring¡ª [You have cleared the ¡® Secret Dungeon of Abyss¡¯.] [You have been recognized by the Monarch of Abyss.] [You have obtained the title ¡®Abyss Warrior¡¯.] [Fame has been increased by 300,000.] [Familiar Bbookbbook has satisfied all the conditions necessary for ¡®Seal of Abyss¡¯.] The whole body of Bbookbbook began to shine with a pure white light. And Ian was quick to confirm this scenario. [Evolution.] How long had he waited for this? ¡®After Ly¡¯s evolution, isn¡¯t this the first after a long time?¡¯ It had indeed been a long time. It was when Ian reached level 20 as a summoner that Ly had managed to evolve. The shining body of Bbookbbook began to grow larger and larger. And all the solid light particles started to surround themselves around Bbookbbook. Ian wasn¡¯t able to let go of his fists¡ªprobably because he had put a lot of concentration on the evolution happening in front of his eyes. ¡®Yes, Bbookbbook. Ah, even you will be able to make a meal for yourself from now.¡¯ He remembered about the meatballs that he had bought for Bbookbbook. Honestly, Bbookbbook was the only familiar of Ian with a unique grade. Ian knew that, no matter what he would evolve into, Bbookbbook will still have the innate features of his powers. As such, Ian had expected it to get lesser stats than that of Karceus. No matter how strong Bbookbbook would get, there was still no way that it would be able to surpass Karceus. ¡®Surely, you will do better once loyalty is formed.¡¯ But apart from Ly, Ian hadn¡¯t been able to spend much time with the others, which made him a little concerned. Ong-ong-oong-! At the time when Ian was thinking about his and that¡­ Bbookbbook had finally evolved. Bbook was roaring. Puaang-! [Familiar Bbookbbook has evolved from ¡®Abyss Turtle¡¯ to ¡®Abyss Dragon¡¯.] [The familiar has successfully evolved, and skill ¡®Advanced training¡¯ has increased.] [¡®Advanced Training¡¯ skill has increased to LV.9 (87.7% to reach next level.).] [You summoned ¡®Abyss Dragon¡¯ for the first time. Your fame has increased by 100,000.] Upon the evolution process being complete, the Monarch of Abyss disappeared into thin air but left a few words before going. [You will have to meet me again on the day you become a full Abyss Dragon after receiving the Feast of Wisdom.] Ian, on the other hand, had no interest on what the Monarch of Abyss had to say. Ian was feeling uncomfortable because of the shape and the unusual screams from Bbookbbook. ¡®Hmm..? What¡¯s this? Why does Bbookbbook seem so different?¡¯ The changing appearance of Bbookbbook made a strange sense of incongruity. BBookbbook did seem like himself, but now it was standing with two feet unlike before. It also had a hard skin on the back, that didn¡¯t seem to go well with it. And small wings that made their way from its skin, the wings were similar to that of Kaka. ¡®Why did the stomach have to come out like that?¡¯ The appearance of Bbookbbook, in simple words, could be described as a ¡®fat baby dragon¡¯. It was bit bigger than that of a baby dragon, but the definite thing was that, this wasn¡¯t the appearance that Ian had been expecting. ¡®Let¡¯s stay calm for minute¡­ is this how a familiar is supposed to look?¡¯ Ian, who believed that it was abilities that mattered and not the appearance of a familiar, decided to check the stats. In less than a second, Ian had opened the stats window of Bbookbbook. He looked at it with unknown sense of anxiety and excitement. Tring¡ª _ _ _ _ _ Bbookbbook ¨C Level: 196 Classification: Dragon Rank: Legendary Category: Lazy Evolvable Attack power: 4150 Defense power: 6643 Agility: 1025 Intellect: 825 Vitality: 687525/687525 Unique abilities -Lazy Dragon ( Passive )- The lazy dragon that can¡¯t fly because of its weight. As flesh grows the defense and vitality of the dragon also increases. (Each time a soul or spirit is eaten the vitality grows permanently.) Currently added defense: 2768 Currently added vitality: 258798 -Greedy Eater/ Predator- The lazy dragon inflicts 1500% damage on enemies and restores self vitality in equal proportion in the battle. 20% of life can taken by swallowing any other dead creatures (Not applicable in the case of Boss monsters and players.) Once used, it can¡¯t be used again until the eaten thing is completely digested. Cooldown time ¨C 3 minutes -Don¡¯t interfere when eating¨C It is a dragon that doesn¡¯t like to be disturbed during its meal. When blocking Bbookbbook from having something, a shield will form that will deplete life to 50%. It also applies when using the ability ¡®Greedy Eater.¡¯ Once the skill is used, it can¡¯t be used for 5 minutes. -The Blessing of Abyss- The Belssing of Abyss is a unique ability. Using the Blessing of Abyss, it can heal any of its allies within a 30 meter radius, and a fixed value of 2%(13750) of health is recovered every 0.33 sec. While Blessing of Abyss is in use, the castor cant perform other actions, if he does it or is confused, the skill wont work. Duration 3 min Cooldown time: 15 minutes. A dragon with a lot of appetite and laziness. Likes to eat and hates working. Favorite meal is ¡®meatballs¡¯. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian read through the long stats window in a very concentrated and serious manner. The moment he read the last parts, he couldn¡¯t help but feel how ridiculous it was, and Bbookbbook couldn¡¯t see his expression as it was behind Ian. ¡®What is this? Is it possible for an evolution to be this way¡­.?¡¯ The unique abilities of Bbookbbook were unusual characteristics, and even the description of the pet was different. Ian was embarrassed and flustered at what he saw. ¡®No matter what, it looks like the original skills of an Abyss Dragon don¡¯t seem to be here¡­¡¯ Bbookbbook walked over to Ian who had a confused expression. ¡°Bbook! Master! I¡¯m awesome, Bbook!¡± Bbookbbook was looking down at its own body in admiration. Ian fixed up his confused expression and answered, ¡°Ye, yeah, you look awesome, Bbookbbook.¡± At the praises from Ian, Bbookbbook was so pleased that it was wiggling its butt. ¡°Bbook but, why am I so hungry?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you have lots of meatballs during the day?¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t evolving call for congratulatory meal, Bbook?¡± In the end, Bbookbbook was able to win over Ian. It sat down right there while munching into the food with its eyes closed. Ian, during this time, was looking over at the skills of Bbookbbook once again, and was in concern as to how to put them to use. ¡®The skills are pretty unique but¡­. But the stats are definitely more than what I had imagined.¡¯ And if one looked at it, it did look pretty cute. ¡®And the last ability¡­ The Blessing of Abyss¡­ it seems like the most effective skill of all the ones.¡¯ The most vulnerable aspect of Ian and his party was healing. Priestly classes like Celia could do a good job in healing themselves, but for the others it was a bit lacking. ¡®Now¡­ if it regenerates 10000 in 0.33 seconds, then in ten minutes doesn¡¯t it complete the full health?¡¯ 30,000 vitality, the vitality of Bbookbbook was so astonishing. Because of the skills like ¡®Lazy Dragon¡¯, Bbookbbook was able to have such a huge amount of vitality. ¡®Thank god. It is a great thing that this isn¡¯t like the form that it had before the evolution¡­ if it is going to be like this, then I wouldn¡¯t mind looking after three of these.¡¯ Ian looked at Bbookbbook and smiled. Though its size is much bigger and it is eating a lot more than before, but it wasn¡¯t much different in its character. Ian felt glad about that, ¡®Ohmm, Bbookbbook-ah. Seems like your hyung has raised you good all this time!¡¯ But suddenly, Ian naturally moved his gaze towards the things hanging on the back of Bbookbbook. ¡®The hard shell like skin on the back¡­ no matter how one sees it, it wasn¡¯t that good¡­ Couldn¡¯t it be just either of it, the wings or the hard skin?¡¯ But at that moment! The shell on the back of Bbookbbook which was hanging fell down onto the floor with a thud. CH 262 A turtle dragon¡ªit was a being that meant a dragon and a tortoise. It literally meant ¡®Turtle Dragon¡¯. But the shell that actually represented the tortoise part fell off. So Ian approached him with a ridiculous look. ¡°Hey! Bbookbbook, ah. Is it alright that this thing falls off?¡± Bbookbbook answered Ian¡¯s question in a dry manner. ¡°Surely, I have no need of it now, Bbook!¡± ¡°But you are a tortoise. And does it make sense for tortoise to not have a shell?¡± Bbookbbook shook its head and answered in a gleeful manner, ¡°No Bbook. Now I¡¯m a dragon.¡± Ian looked at Bbookbbook in a very watchful manner once again. ¡®What the hell is this guy?¡¯ The tortoise shell on the back fell off, and even then, it looked way too round for it to look like a dragon. It looked so much like a tortoise when looking at its face, probably because it had big round eyes and a mouth that was sticking out. ¡®Hmm¡­ it looks a little like a hippo character..¡¯ Whatever it was. Ian¡¯s Bbookbbook was still very lovable. The biggest criteria that Ian regarded in his familiar were their performance. And in that aspect, Bbookbbook was very good. Ian¡¯s gaze moved toward the shell that was lying on the ground. ¡°Then what about the shell? Should it be kept as a memory?¡± There it was, the shell from Bbookbbook, lying right behind it. Ian picked it up and wanted to check it out. ¡®Can this be a useful thing?¡¯ ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C The Dragon¡¯s Shell ¨C Classification ¨C Miscellaneous ( Goods ) Rank ¨C Legendary Durability ¨C 1/1 ( Durability cant be decreased.) It is the shell of the legendary new creature ¡®Abyss Dragon¡¯. This shell is know as the best material for making shields and has very high value that can¡¯t be exchanged by gold. To be able to get this, a hundred years old dragon must be hunted, but no one has been able to do such a thing yet. Hard Shell ¨C When the shell is attacked, it can absorb the damage up to 20%. A Legendary Material ¨C It is a material which can be graded as ¡®Legendary¡¯. This is the highest of the ¡®Legendary¡¯ class, and is equal to the lowest level in the ¡®Myth¡¯ class. (The legendary grade material can be produced by the help of a blacksmith with a manufacturing skill of Master¡¯s Level.) An item that only belongs to Ian ¨C This item cannot be transferred or sold to any other users, and will not drop even if the user dies. A shield made of a dragon¡¯s skin is known to be not penetrated by any form of attack. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian, who had read the complete description of the item, released a sigh of relief. ¡®How is this going to be used?¡¯ The shell of a dragon. After reading the stats, it was definite that this item was incredible. Even if it was a low probability mythical item, it would still possess tremendous power. But the drawbacks weren¡¯t just one or two. ¡®What does it mean when saying about the levels of the blacksmith?¡¯ First of all, there was no blacksmith user with a master level ability to produce in the current Kailan community. Compared to the combat abilities, accumulating the proficiency in the production jobs for these professions was twice as hard. But this was a kind of problem that only time could solve. The best blacksmith at the moment was still a long distance away from the master level. It might take at least one year for a master level blacksmith to level up. But the fatal problem was something else. ¡®I don¡¯t get it, what am I supposed to do if this item is stuck with me!! I cant even send a request using this!¡¯ This was the problem. If the item has the option ¡®User Attribute¡¯ attached to it, then it can¡¯t be handed to another individual or group for the purpose of production. That being said, if Ian ¡®was not going to raise his skill level, it was stated that material the Shell of Dragon can¡¯t be utilized. ¡®That also needs master ¡­¡¯ Apart from a combat user, there was a chance for changing the user type. From the likes of it, for Ian, it wasn¡¯t much a problem nor was it an impossible task for him to be a blacksmith. No matter how nice and nostalgic it might sound, there was no way he would do it at this point of time. ¡°Ah¡­ Oh¡­ My god¡­..¡± Ian could make a very special amulet for the familiar with a low abilities. But the blacksmith skills that were required was still an unknown matter in this world. ¡®Huh¡­. I cant just throw it away, so I must have it.¡¯ Ian put the dragon¡¯s shell in his inventory. It had a nice ability to absorb 10% of the damage when hit, but it was big enough to be a bit restrictive when moving. ¡°Someday¡­ When I¡¯ll be too bored to do anything in Kilian, then I might be able learn a new technique.¡± Ian, who finished rationalizing himself, looked over at Bbookbbook who was still eating and said, ¡°Bbookbbook-ah, lets go from here now. Have the meatballs quickly.¡± Ian had urged Bbookbbook to complete it quickly and walked towards it. But at that moment. [Familiar¡¯s ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ unique ability, ¡®Don¡¯t interfere when eating¡¯ has been triggered.] [A shield with 343762 defense has been created around Bbookbbook.] Thung¡ª A translucent blue shield was created around it, and Ian who was walking toward it was blocked by the shield. ¡°What the hell is this?¡± Ian looked at Bbookbbook with a flustered expression. Bbookbbook, who was eating in a relaxed manner, had met the eyes of Ian. ¡°Bbook, When I eat food, I didn¡¯t like being disturbed even in my tortoise form.¡± ¡°¡­.¡± Ian had no other option but to wait until it was done eating. * * * He had spent a lot of time in the capsule, to the point that it was even getting hard to keep track of time. As soon as Jinsung came out of the capsule, he laid on the bed. ¡®Uh¡­ What¡¯s the time now?¡¯ Jinsung, who wasn¡¯t able to see if it was day or night, tilted his head and to confirm the time. The clock was pointing at 9:30. ¡®It is bright outside, and the clock says it is 9:30¡­ It is 9:30 am¡­¡¯ Since the initiation of Kilian game, Jinsung had a regular gameplay habits. However, once the levels went higher, it was more difficult to clear the quests. Now, it seemed that the change of day and night was almost unrecognizable. For Ian who was a night owl, he reached the dawn of morning at 9:30. ¡°I should sleep for at least 20 hours. I should release all the stress and fatigue that I accumulated, I need to start again with clear and bright energy.¡± Jinsung had set the alarm for after 20 hours to the next day at 5 in the morning, and drifted into sleep. * * * ¡°So¡­ You wish to enter our guild?¡± In front of Herz was a female mage with round eyes, who was wearing a red colored robe. Ramir, who had bright red hair, shook her head and answered Herz, ¡°No, It isn¡¯t like that. Only till the time the monster wave is going on, I want to be a part of the Lotus Guild.¡± ¡°Aha¡­¡± Four days of hunting with Ian. It was a nightmare that Remir couldn¡¯t forget. ¡®Well, can there be a man as demonic as him?¡¯ Except for the time of minimal rest, it was essential to hunt most of the time. ¡®And I made sure to remember all the cooldown time for my active skills.¡¯ In passive skills, their effect wasn¡¯t that wide scale or large, hence, it was tough for the party of Ian to know the precise time of action. However, in the case of an active skill such as attack spells, it was clearly possible to know whether it was activated or not even if it wasn¡¯t the castor himself. That was why it wasn¡¯t that impossible to know the cooldown time of the skills of the party if one was willing. And Ian, after just one day after hunting alongside Remir, was able to memorize the cooldown of all the attack skills of Remir. ¡®They are easy to say, I have a lot of active skills.¡¯ Even Ian, he didn¡¯t just remember the time of the skills, but he moved according to the timing when the skills were activated. At first, she assumed that it was just a battle reflex, but after a while, something felt odd and so she asked Ian. [Ian, how did you know my skill timing so accurately?] [Oh, that. I memorized all the cooldown time of your skills.] [?] [Engulf fire is about 3 minutes and 30 sec, the Glacier Curtain is about 2 min and 15 sec. And the Flame Explosion is about 25 sec¡­] Remir, who had this conversation with Ian, had muttered to herself. ¡®I must be crazy. Why did I have to come here?¡¯ After the hunt, Remir immediately vowed to never hunt with Ian again while being in a party. But after an hour, maybe two days passed, and her thoughts started to change a little. The pain during the hunting period has been forgotten. Experience points were achieved through battle, runes filled the inventory, and the high grade items started to appear in front of her eyes. ¡®Ian, if you aren¡¯t a monster like that, it would be impossible to hunt in this madness.¡¯ She wasn¡¯t completely sure if she wanted to join the Lotus Guild, but she did want to do more hunting with Ian. The Pyro was actually close to the location of Lotus Guild, and it was the location for the monster wave, hence, Remir came with the intention to hunt once again alongside Ian. Remir said to Herz. ¡°If I stay here, I won¡¯t be a burden. So, how does that sound? Can I come in?¡± And doing the obvious, Herz welcomed her. ¡®It would be ridiculous to waste such a top ranked mage!¡¯ Herz smiled and replied. ¡°Definitely! It would be an honour if Remir would be joining us.¡± ¡°Thank you Herz.¡± Ian suddenly came to the mind of Herz who was looking at Remir¡¯s face. ¡®Even if it is so¡­ temporary, a first place ranked user in our guild?¡¯ A few days ago Fiolan searched a ranked priest class user Levya. And now, a most famous ranked mage class user. And at last there was Ian who was overwhelming the other summoners. ¡°But that guy Ian, when will he come here?¡± In response to Herz¡¯s murmur, Remir questioned. ¡°Is Ian not here, right now?¡± Herz nodded his head. ¡°Ah, yes, I haven¡¯t seen him for a long time. I guess that he is busy doing some important quest right now. Maybe if you stick by a little longer, he¡¯ll join you soon.¡± Remir was a bit disappointed at it, but she nodded her head. ¡°Well, sure.¡± Well, even though Ian wasn¡¯t present, there was no other such defense structure that could withstand the monster wave from Pyro. Remir was going to face the monster wave and was waiting for Ian to show up. CH 263 ¡°It¡¯s been a long time since I¡¯ve come to other places rather than major areas and Central Continent.¡± The Central region where most of the desert islands are, and the sad blue colored skies that spread in the Magi. By comparison, the Northern continent¡¯s environment was truly a paradise. Clear sky and cool air! The only drawback is that it¡¯s a very chilly area because of the many snowy areas that were in it. ¡®But it¡¯s better in the cold than the hot.¡¯ Ian preferred winter more than summer. And the reason for it was fairly clear. ¡®One needs to take clothes off when it is too hot, but if it is cold, you can continue to wear.¡¯ But not everyone was like Ian. ¡°Master, why is it so cold here?¡± Ian looked over at Kaka who was shivering in the back and laughed. ¡°Kaka, is this the first time for you to come to the Northern continent?¡± Kaka shook its head. ¡°It isn¡¯t the first to see, but¡­¡± ¡°But¡­?¡± ¡°I think it has been at least 1,500 years and I don¡¯t remember.¡± ¡°¡­¡± And there was another one that was shivering because of the cold. ¡°Master, I feel very cold Bbook.¡± It was the chubby Bbookbbook with a round face that was coming behind Ian. Ian replied with a dry expression. ¡°You come here often don¡¯t you? Why is it suddenly cold?¡± Bbookbbook replied with a sad expression. ¡°At that time I had a warm back.¡± Ian shook his head. ¡°Not that¡­ I guess the warmth from the local was much different from now.¡± Chirit-! Bbookbbook was staring at Ian, but Ian being unfazed by it continued to move without any hesitation. ¡°A little more further, if we go beyond that ridge, there is a portal that will take us to the dimensional world.¡± Now Ian was heading towards the direction of the monster wave¡ªno other place than¡ª the Lotus Manor, the nearest place to the monster wave, Ian¡¯s Manor. Ian checked the time and made the necessary plans. ¡®There will be around 15 min for today¡¯s wave to open¡­ and it¡¯ll take an hour or two for me to arrive.¡¯ Ian wanted to use the new Planet Destruction weapon and the power of the newly evolved Bbookbbook. Of course, even if he went to the quest for the King of Rings, but right now he wanted to watch the battle. And there was another reason for it. ¡®If once a user starts to do quests related to the King of Rings, it is bound for one to find monsters that are increasingly powerful.¡¯ In order to test the performance of the items obtained, one should hunt in an environment that is similar to the obtained environment. No matter how good the weapons change, if the difficulty for the level to go up, the two won¡¯t go well. Ian had items that he wanted to try. So he was going to the battle against the monsters without much thought. ¡®Well, there must be a portal that can warp us into the Lotus Manor in the Eastern Continent.¡¯ He was rather eager to experience the wave that will be for half more day and go to the tower of dimensions. Ian started to pace quickly as his plan got more clearer. ¡®If I¡¯m going to hunt monsters, I¡¯ll have to catch one more thing.¡¯ * * * ¡°Uhh¡­ It is really bad. Today, I think that not only Surangka, but it will break through the plateau of Libellia.¡± ¡°Yes. It is the 3rd day, it is almost gone. In the 20th and 30th days¡­ How far are we going to hold it back¡­¡± The Surangka plains in the Northern continent had two magic portals. There were many users, like the mages who were gathered there. This was the third day of the monster wave. Users were participating in the battle with the tips that they had gained, or the tips that were shared. On the first day, it was a really messy ground, but after the difficulty of the monster wave was overwhelming, more users started to gather. ¡°It couldn¡¯t be that there are only low toxic rankers in Surangka?¡± ¡°I know, right? Most of the rankers are gathered in the Central continent, but for any ranker to be left on the Northern continent seems to be like a huge deal.¡± ¡°Guys, It isn¡¯t that¡­ It is because there are a lot of rankers in our Luspel Empire.¡± ¡°Uhmm¡­?¡± ¡°If you think about it, most of the top users are from the Kaimon region. I guess rankers from Luspel are going to be on the Central Continent.¡± ¡°Now that you say it, it does make sense.¡± There were a total of four places where the monster wave had opened, and two were in the Central continent, and the other two are in the northern continent. But the location where the monster wave is supposed to start was vague. While the two monster waves in the central weren¡¯t much far¡ªthe monster wave in the Northern continent was created in the extreme ends of it. Therefore, the portal in the western end was being kept and used by Kaimon, and the one that was opened in the east was kept by the users of Luspel. Therefore, the empire of Luspel lacked more in terms of power when compared to Kaimon, and it was making a hard struggle against the monster wave. On one side of the barracks of the defense side¡ªa few users who were ready to battle sighed. ¡°Wow¡­ but in our whole empire of Luspel, isn¡¯t there a single ranker?¡± ¡°Yes, there aren¡¯t. Famous rankers like Ilian, Shakaran, Culon, and etc, are among the most important users of the Kaimon empire. The known rankers from Luspel region are Samuel Jean, Roy Chen, and Martin¡­ Roy Chen is still in the top 5 overall, and Martin is 9th? He almost fell down to 10th and Samuel Jean is in 10th. And the archery class rankings have also dropped to the second place.¡± At these words, a user who was sitting beside and listening to their conversation replied. ¡°Well, there are users whom you have missed mentioning.¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°You missed, Remir and Ian. They are really important.¡± The man frowned a little. ¡°They haven¡¯t showed up in the monster wave till now, right?¡± ¡°That is true but¡­¡± ¡°And Miss Remir, I¡¯m sure she is going to be a great player because she was mentioned as the world¡¯s #1 in the magazines¡¯ official magicians ranking, and so did Ian being the 1st ranker in Summonars. So What?¡± At that point, the summoner user who had been listening to it till then replied. ¡°Oh, I don¡¯t think that you have seen the battle video of Ian till now.¡± The man shook his head and replied. ¡°Not that, I surely have seen them. And I admire him too. Obviously, his battle instincts are on a different level. But he still is a summoner. A summoner with leveling up difficulties. Now the level of the top ranking summoners officially is less than 170. What can one do with that level?¡± The summoner user felt hurt once again. ¡°Ian is different¡­! According to my sense, Ian will probably be in 180-190 levels¡­¡± At his words, the opposite man sighed. ¡°I¡¯m aware that Ian is considered to be almost like a God among the summoner users. But think with common sense. Even if Ian¡¯s rank is high, how big can the difference be between him and the other ranker, 10?¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± ¡°According to what I know, even if by any chance Ian is going to be here¡­ it will be tough to reach a defense rank of 10th.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± At the man¡¯s words, the summoner who defended Ian backed away. ¡®Absolutely not¡­ Ian will be able to hard carry it all the way if he comes here.¡¯ He was soon thinking that Ian would join the forces of this two-dimensional war and prove them all wrong. ¡®What a gruesome game for summoner¡­¡¯ However, at that moment, a drum started to sound high at a distance. Dong- Dong- Dong- ¡°Three minutes before the battle begins! Please finish all the maintenance and get into battle poise!¡± * * * Tring¡ª [You have joined the Barracks of Defense for the Dimensional War.] [To participate in war, you must register as a Tobeldewon.] Ian moved as fast as he could, but yet he reached the Barracks after the battle began. ¡°What, one has to register?¡± Ian, who wanted to hunt immediately, frowned at the unexpected message that popped up. ¡®Where should I¡­ go¡­ over there?¡¯ Ian moved back and forth to the barracks of the largest. And in it, one NPC sat down idly. ¡®I think he is the one¡­¡¯ Ian spoke to him. ¡°Hey, how are you?¡± At this, the NPC was awake and stared at the player. ¡°What, still in barracks? Looks like everyone has started before, why are you still here?¡± Ian answered him immediately. ¡°This is the first step to participate in a dimensional war. To participate, one has to register as a new member.¡± As soon as Ian was finished, the NPC threw a wooden card, as if it was a nuisance. ¡°You see the pile, you see the pile? Sign it over there.¡± And Ian¡¯s message came up, with a line of a system message. Tring- [You have been registered as the ¡®Invaders of Tobaldewan¡¯ in the plains of Surangka.] [Position ¨C Soldier.] [Rank ¨C D.] [All the positions have five grades from S to D, and the higher that one participates in the battle, the higher the rank and grade you will get.] [The higher the position and rank, the better the rewards you¡¯ll get at the end of the monster wave.] Ian stared at the wooden card in his hand. And there was a little D written in a rough manner. Ian had a frowned expression. ¡®What is this¡­? A soldier, D?¡¯ Ian who had great status as ¡®Marquis¡¯, as the one who collects tremendous fame beyond the others. Ian didn¡¯t like it, he was displeased with the NPC¡¯s action. ¡®There are more than 10 million units of fame that are piled up¡­ Shouldn¡¯t it look into those stuff?¡¯ Anyway, the position in the battle didn¡¯t seem to have anything to do with the systems way of ranking, Ian had to go up all the way from the bottom. Originally, Ian was planning to go to the quest after participating in the wave for a little while, but when this happened, an unknown sense of rebelliousness grew in him. Ian held the large wooden plank with a D carving on it with his hands and murmured in a small voice as he stepped out of the barracks. ¡°A change of plans¡­!¡± Ian was planning on spending half a day during the monster wave. ¡®Let¡¯s invest only three days. Till then, the public rank will rise up, and a decent rank will be build up by then.¡¯ Ian¡¯s passion began to burn. CH 264 ¡°Ahh! Stop them! Stop them! A little more pushed and the Surangka plain will lose!¡± ¡°Damn. Today I¡¯ll give my all to Surangka, but I think it¡¯s better to stop when needed. It will be more effective to do this at the Libelia plateau!¡± Kwang-! ¡°No! Not yet! If you give up now, I will give you duties for 2 more extended hours in Surangka compared to yesterday! If you¡¯re going to be like this, I won¡¯t be able to count on you even in Libelia!¡± ¡°Uh¡­ Uh!¡± The southern end of Surangka plain. Users were struggling to defend the gorge pathway that somehow led to the Libelia plateau against the monsters. At first glance, it seemed like a favorable situation because the number of users was much higher than the number of monsters, but the reality was not that at all. Most of the users who have reached the level 100, were 50% of beginners and those who were above the level of 150 were 20% of the users, now these users can be considered as the real deal. On the other hand, there was a handful of those who reached the level of mastery with level 180 or more. Sometimes, when the war started to happen, without any need to say, all jump in to give a hand. ¡°All¡­ Out of the way¡­!!!¡± A gleaming shine on the rugged canyon. A female wizard climbed on top of her sharp voice. She was none other than the famous flame wizard who was in the top 10 mages, she was ¡®SooHee.¡¯ With just those words, all the users who were in the middle of the battle moved away, as if they were pushed aside. ¡°Flame Storm¡­!!!¡± At the same time, ¡®Flame Storm¡¯¡ªtop level wide-area flame magic had been cast on the battleground. A flame storm, spewed out towards the low-level marshes and powerful damage had been done. Kwang- KwanggAngAng-! Ten low-level monsters fell down in a single strike.! The mid-level warriors who were in the middle were still alive, but the warriors and the assassins who were around were all immediately removed. Keuahh-! SooHee who had seen this scenario in front of her eyes smiled with satisfaction and wiped the sweat off her forehead. [You have defeated a low-level battalions (damage contribution 76%)] [You have earned as many as 157 Toboll points.] [You have defeated low-level battalions (damage contribution 26%)] [You have earned 55 Toboll points.] ¡®Nice, the timing was fine this time¡­!¡¯ Soohee quickly went through the system messages and scanned the battlefield. ¡®I should stay here for at least three or four hours¡­!¡¯ In order to defend the Shurangka plains, the battlefields that were prone to capture needed to be rescued and given support. In this battlefield, there was no user with a firepower of more than the level of 190. ¡°Phew¡­!¡± Soohee took a deep breath and moved away. She wasn¡¯t able to rest even for a second as she needed to prevent the invasion. ¡°Miss. Soohee! This way¡­!¡± ¡°Yes, will come¡­!¡± Soohee, who heard a voice coming from the left side of the battlefield, immediately cast a spell. ¡°Link¡­!¡± Link is a form of secondary magic that allows one to move quickly at a short distance. Link magic was a low skill, but still, it was one of those rare skills. The skill books for Link were rarely dropped. Weeing-! Soohee immediately moved to the short distance using the link and looked around the battlefield for a better understanding of the situation. But then. Something huge fell into her line of sight. ¡°What is¡­this?¡± With a massive size, it was like a dinosaur-like appearance. Soohee, who wanted to confirm the information of it, went into the wind without realizing it. [Name: Sekaros Rank: Advanced Master LV: 265] Only three days after a dimensional war had begun, and a strong presence of an ¡®Advanced Master¡¯ appeared on the field. Soohee swallowed her saliva and began to cast magic. ¡®I think it will be tough for me to take on an Advanced Master¡­¡¯ In fact, if any user with the specs of Soohee belonged to the other class, then it would have been useful for that user to deal with an Advanced Master. She was at a level of 190, but the opponent was incredibly high. However, she was a wide-area flame master, who uses wide area flame, yet it would be difficult for her to take on a single powerful monster of level 250. ¡®If I take care of the other things around it, then the users can probably catch it¡­!¡¯ After judging the approximate situation, Soohee began to cast one of her most powerful wide-area spell. But, after a while. She was able to realize how wrong she had been. Kung-Kung- A pounding footstep. A Sekaros with the appearance of a dinosaur took a step forward and roared. Grhaaa-! Sekaros who held a low posture till then lifted its head and started to spit out powerful attacks. Kong- Kong- Kong-! The users who were attacked on the battlefield started to burst out like fireworks. ¡°Euah¡­!¡± ¡°Help me! It hurts¡­!¡± ¡°Crazy! It is tough to even handle a basic class!¡± Many users started to vanish into thin air along with their screams. Soohee, who was seeing this became very flustered at this and decided to cancel out her casting spell. ¡°Damn it¡­!¡± Before she released out her magic spell, that monster is bound to run toward her direction. And since all the users that were supposed to block the monsters access were now dead, there was no other choice for her. Soohee spits out the saliva that was in her mouth. ¡®This is it¡­ It¡¯s over! If the archers have the skills then it could be possible to catch that monster, but now¡­ Surangka plains should give up¡­!¡¯ Soohee looked over at the terrain of the battlefield and tilted her head. However, she didn¡¯t see any solution to the problem that was in front of her. ¡®Damn, that is why there should have been two top-ranked players in the warrior class¡­!¡¯ A warrior class can go for 1:1 against a monster. This seemed like a very desperate moment. Soohee could not hesitate anymore. ¡®Nothing can be done. Should retreat for now.¡¯ For the three days, she had the highest contribution in the Surangka plains. It was all thanks to her, she had a B rank on the battlefield and the ¡®Main man¡¯ in this time. Soohee waved her hands to command the users that were surrounding her to retreat. ¡°Everyone! Fall back¡­!¡± But then. An unbelievable sight was unfolding in front of Soohee, who turned to send a signal. Kyaah! Enormous shadows covered the canyon. It was because a Seka dragon was flying with its wide wings and opened mouth. ¡°Everyone fall back, right now!¡± A man was riding on the dragon¡¯s head, and the hand gestures of his made the users fall back to their position. And in the next second. Kwang- Kwakkkk-! From the mouth of the dragon, a tremendous destructive power was pushed out. Shia- shuuuu! Low-level battalions could all melt away with a single stroke! All the low-level battalions were pushed into the gorge and were burned with the attacks, even half of the mid-level ones with full vitality were now at half vitality. ¡°This¡­This is¡­!¡± And Soohee knew the identity of the dragon. ¡°The dragon, Karceus¡­?¡± An unforgettable mass siege in the middle of the Central Continent. She could never forget the protagonist and his dragon, who succeeded in the temple, which was always seemed impossible. ¡°Ian¡­ Ian came¡­!¡± Soohee was a ranked player from the Valiant Guild. Soohee the mage ranker who was recruited by the Guildmaster of the Valiant Guild, Roy Chen himself. At that time Valiant Guild along with Lotus Guild had helped join the Pyro, and there was no way Soohee wouldn¡¯t have to know about Karceus and Ian. ¡°If this is how it is, then we can win¡­!¡± Ian who once ran around Kailin began emanating his tremendous presence. However, due to his personal quests, Ian had concealed his trail, and his abilities were devalued among the other users. -Ian? That lucky guy who got a legendary pet, a honey-sucking summoner? -Well, there are many who are stronger than Ian. I don¡¯t know why it is such a big deal. Honestly, even if he is a ranker, there are other rankers who are much stronger than him. However, Soohee who had witnessed him in the battlefield knavery knew well about him. ¡®Ian is the games god.¡¯ From mere combat to massive combat, as well as from close contact to a distanced combat style, he was a natural, and the flow could be seen through his actions. It was Soohee¡¯s personal opinion that anyone who was standing on the opposite side of Ian had no choice but to lose. But then. In Soohee¡¯s eyes, a high ranker montser directly hit Breath with vigorous power. Kyaah! The Breath was so painful that she began to move back in pain with a very aggravated expression. Kung- Kung- Kung-! Thanks to the Sekaros, all the battalions and toboll soldier at its feet were dying helplessly. ¡®Sh*t, Breath, Even I don¡¯t take away so much vitality, is it a named monster?¡¯ Soohees¡¯ brain started to get a hold of her. Suddenly her gaze moved towards the direction of Ian¡¯s. ¡®Sh*t¡­! Even if it is Ian, a summoner would not be able to deal with a named singly.¡¯ Soohee began to look around, so she could find high-level warrior users. But, Ian who was riding on the head of Karceus, jumped into the air and dived straight at the Sekaros. ¡°¡­!¡± It was a stunning sight that could be seen in the blockbuster fantasy movies. But the users who were looking at this sight were more flustered at his actions rather than feeling that this was cool. -What is it? Is he crazy? -No, even if he is Ian, jumping at it with a spear in hand? Ian however, had already hunted a legendary master a few months before. Rather than hunting, it was an event full of violence, but still worth it. Ian¡¯s hand wrapped itself around the Judgment of the Spirit King, and he felt strong. ¡®Okay, my items have changed a lot since then.¡¯ With a gold light was going to come chaos. Ian¡¯s Judgment of the Spirit King was pierced into the back of Sekaros. Puahk-! CH 265 Innately, humans have an instinctive feature of being jealous. However, people tend to differ in the degree of emotions that they experience, and those who are weak are usually filled with these kinds of tendencies. Ian could now be considered as a celebrity in Kailan, and there was no user who didn¡¯t know him. There were a lot of fans whom he managed to gathered, but he had also gathered a lot of people who were envious of him. And they only believed what they wanted to. ¨C Ian went on a 1 to 1 fight against a ranker, and you want me to believe that? And Ian was able to win? ¨C Ian¡¯s level is more than 190, do you believe that? You really believe that nonsense? Think rationally, isn¡¯t he only 20 levels different from the other summoner rankers? Even among them, there were those who saw Ian with his weapon right in front of their eyes and yet they chose to not believe. They could not believe what they were witnessing right in front of their eyes. And among them was a user ¡®Seian¡¯, who was rubbing both his eyes with his mouth opened wide. ¡®What the hell? What kind of situation is this.?¡¯ Seian was a level 192 warrior class user. The warrior class was a class that was specialized in the 1:1 combat; they were classes that could even pitch against a boss monster as well as PVP. And a person of that quality was inside the top 100 rankings in the whole world, and yet he was cautious and concerned about his fight against the monster Sekaros. Such an enormous monster, and yet Ian¡¯s spear easily went right through the back of its throat. Keuah-! Being a ranker in the class of top 500, it was hard for anyone to imitate the movements even after witnessing them up front. Ian¡¯s technique was not known, and whenever Ian¡¯s spear moved, lightning seemed to fall off the air. Kwang! Kwakaw! Kawng-! Whenever the lightning fell, the vitality of the monster Sekaros was being cut. Keahhh-! After attacking, Ian didn¡¯t let himself get attacked by the monster¡¯s rapid movement, and the pained Sekaros moved its body vigorously. Kung- A vibrating sound reverberated through the massive body of Sekaros! Kung-! KuKung-! In the battlefield that was filled with darkness everywhere, the rough and ragged breath of Sekaros filled the air. Grrr- Grrrr- No matter how many times Sekaros tried to lean forward and shake off Ian, it still had no option but to be the Son Wukong in the palm of Buddha*.. ¡®You will be the 100th Sekaros that I would have hunted with Remir.¡¯ The battlefield where Ian was hunting had 50 to 55 master leveled monsters. It would be the fourteenth time for Ian to fight against a Sekaros without the aide from Remir! Ian knew all the weaknesses and the patterns of behavior of the Sekaros right from the beginning, and the monster fell down like a child. ¡°Goodbye! Yo!¡± Compared to a named or a semi-boss leveled monsters, this Sekaros was twice as strong. Ian had erased almost two-thirds of Sekaros¡¯ vitality in just a matter of 5 minutes. Kiahhhk-! Sekaros squeezed its mouth shut, and the next moment, the monster fell to the ground with a thud, producing a tremor. Kung-! Since Sekaros was one of the greatest masters of all time, it was huge, so the users in the surrounding area could feel the tremors from the ground. ¡°Nice, started the day with a good hunt.¡± Ian smiled and moved toward the next target, and all the users who had watched Ian¡¯s act were with blank expressions. ¡°Did, did you see it?¡± ¡°That thing had more than 200 level seniority, right?¡± ¡°Yah, not 200, it is about 250.¡± ¡°Wow, it¡¯s awesome! That was so crazy!¡± And with the help of Ian, the users morale had risen. Thud-! Thud-! Thud-! One of the soldiers who was guarding the Toboll began to sound the war drums. ¡°Wow! Lets get rid of everything!!¡± Riding on to the momentum, all the players began to jump into the battlefield. Ian, who had just changed the atmosphere of the battle, jumped onto Pin and flew into the air. ¡°Nice, the users seemed to have come out once and for all.¡± Ian had opened his Toboll rank widow to check. Tring- ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Contribution status to Toboll ¨C User Name: Ian Position: Soldier Rank: D Points Attained: 157825 Cumulative Damage: 47982590 Damage per Sec: 267584 Cumulative Recovery: 15980 Cumulative Kill Points: 87 Total Damage: 153768 Cumulative Damage Ranking: 375 (top 5.7%) Damage per second: 1st place (top 0.01%) Cumulative Recovery: 5945 (top 90.36%) Cumulative Kill Points: 789 (top 11.99%) Final Contribution Ranking: 692 (Top 10.51%) The Final Contribution includes cumulative damage, recovery and kill points excluding DPS ( Damage per sec.) rankings. After finishing the day one can increase the position and rank by the consuming earned points. The player with the highest rank in the Toboll will become the ¡®Toboll Captain¡¯ for the next day, and will have authority to command the general soldiers ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian¡¯s eyes gleamed once he saw the system messages that had popped up. ¡°Oho? There isn¡¯t a proper ranker in this battlefield? I shot into the top 10% as soon as I came.¡± Ian had a great advantage of using Karceus¡¯s Breath in the cumulative aspect, but considering the hunting that had been done in the past two to three hours, this seemed like a high ranking. But, Ian wasn¡¯t satisfied with it at all. ¡®What is a Toboll captain? Tomorrow, I will fight unconditionally in the battle.¡¯ The NPC who had come with Ian was burning red out of embarrassment. * * * ¡°Ha, It is really crazy!¡± In the control room of LB Corporation, the developer of Kailan. The control room was a place where the users activity could be seen and the gameplay could be assessed in real time. It was a place where the top 1000 rankers were being monitored. There were about 50 screens in the LB Corporation, and there was a single user who was being monitored regularly. ¡°No, Team Leader. What was that?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°That¡­ that looked like a bug play.¡± ¡°¡­¡± The members in the control room were looking at the battle images of Ian. And they all forgot to breath for a moment. ¡°Yah, Yu Dari. That is the 4th transcendental weapon.¡± ¡°Yes, Team Leader.¡± ¡°That was why we received 80 bug reports in the past¡­ and I told you it wasn¡¯t something that needed to be looked into, right?¡± ¡°Yes¡­¡± ¡°But now that I see it with my own eyes, I understand the feelings of those who reported it.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°When it was being originally designed by the team, when was the item¡¯s supposedfirst release date?¡± At the words of the Team Leader, Yu Dari thought for a few moments by scratching his head and opened his mouth. ¡°I think it was about half a year later¡­ But even then, how is it possible to level it to that strength in such a short time?¡± The Team Leader sat down on the couch next to him and complained. ¡°But why is that thing in that guy¡¯s hand? He put it through the neck of a 40 million worth master class monster? But he is a summoner, and it doesn¡¯t make sense!¡± ¡°¡­¡± Yu Dari looked at the screen with a composed expression and opened his mouth with a dying voice. ¡°But Team Leader.¡± ¡°What, idiot!¡± ¡°Team Leader, even if one gets hold of that equipment, can one play like that?¡± At the words from Yu Dari, the Team Leaders eyes grew big. ¡°What?¡± Yu Dari pointed toward the direction of the screen and spoke. ¡°That can¡¯t happen. That guy Ian¡­ he is raving the battlefield of Toboll all alone¡­ even if I go in there now with that exact equipment, I can¡¯t do that sort of a play. I will suffer at least 90% of the damage because of the wide range attacks.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°And look at that skill cooldown, is there a skill cooldown of 2 seconds?¡± ¡°No¡­¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that a machine?¡± ¡°It seems like that.¡± ¡°From what I see, the fourth transcendental weapon is not the scam, but it is Ian who is the scammer.¡± ¡°Huh¡­¡± As the conversation between the two continued, they couldn¡¯t help but feel down. There was nothing they could do but die, as just a single player managed to destroy the balance of the gameplay. ¡°Haa! I need to plan new content again. But what am I going to say to the development team?¡± ¡°Now that you¡¯ve mentioned it. I¡¯m worried about it too¡­¡± Kailan was the most systematically aligned virtual reality game in the world. That being said, it was the development team that added many great contents to it. Even if it was the planning team that picked up a plan, it was the development team that would go on for countless of sleepless nights to execute the plans. Therefore, Ian, the content destroyer, was the natural enemy for the LB company. ¡°Wow¡­ How harder will the next content be? Honestly, the monster wave was also very difficult, now it will be very tough to raise the level of difficulty.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­¡± While the two of them were having their conversation, one of the persons who was watching the screen with Ian in it looked over at Yu Dari. ¡°Mr. Yu Dari.¡± ¡°Why? What is it?¡± ¡°But it makes sense.¡± ¡°What the hell are you trying to say?¡± That guy looked at the screen with a frown and gulped his saliva. ¡°Can I watch the video for a duration of 20 minutes?¡± The guy¡¯s eyes were very much immersed into the video of Ian. Yu Dari spoke in a honey-like voice. ¡°Watch it like a hawk, hawk!¡± * * * After Ian had joined the battle of Toboll, the atmosphere of the battle had completely changed. It was not just because of the combat abilities of Ian, but also because of the morale that rose in the other soldiers. Now, if a middle-level master appeared, they believed that ¡°Ian¡± could be trusted to deal with it. The presence of Ian made him equal to more than 10 rankers all together, so the Toboll was able to regain more than half of Surangka plain in an hour. ¡°BBookbbook-ah! That one!¡± ¡°Okay Bbook! Leave it to me Bbook!¡± Ian pointed to one of the middle level master and asked Bbookbbook to deal with it. Bbookbbook came and opened its mouth. [Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ unique ability ¡®Greedy Predator¡¯ had been triggered.] [The targets vitality is below 20%, so the ¡®Predation¡¯ has been activated.] [You have defeated an intermediate monster ¡®Crocker¡¯.] [Bbookbbook¡¯s vitality has been restored to 327512.] With an exception to the boss monsters and named monsters, Bbookbbook could swallow an enemy with vitality of 20% or less. Ian was utilizing this skill very efficiently. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah, there is an other one here.¡± ¡°Okay, Bbook!¡± [The familiar Bbookbbook unique ability ¡®Greedy Predator¡¯ has been triggered.] [The targets vitality is less than 20% of its life, so ¡®Predation¡¯ has been activated.] [The familiar Bbookbbook while utilizing ¡®Greedy Predator¡¯ was being interfered.] [The familiar Bbookbbook unique ability ¡®Do not interfere when Eating¡¯ skill has been activated.] [Created a shield while taking away 343762 of the opponent.] Ian laughed and smiled as much as he could. ¡®Heeh. Why is this so much more interesting than what I had expected?¡¯ To be honest, Bbookbbook had a great attack ability, but it wasn¡¯t so good when compared to that of his other familiars. However, Ian started to feel grateful for the new pattern of fight because of the new abilities. ¡®I want to try out the wide area healing as soon as possible, but why isn¡¯t the opportunity coming?¡¯ It had been only 20 minutes since Ian had entered the battlefield, and yet he had already ranked in 30th in Cumulative and 40th in the total contribution. If Bbookbbook¡¯s ability was used in the same manner, then he could go into the 10th rank in the overall contribution. About another ten minutes more? Finally, Ian had found the opportunity to use the skill ¡®Blessing of Abyss¡¯. CH 266 Khya- yah- ooo! A huge commotion rose in the air as the bloody red colored flames flashed into the sky above the battlefield. ¡°What is that?¡± ¡°It is the first time seeing something like that.¡± ¡°Considering the pressure it is giving out, it could be an advanced class monster!¡± All of the users were curious about what was happening. It could be an advanced one because of the majestic pressure that it released and Sekaros was nothing compared to it. But, Ian was pretty relaxed compared to the other users who were worried and confused. ¡®Has the time come for me to use the ¡®Blessing of Abyss¡¯?¡¯ Ian already knew the identity of those red flames that terrorized most of them. ¡®Advanced Master class, Kaifa. In this terrain, Kaifa could be considered as the bird of death.¡¯ The Kaifa was a superior monster that threw its flames at a wide area. Its attack power didn¡¯t exceed the level of 250 in battle, but the real problem lied in its wide attack range. ¡®If a user is at the level of 190, winning this would be a good enough deal, but those who are below the level of 150 are all bound to be burned to ashes excluding the tankers.¡¯ On top of that, most of the users, unlike Ian, had no idea about the skills that it possessed. They were completely helpless. Swishhhh-! Ian who was on Pin, flew into the sky and shouted his orders towards the others. ¡°All gather around!¡± Ian didn¡¯t care as to who the captain of the field was and the user SooHee, who was the designated as captain for today followed Ian¡¯s order without even a slight hesitation. As soon as Ian dropped the command, all the users went in the direction that Ian had asked. ¡°What? Why are we gathering?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know! Let¡¯s just move for now! I¡¯m sure Mr. Ian would have thought of something.¡± After a while, the Kaifa flew over their heads. Swoosh-! And the Kaifa, flying high in the air, began to flap its huge wings. Hwak- Hwak-! They knew that the flame that was around the body of the Kaifa would fall down into the ground and all the users in there had gathered into a narrow area thanks to Ian¡¯s orders. ¡°What is this!¡± ¡°Shit! It¡¯s a wide-range magic!¡± ¡°It¡¯ll cause some serious damage!!¡± ¡°No, what the hell is this? Why did Ian ask us to come here?¡± ¡°Kyaah! Ian is going to kill us all!¡± The users started to shudder with the flames covering the air but at the very next moment, Bbookbbook sat down on the center of the floor and closed its eyes. Wong-! [Familiar Bbookbbook¡¯s unique ability ¡®Blessing of Abyss¡¯ has been activated.] A blue colored tint covered the users and the people that had their life down to a dot due to the flames opened their eyes wide as they watched their vitality gauge. ¡°No way, what? Something¡¯s happening!¡± ¡°What is this? I¡¯m a priest class and I have never seen such a Healing technique!¡± Bbookbbook¡¯s skill ¡®Blessing of Abyss¡¯ was an excellent wide-ranged healing skill that couldn¡¯t be or shouldn¡¯t be compared to the healing skill of a ranked priest. Compared to the ranked priest¡¯s wide range healing spell, ¡®Holy Field¡¯ this one was had better effects. ¡®Holy Field¡¯ was a spell that needed the caster to prepare but Bbookbbook¡¯s heal could be used instantly. And now, in this particular situation, this second case had been a drastic help. The Kaifa¡¯s flame magic had a wide range and their vitality dots could be revived all because of it. [Suffered damage of 21984 due to the ¡®Hellfire¡¯ of Advanced Master Kaifa.] [The effect of ¡®Blessing of Abyss¡¯ restored vitality of 13750.] [The effect of ¡®Blessing of Abyss¡¯ restored vitality of 13750.] The Hellfire used by Kaifa has typically had a damage range of 10,000 to 20,000 damage points per hit. There may be a difference depending on the magic and the flame resistance that a user possessed, but the damage wouldn¡¯t be much less, especially when that damage would be incurred in a span of 1.2 seconds. On the other hand, the recovery from Bbookbbook¡¯s ¡®Blessing of Abyss¡¯ was fixed to the vitality of 13750. Instinctively, one might think that the amount of vitality healed was much less when compared to the damage one takes, but in reality, it was different. Because in reality, ¡®The Blessing of Abyss¡¯ could do a full heal in just about 3 seconds. ¡°I¡­ there¡¯s no damage¡­?¡± ¡°If this a long lasting Heal, I will never die unless I die out of boredom!¡± ¡°What are the archers doing? Get the flames out of your bodies and use your fire skills!¡± With that, all the archer classed and the wizard classed users, even with the lowest ranking abilities prepared themselves to attack. ¡°Magic Arrow!¡± ¡°Destroy Beam!¡± More than a dozen of users began to attack the air above them. Kwang-Kwakwang-! Phak-! After all the hard work that they did, they managed to hit it and eventually, its vitality eventually began to melt away. Keah-! All the users cheered as they saw the Kaifa screaming as it turned into dust in the air. ¡°Yeehaa..! Are you all ready to protect Surangka today?¡± ¡°This won¡¯t do, we shouldn¡¯t fall behind the other players!¡± ¡°Keuh, Mr. Ian was just one person but he managed to do all this¡­! A ranker is a ranker, right?¡± ¡°What nonsense is this, are you saying that it was possible just because of Ian. Even a regular ranker can do it.¡± ¡°What did you say? Are you saying that Ian is the top ranker in the Korean server?¡± ¡°I never thought of it this way, but now that I have witnessed it, it seems to be true.¡± The users were all in their own world, and there was one user who was watching all of them. ¡®Kuek! Surely, Ian didn¡¯t let my hopes down¡­!¡¯ It was a level 160 user, a top-ranked summoner of the upper class, Ryu Hansu. He was the user who had a misunderstanding with another user regarding the summoner class before the match even started. Hansu was thinking about what that idiot would have to say now after he had witnessed Ian in battle. ¡°Excuse me, Sage.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Did you see the Toboll¡¯s contribution ranking for today?¡± ¡°Uhm¡­.¡± ¡°Now, Ian had entered into the battle late, and has been here for only two hours, did you see that he¡¯s already sitting at the third place?¡± At the end of the conversation, the man who bad-mouthed Ian a few hours back scratched the back of his neck. ¡°Yes, it seems like that.¡± ¡°What did you say earlier? Didn¡¯t you say that he wouldn¡¯t even make it into the top 10? ¡°Yep¡­¡± Hansu smiled and asked, ¡°Did you change your mind?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I haven¡¯t seen it before, and I was so ridiculous.¡± Still, today¡¯s monster wave had so much time left, and Ian gave an overwhelming contribution to their current pace. Hansu looked at Ian¡¯s contribution and muttered to himself, ¡®After this battle is over, I should get his autograph. If I go to the weekend party with it, everyone would get jealous of me.¡¯ Hansu was smiling to himself as he moved his foot. No matter how impressed he was of Ian, he couldn¡¯t neglect to raise his own contribution. * * * Yoohyun who was having a leisurely lunch at home took out his tablet and accessed the internet. ¡°Should I see the official community? It has been a long time since I saw anything.¡± Yoohyun didn¡¯t participate in today¡¯s monster wave and since he had plans to eat out with his family, today was his day off. He was much lazier than Ian could ever imagine! Yoohyun didn¡¯t participate in the Toboldae, yet he was curious about the news related to it, that¡¯s why he went to the official community and opened the board. ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­ by now it would have turned into a full-on fighting game.¡± The Toboldea boards were divided into 4 bulletin boards and the magazine gave one bulletin board for each nation. And of course, Yoohyun went into the board of the Central regions. There was a list of the information about the low-level users who couldn¡¯t participate in the Toboldae and they were also posting the real-time feed of their battlefield. [We had a hard time. We are being pushed back even though the most exclusive rankers are on our side.] [Kue, by the way, when did the Lotus guild become so strong? I thought that there was no one there except for Ian, they seem like they can¡¯t be compared to the guilds inside the top 10.] [Of course, the Lotus Guild is now sitting at the 11th place, but the difference between them and the other 10 can be seen clearly¡­] [It was originally a strong guild, and besides, it was fighting alongside Remir and Liviya, it would be weird to call such a guild weak.] Yoohyun read a lot of posts and had a proud smile. ¡°Huh, Nice. Even if I¡¯m not there, everyone seems to be doing well.¡± The mystery monster wave, the contents of the Kailan, the whole nation of Korea was intently observing it. In addition to it, the contributors in the Toboldae and the other real-time participating rankers had their guild¡¯s name written right beside theirs, this could bring a little promotion to their guild. Herz now checked the rankings in the central Toboldae. ¡°Oho, as expected from Fiolan, but are you sure that you would be fine having a similar ranking with Krowan?¡± The ranking table that Herz was looking into had up to the 25th rank and it was a good thing because it had two users from the Lotus Guild. Now, the place that the Lotus Guild was most noted for was the Toboldae, 4 users from it were in the board. That being said, if Remir and Liviya were included as mercenaries for the Lotus Guild, this would include 4 users at the top 25 rankings. Especially for the overwhelming presence of Remir, it could boost their fame and put them into 1st or 3rd place. ¡°Huh, I¡¯ll get anxious if I see this again. I need to participate tomorrow and get into the top 50 somehow.¡± Yoohyun who was browsing the board paused for a moment without turning off the tablet. ¡°Should I check out the Sharangka today?¡± The Sharangka plains weren¡¯t much far from the Lotus Guild, it was the place of their first manor. Hence, Yoohyun was interested in seeing the northern central continent. ¡®No matter how many points we get, it will still be less, if it wasn¡¯t so far, our guild hall would have been there.¡¯ The monster wave in the Central was twice as difficult as when compared to the one in the North, hence, they were able to get more Toboll points. In fact, the guild had to move because of the most rankers were in the central. The Toboll point was a cash worthy item that could be exchanged for gold or fame. But if the monster wave in the North left, it would be dangerous for the Lotus Guild as well. That had to be stopped. ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­ The situation of Toboll¡­¡± Yoohyun entered the bulletin board and clicked on the post of the top-ranked board. CH 267 Yoohyun was completely flustered. Not quite right, there was no other option for him but to be flustered at what he saw. Ian¡ªthe ID name of Jinsung¡ªwas embedded at the top of the rankings for the contribution board ¡®What is this? He didn¡¯t have the time to participate in an urgent quest but has time for the Northern continent?¡¯ Yoohyun scratched the back of his neck and began to read the details of Toboll battles. ¡®It is a bit of shame that I couldn¡¯t fight alongside him in the central continent¡­ But it is fine. I was feeling a bit nervous about the Northern continent anyway.¡¯ Yoohyun sighed out of relief. Probably because, once Jinsung joined, he would do way much better and be more helpful than a few rankers around there. If there was anyone who knew about Jinsung other than himself, then that person would be Yoohyun. ¡®Ah, but what is this? There isn¡¯t an overwhelming difference with the 1st? You¡¯re just above the second rank with a difference of 1.5, I thought you would do better than that¡­¡¯ From Yoohyun¡¯s point of view, in the Northern continent that had no top ranker, Jinsung¡¯s power had to be overwhelming. The reason he felt disappointed was because the difference between him and the second user wasn¡¯t that much. Their contribution was similar. But there was a part that Yoohyun didn¡¯t check into. It was the fact that it had been only two hours since Jinsung had checked into the Toboldae, while other users have been in there for over four hours. ¡°Well, there is no need for it be overwhelming just because it is Jinsung¡­¡± Anyway, Yoohyun¡¯s concern over the Northern Continent and the Lotus Guild¡¯s manor were now gone. He turned on his computer after he was done eating. He actually thought of taking a rest from Kailan for that day. * * * [Kyahahahahk-! You humans dare¡­. Against¡­. Me¡­!] A monster fell down onto the floor after screaming on top of his lungs. And that was the last boss of the Advanced Master of the 3rd Monster wave, and the users began to cheer. ¡°Yes! It¡¯s over!¡± ¡°Yes, it is! It is really done!¡± ¡°Ha, today¡¯s contribution wasn¡¯t a joke. I never thought that the battle would end here in Surangka plains. Moreover, with a contribution of 74%!¡± ¡°Exactly! I think we got twice the points than that of yesterday. If it¡¯s going to be like this, I can upgrade my position!¡± In the Toboldae system, the users were awarded in the end after the battles were completed by calculating their contributions and the points that they had achieved. And before the final sum was added, the points were placed in a proportional share to that of both the virtual and the human world. Until now, the users of the Northern continent were handing over all their contributions of the Surangka plains to the other regions, and the Libelia plateaus got to keep about 50 to 60% of their contribution rewards. But today, rather than being pushed towards the Libelia plateau, the Sunragka plains achieved a tremendous contribution share of over 70%. And it was all thanks to the users. ¡°Huh, This is all thanks to Ian.¡± ¡°Uhm¡­ You can put it that way. I feel like I have no choice but to put my life on the line for the sake of Ian. I was almost gone in the battle today.¡± ¡°Me too.¡± While the users were being cheerful and checking out their contribution results and rewards, Ian was also doing the same. Ian was checking the results window by standing in front of the fallen monster. Contribution Status of Toboldae ¨C User Name: Ian Position: Soldier Rank: D Points Possessed: 28563442 Cumulative Damage: 3298749k Damage per Sec: 220938 Cumulative Recovery: 378988k Cumulative Kill Points: 4398 Cumulative Damage Ranking: 1st place (top 0.01%) Damage per Sec: 1st place (top 0.01%) Cumulative Recovery: rank 16 (top 0.04%) Cumulative Kill Points: 1st place (top 0.01%) Final Contribution Ranking: 1st place (top 0.01%) The final contribution included cumulative damage, recovery and kill points excluding the DPS (Damage Per Sec) rankings. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Cumulative damage, DPS, Kill points¡­ all ranked first, and this was all thanks to BBookbbook, And in terms of recovery, Ian had ranked in the top 20. It was definite that the skill of Bbookbbook was much more efficient than that of a Priest in Toboldae, but skill alone wasn¡¯t enough to take over a higher ranked Priest, it was only the Heal. And this kind of result was satisfactory to Ian. ¡®Phew, I didn¡¯t know that I would reach the top position of the rankers¡­ but I got to see the skill Blessing of Abyss in action.¡¯ After confirming the results of the battles, Ian had arranged his inventory and returned to the base camp of Toboldae with the other users. Now, it was the time for the all-defeating soldier to change his nameplate from rank D to a one with more dignity. ¡°Khum, Keuh¡­ So, how much contribution do you possess?¡± Asked the NPC that Ian had met in the morning. Ian, who was standing in front of him opened his mouth and told the points that he had gotten. ¡°A total of 28.56 million points. So, if I use up all my contribution points, what rank will I be getting?¡± The NPC looked flustered. ¡°Wait a minute¡­ just¡­.¡± He checked something once; he scratched the back of his neck and answered. ¡°If you use up all of your 28 million points, you will get an S Rank along with being presented a ¡®White Seal¡¯.¡± Ian nodded his head immediately and answered. ¡°Nice. Let¡¯s use it all.¡± The NPC was flustered once again. ¡°Really, all of it?¡± The reason why he was flustered was because of something else. If the points were 28 million, and one switches it for Gold, one could get a huge amount of over 2 million. If switched with fame, then one would get fame points of over 150,000. However, the NPC didn¡¯t realize that this user would use all of his points to raise his rank. However, according to Ian¡¯s point of view, 200 million gold or 150,000 fame points were just a tiny amount and didn¡¯t matter to him. According to his calculation, rather than getting that penny in the Toboldae, it seemed like the rank and position would play a more important role in the future. It was just an ¡®instinct¡¯ that he had after spending so much time in Kailan. ¡®If my position is high, there will surely be a lot of opportunities to deal with bosses and named monsters.¡¯ And Ian who had decided on it answered firmly. ¡°Yes, I¡¯ve no intention of changing my opinion. So, do it quickly.¡± ¡°Ye¡­ Yes.¡± The NPC briefly went to a small room behind the barracks and brought out a silver title card. This was definitely better than the one Ian was given in the beginning. ¡°Here you are, Mr. Ian. From now on Mr. Ian is an S ranked ¡®White Seal¡¯.¡± Ian was handed the status card, and the NPC¡¯s tone of responding had also changed. ¡®HuHu, even with the same title, it looks like lower and upper-rank users are being differentiated.¡¯ The NPC¡¯s title was also a White Seal. But he was ranked B, and Ian was S. Ian had a satisfying look in his face and immediately asked the NPC. ¡°Right. Thank you. But can I ask you a question?¡± ¡°Please ask whatever you wish.¡± And Ian continued his query. ¡°How many more positions are there above the White Seal?¡± There were two more positions other than a soldier of White Seal. One was an upper-level S ranked soldier, and the other was the highest level S ranker which would be the ¡®White Leader¡¯. Ian was curious as to how high he went in the ranks. ¡°Well¡­ there are four positions in total. First would be one of the thousands of players, on top of them would be the captain (Ian¡¯s position), above the captain will be the commander. And on top of the commander will be the commander general.¡± Ian nodded his head ¡°Then how many points should one get to be a commander general?¡± The NPC answered. ¡°That would be about 300 million.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ It isn¡¯t much than what I had imagined¡­.?¡± If it was 300 million points, then it could be collected in 10 to 12 days, if today¡¯s pace was carried on. Considering the difficulty level from today¡¯s battle, it would be easy for Ian to get them. But the NPC wasn¡¯t done talking. ¡°However, it isn¡¯t just plain points that the Commander General needs.¡± ¡°Well? then what else is needed?¡± ¡°One would need an object that represents the authority of an Emperor. It doesn¡¯t matter if it is the Luspel Empire or the Kaimon Empire. It just needs to be a thing that contains the power of an Emperor. To be a Commander General for this dimensional war, that much of authoritative power is needed.¡± ¡°An artifact with the Emperor¡¯s powers¡­¡± But then, a thought went through the mind of Ian, and he instinctively rubbed his hands. ¡°Ah, There is another way too.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°The forgotten Emperor the King of Rings[1], his artifacts can be utilized too.¡± Upon hearing this word, Ian¡¯s eyes began to shine. * * * Ian participated in the Toboldae battles for three consecutive days. He was able to collect around 100 million points and raised his rank to a higher level S rank. It was the highest rank in the Northern continent, and even in the central, this would be a high enough rank to rule. It could be considered as a huge achievement considering the fact that he joined the battle a few days late. And during his three days in the battlefield, Ian thought this through. ¡®If this¡­ goes on for 20 days, I don¡¯t know what to do.¡¯ Ian who had been in the battle, now knew how difficult it was going to be for the normal users to reach the higher ranks. The level of difficulty that was being presented was different from what was announced at the official homepage. It has just been the 6th day, and there were master level monsters that were entering the battle, but if this pace continued then it was likely for a Balrog to make its appearance before the 20th day. ¡®I did well by coming here right after the quest.¡¯ Gripper and Iriel said that they would find the item that could stop the dimensional war. But Ian didn¡¯t know what the exact abilities of the item were, but in terms of how the situation was going on, it seemed very much necessary. Ian glanced around him and saw the approximate amount of abilities the other users had. ¡®If I go out of here right now. They will be able to manage for at least one week, the monsters won¡¯t reach the users¡¯ manor during that time.¡¯ Before Ian had joined the Toboll trope, the northern continent was on the verge of getting caught. Ian provided the users with the abilities and the skills of all the monster; they could now understand the pattern much better. Moreover, many named rankers had joined, and their combat ability had improved a lot. ¡®I won¡¯t be raising my contribution points in here anymore, but I¡¯ll be back after finishing the quest of Wheel-Turning King. That contribution will be enough to raise my rank.¡¯ It was clear that if he got the other needed things for making Bbookbbook into a full-fledged Abyss Dragon, he would be able to sweep out the monsters more effectively. Ian made his decision and sent a message to Soohee, the captain of the Toboll group. [Ian: Miss.Soohee] [Soohee: Yes. Mr.Ian, What is it?] [Ian: I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be able to participate in Toboll tomorrow. I think the Toboll field is back in your hands for now,] [Soohee: What?] [Ian: I have an immediate quest to attend¡­ and I will come back as soon as possible¡­ just hold this field for a week.] [Soohee: Uhm¡­ is that even possible¡­?] [Ian: the users are stronger than when I first came here¡­. Even if they just try to block them rather than attacking them. Just don¡¯t overdo it.] [Soohee: Hmm¡­ I understand¡­ I¡¯m sure that you have thought this through.] Ian who had just completed instructing Soohee began to prepare for his move to the Eastern continent. ¡°The quest shouldn¡¯t take away much time¡­.¡± In the quest content, it was mentioned that the quest needed to be completed before the monster wave was done. The main objective of the quest was the prevention of the dimensional war. So Ian had figured out that this quest was needed to be completed quickly. ¡®But the question is, how fast can I do this quest?¡¯ Ian went back to the Lotus manor and was preparing to go. He gathered all the needed necessities and checked the conditions of all his familiars. Since this was a difficult quest to do, he needed to be thoroughly prepared for everything. ¡®Nice. Should we start now?¡¯ The Eastern continent wasn¡¯t that far so he could go there very quickly by using the portal in the dimensional tower. Without wasting time, Ian started to move towards the tower, and he arrived in less than an hour. However, as soon as he arrived at the tower, an unforeseen hurdle was awaiting Ian. CH 268 Kakang! Kang! A sharp voice resonated in the air. Puahk! A man¡¯s red sword penetrated through the chest of a monster. Keuah! Thump! The monster which got its chest the pierced fell onto the floor in front of the man, and the man put up a satisfactory smile. ¡°Phew, This wasn¡¯t such a strong one.¡± To his amazement, just like his muttering, the monster that fell down in front of the man by a single strike was none other than Haimon. It was a monster that was weaker than the legendary Devil Dragon or the Balrog, but even so, it was still way stronger for a user to capture. A system message arose in front of the man¡¯s eyes. Tring! ¨C [You have acquired an amount of 850 Magic.] ¨C [Current magic capacity: 39580.] ¨C [In order to upgrade to Noblesse, you need an additional 10420 magic points.] The man who raised the system message was ¡®Irahan¡¯. He was one of the users who had received a special quest. ¡°If I continue at this pace, I can turn into a noblesse in 2 weeks.¡± The magic points needed to become a Noblesse was 50,000. But that wasn¡¯t all. After getting 50,000 magic points, one couldn¡¯t upgrade and become a Noblesse just yet. Before the upgrade, the Noblesse had been considered to be way stronger than the Asmodians in the system. However, this wasn¡¯t the only way for upgrading into a Noblesse; there was another way. And that was to receive the power from a devil or a demon that was within the top 10 ranks. In layman¡¯s term, it was a form of being recognized. ¡®HuHu, was it 500 users who have died in the dimensional war of Devildom?¡¯ And Irahan received a quest from the Devil King of Destruction, who was in the 10th rank. If one participates in the Dimensional war and manages to kill 500 human users, then that user would be offered the power to be upgraded into a Noblesse. And Irahan immediately accepted the offer. ¡®I¡¯m sure that all the users would be gathering in the grounds like clusters of stars¡­ Not just 500 users, even 1000 users wouldn¡¯t be much of a problem.¡¯ Surely, he didn¡¯t intend to fight 500 user on his own. It wasn¡¯t the style of fight that Irahan did, as it would be tough to know who had entered the fight and who had left the fight if it was just him. But it was easy for him to kill 500 users who were in a fight with other monsters and Asmodians. ¡®Haha¡­ wait a little bit more¡­ wait until I meet the 50,000 magic points needed, then the dimensional war will go down immediately.¡¯ Irahan was in a hurry to fight the users, but before that, he had to hunt the monsters around him. He didn¡¯t take a single break to fill the 50,000 magic points that were needed. * * * Ian immediately moved towards the magic tower of their dimension to find Gripper. However, nowhere near the tower could the shadow of Gripper be seen. ¡®What, where the hell did that so-called gentleman go?¡¯ Ian picked up the connector he had got from Iriel and immediately contacted her. ¡®This was the item I didn¡¯t want to put in the inventory and waste the space, and now it is being used.¡¯ Ian pulled out the crystal ball and activated it, and a very beautiful face of an elf had appeared inside of it. And that was none other than Iriel. [Hello, Miss. Iriel.] [Oh! Mr. Ian, What is it?] [I have arrived at the magic tower of this dimension, but Gripper isn¡¯t here. Is he on your side?] [It looks like you¡¯re all prepared.] [Yes, I am.] [Gripper will be right there. Just wait a moment.] Ian closed his eyes. [Mr. Gripper, you¡¯re still here?] [Ah¡­ um¡­ the¡­] He heard the voice of Gripper in the background. [I¡¯m leaving right away!] [¡­] He sounded like a friend who was late for an appointment. The kind of talk a friend would do when he wakes up and walks out of the door. [Hurry up please¡­] Ian turned off the crystal ball and was looking at the scenario while grunting. ¡°Uh! That was a waste of time. If I knew that this would happen, I would¡¯ve just taken down a few more monsters at Toboll instead.¡± The experience would be immense if he did that. Ian felt like he could raise one more rank if he had gathered more contribution points in the field. Ian went into Grippers room near the tower and sat down in the seat of Gripper. The table in the front of Gripper¡¯s seat was very wide and on the top of it were many miscellaneous items. Ian being the curious cat that he was, started to look at them. ¡°Could there be some stunning items here? It is a bit messy, and I don¡¯t seem to know any of it.¡± Ian picked up a cube in the size of a soccer ball that was just in front of him. [Hall of Dreams Cube] ¡®Huh¡­ Hall of Dreams¡­ seeing this after a long time. If this has such a name, then the grade will be pretty high, right?¡¯ Ian opened the item information. Tring! ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Hall of Dreams Cube ¨C Classification ¨C Miscellaneous Rank ¨C Legendary * It is a mysterious cube, an artifact that was used by the Ancient Monarch in the Hall of Dreams. * By placing a few certain ingredients in this cube, one can create rare and powerful potions. * Items that have been successfully created by this cube are. Complete Recovery Potion Power-up Potion Strengthening Potion * The Hall of Dreams Cube is a mysterious cube filled with power. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian touched the Hall of Dreams Cube with a face that was filled with interest. ¡®This looks like a really good item, right? This item is tempting¡­¡¯ A full recovery potion in the item description was a potion that filled up the vitality of the user to the MAX. The best form of potion that could be used at least once or twice in any combat situation. But the potion Complete Recovery was a little expensive, and it was available at the auction house. On top of that, there was another potion in the item list that was much more eye-catching. ¡®Strengthening Potion¡­ I know that it is a potion that increases your attack power by three times, but what is that power-up potion?¡¯ The potions in the item list all looked great, so Ian looked at the cube for a while and carefully put it down on the table. ¡®I need to look at all the things that are here before Gripper comes. And if I like it, I will ask him for one. I¡¯m not sure if I can decide on one though.¡¯ Ian, who was feeling grateful on the thought of taking away one of the NPC¡¯s goods, began to open up one after the other. Ian looked through everything that was in front of his eyes and saw two useless wooden sticks. ¡°Umm¡­ this looks like an item that should be discarded right away. Gripper keeps things like this too?¡± Was it about twenty minutes or so? Ian¡¯s eyes came across an item that was so miraculous. ¡®What is this? A jewel that changes shape..?¡¯ Ian picked up the big jewel that lay next to the table. The jewel was gleaming with a purple light, and its shape was constantly changing. To be precise, shouldn¡¯t it be said that the light in the jewel was constantly changing rather than its shape? The overall silhouette was a jewel close to the round sphere, but the patter on the surface was constantly changing. Ian opened the information window of the item with an expectant expression. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Dimensional Magic Power Charger ¨C Classification: Miscellaneous Rank: ?? * A Dimensional Magic Power Charger that was developed after a hundred years of research by Gripper. * Using this Magic Power Charger, it is possible to operate objects that work with the power of dimensions even if the user is not a mage. * If one has this item, the cooldown of all their skills will decrease by 5%. (This doesn¡¯t apply to the unique abilities of a familiar or a traitor.) list of items that can be operated with this Dimensional Magic Power Charger are: -Dimensional Beads -Dimensional Magic Wand. -Dimensional Magic Shield. * This is one of the most cherished artifacts of Gripper. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C The more information Ian read about the item, the more his eyes began to shine. ¡®Oh? This is a thing?¡¯ As soon as Ian had reached the point where it was written, ¡®Operated with¡¯ in the Dimensional Magic Charger, his eyes got stuck in there. At the top of the very list, Ian had found a very familiar item. ¡°Dimension Beads?¡± Ian had opened his own inventory as soon as he saw the name of the item. About ten days ago, he remembered the ball that Gripper had given to him. The moment he had pulled it out of his inventory, he checked if it was information, Ian had realized that this bead was the same thing as the Dimensional Bead that was written in the Dimensional Magic Power Charger. ¡®This is¡­ This is it!¡¯ Ian grabbed the Dimensional Magic Charger in his right hand and the Dimensional bead in his left hand. At that very moment, a system message came in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Tring! * [You have met the necessary conditions for using the ¡®Dimensional Bead¡¯ item.] * [The seal of the item ¡®Dimensional Bead¡¯ is released.] * [Please check the item information window.] ¡°Yes!¡± Ian immediately opened the item information window of the Dimensional Bead. When he had first got that bead, it was said that the bead could be used only when certain conditions were met. But now the information window was double the original length. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Dimensional Beads ¨C Classification: Miscellaneous Rank: Legend Dimensional Magic Power Charger: 0/1000 * You can move up to 1000M per 1 hp. When one fixes the desired coordinates on a map, the portal opens to that location and the portal will last for 2 minutes. * If the magic power is 1000, then another instance of the portal to another dimension can be used. (Cooldown time: 1200 minutes) * Users can create portals to the location that they have seen before. * Users cannot create a portal during a battle. * Users of the class ¡®Dimensional¡¯ can charge their item using their own dimensional power, and those users of the different class can use their magic power to charge their item. * This item belongs to user ¡®Ian¡¯. CH 269 ¡®I¡­ want to take it¡­!¡¯ Ian was holding onto the Dimensional Magic Power Charger in his hand, and his appetite to take it was rising. ¡®This one, Will he give it if I ask for it?¡¯ Gripper and Ian¡¯s affinity was so high that it couldn¡¯t be raised any further. Any item could be taken if the affinity was a high, but somehow, this seemed like an item that would be tough to get. At the end of the information for the Dimensional Magic Power Charger, it was written as ¡®The most cherished item of Gripper¡¯, this made it seem tough. ¡®Huh¡­ I guess I¡¯ll just have to try¡­¡¯ Ian feeling a bit let down put the Dimensional Magic Power Charger from his hand back onto the table. Then Ian¡¯s eyes looked at the system message that came on. [You have not met the requirements for using the item ¡®Dimensional Bead¡¯.] [Item is sealed.] ¡°Damn.¡± After placing the item back onto the table, Ian turned his gaze to a different side of the room. Gripper¡¯s studio had a lot of stuff, and Ian hadn¡¯t even seen half of them. At that moment, a low resonating sound started to come from the center of the studio. Woong- Woong-! Ian¡¯s gaze moved to the place where a blue light began to form, and a portal was being opened. And from that portal, came out Gripper. ¡°Phew, I came right away¡­ have you been waiting long?¡± Ian who had just reunited with Gripper, spoke in the brightest and the most cheerful voice possible. ¡°No, No. At this point, I don¡¯t even know how long I¡¯ve been waiting for. You came here real quick.¡± When Ian spoke all that with a smiling face, Gripper opened his mouth, while being a little flushed. ¡°Uh. Is that so? I came here in a hurry thinking that you would wait.¡± Gripper brought his composure back and spoke to Ian after a gap of a few seconds. ¡°Anyway, here you go¡­ are you all ready to go to the Ancient Maurya Empire?¡± Ian nodded. ¡°Yes. Being in the Dimensional war for a few days made me realize that the item from the Wheel-Turning King/ King of Rings would be necessary.¡± Once Ian was done with speaking, Gripper looked pleased. ¡°Kue, Great¡­! Ian you think quick and so are your actions¡­ This was the right choice.¡± Gripper who was done speaking¡ªstretched out one hand and pointed towards the air. A round ball came from the air. ¡°Now, I¡¯m going to open the door to the Ancient Maurya Empire. Is there anything I can do for you, apart from opening the portal?¡± Ian was thinking of completing the quest, and then ask Gripper for the Dimensional Magic Power Charger. But since Gripper had himself asked, there was no way Ian would willingly let go of the opportunity. ¡°Actually, yes. Can I just ask one thing?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Please tell me. I will do it if it is something I can do¡­!¡± Gripper was a little puzzled as Ian had taken his sweet time to reply. And Ian, realizing the high affinity he had with Gripper, nodded his head and spoke. Ian glanced towards the table and pointed in the direction of an item with a high magnitude of magical power. ¡°Maybe¡­ You can give me that thing?¡± Upon seeing the item, Grippers eyes wavered. ¡°That thing¡­? Which one are you saying? Point it for me.¡± As the request from Gripper, Ian took the item into his hand and brought it into the sight of Gripper¡¯s eyes. ¡°This thing. I feel like I need this thing. Do you remember the Dimensional Bead that you gave me the last time¡­? I could use it if I have this thing.¡± ¡°Ha¡­ Ho¡­¡± Gripper started to sweat and had an uncomfortable expression. ¡°How did you know about the Dimensional Magic Power charge? I don¡¯t remember telling you about this¡­¡± Ian replied with a mix of lies. ¡°My beads seem to have responded when I got near this thing. So I found out.¡± Gripper replied out of courtesy. ¡°Hmm¡­ Is that so¡­¡± Ian kept looking at Gripper¡¯s eyes. ¡®I think this much push is enough, this should be enough to persuade him, right?¡¯ If this was something that should never be handed, then Ian wouldn¡¯t have wanted it either. ¡®Then, before his thoughts drift onto the ¡®not giving me¡¯ part, I should change his mind using something¡­¡¯ Ian was thinking of something that he could offer to Gripper. He thought that since he had accepted the request from Gripper, this should be something that could be offered to him for exchange. Ian immediately said to Gripper. ¡°Gripper, did you think that you were the only one giving away stuff?¡± Gripper¡¯s face brightened up a little. ¡°Ooh¡­? You also have something to give me?¡± Ian started to think hard. ¡®The things that I have with me¡­ would Gripper want something from it?¡¯ Ian started to recollect. For a long time, Ian had hunted many monsters and went on numerous quests, so there should have been at least one thing that Gripper would have been interested in. After thinking for a minute or so, Ian¡¯s mind came up with a thing. ¡®Yes! That thing¡­!¡¯ The item that Ian had thought needed to be somewhere in the corner of his inventory. ¡®The strange egg that I received when I was in the first round of summoning¡­! I could give that to Gripper.¡¯ Gripper was very fond of exploring things in veils. And to such a person (NPC), giving an ¡®Unknown egg¡¯ would have him very interested. ¡®Even if there is something great in it, there is nothing to do with it. For now, it is completely useless to me, right?¡¯ The familiar in the egg is awakened when it meets the parents of the same species, or when certain conditions are met. However, Ian had tried every possible way for this ¡®unknown egg¡¯ to hatch, but it didn¡¯t. Once a user knows the kind of egg it was, they could find clues to the process of hatching, but because this was an egg whose identity couldn¡¯t be known and it was just an egg to Ian. Ian settled his thoughts and picked up the item ¡®Unknown egg¡¯ from his inventory. ¡°Gripper, this is one of the hard-earned items I had received when fighting a Legendary ranked monster in the 50th zone. I would like to give this to you Gripper¡­ Is it alright?¡± Ian looked into Grippers eyes. It was because he had exaggerated a little bit. ¡®I didn¡¯t get this from hunting a legendary ranked monster, but it is true that I found it in the 50th zone where I had hunted the Legendary ranked monster, so this isn¡¯t entirely a lie!¡¯ Ian, who was rationalizing his thoughts reached it out to Gripper. And like Ian had known, Gripper¡¯s gaze was completely fixed on the egg. ¡°Wow¡­ This one, anyone can know that this is a rare thing in a single glance.¡± Ian looked at the admiration Gripper had in his eyes, and muttered to himself. ¡®Well, it is an incredibly rare thing. This is a great thing for a person who likes to explore, rather than being a user.¡¯ Gripper, who took the egg from Ian, began to explore the egg much diligently. ¡°Keu, the smooth reddish texture and the light that is leaking out from it¡­ if this thing hatches, then this would be a really big deal.¡± As Gripper murmured, Ian¡¯s hands started to shiver. ¡®Is, is it really¡­? This wouldn¡¯t have a very rare legendary class in it¡­ right?¡¯ Just words coming from Gripper, and it had shaken Ian immediately. Ian made his stand on the decision. ¡®No, there is no way that a great thing could come out of it that easily.¡¯ Ian, who had fixed his mind on taking the Dimensional Magic Power Charger looked at Gripper who was still interested in the egg and opened his mouth. ¡°I really think that there is something very tremendously powerful in it.¡± At this, Gripper asked. ¡°But can you really give it to me?¡± Ian scratched the back of his neck and replied. ¡°It is really upsetting¡­ but I couldn¡¯t figure out how to hatch it with my abilities. So I thought that you, being the Great Gripper would be able to hatch this egg.¡± The word ¡®Great¡¯ started to get into the head of Gripper. ¡°Well, Uhmm. Great is too much. I¡¯m not such a person.¡± Ian¡¯s new plan was launched in success. ¡°No. Wasn¡¯t it the wisdom from you that made it possible for hunting down a Griffin? If you ask me, there is no one other than Gripper who can possibly make this egg hatch.¡± Gripper was feeling better and smiled, he picked up the Dimensional Magic Power Charger from the table. And at last, the thing Ian had been waiting for. ¡°Nice. I plan on trusting your skill and abilities when giving this dimensional charger to you¡­ it is a very precious thing. This is a thing that I crafted after spending a long period of time¡­ but since I already made it once, I¡¯m sure I can make another one way much easier.¡± Ian took the Dimensional charger from Gripper. And Ian¡¯s vision came up with a few system messages. [Handed the item ¡®Unknown Egg¡¯ to the Magical Alchemist Gripper.] [Received the item ¡®Dimensional Magic Power Charger¡¯ from Magical Alchemist Gripper.] [The condition for using the Dimensional Bead has been met.] [The item is unsealed.] [Magical Alchemist of the Dimension, ¡®Gripper¡¯ is very happy with the exchange.] [Affinity with Gripper has increased by 5.] Ian had a questioned expression. ¡®What, affinity with Gripper went further up?¡¯ The Affinity with an NPC was a stat that could not be confirmed by opening an information window. It was a fact that the basic affinity with NPC¡¯s was 50. and one has to calculate and remember the affinity¡ªthey got to know the level of affinity, and there was no other way to know the stats. But Ian remembered how high his affinity with Gripper was, and according to his memory¡­ ¡®Adding today¡¯s affinity, it is 105 points.¡¯ The affinity with Gripper was over 100 points. ¡®I thought that affinity was a structure that doesn¡¯t go above 100.¡¯ Whatever it was, Ian smiled brightly looking at Gripper and entered new information into his head. ¡°I¡¯ll use it well, Gripper. I¡¯ll be able to find the item of Wheel-Turning King¡ªthat will help us all.¡± Gripper gave a satisfied smile and replied, ¡°Huh, I¡¯m feeling great to be able to give you my stuff. It is a hard-to-make item, but it is a great item to use.¡± After a few moments of silence, Ian and Gripper were ready to proceed into the quest. Gripper closed the portal that he used to come and opened a new portal. This was a portal that could take them to the ancient Mauria Empire. ¡®Okay, should I go in now¡­?¡¯ Ian¡¯s lip corners were slightly raised. Now it was the time to see the Wheel-Turning King/ King of Rings! CH 270 Irahan was the first user to succeed at transforming into ¡®Noblesse¡¯. And that status has tremendous advantages and combat ability. It was a kind of power and ability that only an Asmodian could possess. In a normal scenario, an original ranking character will possess about 10 to 20% of the buff. Though it might not seem like much, but 10 to 20% is quite a useful amount. It wasn¡¯t possible for a level 200 user to possess the skills and abilities of a user in the 240 level. So, this was a tempting enough offer for Irahan to give up all the skills and ranks that he had worked hard for. Now that the skills were all replaced; he would be in the initial levels and the skills would be weaker, but they are bound to get stronger over time. Anyway, Irahan who got stronger this way wanted to have all the benefits for himself. ¡®How am I supposed to get a hidden piece that no other has?¡­ something that isn¡¯t easy for the other users to possess.¡¯ There was one, it was a quest that he had been postponing. This was the quest that Irahan had received from the Devil King Mahamu, right after he had turned into a Noblesse. The ¡®Wisdom¡¯s Birth¡¯. This wasn¡¯t a quest that could be deemed as very hard, and the rewards of the quest were also quite satisfying but there was one problem. As soon as the ¡®Wisdom¡¯s Birth¡¯ quest was completed, there would be a chance for the normal users to become a ¡®Noblesse¡¯. According to the information content given in the quest, as soon as Irahan completes the quest of Wisdom¡¯s Birth, the dimensional magic tower at the north end of the Central continent would be activated for a certain period of time. And it is said that all the users will get the quests that would allow them to be a ¡®Noblesse¡¯. Of course, the initial user who had completed the quest would be benefited the most, but this wasn¡¯t something that Irahan wanted. ¡®I will take away everything that I can take, and then I will finish the quest.¡¯ However, there was one part that Irahan hadn¡¯t thought through. That was, the person who became a Noblesse wasn¡¯t the user Irahan. [User Seikun has completed the quest ¡®Wisdom¡¯s Birth¡¯.] [The quest ¡®Wisdom¡¯s Birth¡¯ that is in possession will be extinguished.] [Failed to clear the quest, ¡®Wisdom¡¯s Birth¡¯.] [Affinity with the Devil King Mahamu reduced by 10.] Irahan¡¯s face had become pale with speculations that were running in his mind. ¡®What is this? Was there another Noblesse apart from me?¡¯ An additional system message came. This time, it was a common message that came up to all the users in Kailan along with Irahan. [The quest ¡®Wisdom¡¯s Birth¡¯ has been completed and the ¡®magic tower¡¯ that was hidden in Hippia valley of the Central Continent, has been activated.] [¡®Magic Tower¡¯ has been activated, and the selection of a new character race ¡®Asmodian¡¯ has been created.] [From this moment, till the end of the month, those who go to the ¡®Magic Tower¡¯ can receive a quest that will enable them to turn into a ¡®Noblesse¡¯.] The common system messages came one after the other. And as soon as Irahan had read it through, his face became more and more hard to read. ¡®Damn it! I was the one who was supposed to get the reward!¡¯ Because of not being able to complete the quest, he had fallen down 10 affinity points with the Devil King Mahamu, he lost the hundred thousand fame points that he could¡¯ve achieved through the quest, and he had also lost the powerful weapons that were dedicated to the Asmodians. After realizing all that he had lost, Irahan¡¯s lips started to shiver out of anger. ¡°Sh*t¡­!¡± There was no way he could grab onto a quest that had already left his hand, and all that he could do now was to clear out all the other quests that were related to ¡®Jinma¡¯. ¡®Hu, Does it make sense that I had a competitor? I¡¯ll hunt a little more and build up the tempo.¡¯ Irahan picked up his sword and stepped into the hunting ground. He believed that after reaching his target, he would need to recover from the damage he just got now by joining the Dimensional war. * * * ¡°I don¡¯t get it, why open the magic tower at this moment?¡± In the meeting room that was dedicated to the LB¡¯s planning team. LB was a company that invested heavily in game planning when compared with other gaming companies. LB corporation was a 20-story high building, and one floor was entirely made up of planning teams, with around a hundred planners for Kailan. In fact, it was because of this wide-scale planning that such a large scale virtual game could be well executed. ¡°Huu, Team leader Park. We haven¡¯t thoroughly thought this part through. A user gets the quest and deliberately clears it.¡± The new content called ¡®Devildom¡¯ appeared shortly after the event of ¡®Dimensional war¡¯ had started. In fact, the planning team of LB was thinking of adding a new race called ¡®Asmodians¡¯ through this Dimensional War. The process of adding the race would be in such a way that the users would have to clear the quests, and until Irahan turned into the first Jinma, everything seemed like it was going along with the flow. The team leader of the Balance Planning team, Park Yoon-sung, was muttering something by looking into the documents in front of him. ¡®If it was the original manner, by now, a lot of users should have already begun the quest to becoming an Asmodian. A new user who would have been chosen as the head of the Asmodian should have been there.¡¯ It couldn¡¯t be explained in just one or two words, but the ¡®Asmodians¡¯ had something that the human race did not, on the contrary, they weren¡¯t even a human race. It would be easy to say that it had both advantages and disadvantages to it. The LB¡¯s planning team wanted to create a scenario where the humans, Asmodians, and Centaurs that existed in the central continent would turn against each other for battle. In order for such a scenario to rise, the users playing as the Asmodians in the Dimensional War need to increase in rapid speed. When a new race is formed, the presence of the already existing race would be overwhelmingly high, and this will lead to low merit for the new race. In order for this balance theory to be true, this Dimensional war which had the monster wave needed unconditional victory to be tilted towards the Asmodians. Park, who was in charge of the Balance Planning Team, assumed that the minimum amount of race changed into Asmodians would be around 30%. At least 30% of the users had to turn into Asmodians. All these plans need to intertwine with the other, for the expected outcome made by the planning team to arise. However, a few unprecedented variables were mixed with the LB¡¯s planning team. ¡°That Irahan user, was he trying to monopolize the Noblesse quest all for himself? I should have predicted such a thing would occur.¡± Park Yoon-sung who was sitting in front of Kim Wee-han, mumbled to himself with a sigh of frustration. ¡°It wasn¡¯t that I didn¡¯t think of the other possibility.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Yes, despite the opposition from many users about the dimensional war, I had to raise the difficulty of the Monster Wave.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± ¡°but it wasn¡¯t just the users who were the unknown variables.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± All the team leaders of the planning departments gathered in the meeting room and waited for Mr. Kim Wee-Hwan to speak. ¡°Phew¡­ Is it wrong for me to say that there was always something wrong with the team? ¡®That guy¡¯ has become such a huge variable.¡± From the whole planning team members, nothing but sighs could be heard. ¡°No way, what did that guy do again, that I wasn¡¯t notified of!?¡± ¡°Huh¡­ can¡¯t he just not play the game?¡± No one mentioned the name, but everyone in the room knew who this user that was being referred to was¡­ Of course, his identity was none another than Ian. When it came to the planning team, the word ¡®Ian¡¯ had become like a taboo. The word ¡®Ian¡¯ was almost immediately associated with ¡®Night shift¡¯. Kim Wee-han was speaking. ¡°I was monitoring it until I entered the meeting room. But about thirty minutes ago it was confirmed that he moved to the ¡®Mauryan Empire¡¯.¡± And once again, came nothing but sighs. ¡°Huh¡­ Crazy¡­¡± ¡°What, did the development team finish developing the structure?¡± ¡°This isn¡¯t like the test area that was created the last time, right?¡± There voices of concern that were coming from here and there and Kim Weehan continued his words. ¡°Yes, it is fortunate that it isn¡¯t. The development team was carefully keeping an eye on ¡®him¡¯. Thanks to him that the team had to spend day and night on it.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Hoh¡­ such a burdensome work¡­.¡± Once again all the members in the room spoke, and Kim Weehan continued to speak. ¡°Anyway, from our assessment, it has been said that this dimensional war is once again in the favor of the human race. But our plans were different.¡± From the corner of the room, someone spoke with their hand raised up. ¡°How is that even possible? Don¡¯t say that ¡®the guy¡¯ was able to get Abyss Dragon before the dimensional war?¡± Kim Weehan laughed and nodded. ¡°That is right. At the pace that he is going¡­ the fastest would be around 23 days or at max it would be 28 days. He seems to be gathering the necessary things and heading towards the central continent.¡± ¡°¡­ Oh My God¡­¡± One word that came out from the mouth of one person. And that one word represented the feelings of all the members in the room. The monster wave was supposed to be an event that shouldn¡¯t have been blocked by a user. The human race was meant to be defeated in the dimensional war; and the original plan was to make the power between the humans and the Asmodians similar, just to create balance. There was silence for a while¡ªno other voices could be heard. ¡°Certainly, as Kim Daeri has said¡­ Irahan wasn¡¯t the only variable. And this time such a situation shouldn¡¯t be created.¡± And Kim Weehan answered. ¡°That is right.¡± ¡°What is it that we need to do now?¡± At those words, Kim Weehan looked around and opened his mouth. ¡°Well, there are two choices.¡± Everyone waited for the next words that were about to come, without a single word or noise. ¡°The first is to pray very diligently. For Ian to make a mistake during his quest. Or someone finds out the address of Ian and drops a beaker into his home. No matter what happens for 30 days, he should be on a death bed so that he wouldn¡¯t be able to complete the quest.¡± The content of the first one was a joke, but no one laughed nor did they retort. And then came the option that was deemed to be serious. ¡°And the second option is that we are all heading back to our stations right now¡­ and we will create new content that will naturally enhance the abilities of an Asmodian. And of course, the night shift¡­ is essential¡­¡± To every member of the planning team, that word felt like a death sentence. CH 271 Chapter 271: Ian and The Mauryan Empire (2) Tring! [You have entered the Fourth Island of the Southern Island (ÄÏÙ ²¿ÖÞ), Buju.] [You have entered into the premises of the Mauryan Empire.] [Since you don¡¯t possess the citizenship of the Mauryan Empire, your affinity with all the NPC¡¯s will be reduced by 20.] [When the affinity with an NPC is less than 50, you need to be careful since a single mistake can make the NPC turn hostile towards you.] Ian who had read the system messages felt a tinge of excitement that he hadn¡¯t felt in quite a long time. ¡®This is a town that holds lots of interesting content.¡¯ Till now Ian had studied about the places that he had visited. And naturally, Ian had no clue about the Mauryan Empire, the ancient Empire of India, or about the King Ashoka ¡®Wheel-turning king¡¯, ¡®The King of Rings¡¯ who was the third emperor of the Mauryan Empire. However, Ian had always read various ancient myths and narratives from his childhood, and there was one thing that Ian had wanted to do since he was a child. To Ian who had always had fun reading, the name Buju of the South Islands was very unfamiliar. ¡®Is it something related to the western world? It would be awesome if I get to meet Son Wogong.¡¯ The system messages that were pending popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes while he was looking around. [You are the first to discover the Southern Island Buju.] [Fame increased by 150,000 points.] [The basic affinity with the people of Buju of the Southern Island is increased by 5 points.] [From this point on, all the exp gained on the island of Buju would be doubled. (Time remaining 167: 59: 59)] [The chance of getting unique rewards from boss monsters will also be doubled for a week. (Time remaining 167: 59: 59)] [The Mauryan Empire had been found for the first time.] [Till the coming week, you can buy any goods in the Mauryan Empire stores for 70% off.] Ian was speechless because of the rewards he got from discovering the Mauryan Empire. Ian was really happy about the double exp gained and price discount rewards that he received. And Ian¡¯s happiness wouldn¡¯t stop there. ¡®Okay, Let¡¯s see. A unique item¡¯s drop rate from a boss monster is also increased, could there be something special about these boss monsters?¡¯ Most of the time the rewards for a first discovery were often a specific content that could be gained in a particular region only. And Ian didn¡¯t miss those parts. ¡®Well, then I¡¯ll have to go through the whole area and look into everything?¡¯ At that time, Ian saw a line of system messages that were telling him what he was supposed to do. Tring! [Automatic Quest has been activated.] [The quest ¡®Citizenship of the Mauryan Empire¡¯ has been activated.] [Get the citizenship of the Mauryan Empire in the next 12 hours.] [You can acquire the citizenship of the empire by hunting ¡®Kartovie¡¯ in the ¡®Mathura¡¯ field and earn ¡®wool x 20¡¯, then place it on the King¡¯s altar.] [Time remaining ¨C (11:59:59)] Ian who wanted to find a dungeon to hunt soon looked at the system messages which poked his appetite. ¡®Oh, so acquiring citizenship is the first priority in such drastic situations?¡¯ But there was one problem. ¡®But, where am I suppose to find the Mathura field?¡¯ Ian looked at the vast plains to see every detail of it. But there was no clue as to where he was supposed to go. And Kaka who had been looking at this pathetic sight of a clueless Ian, spoke from behind. ¡°ChiChi, master. Have you forgotten something?¡± Ian had a puzzled expression because of Kaka¡¯s question. ¡°Hmm¡­? Forgotten?¡± ¡°Master you b*st*rd, where did you keep the map that I handed to you? If you use it, in a single glance you will be able to see all of the Southern Island.¡± Ian¡¯s face turned a little twisted and flushed red. ¡°Ah, Right¡­! That thing?¡± Ian immediately opened his inventory and took out the Wishful Treasure map, which Kaka had extracted from Ian¡¯s dream using his ability the Greedy Night Hag. ¡®Since Kaka has mentioned it, I¡¯m sure that the map should be around here¡­ somewhere..!¡¯ The Wishful Treasure map was an ancient map that was made out of parchment that looked like it would crumble at any moment. As soon as the map was opened, surprisingly a light came out from the center of the parchment. And this was a phenomenon that didn¡¯t happen when Ian had opened the map the other day. Woong- Wonng-! [The conditions to unseal the ¡®Wishful Treasure Map¡¯ has been fulfilled.] The white light that was being emitted from the parchment made a huge map in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. ¡®Uh¡­ I guess I was too detailed?¡¯ And at one corner of the map. A blue light was blinking at the outskirts of the Southern Island Buju. Ian¡¯s gaze instinctively moved towards that point, and at that same moment, a text appeared below. The Kings Altar ¨C * * * Being the leader was important, being at the King¡¯s altar was also important, but gaining the citizenship of the Mauryan Empire was much more important. The Empire of Mauryan was a place where it was hard to get around without gaining citizenship. ¡®Urgh, my sight is starting to get blurry.¡¯ Ian was riding on Halli and was moving quickly along the road that was being projected in front of him. All of his familiars except for Halli had been summoned back so they could hide their tracks except of Yankun. This was because he wanted to get as little attention as possible. ¡®Phew, it just looks like a village guard. ¡­ what level will it be, 300?¡¯ The guards that Ian saw were wearing a sloppy leather armor and were armed with a bamboo spear that looked like it would break right away. Ian was not expecting to see such poorly equipped guards. The guards were level 300, and they were watching Ian. ¡°Look Here, That guy¡­ he seems to be winning.¡± ¡°Right. I¡¯m looking at him too.¡± ¡°An unknown stranger? Should we search him?¡± ¡°Well, he hasn¡¯t done anything suspicious yet, so let¡¯s just watch.¡± ¡°Okay, as you say.¡± Ian overheard the conversation of the guards, and he felt a cold sweat on the back of his neck. ¡®Damn, What¡¯s with this bloody eerie neighborhood?¡¯ The field monsters outside the village were only level 250. so, Ian was winning over them without much difficulty. ¡®I don¡¯t know what a Kartovie is or what kind of monster it is, but I hope it¡¯s below level 250.¡¯ Even though Ian was using Halli¡¯s abilities at its maximum, it would still take Ian around three or four hours to reach his destination. At first, it crossed his mind to fly across the plain using Pin. Though Halii was very fast, it was still nothing compared to Pin¡¯s speed when it flies across the sky. But he couldn¡¯t do that, and he had a very clear reason for not doing so. Ian had recalled the conversation that he had with Kaka before he left. ¡°Master, you will be attacked, and you will fall to the ground if you use Pin to fly to the Mauryan Empire.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Why?¡± ¡°What do you mean by why? The archers of the Border tower in the Mauryan Empire will aim their arrows at Master and Pin.¡± ¡°What if I fly at a very high altitude?¡± ¡°Their archers are level 350 to 450, do not take them lightly master.¡± ¡°Their archers¡¯ level is that high?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Ian bent his head and told himself. ¡®Once I complete this quest, I shouldn¡¯t take any other quests from the guards inside the Empire. It would be game over for me if I run into the guards.¡¯ While Ian was riding with Halli, Kaka was climbing onto the shoulder of Ian. If it would have been some other situation, then Ian would have felt very annoyed, but since he was in an unknown territory with no prior information, he felt very grateful for having Kaka beside him. ¡°Aren¡¯t you worried about what kind of guy Kartovie is?¡± Kaka nodded his head. ¡°I am master. With master¡¯s current ability, you will be able to deal with it without much difficulty.¡± And after traveling for so long, Ian got to the destination of the ¡®Mathura¡¯ field. Ian who had just arrived at the field was looking around for monsters to hunt. ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± Ian made a questionable nasal sound at which Kaka asked. ¡°What is it master? Is there a problem?¡± Ian scratched the back of his neck and replied. ¡°Nothing like that, It isn¡¯t a problem¡­. I¡¯m supposed to do a quest, but I don¡¯t see any monsters.¡± Kaka¡ªwho had an incomprehensible expression¡ªanswered Ian. ¡°What? That¡¯s Kartovie over there. Master, are you feeling sick?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± After hearing Kaka¡¯s words, Ian turned his gaze towards the direction that Kaka was pointing at. Ian saw a very peaceful meadow, and sheep were grazing in that place. ¡°The sheep¡­¡± Ian was speaking to himself unknowingly, and he realized something, in a split second he was amazed. ¡°Kaka, don¡¯t tell me that the sheep are the Kartovie or whatever monster it is supposed to be.¡± Kaka nodded its head. ¡°Yes, master. Think about the quest again. The quest instructed us to collect fleece.¡± Ian had a silly expression. ¡®Well, that¡¯s right, but¡­¡¯ Ian felt a little embarrassed but slowly approached the sheep. And once he got close enough to get the information, he was able to identify the name and the level of the unidentified sheep. [Name: Kartovie / Level: 274 ] ¡°¡­.¡± Ian laughed. ¡®This one looks like a tutorial fight zone against a deer.¡¯ However, the level never lies. Once he saw the horrifying numbers of 274 beside the word level, Ian couldn¡¯t help but feel nervous, even if they were harmless herbivorous animals. ¡°Ly, Summon!¡± Starting with Ly, to Bbookbbook, Karceus, and Pin, he had summoned all his familiars and looked at Kaka to confirm his actions. ¡°Kaka, are you sure that we are to catch them?¡± Kaka nodded his head in annoyance. ¡°Ha, master, It is deceivable, you are wasting time. Just wing it quickly.¡± Ian answered back with a composed expression. ¡°Oh, Okay.¡± And Ian after replying to Kaka was ready to deal with the sheep. ¡°Ly, just take down one of them!¡± ¡°I get it, master.¡± Ian wanted to see what a Kartovie would do, so he asked for one. ¡®This quest seems so easy, there seems to be a trap somewhere.¡¯ Ian wasn¡¯t ready to relax until the end! But unlike his thoughts, Kartovie was indeed a truly inexperienced herbivore animal. Kwak- Kwaahkwak-! [Familiar Ly has done tremendous damage to ¡®Kartovie¡¯.] [¡®Kartovie¡¯ health is reduced by 456790.] [You have succeeded in defeating ¡®Kartovie¡¯.] [You have earned 189700 EXP points.] After the attack from Ly, the Kartovie transformed into a grey light. Ian rested his thoughts and took the Judgment of Spirit King into his hands. ¡®Well, at times there are quests that could be done easily.¡¯ All the Kartovie were at the level of 270, but their stats were all in early 200. Moreover, since they were herbivore natured animals, they didn¡¯t seem to possess any combat skills. Ian literally massacred the whole flock. ¡®Hey, the exp they give is so small. Even level 100 monsters can give more exp than this.¡¯ Ian murmured to himself and continued to slaughter everything that came into his sight as if he was relieving his stress. But after clearing out all the sheep, Ian saw a problem. ¡°Wait a moment¡­¡± Ian checked his inventory right away. His inventory was filled with wool, but Ian couldn¡¯t find the ¡®quality wool¡¯ in particular. It was the one he specifically needed to complete the quest. ¡°Ahhh! That is why! Quests like these never go smoothly!!¡± Ian was down in frustration. Then again, Ian still hunted the sheep like a crazed person. CH 272 Chapter 272: Ian and the Mauryan Empire (3) You have acquired the item ¡®quality wool¡¯.] [Obtained the item needed for the quest ¡®Acquire the Citizenship for the Mauryan Empire.¡¯] [You have met all the conditions required for completing the quest.] [Present the wool at the ¡®King¡¯s altar¡¯ and earn the citizenship of the Mauryan Empire.] Watching the system messages that were coming, Ian felt a huge burden lifted off his chest. ¡°Phew, did I collect it at last¡­?¡± Ian had spent nearly 3 hours collecting over 20 fleece. The cause probably was that the probability of the right fleece being dropped was very rare. Moreover, he was in a crisis because of the very fragile situation that he was in. Being a herbivore it had stats that were much lower when compared to its level, but if it was dealt with wrongly, due to the high level it had, any damage caused by it would lead to more than 100,000 damage. Ian immediately pulled out the map from his inventory when he suddenly remembered about the second leg of the quest that he had to do. ¡°Where are we going now?¡± Ian opened his eyes wide and looked at the map. Since the purpose of the map was to go to Cintamani, the position marked with the blue light was the location. Behind Ian, was Kaka who slightly caught a glimpse of the map. ¡°Here it is, Master.¡± Ian realized something when he looked at the location Kaka had pointed out. ¡°Oh, oh¡­.¡± The place where Kaka pointed at was ¡®The altar of the King¡¯ which was written in small letters, and it wasn¡¯t much farther from the location of Ian. However, Ian still thought that the quest was related to humans. ¡®It¡¯s not like I lack any conscience to follow the map to the altar.¡¯ Ian started to move quickly. As it was indicated on the map, the destination could be reached by crossing the ridge on the east. * * * The place where Ian and his party had arrived to was a large city that was soaring with stone high buildings. ¡®This neighborhood, it smells dangerous¡­? ¡® It was terrifying from the start, probably because of the level of the guards who were standing in front of the city gates where Ian was supposed to enter¡­. They were of level 370. ¡®What is this, why is this¡­ I¡¯m scared.¡¯ Ian slowly closed the distance between the guards without losing his calm. If the guards chose to attack, then Ian would quickly go back towards Halli. There were two level 370 guards, and in case Ian had to deal with them, he would probably die before reinforcements came to help him. As Ian was approaching, the guards looked at Ian like they wanted to kill him. And one of the guard came from the middle¡ªthe most outrageously strong looking one¡ªapproached Ian. He was a ¡®security chief¡¯ with a level that was over 400. ¡°Who are you? You don¡¯t seem like a citizen of the empire.¡± Ian took a deep breath and opened his mouth to speak when the head of security was done speaking. ¡°Sir, the sword that you hold seems like a very old one¡­ Can I give you a sword that I have?¡± The eyes of the guards twitched a little with what they heard ¡°Hm¡­? A sword that you possess¡­?¡± Ian nodded quickly and picked one of the weapons from his inventory. It was a hero-class weapon with a tremendously high level which he had obtained during the mage hunting event. ¡®Such an item should be used for such situations.¡¯ When Ian was hunting around zone 50 to 70, a level 350 limited equipment was dropped. Such an item was useless to Ian. And this wasn¡¯t an item that could be worn¡ªout of embarrassment due to his level¡ªnor could it be sold. The highest level of a Kailan user was 205, and that was Ian¡¯s level. And there was no other user who could buy equipment that would exceed the level-limit of 300. And it felt too cheap to sell it at a village shop, so he left the hero class equipment in his inventory. Ian was using it now. ¡°Oh¡­ this is brilliant¡­! This is definitely a special grade sword¡­!¡± The guard who looked at the sword in Ian¡¯s hand started to laugh. His smile had crept its way to his ear. And a system message that Ian had been waiting for came up. Tring! [Kapila¡¯s Chief of Security, ¡®Sikh¡¯ is very happy.] [The affinity with Kapila¡¯s Chief of Security ¡®Sikh¡¯ increased by 50.] Ian made a silly face. ¡®What, with just one object the affinity reached up to 50, what kind of message is this? Is this a low-grade NPC?¡¯ Ian was a bit flustered, but he thought that it was a good thing since the guard was laughing. ¡°How is it, sir? Does it please you¡­?¡± The Chief ¡®Sikh¡¯ nodded his head with a glad expression. ¡°With no doubt, it very much pleases me. By the way, you would really give me such a precious thing?¡± Ian nodded his head and answered. ¡°Yes, surely sir. Please accept this as a form of a gift.¡± ¡°Thank¡­ Thank you¡­! Oh my, Look at my manners. Come inside. Why am I making such a person stand outside?.¡± Ian smiled widely after seeing what had just happened. ¡®It seems good¡­? I should take this opportunity and gather some information about the castle.¡¯ The Chief guided Ian inside of the castle, and Ian continued to follow him slowly. * * * ¡°I mean¡­ did you come all the way to our Mauryan Empire to get the citizenship through finding the Altar of the King?¡± Ian nodded his head in response to Sikh¡¯s question. ¡°That is right. I have come to this great Mauryan Empire to get the citizenship.¡± Once Ian¡¯s tongue felt comfortable, he naturally played along with the situation. And beside him were Kaka and Yanikun who were eagerly looking at him. Both of them were talking in a low voice so that the other guards couldn¡¯t hear them. ¡°Kun, our master is really good at speaking.¡± ¡°I feel the same Kaka.¡± ¡°Kun, it feels great that the master that I¡¯ve stayed with for so long isn¡¯t some kind of a dumbo.¡± ¡°By the way, Kaka.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t call me Kun.¡± ¡°Why? Kun sounds so cute.¡± Yankun wore a dark expression. ¡°I don¡¯t want to be cute.¡± ¡°Even then, I like Kun. Don¡¯t you dare reject the nickname I gave you.¡± ¡°I refuse¡­¡± ¡°I refuse, that you refuse.¡± ¡°¡­¡± On the other hand, Ian succeeded in gathering all the information from the Chief of Security while his two familiars were talking. ¡®All the weapons and miscellaneous goods were all gathered to the front side, while the altar is on the northern plaza?¡¯ Ian had gathered some information from the Chief, like the location of various shops and the major buildings around the castle premises. However, the most important information he had obtained was about the ¡°Wheel-Turning King/ King of Rings.¡± According to what the Chief of Security ¡®Sikh¡¯ had said, to meet the king, one must pass through various tests. ¡®King of Iron, King of East, King of Treasure, King of Silver, King of Gold¡­ They are all very strong names. Can I really pass all of their tests?¡¯ To be specific, according to the explanation given by the security chief, a person must go through these tests in order for that person to enter the gates. In all honesty, that person should be worried about these things. It was an unofficial place where the guards had a level of over 370. ¡®Let¡¯s get the citizenship first, I¡¯ll think about the other things later.¡¯ Ian stepped towards the King¡¯s altar, after getting permission from Sikh, who was still smiling from the sword he had received. The Altar of the King was on the second tallest stone building in the city. * * * ¡°Wow, there isn¡¯t much fuss now huh?¡± Fiolan nodded and agreed to what Herz had said. ¡°Yes. Since the opening of the magic tower, many users have gone there to get their personal quests.¡± ¡°How many from our guild? ¡°There isn¡¯t a single person from our guild who has gone there yet.¡± Herz made a sigh of relief from Fiolan¡¯s answer. ¡°Phew, at this time with the lack of combat power, if the members would have gone to get quests, it would have been a major blow¡­ I¡¯m really glad.¡± Fiolan nodded. ¡°Yes, It is really great. This is a system that disconnects the user from the guild at the moment of conversion¡­ there seem to be users from the top guilds who are going for the conversion.¡± ¡°I see.¡± However, Fiolan¡¯s expression wasn¡¯t that bright. ¡°That could be true, but we aren¡¯t doing that great in the rankings of the guilds. And most of the members could opt for a change into the Asmodian class.¡± Herz wore a wary smile. ¡°Well, yeah. The bonus for the Asmodians is very attractive.¡± ¡°It can¡¯t be true. But it feels like the wave of monsters has gotten harder for a purpose¡­.¡± Fiolan shook her head and Herz smiled. ¡°Well, this would probably be the intention of the developer, what can we do.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I just felt that, after the previous wave, it seems like the difficulty to clear waves has gotten stronger¡­ I think the developers don¡¯t want the humans to win this dimensional war.¡± ¡°Ha¡­?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just what I feel.¡± Fiolan nodded after thinking about it. ¡°That could be the case. From the developers point of view, a new character needs to have enough merit.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. A newly created character, it is going to be a problem if they aren¡¯t strong.¡± Herz and Fiolan were the gamers who were quite wary of the games, hence they could read the flow of the game. And the rough guesses of those two were exactly correct. Herz, who had been in deep thought for a while opened his mouth. ¡°Now, in the next situation¡­ the big picture will be about the users who will change to the Asmodian class during the monster wave.¡± ¡°Ugh¡­ just thinking about it is terrifying already.¡± Herz glanced at Fiolan and looked up after hearing what she said. ¡°Why? I think that the users will be easy to deal with, rather than their ranked human players version.¡± ¡°Does that seem right¡­?¡± ¡°Yes, all the rankers are in the guild¡­ users who convert should not be able to keep the ranking of level 170.¡± ¡°That is also right.¡± And Herz continued to speak. ¡°And I¡¯ve read through the quests that were posted to the online community. The quest for transformation are the ones that could be done quickly.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Herz nodded. ¡°Yeah. So, I think that there won¡¯t be any fights against these users for the coming week or so.¡± ¡°Yes¡­ If it is like that, then I¡¯m glad. It would have been a huge variable if the users who have turned into Asmodians would take the side of the monsters.¡± ¡°I agree on that part.¡± But there were a few other variables that neither of them predicted. First of all, many high ranking players have already proceeded with the race conversion quests. Secondly, there were a lot of users who had already become Asmodians long ago. The dimensional war seemed to have stabilized as a whole. It was probably because of the users who participated in the Toboldae, and also the users that converted into Asmodians. But on the 10th day, the dimensional war began to fall into chaos once again. CH 273 Chapter 273: Antiques of the Mauryan Empire (1) Ian, who managed to arrive at the Altar of the King, was able to accomplish his task much easier than he thought. He went to the location that the Chief of Secretary Sikh had given him and presented the 20 fleece, and a series of system message had come up. Tring- [Offering ¡®quality wool¡¯ items at the Altar of the King.] [You have completed the quest for The Citizenship of the Empire of Maurya.] [You have obtained the ¡®Citizenship of the Empire of Maurya¡¯.] [Earned fame of 10,000.] An old man with a long white beard that came down till his waist¡ªslowly approached him. The old man seemed to be the caretaker of the Altar, he came close to Ian and spoke. ¡°I guess you are Ian¡­¡± ¡°Yes, that is right.¡± ¡°Congratulations on becoming the citizen of our Maurya Empire. It is usually not possible to get as much quality wool in this short time¡­ you have really worked hard¡­¡± At these words from the old man, Ian began to mutter under his breath. ¡®It was laborious work. Especially when the drop rate of this fleece was scarce¡­¡¯ But of course, Ian spoke the complete opposite. ¡°Not at all, old man. It is an honor to be a Citizen of the Empire of Maurya.¡± ¡°Haha¡­ it truly is a glorious feeling¡­ being a citizen of the empire of Maurya.¡± After that, Ian who was able to share a few good words with the old man had received an old wooden identity card. Ian, who had received it had a bit of frowned expression on his face. ¡®This is¡­ This looks somewhat similar to the one that I got in Tobolldae¡­?¡¯ Just a few days ago, Ian had received a humiliating status card, a D- ranked soldier. ¡®Is this also specified with a D?¡¯ But the situation here is very different when compared to that of Toboldae. At that time, Ian was involved in the Dimensional war of Toboldae, in the northern continent to fight the monsters. And Ian had more self-esteem than to accept that rank. But in the Empire of Maurya, Ian was a perfect stranger. And even if it is first class, that user would have been a commoner, and this situation wouldn¡¯t be so bad. Ian had opened the information regarding the wooden item he had received from the old man. ¡ª ¨C Maurya Empire Citizenship ¨C Category: General Classification: Goods Citizen Rank: Sudra Rank: D This is proof that you are a citizen for the Empire of Maurya. If you have this citizen card, you can maintain the basic affinity with the people of the Empire of Maurya. This item belongs to the user ¡®Ian¡¯. This cannot be transferred or sold to other users, and won¡¯t drop even if the user dies. ¡ª Ian carefully read the contents of the identity card by lifting it up. ¡®Umm¡­? What is this? The ranking is a bit unique in here.¡¯ Ian moved his gaze towards the part of ¡®citizen rank¡¯ which had ¡°Sudra¡±, and his eyes opened wide. ¡®Huh¡­ this is a word that I have heard quite a lot about¡­¡¯ Though the game felt strangely uncomfortable, Ian thought that it was better to be a commoner than a soldier, and he put the identity card in his inventory. ¡®Now¡­ What is the gate for the test¡­? Should I go there?¡¯ Ian was relaying the information he had received from the Chief of Security in his head and left the Altar of the King. As Ian came out of the stone building, Kaka who had been waiting for him in the front called for Ian. ¡°Master.¡± ¡°You have waited for so long.¡± Kaka was sitting on the rocks which were floating in the air. ¡°No, It wasn¡¯t that long¡­ but, there is something that I¡¯m curious about.¡± ¡°What?¡± Kaka fluttered his small wings and flew to the front of Ian and asked in a low voice. ¡°Did you succeed in receiving the identity of the Maurya Empire?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°Yes, I was successful.¡± Kaka asked once again. ¡°By any chance, did you get any rank attached to it?¡± ¡°Umm¡­ this was the first time I saw a rank of that sort.¡± ¡°Well, originally the ranks in the Empire of Maurya are a bit unusual, master.¡± ¡°What was it, was it Sudra¡­? I don¡¯t know much about it, but it doesn¡¯t seem like a good thing.¡± And as soon as Kaka heard the rank, he couldn¡¯t help but burst into laughter. ¡°Phuagh¡­! Puahah¡­! Keukkk¡­!!¡± Ian had an uneasy expression at this sight. ¡°Yah! What is it? Is something wrong? Why are you doing that?¡± Something felt very unkind and ominous! Kaka had laughed alone for quite sometime and spoke to Ian. ¡°Master, do you know who a Sudra is?¡± Ian frowned on his question. ¡°You punk, you seem to be gaining a lot of confidence lately? You are at a level where you are looking down on your master, you slave?¡± Once Ian was done, Kaka began to smile and then it turned into laughter once again. Kaka laughed and laughed for a while, and was barely able to speak. ¡°Keuh! Master, now you have to be friends with me. Keuh!!¡± ¡®Sudra¡¯, it was a word that was used to refer to the lowest class of people. It would be easy to say, that the ¡®Sudra¡¯ of the Maurya Empire could be considered as slaves. And in the Maurya Empire, there were people who didn¡¯t belong to any caste and were considered as ¡®untouchables¡¯, but this wasn¡¯t that great either. So, in a sense, Kaka¡¯s words weren¡¯t much wrong. Ian, who felt disgusted for not knowing what a Sudra meant, looked at Kaka and mumbled to himself. ¡®Should I¡­ check it on the internet¡­?¡¯ And the time for Ian to log out had come. And he thought that this would be a great opportunity to search about this before re-connecting into the game. * * * ¡®Ahh¡­ I¡¯m a slave! What the hell¡­¡¯ Ian was angry. ¡®Does it make sense for a game that is based on money to create such ranks?¡¯ However, there wasn¡¯t much that Ian could do even if he was angry. This was a goddamn neighborhood with a guard who had a level over 350. ¡®Huh, but¡­ need to see if this quest will be able to change the ranking system.¡¯ Indeed, it would have been nice if the caste system was properly implemented, but the rise of status was the most impossible part. However, this was just a scenario in the game, and only the name of the class was similar to the caste system. It would be easy to process if it was considered as a form of identity presented to Ian, a user rank that was very commonly used in the Empire of Maurya. Depending on the status, and the affinity with the NPC¡¯s it would change, and the quality of the quests will also start to change. And this is basic, depending on how a user plays, it will impact on how great the chance he will get to ascend. ¡°Yah! Kaka. Stop laughing.¡± Ian threatened Kaka who was still laughing. ¡°If you continue being like this, I won¡¯t give you food. I won¡¯t give you meatballs anymore.¡± However, Kaka responded with confidence. ¡°I¡¯m not Bbookbbook, master. I¡¯m not scared, not even the slightest.¡± At those words, Bbookbbook went stiff. ¡°Bbook, don¡¯t ignore the meatballs bbook!¡± ¡°¡­¡± Even though Bbookbbok had evolved, it¡¯s love for meatballs hadn¡¯t decreased, not even a bit. And Ian, who was walking on the street, had managed to get downtown towards the ¡®Kapila Castle¡¯, a huge city in the Empire of Maurya. The castle of Kapila was on the same scale as the empire of Luspel, this wasn¡¯t even a tiny bit smaller when compared. Ian, who was just walking around by observing his surroundings, suddenly had a different line of thought. ¡®By the way, how many people does the Kailan have in the development? These hidden areas are so massive and meticulously designed, they have a wide view of the world.¡¯ Like Ian had thought, there was no place that could be hidden from the eyes of Kailan. Ian was still in admiration. ¡®This will be the first time for me to play a specific gaming content for such a long time. This is getting very interesting.¡¯ If the LB¡¯s planning team would have heard Ian¡¯s thoughts, they would have fallen down into a slump. Ian was needed to go straight towards the Gate of Test to proceed with the quest, but he had decided to take a little detour and look at the town. ¡®Quests are very important, but I need to look at these places once. Who knows what hidden items reside in these places.¡¯ And in the downtown that Ian had entered, there was a small antique store right at the beginning. * * * Ian didn¡¯t like the word ¡®Temple¡¯ that much. But it didn¡¯t mean that he dislikes the nice items that it held. Having a powerful equipment played a vital part in being a top-ranked player, and Ian was very concerned with that part. But, the word ¡®Temple¡¯ that Ian disliked meant, ¡®No gaming skills, just have good items¡¯. In that sense, Ian had never considered himself as a Temple user. Rather, Ian thought that he was at a level where the item was not measurable compared to his skills. ¡®The Judgement of the Spirit King was a great destruction weapon. Hmm, but even then¡­¡¯ Ian and his endless amount of confidence! And the reason that Ian had moved to the other streets was because he wanted to get a good item. Ian looked at the antique shops with attentive eyes. ¡®Hmm¡­ just a thing would be nice¡­¡¯ Inside Kailan, the antique shops were called as, ¡®Luxury Gambling stores¡¯. Probably because the information about the item buying cost will be confidential, and the item would be sold at a price that is 10 times higher than those of the general stores. But the good thing about an antique shop is that the users can look up the information and judge the items within. In a gambling store, the payment of the items will be fixed in a random manner, and the shop will be buying them from users¡­ However, in an antique shop, they look into the appearance of the item and then purchase it. At least a hundred thousand gold was needed to buy a ¡®Rusty iron sword¡¯ or an ¡®Old leather armor¡¯. ¡®Hmm¡­ this is the first for me to come to such a town, there should be a lot of amazing and interesting things in here, right? It could be a bit expensive but¡­¡¯ To be honest, the price of the goods didn¡¯t matter. And these days, money wasn¡¯t a problem for Ian, plus he had a lot of resources. On top of that, due to being the first to discover the Empire of Maurya, Ian could enjoy a swooping 30% discount from all the stores in the Empire. As he was looking at the items in the antique store, Ian¡¯s eyes began to shine. And just behind Ian, was a creature that was looking at these items with excitement that was thrice more than Ian¡¯s. CH 274 Chapter 274: Antiques of the Mauryan Empire (2) ¡°Welcome to my shop. What kind of items are you looking for?¡± It was made of three floors and looked like a very popular antique shop. But since the only customer in there was Ian, the owner of the shop directly approached Ian with interest. A middle-aged man, with half-white hair, naturally approached Ian, and Ian scratched the back of his neck while answering. ¡°Oh, I didn¡¯t come in here with a specific thing in mind, I just came in because I¡¯m interested in antiques.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± To please the NPC and gather affinity, lie came out of Ian¡¯s mouth. ¡°I was walking through the city, and I found this wonderful looking store, so I came inside to look.¡± This wasn¡¯t a complete lie. This particular antique shop that Ian had entered had a far more luxurious appearance, compared to the other shops he had seen. ¡®It is basically a lie, a compelling lie with a bit of truth in it.¡¯ And due to the compliments from Ian, the owner of the shop had a smile plastered onto his face. ¡°Keuh, Looks like my young friend here knows a thing or two. I made this place after traveling for 450 years around the South Islands and collected all the various rare things that it had. There is no other antique shop in the world that is as great as this one.¡± The man had extended his hand towards Ian, and Ian grabbed his hand. While grabbing the hand, Ian had a bit of flustered look on his face. ¡®What 450 years? Then he must have lived for more than 450 years, this isn¡¯t a human race?¡¯ Ian looked at the man in front of him, and he looked like an ordinary middle-aged man. And the man had opened his mouth. ¡°I¡¯ll introduce myself again. I am the owner of this store ¡®Reno Barns¡¯.¡± ¡°I am a traveler, venturing towards the Southern Island of Buju, Ian.¡± Ian looked at the eyes of the man, and in the same moment system messages started to appear. Tring- [Affinity with ¡®Reno Barns¡¯¡ªthe owner of the shop in Kapila Castle, has risen by 10 points.] [The probability of buying a high-grade item when buying has also increased by 1.5%.] Ian¡¯s lip corners went up. ¡®Yep, it is always necessary to complement the NPC¡¯s. However, I wonder how the 1.5% will be like¡­?¡¯ Ian thought that he should buy a lot of items from the antique store. As a result of using oversight, there were a few expensive items that cost over millions of gold. But for Ian who hadn¡¯t spent a lot of money in a long time, this didn¡¯t seem like a very expensive price. ¡®If I am going to gamble at this antique store, then I should try to get the right thing.¡¯ Ian asked the owner of the shop. ¡°Mr. Reno Barns. By any chance is there anything that you could recommend to me?¡± At this question, Reno Barns nodded his head and answered. ¡°Firstly, tell me what kind of a thing are you looking for.¡± After a minute of thinking, Ian answered. ¡°There isn¡¯t anything specific that I¡¯m looking for. As I told you, I¡¯m just interested in antiques. I just want to buy some cool stuff, whatever they are.¡± Just like he had told Reno Barns, Ian didn¡¯t have anything specific. He just went into the antique shop to buy something because he could afford them. ¡®Some time ago, some guy came and delivered a few hidden class items to the antique store.¡¯ That was really a big hit case of gambling, and gambling was meant to be like that, which is fun. And Ian¡¯s eyes were shining. ¡°HuHu,¡­ well¡­ something that will please your heart. Many travelers come to my shop and look for strong and powerful weapons¡­ But you seem different.¡± And a system message came on. [Affinity with the Reno Barns, the owner of the antique shop in Kapila Castle has risen by 10 points.] And the words from Reno Barns followed. ¡°Come along, I will show the third floor specifically for you.¡± At those words, Ian¡¯s eyes went wide. ¡®3rd floor¡­? Is he going to open an area that no one can enter?¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes started to look like a kid¡¯s eyes. A hidden area in a high-level place that no one has ever been to. A special area inside an antique shop. This was something that wasn¡¯t expected. Creak- creak- As Reno Barns began to move, the wooden staircase began to creak. And Ian was slowly following him. ¡®What could be there? Among the current equipments on me, the shoes have the least abilities¡­ I hope the gamble is good.¡¯ While he was walking, suddenly Ian felt lonely. And the cause for that loneliness was Kaka. Ian hadn¡¯t noticed that Kaka who is always behind him, didn¡¯t follow him. ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± Ian stepped down the stairs and looked around, he had found Kaka who was very engulfed into something at the corner of the first floor. ¡°Yah! Kaka. Come up, quickly.¡± Kaka who was intently watching something looked up at Ian and nodded. ¡°Okay, Master.¡± Kaka immediately flew towards Ian. And in Kaka¡¯s hand was a book that looked very old. Ian tried to get a good look at the book and asked Kaka. ¡°What is that? Why did you bring it along with you?¡± Kaka told Ian. ¡°Master, buy this.¡± Ian who wasn¡¯t able to understand what Kaka meant, asked me again. ¡°And what is that?¡± Kaka shrugged his shoulders and replied. ¡°You don¡¯t get it, Master. You have come to this antique store to buy something, but do you have any idea on what to get?¡± Ian could do nothing but scratch the back of his neck. ¡°Is¡­ is that so?¡± But Ian wasn¡¯t a fool. It wasn¡¯t that he didn¡¯t think about this through. It was because he thought that Kaka who always showed unrivaled abilities in the gaming sphere might have an ability to recognize rare objects in an antique store. ¡°Anyway buy this, Master.¡± ¡°Uh hmmm¡­¡± Still, Ian thought that if Kaka was so interested in an object, there could be something special about it. And at once Ian checked the information. [Name: Incomprehensible Ancient Records / Classification: Miscellaneous / Rank: ??? / Price: 875000 gold.] Ian confirmed the price more than the other stats, in all honesty, he was a bit worried about how pricey the antique object was labeled. ¡®This isn¡¯t even a piece of equipment, and almost a million gold just for a piece of old paper?¡¯ 87 million gold wasn¡¯t a big price for Ian, but he wasn¡¯t sure if the paper was worth such a high price. But Ian wanted to believe Kaka¡¯s decision and decided to gamble for once. ¡°Kay, I get it. Hold onto it for now. Let¡¯s buy all the things at once.¡± Kaka nodded with a bright expression. ¡°Thank you so much, Master.¡± Kaka landed on the shoulders of Ian, and Ian began to move up the stairs along with Reno Barns. Reno Barns also stopped moving and looked at the two with interesting expression when they were discussing over the object. And Reno Barns who started to walk again, looked back to see if it was something that he was thinking about. His gaze fell on the shoulder of Ian where it was. ¡°Hmm¡­? By the way, the guy who keeps following you¡­ looks like a ¡®Karga Phantom¡¯.¡± At these words from Reno Barns, Ian¡¯s eyes shifted with nervousness. ¡®Hmm¡­? Did he discover Kaka¡¯s identity¡­?¡¯ It had been a few months since Ian had been with Kaka. But till now, not the users nor the NPC¡¯s were able to identify Kaka¡¯s identity. Instead, they were very far from identifying it, and most of them just thought of Kaka as one of Ian¡¯s familiar. But unlike the nervous Ian, Kaka had still held the same expression. Kaka opened his mouth. ¡°Oh right, the people who are selected can recognize my true identity.¡± Reno Barns started to climb the stairs with a slight smile on his face, but Ian was still puzzled with what had just happened in front of him. ¡®What are these two talking about?¡¯ Kaka who realized the worry in Ian¡¯s heart spoke short words of comfort. ¡°Don¡¯t worry too much, Master. You¡¯ll know soon.¡± Although he was curious about the ¡®selected ones¡¯ that Kaka had mentioned, it was much more important to enter the hidden floor of the antique store. * * * Kwang- Kwakwang-! On a large plateau, battles of large scale were taking place. There were powerful explosions that were happening here and there, due to this mountainous terrain which started to map out. The rocky terrain that had formed and the rock slides that were happening because of the combat skills could be considered as a grand scenario. However, it was a spectacular sight only from the viewer¡¯s point of view, and the users in the field were tasting death. This was taking place in the Northern Continent on the Plateau of Libellia. ¡°For now, retreat to the defensive combat style! This place is so difficult!¡± After Ian had disappeared, the battle of the Northern continent was in the hands of SooHee. And she was drenched in sweat with her equipment all tattered, but her eyes still held the will to fight. ¡®Phew, just a little more hard work, and we¡¯ll be able to protect Libellia Plateau today.¡¯ Two days after Ian had vacated his post. Tobolldae was forced to deliver the Surangka plains to the monster, because of their fiercest attacks. But the situation wasn¡¯t so bad, it was a strategic retreat so the users didn¡¯t feel deceived or let down. ¡®Ian definitely played a big role.¡¯ The Surangka plains was a bad mapping for the battle as it was a grassy plain with no obstacles for defense, in short, it was a bad place to deal with rambunctious Asmodians and monsters. On the other hand, the Libellia Plateau was a good place to effectively defend oneself from the opponent, if their strategy was well planned and executed. SooHee had a lot of experience in the battlefield along with Ian, and she used this knowledge to block out the monsters from the Northern region. ¡®But with this current situation¡­ I doubt if this will last longer than 5 days.¡¯ Since the Dimensional war had begun, they were on the verge to stop the third wave. The level of difficulty that was being felt from the beginning was very different. ¡®Phew¡­ once they reach this point, it will be just a matter of time before they reach the empire.¡¯ The Libellia Plateau was the immediate place of retreat from the original map of Surangka, there were still three more maps remaining on the borders of the Empire. But, the remaining maps weren¡¯t suitable terrains for blocking the attacks that came from the rampaging monsters. They weren¡¯t wide enough areas to battle. SooHee thought that once the monsters managed to pierce into the Libellia Plateau it would be a matter of a day or two before they reach the empire borders. ¡®Ian needs to come back before that happens¡­¡¯ Ian had said that he would definitely come back, and the ranker of the Northern Continent believed those words. The Dimension war had to end with the victory on the side of the Toboldae union. If they couldn¡¯t manage to do so, the whole Northern Territories were bound to disappear. CH 275 Chapter 275: Antiques of the Mauryan Empire (3) ¡°Woow¡­!¡± Said Ian who climbed his way to the third floor of the antique store along with Reno Barns. The reaction from Ian was definitely because of the objects that were on display on the third floor. And then, a new system message emerged in front of Ian. Tring- [You have entered the antique store of the Kapila castle.] [You have succeeded in entering the hidden area.] [Your fame has increased by 3500.] It was a hidden area, but it wasn¡¯t so hard to enter it and there was no need for fame to be given for such a thing. ¡®What, that is as less as a teardrop.¡¯ Ian grumbled to himself, he didn¡¯t care much about the fame points. The items that were in front of his eyes seemed much more important than the system messages. Gulp- But the messages that followed made Ian a bit stiff. [You cannot purchase more than three items at a single time in the Artifact store.] [Once you have purchased the items, until a certain period you will not be able to enter the Artifact store.] Ian held the back of his neck and asked Reno Barns. ¡°Mr. Reno Barns, how many things can I buy at once?¡± Reno Barns nodded his head and answered. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter till the 2nd floor. But on the top floor, you cant buy more than three items at a time.¡± ¡°Even if I have the money to buy?¡± ¡°Even then. That is the rule that has been going since the beginning.¡± ¡°Damn¡­¡± Ian swallowed his dry saliva and began to look at things very intently one after the other. He became more cautious and calculated after he found out that he could only buy three items at a time. ¡®The weapons look awesome¡­ one more than the other. As if that wasn¡¯t enough, the equipments here are all ranked as unique or legendary.¡¯ Kailan, unlike any other game, always gave a higher graded or high-end equipment. However, one couldn¡¯t be sure is the equipment would be good by only looking at the appearance of the item. If the equipment rose above the legendary grade, there wouldn¡¯t be much difference in the abilities. Moreover, a weapon couldn¡¯t be considered good just by basing the grade of the equipment. No matter how good a legendary equipment it is, if the unique ability of that weapon was not suitable for the user, it couldn¡¯t be considered as a good equipment. ¡®I haven¡¯t seen anything bad on a legendary equipment yet.¡¯ Among the unique abilities that can be used by the weapons, the categorized options that are most likely to be chosen are; the additional attacks over the regular attacks. If we go into a little more details, the options or categories that one user would choose are solely based on the occupation that they select. For example, in the case of a warlock or a mage that wholly deals with magic damage, the additional attacks that would probably be equipped are physical attacks. On the other hand, in the case of other classes that deals with physical attacks, their preferred additional attack would be a magical attack. This option was created as a complimentary for the skill that a class lacked. To give another simple example, For all the warrior classes where their skill attacks usually cause a lot of physical damage, it often becomes difficult for them to deal with the monsters who have a high physical defense or a weak magic defense. However, if there was an option to inflict magic damage with the weapon having a probability of n%, then it would be an effective solution to deal with the above-mentioned enemies. This is the case of Ian¡¯s weapon Judgement of the Spirit King which has the unique ability, ¡®Lightning of Judgement.¡¯ The Lightning of Judgement is an additional attack ability that inflicts damage proportional to the spirit power, which can be also classified as magical damage. From Ian¡¯s standpoint, the unique ability attack of the Judgement of Spirit King is mainly focused on physical attack. Surely, the wide-area attack of Karceus¡¯s Breath was a magic attack, but it had a major drawback that its cooldown time was very long. And Ian was looking very carefully at the equipments, hoping that something would fit his requirements. Kaka, who was on the shoulder of Ian, nagged at him each time he had picked up an item. ¡°Master, this isn¡¯t so great.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°The design is similar to the one used by the ancient cavalrymen in a 1000-year-old war. It has good durability and defense, but it will be very heavy. So, not a good option.¡± ¡°Then, how about this?¡± ¡°Umm¡­ I feel like I¡¯ve seen this somewhere¡­ this looks like the one that the High Elves like, the St. Rania longbow. This is the best thing that I¡¯ve seen so far in here.¡± ¡°Is it a ¡®keep¡¯, for now?¡± ¡°But master, this isn¡¯t something that you need so desperately.¡± ¡°That is right¡­¡± ¡°Let¡¯s quickly look at the other things.¡± ¡°Okie!¡± From one side, Reno Barns was intently watching the interesting conversation between the two strangers and was trying to figure out who was the master and who was the slave. Reno Barns spoke to Ian. ¡°I¡¯ll be heading downstairs. You¡¯ll have to pick something in an hour.¡± Ian didn¡¯t even bother to look at Reno Barns, he just replied with a strong voice. ¡°I get it, Mr. Reno Barns!¡± As soon as Reno Barns went down, Ian and Kaka began to look for the equipment more aggressively. The third floor of the antique store was named as ¡®The Artifact Store¡¯, and the size of this floor was a little different when compared to the other two floors. It was a definite thing that all the items in the display had some kind of a story attached to them. Ian thought that this was like the same situation as when he had found Kaka in the slave market. ¡®If I would¡¯ve just picked some random thing there, I wouldn¡¯t have received a huge jackpot like Kaka.¡¯ From Ian¡¯s point of view, Kaka was a huge jackpot. Although the combat abilities were almost zero, Kaka¡¯s knowledge has always been helpful to avoid unprecedented shortcomings several times. The information about the content of the game played a very crucial role. Especially, since there were more users like Ian in the top class. And it was always natural for Ian to research about the content most of the time. ¡°This is a keep. Let¡¯s move to the next one¡­¡± Kaka had around 70% of the information about the items that were on the display in the artifact section. And it was all thanks to its ability that Ian was able to find two items that he was willing to purchase in an hour. ¡°Is this a fix?¡± Kaka nodded at the question from Ian. ¡°Let¡¯s go for it, Master.¡± The two walked downstairs after successfully picking out the items that they were willing to buy. And since there was no limit on the purchase in the 1st and 2nd floor, they picked out all the items that they felt needed. Kaka looked at Ian with a silly expression and asked. ¡°Master, are we buying these all?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°Hmm, I¡¯m buying them all.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you buying way too much?¡± ¡°We¡¯ll take out one or two.¡± ¡°¡­¡± And Ian went to the downstairs to find Reno Barns and calculate the total of all the items that he had brought. [You have bought ¡®Unknown Ancient Iron Sword¡¯.] [Cost: 1756800 gold.] [You have purchased ¡®Mysterious Shooter¡¯s Longbow¡¯.] [Cost: 2217000 gold.] He had purchased all of the items, and all the gold he had was gone! He sure did keep a lot of his gold in separate places like the guild locker, but he still did spend tens of millions of gold in a flash. But Ian wasn¡¯t feeling bad about spending it. Rather, he had a smile on his face. ¡®It will be advantageous to possess a legendary class equipment that doesn¡¯t have the options account attribution attached to it.¡¯ At the current situation, a legendary item with above-average abilities would be worthy of more than sixty to seventy million gold. And if just one of such classified item could be bought, Ian believed that he could easily get back the money that he had spent, and these were just based on his instincts. ¡°Kaka.¡± ¡°Yes, Master¡± ¡°Shall we try this once?¡± ¡°Sounds nice.¡± After completing the calculations, the two sat at the corner of the antique store and lined up all the items that they had just purchased. And now began Ian¡¯s gamble. * * * Tring- [Feeling the antiques completed.] [You have succeeded in evaluating the legendary items!] Ian¡¯s hand which held an item started to shine with a golden light. [You have been successful in identifying the excellent items.] [Your ¡®discerning¡¯ ability has increased by 5 points.] [¡®Luck¡¯ has also increased by 1 point.] Feeling the antiques, there was no need for any skill to feel the antiques. Anyone who had an emotional balance/order could immediately feel the antiques that were meant for them. So even if you succeed in finding a legendary item, it does not guarantee that the emotional bondage with the item would rise, or the efficiency of the exploration would increase. But, if the antique items or high-ranked items are selected based on the ¡®feeling¡¯ then the stats like ¡®discerning¡¯ and ¡®luck¡¯ were bound to rise. The higher the ¡®discerning¡¯ stats were, the more ability one possesses to see the information about the monsters or to check the information about the items. And ¡®luck¡¯ was a stat which¡¯s ability wasn¡¯t precisely known, but there had been numerous speculations that it could influence the factors related to luck, such as an item drop rate or the probability of successful gambling. These both could be considered as secondary skills that could help a user when playing the game. Ian realizing this¡ªkept on feeling the antiques. ¡®Keuk, is this a fluke? There is no way I get to be this lucky?¡¯ To be honest, Ian is lucky, this was a fact that everyone knew except for Ian. Ian was already successful in acquiring two of the legendary equipment. On top that, there were more than ten of the heroic grade equipment that he had purchased. The breakpoint for buying was already over. ¡°Kaka, I feel like I have ignored gambling till now.¡± ¡°What is that supposed mean, master?¡± ¡°It means that I¡¯m going to actively favor gambling in the future.¡± ¡°Master. Today it was just because of luck. On top of that, we got these at a discount of 30%, we wouldn¡¯t have been able to buy these all if we had to purchase them at their original cost.¡± ¡°Is that¡­ is that so?¡± Ian had felt all the other items, and there were two more heroic grade equipments, but there weren¡¯t anymore legendary equipments. Ian¡¯s expression turned a little blue. ¡°Ahh¡­ I thought that I could get another one settled¡­¡± Kaka who saw the sorry figure of Ian, mumbled in a low voice. ¡°There is no other option but to steal it¡­¡± Ian glared at Kaka. ¡°Yah! This fella! If I¡¯m doing well, then you¡¯ll do well too. I¡¯m sorry that I can¡¯t give it to you¡­¡± ¡°Please explain to me what is good for me, master¡­¡± Ian was flustered with the question that came back. ¡°Uhm¡­ that is¡­¡± Kaka bent his head and opened his mouth. ¡°That¡¯s enough; let¡¯s look at the items from the top floor.¡± Ian just nodded his head. ¡°Yes, I put a lot of money on them; they need to be a huge hit.¡± Ian just put the items that he felt into the inventory and placed two items that he bought from the top floor very carefully on the table. Because these were the items that he had purchased from the hidden floor ¡®The Artifact Shop¡¯, the level of expectations that he had on these were way different from the previous ones. Ian looked over at Kaka who still sitting on his shoulder and asked, ¡°We have bought the right things, right?¡± Kaka answered with a confident look, ¡°Master, don¡¯t you trust me?¡± ¡°That¡¯s not it, I trust you.¡± ¡°Then why are you so nervous?¡± ¡°Not nervous, I¡¯m not nervous¡­¡± Rather than calling it nervous or anxiousness, this was a feeling of unsettlement because all the spectacular items were located on the top floor. And once again, Ian picked up the item to feel the emotion from it. It was an old ¡®wooden box¡¯ that was the size of Ian¡¯s palm. Ian completely detested it, but Kaka kept on nagging him till the last minute to buy it. ¡®I¡¯m gonna have to feel this thing first.¡¯ The box had a bit of luxurious feel, and it had carved details and colorful patterns on the surface of it, but it still was an old box that looked rather plain to any eye. Ian just moved his hands along the item without much expectations. CH 276 Chapter 276: Rise in the Status [1] Hweiing- Ian was blankly staring at the thing that he was holding in his hand. ¡®What could this be¡­?¡¯ It had a weirdly captivating effect that couldn¡¯t be felt when touching any other items for the first time! The box which was placed onto the table started to levitate a bit higher with an intense shade of gold light around it. As the box was moving higher, the outer shade that it had was sucked into the box, and the previously yellow stained box was now beginning to appear in a gold shade. Kaka who was still next to Ian smiled and chuckled to himself. ¡°Well, I was half-skeptical about this¡­ but it looks like I¡¯m right.¡± Ian looked over at Kaka but turned his gaze back towards the wooden box. The golden light shining from the box was done; the box came back and placed itself into the hands of Ian. ¡®Is the feeling process done?¡¯ But Ian was a bit uncertain as he didn¡¯t see the system message come up, so he began to inspect the item a bit more. That moment. The box that was in Ian¡¯s hands began opening slowly. Tring- [You have succeeded in evaluating the ¡®Myth¡¯ class relic.] [You have succeeded in feeling the Mythical class relic] [¡®Discerning¡¯ ability has increased by 5 points.] [¡®Luck¡¯ has increased by 12 points.] [Obtained the item ¡®Seal of The King of Rings¡¯.] [One of the ten conditions required for ¡®founding the kingdom¡¯ has been attained.] [The current established rate for completion of the kingdom ¨C 30% (3/10).] [The basic affinity with the NPC¡¯s of the Mauryan Empire has increased by 5 points.] [You have obtained the item ¡®Seal¡¯, fame has increased by 500,000.] The more he reads the message, the wider and wider Ian¡¯s mouth spread. And it was because he was amazed and surprised at what he had just seen. ¡®Seal? Seal huh¡­? The thing I couldn¡¯t find in the Central Continent even though I tried searching for it¡­!¡¯ The kind of play that 90% of the users in the Pyro domain in the Kailan game used was defense. Till the initiation of the magical dimension war content being introduced, Ian wasn¡¯t just trying to level up his familiar Karceus. On the contrary, Ian was looking for an ancient Seal while clearing out the dungeons in the Central Continent. If it existed in the hands of a person, one could immediately become a King. There was a time when two or three users from a community who had said that they had found a Seal in the Central Continent. There were users who had acquired it from an important point near a magic tower, and there were some users who had acquired it after defeating a Boss Monster from a dungeon. And Ian too gave it a shot. Since the Seal is basically an item that belongs to the user account, he couldn¡¯t buy it from another user. ¡®This, this is so huge¡­!¡¯ In fact, it isn¡¯t entirely essential for a king to possess a Seal to establish a kingdom. There were a total of twenty different kinds of conditions that were needed to be fulfilled for founding a nation/kingdom. And each condition had different reasons for it to be fulfilled. And this was because a kingdom could be build up in a night if the Seal was possessed. Ian looked into the information of the wooden box with a lot of curiosity. ¡ª -The Seal of the King of Rings ¨C Classification ¨C Artifacts Rank ¨C Myth Durability ¨C 350/350 * In the past, the King of Rings ruled over Su-Mi-Sa-Zhou for over tens of thousands of years with the Seal. * The King of Rings with the Seal was a monarch, he was considered as a very powerful king with excellent leadership qualities and achieved the Taipyong Sungdae. * The leadership qualities of the users who have the Seal will increase by 35%. * The combat abilities of the users who have the Seal will increase by 3.5%. * The fame of the users who have the Seal will increase by 1 million ( The increased fame from the Seal cannot be used, and the fame is lost when the Seal is destroyed.) * Increases the growth rates of the user-controlled country by 30% over a month, following the foundation of the nation. * Increases the base rank of the citizen to 5 points in the nation of the user with the Seal. (This also applies to the basic levels in the nation.) Ian who was done checking the information of the item couldn¡¯t recover from the shock. ¡®Well, I guess a Myth class is different¡­?¡¯ Firstly, all the clauses that were attached to the item were much higher than the legendary ranks, and each of the clauses were like honey. The fourth clause was like a blessing, it was the option for the nation to shine brightly after the nation has been founded, this was still an option whose effect was still unknown. And Ian was very satisfied with the other three options at the top. ¡®Increase of leadership by 35%, this so sweet.¡¯ Ian, who had familiars with legendary rankings was always suffering from the lack of leadership. Moreover, Bbookbbook was the only familiar which didn¡¯t need much leadership, but after evolution, it required a lot of leadership. And with the increase of 35% of leadership, with the total leadership that Ian had, it would be enough to fulfill the role of a leader with two or three of his highest ranked familiars. Ian patted Kaka¡¯s head. ¡°Kaka, you¡¯re the best.¡± With an arrogant expression, Kaka folded his arms. ¡°What did I say, master. Told you, you could believe me.¡± The most honored option for Ian in these was the leadership increase, well the other two options were just as good too. The second option was to raise the combat skills by 3.5% excluding the equipment worn by the user, and the other option to maintain the fame of 100,000 stably. ¡®The fame I have is surely overwhelming but¡­ this 100,000 can¡¯t be considered as a small amount either.¡¯ No matter how much fame Ian had possessed, there was no doubt that there will be a need for fame to fill up the requirements of the nation. And if that situation does arise, then the stable fame that Ian now possessed would be of a very solid help. Ian who was glad with this scenario was curious about a certain thing. ¡®Umm¡­ But does this Seal of the King of Rings really possess such power?¡¯ And the reason for this question was simple. Because now, the NPC that Ian needed to meet was the King of Ring himself. In order for Ian to be able to cross paths with the King of Rings; it was needed for the both to be present in the same dimension, and there would be a need for the artifacts from the existing NPC¡¯s antique shops. But that was just a momentary thought. Ian didn¡¯t think of it as such a huge problem and chuckled to himself by looking at the information tab. ¡°Kue, great, this is great!¡± Ian who had obtained the Seal was screaming out of joy. Kaka who was on the shoulder of Ian flew to his front, touched the next item and said. ¡°Master, stop being so engulfed in it and let¡¯s move onto the next item.¡± And Ian who was very pleased with this item, carefully put the Seal into his inventory and picked up the amulet from the table. It looked like a trinket but with signs of splendid craftsmanship. ¡°Now it is time to check how good the item my master picked would turn out to be.¡± At these words from Kaka, Ian couldn¡¯t help but feel a bit nervous. Out of the two items that were picked up from the artifact section, the oak wooden box was picked out by Kaka, and this amulet was picked out by Ian himself. ¡®Huh¡­ it will be so embarrassing if this turns out to be something strange.¡¯ But it all came down to this¡­ would it make up for the gold that was spent? In all honesty, it was completely alright even if a worthless item came out of it, but the only problem would be Kaka, who would be very grim about it. Ian snapped out of his thoughts and began to feel the amulet. Tring- [You have succeeded in evaluating the ¡®legendary¡¯ equipment.] [You have succeeded in feeling the legendary equipment.] [The ¡®discerning¡¯ ability has increased by 10 points.] [¡®Luck¡¯ has also increased by 3 points.] Ian had confirmed about the item through the messages that came from the information window because of his feeling. And after checking out all the options, Ian sighed out of relief. ¡°Phew, I¡¯m just glad that it is a good item.¡± Fortunately, there would be no need for Ian to be humiliated in front of Kaka. The items purchased from the third floor were guaranteed to be of hero rank, and if this item was anything less than legendary Kaka wouldn¡¯t stop making fun of Ian. Kaka nodded his head in agreement that the item was indeed good. ¡°It does look good Master. It seems like a good item.¡± ¡°You think so too? Even if this item is of no use to me, I can put it up for auction and we¡¯ll easily get 50 million for this one.¡± Ian¡¯s necklace was a legendary class equipment of the highest grade with options set exclusively for an Ice Mage. But the best part was that it wasn¡¯t an account assigned item. No matter how extraordinary the other sets of options were¡ªif the item was account assigned, then it would have been a complete waste. This was because this mage only necklace was useless to Ian. ¡®I guess I¡¯ll just give this to Fiolan at a cheap price.¡¯ And Ian who was done gambling in the antique store came out of it with a proud expression. Now the place that Ian was heading to was the ¡®Gate of Test¡¯ to meet the King of Rings. * * * ¡°Huh¡­? To challenge the entrance exam I must become a Kshatriya class?¡± ¡°Yes. A lowly Sudra class can¡¯t step into the gate. You guards! Get rid of him!¡± ¡°Yes! Leader!¡± ¡°Ah, I get it. I can go by myself. Now, Wait¡­!¡± Ian who had arrived at the gate was detained from taking the exam by the guards. And the reason for it was Ian¡¯s rank. Ian was afraid of going against the guards who were leveled as 400, so he just walked out of there and took a breath. ¡°Ahhh, What is this Kshatriya? The name itself sounds very ridiculous!¡± There was a lot of muttering beside Ian, who was muttering to himself. It was because Ian had brought out all the familiars on the plain before arriving at the gate. And this was a possible task because Ian was a citizen of the Mauryan Empire. Kaizer who was next to Ian spoke. ¡°Kshatriya is a knight of the empire of Maurya. My lord.¡± At the words from Kaizer, Ian tilted his head and opened his eyes wide. ¡°Oh, yeah¡­? It is a higher class¡­?¡± Kaizer nodded his head. ¡°Yes. Sudra is the last class followed by the Vaisya, and top of that comes Kshatriya.¡± ¡°Aha¡­¡± Exclaimed Ian. ¡®Wait a sec, not one but I¡¯ll have to go up two ranks to be qualified to enter the gate challenge?¡¯ Ian looked over at Kaizer once again. ¡°By the way, how is it that you know this information Kaizer?¡± Kaizer thought for a moment and shook his head. ¡°I¡¯m not sure, I just know.¡± At those words, Ian¡¯s heart started to beat fast. ¡®Oh, then maybe Kaizer would know about how a class is supposed to be upgraded?¡¯ Ian immediately asked Kaizer. ¡°So Kaizer, do you know what I¡¯m supposed to do to become a Kshatriya?¡± And surprisingly, words started to come out of Kaizer¡¯s mouth. ¡°By accumulating the citizen value in the Mauryan Empire.¡± ¡°Citizen Value?¡± Kaizer nodded his head. ¡°You can enter the Mauryan Empire¡¯s military office and register your name and hunt down the monsters that lurk around the outskirts of the Southern Island and raise your Citizen Value.¡± Ian was nothing less than astonished at hearing all these unexpected words from Kaizers¡¯ mouth, even Kaka was very intrigued at the way Kaizer was speaking. Even Kaka knew about the class system in the Mauryan Empire, but this was the first time that he heard about rising the class level by increasing the Citizen Value. Listening to all this Ian began to calculate the days he had. ¡®If I include the time that I have left here¡­ which was not a complete day, I¡¯ll have around 10 days to clear the quests here and go back to the Toboldae.¡¯ Ian asked Kaizer. ¡°Kaizer, do you happen to know where that military office is?¡± Kaizer shook his head. ¡°I don¡¯t know that.¡± Ian immediately took out his map to confirm the location and then moved in the direction he was supposed to move. With the unforeseen challenges that came on, the time left to complete the quest had become really tight. CH 277 Chapter 277: Rise in the Status 2 To raise the status of the Citizen Value in the Mauryan Empire, there was a need to erase the current identity he possessed. From the very beginning, this was a story that didn¡¯t seem to be easy. It was because the map of the Southern Island Buju with the Mauryan Empire was a location that was mainly composed of high-level quests, and the time needed to clear them was way too short. The amount of citizen value needed to raise one¡¯s rank twice wasn¡¯t a small number. And Citizen value wasn¡¯t something that could be easily stacked. And hunting became harder, much harder than before. ¡°Master, after hunting for half a day how much citizen value did we manage to raise.¡± ¡°Uhm. Just a second.¡± Ian confirmed the accumulated points for the citizen value, and he sighed. ¡°A little over 170 points.¡± Kaizar who was in front of them spoke after sighing. ¡°We are ruined. How will we manage to upgrade the status with just a few days in our hands, Lord?¡± To become a Vaisya from the Sudra, Ian needed to gather 1000 citizen points. And with the work that he had done, Ian thought that it would¡¯ve been enough. Although he didn¡¯t manage to get more than 170 points, he would be able to slowly adapt and the hunting rate would eventually increase, and in a matter of 2-3 days, Ian thought that he could manage to rise to Vaisya. However, the problem was that he needed to rise to Kshatriya by collecting citizen points. ¡®Seriously? 5000 points.¡¯ The number of points needed to upgrade to Kshatriya from the Vaisya class needed 5000 citizen value points. And this was an amount that Ian couldn¡¯t reach, no matter how hard he tried. Ian touched his chin and asked Kaka. ¡°Kaka, How is this possible?¡± In response to Ian¡¯s question, Kaka replied with an impatient look. ¡°Why is it not possible master? We can surely do it.¡± Ian opened his eyes wider and asked once again. ¡°What? Speak out quickly. You also know that we are short in time.¡± Kaka responded to this. ¡°Master, why do you always go for a single monster? Hunt them down with a party.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± ¡°If you hunt down monsters with a party the exp will be low because of sharing, but the amount of citizen value you can get will be proportionate to the exp that will be gained from the monsters.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± The main reason why Ian chose to hunt down single monsters was because the experience sharing system would be inefficient for a summoner¡¯s experience¡ªacquisition .system. The experience that would be gained by the party would also be split between the familiars, so party hunting couldn¡¯t be done. But the situation was different now. If one killed a lot of monsters from a party, one would get all the citizen value. The stronger one was, the faster the speed of getting a citizen value would be. The one thing that couldn¡¯t be shared was the citizen value points when a whole party was hunting for it. That was probably because the familiars of Ian would all get the same citizen value that Ian would get. But there was one problem. ¡°So, Kaka. How am I supposed to do a party hunt here? There needs to be someone on the map for a party hunt to be possible.¡± Kaka put an incomprehensible expression because of Ian¡¯s question. ¡°Master, your head didn¡¯t suddenly get rotten right?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you get that dimensional magic power charger from Gripper?¡± ¡°¡­?!¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t it respond the last time when you put the bead near the charger?¡± Ian had a blank expression. It was because Ian had completely forgotten about the Dimensional Beads. ¡°Ah¡­ that one?¡± The dimensional bead wasn¡¯t a device that moved a person to a needed location. Once Ian opened it, the item could open a portal for a duration of 2 minutes wherever he wanted. And opening the portal meant that the other users could use the portal too and that Ian could pull in any number of other users for 2 minutes. So the last thing that needed to be checked was if the magical power that was needed for the dimensional portal to open was there or not. ¡°It took 10 minutes to fill 1 point the last time¡­ would it have been completely charged?¡± If 1 point could be filled in 10 minutes, then 150 points could be filled per day. With 1000 points it would be able to open a portal through the dimensions. And with a week or so, the points would be roughly near the mark to use the portal. Ian was in a hurry to check the number of magic points in the Dimensional Bead. [Dimensional Beads/Charge amount ¨C 957/1000 (95.7%)] ¡°Uhm¡­¡± Ian immediately calculated the time that that was needed until it became completely charged. ¡®It will be fully charged in about 8 hours.¡¯ Ian had thought that luck was on his side when he took out the Dimensional Bead, so now Ian began to recall all the other things that he brought along. ¡®In my current situation, I won¡¯t be able to bring in a lot of guild members since they are all in the midst of a full-scale war. So I will have to bring in a few efficient members only.¡¯ And an intermediate level user would not be of any help in this toxic environment since the average level in the Southern Island was around 300. And the first person that came into Ian¡¯s mind was¡­ ¡®Remir, will surely be of great help.¡¯ Remir was the most impressive of all. * * * [Ian: Hello, Remir. Have you been doing well?] In the Dimensional War of the Central Continent. Remir who was busy casting magic in the middle of the battlefield¡ªwhere there were Asmodians and high-level monsters¡ªwas a bit flustered as she almost canceled the spell she was casting because of a single-line message. ¡®What¡¯s up with this useless message?¡¯ As soon as she saw the name Ian, Remir felt a rush of subtle feelings. Ridiculousness, gladness, fear, foolishness, etc ¡­ And somehow Remir managed to slip out of the battlefield to send a quick reply to Ian. [Remir: It has been long, Ian. What are you up to now?] Ian immediately replied. [Ian: Oh, this isn¡¯t something else, I just need your help Remir¡­] Remir got more flustered. No matter how hard she thought, it always seemed unlikely for Ian to be in need of one¡¯s help. [Remir: Help? With what?] [Ian: I¡¯m doing a little time-limited quest. This is a quest that can stop the invasion.] [Remir: What? Can you explain it to me in detail?] [Ian: What I mean is¡­ if you finish the quest and get some items¡­] Ian explained how he was doing the quest in detail to Remir. He didn¡¯t explain everything, but he explained important matters needed to understand and complete his quest; that was being able to avoid the monster invasion. Remir knew immediately that this was why he had decided to leave the dimensional war¡ªto help the others. Remir¡ªwho was listening to the information being given to her¡ªhad an odd expression on her face. ¡®Something¡­ always felt strange from the very beginning when he didn¡¯t stay much in the Dimensional War. So he was doing this huge quest all by himself.¡¯ Remir¡¯s curiosity was invoked. [Remir: Um¡­ I roughly understand what you meant. So how am I suppose to help you?] [Ian: One thing¡­? You should hunt with me.] [Remir: It is hard¡­ right?] [Ian: Yes. It is a bit tougher than the last¡­ I guess?] And the moment she checked the message. Remir¡¯s interest in the ongoing quest fell to the floor in a second all because of Ian. ¡®How can this hunt be much harder than the last time? Is that even possible?¡¯ Remir hadn¡¯t replied back, and another message came back from Ian. [Ian: On top of that, the experience points will be better than the last time. This field dungeon is piled up, and it is the first time someone had found it. You know that the buff is applied to a party member, right?] Remir¡¯s eyes began to waver. Ian¡¯s words sounded so inviting to Remir who was under so much stress since the moment she hit level 200. [Remir: Uhm¡­ Keu¡­ can you give me some time to think?] [Ian: You have seven hours to think it through¡­ if you aren¡¯t going to come let me know beforehand. At least three hours in advance, so that I can change my plan if you¡¯ll not come.] Remir fell into a dilemma. From her point of view, Ian¡¯s proposal was almost like the level of temptation from the devil himself. However, considering the enormous experience and items that could be obtained, Remir¡¯s brain began to work full time. ¡®It will be a bit tough¡­ I still have the opportunity to do a teamplay. And my control skills have improved a lot.¡¯ Remir was trying to convince herself unintentionally. ¡®The hunting was fun too. I¡¯ll have to help Ian through this.¡¯ Remir tilted her head and made a choice that she knew that she was going to regret. [Remir: Okay, Ian. When and where am I supposed to come?] [Ian: In exactly seven hours from now wait near the Pyro Dome castle.] [Remir: Ah, Yep¡­] Ian¡¯s invitation was replied with a single word. [Ian: Just log out and sleep for now. I also plan on doing that.] [Remir: ¡­] Remir let out a sigh without being aware. ¡°Phew¡­¡± Remir escaped from the battle without any hesitation, and she logged out. There weren¡¯t many people who depended on her, probably because the Central Continent had a lot of strong users. * * * ¡°Ah, what is this hyung doing scaring me so much?¡± Kanji Hoonie was playing an active role in the dimensional war in the Northern Continent. The northern continent was rapidly pushed down after Ian vacated it, and Herz begged Hoonie to enter and stop the fall of the Northern Continent. However, as soon as he had received the message from Ian, Hoonie decided to transfer his position to the other rankers from the Lotus Guild and join Ian. The content from the quest that Ian was doing was at least three times more interesting than the battles that were happening in the Continents. ¡°Balram, do you know anything about the Mauryan Empire?¡± Death Knight Balram turned his head in the direction of Hoonie in response to his question. ¡°I¡¯m not entirely sure. But I do remember that there was such a name among the names of the ancient empires.¡± Balram was a death knight. And Death Knights have a previous life. Balram¡ªwho was the predecessor of an active human hero all along¡ªdrew out the memory of what he knew about the ancient empires. ¡°Oh¡­ Hehe¡­ isn¡¯t it fun?¡± Balram responded to Hoonie¡¯s question. ¡°It seems interesting. The battle with the Asmodians had been fun too, but it is true that other humans are much less interesting when compared to Ian.¡± Hoonie¡¯s mouth twisted to a smile. ¡°If I hunt with Ian, I¡¯m guaranteed to level up once or twice¡­¡± He was willing to take along Kanoel, but with him missing, the front of the Northern continent would get much tighter, so he decided to let him stay on the front lines. Ian also said that it was a good idea. Kanoel always showed great abilities, and he had a remarkable rank. ¡°Seven more hours left. I need to get some sleep, Balram.¡± Balram nodded in agreement to what Hoonie had said. ¡°I understand, Master.¡± Hoonie felt relieved listening to Balram¡¯s answer who disappeared into the air slowly. Logged out. And Ian started to invite one after another into the hell door thinking he could create a party with high efficiency. CH 278 Chapter 278: Rise in the Status 3 There were a total of six people gathered in front of the castle at Ian¡¯s appointed time. Among them, Remir and Hoonie were the users that Ian had directly contacted, and upon Ian¡¯s request, the other four were high ranked users that were recruited by Herz. What was funny was that there were three of the best top-ranked users in this party. First was the highest ranked user in the summoner class¡ªIan. Then Remir who was the highest ranking mage, and then Hoonie, who was unofficially the highest ranking warlock. Lastly was ¡®Levya¡¯ the highest ranked priest who was recently accepted into the guild by Herz. This was surely a super luxurious party. And the three remaining users had the skills to be ranked in the top 100, and there was no option but to accept them into this party. ¡°By the way, why hasn¡¯t Ian Hyung here yet? There are only 2 minutes left before the appointed time¡­¡± Herz responded to Hoonie who was muttering under his breath. ¡°Kid, did you ever see Ian come late to any appointed mission? Who knows when he¡¯ll pop out like a sharp knife?¡± Herz had always shown remarkable growth in his level, he was currently ranked in the top 80 to 90 in the official ranking. Even then, Ian had hesitated to include Herz into his party. Though Fiolan was more powerful compared to Herz, she had decided to stay back and defend the Central Continent at the Pyro where the battlefield was almost insanely chaotic. Fiolan was the commander of that place, so she had a lot of responsibility on her shoulders. On top of that, Ian already had a trump card, the top-ranked Mage Remir who filled the Mage position. ¡°Well¡­ that is right.¡± Hoonie just went along with what Herz said. Hoonie wasn¡¯t a guild member yet. It was almost as if he didn¡¯t belong to a guild, and Herz was the guild master. There was a reason as to why Hoonie hadn¡¯t become a guild member. It was because there was no vacant position in the Lotus Guild. Of course, the incompetent and skill lacking guild members could have been removed, but according to Herz, that wasn¡¯t the proper way of running a guild. There were a lot of users who had been waiting to hand over their form of admission into the Lotus Guild. Herz was scheduled to receive all the forms once the Lotus Guild was promoted into a great guild in the country after passing a certain criteria. From the Great Plain, the maximum number of guild members that could be recruited would be increased by several hundred, so there would be enough room. ¡°Hmm, This is what I¡¯m nervous about¡­¡± Listening to the mumbling of Remir, Levya asked for the reason. ¡°What are you nervous about, Remir?¡± As Levya inquired, Remir had a bit of twisted look. ¡°No, I was just talking to myself, you know¡­ myself. By the way, how did Levia get into this party?¡± Levya answered by scratching her head. Levya was really beautiful, but there was something that was dull about her. ¡°Well¡­ I am in need of Ian¡¯s help to complete a very important quest. And if I help Ian out, maybe he¡¯ll help me out in my quest too¡­ well, he will help out right?¡± ¡°Uhm¡­ I think so¡­¡± It wasn¡¯t clear, but Remir thought of her as a strange person. She started to use mind control on herself. She felt that it was necessary to use mind control especially if she was going to hunt with Ian. ¡°Inner peace¡­¡± But then. The nerve-racking appointed time came, and the air in front of the six users started to change. Woong- Woong-! Hoonie¡ªwho was the first one to notice the changes in the atmosphere¡ªwas flustered and pulled out his wand. ¡°What, what is this? Is a new wave starting here too!?¡± Looking at the scared expression on Hoonie¡¯s face, Herz shook his head and answered. ¡°Ian is opening the portal, just wait and see.¡± Once Herz was done talking, everyone looked at the distorted air in front of them with intrigued looks, and after 10 seconds, a blue light shined as the portal began to open. Weeing-! From the portal came out a man whose body was completely filled with mud. ¡°Hey yo!¡± It was none other than Ian. He originally planned to keep an eye on the dimensional beads until they get charged, but he decided to hunt for a while till the beads were charged. Ian looked at all the users that gathered before him and smiled brightly. ¡°Wow, you guys are all here. Thank you for coming. You¡¯ll all be blessed for this act.¡± ¡°¡­¡± The moment she saw Ian, Remir knew that something felt off. ¡®Huh¡­ that monster asked us all to rest, but it seems like he had been hunting till now.¡¯ Ian saw Levya and reached out his hand towards her. ¡°Hello, I am Ian. I don¡¯t have a good memory, but¡­ are you a member of our guild?¡± Levya smiled at Ian¡¯s question and shook her head. Herz who was right behind her laughed and spoke out on her behalf. ¡°It was Levya who had helped our guild a few weeks ago during the Dimensional War. She was the highest ranked Priest.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ is that so¡­?¡± Though he couldn¡¯t remember it that much, Ian¡ªwho didn¡¯t show much interest on highest ranked users¡ªseemed to remember something about a certain Levya. And if she was the same person that Ian had thought, then she would certainly be of tremendous help to this party. ¡®Nice, I think I can collect around 6000 points from this party.¡¯ Ian extended his hand towards the direction of the portal. ¡°Okay then, you can all go into the portal now. Hurry up, we only have 2 minutes till the portal closes.¡± As Ian had stated the obvious, all the users quickly started to move into the portal, and Ian also went back into the portal. And as all the users had moved into the portal, around a second later the portal¡¯s entrance started to diminish and then it disappeared into thin air. * * * ¡°Okay, So let me tell you the plan.¡± Ian had successfully brought six people excluding him into the Southern Island of Buju. Ian had been working on what he should say to the party members he invited and about the quest sharing. He had given out a detailed explanation about the quest, but to conclude what Ian had said he just wanted them to help him hunt. ¡°So to put it simply¡­We need to hunt down as many monsters as we possibly can, as soon as possible.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± ¡°It takes about a week for the Dimensional Beads to charge, and I need to accumulate a total of 6000 citizen value points in the Empire.¡± Herz¡ªwho had listened to Ian¡¯s explanation¡ªasked something important. ¡°So we should collect the citizen value points and raise the status in the Mauryan Empire? And, does it have any advantages?¡± Ian nodded and answered Herz¡¯s question. ¡°In order for you to raise your status, you will first need to complete a quest that will give you a citizen ID¡­ we don¡¯t have time for that stuff. Apart from me, you all won¡¯t be able to raise your citizen value. However, it doesn¡¯t mean that the points you accumulate are worthless. You won¡¯t have a citizen value, but you will be able to exchange those points and good items in return.¡± ¡°Aha¡­¡± After a while, Ian added a few more additional information. Remir¡ªwho was listening until now¡ªwas curious about something. ¡°By the way Ian.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Then are we¡­¡± ¡°Go on.¡± ¡°Do we not have an option to go back if you don¡¯t open the portal?¡± They all looked towards Ian to know the answer, and Ian¡¯s mouth slightly tilted up. ¡°Bingo¡­!¡± ¡°OMG¡­¡± Looking at Remir¡¯s desperate expression, Ian added another word. ¡°So, let¡¯s hurry and do it as fast as we can. After collecting 6000 citizen value points, it is my responsibility to send you all back whether you like it or not. Well, you all are important users who are needed to stop the monster invasion.¡± Remir rolled her eyes and spoke. ¡°We are fortunate that you understand that.¡± Ian replied. ¡°Now, let¡¯s go out, shall we? There are quite a few dungeons that will be of your interest.¡± Hoonie who was still there asked Ian. ¡°How many average level dungeons are here hyung?¡± Ian calmly replied. ¡°Well¡­ around 350 to 400¡± ¡°¡­?!¡± Everyone¡¯s faces started to glow with what Ian said, except for Remir and Levya. Remir wasn¡¯t so surprised as she had previously hunted level 300 monsters alongside Ian, and Levia seemed to have no idea on what was about to happen. But Herz was flustered and stutteringly asked Ian. ¡°Yah, isn¡¯t¡­ isn¡¯t it dangerous?¡± Ian lifted his finger and responded. ¡°No, no. Our level is more than enough. If I can coordinate my movements in the right manner then I can attack a level 450 monster instead of a level 350 one.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°And from tomorrow or the day after, I will go into higher level dungeons, so make your hearts strong.¡± ¡°¡­ huh¡­ what¡­?¡± Ian ignored Herz¡¯s mumbling and began to move towards the dungeon. And the moment they all entered the dungeon, the eyes of Remir, Hoonie and Herz changed in an instant. And just like that Ian¡¯s party began to hunt like Spartans. * * * ¡°Hoonie, Walk across a wide slope and stay back! Death Knight manage your vitality! Remir be prepared to cast your wide area spell!¡± ¡°Kay Hyung.¡± ¡°Yes, Ian.¡± Party play, as the number of people in the party increased, the more difficult it was to control the members. Surely, it wasn¡¯t much difficult to find a position that would suit a member, but the kind of party play that Ian wanted wasn¡¯t such a basic one. ¡®Wow, I never thought of the Revenge of the Dead, but Hoonie definitely has some amazing game sense.¡¯ However, Ian¡¯s party wasn¡¯t a regular party. It was a party that literally had top-ranked players that gathered to help another ranked player, and the ranked players instinctively knew what they were supposed to do without receiving any instructions from Ian. They were individually outstanding players. Ian¡¯s party had only been hunting for 30 minutes, and as Ian expected their teamwork was perfect. ¡®Well, this isn¡¯t so frustrating. I thought that Herz would be a burden to the group.¡¯ Ian¡¯s party consisted of a total of 7 members. However, if their powers and skills were all combined, it could be compared to a party of 70 to 80 members, this almost looked as if a small war was taking place. ¡°Ian, it looks like a boss, over there!¡± Levya who was standing in the front and casting heal had shouted over to Ian. Ian turned his head and nodded in agreement. There indeed was a giant and it had a golden hood, it definitely looked like a dungeon boss. ¡®I came into the easiest dungeon and yet¡­ they all seem to be much skilled than I had thought.¡¯ The fact that the dungeon boss had appeared means that over 95% of the dungeon had been cleared, and the clearance rate of the dungeon was much faster than what Ian had been expecting. In particular, Ian was very impressed with the Levya¡¯s abilities. Till now, Ian never had the opportunity to hunt alongside a top-ranked priest class. A few priests did help Ian in the Pyro temple, but he wasn¡¯t able to experience their full abilities as it was a hectic and massive battle. And Levya a first ranked priest, had a whole different level of control when compared to them. ¡®I don¡¯t remember witnessing an Over Heal before.¡¯ Average ranked priests tend to waste a lot of skill in worthless situations. The more members a party had, the more responsibility the priests would have, and if they use spirits without possessing any skill, then it could create a much higher chance of making a mistake rather than helping out their allies. But Levya was different. She didn¡¯t waste any of her energy on basic recovery skills, and she was using perfected recovery skills and was executing them perfectly. Though Ian was the greatest when it came to coordination and control, Levya¡¯s control was on an amazing level as well. ¡®I guess we can do a riskier play.¡¯ Ian called Halli; he climbed onto its back and pulled out the Judgement of the Spirit King. Till now he had mainly played in the back-lines of the battle by commanding and supporting the others, but Ian was ready to get aggressive from this point on. Anyone could feel that they could fight with the fullest of their abilities without thinking twice if they were in this party. CH 279 Chapter 279: Party Hunting, And The Gateway ¨C 1 The Southern Island Buju¡¯s dungeons could be considered as very difficult ones. And this wasn¡¯t just because of the monsters level. The biggest part that could be considered difficult was because of the monster, most of the monsters in the dungeon were humanoid monsters. The humanoid monsters were generally much higher in the intelligence side, and their AI level was far superior to the usual monsters. And the humanoid monsters that were near the level of 400 had a higher level of intelligence than any monster that Ian had ever encountered, including the AI level beings he had encountered. ¡®Sh*t, the field was so comfortable¡­ But the field monsters gave such little citizen value points¡­¡¯ Unlike the other dungeons, the dungeons in the Southern Island Buju were all animal monsters. And animal monsters showed a very simple attack pattern when compared to all the other monsters, so they were easy to hunt irrespective of their level. And Ian¡¯s party was clearing out dungeons one after the other by getting into tough battles with the scary humanoid monsters. And the dungeon that Ian¡¯s party had entered now was somewhat unusual for a dungeon. The skies were very clear, the dungeon was in the shape of a canyon with huge cobblestones that were paved on either side. Shak- shak- The party began to walk into the wilderness on the way that was paved into the narrow canyon, and no one was leading the group from the front. Most of the members in the party were veterans who had cleared a lot of dangerous dungeons, but even they have felt like something was wrong with the structure of the dungeon. ¡°This so contradicting. Once the dungeon clear rate exceeds 90%, it is time for the named monsters to come.¡± Ian nodded and relied on the facts stated by Remir. ¡°On point. This is definitely weird. Move very carefully cause there might be traps.¡± The dungeon that Ian¡¯s party was clearing out could simply be called as a ¡®mountain¡¯s lair¡¯. It was ignorantly large for the structure, and this looked like the scene where the bandits pop out. ¡®There will probably be traps in such terrains.¡¯ Ian opened up his inventory and pulled out the stealth detector he had to scan the area. Scroller was a very expensive consumable item, it was for a purpose like this that Ian had purchased it. If there were any traps actually installed, then by using the Scroller the traps could be identified and the trap would be hit by a long ranged attack. But during this time, Kaka who was right behind Ian had suddenly restrained Ian from doing so. ¡°Master, wait a minute.¡± ¡°Why, what is it now?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t use it, just wait.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± It wasn¡¯t just Ian, all the members of the party were starring at Kaka with a bit of expectation and Kaka just flew from there by flapping its small wings. Ian who didn¡¯t understand what was happening shouted. ¡°Yah. There could be traps, how can you just go forward without caution?¡± Kaka smiled and responded. ¡°I won¡¯t get killed even by a million traps, master.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± And a moment later, Kaka began to move along the corridor and the corridor began to vibrate with a loud tremble. Puang- Puang- Puang-! Just as predicted by Remir and Ian, there were numerous traps in this place. And Kaka, just as he had promised, didn¡¯t lose a single vitality point. That was when Ian had recalled something that he had forgotten, a unique ability that Kaka possessed. ¡®Ah that¡¯s right, Kaka has that¡­invincible except for a light attribute attack¡­?¡¯ Kaka¡¯s first ability, which is his own ability ¡®Descendant of the Darkness¡¯. The Descendant of the Darkness is a passive ability that does not take any damage except for the attack that uses light, on top of that, it takes 50% more damage when hit by an attack of light. And this was a tremendous move to remove the traps. Mostly because there would be hardly any damage in the traps with no lighting, And the light attribute was unique to the priest class, and none of the skill set in the priest class had anything related to the trap installation. After removing all the traps, Kaka returned to the party with a cheerful look. Ian fed Kaka night-honey and patted its head. Kung- ¡°Ah, why are you hitting master?¡± Ian pulled Kaka¡¯s wings. ¡°Yah, what if there was a light trap in there?¡± Kaka replied with a bright face. ¡°Light Trap? Since when did priests start to install traps?¡± Ian just bent his head over and spoke. ¡°No, there couldn¡¯t have been any but¡­ I don¡¯t know, a strange hidden class.¡± Kaka replied without hesitation. ¡°I haven¡¯t seen a trap like that for three thousand years, master.¡± ¡°¡­¡± And once he heard that there weren¡¯t traps like that for three thousand years, Ian was just at a loss of words. ¡°Kue¡­¡± And Ian quickly began to move into the direction where Kaka had removed the traps. Inside, there were a total of five named monsters and a powerful boss monster waiting for the party. * * * Kung- Kung- The last field that Ian¡¯s party had arrived was of an unusual terrain. ¡°Ahh¡­ I¡¯m afraid of heights¡­¡± Ramir¡¯s face was pale and she tried to cover her eyes with her hands. And it wasn¡¯t just Remir who was not pleased. In the front of the filed where the party needed to go, was a heavenly cliff spread out, and two lines of rope spread out towards the boss zone. Herz who was flustered spoke to Ian as if he was whispering. ¡°Yah, That rope¡­ if the leg slips then¡­?¡± Ian was also angry with what he had witnessed and replied. ¡°Step on it, or hang on it.¡± If felt like the time when he went to the amusement park with Harin, and the fear of heights was a really scary thing to confront. But just one person. There was shine in the eyes on an unexpected user. ¡°What are you all doing? Move fast. If you get caught by the boss monster, we are dead for sure.¡± The user looked like a glass that would break on touch but seemed way tougher than the appearance. Levya jumped onto the rope and quickly crossed the cliff. ¡°She, She just¡­!¡± Ian¡¯s head was spinning around. ¡®I can¡¯t waste any time here, just like Levya said.¡¯ Ian soon got onto the pack of Pin. ¡°First, Remir.¡± In the end, Remir rushed over to Ian who looked like a knight in shining armor. And unknowingly she held onto Ian¡¯s waist. ¡°The remaining four will come once I drop them off with Pin and Pin will come back. Well surely if you can cross like Levya, then just go on.¡± ¡°¡­¡± However, there was no person who could go against Levya in that matter, so eventually, Ian had to move them all with the help of Pin. But the moment the last two members began to climb onto Pin¡¯s back, from the boss zone came huge tremors. [Kwak- Who dare to enter into the place without my permission!] It was a shadow that Ian¡¯s party had seen was very big. He was the boss monster of the dungeon ¡®Camilope¡¯. Ian who quickly confirmed the situation made a quick judgment regarding the situation. ¡°Damn, Let¡¯s just deal with our situation first! Let¡¯s hold on until Herz and Hoonie come here.¡± The last two people that were needed to come across were Herz and Hoonie, and it would take a minimum of 30 seconds until they reached the other side. So the other decided to keep still in their position, but the probability of getting isolated was very high. Ian ran like a manic towards the boss monster with his Judgement of the Spirit King in his hand. The boss monster Camilope was Ian¡¯s goal. But before he could approach it, Ian had to stop. [This man! Don¡¯t take another step towards the boss!] [Intruders! You need to be taught a lesson!] It seemed like five named monster appeared in front of Ian. Ian was a bit frustrated with this. ¡®What is this, we didn¡¯t come across any named monster even after clearing out 90% of the dungeon¡­ this surely is a very difficult ant weird dungeon.¡¯ Although each dungeon had its difference, and in almost all dungeons there were three to ten named monsters, and only one boss monster. Generally, they usually appear one after another each time a certain achievement has been done, but none of the mentioned conditions have been met, and all the named monster came out with a boss monsters. This was a really tricky scenario. ¡®Until Herz comes, Bbookbbook will have to be a tank.¡¯ Ian reflexively moved back and took up a stance with Bbookbbook in the front. ¡°Levya, you will have to use a protective spell, okay?!¡± ¡°Kay!¡± Levya didn¡¯t have to be explained in much details. She had a very great sense of the game and in fact, she could tackle all the attacks that Bbookbbook had. In addition to that, along with Levya in the front, Ian had to manage Bbookbbook until Herz managed to get there. And it was only the basic common sense to know the skills of the other members in the party, it was a basic category but not an easy one to follow. Kung- Kung- Dukdae put its big paws on the ground and invoked one of its unique abilities. Kyaah-! [Special ability of the familiar ¡®Dukdae¡¯, ¡®Dragon¡¯s roar¡¯ has been triggered.] [Movement of the monster ¡®Camilope¡¯ slowed by 15% (-25%).] [Movement of the chieftain ¡®Chiles¡¯ slowed by 35% (-5%).] : : Ian who had confirmed the attack messages immediately calculated the movements of the enemy. ¡®The boss monsters resistance is quite strong. But if the movements are slowed by 15%, then one can¡¯t attack much.¡¯ The rest of the monsters also had resistance, but their level of resistance was less compared to that of the boss. It was clearly evident as the movement of the enemies went slow. Ian thought that he had to cut down the monsters that were isolated to the left and the right. ¡°Hoonie! Help me out here! The rest of you go and stop the boss!¡± Once Ian was done giving out orders, all the party members began to move out. Bbookbbook was able to stop the boss attack till the arrival of Herz and backed away slightly, and the previous position of Bbookbbook was now occupied by Herz, and the way of the boss towards Ian was completely blocked. An isolated named monster was right in front of Ian. And Ian planned on taking full advantage of the current situation. ¡°Hoonie, you know right? Go straight into attack from the beginning?¡± ¡°Kay!¡± Ian wielded the spear and quickly approached the named monster. Since the monster was distraught by the ¡®Dragon¡¯s roar¡¯ of Dukdae, the speed of the monster was very low. ¡®And it is another 20 seconds till the provocation is down.¡¯ It was Ian¡¯s plan to take down one monster as quickly as possible, but this wasn¡¯t his full range attack. Ian moved back to the position and opened his information widow, and Hoonie said a weird spell and a thin, filled light wrapped itself around the spear. [¡®Judgement of the Spirit King¡¯ received a spell ¡®Seal of darkness¡¯ from the party member ¡®Kanji Hoonie¡¯. (Will last for 5 seconds).] [While the Seal of Darkness is in use, the damage caused by the Judgement of the Spirit King will increase by 137%.] [During the duration of the Seal of Darkness, all the attacks that touch the critical strike area are marked a ¡®Mark of Darkness¡¯.] [If you cast a ¡®Mark of Darkness¡¯, you will have an additional 7 seconds of damage with an increase of 33%. (Mark of Darkness has been superimposed).] Ian looked at the system message that came in front of his eyes, but he didn¡¯t care as he had always witnessed these things in the party play. And in that moment. Puahk-! Named monster, ¡®Chiles¡¯ failed to respond, Ian¡¯s spear just went through him. [You have done catastrophic damage to the boss ¡®Chiles¡¯!] [The Mark of Darkness has been engraved on the monster ¡®Chiles.¡¯!] The named monsters vitality just went all out with a single strike. ¡®Chiles¡¯ was a named monster which didn¡¯t seem to exceed the level of 400, so Ian and Hoonie started to enjoy the team play. ¡°Hyung! Two more strikes!¡± Hoonie cried over to Ian and Ian knew exactly what he meant. ¡®If there are three marks, then will it cause an explosion?¡¯ The duration from the Seal of Darkness that Hoonie put into effect was 5 seconds only. Ian calmly pulled out the spear from the ¡®Chiles¡¯ monster¡¯s body. Puk- Peuk! And if pushed in much deeper, it could cause much deadly damage, but Ian chooses not to. As long as he had the passive ability ¡®Weakness capture¡¯, there was no need for strong attacks, he only needed to attack the right spot for a critical hit! And Ian¡¯s attack didn¡¯t deviate its path. [You have done catastrophic damage to the boss ¡®Chiles¡¯.] [The Seal of Darkness in engraved on the body of ¡®Chiles¡¯.] Ian¡¯s battle had lasted for exactly 5 seconds. And the body of the monster began to wobble. Ian glanced over at the vitality gauge of the monster. ¡®The life is about 2/5th less. If the marked explosion comes in here¡­!¡¯ The marked explosion was one of Hoonie¡¯s most powerful single attack, and Ian was waiting for it to happen. And Hooine¡¯s skill didn¡¯t upset Ian. CH 280 Chapter 280: Party Hunting and The Gateway ¨C 2 ¡°Marked Explosion!¡± The darkness filled the air that was surrounding the hands of Hoonie flooded towards the boss ¡®Chiles¡¯, and it looked like the boss was getting sucked. To be more precise, the hits that were done by Ian were the places where the darkness was moving to. Bang- Babang-! The three markings of the darkness were left behind after the critical hit done by Ian. The named boss monster Chiles exploded with a huge kaboom. [Due to the Mark of Darkness, Chiles vitality has been reduced by 157989.] [Due to the Mark of Darkness, Chiles vitality has been reduced by 157989.] Not just the damage that was done by the explosion, but the damage left by Ian was over 150,000 times, and the damage of the explosion was over ten times more than a tremendous destructive attack. Even if the named monster was over the level of 400, there was no way that it could still hold its ground after withstanding such huge damage. But surprisingly, Chiles didn¡¯t fall. Although the vitality of the monster was less than 10%, but it still didn¡¯t die. ¡°What? Won¡¯t die?¡± It was an obvious question, after all the combos that were expected to kill it in a strike, Hoonie was embarrassed. But Ian was still lost in his own thoughts. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah! Do it ¡®Greedy Predator¡¯.¡± ¡°Bbook- sure- bbook!¡± Following the command from Ian, Bbookbbook immediately went over towards Chiles. And his mouth wide in the direction of the named monster. [The familiar ¡®BBookbbook¡¯ has activated the ability ¡®Greedy Predator¡¯.] [The targets vitality is less than 20% of its total vitality, so ¡®Greedy Predator¡¯ has been activated.] ¡°Kyahh-!¡± Chiles was screaming and struggling to avoid being sucked into the mouth, and all that wriggling was just clearly useless. The ¡®Greedy Predator¡¯ skill was a definite attack technique that would be impossible to avoid once it was put into play. The reason for it was that, if this skill was interfered after being activated, then another passive skill will come into play. Due to the struggle of Chiles, another ability of Bbookbbook ¡®Do not interfere when eating¡¯ had been activated. [The familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ and the ability, ¡®Do not Interfere when eating¡¯ has been triggered.] [Created a shield with a durability of 343762.] Gulp- With the sound of a single gulp, all the vitality of the named monster was sucked out of its body and went into Bbookbbook¡¯s mouth. Thump- The body of the named monster had fallen onto the floor and its body turned grey in an instant. ¡°Awesome! One down!¡± Ian and Hoonie showed an awesome play in 10 seconds. And all the other team members were shocked at what they had just witnessed. They have all been hunting for plenty of time, but the battle that they had just witnessed in front of their eyes was plain picturesque. Not being aware, Herz spoke out. ¡°Keu, this is art!¡± Just a time play was not enough for the players to understand what had just happened unless the gamers had a good sense of fighting like this party members did. And only if you could see it, this was a kind of play that couldn¡¯t be helped but admired. ¡°Wow, there were words that Seal of Darkness of the Black wizard was a worthless skill¡­ I guess it isn¡¯t all true, huh?¡± At these words from Remir, Hoonie scratched the back of his head and replied, ¡°Well actually¡­ it is a bit¡­ worthless.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°If Ian hyung hadn¡¯t attacked it in the 5 sec, who can pull it off in that time? If it wasn¡¯t Ian hyung, then it wouldn¡¯t have been possible¡­ its hard to find compatible party members.¡± ¡°Oh¡­¡± As the two were talking, the Seal of Darkness of the Black wizard which was supposed to be a useless skill was finally put into use. Since Hoonie wasn¡¯t able to use this spell much profusely, the level of the skill hadn¡¯t reached the third level yet. Whatever was it, the two had succeeded in a partly coordinated play and went back to fight the other named monsters and the boss monster. * * * ¡°Keuhhh¡­ Daeri. Can I go and change my panties?¡± The user play was being monitored in the LB room. On the biggest monitor in the room, Ian and his party were being monitored by Kim Yee-hwan, and right next to him was the Na Ji-chan who got hit and honey like harsh words were being spewed at. Kung- ¡°You want to move from this seat and go where? This sh*thead, what have you been doing till now?¡± Na Ji-chan sighed and spoke. ¡°Ah, why are you hitting me~ this is office violence, you know.¡± Kim Yee-hwan frowned at these words and Daeri responded to the two. ¡°Yah! Are you asking me because you both can¡¯t comprehend? The better he gets, the more night shifts we¡¯ll have to do. And you have time to play around like this?¡± Kim Yee-hwan was appointed as a substitute by Daeri, he was a talented person who was in charge of the planning works team leader with excellent work abilities. And even though Naji-chan seems out of place, he was still the ace of the planning team who had a lot of expectations on his shoulders. It was because Naji-chan¡¯s head was full of ideas and curiosities. ¡°Ah, Mr. Daeri. Doesn¡¯t it look like the two of them are using the Seal of Darkness.¡± ¡°Yeah, seems like it. It was a perfect execution.¡± ¡°You know that it was the skill that I had planned?¡± ¡°I know.¡± ¡°Do you have any idea to know why I feel so bad that my skill is being used?¡± ¡°I know the reason too.¡± Na Ji-chan was a kind of an awesome game planner. Since the gameplay was so interesting they couldn¡¯t help, but get to think about how efficiently the game was played. Usually in such a play even if the skills were combined, it would¡¯ve been hard for the users to show a good play or to execute them. And that was why he was the only fan that Ian had from the planning team of the Kailan game. And he didn¡¯t mind if it was a night shift, or something else. For Na Ji-chan, night shift meant that something interesting was going to happen. He was the only one who usually plans to stay even when there was no work to do, so there was no way that he could not feel glad for meeting Ian. But his direct superior Kim Yee-hwan was different from Na Ji-chan. He was a person, who liked his job of being the game planner very much, and game planning is sure as hell interesting, but the only thing he didn¡¯t want to do was the night shift. ¡°By the way, Ji-chan, do you know why I brought you to the monitoring room?¡± Na Ji-chan nodded his head. ¡°Ye, well¡­ regarding the balance of the rankers on the Asmodians side?¡± Kim nodded his head. ¡°Well, I guess I don¡¯t have to explain much, good.¡± ¡°Whatever it may, I feel like this party will be the best way to check the strength of the current rankers. It isn¡¯t so easy for the topmost players to be gathered like this.¡± ¡°This is true.¡± With that Kim Yee-hwan turned his head to the screen that was right next to him. In that screen, appeared a user who was performing a quest to become a Noblesse. And Kim Yee-hwan spoke. ¡°For three days from this moment, cancel your entire work schedule. You will be in the monitoring room from tomorrow.¡± Na Ji-chan was watching the Iarahan¡¯s battle with an interested look and listened to Kim¡¯s words. ¡°And I¡¯m sure you know what you are supposed to do¡­ analyze the combat power of the Asmodian rankers and the Party of Ian¡¯s of the coming three days, and make sure to bring in a briefing on Monday¡¯s meeting, got it?¡± Once Kim Yee-hwan was done speaking, Na Ji-chan nodded his head. ¡°Yes, there is a new skill planning too¡­ it gets very clear, this sounds so interesting.¡± Kim Yee-hwan smiled and responded. ¡°If you want to, bring a few monitors into the seminar room on the side, and look into the rankings in Shakuran or Ceilon.¡± Na Ji-chan smiled and nodded. ¡°Okay! I get it!¡± After conversing a few more things, Kim Yee-hwan went back to the planning team, and Na Ji-chan sat down at his table and started to watch videos one after the other. The eyes of Na Ji-chan went wide at something as he was watching the videos of the users who were performing the quests for the Asmodian. ¡°What is this? This guy seems familiar¡­¡± After a moment, he took out the tablet and clicked on the user¡¯s data. It looked like a child who had found an interesting toy. ¡°This¡­ is this going to be much more fun than I had imagined¡­?¡± * * * This was the place that the Asmodians were mostly feared of, a place that even the Devil is wary to walk. There were two people facing each other on top of the cliff, the place where the very first generation of the magic system was created. But the feelings that their eyes portrayed wasn¡¯t the same. One man was looking down with a stretched out arm, and the other was the opponent who was on his knees, looking up. ¡°You did good, Irahan.¡± ¡°Thank you, Devil King.¡± ¡°You have all the qualifications needed for a true Noblesse. Except for one thing.¡± ¡°Yes, Devil King. The mission that I was given by you. I will complete and come back soon.¡± At the words from the man, Irahan¡ªthe Devil King nodded his head and answered. ¡°I trust your words, Irahan. If you complete the last thing, then you¡¯ll become a true Noblesse lord in the Devildom. I hope you won¡¯t let down my expectations.¡± Irahan bowed his head and replied. ¡°I will not let you down.¡± The tail of the Devil King went up in a swift motion. ¡°Well, that you should do.¡± And once he was done speaking, the red winds that had been moved around like twisters started to move around. And those twisters swirled around Irahan and then dug at his heart. ¡°Keuahhh¡­!¡± Irahan was in so much pain. But in fact, Irahan wasn¡¯t really in pain. The part of taking the quest to become a True Asmodian, the start of the conversation with the Devil King, and all the other series of the development wasn¡¯t directly led by Irahan, but these were all automatically spoken and acted by the AI. The user Irahan was contemplating on how the quest had progressed till now. ¡®Like this¡­ can I exercise more power than my previous ability?¡¯ The current ability of the Asmodian Irahan was much stronger than the others of the same Asmodian class. However, there was another problem, the proficiency of the skills was lacking much more than before. But even then, Irahan certainly felt much stronger than before¡­ Irahan was waiting for the ceremony to be completed, and his whole body was starting to get stiff. ¡®Just wait, I¡¯ll show all the other people why Irahan is the number 1 ranker.¡¯ When the quest was all finished, Irahan was immediately going to join the Dimensional War. And it was obvious that his camp would be the Asmodian camp. ¡®500 people? No, I don¡¯t mind a 1000 people. I¡¯ll just PK everyone.¡¯ Instead of winning the Noblesse qualifications by competing with other Noblesse Asmodians, Irahan¡¯s choice was to PK more than 500 human users. And a quest message that he had been waiting for had finally popped up. Tring-! [You have met all the requirements to proceed with the quest.] [¡®Blood Pledge IV¡¯ quest has begun.] CH 281 A ¡®Noblesse¡¯ was different from a ¡®Half-Noblesse¡¯. A ¡®Noblesse¡¯ came from a pure lineage. If one was able to learn the skills of an Asmodian and was able to use magic, and wear the items of the Asmodians, then being a Noblesse adds a few more points. A Noblesse was more likely to advance into the higher levels of Noblesse compared to a half-Noblesse. Just like Irahan did, it was possible to substitute a mission with a special quest and yet be able to upgrade to a higher level of Asmodian, and then the speed of collecting the magic points would get much faster. Since there were many factors that were involved, the exact numerical value couldn¡¯t be mentioned, but it would be easy to think that the magic collection would be 1.3 to 1.5 times more. On top of that, the Noblesse class was built with the existing battle stats of a player, so it made the class around 1.3 times stronger. And in addition to that, there were so many items that specifically belonged to the Noblesse class; it would tremendously benefit the class. And now, with the event period, anyone could become an Asmodian by taking up a quest for the conversion process; the process wasn¡¯t that difficult now. But why was it that not much chose to convert into the Asmodian class even when it had such huge benefits? The biggest reason for it was that the users didn¡¯t want to lose what they had after struggling so much for it. Once their class was converted, the users would have to let go of all their current set of skills, and they wouldn¡¯t be able to use any of their human-related items. If there were any guild that the user had joined, then they would be automatically dismissed, and if they had any titles they would all disappear. This was why the users had difficulty in making a decision regarding this. But in the official community, the public¡¯s opinion was leaning towards the Asmodians. In any case, it was said that the Asmodians were much stronger than the human race. And when the public¡¯s opinion started to favor the Asmodians, many users who started to take up a quest and turn into Asmodians started increasing at an exponential rate. But, there was one person who constantly monitored the public¡¯s opinion leaning in favor of the Asmodians. ¡°Sh*t.¡± It was Ian who had logged out of the community for a long time; he just shook his head. For him, the balance between both races was important. The balance would collapse, and he was whining about it. ¡°No, What is so great about a Noblesse? Why are they all so thoughtless?¡± From Ian¡¯s point of view, the whole conversion into a Noblesse thing was like¡­ well, just for the powerful skill set and nothing more. So for Ian, there was no benefit in turning into an Asmodian. Ian just went on scrolling down the comments as he kept on analyzing all the aspects of an Asmodian; he then suddenly clicked his tongue. ¡°I don¡¯t get it, why breakdown the balance by increasing the battle strength with 30%? From what I know, there is a natural balance. If not, then it would become a tribe with just species and no skill.¡± There was no definite reason for Ian to think so. It was because of the existence of a stunt called the ¡®Anti-Magic power¡¯. Once a user converted his race to an Asmodian, all the general attacks and skill attacks were affected by the Anti-magic power. On the other hand ¡®half- noblesse¡¯ magic attacks could get completely blocked by the anti-magic power. ¡°By converting into a Noblesse, it might take time for a new skill proficiency¡­ but a much stronger anti-magic power could be of help.¡± The maximum anti-magic power needed was 30%. In other words, when the anti-magic power reaches its maximum of 30%, it means that the total magic damage from an Asmodian could be canceled off. And with 30% of the innate anti-magic power, the player could be considered having 130% power. With 30% anti-magic power, the Asmodian¡¯s attack would get nullified to an extent. However, without anti-magic power of 30%, 39% of the total power would be reduced by 91%. ¡°Till now, I have brought out only 27% of my characters unique anti-magic power¡­ if I use a couple of more items and magical devices as a secondary option, it can go up to 40 to 50%.¡± Ian roughly thought of the anti-magic that he would need if he decided to fight against magic skills. He could probably raise it up to 60% with the right equipment. In addition, Ian had 5% more anti-magic power than anyone else as he had received that 5% from the GM. Of course, it wasn¡¯t easy to get an item that would harness such power, but it wouldn¡¯t be difficult for a user like Ian who had money. Ian just giggled and turned off the community page. ¡°Fools¡­ go to the auction house tomorrow or the day after tomorrow, and buy all the legendary equipment that has more than 3% of anti-magic power.¡± Users still hadn¡¯t yet known the importance of the abilities of the anti-magic yet. It was because the anti-magic equipment was always rare, and it was difficult for a character to raise its basic anti-magic. Since 1 to 5% of anti-magic didn¡¯t have much role in the current battle, most users didn¡¯t care much about their anti-magic, so this wasn¡¯t an option till now. Ian recalled the anti-magic items he had. And when he began to calculate, it seemed like Ian could get up to 70% anti-magic power with the items he had that could be used against the Asmodians. Well, he surely had to fill up the anti-magic power of his character first till he reached the maximum of 35%. Wheeing- Ian who was holding the capsule button in front of him laughed at the content he had seen in the community page and felt a little excited. After the Maurya Empires quests were over, it seemed like users who have converted into the Asmodians could delete other characters. ¡°Well, the development team isn¡¯t an idiot, I¡¯m sure they will make an anti-magic item or something similar to that¡­ but I haven¡¯t come across any such items¡­¡± Ian sat inside the capsule and closed his eyes. It was time to raise his citizen points in the Maurya Empire for 6,000 points. * * * ¡°Ha¡­ I¡¯m not the only one feeling this, right?¡± Hoonie¡ªwho was beside Herz¡ªhad sweat dripping from his forehead. He nodded and replied. ¡°Phew, why not? It is dead for sure. Have you really hunted with Ian for a long time already? Why is it so difficult for you to keep up?¡± Ian¡¯s companions were all on the floor exhausted, except for Ian. The ones in their best conditions were Remir and Livya. Remir had been the fastest to adapt as she had recently played in a party alongside Ian, and Liviya didn¡¯t really say anything about feeling tired or not. But the one thing that all the members of the party had was that their faces were all bright. And of course, the reason for it was that the hellish hunt was over. Ian got up from the corner and spoke to his party members. ¡°The remaining citizen points we need is about 170. I think I can do that on my own.¡± Once Ian was done, Remir smiled and spoke to Ian. ¡°Phew, you have all worked really hard.¡± Remir¡¯s gaze turned toward Ian. ¡°This time, I¡¯m glad that I could finish the party hunt without leaving in the middle, Ian.¡± Ian responded with a slight smile by what Remir said. ¡°Ha! Haha¡­ looks like Remir, your stamina has gone up.¡± Herz, whose legs could barely support him, shook his head and spoke to Ian. ¡°Phew, if you humans keep on hunting like this, then there won¡¯t be any more living things in here.¡± Ian just briefly answered. ¡°I don¡¯t care.¡± ¡°¡­¡± This time Hoonie shook his head and told Ian. ¡°Hyung, this is so upsetting that we completed the hunt two days earlier. I was hoping to hunt more with you.¡± Ian once again replied briefly to what Hoonie said. ¡°Want to do more?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Once the group was done making jokes and laughing, they all came together then Ian spoke to them. ¡°You all have gone through a lot of trouble. Thanks to you I was able to do this quest.¡± Livya who hadn¡¯t spoken a single word until now spoke for the first time. ¡°It is alright. It had been fun.¡± Hoonie who had seen this went towards Herz. ¡°Hyung, that woman, she is a little scary, right?¡± ¡°I feel the same too¡­¡± Ian¡ªwho was laughing a little¡ªspoke. ¡°I will continue on this road. If you guys want to follow me then you can come or you can shop in the public location, log out and then go back. I would send you back to the Northern continent if I could¡­ but I can¡¯t open the portal just yet. The portal will open in two days, so use your free time then let¡¯s meet up again here¡­ it doesn¡¯t matter even if you want to hunt more.¡± The party members who had listened to this immediately scattered. The ones who wanted to enjoy their 5 days of hard work went to the town, and the others who couldn¡¯t endure their tiredness immediately logged out. There was a user in front of Ian. And that was Levya. ¡°Levya, you plan on coming with me?¡± Levya nodded the moment Ian had asked. Ian spoke again. ¡°Wasn¡¯t it tough?.¡± ¡°It was, but I¡¯m fine.¡± Ian smiled and turned away. ¡°Well, let¡¯s go then, we are short on time.¡± As Ian started walking, Levya moved along with him, and they both started to move pretty quickly. It wasn¡¯t a bad thing for Levya to accompany Ian. He could move much safely, quickly and hunt more as well if she was there. * * * As soon as Ian arrived, he began to use his citizen points to promote his class. Tring- [You consumed 1000 citizen points and was successfully promoted.] [User ¡®Ian¡¯ from the Mauryan Empire moved from ¡®Sudra¡¯ to ¡®Vaisya¡¯.] [Being in ¡®Vaisya¡¯ class, you can now perform business in the Mauryan Empire and purchase buildings.] [Being in ¡®Vaisya¡¯ class allows you to hire a mercenary from the Mauryan Empire.] ¡°Okay, next¡­!¡± Ian just dismissed the series of upcoming messages with a single word and promoted his class to the next one. Tring- [You have successfully used 5,000 citizen points to advance.] [User ¡®Ian¡¯ from the Mauryan Empire moved from ¡®Vaisya¡¯ to ¡®Kshatriya¡¯.] [¡®Kshatriya¡¯ class, the aristocrats of the Mauryan Empire.] [Being in the ¡®Kshatriya¡¯ class, you can buy slaves from the Mauryan Empire.] [Being in the ¡®Kshatriya¡¯ class, you will be given access to Hwangseong.] [Being in the ¡®Kshatriya¡¯ class, you can now occupy the base of the Mauryan Empire.] Again, the messages were all being generated one after another, but Ian¡¯s gaze was stuck to a single message. [Being in the ¡®Kshatriya¡¯ class, you are now entitled to challenge the ¡®Gate of Examination¡¯ in the Kapila castle.] ¡®This is it¡­!¡¯ It was finally the time to go through the test and meet the King of Rings. He could now get a relic from him and complete all the journeys. And with the Dimensional Beads, he could always come back to the Mauryan Empire, but this quest had more importance. ¡®The Cintamani.¡¯ Ian smiled. CH 282 This time when the mysterious monster wave opened, it was a full moon. It was a definite thing, most of the users were interested in dimensional warfare, game channels, and articles during this period, as these all had stories related to the dimensional war. And the battlefields that appeared in the largest number of stations in this dimensional war were all situated in the Central Continent. The monster wave in the Central Continent was definitely larger than the wave in the Northern Continent. There were two waves in the Central Continent, and they weren¡¯t that far from each other, so it looked like one massive battlefield. Also, the two waves in the Northern Continent were on opposite sides. The largest gaming broadcast station YTBC was no exception. Recently, YTBC¡¯s flagship broadcast contents were all related to the dimensional war, and the regular MC¡¯s of YTBC Lucia and Hains were sent to the battlefield of the Central Continent. [Ah, the situation here looks very dangerous.] [That is true. If it wasn¡¯t for Shakaran¡¯s orders, half of the Titan guild would have been blown to bits!] [Oh my! Is the wide area technology so powerful?] [Yes, it is. I just saw a wide area ice attack which was called the ¡®Frozen Hell¡¯ by Keila an Ice Mage, an awesome skill with very high damage. A level 180 knight with no proper defense would be vulnerable to death.] [¡®Frozen Hell¡¯ is it a skill similar to the skill of the Ice Age class wizards?] [That could be the case. Though the skill name is the same, the skills performance is not really similar.] Hains was quite aware of the Kailan game. When he was broadcasting a game, he always stated what he wanted to do. He was one of the most preferred anchors for the viewers when watching a broadcast. [Two more hours left until the end of the war for today! Well, will the users be able to protect the Kalonis desert from being taken over by the monsters¡­!] Hains raised his voice and kept on explaining the situation of the battlefield. At that time, a few system messages appeared for the users who were on the battlefield. Since the anchors were all connected to the game, they could also see the messages without being excluded. Tring- [The first user of the ¡®Asmodian¡¯ race has entered the Dimensional War.] [User with the ¡®Asmodian¡¯ race will join the ¡®Magye¡¯ camp and fight against the user with ¡®Human¡¯ race.] [If you manage to win against the opponent user and earn a kill point, you will earn five times the kill points than any normal Asmodian.] [If you succeed in killing the opponent user, you will get fame points that are proportionate to the target¡¯s level (Target¡¯s level x 10).] All the users who have confirmed the messages began to bounce up and down in happiness. ¡°Well, will we finally have successfully transformed Asmodians enter the dimensional war?¡± ¡°It sure looks like that¡­ hope it isn¡¯t a joke? 5 points per kill and the fame points are multiplied by 10 times. If they manage to kill a level 150 user then the fame points they would get from that would be 1500, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°Right.¡± ¡°But I wonder won¡¯t the Asmodian kids be strong?¡± ¡°No no, maybe they are weak at this moment? No matter how great their battle stats are, their skill level wouldn¡¯t be that great.¡± ¡°Is that so? So if one spots them, just run straight ahead and kill them for the fame and kill points?¡± ¡°Right!¡± The users in the battlefield began to wield their weapons much more swiftly than before, and the anchors of the broadcasting station were running out of breath in explaining the situation to the viewers. And just like that, a new chapter began in the Dimensional War. * * * ¡°Levya, go back to the meeting point now and rest for a bit. I have a few more quests that I¡¯m supposed to do.¡± After using up all her Citizen points in the Inn, Levya followed Ian to the Kapila Castle. It could be that she wanted to see the contents of the newly opened dimension, but Ian was very uncertain. ¡®Why is this scary woman following me around?¡¯ Even for the game obsessed Ian, Levya seemed like a person with strong stamina. Even in the most disturbing environment of the game, she didn¡¯t lose her balance. She didn¡¯t make a single uncoordinated movement till now. If it wasn¡¯t for the Kailan systems content customization for not being able to make big changes from the real world¡¯s persona, Ian would have doubted her gender. That was how great this woman¡¯s skills were. Levya was staring at Ian with an expressionless face and blinked her big beautiful eyes. She then said. ¡°I have nothing to do for the next two days¡­you don¡¯t think I can help you with your quest?¡± ¡°Uh¡­um¡­¡± The help that Levya offered, was something that Ian felt very grateful about. However, the place that Ian was now going to was the gateway, and it wouldn¡¯t allow a party to enter. Just to be sure, Ian opened the quest window and had no choice but to refuse her offer of help. ¡°The quest that I¡¯m now going into, it isn¡¯t a place I can enter with a party.¡± Levya just nodded and responded. ¡°Then there is nothing I can do. Then I¡¯ll go and hunt on my own.¡± Ian couldn¡¯t believe what he just heard. ¡°Hunting?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You are going to hunt again?¡± ¡°Yes, is it wrong?¡± There were two reasons why Ian felt that her decision was ridiculous. First of all, all the members of the party were logged out, and Levya still wanted to do a solo hunt. Though the priest class was a class that could manage to do a solo hunt, this class had the least chance to be successful among all the other classes. Second, she was going to hunt again after just completing 20 hours worth of hunting. Ian had always done this, hunt then hunt again and some more, so when he met another user with the same personality as his, it felt strange Ian responded with a bit of awkward expression. ¡°Ah, no. Then go ahead and do it. There are a few fields around the Kapila castle that can be possibly hunted.¡± ¡°Sure, Thanks. Then I¡¯ll meet you again tomorrow at the appointed place.¡± Ian nodded. ¡°Yep.¡± After answering her question, Ian started to move in the direction of the gateway of the Kapila castle. However, Levya suddenly called Ian. ¡°Ah, Ian.¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡­ but can you just listen to my request?¡± Ian began to sweat because of Levya¡¯s question, yet he nodded. ¡°Sure, you have helped me a lot this time so I¡¯ll listen to your request.¡± Levya¡¯s face brightened because of what Ian said. Levya smiled brightly and thanked him. ¡°Wow! Thank you, Ian.¡± Ian just mumbled to himself and swept the sweat from his forehead. ¡®Well, I can¡¯t be definitely sure yet.¡¯ Ian turned his gaze towards Levya so he could hear out what she had to say. ¡°If your quest is done Ian, please help me with my quest.¡± This was a bit of an unexpected request, but this wasn¡¯t so bad to be called strange either so Ian just nodded. ¡°Yes, I will. But what kind of request is this?¡± Levya¡¯s face went expressionless when she answered. ¡°Well, just a quest.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian could feel a little discomfort, but he just nodded. ¡®Well¡­when did I ever miss a request for a quest¡­¡¯ Both of them made a promise to help each other, Ian turned away and started walking fast. And Ian¡¯s destination was the Gateway of Test. * * * Kwang- Kwakwang-! [¡®Witch sword¡¯ skill has been activated.] [For the time being, all normal attacks will inflict damage on all enemies within the radius of 10m.] The first ¡®Asmodian¡¯ user has joined the Dimensional War. And that one was¡ªIrahan. He started to run wild but with an objective the moment he joined the war. Irahan had a unique ability to control the skills and utilize them effectively, and so he began to massacre the users with the destructive attack skills that he had. [You have succeeded in killing the user ¡®Kathryn¡¯ from the ¡®Human¡¯ campsite.] [Kill points +5.] [Earned 1750 (175¡Á10) fame points.] Irahan¡¯s sword, it was a sword in which part of the Devil Kalifa of Marion was sealed into. It was a weapon that had the strength similar to that of Ian¡¯s Judgement of the Spirit King. It had a lot of magic power which was similar to the Noblesse, and if a user was faced with it, they would be in a helpless situation. Irahan was currently the most powerful compared to the strongest wizards. In other words, he was more powerful than any other monster that would appear in the monster wave. Users were stunned with the strength that Irahan was showing. ¡°Sh*t, what the hell is that? How can he do that?¡± ¡°Did you see that? Users would die instantly whenever that level 175 knight wielded his sword. Does that make any sense?¡± Irahan was in a rush. Since he was once a human user, and he was used to the basics of the party play of the human users, it was definite that he would be able to play in a smarter way than the other monsters and Asmodians who move with an AI. And since there was no player that could take on Irahan currently, Irahan cleverly used the other Asmodians as much as he could and killed the users by confusing them. The level was over 200, and the innate stats were 30% from the Asmodians, there was no user who could deal with his agility in this field. ¡®Keu, this is the taste of PK. Hehe¡­ I don¡¯t feel pity for you. I¡¯m sorry my friends.¡¯ Irahan felt glad every time his sword cut through a human player. Since there was no one who could go against an Asmodian in their correct stage, it was his idea to enjoy this as much as he could. Kwang-! [Caused damage to the user ¡®Maudyi¡¯.] [The damage caused is reduced by 3.56% because of the armor the user ¡®Maduyi¡¯ has.] [User ¡®Madyui¡¯s¡¯ vitality has been reduced by 228900.] [You have succeeded in killing the user ¡®Maduyi¡¯ of the ¡®Human¡¯ race.] [Kill point +5.] [Earned 1880 (188¡Á10) fame points.] Irahan looked at the system message and laughed. ¡®These people in the Dimensional war don¡¯t even have a set that has 5% anti-magic. Are these guys just plain idiots?¡¯ Irahan wasn¡¯t a fool. On the contrary, he was a very smart and sly user. And that was why he knew the importance of having anti-magic. ¡®If they were even a bit wary of the game¡­ 10 to 20% of players in the top rankings will be able to have enough anti-magic, but why haven¡¯t I come across even a single player with 5% anti-magic?¡¯ Irahan just smiled at this situation. That was because users with low anti-magic were like a served meal. Irahan had a very high attack rate, and the magic damage was a fixed rate. With the 200,000 magic power that Irahan has, it was natural for users with low anti-magic to just succumb with a single attack. ¡®Nice, I have already brought down 20 people. At this rate, I can take down around 500 people.¡¯ Irahan smiled and began to move towards the next target. To Irahan, this battlefield was like a honeycomb with no bees to protect it. On another side, while Irahan was busy being on the run, the other Asmodians who had just converted began to join the war even though they were already late to do so. And for the users on the other side, a huge disaster was coming in their direction. CH 283 ¡°No, you are that¡­! You are that low-life! How dare you come back here again¡­!¡± Asked the guard at the Kapila castle at the gateway of the test. The NPC guarding it went out of control the moment he saw Ian standing outside the gate once again. This was because he remembered seeing Ian in front of the gate a few days back. ¡®What? Why am I a low-life?¡¯ However, Ian just pulled out a brand new identity card, and the situation turned around. ¡°What a rude thing to say. Now I belong to the Kshatriya class.¡± The guard who had identified the identification card of Ian¡¯s just went dumb. The status of the Kshatriya was a much higher rank than that of the guards who were only a Vaisya. The head of the guard who had shouted at Ian bowed his head and apologized for his actions. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m sorry. I didn¡¯t know¡­ we made a mistake. Please forgive me with your kind heart.¡± As soon as he heard that, Ian thought of something unusual. ¡®Forgive huh¡­ What if I won¡¯t forgive you?¡¯ However, Ian didn¡¯t have much time to fulfill his curious questions. Before the two days that would be needed for the Dimensional beads to charge, he has to take an item that belongs to the King of Rings, or it would take another week for him to return to the human world. ¡®That can¡¯t happen. I need to go back and take first place in the contribution board once again.¡¯ Ian asked the head guard. ¡°Anyway, can I challenge the gateway of test now?¡± The head guard quickly nodded and answered the question of Ian¡¯s. ¡°Yes, surely you can. Mr. Ian, would you like to enter immediately?¡± Ian just nodded. ¡°Yes, I will. There aren¡¯t any other rules that I need to be aware of, right?¡± ¡°Yes, there aren¡¯t. Since I have never entered, I¡¯m not entirely sure¡­ I only know what I hear from those who enter the gate.¡± Ian just nodded and started to think. ¡®Well, the system is simple, I like it.¡¯ Ian spoke again. ¡°Okay, where am I supposed to enter?¡± The head guard jerked the guard who was standing next to him, the guard came forward and bowed to Ian. ¡°Follow me, sir. I will guide you there.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Ian began to walk alongside the guard, the place that was behind the gate of test that he guided to was a secret tunnel in a huge rocky mountain. * * * Wowooong- In front of the cave was a magic circle, the guard put a red bead on the magic circle. And light started to glow from that red bead and so was the circle. The rocks that were blocking the cave started to move with a roar. Grr- Grrgrr- The circular rock that was perfectly blocking the entrance of the tunnel started to roll sideways, and Ian entered inside once the door was opened. ¡°Well, please do your best.¡± Ian nodded and lifted his head in response to what the guard said. ¡°Well, I hope so too.¡± Inside of the tunnel was a very gruesome atmosphere. Ian immediately summoned all his familiars then checked out their stats. ¡®It would be nice if the others could come too¡­ these are the kind of quests that they needed the most.¡¯ Ian just grunted and continued to talk. There was only one road he could take, there wasn¡¯t much of a choice. ¡°Kaka, do you know anything about this?¡± Kaka who was slowly dozing off came onto Ian¡¯s shoulder and nodded. Ian had gathered so much information from Kaka in the past, at this point it was natural for Ian to right away ask Kaka anything that he didn¡¯t know about. Kaka who was always ready to speak out her thoughts and knowledge turned her gaze towards Ian and shrugged. ¡°I also don¡¯t know. There is no way I would know everything.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­sh*t.¡± Ian cursed and looked over at Kaka. It was a little disappointing, but this was an unavoidable situation. ¡®It is not right for me to depend too much on Kaka.¡¯ Ian started to move again, and the end of the tunnel could be seen now. But Ian suddenly realized that something was wrong. ¡°So, Kaka. How do you sleep?¡± Kaka was a bit surprised with Ian¡¯s question and bounced off from his shoulders and started to fly in front of Ian. ¡°What¡­ what do you mean master?¡± Ian just spoke like a speedboat. ¡°That¡¯s what I mean! You can¡¯t possibly sleep, right? And you have never seen this in the past 3 thousand years? So you won¡¯t be able to use the Greedy Night Hag. But just now I saw you dozing off, you did¡ªright?¡± Kaka looked into Ian¡¯s eyes and shook her head. Kaka was flustered and stutteringly said. ¡°Eu¡­um¡­that¡­so¡­¡± Ian¡¯s eyes started to glow fiery red. ¡°What! Did you lie to me all this while? Now that I see it, it was not written in your information window that you don¡¯t sleep¡­!¡± Kaka was taken aback when Ian scolded her for getting caught trying to take a nap. ¡°That, that isn¡¯t it master!¡± ¡°Then what!¡± ¡°The Karga Phantom clan is a clan that can¡¯t sleep.¡± ¡°Go on.¡± Ian folded his hands and listened to Kaka¡¯s excuses, and Kaka just kept talking. ¡°Do you remember the old book that we bought at the antique store, master?¡± Ian thought about it for a second and remembered the expensive item he had bought in the very beginning, but forgot to check. ¡®Ah, right. The old book that Kaka brought to me.¡¯ Ian looked at Kaka and responded. ¡°So what, you saw it¡­ what about it? Thought that I forgot about it?¡± Kaka just continued to talk. ¡°That book is a legendary item that unlocks a special ability that has been sealed.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Ian¡¯s eyes twitched because of what he heard. He knew where Kaka was heading to with this topic. ¡°The Book of Seiterian¡­? Was it that?¡± Kaka looked at Ian and nodded. ¡°Yes¡­ yes, master.¡± ¡°Did you extract that expensive item?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°And you opened the seal of your last unique ability?¡± ¡°Ye¡­ yes, master.¡± Kaka moved his gaze and put her head down. Ian just laughed at Kaka¡¯s face and thought. ¡®Even though I didn¡¯t get the item in the antique store, he managed to extract that book from the dreams with his ability¡­ it worked out well.¡¯ The Seiterian¡¯s Record was a rare item. Though it was a legendary item, it was still an item that could be dropped. It was very expensive because the demand for this item was much higher than the supply. The average price of Seiterian Records was about 15 million gold. Though it was a very expensive item, Ian would have been willing to pay if it meant any good to Kaka, but it was a good thing that Kaka got what she wanted. ¡®I can¡¯t help but feel like I have done something scandalous?¡¯ Ian wanted to make sure if Kaka was willing to hand over the item to him. ¡°You¡­ owe it to me.¡± Kaka smiled at what Ian said and replied. ¡°Hehe, Master. When does a slave owe anything to a master? You¡¯re everything to me master.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian looked at Kaka and just shook his head. ¡°So, what is the last skill to be unsealed? Is it anything related to you being able to sleep?¡± Kaka nodded. ¡°Yes, master. I feel like sleep is a very nice thing to do. It tastes like honey.¡± ¡°Yes. Sleep is good.¡± Ian impatiently looked into the information window of Kaka¡¯s after a long time of not checking it. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Descendant of the Darkness (Race inherited) (Race specialized) (Strengthening ability) * Karga phantom, the descendant of darkness, immune to all attacks except for light based attacks. However, if dealt with a light attack, takes 50 times more damage. Greedy Night Hag (Rare ability) * Hag is a devil with the ability to make things happen in one¡¯s dreams. Kaka¡ªa greedy hag¡ªwill appear with a rare item whenever she¡¯s dreaming or enters someone¡¯s dream. Dreaming Devil (Race) (Race specialization) (Evolving ability) (Strengthening Ability) * Karga phantom, the descendant of darkness, has a life of the eternal time. They are a mysterious and wise race that dominates the darkness, but they were cursed for a lifetime. So, the clan of the Karga phantom, after studying the Incar for years learned the ability to control their darkness by falling into a state of sadness(sleep). This ability is rare and only a few of the Karga Phantom can use the ¡®Dreaming Devil¡¯ ability; this helps them control the darkness more perfectly. ( Cooldown time ¨C 30 minutes.) * While ¡®Dreaming Devil¡¯ inherent abilities are activated, Kaka won¡¯t be able to do any other task. * When ¡®Dreaming Devil¡¯ ability is activated, Kaka falls into a singer state, and when Kaka dreams, darkness will fall within a radius of 1Km. (Duration¡ª10 minutes, darkness will spread, and the surroundings will become night.) * While ¡®Dreaming Devil¡¯ is activated, all the party members attacks will increase by 5%, and all the damage caused by darkness will be reduced by 50%. All hidden enemies within the specified radius will be revealed. (Sneaky loser slows down the movement speed by 30% for 10 seconds.) * Once the Karga Phantom awakens it gains much more wisdom, and its ability gets stronger. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian was completely shocked. ¡°Wow¡­¡± Of all the abilities that Ian had seen till now, no other ability had such a long explanation than ¡®Dreaming Devil¡¯. Kaka¡¯s new unique ability with a long description was overwhelming. But as soon as Ian read all the lengthy information and options after a long time, he couldn¡¯t help but make fists. ¡®This is all¡­ this is all¡­! This is all I get for spending 15 million gold!¡¯ This was a hidden card for the assassin class, and Ian could do nothing but worry at what he just saw! In the beginning, Ian was an assassin ranker who had a PVP. And he was confident as he didn¡¯t have to deal with any more things related to that, but even now Ian was the most considered when it came to dealing with an assassin class. Summoners were not that good against a poisonous assassin. Assassins were a class that specializes in PVP. There was always a possibility for an assassin to be in the vicinity of an arena, but it was also possible to deal with such situations, but if in the Dimensional war an Asmodian with a previous assassin class had been met, then he would be able to see through the darkness. But it would be an entirely different story as one could neutralize the ¡®stalker¡¯ and frighten the assassin. At least Ian could be sure that there would be no problems for an assassin who lacks specs, and the control would be dropped. ¡®There could be no such assassin.¡¯ But Ian had accepted that Limlong was a very good assassin with awesome control skills. However, he was convinced that as long as they maintained their close-relations, such a situation wouldn¡¯t arise. Besides, when Kaka¡¯s unique ability was activated, it was clear that Ly who already had power at night would go full-on crazy. Ian wasn¡¯t doing much effort to control his expressions. ¡®If I show how much I love this skill¡­ Kaka will get way over her head.¡¯ No matter how good he felt, he had no intentions of showing it. Ian calmed himself and asked Kaka. ¡°This is certainly good. If it is used well, it would be of great help in a big battle.¡± Kaka looked at Ian with uncertain eyes in response to his dull statement. ¡°What is wrong master? What¡¯s with the robot-like response?¡± But Ian didn¡¯t respond and just kept moving. Kaka grumbled to herself and began to move behind Ian towards the end of the tunnel. And from there, a situation would unfold that Ian wasn¡¯t expecting. CH 284 ¡°Challengers! It has been a long time since the last challenge.¡± A vacant lot was where the test was supposed to be held. Ian looked up to get a good view at the ten feet tall giant that stood in front of him. It would be a bit upsetting to call him a giant, but he was still tall and huge when compared to an average human being. The giant had a very long beard that extended up to his waist and wore a shining gold armor. He seemed like a leader who had a great lot of ability on his own. Ian approached him and spoke. No¡ªhe tried to speak. ¡®What? Did an automatic quest process gets triggered in here?¡¯ Disregarding Ian¡¯s will, the quest began. Ian just started to contemplate with a calmed mind and the quest proceeded. ¡°I¡¯m called Ian. It is an absolute honor to meet you.¡± The old man spoke with a satisfied expression in response to what Ian said. ¡°There hasn¡¯t been a remarkable figure in the Maurya Empire for a long time. Our King will surely be blessed to have you.¡± Ian was wondering, how long was a ¡®long time¡¯. ¡®What? Why is he suddenly calling me a ¡®remarkable person¡¯?¡¯ Ian couldn¡¯t understand what was happening, but the elderly man mentioned ¡®remarkable person¡¯ was none other than the fame that Ian had. Ian¡¯s fame, which has never been mentioned or used had gotten over 20 million, and it was now at a whopping figure of 30 million fame. And the gateway of Maurya Empire had a very close relation to a user¡¯s fame. ¡°It is a joy. With morality, I do things I can for justice.¡± Ian¡¯s hands and legs felt numb seeing the old man. ¡®What is this, uh¡­ he¡¯s giving me goosebumps¡­¡¯ However, contrary to Ian, Ograd was indeed pleased to meet the user in front of him. ¡°Well, it is really respectable to live in the world while following the law.¡± The veteran who observed Ian¡¯s words looked at him and spoke. ¡°Well Ian, it is nice to meet you. I am one of the closest to the Seven great Kings, I¡¯m the suitor of the King of Iron Rings.¡± He introduced himself as the suitor, and after shaking hands with Ian, he started to move slowly. ¡°Come along. If you are a person who has built up the merit, then you don¡¯t have to go through the tests. I can make you meet the King right away, how does that sound¡­ shall we do that?¡± Ian who was listening to the suitor felt something was wrong. ¡®What? Why the sudden free-pass?¡¯ Ian didn¡¯t know why the suitor was giving Ian such a huge favor. But the next second, Ian said something that shattered his own happiness. ¡°No. Why would I want such a privilege? I want to prove that my abilities are sufficient to meet the King.¡± Ian didn¡¯t know how to react. ¡®What! what is this¡­! That wasn¡¯t me! This is invalid!!¡¯ However, Ian¡¯s movements were now under the control of AI, Ian could only feel the movements of his eyes and nose. And the suitor who didn¡¯t know the real intention of Ian smiled and replied. ¡°Haha, I really like you, my friend. Nice. As you wish, you can surely pass my test.¡± Ian bent his head and answered. ¡°Give me a chance to prove my worth.¡± The suitor nodded and replied. ¡°Good. Then let¡¯s start the test right away.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Ian immediately went into depression but decided to accept this sour reality. ¡®Yeah, well I guess the AI won¡¯t solve the quest. I will end this by passing the test.¡¯ Ian, who was now under the AI of the Kailan was grunting and shuddering. And after a while, Ian got freed from the AI¡¯s control, and the suitor vanished into the air. ¡°Don¡¯t be a fool, Ian.¡± Ian nodded with an awkward expression and replied. ¡°Thank you.¡± And as the suitor began to disappear, Ian noticed five rays of light started to fall down from the sky. And the rays of light started to take the shape¡­ the shape of monsters. Ian immediately summoned all his familiars, and they started to look at one another with a nervous face. ¡®325, 339, 340¡­ overall there are five name monsters between 300~350 level.¡¯ Ian knew that this wasn¡¯t going to be easy. The overall level was much lower than the monsters in the dungeon outside the Southern Island Buju, but all these monsters were named. And Ian didn¡¯t have back up. Without help from Yankun or Kaizer, these sorts of opponents weren¡¯t going to be easy to deal with. ¡®I guess I¡¯ll have to use Kaka¡¯s new ability once and for all.¡¯ There was no way to be sure if these monsters were the ones who would use the darkness or attack with dark abilities, but even then Kaka¡¯s wide range attack would be of good use. It would give an increase of 5% in attack power, and Ian had a feeling that Ly would be the best player in this situation. And before the battle began, the suitor¡¯s voice could be heard from somewhere. [These are the illusion demons that resided in the underground of the Dong-seung Island. They can reflect about 6 to 7 percent of your ability¡¯s damage, but they aren¡¯t easy opponents to deal with. Be careful and prove your abilities.] Ian knew from the words of the suitor that he was teasing Ian. ¡°Uh¡­uh¡­ how nice it would be if this won¡¯t fail.¡± Ian just grumbled and grabbed his spear. Ian always liked to fight, but he felt that taking the free pass would have been nicer. ¡°Okay, I wouldn¡¯t have been here if I wasn¡¯t capable enough.¡± Ian ran towards the monsters. Now if the quest seemed like it was going to end, then this quest was getting harder. * * * ¡°Nice, awesome.¡± The red flames were all over the place, and all because of the magic that was happening here and there. In this place that was filled with mystery, a man was on his knees while facing the Devil King. ¡°I have given these tasks to many human beings until now, but you are the first person to have completed my task so perfectly. Oh, was there another one?¡± The man bowed his head in response to the Devil King¡¯s praise, but his expression remained unchanged. ¡°Thank you.¡± The Devil king clapped. He turned around and extended his hands. One of the red crystal that was floating in the air flew towards the hand of the Devil. The crystal was large, and it had a deep red color. Its colors were similar to a human¡¯s blood, and it was flowing inside the man. ¡°You have shown great capabilities, but you¡¯ll have to pay for it.¡± The Devil King lifted his hand. And the red crystal that was still floating fell into his hand with a single motion from the Devil King. ¡°This will be enough reward.¡± The Devil King reached towards the man, and the crystal that was in the Devil¡¯s hand got sucked into the man¡¯s chest. Woong- Woowong! Then a line of system messages popped in front of the man¡¯s eyes. Tring- [¡®Asmodian Blood¡¯ has been absorbed.] The Devil King spoke while looking down at the man whose expression still didn¡¯t change. ¡°You¡¯ve already accomplished quite a bit, you know.¡± The man still hadn¡¯t said anything, so the Devil King continued to speak. ¡°Maybe the magic that you have is good enough. Maybe you could have been born into the purest of Noblesse¡­¡± After he was done speaking, he walked back. Now his role was done. He disappeared into the darkness after saying one last word. ¡°I won¡¯t say it, but you know what you are supposed to do next. Once you are done, come find me again.¡± The man answered. ¡°Yes, I understand.¡± The Devil King smiled and disappeared immediately. The man after absorbing all the Asmodian blood into his body rose from his position. His expression changed. And that was because the AI¡¯s control on his character was now lifted, and the user had now full control over his character. ¡°Okay, this wasn¡¯t easy, but the results are good.¡± The man smirked after checking the system messages that were in front of his eyes. [You have successfully accomplished the test of the Devil King. ] [Final grade: SS] [User ¡®Limlong¡¯ master rank has been converted to ¡®Greater Asmodian¡¯.] [You have been given additional 7000 ¡®magic power¡¯ which can be used in combat, the ability of the mage.] [You have been given an additional 4% of magic strike rate, which is a new ability in the magic dimension.] [You have succeeded in becoming a ¡®Noblesse¡¯.] [Your race will be changed to ¡®Asmodian¡¯.] [You have earned 200,000 fame points.] [Permanent increase of magic attack rate by 3%.] [Your damage is permanently increased by 5%.] The man¡ªLimlong¡ªhad a more pleasant expression. ¡®Is it because I was a half-noblesse that the conversion is so much better than other users?¡¯ The speculation of Limlong was on point. Before Limlong became a Noblesse, he had accumulated a lot of magic points and was turned to a half-noblesse. When he became a half-noblesse after putting a lot of effort in passing the Devil¡¯s test, he started to become an ¡®Asmodian¡¯. Limlong¡¯s base was a half-asmodian, but now he would be able to start as a Greater Asmodian after passing the quest of ascension. The Greater Asmodian was a high rated level which had an additional 70,000 magic points that could be used. Therefore, Limlong¡¯s magic points were now 150,000. ¡®Was there a need for 200,000 magic points to become a Noblesse¡­?¡¯ It wouldn¡¯t be easy to collect 50,000 magic points, but it would be easier since he had gotten used to it. ¡®Skill proficiency has fallen to the bottom, but that¡¯s not all..¡¯ Limlong opened the information window of his character and checked his abilities. One after the other. ¡°Okay, It is better than I thought.¡± Limlong, wasn¡¯t in the group that rushed to the conversion quest that had opened up. He was in the category of those who were concerned about the quests which offered users to convert into an Asmodian. He was already walking down the road when he noticed that there wasn¡¯t a single member of the Oakland Guild along with the guild master Samuel Jean who hadn¡¯t turned into an Asmodian. There was a reason why he was concerned. The first thing was, like the other users, it was about the skills they worked hard to accomplish. And the other reason¡ªwhich was his biggest concern¡ªwas the anti-magic stats. Of course, it was clear that there weren¡¯t many users who had even managed to cross the 10% threshold on anti-magic yet. However, as time goes by, this would be a huge disadvantage for the Asmodians as the anti-magic increase. He stumbled upon an opportunity that made him choose to be an Asmodian. ¡®I didn¡¯t know that I would come across the anti-magic power in an auction house.¡¯ While searching in an auction house, Limlong had unexpectedly discovered an item the ¡®Cancellation of anti-magic¡¯. Its figures weren¡¯t that high, it was just 2.5%. However, he thought that this would be enough to cope with the anti-magic power in case he had to come across such a situation. ¡®Once I get 10%, I¡¯ll be able to cancel all of the anti-magic.¡¯ And this was how Limlong secured two more of the ¡®Cancellation of Anti-magic¡¯ in the auction house. He did try to find more of the item, but he could only manage to find two more items in the whole auction house. The other two items held much fewer stats than the first one that Limlong was using. Since both of them were legendary equipment, he could manage to get a total of 7% of cancellation. Limlong thought that he would be able to slash through the users with the amount of cancellation power that he had. And that was what he wanted to do all along. With all that he had, he could deflect around 9% of the anti-magic power. The anti-magic that Limlong could handle because of his character was 7%, and the characters own would give about 9.5%, and 2.5% with the items he had bought. It was natural for anyone to imagine that it would be impossible for anyone to collect a 30% anti-magic power like Ian did. ¡®Huhu¡­ After meeting all the conditions I need to turn into a pure Noblesse and then join the dimensional war. I can¡¯t keep doing these stuff all alone like a monk.¡¯ Limlong also knew than Irahan was the first to have the information. After checking his stats, he started to rush and jump out of jealousy. He felt like he was being served the sweetest of honey right in front of his mouth. CH 285 The demons from the underground were very strong. Their strength couldn¡¯t be assessed that easily. The illusion demons that were level 300-350 had been summoned to push him into a corner to test his capabilities. ¡®Sh*t, these monsters seem too smart.¡¯ At the beginning of the game, it was difficult for users to hunt a monster that had a higher level than them. There was always a limit to the skills one possesses, this was because there were always unexpected factors in combat. However, as the game progressed to the next level, the users were clearly able to overcome the level gap they had with the monsters at a faster rate. This was because the users could play with their intelligence as the monsters had to rely on their AI. And the monster¡¯s intelligence also had been increased and the AI was also upgraded, but it still had its limitations. Therefore, as the users level up, and their abilities were diversified, these skills could be used in the right moment to create a favorable situation and take down monsters that were stronger than the players. Having better equipment was so much better, but this was how it was played. And now here was the reason why Ian was struggling. The ¡®suitor¡¯ summoned opponents for Ian to beat so he could showcase his strength. And these monsters somehow seemed to be more intelligent than the other monsters. Ian narrowed his eyes. ¡®It is almost like I am dealing with 5 users.¡¯ But somehow, Ian had to overcome this situation. ¡®I¡¯ll probably take more damage than I assumed. I need to put an end to this as fast as I can.¡¯ Ian¡¯s vitality was still full. Ian didn¡¯t get himself attacked, and the enemy didn¡¯t bother to either. And Ian had both Bbookbbook and Halli on his side. Ian did manage to defeat one of the five demons and inflicted damage to the remaining four. But Ian still thought that the balance between their powers hadn¡¯t still been achieved. ¡®I¡¯m still in a disadvantageous position.¡¯ The demons weren¡¯t that great, but their skills were still sufficient to damage Ian. And their vitality would recover little by little over time. Ian too had a wide range of Heals, but it was an entirely different story. There was a fairly long cooldown time on his Heals, and those monsters didn¡¯t have such conditions on their recovering ability. ¡°Phew.¡± Ian was able to breathe in between the battle as it had been so long since Ian had to face such difficulties after getting his familiars. And now he had to look for small gaps in his enemies defenses and use his strongest attacks. ¡®They are as smart as users. I need to play thinking I¡¯m in a PVP.¡¯ Thought Ian to himself. The battle was still going on, Ian was just waiting for the right time. Kwang- Kwawang-! Even in a fierce battle, Ian made sure to calmly assess the situation. ¡®The guy who¡¯s holding a bizarre scythe is the most dangerous, and that guy who looks like a Liche.¡¯ Ian was more aware of those two monsters in the remaining four. One of the demons was holding a scythe-shaped weapon. The demon had a horn and was wearing a dark hooded cloak. The other one looked like a Liche and had a skull shaped head. Ian suffered the most damage from the demon with the scythe. The demon with the scythe didn¡¯t pose such a major threat, but the demon would always deal him damage in the most crucial moments. Halli¡ªwho tried to maintain Ian¡¯s vitality while he battled that demon¡ªdied instantly with its hit and Dukdae who had half of its vitality left died with a single strike. Ian thought that it would be best to avoid his scythe. ¡®I wasn¡¯t able to see it that clearly¡­ but this technique seems like it is using darkness.¡¯ Even when hit with an explosive Halli and Bbookbbok would have managed to stay alive, Ian wouldn¡¯t have had a problem in identifying the nature of the weapon. He was now able to find out the identity of the weapon that had caused him such damage, and he checked the object right away. However, Ian¡¯s familiars would die every time they got hit by the demon¡¯s weapon. He wasn¡¯t able to find out the weapons nature even after thoroughly analyzing it. ¡®Can¡¯t do anything. I guess I¡¯ll have to take a chance¡­¡¯ Ian tried to take a chance and gamble with the assumption that the attributes of the demon¡¯s attacks were of ¡®Dark properties¡¯. And it started to move slowly once again. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah, stay ahead and look for an opportunity, if I manage to attack him, then consume him immediately, alright?¡± Once Ian was done talking, Bbookbbok nodded. ¡°Okay-bbook.¡± Kaka who was flying next to Ian¡¯s shoulder, watched Bbookbbook as he walked forward and spoke to Ian. ¡°What are you trying to do master? Their next target will be Bbookbbook.¡± Ian nodded and briefly ordered. ¡°I know.¡± As of the moment, Bbokbbook¡¯s vitality was about 40%. Bbookbbok didn¡¯t have a great tanking ability like Dukdae, but its vitality could sustain the strike from the demon¡¯s scythe. Before running towards the enemies, Ian stared at Kaka and spoke in a low voice. ¡°Kaka, do me a favor. When that demon swings its scythe, spread the darkness that its attack will emit.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Kaka was smart so she could understand right away what Ian was trying to do. She thought that this was a great plan when she realized that she could do whatever she wanted. ¡°I understand master. I trust master¡¯s decision.¡± Before Kaka was about to finish what she was saying, Ian ran towards the demons. Ian was aiming for the Liche shaped demon who had powerful magic. ¡°Karceus, Pin! Surround the enemies and follow Ly!¡± ¡°Okay, Master.¡± Krr- Krrrr-! Even Bbookbbook started to follow Ian with its heavy body. ¡®I had gambled everything, there is no other way but to succeed.¡¯ Ian jumped towards the Liche with all his might. However, the other demons were ready for Ian. They quickly stood in front of Ian to block him. Karceus who was on top of them used Breath on them, and Pin used Crush. Kwahhh-! Kwkwang-! But then a translucent violet shield showed up in front of the demons. The shield wasn¡¯t able to prevent the damage that came from Breath and Crush, but it reduced the damage significantly. Given the fact that they were two of the most powerful familiars with great skill that Ian had, this could be considered as a small achievement. But Ian was smiling in the inside. ¡®Yes, just as I had expected.¡¯ Ian was going towards the Liche, but he suddenly changed directions and ran towards Bbookbbook. It was because the demon was moving towards Bbookbbook, and it was obvious that Bbookbbok would get sick because of the darkness. Smoke puffed up in front of Bbookbbook. [Kiki- you¡¯re late, human.] In a moment the demon instantly appeared in front of Ian by using the space movement ability. The demon moved its sickle towards Bbookbbook. He moved as if an illusion had distorted the space and appeared in front of Bbookbbook. But at that moment. Ian surprisingly gave Bbookbbook an order even though Bbookbbook was about to die. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah! Use Greedy Predator!¡± ¡°Okay-Bbook-!¡± The ability of Greedy Predator had been triggered, and the sickle in the demon¡¯s hand wavered for a second. Anyone could tell that Bbookbbook¡¯s chances of survival were almost impossible. But then, darkness started to spread around the battlefield. Woong- The system messages that Ian had been waiting for came up in front of his eyes. [Slave ¡®Kaka¡¯ unique ability ¡®Dreaming Devil¡¯ has been activated.] [During ¡®Darkness Control¡¯, all the party members attacks will be increased by 5%, and damage caused by Darkness will be decreased by 50%. All the enemies within the radius will be visible.] This was what Ian was aiming for. And among those effects, what Ian wanted was the reduction of the damage caused by dark attributes by 50%. This¡­ [The ability of ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ ¡®Do not interfere while eating¡¯ has been activated.] [Shield with the durability of 343762 has been created.] The ability ¡®Greedy Predator¡¯ of Bbookbbook was an attacking skill. It was a skill that would instantly take down the life force of the enemy, it was almost impossible for this attack to be avoided once activated. But this time, Ian took advantage of another passive skill that was followed by his attack ability. If Bbookbbook activates the ability ¡®Don¡¯t interfere when eating¡¯ while using the Greedy Predator, then a shield would be created that would save 50% of the familiar¡¯s vitality. This play had a chance to fail, but this was the gamble that Ian was betting for. The reason why Ian went for this gamble was¡ªfirst, the damage from the demon¡¯s scythe would be reduced if the skill was a dark attribute because of Kaka¡¯s ability. The second was the shield that Bbookbbook activated, so there was no way the demon¡¯s strike could kill Ian¡¯s familiars. Fortunately, Ian¡¯s gamble was a successful one. Puahk-! [Lateros ¡®Sickle of the demon¡¯ has a unique ability.] [Your familiar Bbookbbook received devastating damage from Lateros.] [The vitality of Bbookbbook has been reduced to 100055 (-443817).] Ian was now able to realize the destructive power of that demon the moment he saw the system message. ¡®Dukdae had about 700,000 vitality taken away from him, and Halli had about 1.2 million vitality taken away from him, and Bbookbbook had about 800,000 taken away from it.¡¯ The last system message, ¡®Vitality of Bbookbbook has been reduced to 100055 (-443817).¡¯ The numbers in the brackets were obviously due to the darkness control ability of Kaka¡¯s. The additional 340,000 of added defense that Bbookbbook got from his shield had been pierced. Bbookbbook was now left with only 100,000. Ian had the ability to grasp the situation once he had experienced it or had seen it. ¡®Kaka¡¯s long-range effects last for about 10 minutes. I need to think of a plan in this duration.¡¯ Since Bbookbbook did not die, the greedy predator skill was withdrawn. The demon was flustered when it saw that Bbookbbook was still alive. The vitality of the demon didn¡¯t drop that much. However, Ian and Ly¡ªwho was there to help Bbookbbook¡ªtook advantage of the effect of the darkness and did a surprise attack on the demon. Though the Greedy Predator ability wasn¡¯t activated, the damage that the demon took was so powerful that the demon died. Ian¡ªwho arranged the most nerve-wracking play¡ªswung his spear and stared at the three remaining demons on the battlefield. CH 286 The demons were definitely strong, but they were defeated soon enough. The battle was over, just as Ian had planned before the darkness got lifted. In exactly ten minutes or so. During that time, Ian managed to take down the other three demons. The defeat of ¡®Lateros¡¯¡ªthe one who had the strongest single attack¡ªfelt like shackles were freed from Ian¡¯s foot. Whatever had happened, the battle was over, and once the darkness released by Kaka was gone, bright light started to fill the place. In front of Ian appeared the Suitor. The Suitor had a very calm expression. Ian turned his gaze towards the Suitor, and the words from the Suitor rang all over the place. [You did well Ian. It was a splendid battle.] Ian responded with a satisfied smile. ¡°Thank you for the compliment, Mr. Suitor.¡± [I¡¯m really thankful for having you here.] ¡°It was fun being here.¡± The suitor had a warm conversation with Ian for a while and extended his hand towards Ian. And from his hand, golden light began to shine. ¡°Um¡­?¡± Ian was just staring at the light in front of him. The golden light soon transformed into a golden chain. [Well, here you go. You have passed the Gateway of our Maurya Empire.] The chain left the suitor¡¯s hand and found its way to Ian. The suitor then spoke once Ian had the chain. [That is a token proving that you have passed the test. You are now one of the strongest warriors of the Maurya Empire.] A few lines of system messages began to emerge in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Tring- [You have successfully passed the ¡®Test of Gateway¡¯ in the Maurya Empire.] [You have earned fame of 150,000.] [You have earned 3 gold bars from the Maurya Empire.] [You have earned the item ¡®Maurya¡¯s Warrior Chain¡¯.] Ian checked the Maurya Empire¡¯s gold bars first. He started to get dizzy because of it. ¡®Can I exchange the 3 gold bars¡ªwhich worth 3 million gold¡ªin the Maurya Empire?¡¯ Well, the 3 million gold wasn¡¯t a big deal for Ian, but he was still surprised that he got more than what he was expecting. The next thing Ian did was intriguingly look at the Golden chain, which was decorated in a very eye-catching manner. ¡®This is the chain of the warriors in the Maurya Empire? Let¡¯s check it out.¡¯ Ian¡ªwho was expecting a lot from the Golden chain¡ªlooked into the item information to confirm. But contrary to his expectation, the chain was a miscellaneous item and not a wearable one. [Maurya¡¯s Great Warriors Chain/ Rank ¨C Legendary / Classification ¨C item.] Though it was accompanied by a tremendous amount of explanations, Ian didn¡¯t bother to check it out and just placed it into his inventory. He kept it with him as this was going to play an important role in meeting the King of Rings. ¡®Aeh¡­ can¡¯t you change the chain, and give me something better.¡¯ But at the moment, the suitor who was looking at Ian all this time laughed and said. [Haha, looks like you are disappointed with the warrior chain.] Ian was surprised at what he heard, but he tried to calm down. The message for the completion of the quest wasn¡¯t issued yet, so he didn¡¯t want to give the NPC the wrong impression. ¡°Ah, No. It¡¯s not like that. It¡¯s just that I tend to think a lot.¡± The suitor just chuckled at this. [Huhu, You don¡¯t need to avoid my eyes, Ian. Anyone would have hoped for a greater price for passing such a tough gate test.] Ian was a bit embarrassed. ¡®What? Then he should have given something that has a greater value.¡¯ But Ian couldn¡¯t speak his mind. ¡°No, this item is great enough for my efforts here.¡± Looking at Ian who was spewing lies so effortlessly like a well-oiled machine, the suitor just smiled. [Haha, you surely have the qualities to be our hero. My eyes are never wrong.] ¡°Ha¡­ Haha. That is a huge deal.¡± But the suitor wasn¡¯t done talking just yet. [The Maurya Empire¡¯s chain that I gave you is an item that actually had hidden power in it. For now, it is just a plain chain that has no special meaning¡­ but you¡¯ll understand it once you get stronger.] Ian¡¯s expression changed because of what the suitor said. ¡®What was that? Will the seal on this chain be released later and turn into a legendary equipment?¡¯ Somehow it didn¡¯t turn out o be bad, and Ian felt better. ¡°Thank you for taking care of me, Mr. Suitor.¡± [It was nothing.] After sharing a few more words, the suitor showed Ian around. There was a place, with a big moving magic circle. [If you go through that you¡¯ll move to the garden in Hwangseong cabinet of Maurya Empire.] Ian¡¯s expression brightened. That was because of the distance between the Maurya Empire and Hwangseong was shortened, and by using this magic circle, Ian would be able to save a lot of time. ¡°Thank you, Mr. Suitor¡± And the words from the suitor continued. [There will be a messenger waiting for you in front of the magic circle in Hwangseong. It is a lion that the King has sent for you, you should follow him.] Ian nodded vigorously. ¡°I understand.¡± Then came the quest completion message that Ian had been waiting for. Tring- [The quest ¡®Gateway of Test¡¯ has been successfully completed.] [Earned 150,000 fame points.] Then another line of message emerged. [You can now go to the ¡®Hwangseong of Maurya Empire¡¯. Do you want to move? ( Y / N ).] * * * ¡°You kids¡­ you nerds. What did you say? You were confident?¡± The underground testing room of LB¡¯s. It was originally a place where the QA employees were present before creating new content for the game. They were trying to find a way to balance the game by testing various plays. Looking for bugs and errors was what always happened in this room. But today, for some reason, the testing room was very noisy. ¡°I¡¯m sorry sir. We are really ashamed.¡± ¡°Gosh¡­ yah, even an AI would have managed to do a better job than you guys. How can a level 215 take down five 300 level ones? Huh?¡± The five staff members standing in front of the long-haired male bowed their heads because of his scolding. And around them, the other employees¡ªwho were in the room¡ªlooked at the five staff members¡¯ pitiful sight. ¡°Huh, they have been caught by Director Choi¡­¡± ¡°Right. Their first job is to avoid other problems after getting away from Director Choi.¡± ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know. Those five were the best of the testing team. I don¡¯t think that anyone can play a level 350 and still manage to take down one of those guys like ¡®he¡¯ did.¡± ¡°But¡­ I think so too. Especially, there are rumors that his control ability is off the charts.¡± ¡°Right. Actually, ¡®That guy¡¯ is just plain monstrous. Our team members weren¡¯t lacking in skills. As a matter of fact, he¡¯s the best user of all the tens of millions of user in the Korean servers in the Kailan game, so he can¡¯t be considered anything less than a professional user¡­ but these guys just seemed like amateurs against him, right¡­?¡± ¡°Right. The director didn¡¯t seem to have thought it through¡­¡± Just like what the staff said, the director didn¡¯t think the situation through. He just went up to the stairs after yelling at the staff. And once he went up, the staff¡ªwho was on the far left of the five-member team who had been yelled at¡ªspoke. ¡°Yah, Oh Seung Chul.¡± ¡°Yeah, Mr. Han Daeri.¡± ¡°Why did the Director got angry like that?¡± ¡°That¡­ the director¡­ wagered for this¡­¡± Han Daeri hit his forehead with what Oh Seung Chul said. ¡°Oh my god¡­ this wasn¡¯t what you were supposed to do, especially after knowing the details¡­¡± ¡°Huh, what were we supposed to do? In fact, none of us thought that he would manage to get out of the situation at all. We all thought that we would catch him and then take the bonus for ourselves¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s what everyone wanted¡­¡± The identity of these five were the five demons that Ian had met at the Gateway of Test. Surprising as it may sound, the demons that Ian went against were actually being controlled by users. In the original course, the demons were meant to be controlled by AI. However, the quest clear speed of Ian was way too fast, so the planning team asked the testing team to get involved. The monsters of the gate were being controlled by amazing players in order to block Ian. But the result they got was fatal, and once again all the employees were frustrated with the outcome. ¡°Huh, I thought that I managed to win till the middle-battle.¡± ¡°Mr. Daeri you should also head up and work¡­ it wasn¡¯t that we were lacking, that guy is just a monster.¡± ¡°I know¡­¡± And this was how Ian unknowingly went against the LB staff and came out with a huge accomplishment. * * * Weeing- Taj Mahal, the most famous structure of India. The Taj Mahal had been famous all over the world for its beauty and grandeur. And the place that Ian had come to in the Maurya Empire reminded him of the Taj Mahal. ¡°Wow¡­¡± Ian who had entered the Imperial Palace of the Maurya Empire through the magic circle was forced to admire the beauty. Ian didn¡¯t know what a Taj Mahal was, the only thing he knew was that the palace in front of his eyes was beautiful. And as Ian was looking around someone approached him. ¡°Are you Mr. Ian?¡± Ian nodded and answered. ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°I¡¯m Machamuthra, the lieutenant the King has sent.¡± ¡°Nice to meet you.¡± The guy called Machamuthra smiled because of Ian¡¯s politeness and guided him. ¡°Follow me, the King is waiting.¡± ¡°Then, let¡¯s go right away.¡± The moment the man heard Ian¡¯s answer, he quickly started to walk, and Ian followed him too. The palace of the Maurya Empire was so huge that Ian thought that he was supposed to turn back as it seemed like a maze. ¡®Ah, why did they have to construct it in a such a complicated manner¡­¡¯ Did it take him 5 minutes? The lion who was guiding Ian stopped. This was Ian¡¯s first time to see such a gigantic and gorgeous gate. And with a very warm smile, he spoke to Ian. ¡°The King is inside. Let us go.¡± Ian looked down and answered. ¡°Thank you. Let¡¯s go.¡± Ian pushed the door without any hesitation. The giant door which was three times taller than Ian moved very smoothly. At that moment Ian realized that he had lost control of his character. ¡®The quest seemed to have started.¡¯ Ian looked at the man who was sitting in the middle of the room with a relaxed face. Alongside him, Ian saw an elderly man with white hair who was sitting on the throne. The old man seemed to radiate an awesome pressure and dominance, and the pressure that Ian felt was much different from what he felt with the suitor at the gate. And ¡®He¡¯ spoke to Ian. ¡°Come on Ian. I heard quite a lot about you from Iriel.¡± CH 287 Ian was surprised in so many ways. ¡®What is this? How does the King of Rings, the great warrior know Iriel? That too Iriel of all?¡¯ Ian had a lot of questions that he wanted to ask to the King of Rings. But all that he could do now was to watch. But Ian¡¯s AI opened his mouth and spoke to the king. ¡°It is an honor to meet the Great Ruler who rules and governs by following the law.¡± And Ian genuflect when he was speaking, looking at the seated King rose and slowly approached Ian. The King opened his mouth. ¡°Stand up. You are also a hero who is respected¡­ who is responsible for the happiness of this world. My Seishoka respects you for the courage shown and justice you provide.¡± At the end of the words from the King regarding his Seishoka, Ian rose slowly from his kneeled position. And Seishoka who was beside the King, who kept on staring at him, took the gold box that was on the table and handed it to Ian. ¡°What is this?¡± Seishoka replied to Ian¡¯s question. ¡°Open it. Who knows, maybe it has something that is needed by you.¡± Ian, to be precise, the AI of Ian opened the box and picked up the contents from inside it. And the content just filled the palm of Ian. What was unusual was, there was a small hole in the stalagmites, and there were streaks of light flowing in it. [Soldier of the Earth] Ian picked it and spoke with a strange voice. ¡°This is¡­¡± And the Seishoka opened his mouth. ¡°Exactly. This is the it. The reason that you came here.¡± Ian politely thanked him. ¡°Thank you, my lord. All thanks to this, we will be able to prevent the invasion in our dimensional world.¡± Both the King and Seishoka smiled and replied, ¡°It is alright, I hope your efforts won¡¯t go in vain.¡± ¡°I borrowed the power from the God, the King¡¯s honor helped me achieve it.¡± ¡°Hoho¡­¡± And the two people talked for a long time. It was a very long story and Ian who was contemplating thought that this was boring and was about to yawn. ¡®Ughh, it has been 10 minutes already and they are still talking, is this a chatting stage?¡¯ And while Ian was struggling to endure his drowsiness, Ian got control of his character at last. Ian who felt the release of the AI was surprised. ¡®What the hell. What is with the sudden release?¡¯ However, Ian was able to calm himself down immediately as he was unconsciously listening to the stories. And as time went by, the information that Ian needed the most started to come out of Seishoka¡¯s mouth. ¡°It will be the most effective when you think that your army is on the verge of getting victorious, or when you think that your army is in danger.¡± Ian quickly asked his doubt. ¡°Can I ask you what outcome will I get from using this ¡®Soldiers of the Earth¡¯?¡± Sheishoka chuckled to himself and answered, ¡°Of course. When you use this, the great King will send armies of God who will come across the boundaries. And the blessings of the mightiest warriors will be given to your army¡­ you¡¯ll be able to vanquish the army of the monsters and win too.¡± Ian started to get confused. ¡®Isn¡¯t the king the great King? What is all this supposed to me?¡¯ Ian was flustered, Seishoka laughed and explained, ¡°You don¡¯t seem like you have understood me.¡± Ian replied to this, ¡°Yes. The King referred to another King, and I was puzzled for a second.¡± Seishoka continued to speak after that. ¡°I am the King of the Maurya Empire that the Great King of Rings had established. Firstly, it is a title that all the kings who have ruled the Maurya Empire are given. The true King of Rings means 4 new kings in the present world.¡± ¡°Uhm¡­¡± Ian still didn¡¯t understand what he meant, but he continued to listen to his words. ¡°In the new world, the King of Gold, the King of Silver, the King of iron, and the King of Copper. these four people share the titles of the King of Rings. And if use the item that I have given you, one of them might give you their blessing.¡± Ian felt like he had to something with the item. ¡®Ahaha, the word ¡®King of Rings¡¯ was just a title. Then what were the four pillars of the King¡­?¡¯ Ian was curious so he quickly asked Seishoka. ¡°If so then, the cloisonn¨¦ pillars aren¡¯t the treasure of the King of Rings, but the of the present King?¡± Seishoka nodded his head at the question of Ian. ¡°That is true. The Seven treasures aren¡¯t human things. Among the four Kings of the New World, it was made by the King of Gold. This cant be said for certain¡­¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± Seishoka nodded. ¡°And the seven treasure, they are scattered all over the Southern Island of Buju. And I have one of it with me.¡± And Ian who roughly managed to get something into his head had a headache. ¡®So they are hidden somewhere in the outskirts o the South Island Buju; the Seishoka and the king also don¡¯t seem to know the full details.¡¯ Now that he had received the Soldiers of the Earth, he needed to quickly evolve Bbookbbook into a True Abyss Dragon. ¡®The time left for the dimensional beads to charge is about one and a half day, and I need to get the Cintamani before that.¡¯ And Ian spoke to Seishoka, ¡°Thank you for the info.¡± ¡°It was nothing.¡± And after conversing with the Seishoka, Ian was guided back to the magic circle by Machamutra. And when Ian got to the magic circle, Machamutra spoke for the first time while going back. ¡°Where are you heading to?¡± At his words, Ian opened his eyes wide. ¡°Can I go anywhere?¡± The lieutenant lion nodded his head and said, ¡°You can go anywhere inside the South Island.¡± Ian quickly looked into the position where the Cintamani was marked. Then he spoke to the lieutenant, ¡± ¡®Seichi¡¯, I need to go there. Is it possible?¡± At these words, the lieutenant expression changed for the first time. ¡°Seichi¡­ you say?¡± ¡°Is it not possible?¡± ¡°No. That place is inside the Southern island cluster¡­ and you can go there through this magic circle.¡± ¡°Then why¡­¡± Before Ian could complete his sentence, the lieutenant spoke again, ¡°Why are you going there?¡± Ian didn¡¯t feel like mentioning the Cintamani and said. ¡°I have a personal situation to take care of.¡± The lieutenant still wasn¡¯t convinced with Ian¡¯s answer, but he nodded his head and spoke, ¡°I don¡¯t know what the situation is, but be careful.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± And this exclamation from Ian, the lieutenant spoke in a low but clear tone. ¡°Because it is the land of dragons.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± * * * All the users who were successfully converted into Asmodians came into the battlefield. The balance of the Dimensional War which had been maintained on a tight leash broke down in a matter of seconds. The human side started to get pushed back. In the meantime; the users were coming up with battle tactics, but the moment the Asmodians began to enter the battle, all the tactics began to go downhill. Clever users began to hunt down the users with the help from the monsters and other Asmodians. This was beginning to turn into a deadly situation for the human world. ¡°F*ck.¡± In the Central Continents in the chambers of the Toboldae, Shakaran hit the table and scraped it. ¡°The member guilds of the Luspel Empire have turned into Asmodians.¡± Once Shakran was done speaking, Fiolan who sat on the other side of the table responded with a slight frown. ¡°Our Lotus Guild is also part of the Luspel Empire¡­ the Luna Guild members from the Kaimon Empire, didn¡¯t they also break away?¡± At those words, Shakaran¡¯s angry expression turned to sorrow. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Fiolan. I was speaking about the Splendor and Auckland members.¡± Fiolan sighed and replied, ¡°Huh, I admit the second part. That is a scary situation but¡­ two of the three guilds of the Luspel Empire have broken away from the camp¡­¡± It was natural for the two person¡¯s expression to be dark. If this same flow continued for at least a week, then the Dimension War will end with the defeat of the humanity. Shakaran wasn¡¯t feeling the worst of them all. In the face-to-face confrontation with Irahan, he was defeated for the first time. He didn¡¯t lose his life, he didn¡¯t see another option but to run away from the 1 on 1 match. ¡®To beat him, the anti-magic power is essential, but in the current state there is no way for us to stop those maggots from running wild.¡¯ The summit which lasted for 30 minutes had no progress. It was because the members were all giving up now. The users were realizing that they were on the defeated side of this Dimensional War, they lost all the motivation. Only Fiolan had a serious look. ¡®Ian should come back soon¡­¡¯ Fiolan was thinking about Remir, Levya, and Herz Hoonie who had all accompanied Ian for the completion of their quest; also was especially thinking about Herz and Hoonie who wanted to raise their rank were doing. And she knew that the quest that Ian was doing was related to dealing with the Asmodians. Fiolan was thinking to herself. ¡®Let¡¯s just try surviving for a little while.¡¯ * * * Weeing- Passing through the magic circle, the darkness went away making the following surroundings bright. And at the same time, system messages came in front of Ian. Tring- [You have arrived at the ¡®Seichi plateau ¨C Dragon¡¯s land¡¯.] [You have discovered the ¡®Seichi plateau ¨C Dragon¡¯s land¡¯.] [For the next two days, all the experience points you got from ¡®Seichi plateau¡¯ will be doubled.] [For the 2 days from now, the item drop rate of all the monsters in ¡®Seichi plateau¡¯ will increase by 1.5 times.] By reading the system messages Ian¡¯s interest went up, and he mumbled to himself. ¡®Sh*t¡­ unfortunately, there is no time to hunt now.¡¯ Kaka who heard Ian mumbling spoke to Ian. ¡°Refrain from recklessness Master. Now isn¡¯t the time to hunt. We need to go back to the human dimension and stop the Asmodians.¡± Ian just grunted. ¡°I know, idiot. Even I know that.¡± ¡°It is just that you are a hunting addict.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t spew nonsense. Look at the map and tell me where I should go, okay?¡± Ian unfolded the map and handed it to Kaka. Then a translucent map emerged into the air. Kaka pointed to the map and said, ¡°This is where we are, master.¡± Ian who confirmed it nodded his head. ¡°I think so.¡± ¡°And do see that text?¡± At the words of Kaka, Ian looked at the map again. The point that Kaka was down just below the position where Yeoji was indicated, there was something written there in characters that couldn¡¯t be read. ¡°What is this?¡± ¡°An ancient language. It says ¡®Dragon¡¯s Altar¡¯. And maybe the Cintamani could be here.¡± ¡°The Dragon¡¯s Altar? Someplace like a dungeon?¡± Kaka answered, ¡°Even I don¡¯t know that. Even though I can read the ancient language, this is my first time to hear the word Dragon¡¯s Altar.¡± By the way, at that time Karceus who had been listening to their conversation spoke from the behind. ¡°Dragon¡¯s Altar¡­ I have heard it after a long time.¡± Ian and Kaka at the same time turned their gaze towards Karceus. CH 288 Ian asked Karceus. ¡®Karceus, you don¡¯t have any memories of your past life, right?¡¯ At this question from Ian, Karceus bend his head and answered after contemplating for a while. ¡°That is certainly true, my memories are being lost. But I seem to have the basic knowledge I need as I¡¯m a dragon.¡± And at these words, Ian nodded his head and asked once again, ¡°So do you know what kind of a place this Dragon¡¯s Altar is?¡± Karceus replied, ¡°I know. The Dragon¡¯s Altar is¡­¡± Karceus stopped for a moment and then spoke again, ¡°A place where dragons like me can present a special sacrifice to the Dragon God and gain new powers. If a non-dragon being places a sacrifice for the Dragon God, the god will present one wish to them and I seem to know why the Cintamani is at such a place.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± Karceus chuckled looking at the strange face that Ian made. ¡°Maybe a certain someone gave the Dragon God the Cintamani as a sacrifice in exchange for something. Maybe that someone isn¡¯t a dragon, and the Cintamani is a special item that can¡¯t be granted to anyone other than a dragon.¡± Ian turned his head around. The words of Karceus wasn¡¯t so hard to understand. However, Kaka ho was listening to the conversation between these two had a very dark expression. ¡°If Karceus words are indeed right then¡­ it will be very difficult for us, Master.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°If Cintamani was sacrificed to the Dragon God, then it will be hidden somewhere deep inside the Dragon¡¯s Altar. To find it you will have to sneak around¡­ and finding treasures in such deep places¡­ have their own share of risk associated.¡± Karceus nodded his head. ¡°Kaka is right master. There is a chance of losing your life.¡± Ian frowned and asked, ¡°Is there no other way? To ask the Dragon god to borrow it¡­¡± Kaka spoke sarcastically, ¡°Don¡¯t spew nonsense master. The moment Bbookbbook uses the Cintamani, it will disappear¡­ how do you plan on borrowing it by then?¡± ¡°The borrowed money is usually used you know¡­¡± ¡°You plan on paying it back?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian was lost in thoughts for a moment, and Kaka¡¯s words went on. ¡°Now we have two choices master.¡± ¡°Two?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°What are they? Go on.¡± Kaka who was in front of Ian¡¯s eyes continued to speak. ¡°First, you give up on the Cintamani, then leave the Cintamani; take the Soldiers of the Earth and head back. Maybe it will give us a victory in the Dimensional War. There isn¡¯t only one Cintamani in the whole universe, so we wait for the next opportunity.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ the second?¡± Kaka¡¯s words immediately followed. ¡°Secondly, the obvious, letting go of your life while taking the Cintamani. It is hard to succeed in this option; and even if you manage to get it, you¡¯ll buy the wrath of the Dragon God.¡± ¡°So what if I get the wrath of the Dragon God?¡± This time it was Karceus who spoke, ¡°I¡¯ll tell you about this part.¡± Kaka and Ian both turned their gazes in the direction of Karceus; he started to speak, ¡°The Dragon¡¯s Altar is guarded by four guardians that the Dragon God specifically sends. Maybe, they will follow their master.¡± ¡°Guardian?¡± ¡°Yes. They appear like dragons, and each possesses a power which is equal to a dragon. I don¡¯t know about their intelligence, but If I speak about the power, each one of it is stronger than me, and they didn¡¯t even reach their limit.¡± ¡°Keu¡­¡± Ian had a moment of conflict. This was because it would be a terrible idea to deal with the guardians who are much more powerful than Karceus. There could be a chance if both Kaizer and Yankun both were with Ian, but they weren¡¯t in the current situation. This was because he hadn¡¯t taken Yankun and Kaizer when entering the Test of Gateway, and without bringing his trails Ian immediately moved to the Land of Dragon¡¯s from the magic circle in Hwangseong. ¡®What should I do, should I just give up¡­?¡¯ At that time, Karceus opened his mouth once again. ¡°But don¡¯t worry about that part.¡± ¡°Um¡­? Why so?¡± At that brief question from Ian, Karceus looked at Bbookbbook and answered. ¡°If you don¡¯t get the Cinamani, then you¡¯ll be dead meat, but if you do manage to successfully acquire the Cintamani¡­ Then Bbookbbook will become a true Abyss Dragon.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± Ian looked at Bbook, Bbookbbook also turned his head and looked at Ian. ¡°Bbook?¡± And Karceus words continued. ¡°Abyss Dragon¡­ they are not normal dragons. It can be said that they possess all the powers¡­ of the dragons, and if an Abyss Dragon is added to the fight, then we can manage the four guardians of the Dragon God.¡± Ian looked at Bbookbbook with longing eyes. ¡®Since Bbookbbook is a legendary¡­ if it becomes a true Abyss Dragon, then it will become a myth class.¡¯ The word ¡®myth class¡¯ was enough to stir Ian¡¯s heart. ¡®Yes, since there is a tremendous gap between a hero class and a legendary class; having a myth class would be on a whole different level.¡¯ And so far Ian¡¯s choice had been settled. And now he wanted to evolve Bbookbbook much more quickly. Ian looked at Karceus and asked, ¡°But Karceus, the guardians, aren¡¯t they the beings who will possess the powers of the Dragon God?¡± Both Kaka and Karceus looked at Ian with an absurd expression. And Kaka spoke, ¡°Master, the existence of God can¡¯t get involved with the creature of this world.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°If they had such enormous power to get involved in the worldly affairs¡­ all the balance of the dimensional worlds would have been a mess. And if God¡¯s involvement was possible, my master wouldn¡¯t be having such a hard time.¡± ¡°You mean?¡± ¡°The five God who rules the dimensions wouldn¡¯t have let the invasion begin on the Dimension world. With their power, they would be able to stop the invasion very easily. But if they chose to interfere, then the devils also won¡¯t stay still. All hell will break loose.¡± ¡°Hm¡­ That is true.¡± Ian who managed to understand the situation nodded his head to Kaka and confirmed the decision¡ªKaka once again asked Ian. ¡°What are you going to do Master?¡± Ian smiled and answered, ¡°Don¡¯t you already know the answer?¡± Karceus laughed and touched the sword. He liked to deal with different kinds of weapons each time when he was polymorphed into a humanoid. ¡°This is why I like you master. Going head-on against a powerful enemy, this makes my heart race.¡± At these words from Karceus¡ªKaka spoke sarcastically, ¡°But I thought you hated hunting with our master.¡± Karceus answered immediately, ¡°No! the thing I hate is going against the same ones. Its always fun to meet new and powerful enemies to battle. It is just that¡­ simple is boring.¡± Looking at the restless Karceus¡ªIan tapped the back of his neck and spoke in a low tone, ¡°Well¡­ should we get a glimpse of the Cintamani?¡± Ian shook his hands and then looked at the map. It was the time to find the route to sneak into the Dragon¡¯s Altar. * * * Na Ji-chan, who was in the monitoring room had monitored the game for 3 days and was preparing a report on balance. When he wasn¡¯t ordered to do a night shift, he stayed back from the second day. The reason for that wasn¡¯t his devotion to the given task. It was because monitoring the game was so much fun. ¡°This so nice but can¡¯t I do anything else?¡± Na Ji-chan was needed to create a balance report, so he was needed to monitor al least ten rankers evenly. But for the past ten hours, his eyes had been stuck on a monitor that was showing Ian. ¡°Oho, those idiots. Those QA team were stupid to approach Ian¡­¡± From the moment that Ian had killed the five demons, until the moment Ian had arrived at the Dragon¡¯s Altar, he didn¡¯t miss a single moment. And when Ian managed to enter the Dragon¡¯s Land, Na Ji-chan had felt much more excited. ¡°What now? Is this crazy bas*ard going to enter the Dragon¡¯s Altar?¡± The original plan of the planning team was to put a few human users along with the Asmodians into the Maurya Empire. And the quest related to the Cintamani was going to be a different chapter. It was supposed to be an exclusive quest for a summoner to make an Abyss Dragon after achieving the Cintamani, it wasn¡¯t a quest that was supposed to be cleared that soon. According to the Kailan scenario; once the true Abyss Dragon made its appearance, the Dimensional war would come to an end. Na Ji-chan who was chewing the salted dry squid, grinned. ¡°Can Ian really be able to get the Cintamani? Then the planning team will get a real beating.¡± The war between the humans and the Asmodians¡ªit was a scenario that was needed to go on for at least half-year. If the true Abyss Dragon decided to make an appearance by then, Ian would bring the end of the war. All the staff of the planning and development team at the LB didn¡¯t know that they were going to give up on their homes for a month. Na Ji-chan was like a third party waiting for the situation that would come. But then his phone rang. A message from Kim Yee-hwan had come. [Kim Daeri: Wrote the report well? How¡¯s the balance?] Na Ji-chan laughed at the message that he saw. [Na Ji-chan: Balanced. The planning team put a lot of effort to make this balance.] Immediately the reply for the message had come. [Kim Daeri: oh¡­ that was obvious, isn¡¯t it? Is the current plan alright?] Na Ji-chan bent his head and sent a reply. [Na Ji-chan: If Ian can get assassinated, I think the balance will come back immediately. Till then, real balance will come to an end.] [Kim Daeri: ¡­] Another message didn¡¯t come from Kim Daeri. And Na Ji-chan¡¯s eyes went back to the monitor. ¡®It is not that the game balance has been lost, he is just one crazy bas*ard.¡¯ The report had been completed on the first day itself. It had become meaningless to keep Ian included in the balance reports. If Ian was the only one strong enough, and the Asmodians were much stronger, then maybe now would be the time for the human users to fold their games. That was why Na Ji-chan had time to watch Ian¡¯s game for the past days. Shhk- Na Ji-chan took out a bag of potato chips and started to munch on them and spoke in a low whisper, ¡°I still feel like this is going to get much more interesting¡­ just one variable maker is needed for the planning team to have some fun.¡± Without any nervousness about the other members of the planning team hearing it, Na Ji-chan went back to focusing on Ian¡¯s video. CH 289 ¡°The Drakes here are different from the Drakes that I¡¯ve known.¡± The Dragon¡¯s Land was wide. This is being said because the arrival at the Dragon¡¯s Altar couldn¡¯t be reached immediately. Ian had to spent almost half a day going through the fields. And the opponents that Ian would fight were Drakes over the level of 350. Karceus answered briefly, ¡°The name of Dragon¡¯s Land isn¡¯t attached to its master. This is a site that has been blessed by the Dragon God, and the Drakes that fight here, they found enlightenment and became Dragons.¡± ¡°Yes, but their intelligence seems to be different, and among these skills, the use of the ability to give magic damage is also present.¡± The Drake was a feral beast. The physical combat capabilities of these creatures were on par with the dragons, not as strong as the Dragon¡¯s Breath, but their Breath was still equally powerful. But there was a huge difference between the Dragons and the Drakes, there were magical power and intelligence. In addition to the unique abilities that could be used by a dragon, they get to use magic power too and in addition to that; the dragon scales had such strong magic resistance that even a strong spell wouldn¡¯t work on them. But the Drake was different. The physical defense was as powerful as a Dragon, but their magic resistance was at a terrible level. So, the most preferred hunting ground for the wizard class had always been the Krupia Mountains. This was the hunting ground where the highest level monsters appeared in the Northern Continent, and this was also the place where the Drakes appeared. Ian had never went there, but he knew about it. That was because Ian had heard a story about it when he was doing the Oakley Quest in the Northern Continent. Krupia Mountain was the hometown of the legendary dragon tamer Oakley. Kwang- Kwakwang-! Ian looked at the Drake that came in front of him and wiped the sweat that was on his forehead. ¡®It looks like there are more Drakes here than the Krupia mountains¡­¡¯ For Ian whose most of his attack power was focused on the physical style of combat, going against the Drakes who had a strong defense wasn¡¯t the right thing to do. And thus, Ian abandoning his desire for hunting them beginning to move faster. ¡°Kaka, do you think the Dragon¡¯s Altar is over there?¡± Kaka who looked into the map to compare the location nodded her head firmly at Ian¡¯s question. ¡°I think we found it right, master. Now we need to find a way to get inside.¡± Ian thought for awhile and then asked Kaka, ¡°Maybe the dungeon is not needed to be done in a dangerous way¡­ can¡¯t I give something that the Dragon God would benefit and ask for an item in return?¡± At those words from Ian, Kaka shook its head without a second thought. ¡°That is impossible, Master. It is not that I didn¡¯t think about it¡­ but we will only reveal our existence to the Dragon God without accomplishing anything.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ I have a lot of rare items in my inventory, but¡­ won¡¯t the Dragon God want any of them?¡± That moment it was Karceus who replied. ¡°No, master. Among the items that you have, there are many things that the Dragon God might like.¡± ¡°But?¡± ¡°But nothing in them is worthy enough for the Dragon God to give you Cintamani. This is not a guess, I¡¯m very certain.¡± Surely the Cintamani was like a sweet dream for all the dragons. Because once a dragon got it, it would increase their level exponentially. Ian nodded his head and replied, ¡°That thing is definitely for sure. Nice. From the beginning, I have always kept on breaking past the hardships¡­ I can¡¯t go weak now.¡± Ian turned his head towards Kaka. ¡°Kaka, I want you to re-confirm.¡± Kaka nodded and replied. ¡°Leave it to me.¡± Kaka smiled and started to fly off and move towards the Dragon¡¯s Altar. And once Kaka moved farther enough point, both Ian and Karceus began to follow. Kaka, who is immune to all the attacks except from light attributes could be called as their best hope. * * * The Dragon¡¯s Altar was located very high. It was like a tower that rose high from the tip of a cliff. So tall that the tip of the Altar couldn¡¯t be seen. And Ian recalled a similar structure. ¡®The tower that I went to when doing the Immortal Quest with Honnie¡­ this looks similar to the place where the immortal ghost was asleep.¡¯ As Ian recalled that memory, he guessed that the Dragon¡¯s Altar would have a number of floors that he will have to clear. ¡®And if I go this way¡­ I will get stuck and not be able to get my hands on Cintamani.¡¯ Ian asked Karceus, ¡°Karceus. Do you have any idea if there is a warehouse inside the Altar where the collected things are kept?¡± Karceus thought for a moment and said, ¡°I don¡¯t know that. But¡­ I feel that it will be somewhere in the lowest floor.¡± ¡°Hmm? Why so?¡± ¡°The Dragon¡¯s Altar has a total of 77 floors. And on the 77th floor, there is a magic circle that will take you to the Dragon God. And on the 1st floor, there is a dimensional door that will lead you anywhere.¡± Ian had a strange expression. ¡°What does that dimension door have anything to do with the warehouse?¡± Kaka interrupted and said, ¡°Maybe the guardians of the Dragon God are keeping their eyes on the dimensional door, and it is the closest to the place where the guardians are on, which might mean that there is a high probability of the treasure being there.¡± Ian deciding on what to do looked over at Karceus, and Karceus also nodded his head. ¡°Let¡¯s do that right away. The Karga Phantom clan also has awesome brains.¡± Kaka who was praised by Karceus for its ability had a very cheerful expression¡ªseeing this Ian said, ¡°Karceus, you shouldn¡¯t praise him so much. They will think that they are really a genius if you do that.¡± At those words, Kaka turned red out of irritation. ¡°What do you mean, Master? I am a genius.¡± ¡°Shut up, you¡¯re noisy.¡± Ian who had just dismissed Kaka¡¯s words had an unhappy facial expression; Ian called out to Pin who was seated in the corner and was polishing his feathers. ¡°Pin, come here.¡± Kruk-? Pin immediately flew and stood in front of him; Ian had summoned all the familiars except for Karceus. Kaka asked Ian, ¡°What are you going to do, Master?¡± Ian looked at the entrance system of the Altar and asked Karceus, ¡°If we go in through that entrance¡­ I¡¯ll be at the 40th story, right Karceus?¡± The place where Ian stood then was on a cliff. And the tower that rose up before Ian¡¯s eyes were from the bottom of the cliff, and the entrance of the tower was made to the middle points of it. The entrance was connected by the cliff point that Ian stood at. So Ian had guessed that the entry point would be at around the 40th floor. Karceus nodded and replied, ¡°It could be. Seeing that the floors are much lower than our point, it could be 50th.¡± Ian smiled and climbed onto Pin. ¡°Karceus, Kaka! Follow us. We will go through there and break into the front, I won¡¯t be able to see the shadow of the Cintamani for a while when crossing the levels.¡± Ian flew with Pin, and was about to go straight onto the bottom of the tower, Karceus and Kaka immediately understood that. But Karceus told Ian, ¡°That is a good plan master. But there is one problem.¡± ¡°What?¡± Karceus pointed down to the bottom of the cliff. ¡°Do you see the water stream running down the cliff?¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°Yeah, saw it. What about it?¡± Karceus replied, ¡°That is the swirl of the dragon. Our ability to approach is the wrong method and if we go there, we will get sucked into it right away.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Ian touched his chin, and Karceus replied, ¡°It is unreasonable to pass through that. It will be better to go 10 floors down from here and try to get in.¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°If you say. Then let¡¯s do it that way.¡± Ian who listened to the feedback was still on Pin and started to fly away skilfully. Pin quickly flew around the tower for checking and then slowly began to descend. The cliff was shining enough to make their eyes turn away. And when they got close to the swirling water, Ian found a uniquely shaped window on the one side of the tower. It was like the entrance of a dungeon, but it was of the size in which only Pin could fit. Ian hesitated for a moment. ¡®It looks like a door that opened for a specific someone to enter? Something feels very wrong¡­¡¯ But Ian soon realized that he had no time to hesitate. Pin was at the foot of the tower, and there was a stream which had been giving out a lot of pressure. Ian ordered Pin. ¡°Pin, take us inside.¡± Grrk- Grrkrk-! Pin flew straight into the building, and the whole party successfully entered into the tower. And at that time, system messages that Ian had not thought of came in front of his eyes. Tring- [You have entered the ¡®Dragon¡¯s Altar¡¯ dungeon (Time Attack Dungeon).] [You have discovered the ¡®Dragon¡¯s Altar¡¯ dungeon for the first time.] [When clearing the dungeon, you will get twice the amount of rewards excluding the item specific rewards (The first round buff will be applied to the user who clears the dungeon for the first time regardless of the number of dungeon trials or the time.).] [Remaining Time (00: 19: 59)] [Dungeon Difficulty ¨C SSSS] [Destroy the lowest level of the dragons in the demarcated zone within the time limit and open the dimensional door to clear the dungeon.] [If the dungeon hasn¡¯t been cleared within the time limit, the Dragon God will descend and the challenger will die.] Ian had a puzzled expression. ¡®What the hell is this?¡¯ This wasn¡¯t the first time for Ian to experience the Time Attack dungeon. However, the time that was shown for the Time Attack dungeon was very burdensome, and the clear condition of the dungeon was not the expected range. And on top of that, it was a SSSS rank quest which had to be crazy. ¡®This doesn¡¯t seem right¡­¡¯ Ian was flustered. And that was because he would die if he didn¡¯t manage to clear the dungeon. Rather than the death penalty, the biggest problem was that the time kept on going, there was no guarantee that the Cintamani would be found in this dungeon. Ian made a quick decision. ¡®I need to go out again.¡¯ Ian directed Pin and was ready to go around again. But when Pin turned, the entrance that Ian had come in had been closed. ¡°Sh*t.¡± Ian gripped his fists. That was going to be the first time that Ian had to pass the Time Attack dungeon unconditionally. Karceus spoke to Ian, ¡°Master, we will have to leave this place quickly.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± In front of Ian¡¯s eye, there were two passages; one on the left and the other on the right. The left would take them to the lower part, and the right would take them to the higher floors. Karceus spoke while turning to the right side, ¡°I feel the energy of a strong dragon from that way.¡± ¡°Dragon¡¯s energy?¡± ¡°The guardians of the Dragon God seem to have noticed our intrusion.¡± ¡°Uh¡­¡± Ian seemed like he knew which direction he was going to enter. ¡®Before they manage to catch me, I need to reach the goal for this Time Attack dungeon, go to the bottom levels and break the seal and move on to the dimensional door.¡¯ The time left was 19 minutes. Ian who didn¡¯t see the 1 minute get passed, immediately ran to the left side. ¡°Let¡¯s move quickly, Pin, Karceus!¡± ¡°Okay, Master.¡± Grr- Grrk-! Ian turned his head. ¡®From this way, Karceus and Pin will have to hardcarry, will it be alright?¡¯ Originally, Ian planned on hiding his other familiars until he reached the Dragon¡¯s Altar. However, due to the sudden initiation of the Time Attack, that plan had gone to waste. Ian ran his finger through his spear and bit his lips. ¡®I don¡¯t know how long has it been since I¡¯ve had a bad feeling.¡¯ CH 290 Ian¡¯s battle strategy was very stable. One might think that he was always hunting in the highest level ground with a high risk, but that wasn¡¯t always the case. For example, Ian¡¯s most important aspect had always been the damage calculation. When a general user usually engaged in a battle, he or she would judge what the approximate damage that they would suffer when attacked by the opponent. And if one calculates it in the right manner, then they will survive while having some vitality left. Generally, these things were always based on their feelings. Shakran, Remir, and Irahan are among those who had this excellent talent. They were better than the normal users when it came to using the ¡®sense¡¯. But Ian was different. Ian had always been extremely nervous and careful from the first time he began to hunt. Ian had managed to thoroughly remember all the damage that would be caused by the enemy and used that information when entering a battle. And when going against a group of opponents, he would try to analyze their battle pattern by going against an individual. And it was all because of that meticulousness and calm mind, that the current Ian could be made. The small gains in the battle begin to grow, they, later on, make a huge difference in the battle. But now Ian needed to abandon his original battle style. The ¡®Time Attack¡¯ dungeon, with no prior knowledge, Ian needed to play in an aggressive and dangerous manner. ¡°Kaka, move till 20 meters ahead. At a constant speed. Don¡¯t stop. Get it?¡± ¡°I understand, Master.¡± The only combat powers that Ian could currently use were of Karceus and Pin. Even considering that Karceus was now in a weak human form as the space in the dungeon was way too small for it¡¯s original to be used, and Pin would have a problem performing in its best, as the space was narrow. Ironically, this battlefield would eventually benefit Ian. ¡®I just need to look at the front, no need to cover the back.¡¯ The aisle was so narrow that Pin could barely open its wings. So the possible damage that Pin could get was lessened, and Ian didn¡¯t give Pin¡¯s condition much thought. So if Ian could manage to fight without losing Pin, the fight could have a balance, but the movements would be slow. ¡®At a fast pace, Karceus will have to go.¡¯ Kang- Kakang-! Ian held the spear tightly and was ready to slaughter the monster who was running towards him. Fortunately, the level of the opponents inside the dungeon was much lower than what Ian had imagined. ¡®I was thinking a minimum level of 300, but¡­¡¯ The level of the monsters was between 270~300. Ian guessed that the level of the monsters was lower than the field because this was a Time Attack dungeon, which was needed to be cleared in a specific time. ¡°Karceus, make a path and move straight ahead. We don¡¯t have the time to kill them all.¡± At these words from Ian, Karceus nodded its head. ¡°I get it, Master. Even if we don¡¯t do I, we need to move as quickly as we can. I can feel the guardians getting closer to us.¡± Ian set all the attack skill to ¡®Ideal condition¡¯. With the skill that he hadn¡¯t used for a while, he was ready to change the equipment if the situation changed. Ian¡¯s goal wasn¡¯t to kill the enemies but to keep them from following him. Having reached the entrance of the lower part, he continued to run towards the gate. [You have entered the 9th floor of the Dragon¡¯s Altar.] [Time remaining ¨C 00: 09: 28] Ian gulped. ¡®Even if I¡¯m going to fail in this quest, I must get that Cintamani at all costs.¡¯ When Ian had first entered the dungeon, he was at the 25th floor of the Dragon¡¯s Altar. And Ian began to move from 19 minutes, if he calculated correctly, it took Ian exactly 40 seconds to clear one floor. To go to the lowest floor, there were still 9 floors for him to clear, and it looked like there was still time to reach it. But that wasn¡¯t the reality. The Dragon¡¯s Altar¡ªit was a dungeon that would get wider, the lower the floors went. Meaning, the lower that one got, the more time that it takes to clear the floor. ¡®This is trouble. This isn¡¯t a SSSS class.¡¯ Ian was breathless, but he desperately moved. It was because he couldn¡¯t give up the last item that would help them win the Dimensional War. * * * The shortest 20 minutes. The 20 minutes given to break through the Time Attack dungeon was very less, it depended on the person who thought; it¡¯s short if it was thought as short, and long if though as long, but the quest time of 20 minutes given to Ian was lesser than all. But contrary, there was one person who felt that the 20 minutes were like 20 long hours. At the LB company headquarters, at 4 am¡ªwhen all the employees were working, Na Ji-chan who was still seated alone in the monitoring room was watching the video while sighing. He was extremely frustrated and completely focused on the screen as if his life depended on it. ¡°Damn, this isn¡¯t it. This is such a huge thing.¡± Na Ji-chan was the person who was watching the video of Ian. Till just a while ago, he was watching the video as if he was looking at a movie. But even then, he wasn¡¯t able to keep his composure. And the reason wasn¡¯t something else. ¡®How can this be? The planning team triggered a quest that I wasn¡¯t told about.¡¯ Ian moved in the same way that Na Ji-chan had predicted. Although the quest progressed fast enough, the process of going to the Dragon¡¯s Altar was just as Na Ji-chan had predicted. Even Na Ji-chan wouldn¡¯t have been able to find the hidden entrances, even if placed on Pin¡¯s back. ¡®But the time attack dungeon¡­ I don¡¯t remember anything about this.¡¯ The hidden entrance to the lower level was a ¡®shortcut¡¯ for the quest that was supposed to be cleared by the Summoner for the Cintamani. It was designed to allow the users to find information from the NPC¡¯s. Ian, however, didn¡¯t go through the series of processes, but with a gamers intuition, reasoning, and ¡®luck¡¯. Na Ji-chan who had liked it clapped his hands. He had always been a fan of Ian, and he also knew Ian¡¯s ability, so he thought that Ian would get his hands on the Cintamani once he finds the shortcut. Things will get hectic if the Cintamani was consumed, but Na Ji-chan was ready to work with Joy. But as soon as he entered the ¡®shortcut¡¯, an unknown event that even Na Ji-chan didn¡¯t know about came on. ¡®Originally until the guardians were discovered¡­ no event should have been triggered¡­¡¯ And the brilliant Na Ji-chan, after a few minutes was able to guess what was going on. ¡®This is a emergency content included to prevent Ian from getting the Cintamani. This maybe the content that the executives have directed the development team to do on a temporary basis. Surely this is a crazy thing to do, and they didn¡¯t know the full capability of Ian.¡¯ However, there wasn¡¯t any problem till now. This was because Na Ji-chan knew the intention of the development team for including a new event exclusively for Ian. The problem was that this Time Attack dungeon had a fatal problem, that was, the dungeon content moved very abruptly. ¡®Ian can¡¯t move that way, there is no way to go¡­ but if he does manage to destroy the monster and enter the dimensional door¡­¡¯ The moment the dimensional door opens, the balance of the Kailan would collapse. It was a dimensional door that was not supposed to be opened. But the development team and the higher officials do not fully understand the contents of the project. They just wanted to make Ian be unable to proceed with the quest. So they were opting for any measure to prevent Ian from getting the Cintamani. But it would be difficult to completely change the system structure that had already been developed in a short span of time, so the development team decided to tweak the existing system and raise the difficulty level. They didn¡¯t realize the danger of doing it, and yet they chose to go along with the plan. Na Ji-chan was restlessly moving in front of the screen like a puppy that wanted to poop. ¡®Please Ian. Let go of the dimensional door and find the Cintamani.¡¯ Na Ji-chan looked at the remaining time he had and was still attached to the screen, to see the progress and speed of Ian. And there was two minutes of time left. Kukung- Kung-! The stone gate that blocked the lowest floor opened with a heavy sound. * * * ¡®Time left 2 minutes and 20 seconds.¡¯ Ian, who was on the lowest floor, quickly looked at the structure of the map. Unlike the past, where the corridors were endless, the lowest floor was like a structure similar to that of a checkerboard. Ian, who still didn¡¯t check all the map wasn¡¯t so sure, but he was able to make some deduction with the information that he could get through his eyes. ¡°Sh*t, which way should I go?¡± In the room that Ian had entered, there were two doors that lead to the next room. One door to the left, and the other right in the front. Kaka flew over Ian¡¯s shoulder then went forward and spoke, ¡°Master, I feel the energy of the dark from that side¡± ¡°Energy of the dark?¡± ¡°Yes. It is the most intense dark energy that I have ever felt.¡± Ian turned his head very quickly. ¡®Darkness? The darkness¡­? The Cintamani has nothing to do with dark attributes¡­¡¯ So Ian instinctively assumed that it would be related to the ¡®Dimensional Door¡¯, which was the clear condition for the Time Attack dungeon. Ian asked Karceus. ¡°Karceus, you still don¡¯t feel any energy from the Cintamani?¡± Karceus responded with a frown. ¡°I don¡¯t know, Master. It seems like the energy from the west¡­ but I¡¯m not sure as the energy is too strong.¡± Too strong, just as Kaka said it could be the energy from the dark. But Ian didn¡¯t have the time to worry. ¡°Then let¡¯s move to the west.¡± Kaka was flustered with Ian¡¯s choice and looked at Ian. ¡°The dark energy is coming from the north side, Master. Maybe there is something in the west that your ambition won¡¯t be able to face, it could kill you, Master.¡± Ian moved quickly and replied, ¡°Even if I die once, the Cintamani is much more important, Kaka. Don¡¯t speak anything else and just follow me.¡± NPC¡¯s in the Kailan all knew that the death of a user doesn¡¯t mean its complete disappearance. It was strange to not know it since this was a system that would revive if a pet or trail died. ¡°Sh*t, I just hate dying¡­¡± Kaka was following Ian, and Karceus was opening the way for Ian. But then. Kwng- KwakwaKwang-! In front of Ian¡¯s eyes, the floor that seemed fine for a second started to divide. ¡°Damage!¡± Ian and Karceus moved to both sides and avoided the splintering rocks, and from the gap, gigantic creatures that were seen for the first time were creeping out. CH 291 Ian was a bit flustered. ¡®What, the guardians have arrived?¡¯ But fortunately, unlike his guess, they weren¡¯t the guardians. Kaka, who regained from the panic, confirmed the creature. ¡°It is a dragon, Master!¡± ¡°Dragon?¡± Kaka seemed like she knew more about the creature, but wasn¡¯t able to put them into words. That was because she didn¡¯t have time to waste on Ian at the moment. ¡®Drako? Why does it look like a giant eel?¡¯ Ian immediately checked the creatures¡¯ level and turned his foot. ¡®A hero rank along with level 420.¡¯ If Ian decides to hunt down this guy, then he would end up using his remaining time. Nope, there was no way he would have captured the creature in the given time, and this definitely wasn¡¯t an opponent that could be won with power. Ian began to run quickly, Karceus and Kaka also started to follow him. ¡®Damn it, only if I could summon Halli, then the three would work well.¡¯ Ian meant about the unique ability of Halli which allows him to strengthen his weak powers, but Ian couldn¡¯t help it. Ian still had 10 more minutes to wait before he could summon his familiars. Kwang- Kwakwang-! Everytime Ian passed through one of the room¡ªeverytime he went through a floor, a single monster always popped out. Ian had never seen a dungeon as crazy, and as difficult as this one. ¡®Whenever did one pass through a room and a named monster popped out?¡¯ Levels ranged from 350~450, dozens of monster that came out one after the other and were threatening Ian and his party. Fortunate thing was that those monsters were big and slow, which meant that Ian didn¡¯t have much trouble escaping. ¡°Karceus, found it yet?¡± ¡°The energy of the dark is far now, a little outline is visible, Master.¡± The subject they were looking into wasn¡¯t mentioned because of the urgent situation, but it was natural that the subject they were looking for was the Cintamani. Karceus ran straight ahead, and Ian also ran using all his power. The buff that Pin had activated a while back was still intact, so it was a huge help in the situation. Ian confirmed the time that was left for clearing. ¡°Sh*t, 1 minute 10 seconds?¡± During that time, Karceus who was running ahead pointed to the left and shouted. ¡°Here, Master!¡± In the direction that Karceus pointed, was a strong translucent shield, and from inside it was a faint light shining. Bang-! Karceus began to destroy the shield without a moment to spare. Ian also began to attack the shield with his Judgement of the Spirit King. Fortunately, the durability of the shield wasn¡¯t high. [Durability of the Protective Barrier reduced by 198024.] [Durability of the Protective Barrier reduced by 229811.] [You have succeeded in destroying the Protective Barrier!] Ian broke through the protective barrier and ripped off the other shields. Thuthud-! And went inside without any hesitation. There was a high probability that there was a trap installed in there, but they didn¡¯t have enough time to worry about all those. [Remaining time ¨C 00: 00: 37] ¡®Where are you, please¡­!¡¯ In the inside where Ian had entered, there were dozens of golden boxes all over the place. In a glance, one could see that the wall had a line of luxurious equipment, and on one corner of the room was a pile of gold. But Ian¡¯s eyes couldn¡¯t see any of this. What he needed was the Cintamani, and that only. ¡®Me dying is a fact, I¡¯m nothing less than scrap if I die without finding the Cintamani.¡¯ The time kept flowing. Every time 1 sec, 1 sec started to get lost, Ian moved around the room very calmly. At the entrance of the treasure-filled room, Karceus was the only one who was blocking the monsters. And that wasn¡¯t enough. But Karceus was still alive and that was what mattered the most. At that time¡ªhowever, Kaka who was rummaging through the treasure screamed at once. ¡°Master! There!¡± Ian ran like a crazed person and went to the place Kaka pointed. There was a tall man¡¯s pedestal with a red bead on it. The bead had a bright light shining from it, and Ian remembered. ¡®The same effect like the Soldier of the Land had¡­!¡¯ Ian grabbed the bead. And he summoned Karceus who was on the verge of death. ¡°Please!¡± Ian shouted with eagerness, and a system message appeared before his eyes. [You have obtained the item ¡®Cintamani¡¯.] Ian wanted to cheer for a moment. It was because this has been such a dramatic scenario. But he couldn¡¯t do it. The next moment, the whole altar began to shake with a roar. Grrr- Grrurur- And the system messages popped up. Tring- [Time limit has completed.] [Failed to clear the dungeon.] [The furious Dragon God has descended.] After Karceus was summoned near him, the dragonkin began to run towards the direction of Ian. And in front of Ian¡¯s eyes, rays of light began to descend upwards. Kwang-! [Trespass¡­ the humans dare touch the treasure of the Dragon¡¯s God¡­] A heavy but low bass sounded voice could be heard, Ian who couldn¡¯t escape, felt his life was withering. [Know that dying in my hands is a glory.] At that time, Ian¡¯s vision started to get blurry. ¡®This dirty feeling¡­ it has been a while.¡¯ But contrary to his words, his mood wasn¡¯t so bad. Because he had finally achieved the Cintamani. ¡®If the Cintamani isn¡¯t an account based item there is a chance that it will drop when I die¡­ that won¡¯t happen right?¡¯ Normally, more than 70% of the legendary items have an account based option. It was obvious that the Cintamani was an item over the legendary grade, and it was definite that this wasn¡¯t a tradable item. With an uneasy feeling, Ian opened the capsule. ¡°Phew, I can rest a day after a long time.¡± Ian saw the time after looking out the window. It was midnight at 4 o¡¯clock. ¡°I¡¯ll have a good night¡¯s sleep, and tomorrow after a long time I¡¯ll go on a date with Harin.¡± Ian quickly showered and threw himself onto his bed. And a moment later, faint snoring could be heard from his room. * * * ¡°Everyone has come early?¡± Levya arrived at the appointed place and smiled as she saw the people who were gathered there. Remir, who was seated down on the rock nodded her head while rubbing her eyes. ¡°Uhh, gathering at this ambitious dawn, isn¡¯t this a little too much?¡± She spoke while yawning, ¡°Can¡¯t help it. Ian died while doing a quest¡­¡± Hoonie also grumbled. ¡°This is the first time seeing this hyung get killed¡­ I¡¯m sure he died doing something important.¡± The point at which Ian originally planned on opening the dimensional door was at 3 pm, about 13 hours back. But Ian died at the dawn of that day, so he couldn¡¯t access it for a time period of 24 hours, and so the time was pushed to 12 hours later. It was dawn at 12 o¡¯clock, but they all gathered at that time as they had to return to the human world as soon as possible. The dimensional war begins when the sun sets, but there was a lot to prepare for a battle before that. Ian, the main culprit of this catastrophe has finally arrived. Phuk- Phuduk-! Ian with the help from Pin moved at a quick pace. Ian was able to move across the air as the NPC¡¯s was recognized by the Maurya Empire and didn¡¯t dare to touch Ian¡ªthe nobleman who had obtained the title of Kshatriya. ¡°Everyone gathered. There isn¡¯t anyone who hasn¡¯t arrived, right?¡± At that question, Levya nodded her head. ¡°I think so, Ian.¡± Hoonie, Herz, and Remir were giving him a death glance, but Ian just laughed it off. Ian was in a very good mood now. ¡®The Cintamani¡­! I got it at last! Haha!¡¯ Ian once again opened the information window. Cintamani ¨C Category ¨C Miscellaneous Rank ¨C Myth A mysterious ornate which doesn¡¯t say for whom it has been made. The Cintamani is one of the seven treasures of the King of Rings, a mysterious bead which contains the power of the Dragon, an item that doesn¡¯t fall short of any treasure. When a Dragon¡¯s kin gains this treasure, it can exert it¡¯s best potential and the rank is raised. Also, when a monarch holds this treasure, they gain wisdom to govern the country in the right manner. * The Cintamani is an ornament with a shining light. * Charm and Leadership increases by 15% (seal) * Disables all magical damage by 17% (seal) * Increases intelligence by 30% * When equipped, raises the affinity with dragons by 10 thousand. * This item belongs to user ¡®Ian¡¯ (Item cannot be sold nor transferred, and won¡¯t drop even if the character dies.) ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¡®Ahh¡­ myth class, stunning option, right?¡¯ Especially, the first and the second option, which were sealed, they give tremendous luck to a man. Ian pulled out the Dimensional Beads. ¡°Everyone¡¯s ready?¡± ¡°Okay.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go quickly, I¡¯ll sleep a little more once I move.¡± ¡°Fast.¡± Ian confirmed the charge of the Dimensional Beads. ¡®Kay, full charge.¡¯ And as Ian breathed mana into the beads, the beads began to shine in purple. Huwooong-! [The item ¡®Dimensional Beads¡¯ is being used.] [Please select the coordinates to move.] Ian chose the Pyro dome as the location, and system messages came up once again. [You chose the location of Central Continent (1275, 1982).] [The dimensional door opens.] In front of Ian, there was a crack in the space, which after a while formed into a large dimensional portal. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± First, Ian entered through the door, and the rest followed him. And so, after a long journey for over the past two months, Ian finally came back to the central continent. CH 292 The first thing that Ian did the moment he returned to the Central Continent was, of course, to evolve Bbookbbook. ¡®At last, I have a mythical cast pet¡­! Hold on, am I the first?¡¯ Ian smiled and laughed, he summoned Bbookbbook near the empty place in front of the Lord¡¯s castle. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah, summoned!¡± Bbook-! This was a Bbookbbook that was already evolved once before, and it was summoned once again. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah.¡± ¡°Your hyung has finally saved the Cintamani.¡± Ian was speaking with the most positive expression ever. And Bbookbbook¡¯s eyes were wavering. ¡°Bbook! Really bbook!¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°That¡¯s what I am saying! Did you ever see your hyung lie to you?¡± Bbookbbook replied without hesitation, ¡°Saw Bbook, saw a lot bbook.¡± Ian was flustered with the answer. ¡°Wh, when!?¡± ¡°When you give me meatballs whenever the hunting is over, not just once or twice bbook.¡± ¡°You bastard¡­ you remember all those stuff?¡± ¡°That is like my Master bbook.¡± Ian, a sad summoner who just lost his dignity as the Master! Ian just shook his head and began to search his inventory. ¡®Bbookbbook has grown a lot. After evolving into the myth class, I don¡¯t know if this guy will even be in a mood to consider me as his Master.¡¯ Ian who was in his thoughts, picked out the Cintamani from his inventory. The Cintamani, just like the time Ian had picked up, had a very bright color. And the eyes of Bbookbbook who saw it for the first time changed. ¡°That, that is the Cintamani bbook!¡± There was a lot of excitement from Bbookbbook, Ian smiled and spoke to the crowd. ¡°So, should I give the real Cintamani or the fake Cintamani? This was something that I originally wanted to give you¡­ but my thoughts changed. I got scared just now.¡± Ian put back the Cintamani into the inventory with a sarcastic expression. And Bbookbbook not knowing what to do, looked at Ian and spoke, ¡°Master, I was wrong. I never saw you lie, not even once bbook!¡± Ian laughed at Bbookbbook who lost his patience in a short span. ¡°Keu, Bbookbbook-ah, after you evolved, your guts seems to have risen too.¡± ¡°No, No bbook. That never happened bbook.¡± ¡°Be quiet. I¡¯m the judge and I give the judgment.¡± Ian continued to speak and saw the sad face of Bbookbbook. ¡°Look, Bbookbbook-ah. I evolved you once, and see how arrogant you have become. So, if I use this Cintamani and evolve you into a Myth class, how arrogant will you get?¡± Bbookbbook shook his head. ¡°Bbook! No way bbook! I¡¯m a good turtle dragon who listens to his Master bbook!¡± Ian turned his head and spoke, ¡°Wow, my cute Bbookbbook from when did you get so arrogant¡­¡± ¡°Bbook¡­ I¡¯m not arrogant bbook¡­! I will be a good one who listens well to my Master, much better than now!¡± Ian touched his chin and looked. ¡°Hmm¡­ how am I supposed to believe that?¡± ¡°Bbook¡­ believe me, bbook¡­¡± Ian thought that he should quit the joking and stared at Bbookbbook who looked like he was going to burst into tears, Ian laughed and called Kaka who was asleep far away. ¡°Yah, Kaka.¡± Kaka rubbed her eyes and answered. ¡°Why are you calling me, Master? I didn¡¯t get to sleep at dawn, my Master.¡± ¡°This is so weird, the guy who hasn¡¯t slept for three thousand years is speaking like this.¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t slept for 3 thousand years Master, I need to sleep a lot now.¡± Ian snapped his fingers without responding. Kaka grunted and flew in front of Ian. Ian opened his mouth, ¡°Bbookbbook is here, did you know that he promised me that he¡¯ll be a good pet and will listen well to me?¡± Kaka nodded her head. ¡°I heard.¡± ¡°Weren¡¯t you sleeping?¡± ¡°It is easy to hear than to fall asleep.¡± Ian looked back and forth between Kaka and Bbookbbook. ¡°Everything that Bbookbbook has said until now, you¡¯ll be the witness, in case he changes his words.¡± Kaka nodded her head. ¡°Will do, Master.¡± Ian looked around and asked, ¡°Bbookbbook-ah, you agree, right?¡± Bbookbbook answered immediately, ¡°Surely Bbook! I will listen to my Master much better in the future!¡± Ian¡¯s lip corners went up, Kaka who was seeing this from the side, shook her head. ¡°A dumb familiar and a wicked Master.¡± Ian who heard those words looked over to Kaka and spoke, ¡°Should I give a good beating, Kaka?¡± Kaka flew away and said. ¡°Master of violence! Bad!¡± ¡°¡­¡± Anyhow, Ian laughed at the innocence of Bbookbbook and pulled out the Cintamani from his inventory. With a lot of cautiousness, he handed the Cintamani to him. ¡°Here, take this.¡± Ian leaned over and handed the Cintamani with a lot of care to Bbookbbook. ¡°Bbook¡­!¡± Bbookbbook who just received the Cintamani had an enchanted expression, and the next moment a system message appeared before Ian¡¯s eyes. Tring- [Used the item ¡®Cintamani¡¯ on familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯.] [The used item ¡®Cintamani¡¯ will disappear, and there is no way to recover it again. Do you still want to use the item ¡®Cintamani¡¯? (Y / N)] Ian paused for a moment. It was because of the fraudulent option attached to the Cintamani. But that wasn¡¯t going to blow up the chance to get a mythical class familiar. ¡°Use.¡± The system message rang again. [The familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ has met all of the evolving conditions.] Wooing- At the same time, a blue light started to glow from the eyes of Bbookbbook. The Cintamani which was in Bbookbbook¡¯s hands floated into the air, and started to emit five colors from it and the whole sky around it was bright¡ªit was a brilliant sight to see. Ian was watching the scene unfold with a throbbing heart. ¡®Did it, did it¡­! Bbookbbook is going to evolve¡­!¡¯ Ian was desperate to cheer, but he couldn¡¯t take his eyes of Bbookbbook whose appearance began to change. The five colors emitted from the Cintamani broke out from it and wrapped the whole body of Bbookbbook, and the body of Bbookbbook turned white. And his stature began to grow larger and larger. ¡®What? What is this? How big will he get?¡¯ At present, the biggest familiar of Ian was Karceus, when he was in his original form. Bbokbbok was enough to match it but was small, compared to Karceus. But now, despite the body of Bbookbbook who already reaching that of Karceus¡¯, he kept increasing. ¡®This is the Abyss Dragon¡­?¡¯ Ian kept watching the evolving process with a blank expression. From the original rounded body and the blue scales that were similar to a dragonfly began to sprout; the short throat was now completely enlarged, and the small wings turned into ten times larger were now covering a lot of space. ¡®Yeah, surely a mythical class dragon, this should be equipped with special skills.¡¯ But then a message popped up, something that Ian didn¡¯t think of. Tring- [The power of Cintamani is partially sealed.] [The familiar has not been able to evolve.] [¡®Cintamani¡¯ has been extracted.] ¡°Oh¡­?!¡± Ian, who was so flustered that he couldn¡¯t speak, confirmed the message again with a tensed expression. ¡®What? Is it related to the inherent ability of the Cintamani that was sealed?¡¯ However, the next moment, Ian was more flustered by the next line of the message that came up. [The Dragon God will come down.] ¡°¡­!!¡± The message was as shocking as the failure to evolve. Ian was speechless. That was because he was going to see those, whom he thought that he would never meet, at least in his current location. Ian needed a moment to worry. ¡®They, they¡¯re not here to kill me, right?¡¯ And in front of the troubled Ian, a white light descended. And dust rose up together with a roar. The body was surrounded by light, and the light slowly began to diminish; the dust started to settle down. The shape was that of a boy with long hair; the unusual thing was that the body was floating in the air and the body was translucent. Ian seemed a little out of thoughts, but he could realize that he was the ¡®Dragon God¡¯. [My most treasured item is here.] Emotionless words came out. Ian gulped down his saliva and asked. ¡°You¡¯re¡­ Dragon God¡­?¡± At this question from Ian, the boy answered with a funny expression. [Yes, I am the Dragon God, Seikaito.] After answering, he slowly approached Ian. Ian was scared and held out his Judgement of the Spirit King. ¡°Don¡¯t come close¡­!¡± Ian closed his mouth firmly, but Ian had a lot of thoughts on his mind. ¡®Should I log out? This isn¡¯t a hunting ground, so, it isn¡¯t going to turn into a battle, so I can log out¡­ No, this isn¡¯t a problem that requires me to log out like a coward.¡¯ The Dragon God Seikaito noticed the confusion of Ian and opened his mouth to speak, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, human. I cannot harm you.¡± Ian¡¯s expression changed. ¡°What? You don¡¯t seem like the Dragon God who killed me with a single shot in the Dragon¡¯s Altar¡­?¡± Seikaito continued his words. ¡°That is the place where my power comes from. I can use my power in the altar, but this isn¡¯t my dimension, so this is a different case. If I harm you, the gods of this place will not stay still.¡± Ian who understood the meaning of the words, asked, ¡°Then why are you here?¡± Even while asking, the nervousness of Ian continued to grow. It was because he was assuming that he was here to retrieve the Cintamani again. And Seikaito¡¯s mouth opened, ¡°I was just wondering, who was the fearless man who came to my place and took away the Cintamani.¡± While speaking, the Seikaito suddenly reached out to the air. And the Cintamani who was slowly floating back to Ian rushed over to his possession. ¡°¡­!¡± Seikaito¡¯s words followed. ¡°And I¡¯m not here to take back my stuff.¡± Ian stretched out his hand to retrieve it. But he was so stiff, that he couldn¡¯t open his fingers. ¡®This¡­! Is this his thing?¡¯ Ian bit down his lower lip. If the Cintamani is taken back now, all the suffering that Ian got and the blast he received from the Dragon God would all turn worthless. Seikaito looked at Ian and Bbookbbook, then smiled a little. ¡°But before I change my mind.¡± Seikaito ran his finger on his palm and the Cintamani started to move. Ian seeing the Cintamani, hurriedly grabbed it and placed it back to his inventory, seeing this Seikaito laughed. ¡°Human, I¡¯m willing to give you a chance to prove your qualifications.¡± CH 293 Seikaito just put a very long story into short brief words. Ian was relieved and was ready to take up a new quest as a form of paying him. This was the point where Ian was supposed to battle against the Asmodians, and there was no time for doing other quests. So Ian had a small chat with Seikaito. ¡°Qualification? Chance? What is it that you are implying?¡± ¡°It means to see if you are qualified to become the owner of the Cintamani.¡± ¡°How am I supposed to prove it?¡± ¡°If you can endure the weight of the fate placed on your shoulders, that will be enough to prove it.¡± ¡°The weight of fate¡­?¡± Ian was intimidated with it. ¡®What does he mean by weight of fate? The quests I¡¯m doing now and the dimensional war¡­ does he mean those?¡¯ Seikaito finally disappeared after saying the following words. ¡°Once my judgment on you is done, I will come back.¡± Ian took a sigh of relief. This was because he had no clue as to what needed to be done. ¡®Phew, it was really thrilling to get the Cintamani. But there¡¯s nothing that I can do other than worry about it¡­¡¯ Bbookbbook failed to evolve, but he still possessed the Cintamani. Also, he had the Soldier of Earth which could play a huge role in winning the Dimensional War. This was about half the success he wanted. Ian had to change his mind to the positive side, he came into his room in the castle. ¡°Do I need to check the equipment before entering the battle?¡± Ian opened his inventory and took out all the useful equipment that he had collected. During the successful huntings he did in the numerous hunting grounds, he came across many high-level boss monsters. And he purchased a legendary item in the auction store, so now the inventory of Ian was literally overflowing. ¡®Okay, let¡¯s prepare to discipline those idiots who decided to change their race to the Asmodians without any fear.¡¯ The first thing Ian did was to check his information window. ¡®From the most important one is anti-magic¡­¡¯ Currently, Ian¡¯s anti-magic was about 31%. The most recent hunting that happened in the Southern Island, Ian didn¡¯t wear any equipment that had anti-magic power, that was because in the location Ian went, anti-magic was useless. The 31% of the anti-magic included Ian¡¯s basic equipment along with some ornaments. Ian touched his Judgment of the Spirit King. ¡®There is no anti-magic option in this Judgment of the Spirit King¡­ but this guy is a non-substitutable resource.¡¯ Ian changed all the items except for the Judgment of the Spirit King and the Dragon tamer head. ¡®Well, this is a bit ambiguous. The anti-magic is about 7% and there are other options¡­ maybe another system would be better.¡¯ Ian took a lot of time to select the items he wanted to use, and it took 30 minutes for him to set all the items. Once all the setting was done, Ian¡¯s anti-magic was at 62%. It was possible to get it to 70% by changing the systems of all the items, but Ian chose not to do that. That was because there were a lot of other things that needed to be considered. ¡®Okay, now let¡¯s try strengthening?¡¯ Ian took out all of his magic stones until the lowest. This time, the equipment for the setting-earmuffs hadn¡¯t been entirely strengthened. He used up all the mid-range and advanced magic stones, so he hadn¡¯t been able to build a high-end system more than 10, but going till the 10 was a definite thing. Ian used all the magic stones by staying seated in his place. After 30 minutes, Ian was successful in making all of his equipment from 8 to 10. Ian had a satisfied expression. ¡°Wohoo, if I have this much, it is enough to overpower the Asmodians?¡± Ian smiled thinking about the Asmodians who would be flustered seeing Ian¡¯s power. When he reinforced the items, the numerical value of options gradually increased and the anti-magic was adjusted to 69%. That could have been an abominable anti-magic from the stance of an Asmodian. ¡°Kay, should we go for a hunt now?¡± Ian looked more confident than ever. Now that he was able to put up the anti-magic, he could play a bit more aggressively, more aggressive than he used to, because he was stronger now. ¡®I have been fighting enemies which are stronger than me for a while and if I need to, I will use the transcendental option that I haven¡¯t used properly.¡¯ The transcendental option that Ian talked about, was an option that was obtained when the Judgment of Spirit King was reinforced with the first transcendental equipment. [Transcendental option: when avoiding an enemy attack, you have a 15% chance to avoid 30% of the damage and 30% chance to regain 10% of your health.] An option that provides a 15% chance of avoiding. This option seemed like a fraudulent option at first glance, but this was a tricky option when put to practice. If one avoids 100 times, then you won¡¯t be able to attack with the 15, and one could get into a dangerous situation if failed. The time Ian used this was when he was on the back of Halli, which quickly triggered a buff. And it wasn¡¯t easy as Halli had to avoid more than half of the attacks. ¡°But in the midst of such a massive battle, if I rage like a crazed person, I could continue to play.¡± Ian believed in his anti-magic power and was willing to play the battle like a knight or a warrior. It was because he had a better chance to kill an Asmodian, than the class of Knights. Avoiding the obstructions that were poured into the battlefields, it would be around 3~5 avoidance per seconds, and the option to use the transcend could be done sequentially. ¡°There is not much left to do. Let¡¯s just go into the battlefield.¡± It was around 30 minutes before the beginning of the Dimensional war. Ian for the last time checked his condition and started moving towards the battlefield. Originally, it was a battlefield not too far from the Pyro Domain, but since they were being pushed back, now the battle was down to the nose of the Castle. * * * ¡°Oh? Why isn¡¯t there anyone apart from our guild?¡± At that question from Ian who just entered the battle, Herz just sighed. ¡°Since I wasn¡¯t here, I don¡¯t know either, but what now? It is said that almost 20 users were hit by Irahan. Since you weren¡¯t here, even the top ranker according to Fiolan was also hit.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± ¡°Said that she went to the Toballdo. It wasn¡¯t so fun it seems.¡± ¡°OMG.¡± Ian¡¯s face widened. ¡®This sudden ego?¡¯ Lotus guild had grown quite a lot in the meantime. Ian thought the Lotus Guild was a guild that stayed on the outside of the top 10 ranks, but now they had enough to be in the fifth place. But he was still feeling sad when he heard that one ranker of the 20 elite guild members were hit. ¡®From what I remember, I don¡¯t think that the control was so imbalanced.¡¯ Among the users that Ian had met Shakaran was the most controlled user. Ian was good too, but his control wasn¡¯t to the limit of Shakaran. Ian who had high self-esteem vowed to find Irahan. Ian greeted the guild members, such as Fiolan after a long time and waited to the battle to begin. ¡°Now, One minute¡­ what could we have in store?¡± [The 22nd Dimensional War begins in 10 seconds from now.] [Start counting.] [10¡­ 9¡­ 8¡­] The eyes of the human users were blank. This was all because of the Asmodian that cleared most of them in just one week. But now, the rankers including Remir who were out of the game were back, and they didn¡¯t have a pessimistic look. Ian fixed his spear and approached Remir. As Remir was a wizard class, she was at a little disadvantage. ¡°Remir.¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°When the battle starts, follow me.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± Remir was anxious at what Ian was planning to do but before she could say anything, the battle started. [Dimensional War begins. I bless you all good luck, specifically the human users.] Ian sprang forward in a flash for a certain something, and Remir who noticed it hurriedly moved along with Ian. ¡®What the hell is this crazy guy doing again?¡¯ But with Ian, she was always able to experience new things, so Remir moved along with anticipation. Remir who was following Ian, one side of her lip corners went up making a smirk. * * * Now that the virtual reality games have become popular. The gaming industry was booming more than ever, and there were many people for whom the virtual reality games were part of their daily life. In particular, Kailan, who occupies most of the virtual reality market, was able to create many new jobs. It would be easy to say that there were a lot of people who made the Kailan play possible. And Kim Sang-min was one of them. Right after graduating from college¡ªhe did not aim to get a good job, so he lived unemployed, but then he found his aptitude in Kailan, and he became happier than before. Not long ago, he met a female user in the Kailan game, married her and now lives a happy life. And there were more such cases like Kim Sang-min. Confirming his role in the Kailan, Sang-min mumbled to himself. ¡°This hero system and the legendary system looks good¡­ if I manage to sell it, I can get a month¡¯s worth of living expenses¡­¡± Sang-min who was checking his items while eating lunch, turned away his head thinking about something. After checking his watch, he was startled and rushed to find the remote control. ¡°Well, I guess it is time to start the broadcasting?¡± Turning on the TV, he immediately changed the channel to the one where the game was going on. And the pro¡¯s started talking about it in the gaming broadcast. [Hello, this is Castor Hains.] [Nice to meet you, this is reporter Lucia.] Sang-min who found his favorite reporter Hains chuckled to himself. ¡°Today too, will the humans run away?¡± Sang-min was a user of the human class. His level was in the mid 140s so he couldn¡¯t participate, but his biggest concern in the last few days was the Dimensional War. [Today, the Asmodians seem very aggressive in the battle. You will feel the same by looking at this, irrespective of the class they are racing to the front. Almost like they are going to melt them all.] [I know, right. There is a lot of talks these days about the collapse of the balance. What are your thoughts on that Hains?] [Well, I¡¯m not sure. It hasn¡¯t been that long since the Asmodians were introduced, and the controversy of the balance in the Kailan started, some time and these pieces will all fall into the respective spaces. In the end, the balance will turn out alright.] [Is that so. Then if the time goes, will the human class user be able to take down the Asmodians?] [They sure will. The balance in Kailan has always been perfect.] From the explanation from Caster Hains, Sang-min muttered to himself. ¡°I¡¯ll decide after watching for a few more days.¡± He had been in a lot of thoughts these days. He was in a constant concern whether or not to convert into the Asmodian class. The race conversion quest would close soon, and once the quests were closed, there would be no way to create a new character play with the Asmodian class. He never really decided to convert to the new class, but the recent aspects of the Dimensional war swayed his thoughts. ¡®Phew, it is nice that I¡¯m still a human race user¡­¡¯ Sang-min¡¯s gaze was fixed to the screen. And at that moment, an excited voice came on. [Ah, the moment I said! Bring on the 7th division! Open the 7th division screen please!] CH 294 The human side, which had been unilaterally taken down for more than a week, was on the defensive side. ¡®The best defense is the best attack¡­ this wasn¡¯t tremendously advantageous, and in such a wide battle area, there isn¡¯t much that you can do by defending.¡¯ Ian knew that he couldn¡¯t do such a thing, and he knew how he was supposed to turn this around. It was because the scam that had been introduced into the crowd from a few days back won¡¯t change from a few words from his mouth. ¡®I need to show that we can win.¡¯ Ian was going to show them by doing it himself. Hwong- Hwoong-! Ian summoned Halli and told Remir, ¡°Remir, during the hunt last time, you seemed to have a great deal of supporting spells¡­¡± ¡°Supporting spell?¡± ¡°Yeah. I¡¯ll let you borrow Halli, be around me and use Haste and an attack buff. And use a wide area attack skill only when you see me coming back.¡± ¡°Um¡­ okay.¡± She didn¡¯t know what Ian was up to, but Remir got on the back of Halli immediately. Even when she was hunting with the party a few days back, she didn¡¯t feel much awkward as she had been on Halli several times, and Ian leaped forward the moment Remir got on. ¡®Now, where is my prey?¡¯ Just like the wave in the past, there was a curvilinear line with humans in the front. Ian, who just popped out from the back went to the front and didn¡¯t have an alternative than to target all the Asmodian tribes. ¡°Who is that crazy guy? Let¡¯s start with him!¡± ¡°Kill him! Get that guy first, and then go onto the defensive line!¡± The Asmodians who detected Ian leaped forward in his direction. Seeing that, Ian smiled. ¡®The ones who are the first to rush are the certified fools.¡¯ The level of users who were rushing towards Ian were all between 150 and 180. But Ian didn¡¯t mind those things. In the meantime there were a few users who made their level information into private, this was because they didn¡¯t want anything to change in the flow of this battle of fear. They could play if they had healers who can cast recovery skills for a one-on-one; then the play would have been aggressive, but when there is no healer, even the slightest damage would cause a huge variable for a play. Ian had the ¡®Recovery of life when Avoiding¡¯ was there due to the transcendent option, but he wanted to be careful until he really experienced it. Also, he couldn¡¯t summon a healer in the middle of the enemy camp. The speed of Bbookbbook wasn¡¯t that great to follow Ian continuously. ¡®Kay, come on now.¡¯ And five Asmodian users came on at the same time¡ªIan chuckled seeing this. ¡°This jerk! I¡¯ll kill you.¡± ¡°Did you come not knowing what you are getting into? From where did a summoner get the courage¡­?!¡± The users kept running while shouting, Ian stopped his laugh and confirmed the attacking skills. ¡®These guys are very simple.¡¯ Ian¡¯s spear swung very quickly. Ian who just swung the sword from side to side in a precise manner avoided the distant monsters with minimal gestures. And at that moment, the transcendence option attached to the Judgment of the Spirit King was triggered. [Succeeded in avoiding the attack from the enemies.] [The Judgement of the Spirit King ¡®Judgment¡¯ option has been activated.] [197650 of lightning damage has returned.] Grrr- A lightning bolt descended on the head of the Asmodian archer. ¡°Uh-ah!¡± A chance in the battle with a 15% chance to hit was luckily played from the start. The lightning hit the Asmodian archer who was level 150, and his defense and resistance were very low. He was almost in the state of dying with a single shot. On top of that, he died just seconds later due to the damage caused by the ¡®Electric Shock¡¯ condition. ¡°What, how the hell did this happen?¡± ¡°What the hell did that summoner do!¡± Ian¡¯s equipment was totally different from the moment it was shown by the broadcaster the other day. The ¡®look¡¯ was a believable difference, but it just changed entirely. As the look changed, the users weren¡¯t able to recognize him immediately. ¡®This is just the beginning.¡¯ Ian immediately summoned Pin and Karceus. ¡°Pin, Karceus! Spread out!¡± ¡°Understood, Master.¡± Grr- Woosh-! The two familiars who rose up into the air spewed breath in front of the Asmodians. Bang- Baaaang-! And the wizard class Asmodians who were in the back started to cast spells. Weing-! Ian was a bit surprised when he saw a wide-area spell which would reduce the damage caused. ¡®What is this? A wide-area damage reduction circle, an immediate spell without time for casting?¡¯ However, even though it reduces the damage to the area, with the breath from Pin and Karceus they suffered a great amount of damage. The dealers in the level range of 150 to 160 were all killed in spite of the damage reduction. There were around 3 or 4 of them who belonged to the levels above 170. But they alone had a tremendous effect. Most of the users on the battlefield were focused on Ian. And as soon as Karceus and Pin appeared, Ian¡¯s identity was revealed. ¡°Ian! That is Ian!¡± ¡°All the Asmodians come over here! Now is your chance! Let¡¯s get rid of this insane jerk when he is isolated!¡± And the Asmodian users started to gather around Ian. And the users started to mistakenly believe that Ian was isolated. This was assumed because usually, Ian led the whole battle by staying in the rear of it. And Ian is in the middle of nowhere and wasn¡¯t the style of battle play that the players were used to see. So the preys began to gather. Ian started to go crazy. ¡®Okay, exactly 10 minutes. Ten minutes from now I need to do as much damage as I can and get out.¡¯ Ian who was ready with his plan initiated Kaka¡¯s unique ability. ¡°Kaka, The Dreaming Devil!¡± ¡°Kay, Master!¡± [Slave ¡®Kaka¡¯ unique ability ¡®The Dreaming Devil¡¯ has been activated.] [During the ¡®Shadow Control¡¯, all the party members attacks will increase by 5%, and the damage by shadow attribute attacks will decrease by 50%. All enemies within the radius will be visible on sight.] Woong-! With a very low resonance, the darkness started to spread around Ian. Whoong-! The unexpected changes in the environment made the users confused and nervous. And Ian didn¡¯t miss that opportunity. ¡°Ly! I¡¯ll open the way for you, and you take down those with half vitality.¡± ¡°Grr-! I know, master!¡± Ly, who saw the darkness began to run while laughing. And at the moment, Ian¡¯s eye came up with additional system messages. [Party member ¡®Remir¡¯ has used ¡®Haste¡¯ skill.] [All the party members can move faster by 23.5% for 15 minutes, and increase the attack speed by 10%.] [Increased resistance for all the party members by 50% for 15 minutes.] [Party member ¡®Remir¡¯ skill ¡®Wrath of Flames¡¯ has been activated.] [Increases all the party members damage by 5% for 7 minutes.] [During the 7 minutes for all the party members general attacks, along with user ¡®Remir¡¯ intelligence and the fire damage is added by 12%.] Remir placed the buff skills at the exact time that Ian needed. ¡®Supereb¡­!¡¯ Ian smiled at this act from Remir and began to slaughter the Asmodians that blocked him. ¡°Euahk¡­! Crazy, summoner who thinks he can attack!¡± ¡°Be careful! Dilli this isn¡¯t a joke! Dealers fall back and the tankers come forward!¡± In the beginning, the dealers were in the close vicinity of Ian, and that caused a major disaster for them. It was because Ian used the 4th transcendental weapon on the dealers within the level of 170, and they couldn¡¯t handle it. Basically, the attack power of Ian was very strong, and with the additional buff from Remir, the dealers won¡¯t stand a single stab. They could block the attack with their armors or their shields, but the attack from Ian was like a ghost. Phuk-! [User ¡®Baek Ji-yeon¡¯ was damaged terribly.] [¡®Lightning of Judgment¡¯, the unique ability of the ¡®Judgement of the Spirit King¡¯ has been activated.] Bang- Babang-! The battle style of Ian now reminded most people of the hidden class fighters who used ¡®Photoelectricity¡¯. Conditional activation¡ªa battle mode in which the passive skill sets were in the item setting, and using the attack power and resistance to the extreme would make the enemy gather together. It was, in theory, a great battle style. However, since it was a battle style that couldn¡¯t be used with a certain control ability, and most of the top ranked users wouldn¡¯t be able to do what Ian was presenting now. On the internet, there were a few images of the ranker using legendary magic spells. Now, Ian however, was making a scene that was more intense than the move of Mad Max. This was all possible because of the present control ability of Ian¡¯s, but that wasn¡¯t all. Remir was a superb ranker to have for support and the anti-magic/ resistance was now up to 70%. And Ian¡¯s power couldn¡¯t be grasped due to the mistake that the Asmodians were doing, but the crazed movie like scene was created. The number of Asmodians who were massacred in just five minutes of Ian entering the battle had reached tens of thousands, and the atmosphere in the battlefield started to change. ¡°Ian! It is Ian! Ian has come back!¡± ¡°I told you right! Didn¡¯t Ian hard carry the war in the Northern continent? Ian will hard carry today too!¡± ¡°So Insane! How does one fight like that? Did he steal the data from the Kailan system or a bug, or what?¡± The users of the human side started to get lively with the activities that Ian was doing, and the users of the magic class began to struggle with the situation that arose which they didn¡¯t think of. Especially the users who just tried to attack Ian with their powers. ¡°No Shiburel, how does a magic arrow have three digits? Is something wrong?¡± ¡°Yah, I was lucky enough to get up after the start of the game, Dilli had been hit with over 400 power. Is that bastard doing a buggy play?¡± The aggressive anti-magic power of Ian was approaching 70%, and due to the high reinforcement and transcendence, there was a tremendous defense. No one was able to hit Ian¡¯s vitality with either magic or power. Especially, the wizards with dark attributes were at a loss of words. Ian¡¯s magic defense reduced the amount of damage by half, and in the area that Karceus was present¡ªthe damage was reduced further to 70%. Those who didn¡¯t know Ian¡¯s current setting were assuming that this was all because of a bug. ¡°Sh*t! How do we kill the monster!¡± ¡°This isn¡¯t a boss raid! What the hell is this?!¡± ¡°That scamming little user?!¡± Ian, on the other hand, was confident and was moving very boldly. He was convinced that a reasonable attack would be the right thing to do. If fought with weak looking attacks, then one could go further into the battlefield. ¡®Alright, a few more tens of thousands of damage will be covered by the transcendence option!¡¯ Ian who was wielding the Judgment of the Spirit King aggressively confirmed the vitality of his familiars. And he went to a high point and got a good look at the whole situation. Even when completely immersed in a battle, constantly looking into the situation is the basic skill in any large-scale battle. At the same time, Ian confirmed the duration of Kaka¡¯s unique ability ¡®Dreaming Devil¡¯. ¡®2 minutes left. Now I need to be ready to get out.¡¯ The wide-area effect of Dreaming Devil helped to improve the combat abilities, but the most important reason was this: During the darkness, Ian didn¡¯t have to worry about the assassins. In the darkness laid by Kaka, all the enemies could be seen, even in their stealth mode. And it was all thanks to this ability that Ian was able to push to the center of the battlefield. ¡®Five in the front. Kill just the five and leave.¡¯ Ian, who roughly drew the exit in his head, glanced over to Remir, who was right behind Ian, casting magic. Remir was doing much better than what Ian expected. ¡®Remir you are hella impressive.¡¯ Remir¡¯s attack was unseen due to Ian¡¯s aggressive style. But, by using Agro, even Remir was slaughtering many Asmodians. She indeed was one of the top users in Kailan. ¡°Ignition!¡± Hwarlll-! The scaling heat poured into the vicinity of Remir, and the illusion that the space was being distorted, caused five users to instantly turn into dark ash. Ian put up a thumbs up and said, ¡°Good! I picked up a good supporter!¡± Remir complained at Ian¡¯s compliment. ¡°No, Ian. This is a supporter¡¯s deal. You¡¯re really too much.¡± These two people deserved to joke around for the work they did. However, even seeing them joke around, the Asmodians didn¡¯t take a chance to attack them. No, it would be accurate to say that they couldn¡¯t afford to attack them. CH 295 The overwhelming strength of Ian changed the atmosphere of the battle all by himself. The users of the human side, who were in the defense formation in the past, now began to move out much more confidently. But that did not mean that all the people suddenly got stronger, but the Asmodians definitely began to get pessimistic. Ian could not jump into battle like he did the first time, so now he retreated to the back. It was dangerous to stir the enemy especially in the middle of the battlefield, that too after knowing the power of the enemy. Ian, who moved to the back, naturally began to command the whole battlefield as he used to in the past. And the rankers such as Remir, Fiolan, Herz, Hoonie and the others controlled the area after receiving the message from Ian. Ian was looking at the overall situation and balancing it with the strength that he wanted to use. ¡®This looks fine, but we are slowly heading close to them.¡¯ The present Dimensional War was larger than a large scale battle that happened in the past of the Central part. So, even if Ian picked up one side of the battle all alone and if the other place started to break, there would be no one to save. And Ian knew that. ¡®I need to look at my back too, the rankers of the Asmodians and need to finish them off.¡¯ Ian¡¯s gaze didn¡¯t stop, his eyes swept through the entire battlefield. The presence of ¡®Pin¡¯ who could fly made it possible. Kwang- Kwkang-! From here and there magic blast could be heard. And most of this explosion was a ¡®Magic explosion¡¯ used by the mage class Asmodian. The magic explosion was the most basic skill that the mages possess, and it had very low attack power and an attack skill with fixed damage, which was proportional to the amount of magic the user possesses. The basic damage was not as high as the 7,000 to 10,000 but it did mean high efficiency. In addition, for human users with zero anti-magic, the figure of 7,000 and 10,000 would cut all of their vitality, and it was harmful as it was a direct hit. Ian frowned seeing the magic explosion skill being used on the battlefield. ¡®That¡¯s too much pressure on the human side. No other way?¡¯ Ian¡¯s anti-magic could deflect only 2~3,000 damage, it wouldn¡¯t be too scary at all. But this was very threatening to the other users as the damage received was fixed. ¡®I need to remove all the mage class Asmodians who have great control.¡¯ Ian piloted Pin and moved through the battlefield. Then, using this feature, he moved to a place where he couldn¡¯t be seen and took out a legendary bow from his inventory. The combat users who were deep in the battlefield won¡¯t be able to see the attack unless it was a short range. He wanted to shoot anywhere in the battlefield if he could, but he couldn¡¯t as he didn¡¯t get the right angle. ¡®My archery hasn¡¯t been rusted for the meantime, right?¡¯ Ian, holding the string in his left hand, took out the quiver filled with mithril arrows and placed them on his back. Ian chuckled as he held the arrow. ¡°Should I start with a low level?¡± The mithril arrow held a tremendous price of 1500 gold for one arrow. Too expensive for general users. Even ranked archers thought that they were expensive so they never recommended it, but Ian didn¡¯t care. He bought about a hundred of those and it had cost him about 150,000 gold, but Ian thought that they would be useful. Even for Ian, it would be a burden to take down thousands of them, but that wasn¡¯t Ian¡¯s style. ¡®Attack + 15% armor, magic armor options are definite¡­ it could be a bit slipped, but it will cause more damage to the undead and the Asmodians.¡¯ Ian was about 20 minutes behind, so there was a lot of Agro. Ian put the saddle on Pin¡¯s back with his feet pressed firmly, he pulled the bowstring slowly towards the first target. ¡®One at a time¡­¡¯ Ian only aimed at the Asmodian users who had less than half of the vitality. If they didn¡¯t die from the arrow, they¡¯ll notice that target got attacked from an arrow by Ian. Then it would be Agro again¡ªhe wouldn¡¯t be able to attack sneakily in peace. ¡®Now¡­!¡¯ Focusing his whole mind and concentration on the target, Ian pulled the arrow without hesitation. Weeing-! The mithril arrow which left Ian¡¯s bow flew to the user who was casting a magic explosion by tearing the wind apart. Puahk-! The mithril arrow pierced through the left chest was sucked in! [The user ¡®Milinae¡¯ has faced tremendous damage.] [The mithril arrows damage boost, it caused an additional damage of 15%.] [The Asmodian class user has faced an additional 9% damage.] Ian grabbed and made a fist after holding the arrow exactly at the red spot that marked as it¡¯s weakness. ¡®Okay! I still have it in me. The mithril arrow has better performance than what I knew?¡¯ The mage casters died in the battle without knowing what was hitting them, and Ian¡¯s shots continued. The battlefield was a mental fight, so no user would care about the identity of the arrow which was flying in the air. The same case even if he was attacked. Phing- Puahk-! Puak-! Ian didn¡¯t stop. Ian wasn¡¯t able to hit the opponents who were constantly moving, but most of them were successful, they were killed with a single blow. Was it about 30 minutes or so? When Ian¡¯s 100 mithril arrows were nearly done, an unexpected situation arose. ¡°Reorganize Heat Formation!¡± ¡°It is Irahan! Be careful!¡± Irahan, the one who hadn¡¯t appeared in the battle for over an hour, finally decided to show up in the battle. And Ian who was waiting for him pulled the bow without hesitation. Ian¡¯s lip corners went up. ¡®Shall I start the discipline class now?¡¯ Ian had around 12 arrows left with him. So he planned on shooting all the 12 arrows at a fast pace. It was because Ian thought that killing him would be tough with a single arrow. Phing- Pipiping-! Ian started the fight with tremendous speed. The first arrow was close to hitting the third arrow before reaching the target, it was a nerve-wreaking scenario. * * * Irahan was in a state of hunger. ¡®I wasn¡¯t able to hunt yesterday until the dawn.¡¯ After the dimensional war, he constantly hunted down the mage class user from evening till dawn. That was to have one more magic point. Yesterday, however, the hunt went on too late, so he overslept, that was why he was an hour late to the Dimensional War. ¡°So today, full-time, it will meet all the conditions to be changed to a true Noblesse.¡± The human user hunting quest that he received from the previous time was finished, but the additional contribution quest was still in execution. However, when he manages to fulfill this quest, the Devil himself gave the assurance that he would upgrade Irahan to a Noblesse, so Irahan was in a hurry. As soon as he jumped into the battle, he started to move to the front and wielded his sword insanely. But soon, he felt something strange. ¡®What? From when did these cowards get into such a systemized manner?¡¯ Normally, whenever he entered the formation it was always collapsed, but now they were moving in a very systematic manner¡­ against Irahan. Some of the users were killed with the attacks from Irahan, but it was completely different from the past. At that moment, he felt a deadly blow. Puahk-! The arrow, which flew in his direction, penetrated his shoulder. [The attack from user ¡®Ian¡¯ was fatal.] [Vitality reduced by 77940.] Irahan¡¯s eyes fluttered. ¡®What? Seventy?¡¯ He confirmed his damage, he was overwhelmed with the numbers the message had shown. He turned his head and confirmed the source of the arrow. And at that moment, two more arrows flew in succession towards Irahan. Swoosh- Puahk! Irahan was able to avoid an arrow but got hit by the following one in his leg. And he checked the ID of the user from the system message which said ¡®Ian¡¯. ¡®Ian? Now, this freak is cos-playing as an archer?¡¯ Irahan was more than glad to see the name ¡®Ian¡¯. In the battle of the Central Continent, Ian was the only user in the whole of Luspel Empire who could go against Irahan. And the pleasure of meeting him was not that of real pleasure, but that of meeting the soon to be dead user. It was nice to be born from the confidence that he could take down the other users with his power. Irahan quickly hit the flying arrows which were coming towards him with his sword. Kang- Kakang-! However, Ian¡¯s speed was about 1.3 to 1.5 times faster than the normal speed, and Irahan just took the additional arrows. His irritation was getting worse and shouted loudly using his death skill. ¡°Ian, you rat! Hiding and shooting arrows!¡± And after that shout, all the attention on the battlefield shifted to Ian and Irahan. ¡°What Ian and Irahan are going against one another?¡± ¡°Really? Damn, this isn¡¯t the time for those fights, but I want to watch¡¯em do it.¡± ¡°You¡¯re a fool, you can watch it on the re-broadcast on the TV at night. Focus on what is in front of you for now.¡± Many users looked at Irahan in anticipation, they were expecting Ian to respond to the provocation from Irahan. And Ian fulfilled their expectations. Wheeing-! There was noise from a huge gust of wind and a large griffin showed up. The Griffin quickly flew to the place where Irahan was and did a tumble in the air. On top of it, a man could be seen. He was none other than Ian. Irahan wielded his twin swords and turned towards Ian. ¡°Wasn¡¯t your appearance too flashy, Ian?¡± Ian smiled and replied. ¡°Don¡¯t bother, you can¡¯t instigate me. I¡¯ll make you regret being an Asmodian.¡± And soon he changed his weapon to a spear, pointing it at Irahan as he laughed¡ªseeing this, Irahan ran towards Ian. ¡°Don¡¯t expect this to be like the last time, bastard!¡± ¡°If you are speaking about the fight back in the central continent¡­ I don¡¯t see another case, do you?¡± Ian continued to move without a speck of nervousness towards Irahan. And the two top-ranked users from both camps started to clash in the middle of the battlefield. And it wasn¡¯t the intention of Ian or Irahan but the moment they began to fight, the war stopped. There wasn¡¯t a single user who wasn¡¯t interested in the fight, and everyone seemed to have stopped their battles as if they pre-decided. The surprise was, it wasn¡¯t just the users, but the NPC¡¯s from both classes joined in. Both the camps retreated to 20m, it was a miracle as if Moses divided the space of the battle camps. Bang- Kabang-! The sound of the arms of Ian and Irahan was the only thing that could be heard. CH 296 Quite evidently, Ian was one of the most recognized users in the game of Kailan. Any user with five fingers would be aware of him, even though he didn¡¯t show up for a month or two. Ian, the current hot issue and Irahan¡ªthe best runner. It was natural for everyone to focus on this topline showdown. ¡°I¡¯ll make you regret coming at me, you idiot.¡± Ian was growling, but Ian didn¡¯t give him a speck of attention. ¡°That is what I actually planned on doing to you.¡± Kakang-! Ian, who easily attacked the opponent, stepped back. In fact, Ian didn¡¯t even see Irahan as an equal opponent. For Ian, rather than the Asmodians, the human user rankers such as Remir and Shakaran were far more intimidating opponents. As long as there was a definite shield the anti-magic power, Irahan¡¯s so-called powerful magic was of mere use. ¡°The joke is right here.¡± Ian nodded at these words from Irahan. So far, Ian had only done the exploratory quests which could measure to the combat abilities of Irahan. ¡°Yeah, like you say. The joke is here.¡± And with the short sparring with Irahan, Ian was able to grasp his approximate ability. ¡®A level similar to that of mine, a stats correction like the one of the Asmodian, so my cognitive combat skill is enormous.¡¯ Irahan¡¯s attack was very destructive. And was incredibly fast. Ian couldn¡¯t completely follow Irahan¡¯s movements despite the simple stats that he had. Because there was a difference in filling the power stats instantly in battle. But that was¡ªto an expected level. Ian¡¯s mouth slightly went up and looked like a more confident one. ¡®Can I still keep the look after 5 minutes?¡¯ Ian did even summon his familiars. Now Ian was wanting to step into the fight with the ability of his character. A brief moment of robust strength due to the content pre-emption. He couldn¡¯t tolerate Ian showing such arrogance. What he didn¡¯t like the least was that Ian¡¯s strength wasn¡¯t even exhausting. Ian picked up his spear and pointed it at Irahan. Ian, who had his gaze fixed at Irahan, used a statement to instigate him. ¡°Come on. I¡¯ll make you yield.¡± And that statement had a great effect on Irahan. ¡°You jerk. I¡¯ll make you regret those words.¡± Irahan ran towards Ian while cursing. Ian laughed and took a defensive stance. ¡®There is no way for me to pursue a move without riding on Halli. To win without a familiar, I need to be able to counter.¡¯ If Ian ran first to make an attack, Irahan wouldn¡¯t take such an aggressive stance like he just did. Even with one swing from his spear, he could feel the strangeness of the attack. Now the reason Irahan was so aggressive was because of the damage he received from the arrow that Ian shot. As a matter of fact, Ian¡¯s bow was a weapon that was just a few steps below when compared to the Judgement of the Spirit King. The weapon damage in the information window shows only 30% of what Judgment of the Spirit king can do. That was how much Irahan misunderstood Ian¡¯s offensive power and was willing to run towards Ian. ¡®I¡¯ll look for an opportunity, and split open the head at once.¡¯ Ian calmly blocked the double swords from Irahan. Kang- kang- Kakang-! The double sword was a kind of weapon whose attack speed was much faster when compared to the others. On top of that Irahan¡¯s brilliant ability was added, his movements were hard to catch for naked eyes. Ian used his spear and blocked them all with minimal movements. ¡®I¡¯m going to spend a moment to use my skills.¡¯ Even if it was Ian, it would be hard to keep up with all the attacks. Rather, Ian believed in the anti-magic stats and thought they would help with the fight a little. However, Ian¡¯s defense was well played and drawing it out would be ill-advised. Ian defended all the attacks, making sure Irahan didn¡¯t change his play. ¡®Maybe I¡¯m a bit nervous about his magic power.¡¯ And Ian¡¯s intentions were exactly on point. Irahan who was constantly attacking Ian now started to tone up his attacks. ¡®Damn it, I¡¯ll need to change it if this continues.¡¯ As a result of the one-sided difference, the situation in which he couldn¡¯t reach the body of Ian continued, and then Irahan picked up the pace. And Ian was constantly on the defensive, just because he saw that preventing the attacks was much important. ¡°Jerk¡­!¡± Irahan stopped attacking and stepped back. And at that moment, a sword of Irahan began to shine. ¡®That thing¡­ explosive magic¡­!¡¯ Ian knew the name of what Irahan was performing. That was because Ian checked through the community page in advance. Explosive magic was a superior single-strike skill of the ¡®Battle Asmodians¡¯ class, a warrior class of the Asmodians, it was a special technique that Irahan enjoyed using. Unlike Ian, who hadn¡¯t performed for the past one or two months¡ªIrahan was constantly in the game and was doing a great job. Because of this, the community had information about him and his technique. ¡®It said that it takes 2 seconds for it to activate?¡¯ The explosion magic was a skill with tremendous attack power. On top of that, the skill is cast within 2 seconds in a defensive posture, so the defense is not penetrated while performing. So, when he notices the explosion magic is being performed, there is only one way to get rid of it, Ian remembered it from the community. ¡®The damage of the single strike from the magic explosion is about 300%, and Irahan¡¯s skill is much similar to that of the other Asmodians¡­ so it would be near 400%.¡¯ Seeing the reddish light from Irahan¡¯s sword, Ian¡¯s brain started to work non-stop. ¡®If he has a single skill with 400% power, it will take around 60 to 70 million even after considering my defense and attack power.¡¯ If it was between 60 to 70 million, it still was an enormous deal. With the maximum level, if even a single strike was hit, it could create a critical hit. But Ian had a tremendous anti-magic which was close to 70%. ¡®Even if it does 70 million, it would decrease up to 50 million¡­ even when hit, I won¡¯t die.¡¯ Once Ian was done calculating, Irahan began to stretch out his hand. And Irahan¡¯s face started to show signs of pride and victory. He thought that Ian didn¡¯t know about the ¡®Explosion magic¡¯ skill, so his attack would be victorious. But Ian was moving towards the blade of Irahan. Ian¡¯s gaze was on the left chest of Irahan. In the heart of Irahan, red dots were shinning, because of his passive ability ¡®Weakness capture¡¯. Ian pushed his spear downwards and avoided the sword of Irahan. Ian put his foot back and adjusted his body, lifted up his spear with all his strength to the top. ¡°Get lost!¡± Words came out from Irahan¡¯s mouth. But Ian¡¯s spear was the first to pierce through the heart. Puahk-! Then with a difference of almost 1/100 sec, Irahan¡¯s attack struck Ian in the abdomen. Kwang-! A gigantic explosion burst intensely because of the effect of Explosion magic! Everyone who was watching the battle of the two was waiting for the results with clenched fists. Since more than 30% of the users knew the effect of the Explosion magic, they were sure of Ian¡¯s death. Although both the side succeeded attacking at the same time, Irahan made a single strike with massive attack power and Ian¡¯s was merely a simple stab. But in a second, unbelievable results came into the line of sight for everyone. ¡°Woah!¡± It was because the body of Irahan fell down with a gust of the wind, he just collapsed to the ground. Thud-! And the body of Irahan who fell down to the floor began to shine. It meant he was dead. ¡°¡­!¡± On the other side, Ian was still standing. And because of the explosion he bounced back 1 meter due to the force, he seemed alright except for a part of his abdomen and chest. All the users who watched the scene were confused and couldn¡¯t hide their expressions, but Ian still had a clam face. ¡®Ae what¡¯s this? You caused so little damage than what I expected?¡¯ Ian confirmed the remaining vitality and thought to himself. The damage Ian thought he would get was 200,000 but what he faced was only 130,000. This was because Ian calculated Irahan¡¯s damage as high as possible. Chok- Chok- Ian approached the body of the collapsed Irahan, he laughed and reached out his hand. Once the dead body disappeared, Ian¡¯s eyes saw the system messages. Tring- [You have obtained loot from the Asmodian user ¡®Irahan¡¯.] [You have earned the ¡®legendary¡¯ item ¡®Phantom¡¯s Cloak¡¯.] [You have earned the ¡®Hero¡¯ class item ¡®The Great Sword of Kalimpus¡¯.] A dozen of Irahan¡¯s items poured over. Among them, two were legendary class. This was a tremendous achievement, especially when the legendary items have account attribute options. ¡®How did this jerk¡­ he managed to get legendary items?!¡¯ But there was something bothering Ian. Irahan had killed a lot of users so far and surely kept all the spoils in the process. The items that were dropped, both the quality and quantity were good. ¡®Is it salty, Irahan¡­?¡¯ Ian smiled, he lifted up his Judgment of the Spirit King which was in his right hand towards the sky. Puahk-! And shouted on top of his lungs ¡°I won¡­!¡± It was silent for a moment. But in a second, the human user¡¯s camp shouted and roared uncontrollably. ¡°Woaahhhh¡­!!!¡± ¡°We won! We won!¡± ¡°Ian caught up with Irahan!¡± ¡°That was so crazy! How did he withstand the explosion?¡± ¡°Did he avoid it? What skills did he use to avoid that?¡± ¡°Wow, Insane!! But awesome! I need to see that again during the rerun in the evening.¡± More than 90% of those who watched Ian and Irahan¡¯s battle predicted the Asmodians victory, so Ian coming out victorious was completely unexpected. And this was enough to change the flow of the war. ¡°Now that Irahan¡¯s gone! We can fight much boldly!¡± ¡°Yeah! Let¡¯s kill them all! We have Ian on our side!¡± ¡°I¡¯m going this way!¡± The war resumed, and the human users were head over heels over the turn of the situation. Except for Irahan, there weren¡¯t other Asmodians who could be compared to his level of strength, and Ian being able to win over Irahan wasn¡¯t anything less than a scam. And Ian didn¡¯t want to miss the opportunity. ¡°We can win, folks! Let¡¯s push back at least two-fold by the end of today!¡± Ian encouraged the users and began directing the battles. And once they got hold of the momentum, the humans were storming the Asmodians. Ian remembered himself of Irahan and began to laugh. ¡®Maybe he died without knowing he was dead? Stupid sh*thead.¡¯ Perhaps after the death penalty was over, Irahan would be surely back. But the sure thing was that Irahan wouldn¡¯t be able to accept his defeat. ¡®He would be thinking that I won because of luck, or that it was a draw.¡¯ Ian¡¯s spear was faster than Irahan¡¯s blades. In other words, Irahan died without seeing how much damage his sword caused Ian. At the moment of death, all system messages disappear and the visibility turns black. And of course, there were no system messages once the system window disappears. And since he couldn¡¯t confirm his messages, he would be in the thought that Ian was dead. Even a top-ranked class Tanker would suffer tremendous damage if hit that close. But no one could imagine that a ¡®Summoner¡¯ like Ian would survive it. ¡®No one saw my anti-magic yet.¡¯ Till now, the crazy Ian was smiling and yet focused on the combat. There was a feeling that something very interesting would happen in the future. CH 297 The community went crazy. Ian was now a hotter issue than he had ever been, and the battle video of Ian with Irahan was gaining enormous views. It was because the battle had such an overwhelming effect that it spread from the Korean servers to all the servers. Korean users knew about the strength of Irahan, so they were much interested in Ian who took him down with a single blow. And the overseas users were interested in the video because the content of the magazine had just been updated. In any case, the two were once the male rankers of the human camp in the Korean servers, and this could be an indicator for the foreign server users who were having trouble deciding the race selection. The most controversial thing was neither the strength of Ian nor the defeat of Irahan. The attention of the users was about how Ian managed to take down Irahan with a single blow, and how he managed to stand even after being hit by Explosion magic. In particular, the users who had converted into the Asmodians were the most confused. The boards of the Asmodian continued to have real-time posts, and hundreds of chat rooms were opened. ¨C No, How strong was Irahan¡¯s explosion magic? No matter what, how did Ian manage to stay alive? ¨C Irahan¡¯s explosion is 3 times much stronger than yours. ¨C Ho, Is that so? Then how did Ian manage to live through it? ¨C That¡¯s what! We have been talking about it since morning, and there is a two-fold conclusion. ¨C Two? What are they? ¨C First one, the anti-magic. ¨C The anti-magic? How much of it will help deal with such a power? ¨C It is a single digit anti-magic. It doesn¡¯t make sense, but what if Ian¡¯s anti-magic is set to 30-50%? ¨C Hmm¡­ ¨C Actually, when we calculate, it does not make much sense. Holding 50% of anti-magic for a summoner is not normal. ¨C Then what the hell was that? ¨C If Ian was holding 80-90% of the anti-magic¡­ won¡¯t this be a possible outcome? ¨C ¡­ ¨C But that doesn¡¯t make sense, even to me. And the second conclusion. ¨C Conclusion? ¨C It¡¯s because he is Ian. No other answer than that. Maybe a destined operator of Kailan. The reason why the users calculated that it could be possible to have 80-90% of the anti-magic wasn¡¯t so different. It was because they completely misunderstood Ian¡¯s other abilities apart from the anti-magic. Ian was a higher level and had amazing stats than any other summoner, and for most of the time, he wields powerful items. Ian¡¯s current level was over 220, and the normal users assumed that Ian¡¯s level was around the 190s. That was a misinterpretation, and they concluded by saying that he sustained with 90% anti-magic. In the end, no one in the community was able to give a proper analysis of the battle, and meaningless nonsense kept coming out. In the meantime, users who were hoping to catch the match between Ian and Irahan to come back for a rematch. Probably because Irahan was famous for having a high ego. * * * The Northern Continent, the spiritual center of the Lotus castle. And in it was Ian, the owner of the room, doing maintenance to get out of the battle. On the first day of his return¡ªIan made a tremendous contribution to the central continent, now he moved to the northern. The human class users in the central continent were on a rampage, and they will be able to hold on without much problem. During the day of yesterday, the human class users were able to reclaim two large fields in the central continent. Ian attacked and Irahan was strong, and Ian didn¡¯t have any other strong user to deal with. And there never was anyone, Ian knew that better. ¡®That guy will come to the North to catch me thinking it was unfair. And if there is no Irahan in the central, they can manage it without me.¡¯ Ian was thinking of encouraging both the Northern and the Central battle. There was another battlefield in the Northwest, but it was impossible to get there. If the two battlefields combined, the one in the Central continent and the Northeast were led to the victory, the war would eventually end in the triumph of humans. Ian touched his Judgment of the Spirit King and thought about the aspects of the war that he will have to proceed. ¡®For the coming 5 days¡­ we¡¯ll have to hold it until then?¡¯ Ian¡¯s gaze turned to the table next to him. And there was an item which was giving out bright blue light. And the item was none other than the ¡®Soldiers of the Earth¡¯, for which Ian had worked hard. ¡®It would be best to use it on the last day.¡¯ As the matter of increasing the Asmodians, and the end of Dimensional War getting closer, it was sure that a powerful monster and NPC¡¯s would emerge. Therefore, the use of the ¡®Soldiers of Earth¡¯ would be the best on those last days. Ian didn¡¯t know how strong the ¡®Army of Gods¡¯ would be, but it was definitely a hidden card. Ian¡¯s thoughtful gaze moved to the item beside the ¡®Soldiers of Earth¡¯. The abandoned ¡®Cintamani¡¯ which had a pale green light around it was lying there. Ian pondered while looking at the Cintamani. ¡®I don¡¯t know what that Dragon God was talking about. But whatever it is, it needs to conclude before the war ends.¡¯ The world view that Kailan showed till now and the scenarios of the development team, the Dragon God would show up once again on the final day of the Dimensional war. And Ian wanted that moment to come as quickly as possible. ¡®Stop this hopeful thinking torture¡­ Recall the Cintamani if you want to, and if you plan on giving it out, then release the seal.¡¯ Ian was grinding his teeth, he later picked up his equipment and stepped out the door. Now, in order to take back the northern, which is in a much serious condition than the Central Continent, it would need a much more diligent and decent plan. * * * Wheeing-! The 100th division of Devildom. A city that was in the middle of wrath. In the middle of the city¡¯s plaza a red light shone, and from it emerged a man. He was none other than Irahan, the user who died in the hands of Ian, he appeared after 24 hours¡ªafter the completion of the death penalty. ¡°Phew.¡± He took a deep breath to calm down his anger. ¡°That bastard¡­ he didn¡¯t die.¡± Since he wasn¡¯t able to connect because of the death penalty, Irahan checked the results of the battle from the community. And he couldn¡¯t help but be in shock. Since he thought that the result of their confrontation was a draw, seeing that Ian had an overwhelming victory was indeed a shock. He couldn¡¯t believe those at first, but after 10 minutes, he could do nothing but believe. And he found the video of the battle posted around in the community. The battle video of him and Ian have spread around so widely that they even reached him, and every time he saw it, it made Irahan much more furious. Thinking that it was a draw didn¡¯t hurt Irahan¡¯s ego, but seeing Ian¡¯s victory just didn¡¯t seem right. On top of that, the common members of the community aggravated him further by saying that the power of Irahan was no more. Among the comments that he read, there was a comment that wouldn¡¯t leave his mind. [Irahan that is just, how could you not catch up till now? The summoner didn¡¯t even bother using his familiars¡­ Haha. Even a summoner who doesn¡¯t use a familiar can win over you.] Irahan felt truly disgusted reading that. After reading the comment, he realized that Ian was a summoner, and he didn¡¯t even bother using the main source of his character. ¡°I was completely alert. It was definite that the guy was hiding something.¡± Irahan admitted that he was a bit too over his head when dealing with Ian. But he didn¡¯t bother thinking that Ian was better than him. ¡°There must be a skill that can cope with the damage that my Explosion Magic does. And that weapon, I need to steer clear from it.¡± Irahan was hot-headed, but he wasn¡¯t a fool. If he was, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to take the first place in the official rankings, not for a second. Since he couldn¡¯t access because of the penalty, Irahan looked into Ian and his 4th transcendental weapon. And knew the reason why he died from a single blow from it, and the amount of damage it takes. ¡®No matter how strong the attack power is¡­ this doesn¡¯t feel right.¡¯ With any amount of variables, Ian couldn¡¯t have higher agility than Irahan. And Irahan was intending to take advantage of this slowness. ¡®No more concerns now. I won¡¯t get taken down with a single strike, and play slowly.¡¯ Drawing both his blades, which were crossed into the sheath on his back, Irahan moved quickly towards the Dimensional portal. It had been 2 hours since the beginning of the Dimensional War, he had only one wish, to meet Ian soon. Irahan knew that Ian joined the war in the Northern region. ¡®You ran away to the Northern continent.¡¯ Irahan walked forward. ¡®Then, I¡¯ll follow you.¡¯ Just as Ian had predicted. Irahan was under the impression that Ian tricked him into defeat, and went to the Northern, to avoid confrontation for the second time. * * * ¡°Ian, I waited.¡± In the middle of the battlefield, Soo-hee¡¯s face greeted Ian and replied with a smile on his face. ¡°You¡¯ve been through a lot of trouble. It would have been hard here as there weren¡¯t many rankers.¡± The battlefields in the Northern felt a bit different from that of the Central Continent. In the Central continent, a large portion of the troops of about 30% changed. The composition of the war was almost PVP to PVP atmosphere. However, the northern continent camps were mostly consisted of NPC- focused troops. Until now, the number of the Asmodians who were relatively inferior in number now started gaining numbers by joining the forces for the Central. But this wasn¡¯t making the Northern war any easier. Because, there weren¡¯t many mage class users, nor were the human users there. A few players and the NPC¡¯s of the Luspel Empire. They were able to guard the Northern Continent. Pung- Soo-hee who was shielding herself from the flying arrows spoke to Ian. ¡°Ian you went¡­ and you took away Hoonie too, which why it is like this.¡± Ian continued to face the enemy, but he still had a calm expression. It was inevitable that he disappeared, but he was feeling sorry for taking off for a week and dragging out Hoonie who was the only strength of the Northern Continent. ¡°Haha¡­ well, didn¡¯t I come back as well?¡± Soo-hee smiled and said, ¡°Didn¡¯t you run here to avoid Irahan?¡± Deang-! Ian laughed out loud. ¡°Running?¡± But then, It wasn¡¯t Soo-hee who answered, but the answer came from another source. ¡°Well, if not running, then what is it, Ian?¡± Both Ian and Soo-hee turned their gaze at the same time. ¡°OMG.¡± Soo-hee had a pale expression, and the human users in the surrounding area were all shocked. There was no one other than Ian who held the same expression. Ian looked at Irahan and said. ¡°Yo, how was your long day¡¯s rest?¡± CH 298 Irahan was flustered. Ian¡¯s attitude was much calmer than he thought. Which made Irahan nervous while thinking. ¡®What is it with this idiot? Does he think that he really won over me? Didn¡¯t he run away to the¡­ north?¡¯ Ian¡¯s gentle expression didn¡¯t change. Even if Ian was a great actor, he wouldn¡¯t opt to be surprised at the appearance of Irahan. ¡®It¡¯s clear that this idiot thinks he can beat me once again¡­ well he is stupid after all, isn¡¯t he?¡¯ But the Ian whom Irahan knew, wasn¡¯t even close to being stupid. Rather, he had a great understanding and sense of battle. Ian was an outstanding user. Eeriness ran down the spine of Irahan, and sweat started to flow down his spine. ¡®This could be¡­ a trap.¡¯ It was Irahan¡¯s thoughts, that maybe Ian moved to the Northern, expecting him to follow Ian. And Ian was sure that he would win against Irahan again. This was a clear trap. Without Irahan in the Central Continent, the Asmodians would be weak, and if Ian kills Irahan again in here, Ian will have an awesome comeback in a day¡¯s gap. ¡®But that won¡¯t happen. This jerk can¡¯t take me down.¡¯ Irahan unsheathed his twin blades and slowly moved towards Ian. His instincts were warning him, but he didn¡¯t let those thoughts get to his head, thinking there was no danger. If he didn¡¯t look down on Ian too much, there was no such thing as a defeat for him. Aligning his thoughts, all the anxiety in the mind of Irahan completely disappeared. Irahan who gained confidence replied to Ian in a low but stern voice. ¡°All thanks to you, I got to rest well.¡± ¡°I know.¡± Ian stretched out his spear, and turned towards Irahan and spoke again. ¡°So you came back because you wanted to have another day¡¯s rest?¡± Irahan frowned. ¡°Jackass¡­¡± Ian and Irahan were facing each other, and the space around them was clear. But unlike the Central continent, the war didn¡¯t stop, and no one came close to the two people in the middle. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you think for being that relaxed but¡­¡± Irahan cast a buff skill and looked at Ian. ¡°If this buff is used, you¡¯ll die right here.¡± Ian laughed out loud and Irahan added another word. ¡°And I¡¯ll make you want to leave the Kailan.¡± Ian responded with a doubtful look. ¡°How exactly?¡± Irahan who was trying to attack Ian thought of something and put his right-hand sword back into the sheath. And he took out a red colored vial from the bag and threw it to Ian. ¡°Take it.¡± Thuk-! ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± Ian who caught the vial that Irahan threw, checked the item information for the vial. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Chrysanthemum Fragrance ¨C Classification ¨C Miscellaneous Rank ¨C Hero A magical fragrance made by a great alchemist of the East and its fragrance lasts for 30 days. In addition, the fragrance can be felt from the outside, and the name Chrysanthemum Fragrance (Incense of thousands) came. However, not everyone can use or feel this scent, and only those who can feel the Chrysanthemum Fragrance can understand it. The scent will last for 30 days. (Will stay on even after resurrecting, and after death.) * Once the Chrysanthemum Fragrance continues, the charm ability will increase by 30 points. * While the Chrysanthemum Fragrance is in effect, the leadership increases by 10 points, and all the production increases by 5 points. * When the Chrysanthemum Fragrance is in effect, you can see the position and coordinates of the user who have used this. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¡°Oh ho¡­?¡± Ian who confirmed the information had a very interesting face. It was the first time for Ian to see these things. Irahan smiled and said to Ian, ¡°If you¡¯re confident, sprinkle that scent on you.¡± Saying that¡ªIrahan took out another bottle into his arms and sprinkled it on his body. And Ian immediately realized what he meant by it. ¡®So¡­ you plan on killing me here; keep coming to me and kill me for the next 30 days?¡¯ This Chrysanthemum Fragrance was an exclusive item that was used in the guild that Irahan used to be in, the Dark Luna Guild. It was very convenient because the guild members could share their position of the guild members with one another by using this. And giving this out to Ian was a very impulsive act on the part of Irahan. Ian didn¡¯t speak for a moment, so Irahan provoked him. ¡°Scared?¡± Ian who heard the words laughed and used the fragrance. And a system message popped up. Tring- [You have used the item ¡®Chrysanthemum Fragrance¡¯.] [The fragrance effect will continue for the next 30 days.] [Remaining time ¨C ( 719: 59: 59)] In front of Ian¡¯s eyes, the descriptions of the buffs and the effects due to the use of the Chrysanthemum were all listed. The most surprising thing was a red dot on a minimap, in front of his eyes. Seeing Ian who just used the fragrance, Irahan was surprised and soon spoke out with a ridiculing expression, ¡°You¡¯re brave enough to use it.¡± Hearing that Ian spoke, ¡°It means I can do it.¡± Irahan pulled out his sword and opened his mouth, ¡°I will kill you for about 25 times in the next 30 days.¡± Ian replied with a smirk, ¡°I¡¯ll do it 29 times.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Will it be 25 or 29? If they both went hunting each other for 30 days, the other users will have a chance to rank up their levels. And these peoples ranker titles could fall off too. And Irahan thinking that Ian couldn¡¯t beat him again, ran towards Ian immediately. ¡°Even if you beg me not to kill you, I won¡¯t bother listening to you.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll make you kneel and think about what you just said.¡± Ian was trying to instigate Irahan. And Irahan with a reddened face ran towards Ian with his swords. Chang- chang- chang! And Ian without much effort was able to dodge Irahan¡¯s attacks. Irahan was extremely mindful, and the sophistication of the attack could be felt. Around 10 seconds passed between them¡­ Chachang- chang-! And the Judgment of the Spirit King succeeded in stabbing Irahan. ¡°Sh*t.¡± It wasn¡¯t stabbed at the point of weakness; wasn¡¯t attached properly, and had much less damage than the stab of yesterday, but this couldn¡¯t be neglected. Irahan who suffered some damage stepped back and calmed his breath. ¡°Hu¡­¡± Taking a deep breath, Irahan started to go around Ian. He changed his strategy. And seeing this, Ian¡¯s lip corners went up. ¡®He would be coming from here.¡¯ Irahan was much quicker than Ian and was constantly interrupting Ian¡¯s thoughts. Irahan thought that if he moved quickly and hit Ian, then Ian wouldn¡¯t be able to cause any damage to Irahan. But there was a blind spot in his strategy. ¡°Halli, come here!¡± Grr-! Ian called out Halli, who was fighting Asmodians nearby. And used Halli¡¯s unique ability, ¡®The Guardian of the Wind¡¯. Not for Halli, but for himself. [The summoner used the unique ability of the familiar ¡®The Guardian of the Wind¡¯.] [For the next 2 minutes, all of the attacks, defense and intelligence will add up to the agility.] Until now, Halli had been the only one to use his Guardian of the Wind ability. Halli¡¯s power was much higher than Ian¡¯s, and therefore the efficiency of it was better. And all Ian had to do was to get on top of Halli as fast as possible. However, when fighting with a user like Irahan, it would be much better to use the buff of Halli on his own character. And with this buff, Ian could have a much faster pace than Irahan, even with the basic stats. It didn¡¯t mean that Irahan didn¡¯t have an instant power buff, but in the whole of Kailan, there couldn¡¯t be any other skill that would give as much power as Halli¡¯s Guardian of the Wind. Woong-! A single gust of wind touched Ian¡¯s body. Irahan who jumped back seeing the familiar ran towards Ian. Ian held the spear in position. ¡®I¡¯ll kill you before the buff goes out.¡¯ The duration of the buff of the ¡®Guardians of the Wind¡¯ was 2 minutes. And in that duration, he had to kill Irahan once more. Ian got into his stance and jumped towards Irahan. Kwang- kang-! A powerful explosion with huge sound came every time the weapons of the two users touched each other. And Irahan¡¯s eyes showed surprise. ¡°What, what is this?¡± Ian¡¯s movements were now twice faster than Irahan¡¯s. Chang- chchang-! And Ian¡¯s spear started to pierce into Irahan¡¯s body without any hesitation. Irahan was still attacking but, felt like he was being sucked. The position of the two people has changed from a while before. ¡°Damn it.¡± To dodge himself from being attacked, Irahan started to move quickly. But before Irahan could move away, Ian blocked his movement and dragged his spear to the side. Phuak-! [You have suffered immense damage from the human user ¡®Ian¡¯.] Around 20 ¨C 30% of vitality went down with just a single blow! Irahan panicked, but calmly swung his sword and was countering the other attacks. The spear was long and powerful, but the movement was so huge that it created a gap when doing the attack. Ian quickly minimized the gaps and brushed off attacks from Irahan. But he couldn¡¯t entirely block off Irahan¡¯s attacks. [The Asmodian user ¡®Irahan¡¯ attacked you.] [Vitality of 1598 has been reduced.] If thought about Ian¡¯s vitality, this amount of damage was close to a teardrop. Ian broke away from the attack, and the damage was less because of the 70% anti-magic that he possessed. Irahan who checked his system message mumbled to himself. ¡®What? What¡¯s this monsterous defense?!¡¯ But, when the next attack was done, Irahan realized that it wasn¡¯t because of the armor. In addition to the attack, ¡®Magic activation¡¯ was used, the damage done wouldn¡¯t be less than 20,000. Irahan¡¯s magic points, to become a noblesse¡ªIrahan needed 50,000 more magic points but that passed away in the past. Unlike the regular attacks, Magic attacks had a fixed damage that ignored the armor, the only way to reduce the damage was using the anti-magic. And because Irahan wasn¡¯t a fool, he knew why even after getting hit, it wasn¡¯t causing much damage. ¡®This crazy guy! How much of anti-magic did he equip?¡¯ As soon as the magic exploded, Irahan moved to his former position. ¡®Sh*t, this was why he didn¡¯t die with the Magic explosion!¡¯ Irahan panicked at that. And realizing that, he couldn¡¯t move near Ian. Phak- phaak- phak-! The Judgment of the Spirit King mercilessly went through the chest of Irahan. Kwang-! And with the ¡®Lightning Judgment¡¯ of the Judgment of the Spirit King¡ªthe vitality of Irahan went to dumps in an instant. ¡°I guess I¡¯ll rest for another day.¡± Irahan chuckled to himself, and for the last blow, Ian pierced his spear through the abdomen of Irahan¡¯s. Puak-! That was it. Irahan collapsed to the floor, and once again his vision went black. CH 299 The moment Ian made his appearance in the Dimensional War, it started a whole new phase. However, this didn¡¯t mean that the human users were completely able to turn over the tables. Just by adding a bit of strength, it tilted the balance and made some alignment. Although the human side of the camp was trying to restore their lost areas, and the momentum of the Asmodians was comparatively slow. The community¡¯s self-proclaimed game researchers continued to analyze the clash between Ian and Irahan¡ªeventually found out that Ian¡¯s victory was due to the anti-magic. And due to that, the auction houses started to sell the anti-magic power. Unless the option was too bad, any equipment with 4% or more of anti-magic was popular enough to be worth calling. In addition, more than the anti-magic items, ¡®piercing anti-magic¡¯ items were super expensive. ¨C A certified 43% anti-magic. The Asmodians won¡¯t bother coming. ¨C OMG, 43%, how to do that? Hmm. ¨C There was someone who went over 50%. ¨C Wow¡­ I¡¯m in the top 300 rankers and I have barely 25%¡­ that¡¯s a monstrous amount. ¨C But in front of Ian, I¡¯m a commoner. Ian has around 60% according to the estimation. ¨C Haha¡­ Ian is an exception in these topics. The community had begun to actively pursue various aspects on the combination of some items. In addition, many users were pleased that the balance between the Asmodians and the humans was now manageable. The balance was in a way, perfect. And there were a lot of users who praised the LB company, which was the developer of Kailan. However, the planning team of LB company was all tongue-tied. * * * ¡°Before the opening of the main battle, the balance between the two sides has been settled?¡± The planning team leader Kim In-cheon who was overlooking the planning team sheets stared at the screen with a distorted look. On the screen, there was a balance presentation that his subordinates reported. Na Ji-chan who presented the report nodded and replied, ¡°Yes. Team leader. Seeing the present aspect of the war, the human side is gradually pushing the Asmodians side. But since the humans aren¡¯t that stronger, they are fighting in favorable camps. I think that once the matters are settled to a certain level, then the results will be definite.¡± Kim In-cheon shook his head while holding it with his hands. ¡°Then what happens if that Ian guy opens his ¡®Soldiers of the Earth¡¯? What will happen?¡± Na Ji-chan¡¯s words continued. ¡°When the Soldiers of the Earth opens, maybe the Dimensional portals would be destroyed. In order to prevent the army of the King of Rings, there should be at least a few subordinates from the Devil King, and in the current plan, on the last wave, the Devil Kings will come from each gate.¡± There was a moment of silence in the meeting room. The people in the meeting room were all the people who were in the Kailan from its early days, so they were most understanding than anyone else. They knew the seriousness of the situation. Kim In-cheon was silent and thoughtless, so Na Ji-chan spoke. ¡°According to me, there is only one situation that could work in the situation, team leader.¡± Kim In-cheon responded. ¡°Go on.¡± Na Ji-chan had a low position in the team, but because his capabilities were recognized by everyone, so his remarks were influential and respected by the others. Na Ji-chan opened his mouth. ¡°Using the system privileges, I¡¯ll put in the Oracle from the temple of God¡¯s.¡± In the Kalian world, all the systems were designed to be run by AI. So even if you are a developer, it wasn¡¯t a good idea to create any artifacts in the existing worldview. The addition of objects that don¡¯t have much use, they have little consequence but any other additional intervention would have a powerful impact that could change the flow of the Dimensional war. That would be because the relationship between the detailed algorithm would be destroyed. So the thing that LB most commonly used was the ¡®Oracle¡¯. The Oracle had the power to move the NPC¡¯s and it would naturally interfere with the relations in the game. Na Ji-chan continued. ¡°If we can move the Oracle to the Asmodian tribes who are currently in the Dimensional war as a courtesy, we can balance it.¡± At those words, all the people in the conference room woahed! ¡°Ohoh¡­¡± ¡°That is surely a good way.¡± If they did that, they would certainly be able to empower the Asmodians and not overpower them. The people of the planning team nodded at each other, and Na Ji-chan continued to speak. ¡°At this point, even if the Army of God¡¯s is summoned, the Asmodians won¡¯t be overpowered. And the Devil Princes of the 30th ranks will intervene.¡± Kim In-cheon nodded. ¡°Certainly. It¡¯s the best idea I¡¯ve heard till now.¡± ¡°That is right. As far as the results are concerned, it is sure that the Asmodians have destroyed quite a few of the human world.¡± Kim In-cheon held his chin with his hand and looked at Na Ji-chan. ¡°Sure. But there is a critical variable that the user Ian has¡­¡± Na Ji-chan knew exactly what Kim was talking about. Na Ji-chan nodded slightly with a sigh. ¡°Yeah. The Cintamani¡­ using it to evolve his pet to an Abyss Dragon.¡± Kim In-cheon nodded his head. ¡°How do you plan to do with that situation?¡± Na Ji-chan spoke with a low voice. ¡°That¡­ is up to the Dragon God Seikaito, sir.¡± ¡°Um¡­?¡± And the answer came from another source. ¡°The Dragon God Seikaito¡¯s AI¡­ we aren¡¯t able to get hold of it¡­¡± A man with round-rimmed glasses answered. He was the man who had designed and planned the character of Dragon God ¡®Seikaito¡¯. The man¡¯s words continued. ¡°If Seikaito acknowledged the Cintamani given to Ian, then the Dimensional War would¡¯ve been ended.¡± ¡°Process to stop it?¡± The planner with glasses shook his head. ¡°There isn¡¯t one.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± ¡°That is because it is the main scenario. So I can¡¯t interfere with it.¡± Kim In-cheon¡¯s face frowned at this. As he closed his eyes and thought, all the men in the room were intently waiting for his words. Today¡¯s meeting was put up to decide the strength of the planning team for the coming month. After a while, Kim In-cheon opened his eyes and spoke. ¡°All of the planning team is forbidden from going home before 11 o¡¯clock till the project A is done.¡± At that moment everyone except for Na Ji-chan was feeling down. * * * Ian once again defeated Irahan overwhelmingly. Ian thought that Irahan would be very frustrated, but he surprisingly came back to Ian. ¡°You, the fool who thinks that skills are everything. Today I¡¯ll show and give you a bitter taste for the match.¡± ¡°Identifying the opponent and setting that option isn¡¯t out of temptation, but it was a strategy, you idiot.¡± Irahan had found out, an item that would go through the anti-magic. Ian could feel it when he received the damage from Irahan. ¡®It is almost 1.7 to 1.8 times more than the last time. This could be used against those with 20-25% of anti-magic.¡¯ But Ian still had 50% more of the remaining anti-magic power. Ian couldn¡¯t have suffered the damage from Ian. [You have succeeded in killing the Asmodian user ¡®Irahan¡¯.] He had already died three times in the hands of Ian. Irahan came back again. ¡°What again. Want to fight again?¡± While Ian was surprised seeing him, Irahan wasn¡¯t there to fight Ian. ¡°Woah, no way. I know that this isn¡¯t the way, even I can know that.¡± Ian was puzzled at this and asked, ¡°Then why did you come?¡± ¡°Apart from fighting with you, there are a lot of users who belong to my class, I don¡¯t see any other human users who can take on me.¡± Ian laughed and asked, ¡°You think I¡¯ll leave you alone?¡± ¡°Of course not.¡± Irahan smiled a little and looked into the advanced magic stones he had. ¡°If you¡¯re looking for me to have fun, I can use this magic stone. And you won¡¯t have a way to get into the Devildom realm, if I use this I will be safe.¡± Ian was able to clearly read the thoughts of Irahan. ¡®This jerk, he thought this all through when he offered the Chrysanthemum fragrance.¡¯ Currently, no other users except for the Asmodian could enter the Devildom realm. As the dimensional war began, all the doors leading to the Devildom realm were disappeared. Only the mage class users of the Asmodians, are the ones who can go up and down the realms in the dimensional war. Therefore, Irahan thought that even if the Chrysanthemum fragrance was in use, Ian couldn¡¯t come over and kill him. But to Ian, there was an item that Irahan didn¡¯t know about. ¡®Huhu, if he knows that I have a dimensional bead with me, he¡¯ll probably faint.¡¯ The dimensional bead that Ian possessed was an item which made it possible for Ian to move between realms if he visited it once previously. That is to say, Ian could open the door to the Devildom realm. Ian wielded his spear and spoke to Irahan. ¡°I killed you 3 times in three days. You have 27 days left before the Chrysanthemum is done, right? I¡¯ll kill you exactly 26 times in the coming future. It is a little tough, but I¡¯ll kill you the moment your death penalty ends.¡± Irahan snapped at Ian. ¡°Try if you can.¡± Having finished their conversation, Irahan went over to another battlefield leaving behind Ian, and Ian chased after him without wasting time. ¡®If you plan those things¡­ you at least need to talk politely.¡¯ And that was the beginning of a terrible nightmare. * * * ¡°Wait, wait!¡± In the 100th division of Devildom. Two people stood facing each other in an empty spot in front of the Gate of Fury. One of them was a person who just connected after the death penalty, and the other one was Ian who arrived there to stop the other person. ¡°Why, it¡¯s been a second since I came?¡± Ian mischievously spoke while pointing his spear towards Irahan. ¡°Have any confidence for today?¡± But the playful tone of Ian¡¯s was irritating for Irahan. It was the 3rd day already. It has been three days since Ian went to Devildom to kill him. Irahan died a total of six times. Irahan who was of level 220, had then fallen to 210, thinking that made Irahan gloomy. In addition, Ian had a great system in leveling. Irahan who was feeling unfair spoke with anger, ¡°A few days from now, the dimension war will be done. Until then, a non-aggressive treaty¡­ okay?¡± But Ian wasn¡¯t ready to accept such a stupid treaty. ¡°I¡¯ll kill you once more and then think.¡± Ian answered briefly and ran towards Irahan. ¡°Euahkk¡­!¡± And so, Irahan died for the seventh time. [You have succeeded in killing the Asmodian user ¡®Irahan¡¯.] Ian murmured while dusting his armor. ¡°If I do this, he should be ready to give up.¡± The reason Ian stubbornly attacked Irahan was because he was irritated with him, but the most important reason was to exclude a strong player like Irahan from the Dimensional War. ¡°Huh, if I manage to do this, I can go back now¡­?¡± In fact, there was a variable in the dimensional beads of Ian¡¯s. Once used, it needed a specific time to regain the power it had used, so it couldn¡¯t be used for a week. So Ian killed the Asmodian then sat, and killed him again and waited for his appearance. But now he wanted to join the Dimensional War. ¡°If another 7 levels are cut, it would be troublesome to go back to the original level.¡± Ian picked up the advanced philosopher¡¯s stone from his inventory. With the resurrection point saved, it was possible to go back there even if the dimensional portal wasn¡¯t opened, with the advanced philosopher¡¯s stone. ¡®If things are a little settled, I¡¯ll wait for a week and open the portal again¡­ but for now, I need to go back.¡¯ Ian used the stone and returned to the Pyro Domain. It was three days before the end of the dimensional war. CH 300 As the Dimensional war was finally coming to an end, the battle became more and more intense. All the users who haven¡¯t been so interested in the Dimensional war began to gather in the battlefields, and the number of Asmodians began to increase, the scale of the battle began to get bigger. In the meantime, in LB company, in the public site ranking of the ranking achievements of the war were posted. The names of the users who were listed from the 1st to the 100th places were given. In addition, all the users who were ranked within the 1000 slots, were notified that they would be given a special title after the Dimensional War, this made the users enthusiastic. ¨C Wow, have you seen the title and rewards for the 1st rank? ¨C Hmm? What is it? I haven¡¯t checked the notice yet. ¨C For the Human faction, rank 1 is given the title ¡®Defender of the Dimension¡¯, there is an awesome option attached to it. ¨C What else is included in it? ¨C All the buff effects are received + 50% of the earned by the quest and fame + 75 %, and charm +100% and so on¡­ ¨C Oh¡­ They are so good. But there isn¡¯t a combat title? That is a little upsetting. ¨C One can always change the titles. And when the titled ranker is in a battle, you can take the rewards and use them when needed. ¨C What is the title class? ¨C Hey, It¡¯s legendary. ¨C Have you seen the title of the 1st ranked Asmodian? ¨C No, not yet¡­ Jinsung, who has been looking at the community after a long time, shook his head by reading the comments and the posts. ¡®Idiots¡­ what kind of battle titles are those¡­ they are just worthless titles.¡¯ There was a specific title ¡®Defender of the Dimension¡¯. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Defender of the Dimension ¨C Classification: Title Rank: Legendary Options: All buff effects + 50% All healing effects + 50% Increases the duration of the buffs by 5 seconds. All fame acquired by the quest + 75% All the gold earned by quest + 55% Production Capacity + 50% Charm + 100% Leadership + 10% ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Most of the users looked at the 4th option to the 7th option. They appreciated the title because of the 4 options. Specifically, the 4th and 5th which increases the rewards that were earned by the quests were clearly eye-catching. But Ian¡¯s thoughts differed. ¡°Why this, no one seems to know the importance of the 1st to 3rd options, right?¡± According to Ian¡¯s understanding, the best options that were associated with the title were the 1st and the 3rd options which immediately increased the buff effects. ¡®If they know about the buff cycle, they are being given the opportunity to raise the combat ability for 1.5 times¡­¡¯ After a long gap, Ian¡¯s will to gain the title in the Dimensional war rose. ¡®Now my public rank is near 1220¡­ and I have twice the difference to get to the 1st.¡¯ Even if I was Ian, since the time of vacancy in the battle was too long, the rankings were bound to fall. Since he managed to hunt down the Asmodians in the past few days, he was able to regain his rank to this level. ¡°Let¡¯s go, and get the 1st rank.¡± Ian turned off the computer and skilfully put on his capsule. From now on, he was going to raise his public rankings more aggressively. * * * Ian kept on moving independently. As party play was inefficient to raise the public rankings. Moreover, if Ian had a better balance than the users of the other class, there was no reason for him to stick in a party. And Ian didn¡¯t call anyone except Kaizer and Yankun for the battles. In the public rankings of Dimensional war, points could b accumulated by the NPC¡¯s in the game. In other words, unlike a familiar, the public value of a trail doesn¡¯t come to Ian but goes to the trail. Nevertheless, the reason for bringing out Kaizer and Yankun was like an insurance. Just before the battle opened, Ian called out Kaizer and Yankun. ¡°Yankun, Kaizer.¡± ¡°Called us, Master?¡± ¡°What is it, my Lord?¡± And Ian explained his strategy, ¡°We will be at the forefront in today¡¯s battles.¡± Once Ian was done, Yankun nodded his head without a word, and Kaizer had an expression which showed he was interested. ¡°Oho, this sounds like fun. It has been so long since I have done such battle.¡± But Ian soon broke the excitement of Kaizer. ¡°But in today¡¯s and tomorrows battles, let¡¯s get the most of it. Don¡¯t leave me around, but try to have my back.¡± Kaizer was disappointed, and he started to complain. ¡°You¡¯re not going to die even if I¡¯m not around you, Lord.¡± Ian shook his head and spoke in a serious voice. ¡°No, Kaizer. You and Yankun will both defend me so that I can fight effectively.¡± ¡°Uhhh¡­¡± Seeing Kaizer with a dissatisfied expression, Ian thought to himself. ¡®Oho, This guy¡¯s loyalty is about 70 for now, should I give something for him to obey me?¡¯ Ian took out a legendary class helmet from his inventory which he took away from Irahan. ¡°Kaizer, what do you think of this item?¡± With a golden eagle engraved on it¡ªin a single glance, anyone could know that this would call for great money. Kaizer lost his mind the moment he saw the helmet. ¡°This¡­ where did you get this item, my Lord?¡± Ian shrugged his shoulders and spoke. ¡°You don¡¯t need to know it. What do you think, does it please you?¡± ¡°Keuh, Keuuuh¡­!¡± Seeing Kaizer in an excited manner, Ian couldn¡¯t help but laugh. ¡°I¡¯ll give you this if you listen to me till the end of the Dimensional war. How does that sound?¡± And after having second thoughts, Kaizer gave in to the legendary helmet. ¡°Ah, I get it, my Lord. Trust me. I¡¯ll protect you until the end.¡± Ian who succeeded in taming Kaizer walked towards the battlefield with a proud expression. ¡®Hehehe, Irahan thanks, dude.¡¯ The items dropped by Irahan were being very handy to Ian. * * * ¡°Wow, this is really head-on, right? What are your thoughts on this Mr. Hains?¡± In the YTBC station¡¯s staff cafeteria. At the lunch cafeteria, there were only two people still eating. The two were Hains and Lucia, they weren¡¯t able to eat in the lunchtime, as their game broadcast schedule for the day had ended late. And while eating, they were watching the channels of the other TV networks. ¡°I know, right. The real combat aspect of this war is nerve-racking. After Ian¡¯s appearance, I thought that maybe the battle will be in favor of the human users.¡± ¡°Is Ian so great?¡± Hains nodded and replied, ¡°A great user in a number of ways, this Ian. Do you see another user who has such an overwhelming presence from the summoner class?¡± Lucia lifted her head. ¡°You are right about that. Ian certainly came to the rescue again, and turned the tables.¡± And Hains added another word. ¡°Besides, since the human side is gaining confidence, the battle is getting much interesting.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Then why did this happen again?¡± ¡°The Asmodians invaded the most of the divisions during the Dimensional War. From their point of view; they occupied some large areas of the human world and their biggest cities. But till now, they haven¡¯t been able to take over a base camp.¡± ¡°Oho..¡± ¡°At the end, when they keep fighting like this tomorrow¡­ the dimensional door will close, and the Asmodians, as well as the monsters, will have to go back to their realms.¡± Lucia spoke then, ¡°Won¡¯t the defense of the human side be successful?¡± ¡°Yes, They will be victorious.¡± Hains, who just answered took a piece on the pork cutlet from his plate, looked at the TV and ate. ¡®In the end, the appearance of Ian¡­ will it change the situation once again?¡¯ Till a week ago, the human camp seemed so hopeless. Each time the Magic explosion happened, the tanker had to take a step back, and when the top Asmodians users appeared, dozens of users were killed. But with Ian entering, the users became aware of the anti-magic power and its importance, and eventually, the battlefield turns into a literal one. On the screen was a scene with Ian, and Hains looked at the eye-catching fight. Watched it intently. ¡®But no matter what I think¡­ the war doesn¡¯t seem like it will end so easily¡­?¡¯ Tomorrow, was the final day of the Dimensional war. And when it is the last day, it means that the wave was going to be much powerful than ever before. Hains muttered by digging into his pork. ¡°What¡­ what all will be expected to be summoned?¡± Hains has always watched Kailan more intently than anyone ever had. And his intuition said that the war wasn¡¯t going to end so smoothly. * * * ¡°We have finally come into the last day?¡± Ian who just entered the battlefield turned his head and stared at the rising sun. It always started when the sun went up, and the war ends when the sun goes down. Ian always believed that the Dimensional War was harder than any other content. And one would have to struggle for a long time, over a period of 12 hours, and surviving from a day to day was hard. On average, a normal user would receive a death penalty once a day, even the top-ranked rankers would experience death at least 5 to 6 times when they participated in a full-time war. And because of this scenario, Ian could fill the gap and raise his rank. If a user dies, he can¡¯t make an appearance till the next day, from the last 5 days a lot of rankers were killed, making the gap that Ian had to fill much lesser than before. Now Ian¡¯s current ranking was 9th. ¡®If I move today and do any mistake, then going to the 1st wouldn¡¯t be so impossible to claim.¡¯ The mistake meant¡­ was not to die. And if he dies, the dream of being the 1st was down in the dump. Ian glanced at the countdown that was above the field. The remaining time was about 5 minutes. Ian spoke to Kaizer who was right in front of him. ¡°It¡¯s the last day Kaizer, Let¡¯s work hard today.¡± Kaizer laughed at it and said, ¡°I always do well, my Lord. Because I want you to be well.¡± Ian wanted to hit Kaizer on his back. ¡®Fine, if I hit, then there is a chance for the loyalty to drop and that can make me lose.¡¯ And in that time, Kaka flew beside Ian¡¯s shoulder and spoke in a low voice, ¡°Master.¡± ¡°Why? What now?¡± ¡°I can feel a very strong energy from across the street.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± Ian turned his head and looked at Kaka, who was blankly staring at the camp of the Asmodians. Kaka¡¯s mouth opened and words came out. ¡°This is¡­ an intense magic that I have never felt before¡­!¡± Ian was surprised to see Kaka who was sweating. ¡®What, what is it? Why is she being this way?¡¯ But after a moment, Ian regained his composure. ¡®Since this is the last day, surely a strong magic presence can be felt, right? Will we see the Balrog and the Devil Dragon we saw in the Devildom?¡¯ If such a monster is over there, Kaka¡¯s tension is unreasonable. ¡®And I still have a hidden card¡­¡¯ And when he thought of the Soldiers of the Earth that was with him, Ian¡¯s confidence rose again. ¡®I did well by saving it until now. For the upcoming dangerous moments¡­ that would help me once.¡¯ And so, the last battle of the Dimensional War began. CH 301 The last day of the Dimensional War. And the battlefield that Ian chose, was the field in the Central Continent. The main battlefield, the largest battlefield was in the Central Continent and this was a natural course. The moment the battle started, Ian began to run in the front like a mad person. ¡®I need to catch another ranked monster, to go higher¡­.!¡¯ When the named monsters appeared on the battlefield, Ian was in the exact spot. Named monsters usually drop more than ten times the public points. ¡°Kaizer! Block the left side!¡± ¡°Okay, Master!¡± Ian scattered all his powers, here and there. Great ranged attackers Pin and Karceus have been helping the others from the rear, and they were placed in the areas where the tankers Bbookbbook and Bakbbak were lacking. Both Bbookbbook and Bbakbbak were strong and solid tankers, and they were so coordinated that no one could go through if they were both together. In addition, with these tankers, their ability was further assured by placing the healer Celia right with them. And all the other familiars had been instructed to help the Lotus Guild, except for Kaizer. At first, he used Yankun for his battles, but the maneuverability did not match the ability of Ian¡¯s. Unlike Kaizer, who had both attack and speed, Yankun¡¯s ability was relatively slow to use. Well, Yankun had a superior tanking ability when compared to Kaizer. But since Ian was in combat style, for the time being, Yankun was deployed to help the guild. ¡®This a bit upsetting but, if I do this way then I can gather as many public points as possible.¡¯ The current power with Ian now was Karceus, Halli and Ly. Although Kaka was always with Ian, she was a hidden card. Kaka¡¯s wide area skills were going to be needed when the situation gets really dangerous, and its other combat abilities were all zero. Kwark- Sometimes Kaka uses small fire bolt from its mouth. [Slave ¡®Kaka¡¯ hurt Monster Heinrik.] [Monster Heinrik¡¯s vitality is reduced by 12.] They were of no help at all. ¡°Yah! Just stay still, Don¡¯t make unnecessary systems messages pop up!¡± ¡°Sh*t, okay, master.¡± Ian who fought for 30 minutes since the battle had begun, decided to fall back. This was because Kaizer¡¯s vitality got reduced. ¡®If I had a good healer familiar it would be very useful for now¡­¡¯ Ian moved to the place with Bbookbbook and Bbakbbak. And that was to receive the wide area heal from Bbookbbook. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah, Heal a little!¡± ¡°Okay, Bbook!¡± As soon as Ian entered the range of the Abyss Turtle Dragon Bbookbbook¡¯s ability: ¡®Blessing of Abyss¡¯ got activated. A green-lighted energy spread through the wide area with a big resonating sound! Users who were in the vicinity of the Heal came into the light covered area. ¡°Wow¡­! This is a great heal!¡± ¡°What skill is this? I want to learn it too!¡± ¡°Hmm, a priest can¡¯t learn this.¡± ¡°Eh? If a priest can¡¯t do this, then who can learn this heal?¡± ¡°This is probably the skill of Ian¡¯s familiar.¡± ¡°OMG¡­ this is better than mine¡­¡± ¡°Keuh, Bbookbbook is an awesome class¡­¡± Users who came into the range of the heal, their vitality rose. If it was a usual situation, all could have gotten into it to be healed, but in the current situation, until the users who have recovered their vitality moved out, those who needed to heal couldn¡¯t enter. And everyone knew that the day was the last battle of the Dimensional War. So, regardless of the classes, all the users were actively engaged in the battle with fear on their sleeves. The battlefield was continuously intense that no one could be seen without performing anything. In the meantime, the east side of the field began to rise, it rose to the sky and was hanging in the middle. * * * ¡°Keuh, The Oracle. Is it really there, Mahamu.¡± ¡°Yes, Lucaros. With its help¡­ the Asmodians can make the human world a land of the Asmodians.¡± The Devil kings were discussing in the Castle. There was a large golden round table on the top floor of the massive castle, it was so big that Ian had never seen anything like that. And there were seven Asmodians who were seated around the table. Among them, there were two Asmodians who had delicate body figures and they seemed like women, but each of their magic presence was tremendous. The most strongest Asmodians. Lucaros who was the Ascendant of Chaos and 4th ranked opened his mouth, ¡°Isn¡¯t this a bit too unusual. For the Oracle to be found. That is too directly into the hands of us Devil kings?¡± Lucaros said that and touched his chin; hearing this, the others also nodded and fell into deep thoughts. The seven Asmodians who were currently sitting around the golden round table were all top ranked Devils. Starting with Lucaros who was the 4th till the 10th Mahamu, the destroyer. They were the present day ones who were resent, and the golden round table meeting to take decisions about the Devildom. The Devil kings in the ranks of 1-3 weren¡¯t well known, and they were divine beings who didn¡¯t interfere with the realities on the realm of Devildom. In fact, it wasn¡¯t an exaggeration to say that Lucaros the 4th was the absolute figure of the Devildom And seeing the silent figure of Lucaros the 4th, Leah the queen of Desires, who was seated beside him opened her mouth, She was the lieutenant whom even Lucaros couldn¡¯t overpower. ¡°Whatsoever, the Oracle has descended, there is no way it will be left alone.¡± At these words from Leah, Lucaros nodded his head. ¡°Sure. We won¡¯t interfere directly¡­ but we¡¯ll send a subordinate who has the power of a devil.¡± Lucaros had a dissatisfied expression. He still couldn¡¯t understand why the Oracle had come down. ¡®There was still time for the Asmodians to grow. This dispatch of a sudden power will create friction with Asmodians of the human world¡­¡¯ But for the Asmodians, the oracle was absolute. This wasn¡¯t something that could be ignored. Lucaros¡¯s gaze moved towards Mahamu. ¡°Mahamu, listen well.¡± ¡°Go on, Lord Lucaros.¡± Mahamu and Lucaros were both Devils and belonged to the same class. But the difference of power between them was enormous. The power of a Devil increased exponentially as they go higher ranks, so there was a huge difference between the 10th rank Mahamu and the 4th rank Lucaros. Mahamu waited for the next words from Lucaros with a polite expression, and Lucaros after a moment of silence opened his mouth, ¡°I will give you the authority to take five members from 50 ranks we got. Along with them, take their most trusted soldiers and let them carry out the Oracle task from now on.¡± As Lucaros was done, Mahamu bends his head and spoke, ¡°I¡¯ll do my best.¡± And at the same moment, a few lines of system messages came in the sight of the Asmodians who were joining the Dimensional war. [Sudden quest, ¡®Army of the Devil King¡¯ quest has been activated.] [Quest cannot be rejected.] [From this moment until the end of the Dimensional war, you must absolutely obey the command of the Devil.] * * * The tight balance of the Dimensional War began to break as the sun moved over slightly to the west. Ian who had been using all his abilities to the extremes was fighting for quite a while, which made him stop his movements. ¡°Master, you need to step back.¡± Chachang-! Ian who just struck an Asmodian climbed over the back of Halli and asked Kaka, ¡°What do you mean, should I be out?¡± Kaka pointed towards a canyon which was at a farther distance of the Asmodian camp and said in a low voice, ¡°I can feel something so strong that even my abilities aren¡¯t able to comprehend.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Ian decided to listen to Kaka. Kaka was the kind who didn¡¯t back-down when dealing with a Balrog or the Devil Dragon. And if such, as Kaka was saying this, then there obviously is a reason. Ian gave orders to Halli and Kaka. ¡°Halli, Let¡¯s head to the back of the field. Kaizer, you also, follow Halli.¡± And Ly who was hunting along with Ian, hoped onto Kaizer as he was seriously wounded, so he could move quickly. Ian using Halli¡¯s speed moved to the other side of terrain as fast as he could. It was because it would enable to grasp what kind of an enemy was going to come as they appeared through the canyons. ¡®Let¡¯s see. What kind of guys are going to come from there.¡¯ Ian fixed his gaze towards the canyon and watched it. The enemies didn¡¯t make an immediate appearance, but Ian didn¡¯t move. He took a rest because his body was weary and looked around the situation. And after a while. A cloud of dust began to rise from the Canyon. Ian focused his attention on the identity of the enemies, and he knew who they were. Ian¡¯s face went tense for the first time. ¡®It¡¯s a Balrog. Not one or two, there are more than five¡­!¡¯ It wasn¡¯t possible to identify the exact number as the dust hadn¡¯t settled, but 5-7 Balrogs were running out of the Asmodians¡¯ camp. The Balrog had a majestic power to destroy the entire battlefield with just one single strike. Ian gulped. ¡®I need to take down one after the other. Then, we¡¯ll be in the odds.¡¯ Ian pulled out the ¡®Soldiers of the Earth¡¯ and held it in his hands for a while. The time to use this thing had come. ¡®Let¡¯s stay calm. I hunted a similar Devil Dragon in the past.¡¯ Well, even with the same legendary rank, it was so clear that clearing a Balrog would be much difficult to deal than the Devil Dragon. According to the explanation he heard from the Devil King Ricardo in the past, Balrog had the ability to manipulate the other magical beasts and borrow their magic. This situation would surely make the strength of Balrog much higher. But, Ian wasn¡¯t going to think about such things, he would probably try to understand how well he could deal with the situation. ¡°Hmm¡­!¡± Ian took a deep breath and checked the condition of the battle so that he could enter once again. No matter how one saw this, the problem didn¡¯t seem to be just the 6 or so Balrogs. It was how well the powers are comparable to the rankers that need to tackle them. But this wasn¡¯t the end of the battle. ¡®There are over 5 hours to finish the battle today. This isn¡¯t the last surprise we get.¡¯ Ian held onto the ¡®Soldiers of the Earth¡¯ tightly. This was the card that needed to be kept alive until the last hour of the war. CH 302 ¡®That¡¯s¡­ a Balrog¡­!¡¯ Irahan didn¡¯t make any connection with Ian since he was sick of what happened between them. However, no matter how much he felt pressured by Ian, he had to connect into the game as it was the last day of the Dimensional War, so Irahan made his appearance on the battlefield. The definite quest ¡°Army of the Devil King¡±. All thanks to this quest, Irahan was able to join the last day of the war by safely avoiding any confrontation with Ian. As the quest of the Army of the Devil King was initiated, Irahan also had his quest triggered. The quest given to Irahan was to lead the Balrog, and the other Magical Beasts into the battlefield. This was a quest that Irahan badly needed at the moment. The reason why Irahan was given this quest was because he was the only user of the top rank who was still in the war. Even though he fell to the 7th level, he was still in the top 20 ranked Asmodians. ¡°This is an order from Lord Mahuma! To all the Magical Beasts here! You all must destroy the enemies in front of you!¡± Irahan cries rang around the field, seven Balrogs along with thousands of magical beasts and Asmodians plunged into the battlefield. And this was the beginning of a great catastrophe. Kuahh-! The moment a Balrog entered the battlefield, they began to run around wildly. Kung- Kung-! Every time the Balrogs stepped foot on the ground, a huge commotion would arise, and human users within a certain range would get stuck with ¡®fear¡¯ and magic damage at the same time. [Magical Beast, Balrog¡¯s unique ability ¡®Vibrating wave¡¯ skill has been activated.] [Health reduced by 79809.] [The state of ¡®Fear¡¯ has been induced.] [Decreases ATK and DEF by 30% for 3 seconds, and reduces movement speed by 50%.] [You cannot attack the ¡®Balrog¡¯ when within ¡®Fear¡¯ mode.] ¡®Fear¡¯ was a state that was the highest grade of debuff in almost all categories. But fortunately, the duration was very short. But the ¡®Fear¡¯s¡¯ duration was all that was needed to get attacked by the Balrog. [Lowly humans¡­! Disappear into Hell along with your cries!] Grrrk-! The Balrog moved both its hands and its body a little. At that time, flames flashed around him. Bang- Babang-! ¡°Avoid it¡­!!¡± ¡°Euahk! It causes crazy damage!¡± ¡°Damn it! I was barely hit, but half of my vitality is gone!¡± The users started to run away from it, but the users who were still affected by ¡®Fear¡¯ weren¡¯t able to do that, they just vanished right from their spot. It all happened in an instant. ¡°Euah- uh¡­! Someone deal with that monster!¡± ¡°We are done! We are so done! Who can catch this crazy monster!¡± The morale of the human users who were in high spirits went down in a second, and at that moment the Asmodians managed to catch up. The human users were overwhelmed with what was happening. A red dot appeared in the sky of the battlefield, and cracks began to appear in the atmosphere. Woong¨C! The dealer users who noticed it were all very nervous and aimed their attacks towards that place. ¡°Something will come out from there!¡± From the distorted space, a man wearing a long dark cloak of darkness appeared, and at that moment, the human user¡¯s ranged attacks flooded in the direction of the unidentified man. Swoosh- swoosh-! From the ranged magic users to the archer and sniper, they used all their strength to attack. Numerous attacks were heading towards the man, but the man just smiled. [Trivial men¡­] Weik-! The man who was floating in the air just waved his hand once, and flames created by magic absorbed all the attacks that were directed towards him. The users who witnessed this couldn¡¯t comprehend what just happened. ¡°What the f*ck was that?¡± ¡°You can¡¯t hit that man! Change your target!¡± The man¡ªwho appeared out of no where¡ªlooked around the field. He was very satisfied with what he was seeing. [ I Harsein had come to this place. My horsemen believe me and destroy our enemies!] The man who just introduced himself as Harsein closed both his eyes and extended both his hands towards his chest. And in front of him, red energy started to appear. It was a sphere that was growing larger and larger with every minute. Goo-ohh-! A storm of magic was about to come in the battlefield. The human users waited for someone to say what they were supposed to do. ¡°What¡¯s that? What are we supposed to do?¡± ¡°Maybe it¡¯s a wide-area magic attack! Wizards cast a wide-area shield!¡± But then. From the center of the battlefield, a man¡¯s voice was heard. The voice wasn¡¯t that loud. However, it was clearly being communicated to the users with the use of an artifact. [Everyone, move to the back! Let¡¯s give out the Alpine plains! Move back to the Serrain Gorge!] The moment the users heard the voice, they began to turn back in an instant. The voice that resonated in the ears of the users was a voice that they knew very well. ¡°It¡¯s Ian!¡± ¡°What kind of solution does Ian have for this!¡± ¡°Let¡¯s leave Alpine plains at once! All! Retreat!¡± And with that, all the human users began to retreat from the battlefield. The huge sphere that was created by Harsein¡¯s magic burst out, and it exploded behind the human users. Kwang-! It was a huge magic explosion, and one could tell that it was dangerous just by looking at it. ¡°Avoid!!¡± Most of them predicted that the users in the back would get wiped out from the wave of pure magic, so they created white shields to protect their rear. Weing-! ¡°Blessing of the Sky!¡± ¡°Levya!¡± ¡°It¡¯s Levya!¡± ¡°I¡¯m alive!¡± The ¡®Blessing of the Sky¡¯ was the highest ranked skill among the powers of a Priest class for protection. And it was widely known that the only user who could use this was ¡®Levya¡¯, the prized ranker. Kwang-! The storm of the red magi and the white spirit came into contact. It was a sacred shield with enormous durability exceeding 1 million. However, as the explosion continued to push forward, the white shield began to crack. Crrk- crrrrk-! Though the shield absorbed a large amount of Magic, the Blessing of the Sky didn¡¯t manage to block the wide ranged spell. And within 5 seconds that the Blessing of the Sky was able to hold, the other users went into action. Weing- wheing-! Priests and wizards from every direction started to create a shield which eventually prevented the storm. The damage that came in through the cracks of the shield was all recovered by the quick response from the priests. ¡°Phew.¡± ¡°We avoided a great disaster.¡± Once Levya was done blocking the storm of magic, Ian along with Remir, Fiolan and a few other ranked wizards launched a wide range attack. Along with Karceus¡¯ Breath and Pin¡¯s smash, and Remr¡¯s Ignition and Fionlan¡¯s Hell of Ice. A large number of simultaneous attacks burst out which made the enemy¡¯s attacks towards the human users to be stopped. So far, there was a wide gap created between the Asmodians and the Human users. At that moment, a purple light began to glow in the human faction. Weing- weing-! It was a wide-range magic Scroll that was being cast by the wizards from all over the field. The scene produced a spectacular sight, and the light eventually disappeared into the air. Numerous human users left the Alpine plains without leaving a single one behind. If the activation of the scroll was even 10 seconds late, the Balrog would¡¯ve cleared out the whole filed. It was a situation that was dealt with very quickly. And the lips of Harsein¡ªwho had seen everything¡ªwent up. [This is fun. It¡¯s more fun than I imagined.] Harsein glanced to the direction of the human users and gave out his orders. [All my horsemen, follow me¡­!] * * * ¡°Harsein could be a Devil king probably under the rank of 90.¡± Yankun¡¯s words made Ian frowned. ¡®Devil King¡­ he should have been. There¡¯s no way anyone could have done that apart from a Devil king.¡¯ The human camp was able to overcome a disaster due to Ian¡¯s commands and the ranked wizards. They gave away a whole map, and arranging the present land will take some time. But even then, it wasn¡¯t like a lot of time would be needed. ¡®Maybe 15 minutes at best. Those Magical beasts will soon be here.¡¯ Ian looked closely at the terrain of the Serrain Gorge. Fortunately, the Serrain Gorge was a narrow and long map. No matter how they were pushed, defending was going to be easy. This was going to be a favorable terrain for the human users who have relatively wider-ranged attacks compared to the Asmodians. In the Serrian Gorge, there wasn¡¯t any space to avoid the wide-range attacks. ¡°Ian, what should we do? Even if we manage to pull this off¡­ the difference in our powers is way too much.¡± These words from Fiolan made Ian turn his head. It could be because the appearance of the Balrog and the Devil king was too overwhelming. Even though the Balrog was 100 ranks lower than the Devil King, it was still a beast that was different when compared to the Noblesse. ¡®If we don¡¯t block them in the Serrian Gorge¡­ then we won¡¯t be able to stop them anywhere else.¡¯ Ian briefly explained how Fiolan and the rankers could work together. ¡°If we are on a map like this, there won¡¯t be any odds. But you know this already, this a narrow canyon.¡± Ian swallowed his dry spit and said. ¡°We need to make the most of the wide-area spells we¡¯ve got. We need to calculate the cooldown time for each user very accurately, and we need to do it without shutting down the shield cycle. If wide-area spells are constantly used, the defense won¡¯t be so easy to penetrate, may it be a Balrog or a Devil King.¡± Ian looked at the time and spoke again. ¡°We have around four and a half hours more. We don¡¯t need to fight them in order to win. If we can hold them back until the time comes then that¡¯s our win.¡± Remir nodded then responded. ¡°That part is right. I don¡¯t know if the strategy is viable or not, but¡­¡± The general cooldown time for a wide-area chilled skill was between 10 to 30 minutes. What Ian meant was to know the cooldown time and make defense shields that wouldn¡¯t get penetrated. But this was a strategy that was theoretically impossible. Firstly, this was a strategy for which it was necessary to grasp the waiting time of the shield skill of all the wizards and priests in the field. Ian looked around and spoke again. ¡°If we don¡¯t use our abilities in this manner, no matter what option we choose, we won¡¯t be able to hold them off given how strong they are.¡± Ian¡¯s gaze went to Remir. ¡°Remir take down the attacking order and get it done. I¡¯ll run the shield cycle once.¡± Remir then nervously asked. ¡°Is it really possible? Even if you The Ian¡­¡± Ian smiled and replied. ¡°We have to try. No, we need to make it work.¡± Ian asked Remir of all the cooldown time for the basic shield of the mage class. He also asked Levya about the priest class. ¡®Phew, I¡¯m getting a headache, but these are all the skills that I already knew.¡¯ Ian was nervous. It was difficult to control the skills of over a dozen people, even if it was Ian, who was in a hurry to memorize the cooldown time of all the skills and run them in a cycle. Besides, this situation wouldn¡¯t go well if there was any mistake. Ian opened his mouth for the users who were waiting in the Gorge. ¡°All the users, share the 2 icons for each of your flagship skills.¡± Sharing the icon of the skills meant, talking to the party members about the cooldown of the skill and the attack attributes. ¡°Other skills can be used at your own discretion, but you will have to activate your wide-area protection and restoration skills according to the given orders. I need to check the cooldown time right now, so I would appreciate your cooperation.¡± This wasn¡¯t a function that was used so profoundly when party hunting. That was because a user showing his or her information to others was like being completely naked. But this situation called for it, and everyone began to share their skills without refusing. And with the information of the users gathered. From the entrance of the gorge on the other side, Ian saw dust rise. Horsemen: by horsemen he meant the Asmodians and monsters. CH 303 Ian was struggling in the Central Continent. The other side of the dimensional war in the Northwest and the Northeast, they had suffered serious damage. The other battlefields had weaker horseman when compared to the Central Continent, but they had a Devil King and strong Balrogs over there. Their defenses in the North was much weaker than the Central Continent, so they couldn¡¯t hold them off, and the Northern defenders gave up two to three maps to the Devil¡¯s side. Hoonie¡ªwho was struggling in the Northeast battlefield¡ªsent a message to Ian. [KanjiHoonie: Ian hyung, It¡¯s getting too hard here.] [Ian: I guessed it. How bad is the situation there?] [KanjiHoonie: now, the neutral filed is almost gone to the Devidom camps, and after the last canyon we will enter the Luspel Empire.] [Ian: Really? It is much serious than I thought.] [KanjiHoonie: once the North gets taken over by the Asmodian¡­ it will be detrimental for the Lotus Guild too. What to do?] [Ian: I can¡¯t help it. Even if we lose the Lotus guild, I need to stay here and block them.] [KanjiHoonie: Are there any extra support that you could possibly send here?] [Ian: Hmm¡­ it¡¯s tough.] [KanjiHoonie: Okay Hyung. We¡¯ll try our best.] [Ian: Okay. Use as much time as you can.] Ian¡¯s eyebrows flinched after communicating with Hoonie. ¡®There is nothing I can do. I would like to stop it everywhere if I could.¡¯ On the last day of the Dimensional war, Ian was deep in thought¡ªthinking whether he should go to the North or the Central. Both the Northern and the Central continent were important for the Lotus Manor. ¡®Pyro Domain and Lotus Manor¡­ Both of these shouldn¡¯t be done¡­¡¯ The Pyro Domain was the reason why today¡¯s Lotus Guild was this grand, it was no exaggeration to say that it was a manor with the highest advanced growth. It was a place that had survived and grown tremendously in the middle of the Central Continent as well as the Lotus Manor in the Northeast. It was definitely not an overstatement to call it the fundraiser for the Lotus Guild. Since it was the first manor for the Lotus Guild, it grew progressively yet in a safe area, it has grown in the economic and cultural aspect rather than in military power. In particular, the large scale facility ¡®Training center¡¯ was managed by professor Lee Jin-wook, was a well-established facility that summoner class users must visit. ¡®No matter how much I value the manor, the Pyro Domain is the most important.¡¯ And after Ian exchanged messages with Hoonie, Ian was lost in his thoughts for a moment, and the horsemen were rushing close to them with fierce speed. Ian stared at the three Balrog who was in the front and was ready to give out orders. ¡®firstly, the vibrating wave¡ªit¡¯s inherent ability¡ªmust be blocked.¡¯ The Vibrating wave was a wide-area ability that puts the enemies in a terrible state of ¡®fear¡¯, it didn¡¯t have much destructive power of its own. And for the human users who were trying to build up a defense now, nothing was more terrible than experiencing ¡®fear¡¯. It would be horrific if that were to happen, and the camp would be destroyed should that happen. [Die! You sewer rats!!] Bang-! As the leader of the Balrog moved to the front, the other two followed him. And Ian who confirmed the current situation quickly turned his head. ¡®It will take 3 seconds to activate, and it takes 1 second after it hits the ground to be triggered.¡¯ Ian concentrated with all his might. Their victory in this war all depended on Ian¡¯s hands. ¡°First.. Isei, use The Barrier of Light! And after that, Kim Chung prepare your skills!¡± Ian ordered what was needed to do, and the nervous priest prepared the skill and invoked it. ¡°Barrier of Light!¡± Weeing-! A thin film spread in the air, and a white light started to form in front of the users. The Barrier of Light was the most basic wide-area defense skill of a priest. The durability of the barrier was only about 250,000. Ian calculated the situation thoroughly. [Keuhhh¡­!] Kwang- Kwakwang-! The first Balrog fell back, and the barrier cracked. [Balrog¡¯s unique ability ¡®Vibrating wave¡¯ has been activated.] [The durability of ¡®Barrier of Light¡¯ is reduced by 77525.] [Barrier blocks the debuff effect.] And two other Balrogs used their unique ability. Kwang-! [Balrog¡¯s unique ability ¡®Vibrating wave¡¯ has been activated.] [The Durability of ¡®Barrier of Light¡¯ is reduced by 78122.] [The durability of ¡®Barrier of Light¡¯ is reduced by 78442.] [Barrier blocks the debuff effect.] The earth vibrated and tremendous roars could be heard, but the barrier of light was still holding up. [Barrier of light / Durability ¨C 15911/250000 (6.36%)] Although its durability dropped tremendously, the Barrier of Light managed to block three Vibrating Waves from entering. And users who saw this were having cold sweat. ¡®Euhh. Why are they so careless right from the beginning?!¡¯ ¡®Isn¡¯t Ian much more skilled than this!¡¯ Other human users were nervous, but Ian didn¡¯t just use normal skills. Ian already checked the amount of damage that the vibration did in the last field. Balrog¡¯s vibrating wave was a pure magic based skill, so it comes with fixed damage that doesn¡¯t affect the armor. In the previous field, Ian noticed that the damage was less than 80,000. That was why Ian used the Barrier of Light, which had the best durability to prevent the attack from all the three. ¡®if there is an additional wave, then the barrier won¡¯t do us any good.¡¯ Kung- kung-! Ian gave out the second order when he saw the Balrogs were already using their huge claws to break the barrier. ¡°Kim Chung! Elu¡¯s Blessing! Halicus, use the Grand Summon!¡± The moment the orders were given, something huge broke down the barrier with a huge roar. Thud-! It was a huge stone statue over 5M in height, which was summoned by the ¡®Grand Summon¡¯ skill, something that only a high-leveled knight class could use. The summoning of the Grand Summon¡¯s ¡®Provocation¡¯ skill would continuously cast shield over a wide area until all of its vitality was depleted, it was capable enough to absorb all the damage except for wide area damage. It was a great skill that could keep even the smallest buffs in range. In addition, it has a vitality of 3 million, so it was practically unbreakable. ¡°What is it, the Grand Summon? That can¡¯t prevent wide area damage¡­! Isn¡¯t Ian wrong about the skill?¡± ¡°No, No way!¡± The reason why the Grand Summon was a little vulnerable was that it wasn¡¯t great in dealing with wide area skills. Even if an enemy tries to destroy the stone statue, the operation of the wide-range skills wouldn¡¯t be hindered. But the users¡¯ worries just grew. Chang! As soon as the first barrier of light was destroyed, a new shield was created upon it. It was a skill called ¡®Elu¡¯s Blessing¡¯, one of the rare skills of a Wizard class. It was a skill that created a shield with wide-range protection and the ability to regain vitality. The unusual aspect of the skill was that the recovery was fixed. The amount of regeneration from Elu¡¯s Blessing was about 70,000 vitality per second, but that amount of healing didn¡¯t apply to every user in its range. The 70,000 vitality that the Elu¡¯s Blessing could heal would be distributed to all the users in its range. If ten users that were in need of healing were within its range, they would get 7,000 vitality per second. This was a figure that couldn¡¯t be considered to be efficient when hundreds of people were fighting in a wide-area. So, rather than depending on the Elu¡¯s Blessing¡¯s heal, it could be used instead as a good wide-area shield with a little heal. In other words, this was a better skill than basic shields like the Barrier of Light. However, something amazing happened once Elu¡¯s Blessing was used. ¡°What? Can you use the Grand Summon and Elu¡¯s Blessing like this?¡± ¡°Crazy, purely!¡± A blue shield with light attribute was created in front of the gigantic stone statue, and the blue shield began to heal the statue¡¯s vitality. Human users could now fully preserve their vitality. They were able to completely block the attacks with the help of the shield. If this continues, the only one who would need healing was the ¡®Grand Summon¡¯. Elu¡¯s Blessing¡¯s heal could definitely recover any damage to the Grand Summon completely Wheing-! The Elu¡¯s Blessing spread a green light which began to restore vitality, and the Grand Summon¡¯s vitality didn¡¯t go much lower even when attacked by many horsemen of the Devil. ¡°Priests, Keep your heals ready! And after that Mr. Oou be ready!¡± Without a single error, they managed to activate the skills with a single order from Ian. Once the defense stabilized, Remir¡¯s attacks started, and the users who later began to acknowledge Ian¡¯s leadership skills started to attack the monsters and the devil¡¯s army. Kwang- kwakwang-! The ranked wizards, who were in the canyons began to cast wide area attacks. Woong- wooong-! The magic spells of the wizards were very powerful. Casting a wide-range spell would take quite a long time. If the user who was casting the spell got attacked while casting then the casting of the spell would be canceled. However, they could cast the most powerful spells since they were in a great situation right now. Grrng- Grrong-! As a lot of casting was done from random places, the entire canyon began to vibrate. The waves of mana gathered here and there which produced a dangerous vibration. ¡®A little, just a little more¡­!¡¯ Ian identified the casting spells. The enemies were much stronger than anticipated, so Ian had to use skills that were much stronger. Many of the horsemen, including the Devil, were making a dreadful deal for them, even if they managed to perfect their protection it would still be tough. The stone statue was almost at the stage of crumbling, and the shield will be down in 10 seconds. Elu¡¯s Blessing was left behind, and if a shield wasn¡¯t put on, no one knew when it would crumble and get the users killed. ¡®If we can get a widespread diversion, we¡¯ll have room to act¡­!¡¯ The high-level skills of wizards needed to cast for about 30 seconds to 2 minutes. Ian predicted that if they could manage to attack the Asmodians then their strength would be reduced by 30% if their skills were successfully activated. The magical beasts and Asmodians didn¡¯t have much vitality to take the wide-range skills that were going to hit them. Ian looked at the crumbling statue and bit his lip. ¡®Euh, I don¡¯t think I should use it now¡­ but I don¡¯t see another way.¡¯ Ian ordered Bbookbbook. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah! Blessing of Abyss!¡± ¡°Okay bbook!¡± Wooing-! A blue light radiated from Bbookbbook¡¯s body, and the wide-area restoration which belonged to the skill Blessing of Abyss was invoked. The Blessing of Abyss wouldn¡¯t be so efficient at restoring the durability of the statue, but there wasn¡¯t much of an alternative now. ¡®There are too few users with stone skills. You guys should stand as long as possible.¡¯ In order for this to not end, and the other statue to stay standing, the first statue shouldn¡¯t collapse. Ian thought that it was more important to make sure that the stone statue was kept standing, even if it meant sacrificing Abyss skills. One minute left before the wizards could cast their magic spells, and it made them feel dreadful. ¡°Flame zone!¡± ¡°Frenzy weather!¡± Here and there, magic spells were being cast by the wizards to take down the Asmodians who had been attacking the users. CH 304 There were dozens of millions of Korean serves in the Kailan game. And even though this was an important battle, the number of people participating in the Dimensional War is less than 5% of the total number. In order to participate in the Dimensional War, one must be at the level of 150 or more, which meant that the low-level players couldn¡¯t participate in it. In fact, the level of 150 was the minimum level to enter. It was well known that to perform well in such content, one needs to be more than the level of 180. So while the Dimensional war had been going on for a while, what were the users who weren¡¯t participating in the war doing? The beginners who weren¡¯t even at the 100th level, the dimensional war was an event that they wouldn¡¯t have the chance to grace for a long time. They get to catch rabbits at the hunting grounds in the peaceful Eastern continent, find a hidden dungeon in the Northern and be content with that. They were just playing their own game. But on the present day, the attention of most users had been on the Dimensional war. It was because most of the game broadcaster televised the large-scale war, and the result of the war would have a great influence on the decision that novice users would take. ¨C Guys, you know today¡¯s the last day? ¨C What do you think the result will be like? ¨C What to say? It¡¯s a mess now. In the beginning, the Asmodians were winning overwhelmingly, but after Ian and the rankers joined, the balance is restored. ¨C Oh¡­! Awesome! Is it going to be completely mind-blowing then? ¨C Yeah, right. I¡¯ll stop the quest for today and watch the YTBC. ¨C Keu, in less than an hour, the broadcast will start, right? ¨C Yes. I think so. As soon as the dimensional war starts, the broadcast will start I guess¡­ but do you really intend to see the broadcast that will go on for 10 hours? ¨C I am a fan of Ian. I was waiting for this time, the YTBC will broadcast a whole screen on Ian¡¯s actions. Not 10 hours, I don¡¯t mind watching for 20 hours, till the moment Ian dies. ¨C Oh¡­! Really? I didn¡¯t know the schedule. Then I¡¯ll also stay in front of the TV for today. Haha. After the massive war on the Central Continent, the rating went really high. Especially as the Balrog and the Devil King made their appearance, the ratings reached the highest peak in the history of the game broadcast. When the news of the appearance of Balrog and the Devil King was heard, the users of the Kailan game ended their connection just to watch the broadcast. And with so many users showing attention, Ian was showcasing a play that seemed godlike. * * * ¡°From here on now, the warrior class, knight class users come out of the shield along with me.¡± ¡°Will that be okay? The vibration will have an effect on us the moment we step out.¡± ¡°That is why we need to move out now. I don¡¯t think that the cooldown time of the wave has come to an end, we need to go out before that happens.¡± ¡°Any other way without going out?¡± ¡°If we don¡¯t go out and make some time, the shield will be cut off soon. And we¡¯ve consumed around 70% of this groups¡¯ shield.¡± Ian summoned all of his familiars and was prepared to move out of the shield. The shield that currently encircled the users was Levya¡¯s highest level defense spell the ¡®Blessing of Heaven¡¯. ¡®The Blessing of Heaven will break in the next two minutes.¡¯ Before that, all the close combat class users need to prepare themselves to attack the Asmodians. Ian thought that he had enough manpower. ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡± Because of the overwhelming presence of the Balrog and the magical beasts, the users hesitated to move, seeing that Ian started to move forward. ¡®I need to go out first.¡¯ Thut ¨C Ian jumped on top of Halli and ordered his other familiars. ¡°Karceus, Pin! Let¡¯s push ahead with full force.¡± ¡°Okay, Master.¡± Grrk- Grrrrk-! From the mouth of Karceus¡ªa reddish black energy started to burst out, and at the same time Pin went up in the air and used its wings to send strong gusts of wind. Kyaahhh-! [It is a powerful wide area attack, move back!] And with the command from their Devil king, the horsemen and beasts moved 20 to 30 meters to the back, with that Ian moved beyond the range of the shields. And the nervous users, who suddenly saw Ian¡¯s action, started to move along with him. ¡°We need to follow fast! We¡¯ll be done if Ian dies in the field!¡± ¡°Dammit, I don¡¯t know what is going to happen, but let¡¯s head out first!¡± All the knight class and the warrior class users jumped out of the shield at the same time, and seeing this all the Asmodians were perplexed. [The are moving out without any fear. Let¡¯s show them what we are made of!] Kyaahh-! Balrog and the other magical beasts rushed towards the users, and the sudden outbreak of war began. Chang- Chan Chang-! Ian who climbed over Halli began to swoop his Judgment of the Spirit King and slaughtered the magical beasts and the Asmodians. ¡®If we can manage to block them off for the next 20 minutes, one cycle of protection will come back¡­!¡¯ Ian had no intention to attack the enemies who were in front of him or to the overall situation. The good news was that during this fight, he didn¡¯t have to worry about the cooldown times of the shield. Puahk-! Ian stretched out his spear, and the head of a magical beast flew into the air. [Successfully defeated a middle-class monster ¡®Hakilion¡¯.] ¡®How good it will be if all of them were this weak?¡¯ Ian quickly killed the low ranking monsters who blocked the first row and jumped towards the Balrog who was in the back. ¡®Let¡¯s manage some time¡­ just one, let¡¯s catch just one of it!¡¯ That was what he thought, but Ian knew it better than anyone that this wasn¡¯t going to be so easy. He was able to deal with the Devil Dragon in the past because he had the top ranker Remir by his side, but now wasn¡¯t the situation where he could ask for the help of a ranker. There were a few warrior users around the level of 200, but they weren¡¯t going to be of enough help. Kwang-! Balrog used his fist, and the artifact user moved back around 10 meters due to the effect. ¡°Eu-ah!¡± And using this gap, Ian moved to the side of Balrog and pierced it. Kwak- Kwakwak-! From it, came out mellow lava. Seeing the spear of Ian¡¯s that hit it, the Balrog felt disgusted. [Keuahh! You fearless human bastard!] Ian immediately checked the amount of damage the Balrog took with his system message. [Fatal damage of the legendary beast ¡®Balrog¡¯.] [Balrog¡¯s vitality reduced by 287059.] Ian¡¯s eyes grew bigger at the message. ¡®What¡¯s this? Was the Balrog¡¯s defense always so small? I feel like this going to be a better deal than I thought?¡¯ It was natural for Ian to be surprised. That was because the damage that Balrog received wasn¡¯t much different from when he dealt with a superior class monster. But the next moment, Ian went into a panic. [Kwaah-!] It was because there was an additional message that came up, one Ian didn¡¯t think of. [The legendary beast ¡®Balrog¡¯ passive skill ¡®Mana regeneration¡¯ has been activated.] Kuk- kkuk- From Ian¡¯s attack¡ªa red lava leaked from the side, but the hole soon got covered. [Beast ¡®Balrog¡¯s¡¯ vitality restored to 212512.] ¡°Oh my¡­¡± It restored around 70 to 80% of the damage in a second. It had a natural healing ability and the remaining damage was recovering gradually. ¡®So, what? How am I supposed to catch this?¡¯ As Ian was still, Balrog who noticed Ian rushed to him with anger. [Die, you human!] Kwang-! Red energy flowed from the Balrog¡¯s hands and moved in the direction of Ian. But Ian who was on top of Halli was able to avoid without much effort. ¡®Damn it, if I get hit with one or two of those, I¡¯ll probably be dead right?¡¯ Ian, who had discovered the amount of damage that attack did to the other users made him more nervous and focused. ¡®How am I supposed to take down a Balrog? Should I attack the same place before it can recover?¡¯ But it was an impossible task for Ian alone. It would be only possible with a well-controlled player like Remir or Levya by Ian¡¯s side. Ian sucked at this. ¡®Should I just use the time and get back in?¡¯ But then. Ian heard a familiar voice. ¡°Hey, Kid. It seems tough, do you need a hand?¡± And Ian looked at the owner of the voice, Ian¡¯s mood went high the moment he saw him. ¡®Why is Shakran here¡­!¡¯ The user of the warrior class who was holding two blades smiled at Ian. He was Shakran, the number one user of the warrior class, who had been in the Northwest till the morning. Ian smiled at Shakran. ¡°If you have time to talk, then come here and help me, fast! It¡¯s so tough that I feel like I¡¯m dying.¡± ¡°Shaken¡­¡± Shakran had met his enemy several times before. And among the users, Ian was the only one who he acknowledged as an enemy. ¡®Sure, if it¡¯s Shakran, then it is possible¡­!¡¯ Ian began to see Shakran as a strong ally. ¡°Uncle, you have that punishment thing, use that now please.¡± At the words from Ian, Shakran gulped. ¡°Uncle?! This bugger!¡± ¡°Well, I call an uncle when I see one, what do you want me to call you?!¡± When they met in the past, Ian didn¡¯t accept Shakran as a companion. The first meeting was at the Pascal¡ªeven during that time, he thought of Shakran as an NPC. Surely, even if considered him as a fellow sure, Ian wouldn¡¯t have accepted him. Ian basically didn¡¯t respect his enemies. But now the time needed them to fight for the same side was here, and it would be hard for Ian to get chummy with Shakran as he was more than 10 years older than Ian. An, the power of Shakran in the current situation was like rain in a dessert. So Ian chose the title Uncle. Ian was very satisfied with his sense. ¡®What¡¯s wrong with uncle? It¡¯s fine and good.¡¯ And now, the merge of the former opponents began. ¡°One point attack.¡± Shakran¡¯s long sword began to glow in red. Kwahh-! From the sword of Shakran came out dozens of stalks, they moved to the direction of the Balrog. CH 305 Shakran was powerful. Beyond the level Ian had expected, Shakran¡¯s armed forces were great. ¡®Surely¡­ while I was struggling with quests, he didn¡¯t just play around I guess.¡¯ With the recent content of the Maurya Empire. In the recent years, Ian had already been ahead of many players in the content, and he surely outdid the other rankings. But now, seeing Shakran, it was clear the most that Ian misjudged him. Ian, of course, didn¡¯t make the mistake of thinking that he was any less than Shakran. In fact, like Remir and Levya, or the users of the other classes, he wasn¡¯t judged so well. However, in the case of Shakran, whose style of battle was similar to that of Ian¡¯s character battle style, he still seemed much skillful. And as he had come here, Ian¡¯s expression began to get brighter. ¡®If Shakran is like this¡­ maybe we could get hold of the Balrog?¡¯ The Guild Master of the Titan Guild¡ªShakran, the official number one of the guild. It was originally the DarkRuna Guild which was the first; followed by Titan Guild in the 2nd, but thanks to the idiot Irahan¡¯s saga, the guild fell down from its rank. And in the background, Shakran had a mighty force standing behind him. Kwang- Kwang-! The reddish-brown creature created by Shakran had scars all over its body. And Ian, because of that mighty army was able to attack more furiously. [¡®One point Attack¡¯ has been successfully implemented.] [Due to the additional attacks, the effect of ¡®Mana regeneration¡¯, the passive skill of the legendary monster ¡®Balrog¡¯ has been reduced.] [The legendary monster ¡®Balrog¡¯ suffered catastrophic damage.] [The vitality of ¡®Balrog¡¯ is reduced by 169840.] Ian was in delight. ¡®Yeah, hitting it in the same place was such a pain in the ass.¡¯ Once Ian and Shakran found a way to break the passive skill ¡®Mana Regeneration¡¯, they began to go through the Balrog with all their might. But Balrog had many complicated abilities apart from the Mana regeneration, and Ian knew that. Especially the ability to draw out the mana from the surrounding beasts was a level that they couldn¡¯t handle. ¡®Damn, for starters I should use Pin and Karceus to clear out the monsters around it.¡¯ The Balrog was attacking with the Mana and then recovering. In order to counteract the monster¡¯s ability, Ian decided to blow out all the monsters around the Balrog. Shakran realizing that was using long range skills to attack and cause damage to it, but it wasn¡¯t very effective, as the skill was more specialized in close combat attacks. ¡®Well, it doesn¡¯t seem like he has the skills with spirit power¡­¡¯ It was similar to an attack skill that could be used with mana, and the spiritual power can be used much effectively with the growth of skill. Could it be over the level of 150? And Ian didn¡¯t use the skills with spirit power that well. That¡¯s was the obvious reason, why this situation didn¡¯t work so well. And the skill that was still in use ¡®Spirit multiplication¡¯, this was a skill that aimed at putting the condition of ¡®Paralysis¡¯ on the enemy than hurting it. However, in the case of high-level monsters like Balrog, which have a great resistance, the current situation was useless. ¡°Uncle, I¡¯m moving out for a while and take down the others, you can hold this, right?¡± And the words from Ian, Shakran frowned and replied in a blunt tone, ¡°Go at once. But I won¡¯t be able to last for long on my own.¡± ¡°I know.¡± After the brief exchange of words with Shakran, Ian turned away and headed towards the nearby horsemen. But right then. ¡°Ian, wait!¡± A familiar voice came from the back, and heat could be felt all over. ¡°Ignition¡­!¡± Hwark-! As far as the plan was concerned, Remir should have been inside the shield, to cast wide area skills. On top of that, right behind Remir was Levya. ¡°Heal¡­¡± Ian stopped in his tracks, and Remir¡¯s Ignition, which gave out strong firepower burnt down every low-level monster around Ian to ashes. Chik- shik-! Ian spoke with confusion in his voice. ¡°Remir this isn¡¯t right, what about the attack order of the wizards?¡± At the question from Ian, Remir answered with a smile. ¡°I gave it Fiolan.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°According to what I saw from the inside, I and Levya were able to see the angles of the Balrog. It could have been safer to stay inside, but¡­ isn¡¯t it better to catch the Balrogs for the better result in the coming time?¡± Remir¡¯s statement made a lot of sense. In fact, this was on Ian¡¯s mind, as Remir¡¯s wide area attacks could¡¯ve been in handy. Ian shouted over towards Remir and Levya while running towards a Balrog to attack it. ¡°Then let¡¯s do it this way, let¡¯s grab at least three Balrogs!¡± ¡°Okay!!¡± ¡°I get it!¡± As soon as he heard their answers, the three took their positions almost immediately. And in the middle of the battlefield, a ¡®Balrog hunt¡¯ started with top class rankers. * * * ¡°Balrog¡­ two are¡­ dead¡­?¡± In the fierce battle that was happening in the canyon, Irahan who had himself guided the Balrog and the magical beasts felt nervous with the news. However, the scale of the battle was so huge that Irahan didn¡¯t get caught by Ian¡¯s eyes. Having seen one Balrog defeated after the other, Irahan started to get nervous. ¡®No, what is that fool of a Devil King doing as the Balrogs are dying one after the other?¡¯ The situation was very frustrating for Irahan. ¡®If there is nothing that can be done, they should have sent too many Balrogs that outpowers Ian and catch him first!¡¯ Despite being frustrated, Irahan had no control over the battlefield. In this battlefield, all the commands and ordering right of the Asmodian camp was in the hands of the Devil King, and the situation made him feel very disgusted. ¡®Hue, along with such amount of firepower, I don¡¯t understand why we aren¡¯t able to break through this shield¡­¡¯ Irahan stared at the Devil King who was contemplating the situation in the battlefield with an uneasy expression. And unlike the nervous expression of Irahan, the Devil King Harsein wasn¡¯t so nervous. Irahan muttered under his breath. ¡®What¡¯s that? How is that son of a b*tch able to stay calm?¡¯ Harsein appeared as if he was enjoying the current scenario. After a while, Irahan understood the reason for that. * * * Eventually, after the improvised Balrog hunting party was able to return to the inside of the shield, after a successful mission. Of the 7 Balrogs, they hunted down 5 of them. And while Ian was around hunting down the Balrogs, it wasn¡¯t that the human users were without any damage. But even if they had received the damage, to take down 5 Balrog was a tremendous achievement in such a situation. And it was natural for the morale of the human users to increase. ¡°Keu¡­! Can we really be able to stop this all?¡± ¡°I think so.¡± ¡°The Central battlefield is the main¡­ we will manage to stop here, will it be possible to gain anything even if the Northwest and the Northeast are lost?¡± ¡°Hmm. I think so, that is why Shakran also came into the Central continent.¡± The users who succeeded in the surprise attack entered the struggle once again, but with a pleasant mind. By now the attack power of the Asmodians was down to the half, and there was enough durability for the stone statue and the shield. On top of that, the shields underwent number of cycles according to Ian¡¯s orders, so the defense was maintained even though he was absent for a while. And as the users who could participate in the Dimensional war were all ranked users, they had a sense of the game. ¡®This much is enough. If we manage like this we will be able to overcome them.¡¯ Ian stared at the Devil King who was floating in the air in the middle of his army. In fact, if it wasn¡¯t the Devil King, they could¡¯ve turned the table right after taking down all the Balrogs. ¡®Phew, What is that jerk going to do? No matter how strong it is, this could get tough¡­¡¯ Ian touched the ¡®Soldiers of the Earth¡¯ that was in his hands. ¡®The remaining time is 3 hours and 15 minutes¡­ is it now the time to use the Soldiers of the Earth¡­?¡¯ He wasn¡¯t sure if he was supposed to use the Soldiers of the Earth, he thought that he could get rid of the Devil Kings army. ¡®Yeah. What¡¯s there to lose. We got by till now with our hard work, using it can be done.¡¯ Ian pulled out the Soldier of the Earth with a nervous face. And just before he was going to use the item. Suddenly a tough and heavy voice resonated all through the battlefield, which Ian heard. [Foolish people¡­ I don¡¯t understand why you want to struggle so uselessly like this¡­] The voice which was ringing in the ears belonged to the Devil King Harsein. ¡°That jerk, what is he trying to do again? Doesn¡¯t feel right¡­¡± Remir who was beside Ian mumbled under her breath, and the next moment all the users began to doubt their eyes. [A new Devildom sky will appear in this place!] The heavy voice of Harsein resonated all over. ¡°Doesn¡¯t, it doesn¡¯t make any sense.¡± ¡°What the hell is this¡­?!¡± Grrrong- Kwakwakwang-! The celestial sky began to split while glowing in red light. * * * A new sky of the Devildom opened up with the words of Harsein. Just like he had said, the celestial sky began to split and the red sky of the Devildom began to form. And through the cracks in the sky, a lot of things started to pour out. It was such a sight, that it even made Ian lose his words. ¡°This, how¡­?!¡± Ian stared at the sky with a shocking face which was now pouring out Asmodians and magical beasts. ¡°That, that things are all¡­ Balrogs?¡± At the words from Levya, Ian nodded his head with the same blank expression. ¡°Yep, they¡­ are those.¡± Even in a single glance, one would see thousands of Balrogs. On top of that, from the top of the canyon¡¯s sky, giant dragons with a few flying ones came out. ¡°There is a Devil Dragon over there, Ian.¡± At the words from Remir, laugh came out of his mouth. ¡°Ha, Haha¡­¡± And Shakran who was right next to Remir asked. ¡°What¡¯s a Devil Dragon?¡± Remir replied with a fretful smile. ¡°It is a legendary creature like Balrog. I hunted it with Ian the other day.¡± Shakran nodded his head and enquired. ¡°Is it stronger than Balrog?¡± ¡°That¡¯s a bit tough to answer, but¡­ it is easier to deal with when compared to Balrog.¡± The conversation between those two was interrupted by Fiolan. ¡°So what. There are a dozens of them flying around here.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Remir was at a loss of words. In fact, there was nothing wrong with what Fiolan said. At that moment, Ian opened his mouth while pointing to the opened sky. ¡°There, something else seems to be coming?¡± ¡°What? Isn¡¯t it done yet?¡± Already knowing about the game¡¯s outcome, the users were all looking at the rain of monsters with ease. And once again, the voice of the Devil King rang out. [Have you come, my brothers¡­] The unidentified Asmodians were surprisingly, the ¡®Devil¡¯ titled monsters similar to Harseins. Now there were a total of six Devils including Harseins, who were hovering around the battlefield and a storm of their armies were moving along with them. Ian who was watching this scene unfold hurriedly picked up the Soldiers of the earth into his hand. ¡®Well, when you¡¯re screwed, you need to do whatever you can to unscrew it.¡¯ Ian used it without any hesitation. [The Soldiers of the Earth, one of the Seven Treasures of the King of Rings will be used.] Wooing- Wooing-! In the close vicinity of Ian¡¯s which had a treacherous view, a new color and radiance began to spread gradually. Users around him panicked and asked Ian. ¡°Ian, what, what is it?¡± ¡°What kind of item is it?¡± Ian wanted to answer, but his lips didn¡¯t move at all. Ian¡¯s body once again went into the control of the AI. Ian began to contemplate in comfort when a system message popped up. Tring- [With the power of Castle (Current) King, you have summoned the Army of Heaven(God).] CH 306 The Dimensional war of Humans and Devils. The first scenarios developed by the LB were simple. First, the dimensional portal of the Devildom would be opened, and the interaction between the humans and the Asmodians would occur. Second, the beginning of the Dimensional war starts after the human users understand the content of the Asmodians to an extent and the monster wave. Third, a new race called the ¡®Asmodian¡¯ would be opened during the Dimensional war, attracting many users with the appealing powers of the race. Fourth, the human users would get defeated in the dimensional war, and using the Soldier of the Earth acquired during the quest of the Maurya Empire, only a part of the human world would be left after blocking the Devildom. Fifth, when the user who attains the Cintamani after facing the Dragon God at the Alter appears, the powers of the five gods would be given allowing the user to completely remove the army of the monsters from the human world. Before the user appears, the developer was supposed to create a new dimension and contents. They were supposed to open a new dimension where humans and the Devildom creatures coexist. ¡®But Ian¡ªan unprecedented user¡ªkept on being involved many times.¡¯ Monitoring the progress of the Dimensional war, Na Ji-chans lips went up. The first mistake was that Ian had cleared the Maurya Empire¡¯s quest way too quickly. According to the original plan, the Soldiers of the earth item had to go into the hands of the user after the defeat of the human world. It was because the users that converted into Asmodian would have enough time to settle as they would be given time. But Ian returned into the Dimensional war with a whole new masterpiece. And he did that too without relying on any bugs. The second mistake was letting Ian have Bbookbbook and the Cintamani with him. Of course, it wasn¡¯t a full-fledged Cintamani yet, and no one knew when the Dragon God would unseal it for the act. The update for the next content was moved for 3 to 6 months as well. Na Ji-chan sighed out of relief. But that sigh wasn¡¯t for the night shifts that would be coming in the future to experience. In fact, he wasn¡¯t even willing to interfere with the game or the Oracle. But if he didn¡¯t do that, he didn¡¯t know what the higher-ups would think, so he had to suggest that. It was because the more someone intervened, the less freedom users would have in the game. Even if the Oracle wasn¡¯t there, the 10th rank Mahamu would have sent his horsemen and the demons that were under his influence. The power of the last wave turned much stronger because of the intervention of the developers. ¡®Isn¡¯t it little? Looks like we have got 1.5 times more troops¡­¡¯ And now on the screen, in front of Na Ji-chan¡¯s eyes were the descendants of the god of fire. Na Ji-chan smiled. ¡°I¡¯m curious about how this will turn out.¡± According to the data, even if the Army of God joined, it would be hard for the users to win against the current army of the monsters. When compared to the main computer, the population of the humans were 20% less. ¡°Now¡­ what more will happen?¡± Na Ji-chan¡¯s gaze moved towards the corner of the screen where Ian was. Wholeheartedly, he was cheering for the humans and Ian. * * * Wheeing- whein- wheing-! All throughout the human world, white streaks of light began to come down from the sky. The scenery of the white light falling down from the clouds was a sight one should see. ¡°What is this?¡± ¡°What is going on?¡± The flustered users looked around everywhere, and the Devils who were preparing to attack were also looking at the scene. After a while. Ian who was inside the human users¡¯ shield, had a whole new vibe around him. ¡°It¡¯s Ian.¡± ¡°He surely did have a hidden card!¡± ¡°Yeah, this isn¡¯t the way we are supposed to die.¡± All the users started to voice their hopes, and in front of Ian who was now in the air, a golden limestone began to grow. Wheing- The golden limestone soon turned into the shape of a golden armor, and a kinship of a dignified (God¡¯s Will) majesty revealed its appearance. Woong- woong- The canyon below the sky began to vibrate. [I¡¯m the commander of the Army of God, Beak Whe-su, sent by the king.] It was so quiet that even the sound of a dropped needle could be heard, and his words continued. [It is a treasure that is filled with the power of the King¡­ and it is a noble power that shouldn¡¯t be used as a pretext¡­] And soon his eyes met with that of Ian¡¯s. [Where do you plan on using this power?] The AI system took control of Ian and spoke. ¡°I¡¯ll use it to protect my territory, my people and my family from the invasion that is happening in our world.¡± Ian continued. ¡°The King of Rings, the ruler of all things by law. If the current King is of the same principles then you would understand my feeling and lend your strength.¡± Baek Whe-su, who listened to Ian nodded and spoke. [Surely¡­ you have the qualities of a hero.] Baek Whe-su¡¯s gaze moved and saw the army of the Asmodians. [They are certainly the race of destruction and slaughter. I will help you defeat the savaging invaders.] Ian responded. ¡°Thank you, great commander¡­¡± Then again the words from Baek Whe-su continued. [The enemies are powerful, they will surely try to deal with the Army of God] The moment his words were done, his figure became clearer. With a huge sound, he landed onto the ground. Kung ¨C [From now on, we the Army of God, will fight to help the hero, I the commander Baek Whe-su will hand over all the command to Ian now.] The last words of Baek Whe-su resounded on the battlefield, and the sound made the whole place vibrate. Kung- Kung- Kung-! The white lights settled down, each member who came down had a lustrous silver armor. [I accept your name.] [There is only victory in front of the Army of God.] Hundreds and thousands of descendants literally came down from heaven and joined the armies of the human world, and the moment this was seen, the morale of the human world skyrocketed. ¡°Wow¡­! What is this? Who is the King of Rings?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t speak nonsense and stay quiet you idiot, you speak rubbish and one of them will decide to put their long swords through you.¡± ¡°Does it matter who the King of Rings is! What¡¯s important is that we also have an army that can be compared to theirs. Especially the commander in the front. If he moves one hand two creature will go down.¡± No one could help but notice that they were all well named and known heroes. It wasn¡¯t just their appearance. [The Army of Heavens (God) ¨C Lv 425] The average level of the warriors in the Army of God was at a staggering level of over 400. This was higher than the level of Balrog and the Devil Dragon, not just the important members, but the whole troop as well, so everyone naturally thought that this was worth the fight. Especially the level of the NPC Baek Whe-su who was the commander had never been witnessed before. [Commander of the Army of God (Guardian) Baek Whe-su Lv 500] The level of the enemy demons wasn¡¯t specified, so it wasn¡¯t sure if they could be at a whopping level of 500. Gigantic users before entering the war looked into the skills and the equipment that they would use, a new phase of the Dimensional war was now going to begin. Ian¡¯s lips moved again. ¡°I will make sure to drive out those crowds from our land!¡± Not Ian, but Ian¡¯s AI was the ambassador of the character, and all the users knew it. All the users knew it because they all experienced such situations. They all had experienced such things when they took over a quest. But even then, the emotions of everybody were moved. ¡°That¡¯s what we have been working on¡­?¡± ¡°Ian has brought us here, there is no way we are giving up now, right?¡± Human emotions were complicated things, but sometimes they were very simple. When such emotions were combined with such a scenario, emotions were instantly on fire. Hot air started to emerge from the battlefield, and Ian was in the center of it. One final word came out of Ian¡¯s mouth. ¡°Power!! Attack¡­!!¡± And the users whose blood was boiling for the war shouted on top of their lungs. ¡°Wahh¡­!!¡± ¡°Let¡¯s destroy those freaks!¡± Thud- thud- thud- The NPC¡¯s of the Dimensional War began to move to make it sound like the drums were being played vigorously, and the clash between the Asmodians and the descendants of God started to cross their swords. And Ian, who was now out of the control of the AI started to move. ¡°Kay, This much of power should be enough¡­!¡± Hope started to rise in Ian¡¯s mind. ¡®The bigger the war, the more likely for us to win, but I shouldn¡¯t fight blindly.¡¯ And Ian who was smart knew that he wouldn¡¯t let this get to his head. * * * ¡°Hoho, the Army of God¡­ they¡¯re tougher than I thought¡­¡± The Devil King Harsein smiled. And turned his head towards the other Devil King who was right next to him. ¡°Look at this, Ken Dylan. What did I say? Didn¡¯t I say that the Oracle had a reason to appear.¡± Ken Dylan¡ªwho was a close associate of Harsein¡ªwas only one rank lower to Harsein. When he was first dispatched to the human dimension, he was grumbling as to why he was being sent to catch chickens with his sword, for that Harsein spoke to him. Ken Dylan smiled and responded. ¡°Yes, indeed. If they are this strong, I understand why we had to send out all of our troops.¡± Grrr- Looking at the army of the human users who were going to get assassinated, the Devil princes took out their weapons. The Devil princes held up weapons from long scrolls along to a powerful long sword, a bow, and till a dagger. The Devil princes who took out different weapons started to look at the Army of God. Harsein who was at the center spoke ¡°War! We need to show the taste of our power to these rats of the celestial world¡­!!! Charge!¡± CH 307 This was the final battle that would determine the outcome of all the wars. Due to that, the attitude of the users in the battle was totally different from before. Up until now, everyone thought that the survival of their own-selves was important for the public value points, but now everyone thought that victory was of the highest priority in this current war. The reason for the user¡¯s change in attitude wasn¡¯t because of a feeling of ¡®altruism¡¯. It was because of the benefits they would get from winning the final battle in the war. Firstly, the fame and the gold that would be distributed according to the content were 1.5 times more when compared to the defeated race, and the title of ¡®War hero¡¯ would be given to all the users of the victorious camp. The moment the battle was won, the winners¡¯ 30-day reward would increase by 1.5 times, and one could get a unique title with lots of options. It was natural for any user to want these. The users weren¡¯t worn out yet, but that still meant that the war was really bad. Ian who had been commanding the war from the very beginning was now running around the battlefield and leading the human camp. ¡°If they push us back any further, there is no more place for us to go! Hold on for a little longer!¡± ¡°All the tankers who have depleted more than half of their vitality, move to the back! The wide area shields have been going on for an hour!¡± ¡°The heal will come back after it¡¯s cooldown time of two minutes! Please manage the time and your vitality too!¡± It was a tough role, even for Ian who had the stamina of steel, but he pushed the tough part to the back of his brain and started to enjoy commanding the battle. ¡®Should I guide the strong NPC¡¯s, or should I let them make moves of their own?¡¯ The fact that Commander Baek Whe-su handed over the command of the army meant that the entire army of the King of Rings would follow Ian. But that didn¡¯t mean that Ian would have immediate power over the troops. Ian felt that the new members of the army were like new employees of a company. ¡®Eventually, we¡¯ll need the commander of the army to win this war. Even if it means that users would die, these guys must survive.¡¯ The battle took place for an hour. Hundreds out of the thousands of users had sacrificed themselves. This was all because of Ian¡¯s efforts. ¡®Huhu, let¡¯s win. I think we can win.¡¯ As the battle progressed, Ian felt that the army of the devil was strengthening, but he chose not to give up. To save the commander of the Army of God¡¯s, Ian directly went against a Devil Dragon, and it didn¡¯t live to see what happened to the war. But that wasn¡¯t the story of top-ranked players. It was natural for rankers such as Remir and Shakran to fight, but ranked users like Fiolan who weren¡¯t used to such attacks took a step forward and were active throughout the battle. And Levya who always displayed tremendous recovery skills and protection skills also performed some offensive skills. It wasn¡¯t as good as Ian, but even so, it was remarkable enough to stand out among the rankers. Ian was thinking only about winning the war even when he was battling. ¡®Now that I see that, the commander is having a hard time against two Balrog¡¯s. I don¡¯t know if it can be possible with support¡­¡¯ As the battle progressed, Ian was able to grasp the combat abilities of the new beings that were on his side, and Ian was using this information to form a strategy. ¡®They can do the Devil Dragons by their own¡­ they look like they can take care of the beast by themselves.¡¯ Ian¡¯s face hardened at that very moment. His gaze went towards the Devil King who was slaughtering the forces of the human side. Ian narrowed his eyes. ¡®The devil princes and the commanders of the army are the most unpredictable ones. They don¡¯t display any kind of stats or data in the battle so far.¡¯ Until now, the fragile individuals of each camp were dying, therefore, the Devil Princes or the commander of the army Baek Whe-su didn¡¯t get to fight with them. So far, their opponents have only been the ¡®snails¡¯ that didn¡¯t even reach their standard. They needed to face each other to know their abilities. The Grand Commander of the Army of God Baek Whe-su. When giant beasts were heading towards the commander, he dismissed them with a single strike, and the legendary monsters such as the Balrog and the Devil Dragons didn¡¯t survive for even a minute. On the other hand, when the magic of the Devil princes was used, the level 150 NPC soldiers were erased. ¡®Well¡­ leaving the Devildom for today won¡¯t be possible for sure.¡¯ Until now, they couldn¡¯t cause too much damage to the faction of the Asmodians so attacking them wasn¡¯t an option. They had to preserve themselves for tomorrow even though they were still fighting today. However, the Dimensional War today was different, and there was probably going to be no tomorrow. They should exhaust all of their energy to win. It was a fight that neither side could choose to back down, and the forces of both sides that filled the canyon began to decrease noticeably. Ian, who had been staring at the Devil¡¯s army, turned around and smirked. ¡®Okay. I believing in you¡­! I have suffered this much, it will be a waste if I get out of here, right?¡¯ Ian had a strong sense of urgency; he began to move by wielding his Judgment of the Spirit King. Until the war came to an end. Ian had no intention of resting for now. * * * Sangmin, one of the survivors of the Kailan game. He couldn¡¯t participate in the Dimensional War so he was at home today. He was sitting on the couch while watching the TV. In fact, today was the day for anyone to sit in front of the TV unconditionally. It was the very last day of the Dimensional War. In his living room in front of the TV, he sat on the couch with his wife Yerim for almost 4 hours like a stone man. Wack- ¡°Ah, eat a little quietly. I can¡¯t hear anything because of that.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ oh, okay. Sorry.¡± Even cookies were prepared for eating while watching the TV, there were a few pieces left. The last battle that was being aired was very interesting, and everyone had their eyes on it. After a while, Yerim broke off the silence. ¡°Honey.¡± ¡°Huh.¡± ¡°What will happen now?¡± ¡°Umm¡­?¡± Both peoples eyes were fixed on the screen even when they were talking, and on the screen was a person in a long golden armor facing the Devil King. The surrounding area had almost been completely destroyed, and the number of people who were on the battlefield was more than five hundred. Sangmin gulped and then opened his mouth slowly. ¡°Well¡­ till now, the human users have been doing extremely well but¡­ even then, don¡¯t you think it will be tough to win the war?¡± ¡°Why so?¡± ¡°Why? Hmm. If you look at it now, there are more troop in the Amsodians. Moreover, there are 6 Devil princes, and all are alive.¡± ¡°If you think so, isn¡¯t the commander of God¡¯s Army still alive? There are a lot of troops from God¡¯s Army who is still left.¡± ¡°Well. I do know, those devil princes all seem to be as powerful as the entire Army of God, and there are a lot of Devil princes when compared to God¡¯s army, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°That could be said¡­¡± Sangmin smiled and spoke again. ¡°Are you rooting for the human side?¡± Yerim nodded and replied. ¡°Yeah!¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Well¡­ that¡¯s the original thing I did¡­ isn¡¯t it right to cheer?¡± Sangmin had always supported the Asmodians, but today he was cheering for the human side. Sangmin¡¯s gaze went towards Ian who was behind the Commander and was breathing heavily. ¡®The broadcast will be over after today. I will join the fan club.¡¯ * * * Kwanggg-! The commander of God¡¯s Army Baek Whe-su, roared with a trident in his hand. The earth then began to split around the point where the trident was stuck. Chuk- chuuk-! Ian spat out as he watched the scene. ¡®Has the battle between the commander and the Devil princes finally happening?¡¯ Ian felt eager to see it. Right now, he was using more of his mental energy than his physical energy. ¡®I did everything that I can. Rather than the first, the Army of God has many troops that were alive, and the troops of the Devil are a bit less.¡¯ But even with those thoughts, Ian had no feelings of uneasiness in his heart. Even if they lost the war now, he didn¡¯t have anything to regret. While Ian was thinking about these things, Baek Whe-su and the Devil King Harseins spoke to each other. Baek Whe-su opened his mouth. ¡°Why is it that you people of the Devildom, always invade the other dimensions without taking a break?¡± Harsein laughed and replied. ¡°Destruction and conquest. It is the nature of the Asmodians. It is the same as eating and sleeping for us, and if you ask such a thing¡­ I don¡¯t know how to put it.¡± The commander, Baek Whe-su frowned. ¡°That¡¯s you rationalizing yourselves. A creature created with such a nature¡­ shouldn¡¯t exist in the world!¡± Harsein spoke with an uncomfortable expression, which even Baek Whe-su had. ¡°Whatever the reason, does it really matter? We have already met as enemies, and we need to conclude it here?¡± Harsein lifted his right hand, and it lit on fire. Intense magic started to spew around his hand. The sharp eyes of Harsein touched Baek Whe-su. ¡°If you are the leader of the Army of God¡­ then I think I have the power to take you on.¡± Harsein continued to speak. ¡°It could¡¯ve been different if you were an Asmodian, but you¡¯re a human.¡± At those words, Baek Whe-su laughed and said. ¡°If this was the celestial dimension, I would¡¯ve swept all of you, every one of you would¡¯ve been gone.¡± Harsein replied. ¡°Huhu¡­ yeah, you could have.¡± Baek Whe-su pulled out the trident that was stuck in the ground and pointed it towards Harsein. ¡°If you know that you can¡¯t beat me, it would be nice that you retreat right now, Devil King.¡± Harsein laughed and collected mana into his left hand. ¡°That was supposed to be my words, Commander of God¡¯s Army.¡± The other Devil Princes who was behind Harsein stood strong, and Baek Whe-su¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°No matter how strong you are, you won¡¯t have the strength to deal with all of us.¡± Hwark- The mana in Harsein¡¯s hand spread all over his body until Harsein¡¯s body was filled with red mana. ¡°How about I send you back to the place that you came from, heaven was it?¡± ¡°Keu¡­!¡± ¡°I think it is about time that you humans call ¡®Power¡¯, I can give you any position that you want.¡± The tension was flowing between both sides. But Baek Whe-su, bend his head and slowly walked. ¡°I can¡¯t do that, Devil King.¡± ¡°Why not? Aren¡¯t the humans just trivial beings for you too.¡± Baek Whe-su continued walking towards Harsein. ¡°If I withdraw from this war, I will be bringing down the reputation of our King.¡± The distance between them was shortened. ¡°In the end, you¡¯d rather take a bullet.¡± Now Harsein too moved towards Baek Whe-su, and as the distance narrowed, they began to rush towards the other. ¡°May the blessings of the Heaven reside with me!¡± And with that, a fierce battle began. Kwang- Kwakwang-! The mana from the Devil Princes and Harsein¡¯s spell all reached their opponent which caused a roar. Ian and the other human users started their own battle with opponents, but their battle wasn¡¯t like the one the Devil King was doing. Grrrung-!! Was there someone like a Great Commander (earth-shattering)? The roar of heavens thundered all over, and it made it harder for the users to move freely. Ian thought differently. ¡®Will there be a day when monsters such as those will hunt us?¡¯ Users all had to stop the battle and watch the battle between the Devil Harsein and the commander. But the battle didn¡¯t take long like many had anticipated. ¡°Kuee¡­!¡± Was it around 20 minutes or so? After a fierce battle which made the whole land echo, six Devil Princes eventually succeeded in knocking down the Army of God and even suppress Baek Whe-su. Thda-! One of the Devil princes cut off Baek Whe-su¡¯s breastplate. Shak- Baek Whe-su who didn¡¯t seem like he could fall, fell down to the cold earth. ¡°Haa¡­¡± And the users who watched this, all sighed. ¡®Is this the end¡­?¡¯ Ian¡¯s mouth displayed a bitter laugh. Ian¡¯s gaze moved to the top of the field. The time remaining for the end of the Dimensional war was over an hour. Now there was no one left in the human camp who can stop the six princes. But the bitter smile on Ian¡¯s mouth turned into a heartfelt smile. ¡®It¡¯s still alright. It was fun, right?¡¯ Now after this phase, new content would be waiting for them. Before he went out. Baek Whe-su turned his eyes towards Ian. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, hero. I couldn¡¯t reward your valor¡­¡± Ian was flustered and replied. The army all collapsed, including Baek Whe-su who gradually faded, leaving back the human users in front of the Devil King¡¯s army. ¡°Huh.¡± Someone sighed again, and this expressed everyone¡¯s feelings. And right when they all gave up. Wheeing- Out of nowhere, a refreshing breeze began to blow over the canyon. CH 308 A blue wind stalked down the canyon and settled down in the center of the battlefield. The blue wind sat between the confrontation that was happening between the Asmodians and the humans. And in that place, the wind started to circle, slowly forming something. ¡°What is that¡­?¡± In the stillness, the mumble of someone could be heard, and it was the curiosity that represented everyone. Everyone was in the middle of the battle, but the users have all forgotten the situation and the blue wind gathered their undivided attention. And then. In the ears of everyone, a mysterious voice which they didn¡¯t recognize could be heard. [The owner of Cintamani, Your valor is that of a tiger, like hundreds of tigers] And the voice continued, the eyes of Ian, which wasn¡¯t similar to that of the other users started to go wide. ¡®What¡¯s this¡­? I feel like I have heard this somewhere¡­¡¯ Ian began to recall his memory. The voice that was heard now, was a voice that had a strong impression in Ian¡¯s mind. The moment he had heard the word ¡®Cintamani¡¯ it felt like his whole body was being drained. And without much difficulty, Ian was able to come up with the name of the owner for the voice. ¡®This voice is, the Dragon God¡­ Seikaito¡­?¡¯ Actually, if it would have just been a voice to recollect, Ian wouldn¡¯t have been able to recollect Seikaito so quickly. However, as he had heard the word ¡®Cintamani¡¯ together with the intense voice, he was able to come up with the name. Ian¡¯s eyes went wide out of anticipation. And his gaze was fixed on the blue vortex. And the voice continued. [The skeleton¡¯s are like a mountain of preys, but it means one should stand upright.] Wheeing-! The wind blew a little, and the blue energy slowly moved in the direction of Ian and went in front of him. Gulp- Ian swallowed his spit. ¡®It¡¯s done¡­! It¡¯s all done!¡¯ Ian¡¯s face swell. It was because he was convinced that the Dragon God had recognized his ability. The Cintamani¡¯s seal was unleashed. It means the birth of the Abyss Dragon and the transformation to the Abyss Dragon. ¡®It is the end of the Dimensional war and the triumph of the humans.¡¯ For some reason, even Ian wasn¡¯t able to understand the exact details. It was only a conclusion that he drew it, considering the current situation. But it was a problem to think over for the later time. And now, the appearance of the Dragon God was the same as light descending in the darkness. Grr- The blue vortex of energy which had stopped in front of Ian slowly began to lose its momentum. And in front of Ian, a familiar silver-haired boy appeared. ¡®Seikaito¡­!¡¯ Ian wanted to speak, but his voice didn¡¯t come out. The moment Dragon God Seikaito appeared, once again the AI dominated the character. And Ian began to observe the progress of the quest with a pounding heart. [Ian, with all honesty, you¡¯re abilities didn¡¯t meet my expectations.] Ian nodded and spoke to the Dragon God in a calm tone. ¡°I know, Seikaito. My lacking feats aren¡¯t worthy to be seen by someone so supreme¡­¡± And Seikaito began to speak again. [But what is necessary for the owner of the Cintamani isn¡¯t the power, but the firm heart and righteousness.] Sekaito looked into Ian¡¯s eyes and then looked above. [You have endless courage and strength that is unbelievable to exist in a human.] Ian bowed his head. ¡°Thank you, Dragon God¡­¡± Seikaito stretched out his right hand towards Ian. [And so, I Seikaito¡­ am willing to lend you my strength.] And at the moment Ian was about to respond, the Devil King Harsein shouted out of confusion. [Dragon God, you¡¯re the father of the greatest clan and the responsible guardian for one entire dimensional world. If you involve in this situation, then you will be breaking the basic law!] At the cry from Harsein, Seikaito looked at him. And spoke. [Don¡¯t fret. The Seikaito has no intention of breaking the Clause of Cause. I have come here to return something that belongs to the human.] And then the troubled look of Harsein relaxed. Harsein misunderstood that the Dragon God would directly fight for the human worlds. And that wasn¡¯t all he thought that Ian would be given power from the Dragon God, and if such a thing happened, then the Devil King thought that they wouldn¡¯t make it out alive. But Harsein could move from his place. The Dragon God declared that he wouldn¡¯t engage in any direct involvement, and it was a wise decision to not be a victim. And Seikaito who cleared out the misunderstanding of Harsein reached out to Ian once again. The blue stalks around him gathered making a small sphere, which went towards Ian¡¯s palm. And system messages appeared in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Tring- [The Dragon Seikaito has accepted you.] [The seal that was placed on the item ¡®Cintamani¡¯ will be released.] [Sealed ability has been removed, charm and leadership increase by 15%.] [Sealed ability has been canceled, and all magic damage will be invalidated by 17%.] Ian¡¯s AI looked at Seikaito with emotional expression. ¡°The ability that you have given me. I will use it wisely so that I won¡¯t damage the name of Seikaito, nor will I go against your righteousness.¡± A smile spread over the face of Seikaito. [Yeah, I will look forward to it.] Seikaito who was done speaking now began to fade away. And the moment he completely disappeared, Harsein moved towards Ian with a smirk on his face. [Are you done goofing around, human?] At those words, Ian tried to speak. But Ian was still under the AI, and to be precise the AI put up a smile on Ian¡¯s face and responded to Harsein¡¯s words. ¡°Haha, Goofing huh¡­ won¡¯t it be a sad thing if I annihilate you afterwards with the so-called ¡®goofing¡¯ that I just did.¡± [What did you just say¡­?!] And the moment Harsein was about o react. Ian brought out the Cintamani into his hands. And the Cintamani in his hands began to glow with intense and radiant light. And Ian¡¯s words continued. ¡°Now all the terms of the agreement are done.¡± And Ian¡¯s gaze turned towards Bbookbbook. ¡°The power of Abyss¡­ wake up¡­!¡± An intense cry was heard in the entire canyon. An unbelievable and soulful voice rang from the body of a small human, and the whole body of the human began to shine with the Cintamani. This was yet another scene like the last time when Ian and not the AI handed the Cintamani over to Bbookbbook. And Harsein along with his comrades who watched this were turning pale. [No, this¡­ how can¡­ this¡­?] [No way! The abyss hasn¡¯t been sealed for even for 100 years now!] [This is something that shouldn¡¯t happen!] The Devils were shocked. Regardless of their reactions, the body of Bbookbbook began to shine with a brilliant glow and was growing rapidly. Thuk- Thuk-! All the joints and bones of the whole body were getting bigger at the same time. Ian checked the status window with a hopeful heart. [EVOLUTION] Ian¡¯s heart started to beat faster as soon as he had checked the single word. The small wings that were on the back of Bbookbbook now grew to a size that was casting a huge shadow; the short neck and round face began to change into a sleek and brave dragon. And the users who were around were all looking at the scenario with a blank expression. They didn¡¯t say anything, they weren¡¯t in a position to speak. That day, in a half-day they experienced way too much. There was nothing that could surprise them anymore. [Ahh¡­ is the power of the Abyss really awake¡­?] [I¡¯ve been waiting for 3000 years for this day¡­] Ian¡¯s ears heard the remarks from the Devil princes. It was a small voice that couldn¡¯t be heard in his original condition, but now Ian was listening to it from the third space. And so, Ian was able to hear the murmurings without much difficulty. ¡®Huhu, can it be any more dramatic? There couldn¡¯t be another perfect timing. I love you Dragon God.¡¯ The wings of Bbookbbook began to move as it was evolving. Flap- flap-! A whole new type of body emerged in the air, and at the same time, scales of a dragon with a magical blue light began to grow on its whole body. The Bbookbbook of the final form was now ten times larger than its original form. The only unusual thing was that there were spikes and scales on the sides of its face. ¡®So cool¡­!¡¯ Ian just stared at him with astonishment, and after a while, the evolution ended with a roar. ¡°Kyaahh!¡± Then, in front of Ian¡¯s eyes, system message that he had long awaited for came. Tring-! [The familiar Bbookbbook (Abyss Turtle Dragon) has successfully evolved into ¡®Abyss Dragon¡¯.] [From the first class of ¡®Legendary¡¯ the familiar has now turned to a ¡®Myth¡¯ class.] [You have earned the title of ¡®Legendary Tamer¡¯.] [You have earned 50,000 fame points.] Bbookbbook who just evolved, sat down on the ground with its wings spread out widely. Kung-! And the mouth of Bbookbbook opened. [I guess you have forgotten what had happened 3,000 years back, Devil King? You once again have set foot between the humans¡­ you really are a fool¡­!] The voice of the Abyss Dragon was filled with anger. Harsein who had met his eyes with Bbookbbook replied with a nervous voice. [War and conquest are the basic instincts of us Asmodians. We have been waiting for this day.] And the Abyss Dragon spoke once again, [But now the power of Abyss has awakened once again, and like what happened 3,000 years back, you will despair.] Harsein laughed and began to move forward. And as his feet moved forward, the other monsters to took a step forward. [Well. No matter how powerful your strength is, you are just a mediator in this dimension. This war will end with victory on our side, and we will destroy your soul before you even get power from the gods.] [Of course. Without the moderator, God cannot manifest power in the dimension.] [You know your subjects very well.] The Abyss Dragon. Bbookbbook with a sly expression spoke to the Devil Princes. [But, what if that was possible?] CH 309 The Devil princes looked like they were bound with a promise, and ran towards it immediately. The devil army which didn¡¯t have a chance against ¡®Baek Whe-su¡¯, now ran towards the newborn giant dragon. [Destroy¡­!!] Harsein broke loose and launched an enormous amount of magic, and the other devils did their things. But Ian still didn¡¯t have any involvement in the situation. The restriction was due to AI. ¡®Is this also a part of the quest progress?¡¯ Six Devil Princes with outstanding strength. Ian was frustrated that he couldn¡¯t help with anything. Ironically, on the other hand, he didn¡¯t feel even a little ounce of discomfort. This was because the AI controls everything, so the burden disappeared. ¡®Okay, let¡¯s just see on how this goes.¡¯ Ian started to observe the battle, but with the mind of a spectator, and looked at the bloody fight of the Devil¡¯s and the Abyss Dragon Bbookbbook. * * * ¡°The power of Abyss¡­ is it really awake¡­?¡± A man with a long hair till the waist exclaimed. He was carrying a giant sword, the one which was hard to cling on, with two blades that were on his back and a moonlight armor wrapped around him finished with a gilt. There was a long scar beneath the left eye of the man, and he had the appearance that said ¡®goodbye¡¯ the moment one would meet him. ¡°Huhu¡­¡± The man slowly rose from his seat. Then, with both his hands he pulled out two large swords that were crossed on his back. Shrr-! A sharp sound in the darkness. The man¡¯s swords were the first ones to touch the floor, and he began to move forward. Chuk- Chuk- He spoke with a low voice. ¡°I get to meet my kids after a long time.¡± A smile found it¡¯s way onto the mouth of the man. And later. Srrk- With a loud sound along with the movement of his thin cape, he vanished into the air with his new form. The man¡¯s name was, ¡®Mares¡¯. * * * With a comfortable heart, Remir watched the battle between the Abyss Dragon and the Devil Princes. As the AI had taken over the whole body, there wasn¡¯t much that she could do. It wasn¡¯t just Ian who was out of his control because of the storyline. Everyone on the battlefield without any exception was under the influence of the AI. ¡®He really was doing a quest to end the war¡­ well, it surely wasn¡¯t a lie.¡¯ Remir looked at Ian who standing at the forefront of the human army. ¡®If you look at it, Ian did carry the burden of the Dimension war all by himself.¡¯ It was because Remir too took an important quest for this big story, so she understood Ian¡¯s greatness more than anyone. ¡®If I could complete the quest of the Power of the Sun God first, would I have been the hero for the day?¡¯ Said to herself by the delusive Remir. And at that time, system messages suddenly appeared. Tring-! [Due to the activation of certain events, the Power of the Sun God (II) quest has been destroyed.] [Failed to do the quest Power of the Sun God (II).] [The fame reduced by 100,000.] [Affinity with ¡®Lanohel¡¯ dropped by one point.] Remir laughed as she saw it. ¡®Huh, it was a quest that won¡¯t be going into the story anymore. This makes me a little upset but¡­¡¯ But seeing Ian, Remir¡¯s mouth went up. ¡®But if we get to win the war, then it isn¡¯t much of a loss.¡¯ But the very next moment, the system messages began to emerge once again. Tring-! [Conditions have been met, a new quest has been activated.] [The quest of ¡®The Incarnation of Sun God¡¯ has been activated.] [This quest cannot be rejected.] ¡®uh, ohh¡­?¡¯ Remir was surprised. But apart from her surprise, a new quest window emerged in front of her. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C The Incarnation of the Sun God I (Hidden) (Connected) ¨C Sun God Helena. In order for the power to be embodied, she needs a few items including the jewel of the Sun. However, only if one condition is met, all of the procedure can be omitted. It is the awakening of the mediator, Abyss Dragon. And since the Abyss Dragon had awakened, the conditions have been met. Helena, the God of Sun, wants to drive away from the horsemen in front of you. Let¡¯s kill off the army of the Devils with her help! Quest Difficulty: None. Quest Condition: ¡®Abyss Dragon¡¯ awakening. The user with the highest rate of quests related to the ¡®Helena the Sun God.¡¯ Time remaining: Unknown Reward: a random legendary skill book x2 Eclipse of the Sun God. A quest that cannot be refused. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¡®What the hell is this¡­? What does no difficulty mean?¡¯ Remir was flustered. This was an unexpected development. And before she gets a hold of herself, a familiar voice began to ring in her ear. It was a voice that no one could hear apart from her. [My lion, my messenger. Help me drive out these invaders of destruction from my land¡­!] And then a red flame started to swirl around the head of Remir, and it soon was swallowed by her. Hwarlk-! And the control of the AI was lost and she could move her body on her own will. * * * Woong-! The Abyss Dragon and the Devil Princes. And in front with a huge sound and resonance, five shadows began to appear one after the other. Woong- Woong- Woong-! With the whirlpool of mana in different colors, it reveals that the great gods had shown themselves. Each of them was emanating a colossal presence, what was unusual was that they were translucent. The moment they made their appearance, the fierce fight stopped halfway. [In the end¡­ It has come to this.] The Devil King Harsein laughed grimly and spoke out. And between them was a man with black hair, the god of war Mares, who laughed and opened his mouth. [The moment when the mediator of the Dimension made its appearance, you should have went back to the palace without a second thought.] Harsein nodded at it and replied. [The moment the moderator of the Dimension had appeared, the result was still the same.] Mares laughed at it. [Yes, the Asmodians aren¡¯t stupid.] [Can¡¯t help it. It is our greatest honor to stay on the battlefield, even if it means disappearing.] [I guess your spirits are still high.] When Mares was done speaking, the other gods opened their mouths one after the other. And when the brief conversation was over, the Wind God ¡®Miro¡¯ brought up the horn that was in his hand. Puaahh-! The sound of the horn was strange, and it resonated throughout the canyon. And with that sound, a huge shadow started to cover the sky of the canyon. Flap- flap- With a gigantic winging sound that could be heard till the ground, four dragons of overpowering size flew towards the canyon near the Gods. Kun- Kung-! The four dragons of the four Gods moved around the Abyss Dragon, and it was a picturesque sight. Ian looked at this and mumbled under his breath. ¡®Five gods and four dragons¡­ then what about the left out one¡­?¡¯ And at that moment, Karceus who was in the humanoid form right behind Ian began to glow with pure white light. Ian was now out of the AI control, looked over at Karceus. ¡®Yes, Karceus was the great Dragon of the War.¡¯ Thud-! Along with the heavy sound, Karceus whose body had just transformed to its original form fled to the vacant spot and sat down. Mares, the God of war looked at Karceus and said. [Karceus, You haven¡¯t regained all of your memories yet.] Karceus responded while glancing at him. [Yes, my God.] Mares smiled and spoke again. [You still don¡¯t remember?] [No Lord Mares. I guess I will know.] [If so then spread out your wings widely Karceus, cause this isn¡¯t the form of mine.] Grrr-! It sounded like a lightning strike, which reminded everyone of a thunder. And the big body of Karceus began to shine again with pure white light. And his body began to grow larger and larger. The body of Karceus which was smaller than the other dragons of the Gods was now in an even size with them. Ian who was looking at this with no emotion, saw a new system message come up. [All the evolving condition for the familiar ¡®Karceus¡¯ has been met.] ¡®¡­!!¡¯ Ian was astounded, and Karceus body was constantly changing. Dhuk- dhuk- The greyish white spines on the back of it started to grow longer, and the silver horns on the back of its head grew even larger. The biggest change, above all, was the body of it was covered in silver light. [The familiar ¡®Karceus¡¯ succeeded in evolving into ¡®myth¡¯ class.] Ian was amazed, he was utterly stunned. ¡®What¡¯s this now? Is it the reward for the hardships I went through? Even if it is, so¡­ evolving Karceus into a myth¡­!¡¯ Ian didn¡¯t know the reason, but Karceus evolved. As Ian was found worthy by the Dragon God, one condition was met, followed by the God of War, Mares, the final condition was met. Ian¡¯s eyes were turning watery because of the rush of emotion. ¡®Keu, now is the time to get rid of the demons and this war for once. I¡¯m not going to get surprised at anything more.¡¯ But that wasn¡¯t the end. Buak- Buak-! Heavy footsteps were heard, a man walked past Ian. And Ian, who thought wouldn¡¯t get surprised anymore was shocked. CH 310 A big and bloody sword that was touching the floor even when put diagonally. ¡®Kaizer¡­!¡¯ Ian couldn¡¯t take his eyes of Kaizer who kept on moving. It was because there were storms of magic around Kaizer. Kaizer approached Mares. Chuk- He opened his mouth, with a heavy voice. ¡°It has been a long time Lord Mares.¡± Mares chuckled. [It has been a while, Kaizer.] Shrr- chuk-! Kaizer pulled out the big sword that was on his back, put it down on the floor and bend one of his knee to the ground. And now the words from Kaizer could be heard by all, he was complaining to Mares. [I am here to fulfill my last mission, that was why I had come here.] Mares mouth went up. [Yeah, if you can complete the mission that you couldn¡¯t do 3,000 years ago, I will myself take away your shackles.] [Thank you.] [You seem to have met a good master.] [I found the last piece of my soul, Lord Mares. Now I¡¯m sure about the path that I would take.] [Yes. As a messenger of God, enjoying a human life after completing all the missions isn¡¯t such a bad thing.] The conversation between Kaizer and Mares wasn¡¯t long, but the content it held was amazing. ¡®Kaizer is God¡¯s Lion¡­?¡¯ System messages began to emerge again after a moment. Tring-! [You have met all the conditions for awakening the trial ¡®Kaizer¡¯.] Ian¡¯s eyes grew bigger. ¡®This¡­ what¡­?¡¯ [The trail ¡®Kaizer¡¯ awakens from ¡®legendary¡¯ to ¡®Myth¡¯ rank.] Pwa-! A storm of winds surrounded Kaizer and got sucked into his body. Ian wasn¡¯t emotionally stable now, he was literary out of his mind. ¡®Bbookbbook, Karceus, and now Kaizer have awakened too?¡¯ Ian¡¯s power had gone up to around 1.5 to 2 times in a blink of an eye. The fact that one trail and two familiars evolved had something to do with it. But this wasn¡¯t just exaggeration. The myth class¡ªwhen compared to other tiers¡ªwas on a completely different level. But. Several users and NPC¡¯s have been in front of different gods. And with no one in the battle, the Gods summoned a few new players. Some of them included Remir, Levya and some unknown users and special NPC¡¯s who weren¡¯t seen before. They were all users who had been associated with the quests that allow them to harness the power of God. Ian mumbled to himself in response to what he was seeing in front of him. ¡®I wasn¡¯t the only one doing the quest related to the Dimensional war. Other users have been given quests from the other Gods.¡¯ But it was clear that Ian was the fastest and the most successful of all. Ian looked over at the six Devil Princes who stood silently to the other side. ¡®It is the end, right?¡¯ Anyone could see the overwhelming difference in power. But then Helena the Sun God slowly opened her mouth. [Kay then, now is the time to send these monsters to where they belong.] Harsein heard and responded to what Helena had just said. [Then let¡¯s get this over with quickly. What are you so scared of, that you are waiting?] Helena didn¡¯t respond to Harsein¡¯s harsh words. She then spoke again. [Devil Prince, do you think that I don¡¯t know the source of this enormous evil that you show? Behind those walls of your dimension?] Boom-! Giant flames burst out of her hand which went past Harsein and hit the space behind him. Bhoom-! And Ian who witnessed that had his eyes went wide. ¡®What? It sure looked like there was nothing, but why does it sound like something is there?¡¯ However, Ian knew the reason why after he heard what Harsein said. [Huhu¡­ well, I guess I can¡¯t hide anything from you. Should I release the dragon which even I find hard to control?] Having finished speaking, Harsein lifted his right hand. And as the lull space behind them began to change. ¡®What is that¡­?¡¯ To be precise, it wasn¡¯t the landscape that changed. There was something huge emerging behind Harsein. Right behind Harsein, there was something that was hidden in an illusion. And Ian was able to guess what it was without much difficulty after only seeing its size. ¡®The Marion Kalifa. That must be the crazy dragon that he heard about in the Oakley long ago.¡¯ The dragon got on its two feet. Kung- Kung-! It was overwhelmingly big even when compared to the five dragons on the side of the Gods and the Abyss Dragon. The Dimensional War¡¯s beginning started with the words ¡®Kalifa¡¯, and now it was revealed. Harsein laughed to himself and spoke. [It has happened, you have to be prepared. Khalifa is a monster that even we Devils find hard to handle.] Mares answered briefly in response to what Harsein said. [Do you really think that such a hybrid Dragon could actually face the power of a God?] And with that, both side began to take their position for the final battle. Chik- Chuk-! The five gods used their power and gave their powers to their messengers by calling them. [I, in the name of Mares, the God of War¡­] [I, in the name of Sandy, the God of Earth¡­] [I, in the name of Helena, the God of Sun command you¡­] Users who were given the power of the Gods gained huge battle buffs, and the NPC¡¯s have become more powerful. When all these ceremonies were done, the five gods went into the air, with that their appearance faded gradually. Ian who saw this was puzzled. ¡®What, you¡¯re leaving? Since you have come, you should fight. Why come in the end, give out buffs and then vanish?¡¯ Ian didn¡¯t understand. Even with an Abyss Dragon and a moderator, it was still impossible for the Gods to exercise their own power in the world. Indeed, the manifestation of their powers through their messengers was already an unreasonable involvement and breaking of the Clause. Before the Gods entirely disappeared. The God of the Wind, Miro, spoke with a loud voice, using the horn he was carrying. [If you can destroy that dragon today, you won¡¯t have to worry about any other invasions in the future. Heroes! Defeat them with all your strength!!] Puaahh-!! The horn began to ring in the battlefield, and at that moment the canyon was filled with shouts. ¡°Woahh¡­!!¡± ¡°Let¡¯s end this war!!¡± The fully awaken Dragon Khalifa roared. [Kyaah! I will destroy everyone who gets in my way.] Kwang- Kwng-! The wizards and archers were the first ones to start bombarding Dragon Khalifa, and Ian waved his spear and jumped towards the front to guide everyone towards the Asmodians. The Dragon Khalifa and the six Devil Princes began to go wild, but the five dragons of God and the Abyss dragon stood in front of them. [I¡¯ll pay you back for what happened 3,000 years ago, Khalifa.] Khalifa responded with a sneer at Karceus¡¯ words. [Funny joke. I will annihilate your soul today, Karceus.] Khalifa swung his giant tail and attacked Karceus. But then, a tide of water blocked him. Bang-! That was the unique ability of Bbookbbook, the Curtain of Water! Bbookbbook spoke to Khalifa. [3,000 years ago. If Karceus would have been in my position, it would have been you Khalifa who would¡¯ve lost the soul.] [Huhu¡­] In the past Karceus was killed by Khalifa on the Northern Continent before the Dimensional war. There were only four dragons and an Abyss Dragon that went against Khalifa and the devils 3,000 years ago. This was what Khalifa and Bbookbbook were talking about. A magnificent battle that fit the end of the Dimensional war. The powerful users who had received the favor of the Gods couldn¡¯t even be touched by the magical beasts or the Balrog. The five Dragon and the Abyss Dragon were having a hard time fighting Khalifa and the Devil Princes on the other side. And the ones who broke the balance of power were Ian and Kaizer. Kaizer was now an awakened mythical being, it had tremendous combat power that was unmatched by any of the God¡¯s Dragon. Ian¡ªwho was under the hands of the God of War Mares¡ªjust massacred the Balrogs. The Gods¡¯ power was a tremendous buff that made his original combat power twice stronger. ¡®Does an athlete feel like this after doping?¡¯ Ian was thinking about going around the battlefield. After the balance of power collapsed for a bit, the camp of the Asmodians was destroyed soon after. As the damage began to accumulate, the camps collapsed as if the heat started to rise in the winter. Eventually, the Asmodian camps were in a point where their powers were destroyed. There were only 20 minutes left remaining before the battle was over. There were two Devil princes, the Khalifa, and 10 Balrogs. Asmodian users were all long dead. The time left for the end of the dimensional war was only 1 minute and 30 seconds. The moment Ian checked the time, his mind was flooded with thoughts. ¡®Wait, the end of the dimensional war? Won¡¯t the entire troop be recalled?¡¯ This wasn¡¯t a thing as it was the last day of the war. At the end of each day of the Dimensional war, the Asmodians would all be summoned back to the Devildom. And that would apply for the current day too. Ian suddenly rushed towards Khalifa who was battling with God¡¯s dragons. ¡®That can¡¯t happen. You wish to keep sending a myth boss monster again and again? How many experience points will I get?¡¯ Ian fired at the Khalifa with all his might. Khalifa¡¯s vitality was almost depleted, and if the planet destroying spear was used in the right manner, then it seemed possible to take Khalifa down in one strike. ¡®Please, let¡¯s show them what we are made of!¡¯ In fact, even though Ian was given the buff of the Gods, hitting it wasn¡¯t much different from throwing a rock. If he made a single mistake when dealing with Kalifa, It could get very dangerous for Ian. Ian began to concentrate. ¡®But, if I open that rock-like skin of Khalifa¡¯s? then I could strike it better.¡¯ Khalifa was busy blocking the attacks of the prying Dragons. Khalifa became distracted thanks to that, and Ian was able to close in on Khalifa. And at the moment, Ian knew that his reckless attempt had half a chance of succeeding. That-!! Ian without any hesitation jumped over to hound Khalifa. Khalifa then noticed Ian. [Keuahh! What are you, you wormy human!] But then, Ian was already over Khalifa¡¯s head. ¡°Thank you, for giving me experience.¡± Ian jumped high and rushed to the top of Khalifa while holding the Judgment of Spirit King. Puahk-! The sound was so clean and the move was tidy! [Tremendous damage is done to the Marion Dragon ¡®Khalifa¡¯.] [Vitality of Khalifa decreased by 265980.] Another system message which Ian was waiting for, came up. [You have successfully defeated the Marion Dragon ¡®Khalifa¡¯!] CH 311 The last battle of the Dimensional war that was unprecedented was once again reversed. It was such a dramatic turn of events that the users who had been watching the broadcast through the TV, as well as the users who were participating in the war, all felt their heart pound. The users who were in the dimensional war were much concerned as the in-game rewards changed depending upon the victory of the camp, and it was such a battle that anyone would be dismayed after going through hell. And the user who had the most attention now was Ian. He was in the center of all the battles and had been the catalyst for all the changes since the very beginning. Moreover, the control he had was of splendid glamour, so it was natural that everyone was amazed by him. In particular, the scenes where the life of Khalifa was ended with the remaining time of less than a minute was considered the highlight and was being shared widely. And Ian¡¯s haters screamed that they could catch that too, but their comments were almost invisible when compared to his supporters. * Wow, Ian you mother-f*cker, that was all just a show. * What?? What¡¯s with you? Are you in the right state of mind? * Just avoid those kinds of things. * If you would have been in the same condition with those specs, instead of stopping the Khalifa you would¡¯ve gone towards a Balrog¡­ Hehe. * Hehe yeah. From what side does he look like that. That is all control ability. * If not for Ian, we wouldn¡¯t have seen Khalifa¡¯s lifeless body at the end of the war. So what kind of nonsense are you spewing? Of course, it was natural for Ian to be talked about. Representatives such as Shakran, Remir and Levya¡¯s fight videos were also being shared around, and the highest view was the fight between Remir and Shakran. Remir¡¯s magic which she got due to the buff from the Gods, was used properly and the vitality of the beasts and the Asmodians around her all went down to less than half, the same could be said for the Shadow that Shakran had cast! And there was a specific video, which showed Shakran¡¯s ability to control himself and activate skills at the same time. At any rate, the Dimensional war had come to an end with the human side¡¯s victory. The Asmodians were all summoned back to the Devildom, and the link between the Asmodians and the humans has severed once again. As a result, the complaints of the Asmodian users started to come out. It was because there weren¡¯t much hunting spots for users below level 100. The developers opened the field from 120 to 200 division, but that space wasn¡¯t enough to accommodate all the Asmodians. On the other hand, the human users who maintained their human race enjoyed the benefits of the victory. First, the rewards that were gained during the Dimensional War were now twice, and the acquired public value could be exchanged for skill or advanced items in the Empire. And of course, Ian was the 1st ranker that received an overwhelming amount of public value. * * * ¡°Wah, organizing these things requires a lot of work. ¡± In the office of the Lotus Manor. Ian who went into his room after a long time hadn¡¯t put his foot into the room. The reason for doing this now was, of course, to identify and arrange the rewards obtained from the Dimensional war. Ian hadn¡¯t looked at the stones and items that were dropped by the magical beasts and the Asmodians. He didn¡¯t check and just picked them up. Ian¡¯s inventory was now overflowing with hundreds of items. Looking at his inventory that was shining in gold and purple, Ian laughed to himself. ¡®Keu, the Khalifa drops would be really huge.¡¯ The compensation that Ian got for taking down Khalifa was huge. Once the equipment items were seen, great words of a hero rank, a legendary armor, and jewels. In addition, one myth ranked item was also dropped. There was also a rare class item that could be changed to hidden class, a Roland¡¯s Dagger. Actually, Roland¡¯s dagger was an item that Ian didn¡¯t need. But Roland¡¯s dagger was an item that could be changed into the hidden class, so it seemed like a worthy class. And finally, there was an item that couldn¡¯t be valued for its worth. Ian carefully pulled out the transparent red crystal that was the size of his hand. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Determination of Marion Khalifa¡¯s Soul ¨C Classification ¨C Miscellaneous Rank ¨C Myth It is the crystal of Marion Khalifa¡¯s soul before his death. It is the most wanted item of the wizards who have the dream to master it. If you are a wise enough man, you can revive the Khalifa through this Soul Determination, or you could choose to create an entirely different dragon. If you succeed in using your skills to use this crystal, you will be able to hold the upper hand of battle. * This is an item that can be used only when the Devil Energy Durability is of level 10. * If it is given as a sacrifice in the Altar, you can get this exchanged for a boxy of myth grade equipment. * The item belongs to the user ¡®Ian¡¯. * This item can¡¯t be sold or transferred to other users, and won¡¯t drop even if the character dies. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¡®Huhu¡­! This item reminds me of something that I¡¯ve been working on for a while now.¡¯ At present, Ian¡¯s mana ductility skill was at the 6th level. In the meantime, he had raised his proficiency level, but he was busy with the battle and the quest, so he couldn¡¯t raise much. Well, the 6th level wasn¡¯t a low figure, but Ian still needed to increase its level. ¡®Offered at the Altar? Doesn¡¯t sound so great. Making a dragon with this is worth more than a ten myth class equipment.¡¯ Ian smiled and put the Soul Determination back into his inventory. ¡°Ha, is the arrangement finished now?¡± At last, Ian arranged dozens of legendary equipment that he had yet to evaluate, along with the myth ranked item dropped by Khalifa onto the table. ¡®Not sure, but should I see them all?¡¯ Ian, who had been thinking to himself, began to evaluate the legendary items one after the other. A short sigh would come out every time he looked into a piece of equipment. ¡®Hmm, not bad, but it¡¯s 2% short.¡¯ In fact, the legendary equipment Ian had acquired were mostly excellent items. But they weren¡¯t good enough for Ian to replace the equipments that he was currently wearing now. In addition, since the items were all account-binded equipments, it was something that couldn¡¯t be sold. ¡®Keu¡­ somehow the trails all seem to be doing fine¡­¡¯ Most of the legendary equipment that Ian saw belonged to the trails. Specially Kaizer, who was like a hyena when searching the items that Ian had. ¡®Okay then, Kaizer¡¯s loyalty will get more.¡¯ Ian thought that he should give the last mythical item that he picked up to Kaizer. ¡°Hmm, only if you had an option, the other would be totally meaningless.¡± It was a mythical rank weapon that was similar to what Ian was using. If only the ¡®feeling¡¯ seemed okay, then he could use it alternatively for the Judgment of the Spirit King. Ian just checked the feel with a pounding heart. ¡°Feel!¡± Tring- [You have successfully ¡®felt¡¯ the item.] [You have acquired the item of myth class ¡®God¡¯s Rage¡¯] Along with the short notification message, the item¡¯s information window came up before his eyes. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Classification ¨C Rank ¨C Myth Restricted wear ¨C Fame of 15,000,000 / an Asmodian of the Noblesse (Can be worn by a Noblesse or higher.) ATK ¨C 3124 ¨C 3544 Durability ¨C 1525/ 1525 Option ¨C All combat skills + 8% Anti-magic penetration + 4.3% Mana hit rate + 5.5% Mana +30% Magic Resistance +3.7% * Shadow-less Soul It is the ability to create arrows instead of using arrows. The users who use God¡¯s Rage will be able to attack with a bow even in the absence of arrows, and the more mana it holds the more powerful the attack gets. (50 mana, fixed damage increased by 1.) * Soul Absorption It is the ability to fire an enemy three times with just one arrow. When the soul absorption ability is activated, it absorbs 50% of the damage done by the third arrow and increases the user¡¯s damage by 15% for 5 seconds. It also takes away all of the buff effects that the enemy soul has and reduces its defense by 15% for 10 seconds. * Spatial Hit It is the ability to concentrate and exercise the mind to target someone or something specifically. When Spatial Hit is activated, your field view is increased by 500% for 10 seconds, your range increases by 100%, and your damage to others increases by 50%. Also, no matter what the obstacles are present, the position of the object activated by the Spatial Hit¡¯s time can be confirmed, and while the effect of the Spatial Hit is maintained, the mana attack rate is adjusted to 100%. However, during the duration of the Spatial Hit, the user cannot move, and the attack speed is reduced by half. * Exploding Arrow When an arrow hits the target, a 10% chance of ¡®mana explosion¡¯ is triggered. The item belongs to ¡®Ian¡¯. It cannot be transferred or sold to other users. The item won¡¯t drop even if the user who owns it dies. The beginning of the world. It is a mythical masterpiece known to have created the power of mana weapon when the creator had created all the creatures of the dark. Known for launching mana instead of an arrow, this bow was once the most sought after weapon by the Princes. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian who read the item information was amazed. ¡°Wow¡­¡± Ian, who once again read through the unique abilities of the item, began to feel high. ¡®The Shadowless Soul doesn¡¯t seem to be a bad option¡­ isn¡¯t the ability to absorb a soul completely fraudulent?¡¯ The reason why Ian thought this ability was a fraud wasn¡¯t because of the absorption of the soul or the buff effect. It was because the item could take away the buff effect of others. ¡®I know that shields are a kind of buff¡­ with this bow, can those things be taken away?¡¯ Furthermore, it would continue hitting the one getting attacked and not a single buff could be used. And its Spatial ability was also unique and interesting. ¡®I think that this is a unique ability similar to the Archery class¡¯s Sniping skill¡­¡¯ It was an ability that couldn¡¯t be used during combat because of the non-movable buff that lasted for 10 seconds after activation, but it was an ability that could be useful when assassinating the enemy with low vitality and strong attack power. Lastly, the ability of Exploding Arrow, though the kind of damage was a little different, it seemed like a power similar to that of the lightening of the Judgment of the Spirit King. ¡°Nice, Very nice¡­!¡± Ian looked up with a very satisfied face. In fact, when one would look at the stats one by one, the inherent ability wasn¡¯t that better compared to the Judgment of the Spirit King. Despite the inherent ability, the basic options and the weapon¡¯s damage were enormously satisfying, so Ian felt glad. ¡°Let¡¯s see if the weapons avg damage is 3300¡­¡± 3300 was clearly the drop of the 4th transcendental weapon of Ian¡¯s Judgment of Spirit King. However, when compared with the ¡®God¡¯s Rage¡¯ whose stats were still opened¡­ ¡®I think the Judgement of the Spirit King has around 2000 damage¡­ if such a thing is possible for a 4th transcendental weapon, then this is a crazy weapon.¡¯ This weapon couldn¡¯t be worn by Ian because he had not met the conditions of being a Noblesse yet. If it wasn¡¯t Ian and some other user would acquire this item instead, then the user would¡¯ve been frustrated. Because all the way to the mana has been cut, and it was impossible for a human user to achieve the conditions of a different user. But Ian was different. Ian had an artifact called Dimensional Beads. ¡°Haha, all the work is done. The battle is done, why does it feel like I still need to do something?¡± Ian picked up the item and put it back into his inventory while humming a song. He left the room after staying inside of it for a half a day. ¡°Okay, should I start with the Devil Energy Durability.¡± Since the Dimensional war was finished, Kailan had been peaceful for a while. ¡®I don¡¯t have to come to the Kaimon Empire right now. The DarkRuna guild had also moved over to the Devildom dimension.¡¯ Ian thought about it and took out the Dimensional Beads from his inventory. Ian¡¯s destination was the 107th district of Devildom. To find a teacher for the Devil Energy Durability in the Laboratory of Cervian. CH 312 ¡°Yah!! Why are you so late? It has been 15 minutes! Do you see that my legs are trembling after waiting this long for you?¡± At the words from Yoo-hyun, who was feeling nauseated, Jinsung smiled and replied. ¡°It¡¯s funny. You thought that I don¡¯t know that you arrived just now? Trying to sell false news?¡± ¡°Huhu, well. Your eyes are as fast as a ghost.¡± Today was the first Monday in March. Jinsung had come out of his house after a long time, except for the date with Harin. And the reason was¡­ ¡®Aoo..It¡¯s the beginning¡­ of the¡­second year as a student¡­!¡¯ It was because today was the opening day. Jinsung took a sigh of relief and then got onto the bus. If it was normally the regular class, he wouldn¡¯t have had any intention to go, but it was the first week for his course, and this was enough reason for him to move. ¡®Damn, if I knew this, I would have asked Harin to take the course registration¡­¡¯ During the enrollment period, Jinsung wasn¡¯t in good spirits because of the Dimensional war, so even a single of the basic major classes weren¡¯t included in the timetable. ¡°Oh, but no matter what you think, I don¡¯t want to go to school today. Will it be possible to make a doctor¡¯s call to get out?¡± Yoo-hyun smiled and replied, ¡°Unless you want to be treated as a forced absentee, I wouldn¡¯t opt for it.¡± Jinsung touched his chin. ¡°Hmm¡­ a long leave¡­ well, that sounds enticing?¡± ¡°Oho, I shouldn¡¯t have said that¡­¡± The conversation between the two people naturally led to a joke, and then to the Kailan game. ¡°Ya, Junsung-ah. Have you seen the announcement this morning?¡± At the question from Yoo-hyun, Jinsung immediately nodded his head. ¡°Of course. The first thing I do after opening my eyes was to check the official homepage of it.¡± ¡°Surely¡­¡± Yoo-hyun who was nodding his head continued to speak. ¡°A new content will be updated a few months later, what are we to do in the meantime?¡± ¡°What you do, do what you want to do. Do quests, raise skill level, item farming¡­¡± ¡°No, not those. What to do about the guild operation? The thing that you said before the initiation of the dimensional war.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± Jinsung started to search through his memories, and after a while he said. ¡°Ah, to claim the Kingdom?¡± Yoo-hyun nodded his head. ¡°Yeah, that.¡± The last few months. The Lotus Guild has grown really big. Now Jinsung no longer intentionally doing the Guild Tiers to avoid the confusion with the Ranker Guilds. Now, most of the users already knew that the Lotus Guild was in the top 10. Jinsung nodded and spoke, ¡°Certainly now¡¯s not the time¡± The dimensional war ended with the win on the human¡¯s side, but it was with a huge damage on the continents. The ranker and Jinsung in the Center were able to stop it to an extent. But the whole of the land in the Northwest and Northeast had been completely washed down. Especially the Luspel Empire, which was much weaker when compared to the Kaimon Empire, more than half were destroyed by the Asmodians. Therefore, Lotus Manor and Jinsung¡¯s Manor were in the process of recovering. ¡°Will it be okay?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Gobbling the Luspel Empire.¡± At the words from Yoo-hyun, Jinsung immediately shook his head. ¡°No, it¡¯s still tough.¡± ¡°Yeah? This time, the imperial army has also suffered a lot of damage.¡± Jinsung nodded and answered, ¡°Yet, the Empire stays as an Empire. I don¡¯t understand how strong the NPC¡¯s are at all. You may have to close the guild doors after being done¡± ¡°Well, sure¡­¡± In Kailan, it wasn¡¯t just the users, but the NPC¡¯s also grow. Jinsung shook his head and recalled his 200 level, the time when he once used to be in the 100s. ¡®I still have to get a lot stronger. Hellaim has been going ahead with a stronger spirit.¡¯ He didn¡¯t know, but now the Imperial army¡¯s Hellaim was now exceeding the level of 300. In the past, Kaizer was similar to the Hellaim, but now he passed over to 300. ¡®When I have the opportunity to go to the Empire quest, I¡¯ll have to meet the Hellaim.¡¯ When Jinsung was thinking about something like this, Yoo-hyun opened his mouth again. ¡°Then for a while, we have to grow up quietly with your own personal quests? The Guild Tier thing will be continued to be in our status?¡± Jinsung shook his head then answered, ¡°No, that won¡¯t.¡± ¡°Then?¡± ¡°You should take down the Guild that is already in the Luspel Empire, one after the other.¡± ¡°Aha¡­ from where should we start? Splendor? Oaklan?¡± The two of them were the guilds that boasted the greatest fortune to the Luspel in the past, but now, the close users including Martin and Sameul Jin who were the guild masters, were now out of the game due to the Devildom. And the Jinsung was thinking of the same thing as Yoo-hyun. ¡°Right. That side is really exhausted, so it would be really easy to take them in.¡± ¡°Okay, I get it. I¡¯ll talk with Fiolan and then make some plans.¡± Jinsung nodded and answered, ¡°Okay, while you do that, I¡¯ll talk with Roy Chen for time being. I have no intentions to clash with the Valiant Guild. If possible try to propagate the direction of taking them in.¡± The Valiant Guild has been on good terms with the Lotus Guild since the mid-continent war. Yoo-hyun asked, ¡°Then, we will put off claiming the kingdom title¡­ Are you going to leave the kingdom things just as it is?¡± Ian smiled and answered, ¡°Not that. Not that but in a few days we will.¡± * * * Wheeing-! Devildom division 107. A shabby building on the outskirts of the 107th division. There was a small resonating sound in front of Ian, and a red colored gate opened. And at the gate, two people walked out of it. ¡°Wow, this really is the Devildom?¡± ¡°Or, you thought I was lying to you?¡± The two people who just came through the gate were Ian and Harin. ¡®Without much nervousness, I need to work hard and take Harin out for a date. This is killing two birds with one stone!¡¯ To develop much efficient durability, it would be efficient to tackle from the lowest to the highest, rather directly moving to the topmost. Besides, Ian had a low-level of experience with the mana of his level 200, and Harin had an amazing experience with it. Harin was now over the level of 150. And Harin, who was the first to look at the Devildom properly, seemed elated. ¡°Uh, Jinsung-ah, do you see that over there?¡± ¡°Huh, why?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it cuter than what we thought? I thought this place would be awful.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian was at a loss of words. ¡®How does anything over here look cute? It¡¯s all¡­ disgusting¡­¡¯ Ian once again confirmed that Harin¡¯s aesthetical standards were extraordinary. ¡®I knew that since the day I like you, but¡­¡¯ Without any more thoughts, Ian began to summon one or two of his familiars. The trails weren¡¯t brought as they were helping in the restoration work of the Lotus Guild. ¡°Summon!¡± Woong-! Along with his summon, the sound of wings could be heard. Starting from Karceus, Halli, Bbakbbak were summoned one after the other and at last Bbookbbook was. [You have called, Master?] Karceus was now in a polymorphed humanoid form, and he was proud of his body, as it was one hell of a body. Nonetheless, he was smaller than when he was in the dimensional war. Ian spoke to Bbookbbook, ¡°yah, why is it that you seem smaller?¡± [Uhm, this is natural. As I was under the God¡¯s power as a mediator in that dimension. Maybe that was why I had more strength when I was a bit more huge.] ¡°Um¡­ that could be.¡± Ian turned his head. ¡®Well, no matter what, it is a myth class and it was awesome. He alone was strong enough to go against the Devil princes.¡¯ Ian checked the information window of Bbookbbook. Bbookbbook ¨C Level ¨C 212 Classification ¨C Abyss Dragon Rank ¨C Myth Personality ¨C Arrogant Complete Attack power ¨C 6725 Defense ¨C 4755 Agility ¨C 3328 Intellect ¨C 5214 Vitality ¨C 776466/ 776466 ¨C Unique Ability ¨C Dragon Fear ( Cooldown 10 minutes ) All enemies within the radius of 50 meters from the point of the familiar are put into a state of ¡®fear¡¯. The higher the level of the enemy, the more likely it is to fall into ¡®Fear¡¯, and in ¡®fear¡¯ it won¡¯t be able to attack for a duration of 100 seconds. (Applied ignoring the enemy¡¯s immunity.) Dragon Breath ( 120 minutes cooldown ) It emits a powerful dragon breath in a fan-shaped with a range of 50 meters ahead. It has the power of 3120% of ATK of all the abilities and for the 10 seconds, it deals with a damage of 60%. (The effect is reduced to half against users.) Enhanced Magic Resistance ¨C The Abyss Dragon becomes more powerful each time they absorb the spiritual spirit. (Each time they eat a soul or spirit, the defense, vitality, and damage causing are permanently increased.) Current Additional Damage: 3882 Current Additional Defense: 3168 Current Additional Vitality: 277715 The Magical Clan ¨C The dragon is born ¡®Magical Clan¡¯. As a complete dragon, he will be able to use much more advanced spells in proportion to its intellect and be able to learn new skills from the skill book. (However, the skill is less powerful than the skills of the wizard class.) The magic that is currently being used are: ¨C Polymorph ¨C Ice Wave ¨C Ice Blast. The Glacier Veil ¨C The glacier veil is made in the range of 50 meters high and 20 meters range, and no attack can pass through the veil. The veil lasts for 5 seconds. ( Cooldown time of 30 seconds.) The Blessing of Abyss ¨C It is an ability that is unique only to the Abyss. Using the Blessing of Abyss, it restores all the beings in the radius of 30m to a fixed value of 2% (13750) of their vitality every 0.33 sec. When the Blessing of Abyss is in use, the caster can not perform any action, and if he is confused or stunned the skill is stopped. Duration ¨C 3 minutes. Cooldown ¨C 15 minutes. * It is an arrogant dragon. * Likes to eat and hates working. * Its favorite thing to eat is the meatballs. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¡®Um, the blessing of the Abyss is the same as before it evolved¡­ Enhancement of Magic Resistance is an upgraded version of the Lazy Dragon. The Dragon Breath and Fear was the same set of skills that Karceus possesses. Is the breath¡¯s power a little higher?¡¯ And the ¡®Glacier Veil¡¯ ability was also the same as the ¡®Water curtain¡¯ that I previously possessed. Among the abilities of Bbookbbook, the most prominent was the Magic Clan. ¡®That is a real hidden card. Even though it is a little less powerful, it can learn all the spells that a wizard uses¡­¡¯ There are enormous fighting abilities. In particular, the close to 7,000 offensive power that hasn¡¯t been heard till then. Ian, who had checked the information window over and over again, immediately opened the next information window of Karceus. ¡®The ability of magic clan, isn¡¯t an ability of a completely evolved dragon?¡¯ And Ian¡¯s guess was right. All the other unique abilities of evolved Karceus weren¡¯t much different from before its evolved ones. However, the ability of polymorph was changed to Magic Clan ability. Ian had two powerful sorcerers in his group. ¡®The magic is lower than that of the wizard users, maybe the coefficient is a little low.¡¯ The lack of skill counts and the enormous combat ability would be enough to fill up the gaps. In addition, both dragons were at the same level of monstrous combat ability excluding the magic, so Ian now realized the majesty of the myth class. ¡®Karceus is a bit weaker than Bbookbbook. Their intellect and offensive power are the same¡­¡¯ Ian was so drunk by the state of the two dragons. But, Harin grabbed Ian¡¯s shoulder and asked, ¡°Ji, Jisung-ah.¡± ¡°hmm?¡± ¡°Is, is that big dragon Bbookbbook¡­?¡± Ian¡¯s gaze moved towards Harin. And Harin, looked like she had lost everything. ¡°What¡¯s wrong Harin-ah?¡± ¡°Why did our Bbookbbook turn like¡­!¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Bbookbbook who witnessed their conversation titled it¡¯s head and stared at Harin. [What is wrong, Harin?] Harin replied looking like she was about to cry. ¡°My lovely Bbookbbook¡­!¡± Ian looked at Bbookbbook with a puzzled expression, and Harin¡¯s words continued. ¡°Is UGLY!!¡± CH 313 [Master, it seems like my abilities aren¡¯t so great after my evolution.] ¡°No, That¡¯s not it, they are good!¡± [Then it looks like Harin is clearly mistaken.] ¡°No, what Harin said is very clear and correct to the point.¡± [¡­!] Bbookbbook looked like he had lost the whole world. Looking at such a sad Bbookbbook, it would be only Ian who could laugh. It was a comic sight to see Bbookbbook, a giant dragon sitting on his butt with a sad face. Harin once again mumbled to herself. ¡°Bbookbbook¡­ our Bbookbbook¡­ has turned ugly¡­¡± At the successive words from Hairn, Bbookbbook complained. [Not ugly, I¡¯m awesome¡­!] Among Ian¡¯s familiars, Bbookbbook was the only one who had good looks. Bbookbbook didn¡¯t understand Harin¡¯s obsession with his appearance. Since it evolved into the Abyss Dragon, Bbookbbook was more than satisfied with his appearance. But this was a huge shock! Ian, who watched the anguish of Bbookbbook while chuckling to himself, called over Bbookbbook. ¡°Yah, Bbookbbook-ah.¡± At this, Bbookbbook responded with a gloomy voice. [What is it, master.] Ian spoke to him with a soft voice, ¡°I know a way for you to overcome this problem.¡± [What is that¡­?] ¡°Bbookbbook, you can do that polymorph thing. You can just turn into something else.¡± Even after Ian had said it, Bbookbbook still looked pretty depressed. Bbookbbook spoke again with his gloomy look. [Master.] ¡°Huh?¡± [Am I really ugly?] Asked Bbookbbook with watery eyes. Ian answered back calmly, [Yeah, Ugly.] [¡­] Honestly, Bbookbbook wasn¡¯t ugly after turning into the Abyss Dragon. The after appearance of Bbookbbook was overflowing with dragon aura. But, Ian didn¡¯t tell the truth. ¡®If not, even I liked the cute Bbookbbook¡­!¡¯ In fact, Ian was overcrowded with big familiars, and he did want what was best for his pets. The black dragon Karceus, The King of Fenrir Ly, and the Griffin Pen, they were big enough. The reason Ian thought of polymorphing¡ªwas because he wanted Bbookbbook to turn back to the time when he was cute. ¡®And, all you have to do is to take this form when you are in a battle, it would be so nice to have an alternate charm.¡¯ Ian began to persuade Bbookbbook. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah, do you remember when you were a turtle?¡± Bbookbbook replied without much energy. [Of course.] ¡°You were the most handsome at that time.¡± [¡­?] With an absurd expression, Bbookbbook looked at Ian. Ian began to persuade again. ¡°At that time, you were the most handsome tortoise then.¡± But, Bbookbbook had other words to say. [Why are you changing your words, Master?] At those words from Bbookbbook, he looked over at Bbakbbak who was there. [At that time, master, you told me that Bbakbbak was the best looking.] After the evolution, Bbookbbook had gotten smarter! But Ian was having a hard time getting into Bbookbbook¡¯s head. ¡°Well, that time your rival was none other than Bbakbbak.¡± [Right. Bbakbbak is my rival.] ¡°But¡­ you ate too much of my meatballs and gained some fat¡­!¡± Seeing Bbookbbook¡¯s eyes wavered, Ian confirmed that he was on the right track. ¡°On top of that, after evolving Bbakbbak it did not emerge to become a tortoise. It became a dragon also.¡± Ian approached Bbookbbook and tugged on its ear. ¡°And Bbakbbak too, isn¡¯t so handsome like before.¡± Bbookbbook eyes were still wavering. [Then, then¡­!] Ian realized that Bbookbbook was having a hard time. ¡°When you first met me. Let¡¯s go back to that charming turtle that you were, Bbookbbook-ah. The most handsome turtle in the whole world.¡± The most handsome turtle in the whole world. That last word from Ian, had an undenied effect on Bbookbbook. And he was asking for the change of appearance. Harin looked at the conversation that was happening between the two, and Bbookbbook who was lost in thoughts opened his mouth. [Well¡­ that I am¡­!] The gigantic body of Bbookbbook who was almost about to cry started to shine in white light. Woong- A huge resonating sound was in the air, and with it, the light began to shrink. And after a while. A word came out of the small Bbookbbook¡¯s mouth. ¡°Bbook!¡± * * * It takes a week for the Dimensional beads to get a complete charge to power the portal. And in the cycle of the week, naturally, Ian needed to get to the Guild. Ian checked the time he had and then proceeded with the plan to prepare for the Guild war with Fiolan, Herz, and Cain. Since the duration of the portal opened by the beads wasn¡¯t for long, Ian always disappeared as quickly as the lightning strike. And, of course, he put up all his time in the devil energy production. ¡°Harin-ah hit me up with a couple of arrows. If it hits me I¡¯ll die.¡± ¡°Okay!¡± Buing-! It was Harin who was always in the position of needing help, but now she was helping Ian manage his energy. If you want to grow the Devil energy, you will have to get a hold of it first and will have to change it in order, because any low or intermediate class of attacks wouldn¡¯t work on Ian. Particularly, the low-level rankers were almost impossible to face, as their attacks would just get blocked, but if Harin hit, they could do damage. And a crucial thing that helped in making the decision, Harin¡¯s tasty ¡®cooking¡¯. ¡°Jinsung-ah, I developed a new recipe.¡± ¡°Hmm? What is that? A soup?¡± ¡°Yep, It is a soup.¡± ¡°The smell is good¡­ what¡¯s with the color? Is it broccoli soup? Green?¡± ¡°Not a broccoli soup¡­ if I need to put a name on it, mushy Kaylof soup? Yeah, I should name it that!¡± ¡°Euh?¡± Kaylof was the name of an intermediate monster that Ian had hunted for the whole day and captured. Kaylof is a gigantic anaconda-like beast with a toxic mucus that was on its entire body, and it was hard to deal with it because of the mucus it throws from its mouth. It was a day that Ian was busy hunting till then as he wanted to use his mana skills, and Harin had made the recipe from its mucus. With a flustered expression, Ian asked Harin, ¡°Yah, can we really have this? What kind of poisonous things are in there?¡± Harin replied as if it was nothing, ¡°Well, it surely isn¡¯t something to eat, what are you talking about?¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± ¡°It is a poisonous food, won¡¯t it be venomous? If you take it again, you could go into a dying stats?¡± Ian was out of his wits. ¡°What, then why did you make it?¡± Harin answered with a proud expression, ¡°That, to help you catch the bounty for your skill upgrade!¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Harin handed a glass bottle with soup in it. ¡°Now check the information window.¡± Ian wasn¡¯t feeling well¡ªthen after receiving the bottle, he checked the item information of the dish. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Kaylof Mucus Soup ¨C Classification ¨C Bottled Rank ¨C Advanced Preparation Score ¨C 1196 Value ¨C 44235 Gold Satisfaction ¨C +60 It is a soup made from processing the mucus of the Kaylof, an intermediate monster who lives in the division of 107. It is an excellent poison made by processing the toxic mucus several times of the Kaylof and turns into a ¡®poison¡¯ state after just one sip of the drink. It has the taste and smell that could entice anyone. It is a poisonous liquid created by the beginner of ¡®Poison Maker¡¯. However, due to the high dexterity and proficiency of the manufacturer, an excellent poison liquid has been made. Unique Ability: Once ingested, it will be in an addicted state, and health decreases by 0.3% of the maximum health per second. However, if the vitality drops below 5%, then the vitality will stop to decrease, and the movement will get slower by 50%. (Duration ¨C 1850 seconds.) ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¡°Ohoo¡­?¡± Having confirmed the item¡¯s information, Ian realized what Harin¡¯s words have meant by capturing the monsters. Harin asked with a cheerful expression. ¡°How¡¯s that? Won¡¯t this be helpful for you?¡± ¡°It sure helps¡­! This so great, right?¡± Even if I was a Kaylof, the condition of it would be the same, even if the effects of it vary. Specifically, in the case of ¡®addiction¡¯, the power difference in the superior state and subordinate state were enormous, and the soup that Harin made wasn¡¯t superior in terms of power. It was impossible to use it with taking off 0.3% of the vitality in a sec. in the battlefield. But in this situation, it was helpful for Ian. ¡®Anyway, 0.3% of the maximum vitality¡­ 300¨C400 seconds, it will be in the state of dying¡­¡¯ The duration was more than 30 minutes, so if it was needed to feed them, they need to be in condition but must have less vitality. Ian once again admires Harin. ¡°Harin¡­! This is awesome.¡± At the praise from Ian, Harin responded with a smile. ¡°Hehe, right? I had such a hard time making this recipe.¡± ¡°But when did you learn about this Harin? I never heard of any such skills¡­?¡± And at that moment Ian¡¯s mind had a weird thought. ¡®Will she poison my food if I didn¡¯t meet her¡­? If I didn¡¯t date her and just spend time gaming, would she have poisoned my food¡­?¡¯ Bringing Ian from his thoughts, Harin spoke, ¡°The first time being in the Devildom.¡± ¡°Oh, really?¡± ¡°So, there were new ingredients when compared to the human world.¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± ¡°So, I was trying to make a recipe by combining this and that. Suddenly a hidden skill called Poison Maker came up.¡± ¡°Oh ho¡­?¡± Listening to Harin, Ian realized something else. ¡®If it is like Harin says¡­ I guess a production class and a maker might get hidden skills in the same way?¡¯ Ian who had been neglecting the familiars¡¯ items for a while, was self-inflicted in his growth. ¡®Keu, I have been so lazy. I should have just continued doing the quests with.¡¯ One minute of rest, meant that one would lose something similar to that. ¡®If I worked hard enough to make skills in the meantime, would I have found a new hidden skill?¡¯ Ian made clenched his fist. ¡°Ah, I still have a long way to go¡­!¡± At these mumbling from Ian, Harin asked, ¡°What?¡± ¡°Ah, nothing. Just something on my mind.¡± Ian took steps with the poison liquid from Harin. ¡°Jinsung-ah, where are you going?¡± ¡°To give the snacks to the monsters.¡± CH 314 Ian¡¯s devil energy training continued on for over a month. In order to merge the soul of Marion Khalifa with his Magical Beast Alchemy, it was necessary to have the 10th level of the devil energy dexterity , which was almost like saying that it was the peak of his training. It wasn¡¯t easy to go from level 6 to level 10 no matter how quickly Ian tried to. ¡®Well, the 10th level is the highest level that anyone could have as of the moment¡­ Rather than slowing down skill exp, it is actually moving much faster.¡¯ In fact, the 10th level was the best place to reach with magic skills, it was necessary for Ian to have the experience even if that wouldn¡¯t get him to level up. However, Ian had succeeded in going up to level 9 in just a month, and now it seemed like reaching the 10th level was possible if he tried hard enough. ¡®For now, it is important to reach level 10 and create a legendary or myth class that has a high level.¡¯ As well as the summoning, swordsmanship, archery, and other combat class proficiency continued to rise even after reaching the mastery level in the skills. Maybe there were other ways to level up magic to level 10. However, two days after reaching level 9, Ian felt like reaching level 10 was much harder than expected. Catching and attacking from low to high hadn¡¯t improved the proficiency. Especially, the magic-durability of the lower classes didn¡¯t give much experience. Ian analyzed the experience of the skill acquired by magic durability. And there were a few unusual things, ¡°Uhmm¡­ but this case and that case, but they have higher level abilities, and why is the experience of both so different?¡± And he realized the reason without much difficulty. ¡°Ahh¡­ I have got a lot of experience because of the new technique, but the dexterity of devil energy hasn¡¯t reached any higher. It seems the higher the rank of the player, the higher the increase in experience gains.¡± The change in the proficiency of experience started after hitting the 9th level. So the conclusion was simple. Now quality was more important than the quantity. ¡®Eventually I¡¯ll have to go further inside.¡¯ The inside that Ian spoke about was the lower part of the Devildom. ¡®It¡¯s dangerous, but there¡¯s no other way.¡¯ In fact, there was a reason why Ian hadn¡¯t gone lower than the division of 100 in the Devildom region, and that was to increase his Devil energy dexterity even though he had the efficiency. Since the end of the Dimension War, it was in the thoughts of many human users, that the Devildom would be dangerous for a human user, and if found in their realm they wouldn¡¯t let that human live. Besides, Ian wasn¡¯t a user that any creature in the Devildom could consider as an enemy. Ian decided to make sure that Harin returned to the Central Continent. ¡°Harin-ah.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°I have a much more dangerous place to visit, so will you go back to Central Continent first?¡± Harin¡¯s face immediately turned sulky. ¡°Hmm, do I really need to?¡± Ian replied with a sorry expression. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m not gaining much from here.¡± ¡°Well, then I guess there is no other way.¡± Ian immediately opened the door of the portal through his Dimensional Beads, and Harin walked towards the portal. And just before going through it. Harin turned back to look at Ian because she thought about something. ¡°Oh right, Jinsung-ah.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Harin gulped and spoke again. ¡°You¡­ you seem to be skipping classes? I¡¯ll ask Yoo-hyun for everything.¡± Cold sweat ran down Ian¡¯s back. ¡°Ah, okay. Don¡¯t worry. I didn¡¯t really get good grades in my 1st year, I think I need to do better on my 2nd year to compensate for it.¡± Harin¡¯s expression was brighter after those words. ¡°Nice! I¡¯ll trust you for now.¡± Harin disappeared through the portal. Ian shook off his fear as she moved away. ¡®Uh, I was thinking of skipping the VR system class tomorrow¡­ what am I supposed to do?¡¯ Ian admired Harin¡¯s insight and moved away to the place he needed to go. The place he was directed to was the Cervian¡¯s Institute. * * * ¡°Oh, Ian! It has been really long!¡± Cervian welcomed Ian very warmly. Ian was also glad to have seen Cervian after a long time. When Ian was still in Kailan, Cervian was an NPC that matched him perfectly. Cervian could have been the soulmate of Ian in the game, according to the research that Ian did. ¡°I know. I have been busy with a lot of things in the meantime.¡± Ian laughed and looked at the date. ¡®Has it been months?¡¯ He came back to Devildom for the first time after a month. Ian was originally going to stop at Cervian to ask about Khalifa¡¯s Soul determination. However, the skill level of Magical Beast Alchemy hadn¡¯t reached the level 10, so it was the first thing he did after entering the Devildom. He tried to come here after reaching level 10, but in order for that to happen he had to descend even more inside Devildom, so he needed help from Cervian. Seeing Ian thinking about something, Cervian laughed. ¡°I know that you are a very busy person.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Ian was flustered the moment he heard those words. Cervian continued what he was saying. ¡°That I didn¡¯t know any news from the outside because I was stuck in the laboratory in the Devildom, is that right?¡± ¡°Uh-hmm¡­¡± ¡°You woke up the Army of God, woke up the power of the Abyss Dragon once again, and most importantly¡­ you killed off the Khalifa Dragon, my masterpiece.¡± Cervian¡¯s eyes were twinkling. Ian was dumbfounded and didn¡¯t know what to say. ¡®What am I supposed to say? I would¡¯ve in the past, but Cervian is an half-Asmodian now who is residing in the Devildom¡­¡¯ It was an obvious thing, Ian thought that he was the target of Asmodians so he carefully chose his choice of words. However, there weren¡¯t that many alternatives since Cervian knew everything. ¡°Well¡­ I did those. I¡¯m a half devil, but I still reside in the human world. I chose to live in the Human world, unlike you Cervian who chose to live here in Devildom.¡± Cervian who was rather puzzled with Ian¡¯s words, soon burst out laughing. ¡°Kyahh, I also have a remarkable thing for you.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± With a face that still didn¡¯t stop laughing, Cervian opened his mouth. ¡°Okay then, do you know what was the first order that needs to be done in this realm¡¯s enormous dimension?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Ian seemed to think for a moment, but Cervian didn¡¯t wait for an answer. ¡°That is¡­ Strength is Law.¡± ¡°Strength is Law?¡± ¡°Yes. You don¡¯t seem to know. In this Devildom dimension, Power is Strength.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve heard that. But what does it include¡­¡± Cervian cut off Ian to tell him his explanation. ¡°The Asmodians are also very individualistic¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± ¡°If a story isn¡¯t related to you in any manner, then they wouldn¡¯t show even an ounce of care.¡± Ian listened to Cervian¡¯s explanation without interrupting as he didn¡¯t understand the reason as to why Cervian was saying all of this to him. ¡°So, to put it much more bluntly, even if you own the sword that has slaughtered an Asmodian in the dimensional war, the Asmodians who didn¡¯t participate in the dimensional war won¡¯t even know your name or face.¡± ¡°Aha¡­!¡± ¡°And even if they know, they won¡¯t hurt you nor will they retaliate against you.¡± ¡°Now, that is a little interesting.¡± ¡°Maybe perhaps if an Asmodian tries to humiliate you, then that is purely because of loyalty rather than trying to hurt you.¡± Listening to Cervian, Ian felt his nervousness calm down. ¡®If what Cervian is saying is true, then I can broaden the ranges of my magic.¡¯ Ian felt like the most nerve-wracking part of this visit had been solved. If any high ranking Asmodian came into his path, Ian would have surely felt nervous and stunned, but he wasn¡¯t so concerned now after hearing this. ¡®I¡¯ll only have to be careful of the Asmodian users.¡¯ That was what he thought, but the Asmodian users weren¡¯t that much of a problem for Ian to deal with. Also, the most powerful user of the Asmodian class¡ªIrahan¡ªhad already lost 5 times in the hands of Ian. ¡°By the way Ian, how did you come here?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°No, I heard that all the dimensions from the human world had been closed. I don¡¯t think you have the power of the Devil King, so I wonder, how did you manage to get beyond your dimension?¡± ¡°Oh, that¡­ I have an artifact that I received from the Dimensional Enchanter. Having that, one can move from one dimension to another.¡± ¡°Aha, is that so.¡± Cervian didn¡¯t ask for any more details. To Ian whom he had met after a very long time, there were a lot of curious things and questions that he wanted to ask. Cervian wondered about the battle he had with Khalifa, about the things that Ian had succeeded in so far, and a lot of more things. ¡°So, I was thinking Cervian.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°When I hunted the Khalifa, I have a ¡®thing¡¯ in my possession that belonged to him.¡± ¡°Thing?¡± Cervian frowned, but soon his eyes shined. Till now, the Marion Kalifa was the strongest creature in the whole world. And when such a strong monster was hunted down, it was only natural to get something from such a monster. As soon as Cervian checked the Soul Determination that Ian took out, he was much more astonished. ¡°Thi¡­ this¡­?¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Cervian looked at Ian and spoke with a trembling voice. ¡°You are so lucky!¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Despite not knowing Ian¡¯s confusion, Cervian continued to mutter. ¡°Unbelievable. The Soul Determination. It determines the soul of a myth class¡­ I might be able to see these while I¡¯m still alive.¡± Ian¡ªwho was now more curious than ever¡ªbegan to urge Cevrian to speak clearly. ¡°Is this something great?¡± The moment Ian asked, Cervian responded. ¡°Ha, you¡¯re really asking me that?¡± Cervian made sure he settled his excitement and began to slowly explain everything to Ian. ¡°So Ian, how many magical beasts have you hunted down so far?¡± It was rather a unique question, but there would have been a reason for it so Ian thought about it. ¡®Hmm¡­I¡¯m sure it has crossed over a thousand¡­ 3,000? 4,000 maybe?¡¯ As if he read through Ian¡¯s thoughts, Cervian opened his mouth again. ¡°I¡¯m not sure exactly, but you would¡¯ve hunted at least a thousand, right?¡± Ian nodded. ¡°Maybe close to a thousand?¡± Cervian continued. ¡°Well, have you seen the monster¡¯s soul drop as you hunt them down? If you did, then how many times did you see it?¡± Ian tried to remember. He certainly had experienced seeing the soul of a monster go away. In fact, he just experienced it the other day. ¡°Maybe around three or four times. I think it was a hero rank or unique grade.¡± At this information from Ian, Cervian turned his head. ¡°That is right, the Soul determination doesn¡¯t work on creatures below the intermediate class.¡± Cervian continued. ¡°Of the things you have hunted, you took down a thousand of high-level monsters, right?¡± ¡°Yeah, maybe two thousand or three thousand, I guess?¡± ¡°The number of monsters are not important. You have hunted down a thousand of these creatures, so you have probably acquired around two or three Soul determinations by now. It is better for you to know what this means.¡± As soon as he heard that, Ian tried to understand why Cervian was so so excited. ¡®Is what I¡¯m hearing right? Even if I hunted down a thousand low-class monsters for their drops, the drop rate of soul crystals was around 0.3% to 0.4%¡­ but the drop rate when I hunted Marion Khalifa¡­¡¯ CH 315 Ian used up all the points he acquired from the Soul Determination for the dexterity right there. It was the only hero ranked souls, so they didn¡¯t help that much to increase the level. Ian didn¡¯t think much about the role of the Soul Determination that he had. He just used it as an instant view. As far as it could be understood, Ian came up with a few pieces of souls that he got from hunting the Devil Dragon in the past. ¡®By any chance is there any correlation between the soul stones and Soul Determination?¡¯ Ian asked Cervian almost immediately. ¡°Cervian, are you aware of the soul stones?¡± Cervian nodded at the question. ¡°Sure. The soul stones aren¡¯t as rare as Soul Determination.¡± Ian¡¯s face turned a little sad after hearing that. Ian¡¯s Soul Determination was obtained by hunting down a legendary monster, unlike the soul stones, which could be obtained by just hunting down higher class monsters. ¡°Well.. is that so?¡± ¡°Soul determinants are items that are only dropped by a legendary or higher class monsters. I remember the drop rate was more than 50%.¡± ¡°Aha¡­¡± ¡°There must be a hundred of those pieces that I can use to make a legendary class. If the drop rate is too low then I¡¯ll probably just grind more.¡± Shortly after explaining about the soul stones, Cervian spoke about how rare and how valuable it was to possess a Soul determination. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you this in the simplest manner as possible. A myth class soul determinant is useful if you can succeed in the beast alchemy with two legendary classes then you will be able to create a myth class.¡± ¡°It surely is an awesome thing.¡± ¡°Right. I have been studying about the alchemy for hundreds of years, but I have succeeded only once in getting a myth class with the help of alchemy.¡± ¡°Khalifa?¡± ¡°Right. Even though I had only succeeded once. He was out of my control when he¡¯s in the mood he goes around running, but when you have that thing, you¡¯ll be able to make a myth class with a very high proficiency¡­ it¡¯s weird that I¡¯m not thirsty for more.¡± Ian scratched the back of his head and asked. ¡°Ah¡­ just a while back you said that a myth class is created conditionally¡­ why¡­ is the probability, not 100%?¡± Cervian grumbled and answered. ¡°It is because there is a chance that the alchemy would fail. But when you succeed in the durability, then there is a chance that the item allows you to bring out a myth creature.¡± ¡°Ah ha¡­ if the durability fails, then will the soul determination fail?¡± Cervian nodded. ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Uh¡­ then somehow I should try to make the durability have the highest proficiency to make the item work.¡± ¡°That is obvious. Before attempting the alchemy, the skill should be at level 10 and at least 30 legendary class must be removed.¡± This was an item that could be obtained by hunting down monsters, and magic alchemy success rate increases if it had a high-proficiency. Ian nodded because it was an obvious thing. Ian, who arranged his thoughts, asked the most basic question. ¡°By the way Cervian.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°What do I have to do to achieve the highest level of magic alchemy?¡± Cervian¡ªwho had a calm expression¡ªreplied with a smile. ¡°Kuehhh, well, I surely taught my disciple well. Good question. If you truly are a disciple of Cervian, it¡¯s only natural to have such ambition.¡± ¡°Sure. Besides, I got such an amazing item, and it is a given that if I can¡¯t get a strong level of magic, then I won¡¯t be able to create a high-class creature.¡± Cervian who gave in to Ian decided to help him. ¡°By the way Ian¡­¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°What is the level of the skill that you¡¯re working on? I think that reaching the 5th level is hard. Since the war just ended, there must be a lot of things that need your attention¡­ so, how about we start with raising the proficiency?¡± Ian spoke out with a clear voice. ¡°Well now, I think I¡¯m around 12% at the 9th level? In a month, do you think I can reach level 10?¡± ¡°¡­!?¡± * * * Apart from Ian, who was in agony in the Devildom dimension, Herz and Fiolan were busy preparing for the claim of the Lotus Guild¡¯s Kingdom. The ranker guild was proceeding better than anticipated. ¡°So¡­ you mean the lotus guild wants merge?¡± ¡°Yes. Our Lotus Guild will soon start the guild war. And then during that time, I don¡¯t want to do unnecessary things.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± After the Guild Master¡ªMartin¡ªentered Devildom, The Splendor guild was occupying the first rank in the rankings, and the user ¡°Seijo¡± was a famous person who ranked first in the class. Fiolan, in order to take over the Splendor guild rankings, she herself was searching for Seijo. ¡°If we take Seijo, you probably know, but the real power of our Lotus Guild has never been revealed.¡± ¡°Right. At least among all the guilds in the Luspel Empire, there isn¡¯t a guild that could equal the Lotus Guild in terms of power.¡± ¡°Well, you know things well. The story is quite easy.¡± Fiolan spoke with a smile on her lips. ¡°Even if the Splendor Guild is merged into our Lotus Guild, the original members would still let the old Lord rule it. Also, if the ability is confirmed, I will give you the right position and rewards without discrimination against the guild members. ¡°Hmm, That definitely sounds appealing.¡± Seijo was a top-notch user, who didn¡¯t lose in any aspects even when compared to the former Guild Master Martin. But he didn¡¯t like to run a Guild-like organization because he needed a place to relax, so Fiolan¡¯s suggestion was a very welcoming one. And in the current situation, there were many rankers in the Splendor Guild. ¡°If you accept my proposal, I¡¯ll make sure that you won¡¯t ever regret it.¡± Seijo slowly nodded. ¡°I¡¯ll head back and try to convince the members of the guild.¡± Fiolan put up an understanding smile. ¡°If the members don¡¯t seem to decide, then you can personally cross over. The doors of our Lotus Guild are always open.¡± Seijo smiled and answered. ¡°I¡¯ll get back to you.¡± The conditions of the other guilds belonging to the Luspel Empire weren¡¯t much different from Splendor. Specifically, the Oaklan Guild, in which Samuel Jin was the Guild Master, easily accepted Fiolan¡¯s suggestion as most of the real heads of the state were extinguished. ¡®Splendor, Oaklan¡­ and if the Valiant also merges, we won¡¯t need anymore after that.¡¯ Fiolan was going to try and merge up to a maximum of five ranking guilds. And there was a limit of the number of the people that they could accommodate, so anyone above that was unreasonable. ¡®I don¡¯t think that taking people individually would be of help now¡­¡¯ The reason as to why such a large scale merger was being initiated was because soon the Lotus Guild was going to be declared as the Mainland. The present grade of Lotus Guild was big enough to be called a¡¯ Dukedom¡¯, but by getting the Mainland rank, they could accommodate 2 to 3 times more than the ¡®Dukedom¡¯. They were moving ahead with a huge push. ¡®Even the mainland will be in the empire, what will happen if we are declared a kingdom successfully?¡¯ At the moment, there was no known guild specification for the ¡®Kingdom¡¯. The ¡®Mainland¡¯ was said to be a state below the level of ¡®Kingdom¡¯, but until now, there weren¡¯t many guilds that had declared their mainland. Among the guilds belonging to the Luspel Empire, there was no guild of the Mainland rank, and two guilds of the Kaimon Empire were known to have become Mainlands just a while back. ¡®All right, this will be the end of the declaration of the Mainland¡­ if we can achieve the maximum specs, then we can grow into a Kingdom at once¡­!¡¯ If so, the next would be getting a rank and then engaging an all-out war against the empire of Luspel. * * * After a long discussion with Cervian, Ian was able to come up with techniques to increase his magic proficiency. ¡°The first thing that you would need¡­ a legendary class¡­¡± And the most important thing during all of the preparation was, of course, what kind of a monster were they willing to use to form the main body. ¡°If you want the strongest of all, then the Balrog comes mind¡­¡± There were a lot of Balrog during the dimensional war, but the Balrog wasn¡¯t a creature that could be so abundantly found in the human world. And it wasn¡¯t so easy to meet such things as easily as Ian did. ¡®Now I have a myth rank Bbookbbook, so I will be able to deal with one or two of them by myself, but¡­¡¯ But he didn¡¯t know how to get to them. And at the time of the dimensional war, all the stats of Bbookbbook were doubled because of the Gods, but now they couldn¡¯t receive such buffs. Of course, the Balrog was a legendary as well as a myth rank. And there was the level. The level of Bbookbbook was 220, and the Balrog that appeared in the field was likely a monster that was easily over 350. But if it was Kaizer or Yankun, he could be able to deal with three or four of them. ¡®And the buffs that the Gods had given us were very awesome. They had almost doubled up the stats¡­¡¯ The story of the buffs being doubled was similar to the level being doubled. Ian who had received all the buffs was similar to being at the level of 400, so it was natural for him to take on a Balrog. And somehow, Ian felt like he was attached to the ¡®Balrog¡¯. ¡®Need to go down the division of 50 and build up the experience while taking down the best monsters¡­ should we go further down to meet the legendary boss monsters?¡¯ In the 50th area of the Devildom, the Devil Dragon¡ªa legendary monster¡ªwould be present. But the Devil Dragon wasn¡¯t so appealing for Ian. ¡®If I get the Devil Dragon, there is a chance for a Khalifa to be made again. Even if it isn¡¯t exactly like Khalifa, a similar dragon would be the result.¡¯ If it was supposed to be a magic mythical creature, he didn¡¯t want to create a thing that was already there. So Ian moved into a place that was further inside. ¡®And by the way, I thought I heard about the habitat of the Balrog from the Devil King¡­¡¯ Ian recalled the conversation he had with Ricardo a few days back. [If it is a Balrog¡­ the 15th division of the Balrog, ¡®The Tomb of the Forgotten Soul¡¯, they won¡¯t be so hard to meet over there.] CH 316 Ian went through the road, and he began to descend one level deeper. With Bbookbbook, Karceus and Kaizer all turning to the mythical rank. It was much easier to go through the Devildom. However, it was still unknown if she could go through the 15th district or not. ¡®The 15th zone of the Devildom¡­ unless the monsters here suddenly get stronger, we can somehow try to manage¡­¡¯ Ian had broke into the 50th zone of the Devildom where he had previously visited, and it was very quick, almost as if he was sliding through a slope. And now Ian had come to the 45th zone of the Devildom. But from there on, he felt like the progress was getting much slower. ¡°Now, we need to move carefully. I¡¯m not sure if I¡¯m getting a bit too vigilant.¡± Kaizer who was beside Ian listened to his words and agreed to the statement. ¡°Right, Lord. Since the moment we have crossed over the 50th division, I hardly see any monster below the intermediate level.¡± As if some thought suddenly crossed his mind, Ian shook his head and asked Kaizer. ¡°By the way Kaizer, Why did you say that?¡± At those words from Ian, Kaizer looked at him with a strange look. ¡°Hmm? What do you mean?¡± ¡°Nothing, it¡¯s just sometimes you call me Lord, and other times you call me master.¡± Ian spoke with a grim expression, ¡°Well, am I not the one who is supposed to accept that?¡± The loyalty of Kaizer was up to 100 points after it had awakened to the myth class. But Ian was still a bit skeptical about the fact, as Kaizer¡¯s tone was still a bit cheeky. Kaizer spoke with a slight smile, ¡°Keu. I have already acknowledged you as the master, in the past.¡± Ian¡¯s face lightened. ¡°Yeah? Then why are you still calling me a Lord?¡± Kaizer hesitated for a moment. ¡°That¡­¡± ¡°What is that?¡± ¡°The Lord seems much more sensible to me.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian asked Kaizer, ¡°Then, what do you plan on calling me?¡± Kaizer touched his chin before answering. ¡°Well, it probably depends on my mood.¡± ¡°Ha¡­¡± Ian sighed briefly, started to walk again after giving up. ¡®Will you also call me Master on your own wish like Yankun does?¡¯ But he just thought it for himself. Ian still had to win on the 1 on 1 with Kaizer. He wasn¡¯t an easy opponent to deal with even before he had awakened, but now that he was awakened, and beating him unilaterally wouldn¡¯t happen anymore. Ian slowly walked through the gate while moving into the zone of 44, and turned his head in the direction of Yankun and asked. ¡°Yankun, do you know anything about the area from 15 ¨C 44?¡± Yankun replied in a polite tone, ¡°Know, means about what do you mean, Master?¡± ¡°Is there anything in the 15th zone that I¡¯m supposed to be careful about while going to the ¡®Tomb of the Forgotten Soul¡¯? The field monster will be strong, and the huge boss monster at the cage is also strong?¡± The gateway from 50 to 49. The boss who guarded it was a legendary monster ¡®Tarveros¡¯. It was the first time for Ian to come across it, and it was a giant tiger with three heads. To describe it in much more detail, it was a monster that had; purple and red stripes with white, its whole body surrounded with purple flames. And Ian didn¡¯t just pass through the gates by taking it down, but there was a moment when Ian¡¯s heart was about to explode. ¡®Taveros¡­ the combat ability was clearly a drop when compared with the Balrog or the Devil Dragon, but he was a top-notch guy to take down.¡¯ The ability to reverse the time seemed like the special ability of the Taveros. To put it precisely, it was the ability to rewind only ¡®your time¡¯ for a certain span. ¡®It was really frightening when we were about to hit it head-on, but somehow managed to get to the back of his head.¡¯ As a matter of fact, Ian didn¡¯t know the exact specs of the ability. And it was because he didn¡¯t have the time to concentrate on it while dealing with the match. While Ian was in thought about those things, Yankun began to explain the information that he knew. ¡°There are no such things like the Gatekeeper that you need to worry about till reaching the 30th zone.¡± ¡°Yeah? There aren¡¯t any gates?¡± Yankun shook his head and spoke, ¡°But there is a gate in the 40th zone, and that isn¡¯t something my master needs to be concerned about.¡± ¡°What kind of a thing is it? I think you know.¡± ¡°Yes. He is one of the 12 officers like myself, and it is of the 5th rank Noblesse. He is around 1.5 times stronger than I am.¡± ¡°So, if I assume that you were in the rank of a Noblesse, then a similar level to you?¡± ¡°Uh¡­ something like that. If I become a Noblesse, then I can fight him.¡± Yankun had met all the conditions he needed to become a Noblesse, but he was still in the process as he couldn¡¯t upgrade himself entirely. And if being 1.5 times stronger than Yankun at its current state meant that Ian didn¡¯t have to worry about. ¡°Hmm¡­ then it is all fine till the 30th zone¡­ then at the 30th, is it guarded?¡± Yankun shook his head again. ¡°Nothing of that sort. The 30th zone guards are similar to the 40th zone guardian Asmodian. With my Master¡¯s ability, we can pass through without much difficulty.¡± Ian asked with a strange look, ¡°Euh? Then what is the problem?¡± ¡°It¡¯s after you¡¯ve gone into the 30th zone.¡± ¡°Hm¡­¡± ¡°In the zone 30, a huge castle called ¡®The wall of Chaos¡¯ blocks the way.¡± ¡°The Wall of Chaos?¡± Yankun¡¯s words continued. ¡°Yes. Inside ¡®the Wall of Chaos¡¯, the 6th rank Devil Princess Liliana is there.¡± Ian mumbled with a low voice. ¡°Uhm¡­Then what about the Rekayl that we met before?¡± Yankun replied, ¡°If it is Rekayl, then around 7th place.¡± ¡°Aha¡­¡± Ian¡¯s face widened. ¡®Then, you mean there isn¡¯t another monster like that? If so, then we can¡¯t just force our way through with power¡­¡¯ Ian asked Yankun once again, ¡°There isn¡¯t an alternative from going there?¡± ¡°The Wall of Chaos?¡± ¡°Hmm. It seems to be worthless to push through there with strength. Is there no other way than to cross paths with the Devil princess Liliana?¡± There was silence for a while. Yankun was in deep thoughts, so Ian looked over at Kaka. ¡°Yah, Kaka. Is there nothing you know?¡± Kaka replied with half-closed eyes, ¡°I have never been to the Wall of Chaos, Master.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not just answering me in your sleep, right?¡± ¡°Absolutely not!¡± ¡°Ah, okay.¡± And while they were having a change of words, Yankun opened his mouth again while still being in thoughts. ¡°Oh, there is one way, master.¡± ¡°Ohh¡­!¡± Ian asked with a smile, ¡°What is it?¡± Hesitating for a moment, Yankun spoke in a low voice, ¡°I can choose one of Liliana¡¯s retainers, before upgrading to a Noblesse. Then naturally, I¡¯ll be invited into the City of Chaos.¡± ¡°Oho, that seems like a pretty good way?¡± But Yankun¡¯s words didn¡¯t end there. ¡°But there is a problem.¡± ¡°What is it, quit stalling and just say it.¡± ¡°If I don¡¯t win the upgrade, then we will have to go through the Core of Chaos.¡± ¡°The Core of Chaos?¡± ¡°Yes. I think it is similar to the one that I was trapped in the past, the City of Rage. I¡¯ll probably be locked in there for a week or so.¡± ¡°Kue¡­probability of you winning?¡± ¡°If it is the current me¡­I have the probability to hold high at 2%, all of Liliana¡¯s retainers, they are the best of the Noblesse.¡± Ian¡¯s head started to hurt after listening to the complicated information that Yankun was giving him. ¡®Being trapped in here for a week is a bit too huge of a penalty.¡¯ If one is trapped in the Devildom, they are bound to lose to the Devils. It was a painful loss, and the penalty for a week is a huge no for Ian. But there was something going on in Ian¡¯s mind. ¡°Just a minute.¡± ¡°What is it, Master?¡± ¡°Do you have to challenge before you upgrade?¡± ¡°Umm¡­? What do you mean?¡± Ian smiled and answered, ¡°I¡¯m here. I¡¯m a Devil. Aren¡¯t I enough for you to change? ¡± Yankun answered while shaking head, ¡°No, master, no.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°If it is you, then winning the challenge isn¡¯t going to be much difficult. It can¡¯t happen for a retainer, but that could happen for a familiar. It wouldn¡¯t be much tough for Bbookbbook or Karceus to change with your consent.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the problem?¡± ¡°In order to challenge the retainers of the Devil princes, you must be a pure-blooded Devil.¡± Ian¡¯s expression turned upset. ¡°Ah¡­¡± ¡°My master is a half-Devil, so the challenge will probably get rejected.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Ian was feeling troubled again. ¡®But¡­I can¡¯t just give up now¡­¡¯ Ian started to make his mind work hard and began to move forward. Looking at this kind of Ian, Yankun asked him. ¡°Hmm¡­? What are you thinking, master?¡± Ian smiled a little and replied, ¡°Let¡¯s try to take of the zone 30 for now. We¡¯ll think of the later part when we get there.¡± Yankun nodded his head. ¡°I get it. we can do that.¡± And Ian summoned all his pets. ¡°Uhm? What¡¯s it, Master?¡± Ian laughed wickedly and spoke, ¡°Until we get to the 30th, you will all have to grow as much as you can, not leaving a single option out.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s enough to have Kaizer when we reach the gate. So get Sparta and get to hunting now, and reach a proper level up.¡± Yankun felt an unfamiliar chill going through his whole body. ¡°What is Sparta, Master?¡± Ian answered briefly, ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± * * * ¡°Hmm, at last, we have been able to establish a guild.¡± In the 100th division of Devildom, the City of Wrath. The City of Wrath had the second largest number of Asmodian users among the current cities of the Devildom. The city that had the most number of Asmodian users in the Devildom was the City of Hatred in the 200th division. The City of Hatred was the first place that had been created during the dimensional war, it was the initiation point when choosing the races that the Asmodians wanted when creating their character. Among the Asmodian users; the place where the novice users were mainly located was the City of Hatred, and it was the City of Wrath that had Asmodian users above the level of 150. There was a place called the City of Destruction in the division of 150, but there weren¡¯t many users over there. ¡°It was hard. In the dimensional war, the public value points were much lower than they had expected.¡± On the corner of the Central Square in the City of Wrath. Two Asmodians were talking. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s true. That would be a win, but Ian came in the last and changed it¡­¡± ¡°Yeah, well, we managed to create the guild somehow. This time for once we¡¯ll join forces.¡± ¡°Great. It is a bit unfortunate that ours isn¡¯t the first guild to be established in the Devildom, but we¡¯ll soon become the most powerful guild in the dimension, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. There is no way that Irahan¡¯s guild, who kept losing to Ian would be the stronger one. I heard that the guild of DarkRuna is almost half in power.¡± Surprisingly, it was the former master of the Splendor guild and the guild master Samuel Jin of the Oaklan Guild. The Splendor guild and the Oaklan guild, which had come into the Devildom, had joined forces to create a single strong guild. ¡°Uh, Ian¡­! He has been interfering from the central continent, and we stumbled in the end¡± At the statement for Martin¡ªSamuel Jin gently answered, ¡°That¡¯s right. Huhu, I don¡¯t know when but in the next dimensional war¡­ I¡¯ll make sure to give Ian a taste of defeat.¡± Although the Splendor and the Oaklan guild had collapsed, it didn¡¯t mean that the two guilds were less in strength. The two guilds were still holding the power to be inside the top 10 guilds. And the new guild had almost 60 ¨C 70 % of the power from the guilds as they had merged. ¡°Huh, I think it was a good decision to move the guilds here.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, the new guild content in the Devildom is amazing.¡± Two huge guilds, forming a new guild with awesome strength¡ªthe Tiger King Guild. Martin and the Samuel Jin were dreaming about making a new leap in the Devildom. But the two of them were soon going to face the challenges that they didn¡¯t anticipate. CH 317 ¡°Oh, ouch. Mas¡­ master.¡± ¡°What is it Yankun. You¡¯re not trying to say that you¡¯re feeling tired and want to rest, right?¡± ¡°No, No. I would never say that. Your Yankun isn¡¯t that weak¡­!¡± ¡°Okay then, let¡¯s go over there. There are a bunch of high-level monsters over there. Is it a pack?¡± ¡°Uh¡­euk¡­¡± A desolated field with many monsters in it. On the outskirts of the 31st division, Yankun was struggling. A total of six people were in the party including Yankun. Ian and three retainers, along with Kaka and Bbookbbook. The three retainers were Kaizer, Yankun, and the priest class Npc Elisha. Elisha was a recently acquired vassal through Ian¡¯s Pyro Training Centre, which had a legendary potential. Well, the current rank was still Heroic. ¡°My Lord, I feel like Yankun is a bit tired. How about we take a small break?¡± Elisha looked at Yankun with her big round eyes and blinked. And Yankun looked over at Ian with expectations in his eyes. But Ian looked cold. ¡°No, Elisha. Yankun is fine. Just put the heal so that Yankun wouldn¡¯t die.¡± ¡°Ah, Okay, my Lord.¡± Elisha looked over at Yankun and began to cast a healing spell on him. Yankun with an upset expression moved forward towards the monster and seeing this Kaizer shook his head. ¡°Catch them well Yankun, catch those Asmodians.¡± At these words from Kaizer, Ian smiled a little and responded, ¡°Now we will soon be in the 30th division. Wouldn¡¯t it be better to raise another level to have better results? I have no thoughts of going into punishment for the sake of Yankun.¡± At these words, the dull expression of Kaizer shone a little. ¡°Yes, I understand that too. The Asmodians dudes are a bit pitiful, but they are weak in general.¡± Yankun¡¯s current level was 385. Ian¡¯s trial had now gone up 25 levels. And Kaizer¡¯s level was 337. When Kaizer was in the before phase of awakening to the Myth class, there wouldn¡¯t have been much difference when compared in power with Yankun. Even if there is a difference between the legendary and heroic ranks, the level difference of 50 wasn¡¯t a small one. Rather, Yankun was stronger. However, now that Kaizer had become a myth class, it had been much stronger than Yankun. The rank gap between the two levels was something that couldn¡¯t be filled with 50 level difference. And that way, the Spartan hunting of Yankun continued, and Ian had no intention to move to the 30th division in the coming one week. ¡®If you keep rolling hard, you can shoot up to level 390?¡¯ In the second half of level 300, Yankun¡¯s level required experience was enormous. However, if the system was going to monopolize the exp of Yankun by sending him to the high level of monsters, it would be possible to raise around 5 levels within a week. When Ian was making plans in his head. Bboookbbook was behind him and called over. ¡°Master, boring Bbook.¡± Ian chuckled. They had all been watching Yankun hunting for a few days, so it was definitely for them to get bored. ¡°Why not go over there and give a shot of breath?¡± At this Bbookbbook¡¯s face began to shine. ¡°If I use my breath, then all the monsters there would die in a strike. And Yankun won¡¯t be able to level up.¡± Kaka who was right beside him countered. ¡°There is no way that would happen, so don¡¯t fret and just use your breath once. They aren¡¯t goblins or low-level monsters, so why would they get killed by your breath?¡± Bbookbbook glared over at Kaka. Glare- ¡°I can¡¯t do that Bbook. My breath is very strong.¡± Kaka responded impatiently. ¡°Shall we bet, Bbookbbook?¡± Bbookbbook responded immediately. ¡°Good Bbook. Let¡¯s bet Bbook. What is the content bbook?¡± Ian looked at them with an interested expression. ¡°If you manage to kill down one of the bosses with your breath then, you win. And if you don¡¯t manage to take it down, then I win. How¡¯s that?¡± Bbookbbook moved his head up and down. ¡°I like it bbook!!¡± Ian, who had listened to the conversation between those two, began to think over in his head. Just calculating the damage wasn¡¯t enough to answer it immediately, even if one was as clever as Ian, the results would be hard to predict. ¡®I don¡¯t know this too. It is likely for the weak ones to be down with a strike, as it will result in a critical strike.¡¯ On the other hand, after evolving into the Abyss Dragon, Bbookbbook looked like he had gotten smarter. ¡®When he received the buff from the Gods, he was able to take down the legendary monsters with a single strike, and even in the absence of the buffs, his attacks are still very powerful.¡¯ But how smart Bbookbbook had turned, the Intellect of Kaka¡¯s was now nearly around 10,000. Kaka¡¯s level had been on the rise for quite some time, but for some unforeseen reason, Kaka¡¯s intellect stats had always been growing. It wasn¡¯t so sure, but Kaka¡¯s intelligence seemed to be rising due to sleeping. And the current intellect of Bbookbbook has been about 5,000 or so. And Kaka was twice smarter than that. Kaka had already known the offensive power and the defense of Bbookbook, so there could¡¯ve been some kind of unforeseen calculation. ¡®It isn¡¯t in a level where one could go down with a single strike even if calculated roughly. When the critical strike explodes, it could lead to an unrecoverable state.¡¯ So the bet that was placed on the meatballs for two days was on, and Bbookbbook was full of ambitious expression. Kuahh-! Flapping its huge wings, it flew to the field where Yankun was fighting! After taking a huge breath, he opened his big mouth widely. The mouth of Bbookbbook began to fill up with a mass of energy, and soon an intense wave began to form. The breath of the Abyss Dragon, a huge chilling storm. Kwahhh-! A dozen of the high-level monster that was attacking Yankun was flustered. It was because of a strong cold air that was over their head. Kwaahhh-! The monsters and the Asmodians tried to dodge, but the cold breath didn¡¯t allow them. The range of it was wide, and their movement was slowed down due to the Breath¡¯s cold effect. In the end, the ongoing Breath had hit all the monsters in the field. ¡°Grrrr!¡± After blowing out Breath, Bbookbbook stood there with a proud expression, and looked down onto the ground from the sky. However, the vitality of the monster wasn¡¯t dead yet, it had around 1/3rd of its vitality still remaining. Even in the places where the breath had directly hit the monsters. Bbookbbook was very confused. ¡®But, But¡­ at least one of them had to die bbook.¡¯ Bbookbbook was trying to find just one dead creature. But then, Bbookbbook found one monster which had turned into a corpse. With a lot of excitement, Bbookbbook returned to the place where Ian was. ¡°Bbookbbook! There is one guy dead over there, bbook!¡± With shining eyes, Bbookbbook spoke, But Kaka¡¯s expression rather than being embarrassed was of comfort. So Bbookbbook felt like something was wrong. ¡®What bbook. I obviously won, won the bet bbok¡­!¡¯ And then Kaka had opened its mouth. ¡°Till tomorrow, all your meatballs are mine. You accept right Bbookbbook?¡± Polymorphing to the tortoise form, Bbookbbook asked with a nervous expression. ¡°What do you mean by that Bbook?! There is one dead thing over there bbook!¡± And turned his head towards Ian, asking for a fair judgment. But Ian shook his head. ¡°I think the bet is in the favor of Kaka, Bbookbbook-ah¡± ¡°Bbook¡­!!¡± And Ian spoke to BBookbbook who was confused at what was going on. ¡°The dead guy over there, Yankun had taken it down before you.¡± And Kaka added another word. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah you just stole it from Yankun.¡± ¡°Bbokbok¡­!¡± Bbookbbook looked depressed. In a moment, he had lost 2 of his meatballs. ¡°Can¡¯t you just let this slide for once, Bbook.¡± Ian who had watched Kaka and Bbookbbook for a while turned his head in the direction of Yankun with a smile. And Yankun, all because of Bbookbbook¡¯s breath, was able to fight much more easily. Breath caused the monsters to lose most of their vitality, but the best part of it was that the monsters movement was slowed down due to the freezing effect. ¡®Phew, can Yankun succeed in upgrading?¡¯ It didn¡¯t mean that the moment it leveled up, it wouldn¡¯t get to be strong all at once. That was why Ian had other plans for Yankun. * * * ¡°Euahkk¡­! How did the Asmodians¡­?!¡± ¡°There is no way to know¡­ I¡¯m sorry but you¡¯ll have to die.¡± Puak¡­! A man with a red armor all over his body. And his sword had pierced through the abdomen of another user. [The user ¡®Minwoo87¡¯ has received tremendous damage.] [You have succeeded in defeating the user ¡®Minwoo87¡¯!] And the user ¡®Minwoo87¡¯ muttered something while dying. ¡°Uh¡­ Irahan¡­ you¡¯re somehow too strong¡­¡± And as soon as the user died, a new system message emerged in front of the standing user. Tring- [A human user (250/250)] [You have met all the requirements for the ¡®Devil¡¯s Power¡¯ to be activated.] Seeing the system message, Irahan smiled. ¡®Huhu, because of that jerk Ian, I was lagging behind¡­ but finally, I will be promoted into a Noblesse.¡¯ Irahan pulled out the red vial into his hands. It was wrapped with a burning red light. ¡°Huho¡­¡± Taking a deep breath, Irahan used it without hesitation. And the red light around the vial began to get absorbed by Irahan. Tring-! [You have successfully completed the ¡®Quest of the Devil II¡¯ (Updated quest).] [The Power of Devil has been activated.] [The ranks of the magic have risen.] [The racial class of the user ¡®Irahan¡¯ has been promoted from ¡®Greater Asmodian¡¯ to ¡®Noblesse¡¯.] [All combat skills increases by 5%.] [Increases your stats by 10%.] [Increase the magic hit rate by 2%.] [Increases your stats by 2%.] The upgrade to a successfully Noblesse rank! Irahan carefully went through the messages. But, Irahan¡¯s expression wasn¡¯t so great. ¡®What? Why is it that there is no compensation for the initial achievement?¡¯ Irahan was confused. No matter how much of a level he had lost, the achievement of his magical content was still overwhelming. He was of the thought that there would be no one before himself who would¡¯ve turned to a Noblesse first. ¡®What the hell is happening? There is someone who had already become a Noblesse, before me?¡¯ Irahan suddenly remembered Ian. However, Irahan knew better than anyone that to become a noblesse, there were many limitations. ¡®Who the hell is it?¡¯ Irahan¡¯s face was distorted. Such kind of developments. In Kailan, there was a compensation for the first achievements of any new content, so it was obvious that somebody had achieved Noblesse first. ¡°Damn it¡­!¡± Irahan felt hurt. ¡®I won¡¯t stop. There is no time to spare.¡¯ In fact, Irahan hadn¡¯t been idle. After Ian had crushed him, he had been busy restoring the losses he had received. However, Irahan was a thorough ¡®resultant¡¯. He had always been focused on the results rather than on process. Effort wasn¡¯t an important thing for him. Rather than ¡®working hard¡¯ he was much interested in ¡®Good¡¯ things that were in store for him. ¡®Now that I am a Noblesse, I can grow faster.¡¯ In order to get his revenge on Ian, he didn¡¯t take a break. And now he couldn¡¯t stand the fact that there was someone who was ahead of him. ¡®If I couldn¡¯t be the first in the Devildom, I¡¯ll make sure that I¡¯ll get that 50 % of magic resistance, and will face him again.¡¯ Irahan clenched his teeth and put his swords back in the sheath. And quickly disappeared¡­ CH 318 Ian had a very tight hunting schedule, and his retainer Yankun had finally achieved level 390. As soon as Yankun reached level 390, Ian broke through the gates. Ian went through the 30th to 31st and finally entered the 30th division. As soon as Ian entered the 30th division after opening the gate, his mouth opened wide. ¡°Wow, what is this. Is this the great wall?¡± The scene that Ian¡¯s eyes were witnessing was like the Great Wall. Kaka who was flying next to Ian asked. ¡°Master, what¡¯s a great wall?¡± Ian replied. ¡°There is this huge country called China, and there was an emperor who had built a huge wall.¡± Due to the short knowledge that Ian had, that was the limit of his answer. But even with such a short answer, Kaka¡¯s eyes were shining. ¡°China? The great wall? This is the first time I heard that name, master.¡± Ian responded with an impatient look. ¡°Well, that¡¯s for sure. China is not a country of this world.¡± ¡°Oho, so it is the empire that exists in the world where my master usually goes over to.¡± Ian nodded. ¡°Well, you can put it like that.¡± Ian¡¯s gaze went towards Kaka, whose eye was trying to take in the beauty of the magnificent wall in front of him. The wall was lined up endlessly along the horizon, and with the red sky behind it, it looked like a painting. ¡®I¡¯ll have to go over there.¡¯ Ian¡¯s gaze moved in the direction of Yankun. ¡°Yankun.¡± ¡°Master?¡± ¡°Will you be able to do it?¡± Yankun thought for a second and nodded with a confident look. ¡°Yes, master.¡± Ian laughed and spoke. ¡°You seem to have twice the confidence today than yesterday?¡± Yankun replied with a gentle expression. ¡°With the equipment, you lent to me master, I can take down even the topmost Noblesse.¡± Ian lent all his equipment to Yankun the moment he had reached the 30th division. Since Yankun didn¡¯t know how to handle a spear, Ian couldn¡¯t lend him his Judgement of the Spirit King. However, he had given Yankun all of his anti-magic equipment settings. Yankun¡¯s anti-magic set was almost 60%, which wasn¡¯t as high as Ian¡¯s. Besides, Ian wore the items before, so the option was all previously set by him. If the setting was enough, it would be possible for Yankun to win against a top noblesse. ¡°Don¡¯t stress it too much, Yankun.¡± ¡°I understand, Master. I will definitely win.¡± Ian spoke in a calm voice. ¡°I¡¯ll let you borrow my equipment till the end of the term, but¡­ you know right?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Yankun felt his whole body freeze. * * * Ian was able to cross the Wall of Chaos without much difficulty. Yankun showed something to the gatekeeper, and he had silently allowed them to pass through. On top of that, one of the guards had even guided them out of kindness. Ian asked something that he was curious about. ¡°Yankun, What is that?¡± ¡°The Seal of the Greater Asmodian.¡± ¡°Umm¡­? The seal of Greater Asmodian¡­¡± The Seal of Half-Devil, even Ian had this. Ian was also a higher-level Asmodian ( Half-Devil), and it was naturally created into his inventory when he had turned into the Half-Devil. But Ian had no reason to be surprised. ¡°But it looks a little different from the seal that I have.¡± Ian had a headache. Ian¡¯s seal was like a sword, but in Yankun¡¯s seal, there was a strong red light. Yankun replied. ¡°Well, basically, the half and pure Asmodians have a different appearance. However, it is a different matter based on the devil energy. When all the qualifications for upgrading to the next rank are met, the seal will change automatically.¡± ¡°Oho? Hmm¡­ but Yankun.¡± ¡°Go on, master.¡± ¡°I have around 5 million devil energy, so basing on what you said, do I need another additional qualification?¡± Yankun nodded. ¡°I¡¯m not sure about the requirements to upgrade for to a Noblesse. But if the seal marking has not changed, then it means you¡¯re still unqualified.¡± But now, Yankun was the one that needed to upgrade to Noblesse, but even Ian wanted to become a Noblesse. ¡®How am I supposed to qualify?¡¯ In fact, Ian wasn¡¯t much interested in the Noblesse till recently. In case of a pure Asmodian, it increases every time they were in a battle, but in the case of a Half-Asmodian, there was no increase in rank apart from the increase in stats. Magic attack rate, magic resistance, and basic wear. They alone were worth the upgrade, but Ian hadn¡¯t thought about them as he had many other important things to do. However, after the end of the dimensional war, his priority had changed a bit. A Myth class bow was dropped from Khalifa. It was because of the Noblesse rating that Ian was able to wear the item ¡®God¡¯s rage¡¯. In any case, showing the seal of the qualified Asmodian, and then expressing their intention to challenge the King of Trails. Their party was guided to the King of Chaos even though their motives were already known. * * * ¡°You have a precious guest.¡± Ian who had confronted the Devil was nervous and became flustered as he chose the words he would say. ¡®What does he mean?¡¯ Ian, the protagonist for the victory of Dimensional War. That being said, Ian was the main cause for the defeat of the Asmodians in the Dimensional War. So, that was why Ian was nervous about confronting the Devil, but the reaction of Liliana was very soft. Ian looked at her but had no idea as to what she was going to do. ¡®Better be careful. This is the enemy¡¯s place.¡¯ Ian spoke after some deep thoughts. ¡°Do you know me?¡± Liliana nodded and put up a very meaningful smile. ¡°How can I¡ªLiliana, not know you? All the rulers of Devildom probably know you, Ian.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ I understand.¡± Liliana laughed while touching her horns and looking at Ian who wasn¡¯t sure about how he was supposed to respond. ¡°It is a very nice gesture, by the way. It hasn¡¯t been long since the Dimensional War had ended, it is astonishing to find you here.¡± Ian decided to be confident and continued to talk. ¡°War is war. I thought that the prince would put an end to the war, but he couldn¡¯t do it since he was alone. In addition, from the human¡¯s point of view, it was plain self-defense.¡± Liliana who hadn¡¯t spoke immediately burst into laughter. ¡°Ho ho ho, you¡¯re really an unusual person, you sure are.¡± Liliana watched Ian very closely and said. ¡°Actually, you¡¯re words aren¡¯t so wrong. Due to the lack of power of our Asmodians, we were defeated in the war.¡± Ian who heard her words was relieved. ¡®Phew, I feel like I¡¯ve lost ten years of my life.¡¯ But Liliana¡¯s words didn¡¯t end there. ¡°However, I¡¯m the monarch who rules over Devildom, and my position is a little different from normal Asmodians. You are a great enemy who had great power, but I am a monarch of this kingdom. Are you thinking that you could just take me on and neglect being punished?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Looking at Ian¡¯s confused expression, Liliana put up a funny face. Liliana sat her long white legs and stared at Ian. Ian was nervously looking at her, and slowly her red lips opened. ¡°But you¡¯re one lucky person.¡± ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± ¡°Fortunately, I don¡¯t like the boasters much. If you weren¡¯t so hard on yourself and tried to be modest, you would¡¯ve been dead before you faced me. Or probably be trapped.¡± Ian understood his situation right now. ¡®Boaster¡­ that was. Then Devil Liliana is a modest?¡¯ Ian¡¯s head was spinning rapidly. ¡®And favoring a half-devil, the Devil Ricardo also, said the same.¡¯ Through his exchange of words with Liliana, Ian roughly realized the situation and the circumstance of Devildom. Liliana¡¯s words continued. ¡°But that doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯m on your side.¡± ¡°I understand that.¡± Liliana licked her lips. ¡°Nice. The reason as to finding the monarch of Chaos. Let¡¯s start with that.¡± Ian gulped down his spit and waited for her next words. But instead of opening her mouth, she clapped her hands. Chak- And one of the Asmodians who were lined up beside Liliana came forward. ¡°You have called?¡± Liliana tilted her head and commanded. ¡°Kiryan, will be the opponent for your Asmodian.¡± All the Asmodians, seemed clueless but replied with a loud voice. ¡°Order received!¡± * * * The magic Noblesse used were called ¡®Nobility¡¯. When a noblesse turns into a Nobility in Devildom, they turn to the vested group of the Devildom. After getting the power from it, the rank would be decided based on it. The Noblesse were the strongest ones, who were entitled to the interest of Devildom. Ian mumbled. ¡°Kiryan, huh? What would the rank of that Asmodian be?¡± The standards of the noblesse in the Devildom were a bit too complicated. On the base, there was a sequence from 1 to a thousand that were granted by skills. And the interesting thing about it was if one got pushed down from 1000, even then their class wouldn¡¯t get demoted. In order to become a noblesse, one would have to win against a noblesse, but once he turns into a Noblesse, he wouldn¡¯t be able to go back to being a greater-Noblesse. Instead, the Noblesse who got out from the rank was subjected to ¡°Out of sequence¡± treatment and was pushed away from the Devildom. Kaka who was beside Ian spoke in a voice that only Ian could hear. ¡°You can see the City of Chaos as the city is ruled by Liliana¡­ but this is also a top city among the various cities of Devildom.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Kaka continued. ¡°The Devil Liliana will surely hold a high position for the Noblesse Asmodian and that means that there is enormous power in Devildom.¡± Kaka who was concerned looked over at Kiryan and opened her mouth once again. ¡°Well, I¡¯m not sure, but I think that he could be around level 500, master.¡± Ian touched his head after hearing what Kaka just said. ¡°Huh? In such an outstanding city, only 500?¡± Kaka replied with his head down. ¡°Not only 500, master. The Noblesse who are between 1 to 100 are the Devil Princes, and those between 200 and 400 are noblesse, most of them will enter the Devil Temple, the center of Devildom. Those over 500 are the ones who are not supposed to be messed with.¡± ¡°Devil temple¡­? Now, what is that.¡± Ian¡¯s curiosity was triggered by what Kaka just said, but Kaka didn¡¯t respond immediately. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you that the next time, master. It¡¯s not something you need to know right now, and I still need to collect information.¡± ¡°Collect information? From where?¡± Kaka replied while rolling her eyes. ¡°Stop asking me, master. You need to start upgrading Yankun.¡± Ian¡¯s curiosity died down after hearing what Kaka said and looked over at Kiryan and Yankun getting into the Altar. The Devil Liliana who was sitting on the other side of Ian looked ominous. CH 319 The Noblesse Asmodian Kiryan was the lowest of the Noblesse line-up, that the Devil Liliana had. However, even if that was so, in the entire Devildom, the users above the rank of 450 were considered to be of tremendous strength. And now he was advancing while feeling upset that a Greater Asmodian, had challenged him¡ªa Noblesse. ¡®Jack ass¡­ I¡¯ll show you what it means to be different.¡¯ Kiryan took steps cautiously and was stroking his arm. His weapon was a giant mace with three heads. A staggering weapon with an equally terrifying appearance. But the weapon that Yankun had was too good. In the hands of Yankun was a gigantic sword, which was about the size of his long arm. Ian smiled and thought to himself. ¡®The moment that I got it, I knew that it was the right weapon for Yankun.¡¯ Normally, Yankun knew how to use two kinds of weapons. One of them was a great sword, and the other was a great axe. The weapon that Yankun had now, was a big sword that touched the floor, but the top part of the blade was huge enough to be used as an axe. At first glance, Yankun¡¯s weapon looked distorted; it couldn¡¯t be distinguished between an axe and a sword. It was a confrontation of both power and strength! Kiryan smiled and slowly approached Yankun. ¡°It¡¯s my first time seeing a Noblesse get losing before getting upgraded.¡± Yankun nodded slowly and acknowledged what Kiryan said. ¡°Well. But I don¡¯t plan on being this way.¡± Boing- Yankun laughed at the gigantic strike it did at the opponent. An explicit provocation. Kiryan¡¯s face turned red of anger. ¡°Man¡­ I¡¯ll show you what despair feels like.¡± Dukduk-! Kiryan wanted to dominate Yankun, but he got confused because of Yankun¡¯s provocation. Kiryan seemed a bit relieved feeling that he would trample the one in front of his eyes. Kiryan ran in Yankun¡¯s direction, and Yankun ran towards Kiryan as well. The two Asmodians began to rush towards the other, and a heavy sound began to ring in the battlefield. Bang- Bang- Bang-! The massive weapons of the two Asmodians came in contact with the other, and great roaring sounds started to resonate. Kwang-! That was the start of the great fight. The two who were exchanging blows vigorously retreated by spreading the distance between them. Ian was watching them very closely. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Ian discreetly called Kaka, which made her respond. ¡°What is it, master?¡± Ian responded in a low voice. ¡°The Noblesse Asmodian, He¡¯s stronger than I thought.¡± ¡°I told you right. He is currently under 6th ranked Devil. He would be strong.¡± Ian¡¯s gaze was fixed on Kiryan¡¯s vitality. ¡®He wasn¡¯t able to attack properly yet¡­ but it didn¡¯t cut more than 5% of the vitality.¡¯ Meanwhile, Liliana who was sitting on the other side was rather relaxed. Unlike Kiryan, Yankun was devastated when he lost 10% of his vitality. And Kiryan, had a much excited expression. ¡®Kiryan¡¯s attack power is better than Yankun¡¯s attack level¡­ but he isn¡¯t strong enough to be my opponent.¡¯ Kiryan with his mace stepped forward. However, Yankun was surprisingly calm and relaxed. ¡°Well¡­¡± Kiryan pulled up the mace and smiled. ¡®Is there room for this?¡¯ Wheing- Kiryan, like the military demonstration, waved his mace towards the floor. He made a heavy sound, and the bottom of the floor pitted out. Kwang- It was a tremendous destructive power! But that didn¡¯t scare Yankun. Yankun laughed and pointed his sword at Kiryan. The two Asmodians slowly began to move towards the other. Ian, on the other hand, felt a little nervous after seeing Yankun¡¯s calm expression. ¡®What is this? Yankun has never been the kind of guy who could keep a poker face like that¡­?¡¯ Ian knew much more about Yankun¡¯s tendencies than anyone else. He wasn¡¯t like Kiryan, Yankun was a simple being. If he had really suffered any serious damage, all his emotions would¡¯ve been exposed in an instant. Ian was now concerned. ¡®What to do?¡¯ And the next moment, Ian suddenly had an idea. ¡®Just a while back¡­ did he just change to combat?¡¯ The magic was a fixed damage that would happen only when triggered, unless it was triggered with unique ability. It was the kind of ability that could be suppressed and invoked when the user wanted to. At the same time, the two Asmodians were exchanging at least two or three attacks, and surely the attack of magi would¡¯ve played at least once. But according to Ian¡¯s analysis, both Yankun and Kiryan had no magi in them. Ian once again looked at the battlefield where the two Asmodians were facing each other. He was able to realize for sure. ¡®That was it. Without Magic, it¡¯s just physical damage, so I need to put my belief in the anti-magic.¡¯ There was something that Yankun had got in the fight. And that was Kiryan¡¯s ¡®Vigilance¡¯. That was the opportunity he was looking for. ¡®What could be the unique ability that Yankun could use now?¡¯ Ian was focused on the battle and thought about all the unique abilities that he had possessed. ¡®Magic Concentration¡¯s passive ability, it is meaningless¡­and the magic eruption wasn¡¯t an ability that could be of use right now.¡¯ Magic concentration was a passive ability that could increase the basic battle abilities of Yankun, and Magic eruption was a powerful ranged attack. Moreover, since magic eruption was a channeling skill, it wasn¡¯t suited to one-on-one combat. If Magic eruption was triggered, then one couldn¡¯t move until the end of the skill duration. ¡®In the end, the ability that Yankun could use in this situation was Frenzy Battle¡¯ Frenzy Battle was a self-buffing ability that exponentially increases the battle power of Yankun for a short duration. Ian glanced at Yankun. ¡®If you want to utilize the opportunity at the right moment, you¡¯ll have to use it right away. You should give your opponent the opening to attack.¡¯ Although the magic wasn¡¯t invoked, the difference between Kiryan and Yankun could be clearly seen. It was easy to say as the damage received was twice. It was obvious, so Ian could deduce that Kiryan¡¯s overall combat abilities were at a greater magnitude when compared with Yankun. Entering the battle by placing all trust in the anti-magic was still a difficult bet. If the opponent found out that Yankun had anti-magic, he would be way too cautious in the battle, and Yankun¡¯s overall specs would fail him and he would get defeated. ¡®Yankun will have to do really well¡­¡¯ Yankun wasn¡¯t a smart one, but his battle sense had always been excellent. So Ian decided to trust him. But then, Ian¡¯s concern was settled. ¡°Kyaahhh-!¡± In the middle of the battlefield, Yankun roared. Ian¡¯s mouth went up. It was because he knew what Yankun was using, ¡®Frenzy Battle¡¯ the inherent ability had been activated. ¡®Yeah, do that immediately Yankun. Finish him off right away.¡¯ * * * The most magnificent and splendid Maurya Empire. The highest place which could make one look at the southern islands. And the man who had entered the ¡®Hwangsoeng¡¯ of the Maurya Empire for the second time. ¡°HoHo, you are genuinely welcomed here, descendant¡­!¡± ¡°Yes, my lord. I came to see your majesty.¡± A man with dark eyes, and strong jawline. With bloodstains on his long sword, it was Shakran. The guild master of Titan Guild became the number one guild after the DarkRuna Guild had gone into the Devildom. He stepped into the land of the Maurya Empire, which hadn¡¯t been stepped on since Ian had left. In addition to that, Shakran found hidden quests for his hidden class in the Maurya Empire. ¡®Huhu, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve seen such a huge field before.¡¯ Shakran mistook himself for being the first one to find the Maurya Empire. But his imagination broke down pretty soon. ¡°Now that I see you, you very much feel like a young hero I met a while ago.¡± Shakran was shocked in response. ¡°You met someone like me?¡± The King smiled and responded. ¡°The name of that person was Ian. He was a very brave young man. He had come here a month ago or so, to borrow one of my treasure.¡± While listening to this, Shakran¡¯s hope collapsed. ¡®Well, then I guess the story about Ian already passing the gate of the Empire and meeting the King a month ago is all true.¡¯ Shakran grunted to himself and was pondering. ¡®Then, if it is a month ago¡­¡¯ Shakran soon realized that Ian was top-ranked in the public value after the quests during the Second world war. ¡®Huh, I guess he really is a crazy guy.¡¯ But he didn¡¯t feel like he couldn¡¯t surpass the difference in skill between him and Ian. Shakran was rather burning with a lot of passion. ¡®I¡¯m surely not going to get defeated this time¡­ I¡¯ll soon catch up to him. Haha.¡¯ He had such strong confidence. In front of his eyes, was a golden booklet the thing he needed. Shakran¡¯s mouth opened. ¡°Ian is someone even I am familiar with.¡± The King¡¯s face shone brightly as he asked. ¡°Oho, is it so? What kind of person is he in your world?¡± The king seemed to like Ian a lot, and the more the king spoke, the more Shakran got flustered. But that wasn¡¯t because of envy or jealousy. ¡°He is definitely an amazing person. It was because of him that we were able to stop the Devils¡¯ invasion.¡± A wide smile came over the King¡¯s face. ¡°Well, surely.¡± He was slowly stroking his beard. ¡°And you, following the progress of Ian¡¯s success, you will surely be able to be a great person.¡± Shakran bowed and replied. ¡°I won¡¯t let you down.¡± Shakran wasn¡¯t a modest person. He had a tendency to be straightforward and confident with his skills. Even in the situation where the King had been talking, the users tend to be humble in response. But here Shakran didn¡¯t lower himself. It wasn¡¯t because he was arrogant. Shakran was confident, but he was never arrogant. The emperor spoke with a satisfied smiled. ¡°Nice, I hope so too.¡± The King, after speaking picked up the golden booklet from the podium. He handed it over to Shakran. ¡°Take it, this is the vision of, ¡®Shadow Secret¡¯.¡± ¡°Thank you¡± Shakran accepted the booklet without much hesitation, and at the same time, a number of system messages popped up. Tring- [You have completed the quest ¡®Shadow Secret¡¯.] [You have obtained the item ¡®Shadow Secret¡¯.] [You have acquired 200,000 worth of fame.] [You have gained 95700000 experience points.] A line of system message appeared at the bottom of the first system messages. Seeing that Shakran¡¯s mouth went up. [The tier of the Hidden class ¡®Shadow Swordsman¡¯ rises to the next level.] CH 320 It was a violent game that even made the hands of the viewers¡¯ sweat. But in the end, the confrontation of strength and power of Yankun had won. Kiryan was obviously strong, but he couldn¡¯t deny the fact that Yankun had fought extremely well. ¡®Phew, we won¡­!¡¯ In fact, Yankun taking the challenge before the upgrade was quite a dangerous decision on the part of Ian. Well, it surely wasn¡¯t a blind gamble. Ian seeing the Noblesse grade Asmodians in the dimensional war had objectively thought that there would be a chance of 70% success. And then, the result was just as calculated, the battle for the upgrade was now silent. [The vitality of Liliana¡¯s retainer ¡®Kiryan¡¯ has dropped below 10%.] [The battle has ended, basing on the rules of upgrade battle.] [The retainer ¡®Yankun¡¯ has won against ¡®Kiryan¡¯.] [Yankun¡¯s rank in the Devildom which had been 37698, has risen to 438.] [The retainer ¡®Yankun¡¯ met all the conditions for getting promoted to Noblesse.] Seeing those message pop up one after the other, Ian felt good. ¡®Nice, nice.¡¯ The final goal that Ian had to reach in the Devildom, to level up his Magical Beast Alchemy. Yankun¡¯s noblesse upgrade was an unscheduled turn of events, yet it made Ian feel better. Ian smiled at Yankun, who was walking away from the battlefield. ¡°You¡¯ve worked hard, Yankun.¡± Yankun looked in the direction of Ian. ¡°Thank you, master. It is all thanks to you.¡± Yankun who thanked Ian moved forward and went towards the direction of the Devil Liliana. And right beside her was Kiryan with a gloomy expression. Liliana who was looking at Yankun opened up her lips. ¡°This is a surprising turn of events. The Asmodian has turned victorious over the Noblesse Asmodian who was the first to upgrade the ranked Kiryan of top 500.¡± Without any words Yankun just looked at her, Kiryan was also brutally hurt hearing those words but stayed still. Such cases in the Devildom world, are the rarest of the rare. Liliana¡¯s eyes were glowing red. It was a phenomenon that happened when the devils use their powers. Liliana opened her mouth with a low but heavy voice. ¡°I, Devil princess Liliana¡­ have admitted that the Greater-Asmodian Yankun will turn to the Noblesse at this moment.¡± Woong-! A red light moved from the hands of Liliana and began to engulf the whole body of Yankun. And the faces of the Asmodians who were seeing the scenario unfold had a different expression. They were curious about the greater ranked Asmodian turning into a Noblesse, and it was envy for the case of the low-level Asmodians. From the Noblesse, the upgrade gets very difficult. At the moment of upgrading to the Noblesse, the abilities will increase significantly, and the power of the Asmodian will get stronger. And it could be compared as an equal to the ability of the Devil princess. But there was still a difference between the power of the Devil and the Asmodian, it was like heaven and earth. Therefore, the case for a Noblesse to upgrade to a devil wasn¡¯t much great except for the title. Ian was looking at Yankun with a proud expression, and system messages started to appear. [The Devil¡¯s power has been activated.] [Trial ¡®Yankun¡¯ is upgrading from ¡®Asmodian¡¯ to ¡®Noblesse¡¯.] [Increase of all combat abilities of ¡®Yankun¡¯ by 5%.] [Trial ¡®Yankun¡¯ magic stats increased by 10%.] [Trial ¡®Yankun¡¯ magic attack rate increased by 2%.] [Trial ¡®Yankun¡¯ magic resistance has increased by 2%.] [¡®Noblesse¡¯ ¡®power¡¯ slot has been created (Seal).] However, Ian¡¯s gaze which read the system message with gratitude stood at a medium level. ¡®What is this¡­? The power of Noblesse? Well, it is created, then it¡¯s created, but what is this ¡®Seal¡¯?¡¯ Once he had read through the messages, there was only one part of the message that didn¡¯t make sense to him. While Ian was trying to understand, Yankun¡¯s Noblesse changing ceremony had ended, and the Devil Liliana looked at Ian. Her eyes were slightly narrowed. ¡°Ian, the owner of Yankun¡­ is it you?¡± Ian answered without thinking, ¡°Yes, it is.¡± And Liliana mumbled in a slow voice. ¡°I guess it is that then¡­¡± Ian was curious about that, so he asked. ¡°What do you mean? I guess it is it then?¡± Liliana spoke with a smile on her lips. ¡°Now your retainer, Yankun has now turned into a Noblesse.¡± That was something that everyone there knew, Ian didn¡¯t respond and waited for the other things that Liliana would say. ¡°But for Yankun¡­ after being the Noblesse, he can¡¯t utilize the noblesse power.¡± Ian¡¯s eyes went bigger at that statement. As it was the thing that he was concerned about. So Ian asked Liliana, ¡°Is¡­ is that so?¡± ¡°I feel a bit bitter, but now I know the reason why.¡± Liliana moved a little forward from her chair and said, ¡°That¡¯s all because of you.¡± * * * A manor that boasts of great territory and godliness in the eastern region of the Northern Continent. It was also the base of the Lotus Guild¡¯s first flag, and with Ian as the Lord, the ¡®Summoners Manor¡¯ as it was called. The Lotus Manor continued to grow in size. And the best first-class honor, and it was the first, the Summoners¡¯ training center was the foundation of the growth of the Lotus Manor. But now there were various other facilities for the various summoners. Among those, the newly opened facilities under Professor Lee Jin-wook and the contents that were brought in by the other users. In fact, that was a natural phenomenon. In the Kailan, Lotus was the only place that had the highest number of summoners, so all the users with the relevant class had to come here. That was why the users called this as the ¡®Summoner¡¯s Valley¡¯. And there was a bunch of crowd in the ¡®Summoner¡¯s valley¡¯; Hoonie and Canoel were walking. ¡°Ah, Sh*t. What kind of a sick quest is this?¡± At Hoonie who was muttering to himself, Canoel who was walking next to him laughed a little. ¡°So, you mean we need to go to the Devildom to find the item called ¡®Deadman¡¯s Book¡¯?¡± At Canoel¡¯s words, Hoonie replied, ¡°Hmm, so what do you mean? No, there is no way to enter the Devildom from our world, so how am I supposed to proceed with the quest? Sh*t¡­!¡± The reason Hoonie was upset could be understandable. Hoonie received a career related quest after the end of the Dimensional War, and during the progress of it, he had discovered a hidden class. But there was one problem: To continue with the quest, he had to enter the Devildom dimension. ¡®And the Devildom is a place that no human user could go to, at the moment¡­¡¯ Canoel looked over at Hoonie who was deep in thoughts. ¡°Then, should we try and call the customer care center. Don¡¯t you think that the content is wrong? We can¡¯t fix it since this a mistake from the development team, right?¡± But Hoonie shook his head. ¡°No, that won¡¯t do Hyung.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Honestly, there isn¡¯t another way to enter the Devildom.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± Hoonie replied with a sigh, ¡°I think this quest feels like a quest that will progress with changing the race.¡± ¡°Oh¡­? What is going on in your head?¡± Even after the dimensional war, the quests for the race change were still available. In fact, these were the type of quests that were supposed to disappear after the end of the dimensional war. They were the quests that were made temporarily for the creation of the new race class in the beginning. Lb re-created a new quest to convert into the race of Asmodians. And the quest that Hoonie had been given, it felt like it was the right time to be given. ¡°You know? This doesn¡¯t seem to be a mistake, it seems to be their intention, hyung.¡± Canoel replied while nodding his head. ¡°Definitely looks like it. I think the developers are pushing the Asmodian class for quite some time.¡± However, Hoonie had no intention of converting into the race of Asmodian. Not long ago, Fiolan came to take him into the Lotus Guild in a formal manner after a long time, and he likes the guild life very much. It was small but big change for Hoonie who had always insisted on staying alone, and somehow Kailan has become more fun these days. ¡®The Asmodian race isn¡¯t so amazing.¡¯ Hoonie, who was walking along with Canoel, was in his thoughts till he opened his mouth. ¡°But Hyung.¡± ¡°uh?¡± ¡°Maybe, there could be a way to go over to the Devildom, apart from converting to the race?¡± * * * ¡°Because of me¡­ what do you mean?¡± Ian was shocked. Because of him, the Noblesse power had been sealed. No matter how much he thought, he couldn¡¯t understand. Liliana spoke, ¡°Apart from the beginning, the half- Devil, Ian, your rank is Half-Devil and Yankun¡¯s class is Noblesse.¡± Liliana, who looked back and forth from Ian and Yankun, opened her mouth again. ¡°In the Devildom, a trial cannot be holding much power than the owner, if he does then he can¡¯t excise the power. It is the law that has been set from the very beginning.¡± And as soon as he heard this, Ian¡¯s mouth went wide. ¡°That¡­¡± Ian had an unhappy expression. ¡°But, now that I think, it is ironical that Yankun is higher in rank than my Amsodians.¡± And as if reading the thoughts of Ian, Liliana said, ¡°Normally, a Half-Asmodian can¡¯t take over a Noblesse Asmodian. However, this is a case of a trial being upgraded¡­ successfully. A rare case.¡± Ian felt a bit relieved. ¡°Is that so.¡± But he wasn¡¯t disappointed. And the power that couldn¡¯t be used, it was something that wouldn¡¯t disappear just because it won¡¯t get used. If one day Ian turns into a Noblesse, the power of Yankun will be unsealed naturally. And the battle ability of Yankun will already grow to a Noblesse. ¡®That is all I need.¡¯ Meanwhile, Ian who was arranging his thoughts was busy with his mind. Lilian smiled and opened her red lips. ¡°That is why I¡¯m saying.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Ian, I am going to make a fine suggestion to you¡­¡± CH 321 ¡®Suggestion¡­ a hidden quest invoke?¡¯ Ian asked Liliana with a very expectant expression. ¡°What kind of¡­ suggestion?¡± ¡°By any chance, you know anything about the magic mines in the Devildom?¡± ¡°Magic¡­ mine?¡± ¡°Yeah, the magic mines. Maybe the Karga Phantom right next you might know about it¡­¡± At the words from Liliana, Ian¡¯s gaze naturally turned towards Kaka. And Kaka opened her mouth with a sigh. ¡°Well a magic mine, there is no way you wouldn¡¯t know what a magic mine is, Master.¡± ¡°Why should it be that?¡± Kaka responded with a bitter expression. ¡°All the slaves of the Devildom, before entering the slave market, everyone will have work in the magic mines for three years.¡± Ian felt a little sorry after listening to that. As it wasn¡¯t going to be a good memory for Kaka. ¡°I¡­ didn¡¯t know that I¡¯m sorry.¡± Kaka responded with a smile, ¡°You don¡¯t have to be sorry, Master. I have already lived for over 3,000 years. So three years is nothing to me.¡± And Kaka began to explain what the magic mine meant. ¡°To let you know briefly about the magic mine, the magic mine contains rare minerals, marbles magic stones¡­ and other various abilities.¡± ¡°Oh oh¡­?¡± The moment he listened to the explanation of Kaka, Ian turned his head. ¡®What, that sounds awesome?¡¯ After looking at Ian¡¯s face, Liliana laughed and opened her mouth. ¡°In the 25th division of the Devildom to the Northeast, a magic mine was discovered recently, it is a nasty exhaust mine that no one has touched yet.¡± With an awed expression, Ian asked Liliana. ¡°And so¡­?¡± Liliana thinking over her decision, opened her red lips again. ¡°Of course, the mine¡¯s ownership right is under my name, and if you hand over Yankun to me, I will give over the ownership of the mine. How does that sound?¡± It was an exceptional suggestion! Ian who hadn¡¯t concentrated much on the magic mine was sure to get a tremendous value. ¡®What should I do¡­? Yankun has worked so hard to grow till now, it is a pity but¡­¡¯ Yankun closed his eyes without saying much and Liliana was waiting for the next words of Ian. But then. Kaka spoke to Ian in a very low voice. ¡°Master, ask for the specifications of the mine. Mines also have grades.¡± And Ian immediately opened his mouth. ¡°Can you please tell me the specs of the magic mine?¡± Liliana nodded at the question and responded, ¡°Surely I can do that. That thing is an awesome deal. You have the right to know.¡± Liliana reached out to the air. And a red light shone in front of Ian¡¯s eyes, and a piece on paper was hanging around it. And when Ian had accepted it, it turned into the information window of an item. Tring- ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Magic Mine Report ¨C Classification ¨C Miscellaneous Rank ¨C None Mining Information Rank ¨C AA Location ¨C Devildom 25th division, (3598, 2231) Potential power ¨C ??? (Unknown) Mining Rate ¨C 0.001% Value ¨C ??? (Unknown) Stored Minerals Marble stone ¨C Low ¨C intermediate Magic stone ¨C Intermediate ¨C legend Mithril ¨C Lowest of the low Estimated stored minerals Ability Stones ¨C ??? (Unknown) Soul Stone ¨C ??? (Unknown) Flame Mana Stones ¨C ??? (Unknown) The certified of mined mining is estimated to be around AA grade. Depending on your potential, you may be promoted to a higher grade if you get high-grade minerals or find new items. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian carefully read the information which was stated as the ¡®report¡¯. New information was there in long reports. New contents have always made Ian very excited. Ian slowly opened his mouth. ¡°Liliana, why is it that many of the parts are said to be unknown?¡± Liliana smiled and answered, ¡°It is an undeveloped mine. as you can see from the report, it is a mine with great potential.¡± Ian swallowed his spit. Most of the minerals listed under the ¡®Stored minerals¡¯ and ¡®Estimated stored minerals¡¯ were items Ian did know, mostly. The minerals that Ian did know from the list were; marble stones, magic stones, power stones, and the soul stones. But with those, the mine¡¯s merit was enough. ¡®The maximum grade of minerals that can be mined is kinda upsetting but it was the legendary grade.¡¯ The ability stone or the soul stone are presumed stored minerals. Aside from those, Ian¡¯s interest was in the legendary grade stone. Legendary magic stone is a mineral that can be obtained by taking down a legendary monster. In addition, it was a necessary item for Ian. In order to increase the level of the abilities, the help of legendary stone was essential. ¡®If it is a legendary one, then it will increase the success rate of the Magical Beast Alchemy.¡¯ And Ian¡¯s mind was tilting more and more towards the offer of Liliana. Liliana once again had something to add. ¡°This proposal is advantageous not only for yourself but also for your trial.¡± ¡°For the sake of Yankun?¡± Liliana nodded. ¡°Well, that is an obvious thing. Rather being under a half devil, being under someone strong as me would help him to grow much stronger.¡± Liliana¡¯s words continued. ¡°Also, once Yankun gets to be on the retainer, then your connection with him is lost and if Yankun grows under me, he will grow much better than being under the Half-Devil, isn¡¯t it a great help?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± And Liliana¡¯s words weren¡¯t wrong. Ian had no more concerns. Ian asked Yankun, ¡°Yankun, will you be okay?¡± Yankun met Ian¡¯s eyes. He bowed his head and said, ¡°I will not forget my master even if I leave.¡± And so, the deal with the Devil Liliana had been established. * * * After finishing the deal with Liliana. Ian immediately moved to the 25th division of the Devildom. The magic mine wasn¡¯t something that Ian had planned, but it was needed to skip the important and original destination the ¡®Tomb of the Forgotten Soul¡¯ in the 15th. . Even Ian took out his favorite hunting gears to see the 25th division. He hunted only a minimum of monsters and quickly moved to the 25th division. As a result, Ian was able to reach the 25th division in a span of about 3 days. From the gates of 30 to 25, the Asmodians were all under Liliana, and it was easy with the free pass she gave him. [The first to enter the 25th division of the Devildom.] [You earn 50,000 fame.] [For the next week, all magic related stats acquired in the 25th division of the Devildom will increase over 1.5 times.] [Over the next week, the amount of experience gained is doubled, and the item drop rate is doubled.] Without even looking at the emerging messages, Ian opened up the map window to confirm the coordinates. ¡°Let¡¯s see, here is the location.¡± The maps provided by Kailan don¡¯t show areas that the users haven¡¯t been visited yet. However, the current position of the user is indicated by the coordinates, even if it was visited for the first time. [Devildom 25th division, (126, 1156)] ¡®The location of the mine was 3598 to 2231. I need to move to the east.¡¯ The number of the coordinates increase as he moved to the east, and the number on the right increases with moving in the north direction. The mine would appear if Ian moves to the northeast direction for a long time, then he would reach it. ¡°Phew, is it wrong to be a little closer¡­¡± At Ian¡¯s mumble, Kaka laughed and responded, ¡°Don¡¯t be so hasty, Master. Even if it is a little late, it¡¯s better to take our time.¡± Ian grumbled and kept walking. ¡°I hate it, let¡¯s move quickly.¡± Ian¡¯s gaze moved towards Kaizer. ¡°Kaizer, let¡¯s skip the battle as much as we can, and go through at once! Let¡¯s cut through the mine in half a day.¡± Kaizer nodded and responded, ¡°Okay, master.¡± But the road to the mine was very long. Ian wasn¡¯t able to get to the mine so quickly, he passed it after a whole day, rather than the half day goal that he had. By the 25th division, the level of the average monsters rose sharply. Even in the 26th, there weren¡¯t many monsters above the level of 300, but in the 25th, it was getting hard to find a monster below 300. And with the level around 300, he couldn¡¯t even see an intermediate monster. ¡°Uhh, I¡¯m all tired.¡± And a few system messages came up. [Connection has been over 22 hours.] [Excessive use of games can interfere with your everyday life¡­] Ian¡¯s gaming warning, something that Ian¡¯s gaming life has never missed. ¡®Not just 22 but even if it was 32¡­ I¡¯m going to see the mine before going off.¡¯ Ian turned his sight and looked at the mine, and as a result, he could reach the mine in 3 hours. Tring- [The first time a magic mine has been found.] [Mine Grade: AA] [Earned up to 100,000 fame points] [The magic mine is owned by the user ¡®Ian¡¯.] [Since you won the magic mine, admissions in it are possible.] [Do you want to enter the magic mine? (Y/N)] Ian took a step forward without hesitation. ¡°Why ask when it¡¯s an obvious thing?¡± Woong- The magic mine was deep in the canyons, which made it hard to find the right coordinates. The entrance of the mines was blocked with huge rocks, and when he moved forward, the light started to leak out from the mines. Chok- Chok- Ian walked with a curious expression while looking around, and after a 5-minutes walk in, a small stone gate appeared on the left side of the wall. ¡®What is this?¡¯ Ian approached the stone gate, and at the same time a system message came up. Tring- [You have found the admission office of the ¡®Magic mine¡¯.] [Entry isn¡¯t possible as it hasn¡¯t been activated yet.] [25000000 gold is required to activate the Management office, slave of at least 2 to 5 are required.] [If the gold is played, you will be automatically be transferred to the ministry of slavery.] [Do you want to activate the admission office? (Y/N)] ¡°¡­ what¡­?¡± Ian was shocked to see the enormous sum that was shown in his eyes. CH 322 Over the past few months of playing Kailan, Ian had never felt a shortage of financial stability. Ian was rich, so he always had gold left with him, even after purchasing millions of gold worth of equipment. ¡®Let¡¯s see¡­ will it be good to sell the marbles in advance?¡¯ The taxes that came from the Lotus Guild, infinite hunting, and all the accumulated items were sold over in exchange for gold. And with just that, Ian acquired gold that was worth around a billion Korean Won. Ian had to use a small amount of 25 million gold, well it wasn¡¯t really a small amount in any way. But the story was different when the entire contents could be known, but the content of the magic mines was still unknown. Ian mumbled to himself while checking the amount of gold in his inventory. ¡°Umm¡­ the gold I have is now about 30 million¡­¡± Well, if he went to the Manor¡¯s vault, then he could get a lot of gold. But, if he thought of activating the admission office of the mines, then most of the gold in his possession would get exhausted, and it didn¡¯t seem like a good idea. Ian called Kaka over. ¡°Hey, Kaka.¡± ¡°What is it, Master?¡± ¡°25 million gold¡­ is it worth to use that much?¡± Kaka didn¡¯t seem to have an answer to Ian¡¯s question. ¡°That sounded like a question, but it isn¡¯t a question right, master?¡± Ian, who now looked like a fool to Kaka, frowned. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°In the mines, if we sell 20 or so Mythril stones¡­ we can get more than¡­ 25 million gold.¡± ¡°Uh¡­?¡± Ian¡¯s eyes were shining like a lamp post. And inside those eyes was endless curiosity. Because Mythril was a mineral that wasn¡¯t known to current users. Kaka continued. ¡°Not just Mithril. By any chance, if you get a hold of one legendary magic stone, then it will be 25 million gold.¡± ¡°That, that is true¡­if it is a legendary magic stone, then it is definite.¡± A Legendary magic stone was a mineral that could be obtained with a certain probability when capturing a legendary beast. Even if someone were going to sell it at 25 million won, then Ian didn¡¯t mind buying it right away. ¡°Besides, I can¡¯t memorize it since I haven¡¯t been to the management office for a while now. But comparing to the actual price of the mines, 25 million gold is literally a penny.¡± Ian who had managed till this point wasn¡¯t much worried. ¡®Yeah, well if it is about 25 million gold, and I get it back. Then¡­¡¯ This was a mine that Ian had got after letting go of Yankun, and Ian wasn¡¯t in a good mood. He was flustered as the amount was too big. ¡°Activate the management office.¡± System messages appeared after Ian activated the command. Tring- [You have paid 25 million gold.] [The Management Office of the Magic Mines has been activated.] [Starting the Admission of the mine from this moment.] [All the settings need to be completed before the mining can begin.] Ian, who had checked all the messages, muttered to himself. ¡°I guess. The admission of the office isn¡¯t like a form,..¡± And the messages continued. [First, you must hire at least 2 and no more than 5 to work in the mine.] [Go to the slave market.] Ian thought of the slave auction house of the monsters, where he had taken Kaka, but it was a bit different from his prediction. Just after seeing the market of the slaves, Ian saw the items in the auction. ¡°Which of these should I choose?¡± Kaka responded to what Ian just mumbled. ¡°Yes, Master.¡± Ian pressed the names on the top of the list. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Elinian ¨C Employee : 72500 gold/ month Level: 87 Sex: Female Classification: Slave Rank: General Personality: Cautious Damage: 1325 Armor: 625 Agility: 1055 Intellect : 1950 Vitality : 15784/ 15784 Unique Ability A ( Race Specified ) Unique A clan of elves who worship the Goddess of the Moon. It is said to have been born under the moonlight, and so it is called as the Most beautiful Species. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¡°Ugh¡­¡± Ian swallowed his spit as soon as he opened the window. Kaka responded with a strange look. ¡°What is it, master? There is no other ability apart from that one unique ability, and its rank is the lowest among all the slaves¡­¡± Ian didn¡¯t speak for a moment and then replied. ¡°She¡¯s, she¡¯s so beautiful¡­!¡± Of all the female bodies and character that Ian had seen in Kailan, Iriel was the most beautiful. However, the slave named ¡®Elinian¡¯ which came up the information window was so beautiful that even Iriel would fell short compared to her. Kaka grinned and laughed. ¡°The standard for human beauty is unknown. All I see is this and that¡­¡± But right then. Ian heard Bbookbbook¡¯s mumbling from behind. ¡°I will tell everything to Harin bbook!¡± Bbookbbook¡ªwho couldn¡¯t do anything a few days back¡ªthreatend Ian. Cold sweat ran down Ian¡¯s spine when Bbookbbook threatened him. ¡°Hey, that¡¯s enough Bbookbbook-ah.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t like it bbook.¡± ¡°How does making a deal with me sound?¡± ¡°Bbook¡­?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll give you three additional meatballs for today, Deal?¡± Bbookbbook was in deep thought after hearing what Ian said. He then responded. ¡°That is too little, bbook.¡± Ian carefully raised the number. ¡°Five then¡­?¡± Bbookbbook replied with a very drowsy voice. ¡°Increase one meatball for every day¡¯s quota. Then I¡¯ll keep what you said a secret.¡± Bbookbbook¡¯s ability to negotiate improved drastically and Ian was a bit confused. ¡®My innocent Bbookbbook is now like this¡­¡¯ Ian who paid Bbookbbook meatballs looked over at Kaka. What a wonderful coincidence for Bbookbbook to hear what Ian said earlier. ¡°Kaka, throw me some advice.¡± ¡°What advice master?¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯m not looking for a slave to do battle, right?¡± ¡°Right.¡± ¡°So, we don¡¯t need any combat skills? So there is no need to pick any high attack powered slave.¡± Ian told Kaka what he was thinking. ¡®But if she attacks a rock¡­ will the rock at least break¡­?¡¯ That wasn¡¯t the case. ¡°That¡¯s right master. Think it over with common sense, one combat abilities won¡¯t affect the mining. And if you hire the Elf slave, even if BBookbbook doesn¡¯t inform Harin, I will.¡± ¡°Why!!¡± ¡°I can get rid of my master, and get the chance to meet a new master.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°The only one who can control my monster like a master is Harin. Only Harin can do it.¡± ¡°Huh¡­¡± Ian felt betrayed by Kaka and said. ¡°But the slave window didn¡¯t contain any information needed for the mining. So what category are the slaves needed to be in order to be hired?¡± Kaka flew towards Ian and sat on his shoulder while speaking. ¡°Master, when you took me at the last slave market auction, did you see any skills that I had which were required for mining?¡± Ian tried to recall what Kaka was telling him and shook his head. ¡°Nope, there weren¡¯t.¡± ¡°In addition, on the information window that you saw, it didn¡¯t even mention anything about mining.¡± ¡°Well, that is true.¡± Looking at Ian¡ªwho still didn¡¯t get it¡ªKaka spoke after sighing. ¡°I¡¯m a Karga Phantom so it was fine, but the Moon Elves aren¡¯t a race that is used for mining. Of course, you can hire them and see, but their efficiency is very low. And if their strength is low, they¡¯ll break the stones, or if not mined properly then the soul stone could get turned into power.¡± ¡°Is¡­ is that so.¡± Ian decided to go with what Kaka is saying. But that still didn¡¯t solve his curiosity. ¡°But Kaka, then when hiring slaves, why are unrelated races like elves included in the list of the slave market?¡± Kaka answered immediately. ¡°The slave market, in addition to the mines, is associated with a number of other magical institutes. The Moon Elves tribe is likely to be employed as a slave in the other magical institutes.¡± ¡°Oh, well¡­¡± Ian who listened to Kaka¡¯s given information thought over. ¡®I don¡¯t get it, how is this girl able to know the details of all the dimensions? Even if she could, how vast is her information content?¡¯ According to Kaka, the unknown content of the mining had words scattered all through the dimensional realms. Ian smirked after thinking for a while. ¡°Well, it¡¯s good to have someone who can work¡­¡± Kaka responded sharply to Ian¡¯s mumbling ¡°What are you blabbering about master? Let¡¯s quickly find the slaves to be hired in our mines.¡± Ian was told off by Kaka. ¡°Yeah, Kaka. You talk like you weren¡¯t a slave?¡± Kaka had an uncomfortable face the moment she heard that. ¡°I am different from the other slaves, master.¡± ¡°What¡¯s so different?¡± ¡°Well, that is¡­¡± He asked it, but Ian knew that Kaka was different from other slaves. ¡®Just¡­read through the community information, and anyone would know that Kaka isn¡¯t just a slave.¡¯ When Ian had hired Kaka for the first time as a slave, there wasn¡¯t much information that he could rely on. That was an obvious thing. The slave contract content was discovered for the first time by Ian. However, a large number of Asmodians now resided in the Devildom, and there were around 100 in the City of Rage, and thousands of high-level Asmodians had settled in. Of course, the number of users who hired slaves also increased. If one would look at the information about the slaves in the community, it was different from Kaka¡¯s information. ¡®Other users¡¯ slaves do what they are asked to do¡­ passionately.¡¯ Ian laughed as he looked at Kaka, who was worried about what she was supposed to respond to Ian¡¯s question. ¡°Well, Kaka. I¡¯ll give you special treatment, so get moving and hire the slaves.¡± ¡°I get it, master.¡± Ian with the help of Kaka began to look around the info of the slaves. According to Kaka, there were three kinds of races that were suitable for mining. CH 323 ¡®Ghor Clan, Munkus Clan, and the Dwarfs Clan¡­¡¯ Of the three races that Kaka had spoken about, the only one Ian had heard about was the Dwarf clan. In fact, the Dwarfs were in the game with fantasy worldview, Ian was unaware that this specific race would appear here. ¡°Ghor and Munkus clans would be easy to find.¡± ¡°You think so?¡± ¡°Especially, the Ghor are fast on their feet.¡± Kaka said. When Ian flipped through the list of slaves, about ten slaves on the pages were named ¡®Ghor¡¯. Considering that there were 100 slaves on the first page, the Ghor seemed like a very common race. Ian opened the information window of the Ghor tribe and looked at the information window. ¡°They look a bit similar to a Golem but smaller. They¡¯re like a mini Golem.¡± Kaka replied. ¡°Well, normally, the Ghor¡¯s are like golems, Master. They have no physical ability, no maintenance cost, no need for food, and no intellect. It is a race that is made for labor purposes.¡± ¡°Oh my, what? Such creature really exist?¡± ¡°Well. I¡¯m not so sure about it, either¡­ Ghors are really awesome.¡± ¡°Uh?¡± ¡°Well, I have heard stories about the ancients who made clans to do their work¡ªthose clans were the Golems and Ghors.¡± ¡°Is that so¡­¡± Even though it was just a game, life in the game seemed very tough. So, Ian could imagine what Kaka was saying. ¡®Well, Kailan isn¡¯t just some thoughtless game.¡¯ Ian nodded while admiring the game to himself. ¡°Then why do we need to find the Dwarves or the Munkus? It seems to me that the Ghor are the best candidates for mining purposes.¡± Kaka just shook her head. ¡°There surely are no slaves that could do the amazing mining labor work like the Ghor¡¯s do, Master. But if all the mines were filled with Ghors, then perhaps master¡¯s mine would contain only minerals such as iron ore, or a minimum marble or the lowest of the stones.¡± ¡°What is that supposed to mean? Besides, the iron ore wasn¡¯t a mineral. It wasn¡¯t mentioned on the mining list, right?¡± ¡°Well, the iron ore is a mineral that can be found basically in almost all mines in the Devildom. Iron ore is a mineral that can be mined even when not listed in the specs.¡± ¡°Is that so¡­¡± ¡°The Ghors are good at doing things, and they don¡¯t create any problems. But when mining, the Ghors could sometimes destroy high-grade elements found in the mines.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Now it seemed like a serious problem. Ian couldn¡¯t hire a slave that wouldn¡¯t blow up millions of won worth of cash and fortune. ¡°That is why we need the Munkus, master.¡± ¡°Huh? What role does the Munkus have?¡± The Munkus, a slave who couldn¡¯t be found even after going through 5 pages of the slave list. Kaka continued to explain. ¡°The Munkus, is the exact opposite of the Ghors, Master.¡± ¡°Okay?¡± Kaka nodded and said. ¡°The Munkus¡¯ role is made directly for the purpose of exploring the mines. However, unlike the Ghors, they can smell out minerals like ghosts.¡± ¡°Oho¡­?¡± ¡°These people eat minerals. So it was natural for them to smell out minerals like a ghost.¡± Ian asked a question with a strange expression. ¡°So, what am I supposed to do if they keep eating the minerals?¡± ¡°That wouldn¡¯t happen, Master. If you feed them 10 low-grade marbles for a day, then they will work hard without eating any other minerals.¡± ¡°Oh¡­?¡± ¡°What is it, Master?¡± ¡°Here, There is a dwarf?¡± ¡°What?¡± With a surprised expression, Ian opened the information window. When Kaka explained information about slaves, the dwarves were told to be one of the rarest. It was Kaka who was much more surprised than Ian. Ian just spoke normally, but this was a first for Kaka to see a dwarf. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Urk Han ¨C Employee : 5195000 gold/ month Level: 56 Race: Iron Dwarf Gender: Male Classification: Slave Grade: Unique Personality: Curious Attack power: 995 Defense power: 1450 Agility: 555 Intellect: 1876 Vitality : 17775 / 17775 Unique Ability A (racial) (racial specialization) (fortification ability) Unknown Unique Ability B (Rare ability) Unknown Unique Ability C (Race inherent) (Rare Ability) (Evolution ability) Unknown It is a dwarf who spends all his life with minerals. Like the other Dwarf tribe, they have good dexterity and like making things. However, they like to collect rare minerals. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¡°Oh my God¡­¡± Ian spoke out unconsciously. The reason was obvious. It was because of the dwarf¡¯s paycheck that was written on the top. ¡°Yeah, Kaka. Don¡¯t you think that this a bit too much?¡± ¡°What is, master?¡± ¡°His payment is over five million gold for just a slave.¡± ¡°Is that unusual, master?¡± ¡°See, from what I know, even the people working in the Empire¡¯s office don¡¯t provide 5 million gold for a months work.¡± Ian¡¯s mind was blown. 5 million gold in Korean currency was worth about 5 to 6 million won. ¡®Why is the payment for a game¡¯s slave much higher than a salaried worker in real life?¡¯ But Kaka wasn¡¯t so surprised. ¡°If you invest 5 million gold to this slave, you will probably see much greater results in the future, Master.¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s possible.¡± ¡°And the dwarf will probably be different from the other slaves.¡± ¡°Uh¡­?¡± ¡°Open the information window once again and see, Master.¡± ¡°I can do that.¡± Ian opened the additional details in the bottom of the window. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Slave Details ¨C Labour Force ¨C 65 Dexterity ¨C 89 Observation power ¨C 82 Endurance ¨C 52 Loyalty ¨C 42 Classification ¨C period slave Remaining time for contract period ¨C 63 days 21 hours. It is a fixed-term slave with a contract. If you want to continue hiring the slave after the slave period, you will have to go through the renewal negotiations once again before the end of the contract period. (However, once the contract period ends, the contract method would be changed since the dwarf¡¯s slave status will be relinquished.) ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian who had read the details rolled his eyes. It was a content that didn¡¯t need much thought, nor was it so hard to understand. ¡®Period limited slaves¡­ and on top of that, when the contract is over, they won¡¯t be slaves anymore?¡¯ Ian needed Kaka¡¯s help to fully understand what he just read, so Ian asked Kaka. ¡°Kaka, I did check it, but what exactly is a period slave?¡± Kaka answered immediately. ¡°Period slaves is just what the word means, Master. They are slaves with a fixed contract period.¡± ¡°That¡¯s all?¡± ¡°Maybe this dwarf slave isn¡¯t a slave from the war but for some reason, it looks like the case where the slave for personal reasons has an existing contract with a high ranking Asmodian.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ so once the contract is over, he goes and finds his owner?¡± Kaka nodded. ¡°Yes, Master.¡± ¡°Uhm¡­¡± Ian began to organize his thoughts. ¡®Slave system seems complicated that what I thought.¡¯ Ian continued Kaka¡¯s explanation. ¡°The Slave market where my master has bought me is trading slaves and providing ownership of them. This slave market that master is looking at now is a form of borrowing slaves who have owners, and not buying the ownership.¡± ¡°Aha¡­?¡± Ian had now fully understood what Kaka was saying so he didn¡¯t do much to clear the special quest. He didn¡¯t think that paying the slaves was strange. ¡°Then the slave¡¯s salary that I¡¯ll pay for will go back to the original owner?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Ian understood everything now. ¡®So you need 5 million gold, but it doesn¡¯t make sense to give a slave 5 million gold. Giving employees that much makes more sense.¡¯ There was something going through Ian¡¯s mind. ¡®So, if Kaka wasn¡¯t an inherent slave, then was she put into slavery for some unknown reason? The contract period wasn¡¯t fixed which obviously means that she wasn¡¯t a periodic slave either. It doesn¡¯t matter if she is cute, but she is quite cheeky for a slave. She also has an enormous amount of knowledge. I¡¯m just assuming, but I¡¯m almost certain that she is more than a family.¡¯ Ian looked at Kaka. ¡°Hey, Kaka.¡± ¡°What is it, master?¡± ¡°So, can I enroll you into this slave market too?¡± ¡°..!?¡± Kaka froze almost immediately. Ian was just messing around with Kaka, but he made sure to look serious when he asked his question. ¡°Hmm, then how much would I need to ask for my Kaka?¡± Kaka was so into Ian¡¯s joke. ¡°Master, don¡¯t do that. I don¡¯t worth that much so you won¡¯t get much.¡± Ian started to laugh after hearing what Kaka said. But in all honesty, was there a slave that was as useful as Kaka? There was no other slave that could be compared to Kaka because of the amount of information she had. Ian, after sharing the joke and laughing it out with Kaka, scouted the dwarf in the information window. He asked Kaka. ¡°So this is it? This dwarf will be beneficial if I hire him?¡± Kaka nodded. ¡°Of course, we must hire him no matter what.¡± ¡°Hm¡­¡± ¡°The only regretful thing is that the contract date is only for 60 days. The slave will be released after 60 days, and the dwarf is more likely to leave the mine.¡± ¡°Yep.¡± Ian opened his inventory and confirmed how much gold he had left. ¡®Haha¡­ once I hire this guy, I¡¯ll hit rock bottom.¡¯ There was no way to receive money from the Lord¡¯s office while staying at the Devildom. So, for the time being, they had to live like beggars. ¡®Well, I¡¯ll trust Kaka for once.¡¯ After hesitating for a few moments, Ian eventually decided to hire the dwarf. Tring ¨C [You have paid gold worth 5195000.] [You have hired the slave ¡®Urk Han¡¯.] [You have succeeded in hiring the first slave of the Magic Mines.] CH 324 The moment Ian hired the Urk Han, he turned into a very, very poor person. And with the leftover amount he had, he hired the less costing Ghor slave. Right after that purchase, Ian¡¯s gold went down to 4 digits. ¡®The remaining gold that I have is 8,000. I never knew that I could spend such huge amount¡­ in such a short span of time. For the time left here, I¡¯ll be seeing thousands in my inventory¡­¡¯ With 8,000, it would be hard to find equipment that was meant even for a novice. In any case, Ian who hired one Ghor, purchased another one of it to meet the necessary conditions of the mines. And the system messages popped out. Tring- [You have met the minimum conditions necessary for running the mines.] [Mining is possible now.] [To open additional facilities, visit the management office once again.] ¡®Additional facilities?¡¯ There was no gold in his possession, so it was just a picture for the future, but Ian being the curious cat that he was, checked into the information of the facilities that could be further developed. ¡®Uh¡­ the magic mines¡­ I thought it is a goose laying some golden eggs¡­ but is it a gold-eating monster?¡¯ Ian¡¯s mine level was currently 1, and it was confirmed with the current information window. The additional facilities that could be opened on the first level were the ¡®mining equipment¡¯ facilities and the ¡®mineral warehouse¡¯ facility. The mining equipment strengthening the facility was literally a facility to strengthen the equipment that the slaves used, and the mineral warehouse was basically a storehouse that would increase the storage capacity of the warehouse. And the gold required to open both of those facilities was 15 million gold and 5 million gold. ¡®And, you need additional gold to raise the mine level and the facility too¡­?¡¯ ¡°This really is a monster eating away gold!¡± Ian has begun to wonder if it would even be able to produce minerals that would be above the investment. ¡®But since I¡¯ve done it, I get to see the results later on. And if I don¡¯t have enough money, I¡¯ll just be stuck.¡¯ In the recent years, there was never a situation where the gold was insufficient, he always had way more than needed, the only day he didn¡¯t have enough gold was on the day he had begun the game. When he got the 800 gold after hunting down an Ogre, he used that to pay for the tuition and then studied hard! And after that the price of the gold fell down to half, even then the amount that could be earned was still different. ¡®In the 20th division of the Devildom, I¡¯ll take down the intermediate class monsters and sell their drops¡­ will I be able to get 1 million gold per hour?¡¯ He wasn¡¯t so sure if the drop rates of the marbles would be high or low, but with the dropped items, he could easily earn about 2 million gold an hour. Of course, if just one right item was dropped, then it would be possible to get 20 million gold, instead of setting for thousands. ¡®Well 20 million gold isn¡¯t anything but¡­¡¯ Actually, 20 million gold wasn¡¯t a bad thing. It¡¯s just that it was easy for Ian to earn the gold as he had went through the most contents in the Kailan. If Ian had been more obsessed with getting the wealth, then he would¡¯ve been able to collect not in billions, but in hundreds of billions. Until now, what Ian had done with the money he got in the real world because of Kailan, was to buy the all-new capsule and made the room much bigger for its use. Ian who had been thinking over moved out of the management office and bent his head. ¡°Maybe I should take a walk, I¡¯ll check it over from the mining once, I guess?¡± The location of the management office was at the entrance of the mine, Ian got out of the office and moved further deep into the mines. Soon, the narrow space turned wide, and the wide mining space had appeared. And right before that, there were two slaves that Ian had hired a while back. Ian and the dwarf¡¯s eyes met, and the dwarf Urk Han bowed his head and greeted Ian. ¡°First time meeting you, I¡¯m called as Urk Han.¡± A polite tone that didn¡¯t feel cheeky. Ian, however seeing the awkward introduction from the Urk Han slave, just nodded his head. ¡®Well, does he really have an owner?¡¯ ¡°Please, do well, Urk Han. From here on now, help me strengthen this untapped mine.¡± Urk Han briefly responded, ¡°I get it.¡± Ian confirmed his unique ability, which he wasn¡¯t able to see before. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Mineral Processing Skill (Racial Inheritance) (Race Specialization) (Reinforcing) ¨C The ability to process minerals within 24 hours of mining, can be used only one time. Using the mineral processing ability, it increases the grade of the mineral by a certain probability. (Cooldown Time ¨C 30 minutes) (Depending on the grade and type of the mineral to be processed, the probability of processing will vary.) Reinforced Gems (Rare Ability) This skill is a passive skill, that only increases the chance of successful equipment enhancement by 30% for the subsequent equipment. Designer Dwarf (Race Inherent) (Rare Ability) (Evolution Ability) The ability to produce an equipment through the research of a certain period of time. When the Designer Dwarf ability is activated, no action can be taken until the end of its study, and the more time consuming the knowledge, the more excellent the equipment will turn out to be. (Cooldown time ¨C 24 hours) (Evolvable) ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C The unique powers of Urk Han made Ian a bit shocked. ¡®Wha¡­ there is no way to discard all the three unique abilities. A slave of unique grade¡­¡¯ Ian whispered to Kaka. ¡°Kaka, maybe after the slave contract, could we take Han as a retainer?¡± ¡°Han? Ah, you¡¯re talking about Urk Han?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± Kaka nodded his head. ¡°That is sure, master. But before that, my master will have to listen to Han.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ is it so?¡± A Retainer was different from slavery. It wasn¡¯t something that could be bought with money. In fact, among the users, there were many who tried to get their ideal retainer. ¡®Somehow, I need to know about Han before the contract ends.¡¯ Ian, who was stubborn minded, began to start the mining and shut all his other thoughts. And the moment the minimum requirements met, the mineral exploitation will proceed faster than expected. * * * At the one corner of the mine. Kang- Kang- Kang- The sound of pickaxe ringing in the silent area without rest. And the source of the sound was Ian. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± The dwarf who approached Ian spoke in a calm voice. ¡°You seem a little unique.¡± Ian stood up and held his waist while wiping his sweat, then asked, ¡°What?¡± Han shrugged his shoulders and responded. ¡°I have been to magic mines to fulfill my slave contract, and to be precise I¡¯ve been to more than 10 mines. But till now, I¡¯ve never seen a Master mine for himself.¡± Ian picked up his pickaxe and responded, ¡°Once I understand the content. Before you mine, I need to get a look at it before you do it efficiently.¡± At those answer from Ian, Han¡¯s eyes shinned. ¡°Oho¡­surely, you are good. I don¡¯t know what these contents are, but¡­ if the employer does the work then they¡¯ll be able to operate the mines efficiently.¡± And in front of Ian, two lines of system message popped up. Tring- [The Dwarf ¡®Urk Han¡¯ is curious about you.] [Affinity with the Dwarf ¡®Urk Han¡¯ increases by 2 points.] Although it wasn¡¯t intended, the affinity with his slave had increased, and this made Ian¡¯s face bright. ¡°Han, I have said this before, in this mine the minerals that should be mined first are the high-grade magic stones.¡± At those words from Ian, Han made a weird expression. ¡°Ah, Not that but I wanted to ask you something.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°I wanted to ask you this before¡­ why are you so obsessed with the high-grade stones? There are magical stones here¡­ but it is true that there aren¡¯t much who need it. they would be hard to sell.¡± Ian smiled and replied, ¡°No, I won¡¯t sell them. I will use them.¡± In the eyes of the Dwarf, once again a light shone. ¡°Hmm¡­? Ian, then are you an alchemist?¡± With the question from Han, Ian got another piece of information. ¡®Alchemist? Indeed¡­ there is a producing job called Alchemist, and a magic stone is used in Alchemy. So, it isn¡¯t a mineral that is needed only for the Beast alchemy.¡¯ Ian shook his head and answered, ¡°No, I¡¯m not an alchemist.¡± ¡°Then¡­?¡± ¡°I¡¯m a beast tamer. And to get the best on the battlefield, I need to get the highest grade stones.¡± Han¡¯s eyes wavered. ¡°A beast tamer¡­! I¡¯m so glad to meet a beast tamer in here!¡± And with those words, new system messages popped up. Tring ¨C [The Dwarf ¡®Urk Han¡¯ is curious about you.] [Affinity with the dwarf ¡®Urk Han¡¯ has increased by 15 points.] Ian put a silly expression. ¡®What? He is the easiest guy ever. Aren¡¯t we getting too close too fast?¡¯ Very well Han! Urk Han was curious about Ian and started to speak with Ian with no hesitation, and soon Ian too began to respond to his questions. In fact, it was possible because both of their interest were similar. A feeling that he had when he met Cervian for the first time? ¡°Ohoh, so Ian, you think you will be able to create a powerful myth class with your Magical Beast Alchemy, and for the main body of it, a legendary monster is needed along with the marbles. And to increase the success rate, you will need high-grade stones.¡± ¡°Right. But it isn¡¯t that simple.¡± ¡°Why is that so?¡± ¡°Firstly, the beast who is going to be the main body needs to be chosen as the best combatant among the legendary grade. And the beast who becomes the material needs to be chosen with a special ability for the special guy.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ and the reason?¡± ¡°This is a bit complicated, but I¡¯ll tell you.¡± ¡°Wow!!¡± ¡°I have been studying beast alchemy for quite a while, so my battle abilities have developed a bit along with the beast taming ability, but even though I have those abilities, I¡¯m more likely to be confident if I have those high-grade stones with me.¡± ¡°Keu, a big task!¡± ¡°On top of that, this isn¡¯t the end.¡± ¡°This so captivating. I want to listen to it.¡± ¡°Han, you are a miner, so do you know any minerals with such abilities?¡± ¡°I know. It isn¡¯t a mineral that can be mined so frequently in this mine, but even I haven¡¯t seen it many times¡­¡± ¡°The power stones will be like a flower that will enhance the beauty of the alchemy. And if I can get the power stones with the highest of the unique ability, I will be able to attach the abilities with that of my partner. And the stone is an item that can be obtained by not just mining, but also by hydo-cracking. And by putting this, there is a low chance of the ability to drop.¡± ¡°This, this is¡­ the best story that I¡¯ve heard so far!¡± The two of them began to fall into each other¡¯s stories. [Affinity with the Dwarf ¡®Urk Han¡¯ increased by 4.] [Affinity with the Dwarf ¡®Urk Han¡¯ increased by 7.] Meanwhile, Ian had one or two minerals piled in his inventory. Kang- Kang- Kang- [You have succeeded in mining the minerals!] [Insufficient dexterity has damaged the minerals.] [Obtained ¡®Lesser Iron Ore¡¯ item.] [Obtained ¡®Minor Sparkle¡¯ item.] [Obtained ¡®Lesser Soul Stone¡¯ item.] [Obtained ¡®Lesser Spirit Stone¡¯ item.] And with such circumstance, the friendship of Ian and Han began to bloom. CH 325 ¡°No way, Herz, Ian really didn¡¯t contact you?¡± ¡°Yeah. I just came out of the dungeon, but it looks like he has closed out all the personal messages too.¡± ¡°OMG¡­ isn¡¯t it weird?¡± ¡°Yeah. The last time he contacted was on the evening of the day before yesterday¡­¡± In the Pyro residency. Fiolan and Herz who were comfortably seated in the near table sighed. ¡°¡­ today is Saturday, that means yesterday was Friday. Didn¡¯t you start school? Or is Ian not feeling well from Friday?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not about health, but he didn¡¯t come to school.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°This happens sometimes.¡± ¡°Aha¡­¡± Fiolan shook her head. In the meantime, there wasn¡¯t much need for Ian, but today was a different scenario. ¡®Uh, I¡¯m a little nervous that Ian isn¡¯t here¡­¡¯ Then, about an hour later, the Red Crowe guild which was in the 13th rank of the guild ranking was starting a full-scale war. And the Guild ranking of Lotus Guild has been the 15th, and the guild was one step higher than them. The current guild ranking of the Lotus Guild, wasn¡¯t so important for them, nor did it matter to them. For the past one month, the head of the Lotus Guild had been working to let the ranking of the guild fall down, purposefully. They had abandoned the form of guild activity from the side of the Lord Manor. Besides the guild ranking points and the loss of fame points of the guild, but strategically it wasn¡¯t a bad option. Even after they had merged with the top guilds in the past, like Oaklan and Splendor, their rankings still fell. The purpose of deliberately dropping the rank of their guild was to avoid the situation of a union of guilds coming against them. If not, then the all-powerful Lotus Guild which was on the top rankings would attract the other guilds to unite against them. There were times when several ranker guilds merged and the other guilds who felt insecure¡ªcrisis went against them. But that was a lost situation. If a few of the low guilds are taken out with full power, then the lost guild usually join the fight of the other guilds. The Lotus Guild was now hiding. Herz spoke, ¡°Well, Is it because of the Red Crowe Guild? Even if we don¡¯t have Ian with us, we will win over them.¡± Fiolan nodded and responded. ¡°I don¡¯t think that we¡¯ll lose either. But I just can¡¯t help but wish Ian was here.¡± Herz chuckled a little. ¡°But¡­ if Ian was there the variables itself would disappear¡­¡± Fiolan slowly got up from her seat. It was the time she should check the guild power and start the preparation for the war. ¡°Phew, so what if Ian isn¡¯t going to be there for the guild this time.¡± * * * ¡°Hehehe.¡± In the Northeastern side of the 25th division of the Devildom. Inside the magic mines that belonged to Ian, the sound of gentle laughter could be heard. And the one who was laughing was the owner, Ian! ¡°Master, even the slaves who work, take rest after 8 hours of work, what is happening in here?¡± At those words from Kaka, Ian immediately responded. ¡°You¡¯re so noisy, b*tch. It doesn¡¯t sound like it, but are you complaining?¡± ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to mean?¡± ¡°Where I live, if I go to work, I need to work for 12 hours a day.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°But the subject of only the slavery is for 8 hours.¡± Kaka asked with a flustered expression. ¡°Then the place you talk about, it is the world I heard of, Hell¡­!?You here are working much harder than the slaves!¡± And gazed at Ian with a grim expression. ¡°So, is that why my master is working like this¡­?¡± After fighting with Kaka for a while, Ian picked up the axe and started to work again. ¡®100 lesser spirit stones. Just that much and I¡¯ll get out of here¡­! If I¡¯m going to fail at digging out the legendary magic stones, I¡¯ll have to find another way.¡¯ Ian had already been working in the mine for 20 hours, without a single break. And Ian¡¯s inventory had minerals piled up in it. Ian looked into the inventory. [Lesser marble stone ¨C 267 ] [Lowest grade marbles ¨C 97] [Lowest grade Iron ¨C 879] [Lesser Iron ¨C 142 ] [Intermediate Iron ¨C 8 pieces] [Lowest grade magic stones ¨C 479] [Lesser grade magic stones ¨C 139] [Intermediate Magic stones ¨C 43] ¡®Damn, I would¡¯ve felt a little better, if I had obtained one of the higher grades¡­¡¯ In the list of the mined minerals, it was clearly stated that there was a chance of getting the legendary stones. However, the reality was different, it was a fortune to have a couple of intermediate items. Kang ¨C Kang- Kang- Even while checking the inventory, Ian didn¡¯t stop picking. ¡®But I don¡¯t want to stop. If I sell off what I have now, won¡¯t they at least get me a little of 20 million gold?¡¯ But right then. In the pile of ore, that was being picked by Ian, a white light suddenly began to escape from the cracks. ¡°¡­!!¡± And Ian looked closer to it. ¡®This is it! just like Han had said, a high-grade mineral stone has a special light in them¡­¡¯ Ian picked up his axe and started to carefully pick it. And at last, the source of white light was finally revealed. ¡°Oh my¡­ this is so beautiful¡­!¡± Ian dropped the pickaxe he was holding and took out a small-sized mining equipment. It was like an item that looked like half of a pickle and a shovel. ¡®Well is it the time, for me to finally use this?¡¯ Mithril pickaxe, the mining equipment that Han had lent to Ian before returning to his break. Within two days, the affinity of Han with Ian was to the extent of lending him a precious mining equipment. Ian carefully picked up the equipment and began to shave off the surrounding mud around the mineral. Shak- Shak-! Along with the uncomfortable movements, the ore began to shatter. [Due to lack of finesse, the durability of the ore is damaged by 5!] [Due to lack of finesse, the durability of the ore is damaged by 7!] [The durability is less than 80%, hence the grade dropped one level.] [The durability of ore is less than 70%, hence the grade dropped another level.] After more than thirty minutes, Ian succeeded in mining it out. [You have successfully mined out the mineral!] [Insufficient finesse has damaged the minerals.] [Intermediate grade magic stones obtained.] ¡°This¡­ this¡­¡± When Ian saw the messages that were emerging, he had a blank expression. Due to the absence of the mining skills of Ian, a huge disaster had happened. Kaka came over and watched the message from Ian¡¯s side. ¡°You just took a highest grade stone and then made it drop two levels to an intermediate level¡­ Master just had the chance to receive at least 10 million gold.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°This is really¡­ you have the finesse of a monster, my Master.¡± While Kaka was beside him trash talking, Ian just couldn¡¯t get himself to talk. ¡®I just want to cut off my hands¡­¡¯ Even Ian was starting to resent himself. If two grades fell off due to the mining, then it would have been the highest grade of stone, as Kaka just said. ¡°Haa¡­¡± Ian, who had been standing there with a blank expression, soon recovered the mining equipment. ¡°What is it, master?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s just stop and go.¡± ¡°We still haven¡¯t got 100 low-grade stones, master.¡± ¡°No matter what, I don¡¯t think this will do.¡± ¡°If you think so.¡± ¡°I have been betrayed¡­¡± Ian who was wounded stepped out of the mine. Even then, that didn¡¯t mean that he was disappointed in the mine. ¡®Now I know what a mining system means. It¡¯s a huge amounted capital, needing a lot of money¡­ and when it works properly, it is a jackpot!¡¯ The gold that Ian had invested so far in the mine was about 30 million gold. However, looking at the system, as the mine level rose, the need for gold rises exponentially. ¡®Once I get the money that is in the manor, I¡¯ll take the mines till the third level. If it takes about 230 million gold¡­ will I end up with all the slaves in the ministry? I don¡¯t have the gold to raise the level to the 4th¡­¡¯ Ian started to make plans. Ian was not agitated, even though thinking of a whopping 230 million gold. This was because he was all prepared for it. ¡®It all depends on my ability, but just assuming that I¡¯m hiring a higher grade¡­ Ghor mined around 100 minerals a day.¡¯ Ian began to look at all the possible variables, including the per miner and the slaves that would be available. ¡®The maximum number of slaves I can hire at level three is around 20¡­ need to think about it¡­¡¯ As he was in these thoughts, the entrance of the mine could be seen. And soon he was out of the mine with calculation in his head. ¡°Nice. Even though I got only a minimum¡­we can probably break-even in a month or so!¡± Kaka was puzzled while looking at Ian making a fist and mumbling. ¡°My Master just blew up a high-grade stone, and now he turned weird¡­!¡± Ian didn¡¯t care about the words from Kaka but just opened the portal using the Dimensional Beads. ¡®I need to do all the settings of the mine, and then go to that ¡®forgotten soul¡¯ place. And need to find a Balrog¡­ and maybe try to mine a weird mineral from it?¡± Ian directly headed over to the Lotus Manor through his portal. The plan was set up, and all he had to do was keep himself busy. Wheeing- But then. Ian heard a familiar voice. ¡°Uh, Ian Hyung?¡± And turning his head, he saw two familiar faces. It was Hoonie and Canoel. ¡°Oh, what are you guys doing here?¡± ¡°Canoel Hyung had something to do in the Summoners Valley, and I just tagged along for a while. Hyung, are you coming back from the hell-like place?¡± Ian was a bit puzzled. ¡°Hell-like place?¡± ¡°That place. Was it the Maurya Empire? It was a place you took me, which got me scared.¡± Hoonie thought that Ian could open the portal only to the Maurya Empire. Ian who understood Hoonie¡¯s words laughed. ¡°Ah, no. I am coming from Devildom.¡± And with that last word, Hoonie¡¯s eyes grew bigger. ¡°What, what? The Devildom?¡± ¡°Huh. I opened the portal and came back.¡± ¡°You can open it anywhere?¡± Ian answered by shaking his head, ¡°No, not like that. Only to places that I¡¯ve been to once.¡± ¡°¡­!!¡± ¡°Huh¡­¡± Hoonie was surprised at this while Ian just yawned. Well, he was in the mine for over a day searching for minerals. Hoonie held Ian¡¯s hands and shouted. ¡°Hyung! Hyung you¡¯re the only one I have!¡± And seeing this Ian¡¯s yawn stopped midway and turned to fluster. ¡°This, why this again? Yah, Noel-ah. Why is this guy being like this?¡± At the question, Canoel just laughed and shook his head. CH 326 Ian¡¯s safe, which he had opened in the Lotus Manor, contained more gold than he thought. ¡°Oh¡­ if I can use it all, then will I be able to go to the 4th level of the mine¡­?¡± Over 600 million gold was stored in Ian¡¯s safe. However, Ian¡ªwho was lost in his thoughts¡ªshook his head. ¡°Gee, I can surely upgrade, but I won¡¯t be able to pay for the slave¡¯s employment costs. I¡¯ll leave 300 million gold here.¡± Ian did not hesitate and immediately withdrew almost half of the money from his safe. Tring- [Access to ¡®Lotus Manor¡¯ deposit.] [Verification completed.] [Extractable gold is 659821222.] [Withdraw 350 million gold? (Y / N)] [For identity verification, Iris recognition is required.] [Iris recognition completed!] [You have successfully withdrawn gold. The remaining amount of gold in your safe account is 334821222.] Ian complained about the gold withdrawal system. ¡°No way, the last time I pulled out the gold, I did it without any procedures¡­ Why is it so complicated now? Is it because the amount is huge¡­?¡± Ian took a glimpse to the 300 million gold in his inventory. ¡®Well, now that I thought about it¡­ with this money, I can buy an apartment in the real world rather than the mine, right?¡¯ The house that Ian was currently residing in wasn¡¯t bad when it came to living alone. The selling price was nearly 2 million, and it had two wide rooms. ¡®If I sell the two rooms now, and exchange the gold in my safe with money¡­¡¯ The area where Ian was currently living at was a famous place in Seoul. He had enough money to even buy a decent apartment. ¡°No, I should still go for the mine¡­! Will the gold in the safe be able to raise the mine to level 4?¡± If his parents would have heard it, there was no way Ian would tell them that he was willing to go penniless for a mine! Anyway, Ian who decided to develop the mine went out of the room. Hoonie, who was still in the waiting room, responded with a strange expression. ¡°Is it all done? Why is taking out the gold from the safe taking him so long?¡± Ian responded in a soft voice. ¡°300 million gold.¡± ¡°¡­what?¡± ¡°I withdrew 300 million.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Hoonie was staring at Ian with wavering eyes. ¡°Hyung? Are you a golden spoon like Noel Hyung?¡± Ian smiled and replied. ¡°Nope, I¡¯m self-made.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Hoonie slightly misunderstood what Ian said. ¡°This hyung¡­ I thought you were only great in the game. Maybe you¡¯re a great businessman in real life too¡­?¡± Hoonie¡¯s respect for Ian at that moment went so deep, that he had nothing but respect for him. * * * ¡°So¡­ you¡¯re not supposed to die even once?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ with the death penalty, the quest will automatically fail.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a quest condition?¡± ¡°Right.¡± Hoonie was listening to Ian¡¯s story while following him. ¡°So you won¡¯t be able to participate in the Guild wars then.¡± ¡°The guild wars? What about it?¡± Hoonie responded with a ridiculous expression to Ian¡¯s question. ¡°Hyung, starting today the Red Crowe Guild is going on an all-out war. You¡¯re saying that you don¡¯t even know that?¡± ¡°Is¡­ is it? I have been a little bit busy these days¡­ wait.¡± Ian opened the system windows to read his recent messages. Messages from Herz and Fiolan poured out. Ian scratched the back of his neck and muttered. ¡°Well, they can manage to win against the Red Crowe even without me¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡± He was dumbfounded because he thought that what Ian said was irresponsible, but he composed himself immediately and went to ask about the quest. ¡°Anyway, Noel hyung decided to help me, and I need to go to the 20th division of the Devildom.¡± ¡°And something there was called Deadmon temple or whatever it is called?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not so sure about it either, I just know that there is a place called Deadmon. And if I go there, then something will come out.¡± Ian was deep in his thoughts. ¡®Somehow I can help since I¡¯m going to that place as well, right?¡¯ If there was a special dungeon in the 20th division of the Devildom, then he thought that he would have the chance to see a legendary beast. There was also a powerful legendary devil¡ªthe Devil Dragon¡ªin the 30th division of the Devildom that was related to the hidden quest of the Hidden Quest Dungeon. ¡®If I find any legendary beasts, maybe I should try catching them.¡¯ As a matter of fact, Ian didn¡¯t have any trouble capturing a legendary beast. Apart from the legendary beasts, Ian hadn¡¯t yet captured some of the finest beasts. ¡°Hmm¡­So what¡¯s the reason why you¡¯re telling me this now?¡± Hoonie smiled a little cutely and spoke. ¡°Why are you asking even though you know¡­ Ian hyung, please help me out.¡± Ian laughed a little and answered while nodding. ¡°Okay, I will help you.¡± ¡°Ohoh¡­?!¡± As soon as Ian agreed to help, Hoonie¡¯s face turned bright. However, Ian still had something to say. ¡°But¡­¡± ¡°What but?¡± ¡°It will be hard to start right away.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I feel very sleepy now.¡± ¡°¡­ Hyung you too get sleepy while playing the game?¡± ¡°It¡¯s because I have been playing the game for two days straight.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Hoonie had a sulky expression because of what Ian just said. Ian noticed it so he asked. ¡°Is this a time-limited quest?¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing of that sort.¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s start tomorrow evening. I¡¯ll get some sleep, and take care of a few things at my place.¡± Hoonie nodded in agreement. ¡°Okay, Hyung. You can take your time. It¡¯s been a while since the last time I see the Devildom, I can wait for a few extra minutes.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll come tomorrow evening.¡± Ian thought of something that would take away Hoonie¡¯s nervousness. ¡°And¡­ while I am away, can you help out with something¡­¡± Hoonie felt anxious because of Ian¡¯s awkward question. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Well, this is a bit hard to explain. Will you be able to help me?¡± Hoonie started to get more nervous. ¡®Uhuh¡­What is it? If hyung is asking for help, then it won¡¯t be an easy thing¡­¡¯ It felt like if he didn¡¯t do what Ian was asking for then Ian wouldn¡¯t help him with his quest. Hoonie was deciding if he would help Ian or not. ¡®Well, I get to do my quest all thanks to Ian hyung¡­ so this is probably nothing.¡¯ ¡°Okay, hyung. I¡¯ll help.¡± Little did Hoonie knew that he would regret his decision a few hours later. * * * (Hoonie POV) That day, seemed like a good day for some reason. I was just mindlessly walking out of boredom when I coincidentally came across Ian hyung, and then I got to enter the Devildom. And somehow, Ian hyung said that he would help to get the quest done. Ian hyung asked for something in return, but it wasn¡¯t something that anyone had to be concerned about, at least that was what I thought. However, from the moment I encountered the dark cave deep in the mountains, I realized that something was really wrong. ¡®What is this? Is this the new dungeon that Ian hyung found?¡¯ I was skeptical of what kind of a messed-up dungeon he was being brought to, but for now, I decided to follow my hyung. To deal with a strong enemy, he had to face the strongest man of the dark. But that place didn¡¯t look like a ¡®dunegon¡¯. Kang- Kang- Kang- ¡°Hyung, what is that sound? There is some sound coming from the inside.¡± ¡°Huh, right. The sound of mining.¡± ¡®The sound of a mine? Then, this was a mine?¡¯ I hadn¡¯t heard of any mines in the Devildom. I did hear that there was an empire that had gold mines in the southwest of the Northern continent, but a mine in the Devildom? I felt like I needed to go out right away, like I was going into trouble, but unlike my intuition, my body was following Ian hyung all the way. ¡®Ha, maybe this was what Slavism is?¡¯ In the end, I just followed Ian into the management office. ¡°Increase the level of mine to 3.¡± ¡®What? Increase a mine¡¯s level?¡¯ I was flustered. If Ian hyung was talking about adding levels, then it meant that Ian hyung probably owned this mine. I had never seen an empire-owned mine, but I had never ever heard of a user owning a mine. ¡°Kaka, do you remember the slaves that we saw before? Let¡¯s hire them all.¡± ¡°I understand Master.¡± Ian hyung just shared an uncomprehensible talk with a strange bellied lizard, who always stuck with him, and started to take gold. ¡°Hyung, how much are you going to spend now?¡± ¡°300 million.¡± ¡°All the gold?¡± ¡°Huh.¡± The short conversation was shocking. Was he a goldsmith, or a self-employed rich boss? Ian hyung began to wire money without hesitation, and the structure of the mine changed real time. Was it 30 minutes since we entered? Hyung started to move somewhere once again. As they were walking along the narrow pathway, the mine spread out in front of us. There were dozens of mining slaves standing in line waiting for Ian hyung. Some slaves were noticeably working. It was a scene of exploitation in a glance! A person could see right away that this was exploitation. I started to get anxious. But then, a dwarf that was smaller than me stopped his pickaxe and ran towards Ian. ¡°Oh! Ian! I was waiting for you.¡± ¡°Haha, was the mining going well?¡± ¡°Today was a great day to start. I¡¯ve already got one of the better stones.¡± ¡°Wow, you sure have awesome skills Han.¡± ¡°Hahaha¡± They talk like friends who had known each other for a decade, and the dwarf¡¯s eyes were shooting hearts towards Ian. ¡°Anyway, it¡¯s great that you¡¯ve developed the mine. When you get to this level, the quality changes.¡± ¡°Thank you, Han. I need a legendary. You know?¡± ¡°Sure, right at it. Just believe me. I will definitely give you a legendary grade stone.¡± ¡°Nice nice. Then I¡¯ll take your word for it.¡± ¡®The ugly dwarf is turning his gaze towards me.¡¯ ¡®I felt my body getting cold, and I don¡¯t know why.¡¯ ¡®This dwarf guy, he seriously looks dangerous.¡¯ ¡°By the way, who is this small friend of yours?¡± Ian hyung smiled because of the Dwarf¡¯s question and answered. ¡®Don¡¯t please!¡¯ ¡®You don¡¯t have to introduce me to this ugly little dude, hyung!¡¯ ¡°Oh, this is the friend who will help you dig up for the next two days.¡± ¡®Huh? Mining? Don¡¯t tell me, the greatest darkest man, will mine?¡¯ What the dirty ugly being said next was more spectacular. ¡°Oho? Can this little friend really be of any help to me?¡± ¡°No matter how you see, he knows how to deal with the Undead. He could summon a Golem or skeleton and be able to help in mining the low-grade minerals, as they can¡¯t get the high grade.¡± This was a tremendous change from my plans. Even if I was in the middle of the mine, I would¡¯ve never thought of doing it. ¡®No, he wanted the Undead to dig.. dig!?¡¯ ¡°Phew, well Ian. You¡¯re creativity always amazes me.¡± ¡°My mind is amazing, right?¡± ¡®Your mine isn¡¯t good, but I think you have great hair.¡¯ ¡®Anyway, I was left to the ugly dwarf without any say.¡¯ ¡®Ah, well. Noel hyung would follow me.¡¯ ¡®No matter how you see this, hyung was the most pitiful.¡¯ ¡°Wait, hyung you¡¯re just going to leave?¡± ¡°Huh. Please help me. I¡¯ll give you something in return after you finished your work.¡± ¡°Now, wait!¡± ¡®My hyung¡¯s heart is rotten.¡¯ ¡®But even with my puppy eyes, Ian hyung just walked away.¡¯ ¡®To log out.¡¯ ¡®I was also going to log out quietly, but then I was worried, and I didn¡¯t get the courage to do it after seeing the dwarf¡¯s eyes.¡¯ This guy would obviously rat me out. ¡°Okay, come on kid. Let¡¯s work hard, okay?¡± And the labor of hell began. CH 327 Pang- Pang- [Ah, shut up. What is with this sound?] ¡°What sound. I¡¯m washing my clothes.¡± [ At Home?] ¡°Huh.¡± While balancing the phone with his shoulder, Jinsung was hanging his laundry. And from the smartphone, Yoo-hyun¡¯s voice could be heard. [By the way¡­ laundry? You¡¯re doing housework?] ¡°Should I not?¡± [It¡¯s not that. It¡¯s just that I had never even seen you sweep the floor.] ¡°I do it once a month.¡± [What?] ¡°Cleaning, washing and so on. I do it once a month.¡± [That¡¯s what¡­] Yoo-hyun seemed to not believe his ears and kept asking, but Jinsung didn¡¯t seem to care. ¡°Housework needs to be done effectively, once a month.¡± [What effectively? You just sound like a barking dog. You will wait for another month to clean?] ¡°If my heart feels like it, then I¡¯ll do it once every year too¡­ then I get to spare time for Harin.¡± Yoo-hyun was dissed for not having a girlfriend. [Huh, let¡¯s not talk about that.] Jinsung who was on a call with Yoo-hyun, changed the topic. ¡°Yah, by the way, why did you call? Is something up?¡± Yoo-hyun replied immediately to what Jinsung said. [Something is happening you know. I¡¯m preparing for the war.] ¡°I know that.¡± [So even then, you won¡¯t fight?] ¡°No matter what, it will be hard for me to do it right now. But your opponent right now is the Red Crowe right?¡± [Hmm.] ¡°Well, you will win no matter what.¡± [Even I know that. Winning is an important thing but how we win is also equally important.] Jinsung immediately understood what Yoo-hyun meant. ¡°Are you worried about the other guilds joining?¡± [Yep.] Now the Lotus Guild had the power to overthrow the Red Crowe Guild. Even if Ian wasn¡¯t with them, there wasn¡¯t much difference in terms of power since the troop that was formed now had enormous power. Recently the case of Wyvern Riders who have been a viable force, were able to demonstrate the power of the lance-class users. If the Lotus Guild was full of power, then the Red Crowe was a walking wreck. ¡®So if you manage to win easily¡­ then immediately, the other guild will join forces.¡¯ Even with a lot of ranking guilds united, the lotus guild won¡¯t be easy to win over. But that wasn¡¯t the point. Because the minimum losses played a role in raising the guild and fame of the guild. So even if the Lotus Guild wants a Kingdom, the Luspel Empire would not be so supporting. Ian once again pushed his ear close to the phone to listen to what Yoo-hyun had to say. [So, Fiolan and I will set up the strategy, where the power will be hidden as much as possible and then let the other users protect the land. Even if it seems a bit dangerous, everyone will benefit equally.] ¡°If you do that, then it will seem like you¡¯re having a close fight, and doing that will surely hide a lot of your strength.¡± [That¡¯s why we needed you as insurance¡­ but somehow, if the Red Crowe guild and the St. Bill Guild merge, then you could be of help by pushing with your strength.] Jinsung nodded and answered. ¡°That¡¯s definitely a nice plan. Since the users will surely die.¡± Unlike the users, the troops of the NPC, once they die they die. As long as the war was carried by the users, it was possible to hide the power of the guild as much as possible and save the NPC troops. Yoo-hyun continued what he was saying. [So what I mean is¡­ will you be able to join in?] ¡°Hmm¡­ I¡¯m currently helping Hoonie with his quest. It would probably take about a week or so?¡± [Not sure.] ¡°Well maybe? Since, it isn¡¯t a time related quest.¡± [I get it. So for now, let¡¯s make a plan for a month.] ¡°Okay. Deal.¡± After spending more time on the strategies, Jinsung cut off the phone and started to hang his laundry. ¡®I¡¯m sure for now, it¡¯s time to claim the Kingdom.¡¯ It has been a few months since they have been declared as a Dukedom. Even the conditions for being declared as a Kingdom have already been achieved long ago. The reason why they have delayed the proclamation of the Kingdom was because of the Luspel empire. To proclaim the Kingdom meant to escape from the shadow of Luspel empire. Of course, they could have paid tributaries every month and take the same stance as a tributary, but that wasn¡¯t what they wanted. After proclaiming the Kingdom, the order they planned was to defeat the banner of the Luspel and proclaim a Lotus Empire. ¡®If it starts then we need to move very quickly. At least the northern part of the Luspel needs to be taken control of.¡¯ In his mind, he was planning to do something like that, and Jinsung had left the rest of the laundry. ¡°Huh, I can¡¯t do this at all. Should I exchange in the gold and get a dryer. I will order the one that I saw in the home shopping channel.¡± Jinsung who was tired of doing the housework did some stretching and lay down. ¡°Just one hour, I¡¯ll roll around.¡± And just then, Ian suddenly remembered Hoonie who just slipped his mind. ¡°By the way, that kid Hoonie, is he doing fine?¡± * * * ¡°Oh Oh! This! Come this way and see, Mr. Han!¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°This is my first mineral!¡± ¡°Please wait for a moment. I¡¯ll come and see it!¡± Ian¡¯s magic resistance was now equipped with the mines Dwarf Han who had been the manager of the mine under the trust of Ian, was motivated to work more than anyone else. Ian even gave Han an additional helping hand which was Thomason¡ªa human race miner NPC. ¡°Thomason, which side?¡± ¡°C sector mining area.¡± ¡°Hmm? That¡­ side is where the dark warrior is working¡­?¡± Dwarf Han who followed Thomason, moved quickly as he saw a white light coming from afar. ¡°Hoo, this is a white light¡­!¡± And in front of the spot where the light was coming from, Hoonie was standing with a pickaxe. Hoonie, who saw Han, spoke in a short voice. ¡°The shorty has come.¡± Dwarf Han replied while snickering. ¡°I¡¯m not a shorty, you little b*tch.¡± ¡°No way, you¡¯re much shorter than me.¡± Han shook his head and replied. ¡°Huh? I don¡¯t know about you, but in the Urk family of the dwarfs¡¯ clan, I¡¯m the most handsome one.¡± ¡°Booo¡­!¡± The moment Hoonie heard it, he began to crack up. But Hoonie started coughing because of the dirt in the mines after laughing for a while. ¡°Kuck, Kuck¡­!¡± However, Han didn¡¯t stop speaking. ¡°A perfect man like me can take the hearts of three female dwarves.¡± ¡°Huh¡­¡± Hoonie managed to stop coughing for a while and spoke. ¡°That¡¯s enough, look at the mineral. This is something that I found, don¡¯t plan on giving away my credit to them.¡± Hoonie pointed his finger to the Ghor clan slave. The mini-golem with a stout body made of rock seemed similar to a hunter. He shrugged his shoulders. Grrk- Grrrrk- Han then spoke. ¡°Oh¡­! That¡¯s a good point.¡± He looked over at Hoonie and said. ¡°Are you sure that you are a really the Black Magician?¡± ¡°Why are you asking again?¡± ¡°How is it that your knowledge as a magician is so little that you couldn¡¯t even identify a member of the Ghor clan?¡± ¡°Huh¡­¡± ¡°You have no mining skills, and you can¡¯t possibly do this, right?¡± Han looked at Hoonie like he was a pathetic creature. Had Ian learned that Hoonie had already been ready to commit a crime that would¡¯ve lost him another stone, his affinity with Han would¡¯ve gone down by 10 points. After Hoonie had closely removed the dirt, Han took over and went closer to the stone. It was fun to harass Hoonie, but it wasn¡¯t as fun as to mining the rare minerals in the mine. Han picked the pickaxe and approached the mineral. He then showed extreme professionalism as he went close to the mineral. ¡°If this is the case¡­! Even if I don¡¯t do it, it could be a higher grade stone!¡± Hoonie¡¯s serious expression was contrary to his cheering. The mining pro¡ªwhich was Han with the sound of the mining noise¡ªgot up took another equipment and got back to the place. Kang- Kang- Kang- * * * A large scale war between humans. The official homepage of Kailan, which had been cold and quiet for months, had started to get warm once again. ¨C Keu, I was curious to see when the Lotus Guild would pick the sword, I guess I finally get to see it. ¨C Yeah. Red Crowe vs Lotus Guild, this is really sweet to see, huh? ¨C Guys, who will win? I checked the betting at the Kalian site, and the bet rates are equally divided. ¨C The betting at Kailan was a sort of sport, a go-to site that predicts the outcome of the scheduled matches, such as guild war or duels in Kailan. ¨C In recent years, only in terms of guild power¡­ the Red Crowe could have been the winner. But It¡¯s difficult to tell now. ¨C Right? It is the guild that has Ian. I can¡¯t imagine Lotus losing. ¨C If anyone saw the power of Ian during the dimensional war. The Red Crowe could be stopped by Ian alone. ¨C Then, why is the bet divided then? ¨C I know the reason. ¨C Oh, what is it? ¨C Before this, Ian seemed to have no intention of joining this match. So there isn¡¯t much credibility¡­ ¨C Oh, really? ¨C Huh? Really? There have been a lot of talks about the Lotus Guild in the Guild discussion. Since the dimensional war, the Lotus Guild has been close to 10 battles, but Ian hadn¡¯t been seen in any of it. ¨C Oho¡­? I didn¡¯t know that since I don¡¯t watch the guild discussions much. But why is the veteran not coming? ¨C Well, Ian is doing an important quest right now. ¨C Hmm, then won¡¯t he participate in the guild wars? Guild war is merely a manner to influence the guild reputation and their ranking¡­Empire war is an important battle that takes away a strong point at the time of death. ¨C That¡¯s it. So, I guess we can say that the probability of Ian going is 50/50 then? ¨C LOL, it looks like it. Ian may participate or Ian may not participate in the empire war, I guess¡­? ¨C In fact, if it had been a few months ago, the ¡®Empire War¡¯ wouldn¡¯t have been such a topic. Even though Ian was a part of the Lotus Guild, since it was Kailan¡ªthat had been peaceful for a month without having even a single incident¡ªthis war became a huge issue. Various game broadcasts were covering other things. This was natural since there was not much content to air. And with this, finally, the two guilds began to get into action. CH 328 ¡°Hyung¡­ this is too much¡­¡± Hoonie complained to Ian who had just returned to the mines and complimented him. ¡°What is too much, you idiot.¡± ¡°No way, I would rather do a difficult quest or hunt, but mining! MINING! To use such great manpower like me for mining!¡± Ian smiled and replied, ¡°I¡¯m using a high-class worker. I wouldn¡¯t have used you if you were something other than a warlock.¡± He meant to say that he wanted to mine using the Undead. ¡°That¡¯s what I¡­¡± However, Ian¡¯s coming words were much mind-blowing. ¡°Hoonie, will you help your hyung the next time too?¡± ¡°What are you talking about? Why would I do this again! No, I won¡¯t! Never!¡± Hoonie who made a weird expression shook his head violently. And Ian, who saw Hoonie, laughed and pulled something out of the inventory. ¡°What is this now?¡± ¡°Come on, take it. It¡¯s your daily wage.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± Hoonie accepted the heavy bag that Ian was giving to him and at the moment, a system message popped in front of his eyes. Tring ¨C [From user ¡®Ian¡¯, 2 million gold has been received.] [From user ¡®Ian¡¯, received 5 intermediate stones.] [From user ¡®Ian¡¯, received 10 low-grade magic stones.] [From user ¡®Ian¡¯, received 20 lesser grade magic stones.] ¡°Oh!¡± A fresh wind blew towards Hoonie. It was because the reward was so enormous, for the two days of work that he had done. ¡®If I convert all this to gold, I can get at least 3.5 million gold.¡¯ 3.5 million gold. And if he did it at a daily rate, then he could get 175 million gold. 3.5 million gold¡ªwhich was the amount that Hoonie would earn in two or three weeks. And if the chance of dropping a legendary item happens, then that is a whole different story. But something no one could dream now. If a legendary stone is dropped once or twice a month, a legendary grade¡ªeven with some bad options, it would be hard to go lower than 500,000 gold. Since now the number of high-level users increased, the quantity of the legendary class equipment decreased. So, why did Ian give out Hoonie such valuable stones? Ian was a good hyung, so it was basic manners to take care of his younger brother. ¡®If I need to use Hoonie again and again, then I¡¯ll have to give him.¡¯ The mining of the Undead was much better than Ian had expected. Especially the case of low-level Undead, he didn¡¯t seem to have an edge but worked on par with the clan of Ghor. Until Hoonie¡¯s magic was exhausted while using the Undead for a non-stop work¡ªHoonie himself played a huge role in bringing out 20 stones. The power of Hoonie the Black Magician was overflowing and his strong capabilities didn¡¯t die down till the lowest of the Undead were summoned. In fact, Ian¡¯s 3 million gold per day is less when compared to the work that Hoonie had done. But it was a huge amount that Hoonie didn¡¯t even think of. ¡°You¡¯re, you¡¯re really giving me this? ¡°Sure. Why would I treat my cherished younger brother like hell?¡± And after that, Ian had something else to say to Hoonie. ¡°Whatever, this was just a day¡¯s work, but since Hoonie my only known black magician doesn¡¯t want to help his hyung. I¡¯ll have to search for another warlock.¡± When Ian was done with his speech, he started to walk forward, and Hoonie hurriedly followed Ian and held his hand. ¡°Hyung, I spoke without even thinking¡­!¡± Ian just shrugged his shoulders and asked. ¡°What?¡± ¡°This is the job that Ian-hyung is giving, I would surely help¡­!¡± Ian went along with Hoonie¡¯s plead. ¡°Oh, what to do? I¡¯ll hire KanjiHoonie the best Black Magician warrior on the continent, as a miner. Rather, you think that your hyung¡¯s thoughts are small.¡± ¡°Hyu, hyung¡­¡± In the end, Ian was able to get help for the work in the mine for the future, and after receiving the answer, Hoonie started to walk ahead with a smile on his face, and the party moved to the 24th division by leaving the 25th division. And the goal was to reach the 20th division of the Devildom to reach the ¡®Deadmon¡¯s Shrine¡¯. * * * Bang-! The intense roar was bursting out! And then a big shout came out. Wow!! The gates collapsed, and dozens of knights began to penetrate the line of defense. ¡°Now is your chance! Focus on the firepower.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s push ¡¯em this time.¡± The siege between the Lotus Guild and the Red Crowe. The place where the war broke out was the Selika Manor of the Red Crowe in the Central continent, and many users were watching the war. It was a thousand of users who were active through the watching systems, and the number of users who watched through broadcasting channels were more than ten times the normal. [Oh! This is huge! The Ice blast hit the gate in the middle of the night!] [It was a wide-area attack! It was the Ice Blast attack of the user Fiolan, and the user Lalika made a field in the front.] [Ah ha, have you seen that Heins?!] [Kay, do you see the purple circle in front of the ice on the slow screen? That¡¯s a magic circle. They put in a secondary field spell that will increase the attack power by 1.5 times, and the range of attack by 3 times.] [So, that was why the Ice Blast managed to get through the gate in a single attack!] [That¡¯s right. Ice Blast is magic, that was originally used to destroy the Defense Tower or the Gate. However, it was awesome on how they had used the magic enhancement and made sure that the hit breaks the gate!] [That was the reason why the user Fiolan wasn¡¯t seen on the battlefield for a minute ago! Ice Blast is a magic that has amazing destructive power, but takes a lot of time casting it too!] [That¡¯s right. Now Lucia also is commenting effectively. Haha.] [Hoh, after three years I can finally read Korean. I¡¯ve been following Mr. Heins for over a year already.] [Hahaha, however, this will completely be overturned.] [Right? Most of the and archers and warrior class users of the Lotus Guild have already entered. The Red Crowe which has always been known for their defense is going to face a hard time.] [The Red Crowe Guild will feel sorry. If they had an hour or more to spare, it could be a great success.] Heines and Lucia had become the legendary commentators of the YTBC. Like the two commentators, as the gate opened, everyone believed that the Lotus Guild would take this win. And the users who were watching, had their hands sweating. ¨C Keu, I know that Lotus would win! ¨C I thought that Lotus guild would be nothing without Ian¡­ I guess I was wrong. ¨C I know right! The Red Crowe had been winning till now, how will the Lotus take this without Ian? ¨C What? how could it just fall? In fact, the gate was strongly shut just a second before. ¨C The timing of using the Ice Blast was real art, but who is this Fiolan? This is my first time hearing about him. ¨C OMG, you don¡¯t know Fiolan? The wizard in the top 10 Ice Wizard Rankings. She is also the Lord of the Pyro. ¨C Haha, Well, you¡¯re one unusual person. ¨C By the way, where were those who were betting on Lotus earlier? ¨C Hehe, LOL, they could probably be unable to chat right now. ¨C Why? ¨C What do you mean why? Because of the betting. There were around 300 million bettings placed on the Red Crowe. ¨C Oh shit, LOL. 300 million gold? That¡¯s huge. Maybe they were glad to see that Ian was not there in the Lotus line up. ¨C In the end, the war had ended within 20 minutes, and the Selika Manor which was a very large manor in the Central continent became owned by the Lotus Guild now. With this being the start of the Siege war, the evaluation regarding the Lotus guild had slightly changed. It could be seen from the analysts¡¯ power analysis on their official website. [Lotus Guild without Ian.] [Lotus, powerful than anticipated. If Ian joins in the war against the 5th ranked too, the power and level of the guild cannot be unseen.] With the attention of many users, the Lotus Guild continued its journey. Starting with the Selika Manor, they began to move in the direction of the other manors. Specifically, the next opponent for the Manor was the 7th ranked Rolangka Guild. The Rolangka Guild was a mighty guild that ranked third in the Guilds of the Luspel Empire. At this point, not only the users of the Luspel empire but the users of the Kaimon along with the Asmodian users began to give their undivided attention to the actions of the Lotus Guild. * * * ¡°Hyung, Let¡¯s rest for a moment.¡± ¡°Is it so? Even if I don¡¯t, I feel like I need to do some maintenance work.¡± ¡°Hmm, even I need to fill some mana, wait for some cooldown time, and then get to move.¡± The 21st area of the Devidom. Ian¡¯s party was struggling more than he thought. It was because of the battle power of the beasts had risen exponentially, with just one area down. ¡°How about Noel? How long do I have to wait for the familiars to be called?¡± ¡°The kids all need to cooldown, Lake needs 5 minutes, and Karden around 20 minutes.¡± ¡°Yah, it looks like Lake is doing better in here.¡± ¡°Ae, no. I wasn¡¯t much of help for Lake. It¡¯s all because hyung did a good job¡­¡± Not long ago, Ian had sold Lake, who had always been doing well in the air to Canoel for a certain period. There was a lack of leadership with Lake which resulted in many overlapping positions. And the dragon tamer Canoel had a passive skill that could generate synergies with the dragon type monsters that he possessed. The Drake King, Lake was now used to working with Canoel. ¡°Noel has always been humble. Yah Hoonie, look at him and learn something.¡± At these words from Ian, Hoonie¡¯s expression distorted. ¡°Why are you doting on me again, hyung?¡± ¡°I¡¯m asking because you don¡¯t know.¡± Ian who was talking with Hoonie glanced at the far away gate past his familiars. ¡®There is the 20th division. A place called The Daedmon Temple.¡¯ It was clear that from the 20th area, many powerful monsters would come in their way. These would be the monsters that even with doing his best, Ian wouldn¡¯t be able to beat them. So, Ian was in need of cautiousness. In fact, after the end of the Dimensional war, the fights have been way too easy for Ian. ¡®It¡¯s a dungeon with the huge name of Monsters Shrine¡­ even if not a Balrog, I wish I could meet a legendary monster in there.¡¯ And the anticipating eyes of Ian began to shine. CH 329 As everyone knows, as the numbers on the areas decreases, the more powerful the monsters that would appear would be in the Devildom system. Especially when 10 areas have been changed, the level increases exponentially compared to the other previous levels. But Ian who had walked into the 20th division had been feeling a lot bored than ever. ¡®I guess this is a little hard¡­?¡¯ As soon as Ian and his party crossed the gate, they had found a bunch of monsters together. Ian was surrounded by huge ¡®Dark Hounds¡¯ who had red eyes and teeth that were as sharp as a scythe. Well, the Dark Hounds were a senior Battalions, and Ian had been hunting them so far. But things were a bit different now. ¡°Hyung, I think you need to be cautious. They¡¯re of level 350.¡± ¡°I¡¯m seeing it.¡± The level of 350, the last level could be considered as a problem¡ªthe bigger problem was that there were so many hounds who couldn¡¯t even be counted. ¡®A Legendary Monster huh, should show my everything right from the beginning?¡¯ The current level of Ian was 267. All thanks to the myth ranked Bbookbbook, Kaizer, and Karceus, Ian had been able to grow quickly, almost twice the speed. Hoonie, the number one ranking user in the Warlock class, whose class was the easiest to level up, was now at the overwhelming level of 245. Not definitely sure, but even after excluding Ian, there would have been a user in the summoner class with a level of 220. But when comparing to the level of 350, these all sounded absurd. ¡®I need to take down one after the other.¡¯ Ian¡¯s head was working at a rapid speed. To cover this wide gap in their levels and power, they needed to have skill and control. ¡°Noel, ¡®The Dragon¡¯s Earth¡¯ skill can be activated?¡± At the question from Ian, Canoel nodded and answered, ¡°Yes. The cooldown time is done but¡­ but can we use it to that extent?¡± ¡°We¡¯ll have to use it! If we can¡¯t take them down quickly, they will just keep on coming back like zombies.¡± ¡°I know hyung.¡± Dragon¡¯s Earth was a long-range buff skill of all the skills that Canoel had. It increases the ability of all the Dragon-type familiars by 30% for 30 minutes and reduces the cooldown time of the Dragon Breath by 50%. It was a skill that allowed the dragon familiars damage to be reduced by 10% if suffered. However, since the cooldown time was around 10 hours, it wasn¡¯t a skill that could be used whenever wanted, so Ian was asking if it could be used. ¡°If you use the Dragon¡¯s Earth, I¡¯ll be able to save a skill hyung.¡± At the word from Hoonie, Ian nodded his head. When the skill Dragon¡¯s Earth is used, the whole battlefield would have been dominated by Ian anyway. This skill of Canoel had a great synergy with Ian. Even if it is not, his powerful familiars Bbookbbook and Karceus could literally jump out the moment Dragon¡¯s Earth was used. Kwahhh-! While they had all exchanged their opinions, a hound which found out their location roared at them. And at the same time, the other hounds found their way to the party. ¡®Fourteen Dark Hounds. And if we fight, then the other will rush towards us from the neighbor.¡¯ Ian touched his Judgement of the Spirit King. The Dragon¡¯s Earth was a skill that was hard to use twice a day, so he had to use it as much as he could¡­ ¡°Karces, Bbookbbook. Get your Breaths ready.¡± ¡°Okay, Master.¡± Canoel gave out orders to his familiars. ¡°Lake, Carden, Yongyong. You too be ready!¡± Grrr-! Ian who heard Canoel suddenly turned and asked, ¡°Noel-ah, you still have Yongyong with you?¡± Canoel scratched his neck and replied, ¡°Why are you asking?¡± Ian, who couldn¡¯t say that he didn¡¯t understand why Noel chose to pamper a guy whose growth rate was below average, just gave up. ¡°Nothing, well¡­¡± Canoel laughed and replied, ¡°He is one of my greatest joy.¡± Ian just shrugged his shoulders. ¡°Well, it wouldn¡¯t have mattered if you don¡¯t have enough leadership.¡± * * * ¡°Should we join forces¡­?¡± ¡°Well, I guess so. I just saw those guilds climb up the rank board and get the top position in the rankings in the Devildom in just a week.¡± In the 100th division of Devildom. The guild base of DarkRuna guild at the outskirts of the City of Anger. Two men were having a meaningful conversation while sitting on either side of the table. One of them was Irahan, the guild master of the current DarkRuna guild, and another person. ¡°Limlong, I know that you¡¯re strong but¡­isn¡¯t it a bit too much to say that we have to combine our strength?¡± ¡°What?¡± At those words from Irahan, Limlong immediately asked, and Irahan responded immediately, ¡°You are currently alone now. And I have the Dark Runa guild. Isn¡¯t it needed for the talks about joining forces to be done on equal terms? If it isn¡¯t, then you¡¯ll have to be under me.¡± Limlong is the strongest among all the ones in the Devildom dimension. In the assassin ranking, Limlong was the first in place. There was a reason why Limlong is in the same level as the top rankers of the assassin class, there was a reason for the superiority that he got, and it was because of the ¡®Indirect buff¡¯ of the assassins class played a huge role. The most beneficial class for the ¡®Asmodian¡¯ race was the assassin class. Among the assassin class¡¯s skills, there were skills made of 100% of effects that could be triggered when hitting or a critical strike for a short time, and it was applied to magic hit rate. So, the recent development of the assassin had changed completely. In the past, in the battle method¡ªa shot with the attack power had been very popular, but in the current changed system, it maximized the speed of the attack. And being an Asmodian, they could use magic, and the maximum amount of increase in the speed and resistance would be to the highest extent, and the assassin class¡¯s unique ability ¡®Shadow Dance¡¯ was in effect. The ¡®Shadow Dance¡¯ had a short duration of 5 seconds or less, but that time was all that matters most. Assuming one had a magic spell of 30,000, once could hit around 10-20 times in 5 seconds, and in an instant 300,000¡ª600,000 damage points could be gathered. In the case of Limlong, the founder of Meta and the most powerful assassin, it was possible to inflict damage closer to 1 million in an instant. Even Irahan couldn¡¯t guarantee his victory if he went one ¨Con¨Cone against Limlong, that was why he recognized his skills. There was a story going on about the Noblesse Limlong that was going around, and Irahan was also sure to know it. But even then, him being all alone was different. And Irahan who had the DarkRuna guild was in no way going to give Limlong an equal treatment. And listening to Irahan¡¯s words, Limlong laughed and folded his hands. ¡°Who said I was alone?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± At the wondering expression of Irahan¡¯s, Limlong showed a red copper identity file from his hands. And Irahan who had been acting so arrogant was looking closely at the identity file. ¡°The¡­ The celestial¡­? Is he the guild master of the Celestial guild?¡± Limlong smiled and spoke, ¡°Yep, the Celestial guild is me. How¡¯s that, how do you feel like having this conversation?¡± Irahan turned stiff in the place where he was seated. The situation didn¡¯t matter if Limlong was all alone, but the situation differed entirely when he was the guild master of the Celestial Guild. ¡®Well¡­I always thought that there was no way such a guild could pop out from the sky.¡¯ The Celestial Guild was the most unusual guild in the entire Kailan. That was because the entire guild was composed of only ¡®Assassins¡¯. Since the members of the guild were less than thirty members, so the Guild rankings of this guild couldn¡¯t reach the top 100, but this guild was still the most famous as it had the most popular assassin rankers. Irahan opened his mouth. ¡°Yes, if you¡¯re the master of the Celestial Guild, then it surely is different. I am ready to negotiate properly.¡± And Limlong¡¯s lips went up making a smirk. * * * ¡®This is¡­ the Daedmon¡¯s Temple?¡¯ The 20th division of the Devildom was wide. Compared with the 21st division, this place was around 3 to 4 times larger. The Daedmon Temple was located very deep, and it took five days for Ian to reach it. ¡°I think we have come to the right place, hyung?¡± Ian nodded at Hoonie¡¯s words. ¡°Your jerk has said the same thing that your hyung has said.¡± At those words from Ian, the Death Knight Ballam who was next to Hoonie spoke back. ¡°I am a very honorable knight, the Death Knight Ballam. It would be nice if you refrain from calling me with such lowly titles.¡± Ian just ignored it. ¡°Well well, the jerk is just like his Master.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Bbookbbook who had been listening to the conversation between those two said, ¡°I¡¯m not a jerk, but I don¡¯t think my Master is much different from that bbook.¡± Kaizer too nodded and said a few words, ¡°Well, I think the same too.¡± This time Ian was at a loss of words. ¡°¡­¡± Ian turned back and looked at his party, and then moved to the inside of the Deadmon¡¯s Shrine. ¡°Be careful while moving in. we don¡¯t know what¡¯s inside, so be on full alert.¡± ¡°Okay, hyung.¡± ¡°Sure.¡± Both Hoonie and Canoel responded to Ian at the same time, and the party moved in very slowly. A white temple was rising high. With Ian and his friends moving in very carefully. * * * Grrr- Huge vibrating noises were resonating from the inside as if it was thunder. The magnificent place was filled with unknown things, and the height of it was almost ten meters tall. In addition, red flashes were happening here and there, and this mysterious place was the Temple of the Devil, the deepest point of it. As the sound of the huge vibrations resounded over and over, they eventually ceased, a red winded air was flowing. Wooing- The intense red winds then created a single whirlpool, and that was floating in the air, and started to move to a higher place. And then. An unknown voice came out from the high floor that the wind settled on. ¡°Ala Karumba¡­!¡± Kwahh-! The red whirlwind was intense enough to make the dark room shine with a red light, and slowly it was almost the darkness was sucked in by a man standing on the high podium. Swaah-! After a few seconds. Behind the expected company, and shadow, which seemed like a dragon began to surface. Grrr- That was the cry of a predator, it was low but wild enough to scare everyone as the air turned thick. And the man on the podium turned slowly. With red eyes which looked like he was suffering, a long man stood there. And he opened his mouth to see the dragon¡¯s shadow. ¡°They are intruders, right¡­?¡± Grrr- Grrr- He seemed to be having a conversation with the dragon¡¯s shadow. ¡°I see, I¡¯ll try to meet them. Huhu¡­¡± The lips of the man twisted slightly, and a wicked laugh came out of that mouth. CH 330 The temple was so quiet, that anyone could hear the sound of a needle dropping. ¡°Is there no monster in this place?¡± ¡°Well I¡¯m not sure, but I¡¯m sure that this isn¡¯t a dungeon. If it was a dungeon then we would have got the first discovery reward.¡± In the end, Hoonies lips opened. ¡°We don¡¯t even know if this dungeon was previously visited. How can you be so sure that we¡¯re the first ones to come here?¡± Ian just responded casually. ¡°Well, that¡¯s simple.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Until now in the Devildom, this isn¡¯t the first time for me to be in a dungeon.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Hoonie who couldn¡¯t think of a response just shook his head. It was because what he said didn¡¯t seem like a lie. Hoonie was the one to first walk forward, Ian just looked around and walked behind him. ¡®It is still quiet here¡­ it wouldn¡¯t be weird if some crazed monster jumps out here.¡¯ In the middle of the 20th division of the Devildom, there would never be a structure ¡®just¡¯ for the sake of appearance. This didn¡¯t seem like the place where one could just pick up the item called ¡®Daedmon¡¯s Book¡¯ that Hoonie needed. Even Hoonie who had received the quest knew that he had to go to the Temple of Daedmon, but he wasn¡¯t sure as to how the Daedom¡¯s book could be retrieved. But then. On top of the party, a huge sound began to resonate. [This is quite fresh. In this sacred temple of the Deadmon, a ¡®Half-Devil¡¯ has set foot.] With that sudden voice, Ian¡¯s party was startled and pulled out their weapons to battle. But as they looked around, they couldn¡¯t find the source of the voice. [Oh, dear. You can¡¯t find me no matter how hard you try¡­ don¡¯t bother wasting your time.] Ian decided to listen to that unknown voice for the time being. The only clue they had now was that it had a chalky voice. Ian then asked the voice after thinking for a while. ¡°Who are you?¡± The voice rang over the whole place in response to Ian¡¯s question. [I am Syarlon, the one who looks after the Daedmon as a substitute of the Devil God.] The voice which paused for a moment once again roared throughout the room. Its voice was now much clearer than before. [If you want to meet me, then come in through here.] A gigantic gate was suddenly created to the side of the party. Wheeing- It was a gate that looked similar to the other gates in the area of Devildom. They then suddenly couldn¡¯t hear the unknown voice anymore. Hoonie waited for a second and then spoke. ¡°There is no such thing as a trap¡­ right?¡± Ian laughed. ¡°If there was a trap, you won¡¯t enter?¡± ¡°Not that but¡­¡± Hoonie wasn¡¯t able to complete his words. Since the suspicious gate was created by a guy called Syarlon, it had a very subdued aura around it. ¡°Well, we don¡¯t really have an alternative right? You want to die here waiting for another way?¡± Ian moved forward after frankly saying what he wanted to say. He then asked Kaka who was flying next to him. ¡°Kaka, do you know anything about this place? Who¡¯s the caretaker of the place? And the rank of this one in the Devildom? An Asmodian? Or a Devil?¡± Kaka responded to Ian¡¯s questions. ¡°Am I some kind of an information vending machine, Master? That if you ask then the answers would just pop out?¡± ¡°But you would know something, right?¡± Kaka was irritated. ¡°¡­ you¡¯re like a ghost Master, that I know.¡± Kaka had a way of knowing about the substitute position of the soul. And this wasn¡¯t the information that only Kaka knew. Even if an NPC Asmodian was asked, there was no way they wouldn¡¯t know about that place. ¡°Basically, the substitute is the highest position among the numerous positions in the Devildom.¡± Ian, Hoonie, and Canoel were all listening very intently. Because this was the information of the enemy that they were going to deal with, and it was being received without much effort. ¡°Although there is a slight difference in the sequence depending on whom they serve for¡­ It can be said that the Asmodian is under the 200th place since he is a substitute for the place.¡± After witnessing Yankun¡¯s upgrade, Ian was able to reconsider the sequence of the Devildom. ¡®If he is under 200, then he will surely be a very strong Asmodian. Probably in the Noblesse with skills that would be in the top 100¡­¡¯ Even though he knew the Noblesse Yankun for a while, this one surely had much more strength. It was tough fighting him even with all the borrowed items from Ian, but it was also because the opponent of Yankun was a Noblesse with stronger ability. But for Ian, the opponent could be easily beaten. Even if Ian was faced with someone that was twice as strong as that Asmodian, Ian could handle it with his current strength. Ian felt a little confident. ¡®Well, there are enough odds for us to win.¡¯ Listening to Kaka¡¯s explanation, the party went closer to the gate, and the gate¡¯s aura was getting stronger as they get closer to it. Ian who stopped briefly spoke to both Hoonie and Canoel. ¡°Kay, be prepared to fight right away.¡± Ian looked around for the last time and stepped in. But the very next moment made him confused. ¡°What is this? Why can¡¯t I go in?¡± Normally when one reaches the ramp of the gate, they could just then cross over to the other space. But in this gate, Ian¡¯s body just felt the earth and nothing happened. ¡°What? What is happening? Is something wrong?¡± Hoonie was also flustered, but Caneol had a very strange expression. This was because everyone saw it for the very first time. However. Intense darkness suddenly spread, and the cry of a deadly predator filled the air. Kyahhhh-! * * * ¡°Oh, ho. Is this the City of Chaos?¡± ¡°That looks like it, Martin. This is surely enormous.¡± A big city which was much bigger than the city of Hatred. Martin the Guild master of the Royal Guild was admiring his surroundings. ¡°Well well¡­ why isn¡¯t the first discovery message coming up?¡± With the question from Martin, one of the guild member who was following him cautiously responded. ¡°Maybe the DarkRuna guild has come here before us?¡± Martin¡¯s expression changed hearing that. ¡°Hmm¡­ well, I cant rule out that possibility. While moving to the division 50, the first discovery message didn¡¯t pop up either.¡± The party of Martin, were the elite users of the guild, who were on their way to complete their Guild Quest. Thanks to the hidden Guild Quest, they discovered the presence of the Gate in the 50th division of the Devildom, which had allowed them to jump into the City of Chaos at once. Martin chewed on his lips and mumbled to himself. ¡®This isn¡¯t the first discovery either¡­ this was completely unexpected¡­¡¯ The City of Chaos was located 30th district of the Devildom. It wasn¡¯t easy to pierce the 50th division, but going thorough the 30th division was something that no one could think of. ¡°Chase, that means that someone has come all this way, right?¡± At the question from Martin, Chase thought for a moment and replied. ¡°That is a bit hard, master.¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°Somebody could have found the gate to move right? I don¡¯t think that there is a guild here, that is so established in power to pierce through. Let it be a user or a party.¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s true.¡± Martin firmly nodded his head feeling convinced. The first ranked guild in the Devildom since the recent times has been the Royal Guild, the most powerful guild at the moment wasn¡¯t ready to fight, which made them think hat no one could have fought them. ¡°Well, let¡¯s stop with that now, I need to achieve my purpose.¡± ¡°Yes, master!¡± The moment Martin was done speaking, all the members of the Royal Guild started to move in a fast pace. To find the ¡®Guild Management Office¡¯ in the City of Chaos. In order to perform a guild-based quest within the cities of Devildom, they first had to find the Guild Management office that was in their quest. The NPC that manages the guild management office will now only help them proceed with the quest, but will also provide them with additional rewards. This wasn¡¯t a only monster limited system. ¡°If we finish this quest quickly¡­ then we can register our guild right here in the City of Chaos right?¡± Chase who was in front of Martin nodded his head listening to the master and responded. ¡°Maybe we could, master.¡± ¡°Did you say about the Seipri Nest in the 32nd division?¡± ¡°Yes, master. Samuel Jin also said that he would like to accompany you¡­¡± Samuel Jin was currently the sub-Guild master of the Royal Guild, but in fact he was running a position that was equivalent to that of Martin. And together with the guild running ahead with a friendly relationship with him, they had a mutual interest. ¡°Samuel cannot help it. I have something I need to do. And it wont be easy. The Hidden Dungeon in the 32nd division¡­ probably where the top ranked monsters are there.¡± And while two of them were talking, one of the guild member who went to look for the Management office came back. ¡°Master, I found the location of the Management Office.¡± Martin nodded and said. ¡°Nice, found it pretty quick. Guide us there please.¡± ¡°Yep.¡± Following the guide member, all the members of the party moved in unison, and they were soon able to find the office without much difficulty. Creak- Martin opened the door and started to move toward the head of the Management office. In any city, the structure of the Guild Management office was similar, and for the Martin the Guild Master, it was a familiar structure. Chuk- Chuk- So they moved in 2 to 3 minutes. Martin was soon able to find the NPC who was in charge of managing the office. Martin looked over at the appearance. ¡®Such an ignorant thing. What¡¯s with the weapon hanging on the back? Is that a big sword or an axe? Who would wield such an disgusting thing?¡¯ The muscles looked like they were going to burst out. Martin, who was slightly taken aback because of the asmodian NPC who had such an outrageous appearance. The first impression was displeasure, but they was no need to resort to try and like the NPC for the sake of going on with the quest. ¡°Well, are you the director of this station?¡± The Asmodian gazed over at Martin. He slowly opened his mouth. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m the director of this place, the direct vessel of Devil Liliana, Yankun. CH 331 The whole area was filled with shadows. And Ian¡¯s eyes were tense. ¡®What is it? This is the first time that I¡¯ve seen such a beast?¡¯ It couldn¡¯t even be seen clearly. A dark silhouette fluttered and wandered around the party. And its shape was very different. Grrr- It had three heads like Cerebus, the mythical beast of the God of Hell, and its body was shaped like a dragon. The eeriest thing about it was the ghostly atmosphere that it was emitting. However, it had something common with all the other monsters. ¡®The body is translucent¡­ not a ghost¡­¡¯ At first, they thought that they could identify the monster after seeing its shadow, but after looking at it closely, they realized that it was their first time seeing such a thing. Ian asked Kaka in a very low voice. ¡°Kaka, do you know anything about this monster?¡± However, Kaka wasn¡¯t able to answer Ian¡¯s question because someone else did. ¡°Hyung that isn¡¯t a monster.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± It was Hoonie who answered Ian¡¯s question. Hoonie was looking at the shadow of the thing that was flying around with a twinkle in his eyes. ¡°Then what is it?¡± ¡°That is the Dark Summon.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°That is the very reason that I¡¯m trying to find the Daedmon¡¯s Books.¡± But just right then. A huge purple flame from an unknown identity was blown in the direction of the party. Between the flames, dozens of fire bullets the same size as a human¡¯s head were flying in their direction. Hwarrk-! There was no way for Ian to get hit even though he was nervous. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah! Water Curtain!¡± ¡°Okay bbok.¡± Kyahh-! A huge water barrier rose from the floor. The strong flames that were headed in their direction were stopped by Bbookbbook¡¯s barrier. The fireballs that met the water barrier just evaporated into the air, making a steam-like sound. Ian¡¯s eyes were sharp. The purple glow no matter how one saw was a technique by an opponent with great power and range. When one of the huge technique was lost after being used, it was a basic strategy in battle to get a hold of the counterattack timing. ¡®We need to take this opportunity and fight¡­ huh¡­?¡¯ But Ian was flustered. The shadow of the unidentified dragon which just fired at them suddenly lost its presence. Hoonie who saw Ian¡¯s surprised expression calmly explained to him. ¡°The summoners that have been summoned by the Dark Summoner is similar to the assassin, hyung.¡± ¡°Assassin? Are you talking about the user class?¡± ¡°Huh. They also have the ability to be stealthy like the assassin.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Ian was thoroughly focused on his enemy. ¡®I thought that it had a translucent body¡­ it takes precautions to hide it well.¡¯ While Ian and Hoonie were conversing, an attack from one or two enemies started to begin. They were still strategizing their targets, and they were launching from a distance, but even with such a huge distance, their attacks were threatening enough. ¡®Shadow Dragon, Soul Eater¡­¡¯ Ian slowly scrolled through the names of the monsters that were floating in the air. They were names that he had seen for the first time. ¡®Thankfully, their levels aren¡¯t much different from those outside the temple.¡¯ Ian heard Hoonie¡¯s voice once again. ¡°We need to move to the corner, we need to have a broader look hyung. We currently don¡¯t have any detective magic now.¡± Ian turned his gaze over and stared at Hoonie. He then laughed. ¡°Who said we didn¡¯t have any detective magic?¡± Kaka, who was on Ian¡¯s shoulder, flew to the air. ¡°Master, can I use it now?¡± ¡°Wait, I¡¯ll give you the signal to move.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± Hoonie didn¡¯t understand what Ian and Kaka were talking about, so he just watched. ¡®Since this hyung isn¡¯t someone who would flinch in battle¡­¡¯ Ian started to get ready for the battle as he raised his Judgement of Spirit King. ¡°Hoonie, Noel. Let¡¯s move defensively for 10 minutes from now.¡± Hoonie grunted and replied. ¡°Well, we sure can¡¯t go against it aggressively. How do you plan on taking it on?¡± Ignoring Hoonies words, Ian continued to speak. ¡°I will trigger the Blessing of Abyss. You understand what I mean, right? I just need this to work. I just need to know what kind of attacks it does.¡± Ian and his party moved in unison. In the meantime, the three people who were in for hunting realized how much the others had grown. Especially in Canoel¡¯s case, he grew to such a degree that he was nowhere near the person that Ian met the first time. Thanks to the three-member party, they knew well on how to move even when not looking at each other. Their party was showcasing amazing teamwork. Hoonie and Canoel also knew what Ian meant when saying they would take a defensive stance using the Abyss. During the ¡®Abyss¡¯ play, the heal would have a huge range, and it meant that they could get a look at the enemy¡¯s skill. Kwang- Kwakwang-! Ian deliberately started to make provocative moves. The shadows were provoked and started to attack without hesitation. Grrr-! Kwahh-! And as everyone knew, Ian came out strong, and the enemies went wild. This was the situation that Ian had been waiting for. Bang-! [¡®Shadow Dragon¡¯ suffered catastrophic damage.] [Vitality has been reduced by 172639.] [¡®Soul Kaizer¡¯ has suffered catastrophic damage.] [Vitality has been reduced by 128889.] In the status window, the diminishing vitality of the party members was happening steadily. Ian was concentrating on the vitality gauge of all the party members. ¡®Till we can battle them on par, we need the Blessing of Abyss.¡¯ If they used the Abyss right in the beginning, the monsters would try to save their abilities. Well, he did think of using it in the beginning, but before confirming the Abyss¡¯ restoration abilities, he didn¡¯t know how long the enemy¡¯s attacks would last. That was a situation that Ian didn¡¯t want. ¡®Well, just a little more¡­!¡¯ If they were regular monsters, Ian didn¡¯t have to go through this. There was a limit to the intellect of the combat abilities of the wild monsters. But if the monsters were being controlled by someone, then it was a whole different story. According to Hoonie, they were familiars called under a common name, ¡®Dark Summon¡¯. Of course, that was the case assuming that they were summoned by someone and being controlled by that person. ¡°Now!!¡± The moment Ian¡¯s words fell out of his mouth, Bbookbbook¡¯s whole body roared. Grrr¨C! A Mythical Dragon with a tremendous presence appeared! Hoonie, who was right next to him, was nervous and was wondering if he could still adapt to the situation. ¡°Oh shit! What am I to going do if it suddenly grows bigger!!¡± While Hoonie was surprised, a blue light started to gather around Bbookbbook. Wheeing- Ian had the strongest recovery technique. ¡®Blessing of Abyss¡¯ began to be played. [Familiar Bbookbbook has used the unique ability ¡®Blessing of Abyss¡¯.] [18729 of vitality has been restored.] [18729 of vitality has been restored.] The advantage of having this ability in Bbookbbook was because of its enormous healing ability. The DOT Heal could be pushed for an endless amount of time. On top of that, its healing ability has a wider area. But it still had a fatal weakness. Since it was a DOT Heal, it was weak with one-shot damage abilities. Allowing successive techniques with such destructive power could result in the death of the party members with the lowest HP. But then. Among the enemies who were crying out, a low voice came out. [In the name of Daedmon¡­ ] Ian¡¯s eyes narrowed a little. ¡®What is this¡­ this noise?¡¯ And right at that moment, they found the origin of the noise. ¡®Grim Reaper¡­? This guy looks the most dangerous¡­¡¯ The Reaper started to give out a very weird aura because of the sickle on his back. Ian had momentarily hesitated. That guy, he must have been casting a high-grade spell without these guys even knowing. There was no way they could stop it now, so they only had one valid option. ¡®Avoid it.¡¯ Ian quickly looked at his party members. He didn¡¯t know the exact casting time, but it seemed hard to avoid everything before the initiation. ¡°Bbakbbak-ah, Dragon¡¯s Roar!¡± Kwahhh-! Bbakbbak put up his head and roared as soon as Ian ordered it to do so. But then all the attack flooded towards Bbakbbak. A huge sound came up. ¡°Everyone move to the sides so you guys could evade!¡± ¡°What is it, hyung!¡± ¡°Just move for now!¡± Hoonie and Canoel didn¡¯t ask any more questions and just followed Ian¡¯s order. However, Bbakbbak started to move in the opposite direction. That was Ian¡¯s intention all along. Bbakbbak used its skill which allowed them to bring out as much broad magic attack as possible. And at the moment, a huge storm of winds began to hit the party members on the other side. In other words, Bbakbbak was the only one that moved from its spot. The magic spell came out from the mouth of the ¡®Grim Reaper¡¯. [Des- prelude¡­!] That meant prelude to death, a wide range of skills with enormous power. Even though Ian tried to react, there still wasn¡¯t enough time to avoid this attack. It was because of this that Ian moved Pin and Ly¡ªhis familiars¡¯ that had low vitality¡ªto a different location. Kwahh¡ª-! Bbakbbak and BBookbbook, the tanking familiars managed to survive the Des Prelude. And somehow, the party managed to minimize the damage. ¡°Hyung, Lake summon.¡± ¡°Well done. It didn¡¯t die?¡± ¡°no.¡± ¡°It coped well.¡± Ian who managed to minimize the damage started to keep on fighting again. Fortunately, it was still possible to recover the lost vitality of the whole party to the maximum level, it was because the Abyss cooldown was about to finish. Ian¡¯s mouth went up. ¡®I think I know what I need to do.¡¯ Ian made a fist. The remaining duration of the Abyss was about 30 seconds. It was time for a counter-attack. ¡°Kaka, ready?¡± ¡°I know.¡± ¡°Then do it now.¡± ¡°Kay.¡± Kaka, who rose to the sky, went higher and closed her eyes. [Darkness¡­ will fall down.] Kwaoong- The inside of the temple was being filled with darkness. [Slave ¡®Kaka¡¯ Dreaming Devil unique ability has been activated.] [During the ¡®Shadow Control¡¯, all the party members attack will be increased by 5%, and damage by shadow types will be decreased by 50%. All the enemies in the radius of the darkness will be visible.] The darkness swallowed another darkness. CH 332 The Temple of Daemon was locked with darkness. Even though it was shocking, all the party members of Ian could look in the darkness. Even the stalkers in the darkness could be seen, even if they were hiding. Hoonie looked over at Ian with a shocked expression. ¡°Hyung, when did you get this aggressive skill?¡± ¡°Well not sure, when was it¡­?¡± ¡°No, that isn¡¯t important, why haven¡¯t you used such an awesome skill till now?¡± ¡°Because there wasn¡¯t a correct situation to use it.¡± Kaka¡¯s unique ability the ¡®Dreaming Devil¡¯. This was a skill that would increase all the attack power of the party members by 5%. But until now, Ian had never been able to activate this skill while hunting with Hoonie. There was no need for the 5% buff attack effect at all. It was a safe-sided skill to be used if the situation called for it. ¡®I think I could use this¡­ but I may not be able to use the 5% buff skill at all.¡¯ And the situation that Ian had been waiting for had finally arrived. Hoonie stared at him as if he was looking at a monster. ¡®Normally the hyung isn¡¯t the kind to be reckless but¡­ but this hyung is awesome, I¡¯ll give him that.¡¯ The ¡®Dreaming Devil¡¯ ability was the same as the Warlock class. That was the reason why all the party members in the range could reduce their damage received by 50%. And the moment the skill got activated, the enemy which had been so powerful could no longer be considered as a threat to Ian¡¯s party. All the attacks of the Dark Pets were based on darkness, and the abilities of the shield made it all useless. In addition, the great skills of the enemy were all missing. Now, there was only one thing left to do. ¡°Karceus, Bbookbbook, be ready!¡± At the end of those words from Ian; the two dragons flew into the air and pulled the air. Tremors started to shake in the temple along with a huge roaring sound. Kyooo¡ª! The next was bright. Kwanng¡ª! The breath of the two dragons was spewed out of the familiars onto the Dark pets, and the remaining enemies were taken care of by Ly and Kaizer. In the midst of the Darkness in the battlefield, havoc was created with the Undead being summoned by Hoonie. The Death Knight with its mighty power was five, and more than ten Golems were summoned together with the skeletons, they all ran towards the dark enemies. [The Monarch of Darkness, for the Immortal!] [Grrr, This is the land of darkness. It¡¯s a good place to showcase my strength.] Tring- [The land of Darkness, is the home of the Undead.] [The Undead in the land of Darkness, has their vitality restored 300% faster.] [Only for Undead the ¡®Dreaming Devil¡¯ buff attack of 5%, will be 35% of the effect.] [All the Undead¡¯s mana consumption will be reduced by half.] It was neither in the description of its original ability nor in a situation that anyone could predict. Not just Hoonie, but Ian was also shocked by the turn of events. ¡®What is this? Did the Dreaming Devil have such abilities? There weren¡¯t any other explanations¡­¡¯ This wasn¡¯t a situation that occurred very often. The attributes of the buff skill, Ian knew that even if it wasn¡¯t explained further about the mechanics of the skill, it often happened that a friend with the same attribute gets a stronger buff. This was also something that was posted on the bulletin board of the official caf¨¦. However, when such enormous effects are given, they have never been seen in play till now. Kiyaaa-! And the Grim Reaper who used the Death prelude moved into the air in a flash and spoke. [You people dare¡­ Merely humans¡­!!!] Kuoo-! Again a wave was pushing them back. But Ian didn¡¯t worry much. Even if Death prelude was used one more, Ian was confident enough to hold it off in this dark land. ¡®Ly, Kaizer. Let¡¯s get rid of them all.¡¯ ¡°Understood, Master.¡± ¡°Okay then, let¡¯s do it.¡± Ian climbed onto Pin¡¯s back. It was because he was planning on joining them. ¡®With them not being able to hide, there is no reason for us to be scared anymore.¡¯ Ian jumped into the air while turning the Judgment of the Spirit King in his hand. Although there were a lot of dark pets, Hoonie¡¯s all-new Undead, Ian and Canoel¡¯s familiars were more in number than the opponent. They were in a fight, so there were no other pets of the dark that could defend the Grim Reaper. Ahhh-! Ian, the first to arrive due to the speed of Pin, jumped up to his level and wielded his Judgement of the Spirit King at the caster. However, as the Grim Reaper couldn¡¯t attack while casting, it allowed itself to get attacked. [You have done catastrophic damage to the Shadow master ¡®Grim Reaper¡¯.] [All the orders that would¡¯ve been cast by the Shadow Master ¡®Grim Reaper¡¯ will be canceled.] [¡®Grim Reaper¡¯ vitality has been decreased by 276621.] [Uh, uh, even if I was a little quicker¡­!] It was natural for the casting magic to get canceled at the attack. The Grim Reaper thought that he had calculated that he would be done casting the magic before Ian could reach him. Ian who confirmed the system message smiled and moved once again. ¡®I¡¯m not sure what he was meant to do, but his armor is unpierceable.¡¯ In fact, the wizards who unleash very powerful magic attacks rarely have strong tanking abilities on par to their strength. Bang- babang-! The spear of Ian and the sickle of the Grim Reaper came in contact with each other. Although the opponent was a wizard, the skill of dealing with weapons was a tough task. ¡®The same as¡­ magic?¡¯ Bu that was just for a while. Both Kaizer and Ly came and pounced into the battle, and the Grim Reaper was removed in an instant. [Kwahk-! I¡¯m dying in the hands of trivial human beings¡­!] The Grim Reaper, who was the one left, disappeared with smoke as the air stopped flowing. Tring- [You have successfully defeated the Shadow Master ¡®Grim Reaper¡¯!] [You have gained experience points of 5789899.] [You have earned the fame of 250,000 points.] But when he looked at the system messages that came up, it seemed obvious that he was dead but not entirely. Ian read the messages and mumbled to himself. ¡®Well the experience points are little for the trouble that I¡¯ve gone to¡­ but what kind of monster gives such fame?¡¯ In general, if a named monster is killed such as a Grim Reaper, one gets around 5,000 to 10,000 fame points. It depended on the level but was based on the current level of Ian. But this Grim Reaper guy should have given out around 250,000, that was why this was a surprising turn of events. But soon Ian, recovered from his shock. Tring- [You have killed the Devil¡¯s Lion.] [The ¡®Magic resistance¡¯ ability has been increased permanently by 0.5%.] [¡®Magic Attack Rate¡¯ increased permanently by 0.7%.] [Magic stats are permanently increased by 2000.] Ian¡¯s mouth turned into a smile. The increase wasn¡¯t that much, but it felt good as it was an unexpected income. Beginning with the Grim Reaper, everything there was cleared out. Not exactly that, but once the Grim Reaper had been taken down, all the other monsters just collapsed with simple attacks. But even then, Ian had a few questions. ¡®The familiars are supposed to disappear the moment their Summoner dies¡­ how is it that they managed to stay still now?¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes were slightly in thought. ¡®Maybe the Summoner is someone different¡­?¡¯ They had assumed that the Grim Reaper was the owner of the pets, but that wasn¡¯t how the situation turned out. Ian¡¯s gaze was fixed on the red gate. And the answer seemed to be inside it. * * * Martin and Chase visited the City of Chaos to proceed with the guild quest and increase their guild branches. But they have met a challenge that they were unaware of. Well, they didn¡¯t know that it was going to be a difficult one. Tring ¨C [City of Quest, Guild Quest has been activated.] Examination by Noblesse Yankun (Guild Quest) ¨C Liliana the Master of the City of Chaos and the sixth Lord of the Devildom. Has recently left the guild management office to the newly acquired retainer, Yankun. In order to register a guild at the guild office, you need the approval of the Managing Director, Yan Kun. Complete your mission after that, and then you will be allowed to register your guild in the City of Chaos. Quest Difficulty: Unknown Quest Condition: Only the ¡®Master¡¯ of the guild can receive the quest. Time limit: None Reward ¨C Guild fame of 150,000, affinity with the Noblesse Yankun. (Reward may vary depending on the user participating in the quest.) ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Martin, who read through the contents of the quest, asked Yankun. ¡°Well, what is meant to do, Mr. Yankun?¡± Martin was forced to ask Yankun. In the Devildom order and rank were everything and absolute, and the difference between the Noblesse Yankun and the Greater Asmodian Martin had a difference of 400 ranks. And if this sequence was violated, then it would anger all the NPCs in the Devildom. ¡°Hmm¡­ looks weak, I¡¯m not sure if you guys will pass the qualification test.¡± It was true, as Chase was a wizard boy who was comparatively slim. However, Martin had a very well built up physic. ¡®What are you saying to me, you ignorant muscle pig?¡¯ Since Martin couldn¡¯t say it outside, he thought to himself and responded politely. ¡°I won¡¯t let you down, Mr. Yankun. If you give us the task we will make sure to do it.¡± Yankun was still not convinced, but soon he nodded and opened his mouth to speak, ¡°Okay. I¡¯ll give you guys one task.¡± Martin and Chase looked relieved and a system message appeared before them. Tring- [A joint quest has been invoked by The Guild Hunter of the City of Chaos, Yankun.] ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Noblesse Yankun¡¯s Test I ¨C In the northeastern side of the Devildom at the 31st division, there is a habitat for the highest ranking warrior Seirein. Go to the habitat of Seirein and hunt as many as possible and collect 30 eggs of it. Quest Difficulty: SSS Quest Condition: only the ¡®Master¡¯ of the guild can receive the quest. Time Limit: 3 hours Reward: Yankun¡¯s curiosity (Rewards may vary depending on the user participating in the quest.) ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Among all the monster, the Seirein¡¯s were the most powerful ones. That was because they use the skill of wide-area slowing, and the ability to regain their lost vitality. Moreover, if it was the nesting area of the Seirein, dozens of them will be there. Martin¡¯s expression was a bit speculative. ¡®What¡¯s with these kinds of quests?¡¯ It didn¡¯t mean that Martin couldn¡¯t hunt them down with his ability. If the battle was one-on-one then it was an easy thing, he could win easily, and he could easily win over three of them too. But the problem was that it was a habitat¡ªa community. If the Seirein used the ability to recover their vitality, then there was a danger that the battle would go on endlessly. ¡°¡­¡± Moreover, the biggest problem was that the quest was time-limited to 3 hours. And what about the ridiculous reward? Yankun¡¯s interest¡­ ¡®I don¡¯t need the interest of that muscle pig!¡¯ But that wasn¡¯t what was important now. He had to register the guild for the very first time in the City of Chaos. And the benefits that it brings were sure to be enormous. Martin¡¯s head was rolling around. ¡®I can¡¯t complete this quest within 3 hours in any normal way. I need to steal the eggs.¡¯ Martin who had finished the approximate calculation and plans nodded his head to Yankun and said, ¡°I won¡¯t let you down, Mr. Yankun.¡± But Yankun responded in a different way. ¡°Well, will see.¡± And so, the hell had begun. CH 333 Ian and the party defeated all the dark pets and once again stepped on the gate floor. And the gate that didn¡¯t work till a moment back, sucked in the party of Ian who were waiting. Winning the battle seemed like an activation condition of the gate. Wheeing- The space was moved and a bright light made its appearance in front of Ian. ¡®What is this¡­? Why is it so bright here? Did we just move over to some other place?¡¯ And the next second, Ian had to get his sh*t together. The floor on which Ian and his party members were standing on was transparent enough to see the bottom, and right below them was the Daedmon¡¯s Temple. Unlike one, Hoonie who just screamed. ¡°Ahhh! What¡¯s this! Is this a trap!?¡± ¡°Shut up, idiot. Try to be a little quiet. Even I¡¯m scared.¡± Ian carefully steps onto the transparent floor by moving one of his legs. As soon as his leg had touched the floor, there seemed to be no problem, so he moved very carefully. ¡®This is like¡­walking on the clouds.¡¯ Ian felt he was just moving away. And then slowly tried to move his gaze to his bottom. This had been the most fearful thing that riding on any rollercoaster rides. Even if the floor suddenly decides to collapse he had Pin to save him, but even the thought of it just scared the shit out of Ian. Chuk- Chuk- Chuk- And naturally Ian¡¯s gaze moved to the direction where the sound was coming from, and there was an Asmodian who was seen for the first time. ¡°Interesting. You¡¯ve made me wait for a long time. It is always a pleasure when I get my anticipated outcome wrong.¡± Ian immediately knew who he was. ¡°Are you the one from this temple¡­ The substitute for this temple?¡± Ian cut off his words in fear, the new Asmodian disappeared and then made its appearance in front of the party. Ian had gotten much nervous. ¡®What¡¯s this? I didn¡¯t even blink¡­¡¯ The man who made his appearance in front of Ian and his party opened his mouth with a fun anticipating expression on his face. ¡°I was told that a half-devil had made an appearance in the temple¡­ with abilities that couldn¡¯t be considered as humans.¡± The substitute, Syarlon¡¯s lip corner went up. ¡°Though it was a bit abrupt, it had been a very long time since I felt so entertained.¡± And Ian¡¯s gaze slowly went above the head of the Asmodian. [Substitute Syarlon / Lv 456 / Noblesse] And this surprised him. ¡®This guy is really a monster.¡¯ If they had to fight against this guy, then it was a full fail. He was a Noblesse with the level of 450. Even though it was a Noblesse, it could be said that his abilities would be different from those at the level of 350. Ian, who had an average level of 250, was nowhere near the enemy. However, this made him feel more comfortable. In the map this was where the enemies of the level 300 would appear, this was a boss class but the ability of the enemy was just exceeding the level of 450. Ian who was curious opened his mouth in the direction of Syarlon. ¡°By the way Syarlon, can I ask you something I¡¯m curious about?¡± Looking at Ian who didn¡¯t seem to be nervous or scared, Syarlon looked at him with a casual look. Normally, when a human comes in contact with an Asmodian who is higher than themselves, he feels upset and get¡¯s his morale down, but this guy didn¡¯t even show a single sign of that. And Syarlon, who thought that he had made a wrong judgment on this guy was in thoughts. But seeing the battle that had happened in the temple, he realized that Ian wasn¡¯t as strong as he was behaving. If it had been him, then he would have erased off all the ¡®toys¡¯ that Ian had dealt with¡ªin a single instant. ¡®What kind of guy are you? You¡¯re stronger than what I had expected, but still, like a little bird to me¡­¡¯ Syarlon who was interested in Ian stared at him and responded, ¡°Okay, let me know what you are so curious about.¡± And Ian asked away immediately. ¡°What is the sequence of yours in the Devildom? It is because you seem to be stronger than all the Noblesse that I have come across till now. No, you seem so strong that I can¡¯t compare you to those of the Noblesses that I¡¯ve seen.¡± The reason for Ian to ask this was very simple. He wanted to accumulate as much information as he could on the combat abilities by comparing with the sequence he had in the Devildom. And Syarlon¡¯s eyes went wide. And then broke into laughter. ¡°Kahahahha!¡± That was a question that he didn¡¯t expect to hear. Maybe this guy, was he considering himself as the friend of the Noblesse? The substitute who should be guarding the temple, the sequence of him in the Devildom. The substitute was surprised, as he was someone on par with the Devil, and being treated so easily was the first for him. ¡°Okay then. I¡¯ll let you know since you¡¯ve made me curious too.¡± Syarlon laughed and smiled. ¡°My rank in the Devils is 107. So, surely you felt the difference with the others that you met.¡± And Ian felt his curiosity settle down. ¡®If you are in the 107th rank of the Devils¡­ means that you are the 7th in the Noblesse. He is close enough to be considered a devil.¡¯ Then the level of 450 was understandable. Syarlon opened his mouth once again. ¡°then, I¡¯ll ask now.¡± The gaze Ian and all the party members turned towards Syarlon. And Syarlon opened his mouth. ¡°For what purpose did you guys come here and find the Daedmon¡¯s Temple? It looks like you have come here knowing that Mr. Daedmon doesn¡¯t like the ¡®hybrids¡¯¡­¡± And by hybrids, he meant the half-devils. The Devil-god Daedmon, favor the devils but seemed to not accept the non-devils, which meant that he was someone close to the tendency of destruction. And as the substitute for the Daedmon, Syarlon also didn¡¯t seem to like half-devils, so Ian¡¯s party were up for a test. If Ian¡¯s party had not been a Half-devil, then they would¡¯ve been able to meet Syarlon without fighting with the Dark pets. Ian turned his gaze towards Hoonie, and Hoonie scratched the back of his neck and slowly moved forward. And Ian¡¯s eyes wavered by seeing this. ¡°What is it Hoonie? Don¡¯t do such things.¡± ¡°Even I¡¯m not sure¡­ but can¡¯t we trust it?¡± ¡°Would you believe it?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Hoonie surely knew that Daedom was close to the destructive nature. And it was written on the description of the quest. Hoonie¡¯s quest was to meet the substitute Syarlon. Meet Syarlon, deliver the token of darkness and then read the contents of the Book of Daedmon, these were the quest conditions of Hoonie¡¯s. But thinking that the substitute wouldn¡¯t make an appearance without a destructive power, he brought Ian as insurance. And as a result, it was the best decision to bring along Ian. He passed the test safely and met Syarlon. Instead, he got the anger of Ian to deal with, but that was a concern for the later time. Ignoring Ian, Hoonie walked towards Syarlon. ¡°You must be the God¡¯s Substitute Syarlon.¡± And the eyes of Syarlon turned away from Ian and met Hoonie¡¯s. ¡°What are you?¡± ¡°The God of Darkness, Kade¡¯s messenger, KanjiHoonie. I have something I need to bring to Daedmon.¡± Syarlon looked at the face of Hoonie thoroughly. ¡°KanjiHoonie, well that is one bad name. so, what¡¯s the thing?¡± Hoonie was about to shake his head but barely managed to control himself. This quest was very important for Hoonie. ¡°This is the sign of Darkness. It was said the Daedmon will put his trust in me for this.¡± Syarlon stared at the quaint but stunning pattern in the hands of Hoonie and took it very slowly. After taking the token of Darkness into his hand, Syarlon mumbled to himself. ¡°This is a thing that has a very strong power. Wait here, just a minute.¡± After saying that, Syarlon disappeared to somewhere, and moments later a system message appeared in front of all the party members. Tring- [Completed the Quest ¡®God of Darkness Kade¡¯s Errand III¡¯ (Hidden) quest.] Seeing this Ian¡¯s eyes grew bigger. ¡®The God of Darkness Kade is one of the five gods of the human world¡­ why such a heavy quest?¡¯ Moreover, there was already a lot of progress, the completion of the third linked quest, which was a hidden quest too. ¡®Hoonie, this jerk had got one hell of a gorgeous quest.¡¯ Ian thought he would have to take a quick snoop at the quest. * * * ¡°I don¡¯t have time to waste! Move fast! Trick the Seirein off and then catch two to three of them!¡± In order to succeed the quest of Yankun, Martin had been dragging with him three members of the Royal Guild. In fact, this level of power with the Seireins community, the guild could be able to do a full scale-war, but the Royal Guild couldn¡¯t do that now. It was because of the ridiculously short time limit on the quest, which was 3 hours. And if they wanted to kill off all the Seirein beings, then it would obviously not to take three hours, but they would need a whole day. ¡®Damn, what is this? Only if I would¡¯ve got a little more time.¡¯ Experience and items that were dropped for hunting the Seireins were the best. Thinking about it made Martin¡¯s heart change. He couldn¡¯t fight because of the time limit, and it was because they didn¡¯t want the guild members to die. It was clear that 30% of the troops would die for them to take the eggs. ¡®Phew, first we need to complete the quest.¡¯ This unblemished quest made by the LB company was out of rage. Anyway, due to the precise movement, securing the Seireins eggs; Martin and Chase went back to Yankun. ¡°I have come back after fulfilling my mission, Mr. Yankun.¡± And Martin as much polite that he could be, handed the eggs to Yankun. However, Yankun who received it still didn¡¯t look so pleased. ¡°Hmmm¡­ you have accomplished your mission.¡± Martin, who was always in control of his facial expression, suddenly lost control. ¡®No, what¡¯s with the way he talks?¡¯ And the words of Yankun continued. ¡°Martin, do you remember my mission?¡± He wasn¡¯t sure how to respond to that muscle pig, so Martin opened the system message and answered while looking at it. ¡°Mr. Yankun has told me to hunt as many Seireins as possible and collect as many as 30 eggs.¡± Yankun got up from his seat and said. ¡°Yes! But how did you do that mission?!¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°You have collected the 30 eggs which were very nice¡­ but you haven¡¯t even killed ten of them?¡± Martin who realized what Yankun was saying, felt upset. ¡®No, that¡¯s as much as I could do! You ugly bitch!¡¯ But he couldn¡¯t say that with his mouth, and Martin spoke different words from his thought. ¡°Sorry. I should¡¯ve killed more of those guys.¡± At the apology from Martin. Yankun turned a bit cheerful and opened his mouth again. ¡°Hmm, I¡¯m very disappointed in you, but you¡¯ve managed to get the Seireins¡¯ eggs, so that¡¯s good.¡± Then system messages appeared in front of Martin. Tring- [You have successfully completed the ¡®Noblesse Yankun Test I¡¯ quest.] [Clear rating : D] [Due to low clear rating, your gained experience and the gold coins are reduced by 80%.] Martin had an unclear expression. ¡®No, what is this?! Since I met all the quest condition I need to get a B!¡¯ But apart from Martin, Yankun¡¯s words continued. ¡°Ha, I feel like seeing my Master. If you were my master, then he would¡¯ve completely destroyed all the Seireins.¡± Martin who heard it was feeling so embarrassed. ¡®Wait a minute, your Master is Lord Liliana. What could compare with the power of the devils?¡¯ But that was just the misconception of Martin¡¯s. The Master that Yankun was speaking about was Ian. ¡°Anyway, since you have completed your mission, I need to give the next assignment¡­¡± Yankun added a word while looking at Martin. ¡°I don¡¯t expect much from you, anyways. Will you be able challenge yourself the next time?¡± Martin¡¯s expression worsened. This muscle pig seemed to have the ability to make the other people feel bad about themselves. CH 334 The token came down. And of course, it would lead to a linked quest or the quest¡¯s final reward. Some quest that would connect the two ¡®Gods¡¯. In addition, there were already three linked quests. This should have been taken with gratitude. The longer the linkage, the greater the rewards. And both Ian and Hoonie knew that. Especially Hoonie, he was looking at the substitute Syarlon in anticipation. ¡°What was the response?¡± Syarlon replied in a much smoother way than before. Perhaps they liked what God had to offer. ¡°He was delighted. You deserve merit for bringing in the token.¡± Until then, the two people didn¡¯t even consider talking, but now they were talking with respect. This was due to the affinity. Syarlon took out a red parchment scroll. Then the red parchment scroll flew to the air and went towards Hoonie. To Hoonie¡¯s surprise, the red parchment scroll pierced into Hoonie¡¯s heart. System messages popped up in front of Hoonie¡¯s eyes. Tring- [Completed the quest successfully and earned the additional rewards.] [Fame grew by 100,000.] [Obtained ¡®Magic¡¯ ability value by 4000.] ¡°Oh oh¡­!¡± Hoonie¡¯s mouth was wide open. It was because of the reward of 4,000 magic resistance and the 100,000 fame wasn¡¯t a small reward for the quest. Syarlon, who looked at Hoonie¡¯s face that was filled with happiness, opened his mouth again. ¡°And there was the additional token.¡± Hoonie¡¯s gaze turned to Syralon. He was waiting for this. If the linkage of the quest ends here, the entire quest would end and the final reward could be obtained already. If not that, the next linkage of the quest would come up. Hoonie was hoping for the linked quest to come up rather than the final rewards. It would be safe if the quest had ended there, but as mentioned earlier the longer the linkage, the greater the reward. In fact, one of the rewards for the entire quest was described as ¡®Elementary Dark Summoners Skill book¡¯ which could be upgraded to ¡®Intermediate Dark Summoner Skillbook¡¯ after the third quest completion. And as Hoonie had hoped for, Syarlon took up the story to the next linkage of the quest. ¡°Daedmon doesn¡¯t know what the agreement of The God of Darkness is, but to understand that, a few things need to be prepared.¡± Hoonie responded. ¡°What are those things?¡± ¡°There are three things¡­¡± Before Syarlon explained those things he opened a small auxiliary quest window. Tring ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Quest Completion Condition ¨C Orb of darkness ¨C (0/1) Shadow¡¯s feather ¨C (0/7) Heart of Balrog ¨C (0/5) ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Hoonie¡¯s eyes glowed as he read them. He didn¡¯t know what an Orb of Darkness or the shadow feather was, but the last thing¡ªthe Heart of the Balrog¡ªwas enough for him to know the importance of this quest. Seeing Hoonie smile Syarlon smiled a little and spoke. ¡°They sure are amazing. They are all the things that can be obtained by hunting a powerful legendary monster.¡± Even though he was surprised, he soon snap back out of it. It was because he thought that he could take down even a legendary monster right now. ¡°Believe me, Mr. Substitute. I¡¯ll be back with these materials.¡± Syarlon nodded and responded. ¡°Of course you should. Daedmon expects much from you.¡± Hoonie stared at Syarlon for a moment and said. ¡°Then, I¡¯ll leave!¡± But just right then. Syarlon called up Hoonie who immediately turned around. ¡°Wait, I haven¡¯t finished the story yet.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± Hoonie looked over at Syarlon with a puzzled expression, and Syarlon looked over at Ian. Hoonie started to get a very uncomfortable feeling. ¡®What, what? Why is that jerk staring at Ian hyung again?¡¯ He felt like something like this had happened before. Hoonie¡¯s ominous premonition was spot on. ¡°The God Daedmon said that he wants you in on the mission too.¡± Ian was just watching the progress of the quest without reacting that much. ¡°Huh¡­?¡± ¡°You have to do the same mission.¡± After hearing this, the reaction of someone other than Ian was much bigger. That was Hoonie. ¡°Huh..!!¡± That was such an unexpected development! While Hoonie was still surprised, Syarlon¡¯s words went on. ¡°How¡¯s that, Ian? Will you like to try the mission the god of the Devildom has presented to you?¡± Syarlon asked Ian. It was a meaningless question. The answer was already set in Ian¡¯s head. Ian responded with a smirk. ¡°Of course. I would gladly do it!¡± Ian changed the atmosphere immediately. It was a decision he wasn¡¯t going to change! And Syarlon seemed so pleased at Ian¡¯s response. ¡°Nice. God will be pleased.¡± Tring ¨C [Obtained the quest ¡®God of Darkness, Kade¡¯s Errand IV¡¯ (Hidden) (Linkage)] After that, the conversation continued for a while about the quest between Ian and Syarlon. As their conversation went on, Hoonie¡¯s lips began to pout. * * * ¡°Noel hyung, I can be a little bit offended, right?¡± ¡°Well¡­ maybe I guess?¡± ¡°Oh my god why! Why do I always have to do good things for this hyung!¡± In conclusion, Ian inherited Hoonie¡¯s quest. Surely, Hoonie didn¡¯t lose the quest. It was just a step beyond the linkage, a similar level of the quest was received by Ian but as a summoner. It was a painful thing for Hoonie. It was originally a linked quest that was shared to the party members to an extent. But getting the Hidden class quest was a very hard thing to do. But it wasn¡¯t surprising that it was shared 100%. It was difficult to accurately quantify, but it was common for the reward to be divided in half with the additional member or to the one who holds the most significance by the time the quest ends. And that too would depend on the user who would finish the quest. But now Ian wasn¡¯t going to help Hoonie finish the quest and share the reward. He now had the same level of quest and allied hunting. It wasn¡¯t unreasonable for Hoonie to say those words. Ian chuckled at this and asked. ¡°Are you cursing me?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m not!¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll forgive you.¡± ¡°WTF!¡± ¡°Did you forget that you deceived me?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Hoonie didn¡¯t remember it right away, but then all his memories about it shot to his head. ¡°That¡­ that wasn¡¯t deceiving! I just didn¡¯t tell you everything!¡± ¡°That¡¯s what deceiving means, you idiot.¡± ¡°If I told you everything would you have accompanied me?¡± Ian thought for a moment and then answered. ¡°No, I would¡¯ve done it either way. I think?¡± ¡°Then there¡¯s no problem!¡± ¡°No, but the process of how it is done is important.¡± Ian¡¯s face was pleasant unlike the look on Hoonie¡¯s face. Well, he surely didn¡¯t like to make fun of Hoonie. It was just that he liked the quest he had got. Although he had thought about Hoonie¡¯s quest, he didn¡¯t know that the opportunity would come to him just like that. ¡®What¡¯s this? Even if I wasn¡¯t interested in hunting, I¡¯ll just do it for the Beast Alchemy. It¡¯s nice to do quests like these.¡¯ Ian once again opened the quest window that he received from Syarlon. ¨C ¨C The God of Darkness, Kade¡¯s Errand IV (Hidden) (Linkage) ¨C One of the five Gods who govern the Human world in the Kailan continent, God of Darkness Kades. He was trying to produce a sickle with the power to fulfill his deal made with the Daemon, over a long time ago. ¨C However, Kades who was in another dimension couldn¡¯t move to the other to collect the materials all by himself. ¨C Thus, Kades attempts to gather the materials with the help of his ability to carry out the mission. ¡®Let¡¯s gather the materials of darkness that were scattered in the Devildom¡¯ that was Kades¡¯ orders. Quest Difficulty: Unknown Quest Condition: Users recognized by Kades. Time Limit: none Reward: The Book of Daedmon. Intermediate dark Summoner Book (Legend) ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian¡¯s mouth went up, and when he read until the end of the quest, it turned to a smile. ¡®The Dark Summons! This is so interesting, right?¡¯ Even the materials that were to be collected were items that could be obtained by hunting down only the Legendary Monsters. Ian, who needed to search for legendary monsters anyway, thought that this was the best. ¡°He¡­hehut.¡± The quest was shared with Ian, and everything was only possible because of Ian himself. Ian and Hoonie were not familiar with the fact, but in order to receive the quest, two specific conditions needed to be met. The first was that the user should be someone who had accumulated a 1% public value in the last war. The second was that a user needed to be a warlock or a summoner and should be in the top 10 rankings. But if the two mentioned conditions were satisfied, then one could skip the linkage and get the fourth quest right away. However, Ian was the number one user with overwhelming power in the dimensional war, and in the summoners ranking too. That was why such a ridiculous situation had appeared. Kade and Daedmon had given Ian the perfect quest. Hoonie thought that his hyung had very strong luck, but it was actually because the things in Kailan were made that way. ¡°Wah, Noel hyung. Won¡¯t you swear at that hyung?¡± ¡°For what?¡± ¡°That hyung he just took the quest from me, and now you don¡¯t have a connection quest.¡± Hoonie who was struggling reached out to Canoel to share his pain and suffering, but Canoel just stood there. Canoel just showed a calm expression. ¡°Hmm¡­ well? I have nothing specific to swear at.¡± Hoonie¡¯s face was distorted, and Ian¡¯s voice once again entered his ears. ¡°Hey, is there a reason for me to be sworn at?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°With the money he received, he can buy dozens of legendary skill books.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± Canoel laughed then Hoonie just realized something as if he was enlightened. Ian¡¯s explanation continued. ¡°Just follow us, it¡¯s just like doing a quest together so just enjoy it. Is the reward that important?¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s true.¡± Canoel didn¡¯t oppose what Ian said. * * * ¡°Hmm¡­ this is my first time doing such a thing¡­¡± They stepped into the red cloud floating in the skies of the Devildom. The substitute Syarlon on behalf of God Daedmon looked at the group of people who just left the temple. And there was a strange expression in his face. ¡°Lord Daedmon was so impressed by the Half-devil¡­ I don¡¯t understand why¡­¡± But whatever the reason was, Daedmon was the greatest of the Devil Gods, and it was an absolute necessity to have a substitute since he sees through him. ¡°I¡¯ll know soon.¡± Syarlon flapped his red cloak and vanished. The red clouds that remained after his disappearance scattered instantly, concealing his trace. CH 335 Ian actually planned on helping Hoonie by dropping him off at the temple and planned on going to division 15 to catch the Balrog. However, due to the unexpected turn of events, that plan was changed. ¡®I never knew that such quests would be given to me¡­¡¯ The reason why his plan was changed was because a guy called Syarlon had given Ian a Hidden quest that originally belonged to Hoonie. Ian didn¡¯t know how to obtain the three needed materials that could be acquired by hunting down legendary monsters. The only thing he knew was the Balrog¡¯s Heart that he could get by killing the Balrog. The only clue provided to Ian and his party was that they would get the required materials by killing legendary monsters. To get the required materials they have to visit a place that they hadn¡¯t visited for a long time. ¡°I don¡¯t get it, what is the connection with this and going to the 107th district?¡± ¡°It had everything to do with it, idiot! Just stop asking questions and follow me.¡± The reason why Ian was going to the 107th district was to meet Cervian. Cervian was the only one whom Ian knew that had lots of knowledge and information about the Devildom, and he would surely be the person that would know everything about the materials too. Wheeing- As soon as Ian¡¯s beads got activated, the gate opened to Cervian¡¯s laboratory in the 107th district. Hoonie looked at the spheres and muttered with a jealous look in his eyes. ¡°Where in the world did you get these artifacts?¡± Ian entered the gate with a smile and didn¡¯t answer the question. Hoonie and Canoel just followed him. Thankfully, Cervian was in the laboratory. ¡°Oh, if it isn¡¯t my master, Ian.¡± ¡°It has been a while Cervian. Actually, It hasn¡¯t been that long, right?¡± ¡°Well, I guess it wasn¡¯t. Oh, by the way, how is the beast alchemy coming?¡± Ian smiled and answered. ¡°I¡¯m surely doing good. I¡¯ve started my journey to make the best monster.¡± ¡°Then it means¡­ you have gone beyond the 9th level, to the 10th¡­?!¡± Ian answered by shaking his head. ¡°I¡¯m still in the 9th level. I think I will reach the 10th level in a few days.¡± ¡°Oh oh¡­¡± The significance of the 9th level of alchemy was much greater than expected. From the level of 9th, It was possible to control the alchemy for the monster¡¯s creation. But in order to have the best, there was a need for the best materials too. There was a need to increase the proficiency level from the 10th to MAX in order to create the strongest as well. Cervian looked at Ian. ¡°I hope you realize that this was my dream that I couldn¡¯t achieve.¡± Ian¡¯s smile was wiped off of his face. ¡°Cevian, you can still do it right?¡± ¡°No, I can¡¯t do it now. It isn¡¯t just excellent proficiency that creates a myth grade¡­ for a monster.¡± ¡°Then¡­?¡± ¡°You will know eventually.¡± Ian whose intuition said that something not-so-good was waiting for him made an odd expression. Seeing this, Cervian smiled and added a few more words. ¡°But it is nothing to worry about. If it¡¯s you, then it will surely happen.¡± Even if he asked Cervian a little bit more, it didn¡¯t seem like he was going to answer. So, Ian didn¡¯t bother asking him about it. It was a bit confusing but during that time they had much urgent matter in their hands to solve. Once all the quests were cleared, he planned on asking all the questions he had. ¡°By the way Cervian, I¡¯ve been wanting to find something.¡± Cervian nodded nervously and responded. ¡°Sure, if I get to be of any help then ask away. What are you curious about?¡± Ian started to explain about the quest and the conditions to finish it to Cervian. Hoonie and Canoel who were behind him kept on nodding while not saying anything. Canoel slowly and cautiously asked Hoonie. ¡°Hoonie-ah.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Have you ever actually met Ian hyung?¡± Hoonie rested his head on his palm. ¡°No¡­ nope. Why are you suddenly asking?¡± ¡°I just had a scary thought that passed through my mind.¡± ¡°Hm¡­?¡± Canoel swallowed and then spoke again. ¡°That hyung doesn¡¯t look like a normal user. Doesn¡¯t that NPC look like the one in Kailan during the beginning¡­?¡± Canoel¡¯s horrific thought made Hoonie¡¯s eyes opened wide. ¡°The¡­ then¡­!¡± Canoel spoke with a much serious expression now. ¡°That couldn¡¯t be, right? Just look at them. Do you see that he seems to be friends with the Devil NPC, are you seeing it?¡± Hoonie quickly nodded. ¡°I¡­ I see it¡­!¡± In Hoonie¡¯s mind, he remembered the dwarf he met in the mine. ¡®He seemed to be very chummy with the dwarf Urk Han too¡­¡¯ Hoonie looked over at Ian and muttered silently. ¡°I think he is much closer to the Asmodians than we are¡­?¡± * * * Tring ¨C [You have successfully completed the quest ¡®Noblesse Yankun test II¡¯.] [Clear Rating: E] [Due to the very low clearing rate, the gained experience and gold coins have been reduced by 95%.] [The affinity with the Noblesse Yankun has been reduced by 20 points.] ¡°Uh¡­Uheh¡­.¡± More than the Guild quest, Martin wanted to beat the noblesse in front of him. After failing for the third time, the second linked quest which had just been completed was declared as E. Was the E grade clearing rate had been something that could be achieved? Its existence wasn¡¯t even known until that moment. Looking down at Martin who was trying to hold in his anger, Yankun just shook his head. ¡°I guess you can¡¯t figure anything out. How can one be so incompetent? To register your guild in the City of Chaos, it isn¡¯t just thought that is needed!¡± Martin¡¯s whole body shook because of what Yankun said. It was because of the enormous difficulty that this place had been providing. He hadn¡¯t thought it through. ¡®Well what else does this NPC have¡­?¡¯ Martin looked up at Yankun after controlling his emotions and anger. Since the mission had been completed shouldn¡¯t they be provided with what they have come for? ¡®Please don¡¯t give us another quest to do¡­¡¯ Martin opened his lips with earnest wish. To finish off the linked quests quickly, Martin wished for it to end for the first time ever since starting at Kailan. ¡°So¡­ we still have accomplished our mission, Mr. Yankun.¡± Yankun replied without any expression. ¡°Yeah well.¡± ¡°Then¡­ are you going to grant the guild registration now?¡± Martin¡¯s eyes were trembling! Martin was nervous. This would be a bit exaggerated, but he was much more nervous now than opening a legendary weapon box. ¡°Keu, even I think that I should do that but, like you did the last time, will you be able to stick to your word?¡± Martin who thought that it was done, got up from his seat and answered. ¡°I can not go back until you grant me the guild registration!¡± Yankun opened his mouth with a grim expression. ¡°Well¡­ I guess I can¡¯t help it. I don¡¯t get to do what I like, rules are rules.¡± Martin felt delighted on the inside when he heard what Yankun said, but he was about to get deep in the dumps again by what Yankun would say next. ¡°Then I¡¯ll let you know your last mission.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Martin and Chase who was behind him exchanged glances. ¡®Bastard! Third connected quest? Are you going to throw some stupid useless quest to me again?¡¯ Still, knowing that this would be the last one calmed Martin¡¯s raging mind. But again, Yankun didn¡¯t let Martin¡¯s expectations go down. ¡°Do you know that¡­¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°In the 15th division of the Devildom, there is a place called the ¡®Tomb of the Forgotten Soul¡¯.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± Martin did know about the place called ¡®Tomb of the Forgotten Soul¡¯. However, from the name itself, it could be considered dangerous, and it was located in the 15th division. They had an extreme experience while doing the quest in the 30th area, but doing one in the 15th area made them scared. Martin almost fell back to his seat when he heard what Yankun was about to say. ¡°Go to the Tomb of the Forgotten Empire and bring the heart of a Balrog.¡± * * * Wheiing-! Ian opened the gate using the Dimensional Beads. Three people rushed out of it quickly. And at the same time, the gate vanished into the air after a huge sound. ¡°Phew, if we were a little bit late, we would have been done for.¡± ¡°So hyung, what did you talk about with that old man for so long?¡± ¡°It was a conversation that started with blood and ended with fat.¡± ¡°Well, you took a lot.¡± While Ian was talking with Cervian, the gate almost ran out of time, which was why they had to jump through it in the last moment. Canoel asked Ian. ¡°Hyung, did you get all the necessary information about the materials?¡± Ian nodded. ¡°Of course, I¡¯ll explain everything to you guys starting with the Orb of Darkness¡­¡± Just like Ian had guessed, Cervian knew all about the materials and the monsters. ¡°The Orb of Darkness isn¡¯t an item that drops by hunting down a monster.¡± ¡°Then?¡± ¡°There is a tower temple in the 17th division of the Devildom, and it is said that it¡¯s sealed somewhere in the tower. However, that doesn¡¯t mean that we wouldn¡¯t have to fight a legendary monster.¡± ¡°A legendary monster is guarding it?¡± ¡°Yep. Behemoth is supposed to be guarding the Orb, I guess? It¡¯s a monster that looks like a big bull.¡± Hoonie who had been silently listening to what Ian was saying asked something. ¡°Hyung, Behemoth?¡± Ian nodded and asked. ¡°Yep, why?¡± Hoonie was looking into Ian¡¯s eyes. He just kept looking. ¡°Why is this kid doing this again, it¡¯s ugly¡­?¡± ¡°After hunting the Behemoth, maybe the skin will drop?¡± ¡°Skin?¡± ¡°Huh, the ¡®Behemoth¡¯s Skin¡¯ you should give it to me, right? That¡¯s just some item so¡­ hehe¡­¡± Ian laughed. He thought that it felt familiar but seeing Hoonie¡¯s actions he had remembered it. The Behemoth¡¯s Skin was a material that was needed to create a wand called the ¡®Commanders Absolute¡¯, which had recently been rated as the strongest weapon in the Warlock class. It was a material item that was well-known to be obtained through a warlock-only quest, and no one even knew if the Behemoth actually exist. It was a material item that wasn¡¯t related to Ian, but its price at the auction house would be amazing. It was worth 1.5 million gold. Ian squinted his eyes and spoke. ¡°Well, there is nothing that this hyung doesn¡¯t know.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± ¡°That will bring around 1.5 million gold if sold to the auction house, but you want it all for your self¡­?¡± Hoonie was shocked for a moment but soon thought of something. His stomach churn after thinking of the quest that he had to give Ian for tagging along. ¡°Hyung, it¡¯s all thanks to you that I shared my quest, it is only right to get this much in return.¡± Ian agreed to some degree to what Hoonie was saying. Ian was never greedy of an item that had no use to him. But¡­ ¡°Well, we¡¯ll see.¡± ¡°Ah, hyung¡­!¡± It was fun to make Hoonie stressed, so he didn¡¯t say that he was willing to give it off. If this mission was going to get worse, then he thought of giving the material as a consolation. Ian went on teasing Hoonie for a moment and then explained about the other materials. The second material, ¡®Shadow Feather¡¯, was an easy item to obtain compared to the Orb of Darkness. Based on what Cervian said, it was a material that had around 90% drop rate when hunting a legendary monster that inhabited the 19th division of the Devildom. The legendary monster¡¯s name was Syakelic. The last material they need to obtain¡ªthe Heart of Balrog¡ªlike everyone had guessed, was an item that could be obtained by hunting down the Balrog. After completing their maintenance, Ian moved slowly. Their destination was the ¡®Commander¡¯s Tower¡¯ in the 17th division of Devildom. CH 336 The place where Ian had opened the gate was the 20th division of the Devildom. If he did that, then he could go to the closet location i.e. the 19th division and hunt the Syakelic. But Ian had decided that the 17th division would be their first destination, and he had a reason to decide that. Hoonie asked Ian, ¡°Syakelic¡­? And the Shadow¡¯s Feather?¡± ¡°Yeah, he is called with that nickname, it seems.¡± And this time it was Canoel who spoke. ¡°If it is a shadow¡­ then, by any chance does it have anything to do with the dark pets we fought in the shrine?¡± Ian smiled a little and answered, ¡°Bingo. Among the legendary monster known so far, he is considered as the dark pet.¡± ¡°Ahha.¡± ¡°And the Orb of darkness is the natural enemy for the dark pets.¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± The item that would be obtained by hunting the Behemoth¡ªit was a material of its soul. But the Orb of Darkness wasn¡¯t an item that had no abilities. It was something like a totem, that gave on tremendous options just by having it in the inventory. An Enchantment ability that has a detecting skill, and reduces the damage of all the dark attributes by 20%, and on the other hand, it allows 30% of additional damage to the opponent. It also had the ability to increase all the Shadow Attacks by 15%, and now Ian¡¯s party was going to get that item, and it could be of a little help when catching the Syakelic beast. But Hoonie once again asked something as he didn¡¯t fully understand, ¡°Surely, if we have the Orb of Darkness we can easily hunt the Syakelic. But even then, what if the Behemoth is much stronger than the Syakelic? Though they are both legendary, hyung you have said that Syakelic is much weaker when compared to a Balrog and the Behemoth.¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Then wouldn¡¯t it be better to go for the Syakelic first, and then go to Behemoth?¡± Ian shook his head. ¡°Even if the Syakelic is weak, the Syakelic has a habitat in the 19th division, a community. And we don¡¯t have any data as to how many reside in there. And if we fight then we could attract the attention of the others, we may have to fight with tens of those legendary monsters at once. ¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ that is right.¡± Surely, there was no guarantee that the Behemoth was guarding the Orb of Darkness, but Ian didn¡¯t say that. ¡®No matter what, I need to get to the Orb of Darkness first.¡¯ In fact, Ian had an idea once, after he had a conversation with Cervian. ¡°So¡­ in order to catch the familiar of darkness, the Orb of Darkness is needed?¡± ¡°Yep, if you can get your hands on the Orb of Darkness, then you can try to catch the Syakelic. And with that, you will be able to well¡­¡± ¡°Then how about catching the Behemoth and the Balrog?¡± ¡°Well, the Behemoth and the Balrog are the most powerful of all the monsters. And I haven¡¯t heard of any successful summons yet.¡± ¡°So is it tough?¡± ¡°Yes, it is. Even among the Devils, there is no one who managed to capture a Behemoth or a Balrog.¡± ¡°Then¡­ the Balrog and Behemoth isn¡¯t a monster that has yet to be used as a summoner?¡± That made Ian surprised. But another thought passed through Ian¡¯s mind. ¡°Oh, no. I saw it, I saw the Devil King Ricardo was commanding the Balrog.¡± However, Cervian had laughed at it and spoke. ¡°Oh¡­ did you forget the existence of Soul Stone?¡± ¡°Ah¡­!¡± ¡°I¡¯m not entirely sure, but maybe Ricardo probably summoned the Balrog by collecting Soul stones. If you have the power that Ricardo has, you can easily gather the Soul of a Balrog. If you directly hunt a Balrog, you will get it, and bring it with a Soul Stone.¡± ¡°What about the Soul Stone?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll tell you later.¡± Ian got more information than he had thought of when visiting Cervian. And the information helped Ian to plan. It was helpful for the progress of the quest, and it helped to plan on obtaining the items needed. ¡®I¡¯ll have to hear it once.¡¯ Had it not been for the information obtained from Cervian, it was likely that Ian would have wasted his power trying to capture the Balrog or Behemoth. He didn¡¯t plan on trying to capture them at all, but now he didn¡¯t even plan on waiting the time to catch those guys who weren¡¯t even controlled by the Devil. ¡®Besides, I got to know the power of the Orb of Darkness¡­¡¯ The Orb of Darkness was surely a nemesis to the Dark Pets. Besides, Ian had another weapon. Kaka¡¯s unique ability! ¡®If I add Kaka¡¯s Dreaming Devil ability to the effect of Orb of Darkness, then¡­ I can easily sweep of the Syakelic.¡¯ Ian¡¯s plan was this. When the effect of reducing the damage from the darkness¡ªby combining the Orb of Darkness and the Dreaming Devil would be imposed, a total of 70% was achieved. What should hit with 100,000 damage will turn to 300,000 damage. What was Ian¡¯s magic resistance at? The basic attribute of the monster Syakelic was magic, so there will be a loss of 60-70% of the damage received. With all the options overlapping, there will be a total of 91% of the damage would be lost. The equipment defense wasn¡¯t just numbers, so even if the legendary monster attacked with it¡¯s highest efficient attack, it would just be a tickle. ¡®This is a chance given by heaven. I need to hunt all of the Syakelic and then raise my alchemy level to the MAX.¡¯ The Orb of Darkness was a fraudulent item. But even if it was so, it was an item that needed to be given to Daedmon. That was why he had to use as much as he could before handing it over. Anyway, Ian moved all the way to 17th ¡ªdidn¡¯t touch a single monster at the 19th and 18th division as much as he could. The monsters in the 19th were all monsters with dark attributes, so Ian thought of taking care of them after getting his hands on the Orb of Darkness. ¡°Hyung, that gate!¡± ¡°Okay. Let¡¯s go past those monsters and immediately get in. ¡°Okay.¡± * * * ¡°Oh oh, who can this be?¡± A huge wall surrounding the City of Chaos. And in front of the door of Chaos which was the only gate in the city, Martin saw a face which he didn¡¯t want to come across. ¡°It has been quite a while, Irahan. You have been very quiet for a while¡­ Are you getting active again?¡± The person who was in front of Martin was the Guild Master of the DarkRuna Guild, who had been joining forces till a few days back. After the end of the Dimensional War, the DarkRuna Guild had been quiet for a while, and just recently, their activities had begun. Which made Martin surprised. ¡®No matter how brooding the DarkRuna Guild is if you have rested this long you had a lot to lose¡­¡¯ Martin looked a little dull because of his day, but that didn¡¯t mean that his observation had gotten dull. Irahan and the other members of the DarkRuna guild who were behind him. Looking at the city, they had just crossed the road of the City. Irahan laughed in the direction of Martin. ¡°Yep. I have had enough time to rest.¡± And the lips¡¯ corner went up a bit and spoke a few more words, ¡°While the tiger wasn¡¯t there, did you have fun playing the king?¡± Listening to this, Martin¡¯s expression changed. He knew exactly what Irahan meant. The DarkRuna Guild was the very first guild to enter the Devildom with huge force. If Irahan hadn¡¯t been absent from the Dimension War due to Ian, then it would have been the DarkRuna Guild who would¡¯ve been in the first ranking in the Devildom. But, it was a maybe situation, but now was different. Martin laughed. ¡°Huhu, are you even worthy to say that? After not being able to be even on par with Ian¡­¡± At those words of Martin, Irahan¡¯s relaxed look turned hard. But that was it. He was looking for something. ¡°I was lacking a bit, so there was nothing I could do.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± That was a surprising reaction. If it was the Irahan that Martin knew, then the situation should¡¯ve been very hot. This made Martin very nervous. ¡®Does this guy have something that he believes in¡­?¡¯ However the next words from Irahan, the nervousness wasn¡¯t there. ¡°Look¡¯s like you¡¯ve been to the Guild Management office, but you don¡¯t seem to have it yet. Your guild isn¡¯t on the list of the guild in the City of Chaos.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Martin started to remember the encounter he had with Yankun. ¡°Huh.¡± Martin shook his head and laughed. And again came the remarks from Irahan. ¡°I don¡¯t know what is our number of arrival, but the first guild to be established in the City of Chaos will be our DarkRuna.¡± Irahan walked past Martin and headed towards the Guild Management office. And Martin turned back and looked at Irahan and mumbled to himself. ¡®Okay, you¡¯ll be able to work hard for once in there.¡¯ * * * The tower looked like a dungeon in the first look and the feel that it gave out was the same. With the heavy atmosphere that was surrounding it, the air felt very moist. Even the cry of the ghosts seemed to be resonating. That had made the Undead¡¯s master¡ªthe Warlock Hoonie to also shiver. ¡°This, somehow gives me a bad feeling.¡± At the words from Ian, Canoel¡¯s words followed. ¡°Well¡­ a dungeon that I don¡¯t feel like entering.¡± It was so dark in the inside that nothing could be seen. Of course, there has been a dungeon with low light in the past, but the vibe in this tower provided a plain, yet horrifying intent. If they didn¡¯t light something, they wouldn¡¯t be able to see anything all. ¡°Hyung, should we really need to go inside?¡± Ian chuckled at it. ¡°Why? Scared?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Whether his pride was high, or his body went stiff of fear, Hoonie¡¯s mouth went stiff. But when Ian moved into the dungeon, Hoonie¡¯s mouth worked again. ¡°Wait!¡± But Ian¡¯s pace didn¡¯t even slow down. ¡°If you¡¯re scared, don¡¯t come in. The Behemoth¡¯s skin, I and Noel will share it.¡± Hoonie was shocked. But he still didn¡¯t move from his place. ¡°No, no way. You can¡¯t do that! You think you can catch the Behemoth without me?¡± After seconds of hesitation, Ian turned and said, ¡°Yep.¡± Eventually, as Ian and Canoel moved into the dungeon, Hoonie forced himself into the dungeon. And the moment that they had entered the dungeon. Ian met the monster that he didn¡¯t even think he would have to encounter. CH 337 ¡°Tarveros¡­?¡± A huge beast growled in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. That creature had a shape of a giant tiger, with three heads, he was the legendary monster Tarveros, whom he met when crossing through the gate after the 50th division. Ian¡¯s memories instantly tried to overwhelm him and remembered the abilities and attack pattern of the monster. ¡®Ability to rotate the area, the time turning skill is something we need to be careful about.¡¯ At that time, the Tarveros made it tough for Ian. He was struggling a lot because of the monster¡¯s ability to turn back time, but he wasn¡¯t a legendary rank monster. Meanwhile, Hoonie who heard the murmur of Ian¡¯s asked. ¡°Tarveros? Do you know him?¡± Ian nodded. ¡°This was the one who was blocking the 50th division.¡± Ian added a few more words after that while holding out his spear. ¡°He isn¡¯t a very tough guy, so I was able to move one.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± Hoonie and Canoel nodded and took the stance to battle. And that was what Ian did too. But right then, Ian who was about to rush towards Tarveros paused momentarily. There was a variable. ¡®What, not just one?¡¯ Grrr- Tarveros roared in the dark. The view of the field was pitch black, so they couldn¡¯t know what it was, but it looked like there were three or four of them, just based on the intuition. Ian asked Kaizer, ¡°Kaizer, do you remember the motion ?¡± ¡°Yes, clearly.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s do it before the unique ability ends.¡± ¡°Okay, master.¡± Ian rushed towards the Tarveros that was in the lead while having a much-motivated look on his face. The more difficult the opponent was, the more spoils the battle would give. Even though the number of them was large, it was a fight that could be done quickly if it¡¯s inherent ability to turn time wasn¡¯t activated. Although the exact specification of the ability or the name wasn¡¯t known yet, there was a need for casting time for that ability of Tarveros. All that was needed to be done was to adjust the timing accordingly. Of course, it would be difficult to break off all the unique abilities that would be used in the play, but he thought that he could understand it after once or twice. ¡°Ly, side! Noel and Hoonie handle the left-siders!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± ¡°Understood, Master.¡± Following Ian¡¯s instructions, the party began to move in unison, and Hoonie immediately began to skillfully control the Undead as the battle began. And the Tarveros too didn¡¯t stay still. Kwanng-! When the Tarveros screamed, the sound tore the eardrums of its members. The total number of Tarveros was 5, but the head they had were 15. And when the 15 of them roared in unison, the sound was huge. ¡°My eardrum is gone!¡± Ian first went to the guy in the lead along with Ly. He already knew their attack pattern. ¡°Don¡¯t get yourself deceived by those molars! Watch their paws!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± Tarveros had sharp molars that protrude out till their chin. They looked very threatening, but in fact, the molars weren¡¯t their main weapon, it was their powerful paws. If the user tried to avoid the attacks from their heads and takes a hit from their paw, then it was massive damage! And after some time, the composition of the field where the battle was happening, eventually looked like a terrain in the mine. Ian, Kaizer, and Ly started to attack one, Bbookbbook and Kaizer took on another guy, Pin and Halli were helping out Hoonie and Canoel. And so, the battle began in the dark. * * * A small square located on the outskirts of the City of Chaos. There was a gathering of Asmodians over there, around ten or so. With two guild flags in the square, they seemed to be users of the Royal Guild and the DarkRuna Guild. ¡°Hmm, so¡­ let¡¯s move ten people, best of the two groups.¡± ¡°That will be the most efficient. It isn¡¯t a work that needs numbers, you know that too, right?¡± The two who were talking to each other were Martin and Irahan. They were talking with serious expressions on their face. ¡°Hmm¡­ but, if you want to move to the 15th division, it will be better only for the best move.¡± Royal Guild and DarkRune guild didn¡¯t have a good relationship between them. There was just one reason for their unity. Just for the purpose of clearing the quest to register their Guilds! Irahan also received the same quest as Martin, and he felt like that Balrog quest was blocking his plans. For the guild registration, the office was quite a challenge by handing out tough quests, and Yankun wasn¡¯t just some NPC. ¡®By the way, that Yankun, it seemed like I knew him¡­ do I?¡¯ Inside the head of Irahan, he recalled the face of Yankun and shook his head. It was because the expression of Yankun who stared at him with a dissatisfied expression somehow seemed familiar. ¡®Well, that muscle pig isn¡¯t a charming face that anyone would want to remember.¡¯ Irahan who was feeling dizzy by trying to remember turned his focus onto the negotiations that were going on with Martin. What was important now wasn¡¯t the look of Yankun. It would have been different if he knew that Yankun had already known him. Irahan opened his mouth to Martin once again, ¡°You should definitely bring strong friends. The difficulty of the bosses in the 20th division is very devastating.¡± Martin nodded and replied, ¡°Exactly my words, Irahan. I don¡¯t know if there is anyone other than the DarkRuna guild¡­ but you better not bring people who are likely to be in fear.¡± The map was opened and it wasn¡¯t a task that needed the number of people. The more the number of users, the more agro will be drawn, and it will make the users fight with more monsters. Therefore, in the beginning, only a certain amount of power will be burdened. According to the thoughts of Irahan and Martin, the optimal number of people to send as a party would be 10. However, since they had to compromise and organize, they collectively decided the 10 people. After a long meeting of two hours, and after the agreement with the Royal Guild, Irahan stood up and shook his head. ¡®Not just the gate boss, it would be better for me to be the one who breaks through the 15th division all by myself.¡¯ It takes a lot of people to break through a place, but eventually one needs a party to deal with the gate boss, and the hunting of Balrog wasn¡¯t a task for a single person. Irahan, who had to forcibly join the guild has been very upset. It would have been better if it was with the Celestial Guild, Limlong and not Royal Guild. If it had been the guild of Celestial, then he thought that it would have been possible to go to the 15th division with a party of 4 or 5 users. To break through a map, no class was as great as the assassin¡¯s class. And that was the only fact that Irahan knew about Limlong, but there was another superuser, one above the Guildmaster Limlong of Celestial Guild. He was a user who felt like a mother f*cker because of his ID name, but he was very amazing. According to Irahan, Martin seemed like a stronger user than Samuel Jin. He had a combat power similar to that of Limlong, which didn¡¯t even need mentioning. After all, the two guilds who finished the negotiations quickly began to move towards the direction of the 15th division of Devildom. * * * ¡°Noel, Hoonie. Check it once. How much loss of power?¡± ¡°The moment the summoned one come back to the Summon option, we can get moving again.¡± ¡°I need my skill to cooldown for me to move again.¡± Ian, who had been fighting with the Tarveros till a while back, checked for the status of the party. The damage received was greater than imagined. Ly and Halli were almost killed, he had to summon Bbookbbook who had never faced a crisis before. Even then, the damage had been minimized by the powerful force of Kaizer and Karceus. ¡°Okay then, we¡¯ll have to take a 30 minutes break. Even I need time for Bbookbbook to recall.¡± ¡°Okay, hyung.¡± As they got over the rough situation, Ian approached the dead Tarveros. It was time to receive the loot. ¡®It would be awesome if it is one big hit¡­¡¯ The reason why Ian and his party struggled more than they had imagined, was because the ability of the Tarveros was much greater than their thoughts. Though the abilities themselves were not similar to the previously known Tarveros, a Tarveros which seemed to have survived from the dead by turning back the time. When the last of the Tarveros revived itself, all of the members had given up due to fatigue and then stayed on the floor. ¡®That unique ability¡­ really a frustrating one.¡¯ It looked like the best summoners had increased their proficiency while adding much higher quality of items to create this beast. Ian wanted to get the Tarveros ability somehow and wanted to add this ability of ¡®Turn back time¡¯ into the myth called ¡®monster¡¯ that he would create. It was a unique ability that would match well with Ian¡¯s fighting style, it could make Ian utilize the skill to it¡¯s highest efficiency. Ian first approached the nearest dead Tarveros and reached out his hand. Tring- [¡®Tarveros Soul¡¯ (Rank: Legendary) (Classification: Miscellaneous) x9 items have been acquired.] [You have collected ¡®Intermediate magic stones¡¯ x3.] [You have acquired the item ¡®Tarveros Skin¡¯.] [You gained the item ¡®Jewel of Time¡¯.] Ian¡¯s eyes went through the list of items he had gained. He didn¡¯t get the ¡®power stones¡¯ item, which he was searching for, but he saw an unexpected benefit. ¡®The Jewel of Time¡­?¡¯ The Jewel of Time was an item that Ian knew. That was a hidden quest given by Gripper, a long-time friend of Ian¡¯s¡¯, to a wizard class user. It was because, at the 210 level limit, it was a necessary quest to be cleared. But until then, no one had ever found the Jewel of Time, so no one had cleared it yet. One persons¡¯ face immediately appeared in the mind of Ian. ¡®This¡­ maybe I should give this to Remir?¡¯ Remir hadn¡¯t yet entered the Lotus Guild even after the endless love calls from Ian and Herz. However, he thought, maybe this would make Remir think. ¡°Huhuhu¡­¡± Ian was laughing at it, and then picked the Soul Stone. Soul of a legendary monster which he had been waiting for since he had hunted the Devil Dragon. [Obtained ¡®Tarveros Soul Stone¡¯ x9] [When you collect all the pieces of the Soul, you will be able to summon the Tarveros.] [Current Soul Stones: 9/200 (4.5%)] Ian¡¯s head began to spin. ¡®Wait¡­ if I do this¡­?¡¯ Ian first collected things of all the four Tarverous bodies. And a total of 41 soul stones were gathered from them. It was an average of 8 pieces per soul. Other than that, there weren¡¯t any noticeable items, but Ian wasn¡¯t feeling bad. It was because he thought that he still had the chance to gather the soul stones of the Tarveros and complete it. Of course, there was some needed for intimidation. Ian approached Canoel and Hoonie. ¡°How many soul stones did you guys collect?¡± Hoonie and Canoel suddenly felt a chill running down their spine and unexplained an eerie feeling. CH 338 After taking away the soul stones from both Hoonie and Canoel, Ian had now accumulated around 85 soul stones of Tarveros in his inventory. That wasn¡¯t a small amount, yet Ian still had an upset expression on his face. ¡®Hmm, does the number of soul stones depend on the amount of contribution one does in the battle? Three people fighting should at least give around 300 stones¡­¡¯ Ian himself got 41 soul stones from taking down the Tarveros, and Hoonie got 28 soul stones. Canoel obtained 16 soul stones, he contributed the least to the combat. Hoonie spoke while having a very gentle expression. ¡°Hyung, will you give the Behemoth¡¯s skin to me?¡± ¡°Okay man.¡± For a Black Magician like Hoonie, the soul stones were rather useless items. Ian gave the Behemoth skin in exchange for the items which were useless because he had other plans. And if Hoonie later found out that a single piece of Tarveros¡¯ soul stone could be traded for 500,000 gold, then he would probably hit the floor. However, Hoonie was pleased with their transactions and seemed to have no complaint. ¡°Well, since my hyung has taken good care of me till now. I can do this much.¡± ¡°Keu, well, Noel is surely on a different class. I always say this, but Hoonie can¡¯t you take that as an example?¡± Ian¡¯s ball hit Hoonie right in his balls. ¡°Ah, why do you keep comparing me?¡± While Hoonie and Ian were having fun, the restructuring of the party was finished. It was time to move deep into the main part of the tower. ¡®I would feel so happy if there were dozens of Tarveros in this tower.¡¯ The time it took for Ian and his party to hunt down five Tarveros was three hours. Considering that it took 30-40 minutes of maintenance time after the battle, the speed of their hunting was really terrible. But even then, the extra income he got was really good, Ian thought that it would be really good if he could keep on hunting Tarveros. ¡°Kay, Let¡¯s get our minds together, and move in very slowly.¡± ¡°Okay, Hyung.¡± ¡°Hmm, do you think that maybe only legendary monsters will continue to appear? No matter how hard the hidden dungeon is, it is a bit obnoxious¡­¡± Ian nodded and replied to what Hoonie said. ¡°I think the same too¡­ but I hope that the Tarveros will keep on coming.¡± ¡°You want to finish this right?¡± ¡°Sure, I do.¡± Hoonie squinted his eyes and spoke. ¡°There are many familiars¡­ even if Tarveros is finished, will it be able to work with your leadership?¡± Ian smiled a little and shook his head. ¡°No, no. I didn¡¯t know there is a need for leadership to summon monsters?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Hoonie¡¯s eyes twitched. For not summoning the monsters, Hoonie thought that Ian didn¡¯t have enough leadership. Ian continued. ¡°The cost of summoning a monster was ¡®Magic¡¯. Don¡¯t you think that around 10,000 to 20,000 of Magic would be consumed for a legendary monster? It varies depending on the level¡­¡± ¡°Hm? Consumed?¡± Canoel spoke this time. ¡°It doesn¡¯t mean that it will disappear, but it is similar to that of leadership. Assuming that Ian hyung¡¯s magic is 50,000 he could summon up to 5 spiders with 10,000 magic.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± Hoonie looked at Ian and was lost in his thought. ¡°Well hyung, then why is it that you don¡¯t use them? Hyung surely has more than 50,000 magic. Even if they are intermediate, can¡¯t you call them to help us?¡± Ian just shook his head. ¡°It doesn¡¯t help much if I try to do it, it¡¯s just for the experience. For one to serve at my party¡­ It should at least have a legend rating.¡± ¡°Ahha.¡± Hoonie¡ªwho understood¡ªnodded, and Ian and his party members started to move further into the tower. Unlike what Ian was expecting, Tarveros no longer appeared on the first floor of the tower. In the field, intermediate and higher grade monsters kept on appearing. The experience and rewards that were gained from the dungeon¡¯s first recovery were tremendous, but still, they weren¡¯t enough to bring back Ian from his blues. It was because he wanted to collect a complete Tarveros. ¡®Ah, I want to collect as much as I can for this to be collected.¡¯ A total of 200 soul stones were needed for completing a Tarveros. They killed 5 of them and earned around 80 stones. If there were 8 or 9 more, then he could collect enough to finish the required 200 stones. ¡°Hyung, there¡¯s a gate over there.¡± ¡°So, let¡¯s head to the next floor then?¡± Ian and his party who discovered the gate to the next floor did a quick maintenance and then walked towards the gate to the second floor. * * * The official community homepage of Kailan was big enough to have a portal site with a volume that no other had. The biggest reason for the huge number of users playing Kailan was the amount of content that one could enjoy in it, Kailan¡¯s content page was infinite. There was a lot of content in the game that was based on nature, and with the direct connection of the game with the gaming capsule, there was no way for the community to not be active. All the above mentioned were possible because the official community page itself was managed by a separate team directly under LB. ¡°Lee Daeri! What are we planning to do with the main A part for today?¡± ¡°Hold on a moment! Let me check the schedule!¡± ¡°Find it fast!¡± ¡°Umm¡­ a new dungeon was supposed to open in the Southern Island¡¯s event page!¡± ¡°Wasn¡¯t it supposed to open in for a few days?¡± ¡°It is scheduled to open 3 days from now.¡± ¡°Cancel it! We need to promote banners of it all over the eastern continent guilds. It¡¯s on hold till next week!¡± ¡°Huh? This has been delayed for a whole week already. Do you know that the guild battle was also over?¡± ¡°I was just contacted by the planning department. The Lotus freaks suddenly ran onto the eastern guilds according to their ranks.¡± ¡°Oh shit, awesome! Not a guild war but an Empire war?¡± ¡°Yes! I think there are going to be hundreds of protest emails to the Public Relations Department as this didn¡¯t show up in the Main page.¡± In the community management headquarters of LB company, Public Relations was a well-known department with more jobs than any other departments in the company. The general manager of the management headquarters Im Jin-hyun, had a very bad thing going on these days. In recent years, the number of jobs had suddenly increased. ¡®It was easier to do the dimensional war all through the month¡­¡¯ The Community management headquarters, on the other hand, had large events with big content which meant less time. It was because they could pass for a month without changing the concept of the page if the banners they made had a few pieces of big images. The gameplay video as well could also be played continuously. However, they didn¡¯t have a big event for a long time, so they waited from time to time and managed it when any incident was supposed to happen. Well, there was plenty of bonus for the extra work, but these days it seemed like they had to work for their money. ¡°Design team, In 20 minutes I need all in the meeting room!¡± ¡°Manager, General manager¡­ it¡¯s 5:50 now¡­ hehe¡­¡± ¡°Shut up! You want to go home now? The A part banner is needed to be placed tomorrow. We need to replace some stuff¡­!¡± ¡°Can¡¯t we just use the image that we have used the last time? Well, the main focus of the image will be the Lotus Guild, so we can just swap out the opponents in the guild charts¡­¡± Im Jin-hyun replied with fury because of what the leader of the Design team Mr. Yoo said. ¡°Then you should go and meet the director, directly!¡± The Yoo team leader was forced to say it. ¡°¡­ I will call in the design team.¡± * * * Kwahh-! Enormous scream resonated in the dark, gloomy tower! A giant shadow was seen on the floor, and the ceiling of the entire floor shook. Kung-! ¡°Nice shot! I¡¯m still dealing with this guy!¡± Hoonie laughed and made a peace sign with his fingers, and Ian too smiled after seeing him. ¡°Hoonie, we dealt with the Death Hound quickly.¡± Canoel too added a word. ¡°Yeah, since Hoonie¡¯s skill has gone up, he¡¯s catching the monsters easily.¡± Hoonie just shrugged it off with a cool expression. ¡°Ahem, I am the awesome KanjiHoonie. This kind of control is my left hand¡¯s skill.¡± There were two monsters lying in front of the party. The Tarveros was the only one that remained. They didn¡¯t see any Tarveros after the 1st floor, but each time they climbed a floor, at least two Tarveros would appear to them. The place that Ian and his party had moved up to was the 8th floor of the tower. Five on the first floor, and two on each floor after that. They had hunted more than 20 Tarveros in total. Of course, the Soul stones were all taken by Ian and there were already 340 soul stones now. ¡°Hyung, when will you summon the Tarveros? Haven¡¯t we gotten 200 stones already?¡± Ian nodded at Hoonie¡¯s question. ¡°Hmm, I do have enough stones, but it¡¯s meaningless to summon it now. I¡¯ll summon it once the quest is cleared.¡± ¡°Why? The Tarveros will be a great driving force for our party.¡± Instead of Ian, Canoel answered. ¡°Summon? And what if we get a level 1?¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± It wasn¡¯t done before, but guessing what might happen was enough. When an egg or a monster hatches, an unconditional level one monster was summoned, so the soul stones were considered to be similar. ¡°But, then we won¡¯t be able to use it.¡± Hoonie nodded since he now fully understand. Ian smiled and went to the bodies of the Tarveros. ¡°Hmm¡­ I don¡¯t think there is much floor left upon reaching the top. Will we be able to meet the Behemoth after going up a floor or two?¡± Ian was mumbling to himself, but Canoel replied. ¡°Maybe not? According to my thoughts, we need to go beyond the 10th floor.¡± While they were talking. The whole tower began to shake. Trrrrr- Trrrrrrr-! Like a quake, it started to shake roughly. It was a tower made entirely of stones. As the tower shook, the residue of the stones started falling down from the cracks. ¡°What is this? An earthquake?¡± Ian looked around calmly. ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s an earthquake. But just in case, be careful. If that stone falls from the top, we will die in an instant.¡± Right after saying that, a stone fell down right in front of them. Kwang-! The three members freaked out and retreated a few steps quickly. The vibrations began to get worse. ¡°What? Noel hyung, let¡¯s prepare and hold onto the scroll.¡± Canoel nodded and pulled out the scroll. None of them wanted to get out of the game because of a natural disaster, nor by getting killed by a monster. But at that very moment, Ian discovered something. One of his hands were restrained from holding the others, and the other one was pointed towards the dark. ¡°Wait, there is something over there.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± Canoel and Hoonie both moved their sight in the direction where Ian was pointing at. And in that place¡­ Grrrrrr- Giant red eyes were staring at their direction. CH 339 ¡°This is crazy! What¡¯s that!¡± On the floor, glowing red balls were present in all directions. From the darkness, the monster came to light. The monster was more than twice as big compared to Karceus or Bbookbbook in their dragon forms. Ian and his party were nothing less than being overwhelmed at the sight of the monster. ¡°A Rhinoceros¡­?¡± Hoonie took a step back and respond to what Canoel said. ¡°Where would you find such a weird rhinoceros!¡± It had three horns on its head, and the one on its nose was red and bigger than the others. The face itself resembled a rhinoceros, but at the same time, it felt like it was an ancient dragon. Ian¡¯s party identified the monster. Kwahhh-! With a huge roar that nearly broke off the whole party¡¯s eardrums, they were able to identify what it was. [Behemoth / Lv 406] The monster was none other than the legendary monster Behemoth whom Ian had been searching for. Since the Behemoth hadn¡¯t made an appearance in the Dimensional War, Ian and his party were feeling nervous. Hoonie was the first one to speak. ¡°Thankfully, it¡¯s movements seem to be a little¡­ slow?¡± Ian looked at the Behemoth very closely and then spoke. ¡°By the way, the skin texture¡­ seems like a steel glow. Looks like it has great physical resistance.¡± Ian glanced at the spear in his hand. The ¡®Judgement of the Spirit King¡¯ who had an unexpected attack power, but he wasn¡¯t sure if even that could tear through its steel skin. ¡®If it¡¯s around level 300, then it wouldn¡¯t have made us feel so intimidated¡­¡¯ However, as of the moment, it seemed like calling it of level 406 would be an understatement. Gathering his senses together, he thought on how to deal with the monster that was in front of his eyes. ¡°Hoonie, Noel. Let¡¯s move back slightly for now.¡± ¡°Why? Since he is huge, isn¡¯t it better to fight in a narrow place?¡± Ian shook his head at Hoonie¡¯s question. ¡°Let¡¯s try to draw him into a bright spot. And we don¡¯t have any information about him at all, can¡¯t you see that?¡± ¡°Well, okay.¡± Ian, Hoonie, and Canoel took a step back while communicating with each other. Ian was thinking about the worst of the things that could happen. ¡®If we don¡¯t manage to get hold of this guy, then we¡¯ll have to pull out as much information as possible to catch the Tarveros the next time.¡¯ Since he was a strong opponent, Ian thought of the situation and how they could possibly lose to it. Though they had a small chance of winning, Ian didn¡¯t plan of dying in his hands. And incase the situation started to get difficult, then they would immediately use the scroll without thinking twice. No matter how expensive the instant scroll would be, it would be nothing if Ian fell down from the 1st rank. Kung- Kung- Kung- The Behemoth raised its massive body and took steps towards the party. Every time it took a step forward, the entire dungeon would shake. ¡°When you see my signal, attack it, okay?¡± ¡°Okay!¡± Ian watched the movement of the monster with utmost concentration. It had been walking in a very slow manner, but that couldn¡¯t be taken into consideration in attacking it. Their nervousness hadn¡¯t settled down even for a bit. ¡®Little more, just a little more¡­!!¡¯ Ian couldn¡¯t wait anymore. Once the whole body of the monster comes out of the darkness, he planned on attacking it right away. Ian thought of attacking the monster that way in order to prevent the monster from attacking them with some unknown weapon in its possession while they were still in the dark. But then. Grrrr- The red-eyed Behemoth which was headed in the direction of the party suddenly started to turn back! ¡°What¡­ what ? Where is it going?¡± ¡°Well, I didn¡¯t think this would happen¡­ what are we going to do Hyung? Should we attack?¡± Canoel nervously looked at Ian, and Hoonie was puzzled. Even they were lost in their thoughts after that. A very aggressive looking monster doing that? This was the first time for Ian to be in a situation like that after entering the Devildom. ¡®What was that? Why did it turn back?¡¯ Moreover, the level of that monster was more than 100 levels higher than Ian and his party, and that made it much harder to understand what just happened. Hoonie looked at the back of the Behemoth with a blank expression on his face and asked Ian. ¡°Hyung, maybe¡­¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Is he going back to protect the Orb of Darkness?¡± Ian went pale with Hoonie¡¯s assumption. ¡°Oh?¡± Hoonie continued to speak. ¡°If it is the task of the Behemoth to protect the Orb of Darkness, then it would explain why it moved to a certain distance and then went back.¡± ¡°Certainly looks like it. Hoonie finally said something that actually made sense after a long time.¡± ¡°A long time!? I always¡­!¡± Ian ignored Hoonie¡¯s outburst and started to think quickly. Ian opened his eyes and looked at the darkness where the Behemoth had disappeared into. ¡®Hoonie could be¡­ right. So the Orb of Darkness can possibly be in there.¡¯ But even then, it was just a hypothesis. The risk was too great to make a move based on an assumption. Ian then spoke. ¡°Let¡¯s confirm it.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°If the Orb is really in there.¡± ¡°How do you propose that?¡± Ian turned his gaze and stared at Kaka, who was right next to him. ¡°Will it be possible for this guy¡­?¡± Hoonie and Canoel looked over at Kaka in response to what Ian said. ¡°Oh¡­! It can be possible if it¡¯s Kaka!¡± ¡°Yes, it would be perfect since Kaka uses dark attributes.¡± Unless the Behemoth uses an inherent ability of divine order, then no harm could be done to Kaka. With Kaka, they could find out what was hidden in the darkness without any risks. In addition, if they use the skill of Black Magician Hoonie¡¯s ¡®Black Eye¡¯, then the entire party would be able to share Kaka¡¯s view. Everyone¡¯s gaze turned toward Kaka, and Kaka nodded at them and replied. ¡°I understand master. I will go and check what¡¯s in there.¡± * * * Frong- Frong- When Kaka started to fly using her small wings, an unpleasant sound came. Ian then said. ¡°Hey, can you not move your wings?¡± ¡°I need to move my wings to push the air, master¡± ¡°Shut up, and stop flapping your wings.¡± ¡°Huk¡­¡± Kaka who was in the center of everyone¡¯s attention, stopped flapping her wings. However, she didn¡¯t seem to face any trouble in flying. ¡°Ah, this is frustrating. Why is she so slow?¡± ¡°I feel the same.¡± As Kaka flew into the dark, Hoonie cast a spell with his skull wand. ¡°In the Darkness¡­ let me have a third eye!¡± Wheeing-! A violet smoke came out from the gem of Hoonie¡¯s wand, and a large bead seemed to have appeared in front of the party. A projection appeared in the bead which was in black and white. What they were seeing right now was what Kaka was currently seeing. Ian looked at Hoonie and said. ¡°Hey, is such a cringey chant needed to be done?¡± ¡°Cringey!? So you don¡¯t want me to do it. Well, it doesn¡¯t matter since I have awesome control. If you think these things are so cringey then you won¡¯t be able to ever be a Knaji(cool).¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be fine without it¡­¡± All the three people gathered in front of the quartz bead screen that Hoonie had summoned. Canoel, who had been observing it very quietly asked in a low voice. ¡°Hey, Hoonie. The last time we saw something in this, it had color. Why did it suddenly change into black and white? Performance downgrade?¡± Hoonie shook his head and responded. ¡°The performance hasn¡¯t downgraded at all, it¡¯s just how Kaka sees the world.¡± ¡°What? ¡°The world that Kaka sees is black and white.¡± Ian who was listening to the conversation of the two, spoke as if he had just realized something. ¡°Ah ha¡­? Oh, now I know¡­ that is why she can clearly see in the dark.¡± ¡°Oh, Is that so?¡± Thanks to that, the three people were able to see clear images in the dark, they stopped talking and began to focus more on the images that were being displayed in front of them. Kaka moved past the Behemoth. When they saw the Behemoth through Kaka¡¯s eyes, it seemed like a rocky hill and not a monster. ¡°Is that its tail? I¡¯m finally seeing the edge of the floor.¡± Kaka was about to get to her destination. The party focused on the screen to find the Orb of Darkness. But then. ¡°Uh, wait. There there¡­! Is that it?¡± Canoel pointed at the screen as if he had found something, and Hoonie and Ian too looked at the screen. The Behemoth¡¯s gigantic long tail was carefully winded up at a dimly shined object. When Kaka found the object, she moved closer towards it. The three was finally able to see the object a bit clearer now. And it wasn¡¯t just one. A total of three smooth glass-like objects were placed close to each other. And there was also a strange aura around them. ¡°What¡­? Is this really the Orb of Darkness?¡± Canoel nodded in response to what Hoonie said. ¡°Well, well? I just opened the quest window to confirm the shape of the Orb of Darkness, and it is different from that.¡± ¡°It is like¡­ an egg, right?¡± ¡°No, its shape is of an egg¡­ The surface is way too smooth and there is light coming out from it. Is it some kind of jewelry?¡± Kaka circled around the place, but no other objects could be found. It was obvious that the Behemoth was guarding these questionable objects. Canoel and Hoonie began to try very hard to understand what that object was, and Ian was thinking all by himself. ¡®What is that? Why does it seem like I¡¯ve seen them somewhere before?¡¯ Ian was feeling upset since the view that Kaka provided was in black and white. If only the screen had color in it, then it could¡¯ve been possible to know what the object was. ¡®It feels so familiar. I¡¯ve definitely seen it somewhere¡­¡¯ Ian tried very hard to remember the unknown object. ¡®The Karceus soul in the dragon egg was a bit similar to that¡­ even the texture.¡¯ Like the God¡¯s eggs, like any other egg, this too had a more convex form in the bottom. On the other hand, the Behemoth¡¯s three objects were almost symmetrical ellipses. ¡®What? Uh¡­ I¡¯m going crazy.¡¯ Ian held his forehead and looked closely at the objects that once again came into Kaka¡¯s line of sight. Suddenly. The object¡¯s light moved to its surface, and the light flowed! And in that moment, Ian remembered where he had seen the object. CH 340 Like lightning, an image passed through Ian¡¯s mind. And that thing out there was¡­ the ¡®Egg of an Unknown Beast¡¯! that was it¡­!! that was why it felt familiar¡­ Ian once again looked at the picture on the video. The closer he looked, the more it seemed to represent the ¡®Egg of an Unknown Beast¡¯ that was in his memory. With shock clearly registered on his face, Ian opened his mouth. ¡°That is¡­ the Behemoth¡¯s egg.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± ¡°Behemoth¡¯s egg. That thing is trying to protect its eggs.¡± At the words from Ian, Hoonie to added. ¡°Maybe that¡¯s the case, that was in my thoughts too¡­ how are you so sure? Isn¡¯t it a bit unique to be considered as an egg?¡± Canoel looked at Ian with curiosity on his face, and Ian briefly explained why he felt so convinced. And then Hoonie began to laugh at Ian. ¡°Then hyung, did you hand over the Behemoth¡¯s egg to an NPC Gripper?¡± Ian frowned. ¡°Shut up, idiot. If not you¡¯ll end up having your ass kicked.¡± And Canoel who was next to him had a few words to say too. ¡°Even then hyung. It was all because of the egg that you¡¯re able to open that fraudulent dimensional door. I don¡¯t think it was a loss-making business.¡± Ian smiled slightly and nodded. It was a rhetorical statement from Canoel. Had it not been for the Dimensional Power Charger, then the Dimensional beads would¡¯ve still been useless. But even then, there was never a limit for human greed. ¡®I can¡¯t help but feel bad.¡¯ Ian¡¯s gaze once again turned towards the alleged egg of Behemoth. ¡°I so want that¡­!¡± As Ian opened his mouth, Canoel and Hoonie¡¯s gaze automatically turned towards his mouth. ¡°I need to get the egg somehow.¡± Hoonie and Canoel both nodded at the same time. ¡°Let¡¯s get a clear look at it. How about we get the Behemoth¡¯s egg?¡± ¡°So do I, even I want to raise a legendary monster right now.¡± Ian felt more motivated now. Of the three eggs, two were hoped to be his share. Ian was willing to give one of it as familiar to Canoel, but it seemed like Ian could easily take of Hoonie¡¯s share. Sure, he wasn¡¯t thinking about taking it for free. Hoonie would also have a corresponding request. ¡®Behemoth isn¡¯t a commonly found legendary monster. He was a strong monster whom the Devil Kings also didn¡¯t dare to capture¡­¡¯ Ian was thinking that if it was going to be Behemoth, then for the Beast Alchemy there wouldn¡¯t be any shortage for devil energy. * * * The Eastern end of the continent. A tall tower was standing all alone on a wasteland. An elderly man strolled leisurely in the back of the tower, which was called the ¡®The Dimensions Magical Tower¡¯. The old man, who was strolling slowly scratched the back of his earlobe and muttered. ¡°Hmm, why is my ear suddenly feeling very itchy?¡± And the identity of the elderly person was Gripper. Gripper has been having a very peaceful and leisurely day in recent times. Even a few months ago, he was suffering from the aggression happening in the Devildom, but once the Dimensional war ended, it was very peaceful. And above all, the most satisfying thing was that the 5 Gods were no longer bothered of the world. So, these days, he was clearing the wastelands behind the tower and had been working on the spacious and beautiful gardens. But there was one problem, because of his greed¡ªhe made the garden a bit wider than needed. While looking at his wide garden, Gripper muttered with a mix of emotions. ¡°Maybe I should take one disciple¡­¡± Gripper, who was thinking about what kind of talent would be good, looked into the sky after hearing a familiar sound. Prrrng-! ¡°Oh, that one. Where have you been today? It looks like you¡¯ve eaten a very satisfying meal¡­ it wasn¡¯t a human right?¡± Prrng- Prrrng-! A huge shadow in the sky. Gripper was smiling with a loving smile and enjoyed the big shadow. * * * The Behemoth was very powerful. One might think that it was natural for one to have a level of over 400, but such strength was something that you can¡¯t translate into words. ¡®This was the first, to see such an ignorant monster.¡¯ Ian looked at the Behemoth which was unaffected even after the strongest attacks he was throwing in its direction. Ian¡¯s average DPS (Damage Per Second) was close to one million when dealing in the common battlefield. All of the damage done by the pets was also counted as Ian¡¯s DPS, and it was a tremendous number. But at the current moment, when dealing with the Behemoth, Ian¡¯s average DPS was around a mere 100,000. The Behemoth was taking about only 10% or less of the ordinary dealings. So one could say that the monster had a great defense and resistance. If so, when the body was big enough, then the attack power of the monster should be low, right? But that wasn¡¯t the case. The tail of it was so strong that with a single strike, the vitality of Bbakbbak was down to half vitality and the attack power was beyond imagination. Ian mumbled to himself after confirming the vitality of the Behemoth was flickering. ¡®Phew, after attacking it for half a day I managed to take around half of the vitality.¡¯ And Ian had been trying to grasp the pattern of attack of the Behemoth for three hours, but even then, it was awesome. And the reason why he could shatter the vitality of the Behemoth was because he was stupid to surpass the AI. Behemoth was slow and stupid¡ªlike a sloth, instead of having tremendous tanking power and attack power. And that was the monster¡¯s fatal flaw. ¡°Karceus, get ready to use your Breath!¡± ¡°I understand, Master.¡± Karceus who was incarnated into its body flew to the air and took in a huge breath. And turning its head towards the dark¡ªopened its mouth. And Behemoth immediately responded to it. Kung- Kung- Kung- It moved a little to the side and stood right in the front of Karceus to block it. And, of course, the wide range of breath swept the entire body of the Behemoth. At first glance, it was a slow movement, but there was a reason for the movement of the Behemoth. It was a movement that it had done to keep its egg hidden in the dark and safe from the Breath. [The familiar ¡®Karceus¡¯ invoked its unique ability Breath.] [Fatal damage was done to the legendary monster Behemoth.] [The vitality of Behemoth has been reduced by 137898.] [The vitality of Behemoth has been reduced by 98997.] [The vitality of Behemoth has been reduced by 108982.] The vitality of the Behemoth was shattered instantly. The Behemoth wasn¡¯t scared of getting hit by Karceus¡¯s Breath, even when it did it only lost around 5% of its vitality. Kuaaa-! Whether the Breath worked well or not, the Behemoth scoffed. When the red eyes were looking here and there, it was clear that he reached over his head. And Ian knew exactly what kind of a pattern the Behemoth was going to follow. ¡°Everyone step back! After 3 seconds, it will later release a vibration wave!¡± Ian knew exactly how much time it would take for its unique ability to be played. At Ian¡¯s cry, as if waiting for orders, all the pets and the Undead stopped and backed away. And soon as they went back, Behemoth¡¯s paw fell down. Kung- Kung- Kung- kung-! From the center of Behemoth¡¯s paw, a red ¡®Magic¡¯ started to spread out rapidly. But the ¡®Magic wave¡¯ didn¡¯t stop until it had reached the last place that the pets had retreated to. ¡°Nice! Just jump in!¡± In fact, the ¡®Vibration¡¯ was a wide-area destruction technique with enormous destructive power. And with a familiar like Ly with weak tanking abilities, just a single scratch from it could lead to death. But on this times attack, Ian didn¡¯t even lose a single skeleton. Kung- Kung- As soon as the attack was done, the Behemoth sniffled and move in the direction of Ian. Ian¡¯s orders followed once again. ¡°All the tanker move back, and the attacker to the front!¡± And the Behemoth¡¯s attack was from its tail. Just a few minutes later, the Behemoth will twist its body and swing its enormous tail. So why did the tankers step back? Behemoth¡¯s tailing was slow because of its huge weight, and it was an attack that could be avoided, I once had great vitality and control. It wasn¡¯t necessary for the tankers to uselessly take damage. The tailing was slow, but the attack power it had was great, so even a user with the best tanking ability won¡¯t be able to hold it. Kung- Kung- Kukung-! Every time the Behemoth¡¯s tail swung, a roar sounded from the bottom of the dungeon. So the dealers quickly began to attack the Behemoth¡¯s tail, and Ian also jumped in with his Judgement of the Spirit King on top of the Behemoth. Puk- Puak-! Ian who was holding a spear in his hand¡ªpierced the Behemoth continuously. But rather than concentrating on the attacking the Behemoth, Ian was more concerned about the overall movement of the party members. And it wasn¡¯t a monster who could be caught with one single powerful attack, rather than just attacking it, it was important for its vitality to fall below the recoverable amount to cause any serious damage. ¡°Hoonie, do it more boldly, Noel move out!¡± Hoonie¡¯s Undead were all crushed under its tail as they failed to escape, but that amount of damage was part of the challenge. And Hoonie¡¯s Undead was soon forced to recover. Ian was super tensed while looking closely at the movements of the Behemoth. And it didn¡¯t take much time for the phase to change. ¡®Now in 30 sec¡­ 20 sec¡­ 10¡­ 9¡­ 8¡­¡¯ The Behemoth¡¯s attack following the tail was the most dangerous of all. And they still didn¡¯t know the exact name of the unique ability, but a whirlwind started to swing in the mapped area, and the whirlwind had magic in it. There was no way to avoid that inherent ability, nor was there any way to block that ability. It was an area where one had to keep using the heals and shields unconditionally. And the reason why Ian and his party were able to hold the dot wide-area ability was because the attack was ¡®dot¡¯ type. It wasn¡¯t a single-time-huge-damage kind of attack but the one were the damage was finely divided by constant attack, and they were able to withstand it because of Bbookbbook¡¯s Blessing of Abyss. And in that way, Ian completely controlled the party as the attacks of Behemoth were on constant repeat and were able to take down its vitality. As time moved on, it seemed like they were losing their concentration, but seeing the vitality of Behemoth cut, they once again gained energy to fight. Over ten hours passed and the fifteenth hour came, Ian¡¯s party was now moving mechanically and systematically. And everyone lost track of the time since the battle had began. Kyaaa-! The Behemoth, which was like a huge mountain, finally collapsed onto the floor of the dungeon. Thud- CH 341 Grrr-! The moment Behemoth collapsed onto the floor, the entire dungeon began to vibrate as if an earthquake had appeared. While seeing the body of Behemoth drained of its vitality, Ian and the party members had blank expressions. And it wasn¡¯t because they weren¡¯t happy. It was because the hellish raid on the monster had ended with success on their side, but the problem was that they had been too drained of their energies to even rejoice. With a blank expression, Hoonie muttered, ¡°Finally¡­ it¡¯s done¡­¡± If the same raid had been performed by a normal party, then there was a high chance for it to be abandoned. They would¡¯ve left it after just an hour or so. After a complete hour of straight offense, and the monster didn¡¯t even lose 5% of its vitality, then it would be natural for anyone to give up or to go and recruit some other users! But the leader of the current party wasn¡¯t a sane person, and in the end, he managed to succeed by raiding the monster with three individuals. Dump- Canoel and Hoonie both sat down at the same time. The same time their minds came to release the stress, their bodies too responded in the same manner, and their lifeless legs couldn¡¯t hold on the violent shaking of the dungeon. ¡°Why are you guys sitting. Let¡¯s check the items right away.¡± Ian who wasn¡¯t so tired approached the body of Behemoth right away. Actually, Ian wasn¡¯t tired. It was because of the spiritual power that had been created by the aspirations towards the items. Seeing that, Canoel spoke, ¡°That hyung, he¡¯s surely not a human¡­¡± ¡°Noel hyung, you knew that now?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian who wasn¡¯t so concerned with the conversation between those two people smiled to himself by approaching the body of Behemoth. Ian was purely concerned about the items that Behemoth would drop. ¡®It was a real miracle that we¡¯ve gotten out successfully. I was starting to increase the attacks twice or thrice for it¡­¡¯ In the first trial, they had to figure out the attack pattern and the attacks. The second and third trial was to succeed with a clear view. If Ian¡¯s plan would¡¯ve been known beforehand, then Hoonie and Canoel wouldn¡¯t have been sitting on the floor¡ªthey would¡¯ve been lying on the floor. ¡®If he would¡¯ve been just a little bit smarter, we wouldn¡¯t have succeeded at all.¡¯ As Ian¡¯s hand reached the body of the Behemoth, a system message came out. Tring- [¡®Behemoth¡¯s Skin¡¯ x 5 items have been earned.] [Obtained the item ¡®Forgotten Magician¡¯s Tooth¡¯.] [Obtained the item ¡®Rage of Chastity¡¯.] [Obtained the items, ¡®Advanced Magic stones¡¯.] [Obtained the item ¡®Vibrating wave ability stone¡¯.] Ian¡¯s eyes looked over at all the items that were listed, after the half he started to rub his eyes. ¡®Ability stone? Power ability stones!?¡¯ Ian felt butterflies in his stomach. He quickly opened the inventory and checked the information of the item. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Vibrating Wave Ability Stone ¨C Rank: Legendary Classification: Goods ¨C It is a power stone with the ability of ¡®Vibrating Wave¡¯ which is the unique ability of the legendary monster Behemoth. ¨C If these abilities are coupled together with the Alchemy, it would give a high probability ¡®Vibrating Wave¡¯ and inherent ability will be born thoroughly. ¨C And the Magical Beast Alchemy can only be done by Cervian the ¡®Devil Summoner¡¯ who resides in the Laboratory of the 107th division of the Devildom. ¨C If the casting of the Alchemy doesn¡¯t succeed, then the item will disappear. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C While Ian was able to find the information about the stones, he found a whole new set on the information. ¡®Even if not the Master of Alchemy, a Beast Alchemist also could utilize the content. But¡­ to make such nice contents, but only for a small number of users to use is a tough task for the developers.¡¯ Ian was a bit upset that the Master of Beast Alchemy wasn¡¯t a content that he could use but soon realized that he needn¡¯t be sorry. Even if it was the work of the blacksmith to make equipment, but wouldn¡¯t it be fine to leave the production work for the normal users? He wanted to understand this content and concept of the alchemy. ¡®Oh, but this¡­ even if the other summoning users are able to perform the alchemy, then the materials needed for the durability of the alchemy should also be available in huge quantities, right?¡¯ Ian was the first to come up with the magic mines. One of the major minerals produced in the Magic Mines were the magic stones that increase the probability of success in the alchemy. Which meant the value of these minerals would rise to an incomprehensible level, which was contrary to the thought that no one but him would use the stones. ¡®The normal users could try and perform normal summons¡­ that could be a merit for the Beast Alchemy. But I don¡¯t think that it would be possible to perform with a skill that could revive or summon¡­¡¯ Ian¡¯s guess was almost right. Although the content wasn¡¯t opened yet, as it was just Ian who had completed the quest of the Cervian¡¯s Laboratory and even if it was opened later, it wouldn¡¯t be able to refer all the Magical Beast Alchemy to Cervian. Firstly, the Cervian Quest was a quest which gave the clear to the hidden job of Alchemy and then provided the user with permission to use the laboratory. And even if it was a natural course, and for the normal users to be able to use the laboratory of Cervian, they will have to pay a big price to use the lab. As far as this thought came, Ian suddenly remembered the dwarf. ¡°Huh, Han would be working hard, right?¡± As the words blurted out of Ian¡¯s mouth, both Hoonie and Noel flinched instinctively. The moment the name ¡®Han¡¯ was heard, all their memories in that horrible place rushed back. ¡°Hyung, why did you have to spell that weird dwarf¡¯s name?¡± ¡°Huh, I have something to do.¡± While Ian was in his own thoughts, Hoonie and Canoel who too hunted the Behemoth retrieved their share of the loot. All the three had received one piece of legendary equipment, and Hoonie especially had obtained 13 pieces of Behemoth Skin. That was because Ian and Canoel both gave all their shares to him. ¡°Hehe, Thank you hyungs! This much of it will be enough, I will be able to continue my process of producing the wand.¡± Ian responded to it with a little irritation, ¡°Well, you do have awesome luck. It seems like an important task that might need at least 30 pieces of skin.¡± ¡°¡­¡± And Ian who was done with the raid now moved into the darkness. There was another thing that they had to recover. ¡®The Behemoth¡¯s egg! I can¡¯t leave that out.¡¯ He had already given up a lot for Hoonie¡¯s sake, there was no way he would be willing to let this go. Among the items that Ian had acquired from the Behemoth¡¯s body, he had already given away the legendary production material ¡®The Forgotten Beast¡¯s tooth¡¯, and the ¡®Rage of Chastity¡¯ to Hoonie. That was why Ian immediately headed into the darkness in search of the Behemoth¡¯s egg. And it wasn¡¯t so difficult to find the Behemoth¡¯s egg, all thanks to the light that they emitted in the pitch darkness. ¡°Keu, my precious!!¡± Ian was in a good mood despite giving away a lot to Hoonie. And right after taking the egg, the system message came up. Tring- [The item ¡®Behemoth¡¯s Egg¡¯ has been obtained.] Ian took a sigh o relief in the darkness. ¡°I knew it¡­! it was the Behemoth¡¯s egg!¡± Ian couldn¡¯t feel relieved until he saw the exact item information and confirmed it. But Ian could feel something strange. ¡°Oh, but¡­ why is blur light coming out of this guy?¡± Ian stared at the Behemoth¡¯s egg in his hand. He noticed a few things that weren¡¯t seen through the black and white vision of Kaka¡¯s. * * * Kiyaaa-! The sky of the Central continent was without clouds. In contrast to the desert where the yellow sand is embedded into the sky, the clouds of Saekaman were bluer. And they were the Wyverns, the predators that dominated the desert. The Velaros guild were both forced to fall into nervousness as they saw the guards of the Lotus Guild. [Ah! What is this? The Wyverns! The Wyverns are now on the side of Lotus!] [Yes, that looks like it! since the scene is far away, it isn¡¯t that clear yet, but that silhouette is definitely Wyverns! The Wyverns are one of the topmost armed riders ever.] [Oh~ yes, they are! The Wyvern Knights! The Wyverns Knights are in the Lotus Guild!] [Not just one or two! At a glance, it looks like there are more than 28! This is huge!] The weekend ended with Monday. So right from the day before. The Lotus Guild proclaimed order of the Lord¡¯s palace on one side of the central. And this was a tremendous step which no guild in the Kailan had even tried to attempt. From the early days of Kailan till the Dimensional war, the DarkRuna guild which was in the 1st ranking for quite a lot time never even tried to declare war on more than two guilds. And due to the normal users started to get excited about the way the Lotus Guild was working. ¨C The Lotus Guild has gone crazy! No matter how confident they are, does it make any sense to declare war on 12 guilds at the same time? ¨C No, honestly, this isn¡¯t confidence. They didn¡¯t declare war on some random guilds but they declared them on the top 12 guilds, do they even make sense? Could it be that the Guild Master is being terrorized or their guild will be collapsed? ¨C Why? Did you even look at the guild once? ¨C Hmm, I did. Do you think that it will be possible? ¨C ¡­ Their opinion is plain foolish, but the Lotus Guild is the asylum for the crazy, their plans are plain unrealistic¡­ I don¡¯t even know what to say about this kind of acts. ¨C Same here. At the Lotus Guild¡¯s act, many theories started to spurt out, and there was a popular theory that someone would have been terrorizing them or that their guild would be destroyed on purpose by some ¡®Conspiracy theorists¡¯. As such, the propagation declaration of the Lotus Guild was to break down the frame of common sense. And on the noon of Tuesday, the first manor transition broke out. And right at that moment. Even in the midst of the blazing sunset, users gathered in the Central Continent to see the Lotus Guild. And as soon as the Empire war began, all the users turned enthusiastic. And as many users and experts were worried about, the Wyvern Knights had appeared in the central continent. With the sunlight falling on their armors, the symbol of Lotus Guild which was the Griffin¡ªit¡¯s representative image was glowing. It was the mascot of Ian¡¯s familiar ¡®Pin¡¯, beautifully embedded. And the Wyvern Knights were just the beginning. The gates of the Pyro opened, and the enormous troops of the Lotus Guild began to pour out. Starting with the basic infantry, horse-knights, giant stone golems and siege weapons. On top of that, a well-equipped magic brigade that uses wide area, the army of Lotus Guild was immense. As a result, as the Lotus Guild troops went closer to the Belaros Manor, the excitement of the users began. [Well, there sure is some trust in the Lotus Guild now!] [Wyvern Knights! Who would¡¯ve imagined? The Wyvern Knights can be produced only after raising the level of the Manor¡¯s barrack to the 4th tier!] [That is so true! As far as I know, the Wyvern knights have been known to be made official for less than a month, right? And it takes two months to nurture them. But the Lotus Guild now has 29 of those!] [What does it mean?] [Then doesn¡¯t it mean that the Lotus Guild have been preparing for this day, three to four months ago?] [That¡¯s right. They pulled out the knife. Even without Ian, the Guild screams ¡®This is who we are¡¯!] It was a scene of frenzy. All the bulletin boards on the page that relayed the Empire war were sick, and the users who weren¡¯t originally interested started to gather to get more information. And so, the war of conquest of the Lotus Manor which the guild had been preparing for over half a year had finally begun. CH 342 Ian was almost convinced that the egg of the unknown monster which he had handed over to Gripper in the past was indeed the Behemoth¡¯s egg. However, once he held the egg, he wasn¡¯t so sure anymore. ¡®The egg that I handed over to Gripper was definitely reddish in color.¡¯ He was 100% certain that the ¡® Unknown egg¡¯ was indeed reddish. But now, the Behemoth¡¯s egg which was in the hands of Ian had blue light around it. The two eggs weren¡¯t the same. ¡°What was it¡­?¡± Canoel who was next to Ian asked with a strange expression in response to what he said. ¡°What¡¯s wrong hyung? What¡¯s the problem?¡± Ian shook his head and answered. ¡°Ah, nothing. I was just thinking about something.¡± And as a result, the identity of the ¡®Unknown Egg¡¯ which he had thought to be the egg of the Behemoth became Unknown once again. Ian¡¯s instincts were telling him that the egg he handed over to Gripper was a much better monster than the Behemoth. ¡®Uh¡­ Uh¡­ How am I supposed to retrieve that egg?¡¯ Ian was wondering what the egg would be like, but for the time being, he decided to not be anxious anymore. The most important thing for them now was to complete the quest. ¡®Once the quest is done, I need to go to the dimensional ancient tower. I need to get on good terms with Gripper and get the egg back¡­!¡¯ Ian, who was imagining things for himself, made a fist and turned his head towards Hoonie and Canoel. ¡°Hey! Hoonie, Noel. If you¡¯re done with your maintenance then shall we go?¡± ¡°I was done a while back. I was just waiting for hyung.¡± ¡°Okay, let¡¯s move then.¡± Behind the place where the eggs of Behemoth were, a blue colored gate was open. If they went in there, then they were bound to get the Orb of Darkness. Ian finally checked the status of his familiars, and no new enemy made an appearance. The situation was looking good for them. Swoosh- swoosh- Ian, who frowned looking at the dungeon entered the gate without any hesitation. The gate swallowed all of them with a screeching sound and its trace was nowhere to be found. * * * [The ¡®Orb of Darkness¡¯ has been obtained.] [The ruling monarch who had been sleeping for a thousand years in the tower has awakened.] [¡®Power of Commander¡¯ is activated.] Woong woooong-! The place where Ian and the party had entered was a mysterious place which looked like the top of the tower. A skeleton-shaped altar that rose to an endless height and a smooth orb was floating in front of them. When all of them approached, a purple light began to glow over the altar. The Orb that absorbed the light moved towards the direction of Ian and his party members. Hoonie then took the Orb. At the same time, a system message came up. Tring- [The power of the ¡®Orb of Darkness¡¯ will last for only three days. Before that time, all the needed materials should be taken to Daedmon¡¯s temple.] [Remaining Time ¨C 71: 59: 58] Checking the message, Ian couldn¡¯t help but frown. Because of this message, all the plans Ian had made became worthless. ¡°Oh, What a dirty quest!!¡± A 3-day time limit was something that he hadn¡¯t even thought of. If they had known it beforehand, then the tower would¡¯ve been the last place they would¡¯ve visited. ¡®We should¡¯ve come after taking the Balrog¡¯s heart at least.¡¯ But what was done was done. Hoonie who grasped the situation a little late spoke. ¡°3 days¡­ it¡¯s a bit too tight of a schedule. What should we do hyung? Shouldn¡¯t we at least sleep for 10 hours and then continue?¡± Although there was an unexpected time limit in the quest, after hunting down the Behemoth there wasn¡¯t a single ounce of strength left in them. No matter how urgent it was, it was virtually impossible for them to continue with the quest. Even for Ian, the icon of Emergency was making him want to take a break as well. And they also didn¡¯t have a plan either. ¡°Can¡¯t help it. let¡¯s sleep for 8 hours and for the remaining 63 hours, we¡¯ll go straight to doing this quest again with no breaks.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Hoonie sighed, and Canoel¡¯s expression was completely down. They wanted to go off immediately, and if they didn¡¯t come right on time, they didn¡¯t know that Ian was willing to call them 500 times to make sure that they wouldn¡¯t be late. ¡°So we¡¯ll log out for now?¡± Ian who was about to nod at Hoonie¡¯s question realized that something was off. ¡°Hey, by the way, in the message that came up earlier, there was something about a Monarch, right?¡± ¡°Ah, so what if there was? I¡¯m dying for sleep now. I want to sleep even if it¡¯s just a minute.¡± Hoonie tried to log out as soon as he could because he felt annoyed. But at that time, a system message came up in front of Hoonie¡¯s eyes, a message that he wouldn¡¯t even think of. [Events that won¡¯t allow Logout are in progress.] ¡°Uh? What is this?¡± Another system message came up as if someone was listening to Hoonie¡¯s question. [The ¡®Commander Monarch¡¯s seal has been released.] Syahhh-! A gruesome noise rang through the whole dungeon. They were all so shocked that they were not sleepy anymore, and in front of them, a quest window came up. Tring- [A Sudden quest will be created.] ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Escape from the Tower (Hidden, Sudden Quest) (Time Attack) ¨C You have received the trust of Daedmon, and defeated the Behemoth and have been successful in obtaining the Orb of Darkness. However, this Orb was originally a seal for the ¡®Commander Monarch¡¯ Chalian, and so the seal for the Ricci King Chalian had been released. As soon as the seal on the soul of Chalian was released, he would go crazy and destroy everything. So, let¡¯s move out of his grip and escape the Tower of the Commander. Quest Difficulty: SSS Quest Condition: Obtain the Orb of Darkness Timeout: 15 minutes Reward: Magical Ability 1000, Magic attack rate 0.1% ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C The three of them quickly read the contents of the quest and were all speechless for a second. ¡°What are all these quests!¡± ¡°What kind of Triple S grade quest reward is this!?¡± Apart from their ongoing complaints, the quest didn¡¯t wait for them. [The Monarch started to run wild.] KukuKung- As the dungeon collapsed, an enormous roar began to vibrate in all directions. Ian turned his head in the direction of the source of the vibration. And there it was, a bizarre shadow with dark smoke around it. [Monarch Commander Chalian ¨C Lv 500] The level of the monster that just appeared was 500, which was equivalent to the Chief of the God¡¯s army who was summoned in the dimensional war. A boss monster with this level would stand strong even if it was attacked. ¡°Oh, shit¡­!¡± Ian turned his gaze towards the gate they used to come here. However, the gate that brought them to this place was not there anymore. ¡®What¡­ what? What to do?¡¯ But right then, Canoel called Ian. ¡°Hyung, there!¡± At the direction that Canoel had pointed to, a new gate had opened. After seeing this, Ian and the party began to run towards it. If they died there, they would lose 24 hours of their 3 day time-limited quest. So they ran desperately. * * * Since the dimensional war, Ian¡¯s name had become a common name among the users. In the Kailan server of Korea, the strongest player Irahan got officially defeated by Ian. He was the one who had gathered the best points in two of the human camps, so maybe it was bound to happen. There was the situation that most people didn¡¯t know, that Irahan had actually been defeated by Ian way before the war, and these were some unknown facts not known to many. As of the moment, it was known that Ian was one of the strongest users in Kailan. And just because Ian was a member of it, the Lotus Guild too became very well known. Not like the previous years, where the Lotus Guild was considered as a lost ship. Now they were doing an Empire war with a total of 12 guilds in the Central continent, and the guild they had challenged were all well-proclaimed guilds in the top ranking of the Luspel Empire. The Lotus Guild was continuing its winning streak. So far, they had 5 consecutive matches and won them all. It wouldn¡¯t be an exaggeration to say that all the attention of the users was now on the Lotus Guild. Of course, they had to exclude Ian and his party who were in a quest. The greatest manor in the Western part of the Central Continent¡ªthe Pauline Manor. It was the place where the Titan Guild¡¯s flags were flourishing, and two people were having a serious conversation there as of the moment. The identity of the two people were the ones who came there because of Shakran, who was leading the power of the Titan Guild. ¡®Ceilron¡¯, the Knight¡¯s ranker and sub-guild master, and ¡®Emily¡¯ the closet keeper of Titan guild whose reputation was still unknown. Emily was originally just a member of the Ceilron party. After Shakran acknowledged her for her abilities, she was made into the current unofficial closet keeper in the Titan guild. The two of them were in front of a small round table, talking to one another. There was a crystal ball on top of the table, and it had the images of the war in it. Ceilron slowly opened his lips. ¡°Emily. Is this something you expected?¡± Emily responded with a firm expression in response to Ceilron¡¯s question. ¡°That¡¯s a little ambiguous.¡± ¡°What is?¡± ¡°When I saw the scale of the Pyro Manor, I thought that they had started to produce the Wyvern knights.¡± ¡°And so?¡± ¡°The problem is, even if we consider the number of Wyvern dragons in the war, we won¡¯t be able to make much difference with the troops. Even I didn¡¯t think that they would be able to do such things in such a short time.¡± Emily sighed and continued with what she was saying. ¡°Do you think that we should move quickly too¡­?¡± ¡°Moving?¡± ¡°What is the goal of Lotus now?¡± Ceilron thought for a moment and then responded. ¡°That¡¯s obvious¡­ they want to take down all of Luspel¡¯s guild, right?¡± Emily shook her head and spoke. ¡°No, the next one.¡± ¡°After that¡­ attack the west?¡± Even in the same Central Continent, the manor in the western and the other respective side had different places. The western side wasn¡¯t under the Luspel Empire. It was under the Kaimon Empire. Emily shook her head once again. ¡°No, not that. Of course, they could do that anytime, but if I was in the Lotus Guild I would add something before that.¡± ¡°Add something?¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± Emily stood up and spoke. ¡°Maybe to proclaim kingdom. If you see the size of the Lotus Guild, you can see that they have already met the conditions to be declared as a Kingdom.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± After hearing this, Ceilron began to scratch his head and explained what the plans would be. ¡°And after that, I would take over the Luspel empire and¡­ declare it as the Empire.¡± Emily nodded with a serious expression. ¡°And if that is so. Then after that¡­ an imperial war against Kaimon?¡± Once the Lotus Guild grows to that extent, then they would start with the Titan guild. However, there was no way they could attack the Lotus Guild in advance. Officially, there was a peace treaty between the Empires of Luspel and Kaimon. So there was no way for the Titan guild to go and attack the Lotus Guild because of the truce. Ceilron muttered something with his seriousness still intact. ¡°Ha¡­ where did the master go in such situations?¡± ¡°Well. He should be back by now¡­¡± The door of the meeting room which was behind them opened. ¡°Well, I am back, and it seems I¡¯m right on time.¡± CH 343 Kwang-! A roar sounded, and a huge gate opened at the beginning of the fifteenth division of the Devildom. At the center of the large gate, a red light was shining. The gate was around 3 meters in width and 5 meters in height. A large sound came along with a red whirlwind. A few moments later. The gate opened with a bunch of users on the other side. Thud- Thud- The ones who appeared from the gate were a complete mess. The knight¡¯s armor was blackened all over, and the robe of the wizards and the priests were nearly as bad as rags. The one who appeared first was a warrior class wearing a light armor. Martin¡ªwho was dusting away the dirt stuck on his armor¡ªmumbled to himself. ¡°Huh, I caught it. The gate doesn¡¯t seem to be used till now. I thought that there weren¡¯t any gates after the 30th division.¡± In general, the magic gate opens after a week or two when one uses it, and then it doesn¡¯t regenerate till a month. So even if there wasn¡¯t a gatekeeper, one could have thought that another had approached it. However, it was tough to imagine someone clearing the division below 30. The first discovery appeared too, so there was no doubt. Ian and his party entered the 17th division, so how did the discovery appear? The reason was simple. Both Ian and Martin¡¯s race were different, and the content pre-emptive reward such as first discovery reward was designed to be applied separately to each race at times. That had also been the intentional project plan of the developers to make more users transfer to the new race, Asmodians. After that, all the other users started to come out of the gate in turns. Chase who came out late responded to Martin. ¡°I guess so Master. I was sure that a level 400 Noblesse would appear¡­ but I can¡¯t see a Noblesse anywhere.¡± He then looked over at Irahan who said. ¡°If it wasn¡¯t for me, we wouldn¡¯t have even passed through.¡± Martin replied to what he said. ¡°That would be the same case for you¡­?¡± But, Irahan was the only one who was nervous. ¡°What nonsense? My DarkRuna guild would have been able to clear it all alone. I hope you don¡¯t forget that fact.¡± Martin didn¡¯t feel like agreeing with that, but neither would he use his energy to argue with the fool on the other side. It was because of his long battle with the keeper. His fatigue had reached its peak, and he felt that it was a shame to use up his calories for a guy like Irahan. Martin ignored Irahan and started to check all the users who passed through the gate. ¡°Hmmm¡­ the damage is bigger than what I had expected.¡± They didn¡¯t have much difficulty when reaching the 17th division. Both the Royal Guild and the DarkRuna Guild incurred losses in power. And this was a natural thing. It was probably because they were the elite Asmodians; that was probably why everyone was present every time they passed through each gate. Thanks to it, that it took less than a week to get to the 17th division from the 30th division of Chaos. However, from the gate of the 16th division, gatekeepers began to appear. They had to fight because they were Noblesse that was on level 350, who guarded division 16. However, the next division¡ªdivision 15¡ªwas a real hell. A level 415 Noblesse Wizard and 390 Noblesse warrior were guarding the gate. But due to that, they had lost almost half of their party members. That was something that never happened before. Fortunately, all the main players were saved. [You are the first to enter the 15th division of Devildom.] [Earned 100,000 fame points.] [For the next week, all the stats that are acquired in the 15th division of the Devildom will be increased to 1.5 times.] [Over the next week, the amount of exp gained is doubled, and the item drop rate is also doubled.] When the message appeared, Irahan thought to himself. ¡®Hmm¡­ why didn¡¯t this appear in the 17th division? It doesn¡¯t make sense unless someone had cleared it before us¡­¡¯ Irahan knew for certain that the first discovery was different for each race. So, he thought that it was possible for a human to go through the 17th division. But, that just didn¡¯t make any sense. Since all the portal that was connected to the human world had been closed off, it didn¡¯t make sense for a human user to be left in here. If a human had been to the 17th division, then it had to be before the outbreak of the dimensional war, and that made no sense. At that time, the average level of users was below 30. While Irahan was lost in his thoughts, he was approached by Sorlin the head of the DarkRuna Guild. ¡°Irahan, I just finished counting. A total of five died, including Leon, and the other seven are safe.¡± Irahan nodded. ¡°Sorlin you worked hard. Let¡¯s do it right this time.¡± ¡°Yes, Master.¡± On the other hand, Martin who completed management came towards Irahan. ¡°What are we going to do Irahan? We need to find the dungeon and move as fast as we can¡­ I don¡¯t think it will be easy to destroy.¡± Irahan slowly nodded and agreed in response to what Martin said. ¡°You have been saying that all this while. But nothing will work if there is a lack of concentration.¡± Irahan directed his eyes and looked at the party members. ¡°Take a day¡¯s rest and then we¡¯ll find the ¡®Tomb of the Forgotten Soul¡¯. Once you get a good night sleep and are done with all your maintenance¡­ we¡¯ll meet same time tomorrow, okay?¡± Martin nodded in response to what Irahan said. ¡°Okay, Let¡¯s do that.¡± * * * ¡°Oh¡­? Is Ian hyung not here yet?¡± In the 17th division of Devildom. A small garden in the back of the tower. Hoonie, who entered the hall looked around for Ian and Canoel. ¡°Uhh, I feel like I¡¯m dying for sleep. How does sleeping for 30 minutes sounds like? But I never saw Ian hyung brake his promise¡­¡± And right when Hoonie was mumbling to himself, Ian who was sitting on a rock in the open field came to his view. ¡°I¡¯m already here. Did you contact Noel?¡± ¡°¡­ there was no way you wouldn¡¯t have made it in time. I just got a message saying that he needs to eat.¡± An unexpected sudden mission was invoked in the Tower of Commander. Ian and his party managed to clear the mission with all their mental powers. All the familiars and the Undead had to be sacrificed, but they didn¡¯t have 24 hours of death penalty. And after exactly eight hours. Ian and Hoonie both showed up at their designated place. ¡°Once Noel arrives, we¡¯ll go. I don¡¯t want to waste a minute or a second either.¡± Ian involuntarily shook the Judgment of Spirit King, and Hoonie just lay down on the ground. ¡°I¡¯ll sleep for ten minutes till Noel hyung comes, hyung wake me up if he¡¯s already here.¡± Just as Hoonie was about to lay down, Canoel¡¯s voice came from afar. ¡°Oh-kay, I wasn¡¯t late, right?¡± Hoonie was the one who answered him. ¡°A little late hyung¡­¡± * * * ¡°What are the specs for the 17th division¡¯s gate?¡± Hoonie was the one who answered the question which was directed to Ian. ¡°Two level 340 Noblesse, and three level 320 monsters.¡± Ian smiled and rubbed Hoonie¡¯s head. ¡°Well our Hoonie has a great memory, and he is putting effort to use it.¡± ¡°No hyung, you have way better memory than me. So remember these things yourself.¡± Hoonie¡¯s words weren¡¯t informal. Hoonie and Canoel truly felt that Ian¡¯s mind was truly amazing. He would be able to remember the cooldown time of the active skills of all the party members, and the way he just keeps giving out orders one after the other in battles was never easy to adapt too. In fact, if Ian, Hoonie, and Canoel had been a warrior or a knight class, it wouldn¡¯t have been so surprising. Of all the top rankers, there were very few people who had the ability to control small party quests. But these men were warlocks and summoners. Ian would give orders after carefully assessing a target¡¯s ability, and he would then summon a familiar that was suited for the current situation. Considering that most of the users didn¡¯t find it easy to properly utilize the unique abilities of their own familiars, this was a fraudulent thing only Ian could do. Hoonie was grinning, which made Ian smile and replied. ¡°You¡¯re noisy, shut up. Since you ordered your hyung, I¡¯ll do as you please.¡± ¡°Hiss.¡± Ian started to try and remember the details of the 16th division. ¡®As we go further down the area, the level of the gatekeepers are going to rise rapidly¡­ maybe a Noblesse close to level 400 might make an appearance.¡¯ Ian and his party were prepared for it, but for now, they nervously took steps towards the gate of the 16th division. However, at the next moment, the three of them got suddenly confused. It was because a system message had popped up that said something that they would have never thought of. [You have reached the gateway to the 16th division of the Devildom.] [After a moment, you will move to the 16th division of the Devildom.] ¡°Huh¡­? Why?¡± Hoonie and Canoel were both saying nice things, but Ian was feeling troubled. ¡®What is this? Has anyone from the Asmodian race already entered the 16th division?¡¯ Ian quickly passed to the 16th division and then managed to reach the gateway of the 15th district. However, once again the discovery message hadn¡¯t come, and Ian and his party passed the 15th division gateway with a free pass. Hoonie who was standing in front of the tower mumbled. ¡°Phew, after hearing that Hoonie had come into the 15th division, all the gatekeepers seem to have run off! Haha!¡± Ian sighed and spoke to Hoonie. ¡°Shut up idiot. I had never heard of gatekeepers running off. Someone has passed through before us.¡± Canoel¡ªwho found something¡ªcalled Ian and Hoonie. ¡°Wait! There¡¯s something here.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± Ian and Hoonie both moved and found things right in front of the gate. ¡°What is this? Are they just glass bottles?¡± ¡°There is a broken sheet of metal armor.¡± Ian blinked his eyes. ¡®Surely, as I thought, somebody got here before us. Maybe some Asmodian users?¡¯ Ian bent down and picked up an empty potion bottle. At the mouth of the bottle, the moisture was still present, which meant that the users had just left. And Ian¡¯s head started to work rapidly. ¡®I¡¯m not sure who they are, but they must have logged out right before we went through the 15th gate.¡¯ Of course, they could¡¯ve entered inside the 15th gate, but that was not really a great thing to do. ¡°I don¡¯t know who, but thanks to them we got to save a lot of time, right?¡± Ian smiled. Even if it was Ian, he would¡¯ve needed some time to get rid of the keepers of the 15th and 16th. And in a situation where they had only two days until the quest completion, this was a nice way to save time instead of dealing with the keepers. On top of that, an evil thought just went into his head. CH 344 ¡®The Strongest Monster¡¯. When the words were heard for the first time, any normal user would immediately think of the name Balrog. Though everyone knew that the strongest presence in the Kailan during the Dimensional war was the Marion Khalifa. When the case of Khalifa came into the topic which felt like a named boss¡ªit felt a little different from the normal monsters. On top of that, when the Devildom dimension was opened, everyone knew that the strongest boss was the Balrog, and even for those users who still hadn¡¯t set foot into the Devildom, the Balrog was the strongest enemy they had known. The Balrog had a very overwhelming appearance. Its whole body had always been constantly engulfed in huge flames all the time, and two threatening horns on its head were terrifying to look at. And among those horns that were bent to the front like a goat, it had a horrible face to even look at. And its size? The body was huge, which seemed to be made of smoke and flame which moved in their own way, creating fear in the opponents. And the hands always had magic in them¡ªthey were larger than the size of a human males¡¯ hands, they were long, sharp and had nails that were more vicious than a sword that warriors carry around. It wasn¡¯t visually overwhelming. Ian was nervous. He was the monster that Ian had dealt with in the Dimensional war, but it wasn¡¯t an easy situation. Hoonie asked Ian, ¡°Hyung, Hyung did you fight a Balrog without the God¡¯s buff?¡± Ian nodded his head at the question. ¡°Huh. Sure.¡± ¡°Alone?¡± ¡°No, how would I have caught the Balrog with a buff if I was alone? Two of us had to work.¡± ¡°With whom? There is no difference if the user is not as strong as the other, right?¡± ¡°Shakran.¡± At the answer from Ian, Hoonie and Canoel both nodded their heads. If it was Shakran, then he had enough ability and power to battle alongside Ian. As the class was different, there was no way that they could compare the battle skills and control of Shakran with Ian, but in the game, Shakran could be a user who was stronger than Ian. Both Hoonie and Canoel were a bit taken aback, but the words from Ian didn¡¯t end yet. ¡°What is it, Hoonie? Why no answer, you look freaked.¡± ¡°Freaked, freaked! Who is freaked!¡± ¡°Why will I talk about someone else? It¡¯s you.¡± ¡°¡­! That Balrog, this Hoonie can defeat them all!¡± Ian just shook his head and started to walk once again. ¡°Seeing you scream and shout, I don¡¯t plan of keeping much faith in you¡­¡± ¡°Wah.¡± Right then, Ian was going through the 15th division of the Devildom. And fortunately, within one hour, they were able to discover the entrance of the dungeon which felt a little different. In many places, magic spells sprang up and down¡ªthe smoke that was coming out of the magic spells seemed like they would give them death. That clearly looked like the path to the Tomb of the Forgotten Soul. Hoonie was taken aback, but Ian tried to calm him down. ¡°Stop it, dude. Although the Balrog is powerful, we took down a Behemoth. On top of that, the Balrog was around 50 to 70 levels higher than the Balrog which they dealt in the Dimensional War.¡± ¡°You, you think so?¡± Ian¡¯s words continued. ¡°And the Balrog we dealt with in the Dimensional war was tough but, then that time I¡¯m around 1.5 times stronger now.¡± Saying the 1.5 times was a humble act. Kaizer and Karceus and Bbookbbook. The three sets of myth ranked familiars, and the level of the party had increased about 20 to 30, so it almost accounted for twice the power. Now Ian was in the thoughts that he could deal with more than two of the Balrog at the same time. ¡®If the level of the Balrog is similar to the ones that made an appearance in the Dimensional war, then it is good.¡¯ But if it was like the Behemoth who was more than the level of 400, then that would be a pain in the a*s. ¡°Wah, why is the entrance of the dungeon so long? And there isn¡¯t even a single monster.¡± ¡°That is so true. The atmosphere is really creepy.¡± If the Tower of Commander was eerie and unpleasant, then this dungeon felt like the ¡®path of death¡¯, it was creepy, dry, and cold. Ian and the party walked around 20 minutes along the path of death. And soon they found a gate that could take them further into the dungeon. ¡°Kay, One last check¡­¡± ¡°Okay.!¡± ¡°Okay, hyung.¡± Ian skilfully and quickly checked the status of all the party members and stepped near the gate after taking a deep breath. ¡°Let¡¯s go! To catch the Balrog.¡± * * * Tring ¨C [The first to enter the dungeon of ¡®Tomb of the Forgotten Soul¡¯.] [Earned fame of 150,000 points.] [Over the next week, all the magic stats in the Tomb of the Forgotten Soul will be increased by 1.5 times.] [Over the next week, the amount of experience gained will be doubled, and the item drop rate is also doubled.] As they saw, they were accustomed to the first reward messages. Ian quickly scrolled through the system messages and began to draw a plan on how to deal with the Balrog. ¡®Firstly, I¡¯ll have to configure minimum familiars.¡¯ The Balrog¡¯s physical combat has been weak. Well, it wasn¡¯t just weak, it was very weak when compared to that of the Behemoth. So, maybe it could be a monster that was easy to deal with when compared to that of Behemoth? But unfortunately, it wasn¡¯t the case. On the contrary, for Ian, it would be 2x times easy to deal with when compared to Behemoth. And the reason for that was the power that the familiars that Ian had. ¡°Hoonie, this time, we need to focus extremely. So don¡¯t summon all of the Undead, only those whom you can control, that too one after the other.¡± ¡°Why? Is it because of the unique ability of the Balrog?¡± Ian nodded and answered. ¡°Yep. You know that too. The Soul Encroachment.¡± At the time of the Dimensional war, the reason for approaching the Balrog was difficult because of that, the users of the human race felt depressed due to it. The Balrog¡¯s unique ability, the Soul Encroachment. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Soul Encroachment ¨C ¨C The Balrog emits powerful magic and temporarily immobilizes the soul of fragile objects within the range. ¨C It is possible to cast it on a target with vitality less than 5%, and the probability of the success depends on the target and the intellect abilities of the Balrog. (Balrog Intellect/ Target Intellect * 100)% ¨C During the duration, the target is moved by the command of the Balrog, and all the attacks are enhanced by 30%. Also, the ¡®the Invincibility State¡¯ persists until the Balrog dies. Cooldown time: 120 minutes Duration: 30 minutes. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C It wasn¡¯t the ability to cast on dozens, as it wasn¡¯t a wide-area, but it was the ability to encroach the small objects that would die within 5 to 7 strikes. In the case of Ian, if Kaizer, Karceus, and Bbookbbook were encroached by it! Then at that moment, there couldn¡¯t be any other solutions. But if the attack was used on the familiars of Ian, then he had the opportunity to block the attack. But for the familiars with whom the control was insufficient, then the familiars would be lost. For the normal summoners, that was an attack that they must avoid from the Balrog. As the results wouldn¡¯t be too good. Ian who simulated the game in his head started to give out orders to Hoonie and Canoel. ¡°Hoonie, you should summon Death Knights, two Dark summons, and then 5 skeletons. Ah, and one Iron Golem too.¡± ¡°Huh huh? You don¡¯t want me to call out Skelton warriors? I can summon more of the death knights and cast a dark spell too you know?¡± While Hoonie was still talking, Ian cut off his words. ¡°You need to control those pets only, anymore other than that would be just plain burden, so just as much as I ask you to, got it?¡± ¡°Okay¡­¡± At the end of the cold remark from Ian, Hoonie didn¡¯t have the guts to refuse. Surprisingly, Ian¡¯s order was almost identical to the one that Hoonie had thought of. Ian ordered the same thing to Canoel too and started to concentrate on the inside of the dungeon. Without much words, Canoel just accepted the order from Ian. ¡°Hmm, I¡¯ll have to control with a lot of concentration¡­ and run this as safely as possible.¡± Ian nodded at the statement from Canoel. ¡°Yes. In case you notice that the vitality of your familiars has dropped to 10%, then boldly summon it back.¡± ¡°Okay, hyung.¡± And on the other side, Hoonie who was walking behind Ian suddenly asked, ¡°But why does hyung get to summon all of them?¡± Ian replied as if it was a natural course. ¡°I can do everything. I can control 100%.¡± Ian had nothing else to say! And soon they were able to meet the foreman of the dungeon ¡®Tomb of the Forgotten Soul¡¯. And surprisingly, the monster that made the appearance, in the beginning, was a Balrog. Both Hoonie and Canoel were flustered. ¡°Sh*t, what? Balrog right from the start in here?¡± ¡°I thought it would be like the boss in the end when we went to the Tower of Commander¡­!¡± But Ian didn¡¯t seem to have an expression that looked surprised. A long time ago, he had heard a simple explanation from the Devil King Ricardo about the Tomb of the Forgotten Soul. [That place¡­ has many species of Balrog in it.] [Is it a community?] [So you wouldn¡¯t want to challenge it so easily. Even the Devils wouldn¡¯t like to set their foot in that place. Well, even if it was the Devil Princes, then it¡¯s the same.] [That¡­ that¡¯s so hard.] And at that time, Ian had heard something very meaningful from Ricardo. ¡°And, in the deepest of that place¡­ ah, nope. Well, it wouldn¡¯t make much sense even if I talk to you about it. since you won¡¯t be able to reach that place.¡± In that conversation, Ian found it very annoying that Ricardo didn¡¯t let him know about it. So he had given up but didn¡¯t forget it until the current time. ¡®I need to get the heart of Balrog first¡­ and to that mysterious place, I¡¯ll come back again and visit. There isn¡¯t much time right now¡­¡¯ Ian who was still walking suddenly stopped midway. And Canoel, together with Hoonie who were behind him too stopped. ¡°Wait. Maybe he isn¡¯t all alone.¡± Hoonie spoke immediately, ¡°What¡­? The legendary monster is waiting for another like a normal monster?¡± From the standpoint of any user, it can be said that surrendering to a Balrog alone was much better. But, in the current situation, inside the dungeon, there was no lethal situation when the monster in the dungeon was all alone. Starting from the formation, all the aspects would get twisted. So, Ian waited for a while, and soon the red curtain began to grow. Balrog came into vicinity. Whooong- Whoong-! A red fog rose slowly with low resonance. And just a moment later. Ian couldn¡¯t help but feel surprised at the number of Balrogs that made the appearance. CH 345 Flustered Hoonie managed to open his lips, ¡°What is this? How many of those are there? One¡­ two¡­ three¡­¡± Ian spoke with certainty in his voice, ¡°Seventeen of them in total.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian who got confused within a moment looked at all the faces of the Balrog. ¡®What? Even if it was a community I thought that there would be around five or six of them¡­¡¯ In general terms, a community meant 50-60 or more monsters together. But even in such a way, it didn¡¯t mean that all the numbers were accumulated in one place. Inside it will be 3-4 of them. At maximum, there would be around 7-8 gathered, and all together are considered as a community. Even the legendary monsters who appeared in the Commander¡¯s Tower didn¡¯t exceed seven at a time. That was a fact, but it wasn¡¯t any other legendary monster, and no one thought that such a high number of Balrog would make an appearance. Just a moment ago there weren¡¯t even two in the area, but suddenly the difficulty went up thousands of times. And Hoonie touched Ian¡¯s hand. ¡°Ian hyung, by the way¡­ isn¡¯t the name of the Balrog a little weird?¡± ¡°Uh?¡± At the words from Hoonie, Ian moved a little closer to the Balrog in front of the group. And checked the monster name that was written on it. [Junior Balrog / Lv 265] ¡°Oh ho¡­?¡± It was named as a Junior Balrog and never heard by Ian. On top of it, its level wasn¡¯t something that will be considered as a junior. ¡®Will it be enough if I manage to do this?¡¯ Ian slowly confirmed the other Balrog¡¯s. In a moment, there were a dozen of Balrog heads whose levels weren¡¯t even checked yet. Besides, the first one that came into their sight was of level 355 and seemed like a normal Balrog, and some of the new ones¡¯ levels were checked too. ¡®264¡­ 271¡­ 252¡­ all the new first time seeing ones are of this level.¡¯ Ian who confirmed the details about all the Balrogs by asking the information from Kaka began to formulate a plan in his head. ¡°Okay, this¡­ this isn¡¯t enough for us to win. But we¡¯ll have to try.¡± And Hoonie had a question regarding it, ¡°Even if they are the Junior Balrogs of the low level¡­ aren¡¯t they way too many? If the legendary monsters start to join them¡­¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°Yes, it certainly won¡¯t be easy. If the situation starts to tangle up¡­ we will surely get there.¡± The inherent ability of Soul Encroachment wasn¡¯t an ability that can be avoided. And if a Balrog uses the soul encroachment on another Balrog with low vitality, then the Balrog will turn invincible and with an increase of 30% attack. On top of that, 30 minutes duration of the Soul Encroachment wasn¡¯t something that could be dealt with. Ian was contemplating on the attacks and formation. ¡°From the low-level junior Balrog, we¡¯ll have to focus on the attack. The variable was that the Junior Balrog may have a unique ability that the normal Balrog doesn¡¯t have¡­¡± And Canoel, who was next to Ian spoke, ¡°Hyung, maybe the junior Balrog¡¯s ability wouldn¡¯t be much different from the normal Balrog.¡± At the end of the confident statement from Canoel, Ian seemed a bit confused. ¡°Huh? How do you know that? Isn¡¯t the monster name different? Did you by any chance get to meet the Balrog?¡± There was no way that could have been possible, which made Ian ask this question. Canoel with his head down spoke, ¡°Hyung, do you know of a familiar called Steragon.¡± Ian being a familiar owner, nodded his head at once. ¡°Of course, I know. It is a hero ranked familiar which can be found in the southern part of the Central Continent.¡± Steragon was a well-known pet. It was similar to that of the Drake, and may be called as an affordable dragon? Steragon, which had great maneuverability, offensive power¡ªwas able to fly and had a very great appearance. It was a popular one. So, the nest of Steragon in the Southern part of the continent, there were always parties that try to capture the eggs or the monster. Of course, since it was a hero grade dragon type, it wasn¡¯t a pet that could be seen that frequently. However, the summoner of the level of 170 ¨C 190 could try and capture it. A few summoners of that level could hunt them and then put them in the auction house sale. Canoel¡¯s words continued, ¡°I went to Steragon¡¯s nest to catch them, and I met a junior Steragon.¡± ¡°Oh¡­?¡± And he started to get interested, both Ian and Hoonie moved close to Canoel to listen to it. ¡°But he had the inherent ability of the Steragon¡ªand the difference from the normal Steragon was that the abilities were a bit lower I guess?¡± ¡°So you mean¡­ the Balrog will be the same too?¡± ¡°Yeah. Maybe the Junior Balrog isn¡¯t a different case? The inherent ability of the junior Steragon was around 30-40% lower than the normal Steragon. I caught both of them and then compared them too.¡± Ian was intently watching them. By the things stated above, it meant that the difficulty of the battle would be lower. ¡°Well, this is some worthwhile information, you surely are amazing.¡± Canoel seemed elated at the small praise from Ian. ¡°I keep all the growth rate and the levels of them with me, Hyung would you like to look at them?¡± Ian seemed to be truly grateful for the piece of information that Canoel had given them. ¡°Keu¡­ our Noel is now all prepared.¡± Hoonie looked at two people with a little jealousy in his eyes. ¡°Uh uh, Hyung what is this.. you were successful in touching Ian hyung¡¯s heart¡­!¡± Ian narrowed his head at Hoonie and responded, ¡°Touch what, what did he touch?¡± ¡°What?! Oh my god, you¡¯re temperamental!¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you talking about yourself?¡± While the two were arguing about who was temperamental, Canoel cut their words as he had more to say, ¡°Hold it, there is more to say.¡± Both Ian and Hoonie looked over at Canoel at the same time, and he decided to continue what was left to say. ¡°But the ¡®Junior¡¯ creatures have other characteristics.¡± Ian was slightly intrigued with it. ¡°Oh, What is that? Is there something else?¡± Hoonie just put his head down and waited for Canoel to continue his words. And giving them a moment to process, Canoel opened his mouth, ¡°I can¡¯t put it in a precise manner, but somehow it feels like the juniors are somehow in contact with their mother.¡± ¡°Like connected¡­?¡± ¡°Well, firstly, to say it in a definite way then, they don¡¯t move after a certain distance from the parent¡¯s body. And the mother is very sensitive regarding the death of its offspring.¡± ¡°What exactly do you mean by sensitive?¡± ¡°Something like a parent-child relationship. If you try to kill its kid, the parent won¡¯t walk away until taking your life.¡± ¡°Oho¡­?¡± Thanks to the extra information that Canoel offered them, Ian was able to modify their strategies in his head. And after coming up with one, Ian let Hoonie and Canoel know what they were supposed to do. ¡°Well, we can surely win this if we do it.¡± Hoonie with his shocked eyes asked, ¡°What are the odds?¡± ¡°Around¡­ 93.3%?¡± ¡°What, isn¡¯t it lower?¡± ¡°There are some variables. But it is higher than the case of Behemoth, isn¡¯t it?¡± If someone else would have heard the conversation it would seem like a joke, but the two of them were actually talking very seriously. It was because Hoonie knew that the odds that Ian stated weren¡¯t just plain numbers of guess. And 93.3% is considered to be low because Ian always said that it was 99.9% in most of his cases. But during the case of the behemoth, Ian only said that the chance of winning was around 70%. ¡°So, let¡¯s move now. If we delay any more time then the plan won¡¯t be so effective.¡± With those last words from Ian, both Hoonie and Canoel understood what he intended to say, both of them nodded their heads and began to implement their plan. And 30 minutes passed. * * * [Kyahhh¡­! You mere humans dare to raise your weapons against the Marion!] Except for the Marion Khalifa, Balrog was the only opponent of Ian who was intelligent enough to express itself. And then, Ian and the party which was dealing with the junior Balrog was all wet from sweat. ¡°How are we supposed to do, Noel-ah. They don¡¯t seem to mind if the junior Balrog is dead or not, see?¡± ¡°Oh, huh? Steragon maybe different?¡± No, to state it precisely, it wasn¡¯t that it didn¡¯t care. Every time a junior Balrog died, the Balrog got furious and the combat power of it had risen. [Due to the death of the Junior Balrog, Balrog is angry.] [All the combat abilities of the Balrog are increased by 2% for 150 minutes.] The Junior Balrog death increased the ability of the Balrog to rise by 2%. That 2% figure seemed to be nothing in a glance, but that wasn¡¯t the case. A total of 5 Junior Balrogs have been successfully killed so far. Thanks to that, the battle ability of the Junior Balrog, it had been increased by 10%, which meant that the Balrog had risen to the level of 35. The level of the Balrog was around 35 levels higher. The Balrog¡¯s level was about 350. ¡®I feel a little confident.¡¯ Normally Ian¡¯s strategies were very simple. It was to intimidate the Junior Balrogs and to inflict every possible damage as they could when the mother Balrog come to protect the child. But the mother Balrog didn¡¯t move whether the Junior balrog died or was hurt. And the increase of the Balrog after every death was a total improvement. ¡®Now it is about 10%, but I still have to do it¡­ after we manage to kill 16 of them, then the battle ability will be increased by 32%.¡¯ The level of 32% increase of the buff meant that it was around 112 levels higher. If they killed off the Junior Balrogs and made it to the end, then they will be dealing with the Mother Balrog which would be around the level of 450s. Of course, they would be a little weak when compared to the original Balrog, but even then they would be strong enough for Ian and his party to deal with. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah, Curtain of Water!¡± Swooah-! Ian who had been trying to defend him and the party from the Balrogs once again began to control the familiars. That was because the Junior Balrogs were getting very furious every time a comrade of theirs died. ¡®If we need to win this battle, we¡¯ll have to deal with the mother of the Balrog¡­¡¯ But that wasn¡¯t so easy to do. Unlike the Steragons, who were said to be desperate to protect their young ones, the Junior Balrogs were being desperate to protect their mother. And if it was an easy situation to be in, then Ian and his party would¡¯ve managed to hunt it down by then. And right then. Ian was able to come up with a nice idea. ¡®Hold on¡­ Do we really need to catch this Balrog?¡¯ The most important reason as to why Ian and the party had come to the Tomb of the Forgotten Soul was to get the ¡®Heart of the Balrog¡¯. And if they could hunt, then the rewards of the Balrog were known to be great, but if they overdo it, then it was bound to get difficult for all of them. Ian started to move very quickly in order to avoid the strong attacks that would come from the Balrogs. ¡°Hyung! Where are you moving to all of a sudden?!¡± ¡°Wait and see, but for now stay in the formation!¡± The pace where Ian had been moving to was the body of a dead Balrog that was closest to him. Shak-! After attacking a Junior Balrog that had come to attack him, Ian managed to get to the dead Balrog on the floor. And, Tring- [Obtained the item of ¡®Ring of the Warrior Decap¡¯.] [Obtained the item ¡®Little horn of Balrog¡¯.] [You have acquired the item ¡®intermediate magic stones x3¡¯.] [You have acquired the item ¡®Higher level magic stone¡¯.] [You have obtained the item ¡®Armor of a Vicious Monster¡¯.] The body of the Junior Balrog had dropped a lot of high-grade items, unlike the deceiving name of ¡®Junior Balrog¡¯. Ian smiled at the last message that he had seen. [You have now acquired the item(s) ¡®Heart of the Balrog x2¡¯.] And, the final piece of the puzzle that Ian was doing had been fixed, and that too came in very perfectly. CH 346 ¡°Why is it taking so long for them to get here?¡± Martin was speaking nervously, and Chase who was right next to him comforted him. ¡°I¡¯ve contacted them all, they¡¯ll be here soon, master.¡± ¡°Huh, it¡¯s already been over 5 minutes.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll contact them once again.¡± In the empty ground right before the gate of the 15th division of the Devildom, the party members of the DarkRuna and the Royal Guild have all gathered together. The purpose of it was obvious, to get the Heart of the Balrog. The reason Martin was feeling nervous was because of the tough task that they need to complete. The biggest reason for him to feel nervous was because of the stress that Yankun had put him through. ¡®Hu, I¡¯m trembling after just thinking about seeing that muscle pig once again.¡¯ Apart from the stress of being in the 15th division, they would soon have to deal with the Balrog. On top of these unpleasant emotions, his guild members were late which made him much more irritated. ¡°When will all the members of the Royal Guild be here? We have all the members from mine. We all have gathered here within 3 to 5 minutes.¡± Martin tried to respond calmly to Irahan¡¯s sarcastic remark. ¡°Give me another 20 minutes. One of them suddenly had something else to do, so it¡¯s going to take some time.¡± ¡°Cha cha¡­¡± The two parties that were gathered in the 15th division of the Devildom were fewer than 15. Well, it wasn¡¯t a small number of people to be in a party, but the time required for gathering and maintaining was being wasted. Around 30 minutes after the proposed time to meet, all the preparations for the dungeon were finally done. ¡°Kay, Let¡¯s move now.¡± The members of both guilds began to move upon hearing what Irahan said. The scout was moving ahead after clearly grasping the position of the dungeon. * * * Ian checked his inventory. [The Heart of Balrog (2/50)] To make a Balrog¡¯s heart the above-mentioned number was needed, 50 of them. Killing one Balrog made them receive 2, then it meant that they had to kill around 25 of them to get the required item. Thankfully Ian wasn¡¯t alone. ¡°Hoonie, Noel how many did you get?¡± ¡°I got 2.¡± ¡°Same here hyung, I have 2 here.¡± Though it wasn¡¯t a completely certain thing, the number of pieces that could be obtained after killing a Junior Balrog was 2 per user. As of the moment, they had collected 6 pieces for hunting it. Ian and his party avoided the incoming attacks from the Junior Balrogs and tried to quickly pick up the drops from their bodies. Tring- [You have obtained the item ¡®Heart of the Balrog x2¡¯.] [You have obtained the item ¡®Heart of the Balrog x1¡¯.] [You have obtained the item ¡®Heart of the Balrog x2¡¯.] After checking the fragments of the Balrog¡¯s heart, they managed to gather a total of 27 of them. ¡®So we need around 5 more?¡¯ They gathered around 27 pieces from 5 Junior Balrogs. If they managed to hunt down another five more, it was almost certain that they would have all that they need. Realizing that both Ian and the members of the party started to hunt down the Junior Balrogs with all their strength and might. ¡°Hoonie, Provide Ly the Retribution of the Dead!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± ¡°Noel recall Yongyong now! It might die!¡± ¡°Kay Hyung!¡± The reason why this field was being so difficult was because they were trying to catch the Balrogs. Every time they managed to hunt down a Junior Balrog, the one which was getting stronger in the back would become bothersome. They were trying to find a plan that could take down the mother, but they couldn¡¯t find an answer. The Junior Balrogs were desperately trying to protect their mother, and killing them would make it difficult for the party, so it was a difficult situation to be in. However, that wasn¡¯t necessary anymore. Rather than attacking the mother Balrog, they were now hunting down Junior Balrogs that were protecting the mother. The Junior Balrogs that were around level 260 were easy to deal with for Ian¡¯s party. Kwaaa-! [Deadly damage done to the legendary monster ¡®Junior Balrog¡¯.] [The vitality of the monster Junior Balrog is reduced by 476090.] [You have successfully defeated the Junior Balrog.] The Judgement of the Spirit King went straight through the Junior Balrog. One of the reasons why the Balrog was considered to be a tough opponent was because of the flames that were around its body. They constantly changed the position of their body so it was a bit difficult to attack as the flame changes constantly. However, if one could manage to attack it properly, then it would work since the physical defense of the Balrog had always been relatively week. ¡°Ian hyung! It¡¯s done! We have the 50 pieces, right?¡± Ian nodded in response to Hoonie after checking the information. ¡°Yeah, to be precise, Let¡¯s clear the quest first¡­¡± Canoel who came in from the other side was anxious and said. ¡°Well then, let¡¯s get out of the dungeon then. The mother Balrog is now a dangerous monster for us to deal with. It already has around 10 buffs.¡± Just as Canoel said. With the 20% attack power buff that it received, the level 350 Balrog was really a hellish monster to deal with now. Which meant that the tanker Bbakbbak would lose around 40% of its vitality with just a single strike from the level 350 Balrog, that was how terrifying its power was. Even Hoonie was shocked. ¡°Okay then hyung, let¡¯s get out of here and then get those Shadow Feathers. The longer we stay here, the more danger we¡¯ll get ourselves in.¡± It was time to run away once again. [Keu! Trivial human beings! I will kill you all!] [Unique ability of the Balrog ¡®Wrath of Wisdom¡¯ has been activated.] [The Balrog¡¯s magic rate has increased by 15% for 30 minutes.] [Adding up all the buffs, its duration is 120 minutes.] [The Balrog¡¯s vitality increases by 20% for the next 30 minutes.] One of the unique abilities of the Balrog was the ¡®Wrath of Wisdom¡¯. The mentioned unique ability wasn¡¯t as unique as the original ability of the ¡®Soul Encroachment¡¯. However, the current situation made it a special case. For the Balrog, all the buffs that were gathered after the death of the Junior Balrogs were still in effect for the battle. The duration of the buff had gone over 2 hours, so it literally meant ¡®Don¡¯t bother trying to catch it for the next two hours¡¯. Hoonie urged Ian. ¡°Ah hyung, what are you doing? I want to get out of here.¡± But Ian¡¯s thought seemed to be different from the other two. ¡°No, I¡¯ll feel bad if I leave now.¡± ¡°Huh? You? Feel sad!? We made the heart of Balrog. We need to save time and get the other stuff!¡± Ian replied while avoiding the Balrog¡¯s attack. ¡°We still have 36 hours left, and we already managed to get our hands on the Orb of Darkness. The Feather is easy to get, so don¡¯t worry.¡± Before Hoonie could say anything else, Ian spoke again. ¡°Change of plans, we¡¯ll hunt down all the remaining Junior Balrogs.¡± ¡°¡­?!¡± Canoel was wondering if it was the right decision, but Ian quickly moved and attacked a Junior Balrog without a heads-up. Kwa- kwa-! Hoonie forced himself to follow Ian while grumbling. ¡°Ah, shit! Why does that hyung have to make me do this!¡± Canoel was the one who responded after a smile instead of Ian. ¡°What are you thinking? He isn¡¯t a person who does things without any reason. Let¡¯s do as we are told. Who knows? Maybe we can manage to make a legendary monster fall down?¡± Ian who was entering the battle muttered to himself. ¡°Well, maybe Noel is right? It doesn¡¯t look like the Balrog will fall for now.¡± ¡°What is that supposed mean?¡± Though he was nervous as hell, once the battle resumed Hoonie got into his position. They all moved at the same time. The number of monsters they dealt with had been reduced, but ironically, the difficulty of the combat had been increasing steadily. * * * Ian and his party were attacking the Junior Balrogs with all their might, but there was something else happening in a different place. ¡°This¡­ is so creepy¡­?¡± ¡°Yeah. It feels a little like the cemetery?¡± The union party of the Royal Guild and the DarkRuna guild were on the ¡®Pathway to Death¡¯ towards the direction of the Tomb of the Forgotten Soul. Martin called to the ones who were ahead of him. ¡°Hey Scout! Is this road supposed to be this long?¡± ¡°Huh, yes master.¡± ¡°Did you surely check the entrance of the dungeon?¡± ¡°Certainly, I have checked and made sure that we¡¯re in ¡®The Tomb of the Forgotten Soul¡¯.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ okay then¡­¡± Martin was looking around with a strange expression. His reason for doing so was justifiable. They had been walking around the road of the Pathway of Death for more than 20 minutes, and they still haven¡¯t seen the entrance of the dungeon which was why they couldn¡¯t help but wonder if it was the right path. Moreover, the reason why they were feeling more anxious was because there was a chance that monsters might pop out the more they walked around. The scout of the DarkRuna Guild said something to Irahan. ¡°Master, we¡¯ll find the entrance to the dungeon right behind that rock wall.¡± Irahan nodded and replied. ¡°Okay. Everyone get ready for battle! Check for the Cooldown times, the quantity of the potions you¡¯ve got. Mistakes are not acceptable. I have explained everything beforehand to you guys about the Balrog, so be aware of it understand?¡± ¡°Okay, Master!¡± Irahan knew the exact information that Ian knew regarding the Balrog. Its unique abilities and attacks were all explained beforehand to the party members. After a couple of minutes of maintenance, the scout moved back to make way for Irahan and Martin. Martin turned back and said. ¡°I understand that everyone is nervous. You realize that we need to get in and get out as quick as possible.¡± And Irahan added a few words to it. ¡°To put it bluntly, we just need to acquire the ¡®Heart of the Balrog¡¯. We need to get two of them¡­ since we have many people, even if we hunt one Balrog, it will drop around two or more.¡± Irahan and Martin walked towards the entrance of the dungeon after giving their reminders. And with them, all members of the party moved into the dungeon. * * * Thud- thud- thud-! An unfamiliar sound was resonating in the dungeon. The sound was so fierce that it seemed to creep out everyone. Martin was mumbling under his breath. ¡°The foot of Balrog? It seems to be a large sized monster.¡± Irahan once again gave out orders. ¡°Be careful once we enter further, and don¡¯t attack until we say so. If there are many gathered here, we won¡¯t be able to attack them.¡± With that, Irahan and the other members of the party moved cautiously into the dungeon. In less than 5 minutes they managed to come across a Balrog. Irahan checked the Balrog¡¯s information. [Balrog/ Lv: 355] Irahan rechecked the information. ¡®A level 355 Balrog. If we manage to work well, we could probably finish this quest much quicker than we thought?¡¯ The average level of the party was around 250. Since they were all top rankers, they had the best control, which was why its level of 350 didn¡¯t scare them much. With a very bright expression, Martin spoke to Irahan. ¡°If this is the case, then we might be able to target it right away¡­ what do you think Irahan?¡± Irahan nodded. ¡°Surely. If it is level 350, we¡¯ll be able to deal with them without using our full power.¡± Irahan instructed the two scouts to confirm that there weren¡¯t any more objects or creatures around the Balrog. And about a minute later, the scouts came back to report. ¡°Within 100 meters radius, there¡¯s only one.¡± ¡°Understood. Nice work.¡± Irahan smirked. ¡°He is all alone. Focus as much firepower as you can and kill it off quickly!¡± The members of both DarkRuna and Royal Guild nodded their heads in response to Irahan¡¯s orders. It was because the orders were from Irahan. ¡°Wizards start casting spells and knights move ahead!¡± Woong-! The wizards were casting spells all over the field, and their attacks started to resonate through the dungeon. The Balrog who noticed the presence of the Humans started to emit its energy. [Human¡­! I will kill you all! Kue!] The moment they heard it, the wizards started to cast their magic as discreetly as possible. It was natural for the battle to start once magic was used. However, it was just a single Balrog, and they just had to be alert of it. They were under the impression that the Balrog could be killed in an instant. Swoosh-! Irahan made sure the tankers were in the front and pulled out his sword from his waist. The Guilds were now ready to show off their strength. ¡®Huhu, I¡¯m not the 1st ranked ranker in the Devildom¡­ this is the opportunity to show my strength.¡¯ However, the ambitious thoughts of Irahan didn¡¯t continue for long. [Will be Ashes and disappear!] Ack-! [The legendary monster ¡®Balrog¡¯ unique ability ¡®Storm¡¯] Kwang- Kwakwang-! As the Balrog opened its arms, strong flames started to spring out from it. However, they didn¡¯t have issues with that. The storm was a unique ability that they already know, and it was a skill that the tankers could withstand. But. ¡°Ah Ah!¡± ¡°What is this!?¡± ¡°What is happening?!¡± It was a problem that no one had even imagined, the tankers at the front trying to withstand the ¡®Storm¡¯ were being wiped out. CH 347 ¡°Kukuah. Keahhh!¡± Hoonie¡ªwho was in a black robe¡ªthrew his head back and laughed till his heart¡¯s content. For a pleasant thing that it was, Hoonie was laughing. Canoel who was right next to him narrowed his eyes and said. ¡°Keahhh what huh? You have a bit of a strange concept.¡± Hoonie responded. ¡°Ah what? Warlocks always laugh wickedly. Didn¡¯t you see me smile wickedly just a while back?¡± Canoel just sighed and turned away his head. ¡°Uh, I shouldn¡¯t have spoken to you.¡± Ian smiled looking at Canole who was shaking his head. ¡°In a day or two. Let¡¯s see the video. This is really a jackpot.¡± Canoel and Hoonie gathered closer to Ian. Hoonie who was standing behind Ian spoke. ¡°Keukk, Ian hyung is the wickedest of all. Hyung you should have been a warlock.¡± Canoel who seemed to like that said. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t you be stuck in the 2nd rank if that happens?¡± Hoonie pouted at what Canoel said. ¡°Boo¡­¡± The three of them who had been working hard for quite a while, squatted down and watched something very intently. Right in the center of the three was a large crystal ball filled with dark energy. The thing they were looking at was made by Hoonie¡¯s black magic. ¡°Oh, this doesn¡¯t have any color. It would¡¯ve been more fun to see it with color¡­¡± Canoel laughed and responded to Hoonie¡¯s grumbling. ¡°Try doing a colorectal surgery for Kaka.¡± ¡°If that could be done, then I would really do it. I¡¯m forced to see something very interesting in black and white.¡± They were looking through Kaka¡¯s eyes which was black and white. Inside the crystal ball, there were a few Asmodians who were fighting with a Balrog. It was easy to guess who those Asmodians were, they were the union party of the Royal Guild and the DarkRuna Guild of Martin and Irahan. They were seeing the suffocation of the Asmodians! If there was anything interesting then, that was a spectacle to watch. ¡°I was the one who thought of it, but I¡¯m starting to feel a little bad for them¡­?¡± Hoonie¡¯s expression changed after hearing Ian¡¯s mumbling. ¡°Ha¡­ hyung let¡¯s talk about heartless acts, shall we?¡± ¡°Hey don¡¯t say that, I have always been a very heartfelt person.¡± ¡°Noel hyung this sound like someone who drank the wrong potion would say.¡± Unlike the two who have been bantering like kids, Noel who had been watching the crystal ball called Ian over. ¡°Hyung, it looks like it¡¯s about to finish. What should we do? Should we still continue to watch?¡± Ian who moved his attention to the ball got up from his seat. ¡°Gentlemen, get ready to go down.¡± Seeing it, both Hoonie and Canoel rose from their seats. ¡°Okay!¡± ¡°Nice, should we go and harvest?¡± It was a well-known fact for them that Martin and Irahan¡¯s party would be wiped out, which meant that going down at the right moment was necessary. It was because they didn¡¯t plan on giving the Balrog any time to recover. Ian and his party were hiding on the second floor of the Tomb of the Forgotten Soul. They moved to the first floor after collecting the crystal ball. * * * ¡®Shit, shit!! I¡¯m not able to move!¡¯ Irahan had been fighting someone without a break. He was fighting an enemy that was able to bounce off any attack each time he swung his sword! However, he was moving against his will, but it wasn¡¯t the opponent who was the problem. Irahan had an overwhelming desire to cry. ¡®How long has this been going on?¡¯ While Irahan was swinging his sword, all the other members of the DarkRuna guild were dying. ¡°Sh*t! What are you wizards doing? Cast your spells faster!¡± ¡°The casting won¡¯t be effective with someone right in the front! I¡¯m still pouring in the magic for casting!¡± ¡°Priests! Where are the priests?¡± ¡°They are gone!¡± ¡°Damn it!¡± More than 70% of the party members who were involved in the battle against a single Balrog had been wiped out. The remaining members were fighting the Balrog while it was using its ¡®Soul Encroachment¡¯ ability. Thankfully the party members didn¡¯t die even after the initiation of the Soul Encroachment, but their opponent turned invincible because of that ability and was almost impossible to defeat. It was a desperate situation. The Balrog didn¡¯t have much vitality left, but due to the use of the Soul Encroachment, the whole situation turned around. Specifically, Irahan, the strongest runner in the party was caught up in the Soul Encroachment, which made it impossible for the party to better their situation. ¡°Euahhhh-!¡± Kaboom-! With a single swing of the Balrog¡¯s paw, one of the wizard from the DarkRuna Guild immediately died. Irahan wasn¡¯t able to move but was able to witness the situation very clearly, which made it much more annoying and painful for him. ¡®Shit! Who the hell made the Balrog get 16 crazy buffs like this?¡¯ The Balrog still had 3 to 4 buffs remaining, and there was nothing Irahan could do. There was nothing humanly possible for Iarahn to do in that situation. He saw the very last member of the guild die in front of his eyes. He wanted to tear off the guild union and go back, but that was impossible to do because the scroll needed a large-scale return. That was probably the worst situation that one could even imagine to be in. The only thing which was comforting Irahan was that he had been doing much better than Martin who seemed like he would die in an instant. ¡®Uh¡­ I wasn¡¯t so intimidated in the beginning so I thought that I could catch him¡­!¡¯ It was a very painful blunder on their part, all their 6 tankers died the moment the battle started. If it wasn¡¯t for it, they shouldn¡¯t have failed in hunting the Balrog. ¡®We are divided¡­!¡¯ At that time, a system message popped up in front of Irahan eyes. [You have been in the ¡®Soul Encroachment¡¯ for more than 60 seconds] [Due to the ability, your visibility will dim little by little] Irahan smiled to himself. ¡®So this is how the 1st rank will fly away from me¡­¡¯ At the end of the Soul Encroachment, an opponent would have their vitality decrease to 1%. They would be forced to be in a ¡®stunned¡¯ state for 3 minutes, and it wouldn¡¯t have been such a problem if a priest with good control had been there. Unlike the ability of ¡®Soul Encroachment¡¯, the basic state ¡®Stunned¡¯ was something that could be recovered with a priest¡¯s disarming skill. If a priest with good control was present, he or she could disable and restore the lost vitality of a user as quickly as possible. However, the problem was that there wasn¡¯t a single priest who was still standing from Irahan¡¯s party. The moment the Soul Encroachment came into play, everyone was trampled by the Balrog¡¯s feet which made it hard for anyone to survive. [¡®Soul Encroachment¡¯ lasts for 21 seconds.] [¡®Soul Encroachment¡¯ lasts for 20 seconds.] Irahan had completely resigned from the battle and was thinking of coming back here with a more relaxed mind. Coming back to the 15th division would be benefiting since they already understand the attack patterns of the Balrog, so there wouldn¡¯t be a need for anyone to be sacrificed the next time. ¡®When we come back to try again, I wouldn¡¯t bring the useless Royal Guild,¡¯ And soon with the Soul Encroachment coming to end, Irahan collapsed onto the floor of the dungeon. Thud- [Soul Injury has been canceled, but you are in a state of ¡®Stun¡¯ for 3 minutes due to the shock.] Irahan thought that he would die in the Hands of the Balrog any moment now. He only had 1% of his vitality remaining. There was nothing else he could do but to die. However, he heard some weird sound from behind him. ¡®What? Aren¡¯t all the party members been wiped out¡­? Did any reinforcements come?¡¯ In that situation, the only thing that Irahan could see was the stone floor of the dungeon. It was because he was on the floor¡ªstunned. There was no way he could turn his head due to the ¡®Stun¡¯, and he didn¡¯t know what was happening apart from the fact that the Balrog had been fighting someone. At least Irahan was under the impression that someone had been fighting the Balrog. He was thinking that they were probably reinforcement from the DarkRuna or the Royal guild. ¡®Yeah! The reinforcements are here! They must be the ones!¡¯ If the so-called reinforcements were able to kill the Balrog, then it was going to be a dramatic end for them after all. Irahan¡¯s heart was beating fast with excitement. ¡®No one is giving out orders, but they are performing so beautifully? Is it Hemmerson? Or maybe Karyon? I¡¯m not sure who it is, but the guy who decided to call for reinforcements needs to get a good prize. The legendary amulet will probably do.¡¯ Kwkwang-! Bang-! ¡°Ly, Kaizer! Let¡¯s finish it!¡± Kwah-! He could hear vibrant string voices. Irahan was trying to guess what guild they were from. ¡®Who are Ly and Kaizer? It¡¯s my first time hearing those names¡­¡¯ After a while. Irahan who was knocked onto the floor heard the sound of the Balrog falling onto the floor. Kuong-! Irahan who heard the sound made fists with both of his hands. Well, he couldn¡¯t actually make fists because he was Stunned. ¡®Done! Now I need to get back up!¡¯ Around 50 seconds later, ¡®Stun¡¯ had been released, and Irahan quickly rose to see the fallen Balrog. However, none of the support party had a priest class so his vitality couldn¡¯t be recovered. Irahan was feeling uneasy. ¡®Maybe, they aren¡¯t reinforcement from our guild¡­ From the Royal guild maybe?!¡¯ But just right then. Irahan heard a sound from the distance. Bbbook- bubbook- Bbook- He didn¡¯t understand what it was but, Irahan was feeling nervous. ¡®What¡­ what? This strange sound!¡¯ The strange sound was getting closer as time passed. Bbook- Bbokbbook-! Irahan instinctively checked the duration of the ¡®Stun¡¯. [Stun ¨C 23 seconds left] ¡®Ah, I don¡¯t want to wait for another 23 seconds!¡¯ Irahan who couldn¡¯t make out the source of the sound was getting scared. The strange sounds stopped. He could now hear a conversation. ¡°Master! He seems to be alive Bbook!¡± ¡°Huh? Still alive?¡± ¡°Yeah, Bbbok! Alive Book!¡± Irahan wanted to scream. ¡®Yeah, I¡¯m still alive! I want to live!¡¯ At that very next moment, Irahan was already feeling despair. ¡°Then step on him!¡± ¡°Okay bbook!¡± Darkness suddenly came down on Irahan. Bbook- [Fatal Damage received.] [Vitality has been reduced by 1.] [Your life has been exhausted. You¡¯re now falling into the state of ¡®death¡¯.] Not knowing their identity, Irahan turned into a cold carcass. CH 348 Tring- tring-! After the death of Irahan, there were a few items that were dropped from him. And Ian who had seen it, wasn¡¯t in a mood to let it go. ¡®Why is this guy¡¯s drop seem so great? Maybe most of the equipment that he is holding onto could be account based, so much didn¡¯t drop.¡¯ An item was shinning with a gold light without even a little break! At that, Hoonie who was right next to him had something to say. ¡°Kyaaah, is this a legendary item? Maybe I¡¯m going crazy?¡± After they had managed to harvest the items from the other dead Asmodian users, Canoel who had reached Irahan was amazed to see the items. ¡°This is so classy. It is so very flashy.¡± Ian nodded with that statement. ¡°I feel the same. Apart from the equipment that I have, there is nothing else I¡¯ve got¡­¡± All three of them gathered the items that they took. The items that were dropped were from the list of top 30 users, and the drops were very enormous. ¡°Keu, How much will we get for selling it all? Maybe 20 million gold?¡± Ian moved his finger as a sign of no and spoke, ¡°Nope, what 20 million? Even to just assume it, we¡¯ll get over 30 million gold.¡± Canoel had something else to add. ¡°Hoonie, you¡¯re a very meticulous person, but your sense of calculating the money is horrible.¡± And Ian too had something to add. ¡°Which is why you don¡¯t get the money.¡± ¡°¡­¡± The three of them were in good mood and filled the dungeon with laughter. Picking up the leftover items that were dropped was the happiest situation that one user could be in. And the items from the Balrog too were amazing which made the three enjoy it even more. ¡°Ian hyung! There are a lot of things that have been dropped from the Balrog! There are also some legendary boots!¡± ¡°Oh really? Are they good?¡± ¡°Yep and the heart of Balrog, which was two pieces are here. Where are we supposed to use these?¡± ¡°Hoonie take them all for now. Once the quest is done we¡¯ll settle it all.¡± ¡°Okay! Okay!¡± The drops from a monster, unlike the drop from a PK the users had their own share. For example, if a Balrog died and turned to a corpse, the three of the users would have to collect their own items from the drop. But in the current situation of Ian and his party, there was an option to acquire the share of the users in the party as there were way too many items to be harvested. ¡°I remember everything that has been dropped, so don¡¯t even think of keeping them to yourself.¡± At the threat from Ian, Hoonie who was picking up the items felt a little scared. ¡°I¡¯m not the one who deceives you, hyung you¡¯re the one like that.¡± * * * Ian and the party which had managed to cross the biggest hurdle in their quest moved straight away to the next part of the quest ¡®Shadow Feather¡¯. That was because the time they had left wasn¡¯t much. ¡®We have less than a day now. We need to move as quickly as possible.¡¯ And due to that time shortage, they had to skip sleeping, yet Ian and the party were still as ambitious as ever. Now that the quest was coming to an end once they did it, they decided to sleep for over 20 hours. [Entrance to the 19th division of the Devildom.] Ian and his party had been successful in reaching the 19th from the 15th in just 2-3 hours. And this was possible because Ian and the party were running on the field. And after arriving in the 19th they continued to move towards the southeast direction. The Syakelik¡¯s nest that would drop the Shadow Feather was located at the Southeast end of the 19th division. Maybe another 30 minutes more? ¡°It looks like the coordinates are right on spot¡­¡± All three of them managed to reach the dungeon of the Syakelik without any difficulty because of the coordinates that Cervian had provided them. Kwa- Kwa- A sound that was similar to the scream of a crow could be heard in the air. But it was a bit too rough and a bit too loud to be considered as a crow¡¯s cry. And Ian¡¯s party, guessed it to be the cry of Syakelik. ¡°Let¡¯s take a 10-minute break.¡± ¡°10? Then we won¡¯t be waiting till my skill cooldown?¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter. Kaka and the Orb of Darkness will take care of this.¡± The Syakelik was monster with dark attributes. And the reason why the monsters of the dark were feared was because of their stealth and powerful attacks. However, Ian¡¯s party had the right artifacts that would completely neutralize the advantageous attacks from the dark monsters. It could be considered as a detecting ability, a shadow of darkness which made it possible to reduce the damage of all the dark attributes by 20%. And in addition, it manages to inflict an additional 30% of damage which was limited only to the monsters of the dark, so the Orb of Darkness would manage to cut off the feet and hands of the Syakelik. ¡®If I activate the unique ability of Kaka¡¯s then it will reduce the damage from the dark by another 50%¡­ then it will be swimming on the ground.¡¯ Ian was very confident. To save time they skipped over their maintenance and wanted to collect all of the feathers after catching the Syakelik. Once the quest would be done, the Orb of Darkness wouldn¡¯t be in their possession anymore, which meant that they would no longer have the opportunity to catch any dark beasts. ¡°Kaka, ready to activate your unique ability?¡± ¡°Always, master.¡± ¡°But there is something else that you need to do before it.¡± ¡°Something else I need to do¡­?¡± At the half question from Kaka, Ian nodded while smiling. ¡°Hmm. Something that no one else but you can do.¡± Kaka was a bit uncertain about what it could be. ¡°Is it really only something that only I can do, Master?¡± ¡°yeah.¡± Ian replied firmly. * * * Kwahhh-! The bizarre cries were resonating all through the dungeon. It wasn¡¯t the cry of one, but of dozens of Syakeliks. And among those cries, there wasn¡¯t a way for them to distinguish one from the other. Puck ¨C Pupuck-! Kwayy-! After hearing a sound from afar, Hoonie turned around and asked Ian, ¡°Hyung, are you sure it¡¯s alright?¡± Ian answered while nodding, ¡°Definitely. There isn¡¯t a monster in here which can possibly cause any serious damage to us.¡± ¡°Not like that, but¡­ even then, you know the last time, I was hit by the tail of Behemoth and bounced back a few meters¡­?¡± ¡°So? But your vitality didn¡¯t wear out.¡± ¡°That is true but¡­ it hurt a lot.¡± Ian replied while scratching the back of his head. ¡°Well, isn¡¯t it supposed to be alright if you aren¡¯t dead?¡± ¡°¡­¡± The task that Ian had assigned to Kaka wasn¡¯t much different. It was to find all the Syakelik in the dungeon. And it was a mission that only Kaka could manage to do. Kaka wouldn¡¯t be damaged by dark attributes unless the unique ability was caused by light attributes. Ian had planned to hunt and go all out by placing his trust on the tremendous tanking abilities of Kaka that has against the dark attributes. As soon as the plan was settled, it would be possible to hunt down all the Syakelik monsters in the dungeon within the next 20 hours. To be precise, it was both hunting and catching? ¡®I¡¯ll hunt like a crazy person until there are only a dozen left, and from then I¡¯ll start capturing.¡¯ And due to that, Kaka was being chased by 20 Syakeliks. It was a natural procedure to poke around every corner of the dungeon. Rather than thinking that Kaka had found 20¡ªthe 20 that were chasing it were actually very few. And because of the amount of Agro in the Kailan, it wouldn¡¯t be much shocking if more Syakeliks followed. And the one being chased would be a little inappropriate. The movement speed of the Syakelik was five times faster than that of Kaka, which made Kaka to continuously beat and flap its wings. Puak- Puahk-! After hearing the sound from a distance. Feeling a little guilty for what was happening, Ian took a step forward. ¡°Come one, it¡¯s time for us to go and help Kaka.¡± Which made Canoel ask, ¡°Are you sure¡­ that this is okay, hyung?¡± ¡°About Kaka, is it okay?¡± At the question that came back from Ian, Canoel shook his head and answered. ¡°No, not Kaka, us. Even if we have the Orb of Darkness in our position, and even if Kaka¡¯s abilities overlap with them, but trying to hunt down legendary monsters¡­ isn¡¯t it a bit too much?¡± Ian smiled and grinned at the spear that was in his hand. From Ian¡¯s calculations, this wasn¡¯t an irrational plan. Even if the level of the Syakelik were close to 400, with all the debuffs that would be applied, it would fall down to a level between 150-200. And this was why rather than the Behemoth and the Balrog, Ian had thought that Syakelik would be easier to hunt. ¡°Instead of holding onto the concerns. I¡¯ll show you what a pleasant and efficient hunt looks like.¡± And for the very first time in the history of Kailan, the hunt of the legendary monsters began. * * * In the eastern end of the 120th division of the Devildom. On the plains of the Devildom, the guild base of DarkRuna guild was present. However, since the guild bases of the Devildom had only just begun to emerge, it wasn¡¯t at a level where they could compare it with the human side ones. But if there was anything that was better than the human lands, then it was the area of the base. Since there weren¡¯t many owners at the beginning of the dimension, the area for the base was much wider than the manors on the human side. And at the center of the Guild base, around hundreds of members from the DarkRuna guild were gathered. And as time went on, the numbers were increasing. It was because their master Irahan had instructed them to gather at the time of his resurrection. Have all the members of the guild gathered, in about 12 minutes? Wheeing- At the center of the Guild square, a pure white light arose from which Irahan was summoned. And with that sight, all the guild members began to speak, ¡°I see master!¡± However not paying much attention to them, Irahan immediately moved to the podium. It was because he had been feeling very embarrassed. Udk-! Irahan who looked around was grinding his teeth. ¡®Those royal guild members¡­ you dare to step on my back?¡¯ Because of the death penalty, Irahan had asked the members of the guild to check for a person named ¡®Lyzer¡¯. And somehow. And among the Royal Guild, there was a user with the ID name of ¡®Lyzer¡¯! ¡®It was clearly Lyzer. The one who was making that weird BBook bbook sound.¡¯ Irahan was furious. He had never thought that Martin would backstab him like that. And there was a reason for calling all the guild members. Chuk-! Irahan picked up his sword and pointed it to the sky, and spoke with a very angry voice to the guild members. ¡°Three days from now, I will apply for a guild war against the Royal Guild!¡± And with that came the first guild war in the Devildom. CH 349 Many students were pouring into the front gate of the Korean university. And the time when most students moved into the university was at 5:00 pm and the person in front of the gate had something to say, ¡°Yah, Young Jun-ah. After our classes, today how about chicken and beer?¡± ¡°No, not today.¡± ¡°Yah, Kim Young Jun. What is it that you¡¯re doing that you had to reject my offer of chicken and beer?¡± Young Jun and the other person, the two of them were the newcomers of the Department of Business Administration at the Korean University. And Young Jun was known as the chicken killer because of his love for chicken, that was why his decline to the offer of chicken and beer was surprising. Young Jun smiled and responded, ¡°Well, the thing is, I have an intuition.¡± ¡°An intuition¡­? About what? Are you talking about the baseball game? But you don¡¯t see baseball.¡± ¡°No, no baseball, it¡¯s the empire war in the Kailan.¡± At the answer from Young Jun, Chol Ho shook his head and answered with irritation, ¡°Wah, This a*shole. It¡¯s alright even if you don¡¯t have any intuitive feel in the Kailan¡¯s Empire war. Let¡¯s just go and grab the chicken and beer for today. It is a big day today.¡± However, Young Jun was still very stubborn. ¡°What nonsense! If this was a normal guild war then I would have gone too, but it is Lotus Guild versus the Irish Guild.¡± Chol Ho had a strange expression at that. ¡°Lotus? Irish¡­? What kind of special guild are they huh? Ah, I feel like I heard the name, Lotus Guild.¡± Chol Ho was a Kailan user too, but he was a young user who just started playing the game. And on top of that, he was a light user who played for only an hour a day, so he wasn¡¯t completely aware of the situation of Kailan. Young Jun who was frustrated with it, began to explain in detail. ¡°Did you ever go into the official website of the Kailan?¡± ¡°Nope, I had to enter. But I haven¡¯t been there for a month. I don¡¯t think I have been there after going past level 10.¡± Young Jun sighed once again. ¡°Huh, which means you don¡¯t know. The whole of Kailan is in a mess because of the Lotus Guild.¡± ¡°What mess?¡± ¡°The Lotus Guild has started the Empire war with 12 guilds all at once, and today is the seventh day of the war.¡± However, the meaning of it wasn¡¯t precisely grasped, so Chol Ho still had a puzzled expression. ¡°Okay? But how can a battle keep on going inside an Empire? Once a war ends it takes another one week to take place.¡± Young Jun clenched his fists at the question and tried to reply with a faint expression. ¡°That is why this is huge. Lotus guild has taken six consecutive wins till now, though it isn¡¯t easy that they are going strong in the war. They are creating history.¡± ¡°Ohoh¡­!¡± ¡°Think about it once. The Lotus guild hasn¡¯t been around much, and now they are dealing with the top-ranked guilds in a row. Besides, it isn¡¯t a guild war, but an Empire war. Now, do you understand why?¡± And now, Chol Ho was surprised. ¡°But, is it even possible? I don¡¯t think I ever saw the Lotus Guild in the 1st ranking.¡± Young Jun nodded his head and replied, ¡°Yep, you¡¯re right. But after they are done with the war they¡¯ll probably be in the 1st ranking. There have been numerous predictions that even the Titan Guild will be overwhelmed.¡± ¡°Keu, this is huge. It even made Young Jun give up the chicken and beer.¡± ¡°Right? That was why I have intuitions going on!¡± And as Young Jun turned his foot and headed to the bus stop, Chol Ho hurriedly called out to him. ¡°Yah, then I can head home and get into the intuition part. Where am I supposed to go?¡± At the question from Chol Ho, Young Jun responded, ¡°No no, You can¡¯t do that if you connect now. You should have made reservations in advance.¡± ¡°Oh? There are things like that in the normal guild war too?¡± ¡°No, normally they don¡¯t exist, but as most people were tilting towards the Lotus Guild such things had to be made. The page of the Lotus Guild was so crowded that the reservations had to be made. When the 2nd and 3rd manuscript were accessed, those who had access were accepted, and the servers disappear.¡± And Chol Ho wanted to get a taste of it. ¡°Damn, then there is nothing I can do to persuade you. I¡¯ll head home and order chicken while watching TV.¡± Chol Ho suddenly remembered something which made him speak again. ¡°Ah, wait Young Jun-ah!¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Does the summoner Ian belong to the Lotus Guild?¡± Young Jun nodded and answered, ¡°You¡¯re right. You don¡¯t know exactly what kind of guy the summoner is? He is considered to be a God among the summoners, Ian¡­¡± ¡°Yah, I usually like playing the game by myself. Even I know that Ian is a great user, but I just wasn¡¯t interested.¡± Young Jun shook his head. ¡°That is why you¡¯re still in level 40s you idiot¡­ go and watch Ian¡¯s play. And then learn to improve the control.¡± ¡°Whatever, so does it mean, that Ian will make an appearance in the war that is happening today?¡± At those words, Young Jun¡¯s expression turned a little sad. ¡°I don¡¯t know. From the third war, the community was in a panic thinking that Ian would come. But until the last war, he had never appeared.¡± Chol Ho¡¯s expression changed too. ¡°Really? Why is Ian not coming into the guild wars? Is it because summoners can¡¯t be of much help in the wars?¡± At those words, Young Jun answered with a smirk on his face. ¡°Where do you plan on going with such ignorant remarks.¡± ¡°Huh? What is so ignorant? It is a well-known fact that originally the summoner is weak against PvP.¡± Young Jun shook his head. ¡°That is a statement meant for the normal summoner¡­ Not the case for Ian.¡± ¡°Yeah? Is Ian that great?¡± ¡°Yeah, he is. He so great, that you who had never been interested in the rankers got to know his name.¡± At those words, Chol Ho agreed immediately. ¡°That is true. If I know the name, then he must be famous.¡± Young Jun was sighing as he was searching for the articles of Kailan in his smartphone. ¡°Haa, I have booked it earlier¡­ I hope I get to see Ian today.¡± The two of them were talking the whole way to the bus stop. The houses of both of them were in the same direction, which was why they had to take the same bus to head home. Three minutes after they reached the bus stop, the bus had arrived. Beep- Chol Ho who sat down after swiping the card asked Young Jun who was seated right next to him. ¡°Yah, did you hear that?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I remembered it while when we were talking about Ian, I heard something a few days back from Young Woo senior.¡± ¡°What was it?¡± ¡°That Ian is actually a student at our university.¡± At those words from Chol Ho, Young Jun smiled and replied, ¡°Ah, that¡¯s a thing that has been going on from a long while.¡± ¡°Yeah? Then, is it just a rumor?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure. There are people who say they saw Ian in the senior year¡­ I was told that he was in the school¡¯s E-sport games last year. But I guess they were all rumors.¡± Chol Ho had something to ask. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°In the high school alumni, I have a friend who said that Ian was in the virtual dept.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ really?¡± ¡°Huh. But it has been a few months since it was opened, and I haven¡¯t seen any senior who looked like him.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ I would¡¯ve seen him if I had gone to check the attendance at least once¡­ since no one had come across him, it is still a rumor.¡± After that, the two of them continued to talk about Kailan. And right behind those people who were seated, another student with a hoodie over his head. He was Park Jinsung. * * * Bump ¨C Tumbling on his foot, Jinsung managed to open the door of his house. ¡°Euh¡­ I need to sleep now.¡± There was no power in his whole body, but his expression was contradictory, it looked satisfied. He surely would be, not only did he manage to complete the quest by morning, but as soon as the quest was over he went over to the school and successfully completed the attendance process too. He felt like he was living his life, and not just surviving. Jinsung lay down on the bed and was thinking about the plans for the future. ¡®Syakelik, five of them were captured¡­ with the soul stones that we got from hunting, the summonable number of Syakelik would be around seven?¡¯ The hunting had been very successful, they managed to hunt dozens of Syakelik in just ten hours. And they were so tired that they logged out without even properly identifying the items that were dropped, the only items they remembered were the soul stones. ¡®Once I wake up after going to bed¡­ I will finally get the level 10 of Beast Alchemy.¡¯ Through the massacre that was done in the nest, Ian managed to get a total of 12 Syakeliks. Till now, the level of Ian in the alchemy had been stagnant in the 9th level, but even after hunting the high-rank monsters he hadn¡¯t gone up much higher. But since he had hunted legendary monsters, it was a completely different story. It was a system that would consume magic every time one does it, regardless of the success or failure, and with 12 Syakeliks he could create around ten monsters of low level. And if that was possible, then it meant that he was in level 10. ¡®After that, I need to work on decomposing the Tarveros.¡¯ There were a total of 800 soul stones of Tarveros in Ian¡¯s inventory. It was an amount that could summon 4 Tarveros, and instead of using them for the Beast Alchemy, Ian was planning on dissolving them. Although the Tarveros were legendary creatures, they were monsters with stats lower than the boss, except for the unique ability. The thing that Ian wanted to get from Soul Stones of Tarveros was the ¡®Power stones¡¯. And if they could dissolve 4 of them¡ªand with luck, he could get a lot of power stones. ¡®Nice, It¡¯s nice that things are going as planned¡­!¡¯ Jinsung who was busy planning things, moved into the bed to sleep, after turning on the air conditioner. There was no environment that was good for sleeping when compared to the warm blanket that welcomes one in a cold room. And before drifting into sleep. There was one thing going through the mind of Jinsung. ¡®Ah right. That thing¡­ the fusion skill¡­ what the hell was it?¡¯ At the completion of the quest of the Daedmon, both Hoonie and Jinsung had earned one Dark Summoner Skillbook. He remembered the line of system messages that were generated¡ªthe moment he had acquired it. [You have acquired ¡®Occupational Fusion Skill¡¯ for the first time.] [You have earned 200,000 fame points.] ¡®Considering the 200,000 fame points¡­ it looks like an important content¡­¡¯ But the idea couldn¡¯t be continued. He couldn¡¯t bear to assume things to himself. ¡°Puahhh¡­¡± Jinsung finally snuggled into the blanket. CH 350 Brrrrr- Jinsung who was taking a nap awakened due to the vibrating sound of his smartphone. ¡°Uh uh¡­ who is this? Why are you calling this early in the morning¡­?¡± The moment Jinsung opened his eyes, he realized that it was really early in the morning. He turned his head to check the clock, and it was only 7 a.m. Since he fell asleep at 6 p.m. in the evening, it was a very long and satisfactory sleep. Grunting and rolling on the bed, he somehow managed to get his smartphone. ¡°Uh¡­! I was planning on sleeping for 20 hours, but I woke up seven hours earlier than what I planned.¡± Jinsung who was whispering to himself rubbed his eyes. Since he was fully awakened due to his phone¡¯s vibration he didn¡¯t plan on going back to bed anymore. Due to the very pleasant sleep he had, he was feeling energized. ¡®By the way, who was the one that texted me so early in the morning? There is no way Harin would¡¯ve woken up so early¡­¡¯ Among all the acquaintances that Jinsung knew, Harin was one who slept till afternoon. ¡®It won¡¯t be Yoo Hyun or Fiolan¡­ then who?¡¯ Seeing the senders name made Ian wonder if the message was from the right person. [Hoonie: hyung, are you up? Come in quick! It¡¯s very important! Quickly!] Hoonie rarely sent messages to Jinsung and called him. ¡®What is this? The quest is all done now, so what¡¯s this important this he¡¯s talking about? Is it really urgent?¡¯ Ian who was still sitting on the bed got up immediately. He took a bath. He had some breakfast and immediately reconnected. * * * ¡°Yah, you got up early?¡± Hoonie who had been intently waiting for someone turned his head after hearing a familiar voice. Seeing Ian approaching from a distance, Hoonie jumped towards him and pulled Ian¡¯s arm. ¡°Hyung, why did it take you so long to connect?¡± Ian was puzzled by his reaction. ¡°Yeah, I woke up a while back. I showered and reconnected right away. What are you up to, connecting this early in the morning?¡± Instead of answering Ian¡¯s question, Hoonie urged Ian once again. ¡°Hyung, you have the skill book that you got yesterday?¡± ¡°Which one? The Dark Summoning skill book?¡± Hoonie responded while nodding. ¡°Open it quickly for now. Go¡­!¡± Ian opened his inventory because of Hoonies¡¯s restless behavior. He wasn¡¯t as curious to know about the ¡®Fusion Skill¡¯. He wanted to know more the reason why Hoonie had been behaving in such a manner. ¡®Here it is. The Fusion Skill, even though the skill grade is still at a general level, what great abilities does it have?¡¯ Ian opened the skill book. A system message appeared in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Tring ¨C [You have acquired the ¡®Fusion Skill¡¯ for the very first time.] [The Fusion Skill menu has been added into the Skill Lock.] [The ¡®Dark Summoner¡¯ skill has been created in the skill list.] Ian immediately opened the skill window. His eyes were shinning while looking at them. ¡°Uh¡­? I was assuming that it was a normal skill, but on the contrary, it seems like a big class?¡± Hoonie, who was right next to Ian spoke. ¡°Open the skill information now for more surprises.¡± Without much thought, Ian opened the Skill information of the Dark Summoner. Well, he was about to open it anyway without Hoonie telling him too. [The ¡®Dark Summoner¡¯ skill is a sealed skill. To use the skill it must be unsealed.] Ian was puzzled by it. ¡®Sealed¡­ huh?¡¯ However, that wasn¡¯t the end of the message. [To unseal it, you need a ¡®Warlock¡¯ class¡¯ ¡®Seal of Darkness¡¯.] This made Ian¡¯s gaze naturally moved towards Hoonie who was right next to him. Hoonie was the 1st ranker of all the existing warlock users. Ian who met Hoonie¡¯s eyes asked. ¡°Hoonie, do you have the Seal of Darkness?¡± ¡°Yes of course. I don¡¯t know what had happened hyung, but the moment I opened the skill book, the Seal of Darkness skill was included in my skills.¡± ¡°Ohho¡­?¡± ¡°And the seal of darkness is for a summoner who will turn to a Dark Summoner.¡± It was then that Ian realized why Hoonie had been looking for him. ¡°So the reason why you tried to find me this early in the morning was?¡± ¡°Hehe, you¡¯re on the right track. Hyung, I wanted to use the fusion skill¡­ and hyung, aren¡¯t you curious too?¡± Ian just nodded. It was then that he realized what the word Fusion Skill meant, and it now became much more interesting for him. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go¡­ that Seal of Darkness, let¡¯s see what it is.¡± ¡°Okay!¡± Hoonie wielded his staff and cast the Seal of Darkness skill. At that moment, a strange pattern was formed in the air, and a dark shadow popped out. ¡°¡­!¡± Ian was a little surprised and confused, and from the mouth of the shadow a surprising voice came out. [The Darkness that was present since the ancient times has stepped out to connect to the souls¡­] Hwoong-! A heavy sound resonated through the air around the shadow. Another system message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Tring ¨C [The Warlock user ¡®KanjiHoonie¡¯ has proposed a commitment of Darkness towards you.] [Once the ¡®Dark Pledge¡¯ is accepted by both of the users, the ¡®Soul Recall¡¯ skill will be initiated.] [The effect of the ¡®Dark Pledge¡¯ will be continued until the contract is terminated, and during that time a Dark Pledge from another Warlock cannot be placed.] [Are you willing to accept the ¡®Dark Pledge¡¯? (Y/N)] Ian momentarily stopped but nodded the next second as he didn¡¯t find a reason to not accept it. ¡°I accept.¡± At that moment, dark energy started to go into the palm of Ian¡¯s right hand. Wheeing-! Ian¡¯s gaze moved to his right arm, and both his eyes went wide. ¡°Ohoh¡­?¡± The dark energy that went through his right arm, engraved an unidentifiable sword of purple color on his hand. The messages continued. Tring ¨C [Obtained the ¡®Seal of Darkness¡¯.] [The Dark Pledge has been accepted with the user ¡®KanjiHoonie¡¯.] [Converted to the ¡®Dark Summoner¡¯, of Fusion Class.] [The Fusion Class, like the dual class, is a separate class from the Summoner (Taming Master), hence they don¡¯t affect each other.] [With the Fusion Skill, the ¡®Seal of Darkness¡¯ will be unsealed.] [From this very moment, you will be able to summon or capture a ¡®Dark Pet¡¯.] [The ¡®Dark Summoner¡¯ class has been activated, and the ¡®Soul Recall (Fusion Skill)¡¯ has been registered as a subordinate skill.] [The ¡®Dark Summoner¡¯ class has been activated, and the ¡®Dark Recall (Fusion Skill)¡¯ has been registered as a sub-skill.] [The ¡®Dark Summoner¡¯ class has been activated, ¡®Dark Bind¡¯ skill has been created as a sub-skill.] Ian very carefully read the messages. As expected, he remembered all the classes he had. ¡®I thought that the Dual Class had been finished, and here I once again get another class¡­¡¯ Ian already had a dual class called the ¡®Devil Summoner (The Magical Beast Transmuter)¡¯. Though he didn¡¯t intend for it to happen, he got a new class. And luckily, it had no influence on his existing class, which made Ian like it. Ian smiled. ¡°This seems fun, right¡­?¡± Hoonie too nodded while agreeing. ¡°Even I feel the same.¡± With the opening of the new class, a question that he had on his mind was solved. ¡®This is the key to deal with the pets of the Dark.¡¯ The Dark pets couldn¡¯t be captured even with high magic stats or the affinity was good. When Ian first received the quest of the Daedmon Temple, he tried to capture the inhabitants in the Dark. However, he wasn¡¯t able to capture them. [Can¡¯t capture the Pet of Dark.] was the only message that popped up every time. The time when they were hunting the legendary monster ¡®Syakelic¡¯ during the quest. Though it was originally meant to be impossible to capture. Thankfully, since they had the Orb of Darkness, they managed to capture 4. ¡®I knew that the Orb of Darkness is the key¡­ but this is the solution to it.¡¯ The Dark pets were familiars that could only be controlled by the Dark Summoners. Ian who managed to simplify the information for better understanding of the concept of the Dark Summoner began to look into his newly formed skills. ¡®Then the Fusion Skill, is it a skill that two users of two different classes can perform together?¡¯ There were two fusion skills and one general skill. They looked like it would take some time for them to better understand the skill. And most of all, Ian was more curious about how the fusion skills could be used in a play. It was their first time to see such a thing, so they weren¡¯t able to fully comprehend it right away. But, New system messages emerged in front of both Hoonie and Ian¡¯s eyes. Those messages are not just regular messages, but a common message that was displayed to all the users of Kailan. Tring ¨C [User ¡®Ian¡¯ and ¡®KanjiHoonie¡¯ were the first to unseal the ¡®Dark Summoner¡¯.] [The closed portal of the dimension has been opened.] [From now on, Dark pets will appear in the ¡®Human World¡¯.] ¡°What is this..? Nice timing, right?¡± Ian replied to Hoonie¡¯s murmuring while reading the message. ¡°Well, not just monsters or normal pets but only Dark pets¡­?¡± Once again the world¡¯s messages started to ring. Tring ¨C [The hidden Fusion Class¡¯ secret has now been opened. With the ¡®Warlock¡¯ class and the ¡®Summoner¡¯ class the ¡®Dark Summoner¡¯ class has been opened.] [From this day forth in the city of the Empire, you will be able to take a former office and convert it into a ¡®Dark Summoner¡¯ class owned.] [The secret of the hidden Fusion Class in the dimension has been discovered for the first time.] [The Fusion Class found till this date (1/????)] Both Ian and Hoonie were astonished by what they had seen. They never thought that doing the quest would give them such an honor in the entirety of Kailan. However, out of the more than thousands of users who had checked the world message, these two were the ones who were more shocked with what happened. As soon as the world message had been relayed, the traffic in the community page of Kailan¡¯s official community began to explode. CH 351 Hoonie¡¯s eyes were shinning. ¡°Oh ho¡­! We are included in a worldwide message!!¡± Ian responded with a silly expression. ¡°Yeah, is that really what¡¯s important now? We need to do this quickly. Start reading from the beginning of the Skill window.¡± ¡°Shit! okay¡­¡± Hoonie immediately opened the skill window. Ian was already reading the details of the Fusion Skill. ¡®The Dark Bondage is like a¡­ is like a maze that temporarily limits the movements of objects. This isn¡¯t so special¡­¡¯ Ian¡¯s interest was on the other two skills that were classified as the fusion skill. The Dark Bondage was a normal skill, so it didn¡¯t make much difference for them, while the other two skills were completely different and unknown from the most basic Dark Summoning skill. Dark Recall ¨C Classification ¨C Active Skill/ Fusion Skill Skill Level ¨C Lv 0 Proficiency ¨C 0% Cool down time ¨C 15 minutes Duration ¨C 30 minutes Terms of Use ¨C Can be used only when the Warlock mentioned in the contract is in the party. ¨C Can be used only with the summoned Familiars/Undead. ¨C The ability to replicate the soul of a specific summon (Familiar or Undead) with the use of dark energy. (The lower the level of the summon, the more souls one can replicate.) ¨C The replicated Soul turns into a summon made of dark energy. It lasts for a specific period of time and exerts 50% of the original capacity. ¨C Either one of the two, if the Summoner or the Warlock dies, all the recalled summons will disappear. * The number of souls currently producible with the level. Myth ¨C Impossible (opens with skill level at MAX.) Legend ¨C Impossible (opens with skill level at 5.) Hero ¨C 1 Unique ¨C 1 Rare ¨C 4 General ¨C 8 *As proficiency increases, the number of replicable souls also increases. * As proficiency increases, the number of recalled souls will also increase. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¡®It is a skill that can only be used in a play if both Hoonie and I are together¡­ right?¡¯ Since the level of the skill was too low, it was still impossible for them to recall a myth or legendary creatures. However, the skill would be of great help. Ian laughed a lot in the inside. ¡®For a while, I will be the one who¡¯ll need more help than Hoonie¡¯ The reason for it was very simple. Among all the summons that Ian possessed, the only one below the rank of Hero was Halli. In layman¡¯s term, the only familiar that Hoonie could use from Ian was Halli. Ian on the other hand had abundant resources to call. Hoonie had normal skeletons, and he used various levels of Undead. Especially the Death Knights and the named Undead were all Hero ranked except for ¡®Belam¡¯, so Ian could summon the death knights. Hoonie who was reading the skill window right next to Ian was grumbling with a pouty face. ¡°What is this? Another skill that is advantageous to hyung? There is nothing apart from Halli that I can call from your familiars.¡± Ian smiled and responded. ¡°It is a good thing, and I get to recall your Undead right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m saying¡­!¡± ¡°If you¡¯re so unhappy, then you should start hunting with me and increase the level of the Fusion Skill.¡± Hoonie¡¯s face turned red. ¡°Huh? What the hell?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you read the skill window thoroughly?¡± Ian continued. ¡°If we manage to go beyond skill level 5, you can then replicate the legendary summons. If you shoot up to level 10 up to the MAX level, then you can even have a myth class.¡± Hoonie¡¯s expression brightened. ¡°If you shoot up to the MAX, then this is a much more advantageous skill for you. I have two myth grade familiars, and you still haven¡¯t got a single myth grade.¡± Because of the last thing that Ian said, Hoonie responded harshly. ¡°Huh, wait and see. With what I received from the Daedmon quest, I will do one more personal quest and then upgrade my Bellam to a higher Knight.¡± What Hoonie just said made Ian ask. ¡°Oh¡­? So is Ballam a myth class now?¡± ¡°Huh, you didn¡¯t think so?¡± When hunting with Hoonie, Ian often preferred Ballam. There was something nice about the Death Knight, and they were fun to use in a hunt. However, unlike the normal image of the Death Knight, Ballam was a star of all the undead. Like its name ¡®Sovereign Death Knight¡¯. It literally meant, ¡®The Monarch Death Knight¡¯ of the Undead. A summon which Ian really wanted to call. ¡®I need to reach level 5 and control Ballam.¡¯ Just by thinking of controlling Ballam, Ian started to get excited. And Hoonie once again spoke. ¡°By the way hyung, rather than this Dark Recall¡­ the Soul Recall seems to be more efficient, right?¡± ¡°Uh, really? Just a minute, I need to read it.¡± Ian opened the skill window of the Soul Recall. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Soul Recall ¨C Classification ¨C Active Skill/ Fusion Skill Skill level ¨C Lv 0 Proficiency ¨C 0% Cooldown ¨C 15 minutes Duration ¨C 5 minutes Terms of Use ¨C It can be used when the Warlock mentioned in the contract is in the party. ¨C Can only be used within 10 seconds of death. ¨C Can only be used once while in a ¡®Party state¡¯. * It is the ability to recapture the soul of a target that has depleted all its vitality and is in a state of ¡®death¡¯. (Including User) * The Recalled Soul gains 125% of the targets original abilities and turns into a state of ¡®Bloodlust¡¯. (Bloodlust state: all movements and attack speed will increase by 60%.) * The user controls the recalled target and uses the skills that the target possesses, and can control all the objects that are deemed related to the target. (However, no skill of the Devine series can be used. If the target dies or the duration expires then all the objects and effects related to the target will disappear.) * As proficiency increases, the number of attributes of the summoned soul will increase. * As the skill level increases, the duration of the skill increases. * If a user is summoned by Soul Recall, the death penalty will still be given regardless of the summon. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C In its current state, the Dark Recall skill wasn¡¯t of much use. The summoning of general to unique didn¡¯t mean much, and only one hero ranked could be summoned. It was a skill that would be effective only after reaching Level 5. However, the ¡®Soul Recall¡¯ was different. It was because this was a skill that could be applied to major classes such as Karceus or to retainers like Kaizer and Pauline. In the case of familiars, it gave the merit to immediately recall the pets before their death. However, even if it meant the death of a familiar, it was still useful if they could manage to defeat their opponents in a battle. ¡®Besides, it can be used to users too¡­!¡¯ Ian liked that part the most. It was because Ian had always been very frustrated every time a member of the party died. The most frustrating thing he experienced was when a ranker with good specs and rank had to die without using the fullest of their abilities. Besides, except for the divine skills, all the other skills could be used and that was still tremendously good. This was surely an inefficient skill for those users who couldn¡¯t control their character¡¯s abilities properly. Hoonie spoke to Ian with an excited face. ¡°With this skill, I¡¯ll be able to use Ian hyung¡¯s character too, right?¡± It was impossible to control the character of another person in the virtual reality game¡ªKailan. However, with this skill, it would be possible to control Ian¡¯s character, who was now the 1st ranker and the strongest user. However, Ian laughed at Hoonie¡¯s childish wish. ¡°Huh? You think that¡¯s possible?¡± ¡°Why? It¡¯s written here. It applies to users!¡± ¡°Hoonie, have you ever seen me die?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Hoonie¡¯s hopes died upon realizing what Ian just said. ¡°Hyung, it is alright to die like once a month you know?¡± ¡°I hate it, idiot.¡± ¡°Then how about once every two months¡­?¡± ¡°¡­¡± The two of them¡ªwho was currently standing up¡ªsat down and studied the skills thoroughly. While in combat, the ¡®Soul Recall¡¯ skill couldn¡¯t be used immediately, but the ¡®Dark Recall¡¯ skill could be used immediately. Ian saw two messages came up at the same time while the two of them were studying the fusion class and fusion skill. [Herz: Jinsung-ah, are you busy now?] [Fiolan: Ian, what are you doing now?] * * * The Kailan servers were full. All the traffic on the page had been flooded because of the Lotus Guild, and there was an additional bomb like issues. What was the explosive issue? The appearance of new content that wasn¡¯t even pre-announced. Thankfully it wasn¡¯t in the official community of Kailan but in the blogs of various communities of other games. And the contents were¡­ ¨C Lol¡­ Haha¡­. LB is really amazing¡­ Haha. Don¡¯t they need to announce it in public when new content is being added? Whatever¡­ they are at the top in the market shares, there is no need for publicity, I guess? ¨C I think so too, LOL, they are in a different class. To make such huge contents and open them up without any notice. They are amazing. ¨C Maybe the publicity team wasn¡¯t made aware by the development team about the content? It doesn¡¯t make sense¡­ the other games usually have bulk updates along with high publicity. ¨C There is no need for such publicity, this is Kailan. Praising Kailan were the first comments that could be seen in those blogs. The other comments were¡­ ¨C By the way, what kind of guy is this Ian? ¨C Exactly what I wanted to say. Does he play 24 hours a day and try to clear all of the contents? ¨C Hmm¡­ will it be possible to do in 24 hours? ¨C Lol. Do you think that it will only take that long to finish the contents of that game? This is a game that scares the shit out of other games. ¨C Are the skills important in the games? Isn¡¯t it the game that has been going on for the longest time? ¨C Honey, what prehistoric times are you talking about. That¡¯s all in the past¡­ ¨C It wasn¡¯t uncommon for games to be as influential as Kailan. With the same specs, experience, and the hunting, other games were rather similar. ¨C Right. Once a character is at the top ranks then there is a rule¡­ that is to continuously move forward no matter what to maintain the character¡¯s level. No exceptions. ¨C Guys, Ian can¡¯t be judged by the standard of comments that people give. They need to consider how much he is being praised. Once again admiration and controversy started because Ian¡¯s name was mentioned in the world message. Sometimes, the name KanjiHoonie would appear in the comments, but they were very few. It was thought that the Warlock was fortunate enough to be known because of Ian. Thanks to that, Hoonie who was reading the comments was getting angry. ¡°Whaaaaat!? Why is Ian hyung¡¯s name the only ones that can be seen here!¡± Honestly, it was Hoonie¡¯s fault. In the concept of keeping ¡®mystery¡¯ to his name, he still kept his ranking in the private setting. So there weren¡¯t that many people who knew Hoonie. The few people who knew Hoonie were the one he partied up with or watched his performance. So, the 1st ranker Hoonie, who was 10 times higher than the other warlocks, was unable to get recognition. ¡°Wah, should I release my ranking too?¡± This time, Hoonie wanted to boast to his school friends. After much thought, he decided to not disclose his ranking. ¡°Nope, Ian hyung has become famous even though his rank is still in private? I¡¯m a mystery, and I will surely become a famous warlock.¡± Hoonie was mumbling something. But then, He heard a familiar voice from the other side of his room¡¯s door. ¡°Hoonie-ah! Dinners ready!¡± CH 352 The Pyro Domain had the greatest manor in the Central Continent. Inside the Lordship Office, on top of the castle, three people were sitting around a small roundtable and discussing. They were none other than; Herz, the Guildmaster of Lotus Guild and Fiolan, the Lordship of the Pyro Manor. And the last person was the landlord of the Lotus Guild, Ian. ¡°So you mean to say, that now you¡¯re starting to lose power?¡± At the question from Ian, Fiolan nodded while replying. ¡°Yes. There are another 4 more manors left¡­ the next manor is also manageable, but the problem starts after that. There are much Wyvern Knights left¡­¡± And Herz added a few more words, ¡°Yeah. Our limit is only till the next Manor, Jinsung-ah.¡± And the reason why Herz and Fiolan called over Ian. Even Ian could guess it now. Ian knew that it was time that they would run out of power. Ian mumbled inside. ¡®I wish there was a little more time¡­¡¯ After thinking for a moment, Ian asked Herz, ¡°The last time in Pyro and Lotus, how did it go with the magic tower at the Elijian Manor?¡± ¡°It was completely done last week. So we are trying to pull out the wizards¡­ but they will be available from the next week.¡± The ¡®Magic Tower¡¯ was the highest tier battalion production facility that was being constructed in the territory of the Kingdom. As one could guess by the name, it was a facility that could produce ¡®wizards¡¯. Before the Magic Tower was produced, it was possible to draw out wizards for battle by ¡®mercenary hiring¡¯, but once the magic tower was built, it would be possible for them to cultivate their own wizards. The difference was so great. It could be produced at a much lower cost than hiring the mercenary, and it was possible to nurture high-level wizards of 5 or more circles. And if they were lucky, then sometimes wizards of 7 or more circles made an appearance. In addition, if the 7 circle wizards made their appearance, they could be compared with the strength of Remir, the 1st ranked Mage. However, no matter how great they were, they couldn¡¯t be used right away. Fiolan slowly opened her lips, ¡°Ian it is time for you to join.¡± Herz nodded his head. ¡°Right. Now stop crawling in the Devildom and come out.¡± Ian just scratched the back of his head. It was Ian¡¯s original plan to make a dramatic appearance at the last battle and succeed in the battle with the strongest monster on his side. But that was taking more time than he had planned, and there was no way he could give them the exact time as to when he would succeed. And that was why Ian was forced to nod his head. ¡°Yeah, well. I¡¯ll join you from the next war.¡± At the answer from Ian, both Fiolan and Herz were elated. ¡°You¡¯ve decided well, Ian!¡± ¡°Nice, nice. I¡¯m not so worried anymore.¡± And Herz added a few more words, ¡°And bring in Hoonie too. He always tells me that there is a quest whenever I call him.¡± Ian nodded his head. ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll bring Hoonie and Noel too.¡± Hoonie was a bit taken aback after listening to Ian¡¯s words. ¡°Noel? Isn¡¯t the guild war a bit too much for him to handle?¡± The Canoel that Herz knew was from the past days when he had poor control and was a low-level. Ian laughed. ¡°He has grown a lot after following me around. He can handle more than one person by himself.¡± Herz responded to it, ¡°Well, if you say that, then I¡¯ll take your word.¡± And three of them then began to make concrete plans for the next four wars, and it was a very time-consuming process. To Ian who had been away from the guild for a very long time, it took some sweet time for him to understand the internal affairs and the battle tactics of the guild. And after finishing the strategizing, Ian moved to the auction house. ¡®I sold out most of the items that I got during these days, and my level has risen so much. I have to change the equipment once again.¡¯ Ian¡¯s current level was around the beginning of 290. The items that he currently equipped were around the level of 200, so he had to do something about them. And till now the hidden quest of the Selamus Desert had been put off. If the quest of the Selamus could be cleared, then the Judgement of the Spirit King could be upgraded to the next level. ¡®The next guild war is two days away from now¡­ since it isn¡¯t a long-term quest, it could be done.¡¯ There weren¡¯t still any weapons of enormous strength that could make the ¡®Planet destroying weapon¡¯ embarrassed. And that amazing weapon was Ian¡¯s main equipment¡ªthe Judgement of the Spirit King. So Ian started to think extensively. It was because of the anticipation of how powerful the Judgement of the Spirit King would turn to, as it was upgraded to the next level. And yet he wasn¡¯t so sure about how it would turn out, But knew that he would get an item called ¡®Summoning Magic of the Spirit King¡¯. And that clearly helps Ian too. And Ian¡¯s pace started to get fast. * * * ¡®I think this is about right¡­¡¯ A huge rocky mountain on the Northwest of the Hold dream. Ian was walking around the rocky mountain for almost half the day. It was because he was trying to find the ¡®Selamus Flying Dragon¡¯s Altar¡¯ Ian opened the quest window of the Selamus after a very long time to search the location of the Altar. ¨C The Test of the Selamus Tribe (Hidden, Linked quest) ¨C You have been recognized as the highest-ranked S- ranked warrior from Eclipse, the Guardian of the Selamus Tribe, and managed to earn the highest marks ever. Now you will have to challenge a task that no one had attempted. If you awakened the flying dragon of the Selamus Tribe Altar, he will guide you. Quest Difficulty: SSS Quest Condition: A S-rated Selamus Warrior recognized by Eclipse. A level 200 or higher summoner. Time Limit: None. Reward: The evolution of the ¡®Judgement of the Spirit King¡¯. ¡®Summoning Magic of the Spirit King¡¯. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C And when the quest window was opened, the location of the altar was displayed with a red light on the mini-map that was displayed on the top right. ¡®Found it right.¡¯ Ian started to move again. There was no monster in the whole Central continent that could threaten Ian. And as proof of it, behind Ian was only Karceus in the dragon form, and no one else. There was none who could overcome the intimidation of Karceus. Did he move for 5 minutes? Karceus who was following him spoke, ¡°Master, I feel the energy of the dragon from the peaks over there.¡± Ian glanced in the direction where Karceus was looking at and confirmed the location. And at the faraway peaks, a rock in the shape of a dragon¡¯s head could be seen. ¡°Nice¡­!¡± The first thing that was needed to be done was to awaken the dragon at the altar. The reason for summoning Karceus was to easily point the location of the dragon, and Karceus did an amazing job. ¡°Take me, Karceus¡± Karecus responded with a single big nod, ¡°Kay, Master.¡± Karceus spread its huge wings and flapped them, with that his giant body took off into the air and flew into the air. * * * [You have discovered the Selamus Flying Dragons¡¯ Altar which contains the history of the ancient times for the first time.] [Fame increased by 150,000.] [All the combat abilities have been increased by 25.] [Leadership and affinity have been permanently increased by 100 for each.] ¡°Keu, it is nice from the very beginning!¡± Words slipped out of Ian¡¯s mouth. It was a similar reward that he had received when he started the quest for the first time, but this was an upgraded reward. And Ian leaped down from the back of Karceus and set foot onto the peak, and Karceus once again polymorphed into human form. As the peaks were narrow, his body was much suitable. As soon as Ian stepped foot onto the peaks, the ground began to crack. Crrk- Crrk- Crrrk-! ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± Ian was naturally a little flustered, but soon calmed himself and saw an intense green light come from the cracks. Kukukung-! ¡®Is this rock the Flying Dragon?¡¯ Ian moved back and forth to balance on the crumbling rocks, and the scales of yellow color started to appear from the rocks. After a while, The huge rock on the rocky mountain had become a magnificent dragon which rose to a large size. Kyaaaa-!! New system message popped up the same time as the scream. Tring- [The condition has been fulfilled, the Flying dragon of the Selamus Tribe has awakened after a long sleep.] Both Ian and Karceus grabbed onto a ridge to avoid falling off the drip. But, The whole body of Karceus was surrounded by a white light, and it wasn¡¯t in the air anymore! This made Ian very flustered. ¡®What, what is this?¡¯ And the emergence of the system message explained why Karceus had disappeared. [The Selamus warrior has entered the first area of the Gate of Dragons.] [It is an area where familiars can¡¯t enter.] [All the summoned monsters will be summoned back.] [Disables the abilities of all the equipment (Except for the weapons of the Selamus Warrior).] [All the skills will be sealed (Except for the Selamus Warrior skills).] [At the gate of the Selamus tests, you can only use the equipment and skills given within the portal.] Ian moved onto the back of the dragon with bright eyes. ¡®Is it like the passage for the warrior¡¯s gate¡­?¡¯ But Ian¡¯s idea couldn¡¯t move forwards as¡­ [Hold on tightly, Warrior of Selamus.] And with that, the sound of the dragon¡¯s wings could be heard by Ian. Flap ¨C Flap -! His golden light shone in all the directions and he started to move. ¡®Sh*t, the last time I was down in the ground, and now I¡¯m going towards the sky?¡¯ It was a dreadful idea for Ian. The body of the golden dragon began to fly to the sky with tremendous speed. ¡°Euahhhhhk¡­!¡± CH 353 The dragon that Ian was stuck to, was literally soaring high into the sky. And that brought up a surge of excitement that no amusement park could ever provide. ¡°Eu ahh ahhh!¡± Ian was screaming in the middle of the air. He was barely hanging onto the back of the dragon with his eyes shut. If he didn¡¯t do that, then he would¡¯ve probably plummeted into the ground, which was why he was holding onto the dragon as hard as he could. ¡°How far up are you planning to go?!¡± Ian asked the flying dragon, by opening his eyes due to the anxious thoughts that were growing in his head. And soon regretted doing it. The reason was they had flown past the clouds, and nothing could be seen beneath them. Really high. With that sight, sweat started flowing down Ian¡¯s spine. ¡°This, this is crazy¡­!!¡± Irrespective of the cry from Ian, the dragon still began to move further up. Prrrng-! Was it around thirty minutes or so? By the times Ian¡¯s energy was exhausted, the speed of the flying dragon began to slow down and then managed to stop. Ian without letting go of the dragon¡¯s back, opened his eyes to confirm the halt in movement. And confirmed it because of the amazing sight that was spread in front of his eyes. ¡°Wha, what is this?¡± It was natural for Ian to get flustered. The reason was simple, till now he had been rising into the sky as if reaching out to heaven, and the sight that unfolded in front of him was like another earth. And at the same time, a system message appeared making Ian¡¯s curiosity settle. Tring ¨C [You are the first to discover the Earths Sky, ¡®Selamus Islands¡¯.] [Obtained 150,000 fame.] [The forgotten pets of Selamus have started to look at you.] Ian¡¯s eyes went wide. ¡®Earths Sky? So, is this a floating island in the sky?¡¯ Ian started to come down on the back of the flying dragon and turned his head in all directions to get a better view. And was able to realize that¡­ Right behind was a sky full of white clouds! If Ian does ten footsteps, then he could be falling down an endless cliff. And the flying dragon who had been closely watching the movements of Ian rose its body slowly. And once again the voice of the dragon could be heard inside Ian¡¯s mind. [Follow me from here. It will be nice if we aren¡¯t late.] ¡°Huh¡­?¡± And the dragon opened its gigantic wings atop Ian and rose into the air again. And the confusion made Ian flustered once again. ¡®What, what? How do you expect me to follow if you fly?!¡¯ It could have been possible if he was able to summon his familiars like Pin or Karceus, but he couldn¡¯t do that now. ¡°No way¡­ shouldn¡¯t I have gotten off?¡± But Ian knew that wasn¡¯t the case. The flying dragon moved into the top floor of a tower in the middle of the Celeste ground. And it would have been possible to move by foot if the tower was on the same island, and not on a different island. And another message came up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Tring- [The first test has been initiated.] [Within the time limit, you must reach the top floor, the Dragon¡¯s room on the 10th floor of the Selamus Tower.] [Time Left: 02:59:59] [If you fail to reach the destination in the given time limit, you will fail the quest and the quest will end automatically.] The moment he read the message, Ian started to run without any more thoughts. It was a triple S grade quest. And he was assuming that there wouldn¡¯t be a time limit for it. * * * ¡°Have you got everything?¡± In the conference room of the Pyro Manor. Guild Master Herz was sitting in the foreground, looked around and asked, Fiolan who was right next him answered, ¡°Ian hasn¡¯t come yet.¡± ¡°Have you sent a message?¡± ¡°Yes. It has been rejected, maybe he is doing another quest or something of that sort¡­?¡± Herz, after listening to it shook his head. He was needed to rest for a day or so, but to go out for a quest? He still wasn¡¯t much worried. He hadn¡¯t talked in advance about the plans, but Ian was very particular about the promises he made. And the huge strategy such as the distribution of troops before the remaining war was discussed in the presence of Ian, and his presence wasn¡¯t needed immediately. Herz who felt that something was empty, got up. ¡®By the way, a few more people need to be coming¡­ where are they¡­?¡¯ And then. The door of the conference room opened with a huge sound. ¡°¡­?¡± The gaze of the head of the Lotus Guild immediately moved to the direction of the conference room door, and footsteps could be heard. What was weird was only the sound of the footsteps¡ªbut no one could be seen. ¡°What, What is it? is someone sneaking?¡± But Herz knew exactly who was the one coming. ¡°Hoonie, you¡¯ve come?¡± At the question of Herz, a black wizard made his appearance on the table. ¡°HuHu¡­ The ultimate Black Magician, KanjiHoonie has finally joined the battle.¡± After saying a dramatic dialogue by flattering his hands, Hoonie disappeared and sat down in an empty seat! One of the guild member among the members present there, looked at Hoonie with an irritated expression. ¡°Master, we have a kid in our guild too?¡± Herz giggled at that question, and Hoonie just glared at the man. ¡°A kid¡­! I¡¯m the strongest warlock. The Master of the Immortal Monarchs of the Dark!¡± ¡°¡­?¡± The guild member was so embarrassed that he couldn¡¯t answer. No one could even be in the guild, there weren¡¯t many people who were aware of Hoonie. It was the first time for Hoonie to join the guild and the first time for him to come over to it in an official manner. So the guild members were looking at Herz and Fiolan, waiting for their answer about the kid, to which Herz smiled and nodded. ¡°This is a bit unusual, but he is definitely in our guild. And he has enough competence to attend the meeting.¡± And someone from the hall mumbled, ¡°Oh, I get it¡­ I think I¡¯ve seen the name KanjiHoonie somewhere in the guild members list. I thought that he was a guy who uses two ID¡¯s¡­¡± Talks broke out in the guild members, which made Herz need to explain. ¡°And it is still unofficial for our Hoonie, but he is the 1st ranked user in the Warlock Ranking.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± * * * Kwang- Kwakwang-! Inside the huge stone pagoda, a sound of something beating was being heard in succession. It was like a drum, was being split open. ¡°Get out of the way you bastards! There isn¡¯t enough time!¡± That- thatt-! Ian waved the Judgement of the Spirit King and broke off the cobbles that were in front of him. To be precise they weren¡¯t cobbles, they were the guardians who were guarding the Selamus Tower. They were the Level 200, Forest Golems. Kwang-! Ian was shattering the heads of the Forest Golems and running straight ahead. ¡®Okay, the cooldown time in back¡­¡¯ Ian was checking the only skill that could be used, the skill of Selamus Warrior. As the test of the Selamus tribe had begun, all the other skills except for the Selamus skills had been sealed, so only one skill was available. However, that skill wasn¡¯t enough to take care of the situation. ¡®What kind of Triple S quest is this? Is it because it is still in the start?¡¯ The monsters on the ground were all of level 200-210. They were fragile monsters that fell down with a single strike from Ian. As evidence of their weakness, Ian was already near the top of the tower, and it was just 30 minutes of the 3-hour time limit. ¡®Or¡­ the quest was limited to the level 200, maybe the level 300 will come in the end¡­?¡¯ However, Ian wasn¡¯t ready to relax until the end. Whenever the quest was easy, it was always better to be full alert as the test could change. [You have succeeded in causing lethal damage to the Forgotten Guardian of Selamus ¡®Forest Golem¡¯.] [The vitality of Forest Golem has decreased by 497098.] [You have succeeded in defeating the Forest Golem.] [Exp has increased by 879500.] Kwong-! Ian who moved past the golem had reached the 9th floor of the tower¡ªfrom golem that was guarding the last floor and stepped into the stairway. Intense sunshine was pouring down from the top of the stairs. And a string presence could be felt, something that couldn¡¯t be compared with what he had felt till now. In that place, Ian saw the face of the flying dragon. * * * ¡°It has been a while, Ian.¡± Ian¡¯s eyes went big at the familiar voice. And Ian immediately identified the owner of the voice from his memories. ¡°Eclipse¡­! It has been very long.¡± There was an elderly gentleman with long white hair. The short elderly man who was in the room wasn¡¯t exactly a visual in the Kailan world. As soon as Ian found Eclipse, Ian instinctively checked the information that was floating on top of his head. [Eclipse / Lv 285 / The summoner of the Selamus Tribe] And he laughed. ¡®What¡¯s this, my level is higher now?¡¯ The reason for Ian to laugh was that the level written was 285. When he had first met Eclipse, the difference between their levels was more than 100, but now Ian¡¯s level was higher. Meanwhile, the level of Eclipse increased by 35, while Ian¡¯s level increased by 150. Which made Ian assume that the quest would be much easier than expected. Eclipse stroked his beard and spoke, ¡°By the way¡­ you¡¯ve taken longer than what I thought. I thought that you would challenge the dragon right after the first one.¡± Ian nodded and then opened his mouth, ¡°I was late as I had to prepare. As the sole successor of the Selamus, I shouldn¡¯t let the tribe ancestors be disappointed.¡± It was a bit different than what had happened, it was because he had way too many quests to do, but he couldn¡¯t say that. Eclipse nodded with a pleased expression listening to Ian¡¯s answers. ¡°Indeed¡­ I believe you, you¡¯ll never let down the expectations of the ancestors.¡± ¡°Thanks, Eclipse.¡± At that moment, a system message appeared in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Tring ¨C [You have successfully cleared the first test of the Flying Dragon¡¯s Altar.] [Duration: 00:39:27 / 03:00:00] [Clear rating: SSS] [Since you have cleared the quest with SSS, you will be given the right reward.] [Obtained the item ¡®Selamus Skillbook¡¯.] [You have earned fame of 250,000.] As expected to the clearance rating of the quest came out with a MAX, and Ian¡¯s mouth turned to a smile. The fame too was huge, but the obtained item provided brought Ian way too much satisfaction. The Selamus Vision Skillbook was an item that had already been obtained from the previous quests. The item that the skill book had given to Ian was a legendary combat skill of ¡®Selamus Warrior Will¡¯. But the happiness of Ian couldn¡¯t be continued. [You¡¯ve done more than the needed standard.] [The ancestors of Selamus praised your potential.] [Selamus Tribe (Hidden, Connected) quest evolves to the top tier.] [The quest of ¡®Selamus Tribe¡¯s Absolute¡¯ was created.] Ian¡¯s grinning face immediately hardened. CH 354 [¡®Test of Selamus Tribe (Hidden, Connected)¡¯ quest has been evolved to the top tier.] [The ¡®Selamus Tribe¡¯s Absolute¡¯ quest has been created.] [Due to the evolution of the quest, the reward will also be upgraded.] [The reward, the evolution of ¡®Judgement of the Spirit King¡¯ to ¡®Absolute Judgement of the Spirit King¡¯ was successful.] System messages kept popping up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Though Ian wasn¡¯t aware of it, a golden glow started to engulf Ian. ¡°Surely..!¡± Eclipse¡¯s eyes were shining bright like lanterns. However, Ian was bothered by Eclipe¡¯s gaze. ¡°Ha¡­ Haha. Eclipse, isn¡¯t it possible to change it back to the original mission?¡± However, the quest had already been accepted. Eclipse declined Ian¡¯s desperate request. ¡°What is that supposed to mean, Ian? The task of challenging the Absolute isn¡¯t given to anyone. So far, in the history of the Selamus Tribe, there was only one person who managed to become the Absolute.¡± ¡°Then¡­ then can you postpone it for a few days¡­?¡± ¡°Ask something doable! Do you think that you can insult such a glorious test like this? There¡¯s no time now, get moving.¡± ¡°Huh.¡± Ian walked behind Eclipse. Once the quest was triggered, it was depressing to give it up and walk away. ¡®The harder it is, the bigger the reward will be¡­¡¯ The problem was that there was only one day left before the war. It was natural for the quest to turn difficult, and it was totally natural for a quest to take longer. If that happened, he wouldn¡¯t be able to enter the war. The war wasn¡¯t something that Ian could miss. ¡®Okay, I¡¯ll do as much as I can. If it doesn¡¯t then I¡¯ll give up on the quest and go to the war.¡¯ He walked a little bit towards Eclipse. There was a huge magic circle on the opposite side of the stairs that Ian climbed to. Eclipse started to walk towards the magic circle¡¯s direction, and Ian decided to follow. A white light appeared from the magic circle and the two of them who entered it disappeared. * * * Tring ¨C [You have entered the ¡®Sky Temple¡¯] Their darkened vision turned bright right away, and the sky unfolded in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. In the center of the sky, a long line of white light was shining. Ian¡¯s gaze moved to the end of the path. ¡®What? What kind of temple looks like this¡­?¡¯ It was too far to see all its details, but the towering structure was amazing. However, something else was passed through Ian¡¯s mind. ¡®Wait¡­ I don¡¯t think the discovery message appeared¡­?¡¯ All the maps in Kailan would bring up a notification whenever they were found for the first time. The first discovery message that Ian was supposed to see didn¡¯t appear. Which meant, that there was someone else who had been there before Ian. Ian was following Eclipse and asked. ¡°Eclipse, Where are we?¡± Eclipse replied. ¡°This is the place where eight thousand desert tribes from thousands of years ago worshipped the Shikaru Continent. It is called the ¡®Sky Temple ¡®.¡± Ian¡¯s eyes were bright. ¡®Oh¡­? Then, does it mean that there are plenty of ways to come here apart from the Selamus Tribe quest?¡¯ That made Ian understand the reason why he didn¡¯t get the first discovery message and rewards. There could have been numerous users who would¡¯ve cleared the quests through the thousand of desert tribes and gotten the ¡®Absolute quest of the Tribe¡¯. Given the time that Ian had delayed the quest, it was a possible scenario. ¡®Who? Shakran? Remir? Some 3rd person whom I don¡¯t know?¡¯ There were a lot of users who weren¡¯t still known as of the moment in Kailan. Even after joining the game late, they managed to enter the top 100 rankings. So there was a possibility that Ian didn¡¯t know. ¡°This is fun¡­¡± While Ian was thinking and thinking, both of them reached the end of the path. The end of the road had a huge structure that was similar to that of a Coliseum, and the center of the structure had a bizarre giant statue. On the outskirts were eight different statues with each having a different appearance and were the same distance apart from each other. Anyone could guess what those statues were even with just one look. They were the Eight Absolutes of the Eclipse. However, Ian had no idea of guessing who that giant statue in the middle was. It was because its appearance was completely different from the giants that were in the Central Continent. In a nutshell, was it like a robot? Which made Ian ask. ¡°Eclipse, who is that giant?¡± Eclipse briefly replied. ¡°The source of destruction of our desert tribes.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°The ancient civilization was that of giants.¡± ¡°A mechanical civilization¡­?¡± Ian swallowed dry spit. It was because the quest seemed to be getting way more complicated. Ian¡¯s curiosity didn¡¯t die down. Eclipse who was walking at the front suddenly knelt before it. ¡°Eos, the Absolute of Selamus, I have brought you the best Selamus warrior.¡± Ian was watching from the back with curiosity, once Eclipse was done talking, a light started to form in it. Woong-! And from somewhere, a pleasing voice could be heard. [You have done well Eclipse. Is this guy the one called ¡®Ian¡¯?] ¡°Yes, Eos.¡± [I¡¯ve waited for a long time. If he doesn¡¯t meet my expectations, then I¡¯ll be disappointed.] ¡°Don¡¯t worry. It is absolute. He is surely someone who will follow Eos.¡± [Hmm, with those words, I have high hopes from him.] Ian who was listening to the conversation of those two could feel cold sweat running all over his body. ¡®No, why is that old man saying useless things now?¡¯ It was because as his affinity with Eclipse increased, the quests seemed to get much tougher. However, Ian wasn¡¯t worried about that, he was listening intently to the one called ¡®Eos¡¯ speak. Whenever the voice came, the statue emitted a white light. Ian was called by Eos. [The Selamus warrior. Come closer.] Ian who was thinking about something else was surprised by Eos sudden call and approached him. Ian, who knew his name was Eos, bowed his head and replied. ¡°Did you call, Eos?¡± [Yes, Are you Ian?] ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± [I have been hearing your name for a long time.] ¡°My¡­ my name¡­?¡± [Yes. The first warrior of Selamus who passed the test with an S rank.] ¡°Ah, yes.¡± But at that moment, his body moved by itself without him being aware. The AI had taken control of Ian¡¯s character. ¡®It has been a long time since this last happened.¡¯ Ian was able to progress quickly into the quest because of it. Eos continued with what he was saying. [You have come later than what I had expected, but your capacity at the Dragon¡¯s Altar made me approve of you.] ¡°Thank you, Eos.¡± [But, don¡¯t let me down from now on.] ¡°I won¡¯t.¡± [Good. You make my heart happy.] After a brief moment. Eos began to talk, along with a system window. [I welcome you into the gateway of Sky.] ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Selamus Tribe Absolute V (Hidden, connected) ¨C Breakthrough the Gate of Sky The Absolute of the Selamus Tribe, named ¡®Eos¡¯, one of the seven ancient desert heroes. To be accepted by Eos, One needs to be an Absolute of Selamus Tribe first. Breakthrough the gates of the Sky¡ªthe last five gates of the desert¡ªto become an Absolute. You¡¯ve accomplished the first Gateway, ¡®Breaking through the Flying Dragon¡¯s Tower¡¯ with commendable standards, and hence you managed to skip the gates and arrive at the last gate. You have to break through one last gate before you turn into an Absolute. If you manage to win over three or more of the eight Absolute appearances at the Gateway of Sky, then you will succeed and become the Absolute of the Desert Tribe. Quest Difficulty: SSS Quest Condition: S-rated Warrior recognized by Eclipse. A Level 200 or higher summoner user. A user who successfully managed to clear 4 gates of the Selamus Tribes. Time Limit: None Reward ¨C ¡®The Judgement of the Spirit King¡¯ with Absolute. ¡®Magic Summon of the Spirit King¡¯. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C All thanks to that waste of time that just happened, Ian hurriedly read the quest window in anticipation and was surprised. ¡®What? I skipped three steps of the linkage quests?¡¯ The quest for the Selamus Tribe, no one knew that there was a linked quest in the first place which made him surprised. ¡®First time I¡¯ve seen things like this¡­¡¯ In fact, Ian wasn¡¯t sure if he had even crossed the first gate, he thought that there were three gates in total. When clearing the second or third gate, it was normal for the quest to end with the reward being given. However, from the ¡®Selamus Tribe¡¯s Absolute¡¯ quest, all the process had been omitted. All this happened because of Ian, who finished a 3-hour limit quest within 30 minutes. Ian was contemplating the contents of the quest. A portal with white light was created in front of the bronze statue of Eos. Woong- ! And with that, Ian¡¯s AI asked Ian. ¡°Of the eight, is Eos included too?¡± [Yes.] ¡°How can I dare and wield a weapon against Eos?¡± [It is alright. The men at the gate are illusions that contain part of our power¡­] ¡°I understand.¡± [Now move inside the portal and take the final test.] At that moment, Ian noticed that the AI¡¯s control disappeared. Ian stepped towards the portal without hesitation, and from there Eos¡¯ voice couldn¡¯t be heard anymore. However, he suddenly stopped after reaching the portal. He had something he wanted to ask Eos. ¡°Eos, can I ask something?¡± [Speak.] ¡°Is there someone who had challenged you before?¡± A bright light came out from Eos¡¯ statue after hearing Ian¡¯s question. Ian had a hunch. ¡®Wha¡­ what is it? Did I ask the right question?¡¯ Eos started to speak again. [Yes. Before you, there have been two challengers from the tribe, and there were five challengers who stood in front of the gate.] Ian was astonished. ¡®So, there were a total of seven users who came here?¡¯ Ian asked again. ¡°Then, can I ask about the two who crossed the gate?¡± Eos responded with his kind voice. [Since they are the descendants of other Tribes, I don¡¯t know much.] Eos paused for a moment then continued. [However, the descendant of the first challenger was the ¡®warrior¡¯ Milakus who defeated 4 out of the 7 Absolute, and the third challenger¡ªa priest¡ªsucceeded as a descendant of Cyril against 5 Absolute.] ¡°I see.¡± [I hope¡­ I hope that you will demonstrate superior capabilities than them.] Ian looked at the system message that came up after confirming his hunch. Tring ¨C [Variable actions changed the quest condition.] [The Quest success condition changed from three to five successes.] ¡°Heu¡­¡± Ian couldn¡¯t help but sigh. CH 355 The fight with the Eight Absolutes. The outline of the quest was quite clear now. Although Ian¡¯s curiosity raised the difficulty of the quest a little more, it wasn¡¯t a quest that would drag on. Once the battle with the Eight Absolutes was done, the quest would end. ¡®Okay then, the eight battles will all be over by today. I can join the war after I finish this quest.¡¯ That was all Ian needed to do. The difficulty of the quest was slightly increased since he asked for information about the users. Woong-! [After 10 seconds, the first opponent will appear.] [Prepare for battle.] [The first Absolute of the Desert Tribe, ¡®Kaizek¡¯ of the Magellan Tribe.] After seeing the message, Ian took a deep breath and waited for his opponent to appear. There wasn¡¯t much to prepare for the battle. The only weapon that he could use was the ¡®Judgement of the Spirit King¡¯ and the only skill that he could use was the ¡®Selamus Warrior¡¯. ¡®By the way, the name Magellan sounds a bit familiar¡­¡¯ Ian was able to realize why the name Magellan was so familiar. Magellan was the desert tribe that the DarkRuna guild was associated with during their first arrival on the Central Continent. The Magellan was the only desert tribe that remained so far. ¡®The Absolute of the Magellan Tribe¡­ its class would likely be a warrior or an assassin.¡¯ Ian tackled the Magellan tribe countless times, which was why he could make a rough guess about the opponent. After a while. A white light appeared, and a typical assassin came out as Ian¡¯s opponent. [Selamus Warrior, Prove your worth to me!] Woong ¨C A voice resonated within the white fog that was spreading into the surrounding. Ian nervously looked at the movements of his opponent. ¡®Assassin. The toughest class right in the beginning.¡¯ When he was with Kaka, there was no reason to fear the assassin class. With Kaka¡¯s inherent abilities, even the most powerful of the assassins were useless. But now, Ian didn¡¯t have Kaka, so there was no way he could relax. ¡®My opponent¡¯s level and basic information are all hidden. Should I test the waters a little bit first?¡¯ Whilst Ian was thinking, his opponent, the assassin quickly ran towards Ian. Thwatt ¨C ! Ian¡¯s spear and Kaizec¡¯s swords clashed. Their confrontation made Ian smile. ¡®What is this? This guy is weaker than I imagined.¡¯ It was because the power that he felt from Kaizec¡¯s swords when it came in contact with his spear was weaker than he expected. That increased Ian¡¯s confidence by a lot, making him wield his spear with pride. Kkang- Phuk-! Ian¡¯s spear went through his opponent¡¯s sword and was able to hit Kaizec¡¯s shoulder. Unless there was a difference in skill, there was no way Ian¡ªeven after having the range advantage because of his spear¡ªcould¡¯ve managed to hit an assassin with two swords. The moment Kaizec¡¯s shoulder was pierced with Ian¡¯s spear, he disappeared like a mirage. Phat-! However, Ian didn¡¯t panic. Since his opponent was an assassin, he knew the possible tricks his opponent could do. ¡®Back¡­!¡¯ The skills that Kaizec used, was a class that Ian knew well about. It was one of the hidden skills that many assassins have, space. It was a skill that allowed one to move to their desired location in a short distance if activated at the moment of receiving damage. It was a technique that was preferred by assassins who prefer a technical battle style. Since the skill¡¯s cooldown time was short and the consumption value was small, it was possible to use it constantly if the user had great control. However, there was one flaw to this skill. If the opponent had a good visual acuity, their position could be grasped. As soon as the skill was activated, the after image of the one who used the skill would shake. That was the skill¡¯s biggest flaw. Srrrk-! When Ian felt the space distort, he turned the spear and pulled it up. He turned around and strongly swung his spear. The location where Kaizec moved was right behind Ian, and Ian just pushed his spear by predicting accurately where his opponent would show up. It was a move that couldn¡¯t be stopped. Nor could it be avoided. Kwang-! [Fatal damage was done to the Desert Absolute Kaizec.] [Kaizec¡¯s vitality has been reduced by 275090.] Being struck by the spear, Kaizec bounced onto the floor. What made that happen was Ian¡¯s precise blow. Yet he didn¡¯t leave Ian. Thwatt ¨C Ian began to move around along with Kaizec. He thought that if he could keep hitting his opponent then, he could win. However, Kaizec wasn¡¯t that easy to deal with. Kaizec, who regained his balance, just as his name¡ªAbsolute¡ªimplies, quickly responded by lunging at Ian with his swords. Ian was a little flustered, but he remained calm and held onto his spear. He used the lower part of his spear to block Kaizec¡¯s attacks. When Kaizec¡¯s sword met with Ian¡¯s spear, it made a blunt sound. The distance between them opened up instantly. Kaizec, who felt that his attacks were unsuccessful, kept moving. They were getting close to each other. The two of them gazed at each other and checked the distance between them. Kaizec suddenly decided to speak. [Great. A warrior who can challenge the Absolute.] Ian looked down and answered him. ¡°Thank you for your kind words.¡± Kaizec continued. [By the way, did you know that the Absolute of the Selamus has never appeared after Eos?] Kaizec¡¯s question made Ian think for a moment. He remembered what he heard from Eclipse. ¡°That¡¯s right. I heard that there was only one Absolute in the Selamus Tribe till now.¡± [Then, did you know that there were way too many Absolutes for the other tribes? Even our Magellan Tribe produced around 5 Absolute after me.] ¡°Ah, That was something I wasn¡¯t aware of.¡± [Other tribes, except the Selamus had a minimum of two Absolutes so far. Ah, the descendant of Seril came not long ago.] Ian started to listen closely to what Kaizec was trying to say. He didn¡¯t think that his opponent would attack in the middle of a conversation, but he was prepared if that would happen. [Why do you think is the reason there hasn¡¯t been any Absolute for the Selamus till now?] ¡°I¡¯m not sure.¡± [The reason is simple. For a long time the summoners have been training to develop their combat capabilities through their pets which get sealed rather than developing their own combat abilities.] ¡°Aha¡­¡± [As a result, the arrival of the second Absolute of Selamus was much later than the tribe of Illuosin, a tribe of priests. The gateway of Sky is the only gate through which you must pass through.] ¡°In the end, this game is against summoners, isn¡¯t it?¡± [Nothing of that sort. A wizard or priest isn¡¯t much different than a summoner. They also get skills sealed in the gate. The warrior and knight classes are advantageous classes, but it would be wrong to say that summoners are the most unfavoured.] ¡°Hearing that makes sense.¡± Ian wondered what Kaizec wanted to talk about. After a moment, Kaizec spoke again. [But you seem different.] ¡°Wha.. what was it?¡± [You are better than any summoner who has ever come through the gate.] Kaizec held his swords and made a stance. ¡°¡­?¡± Ian was looking closely, waiting for Kaizec to speak. [Normally, I don¡¯t do this¡­ but I will do my best. Even if you don¡¯t win, you¡¯ll still be able to win the next three battles with your skills.] Hrrr-! A black thing spread from Kaizec¡¯s entire body. He picked up his swords hanging on his back instead of his daggers. He put his daggers onto his waist. Ian spoke while pouting. ¡°Ah, can¡¯t you just fight normally?¡± Kaizec smiled and said. Not the voice from the air, but the voice from his mouth could be heard. ¡°I can¡¯t do that. I just met an opponent who managed to bring out the long lost passion inside my heart. But it won¡¯t be the first for you.¡± Chuk- Chuk ¨C Kaizec¡¯s demeanor changed. He now started approaching Ian and said. ¡°I don¡¯t think it will, but if you win, I¡¯ll give you a very reasonable reward.¡± Kaizec started to wield his black swords. * * * Bae Cheol-Hoon, an ordinary 30-year-old worker, was rushing to work after taking his meds. Bae Cheol-Hoon was sitting on the subway chair with stooping shoulders while tapping onto his phone. However, his expression was kind of revitalizing. ¡°Huh, these are the only ones?¡± He was swiping his phone¡¯s screen up and down. What appeared on his smartphone was ¡®Betting Kailan¡¯. It was kind of a Sports app in a way for the large scale war that was happening in Kailan. Bae Cheol-Hoon recently made a lot in Betting Kailan. The maximum amount of bet was 3000,000 won, and the amount he earned in the last two weeks was around 8 million won. It was due to the defeat of the high ranked guilds that he succeeded ¡®Keu, thanks to Lotus Guild, I¡¯m now a salary picker!¡¯ In fact, he was never earning that much in betting. Due to his personality, he liked to choose between those whom he liked and even those whom he didn¡¯t. It was the same for this bets too. The Lotus Guild¡¯s Guild Wars attracted the attention of many users. Cheol-Hoon betted on Lotus Guild till their 7th consecutive win. On their 6th war, he was a bit tiled to support the opponent, but he eventually decided to walk along with Lotus and it was a huge win. Today was the day for betting on the 8th war that would be held tomorrow. He didn¡¯t hesitate to bet 300,000 cash on Lotus today as well. It was around 15 times the dividend, and the users¡¯ opinion didn¡¯t seem so good. However, he still decided to go with Lotus. ¡®What the hell? Did anyone guess that Lotus would win the 7th and 6th war?¡¯ On the 5th war, the thought of Lotus winning seemed hard for anyone to accept. There wasn¡¯t any disdain towards Lotus, it was just that most of their troops were consumed in the war. Even in the current war, there was a shortage of troops inside the Lotus Guild, so the dividend went up. ¡®Yeah, this is what has happened. I¡¯ll place the bets carefully on a tie from 8th to 12th.¡¯ He stopped momentarily and went to another window. He placed all his bets on Lotus. There wasn¡¯t any basis on why he did it. If he would bet like that, there was going to be a chance that not even a single penny would come back to him, but he would earn a lot if he wins. ¡°Keu, yeah! This should be enough!¡± He put back his smartphone into his pocket. If he wins, then he would earn a huge amount with his 300,000 won. There was no ground for it, but for some reason, the god of gambling seemed to be helping him. CH 356 ¡°Huhu, Huhu.¡± At the end of the spear¡ªa dark smoke was falling. Just a while ago, the Absolute of the Desert Tribe ¡®Syaelo¡¯ flames were just broken successfully. [Indeed¡­ you are amazing. My test is still here.] The flames that were rising from the floor were extinguished and the voice echoed. Ian turned his gaze towards the wizard in the air and responded, ¡°Thank you, Syaelo.¡± ¡°I was excited since you hadn¡¯t lost even a single battle before this¡­ but, it was more than what I had expected. I enjoyed doing this after a long time.¡± ¡°It isn¡¯t like that. Kaizec¡­¡± ¡°Ah, there it is. Kaizec isn¡¯t someone that can be hit off. Kaizec managed to do it because he had an incarnated body, but the truth is that you have passed all the tests.¡± And finally, Ian managed to complete all the tests with the Absolute of the Desert tribes. And the result was 6 wins, 1 draw, and 1 loss. The rule of the Gate was¡ª if the vitality dropped below 10%, then it would be considered as a defeat, which had happened in the first battle, the first with Kaizec and the third battle against Eos. In the battle against Eos; both the Absolutes attacked and Ian¡¯s attack reached the opponent at the same time, and both of them were out of the game at the same moment. Though the other battles weren¡¯t so easy, he managed to win them with a great margin. And thanks to it, the result was 6 wins, 1 draw, and 1 loss. ¡®I never thought that summoner would be the hardest to face.¡¯ Ian recalled the battle into his mind, and Syaelo opened her mouth, ¡°Well, congratulations. With this, there will be a new Absolute registered in the SkyHall.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°If you improve¡­ you might turn mightier than Eos¡­¡± Hwrrk-! Speaking what she wanted to say, Syaelo hid her trace after a flame engulfed her. Precisely, it wasn¡¯t her, but her illusion. Ian smiled and grabbed the spear in his right hand, and wiped off the sweat from his forehead. He wasn¡¯t sure how long he had been in there, but he was under the impression that he wasn¡¯t late for the war. ¡®Kay, Finished the quest! I¡¯m going to get busy now.¡¯ Whether Ian¡¯s thoughts were ready or not, system messages started to appear in succession. Tring ¨C [Won the battle against the Absolute ¡®Syaelo¡¯.] [Current record: 6 wins, 1 draw, 1 loss] [Cumulative Points: 768798 (The points are the sum total achieved in all the battles)] [¡®The Selamus Tribe¡¯s Absolute V¡¯ all the quest conditions have been met.] [You have successfully cleared the quest.] While Ian was reading the system messages, a familiar silhouette made out of white light formed in front of him. He was the one who had given Ian this quest. It was Eos. ¡°Amazing, I¡¯m proud of you. Warrior of Selamus.¡± There was excitement in Eos¡¯s face. And that was natural, as the result had been much better than assumed. Even if he lost to Kaizec, it wasn¡¯t something that could be considered as a defeat. Ian smiled and responded, ¡°Thank you, Eos. I¡¯m happy that I could meet your expectations.¡± Eos nodded and responded, ¡°Frankly, I never thought that you would be able to challenge my strength.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Eos nodded while smiling and said, ¡°Yes. None of the challengers who came in here, never even managed to make me sweat.¡± Woong-! The spear which was behind Eos was vibrating vigorously with sounds echoing in the air. That made Ian¡¯s gaze turn towards the spear of Eos. ¡®That spear looks very similar to my Judgement of the Spirit King¡­ something seems familiar.¡¯ Ian looked at Eos as he had something to ask. ¡°But Eos, you weren¡¯t fighting me with your original form. I am happy that I could entertain you.¡± Eos laughed and responded, ¡°That certainly could be true, but you managed to fight even with all your skills sealed. If you would¡¯ve fought against me with all your skills¡­ winning against you with all my power would¡¯ve been a far scenario.¡± At the words from him, Ian put his head down and mumbled to himself. ¡®This NPC sure has good judgment.¡¯ In fact, Eos was perfectly correct. If Ian had all the skills and familiars, then he would have managed to win on the first Absolute Kaizec. Though it would¡¯ve been a bit tough to win. And Eos spoke again, ¡°Okay then, you have passed the Hall of Sky with a perfect record compared with all the contestants from the past, and you have been registered in the Hall of Fame.¡± Eos was done speaking and lifted his hand towards the sky. A light had moved from the sky and fell on his hand, then it moved to the stone pagoda in the center of the square. Tring ¨C [You have been registered in the Hall of Sky.] [Total: 6 wins, 1 draw, 1 loss (Rank 1)] [Cumulative points: 768798 (Rank 1)] [Consolidated Ranking: 1st place] [Since you¡¯ve registered to the 1st rank, you will receive the rewards accordingly.] [On the first Monday of every month, you will earn fame of 200,000.] [The affinity with all the desert tribes has increased by 70.] [You have obtained the legendary items, ¡®Selamus Summoners Skill Book¡¯] Reading the system messages, Ian couldn¡¯t help but smile. It was because of the extra benefits he had been getting. ¡®The Cumulative points, the book¡­ they are still the same as last.¡¯ Ian¡¯s fame points at present were about 20 million. With the ones that were collected so far, it should have 30 million, but since he had items to purchase at the stores for the guild¡ªit was down to 20 million. And this too was an amazing thing. 3 million needed to be upgraded to a Duke, and 5 million needed to upgrade into a Grand Duke. Lastly, he needed 10 million fame points to be a King. And with 20 million fame points, he could be made into a king directly. Well, he can certainly be a king, if certain conditions were met. Nevertheless, such an amount of fame being collected was also a good thing. Though it was needed at the moment, there was a need to have huge fame points for Ian when changing from the Kingdom to an Empire. Ian¡¯s addition to the ¡®Selamus Summoners former office¡¯, was a worthy hidden class. Surely it wouldn¡¯t be better than the taming master, and he didn¡¯t plan on using it for himself, but if he sold it, he could make huge sum over it. ¡®Keu¡­!¡¯ Eos moved towards Ian who was admiring the rewards. ¡°Now you have become the second Absolute of the Selamus Tribe, and you will get blessed for it.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± Ian who didn¡¯t understand it, shut his eyes which made Eos laugh and gestured towards an altar. ¡°Come here.¡± * * * Above the huge altar, there was a magic scroll with mysterious signs written on it. Ian climbed over, following the guidance of Eos. Eos folded his hands and opened his mouth with a husky voice, ¡°God of Selamus! This is the birth of a new Absolute, my God!¡± Woong-! A nerve-wreaking vibration shook the whole altar. And after a while, a pure white light came down from the further high sky. Phut-! And the Judgement of the Spirit King, that was in Ian¡¯s hand flew to the sky! ¡°Uh, uhhu¡­?¡± Confused, Ian looked at the things that happened in front of his eyes¡ªthe spear which was upright in the air turned and rotated slowly. Seeing that, Ian started to get interested. ¡®What? Something related to the Absolute¡­ and upgrade of weapon?¡¯ A bright light started to shiningly pour from the sky, and the Judgement of the Spirit King absorbed all the light into it. And the spear which had been rotating started to emit pure light, and its appearance began to change. ¡°Ah¡­¡± Ian¡¯s mouth spread as wide as it could. That that was because he was wasn¡¯t aware of such a weapon upgrade. The pattern of the spear changed slightly. The shape of the tip was sharper, sharp enough to make Ian hunt more. Ian was feeling frustrated as he quickly wanted to check the information as ¡®Judgement of the Spirit King¡¯ had evolved. ¡®How much damage can be done now? Not just the attack power, but any more new options? What kind of options do I get? Any leadership boosting option? Or a combat attack increase option?!¡¯ While Ian¡¯s imaginations were running wild, the process of evolving the Judgement of the Spirit King¡¯s evolution was done and came back to his hand. Shrrk-! And the systems messages began to pop up after the evolution was done. Tring ¨C [The ¡®Judgement of the Spirit King¡¯ weapon has successfully upgraded into an ¡®Absolute¡¯.] [The damage caused by ¡®Judgement of Spirit King¡¯ has been increased to 30%.] [A soul has been provided to the weapon ¡®Judgement of the Spirit King¡¯ and has become ¡®Ego Weapon¡¯.] [The Ego weapon is a growing weapon, and it grows as you start to gain experience. (The way to gain experience differs from character and familiars)] ¡®I don¡¯t know what it is, but it seems huge?¡¯ And Ian instinctively opened the information of the Judgement of the Spirit King. ¨C ¨C ¨C Judgment of the Spirit King (+20) ¨C Classification ¨C Ego weapon Rank ¨C Myth Transcendence- 4th transcendental Spirit Level ¨C Lv 1 Wearable Limit ¨C Level 300/ Absolute of Selamus ATK ¨C 7098~7819 Spirit Power ¨C 50 The Spirit power has fixed damage, ignores the defense power in attacks. As spirit level rises, the spirit power increases. Durability ¨C 2254/2254 Options ¨C All combat abilities + 450 (+ 300) Leadership + 600 (+ 400) Affinity + 450 (+ 300) Increases the vitality of all the summoned monsters by 15% and the attack power by 35%. * Response When the fatal damage is done to the enemy, a chance to trigger a unique ability of the summoned monster with a 20% chance will be triggered. (An ability based on combat cannot be triggered.) * Judgment¡¯s lightning You can summon the Judgment¡¯s Lightning with a 10% chance to attack. The ¡®Judgment¡¯s Lightning¡¯ will increase the damage done higher than the ¡®Elemental Magic¡¯, and deals 50% of damage to the enemies within the radius of 5m, based on the point where the lightning is initiated. [Transcendental Option: when avoiding the attack of an enemy, it deals 15% chance to deal 30% of the damage and 30% chance to regain 10% of your vitality.] The item belongs to the user ¡®Ian¡¯. It can¡¯t be transferred or sold to another user, and wouldn¡¯t drop even if the character dies. It is the weapon of the Spirit King who defended the ancient Selamus tribe. It is the most precious and preferred weapon of all the weapons of the Spirit King. CH 357 ¡°Master! Did you finally decide to enter the battle?¡± ¡°Yes, one week later. We too will begin the war of the guilds.¡± The Guild Master of Titan Guild, Shakran and three warrior class users of the guild were talking. After he returned from his private quest which lasted for a month, Titan Guild was feeling energized. His presence itself was a great strength, but there was another huge reason for it. Finally, Shakran was ready to enter the guild war that had been delayed! Frankly, the members of the Titan Guild had been thirsty for action. And the reason was simple. Recently, as the Lotus Guild began to make its huge presence known through the Guild Wars, the members of Titan Guild were turning restless. The promotions of the Lotus Guild, which had never entered the top 10 ranked guilds stimulated the fighting spirit of the Titan Guild. The normal guild members thinking that the Lotus Guild wouldn¡¯t come near them were much more interested in the Guild Wars. Well even in the Titan Guild, the leaders never thought of it like that. In particular, Shakran had never underestimated the Lotus Guild. ¡®We maybe a little late in trying to proclaim the Kingdom¡­ but we need to make an Empire faster than the Lotus.¡¯ Though astonishing, Irahan was still keeping an eye on the Lotus Guild, which was still in the 7th place of the guild¡¯s ranking after pushing off all the strong guilds, it had the power to go beyond the Kingdom and to establish their Empire. And at last, he was always keeping in mind to wait for the day when he would have a war in the Lotus Empire. ¡®I don¡¯t know when the war between the Empires will be opened, but until then I will garner overwhelming strength.¡¯ At the current situation, there was a peace truce between Luspel and Kaimon. As the dimensional war had begun, all the five Gods blocked of the war between the Empires by establishing trust. It was the God¡¯s words, that when facing the enemy like the ¡®devils¡¯, personal gains should be kept aside for the collective survival. It was a truce that couldn¡¯t be broken off so easily, however, Irahan thought that the truce wouldn¡¯t last for long. It was thought that Kailan had blocked the path between the humans and the Asmodians. But now that the threat from the Asmodians had been cleared, and at some point, the trust between the humans would change. ¡®And then¡­ our Titan Guild will swallow all of the empires and unify the continent of Kailan!¡¯ Shakran¡¯s ambition was burning hot. A voice of a man broke of Shakran¡¯s thoughts. He was the sub-guild master of the Titan Guild, the Knight Ceilron. ¡°Master, I have come back after receiving the ¡®Yakuma¡¯s Judgement Sword¡¯ as you have asked.¡± Shakran nodded his head and accepted the sword from Ceilron. ¡°You worked hard, Ceilron.¡± ¡°Not at all master. Thankfully, I got it much cheaper than I thought.¡± ¡°How much did you get it for?¡± ¡°It was around 7 million gold.¡± ¡°Ohh, that is surely cheap. I¡¯ll deposit the money to you immediately.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± The seven million gold wasn¡¯t less money. Rather, it was money with which any decent weapon could be purchased. Even though the price of gold in Kailan had fallen down, the current exchange rate was still around 94.5 million won. The exchange which had fallen to 1.1, had recently risen to 1.35. ¡®Hmm, though it is from the legendary¡­ it is different from the ones that the dwarfs made.¡¯ Shakran admired the appearance of the sword and opened the information of the item with excitement. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Yakuma¡¯s Judgement Sword ¨C Classification ¨C Sword Rank ¨C Legendary Wearable Limit ¨C Level 297 ATK ¨C 2025-2189 Durability ¨C 1850/1850 Option ¨C All combat abilities +100 Critical Hit Rate ¨C +15% Critical Damage + 75% Strength + 150 Increases the power of all the attacking skills by 30% of the warrior classes only. * Yakuma¡¯s Greed The nature of Yakuma who craves for blood. If damage is done for the enemies, you will have 10% of the chance to deal with 250% of additional damage, and 50% of damage will be avoided, converting it into recovery. (Omitted) ¨C It is a long sword made with the bones of Yakumo, the master of Greed from the ancient myths. ¨C It is a sword that was born from the hands of the Dwarves¡¯ blacksmith with great experience and potential. ¨C Has intense habits. ¨C ¨C ¨C Though he hadn¡¯t said to anyone, Shakran had found a small dwarf village in the quest. And that too was the first discovery of Kailan! And while exploring the Devildom, the dwarfs accidentally came across the long bones of Yakuma and made the product. Shakran swallowed his spit. ¡°Hoo¡­! More than 2000 basic damage points¡­?!¡± Having checked the information window, Shakran was amazed at the performance of the sword, as it had been better than expected. It had attributed to more than 10% of the attack from all the currently existing swords. ¡°It¡¯s better than the blood swords¡­?¡± Shakran was a warrior who used double swords. He had sought after the Yakuma¡¯s sword as he felt that one of the two swords that he possessed had fallen down in terms of comparison. Shakran was excited and started to calculate. ¡®Let¡¯s see¡­ let¡¯s put the numbers in and do the calculation. Attack power is 2025 ¨C 2189¡­¡¯ Shakran was going to use the Yakuma¡¯s sword with the Bloodlust sword and was the 15th strongest, it was the 3rd transcendental weapon. The bloodlust swords attack power was about 4700 ¨C 4950. Shakran was planning to take the Yakuma¡¯s Judgement Sword to the 15th, just like the Bloodlust before using it on the battlefield. And his mouth went wide. ¡®5063~5473¡­? It¡¯s really huge!¡¯ When Shakran purchased the bloodlust sword, the highest price that it was selling for was 120 million gold. And among the legendary items, it was tough to find the items that weren¡¯t attributed to an account, as the price was expensive, but it also made sense that the performance of the sword could be paid with huge amounts. He didn¡¯t know that the sword made by the dwarfs, which was just around 7 million would provide much stronger performance that the sword he had purchased with a higher price. Shakran compared the Yakuma¡¯s sword and decided that it would be better to give 90% of the Bloodlust to the new one. Shakran clenched his fists. ¡®Done¡­! I don¡¯t need to worry about weapons for a while now!¡¯ Although the level limit was high, fortunately, it was only a rise of 2 levels. Shakran¡¯s enthusiasm was burning high. ¡®I will be able to raise the level in a week, so I¡¯ll be able to start wearing this sword before the Guild Wars. Huhu¡­ could there be another weapon as strong as this?¡¯ And Ian did have a weapon that was 1.5 times stronger than Yakuma¡¯s Sword, but Shakran couldn¡¯t imagine till that extent. 1.5 times difference between a legendary and myth class¡ªthe difference itself was so huge to even assume. Srrr- Shakran who was looking at the Yakuma¡¯s sword got up from his seat. He just wanted to raise the level quickly and then swing it at the monsters. And at the same time. There was someone else who had the same idea. * * * ¡°Damn¡­! The level limit is still 1 lower¡­!¡± A guy was grumbling on top of a griffin. His identity was Ian. ¡°No, it would¡¯ve been nice if the war was three days later!¡± The reason Ian was grumbling wasn¡¯t so different. The main weapon he had been using until now had been upgraded. And he successfully managed to clear the test of Selamus which he had delayed till now, and the rewards were tremendous. As a part of it, he obtained the weapon for the destruction of space, but he was unable to wear it due to the lack of level. That was precisely due to the lack of one level. Because of that, he couldn¡¯t use the Judgement of Spirit King in the war, so the loss of power in the war was very large. ¡®Even if used right away, it still has a tremendous benefit¡­¡¯ When the performance of the Judgement of the Spirit King came to mind, Ian laughed without knowing. It was originally known that the weapon would evolve into a myth class, but he couldn¡¯t imagine that the weapon would be so powerful after getting into a myth class. The weapon had always been great with its damage, but it¡¯s strongly suitable for dishing out an attack, which was increased further. The spirit power, which caused fixed damage would get stronger as the level of the weapon grows. The development could be seen by raising the level, but it would greatly help if the spirit power could be raised to 1000 or so. Especially when one was dealing with tankers and knights who had high defense power, this would do the best. But so far, he thought that he couldn¡¯t use the Judgement of Spirit King in the current war. ¡°Uh, I¡¯ve been very lazy all this while. After the war, I need to hunt the monsters much harder!¡± If Hoonie and Canoel heard this, they would be screaming at it! The feathers of Pin while flying were trembling, but Ian didn¡¯t notice it. And, Ian who would be hunting for a while with the presence of the retainer back to him, Ian just prompted Pin. ¡°Pin-ah, let¡¯s move fast. There are only 10 minutes left for us to be at the Manor.¡± Grrrk- Grrrrrk-! With that Pin started to flutter his wings and began to accelerate the speed. The destination was at the east of the Shikar Desert. And after a while, the 9th war of the Lotus Guild which would be at the Sergus Manor would begin. * * * ¨C Guys, is Ian going to appear today? ¨C I don¡¯t know. There are only 2 minutes till the start of the war, but I don¡¯t see him yet¡­ maybe not? ¨C Oh, this is huge. I was tilted towards the Lotus, Keke. ¨C Honey, Lotus has managed to win well without Ian. It is fine to worry. ¨C I¡¯m worried about it too. The Lotus had to work very hard to win the 8th one too, it was facing troubles. So some of the experts are predicting the loss of Lotus. ¨C Well, I could only see 7 Wyvern Knights in the last guild war, so it is definitely a lost match. ¨C Uh¡­ the last time I saw the world message, I thought that Ian would be back after the quest. Fulious Guild, the 6th ranked guild of the Kailan. And the undefeated Lotus Guild was in the 8th consecutive win and went up to 7th ranking from 11 at once. Numerous users were interested in the Guild Wars, and the amount of various communities was at a peak in the official page, as the Guild transition had begun. On top of that, there was a speculation that Ian would join, so the interest was much greater. And most didn¡¯t want Ian to appear. ¨C Oh please! I hope that god sends Ian over only for today! ¨C Sir, wake up. Only 40 seconds are left. On the main page of Kailan official community, there was a link to the war, where real-time chatting was possible alongside the video. And right then. ¨C Oh? It¡¯s Ian! ¨C Oh, really? Where, where!? ¨C There in the sky! A griffin is flying there, right? ¨C Pin! It¡¯s Pin! Pin! The fan club members of the Ian saw Pin before anyone else, and the chat went crazy with that sight. ¨C Wow! Do you think that this will be dramatic again? ¨C Keu, take the shot. Ian! The silhouette of Pin flying started to get closer gradually. Swoosh-! A shadow jumped onto the floor as Pin descended, a sharp yet distinct noise followed. Thatt-! Ian landed lightly on the Lotus Guild¡¯s camp and stretched out his hands towards the sky, and Pin sat beside him. And from the crowds that were there, a tremendous cry came out. Woah-!! Ian stroked Pin¡¯s head and then approached Herz who was looking at him. Chuk- Chuk- And laughed. ¡°Then, shall we start?¡± CH 358 The Selkas Manor. Yu Shin, the Guild master of Fulliso was preparing for their defense. He was confused since Ian made an appearance at Lotus¡¯ side. ¡®Hu, I thought winning the war wouldn¡¯t be that hard, but Ian made it in the end.¡¯ Yu Shin was ranked fourth in the warrior class¡¯ rankings. He was a unique user since he used knuckles as his main weapon. His class was whopping the asses of three-tiered martial arts class. In the entirety of Kailan, Yu Shin was the only one who used knuckles as his main weapon for that class, and it was very powerful. Martial arts were almost connected to all of this class¡¯ skills, but it wasn¡¯t easy to control. It featured a very high destructive power whenever this particular class¡¯ skills hit its opponents perfectly. Even though he was associated with such a class, Yu Shin had superb control, and his ability to grasp the control abilities of other users was commendable. Ian was one of the few people he recognized as worthy. ¡®I don¡¯t know much, but he thinks he is strong with that fraudulent weapon of his¡­¡¯ Yu Shin rose from his seat and spoke. ¡°How much time do we have before the battle begins?¡± ¡°The entrance to the war had been closed just a while back¡­ we have around 2 minutes left, master.¡± ¡°Is that so. Has the defense wall that I strategized been built in the front?¡± ¡°Yes, master.¡± ¡°And¡­¡± He took some time to speak. ¡°Aspel and Hamon let me take them.¡± ¡°Huh? But why them¡­?¡± Yu Shin had a firm expression when he responded. ¡°With those two, I¡¯ll assassinate Ian first.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°If we manage to get our hands on Ian, we¡¯ll win for sure.¡± * * * Ian finally managed to join the war and finally checked into the role. Their arrangement was originally going to be the same¡ªIan taking command of the battle¡ªbut since he was late, Fiolan took the position as his replacement. It would get confusing if Ian took over the command in the last minute. Ian¡¯s new role was to remove or mark the main users of the enemy camp. ¡°Hmm, Warrior Yu Shin, heard of him. He is the elder of Fullios Guild?¡± Herz nodded while answering Ian¡¯s question. ¡°Right. Among the ten strongest ones there, he is considered to be the most dangerous one.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°He was late for 6 months, but he still managed to form Fullios guild all by himself. His control can be compared to Shakran and more than anything else, he prefers a more strategic play.¡± ¡°He started earlier than me.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Herz who forgot what he was about to say got up and explained about the others after Ian interrupted him. He told them about their ID and class. He also explained their characteristics briefly to Ian since he had a good memory. He had already met Herz and Fiolan a few days ago. ¡°I know that you¡¯re strong but not the kind of person who underestimates your opponents, Jinsung-ah.¡± Ian nodded and responded. ¡°I¡¯m never careless even if I¡¯m just trying to catch a single goblin.¡± ¡°Okay, do what you do best then¡­¡± ¡°If I take down those ten, you¡¯ll take care of the others?¡± ¡°No need to take care of those ten. The odds will be on our side if you take down at least 3, 4 or 5 of them.¡± Ian shook his head which made Herz spoke once again. ¡°You can even deal with rankers if you want. How does that sound?¡± Ian, if he was in a normal state, would¡¯ve reflexively asked a question, but he was deep in his thoughts right now. ¡®I¡¯m not sure if I can use the Judgement of the Spirit King right now¡­ and this is not a situation where I can use a sub-weapon.¡¯ Ian had no choice but to use the Judgement of the Spirit King, which made him curse. ¡°Sh*t.¡± He asked for someone without hesitation. ¡°Hoonie, give me Hoonie.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­? Hoonie?¡± Herz knew very well how powerful Hoonie was. Though he didn¡¯t know as much as Ian did, he was able to get a good idea while hunting with him. However, Ian¡¯s choice still didn¡¯t make sense to him. ¡°Why? Even if Hoonie is strong, isn¡¯t it better to be in the rear and just deal damage than to move with you since he¡¯s a warlock? The assassination factor isn¡¯t much¡­¡± Ian cut Herz off. ¡°Assassination? Are summoner assassins?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± He smiled and spoke again. ¡°Trust me and give me Hoonie.¡± * * * [The war will begin 20 seconds from now. We hope that the participants from both camps will be done with their preparations by then¡­] There was a magnificent Manor in the middle of the wide desert. On the clouds above, a large number of users were seated watching the battle from up top. It was an intuition system that was introduced by Kailan just recently. It was interesting to see the war through a screen, but it couldn¡¯t be compared to seeing it live, which was why users were filling up for it. [15¡­ 14¡­ 13¡­] As the countdown came, the shouts of users got louder. ¡°Woahhh! Lotus, win it today too!¡± ¡°Woah! Ian!¡± ¡°Fiolan, I love you!¡± The users behind the Lotus Guild were all fans of the Lotus Guild. Almost all of the people in the crowd were cheering for Lotus. Ian moved to the floor of the battle along with the cheers that were for him; Hoonie then followed. ¡°Hyung, are we moving out?¡± ¡°Yep.¡± ¡°Herz hyung said that it was for assassination. Wouldn¡¯t it be better to hide in the rear when the battle begins if we¡¯re going to assassinate someone?¡± Ian laughed and looked at the back. ¡°Assassination means to kill secretly.¡± ¡°Right?¡± ¡°But there are so many spectators watching me, will that be possible? Nor do I have the skills for it.¡± ¡°well, that¡¯s true.¡± Ian¡¯s words seemed prudish, but that was a fact which couldn¡¯t be denied. Ian¡¯s self-awareness was so high since he had watched numerous users who were intently watching his battle from the sidelines. While the system of Kailan prevented any influence on the battlefield from the stands, the sound coming from spectators was an exception. It was because the executives of Kailan wanted to make the contents like the E-Sports, which was why the cheering noise could be heard on the battlefield. All the attention was on Ian, so Ian chose to not move in secret. ¡°Anyway, my job is to get all 10 of them, right?¡± ¡°Yeap.¡± With a creepy smile Ian called over Hoonie. ¡°Hoonie-ah.¡± ¡°Yeah¡­?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s show them the power of Fusion Class.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°If I join my power with the strongest Black Magician on the Universe, then wouldn¡¯t we be able to sweep away the guild?¡± ¡°Strongest in the Universe¡­!¡± Woo Woong ¨C ! Black mana started to dance around Hoonie¡¯s body. Since Hoonie¡¯s emotions were riled up, the dark mana too got riled up. Ian knew Hoonie well. Ian seemed to have grasped 200% of Hoonie¡¯s personality. [From this moment, the battle between the Lotus Guild and Fullios Guild will begin.] [This is the ¡®Complete Battle¡¯ of the Guild war.] [When all the guild¡¯s members have been wiped out, or if the Fulios Guild is defeated, the Guild war will end.] [I hope the guild members are loyal.] Ian who climbed onto Halli¡¯s back started to move towards the battlefield. * * * [Ian! It¡¯s Ian! Ian is on Halli, a sight we haven¡¯t seen for a long time!] A man was watching the internet broadcast of the war in a room with speakers on Crk- Crrrk- Achk-! He grabbed a potato chip next to the keyboard and mumbled in a low voice. ¡°It sure had been a long time. Seeing Ian at the front.¡± The man was none other than Na Ji-chan. He was watching the war instead of being in the planning team¡¯s room of Kailan since him being there wouldn¡¯t change things much. He wrote a letter for today! The reason he had written a letter of short leave was because he knew in advance that Ian would appear in the Guild war. Since Ian was still being monitored every week in the planning team of LB company, it wasn¡¯t hard to know of Ian¡¯s whereabouts and plans. ¡°There is no way I wouldn¡¯t monitor it, especially after knowing that Ian would make an appearance at today¡¯s war.¡± Aach-! Na Ji-chan was concentrating on the war almost as if he had been stuck to the screen. There was another reason why he was watching the broadcast on a computer instead of watching it on a 50 inch TV in his living room. When he watched the war in a gaming channel, the camera moves around through all of the rankers in the field and doesn¡¯t stick with Ian. On the other hand, there was BJ who had a fan club called ¡®LovelIan¡¯, who used a personal crystal ball which was around a million gold only to see Ian. Na Ji-chan who didn¡¯t want to miss even one of Ian¡¯s control was more fond of this broadcast even though it was on a small screen. BJ Ian [Broadcasting] [Live] Lotus vs Fullios [Ian-oriented] Broadcast Announcement: Anti-Ian¡¯s will be kicked out in a second. 127894 are watching this together. The number of views surpassed the normal views of BJ¡¯s broadcast. Apart from that, the chat was a little bit hard to see and read as comments were popping up at a high speed. ¨C Woah! Ian is such a class! Those wizards on the other side are gone. ¨C By the way Guy, why is Ian not wearing the Spear? Is he going to use the bow and arrow once again? I¡¯ve watched the recent videos, and he always had the spear with him¡­! ¨C I know right! It has been so long since Ian used a bow. ¨C Is that so important! Our Ian will wipe out the floor and cleanse our eyes with his awesome play! Na Ji-chan who had been looking at the chat window, smiled. ¡°Huh, I know the reason why.¡± Ian upgraded his weapon in a quest, and not knowing the level limitation, the Judgement of the Spirit King couldn¡¯t be used due to its low level and Na Ji-chan knew it. However, due to LB¡¯s regulations, the personal information of a user couldn¡¯t be disclosed, and he couldn¡¯t tell the reason why in the chat due to that. Which was why Na Ji-chan was quietly watching the video. Yet somehow, he was feeling superior. ¡°Keu, I know everything that I need to know about Ian.¡± Na Ji-chan¡¯s eyes didn¡¯t leave the screen while he poured potato chips into his mouth. Na Ji-chan¡¯s lips tilted. ¡°Ian, show us how well the Fusion Skill works¡­!¡± As time went on, Na Ji-chan¡¯s heart started to pound crazily. CH 359 Without the Judgement of the Spirit King, Ian was forced to use the bow that he had with him. Ian had a myth grade Bow which he obtained from hunting the Marion Khalifa. It was an item that could be used by a Noblesse. However, the item that Ian was currently using now was a legendary grade one. So, Ian had to change his play style a little bit. ¡°Karceus, Bbookbbook! Both of you move together, Ly and Pin cover me!¡± ¡°Okay, Master.¡± After giving out commands, his familiars started to move. Ian pulled out his bow. Ping- Piping-! If he could use the Judgement of the Spirit King, he would have gone through the tankers in the front. However, since he was now lacking the power, he aimed for the archers at the back instead. [Deadly damage is done to the archer ¡®Hanson¡¯of the Fullios Guild.] [Hanson¡¯s vitality has been decreased by 124090.] [Deadly damage is done to the archer ¡®Hanson¡¯ of the Fullios Guild.] [Hanson¡¯s vitality has been decreased by 119987.] [You have successfully managed to defeat the archer ¡®Hanson¡¯ of the Fullios Guild.] [Contribution to the guild war has been increased by 104 points.] The archers of the Fullios Guild disappeared in a flash because of Ian¡¯s relentless attacks! That was probably because most of the enemy NPC¡¯s were low-level ones, with levels less than 200. However, taking them down with two shots was still an amazing thing to do. ¨C What? Ian is an archer? ¨C This is crazy, right LOL? Well, does it make sense to shoot while being on top of Halli who goes that fast? ¨C HeHe, I should have changed my panties right from the start. ¨C Honey, you seem to be a little lacking in terms of being prepared? ¨C Huh? ¨C I¡¯ve learned to put on diapers before watching the matches so I don¡¯t need to move away from the screen. ¨C Hu, this is really going to be Ian¡¯s game. [¡®Yu Shin¡¯s commands¡¯ have been withdrawn.] [Yu Shin¡¯s commands have been deployed.] ¨C No, you idiots. Standing still and casting NPC¡¯s isn¡¯t enough to make it. [Yu Shin¡¯s commands have been withdrawn.] [Yu Shin¡¯s commands have been deployed.] ¨C Well, their swords seem to be as sharp as ever. ¨C I don¡¯t think there¡¯s such a thing. I¡¯m out of words. How can one see such a crazy play and manage to say those words? Ian continued to hunt down the enemy dealers from a distance. He now started to take actions against the Fullios Guild. ¡°There, Ian is there! Start with Ian!¡± ¡°Tankers push! Long distance damage dealers, take action!¡± Kwang- KwaKwang-! The wizards and archers who spotted Ian started to attack, but none of their attacks could stop Halli. Tat- Thatt-! Halli, who had been hunting with Ian for a long time, was able to comfortably avoid the attacks even if Ian didn¡¯t order it to. Kwaang-! Halli didn¡¯t forget to blow up the users who were approaching close to them as well. Phuak- Puahk-! Not like any tiger, but with a wide-range attack that could remind one of a raging storm! [Familiar ¡®Halli¡¯ has done catastrophic damage to ¡®Reydan¡¯ of Fullios Guild.] [¡®Reydan¡¯s¡¯ vitality has been reduced by 98977.] [¡®Reydan¡¯s¡¯ vitality has been reduced by 108283.] A user who managed to be safe from Halli¡¯s attack immediately began to cast a slow spell to reduce Halli¡¯s speed. [¡®Richang¡¯ of Fullios Guild is casting slow magic.] [The movements of the familiar ¡®Halli¡¯ has been reduced by 30% for 10 seconds.] But it was meaningless, no, it was a mistake on their part. It was a mistake since they didn¡¯t understand the full extent of Halli¡¯s abilities. Phuak-! [¡®Reydan¡¯s¡¯ vitality has been reduced by 95982.] [The Unique attack of the familiar ¡®Halli¡¯, ¡®Smash¡¯ has stunned ¡®Reydan¡¯ for 1 second.] [Since the unique attack ¡®Smash¡¯ has been successfully used, it initiated the connected unique ability ¡®Rage of White Tiger¡¯.] [The familiar ¡®Halli¡¯ will no longer be affected.] [Movements of the familiar ¡®Halli¡¯ has been increased by 50% for 10 seconds.] Kwakk-! There was a big reason as to why Ian chose to ride with Halli rather than the myth grade Karceus and Bbookbbook. It was the ability of the ¡®Rage of White Tiger¡¯, which was the best skill to get out of an unexpected situation. That was what made Halli really shine. ¡°What¡­ what is it! That crazy tiger is speeding up instead of slowing down!?¡± ¡°Bug! Back off!¡± The wizards who had been casting an attack spell after the slow spell hastily canceled their spell and flew backward. However, Ian wasn¡¯t planning on leaving them. Shoot! Shoot! Ian¡¯s arrows flew through their hearts! One of the three wizards who had been casting spells at Ian was immediately taken out of the game. ¡°I need support! The southeastern line of defense is crumbling!¡± ¡°Ian has appeared! The rankers need support!¡± The southeastern part of the battle was in a complete mess. The first line of defense that was considered to be the strongest had been easily breached. It could be said that Ian did all the work. Fullios Guild was losing their minds. Bbookbbook and Karceus using the breath, the heals and the shields, on those with the least vitality had been killed off with just two of Ian¡¯s arrows. The broadcasters were now going crazy. Moreover, Ly, Kaizer, and Pauline which were almost level 300, went against the enemy damage dealers; they were all scorched in an instant. Ly was level 290. Pauline was level 300, but Kaizer was the most impressive. Since it had evolved into a Myth class and reached a tremendous level of 350, it showed a tremendous monster-like rule over the battle. It wasn¡¯t anything less than a gang leader. KwaKwaKwang-! Ian looked around to check what was going on all over the battlefield. ¡®Going through the gates don¡¯t seem to be easy.¡¯ Ian gestured to the back, and the ones in the back started to move to the front. Drr- Drrrk- If they managed to get past the gates, then it would be easier for them to win the guild war. Because of the tremendous siege that was happening, the gate could be destroyed in an instant. ¡°It¡¯s too early! Don¡¯t approach, it¡¯s too early!¡± ¡°Wizards cast fire! You have to burn it!!¡± Due to the nature of the tower, defense users were sure to be on the other side of the walls. So what was the reason for the Fullios Guild to deploy troops inside the castle grounds? The reason for it was the existence of powerful weapons in the infantry. Siege weapons could be destroyed easily as they had mild attacks with weak durability and strength, but the siege weapons had tremendous power. So, in order to prevent the siege weapons from reaching the gate, they had to deploy troops outside the city. There was a way to destroy siege weapons with ranged attacks from the castle, but it wasn¡¯t easy. The shield of the priest class and the wizard class could possibly at least protect two to three siege weapons from ranged attacks. But due to Ian, the siege weapons appeared sooner than they thought. The Fullios Guild had to step up. ¡°Destroy the siege weapons first!¡± ¡°Collect troops and rebuild the defenses!¡± ¡°Collect all the troops to the middle! We¡¯re out of time!¡± Orders were being given here and there, and their troops started to move. ¡°Master Yu Shin will be here to provide support soon! Hold them off until then!¡± ¡°Once Master Yu Shin comes, we¡¯ll get a hold of Ian!¡± Since they realized that using force couldn¡¯t help them, the Fullios Guild started to rely on tactics. Ian had all the summoners into the field, and they could gain enough time if the opponent¡¯s troops managed to push them off. Excluding Ian, all the major players of the Lotus Guild were on the western side of the Fullios Guild, so it was a plausible strategy. However, there was another strong person who was there excluding Ian. In fact, what Fullios decided to do was a mistake. Besides Ian, there was another ranker from the Lotus Guild that not many people knew about. As a result, Fullios¡¯ tactics brought about the worst results possible for them. ¡°Soul Decay¡­!¡± Shaaaa-!! The sound of voices could be heard in the air, and darkness started to take over the clear blue skies. With stinky purple lights that were burning out! Soul Decay was the most powerful attack of the warlocks and had the longest casting time known to this day. With purple flames rising in all directions, many of the Fullios¡¯ soldiers began to fall into helplessness. ¡°Eahkk-!¡± ¡°This is crazy! What are the damage dealers doing! Didn¡¯t they know when the Soul Decay was coming!¡± The chat window was also upset. ¨C Wow, I have goosebumps! ¨C How are you able to see that creepy thing? ¨C Isn¡¯t it crazy? This is my first time seeing Soul Decay being used in a war. How did he do that? It has 5 minutes of casting time, right? ¨C I guess he was given time to cast it or maybe the casting time was reduced? ¨C No, even with all the reduction, the Soul Decay can take at least 3 minutes of casting time. How was he able to use it against top-ranked players? ¨C How did he manage to that? I was only looking at Ian all this time. Will they be able to succeed with that? ¨C By the way, I didn¡¯t know that there was such a high-leveled warlock who was capable enough to use Soul Decay. ¨C Well, maybe? Your level needs to be around 280 if you want to use Soul Decay. Even most of the top 20 warlocks couldn¡¯t be able¡­ ¨C Keu, the Fullios users look so shocked. LOL, the gate will be broken within five minutes. ¨C Oh, but those five minutes is going to be a tough one. The support for Fullios will come. I expect a 10 minute one. However, at that moment, everyone was surprised. That wasn¡¯t the end. Hoonie suddenly moved into the air and reached for Halli. ¡°Dark Recall!¡± And from Halli¡¯s body, a purple light started to come out, and it soon went into Hoonie¡¯s hands. The very next moment, another Halli appeared in front of Hoonie. [You have succeeded in cloning the familiar ¡®Halli¡¯ of the user ¡®Ian¡¯ by using ¡®Dark Recall¡¯.] [The cloned summon lasts for 15 minutes and has 50% of the stats of the original one.] [All the unique abilities of the replicated summon can be used.] Hoonie was excited to use Halli¡¯s Unique ability¡ªGuardian of the Wind. A pure white light started to glow in the wind around the legs of Halli¡¯s clone. ¡°Let¡¯s go! Halli!¡± Kwang-! Hoonie was much more excited as he witnessed the speed of Halli and ran to the front. The place where Hoonie moved to was the center of the battlefield where the Soul Decay skill had devastated the ground. To be precise, he jumped onto the bodies that had been devastated by the Soul Decay in order to get there. Ttatt-! Hoonie, who ran off on Halli¡¯s back, invoked the black magic that he had prepared by raising his skull staff. ¡°Animate Dead¡­!¡± The dead bodies which had been disappearing started to rise with a bizarre sound. Grrr-! Subsequently, the purple light from Hoonie¡¯s wand moved into the bodies and the blood of the soldiers turned a little bit black. Hundreds of Fullios¡¯ troops who were supposed to block off the Lotus Guild was turned into Hoonie¡¯s servants. CH 360 With one word, hundreds of Undead legions were born. And the users who had witnessed it weren¡¯t anything less than astonished. ¡°This is crazy! Revving with Animate Dead!¡± Normally, when using the Animate Dead, it would revive from 1 to 20 at the maximum. And the reason for it was simple. There were a few limitations for the skill Animate Dead. The first one was time. Its greatest constraint was¡ªwithin 10 seconds of it, the target needed to be resurrected as soon as possible. So, for that to happen the user has to kill a mass of users at the same time to use the Animate Dead. And it could be the biggest difficulty as killing multiple targets at once wasn¡¯t an easy task to do, especially if the targets were stronger. And the second, the scope of execution. The range of the Animate Dead wasn¡¯t a small one. It had a radius of 100m, it was rather wide. The problem, however, was that the point of activation was centered from the position of the skill caster. Simply explained, a warlock needs to place himself in the middle of the battlefield to use as many bodies as he can. And the Warlock who naturally had bad tanking abilities¡ªthis was the biggest drawback, and diving into the middle of the battle wasn¡¯t such a good scenario for them. However, in this case, Hoonie believed in the cover that Ian would provide. As a result, Hoonie managed to make a scenario that was perfect enough to ignore the two drawbacks and made hundred of enemies come back to life at once. And the aftermath of it was terrifying. ¡°Move towards the Southeast gate! Half of you will be escorts and the other half of the troops will be ready for assault!¡± Fiolan, who managed to get past the Western area gate, began to direct the battlefield and the attackers of the Lotus began to push forward. Kung- Kung- Kung-! The troops summoned by the summoners from the Lotus side, the Golems and the knights began to trample the users of Fullios without mercy. ¡°Fiolan, you¡¯re changing the strategy, right?¡± At the question from Herz, Fiolan nodded while responding, ¡°I know. I know about Ian¡­ but Hoonie is so much stronger than what I expected.¡± ¡°It is a good plan to move away from the Northwestern and push the Southeastern gates at once. Then let¡¯s call over the rankers to the side.¡± While Hoonie had been active, Ian who was monitoring the action from the back, heard the conversation of the two. ¡°NO, Let¡¯s just go ahead like this.¡± ¡°Hmm? Why?¡± ¡°That isn¡¯t the end. Going from that direction would create a lot of confusion in the defense. If we concentrate our forces in one place, it will be convenient to know and order.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ then, let¡¯s not send all of the troops to one side even when the gates are opened.¡± ¡°Maybe there are a few of them waiting for us to come.¡± Herz nodded and replied to Ian, ¡°Okay then, I¡¯ll leave this side to you, and we¡¯ll keep pushing it from the North-west side.¡± The three of them after having a quick conversation, moved back to their positions to perform their roles. In the meantime, all those of the users who managed to live in the southeastern side escaped into the castle, and the siege warrior of the Lotus instantly reached the front gate. Kung- Kung- Kung-! As extraordinary warriors from the Pyro started to attack the south-east gate of Sergas Manor. The ¡®Siege weapons productions¡¯ that was built in the Pyro was of 3-tier, and fortunately, due to that, the attack of them was enormous. Due to that, the gates began to open with just a few attacks. [Lotus Guild ¡®Higher Impact¡¯ attacked the south-eastern gate of Sergus Manor.] [The durability of the gate decreased by 479830.] [The durability of the gate decreased by 393399.] Before three minutes could pass, The gate was destroyed. Kwang-! And with that, a huge noise started to emerge. ¡°Woah! The gates are destroyed! All attention!¡± ¡°Knights forward! Enter!¡± And right after entering into the castle grounds, the first thing that went into the premise was the resurrections from Hoonie. And it was because they weren¡¯t aware of what kind of wide magic had been placed in the castle. And their prediction had been on point. ¡°Fire Wall!¡± ¡°Frozen Hell!¡± ¡°Lightning Storm!¡± When the Lotus troops entered, the advanced casting done by the wizards started to get activated. And more than half of Hoonie¡¯s troops disappeared without a trace. ¡°A sh*t, I need to do it more, I lost more than what I imagined.¡± Hoonie grumbled and continued to push the remaining undead into the gate. And when the troops of Lotus began to enter, Hoonie entered too. But right then, Hoonie heard a familiar voice. ¡°Hop, in! It was Ian who changed his familiar from Halli to Pin. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Quickly come on! There isn¡¯t much time!¡± Hoonie somehow got onto Pin and sat behind Ian with a puzzled look. ¡°What is this, what¡¯s the plan?¡± ¡°Hold on real tight!¡± In that moment. The huge wings of Pin flapped and it rose to the top of the wall. And the place where the two men heading to was the watchtower, the highest point of the Sergus. ¡°What? Isn¡¯t that a bit too reckless?¡± ¡°Not at all.¡± Ian shut of Hoonie¡¯s concern with a brief answer and looked closely at the enemies around them. And laughed. The reason was, it was the perfect timing that Ian has been aiming for. ¡®Great! All the attention is on the gate.¡¯ The reason why Ian didn¡¯t move using Pin from the beginning was simple. As there weren¡¯t any Wyvern knights, Ian would bring in a lot of attention if he moved using Pin, and it was too easy to be the target. And that was a suicide. And there was no way that Ian could manage to go against the defense line and the archers by using just Pin. But the situation was different now. As the gates were broke open, all the defensive forces were focused on the gate, so Ian could easily move towards the watchtower. And two soldiers guarding the watch tower shouted. ¡°Intruders!¡± ¡°Enemies invaded the watchtower!¡± But the very next moment, both of them had to shut down. ¡°Noisy.¡± Ping- Ping-! Ian¡¯s arrows went through their chests. As the soldiers guarding the watchtower who were weak¡ªwith a level of 100 or lower couldn¡¯t survive the attack from Ian. After taking Ian and Hoonie to the tower, Pin went back to the battlefield, leaving those two all alone. ¡°What now, huh? Should I cast the Soul Decay from here?¡± Ian shook his head and answered, ¡°Nope, casting a 5-minute long spell is suicide in here. We need to go down the stairs and come back up after killing the rankers at the command post.¡± Hoonie was a bit flustered. ¡°No, and how do you plan on knowing where the command for the Fullios Guild is?¡± Ian smiled and answered, ¡°Kaka will tell.¡± As soon as Ian started the war, he had given Kaka the orders to locate the rankers. And as the gates were broken, Kaka would¡¯ve been doing a search on the inside. ¡°Okay, if it is Kaka, then it is possible to know. Let¡¯s do it then.¡± After speaking, Hoonie started to move and Ian followed him. But then. Someone stood in front of the two men who walked down the stairs. A man with a guy of Duo, totally 3 With armor all over his body, and two knights guarding him. The man who used his fists most of the time among all the users¡ªtook a step in front and smiled. ¡°Pleasure, Ian. I¡¯m Yu Shin.¡± * * * [Who is that warlock? Seems like a huge deal?] At the end of BJ Ian¡¯s video, a chat had popped up. ¨C it¡¯s Hoonie, Hoonie. But the first to hear the ID Hoonie¡­ but how is he the top ranker? ¨C A private ranker. ¨C No, even if it was kept private, it¡¯s normal to know the basics. But, I¡¯m seeing him for the first time. ¨C The 1st ranking of the warlock, is it Zhekharta? ¨C Hmm, right. Zhekharta was ranked 1 yesterday. Was the level 287? ¨C I hope that Hoonie users become that¡­ [Keu, maybe he is someone that Ian had secretly brought up? As the controls weren¡¯t so uniformed?] ¨C Huh, maybe? ¨C Well, it is tough for Ian to protect the identity and raise such a good one. Maybe just a colleague? [The ¡®Gamer of Darkness¡¯ was exiled.] ¨C That guy was talking shit about our Ian! ¨C Right! Ian¡¯s colleague huh, what nonsense! ¨C There are so many things that people don¡¯t know about Ian. Our Ian isn¡¯t the kind to do a party hunt! [Hahaha, right. Ian. Our god always sticks to the solo play. I guess that warlock named Hoonie, is probably a disciple of Ian, just like us.] ¨C I feel jealous. Ian¡¯s disciple¡­! ¨C if I get stronger, do I get to become his disciple too? The atmosphere in the chat room wasn¡¯t anything less than madness. But then, Someone had entered the chat. [¡®Ian¡¯s husband¡¯ has entered the chat.] Seeing the name of the user, BJ Ian began to get fussy. [Ohohoh! Ian¡¯s husband has come in! I was worried that you wouldn¡¯t come in today, you are a little late!] ¨C Ha, the Ian encyclopedia is here. ¨C Keu, I think that he might know the identity of Hoonie. ¨C Ian¡¯s Husband!do you know who that warlock is? ¨C I¡¯m going to die of tension! That little warlock, is Ian¡¯s disciple? And after a while, the user ID Ian¡¯s Husband responded, And his words were the same as anyone in the room. ¨C Nope. That user¡¯s ID is ¡®KanjHoonie¡¯. And he is one of the loyalists of Ian. * * * Na Ji-chan was smiling while looking at the chatroom which was getting hot by every passing moment because of a certain ¡®Ian¡¯s Husband¡¯. Na Ji-chan initially watched the broadcast from a non-logged in state but was forced to log in as he was tired of listening to the appearance of Hoonie. And his nickname was ¡®Ian¡¯s Husband¡¯, an ID that was so famous that no one knew more than him in the fan club. ¡°I except that from the number 1 lieutenant of Ian, Hoonie¡­!¡± Achk-! Hoonie picked up the potato chips packet and dumped them into his mouth, and once again looked at the monitor. And right then, Ian and Hoonie¡¯s duo was about to begin. CH 361 Kabang- Pang-! Whenever the fist of Yu Shin moved, a powerful surge spread all over the place. Bang-! It was the master skill of the hidden class, a skill that was specifically for Yu Shin. And the reason for such strong force or power wasn¡¯t because of the destructive power that it had. Rather it was because of the ¡®linked attack¡¯¡ªa special effect, which was attached to the auxiliary effect. The effect of the linkage was like this. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Linked Attack- ¨C If the user successfully inflicted damage on the enemy with the surge, the user can immediately activate the martial skill by ignoring the cooldown time. (Cooldown Time: 80 seconds) ¨C the user can activate within 0.5 seconds after immediately hitting the target. ¨C if the target is hit with the surge, the cooldown time will be reset. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C In the moment of the match, the special effect ¡®Linked Attack¡¯ meant that the other skills can be linked directly regardless of the cooldown time, at the beginning or the end of the class. And if he managed to continuously touch the target, then the user will be able to use the active skill. But, if he couldn¡¯t manage to do it¡ªwith the cooldown time nearly 80 seconds, the linkage will be cut off. But who was Yu Shin? A very well controlled user in the Kailan, the one user who had every control in his five fingers, Yu Shin. And just like the reputation, the linkage of Yu Shin was commendable. [Fullios Guild master ¡®Yu Shin¡¯ has done deadly damage to the Death Knights and the Death Warrior of the Undead.] [¡®Death Warrior¡¯ vitality reduced by 269890.] [The ¡®Death Knight¡¯ has been destroyed.] Seeing the system messages which were popping up, Hoonie frowned. ¡®Does that guy have no waiting time for the reuse of his skill? How is he managing to keep the skill on?¡¯ Ian and Hoonie crossed paths with three enemies including Yu Shin, and they were confused. They were assuming that it wouldn¡¯t be much difficult, but the situation wasn¡¯t as they had imagined. While Hoonie decided to use the tanking from the Undead on the two men, Ian was supposed to hunt down another, but the Undead were dying pretty quickly and the situation was taking a drastic turn. And the biggest cause for that was ¡®Yu Shin¡¯ and his successive attacks. And Ian¡¯s ranged attacks were being blocked by a special shield of Yu Shin, which made the deal to not even reach them. Ian looked over to understand and analyze the attack pattern of Yu Shin. ¡®There is something with that skill.¡¯ The martial class was the hidden class that ¡®Yu Shin¡¯ was in possession of. Therefore, there wasn¡¯t much information about its damage or the linked attacks in the community. They were guesses from regular users. However, as he kept on battling with the still intact martial skill, Ian was able to grasp its working. ¡®That guy. When using any skill, he is putting that surging wave right in between. Then that means¡­¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes began to shine brightly. In order to understand the skill and the pattern, it felt like striking him directly would be the better option. [You have worn out the item ¡®Oliver¡¯s Wrath¡¯.] [You have equipped the item ¡®Dragon¡¯s molar¡¯.] ¡®I don¡¯t want to use the spear as it isn¡¯t properly reinforced¡­¡¯ Ian who had changed the weapons quickly ran to the front of the Undead. ¡°Hooni-ah, give some time by taking care of those knights over there.¡± ¡°Kay, Hyung!¡± Hoonie who roughly understood what Ian was trying to do, turned without hesitation to deal with the two knights. And it was obvious if the Undead went on, then they would die in the hands of Yu Shin without achieving anything. When the opponent changed, Yu Shin smiled and spoke, ¡°Well, you shouldn¡¯t have come out. But I wanted to fight with you, for a long time.¡± ¡°With me?¡± Ian was confused with what he heard, while Yu Shin nodded and replied, ¡°Yeah. You are one of the few people whom I acknowledge as competent.¡± Yu Shin clenched his fists while speaking. Seeing that, even Ian began to smile. ¡°That good?¡± Ian started to get interested in Yu Shin. In the beginning, Ian thought that he was just another annoying interrupter in the well-played plan of his. It was fun to sweep enemies with overwhelming power, but to fight with an opponent who had excellent controls was a whole other thing. And if one was proud of the controls like Ian was, the fun was even bigger. Yu Shin was the first to move towards Ian. ¡°So you¡¯re going to use that spear of yours which took down the Asmodians?!¡± Kwang-! From the fist of Yu Shin, a blue wave was spreading out. Ian broke off the wave with his spear and began to do the counter attacks. Ian¡¯s spear which was filled with the desire to win was much greater than Yu Shin¡¯s. However, Yu Shin calmly avoided the incoming attacks and was aiming for the other side of Ian. Shwak-! Ian moved the spear to the floor and immediately had to bounce off the attack from Yu Shin. It was a battle scene that could be seen in the movies. Hoonie wasn¡¯t able to see it as he was dealing with the two knights, but the five crystal spheres above the stairs were the only ones who could see it. Many of the gaming channels and personal stations followed Ian. Which meant that there were a lot of people who were interested in watching Ian battle. And the chats once again started to blow up. ¨C What? What just passed? ¨C Ian stopped Yu Shin¡¯s fist¡­ and immediately used a counter¡­? ¨C And after that Ian jumped a few steps back. ¨C Crazy. Can¡¯t I see it again? Why can¡¯t I understand it even though I saw it? ¨C Wah¡­ I just drooled seeing that. Did they practice those stuff before they could perform it in the battle? ¨C LOL, I agree it was surreal. I don¡¯t think anyone could have such a hand and mind control, right? The speed of chatting increased and the battle between Ian and Yu Shin started to get more intense. The skills of Yu Shin started to make their way to Ian. As a result, Ian started to accumulate more and more damage. He tried to avoid or defend the attacks, but even though he managed to defend it was still causing enough damage. Ian could do nothing but frown. ¡®Getting damage like this continuously will put me in a disadvantage¡­¡¯ Frankly, the match was indeed a disadvantage for Ian. Firstly, Ian¡¯s a summoner who normally has weak physical combat skills, whereas the warrior class was a strong-class with excellent one on one battle. If Ian had his familiars with him, it would have been a totally different character, but Ian was all alone near the staircase. Which made Ian worry whether he could take anymore hits or not. ¡®Should I use the will of the Selamus warrior?¡¯ Using the Selamus Warrior¡¯s will, he could overcome the differences that the two classes had. All the combat abilities would be increased by 40% for the next 20 minutes, and the stats could compliment a little to the one-on-one battle. Furthermore, proficiency is increased by 15 levels, so the odds were bound to increase. However, as the skill continued, all the other skills would be sealed, which was the most disadvantageous part. While Selamus warrior¡¯s will was in use, and a familiar was in a crisis, then Ian wouldn¡¯t be able to summon it back. But Ian¡¯s worries didn¡¯t last for long. Kwang-! It was because Yu Shin had hit his shoulder. [Fullios Guild master ¡®Yu Shin¡¯ caused catastrophic damage to you.] [Vitality reduced by 178709.] ¡°Keu¡­!¡± Ian retreated and looked at Yu Shin with surprise, which made Yu Shin smile. ¡°Ian, I know that you¡¯re strong¡­ but aren¡¯t you taking too much trouble by trying to win me without your familiars?¡± Ian just calmed himself and responded to Yu Shin, ¡°I admit that. This will certainly be difficult.¡± Yu Shin slowly moved towards Ian. ¡°I would have understood if you would have stuck with the familiars out there¡­ but I never expected you to come this way.¡± Chok- chok- The two of them were getting closer. Ian eventually triggered the ¡®Will of Selamus Warrior¡¯. [¡®Will of Selamus Warrior¡¯ has been activated.] [All the battle abilities increased by 40%.] [All non-combat abilities with agility will increase by 1728.] [The proficiency of all the weapons are increased by 15 levels.] [The usage of all the active skills has been sealed.] Woong-! With a momentary resonating sound, a golden light started to glow around Ian. And Yu Shin looked at the scene in front of him with wide eyes. ¡°There is no use making fuss with those things!¡± Tatt-! While Yu Shin rushed towards Ian, Ian had been feeling rather lighter than before. Moreover, he was able to find out that Yu Shin uses linked skill the battle. ¡®I just need to avoid the surge!¡¯ It wasn¡¯t definite, but the difference in classes would be able to be filled by the Will of Selamus Warrior. Now, the lack of combat skills was overcome by the control differences. In the first place, the skill¡ªWill of Selamus Warrior was made to overcome such differences. Kkang-!! When Ian¡¯s spear came in contact with Yu Shin¡¯s knuckles, a strong sound came out. And Ian, confirming the blue light that had formed in the left hand of Yu Shin, quickly twisted his waist and turned his body. Swahk-! The wave could literally tear off the space. But the sound that usually came didn¡¯t come. And it was because Ian managed to avoid the attack from Yu Shin in a breathtaking manner. ¡°¡­!¡± Yu Shin blinked his eyes. It was because he didn¡¯t expect someone to move with such vigilance in a short span. ¡®What summoner has such agility¡­?!¡¯ Confused Yu Shin, withdrew his fist, but Ian didn¡¯t move. Puahk-! By using the force generated by swinging his body, Ian hit the neck of Yu Shin with his spear. [Fullios Guild master ¡®Yu Shin¡¯ has received catastrophic damage.] [The vitality of ¡®Yu Shin¡¯ has been reduced by 64579.] Ian frowned upon looking at the message that popped up. ¡®Ahh sh*t, it would¡¯ve done ten times damage if it was the then Judgement of Spirit King¡­!¡¯ Ian¡¯s weapon was one that survived 2 waves from Yu Shin. When compared to the previous ¡®Judgement of Spirit King¡¯, the attack level was lacking, almost half the level of the previous one. However, it was a truly helpless situation, but it was possible to deal a lot of damage to the current situation. It was because after getting hit in the neck, Yu Shin¡¯s body was wobbling. Puak- Phuak-! [Fullios Guildmaster ¡®Yu Shin¡¯ has received catastrophic damage.] [The vitality of ¡®Yu Shin¡¯ has been reduced by 59775.] [The vitality of ¡®Yu Shin¡¯ has been reduced by 71511.] Ian was successfully able to get three to four strikes. However, the vitality gauge of Yu Shin hadn¡¯t decreased by more than 10%. The martial class had better tanking abilities, and the top user Yu Shin had a vitality of over 2 million. ¡®But he should be destroyed if this was a planet destroying weapon.¡¯ Ian grunted while looking at the spear. Yu shin who recovered was looking with furious eyes. ¡°Well¡­ the connection of skills has been cut down.¡± Thuk- Thuk-! After moving his neck to both sides, Yu Shin spoke, ¡°The joke has extended for a long time.¡± Woong-! At the same time as he was done speaking, a blue light shone around Yu Shin. It was one of the top level self-buffs of the warrior class, the skill called ¡®Great Warrior¡¯. Ian who saw it calmed down and took a deep breath. Till the moment the Great Warrior skill was activated, even a single wrong move would bring in a lot of damage or death. Right then, A message that Ian never thought of popped in front of his eyes. Tring- [All the experience points needed to level up have been met.] [The level has risen. Have become 300 level.] [The first to achieve level 300.] [Fame increased by 500,000.] [The ¡®Summoner¡¯s Tower¡¯ owner ¡®Wagner¡¯ is looking for you.] Messages that didn¡¯t come in when reaching 100 or 200 had come now. It was clear that the reason for the messages and rewards was because he had been the first. But they weren¡¯t the things to look at, Ian¡¯s eyes were stuck on the number 300. Ian¡¯s mouth went up. ¡°You, are an x.¡± There were a few more lines after the system messages that Ian saw. [You have been equipped with the item ¡®Dragon¡¯s Molar¡¯.] [You have worn the item ¡®Judgement of the Spirit King¡¯.] The real planet destroying weapon made its appearance. CH 362 ¨C What is it? Ian¡¯s weapon changed it¡¯s appearance? ¨C Yeah, right? That spear is gorgeous. I never saw that in the other videos of Ian, it¡¯s the first time for me to see it too, I think? ¨C Woah¡­ lets¡¯ guess. If one gets hit by the spear then will they get stunned? The chat windows were blowing up. Well, that was definitely all due to the weapon that was in the hands of Ian. A myth class weapon, the reinforced mass destruction 4th transcendental spear. It had a visual appearance that would make the person seeing it feel pressured. And Yu Shin who wavered for a moment got back to his senses and asked, ¡°What? Are you planning on building a temple by coming into here?¡± It was a verbal attack from Yu Shin. Ian, however, scoffed at it. ¡°Tempting. But I¡¯m not just any other summoner who doesn¡¯t have his summons with him.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Yu Shin who just heard the words from Ian went red. But he didn¡¯t let that emotion get over his head. There wasn¡¯t anything wrong with Ian¡¯s words. And Yu Shin wasn¡¯t short tempered. ¡°HuHu, you¡¯re words aren¡¯t wrong. I never imagined that I would struggle in the hands of a summoner without his summons.¡± Chuk- Chuk- Yu Shin was still clenching onto his fists hardly while approaching Ian slowly. ¡°But, even though you were strong, I never thought that I was lacking for even a single second.¡± Ian and Yu Shin¡¯s eyes met the very moment. ¡°Is that so? But you¡¯ll have to die here! This was a chance I was given to, to kill you here!¡± With saying those words, Yu Shin jumped from the ground. And Ian¡¯s body reacted accordingly. Kwang ¨C Kwakwang-! The blue lights that were coming out from the fists of Yu Shin and the golden aura out of Ian¡¯s spear collided in the air. And it was hard to make out what was happening between those two, it was a fierce fight. But it was, ¡®just like that¡¯ kind of fight. Bang-! With a roar, the two weapons touched each other, and their repulsive force made them move backwards. And Yu Shin was flustered. ¡®What, What was it? How is that managing to give out such damages?¡¯ Though Yu Shin didn¡¯t allow himself to get attacked in a proper manner. But, just a small cut caused a loss of thousands of vitality points. Which meant that it was at a level that didn¡¯t make much sense. ¡®Maybe the strange spear has a few attack alternative¡­?¡¯ The look on Yu Shin wasn¡¯t flustered, it was far from it¡ªit was astonishment. Ian on the other side had a lot of weird emotions going on. It was because the performance of the Judgment of the Spirit King was much more excellent than he had imagined. Ian looked over at Hoonie who was struggling with the two knights and ran at Yu Shin once again. ¡°I don¡¯t have much time, let¡¯s get this done quickly.¡± ¡°Fine be arrogant!¡± The two of them began to fight each other. And Ian was now using the highest of his concentration. It was because he wanted to use all the monster-like stats that the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ has. Kkang-! Chak-! The spear and the fists were rushing to the other. But as the concentration of Yu Shin moved for a bit, the spear went through the thigh of Yu Shin. [Fullios Guild master ¡®Yu Shin¡¯ has suffered from catastrophic damage.] [The vitality of ¡®Yu Shin¡¯ has been reduced by 474579.] With just a single attack, 20% of vitality had fallen for Yu Shin! But that wasn¡¯t the end of it. [Succeeded in causing fatal damage!] [¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯s¡¯ unique ability ¡®response¡¯ has been activated.] [And it responded to the familiar ¡®Halli¡¯.] [Halli¡¯s unique ability, ¡®Guardian of the Wind¡¯ has been activated.] [For the following two minutes, agility will be increased for the combat abilities.] Because of the unique skill of Judgment of the Spirit King, ¡®response¡¯, Halli¡¯s strongest buff skill, ¡®Guardian of the wind¡¯ had been activated. Well, the increase of the stats were far less than the ones that Halli had when it activated. The sun of ¡®combat abilities¡¯ from the unique ability Guardian of Wind didn¡¯t include the stats bonuses due to the equipment. Ian had a higher level than Halli, except for the bonus stats of the spear, the battle ability of the whole body was rather low. But even in such condition, thousand of agility points increased, and Ian¡¯s movements doubled. Yu Shin found it hard to adapt to the sudden increase in the pace of movements. ¡°Uh¡­!¡± With the white light around his body, Ian was following the movements of Yu Shin. And suddenly, Yu Shin¡¯s fists went to the air to attack. [Successfully avoided the attack from the transcendence of ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯] Shhhk-! And a powerful electric current seemed to flow onto the body of Yu Shin the very next moment. [The Fullios Guild master ¡®Yu Shin¡¯ has suffered from 197980 damage.] All of Ian¡¯s vitality had been restored. [Ian¡¯s Vitality restored to 179809.] And. That was the end. Kwaang-! Ian who was holding onto the spear for a counterattack moved the spear to the back and pushed it with force. [Fullios Guild master ¡®Yu Shin¡¯ has suffered from catastrophic damage.] [The vitality of ¡®Yu Shin¡¯ has been reduced by 619895.] [The Judgment of the Spirit King, unique ability ¡®Lightning Judgment¡¯ has been activated.] [The Fullios Guild master ¡®Yu Shin¡¯ has suffered from 921511 lightning damage.] Before he could even react, Ian¡¯s lightning fell to the ground. And with that, a gigantic successive damage came, and the body of Yu Shin turned black. [Successfully dealt with the master of Fullios Guild ¡®Yu Shin¡¯.] [Fame has been increased by 50,000.] The system messages came in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. And to the users in the field, additional system messages appeared. [The Fullios Guild master has been killed.] [The Fullios Guild morale has been reduced by 20.] [The Lotus Guild¡¯s morale has increased the attack by 20.] And with that, it was the beginning of a massacre. * * * Na Ji-chan who had been watching the battle of Ian was looking at the monitor with a stern expression. The sound of the potato chips being eaten was the only thing that could be heard, he seemed to have forgotten everything else. ¡°Wha, What¡­ just happened?¡± Na Ji-chan didn¡¯t have a high position, but he was still the key to figuring out things in the planning team. That was being said because he understood a lot about the combat systems of Kailan than anyone else. Besides being a fan of Ian, he knew of all the skills and abilities that Ian had. But, Something seemed like a bug for a moment, and the situation was just too hard to comprehend. ¡°What happened to that martial monster of 200-level?¡± With Na Ji-chan in such a state, all of the chat windows had the same reaction. ¨C What?! If someone is lovelIan member, then please explain what just happened. A lightning just fell on Yu Shin? ¨C Huh, it was just plain hard to see. What the hell was that? Wasn¡¯t it a bit too much even if it was Ian? I can¡¯t understand why he suddenly decided to attack Yu Shin and take him down in a single strike. Just one strike? ¨C Ian had gone for five months. It¡¯s probably a skill that hasn¡¯t been revealed yet, but I think it is a probability driven attack, Lovelies. Scrolling through the chat¡¯s that didn¡¯t seem to end. Na Ji-chan went over the battle video three to four times and began to note them down with a pen. He would¡¯ve been asked to do the same thing in the company, so he decided to analyze it right away. ¡°But¡­ did he know in advance that the ¡®response¡¯ skill would get triggered? How did it respond to the direct attack and just flow into the battle?¡± What surprised the most for Na Ji-chan, was that Ian was able to immediately react to the ¡®Guardian of the Wind¡¯ buff, when it was an instantly triggered reaction. If it was for normal uses, when a random skill gets triggered in a battle, they would be flustered. Specifically when the skills like ¡®Guardian of the Wind¡¯ buffs were being used, taking the sudden control could cause a miss of balance in the user. But Ian, somehow, rather being flustered, immediately adapted to the pace and went straight to Yu Shin. That was an unexplained level of animal sense, his speed of reaction was good. Na Ji-chan muttered with a blank expression. ¡°10% chance for the fallen lightning, but even if that didn¡¯t happen¡­ Yu Shin was bound to die.¡± It was true that he had died due to the extraordinary damage done by the lightning, but even if that didn¡¯t happen, another two to three strikes from Ian would¡¯ve done that. It was because Yu Shin had completely given up. And with the two strikes, Yu Shin knew he would die. With the highest concentration, Na Ji-chan looked at the screen another 10 times while moving his mouse nervously. ¡°Ah, this isn¡¯t right. What am I doing while the live broadcast has been going on?!¡± Ian who was done with Yu Shin, immediately moved towards Hoonie who was still struggling with them. The two knight class that Hoonie was dealing with, were high ranked users. And the battle of them couldn¡¯t be missed, but due to the crazy performance from Ian, he had to miss that performance and so much more. Na Ji-chan played the real-time video once again. But the only thing that was on the screen was rather¡ªthe dead black bodies of all three of them. * * * Meanwhile. Ian and Hoonie after dealing with three of them moved out of the stairs quickly. And in front of them, the forces of Lotus and Fullios guilds were fighting. ¡°Hoonie-ah, summon Hargasus!¡± ¡°Kay!¡± At the command from Ian, Hoonie nodded his head, and a black energy flowed out of his hand. And the black energy moved towards a fallen horse that was on the battlefield. And weirdly, the fallen horse wasn¡¯t so fallen after that, it was in the air. Heeing-! And that wasn¡¯t it. The horse which had leather around it turned into bizarre skeleton bones and wings made of bones appeared on its back. It was the recall of Hargasus, a famous horse from the Underworld. ¡°It is Hargasus!¡± ¡°A high-level warlock cast!¡± ¡°Find him! Where is he?!¡± Naturally, the Hargasus was undead with no combat power. Not just without combat abilities, but couldn¡¯t manage any of the combat for itself either. Nevertheless, the Hargasus was still a threat as it was a pet that pairs with the Death Knights. Hargasus is a pet that increases the combat ability of the occupant by 50%, specifically, it has synergy with Death Knight¡ªthe highest summon of the Warlock. Fullios users thought that the Death Knights would soon make an appearance, but they were wrong once again. Hoonie immediately summoned Ballam, the legendary Death Knight. But there were a few more. ¡°Dark Recall!¡± Along with all that was recalled with the skill, there was one Hargasus. And on top of that, a ¡®summoner¡¯ with a spear radiating gold light. CH 363 Hargasus had wings, but it couldn¡¯t fly. Then were the wings just for the sake of appearance? No, that wasn¡¯t the purpose either. Hargasus¡ªits first unique ability was directly related to its wings. The first unique ability of Hargasus was ¡®Descend¡¯. The ability to unfurl the wings and descend slowly when jumping off from a high place, it was a special additive. When the unfolding of the wings happens, Hargasus and the occupant will both move into an ¡®invincible¡¯ state for a duration of 0.5 seconds. Which meant that well-controlled warrior users would be able to use the ¡®descend¡¯ ability of Hargasus to their advantage. When being exposed to a powerful attack, they could take advantage of the invincibility of 0.5 seconds to inflict damage. However, to activate the ability of ¡®Descend¡¯, the Hargasus needs to be afloat with all four legs off the ground, which made it difficult to utilize. Which was why in the higher guilds, it was considered that the casting of this could give them an idea as to how well the warlock¡¯s skills were. And Ian was going to utilize the ¡®Descend¡¯ ability with 200% of his abilities on the battlefield. ¡°It¡¯s Ian!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t get too close, it is a long range attack! If you get hit for being close, then it¡¯s a game over!¡± Hundreds of Fullios soldiers were present in the middle of the camp. Ian after getting on the Hargasus slaughtered all of them who were in his way. Each time Ian wielded his spear, a gold electric current sprang out, and the forces of Fullios fell down like straws. Shwak-! [Fullios Guild ¡®Sliver Knight¡¯ has taken severe damage.] [The vitality of ¡®Silver Knight¡¯ has been reduced by 1029895.] [The unique ability of ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King ¡®, ¡®Lightning¡¯s Judgment¡¯ has been activated.] Kwanng-! [Fullios Guild ¡®Silver Knight¡¯ has been hit with 1533221 of lightning damage.] [Fullios Guild ¡®Advanced Spearman¡¯ has been hit with 870980 of lightning damage.] [Fullios Guild ¡®Advanced Spearman¡¯ has been hit with 728452 of lightning damage.] [Fullios Guild member, user ¡®Blue Feather¡¯ has been hit with 598090 of lightning damage.] The unique ability of Judgment of the Spirit King, ¡®Lightning¡¯s Judgment¡¯ was being used in the battlefield against numerous foes. It wasn¡¯t usually easy to invoke the ability on a one-on-one battle as the probability of hitting the target was around 10%, but it was a different situation in the battle against several foes. The triggered ¡®Lightning¡¯s Judgment¡¯ which has a success hit rate of 10% when the lightning drops, could cause wide-area damage to all enemies within the radius of 5 meters. Which means that, if there were several of the enemy¡¯s bodies within 5 meters, then each time they get hit, there was a 10% chance that each individual was about to get hit. The denser the enemy is, the more likely it is that the user has a chance of activating the lightning. So, in a situation where he was surrounded by hundreds of soldiers, the lighting fell onto them for a dozen times. Just like. Bang- BaBang- BaBaBang-! ¡°Eauhk!¡± ¡°What are the wizards doing! Do the Anti-lightning field walk!¡± BaBaBang- Bang Bang-! ¡°Keuk¡­!¡± Ian¡¯s lightning poured everywhere as if it was raining. All the forces of Fullios who were near Ian fell to the ground. All the soldiers with less than level 200 and the knights who had a vitality of 150,000 to 200,000 were all wiped out. The officers of Fullios who looked at this sight were all dumbfounded. ¡°No, he¡¯s not even a mage¡­¡± The level of mastery that Ian had shown was similar to the magic spells that were cast by top-ranked wizards. And even if the wizard was in the top 10, there wasn¡¯t a guarantee that they could be in possession of such destructive power that Ian was displaying. But Ian wasn¡¯t a wizard. And he wasn¡¯t using any kind of skills either, it was a scene that was created due to the passive ability of his weapon. It was all because of the mercy of Absolute. The leader of the Fullios army, who was gaining consciousness began to give out orders. ¡°I told you not to get close! Attack from a distance!¡± With those orders, attacks from wizards and archers started to fly towards Ian. Ping- Piing-! Woosh-! But Ian didn¡¯t have any thoughts of staying still and getting hit by those incoming attacks. ¡°Yah!¡± Ian slightly hit the abdomen of Hargasus, with that nudge he started to move at a very fast pace. Tatattath-! Hargasus moved two to three meters with just one leap, then it started to go rampant. Ian controlled Hargasus and made sure that no projectile could reach their way, and when he was unable to avoid large-area skills, he used its ability ¡®descend¡¯ to dissolve the damage. It could be said that it was a godly control. ¨C I have been watching the vitality of Ian¡¯s from a while back. ¨C So was I. ¨C Huh, why is the vitality not changing? ¨C Why I don¡¯t know anything, the vitality should be worn out. Any reason to lose vitality when he manages to avoid the attacks? ¨C No, it could be because I didn¡¯t see it clearly, but I think I saw him get hit a moment back? ¨C Ah, that was because of the unique ability of Hargasus ¡®Descend¡¯, if it is used, then the user is invulnerable for 0.5 seconds. ¨C Oh¡­ the ¡®descend¡¯ is like a fraud skill? ¨C LOL, this is the first time for me to see someone use the ¡®descend¡¯ like that. ¨C Me too. Some crazy wizard get to the middle of the battlefield, LOL. ¨C Keu, I learned just a while ago that the skill level of summoning the Hargasus needs to be around 230, that ¡®descend¡¯ is instilling fear in me. That is triggered only when it was in the air¡ªto use it, it needs to be in the air, right away. ¨C I don¡¯t know much about the warlock who summoned it, but based on what you say, he just needs to jump to activate it, and off when it lands? ¨C LOL, it can be used once for every float, so, it¡¯s a bit difficult to use it like that. ¨C Guys, I¡¯m going to practice the ¡®descend¡¯. Hehe. ¨C LOL, I don¡¯t think it can be achieved through practice¡­ but guys, how is Ian controlling Hargasus? From what I know, the Hargasus can¡¯t be summoned by Ian. And Ian isn¡¯t even a warlock. How is he controlling the Hargasus? ¨C That world message that came from the Fusion Class? Because of that. ¨C Hmm, that¡¯s what everyone has been guessing. As far as the talks in the chat implied¡ªIan¡¯s vitality was consistently 100%. But there were a few misunderstandings by the netizens. And that was, Ian hadn¡¯t avoided all the attacks that had been coming his way. The attacks that were coming in were unavoidably coming in a lot of times, but the Supremacy option of the Judgment of the Spirit King was restoring the vitality. However, it was hard to check such details in the video, and the netizens were much more enthusiastic about Ian¡¯s godly control. No one could stop themselves from seeing the images of Ian in the middle of the battlefield avoiding all the attacks. And as Ian began to move, the members of Fullios Guild began to fall down. While all the firepower was concentrated on Ian, the Lotus castle took possession of the castle. And by the time the northwestern side lost its balance. The eastern had already collapsed, and the past repeating itself. ¡°Wow¡­!! The western gate has also been taken down!¡± ¡°Now it¡¯s time to take control! Let¡¯s get rid of them!¡± The troops of the Lotus Guild destroyed the western gate without much difficulty, and the castle had been messed up. The Fullios camp had completely lost the advantage they had. In the meantime, based on the information that Kaka had given, Ian managed to remove one of the flagship leaders of the Fullios Guild. They were lacking. No one was able to stop Ian who was on Hargasus after he had managed to kill Yu Shin, the elite of the Fullios Guild. And the title page of the Guild war had witnessed the emergence of the tilt scenario. It was the system window that was shared to all the crystal balls, which not only displayed messages to the users but to the viewing users too. [It has been over an hour since the Guild war had been started.] [Announcement of the Guild war status.] ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Status of Guild War (Lotus vs Fullios) ¨C Manor Name: Sergus Manor Classification: Dukedom Attacking Guild: Lotus Defending Guild: Fullios Extrinsic Occupation rate: 97.55% Resistance Occupation rate: 66.25% Guild Power information ( Survival/ participation) ¨C Lotus Guild User: 159/205 NPC: 275/423 Current power Index ¨C 1548620 ¨C Fullios Guild User: 72/257 NPC: 105/ 395 Current power Index ¨C 654852 Current expected win rate Lotus : Fullios 95.75% : 4.25% ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C The crowd who checked the window messages started to get enthusiastic. Particularly the ¡®intuition¡¯ camp of the Lotus side were shouting with a relief. ¡°Wow¡­! Lotus!! Crazy!!¡± ¡°Ian God! I love you!¡± ¡°Keuaaa! Lotus! 8 winning streaks! Win the 12th one consecutive too!¡± ¡°I skipped the class for today¡­! This was so rewarding!¡± ¡°It was a worthy game today, but I won¡¯t be able to get a scholarship from my school Ian hyung!¡± The Fullios Guild has lost in the hands of the Lotus Guild in just an hour. And in less than 10 minutes since the guild war situation emerged, the flag of the Fullios Guild which was known to be strongest was taken down. And in that position, the Lotus Guild flags were displayed, the flags in which Pin¡¯s image was embroidered was fluttering. [Sergus Manor resistance rate has gone to 100%.] [All the troops of the Fullios guild have been destroyed.] [The Guild War will end in (01:09:47)] [Lotus Guild has won.] [From the very moment the Sergus Manor will be governed by the Lotus Guild.] [From the next week, the Sergus manor will enter into an inviolable state.] Given the average running time of around 4 hours, it was an overwhelming result. The Lotus Guild¡¯s 8th war ended with a clean victory. * * * ¡°Huh, indeed.¡± Choi Yu Shin, who was watching the relay broadcast on the TV, sighed and turned off the TV. His kailan game id was ¡®Yu Shin¡¯. He was out of the game due to Ian, and after coming out of the capsule, he looked into the page of the war. And just then, the overwhelming victory of Lotus Guild¡ªthe transition of the Guild was over, and he had no more reason to watch the TV. ¡°That golden spear in his hands¡­ that was something.¡± He remembered the moment when 70% of the vitality disappeared with a single strike from it¡ªjust thinking of it sends chill on his spine. It was a shocking incident for Yu Shin, if it wasn¡¯t for that, he could have not lost in the one-on-one match with Ian. But, he meant nothing bad to Ian and his game. He was happy enough to challenge him again with his martial art skills and close-quarter combat techniques. There was only one thought going in the mind of Yu Shin. ¡°Once more, I want to fight again¡­!¡± It was his request, rather. He just wanted to fight with Ian. And he wasn¡¯t in the thought that he would win even after getting stuck by the spear. It was just an aspiration to battle a strong man. When everyone thought that Ian¡¯s power had gotten stagnant, he grew unexpectedly. CH 364 Young-Hoon and Semi were friends from childhood. Although it wasn¡¯t intended¡ªbeginning from a junior high school, they went to the same high school and university, it was a friendship that has been going strong for a decade. And there weren¡¯t many differences between them even if they were of different sexes, it was all thanks to the common interest they had in the ¡®game¡¯. The two of them were known to be game lovers. In the Lordship hall of Pyro Manor. Semi, who noticed Young-Hoon walking from a distance shook her head. ¡°Yah, can¡¯t you come here fast? I asked you to eat rice and come here, did you go farming the rice?¡± ¡°Huh, this is fast enough, you eat rice in 10 minutes?¡± ¡°What 10 minutes? I can have food in just 5 minutes.¡± ¡°Ha¡­ just words, don¡¯t bother¡­¡± Semi was a hardcore female gamer. For her, Kailan had the highest priority in her life. Semi¡¯s love in Kailan moved higher level as her classes were related to virtual reality. Semi held onto Young-Hoon¡¯s hands and dragged him. ¡°Ah, move quickly and stand in the line. There are already dozens more who are in the line.¡± ¡°Yeah? Front of the former office?¡± The reason the two of them had come to Pyro wasn¡¯t so different. Today was the day when the ¡®Dark Summoner office¡¯ was completed. And the place where the first former office would be build was the Pyro. The two of them began to move quickly, and system messages popped up in front of the Young-Hoon. Tring ¨C [Summoner user ¡®Semi¡¯ has invited you to the party.] [You have successfully joined the party. Current members: Seima(Lv 229), Zerojun(Lv 235).] According to the notice that was posted on the official website of Kailan, a warlock and a summoner must be in a party state in order to be able to change to the fusion class ¡®Dark Summoner¡¯. So, Semi applied for the party and Young-Hoon accepted it without saying much. The two of them stood behind a few more and waited for the former castle to be completed. Semi opened her mouth with excitement, ¡°After the fusion class, you have to summon the Hargasus. Hehe!¡± Yeonjun smiled and responded, ¡°What, want to control the ¡®descend¡¯ too?¡± Semi nodded her head vigorously. ¡°Of course! Like Ian, even I want to swipe the monsters while using a spear!¡± ¡°What a story, spear huh? Forget the Hargasus and learn to control your pets first. It¡¯s a bit too strong¡­¡± At the condescending words fro Young-Hoon, Semi retorted, ¡°I¡¯m not like you! I¡¯m the queen of control!¡± ¡°Good luck.¡± ¡°Look carefully. Once I get the fusion class, I will move the level of my character to 250.¡± ¡°I request you to do it.¡± ¡°Once I get to the level of 250, I will put in the membership application request for the Lotus Guild right away. Hehet!¡± Young-Hoon who listened to the words of Semi, shook his head while saying, ¡°Huhu, Ian has ruined a lot of people¡­¡± Though he was just making fun, Young-Hoon was just plain irritated at Semi. Ian and Hoonie, the duo¡¯s fusion class were really great. ¡®I really wish she doesn¡¯t get into Lotus.¡¯ While the two of them were struggling. Woong-! From the sky above, a green energy came down and began to wind up near the former office building. Tring-! A world message came up in front of all the users who were accessing Kailan. [In the Pyro Domain of the Center Continent, the first ¡®Dark Summoner Former Office¡¯ has been completed.] [The information of the facility of the Dark Summoner office will be shared.] ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Dark Summoner Former Office ¨C Classification: Former Location: Pyro Domain (1782, 897) Manager: Robert (NPC) Facility Level: Lv 1 Entry condition: Lv 200 or higher summoner/ warlock. The lions of Kade who have been trapped in the Devildom for years came to find freedom. The Dark summon Maikel came out of his trap, and then entered the world of ours, and various other dark summons which followed him will appear all over the place. And now the dark summons have settled in the city because if Cadesh, who wants to gain the power of the dark, will also come here! This is a facility that can be converted into a fusion class. (Available only for summoner and warlock class.) The Fusion class; as a dual class, are separate classes from the existing classes of the summoner and warlock. And won¡¯t interfere with any other working classes. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C After the world message had come up. More than half the people in the line began to move away. ¡°Ae, what? There was a level limit?¡± ¡°Sh*t, not liking it! They should have posted it on the official homepage that there was a level limit.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ this sucks!¡± Users who were at the level of 200 were out of wits. It was a disaster as they didn¡¯t know about the level limit. But thanks to that, both Semi and Yeonjun were smiling. ¡°Jeu, Nice! We can go in 20 minutes earlier thanks to it!¡± Because the length of the line had gotten shorter, they could enter the office much more quickly. * * * Division 107, of Devildom. The Institute of Cervian. As the corner of the institute, a man was squatting and concentrating on something. [From now the Magical Beast Transmute will start.] [Do you want to set the legendary monster ¡®Syakelic¡¯ as the main body?] ¡°Set it.¡± [Do you want to set the legendary monster ¡®Syakelic¡¯ as the 1st material?] ¡°Yeah. Okay.¡± [You can set additional items for the beast.] The message came up with an inventory window, and Ian picked up a higher level of magic stones with nervous hands. ¡®Please¡­ I¡¯ve put up the highest grade stones, I need to succeed.¡¯ And while adding the high-grade magic stone, another message came up. [You have added ¡®Higher level magic stones¡¯ to increase the durability.] [The chance of success will increase by 10%.] Ian¡¯s clam face wrinkled. ¡®How does a higher level of stone only proved 10% of success rate?¡¯ Ian was doing infinite tries to create a myth class. Since there was no time to conduct the quest separately, the following days until the wars were all done, he decided to try out the beast alchemy. And Ian who managed to master the skills was in the 10th level and reached 50% of understanding how it works. But the problem started now. From now on, if the legendary materials of the monsters weren¡¯t used, he wouldn¡¯t gain anymore proficiency. So he tried to use the legendary monster ¡®Syakelic¡¯ that he had saved. But he had failed three times, so it was reasonable that his hands were trembling. Every time he failed to achieve success, one piece of the set was blown away. So till now, he had blown up three material of Syakelic¡¯s. Ian had only eight more chances left. [If you have set all the materials needed for it, start the process.] The two of the items that were selected flew a little high off the ground, and the white stone in his hand went between the two ingredients. And Ian joined both his hands as if praying. ¡°Please¡­ god¡­¡± Bbookbbook who was seated next to Ian opened his mouth that was full of meatballs. ¡°Master, make a girlfriend for me bbok.¡± That was a serious request from Bbookbbook. But, Ian who was way too focused on what was happening in front of his eyes, hadn¡¯t heard it that clearly. Ian reached out to the materials. The two hands reached out to the Syakelic soul stones floating when magic started to come out of his hand and untie the two of them. Khuoo-! A red gust of wind surrounded the Syakelic¡¯s with feathers. And from the gaps between the feather, white light started to come. And after it, Maybe Ian¡¯s prayers finally reached the gods, system messages emerged along with a burst of white light. Tring- [Successfully completed the ¡®Beast Transmute¡¯!] [Increased the master of the ¡®Magical Beast Transmute¡¯ by 7.5%.] [Flexibility grade: C +] [Since the grade couldn¡¯t reach B, the monster¡¯s rank doesn¡¯t rise.] [A legendary monster ¡®Keakelic¡¯ was born.] [For the first time, you have succeeded in the legendary beast alchemy.] [The fame has increased by 100,000.] [Increased the mastery of ¡®Magical Beast Transmute¡¯ by an additional 15%.] Kiyaahhh-! Huge wings appeared in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Unlike the Syakelic, which had the original Saekaman, the Keakelic had a refined pattern of wings. And with that Ian expression turned a bit disappointed. ¡®I guess my greed was a bit too big, expecting a myth class right in the beginning.¡¯ From the soul of two legendary stones, one legendary monster had been created, but the result wasn¡¯t entirely bad. The proficiency of the alchemy which had been stagnated at 50%, had gone up 22.5% in a single moment. Thanks to it, Ian¡¯s Beast Transmute level was at 10 with 72.5%. Of course, thanks to the successful legendary creation of Ian¡¯s the level was raised by 15%, even the 7.5% of growth wasn¡¯t less. If the 7.5% of increase could be done another four times, then Ian would be able to reach his ultimate goal, Level 10 MAX. And once he managed to the MAX level, he planned on using Behemoth, the Marion Khalifa and Balrog to make a monster of his own. The Balrog wasn¡¯t still decided, and the egg of the Behemoth seemed a bit unlikely to wake up. ¡®Going back there is something I need to think about.¡¯ Ian opened his imaginative part of his brain and later decided to open the information of the monster that he just created. It was a legendary class monster that he managed to create for the first time, which made him want to check. ¨C ¨C ¨C Keakelic ¨C Level: 1 Classification: Monster (Dark Summons) Grade: Legendary Personality: Timid Can¡¯t evolve ATK: 17 Defense Power: 10 Agility: 22 Intellect: 20 Health: 795/795 Unique Ability * Dark Flight (Passive) In the dark, the movement speed increases from 0 to 50% and becomes transparent by 50 to 100% (depending on the degree of darkness). When avoiding the enemy attacks in the dark, it absorbs all the damage for 1 second. * Blood Feather (Cooldown time 2 minutes) Keakelic¡¯s feathers turn red for 10 seconds, and after the duration is over, they blow off all the hundred of red feathers and cause unforeseen damage to the enemies within the radius of 10 m. (The feather damage is proportional to the damage that Keakelic receives during the Blood Feather duration.) * Vortex of Darkness (Cooldown time 10 minutes) A dark vortex made by the Keakelic sucks in all the enemies within the range. The vortex lasts for 10 seconds, and every 0.1 seconds it puts 20% of damage on the enemy within the range. And, the one who is absorbed into the center of the vortex adds 150% damage per second. It is a monster who was born because of the user ¡®Ian¡¯ who used the Beast Transmute. It appears similar to the legendary Syakelic, but the beak and claws are much powerful. ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian who read through the information of Keakelic lost his calm. ¡°Sh*t! What kind of nasty sh*t is this?!¡± The level 1 abilities were surely better than his legendary pets in the past. However, Ian didn¡¯t want to invest time and raise it from level 1. ¡°I¡¯m not sure, I guess I¡¯ll just take back the materials for the beast¡­¡± Ian, who had been in deep thoughts for a while, decided to dispose of the Keakelic. ¡°Maybe put in an auction house. It¡¯s a legendary monster after all and has two huge wings, I can get 20 million gold.¡± At the recent auction site, there have been a lot of monsters that were presented by the Asmodian users. The price range for those were from 10,000 gold to millions of gold! However, no one has seen a hero rank, so if a legendary rank made an appearance in the auction, then 20 million gold would be sure to come. But the next day. Ian didn¡¯t realize then that his guess was completely wrong. CH 365 Chapter 365: Once Again ¨C 2 ¡°There, student Jinsung! If I find you drowsing one more time, regardless of your actual grade I¡¯ll give you a C!¡± In the lecture room for the Virtual Reality class in the University of Korea. A sharp voice resonated throughout the classroom. And Jinsung who was at the corner-back of the room nodded and responded, ¡°Yes! Sorry!¡± Though he had other thoughts in his mind. ¡®Oh¡­ giving me C for sleeping is rather generous, I can go on sleeping, right?¡¯ But it was his thought to avoid any kind of conflict. Anything rather than D, so C was surely better for Jinsung. Feeling thankful for the consideration of the professor, Jinsung once again closed his eyes. Cool- The sincerity fell down to the bottom when he closed his eyes. There wasn¡¯t much he could do, he had always considered coming to the class as a means of getting some sleep time. At night he stays awake and playing the Kailan, and as the sun rises, he moves to the school as a natural course and decides to sleep until the professor decided to end the lecture or whatsoever. For example, like the alchemy and so on¡­ Shik- shik- While he was doing it, there was a girl who was looking at him with a pathetic look on her face. And the girl was ¡®Han Semi¡¯. ¡®Wow, if that senior feels like being like that, then why come to school? Go and sleep for a semester?!¡¯ Jinsung was taking the re-exam for ¡®Basic Game Theory¡¯, which he had dropped in the first semester. It was the reason why he was taking the same class as Han Semi. And Semi was very dissatisfied with such behavior from Jinsung. It wasn¡¯t that she disliked him for just sleeping in the class. Semi normally isn¡¯t a girl with such a personality. However, the case of Jinsung was special. ¡®Hu, how did I end up being in the same team as that senior¡­?¡¯ It was due to a mistake that she did at the beginning of the semester, she was put in the same team with Jinsung. Which was why Semi was constantly sighing. ¡°Well, that¡¯s all for class today. I finished it 20 minutes early, so the groups meet up and complete the tasks given.¡± The professor¡¯s reminding message was relayed throughout the class with the echoing speakers. Which made Semi think. ¡®You end the classes like a ghost.¡¯ And turned her gaze to the place where Jinsung was. She wanted to clearly discuss the final topic they had to do before he moved out of the class. ¡°Senior! Where are you going!¡± Jinsung was flustered as Semi ran towards him and caught him. ¡°Uh. Oh?¡± ¡°Just don¡¯t leave for today! You¡¯ve already put off the work three times!¡± After saying that, Semi sat back into her chair and looked at Jinsung. ¡®Ah.. why is there such as a team player in here¡­?¡¯ It was like the heart that wanted to leave as soon as possible to catch a monster, but the problem was the final task¡ªwas to wait for the team to come. Jinsung didn¡¯t really care about the credit he got (only wanted to graduate), but because he was with a junior, he felt like conscience wouldn¡¯t let go of it. ¡°Ah, yes. Aren¡¯t three weeks left?¡± And a boy who was sitting near him replied instead of Semi. ¡°Yeah hyung. The submission for the final assignment is the next-next week.¡± In the team of Jinsung, along with Semi, there were four boys from the first grade. Semi was the team leader, she pulled out the tablet from her bag and opened her lips while turning it on. ¡°Everyone knows about the final product project, right?¡± At those words, all three of them nodded their heads. Even Jinsung knew what the final project was about. ¡°You have to analyze the AI of an object in the virtual reality, right?¡± At the question from a boy, Semi nodded and responded, ¡°Right. It doesn¡¯t matter what virtual game you¡¯re using, but you¡¯ll have to find a source that is perfect like the Kailan.¡± And Jinsung just wanted to go home as quick as he could. ¡°So, among the monsters, NPC¡¯s selecting an object with the most sophisticated AI pattern and analyze it.¡± At that Semi, Young-Hoon and Min-soo were all blank faced. They haven¡¯t seen anything of that sought in the semester so far. Moreover, they were surprised as Jinsung had spoken exactly what the core of the project was supposed to be. Semi was the one to open her mouth after Jinsung, ¡°Hmm, well. Senior is right. In addition, the more detailed and neat the analysis, the higher will be the score that would be assigned to us.¡± Jinsung shrugged his shoulder and asked, ¡°What¡¯s the meeting for them? You just have to define the object individually and finish off by annotating it, right?¡± Semi tried to maintain a smile on her face while replying, ¡°It¡¯s not that easy. As you just said, one needs to pick a sophisticated object with an AI¡­ and NPC¡¯s and monsters of such high-level AI are difficult to find. The higher level and more intellectual the monster, the more complicated the AI¡­¡± But Jinsung didn¡¯t waver and responded immediately, ¡°That isn¡¯t such a concern. I know a few complicated Kailan monsters with hellish AI. Three days before the submission date, I¡¯ll pick one of them and analyze it.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Not just Young-Hoon and Min-soo, but even Semi was flustered. ¡®Why is he feeling so confident¡­?¡¯ It was shocking to see a Jinsung, who was considered to be a fool in the class, to say that he knew the complex AI in the Kailan, how could that be possible for a dumb person? Which made Semi ask, ¡°Do you know a complex designed AI monster? Can you let us know what kind of a monster it is?¡± And once again Jinsung answered without hesitating, ¡°Hmm¡­ on Syakelic, and Abyss Priest. Bloody Fenrir too has a complicated AI. And ¡­¡± And as the words from Jinsung¡¯s mouth continued, the other three couldn¡¯t help but get shocked with the names they were hearing. The names of the monsters that were coming out of his mouth were unbelievable. Young-Hoon scratched the back of his neck and asked Jinsung, ¡°Just a minute, senior.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what kind of a monster Syakelic is, but the Abyss Priest is of level 260, a sand boss monster on the top floor of Abyss. And the Bloody Fenrir is a level 270 monster that can be encountered in the deepest places of the forest of Bloody Temple.¡± To which Jinsung replied with utmost sincerity, ¡°Oh, you are Young-Hoon, right?¡± ¡°Yeah, senior.¡± ¡°You are pretty smart?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Semi who was listening to their conversation spoke in between, ¡°Senior, and how do you propose that we collect the data of the monsters?¡± Jinsung shrugged his shoulders and responded, ¡°How would you collect? Go together, catch a few and then collect the data.¡± ¡°Ahhh¡­¡± And Min-soo who had been quietly listening to the conversation spoke in a low voice, ¡°The forest of Bloody Temple, it¡¯s so hard to even enter the place¡­¡± For which Semi shouted, ¡°Min-soo, shut up!¡± Semi felt like her head would burst. From her point of view, no matter how great of a buff Jinsung used, he couldn¡¯t have witnessed them. And in other words¡ªto hunt down those monsters; only users from level 250, the semi-ranked players could do that. And it was a little weird to consider her senior as a ranked user in the Kailan. And if he was talking about such monsters as if they were nothing, the reliability on him was dropping for her. ¡°Wow, Senior.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Do you play Kailan?¡± Jinsung nodded confidently answered the question, ¡°Then, you would¡¯ve worked hard every day I guess.¡± Semi took a breath and spoke again, ¡°I don¡¯t want the big ones. But if you could collect about one or two, or your opponent monsters, then hand it over to me. I¡¯ll take care of the rest.¡± At those words from Semi, Jinsung¡¯s face was bright. ¡°Yeah, you¡¯re a really nice junior¡­! Thanks! If I meet you in Kailan, I¡¯ll give you a good present.¡± ¡°¡­ it¡¯s alright, there¡¯s no need for it.¡± Collecting the data of the monster AI. This was the perfect work for Jinsung. Analyzing the Kailan¡¯s AI pattern and targeting the monsters accordingly was the basic play style of Jinsung. However, it was annoying to submit the data when it was considered as a task, which was why he looked at Semi as some kind of angel who took away the presentation task. ¡®I can just throw in a few pieces of data that I¡¯ve collected. I¡¯m excited¡­!¡¯ He was able to finish the meeting with a pleasant feeling and rushed to the capsule in his home. * * * ¡°Should we start with the auction house first?¡± The first place that Ian visited in Kailan was the auction house. He had to pay for the sale of Keakelic and needed to buy some items. ¡®Let¡¯s see¡­ seven blue sapphires. Twelve golden soul stones¡­¡¯ Ian checked through the inventory and after checking the things, he sighed. ¡°No, there isn¡¯t much that I need.¡± The reason why Ian suddenly changed was because of the Magic Circle of the Spirit King, which he had obtained from clearing the quest of Selamus. ¨C ¨C ¨C Magic Circle of the Spirit King ¨C Classification: Magic circle Grade: Legendary It is an ancient magic circle known to be able to summon the spirit system that the Spirit King controls. If you manage to draw the circle shown along with the symbols¡ªwithout any errors and place the jewels as directed, you will be able to summon a portal to summon the Spirit King. ¨C the magic circle can be activated only by a summoner class. ¨C it is a one-time item. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C At the bottom of the information window was an image of how the magic circle had to be formed, and the names of the gems that were needed to be used were written there. And the gems that were written there were the over-priced items. ¡°I think I¡¯ll need 50 million gold to get the items. I don¡¯t think I can get that even after selling the Keakelic, right?¡± 50 million gold, it was a huge amount with which one could buy a foreign sedan car. Even though Ian never thought much about money, it was still a burden. Even if he had to spend all the money he had, Ian was ready to do it, to know the nature of the weapon. ¡®Let¡¯s check the sales of the Kaekelic once¡­?¡¯ Upon arriving at the auction site, Jinsung moved towards the payment receipt window. And recognized the unmanned iris system. Tring- [Iris recognition complete!] [¡®Ian¡¯ would you like to receive all the payouts that have been done so far?] Ian nodded his head and answered. ¡°Yes, I¡¯ll take¡¯em all.¡± And with the following message, Ian¡¯s face lost its color. [Item Sold ¨C Keakelic (monster)] [Sold price ¨C 159,804,230] ¡°What? 15? That¡¯s all?¡± Ian had thought that the Keakelic would bring over 20-30 million gold, but he was embarrassed to see the 15 million gold. But the next moment, Ian began to doubt his eyes. ¡°Wait¡­ that¡¯s one thousand¡­ fifteen million¡­¡± Ian was surprised to see the numbers there. It was because the sales price of Keakelic wasn¡¯t 15 million, it was 150 million! CH 366 Chapter 366: Once Again ¨C 3 Ian wasn¡¯t the person who had a tendency to imagine. Rather, he had an eye to judge the price of a product accurately. Recently, he had managed to get enough money with the drops and profits he had received from the previous territory war of Lotus, even if he sold the dropped items to cover the cost of living, it was impossible to get such price. So when he judged. The value of Keakelic was worth for 50 ¨C 60 million gold. That too was a hope for the best price. ¡®I don¡¯t know, not even a level of 200 monster would go¡­ how does a level 1 monster get sold so expensive?¡¯ Normally, the price of the familiars in the auction house was put up according to the level they are. Even if Ian¡¯s Keakelic was around the level of 250, it would still be impossible to fetch a whopping 150 million gold. But if it was Ly who was a legendary class with more than level 200, then he would be sold for a price of 300 million gold, as the starting price in the auction house. However, the level of Keakelic that Ian had placed in the auction house was of level one. And it was sold for a price that Ian didn¡¯t even imagine, and he wasn¡¯t able to figure out the reason for it. ¡®It¡¯s nice but¡­¡¯ Something felt off and nice at the same time. And this was the whole story. * * * 24 hours ago, in the LovelIan caf¨¦ room. Million: Lauren, is it really possible for the entire team of Golden Summoners to transfer to the Lotus? Lauren: Yes, I have already talked with Herz, maybe once the guild wars are done we can be on our way. Million: Oh¡­! I still have to hit the 250 level¡­! I love you a lot, Lauren! Lauren: Haha, everything we are doing is for Ian¡¯s virtue. Maybe Ian has understood that we are accomplished LovelIan¡¯s¡­ Shwape: Keu, now Lotus will emerge as the #1 guild in Kailan, so are we going to be in the #1 guild? Lauren: Well, I guess so. However, if you don¡¯t manage to get to the level 240 by then, your subscription will get canceled. Million: you don¡¯t have to worry about that! The lowest level of our Golden Summoners is currently 237. The chat window where the peaceful members of the Golden Summoner were talking about the merger with the Lotus, but then one user suddenly caused a commotion. (¡®Coke¡¯ has joined the chat room.) Coke: Hey, guys! I¡¯m not sure. But can I ask you guys to look at a familiar? Precisely a monster. Lauren: Oh, Coke, you¡¯re here. I don¡¯t see you much in the chat room, these days. Sure, I¡¯ll take a look at it. Coke: Kay, one second (Screenshot) ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Keakelic ¨C Level: 1 Classification: Monster Rank: Legendary Personality: Timid (Syncopation) The master of the monster is the user ¡®Ian¡¯. It looks similar to the legendary Syakelic, but the beak and claws are much sharper and powerful. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Million: Woah! A legendary monster? I haven¡¯t heard of a legendary monsters rank yet¡­ is it in an auction house? Coke: Yes, Million. It just came up one minute ago, it was a free auction with no title. Well, I¡¯m not sure as to how much to bid¡­ I came to the chat to ask if 5 million gold is sufficient enough to try. Shwape: Keu¡­! The unique abilities. An enormous coefficient with wide-range skills to deal with numerous monster¡­ Oh, I feel like trying that one. Coke, even if you can¡¯t, I feel like 20 million gold is too less. Coke: Ah, well. I wanted to get it as the abilities were pleasing to see¡­ but the 20 million gold¡­ Million: the level is a bit disappointing. If it was around the level of 200, then I would¡¯ve given up all the gold I had. Lauren: Wait, guys. Are you guys talking after thoroughly reading the information of the pet? Million: Hmm? What is it, Lauren? Is there a problem¡­? Lauren: Read the last part of the information, the explanation given below. Shwape: ¡­?! The monster born from the user ¡®Ian¡¯¡­? Million: Holy sh*t, the number is 001? Shwape: Crazy¡­ batsh*t! Lauren: I¡¯m going to win the bid right away. Coke, I¡¯m sorry but, I¡¯m going to buy that one. Coke: Ah¡­ kay. Well, if it goes over 10 million gold, then there is no way I could purchase it. so go ahead and purchase it, Lauren. Shwape: Lauren, do you have any saved money? It¡¯ll be expensive if other fanatics read that last part. Lauren: I have around 1 billion, but I¡¯ll sell more items and mobilize much more if I can¡¯t get it, and I¡¯ll mobilize cash too if needed. Coke:..? Suddenly 1 billion¡­? Million: Lauren¡­! Please come back after winning the bid! Fighting! Lauren: Well, need to see. (¡®Lauren¡¯ has left the chat room.) Million: Keu¡­wow. Ian is now making monsters too¡­! How does one make a monster? Is it some kind of a hidden quest? Coke: by the way Million, Shwape. Lauren just mentioned 100 million gold, but how is that level 1 loser worth so much? Million: ha, this man¡­ you¡¯re so innocent. You don¡¯t know about Ian¡¯s premium? Coke:¡­ What? Million: Coke you¡¯re are summoner too, you use charm on your familiars? Coke: sure, why? Million: if you go to the auction house now, the most expensive charm items are all the ones from Ian. Coke: That¡­ that is because the ¡®unique¡¯ effect increases the effectiveness of the item, and many use it. But the charms offered from Ian are 1.5 times better than the normal ones¡­ Shwape: Yes but, have you been to the auction houses? Where the items were so expensive that you couldn¡¯t purchase it? Coke: Ah¡­ well, last time when there was a rare talisman that below the level of 100 but was of worth 20 million gold. But some bastard purchased it before me¡­ Million: Heu¡­ that¡¯s Ian¡¯s premium, Coke. Even it was in thousands of gold, it will be numbered to be 20 million. Coke: numbering? What is that now? In Kailan, the items that are made by a particular user would be numbered in the ascending order along with the name of the user, in the auction house. That was the numeric value that would be confirmed when entering the item details but has nothing to do with the performance, In case it was an item made by a named maker, then the lower the number means the higher the price. The concept was similar to the ¡®luxury¡¯ in the real world. It was a system, that stimulated the users to collect things. And for now, there weren¡¯t many people who could purchase the Ian premium. Coke: Ah¡­ So¡­ Million: Lauren is a collector of Ian¡¯s. She wouldn¡¯t mind doing anything for Ian¡¯s premium¡­ Shwape: But what can we do, Lauren is a golden spoon¡­ Ian thought that the item purchased was just a need for some user. For him, the behind-the-scenes story was something that he couldn¡¯t imagine. But in the future when Ian will know the fact, he¡¯ll regret not expecting higher from it¡­ But that was a story for another time. * * * In the 25th division of Devildom. Ian arrived at the magic mines which he hadn¡¯t visited in a long while and felt proud to see the slaves working hard. ¡®Keu, nice. I guess I can raise the level of the mine by today, maybe I¡¯ll collect legendary stones in here!¡¯ The level of mining was currently 4. To upgrade to the 5th level, he needed 100 million gold, and fortunately, because of the sale of the Keakelic, he had the money that he needed. The mine contents were literally eating money! But it wasn¡¯t that Ian didn¡¯t have that amount. The value of the minerals that were coming out of the mine was tremendous. If he managed to do the mine for 3 to 4 months, then Ian would be able to recover all the 400 million gold that he had invested. Ain, who entered the admission office, went on to the expansion of mine without any hesitation. ¡°Extend the mine to level 5.¡± Tring -! [The expense required for mining: 101500000 gold.] [Do you really want to expand? ( Y/N)] ¡°yeah.¡± [Mine level of the Magic Mines increased from 4th to 5th level.] [There is one kind of mineral that can be mined now. (But the mineral¡¯s that can be collected are still a little unknown.)] [The grade of the minerals that can be collected have increased.] [You can hire an additional 5 mining slaves.] Checking the system messages, Ian had a proud expression. ¡°Nice. I need to make an investment once in a while.¡± Ian was satisfied with the change of the appearance of the mine and hurriedly went somewhere. There was a person he had to meet. The reason Ian had come all the way to the mine was because of the expansion. Kkang- kkang-! Drrrk- Drrrrk-! There was a beautiful harmony ringing in the mine! Ian moved into the deepest part of the mine by following the hum. And there was the dwarf Han, who was hitting the rocks. ¡°Oof, Han! It has been very long!¡± At the heartfelt cry from Ian, Han¡¯s face was shining like the sun. ¡°Ian! Really it was a long time. Where have you been till now?¡± Han who kept on reporting on time for the mining came over to Ian and hugged him. It was because he had to confirm. ¡®The contract expiration of Urk Han has come.¡¯ ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Slave Details ¨C Labour Force: 65 Dexterity: 105 (+15) Observation Power: 82 Endurance: 52 Loyalty: 42 Classification: Periodic Remaining contract period: 17 hours for the day. It is a fixed-term contract whose contract period is fixed. If you want to re-hire the slave again, you need to go through the renewal process once again before the contract period expires. (However, after the contract expires, the contract changes as he won¡¯t be considered as a slave.) ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian who checked the information window was able to take a sigh of relief. It was because the date of the contract¡¯s expiration didn¡¯t even have two days. ¡®Huh, I came right on time.¡¯ If he hadn¡¯t made a pledge with him until the slave contract had expired. Then Han could have disappeared to somewhere. ¡®I can ask for a pledge in the magic circle, I have enough affinity with him.¡¯ If they didn¡¯t have enough affinity, then the pledge could have been rejected from one side, but Ian was convinced that it wouldn¡¯t happen. It was because the two seemed like the two sides of a similar soul. Ian took out the magic items and jewels that he had prepared beforehand and handed them to Han. ¡°Han, can I ask something?¡± ¡°Oh, Ian. Sure, anything you want!¡± Ian nodded and laughed brightly. ¡°I have enough magic to produce, but I don¡¯t have the dexterity for it to function¡­¡± Normally, the magic circle was something that could be created by anyone with a blueprint and the materials. The magic circle was something that only a wizard could draw, but the production of it could be made regardless of the class. However, when a user with lacking dexterity tries to produce, the higher the rank of the magic circle, the higher will the probability to produce. However, due to the production work, he was confident that he could make the magic circle with two or three tries. But as the materials were expensive, he didn¡¯t want to fail. And as soon as Ian received the magic circle, he was interested in it. ¡°Oh, Oh¡­! This is the magic circle for the ancient spirit world¡­!¡± As soon as Han recognized the circle, Ian too began to feel excited. ¡°Han, can you do it?¡± Han nodded with a confident face. ¡°Of course! I¡¯m a slave now, but once I was the best craftsmen.¡± Ian laughed and thought to himself. ¡®I already knew that from your information window!¡¯ Ian once again spoke to Han after calming himself. ¡°Please Han! It¡¯s a very valuable item.¡± ¡°Leave it on me!¡± Han carefully put the material that Ian had handed over to him in the corner of the mine and started to draw the circle. Ian who was staring at it was wide-eyed. ¡®What kind of a guy¡­ that Spirit king will be?¡¯ The name Spirit King had an enormous force to it. Ian, however, wasn¡¯t expecting much from the spirit of the Spirit King. The reason wasn¡¯t so weird. It was a thing that hadn¡¯t evolved to a higher or intermediate level. He wasn¡¯t expecting much from the content of ¡®Spirit¡¯, it was all thanks to the few features that have fallen and failed since the level had risen. If the Jack would be evolved to the highest, maybe it would work well¡­? The reason it hadn¡¯t evolve wasn¡¯t because he didn¡¯t use it. But no matter how much he tried to fill the spirit, the spirit was no longer increasing after 4999/5000. So naturally he hadn¡¯t used Jack, and he wasn¡¯t even able to summon. In addition, when he looked at the contents of the Spirit King, he thought that the content would be of mere help to him¡ªas they were attacks based on the spirit power. ¡®I wish the Spirit King is changed¡­¡¯ While Ian was in his thoughts. The magic circle made by the hands of Han was completed and it revealed it¡¯s merits. Woong-! Then, from the pattern of the magic circle, sparks of light started to shine and spread out in a complicated pattern. CH 367 ¡°Ahhh! Why does that jerk have to! Why again!¡± In the monitoring room of LB Software. The team leader of the planning team, Kim Yu-hwan, was holding onto his head and shouting. Kim Yu-hwan was recognized as a worthy employee and was promoted to the planning team as a promotion. Thanks to that, he always tried to be in a good mood, but now he seemed like he had lost the whole world. And the other members of the team who were sitting there didn¡¯t have a much different expression from Kim Yu-hwan. Almost all seemed like they were bankrupt. Except one. He was non-other than Na Ji-chan, who was promoted the same day that Kim Yu-hwan was promoted. ¡°What are you doing, sir? Don¡¯t, team leader. Stay calm.¡± At those words, Kim Yu-hwan glared at Na Ji-chan while saying. ¡°You think I can stay calm, now? The new content is about to be opened again! No, the new content is opened! It happened way faster than I had thought it could.¡± He was speaking as if he was in a rap contest and repeated the same words that he shouted, ¡°But, why, why does the one who discover the new content have to be Ian? Why in the world?! Why?!¡± Na Ji-chan responded with a bit of impatient look, ¡°That, maybe because Ian is the best.¡± ¡°¡­¡± It was a simple answer. And a fact that couldn¡¯t be denied. The newly opened content of the Spirit system was a content that only a summoner could open, and Ian was too powerful among all the summoners. It was impossible for Ian to be compared with the other summoners. In fact, even Kim Yu-hwan thought that Ian would make it to the new content soon after hearing that he had been informed the content was found. ¡®But this is too much¡­ there are high-level summoners out there¡­ but no one expects that Ian managed to find it¡­¡¯ Kim Yu-hwan just sighed and spoke without life, ¡°Ian god, my foot¡­ is that Ian a god?¡± And the one in front of him responded to the lifeless question, ¡°Maybe is the God of Night shifts¡­?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian¡¯s level up speed and his quest clearing speed were both beyond imagination. He always used the most efficient route to move and had amazing control. Moreover, he had invested the most time in the game than anyone else, so it was natural for that to happen. But that meant that a disaster was coming for the LB employees. If Ian had found the new content, it meant that they didn¡¯t have many open days from that moment. If a typical user managed to find the new content, he would afford to spend from six months to one year on it. But Ian, Ian would¡¯ve completed all the preparations within three months of the discovery. With nervous eyes that were still on the screen, Kim Yu-hwan tried to get some strength and spoke with a loud voice, ¡°For the coming days¡­ Planning team 3 will do the night shifts.¡± And even though their leader had just asked them for the night shifts, none of the members rebelled or whined against it. It was because everyone in the room knew very well that even their leader Kim Yu-hwan hated doing the night shifts. * * * Kyooo-! The entire mine was vibrating and sound started to spread in the mines. ¡®What, what? How great of a man is he that the mine itself is shaking as if an earthquake is coming?¡¯ Ian¡¯s complete fortune has been invested in the mine, hundreds of millions of gold were literally piled up for the magic mine to function. And with that, the trembling of the mine made Ian¡¯s heart drop. ¡®Ah, I still haven¡¯t taken a worthy item yet¡­!¡¯ Ian was getting nervous. He was regretting the action of trying to summon in the mine. ¡®No, No. it won¡¯t collapse. Right? It won¡¯t¡­!¡¯ Ian was sweating from his hands. What was happening in the mine due to the magic circle, was unforeseen and was comic to listen to, but it was enough information for one to sympathize with him. But that¡¯s just for a while. As soon as the trembling shook the mine, a new wave of light sprang up from the circle and began to cluster together. ¡°Oh oh¡­!¡± The dwarf right next to him was excited. Ian who was trembling with anxiety managed to calm his heart and looked at the unidentified light on the circle. At first, the blue light was just a mass, but as time went on the light began to take a shape. And as the form was done, Ian couldn¡¯t help but feel confused. ¡®What? A woman¡­?¡¯ A small waist with long legs. Thin arms and gentle breasts, the form of a young woman. The eyes of her which were looking around the mine found the way to Ian¡¯s. ¡°Sh*t¡­¡± Ian felt exhausted by the time she came out. It was because a worthless piece of cloth was laid on the body of the beautiful female, whose body was naked. And a system message came up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. [King of Water ¡°Alicia¡± has been summoned.] As the name ¡®King¡¯ a blue-haired woman, with a magnificent body and aura. She was dressed in a gorgeously designed blue and white, and slowly her gaze once again met with Ian. With cherry colored lips that seemed red on the first look, a pale white face with skin that glittered. She was just covered in a warn like clothing, but she still managed to make a man lose his mind. Alicia the Spirit King of Water, opened her lips looking at Ian, ¡°You¡¯re a human.¡± Ian who met her gaze answered along with a nod, ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Then, this will be the human world¡­ I never imagined that there would be a day when I would step back into the human world.¡± Ian scratched the back of his neck. ¡®Well, honestly this is the Devildom¡­ but I guess it doesn¡¯t matter.¡¯ A little while later. Alicia, who was still in the air, took a gentle step on the ground. The place where her foot was placed, looked like water drops were popping up. Despite the ground, she was stepping on¡ªwas a dirt floor, it seemed like pure water puddles. Which made the Dwarf Han said, ¡°Oh oh¡­ Indeed¡­!¡± Alicia who came near Ian continued to speak, ¡°Human hero, can you do me a favor?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Ian was flustered at the unexpected words that he heard too. ¡®What? Isn¡¯t it just supposed to be like a contract?¡¯ Ian was imagining about the normal developments that took place in most of the fantasy novels. ¡®A human has summoned me¡­ amazing! Do you want to sign a contract with me?¡¯ That was how he had imagined it to be. ¡°A favor¡­?¡± Alicia nodded at the question and opened the beautiful lips of hers, ¡°The Absolute of Selamus, please take out the darkness that came into the spirit world. Like the past, I hope that the spirits become the friends of the humans¡­¡± The words that Alicia spoke weren¡¯t comprehensible to Ian. But he managed to make out that in the current world, the connection between the humans and the spirits were all disconnected. The summoners in the land were the ones who used the skill of the spirits and seemed like she wanted to say something about it. Ian was wondering what Alicia had to say, and what the ¡®favor¡¯ she wanted was, which was why he nodded and responded, ¡°The favor¡­ if possible can I know what it is?¡± With the words from Ian, a quest window started to appear in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. ¨C ¨C ¨C The Spirit King Alicia¡¯s Request I ( Hidden, linked quest) ¨C After you have passed the test to become the Absolute of the Selamus Tribe, you have taken the role from Eos as the Absolute for the summoning of Spirit King. And the Spirit King summoned, is Alicia the Spirit King of Water. However, the spiritual world has been contaminated by civilizations and has become devastating to level there, and she can¡¯t stay in the human world. It is because she was trying her best to support the collapsing dimensional world. The Spirit King, Alicia wants you to get rid of the mechanical civilization that is destroying her spirit world, and restore the power of the spirits. If you plan on helping her, she is willing to lend you her strength. To open the door to the contaminated spirit world, meet Gripper. If you take the necklace that Alicia is wearing, Gripper will be able to open the door for the dimension, with that being a medium. Quest Difficulty: SSS Quest Condition: The user who manages to place his name on the Hall of Sky. A level 400 or higher summoner. A user who has 90 or more affinity with Gripper. Time Limit: None Reward: The necklace of the Spirit King Alicia. The title ¡®Savior of the Spirits¡¯. ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian who read through the contents of the quest looked over at the line that mentioned the level limit as 400. ¡®The difficulty is the same¡­ this is also a burdensome quest, right?¡¯ Whatsoever, it was a quest which had no time limit, and Ian who had little time to spare started to guess the situation. The spirit world was stated to be polluted. And it was somehow related to the reason why the Jacks¡¯ spiritual power didn¡¯t rise after a limit. Jack- Jackk-! And he summoned Jack. As soon as it appeared, it began to go stiff like it was frozen. He looked over at Alicia who was in front of him. Which made Ian ask Alicia, ¡°This guy¡­ do you know him?¡± Alicia shook her head and answered, ¡°No. I don¡¯t know. I¡¯m the Spirit King, but I have no knowledge about the kinds of others.¡± But Ian¡¯s eyes fluttered. Anyhow, she was supposed to know something, at least about the spirit. ¡°Then maybe¡­ do you know the reason why he isn¡¯t evolving? I have been raising this one for a long time, but somehow I¡¯m not able to build-up anymore spirit.¡± With that Alicia smiled and nodded, ¡°In order to become a superior or higher spirit, one needs a pure and powerful spirit power. However, after the spirit world was polluted, the means to find pure power in the human world began to disappear. It was because the power of the spirit world weakened, but the human world wasn¡¯t falling to our level.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± ¡°And for the higher level spirits to act¡­ Just as I had mentioned, there is a need for pure spirit power. Because of that, no superior or higher level spirit would work in the human world.¡± Ian who listened to Alicia¡¯s words nodded and understood. He now understood everything. ¡°If that is so, it means that Jack will evolve if I clear this quest. And the reason why the spirit content was failing was just explained¡­¡± And Ian¡¯s desire started to rise once again. It seemed like the new content was being planned for a long time, which was why Ian seemed to smile. ¡°The request of Alicia, I¡¯ll take it on. I will go to the Spirit world as soon as it is possible.¡± With those words from Ian, Alicia¡¯s face brightened with a smile. And her laughter was beautiful. ¡°Thank you, Ian. Our spirits will never forget the help they got from Ian.¡± Ian smiled and responded, ¡°Thank you, but I¡¯ll take those words after the work is done.¡± Alicia laughed once again and said, ¡°Okay. But obviously¡­ you¡¯re the Absolute Ian, I¡¯m sure you can save the spirit world.¡± ¡°Yah, of course.¡± Maybe she liked the honest response from Ian, but Alicia was laughing again and again. Once she was done laughing, she still had something more to say. ¡°But you don¡¯t need to hurry, increase your strength a little more. I know that Ian is an excellent warrior, but the ones in there are very powerful too.¡± The level limit on the quest was 400. Maybe it was something related to that. Ian nodded and clenched his fist. ¡®Kay. There is one more reason I need to create the best monster.¡¯ He wasn¡¯t sure how much effort was needed to be put, to achieve the level of 400. Even if there were a lot of dungeons that came up in the recent years, the leveling up process was little, so he wasn¡¯t sure how long it would take to get to the level of 400. He was planning to raise the level of the Magical Beast Transmute and creating the best monster¡ªand by then entering the spirit world. ¡°I understand, Alicia.¡± And soon he had a new purpose, which would contribute to the level-up to be faster. But it was going to be a nightmare for some other people. CH 368 Click ¨C click ¨C A mouse clicking in an empty room. There was a man who was holding onto his chin and staring at the monitor. ¡°Hmm, sure¡­¡± And slowly the lip corners of the person went up, forming a smile. At first look, the expression seemed complex to understand, but if one saw it closely they would know that the person was joyous. ¡°Interesting, this is interesting¡­¡± The guy kept on moving the mouse and laughed at what he saw. He stared at the screen for a moment and then turned his eyes away from the screen. On the monitor was a screenshot of the official community. And the posts which were on it¡­ ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C [Best Screenshot of the Week] By: Lauren [Named] [Ranker] Title: Became the owner of a legendary monster (Salted Attention) (Ian God) Hits: 565725 (up!) Best Index: 98 Contents: Hello everyone, it¡¯s Lauren. The leader of Golden Summoners and president of the LovelIan¡¯s fan club. The reason why I showed up on the screenshot board of today is¡­! (The legendary Monster Keakelic.JPEG) To immediately boast about this guy. Is your strength all together? He was the one whom I won in the auction house three hours ago. I think I¡¯m going to raise this guy, my heart is pounding really loud. I am the first official owner of the legendary monster! Huh, not a devildom user! But the first human user as the owner of this dark summon of a legendary creature, did you guys ever imagine that? By the way, did you read the end of the description? ¡®The dark summon monster born from user ¡®Ian¡¯s¡¯ beast alchemy!¡¯ Keu. Honestly, that is the main point. This guy is the number 001 of Ian¡¯s skill born monster! Ah¡­! I¡¯m so happy right now. I feel like I just fulfilled my mission as the president of the LovelIan¡¯s. And, everyone! Do you guys know, that this is the monster of Darkness? The content that Ian God has opened up recently¡­ the ones that only a ¡®Dark Summoner¡¯ can deal and control! He created such a thing right after turning into the Dark Summoner¡­! Ahh, I¡¯m not even a little bit sad for using the amount that I had to get this guy. (Though the successful bid amount is going to be a secret. Hehe.) (Compulsory) ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Keek-! The man closed his eyes for a moment, as he was locked in his thoughts, he took the mouse into his and started to move it again. ¡°Irahan you idiot. Why didn¡¯t you even know that Ian could have been in the Devildom?¡± He kept on mumbling and pounding his mind. ¡°The evidence even came out on the community page.¡± Even though he didn¡¯t know what kind of materials were needed for creating a dark monster. It was common sense that he would need to go to the Devildom to get them. It made no sense for anyone when they thought that a human was able to create a monster of Darkness. So, in the description, the explanatory note which clearly said ¡®monster born from Ian¡¯, was proof that Ian could enter the Devildom. As he could enter the Lotus, he seems to have found a way to enter the Devildom dimension. ¡°Huhu. I don¡¯t need to be told. Maybe this¡­ is a chance for me.¡± As he continued to scroll down the posts, he saw thousands of posts, seeing that the man laughed hysterically. * * * After the ¡®The Spirit King Alicia¡¯s Request¡¯, the spirit king Alicia who was summoned from the magic circle went back to her world. And Ian had an item called ¡®Alicia¡¯s Necklace¡¯ which was needed for the quest. But even that was sealed and couldn¡¯t be used. ¡°Sh*t. This looks like a very nice necklace¡­¡± However, Ian wasn¡¯t disappointed. As one went to a new content, the rewards that came in were tremendous. And right now, he had to grow as fast as he could. ¡®Let¡¯s move to that Tomb of the Forgotten Soul. I¡¯ll just keep hunting in there.¡¯ With the recent update of the dungeons, very high-level hunting grounds have been made in various parts Kailan. Specifically, in the deepest regions of the Central Continent and the Northern Continent, dungeons with 350-400 leveled dreadful monsters were created at the same time. This update had been placed as there was a surge of leveled users in recent times. However, Ian wasn¡¯t so interested in the dungeons in the Central of Northern Continent. ¡®If I manage to go to the 10-50th divisions of the Devildom, I¡¯ll gain much more experience than that.¡¯ It was important to raise the level, but at the same time, he had to continue and improve the Magical Beast Transmute (Beast Alchemy). Especially, because of the fact that the proficiency with the legendary magical beasts increased by hunting them in the hunting fields. He must collect as many soul stones as possible and continue his practice to create magical beasts. Which was why Ian had chosen the ¡®Tomb of the Forgotten Soul¡¯ as the hunting ground. Wheiing-! [You have come to the 15th division of the Devildom.] Ian had opened the dimensional doors to the 15th division of the Devildom. Right behind Ian, was a man with a white armor. And with a distinctive tone, the man spoke, ¡°Well well¡­ I guess it is true that you could come to the Devildom.¡± At those words from him, Ian couldn¡¯t help but smile. ¡°Did I ever lie about it?¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s true.¡± The man who just answered, smiled and looked at him. And knocked both of his fists together. And the colorful golden knuckles on his hands met each other with sparking flames of blue color. He was none other than the Guild master of the Fullios, Yu Shin. But he was in this place. ¡°You want to fight me?¡± ¡°Yes. I want you to teach me some stuff.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ that¡¯s a bit hard. I don¡¯t have enough time, I need to level up now.¡± ¡°If there is anything you want from me¡­ I¡¯ll help you out.¡± ¡°Help huh¡­ what kind are you talking about?¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter what it is. I¡¯ll do whatever I can to help you.¡± ¡°Yeah? Deal!¡± The request Ian asked from Yu Shin was simple. Until Ian reaches the level of 400, he needs to hunt along with Ian. For which Ian decided that he would have to deal with him once a week. And Yu Shin naturally accepted it. It was because he wanted to see and understand how Ian, who was considered as the best users in Kailan hunts and works. And thus, the Devildom had brought Yu Shin and Ian together. While Yu Shin was looking at the surroundings of the Devildom with inquisitive eyes, the retainers of Ian who were moving behind him were looking at him with doubtfulness. Pauline asked Kaizer, ¡°That man called Yu Shin. Seems to be alright, but what do you think about him Kaizer?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ he seems fine by the looks¡­ can he hold on for a week? Huh¡­ I still don¡¯t understand why he followed our Lord and is agreeing to hunt in here.¡± ¡°But following our Lord won¡¯t he grow fast too?¡± ¡°If one swings their sword for hunting until they fall asleep¡­ then they are better off at getting stronger by doing it alone.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Celia spoke to ¡®Millet¡¯ a priest class retainer of Yu Shin. ¡°Did you say, Millet?¡± ¡°Yes, Celia.¡± ¡°Cheer up.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°No, just saying¡­ cheer up and work hard. Fighting!¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± There was a slight fuss, but the party of Ian and Yu Shin slowly began to hunt in the 15th division of Devildom and began to enter the deepest locations. Ian was hunting down the beasts carefully as if he was a bounty hunter. And seeing that side of Ian, Yu Shin felt like he misunderstood him. ¡®Remir seems to have exaggerated. Isn¡¯t this the normal speed for hunting?¡¯ Remir and Yu Shin were on friendly terms, which was why Remir had talked to him about the party hunt that they did. He was worried when he heard her say that ¡®I was hunting until my legs couldn¡¯t stand¡¯, but right now Ian was hunting like a normal human. But that was a plain misunderstanding. In the 10th division, he was careful when it came to hunting because there could be some Asmodians users too. Was it a hunt for one or two hours? Ian and Yu shin finally managed to reach the grave of the Forgotten Soul. This was the hunting ground that the two of them would spend quite a time. Before entering the dungeon, Ian finally asked Yu Shin, once again. ¡°I, I don¡¯t like resting when hunting¡­ you¡¯re fine with it?¡± For which Yu Shin nodded. ¡°Sure. You don¡¯t have to worry much about it. even I don¡¯t prefer taking breaks when hunting.¡± And the two who entered the grave of the Forgotten Soul, had forgotten everything about the outside world. * * * The Lotus Guilds, guild wars had come to an end with 12 wins and 0 losses. But the heat of the matter wasn¡¯t so easy to cool down. Right after those incidents, the Manor of the Lotus Guild had attracted the attention of many users from Kailan. It was a record that no one had made in the Guild Wars till the present date¡ª12 wins without a single defeat. Thanks to that, the status of the Lotus Guild had risen over the sky, and the community began to praise both Ian and the Lotus. There were a lot of arguments saying that the Lotus was currently the No-1 guild in the Korean Kailan Server. Though it was in the 2nd place with a slight difference, it was still of the opinion that the Lotus Guild was still stronger than the Titan Guild. And the Titan Guild, who were motivated with the war in the Luspel, started the Guild wars in the Kaimon Empire too and were successfully able to move forward with the successive wars. And as a result, the Titan Guild had merged all the lands of the Western continent. So the central continent became a fight for the Titan and the Lotus guilds, and both the guilds were growing a tremendous pace. With the exception of the hard to merge guilds on the continent, all the other guilds that went against the top two had disappeared. The Lotus Guild was enjoying the greatest fortune since the opening on the Kailan! The Lotus Guild¡¯s Manor, the capital of the Pyro, wasn¡¯t settling with that, they were constantly on their feet and even visited the Empires NPCs. But one day. A muscular dwarf came into the castle gates of Pyro. ¡°Well, if it isn¡¯t Lord Fiolan.¡± And the first to notice him was Fiolan who had a prior appointment with him. ¡°Yes. I¡¯m Fiolan. But¡­ your reason to come here.¡± The moment she was done speaking. Fiolan¡¯s eyes saw something that was familiar in the hands of the dwarf. ¡®That¡­ seems like a thing I saw a lot¡­?¡¯ While Fiolan was in thoughts, the dwarf spoke. ¡°I¡¯m the vassal of Ian, Urk Han. I came in here in the name of Ian. Please take good care of me.¡± And Fiolan realized the identity of the shell that was in the hand of the dwarf. CH 369 ¡°So¡­ you¡¯re in need of a blacksmith in the Pyro Domain?¡± ¡°Yes, Lord Fiolan. In order to refine the material that my lord has given, we need a large forge.¡± Fiolan had a strange expression while seeing the dwarf that Ian had sent. ¡®No, I don¡¯t get it Ian¡­ from where did this dwarf come now?¡¯ Fiolan felt that something was wrong. As soon as the Guild wars were done, he couldn¡¯t be seen anymore, and a dwarf that shouldn¡¯t be in the empire suddenly appeared. The fact that he sent a retainer to help the matters of the manor wasn¡¯t surprising. However, it was a problem because it was a ¡®dwarf¡¯. ¡®Has dwarves ever appeared before in the Kailan?¡¯ At least Fiolan didn¡¯t know of it. There have been instances of Shakran and other users visiting the hidden dwarf villages, but none of it were publicly known. Which made Fiolan think that Ian was the first one to discover the species of dwarves. But, the fact that those talented people referred to as dwarves, entering the Pyro Domain was the most beautiful moment for them. At the view from Kailan¡¯s world, a dwarf was referred to as a superior species of a blacksmith. If a dwarf took charge of the blacksmith, he could certainly raise the level of the Manor. Fiolan laughed and grabbed the hand of Urk Han. ¡°Sure, let¡¯s do it. But¡­ the only level that our manor has been constructed to is the advanced level 5. Would it still be fine with you?¡± Advanced level 5. Although it is a high-level facility, it was still evaluated as a relatively low when compared to the level of the Pyro Manor. In the case of ¡®Red Hawk¡¯ guild in the Kaimon Empire, it has the best facilities and has been very long since it has reached the Max level. And that wasn¡¯t it. Even the blacksmith facility was also of the MAX level which was being rebuilt to the next tier. The Red Hawk guild had already put the ¡®blacksmith¡¯ which was in the 2 tier into the 9th level. Compared to that; the facility of advanced 5th level, of the first tier, was shabby. The dwarf shook his head. And spoke after looking at the person in front of him, ¡°Impossible. With the level of the advanced 5th manor, you will never be able to refine this huge project.¡± Fiolan was embarrassed at it. ¡°Then what do you suppose? It will take some time to reach the next level¡­?¡± At which Han smiled and spoke, ¡°There is no need to worry, Lord. Let me share something with you.¡± ¡°¡­?!¡± Fiolan who didn¡¯t understand what the dwarf was talking about, was interrupted by the dwarf once again. ¡°Hehe, please guide me to the blacksmiths. You¡¯ll know once you see.¡± Fiolan just nodded her head and smiled, ¡°As you¡¯ve asked. Come this way please.¡± * * * The main blacksmith tower of the Pyro Manor. In front of Fiolan, a series of system messages started to appear. Tring! [Guild Member ¡®Ian¡¯ retainer ¡®Urk Han¡¯ shares his skill for the Pyro Domain.] [Pyro Domain blacksmith skill has been increased from the advanced 5 levels to the advanced 10 levels (MAX).] [From the very moment, you¡¯ll be able to upgrade all the blacksmiths of the Pyro to the advanced level 10.] [Congratulations!] [The Manor blacksmith skills have risen sharply!] [It is now possible to expand the facility to the 2nd tier.] [From now on a 2nd tier facility, ¡®Blacksmith facility¡¯ can be built.] [The current level of facilities that can be created with technical skill blacksmith, is to beginner level 3.] The eyes of Fiolan confirmed the messages once again. From all the time that she had been here, she never knew that the blacksmith of the Manor could be developed this way. And it didn¡¯t develop in a small manner. Was it possible for the facilities to be changed to the next tier in an instant, and that too, to start from the beginner level of 3 from the next tier? ¡®What is this? Isn¡¯t this a bit too fraudulent¡­? If this is possible, then the blacksmiths can be sent to other manors and the skills can be shared¡­ they all have the same facilities as the Pyro Domain, right?¡¯ But it was a misunderstanding on the part of Fiolan. But technique transfer wasn¡¯t possible for anyone to do. Because there has to be a title of craftsman for a person to transfer the skills to a manor. When the production skill enters the stage of master, then the title of craftsman would be generated. However, there were very few users who have reached the level of mastery. Which was why such content wasn¡¯t known yet. And the technique transfer wasn¡¯t an ability that could be used indefinitely. Only one transfer could be done once a month. Urk Han scratched the back of his neck and opened his mouth, ¡°Even with my skills, the limit to develop colonial facilities by the blacksmiths of this Manor has been to 3rd level from the first level¡­ this a bit disappointing to say, but this can still work and be ready.¡± The present skill of blacksmith was master 1 level. Normally, when a blacksmith with such a level of skills could manage the colonial facilities, it was possible to produce large facilities of about 3-4 levels. However, the level of development that could be done at a time with the transfer was limited to beginner level 3. Fiolan who had no knowledge of the technique transfer, couldn¡¯t understand what he was talking about, so dwarf Han spoke again, ¡°Then, I hope you take good care of me, Lord.¡± At that, not being aware, Fiolan bowed her head to him. It was because she had been given a gift that she could never think of. ¡°Uh well¡­ why are you doing this.¡± Was what she wanted to say, but the moment Fiolan opened her mouth something else came, ¡°But Han?¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°Do you by any chance know where Ian is right now?¡± She had been wondering for weeks where Ian had gone to. And Han¡¯s words came out. ¡°Ah, Ian is now¡­¡± * * * Ian mainly preferred solo play. Does it mean that being in a party doesn¡¯t help Ian much? That wasn¡¯t the conclusion. It was true that when the level was considered to be low, then solo play was much rewarding and efficient than party play, but as the level went high, party play had better results and with the right synergy of the professions, they could be advantageous. Even then, there were a few reasons why Ian preferred Solo play. First, There weren¡¯t many users who had good control like Ian did. No matter how high the level was, it was rather negative to hunt with a nervous uncoordinated member. And second, There weren¡¯t many users who could match with the hellish hunting schedule of Ian. Remir, Hoonie, and others. Well, known rankers run out of blood after just a few days of hunting, so it didn¡¯t need any explanations. Finally, the third. Given the time that it takes to make a party, just going into a solo play would be effective and efficient. But till a few days ago, Ian was continuously party hunting. Kwang- Kwakwang-! ¡°Get yourself together, Yu Shin! Are you suddenly feeling sleepy or tired¡­ or something like that?¡± ¡°Ah, No! would that be possible. I¡¯m still wide awake and brisk. Hehe!¡± Opening his eyes, Yu Shin banged his fists. The eyes were red and closing, it was the image of a man who was tired but wasn¡¯t ready to admit it because of his pride. Which made Ian smile with satisfaction. A very satisfied expression! ¡®Keu, this Yu Shin¡­! I seem like I really like this guy?¡¯ A few days later, around the 3rd week. Despite having the most packed schedule for weeks, this guy didn¡¯t even try to run away. Which was why Ian¡¯s eyes shone. ¡°Nice, Yu Shin! Let¡¯s show some more strength!¡± ¡°Okay, Ian. Let¡¯s go straight to the next floor.¡± Even though the dark circles under his eyes reached his chin, he was still burning with enthusiasm! Ian nodded with a satisfied expression, ¡°Nice, nice. After the next hunt with the Balrog is over in the floor, we¡¯ll have a 30 minute rest time.¡± ¡°Really¡­?!¡± The dark and pale face of Yu Shin went bright immediately. And the sharp observation skill of Ian¡¯s caught the pleased expression of Yu Shin which wasn¡¯t there a while ago. ¡°Yu Shin. I think you were happy that you just rested a while now¡­?¡± Yu Shin who was startled at that, responded while stuttering a bit, ¡°Who? Did I seem like that? No way, Ian. You¡¯re surely mistaken.¡± Ian smiled at the cute effort and spoke again, ¡°Well, if you say so.¡± Yu Shin added other words, ¡°I¡¯m certain, I¡¯m very motivated right now. Don¡¯t judge me just as you want to!¡± ¡°Indeed¡­! There¡¯s no need to take a rest, we just need some time for the maintenance¡­?¡± ¡°Yeah! Just that!¡± Ian smiled at it. And Bbookbbook who was watching the conversation between the two from a distance mumbled in a small voice, ¡°A humans, I can¡¯t understand¡­¡± Ian had learned how to use Yu Shin. * * * Lilson the number one of the Explorer class. Thanks to his relationship with Ian, he managed to become a member of the Lotus Guild. However, it was a bit saddening. The level of the battle class wasn¡¯t so high, but the Lotus Guild with having the ranked users in the production class didn¡¯t have many in the castle. In fact, though he had received quite a calls from the other guilds to join, Lilson had come into the Lotus Guild because he was a fan of Ian! But things were different now. ¡®Catch! My foresight¡­! I did well by joining the Lotus Guild then!¡¯ It is the best guild at the moment with second place in the rankings. And being the member of the Lotus Guild boasted their pride. And Lilson did enough to be proud of himself. As an explorer class, he had found a large number of dungeons near the Pyro territory, and it certainly made a huge contribution to the development of the Pyro province. If there were a lot of good hunting grounds around the Manor, many people would be interested and it would eventually lead to the development of the Manor. Tring-! [You have found a new dungeon!] ¨C ¨C The Forgotten report of the Desert Giant (Treasury) ¨C Classification: Instant Dungeon Grade: Tier 2 Location: Oligos Desert Level Limit: 240 Recommended level: 270 or higher Exploration Progress: 0% Appearing Monsters: Unknown Boss Monsters: Unknown (Hero Rating), Unknown (Unique Rating) It is the forgotten treasure house of the desert giant who lived in the Central a long time ago. The treasure of the desert giants are¡­ (often) ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C [On the Central Continent, you¡¯ve found a tier 2 dungeon in the Oligos Desert!] [The explorer experience has been increased by 3678100.] [¡®Dungeon Exploration¡¯ skill experience increased by 208793.] [The level of ¡®Dungeon Exploration¡¯ skill increased from advanced 3 levels to advanced 4 levels.] [Successfully accomplished a tier 2 dungeon, earned the fame of 150,000.] The dungeon discovery, the rewarding messages from it were the only ones that an explorer could enjoy! And Lilson who read it became happy. ¡°I did one today!¡± Lilson, who traveled the desert the very same day, explored restlessly was hungry for rewards. He checked the status window and was feeling full after a lot of time. ¡°Oh, I¡¯m hungry now. Now, should I head back to the estate?¡± Lilson turned towards the direction where the Pyro Lord castle was and took light footsteps in the direction. The Oligos desert is a near field that was only 15 minutes away from the Pyro. Which was why he thought that he could go back there and eat a tasty meal. ¡°At this time¡­ Harin¡¯s restaurant should be opened, right?¡± The cooking of Harin was the main reason why most people couldn¡¯t leave the Pyro Domain. Her cooking expertise was still on the top rankings. ¡®What should I eat for today? Should I eat something delicious as it has been a while¡­? I heard that the Golden Drake¡¯s leg, meat stake was so good¡­!¡¯ He was feeling very excited to eat the food. And his footsteps began to pick up the pace. CH 370 ¡°No way¡­ Jinsung isn¡¯t going to come today?¡± ¡°Ah, that can¡¯t be. Let¡¯s wait. He said that he¡¯ll definitely come here just to hand us the data.¡± In a lecture hall for the Virtual reality class in Korea University. Three people were seated in an empty classroom and were waiting for someone. They were first-year students of that virtual reality class, Semi, Young-Hoon, and Minsu. They all gathered because they decided to proceed with their team project today. Semi lowered her voice and muttered. ¡°Jinsung senior doesn¡¯t have to get us that many, just two cases are all we need¡­¡± To which Young-Hoon responded. ¡°Yeah. Semi already brought enough materials we can use for the presentation.¡± They suddenly heard the sound of the door being forcefully opened in that silent classroom. Since all the students were currently in their morning classes, there wasn¡¯t anyone else apart from the team members inside the lecture room. The three of them looked at once in the door¡¯s direction. ¡°Jinsung seni¡­!¡± However, Young-Hoon who was about to call Jinsung¡¯s name stopped midway. The other two who were there were flustered and confused. It was because the person who opened the door wasn¡¯t Jinsung. ¡°Wh¡­ Who¡­?¡± Semi spoke while being a little bit embarrassed. Even if it was not Jinsung, that wasn¡¯t a good enough reason for them to be flustered. It was because the one who entered was a stunningly beautiful woman. There were many pretty ones at Korea University, but there wasn¡¯t anyone who was as beautiful as the woman in front of them! Minsu whispered to Young-Hoon. ¡°Hey, do we have such a pretty girl in our class? Not just in our year¡­ maybe a senior?¡± Young-Hoon whispered back. ¡°Ah, no. This is my first time seeing her¡­¡± A moment later. The female student who was moving into the classroom smiled brightly and asked. ¡°Ah, by any chance¡­ is this the virtual reality B-15 classroom.¡± Young-Hoon nodded with a blank face. ¡°Huh¡­? Yeah! Right.¡± ¡°Ah, I found it. Then the three of you are the ones who are in the same team as Jinsung¡­?¡± Both Minsu and Young-Hoon nodded at the same time, and Semi who managed to come out of her trance was the first to ask. ¡°Right. But, who might¡­ you be?¡± That question made Young-Hoon and Minsu look at the stunningly beautiful girl with anticipation. ¡°Ah. I¡¯m Harin. I¡¯m a 3rd year from the Cooking Department here in Korea University.¡± ¡°Then, why are you here¡­?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve come to run an errand for Jinsung. It¡¯s to hand this over.¡± Young-Hoon and Minsu were shocked hearing her say that she was running an errand. ¡®An, errand¡­?! Such a beautiful student is running an errand?¡¯ ¡®For Jinsung senior¡­!!¡¯ Harin didn¡¯t pay attention much to their reaction and put a thick envelope on the desk. It contained a bunch of thick documents that seemed like major subjects books. Thud-! Semi asked Harin once again. ¡°What is this¡­?¡± Harin smiled and answered immediately. ¡°I didn¡¯t exactly understand what I was told. Was it a task or a report¡­? All I was told was that it was a collective work.¡± Semi who couldn¡¯t think of anything to say nodded with a frown on her face. In fact, Jinsung didn¡¯t work much with the team, but still managed to get them the data. Tugk- tugk-! Harin who did her task walked out of the room while the other three were still in shock. Minsu was the one who was able to talk first. ¡°Wha¡­ what was that¡­?¡± Young-Hoon said. ¡°Maybe¡­ Jinsung¡¯s younger sister, since she said that she was in the 3rd sem..?¡± ¡°Does that make any sense? It doesn¡¯t matter how much of a fool you are, but do their genetics match at all? Jinsung and her¡­¡± ¡°Then, why would she even run an errand for Jinsung?¡± ¡°Well¡­? Girlfriend¡­?¡± Minsu immediately rejected that possibility. ¡°No way! That makes no sense either!¡± Young Hoon then continued. ¡°Well, that¡¯s right. That girl can¡¯t be his girlfriend. How can Jinsung senior get such a beauty¡­! Let¡¯s just think of her as some friend he knew.¡± ¡°¡­¡± After they cleared their thoughts from their mind. The three managed to settle down and turn their gaze towards the bundle of documents enclosed in an envelop that Harin delivered. ¡°By the way, should we do this?¡± ¡°Yeah, Semi is right. The deadline is tomorrow¡­ we¡¯re out of time.¡± ¡°Yeah. I¡¯m thankful that this happened. Didn¡¯t Jinsung senior keep his promise?¡± ¡°Well, you could say so, but we can¡¯t really say until we see what¡¯s inside.¡± Semi picked up the envelope and said. ¡°But why make such thick paperwork for just two cases.¡± Heavy A4 papers were inside the envelope. However, the moment they saw the first page, all three of them were amazed. ¡°Wa¡­ wait a second!¡± ¡°Wha¡­ what is this¡­?¡± Young Hoon picked up a bunch of A4 papers and turned them over. As time went on, his expression darkened. Apart from taking the case, he was the one who was responsible for its presentation and the PPT that had to be submitted. Semi who was also looking at the data from the sides spoke to Young Hoon with bright eyes. ¡°Young Hoon. Don¡¯t miss a single report and put them all together, okay?¡± Young Hoon nodded slowly with a depressed look has he had more work to do now. ¡°Ah¡­ kay.¡± * * * ¡°What happened today that we¡¯re having a date here in Kailan?¡± Ian said to Harin when he saw her at the Pyro Lord Castle. Monday was normally the day where they would meet in the real world. They promised each other that every two or three weeks, they would go on a simple date outside the game. However, Harin told Ian to meet her at the Pyro Manor. Thanks to that Ian didn¡¯t have to worry about being so unproductive for the date. Which was why Harin looked a thousand times more beautiful than usual today. ¡®Hehe, dating in-game is the best. This is way more fun than watching movies.¡¯ Harin walked closer to Ian and fire seemed to come out from her mouth as she spoke. ¡°Jinsung-ah, I¡¯ve been thinking a lot¡­¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Harin¡¯s tone was making Ian anxious since this was something that he had never experienced before. ¡®What, what is it!?¡¯ He was worried that he made Harin feel left out since he was spending way too much time in the game! ¡®No way, but we¡¯re still having a date once every week¡­! It is tough in-game since the level differences are a bit too much.¡¯ Those thoughts were quickly swept away from Ian¡¯s mind as soon as Harin continued what she was about to say. It was as surprising as he thought though. ¡°Why don¡¯t I try doing business?¡± Ian frowned after hearing what Harin said. ¡°Busi¡­ business¡­?¡± Harin nodded while having a serious expression. ¡°Huh! Business?¡± ¡°What kind of business?¡± ¡°Hmm.. franchise a business maybe¡­?¡± Ian¡¯s head was once again filled with various thoughts. ¡®What? Franchise? Does Harin want to open a restaurant behind the school? Hmm¡­ I guess it will be fine if it is Harin¡­? But if you think about it, it would be better to create a brand rather than a franchise¡­¡¯ There were a thousand thoughts running through Ian¡¯s mind. ¡°Hmm? What are you looking up?¡± ¡°Wait and see. I¡¯ll show you the business plan.¡± ¡°Busi¡­ business plan¡­.?¡± ¡°Hmmm! You always do a lot of analyzing about Kailan, which was why I thought that I should make a business plan.¡± Ian became a little bit suspicious when he heard about this business plan that Harin was talking about. ¡®What? Why have a business plan in setting up a small shop¡­? I can surely lend her money that¡¯s needed for setting up a shop.¡¯ Ian began to read with his utmost concentration the business plan that Harin gave him. He was willing to lend Harin a few bucks for this kind of thing, which was why he felt like he needed to know what it was going to be like. Even if it wasn¡¯t game related, Ian always made sure that he had researched and analyzed stuff that he was about to get into. ¡°Business L&H¡­?¡± Harin nodded with excitement. ¡°Yeah. L* from Ian and H from Harin.¡± Both of them decided to sit as silence engulfed the place. The only sound one could hear was that of the pages being turned. Ian¡¯s expression was very serious with both of his eyes trying to understand what she was planning to do, and Harin with an expectant expression was just looking at Ian. ¡®Haha¡­ I hope Jinsung-ah likes it too¡­!¡¯ Jinsung wasn¡¯t completely aware, but in recent times, Harin managed to accumulate a good sum of money. Aside from those times when she joined the guild party or gone hunting, she used to spend a lot of her time trying to cook and sell her food. Which was why Harin had a whooping sum of 130 million gold in Kailan. She was able to collect that much because of the restaurant that she opened in the Pyro Domain. ¡®Harin¡¯s Beautiful Restaurant¡¯ was what she named it since it was the most famous place in Pyro. It was so famous that it made its way to the community. Ian who was busy with his quests had no way of knowing it. The franchise that Harin was talking about was in Kailan. It wasn¡¯t a plan to hand out a franchise to a person, but to open her own franchise! She didn¡¯t need Ian for money. It was Ian¡¯s fame and Lotus Guild that she wanted to borrow. She needed to know how Ian would feel about this. Though his sense of opinion in business wasn¡¯t known, Ian still had a great insight into Kailan. Ian who was just reading through the business plan saw Harin in a new light. ¡°Harin-ah, isn¡¯t this awesome?¡± ¡°Re¡­ really? You think that it will be possible?¡± Ian nodded with a lot of sincerity. ¡°Yeah! It¡¯s great. Opening a franchise in Kailan¡­!¡± Cooking was many of the non-productive classes among the many production jobs in Kailan. In the blacksmith class¡¯ case¡ªthe most popular production class¡ªthere were more than 10 users who managed to reach a mastery level, but not a single user from the cooking class managed to do it. Kailan¡¯s buff effects were good, but it was always difficult to raise the proficiency with them. On top of that, there were many effects which didn¡¯t overlap with a user¡¯s skills, which was why many changed their production classes from cooking. The main reason for the change was the rise of production facilities which was directly related to the items that blacksmiths made for money. The most important materials that the users of Kailan need were weapons that were made by blacksmiths. However, Harin still loved Cooking! Which was the reason why Harin still held onto it. Rather than hearing ¡®tasty¡¯ from her customers, she preferred to hear ¡®delicious dish¡¯. She already owned a well-known restaurant in Kailan. Ian then said. ¡°This business, how about you put it in the Guild premises?¡± Harin blinked her eyes hard. ¡°Guild¡­ premises?¡± Ian nodded and answered. ¡°Hmm, if it works, then let¡¯s have it built all over the place.¡± With this, Ian gained another thing that he wanted to be the best at in Kailan! The two of them sat there for quite some time and were thinking of what to do next. Ian was really thinking earnestly about the business and the future. ¡®If Harin succeeds at the guild level, she can get some money. And even my money will come in¡­¡¯ The Lotus Guild had recently managed to take over the entire territory to the maximum level. The guild was now trying to get back on their feet and become much stronger. The restoration of the troops and the development of the Manor were going on. After gathering as much power as they could harness, they could already declare themselves as the first Kingdom in the whole nation. ¡®Once we turn into a Kingdom, the shop will still be in the early stages.¡¯ One of the two big pictures that Ian wanted was being realized. One of those big pictures was to take over the Central Continent, which was the first thing he thought of after entering the game. And with just that 3 months passed by quickly. CH 371 Drrrk -! In a large meeting room. With a large U-shaped table in the center of it, and all the people sitting around it were in unison. ¡°Mr. Chairman is coming in.¡± A middle-aged man dressed in a black suit came into the room after the door was opened by the doormen and walked in the direction of the chairman. Was he around forty? Although he looked young and sophisticated to be considered as middle-aged, the wrinkles around the man¡¯s eyes were deep. He was ¡®Nam Taehoon¡¯, the chairman of the planning team, which was responsible for the overall planning of Kailan¡¯s huge gaming industry. He entered the gaming market when he was in his early twenties and became a founding member of the LB company and now had a profound influence on the development of Kailan. Even though he was in his forties, he still had a great sense of game planning and that was the reason why he was still a respected person. Thud-! As he was sitting down in his chair, he placed the paperwork that he brought with him onto the table and the people who stood as he arrived sat down. The situation in the conference room was rather serious and nerve-wracking. The reason why the whole gaming company was giving out serious vibes was because the meeting for today had a very important cause. Seven executives, general managers and three executives from each of the seven planning teams. This meeting that was being held today along with the marketing team was an important meeting that was held only twice every year. It would be no exaggeration to say that this meeting would determine Kailan¡¯s planning direction for the coming second half of the year. Nam Taehoon looked around the room and said after much thought. ¡°It isn¡¯t just one or two things that I want to talk about¡­ but for now, I¡¯ll start with the most pressing and concerning issue.¡± The same moment his words ended, the screen behind him was turned on showing everyone in the room a presentation. On the screen, were ten beautifully arranged pictures. Nam Taehoon¡¯s gaze moved towards the man who was sitting in the far right. ¡°Yu Hwan. You can start.¡± ¡°Sure Mr. Chairman.¡± He was the head of Team 3 and the youngest team leader of the planning department. Yu Hwan spoke with a strong voice and got up from his chair and approached the screen. As he reached his hand out to the screen, the image selected by him was magnified. The enlarged image directly produced an image. ¡°Currently, you¡¯re seeing the guild of the two countries. As you can see on the right-hand side of the screen, it is very similar to what we have predicted at the beginning of the year.¡± The contents reproduced by the image were the largely divided 3 continents of Kailan. The images of the guilds that were in the continent were in 3D which were very attractive to one¡¯s eyes. Nam Taehoon nodded and said. ¡°So, the one in red is Titan and the territory of Lotus is in blue.¡± At which Hwan answered immediately. ¡°Yes, Mr. Chairman. As you can see, everything is properly balanced.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ it was an excellent choice, it was indeed necessary to set the number of the Manors that a guild can possess.¡± ¡°Right. If we didn¡¯t put up limits, then almost all of the basses would¡¯ve been owned by either the Lotus or the Titan Guild. The balance of the guilds would¡¯ve crumbled too.¡± If one could look at the displayed map on the screen, both the territory of the Lotus and Titan weren¡¯t so overwhelmingly huge. There were around 20 to 30 guilds that had a territory with the same size. However, the power of Lotus and Titan was evil. The map was different in contrast to the mighty power of the two guilds. This was the structure that was originally intended by the planning team. It was planned in advance because they were worried about the guild eco-system that could get destroyed. Unless one declared a Kingdom, they had to set up a system which would no longer increase the growth of their territories. If that was so, then the two guilds with overwhelming power would think that being a Kingdom was a task that needn¡¯t to be done right away. However, it wasn¡¯t so easy. It doesn¡¯t matter if the guild was still in the empire until the dukedom, the moment one went to the Kingdom, they would get out of the Empire. Once they leave the fenced protection of the Empire, no one would know when they would be attacked by either the Kaimon or the Luspel. No matter how powerful the forces of Titan and Lotus were, they weren¡¯t comparable to the ones in the Empire. It was a safety measure which they installed as a means to prevent the collapse of balance. It was the planning team¡¯s decision to hold onto the legs of these two fast-growing guilds and gave them time to rebuild their roots of being a guild. The intentions of the developers might seem too unfair for Lotus and Titan, but that wasn¡¯t the case. As long as the guild eco-system was being maintained properly, the value of the existing high-leveled guilds would keep increasing. Kailan was a virtual reality game. A virtual reality game that pursued as much reality as possible. However, since it was a game, there was a clear need to limit the reality in it. It was important to invest more time and game rewards to the top rankers and the top guilds, but it was equally important to give new user¡¯s a fighting chance as well It was the planning team¡¯s mission to maintain the equality and balance of the two. Nam Taehoo, who listened to Kim Yu-Hwan¡¯s briefing, said. ¡°Nice. It certainly seems like the balance is right. But the bigger the guilds, the more fights there will be I assume?¡± ¡°Yes. Now in the case of Lotus and Titan guild, both have grown to the maximum expansion ¡®Empire¡¯, but if we weren¡¯t able to create an environment where one could create a Kingdom, the lack of guild content will increase complaints.¡± Nam Taehoon nodded. ¡°Okay. Let¡¯s open a new episode next week then.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± The team leaders of the other planning teams who were discussing it through stopped midway. They were not expecting what Nam Taehoon just said. ¡°Next week?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that a bit too sudden?¡± ¡°Yes. The forces of the Lotus Guild and the Titan Guild are still getting stronger¡­ I think we should give the other guilds enough time to grow.¡± However, Nam Taehoon shook his head. ¡°No, No. the time given for the other guild to come up was enough. Can¡¯t you see the screen? There are 20 guilds of that sort in the continents, we have given them enough time.¡± The most senior among all the team leaders¡ªthe team leader of team 1, Woo Min-chol¡ªspoke with an anxious expression. ¡°But once the empire wars break out¡­ the Titan and Lotus will instantly grow out. We will need an alternative.¡± Nam Taehoon smiled and nodded. ¡°Team Leader Woo is right. An alternative is surely needed.¡± Nam Taehoon rose from his seat while Kim Yee-hwan sat down. A second video then began to emerge. Nam Taehoon smiled and spoke again. ¡°Here, there is a clear alternative.¡± * * * Ding Dong-! A ringing sound was heard. Jinsung who was lying on the sofa was startled by the sound. ¡°Who is it?¡± The sound made Jinsung¡¯s gaze turn away from the screen and shift towards the porch with a reflexive question. There were a few welcoming faces out there. ¡°What do you mean by who? Idiot! Open the door now! It¡¯s so hot in here that I feel like I¡¯m dying!¡± Jinsung laughed a little at how irritated Yoo Hyun was and opened the door. Keeuk-! He saw Yoo Hyun and a few others standing there. ¡°Hey! Park Jinsung! You¡¯ve got a very nice place huh?¡± ¡°That is so my word. Here is a poverty-stricken university student, and the other is a game crazy student buying houses.¡± ¡°Keu, Jinsung the great. I still don¡¯t understand the full extent of what you do.¡± ¡°Full extent?! No student can own an apartment worth a billion won. An apartment worth a billion won, seriously?¡± With a pleased smile, Jinsung gestured to them with his hands to enter inside. ¡°Come inside you jerks. Hyung you too come inside. The air conditioner is on. It¡¯s a waste of electricity to keep the door open. ¡± Among them was someone who was a year older¡ªSewon. He then said. ¡°Uhuh, you little. Coming in coming in.¡± Just a few days ago. Jinsung moved out from his 2 bedroom apartment and moved into a 30 square-meter luxury apartment. It was a high-priced apartment costing more than a billion won, but he still bought it since he had enough money. Today was the day he decided to call his friends to come and visit his place. ¡°Wow, but what is that smell?¡± ¡°Are you making something? Maybe Harin is cooking something.¡± Minnie who was sitting on the sofa was sniffing and Sewon was the one who asked the question. Harin came out of the kitchen to greet them. ¡°Ding dong dang! Gentlemen welcome to the house of Jinsung and Harin!¡± Sewon then asked with a dumbfounded expression. ¡°What was that? Why is this place called Jinsung and Harin¡¯s house? This is Jinsung¡¯s house.¡± Harin laughed at that and responded. ¡°Why, will it not become my house as well? I¡¯m going to be living here moving forward.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Both Yoo Hyun and Minnie were shocked. ¡°Ugh? As in, living together?!¡± ¡°What? You¡¯re living together now?¡± Harin was the one who responded to them. ¡°Yeah, yeah. I also had rights to this house!¡± Jinsung who was changing the channel on the TV just laughed nervously. ¡°We decided to do this. Harin was uncomfortable living in her cousin¡¯s house, so she moved into a much spacious one¡­¡± Yoo Hyun who had conservative thoughts once again felt the need to ask a question. ¡°OMG¡­ living together¡­! That means Jinsung and Harin won¡¯t have a problem since both their parents are far away¡­¡± Minnie¡ªYoo Hyun¡¯s girlfriend¡ªlooked at him with narrowed eyes. ¡°Well, it is a bit embarrassing in some ways¡­¡± Jinsung said to ease the intense atmosphere. They were a little nervous thinking about the issue of living together, but when Harin brought out the food, everyone became quiet. They were all eating food while watching TV. Sewon was laughing while looking at the TV¡¯s huge screen. ¡°I guess there was a reason why you decided to call us over for housewarming at this specific date.¡± ¡°I told you, hyung. Today is Kailan server¡¯s maintenance day, that¡¯s why you called us, right?¡± Jinsung responded with a gentle look. ¡°Well, detective, isn¡¯t this good? You are also users of Kailan.¡± The channel that they were currently watching was the Game Broadcast. A massive update was being patched today after having no updates for quite some time. It was the day when LB announced it would release major contents. This upcoming update wasn¡¯t just a simple release. According to the announced schedule on Kailan¡¯s website, high-quality videos were going to be broadcasted non-stop for 6 hours. It was easy to say that all the users had watched the six-hour long broadcast to get as much information as they could about the new updates. Only LB would be able to drift away from common logic when putting content into their game. LB¡¯s software offered a lot of fun for their users who were currently waiting for such large scale update. The users praised the developers endlessly, and the whole world admired Kailan. ¡°Uh, It¡¯s starting!¡± At the same time, everyone¡¯s gaze turned towards the TV. Though they all teased Jinsung as a game lover, they all undeniably love Kailan as well. * * * Muran, the capital of Luspel Empire. At the center of Muran City, a spectacular image of the Luspel empire had come up. The screen soon shined. Starting with the appearance of the emperor of the Luspel Empire sitting near the table and dozens of large people seated on both sides. The knight of the imperial family¡ªHelliem¡ªwas facing Serius with a knee bent on the ground. Serius, the emperor of the Luspel Empire spoke with a stern look. ¡°Okay, Helliem. Did you find anything more?¡± ¡°Yes, your majesty.¡± ¡°Then go on.¡± Chuk-! He slowly spoke after seeing Serius¡¯ hand. ¡°The Emperor of the Kaimon Empire, Juan Lucas. So, it is true that he already died.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± The Emperor¡¯s deep golden eyes shined brightly. The many scholars who were in the area were all shocked by the news. Serius then spoke. ¡°This is¡­ an opportunity.¡± ¡°Yes, your majesty. The God of War, Mares has taken the inviolable oracle without handing it back.¡± The war between the two empires had taken place simultaneously with the opening of the Central Continent. The Luspel Empire suffered a great loss at that time, and it was considerably weaker than the Kaimon Empire when it came to military might. If the war continued, Luspel wouldn¡¯t have managed to turn the tables over. It was very fortunate since the Devildom opened up at that very moment, so the God of War, Mares had to trust the two countries. The oracle was then placed to prevent the war from ever happening. But not long ago, it was true that the oracle of trust was taken away. It was decided that the war would eventually take place. If there was a chance that a war was going to happen, Kaimon would indeed have the upper hand. A situation no one would have ever thought of. The Emperor of the Kaimon Empire¡ªLucas¡ªdied, and opportunity had come for the Luspel Empire. ¡°Guards listen¡­!¡± ¡°Yes, your majesty.¡± The emperor stood up from his seat. He pulled out his golden sword which was dangling down his waist and raised it to the sky. ¡°A week from now.¡± Serius gave them a moment and looked around them. His golden eyes were shining brightly. ¡°Victory will come to us by itself!¡± It was the prelude to the war. CH 372 Inside a small seminar room for the Kailan team. Na Ji-chan, a member of the planning team¡¯s team 3, was sitting with a screen in front of him, and a pile of documents on the desk. On the screen was a large episode that was being broadcasted throughout Korea. ¡°I¡¯ll take a break and listen.¡± The episode of Luspel was 6 hours and 50 minutes. Na Ji-chan, who was directly involved with the production of the video, knew about the scale of the update better than anyone. ¡®I¡¯m sure that this is way better than any blockbuster movie.¡¯ Plurk- Na Ji-chan opened the drawer on the corner of the desk and pulled out a bag of potato chips which he had hidden and fixed his eyes on the screen. He already knew what it contained, but he still felt that it was a fun thing to do. As the video progressed, Na Ji-chan couldn¡¯t help but admire what the development team did. ¡®Hya¡­ how can artificial intelligence manage to produce such natural images?¡¯ Kailan¡¯s video that was being played was made with the most advanced technologies in filmmaking. All the filmmaking methods that they put in the video were completely different. The video which was being played throughout all the gaming channels in the country was the result of having AI inclusion in them. Kailan¡¯s development team nudged the two empires by intervening a little with the ¡®oracle¡¯ that lead to war. Of course, the users weren¡¯t the ones playing in the actual server. It was just a simulation replicating the virtual server in the same environment of Kailan¡¯s Korean server. During the massive update that was going to last for 12 hours, they were working on bringing the results of the simulation of real servers. It was fair to say that the video made by LB company was just a video in which the actors in it were just edited into it and nothing more. However, that alone needed a lot of manpower and time. ¡®The development team will be in real trouble from now on.¡¯ Na Ji-chan looked over outside of his window. A familiar building was right outside his window. Na Ji-chan laughed while looking at the building of the development team which was painted in white. Maybe until the sun rises tomorrow, no member of the development team would be allowed to leave the premises. Ach-! Na Ji-chan placed a potato chip into his mouth and continued watching the video with a happy face. He then mumbled, ¡°Whatever, it will take some time for Ian to come.¡± Both of Ian¡¯s eyes would¡¯ve displayed question marks if he heard what Na Ji-chan just said. However, Na Ji-chan picked up a paper that was on the table with a casual look. ¡°Should I update the morning before Ian comes and maybe check it once¡­?¡± He started to wipe his hands with the paper while the episodes played on the screen. * * * ¡°Wow, Sh*t! Crazy Ass!¡± ¡°You think so? I never imagined such things?¡± ¡°Hey, Jinsung-ah. What happens to our guild now? The war is going to start right away.¡± Was it around thirty minutes since the episode started? Inside Jinsung¡¯s living room, all the excitement had crumbled. It was because the scale of the story was getting bigger and bigger. They were all tensed at the moment because of the same reason. It was because of the video which showed Emperor Serius of the Luspel Empire giving out orders to the other lords. Not surprisingly, the Lotus Guild, the current largest guild in the Empire, was of no exception. ¡°All the users who are probably watching this video, and the NPC¡¯s will join the battle, right?¡± Everyone nodded in agreement to what Harin said. ¡°I guess so?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ if that is so, won¡¯t there be guilds who have a lot to lose because of the episode¡¯s progress?¡± Sewon¡¯s statement made Yoo Hyun laugh. ¡°Well, not sure. If LB is sensible, that wouldn¡¯t be done.¡± ¡°Hmm, that is that.¡± Right then, Jinsung who was watching the video till now said, ¡°Hmm¡­ but doesn¡¯t any of this feel weird to you guys?¡± Yoo Hyun was the first to respond, ¡°Weird? In what sense?¡± ¡°This video that we¡¯re seeing. The time is passing by way too fast in it, and it has been just 20 minutes now. However, it¡¯s over a month there already.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that obvious when it comes to directing, right?¡± Jinsung was starting to get agitated and shook his head out of frustration. ¡°No, think of it clearly. If these are all the things that are happening within the servers that are currently closed, then it needs to happen at the same time as ours¡­¡± ¡°Huh? What makes you say that¡­?¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s LB¡¯s technology, so there could be that possibility. Maybe the servers time is going quickly¡­ but even if they were trying to place a real-time video, then could they manage to edit it with such precision and send it at the same time¡­?¡± ¡°Yeah. Jinsung is right.¡± Yoo Hyun understood what Jinsung was trying to say, and the others were shocked once they understood it as well. As if the video was waiting for them to realize everything, a more shocking thing happened in the video. ¡°Uh? Wait a sec! That face over there¡­! Isn¡¯t that Fiolan¡­!?¡± ¡°Eheh? Really!! It is?¡± ¡°Oh shit, why is Fiolan unnie inside the video?¡± They were all watching the screen with shock registered on their face. Fiolan was the lord of Pyro Domain, and she was under the command of the Emperor of Serius. They seemed like they have been called on behalf of the nobles in the central continent. Pyro was one of the largest and most powerful power holders of the Luspel Empire, and she was there as a representative. Emperor Serius soon gave orders to all of the members there while bringing out a sword then the screen changed. This time, it was a battlefield in the north, full of pure white snow. However, that wasn¡¯t the end of the scene, there was another familiar face on the TV screen. * * * A golden ray of light. A man with a golden helmet and a lightweight armor on him. He jumped off from the back of a large black dragon while wielding a golden spear. Ttat-! At the same time, the dragon emitted purple breath out of its mouth. Kwahh-! The man¡¯s golden spear pierced the armors of the knights on the red horses. A yellow light flashed and lightning fell onto the ground. Kwarrng- Kwang kwang-! The moment he extended his hand towards the fallen horse, a white horse came in its place. The white horse¡¯s dead body, which was supposed to be lying on the floor, rose. And with it, the horse¡¯s white skin turned black. A man approached the black horse who had bone wings. ¡°Kill the enemy! Charge with power!¡± His voice rang all over the battlefield. All the soldiers of Luspel began to scream enthusiastically. ¡°Waohhh! With power!!¡± ¡°Ian the great has come!¡± ¡°Destroy the enemies! There is no way for us to get defeated now!¡± Hundreds of horsemen were flocking with the Luspel Empire¡¯s flags. Two dragons with dozens of Wyverns were flying in the air and were trampling their enemies. At last a man got on top of the Hargasus and began to move to the north of the battlefield. In the distance, the screen showing the battlefield was getting closer and closer to the man clad in gold. Finally, the back of the man who was wielding the spear was shown in full screen. His rear view had the aura of the Absolute pouring out. However, that wasn¡¯t the end. At that moment, the angle of the camera had suddenly rotated, and the man¡¯s face began to appear on the screen. Shinning because of the golden helmet were the eyes of the man. Most of the man¡¯s body was covered, but the man was famous for his appearance. Ian. His face filled the screen. * * * ¨C Him! He has come, everyone! ¨C Keuu! Lord! Get me a bucket of chicken! ¨C LOL, why are you looking for chicken when you have a treat in front of your eyes! ¨C Wow really, that is Ian¡¯s AI? ¨C Oh, oh maybe. All the users there are working on his AI. ¨C Kya, Even Ian¡¯s AI is terrifying. ¨C I know right. However, will the AI be able to perform on par with the original user¡¯s abilities? ¨C Well, I¡¯m not sure hehe, it¡¯s not the control, it¡¯s just that Ian¡¯s character itself is very hot¡­ ¨C Haha, I¡¯m that user from the Kaimon Empire. My character just got killed by Ian¡¯s hands. Guys, I need some comfort. ¨C Hehehehehe oh shit, hehehe you belong to the North? ¨C The warrior dying in the hands of Ian¡¯s spear¡­! I¡¯m jealous¡­.! ¨C No, LOL what is this guy lol why are you getting jealous if you¡¯re dead¡­ you crazy! Lol, the AI fights and dies like a pussy? I guess there is no death penalty as it is AI. ¨C Ahe, I don¡¯t think so lol. There were a lot of users who were watching the episode on the TV, but there were many who were watching it through the internet broadcast. It was fun to watch the video in real time while discussing things with the netizens, and it was several times fun. As always, Ian once again made an appearance in the chat. ¨C This is really popcorn worthy hehe I expected something good in this server update but didn¡¯t see this coming. ¨C But guys, is there a fan of Ian in the LB planning team? No, it looks like an Ian Mad movie as soon as the war started, which is why I¡¯m suspicious hehe. ¨C That¡¯s just how it is dude¡­ the one that came up first was Shakran hehe of the Kaimon¡¯s Empire II? He just came out while you were talking. ¨C Hehe, really? ¨C Huh, hehe. He appeared around 5 seconds ago. ¨C Our Fiolan unnie too has come but got ignored. Ian¡¯s battle in the north was shown on the screen for 3 long minutes, and the screens were constantly changing. The screen started displaying images of the battlefield throughout the continent. Watching the video was fun. All the users turned their eyes onto the screen with full focus to check and see if their avatars would make an appearance on the screen, while some cheered for their favorite ranker. The new episode footage was spectacular. Many empires emerged, and a strategy was established. Siege warfare and many conflicts came. In that story, the newly updated information of the world view was being given here and there. There was a lot of information on quests about artifacts and information about the hidden dungeon and named monsters. The new episode opening video was 6 hours. Yet users who loved Kailan couldn¡¯t keep their eyes off the screen. CH 373 During the six-hour airing of the New Episode, around three years had passed in Kailan¡¯s time. A three-year war. During that time, many scenarios unfolded. At the end of the long war, both the empires collapsed and many large and small kingdoms entered the continents where a large empire was previously standing. Every Manor, except for the manor possessed by the owners and lords, were torn apart and some became individual kingdoms. As the new episode began, it literally changed the environment of the continent itself. Especially the southern part of the continent, a large neutral kingdom called ¡®Al Pinsya¡¯ emerged and dozens of port cities in the kingdom became a huge issue. A new content that was created in the port cities abled users to travel to other continents. Since the huge empire disappeared and small kingdoms emerged in its place, new users were given the chance to create characters belonging to their chosen kingdom. In addition, the most extraordinary part was that the stage of ¡®Kingdom¡¯ could be selected as the starting point by users for their guild. In short, the ¡®Large scale update¡¯ added a bunch of amazing content. After the episode was done, Yoo Hyun stayed at Jinsung¡¯s house till dawn and discussed with him matters about the update while reading the notice on the official website about the updated content. ¡°Waaaah! The update¡¯s content is way too much. My head hurts just by looking at it.¡± Jinsung nodded with a sympathetic look in response to what Yoo Hyun said. ¡°Yeah. I thought it was going to be a good update¡­ never thought that such a large scale update would be released.¡± Even while conversing, their eyes were both focused on the computer¡¯s screen. They continued to read the contents of the updates while complaining. ¡°By the way, Asmodian users will be upset. Almost all the updates favored the human class users, right?¡± ¡°Yeah, totally. But even though some of those users are going to be sad, it doesn¡¯t mean that all of them will be.¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°Hmm. Devildom wasn¡¯t included in the large-scale update somehow, and its contents haven¡¯t yet been discovered. That¡¯s a bit suspicious. However, I¡¯m not that eager to see the new contents there.¡± ¡°Well¡­ It is indeed suspicious.¡± The two of them kept scrolling up and down and discussed guild operations and the plans for it. The biggest issue for them was the proclamation of the Kingdom. Jinsung spoke, ¡°The moment the servers open, the first thing that we need to do is to proclaim the Kingdom.¡± Yoo Hyun nodded and responded, ¡°Yeah. We need to proclaim the Kingdom right away. We need to start the war conquest as well.¡± The history that the Lotus Guild wanted to create was once again stagnant. After the end of the war, they hadn¡¯t been to the Manor for 2 months. Both Yoo Hyun and Jinsung were hanging on a thread. Yoo Hyun¡ªwho moved the screen of the tablet¡ªspoke, ¡°Once the conquest war begins, the most important thing that needs to be done is to connect the territory of the northern to the central.¡± Currently, the Lotus Guild had seven manors in the central and five manors in the Northern Continent. What Yoo Hyun meant was that they needed to win the territory between those points and connect the regions. ¡°Right. Since the territories have been dispersed, we won¡¯t have any trouble operating.¡± In the past, since all the manor were under the Luspel Empire it was uncomfortable to do such conquests. However, such a situation wouldn¡¯t rise now. If one was trying to merge the nations of the Northern and the Central that they occupied, they needed to go through other kingdoms in the middle. Jinsung put his finger on the map. ¡°First, we will need to strike the Kingdom of Erika and Paulus. If we manage to get these two, then we¡¯ll be able to merge them in our territory as well.¡± His finger moved on the screen. Once they get the two kingdoms, they would own a huge territory. * * * [Iris recognition completed. ¡®Ian¡¯ welcome to the world of Kailan.] As soon as the server update was done, connecting to the game was the first thing that Ian did. He was up the whole night, but he wasn¡¯t tired at all. Rather, he was feeling excited and thrilled. ¡®This way, I won¡¯t have to turn over the whole plan.¡¯ Ian had a dream of establishing an Empire after their proclamation of the Kingdom. However, Since Kaimon and Luspel¡¯s power are overwhelming, they all decided to delay that part of proclaiming the Kingdom and do the quest related to the Spirit World. However, the LB company put the meal in a plate and served it to the Lotus Guild. ¡®I need to raise my level in the meantime and finish it of¡­ and then we¡¯ll move and proclaim ourselves as an Empire.¡¯ Ian¡¯s current level was 355. He got 50 additional levels in just three months; it was a tremendous growth rate. ¡°Kay, should I go to Lotus as it has been a long time?¡± The land that Ian stepped into as soon as he connected wasn¡¯t any other. It was the Tomb of the Forgotten Soul. The dungeon that made the biggest contribution to Ian¡¯s leveling. Ian tore off the Return Scroll without any hesitation. Woong-! [You have used the item ¡®Returning Scroll¡¯ for (Lotus Manor).] [Going to the Lotus Manor.] * * * Thud ¨C thud- thud -! Big drums were ringing everywhere. The people gathered in front of the Lord¡¯s Castle of the Great Lotus Manor. At first glance, it looked like there were thousands of people. Although most of them were NPCs, the number of users over there were 1000. ¡°Kyaa, It had been only an hour after the update¡­¡± ¡°My words exactly. I thought that it would take at least a week for them to proclaim the Kingdom.¡± ¡°Well, Lotus itself is a class¡­! Who will be the king? Would it be Ian?¡± ¡°Oh. Maybe Ian or Herz?¡± ¡°Huh? No matter how bright Ian is, the Lotus belongs to Herz, so surely it will be Herz, right? It is such a prestigious and important force. Since Herz is a guild master, isn¡¯t his title higher than Ian?¡± ¡°Ahh, I¡¯m not so sure about that. Ian uncovered new contents. Isn¡¯t Ian¡¯s fame and reputation overwhelming?¡± The users, who were near the Lotus Guild were talking about the Guild¡¯s possibilities. The Lotus Guild was the first of all the Guilds in Kailan to garner such attention after claiming the Kingdom. The Titan guild too claimed the Kingdom right after, but Lotus was one step ahead of them. The King¡¯s coronation event was preceded after the declaration of the Kingdom. The event which was taking place in the Lotus manor wasn¡¯t something else, it was the coronation of Ian. Thud ¨C thud- thud ¨C ¡°Your majesty! The King is entering!¡± A huge voice rang from the Lord¡¯s castle. At the same time, the people who were gathered outside the plaza were shouting. ¡°Woahh¡­! Hail the king!¡± ¡°The King of Lotus Kingdom!¡± Most of the shouts and screams were from the NPC¡¯s who belonged to the Lotus, but the users¡¯ voices could be heard too. ¡°Yah!! Lotus is awesome!¡± ¡°Ian!! Mansae!¡± The members of the Lotus Guild who were watching couldn¡¯t hide how proud they were. ¡°Yo¡­! I thought that it was just a formal event, but it is much more interesting.¡± ¡°It really is. Is it too much to say that I¡¯m feeling emotional?¡± ¡°Carwin and Claw are missing it to catch some sleep right?¡± ¡°Maybe. They will so regret it once they see the video later.¡± The highest point of the castle. On top of the highest point of the castle which protruded out, a man had appeared with a golden crown on his head. A luxurious white and red robe with a golden dragon embroidered on it. He lifted his golden spear and climbed on top of the podium. ¡°I, Ian of the Lotus, declare that the Lotus will become a Kingdom as of this very moment!¡± Ian¡¯s voice spread out. At that very moment, the blue sky was filled with clouds. Woong- Wong-! White light shined down through those clouds. The light made its way towards Ian, who was moving to the podium. At that moment, system messages began to emerge in front of all the users in the Lotus Manor. Tring ¨C [The user ¡®Ian¡¯ is the first to become a King.] [We have witnessed the first ¡®King¡¯s Coronation¡¯.] [Fame increased by 1500.] [The affinity with the NPCs of the ¡®Lotus Kingdom¡¯ is increased by 3.] A lot of messages began to appear! However, it didn¡¯t end there. An additional message in gold appeared in front of the members of the Lotus Guild. It was in particular for the crowned King Ian. [The first user to be given the status of ¡®King¡¯.] [Fame increased by 500,000.] [You can choose the religion of the Lotus Kingdom.] [When choosing a religion, you will be able to build a temple in every city and be able to increase the kingdom¡¯s culture and religious points by 10 points.] [Do you want to choose a religion?] ¨C ¨C ¨C * Religion of Mares (The God of War) ¨C When the Mares religion is designated as the religion of the state, all damage done by soldiers and knights of the kingdom will increase by 3%. ¨C If the battle is won, the rewards will increase by 5%. ¨C The King¡¯s leadership will increase by 20%. ¨C We have the Dragon of War Karceus. ¨C Once Karceus is declared as the ¡°Empire¡¯s Dragon¡± for the Lotus Kingdom, all the effects are applied by 50%. * Religion of Kades (God of Darkness) ¨C When the Kades religion is designated as the religion of the state, all the warlocks of the Lotus Kingdom will have an increase of 5% to their abilities in battle. ¨C Increases the chance of ¡®Undead¡¯ dungeons appearing around the kingdom by 30%. ¨C Increases the dark resistance of all the users in the kingdom by 5%. * Religion of Sandy (God of Earth) ¨C When the Sandy religion is designated as the religion of the state, the agriculture points of the Lotus Kingdom will increase by 30. ¨C The probability of all the dungeons around the kingdom will rise by 10%. ¨C Increases the resistance of all the members of the Kingdom by 5%. (Syncopation) Whenever the level of the state religion becomes higher, religious effects are added. If the level of Diplomacy is more than level 3, all the priest users belonging to the kingdom will have strengthened recovery skills. ¨C ¨C Ian, of course, chose Mares. It was because of the privilege to enjoy Karceus was huge. ¡°I take Mares as the state religion.¡± He immediately summoned Karceus. Kwahh-! Knowing why he was summoned, Karceus rose to the sky while roaring. Looking at Karceus, Ian decided to give out orders. ¡°I register Karceus as the dragon of the Lotus Kingdom.¡± Karceus opened his wings wide in response. Its silhouette which rose to the sky hovered around and engraved a seal of the dragon onto the castle. Ian had been playing Kailan for over a year, but he had never seen anything so beautiful! The users who saw it were amazed and watched the next scenes that unfolded. ¡°Wow¡­ that is so dope¡­¡± ¡°What is Ian feeling now?¡± ¡°Keu, I¡¯m really jealous now.¡± After that, Ian explained for more than ten minutes the aspects of the Kingdom. Starting from the appointment of the government to the budgeting. It was a full-on complex content, but Ian wasn¡¯t fazed by it. It was because he had already thought of the contents a long time ago. After a series of processes were all done, the Lotus Manor began to shake. Tring-! [The rank of ¡®Lotus Manor¡¯ is elevated and promoted to ¡®Royal Lotus Manor¡¯.] [The expansion of the Kingdom begins.] Kukung- Kung-! Ian and the other users were flustered for a moment, and they soon watched the scene unfold with their mouths wide open. The structure of the immense size of the manor moved and expanded by itself, it was a sight to see. Was it for 12 minutes? And once again system message came up. This time, it was a world message for all the users in the Kailan Korean servers. Tring-! [The ¡®Royal Lotus Manor¡¯ is complete.] [The rank of the Lotus Kingdom is level one.] [The Kingdom of Lotus has been established.] [The Lotus Guild is the first to declare itself a Kingdom.] [From this very moment, when a user creates a new character, they will be able to set the Lotus Kingdom as their nationality.] A new Kingdom named ¡®Lotus¡¯ had emerged in Kailan. CH 374 The grade of the guild had become a ¡®Kingdom¡¯. It was a change different from all the changes that happened to the guild so far. There was a huge change when they were a Dukedom for the Empire, but the change that had currently happened was very different. The first surprise they had was the Tax. In the so-called ¡®Kingdom¡¯, the tax that they needed to pay was nearly 200 million gold. It was three times higher than the tax they were paying when they were still a Dukedom and six times higher than a Duke. ¡®This is really huge. It is a huge amount of gold¡­¡¯ But surely, one would think that a huge amount of gold amassing 200 million would be an asset for the guild. That wasn¡¯t the case though. Even if the minimum amount of gold invested in the internal affairs to run the state¡ª80% of the tax they paid which was 160 million gold¡ªwould be fundamentally spent for the state. It took more than 180 million gold to run any country in a leisurely manner. As it was still in the early stages of development, they would need to invest more gold to develop the Kingdom. The guild members were needed to be paid for the activities, but there wasn¡¯t much gold left to pay them. Both Ian and Herz had a measly 100 million gold in front of them now. ¡°Will this be used as the guild¡¯s capital? Or are these going to be given to the guild members?¡± Ian shook his head in response to Herz question. ¡°Just place it inside the Kingdom.¡± ¡°You, sure?¡± ¡°Huh. I share leadership with them so I can¡¯t hand 10 million gold to a person.¡± ¡°Then, you¡¯re saying you¡¯re not going to trouble yourself by giving the gold to the heads of the guild.¡± ¡°Yep. Besides, winning is the most important thing now. That being said, we haven¡¯t been getting any less attention from the users.¡± ¡°Then¡­¡± Ian and Herz were already running the guild interventions for over a year, and they were partly right. When it always came to running the guild, both of them had well-defined positions. If Herz was the servant in charge of the guild along with internal affairs, then Ian had an active role in establishing their goal and external affairs. The guild members had complete trust in the two of them, they were the driving force of the Lotus Guild. ¡°Uhm¡­ the guild will go on for the time being without any change¡­ Jinsung, what do you plan on doing now?¡± Jinsung just shrugged his shoulders at Herz¡¯s question and replied, ¡°Plan about what? We¡¯ve decided already. To start from the Elika Kingdom.¡± Herx tilted his head and spoke once again. ¡°No, I mean how are you planning on proceeding with that. We can¡¯t do a pre-emptive strike as we did in the past.¡± The new episode destroyed the two mighty empires and being a Kingdom wasn¡¯t so satisfying to them. The scale of it was small, and the quality of the Knights and the troops weren¡¯t much lower than that of the empire. For example, the Knights of Elika Kingdom which the Lotus had its eyes on, had monsters close to level 400. Ian answered after he slowly shook his head. ¡°Ah, sure. It is my plan to first take over the surrounding small medium estates.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ well, not a bad idea. If we can conquer them, we can then disperse the main force of our Kingdom. So, is the war starting right away?¡± One side of Ian¡¯s lips swept up upon hearing Herz¡¯s question. ¡°No. Not that.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°That can be done, but do we have to shed our blood so quick?¡± * * * Ian was a user who thoroughly analyzed the new contents of the Kingdom. And its results were¡­ The part which caught his attention was ¡®Diplomacy¡¯. Before the update, it wasn¡¯t like there wasn¡¯t any content called diplomacy. However, it wasn¡¯t functioning, and it was an empire-centered world view which was why it was so unfamiliar. The conflict between the guilds wasn¡¯t something that could be solved by the diplomacy content. ¡®It¡¯s a different one.¡¯ The biggest change in the diplomatic content was that it was possible to take advantage of talents such as ¡®Diplomat¡¯ and ¡®Triple play¡¯. Small powers, specifically those below Duke, would be able to merge themselves into the Lotus Kingdom without any bloodshed if they had good diplomacy. It wasn¡¯t an easy scenario. However, the only possible way to subdue the small and medium territories was by one¡¯s diplomatic skills. However, Ian was confident. ¡°Should we move around slowly¡­?¡± Ian who was behind the Lotus Manor summoned Karceus. Kyahh-! With one of its greatest roar, Karceus sat down in front of Ian. [Summoning energy is restored. Should we hunt again?] The summon energy was the cooldown time for recalling the familiars. Ian smiled and responded to Karceus. ¡°No, not yet.¡± [This is a bit surprising. We haven¡¯t been hunting for three hours¡­ this isn¡¯t like you master.] ¡°I have some work to do. Give me a ride to Muran.¡± With Ian on his back, Karceus flapped his big wings and began to fly towards the East. The place he was heading to was Muran, the capital of Luspel Empire in the past, but it was ruined now. Ian who was on Karceus¡¯ back mumbled in a low voice. ¡°Thankfully I was able to focus till the end of the video episode.¡± What he was thinking of was unknown, but Ian suddenly smiled as he was heading towards Muran. * * * Hwark-! A vortex of huge flame spread through the empty ground. It was a spiral flame that was heading towards the monsters! The flames vanished with small flames here and there after melting off many bodies to the ground. At the same moment, the voice of a woman could be heard inside the dungeon. ¡°Madness of Heat Wave! Continuous attack!¡± Kwang- Kwakwang-! Small and continuous number of flames exploded and tremendous heat spread out again. A connection of wide area attack and magic displayed enormous destructive power. Numerous monsters were appearing all at once in the dungeon. ¡°Nobody knew that there was a sweet dungeon like this in here, huh?¡± ¡®Monarch of the Red Flame¡¯, the only female wizard with a hidden class of the highest tier. She was most known for her sub-class, the ¡®Red Flame Magician¡¯. Laughter rose from Remir¡¯s mouth. She would soon reach level 350, and that made her super excited. ¡°This is the only dungeon that seems to have given me such pleasure in quite a while¡­¡± She began to hum and collect the items from the many undead bodies that were lying on the ground. The different bodies of the undead that were lying on the ground ranged from level 200 to mid 300. ¡°Well, awesome. I looked at this in the episode video!¡± Remir was somewhat like Ian. She swooped until the end of the long dungeon. When she reached the end of it, she hesitated and turned back. She saw a staircase going down as she reached the end of the dungeon. She wanted to go down those stairs, but she couldn¡¯t. ¡®Till I learn the next skill of my tier¡­ but when will that be?¡¯ Remir just decided to go out of the dungeon. In fact, it wasn¡¯t that she didn¡¯t want to go down the dungeon. She wanted to go down since she saw a hunting ground that would provide enough merit there. She was hesitating because there might be a level 300 Death Knight guarding the corners there. ¡°It has been so long since I did any party, should I try¡­? I can challenge it if there were one or two ranked tankers¡­¡± The charm of the lower dungeon was enormous, which was why rather than the soloing it she decided to go for a party hunting. Remir thought of someone the very next moment. It was like the shape of a human. ¡®No, no¡­ not that guy. It will be fine as a solo hunt till the 1st floor¡­ but he loses his rationality when hunting.¡¯ Remir who was feeling better, cleaned up her inventory and went back into the dungeon. The reason why leaving the dungeon was tough for her, was because of the monsters in the dungeon were more wonderful than any monsters. It was the biggest merit of the ¡®Unlimited instant quest¡¯, from which additional experience points and gold would be given even when continuously hunting the Undead. ¡°Now, let¡¯s go and do it again.¡± With a pleasant expression, Remir started to move into the dungeon. She was in the middle of casting her spell when she suddenly heard a noise from the dungeon¡¯s entrance. ¡°Invisibility¡­!¡± Invisibility was an intermediate magic spell that could be learned by wizards once they became level 150. Remir started to turn invisible right after she finished casting the spell. It was a sight that only a wizard could see. Even if it was an intermediate magic spell, there were only a few wizards that could cast it in a short time. Remir¡ªwho concealed herself with invisibility¡ªwalked outside of the dungeon. In order to hide her footsteps, she used double casting and flew out of there. ¡®What? Who could it be¡­? Is there anyone else who knows about this place other than me?¡¯ No one could¡¯ve known the location of this place unless they watched the dungeon with utmost concentration. Remir who thought that she alone would be there was curious to know who the person could be. Remir¡¯s eyes grew wide when she saw who it was. ¡®Why is he here, when he should be in the Lotus Kingdom¡­?!¡¯ * * * Not far from the city of Muran, a huge mountain was there. It was the favorite hunting ground of beginner users. Ian remembered that he caught a bear in that mountain region. However, the Neuron mountains were now a thing of the past. Kwakwang- Kwang-! Ian, Kaizer, and the humanoid form of Karceus were all swinging their weapons with all their might. ¡°Wah, when did monsters of Muran became level 300?¡± Kaizer responded briefly to Ian¡¯s question, ¡°But, they are still the Undead.¡± Ian just laughed upon hearing what Kaizer said. ¡°That is true, perfectly right.¡± They weren¡¯t powerful monsters for them. They were just swinging their swords with all their might on their way towards the mountains as they wanted to move as quickly as possible. Ian was looking for the ¡®old man¡¯ in the mountains. ¡®Hellim¡¯s bookshelf¡ªLouisei. That¡¯s for sure.¡¯ The Luspel Empire was destroyed, but all the NPC¡¯s empires weren¡¯t completely destroyed. There were many NPC¡¯s who were scattered throughout the continent, including Helliem, the chief of the knights who fought for the Empire till the end. The episode video didn¡¯t reveal everything, but clues were scattered. Ian confirmed it from seeing clues in the episode, that Lousei was hiding in the Neuron mountains. ¡°I¡¯m sure that it is on this side¡­?¡± Ian was looking for Lousei. Suddenly¡­ Ian¡¯s gaze moved in a certain direction, and his eyes caught something. ¡®What is it? It looks like¡­?¡¯ CH 375 Luspel and Kaimon. The two great powerful empires. Their powers were so absolute that even the Lotus didn¡¯t dare to take their swords on them. But the same two empires were completely collapsed now. From the map of the continents, the names of the two empires had completely disappeared. No matter how long or fierce the war was, how could such a thing happen? The greatest influence, however, was, the decline that was happening due to the war. But, if it wasn¡¯t for the last ¡®event¡¯ that was shown in the episode, maybe the situation would have been slightly different. It was a hard and fierce war, but the winner of the war was surely Luspel¡ªthe main character. Although the long war had weakened the strength of the Luspel, it was a situation where it could become much more powerful if it unified the empire. ¡°If only they didn¡¯t¡­!¡± A small hut on the slopes of the Neuron mountain. An elderly man in the front had a cane that was shaking. ¡°Kheum.¡± The elderly ¡®Louisie¡¯, with his wrinkled eyes, sat down on the rocks. Now, in his mind, a beautiful woman with flames all over her body came up the mountain. ¡°Well, if it is her¡­ she can probably help me.¡± A few hours ago¡­ A powerful woman with a robe had come to visit Louisie. It was like he was looking at the powerful magicians of the imperial army of the empire during his time. He hadn¡¯t seen her perform any magic or spells, but he just knew. It was because Louisie himself was a wizard. And if it wasn¡¯t for a powerful wizard, there was no way the place he was staying could have been found out. ¡°Said it was Remir¡­ let¡¯s try and trust her for once.¡± Louisie moved his eyes and closed his eyes again. If would be fine if it was that woman, she can find the secrets of ¡®Striae¡¯. But then. ¡°¡­!¡± Louisie¡¯s eyes turned a wide. The woman he had been thinking of till a while ago¡ªthe woman called Remir, was right in his line of sight. And his expression brightened. The fact that she returned meant that something had been done. Even there was nothing that could be achieved, the spirits that protect it would¡¯ve at least been killed. But after a while, Louisie was forced to be panicked. It was because there were others along with Remir. Louisie gained all the energy he could to get a clear look at the three new men. And among the three, his gaze was fixed on one person. That was the person with a red cloak and golden gloves. Also, he was wearing a golden waistband. Seeing him get close, Louisie began to get intimidated more and more. * * * ¡°Wow, how did you know?¡± ¡°A transparent spell and fly magic. How many more wizards are there that can double cast in real time? Besides, look at the forest, it¡¯s a mess with ashes. If it wasn¡¯t you, then who could it be?¡± ¡°Ugh, you son of a ghost¡­¡± Remir who was found out by Ian had an odd feeling. A bit of hate and like too¡ªhence the expression was adoring and disgusting at the same time. ¡®If I go with this jerk, then I¡¯ll surely level up faster¡­¡¯ However, after a week of hunting with him, there was a minor side effect that came along with it¡ªshe had to stay in bed for a day. ¡°Anyway! There is a cabin of the Louisie on that side right?¡± ¡°Yeah, you shameless jerk.¡± ¡°Shameless?! Well, can¡¯t there be a little exchange of information between us?¡± ¡°What do you mean by us?¡± ¡°Hm¡­ since we battled in the war together¡­?¡± ¡°Boo, not a funny joke bastard.¡± Before the beginning of the Dimension War, the relationship with Remir was there. They haven¡¯t come together in the past few months, but neither of them had been out of touch. By helping out the Lotus guild, she had become close to Herz. Her age was 24, the 3-years difference between them didn¡¯t affect anything. ¡°Then, noona, by getting the Louisie instant quest, you¡¯re trying to level up while hunting?¡± Remir nodded and replied, ¡°I guess so. I came here as soon as the server had opened.¡± With a strange look, Ian questioned her, ¡°Nothing else apart from an instant quest? I¡¯m sure that it wouldn¡¯t be ended like that¡­?¡± ¡°Well¡­? I haven¡¯t received any other quest apart from the instant quest yet.¡± ¡°Aha¡­?¡± Frowning, Ian touched his chin and drifted into thoughts. ¡®There is no way¡­ if it is Louisie, he would¡¯ve given a huge quest related to the Luspel Empire¡­¡¯ Ian was recollecting the second part of the episode that he had seen. It would have been a tough task for people with less concentration and eyesight, but he was sure that the background in the video was the Neuron Mountain. And surely most of the Luspel empire people would¡¯ve been somewhere in the mountain. And in the screen, they showed Louisie, who was hiding near the Undead in the Neuron mountains for a split second. ¡®There should be some quests related to him¡­¡¯ Ian who was deep in thoughts stopped, the moment Remir had stopped. ¡°Why did you stop? There¡¯s nothing in here?¡± ¡°Wait and see.¡± Hwoong-! Remir was swirling her hands in the air. A small hut on an empty ground came into his visibility the next moment. In front of Ian was an old man in a grey robe with a staff in his hands. And Ian was able to recognize the identity of the man immediately. ¡®Ruisei¡­!¡¯ Blow ¨C blow-! Thanks to Remir, Ian easily managed to find Louisie, and he approached him with a smile on his face. But then, Louisie did something unexpected. ¡°God! Ian has come here.¡± Louisie suddenly bent down on one knee in the direction of Ian. Even Remir, who was right beside Ian was shocked at this, Ian took a step back at this unexpected act. And Ian getting his composure back, nodded and extended his hand. In fact, even Ian knew that such an act from Louisie was a natural thing. As the time of the Luspel¡¯s empire reign, Ian was the bravest and loyal warrior in the whole of the Empire. ¡°It has been so long, Louisie. Stand up right away.¡± ¡°Huk, Keuk¡­!¡± Louisie stood up while crying, he was unable to control his emotions. And he managed to speak between the sobs. ¡°I¡¯m very glad that you¡¯re safe¡­! Is the Lotus Dukedom all well?¡± Ian nodded and answered, ¡°Yes, Louisie. And just today the Dukedom of Lotus has claimed the Kingdom title.¡± ¡°Ahah¡­!¡± Louisie had a look of fascination on his face. Ian was one of the most trusted person for King Serius, which meant that the Kingdom was like a tribute to him. He wouldn¡¯t have felt glad if the Luspel hadn¡¯t been destroyed, but in the situation that he was in, he couldn¡¯t help but feel glad for the Lotus. ¡°Lord Ian, will you come inside?¡± Louisie led Ian into his cabin, and Ian followed without much words. And Ian would be able to gather a lot of information from him. * * * ¡°So.. what you mean to say is, the place where Remir was fighting was far under the ground?¡± ¡°Yes, your majesty. Please speak in a low voice.¡± ¡°Umm, well¡­ I can do that.¡± Ian smiled and sat back into his seat. It felt nice to get asked like that. ¡®Well, it was a clue to find Louisie, the disappeared loyalist of the Imperial Luspel Empire.¡¯ And Louisie continued, ¡°Majesty. Please rescue the other loyalists of the Empire who are trapped in there.¡± Ian answered with a quick nod. There could be some talented people in there, even if was just one named NPC, that itself would be huge. And if he managed to clear out the quests, then he might be able to get the human resources he wanted. ¡°All right Louisie. I¡¯ll give it a try.¡± ¡°I¡¯m in your debt, your majesty!¡± Louisie bowed to him Ian as a sign of gratitude, and the very moment a quest window appeared in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Tring ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Catacombs Exploration I (Hidden, Linked Quest) ¨C Ruisei, the former head of Hellaim, the chief of Knights of the Luspel Empire in the past. By finding Ruisei who was hidden in the Neuron mountains, you have received the information about the ¡®Catacombs¡¯. According to Ruisei, the underground jungle is guarded by the powerful undead, and many of the Luspel Empires loyalists are in there. Destroy the undead and move to the eastern end and rescue those of the Luspel Empire. When you help them, with the bind of trust with you, they would be willing to be your servants. Quest Difficulty: SS Quest Condition: Level 330 or higher. Affinity with Louisie needs to be more than 50. A user who was a noble of the Luspel Empire. Time limit: None Rewards: Fame of 20 million. Affinity with Louisie increases by 25. Richie King, Chalian¡¯s necklace. (The rewards depend on the user participating in the quest.) ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian read the contents of the quest and lifted his head. The name of Chalian written for the rewards was for a familiar. ¡®What¡­? Richie King Chalian¡­ it is a name I have heard somewhere¡­¡¯ After a while¡­ Ian was able to remember where he had come across the name. ¡®That is it! The Orb of Darkness! The monster-like guy appeared in the Tower of Commander when we received the Orb of Darkness, Chalian!¡¯ The very moment, his head started to get heavy. Chalian was apparently sealed in the Devildom. Which was he didn¡¯t understand why his name appeared in here. But now, it was important, Ian opened his mouth as he had something to say to Ruisei, ¡°Then, I¡¯ll be going Louisie. Wait for me.¡± Louisie bowed his head as a polite gesture and responded, ¡°Yes, lord. Be careful.¡± ¡°Okay. Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± Remir, who was standing beside Ian had something to say, ¡°Sir, why wasn¡¯t I given anything like this?¡± Unlike Ian, Remir was only provided with an instant quest for which Ruisei spoke with a gentle expression. ¡°I couldn¡¯t, as I wasn¡¯t sure of your title Miss Remir. On the other hand, Ian is a noble, someone I already knew¡­¡± ¡°Sh*t.¡± ¡°If I knew you were an acquaintance of his majesty, then I would¡¯ve said something in the very beginning. So please don¡¯t show the grudge on my majesty, and help him with this.¡± And in front of Remir came the same quest window that Ian had seen, now she was smiling. ¡°Alright, sir. Trust me.¡± The two people moved away from the cabin of Ruisei. Since Remir knew the exact location, there was no need for wasting time. And then. Remir who discovered the underground frowned and mumbled, ¡°Oh Sh*t, that one is back again. I had a hard time taking him down in the morning.¡± And the mumbling of Remir, Ian¡¯s gaze moved to the place Remir was looking with curiosity. ¡°What? What is wrong? Is it because of that pig sh*t that¡¯s standing there?¡± Where Ian¡¯s gaze stood¡ªa dark-colored golem was standing, at which Remir nodded and said, ¡°Yep, that guy. He¡¯s not hard to deal with, but he¡¯s huge. It took me around 20 minutes to get a hold of that guy in the morning¡­¡± At those words, Ian smirked and muttered, ¡°Don¡¯t worry noona. That fatso¡­¡± Ian lifted his hand and a red haze began to form in front of them. As the red haze became thicker, it soon began to shape itself. Both the eyes of Remir and Ian were shocked at what they were seeing. ¡°Ba, Balrog¡­?¡± CH 376 For all the Kailan users, the strongest and the most famous magical beast. From the time when the trailer video was displayed before the opening of the Devildom, the most feared magical beast was the Balrog. Surely, in terms of ¡®robustness¡¯ the Marion Khalifa had an overwhelming presence. But Khalifa was an event monster, so that was out of the question. And Khalifa was a monster that no longer appeared in the Kailan. ¡°Grrr¡­¡± Between the two horns on top of its head, a cold breeze blew out. And every time it moved, the flames on its body moved by making the atmosphere hotter and hotter. It was a perfect monster for the title ¡®King of Magical Beasts¡¯. Remir who was watching the Balrog with a blank face suddenly gained sense. Normally, the shape of the body was unknown as the body was engulfed with treacherous flames over it. But this one, he had a clear shape even with the flame around it. ¡°Uh¡­ but this guy, is a bit different from what I had seen?¡± And at words from her, Ian smiled and nodded, ¡°Right, it¡¯s different. This ¡®Grrr¡¯ isn¡¯t just a Balrog.¡± ¡°Grrr¡­?¡± ¡°This one¡¯s name is Grrr..¡± ¡°That is a horrible sense of naming¡­¡± He didn¡¯t give a f*ck regarding the taunt from Remir and continued his explanation, ¡°Grrr isn¡¯t a normal Balrog, but another kind of Balrog, a Balrog of Destruction.¡± ¡°Balrog¡­ of destruction? Was there such a monster?¡± ¡°No, it wasn¡¯t there originally. Because I¡¯m the one who made such a beast.¡± Ian had spent more than a month in the Tomb of the Forgotten Soul. So he was able to recall a lot of the Balrog souls while his hunt with Yu Shin, and as a result, he tried to summon dozens of Balrogs. And, of course, they were all not successful with the materials of Ian and his skill. Ian continued to use the soul stones of the Balrog until he could develop his alchemy skill to the MAX. Ian mixed the Balrog with Syakelic, Balrog with Tarveros, and Balrog with Devil Dragon. Ian¡¯s efforts to make a strong beast were indeed successful to an extent! However, he wasn¡¯t able to make a myth class magical beast yet. ¡®However this one is a good one¡­ he is quite a handful.¡¯ Ian boldly looked up at the appearance of the Balrog, and his lips turned into a smirk. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Grrr (Balrog of Destruction) ¨C Level: 265 Classification: Magical Beast Rank: Legendary Personality: Wild Evolvable Attack Power: 9476 Defense Power: 3754 Agility: 4517 Intellect: 4517 Vitality: 758520/ 758520 * Unique ability ¨C Soul Encroachment The Balrog emits a powerful magical power that temporarily immobilizes the soul of weak objects and users with the needed range. It is possible for this skill to be cast on a target whose vitality is less than 5%, and the probability of the success of the skill depends on the ¡®intellect¡¯ of the target and the Balrog. (Balrog Intellect / Target Intelligence * 100)% During the duration, the target will move according to the commands of the Balrog, and all the attacks are enhanced by 30%. Also, the state persists until the Balrog dies. Cooldown Time: 120 minutes Duration: 30 minutes ¨C Broken Flames At the fingertips of the Balrog, intense flame magic will be spewed out, which captures and destroys the soul of the target. It can be used only by targets whose vitality is less than 20%, and the flame stays alive until the target dies or the Balrog dies. While the flame lasts, it deals 30% damage per second and restores all the unique ability cooldown times of the Balrog by 2 seconds. In addition, 55% damage done by the flame will be added to the vitality of the Balrog. * If the distance between the Balrog and the target is more than 30 meters, then the flames will die down. * If the target is killed with the flames, the cooldown of all the unique abilities is restored by 300 seconds. Cooldown Time: 10 minutes ¨C Annihilation Ray The Balrog collects all of his magic and releases it at once. The ejected magic penetrates through all the living objects in the front, but when it hits an obstacle, it moves to the angle of collision. The objects that are touched by the Annihilation ray will be dealt with damage of 3750% and the damage is further reduced by 5% for every trajectory. * The rays reach 150m and then it disappears. * After the activation of the Annihilation ray, the Balrog wouldn¡¯t be able to move for 5 seconds. Cooldown Time: 7 minutes. It is a magical beast that was born from the user ¡®Ian¡¯ as a result of his Beast Alchemy. He has inherited the power of the Balrog but has more power than that of a normal Balrog. But it lacks intellect when compared to the normal one. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Of all the beasts that Ian had tried to make so far, this was the first magical beast with the ¡®evolvable¡¯ option. But that wasn¡¯t the only good merit that this monster had, and that wasn¡¯t just the end of it. The ability was enormous, and above all, the unique abilities were newborn ones. Rather than a high attack rate, all the unique abilities required a technical control of high level. And he was the right style for Ian. Recently Ian, was actually happy when raising the guy. ¡°Look at that noona. I was the one who has made that big pig like that.¡± At the confident boost from Ian, Remir couldn¡¯t help but scratch the back of her neck. ¡°In a glance, it does look like a strong one¡­ but even then, the level is a bit lacking, isn¡¯t it? Even a named monster such as a Black Golem behind it is of level 360.¡± But before Remir could even finish her words, Ian was already moving towards the golem. Well along with Kaizer, Karceus and the Balrog too. And seeing that, Remir moved her head and mumbled, ¡°I guess it is the general pattern of attack¡­¡± It was the first time for Remir to see the Black Golem. And it had a different battle pattern when compared to the normal golems. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I¡¯ll just cast a spell.¡± From a corner, Remir began to slowly cast a powerful magic attack. The casting time was so long for the attacking spell, the ¡®Inflammation¡¯¡ªwhich has never been used. Not exactly knowing why, but Remir wanted to see Ian struggle while she was casting the magic. * * * ¡®Black Golem. He seems to have been here for a long time.¡¯ Ian was moving towards the Golem, and quickly recalled the attack pattern of the guy whom he had fought a long time ago. Unlike the expectations for Remir, Ian already knew the guy. ¡°Karceus, prepare the Breath.¡± ¡°Okay, Master.¡± ¡°Kaizer, you know what to do?¡± ¡°I know, Lord. You will be able to take care of everything till there?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± Ian and his party were facing the Golem, and they were huge. However, Ian was taking the position as if he was going to deal with several enemies at once. It could be something if a person didn¡¯t know about the Black Golem, but that was how one was supposed to take the positions. There was a unique ability for the Black Golem. Keuooo-! The black golem, which had faced Ian¡¯s party roared with a huge voice. Boom- Boom-! Rather than the incarnated body of Karceus, the sound that came from the Golem that moved was tremendous! The golem started to move by increasing the momentum, and Ian¡¯s eyes started to shine. Ian¡¯s eyes were looking at the white gem that was stuck between the chest of the Black Golem. The white gem was contrasting the black body of the Golem. ¡®It¡¯s time for the unique ability to be activated¡­ was it a pledge of Land¡­?¡¯ And the very moment, the white gem started to shine and the Golem began to shine too. ¡°Now¡­!¡± Ian raised his right hand out of reflex and Karceus went into the air and began to use ¡®Breath¡¯. And the Golem which was approaching Ian lifted its heavy leg. And¡­ Kwang- As the foot of the Black Golem landed on the ground, the numerous stones and rubble on the ground floated into the air. Ian avoided the scattered rock with minimum movements. But that wasn¡¯t the end. The Black Golem kept on stomping its feet, and the boulders around it constantly floated. Bang- Bang ¨C Bang-! The ground vibrated every time it did that¡ªalmost like an earthquake and the aftershocks. As the boulders kept on floating into the air, instead of falling back to the ground, some of them went together to form something. It was a miniature golem, but its size was larger than that of Ian. In a flash, there were ten small golems. The very moment. Karceus who was ready to do it blew out the ¡®Breath¡¯. Kwahh-! The Breath of Karceus, which was being prepared in advance, reached the golems exactly. The moment the ¡®Breath¡¯ had passed them, a shadow from the back of Ian sprang forward. The Balrog of Destruction, Grrr. ¡°Let¡¯s go Grrr!¡± ¡°Grrr, Khuaa!¡± To say how the name was decided, it was because of its roar, Grrr. After receiving the orders from Ian, Grrr started to attack the smallest Golems that were heading towards them. Ian who checked the vitality of the golems just clicked his tongue. ¡®Well, it is the black golem after all¡­ such a lively fight.¡¯ The Black Golem was of the highest ranks of all the kinds of Golems and was famous for its tanking abilities. Even the small ones which were made by the black golems only received the damage of 10-20% by Karceus¡¯ Breath. And the huge body of the Black Golem didn¡¯t suffer even a slight damage, and the tiny ones had fallen, to less than half. Even when the Mini Golems were killed, he would spring up the new ones right away. In order to catch the Black Golem, they must drop the vitality of the Mini Golems to less than half and then, only would they be able to take on the huge one. ¡®But that¡­ was a story when Grrr wasn¡¯t there.¡¯ Grrr was a powerful monster, it was true that the skills were still lacking as it was considered in the terms of level. When compared to the Black Golem, he was lacking a whopping 100 levels than him. Then why was Ian confident about Grrr? It was because of its inherent abilities. The unique ability of Grrr was like a perfect counter attack for the Black Golem. Ttat-! Ian, who stepped on the forearm of the Golem, leaped to the air from above and summoned Pin and Bbookbbook at the same time. Kiyaahhh-! Bbook-? Ian who had caught Bbookbbook in its turtle form climbed onto the back of Pin, and after reaching a high point in the air, he let go of Bbookbbook from there. ¡°Bbbookbbook-ah! Breath!¡± ¡°Okay bbook!¡± And the next moment, Bbookbbook in its dragon form had released the ¡®Breath¡¯, and it successfully attacked the golems. Kwang- Kwakwang-! Kwanhhh-! When the gigantic explosion burst out, the golems began to slow down as they had taken some damage. Now all of the mini-golems¡¯ vitality had fallen to less than half, and the vitality of the Black Golem had fallen slightly. Ian¡¯s gaze went to the place where Remir was casting. ¡®That auntie is taking the time of her life¡­¡¯ Ian had been playing with a mind that Remir was there for him. And he had no idea as to what kind of skill she was casting, but it was obvious that she was trying to do a powerful wide-range skill. If that was so, then he could assess the approximate time that she would need. ¡®What? Was my calculation wrong? Does it take more than that¡­?¡¯ However, the time to cast a spell by Remir had taken longer than Ian¡¯s thoughts. And when Ian was wondering about the casting, a storm of flame began to gush towards the battlefield. Hwarrrk-! The blazing red flame started to emerge from the floor and moved towards the battlefield, and the golems were all in the middle of the fire who had a sign engraved on their chest. Ping- Ping- Piping-! The sings on the chest exploded, and there were explosions everywhere. This was the moment Ian had been waiting for. ¡°Grrr! Soul Encroachment!¡± ¡°Grrr¡­! Kwaahh!¡± Grrr, who had been fighting with the golems leaped onto the air. Ttat-! Subsequently, Grrr landed in the center of the golems and a huge explosion broke out. Shwaahh-! And red magic started to move out of the hands of Grrr which were extended to both sides, and the waves of red magic encroached the entire battlefield. That very moment¡­ Thud-! The violent actions of the Mini Golems that were attacking the familiars of Ian, stopped all of a sudden. CH 377 After the conquest of the Lotus Guild. The Lotus Guild had taken away three Manors that were under the Fullios Guild, but they managed to get back into being one of the top 10 guilds by restoring their manors in only three months. The biggest reason for that to happen was the help that the Lotus Guild had given them. Yu Shin kept having a strong relationship with Ian, and he received a lot of help from the Lotus Guild without even realizing it because of it. In particular, the Lotus Guild dispatch mercenaries for free and supported the Fullios Guild from all the sides. Even then, it wasn¡¯t like Herz and Fiolan had done charity for them. There was some kind of agreement between these two guilds. ¡°It¡¯s nice to get things done quickly.¡± ¡°Hehe, It¡¯s not fun to drag time too much. The quicker we move, the faster we get to hit them.¡± There was a man in front of Herz and Fiolan. He was wearing round glasses, and his blue hair was neatly combed. A man with an unusual appearance that gave out a bit of that scholar-like vibe. He was the chief of the Fullios Guild, Rivelli. Fiolan smiled and said after taking a sip of coffee, ¡°But it still isn¡¯t an easy decision to make¡­ What did Master Yu Shin said about it?¡± Rivelli giggled in response and said, ¡°Well honestly, this was all arranged by Master Yu Shin. I¡¯m only doing what I¡¯m asked to.¡± ¡°Really? Haha.¡± With amazing control ability and judgmental skills, Yu Shin had the talent which was necessary for battle. Even before reaching level 100, he was a very famous player who had his own fandom. It wouldn¡¯t be an exaggeration to say that the Fullios Guild revolved around Yu Shin. However, Yu Shin didn¡¯t have much interest in guild operations and management. Which was why he had been running the guild by being its face, and Rivelli was the one who was actually running the guild. It was the same thing now. Yu Shin wanted to join Ian for his future, which was why Rivelli told them their opinion. The Dukedom of the Fullios was ready to merge with the Lotus Kingdom. In fact, until now the concept of a sub-guild was non-existent in Kailan. Before the introduction of Kingdoms, there was no system in Kailan that could merge guilds. However, when the Lotus Guild claimed itself as a Kingdom, the sub-guild option had opened, and it could be said that the Dukedom of Fullios became a member of the Lotus Guild. It could have been a decision that was thought to be stupid from an average man¡¯s perspective. It was because since the Lotus proclaimed themselves as a Kingdom, the Fullios Guild too with a little bit more power could¡¯ve proclaimed itself as a Kingdom as well. However, Rivelli believed that this was the right decision to make. ¡®Anyhow Lotus¡­ will eventually grow beyond a Kingdom to an Empire for sure. If that happens then we will declare ourselves as the tributaries of the Lotus.¡¯ If it was merged right after the conquest war, the name of the guild wouldn¡¯t have survived. However, if they moved in with the concept of having an alliance, they would be able to grow in terms of power and be protected under Lotus¡¯ name. Rivelli¡¯s goal was to have the Fullios Guild became Lotus Guild¡¯s shadow workers. If they managed to stay behind Lotus, then they would be able to look at all the other guilds. It wasn¡¯t so bad. The conversation between Herz, Fiolan and Rivelli took nearly an hour. It took quite a while for them to make the Fullios Guild into a subordinate guild, but it took much longer to discuss their future plans. After the procedures were all done, Rivelli stood up with a smile. ¡°Then, please look after us from now on, Herz, Fiolan.¡± Herz and Fiolan looked at each other and laughed. ¡°Like it. Hope you do the same.¡± ¡°Take care of us too. In the future maybe we can organize a guild union party and enter a dungeon.¡± ¡°I¡¯m down for that anytime.¡± The very next moment, System messages began to emerge in succession in front of the three people. Tring ¨C Tritring-! [The ¡®Lotus Guild¡¯ and ¡®Fullios Guild¡¯ have signed a contract.] [From now on the ¡®Fullios Guild¡¯ will be incorporated into the ¡®Lotus Guild¡¯.] [The ¡®Fullios Dukedom¡¯ has become the tributary for the ¡®Lotus Kingdom¡¯.] [All the users of the ¡®Fullios Guild¡¯ will be transferred to the officialdom of the ¡®Lotus Guild¡¯] [When certain conditions have been met, the King ¡®Ian¡¯ can give the users of the Fullios Guild the appropriate title and a Dukedom moving forward.] Herz who read all the system messages was pleased. He then looked at Rivelli and said, ¡°Ah, by the way, Rivelli.¡± ¡°Yes, Herz?¡± ¡°Maybe, just maybe¡­ I¡¯m asking you out of curiosity. Is Yu Shin¡­ and Ian still hunting as a Duo?¡± Rivelli scratched the back of his neck and responded, ¡°Maybe¡­?¡± Fiolan admired his strong tongue. ¡°He¡¯s a strong person¡­¡± Rivelli shook his head. ¡°I agree with that. But what is he up to today, he hasn¡¯t connected today. The server has already been opened after the massive update¡­¡± * * * ¡°Huaahm¡­!¡± Warm sunshine was entering the room. The warmth of the sunshine filled the entire room, and Yu Shin stretched his body after yawning. ¡°Hmm. I had a really good sleep after a long time. Now it¡¯s time to think of the massive update¡­¡± Yu Shin who had hunted with Ian every day was able to sleep like a baby because of the large-scale update. He knew that the episode would air for 6 hours, which was why he decided to sleep. He wouldn¡¯t have slept for so long if not for that extensive update! He didn¡¯t regret sleeping that long though since he woke up feeling fresh. ¡°I¡¯ve been asleep for God knows how long, had the server opened up already¡­?¡± The server was scheduled to open at 9 am. Yu Shin fell asleep at 6 pm the previous day. He smiled like a little kid upon seeing the screen shining brightly. However, that smile faded when he looked at the time. It was around 7 in the morning, yet the day was bright already. ¡°Huhu, I woke up a bit early.¡± Once again Yu Shin stretched his legs and nervously unlocked his smartphone. He wanted to confirm if the woman that he met in a blind-date responded to him! The moment he unlocked his phone¡­ He saw the message of a person whom he was expecting to see. [You have a message from Ian.] Yu Shin mumbled to himself while jerking his neck, ¡°Phew, this guy really must be a robot¡­¡± His face hardened as he opened the app to check for messages. It was because there was a series of messages in it. [08:07 am] [Ian: Yu Shin, even after the server has opened, you¡¯re not sleeping are you?] [08:48 am] [Ian: Opened 10 minutes ago. Wake up Yu Shin!] [08:59 am] [Ian: Yu Shin, I¡¯m disappointed. I didn¡¯t know that you were such a lazybum¡­!] It was a situation that he never had imagined, which was why he had to reconfirm the time once again. He was nothing less than puzzled. [03:27 pm] [Ian: Head to the Neuron Mountains the moment you wake up.] At the top corner of his phone, Yu Shin saw that it was ¡¯06:59 pm¡¯. He began to wobble a little bit. ¡°So it wasn¡¯t 7 in the morning¡­ but seven in the evening?¡± With reflexes that were as quick as a new trainee in a training camp and with intentions to not let down the hope that Ian had on him, he jumped into the game with having one goal in mind¡ªto enter the hunting grounds. * * * Kung-! Fifteen small and large golems were stopped at the moment. On top of the Black Golem, red smoke began to form. Woong-! After casting a wide area skill, Remir moved to the Battlefield to help out Ian. ¡®This¡­ was it his?¡¯ The Balrog¡¯s unique ability¡ªSoul Encroachment¡ªwhich was the most famous and the hardest to deal with. Having gone through numerous battles with the Balrog, Remir knew pretty well about that skill. Since she wasn¡¯t a summoner, she didn¡¯t have any idea about the specific time or the conditions that triggered it. However, she knew that it was an ability that immobilizes the enemy and controlled them for a certain period of time. She suddenly felt bad and wanted to apologize. ¡®It looked like it wasn¡¯t much¡­ but I never thought that it would be executed perfectly¡­!¡¯ Only a ranker with great gaming sense would know that the Soul Encroachment skill could only be used at a specified level. What was more surprising was that they managed to get a total of fifteen golems without leaving a single one of them. Kwang- Kabang-! They heard the sound of the golems¡¯ giant boulders bumping into each other. The attack of the small golems was slow, and their attacks couldn¡¯t cover a wide area. However, the Black Golem¡¯s vitality was still being damaged. The angry Black Golem roared as if it was feeling unjust. Keuaaah-! Kueeee-! Dark Wave, a quick wide area skill of the Black Golem was initiated. Kwakwakwang-! The Dark Wave¡¯s range wasn¡¯t that wide, so it wasn¡¯t much of a threat for Ian. [Due to the Dark Wave of the Black Golem, the ¡®small golem 1¡¯ has suffered huge damage.] [Due to the familiar Grrr¡¯s skill ¡®Soul Encroachment¡¯ the ¡®Small Golem 1¡¯ wasn¡¯t damaged.] [The Small Black Golem¡¯s vitality is down to 0.] When Soul Encroachment was still in play, the ones in its control were ¡®invincible¡¯ for that duration of time. Ian¡¯s familiars moved back after seeing the attack of the Black Golem. Kung- Kung- Kukung-! The small golems were unable to move back any further. ¡®Grrr¡¯ approached the monster after perfectly executing its skill, and Ian¡¯s gaze immediately moved towards the golem. The vitality gauge of the golem was less than half. ¡°Noona! Focus on just a single attack!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± Remir began to concentrate on Ian¡¯s orders. Kwang- Kwakwang-! A pre-deal that was so perfect. When two of the strongest top rankers performed such a pre-deal, no matter how durable a monster was, it would turn helpless. Moreover, it was even more helpless as it was surrounded by small golems. Add to that Grrr¡¯s strong attack¡ªRay. Kwahh-! [The familiar magical beast Grrr¡¯s unique ability¡ªAnnihilation Ray¡ªhas been activated.] [The familiar ¡®Grrr¡¯ has done catastrophic damage to the Black Golem.] [The vitality of the Golem has been reduced by 479830.] Despite the huge level difference between the two, due to the tremendous 3700% additional damage, the Annihilation Ray dealt powerful damage. Kuk- Kkkuk-! The golems were moving close to each other with a rumble. Black Golem¡¯s vitality was less than 20% now. Ian gave out the final order! ¡°Grrr, Broken Flames!¡± [Grrr!!] The second unique ability of the Balrog of Destruction¡ªBroken Flames. Red flames began to emerge from Grrr¡¯s fingertips; those red flames quickly engulfed the whole body of the Black Golem. [The familiar Grrr¡¯s unique ability ¡®Broken Flames¡¯ has been activated.] [The vitality of the Black Golem has been reduced by 10978.] [Due to the additional effect of Broken Flames, the vitality of Grrr has been restored by 6038.] [The cooldown of all of Grrr¡¯s unique abilities are reduced by 2 seconds.] Broken Flames was a DOT attack skill that constantly gave out damage to the enemy. The attack factor was considerably low. However, the skill¡¯s damage per second was increased tremendously since it had a low cooldown. During the initiation of the Broken Flames, all skills¡¯ cooldown time would be reduced by 3 seconds per second, which meant that a skill that had a 7 minutes cooldown could be reused after 2 minutes instead. Just like this. Kwaaa-! Grrr shouted and a red burst of energy shot out in his mouth at the same time. And¡­ Thud-! The huge body of the Black Golem which was standing tall as the mountain was oxidized into a grey ash-like substance. In just 5 minutes since the battle had begun. CH 378 ¡°Hey, it has got that red glow thing.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°The red rays that are bouncing up and down.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ my Grrr¡¯s unique ability?¡± ¡°Yeah, that.¡± Remir and Ian took down the Golem and entered the tunnels. While looking at Grrr that was emitting a red colored magic, Remir asked things out of curiosity. ¡°What is that skill, an attack factor? Even if it is a Balrog, it doesn¡¯t make sense for a level 250 magical beast to have such an advantage.¡± Ian smiled and said, ¡°3700% factor.¡± ¡°¡­?!¡± Remir blinked her eyes. ¡°3700 you said? The attack factor is that high while having 2-3 minutes cooldown as well?¡± Ian laughed at Remir¡¯s question and responded, ¡°The normal cooldown is seven minutes. But there is another skill that reduces the cooldown of all the other unique abilities.¡± ¡°Ahhh¡­¡± Ian told her about the Broken Flame. She listened to Ian¡¯s explanation while nodding occasionally. Since she was a wizard, she knew about a similar skill that worked the same as Broken Flame. The two users entered the dungeon as if they were taking a nice stroll since the monster there had been wiped out. It was because Remir managed to take all the monster down earlier. Seeing Ian who was disappointed with the scenario, Remir encouraged him. ¡°Don¡¯t take it so hard. It¡¯s going to start now, it would be better to get your guard up.¡± Ian became excited upon hearing what Remir said. ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°Yup. It¡¯ll get different once we go deeper underground. The level of normal class monsters starts at 380.¡± ¡°Oh oh¡­!¡± Ian¡¯s eyes were shining when he heard the monsters¡¯ level. After level 350, he was under the impression that his speed of leveling up would significantly slow down. ¡®The monsters here are at least level 380¡­! This is a huge opportunity, right?!¡¯ The dungeons that Ian had been hunting in so far had level 380 monsters as well. Level 420 monsters would occasionally appear too. However, he had never seen a mob of level 380 monsters. There were level 350 monsters at the Tomb of the Forgotten Soul. Why was there a need for a normal-dungeon monster to have such a high level? The reason was simple. It was because it would make gaining experience more efficient. In Kailan, monsters of a similar level had a different level of difficulty depending on their grade. Taking down the general-dungeon monster wasn¡¯t advantageous when compared to the benefits that one would acquire when hunting high-grade monsters. ¡®The level 380 general-dungeon monsters will be weaker than a level 350 rare-monsters¡­¡¯ Ian, who was feeling grateful for the high-level monsters he was about to play with, moved into the dungeon while humming a song. But just right then. An unexpected system message popped up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Tring-! [You have found the dungeon of ¡®Dark Catacomb¡¯.] [Since the user is in a party with another user ¡®Remir¡¯, the original detection buff of the dungeon will be shared.] [Feel the energy of the ¡®Richi King Chalian¡¯.] [¡®Hero, Muran¡¯s Choice¡¯ has been activated.] Ian who read the message was puzzled. ¡°Oh, what¡¯s this?¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°Noona, didn¡¯t you get any system messages?¡± ¡°Huh¡­? The dungeon entry system message?¡± ¡°Not that.¡± Remir became confused. She didn¡¯t see a system message even though they were in a party. Ian mumbled in a low voice, ¡°Muran huh¡­ I have been hearing this a lot, but I can¡¯t remember where?¡± Remir who could hear Ian¡¯s murmuring immediately hit him on the head. ¡°Idiot. Isn¡¯t that the name of Luspel Empire¡¯s capital¡ªMuran? It isn¡¯t that far from here, but what about Muran?¡± Ian was now able to recall that Muran was the capital of the Luspel empire. ¡°Ah¡­!¡± Ian remembered the time when he had the item that would transform him into the hidden class¡ªTaming Master! ¡®Yeah, the Crystal of Muran. Why did I forget that?¡¯ When Ian was still in the archer class, that item played a pivotal role in making him transform into the hidden class. That was the reason why Muran was seemingly familiar to him. ¡®Yeah. Come to think of it¡­ the capital of Luspel is Muran and the Crystal of Muran¡­ was named after the hero of the Luspel Empire¡­!¡¯ Ian¡¯s head began to work at a high speed. ¡®Then the message was only sent to me and not to noona¡­ is this related to the Crystal of Muran?¡¯ The system message mentioned the words ¡®Choice of Muran¡¯. It seemed to be something that was related to that crystal in some manner. To solve this mystery, Ian asked Remir, ¡°Noona.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°How did you get the first Hidden class?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ that¡¯s top secret¡­¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be stingy now, just tell me. Was it a hidden class that was done with the help of a crystal?¡± Remir tilted her head and answered him, ¡°No no. It didn¡¯t. My hidden class was activated by doing the quest of the Sun God.¡± ¡°Ahaa¡­¡± Ian was convinced that his speculation was right upon hearing what Remir said. ¡®This is a bit exciting I guess¡­? The hero of Muran. What kind of connection do I have with this hero?¡¯ Ian began to move forward slowly, and with curious eyes, he was scanning every part of the dungeon. He was hoping to find some kind of clue. However, there weren¡¯t any clues, and as they reached the end of the stairs¡­ Ian¡¯s eyes saw a very spacious ground. With countless undead waiting for the two. Remir, while casting all her buffs, said, ¡°It¡¯s all about power from here, summon all of your pets.¡± ¡°Kay, noona.¡± Ian instantly summoned all his familiars which weren¡¯t summoned till then, such as Halli and Bbakbbak. Seeing the undead which filed the whole room, he brought out the Judgment of the Spirit King. From what Ian could see, they weren¡¯t the level of monsters which could be considered insignificant. ¡®Experience is experience¡­ I can smell already the hidden quest from here.¡¯ The undead who discovered the party began to move towards them in slow motion. ¡°Grrk-!¡± ¡°Kek kek, intruders¡­! Attack them!¡± ¡°Keeeek! They look tasty¡­!¡± At the same moment, a huge rock at the corner of the chamber began to move. Kkkgk- kkkgggk-! Ian¡¯s gaze moved towards it. He saw purple eyes shining from that dark corner. [No one should¡¯ve come¡­ to this place¡­] Thud- thud-! The thing Ian saw was on top of a Hargasus while clad in a glossy armor and had an awful aura. A legendary undead¡ªDeath Knight. The death knight pointed his spear at Ian. * * * In the 20th division of the Devildom. On top of Daedmon¡¯s temple, the energy of Sekai was descending. Intense dark energy was swooping the temple as if it was going to swallow the temple! The users who were hunting around the vicinity started to get stronger. ¡°I have been hunting for more than a week here in the 20th division, but it¡¯s my first time to see such a strange phenomenon.¡± ¡°Ohoh¡­! What is that? Is that how a war skill comes out?¡± A war skill, it could be considered as a Priest class Asmodian user¡¯s skill. The temple was a place that Asmodian users needed to move to. A magical effect was created around the temple. The users were searching for the one who did it. One user then said, ¡°Ah, that. That¡¯s the magical effect that happens when the oracle comes down.¡± ¡°Oracle¡­ you say?¡± ¡°Yeah. The oracle that the Devil God Daedmon has.¡± ¡°Hu! Is a hidden quest being created¡­?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not so sure. This is only my second time seeing it come down. It¡¯s kind of peculiar. The last time the oracle came down, it was red, not dark.¡± Apart from the nervous bickering of the users, the darkness was getting stronger and stronger. A man with a black cape appeared in front of the temple. The door of the temple opened and the man walked inside it. The energy that was rattling the temple began to vanish gradually. The users who were curious at what had happened tried to get closer to the temple but were in vain. Since the black aura was still around it, the temple didn¡¯t provide any access to the users. In the meantime, one user read the name of the man who appeared for a short while. ¡°Cadesra¡­ seems like a name that we¡¯ve heard somewhere, it isn¡¯t a user right?¡± * * * The death knight, known as one of the strongest undead. The death knight that made its appearance in front of Ian and Remir was a legendary monster that was level 420 with powerful armed forces. Thanks to that, Ian was about to get involved again in a breathtaking fight after a long time. Kwang- Kwang-! Ian¡¯s golden spear and the death knights silver spear roared every time they hit each other. The enormous damage that Ian had matched the sound his spear was making. ¡®Oho, even if is the last, it is doing such crazy damage.¡¯ Ian was under the impression that no one could block his spear. Ian¡¯s vitality¡ªwhich was being reduced¡ªwere being recovered right away. Whenever Ian managed to avoid incoming projectiles his vitality would recover. This was because of the power of ¡®Transcendent Option¡¯ that was attached to the Judgment of the Spirit King. Remir who was seeing Ian¡¯s stunts began to sweat profusely. ¡®Why the hell is he playing like that? If it gets any more dangerous, he might die and retry it with a tanker.¡¯ It wasn¡¯t unreasonable for Remir to think that way. Ian¡¯s vitality gauge was like a rollercoaster. It would go down to 20% then go back to 90%. As time goes by, the Death Knight¡¯s attack patterns were becoming obvious to Ian to the point where the Death Knight wasn¡¯t landing a hit anymore. Ian¡¯s vitality gauge which was in danger now began to stabilize. The vitality of the death knight was now beginning to flicker. [You insignificant human¡­!] The furious Death Knight began to wield his spear much more violently. However, that was what Ian was waiting for. Though the Death Knight¡¯s attack power was high, it was easy to avoid its attacks because of its repetitive movement. Like a squirrel, Ian was avoiding the Death Knight¡¯s attacks and was regenerating his vitality. Phuk- puk- phuk-! But just right then, Remir¡¯s voice burst out. ¡°Ian! Behind you!¡± A sphere of powerful violet magic by a skeleton wizard was cast towards Ian. It was going to be difficult to avoid even for Ian! Remir cast a shield spell where the projectile was heading to, but it wouldn¡¯t be able to protect Ian on time. ¡®Damn it! so Ian will be taken out anyway, huh?¡¯ She immediately switched the shield spell to an attack spell. It was impossible to prevent that sphere of magic, so attacking the death knight would be the next option one had to take. That was a better call rather than hoping for Ian to be safe. Kwanng-! The giant sphere that was headed towards Ian burst into the air. ¡°¡­?!¡± There was a translucent blue object on the floor with a back that seemed similar to that of a turtle. CH 379 ¡°Hey! Hoonie, what work do you have in here¡­?¡± In the middle of the Neuron mountains. Inside the dungeon, Hoonie came across Yu Shin. They both encountered people who they never even imagined of, Hoonie¡¯s eyes went wide. ¡®Oh¡­! This totally sweet! Though it can¡¯t be, it is a quest that is high and I was in need of one person¡­¡¯ Yu Shin was one of the most trustworthy rankers and Hoonie was feeling a bit elated. But Hoonie¡¯s elated happy feeling didn¡¯t last for long. ¡°I¡¯m here for the hidden quest for the warlock. But hyung, why are you here?¡± At the question of Hoonie, Yu Shin responded while smiling, ¡°Haha! I was called over by Ian¡­¡± ¡°Uh? In here Ian hyung has called you?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± At those words from Yu Shin, a smile went away from Hoonie¡¯s face. ¡®No, this is my personal career quest, why did Ian hyung have to come in here?¡¯ Even though the hidden quest was right in front of him, he was afraid of going into the dungeon because of Ian phobia. However as Yu Shin began to move into the dungeon, Hoonie too went in involuntarily. Ian¡¯s loyalists 1 and 2 started to enter the dungeon side by side. * * * The result of the expert craft of the blacksmith dwarves. The dwarf Urk Han, made a shield called the ¡®Shield of God¡¯. ¡°Thank you for providing me with the opportunity of creating a masterpiece as such, master.¡± It was a shell shield that was made with an investment of a month with the turtle back. The shield was called as the ¡®Dragon Shield¡¯, which had an overwhelming performance. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Dragon¡¯s Shield (+15) ¨C Classification ¨C Shield (Ego Weapon) Rank ¨C Myth Transcendence ¨C third transcendence Soul Level ¨C Lv 125 Restriction on the wear ¨C Level 300 summoner only Armor ¨C 2870 to 3525 Damage Absorption ¨C 95.57% Spirit Power ¨C 8750 The shield item, ¡®absorb damage¡¯ option will only come into work when an attack gets blocked. (If the attack wasn¡¯t completely blocked, the damage absorption rate will decrease.) Spirit Power reduces the damage done by normal attacks with an additional spirit (8750). (When damage absorption is activated, it absorbs the souls and reduces all the other damages.) Durability ¨C 10752/10752 Options ¨C All combat abilities + 175 (+105) Leadership + 750 (+450) Affinity + 2125 (+1275) Increases the vitality and defense of all the summoned magical beasts by 15%. * Dragon¡¯s Soul By interacting with the Dragon¡¯s Soul, the shields¡¯ enchantment can be summoned instantly in the desired position. The summoner shield will absorb all the projectile for 3 seconds and will remain for an additional 15 seconds without disappearing. It can be called out at three different places in a single time. ¨C The item can be used even when not in possession. (However, it must be in the inventory.) ¨C While the Dragon¡¯s Soul is being used, the vitality of all the familiars is restored by 1% per second. Cooldown time: 10 minutes * Dragon¡¯s Anger When the enemy¡¯s attack was defended successfully, there is a chance of 15% to return 50% of the absorbed damage. And every time the defended enemy attack has been done, the times of attack will be accumulated, and gains 0.5% ATK and when it goes for 100 times, the shield turns invincible for 5 seconds. After the accumulation of 100, the buffs will last for 15 seconds longer. If the defense of the attack is successful before the duration of the buff, then the buff duration will be reset. [Transcendence option: reduces the cooldown time of all the pets unique ability by 8%.] ¨C The item belongs to user ¡®Ian¡¯. ¨C It cannot be transferred or sold to any other users, and won¡¯t drop even if the character dies. ¨C It is a shield made by the dwarf ¡®Urk Han¡¯. ¨C It is a shell shield made from the evolution of a legendary dragon and contains the dragon¡¯s soul. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¡®Phew, if it wasn¡¯t for it, I would¡¯ve been in a dangerous situation.¡¯ Ian was feeling thankful after remembering the moment when he would have been hit by the sphere. The shield¡¯s unique ability, the ¡®Dragon¡¯s Soul¡¯. The other options were amazing, but Ian was under the impression that this skill was the most fraudulent of all. Can be used even while just having it in the possession in the inventory, so it was amazing. It was a very pleasing option for Ian who uses both his hands to use his main weapon. Though the single hand can be used to handle the weapon in Kailan. Yet, Ian decided to put the shield in his inventory, because if it was worn by him, it would drastically reduce the attack power and other options. Remir who saw the information of it grumbled to Ian. ¡°What is it, it has no charm, called from the inventory?¡± ¡°If you¡¯re feeling bad then noona you can make one.¡± ¡°How?¡± ¡°Hmm.. for starters go to the Abyss Island and catch the friend called Bbookbbook¡­¡± And that joke from Ian, Remir just shook his head. While they were enjoying the jokes, two people were approaching them from the dungeon. It was a bit difficult to clear them quickly as it was difficult, but once they had started, it was getting stable for them. The structure of the dungeon had a lot of closed rooms, but the pattern of the Undead appearing in the room was similar. Kung-! [Dark dungeon, have defeated 5 Dark Knights.] [The passage leading to the second floor of the dungeon has been opened.] [The Dark dungeon, 1st level will be cleared.] Sssssksk-! After Ian and Remir killed the 5th Death Knight, all of the rooms on the floor had disappeared. In their sight, was a stairway descending to the next floor. ¡°Hmm, it took almost 4 hours to clear a floor.¡± And the low murmur from Ian, Remir nodded and replied, ¡°Yeah. Even then, the experience is great, isn¡¯t it? no other place will provide such an amazing experience.¡± ¡°That, I agree.¡± The two of them were about to step down the staircase. At the time there were familiar voices from the back. ¡°Ian hyung! Remir noona!¡± ¡°Ian, sorry I¡¯m late.¡± The identity was obvious, it was Yu Shin and Hoonie. The power of the party had further strengthened. * * * Kick-! Inside a dimly lit room, a heavy sound of chirping was audible. A door of the underground dungeon had opened with a creaking sound. Kkgk- Kkgkk-! Inside the room was the image of a man seated in there, with bright eyes that were visible. There was a griffin pattern statue which had been ragged and had bloodstains on it but was still clear enough to make out the identity. Before he had been in here, it was clear that the one belonged to the Royal Knights of the Luspel Empire. ¡°Keu¡­¡± A low voice came out of the man¡¯s mouth. Thanks to the environment where he wasn¡¯t exposed to the light, and it wasn¡¯t even clear as to how long he had been trapped in there. And as the door opened, the warlock moved into the room. His body was covered with a black robe, and his appearance wasn¡¯t exactly visible, but the long nails showed that he wasn¡¯t just a normal person. ¡°keukk, I guess you are the chosen hero of Chalian.¡± A voice that could make anyone tremble with cold sweat. The man who was sitting with no strength asked of him. ¡°You evil men! You will fall into the hell!¡± The warlock slowly approached the man. And slowly pushed the hood of his face. And his face was revealed in the soft light. The face of the warlock was like bones, the level where the bones of the human could be seen. His mouth went up, ¡°Kukk, Hell¡­ a place I can¡¯t go even if I wanted to.¡± ¡°What is that¡­?!¡± ¡°A place called hell. Isn¡¯t it a place I can go if I¡¯m not dead. But my body will survive for eternity, so it is a place I can¡¯t go to even if I wish.¡± At the words of the warlock, the man turned angry. ¡°Bastard! I¡¯ll kill you!¡± But the voice was powerless, and his body didn¡¯t move at his will. The warlock couldn¡¯t help but laugh at that. At the depressing sight of the man, a black smoke rose from the side. And¡­ Puahk-! With a blunt sound, the man fell. A skeleton appeared instantly and stabbed him on the back. The man who was once a Royal Knights. If he had possessed the power he used to, he wouldn¡¯t have been hit with such a despicable attack, but he was now so fragile that even a skeleton could take him down. ¡°Keke, foolish people. If you would¡¯ve accepted the suggestion of Chailan you wouldn¡¯t have suffered so much.¡± A grey smoke rose from the hands of the warlock. It wrapped itself onto the body of the fallen man and began to cremate downwards. There was a huge magic circle on the spot. [The Source of Darkness ¡­!] Woong-! A big resonating sound went throughout the room. A few seconds later, the man had disappeared without leaving behind any traces, and the warlock¡¯s face turned pleased. He walked out of the room with a satisfactory laugh while looking at the empty room. ¡°There isn¡¯t much left. The ceremony was almost over, I need to head back to Chailan.¡± The very moment, beside the muttering warlock, came a grey smoke with a shadow. A shadow with a ghostly figure that was floating in the air. And opened its mouth, ¡°Kells, there are intruders!¡± At that, the warlock called ¡®Kells¡¯ frowned. ¡°Intruders. There aren¡¯t many who can make down here¡­ does it mean that they have taken down all the undead?¡± ¡°Yeah, yes!¡± That was when Kells complexion had darkened. ¡°¡­!¡± The next moment, Kwang-! A large roar was heard from the corridor of the opposite side, and the wall of racks burst out. ¡°Who is it? to dare and step foot in here¡­!¡± There was silence and static for a while. But after a while, a bunch of people emerged from the broken walls. And among them, Kell¡¯s expression hardened as he saw the face of a man with a huge sword. CH 380 Warlock Kells. He was actually a wizard of the Luspel Empire¡¯s magic legion. Although he was just a commoner, he earned his work based on the talent. Despite the excellent magic ability, the position that he was able to climb was limited. In order to become a higher division captain or an imperial warlock, it was needed to cross over the wall of identity. The imperial warlock was an authoritative group that did not accept the subordinate of any other classes of nobles less than the Barons and Viscounts. Kells, who had the birth of a commoner couldn¡¯t have moved into a high wall of status. Yet the talents of Kells was superior than the imperial magicians. And it was natural for Kells to be disgusted and feel antipathy towards the magicians of the Empire. Which was why Kells had chosen to be a black wizard, and he never regretted it. ¡®If it hadn¡¯t been for Chalian, I would¡¯ve never gotten stronger.¡¯ He had sworn an allegiance to the Richie King Chalian and had pledged his soul to obtain the powers of the Black warlock. It was all thanks to it that Kells now possessed the power and wasn¡¯t lacking when compared to Tamur of the former Imperial magicians. And the level of 440, is a tremendous level, and with a provable strength. But¡­ ¡°Kaizer? Why are you here boy?!¡± And yet, the moment he had discovered Kaizer, he couldn¡¯t help but feel cold sweat drip down. In the past when Kells was in the Imperial Magicians corps. Kaizer was like a warrior for the Imperial Army. Until the great power of Chalian had come, he was the chief of the warriors and no one dared to look at him. Srr-! Kaizer, who pulled out the huge sword that was on his back, opened his mouth while speaking something in a low voice. ¡°That guy, he knows me.¡± The low voice of Kaizer resonated the room. Though Kaizer didn¡¯t know him. But in the past, Kells was the leader of the many magic troops and Kaizer was in the command of hundreds of land troops. Kells, who faced Kaizer with those eyes, tried to calm himself from the shock. ¡®Well. No matter how strong Kaizer is¡­! there is no way he could be stronger than the power that was given to me by Chalian!¡¯ Kells, whose confidence was down, immediately rose once again. Although Kaizer was stronger in the past, Kells was under the impression that he would¡¯ve been trampled and weakened in time. And with his thoughts of that kind, Kells¡¯ desire to take him down began to boil. ¡®This is my chance. If I bound up the soul of Kaizer and turn it into a Death Knight¡­! Maybe a Death Knight of myth rank will be born!¡¯ Kuoong-! Kells laughed while stretching both his hands into the air. ¡°I don¡¯t know how you managed to find this place but¡­¡± An intense black energy flowed from the hands of Kells. Like an earthquake, the whole ground began to tremble violently. ¡°But this is going to be your grave¡­!¡± Koong-! A dark tornado wrapped itself around the rock. And in the corridors of the underground, black smoke rose along with Undead from the ground. ¡°Kekel. Precious meal.¡± ¡°Kuuuh-!¡± Starting with the lowest grade Undead to the highest Death Knights. Ian looked at all the enemies who were seemingly powerful even at a glance and held his spear tight. ¡®I¡¯ll need to call out the shield again. The deal will be a little less, but I don¡¯t have an option.¡¯ All the party members of Ian were all looking at the undead with nervous expressions. But right then. A sudden quest window had appeared in front of all of them. Tring-! ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Chalian¡¯s Servir (Hidden) ¨C The Black magician Kells, is the servant of Richie King Chalian. Numerous imperial Knights were sacrificed in his hands, and their souls have been used to produce the Undead. After killing the Black Magician Kells, let out the loyalist of the Empire who has been trapped in here. And inside the underground, find the ¡®Commander of Chailan¡¯. If the Commander of the Chalian is found, you will be able to find out what the ambition of the Richie King is. Quest Difficulty: SS Quest Condition: Entry to the 4th floor of the dungeon. Find the Black Magician Kells A user with ¡®Catacomb Exploration I¡¯ quest in progress. Time Limit: None Reward: Affinity with the NPCs that were formerly part of the Luspel Empire will rise to 25. Fame of 15 million. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian quickly read the quest window that came up in the front. It wasn¡¯t bad that they were given a quest when they were trying to clear the existing linked quest along with the bonus. ¡®Nice, we just need to kill that one fragile Black Magician!¡¯ The appearance of the warlock Kells was with a boney appearance. And the level of 440 wasn¡¯t a level that could be seen as a low level, yet Ian was feeling confident. For the last boss of the dungeon, there were still a lot of moves that could be used. ¡°Master, there¡¯s no need to be time efficient this time?¡± And that was, Kaka who was floating right beside Ian after a long time! ¡®Dreaming Devil¡¯ was still in save, and there was no way that 440 level black magician could hurt her. ¡°Kay, I¡¯ll give you a signal.¡± ¡°Okay, Master.¡± Ian started to give out the orders for the party members and they all began to take the needed positions. But there was one person, Hoonie who wasn¡¯t moving. Which was why Ian shouted at Hoonie. ¡°Hoonie what are you doing? Won¡¯t move fast!¡± Hoonie who was startled at the shout from Ian responded very quickly. ¡°Ah, I was lost in thoughts for a while. Sorry, hyung.¡± And yet somehow, Hoonie¡¯s eyes were wavering. * * * ¡®Ah, God! Why does that have to be now¡­!¡¯ Hoonie looked at the quest window that was in front of his eyes and bit on his lip. It was Hoonie¡¯s body signal to bite down on his lips when he was nervous. ¡®Why should a hidden quest window come up now¡­?¡¯ Hoonie¡¯s eyes were looking at the floating window. It had a content that was different from the other members of the party. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Chalian¡¯s Powers¡¯ Succession (Hidden class only) ¨C The black Magician Kells is the servant of Richie King Chalian. And Richie King Chalian was the first disciple of the Immortal in the past. However, Chalian who had different ways of pursuing magic than of Immortal, he was unable to do it, as to raise his level of dark magic he had to steal and corrupt the living souls. Thanks to it, Chalian had eventually become stronger but was banished from the Imperial Tower by Immortal, his teacher. Exiled Chalian hated Immortal for it, and continued to develop his magic in his own way. Later on, after becoming the Richie King Chalian enjoyed eternal life, and came to create his own kind of Black Magic. Richie King Chalian didn¡¯t teach all of the skills to his servant Kells. However, if you¡¯re the descendant of Immortal, you will be able to possess all of his black magic. In order for that to happen, you need to go with Kells who protects the underground from the intruders and meet Chalian. Help Kells by defending from the intruders and gain the trust from Chalian. Quest Difficulty: SS Quest Condition: Enter the 4th floor of the Underground. Find the Black Magician Kells. The descendent of Immortal. A warlock user who is under the quest ¡°Catacomb Exploration I¡±. Time Limit: None Reward: Rise of affinity with Richie King Chalian by 30. Hidden Class, ¡®Richie Mage¡¯ ex quest. Myth Class weapon box. Fame of 15 million. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C An exclusive ¡®Hidden class quest¡¯. An exclusive hidden class quest was a very rare phenomenon to happen. And it was something that would be possible to happen, only if the user has a hidden class or a lower class. It was a well-known fact that the rewards were amazing, but the quest would be hard to play. ¡®Hu, a myth class weapon box with a hidden class quest¡­!¡¯ The myth class weapon box was of amazing value, but the more amazing one was the ¡®Richie Mage¡¯ ex-quest. If the quest hadn¡¯t been an exclusive Hidden Quest, there was no way it could turn into a tier. There was no way how one could guarantee that the Richie Mage quest would be of a higher tier than the current quest that Hoonie was doing. However, it was a hidden class-specific quest, which could be activated only by Hoonie. Then it was definite, it was a former quest with a higher tier. Hoonie¡¯s head began to hurt for all of it. ¡®Can I win if I manage to help Kells?¡¯ Hoonie¡¯s eyes moved between Kells and Ian. Though Kells had a very fragile appearance, and Hoonie knew that there was no hope. And as long as Kaka was there, there was no way one could win against Ian with the Black Magician class. Even if he hurts the party, there was no guarantee that Hoonie would win. Even if he managed to get the quest done, that would turn into another problem. Firstly, the act betraying itself was unappealing in the life of Kailan, and to be able to survive in the Kailan after backstabbing the top rankers was hopeless. Ian, Remir and Yu Shin. He was especially scared of Ian. From the hunting that he had done with Ian, there was no way that he could even imagine what would happen to him. He didn¡¯t know, but he knew it would be terrible. Hoonie¡¯s thoughts were arranged, which was why he sighed. ¡°Huuu.¡± However, his desire to follow the quest didn¡¯t die. ¡®Maybe if I explain in detail to Ian hyung¡­ and ask him to die once?¡¯ Hoonie realized that his thoughts didn¡¯t make any sense, which was why he shook his head. It was because of the death penalty¡ªthat the death would cause could damage the quest, as well as the rank. But Hoonie was in constant conflict. Kuoong-! From Kells¡¯ hands, a gigantic magic circle was created from which dark energy came out. And¡­ ¡°For the honor of the Richie King Chalian¡­!¡± Kells¡¯ voice rang out and numerous shadows were on top of the magic circle. Dozens of warriors wearing black robes appeared. The sight of Ian¡¯s party saw an unexpected message. Tring -! [The first Hidden episode opens.] [The ¡®Richie King Chalian¡¯ ambition has been revealed.] [The hero of the continent, ¡®Muran¡¯ chosen is activated.] And those messages weren¡¯t general messages, they were the world messages. CH 381 All the users who were playing Kailan suddenly stopped at once. They were all looking at the system messages that had come up. Tring-! [The first hidden episode opens.] [The ¡®Richie King Chalian¡¯ ambition has been revealed.] [The hero of the continent, ¡®Muran¡¯ is activated.] [The Undead army of the Richie King Chalian will begin to erupt on all continents.] [Hidden quests will be created for all warlock classes. (Level Limit: 300)] [The episode intro video will start now.] Users who were hunting in the hunting grounds were flustered by the system messages that suddenly popped up. Time seemed to have stopped. The users weren¡¯t able to move, nor were their voices could be heard. The good news was that it wasn¡¯t just the users who stopped moving, all the NPCs and the monsters stopped at the same time. Bit by bit, the user¡¯s sight began to darken. [Scenario viewing mode.] [Connected to the chatting server 2798.] [Scenario viewing mode will go on until the end of the video. All users will not be able to access the game until the end of the event even when the users try to forcibly terminate their connection.] After Kailan opened, a new type of event, which had never happened before had just started. At first, all the users were shocked, but it didn¡¯t take long for them to adjust to it. It was a familiar interface for users in Kailan¡¯s official community. ¨C Oh oh¡­! Is there an alien in the Kailan¡¯s development team? How do they manage to get a new system every time? ¨C Wow! This type of freshness¡­ It really looks like they are developed by alien programmers. ¨C Those aliens¡­ they won¡¯t be able to keep this up and end up dying of overwork. ¨C What is this about this story? It looks a bit like a prison. ¨C Are you guys not seeing what I¡¯m seeing? The chat window became noisy as the users get adjusted to the changes. The video zoomed into two people who were facing each other. A confrontation between a warrior with grey hair and a long glossy sword, and a warlock holding a black sword. The scene was dimly lit like it was taken straight out of a movie. ¡°You¡ªBlack Magician¡ªwho I haven¡¯t seen or heard about anywhere, have the guts to stand in front of my majesty!¡± The grey-haired warrior lifted his long sword and let out a powerful energy. Kaizer¡¯s cloak fluttered as he began to wield his sword. Ian became thrilled upon seeing it. ¡®Majesty¡­? Listening to Kaizer call me Majesty¡­!¡¯ Ian¡¯s heart fluttered upon hearing what Kaizer called him. Kaizer, who was calling Ian ¡®Master¡¯ before, was now referring to him as his majesty. What Kaizer did only happened during a quest, but Ian was still very pleased with it. ¡°Hahahaha, Kaizer. No matter how strong you are, you won¡¯t be able to get out of here alive¡­¡± The voice of the Black Magician echoed in the room. Ian and his party members were now slowly approaching the Black Magician. * * * In LB¡¯s planning team and monitoring team. The development team was very busy. Since the first system was launched, it was necessary to make a backup so that nothing goes wrong in real time. At that very moment, the most nervous and anxious team was the planning department. It was because the users who had discovered the hidden episode were rankers and top class rankers. Among them, was the famous headache initiator. Bang-! Kim Yue-Hwan, who forcefully opened the door, entered the monitoring room. He spoke to Na Ji-chan, who was watching something very intently, right away. ¡°Hey, Ji-chan-ah. Why did this happen? Wasn¡¯t Remir the only one who found the episode this morning?¡± Na Ji-chan sighed upon listening to Kim Yue-Hwan¡¯s unstoppable rant. ¡°Phew, well. From what I had seen, Ian and Yu Shin came in; even Hoonie rushed in there.¡± ¡°Haa¡­ Don¡¯t tell me¡­ they aren¡¯t thinking about killing Kells right?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure. It wouldn¡¯t have been a problem if Ian wasn¡¯t there¡­ but the warlock seems like he will go right at Ian¡­¡± ¡°Euh¡­¡± The hidden episode ¡®Richie King Chalian¡¯s Ambition¡¯. The beginning of the episode was from the ¡®Battle of the Underground¡¯, and it didn¡¯t really matter who wins in this scenario. This battle shouldn¡¯t take too long. The warlock¡ªKells¡ªwasn¡¯t supposed to die in the battle. Kells should manage to stay alive and run off to Chalian and report to him, that was when the episode would begin. Kim¡¯s face was turning dark. ¡°God no, find an alternative quickly. I¡¯m about to go crazy any second now.¡± Kim was looking at the huge monitor on the wall and moved like a blank thoughtless puppy. Kim saw on the screen that the battle was about to start, and Ian¡¯s party was looking very strong even from Kim¡¯s eyes. If Kells get killed there, they might have to revise the story that they planned. Na Ji-chan stood up from his seat and called out to him. ¡°Team leader.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°There is a way.¡± ¡°¡­?!¡± Kim made his way to Na Ji-chan¡¯s chair and sat in front of him. Na Ji-chan was someone whom he knew well, though he sounded a bit kinky at times, he wasn¡¯t the kind to talk useless stuff in troubling situations. ¡°What is that! It¡¯s less than a minute until the battle starts! Talk quickly! Fast!¡± Na Ji-chan took out a smartphone from his pocket. He then smiled and said, ¡°I knew something like this would happen, which was why I prepared something in advance.¡± ¡°Um¡­?¡± Na Ji-chan¡¯s finger was pointing at something in the screen. He was pointing at Hoonie who was just standing there with a straight face. ¡°That guy, let¡¯s try to use him.¡± * * * ¡®What? What is happening all of a sudden?¡¯ Hoonie who had cast magic according to Ian¡¯s orders was shocked upon seeing the system messages that popped up. [As the scenario progresses, the quest ¡®Chalian¡¯s Power Succession¡¯ has been activated.] [AI will be activated for the quest progress.] Hoonie hadn¡¯t accepted the quest. ¡®Maybe the quest window turned itself on¡­!¡¯ Once the message came up, he was forcibly under Chalian¡¯s Power Succession quest. He also lost control of his character. ¡®What the Hell!! Why is this happening to me!¡¯ Hoonie began to think hard about to do. His heart started to feel uneasy. Hoonie thought that Ian wouldn¡¯t believe that he was under the AI¡¯s control. ¡®The AI wouldn¡¯t attack Ian, right? No, please. Please attack Kells or whatever his name is!¡¯ While he was being flooded with different thoughts. He couldn¡¯t stop the AI from controlling his character. If the AI was successful and the quest had gotten cleared, that would be the best outcome. However, that scenario was unlikely to happen since Hoonie was being controlled to betray his comrades. Hoonie was begging in his mind ¡®Please¡­! If the quest is going to continue¡­ At least do it without getting killed¡­¡¯ A myth ranked weapon box, something about the Richie Mage, and a top tier hidden class; Hoonie suddenly recalled all of those things. If Hoonie had to confront them face to face, there wasn¡¯t much difference in the results, but Hoonie wasn¡¯t in a position where he could even say what he wanted. What the planning team was trying to do was to decrease the power of Ian¡¯s party by making a hidden quest be invoked to Hoonie, and it was a good move on their part. What was happening was making Hoonie¡ªwho was losing hope¡ªsuffer. It was the opposite for the planning department though since they were now filled with hope. However, Hoonie and LB¡¯s planning department were going to be faced with something they weren¡¯t expecting. * * * Kwang- Kwakwang-! ¡°Yu Shin! Create some space up ahead! Bbookbbook will soon initiate heal!¡± ¡°Kay!¡± The current area they were at was vast, but the floors became more complex and narrow as they descend. The battle between the warriors and Ian¡¯s party was about to begin in the alley. ¡°Noona! Move back and support us with some secondary magic!¡± ¡°An attack magic?¡± ¡°The deal isn¡¯t enough here. With the map¡¯s structure, our efficiency is considerably low in the wide areas!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± ¡°Hoonie, block the left side with Undead!¡± Ian was at the forefront of the battlefield as soon as the battle began. He was giving out orders without break and took command as usual. However, he began to feel an odd feeling as he watched Hoonie. ¡°Ohho¡­ this is¡­?¡± Unlike the orders that Ian had given, Hoonie was moving to a direction that he couldn¡¯t understand. Ian hadn¡¯t meet Hoonie for a day or two, which was why he decided to ignore the slight difference in his actions. Ian decided to not pay attention too much on Hoonie¡¯s movements anymore. However, there was a small message that was blinking at the corner of Ian¡¯s view. [Quests that can be shared are present.] It was a quest window that was shared with Hoonie. Since Kaizer hadn¡¯t destroyed him, the relation between Ian and Hoonie was still going on! Since Ian hadn¡¯t shared any quests with Hoonie for months, it was very something that Hoonie couldn¡¯t think of. There was no way that Na Ji-chan would¡¯ve known something that even Hoonie didn¡¯t even think of. Even though he was a stalking fan of Ian. ¡®This jerk Hoonie, was he trying to backstab¡­?¡¯ Ian who had read Hoonie¡¯s quest thought that the contents of it were good enough to even make him think about it. Which was the reason why he was watching Hoonie¡¯s movements since the beginning since something felt wrong. ¡®Is he losing control because of the conflict?¡¯ However, as time went on, something was feeling off. Hoonie would always respond whenever Ian give him an order, but he wasn¡¯t responding now. He just kept moving on his own. He wasn¡¯t able to perform an order correctly. That was very uncharacteristic of him. Ian called Ly who was facing a skeleton warrior. ¡°Ly, come here.¡± [You called, master?] ¡°Go over to Hoonie and cover him.¡± [I will do that, master.] ¡°And¡­¡± Now that the battle was at its peak, Kaka¡¯s wide range debuffs would get triggered, and the darkness would spread onto the battlefield. Ly was one of Ian¡¯s familiar that exerted more power in the dark. Moreover, of all the familiars that Ian had, Ly had the highest level of agility, which was why it was the most suitable to check for any suspicious acts. After a second, Ian added another instruction, but this time he said it in a low and secretive voice. ¡°With my signal, kill Hoonie right away.¡± CH 382 Na Ji-Chan¡ªwho was left alone in the monitoring room¡ªwas staring at the screen while sweating profusely. ¡®No way, did he notice it already?¡¯ Na Ji-chan who noticed Ian¡¯s cautiousness was creeped out. In a glance, it was like a party play where the members were helping the party, but Na Ji-chan felt something was off. ¡°Even if it is Ian, this is¡­!¡± The AI skills of Kailan were beyond imagination. The play style and the pattern of the users were gathered and were being incorporated into their AI. This was the reason why no one could notice if it was actually the user who was using the character or the user¡¯s AI. One could notice the difference if they look hard enough. However, the current situation that Ian and his party was in was too messy. So, even if it was Ian, there was no way one could find out about Hoonie in such a messy situation. ¡°That¡¯s so crazy.¡± Without even realizing it, Na Ji-chan spoke out his thoughts. He was having goosebumps. Ian¡¯s game sense was scary. There was no way for such a thing to happen since the quest wasn¡¯t shared with Ian. However, it was amazing that he still managed to notice it. Na Ji-chan pulled out his tablet. He opened a proposal and began to turn the pages. ¡°This is just a maybe but I might have to use plan B¡­¡± Looking at the screen once again, Na Ji-chan was now fully convinced that Ian knew about it. Now was the time to carry out the plan that was already set up. He hurriedly moved out of the monitoring room. He needed to move to the planning room right away. ¡°I feel so sorry for you Hoonie¡­ for what had happened, I¡¯ll make sure to get you a present.¡± Na Ji-chan quickly paced towards the planning room. He was smiling as he approached his destination. He was filled with joy since Ian would be surpassing his expectations once again. * * * Almost all skills in Kailan have non-targeting methods. The non-targeting method was where users could attack their enemies just by facing them rather than selecting them individually. Then what if there were allied users within the caster¡¯s range? Although there were areas such as the PK zones, friendly forces within the caster¡¯s range wouldn¡¯t take any damage in Non-PK zones. In other words, it was easy to say that ¡®mistake by killing a team member¡¯ was impossible. Assuming users use this method on a large scale war, all the users of the same camp were considered as allies, so they wouldn¡¯t damage each other even if they were all using the non-targeting method. So what needed to be done to perform a ¡®team kill¡¯? Simple! One just had to switch to PVP mode right away. When PVP mode was activated, one could attack any user regardless of their affiliation with each other. However, activating PVP mode wouldn¡¯t result in any system messages or major changes. Users could only see a small red skull blinking next to a user¡¯s name floating on their heads. Ian continued fighting, but he made sure to not take his eyes off of Hoonie. If a red skull started to flash next to Hoonie¡¯s name, then that moment would be the death of him. On the other hand, the battle was turning more and more intense. ¡°Yu Shin! You don¡¯t have that much shield left! Move back a little!¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright, I still have room to take some risks!¡± Kwang- Kwakwang-! Their current location had a complicated structure overall. There were three corridors at the end of the underground dungeon. Hoonie, Ian and Yu Shin decided to split up, each going into different corridors. Remir stayed at the back to support the three of them and see the passages the same time. Remir¡¯s main weapon¡ªthe wide-area magic¡ªcouldn¡¯t be used in such a situation. Remir asked Ian as she was feeling frustrated, ¡°Ian-ah, wouldn¡¯t it be better to just fall back and fight in the open?¡± Ian shook his head and responded to her, ¡°No, there are too many enemies.¡± It was as if Ian was implying that¡­ ¡®If you plan on moving back to a wide map, then I won¡¯t be able to keep an eye on Hoonie.¡¯ Ian kept those thoughts to himself and looked at Hoonie and Ly with keen eyes. He had to be careful since nothing was obvious yet. Remir was a little upset, but she put that aside and decided to concentrate on supporting him. Suddenly¡­ A huge black magic spell came from the front. ¡®La Poradium!¡¯ Kuoong-! The thick steel bars in the dungeon¡¯s underground cells began to vibrate. Purple sparks began to form at the bottom of the ground. Ian¡¯s eyes went big. ¡®What? Summoning Magic¡­?! A technique that I haven¡¯t seen a lot before..!¡¯ Although Ian¡¯s a summoner, he had always been disappointed with how other users use their skills. No matter how good a users¡¯ control was, they wouldn¡¯t be able to defeat anyone in PVP unless they know their opponent¡¯s skill pool. Also, users¡¯ in the same party wouldn¡¯t be able to properly use their skills against a boss monster if they don¡¯t know each other¡¯s skills. However, now that Kells was trying to use a skill that Ian wasn¡¯t well aware of. Ian started to get confused a bit. ¡®Eu¡­! Should I wait a little longer?¡¯ A cloud of white smoke started to rise from the magic circle and began to spread. Though it was a dark attribute skill for sure, they still didn¡¯t know what it could do. There was one thing that Ian could think of though. ¡®I¡¯ll have to hold on to catch Hoonie if he reacts suddenly¡­!¡¯ In case Hoonie betrayed them, the Dreaming Devil wouldn¡¯t give Hoonie¡¯s Undead the buff. Doing that would make all of Hoonie¡¯s undead be devoured by the Dreaming Devil once the PVP indicator showed up next to Hoonie¡¯s name. Suddenly¡­ ¡°¡­!¡± A red skull appeared next to Hoonie¡¯s name. ¡®It has come up!¡¯ This was what Ian had been waiting for. Ian would get a nasty penalty if he killed Hoonie, but his fame was overflowing so he wasn¡¯t really scared about the consequences. Ian gave out the orders to his familiars. ¡°Ly! Kaka!¡± ¡°Understood, Master.¡± Ly¡ªwho only had one thing in mind and that was to follow Ian¡¯s commands¡ªstabbed Hoonie at the back with its claws without hesitation just before Hoonie could trigger an attack spell. Kwak-! Hoonie had just allowed himself to get attacked in an unprotected state! Kaka quickly flew to the sky and closed her eyes while muttering in a low voice. ¡°Darkness fall upon us.¡± [Slave ¡®Kaka¡¯ unique ability Dreaming Devil has been activated.] [During ¡®Shadow Control¡¯, all the party members attacks will increase by 5%, and all the dark attribute damage will be decreased by 50%. All enemies within the radius will be visible.] Hoonie¡¯s AI jumped back. An AI wouldn¡¯t get surprised even though it experienced an unexpected situation. Moreover, the skill that Hoonie was trying to cast got invalidated by Ly, and it burst out into nothing. The damage caused by Ly was fatal. Ian didn¡¯t plan on missing out on anything. ¡°Space Distortion!¡± Ly was on Hoonie¡¯s¡ªor Hoonie¡¯s AI¡ªback. Hoonie was completely defenseless when Ian and Ly switched places. Ian thrust Hoonie with the Judgment of the Spirit King without any hesitation. Kwanng-! Ian hit Hoonie¡¯s weak spot with a critical strike. [The user ¡®KanjiHoonie¡¯ has suffered tremendous damage from a critical strike.] [¡®KanjiHoonie¡¯s¡¯ vitality is reduced by 498079.] Kwakwakwang-! Two consecutive attacks from Ian made Hoonie¡¯s body unable to move. [¡®KanjiHoonie¡¯s¡¯ vitality reduced by 343888.] [¡®KanjiHoonie¡¯s¡¯ vitality reduced by 560162.] Hoonie who had taken three hits at his weak point couldn¡¯t stay standing any longer. Hoonie¡¯s body sank to the ground as he couldn¡¯t take any more damage. The warlock class¡ªthe weakest of all the classes¡ªhad no vitality nor the defense to survive damage such as that. Thud-! Remir and Yu Shin who wasn¡¯t able to understand what was happening recovered from their surprise and asked, ¡°Ian-ah, what did you do?¡± ¡°Why did you attack Hoonie!¡± However, Ian didn¡¯t have the time to explain everything to them. ¡°I¡¯ll explain later! Let¡¯s go for now!¡± Even if he suppressed Hoonie¡¯s rebellion, there was still work that had to be done. Dark energy began to spread from Ian¡¯s hands. Woong-! Ian was planning to use the ¡®Soul Recall¡¯ skill. It was a skill that could be activated within 10 seconds of one¡¯s death. Hweeing-! The darkness from Ian¡¯s hand flowed to Hoonie¡¯s fallen body. Hoonies¡¯ body began to change at that very moment. [The fusion skill ¡®Soul Recall¡¯ is being used on the user ¡®KanjiHoonie¡¯.] [¡®KanjiHoonie¡¯s¡¯ soul is being summoned. (The soul that will be summoned have 125% of the target users combat abilities.)] [KanjiHoonie¡¯s soul is in the state of ¡®Bloodlust¡¯. (Movements are increased by 60%)] [You can control all the skills and unique abilities of the user ¡®KanjiHoonie¡¯ moving forward.] [You will be able to control ¡®KanjiHoonie¡¯ and all of his summons moving forward. (You wont be able to control the retainer.)] The change in the battlefield took place in just an instant. Although Ian had done all of this in just 10 seconds, his concentration didn¡¯t waver for a second. He now had control over Hoonie. There was a lump of huge dark meat in front of his eyes, and he had the perfect plate to put it in. Hoonie¡¯s soul began to summon the undead. [The land of darkness is the home for the Undead.] [The Undead in the shadow of the earth will have their vitality recovered 300% faster.] [The effect of the ¡®Dreaming Devil¡¯ won¡¯t be applied as 5% but as 35% to the Undead] [All the mana consumption of the Undead is reduced by half.] Ian looked at Kells. The time limit for Hoonie¡¯s soul was 5 minutes. ¡®I¡¯ll break your neck within that time.¡¯ The flow of the battlefield changed once again. CH 383 ¨C Oh, sh*t! What was that? Hoonie died all of a sudden! ¨C Why? Guys! Ian just PKed Hoonie a moment back. What was that? Was the relation between Hoonie and Ian not so good? Even among the normal users, a certain level of observation had started for Hoonie. Because of the unique concept, even for the warlock, many users were starting to turn as fans. So if one was a fan of Ian, and Hoonie was most of the time with Ian, there was no way that they wouldn¡¯t have known it. ¨C OMG, what¡¯s going on? Was Hoonie going to go against Ian? ¨C Wasn¡¯t that crazy! Our Hoonie! The chat window was confused at the death of Hoonie. But on the other side, there were users who had sharp observation skills. ¨C Wait, guys. I just saw something strange. ¨C What! What is it now?! ( Box novel.c om ) ¨C Ian surely killed Hoonie just a moment back. ¨C And so? ¨C But, Ian wasn¡¯t in the PVP mode. ¨C Hu¡­?! Really? How is that? What would have happened? In the PVP mode, once it was used, the system configuration will need 30 minutes to revert back to the non-mode or until they have transferred to another map. Malicious PKs, or mannerless, or the young users who lacked the concept couldn¡¯t manage to exploit the system. After turning on the PVP mode, attacking an ally and quickly returning to prevent any attack on oneself was a trolling act, and such a system was created to prevent the (trolling) acts. If Ian had indeed PKed Hoonie, there should have been a red skull next to Ian¡¯s name. It was impossible to PK without the PVP mode. However, at the moment Ian wasn¡¯t in the PVP mode. ¨C How could such a thing happen? What? Was it a bug play? ¨C No, No. Just think a little more, guys. There is a way how Ian can attack Hoonie without the PVP mode. ¨C Well¡­ such a way exists? What is it? ¨C Ah! There is one way!! If Hoonie has his PVP mode on¡­! ¨C Ohoh, really? Why didn¡¯t I think of such a thing? The chat room was flooding after realizing something great. A user who seemed to be concerned about something asked the question in there. ¨C Well, that is right. Then that, what is that supposed to mean? ¨C Uhm? That. Why did Hoonie suddenly switch on the PVP mode? Was Hoonie the one trying to backstab Ian? ¨C Well. I can¡¯t find another answer about that¡­? ¨C Well, if that is the case, then how did Ian manage to react much before Hoonie? ¨C True. How the hell did that happened? And with the comment of someone else, a misunderstanding had deepened. ¨C This is all the strategy of Ian. ¨C Hmm? Ian¡¯s strategy? ¨C Didn¡¯t Hoonie just die in the hands of Ian for a purpose? ¨C Huh? Why would they? ¨C Why do you think, to control Hoonie with the fusion skill and wipe them all away? Wasn¡¯t that one the soul recall skill? ¨C Ah! Yeah. I saw it in the community, the user who uses the soul recall skill and the soul that is summoned receives a lot of combat buffs. Then, for that¡­?! A misunderstanding caused the whole situation to be understood in the wrong way, and the misunderstanding became very persuasive, and the interest in the chat room had increased. ¨C Well, surely Ian God¡­! ¨C ( Box novel.c om ) Keu, he sure is of a different class. How did he decide to sacrifice Hoonie? Although it was said in two or more places, because of the popularity of Ian, the rebellion against Ian was buried right away. The battle was coming to a new phase, and because everyone appreciated the control that Ian had. And Ian¡¯s popularity soared higher than ever. * * * And on the other side, Hoonie was watching the process of his character¡¯s death with a skeptical mind. ¡®Ah, that merciless hyung¡­ killed me off without any hesitation. Sob sob.¡¯ Hoonie who was desperately cheering for AI was trying to cope with Ian who was making him depressed. But at the very moment, he began to wonder about something. ¡®But why didn¡¯t I log out? My character is already dead¡­?¡¯ And a system message had appeared to him. Tring-! [The character has died.] [No penalty will be applied as the character has died in the control of the AI.] [Log-in is possible after 60 minutes.] [The reward after the 60 minutes, when the user reconnects all the experience points and goods that can be acquired in the 60 minutes will be doubled.] [Reward for the quest failure, one of the quest success rewards will be paid randomly.] [Switch to the scenario viewing mode.] [The scenario viewing mode will be watched until the end of the video, and won¡¯t be able to access the game until the end of the event, even when forcibly tried to terminate the connection.] Hoonie¡¯s eyes were shining as he saw the system messages. ¡®This¡­!¡¯ He was cheerful even without realizing it. He felt like he was seeing a halo behind the system messages. ¡®Well, the Kailan game is sure great! Haha.¡¯ Hoonie who had always been blaming the Kailan game for forcibly taking quests was feeling great because of the unexpected reward. The exp and commodity were impressive enough, but giving one quest completion reward randomly!! ¡®I¡¯ll play the game with more dedication in the future. Kailan God! Kehehe.¡¯ And he quickly began to recall what the game rewards were for the quest. ¡®There were four rewards? If it wasn¡¯t the fame and affinity then it would be great¡­¡¯ Because of the system intervention, the quest of ¡®Chalian¡¯s power succession¡¯ was forced to fail. And there were four rewards for the quest and list, were as follows: The affinity with Richie King Chalian will rise to 30. Hidden class, ¡®Richie Mage¡¯ ex-quest. Myth class weapon box. Fame of 150 million. ¡®If I get the weapon box, it is an awesome gain¡­!¡¯ At that point, the interception of the system was gladly welcomed. If it hadn¡¯t been for the system, he would have been able to get through the quest in the first place. In a moment, he moved from hell to heaven and was watching the video with a smile. Now was the time to take look at how Ian was going to control his character. * * * ¡°No¡­! How is that a cursed ability¡­?!¡± Kaka, the Karga Phantom that was the slave of Ian had a unique ability¡ªDreaming Devil. As soon as the Dreaming Devil skill was activated, Kells¡¯ pupils were nervously watching the darkness engulf the whole battlefield. ¡°This doesn¡¯t make any sense¡­?!¡± Kells was actually very well aware of the skills of the Dreaming Devil. To be precise, he knew that the Dreaming Devil would cover the land with darkness. For warlocks, it was the best wide-buff skills and the worst debuff skill. The dark lands were the power of Richie King Chalian, and Kells knew that. Thanks to that when dealing with the empire¡¯s knight with Chalian, he had already experienced the darkness. But at that time, it was buff and not a debuff. ¡°Damn it! Back off! Don¡¯t fight until the darkness has settled down!¡± Kells was giving out orders, but he was already late. A Hargasus and two skeleton warriors flew into the air. Kiaaang-! Bizarre and strange voices were resonating from the underground. Kells moved his gaze and was turning much more nervous at the situation. There was a man on top of one of the two hargasus. ¡®No matter how I see, he isn¡¯t a warlock¡­?¡¯ Unless one was a warlock, they couldn¡¯t be able to ride the Hargasus. That was what Kells had known. But from the man who was on top of the hargasus, he didn¡¯t feel any black magic energy. ¡°Jerk! To stand in front of Kells! You won¡¯t stay still!¡± But the man in the statement, without answering, ran towards Kells on the Hargasus. Kells skilfully waved his skull wand. ¡°Die you bastard¡­!¡± Kwang- Kwang-! Kells that warlock with the level over 400 was instantly casting the skill without wasting time. The two Hargasus with Ian and Hoonie began to flamboyantly attack. Tatt-taat-! Kwang-! Among the dozens of dark rays that were coming at them, the Hargasus was moving over most of them and was avoiding the damage. The two Hargasus were able to avoid most of the damage and was absorbing the damages when the skill was triggered in the necessary situations. And they were moving rather close. ¨C Huhu, lol¡­ Ian surely scared the sh*t out of him, right? ¨C Can such a thing be done with two of them? Lol, if it is the soul recall, then does the summoned soul move to an AI? It doesn¡¯t make sense if it doesn¡¯t. ¨C Mind-boggling, have you ever seen a user who moved with elaborate moves? I don¡¯t know if even a boss monster can¡­ ¨C Don¡¯t need much thought, now both the character of Ian and Hoonie are moving in an identical manner. It¡¯s obvious that Ian is the one controlling. ¨C Ah, right. Ha¡­ this is crazy. Ian must be having multiple brains. Don¡¯t know if they are good or not, but he sure has a lot of brains. ¨C Accept, it is impossible to control so many things at the same time with the same brain. ¨C Lol, I really want to dissect the head of Ian. As someone had just mentioned, Ian and Hoonie¡¯s Hargasus were almost identical in the movement. Anyone who saw it can see that the person was being controlled. What was more surprising here was that the movements changed depending on the situation. For the sake of control efficiency, the control of the two Hargasus was bound, but when needed, there was a change in the movement. In addition, Hoonie¡¯s soul, which was on a Hargasus was casting black magic that was of high level. It was a high-level magic, and one minute of casting had already been done, but it wasn¡¯t activated yet. Ian had tremendous confidence in it. With a single attack the casting would get released, but to cast it without being activated while jumping into the middle of the battle¡ªmeant one needed to have great confidence. ¨C Wow, that¡¯s awesome! I was getting annoyed because my game scenario was changed¡­ the live broadcast is welcomed anytime. ¨C Keu, look at how Ian is flying. And trying to sweep of everyone for Hoonie. ¨C But, Ian god is busy now. ¨C What did you say? ¨C Hoonie isn¡¯t fighting at all. Hoonie is just avoiding the attacks. ¨C Hehe, get your vision checked once. ¨C Hoonie is casting magic now. I don¡¯t know what it is, but it has already been over 30 seconds. ¨C 30 seconds huh? 1 minute? No, it is around two minutes. The users were excited and began to analyze the situation in various manners. In the meantime, the insightful ranking users of the Kailan¡¯s sprang up. Especially summoning the interest of the magical beast ¡®Grrr¡¯ which was revealed in the video for the very first time. ¨C Wow¡­ When did Ian start taming a Balrog¡­ Does he play 48 hours straight? ¨C But that Balrog there is different from the one that I saw? I don¡¯t know how to put it, but it is different, that I¡¯m sure. ¨C You must be a ranker since you have come across a Balrog? ¨C No, not in person. I saw it in a lot of videos. And that¡¯s definitely different. And Grrr was playing a huge role in increasing the comments of the chat. ¡°Grrr! Kwahh!¡± Which was running around the battlefield and destroying the undead which was under the debuff. In particular, the annihilation rays of the unique ability of Grrr was attracting a lot of attention from the viewers. The effect of it was brilliant, but the way it was being utilized was much more effective. Due to the nature of the map and the narrow structure it had, the rays from Grrr were bouncing off quickly, which made the ability look way more appealing. The red smoke that came out from the mouth of Balrog was creating a masterpiece. Keuah-! The skeletons of level 200 were collapsing immediately. Bang-babang-! Warlocks of level 400 suffered a little damage from it. Shaaa-! The heat produced by the blazing fire was swallowing the whole battlefield. After a while. From the right hand of Hoonie¡ªwho had been casting for a lot of time, a purple light began to dazzle and swirl. CH 384 Kwang- Kabang-! With the sound of weapons touching another, explosive sounds began to ring everywhere. Despite the loud noises from them, another persons¡¯ voice could be clearly heard. ¡°Soul Decay¡­!¡± Shhhh-!! It wasn¡¯t a loud voice. It was almost like someone had whispered right into the ear. The light in the ground began to turn purple. All the white spirits began to turn into purple. The ¡®Soul Decay¡¯ of Hoonie which had brought about tremendous fortune for the Lotus guild against the Fullios was being used again. The amount of power that it was giving out was much stronger than the time of that guild war. The level of the skill itself had risen due to the map being an area of darkness and the power had gone up to 35% due to it. Kwang- bang- Kwang-! Swirlll-! Purple flames were rising from all directions, and numerous undead began to fall into helplessness. The Soul Decay that was cast in front, waiting for Hoonie¡¯s Undead to be followed. ¡°For the omnipotent Immortal¡­!¡± ¡°The energy of death is calling to us!¡± ¡°Kwahh-!¡± Kells who had been witnessing the scene was more shocked than ever. ¡°Immortal! I¡¯m the descendant of Immortal!¡± Keels was amazed but it wasn¡¯t the end. Kwakwang-! As if an earthquake had taken place, the ground began to shake. The reason for it was the two dragons, Karceus and Bbookbbook. When the two of them had taken their dragon forms, a narrow wall had burst, causing the vibration. And as the small walls were torn down¡ªcausing the complex structure to be turned into a vacant area due to the bloody fight that was going on. The structure of the map had changed in an instant. ¡°All of them will be frozen¡­!¡± To show the dignity that the Abyss clan had, Bbookbbook had spoken. At the same time, Karceus opened his mouth and both of the dragons began to use ¡®breath¡¯ instantly. Kwaahh-! Kyahhh-! If it was in the normal situation, the breath should¡¯ve been clogged by the walls, but as the walls were now cracked, it pushed through them. Kells and the other summoned warlocks were trying to get far from the Breath, but Ian wasn¡¯t going to stay still after noticing it. With Bbookbbook, Pin, and Grrr he managed to stop the exits. And the two dragon ¡®breaths¡¯ had completely swallowed all the Undead. ¡°Eukkk¡­!¡± ¡°God¡¯s dragon! Dragon Breath!¡± ¡°Shield¡­ quickly¡­!¡± Warlocks had tried to cast a few defense spells, but that was useless. With the best spell of the warlock and the Breath of the Dragons, there was no way that they could hold onto their lives. Among the summoned Undead; Death Knight and the Ghost Golems, even those with the strongest vitality wasn¡¯t an exception. [Familiar ¡®Karceus¡¯ has done catastrophic damage to the undead ¡®Death Knight¡¯!] [Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ has tremendous damage to the undead ¡®Skeleton Mage¡¯!] [The vitality of the ¡®Death Knight¡¯ has been reduced by 469809.] [The vitality of the ¡®Ghost Golem¡¯ has been reduced by 297542.] [The vitality of the ¡®Death Knight¡¯ has been reduced by 501709.] [The vitality of the ¡®Skeleton Mage¡¯ has been reduced by 792801.] Kells¡¯ servants burst out like balloons that were poked with needles. Even 20% of Kells¡¯ vitality was drained, and no normal NPC had survived, so it made sense that the regular undead stood no chance against them. And at last. Remir¡¯s wide-range skill which was going to be the last mark for the battle had exploded. Hwrrk-! The remaining survivors of the army of Kells¡¯ were annihilated. ¡°Keu¡­!¡± It took only three minutes for the undead in a higher 300 level and below 400 level warlocks to be wiped out from the map. And Kells who was all alone in the end wasn¡¯t able to hold himself any longer. Although there wasn¡¯t much vitality left, there was no way he could go against Ian and Yu Shin in the combat. Although the level of the warlock Kells was 440, the class warlock class vulnerable to close combat, and as he had only cast magic to protect himself, it would take time to cast for an attack spell, but that wouldn¡¯t happen. ¡°Keuuk¡­! You¡¯ll get the deserved¡­!¡± With a chirping voice, he spoke something and disappeared with smoke. The worried face of Kells, seeing that Yu Shin and Ian has thumped each other. He hadn¡¯t thought that battle would be so tough to win, but he hadn¡¯t imagined that it would end in such a short time. It was the same with Remir, who was admiring it. ¡®To think and use the polymorph like this¡­¡¯ From the beginning till the end, a perfect design with no flaws. Starting with the timing of polymorphing of Bbookbbook and Karceus, everything was a well-written play. And the chat window wasn¡¯t slowing down either. ¨C Kya¡­! They just got the 440 something warlock right? ¨C It¡¯s so crazy. No matter how strong those rankers are, how can the battle be ended so quickly? ¨C UwU really crazy! I honestly thought that the Kells was at the level of 440 and thought that Ian and his party would be out¡­ ¨C Oh. I thought that Ian¡¯s party wasn¡¯t well made. But now, the important thing is that Ian got the 440 level named monster. ¨C Well? Then what is so important? ¨C The process of battle is important. That was an awesome play. I¡¯m the only one who sees it. ¨C It was moving too fast and I didn¡¯t know who to follow. Can someone explain while putting it into a comment? ¨C Yeah. Someone explain it! I didn¡¯t understand much from the game. The scenario viewing mode was open to all the users of the Korean servers who were playing the Kailan. Which was why even the novice players who weren¡¯t even interested in the rankers began to watch the video. The top rankers, and specifically the beginners admired the battle and splendor of Ian, and the high-level users of the Kailan who had good game sense complimented Ian for the plan he had laid out. ¨C Once the Hargasus descends, the casting time was over 3 minutes and to cast the soul decay through Hoonie, is not a human. ¨C That too. But I honestly didn¡¯t see the polymorph crushing the corridors as the map was too inefficient for using it in battle. All the walls were covering the space to battle, so it was a useless structure for wide-area skills. ¨C Right. I was curious as to why Hoonie was made to cast the Soul Decay and then waited for the Breath of the Dragons. That was why he was trying to take the numerous undead that was all devastated by the fire of the dragon. That Soul Recall, this is really dope. ¨C Keu, Praise Ian God! Normally, the Undead had both weak strength and defense. However, when the Undead were all together, it was more difficult¡ªthe reason was the regenerative power they had. If a master level warlock had used the ¡®Soul Absorb¡¯ skill continuously to back them up, then the vitality of him would fall down. Absorbing the souls was one of the representative skill for the warlock class, in which the enemy could breathe in life for the Undead, even with a little vitality. Because of it, Ian had managed to neutralize the situation while taking down the powerful Undead. No matter how good the regenerative power was, there was no way to take them down in a single strike. After all, the battle was completed and Ian who had recalled the soul of Hoonie had now scattered into the air as the duration was done. The spot where Kells had died a white light began to bloom. Wheeing-! Ian¡¯s gaze was fixed right there. Yu Shin spoke with an interested voice, ¡°What is that? Are we going to hear any other related quest?¡± Just when he was done saying it, a system message had come up in front of the three people. Tring-! [You have successfully defeated the minion of Richie King Chalian¡¯s warlock ¡®Kells¡¯.] [The ones who have been kept trapped here by Kells have been released.] [With the ones released from the underground, the Luspel Empire has regained its strength.] [Fame increased by 150,000.] From the corner, a bright light began to shine and the loyalists of the Empire who were the corpses on the floor had begun to regain life. Right then, From the body of Kells the white light had settled down and a skeleton had formed on top of it. ¡°¡­!¡± From the mouth of the skull came out a loud voice. [How dare you interfere in the grand scheme of the Chalian¡­!] That was just for a moment. The skull had disappeared with them being the only words. And a big iron door that was in the deepest part of the floor had begun to move with a thumping sound. Remir was the one to speak now. ¡°There seems to be someone trapped in there?¡± ¡°Well, same NPC related to the Luspel Empire?¡± Ian moved toward the door which was still pounding. But, Bang-! With a huge sound, the iron door broke by itself with three shadows walking out from it. Chuk-chuk-! With blood scattered here and there, a silver armor that was already in rags. But the moment Ian saw the golden griffin embroidered on their armor¡¯s abdomen and shoulders, the identity was known. ¡°The chief of Knights.¡± They were the chiefs of the knights who had led the Knights of the Luspel Empire in the past. Ian checked at the faces, but unfortunately, Helliem wasn¡¯t in them. The three people who Ian had discovered moved to the front of Ian. Ian tried to shake the hand of the man who was walking ahead of the three, but he was shocked the next moment. But the system had deprived him of the control, and his hands didn¡¯t move at his own free will. An unexpected situation had unfolded. Thud-! All three knights were kneeling in front of Ian at the same time. ¡°God, the chief of knights Rotherham is pleased to meet Ian of the Lotus.¡± ¡°God, the chief knights of Soknia, Larson is pleased to meet you.¡± ¡°And I! The chief of the Colton Knights, Rafael is pleased to meet you Ian the great.¡± The three knights who had kneeled before Ian were all saying the same thing, it was almost like they were the ambassadors of something. But then, not just the three knights but all the other refugees who were released were on the ground, kneeling. Half of them were the knights of the empire, some were the wizards of the empire, and the remaining ones were the normal soldiers. On the wall, was the torch that was flickering in and out giving a subtle light. And Ian who was at the center of it, his face was flashing with a red light. And the sight of the knelt loyalists of the empire was in front of him. This sight was enough for the users to get goosebumps. After a while. The strange silence was broken as Ian had opened his lips. ¡°You should all hear this.¡± A heavy voice had left Ian¡¯s mouth, and the whole dungeon had turned silent. Everyone in the area was waiting for the next words that Ian would say, and so were the users who were viewing the video. The chat window which had been constantly moving stopped at that very moment. Ian, To be precise, it was Ian¡¯s AI who was speaking. ¡°If you guys follow me, Ian of the Lotus¡­ I will promise to give you the glory that you had in the rule of the Emperor Serius.¡± At those words from Ian, the knight¡¯s eyes began to shine. But that wasn¡¯t the end of Ian¡¯s words. ¡°However, the name of my empire¡­¡± This time it was Ian¡¯s eyes that were shining. ¡°¡­ will be Lotus and not Luspel.¡± CH 385 The battle video between Kells and Ian¡¯s party was 20 minutes long. The duration of the actual battle video was shorter, it was around 10 minutes or less, yet the video went wild having an explosively large amount of views. All the users who were playing the game at that time stopped to watch the video, and users who couldn¡¯t catch the live video watched it on the official website. As many people began to see the video, the video turned into a huge topic even among users who weren¡¯t playing Kailan. ¡°Hey! Have you seen this video? Is this the trailer of a movie?¡± ¡°Movie, what the hell? That¡¯s a video of Kailan¡¯s play.¡± ¡°Kailan? Are you talking about the virtual reality game, Kailan?¡± ¡°Yeah. That Kailan.¡± Thanks to that, the LB company¡¯s publicity team had a growing desire to work harder. ¡°Kay, there¡¯s no need to produce the promotional video separately. I think the clarity of the video should be improved and maybe edit it a little bit?¡± ¡°I think so too. Then team leader, maybe we can go to the public relation team¡¯s workshop next week?¡± ¡°Haha, I like that! if we can get this video edited by this week, then we can go to the workshop and get the payment next week!¡± However, they needed to pay Ian in order to directly use Ian¡¯s video for promotional purposes. They were not paying Ian less but not too much either. The profit they made was enough for a business to survive if the amount of publicity they got was converted into cash. On the other hand, despite being employees of LB, there were a lot of them who were already sick of Ian. Because of Ian, the direction of the episode changed entirely and now there was a need to make additional content as soon as possible. Inside a room where the development team was, the design team and the planning team had darkened faces. * * * Wheeing-! Inside the empty underground dungeon. Blue energy resonated in the middle of that enormous underground dungeon. That blue energy was the login effect. ¡°Phew, I was feeling sick of not being able to reconnect right away.¡± The person who had reconnected after all those series of events ended was none other than Hoonie. ¡°Huh, I have a lot to explain to Ian hyung, and I need to gather twice as much experience; I have a lot to do¡­!¡± Hoonie suddenly gulped down and began to join his hands together to pray. ¡°Buddha. No, Mr. Immortal¡­! Please either give me a weapon or a quest!¡± Hoonie¡¯s prayers seemed to have been heard. After he was done praying, Hoonie opened his quest window right away. ¡®Former quest! Please be a former quest!¡¯ Hoonie was praying internally while quickly swiping through the quest window. However, he didn¡¯t see an ¡®N¡¯ anywhere in the quest window indicating that a new quest window had been created for Hoonie. ¡°Shit¡­!¡± Hoonie was a bit disappointed but didn¡¯t lose hope. ¡®Well, my luck is usually bad at the beginning, but¡­ it will be different this time. Hmm, how far can bad luck stick to a person anyway?¡¯ The probability of Hoonie getting the reward that he wanted was 2/4. Which was exactly 50%. Since he had already confirmed that the former quest wasn¡¯t there, the probability now was 1/3. ¡°Please¡­!¡± Hoonie opened his inventory with his eyes closed. After calming his mind, Hoonie finally decided to open his eyes to check his inventory. He saw a golden box at the top of the item window. ¡°Come on! Come on! Come on! Come on!¡± Hoonie quickly checked the item information. He smiled brightly upon seeing what he got. [Myth Rank Weapon Box (Warlock Only)] ¡®Keu! A profession dedicated item! Awesome!¡¯ Hoonie did a celebratory dance as he took the weapon box out of his inventory He opened the weapon box since he was already excited to see the weapon he would get. ¡°Kay, Where¡­ can I see the weapon that it contains?¡± Hoonie smiled, and the look of anticipation could be seen on his face. This was Hoonie¡¯s first myth class item, so he couldn¡¯t help but feel excited. Right when Hoonie was about to open the item box. Hweeing-! A dark-colored smoke appeared in front of Hoonie, and it started to form a shape. ¡°¡­!¡± Hoonie who was flustered by this thing immediately closed the weapon box and put it back in his inventory. He still took up a battle stance even though he was nervous. He was indeed worthy of being called a ranker with those reflexes of his. ¡®What is that? Are there still monsters left in here? I don¡¯t think that¡¯s it though.¡¯ Hoonie was scared but he still tried to get a good look at the dark shadow. However, he couldn¡¯t help but be surprised at what he saw. ¡®This¡­? Isn¡¯t this the guy who appeared after Kells died?¡¯ A white light came out from Kells after his death. The shadow that came out in front of Hoonie was the same skeleton shaped creature that appeared when Kells died. The creature began to speak after a moment of silence. [I feel like we are the same. I feel like I¡¯m very familiar with you.] Hoonie assessed his current situation he was in. It wasn¡¯t like he was supposed to fight this monster, and he couldn¡¯t even see the creature¡¯s level when he tried to check its name. Hoonie decided to talk to this creature after he was done thinking. ¡°Kuek, That definitely could be. You¡¯re also a Monarch of Darkness. Aren¡¯t you?¡± The shadow replied, [Monarch of Darkness¡­ that isn¡¯t me. I am just a part of it.] Hoonie lifted his hood slightly back with his hands and spoke with a very arrogant look. ¡°Ahh, there is something you have that I need¡­ don¡¯t be scared and just tell me. I don¡¯t look like it, but I¡¯m actually a good guy.¡± If someone else heard that, their hands and feet would have shriveled with embarrassment. Hoonie was actually also surprised with what was coming out of his mouth. Surprisingly, the shadow agreed to what Hoonie was saying and said, [The energy that I feel from you child is surely the Energy of Darkness¡­ and it¡¯s not normal. So nice, let¡¯s make a deal.] A quest window suddenly appeared in front of Hoonie the moment the shadow was done talking. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Richie King Chalian¡¯s Proposal (Hidden) (Dual) ¨C Richie King Chalian, as a part of his proposal, he planted a part of his soul in Kells¡¯ heart¡ªthe Black Magician/Warlock. Richie King Chalian lent his power to Kells, and at the same time allowed him to monitor Kells. However, because of Kells¡¯ untimely death, the pieces of Richie King Chalian¡¯s soul were isolated here in the underground dungeon. Richie King Chalian wants you to go and find a piece of this soul. If you accept his proposal, he will tell you the fastest way to become a ¡®Richie Mage¡¯. However, you could not take the path of the Richie Mage if you¡¯re an Immortal of the Empire. If you take the path of the Richie Mage, the power and magic of the Immortal will lose its light since you will be gaining the power of pure darkness. You have to choose now. If you want to gain the power of the Richie Mage, then accept this proposal. If you want to keep the power of the Immortal, then destroy his soul. Quest Difficulty: S/SSS (Difficulty of the quest depends on the choice of the user.) Quest Condition: Level 300 Warlock or higher. Discovery of the soul pieces of Richie King Chalian. User with ¡®The Underground Jungle Exploration¡¯ quest in progress. Time Limit: None. Reward: ¡®Richie Mage¡¯ former quest/¡¯Lord of Commander¡¯ quest (The reward of the quest will vary depending on the choice of the user.) ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Hoonie who was contemplating while reading the quest¡¯s information window smiled wickedly * * * Ian returned to the Kingdom after completing the quest. He also took his newly acquired NPCs as servers of the Kingdom. At first, he wanted to register them as his retainers, but it seemed like they weren¡¯t that efficient. Whether they were the servers of the Kingdom or Ian¡¯s personal retainers was no different once they were registered for the Kingdom even other users would be able to issue them orders. As for Ian who didn¡¯t have much to do, having too many retainers would be a burden. ¡°Chalian¡¯s necklace¡­. Should I give this to Hoonie?¡± After completing Louisei¡¯s quest, Ian obtained an item called ¡®Chalian¡¯s necklace¡¯. It was expensive since it was a legendary class necklace, but he decided to give it to Hoonie. Even though he didn¡¯t need to, he felt guilty for PKing him. ¡°Well, I will give it to him if he contacts me.¡± If Ian would just check his friend¡¯s list, he would¡¯ve seen that Hoonie was already online. However, Ian was a user who rarely opened his friend¡¯s list. He also had too much work to do. The new linked quest he received from Louisei had to be done right away. There were also places he had to visit. Ian pulled out the Dimensional Beads from his inventory after a long time. He opened the portal and teleported to a different place. * * * In the 107th division, the Institute of Cervian. Ian who had arrived at the lab after a long time was welcomed by Cervian. ¡°Oh oh, Ian! It¡¯s been so long. That is too much. Why don¡¯t you visit here more often? An old man staying in an institute all alone, think about this old man once in a while.¡± Ian laughed at what Cervian said. ¡°If you¡¯re so bored, then will you take me back as your student? I don¡¯t usually say stuff like this you know?.¡± ¡°Haha! I can¡¯t do that. I¡¯ve already taught you everything, but I suppose not everyone can feel satisfied like me.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to put things that way.¡± Ian felt like Cervian didn¡¯t like to teach him anymore. However, Cervian really thought that he wouldn¡¯t feel satisfied with anyone else anymore after he took Ian in. ¡®Where will I ever find another kid who can improve so much just by looking at my research findings.¡¯ Cervian was convinced that he would never have a student who could do better than Ian, within humans or the Devildom. ¡°You have come here because of the egg that you left behind right?¡± ¡°Yep! That¡¯s right. Can I pretend that you are my teacher and teach me again.¡± ¡°Haha, come this way.¡± Ian followed Cervian to a room located deeper in the lab. The inside of the room was really hot, and it was filled with a raging fire. ¡°Uhh, I come here often, but I¡¯m still not used to it till now.¡± Cervian couldn¡¯t help but laugh and nod in agreement in response to Ian¡¯s grumbling. ¡°Well, if it¡¯s going to make you feel better, even Asmodians have a hard time enduring the heat here.¡± Ian looked around the room. Various eggs of Magical Beasts were displayed in the room and were engulfed with red devil energy. The Magical Beasts¡¯ eggs were different from normal monsters¡¯ eggs. Their color varied depending on their kind. Which was why the appearance of the eggs was different. At the corner of the room, the eggs that Ian entrusted to Cervian were on display. Cervian saw the change in Ian¡¯s expression. ¡°Uhm¡­ that Behemoth¡¯s egg, there hasn¡¯t been any changes to it yet.¡± Cervian nodded with a wry smile. ¡°Yeah. I still haven¡¯t found a way to hatch a legendary grade egg. I know the specific materials needed in order to hatch it, but¡­ I¡¯m can¡¯t find them.¡± There were three green eggs on display, with a red burning flame around them. Ian scratched the back of his neck while looking at the egg which still had its glass-like texture. ¡°It would be nice if the Behemoth could produce a myth class familiar.¡± Cervian laughed in response to what Ian said and replied, ¡°Haven¡¯t you already succeeded in making a myth rank from your Beast Alchemy?¡± ¡°Are you talking about Grrr?¡± ¡°Yeah, I am. I haven¡¯t been successful in Beast Alchemy since Khalifa. I was really proud of myself when I succeeded in making that magnificent beast.¡± Ian just squatted in front of the Behemoth¡¯s egg. He looked at the eggs and said after carefully looking at them. ¡°Although Grrr is an exceptional one, I wanted to use these guys with my skills¡­¡± Ian experimented with a lot of legendary monsters that he found in Devildom¡¯s dimension. From the Balrog to the Traveros to the Devil dragon. He hunted all the legendary monsters that were in the 10th division of the Devildom and was randomly experimenting with their soul stones. However, there was one soul stone that he couldn¡¯t get¡ªit was the Behemoth¡¯s soul. He couldn¡¯t find a Behemoth apart from the one in the tower. Cervian nodded with a stern look in response to Ian¡¯s murmuring. ¡°Don¡¯t worry so much. I¡¯ll try to figure out how to hatch those eggs.¡± ¡°Thank you so much, Cervian. If it¡¯s you, I know that you¡¯ll find a way for sure.¡± Cervian laughed because of what Ian said. He then sat on a chair and wiped off his sweat. ¡°Phew, It would be nice if those eggs would hatch soon or if there are any records about them I could find, but there aren¡¯t¡­¡± Suddenly¡­ Ian immediately stood up as if something had gone through his mind. CH 386 ¡®Yeah, that¡¯s right¡­ there is another legendary egg!¡¯ A red egg started to take shape in Ian¡¯s mind. That red egg had a similar structure to that of the Behemoth¡¯s egg. Both eggs were so similar that anyone would confuse the two. In the past, Ian gave the red egg to gripper in exchange for a Magic Power Charger. ( Box novel.c om ) Ian forgot about it, but he thought that maybe the legendary beast egg hatched already. ¡®Did Gripper find a way to hatch the egg?¡¯ Ian was really eager to know what happened to the egg. He wanted to go back to the Human¡¯s dimension right away. ¡°Cervian, I need to go right away.¡± ¡°You haven¡¯t been here that long! You stay for a week or so every time you come here¡­¡± ¡°There is something really urgent that I need to do. But for the time being, look after my egg.¡± ¡°What¡­¡± Ian went out of the lab without even hearing out Cervian was about to say His destination was the Dimensional Tower in the eastern end of the continent. * * * White, black and grey. The scenery looked like it was a photo from the 80s. A huge silver tower was standing on the ground. The desolate tower was surrounded by a rocky gorge and snow. Around the tower were numerous skeletons which made the place¡¯s atmosphere more bizarre. This forbidden area was between the northern and central continents. The tower was opened when the new update was released. Users still had not discovered this desolate tower. The reason why users still had not discovered the tower was because its position in the map was unusual. This giant tower was the landmark of the Richie King Chalian. ¡°Keuk, who is this warlock that dared reject the offer of the great Chalian¡­¡± There was a man sitting inside the giant magical tower wearing a dark robe. The dark-robed man was giving out a dreary aura all over his body. While having a painful expression, he grabbed his heart after putting his hands through his boney body. ¡°Huhu, for one to recover the fragments of the lost souls¡­ I won¡¯t be able to move for another week.¡± The man¡¯s¡ªChalian¡ªeyes were gleaming, and in those eyes was a hint of anger. ¡°How dare¡­ KanjiHoonie. The choice that he made today, I¡¯ll make you regret it.¡± No one except the Master Immortal had ever tried to oppose Chalian till today. No, even the Immortal didn¡¯t go against Chalian after he got the power of the Richie King. But now, a human warlock with no particular reason turned his offer down. He couldn¡¯t help but feel rage upon thinking about the time he wasted. Drrrrk-! Chalian lifted his hands. The crisp cold air started to swirl from his hands. ¡°La-Kamorel!¡± Chalian¡¯s cold and brisk voice rang inside the tower. With black smoke rising in front of him, five shadows rose in front of him from the floor. From the ones that appeared, a shadow in the middle slowly moved forward and kneeled before Chalian. A man with a bizarre breastplate and a halberd. ¡°You called, our king.¡± ( Box novel.c om ) He was a Death Knight who was reborn from the power of Richie King. Chalian slowly rose from his throne. He then said while having a fear-inducing expression on his face, ¡°The war has begun.¡± Chalian¡¯s eyes turned red. ¡°Gather together all the fragments of the souls that are scattered.¡± The Death Knight¡ªKamorel¡ªresponded, ¡°I will take on this request with pride.¡± * * * On a lush green garden. A breathtaking place filled with rich grass and blooming flowers of various colors; the place looked like heaven. At the center of the garden, a beautiful dragon was sitting down. The azure light reflected from this mysterious creature¡¯s scales. Phrrrr- Phrrrrrr-! The creature was sleeping very soundly. Suddenly¡­ The sparkling eyes of the dragon opened. Mixed energy of some sort woke him from his sleep. Phrrr? The dragon looked around. The dragon felt the intensity of this mixed energy; it was something he hadn¡¯t felt before. Someone who wasn¡¯t his ¡®master¡¯ entered the garden. Swoosh-! As the dragon flew toward the blue sky, his whole body glimmered in blue. Anyone who would¡¯ve seen this magnificent being would surely have their mouths wide opened. He opened his wings and moved toward the dimensional tower. The dragon needed to do one thing to get good food and bask himself with sunlight according to his ¡®master¡¯. * * * There was a kennel for Gripper¡¯s beast at the back of the Dimensional Tower of the Kingdom. It was the breeding ground where Ian made monsters that he brought back from Arnovel Empire, and Gripper was still operating that kennel. Gripper who was feeding Haliken was very pleased to see Ian. ¡°Oh well, who could this be, if it isn¡¯t the hero who had won the Dimensional War! Ian the Savior! He has come all this way to this shabby place, I should be considering this as an honor.¡± Ian laughed while looking at Gripper who still hadn¡¯t lost his touch of the world. Ian¡¯s affinity with Gripper reached the maximum a long time ago. That was why he was used to hearing such comments from him. ¡°Haha, Ian the Saviour, I¡¯m not that anymore.¡± Gripper couldn¡¯t help but open his wrinkled eyes upon hearing those words. ¡°Huh, then? Have you attained the title for establishing the Kingdom?¡± Ian grinned and responded, ¡°Bingo. You¡¯re right. We have done it right away.¡± Gripper was a bit surprised but wasn¡¯t too shaken upon hearing the news. ¡°Oh, shit, which means the empire was ruined.¡± ¡°That was what happened.¡± Gripper couldn¡¯t help but laugh. He looked over at Ian with a faint smile. ¡°I remember the first time that I met you, Ian. You were just a beginner¡­ but you¡¯ve become something else now. Hoho.¡± Gripper was nothing but a commoner. The empire gave him a noble status in the past. However, it was nullified because the empire was destroyed. Gripper didn¡¯t belong to the common category though. He is the mediator of the dimensions, which was why his status in the world was meaningless. That was why he still talked casually to Ian even though he knew that Ian was a King now. ¡°By the way, why is it that you¡¯re in need of this old man? A busy person like you wouldn¡¯t come here for no reason.¡± Ian nodded and went straight to his point. It felt nice that Gripper was talking to him like he always did. ¡°Ah, it isn¡¯t something else¡­ Gripper, do you remember that red magical beast egg that I had given to you?¡± Gripper nodded and laughed in response to Ian¡¯s question. ¡°Of course, how can I forget that egg? I remember it very clearly.¡± Ian gulped and said, ¡°Then maybe¡­ about that egg. Did you succeed in hatching it?¡± Ian¡¯s gaze was on Gripper the whole time. Ian was nervous since his long-awaited wish would be fulfilled depending on Gripper¡¯s answer. However, Gripper¡ªinstead of answering Ian¡¯s question¡ªlaughed and pointed his finger somewhere. ¡°It¡¯s on its way here.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°You¡­ weren¡¯t you the one who found the egg.¡± ¡°Yeah, I was.¡± Gripper laughed said, ¡°That egg you gave me, it is now flying towards here.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Ian became flustered upon hearing those words. He looked to the direction where Gripper was pointing to. Both of his eyes went wide with what he saw. A majestic azure dragon was flying at the place where Gripper was pointing to. What felt more surprising was that, even though it was his first time seeing that dragon, there was a feeling that he had seen that magnificent creature somewhere many times before. Ian focused on the flying dragon in order to see the information over his head. [Selipa ¨C Lv 125] ¡°Se¡­ lipa?¡± Gripper spoke with a cheerful voice upon hearing Ian¡¯s mumbling, ¡°Oh¡­! Finally! Someone recognized him! You sure are the best summoner on the continent!¡± However, Ian wasn¡¯t even listening to whatever Gripper was saying. The closer the dragon got, the more familiar it seemed to Ian, and his name¡ªSelipa¡ªmade it too hard to miss. Ian finally remembered where he saw a thing that was similar to Selipa. ¡®Khalifa¡­! It looks very similar to Marion Khalifa, right?! The scale type and color are the only things different, but his other features are the same!¡¯ Honestly, the dragon¡¯s name was so familiar that it was odd that Ian wasn¡¯t able to figure it out right away. The only difference the two had was that the scales of Khalifa were rough and red, but Selipa had sparkling scales like a glass mirror. Ian asked gripper while stuttering a bit, ¡°That one¡­ is¡­ is that the one that came out of the egg that I gave you¡­?¡± Gripper confirmed it with a warm smile and pride on his face. ¡°Yeah. I¡¯ve got such a beautiful beast with me all thanks to you. I don¡¯t feel so bored in the dimension tower because of him. He sometimes ate the monsters that I¡¯m growing, but I don¡¯t mind it that much.¡± Ian¡¯s stomach started to hurt more and more! Ian ignored his foresight and asked Gripper once again, ¡°That guy¡­ what¡¯s his rank?¡± Gripper chuckled while looking at the dragon. ¡°Hoho, it was the egg that you gave me, I¡¯m sure that you can get a rough guess¡­¡± Thud-! Selipa who flew to Gripper¡¯s side looked at Ian. Prrr- Prrrng-! Gripper stroked Selipa¡¯s head with a warm look and spoke, ¡°Our Selipa is a myth grade Magical Beast.¡± Ian was almost on the verge of crying upon hearing what Gripper said. CH 387 The final boss of the Dimensional War, the most powerful of all the boss monsters that had appeared so far¡ªthe Marion Khalifa. It wasn¡¯t the Khalifa, but the appearance was like the one of a twin-myth class creature, and that was the most shocking part. And the Khalifa was a boss monster that had appeared in the story-line with the progress of the main story. Even if the Selipa was the twin of the Khalifa, it couldn¡¯t possess the same strength as the Khalifa. Nevertheless, the beauty of the figure was enough to make Ian crumble. The egg which hadn¡¯t even changed for an inch in the hands of Ian was now a beautiful creature. ¡®Keuk, my stomach¡­ hurts¡­ it hurts¡­ sob.¡¯ Honestly, even if he could go back in time, Ian would once again exchange the egg for the Magical power dimension charger. The benefit that he had got from the exchange was enormous, and the scale of a myth rank was hard to compare with it. Nevertheless, he couldn¡¯t help but feel sick. ¡°The beast¡­ is pretty.¡± ¡°Hoho, you think so?¡± Gripper was having a happy laugh! Ian felt very bad for the day that had come. With pleading eyes he asked Gripper, ¡°Gripper¡­¡± ¡°Uh? What¡¯s with that look?¡± Suddenly, Ian spoke with a loud voice, ¡°Can you share some of the information on Selipa?¡± He knew that he would be more hurt if he sees the information window, but he couldn¡¯t help but be curious about the information of a myth rank beast. And Gripper just nodded. ¡°Well, it isn¡¯t so difficult to do. And if not, you¡¯re still the one who gave it, which makes you curious about it, and you should be.¡± In front of Ian¡¯s eyes came the information window of Selipa which was shared instantly. ¡®The Dimension Enchanter ¡®Gripper¡¯ has shared the information of the magical beast.¡¯ And Ian began to read the emerging messages from the information window without leaving out a single detail. ¡®Level 125, attack power 3274, defense of 2188, and Agility of 1256 with the Intellect 1975.¡¯ Ian made a quick note of its combat abilities and also of the unique abilities that it possessed. ¡®Uhmm¡­ most of the unique abilities are the supporting ones. Since it is a dragon it has the ¡®Breath¡¯¡­ and the count is enormous.¡¯ The more information he saw, the more he wanted to take Selipa! However, something scared Ian. It was because, with the ability of Selipa, he had calculated the growth value of it. ¡®What? Why is the growth so low? It¡¯s worse than the legendary Ly and Bbakbbak.¡¯ The growth rate means the average value of growing the combat ability of a magical beast for 1 level up. For example, if one had a growth rate of 50, then one would get an average of 50 for each of the combat abilities with the climb of a level. The current level for the legendary monsters that Ian owned was around 70. Even the myth ranked Karceus and Bbookbbook had the growth of 90, but the growth rate of Selipa was just over 60, which was why he was puzzled. ¡®What is this? The pattern is only half to that of an actual myth rank¡­? But that can¡¯t be.¡¯ At the unforeseen things, Ian was surprised. But after trying to beat around the bushes of his brain, Ian quickly realized the reason. ¡®The potential power¡­! That was the problem. Gripper didn¡¯t even train him! No, saying that he raised it is a bit too much. The problem isn¡¯t the level of training, there wasn¡¯t a basic level of training at all?¡¯ Even if one didn¡¯t use the training skills or train hem, when a summoner takes a pet to the battle, that would result in the increase of the potential of the pet. But in the case of Selipa, it was clear that he had grown ¡®fine¡¯ until the level of 125. Like some wild beasts, it just grew with monsters that were around the place. In the case of humans, a person with an IQ of more than 160 was taken and placed into a scheduled school curriculum! Ian couldn¡¯t help but sigh at it. ¡°Phew¡­¡± And due to that, the dream of Selipa had disappeared, and the sad reality had hit the ¡®Taming Master¡¯. Ian looked over at Gripper again. A little difference in the eyes, something vague to point out. ¡°Gripper, why did you have to raise him like this.¡± At those words from Ian, Gripper couldn¡¯t help but raise his eyes. ¡°Uhm? Is something wrong, is there some problem without Selipa?¡± Even Selipa who was seated next to him wailed. Prrrng- Prng-! Ian approached Gripper with his head down. And took a hold of his hands. ¡°Gripper, come this way and see.¡± ¡°Uhm¡­?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t normally plan to do this, but I¡¯ll have to give a lesson.¡± ¡°A lesson? A lesson for what?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll know if you look.¡± Ian dragged Gripper into the dimensional tower. And the lecture started right away. * * * ¡°Oh oh¡­! Oho!¡± ¡°That is what potential is¡­¡± ¡°Keu, that is!¡± ¡°That is how it should be¡­¡± ¡°Well! You sure are great!¡± Ian¡¯s lecture had begun with the correlation between the potential power and the innate power¡ªand continued for a while. The differences in the gender; the effects of increasing those combat abilities in the battle. Ian¡¯s mouth was spewing out expert words. Not being a summoner, that could¡¯ve been a boring topic for him, but Gripper¡¯s eyes were shinning the whole time. ¡°That¡¯s really shocking¡­! Wow! There is such a disciplined manner in fostering monsters!¡± For Gripper who was a born scholar, the upbringing of the monsters by Ian was very captivating. Glancing over at Gripper who was busy taking down notes, Ian sighed. ¡°I feel like you should raise it right from now on. How do you think it would feel like to raise such an amazing one like this. It has already reached the level of 125, but the damage of growth is too much.¡± At those words from Ian, Gripper smiled brightly. ¡°Kuhk, now that I know, I¡¯m under thought if I should re-raise it back. Maybe I should raise it from the beginning. From what I just learned from you, I will raise it better than ever.¡± ¡°Oh¡­?¡± Those words from Gripper made Ian confused. He couldn¡¯t understand the words. ¡°How do you re-raise from the beginning?¡± Gripper just spoke the same words again. ¡°Like I said. I wonder if I should raise it from level 1.¡± ¡°How?¡± ¡°A long while back, there was an item that I made for fun.¡± Gripper who had moved through the corner of his lab came back with a capsule that was like a pill. And he showed the information. ¡°Here, see this.¡± ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Recurring Pills ¨C Classification ¨C Miscellaneous Rank ¨C Hero A huge leap made out of the ancient alchemy. If the pill is swallowed, the target will return to the stage that it was first created. In the presence of the skill, all of them would disappear and will revert back to the 1st level. Humans and humanoid species can¡¯t use this. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian checked the information about the item. ¡°Why do you even make such an item?¡± ¡°Uhm¡­ some dangerous shelled monster with such curiosity will eat it¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian could help but have cold sweat. The moment he said that Ian thought of Bbookbbook. ¡®I do not want to summon Bbookbbook in front of Gripper.¡¯ If Bbookbbook eats that item, then a terrible disaster will happen for Ian. It was very tough to evolve him to the myth rank and develop him. Which was why it was terrifying. But at the same time, it was an item that could come in handy someday. ¡®Someday, when I find a worthy tamable monster, I¡¯ll catch and feed it with this.¡¯ No normal user will think of going back to level 1, but for a perfectionist like Ian, it was a possible idea. After completely teaching Gripper, Ian decided to get into the matter. The reason that he had made a visit to the dimensional tower after a long time was¡­ ¡°Gripper, I have a request.¡± ¡°Request? Say what it is. I will listen to you and then give you whatever I can to help you. Having heard the interesting lecture, I need to reward you for it.¡± Gripper¡¯s answer made Ian smile. It wasn¡¯t an intentional act, but it looked like telling him about the pets had solved the problem for Ian. Ian spoke again, ¡°It isn¡¯t much, about Selipa. How did you hatch it¡­? Just wondering about the process.¡± * * * ¡°No¡­ I¡¯m asking about how Chalian needs to be killed? It is a quest of SSSSS difficulty? Quadra S Penta S¡­?¡± A dual quest was given to Hoonie in the catacombs. According to the choice of the user, and Hoonie¡¯s was the dual quest, which was given for rejecting the offer from Chalian. He had destroyed the soul of Chalian. And for Hoonie, this was a normal choice. Although the class of ¡®Monarch of Darkness¡¯ was attractive than the ¡®Richie King¡¯, the problem that he had to stand against Ian if took the later one, which made him decide it. ¡®I have no intention of dealing with that hyung, I¡¯d rather catch the Richie King.¡¯ In the Hidden Episode, he watched Ian control his soul, which made him even more terrified of him. The control was amazing as always, but he noticed that Hoonie was going to betray him in the shortest time. So Hoonie chooses the more than Triple S difficulty without any hesitation and would rather defeat the Chalian. As the quest went more than triple S for the difficulty, the power needed for the quest would be much stronger, and Hoonie could deal with it. But the problem was something else. The Quest that was changed to killing Chalian, from the ¡®The Former Quest of the Monarch¡¯. It was the quest that needed Richie King to be captured. It was a hunt to catch the Richie King as an opponent, and it was now changed to killing Chalian. Hoonie had already encountered Chalian in the Devildom, and the level of Richie King Chalian was of level 500. ¡®Hu¡­ it was a triple S quest and we could barely run away¡­¡¯ In the quest ¡®Escape from the Commander of Tower¡¯, he clearly remembered running away from Chalian with Ian. A level 500 monster. Not the normal monster, but was a boss monster. He wasn¡¯t even sure how to catch it. But the Penta S seemed like an understatement for the difficulty level. Hoonie opened the quest once again with the intention to examine its contents once again. He was hoping that there might be a clue in it. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Deterrent for Richie King Chalian¡¯s Ambition (Hidden) ¨C Richie King Chalian has the desire to spread darkness to the human world and build an Empire of Darkness. He plans to not use the souls of the dead, but also of the spirits that are alive, and to enhance his power by turning them into Undead. His secondary goal is to absorb numerous souls and gain the power of infinite darkness and attain eternal life, similar to a divine being. However, it is contrary to the will of the five gods who defend the balance of the human world, and thus, the plan of Chalian which is against the will of the Immortal. The balance of the human world must not collapse with the dead, and the long-lasting symbiosis with the Dark Lord. If you manage to defeat Chalian and his ambition, you will be able to inherit the remaining powers of the Immortal and become a genius. Let¡¯s kill Richie King, and let the Immortal live on. Quest Difficulty: SSSSS Quest Condition: A warlock of level 350 or higher. The rejection of the soul of Richie King Chalian. The user who succeeds in getting the ability of Immortal. Time Limit: 60 days Rewards: Existing ¡®Tower of Commander¡¯. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¡°Hmm? I¡¯m not sure how to do it.¡± It was the content that could be understood with just one read, but the problem was that the answer for it couldn¡¯t be seen even when reading several times. If there was no time limit, then he could have thought of getting stronger by doing something, but raising more than 100 levels in 60 days was impossible. ¡°Uh¡­ should I have just taken the ¡®Richie Mage¡¯ quest¡­? With a little luck, maybe the quest can be cleared with help from Ian hyung¡­¡± Hoonie was just staring at the quest window. But then. Suddenly some sentences came in front of Hoonie¡¯s eyes. ¡®Contrary to the will of the five gods who defend the harmony and balance of the human world.¡¯ ¡®If it is a violation of the will of the Gods¡­?¡¯ Hoonie¡¯s eyes were fixed on it. Somehow, he felt like that was the solution for it. CH 388 ¡°The manner how I hatched the egg of¡­ Selipa?¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± ¡°Oho? Why are you curious about it? Don¡¯t tell me that you have another egg like that?¡± Gripper¡¯s eyes were shining while asking Ian that question. Ian shook his head and spoke, ¡°Hmm¡­ not the same egg, I have a few eggs of some legendary beasts, and with all the tires that I did, I haven¡¯t seen a single sigh of hatching. If I know about how the Selipa was obtained, then I can use that to hatch my eggs too¡­¡± ¡°Hm, well.¡± Hearing it, Gripper was stroking his beard and decided to speak after a second. ( Box novel.c om ) ¡°However, even by knowing the way how I hatched Selipa, you won¡¯t be able to hatch yours.¡± Ian couldn¡¯t help but be shocked at the answer that he had heard from Gripper. ¡°Haaa¡­?¡± Gripper leaned onto the table and continued, ¡°A legendary rank egg can¡¯t be done in the same way.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°From what I know, there are a lot of legendary eggs, and each of them has its own way to hatch.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Ian couldn¡¯t help but feel disappointed hearing what Gripper had to say. It felt like he had lost the fish that was in his hand. But the disappointment was for a while. But Ian¡¯s eyes began to shine again. ¡®If he knows what the method to hatch an egg is different for the legendary¡­ then there could be much more information that Gripper has than what he was saying?¡¯ And seeing Ian who was in thoughts, Gripper spoke again, ¡°Do you by any chance know what kind of a legendary monster it is? If I know that, then maybe I can be of some help to you.¡± Ian who listened to it, couldn¡¯t help but feel elated. Which was why Ian had answered immediately. ¡°The legendary Magical beast; Behemoth¡¯s egg. That egg that I had received from the Behemoth¡ªit is 90% of the same kind, from what I have analyzed.¡± ¡°Ugh, Behemoth!¡± Gripper touched his chin and slowly rose from his seat. And asked Ian to move with him. ¡°Come over here, Ian. It seems like I need to get into the archives after a long while.¡± Ian jumped out of his seat and followed Gripper. * * * A dusty shelf was on the corner of the room. Gripper knocked off the dust from the bookshelf and with a voice that had a tint of longingness spoke and pulled out an old book. ¡°Behemoth. It seemed like something that I had heard quite often, it was the name of one of the earliest magical beasts.¡± The moment he had heard the word ¡®Most earliest¡¯, Ian¡¯s eyes went bigger. ¡°A monster who was the earliest? What is that?¡± Gripper started to explain, ¡°There were many species of magical beasts in the present Devildom, and they are so hard to count. I know you¡¯ve been to the Devildom too.¡± ¡°It is like that.¡± ¡°And perhaps most of the people, including you too, know all of them as the creatures that were made by the creators.¡± It was the first time for Ian to hear it, but he was still feeling dizzy of all the information. ¡°Well, for now, let¡¯s just say that.¡± And Gripper went on explaining. ¡°But that isn¡¯t the truth. Among the creatures that we see today, there aren¡¯t even 20 magical beasts that were actually created by the Gods.¡± ¡°Then the others¡­?¡± ( Box novel.c om ) ¡°It can be said that they were born from the crossbreeding among those Magical beasts, hence, not the direct creation of the Gods, they were just naturally occurring species.¡± The story that Gripper was saying was quite long but was captivating. Which was why Ian was able to concentrate and listen to it. ¡°Well, Let¡¯s talk about the origin of the Magical Beast now¡­ Let¡¯s move to the point now.¡± Ian was getting very excited as he noticed how low Gripper¡¯s voice had fallen to. ¡°When the Behemoth was created in the beginning, there were two more beasts that were created alongside with it.¡± While Gripper was still speaking, he waved his hands in the air. Surprisingly, a hologram appeared in that spot. One of the magical beasts was something Ian was familiar with, and the other two were ones he had never seen. Then, there were monsters in the video who were glancing at Ian. ¡®God, I was scared.¡¯ And Gripper continued seeing no change in Ian¡¯s expression. ¡°The earliest of the magical beasts were symbolic of something, they were for the Earth, the Sea and the Sky. And the Behemoth represents the Earth.¡± Ian mumbled to himself. ¡°The earth¡­ now that I think, it sure did seem like it.¡± The unique effect of Behemoth had a trembling effect. When he thought of the hard skin of the guy which was like a rock, Ian felt satisfied hearing the story about Behemoth being the symbol of the earth. Gripper then moved onto the other two. ¡°Then there is the seven-headed dragon the Leviathan, who symbolizes the sea. And the sea of the Devildom ¡®Mahay¡¯¡­¡± Gripper took a deep breath and pointed to the guy who resembled a Griffin. ¡°And finally, that magical beast ¡®Zeus¡¯, he is the symbol of the sky in the world of Devildom.¡± The story of the Behemoth was very interesting and Ian¡¯s expectation kept on rising while listening to it. Behemoth, whom he only knew as a legendary magical beast, was a much special guy than he had imagined. ¡®He has explained it eloquently¡­ don¡¯t tell me there is no way for it to be hatched, you won¡¯t say that, right?¡¯ Ian tried to swallow the sudden feeling of anxiety that was in his mind and asked Gripper, ¡°By the way, Gripper.¡± ¡°Hu¡­?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been around the Devildom, but I haven¡¯t ever seen a sea in the Devildom. Where is the place where a sea is located in the Devildom?¡± Ian was curious about it. When he had entered the Devildom, from the 127th division Ian had managed to go to the 13th division, he had moved more than 100 divisions. But he had never seen the word ¡®sea¡¯ in the map of the Devildom. Gripper laughed and nodded. ¡°It is true that you haven¡¯t ever seen that in the Devildom. The sea in the Devildom is of a different concept than the sea that we know of.¡± ¡°A concept¡­¡± ¡°The sea of the Devildom is a huge landmass containing many parts of the Devildom. It means that it is the whole of the Dimension itself which is called as the ¡®Miracle¡¯.¡± ¡°Uhmm¡­?¡± Ian was confused and seeing this Gripper laughed. ¡°Huhu, maybe when you understand the concept, you won¡¯t make such an expression.¡± ¡°Well, I think so. But now, the important thing is to crack open those Behemoth eggs.¡± ¡°Yeah, about that. I¡¯ll let you know what is written in this book.¡± The main part of the stories had passed, and now the most important. The story of the Behemoth¡¯s eggs hatching had finally come. * * * Fortunately, it wasn¡¯t impossible for the Behemoth¡¯s eggs to be hatched. It just needed some materials. And their preparation was of two kinds. The first was the ¡®Extreme Fire¡¯, which was considered as the Fire of the Devildom which gives out intense heat. From the explanation that Gripper said, the ¡®Extreme Fire¡¯ was an essential factor for hatching the eggs of the legendary monsters. The eggs of the common magical beast just needed basic magic to hatch, but the legendary ranked ones needed stronger magic. And the Extreme fire can be attained by presenting magic at the altar of the Devildom God. The second thing that was needed, was the seal of the Spirit Power, which has the Behemoth¡¯s Magic Seal. It was the special condition that the Behemoth had, and it was actually a demanding condition. ¡°Behemoth¡¯s cubs are known to absorb the spirit power of the mother Behemoth¡­ but maybe¡­ the eggs should have died the moment your hands touched them.¡± ¡°Re, really?¡± ¡°Which is why you need the seal.¡± Ian had received the item called the ¡®Spirit Magic Seal Stone¡¯ from Gripper and checked the information of the item. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Spirit Magic Seal Stone ¨C Classification ¨C Miscellaneous Rank ¨C Hero This is an artifact that can be used to seal the spirit of a specific magical beast, it was created by the Dimension¡¯s Keeper Gripper, by using his magical engineering. If you process the seal on the magical beast, then you will be able to acquire the spirit segment of that specific magical beast. Only one soul can be sealed at a time, and once used, it cant be used once again. It is a one-time use monster. At the time of sealing the spirit, you can acquire a minimum of 30 to a maximum of 100 spirits at a random. Can¡¯t be used on humans and humanoid species. ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian, who had just checked the information window of the item had his eyes shining. ¡®Ohho, this¡­ an item that would be so useless after one use?¡¯ A seal that could extract at least 30 to 100 spirit. And when considered with the 10 soul stones that are dropped when a beast was killed, this was an amazing artifact. And who had taken the Soul Seal Stone, put it into his inventory, and Gripper¡¯s word continued, ¡°Bring back the soul of the Behemoth with this Soul Seal Stone. And you will be able to hatch the egg.¡± Now, Gripper smiled, indicating that he was done. But there was a problem. A very deadly problem to be exact. ¡°But¡­ how am I supposed to embrace a Behemoth¡¯s soul?¡± At the question of Ian, Gripper responded as if it wasn¡¯t a big deal. ¡°That is simple. After hunting the Behemoth, you just need to activate the seal on to his body, and you will be able to extract the soul stones from it. but, that needs to be done within a minute of its demise.¡± Was the problem solved? Not in the least. If a Behemoth could be found, then Ian wouldn¡¯t have tried so hard to hatch the eggs. Even though hunting it was a tough task, Ian would have done it to collect the souls. Which was why Ian was in such a huge confusion. ¡°No matter where I look in the Devildom, I can¡¯t find the Behemoth. So what am I supposed to do?¡± It was the first time for Gripper to have frowned at such conversation. ¡°Uhmm¡­ although the primordial magical beasts are rare ones, it is not like they don¡¯t exist.¡± ¡°¡­ then if they don¡¯t, is there another way?¡± Gripper closed his eyes and thought for a while. Ian was anxiously waiting for the answer, and right then, Gripper had opened the wrinkled eyes of his. ¡°There is a way.¡± ¡°Uh, what kind of way is it?¡± Ian was enthusiastic about it and stood up; both men stood face to face. And Gripper spoke, ¡°You must go directly to the underworld and find the soul of a Behemoth that is wandering there. It¡¯s easy to say, you need to bring the soul of the Behemoth in a seal right from Hell.¡± Now, it was Ian¡¯s expression that was distorted. CH 389 ¡®The¡­ place where it exists?¡¯ The answer that Gripper gave Ian didn¡¯t seem to have answered anything. Ian head to the Manor after exiting the Dimensional Tower. He found a way how the Behemoth¡¯s egg could be hatched, but they didn¡¯t know how to get it. Gripper knew that there was a place called the Underworld but didn¡¯t know how to go there. He just gave Ian a clue. ¡®Hmm¡­ How to get to the Underworld? Honestly, I¡¯m not so sure about it either. I only know that there is a place called the Underworld and how to get inside there. I¡¯m sure that there were ancient records which mentioned how others went there.¡¯ ¡®But that¡¯s all¡­? This guy has no idea at all?¡¯ Ian thought. ¡®Ah! I¡¯m not so sure about it, maybe the ¡®Monarch of Command¡¯ might know something about it. However, rather than trying to find the Monarch of Command, it might be easier for you to find a Behemoth in the Devildom¡­ gulp.¡¯ Recalling what Gripper mentioned to him the last time, Ian tried hard to remember the information he had about the ¡®Monarch of Command.¡¯ However, he just couldn¡¯t remember any information related to the ¡®Monarch of Command¡¯ no matter how hard he tried to remember. Ian sighed out of disappointment. ¡°Phew, I just don¡¯t know what I¡¯m trying to look for¡­?¡± Ian was thinking so hard that he was shaking his head. Suddenly¡­ A thought flashed into Ian¡¯s mind. ¡®Come to think of it¡­ the tower where the Richie King Chalian¡¯s seal was unlocked in the Devildom was the Commander¡¯s tower¡­?¡¯ Information flashed through Ian¡¯s mind one after the other. ¡®Then does it mean that the Richie King that was sealed at the top of the tower was the one Gripper was talking about?¡¯ He wasn¡¯t 100% sure about it, but it seemed plausible to him. In order to find the clues about the Monarch of Command, it seemed like meeting the Richie King Chalian was needed. He had to follow the linked quest he got from Louisei in order to find Chalian who was hidden somewhere. Many of the Luspel Empire loyalists were sacrificed for the ambitions that Chalian had, and the loyalists were hiding in various parts of the continent. Ian might eventually meet Chalian while looking for them. ¡®Uhmm¡­? This is all rather good. I was going to find Helliem either way¡­¡¯ Helliem, the battle type NPC, the leader of Luspel Empire¡¯s Imperial Knights, a companion to Kaizer. He didn¡¯t know much about the other NPCs, but the only thing he wanted to do was to find Helliem and make him his retainer. ¡°Nice, by now Remir noona and Yu Shin should have made it back to the estate¡­¡± Remir and Yu shin received the linked quest along with Ian. Hoonie also received the quest, but there was a message saying that he wouldn¡¯t join the party as he had something else to do. Ian laughed out loud the moment he thought of Hoonie. ¡°Haha, that jerk isn¡¯t upset, right?¡± Ian had to kill Hoonie in the catacombs, and he truly felt bad about that. He looked at the blinking icon at the corner of his message window. [There are quests that can be shared.] Ian thought that maybe he wasn¡¯t able to clear the quest in the catacombs, and that was why the icon at the corner of his message window was still blinking. ¡°Well, Hoonie isn¡¯t the guy who likes to lag behind¡­¡± Ian arrived at the front of the castle town and went inside. * * * ¡°Kay, I got the Queen¡¯s Scale for 13500 gold each! That¡¯s so cheap¡­ cheap! At least a thousand gold cheaper than its original price!¡± ¡°The Griffin¡¯s Patron has been sold! It was sold for 2.2 million gold!¡± ¡°Hallucus, and an underground tanker that moves quickly! Level 230 or higher with 5000 defense and strength and vitality more than 150 million!¡± A shout from a user could be heard throughout the market. A large group of people was in the small town of Keaton Manor, which was very close to the Lotus Kingdom. Keaton Manor was a place that belonged to the Kingdom of Elijah. Many users started to form a base inside the city. It was close to the Pyro Lordship¡ªthe Capital of the Lotus Kingdom¡ªand word started to get out that dungeons had been appearing there recently. Another good thing was that the Manor of the estate belonged to an NPC and not a user. Even if they didn¡¯t have a guild, they were able to have bureaucratic power in the Kingdom and receive help from the Lord. Even when their territory was under the Kingdom, which was set by a user, it didn¡¯t change much. The Elijah Kingdom lost its title since their guild¡¯s affiliation changed. Keaton¡¯s noble users wanted the Lotus and the Elijah Kingdom to fight because of that. If the Keaton Manor was merged with the Lotus, all the Manor¡¯s noble users would naturally be transferred into the Lotus Guild. Well, they wouldn¡¯t be given a high ranking position, but they would be taken in as general guild members with little authority; that in itself was huge merit for them. In recent times, the Lotus Guild turned out to be the dream guild for many because of its ranking. There were a lot of users in the Keaton manor thanks to that. A warlock with a black robe entered Keaton¡¯s square. ¡°Uh, I need to kill him fast. But, why are there so many people here in this small good for nothing town?¡± The man who was grunting¡­ was none other than Hoonie. ¡°I was told that there was definitely a temple of the God Kades in here¡­¡± There wasn¡¯t any other reason for Hoonie to appear in this small town aside from that. Hoonie was currently looking for Kades the God of Darkness¡¯ shrine, which was near the Keaton Manor. Since the religion that the Lotus chose for their state was ¡®Mares¡¯, Elijah Kingdom had no other option but to take ¡®Kades¡¯ as the religion for their state. This was Hoonie¡¯s first time to visit the city, and he was very intrigued about why the city was so busy that it took him almost 20 minutes to find the Shrine of Kades. * * * Krrrrng- kung-! The sound of the temple¡¯s huge door echoed throughout the temple as it closed. Purple flames lined up on the dark walls of the temple at the same time. Inside the dark temple was a shrine for Kades¡ªthe God of Darkness. The lights that were on either side of the walls were bright enough to only lit what was ahead. Thud- thud-! Hoonie¡¯s footsteps were the only sound that could be heard in the middle of the quiet temple. A black shadow suddenly appeared in front of Hoonie. ¡°Why are you here?¡± The voice sounded dismal and bitter. However, Hoonie wasn¡¯t scared, not even a bit. Rather, he answered the dreary voice with a cheeky tone. ¡°I want to see the God of Darkness, Kades.¡± The dreary voice didn¡¯t answer back right away. The reason why was because the shadow was flustered at how cheeky Hoonie was. ¡°Uhm, you too are a kid of darkness like me. The purpose¡­¡± Hoonie cut off what the dreary voice was saying. ¡°Keuk, I¡¯m the great Monarch of Darkness. I am the successor of the Immortal, and I have no obligation of any sort to only talk to a priest¡± Since he met this NPC a lot of times before, Hoonie knew well about how its AI worked and stopped it in advance. There was nothing wrong with what Hoonie was doing, which was why the NPC just nodded while touching its forehead. ¡°Ha, you sure are. I¡¯ll take you up. Come this way please.¡± Kades¡¯ priest guided Hoonie further into the temple. Hoonie then saw a dark altar with huge purple flames. Hoonie mumbled to himself after seeing the purple flame around the altar, ¡®Hmm, it¡¯s been a while since I last visited Kades¡¯ temple. I just want Kades¡¯ help¡­¡¯ Hoonie arrived at the altar. He took out the Book of Darkness from his inventory and handed it to the priest. The Book of Darkness was a basic item that users needed to sacrifice if they wanted to see Kades. ¡°Give me a moment, Lord of Dark.¡± Hoonie nodded and responded. ¡°I have something very important to talk about with Lord Kades.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± Kwark- Hwakr-! The priest unfolded the Book of Darkness that he received from Hoonie and began to wave his hand over it. Something unknown appeared behind the priest. The purple flames roared and became larger as it sucked this unknown thing into the altar. After a while, grey smoke began to rise from the altar. The smoke started to turn darker while it slowly took shape. A man with a sacred cape and was twice Hoonie¡¯s height appeared. Hoonie immediately recognized the man and decided to talk first, ¡°It has been a while, Mr. Kades.¡± Kades saw Hoonie and laughed. He then gave Hoonie his greetings, ¡°It has been a while, mischievous kid. You were just a dark man, the other day¡­ You have taken the power of the immortal, use it well.¡± Kades spoke with a stern tone. Hoonie shook his head since he felt that Kades was not being friendly today. ¡®What? That is definitely not a friendly reaction¡­ but not hostile though?¡¯ The reason why Hoonie met with Kades was simple. It was because of a sentence he read in the quest related to ¡®Richie King Chalian¡¯. It hinted the Chalian¡¯s ambition to go against the will of the five Gods who defended the harmony and balance of the human world. Kades too was one of those five gods, and that meant that he too wouldn¡¯t be on Chalian¡¯s side. Hoonie, who had the power of the Immortal, was standing in Chalian¡¯s way. If Hoonie¡¯s assumptions were right, then Kades should be welcoming him with open arms. However, Kades seemed to be acting the opposite of what Hoonie expected. When Hoonie took a quest from Kades the other day, he was surely friendly to him. ¡®Something is surely wrong.¡¯ However, Hoonie had no reason to fear Kades. Even though Kades was powerful, he couldn¡¯t exert any direct influence over the human world. Which meant that ¡®Kades¡¯ was a God that shouldn¡¯t be feared. So Hoonie decided to speak confidently to him. Kades then spoke, ¡°Huhu, what about you? You decided to come to this place after a lot of searching¡­ it means that you need to know something of dire importance.¡± Hoonie respond, ¡°Of course, there are important things I need to know.¡± ¡°What are those?¡± Hoonie answered him very straightforwardly. ¡°I need your strength Kades.¡± Kades¡¯ eyes slightly went big. ¡°My strength¡­? The Monarch of Darkness needs my help¡­?¡± Hoonie looked straight into Kades¡¯ eyes. ¡°There are a few who want to destroy the harmony and balance of the human world, and my strength alone isn¡¯t enough to defeat them.¡± Kades¡¯ eyes changed as he heard what Hoonie said. ¡°This is interesting, the balance and harmony of the dimensional world¡­ who is it?¡± Kades asked with a smirk on his face. Hoonie then spoke with a resolute voice upon seeing the smirk on Kades¡¯ face, ¡°The one who wanted to destroy the order of the world is Richie King Chalian.¡± CH 390 ¡°Oh oh¡­! Sir! One more user had been added to the new content¡¯s quests! Please come over quickly!¡± ¡°Oh, really? Who is it? Is this the third one?¡± Inside the Planning Team 3¡¯s monitoring room. Na Ji-chan, who was promoted to a supervisor, was an indispensable member of all the planning teams. Every time they encountered a problem, he made sure to solve it using ingenious methods, which was why he was a key member of all the planning teams. Yoon Ji-young was a new employee who became a huge admirer of Na Ji-chan. ¡®I¡¯ll definitely have a super-fast promotion if I stick with you sir¡­!¡¯ Yoon Ji-young began to explain the situation as soon as Na Ji-chan entered the room. ¡°Look at Sector C Screen 17, sir. That woman, Levya the priest class ranker. Do you see it, sir?¡± ¡°Oh ho, yeah. If this is so¡­ then Ian, Hoonie and the one after them is?¡± ¡°It looks like that sir.¡± While looking at the screen that Yoon Ji-young was pointing at, Na Ji-chan couldn¡¯t help but feel happy. ¡®The new content¡ªThe Underworld¡ªis finally going to open.¡¯ Till now, the Kailan planning team had been working so hard every time whenever Ian step foot into new content. He always moved in a direction that the team would least expect, even to contents which weren¡¯t fully ready. ¡®It¡¯s nice that rankers are the ones to open it. I¡¯ll have to move faster. I have been holding this off for almost a year.¡¯ The Underworld was upon the ranked users. It was going almost 90% in the way the planning team was expecting. Ian getting a clue from Gripper to go to the Underworld was a special case scenario which they hadn¡¯t foreseen, but they weren¡¯t so thrown off by it. ¡°Huhu, everyone will be in trouble this time.¡± Yoon Ji-young who was right next to Na Ji-chan was confused. She then asked, ¡°Trouble? Are you saying that the rankers will have a hard time entering the Underworld?¡± Na Ji-chan nodded. ¡°Right. Not considering all the other things for once, the Richie King Chalian is too strong right now.¡± ¡°Oh! However, if the rankers are all gathered and if the Lotus Guild mobilized a Guild Raid, then wouldn¡¯t that be enough to catch him?¡± ¡°You think so?¡± Yoon Ji-young responded while nodding his head. ¡°Yes, sir. Until now, whenever ranked users joined forces, they have been able to take down boss monsters which were over 100 levels higher than them. The top-ranked users have already climbed to level 350. Even if it is a little tough if they decide to put in their all, won¡¯t they be able to catch a boss monster that¡¯s level 500?¡± It was a reasonable assumption. However, Na Ji-chan shook his head in response. ¡°If the ¡®Richie King Chalian¡¯ is just a level 500 boss monster, then that¡¯s possible. But Chalian isn¡¯t a boss monster who can be judged just by his level alone.¡± ¡°Sorry¡­?¡± ¡°Hehe, you should be. I can¡¯t let you know more since the system isn¡¯t done yet, but¡­¡± Na Ji-chan looked over at the screen. On the screen was a beautiful woman that reminded him of a pure angel with elegant white wings. ¡®If the rankers rush to the Richie King, they will be massacred. No matter how great Ian¡¯s control is, it will be impossible to do it.¡¯ Na Ji-chan grinned. ¡®In Kailan¡¯s world and environment. The most perfect content¡ªUnderworld¡ªhas opened up. This is going to be better than the Dimensional War with the Devildom.¡¯ * * * The vast land of the human dimension where the users were currently playing the game was divided into the northern and southern continent. The Malacca Continent¡ªthe northern side¡ªwhich wasn¡¯t fully explored or exploited yet, and the Colonial Continent in the South, which had been the major site for users since the beginning of Kailan. The southern continent was divided into three parts. A huge desert that occupied the center of the continent. The place many referred to as the ¡®Central Continent¡¯ was in the middle of the east and west of the southern continent. In the early days, the central continent was a place which no one approached. But now that the central continent was fully explored, the mystery that shrouded the Colonial Continent disappeared. There were still some unknown lands though. One of them was a place in the north which was in between the northern continent and the central continent¡ªMalacca. It was an area that was marked on the world map, but there was no known point of entry there. A place still under the veil. Heavy footsteps could be heard in this wild wasteland which was different from a desert where no user had ever set foot. ¡°This is utter hell¡­¡± In a pure white dress with silver embroidery. A priest class user, with a high leveled gear, was climbing a steep mountain trail. She was none other than Levya. Right next to her was a man, who was in heavy metal armor, walking beside her. On the armor was a luxurious design engraved in a gold pattern, a contrast to what the woman was wearing. He was an unofficial ranker of the Knight class. The two people, with ten retainer NPCs behind them, were moving ahead. ¡°We¡¯re going all over the place. Is this really the right place Levya?¡± Levya nodded in response to what Romur said and replied, ¡°Of course. We will see the temple of the goddess Ernesis a little further ahead.¡± ¡°When this quest is over, will you help me out with my quest?¡± ¡°Okay, you just asked me that a while back you know? Have you ever seen me not keep my promise?¡± The two bickered while they climbed the mountain and defeat the enemies that came before them. The level of the monsters in the mountain was almost level 400. However, since all of them were undead monsters, it was an easy opponent for the priest class user Levya. Her main weapon¡ªthe skills which used the divine series¡ªgave hellish damage to the undead. Kukung- kung-! A pure white light fell to the ground that turned level 415 Skull Gargoyles into ash. Romur laughed and collected the items that were dropped by the gargoyles. ¡°Keu, this is the experience we get for killing them? Levya, can we not go hunting anymore?¡± ¡°Shut up, Romur.¡± Levya kept looking around after she dismissed what Romur said. According to the coordinates, they should be near where the temple of Ernesis was located. While looking around, Leviya¡¯s eyes suddenly went big. ¡°Romur! Come this way!¡± Levya began to move at a high speed while floating in the air. Anyone who saw how fast she was moving would think that she was a magician. Levya was a priest class user, flying magic wasn¡¯t something that a priest could learn. It was merely a ¡®high-speed flight¡¯, a unique ability of Levya¡¯s boots. ¡°Ah! Let¡¯s go together, Levya!¡± Romur was grunting while trying to catch up to Levya. They were getting closer to the place that Levya saw. A huge grey temple appeared in front of them. The temple¡¯s color was supposed to be white, but one could wonder why such a light was radiating from it. Levya, who was in the front, took something out. It was a jewel with a whitish aura that would remind one of a diamond. ¡°Goddess Ernesis¡­¡± The voice of Levya rang with a low tone. The light from the jewel started to burn bright the very next moment. Woong- Wooong-! The light was spreading everywhere and was sucked into the top of the temple; a white figure appeared at the same time. The white figure was so pure that it looked like snow appeared in the middle of a desert! Levya and Romur watched the spirit that came up. Hweeing-! A refreshing breeze started to blow out of nowhere in the forsaken desert and began to circle around the temple of the goddess. A calm and warm breeze¡ªWind¡¯s Beauty¡ªwhich wasn¡¯t suitable for a desolate environment. The white light on the temple came down right in front of Levya. A heavenly woman walked right out of it out. Her identity¡­ ¡°The Goddess of light, Ernesis.¡± Levya looked at her for a moment and gently bowed her head as a sign of respect. A small smile made its way onto the lips of the goddess. The goddess then spoke, [My child. You¡¯ve come all this way to see me.] The goddess¡¯ voice was as beautiful as her, like an oak on a silver tray. Levya who was admiring her beauty tried to snap out of it. She then opened her lips to answer the goddess. No, she tried to talk. But unfortunately, the system AI took over her character. Being in control of the AI, Levya was now on the ground bending her knee as she began to address Ernesis. ¡°Yes, Lady Ernesis. It took me so long, but I finally found you.¡± Romur was just listening to the conversation that was happening between those two. [You have done commendable work, and I thank you for finding my temple that was buried in this desolate place.] ¡°Not at all, Lady Ernesis. I did what any of your children would do.¡± [Good work, my child. Though I wouldn¡¯t prefer it, it feels like the power of darkness has been taking over.] Hweeing-! A warm breeze blew in once again around the temple. However, this time it was moving slowly around Ernesis¡¯ shrine. It began to touch the earth along with a warm light. The desert changed and flowers started to bloom wherever the wind touches. It was a truly spectacular sight. Suddenly¡­ Levya heard a familiar sound. Tring -! [The Goddess of Light, Ernesis has been found for the first time.] [Fame has been increased by 300,000.] [Divine power increased by 50,000 points, permanently.] [The title ¡®Representative of the Goddess¡¯ has been acquired.] System messages came up in front of Levya! However, the messages didn¡¯t end there. Once the personal messages were done, the world messages came up. [The Goddess of Light¡ªErnesis¡ªgave her blessing.] [The Ulphir Plateau, that has been sealed with the energy of darkness will now begin to gain back its life.] [A new God has come to defend the human world.] [Once the Goddess Ernesis regains her strength, the ¡°Ernesis Religion¡± will be made available as a Kingdom¡¯s state¡¯s religion.] [Somewhere in Colonial Continent, a light dragon has been born.] Ernesis then said after the messages stopped popping up. [Levya, my child.] ¡°Yes, Goddess.¡± [Beyond Ulphir Plateau, powerful dark energy has been conceived on the land of the dead.] ¡°I understand, Goddess. Which is why I would like to borrow the power of the goddess. Give me the strength to overcome the seeds of darkness that will bring down the order and balance of the human world¡­¡± Both Ernesis and Levya¡¯s gaze met. After a while, the goddess red lips opened. [I will give you my rings. With the power of light, defeat the Richie King Chalian and let me regain my strength that is currently sealed.] Behind Levya, who was still on the ground, a white light began to shine. Levya stood up and wings started to sprout from her back. A line of system message emerged in front of Levya. Tring-! [¡®Elimination of the Richie King Chalian¡¯ quest has been created.] CH 391 [Good Morning, Hains of YTBC is presenting the Kailan for the evening news.] [This is Lucia.] [Lucia, what news has been coming in for today?] [We have a lot of exciting topics for today, but the first thing that I would like to talk about is the Hidden Episode.] [If it is about the Hidden Episode, are you talking about the ¡®Episode of Darkness¡¯ that was invoked for all the users who were level 200 in the human world?] [Yes, right on point. Almost everyone will know about the LB¡¯s ¡®Scenario watching mode¡¯ which had been introduced for the first time by the LB, but now the armies of darkness are beginning to emerge from around the continent. And many high-level users are forming a party against the dark corps.] [That is so true. These armies of Darkness, what are the approximate level that they are composed of?] [The level of the Undead seem to begin from 200 and move to the high level of 300, but it has been said to depend on the area that they appear.] [Is it possible for you to explain it a bit more?] [Definitely. Generally, the level of the Undead that appears on the open field is as low as 200, and the level of the Undead in certain dungeons or the instant fields are generally high.] In the second grade of the Virtual Reality classroom at the Korean University¡­ In front of the TV that was on the corner of the classroom, the YTBC Kailan channel was being played which had a number of people gathered together. Among those group was Semi, Young-hoon, and Minsu, who were included in the semester classes. ¡°yah, Semi-ah. Is it possible for you to tell me when the door opens¡­?¡± At the question from Young-hoon, Semi responded swiftly, ¡°As soon as the door opens! That door has already opened, and in the classes where there is no ¡®class¡¯, I have no intention of seeing the news!¡± ¡°I can see it because it is the game news. When the professor comes in¡­¡± ¡°When the professor comes in? Will you watch it along with the professor?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Semi and Young-Hoon were bickering. But Minsu, who had fixed his gaze on the screen, told them to get off. ¡°You¡¯re so noisy. Is that so important that you have to talk about it now?¡± Young-hoon just rolled his eyes. ¡°Well, you always watch this news and the videos so much. If you used this time maybe you would¡¯ve raised the level, maybe around 300 too.¡± ¡°Shut up¡­!¡± In that moment of outburst. When the news started to air once again, the noisy people had suddenly turned quiet. All the other students who were busy doing their own things in the classroom came together to see it. [And Heins, there is a really special scoop waiting for today.] [Oh oh! You sure always keep something up your sleeve¡­!] [Yes, well. Lucia has worked very hard and got an interview with the party that had found the fifth catacomb!] [Wow, that¡¯s so great! A party that has found the fifth catacomb?] [As many of the viewers might have guessed, the fifth catacomb has been discovered by the expedition of the Titan Guild, in that place around ten Death Knights were keeping guard of it.] [Oh oh! That¡¯s really amazing. It was a hot news that still hasn¡¯t been revealed in the official community yet!] [But Heins, I still haven¡¯t recovered from the shock.] [Why? Don¡¯t tell me, you have another bigger scoop?] [Yes! Richie King Chalian¡¯s pieces of soul have been found, but not in the catacombs but on the general open field!] Minsu who watched the TV was taking a deep breath when he spoke something, ¡°OH¡­? The soul fragments of Chalian have come out into the fields?¡± Young-hoon who was right next to him spoke to him. ¡°Oh sh*t, well. If that really is true¡­ then shouldn¡¯t we also try to use this?¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°The catacombs are surely crowded, at least our party can try for the field. Even if we manage to find just one piece of the Chalian¡¯s soul fragment, we can get 100 million contributions¡­!¡± As the scenario of the ¡°Episode of Darkness¡± has been activated, all the human users above the level of 200 can receive any scenario related quest. And each time a quest was performed to a scenario-related quest, the users¡¯ contribution to the scenario would increase. And with the accumulation of the contribution can be exchanged for goods, titles or items in a store. For example, a legendary equipment box that would present the bought user a random equipment could be purchased by paying 200,000 of contribution points. However, the quest ¡®Destroying the Soul Fragment of Chalian¡¯ gave a million contributions, so it was natural for the users to turn their heads to that side. ¡°Then, what Young-hoon said is a bit true. The contribution that we got so far is around 70,000 after yesterday¡¯s task¡­ if we just find one fragment, it will take over fifteen days right?¡± ¡°Yeah, well it is still worth the try.¡± While all the people in the classroom were talking to the others, the screen in the room changed. The video of a Kailan play was being broadcasted. And the video was followed by the voice of Lucia from the TV. [Hayasis highlands has the death knights and the other legions of darkness! Let¡¯s look at the video that Lucia had tried very hard to present.] The attention of the students was completely focused on the TV that was broadcasting the video. However, the very next moment, a voice came out of the mouth of Semi, ¡°That is Ian¡­!¡± Both Young-hoon and Minsu couldn¡¯t help but feel annoyed at that name. ¡°Kya, it¡¯s Ian god once again.¡± ¡°Keu, right. I am really curious about something here, how much contribution do you think a user like Ian got?¡± ¡°Well, can¡¯t be sure, but don¡¯t you think he would have gathered around 5 million?¡± ¡°Hey, that can¡¯t be. Even if all the soul fragments were found, Ian wouldn¡¯t have less than 10 million¡­¡± Semi nodded and added, ¡°Right, 5 million. What? It¡¯ll probably be in tens of millions.¡± ¡°Phew. I feel so jealous.¡± There were two students who were talking o the other. But right then. ¡°By the way Young-hoon-ah. You see, Ian¡­¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you think that he resembles Jinsung senior? I couldn¡¯t make it out because of the hairstyle, but when you compare with the picture of Ian that runs on the internet with, doesn¡¯t Jinsung senior look like him?¡± However, the answer for Minsu came out from another source which wasn¡¯t Young-hoon. ¡°Eh¡­?! Minsu, don¡¯t even spout those stuff for fun.¡± ¡°Why?! That¡¯s a good thing. The crazy data that Jinsung senior has given us last semester also explains that he could be Ian. Besides, it has been said too many times that Ian is a student of our institute.¡± However, Semi shook her head and dismissed every single word. ¡°Ah, whatever! That can never happen! No way!¡± And seeing Semi almost burning hot with anger, Young-hoon couldn¡¯t help but laugh. ¡°yah, are you saying that after knowing that Semi is a die-hard fan of Ian?¡± ¡°Why, what does that have to do with this?¡± ¡°What does it have to do with this?!¡± Youg-hoon¡¯s lips went up, ¡°You just broke of the fantasy that Semi had till now.¡± ¡°¡­¡± * * * ¡°Remir noona! Shield please!¡± ¡°Kay!¡± Hwoong-! A red-colored shield was created around Ian who was on top of Halli. The shied look like lava was flowing. Ian, who had a shield of flames around him because of Remir, ran towards the boss monster in the field. An Undead monster that looked a lot like the Death Knight. However, the boss monster with a whole different level of power than the normal death knight was wielding the sword with a lot of power right in front of Ian. [Arrogant human¡­!] Kakang-! Ian¡¯s judgment of the Spirit King and the great words of the Knights¡¯ Order were intertwined, causing weird sounds on the ground. Kku-kkkukkk-! Every time the two weapons came in contact, flames sprang up from them due to the effect of the flame barrier. The effect of the flame barrier was to absorb 10% of the damage, as well as during the time of its duration. Therefore, in order to maximize the effectiveness of the Flame Barrier, it was completely important to prevent the attacks from the enemy. If the dodge was successful, then the damage absorbed will be around 30-90%, and with the Flame Barrier, a minimum of 10% of additional damage will be absorbed. So, in fact, the Flame Barrier was the most preferred support technique for the Flame using Knight classes. In the case of the Knights class, if they use the shield to block an attack, then it would absorb 80-90% of the damage. So, if one was able to utilize the shield effectively, it was possible to prevent 100% of the damage by the effect of the Flame Barrier. Surely, without using the shield, it was possible to dodge around 80% of the monstrous damage that comes in succession. Kkang-! It was then based on Ian¡¯s performance now if he was able to minimize the impact. Without receiving any damage, Ian would be able to defeat the Death Knight. Right then¡­ [With the power of the Lord¡­!] The death Knight began to cast out a spell with a low voice and raised his sword in the air. Right then, something began to come out of the sword he was holding to¡ªfrom the great sword, the energy of darkness was released! Ian who noticed it moved back in the speed of light and swapped his equipment. To be precise, rather than the swap, it was an ¡®add-on¡¯. He grabbed the Judgment of Spirit King in his right hand, and in the left was the shield that was made from the shell of Bbookbbook. With a defensive posture, Ian signaled Yu Shin, who was fighting the Undead on his right side. ¡°Yu Shin! Now!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± All of a sudden a golden light broke out from the hands of Yu Shin and wrapped around the members of the party. Because a decent amount of 15% of the vitality of the caster was regenerated, it was a skill that was one of the most favorites of Yu Shin. ¡°Nice¡­!¡± Ian¡¯s sharp eyes headed to the sword of the knight that was gathering energy. It was the ultimate move of the Knights, a multi-level sword that gave out strong attack factor. The casting for the paralyzing sword was 15 seconds. However, it was a tricky skill that couldn¡¯t get canceled while casting¡ªeven if attacked by the enemy, the caster turns invincible for the casting time. But the way to deal with it was simple. Dodge or get attacked. One needs to survive just one strike of the paralyzing sword. After using the skill, he would turn completely defenseless for the following 10 seconds. But if one couldn¡¯t get the target under the 10 seconds, then the vitality of the target will rise, but Ian¡¯s party didn¡¯t have to worry about it. The Lotus Guild, which was not just Remir and Ian, had many numbers of top damage dealers in it. If they managed to deal some damage for 10 seconds, it was safe to say that, the target had a very little chance of surviving. ¡®This time will be the end¡­!¡¯ Ian took the shield of the dragon and lifted his defense to the maximum. The very moment, Kukung- Kukung-! The lonely grounds began to vibrate with huge sounds. ¡°This is the start!¡± From the sword that the Knight was holding, all the energy moved to the tip of the sword and sprang up. CH 392 ¡°Phew, is this the fifth fragment of the soul?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ I guess so. Our party has been attacked five times. In the whole server, it seems like it was around 13-15th.¡± A golden flag with an image of a Griffin embroidered, the symbol of the Lotus Guild. Three people of men and women were under a conversation. Ian and Herz along with Fiolan. They have already been chasing after the single traces of Chalian for around a week. ¡°Fiolan, have you got no information from the other guilds or parties about Chalian?¡± ¡°Yes, we haven¡¯t got any.¡± ¡°What about Helliem?¡± ¡°That too¡­¡± Honestly, the quest is given by Louisie ¡®Elimination of the Chalian¡¯s Soul¡¯, which was a very beneficial one. He was letting go of the other things, to get a huge contribution. Although it differed a lot based on the level of difficulty and the individual participating, the quest for destroying the Chalian¡¯s Soul gave an average of 1 million contribution points. Ian participated in all five parties and was able to record a very high contribution, he nearly had 7 million till the moment. Once he was able to collect the contribution, he could exchange it for a ¡®myth class equipment box¡¯, which needed a huge amount of contribution. However, Ian was frustrated. ¡®The contribution is good, but I just want to make some progress, that would be nice¡­¡¯ There were two goals that Ian had to reach for the quest of Louisie. Firstly, he had to find a clue about the whereabouts of Chalian. And secondly, to go and find Helliem who was somewhere trapped by the minions of Chalian. However, there was no progress with both of them, and it felt more frustrating that he had a huge contribution. Ian once again asked Herz, ¡°Louisie, didn¡¯t give out any other quests?¡± ¡°Huh, nope. It was still the same; continue to destroy the soul fragments and rescue the empire hostages.¡± At the answer from Herz, Ian couldn¡¯t help but frown. ¡°Hmm¡­ there is no progress.¡± Herz just responded to him. ¡°But we have no other way. In the middle of the catacombs, you won¡¯t be able to see anything else unless we continue to chase after the souls of Chalian, right?¡± Ian nodded and responded, ¡°Yeah. That¡¯s right. Even then, it¡¯s so irritating. For the sake of the Episode to progress, there needs to be a clue¡­¡± Fiolan entered the conversation. ¡°Well, how does it sound to take off the quest slowly, just until you fill out the ten million points?¡± ¡°Yeah. Fiolan is right. Let¡¯s gather it and look at the myth class equipment box, and think about the other things later.¡± Ian just scratched his head. ¡°Sh*t. In other words, there isn¡¯t another way?¡± ¡°Yes. There is no need to do it. So don¡¯t rush.¡± ¡°Well okay. Should I look at the list of the next party?¡± The three people talked for a while and made an outline of the guild party schedules in the future. The name of the party was; ¡°Party that Destroys the Soul Fragments of Chalian.¡± But the Lotus Guild members were simply referring to the party as ¡®Soul-destroying party¡¯. There was a reason for it to be called that way, but the party schedule had a closer reference to it when compared with the soul-destroying. The Lotus Guild was continuing to rotate a 20 person pool-party, who barely had any time to rest. There weren¡¯t many users who could keep up with the hard schedules, and all the members were on rotation except for Ian and Yu Shin. [Ian: the 5th party schedule was just over, guys. Who is going to apply for the 6th one?] The moment Ian¡¯s texts went up, the chats began to go wild. [Liu: Oh-oh! It¡¯s Ian!] [Kim Go-su: Oh sh*t! Ian is in the chat!] [Kaies: Ian!! Are you going to chat again next month?! Please do this often!!!] After the proclamation of the kingdom and the merge of the Fullios guild, the size of the Lotus Guild had gotten very huge. The number of the guild members had currently been around 500. Even then, there were people who didn¡¯t see Ian. Ian rarely appeared in the chat window, and he didn¡¯t show up in the parties of the guild. Even if there was a guild chat, Ian mostly used the chat window that was created separately for the head of the group. Which was why, with just a single message from Ian, the chat was going wild. [Clloban: Kay, everyone clam down. And stop chatting for a moment. First, we need to get the one who is ready for the Soul Destruction party.] [Fiolan: Yes, everyone. Please let us know if there is anyone who wants to join the party! This location is a less difficult one, so we¡¯ll take those of level 300 or higher. For the Priest class, it is open to those from the level of 250!] [Carwin: Scary, that Soul Destruction Party. It¡¯s a bloody thing.] [Ricky: I agree, that is a scary party. Was it three times last week? It was like following the death experience one time after the other.] Ian just said a word and went off again, eventually, it was Fiolan and Clloban who had to take the control, and soon the 6th party was filled. Everyone knew how scary the party was, but the contribution they got was so great to let go. Right when the members of the party were about to be formed. A commotion rose once again, making the chat a mess once again. [Leeruk: Herz, Fiolan! Just a moment ago the Kailan caf¨¦ (official caf¨¦) got shut down!] [Fiolan: What? What could be so huge?] [Leeruk: A New raid boss was created in the Shikar desert! The name of the boss is Monarch of the Army. A level 450 and a myth class?] [Herz: Hell, really? Crazy! A raid boss of a 450 level?] [Leeruk: Yes. Besides, right before this bastard, the Chalian one was seen to be there. It was said that there were a few level 200 users in there and he swept them all off to go up the north.] [Carwin: OMG, a myth ranking raid, isn¡¯t this the first time?] [Ricky: Mmm? Wasn¡¯t the Marion Khalifa that we faced in the dimensional war a myth?] [Carwin: Right. But it wasn¡¯t a raid monster. Khalifa was the scenario monster.] [Ricky: Oh, that¡¯s right.] In the Kailan, the ¡®Boss Monsters¡¯ were classified into three concepts. 1. The common boss monsters that every user wanted to catch. 2. Even with the same level, there are those which are stronger than the normal bosses and had tremendous vitality. There is also a raid boss monster with the ability to drop the same type of items like the boss, regardless of the contribution. 3. Finally, a feel similar to the raid boss, but much more powerful, and the item acquisition method was similar to that of the normal boss monster. The Marion Khalifa and Richie King Chalian were the third categories of the boss scenario, and all the other boss monster that Ian had hunted were mostly of the first one. Ian had been in the second boss raid hunt, it was a real excruciating one. So when he looked at the chat window, he couldn¡¯t help but frown. ¡°Ah, why does it have to be a raid boss?¡± It wasn¡¯t that Ian couldn¡¯t catch any raid boss because he didn¡¯t find one. He just plainly hated the participation in the raid, regardless of what the contribution was, as they would be given it equally, which Ian didn¡¯t like. It was better to go against a raid boss in an instant dungeon with a small party; but this time¡ªas the raid boss had made an appearance, he was going to sit it out. The Raid Boss was a content that was made to block the rankers¡¯ monstrosity, and it wasn¡¯t something that Ian preferred. But this time it was different. It was obvious that he could get a clue about Chalian through this raid. Fiolan asked Ian. ¡°What do you propose we should do, Ian? Don¡¯t you think we should cancel the 6th party and go to the raid?¡± Ian couldn¡¯t help but grumble. ¡°Uh, I hate the raid so much. But maybe something good will come out of it¡­¡± Herz couldn¡¯t help but grin while talking, ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s a myth class one. Don¡¯t you think it is better than the myth class equipment box?¡± ¡°With a probability of 0.1% of getting a myth class equipment. Wake up from the dream!¡± ¡°Bastard, even then¡­ It can! Will you go or not?¡± There was silence for a while. Ian just sighed. ¡°I have to go, there is nothing I can do. I don¡¯t expect a myth item, but maybe a lead to Chalian could be found from there, which is why I feel like the raid needs to be taken this time.¡± * * * ¡°Huhu, you¡¯ve done well. Wait a moment.¡± In the temple of Kades, the God of Darkness. Kades and Hoonie were talking to the each other in front of the altar. ¡°I understand, Lord Kades.¡± Hoonie who had taken the materials from Kades nodded and stepped back. And a system message came up to inform the completion of the quest. Tring-! [You have successfully completed the quest ¡®God of Darkness, Kades Request II¡¯.] [Earned the fame of 20,000.] A fame reward for a request quest. But, as it was a linked quest which wasn¡¯t much difficult. Hoonie just waited. ¡®Hmmm, why do I have to be the one to collect the request quest?¡¯ Kades request I and II quest, which Hoonie had proceeded to collect miscellaneous items which can be easily obtained in the hunting grounds of level 300, both times. ¡®I¡¯ll have to make something out of it¡­¡¯ Hoonie started to think as he was waiting for Kades who just disappeared. And the evolution of the quest wasn¡¯t something that could be predicted at all. However, he wanted to use the linked quest as much as he could. And there were no quests that so boring and annoying as these quests. After a moment, Kades who disappeared came back. Kades went close to Hoonie and handed him pale purple beads. ¡°Come on, take them.¡± Hoonie accepted the beads while Kades spoke, ¡°The ball is made to control the power of Darkness.¡± Hoonie checked the information of the beads right away. It was because the beads were literally for the power of darkness, with that being the very little information. To summarize, ¡®Kades¡¯ Beads¡¯ were a miscellaneous item. Hoonie couldn¡¯t help but ask him, ¡°What am I supposed to do with the bead?¡± Kades lip corners went up slightly giving of darkness. While he slowly opened his mouth, ¡°In the Southeast side of the Northern continent. To the south of the Malacca continent, which is connected to the Colonial region,..¡± Kades who was excited lifted his hands to the air. A dark smoke came out of his hands and a silvery picture began to be drawn in the air. The picture of a map. A detailed map of the region in an instant. A spot in the corner of the map began to flash with a purple dot. Kades continued to speak, ¡°There is a rocky mountain called the Lugaric mountain.¡± ¡°Lugaric¡­ mountain¡­?¡± The name ¡®Lugaric¡¯ was something that Hoonie had surely heard, and he was definite of it. ¡®But it wasn¡¯t a name of a field or the dungeon.¡¯ And the curious question of Hoonie suddenly was answered, as the information continued from Kades. ¡°On top of the Lugaric mountain, my child is asleep.¡± ¡°It is the child of Kades¡­.¡± ¡°The Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix. That is the place where he is.¡± ¡°Ah¡­!¡± Hoonie¡¯s eyes went wide with the information. The Dragon of Darkness Lugarix, there was no way Hoonie didn¡¯t know about it. Hoonie had a quest from Lugarix at the time of the Dimensional War. ¡®I thought that I¡¯ve heard that name somewhere¡­¡¯ He was trying to pull out the information that he had in his mind, while Kades continued, ¡°Take this bead and go to the layer of Lugarix. My child will wake up.¡± Hoonie asked something he was curious about. ¡°What next?¡± ¡°Then my child will help you.¡± ¡°He will help me¡­?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Kades black eyes looked at Hoonie for a moment. And words came out once again, ¡°Richie King Chalian. Don¡¯t you want to stop his ambition which is to destroy the harmony and balance of the dimensional system?¡± Right in front of Hoonie¡¯s eyes, a quest had come up. Tring-! ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C The God Darkness, Kades Request III (Hidden) (Connected) ¨C You have talked with Kades about the ambition of Richie King and asked for help. However, Kades is a god who can¡¯t directly perform tasks in the human world. Which is why he is willing to provide you with someone to help on his behalf. Kades has handed you the bead that he has made from the darkness. And the beads will allow you to stimulate and awaken the sleeping dragon ¡®Lugarix¡¯. Kades is giving you these beads of darkness, hoping that you will wake Lugarix. Once Lugarix is up, he will help you on behalf of Kades. Quest Difficulty: A Quest Condition: Warlock of 350 or higher. A user who has succeeded in the ability of the Immortal. Time Limit: None Reward ¨C Unknown * If the quest has been failed, the quest ¡®Kades Conspiracy Theory¡¯ will appear. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Hoonie who read the quest window at the speed of lightning began to contemplate. While he read the last line of the quest, he began to make a wicked smile. ¡®Kades conspiracy¡­ Keuk sounds interesting¡­!¡¯ CH 393 Hoonie had never doubted Kades, ever since the first time he saw him. But as the quest was progressing, he couldn¡¯t help but feel that something felt off. He wasn¡¯t so sure about it, but it started to feel like Kades had some unknown hostility towards Immortal, which was Hoonie¡¯s identity. That was why Hoonie couldn¡¯t help but ponder about the quests he had done so far. Daedmon¡¯s Quest, a quest he did alongside Ian in the past. It came to his mind that he was the one who released Richie King Chalian, who was sealed in the Tower of the Commander. The Daedmon¡¯s quest was a quest which was like a ¡®deal¡¯ between the two¡ªKades and Daedmon. ¡®It was because of Kades that the Seal of Chalian had been released, which is why he couldn¡¯t help but feel like I¡¯m one of his enemies.¡¯ As far as he was concerned, Hoonie had no choice but to complete the quest that Kades had given him. However, he couldn¡¯t help but feel astonished with Kailan¡¯s AI. Kailan¡¯s NPCs knew what the users were thinking, and it then gave them quests accordingly. Hoonie just decided to go through the quest with conviction, and it was a really huge task for him. ¡®Let¡¯s see then¡­ why Kades has ordered the awakening of the Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix?¡¯ Other than the God¡¯s Dragon¡ªKarceus¡ªthat Ian had, all the other dragons of the Gods were in deep sleep after the Dimensional War. However, Kades had given Hoonie the quest to wake one of his sleeping dragon¡ªLugarix. Kades told something about Lugarix helping him stop Chalian¡¯s ambition. However, as soon as Hoonie noticed the dark aura around Kades, it was obvious that it was a lie. ¡®Do you need my help in bringing out Lugarix? Or are you trying to take down the users who are trying to stop Chalian¡¯s ambition rather than being on our side?¡¯ If so, then could Hoonie be able to take advantage of Kades¡¯ dark energy? Hoonie once again checked the information of the ¡®Beads of Kades¡¯ which he received from the God of Darkness. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Beads of Kades ¨C Classification- Miscellaneous Grade- Legend The God of Darkness¡ªKades¡ªcreated the beads by using his own power. When these are used in the presence of the power of dark, some of his power will be passed as a command to his subjects. ¨C One-time use item. ¨C Item isn¡¯t available to users. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¡°The ¡®Command of Kades¡¯ is passed hu¡­¡± Hoonie¡¯s head was spinning with all of this information he just read. ¡®As soon as I take these beads to the Dragon, the command of Kades will be passed onto the Dragon, and that would put the command into action. Doing that would probably help out Chalian.¡¯ Obviously, the first thing that Hoonie needed to do was to make sure that the beads wouldn¡¯t be passed on to the Lugarix at all cost. However, in order to reverse the situation¡­ ¡®Will I be able to wake the Lugarix in some other way and make it my ally?¡¯ The Dragon of Darkness was the representative of the God of Darkness as of the moment. It was the same with the messenger of God who did things according to God¡¯s will in place of God himself, who couldn¡¯t have direct involvement with the human world. However, Hoonie who had the power of the Immortal knew one thing for sure. ¡®In the past, Lugarix helped the Immortal build the Empire of Darkness.¡¯ He learned about that after inheriting the Immortal¡¯s power the other day. Maybe that was made possible because during that time Kades and the Immortal had friendly ties. It was certain that the Immortal and Lugarix wouldn¡¯t be hostile with each other. Hoonie who was in deep thought just shook the thought out of his head. Hoonie had one person in his mind. ¡®Well, Let¡¯s ask Lilson for once.¡¯ A user of the Lotus Guild¡ªLilson¡ªalways shined at the top of the explorer rankings. Which was why Hoonie believed that he would have many ancient documents and would have an answer about the Lugarix situation. Hoonie believed that Lilson knew what the situation was between the Immortal and the Dark Dragon. Maybe he could find it out from the old books and figure out something. Hoonie began to pick up his pace. There was no time limit in seeking out Lugarix, but he only had 60 days for the quest¡ªMonarch of the Command¡ªand defeat Chalian. It had been 15 days already so Hoonie had no more time to waste. Hoonie instantly opened the chat window and sent a message to Lilson. [Hoonie: Lilson hyung, where are you?] * * * ¡°Oh, that person?¡± ¡°Huh? Have you seen someone?¡± ¡°Levya. That sure is Levya!¡± ¡°Oh¡­? Really?¡± Ian¡¯s party and Herz went to the central continent to participate in the ¡®Monarch of the Army raid.¡¯ Herz saw Levya while they were moving towards the location of the canyon where the Raid boss was said to have appeared. If they could get the 1st ranked Priest class, then their party would have an easy time dealing with the boss. ¡°Wow, it¡¯s been a while since I saw Levya.¡± ¡°I know, right. By the way, what are those wings on Levya¡¯s back? They are so beautiful!¡± ¡°OMG! Is that a limited edition costume? I¡¯ve never heard of such a thing.¡± While Ian¡¯s party members were busy chatting with each other, Levya¡¯s party noticed Ian¡¯s party as well. Levya who saw them approached Ian with a smile. ¡°It¡¯s been so long, Ian. How have you been?¡± Ian nodded and spoke with a very low voice, ¡°Well, I¡¯m doing fine as always.¡± Ian who noticed Levya¡¯s party talked once again, ¡°Levya, are you also going to the Raid Boss¡­?¡± Levya nodded and responded, ¡°Yeah. I¡¯m going to the raid, but I have another reason for going there.¡± Ian was now curious about what she had said. ¡°Another reason? What¡¯s that?¡± Levya responded to him earnestly, ¡°I need to go to the main point of the Monarch of the Army and open the magic tower that Richie King Chalian is in.¡± Ian¡¯s eyes grew bigger upon hearing what Levya said. * * * [My greetings to all the viewers! This is YTBC reporter, Hyun Min.] At the chicken joint right behind the University of Korea. It was only 4:30 pm, but there were a lot of customers there already to the point where no more seats were available. Even though it was a weekend, the place was quite different than usual. The owner of the joint along with the part-timers was frying the chickens. ¡°Yu Jin-ah fry the chicken quick! What are you doing over there! There is no time to sit around! Go to the window table and get their orders!¡± It wasn¡¯t just the busy kitchen, the crowd in the joint was noisy as well. It was a mental turmoil. However, there was one thing the customers there had in common. All of their eyes were glued on the huge TV that was mounted on the wall. ¡°This is the first time for a myth to appear and that surely is a monster.¡± ¡°Right. Did you see the article about the level 320 Knight?¡± ¡°Yeah. I saw it. I was outta my mind. The cooldown of that Knight¡¯s skills was short, and he could get out with just one shot from a non-targeted skill.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not even sure how a knight can do that, but that sh*t is amazing.¡± All the attention of the customers at the chicken joint was on Kailan and on the Raid Boss. ¡°Uh, Maybe I shouldn¡¯t have come here to eat chicken. I should¡¯ve gone there to help.¡± ¡°I get what you¡¯re saying, but what can a guy not even reaching level 200 do to help. It¡¯ll be a while before you can even reach Ulphir.¡± ¡°But even so¡­ The monsters that are appearing in the north and central region are all level 300¡­¡± The customers who couldn¡¯t keep their eyes off the TV were constantly bickering, while the reporter on the TV continued to explain the situation. There was a small screen at the corner of the TV where Heins and the reporter were at. [Everyone, can you see that? That is the level 450 myth class Raid boss! Heins could be please explain this monster in detail for those who are able to clearly see the Raid boss?] [Definitely, Hyun Min. I¡¯ll explain it very concisely. If you compare it to a boss monster that appears in a regular dungeon, you can see that this Raid Boss clearly surpasses a level 500 normal raid monster.] [Wow, that Raid Boss seems to be really strong.] [Yes, that¡¯s right. According to my calculations, the best way to go at that Raid Boss is to have all the rankers of the human¡¯s side go against it all at once. However, it¡¯s still not guaranteed that they will defeat that Raid Boss even if they did that.] [Their win is still not guaranteed even to that extent? But did the rankers come to such a place just to capture a normal raid monster¡­] All the audience who were watching the screen shook their head and talked among themselves. ¡°Rather than going for a raid like this, I think they could gain more by hunting on the newly found dungeons.¡± ¡°Well, the Raid Boss could have been caught if it had a realistic level, why the hell did LB company bring that monster in?¡± ¡°The Northern Continent is too peaceful to put a level 400 monster in. Won¡¯t it take more than a week just to catch it?¡± ¡°I will be glad if they can do it in a week.¡± What the customers were saying was right. The many users that were on the screen were in fact not able to even put a scratch on the Monarch of the Army Raid Boss. The users who were level 300 and above tried to put in some damage effectively, but their damage was so low that it couldn¡¯t even be seen decreasing the boss monster¡¯s vitality. The Monarch of the Army was currently slaughtering many users with overwhelming power. [Kyaaaa-! You thoughtless humans, I will take away your souls and make them part of my army!] Kung- Kukung-! Every time the Monarch of the Army swung his ax, numerous users were being thrown away, and numerous undead were being summoned every time a purple glow left his hand. He was like a boss monster that was part Warlock and part Death Knight. [For the Richie King Chalian!] [For the Empire of Darkness!] Even the undead monsters that he created were strong. Even normal rank skeletons were close to level 350. Moreover, a level 400 Death Knight was being summoned occasionally as well, and that alone had enough power to be considered as a boss. ¡°Ahhh! It¡¯s so hard to raise a weapon there.¡± ¡°Right. Contributions will be awarded to users even if they died, but what¡¯s happening now is just a massacre.¡± ¡°Hahahaha, it¡¯s good that I came here for chicken, after all. Your exp level would¡¯ve gone down if you go there.¡± The guests were tongue-tied and decided to just have their chicken. Nevertheless, the battle was so captivating that all their attention were still on the TV. Hyorin was trying to explain the system in a pessimistic manner when her tone of voice suddenly started to rise. [Camera! Camera! Put it over there!] [Why Miss Hyorin?] [The rankers have made an appearance at the gate! Fast!] As per Hyorin¡¯s instructions, the camera was quickly pointed at Ulphir plateau¡¯s gate. Heins and Hyorin then said with an excited voice, [There is a Warrior user who just entered! It¡¯s Shakran! That¡¯s definitely him!] [There¡¯s Remir at the back! Oh! Roy Chen, the Guild Master of the Valiant Guild is there too!] [Oh, what would happen now that these guys are here? It¡¯s tough to tell the viewers what¡¯s going to happen since there are more than ten rankers who have appeared here!] It didn¡¯t end there though. A dazzling group made its appearance, and the customers at the chicken joint cheered at the same time. ¡°Ian! Ian!¡± ¡°Levya is there too!¡± ¡°That is the Lotus Guild¡­!¡± CH 394 Specifically for special circumstances such as a large-scale war, Kailan¡¯s party system could have a maximum of 20 members. The same goes with boss raids. As far as the rewards from a boss raid were concerned, being in a party wasn¡¯t that necessary. The Raid Boss gave out very low experience points, and even its item drops weren¡¯t similar to the number of players participating. Of course, if one belonged to the same team, they would move in a systematic manner and perform more skillfully. In the end, all of them were a team. Which was why the users who were watching the boss raid were thrilled. Honestly, users were thrilled because most of the ranked players from the human world participated in the raid. ¨C This is crazy awesome. Isn¡¯t this the first time since the Dimensional War? ¨C I think so. It was supposed to be a broadcast of the level 450 raid boss, but this is an unexpected turn of events. ¨C Kya, the day I get to see the duo of Shakran and Ian¡­! Really happy. ¨C Me too¡­ who knew the day Shakran and Ian teaming up is upon us. It wasn¡¯t just the netizens, but the users who were on the scene were confused as well. It was an incredibly powerful boss, and for these rankers to all come as if they promised each other that they would meet up. ¡°Shakran! Throw a sign for me once the raid is over!¡± ¡°Ian! Won¡¯t it be nice if you do it instead?! Let¡¯s party up!¡± The rankers were happily checking up on each other when suddenly¡­ The Monarch of the Army roared which made the atmosphere of the battlefield feel tense. [All of you! I¡¯ll kill every single one of you!] A powerful and intimidating roar reverberated throughout the land. Ian thought to himself after seeing the Monarch of the Army who was under the protection of his Undead Corps. ¡®Huh, can I use God¡¯s Rage here¡­!¡¯ Ian thought about the myth class equipment¡ªGod¡¯s Rage¡ªwhich had been sleeping in his inventory for a long time. God¡¯s Rage was Ian¡¯s second myth class weapon. He couldn¡¯t use the weapon yet since he hadn¡¯t met the condition of being a Noblesse yet. In fact, Ian had been trying to become a Noblesse already. However, in order to become a Noblesse class, he had to meet with the Devil King which he hadn¡¯t done yet. Ian visited Liliana in the past, but he didn¡¯t have the time now to return to her city. ¡®Well, it¡¯s so upsetting that I can¡¯t use it yet.¡¯ Ian climbed on Halli¡¯s back as usual while giving Karceus and Bbookbbook instructions. ¡°Be watchful when using Breath. Stand back¡± ¡°Okay, Bbook!¡± ¡°Understood, master.¡± Until they could find out the skills and attack pattern of the raid boss, it was a good idea to just stay back for now as their skills had a long cooldown time. ¡°Levya, you wouldn¡¯t mind being in the defense right?¡± ¡°Not at all, Ian.¡± Right beside Levya was the Knight class user¡ªRomur. ¡°You want us to hold our positions?¡± Ian nodded and responded, ¡°Yes, Romur. Let¡¯s observe things first for now.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± Levya waved her hands in the air once each person¡¯s role was determined. ¡°May the Light fall upon the battlefield.¡± Shwoong-! Then, through the dark clouds in the sky, numerous rays of light penetrated into the battlefield and fell on the users. [You have received the Light for 15 minutes.] [Maximum vitality increased by 10%.] [Defense increased by 5%.] [While the light is on you, it will absorb 3% of the damage a user receives.] The users who received the buff became really happy upon receiving it. ¡°What? Is this a fraudulent buff skill?¡± ¡°Was there a skill like this in the Priest¡¯s skill list?¡± ¡°Wow¡­ well, a first-place ranker is surely on a different level.¡± Users were admiring the amazing buff effect they just got. However, it didn¡¯t end there. Levya who just triggered the buff flew into the air. Flap-! The white wings on her back began to light up while raising them high. Ian who saw it was lost in his thoughts. ¡®What kind of item is that? Is that some kind of a cloak item.¡¯ If users could fly freely through the air, their chances of making an impact on the battlefield were tremendous. Of course, it was possible to fly using a pet that had the flight skill, like Karceus that Ian had. However, it was different if a user could fly by themselves. Ian took out the Judgment of the Spirit King. He then grunted as he ran towards the Undead legion with Halli. ¡®Oh, Where the hell did that Hoonie go? It would have been a lot easier if the Hargasus was summoned.¡¯ The Fusion skill of the Dark Summoner could only be activated when the contractor¡ªHoonie¡ªwas present. Among them were the Hargasus¡¯ ability to fly and descend, and that made Hoonie¡¯s absence more upsetting to Ian. * * * ¡°Oh ho, so you want to find the old document about Lugarix, the Dragon of Darkness.¡± ¡°Huh. I would like to see the documents of Kades and the Immortal as well as Lugarix. Somehow I need to make the dragon choose my side.¡± Hoonie told Lilson the whole story about the quest, its progress, and the plot of Kades. Lilson¡ªa Lotus Guild member¡ªdidn¡¯t have much information to share to Hoonie. Lilson was amazed by the story that Hoonie just told him. ¡°Wow¡­ NPCs are trying to scam users now?¡± ¡°I know right. Was he even conscious of it? I almost followed the game without thinking too much about it. Hyung, you should be careful too.¡± Lilson touched his forehead and said, ¡°Yeah. I need to be careful too. I haven¡¯t received such a fake quest yet¡­¡± Lilson began to search through his inventory. ¡°Wait a minute. I¡¯ll take a look at my inventory. There¡¯s certainly some books or artifacts related to this quest of yours.¡± ¡°Okay, please help me out hyung.¡± As Lilson searched through his inventory, items started to pop out of it. Tok- totok- tok- [A record of the war of the Ancients and Asmodians.] [The Holy Dream and the Holy Grail¡¯s secret.] [The destruction of the Arnovel Empire and the birth of the Kaimon Empire.] (Syncopation) As Hoonie was checking the information of the ancient books that came out from Lilson¡¯s inventory, his gaze became fixated on one title. ¡®Kailan¡¯s 17 Gods and 13 Devil Gods¡­ huh?¡¯ Hoonie was a user who played the game with utmost seriousness. The word ¡®serious¡¯ meant that he was very different from casual users. He tried to be fully aware of the worldview and the situation that was happening in the game while he was playing. For example, behaving and speaking the same as a real warlock. Which was why many think of him as a real warlock. Hoonie had a better understanding of Kailan¡¯s worldview than anyone else. Casual users didn¡¯t take a good look at the cinematic images on the official homepage of Kailan, but Hoonie paid close attention to them. However, seeing the title 13 Devil God¡¯s was a first even for Hoonie. ¡®This looks interesting.¡¯ Hoonie asked Lilson who was still searching through his inventory very intently without even paying a bit of attention to Hoonie, ¡°Lilson hyung, can I read this book?¡± Lilson nodded without even looking at Hoonie. ¡°Cool. I¡¯ll keep looking for books that will be handy for me.¡± Hoonie picked up the book the moment Lilson agreed to lend it to him. He was very curious about the 13 Devil God¡¯s and felt that he could find some clues in the book. Hoonie could feel his heart beating stronger as he looked at the old and thick cover of the book. In the very first chapter, there was a line written in gold that didn¡¯t match the book¡¯s yellow paper. It was a phrase that appeared in the cinematic video that was screened for the first character that was created for Kailan. [At the beginning of Kailan, there were a total of 17 Gods with different powers.] * * * The power of the Gods came from believers. In short, as believers worshipped the Gods, their powers became stronger. So, could it be said that if there were no believers, the Gods would lose their powers? That wasn¡¯t it. Whether the believers exists or not, the inherent power of the Gods that had been there since the beginning would always be powerful. The Gods had always been competing amongst themselves because the order of the Gods was decided based on the power they possessed. The Gods who were powerful enough to be embodied in the dimensional world were given that position. The harmony of the dimensional world and to protect its balance. If the Gods got blinded by greed and neglected their responsibility, then the humans would stop worshipping them, and their powers would become weak. Hoonie kept reading the book with the utmost concentration. ¡°That is why there are only five gods in the Dimensional War.¡± A part of Hoonie was always curious about stuff. It was evident that there were 17 Gods who defended the human world when they first encountered the game, but most of the NPCs in the human¡¯s dimension only knew the existence of five Gods. The Gods that had once appeared in the Human World had always been the five Gods. Those things had always seemed strange to Hoonie, and he knew why now. In addition, he now knew the reason why Kades was acting that way towards him. ¡®Kades wants to raise his influence by helping out Richie.¡¯ Once Richie King set up the Empire of Darkness, Kades¡¯ power would surely get stronger. The God that followed the dead and the God of Darkness. One of the questions that had been bugging Hoonie was answered. However, that didn¡¯t make Hoonie stop reading the book. There was still a lot of interesting topics left that Hoonie would surely love to find out. ¡®The relationship between the Dragon of God and God. I need to find out about it.¡¯ Hoonie who normally hated reading books was now reading one with a lot of enthusiasm. Hoonie came across something that caught his attention. He found the chapter that he was looking for. [Messenger of God, and their activities.] Hoonie began to read the phrase quickly. Hoonie couldn¡¯t read the book properly since there was a lot of parts that were torn off, yet his concentration was higher than ever. Hoonie then found a few interesting facts. [Colonial, year 3950.] [The terrifying army of the Asmodians has invaded the continent.] [They were cruel and powerful.] [The human army lacked the power to stop the evil Asmodians, and many people died in their hands.] [One day, however, the invincible Kaizer appeared.] [He was courageous and mighty, and his great sword destroyed many Asmodians and magical beasts.] [He was the messenger of Mares¡ªthe God of War.] Hoonie laughed. It was because he knew about it in the past dimensional war. However, his fascination turned into frustration the very next moment. The truth about Kaizer¡¯s memories disappearing, yet still managing to keep his relationships. ¡°Shit.¡± Hoonie once again looked at the book. He found something interesting again. He read the record he found with much anticipation. [Colonial, 2547.] [There was a terrible plague throughout the Empire.] [Many people cried in pain, and the children with weak constitution died helplessly.] [One day, however, the saint Ernasa appeared.] [The saint blessed the light on the people with infectious diseases.] [She was the messenger of the Goddess of Light¡ªErnesis.] ¡°The God of Light, Ernesis¡­?¡± This was the first time Hoonie heard about this God, and it made him confused. ¡®Are there more than five gods that created reality? Then why aren¡¯t we seeing them now? Could it be that they lost their power?¡¯ Hoonie continued to turn the pages of the book passionately. He soon found the information he was looking for the most. Thanks to that, he was able to recall a video that he had forgotten. CH 395 The atmosphere was too familiar¡­ Within the darkness that represented the God of Darkness Kades in his temple. Inside, was a creature in the darkness a sacred dragon, and two men in that gloomy atmosphere. Hoonie knew both of them very well. A conversation between Kades and Immortal. ¡°Immortal, the help of Lugarix is needed.¡± A man in black robes with grey hair, Kades. Opened his mouth, and Immortal who was on one knee bowed his head and responded, ¡°There is a reason, God of Darkness¡± At the answer, Kades turned his gaze with a nod. The direction he had turned was a huge black Dragon, Lugarix. ¡°Lugarix, you will do well, right?¡± Lugarix bowed its head. ¡°Of course, master. I¡¯ll never let you down.¡± A memory swept through the mind of Hoonie. An episode video that was made at the time of the Dimensional War, that was what Hoonie had just recalled. At that, he watched the video with a lot of excitement, but as time went on, he began to forget about it. ¡°Right, that is it¡­!¡± At the scream that he wasn¡¯t aware of Lilson who was busy doing his thing couldn¡¯t help but look at Hoonie. ¡°What? Don¡¯t like reading a book?¡± Hoonie realizing what he had done, responded to him, ¡°Ah, I was lost in thoughts hyung. Hyung are you done with your work?¡± Lilson shook his head. ¡°No no. Not even close to it. Wait a little more while reading that book.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± Replying to him, Hoonie closed his eyes. There was one more clue he had received. ¡®Well, there is one thing that is clear. At least the two of them weren¡¯t in bad terms right from the beginning.¡¯ The Dimensional war that Hoonie was in was just a year ago, but the Dimensional war that had appeared in the video was over a thousand years back. Even if there was some kind of conflict with the Immortal, but the current situation had nothing to do with. But, another puzzle was scrambled inside Hoonie¡¯s head. ¡®And Immortal didn¡¯t show up from the Dimensional War. Although I am the descendant of Immortal, I have no idea as to why he didn¡¯t show up at that time.¡¯ Immortal was healthy. Hoonie had ¡®challenged¡¯ the power of Immortal at the time, and the Immortal ¡®recognized¡¯ the power that Hoonie had. And Immortal went off without giving any information. And Immortal didn¡¯t even bother giving out another new quest for Ian! ¡®Maybe Immortal isn¡¯t able to get out of the tower? Maybe some unheard reason?¡¯ Immortal and Kades. In between them, something definitely had happened. In the last millennium, there was no way he could have known what had happened. Hoonie was convinced there was some ¡®scenario¡¯ that was surely there, which would be the key to his situation. And he was feeling something about the Monarch of darkness. ¡®Nice, let¡¯s try once¡­?¡¯ The eyes of Hoonie lifted up slightly. And he saw a phrase that answered all the questions that he had been having. [The abandoned Monarch of Darkness is at the bottom of the Empire.] * * * Warlock, Death Knight. And Undead. Against all the dark attributes, Ian would be able to exert his powerful combat skills. It was because of the existence of Ian¡¯s slave, Kaka, who was also a dark creature that could go against the dark. But right next to Ian, was a person who massacred the darkness to such an extent that he thought that his future was colorless, Levya. Every time that woman activated her skill, even the undead of level 400 disappeared like ashes. ¡°In the name of the Goddess of Light, Enrnesis¡­!¡± Levya flew to the sky opening her wings wide. Her eyes were closed and her hands were gathering the energy. It was because all the dark attribute monsters in the vicinity of Levya just turned up dead with that attack. [Keuk, Ernesis¡¯s power, how did it get here¡­?!] The Undead of the darkness was unable to cope with the light, and the ones which came in contact with the light emitted from Levya, they just fell down dead. It was a sight that couldn¡¯t be called anything less than spectacular. ¡°This¡­ if this goes on, won¡¯t it be much easier than expected?¡± For the Undead who were being born crazily, Levya too was pouring out light crazily to wipe them off. Ian looked over at the wings and thought something to himself. He realized that the fraudulent skill was all because of the wings. ¡®Is it something for a temporary quest type? But it is very unlikely for the LB to offer such a thing.¡¯ And for Ian, he just wanted to use the situation to his best. Unfortunately, even the light energy of Levya didn¡¯t manage to cause huge damage to the ¡®Commander of the Army¡¯, but the turn of Ian and the other rankers had come. Chuchuk- chuchuk-! As if it was planned in advance, all the rankers jumped to the front line. Ian who saw Shakran, jumped a step ahead than him on the other side, smiled and greeted him, ¡°Uncle, been long huh?¡± ¡°Shut up, bastard.¡± With the smallest greetings, Shakran moved his feet quickly. The very next moment, Shakran¡¯s new model began to stain with blood. In a moment, even the shadow of Shakran was bloody. In a moment the sword split into ten divisions. Ian who had seen that mumbled to himself. ¡®Uncle, seems like you have got yourself a freak. How tremendous¡­?¡¯ Ian had become stronger, and he was still striving to be much stronger. But the other rankers weren¡¯t just having fun during the past either. No, they were turning strong enough to the extent that Ian¡¯s strength could be threatened. Ian could feel his heart pounding. ¡®Shakran, Remir, Levya¡­ and Yu Shin.¡¯ Starting from the acquaintances, there were so many rankers that couldn¡¯t be listed. The sight of those dozen rankers running ahead at the same time with an enormous thudding sound made everyone¡¯s mouths open. Kung- Kung- Kung-! The whole land was shaking, creating an enormous effect. It couldn¡¯t be helped, but as noticed, the vitality of the Raid Boss hadn¡¯t shrunk to a little bit. However, the Monarch of the Army was standing still. [You worms¡­!] The angry legion of the boss all began to swing their weapons. Kwang-kwkwang-! While some knight class users bounced backward. Moreover, the users who haven¡¯t been able to cope with the rush just died right there. They were all dead with a single general attack. A word came out of somebody¡¯s mouth, it was grumbling of excitement. ¡°Wow, what kind of a normal attack is that?!¡± The vitality of the users with the shield was being cut down to half. The 450 level Raid Boss was showing tremendous power. But that didn¡¯t end. The Monarch of the Army who was swinging his ax bounced off to the knights and raised his ax once again to attack. At the end of the black ax, a purple light began to flow. ¡°Wait for the range! Avoid it!!¡± With the cries of someone, the users began to move out. Despite the warning, however, there were a few users who didn¡¯t leave the range of the battlefield. And the one who was in front was Herz, who raised the shield and placed his legs backward. A defensive posture to absorb the incoming impact. The defensive skill of the Knights class top tier ¡®Divine Barrier¡¯ had unfolded. Woo Woong-! The Divine Barrier was an advanced Knight Class skill that was designed to optimize and block the range attacks, and also absorbs the damage exactly at the point where the ranged attacker triggers it. However, the ability ¡®Divine Barrier¡¯ doesn¡¯t show extreme damage absorptions. Therefore, Herz¡¯s judgment might seem very reckless at first thought. ¨C Sh*t, he¡¯s crazy! ¨C No matter how great the number one ranker is, what¡¯s the point if he dies!? But the very moment. Shortly before the weapon of the Commander of the Army reached Herz, several layers of shields were simultaneously cast in front of Herz. The very moment, the wizard rankers and the priest class rankers cast their shields. Kwanng-! A huge crashing sound came from the shield of Herz, and Herz¡¯s body which was balancing itself on the back foot¡ªwas pushed back about 3 meters. The shield magic that was used in the right moment and the damage absorption skill of Herz¡¯s shield took most of the damage. Moreover, thanks to the ¡®Divine Barrier¡¯ the ranged attack was completely evaporated. And for the users who didn¡¯t know all the details, it was like Herz had single-handedly taken the attack, and the users couldn¡¯t help admiring him. It was because they could understand how deep the players had thought for the moment¡¯s execution. The chat window was scrolling with numerous comments. ¨C Wow, that¡¯s Herz? ¨C haha, Lotus Guild Master Herz. ¨C Keu, he such a daredevil. How could he stand there trusting the shields to come on? ¨C So are my words. Heh he! The shields didn¡¯t even come until the boss was going for the attack, but it was a treat to see. ¨C Believe, there is always a need to believe in the Guild members. Don¡¯t you see that the ones left behind are mostly of the Lotus Guild? ¨C Oh? Is that so? Keu¡­! The party of Lotus is so crazy. Herz was a high-level Knight class with a level above 330, but the Commander of the Army was a monster with a level of 450. And it wasn¡¯t just a normal boss, it was a raid boss monster that was able to handle the whole field. Even if the knight class ranker was guarded, when the skill of a 450 level raid boss comes in with correct precision, he would be forced to be out of the play. The shield that Herz put in play a moment back was the minimum what one could do to survive in the play, and the shield that Herz placed had a control of maximum absorption for any attack, plus the addition of three other shield magic. And if one didn¡¯t believe in their own skills and the skills of the guild, one could never be able to go past the impossible. The very moment, Herz who believed that his guild would hold him didn¡¯t fall back, and the guild who believed in Herz casted their shields. ¨C Well, rankers are surely different. If I was in the same position, I would¡¯ve avoided it. ¨C he he he, I agree. Herz of level over 300 should have been dead by the Raid Boss, but see where he is now? ¨C Herz sure is Herz, but not even a single ranker of the Lotus has been wiped out. If Herz couldn¡¯t have stopped it, he would have been the first to go. ¨C Keu, Has someone seen the shield on Herz? As the shield was placed, a blue wave spread across, did someone notice it? ¨C Uh, I saw it too. ¨C Huh? What was it? I know all the skills of the knights. ¨C That blue wave is an effect that appears when it has absorbed more than 90% of the damage. Even a novice user would be able to tell that¡­ ¨C Aha, I see. The viewers watching the channel were making breakless comments. But it wasn¡¯t just the viewers who were surprised. The rankers who were there on the battlefield were also extremely shocked with the team play of the Lotus Guild. ¡°Such a lucky lot, that Lotus! Nice to see some guts.¡± Ian who was next to Remir while she was admiring couldn¡¯t help but laugh. ¡°Is that so noona? Didn¡¯t you also think that Herz wouldn¡¯t fall after the attacks?¡± ¡°Sure I didn¡¯t. I have been in the party with you guys for once or twice, right?¡± Remir too believed that Herz would be able to block the attack, and was getting ready to cast an attack spell for the moment. Controlling his familiars, Ian asked Remir for something. ¡°So, come into our Guild from now on. You hunt with us so often, why not just come into the guild?¡± ¡°That, that¡­! Because I like being alone!¡± Remir couldn¡¯t help herself as she was a bit nervous of her performance when compared to Hoonie or Yu Shin of the Guild. And while the two of them were bickering, the attack spell of Remir was cast, and a red light blew to the front. Below the Commander of the Army¡¯s neck, a red circle had formed. And someone has noticed it. ¡°Meteor!¡± Remir shouted in the battlefield. ¡°The boss can¡¯t move, so get on your feet!¡± When the meteor circle was summoned, exactly ten seconds later, a huge meteor falls on the spot. The meteor skill was a difficult one to use properly as it takes a lot of time to cast. A shining red sphere started to head rapidly towards the spot. CH 396 Woong-! The black staff in the hand of Hoonie was vibrating vigorously. The next thing was smoke that was flowing out of the one end of the staff. The black smoke that came out from the staff was dancing along with the movements of Hoonie¡¯s hands, forming a kind of serpentine pattern and then slowly disappearing. Lilson who had seen that was curious of it. ¡°Wow, what is that? How did you do that? So Interesting. Can a warlock do everything?¡± Lilson¡¯s eyes were wide open and his words were coming out nonstop. Hoonie smiled and shook his wand. It was because of the teamkill that Ian did, that he had got a weapon from the myth box. It was a staff from the box. ¡°Only with this staff, I can do it, Hyung. This is a myth rank weapon.¡± Lilson¡¯s lips pouted while listening to that. ¡°You did good! Ahhh, I wonder when I¡¯ll get a myth rank weapon. Even, Ian¡¯s weapon is a myth rank, that flashing lightning thing?¡± ¡°Won¡¯t it be¡­?¡± At the curiosity of Lilson, Hoonie just responded normally without any excitement. And soon, with an upset face, he sat down on the chair. Lilson who noticed it laughed and talked to him. ¡°You were all excited when you wanted to find things, but why are you suddenly feeling down?¡± Lilson decided to sit down on the other end of Hoonie. Hoonie pouted while replying, ¡°What¡¯s the use of finding it. When it can¡¯t be read?¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°Hyung, look at this book once.¡± Hoonie softly threw the book towards Lilson and caught it with a panicked look. And after opening the book, Lilson asked him with a frown, ¡°What is wrong? I don¡¯t find anything wrong with the book.¡± Hoonie who was hanging down his neck spoke, ¡°The next chapter. Turn over the pages.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Maybe it is sealed or something, I cant turn over after that. If you try to open, then only strange patterns of snake shine.¡± Lilson did as Hoonie had asked. And the page didn¡¯t go over, however, the mentioned snake patterns were engraved on the underside with a purple light. The pattern that Hoonie had been drawing with the staff a little while back. Lilson mumbled out of curiosity, ¡°The abandoned Empire of Darkness and below the earth¡­ this part won¡¯t open?¡± Hoonie nodded his head. ¡°Huh. I wasn¡¯t able to open that part of the text as the condition wasn¡¯t met.¡± ¡°Keuk, this really something. Something that would make even listening to the title makes you want-to-know-the-story kinda interesting.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I meant.¡± Lilson laughed at Hoonie who was upset and asked him something, ¡°Then, should I try reading the other things first?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Something other than this book.¡± ¡°Oh, is the classification all done?¡± Instead of answering Hoonie¡¯s question. Lilson got up and spread his hands. ¡°Voila, the books are all here. All the things that you have mentioned. So don¡¯t let them spread all out and try to get your needed things.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± There were countless books in front of Hoonie¡¯s eyes. Hoonie didn¡¯t even know how he was supposed to respond to the piled up old archives in front of him. ¡°These, these are all relics?¡± Lilson nodded with a chuckle. ¡°You don¡¯t think so?¡± No matter how exciting the Kailan was for Hoonie, these were a lot of books, especially for the one who hates them. ¡°Haaaa¡­ how can¡­¡± He was as shocked as the time when he received a Penta S grade quest. Right then. System messages that Hoonie didn¡¯t even imagine started to appear in front of him. Tring-! [All conditions have been met and the story has been completed.] [Hidden Episode, ¡®The Secret History of Darkness I¡¯ has opened.] [This is a private episode, so only those who match the criteria will be able to view the episode.] The books that were in front of Hoonie, were now in the air. ¡°Oh, Oh oh¡­?¡± Flustered at what was happening, Hoonie took a step back. Before his body could react any further, darkness took over Hoonie. ¡°¡­?!¡± A new image began to emerge in front of the darkened vision of Hoonie. * * * Humans have been said to have an average life span of hundred years. However some of them, there were a few cases who have an abnormally long life span, or in some cases have an eternal life, one of which came from being the messenger of the God. When the call from the God is received for the matter of helping him, the constraints of life and death are lost. It was the messenger of the God who gets that eternal life for his life, unless the task was passed on to another or if retrieved back by the God. Then, how is one supposed to be the messenger of the God? For the above-mentioned thing to happen, there were two ways. To receive the God¡¯s favor, or to join the vocation of the existing messengers. And Immortal, who was the ¡®Messenger of God¡¯ was chosen by Kades, was the first one to ask for a pass at the call. To one of the seven warlock disciples that he had, ¡®the one who was the least talented¡¯. He was the youngest of the seven disciples of Immortal, ¡®Radeus¡¯. [Radeus, my student.] [Yes, teacher.] [I want to stop it now, and want to go back to the darkness.] [Teacher¡­!] [So, I hope that you take the call of this teacher and¡­ and do me a favor.] [What is the call, what is it?] [The God of Darkness, Kades, accept his proposal.] God¡¯s messengers aren¡¯t supposed to have excessive desire. As one is given immense power and a life without death by the God, the advantages are confused inevitably the moment his desire rises. Of course, it didn¡¯t mean that there should be no desire at all, but there needs to be a good line. So Immortal tried to give his calling to the most lacking and youngest of his disciples. Rough and pure. A child who wasn¡¯t even a little close to becoming a true warlock. Radeus refused to take it at first, but Immortal was the one who finally decided that he needs to give it. If he had chosen any of the other disciples who had a lot of desire, then what came next was an obvious thing. In the end, Radeus decided to accept the request from his teacher, and a new messenger of the God was born. The first disciple of Immortal, without any desires like ¡®Chalian¡¯. [How can teacher do this to me¡­?!] Chalian was learning the black magic from Immortal at a very young age, he was something like a son for him. He was a genius, and he was able to understand the teachings of Immortal faster than anyone else. As a matter of fact, Immortal treated that kid like a friend and pampered him a lot while raising. He always listened to what the teacher had to say and didn¡¯t do a task if he felt like he didn¡¯t like it. But that itself was the problem. Chalian began to grow greedy, and by the time Immortal had realized it, he was at a stage where he couldn¡¯t be brought back for his desires. Which was why he couldn¡¯t help but feel angry. At a teacher who hadn¡¯t choose him. That too, the youngest of all the disciples. [I will make sure that you regret not choosing me!] Chalian knew that his teacher was the Messenger of the God. He even knew that once a person turns to become the messenger of God, they began to turn powerful along with the eternal life, and thought that Chalian would be the one to be called on for the task. They were the things that were meant to happen. It was natural for those thoughts, as he had thought that the position was for himself. And the brilliant Chalian began to choose a taboo path. [If my teacher chooses to not give it to me, I will take it with my strength¡­!!!] Eternal life, and the mighty power that came all through the time. The manner on how it was supposed to be received, Chalian knew a thing about it. The existence of being in the middle point of life and death. Not a living being, nor a dead man. Just Richie. [Big hyung! That isn¡¯t all!] [Yea, yeah. No matter how angry you are, you shouldn¡¯t break the rule¡­! The Gods will get angry¡­!] [Shut up! I don¡¯t want to hear about it!] When a man dies, he dies. And in the process, he loses all the memories of his life. In short, the dead ones don¡¯t have the luxury or the pain of holding onto memories. But a Richie was someone who could still hold onto the memory even after death. It was an existence that one stays in neither the dead or alive but can feel joy and anger. It was the Richie, a forbidden black magic created by the darkness of the person and chooses to place his soul in it, to enjoy the things that were given to a normal human. And being a genius, Chalian, knowing the teaching of Black magic, secretly became a Richie. He had sacrificed the youngest disciple of his teacher, Radeus who was supposed to attend the calling for his teacher had been turned into a vessel for his soul. In the end, he had become free from the circle of life and death with a ¡®shortcut¡¯. But being a Richie didn¡¯t solve everything. There was no way that the God of Darkness Kades didn¡¯t know about the natural order being broken, and he would surely try to correct it again. And at the peak of it, Chalian didn¡¯t know that he would die. However, Chalian didn¡¯t panic. He even predicted that to happen. [The God of Darkness that controls life and death should be turned to my side. And for that to happen¡­!] Chalian who had already gone past the boundaries was ready to do it once again without any hesitation. He turned his eyes towards another dimension. [Devil Gods, I¡¯ll ask for their help.] * * * Tring-! [Hidden Episode ¡®Secret History of Darkness I¡¯ has ended.] [Can¡¯t open the next episode as the conditions for the next episode haven¡¯t been met.] [If the following conditions are met, ¡®Secret History of Darkness II¡¯ episode will open.] The video ended there. The story had lasted for an hour, a story which didn¡¯t give the person a chance to think. Hoonie¡¯s sight once again turned back to normal, but Hoonie couldn¡¯t wipe the black expression of his face. It was because he had to rearrange the parts of the story into his mind. ¡®What, so according to the story, isn¡¯t Kades supposed to be on the side of Immortal?¡¯ At the end of the video, it was clear that Kades was angry at Chalian, who had broken the natural course of life. And Hoonie who was under the thought that Kades and Chalian were on the same side, couldn¡¯t help but feel lost. Because his base assumption was completely destroyed. Hoonie was staring at the sky but managed to ask Lilson, ¡°Hyung! Hyung did you see the video too?¡± Lilson nodded his head. ¡°Huh. I saw it too. Maybe because I¡¯m the owner of the books.¡± ¡°What situation¡­ can be an alternative?¡± Before confirming that images, Lilson and Hoonie only knew of an unsolved situation. And it was confusing. ¡°What to do? Something surely has happened. Let¡¯s think for a while.¡± Lilson and Hoonie who were both intrigued nodded and sat face to face. The both of them began to look back at the story that they had just seen and were trying to act like detectives who were trying to guess the case. But before the mystery was opened, within ten minutes from the start. Suddenly, Hoonie got up from his seat and clapped his hands. ¡°Ah! Right! That was it!¡± CH 397 ¨C What happened? Why did Ian stop moving! ¨C Oh, right! Is it some kind of glitch or something? Why did he stop attacking all of a sudden? ¨C Oh shit, hehe is it a bug? Is Ian being affected by a bug for the first time in Kailan? In the boss raid of the ¡®Monarch of the Army¡¯ in which an unusual number of rankers were taking part in, all the seasoned rankers did their best and managed to take down 10 percent of the Commander of the Army¡¯s vitality. It was unexpected for a lot of people since it would normally take around 30 to 40 minutes to finish a raid. Suddenly¡­ A situation that no one anticipated was taking place. Ian, who had the most influencing presence in the raid, had stopped moving at the spot where he was supposed to deal damage on the monster. Ian was experiencing lag. It wasn¡¯t just Ian, all of his familiars and retainers stopped along with him, which was why everyone knew that the situation was unusual. Right above Ian¡¯s head, the Monarch of the Army¡¯s Wave of Darkness was being set. ¡°No¡­!!¡± ¡°Why is he just standing still?!¡± ¡°All of a sudden?! Is it a bug?¡± Users¡¯ screams of panic could be heard everywhere because of the sudden turn of events. There would be a huge setback for the remaining parties in the raid if Ian died. Surely without Ian, the situation wouldn¡¯t be so bad, but it would make the raid much harder without him. However, the users¡¯ panic soon turned into wonder. Kwanng-! Ian¡¯s character stood there unscathed even as the dark energy had fallen on to the ground. Normally, his character should have emitted grey lights and be out of the game. All the users began to panic again because of what happened. ¡°Wha¡­ what?! What is that?!¡± ¡°What the f*ck? Does the Summoner class have such a skill?¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t seem like invincibility, is it just a bug?¡± Not just the users in the field, but the netizens were also confused. ¨C Guys, does that seem like a bug? ¨C It looks like it. This situation is definitely trippy. ¨C Right! Though Kailan is famous for not having bugs, I think what¡¯s happening is surely a bug. But then¡­ Someone said something interesting. ¨C It¡¯s not a bug. ¨C Eh? How do you know that? ¨C I just called the customer care center. ¨C Sh*t! Smart bastard! What did they say? ¨C Nothing much, just that it wasn¡¯t a bug. ¨C Hmm, what? It really isn¡¯t a bug? Hypotheses were pouring over. Speculations were being made about what was currently happening to Ian. It was a very confusing situation, but the rankers on the field were very quick to focus on the raid. Ian was powerful, but they were powerful users too. ¡°All of you! Focus! We can catch it without Ian!¡± ¡°Okay! That monster¡¯s vitality is almost at the bottom, we can finish it off even with gentle hits!¡± Rankers moved in and started to take Ian¡¯s vacant spot. They¡¯ve battled the Raid Boss for about 50 minutes. [Keuuu! You measly humans¡­!] The Monarch of the Army began to roar loudly and collapsed on the spot. Kung kung-kung-! As the Raid Boss fell on the floor, a huge sound echoed everywhere. System messages started to pour in for all those who participated in the raid. Tring-! [Successfully defeated the Raid Boss ¡®Monarch of the Army¡¯!] [Attained 46987030 experience points.] [Earned 1 million fame points.] [You will get rewards based on your contribution to the raid.] [Item ¡®Raid treasure chest¡¯ has been obtained.] While watching the boss fall down, all the users sighed in relief. ¡°Huh, it was really tough. It¡¯s like I had a bad day.¡± ¡°Keu, Shakran you have done well. It went down because of the damage you dealt in the end.¡± ¡°It was nothing.¡± ¡°Levya, you worked hard too. You really are the 1st ranked Priest class. That¡¯s some awesome support you did there.¡± All the rankers were having warm conversations with each other. When suddenly¡­ Herz who was confirming his reward looked over at the spot where Ian was still at. ¡°How long does that guy plan on standing there¡­?!¡± Herz wasn¡¯t able to complete his sentence. It was because Ian and his familiars who were standing still for almost an hour till the battle had ended suddenly disappeared. * * * ¡°Devil God Daedmon¡­! Why didn¡¯t I think of that?¡± Pieces of information that were in Hoonie¡¯s head were being pieced together one after the other forming the big picture, and there weren¡¯t that many pieces missing. The only piece of information he needed to know now was ¡®The relationship between the Devil God Daedmon and Richie King Chalian¡¯. ¡®Chalian must have done something with Daedmon. That made Kades change.¡¯ Everything would be clear once he found the last piece of this intricate puzzle. The New Episode was currently underway. The relationship of this three would be unraveled in this episode. After knowing the last piece of the puzzle, Hoonie would then figure out how to use the Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix. Hoonie was looking into his inventory. He was finding an item that he wanted to show to Lilson. ¡°Lilson hyung. Can you feel an item from the Devildom?¡± Lilson nodded in response to Hoonie¡¯s question. ¡°Well, that¡¯s possible. In some cases, I might need a few materials.¡± Hoonie took out the item¡ªDaedmon¡¯s Book¡ªand handed it to Lilson. It was an item that Hoonie had gotten in the past for completing the quest¡ªGod of Darkness, Kades Errand. The errand itself was to fulfill the ¡®Deal with Daedmon from the past¡¯, which was why he thought that the Daedmon¡¯s Book would give him a clue. Its item information was as follows¡­ ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Daedmon¡¯s Book ¨C Rank ¨C Legendary Classification ¨C Goods (Artifacts) It is an ancient book that contains the power of the Devil God, Daedmon and the God of Darkness, Kades. It contains the description of the two Gods¡¯ pledges, and clues about the former Hidden class, ¡®Wizards of Destruction¡¯ Item has been sealed. It is an item that can get a high-grade reward when offered at the altar of the Devil Gods. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C If Lilson would be able to unlock the seal on the ¡®Daedmon¡¯s Book¡¯, then Hoonie would know about the pledge between the two Gods. Lilson who had taken the item from Hoonie was amazed. ¡°Wow¡­ from where did you get this thing? No normal human user gets to see such a thing in this world¡­¡± Hoonie went straight to the point and said, ¡°I really had to work very hard to get that thing, so don¡¯t talk nonsense and get to opening the seal quickly.¡± ¡°Kay, wait a second.¡± Lilson began to use his Relic Appraising skill on the Book of Daedmon. A moment later, Lilson said, ¡°Well, it sure isn¡¯t something whose seal can be opened just yet.¡± ¡°Then? Does it need something?¡± ¡°Maybe, I don¡¯t really know. Maybe a magic stone or something. It would be better if you could get an intermediate or advanced level magic stone.¡± Hoonie lifted his head at those words. ¡°A magic stone? I think I have heard about that somewhere¡­¡± Lilson narrowed his eyes. ¡°Huh? Magic stones are used for alchemy. It is useless for anyone other than the ones who are in the production business.¡± ¡°No, I have surely heard of it hyung. That word¡­ I¡¯m very familiar with it¡­¡± It wasn¡¯t a very nice memory for some reason, but Hoonie tried a good deal to recollect it. Suddenly¡­ A man suddenly opened the door and entered the room. Hoonie realized now why the word magic stone felt so familiar after hearing this man¡¯s voice. ¡°Higher ranked magic stones? I¡¯ll give them to you.¡± * * * It was a mineral called ¡®magic stone¡¯. Hoonie remembered that he had dug so hard to get those stuff. However, he didn¡¯t get high ranked stones. ¡°Ian hyung¡­? Hyung how are you even here¡­?!¡± It was Ian who opened the door of the manor¡¯s room. Ian smiled at Hoonie and said, ¡°What do you mean how, idiot? Hyung has come to help you.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Hoonie¡¯s complexion darkened upon hearing Ian¡¯s words. ¡®This one time I wanted to do this alone¡­!¡¯ A Hidden Quest which had the main scenarios hidden. Just like the Dimensional War, if one could bring out the core quests, they would eventually become the protagonist of the scene. Like Ian who carried the humans to victory. Ian¡¯s power which was showcased in the Dimensional War was so overwhelming that no other rankers could be even compared to it. Hoonie wanted to be in that kind of situation as well. He wanted to become the protagonist of the current episode and become a hero to human users. It was a magnificent dream. However, when he saw Ian smiling in front of him, he felt like his dreams went crashing down in the dumps. ¡°What are you thinking so hard about?¡± Hoonie¡¯s hands were shaking, but he tried to calm his emotions down and replied, ¡°Nothing, Hyung. Then please give me the higher grade magic stones.¡± Ian laughed and picked up the stones from his inventory. Lilson who still didn¡¯t understand what was going on had a puzzled expression. ¡°Kay, Lilson hyung. Here is the stone.¡± ¡°Uh? Yeah.¡± Lilson took the stones with utmost seriousness. He placed it on the Book of Daedmon which he received from Hoonie. ¡°Ian¡­ Do you have more of those magic stones with you?¡± Ian nodded. ¡°You have a lot of intermediate leveled magic stones, but only three advanced level magic stones. Why? Well, I don¡¯t guarantee that we would be successful for the first time anyway.¡± Ian spoke in a low voice and said, ¡°Hyung, that is expensive.¡± ¡°I know.¡± ¡°That is why if we succeeded in the first try, I¡¯ll be charging you for the next one.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Lilson couldn¡¯t help but gulp down his saliva when he heard that. ¡®Oh, what is the price of these stones these days? Was it around 150,000 gold?¡¯ The thought of failing started to enter Lilson¡¯s mind while cold sweat ran off his back. Lilson began to concentrate on the magic stone and the Book of Daedmon. He swallowed his spit and calmly tried to invoke his Relic Appraisal Skill. CH 398 ¡®Secret History of Darkness¡¯, a story that Hoonie discovered because of Lilson. Same with the ¡®Hidden Episode¡¯, it needed a special qualification to view that episode. The Deal of the Devil God, Daedmon and the God of Darkness, Kades. This episode video was shared only to the users who had cleared the quest related to the deal. Except for Lilson who hadn¡¯t even cleared the quest related to it even though he owned one of the artifacts. So, how many people this episode video was shared to? It wasn¡¯t clear as to how many had cleared the quest, but it was clear that it wasn¡¯t just Hoonie since he cleared the quest along with Ian. Ian stared at Lilson who was examining the Book of Daedmon and chuckled. ¡®I was really nervous since I was summoned here from the middle of the raid, but this is so cool.¡¯ Ian suddenly stopped moving in the middle of the raid with the Commander of the Army. The reason for it was that he was viewing a shard episode video. Ian¡¯s character¡¯s time stopped, and it was linked with the episode of the Secret History of Darkness. Everyone assumed that what happened was caused by a bug or something. Ian was able to catch up with almost every scenario and carefully saw the episode video. That was why he had come to the area where Hoonie was at. ¡®Kay, how should we proceed now?¡¯ Ian looked at Lilson and Hoonie with an excited expression. From the Book of Daedmon which Lilson was holding, a bright light began to come out. Tring-! [You have succeeded in evaluating the ancient artifact ¡®Book of Daedmon¡¯, an item of the Devildom!] [Your explorer experience has increased by 54975800.] [The ¡®Relic Appraisal¡¯ skill experience increased by 915764.] [The level of the ¡®Relic Appraisal¡¯ skill increased from Master 3 to Master 4.] [You have succeeded in the appraisal of a legendary relic, earning you 100,000 worth of fame.] ¡°Done!¡± Lison threw a fist to the sky. In the past, Ian asked Lilson for the appraisal of a legendary relic. After taking more than a dozen stones, he was able to achieve it. Lilson¡¯s relic appraisal skill was at the Advanced 9 level at that time, which was now raised to the Master 3 level. He was ecstatic since he succeeded in Feeling an item in one try. Honestly, Lilson was prepared to fail for about two to five times. Ian was confident that Lilson would succeed with just using one out of the three advanced level magic stone. ¡°Keu, Are you seeing now who the 1st ranked Explorer class is?¡± Lilson¡¯s shoulder stood straight and had a very intense look. Before Lilson could even brag though, new system messages popped up in front of them. Tring-! [The item ¡®Book of Daedmon¡¯ has been unsealed.] [It is an ancient book written in the language of ancient magic.] [The content cannot be understood.] Hoonie looked at the message that came up and spoke with a ridiculing expression, ¡°Well, if it is unlocked, then the content needs to be shown! What am I supposed to do now?¡± Another system message popped up right after Hoonie¡¯s ranting. [All the conditions have been met to uncover the ¡®Devil God Daedmon¡¯s Plot¡¯.] [Find the Mediator of the Dimension, Iriel and the quest will be activated.] ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Find the Mediator of the Dimension, Iriel (Hidden) (Connected) ¨C Through the analysis of the ancient artifacts, you have discovered a ¡®secret¡¯ that was buried in the dark. In the hidden history, there was a conspiracy about breaking the balance and order of the dimension. The destruction of balance began with the greed and desire of the Richie King. However, the God of Darkness who was supposed to stop such an act neglected the Richie King Chalian. The God Kades, who was a normal innocent person, had a feeling of ¡®greed¡¯. If the crack continues to occur, there will be a crisis of destruction that will come onto the dimension of the human world. According to the ancient books, the power of the Devil God was partly involved in the Greed of Kades. Everything that happened between the two Gods was recorded in the Book of Daedmon. Let¡¯s go to Iriel, the Mediator of the Dimension and ask for help. She will be able to read the ancient magic language. If you take the Book of Daedmon to her, she will be able to read and tell you how to stop this conspiracy. Quest Difficulty: S Quest Condition: Unknown Time Limit: None Reward: Unknown This quest cannot be refused. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C The Forest of Love¡ªwhere Iriel was staying¡ªwas a place where one cannot go to, unless with the help of Gripper¡¯s Beads of Dimension. However, Ian was an exception. Ian had the Beads of Dimension. Regardless of the dimensional system, once the coordinates had been set, the Beads of Dimension could always be used to move to the user¡¯s desired dimension. It was a broken item! Ian immediately opened the dimension¡¯s door, from which both Hoonie and Ian moved through. However, Lilson couldn¡¯t come with them. He couldn¡¯t since he was still low level. Hoonie was amazed when he saw the Forest of Love since this was his first time seeing the place. ¡°Oh oh¡­! This place is so shiny, right? The sky is pink!¡± Hoonie then turned his gaze over to Ian and asked. ¡°Hyung, this isn¡¯t your first time visiting this place, right?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°What are we supposed to do here anyway? It feels like we¡¯re staying at a magic circle, right?¡± Hoonie was filled with a strange feeling because of the beautiful surroundings. Ian who saw Hoonie drooling over the scenario laughed and asked him, ¡°Hoonie, do you have a girlfriend?¡± Hoonie flinched upon hearing such an unexpected question. ¡°Girl¡­ friend?¡± ¡°Huh. Nowadays, everyone has girlfriends¡­¡± Hoonie replied, ¡°I don¡¯t understand. What kind of nation has that kind of people?¡± ¡°What do you mean by what nation? It¡¯s Korea I¡¯m talking about.¡± ¡°That¡­ that can¡¯t be!?¡± Seeing Hoonie all worked up, Ian couldn¡¯t help but laugh. ¡°Whatever! Just answer my question. Have you or have you not?¡± A terrible question for Honie who had been forever solo! Hoonie who was feeling all excited about the pink sky felt shattered in an instant. Hoonie answered with a timid voice, ¡°Uh, I don¡¯t have one.¡± Ian tried to confirm another thing. ¡°Not even one?¡± ¡°Yeah¡­¡± Ian who just heard something he didn¡¯t even imagine from Hoonie spoke with an evil smile, ¡°Hoonie-ah, you asked me what kind of place this is, right?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°This is¡­¡± Ian paused for a moment then said, ¡°This is hell.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± Ian¡¯s lips formed a wicked smile. ¡°At least for you it is.¡± * * * The two men who arrived at the Forest of Love were able to search for Iriel without much difficulty. Since Ian knew the mapping of the forest, it was natural that they would find her without any problem. Hoonie kind of had a hard time though. Iriel greeted Ian with a pleasant smile, and the linked quest was activated immediately. Iriel, who received the Book of Daedmon from Ian, began to read it with a serious expression. ¡°Kay now, please focus and listen.¡± The book¡¯s contents were as follows The Devil God Daedmon wanted to break off the balance, harmony, and order of the human world. Furthermore, the Gods defending the Human World wanted to part ways. Which was why the proposal of the Richie King Chalian, seemed very attractive for him. ¡°Devil God, I need the seed of greed.¡± [The Seed of Greed, why do you need it? You already are a man with a lot of greed.] ¡°The God of Darkness, Kades is in need of Greed. Which is why I need to give him a lot of it, I need to let him know of things by greed.¡± [Kkkuk, Kuaakk!] The Seed of Greed was normally made to corrupt all the Gods. The Seed of Greed, which was made in the Devildom, that was once driven to a state of crisis due to the attack of the Knights from the celestial world. The seed allowed the Devildom to regain their power. The Devil Gods succeeded using it as an instrument to corrupt five thousand bodies, which they turned into Devils. Among the 12 Devils of the current Devildom, five of them were once the devotees of the Gods. In fact, Chalian wasn¡¯t even sure what the Seed of Greed was. He just knew that it was a thing that could corrupt the Gods. However, that was all he needed. With the Seed of Greed, he was sure that he could make Kades take his side. Using the Seed of Greed, Kades would be thirsty for power, so the Richie King could use him as an effective tool. [Nice. I will give you the Seed of Greed.] ¡°Thank you, Devil God.¡± [However, be mindful, this is a very valuable thing for me.] ¡°Is there something you hope from me?¡± [There¡¯s nothing I hope from you. If you succeed, just give me a soul.] ¡°I understand¡­.¡± Finally, Chalian received the Seed of Greed from Daedmon. He then took it to the God of Darkness Kades¡¯ altar and offered it to him. He then planted the feeling of ¡®Greed¡¯ into Kades. The story which Iriel told both of them was quite long. As Iriel was continuing to read the Book of Daedmon, Ian asked something about a thing he was curious about. ¡°So, why was Chalian sealed inside the Devildom?¡± Hoonie who realized something added, ¡°I know, right! Until a while back, Chalian was sealed in the Devildom. If he succeeded in corrupting Kades, wouldn¡¯t he have helped Chalian?¡± Iriel answered both of their questions with a wry smile. ¡°No. Chalian indeed planted the Seed of Greed to Kades, but that doesn¡¯t mean that Kades had fallen for it.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Surely, Kades is a deity, so falling for it wouldn¡¯t be so easy.¡± ¡°Then¡­?¡± ¡°It takes a long time for Kades to fall into such a thing. As the Seed of Greed sinks in slowly for deities.¡± ¡°Ah, that is why¡­¡± Chalian had indeed succeeded in planting the Seed of Greed to Kades, but he eventually stepped on his tail. He didn¡¯t catch the attention of the Gods because he offered the Seed of Greed to one of them. He caught their attention because he had the title, Richie King. And thus Kades convened a meeting of the Gods and ordered the hero of the human world to discipline Chalian. And that hero was the hero of Luspel Empire. ¡°Miss Iriel, then what are we supposed to do now? The Seed of Greed that was planted to the God of Darkness¡ªKades¡­ is it possible to remove it?¡± Iriel shook her head in response to Hoonie¡¯s question. ¡°No, it is impossible. Kades has already begun to fall for it, and if this keeps up then he¡¯ll become a Devil God.¡± ¡°Then what are we supposed to do?¡± Iriel¡¯s big eyes began to shine. She looked at Ian then at Hoonie. She then laughed a bit and said, ¡°The problems of the Gods needs to be left to the Gods.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Now, you guys need to do what human heroes need to do.¡± ¡°What we need to do, in the sense¡­?¡± ¡°To stop the Richie King Chalian, who is trying to raise a Dark Legion beyond the Ulphir mountains. Like the hero of the Luspel Empire of the past.¡± Iriel continued, ¡°If the other Gods find out about the fall of Kades, he will no longer be able to help Chalian. Isn¡¯t that for the best?¡± After saying a piece of her mind, Iriel continued to tell the story once again. This time it was about the hero, the hero who sealed the Richie King Chalian in the past. The key to this story was the two dragons. The Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix and the Dragon of Light, Elcarix. A quest window that Ian hadn¡¯t thought of, had now appeared in front of him. CH 399 Tring-! [Quest to find ¡®The Goddess of Light, Ernesis¡¯.] ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Finding the Goddess of Light, Ernesis (Hidden) (Connected) ¨C The God of Darkness, Kades has given you the item Kades Beads, which contains his power. He then ordered it to be delivered to the Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix. However, if the order gets fulfilled, then the Dragon of God¡ªLugarix will be on the side of Richie King Chalian. And it is clear that your wanted result will be ruined. Now that you have everything, you need to find the Goddess of Light, Ernesis. Only with her power, the darkness of the Kades beads will be purified, and the cleansed beads will help you take the Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix to your side. The shrine of the Goddess of Light, Ernesis is hidden somewhere in the mountains of Ulphir. With the messenger of light, find her temple. After explaining it all to Ernesis, let¡¯s get the Kades Beads cleansed. Quest Difficulty: S Quest Condition: ??? Accompanied by the messenger of light. Time Limit: None Reward: An opportunity is given for the rise of a tier for the ¡®Taming Master¡¯ class. (Rewards may depend on the user who has received the quest.) * A quest that cannot be refused. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian, who had read the contents of the quest, discovered something. ¡°Kades Beads? I have never received anything like that¡­?¡± Kades Beads was something that Hoonie had received, and Ian didn¡¯t know of it. Hoonie replied bluntly, ¡°That was for me. Don¡¯t worry.¡± ¡°Aha.¡± Ian who thought it was a joke laughed, and Hoonie couldn¡¯t help but pout his lips. After a while, Ian who realized it suddenly gulped. ¡°Oh¡­?!¡± And the quest window which showed the rewards list at the end. ¡®I am being given the chance to rise the tiers for the class!?¡¯ Ian had already once experienced the elevation of the Taming Master Tier Class. After successfully taming ¡®Rakyal¡¯ which was a higher level which couldn¡¯t be tamed, the 2nd tier taming master had turned to the 3rd tier taming master. So if he succeeded in raising the tier this time, the taming master tier will move to the 4th tier. The highest tier of any hidden class ever known until the moment was the third tier, which was a tremendous reward. Of course, there were rankers who have already got 4th tier in the class, and if Hoonie clears all the quests, he would become a 4th tier class of ¡®Monarch of Darkness.¡¯ ¡®I have used the skills that I acquired after reaching the 3rd tier¡­ the sacrifice skill wasn¡¯t used as much I had thought that I could.¡¯ A skill that expands the scope of the summoners exponential, ¡®Sympathy I¡¯ skill. Of all the skills that Ian had possessed, this was a skill that could be used before raising three fingers. In addition to widening the scope of control, it allowed the familiars to hunt for hours even if Ian wasn¡¯t connected, which enabled them to maintain the level of numerous retainers. On the other hand, the ¡®Sacrifice I¡¯ skill, which had a huge buff effect, was used unexpectedly. The buff itself was tremendous, but the extreme situation didn¡¯t come for sacrificing one of his familiar. That wasn¡¯t the end. In fact, the biggest benefit of the tier use was in the rise of the career stat. Summoners required stats, such as leadership and affinity. Especially if leadership was to rise, he would probably be able to add another familiar of a legendary-myth rank. Ian¡¯s mouth went up, ¡®What skills will I get this time, will I have a lot of expectations?¡¯ Ian, who thought that he wouldn¡¯t fail in getting the tier, was all excited. ¡°Keu¡­!¡± Ian¡¯s will was beginning to burn. * * * Hoonie and Ian moved to the North of the Central Continent in search of Levya. It wasn¡¯t so tough to analyze that Levya was the messenger of Light. It was because Iriel had told them a definite clue. And that was¡­ ¡°By the way, Iriel. Who is the messenger of Light?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. I¡¯m not sure who he is, but I know a clue.¡± ¡°What kind¡­?¡± ¡°The messenger of light is a human being, and has pure white wings.¡± White wings. That one word was all they needed. Just before coming to Hoonie, Ian had seen the strongest priest with white wings in the raid. ¡°Ian: Levya, which direction are you going to? I need to go to the southeast of the Ulphir Mountains.¡± ¡°Levya: Ah, Ian! Are you close to it?¡± ¡°Ian: Yep, I¡¯m in front of the gate now.¡± ¡°Levya: Ulphir mountains have more than two gates. Could you send me the coordinates?¡± ¡°Ian: Sure. It is 1798, 1231.¡± ¡°Levya: Okay! Wait.¡± Levya, who had an exchange of messages from Ian, appeared in front of the two men within awhile. And the three men who greeted each other in an exchange of brief and short greetings began to move to the Ulphir mountains. The Ulphir mountain range had a lot of powerful monsters of high level, but the top three rankers were in the party who wouldn¡¯t be taken down by those monsters. Was it around 20 more minutes? The three people were able to arrive at the white temple where a gentle light was shinning. * * * Ian had discovered the Goddess of Light, Ernesis. The first thing she had said the moment she came down was. ¡°You are someone who has a very special power.¡± A word which was vague to understand, Ian looked up at her. ¡°Special powers how¡­?¡± Ernesis answered with a smile, ¡°I felt your special power at the very beginning, and like the messenger of the God, Levya, I felt the same feeling from you.¡± Ian was listening to her words, and she continued, ¡°But you are someone with no God, a special person with strength and power.¡± Ernesis lifted one of her hand, A pure light from her hand started to enter Ian. ¡°Goddess of Light, Ernesis blessed you.¡± [Increase of all battle abilities rise temporarily by 30% (this is an effect that overlaps with other buff effects.)] At the same time, rays of light moved from the entire body of Ian. Ernesis murmured in a low voice, ¡°Maybe in the human world, another holder might be born.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Ian, who didn¡¯t understand what she was talking about, was a bit blank and Hoonie was getting annoyed. ¡®That Goddess of Light, she too is treating Ian as the only special one here.¡¯ The very moment as if she read the mind of Hoonie, Ernesis laughed. ¡°Lord of Darkness, I can¡¯t give you my blessing. My blessing is like a poison to the darkness.¡± Hearing that Hoonie scratched the back of his neck and responded, ¡°Ah, yeah¡­¡± And about quests maybe, Ernesis had a chat with Levya for a while. And her gaze moved once again to Hoonie. ¡°Child, don¡¯t you have something that you want to ask me?¡± Hoonie nodded and replied, As it was all very sudden, he had immersed himself into the scenario. ¡°Yes, just a minute.¡± He opened the inventory and pulled out the ¡®Kades Beads¡¯. As Ernesis reached out to the beads, white light began to shine around the purple beads. The white light smoke started to wind up and the smoke moved into the air. Hoonie gently shook his head. It was because there was no change in the appearance of the Kades Beads. ¡®What? Has it been cleansed? I thought it would turn white¡­¡¯ Right in the moment. Messages started to appear in front of Hoonie¡¯s eyes. Tring-! [The power of Darkness in the ¡®Kades Beads¡¯ has been cleansed.] [The information of the ¡®Kades Beads¡¯ will change.] Hoonie who read the message instinctively opened the item window. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Kades Beads ¨C Classification ¨C Miscellaneous Rank ¨C Legend God of darkness, Kades¡ªhas made the item while using his strength. When it is used on the creatures with dark attributes, dark power can be delivered to them. * A single time use item. * The item isn¡¯t available to users. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Hoonie, who read the information window, was able to know what had changed. ¡®The word command was gone¡¯. For the word dismissing the command on the object, it now said that it would convey a powerful power that would be said. The words of Ernesis followed, ¡°It is done, my child of darkness. Now it is up to you, to take this stuff and handle Lugarix.¡± Hoonie nodded and answered, ¡°I understand, Goddess of Light. I won¡¯t let you down.¡± Hoonie who was deep in the scenario forgotten that he was genuflecting. Looking at him, Ian and Levya were embarrassed, but Ernesis was satisfied with it. ¡°Then I will believe you. Be sure to borrow the power of the Dragon of Darkness.¡± ¡°I will do my best.¡± Hoonie stood up, and Ian bowed his head at Ernesis. It was all over now, now they had to move to the Lugaric mountain to find the Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix. And Ernesis still had something to say. ¡°After getting the power of Lugarix, what do you guys plan to do?¡± The party was flustered at the question. After a while, Ian decided to speak. ¡°Won¡¯t we go up the north to discipline the Richie King?¡± At those words, Ernesis answered after shaking her head, ¡°With only the help of Lugarix, you won¡¯t be able to deal with Richie King.¡± ¡°Then¡­?¡± ¡°With the help of my messenger, after persuading Lugarix to find Elcarix.¡± ¡°Elcarix you mean, the Dragon of Light?¡± ¡°Yes. My child, Elcarix.¡± Hoonie and Ian had already heard the story about Elcarix the Light dragon, from Iriel. In her story, the hero Muran was known to have taken the help of both Lugarix and Elcarix in punishing the Richie King. However according to Iriel, the light dragon wasn¡¯t in the human world, so it was a situation they hadn¡¯t thought of. With a confused look, Ian asked, ¡°The Dragon of Light has disappeared hundreds of years ago.¡± Ernesis nodded and replied, ¡°You are right. In the past, when my power was sealed, my child was destroyed.¡± Ian waited for her next words to come, and soon she did. ¡°But I awakened from a long sleep, and somewhere in this dimension, my child also would¡¯ve been born. And it is up to you Ian¡­ that by then I think that my child will wake up.¡± Ian wanted to know more about him. But with those words from Ernesis, a new quest window had emerged in front of Ian and Hoonie¡¯s eyes. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C The Dragon of Light Elcarix (Hidden) (Connected) ¨C According to the Goddess of Light, Ernesis, it is said that the God¡¯s Dragon has been born somewhere in the dimensional system. And if you have an Abyss dragon who has been granted the authority of Dragon God, you will be able to bring out Elcarix from asleep. Let¡¯s find the egg of the God¡¯s Dragon Elcarix who is somewhere in the dimension and wake his soul. Quest Difficulty: SSS Quest Condition: 300+ level summoner user, Users with myth rank pet, ¡®Abyss Dragon¡¯ Time Limit: None Reward: Myth rank pet ¡®Elcarix¡¯ * A quest that cannot be refused. CH 400 ¡®I will be given the God¡¯s Dragon, Elcarix¡­?!¡¯ It would be wrong to even say that it was rare, it was a tremendous reward for a quest. Ian hadn¡¯t misread it, yet he once again went through the contents of the rewards. And apparently, the reward was the dragon ¡®Elcarix¡¯ itself. Also, it was mentioned as a ¡®myth rank familiar¡¯. Holding the Judgment of the Spirit King in his right hand, even without Ian realizing he was fully driven. ¡®Awesome¡­!¡¯ Ian checked the difficulty of the quest. In the column of difficulty, there was a triple S grade which symbolized the highest degree of difficulty for a quest. However, Ian started to get skeptical. ¡®Triple S is a bit lacking¡­ such a reward can be understood if the quest was penta S grade.¡¯ But that suspicion was only for a moment. A myth rank familiar¡ªthat too is a God¡¯s Dragon. ¡®This, this¡­ I don¡¯t know if I can make a collection of the God¡¯s Dragon.¡¯ Ian looked at Ernesis once again and bowed his head. ¡°Never. I will never let you down.¡± Ernesis who was satisfied with his reply smiled, ¡°It isn¡¯t an easy task, but I believe that you¡¯ll be able to do it.¡± At the answer from Ian, the Goddess of Light, Ernesis began to feel much better. But the answer was actually much closer to the commitment Ian had for the reward, rather than for Ernesis. * * * North of the Central Continent. The unknown land was blocked by the power of darkness. It was finally been opened by the users. The gate had opened the very moment the raid boss was taken down. A wide plateau connecting the Northern Malacca and the Central Shikar Desert. It wasn¡¯t as big as the central continent, but when the new map had opened, users jumped in for it. Always in the Kailan¡ªa new content had always attracted the attention of many users. After the canyon of the North of the Central continent, the white plateau spread out from the Ulphir mountain. The name of it was ¡®Heinz Plateau¡¯. All thanks to the map, the recent official community page of Kailan was full of the stories regarding it. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Title: Users who are hunting in the Heinz plateau! Help out the newbie! Hello. Not long ago I went with a guild party to hunt the magical beasts of the Ulphir mountains. I¡¯ll just ask a few questions that I¡¯m curious about. What are the necessities for entering the Heinz plateau? And I¡¯ll be pleased to know if there is another area with little lacking specs! The Undead of the Heinz plateau, is said to be so high that they only drop the heroic rank for warlocks? From what I have heard, the drop for the warlocks has been the highest. If there are a lot of people. Then, how will it be divided¡­? I would like to hear from an actual reviewer. Ah! And I¡¯m curious about another thing, how many times per hour the contribution will be accumulated. (Syncopation) For reference, my specs are of level 257 Black magician. I have a two-tier class. I would really appreciate it if you could share a recommended map, party composition, and the item settings! You can refer to the detailed specs from the screenshot given below. (Screenshot) PS. I have 10 million gold in deposit, so if you can let me know of the item settings, I will raise my specs while investing in them. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C The biggest feature of the Heinz plateau was that it was mostly made of the Undead. So the biggest advantage that was derived from it, was the ¡®contribution¡¯ that it gave to the new episode. During the episode, there was an accumulation of the contribution when hunting all the Chalian related-Undead. Until the end of the episode, till the Richie King Chalian is caught, this contribution could be used for an item, as experience points or even for gold¡ªwhich was why it was a tremendous merit. Also, the drop rate for the warlocks-only item was so high that the warlock users were especially tilted to it. But the ones who could enter the Heinz plateau were just one or two of the warlocks. Like the above-mentioned post. ¨C He he he, Mr, what do you think of the Heinz plateau, some kind of a playground? Would anyone enter with a 257? Hehe. ¨C Wow, 257 is surely not a level that would be enough to enter the Heinz plateau, but I think I¡¯ll be open if you just try out the outer region? If one is around mid 200, then you still have a 30% chance to succeed. ¨C Right. If you have more than 15 million Gold, you¡¯ll be able to play in the outskirts. ¨C You haven¡¯t even got a level that starts with the third digit. ( Compulsory ) Immediately after the first episode began, the normal users of the central continent had suffered some damage by the Undead corps descending from the North. The high-level of Undead were also being a problem. And the number that came down was a huge problem too. But when the users learned about the contribution, and when the information about the Undead began to be released, the situation changed. High-level users who were hunting across the continent were flocking to the north of the Central continent like a swarm of bees. The army of darkness which had come down from the north was attacked by the users who were in there for a hunt, and the undead was all taken down. Moreover, the Northern Part of the Central continent had been opened with the Heinz plateau. It had a rather contrary situation from what the users expected. The users were the ones who were concerned this time. ¨C But guys, is this episode too hard or not? ¨C Huh? Why is it? ¨C No, what I mean is. Nowadays, the Heinz plateau seems to be exploited in an instant, and if one manages to catch the Richie King who¡¯s hiding in there, it¡¯s the end of the new episode. ¨C Yeah. Like you¡¯ve said, maybe the ranker will be the one to find the Richie King? ¨C Ah, no way. Will the LB company end the new episode so quickly? Just wait on. Something will surely pop out from somewhere. ¨C Hmmm, is that so? It maybe because one doesn¡¯t know, but the users are underestimating the LB¡­ in fact, the new episode with the Heinz plateau difficulty isn¡¯t that low. ¨C Keu, LB is really pitiful he he he, this content isn¡¯t enough to put restlessness, all the real gamers are consuming the content way faster. How can they work if they can¡¯t make their employees beat the other companies at this stuff? In the beginning, the users were worried about the comfort the game was putting them in. However, it turns out such worries of those users were indeed a little off. * * * Somewhere deep in the Heinz plateau. At the white peaks of mountainous snow, which were still untouched by man; At the top of the tower, the king of Undead¡ªthe Richie King gave out a terrifying presence. The appearance of the Richie King, where there was no flesh but just bones on him. Instead of the pupils that humans have, the eyes of the Richie King had a light in them. Richie King who was all prepared opened his mouth, ¡°The preparations, are they done?¡± He asked with a sassy and fear instilling voice. A voice that had no emotion and a black image appeared in front of him. The young man walked towards the Richie King. As he walked out of the darkness, the appearance of the young man could be seen slightly. With a purple robe and white skin, it was a warlock. He opened his mouth while looking at Chalian, ¡°My great king. All the preparations are done.¡± Chalian nodded and spoke, ¡°Nice, we¡¯re finally ready. It has taken longer than I anticipated.¡± ¡°I apologize for that, my king. But the legions of the Undead have been prepared much more perfectly.¡± Ttak- tak-! As Chalian smiled, the bones seemed to have intertwined, making a bizarre sound. There wasn¡¯t any flesh, and there were muscles that couldn¡¯t be seen that clearly on the body of Chalian. As the muscles of the Richie King moved, the face of the Richie King had turned much more grotesque to look. Chalian wasn¡¯t done yet. ¡°That¡¯s fine. Their resistance is much better than I had imagined. And the biggest reason why too much of my soul has been lost is your fault.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll repent for that, my King of Darkness.¡± Richie King raised his hand. Right next to him, a new warlock had appeared. He came forward and quietly kneeled before Chalian. ¡°Did you get the ¡®thing¡¯ from the Kades?¡± ¡°Yes, I did, King.¡± The new black magician took out an old parchment from his hand. And showed it to Chalian who was in front of him. ¡°Nice. Perfect. Ha haha¡­! I, Chalian will now use the power of the God of Darkness. Kyahhhh!¡± Chalian raised his hands and picked up the parchment paper. In a flash, a blue light shines, making the old parchment disappear quickly. But that wasn¡¯t the end. From the burned parchment paper, black sparks were coming¡ªwhich were absorbed into the body of Chalian. ¡°Kahha, Kyahhh!¡± The energy of darkness seemed to be an enormous power. Inside the tower, there was nothing except for the wicked smile from Chalian could be heard. Giving Chalian a few moments, the warlock who had bought the parchment to him decided to speak. His voice was serious this time. ¡°King, there was a word that God of Darkness has said.¡± Chalian, who was drunk with the power in his body, slowly turned his head and asked, ¡°What was it?¡± ¡°For the time being, helping Chalian will be tough.¡± Chalian¡¯s expression distorted hearing those words. ¡°Reason?¡± ¡°That even I don¡¯t¡­¡± The black warrior was hesitating to answer what he didn¡¯t know, at which Chalian had told him. ¡°I have already received a lot of power, so it isn¡¯t much of a sorrow for me¡­¡± The blue light which was still burning had now turned into a purple flame. And after a while, Chalian held up his staff. ¡°Now, it starts! My sons. We will advance to the continent and kill the arrogant humans and build our Empire of Darkness.¡± With those words, the dark obsidian at the end of Chalian¡¯s staff, began to shine in purple. Chalian moved backward. The old door on the top of the tower opened, and a white snowy terrace had opened. Chalian walked slowly and the energy of the staff had turned much more intense. Within a while. When Chalian had come into the sight. ¡°Kyaaa¡­!!!¡± ¡°Kwahh!¡± ¡°Our King! Our father!¡± ¡°For the glory of our king Chalian!¡± Huge screams and shouts that could rip of any humans¡¯ eardrums reverberated through the air. In the vast snowy field in front of the magical tower, there was an enormous legion of darkness that no one could count. This was the Chalians, who started to counter-attack. * * * On the other hand, when the legions of the darkness were beginning to erupt. ¡°It looks like this is the correct coordinates¡­¡± ¡°We found it right, hyung. After the gorge, the Dragon¡¯s lair will surely come out.¡± ¡°Uh, Hoonie. That looks like a dead-end, right?¡± The three of them had arrived at the Lugaric mountains. They were looking for a rare dragon¡ªthe Dragon of Darkness ¡®Lugarix¡¯. ¡°Oh, there! It is over there!¡± As the voice of Hoonie rang, both Ian and Levya¡¯s gaze turned the very moment. And there it was, the huge entrance to the lair of the dragons, which was boasting with majestic energy. CH 401 Until the very moment, only one dragon¡¯s lair had been found in the Korean server of Kailan. It was in a volcanic area at the center of the Central continent. It was the very lair of the ¡®Sun God¡¯s Dragon, the Ranohel¡¯, which came from the lava in the highest level of the dungeon that could be found during the main quest which was related to the Dimensional War. But even then, no one succeeded in attacking it even though it was discovered. Even the one who found it¡ªRemir¡ªcouldn¡¯t. ¡®What did Remir noona say then¡­? That the dungeon¡¯s environment was really like hell?¡¯ Before entering the lair of Lugarix. Ian reminded himself of the story he heard from Remir about the Sun God¡¯s dragon lair. ¡®Are all the monsters there Drakes or Wyverns?¡¯ ¡®Almost. Most are named monsters like Guardians. Golems appear too, around 90% of them has Heroic rank.¡¯ ¡®What are their levels?¡¯ ¡®If my memory serves me right, then Drakes are around level 370, and the wyverns were around level 340, but we¡¯re surprised since those monsters didn¡¯t try attacking us.¡¯ ¡®Hmm, I¡¯m guessing the reason why they didn¡¯t try attacking you guys was because those monsters were all below level 300 when you found them, right noona?¡¯ ¡®That¡¯s probably the case.¡¯ ¡®But why didn¡¯t you try to explore the dungeon more?¡¯ ¡®Well, we tried exploring deeper into the dungeon until we reach the level 320 monsters. I went with some of my ranker friends like Shakran and many more, but we couldn¡¯t get through the dungeon no matter how much we tried so we just gave up.¡¯ ¡®Why so?¡¯ ¡®The atmosphere there was like hell. There was literally fire everywhere. It had gotten so difficult that even walking through the dungeon was almost impossible without full flame resistance equipment starting from the 3rd basement.¡¯ ¡®Hmm¡­ it surely would¡¯ve been tough then.¡¯ ¡®Well, you can try going into the dungeon if you want. It¡¯s probably easier to explore the dungeon now. I¡¯m actually planning on exploring the dungeon again..¡¯ Ian snapped out of his thoughts the moment Levya had spoken. ¡°Why are you spacing out, Ian? Don¡¯t you want to come in?¡± The two already entered the dungeon while Ian was lost in his thoughts. Ian looked at Levya and nodded. ¡°Oh, I was thinking of a strategy before we enter the dungeon.¡± Hoonie and Levya asked Ian a question in unison, ¡°Strategy for the dungeon?¡± ¡°Uh? Have you been to a dragon lair before?¡± Ian then said while bending his head, ¡°No, I haven¡¯t been to a dragon lair before. From what I¡¯ve heard from Remir noona, I¡¯m assuming that a dragon lair would be the same with normal dungeons.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± ¡°Yeah? Then tell us about this so-called strategy of yours then.¡± Ian smiled at Hoonie and said, ¡°Let¡¯s go inside. The first-floor won¡¯t be difficult. Let¡¯s warm up there, and then I¡¯ll explain.¡± Levya and Hoonie both nodded and said at the same time, ¡°Okay¡­ okay hyung.¡± ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go.¡± * * * At the entrance of a dungeon in the deeper end of Heinz plateau. The place was filled with the fluttering flags of the Titan Kingdom. A user suddenly appeared and then said, ¡°Huck, Huck¡­! Master! It¡¯s a big deal!¡± The man was feeling really nervous while he looked around the dungeon. The Master of the Titan Kingdom, who felt the man¡¯s nervousness, asked him with a silly expression. ¡°Umm? What¡¯s the big deal?¡± ¡°Haven¡¯t you seen the guild chat?¡± ¡°The dungeon has been opened a while back.¡± The dungeon of the Heinz plateau was difficult to clear even for top guilds, but the Titan Kingdom could surely do it. All kinds of chats and messages could be seen in Kailan¡¯s community chat box since the Titan Kingdom decided to try out such a difficult dungeon. As a well-organized party, they should avoid any mistakes. If they did such mistakes, they would be wiped out. The man who went back at an agonizing speed¡ªShakran¡ªsaid, ¡°What the hell is going on? You know that I don¡¯t do stuff unless they are a big deal. There is no guild that has the guts to attack us, and it isn¡¯t like Ikarun Kingdom will suddenly proclaim a war.¡± The Ikarun Kingdom, the name of a newly established Kingdom in the western region after the fall of the Luspel Empire and the Kaimon Empire. Among the many new Kingdoms that had been created, and among the various Kingdoms that have been created so far, they were all keeping a close eye on the Titan Kingdom. So Shakran had no choice but to stay alert for a possible war. However, Shakran couldn¡¯t help but feel shocked upon hearing the man¡¯s words. ¡°It is the Ikarun Kingdom, master.¡± ¡°Uhm¡­?¡± ¡°Just 30 minutes ago, Ikarun Kingdom has called for an army against the Titan Kingdom.¡± Shakran had now finally understood what was happening. ¡°No way?! The Ikarun Kingdom shouldn¡¯t be in a state to call forth a war?¡± It wasn¡¯t just the Ikarun Kingdom that had shared borders with the Titan Kingdom. There was also the small NPC Kingdom of Lamaris. They were all waiting like hyenas for the Ikarun Kingdom to show them an opening. The Ikarun Kingdom would be taking a huge risk if they engaged an all-out war against the Titan Kingdom. The man spoke again after hearing what Shakran said, ¡°The Kingdom of Ikarun sent a large army not towards our Titan Kingdom, but to someplace else.¡± ¡°Cheap bastards. The Kingdom of Ikarun is indeed powerful, but this is suicide.¡± ¡°Not really, master. The Kingdom of Ikarun is now supported by tens and thousands of the Legions of Darkness.¡± ¡°The Legions of Darkness¡­? Now, what¡¯s with that nonsense?¡± ¡°Ikarun seems to be holding hands with the Richie King.¡± ¡°¡­?!¡± ¡°Not just the Ikarun Kingdom, there are many Kingdoms throughout the continent that are seeking the help of the Richie King¡¯s legions.¡± Upon hearing this, Shakran immediately summoned the guilds and ordered them to return to the Kingdom as soon as possible. The situation they were all afraid off was now happening. ¡®This is it. I¡¯ve always known somehow that the new episode¡¯s updates will turn into this¡¯ Almost 60% of the new map of Heinz plateau had already been explored by Kailan¡¯s users in just over a month. This meant that they would be able to attack Richie King Chalian after just a month or two. In general, when a new episode appeared, it would usually take around six months for the episode to be cleared up, which was why the current happenings in this new episode were lacking. Shakran opened the guild chat and began to analyze the information that was there. ¡®Ikarun, Lamaris, etc¡­ all the seven kingdoms have the Legions of Darkness with them. What is it that they have in common?¡¯ Shakran started to get nauseous just thinking about it. The Legions of Darkness was now also appearing in the NPCs¡¯ Kingdoms. Somehow Ikarun Kingdom didn¡¯t attack Lamaris Kingdom even though their location was just in the north side of Ikarun Kingdom. Ikarun Kingdom¡¯s actions were suspicious. Shakran soon realized that. ¡®Yeah! That¡¯s it! The seven kingdoms have all put Kades as the religion of their state!¡¯ Shakran had a gist of what was happening now. ¡®Is the God of Darkness¡ªKades, on Chalian¡¯s side?¡¯ Shakran smiled upon arriving at that conclusion. He thought that the new episode was lacking, but he was now starting to enjoy it. It was going to be a lot more difficult, but he liked where this episode was heading. * * * [The Dark region, you have entered the last area.] [After 10 seconds. The guardian guarding the 4th floor basement, ¡®Chaotic Drake (Lv 375)¡¯ will appear.] When the system messages came up, the three quickly checked their status. The monsters in the dungeon didn¡¯t stop spawning, but the three of them were able to handle them. Ian gave instructions to Hoonie and Levya upon seeing the system messages. ¡°Be careful! It¡¯s going to be a Chaotic Drake!¡± ¡°What is that?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll explain later. Hoonie move back for now!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± According to Ian¡¯s instructions, Hoonie moved back and Levya immediately began to cast a spell. Ian just kept moving as well while the two were doing their thing. He did that so he could scout the area while Kaka¡¯s Wide Vision was still on cooldown, and to also keep Levya safe with the help of his familiar. The three of them spent almost a day attacking the monsters in Lugarix¡¯s lair, but their movements hadn¡¯t slowed at all. It was normal for any user to be exhausted after half a day of playing. However, the three of them proved that they were rankers for a reason. Kukung- Kung-! They suddenly heard a loud noise that resembled the sound of giant footsteps. A Drake had appeared. A Drake that was three times bigger than a normal Drake. The dungeon¡¯s darkness was being sucked into the Drake¡¯s mouth every time it breathed. After seeing such a huge figure, Hoonie couldn¡¯t help but sigh out of nervousness. ¡°Chaotic Drake, right? How would I be able to use that skill on such a drake?¡± Among the Warlock¡¯s skills, there was a skill that was really hard to obtain. That skill was the ¡®Chaotic Drain¡¯. The Chaotic Drain was a skill that could absorb all the dark energy in its range, and it could be obtained from an Undead Named monster called ¡®Chaotic Mage¡¯. Hoonie tried using it, but it wasn¡¯t working which made him confused. ¡°It isn¡¯t Chaotic Drain. It is Chaotic Breath.¡± ¡°¡­?!¡± Hoonie¡¯s eyes went wide upon hearing those words. All the dark energy he tried to gather went into the Drake¡¯s mouth. Levya saw that and cast a skill out of reflex. Her splendid radiance began to emerge from her white wings! The radiance that was being emitted by her wings turned into a wall that protected her party members. Krrrwah-! The Chaotic Breath of the Chaotic Drake struck Levya¡¯s shield of light. In this battle between light and darkness¡­ Levya¡¯s light emerged victoriously. Chak-! This made the Drake angry. The Drake then puffed dark smoke from his nose. Hoonie then spoke, ¡°This¡­ this is just a hunch but¡­ the power of this Drake¡¯s attacks seemed to be proportionate to the amount of dark energy that he absorbs, right?¡± Ian smiled and nodded in response to Hoonie¡¯s keen analysis. ¡°Bingo.¡± If Hoonie hadn¡¯t fallen back, his energy would¡¯ve been taken by the Chaotic Drake, and the power of his breath would¡¯ve been much stronger. If it wasn¡¯t for Ian¡¯s instructions earlier, Levya¡¯s shield wouldn¡¯t have worked. ¡°Hyung, how did you know?¡± Ian responded like it wasn¡¯t a big deal. ¡°Noel told me. He is very knowledgeable when it comes to dragon monsters, and what he told me about dragons were right. ¡± ¡°Ah, sure.¡± Canoel, who was a dragon tamer, was lacking compared to Ian and was now looking for summoners. He just recently managed to level up to 330. It would¡¯ve been great if Canoel got the third class of the Hidden Class, but it was still a notable achievement. In addition, his first dragon¡ªthe black dragon ¡®Orden¡¯¡ªevolved into a myth class, and now even Ian was seeking Canoel¡¯s help. ¡°Levya! Give us a light buff!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± The Drake raised his head towards the air. Taking advantage of that opening, Ly quickly dug into the Drake¡¯s side. Tatt- Tat-! Ly was Ian¡¯s fastest familiar, and that was the reason why Ly was able to take advantage of the Drake¡¯s opening. Ly¡¯s red mana turned white. Woong-! Ly changed the attribute of his attack to light and the damage of his attacks were temporarily boosted because of Levya¡¯s buff. Claws of Ly were emitting white light! The same time¡­ The Chaotic Drake¡¯s eyes turned bright red. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah! Use Curtain of Water¡± ¡°Kay Bbook!¡± Bbookbbook who was in his tortoise form was riding Halli¡¯s back, and from his mouth, a blue stream of water came out. The blue stream went right between Ly and the Drake. Swooah-! The Curtain of Water hit the Drake¡¯s red eyes, which made the red aura from the Drake¡¯s eyes disappear. Kwahh-! The Drake cried out of rage. Clak-! Ly, splashing through the water, lunged his pure white claws at the Drake¡¯s abdomen. Kwak-! Ly had chosen the perfect time to attack! If Ly didn¡¯t have any trust in Ian, there was no way he would have chosen to do such a thing. Ly once again managed to get there quickly. He attacked the Drake and twisted himself out of harm¡¯s way avoiding the Drake¡¯s attack. Keak-! The Drake cried out in pain. Hoonie along with Ian wouldn¡¯t miss this opportunity. ¡°With the power of darkness¡­!¡± Hoonie started casting a spell, and darkness poured out of his staff. ¡°Halli! Guardian of the Wind!¡± In a moment, apart from Bbookbbook, Ian wielded his Judgment of the Spirit King and climbed on top of Halli. Kwang- At that very moment¡­ System messages started to pop up in front of them. [Inside the ¡®Lugarix Lair¡¯, on the 4th floor of the dungeon, you have defeated the named monster ¡®Chaotic Drake¡¯.] [You have successfully defeated all the guardians in the dungeon of the Lugarix Lair.] [You¡¯ve earned the title, ¡®Guardian Hunter¡¯.] [Earned 150,000 worth of fame.] (Syncopation) [After a while, you will be moved to the 5th floor of Lugarix Lair.] They read the messages quickly. The moment they checked the last message. [The Dragon of Darkness¡ªLugarix¡ªhas woken up from its deep sleep.] The whole dungeon began to shake the same time the system message appeared. CH 402 [All the conditions have been fulfilled to be able to use the item ¡®Kades Beads¡¯.] [The Dragon of Darkness is given the power of God.] [Increase all the battle abilities of the Dark Dragon, Lugarix by 50%.] [All of the Dragon of Darkness¡¯ dark attribute attacks are enhanced by 30%.] Ian, Hoonie, and Levya. When the three of them entered the 5th floor, those system messages came up at the same time for all of them causing them to become nervous. ¡®What is this? Can it be used automatically?¡¯ Hoonie nervously thought to himself. It was because he thought that he could finish the quest easily and move up to the 5th floor. He would then find the Lugarix and then use the beads. However, the Kades Beads activated by themselves, and Lugarix was now awake. It was natural for Lugarix to assume the three people to be intruders once he woke up. The three of them were in their own worlds of nervousness after they heard Lugarix¡¯s roar that went throughout the whole lair. [Kyahh! How dare¡­ How dare you people who have entered the lair of the God¡¯s Dragon!] Kung- Kukung-! Lugarix¡¯s roar was so powerful that the entire lair seemed like it would collapse. The boulders at the ceiling of the dungeon were falling down, creating a rough atmosphere. Ian calmly looked around for Lugarix which still couldn¡¯t be seen. ¡®Isn¡¯t Lugarix suppose to make an appearance in the first phase of the quest?¡¯ The rocks kept falling down. Darkness started to take over the dungeon. Among the familiars which Ian had summoned, he called out Bbakbbak whose agility was low but with tremendous tanking capabilities. The other familiars would lose their vitality right away if they got hit with one or two strikes on their weak spot. Ian felt like it would be better to unsummon them in the meantime and just wait for them to cooldown. Bang- Kabang-! Hoonie had the biggest loss though. Hoonie barely managed to escape from a falling rock, but many of his Undead were hit by the falling rocks. His high-level Undead and his Death Knights were the only exceptions, but the Undead General had really low agility. Duk- Duk-! The skeletons especially had lower abilities overall, and they were all smashed by the rocks. ¡°Ahh, I hate places like these the most!¡± The only one who was having a great time was Levya. Since she had those wings of pure white light, she could fly and didn¡¯t have to care about the rocks falling from above¡ªunlike Ian and Hoonie. Levya flew to a safe spot and clasped her hands to cast an area buff. ¡°The Blessing of the Holy Spirits¡­!¡± Hwoong-! A spirited resonance spread out, and the white light which started from the hands of Levya then reached the members of the party. A white shield formed around all the members. ¡°Hold on for a little longer! I think it¡¯s over.¡± Right then¡­ Hoonie pointed his finger to the front where he seemed to have noticed something. ¡°The¡­ there!¡± There were huge opening in the darkness. A dark cave that they hadn¡¯t seen when they first entered the floor was suddenly there. As the rocks began to collapse, the entrance seemed to have opened. After a moment¡­ Deep in the darkness, a pair of purple lights began to shine. [Interesting, interesting. You lot, are one hell of a guest. One is the Monarch of Darkness¡ªImmortal¡­ No, his descendant? I feel his energy.] Thud- thud- The sound of heavy footsteps came through the cave opening, and the vibrations of the dungeon began to stop eventually. Ian focused all of his concentration in the direction of the sound. He managed to grasp the situation calmly. ¡®The power of God, he will have a crazy buff with him. His level is probably over 450 as well. We will be wiped out with just one wrong move.¡¯ Huck ¨C huhuck-! Except for the sound of falling sand and powder, the whole place was quiet. All three of them were looking at the dragon¡¯s dark pupils. They were checking his skills to ready themselves to fight in the dark while feeling his footsteps that came occasionally. ¡®What? Aren¡¯t this footsteps a bit light for a dragon? Did it polymorph into a human?¡¯ Lugarix slowly showed himself. With a dark brown robe, and a silhouette the shape of a man. He looked at Ian¡¯s party with his intense purple eyes. [It has been so long since I had such radical guests.] He said with a smile on his face. The dungeon had now stopped trembling. ¡°It has been a while, humans.¡± Lugarix had seen Ian¡¯s party during the Dimensional war. He surely would have, as the three of them were standing strong till the last battle of the Dimensional War. And fortunately, Lugarix seemed to have remembered them. One might think that Lugarix knowing them would make their work easier. ¡®I can¡¯t let my guard down just yet.¡¯ Ian who confirmed the level of Lugarix gulped down. [Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix / Lv: 500] The Dragon of Darkness had the strength that he hadn¡¯t expected. If things didn¡¯t go well for Ian¡¯s side and they went to battle, then there was no guarantee that they would win. Ian had God¡¯s Dragon¡ªKarceus who was the same as Lugarix. He also had familiars who were as powerful as Kerceus¡ªBbookbbook and Kaizer. But even then, the difference in level and buff between them and Lugarix was way too big. Currently, Ian¡¯s level was almost 370. The average level of monsters was lower than that, while Bbookbbook and Karceus¡¯ level was around 350. Kaizer¡¯s level was over 400, even then their opponent was at 500. In addition, since Lugarix¡¯s battle power would increase by 50%, if calculated arithmetically, it could be considered that it had the strength of a monster that was level 700 or above. Of course, Ian too had buff skills but even considering that the gap was still going to be too big. Hoonie was the first one to talk out of the three of them, ¡°I am the Monarch of Darkness, KanjiHoonie. Are you God¡¯s Dragon, Lugarix?¡± Hoonie talked with a firm voice. Levya then whispered to Ian, ¡°Ian, Is he in the AI mode right now? Or, is he just acting?¡± ¡°Well, that¡­ I don¡¯t even know¡­¡± In the entirety of Kailan, when a user suddenly began to speak in a serious tone in a scenario, it is due to the quest that he had accepted. Which was why Levya assumed that Hoonie had been taken over by the AI. Even Hoonie wasn¡¯t an exception. ¡°It just feels like Hoonie will be good at acting.¡± ¡°I agree with that. But even then, Levya.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± ¡°Why would Hoonie suddenly change his demeanor?¡± ¡°Ah, I just assumed¡­¡± On the other hand, the conversation between Hoonie and Lugarix continued. They were both talking in the distance. ¡°Yes, I am the Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix. However, what do the human heroes need from here?¡± ¡°Lugarix, we have come here to borrow your strength.¡± ¡°Please enlighten me. Even if you are the heroes of the Human World, I can¡¯t just give you my help without knowing the reason.¡± Kung-! Lugarix took the staff that was on his back and put it on the ground. A wave spread out from the staff the moment he put it on the ground. ¡°Hmm¡­.!¡± An obvious threat to Ian¡¯s party. Lugarix stared at the three people and Hoonie continued slowly with what he was saying, ¡°Richie King Chalian. Has come back¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Hoonie briefly explained the situation to Lugarix. Ian who heard their conversation nodded and spoke to Levya, ¡°This time it surely is the AI.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­? Why?¡± ¡°Hoonie doesn¡¯t really know how to speak in such an eloquent manner.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± While the two of them were analyzing what was happening to Hoonie, Lugarix¡¯s eyes began to shine brighter. ¡°Chalian¡­! In the end that person¡­!¡± Just listening to Lugarix¡¯s voice was enough to notice the anger he was harboring. Lugarix wasn¡¯t angry at the fact that Chalian caused the Legions of Darkness to rise. It was because the God of Darkness had fallen to Chalian. That part had a huge effect on Lugarix. Kades was his God and his father. ¡°I will never forgive him¡­!!¡± Luagrix¡¯s body began to emit a purple glow. The intensity of the light was so strong that the shape of his body couldn¡¯t be made out anymore, and his silhouette began to grow. Kukung- Kukukung-! Lugarix returned to his Dragon form. Kwahh-! Lugarix¡¯s mouth opened as he released a huge roar. [I shall take down Chalian, and correct the order of Darkness!] System messages started to appear in front of Ian and his party. Tring-! [You have been successful in persuading the Dragon of Darkness, ¡®Lugarix¡¯!] [Lugarix has started to get angry with Chalian.] [From this very moment, the Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix will join your party. (However, if you do a quest that isn¡¯t related to the Richie King Chalian, then he might turn into an enemy.)] After checking the system message, Ian who had been deeply concerned sighed. ¡®Phew. Is this just the first step then?¡¯ With the success of the first connected quest, instead of Lugarix giving in to the greed of the God of Darkness, he had now chosen to confront the Richie King. What was left now was to gain the power of the Dragon of Light, Elcarix. ¡®Hu, we¡¯ll we win if we get another one of God¡¯s Dragon?¡¯ The quest ¡®Finding the Dragon of Light, Elcarix¡¯, was a quest that was given to the three of them. However, the rewards for each of them were different. Both Hoonie and Levya didn¡¯t know what Ian¡¯s reward was for this quest. ¡°Huhu.¡± Thinking that he would get another one of God¡¯s Dragon, Ian couldn¡¯t help but feel excited. Suddenly¡­ An unexpected message came up in front of Ian. Tring-! [Sudden quest has been activated.] ¡°¡­?!¡± Since he had been in Devildom for so long, it had been a while since he got a sudden quest. However, Ian was dumbfounded because of the contents of the quest. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix (Hidden) (Sudden) ¨C You are a Taming Master. And till now, you have tamed numerous familiar. You have now tried to challenge the transcendent which hadn¡¯t been reached by any human being. That is having a ¡®Mythical¡¯ pet. If you can do what no other summoner has ever done before, you¡¯ll be able to overcome the limitations of being a Taming Master once more. Now, you have a chance. Tame the Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix, and prove your power of transcendence. Quest Difficulty: SSSSS Quest Condition: 350+ level summoner user. A user with the class ¡®Taming Master¡¯. A user who has cleared the quest ¡®Finding the Goddess of Light, Ernesis.¡¯ Time Limit: None Reward: Myth level pet ¡®Lugarix¡¯. Rise of the tier for the hidden class ¡®Taming Master¡¯. * This quest cannot be shared. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C The quest ¡®Finding the Goddess of Light, Ernesis¡¯, had given Ian the opportunity to climb to new heights. The reward he had forgotten for a moment was now headed to a direction that he had never even imagined. CH 403 To summarize briefly, a sudden quest with the content of ¡®Tame the Lugarix¡¯ had been given. Despite the intuitive mind of Ian, he couldn¡¯t help but feel shocked as he saw the quest. ¡®I don¡¯t get it, why am I getting all these endless quests ?¡¯ Ian looked at the dragon that was in front of him. The Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix¡¯s appearance was enough to oppress anyone with terror. Ian was in frustration as he didn¡¯t understand how he was supposed to train a dragon that he would never be able to win over with all of his strength. He wouldn¡¯t have seen it wrong, he had read the quest window from the beginning. And the contents of the quests weren¡¯t even a little wrong. ¡®Penta S grade difficulty¡­ huh, I guess it is good that it doesn¡¯t have a time limit?¡¯ If there was a time limit, then the quest couldn¡¯t have been cleared. He looked at the amazing reward that he would get with the Hidden quest. As there was no time limit, there was a possibility. As the quest of the Richie King Chalian progresses, he would keep a huge lookout on the buffs of the Lugarix. Ian wasn¡¯t sure how long the buff of the Kades would last, but it was definite that it would disappear at some point. Surely one couldn¡¯t consider that it would be ¡®easy¡¯ if the buffs were lost, but from the probability of 0%, it would reach 10%. Ian who had been trying to think of the situation suddenly clenched his fist. ¡®Kay! That was the correct thought. If I succeed at taming the God¡¯s Dragon, then I can get the first quality taming reward!¡¯ Ian already had two myth class familiars. The God¡¯s Dragon, Karceus and the Abyss Dragon, Bbookbbook. Nevertheless, the quest window had just stated that no ¡®myth¡¯ class was tamed until the moment. Was this a mistake by LB? Not at all. Ian possessed myth class pets, and the two of them were in direct contact with Ian from the beginning. Especially Bbookbbook, it had evolved from the unique class to myth class. Taming a myth rank magical beast, a hardcore mission even for Ian. ¡®Phew. This really is a hidden class mission like the name.¡¯ Ian laughed as he remembered the hidden class, Taming master. And the shock which was registered when he first saw the mission had diluted, and now he began to get motivated. Since he had received this quest, he would be able to know how to tame the Lugarix, as he kept on proceeding with the quests of Richie King. Right then, The voice of Hoonie brought Ian from his world of fantasy to reality. ¡°Hyung, what should we do first? Do we need to head back to the Heinz plateau once again?¡± ¡°Uh? Wait, wait a second.¡± Ian who was in other thoughts was flustered and stumbled on the words when Levya who was next to him had opened his mouth, ¡°We need to do something else before it.¡± Ian remembered what it was and nodded his head while answering, ¡°Ah, right! The Dragon of Light, Lugarix¡­ we need to find it first.¡± As the words of Ian came, the next schedule of the party of Ian began to form. The Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix suddenly polymorphed into the human form. But the appearance of Lugarix in the human form was a bit different. Before he was a sturdy man who gave out a feeling of restlessness, but now he had changed into a younger boy, and he looked much younger than Hoonie. Lugarix had a very cute appearance, almost like a child actor! Ian who had seen that asked Lugarix, ¡°Uh, but Lugarix. Why have you polymorphed in a different way than before?¡± The polymorph magic, as nature was said to have almost no restrictions on the appearance change. It wasn¡¯t surprising that Lugarix had polymorphed into another way. But all the dragons that Ian had polymorphed to the same form. Which was why Ian was questioning it if it was natural. Even though it was a question, it wasn¡¯t something that needed to be asked right away. Interestingly, however, Ian who asked the question, made Lugarix turn a bit flustered. ¡°Ah, that¡­¡± Lugarix didn¡¯t know how to respond and opened his mouth trying to find the right words. And the answer to the question had come from Karceus¡ªwho was standing right behind Ian. ¡°That¡¯s what Lugarix looks like, Master.¡± ¡°Huh¡­? This is what he is? Then, he isn¡¯t a dragon?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not talking about his appearance in the real world. This is the appearance of his soul.¡± It was an unexpected story, both Hoonie and Levya too were listening to it. Karceus who was silent for a moment opened his mouth again, ¡°For us dragons, Polymorph is like the mirror of our soul.¡± ¡°Mirror of the soul?¡± ¡°Yes. If we think of a shape, then we will be able to change to that form, but when we use the polymorph magic unconsciously, we will turn into the shape that represents our soul.¡± ¡°Aha.¡± Ian who had now understood the situation once again looked at Lugarix. And Ian now dropped a shorter definition for it. ¡°So, normally you¡¯re an elementary student? And you just pretended to be someone before.¡± Hearing those words from Ian, Lugarix scrunched his nose and responded, ¡°No! Me an elementary student¡­ I¡¯m not!¡± ¡°Yah, do you know what an elementary student is?¡± ¡°I, I don¡¯t know¡­! Even then, I¡¯m not that elementary thing!¡± ¡°¡­¡± Seeing at the flustered Lugarix, and Ian who couldn¡¯t make sense of it, Levya said a few words after a laugh, ¡°Well, now will we move or not? It is a waste of time staying here.¡± Seeing that, Ian nodded and started to move. ¡°I know, we need to move quickly as we have more things to do.¡± Ian looked back at Lugarix. ¡°Elementary kid, you should move fast too.¡± Hoonie who wanted to take part in the tease added another word, ¡°You will do well if you follow this hyung. Understand?¡± The eyes of Lugarix were now swollen red. * * * ¡°Ah, is this a disaster or a blessing?¡± ¡°That is what I say, everyone! Look at those Undead which can¡¯t even be counted! Could we possibly get rid of all those massive Undeads?¡± ¡°It would be a tremendous blessing if we could prevent them. Now I am starting to see the Undead, with some legendary equipments!¡± ¡°Eh, legendary you say? I think that by collecting all the contributions from the Undead, a myth-class weapon could be picked, right?¡± ¡°That, that is right. I haven¡¯t thought of a box of myth class equipment. Haha.¡± Chrip- chrip- A cheerful sound was coming from a dark, quiet room. Na Ji-chan, seated in front of the monitor was watching the internet broadcaster while eating the potato chips as usual. It was eleven o¡¯clock on the night of Friday. If he was a normal person, he would¡¯ve been having chicken and beer with a few friends and having some heartfelt conversations. And Na Ji-chan worked for Kailan the whole week, yet the moment he had gone home, he watched the broadcast of the Kailan on his monitor. ¡°Kuku, that¡¯s all they think of, contributions?¡± Na Ji-chan was watching the famous Internet BJ¡¯s real-time video. He wasn¡¯t a high-level BJ, but he was well known to move faster than the reporters, and a lot of viewers tried to find him. ¡°It would be better to run away from Kingdom or territories that belong to Ranking Guilds¡­¡± Muttered Na Ji-chan while eating potato chips. It was always interesting for him to monitor the users that were moving in the scenarios which he had designed. In multiple ways. ¡°Oh, wait a minute, Mr- BJ!¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°This, the line of defense is already being pierced!¡± ¡°Oh oho! Viewers! Are you seeing that?! The grandeur of the huge Drake! It¡¯s a Ghost Drake! I think it is the first time for the monster to appear in the Kailan!¡± Na Ji-chan mumbled to himself. ¡°I don¡¯t think now is the time to admire a Ghost Drake¡­?¡± ¡°No, this man! Now isn¡¯t the time for that! For a little while, if the defense is further breached, then we are dead!¡± ¡°Now, wait a sec, Just wait. The defense has been breached?!¡± ¡°Uh, oh! I¡¯m going away first! I¡¯m on-air and I plan to live!¡± ¡°Wait! Just hold on!¡± The place where BJ was showing was a small manor of the guild, which was in the top 1000. The reason he had chose it was to broadcast that it was simple. He chose the place which could push the Undead army. However, he didn¡¯t think that the guild troops would fail in handling the Undead. And such misjudgments had led to fatal consequences. The guild defenders of the late 200 level were already falling down like autumn leaves. ¡°Ah! Help me¡­!¡± ¡°I¡¯m done¡­!¡± Numerous Undeads were pushing into the manor, and Na Ji-chan who was seeing the darkening screen pressed the ESC button to turn off the screen. ¡°Huhu. This¡­ I think I should change the BJ.¡± As the BJ was killed by the Death Knight who entered the area, the broadcast was terminated immediately. ¡°Let¡¯s see, isn¡¯t there some kind of BJ who will relay the one that will happen in Lotus or the Titan Kingdom?¡± Na Ji-chan with a sullen look began to sweep down the channels on the monitor. It wasn¡¯t the scene that Na Ji-chan really wanted. The battle between the Legions of Undead and the ranked users was created by him. It was the scene that he really wanted to see. * * * Ian and his party finished the maintenance in the Lugarix¡¯s Lair and moved to their next destination. No, they tried to move. ¡°Wait. Where are we supposed to go?¡± With the question of Ian, Hoonie and Levya stopped the very moment. Hoonie responded, ¡°Where to go. Aren¡¯t we supposed to find the Dragon of Light?¡± ¡°That only, but where?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Hoonie was speechless. Levya who was pondering on her thoughts opened her mouth, ¡°Since it is the Dragon of Light, should we search for a land of light?¡± Ian bent his head while answering, ¡°The land of light¡­ a place where only the priest class with a carrier can go to? I don¡¯t think Levya had that quest¡­?¡± At the question from Ian, all three of them went stiff. After thinking, Ian once again opened his mouth, ¡°Maybe Bbookbbook would know¡­?¡± But before Ian could be done, Bbookbbook shook his head. ¡°I don¡¯t know too Bbook!¡± ¡°You haven¡¯t found any other God¡¯s Dragons?¡± ¡°I can feel the energy of the dragons to an extent when they are nearby bbook! I don¡¯t feel the energy of the Elcarix here.¡± ¡°Uhm¡­¡± Right then, Hoonie who was listening to it shook his head and opened his lips, ¡°Uh, wait!¡± ¡°Huh? What?¡± ¡°Now that I¡¯ve thought of it, the name of this mountain¡­ the Lugaric mountain?¡± ¡°yeah.¡± ¡°Then, maybe¡­ the place where Elcarix is, Is the Elcaric mountain?¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± Simple, unreasonable, and yet seemingly reasonable reasoning from Hoonie! Even the Elcarix mountain was a place that existed on the northern side of the Malacca continent. In the past, when Ian met the Dragon Tamer Oakley, it was on a mountain that was further North. Levya nodded with a stern look and answered, ¡°Doesn¡¯t, doesn¡¯t that sound right?¡± ¡°Me too. Somehow it seems to fit¡­¡± Hoonie admired his own reasoning skills by waving his staff haughtily. ¡°Khaaa! It hasn¡¯t died yet. The reasoning ability of KanjiHoonie!¡± ¡°¡­¡± Levya and Ian, at the same time, gazed at Hoonie. Lugarix who was right next to Hoonie added the praise, ¡°Indeed, the Monarch of Darkness¡­!¡± Ian, who lost his words at the act of Hoonie and Lugarix, just moved ahead. And Levya soon caught up to Ian. Their destination was the Elcaric Mountains in the North of Malacca. CH 404 The Northern continent of Malacca. The Malacca continent, the newly opened continent in the Kailan after the first new update, it had been over a year since it was opened. It was the area which was pioneered by almost 99% of the users, so finding the Elcaric mountain wasn¡¯t a big deal. Even Hoonie had actually been to the Elcaric mountain, due to the proceeding of a quest. Ian and the party who were in the most northern part, immediately headed in the direction of the Elcaric mountain. Ian asked Hoonie who was moving behind him. ¡°Hoonie-ah, how long would it take for us to reach the Elcaric mountain?¡± ¡°Well. I can¡¯t give you the exact time because the situation is a little different now¡­ maybe a few more couple of hours?¡± ¡°Haa, it takes that long?¡± ¡°Huh. We are really at the end of the Northside. By the time we fight the monsters and head that way, wouldn¡¯t it take that long?¡± ¡°Hmm, I want to go there within an hour.¡± ¡°What will you do by moving that quick?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to waste time where the experience I¡¯ll get is negligible.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian with Pin, Karceus, and Bbookbbook. With all the familiars that could fly, they moved the party through the air. With that, they started to head to the Elcaric mountain to find it as soon as possible. The level of monsters that were appearing was of early level 100. And Ian had no intention of wasting his time on the place where the monsters hadn¡¯t even reached the level of 200. However, within 20 minutes, Ian realized that he was wrong. ¡°What¡­? What¡¯s the stats of the monsters here¡­?¡± As soon as the level of 100 monsters started to stop, a monster with the level of 300 began to appear. A lot of Undead monsters which weren¡¯t heard of, or seen before were now in the continent. ¡°I think it¡¯s all the effect of the Richie King?¡± Ian nodded with a grim look on his face. ¡°Yeah. What else had happened during the time of our quest?¡± Like they have noticed, the power of the monsters had risen exponentially. Levya who was riding on Pin asked Ian, ¡°Ian, what should we do? From here it will be difficult to avoid those gargoyles and fly away?¡± Ian¡¯s sight moved to the place where Levya was talking about. There were snow gargoyles heading in the direction of Ian. Ian stood on top of Karceus, nodded and replied to Levya. ¡°Maybe even then¡­ maybe we should start attacking. I thought we could just pass, but it doesn¡¯t seem like that would happen now.¡± ¡°Okay! Then¡­!¡± Levya immediately moved away from Pin and spread her white wings in the open air. She brought her hands close to her chest, along with the chant of magic light. ¡°In the name of the Goddess of Light, Ernesis¡­¡± Woong-! White light started to grow around the body of Levya. A few seconds later, the numerous rays of white light passed through the dark clouds of the Northern Continent. Kyak, Kayh-! Kiyaaah-! Holy rain, a top tier skill of the Priest class. It was normally used to restore the vitality of a large number of the group at once, but the very same wide area healing skill was now being used as an ultimate wide-area attack skill against the Undead, ¡®Holy Rain skill¡¯. The Holy Rain of Levya, the most powerful skill of the priests was enough to make the level 300 Undead screech out in pain. Especially for the case of the Gargoyles that were flying in the air. Along with the ones that were being attacked by the rain from the cloud, some of them weren¡¯t flying now. ¡°Then, Should¡­ should we wipe them all off?¡± Ian leaped from Karceus and jumped towards the monsters. Even though he didn¡¯t have wings like Levya, Ian didn¡¯t hesitate to jump at the high altitude. It was a terrifying and dangerous act for anyone, however, Ian¡¯s party wasn¡¯t surprised at it. It was because they knew that Ian had a pet that he could summon. Khiii-! A black horse was summoned with a sharp screech. As soon as Ian climbed on it, it spread open its black boned wings into the air. [The pet ¡®Hargasus¡¯ descend skill is in use.] [Disables all the damage for a while.] Just before landing onto the ground, Ian absorbed all the attacks of the Undead with the descend, and began to wield his golden spear. Hoonie and Levya, who reached the ground a little later than Ian, began to head to the Undead with their skills. ¡°Rise up! The sons of darkness!¡± ¡°The Light!!¡± Normally it was tough for a priest and warlock to work in a party and hunt. They couldn¡¯t cause any damage towards another unless they were in PK mode, but the buffs of light and dark don¡¯t usually touch the same objects. The Debuff was the same too. If one casts more of the dark attribute on a target that has an abnormal attribute of light, the situation could be overcome by the later attack. Especially, in case of warlocks who have numerous skills to cast with the dark attributes, but when the markers disappear due to the wide range skill of light from the priests, the situation would turn dark. If both their hands and feet weren¡¯t on the same line, the battle would be a mess, however, that wasn¡¯t the situation for Hoonie and Levya. Kwang- Kwakwang-! And Ian, who was fighting the battle earnestly began to attack the Undead rapidly. Though the quantity of enemies was outnumbering, it was assumed by them that it would be done in 30 minutes. ¡®Well, I think that it is a good contribution. This place is sweet, but we don¡¯t have much time.¡¯ Looking at the system messages that were coming up, Ian couldn¡¯t help but feel satisfied. Right then, Kwanng-! Ian who was swinging his spear, couldn¡¯t help but feel the rippling waves from behind him. ¡°¡­?!¡± Ian reflexively looked behind him. It was Lugarix, with his huge wings in the sky using ¡®Breath¡¯. Kwaaa-! With tremendous stamina¡ªthe breath of the Dragon of Darkness had come! The breath hit the ground like a tsunami, and the undead on the snow was being melted down. From the normal level skeletons to the hero ranked ones. The scene where the hundreds of 300 level undead were annihilated was a wonderful sight to see. The system messages which came up¡ªwere like a bonus to the party. [Party member ¡®Lugarix¡¯ has successfully defeated the ¡®Skelton Warrior¡¯!] [You get 5970981 experience points!] [Your Party member ¡®Lugarix¡¯ is successful in killing the ¡®Skeleton mage¡¯!] [You get 6951209 experience points.] [The party member ¡®Lugarix¡¯ has successfully defeated ¡®Dark Race¡¯¡­] It wasn¡¯t the monsters that give them the experience points, but the experience that they gained was all because they were all in a party. With the breath of ¡®Lugarix¡¯ which was taking down everything, Ian couldn¡¯t even speak. The experience and contribution that they were getting were normal, but there was something that Ian couldn¡¯t exactly pinpoint. It seemed like a joyful feat for the Lugarix, but it showed such skillful control at it. Lugarix who had cleaned off all the undead, laughed with his shoulders straight. ¡°Keukk, fragile humans. This is the power of the God¡¯s Dragon!¡± The elementary kid, Lugarix. * * * There were currently more than a thousand guilds in the Kailan Korean server. And if the units of the guilds were counted, then it would be around 10,000, and they had some sort of assortment. Among them, only seven hundred of them had a Manor. And now many of the manor sites were in the wartime system. It was a huge event which had never happened since the beginning of Kailan. As a matter of fact, the official community of Kailan was upset. All the users who were dead in the hands of the Undead legion were all gathered in the community page, which was why the traffic in the page was high. ¨C Guys! The Guild manors that were occupied had now reached to over fifty? ¨C Yeah yeah, perhaps after a day, maybe the Richie King will have hundreds of them in his hands. ¨C Isn¡¯t this episode a bit too much? How can the novice users be hunt down in the continent with the Undead? ¨C Man, the novice users don¡¯t have to worry much. The Undead don¡¯t hunt those below the level of 150. ¨C AH, seriously? ¨C Yeah, LB seemed to have considered that. The voice of concern could be heard everywhere, but the smallest guilds were the ones who had faced the most serious damage. For those who had no power to prevent the legion of the undead with Level 300, they just had to watch their beloved estates crumble to the ground. Surely, they wouldn¡¯t lose over the manor if they couldn¡¯t just block the Undead. But once the undead swept over, the population on the land would reduce to half, and the facilities were destroyed. However, among the small and medium guilds, there were cases where the land was protected without facing grave damage. They were the guilds who belonged to the Lotus Kingdom after their declaration. ¨C Keu, This episode is! ¨C Huh? Aenas, wasn¡¯t yours the Black Wind Guild? ¨C Right. ¨C Was there no damage there? With the level of the Black Wind guild, there was no way you could¡¯ve prevented the Undead wave? ¨C Huhu, this is why people need to have a good alliance. ¨C Huh¡­? ¨C Our guild has been with the Lotus Kingdom since last month. Which is why we are enjoying the benefit. The Lotus Kingdom has come and blocked them for us. ¨C Oh oh¡­? ¨C Now, thanks to the undead legion, we were able to grow our public value. ¨C Sh*t, jackpot. I¡¯m so jealous. It was really chaotic! However, as the time passed and the situation could be understood, the system picked up the battlefield. Locals with the Lotus Kingdom had the strongest power and began to defeat the undead legion. They were attacking the bases of the legion of undead. In particular, the Lotus Kingdom met them in the border of Elrika Kingdom and had an all-out war. The Kingdom of Elrika was the kingdom of Kades, and it was in the Kingdom of the God of Darkness that many legions of undead were based. Was it in a day or so? The Lotus had finally declared the war. And the object of war was, of course, the ¡®Kingdom of Elrika¡¯. CH 405 Bang-! In one of the rooms in the Lotus Kingdom, Next to the desk in the King¡¯s office, Herz stamped on a golden letterhead. As soon as the seal was stamped, the letter started to glow and levitated to the air. It then turned into a white powder. ¡°Could this be possible¡­?¡± While Herz was mumbling to himself. Before he could even continue what he was saying a few system messages emerged into Herz¡¯s view. [The Lotus Kingdom¡¯s King¡¯s pin has been used.] [The whole population of the Kingdom will be notified of this] [The war against the Elrika Kingdom has been declared.] [At this very moment, the Lotus Kingdom can attack any of the users and NPCs from the Elrika Kingdom without facing a PVP penalty.] [At this very moment, The state of the Kingdom will be set to ¡®Emergency situation¡¯.] [By using the ¡®Conscripts¡¯ tab, you can recruit level 100 to 200 users and soldiers.] [The maximum number of people who can be drafted at the moment is: 54250.] [At the time of recruitment, you will have to pay gold every day for LV*20 (In the case of recruiting users, you will have to pay according to their playtime for LV*15.)] [Set the number of recruiters to be drafted.] Herz who was reading the system messages decided to try to maximize first the number of conscripts. ¡°Conscripts to the maximum.¡± System messages appeared once again. [Please set the User/NPC ratio of the troops to be drafted.] This was where Herz was having a bit of trouble the most. ¡®Users are definitely better than soldiers¡­¡¯ Although it was slightly different if they were a bit higher in level, a common level soldier didn¡¯t even have half the power that the same level user had. It was stated that NPCs were showing the same capabilities regular users had according to research articles recently. However, in a large-scale war, intellectual users were much better than AI-based NPC soldiers. Although the payments for users were higher than that of an NPC, it was worth hiring them. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Herz who was in deep thought while holding his chin said, ¡°User 20%, NPC 80% for match.¡± 20% was around 50,000 in actual numbers, and there were around a million users who are for recruitment normally. However, an unexpected system message popped up. [Currently, there are 5798 people who are available for recruitment in the Lotus Kingdom] [The user percentage needs to be reduced.] Herz scratched his head and responded again, ¡°Then¡­ 10%?¡± [Recruitment is possible.] [Result being calculated.] [Estimated consumption cost: 288742450 gold (approximate figures may vary by 10%)] [The recruitment cost includes all the expenses including food and medical equipment.] [Do you want to proceed with the recruitment?] Having confirmed the cost of recruitment which was more than a billion per day, Herz paused for a moment. ¡°Uh, why does recruiting people so expensive?¡± Actually, the recruitment was never expensive. The taxes that were being paid each month to the Kingdom were over 50 billion gold. It was a figure that had been doubled since the time when the Kingdom was first built. So even if they had a war for the whole month, they could hold it with the tax they got after merging the other territories and guilds. They should also consider using up all the taxes they had collected. From the perspective of recruited users, the gold that would be given to them wasn¡¯t that much. At most, they would receive around 2,000 to 3,000 won. However, users should also consider the fame and items they would get if they participated in the war. Herz was a bit worried but proceeded anyway. ¡°Yeah, well¡­ if we win this war we will get back more than the amount of gold that we spent.¡± What Herz¡¯s said wasn¡¯t an exaggeration. If the Lotus Kingdom won the war and conquered the Elrika Kingdom, their Kingdom¡¯s territory would be doubled. Restoring the Kingdom would take place after the war and would cost them more gold. However, the tax money they would get would be doubled once they had successfully conquered the Elrika Kingdom. It would be great if the Lotus Kingdom would win since they were planning to expand into an Empire. ¡°By the way, Ian that bastard of a King, where the hell is he? At such crucial moments¡­¡± Ian was needed in order to minimize the cost of the war. They needed to finish the war as soon as possible, or they would exhaust the taxes they had collected. They would surely have a great boost in their morale if Ian was there. ¡°Huh, I¡¯ll give him the best treatment when he gets back.¡± Herz grumbled while he was holding onto a golden light in his hand. His power and authority weren¡¯t that different from the King. Ian said that he didn¡¯t want to be King, and Herz knew why now. ¡°Uh uh¡­ all of these are worthless. Why complicate things so much?¡± The war between the states, and between the nations were also of a different magnitude. Which was why the King was an interior part of a Kingdom. Herz went out of the room and went onto the balcony to look at the entirety of the state. Tring-! [Everything has been ready for the ¡®war¡¯!] [Do you want to leave?] Finally, all the preparations were done for a full-scale war between the kingdom of Lotus and Elrika. * * * Moving to the north of the northern continent, the number of undead were getting higher and higher. Because of that, Ian and his party experienced a lot of lag, but they eventually made it to the north end of the Elcaric Mountain. [Arrived at the ¡®Elcaric Mountain¡¯.] A simple one-line message appeared once they had arrived. ¡°Phew, why is it so hard to move in the north?¡± Hoonie grunted. Levya replied, ¡°I know. It¡¯s as if we¡¯re in the Heinz plateau, right?¡± Levya wasn¡¯t being exaggerated when she said that. When they were near the Elcaric Mountain, they couldn¡¯t help but notice that the level of the undead monsters had risen close to 400. Moreover, their number was so great they thought that the Heinz Plateau would¡¯ve been easier to deal with. Lugarix who was polymorphed into a kid joined their conversation. ¡°Keu, you guys wouldn¡¯t have managed to come here if it wasn¡¯t for me.¡± They would have managed to come to the Elcaric mountain without Lugarix, but his help had surely come in handy for them. Hoonie immediately denied what Lugraix was saying. ¡°Not really? Nope¡ªNo!¡± There was no proof for it nor was there any logical basis for what Lugarix was saying. Lugarix was stubborn though and refused to agree with Hoonie. ¡°Keuk!¡± Ian and Levya looked at each other with a smile, and Hoonie seemed to be in a good mood too. Ian secretly sent a message to Levya. [What are those kids doing?] [That? Well, I don¡¯t know either¡­] Hoonie and Lugarix totally forgot why they came to the Elcaric mountain because of their bickering while they were following Ian and Levya. The mountains were so wide that finding the lair of Elcarix didn¡¯t seem like an easy job. It wasn¡¯t possible as well to disperse their familiars and ask them to explore the mountain as it was too wide. Plus, there was too many Undead on the mountain. However, there was someone in Ian¡¯s party who could make their lives easier. Ian then issued an order to Kaka. ¡°Kaka, I¡¯m ordering you to find Elcairx¡¯s lair.¡± ¡°I understand master. I will share my vision through the Dark Lord.¡± ¡°Please!¡± Ian sent Kaka off to the west, and they went to the mountain¡¯s eastern side. Around thirty minutes later, Ian felt something strange. ¡°Uhm, why did the number of undead monsters went down in this side?¡± Hoonie responded to Ian with a silly look on his face, ¡°Who cares why? Don¡¯t you think that our search would be easier if they decrease?¡± Lugarix was the one who responded to Hoonie instead of Ian while snapping his fingers, ¡°Ian wants to fight the legion of the Richie King, you coward Monarch of Darkness!!¡± ¡°I¡¯m not! I won¡¯t let you¡­¡± ¡°Swoosh!¡± On the other hand, Ian just kept thinking of their situation while the two of them were bickering. ¡®Maybe¡­ hundreds of undead monsters are protecting Elcarix¡¯s eggs?¡¯ Ian thought of the battle that was going on in the North. ¡®When I think about it, the undead monsters have only appeared in the direction of the undead army.¡¯ There was the Richie King¡¯s army throughout the northern continent. However, his army was mostly composed of undead monsters that could be easily hunted down by any user. However, it was only on the Elcaric mountain that high-level undead monsters were blocking the mountain¡¯s path. ¡®I feel like we¡¯re not on the right path. Before entering the Elcaric mountains, we were talking about the Heinz plateau.¡¯ If that was right, then Ian and his party were heading in the wrong direction. If the Richie King¡¯s legion was indeed protecting the Elcarix¡¯s lair, then more powerful undead monsters would be near the lair. ¡®I¡¯ll just go with my instincts for once.¡¯ Ian who arranged his thoughts looked at his party and spoke, ¡°I don¡¯t think we¡¯re heading in the right direction.¡± Both Hoonie and Levya responded at the same time, ¡°Huh¡­?¡± ¡°What? Why?¡± Once Ian started to explain, both of them started to get convinced. ¡°Oh¡­! You really think so?¡± ¡°Yeah, well, I don¡¯t think that what Ian was saying is completely wrong, right? Lugarix, who was hysterically looking at the three of them, looked at Ian. ¡°Smart, you¡¯re a smart human¡­! How did you come to that?!¡± Lugarix who had admired Ian¡¯s reasoning looked at him with his mouth wide open! Ian¡¯s party members all agreed with Ian and moved west. Whether Ian was right or not, the number of undead monsters started to increase as they further go west. They could advance quickly at first, but their pace began to slow down eventually. About three hours after entering the Elcaric mountains, Ian began to get suspicious. ¡®Why is that Kaka not coming up with anything? If the path was right, she should have discovered something, right¡­?¡¯ Ian glanced around and looked at Hoonie. Ian didn¡¯t contact Kaka, but he wanted to see her view. The moment Ian was about to say something a system message popped up. [Slave ¡®Kaka¡¯ has suffered catastrophic damage!] [Kaka¡¯s vitality has been exhausted and died.] [A deceased slave can be recalled after 72 hours.] ¡°¡­?!¡± Seeing the system messages that he had never thought of, Ian began to panic. CH 406 Normally when a familiar gets killed, it can be summoned back after 24 hours, just like users. However, it was different for slaves. A dead retainer would take any time after a week to resurrect, and slaves could be summoned after 3 days. Kaka¡¯s death was a huge blow to Ian. ¡®Uh, there will be a lot of undead monsters that I¡¯ll have to deal with later since I¡¯m going to be fighting without Kaka for three days¡­¡¯ Except for light attribute attacks, there was nothing that could harm Kaka. Kaka was completely helpless with any light attribute attack. The very thing that Kaka was looking for was the Dragon of Light, Elcarix, so Ian could understand if Kaka would die. ¡®I was being too careless. Thinking that the Dragon of Light was still in its egg form, I sent her in¡­¡¯ Even if the dragon was still in its egg form, it was still in its lair. No, it wasn¡¯t even certain that the dragon inside the lair was still in its egg form, and the place that Kaka found were filled with light attribute energy. Like the case in the lair of Lugarix, there could be some kind of an unforeseen danger in this lair as well. If Kaka was indeed in the Dragon of Light¡¯s lair, then Kaka¡¯s death was understandable. Ian calmed his mind and spoke to the others, ¡°This seems to be the right way.¡± Levya responded to him right away. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Kaka is dead.¡± ¡°¡­?!¡± ¡°It seems like Kaka has found the lair of Elcarix. The only thing that could hurt Kaka is light attribute attacks.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± Ian¡¯s party members nodded their heads in agreement and began to move quickly. As the level of the undead kept on rising, Ian was confident that they were going in the right direction and kept moving forward. After a couple of hours, they managed to find the lair of Elcarix. * * * A rocky cave in the snowy white mountain. Contrary to Lugarix¡¯s lair¡¯s entrance that had an intimidating aura, this lair was rather modest and small. Hoonie then muttered, ¡°This seems smaller than Lugarix¡¯s lair¡­?¡± After hearing those words, Lugraix folded his arms with an arrogant look. ¡°Huhu, my lair is rather grand. It sure is¡­!¡± Lugarix straightened his shoulders and began to boast about his lair. However, Ian cut him off and asked something he was curious about. ¡°Don¡¯t talk nonsense. Lugarix, look at this lair carefully. Is this really Elcarix¡¯s lair?¡± Lugarix was about to answer Ian¡¯s question when someone else beat him into it. ¡°This is it bbook. I can feel the energy of God¡¯s Dragon in there bbook!¡± Answered Bbookbbook who was on top of Ly. Lugarix then followed up on what Bbookbbook said. ¡°Right, this is it. Ian-ah, this seems like Elcarix¡¯s lair.¡± Ian responded with a cranky voice, ¡°Bbookbbook had already said that! You¡¯re late, kid.¡± Lugarix¡¯s eyes widened upon hearing what Ian said. ¡°Oh, Oh no. I was about to say that! I already knew that this is the place!¡± Ian shook his head and his finger at the same time. ¡°How am I supposed to believe that?¡± Lugarix was dumbfounded. Lugarix looked like an unfairly treated victim trying to claim that he was innocent. ¡°Eh, Elcarix is my twin sibling! Do you really think that I don¡¯t know the lair of my sibling?!¡± Lugarix started to spew out interesting stories that they hadn¡¯t even asked for. Ian noticed something interesting, and Hoonie looked at Lugarix with red eyes. ¡°Which mean, you knew where Elcarix¡¯s lair was and yet you chose to say nothing until now?¡± Hoonie¡¯s accusations made Lugarix nervous and embarrassed at the same time. ¡°It isn¡¯t like that¡­!¡± ¡°Not like that? It definitely sounds like that! This liar!¡± ¡°I¡­ I didn¡¯t lie!¡± ¡°Then why didn¡¯t you say anything? If you knew you should have told us right away. We wouldn¡¯t have lost Kaka!¡± ¡°That¡­ about that¡­!¡± Lugarix was on the verge of tearing up. His mouth was trembling. Lugarix didn¡¯t want to die, as he wanted to sweep off the undead monsters and be a good support to them. * * * ¡°Orden, are you sure this is the way?¡± ¡°It seems like it, master. A little further to the Northeast is where Prilania valley is.¡± ¡°Phew. Then can we rest here for a moment?¡± ¡°Understood, master. Then I¡¯ll sit on the peal over there.¡± ¡°Yeah, okay.¡± At the north end of the northern continent. A wild dragon flapped its wings in the sky of the snowy fields where the wind was enough to freeze a person. A man was riding this wild dragon. He was the successor of Oakley the Dragon Tamer, a summoner. Flap ¨C Flap ¨C Every time the dragon flapped its wings, it would create huge gusts of wind. The dragon¡ªOrden¡ªwho was carrying Canoel sat down and wrapped its master in its wings to protect its master from the cold wind. ¡°It¡¯s alright, Orden. This wind won¡¯t matter much to me, and I have the food that Harin noona has given me.¡± Canoel took out an onigiri (Japanese rice cakes) from his inventory and looked at it with a bit of a spooked expression. The rice was red in color and there was something that looked like a chunk of flying fish on top of it. Orden who saw it asked Canoel out of concern. ¡°Really¡­ you¡¯re really thinking about eating that, master.¡± Canoel stuttered as he himself wasn¡¯t sure. ¡°I¡­ I should eat¡­ If I eat this, then I can get through these cold winds.¡± Canoel hesitated and took a bite from the rice ball. System messages started to appear in front of him. Tring-! [You have consumed the food ¡®Magma Riceballs¡¯.] [The spicy flavor of the magma rice balls is too much for your mouth.] [You lack the resistance for a spicy taste.] [For 30 minutes, you will get 20 damage per second.] [Your resistance to spicy food was increased by 2.] [Frost resistance increased by 30% for the next 2 hours.] [Flame resistance is reduced by 15% for the next 2 hours.] However, Canoel couldn¡¯t confirm the message. He closed his eyes tightly. As the message said, its spiciness was over the top! ¡°Uh¡­ uuuhh!¡± Canoel, who had just taken a bite off of it, could feel his esophagus melting, and began to eat the snow that was around him which he wasn¡¯t supposed to. [You have eaten the ¡®Cold icy snow¡¯.] [Careful! It is not something that you should eat!] [Frost resistance will drop by 1% for 5 minutes.] Orden comforted Canoel with a worried look. ¡°It¡¯s alright, master. It can be like that. I understand.¡± Orden¡¯s nickname was the Gourmet Dragon. His hobby was tasting Harin¡¯s new food! Orden had already had the ¡®Magma Rice balls¡¯. During that time, Orden had to eat 5 snowmen made by the kids from Pyro to settle the burning feeling. Which was why Orden fully understood what his master was going through. Canoel, who was eating the snow all over the place, sat down. ¡°Huhu, this¡­ is five times harder than fighting undead monsters, Orden.¡± ¡°Right, master. If you can maybe feed that to the Richie King, we might be able to get rid of him easily.¡± ¡°Hehe. Anyway, I¡¯m not feeling cold. That onigiri is indeed effective.¡± Orden spoke after seeing Canoel all impressed with the effects of the onigiri, ¡°Your insides are probably hurting by now. That is why you don¡¯t feel cold.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Canoel climbed back onto Orden¡¯s back after he was done with his repairs. ¡°Still, the more we move to the north the less I think the undead monsters will appear, Orden. Is it because of this cold weather?¡± ¡°Undead monsters won¡¯t be stopped by cold weather.¡± ¡°Uh, really? Well, it still is a good thing for us¡­¡± Once Canoel settled himself onto Orden¡¯s back, he flapped his wings and flew into the air. Their destination was the Prilania Valley at the northern end of the north continent. It was a place where many tamers were buried in the past due to the invasions of the dragons. ¡®Once I find the Prilania Valley¡­ I will be able to use their strength against the army of the Richie King.¡¯ While holding onto Orden, Canoel¡¯s eyes shined with hope. * * * [You have entered the Dragon of Light, Elcarix¡¯s lair.] [The area of light, you¡¯ve entered into the first area of the lair.] [You are the first to discover the ¡®Lair of Elcarix¡¯.] [Fame increased by 50,000.] [You are the first to discover this dungeon.] [All the experience you gained in the dungeon will be doubled for the next 5 days.] [The drop rates of items in the dungeon will be doubled for the next 5 days.] Ian¡¯s eyes were fixated on the system messages. ¡®The Elcarix lair isn¡¯t the first discovery, but the area was.¡¯ The Lugarix lair wasn¡¯t a dungeon that was hard to find, it was a place that any user could find. However, he was happy that he found a dungeon after a long time. If this dungeon¡¯s difficulty was similar to that of Lugarix¡¯s lair, then they would be able to get some awesome experience and items. ¡®We also have Lugarix with us.¡¯ Lugarix, who could sweep monsters with just one or two hits, still couldn¡¯t be considered the best. Furthermore, since light and dark attributes were inversely related to each other, an attack from Lugarix could cause severe damage to enemies with light attributes. Lugarix too could be attacked with a light attribute attack and suffer severe damage from it. That¡¯s why he couldn¡¯t really be considered as the best among the people in the party. Ian just laughed at the idea of him trying to hard carry them! And not everything happened the way he wanted. [Area of light, you have entered the last area.] [After 10 seconds, a Holy Drake (Lv 375) guarding the first basement will appear.] ¡°The last¡­?!¡± Unlike Lugraix¡¯s Lair, Elcarix¡¯s lair wasn¡¯t a dungeon that had floors! Ian¡¯s dreams of hunting down monsters and gaining experience points were broken. Grrrong-! Something came out and resonated throughout the lair. A pure white wave came from inside of the dragon. [¡®Illusion of Light¡¯ has been activated.] [You have suffered damage from the light.] [Vitality is reduced by 2350.] [A being of dark attribute can¡¯t enter the area of light.] System messages that Ian didn¡¯t expect were showing up. Ian now understood why Kaka died. ¡®Hu, so this is why Kaka died.¡¯ Honestly, that level of damage wasn¡¯t enough to even kill a Warlock class. However, Kaka was different. If an attack was a light attribute, even a small amount of damage could kill her. ¡°This will be tough¡­?¡± The same time the messages came, Hoonie and the Dragon of Darkness¡ªLugarix¡ªwere thrown out of the dungeon. Levya opened her wings and smiled. ¡°There¡¯s nothing we can do. We just have to try.¡± Ian laughed and held onto his Judgment of the Spirit King. ¡°Yeah, well, it¡¯s not like we wouldn¡¯t be able to catch the drake without those two kids, right?¡± Kyahh-!! The Holy Drake had scales that were as white as snow. Levya and Ian rushed towards the Drake the very moment it came out. CH 407 [The illusion of light doesn¡¯t allow darkness.] [It is an alliance created by the power of the Goddess of Light, Ernesis.] [It doesn¡¯t resist violence.] [Move out of the dungeon.] [For a while you will be in the state of ¡®helplessness¡¯.] After the white light flashes, the messages came into Hoonie¡¯s view. With a feeling of dizziness, his vision started to lose focus. The next thing he saw, was that he was back at the entrance of the dungeon. Feeling distorted and proud of it, Hoonie opened his mouth, ¡°Finally¡­ Even the Gods are feeling burdened by the darkness.¡± Laughing wickedly. ¡°Kuk, light, and darkness are two sides of a¡­ which is why they have rejected the darkness, indeed a narrow minded dungeon it is.¡± Hoonie approached the cliff of the Elcaric mountain and closed his eyes with a solitary look. ¡°The justice given by light and darkness aren¡¯t different¡­¡± While Hoonie was drifting into his own world of thoughts. Right then, Hoonie heard a sound from behind. ¡°That isn¡¯t the case. Monarch of Darkness.¡± Hoonie who was startled with that voice opened his eyes. ¡°Uh, Euk!¡± He almost slipped down the cliff. Hoonie held onto a tree branch and saved himself from the crisis, and tried to calm his pounding chest. ¡°Eh, ahm.¡± Hoonie stared at Lugarix who was in front of him. ¡®Right, that guy¡­ he is a dragon of darkness.¡¯ He thought that he was the only one who was thrown out of the dungeon, which was why when he heard the voice of the kid from behind, he almost threw himself off the cliff. Lugarix approached Hoonie who had lost his wits with that incident and opened his mouth. ¡°God is neither intolerant nor stupid. They are non-existent by themselves. But there is a deep sense of what they do.¡± Hoonie just scratched the back of his neck and responded, ¡°Is, is that so?¡± ¡°Yeah, it is. At least till one doesn¡¯t get touched by the greed-driven Devil gods.¡± Thinking about Kades, the God of Darkness Lugarix¡¯s expression turned grim. And it was Lugarix who broke the silence once again. ¡°We can¡¯t go into the Elcarix lair, but we should do something, Monarch of Darkness. And that is the arrangement by the Goddess of Light, Ernesis¡± Hoonie couldn¡¯t quite understand that. ¡°What is that?¡± Turning his gaze to the Elcarix lair, Lugarix said, ¡°Richie King Chalian wouldn¡¯t want the dragon of light to be awakened.¡± ¡°That is true.¡± ¡°Which is why he has kept so many undead in these ranges of Elcaric Mountains.¡± ¡°Aha¡­ and so¡­?¡± Hoonie who had heard the explanation about it understood the whole situation. ¡®The presence of Light made it inaccessible for the Darkness to prevail, hence stops the Richie King.¡¯ And the reason for the numerous legion of undead coming to protect the Dragon of Light, and to protect the Elcaric mountain was the very reason. Seeing Hoonie who nodded his head, Lugarix opened his mouth once again, ¡°Then, Monarch of Darkness. What are we supposed to do?¡± ¡°What we are supposed to do¡­?¡± Hoonie¡¯s head was spinning. But before Hoonie could think of a response, Lugarix answered, ¡°Going through the exit.¡± Trying to grab the moment, Lugarix spoke after giving a pause for a few seconds. ¡°By now, the Richie King would have noticed that we have entered, and more powerful legion of darkness will make an entry.¡± The very moment, a quest window formed in front of Hoonie¡¯s eyes. Tring-! ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Destroy the Legion of Dark (Hidden) (Sudden Quest) ¨C The legion of Richie King is powerful. In order to deal with him, there is a need for the power of the two dragons. The Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix and the Dragon of Light, Elcarix. You already have Lugarix with you, now you need to awaken Elcarix and get her strength. Which is why you have come to the Elcaric mountain with the other heroes of the Human race. But there is a problem. The legion of Richie King, who was scouting on the Elkaric mountain has noticed your presence. The legion of Richie King is aiming for the Elcarix. When the heroes who have entered the lair come out with the soul stone of God¡¯s Dragon, they will try to seize the stones and destroy it. Numerous legions of undead have begun to surround the Elcaric mountain. Before your comrades come out with the soul stone from the lair, you must destroy the legion of undead and secure a safe retreat. The legion of darkness is powerful, but you have the help of Lugarix. He will help you to defeat them. Quest Difficulty: SSS Quest Condition: Users with a level of 350 or higher. A user who has cleared the Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix lair. With an ongoing quest of ¡®Dragon of Light, Elcarix¡¯. Time limit: None Rewards: Varies according to the number of legions of darkness that have been faced. (Gains fame and experience.) During the quest, all the experience and episode contribution will be doubled. Death during the battle will cause the quest to be failed. The quest will continue until the party that is in the dungeon will get back to the field. The quest cannot be rejected. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Hoonie who had read the quest window was elated. ¡®This, this such a treat¡­!¡¯ A simple quest to fight the legion of darkness of the Richie King. Along with the Lugarix, if they managed not to die, it would be considered a successful quest, which was why it felt like a bonus. ¡®I can swim in exp with this!¡¯ Hoonie who was troubled with the alienation from the quest was now in a good mood and looked around the cliff. The Undead were moving in their direction from the underneath. ¡°Nice! I¡¯ll wipe them off!¡± Hoonie began o summon the undead! ¡®Keu. I took almost three to four hours to clear the Lugarix lair¡­ so this will probably take around half a day?¡¯ As Hoonie and Lugarix were missing in the party, they assumed that the party would take twice the amount of time for clearing it. Hoonie was excited about the experience points that he would get for the coming seven hours, while Lugarix asked him. ¡°Monarch of Darkness. Destroy those things along with me!¡± Hoonie smiled and replied, ¡°I like that!¡± * * * While Hoonie was dreaming about the exp, Ian and Levya did good work in slaying the Holy Drake. The Holy Drake was much easy to defeat when compared to the Chaotic Drake in the lair of Lugarix. [In the ¡®Elcarix lair¡¯ on level 1 you have defeated the named boss ¡®Holy Drake¡¯.] [Fame of 150,000 has been achieved.] [Within a while, you will be moved to the 2nd floor of Elcarix lair.] Holy Drake had oxidized into white light. Seeing that, Levya muttered in a low voice, ¡°This is a bit too suspicious?¡± Ian nodded his head in agreement and expressed his concern. ¡°Yeah. It doesn¡¯t feel like we will get the soul stone of Elcarix¡­¡± While the two of them were conversing about it, the dungeon began to shake. A much scarier movement in the dungeon than when they woke Lugarix in its lair. Kukung- Kukukung-!! Both Ian and Levya turned nervous with those sounds and the floor began to crack under the feet of the two people. ¡°Ian be careful with the floor!¡± Warning Ian, Levya opened her wings and moved away from the ground. Ian summoned Pin and got on top of him. Urrrng- Kukukung-! The lair continued to vibrate with no signs of ending any time soon. As the vibration continued, the floor eventually collapsed and sunk. ¡®The whole floor is going to disappear like this¡­?¡¯ Ian was flustered at it while he summoned Pin, Karceus Bbookbbook excluding the other ones. Everyone was perfectly safe in the party of Ian. Within a while, as Ian had predicted, the floor had vanished¡ªand a cliff unfolded beneath it. From a spot, a light began to rise. Ian and Levya watched the scene with heavy breaths. Woong-! The sounds which were resonating began to get louder and closer. The vibration that shook the lair had calmed down, and the sound which was coming from a light source was the only thing one could hear, the whole atmosphere felt strange. As time went on, the light turned to take a shape that could be seen. Ian¡¯s eyes were fixed on it. ¡®What is it? Is that woman the Dragon of Light, Elcarix¡­?¡¯ With wings of white, and white armor all over her body. Holding a gold shield and sword in her hand, she was reminiscent of the army of heaven that they had seen in the Dimensional War. It wasn¡¯t very same, but the atmosphere was similar. Right then, From Levya who was seeing all this unfold, a stuttered word came out. ¡°Val¡­ kyrie¡­?¡± Ian reflexively asked her, ¡°Valkyrie? What is that?¡± ¡°The beings who serve the Goddess of Light, Ernesis. I thought that they couldn¡¯t appear in the human world¡­?¡± Valkyrie, the demi-gods who possessed some of the power of the Gods. And when the quests of a priest class proceeded, it was a term they all got familiar with. If one was going to go against a valkyrie, then it was considered that they better have given up the quest. Ian was going to ask about the valkyrie once again. But she suddenly moved in front of the two and opened her mouth with her wings wide open. ¡°You¡¯re the priest that the Goddess of Light has mentioned.¡± With a soft voice, she asked Levya, at which she nodded, ¡°Yes, it is I. Are you the warrior of light¡­ valkyrie?¡± The woman answered along with a nod, ¡°My name is Milos. I¡¯m just a trivial presence that can¡¯t be compared with the warrior of light or valkyries. I have been commanded to keep the Elcarix safe till you come along¡­ the day Ernesis rises.¡± She placed her sword down and extended her right hand. A sphere of white light formed in the palm of her hand. Ian who confirmed it, spoke in a low voice not realizing he did, ¡°The Soul stone of God¡¯s Dragon¡­?¡± The color and aura were different, but it had the same presence that Karceus had in the past. Which was why he was able to identify it in a glance. The woman called Milos nodded and spoke to Ian, ¡°Right. This is the soul stone of Elcarix.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°If I¡¯m correct¡­ you have the mission to wake up the Elcarix to defeat the legion of the Dark?¡± Both Ian and Levya nodded their heads at the same time¡ªseeing that, Milos smiled and spoke again, But unexpected words came out of her mouth, ¡°Prilania valley. Take me to that place.¡± ¡°¡­?!¡± Levya who didn¡¯t know much about Prilania was puzzled at the request. ¡°Prilania valley, in other words¡­ the Dragon valley?¡± Milos nodded and responded, ¡°Right. The Dragon village of the past. Take me there, please. Then you can wake the sleeping Dragon of Light.¡± A new quest window opened up in front of Ian and Levya as the lady was done speaking her words. CH 408 Thousands of years ago¡­ There was a place known as the Dragon village in the continent of Malacca in the ¡®Northern Continent¡¯. Crupia mountain¡ªwas a giant mountain range in the Northeast of Malacca. And deep in the Crupia mountain, was a huge deep canyon called¡ªthe Prilania canyon. It was a huge canyon which was about 50 meters wide and hundreds of meters in depth. At the bottom of the canyon¡ªmysterious water with an emerald shine was seen through the valley. Splash-! At the mysterious hue in the valley, the feet of Canoel immersed lightly on the ground and spoke something, ¡°There is a reward that comes from hard work.¡± Valley and cliffs of emerald light on either side. The intense light coming from the sky was doubling the beauty of the Prilania valley was doubled. Orden opened his mouth looking at Canoel who was admiring the beauty. ¡°This place has regained its lost beauty.¡± Canoel who heard it asked him, ¡°Orden? You haven¡¯t been here before?¡± Orden shook his head and responded, ¡°Right, Master. I haven¡¯t come here before.¡± ¡°Then?¡± ¡°But the memories of the Prilania, the home town of the dragons are in the memories of the dragons ever since our birth. The moment a dragon wakes, their memories awaken too.¡± He didn¡¯t fully understand but Canoel nodded, For the moment, it wasn¡¯t important about what Orden had in his memories about the valley. What was important to Canoel at the moment was¡­ ¡°Then, Orden. Do you know where the temple of the Dragon God is?¡± The temple of the Dragon God. In order to clear the ongoing main quest, he had to find the temple of the Dragon God. Orden nodded his head and spread open his wings. ¡°I¡¯m not so certain about it. But, I feel like I can find it.¡± Canoel rode on the back of the dragon. Orden, carrying Canoel on his back, flew towards the sky. Flap-! Even though the giant dragon had spread open its wings, the width of the canyon was so huge that only half of the canyon was filled with the shadow, and Orden could fly leisurely. Now he had to go through the temple of the Dragon God Seikaito, which was hidden somewhere in the canyon. * * * ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Find the Forgotten Dragon Village (Linked Quest) ¨C You have encountered Milos, a servant of the Goddess of Light, Ernesis in the lair of Elcarix. She is in possession of the Elcarix soul stone and says that to awaken the soul stone, she needs to head to the Prilania valley. Defeat the legion of Undead that is heading towards the Elcaric mountain by protecting Milos and head to Frillania. Quest Difficulty: SSS Quest Condition: A user with level 350 or higher. A user with the quest ¡®The Dragon of Light, Elcarix¡¯ quest in progress. Time Limit: None. Rewards: Varies proportionately according to the number of the dark legions that have been faced. (Gain fame and experience) * During the quest, all the experience and the episode contribution will be doubled. * If you die during the battle, the quest will be deemed failed. * The quest cannot be rejected. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Among the quests that were received in recent times, this was mostly vague. ¡®Well, the content of the quest is simple¡­ but why head to the Prilania canyon? There is nothing over there.¡¯ Crupia mountain, with the Prilania canyon, was famous for the hunting grounds of level 200. It was the hunting grounds of the wizards as it was the habitat of the Drakes¡ªwhose magic resistance was significantly weaker than its physical defense. But that is it. Although the ¡®Dragon valley¡¯ had existed in the past, the Prilania canyon was just a canyon. Ian wasn¡¯t able to understand how he would be able to wake the Dragon of Light in there. ¡®The way to wake the Dragon of Light¡­ is there someone like Oakley?¡¯ Ian who read the content of the quest was making random guesses. But right then, maybe she was trying to solve the curiosity of Ian, Milos opened her mouth, ¡°It won¡¯t be possible unless the dragon exists.¡± Ian was reflexive to ask, ¡°What is that?¡± ¡°The power of a divine being. In order to awaken the Dragon of Light, we need the power of the God, the Goddess of Light, Ernesis who wants to lead you the power¡­ her power is sealed. Even Karceus wouldn¡¯t have woken up unless the God of War lent you the power.¡± ¡°Then the Prilania valley, is there an entity that could grant the power to Elcarix?¡± Milos nodded and responded, ¡°Yes. The one who has granted the power to the human world of the Dragon God. In the valley Prilania, there was a way to see ¡®Seikaito¡¯ the father of all the dragons.¡± The Dragon God, Seikaito. Ian¡¯s eyes went wide after hearing the familiar name. ¡®A name I haven¡¯t even thought of¡­?¡¯ Levya, who heard it, spoke to herself, ¡°The power of the divine being¡­ that would be tough.¡± At the words from Levya, Milos responded, ¡°That is right. More specifically, it is a concept similar to getting the God¡¯s ¡®permission¡¯?¡± And Ian nodded his head. Now it seemed like the quest was understandable. But there still was an unanswered question. ¡°But, Milos. What is required for a dragon to get the permission of the God?¡± Milos laughed and opened her mouth, ¡°If powerful beings, such as dragons reproduce indiscriminately, then what would be the condition of the human world?¡± ¡°Hm¡­?¡± ¡°The order of the dimensional word will collapse. The balance between the power will break.¡± ¡°Well, that makes sense.¡± Ian looked at Karceus. Whether Milos¡¯ words were wrong or not, Karceus was listening to those with a blank face. ¡°However, there is a number of ways that the dragons can keep order while they are alive.¡± ¡°How is that?¡± ¡°That is the power of the Dragon God ¡®Seikaito¡¯. With the power of the Dragon God, he could control all the dragons, hence they are reduced, or there would have been way too many dragons than humans.¡± In the past, there were many dragons in the human world. There were dragons who were taken into the kingdom and served the humans, and there were dragons who enjoyed being in humans by the use of polymorph, and also they play. And the ¡®Dragon valley¡¯, a sacred place which symbolizes the power of Dragon God, was the very same reason they could exist. The dragon was a special creature that lived for thousands of years. They weren¡¯t creatures that could ¡®just¡¯ be extinct. In her explanation, Karceus who was still there nodded his head and spoke, ¡°She is right, master. In the past, when the power of Seikaito was in the human world, there were hundreds of dragons in the human world.¡± And Milos explained a little more about the Dragon Valley. It could be summarized briefly. The Prilania valley, formerly known as the Dragon valley, was a symbol of the Dragon God, Seikaito and the home of dragons. But the dragon valley was destroyed by the invasion of the dragons from Devildom, and Seikaito took off his power from the human world. Because of this, only the God¡¯s Dragons and the other special dragons existed in the human world. ¡°So the reason why we should head to the Prilania valley has been explained, isn¡¯t it?¡± Ian nodded and answered, ¡°Yes.¡± Karceus who was next to him mumbled something like, ¡°I get to meet Seikaito after a long time.¡± * * * ¡°Keuhhh! How dare you go against the Monarch of Darkness!¡± Kwang- Kaboom-! Explosions happened all around Hoonie. At the same time, waves of darkness spread. When Hoonie became the Monarch of Darkness, he had recently obtained the magic ¡®Chaotic Shock¡¯, a skill that once was activated¡ªall the Undead within the range of the skill fell into the ¡®confused¡¯ state. ¡°Lugarix! Breath!¡± ¡°Noisy! I already know that!¡± ¡°AH! Do it quick! You should use it before they snap out of confusion!¡± Lugarix gave one last death glare at Hoonie and took a huge breath in, after flying into the air. From the mouth of Lugarix, came a vast wave of energy. Seeing it, Hoonie placed his staff on his shoulder and smiled. ¡®Keuhhh! Ow, how many did we get? It could go up with just one shot of breath!¡¯ While Ian and Levya were in the dungeon. Hoonie and Lugarix were sweeping experience points. The exp that hadn¡¯t risen up for a long time had suddenly gone up 10% in an hour. The remaining experience points that Hoonie needed to get for the next level up was 3% and Lugarix was trying to shoot another Breath at the group of Undead. The number of Undead gathered in the front of the mountain was huge, it just took 20 minutes for those Undead to reappear. Now, as they were all melted, Hoonie was able to hear the system message notification! ¡°All right! Lugarix! Blow them off!¡± Waiting for the system messages that would come up, Hoonie was doing a silly dance. And the messages he was waiting for had finally come up. But they weren¡¯t what he wanted. [The ¡®Elcarix Lair¡¯ dungeon has been cleared.] [The party will be restored to its original state.] [You have successfully cleared the quest ¡®Destroy the Legion of Darkness¡¯.] [Clear Rating: SS] [You have earned fame of 124893.] ¡°Wait, what!? How did they clear it already?!¡± Hoonie turned pale. He was under the impression that they would take a few more hours, and by then, he could collect the experience points. And as the party had been restored, the experience gained from the massacre of the Undead would be shared by all! ¡°No! No f*cking way!¡± Hoonie was screaming on top of his lungs! But what was done was done. Kwang- Kwakwang-! The breath of dragon filled the area. All of the undead were destroyed and melted at the entrance of the mountain. Keaahh-! Keuk- Keukk-! The breath was so powerful that the legions of the Undead were annihilated! But then, A familiar voice entered the ears of Hoonie who was pale and upset. ¡°Uh? Why did my level rise suddenly?¡± ¡°Same here, I suddenly have received some exp!¡± CH 409 In the meeting room of the Planning team of the LB support. At the huge conference room, with a huge screen on one side of the wall. What filled the screen was a scene of a beautiful white field. In the scene was an ongoing large scale battle that seemed like a movie. Like the Cho Ja-ryong, who broke a million troops to defend the son of Ubi. A party was going against the numerous legions of the undead. In the conference room, two men were looking at the video; the two of them were Kim Yu-hwan and Na Ji-chan. Kim Yu-hwan asked Na Ji-chan. ¡°Yah, Ji-chan.¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± ¡°How did this happen?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Wasn¡¯t it promised that this episode would last for a year? You just¡­ said that last week, right?.¡± With his eyes on the screen, Kim Yu-hwan spoke with a bit of irritation. Na Ji-chan, on the other hand, was looking at the screen rather leisurely. He nodded with a smile. ¡°Yes. It did. I certainly said so.¡± Kim turned his head toward Na Ji-chan upon hearing what he said. ¡°How could you be so irresponsible! I believed in your plan and already gave permission for five people to have a vacation!¡± Kim Yu-hwan who was enraged clenched his fists, while Na Ji-chan¡¯s expression remained the same. Rather, he was laughing. ¡°Why are you so worried? The episode hasn¡¯t been cleared yet.¡± Kim Yu-hwan responded to him right away. ¡°Yah! Do you really think that we shouldn¡¯t be worried right now? It all started with that kid KanjiHoonie being granted that stuff for that one time. All because of that kid, the cards of Kades has turned obsolete and even Lugarix who was supposed to be on Chalian¡¯s side is now standing on the human¡¯s side.¡± Na Ji-chan nodded and said, ¡°That surely happened. I didn¡¯t expect Hoonie to find out the trick.¡± However, unlike Kim Yu-hwan, Na Ji-chan wasn¡¯t stressed at all. Honestly, the progress of the new episode was going almost according to Na Ji-chan¡¯s plans. The only thing that didn¡¯t go according to his plan was¡­ Hoonie. Hoonie¡¯s game sense was better than he thought. ¡®I didn¡¯t put that many clues in this episode. I never expected that Hoonie would find it out.¡¯ Ian¡¯s party was progressing quickly with the quest because of that. However, Na Ji-chan didn¡¯t worry about it. It was because he had a lot of things saved up his sleeve. With a loud voice, Na Ji-chan spoke. ¡°Sir!¡± ¡°What, idiot?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry! This episode will last a year as I have planned!¡± Na Ji-chan was as confident as ever, and the head of the department Kim Yu-hwan who noticed that calmed down. Kim Yu-hwan spoke after calming his heart. ¡°Yah, why are you so confident? Could you tell me that at least?¡± Na Ji-chan who was looking at the screen turned toward his superior. With a lot of excitement in his eyes, Na Ji-chan said, ¡°The Devil God Daedmon. You didn¡¯t forget him, right?¡± * * * ¡°The Clark Nest is recruiting full-time party members! Those above the level of 180, please apply now! Healers above the level of 160 and level 200 users are very much welcome!¡± ¡°Kay, Kay! Anti-magic full armor set for sale! 13.5 million gold for a piece! The ax is 27 million gold! They are very cheap!¡± ¡°Sir, do you have an anti-magic on the Kruger ax?¡± ¡°Sure we do. 4.5% additional.¡± ¡°Eh, 4.5 is too little¡­. cut the price to 24 million and I¡¯ll buy it.¡± ¡°You¡¯re being too picky, sir. Fine! I¡¯ll sell the ax to you for 26 million and 30 thousand gold! I can¡¯t go any lower than that!¡± While there were many changes happening in the Human world, there have been quite a few changes happening in the dimension of Devildom as well. Devildom¡¯s biggest update was the ¡®Central continent of Devildom¡¯. A new continent was created in addition to the existing one that was divided. If one had the ¡®Return to the Central Continent¡¯ scroll from anywhere in Devildom, one could go to the central continent through magic. It was a place that had a similar system to that of humans. Thanks to that facility, many mysterious guilds and buildings were being formed there. However, the central continent of Devildom was different from the human world. The ¡®Hunting Grounds¡¯ didn¡¯t exist in Devildom. Devildom¡¯s central continent was like a battlefield where many fought on a daily basis, and that was to be expected in an area with a high number of users. Unlike the continents on the human world, the central continent of Devildom didn¡¯t have a single Kingdom that was under a user. The top 20 guilds of Devildom only had a level 2 or 3 Manor. All the Kingdoms on the central continent of the Devildom were owned by NPCs, so they couldn¡¯t go against them. Even Irahan, who was Devildom¡¯s 1st ranked user and was ranked 400 overall, was weaker than a Devil Prince who didn¡¯t even own a kingdom. The ranks of other rankers were around 500 to 600. Lilliana Kingdom, the fourth largest Kingdom in Kailan. The place where Samuel Jin¡ªthe Noblesse¡ªwas at. [Lord Samuel Jin. Apparently this month, Miss Liliana has asked you to increase the magic stones production by 5%.] A voice came out of a crystal ball. Inside the crystal ball, a rabid face of an Asmodian came up, he was staring at Samuel Jin with a grudging expression. Samuel Jin responded with sweat running down his spine, ¡°That¡­ that¡­ I¡¯m sorry. There is a shortage of magic stones that are being extracted from the mine.¡± [Nonsense! The mine that you found in the estate is an excellent mine which bears amazing stones, but the fact that you can¡¯t even meet the quota says that you are incapable!] The Asmodian who was angry at Samuel Jin was Yankun¡ªIan¡¯s retainer in the past. Yankun was being trained under Liliana. He became an outstanding Asmodian under Liliana¡¯s guidance and was ranked 200 among all the Devils. Samuel Jin, who was always being stepped on by Yankun from the first time they met, knew him. ¡®Kuk. This muscle pig bastard. Why can¡¯t he get it? Yes, it is true that the mine is wonderful, but what am I supposed to do if the mining wasn¡¯t done right!¡¯ Not long ago, a large scale mine was discovered in the territory of Samuel Jin. Various minerals could be mined there such as special minerals like magic stones and ability stones. The value of the mine was tremendous, and Samuel Jin was pleased with it too. Until the mine started to develop. That was when the nightmare began for Samuel Jin. ¡®Who knew that such money would be needed to raise the mine?¡¯ Samuel Jin was spending a huge amount of money that he had never even imagined would go into managing the mine. In reality, Samuel Jin was someone close to a golden spoon, and he was able to amass a lot of gold in Kailan. He was willing to spend gold on the mine since it was kind of an investment that would give him profit in the future. However, the real nightmare started here¡­ Even with billions being spent to raise the level of the mine, the minerals that were being produced in the mines were low grade. The level of the mine had been raised, but the level of the miners was low¡ªmaking the high-grade stones that they got ending up as a low grade one. The tax on the high-level mine increased during the same time, and this made Samuel Jin want to cry. The minerals they were able to mine were used to pay taxes. That was why there were no more minerals left for them to give to Liliana. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Mr. Yankun. I¡¯ll give them to you starting next month¡­ for sure!¡± [Next month? You¡¯ll never see the light of day any more if you don¡¯t provide the magic stones that Liliana wants in three days. She will personally make sure that you¡¯ll be punished.] ¡°But¡­ but¡­!¡± [Chacha- Chahak-] In spite of Samuel Jin¡¯s pleading, Yankun was all cold-hearted and turned away. Kwang-! ¡°Uh¡­! That muscle pig!¡± Samuel Jin was shadowboxing with anger. ¡°Haa, do we need a dwarf to mine the minerals properly in the mine?¡± Samuel Jin shook his head. If he could get back the development cost, then he would willingly sell off the mine. ¡°Huhu, the mine slaves get better with an increase in their proficiency¡­¡± However, that was what was wrong about Samuel Jin¡¯s thoughts. Kailan¡¯s mining system was designed to make mining high-level stones difficult. So if the mine was upgraded to a high level from the start, the hired slaves wouldn¡¯t be able to adapt to it. Because of that, the slaves mining proficiency was low. Samuel Jin was stressed because of the mine. He closed his eyes and leaned back onto his chair. He was taking some time to release his anger. ¡°Huhu¡­¡± A sigh came out from Samuel Jin¡¯s mouth. Suddenly¡­ He heard the notification¡¯s sound. Tring-! Samuel Jin opened it right away. His eyes went wide at what he saw. The message was from an unexpected person. [Irahan: Samuel, Can you come to the Kingdom of Laicardo?] ¡°This bastard! Why should I go, and who should I see?¡± Irahan was surely stronger than Samuel Jin. However, Irahan¡¯s guild¡ªthe DarkRuna guild¡ªwas still weaker than the Royal Guild. Which was why Samuel Jin found Irahan¡¯s message offensive. [Samuel Jin: If you need something from me, then come here and tell it to me personally.] However, Samuel Jin got up from his seat the moment he saw the next message. [Irahan: Hmm, you¡¯re still as cheeky as ever. Well, you don¡¯t have to come if you don¡¯t wish to. I¡¯m fine with it, but I won¡¯t be sharing the ¡®Devil God¡¯s Oracle¡¯ with the Royal Guild then.] CH 410 The legions of the Lich King began to spread over the continent. Many small territories have been captured by the Legions of Darkness. Apart from the five major kingdoms, everything was under them. It meant that all the gods selected by the guilds who weren¡¯t part of the plan were occupied by the Legions of Darkness. However, human users weren¡¯t fazed by it. There were valid reasons as to why. First, their manors being captured by the Legions of Darkness didn¡¯t mean that they would lose their manors permanently. Because if those manors did fall in the hands of the Lich King, it would just go back to them once the Lich King returns. Second, they could hunt endlessly and accumulate contributions. The users might even get two or three legendary items in the process. If the new episode gave users something to worry about, there would surely be a part in the episode that users would take advantage of. ¡°Won¡¯t we have to fight a year long with the Lich King?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. Now that you say it, we probably will.¡± ¡°Ahh¡­ no way that¡¯s going to happen. We would definitely get lots of levels. I think this episode will be done for in 6 months, don¡¯t you think¡­?¡± ¡°Half a year? If all the rankers came back, then they could catch the Lich king right away.¡± ¡°That is a little¡­ did you forget that the rankers got wiped out in half a second?¡± The final boss of the new episode¡ªLich King¡ªhad been seen by the users only once. The Lich King was so powerful that they couldn¡¯t get him out of their minds. The party that challenged the Lich King didn¡¯t even manage to stay standing for five minutes, and that fight was broadcasted live on the official community page of Kailan. The post where the video was uploaded had thousands of comments. That wouldn¡¯t have happened if it was Ian or Shakran or any other rankers in the top ten that fought against the Lich King. LB announced a new event. This event had enough content to attract the attention of a lot of users. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C [October 21, Saturday 6 pm. Kailan special broadcast will be on air simultaneously three times!] The new episode ¡®Richie King¡¯s Legions of Darkness¡¯, which started on the second half of the year, is getting much more interesting. There are so many heroes who are struggling to fight against Chalian, and in the process, it brings forth many new stories. We in LB felt that it would be a pity to hold back on the stories. We will broadcast all the stories on the ¡®Kailan Special¡¯. This Tuesday, October 17th, the coming week. We will monitor all the battles and quests that have been taking place till then, and our team will edit a video and release a montage of Kailan¡¯s plays and quests. If you¡¯re confident on your own play or have a story or battle that you want to share, send them to us by 5 pm on Tuesday 17th. * We will give 100 million gold and a legendary equipment box for those who have appeared in the video. We will pay a bonus according to the broadcast ratings. * The voting for the most popular play will be on the same day, and additional rewards will be given according to the video¡¯s rank. (Rewards are given to users who appear for more than 70% of the video¡¯s time) First prize ¨C ¡®Richie King Chalian¡¯s Legions of Darkness¡¯ episode limited edition costume set. (The power of Heavenly King set.) Second Prize ¨C ¡®Richie King Chalian¡¯s Legions of Darkness¡¯ episode limited edition costume set. (Majestic Lord of the Undead set.) We hope that all of you can join us. * Broadcast time is from 6:00 pm to 10:00 pm (The broadcast ending time may vary by 10 to 30 minutes depending on the situation.) ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Saturday 6 pm, the hottest time ever, not one or two but four hours of broadcast! It was shocking that Kailan¡¯s video was being aired at 3 non-gaming channels at the same time. It was something that hadn¡¯t happened in the entire history of Kailan. ¨C Wow, this is awesome. Concurrent broadcast from 3 screens? From 6 pm? ¨C What! Read the bulletin properly. Are you stupid? It¡¯s not screens, it¡¯s airwaves. ¨C LOL, hehehe¡­ they are the same. ¨C You guys are making me laugh. He he he. By the way, it is a simultaneous broadcast on 3 airwaves, and the event rewards are amazing too¡­ surely Kailan is awesome. ¨C Kue, it is rewarding, but it isn¡¯t that practical. Of course, the limited edition set is a worthy collection¡­ ¨C It was an event where Asmodians couldn¡¯t participate in. It was a bit strange, but maybe it¡¯s fairer if it¡¯s like that. ¨C Oh, now that you say it, it makes sense. ¨C Honestly, even if there were no rewards, the broadcast would have been successful. Pretty users like Remir would be on air like celebs, right? Kailan was a well-known game for everyone who had an interest in gaming. However, if the broadcast was aired in the prime time, then those who weren¡¯t even interested in gaming would probably have a look into it. Kailan¡¯s visuals were so high quality that it would make anyone forget that what their seeing was a game. Like any other game, users who play Kailan wanted more and more people to enjoy the game. The event planned by the LB company wouldn¡¯t benefit them alone. They were providing gifts for the users too. The announcement posted on the official website began to spread at a high pace with thousands of video being sent to them by users willing to participate in quest-related episodes. * * * An intense blizzard came that made them unable to see anything. A blizzard with tremendous power which reminded them of the ¡®Blizard¡¯ magic of the Ice Wizard. Ian was struggling as he couldn¡¯t set the resistance properly. ¡°Oh¡­!! I thought I was dead for sure. Why would a field be designed to be so cold?¡± Levya¡ªwho could sympathize with Hoonie¡¯s grumbling¡ªnodded. ¡°I feel the same too. However, we¡¯re here already, and we need to get through this.¡± Ian nodded his head and agreed with them. ¡°Phew, if we knew that we would have to go through this, then we could¡¯ve set our settings well.¡± ¡°Ahe, then Ian, wouldn¡¯t it be tough to break through the Legions of Darkness if we didn¡¯t set our settings against dark attributes?.¡± ¡°That¡­ is true.¡± Hoonie mumbled while stretching out his hands, ¡°We should have brought along Remir noona with us. ¡°Yeah, we should have. Why didn¡¯t I think of that? It would have been easier to move with her warmth.¡± Ian and Hoonie were talking about a ranked wizard as if she was a room heater. However, it was true that they truly wanted Remir to join them. ¡°Can¡¯t we bring her in now?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You have those Dimensional Beads. Can¡¯t you use them?¡± ¡°Oh, right¡­ should I bring her?¡± Hoonie and Ian had a serious expression, which was why it was tough to make out whether they were joking or if they were serious. Levya just shook her head and spoke to those two, ¡°Could you guys stop spewing nonsense and find the canyon? Or you¡¯ll die of the cold.¡± Both Ian and Hoonie answered her at the same time. ¡°Yep, noona!¡± ¡°Understood noona!¡± Levya¡¯s pretty face blushed after hearing their answers. ¡°Noona! Whose noona am I? I can understand Hoonie calling me that, but Ian¡­! I thought that you were my oppa?¡± Hoonie was really flustered when he heard that. ¡°Uh¡­? Huh only me? Really?!¡± ¡°Hoonie, gets to be the only one to call you that? I can call you noona better than Hoonie.¡± ¡°Be quiet¡­!¡± The three of them kept walking on the snowy mountain while talking about silly stuff. They managed to fly to Curpiah with Ian¡¯s help. However, walking to the Prilania canyon was like walking in a complicated terrain using their hands. After an hour or so, the temperature was starting to warm up. The three were able to see the entrance of the Prilania canyon. Below the cliffs, and the high peaks, the magnificent Prilania canyon could be seen hidden by the clouds. Hoonie who saw the magnificent view was amazed by it. ¡°Keu, I want to take a shot of it in my smartphone.¡± ¡°Stupid, just take a screenshot.¡± ¡°Ah, right¡­¡± ¡°Maybe the cold is getting to your brain? ¡°Boo bo bo.¡± Hoonie was speaking a lot of nonsense today. Ian walked down carefully towards the canyon. Although it wasn¡¯t entirely explored, the Prilania canyon had very little information about the community. When Ian stepped on the entrance, system messages came out in front of him and his party members. Tring-! [You have entered the ¡®Prilania Canyon¡¯.] [You¡¯ve discovered the forgotten ruins of the Ancient in the North. Fame increased by 100,000.] [Obtained the title ¡®Un-interrupted Explorer¡¯.] After seeing the messages that came up, Ian thought to himself. ¡®Also, not the first discovery.¡¯ Afterward¡­ A few additional messages came up. Messages that only appeared for Ian. [The Dragon God¡¯s, ¡®Seikaito¡¯ blessings have come upon.] [Increase the battle abilities of all objects classified as ¡®Dragon¡¯ by 50%.] [The battle ability of a familiar was increased by 50%.] [The ability of ¡®Karceus¡¯ was increased by 50%.] ¡°Uhm¡­?¡± Ian was slightly surprised. It was his first time to witness something of that sort. ¡®Is the field the one that gave the buff? I haven¡¯t heard of such a map¡­?¡¯ Milos, who was following Ian, said, ¡°Because you are a passenger.¡± ¡°A passenger¡­ anyone else in the category?¡± Before Ian could even hear the answer to his question, a new system message appeared in front of him. This time Ian¡¯s party was shocked by what they saw. [Dragon God¡ªSeikaito¡ªhas come down to the temple.] [¡®Prilania Canyon¡¯ field quest has been activated.] [The quest for the ¡®Remnants of Marion Dragons¡¯ begins.] [If you get out of the field, the quest will stop automatically.] CH 411 A quest notice all of a sudden. With warning messages coming up one after the other. [Caution! If you don¡¯t leave the canyon within 10 seconds, the quest will start. After the quest has begun, you won¡¯t be able to leave the canyon!] [Caution! If you don¡¯t leave the canyon within 10 seconds, the quest will start. After the quest has begun, you won¡¯t be able to leave the canyon!] A flashing red sign in front of Ian¡¯s party, but nobody moved out of the canyon. In fact, it was natural. The ones who did hidden quests every day with the risks that were associated with them, but not as a party. Ian smiled and looked at Hoonie and Levya alternatively. ¡°No one going, out?¡± Levya and Hoonie both nodded at the same time and answered, ¡°Definitely!¡± ¡°Surely I¡¯m walking with you hyung. Like the Bonamana hidden quest, I¡¯ll take a handful.¡± As soon as the two of them answered, the time of 10 seconds had passed, and the quest window had opened in front of the party. Tring-! ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Remnants of the Marion Dragons (Hidden Quest) (Sequential Quest) ¨C In the northeast of Malacca continent, Prilania canyon. The Dragon Valley, a place where the dragons resided as a home, was left by them as the Marion dragons had destroyed the area. Some of the surviving dragons and the dragon tamers have tried to rebuild the valley, but even with their effort, they couldn¡¯t overcome the remnants of the Marion dragons that were suppressing the entire canyon. Because the Marion Khalifa had placed a strong curse on the Prilania before heading to the Devildom. Now, however, the Marion Khalifa was defeated by the heroes of the human world. Because of that, the curse had weakened and finally, the opportunity to break the curse arrived. The last dragon tamer remaining in the human dimension wants to rebuild this Dragon valley. He has asked for the permission of the Dragon God and has been granted the opportunity. But if he fails to clear the remnants of the Marion dragons despite lending the power, then the Dragon God will get upset. Help the dragon tamer to purify the canyon of Prilania. Quest Difficulty: SSS Quest Condition: A user who is of the ¡®Dragon Tamer¡¯ class. (The trigger for the quest condition. When the quest is triggered, all the users in the Prilania canyon can join into the quest.) Time Limit: 80 minutes Reward: Varies, proportionate to the number of the legions of darkness. (Gain fame and experience) * If you die during the battle, your quest will fail. * The quest cannot be rejected. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian¡¯s eyes gleamed looking at the quest window that had just opened up. ¡®Uhm¡­? The blessing of the Dragon God, Seikaito? So, all the dragons got the buff¡­?¡¯ The content of the quest wasn¡¯t that difficult. He didn¡¯t know what kind of a Marion dragon the Khalifa had left behind, but they were trying to get a rough guess. ¡®The time limit of it is around 80 minutes¡­ maybe like the time effect that was given to infiltrate the tower of the Dragon God.¡¯ But there was one part that Ian didn¡¯t know about the phrase, ¡®sequential quest¡¯ written right next to the word ¡®Hidden Quest¡¯. It was the first for Ian to see. However, Ian was still relaxed. ¡®Once the quest starts, we¡¯ll know what it means?¡¯ Ian quickly checked the condition, so that he could move into the fight right away. The vision of the three began to turn distorted. The landscape began to get distorted, and so did the space around them. The distorted view quickly set, and the party could see clearly, and it was the Prilania canyon that they had came. It was just like the Prilania canyon. The situation was different. The canyons which were there had now turned hell-like. The sky of the canyon was red. * * * ¡°The weak dragons of the Human dimension! Bend your knees before me!¡± The red sky with clouds was still moving. With gentle lightning storms in the back of the canyon, the shadow of a huge dragon floated. The dragon began to appear with the huge monstrous shadow falling on the ground. A dragon with a very familiar silhouette¡ªIan was familiarized with the dragon without even waiting for it to get any closer. ¡®The Marion Khalifa.¡¯ The landscape of the Prilania had completely changed, Ian, Hoonie, and Levya stood there. However, Ian couldn¡¯t move. As the quest was underway, he was under the control of the AI. What Ian could do, was just to watch the scene unfold. Even then, his heart didn¡¯t want to back out. This was just before the quest had actually started, which was why he had to gather a little more clues to make success. Kukung- Kukung-! The cliffs, the canyon and everywhere around them, began to vibrate. Right in front of Ian, a green dragon with blood spilling out from its neck fell down. Thud-! ¡°Keu¡­! With the devil energy, I have defiled the sacred power of the Dragon God!¡± In front of the fallen one¡ªa dragon with scales similar to Khalifa had appeared. Looking closely at the dragon, Ian couldn¡¯t help but feel bizarre all over. ¡®It looks like a devil dragon, but¡­ it looks a lot bigger and stronger than that.¡¯ A ferocious looking dragon approached the green dragon and opened his mouth with a low voice, ¡°Krrrrr, the Marion Khalifa is the only absolute for us. What faith lies upon the unclear existence of the Dragon God?!¡± At those words from the Devil Dragon, the fallen green dragon roared showing its teeth. ¡°This Dragon valley is proof that the Dragon God exists. The Dragon God isn¡¯t the name that dirty beings like you should speak about!¡± ¡°Haaa! If that is so¡­ I¡¯ll destroy the dragon valley!¡± Kwahh-! The Devil Dragon roared with its face towards the sky. Energy began to get sucked at the tip of its mouth. At that very moment! Tring-! New system messages began to emerge in front of the party of Ian. [The first mission, ¡®Protect the Green Dragon Lerika¡¯ quest has been activated.] [Quickly defeat the ¡®Red-eyed Marion Dragon¡¯, and protect Lerika.] [When the Green Dragon Lerika dies, the quest will be deemed as a ¡®fail¡¯.] [If the mission is succeeded, then it would lead you to the next mission.] [Time limit until the final clear ¨C 01: 19: 59.] Ian¡¯s eyes were bright. ¡®Is this the meaning of a sequential quest?¡¯ The very same moment, the Al control on the characters of Ian and the other party members were released, and they got the control back. Ian and Hoonie simultaneously opened their mouths, ¡°Levya, shield!¡± ¡°Noona! Stop the breath!¡± It was because it seemed like it would be able to save the Green Dragon Lerika by stopping the breath of the Red-eyed Marion Dragon. The very moment Ian and Hoonie had opened their mouth, Levya had already cast the ¡®Blessing of Sky¡¯. As the best supporter and the 1st rank priest, her judgment was quick and accurate. Woong-! A white light came down from the clouds and wrapped itself around Lerika. Just a second after that, the breath of the dragon reached it. Kwak-! The breath of the Red-eyed Marion Dragon had an intense red color! When the breath reached the shield, the flustered Marion dragon looked around. ¡°Disgusting worms are hiding in here.¡± The Marion dragon growled from its teeth. The very same moment, Ian and Hoonie summoned the Hargasus and went towards the dragon. And it was the death knight, not Hoonie who was on the Hargasus. Ian held onto his Judgement of the Spirit King and gave out orders to Karceus. ¡°Karceus, block it!¡± ¡°I get it, Master.¡± Karceus quickly incarnated into its body and blocked the dragon in the sky. ¡°Kuahh! Die you bastards!¡± With words of anger coming from its mouth, the Marion dragon waved its tail, Woong-! And attacked at Ian who was riding the Hargasus. But Ian had already predicted it and invoked the ability of Hargasus. ¡°Hargasus, descend!¡± Swoosh-! As soon as the ability of descend got activated, a cold air flew around the close vicinity of the Hargasus. The invincible effect of the descend had been activated. The tail of the dragon which came in at the perfect timing just stuck in the air. ¡°¡­!!¡± His tail moved out without touching anything, which made the dragon shocked. The death knight of Hoonie who wasn¡¯t ready to miss the opportunity pierced its spear to the other side of the Marion dragon. ¡°The judgments of darkness will come upon!¡± Kwak- Kwak-! Hoonie¡¯s first knight ever the Ballam, and the first-ever myth rank death knight of the Korean server. Ballam bruised and pierced the side of the dragon and the dragon was on the floor crying out of pain. Kyahh-! That wasn¡¯t the end. Karceus, who had approached the dragon, bit the neck of the dragon. Kwak-! [Karceus, the familiar has done tremendous damage to the ¡®Red-eyed Marion Dragon¡¯!] [The vitality of the ¡®Red-eyed Marion Dragon¡¯ has been reduced by 159800.] The attacks began to pour in from the party of Ian! Until then, Ian and his party were going on against numerous Undead monsters, but the situation was different now. Because this time, the whole party of Ian was going against the Marion dragon. Kwaknwag-! Kwang-! Starting from the black magic of Hoonie, up to the continuous attacks coming in from Halli and Ly. Linked with the light attributes from Levya, which would be a debuff for the dragon, the Marion dragon¡¯s vitality began to go down quickly. ¡°Kwahh!¡± The Marion dragon moved around violently, it wasn¡¯t able to resist the attacks from the party of Ian. The level of the dragon was just around 370. Ian could have dealt with it all alone, but there was no need for having three people to do so in the same mission. ¡°Keuk, you guys¡­! Khalifa will never forgive you!¡± Glowing uncontrollably, the giant Marion dragon quickly fell onto the floor. Thud-! The whole canyon rumbled as it fell down. As the dragon fell down on the ground, Messages started to emerge in front of the party of Ian. Tring-! [You have successfully completed the first mission!] [You have earned the fame of 50,000.] [You will be lead to the next mission.] [Time limit for the final clear ¨C 01: 15: 33.] The same moment the messages began to come, the voice of the Green Dragon Lerika began to rise. ¡°Oh, you are¡­ the heroes our Dragon God has sent!¡± Ian nodded and responded, ¡°Yes, we are.¡± And once again, the AI began to control the characters and the view began to change once again as the quest watching mode had started. Lerika¡¯s words followed, ¡°Human heroes¡­! Would you help me?¡± CH 412 The holidays of Chuseok, the greatest holiday of the nation. As soon as Semi had arrived, she quickly moved around for a capsule center. It was because as she went to the home of her grandmother, she would be expected to play with her five nephews. And it was definite that she couldn¡¯t get away from the grasp of her nephews to go into the game, but she somehow managed to getaway. ¡®Since Chuseok is tomorrow, even if I play a little I¡¯ll make sure grandma understands.¡¯ Semi, who came into the town turned on the map in her cell phone and searched for the location of the capsule centers. But suddenly, anxiety reached the mind of Semi. ¡®Please, they all won¡¯t be closed because of the holidays, right? Or maybe in the country-side town, there aren¡¯t any capsule centers?¡¯ Fortunately, there were two places of the capsule centers on her search list. But then again, she started to get nervous. Both the capsule centers weren¡¯t answering the calls. ¡°Uh¡­¡± The light steps of Semi began to pick up the pace. She had no intention of going back to her grandmother¡¯s home. She reached the closet capsule center. The moment she went into the center, she spoke to the part-timer, ¡°Pre-payment of 12 hours.¡± ¡°¡­ huh?¡± The part-timer student was flustered at what she heard. Seeing that Semi spoke again with a clear voice, ¡°Twelve hours of pre-payment, Unnie. Twelve. Hours.¡± From the time when she was middle schooler, she was full-fledged into the games, she normally stayed in the games for ten hours. She was around twenty years old, and that habit of hers hadn¡¯t changed. ¡°Hmm, it has been so long since I came to the gaming centers. Should I try playing those games for the old time¡¯s sake?¡± Semi who was once grief-stricken about the Kailan game played around a lot of PC games seven years back. But those games which were funny and interesting to play at that time were too flat and boring now. ¡°No, I just have to see the Kailan Community. Is it fine to see the information of the past¡­?¡± With ramen noodles and a soft drink in her hand, Semi opened the internet and connected to the official page of Kailan. Her gaze was fixed to the main banner that was on the page. [Kailan Chuseok Event!] [Among the videos that have been put in the official caf¨¦ of Kailan, the videos ranked from the first to third popular ones will be featured on the Kailan special feature!] [When you are done voting on the video that you like, you will get 300p points. Vote now!] Semi who read the information was excited by it. ¡°Hoo¡­?¡± Something like a hypnosis, Semi got sucked into the banner. Click-! On the monitor came up dozens of videos in a grid format. Semi skilfully clicked on the sort button and changed it for ¡®Top-of-the-list¡¯ to ¡®Popular¡¯. ¡®Surely, Ian¡¯s video will be on the top, right?¡¯ What Semi was looking for was the battle video of Ian. Even when looking at the videos that came up, her heart started to pound. She was feeling upset that she wasn¡¯t able to catch the live video of Ian¡¯s battles as she wasn¡¯t in the capsule. However, her eyes went wide as she saw something on the screen. ¡°Uh¡­?¡± The video of Ian, which she had assumed to be in the top 10, was nowhere to be found. However, when she scrolled a little further, she could find the videos of Ian¡ªranked in the top 20. And besides the video, it was stated as ¡®NEW!¡¯, which meant that it hadn¡¯t been long since the video had been uploaded. ¡°Then, it makes sense.¡± Semi, who was a die-hard fan of Ian from the very beginning, clicked on it with a very happy expression. Putting in the wired headphones which were hanging from the side, she started to watch the video with utmost concentration. One of the thumbnails was an image of Ian and some other rankers fighting against the legion of darkness. The white snowy field covered with the dark army, the grandeur of number that the army had. The situation was exciting from the very start, and the phrase ¡®LIVE¡¯ was floating above the top corner of it, which made Semi concentrate on it even more. ¡®Keu, Ian god, is the strongest in the battle.¡¯ Supported by Levya and Hoonie; Ian¡¯s party was going to seize the whole army of darkness. It was a thrilling sight to see the summoner control his character and give out orders to his pets at the very same time. The higher the Summoner, the much harder it gets to control the character. And Semi, a high-level summoner close to nearly level of 300, had been able to fully understand Ian, which was why she enjoyed watching it. Semi, who had been watching the video for a while, opened the chat window and started to watch the reaction of others. ¨C Ha, my Bloody Fenrir came out and reduced less than a hundred number of the undead¡­ Ian¡¯s Fenrir single-handedly dealt with hundreds to thousands of them. ¨C What¡¯s the level of your Fenrir? ¨C 270. ¨C The level difference is already there. There is no need to compare. ¨C What¡¯s the level of Ian¡¯s Fenrir? ¨C I¡¯m not sure, but at least a 350. ¨C Sh*t? Apart from the dragon. He has a level 350 Fenrir? ¨C Yeah. The average level of Ian¡¯s pet will be somewhere around there. ¨C That is so crazy¡­ How is such a thing possible? ¨C No, the level of the character is similar to that of the familiars too, and to that of the monsters. And it is not a bug¡­ Semi who saw the chat laughed out loud and wrote. ¨C Not a bug, it is Ian. ¨C Keu, I totally agree. ¨C Right. If it was a bug that is more than a bug, it¡¯s Ian. The general summoner would choose one familiar as his main focus, and gain experience from it while growing it. The more they are, the more experience points that would be distributed, the more difficult it gets for leveling up. In numbers, the speed of leveling a pet is directly proportional to that of the number of pets one possesses, which was why it would be better to not have many pets in general. The more the pets one possesses, the harder the control which would eventually lead to the inefficiency in hunting. Therefore, the level of summoning that summoners possess was like¡ªthe user with a base of level 100 would have a summon base of level 90-95. It was common to have two or three more pets around the base level of 70-80. However, Ian was different. In the case of Ian, all the levels of his pets were maintained at 90-95% of the level. That was why Ian had the level of the summons equal to that of the summoner. As Semi had begun to watch the live combat video of Ian, the time of 20-30 minutes passed by very quickly. As time went on, Ian who was constantly fighting with the backdrop of a snowy field had reached a canyon and began a new quest. Doing quests and endless battles without getting tired, an interesting quest was underway which made Semi get interested in it, once again. ¡°Oh, What is this quest? Dragon valley?¡± It was a much interesting quest if one was a summoner. Semi, who was excited to see it, suddenly thought of something. ¡®But, Jinsung senior isn¡¯t really Ian, right¡­?¡¯ Though she had denied the probability of such a thing, Semi was still not sure about it. And the live video of Ian, which was in the top 20 had suddenly made it to the first. * * * The Green Dragon Lerika was like a progressive agent in the series of the ongoing quest. After being treated by Levya, she had polymorphed into an archer with green hair and guided the party of Ian. And unlike before, Lerika was using an honorific title of calling Ian as ¡®master¡¯. ¡°This is the way, master! You need to destroy the bloodstone to get to the other side.¡± And Hoonie who wasn¡¯t satisfied with the title. ¡°Why is that hyung the only master, and I simply a human?¡± Lugarix who was right behind him answered, ¡°Because Ian is the master of the party.¡± ¡°Hmm? Ian hyung is the master of the party? What is that supposed to be? I never agreed with hyung to be the master!?¡± Ian who was walking ahead dismissed the complaints of Hoonie. ¡°I¡¯m the party head, you idi*t.¡± ¡°AH, party head¡­¡± A baseless conversation that seemed to miss the common sense. Apart from that, they were heading to the next mission with a quick pace. [You have successfully completed the third mission!] [You have earned the fame of 50,000.] [The next mission will come.] [Time limit of final clear ¨C00: 59: 22.] The party of Ian went through all the missions to save the Prilania canyon. Because the achievement rate of the quests still wasn¡¯t know, they could afford to slow down. In the process, the value of the three-member party play had turned even more prominent. ¡°I¡¯ll move alongside Ly and Levya, and will look from the back, Hoonie and Lugarix look for the Marion dragons.¡± ¡°Okay!¡± ¡°Levya, please get the timing while staying afloat in the air, and a little support would be welcomed.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do that.¡± An iron bridge that connects the cliff on both sides of the canyon. They had to cross it in order to move to the next mission, and they had to move at a right angle from the bridge. They couldn¡¯t move in any other way as there was a swirling tornado that was forming at the bottom of the cliff. Ttat- tat-! Halli was carrying Ian ran towards the dark cave. And Ly was following them closely. Ian¡¯s expression hardened within a little while. ¡®This, I don¡¯t like the feel of this.¡¯ The bridge that they were moving on lead to the inside of a cave. However, there was a steel bar that was installed in front of the bridge lever. An engine system that wouldn¡¯t have been found unless watched very carefully. Ian was feeling that the steel bar above it would come down as soon as the leveler was lowered, and the bridge would move. ¡®It will definitely trap us.¡¯ Yet Ian didn¡¯t stop and went forward. Kwang- Bang-! Ian quickly caught up to the Asmodians who were guarding the entrance of the cave and quickly gave orders to Ly. There could have been a better way, but he felt like making a bold decision was necessary sometimes. ¡°Ly, go inside and lower the lever.¡± ¡°I understand, master.¡± After letting Ly take over the role of the lever, he decided to get out of the cave. Tatatata-! Even without the buff skill, Ly was much quicker than Halli, he went in the speed of light and rushed to the lever. Without any hesitation, Halli pulled the lever. Grk-Krrrrk-! As Ian had predicted, the breaker fell down and Ly got trapped inside. TThud-! Normally, if it was a party, one of the party members would have to be left off for the quest progress. However, thanks to the quick observation of Ian, with the familiar being in there, he could go through. He could summon it back, and summon it into the field whenever he wanted to. The time he wouldn¡¯t be able to use Ly, was something he would have to fix. Tring-! [You have successfully completed the fifth mission!] [You have earned the fame of 50,000.] As they went on, the quests were going on! It was their quest to complete the mission, finally, they were able to complete the ten missions. A system message reminded them that all the sequential quests have been done. CH 413 Ian¡¯s mentor and the founder of the Magical Beast Transmution, the first half-Elf half-Devil, Cervian. The laboratory which was always quiet and gloomy was currently full of people and noisy. The information about how Ian¡¯s beast alchemy could be done in Cervian¡¯s laboratory had spread out. Numerous summoner class users searched for the institute of Cervian and tried to make high-level beasts of the ones they had managed to catch. The cost of making a beast was never cheap, but nonetheless, it didn¡¯t seem to reduce the popularity it had. For the summoners of Asmodians, the presence of a high-level magical beast would help them in their combat. No one had ever obtained a Hidden Class like Ian in Cervian¡¯s institute. None of them had caught Cervian¡¯s attention. [Keu, if Ian was here, what would he have said after seeing this.] [This guy surely lacks the will. If it was my number one student Ian, he would have picked the best with just one look.] As time went by, Cervian gave up on the idea of accepting new pupils since none caught his attention. The study of the Magical Beast Transmuter which had been stopped was resumed once again. From the study, Cervian looked at the problems in the old records of the Khalifa. When the Marion Khalifa was made in the past, why was it hard to control? Cervian wasn¡¯t able to find the reason why. There was no way he was willing to challenge the Magical Beast Transmuter again if he didn¡¯t find out why the Marion Khalifa couldn¡¯t be controlled in the past. If another creature just like the Khalifa was born again, then it would turn into a complete disaster. In the final process of making the Khalifa, an unidentified energy suddenly got sucked into the magic circle. He had to find an answer for that energy, he wasn¡¯t willing to make the same mistake once again. The eyes of Cervian who were looking into the old records of the Khalifa were more serious than ever. * * * Tring-! [You have successfully completed all the missions!] [The remnants of the Marion Khalifa have begun to collapse.] [The Prilania Canyon have opened.] [Enter the ¡®Alter of the Marion Dragon¡¯.] [Time Limit for Final clear ¨C 00: 19: 24.] The long and twisted canyon of Prilania showed their goal. In the very last section, there was a portal that was emanating pure white light. The Green Dragon, Lerika who had been guiding Ian¡¯s party, bowed to the party and opened her mouth. Her eyes were filled with dignity and pride. ¡°Expect the Khalifa to come, and please revive the Sacred Land of Dragons.¡± Ian was confused upon hearing those words from Lerika. ¡®Does he expect us to fight the Khalifa?¡¯ The final boss of the Dimensional War. Ian remembered just how powerful a single attack from that monster was. ¡°Inside that, Khalifa is there¡­?¡± Lerika nodded her head and answered. ¡°Yes, master. But you don¡¯t have to worry about it.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Lerika smiled softly and extended her hand towards Ian. A white bead that was similar to the Cintamani was present in his hand. ¡°The Dragon God Seikaito will be with you.¡± Ian accepted the bead from Lerika. A single system message came up. [Obtained the item ¡®Eye of Truth¡¯.] ¡®The Eye of Truth¡­? What does this have to do with the Dragon God?¡¯ Ian wanted to check the information of the item ¡®Eye of Truth¡¯. He took a deep breath as if he could afford to do so. Time was running out with every passing second, and they couldn¡¯t waste any more time. Therefore, Ian simply exchanged gazes with Hoonie and Levya and put his foot through the magic portal. Once Ian had stepped in, the rest of his party went in without any hesitation as well. Ian¡¯s party slowly faded away as they went inside the portal. * * * ¡®Euk!¡¯ Ian tried to scream, but his voice didn¡¯t come out. The reason why Ian screamed was because of the terrible sight he saw after stepping out of the portal. Ian¡¯s party was summoned so high in the sky that they couldn¡¯t see the floor. Ian saw numerous Marion Dragons below them at the Prilania Valley. He was also afraid of heights that was why he felt sick when he got out of the portal. However, Ian¡¯s party which was summoned in the sky couldn¡¯t move. They were under the AI¡¯s control. Ian tried to calm his pounding chest and looked around the sky. They could still look around even if they were under the AI¡¯s control. ¡®Phew, why the hell did we have to be summoned in the middle of the sky? Do we really have to be hanging in the air?¡¯ While grumbling to himself, Ian looked up into the sky above him. He saw two giant dragons facing each other. Khalifa the feral dragon with scales like swords, and another dragon of familiar appearance. He was none other than the Dragon of War¡ªKarceus. Karceus was carrying an old man with grey hair. Ian knew the identity of that man too. ¡®Dragon Tamer¡­ Oakley!¡¯ In the past, when Ian was still in the double-digit level, he was the one who gave Ian the sealed soul of Karceus. Ian felt happy seeing the face of Oakley after a very long time. ¡®Then¡­ is the battle of the Prilania Valley which Oakley had mentioned in the past¡­¡¯ If the scene would turn out just like Oakley mentioned, then Karceus would be defeated in the battle. ¡®Karceus will run away to the base of the Cruphia Mountain.¡¯ But Oakley, not being able to fight head-on with the Marion Dragons, finally decides to seal himself and Karceus in the Underground. The seal of Karceus was currently with Ian. While Ian was thinking about the past, the quest scene that was in progress had almost come to an end. [Trivial human! You dare show yourself in front of me!] Oakley looked at the sky and yelled after hearing Khalifa¡¯s roar. [This has been our home for thousands of years. Even if you can¡¯t understand it, we will not retreat from here!] [How dare you¡­!!] The situation was just moments before Karceus with Oakley and Khalifa collided. The whole scene suddenly stopped and system messages appeared in front of Ian. [¡®The last battle for Prilania Valley¡¯ has been initiated.] [Help the Dragon Tamer and God¡¯s Dragon ¡®Karceus¡¯ to defeat the Marion Khalifa.] [When either the Dragon Tamer or Karceus gets killed, the quest would be declared as a fail. (Even the death of a user will declare the quest as a fail.)] [If the mission is a success, it would lead to the next mission.] [Time limit for final clear ¨C 00: 18: 12.] Ian was flustered the very moment he saw the messages that came up. ¡®Uh, I need to help Karceus over there? Then what happens to my familiar Karceus? Will two Karceus fight?¡¯ However, as if the system read Ian¡¯s thoughts, another message came up. [Due to the progress of the story, you wouldn¡¯t be able to use your familiar ¡®Karceus¡¯ till the end of the quest.] Ian just nodded his head. ¡®Surely, this would have happened.¡¯ Another line of system messages came up. [5 seconds from now, the battle will resume.] Ian quickly looked at the terrain and summoned his familiars. He summoned all of his familiars except for Ly since his cooldown was not done yet. ¡®It¡¯ll be war so I won¡¯t be able to use Bbakbbak and Halli.¡¯ Ian checked his inventory and felt upset. God¡¯s rage, which was a myth rank item that couldn¡¯t be worn even though he was powerful enough since he had not met its conditions. It had been a very long time since he had achieved 15 million fame, but he still had to get the Noblesse title. The situation Ian was in was something where his bow could be of tremendous use. ¡®The moment this quest is done before I go to the Richie King, I need to find the Devil Liliana or Ricardo, and upgrade to the Noblesse.¡¯ Ian smiled to himself and pulled out the legendary equipment that he always used. This time when Ian looked around the battlefield, he couldn¡¯t help but be surprised. It was because Oakley who had been riding Karceus was replaced by another character. The character was a ¡®user¡¯, whom Ian knew. ¡®Noel¡­?¡¯ Five seconds passed, and the battle had resumed. Ian and Hoonie quickly summoned their familiars and moved. If they didn¡¯t quickly summon their familiars they would¡¯ve fallen from the sky. Levya, Lugarix, and Milos didn¡¯t have much trouble since they had wings. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah! Summon!¡± ¡°Hargasus, summon!¡± Ian summoned Bbookbbook first. Hoonie summoned Hargasus, and they both boarded their respective ones. There was a problem though. Bbookbbook came out in a turtle form. Ian was on the back of a turtle and not a dragon. Ian who was confused and shocked at the unexpected turn of events screamed at Bbookbbook. ¡°Yah, Bbookbbook! Polymorph quickly!¡± ¡°Kay, Bbook!¡± Hweeeing-! Right before they crashed, Ian adjusted himself on the Abyss Dragon and flew to Karceus¡¯ side. Canoel who noticed Ian opened his mouth with a not so welcoming expression, ¡°Ian hyung! How did this happen!? How can you be here!?¡± Ian couldn¡¯t answer Canoel¡¯s question since Marion Khalifa charged towards his direction. Keuahh!! The Marion Khalifa with its huge body was doing quick movements that didn¡¯t suit its size! Ian managing to escape the Khalifa¡¯s attack answered Canoel¡¯s question with a short statement. ¡°I don¡¯t know too! Let¡¯s just focus on the fight for now!¡± Ian began to release rapid-fire arrows. Ping- Ping- Ping!! Ian¡¯s arrows were moving with precision and accuracy as ever and heading to the weak-point of Marion Khalifa. For Ian who could hit even the tiniest target, putting arrows on the giant Khalifa still seemed cool. Ian¡¯s attacks began. With earnest feelings, the ¡®Khalifa Raid¡¯ had begun. As of the moment, Canoel was on top of Karceus, and Ian was on top of Bbookbbook. Hoonie who boarded on top of the Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix, and Levya who had her own white wings were the members of the raid party. Hoonie was on top of Hargasus in the beginning, but because of the nature of Hargasus which couldn¡¯t fly to higher altitudes, he got on Lugarix instead. The battle was going to be a 100% air raid, the first time in the history of Kailan. CH 414 ¡°Oh! Oh¡­! What, is this is a public battle?¡± Semi who was looking at the monitor while holding onto the chair beside her straightened her body and looked at the computer. Both of Semi¡¯s eyes were shining bright. ¡°Wow, is this just a one-time thing?¡± In Kailan, there were several dungeons that users could choose from to fight in. However, a map that no one could select as the battle was happening in the sky was an option that no one could select. Ian¡¯s party was so high in the sky that a single mistake could lead to their death. Semi opened the chat window with an exciting look on her face to look at other users¡¯ reactions. ¨C Wah, lol, how are they able to fight there? ¨C I don¡¯t think that it is a matter of killing the Khalifa, but the chance they have are surely better. ¨C I know. Any one of them could fall out of the sky with just one simple miss-step out of habit. ¨C Huh, where would they even step onto? They¡¯re so high from the ground that no one could even take a step anywhere. ¨C Do you see those golden clouds around the Khalifa? ¨C Ah, yeah. I see them. ¨C Those are cloud pieces where they could take a step on to. It disappears once they step on it, but they can jump onto it once. ¨C Oh, something like that exists? ¨C Yeah, a bridge of clouds on the southeast side of the continent, you can see it if you go there. ¨C Ahh, it sounds hard but fun. After seeing the chat window, Semi smiled and mumbled to herself, ¡°This is almost like an arcade game.¡± A gold cloud that disappeared when stepped on. A content that appeared quite frequently in arcade games. She was thinking about how she would approach the raid, but she could only watch as of the moment. However, being in the spectator seats made it much more interesting. * * * [Die! You creatures of the Human Dimension!] Krrrrng-! Kwakwang-! A huge roar from the Marion Khalifa came out, a strong gigantic energy poured all over the place. The energy was bound to the map. It wasn¡¯t a wide-area attack with direct damage, it was a critical debuff skill. Marion ¡®Khalifa¡¯, unique ability, ¡®Demon pollution¡¯ has been used. During the duration of the attack, you will receive additional damage of 75% for every attack of the devil energy. Magic-resistance is decreased by 30% for the duration of the debuff. For the duration of 15 minutes, 7% of a magic attack¡¯s damage will be absorbed. The debuff¡¯s effects will last for 15 minutes. Ian¡¯s expression was slightly distorted. Since he was thinking about the battle with the Undead, he didn¡¯t set his magic-resistance properly. This debuff would definitely become troublesome. In addition, it lasted for a duration of 15 minutes. Considering that the remaining time for the final clear was 17 minutes, the debuff would be active almost till the last minute. ¡®There are no way attacks would even work.¡¯ Ian¡¯s gaze went over to the Khalifa¡¯s head. [Marion Khalifa/ Lv 500] Being a Level 500 was tremendous. With this debuff, even a single hit from the Khalifa¡¯s tail would kill them off in an instant. Ian shouted to Levya, ¡°Levya, please initiate an attack buff right away!¡± Levya was confused because of Ian¡¯s command. ¡°You want to set an attack setting in this situation? We will all die with a single hit!¡± ¡°It¡¯ll be a buff with a defensive ability for the Khalifa¡¯s attacks.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian calculated exactly how much damage they would take, and Levya immediately agreed to it and set all the buffs to attack. Instead of putting up defensive buffs, she cast magic of the higher tier ¡®Haste¡¯ which increased a target user¡¯s movement speed. Hweeing-! [Party member ¡®Levya¡¯ unique ability ¡®Blade¡¯s Edge¡¯ has been activated.] [For the duration of 20 minutes, the damage done by all normal attacks will be increased by 20%.] [Party member ¡®Levya¡¯ unique ability, ¡®Warrior of Light¡¯ has been activated.] [For the duration of 25 minutes, all the attacks of the party members will be increased by 37.5%.] [Party member ¡®Levya¡¯ unique ability, ¡®Goddess of Wind¡¯ has been activated.] [For the duration of 17 minutes, all the movements of the party member will increase by 22%. ] Once all the buffs were set, Ian moved aggressively fast. Since being in the defensive was out of the question, they had to move as aggressively as possible. ¡°Offence is the best defense.¡± In a typical RPG game, being hit doesn¡¯t limit the movement. In simple words, attacks couldn¡¯t be reversed, even when hit. The player could attack continuously. But Kailan was different. In reality, when one gets shocked, one either loses balance or gets clumsy. Since they were in a situation where it was hard to keep their balance, it would be difficult to deal a lethal blow to the enemy. Like what Ian said ¡®Offense is the best defense¡¯. For example, when the dragon¡¯s tail flared up, a strong impact to the torso could distort its movement. And in the case of the huge Khalifa, its body won¡¯t shake with just a few attacks. ¡°Hoonie! Don¡¯t think of using your Undead, and do your best to provide support from the back! Hyung will deal with the Khalifa!¡± At which Hoonie replied. ¡°There is no place where I can even summon my Undead!¡± An undead that was similar to that of a ghost could be summoned in a race, but they were the type of undead that wouldn¡¯t be much helpful in a Boss Raid. There was an undead that was called the ¡®Ghost Dragon¡¯. That Undead was a top tier among the Undead, and it could also fly. However, no warlock had been able to summon the Ghost Dragon yet. So what Hoonie did was to use targeted spells along with various curses. Though the amount of power was generally lower than that of a normal magician, it still helped. Ian, who leaped into the air with Bbookbbook, sprang high to direct his arrow towards Khalifa as a provocation. ¡°Could you match my strength, you stupid dragon!¡± Khalifa, who was burning hot with rage because of Ian, looked at him as if lasers would come out of his eyes. [Humans, you bastard, I¡¯ll start with you! Kwahh!] Red flame came out of Khalifa¡¯s mouth. At a single glance, it looked like something that was similar to that of a dragon¡¯s breath. However, as Ian had already fought with Khalifa, he knew that the effect would trigger another effect. Kwahhh-! A red flash came out of Khalifa¡¯s mouth. It rushed towards Ian twice faster than a normal dragon¡¯s breath. However, it didn¡¯t hit Ian since its range wasn¡¯t enough. Shwoosh-! The clouds that were in the path of the red flash all burned off in an instant. And of course, Ian who had predicted the attack¡¯s radius was easily able to avoid the Khalifa¡¯s attack. Ttat-! Ian jumped to the air with light footsteps and shot three arrows at once. The arrows went through the neck of Khalifa. [The Marion Khalifa has received tremendous damage!] [The vitality of ¡®Khalifa¡¯ has been reduced by 47,980!] For the Marion Khalifa¡­ Khalifa was furious and jumped to the air with anger clearly registered on its face. [You rats! I will never forgive you!] The body of the angry Khalifa twisted in the air. Khalifa¡¯s long tail moved towards Ian like a whip. Swooah-! Its tremendous tail just like Ian had expected had tremendous power. Ian jumped from the back of Bbookbbook and got onto Pin, completely negating the attack from the Khalifa. At the same time, Ian didn¡¯t stop shooting arrows at the Khalifa. Ping- Ping-! [The vitality of ¡®Khalifa¡¯ has been reduced by 49,514!] [¡®Khalifa¡¯s¡¯ vitality has been further reduced by 57,245!] The moment Hoonie saw Ian launching attacks by skillfully moving in the air, he began to cast some spell. ¡°This hyung, he was really born just for this game.¡± To be able to avoid attacks and attack in return was something only Ian could do. However, there was a problem. Ian¡¯s DPS when using the bow was relatively weak against the Khalifa who was a level 500 Raid Boss. In addition, the attacks of Bbookbbook and Pin were mainly wide-area based attacks, and the attacks of his other familiars weren¡¯t that great as well. There was Bbookbbook¡¯s skill¡ªBreath. However, that skill could only be used once or twice. ¡®If Pin picks up Grrr, then would his DPS rise¡­?¡¯ There was no way to decide the right way to attack as there were various ones. In the end, it seemed like Hoonie would be the one to deal the finishing blow. Ian looked over at Hoonie and yelled, ¡°Hoonie-ah! The biggest one! Big and heavy!¡± Hoonie was flustered by what Ian said. ¡°What is the biggest one?¡± ¡°That thing, that! Death Meteor!¡± ¡°¡­?!¡± The Death Meteor was like the Wizard class¡¯ skill¡ªMeteor. However, Death Meteor was completely different from the Wizard class¡¯ skill¡ªMeteor. Unlike Meteor, which was summoned from the sky, the Death Meteor was a small dark meteor that immediately came out at the end of the caster¡¯s staff upon activation. It was a non-target skill that rushed towards its targets. The casting time was comparatively very short, and the cooldown time was short as well so it could be used continuously. Compared to Meteor, it was rather similar to the skill¡ªFireball or Ice Blast. Its destructive power was enormous, and it could be activated continuously. It would be ideal to use Death Meteor in their current situation since they need to quickly take down their enemy. But there was one problem. ¡°How am I supposed to hit that thing!¡± It was difficult to make the Death Meteor hit. The speed of the skill was extremely slow. However, its speed would gradually increase as it approaches its target. Despite the powerful destructive power that it possessed, the Warlock that was about to use it wasn¡¯t really experienced in using it. Ian didn¡¯t know about it and couldn¡¯t help but ask Hoonie to use Death Meteor. ¡°There is no time to explain, so cast it right away!¡± ¡°Ah, okay! Continuous?¡± ¡°Just do it until you completely exhaust your magic!¡± Hoonie would have normally grunted at Ian¡¯s orders, but when he was in a battle he just followed without complaining. Even though he was not sure as to what was Ian trying to make him do, he still followed Ian¡¯s order. It was the result of the trust that they built over the countless number of battles that they did together. Kwah-! Intense black energy began to gather at the end of Hoonie¡¯s staff. After a while, a huge dark sphere was created in front of his staff. Kwahhh-! Levya became flustered not because of the skill¡¯s tremendous energy but because she wasn¡¯t sure if the skill would hit the Khalifa since she knew how slow the skill moved towards its target. However, Ian began to draw the Khalifa¡¯s aggro, and Hoonie continued to cast the Death Meteor. The Death Meteor kept growing and growing in size as Hoonie continued pouring dark energy in it. CH 415 The video of the Party of Ian which was fighting in the Prilania valley had come to the top in almost an instant. It was the first time for it to be aired in the official community of the Kailan, but the reason the video turned into such a big hit was because of the hidden quest that it was related to. It wasn¡¯t just the video with the number one ranking in the community but had been relayed as the video of Ian by the internet broadcast BJs. Particularly, from the first to the fourth place on the communities¡¯ video ranking, all of them were about the Prilania valley. From the 2nd to the 4th place were the videos of Hoonie, Levya, and Canoel. As the traffic on the video of Ian began to slow down, the people who weren¡¯t able to connect to the video naturally went and saw the video of the members of the party. And the users who wanted to watch the personal video of just Ian had accessed the BJs broadcast and watched it in there. And among the BJs that were present, there was particularly a hot channel. ¨C Ah, for those pitiful ones who don¡¯t know that chunks of darkness in the sky, Guys! That is a powerful skill of the warlock called the Death Meteor! ¨C What is that? I¡¯m a warlock user, but it¡¯s the first time for me to come across that. ¨C It seems like you¡¯re a bit upset. To not know the Death Meteor, it was once a very famous skill. ¨C Right, right. Was it a user of the US server? Some overseas ranker warlock with a Drake, the video had been uploaded to the internet. ¨C Lauren BJ, can you please explain the Death Meteor? ¨C Of course, you sulky sir. The Death Meteor is one of the most highest DPS skill of the Non-targeting skills of the warlock, a staggering 1,500 percent cooldown within 1.5 seconds. But there is a fatal disadvantage for it. The disadvantage is¡­ Lauren, a very famous user of the Kailan¡¯s BJ. He was a regular user with the level around 220, of the archery class, with somewhere being a middle ranker. But, he was very well-known in Kailan for his knowledge, he was one of the five fingers¡ªas the Kailan BJ. Originally he had been relaying many videos of the rankers regularly as a BJ, but his channel later changed to the one which was dedicated solely to the Lotus Guild. Around 3 months ago, he was taken into the lotus guild. The level was definitely much lower than that of their standard level needed to join, but he was an exception because of the guild marketing. ¡°Huh, it really was a good choice to take in Lauren.¡± Yoo Hyun who was sitting in the chair and looking at the monitor, smiled while taking a sip of the coffee that was placed on his table. Just like he had been confident about recruiting Lauren, he felt better as he could see the result of it. ¡°The editor ¡®So Jin¡¯ who is dedicated just for Jinsung would sure be exhausted. I think that it would be better to get in a full-time team by hiring them¡­¡± Shortly after the Kailan gaming appeared in the industry. The virtual reality gaming industry, which had just begun to grow had made a remarkable progress. Not just the technology, but the awareness itself had reached a tremendous point. Starting from the planning till the completion of the games, to the technology that shows different dimensions. ¡®Virtual Reality Game¡¯ has been started to be recognized by the people as a new world that was beyond a simple game. Kailan¡ªwhich had been launched a few years before now, had turned into a powerful game because of the ¡®Kailan¡¯. It was no exaggeration to say that each of the giant guilds in the Kailan was almost like a small power business. Recently, the guilds of Kailan have been moving fast to catch up with the current trend. It was very similar to the reason why Yoo Hyun had brought in BJ Lauren. ¡®Ian¡¯ and a lot of rankers, including the well-known members, were currently in the best Lotus Guild of Kailan. ¡®Lotus¡¯ had now turned into a huge ¡®content¡¯ and it was realized that such a powerful content could be an enormous power. The easiest example would be the rework of the combat battles of the rankers of the Lotus and bring in only the advertising revenue that would be of use for them, but that itself would bring in tremendous benefit. ¡®I will need to analyze the needs of the viewers through Lauren, and then reprocess and distribute the videos according to their specific taste. If the funds of the guild are gathered, then maybe it would be nice to set up a channel exclusively for the Lotus.¡¯ Recently, Yoo Hyun had been having a business-oriented mind than most gamers did. And this change in Yoo Hyun came from seeing the success of Harin¡¯s business. ¡°Nice, I guess I should connect now?¡± Yoo Hyun, who drank all of the coffee, got up from his seat and headed back to the capsule room. After having lunch and taking a break for an hour, it was time to head back to the game and then to the war. As the Legion of darkness was strong, there was no time that they could spare, even if it was the holiday for Chuseok. Till Ian came back, he had no intention of letting go even a single manor to the side of the darkness. * * * Even with a big body, the Marion Khalifa was a fast one. As a result of the Death meteor¡ªwhich was moving very slowly and had no intention of hitting it, seeing this, it laughed at the party of Ian. with such a low-level you plan on dealing with me! With the growl, the breath of Khalifa began to speed up. He raised his head towards the air and emitted strong energy. Kwahhh-! ¡°¡­!¡± It was a new skill of Khalifa that Ian hadn¡¯t come across. As Ian was turning nervous, messages began to emerge. Tring-! [The Unique ability of Marion ¡®Khalifa¡¯, ¡®magical summon¡¯ has been activated.] [The Marion dragons of the battle capacity of 40 percent of Khalifa have been summoned.] [When the Marion dragons have been killed, the vitality of the Khalifa will be decreased by 15%.] Five small dragons, with shimmering purple light, had appeared before the party of Ian as soon as the messages disappeared. Ian¡¯s expression hardened a little. ¡®This is a bit hard to¡­¡¯ Five additional troubles came up suddenly. It was difficult enough to concentrate the firepower in the field where there wasn¡¯t enough damage to the Khalifa. ¡®This is really not helping.¡¯ Ian put the bow back in the inventory and took out his Judgment of the Spirit King. It was a situation where he had to change his strategy and play as safe as he could. Hoonie screamed towards Ian, ¡°Hyung, what should I do? Should I keep casting the Death Meteor?¡± Ian answered nonchalantly, ¡°Don¡¯t worry and wait for the orders, or do something if it feels safe!¡± Ian held the Judgment of the Spirit King with both of his hands and leaped into the air. Ttat-! Hoonie¡¯s eyes which gazed at it were shocked. ¡®That crazy hyung, what is he planning to do?¡¯ In fact, Hoonie was actually looking at what Ian was planning to do. In order to utilize the Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯s strongest attack; the hit needed to be a direct one, and there was no other way but to hit the dragon on its back. And the situation was a very dangerous one. It was because of the huge difficulty that the task included¡ªto jump on the dragon¡¯s back and not to fall from it. ¡°Hyung! You¡¯re afraid of heights!¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine, as long as I don¡¯t look down!¡± ¡°¡­¡± From the back of Hoonie who was feeling troubled, Ian flew to the back of the Marion dragon that was summoned. Ttat-! But to jump on the back of a moving dragon wasn¡¯t an easy task to perform. As soon as Ian jumped on his back, the dragon twisted and turned in every direction. Kiyahh-! It was an unbearable moment for one to see. Ian, who was about to play the counter-attack with the Judgment of the Spirit King, strongly put it into the back of the dragon. Kwa-! The Judgment of the Spirit King went into the back of the dragon with a huge sound. [Damage was done to the ¡®Marion Dragon¡¯!] [The ¡®Marion Dragon¡¯ vitality has been reduced by 379,809!] As long as there were no causalities, Ian couldn¡¯t hit the weakness of the dragon. So even though the ¡®fatal damage¡¯ didn¡¯t work, the damage was enormous of 370,000. It was a different amount of damage when he attacked with arrows. Kiyaa-! The dragon began to turn violently and screamed out of pain! The dragon struggled to drop Ian, but it was useless. Ian who was completely settled in the back¡ªwrapped his hands from the back of the neck of the dragon. ¡°Wah-ah!¡± Ian held onto the dragon¡¯s neck perfectly with his left arm and wielded the Judgment of the Spirit King in succession. Kwang- Bang- Bang-! The enormous damage had been done, and golden lightning bolts started to descend from the sky. It was the effect of the Judgment¡¯s Lightning¡ªa unique ability attached with the Judgment of the Spirit King. [Vitality of the ¡®Marion Dragon¡¯ has been reduced by 587,982!] [Vitality of the ¡®Marion Dragon¡¯ has been reduced by 771,928!] If the dragon was a huge Khalifa, then it would have been an impossible battle, but the size of the dragon was about three times of Ian. Therefore, the thickness of its neck was enough to wrap with one hand of his. Kyahhh-! The Marion dragon¡ªwho was bewildered with the enormous damage that was coming in succession struggled in pain and quickly flew towards Khalifa. However, the vitality of the dragon had almost fallen to less than half. It was like he wanted Khalifa to take care of Ian whom he couldn¡¯t manage to throw off. Seeing this, Ian¡¯s lips went up. * * * ¡°Oh-oh, what kind of situation is this?! The dragon carrying Ian is flying towards the Khalifa!¡± In a small room, there was a man shouting at the broadcast that was happening. He was none other than the BJ Lauren. Although he had been relaying the video of Ian for hours, he wasn¡¯t tired of them, his passion for it was still going strong. Lauren¡¯s face was red because of shock and nervousness. ¡°That is so dangerous! The speed of the dragon is very fast! He won¡¯t be even able to get onto Pin or Bbookbbook!¡± Lauren¡¯s voice was all tensed up, and he looked over at the chat section of the video. ¨C Wow, This is a real crisis. Are we finally going to see Ian¡¯s game-out? ¨C No, that can¡¯t be. Our Ian will never be out of the game under any situation! ¨C Sir, this is a perfect out, how can one survive out there? ¨C That, that¡­! You know Ian right! ¨C ¡­ ¨C Huh, these people really lack the virtue. Have you forgotten the skill that allows Ian to change the position with that of his familiar, ¡®space distortion¡¯, he will be alive! ¨C AH, right¡­! ¨C Oh sh*t, that was genius. Having read that in the chat, Lauren stared at the monitor that was relaying the video. ¡®Space distortion¡­ that is true, that wouldn¡¯t feel like he was running away¡­¡¯ Lauren¡¯s eyes glanced at the monitor. The expression of the user wasn¡¯t shocked or frightened. Rather, it was a smile, he seemed rather too relaxed. ¡®What is he going to show us?¡¯ Lauren swallowed his spit. In a sudden moment, Once the two dragons collide, and with a few more mistakes, Ian wouldn¡¯t have the opportunity to escape from there. Right then, Lauren¡¯s eyes narrowed. An unexpected situation like this always had happened. Hweeing-! Suddenly right behind the Khalifa with blue light, a whole new familiar had been summoned. CH 416 Jabang-! A huge sound roared right behind Khalifa! Rather than the soft sound of the wind, it was something more terrifying. From somewhere, two of Ian¡¯s familiars were summoned right behind the Khalifa. Kiyaahhh-! A screech came out from the mouth of Khalifa. The reason was simple, one of the summoned familiar of Ian had landed on its back, one hell of a heavy guy was on the back. The familiar was none other than¡­ It had been very long since Ian had summoned Ddukdae from his hands, and after a sweet time, it was summoned. Kauu-! With a giggle, it held onto both sides of Khalifa. With the same movement, the Khalifa¡¯s posture looked like it was facing the sky with its back to the ground. And ¡®Grrr¡¯ whom he summoned on top of it, quickly rushed to it. Beginning with the two summons, it only took a matter of 3 seconds for all the moves to take place. In the meantime, Ian who was almost at the cross point with the dragon he had been riding, yelled at Grrr. ¡°Grrr, use Broken Flame! Annihilation Rays!¡± The level of Grrr which had been lacking compared to the other familiars, had reached the point of 340. It wasn¡¯t completely done yet, but it managed to cover at least 90 percent when compared to the others. And the unique ability of Grrr, which boasted the strongest single skill began to burst out. And the skill was possible because the ¡®Broken Flame¡¯ was an immediate skill. As soon as one activates it; the flame burns on an object and doesn¡¯t die down until the enemy dies of it, or the familiar dies. When the Marion dragon caught on the flame, the sound that came of Grrr¡¯s mouth was very terrifying to hear. Kwahh-! It was the ¡®Annihilation Rays¡¯, which was a brutal attack skill that had close to 4,000 percentile modulus. [The familiar ¡®Grrr¡¯ unique ability ¡®Annihilation Rays¡¯ has been activated.] [Fatal damage done to the ¡®Marion Dragon¡¯.] [The vitality of the ¡®Marion Dragon¡¯ has been decreased by 897,918.] [You have successfully defeated the ¡®Marion Dragon¡¯!] [The destruction of the ¡®Marion Dragon¡¯ has resulted in the reduction of the vitality of Khalifa by 15%.] Kiyahhh-! The dragon moved around in pain and suddenly disappeared. The guys had already lost a lot of vitality due to Ian, who couldn¡¯t handle the damage that came from the attack of Grrr. The momentum of placing such beautiful attacks was a stunning picture for anyone to see. But there was a minor problem. Once the Marion dragon disappeared, Ian who was hanging onto it would fall to the ground, which was happening by the way. Seeing that, Hoonie and Levya began to scream out of worry. ¡°Hyung!¡± ¡°Ian!¡± The two who were worried to death soon have settled down. Ian was the best ranker with the highest sense of gaming, it was natural that he would overcome the situation in unexpected ways. Just as they had expected, Ian had already thought of a manner. ¡°Space distortion!¡± The same time he had said it, the place of Ian and Grrr began to exchange with a blue light. As the skill started to take place, the places of Grrr changed with his. Woong-! To the top of Marion Khalifa. To put it precisely, Ian¡¯s position changed to the top of the back. It was a perfect solution for the moment of desperation to stay alive. Then, what had happened to Grrr instead of Ian? Simple. Ian had quickly canceled his summon. Watchers who saw the turn of events were hitting on the keyboard. ¨C Wow! That was crazy! ¨C No, honestly he is a playboy that could do anything, but how did he manage to do it in such short notice? ¨C I can only think about it. But, to actually do it and then to actually succeed at it, that¡¯s a jackpot! ¨C OMG¡­ lol¡­ I just don¡¯t understand what had happened to the monitor. The dragon, why did it melt away? And how did Ian, who was falling to the ground appear on the Khalifa? ¨C If you don¡¯t know, please go back and check the scene. The battle isn¡¯t over yet, so I can¡¯t explain it to you. Just concentrate on the turn of events. ¨C Uhhh! Praise the God Ian! Not just the viewers, but the BJ Lauren, who was in the middle of watching the video turned into ice. ¡°This, this¡­¡± Lauren, a very famous internet BJ, knew the perfect timing to unleash the news and catch their attention. It was obvious that Ian¡¯s skills that were used were known, and he clearly understood how he had done it, and it was sure that he could clearly explain it to them. But he couldn¡¯t. The very moment, he wanted to concentrate on the match on Ian than to anything else. The moment had passed, but Ian was still standing in the middle of the enemy. Ian wasn¡¯t completely out of the crisis. ¡°This is Ian everyone! Today we get to cleanse our eyes watching the play of Ian!¡± Lauren began to focus after saying something to himself and focused on the monitor again. The next moment, he tilted his head slightly. ¡®Why the hell did he summon him? Was Grrr a stepping stone with much easier targeting skills?¡¯ Though it was a good enough guess, he couldn¡¯t figure out why it had been summoned. According to the feel of Lauren, there would¡¯ve been a key reason why he had suddenly decided to do such a move. ¡®Why the hell?¡¯ Right then, the head of Lauren which was starting to ache with all his thoughts suddenly realized something. ¡°Ah, the agility¡­!¡± Khalifa, who was carrying someone half the size of him, was a bit slow to see. The tremendous weight and the massive daggers that were hanging on the back had limited the movements of the huge Khalifa to a great bit. It wasn¡¯t easy, however, if they managed it, then it could be possible to perform. If Khalifa flipped it¡¯s body to get rid of them, then Khalifa would lose the balance too. It was because the center of gravity was there and would momentarily make it lose its balance. When suddenly, Hoonie¡¯s Death Meteor¡ªwhich was moving with a sluggish speed, was starting to pick up speed. * * * Kwang- Kwakwang-! [Done fatal damage!] [The vitality of ¡®Khalifa¡¯ has been reduced by 480,912.] [Vitality of ¡®Khalifa¡¯ has been reduced by 375,131.] Ian who was firmly seated on the shoulder side of the Khalifa stabbed it with his spear once again. As the damage began to accumulate, the vitality of Khalifa was reduced. Kuuuah! You humans, I¡¯ll teach you idiots a good lesson! There was no way for Ian to stand on the back of it, and Khalifa knowing that, cast a new ability. It was an intense sound that could tear off the eardrums of the people in the nearer areas, and the vitality was reduced too. [The unique ability of Marion ¡®Khalifa¡¯ ¡®Marion Dragon Roar¡¯ has been activated.] [Vitality has been reduced by 1,293,098.] [Fallen into the state of ¡®fear¡¯.] [For a certain duration, you will lose the control of the character.] Ian who confirmed the system messages could do nothing but sigh. ¡®It¡¯s a good thing that Ddukdae is a golem.¡¯ As Ddukdae belonged to the golem class, ¡®inanimate matter¡¯ it was completely immune to the condition of ¡®fear¡¯. Therefore, it wasn¡¯t affected by the roar of the dragon, and thankfully, Ian who lost control didn¡¯t fall off from the back of the dragon. But that didn¡¯t mean that the roar of the Marion dragon wasn¡¯t threatening enough. The damage caused by the roar was very huge. ¡®Sh*t, it took down a million vitality with one wide-area.¡¯ A wide-area attack and Ian¡¯s vitality had fallen to less than half. Ian bit down on his lower lip, looking at the vitality that flickered. ¡®Little more, just a little more¡­!¡¯ Ian turned his gaze to Hoonie. To be precise, he looked over at the numerous Death meteors that were being fired from Hoonie. The speed of the Death Meteor was picking up pace, but it still wasn¡¯t fast enough to hit the Khalifa. Of course, this was an alternative that Ian had thought of, but he needed a little more time for it to work. ¡°Noel-ah, control Karceus to stop the Marion dragons! Bbookbbook, protect Hoonie!¡± Ian, who commanded Canoel and Bbookbbook, turned his gaze to the only familiars that were flying, which was¡ªPin. But he still hadn¡¯t given any orders yet. It was because Ian hadn¡¯t come up with one. And in the meantime, the remaining time left for them was less than five minutes. ¨C AH, the execution is surely wonderful, the fight was really artistic, but¡­ it seems like the time is a little too short. But everyone! I think that Ian God will eventually clear the quest! Like the words of BJ Lauren went, the whole chat began to explode. ¨C Ha, Even if it is Ian, this time it will be impossible to do. ¨C What nonsense!? There is no way the quest would fail after they made it this long. Surely, Ian God will think of a way. ¨C Huh, well. No matter how nicely played Ian is, sometimes the truth is cold. From the 15 minutes, the vitality of Khalifa has been reduced to 40. How would they plan to kill it within the next 5 minutes? ¨C There is a way. ¨C Huh? ¨C Once all the Death Meteor of Hoonie hits him. ¨C Is there anyone in here who doesn¡¯t know that? ¨C ¡­ It was a natural thing, but in the current situation, it looked like it is the only way to get out of the situation. And Lauren was expecting that too. ¡®Now, in a minute or so, the Death meteor will reach the Khalifa¡¯s point¡­ if they can just keep the Khalifa like that somehow¡­¡¯ Of course, Lauren wasn¡¯t thinking of how they were supposed to keep the Khalifa right there. Ian would¡¯ve surely thought of a way. Not many people would have noticed, but the fact that the speed of Khalifa had been reduced more than twice the original speed, made it sure hat the Death Meteor would manage to hit it. Nevertheless, it would still be tough to hit it. ¡®Now, what kind of a crazy act will you do?!¡¯ Looking at Ian who was in the monitor, Lauren¡¯s mouth turned into a wicked smile. It was unreal. It seemed so impossible. If it was Ian, he would show something, some kind of vague expectation was building up. But it was certainly true that many of the users who were watching the video at the moment were all expecting something and it wasn¡¯t just Lauren. The very moment, Lauren¡¯s eyes went wide into the upcoming scene. * * * The scene at the battlefield was the raid boss Khalifa, surrounded by the party of Ian. The three dragons, including the Lugarix with Hoonie, was holding on to; along with three younger dragons and Levya, along with Milos, who was supporting them from behind. Hoonie had summoned the Death meteor, following Ian¡¯s order. But in a glance, it looked like the Meteors were going to fail. More than a third of the meteors were already heading to the opposite direction past Khalifa, losing the point of their destination. Despite the slow movement, Khalifa managed to avoid the projectiles without much difficulty. However, Ian¡¯s eyes hadn¡¯t lost focus or concentration. Rather, his eyes were shining like a beast who had caught its prey. ¡®Now¡­!¡¯ A golden cloud formed in front of them. Ian who was waiting jumped into the air without any hesitation. At the same time, he gave out the orders for the familiars and the users. ¡°Pin, use Crush!¡± Kiyaaah-! The first order was given to Pin, while he was jumping onto the cloud. As soon as he stepped on, the cloud had disappeared, yet he didn¡¯t panic. And the shock wasn¡¯t the scene of Ian running on the clouds, but¡­ The most surprising scene was the unique ability of Pin¡¯s ¡®Crush¡¯ and the ¡®Death Meteor¡¯ getting into sync. Pin¡¯s unique ability ¡®crush¡¯ was a wide-range skill that causes strong gusts of wind which gave out DoT damages, in the course, they also affected the projectile. Because of that, the Death Meteor which moved like slugs started to get faster and faster. Even the Khalifa, which had avoided them a moment back was shocked at the turn of events due to the linkage attack. The Death Meteor, which he had cleanly managed to avoid till then had now started to give it damage. [Keuahk! You trivial beings!] Something was still lacking. The speed of the projectile was almost twice to thrice faster, but that didn¡¯t mean that all of the Death Meteors were intense. It wasn¡¯t definite as to how much time they had on their hand, it was only about a minute that was left in the hands of Ian and his party. And the vitality of Khalifa was still around 30%, it was too short of a time to take all that vitality down. The very moment, Ian who was running around the golden clouds, invoked a skill that no one even though of. ¡°Ddukdae! Abyss Hole!¡± The very next moment, loads of black rocks that were scattered on the battlefield began to rush towards Ddukdae! CH 417 All attack skills and non-targeting skills in Kailan didn¡¯t inflict any kind of damage on objects that were not recognized as enemies. So even when a person wants to PK someone, once that person attacked the target with a target skill or a general attack, a ¡®hostile¡¯ situation wouldn¡¯t be created in an instant. Which was why he thought of a way that could attract the projectile using the Abyss Hole. No matter how fast the Death Meteor was pulled in, there was no way that Ddukdea which was in the same party as Hoonie would have to worry. Then why didn¡¯t Ian summon Ddukdae in the past and summoned a retainer? The answer to that was fairly simple. Ian accumulated more leadership points with Celia. Before he could even level up a 100 more leadership points with Ddukdae, Ian already added another familiar to his list¡ªGrrr. The leadership points Ian had was doubled during that time, but he couldn¡¯t give leadership points to all of his familiars. So he wasn¡¯t able to give Ddukade some leadership points. Surely the few familiars that he possessed had leveled up and evolved, and so did their need for leadership points. However, the leadership points Ian was getting wasn¡¯t increasing. In conclusion, Ian currently had the ability to maintain only one of his myth class familiar. Which was why it was literally ¡®The only one he had¡¯. ¡®I never realized that I would be using it this way.¡¯ At Ian¡¯s command, Ddukdae lifted both its hands and struck them down on Khalifa¡¯s back. Kwang-! A powerful shock wave had spread after Ddukdae¡¯s attack. [The familiar ¡®Ddukdae¡¯ ability ¡®Abyss Hole¡¯ has been activated.] [27,983 damage has been caused to the Marion ¡®Khalifa¡¯.] The damage from the Abyss Hole wasn¡¯t so bad. Though it was surely weaker than Ian¡¯s arrows, it was enough to deal damage to the Khalifa. The problem was the swirl of the shockwave that was summoned on top of the Khalifa. Kwahh-! The waves began to turn larger and larger producing huge sounds. Flashes of blue shimmer began to appear inside the shockwave which started gathering all the objects around it. Kwahhh-! Khalifa was trying to flap its wings and overcome the shockwave¡¯s mighty power, but it was useless. Holding Ddukdae who had a huge body, and who was using the strongest CC called the Abyss Hole, it was an impossible task to overcome the gravitational pull. Besides, the location where the Abyss hole had been summoned was right on top of Khalifa¡¯s body. Kwakwnag-! Seven or so Death Meteors got sucked into Khalifa¡¯s body and exploded when the Abyss Hole got activated. [The vitality of ¡®Khalifa¡¯ has been reduced by 40,982.] [The vitality of ¡®Khalifa¡¯ has been reduced by 34, 421.] [The vitality of ¡®Khalifa¡¯ has been reduced by 1,315,122.] [The vitality of ¡®Khalifa¡¯ has been reduced by 1,279,830.] [The vitality of ¡®Khalifa¡¯ has been reduced by 34,421.] [The vitality of ¡®Khalifa¡¯ has been reduced by 1,198,754.] A lot of system messages appeared in front of Ian¡¯s party. The damage that was dealt to the Khalifa was approximately seven million. The damage that the Abyss Hole normally gave was around 3 to 4 million, but the damage exceeded due to the Death Meteor that was along with it. With that skill combination, the vitality of Khalifa was going down the drain. Khalifa was receiving around 10 million units of damage per second while he was inside the Abyss Hole. The vitality of Khalifa, which was that of a raid boss was around a billion. 10 million worth of damage was something devastating even for Khalifa. Kyahkk-! Khalifa was writhing in pain and grief. However, it was just the beginning. Dozens of Death Meteors were being pulled into the Abyss Hole. Woong-! Normally, the skill information of the Abyss Hole didn¡¯t specify how much power it had. After the duration, the range of the damage was precisely around 10 meters to be exact, but the range of the pull was much higher. If its attack covered 20 to 30 meters rather than 10, then its power would be weaker. Even mere goblins could withstand the Abyss Hole¡¯s power if it had been spread out that wide. However, Death Meteor¡¯s weak power increased as it orbited the Abyss Hole. The closer the Death Meteors got to the Abyss Hole, the faster they accelerated. Everything happened according to Ian¡¯s plan. Kwang- Kwang- Bang-! [The vitality of Khalifa has been reduced by 1,199,454.] [The vitality of Khalifa has been reduced by 1,175,945.] [The vitality of Khalifa has been reduced by 1,351,742.] Levya¡¯s jaw dropped as she watched what was happening to Khalifa. ¡°What¡­ what the hell is that¡­?¡± They manage to take millions of Khalifa¡¯s vitality before one could even realize, and it all happened in the blink of an eye. There was another person apart from Levya who was even more shocked than her. It was none other than Hoonie, who had summoned the Death Meteors. ¡°Crazy! Totally crazy¡­!¡± The battle information window was floating to his side. When he checked, the DPS (Damage Per Second) was written there. Average Raid DPS: 520,983 Average DPS for the past 1 minute: 1,652,151 Instantaneous maximum DPS: 32,517,512 When typical level 300 users were in a Boss Raid party, the DPS damage dealers would deal between 100,000 to 150,000 damage. In the field hunting, there were a lot of rankings that took out over a million DPS, and that was because of the loads of monsters that get attacked in a single strike. Surely, when dealing with a low-level boss, one could easily deal a DPS amounting to 500,000. It was an entirely different story when the boss was of the raid level though. Even a party consisting of top 10 rankers of all the top ten classes couldn¡¯t deal 200,000 DPS. They could deal 200,000 DPS in a Boss Raid if every one of them went all out. However, the DPS window that was in front of Hoonie¡¯s eyes was showing some ridiculous numbers. ¡®Ones, tens, hundreds, thousand, million¡­ 30 million?¡¯ The figures Hoonie was seeing didn¡¯t make sense to him. He couldn¡¯t believe that his Death Meteors had just dealt that much damage. Users who were watching the video on their screens were much more agitated than Hoonie. ¨C lol, hehe, hold on a second. I¡¯m not seeing things, am I? ¨C WOW, he he he, lost it. now isn¡¯t the time to joke around Mr. Snob¡­ ¨C No, guys he he¡­ the raid boss that was hunted yesterday was around 30 million I think so? The information that Hoonie had just seen was the DPS window, then it means that the previous raid boss information has been crossed over.. heh he ¨C Wah¡­ it is probably because the level of the raid boss that they previously hunted was low. The average DPS is the same. The DPS was 50,000, even now. ¨C Then maybe¡­ Has anyone seen the DPS window that Hoonie opened before the explosion? ¨C I have. Hoonie¡¯s window showed 8 million a while back¡­ and then it went up to 50 million after the explosion¡­ Boom! He he lol. ¨C I seriously don¡¯t know how did that happen, really. I admit today that Hoonie is truly the KanjiHoonie. ¨C Why is Hoonie Kanji(cool)? Ian was the one doing everything. I still feel like Ian was the one that needs to get praised. Today is a day for Ian¡ªIan God! ¨C I second that, Ian! Even Hoonie had a huge fan club now since he was starting to become famous. However, Hoonie¡¯s fans were a bit different than that of Ian¡¯s. Unlike Ian¡¯s fans, who were busy praising Ian, Hoonie¡¯s fans enjoyed dissing Hoonie. However, they weren¡¯t his haters. It was just fun to support Hoonie that way. Ian¡¯s plan worked somehow and almost every Death Meteor got sucked into Khalifa¡¯s body for the last 10 seconds since the activation of the Abyss Hole. It was hard to accurately calculate how much damage they dealt, but around 60 million damage was done in the span of 10 seconds. Khalifa¡¯s vitality gauge, which seemed impossible to deplete, fell to the bottom. [Keu, these humans¡­!] Khalifa lifted his head to the air and roared. However, it wasn¡¯t a roar for a counterattack. It was the last scream of despair before the Raid Boss died. Kukung- Thud-! The whole map began to tremble. Khalifa¡¯s energy began to spread around. At the very same moment, system messages began to emerge in front of Ian¡¯s party. Tring-! [You have succeeded in destroying the remnants of ¡®Khalifa¡¯ the Marion!] [The devil energy that had been encroaching the land of Prilania Canyon had been purified.] [The blessing of the Dragon God ¡®Seikaito¡¯ has fallen back to the Prilania canyon.] [The quest ¡®Remnants of the Marion Dragon¡¯ has been completed!] [You¡¯ve earned 30,000 fame points.] The moment they checked the quest completion message, they couldn¡¯t help but feel proud of themselves. If a person succeeded in completing such a hardcore quest, the amount of satisfaction that person would have normally doubled up. Seeing the image of Khalifa disappearing, Ian smiled brightly. The magic circle that was around it had disappeared, and they were able to stand in the ground of the canyon now. Canoel, the main subject of the quest was the first to say something, ¡°WOW! I almost gave up on that one¡­¡± Before Ian¡¯s party appeared, Canoel was doing the quest all by himself and had almost given up on it. The moment the Khalifa emerged, he realized that the quest would be hard to clear all by himself. After abandoning the quest, he was planning on asking rankers of the Lotus Guild like Ian to support him with the quest. But miraculously, Ian and his friends appeared in the Frillania Canyon and cleared the quest for him. Hoonie and Levya who just landed on the ground said what they felt too, ¡°Yeah, hyung. Even I felt like giving up on that quest. It felt like a quest that couldn¡¯t be cleared.¡± ¡°Even me. I never imagined the last part to turn out like that.¡± As they were talking about it, the effect of Khalifa that was hanging into the ground started to slowly disappear. ¡°But, Noel-ah.¡± ¡°Yeah, hyung?¡± ¡°What is the quest clear reward?¡± ¡°Ah, that¡­¡± All of them cleared the quest, but the rewards that they got were different. Of course, the rewards of those who just assisted with the quest would be similar, but Canoel¡ªthe one that took the quest¡ªwas bound to receive an entirely different reward. It was a ¡®Dragon Tamer¡¯ class hidden quest. Canoel looked into the system message and said with a smile, ¡°I will get a myth class headdress and a skill book along with the egg of a myth class dragon.¡± The moment Ian¡¯s party heard the rewards that Canoel would get, the whole party of Ian was shocked. ¡°What¡­!?¡± ¡°OMG!¡± ¡°Awesome.¡± They knew that Canoel would indeed get an amazing reward, but what they just heard was mind-blowing. Canoel¡¯s words followed with something that was even more surprising. ¡°Uhh? Is this the normal reward¡­? Ah! Is this a reward for achieving the extended quest?¡± ¡°What?¡± Ian who didn¡¯t understand what Canoel was talking about, immediately asked him what he meant. However, before Canoel could even respond to Ian¡¯s question, system messages appeared in front of Ian. [You have succeeded with your quest ¡®Remnants of the Marion Dragon¡¯] [Your affinity with the Dragon God ¡®Seikaito¡¯ has increased drastically.] [You¡¯ve acquired the item ¡®Dragon God, Seikaito¡¯s cloak¡¯.] [You have ¡®The secret of Marion Khalifa¡¯.] [You have activated the Hidden episode.] Ian instinctively confirmed the messages that he received and looked at the Khalifa. They thought that the Khalifa was dead. However, the Khalifa was still alive, and it spread its wings wide. ¡°¡­!¡± They were about to battle with it when they noticed that it wasn¡¯t the Khalifa. It was a bizarre dragon which was covered with red-scales. The dragon looked magnificent. The dragon was someone Ian was familiar with. CH 418 The contaminated dimensional system gradually turned into the ¡®Devildom¡¯ as time went by. The dimensional system that eventually turned into a part of the Devildom because of the unique landing system that Daedmon did, and were made into Devildom¡¯s divisions. All the areas in Devildom eventually connected and formed into the central continent of the Devildom. However, Daedmon¡¯s army which had been widening their territory without any delay failed the war of conquest for the first time. It wasn¡¯t just a failure, but a complete failure. The whole of Daedmon¡¯s army got killed, and not leaving a single one standing. The dimension that beat them was the human dimension. Daedmon was shocked by what happened. [Humans¡­ this is a dimension where more ¡®powerful men¡¯ than me exist.] The ¡®powerful men¡¯ in the human dimension he mentioned was ¡®God¡¯. Of course, there was also a god who existed in other dimensions too, and Daedmon had conquered them because their power wasn¡¯t strong enough to stop the army of Daedmon. However, the dimension of humans was different. There were already many Gods who had been ruling over them for many years, and their strengths couldn¡¯t be compared with that of Daedmon. Which was why Daedmon had thought. [Now is the time to continue my conquest. I will rule Devildom and build a world stronger than theirs.] The power of God came from the faith that beings had. The more beings who serve the god with sincerity, the stronger the power of God increased. Also, as the divine power got stronger, the creatures of the dimensional world would also have a rise in their spirit. As a result, the greater the power of a reigning God was, the more advanced would be the dimensional system. Daedmon, who realized what he was lacking in, decided to resign and devote himself to his region. Which resulted in the creatures of Devildom to evolve, and the birth of the higher leveled ones called ¡®Asmodians¡¯ began to take form. [I will be your God, and if you serve me, I will grant you all with mighty strength. ] Highly intellectual Asmodians have begun to develop in Devildom at a faster rate. They recognized the existence of God and began to put their belief in it. Eventually, Daedmon began to get more powerful. However, there was a problem associated with that. The Asmodians, who had a high level of intellect, had a lot of emotions apart from the feelings of destruction and conquest. They began to learn of ¡®values¡¯. Which resulted in the birth of new gods in Devildom. As such, Daedmon who tried to conquer the human dimension by creating high-leveled Asmodians created unexpected situations for himself. [Dare, they challenge my authority!] Many newborn Devil Gods who were weaker than Daedmon started to form. If the power of Daedmon was the sun, then their power was only that of a small firefly. They would never be able to defy Daedmon. [They are against Lord Daedmon?] Please lead the future of the Devildom. [However, Daedmon felt uneasy. ] [Now, I can control them, but there is no guarantee that I can still do so in the future.] As Devildom became more peaceful, the other Devil Gods became more powerful. The gods who were against destruction and conquest were becoming more powerful. Daedmon was forced o make an unreasonable decision. Once again, he started the conquest of the human dimension. He did that because the power of destruction and conquest would be strengthened by creating the Dimensional War, and then he could continue to reign as the supreme figure of Devildom. The human system, which had turned comparatively weaker than the Devildom, would have a hard time overcoming a mountain of devils. Deadmon once again placed the oracle, and the battle for the conquest of the human world began. That was the War of Dimensions that took place a thousand years back. [I will conquer the dimension of humans by any means!] The army of Daedmon was so powerful that it was incomparable to that of the previous one, and it made tremendous progress. They managed to destroy many creatures of the human dimension and gradually began to conquer the human dimension. [It is just a matter of time before I conquer the entire human dimension!] However, Daedmon was now just being delusional. The human¡¯s gods saw that Devildom¡¯s army didn¡¯t show any signs of retreating and began to get involved. They turned dragons into their messengers. The heroes with strong power began to fight back, and the army of Devildom once again failed in their conquest of the human dimension. Surely, Daedmon could grant his power to his creatures. However, a being who had been granted the power of God couldn¡¯t move to another dimension that wasn¡¯t theirs. It was Kailan¡¯s unwritten law. If it was violated, then one wouldn¡¯t be a God anymore. Which was why the army of Devildom got defeated once again. Daedmon was heartbroken. He found no other way to conquer the human dimension. A few hundred years later, Daedmon found a strange being in his dimension. They were the mutants who didn¡¯t have the power of the Gods. [Was it possible for such creatures to exist!?] Daedmon thought of a shortcut. To give his power over to the ¡®non-standard¡¯ which existed. In here, a non-standard¡¯s entity meant ¡®mutant¡¯, which weren¡¯t created by God. The non-standard beings were the only ones who escape from the control of God. They escaped from God¡¯s terms and his teachings. Ironically, however, the creators of the mutants or magical-beasts were the ¡®elfs¡¯ of the human dimension. [Huhu, the humans¡¯ gods will eventually be destroyed by the creatures that they have created.] The ¡®elves¡¯, like ¡®Cervian¡¯ had great intellect and inquisitiveness. Cervian had spent hundreds of years studying about magical beasts by creating the beast transmuter called the ¡®Beast Alchemy¡¯ and created such ¡®mutants¡¯ out of the power of God. Which made Daedmon help Cervian. He helped Cervian bring out and make much more powerful mutants. The larger the body of a mutant, the more power it had. As a result, higher-ranking Asmodians were born. A white dragon with gleaming scales. Daedmon was impressed with that. Despite the lack of Dragon God, Seikaito¡¯s power, the birth of a being with the personality of a ¡®Dragon¡¯ was born. [Yeah, I guess this guy would be good enough.] Daedmon secretly gave Cervian the mightiest power that he could provide someone. Thus, the dragon with a pure white dyed scales possessed the darkest power, and its whole body eventually got covered with red devil energy. That was the birth¡­ of Marion Khalifa. * * * Lauren who had been relaying Ian¡¯s video was flustered at what he saw. ¡°Uh¡­?¡± It was because the video suddenly stopped at its climax. The video stopped after the Death Meteors were pulled into the dragon and the explosion that came after it like a scene in a movie. It was clear that Ian¡¯s party cleared the quest. ¡°Is this a bug? Were they aware of the curiosity of the viewers?¡± It was obvious, and it wasn¡¯t just Lauren who was upset. ¨C Uh, did it stop just now? ¨C Yeah, right. I just checked it, and Ian¡¯s video had stopped. ¨C Thank god, I thought that the server got disconnected. ¨C What is happening? Is it a bug just like BJ said? ¨C Ahh, no way! There is no way that a bug would appear in Kailan after all this time. ¨C Even then, doesn¡¯t it seem like it? if not, what could the reason be¡­? The users who were waiting started to move over to other videos one after the other. Lauren wasn¡¯t sure either if he should continue or stop the broadcast. ¡®What am I supposed to do? Should I call LB¡¯s customer care and find out what¡¯s happening?¡¯ The moment Lauren picked up the phone and dialed the customer service¡¯s phone number, Ian¡¯s video started playing again. * * * Ian¡¯s eyes slowly went up. Everything that stopped started moving again. No one knew the reason why everything just stopped. The hidden story that was meant to be hidden from them had stopped for 5 minutes for the entire world. However, Ian was the only one who understood the stories. Hoonie and the others didn¡¯t even know about the presence of Selipa. ¡®Selipa¡­ surely that one too.¡¯ Thanks to the hidden story, Ian was able to understand a lot of things that didn¡¯t make sense to him till now. The egg that Ian had got from Cervian when he got the hidden class¡ª¡¯The Unknown Egg of a Magical Beast¡¯¡ªwas clearly the egg of Khalifa. It was revealed that Selipa, who had the power of the Devil Gods, was given birth to because of the Marion Khalifa. ¡®Cervian wasn¡¯t able to seal Khalifa which was born out of the Magical Beast Alchemy, but it wasn¡¯t his fault. It was all because of that bastard Devil God called Daedmon.¡¯ Ian finally found out the thing he was really worried about with his Magical Beast Alchemy. Well, it wasn¡¯t completely resolved, but he knew the cause of it. He could now find out the answer he was looking for. Because of the behind-the-scenes of the Devil God¡¯s story which came out due to the quest, he was able to learn of the secret that no one knew. ¡®If I didn¡¯t know about this and created a myth class beast, then my situation would have been the same as Cervian. I would¡¯ve given Daedmon another chance for conquest.¡¯ On top of that, he learned a little more about Kailan¡¯s world setting. For example, how the numerous areas and creatures were created in the Devildom. While Ian was thinking about the hidden story, his pending quest resumed. Woong-! With a huge resonance, the welcoming image of Selipa in front of the party began to dim. The dark clouds of the sky were lifted and a white light began to settle on the ground where Selipa was last seen. A fresh blue breeze of refreshing air began to blow from the canyons. CH 419 The bluish breeze flowing in front of Ian¡¯s party gradually settled down. And there, appeared a mysterious atmosphere with a beautiful boy having silver hair. [Well, you are the master of the Cintamani.] The Dragon God Seikaito. The eyes of his met with that of Ian¡¯s. The very moment, the control of the whole party of Ian went into AI mode. The Hidden story had begun. Ian, no, it was Ian¡¯s AI who had opened his mouth towards Seikaito after bowing his head. ¡°It has been long, Seikaito. Have you been doing well?¡± Seikaito responded very slowly after nodding his head, [Surely, I was.] A new model of Seikaito floating in the air smoothly glided and stopped in front of the party of Ian. And his eyes of his turned toward the direction of Canoel. [You have done well, after Oakley.] ¡°Thank you, Lord Seikaito.¡± [Thanks to your valor, the remnants of the Marion dragon suppressed in the Prilania canyon have been completely erased.] ¡°I just did what I had to do.¡± Doing what you had to do. That itself is enough. Seikaito slowly lifted his hand. From his lifted hand a gleam began to rise. This world has a lot of people who don¡¯t do what they need to do. To the extent how a dark ground turns white with a little snow, the light that gleamed from Seikaito was that intense. The blue light then shined all throughout the Prilania canyon spreading to the air and the permeated canyons. On top of that, numerous shadow of dragons started to sit in the canyon. It indeed was something that couldn¡¯t be explained. With that, a familiar sound rang in the ears of the members. Tring-! [The power of Dragon God Seikaito fell on the Prilania.] [The Dragon Village has risen back.] [From all over the continent, the ¡®Dragon¡¯ monster will appear.] [From the moment, you can set a dragon for your kingdom and a ¡®Dragon Knight¡¯ can be trained.] [As the certain conditions have been met, you can create a ¡®Dragon Warrior¡¯ class, which was a fusion class of the Summoner class and the Warrior class. (You can have up to three fusion classes per a character)] [Added 2- tier hidden class of ¡®Dragon Breeder¡¯. (Only for the summoner class, the change of career can be done only when the conditions have been met.)] The content of the world message was astonishing. Especially for Ian, who already had the status of King, became interested in the ability to train a dragon with the ¡®Dragon Knight¡¯. ¡®I¡¯ve been going by the name. The Dragon Knight¡­ it sounds twice more powerful than a Wyvern knight, I guess so?¡¯ While Ian was looking at the world messages and thinking about other stuff to do, Seikaito once again looked at Ian. Well Ian didn¡¯t have to respond by himself. As he was still under the control of the AI. As Seikaito opened his mouth, the conversation of the two began. [My eyes which are seeing you, surely haven¡¯t mistaken.] ¡°You mean.¡± [To overcome the remnants of the Khalifa that were hidden in the Prilania canyon, it indeed is something that could only be done by the master of Cintamani.] ¡°You¡¯re are exaggerating, Dragon God.¡± A moment later, Seikaito¡¯s gaze headed to that of Milos who was standing behind Ian. It wasn¡¯t exactly Milos, it was the soul stone that she was holding onto. [For you to come here, is it because of the child?] Ian nodded and answered, ¡°Yes, Seikaito. To get rid of the darkness in the human dimension, we need to awaken the Dragon of Light which is still in slumber.¡± Sekaito smiled a little. And gestured Milos to get close to him. [You, the messenger of light. Come here.] Milos moved forward and responded after politely bowing her head to him. ¡°It is an honor to meet you, Dragon God.¡± Seikaito¡¯s words continued after that, [You have been through a lot, to keep the child in safe hands.] ¡°No, not at all¡­¡± [It was something you had to do.] Woong-! The bright white egg was tightly wrapped in the hands of Milos. A blue light began to circulate around it while slowly lifting it to the air. The egg that had risen to the air had slowly went to the direction of Seikaito. Seikaito once again looked at Ian. [Honestly, the moment the Dragon village had been revived.] Seikaito stroked the dragon egg. [The seal that was hanging onto this child had been lifted.] Crack- crack- crack-! A cracking sound along with blue light from the cracks began to grow more and more. It was a sight that Ian had seen the other day. ¡®Karceus¡­! It is almost the same effect when the soul of Karceus had awakened!¡¯ Looking at the scene, Ian¡¯s heart began to beat quickly. Hwoong-! The Dragon of Light, Elcarix. The soul of Elcarix, which had now started to turn into pure white light, started to grow brighter and brighter. The soul of Elcarix which had been asleep, awakened and took the shape of a dragon. The whole party was looking at the scene that was unfolded, and the words of Seikaito continued, [This child, who has been sealed off for a long time, probably has lost the memory. But you, the owner of the Cintamani¡­ I believe that you can take good care of this child.] Large white wings, and a tail that extended from the body with an utmost beautiful curve. The Dragon of Light, which was full of light till the moment had finally shown its body and appearance. Tring-! [A new God¡¯s Dragon has appeared!] [Right now, you can register the Dragon of Light, Elcarix as the dragon of the Kingdom.] Another two world messages. And a message that was only for the eyes of Ian. [Obtained the Dragon of Light ¡®Elcarix (Lv 1)¡¯.] * * * ¡°Herz, something huge has happened!¡± ¡°Huh? What has happened?¡± ¡°The Alita manor has been debilitated sharply!¡± The war between the Lotus Guild and the Elrika Kingdom. In the midst of the battlefield where a total of 100,000 troops, from both sides, faced each other¡ªHerz was directing the battle. Of course, not all of them had been battling on the field. There were seven lands adjacent to the Elrika Kingdom and its border, it was an all-out war with seven territories at the same time. The lords of each manor were regularly under the command of the Kingdom. And the place where Herz was currently at was the ¡®Keaton Manor¡¯, that was taken away from the Elrika Kingdom. ¡°No, wasn¡¯t the manor of Alita prevailing till a moment ago?¡± ¡°That was. But all of a sudden¡­¡± ¡°All of a sudden?¡± ¡°It has been reposted that a whole new Undead has appeared.¡± Herz was confused at what he had heard. ¡°A new Undead? Did a new higher-level of Undead appear?¡± The guild member who had come to relay the information took a deep breath and responded. ¡®No, it wasn¡¯t that¡­ much more difficult than dealing with the death knight.¡¯ ¡°Durahan¡­?¡± Of all the undead, the Durahan was the toughest to deal with. The attack power was much lower than that of the Death Knight, there was no specific weakness for it and had a very good regenerative power, it was hard to hit it with a deal. But the guild member shook his head once again. ¡°No, master. A whole new undead¡­ a ghost drake.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± ¡°No physical attack is going through it at all, he is like a monster.¡± Herz¡¯s face hardened a little. If no physical attack could work on them, it would definitely be tricky. Amongst the undead ¡®race¡¯ that had currently been existing, the ¡®Ghost Warrior¡¯ was a character that was completely immune to the physical attack. However, it had a weak vitality that could be taken down with wide-area magic, but the situation would be different from that of a ¡®Drake¡¯. Firstly, the race of Drake itself was a monster with a good vitality that was excellent for a tanking position. ¡®Huh, then I can¡¯t send in the mages for support there¡­¡¯ Herz¡¯s head began to hurt with all the thoughts that were going on in his head. If the Ghost Drake had appeared in the Alita Manor, then they would surely make an appearance at the Keaton Manor too. ¡®Oh no¡­¡¯ As the anxiety of Herz intensified, an unexpected huge roar came to form the eastern side of the battlefield. Kyahh-! All of them looked in the direction of the sound. Not surprisingly, Herz did too. The very next moment, Herz went pale at what he saw. It was because something that was more threatening than a Ghost Drake had appeared. ¡°Ghost Dragon¡­!¡± It was the first top tier of the Undead, which had never been encountered in the Kailan ever before, and this was the first time. * * * Aside from Ian who had obtained the Dragon of Light, the other party members received tremendous rewards for the quest with the utmost difficulty. And all that¡ªwas due to the performance in the quest. Normally, as the vitality of the Khalifa had fallen to less than half, then the Dragon God should have appeared and helped the party members out. However, Ian and his party had killed Khalifa in an unexpected way, and a new Hidden story was opened. [Normally, my role was just till here, but thanks to you I came to know of the hidden secret of the Khalifa, which is why I will give you additional powers.] In addition, Dragon God Seikaito provided them with a huge buff, a ¡®blessing of Dragon God¡¯ that would last for a week. A powerful buff that would increase 30% of the combat abilities without any conditions. In addition to the Dragon of Light, Elcarix has been granted additional buffs too, which would have been five times more effective than a regular attack. But, Ian couldn¡¯t help but feel irritated. ¡®Keuk, what¡¯s with this sweet buffs? For one week it has to be no sleeping. Will this be effective till the Wednesday class of next week?¡¯ Not twice, not even thrice, it was whooping five times buff experience. In order to extract the maximum efficiency here and leave no regrets, it would be right to hunt indefinitely. Luckily, the holidays for Chuseok lasted for four days in the coming future, it felt like he could give up three classes till then. Ian, who was now out of the control of the AI spoke to Seikaito, ¡°Sir Seikaito, then we will now drive the legion of the darkness away!¡± The very moment¡ªthe buffs¡¯ duration was diminishing. Every minute and second was an inevitable worth for Ian. Ian had done all the work that Seikaito had wanted him to, now he wanted to move fast and hunt down the undead as soon as he could. But then, Seikaito still had something to say. [Your courage is indeed great.] Letting those words settle down, he spoke again, [I will lend you my army for a day, and they will help you destroy the legion of undead that is corrupting this land.] Once again, Seikaito has given Ian and his party a wonderful sweet treat. CH 420 Tens of dragons which displayed courage. Considering the word ¡®army¡¯, the number wasn¡¯t so much, but it was the elite troop which didn¡¯t need to be millions in number appeared in the Prilania canyon. It was natural for Ian to rethink what he had heard, but right then, a sound in his ear cut off his thoughts. Tring-! [The Dragon God Seikaito¡¯s guardian will join the party.] [The commander of the army ¡®Cameres¡¯ joined the party.] [50 dragon vessels have joined the party.] [The Party leader ¡®Ian¡¯ has been given the title of commander for the unit.] Around fifty-five veteran dragons and an NPC named as ¡®Cameres¡¯. Dozens of dark blue dragons with horseman were much smaller than the normal dragons, but since a large number of them were gathered, it was a great force. Moreover, not only were the warriors armed but the dragons were armed too, so the light reflecting off them was beautiful. In particular, Cameres and the dragon with the title of ¡®Courageous commander¡¯ were the most prominent of them all. It was the same with the greyish blue scales, but on the top of them was a golden armor. Ian¡¯s gaze went to the top of the head of the NPC. Courageous Commander/ Cameres/ Lv: 500 ¡®Keu, I want to make such armor for Karceus too¡­ where will I even get such a thing?¡¯ Ian was admiring the grandeur of Cameres, the warrior on top of the dragon had gotten down and come towards Ian. Cameres walked up to Ian and extended his hand for a handshake. ¡°You must be the owner of Cintamani, the one my Dragon God has told me about.¡± Ian responded by extending his hand. ¡°That¡­ that is right.¡± ¡°Nice, I will stay in the dimension and try to help you as much as I could.¡± As the voice of an NPC with a level of 500 had said such words, Ian decided to place infinite trust in them. ¡°Thank you so much, commander.¡± Cameres smiled and spoke a few last words. ¡°I look forward to seeing your bravery.¡± Though his words sounded scary, new system messages surfaced in front of Ian. Tring-! [Sudden quest has been activated.] ¨C ¨C ¨C Meet the expectation of Cameres (Sudden) ¨C Cameres, the servant of Dragon God Seikaito and the courageous commander, has shown his interest in the owner of Cintamani. Now that he has been asked to help you by Seikaito, he is looking forward to fighting alongside you. As Cameres and the whole dragons of courage stay with you for the coming 24 hours, you will have to defeat as many legions of darkness as you can, to meet his expectations. If you succeed in meeting the expectation of Cameres, then you will be rewarded big. Quest Difficulty:? (Unknown) Quest Condition: Receiving the recognition from the Dragon God ¡®Seikaito¡¯. Time Limit: 24 hours Reward: A token from the dragon * A quest that cannot be rejected. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian who read the content of the quest felt a little disturbed. ¡®Now I need to gain recognition from the Courageous Commander?¡¯ He didn¡¯t know the specific conditions that were needed to achieve the quest, but it seemed rather difficult to clear. It was a quest that could be finished by randomly clearing the legions of darkness from the very moment. ¡®If I don¡¯t manage to do it, then it would practically be a quest that no one could clear.¡¯ Even when compared to the rankers of the Kailan in the Korean server, Ian was someone with a unique PVE and he was proud of it. Realizing that, Ian¡¯s mouth tilted up. ¡°You can surely expect a lot, Cameres.¡± And thus, the dragon joined the battlefield at the Northernmost tip of the Malacca continent in the Prilania Canyon. * * * ¡°Hmmm, according to my memory, this seems right¡­¡± ¡°Yeah? But how come there are no signs?¡± ¡°Well, it is obvious because I had destroyed the summoned magic stones that were in the positions.¡± ¡°Hmm. Then the result of this will be the same.¡± In the 50th division of the Devildom, there were several zones that haven¡¯t been entered. And there was a dungeon near the outskirts of the 50th division, a woman with red hair and a warrior class man in black armor were discussing. The two of them were none other than, Remir and Shakran. ¡°Remir, this will be the fourth dungeon¡­ right?¡± ¡°Right, Uncle.¡± ¡°Ah sh*t, didn¡¯t I tell you not to call me uncle!?¡± ¡°If I won¡¯t call an uncle as an uncle, then what am I supposed to call?¡± ¡°Why am I an uncle?¡± ¡°Just looking at you¡­¡± Remir and Shakran. Both from the race of humans. Then, what were those two doing in the world of Devildom? It was also related to the situation to overpower the Richie King and his legion of darkness by doing the Quest of Darkness. And if some Asmodians had seen the two people, they would wonder ¡®how¡¯ rather than ¡®why¡¯. At the current state, the Devildom was something that humans couldn¡¯t enter to. ¡°Whatever, there are two more places left.¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°As far as the quest is concerned, the last two remaining places should be where the devil summoning stones are present.¡± ¡°That is definite. This uncle sure gets worried a lot.¡± The visit Remir and Shakran had was very simple. It was because of the quest. The quest of the two people, which they were trying to clear was something related to the main scenario of the Human World. Remir, the red-flame Magician was here due to a quest from the Sun God. And the quest was to stop the legion of the Devildom. The legion of the Asmodians who have received the oracle from the Devil God is once again trying to open the portal to Devildom and help the Richie King. Before the portal opened, they need to move to the Devildom and stop them from obtaining the devil summoning stones¡ªin order for their plan to work. Just like when Remir and Ian had destroyed the devil summoning stones during the monster wave in the past, it was a similar quest this time. But of course, the process of doing the quest was different. The past one was something like they had to destroy the 6 devil summoning stones, and this time they had to destroy just one of the Devil Summoning stones. However, unlike the past where the location of the Devil Summoning stones was disclosed, this time, it was a bit impossible as there were six positions they had to check. ¡°I feel so sick. The remaining two places could be the spots where the base of the Asmodians are.¡± ¡°We can¡¯t help it. The difficulty is triple S, wouldn¡¯t it be rather strange if it was easy?¡± ¡°Well, that is true.¡± ¡°Kay, let¡¯s move quickly. If we get caught by the Asmodians in the Devildom, it will get difficult.¡± In the past, unlike the current, Ian and Remir didn¡¯t have much things to worry about when they were carrying out the same quest of destroying the Devil Summoning stones. It was because, during that time, it was just Ian and Remir who could enter the 50th division of the Devildom. The NPC base of the Asmodians wasn¡¯t so elegant. However, the situation was different now. The higher most leveled Asmodians were already hunting in the 20th-30th division. If Remir and Shakran neglected the boundaries, there was no way they could avoid the immediate confrontation with the users of the Devildom. Remir and Shakran who were thoroughly following the dungeons paced over to the next location and searched for the devil summoning stone. The very moment, they had heard the voice of a person they least expected. ¡°Hey! Who could this be? It has been really long since I last saw the two of you.¡± A familiar voice of a user from the other side of the dark dungeon. Flustered Remir and Shakran quickly took on their battle stance, and the man in the dark slowly came into the light. The two people who confirmed the appearance of the user started to get nervous. ¡°Irahan¡­!¡± Irahan had been ranked as the highest-ranked Asmodian user in the Devildom. He had already got past the Asmodians ranking of 350 long back, which was why they couldn¡¯t believe that he was in the 50th division of the Devildom, which only consisted as the hunting ground of a creature of level 200. However, the surprise for the two human users didn¡¯t end there. ¡°Huh, the ones I never thought of had come here.¡± ¡°Remir and Shakran have come.¡± ¡°I knew that the rankers would come, but I never thought that the most famous would come.¡± There were a lot of users in the dark. Remir clutched her fists and asked Irahan. ¡°Did you guys come here knowing that?¡± Irahan laughed at the question. ¡°You¡¯re talking dumb things Remir. How did you guys come here?¡± ¡°I, because of a quest¡­¡± The very moment Remir realized something. ¡®Oh sh*t. The users of the Asmodian too received a quest from the Devil God! Why didn¡¯t I think of it!?¡¯ In fact, Remir didn¡¯t move for the quest right after receiving it. It was only after she had collected enough contribution¡ªafter hunting down the legion of darkness did she move into the Devildom. She was able to do it as it was a time-limited quest. ¡®Damn, I should have done it as soon as I received the quest.¡¯ Despite the fact that both Remir and Shakaran were strong users, however, they couldn¡¯t deal with the Asmodians that have come to catch the two. Irahan looked at Shakran and opened his eyes. ¡°It has been long, Shakran.¡± Shakran responded with a smile. ¡°Yes, it has been long. Playing the head in the Asmodian, it¡¯s clear that you get to play what you want.¡± Iarahan¡¯s complexion darkened as he heard those words from Shakaran. ¡°I was always the first. I have passed into the Devildom and become the first Asmodian to do it too.¡± ¡°Huhu, I admit that too. You sure were the first normally. Though you soon caught up to stuff.¡± Before the concept of the Asmodians came, Irahan was leading the DarkRuna Guild and was the 1st one with the strongest ranking. And Irahan was the best user who always held the 1st level ranking. However, Irahan wasn¡¯t as strong, nor was he considered as best as Shakran. Indeed, he had the advantage of taking on Irahan in the arena, and Irahan had always avoided getting involved in the battle with Shakran. Obviously, Irahan was also aware of the fact¡ªwhich was why he knew Shakran was teasing him. Irahan who felt hurt with those words pulled out his sword in the direction of Shakran. ¡°Shakran, don¡¯t think you¡¯ll die?¡± Shakran laughed at that and pulled out the double swords that he had on the back. ¡°Yeah. It has been long since I had fun.¡± CH 421 ¨C Elcarix (Dragon Light) ¨C Level: 1 Classification: God¡¯s Dragon Rank: Myth Personality: Cowardly (Complete) Offensive power: 25 Defensive power: 33 Agility: 17 Intellect: 37 Vitality: 1,527/1,527 Unique ability: Holy Vital (Passive) Increases the recovery speed of allies¡¯ vitality within a certain range. Recovers vitality in proportion to the number of allies within the radius of 150 meters. (For allies with less than 20% of their vitality, the recovery rate is double.) Dragon Skin (Passive) Reduces the damage done by all magic attacks by 40% and physical attacks by 10%. If allied users receive damage within 10 seconds, then their vitality is restored by 2% of their vitality per second. Dragonic Barrier (Cooldown: 10 minutes) From a radius of 50 meters from yourself, the aggros on allies will be turned to zero. A ¡®Dragonic Barrier¡¯ will be created within the skills¡¯ range for allied users. Dragonic Barrier¡¯s durability is equal to 0.1% of Elcarix¡¯s vitality and defense equal to 5000% of Elcarix¡¯s defense. (The minimum durability of Dragonic Barrier is 1.) Dragon Breath (Cooldown: 120 minutes) It emits a very powerful fan-shaped dragon breath with a range of 50 meters. Its power is equal to 2370% of Elcarix¡¯s damage, and it deals an additional 40% of damage for the next 10 seconds. (The effect is reduced by half against a user.) Polymorph (No cooldown time) Elcarix can turn into her human form using Polymorph. When in human form, all of her combat abilities are reduced by 30 percent, and she cannot use ¡®Dragon Breath¡¯¡ªher unique ability. * Magic Clan A dragon is born from a ¡®Magic Clan¡¯. As a complete dragon, you will be able to use much more advanced magic that is proportional to your intellect. New magic skills can be learned through skill books as well. (However, your power would be comparatively less than that of a magician class user.) * The magic that you can currently use. ¨C Polymorph ¨C Healing Wave ¨C Recovery ¨C It is one of the forgotten God Dragon. The Dragon with the power of Light granted by the Goddess of Light. ¨C She is the twin sister of the God Dragon, Dragon of Darkness¡ªLugarix. The Dragon of Light, Elcarix was the second God Dragon that Ian obtained. Bbookbbook too had the power that was on the same level as that of a God Dragon. However, he wasn¡¯t a dragon that had directly received power from a god. The moment he checked the information of Elcarix, Ian was able to feel the identity that she had with the title of ¡®God Dragon¡¯. It felt very much like the information about Karceus. ¡®Keu, the ones who have the title of ¡®God Dragon¡¯ have such a feel to it.¡¯ Firstly, the ¡®Dragon Skin¡¯ and the ¡®Dragon Breath¡¯ were all inherent abilities that perfectly suited Karceus. In addition, in the case of the skill Holy Vital¡ªa passive buff skill¡ªit was a defensive version of the passive skill of Karceus¡¯s ¡®God of War¡¯. However, Elcarix was completely opposite to that of Karceus even though they had similar configurations. Karceus had ¡®Dragon Peer¡¯ instead of ¡®Dragonic Barrier¡¯. Elcarix had clearly shown the qualities of a familiar. ¡®Keu, this is a really broken skill.¡¯ Users who didn¡¯t understand Kailan¡¯s damage calculation system were bound to not understand the true value of the Dragonic Barrier skill. Although Dragonic Barrier could increase a user¡¯s defense 50-fold, the resistance co-efficient was only 0.1% which meant that even though Elcarix had several thousands of vitality, it only had the durability of just a few hundred. However, Ian who knew Kailan¡¯s system better than the anyone immediately recognized the use of the skill. ¡®This is a shield that can¡¯t be penetrated unless the user that got buffed by this skill received fixed damage or DOT damage.¡¯ Kailan¡¯s damage generation was somewhat different. As the gap between the attack power and defense power between a user and his enemy increased, the higher the damage would be and vice versa. If the defensive power was overwhelmingly higher than the attack, the damage that would be dealt would only be 1. ¡®I¡¯m not sure exactly how much of defense Elcarix will have in the future, but¡­ when I see her initial stats, she is definitely higher than that of Bbakbbak.¡¯ That was to say that, if Elcarix could successfully go above level 300, then her armor would be close to 10,000. If a factor of 50 was attached to her terrifying defense, not even a couple of damage could go past her barrier. Of course, the absolute durability of her skill itself was weak, and there was a fatal disadvantage. The shield could be destroyed with just a single shot of fixed damage. That could be overcome in a different way though. A user could always avoid an attack skill that gave fixed damage or blocked it in advance with a unique ability like the Curtain of water. However, that would only happen if a user had extreme control. Ian, being fully aware of the unique abilities of Elcarix, finally confirmed its potential. Since a ¡®God Dragon¡¯ could be called as the strongest familiar, she had a high probability with her basic potential almost at max. However, raising her level wouldn¡¯t be great if she lacked in many aspects. Fortunately, the potential of Elcarix was 100. ¡°Keu¡­! Nice, Nice!¡± While Ian was enjoying the information window of Elcarix, his party moved down to the continent of Malacca. Since all the members of the party could fly, they got there fast. As they moved to the south, the legions of the Lich King began to appear. As such high numbers of undead flocked, Levya asked Ian, ¡°Do you want to head down and hunt them?¡± Ian shook his head. ¡°No, not yet.¡± Levya found it strange. ¡°You said you wanted to battle since according to you, losing even a second of buff wouldn¡¯t¡­¡± Ian cut off Levya since he suddenly received a message. Ian who had read a personal message from Herz smiled and responded, ¡°We do have a battle that is waiting for us.¡± * * * ¡°Gulp¡­¡± In the LB¡¯s planning room. Na Ji-chan was looking at the monitor while tilting his head. The scene on the monitor was that of Kailan¡ªa very huge mess. ¡°Huhu, this is taking such a long time.¡± A huge sigh came out of Na Ji-chan¡¯s mouth. One of the subordinate planner who looked at Na Ji-chan asked. ¡°Senior, is something bothering you?¡± Na Ji-chan shook his head and responded, ¡°Nothing¡­ well, not that it won¡¯t go well. I¡¯m just planning something new.¡± The subordinate¡¯s eyes went wide at what Na Ji-chan said. ¡°Huh? A new plan? There are still a lot of scenes about the Lich King, and just a little while ago the Spirit Dimension was opened too, right?¡± ¡°Huhu, that is true.¡± ¡°Then, why would there be a need for a new plan?¡± ¡°I¡¯m making a couple of hidden scenarios for the existing plan. This week, a proposal had to be completed, but it doesn¡¯t seem like it would be as easy as I thought.¡± ¡°Hidden scenarios¡­?¡± Na Ji-chan who was looking at the monitor smiled. ¡°Honestly, rather than hidden scenarios, maybe starting a hidden class for those pitiful hidden class users is better¡± ¡°Huh?¡± The subordinate who didn¡¯t understand what Na Ji-chan just said looked at him with confusion which made Na Ji-chan laugh and broke it down for him. ¡°There is a ¡®Dragon Tamer¡¯ who was supposed do a hidden quest, but somehow a monster snatched away all of the credit for that pitiful bastard.¡± ¡°¡­.?¡± Na Ji-chan who couldn¡¯t break it down any further just laughed at the confused subordinate. * * * ¡°Crazy! What are the magicians doing? I want you guys to focus on that monster jerk! Archers protect the magicians!¡± ¡°Understood, master!¡± ¡°Archers intercept the Skull Mages only! Ignore the tankers for now! Let¡¯s give them as much damage as we can!¡± It was no exaggeration to say that Elrika Kingdom was now the kingdom of the Undead. In the Keaton Manor that was adjacent to the Lotus Kingdom. In the middle of the Keaton territory was a site of a bloody battle. ¡®Huh, even if the Ghost Dragon didn¡¯t¡­¡¯ Herz who was in charge of the battlefield was biting down his lip. The situation was turning for the worst. They were now at the level where the Keaton Manor could be lost at any moment. They had a lot to lose now. The biggest factor that created this situation was the ghost-like dragons that made its appearance at the Keaton Manor. The appearance of several Ghost Dragons on the highlands of Keaton turned the situation disastrous in a short period of time. Ghost Dragons were monsters that could not be damaged by a physical attack. Because of that, the Lotus Guild was in a situation where everyone could drift into depression at any moment. ¡®Hu, Let¡¯s just wait until Ian comes back. He could definitely turn this thing around.¡¯ Honestly, the situation might not even change even if Ian came back. Most of Ian¡¯s skills had physical attributes. However, Herz was confident that Ian could come up with something. To be precise, it wasn¡¯t Ian¡¯s physical power but his ability to command the party that he was looking forward to. ¡®If we have the synergy of Kaka and Levya, we won¡¯t be pushed back just like we were a while back. Hoonie too has great power.¡¯ Looking at the forefront of the battle, Herz¡¯s face suddenly distorted more than it already was. If only they had some good damage dealing magicians like Remir or Hoonie, maybe they wouldn¡¯t have been so helpless. Suddenly¡­ Swoosh-! The whole battlefield was filled with an eerie sound. From the mouth of the Ghost Dragon, energy started to get sucked in. Whoever heard that sound would understand that it was a sign of a dragon¡¯s greatest wide-area skill. ¡°Shit! Evade it!¡± Urgent cries ran over the whole place. However, it was already too late. The Breath of the Ghost Dragon was weaker than the other dragons, but it had a lesser casting time. Which made it hard for anyone to react quickly to it. Seeing that Herz quickly cast a shield. Although the power of the Ghost Dragon¡¯s Breath was weaker than a normal breath, they were still going to suffer damage though it couldn¡¯t kill them. The Breath of the Ghost Dragon covered the whole field. Kwahhh-! Herz was successful in blocking the attack with his shield. ¡®Damn, I just hope the wizards suffered less damage¡­¡¯ If the magician damage dealers were hit hard by the attack, it would be tough to reverse the situation. Herz suddenly felt something strange. ¡°Oh?¡± Though the Ghost Dragon¡¯s Breath was blocked by his shield, his vitality didn¡¯t decrease at all. ¡®What is this? No matter how perfect the shield worked, there should at least be a little damage, right?¡¯ Herz who was puzzled by what happened quickly surveyed the battlefield. Not a single warrior had fallen. ¡°¡­!¡± The wandering eyes of Herz saw a silhouette that wasn¡¯t in the field a while back. A girl in a pure white dress was floating in the middle of the battlefield. Her hands extended towards the dragon, and a pure white glow as pure as the falling snow started to flow out. CH 422 ¡°Hmm, I slept well. How far have we come, mom?¡± ¡°Halfway. We still have a lot to go, so sleep a little more.¡± ¡°Half¡­? Just halfway?¡± ¡°Yeah, we do this every year. Why are you still so shocked?¡± ¡°Euhkk!¡± The first day of Chuseok holiday. The scream of Young Hoon echoed through the highway. Even though he couldn¡¯t, he tried to sleep for two to three hours, but he was frustrated at the fact that he only came halfway. ¡®Uh, will I be able to go to Kailan today at least. It will be 2 am already once we get there.¡¯ Young Hoon, who was depressed, instinctively turned on his smartphone. If he could go to Youcast and watch a video of Kailan, time would at least seem to move fast. However, Young Hoon who pressed the Youcast icon quickly turned it off and clicked the official homepage of Kailan instead. ¡®Right, why didn¡¯t I think of that? There was a popular video broadcast in the official community!¡¯ Of course, Youcast too had interesting videos of Kailan, but it was hard to see real-time videos of top users there. Since there were no personal videos to be uploaded live in Youcast, no top ranker uploaded their own personal videos. The videos of the rankers in Youcast were mostly edited videos. ¡°What to see¡­ here! The banner is so big!¡± After finding the event page easily since it was on the main page of the community, Young Hoon immediately opened his messenger and contacted Semi. They had the kind of friendship that those who were suffering due to the holidays had. However, what he got was a betrayal. ¨C Yah! Semi, what are you doing now? ¨C I¡¯m busy. ¨C It¡¯s not the time to be busy! We need to go to the community and watch the video! ¨C I¡¯m busy watching them. ¨C ¡­! Young Hoon lost his mind upon seeing Semi¡¯s message. He quickly set the order of the videos to look at them on a ranking basis. Young-Hoon was surprised the moment he touched the top rank video. ¡°Keu, Yeah, surely Ian! No, Jinsung senior!¡± The moment he started to watch the video, all the sense of betrayal he felt vanished in an instant. ¡°Surely, 1st place!¡± After the day he realized that Jinsung and Ian were the same person, Jinsung turned into a role model to Young Hoon. It was surprising enough that he had a girlfriend who was as majestic as a goddess, and ¡®Ian¡¯ who never let out his identity apart from being an acquaintance to such a person. Young Hoon who wanted to be a gamer couldn¡¯t help but admire him. ¡®This will be the future of gaming fans!¡¯ Once he saw Ian¡¯s video, he clicked on it and watched the video with utmost concentration. ¡°Young Hoon-ah, don¡¯t look at your smartphone like that; you will hurt your eyes.¡± ¡°Ah, mom, this is a very important moment!¡± ¡°Huh, What will you become if you keep looking at those games like that?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll become Ian.¡± ¡°Ian? What is that?¡± ¡°There is something like that.¡± Even though his mom was continuously nagging him, Young Hoon didn¡¯t lose even a little bit of concentration and kept watching the video. Once he got into the video, all the stress that was built inside of him up from staying in the car for too long vanished. ¡°Keu, Yeah! That¡¯s it!¡± The point where Young Hoon opened the video was the battle with the Khalifa, which made him even more excited. Everything even before the Death Meteor strategy that they pulled off was exciting Especially when the Courageous Commander, Cameres appeared. Young Hoon couldn¡¯t contain his excitement anymore. ¡°Kay! So Sick!¡± ¡°Young Hoon-ah, do you need to go to the bathroom? Should I stop at the rest stop?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Young Hoon didn¡¯t respond to what his mother was saying and concentrated on the video once again. However, the video stopped showing anything 30 minutes after the appearance of the Dragon Army. Ian¡¯s party which completed the quest was heading somewhere. Young Hoon was almost about to fall asleep because of that. But after a while¡­ Chang- Chchang-! The sound of something started to ring in his ears, and Young Hoon¡¯s eyes began to shine brightly once again. ¡®Is the battle going to start once again?¡¯ Young Hoon sat up straight and watched the video again. It was obvious that Ian joined the battle and from then the highlight should start. The eyes of Young Hoon who were shining like gems went wide at something that he saw in the video. ¡®Wha¡­ what? This is my first time seeing that kid.¡¯ Ian recalled the summoning to the center of the battlefield. There was also a girl that suddenly appeared in the middle of the battlefield. ¡®This is what Jinsung sunbae does¡­!¡¯ The place where the girl was standing on was right in front of the Ghost Dragon. Young Hoon couldn¡¯t help but get nervous at what was about to happen in the video. However, he never doubted Jinsung¡¯s instincts. As an enormous skill started to be played, the mouth of Young Hoon went wide because of shock. Light began to spread out instantly, and all the combatants in the field were covered with a white shield. As the shield was placed, the breath swept through the entire field yet no one got hurt. No matter how weak the shield¡¯s durability was, Kailan¡¯s defense system blocked the attack successfully. For example, if an attack that had 30 damage was done to a shield with 30 durability three times, the shield could avoid 60 points of damage. However, if an attack dealt 90 damage in just one strike, the shield would crack, but the damage wouldn¡¯t be applied. To keep all their allied forces standing even after being hit by the Breath, Young Hoon couldn¡¯t help but admire that scene. He was quick to deduce the identity of the little girl. ¡®The Dragon of Light, Elcarix! Elcarix has polymorphed into a little girl!¡¯ Young Hoon¡¯s concentration increased. Things had just become more interesting now. * * * ¡°Ian! It¡¯s Ian! Ian came!¡± ¡°Our majesty, Ian had stepped into the battlefield!¡± ¡°Raise your swords! Your majesty has come back!¡± ¡°Done! Let¡¯s take back the Keaton Manor!¡± As soon as Ian came into their sight, the whole ground started to fill with excitement. Users, as well as NPCs of the Lotus Kingdom, were all pumped up. Ian to them was like a guaranteed victory. Especially, a warrior who wasn¡¯t able to grasp the condition of the field had a much higher belief and confidence in Ian. It was faith. ¡°I have never seen our Majesty get defeated!¡± ¡°Well then! Our majesty is the God of War!¡± If Mares heard that, then he surely would¡¯ve been jealous of Ian. A moment later, a fire started to burn in the hearts of the Lotus Kingdom warriors. Behind Ian, a huge number of the dragon army started to appear. Level 400 dragon warriors started to come into their sight. ¡°WOW! Let¡¯s take down all the Undead!¡± ¡°Lotus will win!¡± ¡°The Legion of Darkness will lose!¡± Herz who was in charge of the battlefield had no choice but to smile at what was happening. ¡°Wah, Ian did something to turn things around again.¡± Ian prevented the Dragon¡¯s Breath, but it wasn¡¯t such a huge act that could change the impact of the battlefield. However, despite that fact, the Lotus guild started to push forward since Ian was now with them. On the other hand, the Legion of Darkness was obviously stunned. ¡®Is it the power of fraud?¡¯ The system of ¡®fraud¡¯ in Kailan was something that had a huge impact on power on a large scale war. The more the people gathered, the higher the fraud would be. Ian, who was the highest of them, was the key to raise the Kingdom¡¯s fraud. ¡®But, we need to keep the morale up.¡¯ The status of ¡®fraud¡¯ was a stumbling block that could rise and fall in an instant. But now, it was a very important thing. If they could continue pushing back the Legion of Darkness, the effect of synergies would be much more effective, but if the situation went otherwise then that was going to be the end for them. Herz¡¯s gaze went towards the armed dragons. ¡®If it is them, they would be able to do a lot more than a 1st ranker.¡¯ At the very moment, the dragon warrior who was at the center of the battlefield jumped off the dragon. A huge sound resounded in the whole battlefield when he landed. [Seikaito has granted his strength to us!] An intense cry with tremendous feel. [Destroy the Enemy!] The massacre began to spread the very next moment. * * * Ian had been playing Kailan for a long time, and numerous times he had worked with the NPCs. However, it seemed like none of the other buffs were as great as the ones that Seikaito had given them. [The familiar ¡®Elcarix¡¯ has leveled up!] [The familiar ¡®Elcarix¡¯ has leveled up!] [The familiar ¡®Elcarix¡¯ has leveled up!] System messages continued coming up, and they were blocking Ian¡¯s vision. Except for the Ghost Dragon which was immune to physical attacks, everything else was wiped out. ¡°In the name of the Dragon God, Seikaito!¡± ¡°Dirty and impure Legion of Darkness! Go back to your place!¡± Suddenly, the Ghost Dragon was not a problem anymore. There were 5 Ghost Dragons that appeared on the battlefield. As soon as the rest of the troops got washed away, no matter how tough they were to deal with, it had no meaning. It was because all the magicians of the kingdom were able to focus their attack on the Ghost Dragons. Hwarrk-! Kwakwang-! In addition, the 1st ranked user of the priest class, Levya was pouring out her divine spell, and the Ghost Dragons were creatures of darkness which didn¡¯t go well with light attribute attacks. [Fatal damage was dealt to the ¡®Ghost Dragon¡¯!] [You have succeeded in killing the ¡®Ghost Dragon¡¯!] System messages kept coming up. Though it was a pleasant sight, Ian didn¡¯t stay still. In order to maximize experience points, all of his familiars except Elcarix were summoned, and without waiting a single moment they leaped at the Legion of Darkness. Kwang- Kwang-! Ian, who was on top of Hargasus was slaughtering many of the Undead. Hargasus wouldn¡¯t get any experience points from this, so it was really nice of him that he was letting Ian ride him. Funny thing was that it wasn¡¯t just Ian who was on board Hargasus. Sitting in front of Ian was a young and cute girl. ¡°Elcarix, how much time till we can use your skill again?¡± ¡°4 minutes left!¡± ¡°Kay, can you use it again perfectly once I ask you to?¡± ¡°Kay, dad!¡± She laughed and nodded her head like a cute child while looking at Ian. It was surprising, but she was Elcarix in a polymorphed form. Not sure why, but Elcarix saw Ian as her father. ¡°Dad, I¡¯m scared! Kya!¡± The image of Elcarix sitting in front of Ian and closing her eyes out of fear was a sight anyone would find cute. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Daddy will protect you!¡± Ian, who had been unmarried till then, was somehow feeling parenthood rising in him. ¡®I won¡¯t let even a single attack fall on my Elcarix!¡¯ Ian was desperate to attack, more than usual. Even low-leveled skeletons didn¡¯t matter to the spear that was in Ian¡¯s hand. ¡°Woo-ah!¡± Ian felt recharged once again when he saw how impressed Elcarix was. ¡°Nice! Let¡¯s shake up the Elrika Kingdom like this!¡± Ian kept wreaking havoc on the battlefield and that made Elcarix level up some more. [The familiar ¡®Elcarix¡¯ has leveled up!] [The familiar ¡®Elcarix¡¯ has leveled up!] [The familiar ¡®Elcarix¡¯ has now reached level 57!] Elcarix¡¯s level had already gone past 50! However, that was just the beginning. CH 423 The ¡®Legendary¡¯ and ¡®Myth¡¯ ranks. Both of those ranks were at the topmost priority in Kailan, but they weren¡¯t the ranks that could be treated as equal. The myth rank is the highest rank in the current Kailan, it literally had the value and existence to be called a ¡®Myth¡¯. Like items, NPCs or summons. However, among them, the dragons had a severely huge gap in the case of the ranks. And it was something that peculiar only to the race of the dragon. All of the ranks of the ¡®dragon¡¯ races in the Kailan were limited to the hero and myth ranks. There was no creature that could be in a dragon race and be below the rank of hero. And those hero rank came out of the Prilania canyon quest only, and for that, one could know how high the species of ¡®dragon¡¯ were. So what was the reason why the dragon had a high gap when compared to one another? The answer is ¡®unique ability¡¯. Because of the unique ability that a legendary rank had, and the unique ability that a myth rank possessed. The first unique ability that dragon from the legendary level had, was the Dragon Skin. An aggressive passive skill which reduces the damage up to 40% for the incoming magic attacks, regardless of the damage that would be received. An additional 10% recovery of vitality from physical damage. And the Dragon Breath that comes after the legendary level had a very huge difference in the coefficient that raised. If so, then what was the inherent ability that could be gained after having a ¡®myth¡¯ rank, which was termed as the highest level? That was the unique ability of the ¡®Magic clan¡¯. The ability to acquire ¡®Magic skill¡¯, was what the dragon got. When Ian had first learned about the ¡®Magic clan¡¯, he thought that it was a bit of a fraudulent skill. Although there were various penalties, it felt like it would be very useful as the skills that the magicians could be done would be acquired to the familiar. ¡®It was similar to the saying, learning about one¡¯s own abilities first.¡¯ However, what Ian had though was only half correct. The inherent ability of ¡®Magic clan¡¯ was fraudulent, but they had to meet a certain condition. And that condition was ¡®the Intellect ability¡¯. No matter how much magic one could perform, if their intellect was comparatively low, then there wouldn¡¯t be a way one could properly utilize its power. Unfortunately, Ian¡¯s two integral dragons, Bbookbbook and Karceus had very low intellect. Bbookbbook being a ¡®dealtank¡¯ ability using dragon, and Karceus was close to being called an extreme physical dealer. In short, both of them were ignorant and powerful. The magic spell that a magician uses were only 80% of magic, yet they needed the intellect ability to utilize them. Which was why Ian had never asked Bbookbbook or Karceus to acquire magic. They only learned a few magic skills which they occasionally used. ¡®However, Elcarix is different. Totally different.¡¯ As a result of growing to the level of 100, Ian realized exactly how he was supposed to use Elcarix. With the composition in the stats of Elcarix, the ¡®Magic clan¡¯ ability could be used to the best of it. The four battle stats ratio of Elcarix were like, 2: 3: 1: 5. Agility being the lowest, and intellect being the highest. ¡®I thought that she was a tanker at first, but seeing the initial¡­¡¯ Elcarix¡¯s first level ability was a defensive and vitality oriented composition. Even at the first level, the intellect was the highest, but the level difference wasn¡¯t much from the defense factor. As the level started to grow, the difference could be clearly seen. The growth rate of intellect was incredibly high. At the level of 100, the intellect of Elcarix was almost higher than the magicians of the same level. It was enough to overcome the penalty by intellect. There was another thing about Elcarix. ¡®In the Kailan, I¡¯ll make her the first light dealer.¡¯ The attribute of Elcarix was light. Of course, users of the general ¡®priest¡¯ class would normally choose for ¡®light¡¯ attributes. But for priests, the stats of intellects weren¡¯t exactly high. Since priests were specialized in ¡®recovery¡¯ their combats were significantly lower. Surely, the intellect does affect the amount of recovery, but all the abilities that were concentrated on the ¡®Divine Power¡¯ career stats had the greatest impact on recovery. So from his point of view, Ian thought that it was possible to make Elcarix a magician of Light attribute. Which was why Elcarix could be even special. Especially in the episode where she would have to deal with the enemies of the dark attribute. ¡®Before the buff finishes, I need to at least go to the level of 200, I should!¡¯ And it was already proven that Ian had good judgment. ¡°Elcarix, Flash Beam!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± Hweeing-! [The unique ability of ¡®Elcarix¡¯, the ¡®Magic Clan¡¯ has been activated.] [Elcarix has activated the spell ¡®Flash Beam¡¯.] [The familiar ¡®Elcarix¡¯ has done catastrophic damage to ¡®Skeleton mage¡¯!] [The vitality of ¡®Skeleton Mage¡¯ has been reduced by 76,918.] Although it was only about the level of 100, it was damaging the monsters of level 300. Of course, it wasn¡¯t at a level where it could help in the battle, but seeing the magic skill get stronger, Ian couldn¡¯t help but feel happy. ¡®Keu, already causing the damage in the 70,000? I really want to see what happens at level 300!¡¯ The flash beam was a basic attack of the light attribute, which meant that it was the lowest attack skill. If she could catch up to the top-level attacks of the magicians, the amount of damage that it could cause would be unbelievable for the darkness attribute. ¡®Nice. After shooting to the level of 200, I¡¯ll give her the skill book. The light attack magic can¡¯t be obtained¡­ even if I give a lot of money, I need to take her to the top tier and teach her.¡¯ Looking at the experience gauge of Elcarix, Ian started to get crazy, Ian was crazy with happiness. * * * In the midst of the advent of Elcarix, Ian didn¡¯t lose focus of the quest. As soon as he completed the quest of the Prilania canyon, he had another which asked him to meet the expectations of Cameres. He wasn¡¯t sure what the reward item ¡®Dragon Knight¡¯ would be, but he didn¡¯t want to miss the quest and not know its meaning. If he missed an item it would be tough for Ian to sleep for a whole week due to the anxiety. ¡®If I need to get his acceptance for my skills, then I better get close right?¡¯ The Courageous Commander Cameres was holding onto a dragon that was as huge as Karceus. Which was why battling beside him would be a hard task to do. So Ian decided to jump to the front for him to get a good view. Until then, the level of Elcarix was too low, which was why he had to protect her, but now that he saw that she could attack, he was feeling at ease. Even then, he made sure to keep an insurance with him. ¡°It has been long, should I take out the shield that I made out of Bbookbbook¡¯s shell?¡± ¡®The Dragon¡¯s shield¡¯ was the insurance that Ian had¡ªan item that he had asked a dwarf to make. Although the shield did do its work as a normal shield, the unique ability of ¡®Dragon¡¯s Soul¡¯ which it had possessed was the real insurance that they had. It had the ability to summon three shields at the very same time, in the desired location, which meant that Ian could protect Elcarix at all times. Chuk-! [You have been equipped with the item ¡®The Dragon¡¯s Shield¡¯.] [All the handheld weapons ¡®Judgment of Spirit King¡¯ ability will drop significantly.] [Defense and damage absorption has increased significantly.] Ian was now equipped with a golden spear in one hand and a blue shield in the other. Ian had an exhilarating look and began to move forward on the Hargasus. * * * The Courageous Commander, Cameres. A day in the dimension, he was glad to be called out by the Dragon God after a very long time. Moreover, the most favorable part was that he could battle to his heart¡¯s content without any limit. ¡®You Undead bastards, I¡¯ll turn you all into losers. Till your souls begin to cry.¡¯ As soon as the battle had started, he went around crazily. The lesser undead like the skeletons¡ªwere dead under the legs of the huge dragon, the huge ones like the golems and the Durahans were killed with his spear. His spear was full of spirit and devotion, not a single undead could manage to stay standing after being hit by it. ¡®1 hour of the 24 hours has passed away! I need to be more passionate!¡¯ Being 24 hours in the human dimension and to hunt without restriction was a huge deal for him. Which was why the only thing that his eyes could see was the Undead. If he destroyed the enemy in front of his eyes¡ªhis eyes will then drift to the other enemy that he should strike, and nothing could be seen in his eyes. However, such devoted eyes for killing suddenly wavered at a presence which gave uneasiness to him. ¡®What is that guy? He looks like a human but¡­!¡¯ And that was the back of Ian who was riding the boned winged Hargasus, with his golden spear. That guy, he still hadn¡¯t regained his full strength from the battle, yet he was taking down the undead while protecting the Dragon of Light Elcarix. ¡°That, that can¡¯t be¡­!¡± He hadn¡¯t been to the new world in a hundred years and was called to help them. That was the face of the Courageous Commander of the dragon army. Even if he was the owner of the Cintamani or someone that was recognized in the eyes of the Dragon God, it was still unacceptable. Besides, the human was using the same weapon that he had. Cameres rose and he began to sweep the undead on the battlefield. Bang- Bang- Babang-! The Dragon God Seikaito has personally given him something, then fire came out of it. Kwah-! And that quickly managed to melt away the skull golems who had the highest defense. ¡°I¡¯ll turn you into ash!¡± As time passes, Cameres began to sense a strange feeling of being defeated. He did manage to kill off the golems and the Durahans, but Ian, who was sweeping off the skeletons looked so better. ¡°¡­!¡± While staying on the back of a dragon, he felt like he would never reach the level of coolness that Ian had. It was because of the many restrictions that he had. ¡°I can¡¯t help it. I need to show the skills of Cameres which haven¡¯t been seen in a long time.¡± Mumbled by Cameres as he jumped out of the back of his dragon while swinging his spear wildly. Bang-! Cameres broke through the skeletons and quickly moved to the side of Ian who was busy destroying the legion of Undead. And spoke to Ian, who he had mentally fixed as his opponent. ¡°I challenge you to go against me.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± At the sudden emergence of Cameres, Ian was dumbfounded. However, Cameres didn¡¯t care about it. ¡°Let me show you a true world of battle, you innocent one!¡± From the standpoint of Ian, the declaration of a challenge of Cameres was truly ridiculous. However, the message that came out was the most ridiculous one. Tring-! [The Courageous Commander Cameres will test you!] [For 90 minutes starting from now, you will have to achieve the target faster than Cameres.] [Target: 150 kills] [User Achievement rate: 0/150 (0 percent)] [Cameres Achievement rate: 1/250 (0.4 percent)] [When you reach the target faster than Cameres, the sudden quest will be completed.] Though Ian was flustered at the turn of events, he felt much motivated than ever. CH 424 At the forefront of the battle were two men wielding their spear at a crazy rate. Those two men were pounding the skeletons at an unscathed rate and were crushing the camp of the Undead, which was why the camp began to get destroyed in the hands of the two men. Over thousands of the undead were cracked because of Ian and Cameres. BJ Lauren who was monitoring the sight on his screen got up from his seat. ¡®It is not the time to relay the plain video!¡¯ The video that was being relayed on the internet channel of BJ Lauren did personal video relays of Ian from the official community page of Kailan. Of course, since the video was for one individual person, the screen would put the individual in the middle, however, there was a problem associated with it. The video would always be in the same direction, in the same manner for Ian. The video that was coming from the viewpoint of Ian was a little blurry and disturbing, but the video that was being sent out didn¡¯t give a good feel. Lauren asked for the understanding of his audience and quickly dialed somewhere. The one he had called over was the editor in charge of the videos of Ian, ¡®So Jin¡¯. ¨C So Jin, is it fine to talk at the moment? ¨C Yeah, Lauren, what is it? ¨C I need some help on the broadcast of a real-time video of Ian in the battle ¨C Help in the sense¡­? ¨C I need three crystal spheres in the direction of the Keaton Manor. Please stream them to my broadcast address. ¨C It won¡¯t be hard to send them, but how do I switch the broadcast channel? Lauren who was speaking quickly swallowed his spit and spoke again. ¨C By giving you the control, you can directly control their movement. No matter what, controlling the crystal ball is your major purpose. ¨C So you want me to match the control, according to my wish? ¨C Right! ¨C It is the first time for me to do such a broadcast¡­ ¨C It is good enough. We can make a million views with just one video. ¨C ¡­ Nice. Let¡¯s try once. Instead, you have to give me half of the incentive that you get from Ian. ¨C Deal! After a lot of exhaustion, Lauren managed to finish off the deal, and hurriedly returned to his seat and opened the window of the viewer chats. For a while, the whole chat was filled with complaints. ¨C Ah, Lauren when are you coming? ¨C No, where did you go away in such an important moment? ¨C I think he went to take a dump. ¨C I hope it is a quick dump. ¨C Haha, I normally am the kind who doesn¡¯t know much¡­ who apart from Lauren can explain to me what is happening? Lauren wasn¡¯t even at least a bit embarrassed. He was under the impression that after a while, the viewers would begin to praise him. ¡®The crystal ball and the awesome control of So Jin combined with my ability to comment, I¡¯ll show you what a real broadcast is like.¡¯ If there was a battle for the content of a video like a mad movie, then it was sure that BJ Lauren would surely snatch away the first place in real-time. ¡®Let¡¯s get hold of many more subscribers with this opportunity!¡¯ The desire of Lauren was burning hot like the desire of Ian¡¯s to compete with Cameres. * * * Swoosh-! As the golden spear of Ian was lifted into the air, lightning started to fall from the sky. Kwack-! The skulls of the skeleton in the close range all flew away. [Unique ability ¡®Lightning¡¯s Judgement¡¯ of the Judgment of the Spirit King has been activated!] [Fatal damage was done to the skeleton warrior!] [Vitality of the ¡®Skeleton Warrior¡¯ has been reduced by 719,280.] [Successfully defeated the ¡®Skeleton Warrior¡¯!] System messages came popping in front of him. But even before he could see the messages that were coming, Ian¡¯s spear kept going through the other enemies. Puck- Puck-Puck-! Ian¡¯s spear went to the exact weak point, like the jab of a professional boxer. [The vitality of the ¡®Skeleton Warrior¡¯ has been decreased by 572,450.] [The vitality of the ¡®Skeleton Warrior¡¯ has been decreased by 398,542.] And every time the skeleton went out of balance with the attack, Ian pushed the spear of his into the greatest weakness of it, without losing the opportunity. Kwang-! The weak point of the skeleton that Ian was aiming at, was the ¡®vessel of the soul¡¯ that was located right in the ribs of its chest. Vessel of the Soul also called as the ¡®inner core¡¯, was the most famous and known weakness for all the skeletons. However, it wasn¡¯t an easy target to hit. Firstly, there wasn¡¯t any skeleton that didn¡¯t wear armor or equipment, but even with the little armor that they had on, finding the weakness wasn¡¯t easy. But the manner in which Ian was wielding his spear made it look like an easy task to perform. If it was possible to exaggerate a little, it almost looked like the spear was actually getting sucked right into the weak point. As soon as the skeleton lost its balance, the chest got exposed and the spear of Ian which knew of no mercy went through it with precision. Kwang-! And if one could damage the inner core of a skeleton, then even a level 400 skeleton would succumb in a second. [The vitality of the ¡®Skeleton Warrior¡¯ has been decreased by 1,642,152.] [Successfully defeated the ¡®Skeleton Warrior¡¯.] A whopping 1.64 million damage. But the scene somehow raised a few questions. No matter how precise one¡¯s accuracy was in hitting the inner core, the amount of damage that was being displayed made no sense. Maybe if he wasn¡¯t equipped with the shield, but currently had the dragon¡¯s shield in his left hand. And when one took a shield into their hands, the power and attack of the weapon lowered significantly. However, the attack power of Ian¡¯s weapon didn¡¯t seem to have much difference from the moment when he didn¡¯t hold a shield. Then, was it a bug? That wasn¡¯t the case either. The secret of the tremendous attack power was nothing else, it was the Dragon¡¯s Shield itself. ¡®Keu, uncountable enemies, never thought that such stack damage would happen!¡¯ The second unique ability that was attached to the Dragon¡¯s Shield was the ¡®Dragon¡¯s Rage¡¯. Ian was currently using that passive skill, which takes an additional 0.5% attack buff for every block the shield has taken. Ian managed to maintain the buff accumulating to a 100 which would last for 15 seconds. [You have succeeded in blocking with the shield!] [The unique ability ¡®Dragon¡¯s rage¡¯ has been activated.] [The duration of the ¡®Dragon¡¯s rage¡¯ has been reset.] [Increase of attack power by 0.5% (cumulative 50.0%) for 15 seconds.] In a situation where he was surrounded by the enemies on all the sides, and with arrows coming in from all the side, there was no way that the stack would fall off. Furthermore, as the duration of the attack got reset every time it blocked, there was no way the stack could come to an end. That wasn¡¯t the end. [The ¡®Dragon¡¯s Rage¡¯ has been accumulated 100 times.] [You will now be invisible for the coming 5 seconds.] Once the shield blocked the attacks for 100 times, it had a buff that made the user turn invincible for a 5-second duration. And once the duration of the invincibility was over, the stack accumulation begins from the very beginning. But even then, Ian was unbeatable every three minutes. Once every 2 seconds, the shield succeeded in blocking. And a 15 percent chance of the damage, gave him a huge bonus. Kwang- Bang-! [You have succeeded in blocking with the help of the shield!] [You have absorbed the damage of 198,093.] [Damage of -99,046 has been returned.] Block- stab- break! Ian¡¯s movements could be summarized into three simple words for comprehension, however, the visuals made it look complicated. The control itself was brilliant, and the effects were enormous which made Ian look like a raging storm. Kwakwang-! Ian was swinging his spear crazily and looked at the target that he had to reach for the quest to be completed. [User Achievement rate: 67/150 (44.66%)] [Cameres Accomplishment rate: 116/250 (46.4%)] Ian bit his lips. ¡®Damn it, I¡¯m a little behind. Is it three more headcounts?¡¯ At first, he felt comfortable thinking that he could summon attack-oriented familiars of his, however, that wasn¡¯t the case. If Elcarix by any chance got attacked when she was busy, then the achievement wouldn¡¯t increase. Ian who was busy wielding his spear spoke to Elcarix and called her to summon. ¡°Elcarix, I¡¯ll call you out once again.¡± ¡°Okay, dad!¡± Whooing-! With that, Elcarix disappeared leaving a sound of resonance. And Ian¡¯s actual character rushed to him, being on top of the Hargasus, till a moment back, Ian jumped to the sky. * * * ¡°This, Ian is suddenly moving to the sky!¡± Due to the connection of So Jin, Lauren¡¯s personal broadcast which resumed rapidly after connecting to So Jin¡¯s¡ªexploded with viewers in just seconds of time. ¨C What? Why did he leave the Hargasus and jump out? ¨C He also canceled the summon of Elacrix who was sitting in front of him? ¨C AH, where did that cutie pie go?! ¨C I really don¡¯t understand anything this time. Wasn¡¯t he trying to get up of Elcarix till now? ¨C Yes, yes. Even Lauren was talking about it a moment back¡­ Lauren, who had a good understanding of Ian¡¯s summons, quickly realized the reason why Ian had summoned Elcarix. He was always able to explain it to the viewers. However, it was a situation even he wasn¡¯t able to understand anymore. ¡®What? Why did he summon back the familiar that he needed to level up? And he didn¡¯t even summon any other of his familiars?¡¯ Which was why it was natural for Lauren to not understand the situation. Apart from the understanding of Ian, there was no way he could guess it without seeing the quest window that Ian was currently doing. The fact that Ian was currently competing with Cameres, who else knew apart from Ian? Lauren¡¯s head was turning dizzy, and he began to do the commentary with what little reasoning he could manage. ¡°I am not sure about the exact reason, but Ian probably sees Elcarix being in some kind of danger. Maybe after the cooldown, he will summon her back, but if she dies, then he won¡¯t be able to summon her during the end of the day.¡± ¨C AH, did I see Elcarix get almost attacked twice till now? ¨C Yeah. But not even one of the attacks could be taken as dangerous. ¨C He, he, he, does he feel that Lauren¡¯s reasoning is a bit down? ¨C Ha, he, but if that wasn¡¯t explained, it wouldn¡¯t have made any sense. ¨C That makes sense. Lauren, who was reading the content of the chatting couldn¡¯t help but feel embarrassed. It was because he couldn¡¯t come up with something to refute. ¡®Well, even I don¡¯t feel like Elcarix was in danger.¡¯ When such things happened, there was a need for the change of topic. Lauren looked at the battlefield once again. And he looked at what he had just explained to his viewers. ¡®Hmm, still unbeatable. However, if I explain it as I did before, then it¡¯s sure that they¡¯ll start to curse me¡­¡¯ The head of Lauren was working twice as fast as the mind of Ian who was in the middle of the battle. But right away, Lauren who was looking at the monitor went wide-eyed at what he saw. CH 425 A golden light began to spread from where Ian was standing. A glowing golden wave surrounded Ian¡¯s body, a thin and transparent film that spread around in a spherical wave. As soon as the effect of ¡®Invincible¡¯ emerged, Ian jumped off of Hargasus¡¯ back and went into the middle of the battlefield. Having summoned back Elcarix and then jumping off of Hargasus, Ian really looked like a figure of strength. Ttat-! Ian took off his Dragon¡¯s Shield which he was wearing. [You have un-equipped the item ¡®Dragon¡¯s Shield¡¯.] [Defense and damage absorption have been greatly reduced.] [Reduced and restored all the abilities of the item ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯.] [Your combat abilities have increased.] No matter how low the levels of the skeletons were, they weren¡¯t to be ignored when compared to the level 400 ones. Ian moved into the middle of the battlefield which had nothing but different kinds of skeleton monsters after he un-equipped his shield. But of course, Ian had a plan that would let him overcome that. ¡®I just have to actively swap my equipments.¡¯ Kailan gave no penalty to users who swapped items in the game. However, it was never easy to swap an equipment, especially during combat. As soon as a user replaced an equipment, they would turn defenseless for a second. If an attack came during the equipment swap, the equipment wouldn¡¯t be swapped. If a user received damage within that second, it didn¡¯t matter how invincible a user was their equipment swap would be canceled. Taking additional damage wasn¡¯t really the problem when equipment swapping. The real problem was that a user¡¯s skill would be canceled if they got hit while equipment swapping. Ian¡¯s plan was simple. He would take off the Dragon¡¯s Shield and wear it again if he needed the invincibility effect of the shield. Wearing the shield wasn¡¯t really the problem, the real problem was making sure that he wouldn¡¯t be hit while equipping it. If the invincibility was released while Ian wasn¡¯t wearing the shield, he would lose his vitality in an instant once he got hit with an attack. However, the greater the risk, the more likely would be the return. ¡®This is the only way for me to get more hunting speed.¡¯ Ian, who boldly lifted the shield began to wield the Judgment of the Spirit King, and the result was far better than he thought. Bang- Kabang-! [You have done tremendous damage to the ¡®Skeleton Archer¡¯!] [The vitality of the ¡®Skeleton Archer¡¯ has been reduced by 2,508,008.] [Successfully defeated the Skeleton Archer!] The ¡®Dragon¡¯s Rage¡¯ stack wasn¡¯t released, its attack power increased tremendously with the right equipment in hand, and the power that came from it was crazy. By that time, there was no need to precisely aim at the ¡®Vessel of the Soul¡¯ like before. It was like destroying a soft tofu with a spoon. Moreover, while the ¡®Invincible¡¯ state was active, there was no need to worry about defending or evading attacks. Though its duration was only 5 short seconds, Ian¡¯s powerful attacks were enough to ignore his enemies¡¯ defense. 5 seconds was enough time to crush the skulls of the various skeleton monsters surrounding him. Puak-! Kwang-! [Successfully defeated the ¡®Skeleton Archer¡¯!] [Successfully defeated the ¡®Skeleton Warrior¡¯!] [Successfully defeated the ¡®Skeleton Archer¡¯!] [Successfully defeated the ¡®Skeleton Knight¡¯!] The Skeleton Knight was the most powerful of all the skeletons. However, regardless of how powerful it was, the Skeleton Knight succumb to Ian¡¯s hands once it received his barrage of attacks. Kiyaaa-! The skeletons kept on disappearing into black ashes one after the other. In the middle of nowhere, Ian kept crushing skeletons around him while skillfully swapping equipments. [You have equipped the item ¡®Dragon¡¯s Shield¡¯.] [All the equipped weapons like the ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯s¡¯ abilities would drop.] [Defense and damage absorption has increased slightly.] Ian succeeded in swapping the equipment. Woong-! After that, the invincible effect disappeared, but it didn¡¯t matter. Even if he wasn¡¯t wearing the shield, he was still far away from any dangerous situation. Ian looked on the screen and saw the achievement target he had to reach. He laughed at it. ¡®Nice, I got around seven.¡¯ However, it wasn¡¯t the time for rest. Towards the Undead who were running again, Ian¡¯s hands moved without any hesitation. Kwang- bang-! Block and wield. He accurately blocked incoming attacks and nullified 90% of the incoming damage. Knight users wouldn¡¯t believe that if they heard that. The only class that could absorb 90% of the incoming damage were the Knight class because of their passive skills. However, the Dragon¡¯s Shield¡¯s effects didn¡¯t end with only absorbing 90% of the damage. [Successfully defended the attack from the ¡®Skeleton Warrior¡¯.] [Received 10,981 (95.24% absorption rate) damage.] [The Dragon¡¯s Shield effect were triggered.] [Additional 23,450 of damage was absorbed.] [Vitality reduced by 0.] The Dragon¡¯s Shield, which was an ego weapon, had a special option called Soul Force. The powerful Skeleton Warriors¡¯ attacks which should have dealt Ian 230,000 worth of damage was nullified in an instant. However, in the midst of such a tremendous situation, Ian avoided the Death Knight and Undead monsters that had similar levels. ¡°Kyahhh! Human, I¡¯ll fight you!¡± ¡°I hate it!¡± It wasn¡¯t that he wasn¡¯t confident in going against them, Ian just didn¡¯t want to waste his time. Defeating the Death Knight or a Skeleton Archer would give him the same results in terms of achievement. Another 15 minutes had passed. Tring-! The system message that Ian had been waiting for finally arrived. [You have successfully completed the quest ¡®Challenge of Courageous Commander, Cameres¡¯!] [Quest Time to achieve: 27 minutes 23 seconds/ 90 minutes 00 seconds (SSS)] [Target: Undead 150 kills (complete)] [User Achievement rate: 150/ 150 (100%)] [Cameres Achievement rate: 231/250 (92.4%)] [Final Clear Rating: SSS] [You have completed the quest] [After the battle is over, you will receive the quest completion rewards from the commander, Cameres.] * * * The greatest battle of recent times. The largest battle out of all the recent large-scale battles. A war that lasted almost 20 hours had finally come to an end. The enemy was finally pushed out of the manor¡¯s territory. The Keaton was finally defeated. The Earl of Keaton Manor had emptied the castle and ran away to the Elrika Manor. Ian climbed onto the back of Hargasus and slowly entered the castle. Ian was followed by a few members of the Lotus Guild. Taktak-! In front of Ian¡¯s eyes, came a few system messages. Tring-! [The occupation rate of the ¡®Ketton Manor¡¯ is now 100 percent.] [All of the influence of the Elrika Kingdom has been removed.] [The ¡®Ketton Manor¡¯ has now turned into an ¡®Anarchy¡¯.] Ian couldn¡¯t help but smile. ¡®The beginning of an unintended war¡­ a much better situation has come.¡¯ Several months had passed since the Lotus was declared as a Kingdom. Ian who was in the middle of a quest of the Spirit World had plans to immediately establish an Empire. The beginning of the conquest of the Elrika Kingdom had come. The Elrika Kingdom was the one which shared borders of the same size as the Lotus Kingdom. Therefore, the rise of the Legion of the Undead in the Elrika Kingdom was a rather favorable situation to the Lotus Kingdom. In order to conquer Elrika, it was necessary to keep a lookout to its territories nearby. However, that was no longer necessary due to ¡®The Legion of the Richie King¡¯. Right now, all the kingdoms of the continent were in a hurry to stop the Legion of the Undead, which meant that no one would care even if the Lotus Kingdom tried to expand. ¡®Before the end of the Richie King episode, I need to conquer the whole Elrika Kingdom. Just the Elrika Kingdom would be enough to declare us the strongest.¡¯ After conquering the Elrika Kingdom, it didn¡¯t matter if the Richie King episode ended. By that time, there would have been a huge gap between their power and the power of their neighboring kingdoms. From that moment, the beginning of a full-scale conquest war would begin. Surely it wouldn¡¯t be an easy task. There was a need to merge more than 5 to 7 kingdoms before a kingdom could declare itself as an Empire. If the power of the Lotus Kingdom was strong, an alliance between territories could probably happen. ¡°Uhha.¡± Ian who got down from Hargasus¡¯ back, headed inside the castle to carry out the final procedure for the conquer of the land. ¡°This is when one feels the happiest.¡± Hoonie who was right behind Ian responded to his mumbling. ¡°Hyung, let¡¯s finish this quickly. I¡¯m about to die because of sleep deprivation.¡± 20 hours had passed since they started their quest in the Prilania Canyon, and Hoonie was already feeling very sleepy. Ian smiled after seeing how Hoonie was suffering to make fun of Him. ¡°Hmm¡­Hoonie seems to be bothered by something these days. Then maybe I should just hand over the Lord title of the Keaton to Noel¡­?¡± ¡°¡­.!¡± Hoonie¡¯s reaction was funny. Hoonie¡¯s face which changed quickly made Ian laugh. All the drowsiness he had just a while ago melted away. ¡°Haha, hyung, you know my intention, right?¡± ¡°Know what, idiot?¡± ¡°This Hoonie is the one who admires you hyung!¡± ¡°I¡¯m not so sure about that¡­¡± ¡°Ah, hyung¡­!¡± Ian who was done teasing Hoonie pulled out a big flag from his inventory. The Griffin symbol the figure of ¡®Pin¡¯ was embroidered on the Lotus Kingdom¡¯s flag. Ian took off Elrika Kingdom¡¯s flag from the flagpole and put in the flag of the Lotus Kingdom. A white light began to spread from the flag pole inside the castle which was dark just a while ago. Woong-! [You have succeeded in conquering the ¡®Keaton Manor¡¯.] [From this very moment, the ¡®Keaton Manor¡¯ belongs to the Lotus Kingdom.] [The nationality of all the users and the NPCs belonging to the ¡®Keaton Manor¡¯ will now be changed to the ¡®Lotus Kingdom¡¯.] [You can now appoint a new Lord for the ¡®Keaton Manor¡¯.] The first step for the construction of the ¡®Lotus Empire¡¯ was successfully placed. CH 426 From doing the quest at the canyon of Prilania till the Keaton Manor, Ian fell asleep after a hard day. Cameres and the dragon were able to stay in the Dimensional World for a day, which was why he felt the need to sleep. Surely the buff of Elcarix would last for a whole week, but that didn¡¯t mean that he wanted to go a whole week without sleep. Ian, who already slept for seven hours got up and connected into Kailan without even freshening up. While waiting to be connected into the game, he was feeling bad because of how much buff time he lost. [Iris recognition has been completed. ¡®Ian¡¯ welcome to the world of Kailan.] Woong-! Ian who accessed Kailan immediately opened his inventory along with the sound of a familiar machine sound. As soon as the battle was over yesterday, he logged out immediately so he wasn¡¯t able to see the quest completion reward. The ¡®Meet the Expectation of Cameres¡¯ quest which gave the reward ¡®Dragon Knight¡¯s Token¡¯. Ian who identified the Dragon Knight Token item in his inventory immediately opened the item information window. Dragon Knight¡¯s Mark ¨C Rank: Myth Classification: Goods It is a token given only to the mighty warriors recognized by the Courageous Commander Cameres. When equipped with this mark, it increases the combat ability of all ¡®Dragon¡¯ type familiars by 3%. The basic affinity with the whole ¡®Dragon Clan¡¯ will increase by 10 as well. Users who possess this token can enter the ¡®Dragon Warriors¡¯ village¡¯ in the middle earth. The item belongs to user ¡®Ian¡¯. This item cannot be transferred or sold to any other user. It won¡¯t drop even when its owner dies. ¡®Oho, the affinity with the dragon clan isn¡¯t such a useful stat at the moment but¡­ isn¡¯t the rise in the abilities of dragon type familiars a bit good?¡¯ A 3% growth was indeed low, but it was a very satisfying stat for Ian as he only had to carry the item in his inventory. There was a free buff option, so there was no reason to use it. Ian¡¯s eyes slightly went wide at the information of the item that he had just read. ¡°Uh¡­?¡± Ian saw an unfamiliar word when he took a closer look at the item¡¯s information window. ¡®Middle-Earth? And a village of Dragon Warriors? What are those?¡¯ The Spirit World a place users could only enter once their level was 400. Users need to meet those conditions for them to be able to go into the Underworld to find the spirit of the Behemoth. There were still dimensions that Kailan¡¯s users hadn¡¯t seen yet, and ¡®Middle-Earth¡¯ was something that Ian had never heard of. Even the dimension of the ¡®Middle-earth¡¯ couldn¡¯t be identified as a place that was similar to that of the Spirit Dimension. ¡°Well, I¡¯ll find out more about this place someday.¡± Since it was an account oriented item, he didn¡¯t have to worry about losing it, and he someday would know what it was if he kept on carrying it. Ian who comfortably calmed his mind closed the item window of the ¡®Dragon Knight¡¯s token¡¯ and opened the guild window. ¡°Where is everyone? Well, it¡¯s still 6 am now so that¡¯s probably why no one is online yet, right?¡± Ian who checked the guild members¡¯ list shook his head. It was because all of those who were in a party with Ian wasn¡¯t online yet. It seemed like everyone was exhausted after the long hours of work that they did. ¡°I can¡¯t help it. I need to hunt with my Elcarix.¡± Ian who just thought of Elcarix couldn¡¯t help but smile. Ian felt better without even realizing it just by thinking about someone as cute as her. ¡°Elcarix! Summon!¡± Wheeing-! Along with a blue light, Elcarix appeared in front of him. ¡°Hehe, did you took a break, dad?¡± As soon as she was summoned, Elcarix spoke with a bright impression after holding Ian¡¯s hand. Ian who wasn¡¯t still used to it was a bit flustered, but he couldn¡¯t help smiling. ¡°We¡­ well. I came back after a good rest! What about my Elcarix? Did you rest well?¡± ¡°Yup! Me too!¡± Looking at Elcarix who just lifted his mood, Ian looked into Elcarix¡¯s information. ¡®Hmm, level 170¡­ she really leveled up a lot.¡¯ Leveling Elcarix up was surely the most important thing for Ian as of the moment. Even then, it still was a huge task to level her up to 170 in just a day. It was all possible because of the Dragon Army and the courageous commander Cameres and their buffs. ¡®The goal today is to reach level 240¡­! But the real goal is to have a sense of accomplishment at what we¡¯re about to do today.¡¯ Ian looked at Elcarix who was still holding onto him. When he saw the cute child holding his pinky finger with her small hand, he felt a kind of energy rush into him. Ian decided to give a nickname to the cute child who was holding onto him. ¡°Elcarix, your daddy is going to call you ¡®El¡¯ from now on. How is that?¡± The eyes of Ian met with that of Elcarix. Her two eyes shined brighter than ever. ¡°Wow! I like it! so I¡¯m going to be El from now on?¡± ¡°Yeah, El. From now you¡¯ll be El.¡± ¡°Awesome!¡± Elcarix the god¡¯s representative who got a new name ¡®El¡¯ screamed while hanging onto Ian¡¯s arm. A message suddenly appeared making Ian surprised. Tring ¨C ! [Created a new nickname for the familiar ¡®Elcarix¡¯.] [You are successful in giving a unique nickname to your familiar.] [Your fame has increased by 5,000.] [Your affinity with your familiar ¡®Elcarix¡¯ was increased by 10.] Ian who read the message suddenly realized something. ¡®Oh, now that I¡¯m seeing this¡­ I couldn¡¯t name Karceus with a unique nickname of this sort?¡¯ In fact, Ian attempted to change Karceus¡¯ name. He wanted to change his name because it was too long making it tough and annoying to call him. However, Karceus refused and that resulted for a system message to pop up saying ¡®Familiars with a unique name can¡¯t be renamed.¡¯ ¡®I should have given him a nickname!!¡¯ It wasn¡¯t a huge influence on the gameplay, but Ian who realized what had happened couldn¡¯t help but chuckle. The thought that he could give nicknames to his familiars like Karceus. It was something that would help him play and tease Bbookbbook. ¡°Kay then El, shall we go for hunting today?¡± ¡°Wow, I like that! Are we going to catch the black friends like we did yesterday?¡± Asked Elcarix while waving her hands in excitement. ¡°Yeah. Let¡¯s go and catch those black friends.¡± ¡°Hehet, it is a bit scary but fun with daddy!¡± Looking at her, Ian felt his sweat drip. ¡®She isn¡¯t the least bit scared¡­¡¯ Somehow, in the character information of Elcarix, it was mentioned that she was one of the ¡®cowardly¡¯ types. ¡°WOW!¡± Ian picked up Elcarix and began to walk somewhere. There was a place he wanted to stop by before he went all out in hunting. * * * ¡°Hmm, why should I listen to your words?¡± Looking at Ian with a very vile expression, an elementary kid asked. Ian squatted in front of Lugarix with the intent of persuading him. ¡°You have a great duty to defend the harmony and order of the Human Dimension.¡± ¡°Tha¡­ that is true.¡± ¡°To do that, you need to drive out the force of darkness.¡± ¡°That is true too.¡± ¡°I¡¯m on my way to fight the Legion of Darkness, shouldn¡¯t you come too?¡± Yesterday they had the battle of Keaton manor. Even though Ian didn¡¯t ask for it, Lugarix actually helped them out. The reason why he had woken up from his long sleep was to drive out the forces of darkness, so he fought the war against the Legion of Darkness. Ian was actively planning on using him for his personal hunt. An NPC which took any experience when compared to other players was the most perfect member to have in a party. He was going to try and finish the quest of ¡®Taming Lugarix¡¯ as well. ¡®Taming Master class tier rise¡­ needs the quest to be completed unconditionally no matter the difficulty.¡¯ He wasn¡¯t sure how he could tame him, but he wasn¡¯t going to try. If the episode of the Lich King fails before he could tame Lugarix, then the quest would be a fail too. ¡°Hmm, are you really going to deal with the Legion of Darkness?¡± ¡°Of course, if that wasn¡¯t the case I would have never come to pick you up.¡± ¡°Uhm¡­¡± However, Lugarix didn¡¯t seem do be convinced. Ian decided to play a little dirty to get him to participate. ¡°Lugarix, you¡¯re the oppa of Elcarix, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Elcarix is coming with me to defeat the legion of the Richie King, but her oppa is going to stay in the castle without any sense of duty towards his sister?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Lugarix who didn¡¯t expect such a response from Ian was shocked. Elcarix who was piggyback riding on Ian¡¯s back put her head out and supported Ian in his conquest of Lugarix. ¡°Dad, why is he my oppa?¡± ¡°Huh? He said so?¡± ¡°No, I don¡¯t have such an oppa.¡± ¡°Is¡­ is that so?¡± ¡°Huh! I don¡¯t have such a cowardly brother.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± And with that came the bickering of the twins. Lugarix who heard the word coward got up from his seat and stood tall. ¡°Who¡­ who is a coward?¡± ¡°What do you mean who!? You¡¯re the coward!¡± ¡°Ahh! How dare you call your oppa a coward!¡± ¡°Booo, our dad is much stronger and braver than you! And why in the world are you my oppa?¡± ¡°Because I am!¡± ¡°I don¡¯t care! I won¡¯t accept you as my oppa! Dad, let¡¯s leave him and go. I won¡¯t play with a coward.¡± Elcarix who awakened from a soul stone seemed to have no memory of the past. Starting from recognizing Ian as her father and not even knowing that Lugarix was her brother. The state of Elcarix was different from that of Karceus. ¡®What? Where is this going?¡¯ Though it was a little different from the original plan of Ian¡¯s, this new one was going to be much better. Ian was actually enjoying watching their bickering. ¡°Yah, Lugarix.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°You are the brave Dragon of Darkness.¡± ¡°Yeah! I¡¯m brave!¡± ¡°Then, can you show her?¡± ¡°How?¡± ¡°What do mean by how!? By fighting the Legion of Darkness alongside me.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± The Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix seemed to be the one with a lot of pride. Even though there was a mission to drive out the Legion of Darkness, he didn¡¯t want to be associated with Ian¡ªa human¡ªfor the mission. However, to make Elcarix see his true strength, he couldn¡¯t help but cooperate. ¡°Fine! I¡¯ll show you that I¡¯m much stronger and braver than Ian!¡± Luragix threw his fist to the air. However, Elcarix wasn¡¯t even listening to what he said and nagged him, ¡°How dare you call our father with his name?¡± ¡°Huh!¡± Nothing but un-audible mumbling came out of Lugarix¡¯s mouth. A system message came in front of Ian right away. Tring-! [The Dragon of Darkness ¡®Lugarix¡¯ has joined the party.] Ian couldn¡¯t help but smile. CH 427 Lugarix was powerful. However, till the moment, Ian wasn¡¯t able to grasp the exact power and ability of Lugarix. Just a faint guess. ¡®A dragon of myth rank class, and surely will possess the Breath of dragon, as well as the dragon skin¡­ and will have the dragon clan.¡¯ Before the end of the buff, it was necessary to know the skill of Lugarix as accurately as possible¡ªin order to extract the power he could from Lugarix. Because of that, Ian managed to shake little luck on Lugarix who still was feeling doubtful. ¡°Lugarix, what was the huge magic spell that you used last time?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± When Ian was about to open his mouth once again, someone else had quickly entered the conversation. ¡°Little boy, why do keep talking to my dad without honorifics?¡± ¡°Ah, get lost for a moment will you?! We are talking here.¡± ¡°Booo.¡± The two siblings started to argue with each other. Seeing that, Ian was confused. ¡®El, it is nice that you take my side, but¡­¡¯ He somehow felt very good but wasn¡¯t sure of the situation. When the conversation between them didn¡¯t end, Ian tried to calm them down as he was feeling nervous about the kids¡¯ situation. Taking in Elcarix into his arms, and trying to bring out the most possible friendly voice as he could. It was understandable that he chose to take the side of Elcarix. ¡°Our sweet and polite Elcarix will be understanding. This kid was born a little spoiled.¡± And Elcarix with an expression which stated ¡®couldn¡¯t do anything more¡¯, shook her head. ¡°Huh, if you say that, well.¡± Lugarix strongly resisted. ¡°No! Not spoiled! Who the hell are you talking about?¡± ¡°Who else is here apart from Elcarix and me? You, you.¡± ¡°Ahhh.¡± Nothing but sound came out of the mouth of Lugarix, and Ian didn¡¯t mind. The one who seemed very strong in a single glance, and suddenly showed a bit of a weak side during the fight with his sibling. ¡°There was no need to give me any honorific, so answer me, kid. What was the magic that you used the last time?¡± In the battle of the Keaton Manor, Ian was the one who showed a very prominent performance. However, the contribution of Ian wasn¡¯t the greatest. Because he was the king and the one who changed the whole flow of the battle, the attention of many people were on him. Honestly, he couldn¡¯t have contributed much when compared to Lugarix of Lv 500. As summoning all of his summons would have lowered the experience accumulation of Elcarix, Ian did summon many, and it was sure no matter how one had seen that he had contributed less than the rankers like Hoonie and Levya. So, who was it that contributed the most for their victory? Surprisingly, it wasn¡¯t even the unit of the dragon or the courageous commander Cameres, it was Lugarix, Especially in the huge summon of Ddukdae in the last wave of monsters, a tornado with enough force to make anyone¡¯s mouth open had formed. If Ddukdae¡¯s Abyss hole was like a black hole, Lugarix whirlwind was like a ¡®moving black hole¡¯. It was a powerful crowd control period attack magic that swept, broke and passed everything. And it wasn¡¯t just the one unique ability of Lugarix. Lugarix had used various abilities that Ian wasn¡¯t aware of. And Ian wanted to know the specs of all of them. If he could use those skills, then the efficiency of the hunting could be enhanced. As soon as the bickering of the two dragon siblings was done, Lugarix began to explain his skill. ¡°Ah, that skill. Rather than my ability, it was magic.¡± ¡°Magic?¡± ¡°Yeah. A Soul Storm, a black magic corporation of 9 circles.¡± ¡°9 circles huh¡­? Really?¡± ¡°Yeah, really. When did a God Dragon ever lie?¡± ¡°Well, I didn¡¯t mean it like a lie, lie. Just astonished, 9 circles¡­¡± ¡°Huhu, great right? My black magic skills are awesome.¡± Ian¡¯s head started to work very quickly. A huge storm of darkness started to turn inside the head of Ian. The term 9 circles was enough to understand the power of it. As far as human magicians were concerned, there was no one who had ever used magic that made 9 circles. ¡®Not an ability but magic¡­ then it will be something that was thought by the magic clan.¡¯ And to have the black magic that could do powerful attack magic, Lugarix¡¯s battle was the same proportion to the intellect of Elcarix. As he had received the information about Lugarix, Ian began to smile. Hopefully, he could learn Lugarix¡¯s skills and then teach Elcarix the 9 circle skills too. Ian changed the tone of his voice. ¡°Wow, Lugarix, the more I see, the more strong you seem? Where did you learn such magic from?¡± Lugarix had a simple mind with basic intellect. And it was very clear that Lugarix had a soft spot for praising. It was an insight Ian had gained for having so many familiars. Just as Ian had predicted, Lugarix began to give out the information. ¡°Ahem. Have you realized the greatness of this body?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I said! I didn¡¯t even know that there was magic which used 9 circles.¡± ¡°Oh, is that so?¡± ¡°To learn the 9 circle magic¡­¡± And then came out the stories from Lugarix¡¯s mouth, one after the other¡ªamazing things. Advanced information that no one has ever heard in the Kailan. ¡°A 9 circle spellbook, is something that cannot be performed by a human. It is only for transcendental beings. So, one has to get to Middle-earth to get 9 or more circle spells.¡± ¡°Middle-earth¡­?¡± ¡°Middle-Earth isn¡¯t a term for a one-dimensional system. To describe it briefly¡­¡± Lugarix explained that many of the worlds in dimension can be classified into three categories. In the first category, the ¡®Ground System¡¯ in which the basic dimensional systems such as; the humans and the asmodians belonged to. And there were many dimensions in the ground system, it wasn¡¯t just the human or the Devildom. The Southern islands where the Maurya Empire was situated at, was an ancient dimension that was called ¡®Halley¡¯ in the past. Even Lugarix didn¡¯t know how many dimensional systems existed. However, when all this story was going on, the first thing that came into the mind of Ian¡¯s was ¡®server¡¯. ¡®The existence of the human and devildom dimension seems like the servers from other countries¡­¡¯ Not knowing how far it was correct, it somehow seemed like a reasonable explanation. And while Ian was thinking about it, the explanation of Lugarix continued about the second classification of the dimensional systems. The story that came out of the mouth of Lugarix was the same as the explanation that came out on the ¡®Dragon Knight¡¯s mark¡¯ item description from Cameres. ¡°Not much territorial world, but there are also many dimensions in the Middle-earth. A Spirit dimension¡ªcelestial dimension. And the hometown for us dragons like the one in the Dragon Valley, since I don¡¯t know of all those, I can¡¯t give you a thorough explanation.¡± There were many differences between the Middle-earth and the ground system, but the most striking difference was there weren¡¯t many dimensions in there. And if the previous assumptions of Ian were correct, Ian could be able to build something there. ¡®If the number of the dimensional systems meant the servers, wouldn¡¯t it be possible to meet the users of the Middle-earth servers, where there is only one land?¡¯ As the thoughts were going through his mind, Ian¡¯s heart started to race. The Korean server rankers were indeed very strong, but it would be very exciting if they could compete with the rankers from the other countries. And, the derived content could be indefinite. ¡®Is it something that I should look forward to?¡¯ While Ian was in deep thoughts, Lugarix¡¯s explanation followed. ¡°And at last, on top of the Middle-earth, there is a place called the heavenly system.¡± ¡°Heavenly system?¡± ¡°Huh. And I don¡¯t have much to say about that either. I don¡¯t know much about it, as there is only one system in the Heavenly system.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°In other words, the heavenly system is something like a ¡®New World¡¯.¡± And the explanation of Lugarix ended there. However, that alone made Ian¡¯s mind complicated with thoughts. It was because when playing Kailan in the future, there were a lot of factors for him to consider. And Ian, who gathered much information about the Kailan worldview, stroked the head of Lugarix. ¡°Ha, you¡¯re smarter than you look.¡± ¡°Yeah, well! I know a lot of stuff!¡± ¡°Yeah. Surprisingly you have a nice corner.¡± ¡°Why do I feel bad¡­ that was a compliment right?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± At first, it was making Lugarix teach Elcarix the magic he knew. But as the scale grew, Ian decided to ask more questions. ¡°Then, Lugarix, where have you been to in the Middle-earth?¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t gone to any other place than the Dragon Haven.¡± ¡°Yeah? You don¡¯t know how to go to the other dimensions?¡± ¡°Ha, I don¡¯t know how to go.¡± ¡°Hmm, but you do know how to go to the Dragon Haven, right?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± However, Lugarix stated that he couldn¡¯t specifically tell on how to get to the Dragon Haven. Which was because of the command from the Dragon God. However, as he was feeling good, he kept giving out hints. ¡°The Dragon¡¯s altar. There might be hints about the Dragon Haven. That¡¯s all that I can say.¡± ¡°Yeah? The Dragon¡¯s altar¡­ I feel like I heard it somewhere.¡± Ian recollected everything that Lugarix had told him. It was because he had put in all the new information into his head. After a while, Ian¡¯s eyes went wide. A memory ran past the mind of Ian in an instant. ¡®The Dragon¡¯s altar¡­! The door of dimension that was in the deepest place!¡¯ In the land of dragons¡ªwhich was located in the wide field of the Southern Islands. And a huge spiral tower came to the mind of Ian. The place where Ian had went to steal the Cintamani. A dungeon named the ¡®Dragon¡¯s Altar¡¯ came to the mind of Ian. ¡®Yeah. At that time, the door of the dimension that was needed to be opened for the time attack quest to be cleared was the door to the Dragon Haven!!¡¯ The ¡®hunting with Lugarix¡¯s¡¯ seemed to be the most important decision made by him. It gave Ian the information that he never thought of. CH 428 ¡°Lugarix, move this way!¡± ¡°Okay, Nice! Soul Storm!¡± ¡°That¡¯s it! The best, Lugarix!¡± After uncovering the high-quality information from Lugarix, Ian began to roll well with the Dragon of Darkness. And Lugarix turned out to be a much-talented person than he thought. Most of the magic that Lugarix could perform was black magic, which meant that he could summon various undead, starting from the Skeletons to the Death Knights. All thanks to the fast-moving ¡®race¡¯ of the Undead of the dark legion, using the Soul Storm or breath was a perfect mechanism for a complete sweep. ¡®This looks like the work of a whole new world?¡¯ In the standards of Ian, Lugarix was a true worker. There was still much experience needed, but for Ian, he felt like the right match. And Ian wasn¡¯t just waiting while all of it was happening. Ian was doing everything he could, moving by himself without any hesitation. To gain efficiency in the hunting. ¡°Uh, The named over there! Lugarix, I¡¯m going to be dealing with him, move that way!¡± ¡°That guy, he looks strong¡­ you don¡¯t need the hand of the strongest dragon, Lugarix?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t spew nonsense, go over there.¡± High ranked named monsters, which were hit with the wide attack from Lugarix had already lost a lot of their vitality. In addition to that, the counterattack of Lugarix started to get prominent. ¡°Ian, did you just order me?¡± ¡°No way¡­ no. I asked you because you are the best.¡± ¡°Is, is that.. so?¡± ¡°If not?¡± There were times when Lugraix raised doubts on the act of Ian, but he wasn¡¯t so sure¡­ ¡°Ian, are you trying to prove your valor to me by catching the big guy?¡± ¡°Ahe, there is no way I would do that. Think about it, Lugarix. I need to fight one on one, but you can just sweep them all of them in a single shot.¡± ¡°That, that is true.¡± ¡°Then, who is the bravest one?¡± ¡°Of course it is me!¡± ¡°Right?¡± ¡°Yeah!¡± ¡°Then, go there quickly.¡± He completely controlled an unexpected situation showing that he was the true ¡®Taming Master¡¯. Elcarix who was able to grasp the mood that Ian had created, was helping out too. ¡°Oppa, you¡¯re cool!¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Listening to the words of Elcarix, Lugarix lost concentration. ¡°I, I¡¯m always cool.¡± The two were meant for the other. And Ian realized it. ¡®This El is the scariest one¡­?¡¯ And Lugarix wiped away all the legion of dark each time Ian moved from plane to plane, and Elcarix was leveling up at a tremendous speed. [The familiar ¡®Elcarix¡¯ has leveled up to 169!] [The familiar ¡®Elcarix¡¯ has leveled up to 170!] [The familiar ¡®Elcarix¡¯ has leveled up to 171!] But Ian didn¡¯t praise her as much as he did with Lugarix. It was nice to be sweet, but he felt like needed to be strict too. ¡°Hmm, it looks like the whole legion of darkness has been swept away, Ian. I¡¯ll go to the lair and get some rest.¡± ¡°Ahh, what is that? Is all your work done?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Lugarix you, you look brave, but the more I see, the more weak you seem?¡± And Lugarix seemed like he was ready to catch the bait. ¡°What does that mean? I am strong!¡± ¡°Ah, it doesn¡¯t look like it? you just said that you were tired and wanted to go back to your home, no?¡± ¡°What nonsense! There is no way I said that!¡± And when he took the bait, the point of pulling him into his hands was an act too. ¡°Yeah? Surely that? The brave dragon isn¡¯t so fragile.¡± ¡°Yeah! I¡¯m not weak!¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I was wrong, Lugarix.¡± ¡°Hehe, no, Ian. Well, it could be misunderstood.¡± Even if Lugarix tried to retort to Ian, he was only digging a deeper grave for himself. ¡°I was just wondering if Ian would want to take some rest. I was just done with the warm-up!¡± ¡°Ah, is that so? Surely! Lugarix is caring!¡± ¡°Huh, I¡¯m always great!¡± ¡°Then when and where do we start! I¡¯m still very good. If you¡¯re feeling a little tired, then talk to me!¡± ¡°Yeah, nice!¡± And the biggest beneficiary, Elcarix, who was seeing the scene unfold, held the hand of Ian. Her eyes were shining, like a 3-year-old who saw a comic for the first time. When Lugarix left to look for his next target, Elcarix opened her mouth, ¡°Dad.¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°I think I learned something today.¡± ¡°That, that so?¡± ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s the first time in the life of El, that I knew something so beneficial!¡± ¡°Beneficial?¡± ¡°Yeah! I realized a huge enlightenment!¡± Ian who was curious of it asked with a very low voice. ¡°A huge enlightenment¡­?¡± ¡°If I like dad, I realized that I can go anywhere and not lose anything.¡± Ian chuckled at it and agreed to her words. ¡°Right, wherever this dad goes, he is not the type to lose it.¡± Ian was impressed with the learning ability of a dragon that was less than a week old. ¡®Surely, a whole different dragon?¡¯ Lugarix was a dragon too, but Ian forgot it the moment he realized how Elcarix was. * * * The time of a week that Elcarix had received a buff had gotten faster than expected. In the meantime, the Lotus Kingdom had attacked the Elrika Kingdom three times and managed to conquer five manors. The first manor¡ªthe Keaton Manor, was the tough one¡ªafter which, the Elrika Kingdom started to collapse. And it was natural that Ian had taken part in all the wars. ¡®I can always hunt without Lugarix, but¡­ the experience points that comes with him is the best.¡¯ Thud-! Ian, with the flag of the Lotus Kingdom, raised his hands and opened his mouth to the crowd, ¡°The enemy you fear isn¡¯t a powerful monster.¡± The battlefield which was loud went silent for a moment. The moment Ian had started to say something, everyone started to listen to it. And Ian seeing that, gave out sincere and strong words to the crowd, ¡°I¡¯m not afraid to give you items and experience!¡± Ian felt himself falter, but the atmosphere of the Lotus Kingdom said otherwise¡ªthe army screamed like crazy! ¡°Woah!!¡± ¡°Hooray for Ian!¡± ¡°Hail Lotus Kingdom! Hail the Majesty!¡± The sight of the thousand armies of the Lotus Kingdom was a sight anyone should see. ¡°Keu, great!¡± Ian¡¯s mouth turned into a subtle smile without realizing it. However, that wasn¡¯t the mood of the current situation for Ian. It was because of the level ups that he had been seeing till then. Coming towards Ian who seemed to have a very satisfactory expression, Herz asked. ¡°Yeah, something seems weird!¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°That, that¡­ I said something, something¡­¡± Herz was cheering and feeling good, but he felt like something was different. And the relatively, the mind of Fiolan picked it up. ¡°That, isn¡¯t that a saying of Alexander the Great?¡± ¡°Yes, you¡¯re right. If you¡¯re going to copy something, at least do it right! There are many who see the videos of Kailan!¡± ¡°Right, Ian. At least for the sake of the guild.¡± However, Ian, even though he was pointed out, he was still unquestionable. ¡°What are you saying, it¡¯s wrong. I just expressed what I was feeling at the moment.¡± ¡°What, what did you feel?¡± ¡°Experience, and greatness! Keu!¡± ¡°¡­¡± Herz was at a loss of words as he shook his head, and Ian laughed after looking at the information window. ¡®Kya, level 392¡­ went up 4 levels in a week.¡¯ When he received the quest from Spirit King, he was in need of level 400 for the proceeding, and now that seemed to be just a few steps ahead. And Ian opened the information of Elcarix after a very long time. Elcarix (Dragon of Light) ¨C Level: 279 Classification: God Dragon Rank: Myth Personality: Cowardly Complete Attack power: 5301 Defense power: 6975 Agility: 4185 Intellect: 12,555 Vitality: 2,130,165/ 2,130,165 (Compulsory) A proud smile made its way onto the lips of Ian as he checked the information window of Elcarix. He had seen more than a million intellect points and more than 2 million vitality, I wasn¡¯t going to feel hungry for a week. ¡®I think that the attack power of Karceus was around five digits at that time, but is already at 12,000¡­ certainly, the growth of intellect is huge.¡¯ The composition of Karceus was mostly in the attack side. However, the level of intellect for Elcarix was dominantly more. Of course, the attack and agility were a bit lacking for the dragons, however, the flawless tanking ability was admirable. ¡®And with the adding of a few high-level magic, the attack will rise.¡¯ The skill-books with high-level light attack magic didn¡¯t sell in the auction houses. That was because of the less demand they had. A priest with the light attributes never opted for the position of a dealer, and a mage with a light attribute almost never existed. Sometimes the priests did¡ªwith some low-cost light attribute attacks. Thanks to that, Ian was able to see the profit he had in those. ¡®Huhu, I can get a full set of magic in just one million.¡¯ In case of the top tier flame attack magic, the transaction concluded up to 100 million gold. Compared to it, the attack attribute of light even when choosing the highest one would cost only around 10 million gold. ¡®Now that the experience buff is over, we should go over to the auction house and shop a little leisurely?¡¯ The next battle of the Lotus Kingdom would resume tomorrow, and Ian decided that he could enjoy a little time off. ¡°El-ah, shall we go for shopping?¡± With bright gleaming eyes, El asked Ian, ¡°Shopping? What is that, dad?¡± Looking at those gleaming eyes, Ian started to feel burdensome and instinctively lied. ¡°Hmm¡­ I mean, we will go and bring those things that my El wants to have.¡± However, Ian¡¯s lies didn¡¯t work. ¡°Ahh, dad. Isn¡¯t that a kids shopping?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Not the kids shopping, but we¡¯re really going for shopping right?¡± Ian could feel his whole body sweat at that moment. He was feeling something strange. ¡°El, you know what shopping is?¡± But, clever El managed to evade the traps. ¡°Ahh, no way. I just know what a kid shopping is, I don¡¯t know what shopping in general is.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian who couldn¡¯t say anything back just looked at her, and Elcarix turning affectionate the very moment, lightened the situation. ¡°Dad, let¡¯s go and do shopping quickly.¡± ¡°What is shopping?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, which is why I want to do it.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian headed to the auction house while holding onto the hand of Elcarix. CH 429 All the facilities inside Kailan grow in accordance with the development of a territory. Of course, the auction house, which was one of the most important facilities of a city was included in it. The higher the level of the city, the higher would the floors of the auction house facility¡¯s level would be. The largest auction house in Kailan at the moment was in the capitals of the former Empires of Kaimon and Luspel. However, since the empires disappeared, the auction houses too had disappeared along with them. The largest auction house of all the existing auction houses was in the Lotus Kingdom, and Ian and Elcarix were walking around it for around 30 minutes already. ¡°Dad, I want this. This!¡± ¡°That, so?¡± ¡°Yeah! This is so pretty!¡± Elcarix was showing Ian a fur hat that was displayed at the corner of the store. Ian looked at the item¡¯s information. Tring-! White Dragon Fur Hat ¨C Price: 307,698 gold Seller: Private Time for the sale to end: 7:14:27 (At the end of the sale time, the price will become 5% lower.) Classification: Costume (Costume items can be worn on top of one¡¯s equipment.) Options: cold resistance +3 Charm x 1.25 It is a fur hat made of leather ¡®snowflake¡¯ which is considered as one of the rarest animals in the Northern continent. It is a limited edition made by ¡®Yupina¡¯ the best clothing designer in the Kingdom of Lotus. It is a fur hat designed for the concept of a cute baby dragon¡¯s face. Ian, who read the information window of the item, just sighed to himself. ¡®Huh, a costume item¡­ plus, the options are very sublime.¡¯ Ian never spared money when it came to items, a thorough pragmatism. Which was why he never bought costume items. The only costume items he bought were the ones with the minimum options that he could put on with his equipment. Whether it cost 5,000 gold or 1 million gold, the options were very few. The price difference of the costume item depended on the term ¡®designer¡¯. ¡°Uhmm, 30 million¡­ I can buy three fluffy hats with that money¡­¡± While Ian was mumbling, he could feel the stare of Elcarix on him. Ian with sweat rolling off him asked Elcarix, ¡°El-ah, you want to buy a fur hat for 30 million with no proper option?¡± Ian emphasized how much the costume would cost when he spoke to Elcarix. However, Elcarix was stubborn. ¡°But dad¡­ I think I can wear that hat since I can transform into a human.¡± In Kailan, the NPCs could wear items, but the non-humanoid NPCs had no such options. Elcarix knew this and would like to try if she could wear a costume since she could transform into a human. Ian was flustered. ¡°How did you know these things?¡± However, Elcarix used her charm to convince Ian. ¡°Hehe, dad, come on.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian, which was still hesitant about it, grabbed the furry hat. Tring-! You have purchased the item ¡®White Dragon Fur Hat¡¯! ¡®307,698 gold¡¯ has been paid. Ian¡¯s eyes were very sorrowful as he watched his gold be taken away from his hand. ¡®Well it is cheaper than the clothes that I wear from head to toe in the real world, so¡­¡¯ However, Elcarix shopping had just started. Tring-! [You have purchased the item ¡®Dragon Soles¡¯!] [¡®238,820 gold¡¯ has been paid.] [You have purchased the item ¡®Dragon¡¯s Wing Dress¡¯] [¡®970,981 gold¡¯ has been paid.] Ian nearly spent 2 million gold just on costume items, and that made his face fell. ¡°El-ah, do you really have to buy the dress that looks like a table cloth?¡± ¡°Table cloth!¡± ¡°The table cloth looks just like that back at my place¡­¡± ¡°Ah, it¡¯s not that!¡± Ian who normally didn¡¯t understand why users bought costume items never thought that he would be in such a situation. ¡®Ah, being a dad in the virtual reality game is also tough¡­¡¯ Ian¡¯s respect for his parents suddenly began to spring up inside his heart. He wanted to see Harin quickly. ¡®Wait, if I¡¯m El¡¯s dad¡­ then Harin is her mom, right? I don¡¯t have to feel this pain all by myself!¡¯ However, Ian who realized that Harin was busy felt dejected once again. Harin was very busy with her restaurant activities lately. If Ian left El with Harin, he was sure that he would be ignored the whole day. There was also the possibility that the cute and sweet El would become twisted. ¡®That can¡¯t happen!¡¯ Ian clenched his fists as his heart got fired up. At the same time, Elcarix wearing all the costumes that Ian bought for her walked towards him. ¡°Ta-da! Dad, how is it? Do I look good?¡± Ian felt that the 2 million gold he spent was worth it after seeing El wearing those costumes while happily dancing around. ¡°Cute, so cute!¡± It wasn¡¯t the Dragon of Light, but Elcarix who was dressed in all-white. The dragon fur hat and the small wool that was dangling on her back with her small wings intensified her cuteness. ¡°Our El is so pretty!¡± Elcarix who got praised by Ian flew to the sky with a huge smile. Before they went costume shopping, El learned fly magic in her polymorph form. ¡°I¡¯m pretty, right?¡± ¡°Yeah, my daughter is the prettiest.¡± The wound on Ian¡¯s heart caused by those unexpected expenditures disappeared in a second. ¡®Well, all her skill-books can be bought for 20 gold so everything is fine.¡¯ Even though his expenditure was twice than what he had expected, Ian tried to rationalize his thoughts. Ian was holding onto Elcarix and turned towards the hunting ground. Now was the time to earnestly hunt. ¡®Huhu, now I need to study how to turn the skill cycle?¡¯ Elcarix¡¯s exclusive experience buff was over, and now was the time to take advantage of all of his familiars. He thought he could combine the magic of Elcarix with his existing familiars, and that made him excited. * * * ¡°Huu, Lugarix, this elementary kid¡­¡± Inside the planning team room of the LB company. Over ten people were gathered in the meeting room with seriousness written all over their faces. And all of them couldn¡¯t stop talking about ¡®Lugarix¡¯. ¡°Hu, who was the one who thought of that Lugarix guy?¡± Asked the planning team leader of team 3, Kim Yu Hwan. He sat down then sighed, and the member next to him raised his hand up and spoke with a low voice. ¡°Me¡­ me sir¡­¡± ¡°I don¡¯t understand. Why does this guy have such a lot of information?¡± ¡°That¡­ the God Dragon¡¯s normally belonged to that part. So, having the data of Middle-earth had to be included.¡± Choi Seo Young, who was seated on the opposite side asked with a puzzled look. ¡°There have been a lot of God Dragons before Lugarix. Especially that Karceus who became the familiar of Ian¡­ but he didn¡¯t give out any information, right?¡± The member just sighed and responded, ¡°But Karceus doesn¡¯t remember anything. He becomes a complete dragon after awakening then say his role and his reincarnation. The same goes for the Dragon of Light, Elcarix. They don¡¯t remember Middle-earth.¡± This time it was Kim Yu Hwan who asked. ¡°Then what about the Sun Dragon, Ranohel and the Dragon of wind, Norpis? I know of a lot of users who are currently doing the quests regarding those matters.¡± At that question from the team leader, the member just scratched the back of his neck. He was trying hard to think of an answer to give them when Na Ji-chan who was sitting next to him spoke, ¡°Team leader, it has something to do with the affinity.¡± ¡°Affinity?¡± ¡°Yeah. No matter how the quest progresses, even when having acquaintance, the NPC doesn¡¯t give out information if the affinity was low between them and the users.¡± ¡°Hmm, then the affinity between Ian and Lugraix is that high?¡± ¡°Yes. However even then, the entry of the Dragon Haven information¡­ I never thought of it. To be controlled by the ¡®command¡¯ of the Dragon God.¡± Silence filled the conference room once Na Ji-chan was done talking. Everyone was lost in their own concerns. It was the same for Na Ji-chan as well. Even for Na Ji-chan who knew more about Ian than anyone else in the planning team, this was a situation that even he couldn¡¯t quite understand. ¡®No, why is that kid dragon opening his mouth like this?¡¯ In fact, if the information from Lugraix went to other users, it wouldn¡¯t be such a critical situation. If that ever happened, no one in the planning team would¡¯ve actually been worried. But the problem, however, was Ian. It was because Ian would be able to figure out the exact project frame they had just by knowing the smallest bit of information. The whole team wasn¡¯t being exaggerated. They were certain that Ian could definitely do that. In particular, the dimensional door to the Dragon Haven¡­ ¡®Even at level 200, he almost went through the bottom of the dungeons¡­ now he is almost at the level of 400, he will be able to drill right through it.¡¯ Ian had already been to the dragon¡¯s altar in the past, and he surely knew what the door of the dimension led through. However, the reason why he didn¡¯t go through the door was because of the ongoing war in their dimension at that time. In order to go through the dimensional door in the Dragon¡¯s Altar, he had to open the dimensional door by using the dimensional charger. Once he moved to the Dragon¡¯s Altar with that item, it had a restriction that one couldn¡¯t come back for the duration of one week. According to Na Ji-chan¡¯s expectation¡­ ¡®Once the war is over and the Richie King is caught, he will challenge the Dragon Haven right away.¡¯ Once he was done with everything on their continent, he would most likely head straight to the Dragon Haven. That would definitely turn into a disaster. The idea was still in its rough stages. Since the system wasn¡¯t completely designed yet, there was a high probability for bugs to occur; just like it did the last time. While Na Ji-chan was working on his assumptions and thoughts, Kim Yu Hwan¡¯s voice suddenly rose. ¡°Ji-chan ah.¡± ¡°Yea, Team leader.¡± ¡°What are all the ongoing quests of that Ian jerk?¡± He instinctively replied to his team leader¡¯s question. ¡°Team leader, it isn¡¯t Ian jerk, it is Ian God.¡± ¡°God my foot. Even in this situation, you¡¯re calling him a god?¡± ¡°Yeah, Ian god is a god.¡± ¡°Enough, just answer what I have asked you.¡± Na Ji-chan took a moment and tried to recollect all the quests that were under progress for Ian. ¡®Got it! The Spirit Dimension!¡¯ The quest that Ian wasn¡¯t currently doing, the Spirit Dimension quest. ¡®If we give an additional reward to the Spirit Dimension quest, Ian will surely do the Spirit Dimension quest¡­ in the meantime, we could finish the Dragon Haven.¡¯ Before Ian got the Sprit Dimension related quest, the whole planning team was involved in the completion of the Spirit Dimension. Therefore, if Ian entered the Spirit Dimension, they would be able to buy themselves a couple of months. Na Ji-chan, who realized it, spoke with a bright expression, ¡°Everyone, I have a great idea.¡± He started explaining the plan that he came up with. As they listened to it, the faces of Na Ji-chan¡¯s team members brightened up as well. ¡°That seems nice.¡± ¡°Keu, surely.¡± ¡°Huhu, then we¡¯ll have to do one thing.¡± However, while he continuously explaining, Na Ji-chan couldn¡¯t help but sigh. ¡®Hu, we are all squeezing our heads because of just one user¡­¡¯ The plan of the planning team, which was going to be their task during the episode of Lich King, was to waste all the information that came out of Lugarix¡¯s mouth. CH 430 Kaimon and Luspel. After the destruction of the two great empires, there were many kingdoms that came in their place. East, West, and the Central and North continents too. The vast land was divided into numerous sections. However, the size of the kingdoms that were split wasn¡¯t of the same size or area. The largest kingdom was the one which had almost six times the size compared to the smallest kingdom. Then, what was the current size of the Lotus Kingdom? The Lotus Kingdom, consisting of a total of 35 manors, could be seen as average in terms of size. In fact, the smallest existing kingdom had ten manors, and the largest kingdom had eighty manors, so one could say that a kingdom was of average size if they got at least 45 manors. However, since the number of smaller kingdoms were more compared to the larger ones, it could be said that a kingdom with 35 manors was above average. Of course, among the kingdoms that were set up in recent times, Lotus by far was the greatest. The Lotus Kingdom was running towards a much greater goal. And that goal was to be declared as the server¡¯s first Empire. After the Elrika Kingdom was merged with the Lotus, the first step of their goal was achieved. The barracks of the Lotus Kingdom was placed on the forefront of the army on the battlefield. Herz and Jinsung were having a serious meeting. The war would resume tomorrow. According to the schedule they laid out, the war would go on till the next full moon. During the full moon, the Lotus Kingdom was planning on taking in the Elrika Kingdom into theirs. ¡°Yoo hyun-ah, as of the moment, what¡¯s the state of the Elrika kingdom?¡± ¡°Hmm, wait.¡± Looking at the Elrika Kingdom at the map, Herz spoke with a surprised tone, ¡°The Elrika Kingdom became larger.¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°Huh, there are forty divisions and fourteen of them was around the same size as Keaton.¡± ¡°Oh ho, which means there are more than ten Lords.¡± ¡°Right. There are seven royal households and four marques, and there are three dukedoms.¡± ¡°Viscounts, and Barons¡­?¡± ¡°Ten Viscounts and fourteen Barons.¡± ¡°Fourteen, and twenty-four. A total of thirty-eight.¡± ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s fast.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± As a matter of fact, the larger the manor titles the higher would be their level, and the more difficult it would be to attack. The level of defense would be higher. Which was why they had to make a good strategy when trying to attack a kingdom. The commanding abilities of the commanders on the battlefield weren¡¯t the only thing that was important in war. There were a few things that had to be considered as well; such as the strategy that would be used, the troops and the terrain. Herz explained everything about the manors and pointed his finger to a place on the map and spoke with a serious tone, ¡°However, we have a problem.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Everywhere else is fine, but this¡­¡± Ian¡¯s gaze went to the place that Herz was pointing to. ¡°Rataphel Manor?¡± ¡°Huh, this is the most tricky place. I¡¯m not sure if the place can even be breached. Even if it¡¯s possible to do so, we need at least a week or so to break their defenses.¡± ¡°Yeah? That tough?¡± With a look that said he was interested, Ian looked closely at that point on the map. He wanted to analyze it before he confirmed anything with Herz. Being concerned about things without even looking into it wasn¡¯t how Ian did things. Even Herz knew of it, which was why he was waiting for Ian¡¯s opinion on the situation. ¡®Hmm, it¡¯s a bit hard to say as there is just one entry¡­ what is the reason for having a marquis?¡¯ As the rank increased, the manpower increased exponentially as well. Therefore, a marquis was much more difficult to deal with than the other dukes at the Rataphel Manor, and there had to be some reason as to why. ¡®What could it be¡­ the reason?.¡¯ Ian took a look at the map. The next moment he was surprised by what he had thought of. ¡°Oh shit, crazy! The Sanctuary of Darkness¡­!¡± Herz nodded with a smile in response. ¡°Right. The Sanctuary of Darkness. That is the biggest problem.¡± * * * What could a sanctuary be? As the name itself implies, it was a sacred holy place. The sanctuaries function in the same manner in Kailan. It was the only place where God¡¯s blessing could be taken without the intervention of a priest. It was a sanctuary where one could get strong buffs from God¡¯s blessings by just stopping by at the place. However, there were disadvantages. The place had constraints. When one moved out of the sanctuary, the effects of the buffs would be revealed immediately. However, an artificial sanctuary couldn¡¯t be created, so it was a perfect match. Which was why a sanctuary was an unfamiliar topic. At times there were sanctuaries which could be reached within a certain range from a dungeon, but it was a premium and very rare. ¡®However, having a sanctuary in such a place is a whole different story.¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes were still fixated on the map. The sanctuary was surrounded by mountains and rivers, and it was the ultimate buffing facility. Going through the Rataphel manor was the only way they could go there. Herz spoke as he watched Ian who was still fixated on the map. ¡°Did you found it already?¡± ¡°Yeah, who couldn¡¯t see this?¡± ¡°Cain and Corbin looked at the map for a while, but they couldn¡¯t find it, you know?¡± ¡°Cain lacks observation, and isn¡¯t Corbin the muscular brain kind of guy?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Silence fell over the two. Ian seemed to be immersed in some thought, so Herz waited it out. He was hoping that Ian could come up with some valid idea in his head. It wasn¡¯t just plain hopeful anticipation, and Ian who was still staring at the map spoke at last, ¡°This¡­ isn¡¯t this map wrong?¡± ¡°No way. The map is completely up to date.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°I never even thought of that.¡± ¡°Yeah, I know.¡± ¡°Without further looking into the matter, we couldn¡¯t have been able to see it.¡± ¡°That can¡¯t be¡­ we would lose all our troops in the fight.¡± ¡°Then¡­¡± There were around twenty sanctuaries known as of the moment in Kailan, and each sanctuary had a different buff. Of course, the sanctuaries of the same attribute gave the same buffs, but the coefficients were different. However, there wasn¡¯t much of a big difference. The highest would probably be around 4 to 5%. Ian and Herz continued their conversation with serious expressions. ¡°The Sanctuary of Darkness buff effect¡­ maybe a dark attribute DOT damage increase?¡± ¡°Right. A 20% DOT damage increase, and 3% attack power increase for 20 seconds. If the target has something with a dark attribute, the buff will increase by 50%.¡± ¡°20% is the minimum. The DOT damage could increase by up to 26%. The DOT damage is what we really need to be worried about.¡± ¡°Sure. The problem is the alliance of the Elrika Kingdom and the Undead.¡± ¡°The buffs will be applied one and a half times.¡± ¡°Right.¡± ¡°¡­¡± To summarize all their saying, it would be easy to say that the attack power of all the ones inside the sanctuary would be around 37.5% higher. In addition, 3% of the accumulated DOT damage. Although the buff was limited to one¡¯s attack power, the level of the troops increased 10 to 20% higher. The average level of users in the Elrika Kingdom was 350, but their battle abilities would probably be the same as a level 385 to 420 user since their abilities were boosted. The level 400 Death Knights would have battle abilities close to a level 500. Those were levels that couldn¡¯t be easily overcome with tactics. ¡°Wow, I¡¯ve played this game for a long time, but this is the first time that this game looked crazy to my eyes.¡± Ian was baffled at what he just realized, and Herz just shook his head. ¡°Right. This is developer-level¡­ the sanctuary isn¡¯t on a continent but in the Elrika Kingdom.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Once again silence fell between the two. They need a miracle now. Ian then spoke, ¡°Is there no way to deal with this?¡± ¡°Should we give up Rataphel then? If we do, then we¡¯ll have to give up the twelve manors that are behind it. In addition, we could only conquer the greatest manor of all¡ªthe Elrika¡ªafter crossing Rataphel.¡± Ian bent his head and responded, ¡°No, not that.¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°Not give up the Rataphel Manor. The walls are ones that need to be given up.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that the same?¡± ¡°No.¡± Ian pointed to a place on the map. Herz¡¯s gaze moved into the spot Ian was pointing to. Ian then continued what he was saying. ¡°Let¡¯s go here.¡± ¡°Mountain wall? It¡¯s not like I haven¡¯t thought of it¡­¡± What Ian was trying to say were simple, going over the mountains was the easiest way. It was easy to say, but it was rather hard to do. A small battle could be thought of, but in a war, there were many unknown variables and risks that were associated with those thoughts. For example, an attack was possible, and normal soldiers could be annihilated in an instant. There were no walls or defense groups that could handle the mountains. The mountains could be a great defense if used well. ¡°No matter how hard the mountain is, it will be easier than our original plan.¡± ¡°That is true.¡± ¡°Not a normal, but a high-level party needs to be formed to go to the sanctuary.¡± ¡°Well, that might work, but I¡¯m still not sure if it will.¡± Ian was speaking while moving his fingers across the map. ¡°The longest it could take us to reach the land of Rataphel will be five days.¡± ¡°I think so too. At least seven manors are needed to be taken down.¡± ¡°In the meantime, I¡¯ll take a ride.¡± Herz was shocked upon hearing what Ian said. ¡°What? Even if it is you, isn¡¯t it a bit too dangerous?¡± Ian bent his head and replied to him, ¡°No, it¡¯s not like I can do it by going there alone¡± ¡°Then why?¡± ¡°Here, let¡¯s go scouting.¡± ¡°Uhm¡­?¡± Ian¡¯s fingers pointed at the back of the sanctuary. Although small, one could see something written in the direction Ian was pointing at. It said ¡®Underground Prison¡¯. Herz was unable to grasp Ian¡¯s intention which made him ask once again, ¡°Underground¡­ not even the sanctuary, why there?¡± Ian got up and responded, ¡°There is a thing that needs to be done there.¡± CH 431 The underground catacomb was the starting point of the Lich king¡¯s episode. Ian, along with his party members successfully cleared the dungeon during the time. ¡®I couldn¡¯t find Helliem¡­¡¯ The best knight of the Luspel Empire, Helliem. And he still didn¡¯t have any idea how to find him. It was clear that Helliem wasn¡¯t much lacking in terms of power when compared to Kaizer in the past who served as the general of the Royal Knights, and now he could be the great force for the Lotus Kingdom. ¡®I can¡¯t even think of him as a fine knight, he might be better than Kaizer and be much helpful too.¡¯ It wasn¡¯t a tough task to create a knight¡¯s general with the king¡¯s authority. If the king could allocate a clear budget, it could be created. But raising the level of the knights wasn¡¯t such an easy task. The level of the knights was proportional to the NPC¡¯s abilities that were appointed as the general of knights. The most powerful chief of Knights of the current Lotus Kingdom was an old retainer of Ian¡¯s¡ª¡¯Pauline¡¯. The knights with Pauline of Lv 400, were very powerful ones, and if he could take in Helliem who would probably be of level 500, he could produce the knights to a tremendous level. Not only didn¡¯t he found Helliem in the catacombs, but even the loyalist of the past empire didn¡¯t know of his whereabouts. He didn¡¯t have the time to go and look over all the catacombs in the land. However, the underground crypt of Rataphel manor seemed to have that weird smell. Do you think there is a connection between the underground crypts and the sanctuary of darkness? Right. The Kells who had received the power of darkness from the Lich King Chalian. Maybe a vague guess, but I thought that the dark energy that is released out of the Sanctuary of darkness might help someone. Hmm, it could be. Right. If my guess is correct, this underground crypt is probably a link to the Lich King, and the loyalists of the Luspel could be trapped in there. And, you want to get their help? Bingo. If we destroy the sanctuary and open the gates, wouldn¡¯t it be a game out? Ian was reminiscing about the conversation he had with Herz and started to pick up the pace. With a little more distance, they would enter the territory of Rataphel, and it wasn¡¯t good to be lost in thoughts once they reached there. ¡°Master, are you really sure about going alone?¡± Ian chuckled while seeing Kaka all worried and replied, ¡°I have thought about it, and there is nothing to be worried about.¡± ¡°Even if it¡¯s you master, the sanctuary of darkness is very dangerous¡­¡± ¡°Well, that still remains, but why aren¡¯t you asleep?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know either. Sleep isn¡¯t coming, master.¡± ¡°Oh, really¡­?¡± After that, she was able to sleep¡ªand all that she did was sleep. And that too exactly, when they were in a fight. It was common for her to close her eyes half-asleep like that when moving too. However, because of the useful things that came out of the dreams of Kaka, Ian couldn¡¯t help but be fine with it. Along with the concern of Kaka, Ian¡¯s party moved forward. As they had chosen another path rather than the official road for the mountain, the speed they were moving at was slow. ¡°Who?¡± Upon climbing onto a high ridge, a valley had appeared. Ian unfolded the map and looked at it. ¡°Okay, we¡¯ll have to fly from here.¡± As there were thick forests till a huge area, they couldn¡¯t attempt it¡ªbut now that he came to the mountains, there was no need to walk anymore. It would be easy to cover the distance as they had to cross the valley to reach the Rataphel. Ian, who meticulously looked at the mini-map, looked over at Bbookbbook. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah.¡± At the call from Ian, Bbookbbook spoke with dull eyes. ¡°Called bbook?¡± ¡°It¡¯s been a long time, shall we fly?¡± As he had to fly now, Ian had chosen Bboobbook. It started with Bbookbbook then to Pin, Karceus and then the recently acquired Elcarix. But the ride of Pin wasn¡¯t as comfortable as those dragons, and couldn¡¯t think of getting on his child. Finally, the choice left was Bbookbbook and Karceus. Karceus had a little more waiting time for summoning, so Bbookbbook was chosen. But Bbookbbook has a lot of complaints. ¡°I hate it bboom. My wings are heavy these days.¡± At that Ian tried to persuade him. ¡°Keu, I¡¯ll give you five meatballs when we reach there. How is that? Deal?¡± However, Ian¡¯s persuasion was useless. ¡°I can already eat a lot Bbook. It¡¯s fine if you don¡¯t give Bbook.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°I have been working at Harin noona¡¯s shop these days. And when I work, I get meatballs in return.¡± ¡°Work? What work?¡± ¡°I am very good at working. I¡¯m good at freezing, bbook.¡± ¡°Freezing?¡± Bbookbbook responded by nodding with a proud expression on his face. ¡°If I make ice when Harin noona asks me, then I get meatballs in return bbook. A lot of meatballs bbook! Boobbook!¡± Looking at Bbookbbook who was all excited talking about it, Ian just shook his head. ¡®Euh, I lost the meatball card¡­!¡¯ However, it was impossible to stop Bbookbbook from doing part-time work. Then the problem wasn¡¯t Bbookbbook, but Harin¡¯s excess treatment. Ian pointed to the canyon and tried to persuade Bbookbbook again. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah, help out this hyung. We could walk this way, but how can we do that till there?¡± It would take almost two hours to walk if they decided to do it on the rough terrain. However, Bbookbbook wasn¡¯t going to back down. ¡°Take some other friend Bbook. The meatballs I ate in the morning haven¡¯t digested yet.¡± ¡°How many did you eat?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t remember bbook. Till my stomach was full bbook!¡± ¡°Euh¡­¡± Ian was facing a difficult situation that he hadn¡¯t thought of, and could do nothing but sigh. At the time, someone who was hanging onto Ian¡¯s back talked. ¡°Dad, dad.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Dad, you are his hyung(brother)?¡± Whenever Ian talked with Bbookbbook, he usually referred to him as ¡®this hyung¡¯. Because of that, Elcarix seemed to have though that Bbookbbook was Ian¡¯s brother. ¡°Huh, well?¡± Ian looked at Elcarix who had an exciting look like she was waiting for him to complete the story. The next words that came out of Elcarix¡¯s mouth, were much more fun to hear. ¡°Dad¡¯s sibling, which means¡­ my uncle?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Elcarix got down from Ian¡¯s back and moved forward to Bbookbbook. A voice full of charm came out of her mouth, ¡°Bbook uncle, I want to ride on your plane!¡± ¡°Boo, Bboobbook?¡± ¡°I like the plane of Bbook uncle the most!¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°When Bbook uncle changes, it is so cool!¡± A triple attack from Elcarix and the stubbornness of Bbookbbook broke down in an instant. * * * The name of the kingdom that was established by the Lotus Guild was Lotus, and the kingdom that was usually established by the guild normally had the guild name. The same was with the Titan guild. If the largest kingdom in the North-eastern kingdom was Lotus kingdom, then the largest kingdom in the west was the Titan Kingdom. And Shakran, the king of the Titan Kingdom already succeeded in conquering a single kingdom. The conquered kingdom was small with just ten manors in it, unlike the Elrika that Lotus was running after. And the Titan Kingdom was strong enough to give Lotus a good war. King Shakran was heading to the south-west of the continent, along with an army of the elite. It was a strange situation at first glance. All the users were heading north to battle the legion of Richie King, he was moving to the peaceful place of the south. ¡°Hmmm, this seems to be on the map¡­¡± Shakran mumbled and asked Ceilron who was next to him, ¡°No, master. Why is it that you haven¡¯t told us about this?¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°By catching the skeleton we could have increased the experience and contribution, why do we have to come this south?¡± At the question from Ceilron, Shakran smiled and responded, ¡°Are you that curious?¡± ¡°Absolutely. In the east, the Lotus Kingdom is doing a battle for the conquest, isn¡¯t that what we should be doing too?¡± The concern of Ceilron was understandable. After the unrestrained wars, they almost caught up with the Lotus, and by spending their time in such a place. The gap that they tried hard to cover would widen again. However, the expression of Shakran wasn¡¯t so pleasant. ¡°Ceilron.¡± ¡°Yes, master.¡± ¡°Now, our ultimate goal is to expand our territory.¡± ¡°Yes¡­¡± Thinking about it¡ªCeilron soon responded without hesitation, ¡°Building an Empire. We still have a long way to go, but is that the final goal we are aiming for?¡± Shakran smiled and responded, ¡°Right, exactly that.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Right now, we are moving to lay pavement for our final goal.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Ceilron who didn¡¯t seem to understand it looked at Shakran with a distant expression and Shakran continued to speak, ¡°Ceilron, what¡¯s the requirement that we need to build an Empire?¡± ¡°Well, that is the fame along with securing 200 manors, and our kingdom has already achieved more than 90 percent of it¡­¡± Shakran cut off the words of Ceilron. ¡°Those are all the small things, you have forgotten the most important one.¡± ¡°The most important one?¡± ¡°Huhu.¡± With a cheerful smile, Shakran showed Ceilron the map. And was pointing his finger somewhere along with continuing his words, ¡°Ruins of the ancient Arnovel.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± The short question exclamation from Ceilron was due to the unfamiliar story that had nothing to do with their current state, and Shakran smiled. ¡°You know that the entire body of Kaimon was in the Arnovel Empire, right?¡± ¡°Yeah, well¡­ who wouldn¡¯t know while playing Kailan? But why?¡± ¡°Here, this is the Arnovel¡­¡± Giving it some time to sink in, Shakran opened his mouth with a low voice, ¡°I got the information that the empire¡¯s ruins are hidden here.¡± ¡°That¡­ is it true?¡± ¡°You¡¯re speaking loudly, idi*t. Low, speak a little low.¡± ¡°Ah, okay, master.¡± With a cheerful expression, Shakran opened his mouth, ¡°Which means, it is important to extend our land right away. How many empires were there in the Kailan? Only two empires.¡± ¡°Yeah, true.¡± ¡°Should I let you know another interesting thing?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°This was the information that Emily had obtained a few days back, the ruins of the Luspel Empire have already been obtained by the Blue Wing Kingdom.¡± Ceilron was flustered at what he heard from Shakran. This was much shocking information than that of the Arnovel one. ¡°That, is that really true?¡± ¡°Huhu, would I ever lie to you?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°Then, do you know what that means?¡± Ceilron who was still in shock, couldn¡¯t respond to Shakran¡¯s question. And Shakran continued to speak, ¡°A fortress of the ancient Arnovel empire and the past Kaimon Empire. If we manage to get only this¡­¡± Shakran then changed his speech and spoke word to word. ¡°In the future, the Lotus can never get past us, no matter how much they try.¡± And Ceilron who now understood the entirety of it smiled with a pleasant expression. ¡°Keu, no matter how much the Lotus will try to fly, it can¡¯t be anything but an everlasting kingdom¡± ¡°Sure. Unless the Blue Wing Kingdom gets merged into the Lotus.¡± CH 432 Surrounding the Rataphel Domain were three rivers flowing on either side of it. Ian, who reached the halfway point of the ¡®Rataphel¡¯s mountain¡¯, summoned all of his summons. From the moment they had to infiltrate the manor, which was why they were all called. Ian took out the ¡®invisibility cloak¡¯ which he had bought in the village. [You have equipped the item ¡®Invisibility Cloak¡¯.] [The character will disappear from the sight of the others.] [When the enemy is attacked or the character attacks, the invisibility effect of the character will be exposed.] [After the invisibility effect disappears, the damage is reduced by 50% for 1 minute.] The invisibility cloak was a very rare item. It was an item that was dropped after catching a monster in the Kailan, and the drop rate of the item was close to extreme. Ian, who had been playing for a very long time, for the first time after all the items he had purchased¡ªthis was an expensive item of about 50 million gold, which he bought at the auction house. Although there were several penalties, it was an item that could be used very effectively, considering the situation it would be used. The invisibility cloak was an item that could be considered as something that all the rankers had worn at one point or the other. Ian, wearing his invisibility cloak moved up the mountain boldly. Did he go around 30 minutes like that? At last Ian¡¯s eyes could see the walls of the Rataphel Domain. The magnificent connected walls that went along the mountains. Ian looked at the scene and moved with a slow pace again. ¡®Should I maybe check the location of the Detecting tower first?¡¯ Usually, the detecting towers were placed on the high walls at regular intervals. The detecting towers were a necessary defense system placed to prevent the invaders from entering. It was often for the high-level assassin attempts to invade, like the one the Lotus had in the Pyro Domain. The detecting towers were needed for it, and they were built on the outside of the Rataphel manor. And for Ian, who turned on the invisibility cloak, it was a matter of fact for getting out of sight from the detecting towers. Ian¡¯s head started to work rapidly. ¡®The Rataphel domain is a marquis¡­ four levels of detecting towers can be built.¡¯ In Kailan, when the base of the territory moves to the stage of a domain, it will be divided into five grades. From the very sub-ordinate ones like the Barons and Viscounts. To the earliest level of the castle, like the Marquis which begins with high levels. And finally, the stage of a dukedom. All the types of territories are upgraded along with a one-level upgrade of all their properties. Till the stage of the ¡®Baron¡¯ the grade of the facilities can be raised only till one level at a time, and once a territory reached till ¡®Marquis¡¯ it was then possible to raise the level of the facilities till four levels. In either case, the limit was the same, either basic or advanced. Therefore, in the case of the Rataphel Domain, a Marquis, all the buildings had grown up four levels starting from the defensive tower. ¡®4th level detecting tower, range of 280 meters?¡¯ Ian quickly started to identify the levels of the detecting towers that were outside the Rataphel Domain to find any gaps. They were mostly of level 4 towers, but it seemed there was a less upgraded one somewhere. And if he could find any tower below the level of 3, then he was going to search for a blind spot and move between the towers. ¡®Oh ho, there! A level three in the middle.¡¯ As expected, Ian who saw the blind spot couldn¡¯t help but smile. However, just finding the level 3 wasn¡¯t the end. After calculating the distance between the towers, the next thing he had to do was to see if there were any blind spots. And that was the real problem. In the snow, there was no way Ian could be sure of the exact distance. Ian thought of a possible idea. [You have equipped the item ¡®Solid Armor¡¯.] He would shoot an arrow for a range of 200 meters to measure the distance and then shoot another. Put the arrows in for a demonstration. Ian checked the surroundings many times. ¡®If someone spots me, then it¡¯s turning into a huge problem.¡¯ Even if Ian¡¯s arrow hits a passing monster, Ian¡¯s position could be detected right away. After taking a stable stance, Ian took a deep breath and put the arrow on the bow, then pulled the bowstring. Along with the intense feelings in him, the arrow left the bow. Flying-! A moment later, the arrow fell on the floor without reaching the wall of the detecting tower. Thud. Looking at the position where the arrow had fallen, it seemed like there was still some distance to reach the range of the Detecting Tower. And Ian¡¯s work wasn¡¯t done yet. Ping- Piping-! He changed his position and direction, as soon as it started to hit arrows here and there. Ian who had already released five arrows stood up and then sat down on the ground after taking out his notebook. ¡®The distance between the tower A is about 300 meters, and the distance of the tower B is 400 meters¡­¡¯ Ian pulled out his pen and began to draw a picture without any hesitation. His location, the location of the two detecting towers were drawn in the notebook, and he made a triangle with the three points. The vertex was at a right-angled triangle. ¡®Hmm, so¡­ the distance between the two towers is about 500 meters.¡¯ He was calculating the range the towers had by using his knowledge. He used Pythagoras theorem to find the distance between the towers. ¡®Tower A is of level 4, and tower B is of level 3. There needs to be a blind spot of about 10 meters.¡¯ The range of the 4th level tower came out to be 280 meters and the range of the 3rd level tower came to be 210 meters. If so, then the distance between the two towers was 500 meters, and there will be a gap of 10 meters in the middle. Ian picked up a few more arrows. It was the last arrow that would be hit in the 10-meter blind spot. Ping-! ¡®From the shortest point of the distance, 180 meters from the tower b¡­ going a little further to the left will allow the entry of the blind spot.¡¯ His calculations were complete. Inside the notebook of Ian, the numbers of 180, 320 and 240 were staggered. Ian, who found out the distance with three arrows began to move away slowly. Ian moved as he was convinced. Arriving safely at the front of the wall, Ian climbed the wall abruptly. While Ian was climbing the wall, the soldiers who were guarding the wall didn¡¯t figure out Ian. * * * [Iris recognition completed. Welcome to Kailan ¡®Remir¡¯.] A familiar scene with a familiar message. The Red Flame Magician. No, now she was the Monarch of Red Flame, nicknamed by the server of the Koreans, the strongest wizard user¡ªRemir. She was connecting to Kailan as soon as she got up for leveling up. ¡°Hmm, should I maybe try the party after a long time? The solo play is getting a little boring¡­¡± Remir opened the list of friends that she had while sticking out her tongue. She looked at the most natural person who would¡¯ve been on, connected with a blue light on top of her friends list. That person was Ian. ¡°Doesn¡¯t he ever get tired, right from morning? Let¡¯s see¡­ hmm, today¡¯s playtime seems to be a little human-like. It¡¯s only been three hours since he logged on.¡± Remir sometime checked the playtime of Ian on her friends list, and there were times where she was scared. Ten to twenty hours were his basic, and many times she had seen 40 hours on his playtime. The current time was till, at 5 o¡¯clock in the morning. Since there was just one person in her friends list, Remir decided to message him. ¡°Yeah well, it will be nice to run Spartan after a long time.¡± Even when not in a party the ¡®party offer¡¯ to him made Remir a bit nervous. Remir who was able to decide sent a message to Ian. No, tried to. ¡°Uh?¡± Right when she was about to. Ian¡¯s message came to her first. Ian: Remir noona, party play, it has been a while right? Remir who was shocked for a second rubbed her hands while thinking again. ¡°Ah, he isn¡¯t a ghost right?¡± Remir was scared of Ian whenever he asked for a party play. * * * A small ground on the outskirts of Rataphel. Wheeing-! A portal opened with a small resonance and around four to five people moved out from him. But they were all very gorgeous to be generalized as ¡®four or five users¡¯. Starting with the Monarch of the Red Flame till the 1st ranked Black Magician Hoonie. And with Yu Shin the warrior class user in the top 5, and the 1st ranker priest class user Levya. And at last, when Ian came out of the portal, the door of the portal went shut and disappeared. ¡°Woah.¡± Ian looked around at all the party members who were gathered and laughed. ¡°I¡¯m sure you all had a hard time coming here right from the dawn. He he.¡± Remir opened her mouth with a blank expression, ¡°No, I¡¯m actually surprised that you contacted all the people at this time. Other than me, Ian directly contacted all of you?¡± Levya nodded her head and replied, ¡°Tha¡­ that so? I was sleeping when I answered the call from Ian and connected right away.¡± Yu Shin added to it, ¡°It was the same for me.¡± Hoonie whined along with them. ¡°I wanted to sleep a little more, hump¡­¡± Ian suddenly disconnected after sending Remir a message and quickly went to wake up those people who currently joined the party. Moreover, he said to come to the castle right away, and after opening the portal, he bought them all to an unknown place. Though they were called to connect into the game at dawn, these people actually connected and joined the party. It was sure that these people were indeed the esteemed rankers. Levya looked around and asked Ian a questioned face. ¡°By the way Ian. What is this place?¡± ¡°Inside the Rataphel Domain.¡± ¡°Rataphel Domain in the sense¡­¡± ¡°A Marquis in the Elrika kingdom.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± It was a fact which everyone knew, that the Elrika Kingdom was the home of the Lich King. And to be said, it was the center of the dark force. But before they could be curious about why they were brought into there, they were much curious about how Ian had managed to actually enter that place. ¡°Just a second, how in the hell did you get here?¡± At the question of Remir, Ian shook his head. ¡°No comment on that. I¡¯ll explain another thing.¡± ¡°Sh*t¡­¡± And this time it was Yu Shin who asked the question. ¡°Then why are you here?¡± ¡°That¡¯s an obvious one¡­¡± Ian¡¯s lip corners went up when he answered with a weird grin, ¡°To actually play and have fun.¡± CH 433 Ian thought of infiltrating Rataphel, and he was planning to do it alone. Since he was with Elcarix and Lugarix, he wouldn¡¯t have been in any kind of danger. Ian thought that infiltrating Rataphel could at least make him explore the catacombs. However, after talking with Remir, his thoughts changed. ¨C So, noona, are there quests in the Devildom related to the Lich King? ¨C Yeah, I was in a quest with Shakran when we were confronted by the users of Devildom. ¨C Then, you couldn¡¯t break the dimensional door? ¨C Right. Sooner or later those users in Devildom will enter our continent. ¨C It has something to do with Daedmon. ¨C Yep. Acting like you weren¡¯t sure. How do you know that? ¨C Ah, that¡­ A while back, Ian heard from Hoonie about the relationship between the Devil God and the God of Darkness. Therefore, he could immediately notice a connection between the dimensional doors and the Lich King. ¡®If those ones from the Devildom get involved, it¡¯ll turn a little dangerous.¡¯ He didn¡¯t know if the magic-resistance setting could be placed, as the episode of the Richie King was under progress, all of the equipment of Ian was set to dark resistance. Which was why, if he was going to face-off against rankers like Irahan from the Devildom, Ian couldn¡¯t guarantee a victory if he was going to do it alone. Which was why Ian decided to use those Dimensional Beads. He opened the magic portal and brought in his other colleagues. Hoonie, Remir, and Levya. And Yu Shin too. Having companions with such high power and skill, Ian was sure to overcome any unforeseen danger. ¡°I think this will be¡­¡± Ian brought with him the members of his party which he had scouted and sent Kaka to find the entrance of the catacomb crypt. After a while, he got back the information through Kaka¡¯s vision. ¡°There are three guards at the entrance. Their level is around 400.¡± Hoonie relayed to them the situation he was seeing through Kaka¡¯s vision. Ian then said, ¡°That¡¯s it, right?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°This catacomb is similar to the catacomb that we opened at the beginning of the episode.¡± Remir then asked, ¡°Yah, how can you know that after just seeing the entrance of the dungeon? It can just be a normal underground cave for all you know.¡± Ian bowed his head and pointed to the crystal ball. ¡°There, can¡¯t you see the guards¡¯ attribute there?¡± ¡°Attribute?¡± ¡°The floating icon beside the guards¡¯ level. The guards have dark attributes.¡± ¡°Uh, that?¡± Levya interrupted their conversation. ¡°But you can¡¯t say for sure by just that one thing, right? The attribute of the NPC isn¡¯t the only thing that should be considered here¡­ for example, the guards of the Lotus will have general attributes, and the guards of the Pyro Domain will have a mix of flame and general attributes.¡± Everyone¡¯s eyes turned to Ian upon hearing Levya¡¯s detailed question. However, Ian¡¯s answer was simple. ¡°That is related to the area.¡± ¡°The area¡­?¡± ¡°Normally, the humanoid NPCs have general attributes. However, depending on their surroundings, there are cases where the attributes change. NPCs in the deserts are mostly composed of flame attributes, and the ones in the northern continent have ice attributes.¡± ¡°Oh ho, then according to Ian here, the guard out there must be having either general or ice attributes, right?¡± ¡°On point. All the humanoid NPCs that I¡¯ve seen so far had dark attributes, Undeads. Well, though these guards are the first case of such which I¡¯m seeing¡­ I¡¯m sure that the odds of me being wrong are low.¡± ¡°I see. That¡¯s so interesting.¡± All the people out there admired how intelligent Ian was. All of the ones in the party were very good with their overall knowledge of Kailan, but Ian was on a whole different level from them. It was absolutely necessary for users to have abundant knowledge of Kailan if they would like to succeed in it. However, it wasn¡¯t like these were that essential either. Specifically, in the case of the players who have a high level of control like Remir. They weren¡¯t aware of these things even after being rankers. While the party was having a thorough discussion, the relay of Kaka¡¯s vision ended. The fact that Kaka wasn¡¯t caught even after entering the enemy¡¯s borders meant that they were on the right track. ¡°Good work, Kaka.¡± ¡°It was nothing, master.¡± Kaka shrugged with a haughty expression. Ian riffled his hair and got up from the place where he was seated. He then took out his equipment. ¡°Should we try moving in now?¡± * * * Remains of the eastern side of the continent. There was a scruffy looking user who was level 90 in a place of hunting for level 70 users. ¡°Who is that person?¡± ¡°Yeah. Although his equipment seems all rough, it is a minimum level 90 equipment¡­ why is he here?¡± ¡°I¡¯m thinking the same. Maybe to get some material items?¡± ¡°If he is already over level 90, then he is probably here because he lacks the skill to hunt in a level 90 or above hunting grounds.¡± ¡°Oh, is that so?¡± Passing by the man, were some normal group of users. The users who were passing by looked like they were elementary kids. There was a lot of beginners out there, the man heard what they were saying about him. The man turned and spoke, ¡°Level 90? Moreover, skill-less!? I¡¯m a top-class user! A top ranker!¡± However, after the outburst of the man, the beginner kids just teased him more. ¡°Uncle, you¡¯re a top-class?¡± ¡°And a top ranker too!?¡± ¡°Hahaha. If you¡¯re a top ranker uncle then I am Ian.¡± ¡°I¡¯m Hoonie.¡± ¡°Then, I¡¯ll be Irahan!¡± ¡°Aeh, Irahan is in the Devildom. Change it to Shakran.¡± ¡°Okay, I¡¯m Shakran!¡± The man who was being ridiculed by the kids responded with a grim look, ¡°Come see, my level is over 300, you kids!¡± Silence filled the air when the kids heard what the man said. A blank-faced kid was the first to respond. ¡°Huhu. I guess this uncle wasn¡¯t joking. It¡¯s crazy for him to say that he is above level 300.¡± ¡°Yeah. Maybe he isn¡¯t feeling well?¡± ¡°Yeah maybe. Have a little conscience, Sam. Was it level 30 again?¡± ¡°Euk, if this was the PK zone, I would¡¯ve taken him down. Such a waste.¡± The conversation of those beginner kids made the man mad. However, the man tried his best to control his emotions from exploding. He thought that he could shut the mouths of those kids right away if he opened his level information and showed it to them, but his current quest would then fail. ¡®Endure, just a little more¡­¡¯ The man endured the verbal attacks from the kids with the highest level of dedication. The man¡¯s name was Lilson. The dungeon where Lilson was currently at was a dungeon which had a level limit. Users of level 100 or higher couldn¡¯t enter it. So the misunderstanding of the kids wasn¡¯t that unreasonable. In normal circumstances, Lilson wouldn¡¯t have been able to come here. However, the explorer class Lilson had a special skill called ¡®Camouflage¡¯. The ability to temporarily change a user¡¯s level whenever a user wanted to. However, if the level information was disclosed, the skill would be deactivated right away. That would immediately push Lilson out of the dungeon. ¡®Uh uh, I¡¯ll make you pay for this. I will never forget these kids faces, you cool-acting-jerks! I¡¯m invincible!¡¯ Even if users changed their level their stats would stay the same. However, users would only be able to wear equipment that was appropriate to their current level. So, users couldn¡¯t disguise themselves as high ranking rankers and go around. Lilson¡¯s case was the complete opposite though. ¡°Eh, this uncle looks like he is sleep-deprived.¡± ¡°Right. Since he has nothing to say, he¡¯s digging the ground.¡± ¡°Huhu, no fun. Let¡¯s go and hunt guys.¡± ¡°Yeah! We need to reach level 75 by the end of the day!¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go, friends!¡± After seeing Lilson not responding to their provocation, those kids decided to move into the hunting grounds. Lilson, stoop up for the last time and encouraged himself. ¡®Hu, this was the biggest crisis in the game life of Lilson. Good job, Lilson!¡¯ Once those kids left, Lilson continued to shovel. As kids said earlier, Lilson digging in the ground made no sense. Lilson was looking for an ancient ruin or ark. Lilson, who was in a Quadra S quest, couldn¡¯t abandon the quest just because some know-it-all users bothered him. ¡®The quest did have a high-level of difficulty ¡­ I guess it had a reason.¡¯ He was thinking of doing something nonsensical, Lilson¡¯s shoveling didn¡¯t stop. It was truly a terrific one. Lilson¡¯s desire was tremendous. As a ranker of the Explorer class, he could be considered as a crystal in that career. ¡°I¡¯m sure that the Records of Muran are somewhere in here¡­¡± Lilson once again checked the coordinates on the mini-map and grunted while shoveling. He heard and felt the shovel hit something when he dug into the ground. Ting-! The sound came from beneath the ground. ¡°Found it!¡± Lilson was sure that he found what he was looking for. He put the shovel back into his inventory and took out a Houmi. [You have released the item of ¡®Pyro¡¯s administrative supply (Legendary)¡¯] [You have equipped the item ¡®Houmi (Hero) of the Dwarf edition¡¯.] Lilson grabbed onto the Houmi firmly and began to work it around the source of the sound. Lilson¡¯s expression as of the moment was the most serious of all the excavation that he performed in the past. ¡°Hup¡­!¡± He stood up and took a deep breath at the same time. He then got back to work with the Houmi. Despite his efforts, however, fussy system messages kept coming up. [During the excavation, the quality of the remains has been damaged by 1.25%.] [The quality of remains has been damaged by 0.97% during the excavation.] Lilson sighed deeply at the warning messages that came up because he dug as precisely as he could. If the quality of the ruins were lowered before the excavation was even completed, then restoring the ruin would be a complete fail. ¡°A little more¡­!¡± Lilson¡¯s heart started pounding. If another warning message came about the level dropping, then it was likely that he would fail to find the artifacts in his needed level. It had been about 15 minutes since Lilson started to dig in the ground. Tring-! [You have succeeded in discovering the ruins of the ancient Luspel Empire, ¡®Muran¡¯s Records (Legendary)¡¯!] [The excavation experience increased by 729,380.] [Fame increased by 15,000!] Lilson felt proud after enduring all of those insults and finding the item he was looking for. ¡°Kay, should I open it now?¡± He slowly opened the lid very carefully. However, at that moment, Lilson suddenly heard someone¡¯s voice. [On the day when the darkness descends on the land, my descendants will awaken and come to save the world.] CH 434 Inside the refreshment room of LB Soft. Two men were drinking while talking. The two men weren¡¯t just someone else. They were Na Ji-chan and his disciple Im Chul-woo. ¡°Sir, I¡¯m curious about something.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I¡¯m really glad that things are going our way¡­ but, aren¡¯t we leaving the plan a little too much to luck?¡± ¡°Luck? What do you mean?¡± ¡°Well, Muran¡¯s Crystal is an item that very randomly drops¡­ if it wasn¡¯t Ian but some other powerless and skill-less user who gets it, isn¡¯t it likely for the scenario to be ruined completely?¡± Im Chul-woo¡¯s question made Na Ji-chan laugh. ¡°Who said that Muran¡¯s Crystal would just randomly drop?¡± ¡°Huh? Wasn¡¯t it a separate drop rate?¡± Na Ji-chan jerked his head aside and replied, ¡°The system will drop it when certain conditions are met.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Think about it. Even if the drop rate was low, and if it was a random drop, wouldn¡¯t it have been dropped at least once now?¡± ¡°That¡­ that makes sense.¡± It had been six months since he came to the planning team. It was a matter he heard for the first time since he came to LB, which raised the brows of Chul-woo. Na Ji-chan continued spewing out interesting things. ¡°Bottom line is, in order to get Muran¡¯s Crystal one needs to satisfy a whole lot of conditions.¡± ¡°And they are¡­?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not so sure about everything, starting from the average quest achievement level, skill uses, and ability¡ªexcluding control abilities¡ªall the conditions are needed to be met before one can get Muran¡¯s Crystal. Also, the item will drop as the quest progresses.¡± What Na Ji-chan said made Im Chul-woo¡¯s eyes grew wide. ¡°Is that really possible?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Even then, there is one thing that I find strange, senior.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°If a user met all the conditions for acquiring Muran¡¯s crystal, could he sell or transfer it to another user. Ian might get lucky and be the one to buy the crystal from someone.¡± ¡°Who would want to sell it? No way that¡¯s going to happen. Only a fool would do that. Muran¡¯s crystal is an account-related item, right?¡± ¡°Ah¡­ Of course.¡± Na Ji-chan kept touching his head then spoke, ¡°Anyway, that is why if a user tries to transfer Muran¡¯s Crystal, the receiving user needs to be someone who deserves the crystal. He should be someone who had the ability to solve a lot of quests.¡± ¡°If that is the case, will Muran¡¯s Crystal drop as the system planned?¡± ¡°Could be or couldn¡¯t be.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± Na Ji-chan¡¯s explanation continued, and Im Chul-woo took out his notebook and began taking the notes. In the case of Kailan, its scale was vast despite the company only releasing one update every six months. There were still loads of content that wasn¡¯t released yet. Im Chul-woo, who understood an outline of the situation, spoke with that giddy head of his, ¡°Sir, now that we¡¯ve played the Muran card, doesn¡¯t this scenario worry you?¡± Na Ji-chan nodded and replied to him, ¡°I feel that. Well, Ian isn¡¯t a user who lacks the ability to solve quests¡­ maybe it will go smoothly.¡± Contrary to what he said, Na Ji-chan was actually feeling uneasy. ¡®Ian is a user who can be understood¡­ however, if something goes wrong, then what?¡¯ * * * In the southeast of the Colonial Continent. A powerful empire that was the first ever to unify the whole continent under a single banner was once there. The ruins of the empire were Muran, the capital of the Luspel empire. A magnificent castle towering to the sky was there to prove the splendid glory of its past. The structure lined up along the castle. However, those were just remnants of the past. The present Muran was just a ¡®ruin¡¯ now. These ruins were once crowded with people. However, it was now filled with dungeons and monsters. As of the moment, Muran was just one of the many hunting grounds in the southeast continent. It was a great hunting ground for ranked users, as it had monsters with levels over 300. At the center of the city, which was currently a hunting ground, was a unique place. It was a place that wasn¡¯t being approached by monsters, it was giving out a sanctuary kind of vibe. In the space of about 50 meters from the center of the ground, a huge statue was standing, and no monster seemed to have set foot on that ground. That space turned into a shelter for users who came there for hunting. Young-hoon and Semi who just reached level 290 were there, and they were the biggest beneficiaries of that safety zone. Originally, the place was overflowing with the power of a two people play, but all thanks to the safety zone, the hunting ground was viable. ¡°By the way, Young-hoon-ah, why aren¡¯t monsters coming in here?¡± ¡°Not sure. Maybe the statue has something to do with it?¡± Young-hoon and Semi thanked the statue by touching it gently. The dirt on the statue had piled up, and there were a few chips here and there. However, the statue still gave out the splendid grandeur of a warrior. The statue was that of a hero on a horse with a sword in his hand. Muran, the absolute hero, and leader who ruled the Luspel in the past. A warrior who was called the hero of the continent for his valour. Semi tilted her head and responded to Young-hoon¡¯s guess earlier, ¡°Maybe it is? So what remains of Muran is stopping the monsters?¡± ¡°Well, you know about the details of the planner, so.¡± Young-hoon responded with a slight irritation and checked his equipment. Semi then suddenly pulled Young-hoon¡¯s shirt. ¡°Uh, Young-hoon.¡± ¡°Ah, what now?¡± ¡°The statue just moved¡­!¡± After seeing Semi all flustered, Young-hoon turned back to check it for himself. However, the statue still looked the same. Young-hoon just sighed and shook his head. ¡°Huh, the statue suddenly moves, really? You were sleepy when we were hunting and now you¡¯re dreaming?¡± ¡°No¡­ not that! I mean it. It¡¯s true!¡± ¡°Enough! Stop talking about nonsense. If you¡¯re tired, take a break or a nap. I¡¯m going to hunt a little more before I sleep.¡± Young-hoon gave up and rose from his seat. He then suddenly heard a voice, but it wasn¡¯t from Semi. ¡°Euk! Monster!¡± ¡°What? Why would monsters suddenly come here in the safety zone?¡± Both Semi and Young-hoon got ready for battle. If monsters started to enter the safety zone, then there was no way they could calculate when the monsters would reach the place they were resting at. ¡°What happened suddenly?¡± ¡°Yeah. A monster hasn¡¯t come into the safety zone for months now.¡± Semi responded while keeping a lookout. Krrrng- kukung-! They suddenly heard a thunderous roar, and the statue behind the two began to crumble down. * * * [The darkness had finally descended upon¡­.] In the sky city of Muran. A translucent body was floating in the air and looked at the ground with a gentle expression. The man¡¯s appearance was very identical to that of the statute that just crumbled. [Chalian¡­ that wicked human eventually released the Devildom¡­] The man closed his eyes and brought his closely clasped hands to his chest. With white light coming from his hand, a great sword of history sprang up before his eyes. [Now is the time to tell me everything.] A man murmuring unknown words put the sword into its sheath. After a while. The man floating in the sky suddenly disappeared without a trace. Only the white clouds were the only ones that could be seen, and the wind started to flow again. * * * Kwang- Kwang- Kwang- [You have successfully defeated the ¡®Dark Guard¡¯ monster!] [You have earned experience points of 19,827,198!] [You have successfully defeated the ¡®Dark Salamander¡¯ monster!] [You have earned experience points of 13,875,421!] A party of the strongest rankers was hunting monsters with Lugarix who was level 500. They were rankers and yet Ian could still see flaws from their play, so he nagged them, ¡°Yu Shin, your timing is too fast. Some monsters got away!¡± ¡°Hoonie, you should have cast a single skill when doing the Soul Decay. The wide area efficiency is very low in a similar situation.¡± Looking at that scene, Remir shook her head. ¡°Phew, that is indeed a rare species.¡± Upon hearing Remir¡¯s mumbling, Levya laughed and responded, ¡°Even then Remir, he hasn¡¯t said anything wrong, right?¡± ¡°That¡­ that is true¡­¡± ¡°Check the experience points we¡¯re getting. Won¡¯t a few complaints be alright?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Remir who looked at how much experience she was getting was surprised. The hunting speed was never low. She earned more than half the experience points she would get if she hunted by herself. Even when considering the difference that was in a solo-play and a party-play, it was a figure that made no sense. ¡®I think I¡¯ll have to come right away if I get a call at dawn¡­¡¯ The temptation was sweet. Almost like a drug with a force that made it impossible to stop. That was what Ian and hunting with Ian were like. Once a party play was done, it couldn¡¯t be done again for a duration of time. So if one misses the opportunity to party up with Ian once he called, the party hunt would be over by the time they begin to regret it. ¡°Nice! This is good¡­¡± Remir was trying to rationalize herself. She began to cast spells just as Ian ordered. ¡°Nice, let¡¯s clear the basement in 30 minutes and then go down!¡± Upon hearing what Ian said, Hoonie grunted in response to Ian¡¯s enthusiasm. ¡°Hyung, we¡¯re still close to half in the 3rd floor, how do you plan on clearing this in 30 minutes? Do we have to hunt as fast as we possibly can? Let¡¯s rest for 10 minutes.¡± However, Ian¡ªbeing himself¡ªignored Hoonie. ¡°Idiot! This is the enemy¡¯s place. We don¡¯t know if the Rataphel nobles are already aware of us. We need to clear it as soon as possible and find what is at the end of the dungeon.¡± This time Yu Shin asked with a grim look on his face, ¡°But, how will the Rataphel nobles be aware of us?¡± ¡°Uhm?¡± ¡°It¡¯s because of the guards. We didn¡¯t leave any of them out¡­ I don¡¯t think anything would even run into the manor.¡± That was a good answer. However, Ian dismissed it as he didn¡¯t want anyone else to think about it. ¡°Noisy.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian who was dissatisfied with his party members¡¯ attitude just started to move again. Since Ian had Elcarix with him, the hunt was much more fun for him. ¡°El, Bondage of Light!¡± ¡°El, Dragonic Barrier!¡± ¡°Good job, El!¡± Elcarix who made a deal with Ian did what he asked, and the party members just followed. ¡°Hehe, dad. I¡¯m the best, right?¡± ¡°Yeah! El, you¡¯re 20 times better than your brother.¡± ¡°Het! Let¡¯s clear this as fast as we can and go to the auction house. Dad you¡¯re supposed to buy me some pretty clothes.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Though they hesitated a bit earlier, Ian and his friends cleared the dungeon smoothly. The dungeon¡¯s difficulty was similar to that of that dungeon where Kells was. That was why it was natural for Ian and his party to easily clear the dungeon since they were stronger now. Around 30 minutes have passed¡­ ¡°Oh, the staircase is there!¡± ¡°Phew, we really broke through in 30 minutes.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I said¡­¡± Ian cleared the 3rd basement of the dungeon and succeeded in finding a staircase that descended into the 4th floor. Just when everything seemed to be going smoothly¡­ Kung- Kukung-! ¡°What? What¡¯s this all of a sudden now?¡± ¡°Uh? Uh-oh¡­?¡± The whole dungeon shook when a shining light appeared in front of Ian¡¯s party. After a while. Woong-! They suddenly heard a low voice after a large resonating sound. [Who dares to step foot in here! You probably have a death wish!] Spoke the voice of a very familiar man. CH 435 A Death Knight with a purple metal armor and a huge sword. Ian who looked at the appearance was dumbfounded. ¡®Who is it? It seems like someone I might surely know.¡¯ As Ian¡¯s memory wasn¡¯t able to pick up any identity or name, it was thought of a some not-a-big-deal NPC, but he was sure that he knew the one who just appeared. Ian had good eyes. And within a while, Ian was able to realize the identity. ¡°Vice-captain Rosen?¡± Deputy Rosen was a Luspel Imperial Knight who was always beside Helliem in protecting the empire. Surprisingly, Rosen who always protected the empire of Luspel by being a loyalist had now appeared as a death Knight right in front of them as a gatekeeper for the catacombs. But after those words came out of the mouth of Ian, Rosen was the one who was more puzzled. ¡°You know my name. But a vice-captain you say, what is that? I¡¯m the lord of the dead, family of Chalian.¡± Thud-! Rosen took out his sword and raised it to the sky and put the gauntlet on the floor. It was an unexpected act from anyone¡¯s point of view, however, Ian responded with panic. ¡°El, Dragonic Barrier!¡± Wheeing-! In less than two seconds, before Rosen¡¯s skill could be implemented, the Dragonic Barrier was created as a shield for all the members. The wide-area attack from Rosen got completely absorbed by the barrier. Kwang- Kwakwang-! [The attack skill of ¡®Death Knight Rosen¡¯, the ¡®Darkness Quake¡¯ was overwhelming.] [The durability of the ¡®Dragonic Barrier¡¯ has been reduced by 57. (2,927/ 2,984)] [A state of stun has been activated with a 75% chance.] [¡®Dragonic Barrier¡¯ resisted the influence.] Of the named Death Knight, the most high-level skill was considered as the Darkness quake. The Darkness Quake wasn¡¯t a very powerful weapon for destruction, but it sure was a very threatening skill. The reason for it was the ¡®stun¡¯ condition. If there was a little damage taken in from the Darkness Quake, there was a high probability of being in a stun for 7 seconds. In that duration of 7 seconds, any weaker class position could reach the point of death. If I wasn¡¯t for Ian¡¯s quick response, the party would have suffered huge damage. Levya who played another skill, a step later, opened her mouth with a little flustered expression. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I was a bit late.¡± ¡°No problem, well, It was very sudden so.¡± Ian looked at the Death Knight Rosen. ¡®The vice-captain of Imperial order¡­ it is sure that we aren¡¯t on the wrong side.¡¯ For Ian to come over to the Rataphel domain, and the purpose of using the dimensional portal. And to come to the underground catacombs with a certain amount of expectation. Was to rescue the powerful NPCs of the past Luspel Empire and place them in their armies. And for the Rosen of that time appearing in front of him as the knight was a good sign. And it has been said that there was a high probability that the other imperial NPCs would appear further deep. ¡®But if all the knights have already turned into Undead¡­ that will be the worst turn of events.¡¯ If it was just Rosen, then it wouldn¡¯t be much of a problem, but if all the knights including Helliem were Death Knights. Then the party of Ian would have an impossible situation to cope with. Ian¡¯s head started to work at a high speed. They couldn¡¯t just merely drill through the ground without any plan. Depending on their judgments and decisions, they could win big or lose more. ¡®The total number of imperial knights were around 100 to 200. We can get rid of half of them if they aren¡¯t Helliem¡­¡¯ However, Ian¡¯s idea didn¡¯t move any forward. Rosen who had failed to cause any damage to them had called for reinforcements. ¡°I cannot help the humans who dared to step foot into the sanctuary of darkness.¡± Kwahh-! A purple smoke started to rise from the back of Rosen, and the air started to move. With a while, the haze of purple disappeared and additional death knights came into their sight. Now Ian¡¯s expression had changed. ¡®Rosen is of level 450 and the others are all 420s¡­¡¯ The appearance of the death knights seemed like the NPCs of the empire. However, no matter how many alternative techniques were thought, it just seemed inevitable to go against them. Ian stopped trying to figure things out with nervousness and ordered the party members. ¡°Remir noona.¡± ¡°Huh.¡± ¡°I think this will be a better situation to go for the cut-and-block strategy. Let¡¯s operate with a single focus.¡± ¡°Kay.¡± While Ian was getting ready to battle. Chuk- chuk- chuk- The death knights began to form their own formation. ¡°Yu Shin, you need to be at your best.¡± ¡°Understood, Ian.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll move from the person that you¡¯re targeting, one after the other.¡± ¡°Okay!¡± Except for the quest that happened in the Prilania canyon, the current battle was the arduous one. Even with the high level of anxiety and panic, the party of Ian soon went into battle. * * * Sllrrrr. Thud, thud. With a sound of a door sliding, the sound of someone¡¯s steps approaching him entered the ears of Prof. Lee Jin-wook. After listening to the sound of the footsteps which seemed like whining footsteps. Lee Jin-wook was able to guess the identity of the person who just entered the professor¡¯s room and spoke to him without even looking at his face. ¡°Can¡¯t do.¡± And the protagonist with the footsteps, who was dumbfounded with the sharp words was Semi who looked at him with a sullen face. ¡°Huh? What ¡®can¡¯t do¡¯, professor?¡± Keek. Lee Ji-wook, who was staring at the monitor, turned back with his chair. And looked through his glasses to see the person. ¡°You, didn¡¯t you come to ask permission to take a leave again?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°You thought I didn¡¯t know? Not this time! I need to go to the other class, move.¡± At the successive successful attacks from Lee Jin-wook, Semi was perplexed. However, she wasn¡¯t in the plan of backing down, she immediately asked him. ¡°Professor, it really can¡¯t happen this time?¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°I have never canceled it even once this semester, so saying ¡®this time¡¯ for just once is a little sad to hear.¡± ¡°That, really? Didn¡¯t you cancel the last class, class B?¡± ¡°Yeah. Besides, tomorrow is a holiday that was declared for the whole nation! Professor, I really appreciate your passion¡­ wouldn¡¯t it be a loss in the long run if you take classes even in the holidays?¡± ¡°Why do suppose it will be?¡± ¡°Well, firstly, the students will feel less motivated to study.¡± ¡°And?¡± ¡°Secondly, professor, your physical strength is very low. How about you give us a better quality lecture on your workday and take the holiday as rest time, that sounds better right?¡± Lee Jin-wook¡¯s expression stiffened with the logical allegations that Semi had just made, touching his chin he opened his mouth, ¡°Are you sure this is the collective opinion of all?¡± ¡°Of course! Even with tomorrow¡¯s class being canceled, everything else will be perfect in the timetable!¡± ¡°Perfect¡­?¡± ¡°Perfectly clean¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡± Lee Jin-wook looked at her face narrowing his wrinkled eyes. ¡®There is some time till the end of the final exam¡­¡¯ It was natural for the professor to feel comfortable at the explanation. To stand in front of the whole class for 2 hours and teach, consumed a lot of energy. And there was enough ground for the cancellation, so it was a good idea. However, there was a reason why Lee Jin-wook was worried¡­ ¡®There is nothing for me to do if tomorrow¡¯s class gets canceled.¡¯ He who went hunting in the afternoon was killed and had to face the Kailan¡¯s death penalty, which meant he couldn¡¯t play until 5 pm tomorrow. And that was the actual and critical problem of Professor Lee Jin-wook. ¡°Keum, cancel ah¡­¡± Lee Jin-wook repeatedly touched his chin with concern still running in his mind. Seeing that, Semi decided to hand a little sweet information. ¡°Professor, do you know about that?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Yoo-hyun senior has told this.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± ¡°Professor Seonmi is going hiking tomorrow morning.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°Professor Seonmi is going alone, try contacting her¡­¡± And with that story, the negotiations were concluded. There was nothing as sweet as the opportunity for a bachelor to find a partner to spend the day with. ¡°That, that seems like a good one¡­¡± ¡°Huhu, am I not a student of capabilities?¡± ¡°Huh, you have such good qualities.¡± ¡°Then, professor, canceling¡­?¡± ¡°Okay, deal! Tomorrow we will all rest. See you next week, Semi-ah!¡± Professor Lee Jin-wook hurriedly turned off the computer. Seeing him like that, Semi smiled. ¡®Nice! Then I can watch the videos of Ian with peace today!¡¯ Honestly, Semi didn¡¯t want to rest tomorrow. As her mind was still stuck in the field, she wasn¡¯t able to do the assigned task that was needed to be done by tomorrow. However, as all of the students wished for the same thing, the cancellation was concluded, and now the task could be postponed to the later week. Semi smiled and ran out of the room. After hearing the good news, she wanted to rush home and watch the broadcast after going home. * * * There were many kinds of monsters in Kailan. Skeletons, orc, goblins, ogres and many more. Monsters of various categories, who could be identified by just listening to their names. But what was interesting was that even if the same monster appeared twice, they didn¡¯t possess the same ability and skill. Just as how humans had the same ability, the monsters of Kailan also had a certain tactical distinction with a range. Relatively strong orcs, specifically the ones with a good head. The difference between each unit (monster) becomes bigger with a higher tier of the monster. In the case of goblins, the main monster, there wasn¡¯t much of a difference in them that could be noticed, but the difference was highly noticeable in the higher tier monsters like the death knight. Not to mention the NPCs who were proud of their abilities before they became the Undead. KaBang-! The fist of Yu Shin and the sword of Rosen made contact with the other and went bouncing with a sound. Though almost 30 minutes have passed since the battle had begun, Ian only succeeded in removing three death knights. Death Knights, including Rosen, were pushing the party of Ian with a hard battle. ¡®The AI is so good on the units such as monsters.¡¯ The plan made by the party of Ian was simple. A battle that slays those that looked the weakest while Yu Shin takes it on, Bbakbbak would do the best with his tanking abilities. The best and effective form of combat had been disabled under the command of Rosen. When the attacks were being focused on a specific death knight, the specific target moved to the back of the battlefield and the others began to protect it. Of course, even if the battle kept happening like this, they would eventually win, but they would have to spend around 3 to 4 hours. ¡®I wanted to finish this quickly¡­ is there another way?¡¯ Though they cleared out all the monster in the dungeon while descending down, as things went now, it was more likely for the Rataphel lord to be discovered. At least before that, they had to clear out the dungeon and get out of there. ¡®If we had one or two more damage dealers¡­¡¯ Right after the mission was done, Cameres had returned to the Dragon Haven. Ian who was in his deep thoughts felt hesitation. ¡°Sh*t.¡± If one NPC had been there, he could finish the battle in just 10 to 20 minutes. ¡®Maybe if either Kaizer or Pauline¡­¡¯ He tried to recall the retainers who were currently in the Kingdom¡¯s army and fighting hard, and he wasn¡¯t able to think of anything else. Since there were many constraints, there was a limit to how much they could do. While Ian was in deep thoughts. Bang-! On the side of the battlefield, an enormous sound came. A huge explosion which was enough to make the whole dungeon battle stop. Ian¡¯s gaze turned naturally in the direction of the sound and was shocked at what he saw. One of the death knights, who had a full Hp till then, was a cold corpse on the floor. Right behind the corpse, there was a man standing whose identity was unknown. CH 436 The seal of the Luspel empire was very similar to that of the Lotus Kingdom. What was inevitable was that both of them were the images of a griffin. As Ian¡¯s ¡®Pin¡¯ was a griffin cub in the Luspel Empire of the past, it was the model used. So they couldn¡¯t help to know the resemblance. Immediately after confirming the armor of the man, Ian couldn¡¯t help but panic. It was because he was confused about the shape of the griffin that was made on the armor of the man, and mistook him for an NPC of the Lotus Kingdom. However, when he checked the level that floated on his head, he realized that he was wrong. ¡®There can¡¯t be a level 500 in our kingdom. Then, it is much likely for him to be an NPC of the Luspel kingdom¡­¡¯ Lugarix, Cameres. A knight with the level similar to that of the Lich King Chalian. Ian was very curious about the identity. ¡®Was there another strong knight in the Luspel Empire apart from Helliem?¡¯ In a very short period of time, just a few seconds after the appearance of the Luspel¡¯s knight, Ian¡¯s mind was getting filled with numerous thoughts. The very moment, ¡®he¡¯ began to move. Tatt-! A very quick movement that the metal armor on his body couldn¡¯t restrict. The man pulled out the sword that was on his back and began to move at an incredible speed. Bang- Babang-! Once he went into the battle, the death knight¡¯s vitality was going down in an instant. However, there was no time to be shocked or surprised. Ian quickly moved along with the party. ¡°Levya, hand us a little buff!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± ¡°Noona and Hoonie will follow the knights that would target the new one and support him greatly, Yu Shin, you follow me!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± ¡°Nice!¡± Ian, who gave out the commands very quickly controlled his summons and moved in the direction of Rosen. In order for Rosen to lose the strength of his leadership, he needs to be hit hard enough to be dizzy. However, going towards Rosen would be tough¡ªas he was surrounded by numerous Death Knights, however, it wasn¡¯t their goal. ¡®Little by little, we need to wait till its vitality goes down.¡¯ If many death knights were taken down, the most ignorantly powerful NPC knights would reduce one after the other. Though they couldn¡¯t be able to take the act anymore carefully, their first priority was to break through the dungeon. The appearance of a single NPC had changed the whole situation in the battle. ¡®Death Knight Rosen¡¯ spoke out in a voice filled with anger. ¡°Who are you? How dare you enter the area of Chalian?!¡± The same words which Rosen had said to the party of Ian when he came across them. Because of that, Ian knew what the conversation would be, but couldn¡¯t know the response. The question wasn¡¯t answered by the NPC. And that conversation would have been a very meaningful one. ¡°You stupid one, you¡¯ll succumb to the darkness before even witnessing its huge achievement.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°The knight¡¯s honor that you have! I will make sure to defame it!¡± As Rosen was speaking, ¡®the man¡¯ giggled and stretched his sword out front. Suddenly, something had happened. As if the sword was actually alive, all the death knights began to get slaughtered. Kwang- Kwang-! An incredible battle that was happening right in front of them. Ian who lost his concentration from the battle was looking at the scene with his mouth wide open. ¡®That, that is so crazy! What the hell is that?¡¯ That wasn¡¯t the end of surprises that they were getting. Apart from the indiscriminate attacks the sword was doing, the man pulled another pair of swords. Srrr-! The two swords were crossed on the man¡¯s back. Normally it wasn¡¯t common to use double swords. And the swords were huge ones, unlike the sword that was taken out in the beginning. Ian wasn¡¯t that surprised though. Hoonie who had cast a spell to support that man muttered without even realizing it, ¡°Does that even make sense?¡± Removing the death knights in a flash, while wielding three large swords would make anyone admire the NPC. Ian was indeed flustered for a moment, but quickly went into the battle to help him and began to take on the death knights. ¡°Keu, Keuk!¡± Death Knight Rosen looked over at the strong man with a questionable expression. It was an amazing battle sight, a battle that was going to take them 5 hours was now done in 5 minutes. ¡°It is a shame that you fell for the darkness.¡± Said the unknown-mysterious-man as he swung his sword at Rosen. Phuk-! The sword went right through the head of Rosen. ¡°Kuahk!¡± Rosen who was almost out of vitality fell down right there. [¡®Death Knight Rosen¡¯ is out of combat.] [The 4th floor of the catacomb has opened.] Woong-! The whole sound resonated right in front of the party. But not even a single member of Ian¡¯s party moved. No, they couldn¡¯t move. Until they knew the identity of the unknown man, they couldn¡¯t move forward. Surely he was friendly as it seemed. Huck-! The man threw both the swords in his hands to the air. And the three swords that were in the air, at the same time went into the sheath that was on his back. Chuck- shuk-! Seeing that, Ian thought to himself. ¡®Acting all cool by himself.¡¯ However different from Ian who was whining, there were a few people who were blinded by his act. And that was Hoonie. ¡°Keu¡­!¡± Despite the sudden appearance of the chief of knight, Hoonie went to his direction. ¡°I am the Monarch of Darkness, Hoonie. The Lord of the dead. I wish to know your name.¡± However as soon as Hoonie was done introducing himself, the sword that just went into the back came out in an instant. ¡°It seems like one of them was still left?¡± Hoonie, who realized what was going to happen waved his hands rapidly. ¡°Woah, woah! I¡¯m not one of them.¡± ¡°I can feel the dark energy from you¡­¡± ¡°I, I¡­ my darkness is trying to punish the Lich King!¡± And the party members who were watching this scene just shook their heads. ¡°Uh, Hoonie has been very quiet these days¡­¡± ¡°It has been a while since I saw something fun.¡± ¡°¡­¡± However, the man who was conversing with Hoonie suddenly turned his sharp gaze over to Ian. Hoonie immediately opened his mouth again, ¡°Wait, wait for a second, will you?! You should at least tell me your name!¡± However, he paid no attention to Hoonie and slowly moved in the direction of Ian. Flustered and shocked, Ian gulped without any knowledge of his. Gulp. The man who finally got close to Ian opened his mouth, ¡°You must be Ian.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Ian was very very shocked at the moment. ¡®What? He knows me?¡¯ And the man wasn¡¯t done speaking. And the next words were strong enough to blow the wits off everyone else. ¡°It is a pleasure. My descendant.¡± * * * The most outstanding knight in the history of the Luspel Empire. The great hero of the human dimension who blocked the ambition of Lich King Chalian in the past and sealed him inside the Devildom. The knight of the story, who wasn¡¯t lacking even a bit, when compared to the courageous commander Cameres was none other than ¡®Muran¡¯. ¡°Muran? How did you get here¡­?¡± However, Ian wasn¡¯t able to understand. Wasn¡¯t Muran an ancient figure that ceased to exist more than 1000 years? Then the man in front of him, claiming to be Muran, had a nice face with no wrinkles. A face that had the liveliness of a twenties, the same as Ian. At the half question from Ian, Muran opened his mouth, ¡°I¡¯m here right now, but I do not entirely exist.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Ian, who wasn¡¯t completely understanding the weird words that were just said, waited for a moment so that the man claiming to be ¡®Muran¡¯ could say something else and bring a little clarity. ¡°With the choice that has been taken in the past, I have been given a little time to help you out.¡± The moment he heard it, something clicked in Ian¡¯s mind. ¡°Right! Muran¡¯s choice! I was trying to know what it meant¡­¡± At the beginning of the Richie King¡¯s episode, Ian had seen a system message that said something about Muran¡¯s choice. He had been running around for a while, and the thought had skipped his mind, but he never expected that to help him out in a situation like this. Meanwhile, all the other members of Ian¡¯s party were all envious. ¡°What, what kind of a quest did that hyung do¡­¡± ¡°Wah, how did he get to bring a 1000 years old NPC back?¡± ¡°Right, my words too¡­¡± Ian barely managed to open his mouth to Muran, and asked for something ¡°You have come to help me?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You are going to help me defeat the Lich King, together¡­?¡± Ian was very excited. But the answer that Muran gave, unfortunately, wasn¡¯t what Ian had been expecting. ¡°No, I didn¡¯t mean in that way. The power for the thousands of years of history will let me stay here for only a day.¡± ¡°Damn¡­¡± ¡°It is impossible to get rid of the Lich King at that time.¡± ¡°That is true¡­¡± Muran had a lot of power. Even then, there were way too many walls they had to cross to reach the Richie King. ¡°Then, how do you plan on helping me?¡± At the question from Ian, all the eyes of his party members went towards Muran. Even Ian was wondering what the answer would be. As helping Ian would be the same as helping the whole party. But this time too, that answer from Muran wasn¡¯t what they were expecting. ¡°The whole day that I have, I will stand by you till the end.¡± The time the words ended, Ian¡¯s eyes came across an unexpected quest window. Tring-! ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Hero, Muran¡¯s Arrangement (Hidden) ¨C Muran, the greatest hero of the Human dimension. In the past, he stopped the ambition of the Lich King and succeeded in sealing him in the Devildom, though it wasn¡¯t a guarantee. He couldn¡¯t completely exterminate him and knew that one day the Lich King would resurrect and once again expose the world to despair. Which was why he made an arrangement for that time. And you, who is the descendant of the hero, Muran, who obtained the crystal of Muran. As the Lich King has resurrected again and raised his legion of darkness once again, the Hero Muran has come to help you while crossing the walls of time. He wants to follow your progress. And if you agree, he will grant you all of his skills. Now you have to choose. If you manage to gain the strength of Muran, accept his offer, and if you want to continue walking down the path as a Taming Master, then refuse. Quest Difficulty: None Quest Condition: A person who has used the ¡®Crystal of Muran¡¯. Time Limit: None Reward: 4th tier hidden class ¡®Summoner Knight¡¯. ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian, who read all the content of the quest turned sad all of a sudden. CH 437 ¡®Hue, I have to think calmly about this¡­¡¯ A proposal to be promoted to a top tier hidden class appeared. ¡®Summoner Knight¡¯ was obviously a new and amazing hidden class for the summoner class. Normally in Kailan, it was impossible to change from one class to another. Ian was feeling conflicted, as it was the gods who gave him the chance to change to a 4th tier hidden class to show their gratitude for ¡®Muran¡¯s crystal¡¯. The reason why Ian was conflicted was because in his quest window the ¡®Taming Master¡¯ class tier-up option could be seen. ¡®Even if I raise the Taming Master¡¯s tier or pick being a Summoner Knight, they will both be in the same tier¡­¡¯ Which class was better for their current situation wasn¡¯t clear yet, and the two classes were totally different. The first difference between the two was their class classifications. The Taming Master was an evolutionary hidden class where one could upgrade its tier. The Summoner Knight, on the other hand, was a class that was already classified as a top tier¡ªthe 4th tier¡ªwithout being upgraded right from the beginning. If a user would be given the chance to transfer to a higher tier, that user would probably not be able to decide right away. The thing that Ian was really concerned about was the ¡®4th tier¡¯. If Ian picked being a Summoner Knight, he could change his class the moment he accepted the quest. However, if Ian chose to do the 4th tier of the Taming Master, he would have to tame the Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix. If Lugarix was a normal monster, then it wouldn¡¯t be an issue. However, he was a named monster with a unique name and of myth rank. It wasn¡¯t clear if the task was possible or not since there were no records yet of anyone being able to successfully upgrade to a 4th tier. ¡®Uh, Summoner Knight¡­¡¯ It was a deeply troubling topic for Ian. However, Ian didn¡¯t have the time to worry about all this. * * * The Kailan planning team of the LB company. Na Ji-chan, who was working late at night, was going somewhere with hot water for his cup ramen. ¡°I love cup ramen at night.¡± Na Ji-chan¡ªthe only person in the planning team who enjoyed night shifts. Na Ji-chan stayed back in the company the whole week. ¡°Is no one in the monitoring room?¡± Keeck- Na Ji-chan opened the door and glanced around the monitor room. He couldn¡¯t help but smile since it was quiet. One of the greatest pleasures of Na Ji-chan was to watch a dozen monitors in the monitoring room and watch videos while digging into his cup ramen. He couldn¡¯t really have ramen in the monitoring room when other employees were around. So he could only do this during his night shifts. ¡°Kay!¡± Na Ji-chan sat on the most comfortable position to look at the monitors. He then picked up the remote control and started to turn on the monitors one after the other. Ping- Ping- Ping- Piping- As the monitors were being turned on one after another, a small sound came out. Na Ji-chan then started to work on the keyboard to set the screens on the rankers that he wanted to see. ¡°Since it is already 9 pm, all the rankers will be online now.¡± To see what quests the rankers would be working on and what planned content they were going to open, Na Ji-chan turned on the monitors with excitement. The first set of monitors that Na Ji-chan turned to was that of Ian¡¯s. Except for special cases, Na Ji-chan always checked Ian¡¯s videos right away. Na Ji-chan who was carefully examining Ian¡¯s videos burst out of excitement. ¡°Ohho, you found the underground prison of the Lich King? That¡¯s faster than what I expected¡­ how did you find it?¡± No other content related to the Lich King could be seen unless the Episode of Conquest had progressed. So what Ian did made Na Ji-chan dumbfounded. ¡°The structure looked like the Rataphel Manor¡­ Lotus already went through Rataphel? How could that have happened?¡± Na Ji-chan was mumbling to himself and turned on the tablet PC that he always carried. He then looked at the data that only planning team members could see. ¡°Hmm, surely¡­ you haven¡¯t reached Rataphel yet. So how did you get in there?¡± Na Ji-chan was looking at the video with much more excitement than he had a while ago. He didn¡¯t understand how Ian found that place, but he had a slight idea as to why he was able to found it. ¡®He was trying to find Helliem.¡¯ Na Ji-chan knew a little information about Helliem. Though he wasn¡¯t the one who planned the character, the character was an important NPC. ¡°I can¡¯t believe this guy¡¯s luck or was he just that persistent. This guy¡¯s game sense is amazing!¡± The lowest floor of the Rataphel Domain. Ian guessed that Helliem was definitely there. The greatest knight of the Luspel Empire. In fact, if the Lich King quest went in the right direction, then the NPC Helliem was the one who was designed to get through the quest. Once the Lich King was defeated and the darkness has been lifted, a quest would be created to purify Helliem who had fallen into darkness. It wasn¡¯t yet the time for those things to happen. Users could only get to Helliem once the Lich King had been successfully defeated. However, Ian managed to find the underground prison ahead of time. No one knew now where the quest would head to. ¡®Keu, are you for real Ian God? If he wants to clear the dungeon safely without being caught by Rataphel¡¯s Knights¡­ he really needs to get Helliem.¡¯ If they really did manage to do that, the Lotus Kingdom would be able to soar even higher than where they were now. Rather than the individual strength that Helliem possesses, the level of the knights of the Lotus Kingdom could be raised tremendously with Helliem on their side. In fact, if one compared Helliem and Kaizer with each other, the fighting abilities of Kaizer were more superior. However, that was just their stats and combat abilities. Helliem was still far superior to Kaizer when it came to leadership and everything else. ¡°Phew, this will be a fixed channel once again¡­¡± Slurrp-! While slurping his cup ramen, Na Ji-chan operated the remote again. After moving Ian¡¯s video at the center, he turned off all the other monitors. ¡°Huhu, I feel sorry for your party members¡­ it won¡¯t be easy for you anymore, Ian God.¡± Ian¡¯s party were fighting their way through the Undead monsters. Seeing the rankers defeat the dungeon they created, it felt like he was fighting head-on with the rankers. When the party¡¯s battle with the Death knights including Rosen happened, Na Ji-chan reached the maximum levels of his excitement. ¡°Right, Rosen! The AI is working well!¡± Rosen controlled the Death Knights one by one and caused great trouble for Ian¡¯s party. Seeing the scene brought great happiness to Na Ji-chan. ¡°Ha! What will you do now, Ian? If you won¡¯t clear the dungeon within 2 to 3 hours, then you¡¯ll probably be caught by Rataphel¡¯s Knights, right?¡± Na Ji-chan was talking as if he was directly conversing with Ian. However, something suddenly happened that made Na Ji-chan flustered. Muran suddenly appeared and wiped out all the Death Knights. ¡°Crazy¡­!¡± He knew that the arrangement of Muran was under process and that someday Muran would visit Ian. But even then, this ridiculous turn of events made Na Ji-chan¡¯s eyes doubtful. ¡°Why now Muran?¡± Na Ji-chan thought that he possibly couldn¡¯t see anything weirder than that. If Muran helped Ian¡¯s party, the dungeon would be cleared in 30 minutes rather than 2 hours. It wasn¡¯t just because of Muran¡¯s power. The reason why Muran came to Ian was because Ian took the ¡®Summoner Knight¡¯ 4th tier hidden class. Ian, who inherited the abilities of Muran would be changed to a 4th tier hidden class ¡®Summoner Knight¡¯ and would gain powerful skills immediately. In addition, all of his stats would be adjusted to the stats of the 4th tier hidden class he picked. It had an entirely different power compared to the 3rd tier. Once Ian¡¯s familiars became compatible with the combat abilities of Muran, the difficulty of the dungeon would be reduced by half. Na Ji-chan shook his head. ¡°Huu, Now if he gets Helliem¡­¡± According to the planning team¡¯s plans, Helliem couldn¡¯t be reached as of the moment. In other words, Ian would have immediately hired him if he had rescued him. Other users with low affinity wouldn¡¯t have known, but Ian who was always in the forefront for the Lotus Empire would have enough affinity with Helliem. ¡°Dammit.¡± Na Ji-chan was feeling intrigued and started to turn on the other monitors once again. No matter how many monitors were displaying Ian¡¯s videos, he just never seemed to be losing interest. ¡°Ah, this¡­¡± Na Ji-chan grunted while reaching out for the remote. After a while, Na Ji-chan started to doubt his own ears. Because he just heard an unbelievable speech coming from Ian. [Thank you, but I can¡¯t.] [What is that¡­?] [I can¡¯t accept your offer.] After hearing that, Na Ji-chan got up from his seat and looked at the screen. * * * ¡°Why?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I am powerful. If you take my power, you will get a hold of a mighty power for you are a summoner.¡± ¡°Yes, that is true.¡± ¡°Then why would you reject my strength? You are the true hero who has inherited my will. We are fated to take over everything and kill the Lich king¡­¡± Muran¡¯s face went blank and dull when Ian rejected him. It was the same as Ian¡¯s party members. ¡°Ian, what are you doing?¡± ¡°Yah, what do you think you¡¯re doing now? Do you think the 4th tier class will come to you like calling out a dog¡¯s name?¡± Everyone was dumbfounded except Hoonie. ¡°Hmm, is this hyung finally trying to put restraints on himself. Surely playing the game alone isn¡¯t even a bit fun.¡± However, he wasn¡¯t even a bit interested in what his party members had to say. Ian then said, ¡°Muran, My path is the path of the Taming Master.¡± ¡°I know.¡± ¡°And I haven¡¯t reached the end of this road.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°The ¡®Summoner Knight¡¯ is a very exciting route, but not for now. I at least want to see what the Taming Master can show me at the end of the road. I will then think about your offer.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± All of Ian¡¯s party members became sulky and so was Muran. Basing on the AI that was embedded in Muran, it was a very tough decision for it to understand. However, it was very brilliant for the AI to cope with all these unforeseen development. Muran soon understood and responded to Ian¡¯s answer, ¡°Well, you sure are qualified to be called a hero.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Since you are a great man, you should have the desire and aspiration of such sort.¡± ¡°Yeah, well.¡± Muran responded, ¡°Nice. I will respect your choice, but¡­¡± ¡°But?¡± ¡°However, you must carry on my will.¡± ¡°Your will¡­?¡± An ominous feeling came over Ian. ¡°I, Muran who has inherited the will of a hero, will defend humanity by stopping the Richie King Chalian¡¯s ambition and punish him!¡± Tring-! And with that, the notification of a quest came on. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C A Hero¡¯s Responsibility (Hidden) ¨C You are the hero who has inherited the will of Muran. You chose to be the ¡®Taming Master¡¯ even after Muran¡¯s offer to be a ¡®Summoner Knight¡¯. That proves how outstanding of a hero you are in the Human Dimension. Although you have rejected the path to becoming a Summoner Knight, that doesn¡¯t mean that you will be discarded of the responsibility of a hero. You must fulfill now the responsibility of a hero. Defeat the Lich King Chalian and defend the order and peace of the Human Dimension. If you don¡¯t perform these responsibilities you will have to pay dearly. Quest Difficulty: SSSSS Quest Condition: A person who used ¡®Muran¡¯s Crystal¡¯ to change his class. Those who have been recognized by ¡®Muran¡¯. Time Limit: 30 days Reward: Unique dual-class of ¡®Summoner Knight¡¯. *If the quest fails, the tier of ¡®Taming Master¡¯ will drop one level. * The quest cannot be rejected. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C CH 438 Muran suddenly gave out a hidden quest. Rather than a hidden quest, the quest Muran gave was more like a hidden land mine. And Ian was the one who would step foot on that land mine. If Ian decided to take his foot off, that mine would end up making a huge explosion. Ian read the quest window once again not being able to understand what he had gotten himself into. ¡®What the hell is this crazy penalty¡­?¡¯ Among the hidden quests which had great rewards, there often were cases that came with penalties for the failures. However, its penalties were only a cut of experience points, fame loss, or a decline of affinity with the NPC that gave the quest. The quest¡¯s penalty of being dropped a tier in the hidden class for not clearing it was borderline robbery. No kind of effort could recover that. A user had to put a lot of effort into gaining that tier. Also, many things were needed in order to succeed in gaining a tier. Ian was stunned. On the other hand, Muran¡ªwho wasn¡¯t aware of how overwhelmed Ian was¡ªspoke to him with a very satisfied expression. ¡°I didn¡¯t know my arrangements were fine. If I knew that there was going to be a strong hero as such in the future, I would¡¯ve taken rest with a calm heart.¡± Muran¡¯s encouragement was continuing to burn Ian¡¯s heart furthermore, and Elcarix was about to pour gasoline over it. ¡°Woah! My dad is so awesome!¡± Elcarix was laughing at Ian while hanging on his back. Even the cute voice of Elcarix couldn¡¯t raise Ian¡¯s spirit ¡°Heuu¡­¡± Ian took a deep breath to regain his cool. Due to the sudden outbreak of an insane quest, he was in a situation where he had to revise all the plans he made for the future. ¡®It looks like I¡¯ll have to put off conquering the Elrika Kingdom as of the moment. I should ask for the understanding of our guild members, and I need to go to the Ulphir Mountains to upgrade the troops as soon as possible. I¡¯ll be needing to make the most out of my ranker friends¡­¡¯ Ian¡¯s head was working and working. It was clear that it was a quest with the highest level of difficulty, and it was also clear that it was impossible to avoid such a quest. The only thing he could do at least was to increase the success rate of the quest as much as he could. Things like giving up weren¡¯t Ian¡¯s style. When Ian¡¯s head was going through a trauma of its own, it wasn¡¯t Ian who was in trouble. Ian shared the quest with his party members too. The other members of his party were reading the quest window of a weird quest very cautiously. Their rewards and penalties were all entirely different from Ian, but the rest of the content of the quest was similar. Ian¡¯s party members suddenly noticed him. After a while, Remir spoke with a lot of cautiousness. ¡°Ian-ah, can you not share this quest?¡± Levya and Yu Shin then said, ¡°Ian, I will take a break. Thank you very much for sharing the hidden quest, but I don¡¯t think this¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry bro, Ian. I can¡¯t do it.¡± Three lines of message suddenly emerged before Ian¡¯s eyes. [Party member ¡®Remir¡¯ has refused to accept the shared quest.] [Party member ¡®Levya¡¯ has refused to accept the shared quest.] [Party member ¡®Yu Shin¡¯ has refused to accept the shared quest.] Ian was struck with the feeling of betrayal. ¡°Noona, Levya, Yu Shin!¡± However, the three simply avoided eye contact with Ian. ¡°Keu¡­¡± Ian looked completely devastated. He suddenly felt a hand that seemed to be comforting him. Ian then heard a voice saying the thing he needed the most from an unlikely person. ¡°Hyung, I¡¯ll follow you hyung!¡± Everyone¡¯s gaze went in the direction of that person¡¯s voice. There was Hoonie standing with a confident look. The other party members were shocked at Hoonie¡¯s attitude. ¡°Oh, Hoonie¡­?¡± ¡°Hoonie get your mind straight! Aren¡¯t you overwhelmed with the stress of excessive hunting?¡± Unlike his party members, Ian wasn¡¯t surprised at all. Ian knew exactly why Hoonie decided to do such a thing. ¡°Don¡¯t overdo it, man. You¡¯re in the same boat as me anyway, right?¡± ¡°¡­¡± He did. Hoonie was already in a situation where he needed to kill the Lich King for his 4th tier quest to be completed. Even the time limit of the two was the same. Unlike Ian though, Hoonie¡¯s quest didn¡¯t have such ridiculously unfair penalty for failing the quest. ¡°Huu, you don¡¯t know me at all. You¡¯re so mean¡­¡± Hoonie was displaying a sad face, but that wasn¡¯t what he was feeling. His expression changed right away. ¡°Noisy. Let¡¯s clear the dungeon as quickly as possible.¡± Ian looked at all of his party members while he talked slowly to Hoonie. Though he spoke calmly, he hadn¡¯t forgotten the terrible thing that they did awhile ago. ¡°If you guys want to rest early, then go ahead. I¡¯ll somehow manage.¡± Ian¡¯s tone was rather threatening, and his party members were obviously feeling it. * * * ¡°Wow! That¡¯s crazy. Why didn¡¯t he do the play in a normal way?¡± Seeing the decision that Ian took, Na Ji-chan couldn¡¯t help but feel ridiculous. Ian who was playing very well took a decision that no one would have even chose to opt for. ¡®I¡¯m going to ¡®give up¡¯ a 4th tier hidden class.¡¯ was what Ian said. No one including Na Ji-chan would have guessed that. ¡°Not that¡­ this is¡­¡± Na Ji-chan was pacing back and forth in the monitoring room restlessly. The unprecedented choice of Ian was going to bring in heaps of work for the planning team. Honestly, since they wanted to delay users from exhausting the new episode¡¯s content as much as possible, Ian¡¯s choice would greatly benefit them. Apart from being a 4th tier hidden class, the ¡®Summoner Knight¡¯ contained a very important piece of the puzzle in dealing with the Richie King. Without that piece, it would be hard to get rid of Richie King even if it was Ian. That being said, the Richie King episode was going to last longer. However, there was another problem. The problem was the ¡®Hero¡¯s Responsibility¡¯, the hidden quest that Ian got from the unexpected choice that he made. It wasn¡¯t a quest that the planning team had even designed. The quest didn¡¯t even exist in the first place. ¡®Hu, I knew that we were going to have a problem¡­¡¯ As Ian had taken a choice that the planning team wasn¡¯t even considering to be in the option, a random quest got activated. Kailan¡¯s system was designed to cope with situations by judging its own algorithm if the situation wasn¡¯t designed by the planning team. So Muran used his own AI to make his own decision, and the quest was the result of his judgment. ¡®Hu, if you¡¯re going to make quests that you wish, at least make some sensible ones¡­¡¯ Na Ji-chan held his head as it was beginning to hurt. The quest had fatal problems in it. The most lethal problem was the ¡®Unique Dual Class¡¯. The reward that Muran¡¯s quest offered was the ¡®Unique Dual Class¡¯. It was as if the quest was giving out a class that never existed. ¡®This is going to hurt us a lot. Just because of Ian, we will now have to make this unique dual-class thing?¡¯ Adding a new class wasn¡¯t an easy task. A new hidden class always called for the addition of a few new skills and a special trait to the existing planned base. ¡°Hu¡­¡± Na Ji-chan had already been working for Kailan¡¯s planning team for 5 years now. Na Ji-chan who had worked long before the opening of Kailan was always confident that his mind was as strong as a diamond. However, all thanks to Ian, he was having his second mental breakdown in the middle of the night. The first one was when Ian was close to clearing the Dragon¡¯s Altar time attack dungeon and almost opened the Door of Dimension. The current one was this crisis Ian just brought in. ¡°Phew¡­ let¡¯s just hold that thought, maybe Ian will fail the quest?¡± According to what Na Ji-chan was thinking, without the Summoner Knight class, the possibility of Ian clearing the quest was below 10%. Which was why it could be seen as a good gamble. If Ian failed the quest, then they could go back to the point where nothing had happened. Taking off a tier from the Taming Master class was a bit too much of a penalty. However, they could just give Ian an opportunity in the future to raise his tier again. Na Ji-chan knew very well that Ian would fail this quest. If Ian¡¯s chances of success were even at 10% and he did finish the quest successfully, it was the end of the story. Without taking his eyes off the monitor, Na Ji-chan mumbled and mumbled, ¡°10% success rate¡­ I¡¯ll have to spend the night here to see what¡¯s gonna happen.¡± Ian¡¯s quest was limited to 30 days, but the time limit for the planning team was much shorter. Ian wasn¡¯t going to complete the quest right away, but he would surely challenge the Richie King in the days that were going to come. ¡¯27 days, no, maybe 25 days¡­? We¡¯ll have to make a thorough plan within those days.¡¯ Even though Na Ji-chan enjoyed working in the night shift, he was now at a point where he couldn¡¯t work happily at all. Rather than the night shift, it was now a torture shift. His cup ramen turned soggy and could now be mistaken for udon. Hrrr-! Na Ji-chan immediately dug into his cup ramen, but he couldn¡¯t taste anything from it. His eyes just kept moving. ¡°The Dual Class shouldn¡¯t overlap with the planning¡­ I need to think of how I¡¯m going to connect it to the main class¡­¡± The moment Ian refused the hidden class, Na Ji-chan felt like he aged for 10 years. Na Ji-chan opened the door of the monitoring room and stared at the monitors one last time before leaving the room. Ian¡¯s figure that was on the screen came into his mind. ¡°Keu, does Ian God even know what he is doing now?¡± At this very moment, at least for today, Na Ji-chan was an anti of Ian God CH 439 The one who wasn¡¯t expected at all was Muran. And as a result of that, one storm came over, but what it resulted was the much easier clear for the dungeon. Apart from the upgrade of Ian¡¯s hidden class tier, Muran¡¯s power was huge. The power that Muran had was more than any NPC that Ian had till the moment. The only exceptions that he placed were the NPCs¡ªwhich he hadn¡¯t come across in a battle like the Iriel, from Forest of Love and Gripper, the Dimensional Enchanter. Of course, there were also many special cases like the ¡®God¡¯. ¡°Kya, Muran, like the statue that was built in the capital, right?¡± ¡°Yeah. Indeed! I¡¯ll build a statue for him at this point.¡± The group was busy admiring the strength of Muran. And Ian was no exception in it. ¡®He really is amazing. In addition, the power that he is currently exerting now is just half of what he normally possess¡­¡¯ And the upfront image of Muran cutting through the Undead, Ian opened his mouth wide. Ian who still had a little anxiousness left in him asked Muran. ¡°Muran.¡± ¡°Why, called? Hero¡± ¡°How am I supposed to use the three swords like you do?¡± The three swords of Muran which were being swung in the air made the highest level undead seem like kids. The destruction that was caused was pure, but the splendid swordsmanship that he performed wasn¡¯t something that anyone could turn a blind eye to. But the answer from Muran made Ian much more uncomfortable. ¡°This is an ability that the Summoner Knight has, the most top tier skill.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°It is like bringing the weapon¡¯s self to life. This is a power that only the Summoner Knight can have.¡± ¡°A weapon with self¡­ are you talking about an Ego Weapon?¡± At the question of Ian, Muran¡¯s face looked slightly puzzled. ¡°Right, that is it. You are well informed. I didn¡¯t think that humans would be aware of the existence of the Ego Weapons.¡± Saying that¡ªMuran looked around with a proud expression. ¡°The Summoner Knight is a class that brings out the maximum performance of any Ego Weapon. And those, Ego Weapons aren¡¯t the ones that could be received so easily.¡± ¡°Hm¡­¡± ¡°And even I haven¡¯t reached the highest point of it yet, but I know that I will need to get my Summoner Knight to a higher level, then I will be able to grant a soul to my Ego weapon.¡± ¡°Not reaching the point, how do you know that?¡± ¡°There are already several beings who have already reached it in the Middle-Earth.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian suddenly felt depressed. ¡®Will just do my job¡­¡¯ The weapon that Ian was currently using was the Judgment of the Spirit King. And a shield made out of Bbookbbook¡¯s shell. Ian already had two Ego weapons in position. Which meant that if he accepted the Summoner Knight¡¯s quest request, he could have immediately used the top tier power. In addition, Ian was feeling much more depressed after that, he had the chance to add ego directly to the weapon. ¡®The cake of the other looks much better¡­¡¯ Seeing the swords of Muran dancing in front, Ian couldn¡¯t help but clench his fists. ¡®Yeah, well. The quest hasn¡¯t failed yet so maybe? If I succeed, then I¡¯ll get that dual-class and it might be better.¡¯ As he began to make infinite positive thoughts in his mind to control it, Ian¡¯s will began to fire once again. A Unique dual-class, the first time ever hearing those words in Kailan. Not knowing what it was (In fact, it is a word that even the planner didn¡¯t know), and there was no way to know about all the abilities of the Summoner Knight. The first ¡®dual class¡¯ was introduced during the time when the Dimensional world was opened, and one couldn¡¯t bring out the 100% of it unless he was an Asmodian class user. But even then, the information gathered from Muran about the Summoner Knight was shocking enough to motivate him. With gleaming eyes, Ian turned his gaze and saw Bbookbbook. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah.¡± ¡°What now bbok?¡± ¡°We can probably do it.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± That was the end of an unfinished sentence, to Bbookbbook who wasn¡¯t that high in intellect. However, even if the meaning of it was unknown, some unfamiliar boosts of energy could be heard in those words. Which meant that the years he spent with Ian weren¡¯t just passing time. The large eyes of Bbookbbook wavered a little. ¡°I don¡¯t know what we can do, but I want to do it appropriately, bbook.¡± However, the word ¡®appropriately¡¯ was something that was rarely seen in the gaming history of Ian. * * * The underground prison of Rataphel territory was a much larger dungeon that Ian had expected. ¡®I thought that it would end with the 5th floor, but now we¡¯re in the seventh one¡­¡¯ After around 30-40 minutes after the appearance of Muran, Ian and his party were breaking through the dungeon floors. And yet, they still hadn¡¯t seen the end to it, which made Ian¡¯s fingers go cold. ¡®If it weren¡¯t Muran, it would¡¯ve taken us around 2 hours in the least.¡¯ And if it had taken two hours with no signs of ending, then Ian would¡¯ve surely called it quits for the dungeon. In other words, if it weren¡¯t for Muran, then Ian would have already abandoned the dungeon. Kwang- Kwakwang-! Ian climbed onto Halli and hit the Undead with his spear. And it was an instinct mechanical move. ¡°Kyaa, powerful humans!¡± Screamed by the Devil spirit as it burst into the air. Ian continued to grasp the kind of terrain in the midst of that heavy swinging spear. ¡®If we break through the left side, maybe a path will open. By the way, this doesn¡¯t seem like a boss room passage as this is so narrow¡­ is there another floor?¡¯ The dungeons of Kailan had a certain pattern. And Ian¡¯s guess could be right because of it. ¡°Kaka, go ahead and use the Dreaming Devil ability.¡± ¡°Okay, master.¡± Ian was able to make full use of the Dreaming Devil ability of Kaka as they were in an underground which went further down, and it was a place where light couldn¡¯t enter. After a while, Ian and his party members were able to find a staircase which went to the next floor. ¡°Nice, this way!¡± ¡°Keu, Kaka, good job!¡± ¡°This Kaka, your skill to find a path is the work of God.¡± Kaka was completely embarrassed at the compliments of the party members who came and sat on the shoulders of Ian with a pleased face. ¡°Ahem, normally even I don¡¯t know what I can do, but I¡¯m the smartest one in the world.¡± Right then, Elcarix who was walking right beside her flew to the air and struck her with her hands. ¡°No, that is not! I¡¯m the smartest one!¡± ¡°Who said that?¡± ¡°Dad did!¡± At the reaction of Elcarix, Kaka shook her head while moving her fingers. ¡°Elcarix, do you by any chance know what a white lie is?¡± The attack of Kaka to bring down Elcarix¡¯s spirit. However, Elcarix was a tough gal. ¡°Kaka, do you by any chance know what a white honey night is?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Would you like to come to this side and see? I¡¯ll beat you to a white honey night.¡± ¡°Hu, hek!¡± The response of the Dragon of Light Elcarix was a catastrophe in Kaka¡¯s direction. And Elcarix who was satisfied with her gain looked very proud. ¡°Dad, I did well?¡± ¡°Yeah, our El did very well.¡± ¡°¡­¡± With a little fuss, the party of Ian stepped onto the staircase that went to the next floor. At that moment, new system messages began to emerge in front of the party members. Tring-! [You have found the lowest floor of the underground crypt.] [Strong energy of the Devil can be felt.] Ian confirmed the messages twice out of instinct. ¡®Kay, the bottom floor at last.¡¯ He got clear information that the next was the bottom one, so now it was a matter of time to find the boss room. A psychological margin had been created. The time, however, a few more additional messages in front of Ian and his party. [The dark sailor ¡®Lacamer¡¯ has noticed your presence.] [You have found the hidden (anecdote/visa) of the Rataphel.] Ian¡¯s vision darkened immediately. * * * The heart of the Rataphel, a dark sanctuary which was the source of the dark power. And right next to the sanctuary was a dungeon that had imprisoned the members of the estate. That was the reason Lich King Chalian had been looking for an underground prison. The underground had the power of the sanctuary, and it was a place that well suited to foster the legion of darkness. The energy that radiated from the sanctuary helped them in growing the seeds of darkness much faster and stronger. Chalian deliberately sent his servant ¡°Lacamer¡± to the underground prison in Rataphel. [Lacamer, I trust you.] [Please excuse me, Lord of Darkness.] The Lacamer was originally a powerful warlock, and he quickly managed to grasp the underground crypt and began to power it up secretly. [Keuk, Stupid humans¡­] Lacamer grew quickly. The underground prison was the best place for the growth of Lacamer. The prisoners who were continued to be spread with the dark energy in the dungeon, together with rituals of darkness being performed and as the dark sanctuary was right next to it, it was the heaven for a warlock. Lacamer had grown eventually and with time had turned into a ¡®Lich Mage¡¯ to support Chalian. The day that Lacamer had turned into a Lich, Chalian had given him a new order. [Now is the time.] [Name it to me, my lord.] [Take control of the governor and abduct the lord of Rataphel.] [Okay.] [I will turn him into my minion and this land, as the land of darkness¡­!] [I will bring support for you!] The Rataphel estate which had already been taken by Lacamer easily entered the hands of the Lich King, and that was the beginning of the Dark Kingdom. Chalian and Lacamer began to devour the kingdom of Elrika after the start with the Rataphel Domain. The short video lasted for around 10 minutes and as it was done, Ian hit his own head. The story sure was interesting with unique content, but he didn¡¯t know why the behind-the-scene had suddenly come up. ¡®What? It doesn¡¯t seem to be connected to the ongoing quest so why?¡¯ As Ian was done questioning it in his mind, the system message announced the invocation to the party. Tring-! [Sudden quest had been initiated.] [Quest of ¡®Tears of Elrika King¡¯ has been created.] CH 440 ¡®Tears of Elrika King (Hidden) (Sudden)¡¯ ¨C The kingdom of Elrika is a kingdom which has the state¡¯s religion as Kades, one which serves the God of Darkness. But by worshipping Kades, the entire kingdom hasn¡¯t been tainted by darkness. Until the darkness of Kades god had succumbed, the religion of Kades was a very healthy religion. In the line that doesn¡¯t exceed the casual rate, the Kades religion gave a bridge that could make the co-existence of man and dead possible. But when the God of Darkness fell, things changed. The Lich King has spread a beast under the acquiescence, and the entire kingdom of Elrika has fallen to the darkness. Due to the plot made by the Lich King Chalian, the Elrika kingdom entered the grip of darkness. And ¡®Remus Elrika¡¯ the King of the Elrika Kingdom, was trapped in the underground crypt of the Rataphel. Lacamer, the minion/chariot of Chalian controls the underground. Destroy him¡ªdestroy the sanctuary of darkness and rescue the Remus Elrika who was trapped somewhere in the underground. The successful rescue of the king will gain your support, loyalty, and affinity with the Elrika Kingdom. Quest Difficulty: SSS Quest Condition: User of level 350 or higher. User who have entered the lowest floor of the underground crypt in the Rataphel Domain. User with fame of over 15 million. Time Limit: 80 minutes Reward: The Mark of Elrika kingdom. A significant increase of affinity with Remus Elrika. (If you have higher fame and position than that of an NPC, you can join as a retainer.) Quest fail will reduce fame by 200,000. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C ¡°¡­!¡± Ian who checked the content of the quest was shocked. ¡®If I do this well, then I can get the whole Elrika Kingdom?¡¯ If Lotus had grown to the level of Empire, it could have been possible to merge the Kingdom of Elrika and incorporate the kingdom as a tributary. However, as Lotus was still in the position of a kingdom, that couldn¡¯t be done. Nevertheless, the thought of getting the Kingdom of Elrika due to a special and sudden quest of the Kingdom being tainted in darkness. ¡®Which means that the position of the Remus Elrika isn¡¯t in the king¡¯s position of the castle.¡¯ As long as he was trapped in the underground crypt, Remus Elrika was nothing more than a prisoner. And all that was left was the famous figure, and Ian never thought that he could be with lower fame that the NPC, the king of Elrika Kingdom. Because of the tremendous amount of fame that he built up, objectively, the fame of Ian was now very close to that of the conditions of the Emperor. The next was simple. If he could have the Remus Elrika behind him, the people of Elrika who weren¡¯t under the influence of darkness would help Ian in the conquest. If everything went smoothly, it wouldn¡¯t have been possible to go through the King of the Elrika Kingdom. The time for the conquest could be shortened to half. ¡®If we take in the king, and then make Remus Elrika sit on the throne, the rest of the estate would surrender too.¡¯ Just as mentioned earlier, since Lotus wasn¡¯t an empire, it wouldn¡¯t be possible to incorporate the Elrika Kingdom into them. But the Elrika can form a military relationship with the Lotus Kingdom, and afterward, the Lotus could merge it when it reaches the point of Empire. And the scenario would be possible because of the current king of Elrika ¡®Remus Elrika¡¯ was in prison. Everything fell right into place. ¡®Keu, this Remus guy. It would be nice if I can see some stats¡­¡¯ If he can get him as a retainer, then he would have great benefits if he had stats like Helliem or Kaizer. Chuk-! Excited to take the former king as his retainer, Ian took steps fixing his spear. ¡°What is a Lacamer, should we try to beat it?¡± * * * [You have entered the bottom zone of the underground prison.] [¡®Tears of Elrika Kingdom¡¯ quest time remaining: 01:19:23] [Lacamer¡¯s minion has awakened.] [The first wave of the dungeon begins.] Woong-! A loud noise entered the ears of Ian. After nearly half a days¡¯ battle, they managed to find the last zone. The moment the party entered they were welcomed by numerous undead. ¡°Keuk, humans have invaded us!¡± ¡°This is the sanctuary of darkness, we¡¯ll kill you all!¡± Ian who entered the new battlefield first tried to get a thorough understanding of the map. ¡®It is a straight structure that goes all the way to a spacious hallway, and there are prisons on both sides¡­¡¯ The lowest level of the underground prison dungeon seemed to be the widest map ever. Even though it was being called an ¡®underground prison¡¯, they couldn¡¯t find one prisoner from the beginning. The only place where all the prisoners were trapped was at the bottom of the dungeon. The prison didn¡¯t seem to have a very complicated structure they were plain wide, however, it was an unfavorable structure for a battle as they would have to deal with large numbers at once. ¡®I should place the tanker in the front, and the rest should be up horizontally. Being surrounded by the enemy could be dangerous¡­¡¯ Ian was aligning his thoughts and gave out orders. It was impossible to control it directly, but the situation could be handled by the rest of the party members. ¡°Let¡¯s push them all the way down the hall. Let¡¯s pierce it immediately.¡± ¡°Okay!¡± ¡°I understand!¡± The formation of Ian¡¯s party was simple. Party members lined up horizontally, blocked the entire corridor. Only the tankers like Bbakbbak and the dark golems summoned by Hoonie were stationed up front, while the remaining were all in the backline. The only one placed in the rear was Levya, the healer. ¡°This looks like a good idea, but wouldn¡¯t it be fine for Hoonie and me to go in the back too? Since the range would be a little wider.¡± Ian shook his head at the question of Remir. ¡°No, noona. If two people fall back in the line, then it won¡¯t make the line too loose¡­ when fighting crazily, it¡¯s hard to keep a line you know.¡± ¡°Hmm, but it is dangerous for the magician to be on the defensive line¡­¡± ¡°That is why stay at the end of both sides. There you won¡¯t have to take much damage as you think.¡± ¡°Is it so? Kay. I¡¯ll try it once.¡± Muran who was ordered by Ian began to naturally push through the path. Standing in front of the party of Ian, Muran cleared the Undead as if they were pebbles on the street. And that was a scenario that was in Ian¡¯s plan. ¡®In case, the camp of theirs is pushed in slightly.¡¯ Even when they were trying to keep the line as much as possible, the center camp where Muran played was bound to rise naturally. In the end, the shape would be like a triangle with a sharp front in the middle. In that case, the end where Hoonie and Remir were positioned would take as less damage as possible. Both sides being blocked and the front taking the charge, so the range of attack was limited. If the enemy planned to attack the side, there was no need to worry, as the tankers¡¯ skill was ready. Once the formation settles, Ian¡¯s party began to break through the dungeon as soon as possible. ¡°Pin, Crush! Karcues load the Breath for 5 seconds¡­ Hoonie-ah, Dark Swamp!¡± In the open and back map, once surrounded the only way to go would be the front. Especially, the magicians didn¡¯t even get the time to cast magic as the attacks came in from every direction. Of course, a casting time of less than 2 seconds spells was there, but they would be a one-time cast spell, and a minimum of 5-second casting time was needed as the wide-area was the most difficult one to play. However, in the current line up, it wasn¡¯t so relevant as the front was blocking in the attacks. Remir and Hoonie were hardly attacked in the ends, so they could take their time for casting. Pung- Boom! Based on Ian¡¯s orders, Hoonie triggered the warlock skill¡ª¡¯Dark Swamp¡¯. The Dark Swamp was literally a swamp of darkness. Although it had a weak offensive power, it was a high-ranking warlock skill that gave various debuffs in the wide area. Enemies in the dark swamp range had a greatly reduced movement speed, and their resistance to magic reduced significantly. Krrk- Krrrk-! When Hoonie¡¯s Dark Swamp was triggered, the whole bottom of the area was filled with thick dark energy. The numerous Undead who stepped on it was trapped. ¡°Keuk-Keuk!¡± ¡°Wide-area magic! Retreat to the back!¡± The Death Knights with high leadership and AI were giving out orders for a retreat, but it was all useless. The agility of theirs was slowed down significantly and Remir changed to an Ice system for the act. This was called a play of mere sense. ¡°Oh, Remir noona now!¡± ¡°This is basic!¡± Remir was a flame magician. When one had a certain magic attribute like fire, it didn¡¯t mean that other attributes couldn¡¯t be used, it was just rarely used as they have weaker significance. Not only the coefficient of the attack, but the effects of the additional skills such as; Freeze or Frostbite would be considerably less than half of the normal Ice Magician. The spell that Remir used just now, the Broad Freeze was of the same nature. If used by the Ice Magician, the magic could grant up to 45% of the speed, but as it was Remir who did it, it resulted in less than 20%. So in general, the magicians didn¡¯t even learn the attributes of the other magic. It was because efficiency couldn¡¯t be achieved. However, the current situation was different. The same slowing effect was superimposed on the slowing effect of the dark attributes, with the combination of the Broad Freeze and that of the Dark Swamp almost created 80% slow down. And for the skeletons, their feet would even budge from there. And the Breath of Karceus came down. Kwahh-! The purple air of stream came out from Karceus¡¯ mouth and swept the Undead. The power was enormous. It was because the magic resistance was reduced due to the debuff of the Dark Swamp, and the undead of level 400 with full vitality was down to less than half in an instant. However, if they were backed by the warlocks, the undead¡¯s vitality could be up once again. Naturally, Ian had no intention of letting that situation arise. ¡°Bbookbbook, breath!¡± It was weaker than Karceus, but in the situation, the breath of Karceus was more than enough. And Bbookbbook responded immediately and opened its mouth, Kwang- Kwaakk-! At that, the lower undead like skeletons and such would all be wiped out. ¡°Kiikk-!¡± ¡°Keuk, it hurts!¡± Only a few death knights and golems were left in the front. In order to save them, the warlock in the back began to cast magic at his location. ¡°The power of Darkness, heal the souls of the dead!¡± But the wizard wasn¡¯t able to complete the casting. Swoosh-! It was because the three swords of Muran swiftly rushed towards the dark knight. Swak-! Like tearing of the air, the swords moved at an incredible speed. The Death Knight couldn¡¯t stop it. In the absence of troops to block for it, the swords of Muran just went right through the Death Knight. The sword went through the heart of the Death Knight who fell to the ground. ¡°Lacamer will not forgive you!¡± ¡°Honor to the Lord of Dead, Chalian!¡± With that, the situation ended. The Death Knight which had no support fell down like the plan of Ian. [You have successfully killed the ¡®Death Knight¡¯!] [Earned experience of 13,089,209!] And new messages came in the sight of Ian. Tring-! [You have succeeded in breaking through the ¡®First Wave¡¯.] [Break-though rank: SSS] [Since you passed the first part, the prisoners of the sector A will be released.] [Due to the high breakthrough rank, you get a fame of 100,000.] [Lich Mage Lacamer is angry.] [Within a while, the second wave will start.] The smoke of dark that was in a faraway distance lifted and new numerous undead appeared. The number of undead was similar to that of the first wave, but there were much high ranking monsters. Ian fixed the spear and looked at the party members who were nervous. This time it was because the strategy used before couldn¡¯t be used now. Right then, Ian heard a very familiar voice in his ears. ¡°I am seeing you after a very long time, Ian Grandee¡± CH 441 ¡®Ian Grand Duke¡¯ was the word. The title sound really old school to Ian. However, it was a nice title in his current situation. ¡®Helliem¡­?¡¯ Ian turned his head in the direction of the voice he heard with an inquisitive expression and became disappointed. Unfortunately, that voice wasn¡¯t Helliem¡¯s. However, Ian¡¯s face brightened right away. ¡°I see the Grand Duke!¡± ¡°Hah! I see the Grand Duke!¡± Numerous knights of the empire who were trapped in the jails poured out from both sides. However, Helliem wasn¡¯t among them, but even then the power of that group was very high. ¡®Wow, is it because of the time that passed? What is with the level of these imperial knights?¡¯ Ian was surprised at what he saw. The fifteen new imperial knights were close to level 450. The level of the imperial knights was 450, which meant that Helliem would have reached the level of 500. Ian immediately went to reorganizing his side by controlling the new knights. ¡°Lofern, move to the left! Legas, you stay there!¡± ¡°I will do as you command!¡± The knights being obedient was only possible because it was Ian. No matter how high one¡¯s fame was, if it was some other ranker then it would have been impossible to control and order the Imperial Knights. The Imperial Knights were NPCs with very high pride and they weren¡¯t the ones who would get orders from just anyone. However, Ian was different. Since the Imperial War, they were used to listening to Ian¡¯s orders. Ian was the most highest-ranking noble in the Empire of Luspel as well¡ªexcluding the emperor. Since Helleim wasn¡¯t there, there was no reason for them to not listen to the command of Ian. Ian¡¯s party was fully formed before the 2nd monster wave began. From the back of the undead camp came a voice. ¡°You petty humans, I¡¯ll make you all my slaves!¡± ¡°¡­!¡± The eardrums of all the users shattered upon hearing that sound, and the eyes of all of Ian¡¯s party members moved in the direction of that nerve-wracking sound. There were dark shadows with levels around 475 in the place where the voice came. ¡°What is that?¡± There was a peculiarly named monster, and its information place had a ¡®?¡¯ mark in it. Its level was the only thing visible. Ian was shocked, and one of the imperial knights beside him spoke with an eerie voice. ¡°It is a Lich Mage, Grand Duke.¡± ¡°A Lich Mage¡­ you¡­ say?¡± ¡°Yes. They are all the entourage of Lacamer.¡± ¡°Oh my¡­¡± The ¡®Lich¡¯ was a top tier among the undead. Its level was almost on the level similar to that of a ¡®Dragon¡¯. There were three things of such sort. Even though the strong support groups called the ¡®Imperial Knight¡¯s¡¯ help, it was clear that the battle wasn¡¯t going to be an easy one. Ian started thinking of a plan right away. ¡®This is a one area fight. We need to take advantage of it and accurately estimate every situation.¡¯ Since all of their enemies were undead, Ian had two powerful cards that he could use. One was the wide-area skill of Kaka. If he used the ¡®Dreaming Devil¡¯ skill, then they would have an overwhelming advantage as the battle progresses if the skill was maintained. Once the Dreaming Devil was cast, it would apply ¡®Dark Control¡¯ to all enemies within the skill¡¯s range and reduce the damage of dark attribute attacks by half. During the 10 minutes duration of Dark Control, Ian¡¯s party should be as aggressive as possible and eliminate the Lich first. The second thing that could help them was the ¡®Dragonic Barrier¡¯. Ian wanted to combine the unique ability of Elcarix¡ªDragonic Barrier¡ªand the unique ability of Kaka¡ªthe Dreaming Devil. ¡®If the Dragonic Barrier of El is used at the same time as Dark Control, then we will be invincible until this battle ends.¡¯ Dragonic Barrier¡¯s stats of defense were enormous. Therefore, even if damage reduction wasn¡¯t superimposed, it would take a lot of time to cut down the durability of the barrier. However, if they get a 50% reduction of dark attribute damage from enemies, then it was safe to say that they were in an invincible shield. Ian stroked the head of Elcarix lightly while keeping his eyes on the Legion of Darkness. ¡°I request to you, El.¡± Elcarix felt Ian¡¯s hand touching her head. She then turned her head towards Ian and looked at his face. She then said while still looking at Ian, ¡°Definitely, dad. Just believe in your El.¡± * * * A leisurely Sunday afternoon. Despite it being a weekend, Semi was heading for the university. With a heavy bag hanging on her back which had a laptop in it and was doing something with her smartphone. A typical college student. Semi who kept on typing something seemed like she was sending some message to someone. ¨C Where are you all? ¨C I¡¯m almost there. ¨C I¡¯ll be there in 3 minutes! ¨C Me too, 3 minutes! ¨C I¡¯ve been here for a while. Semi sent her message in a group chatroom made by her and her friends. After seeing the messages of her classmates that came one after the other, Semi shook her head. ¡°Ugh! When we team up, we need to move fast¡­ only then can we maintain a knife-like precision.¡± Thud Thud. Semi began to take heavier and faster steps towards the university. After she arrived at the back door of the Virtual Reality building, she waited for someone. ¡°Unnie where are you now¡­¡± Semi pulled out her smartphone since she wanted to send a message to this ¡®unnie¡¯ person whom she had been waiting for. She then heard a voice coming from behind her. ¡°Semi, it had been a while!¡± The voice came from the person that Semi was waiting for. She put her smartphone back in her pocket and greeted the person with a smile. ¡°Hi Jin unnie, it has been a while!¡± * * * There wasn¡¯t any special reason why Semi and her group of friends were meeting at the university. They went to meet the uploader, So Jin, the video editor of the Lotus Guild. ¡°Thanks, Semi-ah. For coming here even on weekends.¡± ¡°Not at all, unnie. I get to see the unedited videos of Ian, so this isn¡¯t such a hard task.¡± Last night, a fire broke out in the building where So Jin¡¯s office was located. Luckily, the office was empty so no one was harmed, but all the equipment in the office got caught in the fire. That wasn¡¯t really much of a problem since the content in the computer was uploaded to the web. The biggest problem she had was that she had no place where she could do her work. It wasn¡¯t like she hadn¡¯t thought of the PC rooms near her neighborhood. It was just that working in a PC room seemed unreasonable. In order to produce visually stunning videos, she had to work with the best quality. That meant that she would need high-end PCs. So, So Jin came up with the idea of using the PCs in the computer room in the virtual reality department. It was a computer room with high-end computers so she could definitely produce high-quality videos if she used the PCs there. So Jin called Yoo Hyun for help, but Yoo Hyun was busy with the war. So, Semi decided to help her out. Semi first got permission from the office and then opened the computer room on a Sunday. So Jin often came in and out of the Virtual Department to meet Yoo Hyun and Jinsung. Since she was acquainted with the other students too, there didn¡¯t seem to be a huge problem. That was why Semi asked for a weekend skip. Wheeing-! As the computer turned on, So Jin couldn¡¯t help but laugh. ¡°Thanks, kids. This unnie will treat you to a delicious meal later.¡± ¡°Wow, I¡¯m excited now!¡± ¡°Unnie, I like pizza.¡± ¡°No, I like chicken.¡± So Jin smiled at them and said, ¡°Then let¡¯s make it both chicken and pizza.¡± ¡°Keu, sure! So Jin noona is so above us!¡± The excited and noisy kids inside the Virtual Reality department sat around and stared at the screen. When all the settings were done, Ian¡¯s video appeared on the screen. So Jin who saw that on the screen murmured in a small voice, ¡°Uh, Ian seemed to have battled a lot lately, but I¡¯m diligent.¡± After finishing the program setting, she tried to access Kailan using the PC. To connect to the ¡®crystal ball¡¯ and capture Ian¡¯s video. It was possible to simply access a crystal ball for a video without a capsule. ¡°Oh, Imperial Knights!¡± ¡°Oh! Oh! Right! Isn¡¯t that the Luspel Empire¡¯s image?¡± ¡°Right. It looks like they have been rescued from prison.¡± The Virtual Reality students were all excited at the clip they were seeing. After a while, they saw three crystals floating around Ian. * * * ¡°Bbakbbak, Dragon¡¯s Roar!¡± Kiyahhh-! As soon as Ian issued his command, Bbakbbak¡¯s roar ravaged the whole area. Bbabbak launched his wide area CC along with the effects of ¡®slowing¡¯ and ¡®defense¡¯. Kung- Kung-! Bbakbbak suddenly suffered a huge deal of damage. After seeing that, Hoonie asked Ian with anxiousness. ¡°Hyung, Bbakbbak¡¯s invincible skill hasn¡¯t cooled down yet, right?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry and continue casting.¡± ¡°Ah, kay.¡± Intensive attacks of numerous undead monsters of over the level of 400 fell onto Bbakbbak. No matter how many millions of vitality Bbakbbak had, if such attacks were targeted to a single point, there was no way Bbakbbak would be able to handle it. [Vitality of your familiar ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯ has been reduced by 279,809.] [Vitality of your familiar ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯ has been reduced by 498,109.] Levya did place intensive heals on Bbakbbak, but nevertheless, the vitality of Bbakbbak had fallen to less than half. Bbakbbak¡¯s suffering didn¡¯t stop there. His vitality kept on going down and down. Once Bbakbbak¡¯s vitality dropped to a third, Ian signaled Yu Shin. ¡°Yu Shin, ready?¡± ¡°Yeah!¡± Upon hearing Ian¡¯s signal, Yu Shin crossed his arms and stretched them towards Bbakbbak. ¡°Warrior¡¯s Toukon!¡± A golden light shield appeared on Bbakbbak¡¯s head. Woong-! [Party member ¡®Yu Shin¡¯ has used the skill ¡®Warrior¡¯s Toukon¡¯ on the familiar ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯.] [The damage received by the familiar ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯ will recover up to 30% at a time for 1 minute.] [The power of a warrior will come out from the familiar ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯.] [The damage taken by the familiar ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯ will be healed and cause damage to surrounding enemies as well amounting to 3,679,809.] Kwa-Kwang-! A huge explosion rang. A golden wave spread out around Bbakbbak at the same time. Kwakwakwa-! The highest tier skill of Yu Shin¡¯s class¡ªthe ¡®Warrior¡¯s Toukon¡¯. The timing of the Warrior¡¯s Toukon was perfect, and Bbakbbak who was about to die soon had his vitality recovered to 100 percent. The skill also dealt 3 million worth of damage to Bbakbbak¡¯s surrounding enemies. ¡°Keuak!¡± ¡°Move back!¡± 3 million damage wasn¡¯t a huge deal. A monsters defense would also be considered in the damage calculation process. However, the monster that was caught up into that attack were skeleton archers and warriors. [You have successfully defeated the ¡®Skeleton Warrior¡¯!] [You have successfully defeated the ¡®Skeleton Archer¡¯!] Because of such unexpectedly strong widespread attack, the Undead withdrew a step back. However, the Undead¡¯s vitality recovered right away. The Undead¡¯s fast recovery was because of the Lich Mage. Even then, a smile made its way onto Ian¡¯s lips. ¡®Nice, I got them¡­!¡¯ There was a twinkle in Ian¡¯s eyes. Ian set his sights at the back end of the Undead Army. After a little while, Kaka flew to the air. Kaka was flying over the Undead monsters that moved back. The moment Kaka and Ian¡¯s eyes met, he raised his hand to the air. CH 442 ¡°Woah!¡± ¡°That is¡­ awesome!¡± ¡°OMG! This is my first time seeing the Warrior¡¯s Toukon!¡± ¡°Only you? It¡¯s my first time seeing it as well. It¡¯s a skill that can be acquired only when a Martial Arts user turns level 350¡­ and we get to see that? A level 350 of the hidden class martial arts is a deadly one and a rare class.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­there aren¡¯t more than three users with level more than 350 of the martial arts class on the server.¡± A huge screen in front of the computer room. The golden brilliance of the ¡®Warrior¡¯s Toukon¡¯ skill filled the big screen. The virtual reality students who were watching Ian¡¯s battle wowed in excitement. ¡°Wow! So Jin noona your control on those crystal balls are no Joke huh.¡± ¡°Yeah, well, I¡¯m not the exclusive editor for Jinsung senior for nothing.¡± The students were awed by the series of scenes that they saw. The ranker¡¯s movements were being captured very neatly. So Jin was concentrating so much on the computer that she started to sweat and not hear her surroundings. She was moving the mouse like a pro-gamer who never let their hands stay free. ¡®Phew, this really still feels a bit raw¡­¡¯ In the beginning, to film a video while controlling the crystal balls was more difficult than one would think of. Not too long ago, a company that shot personal videos and photos of individual users was created. Of course, it was possible for anyone to just shoot their own content, but it was difficult to use multiple crystal balls at once like So Jin. Besides, the one being captured was Ian. And when recording the video footage of Ian¡¯s battle, editors weren¡¯t just going to have one or two concerns because unpredictable things occur constantly. They needed a high level of observation and focus. The same situation happened today. ¡®Uh, what is this now? The Warrior¡¯s Toukon skill has been triggered, won¡¯t he connect it with some other high-impact skills?¡¯ So Jin constantly edited the videos of Ian so she gained considerable knowledge about Kailan. And yet the Warrior¡¯s Toukon, one of the most famous skills in the Martial Arts class, was something she wasn¡¯t aware of. In addition, when one wants to shoot the video of Ian, an understanding of the game was fairly necessary. So, So Jin had an understanding of the game to the level of a few commentators. However, she didn¡¯t seem to fully comprehend the situation that was currently happening. ¡®The timing was spot-on, why are they staying still?¡¯ So Jin expected a wide-area skill to destroy the Undead, which was why she took the crystal balls high up the sky. A wide-area skill that could annihilate all the enemies at once filled the screen. However, all the Undead who were affected by the Warrior¡¯s Toukon immediately rushed back to avoid getting any more damage. So Jin¡¯s prediction of them dying went sideways. ¡®What? What are you trying to do?¡¯ So Jin¡¯s eyes were scanning the whole battlefield. It was because a perfect scene could only be captured when one could predict where the crystal balls should go next. Suddenly, a familiar system message was heard from the loudspeaker in the computer lab. [Darkness¡­ will set upon.] * * * All the Warlocks, including the hidden classes, had a skill that they could learn once they reach level 300. The skill was ¡®Animate Dead¡¯. Of course, if one was a high-level hidden class Warlock like Hoonie, then one could learn it at a faster pace, but most warlocks gain the skill ¡®Animate Dead¡¯ at level 300. The skill was a special skill that was enough to not divide the ¡®Warlock¡¯ class before reaching level 300. It was a skill that could resurrect all units that died in battle. A skill that could reverse the flow of the battle. In particular, when a large number of monsters were concentrated like what was currently happening now, the more powerful Animate Dead would be. The units who would be revived by Animate Dead would become an Undead within 10 seconds of their death. The skill was best used in battles that were happening in a vast area. ¡®To wipe them all at once¡­ we need to start with Breath and then pour out all our remaining attacks. Once we are out of skills, that¡¯s when we will use Animate Dead¡­¡¯ There was nothing more troublesome than having their enemies survive even after they use all of their high-level skills. That would¡¯ve been nothing less than an embarrassing situation. However, if one wasn¡¯t familiar with the concept of Animate Dead, then one might think like this. ¡®Shouldn¡¯t Hoonie activate the Animate Dead and pre-empt the bodies?¡¯ However, it wasn¡¯t that easy. Animate Dead was a high ranked black magic skill that had to be cast from the sidelines. Its casting time decreases as its level got higher. The Lich Mage was almost 100 level higher than Hoonie who hadn¡¯t reached 400 yet, and it was a difference that couldn¡¯t be overcome by good control alone. The Undead kept reviving because of that terrible monster called the Lich Mage. So in order to win the battle, the first thing they had to do was to get rid of the Lich Mage. Otherwise, Ian wouldn¡¯t be victorious today. ¡°Levya, provide Elcarix with a light shield!¡± Levya immediately cast the spell as Ian requested. ¡°Okay!¡± Levya didn¡¯t understand why Ian would choose to have her cast that skill. [Party member ¡®Levya¡¯ used ¡®Guardian of Light¡¯ on familiar ¡®Elcarix¡¯.] [The defense of ¡®Elcarix¡¯ has increased by 78% for 60 seconds.] The Guardian of Light was a low tier buff skill that a Priest class could learn before the level of 100. Its coefficient was very high. However, it lasted for only a minute and could only buff just one target. It was a skill that was rarely used. But in the present situation, the Guardian of Light skill, was the best choice. Elcarix¡¯s defense would increase tremendously after she used the Dragonic Barrier as well. The defense buff that was given to Elcarix would be connected to all the party members. As soon as the two skills combined, the short duration of the Guardian of Light skill would be extended once the Dragonic Barrier¡¯s effects had been triggered. The single target defense buff ¡®Guardian of Light¡¯ became a wide-area buff due to Ian¡¯s amazing skill application. Ian issued an order once again, ¡°Levya, get ready to cast an offensive skill!¡± Again, Levya was confused as to why Ian would ask her to do that. ¡°Huh? How about the heal?¡± ¡°You won¡¯t have to heal for the next 10 minutes.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Levya nodded her head even though she was still surprised. As soon as Ian was done, Kaka¡¯s low voice resonated in the dungeon. [Darkness¡­ fall upon us.] Kwoo-! A thick black fog began to fill the battlefield. System messages appeared in front of Ian¡¯s party members at the same time. Tring-! [Slave of the party member Ian, ¡®Kaka¡¯ unique ability ¡®Dreaming Devil¡¯ has been activated.] [During the shadow control, all the party members¡¯ damage is increased by 5% and all incoming dark attribute damage will be reduced by 50%. In addition, all the stealth enemies within the radius will be visible.] Ian¡¯s voice rose once again at the same time. ¡°Karceus, Bbookbbook, block their retreat!¡± ¡°Okay, master.¡± ¡°Kay, Bbook.¡± ¡°The rest, attack the Lich mage with everything you¡¯ve got!¡± Levya once again confirmed the order that Ian gave her awhile ago. ¡°Do you really want me to switch to a damage dealer position, too?¡± Ian nodded without a second thought. ¡°Yeah, please do that play, Levya.¡± Levya nodded giving him an assuring smile. ¡°Nice. I¡¯ll use the magic skills I haven¡¯t used for a long time.¡± Swooah-! The white wings on Levya¡¯s back fluttered and rose high into the sky immediately. The same went for Ian¡¯s other party members. As the orders of Ian fell into place, the battle to frighten the Lich Mage began. It wasn¡¯t that hard to move to the place where the Lich Mage was. The Undead were all in front of them with no place to retreat, so the front of the Lich Mage was wide open. The Lich Mage who grasped what was about to happen burst out. ¡°You played a furious trick!¡± ¡°You pathetic humans!¡± ¡°You think you can stand up to us!¡± Kuoo-! The Lich Mages raised their hands and swung their staff. Dark spheres quickly moved in the direction of Ian and his party. And right behind them in that time, the Undead seemed to have come right behind Ian¡¯s party. They looked like they were in trouble at first glance, and it seemed like their doomed. However, Ian didn¡¯t panic since everything was going according to his plan. Ian¡¯s loud voice rang through the dungeon. ¡°El, Dragonic Barrier!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± A shield was created around the party. A truly invincible shield with insane defense. * * * ¡°WOW¡­¡± A short exclamation came out of So Jin¡¯s mouth. She was controlling the crystal balls in the air for quite some time. But for a while, she was under the impression that she no longer had to control the sphere. Her current angle could see the entire battlefield. ¡®To think that the Dragonic Barrier and the Dark Control could be used together¡­¡¯ Ordinary users couldn¡¯t see the extent of decisions that the party of Ian made. The Dark Control effect that came along with Kaka¡¯s ¡®Dreaming Devil¡¯ skill was already known to many, but very few knew about any kind of information about the Dragonic Barrier. As a result, the present situation on the battlefield would be perceived as suicide by other users. Which was why apart from So Jin, the other viewers with her were bursting out in shock. ¡°What? They were doing well, then why did they turn it into something like this?¡± ¡°Uh¡­ Jinsung senior is also like this.¡± ¡°Well, no matter how much one like to take risks, getting themselves buried among the Undead is just¡­ there¡¯s no escaping that now¡­¡± ¡°Hmm. Let¡¯s watch first. Did you ever see Jinsung senior make a mistake?¡± ¡°Even so, this is a bit¡­¡± It didn¡¯t take much time for those doubts to turn into amazement. Ian¡¯s party members ran towards the Lich Mages. Even though they were getting attacked, the durability of the shield buff on them didn¡¯t go down. They were all attacking head-on and totally neglecting defense. ¡°Oh, Wow! What is that?¡± ¡°That¡¯s crazy, dude. What is that shield? How is it still active after being hit? How strong is that shield?¡± In the meantime, Semi who was listening to their conversation gulped and opened her mouth, ¡°It looks like the Dragonic Barrier. I think maybe a unique ability of Elcarix.¡± ¡°Oh shit¡­ isn¡¯t that ridiculous? That is so broken!¡± ¡°Not sure. Something else should have been there. There hasn¡¯t been such a skill in Kailan so far¡± ¡°Well, the first time Breath came out, everyone considered it to be a flawless one.¡± So Jin who knew exactly what was happening out there smiled. Though she wanted to talk to those uneducated lambs, she didn¡¯t have the luxury of time. Ian was on Pin and was flying in the air. He then leaped onto the Lich Mage. She now had to take control of the crystal ball and get a close up on one of Ian¡¯s battle scene. ¡®You¡¯re overlapping crazy defenses and reducing the damage¡­ if someone with no knowledge saw this, they would assume you were invincible.¡¯ So Jin felt goosebumps all over her while watching the video. While neglecting defense, Ian was going to attack at a very high speed. CH 443 While Ian was on a hunt during those times, the level of Elcarix had gone up exponentially. This time, when the Dragonic Barrier was triggered, the level of Elcarix was around 325. It was still lacking when compared to the 400 levels of Ian. ¡®Because of the Guardian of Light skill has a 78% buff ratio¡­¡¯ Elcarix¡¯s defense was now nearly around 8,000. And 78% more meant that it was around 1 million. In addition, the Dragonic Barrier¡¯s defense boasted a shocking factor of fifty times of Elcarix¡¯s defense, which would result in a defense of 700,000. On the other hand, the highest damage that the Lich Mage could give was around 20,000. Of course, when the attack skills of the Lich Mages came, the coefficient was high, but that didn¡¯t mean much. It was because of the Kailan¡¯s damage calculation system, the formula calculates the attack and the defender¡¯s attack, as well as the defense ratio. In layman¡¯s words, no matter how great of a high-level skill was used, if the inherent damage is low, then the damage won¡¯t come out. And the result of that was this. [¡®Lich Mage¡¯ unique ability ¡®Death¡¯s Touch¡¯ has been cast.] [Darkness Damage is reduced by 50%.] [Damage of 7 has been received!] [Dragonic Barriers durability (4,112/4,217) reduced by 7.] [The ¡®Skeleton Archer¡¯ has done a deadly hit!] [Darkness Damage has been reduced by 50%.] [Dragonic Barrier durability (4,111/ 1,217) reduced by 1.] The Death¡¯s Touch was a skill that boasted the highest coefficient for the single attack of the Warlock. A Warlock of level 300 when cast a Death¡¯s Touch can give out a deal of 700,000. However, when cast on top of the Dragonic Barrier, 70,000 no 7,000 no, just 7 points of damage was received. For the Lich Mage, it was a tricky situation. ¡°That dragon uses strange magic!¡± Screamed by a Lich Mage, seeing that Elcarix just snapped her fingers. ¡°Hehe, weird magic, you say. This is my strongest power.¡± Another Lich Mage was right to the one who complained. ¡°This¡­ is a bug! It¡¯s definitely a bug!¡± Ian was shocked at that. NPC or monsters, the topic of bugs coming out of their mouths was ridiculous to hear. ¡°Bug? You know what a bug is?¡± But the answer that came back from the Lich mage was even absurd to hear. ¡°You people don¡¯t even know that!¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± ¡°The strong magic spells that I¡¯m not aware of are bugs!¡± ¡°¡­¡± There was a strange feeling in his chest because of the insight of the Lich Mage. ¡°Where did you learned about that?¡± ¡°The strongest magicians said that humans are like bugs.¡± ¡°Hmph.¡± The amazing learning ability of an NPC¡¯s AI, Ian couldn¡¯t help but smile. It sure was a fun situation to talk about, but it was much important to get rid of the Lich Mages before the barrier ended. Even though the attacks were drizzle, the durability of the barrier was eventually going down. And the invincible looking Dragonic Barrier had deadly weaknesses. If one focused on the DoT attack that deals damage every 0.1 seconds, the endurance of 4,000 would disappear in an instant. However, it was a good thing that the Lich Mages didn¡¯t know it. ¡®If they try to take down the barrier right away, I¡¯m confident of taking it down in a minute.¡¯ At the plan of Ian¡¯s party which had the shield on, the Lich Mages vitality began to drop quickly. Kwang- Boom-! The elimination of stress on the defense from the mind of the party had a great impact on the DPS than expected. The DPS of Healer Levya was above most dealers. After a while, the vitality of one Lich Mage got exhausted. [Party member ¡®Remir¡¯ has successfully defeated the Lich mage!] [Earned experience of 37,982,014 points!] [Acquired fame of 150,000!] ¡°Keuk, avenge me!¡± A Lich mage disappeared with a smoke. The remaining two suddenly felt a sense of crisis and triggered a few magic spells that weren¡¯t seen before. ¡°Illusion Warp!¡± The party members including Ian were nervous when it first got triggered, but the eyes of Hoonie were twinkling. For the warlock Hoonie, the new magic skill the Lich Mage of level 450 was using, was likely going to be a skill that he would learn in the future. And when the illusion warp was cast, shadows were created. Swooah-! ¡®What is this?¡¯ The skill name of illusion warp, inferring to its name, it was tough to guess the kind of magic. But after a while, Ian and the party were able to see the use of magic. Swing ¨C swing- swing-! The two Lich mages that were being attacked by the party were now teleporting constantly to the location where the shadows were created. Although the location of the shadow was determined, it was a tricky magic. It was estimated that once every three seconds, the teleportation could be done with casting, but the focus was scattered everywhere. In particular, Yu Shin, who had a short range of attacks grunted with irritation. ¡°What¡¯s this, skills of such nonsense existed?¡± Ian too used his spear, so his situation wasn¡¯t much different from Yu Shin. With the vitality of the mages generally being short, it was annoying but not impossible. Ian asked Remir. ¡°Remir noona, Haste for Ly and Halli!¡± The two familiars with great agility. Halli, in particular, was the best choice in their current situation because of the stun that it had on its passive skills. As magic got cast from Remirs hands, a white smoke flew its way to Ly and Halli. Ian got Halli and ordered Ly, ¡°Ly, start with the one I target!¡± ¡°Krrrk! Okay, Master!¡± Ian activated all the unique powers of both his familiars. The first unique ability was Ly. [Activated the familiar Ly¡¯s unique ability ¡®Fenrir¡¯s Fury¡¯.] [The familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ will go into a state of Fury for 3 minutes.] [Increases all combat stats by 50 percent and critical strike chance by 20 percent.] [Each time an attack deals a critical strike to the enemy due to the ¡®Fenrir¡¯s Fury¡¯, the cooldown is reduced by 5 seconds.] [Activated the familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ unique ability ¡®Dark Encroachment¡¯.] [The familiar Ly will be in the Dark Encroachment for 3 minutes.] [Over time, all attacks are critically hit and negates 70% of the damage.] [In presence of darkness, all the movements are 50% faster for the duration period.] The King of wolves, the ¡®Sovereign Fenrir¡¯. In the case of Ly, the difference in the combat power before activating the unique abilities and after activating them could be seen clearly. As one could observe from the system messages, the effect of its own buff was huge. ¡°Krrrng, Gggrrrrk!¡± Moreover, the environment of the battlefield was optimized just for Ly. Despite being a legendary familiar, Ly gave the same amount of damage as a myth rank. The weakness of Ly was the defense and vitality, which were the chief stats for a dragon, however, those black holes were covered thanks to the Dragonic Barrier. And there was an extra buff effect due to Kaka. Moreover, due to the nature of Ly which specialized in attacking a single target, it would be able to draw a stronger deal than any other in their situation. ¡°Awoo!¡± Ly rushed towards the Lich mage like a lightning after a terrifying howl. Slash- slash-! Ly¡¯s claws struck into the chest of the Lich mage, and the vitality of the mage began to fall down. [Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ has inflicted devastating damage on Lich Mage!] [Vitality of the Lich mage has reduced by 493,801!] With the sudden burst of damage on it, the shocked Lich mage tried to warp. ¡°Illusion Wa¡­!¡± However, Ian was prepared for that. [Familiar ¡®Halli¡¯ unique ability ¡®Smash¡¯ has been triggered.] [¡®Lich Mage¡¯ is in the state of ¡®faint¡¯ for a second.] Halli¡¯s passive ability was well connected. When the unique ability ¡®Smash¡¯ was triggered into the play, the ¡®Rage of White Tiger¡¯ sped up the attack of Halli. A chance of hitting it along with a 10% chance of providing a normal attack. The faster the attack speed, the higher the chance of providing damage, and all due to the synergy between those two unique abilities. [Familiar ¡®Halli¡¯ unique ability, ¡®Rage of White Tiger¡¯ has been triggered.] [Familiar ¡®Halli¡¯ removes all the imposing effects and increases the movement by 50% for 10 seconds.] Paws of Halli burst one after the other into the Lich Mage who got stunned for warping. Puhk- Puck-! Halli¡¯s offense was much less than Ly, but that didn¡¯t matter. If one could tie down the Lich Mage, then the damage done by Ian and Ly would be enough. In addition, Hoonie and Remir were providing them with long-range attacks, so the vitality of the Lich Mage was going down much faster. After two of the three had been removed, the remaining Lich mage was handled much easier. ¡°Keu, Lacamer will take revenge!¡± ¡°Humans! Today won¡¯t be forgotten!¡± The named monsters disappeared after saying the words they wanted to. When all the three Lich mages were removed, Hoonie cheered. The Lich mages were surely tricky opponents to deal with. ¡°Ahaha, nice!¡± Remir too, who was casting magic from far away opened her mouth with a laugh. ¡°Now¡¯s the time to party?¡± Now that the Lich mages who restores vitality were dead, the leftover undead were all just haphazard. In addition with the darkness control effect and the barriers still intact, they were just going to sweep of the experience. ¡°Hoonie, Remie noona, you get it?¡± ¡°Okay!¡± Even before Ian could give them a specific order, Hoonie and Remir used ¡®Blink¡¯ to fall back. Even with the barrier on, the cast always released when hit, so they had to move further back to cast a long-range magic. And after a while¡­ Waoong-! With a splendid feast of magic, all the undead turned into ashes. Bang- Bang- Babang-! Ian noticed that a lot of system messages were popping up, and these messages made Ian, as well as his party members, smile. Tring [You have successfully killed the ¡®Death Knight¡¯!] [Attained the experience of 9,981,029 points!] [You have successfully killed the ¡®Skeleton Warrior¡¯!] [Attained the experience of 5,154,429 points!] And with the battle being cleared, the blocked wall in the front began to move around once again. Thud- thud-! New system messages came along with a change in the area. Tring-! [You have succeeded in breaking through the second monster wave.] [Breakthrough rank: SSS] [As you have passed the second section, the prisoners of sector B will be released.] [As you have achieved a high breakthrough rank, you get fame of 150,000.] [Found ¡®Lacamer¡¯s laboratory¡¯!] [Lich mage Lacamer has started to move.] [After a while, the next monster wave will start.] CH 444 The wall of the dungeon started to move much vigorously than the beginning. Stones walls of the underground prison started to move like living creatures and new spaces began to form. While the structure of the dungeon changed, Ian opened a mini-map to figure out the structure of the changed space. The space was twisting and moving, but the mini-map showed the finished structure of the area. ¡®It is a big hemisphere structure. There is a structure that is high in the middle. Not complicated, it¡¯s good.¡¯ The narrow, long corridors of the maps soon turned into a spacious dome. And finally, the giant structure began to soar in the very center of the map. Boom- BoBoom-! Ian and the other party members looked at the huge structure. ¡°Wow, even though it is just a game, this is huge!¡± ¡°The scale of it is so high.¡± The appearance almost felt like an hourglass. The middle was slanted and the up and downs were protruded. Right then, the center of the structure where Ian¡¯s gaze was fixed. It was filled with light and dark energy. A shadow that looked like a black hole that would swallow everything in its near surroundings. Ian was able to recognize the identity of the shadow with just a glance. ¡®Helliem!¡¯ Ian was in turmoil. From the experience, the figure was similar to Helliem, who was stained with darkness. If Helliem had become a Death Knight, then it was like having another boss. Helliem was surely a myth rank, and if had become a Death Knight and gained the power of darkness, then it meant that he would be much more powerful than the Lich Mage. However, a few unexpected system messages came into their line of sight. Tring-! [All the conditions have been met.] [Hidden, Sudden quest has been initiated.] [The quest ¡®Rage of Lacamer¡¯ has been triggered.] ¡°¡­?¡± And subsequently, a large quest window appeared below those system messages. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Rage of Lacamer (Hidden) (Sudden) ¨C Kingdom of Darkness, Elrika. The Lataphel Domain was the estate with the highest fortification in the Elrika Kingdom. In a place where one could only afford to block a hundred troops, the Lataphel¡¯s solid structure allowed it to block ten thousand. An iron wall which couldn¡¯t be entered or exited without permission from the territory. As a result, King Elrika of the kingdom asked for the construction of the underground prison in the Lataphel territory. A huge underground imperial prison where the confined prisoners of the kingdom could never escape from. But after the Elrika Kingdom fell into the hands of Lich King Chalian, the prison was completely deformed. The underground prison¡ªwhich had served as the prison exclusively for the prisoners, has now turned into a training camp for the legion of darkness for the Lich King. Lich King¡¯s minion, Lacamer trained numerous undead in the very prison. And the materials, they were, of course, the prisoners of the Kingdom. From the imprisoned thousand prisoners, all the undead have been made. One fine day, the Imperial Knight from the Luspel Empire was taken in as a prisoner. And after confirming their identity, Lacamer was very pleased. It was because the Imperial Knights of the Luspel Empire would make very powerful undead Death Knights. In particular, the Chief of Knights ¡®Helliem¡¯ had enormous potential. Because of that, Lacamer wasn¡¯t able to turn Helliem into undead with ease. However, to make such a death knight meant a waste of the huge potential of Helliem. Though made into a death knight of the undead, he would have been very powerful, but he had a higher aspiration. And that was the ¡®Lich Knight¡¯. The combat ability of the Lich Knight far exceeds the Lich Mage. So if one could make a Lich Knight and keep it under them, then one would hold a position close to the Chalian right after the legion of darkness. So if he used Helliem, then Lacamer would be able to come up with a Lich Knight. As a result, he was almost successful in making the great Helliem become a Lich Knight. After a few days, a situation to make Helliem into a perfect Lich Knight would be performed. But in the most important moment, the very end of the experiment, your party has entered the lab. Lacamer was upset. He will use everything in his power to kill you. Kill the furious Lacamer as much as possible. If you don¡¯t manage to kill him in time, the Lich Knight Helliem will wake up to attack you. Quest Difficulty: SSSS Quest Condition: The user who has discovered the Lacamer¡¯s laboratory. Time Limit: 35 minutes. * If you attack and kill the sleeping Helliem before the time limit elapses, then the time limit will disappear. * The quest won¡¯t fail even after the time limit, as Helliem will awaken. * If Helliem wakes up after the time limit, you will have to clear the quest by taking him down. Reward: Unknown (Rewards may vary depending on the progression of the quest.) Rewards vary by users. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian read the elongated quest content till the very end and couldn¡¯t help but shake his head. ¡®There is a reason why there is a lot of time for the third monster wave to start.¡¯ Three minutes have passed since the second monster wave, and yet the third wave hasn¡¯t started yet. It was part of the planning team¡¯s intention, to read the long quest window which would take a lot of time. Somehow, Ian¡¯s head started to hurt while thinking about the core of the quest. It wasn¡¯t a huge complicated type, but the quest format was a little different from the ones that appeared so far. Even though there was a time limit, it wasn¡¯t related to success or the failure of the quest. In addition, depending on which direction the quest proceeded, the reward would be fresh for Ian. So far, in the Kailan, this was the first time for a quest. ¡®What would be the best strategy? How to deal with Lacamer after quickly dealing with Helliem, eliminate the time limit? Would it be possible to kill Lacamer within the time limit without touching Helliem?¡¯ Clearly, the first one was the easiest to perform. But for Ian, the second one was the best choice. ¡®If I complete the quest with Helliem in it, do I get him?¡¯ In the quadra S quest, it could be said that the easy way was the tough one, and the tough way was the easy one. In addition, if they failed to kill Lacamer, the previously received quest of ¡®Tears of the King Elrika¡¯ would fail. But Helliem was the problem. For Ian, Helliem was a sweet temptation. In addition, Ian¡¯s party now had a very strong helper that no one could think of, Muran. Therefore, the troubles of Ian wouldn¡¯t last long. ¡°Ah, what the hell is life?¡± The party members never even thought of asking questions, so Ian had decided the direction of the quest. On the other hand, Hoonie, who heard the grumble of Ian asked him, ¡°Hyung, what is it?¡± Instead of answering them, Ian smiled and seeing that¡ªHoonie shook his head. After a while. The black thick smoke began to rise. ¡°How dare you step into my lab! I will show you what hell is!¡± The minion of Lich King. It was Lacamer. * * * The third monster wave was special. It wasn¡¯t about pushing away the monsters that were generated on the map but was to deal with the undead summoned by Lacamer. At first, the difference between those two waves were indistinguishable. But Ian and the other members of the party knew the difference once the wave began. Firstly, the location where the monsters came in was random. It was an important part when it came to assigning the positions of the party members. If the monsters that came from the front continues, the remote damage dealers would be placed in the back, but if they didn¡¯t know where the monsters would be coming in from, then the location of the remote damage dealer would be pushed to the center. In addition, holding onto the damage dealers was much more troublesome. And Ian¡¯s party had no one of the knight¡¯s class to protect their magicians, aside from a single warrior class, which will have to protect Ian, Hoonie, and Remir. However, that wasn¡¯t the only tricky part. Since the monster¡¯s respawn was a method that Lacamer did directly, to prevent it¡ªthe monster¡¯s respawn speed will have to be slowed down. By creating a circular formation to protect Remir and Hoonie, Ian¡¯s party began to move forward little by little. Ian pulled out the Dragon¡¯s Shield out of his inventory. To protect the damage dealer much efficiently. ¡°Noona, single damage, please.¡± ¡°You really won¡¯t attack that Helliem?¡± Ian nodded resolutely at the question of Remir¡¯s. ¡°Huh.¡± Remir shook her head and asked again, ¡°We can do it in 35 minutes?¡± ¡°Believe me.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Remir who looked at the confident expression of Ians¡¯ just sighed. As Ian was the leader of the party, it was definite that they would have to listen and follow his plan¡ªit was inevitable for Ian¡¯s plan to look reckless. Ian who got the consent of Remir began to command such strong orders. ¡°We have 4 minutes for the cooldown of the Dragonic Barrier. Until then, let¡¯s move defensively. By then we¡¯ll know of the attack pattern of the boss and stand a good chance.¡± All the party members answered at once, ¡°Okay!¡± ¡°Kay.¡± Ian¡¯s party advanced much more quickly towards the distant Lacamer. Lacamer, on the other hand, was also facing the party of Ian. The image of Lacamer on a black cloud was overwhelming. Lacamer had the appearance similar to that of a Lich Mage, but the body was much larger than that of a usual Lich Mage. Lacamer who had a ¡®Lich Wizard¡¯ modifier look, raised his skull staff to the air. ¡°My servants, kill the intruders!¡± Around the party of Ian, numerous Undead rose. Swoosh-! The sound of darkness being born was very creepy. Muran¡¯s swords went to the air. ¡°Today, I will judge the darkness!¡± After a day of restless attacks in the underground prison, the last battle of the prison began. CH 445 Not long after the start of the battle with Lacamer, Ian and his party members knew why the quest difficulty was rated as a quadra S. The skills used by Lacamer had a one in a million destructive force. Nevertheless, there was still hope that it could be cleared in 35 minutes. Lacamer¡¯s vitality wasn¡¯t as much as they had expected. Compared to the confrontation with Khalifa in the Prilania Canyon, Lacamer had less than half of Khalifa¡¯s vitality. However, as Lacamer had his own ability to recover his vitality, overcoming that was their priority. Once they found the right way to deal with that, 30 minutes seemed more than enough to kill Lacamer. However, finding that out wasn¡¯t an easy task. Lacamer¡¯s resilience was a different form of resilience when compared to the usual Lich Mage. A normal Lich Mage¡¯s ¡®Soul Reliance¡¯ skill had the ability to absorb a dead soul to heal his own vitality or the summons. On the other hand, Lacamer the Lich Wizard had the ability to heal all of the damage incurred to him immediately using his summoned Undeads as they took in any attack from the opponent. That was the reason why they couldn¡¯t attack his summons, but it would turn into a pain if they avoided the other undead and went against Lacamer directly. They were indeed in a pinch. The whole party was lost. ¡°So, you¡¯re saying to not use wide range skills?¡± ¡°Well, even if we manage to drain his vitality with a wide range skill, he can just recover from it.¡± Many ideas came into Ian¡¯s party members mind. The first method was for them to read the movement of Lacamer¡¯s summons and cast all their skills in advance. However, there was a fair amount of risk that would take them back to the starting point if they accidentally left the summons. The second way was to attack Lacamer directly since no matter how many Undeads were summoned, attacking them would only recover Lacamer¡¯s vitality. However, that would be impossible. It was hard to not only sustain the incoming damage, but it made no sense to use non-targeting skills to also avoid the undead that protected Lacamer. Lacamer would just summon the Undead to protect him. There was no way to attack Lacamer without providing damage to them. Kwang- Kwang-! Hoonie who managed to stop a powerful attack from Lacamer spoke with a scoff, ¡°Ohho, isn¡¯t his vitality still the same even after 5 minutes?¡± The moment everyone¡¯s eyes instinctively went towards the vitality gauge of Lacamer. What Hoonie said was true. Despite numerous attacks being directed towards him, the vitality of Lacamer wasn¡¯t going down. Feeling triumphant, Lacamer spoke, ¡°He he he, you people can never beat me. At least not as long as we are here.¡± However, that didn¡¯t mean that they didn¡¯t get anything done in the last five minutes. Although his vitality didn¡¯t even have a scratch on it, they were able to get a clear image of the attack pattern of Lacamer. In response to the Undead¡¯s attack, Ian began thinking. ¡®It seems like the Undead can be summoned every two minutes, and the Death Wing every 40 seconds. The Spirit Storm did come out again, so maybe five minutes.¡¯ In Kailan, the higher the difficulty of the boss, the greater would be the randomness of the AI. For example, in the case of a lower-leveled boss, a fixed skill set would be used repeatedly at regular intervals in sequence, but as it went to intermediate and higher levels, the standardized pattern disappeared. Using an A skill and then to C skill. Using an A skill when the timing was best suited for a B skill. So in a boss attack, checking the characteristics of the leader boss was very important. If one knew what skills a high-leveled boss would use, then one could surely counter it to some extent. And in that regard, Ian was the best. ¡°It is the Death Wing, spread to the side!¡± The moment Ian¡¯s words came out, his party members spread out to the sides. Subsequently, a huge dark smoke came out from both sides of Lacamer¡¯s body. ¡°Wings of Death, their souls¡­!¡± Death Wing, as the name implied was an attack that was shaped like a wing. A powerful attack technique that went to the sky and descended quickly to cut away all the targets in its path. At first, it was Yu Shin who managed to avoid the skill. It shocked everyone for a second as it could¡¯ve killed them in an instant. Boboboom-! The Death Wing passed through the place where the party was there a moment ago and cut through the ground. They avoided the Death Wing perfectly, Ian and his party regroup to fight. At that moment, a thought passed through Ian¡¯s head. ¡°Wait for just a second!¡± Ian rushed off to somewhere. Tattat-! He then ruthlessly attacked a Death Knight that was close to his party. Kwang- Kaboom-! Hoonie who was flustered asked him, ¡°Hyung, what are you doing? The little damage we did to Lacamer¡¯s vitality will recover!¡± However, without even responding to him, Ian continued to attack the Death Knight. Ian kept attacking the Death Knight but didn¡¯t destroy it. He left it with a little bit of vitality. He then went back to his party. Remir, who was shielding them from the incoming arrows coming from the side, asked with a dumbfounded expression, ¡°What were you thinking? If you already went there, then kill it. Why leave a little bit of its vitality?¡± Ian answered, ¡°I was doing an experiment.¡± ¡°What? In the middle of this shit hole¡­?¡± Remir was shocked. However, that didn¡¯t bother Ian. He once again gave orders. He would just show it to them instead rather than explaining it since that would be easier. ¡°Noona, hit the Lich Mage with a Fire Blast.¡± ¡°Ah, kay.¡± A giant flame sphere came from Remir¡¯s staff. Lacamer who was fighting with Yu Shin couldn¡¯t avoid the fire blast. Kwang- Kwang-! The attack spell of the 1st ranked flame magician¡ªthe Fire Blast¡ªhad tremendous power. Ian confirmed how much damage it did to Lacamer¡¯s vitality and remembered it. ¡®483,000 damage¡­!¡¯ Ian memorized the number and called out Grrr. ¡°Grrr, Annihilation Rays!¡± Grrr roared. ¡°Grrr Kwahh!¡± Bang- Bang- Bang-! The Annihilation Rays from Grrr surged forward with huge momentum. The annihilation rays rushed towards the Death Knight that Ian left out earlier. After seeing that, Yu Shin who was a bit flustered asked, ¡°Hoonie-ah, what is that?¡± Hoonie replied as if it wasn¡¯t a big deal, ¡°I don¡¯t know either. That hyung always do weird things once or twice, right?¡± That made sense to Yu Shin. ¡°Hmm, that is true.¡± Of course, the women who were listening to their conversation became more flustered because of the two. ¡°I don¡¯t think those two are normal either, Levya.¡± ¡°That¡­ that¡¯s true.¡± The Death Knight who just had 10,000 remaining vitality was taken down with Grrr¡¯s powerful skill. It seemed silly to throw such a powerful attack to a monster that didn¡¯t have that much vitality, but Ian would never do something without thinking it through. As soon as the Death Knight¡¯s vitality went down, Ian¡¯s gaze went towards the vitality of Lacamer. ¡®472,000¡­!¡¯ The moment Ian checked the vitality of Lacamer, he clenched his fists. ¡°That is it! That is it!¡± In the midst of dealing with the undead, Hoonie asked, ¡°What is it?¡± Ian smiled and responded, ¡°I just found a way to defeat this guy.¡± * * * ¡°End of meeting! Thank you!¡± ¡°Great work. Work hard from now on.¡± ¡°Huhu, that¡¯s what we are planning to do.¡± ¡°Uh¡­ I will never forgive you, Ian!¡± In the meeting room of the planning team. A member of the planning team who about to die¡ªnot literally¡ªdue to the work stress created by Ian, opened one or two doors. They then began to take their seats. Even after working overtime for a whole week, they still didn¡¯t have enough time. Even Na Ji-chan who was heading to the monitor room sighed. ¡°Huhu, I¡¯m sweating from my eyes now¡­¡± Na Ji-chan sat in front of the monitor and wiped away his tears. His role was to monitor Ian. Na Ji-chan¡¯s mission was to predict how long it would take before Ian completed the quest. Ping-! A monitor was turned on. The video that was playing in it wasn¡¯t a real-time video. After Na Ji-chan left work, the dungeon fights of Ian were recorded. Na Ji-chan leaned back in his chair and began to look at the video of Ian. In order to predict the quest clear point, he couldn¡¯t afford to miss a single video. ¡°Huhu, they gave you a huge candy¡­ there isn¡¯t one now. Now, what are you going to do?¡± The other day, Na Ji-chan saw the emergence of Muran and was convinced that the quest would be a success. Muran was indeed powerful. If Ian took the Summoner Knight class according to the plan, then they could counter Lacamer. The unique ability of the Summoner Knight was the Summon Ban. No, precisely speaking the Summon Ban wasn¡¯t an inherent ability of the Summoner Knight. Every Summoner class had a unique ability that they got when reaching tier 4. Summon Ban was a skill that literally blocked all of the summonings of the opponent for a time period. The counter skill for Summoners. As of the moment, there was no other skill like that which would be lethal for Lacamer. If he couldn¡¯t summon the Undead because of the Summon Ban, they could¡¯ve killed Lacamer in no time. One might assume that Muran had the skill, but that was wrong. To begin with, Muran was never a Summoner. Muran was just an NPC who was able to transfer his abilities to the one who would succeed him, which was why the Summoner Ban skill couldn¡¯t be used. If a class other than a Summoner gained Muran¡¯s chrisXJF, he or she would be given a quest to change to another class. Either way, Ian wasn¡¯t a Summoner Knight. Because of that, he didn¡¯t have the skill ¡®Summon Ban¡¯. Na Ji-chan was looking at the low-probability of Ian killing Lacamer. ¡°Keu, this time Ian God made a huge blunder. Why would one throw the food that was served right into their mouth¡­?¡± If Ian had chosen to kill Helliem, then their odds would¡¯ve increased. However, Na Ji-chan predicted that Ian would save Helliem. ¡°Surely! The Ian I know would¡¯ve done something like that!¡± The battle video was getting much more exciting. The more Ian and his party members struggled with Lacamer, the more cheerful Na Ji-chan felt. If they failed to clear the Underground, Ian¡¯s chances of getting rid of the Lich King would be reduced significantly. As a result, Na Ji-can couldn¡¯t help but root for Lacamer. ¡°Keu, nice! Crush them all!¡± Na Ji-chan was cheering for Lacamer wholeheartedly. That didn¡¯t last though. He soon stopped cheering. ¡°Why are you doing that¡­?¡± Na Ji-chan became anxious when Ian started to do weird things. ¡°What¡­ are you doing?¡± What Ian was doing was something a planner like Na Ji-chan couldn¡¯t understand. After looking at the scene unfold a little more, Na Ji-chan¡¯s mouth went wide because of shock. CH 446 ¨C Journal¡ªG30 In terms of a gamer¡¯s preferences¡­ (syncopation) Most users who weren¡¯t as good at gaming would tend to play the game as soon as a thought crossed their mind. Of course, that wasn¡¯t a bad decision. An average gamer play games because they want to enjoy. It was an upsetting thing if one got stressed out by playing games. However, there were many users who had a strong desire to play compared to the ones who just played for fun. Most of them were in the upper-middle class. They wanted to stay ahead of other users. They want to have better skills and get better items into their possession. Though it was a known thing, effort was needed for one to stay ahead of others. If they failed to hit a dungeon, they would think about the reason for their failure. If they lost in a PK, they would study the reasons for why they were defeated. Thinking about their own play every day was what made users become better. It could be called the realm of heaviness. If so, what kind of play do users have to do to become top rankers after that stage? The most important thing they should do was to try to grasp the changes planners were planning to do. If users got a quest, users should think about why the quest was given to them. If users got a new skill, then users should think about what the skill was for. When looking at a small option of an item, think about what the intended option was and how to get the most out of that option. The point was ¡®research¡¯ on the game¡¯s system. Users who constantly researched and found what was best for them were the ones among the top 10%. Personally, if users gave the right amount of effort, then most users could be in the top 10%. However, to become better than that 10%, one needed something that had no connection with effort. Physical and game sense. In other words¡­ talent. Most of the game-playing users succeeded in playing the game as theoretically as possible. These were the rankers who were on the top list. If so, how about the top 1%. No, how many users with single-digit rankings were in percentage? If one needed to define them in a single word. ¡®Non-standard beings.¡¯ Beyond knowing the planner¡¯s planning intent, they also found loopholes and analyze the system to earn new techniques. There were a few special users who had shown the ups and downs of playing beyond the theoretical limit. They were called gamers. Star players who were admired by numerous users of Kailan. And among them, the number one user was ¡®Ian¡¯. Kailan Chief planner Na Ji-chan¡¯s report, ¡°Analysis of Gamer¡¯s propensity¡±. * * * Lacamer¡¯s recovery skill could recover his vitality with how much damage was done to his summoned Undead. Ian was able to find the ¡®flaw¡¯ in that system. The key was the damage dealt with his summons. Ian¡¯s mouth turned to a wicked smile. ¡®So¡­ after all this, all the summons just need to have a minuscule amount of vitality before attacking Lacamer. We should then kill his summons.¡¯ If someone heard his thoughts, they would think, ¡®What the hell is he thinking?¡¯ It sounded like crazy. However, if one thought about the experiment that Ian did a while ago, then one could understand what it meant. Not ¡®Damage done¡¯ but ¡®Damage suffered¡¯. In other words, the ¡®damage¡¯ applied for the recovery factor was applied on the basis of the subject. To put it a bit more plainly, if one attacked with millions of damage, the opponent couldn¡¯t take more than 10 damage if he has only 10 vitality points remaining. Meaning¡­ Lacamer would only recover 10 vitality. Ian who was convinced by his experiment immediately began to plan an operation. ¡°Hoonie-ah, you have Soul Rust, right?¡± Asked Ian. ¡°Oh, isn¡¯t that obvious?¡± Soul Rust was a very useful attack magic skill for the Warlocks. A wide-area spell that dealt 1% of the enemy¡¯s remaining vitality every second as long as the enemy was within the spell¡¯s range. If they could bind the enemy within the spell¡¯s range, no matter who it was, in a span of 5 to 50 minutes the enemy would be dead. In general, the mentioned skill was used when hunting monsters such as golems which had slow agility and high magic resistance. Slow agility meant that it was easy to keep them within the spell¡¯s range, and any damage could be dealt to them regardless of their magic resistance. Warlocks usually use Soul Rust to reduce the enemy¡¯s vitality to less than 10% and then use other attacking spells to finish them off. That was how they could hunt a golem quickly. But apart from that, Hoonie didn¡¯t understand why Ian wanted to use Soul Rust in their current situation. ¡®I don¡¯t think that it¡¯s going to be that effective.¡¯ The ones they were up against didn¡¯t have high magic resistance and most of them were Undead that moved quickly. There was no way that the Boss monster Lacamer would come within the range of Soul Rust. Even if they bind him up, he would recover right away. However, as Ian continued to explain, Hoonie understood what he was aiming for. ¡°It is impossible to kill enemies within the Soul Rust?¡± ¡°What is that¡­?¡± ¡°You cut one percent of the remaining vitality, not the maximum vitality. At the end, not a converging one.¡± ¡°Ah, I see. I never thought of it that way. I haven¡¯t used Soul Rust for attacking in a very long time.¡± Ian nodded and responded, ¡°That is the point¡ªto bring down the vitality of the summoned undead as low as possible. We will then kill them in one go.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°If we do this right, then Lacamer wouldn¡¯t be able to recover that much vitality.¡± ¡°Crazy¡­!¡± Hoonie was shocked. This idea was something that would¡¯ve never crossed his mind. Somehow, the vitality of Lacamer wasn¡¯t as high as normal boss monsters. If everyone in the party used their magic including Breath, then they could cut down Lacamer¡¯s vitality at once. At the same time, the vitality that was restored would be a problem, but Ian probably had something up his sleeve. If the vitality of the Undead dropped to less than two digits being in the Soul Rust, no matter how powerful the wide-area magic was, he wouldn¡¯t be able to recover 10,000 worth of vitality. Remir who heard the conversation between those two wanted to confirm if that was true. ¡°Is that really possible?¡± Of course, Lacamer wouldn¡¯t stay still when being attacked. He would definitely summon new Undead monsters. However, the number of undead that could be summoned by Lacamer were limited, and his summons skills couldn¡¯t be used constantly. While avoiding the newly summoned undead monsters, they wanted to do a deal and catch Lacamer. Ian moved his gaze to check the time limit. 00:13:27 ¡¯13 minutes? That¡¯s a little tight.¡¯ The odds were enough. If Ian¡¯s party didn¡¯t make any mistakes and worked perfectly according to his plan, then theoretically they could catch Lacamer within 10 minutes. Ian briefly explained the operation in the chat window, and Hoonie immediately invoked Soul Rust. ¡°Soul¡­ Rust!¡± Swahh-! Unpleasant souls came out like they were trying to escape, blue smoke began to spread on the field. However, Lacamer just laughed at Hoonie¡¯s Soul Rust. ¡°Hehe, you¡¯re really fighting me with such low leveled black magic? Pathetic!¡± Soul Rust was one of the most basic magics of Warlocks, so it was natural for Lacamer to laugh since he was a Lich Wizard. As soon as Hoonie¡¯s Soul Rust was played, Remir¡¯s wide-area flame magic exploded. It was one of Remir¡¯s most powerful wide-area spells. Kwang-! Its effects were relatively simple, but its destructive power was much stronger than any other magic. Remir¡¯s magic roared throughout the battlefield and devoured all the Undead in a blink of an eye. That was a testament of how strong that spell was. It was, of course, part of their strategy to use such an attack. The Soul Rust took too much time to cut down the Undeads¡¯ vitality which was why they had to ¡®spice¡¯ things up. Lacamer was flustered. Of course, he just recovered his damage, and his vitality was back to full again. ¡°Huhu, it was fine this time. Amazing! Humans know how to use the magic of eight circles.¡± Remir then gave out many several lower-tier magics. The vitality of the undead monsters was cut down even more. Once the Undeads¡¯ vitality fell to less than 15%, Ian ordered, ¡°From now on, let¡¯s focus all of our attacks on Lacamer for three minutes. Don¡¯t bother attacking the undead!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± ¡°Let¡¯s show him!¡± Around the healer Levya, Ian¡¯s party members gathered. With the Dragonic Barrier, they could hold up for three minutes. However, they still had to be cautious about something unexpected. After defeating all the undead monsters, they had to focus their attacks on Lacamer. ¡°Devine protection! Bright Light!¡± A white glow radiated from the hands of Levya, and a wide area shield-like magic was created. But nevertheless, the offense of the undead monsters was great. Ian¡¯s party was all poised to defend, using their potions to barely endure the attack of the Undead. The most troubling thing was that they shouldn¡¯t kill the Undead. The number of undead monsters currently summoned on the battlefield was the maximum amount that Lacamer could summon with his leadership. If Ian¡¯s party killed all the undead monsters, Lacamer would have fresh leadership to get new undead. The more undead monsters were summoned, the more Lacamer¡¯s vitality would recover. Ian desperately tried to refrain from doing those things. Lacamer had a tough time understanding Ian¡¯s strategy. Lacamer got flustered and tried to make his way toward Ian¡¯s party. ¡°What are you trying to do! Spirit Storm!¡± Kwaah-! A raging dark storm came from the staff of Lacamer. The Spirit Storm was one of Lacamer¡¯s most powerful skill. Ian¡¯s head began to work. ¡®Levya¡¯s shield won¡¯t last anymore. We¡¯ll be wiped out right away.¡¯ Ian was looking at the undead monsters¡¯ vitality that was on the battlefield. There was a little more than what they needed, and the Dragonic Barrier was still available for him to use. After assessing their current situation, Ian ordered Elcarix, ¡°El, Dragonic Barrier!¡± ¡°Yeah, dad!¡± A bright white glow came out. Wheeing-! All the members of Ian¡¯s party were surrounded by a white halo, and that meant that they had to strike now. ¡°Hoonie, Remir noona!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± Hoonie and Remir moved to their position. Subsequently, their skills started to burst out. ¡°Bbakbbak, Roar of the Dragon!¡± Kwahh! Hoonie and Remir¡¯s wide-area magic needed time to cast, so Ian covered them. Ian was much more focused than ever. All the wide-area skills would be released at the same time, so the newly summoned undead monsters wouldn¡¯t be hit with it. ¡®One, two, three¡­!¡¯ After a while. Ian raised his right hand at the same time. ¡°Breath, Smash!¡± Swooah-! Including Breath, the offensive ability of Ian¡¯s familiars was mostly of intermediate level. Therefore, in order to match the timing with Remir and Hoonie, he waited a while. BBookbbook and Karceus¡¯s Breath was being charged inside their mouths. In the next moment, Ian¡¯s party¡¯s most powerful wide-area magic began to sweep the battlefield. CH 447 Storm. That was it, it was literally a ¡®storm¡¯ that swallowed everything. A body full of destructive breath, the cold breath from the mouth of the Abyss Dragon, and the destructive breath from the mouth of Karceus. With all kinds of wide-area spells being released at once, the magnificent dungeon unfolded. Of course, the undead were all swept away the moment the breath came from Bbookbbook. Hoonie¡¯s Soul Rust being used against the undead only had 1 percent of vitality left. There was no way the powerful breath of Abyss Dragon couldn¡¯t cut their vitality down. Because of the huge wide-area magic, the only monster that was standing was Lacamer. The vitality of Lacamer did recover, but it was so minimal that the naked eye couldn¡¯t make it. Ian¡¯s calculation was correct. ¡°Nice!¡± As a result, the vitality of Lacamer quickly dropped to as much as 30 percent. Lacamer roared in his loud voice. ¡°You human, thinking you¡¯re so smart!¡± Lacamer had no choice but to panic. Even the best AI couldn¡¯t have predicted such development. Lacamer was frightened with the enormous damage that he received at once and cast a summon spell. If he summoned the new undead as a shield, then he wouldn¡¯t have much of a problem to regain his lost vitality through them. ¡°In the name of I, Lacamer¡­!¡± But, that was it. Ping-! A sharp perforation rang from somewhere and an arrow struck into the right shoulder of Lacamer¡¯s. Shot-! The damage of the arrow was insignificant, yet it was fatal in another way. [Damage of 79,480 has been inflicted.] [Concentration has been scattered.] [The casting of summoning spell has been canceled.] Due to a single arrow, Lacamer¡¯s summoning was broken. And to use the summoning spell again, there was a cooldown of 1 minute. And it was the sense of Ian¡¯s play and the mistake for Lacamer. And the mistake was. ¡®Lucky! A pattern twist, so now you won¡¯t even have a Black Shield to place!¡¯ He wasn¡¯t able to activate the ¡®Black Shield¡¯¡ªa shield that a warlock could instantly place that would put him in an immune state. Lacamer¡¯s original combat pattern was to do the summoning spell right after the cast of Black Shield. It wasn¡¯t a state of immunity to all the abnormalities, but because the attacks and motion wouldn¡¯t hinder it. In other words, if Lacamer would have triggered the Black Shield first, then the summoning spell would¡¯ve been triggered even if Ian¡¯s arrow was hit. No, even if not the arrow but the meteor was dropped, the casting wouldn¡¯t have broken. It meant that the damage would¡¯ve not mattered. However, the AI got twisted in an uncanny and uncalled situation, and Lacamer ends up using the summon spell without triggering the Black Shield. With that single mistake he had done, the party of Ian¡¯s rushed towards him. ¡°Kaka, Dreaming Devil!¡± Ian¡¯s voice rang throughout the dungeon. ¡°Darkness¡­ fall upon us.¡± Wind started to move around Kaka who was in the air. * * * The computer room of the virtual reality dept was silent. It wasn¡¯t like it had turned silent all of a sudden. Kailan¡¯s top-tier party made up of top-ranked players in the Korean server. Watching the highest level of play in the real-time, it was natural for the words to stop. More than ten students were gathered in the computer lab, but none of them opened their mouths. They showed amazing concentration with their eyes fixated on the screen, they didn¡¯t want to miss even a single scene that included rankers. However, one student in the computer room, Hyung-woo, was the one who had a bit of an upset face. The reason wasn¡¯t something major. Hyung-woo¡¯s Kailan character was the ¡®Knight¡¯ class, and there was no knight class in the current party of Ian. Hyung-woo himself being a knight, wanted to see the activity and skills of the ranking knight class. ¡®It would¡¯ve been nice if Yoo Hyun senior would¡¯ve been with them¡­¡¯ Yoo Hyun or Herz wasn¡¯t as good as the members of the party. However, it was obvious that he was in the top 1 percent of top users, and Hyung-woo was very curious to see how a knight would perform in the party. And that didn¡¯t mean that the video wasn¡¯t fun to watch. It was because an unfortunate part and the quality of video were two entirely different concepts. Since his class had no ranker, his eyes were fixed on Ian. ¡®But, by the way, Lacamer boss monster is surely amazing and the rankers raid is no joke.¡¯ Hyung-woo who was of the level 50, wasn¡¯t still cut out for dungeon hunting. Block with shield and cut with a sword. To block more than 90 percent of the damage by a shield was plain ridiculous, and it was possible in a small hunt. However, in the video of Ian, around 90 percent of the damage was absorbed too, not by a knight class. The high damage absorption rate had different effects, so it was enough to know from the screen alone. Also, the shield was lifted and released, and the weapons were being swapped freely¡ªshowcasing a thrilling control. As a beginner knight, Hyung-woo wasn¡¯t that much into control play. ¡®I want to be like that too¡­!¡¯ Hyung-woo swallowed dry spit. Watching the videos of the rankers, he was very inclined to run towards a capsule right away. He wanted to recreate the great play that they just witnessed in the game right away. It was like going to a karaoke right after watching a music contest. Of course, seeing it up close, not doing it made it much more frustrating. However, at that time, exclamations came out of the room which was silent a moment back. ¡°Oh, sh*t!¡± ¡°Wow, what was that? How did that happen?¡± ¡°Wow¡­!¡± Kyahhh! Kwang- Kwakwang-! Loud sounds were coming in from the speakers, a simultaneously large number of wide-area skills were sweeping the battlefield. In fact, when watching a large-scale battle video, seeing wide-area skills used on the battlefield wasn¡¯t so rare. But this was the first time to see so many wide-area magic being used at the exact same time. ¡°PMG, awesome! How did they set the timing of the wide-area skills exactly like that?¡± ¡°Awesome! The vitality of a boss of level 470 being cut at once!¡± ¡°Woahh!¡± What was interesting was that the reaction differed depending upon the understanding of the people who saw the scene. For those who didn¡¯t spend a lot of time in Kailan as they just started, it was all destruction and nothing more¡­ ¡°Wow, the wide-area skills are really cool! Should I give up the knight and become a wizard class?¡± Hayoung who was a wizard of level 200, was much more admired at the fact of how the spells of different time-release burst at the same time. ¡°Oh my, awesome. Those skills have different casting times, so how did they make use of them at the same time? Was it a coincidence or an order?¡± But for Semi or So Jin, the most understandable of them, were no words to say. The only thing they could do was to admire with their mouths open. Semi wanted to explain to her classmates about the creepy design of Ian, but couldn¡¯t put them to words. She couldn¡¯t take her eyes off the video, so there was no time to explain. * * * After a wide-range magic storm swept through, the reaming vitality of Lacamer was just 30 percent. According to the calculation of Ian, the current vitality could be cut down in three minutes by a high concentration of their attack. Lacamer¡¯s last resistance, however, was much intense than assumed, and it seemed like they had to put a bit more effort. Lacamer¡¯s vitality was still left, and he continued to summon undead to restore vitality. Lacamer had resisted for another 3 minutes. In the end, however, Lacamer had to kneel. The firepower of Ian¡¯s party, and the ever strong swords of Muran. Besides, Muran¡¯s ¡®light¡¯ attribute could be a great damage nuker to the ¡®dark¡¯ attribute. ¡°The swords of judgment¡­!¡± Grrrrng-! Subsequently, his three terrifying swords went into the air and dropped into the head of Lacamer with a speed of lightning. Kwang- Kwang-! That was the end of Lacamer. ¡°Keuk, to be defeated by trivial humans¡­¡± Lacamer fell with clich¨¦ words. Hoonie who was very immersed in the situation. ¡°Huhu, That¡¯s right, you are on the wrong side of darkness! Chalian¡¯s servant.¡± But Ian who was next to Hoonie broke the flow. ¡°If we raise the tier, even the Lich Mage is nothing great¡­¡± Seeing Ian stole his moment, Hoonie pouted. ¡°Ugh.¡± The last attacks of Muran took away the vitality of Lacamer. Swahh-! With a creepy sound, Lacamer turned into smoke and scattered into the air. System messages came in front of the party of Ian. Tring-! [You have successfully defeated the minions of Chalian, the Lich Wizard Lacamer!] [Obtained the experience points of 109,789,092.] [Acquire the fame of 700,000.] [Affinity with Muran and the Heroes increased by 20.] Including the system messages that usually appeared when the boss monster was killed¡­ [You have successfully completed the quest, ¡®Rage of Lacamer¡¯.] [Remaining Time: 9 minutes 27 seconds.] [Clear rank: SSS] [Obtained the item ¡®Archmage¡¯s corrupted skull necklace (Legendary)¡¯] [Obtained the item ¡®Death Knight¡¯s Sword of Doom (Legendary)¡¯] Quest success messages. Ian was proud and happy, but after confirming the items he had obtained, he couldn¡¯t hide his disappointment. ¡°Hmm, the reward is a bit lacking¡­¡± He got two legendary items, but the level of difficulty of the quest was very stressful so it wasn¡¯t satisfactory. Also, as the items weren¡¯t so useful to him, so. ¡®It is a sword, so a retainer could hold onto it¡­ I need to sell the necklace to the auction house.¡¯ And of course, it wasn¡¯t just Ian who was feeling bad. Other party members were looking at the reward too. They got different rewards, but the grade was similar to them. ¡°Ah, I thought I¡¯d get a myth grade.¡± ¡°Right. I thought I got a great monster price, but I guess LB has no conscience.¡± The expectations were high, but each of them was throwing out words of regret. The time, however, additional system messages came, the thoughts of the party which thought the tough time was far over from continuing. Tring-! [You have met the Hidden Clear conditions for the quest ¡®Rage of Lacamer¡¯!] [The quest ¡®Rage of Lacamer II (Hidden) (Epic)¡¯ will be played now.] Seeing that, the bright eyes of happiness went away from the reward and shone again for the party of Ian. CH 448 ¨C Rage of Lacamer II (Hidden) (Epic) ¨C Surprisingly, you have succeeded in killing Lacamer before the Dark stained Helliem woke up. The minion of Lich King Chalian, who had possessed great power and power of darkness, you managed to kill him in an incredibly short time. This has provided you with the chance to save the Knight¡¯s General Helliem and some other knights of the Imperial Knights. The darkness that was encroached on them now ceased after killing Lacamer. But they aren¡¯t fully saved. Helliem and Knights¡ªnow trapped in the hourglass of darkness, are nothing but empty shells. Lacamer has trapped their souls in the ¡®Dark Sanctuary¡¯. Destroying the ¡®Soul Crystal¡¯ that is behind the dungeon will open a portal to the Dark Sanctuary. Take the portal to the dark sanctuary and rescue the souls trapped in the sanctuary. Quest Difficulty: A Quest Condition: Kill Lacamer without removing Helliem. Defeat Lacamer before Helliem wakes up. Time Limit: 18 minutes 54 seconds. Destroy the dark sanctuary and complete the quest. Reward: Dark Shard Bundle Unknown Unknown * rewards may vary. ¨C ¨C ¨C The rewards were poorer than what they thought, but the new quest came up with the conditions that were enough to energize the members of Ian. Ian quickly read the contents of the quest window and opened his mouth with his gaze still on the quest. ¡°Let¡¯s move fast. There is a lot of difficulties, but don¡¯t lose focus.¡± Remir nodded and laughed at Ian¡¯s words. ¡°Sure. I have a reward of ¡®Necklace of Time and Space¡¯ for clearing the quest. Besides, there are some unknown items too.¡± The necklace of time and space was a rare item that reduced the magic casting time of wizards and warlocks. The rank was just ¡®legendary¡¯ but it was a special item which was worth much more than myth items. Hoonie too spoke with his eyes shining, ¡°Its the necklace of time and space for me too. Let¡¯s move fast!¡± Excited at it, Hoonie ran in the direction of the purple crystal and the rest of the party members moved along with him. Ian, shook his head seeing the quest difficulty to the lowest. ¡®Is this like a bonus? Feels like it, Even then an A rank quest¡­ maybe it is because we worked hard doing the quadra S rank.¡¯ Ian was grateful for the care that the Kailan team had shown and began to swing his spear in the direction of the Soul Crystal. But his doubts weren¡¯t completely alleviated. Kwang- Kwakwang-! In less than 10 seconds after the party members attack, the crystal got destroyed. Ping-! [Soul Crystal has been destroyed!] [Dark Portal is created.] Wheeing-! A giant purple portal sprang up where the crystal was. * * * Though Ian was natural, the somewhat lower quest difficulty of A-levels wasn¡¯t the concern of the Kailan planning team. Then the Epic quest that could be activated with the special conditions in the Quadra S hidden quest, it couldn¡¯t be considered as a bonus quest. If so, then was the difficulty level A, a fake set placed by the Kailan team? The answer was, it wasn¡¯t. The difficulty system set by the main system of Kailan couldn¡¯t be touched or messed by the planning team. Even if they tried to touch the system, it could only be done by the users with ability. Then why was I tagged as an Epic quest with only an A? The answer was in the quest window, ¡®Time Limit¡¯. Time Limit quest for 18 minutes and 54 seconds. If one had too much time to clear the quest, then the difficulty would be easier. The time limit for the hidden quest was set in proportion to the time remaining after clearing the quest of ¡®Rage of Lacamer¡¯. Of the time limit set on the Rage of Lacamer¡¯s quest, the time remaining after the clear of the quest was doubled, as the time limit for the current one. In other words, Ian¡¯s party completed the quest in 9 minutes and 27 seconds left, the double of it, 18 minutes and 54 seconds was set as the limit. That too was an unexpected result for the planning team. The first thing that the planning team thought was that, when clearing these kinds of quests, no matter how quickly one tried, it was impossible to have more than two minutes left. In the normal strategy, no matter how quickly it was cleared, leaving more than 1 minute was tough. How could they even think of having 10 minutes remaining? Watching Ian¡¯s party clear up the quest on the screen, Na Ji-chan muttered, ¡°Oh, that was actually a quest that made me take medicine to relax¡­¡± They destroyed the Soul Crystal and moved to the dark sanctuary, and now the users had to destroy the sanctuary that was like a sphere. The Dark Sanctuary¡¯s durability was 300,000. At first glance, the durability figure may look easy to clear. However, there was a catch. The dark sanctuary was close to infinity, and any attack done wouldn¡¯t cause damage of more than 1. In short, the 300,000 could be destroyed only by attacking. Even if one used a DoT attack skill that could attack more than 10 times in a second, then it would take at least 5 to 10 minutes to attack the structure. So Na Ji-chan and the planning team thought that the hidden quest would end in despair for the users. If they fail by running out of time in a quest that could be cleared only by taking durability, then literal curses would come out of the mouth of user¡¯s mouths. But in the case of Ian¡¯s party, it was the opposite. ¨C What? Is it a quest that was meant to bother the planners? ¨C Yeah well. Is it a quest that is the end? ¨C It looks like it. By the way, it is over half. ¨C There is time! ¨C If so, then why set time limit? Even if the party attacks a level 50 dungeon, it could break within 18 minutes. Rather being cursed at, Na Ji-chan looking at Ian in the screen was cursing. Na Ji-chan trembled and vowed vengeance. ¡°Keuk, Let¡¯s see¡­!¡± * * * Far less than 18 minutes before the time limit, the Dark sanctuary was destroyed within 10 minutes. Kwarrng-! Numerous dark particle debris created a whirlwind. Subsequently, many white souls escaped from their bondage and found freedom. [You have successfully destroyed the Dark Sanctuary!] [The many souls which were trapped in the Dark Sanctuary found freedom!] A few more system messages began to pop up in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Tring-! [You have successfully completed the quest ¡®Rage of Lacamer II (Hidden) (Epic)¡¯.] [Earned experience points of 10,500,000.] [Fame of 300,000 has been acquired.] [Affinity with Hero, Muran increased by 10.] [Remaining time: 8 minutes 55 seconds] [Clear rank: SSS] [You have earned the ¡®Dark Shard¡¯.] [Earned gold of 16 million.] Ian and the party all had a single look. After clearing the hard quest and taking the rewards of hard work, the pleasure of taking rewards for laziness was much more of a pleasure. The party got excited and confirmed their rewards. ¡°AH! Necklace of time and space option A! awesome.¡± ¡°Hoonie what¡¯s your coolness factor?¡± ¡°I 1.63. noonas?¡± ¡°Hut, I have 1.97.¡± ¡°Really? True? Seriously?¡± ¡°No matter what, I never lie. It really is 1.97. maybe the max is 2.0?¡± ¡°Cra, crazy! I have never seen anything more than 1.8 at an auction house¡­¡± Remir and Hoonie received the same reward on the same day, and was a good item accordingly, Levya and Yu Shin too were satisfied. Ian too confirmed the rewards that he got. ¨C Dark Shard Bundle ¨C Rank: Myth Classification: Goods Lich King Chalian¡¯s servant, Lacamer had crafted a long shard of darkness for a very long time. Each piece of shard contains a powerful soul that cannot be known, and when all the pieces are assembled, they form a complete ¡®legendary¡¯ undead. However, assembling the shard piece requires excellent dexterity, and the complete undead stats will be determined in proportion to the dexterity of the assembled user. Complete undead becomes a ¡®summon¡¯ that belongs to the user. (Regardless of class, it can be called as a summon). Summons no longer require leadership to summon the familiar. If the alchemy fails due to lack of dexterity, the item will be destroyed. This item belongs to ¡®Ian¡¯. It cannot be transferred or sold to other users, and won¡¯t drop even if the character drops. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¡®Wow, this looks good, right?¡¯ An unusual item that could produce a ¡®legendary¡¯ rank summon. So far, such an item wasn¡¯t seen in Kailan, and it was definitely as valuable as the necklace of time and space. No, for Ian there could¡¯ve been a better item than that. ¡®It is a class independent option, and meaningless for me as a summoner¡­ it is nice that it had no leadership.¡¯ The rank itself was a legend but wasn¡¯t much to Ian. Already most of Ian¡¯s familiar had ranks more than that of legendary, and even the myth familiars were good. But if he didn¡¯t take any leadership, then it was a different story. Legendary summons that could be summoned without restrictions, it was surely a great power. The only part of it, however, was the ¡®excellent dexterity¡¯ which was needed to create a higher-level individual. ¡®I need to find the blacksmith of Pyro Domain after a long time.¡¯ Ian¡¯s best friend and retainer, the dwarf. ¡°Huh, are we done now? Feeling excited about the reward, Ian closed the inventory and looked around. But then, the scenery around them started to change. Woong- Woong-! After a while, Ian and his party were removed out of the dark sanctuary to the dark room. They came back to the lab of Lacamer¡¯s. Subsequently, the space before distorted and a purple haze formed in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Swah-! Whether he was nervous or not, Ian unknowingly fixed his spear. But the very moment, Ian¡¯s face gave out a bright smile. It was because of that¡ªthat Ian decided to go through the tough nerve-wracking quests. The Imperial Knight General Helliem appeared before Ian. ¡°I see you, Ian Grand Duke.¡± CH 449 Although it wasn¡¯t officially disclosed yet, the information on the classes associated with the ¡®Lich¡¯ was already known. Many Warlocks had gone through the quests related to the higher-hidden classes. And because of it being a Lich King Episode, hidden clues could be found everywhere. The two known hidden classes were the Lich Mage, which Hoonie rejected, and the Lich Knight, a warrior class. Ian already knew about the Lich Knight class. ¡®Lich Knight? That is a 4th tier knight class¡­¡¯ As of the moment, no user had advanced to a 4th tier class yet. Even Ian wasn¡¯t a 4th tier yet. If Helliem was a Lich Knight class and Ian got him as a retainer, then he would be a user who has a retainer that has a higher class than the user. That wasn¡¯t a bad thing either. However, Ian wanted to check the status window of Helliem right away, but he tried not to. In order to check Helliem¡¯s information, he first had to be made into a retainer. ¡°It has been a long time, Helliem.¡± A bitter smile came on Helliem¡¯s lips after he heard Ian¡¯s voice. ¡°I never thought that I would see you again.¡± ¡°What¡¯s with that?¡± ¡°If I had been left as the servant of Chalian, it would¡¯ve been just a shell that would be left of me.¡± ¡°That makes sense.¡± If Ian didn¡¯t manage to destroy the Dark Sanctuary, then the soul of Helliem would¡¯ve been trapped in there forever. And if Helliem did lose his soul, he would probably not recognize Ian. Helliem spoke once again, ¡°Since the time I joined the Imperial Knights, I only lived to serve the Luspel Empire.¡± ¡°Yes. You were faithful to the empire.¡± ¡°But now¡­ there is no empire.¡± Ian couldn¡¯t respond to him after seeing the sadness on the face of Helliem. Helliem then continued with what he was saying. ¡°All of this couldn¡¯t have happened just because of my distrust in God. My incompetence is to blame as well. I couldn¡¯t defend my majesty, and eventually, it turned out like this.¡± Ian who listened to Helliem couldn¡¯t help but think. ¡®Why are you blaming yourself? Kailan¡¯s story was created to develop like this¡­¡¯ Ian didn¡¯t say those words out loud. Ian¡¯s thinking was interrupted when Helliem spoke again, ¡°Please cut my neck off. If the Grand Duke of the Luspel would punish me, then maybe that¡¯s enough payment for my stupid actions.¡± Ian then asked after hearing those unexpected words from Helliem, ¡°Price? You want to die in my hands?¡± ¡°Yes, Grand Duke. For the sin of not being able to defend the empire¡­ wash me away with death.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Made an example out of me to the other Knights. If you take my life, then surely none of them will dare betray the empire.¡± Thud-! While kneeling in front of Ian, he banged his head on the ground so hard. Subsequently, the other knights who were behind him knelt down altogether. Ian and his party couldn¡¯t help but feel that the situation became absurd. ¡®Aren¡¯t you overestimating yourself a little too much? How can one person alone stop the fall of the whole Empire?¡¯ Ian was flustered at the excessive responsibility that Helliem took. At the same time, crazy thoughts were going through his mind. ¡®What will happen if I cut him down here? A level 470 myth class¡­ won¡¯t that be a salty experience?¡¯ It made Ian laugh just thinking about that. At the moment, Ian felt something surge throughout his body. Woong-! For the quest to progress, Kailan¡¯s AI took over. As Helliem approached, Ian or Ian¡¯s AI suddenly pulled the sword that was stuck in the waist of Helliem. Srrrng-! A purple glow came out of the white sword. After seeing that, Ian was much more flustered at what was happening. ¡®Yah, crazy AI! You¡¯re not really thinking of cutting him down, are you? Are you trying to get rid of an S class retainer with my own hands?¡¯ Ian couldn¡¯t say those words out loud, and the AI of Ian lifted the sword to the air. ¡®¡­!¡¯ All eyes were focused on Ian and Helliem, Ian¡¯s mouth opened slowly, ¡°The Great Helliem.¡± Helliem lifted his head that was on the ground upon hearing Ian¡¯s call. ¡°Grand Duke.¡± The two people began to talk. ¡°Your sins for not being able to defend the empire are grave.¡± ¡°I know, Grandee.¡± ¡°You and the Imperial Knights have certainly fought for Luspel with your lives on the line.¡± ¡°That¡­ is.¡± Ian and Helliem¡¯e eyes met. Ian then swung the sword down. Thud-! The sword fell in front of Helliem. Ian¡¯s words continued, ¡°I, Ian, won¡¯t bury your sins.¡± ¡°Grandee¡­¡± ¡°One, I won¡¯t ask of you, but your sins won¡¯t go away.¡± Ian picked up the sword that was on the floor and spoke, ¡°The Legion of Darkness that led the destruction of the empire, go against them to wash away you feeling of disloyalty!¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°I, Ian of the Lotus Kingdom will take you as my servant.¡± Thud-! As soon as Ian¡¯s words were finished, the knights kneeling in front of him bowed on one knee. From the mouth of Helliem, a trembling voice came out, ¡°I will come back, Grand Duke majesty¡­!¡± After seeing that, Ian who didn¡¯t have to cut the neck of Helliem felt very glad. ¡®Hu, thank god¡­¡¯ Ian put his hand on the handle of the sword and pointed to the dozens of Imperial Knights in front of him. Ian felt overwhelmed at the splendid scene he was seeing, and the system messages that he had been waiting for finally came up. [Recruit ¡®Helliem¡¯ as the servant of the Lotus Kingdom.] [Recruit ¡®Rosen¡¯ as the servant of the Lotus Kingdom.] [Recruit ¡®Million¡¯ as the servant of the Lotus Kingdom.] The best knights of the Luspel Empire. After managing to recruit him, Ian quickly opened his information window. However, Ian was shocked after seeing Helliem¡¯s stats. * * * Helliem ¨C Level: 470 Race: Undead Class: Knight (Dark Knight) Status: Commander Character: Valor Talent Class: Myth Combat Abilities (Expandable) Detailed Abilities (Expandable) Abilities * Dark Vision The Dark Knight Helliem can appear wherever the power of darkness resides. The Dark Knights that appear in the darkness get explosive damage instantly, and nothing can cut off their sword. Teleports a target that was hit by an enemy¡¯s ¡®dark¡¯ attribute and deals 375% damage. For the next 10 seconds after using Dark Vision, Helliem¡¯s damage would be increased by 250%. The cooldown of Dark Vision will reset if the enemy is killed. (Maximum of 10 times, the cooldown will not reset if the Dark Vision has been triggered 10 times in a row.) (Usable Range: 20 meters) (Cooldown time: 1 minute) * Soul Destroyer The Dark Knight Helliem is a soul destroyer. The souls of his enemies can be cut off with his sword. Only Helliem could heal wounds inflicted to an enemy¡¯s soul. When Helliem attacks an enemy with a regular attack, there is a 15% chance of triggering this ability. Inflicts 150% additional damage when dealing with the ¡®dark¡¯ attribute targets. Provides an unrecoverable status for 15 seconds to the target. (Passive) * Dark Counterattack The Dark Knight Helliem is good at counter-attacks. If he dodges an enemy attack he will be able to use the ¡®Dark Counterattack¡¯. Dark counterattack teleports him at the back of the target and inflicts an additional 150% damage. (Passive) * Chain Darkpulse Helliem wields a sword that can expel a wave of darkness. The wave of darkness inflicts 450% of damage dealt with the target and shots nearby enemies within the radius of 5 yards. Darkpulse can deal up to 10 damage at a time. Whenever the target of Darkpulse changes, its damage is reduced by half. (Cooldown Time: 7 minutes) A brave knight, former commander of the Imperial Knights of the Luspel Empire. Turned to an Undead by the experiment done by the servant of Chalian, ¡®Lacamer¡¯, now he recovered his soul and became a special being. He is now a Dark knight. ¨C ¨C ¨C That was Helliem¡¯s information window. However, the most notable thing there was Helliem¡¯s class. His class wasn¡¯t a ¡®Lich Knight¡¯ which Ian had expected. ¡®What? A Dark Knight?¡¯ An unusual class name. Ian carefully read the whole information window of Helliem. After thoroughly reading everything, he was able to make rough guesses about the Dark Knight class. He had an idea when he saw the description at the bottom of the window. ¡®You got your soul back and became a variant before becoming a Lich Knight.¡¯ Ian didn¡¯t know much about the class called Lich Knight. That was just normal since there weren¡¯t any Lich Knight user in Kailan. So knowing which one of the Dark Knight and the Lich knight were better was impossible. But apart from that, Ian seemed to like the Dark Knight more. Unlike the Lich Knight whose existence was known, the Dark Knight was very unique. ¡®Its skill composition looks fun.¡¯ Just as Ian had expected, the combat ability of Helliem was less than that of Kaizer¡¯s. However, when compared to the level of Kaizer which was 430, he was 40 levels higher and had superior abilities. In addition, his skill and attack coefficient was better than that of Kaizer. Even if their level would become the same in the future, their overall combat abilities would be different. ¡®Keu, I want to use them as soon as possible¡­!¡¯ Every time he read the unique abilities of Helliem, Ian¡¯s head kept calling him to link the skills. ¡®If it is poorly linked to Darkpulse, it will be worth to see.¡¯ The chain of Darkpulse was like the magic chain-lightening spell of the Wizard class that dealt damage while going against enemies. When he imagined Helliem walking through the dark wave while wielding his sword, Ian couldn¡¯t help but squirm out of excitement. ¡°Okay, let¡¯s do it quickly! Contact Herz! We should join the siege now!¡± They had finally figured out the Rataphel Domain, their biggest obstacle in conquering the Elrika Kingdom. Conquering the Elrika Kingdom was now just a matter of time. With his newly acquired knights and Helleim, they could quickly capture the Elrika Kingdom. But unlike Ian, his party members were tired. ¡°Ah, hyung. Let¡¯s take a break.¡± ¡°Yeah, Ian. We haven¡¯t even picked up the items yet.¡± Ian just smiled fabulously in response to Levya. As a result, the time-related quests proceeded very quickly, the dungeon was dropping items here and there which they couldn¡¯t even pick up. Ian smiled and spoke while looking at Levya and Remir. ¡°Then after the maintenance is done, aside from you two, will the others come for the guild siege?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Why now¡­¡± It wasn¡¯t just Ian, Hoonie and Yu Shin who were members of the Lotus Guild were a great asset to the guild. Ian received the confirmation from the two. They then began picking up the dropped items in the dungeon. There were no notable items that were dropped. However, since the dungeon had quite a high difficulty, any item they could get there would bring them a lot of money, so they made sure that they had picked up every item that was dropped. Kaka who was flying from a distance threw some unusual object in Ian¡¯s direction. CH 450 Kaka had a shard filled with dark energy in her hands. The dark energy started to flow out from her tiny hands. What it was wasn¡¯t entirely known, but Ian¡¯s eyes were fixed on that item. ¡®Wha¡­ What is she carrying?¡¯ Ian who was puzzled asked Kaka, ¡°Kaka, what is that?¡± Ian took the item then a line of system message popped up. [Obtained the item ¡®Underworld King¡¯s Necklace Fragment (A) (Sealed)¡¯] ¡°¡­!¡± He thought that it wasn¡¯t much, but it seemed like it was something useful based on the name of the item. However, that was all the information that it had. Since it was a sealed item, the information window of the item wasn¡¯t open. Ian¡¯s head started to work again. ¡®As the name of the item contains fragment and (A) in it, is it an item that can be unsealed if all the fragments are collected?¡¯ Whether or not the RPG had been built like that, it was the only reasoning Ian could come up with. Kaka who was in front of Ian said, ¡°I¡¯ve lived for a thousand years, but I have never even dreamed of seeing this stuff, master.¡± Ian began to become more interested in the item upon hearing what Kaka said. ¡°What the hell is this?¡± Kaka was looking at the shard in Ian¡¯s hand. She then spoke with gleaming eyes, ¡°This is the stuff which contains the power of the King. Looking at the shape of it, it probably is the necklace of the Underworld King, master.¡± Ian replied immediately, ¡°Even I know that.¡± ¡°How did¡­!¡± ¡°It looked like a necklace right from the start. So, explain how this item can be of use.¡± Kaka scratched the back of her neck and spoke, ¡°Was that so? Anyway, this necklace of the king¡­¡± The explanation given by Kaka was quite long, but it wasn¡¯t that complicated. The Underworld King¡¯s necklace consisted of three fragments, and when all three fragments were collected, the seal would get released just like Ian¡¯s guess. That was when the necklace would be completed. ¡°The Underworld King¡¯s Necklace is the only medium that allows the summon of the king of underworld, master.¡± Upon hearing those words from Kaka, Ian¡¯s eyes began to shine. ¡°Underworld King? What kind of Underworld King? Someone who can be summoned?¡± Kaka shook her head and explained, ¡°To call a king as a summon¡­ maybe like a ¡®god¡¯. The Underworld King is the kings of the world¡ªa watchman who guards the way to the afterlife.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°Perhaps, once you complete the necklace, the king will appear in front of you, master.¡± Ian once again asked with gleaming eyes, ¡°And so? If summoned?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what¡¯s going to happen after that, master. I heard that only a few powerful Warlocks of the past managed to summon the king.¡± While listening to Kaka¡¯s explanation, Ian¡¯s eyes widened. It was a questionable item, but it was more valuable than the other items they got since it was associated with the King of underworld. ¡®Maybe this¡­ maybe this is a clue to the Underworld.¡¯ The Underworld King was playing the role of a watchman who was guarding the path to the afterlife. Which meant that if he was the Underworld King, then he would know the way to the underworld. Rather than a bit of clunky information which the Lich King could provide, this source seemed to be more specific and certain. ¡®Oh ho, this is an unexpected harvest.¡¯ ¡°Huhu, it has been a very long time, but I¡¯m a very great one, master.¡± ¡°Yeah, well. By the way, where did you find this fragment?¡± ¡°This is what Lacamer dropped upon his death, master. I picked it up since I didn¡¯t want to bother you.¡± ¡°¡­ you did?¡± As Kaka said, Ian had the tendency to ignore catch items since they seemed like nothing to him. He was doing that not because he didn¡¯t need them. Their hunting efficiency would be reduced if they picked those items up. Nevertheless, Ian learned today to always check all the items that were being dropped. ¡®Huhu, it was obvious. To tame a servant with low leadership power only for the item picks¡­¡¯ Ian kept the item in his inventory and completed his maintenance. One after the other, all the prisons started to open up, and the prisoners were released. In the prison handled by Lacamer, most of the prisoners were Imperial Knights. After all the search work was done, Ian was able to cleanly clear the remaining quest. The quest was called ¡®Tears of King Elrika.¡¯ Ian succeeded in finding ¡®King Remus Elrika¡¯ the former king of the Elrika Kingdom. Tring-! [You have successfully completed the quest titled ¡®Tears of King Elrika (Hidden) (Epic)¡¯] [Remaining Time: 35 minutes] [Clear rank: SSS] [Gained 17,805,500 experience points.] [Acquired fame of 200,000.] [You have obtained the item ¡®The mark of Elrika Kingdom¡¯] [Affinity with ¡®Rems Elrika¡¯ has been increased greatly.] * * * ¡°So you were the hero of the Luspel Empire, the Grandee¡ªIan. No, now you are the king of the Lotus Kingdom.¡± Remus Elrika who got released from his prison correctly identified Ian. With a puzzled expression, Ian asked him, ¡°How do you know me?¡± ¡°Your fame during the Imperial War has reached all the continents, so it would be rather strange to not know.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Remus wasn¡¯t saying anything out of exaggeration about the fame of Ian reaching the entire continent. And it wasn¡¯t a bad situation for Ian. ¡®As, my fame is already over 20 million¡­ there was no way I wouldn¡¯t have been a celebrity in Kailan.¡¯ While looking at Ian who was smiling, Remus continued to speak, ¡°And you might not remember this, but in the past, I was the high general of the Luspel Empire. I fought on the same battlefield as you.¡± ¡°You did?¡± In fact, it was no surprise that the former King of Elrika was a general in the Luspel Empire. Most of the Kingdoms that were currently established were once under the former nobility of the Luspel Empire. It was only natural that Ian didn¡¯t remember Remus. The three years Imperial War was replaced with a six-hour trailer episode for the users. Nevertheless, Ian had no choice but to be cool about it. It was embarrassing and a very sorry situation to be in. It was like not remembering an old friend. Although he was an NPC, it was lucky that Remus was taking it calmly. ¡°I¡¯m very sorry for not being able to remember.¡± ¡°There is no need to be sorry. I should actually be thanking you instead, right?¡± ¡°Well in that case¡­¡± In any case, Remus continued his story in a very friendly manner. ¡°You, King of Lotus, have found the underground prison in the Rataphel¡­ which means that you are at war with my kingdom.¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s kind of like that, yes.¡± The Elrika Kingdom was a kingdom that was founded by Remus. It was natural for Remus to have an attachment towards his kingdom, but that wasn¡¯t the case with the Lotus Kingdom. Even though the Lotus Kingdon wanted to attack his kingdom, Remus didn¡¯t really mind. ¡°So Ian, I would like to make a deal with you.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Yeah. And it won¡¯t be a proposal that would hurt you.¡± Ian nodded to show that he was interested in listening to his story. He then placed his hand under his chin. ¡°Well, let me hear it our first.¡± The moment those words came out, a new quest window appeared in front of Ian. Tring-! ¨C ¨C ¨C Tears of King Elrika II (Hidden) (Connected) ¨C You succeeded in rescuing King Remus who was trapped in the underground prison in the Rataphel Domain. King Remus has taken a great liking on you for rescuing him from the hellish prison cell. And King Remus has offered you a deal. If you give him the position of ¡®noble¡¯ in your Lotus Kingdom, he is willing to easily give away a secret about the Elrika. For Remus, who was the king of a nation, this is an exceptional offer since he was throwing away his pride. If you reject the offer, Remus will be very disappointed with you. Quest Difficulty: None Quest Condition: A person who cleared the Rataphel Manor Underground Prison Dungeon. A person who has completed the quest title ¡®Tears of King Elrika¡¯. Time Limit: None Reward: Active Linked quest. Increased affinity with Remus Elrika * If you decline the quest, your affinity with Remus would be reduced greatly. ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian quickly read the contents of the quest and felt a little troubled. ¡®This is probably a side quest, but¡­¡¯ Ian any case, to appoint Remus as a general was the same as making him a member of the Lotus Kingdom. For Ian, giving him a title and a manor meant that Ian had nothing to lose. The only concern he had was he didn¡¯t know what kind of abilities Remus had. Remus, the king of a kingdom, might not be of the lowest level, but if he didn¡¯t possess the stats that he was expected to have, he would only slow down the growth of the domain. However, Ian¡¯s concern didn¡¯t last for long. It was because there was a lot more to gain from this than its risks. Ian nodded and asked Remus to shake hands. ¡°Okay, let¡¯s do that. But this should definitely be of help.¡± At those words from Ian, Remus looked bright. ¡°Of course, This plan can only be executed with my help. If you successfully executed this plan, you won¡¯t be having a difficult time in conquering the Elrika Kingdom.¡± At the end of Remus¡¯ words, a new system message came in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Tring-! [Elrika Kingdom¡¯s Puppet (Hidden) (Connected) quest has been activated.] The content of the quest came up, and it contained interesting things. CH 451 ¡°So what you mean is¡­ the current king of Elrika Kingdom, is a servant of Chalian?¡± ¡°Yes, Ian. And he isn¡¯t even a ¡®human¡¯.¡± ¡°What is he if not a human? An undead or asmodian?¡± Ian asked Remus with a surprised look. ¡°Yes. He is an Asmodian. No, precisely he is a magical beast.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°The identity of the guy who is seated on the throne is almost exactly like a ¡®doppelganger¡¯.¡± A new quest from Remus, the quest ¡®Puppet of Elrika Kingdom¡¯. The content of the quest was simple. By hiding behind the strength of Elrika, defeat the fake king and then place the real king, Remus on the throne. There was only one precondition. No one should be known that the king had been replaced. The quest was to return the Elrika Kingdom to the rightful King, by replacing the one placed by Lich King. And not to let the Lich King notice. Ian was flustered and was scratching the back of his neck. ¡®I don¡¯t know, it isn¡¯t easy to infiltrate the domain of Rataphel, how am I supposed to do that to the castle? Besides I need to take him along¡­¡¯ Ian looked at Remus who had a comfortable face and sighed. If he would use the manner similar to the one when infiltrated the Rataphel domain, then it wouldn¡¯t be so impossible. But rather than taking the difficulty and risk, it looked better to take some time and push in with the troops. Ian complained to Remus. ¡°This is the secret book?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°The helpful assistant that was bound to help me with this secret book?¡± Remus still responded to Ian with the same confident look. ¡°Surely, I can¡¯t help but be sure. If I take back the throne without the Lich King not noticing, then it will be bloodless battle for the Lotus Kingdom.¡± ¡°No, it isn¡¯t that¡­ it¡¯s too unrealistic to sneak in and kill in the doppelganger and then to put you in place. I think it will be more difficult than taking the whole war.¡± Only then did Remus understood the dissatisfaction of Ian¡¯s and opened his mouth, ¡°Oh, it is right to worry about.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it a bit too carefree?¡± ¡°I need to be carefree. From what I know, your abilities are too great for the task.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Ian stared at Remus with a ridiculous expression. Remus took a moment to speak. ¡°There is a secret passage to the castle in the northwest.¡± ¡°Secret¡­ passage?¡± Remus nodded his head and answered. ¡°Yes, secret passage. It is a path that only I know about.¡± ¡°Oh ho?¡± Ian¡¯s eyes were shining. Because if there was a secret passage like Remus had mentioned, then the quest would be much easier than imagined. ¡®That was why the difficulty wasn¡¯t greater than S?¡¯ Of course, the difficulty of an S didn¡¯t mean easy, but until recently, only triple SSS grade quests have been in progress, and so the current quest seemed easier. However, listening to the story of the secret passage, the level of difficulty seemed appropriate. ¡®But what did he mean when he said my abilities were too great for the task?¡¯ A question arose about what Remus had said. And that question was solved quickly. * * * Swoosh-! The sound of a stream water flowing. To feel the water¡¯s pressure, Jinsung was down in the bathtub. ¡°Uhm, paradise¡­¡± The new house that he had moved in a few months ago was his favorite in many ways. Because it was a newly-built apartment, it¡¯s comfort wasn¡¯t comparable with the other ones. The bathroom, in particular, was truly unparalleled. The freshwater flowed to Jinsung who only used the shower in his other home, this was like a feeling of going to the hot spring for every bath. Soaking in hot water and lying still was nothing less than heaven. ¡°Ahm!¡± An intense yawn came out of Ian¡¯s mouth. But in the meantime, the mind of Jinsung was filled with Kailan. ¡®I¡¯ll have to head to the Elrika castle once I log in. This time I don¡¯t even have a party so I need to move right away.¡¯ With his eyes closed, Jinsung recalled the conversation he had with Remus before logging out. ¡°Phoenix¡­ you say? That is a very interesting thing.¡± The defenders on the side of the Lotus were the God Dragon ¡®Karceus¡¯ and the Griffin ¡®Pin¡¯. Likewise, each of the other kingdoms had more than one patron. The same was the case for the Elrika Kingdom. ¡°The Guardian deity of our Elrika Kingdom is the legendary beast Phoenix.¡± The guardian of the Elrika Kingdom was a beast Ian hadn¡¯t seen yet. With the flames that would never be extinguished till its heart still beats, the legendary beast ¡®immortal¡¯ one, was the guardian of the Elrika kingdom. According to Remus, the phoenix was the one which guarded the secret passage. At the end of the secret passage, one giant tree stood tall, and in the tree was a nest of Phoenix. ¡°Huh. Do we have to kill him to get there?¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t have to be like that. To kill a phoenix, that is something that one can¡¯t do. The guy in the giant tree is probably a little younger than a year old.¡± ¡°Yeah? Then what am I supposed to do?¡± ¡°You need to get the heart of it.¡± ¡°The heart¡­?¡± Ian who reminded the conversation with Remus began to organize the contents one after the other. ¡°Behind the giant tree is a door to the castle. But it is blocked by strong bonds. And to open those bonds, the flame bead is needed.¡± ¡°Flame bead? What is that?¡± ¡°The red beads are something that a Phoenix can make once a lifetime.¡± ¡°Hm¡­?¡± ¡°The Phoenix presents the Flame Beads only to the master that he accepts worthy.¡± ¡°The master of the phoenix, is it you the king of the Erika Kingdom?¡± ¡°My phoenix isn¡¯t in the world. Chalian had already destroyed it.¡± ¡°That¡­ so. Then the guy who is in the secret passage¡­?¡± The Phoenix which Remus had raised was already taken down by the hands of Chalian. But the egg, which remained in its nest, woke up while Remus was caught. In order to be recognized as a master of the Phoenix, a non-summoner had to meet eyes with it¡ªright after he breaks through the egg. However, the guy in the nest woke up alone, so the only one who gets acceptance from him can be the one who can tame and summon him. ¡°So¡­ You told me not a difficult task for my ability.¡± ¡°Yeah. To be precise, you¡¯re an excellent summoner. You are a summoner who tamed a God Dragon, I believe that a Phoenix can be tamed.¡± ¡°That, well¡­¡± The secret passage to the Elrika Castle, was in fact created by Remus when he ever came across an emergency to escape. Because of this, only Remus who had the flame beads could only pass the barrier. Of course, when the phoenix, which Remus owned had disappeared¡ªthe flame beads were already lost, which was why he couldn¡¯t pass through the enchantment which he designed. ¡°If you defeat the phoenix, the enchantment can be forced to open.¡± ¡°How?¡± ¡°If the heart is taken and broke, then it is possible.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°But if that happens, the guards who defend the castle will notice such intrusion.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll have to tame the Phoenix.¡± Swooah-! Summing up all his thoughts, Jinsung rose from the bathtub. He wasn¡¯t sure if the rank of the Phoenix was legendary or myth, but meeting the one with the title ¡®God Bird¡¯ was a chance he wasn¡¯t willing to meet. A familiar voice came for Jinsung from the living room, as he was about to enter the capsule room after getting dressed. ¡°Jinsung-ah, eat your food and then play.¡± For ten years with his parents, it seemed like a nagging pain. But now it was a voice that could never be seen as nagging. ¡°Huhu, okay Harin-ah. What¡¯s the menu?¡± Because the food made by Harin was enough to put off the game. * * * The entrance of the secret passage that Remus constructed in a place that was easy to enter. The location itself was inside the Elrika kingdom, but the portal connected to the entrance was connected to the adjacent kingdom, ¡®Paulus Kingdom¡¯. The Paulus Kingdom wasn¡¯t a territory that was hostile towards Lotus, which made it easy for Ian to locate the location of the portal. ¡®Surely after the Lich King episode gets done, the next was going to the Paulus kingdom.¡¯ As soon as the footstep fell on the ground after the episode, he was going to declare the war on Paulus kingdom right away, but now, the Paulus kingdom wasn¡¯t in a bad relationship with Lotus. Kaemik territory¡ªa small baron land located outside the Paulus kingdom. Remus, who took Ian to a small hut outside the estate, spoke to him. ¡°Inside the secret passage, a lot of powerful monsters will come at you.¡± At the unexpected turn of events from Remus, Ian was a bit shocked. ¡°Uh? To a secret passage made for evacuation. Why would you release the monster?¡± Remus replied like it was a needed thing to be done. ¡°If one had the flame bead, no monsters in the aisle would attack.¡± ¡°Hm¡­?¡± ¡°The monsters in the passage area are all the monsters with flame attribute. Monsters with flame attributes don¡¯t attack the phoenix.¡± Ian was interested in it. ¡°Oh, yeah?¡± ¡°Not entirely precise, but unless it was a higher-ranking one than the phoenix.¡± ¡°Then they will be aware of the ¡®flame bead¡¯ item from the ¡®Phoenix¡¯?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not entirely sure, won¡¯t it be like that?¡± ¡°Well.¡± ¡°But that doesn¡¯t mean that if you have the flame bead then you won¡¯t be attacked at all.¡± ¡°Huh? What is that supposed to mean?¡± ¡°Even having the Flame bead in possession, it will be hostile if it is attacked first.¡± ¡°Ah, that is understandable.¡± Ian wasn¡¯t paying much attention to the flame bead. He was only interested in the summon called ¡®Phoenix¡¯. After listening to the explanation given by Remus about the ¡®flame bead¡¯, it didn¡¯t seem like just another ordinary item. ¡®This, is this an item that would be incredibly useful when entering a dungeon of flame attribute?¡¯ High-level dungeon which hasn¡¯t been discovered yet, obviously composed of flame attribute monsters over the level of 400. If the flame bead was in possession in those places, hunting in those dungeons would be peaceful. This would have a great impact on the dungeon¡¯s difficulty than anyone could expect. ¡®Nice, what¡¯s the secret dungeon, should I see it for myself?¡¯ When he opened the door, a small portal with a burning red color opened. The eyes of Ian and Remus met each other, and Remus opened his mouth after a nod. ¡°You can enter the portal. You go in and then I¡¯ll follow you.¡± As soon as Remus was done, Ian stepped forward without hesitation, and the portal sucked in Ian right after. A line of system message emerged in Ian¡¯s view, which temporarily turned black. Tring-! [Entered ¡®Remus Secret Passage¡¯ dungeon.] CH 452 Chapter 452: The Secret Passage of Remus 1 The ¡®Puppet of Elrika Kingdom¡¯ a quest, which was difficult to perform with its triple S difficulty. But the reason for the difficulty didn¡¯t seem to be because of the monsters that were considered to be strong. Remus gave the quest, according to the information of the secret passage, the monster that would make an appearance in the dungeon appeared to be much weaker than the level of the undead. Then the reason why the quest was termed to be difficult could be inferred in another way. ¡®It would be the difficulty to avoid falling in the sight of the NPCs in the castle. If I get caught, I¡¯ll suffer a lot.¡¯ Determining that, Ian, without any party members or retainers, followed Remus. It was because he thought that having too many people would make it harder to clear. However, there was only one party member and one retainer. ¡°Lugarix, you can do well, right?¡± ¡°Of course, Ian. This time I¡¯ll show what my true black magic skill is like.¡± Lugarix clenched his fist with determination. Elcarix who was on Ian¡¯s shoulder put on the best smile and cheered. ¡°Oppa, fighting!¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Red color tinted the cheeks of Lugarix. The reason Ian was traveling along Lugarix wasn¡¯t so hard to guess. Among the high-level warlock skills that Lugarix could use, there was a very useful magic skill called the ¡®Dark Illusion¡¯. The ability to hide the members within the scope of a period of time, Ian felt that it was going to be necessary to use that to continue the quest. Of course, even the warlock Hoonie had the Dark Illusion skill. Nevertheless, the reason for bringing him was furtherly simple. The level of Lugarix was so high. He wasn¡¯t that much powerful when compared with Hoonie. The fatal weakness of the Dark Illusion was based on the level of the caster. ¡®The Dark illusion is useless for the warlocks who are the same or higher level as the caster.¡¯ If Hoonie uses the Dark Illusion, warlocks with the level similar to that of Hoonie or higher would end up destroying the party within seconds. Detecting wouldn¡¯t work. But Lugarix¡¯s level was 500. Perhaps the only warlock who could break the Dark Illusion of Lugarix was the Lich King Chalian. With the Dark Illusion of Lugarix, the stealth quests would be a step lower than the normal difficulty. Then why bring along Helliem? It was because of the synergy between Lugarix and Helliem. If there was any kind of wide-ranged black magic, then with Lugarix, the ¡®Dark Vision¡¯ of Helliem would shine. Of course, the desire to use the newly acquired retainer played a pivotal role in tagging him along. ¡°Lugarix, what¡¯s the range of Dark Illusion?¡± At the question of Ian¡¯s, Lugarix responded immediately, ¡°Well¡­ it will be around 5 meters.¡± ¡°How long is the duration?¡± ¡°If I don¡¯t move out of the spot or consume the whole power, the illusion won¡¯t be broken.¡± ¡°That so.¡± The Dark Illusion was a channeling skill. The caster can¡¯t perform anything else while the skill was being cast. After grasping the weakness of the Dark Illusion, Ian began to step into the passage. ¡®After entering the castle, I should summon Ly and Halli. I can have Karceus or Elcarix in the polymorphed state.¡¯ Large pets can¡¯t hide in the Dark Illusion, so there were several restrictions. ¡°But there won¡¯t be a problem here, right?¡± Seeing the monsters start one after the other inside the dungeon, Ian¡¯s mouth curled up. In the secret passage, he didn¡¯t have to worry about the soldiers of the kingdom, so he could fight to the fullest. Remus who was next to Ian spoke slowly. ¡°It¡¯s a Lava Drake, right from the start. It looks like there are much more powerful guys than what I had thought?¡± Remus seemed a little worried. Ian however, wasn¡¯t the kind to feel upset about it. The level of Lava Drake in front of them was over 400. Clearing the underground prison¡ªIan¡¯s level too was 399, so the level of the monster was similar to that of his. ¡°Don¡¯t worry Remus. I¡¯ll sweep it away in an instant.¡± At the confident reply from Ian, Remus nodded his head. ¡°Well, Ian I believe you.¡± Then, right before Ian¡¯s eyes, a system message came to his mind. Tring-! [NPC ¡®Remus (Lv. 379)¡¯ joined the party.] At the same time, Ian¡¯s hunt began. * * * [You have successfully cleared the quest ¡®Dark Pact (Epic)¡¯!] [The dimensional door will open.] Kung- Kukung-! In the temple of Daedmon where the red color danced through¡ªwas a majestic atmosphere. A group of Asmodian users was waiting for something while standing. And in the middle of them was a dark energy spreading. Kwooo-! A loud vibrating noise rose through the entire temple. A ray of light began to glow around the dark energy. ¡°¡­!¡± The Asmodian users turned shocked almost immediately, but a moment later, they knew the identity of the person. ¡®He¡¯ appeared with a red light, the person the Asmodian users were waiting for. [Great, my sons. You didn¡¯t mislead my expectations.] The appearance of a handsome man with red hair. He was an NPC that hadn¡¯t made an appearance in front of the users till the moment, yet the users couldn¡¯t immediately identify him. It was because ¡®He¡¯ was the one who had given them their ongoing quest. ¡°Devil God, Daedmon.¡± ¡°It is an honor, Daedmon.¡± Numerous Asmodian users were kneeling and spoke, It was a very spectacular sight that denoted power. Among them were Irahan and Martin and rankers including¡ªSamuel Jin were included. As they were all on their knees, Daedmon¡¯s words continued, ¡°Thanks to you, I was able to avoid the sight of the celestial world once again. However, it clearly violates the causality of the dimensions.¡± Except for that loud and clear voice of Daedmon, the sound wasn¡¯t heard anywhere in the temple. Daedmon spoke again. ¡°If we don¡¯t make use of the opportunity, then we don¡¯t. When we¡¯ll have the chance to open the door of the dimension and it will no longer be heaven.¡± Pitch darkness swirled intensely. Slowly approached Daedmon. The red energy sucked into his hand after he stretched it out. Kwa-Kwak-! The sound was huge enough to tear off the eardrums, huge explosion sounds were resonating inside the temple. Daedmon opened his mouth. The human world was in chaos because of the Lich King and it was the perfect opportunity. One of the users slowly rose from the knelt position and approached Daedmon. A man wearing a red armor with a large sword on his back. He was Irahan. ¡°Yes, Daedmon. We will never disappoint you.¡± With a satisfied expression, Daedmon replied, ¡°I like that, I will believe you. This time, be sure to succeed in the invasion of the human world and show them the power of the devils!¡± Kwakwang-! Once again a loud explosion sounded throughout the temple. At the same time, the whirlwinds of darkness moved in all the directions and space began to twist. In that space, the dimensional door got created. ¡°Go, my sons. Wait for the right moment! When the legion of darkness vanishes with the corpses of humans, that day, the heaven for the Devildom will open!¡± * * * Along with the many RPG games, Kailan was too exponentially increased the experience required to level up at the higher levels. However, there was a section in which the amount of experience required was particularly high, specifically when the number of digits changed to a hundred level. For example, the level of experience at 199 to the level of 200 was five to seven times the experience required from changing 198 to 199. This section was the most painful one. It applied to Ian who was at the level of 399. ¡®Huhu, it has been three days since I entered the 90 percent range, and it still needs to go up.¡¯ Confirmed by Ian after looking at the gauge that was in the corner of his field and took his weapon while shaking his head. Ian¡¯s experience gauge was at 96.7 percent. Looking at the numbers¡ªit seemed like he would level up soon enough, but if one looked at the amount of experience remaining, that would change their thought. Ian calculated the time required for the leveling up, and it seemed like he would be lucky if he could level up before the quest ended. It was a bit comforting that the ¡®Secret Passage of Remus¡¯ dungeon was pouring out experience much more than Ian had expected. It wasn¡¯t that the monster that was coming out was high in experience points. There were more monsters than he had thought, but because of the synergy between Lugarix and Helliem, it was a good turn of events. The breath of Bbookbbook which had the attribute of water and ice helped quite a bit. ¡°Lugarix, Dark Swamp!¡± Grrrk- Grrrrk-! The moment the Dark Swamp got triggered, sticky pitch-black energy began to swell from the bottom. From the hands of Lugarix came out a wide range skill with dark attributes. The other orders of Ian followed. ¡°Helliem, Dark Vision!¡± As if he was waiting for it, the Dark Vision ability of Helliem exploded. Helliem¡¯s unique ability to teleport forward and deal powerful damage to targets with ¡®dark¡¯ attributes. Of the seven drakes that got trapped by the Dark Swamp, the most forward one had a rise of dark energy. Srrrk-! Dark energy rose from the air and Helliem appeared over there in an instant. The very same moment, purple energy flashed and a huge sword fell. Kwaang-! [The unique ability of retainer Helliem ¡®Dark Vision¡¯ has been triggered.] [The retainer Helliem inflicted tremendous damage on the ¡®Lava Drake¡¯!] [Lava Drakes vitality has been reduced by 1,998,039.] Lugarix had a lot of powerful magic attacks. But nevertheless, there was a reason for the use of Dark Swamp which wasn¡¯t a high tier offensive magic. Firstly, because of the low cooldown of Dark Swamp, and secondly, the Dark Swamp provided various debuffs. The damage dealt by the Dark Swamp wasn¡¯t such a significant one. The most important one of it was to ¡®buy time¡¯ for the dark attack on the enemy. Immediately after using the Dark Vision, Helliem had given it a tremendous amount of destructive damage due to the attack. The Lava Drake, a Lv 400 monster was sliced in an instant. Kwang-! Purple glow flashed in the air, and a total of seven roars reverberated. And that was the end. The sword of Helliem who slashed through the darkness turned the seven drakes into ashes. Of course, the Drake didn¡¯t die with a single strike. Ian¡¯s other summons wasn¡¯t staying still while Helliem was active. But with damage of 2 million with the Dark Vision, almost most of the vitality was erased. ¡°Clean finish¡­!¡± Hummed Ian out of excitement. Excluding ¡®Remus¡¯ who wasn¡¯t of much help, the party of Ian wasn¡¯t anything less than perfect. ¡°Remus, don¡¯t stop, drive those monsters away.¡± ¡°That, that, okay.¡± At the words from Ian, the former king Remus went to the monster with sweat. Him following the order of Ian was more than just stimulating because of the affinity they shared. In the perfect party where everyone engaged in perfect battle, there was one who was enjoying it. After just one round of hunting, Ian asked Remus. ¡°Remus, how much more left?¡± ¡°To the secret passage?¡± ¡°Yes. How much longer do we have to move to the Phoenix?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t concern yourself with that Ian. We will arrive soon. I think we broke through much faster than expected.¡± Surprised with the ability of Ian, Remus raised his thumb with a smile. But even with the praise, Ian didn¡¯t look so glad. ¡°Uh, already¡­?¡± With the experience buffs that came in with the first discovery, Ian expected that he could stay in the dungeon for a while. However, without knowing about Ian¡¯s thoughts, Remus shook his head and started to hunt separately. 30 minutes passed? Creak-! At the end of the dungeon passage¡ªwas a huge iron gate that was shining with a bright white light. At the center of the light source was a huge tree, the size of it was something that had never been seen before. CH 453 Tring-! [You are the first to discover the ¡®World of Sun¡¯!] [Earned additional fame of 100,000.] [¡®Affinity¡¯ stat has been permanently increased by 15%.] [¡®Fire Resistance¡¯ permanently increased by 10!] [You¡¯ve met the conditions to enter the ¡®Sun Obelisk¡¯ dungeon!] [The Sun Elves are starting to appear on the planet.] A lot of system messages came in front of Ian¡¯s sight along with the white light in front of him. And Ian, who confirmed the messages seemed surprised. ¡®World of Sun? I thought that the Phoenix just lived on a big tree, isn¡¯t this a lot bigger than what I was expecting?¡¯ From the Sun Obelisk to the Sun Elves. Unprecedented terminologies popped up, suggesting the emergence of a new content. Just when he was sneaking into the castle of Elrika he came across stuff that he couldn¡¯t have foreseen. But the biggest one he got among those rewards was the rise in the ¡®affinity¡¯, the first reward. For Ian, who was a summoner, the best stats for his career had been rewarded, ¡°Keu!¡± The sound of excitement came out of Ian¡¯s mouth. But it wasn¡¯t just because of the affinity stat rise. If one found a landscape belonging to the ¡®land¡¯ while traveling the continent, it was often known to reward with affinity stat. So, why was Ian that excited? The reason was the affinity. It was because its in percentage and not a fixed number. ¡®Oh, crazy. How much affinity will I gain?¡¯ Ian was the number one ranking user among all the existing summoners. In addition, as he was very preoccupied with Kailan¡¯s content and swept his career aside, his affinity was high. Before receiving the reward, Ian¡¯s affinity stat was close to 2,700 excluding the ones he got from his items. Considering that the affinity for an average ranking Summoner needed to be between 1,500 to 2,000, Ian¡¯s affinity stat was tremendous. But because of the reward he got, 15% was added to his affinity. And that was permanent. ¡®400? For just finding a tree, I got 400 affinity points?¡¯ To be precise, 403 affinity points were added to Ian¡¯s affinity. The amount of affinity he got from the hidden quest would normally be obtained by clearing a quest. Which was why Ian couldn¡¯t handle his happiness and let out a laugh. ¡°Haha, thank you, Remus.¡± ¡°What¡­ why?¡± ¡°For everything or something like that.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± While Ian was being excited the light from the tree began to fade. Subsequently, in the field view of Ian, the overview of the map was formed. ¡®The passage is over now, and it is like a coliseum in the air.¡¯ The structure in front of Ian was truly spectacular. A myriad of pillars stretching in all directions, and a giant tree that rose magnificently among them. It was the most sensational landscape of all the ones that Ian had seen. As the light began to fade away, a new message came into the sight of Ian. Tring-! [You have entered the new section of ¡®Phoenix¡¯.] [The ¡®Phoenix¡¯ has found you.] [The ¡®Phoenix¡¯ has shown hostility towards you.] Kiyahh-! In a huge hall surrounded by numerous pillars, the cries of Phoenix rang out. Ian heard the cry and began to prepare for its attack with a tensed expression. According to Remus, the Phoenix was still young, but he couldn¡¯t rest until he confirmed it. After a while, huge flames came down from the air. Hrrrk-! A wide-area fire attack covered the entire party of Ian. That was their first time experiencing something like that. Ian reflexively triggered El¡¯s Dragonic Barrier. ¡°El, Dragonic Barrier¡­!¡± ¡°Okay, Dad!¡± Hweeing-! Once the white film got created around Ian¡¯s party members, the fire of the phoenix slid through the surface of the shield. However, the fire¡¯s power wasn¡¯t as powerful as it looked, and the barrier didn¡¯t get damaged that much. ¡®This seems to be weaker than the magic of a level 300 fire mage¡­¡¯ Ian tried to guess the level of Phoenix which hadn¡¯t appeared yet. Ian was shocked when he saw the Phoenix. Phoenix (God Bird): Lv. 95 ¡°What was that?¡± Ian thought that he was just seeing things. He rubbed his eyes roughly and once again looked at the number hanging on the head of the Phoenix. But the Phoenix¡¯s level was still 95. Ian who was panicking asked Remus, ¡°Remus, was the Phoenix normally a beast?¡± Remus who didn¡¯t understand the question replied with a puzzled look, ¡°What do you mean by a beast?¡± With an irritated expression, Ian explained, ¡°The flame attack that that animal just fired. Do you think that was something a level 95 could do?¡± Remus who listened to the question of Ian nodded his head and answered, ¡°Ah, this guy. You¡¯re surprised because you don¡¯t know much about this guy.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°The flame attack was surely powerful. It sure is tough to think of it as a young Phoenix when it attacks like that.¡± ¡°But?¡± ¡°Of course, the damage of the new Phoenix is very good, but the power in that flame attack is because of the World of Sun¡ªthe tree out there.¡± ¡°The World of Sun in the sense¡­ that tree?¡± ¡°Yes. The only tree where the Phoenix nest can be built on. The tree of World of Sun. With the influence of the World tree, the power of a Phoenix doubles.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± After listening to the explanation of Remus, Ian nodded. ¡®So that¡¯s why its attack is powerful, huh?¡¯ But considering that its damage was doubled, it was still strong for something who wasn¡¯t level 100 yet. Only after taming it could its information be known for sure, but perhaps it had the same amount of damage as Karceus when it came to attacking. Ian gradually began to think. ¡®Though I¡¯m not using that beast for entering the castle, I need to catch that beast.¡¯ It had been a long time since a beast had instigated Ian¡¯s desire to catch and tame it. And in a place, no one would think of. While smiling, Ian looked above him. A beautiful bird was overlooking Ian. It reminded Ian of the ¡®Phoenix¡¯ of the oriental mythology; the bird whose body was covered with flames. He was looking down on Ian¡¯s party seeing whether his attacks went through or not. ¡®In order to tame it, I need to cut down its vitality.¡¯ The most important thing when it came to capturing a summon in Kailan was to reduce the vitality of a summon¡¯s physical body. The term ¡®physical¡¯ here didn¡¯t mean the vitality only. Though the vitality played a pivotal role, he had to harass the summon for a long time until it exhausted itself. Once the summon was exhausted and couldn¡¯t move anymore, they could bribe it with special food and items that the familiar might like. That was the secret when it came to taming. There were some familiars which could be caught very easily; that was the unchanging truth about the familiars of Kailan. ¡®Should I start by taking down its vitality?¡¯ Although it showed unexpected strong damage, the level of the guy was mere two digits. Anyone from Ian¡¯s party could probably one-shot the Phoenix. Ian acted as carefully as possible. If it got killed by mistake, then that would be a big loss for him. ¡°Remus, give me some information about the Phoenix.¡± ¡°What do you mean by information?¡± ¡°I want to know if there¡¯s anything unusual about it; like the buff from the world tree that I just told you about.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± The Phoenix attempted to attack several times while Ian and Remus were talking. But it wasn¡¯t enough to get past the Dragonic Barrier of Elcarix, so Ian was able to listen to Remus. ¡°Let¡¯s talk a bit more about the buff from the world tree. The buff effects aren¡¯t limited to increasing the Phoenix¡¯s damage.¡± ¡°Then?¡± ¡°Rather than its offensive power, it has a much greater impact on the sustainability of the guy.¡± Ian waited for Remus to continue, and Remus extended his hand and pointed at something. ¡°See that red beam over there?¡± At the question from Remus, Ian¡¯s gaze reflexively went in the direction Remus was pointing at. He then saw a mysterious red energy connecting the Phoenix and the world tree. ¡°I see it. What is that?¡± The words from Remus followed, ¡°That is like the lifeline of that guy.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°The huge life force created by the world tree is shared with the Phoenix.¡± ¡°Well? Do you mean to say that the life force is shared between the phoenix and the world tree?¡± ¡°Not really. If the vitality of the world tree is shared, then he will be immortal. The World tree has infinite vitality.¡± ¡°Then what?¡± ¡°It can be simply regarded as the tree giving the phoenix some vitality and then constantly fills it. I don¡¯t know if you can see it, but there is a red sphere that is spinning inside the branches of the world tree.¡± Ian focused his eyes on the red sphere floating inside the trees. And he saw the small print on the red sphere. Vitality: 5,000,000/ 5,000,000 Once Ian confirmed it, Ian was able to understand the explanation of Remus. ¡®So I will have to do enough damage to destroy that sphere, and that should exhaust the Phoenix, right?¡¯ That made capturing the Phoenix much easier. In that way, he wouldn¡¯t have to worry about accidentally killing it. All that was left was to reduce the Phoenix¡¯s vitality and leaving just enough to keep it from dying. ¡°Nice. Anything else?¡± As Ian asked Remus, Remus gave him more information. ¡°The Phoenix will turn into a flame egg when its vitality runs out. And it will be reborn after some time.¡± ¡°Oh, yeah?¡± That eliminated the need to be more careful. Even if the sphere of vitality bursts with uncoordinated attacks, it didn¡¯t mean that the beast would die. Remus continued again, ¡°But if you break the flame egg, then it will die. And if it wakes up from the flame egg and dies once again before it regains its strength, then it won¡¯t become an egg again.¡± ¡°How do I know if it already regained its strength?¡± ¡°You can tell by looking at its tail. If three tails are fully sprouting, then it means that it already had its strength back.¡± ¡°Ah ha, is that so?¡± For Ian who was practically living in Kailan, he was able to guess the Phoenix¡¯s mechanics. ¡®There must be a cooldown for the unique ability to resurrect the egg.¡¯ Remus then continued giving more information about the Phoenix. ¡°I don¡¯t know much about summoning, but I recommend that you catch it when it is in its flame egg form.¡± ¡°Huh? Try to capture it when it is in its flame egg state?¡± ¡°Yeah. That is when he is the least resistant.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a nice tip.¡± The information given by Remus was much more useful than Ian had imagined. And with that information, the capture of the Phoenix seemed a lot easier than expected. ¡°Kay, that¡¯s enough then. Let¡¯s start catching him now.¡± Ian smiled and had a confident look. Towards such a cheerful Ian, Remus spoke. ¡°I¡¯m not sure, but catching that guy won¡¯t be easy, Ian. Only a few summoners had been successful in capturing the Phoenix in the entire history of Colonnare.¡± Ian shook his head to get rid of his worry and ran towards the direction of the Phoenix. Ian¡ªthe ¡®Taming Master¡¯¡ªthought that capturing the Phoenix wasn¡¯t going to be hard. But it didn¡¯t take him long to realize that he was wrong. CH 454 ¡®What the¡­ what kind of speed is that?¡¯ The bird of fire was soaring high in the sky with flames around it. Ian¡¯s eyes wavered while looking at the Phoenix. Kiyaah-! On the other hand, the phoenix looked down on Ian with a triumphant expression. Ian, who swapped his weapon, started to point his bow in the direction of the Phoenix. ¡®Hitting it with a fast projectile or magic is a no no¡­ The only way I can do this is with arrows.¡¯ Keek-! Pulling back the bowstring to the end made the bow scream. At the same time, Pin, who was in the sky, was being approached by the bird. Kiyahh-! It was a fierce dogfight between the two God birds. In order to limit the range that the Phoenix could move to, Ian sent Pin first to fight it. That made it easier to predict the movement of the Phoenix. The arrow which left Ian¡¯s finger began to cut through the air. Ping- PiPing-! And as Ian¡¯s orders came out, the black magic of Lugarix started to glorify the battle. ¡°Darkness Blessing!¡± Woong-! It was an exaggeration to say that all the Warlocks had that basic magic spell. A spell that grants the target a Dark Blessing and temporarily granted one¡¯s attack with ¡®dark¡¯ attributes. Since it was basic magic, the buff effect wasn¡¯t that great, but Ian had a reason why he activated the spell. It was to bury the possible damage of a dark attribute and allow Helliem to use his Dark Vision. Ian did it that way because it was impossible for them to match a dark-range attack to the Phoenix. The Phoenix had a very high agility, but more importantly, it hadn¡¯t even come down to the ground yet. It wasn¡¯t known how it was when using a skill like Fire Lane or Blizzard, but Lugarix didn¡¯t have such a wide area magic with his dark attributes. Which was why Ian came up with the next best alternative to hit the Phoenix with dark attributes. It was very difficult to hit a Phoenix flying at its top speed, but Ian had the skills to hit it at least once or twice. Swaak-! Five arrows which had dark energy surrounding them were shot into the air in the direction of the Phoenix. What was unusual was the arrows shot by Ian were flying slightly off the mark. Ian¡¯s mistake was as big as the arrow that was in the air. However, it wasn¡¯t a mistake. It was Ian¡¯s intention to at least get one arrow to hit it right. Kieeek-! Feeling the arrows of darkness flying towards it, the Phoenix quickly swung in the air. But two more arrows came flying out at the place where the Phoenix avoided at. No matter how fast the Phoenix was, there was no way it could avoid arrows that were already about to hit it. Pack-! Ian¡¯s prediction shot was right. [Caused devastating damage to the mythical ¡®Phoenix¡¯.] [The vitality of ¡®Phoenix¡¯ has been reduced by 298,072!] [¡®Darkness Blessing¡¯ has been triggered, an additional 15% (44,710) Shadow Damage has been dealt.] Since the Phoenix was quick right from the start, they had to come up with a trick. When the two arrows of Ian hit the body of the Phoenix, Ian quickly ordered Helliem. ¡°Helliem, Dark Vision!¡± ¡°I understand, Lord!¡± As the dark smoke rose, Helliem disappeared from the ground. The place where Helliem appeared at was right above the Phoenix. ¡°Kyaah!¡± With great force, the sword of Helliem fell on the torso of the Phoenix. Bang- Bang-! The vitality of the Phoenix fell to the bottom in a flash. [The Unique ability of your retainer ¡®Helliem¡¯ ¡®Dark Vision¡¯ has been triggered.] [Your retainer ¡®Helliem¡¯ has done devastating damage to the ¡®Phoenix¡¯!] [The vitality of the Phoenix has been reduced by 291,8092.] 2,591,225 was the vitality of the level 90 super speedy Phoenix. It was easy to deal millions of damage to it. If the damage they dealt to it was close to three million, then it would die in an instant. But somehow its vitality, which had fallen to the bottom of the gauge, went up in an instant. Ian¡¯s eyes shone brightly when he saw what just happened. ¡®Well, the vitality that was drained was filled again because of that sphere in the world tree.¡¯ The red sphere on the world tree had a vitality of 5 million. The 3 million damage that the Phoenix suffered was immediately filled with the vitality of the sphere, so the Phoenix had to be crushed again. Unfortunately, there was no way to hit the sphere directly. It was because the world tree was surrounded by infinite vitality spheres. ¡®If that¡¯s the case, then I¡¯ll have to deal tons of damage to the Phoenix itself¡­¡¯ Presumably, if he could inflict 6 million worth of damage at once, the Phoenix would die and turn to an egg. Ian decided to use Bbookbbook and Karceus¡¯s Breath and mobilize all of his attacks. Though it was the best option to use the passive skill of Helliem¡ªthe ¡®Soul Destroyer¡¯¡ªand trigger its ¡®unrecoverable¡¯ effect, the chances of it working was too low. The Soul Destroyer had a 15% chance to trigger. The skill would probably trigger if Helliem constantly gave out hits, but a single shot from Dark Vision made the Phoenix fly higher in the air. ¡°Kay, give it your all in just one hit!¡± Whistle-! When Ian whistled, Pin who was tailing the Phoenix came to the ground in an instant. Ian climbed over and decided to control Pin. ¡®6 million in a single shot¡­ it isn¡¯t impossible.¡¯ When Ian flew with Pin, the two dragons who were following him soared at the same time. Lugarix and Elcarix were on the back of Karceus and Bbookbbook to assist them in the battle with their magic. Unfortunately, summons like Bbakbbakk and Ly couldn¡¯t help, so their summoning was canceled. Ian¡¯s summons tried to narrow their distance to the Phoenix. And the next moment, unique powers all came out upon Ian¡¯s order. Kiaah-! The powerful Breath from Karceus and Bbookbbook came out with a roar. At the same time, the torso of the Phoenix began to glow red. Kiyaaaa! Many of the feathers of the Phoenix started to spread out, and the Phoenix¡¯s feathers burst into light. Ian doubted what he was witnessing for a moment. All the inherent abilities that seemed to devour everything in the air got devoured by the light from the Phoenix. An unexpected scene in just three seconds made Ian confused. ¡®Is this the unique ability of the Phoenix¡­?¡¯ Ian would know the answer to that if he could check the Phoenix¡¯s information window, but the unique ability that it just showed was amazing. Although it was hard to schedule the timing as the duration was short, it overthrew the flow of the battle in an instant. And just like that, all the attacks that were used earlier became useless, and the Phoenix¡¯s timing when it used its unique ability was perfect. ¡®I want it!¡¯ The more he suffered, the more greedy he was turning into. But apart from that, making the Phoenix into an egg was just getting much harder. Ian¡¯s strategy was to take him down in one shot and not give him the luxury to recover. ¡®Should I just try believing that it can¡¯t recover?¡¯ His first strategy failed, but Ian wasn¡¯t disappointed. There were dozens of unique abilities to operate on. They had to look at things with a clear mind in order for them to succeed. ¡®It would¡¯ve been easier if I brought Remir along¡­¡¯ After remembering a few unique abilities that the Magicians had, Ian sighed for a brief moment. Taking the Phoenix down would be easier even with just one basic magic attack from a magician. Remus who was watching the battle of Ian from the ground sighed. ¡°It isn¡¯t easy for Ian either. The Phoenix in the hold of the world tree is invincible, and it was made like that for a reason.¡± Remus wasn¡¯t disappointed with Ian. Rather, Ian was showing much greater abilities than he had imagined. The only problem was the world tree that kept giving vitality to the Phoenix, and that was to be expected. Whatever was Remus intentions, Ian heard his murmuring, and it hurt his pride. ¡®Does it look like I had given up? I would never do that.¡¯ Ian¡¯s mind started to work, and he thought of attacks that could hit the phoenix. ¡®If I brought Ddukdae with its Abyss Hole¡­ no, I just saw that unique attack of the Phoenix, the Abyss Hole will get absorbed.¡¯ No matter how much Ian thought of it, the best attack he could think of using was Helliem¡¯s Dark Vision. Aside from the coefficient of the skill, the level of Helliem was overwhelmingly high. ¡®I need to make the most of the abilities of Helliem.¡¯ Ian¡¯s head started to work. After thinking hard about it, he finally came to a conclusion. ¡®Dark Vision, Chains and Dark Strikes?¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes were recalling the inherent abilities of Helliem¡¯s. ¡°Right, that!¡± He came up with an amazing idea on the spot. Ian¡¯s gaze went towards Lugarix who was riding Bbookbbook. ¡°Lugarix, can you summon a Dummy?¡± Lugraix was puzzled at that question from Ian. ¡°A Dummy? Yes, I can summon it. There is no Warlock on the continent who can¡¯t summon a Dummy. But why are you asking?¡± A Dummy was like a ¡®scarecrow¡¯. The most basic summoning skill one got as soon as they moved to the Warlock class, a skill that summoned a creature that looks similar to the one who activated the skill. But a Dummy didn¡¯t have its summoner¡¯s stats. A Dummy could only replicate its summoner¡¯s vitality. A Dummy was usually summoned when there wasn¡¯t enough time to summon the Undead or to use it as a temporary tank. In addition, a Dummy had a huge weakness. Since a Dummy had no ability to judge the enemy, it was perceived to be ¡®neutral¡¯ in the system. Because of that, it could get caught from an allies wide area spells and die. However, from Ian¡¯s point of view, it was an awesome idea to use it. CH 455 If one was a wizard user or if one had ever played an RPG game like Kailan even once, then it would know about the famous magic. It was the Chain Lightning magic. The Chain Lightning magic which was in possession of the lightning magician¡ªis an offensive magic that shoots out continuously and damages the target. However, the difference between the chain lightning and the other non-targeting attack skills was that the current was a shot that wasn¡¯t a single target. The chain literally moves onto multiple targets and then, the damage moves on continuously. Then, will the chain lightning be able to provide such high damage to a specific target? It was the case where only two individuals not more or less were in close proximity. Since there were only two targets, it will continue to take turns damaging, until it loses all its power. One of the unique abilities of the retainer Helliem was the chain lightning. It would be understood once the name was known, and it was the skill called ¡®Chain Darkpulse¡¯. ¡®Why didn¡¯t I think of that?¡¯ The only thing that Ian had to deal at the moment was the Phoenix. As a result, the Darkpulse doesn¡¯t really work. If there were no targets around, the darkpulse would die instead of bouncing off. So Ian came up with the Dummy, one of the basic black magic. He cloned the Phoenix and the dummy next to it and simultaneously fired the chain darkpulse. ¡®DarkPulse¡¯s maximum number of attacks was 10 times¡­¡¯ The Darkpulse wouldn¡¯t disappear until the 10 damages have been to the Phoenix and the Dummy. The Phoenix will suffer 5 damage in a row. That would cause Helliem to inflict great damage to the Phoenix, and theoretically, it would be done by triggering the Darkpulse. That wasn¡¯t the end. Dark Vision, the best unique ability of Helliem according to Ian. As many times as the Darkpulse hit the phoenix, the Dark visions single attack would continuously fall on the head of the Phoenix. ¡®Okay, that would be enough to quickly erase not just 5 million but 10 million.¡¯ Ian thought up and decided to put it into action. ¡°Lugarix, bring back the buff!¡± ¡°Okay, Darkness Blessing!¡± Hweeing-! In the vicinity, dark energy rose from everywhere. The confirmation message came to the eyes of Ian. [Dragon of Darkness ¡®Lugarix¡¯ has now cast the Darkness Blessing.] [Temporarily gained the additional damage of the ¡®dark¡¯ attribute.] That was the beginning of the linked spells. Ping-PiPing-! With a clear sound, arrows were shot towards the Phoenix. ¡®Kay, one of you just hit it!¡¯ Since the attack was bound to touch, Ian¡¯s arrow hit the Phoenix without ease. Puck-! Kiyoo-! Feeling the arrow that got shot between its feathers, the Phoenix cried looking at Ian in an angry voice. But that didn¡¯t mean that Ian was planning on staying still. ¡°Helliem, Dark Vision!¡± ¡°Okay, Lord.¡± Swoosh-! As it was done a while ago, Helliem quickly went to the air and appeared in front of the Phoenix. Helliem¡¯s sword fell on the top of Phoenix. Clang-! Till now, the order of the linkage quest differed from the previous ones. But from now on, the problem started. From the moment, Ian couldn¡¯t afford to make a single mistake when linking the skills to bring out the perfect picture. ¡°Lugarix, Dummy! Helliem, Chain Darkpulse!¡± Helliem wasn¡¯t someone who had the talent of flying. After hitting the Dark Vision, he was bound to land on the floor. It meant that the distance from the Phoenix would turn far and Helliem couldn¡¯t attack again. But with the Darkpulse shooting skill to use a dark attribute, the fight in the air was a different story. If he shot the Darkpulse from a close distance, then it would be hard to avoid the Phoenix. But for it to be perfect, Ian targeted the Darkpulse to the dummy and not toward the Phoenix. Kwahh-! In the case of the ¡®Chain¡¯ type non-targeting magic, after hitting the first target, the next target will be approached. A dummy was summoned in the air, the summoned phoenix. That was where the Chain Darkpulse was headed to, and there was no reason why it couldn¡¯t hit the Dummy that was still in place. Swooah-! The Darkpulse sent by Helliem went right through the Dummy with sounds of terror. Then, in front of Ian came the messages that confirmed it. [Unique ability of the retainer ¡®Helliem¡¯ ¡®Chain Darkpulse¡¯ has been activated.] [The retainer ¡®Helliem¡¯ has done fatal damage to the ¡®Dummy¡¯!] [The vitality of ¡®Dummy¡¯ has been reduced by 3,782,681.] Of course, the next target of the Darkpulse was the Phoenix that was right beside it. Swoosh-! In a moment, many skills got activated, but for the scene to develop took less than a second. The figure of Helliem who was done using the Dark Vision was still moving to the ground. But Ian didn¡¯t care about the falling figure of Helliem. If it was a normal situation, Ian would have sent Pin or Karceus towards Helliem before he reached the floor. However, in the current situation, Helliem was falling down, but Ian didn¡¯t even care about it. Then, did Ian forget about the drop damage that Helliem would take from falling? No, that couldn¡¯t be. He was waiting for a message, which had finally came up¡­ [Unique ability of retainer ¡®Helliem¡¯, ¡®Chain DarkPulse¡¯ has done devastating damage to Phoenix!] [The vitality of Phoenix has been reduced by 1,891,340.] And followed the orders of Ian. ¡°Helliem, Dark vision!¡± Phahaat-! Black smoke rose and Helliem who was falling to the ground vanished in an instant. The Chain Darkpulse bounced of the Dummy¡ªhit the Phoenix and then went back to the Dummy. In other words, Helliem would be able to use the Dark Vision again. Swooah-! Helliem¡¯s sword moved once again and fell on the head of the Phoenix. KwangKwang-! [The unique ability of retainer ¡®Helliem¡¯, ¡®Dark Vision¡¯ has been triggered.] [The retainer ¡®Helliem¡¯ has done devastating damage to the ¡®Phoenix¡¯!] [The vitality of Phoenix has been reduced by 2,874,621.] The time it took for Ian¡¯s arrows to make contact with the body of the Phoenix who was only about one to two seconds. In the meantime, the damage done was nearly 7.5 million. The damage done by Ian¡¯s arrows was minimal, but the Darkpulse hit once and the Dark Vision twice. However, the vitality of the Phoenix was restored back to the original¡ªby the sphere in a matter of two seconds. Despite the inflicting 7.5 million damage, the Phoenix¡¯s vitality was still full. However, Ian was still feeling good. It was because he checked the vitality gauge of the ¡®Vitality sphere¡¯ that was in the world tree. Vitality: 2,175,120/ 5,000,000 If one looked at the vitality of the Phoenix, then it might look like the damage has been done whatsoever, but in fact, they had done tremendous damage. There was less than half vitality in the vitality sphere which had a tremendous rate. Of course, the very moment the vitality sphere was filling it up. However, Ian wasn¡¯t done yet. Swat-! Swoosh-! The Chain Darkpulse had done one out of the five deals of damages to the Phoenix. Kiyaaah-! A painful scream escaped the mouth of the Phoenix. The next moment, Ian¡¯s sight was filled with system messages. [The Unique ability of the retainer ¡®Helliem¡¯, ¡®Chain Darkpulse¡¯ has done devastating damage to the Phoenix!] [The vitality of the Phoenix has been reduced by 945,670.] [The unique ability of the retainer ¡®Helliem¡¯, ¡®Dark Vision¡¯ has been triggered.] [The vitality of the Phoenix has been reduced by 2,874,621.] [The unique ability of retainer ¡®Helliem¡¯¡­] Everytime the chain darkpulse bounced off¡ªHelliem¡¯s sword fell down from the sky. The power of the Chain Darkpulse was reduced to half each time it bounced of causing no significant damage, but that didn¡¯t matter. After all, the main damage giving part was based on the successful attack of the dark vision. And when Helliem¡¯s dark vision fell. Kiyaaa-! The flame Phoenix which never seemed to die down began to fade away. Hwarrk-! Ian confirmed the phenomenon of what was happening and spoke, ¡°Nice!¡± In the space about Ian¡¯s head, a picturesque view of attacks was being displayed. The Phoenix which was as big of Pin began to turn smaller and smaller in a quick pace and eventually turned into an oval egg, still floating in the air. Woong-! With orange flames around it, the Phoenix egg emitted a soft glow. As soon as the mission was done, Helliem landed on the back of Karceus, and with Ian on Pin slowly moved towards the egg. ¡®Keu, this guy is mine!¡¯ Approaching the egg that was in front of them, Ian extended his hand and activated the capture skills after a long time. But right then, the voice of Remus was heard. ¡°You need to make it cold before you catch the eggs!¡± Surprised by him, Ian stopped his hands mid-way and looked down. ¡°Cold Huh?¡± ¡°Yes! It is easier to catch if the burning flames are controlled as much as possible!¡± ¡°Why are you telling me that right now?¡± ¡°Since the success seemed difficult to get¡­¡± ¡°Damn.¡± Ian who spoke to Remus ordered Bbookbbook. Then, the huge body of Bbookbbook began to shrink. It was polymorph magic. But what¡¯s new about the polymorph wasn¡¯t the turtle appearance. ¡°Can I freeze that egg, master?¡± Bbookbbook appeared like a cheeky little kid. The Abyss Dragon, took the morphing of a human because the cast of magic was easier in that form. The intellect of Bbookbbook for the use of magic was very weak, but the intellect was just enough to freeze small eggs. ¡°Kay, Bbook.¡± As soon as Ian¡¯s words came, a blue chilly sensation flowed from both hands. It was Freezing¡ªone of the basic spells of the Ice Wizard. As the name suggested, it was the ice magic. Crack-! With the sound of crackling frost, the scarlet egg of Phoenix began to turn white. And after a moment it was¡­ ¡°Capture!¡± It has been a very long time, and the ¡®capture¡¯ skill of Ian got triggered. CH 456 The Phoenix showed a persistent life with the ¡®reputation¡¯ of being a phoenix was on the line. Thanks to that, Ian spent a lot of time trying to capture it, but it was easy. [You have succeeded in capturing the God Bird ¡®Phoenix¡¯.] [Succeeded in capturing the God Bird, earned the fame of 150,000.] [The World of Sun recognizes you.] [Fire resistance increased by 5.] Seeing the message coming up, Ian smiled. ¡°Good!¡± In the beginning, as he didn¡¯t know about the ¡®Phoenix¡¯ he was expecting it to be an offensive summon like Pin. In general, fire familiars were often specialized in the offense. However, the Phoenix he faced wasn¡¯t just a simple attack type. It was moving with the agility and vitality that Halli had when the ¡®Guardian of Wind¡¯ was activated. The special ability that instantaneously invalidated all the attack skills. Ian felt like the Phoenix was just what he needed. ¡®I needed the offensive supporter. It will be a good summon.¡¯ Ian¡¯s party currently had two supporting pets. They were the God Dragon Elcarix and Bbookbbook. But they two were definitely different when compared to the Phoenix. Bbookbbook was a tanking supporter and Elcarix was the rear support case. The Phoenix, on the other hand, was a perfect offensive support. At the forefront of the battlefield, he played powerfully and doesn¡¯t die that easily, due to the high movement speed and persistent vitality. ¡®So, should I check the details window?¡¯ Ian smiled and opened the information window of the Phoenix. Phoenix Level: 95 Category: God Bird Rank: Legendary Personality: Cheerful Evolvable (Sealed) Attack: 3,375 Defense: 1,798 Agility: 3,409 Intellect: 2,989 Vitality: 933,000/ 933,000 Unique ability * Flame that doesn¡¯t go out (Passive) The Phoenix, the symbol of immortality has a persistent vitality like an unquenchable flame. The vitality of the Phoenix heals 1% per second. When the Phoenix¡¯s vitality is exhausted, it turns into the ¡®Red Flame Egg¡¯. (The egg¡¯s vitality and defense are proportional to the stats of the phoenix.) (The respawn time required is 55 seconds per one level, and decreases 1 second every time the level increases by 10.) * Guardian of the Sun God The Phoenix, the guardian of the Sun God, can borrow the power of God for a limited time in an emergency. No one can harm the Phoenix while it is under the protection of the Sun God. Over the duration, the vitality of the Phoenix is healed for 30% per second. In the duration, all the attacking skills within the 50 yards from the point of Phoenix are invalidated. (Duration: 3 seconds) (Cooldown Time: 10 minutes) * Wings of Red Flame Born from the blazing flames, Phoenix had been covered with flames. When angered, the Phoenix flew wildly and it will turn the scene into a sea of fire. The Phoenix¡¯s big wings pour out the flames. It is a powerful flame that would destroy everything in front of it for 30 yards. (Inflicts 95% damage with the attack.) (Ignores the flame resistance by 50%) (Cooldown Time: 12 minutes) * Phoenix¡¯s Rage (Passive) Phoenix, the flame God Bird, has a fiery character. When the phoenix is angry, it will be hard to survive from him. If the vitality of the Phoenix drops below 35%, then you¡¯ll gain the rage for 30 seconds. While in ¡®Rage¡¯ state, the deals done by Phoenix will be increased by 30%. While in ¡®Rage¡¯ state, the vitality regeneration rate is doubled. While in ¡®Rage¡¯ state, the normal attack range is tripled. ¨C It is a legendary beast born from the powerful flames and can burn everything. ¨C He is a flame God Bird, the guardian of the Sun God, and has strong attack power together with persistent health. ¨C ¨C ¨C The Phoenix had a colorful information window like any legendary myth. And of course, the most favorite part of Ian¡¯s, it¡¯s evolution¡¯. ¡®Keu, what will happen if we evolve it?¡¯ Although the phrase ¡®seal¡¯ was written next to the phrase ¡®Evolution¡¯, it didn¡¯t matter. If evolution was possible, then it could happen someday. After gaining the new summon after a very long time, Ian looked at the information window with a serious expression. ¡®The flame that doesn¡¯t go out¡­ made a nice name for once.¡¯ According to the damage Ian had done, the Phoenix really did have the flames that didn¡¯t go out. Of course, the vitality support from the world tree had a big impact, but it was still obvious that he was a tricky guy. ¡®This was a passive resurrection. But, how long does it take to resurrect from the egg¡­ 55 seconds per level?¡¯ Ian¡¯s head began to spin. ¡®If it decreases 1 per 10 levels in 55 seconds¡­ will it reach to 0 seconds at level 551? Well? Does it even make any sense?¡¯ It took around 46 seconds for the Phoenix to resurrect right now. Given that the egg of the Phoenix wasn¡¯t so tough, this wasn¡¯t a very fraudulent one. But as the level went up, the story changed. Like the calculation of Ian, if it reached the level of 551, the resurrection duration would go down to zero seconds. If it dies, the Phoenix can be resurrected back to its original form immediately. In short, there was no way to kill it. The frown on Ian¡¯s head deepened. ¡®Kailan¡¯s planning team can¡¯t mess up the balance like this¡­ but it doesn¡¯t seem like a bug.¡¯ Ian¡¯s idea was that, this being a passive buff when it came to the forefront required to reduce the resurrection for less than 10 seconds. In the short duration of about 10 seconds, there was no way for the Phoenix¡¯s egg to get damaged. But if the time went any further and goes to within three seconds, then it was certainly overbalanced. ¡®Obviously, if it was me I would¡¯ve made it a point to no longer reduce the duration¡­¡¯ Ian, who had been thinking for a while placed his attention to the next unique ability. This was because it was unknown to consider that situation now. And the overbalance, from Ian¡¯s point of view, if it was accumulated, then it wouldn¡¯t be a loss. ¡®Now shall we look at the next ability? The Guardian of Sun God¡­¡¯ ¡®The Flame that never goes out¡¯ and the ¡®Guardian of Sun God¡¯. The ¡®Wings of Red flames¡¯ were the Unique abilities that Ian had experienced during the battle. But the last ability¡ªthe Rage of Phoenix, was the one that wasn¡¯t activated during the battle. ¡®It can¡¯t be. As soon as the vitality fell down to 35 percent, he dies¡­¡¯ The vitality of the Phoenix must drop 35 percent in order to trigger the rage. Therefore, Ian read through the skill more thoroughly, and after reading it, he was feeling very satisfied. ¡®Keu, the name God Bird is a nice one.¡¯ Ian stretched his hands with a proud look. Now it was time to summon his favorite guy. ¡°Phoenix, summon!¡± Subsequently, a new message emerged before the eyes of Ian, and a large bird covered in flames appeared. Kiyaah-! [The first summon of the ¡®Phoenix¡¯. You can name it.] When one got a new familiar, there was a painful time of going through the naming process. ¡°Uh¡­ right. I need to name it.¡± Of course, there was no problem if it wasn¡¯t named yet, but naming it was an essential process. When the summoner gave a unique name, the affinity with the familiar rose much faster. That wasn¡¯t the case with the familiars who had names. ¡®When I got El or Karceus, it was nice that I didn¡¯t have to go through this¡­¡¯ Ian closed his eyes with agony. After a while, Ian confidently opened his mouth and called the Phoenix. ¡°Nick! Your name is Nick from now on.¡± * * * Ian summoned the Phoenix and named it, and returned him to the space. A level 98 guy could barely do anything in the quest. Also, after passing through the area¡ªthe next came the castle of the kingdom of Elrika, so it was needed for Ian to minimize the number of people. The total number of summons left with Ian before entering the castle was 4. Elcarix, Karceus, Ly and Bbookbbook. A little petite familiar could be a burden when infiltrating, which was why he was with dragons that could polymorph. Of course, he had Lugarix, Helliem, and Kaka too. Ian¡¯s party reached the back of the world tree after passing the pillars, and a huge wall came into their view. Ian asked Remus, ¡°So this is a door that leads to the Elrika Kingdom?¡± ¡°Yes, Ian. This way.¡± Remus took the lead and guided the party of Ian. Did they walk for about 10 minutes along the wall? A small stairway appeared in the basement of the wall and a space in front of them was red. Remus opened his mouth which was directed towards Ian. ¡°Here, this is the border.¡± Ian scratched the back of his neck. ¡°Hmm, do I have to summon the Phoenix to pass through the barrier?¡± Remus shook his head. ¡°No, it isn¡¯t needed. You are the master of the Phoenix. The door will open for you.¡± When Remus finished, he showed the space towards the wall. Ian carefully stepped inside, and at the same time, a low resonance filled the space. Woong-! The red energy that was moving in a swirl gradually spread away like a parted wave. Before Ian¡¯s eyes, came the system messages. Tring-! [The quest ¡®Elrika Kingdom Puppet II (Hidden) (Connected)¡¯ has been activated.] ¨C ¨C ¨C Elrika Kingdom Puppet II (Hidden) (Connected) After clearing the underground prison dungeon, you rescued Remus, the king of Elrika kingdom who was trapped in the prison. Upon hearing the story from Remus, you decided to help him out and defeat the ¡®Puppet¡¯ king of the Elrika Kingdom and reached the Elrika King castle through a secret passage known only to Remus. Defeat the puppet king that was created by the Lich King Chalian¡¯s spells and place Remus back to the throne. Before killing the puppet Remus, you must first defeat the dark psychics who control him. If you kill the puppet before taking down the psychics, then Chalian will notice the death of his puppet. (Total Dark Psychic: 0/5) If you are discovered by the soldiers of the kingdom before the end of the quest, you will fail. Quest Difficulty: SSS Quest Condition: Recognized by the legendary God Bird Phoenix. Trust obtained from the King of Elrika Kingdom, Remus. A user who has cleared the ¡®Rataphel Underground Prison¡¯ dungeon. His quest is completed if the Dark Sanctuary is destroyed. Reward: + 10 affinity with Remus, ArchMage records. CH 457 Tring-! [You have entered the dungeon ¡®Elrika Castle Underground¡¯.] [Found the dungeon for the first time.] [For 24 hours, all the experience gained in the dungeon will be doubled.] [For 24 hours, the chance to acquire items from the dungeon boss will be increased by 100%.] [When a designated enemy is killed, you gain an additional 1,000 percent experience. (Designated Enemy: Guard, Captain, Dark Psychic, Puppet Remus)] The place where he passed through the barrier was a dark underground made by the royals. After looking at the ¡®first discovery¡¯ messages that popped up in front of his eyes, Ian felt satisfied. He was satisfied with the doubling experience that was applied with the first discovery, and he really liked the first-time content that appeared there. ¡®I have never seen a bonus like this¡­ do these designated enemy mean the monsters that are associated with the quest?¡¯ Basically, 1,000 percent additional experience along with the double experience meant 20 times the normal one. If he killed just one guard, it meant he would be rewarded with the experience that would be gained for killing 20. Of course, the crazy bonus experience has been set, but the guards and the number of guards wouldn¡¯t be easy to kill. ¡®I can go up to level 400 if I clear this dungeon.¡¯ Since he had to gather so much experience from level 399 to 400, he had decided to leave the other rankers. Once he reached level 400, he had to be on the move again. The experience bonus was like a gift from heaven. ¡®Kay then, it looks like there aren¡¯t any monsters in the area¡­¡¯ As the quest were quests, Ian carefully moved around and always looked forward. Remus who was following him closely decided to speak in a very low voice, ¡°Of the two doors that are there at the end of the passage, open the left door.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± ¡°It was supposed to be empty when I was the king, but be careful of what might happen.¡± At the warning from Remus, Ian nodded and muttered to himself, ¡°It is surely infested with monsters. If not, this wouldn¡¯t be called a dungeon, right?¡± When they arrived in front of the door, Ian ordered Lugarix before opening it. ¡°Lugarix, Dark Illusion.¡± ¡°Okay, Ian.¡± It wouldn¡¯t be much of a hurdle if there was a normal monster inside the door, but they would have to be ready if there was a guard inside. In quests of this kind, a moment of carelessness with the guards was enough to lead the quest to failure. Woong-! Dark energy emanated from the hands of Lugarix and gradually began to wrap around the party members. After a while, all the party member¡¯s body turned into a dark silhouette like a shadow. [The Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix has triggered Dark Illusion.] [All the party members within 5 yards of Lugarix will be invisible.] [Unless there is a Warlock above level 500, one won¡¯t be able to penetrate the Dark Illusion.] Dark Illusion was a black magic that could sometimes be used strategically on the battlefield. If one had the confidence that the other side didn¡¯t have a higher leveled Warlock as an opponent, then there was no magic that could go through the spell. Of course, in the case of a siege where the detection towers are present, it was a useless spell to use. ¡®Nice, should we move slowly now?¡¯ Ian carefully approached the iron gate and opened it. Creak-! The iron gate moved slowly and made awkward sounds of creaking. Kaka, who was seated on the shoulder of Ian, moved first because she wanted to scout. She shared her view with Ian. ¡®Surely, the guards are there.¡¯ There were three guards in Kaka¡¯s view. But they weren¡¯t guarding anything. Presumably, they seemed to be sneaking out of work so they could rest. Swrrrk-! Ian moved inside completely hidden by the Dark Illusion and looked at the passage structure. ¡®I hope we can easily avoid them and sneak into the other passage.¡¯ The levels of the three guards were 440. It wasn¡¯t a situation where they had to be concerned with their opponent¡¯s level, but it wasn¡¯t an unreasonable situation. If the guard screamed or even one of the guys left their position, they would fail the quest. Suddenly, Ian¡¯s dungeon experience bonus came through his mind and made him smile. ¡®If I think about it, it was only natural that we wouldn¡¯t be given crazy bonus experience points for nothing.¡¯ The allure of the massive bonus experience called ¡¯20 times¡¯. That was a trap made by the planners to make it more difficult for the users. Right now, Ian was using the Dark Illusion, so he could just easily pass by. ¡®But, I can¡¯t just let this pass by.¡¯ Ian ordered his familiars and Helliem who were approaching the gate. Flustered with what he saw, Remus pulled on the hem of Ian¡¯s dress with an urgent confused look. ¡°¡­!¡± Knowing that the guards would react to any sound, he couldn¡¯t even open his mouth; but his expression itself was enough for anyone to know what he was trying to say. In fact, from the position of one doing the quest, for the subject of the quest Remus, it was natural to not understand the intention of Ian. Ian smiled a little and turned his sight away from the remorseful eyes of Remus. ¡®Well, it doesn¡¯t have to be only a successful quest.¡¯ Subsequent to the orders that Ian put down, a Summoner skill began to get activated. It began with the magic of El. ¡°Silence!¡± As the name itself said, it was a sub-tier light attribute secondary magic that ¡®silenced¡¯ the enemy. If it was a normal situation, the silence magic could be considered as a useless skill. For guards wielding the sword, there was no penalty that would be faced for going into a ¡®silenced¡¯ state. In the beginning, the magic of silence was a skill that was used as a counter to the wizards to stop their casting. But in their current situation of needing to kill the guards without even letting the rats know, they had to place the silence on the combat dealers. [Familiar ¡®Elcarix¡¯ has cast the Silence spell.] [The ¡®Guard¡¯ has taken light damage.] [The ¡®Guard¡¯ is ¡®Silenced¡¯.] At the same time, the ¡®Soul Curse¡¯ skill, one of the strongest debuff skill of a Warlock was activated. [The Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix has cast the Soul Curse.] [The magic resistance of ¡®Guards¡¯ has been reduced by 85%.] [The physical resistance of ¡®Guards¡¯ has been reduced by 55%.] [The dark resistance of ¡®Guards¡¯ has been reduced by 90%.] The two buff spells played simultaneously. The guards sitting on the floor jumped out of their spots with a confused look. But at the time, the Chain Darkpulse¡ªa unique ability of Helliem¡ªhit them. Swooah-! The sound scattered in the air. And as always, a huge dark sword with dark energy fell on to the Guards. Bang- Bang- Bang-! A lightning strike hit the Guards three times at regular intervals. Helliem¡¯s Dark Vision got triggered in conjunction with Darkpulse. the Guards quickly got wiped out. ¡°¡­!¡± The one who suffered the least damage tried to escape, but it wasn¡¯t the nature of Ian to leave that alone. Swoosh-! Ian suddenly went to the back of him and wielded his Judgement of Spirit King and cut it off. Thud-! With smoke, the Guard collapsed on the floor. Tring-! [You have successfully defeated the ¡®Guards¡¯ of Elrika!] [You have earned an additional 1000% XP, as you have killed the designated enemy.] [Obtained experience points of 78,752,500.] Ian had earned around 80 million experience points. With the incredible amount of experience that he got from taking down the Guards, Ian¡¯s smile went up to his ears. * * * The underground of the Elrika, was a much more complex structure than assumed to be. The road that was made for evacuation purposes would have been tough to walk to without the guidance from Remus. Ian realized what the structure was symbolizing. ¡®This looks like an underground with the option of a bunker.¡¯ Although he was just going around, Ian was actually the King of a nation. Because of that, he knew most of the content that was related to the expansion of a strong nation. ¡®I put it on hold because it cost a lot¡­ I¡¯ll have to budget the taxes next month.¡¯ Though a general castle, the Elrika¡¯s protagonist made Ian introspect about his nation and castle. The underground bunker was a great defensive facility that could have a huge impact when the outer area was invaded. A defensive structure that allowed the attack against an enemy from the basement and to pass easily in terms of crisis. If Ian hadn¡¯t progressed the quest which began from the Underground prison, the Lotus army would have had to penetrate the Elrika¡¯s defense outside. No matter how powerful the forces of Lotus were, if there was no information about Elrika¡¯s defense it would turn quite damaging for the Lotus. While passing through the basement of the castle, Ian gained some harvest and began to concentrate on the quest¡¯s progress once again. Most of the monsters that appeared underground was as fragile as a level 300 Undead, but the Guards that appeared here and there made the situation tricky. Especially in the case of the ¡®Chief Guard¡¯ whose level was over 450; they struggled to kill him. The Chief¡¯s combat abilities were close to that of a tanker and a knight; he was harder to kill compared to normal Guards. They put debuffs on him and tried to kill him as quickly as possible, but it took them three times more effort to kill him. In addition, the Guard Chief was usually guarded by normal Guards, and that made it more difficult to kill him. Kwang-! Ian, who put his spear in the back of the Chief mumbled to himself. ¡°I hope this troublesome guy doesn¡¯t come out again.¡± Even though it was difficult to deal with the Chief, the experience he gave was only half as much as a normal Guard gave. For Ian, it was natural to want to avoid him. But apart from that, the quest was going smoothly. ¡®Well, I¡¯m getting used to it, so I think it will get faster.¡¯ It was a little short of what they were expecting, but he was getting quite a bit of experience. Although the monsters that were coming were only half the number of what appeared in a normal dungeon, the experience was huge. They have now been in the underground for an hour now. A huge space opened up in front of Ian¡¯s party who was following Remus. There was a staircase which seemed to lead to the King. Ian asked Remus, ¡°Can we go up?¡± After a thought, Remus nodded his head. ¡°Yes, you can climb the stairs to the top floor. From here onwards, it can be said that the inside will be full-on-vigor.¡± ¡°Yeah well.¡± Ian responded and began to take big strides. But then Remus shook his head and stopped him. ¡°Wait!¡± ¡°Huh? What is it?¡± ¡°If you go up, then you¡¯ll be a hedgehog.¡± Ian frowned and asked again, ¡°Are there traps installed?¡± Remus nodded. ¡°Yes. There is a system in the staircase.¡± Remus extended his finger to the direction of the iron gate that was opposite the staircase. ¡°There is a management office inside that door that can stop the traps.¡± ¡°Huh? Then I have to go inside?¡± Ian turned to the iron gate and looked at it. At that moment, a new system message emerged in front of him. [Strong dark energy can be felt.] CH 458 As soon as the system messages came, Ian could already feel the dark energy coming from the inside of the iron gate. Ian was surprised. He stopped and took a step back, and Remus¡¯s eyes went wide upon looking at the direction of the iron gate. ¡°This¡­ this can¡¯t¡­!¡± Ian who didn¡¯t know why Remus acted like that asked, ¡°What is it, Remus?¡± For a moment, Remus looked at the direction of the dark energy and slowly said to Ian, ¡°Radeus, this certainly is the power of Radeus.¡± ¡°Radeus? Ra who? Who is that?¡± Asked Ian to Remus who was shaking while biting his lower lip. ¡°One of the minions of Chalian. He was the Archmage of the Elrika Kingdom in the past.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± ¡°Ian, think of Lacamer who you just killed in the prison. Radeus also is like Lacamer.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Upon hearing ¡®Lacamer¡¯s¡¯ name, Ian couldn¡¯t help but feel his body creep. No matter how it was, even though it was Ian, it still wouldn¡¯t be a troublesome process to deal with a Lacamer class enemy by himself. ¡®I don¡¯t think it will be a boss monster if it appears here¡­ is it like an epic mob?¡¯ In Kailan, even if the same leveled monsters of the same class appeared, then depending on their position in the dungeon, there would be a difference in the combat power. Radeus would be a bit weaker than Lacamer, but it would still be troublesome. ¡®What am I supposed to do? I would¡¯ve never tried for it if it wasn¡¯t a quest.¡¯ Ian decided to check out the most important facts. ¡°Remus¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°By any chance, ¡®Radeus¡¯, is he one of the psychics who controls the puppet king?¡± If Radeus was one of the psychics, then Ian had no choice but to fight Radeus. Ian was the first to confirm it. Ian asked Remus who was still surprised and was shaking his head, ¡°No, Radeus isn¡¯t a psychic. They are deeper in the dungeon.¡± ¡°Then¡­ this is a nice turn of events¡­¡± ¡°But how did you know about the psychics?¡± No wonder Remus was surprised. He hadn¡¯t told Ian about the psychics yet. It was natural for an NPC who didn¡¯t know of the existence of the quest window to be surprised. Ian tried to talk his way out of it, ¡°Even then, we need to try and find another way, Remus.¡± ¡°Other way¡­?¡± ¡°It seems impossible to enter the room right away. In this situation, it is too risky to deal with a dark magician who is as strong as Lacamer.¡± At that Remus nodded. ¡°Definitely¡­ you¡¯re right.¡± And the words from Ian continued, ¡°Is there another way for me to enter the castle?¡± Remus listened to the question of Ian. ¡°Hmm, different way huh¡­¡± Right then, an unexpected system message appeared in front of Ian. Tring-! [The ¡®Underworld King¡¯s Necklace Shard (A) (Sealed)¡¯ item has begun to respond to the dark energy.] [An overwhelming dark force has detected you.] [Sudden quest has occurred!] ¡°¡­!¡± Subsequently, a new quest window appeared in front of Ian. ¨C ¨C ¨C Radeus¡¯ Ambition (Hidden) (Sudden) ¨C Radeus¡ªminion of the Lich King Chalian¡ªand the former Archmage of the Elrika kingdom. He succumbed to the power of Chalian and became one of his servants, but he has great ambition. A grand plan to one day surpass Chalian and make him surrender with his black magic and take away everything from the Lich King. But Chalian, who had corrupted even the God of Darkness, Kades, had grown much stronger and the ambition of Radeus has gone further away. Radeus decided to cultivate a forbidden art without the awareness of Chalian. Chalian could never tolerate it if someone else other than him turned into a Lich. Radeus spent his time in the corner of the royal castle of the Elrika and began to do some research about becoming a ¡®Lich King¡¯ while avoiding the eyes and ears of Chalian. Though not as powerful as Chalian, he thought that he would at least close up the gap between them. Radeus being the genius he was, managed to complete that task soon enough. But despite the completion of that task, he wasn¡¯t able to reach the point of a king. There was a decisive problem. To become a Lich King, one needs a powerful dark bowl which could hold the soul of a Lich King, but he hadn¡¯t found the material that was needed to make it. A powerful dark item that doesn¡¯t exist in the human world. To make a soul bowl that would hold the soul of the Lich King, there is a need for a material with a high purity of dark power. Radeus wanted to directly go to the ¡®Underworld¡¯ to get that dark material. Which was why he had mobilized his priest, Lacamer to search for the fragments of the Underworld King¡¯s Necklace. If you collect all the fragments and complete the Underworld King¡¯s necklace, you can summon the Underworld King and ask for guidance to the underworld. Well now, Radeus has found that power of the king from you. Because of that, he will somehow try to steal the necklace fragments from you. Defeat Radeus and stop him from pursuing his dangerous desires. Quest Difficulty: SSS Quest Condition: ¡®Underworld King¡¯s Necklace¡¯ item. A user who cleared the ¡®Rataphel Underground Prison¡¯ dungeon. Time Limit: 25 minutes * Killing Radeus completes the quest. * This quest cannot be rejected. Reward: ¡®Underworld King¡¯s Necklace Fragment (B) (Seal)¡¯. Radeus¡¯ Skull Staff. Dark Soul Stone. ¨C ¨C ¨C ¨C A new quest had appeared at an unexpected time. The word ¡®sudden¡¯ was a quest that appeared as a surprise, but the contents of it weren¡¯t that simple. Because of that, even though there wasn¡¯t much time, Ian carefully read the quest window. ¡®My prediction was correct!¡¯ The ¡®Underworld King¡¯s Necklace fragment¡¯ item was the reason why the quest had appeared. Just as Ian guessed, the Underworld King¡¯s necklace was something that could summon the Underworld King to guide them in the underworld. He first heard of this from Gripper about the place called ¡®Underworld¡¯, but the quest that was in progress was beginning to give a clear path for how it worked. ¡°Hu, then I guess there is no other way?¡± Mumbled Ian in a low voice while taking small strides towards the management room. Remus was surprised and tried to stop Ian, but he couldn¡¯t help but move along. Radeus who opened the door appeared right in front of Ian. Ian fixed the Judgement of the Spirit King and spoke to Radeus, ¡°Are you Radeus?¡± He had a white beard and long white hair. The man was dressed in a dark robe. The robe¡¯s hood covered the man¡¯s face. He then spoke with a slightly surprised expression, ¡°Yes, I am Radeus. How do you know me?¡± Since turning into the minion of Chalian, Radeus hadn¡¯t even stepped foot outside. Because of that, Radeus was amazed when Ian had recognized him. But even before answering Ian, Radeus had found the answer by himself. ¡°Remus, you¡¯re making fun of me with that mouth of yours.¡± Remus the former King of Elrika Kingdom, and Radeus the former Archmage of the Elrika¡¯s royal family. Of course, if it was a normal situation then Radeus would have shown his respects. However, the relationship between the two in the past was like, a fellow who established the kingdom of Elrika and the royal wizard. Furthermore, Radeus¡¯ betrayal was the reason for the fall of the Elrika Kingdom into the hands of the Lich King. In the present situation, the relationship between the two was nothing more than enemies. Remus shouted at Radeus, ¡°You look good saying those stuff. How is it being the dog of the Lich King?¡± But Radeus didn¡¯t mind Remus¡¯ anger at all. While taking a step closer to Ian, he laughed and spoke, ¡°Huhu, after seeing that you are with Remus, you¡¯ll get what you deserve.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I wonder why you have to be the one person who had found the Underworld King¡¯s Necklace fragment.¡± According to his knowledge, Remus was imprisoned deep in the underground prison of the Rataphel Domain. And it was his priest Lacamer who was guarding it. If Ian was with Remus, then it meant that Lacamer who was guarding the prison was dead. Then it meant Ian was the one who killed Lacamer, which explained the fragment of the Underworld King Necklace in his hand. It was Lacamer who was collecting the fragments of the Underworld King¡¯s Necklace. Radeus spoke again, ¡°Either way, if you could beat my priest, then you probably aren¡¯t a normal guy.¡± Radeus was staring at Ian with an expression of anger and curiosity. But Ian just became annoyed. He just wanted to go ahead and complete the connected quest. ¡°Mr. you talk way too much than one would think. I don¡¯t have much time on my clock.¡± At the provocation from Ian, the face of Radeus which hadn¡¯t shown any definite emotion suddenly turned red. ¡°Nope, I see nothing that makes you possible to defeat a priest.¡± Kwooo-! A huge dark wave began to spread around Radeus. It looked very powerful. But somehow Ian¡¯s expression turned much more comfortable than before. ¡®I don¡¯t have to worry about getting caught, but it isn¡¯t a bad thing to have a fight.¡¯ From the information that Ian had gained through the quest window, the ¡®Underworld King¡¯s Necklace fragment¡¯ didn¡¯t just provide clues to the Underworld. It contained a story related to Radeus, and thanks to that, Ian could figure out why he had appeared. According to the content in the quest window, Radeus was hiding from the Lich King too, which meant that the staircase was a safe place from the eyes of the guards. Ian provoked Radeus once again while smiling. ¡°Unfortunately, I¡¯m going to take away the other fragments that you have.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°Even I have a few things to do in the Underworld.¡± Radeus¡¯ eyes widened. Ian¡¯s words contained information that would never be known by an ordinary human. ¡°You are a lot more dangerous than I expected.¡± Khooo-! Radeus picked up his staff and a huge dark vortex began to form around him. The whirlwind of darkness began to disperse gradually and then formed into small chunks one after the other. Death Knight, Dark Golem, Skeleton and other Undead monsters that Ian had seen until now appeared. However, among those creatures of darkness, the first one that appeared caught the attention of Ian. CH 459 ¡®Who is that?¡¯ A monster with a skeleton body all over. But compared to the skeleton, it was a rather huge monster in front of Ian. Skeleton giant in a dark blue armor with an enormous pattern, like a cylinder. Ian checked the name that was floating on its head. -Skull Giant King: Lv 475 A huge skeleton body that had a shiny armor all around its body, it looked very solid at first glance. Radeus¡¯s unusual summons had a much appealing look of the ¡®tanker¡¯. Ian was curious about it, but he had no time to think about it. Because the battle had begun right away. ¡®Hmm, if I get Radeus, then I can know anything.¡¯ The quest rewards were the Radeus Skull staff and the Dark Soul stone. Guessing that either one of them could be related to the opponent, Ian wielded his spear. Kwang- Kwang-! Ian summoned all his summons and quickly moved towards Radeus. The summons must be defeated to be summoned once again, that was the mark for the Warlocks, and that was because they came out after the cast. Of course, the dark magician Radeus didn¡¯t allow Ian to get the access, but Ian who had gone through many battles knew the most expected skill pattern. Ian took Halli to the close range of Radeus and broke the Dark Shield. ¡°Why aren¡¯t you a dark psychic?¡± Ian¡¯s quick question made Radeus confused. ¡°Man, what do you mean?!¡± ¡°Nothing much, it is because of the experience?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± In the meantime, it was regrettable that Radeus wasn¡¯t a psychic that would give Ian a 20x experience bonus. The battle was getting fierce as the time passed but was clearly progressing much better than the battle of Lacamer. Not because Radeus was weak. He was a powerful epic monster, but he didn¡¯t have the ability to be differentiated from a normal dark magician. In other words, the stats felt like a higher level of a dark magician. No matter how powerful Radeus was, Ian¡¯s controls were great enough that he discovered the patterns already. ¡°El, Dragonic Barrier!¡± ¡°Okay, dad!¡± The barrier absorbed concentrated deal, and waited for the summons to accumulate, then came a magic sweep of a cast at once. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah, Karceus. Breath. Pin, Smash!¡± Kwaah-! Ian had been carefully and skillfully dealing with the undead till now, which meant that Radeus was forced to feel helpless. ¡°This, human¡­!¡± Inevitably, Radeus didn¡¯t have a specific manner to deal with. No matter how high the stats were, the vitality was being cut everytime he took a step to counterattack. The pattern of the skills that Radeus was utilizing was already what Ian had predicted. However, if there was anything that was beyond the expectation of Ian¡¯s, then it was the undead with a crude name of ¡®Skull Giant King¡¯ whose vitality was much greater than assumed. ¡®What, what is with all these crazy summons? This is a meat shield. No, it is a bone shield?¡¯ To match the size of it, the Skull Giant King had a very dull movement. The attack pattern was incredibly simple and even seemed to have just one or two unique abilities. ¡®One provocation skill and an active skill for self-healing one. What is up with the incompetent summons?¡¯ Of course, despite the intensive attacks from Ian, the undead summons endured it with the tremendous amount of vitality they had. But, that was it. The style of the summons was what Ian disliked the most. ¡®Phew, if I am asked to play with one of those guys, then it is no fun at all, so I¡¯ll fold the game in a day.¡¯ It was too slow and there was no skill to take advantage of, so there was no way to control it. Ian gave out orders while still thinking about the undead. ¡°Grrr, Soul Encroachment!¡± ¡°Grrr, Kwayy!¡± [The Balrog of Destruction ¡®Grrr¡¯ attempted to infiltrate a fragile soul (Less than 5% of its vitality was remaining)] [Successfully encroached the soul of the Undead Skeleton Warrior (Lv. 433)!] [Successfully encroached the soul of Undead Dark Race (Lv. 425)!] [Successfully encroached the soul of Undead Death Knight (Lv. 452)!] (Syncopation) [Total of 11 souls have been encroached.] [During the Soul Encroachment, that target is moved by the command of the Balrog and all the attack power is increased by 30%. In addition, they will remain invincible until the Balrog dies.] In the battle that included many, the ¡®Soul Encroachment¡¯ of Grrr was always handy¡­ ¡°Ly, start the killing from Mage!¡± ¡°Okay, master!¡± Ly triggered the ¡®Rage of Fenrir¡¯ and ¡®Dark Encroachment¡¯, it¡¯s an inherent ability and was also use to cut off the skeleton mage that was supporting the undead from behind. ¡°Kiyaaak!¡± ¡°Stop the Fenrir!¡± As a result of all the familiars pouring out their abilities, Ian was able to finish the quest much easily than expected. ¡°Keu, to be taken down by human¡­!¡± Radeus whose vitality was exhausted to the last bit fell down with anguish. Ian laughed at the displeased looking guy. ¡°You lost to me because you carry such hard summons with you. It looks like you have got great leadership, but why bother raising stuff like that?¡± Ian shook his head while pointing to the broken Skull Giant King, who was on the floor with no help. Radeus, was quite responsive to the mockery of Ian. ¡°Keu, you think that I raised it because I wanted to raise him?!¡± ¡°Uh. What do you mean?¡± ¡°Some dumb piece of sh*t-smith had made that thing with some of his best materials, so I took it!¡± ¡°What?¡± Ian responded to the unexpected response from Radeus. Radeus was completely exhausted because of the vitality that was down. Tring-! [You have successfully cleared the quest ¡®Radeus Ambition (Hidden)¡¯.] [Obtained the item ¡®Underworld King Necklace (B) (Sealed)¡¯.] [Obtained the item ¡®Radeus Skull Staff (Legend)¡¯.] After completing the quest which was needed for getting the king¡¯s fragment, Ian¡¯s expression didn¡¯t seem that glad. Probably because he wanted to find out more about the information in those incomprehensible words of Radeus. ¡®What? A blacksmith? Did he mean to say that the giant skull thing was made?¡¯ All the words of Radeus were questionable. However, there was one thing that was rushing to the mind of Ian. After completing the Lacamer¡¯s rage quest, the item of ¡®Dark fragment bundle¡¯ came to his mind. ¡®Right! There was an item that I could assemble and make a summon!¡¯ A special item that could be summoned depending on how it is used. If the Skull Giant King was a familiar of the fragments, then he wouldn¡¯t even need leadership, which meant that Radeus had no reason to not use it. ¡°Ha, but for such garbage to be made out of the fragments¡­¡± Approaching the collapsed skeleton giant¡ªIan kicked him once and shook his head. Right then, system messages came into the sight of Ian. Tring-! [You have obtained an item called ¡®Dark Soul stone¡¯.] [If you use that ¡®Dark Soul stone¡¯ item, you can summon the fallen undead.] [The surviving summon will be attributed to the user and will follow your orders.] [Do you want to revive the Skull Giant King summon (Y/N)?] [Once the summon is revived, the item Dark Soul Stone will disappear.] After reading the entire message, Ian shook his head almost reflexively and canceled the use of the item. ¡°Uh, do you think I¡¯m crazy? To use the only one chance to bring back a junk like this?¡± Then came another two lines of system messages. [You have canceled the use of item Dark Soul stone.] [The Skull Giant King summon is completely lost.] Ian shook his head with a grin. However, it was possible to see how the item ¡®Dark Soul Stone¡¯ was used. ¡®The next time I fight a nice undead summon, I will use it.¡¯ It was the first time for Ian to see the ¡®Skull Giant King¡¯. It seemed to be unlikely for it to be seen in the human world, but he was under the thought that he could see a lot of them when he went to the underworld. It was clear that one day a nice summon would make an appearance in front of Ian, so the Dark Soul Stone wouldn¡¯t go to waste. ¡°Hu, should we go inside and see?¡± Ian who entered the engine room lowered the lever and walked up to the stairs with careful steps. The summoned summons for the battle against Radeus, they all returned to the subspace, except for the original set. From then, they were going to enter the core area of the castle. ¡°You can cheer up Ian. Now that Radeus has been killed, you can remove the psychics without much difficulty.¡± Encouraged by the words of Remus, Ian smiled. ¡°Okay, and trust me.¡± Like Remus had said, the psychics were much weaker than Radeus. Ian easily defeated all the five psychics and managed to smoothly move to the kings¡¯ castle where the puppet king was residing. ¡®Isn¡¯t this a bit too easy? It is a triple S quest difficulty¡­ but compared to Lacamer it is a bit too low.¡¯ Ian was in the wrong thought. Ian was able to easily clear the quest because of a warlock Lugarix of level 500. There were many warlocks above the level of 450 in the Elrika kingdom, and if they were with some other warlock other than Lugarix, then going against the psychics would have been tough. None of the users, even those of the warlocks, one with a level 400 wasn¡¯t there yet. Anyway, since Ian arrived at the King¡¯s castle without any tension was almost at the end of the quest. There was another Remus sitting on the throne with his eyes closed with robes of royalty. Puppet Remus/Lv? ¡®Should I just kill off that guy now?¡¯ Ian, who identified him, swallowed the desire into the stomach. The level was hidden because it seemed like the opponent was stronger than Radeus. In addition, Ian had come through the dungeon much easier than he had expected, so the last boss would be stronger. Ian took careful steps toward him. Remus who was behind Ian popped out his sword. ¡°The last one¡­ can you leave it to me?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°That guy is an alter made out of my soul. In terms of the warlocks jargon, it is a Dummy.¡± ¡°Uh?¡± The story of a dummy¡ªa scarecrow with no power to fight. While Ian was shocked, Remus pulled out his sword. Slash-! The puppet Remus who was seated on the throne turned grey. Ian saw the scene unfold with a blank expression. ¡®Uh¡­ then¡­ this is¡­ the end?¡¯ Even before the sword of Remus fell, Ian¡¯s eyes saw the system messages that informed him about the completion of the quest. [You have successfully completed the ¡®The Puppet of the Elrika Kingdom (Hidden) (Connected)¡¯!] [Acquired the fame of 300,000!] [You have earned the experience points of 597,089,812!] (Syncopation) [Your level has risen. You have reached the level of 400.] CH 460 [You are the first to achieve the level 400.] [Fame increased by 700,000.] [¡®Wagner¡¯ of the ¡®Summoner ¡®s tower¡¯ is looking for you.] A lot of messages came in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. But the most prominent messages were the words¡ª¡¯first¡¯. ¡®Hoho, I am the first?¡¯ Kailan never leaked the level of the private rankers. And unless the word ¡®first¡¯ wasn¡¯t added, one couldn¡¯t be sure of being a top ranker with just the ranking list. This ¡®first¡¯ made Ian feel good in many ways. ¡®Keu, now there is nothing else but to catch the Elrika Kingdom¡­ all that is left is to hit Chalian.¡¯ While Ian was lost in his own thoughts for a while, Remus who had cut down the fake king went towards the throne and sat down. Contrary to what he looked like a moment back, Remus looked like the king of a kingdom. ¡°Thank you, Ian. Now it is my turn to fulfill the promise.¡± Ian nodded and smiled. ¡°Yes please, Remus. I will move my army as soon as I get back.¡± Ian made a brief plan with Remus and then opened the inventory to use the recall stone. Now it was the time to go back to the Lotus Kingdom and raise the army as soon as possible. A few lines of system messages came before Ian¡¯s eyes. [Since you are at 400, you have met the minimum requirement to ¡®transcend¡¯ a person.] [If you go to the ¡®Hero¡¯s Village¡¯ and find ¡®LeBoro¡¯, he will tell you about the ¡®Transcendental Test¡¯.] ¡°Uh?¡± An exclamation came out of Ian¡¯s mouth. The word ¡®Hero¡¯s Village¡¯ seemed like a very familiar one. ¡®The Mark of Courage that Camares had given! Wasn¡¯t it for a village in Middle-earth?¡¯ Also, the word ¡®transcendence of a person¡¯ was a nice clue to Ian. If it was probably a few days ago, then Ian wouldn¡¯t have been able to assign any meaning to the word. But now, he knew exactly what it meant. ¡®Middle-earth!¡¯ In the mind of Ian, the memories of three days back had come up. In general, the ¡®quest window¡¯ of the normal users in Kailan was filled with a lot of content on the floors. The higher the level of users, the more likely the tendency, and the reasons were simple. With being hard to clear or because the higher the level the longer the quest becomes. Especially in the case of the simple users who weren¡¯t much bothered with the quest, and would just hunt till death without sparing a look at the quest window. But in Kailan play, such a play wasn¡¯t in works, it was because the quests were very tough. However, even though the level was at the top level, there were always users who kept the quest window content within 10 lines or less. One of those users was Ian. Ian was one of those pathological dislikers of the red letter ¡®N¡¯ on the quest window. ¡®If that was floating all day like that, it¡¯ll be a bother to me.¡¯ Sighed Ian briefly. Recently Ian had a problem. It had already been quite a few weeks, but instead of a clear, there was a quest which he was stuck with. Besides, it was a quest that Ian could never give up. Then, didn¡¯t he try to complete it? That wasn¡¯t it either. ¡®How can I clear it?¡¯ It was a quest he had received before proceeding with the ¡®Puppet of Elrika Kingdom¡¯ quest from Remus, Ian couldn¡¯t help but sigh. Quest in progress was given in a very smooth situation, and the delayed quest was still in progress. The quest was¡­ Quest: Taming the Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix. Type: Hidden/ Sudden Time Limit: None Difficulty: SSSSS Status: In progress. Reward: Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix, Hidden Class tier ¡®Taming Master¡¯. (Read More) A Mythical Summon, one of the strongest summons that the Summoner Ian had ever seen. A quest of Penta S rank difficulty was in the quest window of Ian, he was required to tame the myth summon which hadn¡¯t been captured in the Kailan¡¯s history. ¨C ¨C ¨C So for Ian, it was a choice he couldn¡¯t leave. Ian¡¯s gaze was fixed on the letter ¡®N¡¯ when he moved to the side. And there, a pair of familiar children were playing. In front of the two, a Barbie doll that was the size of a palm was there. ¡°Kay, Oppa, do it quick! Make Ernesa into a woman!¡± ¡°Kay, look! I made it right here. See, a white uniform and the silver staff too. Didn¡¯t I make it exactly right?¡± ¡°No, no! Miss Ernesa wouldn¡¯t have looked like this.¡± ¡°Huh? How would you know that? You don¡¯t even remember.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t remember, but it is recorded in Colonnar History! ¡®Like the Goddess of Beauty had descended.¡¯!¡± Lugarix had crafted a doll of Miss Ernesa out of the clay. Lugarix¡¯s magic had made the doll with immense quality and was proud of it. It was almost as good as the ¡®hyper-realism¡¯. Elcarix however, didn¡¯t seem to like the doll. ¡°Right, Miss. Ernesa was very beautiful.¡± ¡°Then how could you make it like this?¡± ¡°What? It looks pretty, right? What do you mean by that?¡± ¡°Miss Ernesa couldn¡¯t have had such long hair! Reduce hair size, Oppa.¡± Elcarix was demanding a modification, however, Lugarix wasn¡¯t going to do it. ¡°I can¡¯t.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because¡­ this is the identity of Ernasa.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°That lady was surely beautiful, precisely in the 4th.¡± ¡°Uh?¡± ¡°There is no way I can fix it perfectly like she is.¡± Listening to the two dragon kids, Ian shook his head. ¡®D*mmit, I need to stick with these¡­¡¯ When he first got the quest of ¡®Taming Lugarix¡¯, Ian was completely lost. But after getting the strong help from ¡®El¡¯ from a quest, he began to smoothly enter the quest. Thanks to Elcarix, the most basic conditions for taming familiars ¡®affinity¡¯ was achieved. Just a few hours back. Ian saw that his affinity with Lugarix had reached MAX, and he finally tried to tame. In the anticipation of rising his tier of the Taming Master class and getting the reward of Myth class summon¡ªLugarix. ¡°Lugarix.¡± ¡°Ian, called?¡± ¡°I really think that you¡¯re a great dragon.¡± ¡°Obviously. Since I am the Dragon of Darkness.¡± ¡°So, then Lugarix.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°How do you think about me as a summoner?¡± The hidden intention of Ian was ¡®your answer defines what the answer for me to the quest would be¡¯. But the simple dragon, Lugarix gave out a very natural answer. ¡°Ian, you are a great summoner.¡± ¡°Right?¡± ¡°At least, the best human summoner that I have ever seen.¡± ¡°huhu, you have great eyes!¡± Ian started to mend to Lugarix to be able to recruit Lugarix. When he thought that the perfect timing had come, Ian started to act. ¡°Lugarix, the thing¡­ what I mean¡­¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Uhm. Nothing, can you be my summon?¡± ¡°Uh?¡± ¡°With your powerful magic, I think that we can defeat the Chalian.¡± ¡°That is natural.¡± But the result¡­ ¡°Then, how about being my summon?¡± ¡°No, that can¡¯t happen.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to be the summon of a human.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°It means I can¡¯t be the summon of someone who is ¡®lower¡¯ than me.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± The explanation of Lugarix was simple. As a new dragon, he intervenes the dimension like a ¡®middle man¡¯, while Ian was a normal ¡®human¡¯, then he cannot be a summon. Ian who had heard the explanation of Lugarix, about the human world, the Middle-earth and the celestial world, had a glimpse of what he meant. ¡°So¡­ does this mean that you can¡¯t be a summon because I¡¯m not a being of the middle?¡± ¡°Right.¡± ¡°That is the only reason?¡± ¡°Huh.¡± Nevertheless, there was one thing that didn¡¯t make any sense. ¡°But Lugarix. Do all the God Dragon who intervenes in the dimension have a man from the middle-earth?¡± ¡°Yep.¡± ¡°That means that El, Karceus, and Bbookbbook too have a man from the middle-earth?¡± Lugarix nodded his head and answered, ¡°Huh. It¡¯s not entirely clear since part of my memory is lost, but I do have a person there.¡± ¡°But, having a person in Middle-earth doesn¡¯t mean that you shouldn¡¯t have a human? All these are my summons.¡± ¡°What you say is indeed right.¡± At that response from Lugarix, Ian was dumbfounded. ¡°Then, why not?¡± However, the next words from Lugraix made Ian at a loss of words. ¡°Just, what my heart says.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°For I to be the summon, they should at least be as good as ¡®Eos¡¯.¡± Ian knew Eos too well. The ancient summoner who had given Ian the quest of ¡®Selamus¡¯. One of the Absolute Eight of the desert tribes. ¡®Eos? Was he a being of Middle-earth?¡¯ But now, it wasn¡¯t the time to think about the man of the desert tribe. But the biggest question was whether or not he would be able to succeed in the quest of ¡®Tame Lugarix.¡¯ ¡°Then¡­ will you be my summon if I am a being of Middle-earth?¡± At that question from Ian, Lugarix nodded his head slowly. ¡°Uhm¡­ Ian, you¡¯re qualified enough if you are a summoner. Nice, if you get that position of being in the middle-earth, then I¡¯ll consider that.¡± The first attempt of Ian at taming Lugarix was still there. He wasn¡¯t sure what that ¡®person¡¯ exactly is or does, but because of the stubborn will of Lugarix, this was decided. The simple demand of Lugarix to be the person of Middle-earth would decide everything. Surely this couldn¡¯t be considered as a means to success, but Ian did get a minimum direction. Ian tried to clear his mind of the current conversation and got up. ¡®Level up might give out the clue.¡¯ Ian¡¯s lips formed a wicked smile. CH 461 ¡°Master, I will report.¡± ¡°Go on, Emily.¡± ¡°I just got contacted by Ceilron a moment back. He has successfully captured Lefron stronghold.¡± ¡°Is that so? Is this the end of the first war conquest?¡± ¡°Yes, it is. There are two Baron-level estates behind it, but they will be cleared in the next two days.¡± ¡°That should be done.¡± If the Lotus Kingdom was the ruler in the eastern part of the Colonnare, then its power could be compared to the Titan Kingdom in the west. The guild rankings too had powerful forces which were enough to overwhelm the first and second places. That was how strong the Titan Guild was. In fact, two to three months ago, the Titan Guild was lagging behind compared to the Lotus. However, recently, the Titan Guild suddenly grew stronger, and they overcame Lotus in terms of guild points. How exactly did the lagging Titan Guild catch up with the fast-growing Lotus Guild? The answer, environment. The Location that the Titan Guild was located was much more favorable than that of the Lotus. ¡®Taking a place in the Southwest was a great choice.¡¯ In the Northeastern part of the Colonnare Continent were many kingdoms with great power under the influence of the Chalian. Beginning with the Elrika Kingdom, where the Lotus Kingdom was having a full-on war with the kingdoms of Icaron and Lamaris in the east and west. Each one of them was a powerful kingdom, comparable to Lotus and Titan. On the other hand, in the southwest, which was relatively free from the quests of the Lich King, there were relatively few areas. Thanks to that, the Titan Guild was able to wage a war conquest. That content raised the highest guild points as it was a war conquest. As the estate¡¯s number increased by one, the guild score was bound to increase. Shakran spoke to Emily, ¡°Emily, how far has the Lotus¡¯s war conquest gone to?¡± Emily immediately answered the question of Shakran, Information gathering about the Lotus Kingdom had always been the top priority, so it was natural for her to know about the information like an encyclopedia. ¡°It is about halfway through the arithmetic ratio.¡± ¡°Arithmetic? What does that mean?¡± ¡°Yeah, out of the 88 provinces that make up the Elrika Kingdom, they have restored exactly nineteen.¡± ¡°Just say half then. Why bother using the word arithmetic?¡± ¡°That¡­¡± Emily opened the map and pointed to one side of the map and spoke again, ¡°Here and here. There are a lot of fortifications that are difficult to pass through, such as the Elrika and the Rataphel.¡± ¡°Hm?¡± ¡°Specifically, the Rataphel Domain¡­ it is more than just a marquis.¡± ¡°That is why the progress is less than half because the remaining territories have excellent defenses.¡± ¡°Yes, master. Rather than half, it isn¡¯t just around 3%.¡± ¡°Hmm, that is good news.¡± The stagnant growth of the Lotus Kingdom was more than just good news for the Titan Guild. Other than lotus, there was no other entity that could be compared with the Titan Guild. While the Lotus was suffering in stagnation, they had to urgently expand their forces and soon create enough conditions for the declaration of the ¡®Empire¡¯. ¡®If we can take on the Empire content, the gap between the Lotus and us will widen.¡¯ Shakran, who pulled out a jade item from his inventory, grinned while touching it. The Lotus was the first to pre-empt the Kingdom content, but the first guild to be declared as the Empire was going to be Titan. That was what the context of their conversation meant. * * * The splendid King¡¯s room in the top of the Lotus. And on the throne was a man sitting and nodding. It was none other than Ian. [The ¡®Throne Power¡¯ effect has been triggered.] [Fatigue restored by 0.5.] [Satisfaction restored by 0.2.] (Syncopation) [The ¡®Throne Power¡¯ effect has been triggered.] [Fatigue¡­] System messages that appeared at regular intervals filled the corner of Ian¡¯s vision. Ian often favored the feeling because the Throne Power was like a little privilege given only to the King. ¡®To sleep and then recover from the fatigue feels great.¡¯ In Kailan, fatigue affected the control¡¯s ¡®sensitivity¡¯. It was a similar concept to the reaction speed of the character that follows the movement of the user. ¡®Forodo¡¯ was a content that very slightly affected the gameplay, so most of the users didn¡¯t even feel the existence of it, but for the rankers such as Ian, it was a different situation. The slight difference in the reaction rate played a huge role in a rankers¡¯ life and death, and it affected their hunting speed too. Which was why the rankers always had good food and potions to recover from the fatigue even though they were all expensive to consume. Therefore, the Throne Power which restores all the fatigue and satiety in about 10 minutes could surely be considered as a privilege that not much could claim. But that wasn¡¯t the reason why Ian was currently seated on the throne. ¡°Haham.¡± Ian after yawning confirmed the time. He was currently waiting for someone in that place. ¡°Hmm, it seems like the appointment time is getting close¡­¡± At least in Kailan, Ian was quite punctual. When Ian¡¯s mumbling came to an end, the door opened then someone entered. ¡°Ho ho, thank God I wasn¡¯t late.¡± The one who entered the room was breathing ruggedly. Ian shook his head and looked at the yellow hair of the one who came in thinking if it was dyed or not. ¡°Weren¡¯t late? You¡¯re late!¡± ¡°Uh? Wasn¡¯t the time of our meeting at 2 o¡¯clock?¡± ¡°So, you¡¯re precisely 25 seconds late.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian rose up from his seat. In front of him was the person he had invited to come. ¡°Sit. Don¡¯t be late next time.¡± ¡°Huh? Yeah¡­¡± Lauren, the BJ, exclusive to Lotus, took a seat while cold sweat was dripping all over his body. ¡®How can you call me suddenly and then say that I¡¯m 25 seconds late?¡¯ Lauren was mumbling inside, as he didn¡¯t have the courage to show his resentment to Ian. Of course, even if he said that out loud it wouldn¡¯t really mean much to Ian. Only the money Lauren would get would be reduced. In order to maintain the exclusive BJ position of Lauren and Lotus, this kind of talk wasn¡¯t a huge deal to face. Lauren who had forgotten about it for a second said, ¡°Hyung, what are you going to do today?¡± Since Ian called him personally, there could be hundreds of reasons for it. For example, maybe a 1.5x increase in the channel subscribers good thing kind of act. Ian waited for a moment and then spoke with a very subtle voice, ¡°Let¡¯s make a deal, Oren-ah.¡± ¡°By deal¡­ you mean?¡± Lauren¡¯s eyes went wide. Ian wasn¡¯t the person to use the words like ¡®deal¡¯ unless he had come up with a lot of content. And the fact that Ian had brought up the word ¡®deal¡¯ with a very serious expression meant that he had an enormous content. ¡°Yeah, deal.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± When Ian was done talking, he pulled out two sheets from his inventory. [Opened the item ¡®Kailan¡¯s contract¡¯.] A legally valid contract notarized by LB. Ian turned over the two contracts to Lauren. He then laughed and said, ¡°A. B. choose one of them and then stamp it.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Lauren, who took the contracts and studied it, began to tremble. The contents of the contract were so simple that it was an instant-read. Lauren whose eyes met with Ian asked for clarity, ¡°You didn¡¯t put the 0 and the 1 wrongly, right?¡± ¡°No way. You don¡¯t know how to calculate?¡± ¡°I know.¡± ¡°Exactly 50 million gold. Seven zeros in the back.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Lauren once again confirmed the contracts in hand. A: Down Payment 50,000,000 gold/revenue distribution 0:100. B: Down payment of 0 gold/revenue distribution 30:70 The contents of the two contracts were simple, yet it didn¡¯t seem like it was simple. Lauren¡¯s head began to spin. ¡®If it is 50 million gold, how much is it? The gold¡¯s price is around 10 to 12,000 won.¡¯ If he stamped on the A option, then he would be able to get 60 million won in cash. If he thought about the 15 million that he had made so far on Ian, the contract deal was amazing. On the other hand, in the case of the contract B, it was worse than the previous contract condition. Lauren objected. ¡°Hyung, what is it with contract B?¡± ¡°What, what?¡± ¡°It¡¯s 15% lower than the usual one?¡± ¡°It is.¡± ¡°And the condition for A, isn¡¯t that a bit too much?¡± However, Ian shook his head and responded, ¡°Nope, the content is much better than usual. Surely you can¡¯t even see that.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­!¡± To argue with the words of Ian was no good, and the content of contract A was a bit too much. Ian wasn¡¯t a philanthropist, even if the contents weren¡¯t that good, he would be able to pay the 50 million gold that he needed to pay as a proceeding. Lauren was in a lot of conflicts. ¡®Even though the A doesn¡¯t seem to be that safe¡­ should I gamble on it?¡¯ Lauren did all sorts of calculations in his head while his eyes were closed. Ian closed his eyes and waited for his decision. Lauren then spoke after a moment, ¡°Hyung, can you give me something like a hint?¡± ¡°Hint for what?¡± ¡°Like¡­ temporary titles that would appear on broadcasts¡­¡± However, without opening his eyes, Ian shook his head. ¡°Huh? That¡¯s no fun then.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°The moment you sign the contract is when you¡¯ll be able to open and see its contents.¡± After a while, Lauren stamped on the A contract with his eyes closed. ¡®Hu, well, this is not really a gamble, Lauren. You were deceived by this hyung last time too.¡¯ In fact, Lauren wasn¡¯t the first to receive the two contracts. But he was the first to receive an extreme kind of contract. He did try gambling a few times and failed miserably, which was why this time he had chosen the 50 million gold. ¡®This time, I won¡¯t be falling for this hyung¡¯s schemes! 50 million gold is awesome enough! Right?¡¯ With trembling hands, Lauren handed the contract to Ian. Ian, who accepted it, began to write the title of the content on top of the contract. Swoosh-! Ian was filling in the contract with a pen. But Lauren¡¯s eyes, which were turning dry because he wasn¡¯t blinking, gradually widened. [Till Elrika Castle¡¯s 19 estates have been occupied, 24 hours cut.] CH 462 A leisurely weekend afternoon. Na Ji-chan, who had been working for a long time, decided to relax while watching the broadcast game. ¡°It sure is fun to see Kailan.¡± Na Ji-chan prepared three bags of potato chips to watch Kailan. He connected the projector that he had just purchased to his computer. The reason why he had bought the projector was to watch Kailan on a big screen and as a getaway from the frustrating monitor. Na Ji-chan¡¯s favorite game broadcast wasn¡¯t a regular broadcast from the game channel on the TV. It was much more interesting for Na Ji-chan to watch the broadcast of the internet BJs which were much more diverse with their content, and people could pick which users they want to watch. Slash-! Na Ji-chan slowly started to scan the list of the broadcast while savoring some crispy potato chips. And as always, his first target was the broadcast of Ian. ¡®It¡¯s been a while since I watched the Ian God¡­ what else do I have to do today?¡¯ Na Ji-chan was always aware of Ian, but that wasn¡¯t the case for his previous week. And ironically, the reason was Ian too. ¡®Hu, I was bloody busy making the new contents¡­¡¯ Even Ian¡¯s new job that they had started because of Ian wasn¡¯t finished yet. After a day¡¯s rest, the night sessions were going to start again. Before Ian complete the ¡®Hero¡¯s Responsibility¡¯ quest from Muran, which was to defeat the Lich King and get the ¡®Unique Dual-class¡¯, the content had to be completed, and it turned into a huge headache for the planning team. ¡°Honestly, I would like for Ian to fail the quest¡­¡± Tak-tak-tak-! Na Ji-chan who connected to the internet immediately entered ¡®BJ Lauren¡¯ into the search box. If he searched the name ¡®Ian¡¯, then he would get a huge number of videos. Even if he searched videos specifically for Ian¡¯s play, there were just way too many useless videos that would come up. Search result¡­ Catch up with Ian God (Summoner¡¯s Guide) BJ Kane¡¯s Ian Mad Move. There were also titles that were clearly a click bait. 24-hour party hunt with Ian. ¡°Uh? Ian with a party hunt?¡± ¡®Maybe I should click and see¡­¡¯ Oh guys, isn¡¯t this a hoax? Yeah well, maybe need to ask the customer care right away. Lol, why? Maybe it will be fun. ¡­ party hunt with Ian, but even the familiar names have been mentioned. There was a BJ who named the retainers and familiars of Ian and put the title as ¡®Party hunt with Ian.¡¯ And one could easily find the latest video of Ian by searching for ¡®Lauren BJ¡¯ as it was exclusively done by Lauren. ¡°This Lauren guy is always in a hurry¡­¡± Na Ji-chan smiled as he immediately connected to the personal broadcast of Lauren¡¯s personnel channel. Since it was less than 20 minutes since the start of the broadcast, it was clear that the viewer could enjoy a minimum of 12 hours of broadcast. The chance of Ian completing Kailan within 12 hours of connecting could be compared with Na Ji-chan¡¯s chance to commute tomorrow. ¡°Nice timing¡­!¡± Na Ji-chan leaned on to the couch with a very pleased expression and began to watch the videos. It had been a long time since he had actually felt excitement while watching the advertisement even before the game started. However, that too was for a while¡­ ¡°¡­!¡± Suddenly, Na Ji-chan, who looked at the broadcast of Lauren confirmed something. ¡°What? He already went to Elrika?¡± Normally, before entering the video, it was natural for a person to confirm the title of the broadcast. However, Na Ji-chan didn¡¯t open the video after watching the title but came in after seeing Lauren BJ¡¯s name right next to it. ¡°This is an edited one. 19 provinces cut in 24 hours.¡± Generally, no matter how flimsy it was, it was common sense to take half a day to attack. However, the current situation made no sense when one thought about the power of Lotus. ¡°Huh¡­¡± Na Ji-chan who shut his eyes after a moment of disbelief opened them after a moment of gaining calmness. ¡®What is this? What else happened with Ian God when I wasn¡¯t monitoring him?¡¯ Na Ji-chan¡¯s pupils were trembling with anxiety. ¡®To complete that dual-class, no matter how tight that schedule is made to, I need a full¡­ Is he going to capture the Elrika Castle already?¡¯ On top of that, the plan wasn¡¯t unrealistic at all. To take over 19 provinces within 24 hours meant that the Lotus needed to destroy a province each hour. And the planner Na Ji-chan saw that plan as something that couldn¡¯t be done without the involvement of a buggy play. If the broadcasting title wasn¡¯t made by Lauren, then Na Ji-chan wouldn¡¯t have snorted at the content. He would¡¯ve assumed it to be a normal gaming broadcast with a little aggro to attract viewers. But as it was one of Lauren BJ¡¯s videos, there was no way he would have doubted it. ¡°Ho.¡± After taking a short deep breath, Na Ji-chan clicked the skip button that was at the bottom of the ad. Na Ji-chan who was looking at the floating game screen buried his body deeper into the couch. There was no way he was going to take his buff off from the sofa. * * * As explained many times, the Elrika Kingdom was a powerful estate that didn¡¯t lag behind compared to any Kingdom in terms of power. Because of that, the users watching the broadcast could hardly manage to believe the ¡®miracle¡¯ that they were witnessing. ¨C Guy, guys. How many minutes have you been in the broadcast till now? ¨C Exactly 42 minutes have passed. ¨C No no, it has been 43 minutes. I¡¯m sure about it. ¨C Not that, it is not the important thing¡­ this is the end of a siege, right? ¨C Uh uh, I feel so too. ¨C If the defense is destroyed over there¡­ but it hasn¡¯t even been 50 minutes yet. ¨C Right, I¡¯m doubting my eyes right now. ¨C What was the time of the Titan Guild¡¯s best siege? I remember that it was less than two hours¡­ ¨C Right! Was it around 1 hour and 55 minutes? ¨C It was really crazy at that time, but the Lotus is seriously mad. Does this really take around 24 hours? ¨C Yep. In addition, the territory occupied by the Titan Guild at that time was some strange Baron, but even the territory that the Lotus is occupying has its own level. ¨C OMG, yeah. Some Maika domain was there. ¨C Yeah, I thought that it was Baron¡­ Around 80 percent of the broadcasts of LaurenBJ was related to ¡®Lotus¡¯ Guild or ¡®Ian¡¯. As soon as Lauren¡¯s broadcast was open, many viewers who set up the notifications for it would enter almost immediately. The average number of viewers that gathered in 30 minutes since the video¡¯s opening was roughly around 50,000. However, currently, 30 minutes after the start of the video, around three to four times the viewers had gathered. Only the few popular BJs achieved 150,000 viewers in just 30 minutes, and it was a difficult task to achieve even during the peak times of broadcast. This was an incredible thing for Lauren. ¡®Wow, awesome. I expected some increase due to the aggro title¡­ but this is way too much, right?¡¯ Even then Lauren kept sweating, it was because the number of viewers who were coming in was crazy high. He didn¡¯t even have to raise the ranking of the broadcast by recommending it to the viewers. When the information about the broadcast began to spread through various communities, the traffic burst the site. Various rankings directed to the main personal broadcast homepage had already won the 1st place for a long time. In the mind of Lauren, feelings of anxiety began to rise. ¡®This¡­ if it continued to be like this¡­ wouldn¡¯t I be generating billions of sales?¡¯ Lauren¡¯s down payment with Ian totaled about 60 million won in cash. On the other hand, the settlement ration, which had been presented as profit sharing, had a total of 30% of total profit. In other words, Laurens choice was proven to be the right choice only if the sales of the broadcast didn¡¯t exceed 200 million. Lauren seemed to be hungry for 10,000 won per minute when the content for sale exceeded 200 million. ¡®Well, this doesn¡¯t mean that I won¡¯t have to work hard¡­¡¯ Lauren immersed himself in the broadcast and was trying to get his spirit back. And while commenting, he was forced to admire the size of the Lotus Guild. ¡°Oh, what could this be? How did the Lotus even manage to get the coordinates to the Hidden Gate?¡± ¡°Fiolan! Fiolan¡¯s Frozen Meteor falls! How is such a play possible? Did you guys predict that there was going to be support units behind the walls? The meteor falls three times in a row exactly in that one location!¡± ¡°The moment that I spoke¡­ all the defense has been destroyed! It took exactly 49 minutes to go past the defense of the enemy! It was like a clear way and not a barrier!¡± Lauren was immersed with his casting while his saliva splashed around. His broadcasts had always been enthusiastic, but today he was much more excited than he was with his previous broadcasts. The top-ranked Lotus users¡¯ brilliant control and the powerful skills were all amazing, but their siege abilities were much more brilliant. The troops of Lotus, as if they were done waiting, hung to the retreat of the support troops and then sneaked inside to find the hidden way. It seemed like they knew the defense inside all too well. ¨C And it was natural for the viewers¡¯ chat to explode. ¨C Is this really true? ¨C It looks like placing a flag on the stronghold which has no owners, right? ¨C Wouldn¡¯t LB have any kind of patch? ¨C What kind of patch? ¨C Lowering the difficulty of a siege¡­ ¨C No no, that is not it. I just came in from the Lapis Guild siege; that place is packed with blood right now. ¨C Kue, was it because of Ian God¡­? ¨C Is Ian on a spree? Ian and the Lotus Guild had taken over a territory before an hour could pass since the initiation of the broadcast. Lauren whose throat was burning from all the talking he did took a sip of cold water that he had brought beforehand. He was going to have a rest for 5 minutes until the next siege began, so he thought that he would turn off the broadcast for a while. If he went on talking all through the broadcast, then he wouldn¡¯t have a voice for the next day. ¡°Phew, a siege right after?¡± Even though it was Lauren, he thought that the title ¡®Till the Castle¡¯ was a bit too much. But now, those watching it wouldn¡¯t think of the title being too unrealistic. ¡°Kay, where is the next domain? Is it Lapalem?¡± Lauren scanned through the map of Elrika and tried to predict the next route that the Lotus Kingdom would take. Right then, the smartphone of Lauren began to vibrate. Vibrate- vibrate-! Lauren¡¯s eyes naturally turned over to the place where his phone was at. ¡®What? It wouldn¡¯t really be nice to take a call now, right?¡¯ His phone checked the unknown number that wasn¡¯t stored in his contacts. If he was live, then Lauren would have hanged up, but since it was his break, he decided to answer it. ¡°Hello?¡± Without much thought, Lauren took the phone to his ear. And over the phone came in the sweet voice of a woman. Ah, Hello? And habitually, Lauren almost hung up the call. The only woman who would call Lauren¡¯s number was none other than his partner, So Jin. In addition, if the call was a woman, then the call was 99% going to be about loans, counseling or insurance company calls. However, as soon as the next words of hers came out, Laurens thumb which was moving towards the cut button of the call stopped. I¡¯m the reporter of the gaming broadcast of YTBC, I¡¯m Eunyeong. Is this the number of Mr. BJ Lauren? CH 463 YTBC was one of the leading game broadcasters of the game broadcast channels. It was no exaggeration to say that the channel that was first played for viewing the game broadcast was none other than the YTBC. Lim Eunyong, the reporter who called Lauren¡ªwas one of the most famous figures of the YTBC. Something like a celebrity in the game broadcasting. ¡®Did you just say, Lim Eunyong of broadcasting? Is Lucia on the line with me now?¡¯ Lim Eunyong was a famous reporter with her ID name of ¡®Lucia¡¯ than the real one. A reporter who has been leading the broadcast since the early days of YTBC Kailan, and had an outstanding appearance. Lauren was also a big fan of hers. ¡°Keu, Keum.¡± Lauren quickly adjusted his voice and took the smartphone close to his mouth again. ¡°Ah, hello. I am Lauren. But if you are Lim Eunyong¡­ then you must be Lucia of YTBC right?¡± Everytime he spoke, the heart of Lauren was pounding crazily. It was almost as if his heart was going to come out of his mouth. ¨C Ah, yes. Right. I am the reporter, Lucia. Normally, many know my ID name and not my real name¡­ ho ho, thank you for knowing that. Pound- Was it his heart hitting hard against his ribs? Lauren felt like that for a moment and his head was spinning, and then the voice of Lucia came out. ¨C Umm, Lauren? Can you hear me? When he heard her voice, Lauren snapped back to reality. ¡°Oh yeah, I can hear you really well.¡± ¨C I thought that the line broke since you didn¡¯t say anything. ¡°Ha, Haha. I was doing something for a while now¡­ but why did the YTBC contact me?¡± ¨C Ah, that. The conversation between Lucia and Lauren was a little insane and quite long. But somehow, as the conversation continued, the face of Lauren hardened. * * * ¡°Ah, so¡­ did you just get the permission for Ian hyung just now?¡± ¨C Yes, that is current. The negotiation was already over. If Mr. Lauren sends the OK sign, we will proceed immediately. Was it the expression of a school student who had dropped a candy on the floor? Suddenly, Lauren¡¯s eyes lost focus, and his whole body to slouch. The first ecstatic expression disappeared at the end of the call. Well, then please look into it, Lauren. ¡°Ah, yeah. Then¡­ it will go into the YTBC channel right away?¡± ¨C Doing it right away is going to be difficult, maybe an hour later or so. ¡°That, that is so.¡± On the other hand, Lucia who had a clear voice was much different from Lauren. ¨C We¡¯re good ones, Lauren. Let¡¯s make the best ratings. ¡°Effort¡­ I¡¯ll try too.¡± ¨C The advertisements are very upset now. If we just get the personal broadcast of Laurens¡¯, the best video will be presented immediately. ¡°Ah, that so?¡± ¨C I¡¯m not that sure but, we¡¯ll probably get around billions of revenue for advertising. ¡°Bi, billion?¡± ¨C No, no, not just a billion it is billions. I am not aware of the settlement ratio that you have with Ian, but even if you have signed with the lowest rate, think of how many billions will be returned, Lauren? ¡°¡­¡± ¨C Ah, I envy you, Lauren. All I¡¯m going to get is a bonus from doing this, but Lauren, you¡¯re going to earn as much as my per-annum salary in one shot. ¡°Uh¡­ that¡­ uhm¡­¡± Lauren was almost going to cry. ¡®Is there no way that I can turn back the time to the morning?¡¯ In fact, the settlement ration with Ian was 3:7, which wasn¡¯t a bad choice. When famous rankers signed with BJs, it was a ratio that was often used. But for Lauren who was a prominent BJ, the 45 percent revenue was usual, which was why the 30 percent felt like a tinge. On the other hand, the cash of 5,000 gold which was right in front of him felt too big. The amount of 50 million gold was determined to be too overwhelming and went with the settlement rate of 30 percent. And that moment¡¯s misjudgment resulted in this catastrophe. ¨C Then, I¡¯ll get ready for the show. Please move ahead, Lauren. ¡°AH, yeah, I understand. Good work, Miss Lucia!¡± Lucia returned the greeting with her clear voice and then hung up the call. Du-du-. As soon as the phone call got disconnected, Lauren cried out reflexively while holding onto his forehead. ¡°Billion! Billion! Billioooon¡­!¡± * * * Breaking it. The forces of the Lotus Kingdom were really running everything. The first siege which took less than an hour had occupied the whole territory, and that was just the beginning. Once the momentum began to pick up, the speed of the kingdom began to advance too. At the center was Ian, the king of Lotus who was flying through the battlefield with Pin. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah, Guardian of Abyss!¡± ¡°Kay, Bbook!¡± ¡°Bbookbbook will hold on while giving up a heal, Herz, let me penetrate that side!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± ¡°Fiolan you have received the coordinates beforehand right?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°There is a management office in the sector C. So take the squad and intercept it.¡± ¡°Leave it to me, your majesty.¡± Ian¡¯s role in the battlefield was the same as always, it was to command and control the whole. In addition, since the play was going ahead as planned, Ian jumped directly into the battlefield and played with a common pattern. However, Ian was showing a slightly different aspect of the all-out war with the Elrika Kingdom. No matter how much of a favor he had from the God of war, he was just riding his Pin while floating in the air, only giving out the orders. Even the Judgment of the Spirit King that was always in the hand of Ian¡¯s didn¡¯t saw it anywhere but in the inventory. He was just controlling his summoned familiars. ¡°2 minutes later, the west side gate will be opened. Corban gets in and captures the front gate. Carwin will cover you from behind.¡± ¡°The gates will open?¡± ¡°Uh, yes.¡± ¡°Ah-ha, but how do you know that? Do you have some kind of foresight?¡± ¡°I see that the combat troops are moving in, soon it¡¯s time for the support troops to move.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°First just follow my words, Hyung. I will explain it all later!¡± Normally, the guild members of Lotus didn¡¯t have the guts to question the order of Ian. There was a deep reliance on Ian, but that wasn¡¯t the only reason for it. His orders were always clear and reasonable, so there was no need to question it. However, today was different. Ian¡¯s orders were clean and perfect like always, however, there were too many orders that couldn¡¯t be comprehended. It was for a simple reason that the guild members weren¡¯t able to understand the commands of Ian. ¡®How can you understand? They are orders that can be given only when the internal information has been given out in advance.¡¯ Ian hadn¡¯t informed the guild about his association with the quest ¡®Puppet Remus¡¯. Which meant that the guild members weren¡¯t aware that Ian was receiving the information about the inside of the Elrika Kingdom from Remus. So Ian¡¯s orders, which seemed like a prediction about the hidden breakpoints and stuff couldn¡¯t be understood from the general point of view. ¡°Hoonie, do not go in from that direction.¡± ¡°Why? The castle is crumbling over in that direction. I think that we should put the Undead in first and then follow along.¡± ¡°It is a trap. There are a lot of traps installed there, probably.¡± ¡°Uh?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t pound on it and just come over here!¡± ¡°Ah, okay, hyung.¡± So, why exactly did Ian hide the fact that he had information? It was for a simple reason. The siege was currently being broadcasted in real-time. If there was a hostile or competing guild, then it was definite that they would come over with their guild and hinder the accomplishment of Lotus. ¡®Shakran may have infiltrated Elrika and put a knife on Remus¡¯s neck.¡¯ That was why Ian began to wrap up the orders and made it seem like the information he just knew. Of course, it wasn¡¯t so hard to understand from the guild¡¯s point of view. And as time went by, and the territory was being captured at a fast-paced rate, none of the guild members seemed to discuss about the certainty of the orders from Ian. Ian¡¯s orders still couldn¡¯t be understood, however, they decided to give up. And, as long as the orders were getting them to a higher level, there was no reason to question it either. The guild members of the victorious guild just admired him. ¡°Keu! This is just plain amazing, how did he know about the ambush out there?¡± ¡°Wow, surely Ian is so!! Awesome!¡± ¡°This is really creepy!¡± And the developments were paved in the direction that Ian didn¡¯t even think of due to the broadcast. * * * ¨C This is not just one or two orders, but everything seems to be planned ahead. ¨C Really turning dizzy here. How can it be thought in those situations? ¨C Wow, I was always anxious to push out the cavalry in the anticipation of the timing of the reinforcements. ¨C Me too. That was just awesome. ¨C It was really a very dangerous gamble, and I didn¡¯t even think that it would work. ¨C Keu, this is why those Ian suckers felt so bad today. This is the real deal. This isn¡¯t something that a normal person can do. ¨C I totally agree with it. I wasn¡¯t normally a fan of Ian, but I feel like I should turn into one right from now. ¨C Uh? Were there still users in Kailan who weren¡¯t fans of Ian? ¨C Since there were too many fans for Ian, I tried to divert my attention towards the other rankers. Shakran and Remir, but I couldn¡¯t. ¨C Why? ¨C I watched this today¡­ there can really be no substitute, really mean it. Ian¡¯s orders which were all falling into the right places at the perfect timings was actually a piece of content and performance that would normally make any viewer get goosebumps. While narrating the orders and commands that Ian was making, Lauren was able to easily pick up the pace of the broadcast. The understanding that Lauren had on the game made it easy for him to comment throughout the game. However, today was an exceptional case where Lauren wasn¡¯t able to comment. The only thing that Lauren was able to do was to admire and be awed. ¡°Uh, why are the Wyvern knights suddenly descending?¡± ¡°The Latoto Domain is a Count, so the support battalion will likely pop out in a little while. From the Barons to the Counts troops are going to come out from the tunnels to resist¡­? Uh? Where are they?¡± ¨C However, that didn¡¯t mean that the broadcasting wasn¡¯t so fun. ¨C Lol Lauren, he¡¯s really losing it today. ¨C Yeah well. Lol, there¡¯s no need to comment if you don¡¯t want to, but why bother asking us? ¨C Lauren seems to be in a haze. Just 2 minutes back, the mages swept of the support, haven¡¯t you seen that yet? Watching that Lauren was feeling embarrassed with sweat falling off him, and soon was engulfed in the new content. In any case, the Lotus Kingdom army unstoppably captured the Elrika domain, and simultaneously, the number of viewers began to grow. Even the players who were playing Kailan did a collateral log out to see the play of Ian. After 15 hours passed, the broadcast began at 10:00 am and it came around at 1 am¡­ Thud-! ¡°All-charge assault!¡± ¡°Take down the Elrika Kingdom that is in darkness!¡± ¡°The only thing left to do! Power assault!¡± And finally, there was just one left of the 19 domains in the Elrika Kingdom. The stronghold, the castle. CH 464 [20 seconds later, the castle gates of Elrika Royal will open.] [After 1 minute and 15 seconds East: 254, S: 1,728, the underground fortress will open.] [After 45 seconds, a lightning trap will be triggered all over the wall.] With unusual purple light, the system messages started to emerge. It was all due to the ¡®special item¡¯ and nothing else. ¡®Keu, this really will take down the castle in once.¡¯ After the quest of the Puppet Remus, there was a conversation he had with Remus that seemed somewhat difficult to understand. Ian tried to recollect those moments. ¨C Ian, take these items with you. ¨C Hmm? Do these have any information about the structure of defense? ¨C If you only have these records in your possession, you will win. ¨C Huh? What did you say? [You have earned the item ¡®ArchMage Records¡¯.] ¨C Uh? But what is this? ¨C We don¡¯t have the luxury of time. Come back later, but you need to get out now! ¨C ¡­? ¨C The guards are coming! Hurry! [A sudden quest has been triggered.] [The quest ¡®Elrika Castle Career¡¯ has been created.] ¨C ¨C ¨C ¡®Elrika Castle Career (Hidden) (Connected)¡¯- You have successfully invaded Elrika and defeated the Puppet Remus. Remus has handed to you the Archmage¡¯s records, which were the records that contain all the operation of the Elrika Castle. And with the help of Remus, you will have to kill the minions of Chalian and take back the Dark Castle of Elrika. Occupy the Elrika castle and prepare a base against the forces of Chalian. Declaring the All-out war against the Elrika Kingdom will release the seal on the Archmage¡¯s Records. Quest Difficulty: SSS Quest Condition: A user who has cleared the quest related to ¡®Puppet King of Elrika Kingdom¡¯ A user with a title higher than ¡®Duke¡¯. User with great affinity with ¡®Remus¡¯. ¡®Archmage Records¡¯ in possession. Time Limit: None The ¡®Archmage Records¡¯ is an item that will expire after 36 hours after being unsealed. Reward: Named NPC ¡®Remus¡¯ as a retainer. Acquiring the title of ¡®The first Conqueror¡¯. Obtaining the item ¡®The Crown of Conquerors¡¯ (Legendary). ¨C ¨C ¨C When Ian first got the item ¡®Archmage Records¡¯ he wasn¡¯t able to figure out what item would do. It was because, in the information window of the item, three question marks were present. However, after the all-out war was declared, the whole story changed. [The war with the Elrika Kingdom begins.] [The item ¡®Archmage Records¡¯ can be utilized.] With those two lines, information about the defenses of the Elrika Kingdom began to pour out in real-time. Very detailed and clear, a spellbook which told Ian everything about the movement of the defense troops. As soon as Ian confirmed the performance of Records, he contacted the broadcast station and Lauren immediately. With the possession of the fraudulent item, he would swallow the whole scenario in an instant. ¡®Should I have said the cut was 15 hours instead of 24 hours-cut? It looks like there is hope to finish it within 15 hours.¡¯ And it didn¡¯t mean that while having the information in possession meant that everyone could complete the task like Ian did. The crazed performance was only possible if the user kept on catching onto the information that was being relayed in real-time with the battle going on. And as soon as the siege began, the ¡®Archmage Records¡¯ began to work. [The Lotus Kingdom army has occupied the A sector of Elrika Kingdom!] [A sector capture rate: 100 percent] [B sector capture rate: 58 percent] [C sector capture rate: 77 percent] (Syncopation) [External Occupation rate: 32.75 percent] [With the occupation of all the sectors of the castle, you will be immune!] A red system message appeared in the sight of all the users who were in the mapping area of the ¡®Elrika Castle¡¯ during the siege. It certainly caught the eyes of the viewers watching the broadcast, and the chat once again began to move again. ¨C What is it? It has been less than 5 minutes since it had started? ¨C Lol, I thought that it would be different since it was a castle, but this is¡­ ¨C Where did he go, that guy who said that it¡¯ll take 3 hours for the capture of the castle? This will be done in 30 minutes and not 3 hours, right? ¨C Ah, sir. Isn¡¯t the 30 minutes a bit too much? LOL, it will take around 1 hour and 30 minutes. ¨C Wow, this really brings out the appetite of those watching it. First time seeing the siege with such a speed. ¨C By the way, I¡¯ve never seen the capture rate of a sector, if someone could explain it to me. ¨C Ah, that? That is a content that doesn¡¯t open until the tier 3 defense is overtaken. I looked at it the first time when the Titan Guild was taking over some Dukedom. ¨C Ah, that so. What does it mean when those messages come? ¨C Each time a sector gets captured, the buff tower gets buffed. That buffing had some name¡­ ¨C That was something like a ¡®Crisis Management II¡¯. Was it a defense tower buff of 15 percent per sector? ¨C Oh, then it is probably getting harder by every minute. ¨C In theory, yes. However, that doesn¡¯t look like it if you see the screen. It was almost the end, and Ian was still as calm as ever. In order to not miss even a single message that would be delivered from the records, he tried his best to concentrate and not neglect to minimize the loss of guild troops. ¡®This isn¡¯t the end of the capture of the Elrika.¡¯ The subjugation of the Elrika Kingdom wasn¡¯t a difficult task in accordance with the time. However, the remaining task ¡®Lich King Chalian¡¯s ¡® was a huge difficulty oriented task that even Ian couldn¡¯t guarantee. The nasty quest difficulty of Penta S grade was one, but above all, Ian had already met Chalian. And he knew the strength of his enemy better than anyone. ¡®Now that I think, it was Hoonie and I who released the sealed Chalian into the world.¡¯ Considering that the quest that they played at the time was ¡®Escape and survive from Chalian¡¯, it was undeniable from it that Chalian was a monster. And in order to deal with him, it was very important to save as much power as possible. It didn¡¯t matter if they had the time to make up for the lost power, but for Ian, there was no choice but to go on full time. ¡®Kay, Remus. Now come out with the white flag. I am a very busy person.¡¯ One to two Lotus flags began to be placed on the huge wall that surrounded the Elrika castle. And when the capture rate of the external parts reached 100 percent¡­ Tring-! [Capture rate of all sectors of the Elrika castle, external parts have reached 100 percent.] [You can now attack.] [The Elrika castle, sector resistance has been renewed.] The wall enveloping the outer side disappeared and the high-rising castle revealed the greatness. If it was a normal situation, the second phase of the siege would have started. However, Ian didn¡¯t give out any more commands. Ian climbed on top of Pin and then looked around silently. Wheeing. The battlefield which was very noisy with the sounds of weapons and explosions had turned quiet and was quiet enough to hear the wind. And the users who were watching the siege unfold while holding onto their breath began to chat. ¨C Why isn¡¯t he ordering? ¨C He should have pushed in the defense line when he had the chance, why did he decide to stop all of a sudden? ¨C Surely Ian God has thought of something. Everyone is in a hurry. ¨C No, this is so frustrating. I thought that he was going to get in right away, but then he stopped suddenly¡­ ¨C However, that was all just for a while. Tring-! [A white flag has been raised on top of the Elrika Castle.] [The King of Elrika Kingdom ¡®Remus¡¯ has pronounced the surrender.] New system messages began to ring across the battlefield. [The royal power of the Elrika Kingdom has been taken over.] [All the estates in the Elrika Kingdom has been occupied.] [The Lotus Kingdom has won the war in the front war of the Lotus Kingdom and the Elrika Kingdom.] [All the estates of the Elrika Kingdom now belong to the Lotus Kingdom.] (Syncopation) [The Lotus Guild has succeeded in subjugating a ¡®Kingdom¡¯ for the first time.] [All the users of the Lotus Guild are given the title ¡®Incarnation of War (Legendary)¡¯.] Some more messages came into the view of Ian. [NPC ¡®Remus¡¯ can be asked for a retainer.] [You have earned the item ¡®Crown of Conquerors¡¯.] [You have earned the title ¡®The First Conqueror (Myth)¡¯.] * * * As soon as the 15-hour war-conquest was done, it was Ian¡¯s choice to take a sweet rest. No, to be precise, rather than rest¡ªit was sleep. The physical strength was still the same, but it was necessary to replenish the sleep in advance, as he had to go one with the remaining hardcore schedule. And thus, Ian who returned to Kailan after sweet 10 hours, immediately locked himself in the castle office. It was to develop a strategy to target the Lich King Chalian. But as soon as he opened the quest window, he couldn¡¯t help but sigh. ¡®Hero¡¯s Responsibility¡­¡¯ The quest was the reason for the immediate reaction of Ian and the overtime working of the planning team of the LB. Ian read the quest ¡®Hero¡¯s responsibility¡¯ which he had received from Muran as a favor and shook his head. ¡°I didn¡¯t have to overdo it and just change the damn career.¡± Mumbling just what Na Ji-chan did when he saw the video, Ian collapsed into the seat and laughed, he pulled out the map of the Colannare from his inventory. ¡°Where is it¡­ what route should I take to hit Chalian in the shortest time?¡± The ¡®Hero¡¯s Responsibility¡¯ quest which had a great penalty of ¡®losing one tier of the Taming Master class¡¯ if the quest fails and the time limit of it was rather less. The quest could be completed only by defeating the ¡®Lich King Chalian¡¯, a monster whose strength couldn¡¯t even be measured. Then why did Ian occupied the Elrika Kingdom in such a drastic situation? Was it due to the quest that was already in progress? Surely that wasn¡¯t going to be the one dimensional and simple reason. The all-out war against Elrika that was started by Ian who had a very clear reason. ¡®I had to go through all that to hit the castle of Darkness.¡¯ Icaroon, Lamaris, and Elrika. Only after passing through one of those three kingdoms was it possible to reach the Ulphir mountains, and the most pervasive of them was the Elrika. Since the connected quest all fell into place, the situation went well. Surely, if he moved with a small party he didn¡¯t have to go through the kingdom, and there was a way to go to the Ulphir mountains. And if it wasn¡¯t for that, their users wouldn¡¯t have been able to hunt in the Ulphir mountains and Heinz plateau. But the castle of Darkness that Lich King was present, wasn¡¯t a place that could be gone with small power sources. Because of that, Ian planned to mobilize the entire force of the Lotus Kingdom and go for the war. ¡°It is still not enough¡­¡± The time left to reach the Lich King was really very short. And Ian judged that it was an impossible task for the Lotus to attack the Lich King all alone. And it was a natural conclusion for any sane person to draw. The boss monster named¡ªLich King was the one who had appeared as the boss of the entire time in the episode. That meant that he was a boss that was made for lasting at least half a year. And at the current situation, it was clear that the boss wasn¡¯t designed to be cleared by a single force. Ian who was in distress could do nothing but shake his head. ¡°Which means, I¡¯ll have to twist that ¡®old man¡¯¡­¡± Ian has come up with the name of someone who would take part. If it was the ¡®old man¡¯, there was no way he was going to help Ian. ¡°I need a way, a way¡­¡± Ian was mumbling to himself and was walking around the room. Right when. Thud. The door of the room opened and someone came into the office of Ian. ¡°You called, your majesty.¡± A man with a thick voice and a huge belly that matched the voice also had two strong looking legs. Ian who met the eyes with this man welcomed him with a satisfied look. ¡°Han, it has been so long!¡± CH 465 Almost all the guilds in the human dimension had an ¡®Alliance¡¯ or an ¡®Inviolability Treaty¡¯. There were many complex reasons for it, but two of them were the biggest reason for it. The first was due to the episode that created a powerful creature called the ¡®Lich King Chalian¡¯. If the undead invaded the users in between the wars, then it was sure that just one side wasn¡¯t going to lose. In addition, even if the users didn¡¯t battle against the others, the undead was bound to make their way to them, because of that there was no reason why the users would insist on a war between them. And the second reason was related to the current state of Colonnaire. Since the nation had been divided into more than a hundred large and small NPC kingdoms, there were very few users who were in the process of expanding their territories. The number of kingdoms that were set up by the users was still less than 10, while the number of kingdoms that were set up by NPCs were ten times that, and the user-built kingdoms were rarely facing their borders. And for that reason, the current users of the human world could be considered as a tentative alliance. ¡®However, it still is a competition.¡¯ According to Ian¡¯s thoughts, at least the top five guilds had to join hands in order to defeat Chalian. And among them, having the Titan Guild was a must. However, the inviolable relationship of Titan with Lotus couldn¡¯t be of any help. It wasn¡¯t a hostile situation, but it was still in a competitor stage. ¡®If we don¡¯t have enough damage dealers, then it will turn bad.¡¯ If only the Titan Guild would help them out, then they would have a chance to defeat Chalian. Like the Fullios guild, there were a few guilds that would move immediately if Ian commanded them to do so, and there were guilds with friendly ties. In addition, if the two largest guilds of the human world were going to strike Chalian, then it was an obvious fact that many small guilds would catch up to them. One would think that with the Lotus and Titan being together, the chances of clearing the episodes was high and that they would have to take a scoop of the rewards. ¡°If we are able to catch the right flow of wind¡­ we can do it well.¡± Ian¡¯s head started to work at a very high speed. If he could quickly bring Shakran to a turmoil, only then would the Titan be willing to take or offer a deal. Of course, that didn¡¯t mean that they would lose, but it wouldn¡¯t be that hard to win. Shakran was not stupid, and there was an excellent bookkeeper who assisted him. ¡°Huh¡­ I feel like it is time now.¡± Ian got up and started to move somewhere. * * * In any case, negotiating meant that all the hands needed to be together on the deck. Even if the hand was an adversary, somehow it was needed to be hidden. And the card that Ian should never show the Titan Guild was the penalty that was associated with the quest ¡®Hero¡¯s Responsibility¡¯. If Shakran knew that Ian had to kill the Lich King at any point, then he would try to tear down Ian. In addition, it was obvious that he had to put up a face in front of the Titan Guild until he defeated Chalian. ¡®I can never let that happen.¡¯ So how was he supposed to deal with the Titan Guild and have an equal relationship and if possible a higher hand in the deal? Ian decided that he should use the ¡®advanced information¡¯ appropriately. ¡°Hmm, I would have seen you for some normal reason¡­ but I definitely got a huge one.¡± Shakran¡¯s eyes were waiting for the ¡®advanced information¡¯ that Ian had brought for him. Ian¡¯s high-level information was about the ¡®Underworld¡¯. And that valuable information wasn¡¯t fully opened up by Ian. It was a slight ¡®twist¡¯ to attract the interest of Shakran. ¡°I¡¯m sure uncle felt it. I¡¯ve shared a huge information with my big heart.¡± The word ¡®uncle¡¯ was a bit annoying, yet now wasn¡¯t the time to think about those stuff. Shakran spoke, ¡°Huh, I admit that it is an advanced information. Since you¡¯re not a kid who goes around talking nonsense¡­¡± ¡°Right.¡± ¡°However, it is hard to believe such facts based on face value. In fact, some of the parts don¡¯t even make sense.¡± ¡°Which¡­?¡± ¡°The fact that the guy who shares a rivalry with me is now sharing advanced information with me, wouldn¡¯t that feel suspicious for anyone? Besides, you¡¯re sharing content with me? That¡¯s very suspicious.¡± Ian¡¯s information to Shakran was very concise. Along with the fact that there was an underworld, he stated that the Lich King was holding the key to a dimensional system called the ¡®Middle-Earth¡¯. In addition, that Ian himself had the remaining pieces of the key that was needed to go there, and that if Shakran helped defeat Chalian, he would help Shakran enter the world too. That was the seed that Ian had sown. ¡®I haven¡¯t told a lie. I just placed a smokescreen to hide my weakness.¡¯ It was the process to drag the attention of Shakran to some other matter little by little. Although the information about the new dimension was a bit deplorable, it was the information that Shakran would soon find out. The contents of Kailan would eventually flow. And even if the Titan Guild was taken to the Middle-Earth dimension, the advantage would be for the Lotus. Unlike Shakran, who just realized about the place called the ¡®Underworld¡¯, Ian would go there with a certain purpose. In addition, the benefits that the Titan Guild would receive would be their own, but the additional benefits were to be taken by the Lotus. Ian continued, ¡°Yeah, it would make no sense to help your guild without any cause.¡± And when Ian admitted that, Shakran seemed to be really interested. ¡°So, you have something you want from us?¡± ¡°Yes, obviously.¡± ¡°That is funny. Say it, then.¡± ¡°First, I want Lotus to take all the items dropped by Chalian.¡± ¡°Hmm, first huh¡­ you have a second too?¡± ¡°That is right.¡± ¡°Say that too.¡± ¡°The second one¡­.¡± Ian, who lost his breath, took a deep breath and opened his mouth once again. ¡°I will be taking 50% of the revenue from this Boss Raid to the Lotus.¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°The remaining 50% should be shared among the remaining guilds, including the Titan.¡± ¡°That is what you want?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Shakran frowned at what Ian said. He was calculating it all in his head. After a while, he opened his eyes and stared at Ian. ¡°Doesn¡¯t this seem a bit too much?¡± ¡°Uncle, you think so?¡± ¡°I think that there will many item drops since it¡¯s an episode boss. I think we will all profit one way or another. I also feel that it¡¯s only right for us to take half the revenue of the broadcast¡­ ¡± Ian immediately shook his head and rebelled. ¡°That¡¯s not true.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°I think that you know well enough. How much the new content is worth, uncle?¡± Shakran who was holding back till then snarled. ¡°Yeh, uncle? Don¡¯t call me uncle. I¡¯m a hyung, hyung.¡± ¡°Hyung¡­. You say¡­ well, okay. I will call you hyung.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Though Ian was unwilling to call Shakran who looked like an uncle a hyung, Ian decided to make a concession for the negotiation to go ahead. ¡°Anyway, I feel that sharing new content would be worthwhile enough.¡± ¡°Hmm, you have a very warm heart, but you¡¯re very wrong.¡± ¡°Uncle you are, hyung. Aren¡¯t you going for the deal?¡± ¡°However, it isn¡¯t my own decision. I need to hear what my guild members have to say.¡± At the response from Shakran, Ian started to experience inner conflict. ¡®It will be hard if we waste too much time¡­¡¯ Was he supposed to take a step back and go ahead with the decision of Shakran or was he supposed to go ahead with that strong attitude of his¡­? After a brief conflict, Ian chose the latter. ¡°Well, fine. However, I can¡¯t wait long, so you need to give me an answer today.¡± With that, Ian got up with a cool nod. From Ian¡¯s point of view, even if a little more was given, the Titan Guild would surely be successful. The most important thing for Ian at the moment was whether he could get rid of the Lich King before the time limit. The reason why Ian didn¡¯t give Shakran what he wanted so easily was because he didn¡¯t want Shakran to be suspicious of him. If good conditions were given, and the deal was tried to be closed quickly, Shakran would surely notice that Ian was in a hurry. When Ian stood up, Shakran nodded and stood up too. The next moment, however, a sharp question came out of the mouth of Shakran. ¡°By the way, kid, I have a question.¡± ¡°Go on.¡± ¡°It hasn¡¯t been that many months since the episode has opened, so why is it moving so fast?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°If I was in your position, I would take the time and build up myself and do all of this alone. After all, the main members of your guild had become level 400 or more, and the top four were close to 450. By that time, the level 500 boss would be easy to deal with by the strength of your guild itself.¡± In response to the keen observation of the suspicious Shakran, Ian felt a cold sweat flowing down his back. ¡®Surely, this old man. He isn¡¯t a normal one, right?¡¯ In fact, the question was enough to make anyone thought of why Ian was doing things like this. For the Titan Guild, he added a spoonful of ¡®Middle-earth¡¯ content as a preoccupation or diversion, and that somehow they would get distracted from Ian and the deal. However, Ian confronting Shakran with certain conditions seemed to have backfired. In the last minute, however, Shakran asked the same thing he was trying to avoid. Though he might not have noticed that Ian was in an urgent situation if he was misunderstood even a little out there, all the efforts of Ian would go to waste. And there was no countermeasure against such a situation. ¡®In the end, I¡¯ll have to show you the adverse hand, huh? I can¡¯t help it anymore.¡¯ After a short pause, Ian slowly opened his mouth to speak, ¡°Hmm¡­ I¡¯ll be honest about it then.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± And at those words of Ian, Shakran tilted his head a little. ¡°Hyung, you know that the geographic condition in the Northeast is poor, right?¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± ¡°And the reason for that is Chalian.¡± If Chalian was crushed and the Legions of Darkness were to crumble, the mighty forces of the Northeast kingdoms were bound to fall. It would soon create an environment that would allow Lotus to expand its territory quickly. Shakran who seemed to have heard a very convincing answer nodded with a smile. ¡°Huhu, that then. I can understand that well enough.¡± CH 466 From the Titan Guild¡¯s point of view, the episode of the Lich King had to last longer without anyone clearing it in order for them to compete with the Lotus. The longer their advantage of being in the Southwest far from the dark forces last, the better would be their scope for expansion. Because of that, Shakran had held a meeting instead of giving out an immediate answer. It was because the request seemed a bit silly and he had to be sure. ¡°So master. The Lotus wants to clear the episode quickly in order to overcome the geographical disadvantages?¡± ¡°Yeah. It looks like they are facing quite a problem due to the Legions of Darkness.¡± At that word from Shakran, Ceilron opened his mouth to speak with a puzzled look. ¡°Hmm, but after the war between the Lotus and Elrika, it seemed like Lotus had enough power to face the Kingdom of Darkness.¡± Shakran shook his head. ¡°That looks like it.¡± ¡°Then why is Lotus trying to change their manner if they are trying to get their goal?¡± This time it was Emily who answered instead of Shakran. ¡°Lotus was able to easily take over the Elrika Kingdom because of a special quest.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°I looked into the video from the start to the end and analyzed it. It was obvious that someone from Elrika has helped Lotus.¡± When Emily first looked at the video, she thought that there was a buggy play involved with Ian. Ian¡¯s siege orders made no sense. However, after thoroughly analyzing the video several times, she was able to find a pattern. The troops of the Elrika were using obvious strategies in obvious situations. Ian¡¯s play wasn¡¯t the buggy one, but the royal defense¡¯s AI was so stupid that it was at a bug level. However, when she contacted LB, they just said that there wasn¡¯t a bug, so Emily determined that the stupid AI actions were the effect of some special quest. The conversation between Emily and Ceilron continued. ¡°Hmm¡­ that could be.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not trying to look down on the power of Lotus, but I think that their current line up of users isn¡¯t the best of them, given their strong power. That is why Ian wants to flip the plate.¡± ¡°Till the extent that he would have to disclose the facts about the unknown content?¡± ¡°Yeah. The Lamaris and Icaroon Kingdoms, which are now blocking the expansion of the Lotus, are the Kingdoms of Darkness which hold more power than the Elrika. I¡¯m not entirely sure, but it definitely will take a lot longer time and effort to get to their goal.¡± While Emily was continuing her explanation, all the other guild members of the Titan were fixated on her. Emily took a sip of the cold water that was on the table and continued, ¡°On the other hand, in the Southwest region where our Titan Guild is located, there isn¡¯t anything to do. Although the Lotus managed to capture the Elrika Kingdom in ways we never imagined, it is only a matter of time for us to fill in the gap.¡± Ceilron smiled and asked Emily, ¡°So Emily what you¡¯re saying is, if the situation is maintained, then our Titan will be able to pre-empt the Empire content before the Lotus?¡± Emily nodded and replied, ¡°Yes, that is it. I think the proposal of Ian is smart.¡± Shakran who was listening to the conversation between then, cut in with a low voice, ¡°Then Emily, do you think that I should reject the offer of Ian?¡± ¡°Well¡­¡± Emily wasn¡¯t able to answer. And in a moment, she opened her lips to speak again, ¡°That shouldn¡¯t be done, master.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Even without our help, I feel like Ian can manage to take down the Lich King.¡± ¡°Lotus can get the Lich King without our help?¡± Emily shook her head and reframed her words. ¡°Of course, not right away. At least in a month or two, they would be able to get the Lich King even without us.¡± ¡°Huh¡­¡± Emily thought high of the potential of Ian. Therefore, she always assumed the worst-case scenario possible. ¡°And then, that time the lead in the negotiations will probably move to the Lotus.¡± ¡°It sure will, unless we declare Empire status before that.¡± ¡°Then is there anything crucial in our Titan Guild that the Lotus Guild doesn¡¯t have?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± In response to that question from Emily, Shakran was just confused. ¡°Something we have, that Lotus doesn¡¯t¡­?¡± Emily answered with a smile, ¡°Conditions for the Empire declaration. Did you forget about it already?¡± ¡°Ah¡­!¡± ¡°Even if the Lich King episode is cleared, and the Lotus does somehow manage to gain territory before us, they cannot become an Empire.¡± ¡°Yeah!¡± Emily¡¯s thought was really simple. Now that they were going to have an upper hand in the negotiations with Lotus, they should try to take as much as possible. Lotus wouldn¡¯t be able to declare itself an Empire unless some miracle found its way to them, and there was no reason to worry too much about it even if the Lotus manages to flip the boards and overcome the penalty. Even if the Kingdoms of Darkness disappeared, and the Lotus winged the war conquest, it was still impossible for them to declare themselves as an Empire, so there wasn¡¯t need to think much about it. ¡°Okay then¡­¡± Shakran who made a decision smiled and asked Emily, ¡°Emily, I¡¯ll leave the matters of the deal to you.¡± ¡°Okay, master.¡± ¡°Go over to Ian and try to snatch as many advantages as you can.¡± * * * Creak- In the meeting room of the Lotus Castle. The door opened with Ian entering, and everyone¡¯s eyes were on him. Fiolan, Hoonie and Carwin and the leaders of the Lotus were waiting for the return of Ian. And among them, the most reckless one, Hoonie jumped out to ask Ian. ¡°How did it turn out, hyung? Will the Titan negotiate with us? Will Shakran Uncle help us out?¡± Hoonie wasn¡¯t as eager as Ian, but he still was the topmost person who was eager for the negotiations to proceed. The reason for Hoonie¡¯s enthusiasm was the hidden quest, ¡®Annihilate the Lich King Chalian¡¯s Ambition¡¯ which only lasted for 10 days. In order to become a four-tier hidden class of the ¡®Monarch of Darkness¡¯, they had to deal with the Titan Guild and then execute the Lich King. He didn¡¯t have a huge penalty as Ian did. Ian looked at Hoonie and smiled. ¡°Hu huoo, it was a good deal¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°The Titan Guild has decided to join the expedition.¡± ¡°Yeah, Ian God!¡± Hoonie threw his fists to the air and cheered. It was because that was the most difficult hurdle for them to cross. On the other hand, the expression of Fiolan and Herz were much closer to novelty than that of joy. Fiolan was the one to ask Ian, ¡°Is Shakran smarter than what I assumed or is he plain stupid?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Nothing much. If I was in the position of Shakran I would have never yielded to the suggestion of Ian. It is an opportunity for Titan to look at their strongest competitor losing one of his tiers.¡± Herz too replied reluctantly. ¡°Yeah. I don¡¯t understand it either. I have been thinking about the same thing as Fiolan.¡± Ian smiled and responded. ¡°You think that I will be showing the Titan all the weaknesses of mine?¡± ¡°Then?¡± ¡°Titan knew nothing about the quest that I was given. So I made a stupid offer that they would accept.¡± At that reply from Ian, Herz put his tongue out. ¡°How did you manage that? If you didn¡¯t talk about the quest, then how did you convince him about defeating Chalian?¡± Instead of answering him, Ian just laughed. It was because the job was done much easier than he thought. ¡®While giving some stake in the boss drop items, I placed the bait¡­¡¯ In any case, the success rate of attracting the Titan, which was less than half was brought to 100%. All that was left for the Lotus to do was to do their best and defeat the Lich King and the Legions of Darkness. After defeating the Legion of Darkness and completing the quests related to the episode, he was thinking about the war conquest. At least till the point where the first empire would be formed, and an emperor would be made. Unlike the misunderstanding that the Titan Guild had, the Lotus had long back fulfilled the conditions that were needed for the declaration of Empire. Ian was the first user to get the Emperor¡¯s Jade. In any case, after the successful negotiation with the Titan Guild the largest mountain blocking their path, Ian began to plan the attack of the Castle of Darkness with his forces. ¡°Firstly Herz, under the name of the guild master, you¡¯ll be announcing the expedition recruitment.¡± ¡°Fine, the criteria to select?¡± ¡°Starting with the level limit¡ªLevel 350 or higher.¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t the participation be a bit too limited?¡± ¡°No. If they are lower than 350, it won¡¯t be of much help. And as an additional condition, damage dealers should have DPS over 200,000. Tankers should have 2 million vitality and over 13 thousand defense.¡± ¡°Uhm¡­ I¡¯m worried if we can get enough people.¡± Herz was a bit concerned about the strict criteria conditions; however, Ian didn¡¯t seem to be concerned about it at all. A union raid of Titan and Lotus. It was clear that that would attract users from all over the continent. ¡°Kay, let¡¯s get moving. The raid should leave by tomorrow morning in the least.¡± ¡°Kay, hyung.¡± ¡°Understood Ian.¡± Ian, who managed to assign a role for each of the leaders, went out to go somewhere. It was time to go and find the secret weapon that he had left in the hands of the dwarf, Han. ¡®Since it has been half a day, it should have been completed, right? I hope that it was made to be a bit useful¡­¡¯ What Ian had given Han was none other than the ¡®Shards of Darkness pack¡¯ that he obtained from defeating Lacamer. A special miscellaneous item of ¡®myth¡¯ level that allowed him to summon an undead that he created. ¡®The ability of Han is the best¡­ I am sure that I can trust him.¡¯ Ian tried to shake off the useless thoughts from his head. No matter how much a useless ¡®bonus power¡¯ he got, it had no use with his leadership. ¡®If something like a ghost dragon came out, then I won¡¯t need anything.¡¯ There was no other reason for Ian to wish for a ghost dragon. Ghost Dragon¡¯s strong passive ¡®physical attack immunity¡¯ was a must. Compared to the other dragons, its overall stats seemed to fall behind; however, its excellent maneuverability and physical immunity covered its shortcomings. A black smith tower occupied a large lot in the north of Lotus. Kang- Kang-! As Ian entered, he heard a large rumbling sound. Ian found Han, and one of the nearby blacksmiths quickly approached Ian and bowed. ¡°Majesty, you have come.¡± ¡°Yeah, where is Han?¡± ¡°He is in the large workshop behind the forge.¡± ¡°Large¡­ workshop?¡± ¡°Yes. Is there some problem¡­?¡± The large workshop of the smith was mainly used to make siege weapons. Ian started to get ominous thoughts. ¡®Don¡¯t tell me¡­ you¡¯re not going to make that skeleton giant king like that one right?¡¯ The closer he went to the workshop, the faster Ian¡¯s pace got. Within a while, the moment Ian entered the workshop, something huge appeared in front of his eyes. CH 467 Huge. That one word fits well for the huge colossal skeleton knight. ¡°Ah¡­¡± Ian¡¯s mouth was wide with the exclamation. It was because of the appearance of the summon that dwarf Han was making, which looked like the skull Giant King that he had played against Radeus. At least the Skull Giant was armed with shinning and glittering Radeus, but the guy in front of Ian was bare. Ian asked Han with a trembling voice. ¡°Han is this the guy¡­?¡± There was a great sense of desolation, as he was expecting a high myth item. ¡®I was hoping for it not to be this guy¡­¡¯ He couldn¡¯t confirm the name because the summon wasn¡¯t completely finished yet, but it would have been the ¡®sculpture of Giant King¡¯. ¡®Why¡­ why does it have to look like the same?¡¯ And at the depressed Ian, Ha asked a clean question. ¡°Majesty, you have come?¡± ¡°Huh, yeah. The shards that I left yesterday¡­¡± ¡°Right. That is this guy right here. How does it look, doesn¡¯t he feel great?¡± Han didn¡¯t notice the melancholy of Ian and introduced his work with a proud look. However, it turned Ian much sadder. ¡°Keuk.¡± If he hadn¡¯t faced the Skull Giant King when fighting with Radeus, Ian would have probably looked up at it with fascination. That was because he was so big, that Ian couldn¡¯t even compare it with his other familiars. In terms of visuals, he certainly looked like a tier 1 summon. Ian was depressed and wanted to hit Han on his head, however, he decided to put up with it for once, considering the friendship. ¡®Yeah, well, Han had made so many weapons till now¡­ it is fine to make a mistake once.¡¯ Ian was desperately trying to control his anger. Ian who was worried about how this summon was supposed to be used in the future opened his mouth. ¡°How long will it take to complete this guy?¡± ¡°The original schedule is to be done the day after tomorrow, but I might complete it by tomorrow morning if I stay up all night.¡± ¡°So, you¡¯ll be done with this by tomorrow?¡± ¡°Yes, majesty.¡± Looking at the glistening eyes of Han, Ian tried to recall what he should say. ¡®It doesn¡¯t seem like it is that useless to take it out of the war, but I will stay up all night¡­¡¯ Even then, in order to boost the morale of Han, the best blacksmith of Lotus Kingdom, Ian decided to encourage him while hiding his bruised heart. ¡°I have no one but you, Han.¡± ¡°Thank you, your majesty.¡± ¡°Tell me anything more. If you ever require anything, tell me.¡± Ian, after a formal encouragement, turned back and began to walk out of the room. Right then, an unexpected result came out of the mouth of Han. ¡°If that is so, I have a request¡­¡± And with those words of Han, Ian immediately began to contemplate. * * * ¡°Kook- hook-¡± A man with a solid body and coppery skin, with a rough breath¡ªwas stretching his hands. And a small dwarf was standing behind him with an excited expression. ¡°Right, River! It is the perfect temperature!¡± The dwarf was Urk Han, the best blacksmith of the Lotus. And the man¡¯s identity was River, one of the ranking blacksmiths in the Kailan Korean server. ¡®Uh uh, why did I have to come here just to suffer?¡¯ River¡¯s entry into the blacksmith tower was a very recent task. And the reason he came in here instead to be in his own forge, wasn¡¯t any different. From a friend in the Lotus Guild, he received information about the chief blacksmith of the Lotus, who was a dwarf. He took the job at the Lotus Forge intending to learn the blacksmith skills from the dwarf. River, who had excellent blacksmithing skills, could easily gain the attention of Han, and that was why he joined. He did succeed in becoming the disciple of the dwarf. When River¡¯s bellows ended, the giant lump of heat swelled appropriately, Han kicked up the iron hammer. Kang- Kang Kang- Mezyl was one of the most processes in determining the quality of the armor. A balanced form was essential for creating a solid weapon with a good performance, and it required a sophisticated work output. River wiped off the sweat and held the hammer in the direction of Han. ¡®Huh, even if it is an NPC, how can it hammer for a whole day?¡¯ River was watching Han the whole time, he couldn¡¯t help but feel compelled to admire the endless spirit of the dwarf. Except for the time when he had to eat and sleep, Han never let go of the hammer. ¡°Sir, I really think that you¡¯re amazing.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°The spirit of sir is hard to follow.¡± With that, River began to hit with his hammer once again. Han just shook his head and answered, ¡°My spirit is still lacking.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t forget the spirit that the majesty had shown me before.¡± ¡°Majesty¡­?¡± ¡°I saw the majesty take a posture and stay in that position for three whole days in the mine¡­ I still can¡¯t forget that.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯m still very far away.¡± Urk Han mumbled the incredible story and stretched out the hammer in his hand. River shook his head and continued to mend. Kang- Kang- Kang- ¡®How is such a ridiculous sized armor made?¡¯ The weapon that Han and River were making the whole night was of enormous size. It was almost dozens of times larger when compared to the normal armor. Among them, the size of the hammer in the hand of Han was the best. ¡®Can there be any person who can pick up such a crazy weapon?¡¯ Last night, the two people went and melted an ore and brought out several tons of weighing ore. In other words, to be able to wear such tools, one must be able to handle thousands of pounds of weight. What was even more surprising was that the ore that was used was the most expensive one. Around 500 kilograms of Mithril was used, so the cost of making the weapon couldn¡¯t even be guessed. ¡®Hu, I can see the end.¡¯ Kang- Kang- Kang- Beating the red hot plate, River tried to garner his concentration. Finally, all the plates they were making were completed, and the equipment set was finally finished. -??? Set Item: Build Complete: 99.25% As the design itself wasn¡¯t based or made by River, it was tough to know the item name that was just completed. However, like the huge amount of effort and materials that were spent, it seemed like a true work. ¡®What kind of a thing will come out of it¡­?¡¯ Splash-! When the cold water was poured in, the reddish metal started to look white. After a while. Creak-! Connecting the parts of the armors that were separated, the item was finally made 100 % complete. Tring-! [The item ¡®Great Plate of Mithril Armor(Legendary)¡¯ is now complete!] [The item ¡®Great Plate of Mithril Armor (Legendary)¡¯ is now complete!] [The item ¡®Great Plate of Mithril Amor (Legendary)¡¯ is now complete!] [The item ¡®Giant Mithril Hammer (Legendary)¡¯ is complete!] [Successfully crafted the ¡®Great Battle Set¡¯ item!] [You have succeeded in making a set item of ¡®Legendary¡¯ for the first time!] [Fame increased by 450,000!] [Dexterity has been permanently increased by 75!] System messages began to appear in front of River¡¯s eyes. Everytime River read the lines, he felt the illusions of fatigue that he had accumulated over the past two days be washed away. * * * ¡°Ho, I might be crazy. Why did I allow it?¡± As soon as he opened his eyes in Kailan, Ian grunted and headed to the direction of the Royal Forge. Ian¡¯s head was relaying the conversation he had with Han yesterday. ¨C Then, your majesty, I have a request¡­ ¨C What is it? Tell me, Han. ¨C Can I use some of the Mithril ores that you have collected? ¨C Mi¡­ th¡­ ril.. ore? ¨C Yeah, majesty. ¨C How will you use that? ¨C To make the secret weapon of Majesty much more powerful, a Mithril ore is a must. ¨C That¡­ skeleton, are you talking about it? ¨C Yes, majesty. ¨C How much will you need? ¨C I¡¯ll know when I start working with it, around 50 or so. ¨C That, that much? ¨C Yes. ¨C What are you going to make¡­? ¨C And I will be needing a thousand more iron ore. Uhm, and¡­ The minerals demanded by Han were of enormous quantities. It wasn¡¯t like that it was a tremendous amount. And the cost of the ore wasn¡¯t a joke either, they were the wanted minerals. One iron ore was traded for 50,000 gold, and the iron ore alone cost around 50 million gold. After all, the total value of the minerals that were supported by Ian added up to a ridiculous amount of nearly 200 million gold. ¡®Well. Being impulsive isn¡¯t the right choice¡­¡¯ He had allowed Han to use them all and used the money because he had been very useful till now, however, Ian was deeply contemplating. Ian was taking heavy steps. ¡®I hope something good comes out of all that I did¡­¡¯ After a while, a huge shadow came into the sight of Ian¡¯s. ¡°Huh?¡± A huge skeleton knight shadow was towering in front of the blacksmith. Ian¡¯s eyes confirmed that, and his eyes were shining. Armed with colorful armor and huge hammer, it was a huge difference from yesterday¡¯s big and ugly appearance. And most importantly, unlike the one of Radeus skeleton, which had a dark blue armor, this one was wearing a golden mithril armor. ¡®What? Is it the same one that Radeus summoned?¡¯ Ian was with half anxiousness and half anticipation while he was approaching the skeleton. Han who was sitting in the back quickly made his way to Ian to greet him. ¡°Oh-oh, you have come, majesty!¡± ¡°Yes, Han. Are you done?¡± ¡°yes, majesty. Come and check it right away.¡± At the end of those words from Han, Ian looked to the back with a puzzled look. ¡°How am I supposed to check¡­?¡± ¡°Oops, wait a moment, please.¡± Han entered the forge while tumbling and passed a sphere towards Ian. [You have earned the ¡®Soul Contract Stone¡¯ item.] Han spoke again, ¡°You can use it to check the information of his.¡± ¡°yeah?¡± Ian swallowed his spit and tried to use the Soul Contract Stone. And system messages rushed in front of Ian¡¯s eyes Tring-! [You have used the ¡®Soul Contract Stone¡¯ item!] [The contract with the Dark Contract has been made with the Summon.] [Acquired fame of 50,000.] [Dark Contracted Summon doesn¡¯t need leadership for summoning.] (Syncopation) [You have summoned, ¡®Skull Knight of Destruction (Myth)¡¯!] At the end of those messages. Ian¡¯s eyes which confirmed the word ¡®myth¡¯ went wide with shock. CH 468 Skeleton Knight of Destruction ¨C Level: 1 Classification: Dark Contract Summon Rank: Myth Personality: Simplicity Un-evolvable Attack: 42 Defense: 48 Agility: 2 Intellect: 1 Vitality: 2,755/ 2,755 Unique Ability * Giant Hammer (Passive) The skeleton Knight of Destruction always increases damage by 150% and reduces the attack speed by 50%. Inflicts additional damage when attacking the inanimate creatures, and is unable to move for 1 second after the successful attack. (Deals 50% of damage dealt with all the enemies within 5 yards.) * Hammer of Destruction (Cooldown of 15 min) The Skeleton Knight of Destruction gathers strength for 5 seconds and knocks down the hammer with full force. It deals damage to all the enemies within 15 meters of the attack location, dealing 2,500% damage. (When the Hammer of Destruction is triggered, it cannot move for 5 seconds and the defense is increased by 200%.) (The ¡®Hammer of Destruction¡¯ deals more damage to walls and defense towers: Additional damage: 50% ¨C 500%.) * Sealed Unique ability (Unknown) ??? * Of the alchemy that has killed in ancient times, there was a forbidden martial art that can inflict powerful souls of dark power into the sculpture. * And if you manage to assemble the sculpted pieces carefully you can create a powerful dark summon. * Today, however, someone of superior dark knowledge has revived the forbidden martial art. * And a great alchemist has used the shard of darkness to make a huge summon. * A powerful dark summon with mythical powers. However, the rest of the summons couldn¡¯t be born as the technical skills were beyond their limit. If special conditions can be met, this familiar can be reborn as a perfect being. * This summon belongs to the user ¡®Ian¡¯. The summons of the Dark Contract no longer need leadership to summon. ¨C ¨C ¨C Ian¡¯s new summon with a fabulous name, ¡®Skeleton Knight of Destruction¡¯. Ian¡¯s mouth was hanging wide as he slowly read the information of the new summon, Skeleton Knight of Destruction. ¡®Crazy, what is with these extreme ones?¡¯ Ian was flustered to look at anything else. He was very shocked for a complex reason. The first was due to the unique ability of the Skeleton Knight that had unthinkable options, and the second was due to the absurdly extreme combat capabilities. And finally, it was a summon with ridiculous power than what he was imagining. ¡®If Radeus¡¯s Skull Giant was something that had a similar ability like this, then we would have been helpless out there.¡¯ The Skull Giant of Radeus, which had fought against Ian, was a really useless summon according to Ian¡¯s standards. The stats were good, but it was useless because it had no provocation skills. Ian didn¡¯t confirm the stats of that giant at that time, so he could only guess it through the ¡®Skeleton Knight of Destruction¡¯ that was in front of him. ¡®If he too had such intrinsic abilities, then I¡¯m sorry for calling him trash.¡¯ The Skeleton Knight of Destruction had combat abilities that were very similar to the Giant Skeleton King. If one looked at the combat stats of it in the battle, there was a worse rate for the opponent. ¡®Initial stats were 42 ATK and 48 DEF, but the agility is 2 and intellect is 1¡­¡¯ The attack and defense were monster-like levels that could be achieved only by the level 10 summon, while the wits and intellects were as bad as they could get. However, if one looked at the overall stats, there was a myth rank on the side. The sum of the Radeus¡¯s level 1 combat abilities totaled 93. Considering the fact that the total of Elcarix at level 1 combat stats was around 104, it could be considered lower as it was a myth summon, but the vitality of 2,755 wasn¡¯t a low stat. ¡®This is more like a monster.¡¯ Elcarix at level 1 had half the vitality stat of a tanker with 1,527. Given the combat abilities that grow in proportion to their initial stats, there was a monster like shield that was twice the vitality of Elcarix. Considering that Elcarix¡¯s current vitality at the level of 350 was around 3 million, it was clear that the new one would have a 5 million vitality. Besides, the defense was half of what Elcarix had at the 1st level. To put it in simple words, it was a crazy summon which had two to three times the tanking ability when compared to Bbakbbak. Of course, there was no provocation skill, and as a tanker, it was a fatal disadvantage. ¡®It is a shame that this has no provocation, but this guy isn¡¯t a tanker in the first place.¡¯ The role of the Skeleton Knight of Destruction in the party of Ian was to be a powerful siege weapon that would destroy the gates and the defense towers. In less than 5 minutes, Ian grasped the use of the ¡®Skeleton Knight of Destruction¡¯ and smiled. That guy would be a great help to Ian, more than any summons in his current situation. Though the stats were as high as monsters, there were two unique abilities, but the synergy that would be created from the use of the two unique abilities was tremendous. If the passive and active synergies were in place, quite a few of the defense towers could be destroyed in one shot. ¡°Hu hu, you have two quick stats but your speed is half and a basic passive¡­ will you be able to swing that hammer?¡± Ian once again scrutinized the information window of the Skeleton Knight while scratching the back of his neck. With a proud look on his face, Han spoke, ¡°How is it, your majesty? Are you pleased?¡± As those words ended, Ian raised both his hands at the same time. ¡°Perfect, Han! You¡¯re the only one!¡± Not to mention, the apprentice of Han was descending to hear the praise of Ian. * * * After completing his appreciation of the new summon, Ian checked the time. ¡®Since it hasn¡¯t even been 8 o¡¯clock in the morning, there is still 4 hours to go to the field.¡¯ The time when the allied forces were supposed to kill the Lich King Chalian was exactly noon. And Ian could clearly see what he needed to do till then. Ian hurriedly opened the guild chat window and hit on the message option. Ian: Has anyone one ever come across a dungeon with a first discovery buff? It is better if the dungeon is higher than 350?! * * * ¨C OMG! Is this really a message that Ian himself has sent? ¨C Hu hu, looks like it. I just checked the previous shots of the account, and this is the real Ian. ¨C Awesome! Ian God has left a message on the home! This is a historic day! ¨C Sir, that isn¡¯t what is important now. Have you even read the announcement? ¨C Nope. Once the username Ian had been confirmed, all the comments started to flood in. ¨C LOL¡­ then read the comment first. Ian God is trying to go crazy once again. ¨C Oh huh, read it. ¨C Oh my god! Before half a year, is he trying to catch an Epiboss? ¨C If that really is possible? The level of Lich King is 500. Is Ian¡¯s level over 400? ¨C Hu hu, I am a member of the Lotus Guild, and it has been going around that Ian has crossed the level of 400 a while ago. ¨C Keu, Lotus, and Titan have joined forces. Hopefully, this will clear the episode already? ¨C Ha ha haaah¡­ My friend in Kailan¡¯s development team he he I think I need to contact him. ¨C Your friend is in the Kailan development team? He he¡­ your friend huh, development team¡­ ¨C OMG¡­ ¨C Ian posted only one comment on the official website of Kailan. The post was posted on the bulletin board named as ¡®Raid Party Recruitment¡¯ and the title and contents were very simple. Want to catch the Lich King! Current participation of confirmed guild. Lotus, Titan, Fullios¡­ (Leak). Conditions of Entry Level Limit: 350 (Flexible) Dealers: DPS more than 200,000. (Valcon refused good equipment.) Tanker: with vitality more than 2 million, and defense of 13,000. Calendar Saturday, 31st till noon until the Lich King is captured. Questions Lotus Guild Master Herz. But the simple post wasn¡¯t so little. First of all, the number of titles and contents are aggravating, so the number of views began to rise quickly. And with the wave of the post, starting with the official homepage, various Kailan chatrooms were being filled with the stories of Ian and the raids. ¨C DPS 200,000 makes me feel a little bitter¡­ should I still apply? ¨C Keu, I¡¯ll be able to match the spec of the tanker with the change of just one part in armor. ¨C Chris, do you have the money to change the armor? ¨C I can get it by today, don¡¯t know? ¨C ¡­? ¨C The warriors get stronger on the payday. ¨C Keu¡­! ¨C I¡¯ll go to the gold exchange right away. ¨C Guys, I envy you sulky, I won¡¯t be able to apply even if I change the spec of the equipment even if I use the house deposit¡­ ¨C Cheery up, sir. He he. Ian has done it, but some were suffering. The leaders of the Lotus, Herz and the others had to manage the incoming applications that were to be organized into attack parties. ¡°Uh, there are so many people!¡± At the scream of frustrated Herz, Fiolan who was right next to him spoke in a low voice. ¡°That was why you should¡¯ve let Ian raise the limit when he was about to.¡± Herz responded with an almost crying look, ¡°I didn¡¯t know that Kailan had so many sick people.¡± ¡°¡­¡± In fact, Fiolan too had the same opinion as Herz, so she didn¡¯t want to blame him. Right now, the application for users for entering was closed. ¡°Let¡¯s cheer up a bit now, we should.¡± ¡°Hey¡­¡± Herz could feel the ground move under his feet, and he sighed. It wasn¡¯t difficult to organize the party, however, it wasn¡¯t fine as they had to form a party considering all the specs that were being sent. Herz who had been so busy with his work for a while suddenly raised his head and asked Fiolan, ¡°By the way Fiolan.¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°Where is Ian right now?¡± CH 469 Kwang- Kwakwang-! The moment the huge hammer fell on the floor, a bolt of intense lightning hit the area that destroyed the whole area. A bolt of lightning literally ¡®struck down¡¯. An intense energy that resembled the flash of lightning surged up. Was it a bolt of lightning that bolted up from the ground? ¡°Keu, the effect is totally like the sniper.¡± Ian smiled and was elated while looking at the back of his newly acquired Thor summon. Thor, an ancient Norse God, who wielded a legendary huge hammer called Mjollnir. Mjollnir was like a combination of a mace and a hammer. However, that wasn¡¯t so important. The moment Ian noticed the hammer fell to the ground and crush everything, Ian decided to name him ¡®Thor¡¯. ¡°Thor, the hammer of destruction!¡± Keuhhh-! Thor had only two unique abilities. One of them was a passive skill, which meant that he only had one active skill that could be used during a battle. ¡®The hammer of destruction.¡¯ The hammer of destruction was a very unique ability that matched well with the name. It was a thunderbolt hammer that destroyed everything once it fell to the ground. Ghoooo-! As Thor lifted his hammer high into the sky, huge energy began to whirl in the air. Subsequently, tremendous waves of energy were being sucked around his huge hammer. A technique with a relatively long charging time of five seconds. It was surely going to be difficult to hit a target with that skill. But Ian didn¡¯t think it would be difficult to hit a target with the ¡®hammer¡¯. The reason being¡­ ¡°Ddukdae, Abyss Hole!¡± Kuooo-! It was because of the ¡®Abyss Hole¡¯, the best CC of the summon Ddukdae, which sucked everything. The Abyss Hole of Ddukdae began to suck in all the skeletons in the dungeon to the location where the hammer fell down. Kiyakk-! Kyahhh-! The skeletons who were caught in the CC looked into the air with a puzzled look. However, that didn¡¯t stop the hammer of Thor¡¯. The huge golden hammer fell onto the Abyss Hole that kept sucking everything around it. Kwang- Kwang- Kwakwang-! [The summon ¡®Thor¡¯s¡¯ Unique ability, ¡®Hammer of Destruction¡¯ has been triggered.] [The vitality of the Skelton warrior has been reduced by 289,809.] [The vitality of the Skeleton Archer has been reduced by 318,982.] [The summon ¡®Thor¡¯ gained experience equivalent to 9,801,928.] [The level of summon ¡®Thor¡¯ has been increased.] [The summon ¡®Thor¡¯ has reached the level of 126.] [The summon ¡®Thor¡¯ has reached the level of 127.] The hammer of destruction was a skill that was really powerful. However, it had a charging time that was too long to hit. In addition, the damage done by Thor was overwhelmingly strong when compared to any familiars of Ian. His damage was even higher than Karceus. ¡®All of his combat abilities are lacking apart from his attack and defense.¡¯ Of course, in terms of DPS, Karceus would be stronger than Thor even if their levels were the same. That was because of the difference in their agility. Thor¡¯s attack was more powerful, but his attack speed was slower than Karceus. However, the one that could deal the highest damage in a single shot was by far Thor. Thor was still just level 127 yet his damage was already reaching 300,000. Thor¡¯s current damage was 5,334. Karceus had the same stats when he was at the level of 150 to 160. ¡®This is all because the hammering factor of destruction is 2,500 percent.¡¯ In addition, the offensive power of Thor had a huge impact on why Thor was leveling up so fast. Within just three hours of hunting from the time he was level 1, he had already reached the level of 127. The attack power of Thor wasn¡¯t enough to affect the speed of the hunting just yet. So how did it affect the speed of how fast he leveled up? The secret was related to the XP system of Kailan. ¡®I didn¡¯t expect the Macta XP bonus to be this useful.¡¯ The experience acquisition system of Kailan was a very complex system. Along with the basic distribution system, one would get a bonus experience depending on the level of contribution one did in the battle. In particular, the one who last hits the enemy would get the most bonus experience points. Thor¡¯s powerful attack made it possible. No matter how strong the damage of Thor was, there was no way he could beat the level 400 monsters with having a level just above 100. However, Ian decided the monsters¡¯ ¡®Macta¡¯ based on the degree of attack possible. And that was why it allowed Thor to level up much faster than the Phoenix. At this rate, Thor could reach level 180 to 200 before the beginning of the war. ¡®Huhu, Phoenix too is approaching the level of 300¡­ I might be able to use these two properly.¡¯ While watching the fast-growing Thor, Ian¡¯s smile reached his ears. He wanted to see the huge hammer of Thor take down a defense tower. * * * Dum- Dum- Dum! A loud sound of a drum was ringing throughout the battlefield. The sound that meant the beginning of the war. After that, many troops appeared on the battlefield with expressions that were nowhere near the feelings of anxiety or awkwardness. This was going to be the largest battle in Kailan over the past few months. Almost all the users of the human world were united, and that was to be expected. After seeing the giant Ebon Castle overlooking the snowy plains, Shakran opened his mouth. ¡°This is a war started by the Lotus, but it wasn¡¯t necessary for the leadership to be in their side.¡± ¡°Yes, master. First, you should sweep as much contribution as possible and hold down the Lotus.¡± The Lotus Guild had an overwhelming contribution in the Lich King episode having the first place. It was because the location of the Lotus Kingdom was constantly being attacked by the Legion of Darkness, so they encountered them quite often. On the other hand, Titan Guild, the only guild that was as strong as the Lotus was in the Southwest. Compared to the Lotus, there were fewer Legions of Darkness for them to battle against. As a result, there were fewer opportunities for them to build up contributions. Normally, the Titan had let go of the episode content in order to pre-empt the empire content for their guild. But, there was no reason for them to just let go of it. One of the purposes of the Titan in the war was to fill in the gap between the contribution. The gap was small, but Emily had already thought of something. ¡®The remaining budget has been used on siege weapons¡­ We can use this to aim for a spot.¡¯ The episode¡¯s contributions could be earned with their plays against the Legion of Darkness. It could be obtained by hunting the dark army, skeleton soldiers or by clearing a dungeon related to darkness or by completing a quest. And not every user would get the same number of contributions. Contribution literally measured how much a user contributed after clearing the episode, so there was a lot in a play that could earn a user some contribution points. And it was Emily¡¯s aim to destroy the facilities of the Legion of Darkness. ¡®Once I destroyed the weapons warehouse on the outskirts, huge contributions will come in. If we destroy the other towers as well, huge contributions will come in.¡¯ Suddenly, Ian¡¯s face flashed in the mind of Emily. ¡®Wouldn¡¯t he know that too? Should I find something that they wouldn¡¯t know?¡¯ Emily¡¯s eyes naturally moved towards the camp of the Lotus Kingdom. As the camp of the Lotus wasn¡¯t far away, it wasn¡¯t that hard to see. Emily quickly scanned the camp of Lotus. But the very next moment, the eyes of Emily went wide. ¡°That? What in the world is that¡­?¡± Standing next to the small golem was a huge skeleton. Emily was agitated in numerous ways, and Shakran who was right next to her asked with a puzzled look, ¡°What is it Emily?¡± She pointed towards the camp of the Lotus Kingdom. ¡°Master, do you know anything about that giant skeleton?¡± The moment Emily asked about the giant skeleton, Shakran too looked over to see what she was pointing at. The giant skeleton was towering in the middle of the battlefield. Along with a striking golden armor that made it much more prominent. Shakran, who had been watching the skeleton with his mouth wide open, smiled. ¡°What is that useless piece of scrap?¡± Emily was surprised upon hearing what Shakran said. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Look at the movements of that junk closely, Emily.¡± ¡°I am looking at it, master.¡± ¡°Who in their right mind would get hit with that slow-moving hammer?¡± ¡°Ah?¡± As Shakran said, the skeleton was just moving the hammer in the air. It was a disaster in the least. It could cause damage sometimes, but the hammer wasn¡¯t being wielded properly. In addition, it was taking it 2 seconds to swing the hammer once. It sure was showing the attack efficiency that was close to a ¡®Ka-boom¡¯. Emily nodded and opened her mouth to speak, ¡°Master, you sure have keen eyes.¡± ¡°Emily, you would¡¯ve seen that too if you focused just a little bit more.¡± ¡°Well, that could have been the case.¡± ¡°Anyway, there is no need to worry about that one. Its effect is gorgeous, and I was nervous for a while too, but I don¡¯t understand where that scrap was picked up. It is nothing but a meatless shield.¡± The eyes of Emily and Shakran was on the Giant Skeleton the entire time. However, their interest in it had quickly gone away. They had too much to do and too many things to care for on the battlefield rather than just pay attention to a skeleton giant. ¡°Through the path! We need to reach the castle!¡± Shakran¡¯s voice rang throughout the camp of the Titan Guild, and all the members of the Titan guild ran to the battlefield in unison. From that point on, the competition between the Lotus and the Titan had begun. CH 470 Along with Lucia was the major reporter Hines, and he was entering the station with excitement as it had been a very long time. ¡®Huhu, this is going to be fun in many ways.¡¯ Hines was excited because of two reasons. The first one was due to the huge battle of the human world users joining together after a long time. The second one was the biggest reason why Hines was buzzing with excitement. Till now, almost all of the game broadcasts in Kailan had been limitedly broadcasted through crystal balls. The reporters and the casters in the broadcasting station commented on the videos and pictures that would be relayed through the crystal balls placed on the field. Occasionally, the reporters would access Kailan and broadcast their own personal videos, but that was a very rare case. It was because most of the content organized by the broadcasting section was of high level, which made it difficult for the reporters to meet. However, this time the ¡®broadcast capsule¡¯ of LB was going to tell a different story. Kailan¡¯s first-ever capsule that would support ¡®Master Observer Mode¡¯. The observer mode was a system that literally let one enjoy the game from the observer¡¯s point of view. Until now, Kailan had never supported the observer mode. In fact, no RPG game had ever supported an observer mode. There were many users, including the game broadcasters who hoped to support the observer mode in Kailan. Not only for the convenience of broadcasting, but many users wanted to enjoy a play while directly looking at the play of the users. And thus, the first-ever introduced observer mode by LB was the ¡®Master Observer Mode¡¯. The Master Observer Mode was available only with the capsules that were provided by the LB. In addition, if one tried to violate the terms and conditions, LB company would ban that user¡¯s IP arbitrarily. And there was a valid reason for the new capsule to be made with such restrictions. It was because the permissions in the Master Observer Mode were quite broad. The permission to play the screen by connecting to any objects or coordinates at any point. Even the point of view of a monster or NPC could be accessed depending on the use of the enormous authority being used. ¡®One can observe from any point of view that they want¡­ it is possible to present a really dynamic show.¡¯ That was the reason for LB to specify the terms and conditions while accessing the Master Observer Mode, and it could be presented only if the broadcasting schedule was announced beforehand. If not, the privacy of the users would be violated. In addition, the terms and conditions mentioned that the observer needed to distribute the broadcasted revenue in proportion to the time spent for broadcasting. There were a lot of shady terms, but none of the broadcasters seemed to mind them. That was because of the difference in the quality of the video that could be gained from using the Master Observer mode. ¡®If I manage to take a shot of Ian or Shakran or any rankers in particular¡­ I¡¯m getting excited by just thinking about it.¡¯ Hines¡¯s pace began to get faster and faster. There was still one hour for the broadcast to start, but the excitement to test the Master Observer mode in the new capsule was making him lose rationality. *** Kim Yong-woo, who had been stressed to the level of not being able to close his eyes to sleep due to the company strain, was sitting in front of the TV after a very long gap. Actually, he was supposed to still be at work; however, he seemed to get off work early since he had been working hard. ¡®There is no way I can miss the YTBC broadcast today.¡¯ The broadcast of ¡®Annihilate the Legion of Darkness¡¯ had already been promoted on a huge scale since the day before. It was a broadcast which wasn¡¯t just promoted in the official community of Kailan, but also by LB. It was receiving a lot of attention from Kailan users. And that was the case with Kim Yong-woo, the biggest fan of Kailan. The broadcast was being promoted to have something new, which made it even more interesting. But apart from everything else, there was no way one would be willing to miss the content of the ¡®Annihilation of the Legion of Darkness¡¯ where the human rankers would fight. Yong-woo, took a chicken leg into his hand and mumbled, ¡°Ah, when is it going to start? Cut down the worthless advertisements.¡± While his gaze was still fixated on the TV screen, Yong-woo was looking grim. After a while, his anticipated Kailan broadcast began. ¨C You have waited for quite a lot of time, viewers. ¨C This is reporter Lucia of YTBC. ¨C And this is Hines. ¨C Where exactly are we Hines? ¨C We are in the highest level hunting ground of Kailan, the Ulphir grounds. ¨C This is the first time for me being here. Have you seen the Ulphir grounds before, Hines? ¨C I haven¡¯t actually been here, but I did see it quite a few times. ¨C Is that so? The two reporters¡¯ broadcast was connecting as smoothly as ever. Yong-woo was pleased and decided to lean back into the couch. ¡°Keu, You mean that the Legion of Darkness is inside that castle?¡± The two reporters briefly talked about the battle that would happen that day, followed by a brief description of the newly introduced Master Observer mode. However, the explanation of the observer mode was boring for the impatient Yong-woo. ¡°Stop with those depressing explanations and show me the battle screen¡­¡± And with in a moment, the discontent of the mumbling Yong-woo turned to wonder and astonishment. ¡°What¡­ what is this? This isn¡¯t a personal broadcast of Ian; this is supposed to be a general broadcast. Then how is the video being transmitted from Ian¡¯s point of view?¡± Yong-woo wasn¡¯t able to understand the observer mode even as it was being explained. It didn¡¯t take much time for Yong-woo¡¯s ¡®boredom¡¯ to turn into ¡®admiration¡¯. ¡°Kiya, this is crazy awesome!¡± The video on the screen was displaying the ¡®Skeleton Knight giant¡¯ who was wearing an armor of Gold. Bang- Bang-! As the huge golden armor fell from the sky, a large pit formed on the ground as if it was hit by a meteor. Yong-woo started to drift into an illusion that made him think that he was the skeleton knight and was wielding the hammer. * * * ¡°Supporters, provide a shield for Thor!¡± ¡°Yes, Majesty!¡± ¡°Okay, Ian!¡± The powerful Lotus was trying to get through the enemy lines as quickly as possible and get closer to the walls. In the forefront was Ian¡¯s summon, Thor. A large army of Lotus that was in a triangle formation was steadily attacking the defensive front of the Legion of Darkness. Ian smiled bitterly as he saw Thor swinging the hammer at the forefront. ¡®Thor¡¯s attacks can¡¯t even hit a golem.¡¯ The Dark Golem, one of the main forces of the Legion of Darkness was the most agile monster among the golems. However, it was still a golem that was relatively fast. Despite the frustratingly slow movements of the skeleton, the hammer of Thor moved quite well. Hoonie who was walking alongside Ian spoke with a distressed expression, ¡°Hyung, is that really supposed to be the secret weapon?¡± ¡°Yes, it is.¡± ¡°How do you plan on using something that can¡¯t even hit a golem?¡± ¡°Siege.¡± ¡°Siege?¡± Despite hearing the answer from Ian, the distress of Hoonie didn¡¯t seem to go away. It was because he didn¡¯t exactly understand how it could be used for a siege. ¡®What? You¡¯re planning on destroying the wall with that?¡¯ Honestly, it was all fine for Hoonie to not understand what Ian was trying to do. The only thing that ignorant monster could do was to swing its hammer at the wall; however, that seemed meaningless to Hoonie. It wasn¡¯t like breaking the wall was an impossible task, and it was too inefficient. ¡®At least tens of thousands of attacks are needed to destroy the wall. At what time do you plan on breaking the wall with that speed of yours?¡¯ The durability of the wall surpassed millions; its durability was around 10 million units. No attack power was strong enough to break that kind of wall in one go. If that was said by some other user other than Ian, Hoonie would have surely laughed. However, it was Ian. Ian was quick-witted compared to Hoonie, so there was no way he wouldn¡¯t have thought of a strategy. ¡®What is your plan?¡¯ Hoonie looked over at the mighty looking skeleton knight. In the meantime, the army of Lotus was getting closer to the wall, and the battle started to get much more intense. ¡°You humans dare to set foot in the land of Chalian! I¡¯ll turn you all into ashes!¡± With the roars of the Undead monsters who seemed like named ones, numerous dark spheres poured down from the wall. A soft mumbling could be heard; it was from someone who was very familiar with higher tier dark attribute magic attacks. ¡°Death meteor¡­¡± Numerous dark meteors started to fall in the direction of Lotus¡¯s army. Fiolan who was in the rear looked over at Ian with a tensed look. ¡°Ian, should we take a tempo back?¡± The death meteor had a strong destructive power; however, the speed of its movement was relatively slow. After its activation, it was possible to avoid them. In general, a step back tempo, like Fiolan has asked was the solution for it. Waiting out until the meteor fell and then move again. That didn¡¯t mean that they would take in any damage. While retreating, the camp would get distracted, so losing a few troops were inevitable. Nevertheless, the shields backed by the magicians would be able to reduce the damage, but not much compared to taking a step back. However, Ian shook his head and answered Fiolan, ¡°Don¡¯t pull out, Fiolan. Push further in.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°If we take a step back, one more vicious cycle would begin. Do you know that the cooldown time of death meteor is relatively short?¡± ¡°That¡­ I know.¡± If the Lotus army would take a retreat of a few steps, the dark meteors would return once again after its cool down. That would turn into the vicious cycle that Ian was talking about. ¡°What do we do then? Should the shield spells be connected?¡± Fiolan tried to calmly communicate with Ian even during the crisis. That was only possible because of the belief she had in Ian. Ian smiled and spoke to Fiolan, ¡°You don¡¯t need to back down or connect the shield spells.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Just ignore it and let them blast. I¡¯ll take responsibility for what will happen.¡± Ttat-! In the blink of an eye, Ian landed on the shoulder of ¡®Thor¡¯ and shouted a command with confidence, ¡°Focus on breaking the line in front of you!¡± After discovering the meteors that were coming in from afar, the Lotus users were turning jittery. However, when they heard Ian¡¯s orders, they began to wield their weapons. Because of the belief, they had in Ian, not even a single member of the guild moved away from the formation. Dozens, maybe hundreds of troops could vanish in a moment. Suddenly, a sharp cry rang out from the middle of the battlefield. Kiyaaaah-! 123 CH 471 A huge lump almost similar to that of a rock¡ªfell from the air. The shadow of the mass of the huge rock fell. ¡°Avoid!¡± ¡°Scatter!¡± Urgent and panicked calls came around from the surroundings, however, it was too late to recognize what was happening. ¡®Uh¡­ apply for the war? I could¡¯ve just gone to some dungeon with a party like I always did¡­¡¯ Liana, a level 330 magician class user, she saw what was rushing right towards her and closed her eyes. With very good equipment for level and control, she had met the DPS standard of the Lotus Guild and was able to join their war against the legion of darkness. Honestly, she wasn¡¯t interested in the war. The reason why she decided to apply, was to have a personal view of the gameplay of Ian God. She had the chance to look at Ian¡¯s play up-close, however, she missed the timing. Her lack of control for the magician class at the level of 300 was natural, if she were good enough, she would be able not to get hit with one of those sluggishly moving rocks. But as her mind was occupied elsewhere, she had to face the shameful experience of getting buried in those rocks. ¡®Even¡­ even then, maybe I¡¯ll get to see the play of Ian from the back? Even with the Death Penalty, I can recover within a few days.¡¯ Liana closed her eyes and sighed. However, something felt strange the next moment. Uh?¡± She should have been dead and logged out, however, it had been a few seconds. She opened her eyes which she had closed. She looked at the sky and turned puzzled. The rocks which were flying towards her were destroyed and scattered everywhere, and there was a huge red beautiful bird flying in that spot. Also, there was some intense gold energy surrounding the bird. Liana couldn¡¯t help but smile looking at the beautiful phoenix, which made her forget all the fear in her till a moment back. Kiyaaa-! * * * Huge dark spheres were beginning to cover the sky. Most of the troops on the battlefield began to take a step back, but the only place¡ªthe one camp of Lotus Guild was the one that was moving forward without any hesitation. Yong-woo who was watching the TV mumbled at the absurd situation that he was seeing. ¡°No, why aren¡¯t you going back Lotus? That is suicide!¡± Kailan¡¯s diehard fan, Yong-woo was a fan of Ian too. There wasn¡¯t anything about Ian that he didn¡¯t know. ¡°What in the world are you doing Ian God? You used the Death meteor to kill the Khalifa when fighting against it, you should know better about the power it holds.¡± The picture on the TV was showing the image of the giant skeleton. Almost for 5 minutes, the broadcast was constantly capturing that being, it was because of the battlefield, the skeleton was the most visible part. ¡°This is frustrating. Even if you use the Dragonic Barrier of Elcarix, you won¡¯t be able to cover that wide of a range¡­¡± Even the skills of all of Ian¡¯s familiars were registered in the mind of Kim Yong-woo. There was no way he would know of the specific coefficients, he just roughly knew what skills they had. ¡°Ahhh!¡± As the slow dark spheres made their way to the ground, Yong-woo¡¯s heart began to pound crazily. Right then, a familiar voice rang from the speakers of the TV. [Phoenix, the guardian of the Sun God.] Watching all those hundreds and thousands of videos of Ian, there was no way he would forget that voice. And with that, a huge explosion rang. Ka-boom-! The rocks that were about to fall just exploded in the air. Breaking through the blast of rocks, a beautiful bird began to fly into the air. Kiyaaa-! A beautiful Phoenix was summoned by Ian. Yong-woo who saw that couldn¡¯t help but mumble, ¡°What is that? Did Ian have such a familiar?¡± The reason why Yong-woo was surprised was simple to understand. He knew about the destructive power of the rocks. The fact that the familiar was looking all fine even after taking in the rocks meant that the gorgeous summon was close to invincible. Yong-woo¡¯s face started to get interested in the turn of events. However, he was much more surprised within a short while. The intense gold energy radiating from the phoenix began to spread out. The moment that golden energy was touched¡­ ¡°The meteors have disappeared!¡± All the meteors which were about to fall just disappeared. As if a picture was effaced with an eraser. * * * It wasn¡¯t as strong or powerful as any offensive magic spells, and the death meteors were very slow. Ian made full use of the shortcomings of the Death Meteor. ¡®Nice. Nick, you have erased all the meteors in the sky!¡¯ Ian¡¯s summon¡ªNi, the guardian of the Sun God. A fraudulent inherent ability to invalidate all the attacks that were in a 50 meters radius from the phoenix, and Ian wanted to use that. In the situation like what had just happened, it was a skill that no magician could ever perfect. ¡°What, what was that?¡± ¡°The meteors just disappeared!¡± The moment Nick flew, around 30 percent of the meteors that were floating in the air melted and disappeared in the golden light. However, Ian wasn¡¯t satisfied with that. ¡°El, Haste!¡± ¡°Okay, dad!¡± He mobilized the Haste spell of El¡¯s to buff his Nick even faster and then wiped out all the meteors in the sky for the duration of 3 seconds that the ¡®Guardian of Sun God¡¯ was still one. Kiyaaa-! To explain it simply, the erase¡ªwhich could disappear in the range of 50 meters in all the directions, was moved for 3 seconds to erase all the falling meteors. The users who had witnessed the scene were all puzzled and shocked. ¡°Did you see that?¡± ¡°Wow¡­¡± And not to mention the netizens who were watching the broadcast. ¨C OMG¡­ guys, wasn¡¯t that a cheat skill? ¨C Hu hu, that was too much. If one could dispel all the magic at once for such a wide area, then what is the use of the wizards? ¨C Ke ke, it really looks like a good skill, however, it doesn¡¯t seem that it is great. ¨C Why? It looks like a cheat skill for my eyes too. ¨C Think about it. What Ian just showed, is possible when dealing with magical opponents, such as Death Meteors which move at a slow speed, and it will be useless for opponent¡¯s skills that last longer than 10 seconds, such as Hell-flame or Blizzard that explode in no time. ¨C And with that skill, the cooldown too will be long enough. ¨C Even then¡­ that is too. ¨C Just a thought, but Ian might be able to stop the Hell-flame if he carefully watches the motion of it. ¨C Lol¡­ that could be too. ¨C Anyway, Ian God! I should have changed my panties right before the broadcasting started. Huh¡­ The decision that Ian took just now, was one of the very dangerous ones. It was assumed that the Death Meteor would handle the guilds off for a moment, but due to the unexpected reaction, the line was penetrated quickly. As soon as they had gained access to the wall, direct damage began to occur, and the dark magicians began to rush. ¡°Pour in hot oil, so they won¡¯t try to climb!¡± ¡°Shoot those who are the closest to the wall!¡± ¡°Burn of the ladders so they don¡¯t climb!¡± The legion of darkness began to move one by one to the wall. Ian listened to the orders that were being given by the dark mages and scoffed at them. ¡®Why in the world would you go up the wall?¡¯ Ian climbed onto Pin and soared into the air, and started to give out orders. ¡°the defenses of left and right, protect Thor from now on! Magicians, connect the shield and there is no need to climb the wall!¡± And just like the orders of Ian, Lotus¡¯s troops moved in unison. He started to build the original circle defense around Thor which was raising the hammer. And subsequently, the unique ability of Thor¡ªwhich Ian was dying to use began to get charged. ¡°Thor, Hammer of Destruction!¡± Keuu-! Thor looked at his mithril hammer and screamed on top of his lungs. Golden air flowed around the hammer. And the dark magicians who saw it changed their orders immediately. ¡°He wants to attack the wall!¡± ¡°Use the repairmen to immediately repair the wall!¡± The ¡®hammer of destruction¡¯ was a unique ability with a charging technique that needed a fairly long time to use¡ªaround 5 seconds. Then was Ian planning to stay still for the 5 seconds as the skill would be played? There is no way that he would. Swooah-! The only defense line that could be seen was Thor, and Ian moved to the sky. Moving into the clouds high enough, Ian began to attract incoming perforations. Arrows from the enemy defense tower of the castle were flying in, and Ian was able to survive from those attacks by using the Dragonic Barrier. And with that one shot. ¡°Bbakbbak, summon!¡± At the same time as Ian¡¯s words came out, a huge dragon of sort got summoned. Not as giant as Thor, but he was huge enough to be beastly. Ian was planning to use the method that was used in the Pyro Domain¡¯s war in the past. Kwaah-! With a very violent sound, Bbakbbak the giant fell down near the wall. Ian quickly pulled back so he could get away from the range of the defense tower and watched the scene unfold with nervous eyes. ¡®The timing seems to be right¡­¡¯ The lower the altitude, the faster the pace that Bbakbbak falls. At that moment, Keu-! Throughout the battlefield, massive sounds started to rise because of Thor. Kwang-! Thor¡¯s mithril hammer, which was done charging for 5 seconds, fell to the wall. Kwakwang- Kwakwang-! Thor put the hammer down only once, however, the explosion didn¡¯t stop with once. It was all due to the additional damage that was attacked to the unique ability of the Hammer of Destruction. [The unique ability of ¡®Thor¡¯, ¡®hammer of destruction¡¯ has been activated.] [The ¡®Wall of darkness¡¯ has been dealt!] [The durability of the ¡®Wall of darkness¡¯ reduced by 5,879,809!] [Additional damage has been triggered for attacking ¡®inanimate¡¯.] [The durability of ¡®wall of darkness¡¯ is reduced by 17,609,890.] System messages started to pop up in front of Ian. Ian who confirmed it could feel great pleasure rise inside him. ¡®Keu, the coefficient multiplication! Passive seems to overlap too.¡¯ Thor¡¯s hammer of destruction inflicted more than 20 million of nonsensical damage. It was nonsensical because of this; The giant¡¯s hammer, a passive skill that gave 150% of damage buff and an extra 500% buff when attacking the inanimate objects. Thor¡¯s damage, was already six times, increased by an additional tenfold due to the 1,000 percent factor attacked to the Hammer of Destruction, resulted in an odd number of 5.88 million. And that wasn¡¯t the end. Random addition damage of 50- 500 percent factor, another option attached to the hammer of destruction. When that burst to 300 percent, three times the amount of damage was added. And the 20 million beings who were great and powerful as it was, wasn¡¯t enough to take down the wall. Grrrng-! The gold beam began to bounce from where the hammer fell, and cracks began to spread around the wall of the castle. And the dark magicians immediately urged the repairmen to revive the wall. ¡°To the wall! Repair it with all your strength!¡± The orders were, however, turned worthless. Kwang-! Golden beam was spreading across the cracked walls. And with that, the wall of darkness which was supposed to be of tremendous durability started to fall off like dried tofu. CH 472 ¡°What was that? How did they do that?¡± Shakran, who took a step back to escape the Death Meteors that were pouring in, stared intently at the wall which had just fallen down. ¡®What was it? Was the durability of the wall of darkness that low? It doesn¡¯t make sense for it to break at this point¡­¡¯ The distance was too much, which made it tough to see what exactly happened, but he knew that the wall took somewhere around 10 seconds for its collapse. The golden light seemed to flash several times, and the massive wall fell down. ¡®I know that the durability of the wall is around 30 million.¡¯ The figure of 30 million was tremendous, and the durability of the wall can¡¯t be brought down by just one member. It was because the damage formula applied on the defense walls was completely different from the formula that was applied to the general monsters and users. The defense property of the wall was ¡®inanimate¡¯ type. Inanimate matter was the most well known efficient of defense properties. The official community has a bulletin board that had the researches based on the data that was accumulated by the users so far. * Inanimate Defense Type The inanimate defense types, the ¡®vitality¡¯ was replaced with ¡®durability¡¯. In general, there were features, there were defense, armor, and weapons which had ¡®lifeless¡¯ defense types. (for wearable equipment, the durability differs when worn.) Inanimate defense types do not suffer any damage from the ¡®magic¡¯ attribute (immune to magic). Inanimate defense types reduce the damage caused by the physical attacks by 90-95 percent. Inanimate defense types take 200-250 percent damage from the ¡®siege¡¯ attacks. * All the coefficient are approximate and estimated from experiments, and the information may not be accurate. As you can see from the article above, it was supposed to be difficult to destroy the wall. It was the intention of the Kailan planning team to enhance the reality in the virtual content. No matter how strong the attack, it would be too unrealistic if a wall could be broken down by a spear or sword. It was in fact because of these settings, that it made the awesome defense of the shell of the ¡®Abyss turtle¡¯, it was because it was ¡®inanimate¡¯. And as stated above, the story was different for a siege-type attack. If the group could take a number of top siege weapons and get a free damage deal, then it could be broken in a matter of 5 to 10 seconds. The only problem was that the weapons of the siege were generally weak. Even when briefly exposed to the defense tower it would break down, rather than several, it would be tough to break even a single wall. Shakran rolled his head and tried to interpret the astonishing and embarrassing situation in front of his eyes. ¡®In the end, if that is possible, that guy could probably be an attack-type siege¡­¡¯ Shakran shook his head. The fact of being an attack-type siege was something unheard of. ¡°What is up with that crazy guy?¡± Shakran had a better understanding of Kailan than anyone, which was why he was the only one who admired that monster. ¡®Ian¡¯ was the only user in the Korean server of Kailan that Shakran couldn¡¯t help but accept as worthy. ¡®But that doesn¡¯t mean that I shouldn¡¯t be bothered.¡¯ Although he was flustered for a while, Shakran¡¯s spirit started to burn. Though he was flustered at the unexpected situation which had risen, however, that didn¡¯t mean that he was going to be sad about it. ¡®Since the walls are broken, the defense forces will be concentrated in there¡­¡¯ Firm eyes of Shakran moved around. ¡®As all this is going, I will do the best from the beginning.¡¯ Shakran climbed onto the horse and ordered loudly while lifting his sword. ¡°Soldiers, move ahead of the cavalry!¡± Something of the Titan guild that hasn¡¯t been shown till now and that was literal. As Shakran pulled out, Emily who was right next to him asked out of confusion. ¡°Master, aren¡¯t you going to use the cavalry while facing the Lich King?¡± The air unit, ¡®Dragon Cavalry¡¯ was hard to take siege weapon, meant for the defensive towers. But now, in the situation where all the troops were concentrated in one place, it would be great to put a hole through the enemy. ¡°There is a need to modify the plan a little in this battle, Emily.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Today we give up the siege bonus and change the line to the Epic bonus.¡± Emily¡¯s eyes which had been on Shakran narrowed for a while. His judgment did seem good. ¡®To use the canister to assassinate the Epic tower of darkness at level 450¡­ we can build up contributions as much as a siege bonuses.¡¯ The bookworm of the Titan guild¡ªEmily instantly understood the strategy of Shakran. ¡°Well, master¡­!¡± ¡°While the Lotus guys pierce the front, let¡¯s go back and stab them while they are in a hustle.¡± Kyahh-! Dozens of mighty dragons rose from the camps of Titans into the sky. Seeing that sight unfold, Shakran couldn¡¯t help but smile widely. ¡®Huhu, Ian. This time you are the one going to be surprised.¡¯ * * * The appearance of the cavalry of the Titan guild was surprisingly looking the same as the ones that supported Ian at the order of the Dragon God, Seikaito. The tier was lower than those of the intermediate NPCs, but nevertheless, they must be powerful than any troops that were currently operating in the kingdom. The moment the cavalry approached the troops on the wall couldn¡¯t help but be shocked. ¡®That dragon cavalry¡­ how did he manage to get it?¡¯ Ian who looked at the dragon cavalry was as surprised as the expectations of Ian. However, that surprise didn¡¯t last for long. The dragon cavalry wasn¡¯t that powerful. It wasn¡¯t something that could be compared to the ones that Seikaito had given, it was because Ian could give up if he had those dragons. However, the Titan Guild¡¯s dragon cavalry had the same appearance as the one that Ian had, but ¡®different¡¯. In other words, he realized that they weren¡¯t ones related to the Middle-earth. ¡®Ay, I thought that you bought those ones from the Middle-earth.¡¯ Even Ian began to wholeheartedly welcome the cards of conversion from the Titan Guild. ¡°Yeah, Titan Guild!¡± At the admiration of Ian, Hoonie who was next to him looked puzzled. ¡°What is it, hyung?¡± ¡°You see that cavalry out there?¡± Seeing that, the mouth of Hoonie went wide out of admiration. ¡°Dragon cavalry? Really? Oh¡­ Oh!¡± A nasty smile spread across Ian¡¯s mouth. ¡°Hu hu, looks like old man Shakran is trying to help us?¡± Hoonie who realized what Ian was talking about¡ªspoke accordingly, ¡°Yeah, well. Next time, maybe they should be given a meal at the store of Harin noona?¡± Initially, the two of them were focused on completing the quest before the Titan Guild could proceed. However, contrary to it, due to the act of Shakran, the two were forced to welcome the forces of Titan with a smile. ¡°Shakran oldie is trying so hard to help us out, we should be working that hard too.¡± ¡°Yeah. I¡¯m a bit encouraged too, hyung.¡± With the smile still on his lips, Hoonie cast magic. Seeing that, Ian was on the move again. ¡°Let¡¯s go, Thor! Let¡¯s get rid of those defense towers so the cavalry can do their task!¡± Kudk-! Thor nodded his head, not understanding what Ian meant. With the intensive support from the Lotus Guild magicians, Thor began to crush all kinds of obstructions with his hammer. Bang- Bang- Babang-! The more the hammer of Thor moved, the wider was the destruction that was happening on the wall. After a few minutes had passed, there was enough space created for the units to move in. Before the troops could be moved inside, Ian checked for the skills that could be summoned inside. ¡®The cooldown for the hammer of destruction is long¡­¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes quickly scanned the defense towers that were inside the castle. ¡®If the cavalry of the Titan needs to last a little longer, then the towers should be demolished first.¡¯ The dragon cavalry and the wyvern knights were air units that were very powerful and the top tier troops could be raised in the kingdom. However, the presence of the anti-air troops made them really helpless. They couldn¡¯t attack the ground troops, and they were the unique type of defense towers that specialized in extreme air battle and were powerful. The Kailan team had designed the powerful anti-air tower to balance out the siege. The existence of the air units that could cross the wall without the restriction was too easy and would break out the balance of the siege. Even the anti-air tower had been created to have twice the durability of the normal towers, and they were often ignored in the general siege. As the anti-air tower was so powerful¡ªit would result in the loss of the air force in the siege and would only fight using the ground force. ¡®It is different when we have Thor!¡¯ Ian glanced at the huge back of Thor which was wielding the hammer with twinkling eyes. He had a slow attack, but he was an amazing guy that could demolish the facility. Thud- Thud-! Maybe he had destructive instincts that went along with the name of ¡®Skull Knight of Destruction¡¯, the giant ran towards the tower with his hammer high. Even though Ian didn¡¯t order it. Thud- Thud- Thud-! Taking two heavy steps, the hammer of Thor hit the obstructions. [Familiar ¡®Thor¡¯ has inflicted critical damage on the ¡®Darkness Attack Tower II¡¯!] [Durability of the ¡®Darkness Attack Tower II¡¯ has been reduced by 2,251,155!] [As an ¡®inanimate¡¯ has been attacked, additional damage has been triggered.] [Durability of ¡®Darkness Attack Tower II¡¯ has been reduced by 1,125,102.] Seeing the low-level defense towers fall down with just a single strike, Ian couldn¡¯t help but feel glad. It was now time to faithfully destroy the towers for the sake of Shakran. ¡®Hu hu, Oldie, I feel like going into the grounds and focus on the named¡­¡¯ Thinking about Shakran, Ian¡¯s lips twitched into a smile and remembered something. ¡®I will support you very hard.¡¯ The only strong competitor of the Lotus Guild, the Titan Guild. However, currently, Shakran and the Titan guild seemed to be faithfully working for Ian. CH 473 ¡°Phew, I think I¡¯m going to faint right away¡­¡± There was a man sitting on the couch and staring at the TV that was mounted on the wall. This man was a man that couldn¡¯t sleep for more than 3 hours a day on average; it was none other than Na Ji-chan. ¡°But I need to watch the broadcast till the end.¡± The planning team and Na Ji-chan had completed the hellish schedule that Ian had thrown at them. Of course, the new content¡¯s development wasn¡¯t 100% complete. It was still just a plan, and it was time to apply them to the game. The development process was the work of the development team and not the planning team, so Na Ji-chan was given a long vacation. Psss-! Na Ji-chan drank his energy drink at once and began to look at the screen with clear eyes. On the screen of the TV was a fight between the users of the human world and the Legion of Darkness. Na Ji-chan who was interested mumbled, ¡°You have collected all the human rankers. You brought in the dragon cavalry too. The other guilds too¡­ but how did you get the Titan guild to stand by your side?¡± Na Ji-chan, the chief planner of Kailan, had great awareness about the users in the game. Because of that, it was interesting for him to see the human users begin the capture of the episode. ¡°Was it because of Ian?¡± However, Na Ji-chan who was watching the broadcast soon smiled a different smile. The elite forces of the Titan guild soon penetrated the walls. ¡°Yeah, there is no way Titan will be able to take the initiative like Lotus.¡± The strategy to pierce the wall when the attention of the Legion was diverted wasn¡¯t really that bad. Hitting the back of the castle would make the process of entering it much faster and easier. But in the eyes of the planner, Na Ji-chan, it was obvious that the Titan wouldn¡¯t move much farther. ¡®You¡¯re trying to take in as many contributions as you can to overtake Lotus. Then the clear time will get delayed.¡¯ The Titans wouldn¡¯t want to cross paths with named monsters, hence they wouldn¡¯t want to enter right away. As a result, the time taken for the fall of the castle would naturally be long. ¡®And even if it was Lotus, it won¡¯t be easy to clear the forces outside the castle without the support of Titan.¡¯ While Na Ji-chan was thinking about it, the outer wall of the castle had already been breached. However, since Na Ji-chan had turned on the TV a little later than the start, he wasn¡¯t able to see ¡®Thor¡¯. Na Ji-chan misunderstood what he saw at the moment when the dragon cavalry of the Titan was crossing over the wall. However, that misunderstanding was just for a while. Kwang-! Somewhere, a thundering sound rose, and the view of the TV was being changed to the point where the sound came from. And from the speakers, the voice of the caster which was silent till now began to burst out. Ah, Thor! Really great familiars have appeared! In the stage 3 anti-air towers, they were taken down with just one shot from the hammer! Hines, how long will the defense front of the Legion of Darkness last? Well, I¡¯m not so sure. After seeing the momentum of the siege forces, holding out for 5 minutes seems hard to do, right? In addition, the dragon cavalry of the Titan Guild has successfully entered from the backside. Right! In addition, Ian is demolishing the anti-air towers in order to make the dragon cavalry more usable. They are piercing through everything! The golden light rose like a thunderbolt, and the huge anti-air tower collapsed. Na Ji-chan, who was able to confirm Thor¡¯s appearance, opened his mouth wide. ¡°That crazy familiar¡­ how did he get it already?¡± Na Ji-chan¡¯s gaze inevitably jumped towards Thor who was wielding the hammer like a crazed being. ¡°That¡­ that surely is¡­ the skeleton knight of destruction.¡± The ¡®Skeleton Knight of Destruction¡¯ was a summon that was born for the purpose of ¡®siege¡¯. Na Ji-chan¡¯s expression had immediately turned sullen. The being that could only be made after entering the Underworld¡¯s top content was currently running for the Lotus camp. ¡°This¡­ this shouldn¡¯t have happened. I need to call the development team!¡± At the time where the content of the Underworld wasn¡¯t even made, it was unknown how that monstrous guy had appeared. But that wasn¡¯t the important thing now. Ian¡¯s chances of clearing the Lich King quest, which was 1% as of the moment, had gone up to 50% just like that. In addition, the clearing point could be pulled closer to two or three days than the expected time. In order to meet the Lich King, the camps had to capture five dark castles; at this rate, they might take down one in a day. All of their plans were ruined. This meant an emergency situation for the development team. * * * ¡°Ceilron, stop the ones at the back!¡± ¡°Okay, master.¡± The elite forces of Titan successfully pierced the wall with the help of the dragon cavalry. The dragon cavalry unit, which had a high stealth level, were the ones which opened the way forward and were followed by the Flygons. A Flygon was a simple air unit that acted like ¡®transporters¡¯ which were large like the pterosaurs that could carry up to ten users per aircraft. And Shakran who quickly crushed through the walls searched for the named monsters. It was because while the Lotus and the other users were busy breaking in, the Titan wanted to collect as many contribution points as they could. ¡°Haha, nice! Let¡¯s wipe out everything like this!¡± Emily who was right next to Hakun¡ªA ranker who was also the most important member of the Titan Guild¡ªtold him, ¡°Hakum, tone down your voice. It is hard when I get dragged by the aggro because of you.¡± ¡°Kuhahat! It is annoying to look for them; it is more fun if they look for me instead!¡± ¡°Shut up and just swing that ax of yours.¡± ¡°Okay, I get it¡­¡± The elite troops of the Titan were indeed excellent. In fact, the Titan Guild had more rankers than the Lotus. ¡°Kyaahh-! That is right, kneel, kneel before the power of Chalian, you humans!¡± A Death Knight that was three times stronger than any normal human being was rushing towards Shakran. With a rugged appearance, the Death Knight looked like an ogre. [Knight of Death, Knight Rockper: Lv: 465] He had a whopping level of 465; however, that didn¡¯t bring down the spirit of Shakran. ¡°I think Chalian should be the one to kneel before me first.¡± ¡°How dare you¡­!¡± The angry ¡®Rockper¡¯ threatened while wielding his massive scimitar. Instead of dodging it, Shakran pulled out his twin swords. Crrrng-! If one looked at the size difference, it looked like Shakran¡¯s twin swords wouldn¡¯t be able to stand Rockper¡¯s scimitar. However, even though Shakran¡¯s swords seemed to be small, they exerted the kind of force that was able to push the scimitar. Kwang- Kwakwang-! Rockper¡¯s scimitar and the twin swords of Shakran collided with each other, giving out blue sparks. Due to the lack of the level, the physical battle ability was sure to be lacking for Shakran. However, Shakran didn¡¯t give the opponent enough room to hit him. He had the confidence that his lack of stats could be covered with his control. ¡°Illusion!¡± With those short words, Shakran¡¯s side was trembling. The shadow of Shakran split into three and then split again while emitting blue light. Dozens of blue lights started to shine like a net intertwined, and all came into Rockper. Bang-! The vitality of Rockper began to get cut in huge amounts with a loud explosion. Rockper screamed with a screeching voice. ¡°How could a human harness the power of illusion¡­?¡± Shakran was rather surprised when he heard what Rockper said. ¡°You know about the swords of illusion?¡± However, rather than responding to the question of Shakran, Rockper instead said with anger, ¡°Don¡¯t you dare say its name without his permission!¡± Kwang- Kwang-! Shakran didn¡¯t open his mouth to talk anymore. The battle started to get more intense. After taking a break to catch their breath, it looked like Rockper¡¯s scimitar was slowly getting weak. Was it around five minutes or so? Swooah-! The twin swords of Shakran went through the heart of Rockper and with that, he fell on the ground. Thud-! And subsequently, new system messages resonated. Tring-! [You have successfully defeated the ¡®Knight of Death¡¯ ¡®Rockper¡¯!] [Legion of Darkness, you have defeated a named monster.] [Episode contribution has increased by 357,000.] [Obtained experience points of 70,928,490.] [Acquired fame of 100,000.] After seeing those sweet messages rise up, Shakran smiled. ¡°So there is an undead who knows about the illusion swords, huh? This is a weird turn of events¡­.¡± Shakran who seemed to be in a good mood placed his swords back in the sheath and began to move. ¡°Emily, how many named guys did we get?¡± ¡°Two of the 2-tier named ones and seven of 3-tier.¡± ¡°Hmm, this is taking longer than I thought. Before the Lotus guys get here, we¡¯ll have to catch twice the goal.¡± ¡°Yes, Master.¡± ¡°The timing will be a bit troublesome.¡± In the harvest that had happened so far, the harvest that was done by the elite was tremendous. In less than 10 minutes, they had taken more than 1 million contributions. However, Shakran wasn¡¯t satisfied. ¡®It looks like we are still lacking. I can¡¯t get my mind off that monster skeleton that ripped off the defense tower.¡¯ Shakran shook his head as he unconsciously thought about Ian¡¯s giant skeleton knight. It was Shakran¡¯s intention to not fall behind the Lotus¡¯s troops and Ian. ¡°Master, I¡¯ve found one tier-2 named monster and five tier-3 named monsters in the northeast!¡± After hearing one of his guild member¡¯s report, Shakran immediately took a jump in the direction his guild member mentioned. ¡°Ceilron, Hakum, take over that side!¡± ¡°Okay, master.¡± ¡°Understood, master!¡± ¡°Emily, support me!¡± ¡°Yep!¡± The elite users of the Titan Guild rapidly ran into formations that were ordered by Shakran. As the dragon cavalry followed them in unison, an ominous atmosphere was made. ¨C Oh oh, that Titan! That was so dope! ¨C How long did they have to train to get something like that possible? ¨C Kya, Ian is Ian, but Shakran is pretty hardcore too. ¨C I second that. ¨C Like Shakran, like Ceilron. Definitely rankers, they are. ¨C Why? ¨C Seeing those combat skills, damn man! And those NPCs don¡¯t seem like a joke to me. ¨C I know! The netizens admired the movements of the elite users of Titan. At that moment, the scene on the screen took a change and voices of the caster began to flow again. ¨C Okay then, if they¡¯re going to do it like this, I can¡¯t help but want to see this from the view of the Legion of Darkness¡¯s side? ¨C Yeah, Hines. ¨C From now on, let¡¯s see the battle from the view of the dark archmage, Sigrid! Huge wings and sharp claws emanating white light. It was the back of a giant ghost dragon; it filled half the screen. And on top of it was an Archmage, and he was overlooking the elite users of Titan. ¡°Kuku, frivolous humans!¡± The voice of the Archmage Sigrid was appalling to hear. Right then, a huge explosion rang somewhere. Ka-boom-! CH 474 As if a meteorite fell, the explosion was so loud that it made the whole map vibrate. And thanks to that commotion, all the gazes went in the direction of the sound. Crack- Crack-! Subsequently, the walls that were encircling the castle broke, and the bricks started to fall down simultaneously. The Archmage Sigrid looked at the scene not being able to comprehend what he had just witnessed. ¡°The wall is crumbling¡­ don¡¯t tell me they had a siege weapon?¡± Even the rankers of the Titan Guild who were about to attack the dark mages stopped and looked at the wall that was crumbling. As what just happened was an unexpected situation, everyone stopped momentarily to see what was happening. ¡°No, there is no way¡­!¡± Emily too stopped and stared at the crumbling bricks. A huge shadow began to appear from the dust. It was obviously the shadow of Thor. Ku- Kuahh-! Thor was roaring viciously and whipping his hammer round. Kwang- Kwakwang-! Like a domino effect, the huge wall¡¯s durability went down. Emily couldn¡¯t help looking at Thor with fear and shook her head. ¡®How did the Lotus manage to arrive here already?¡¯ She never underestimated the siege destructive power of Thor. She obviously noticed the damage that the giant hammer inflicted on the wall. However, there was something that Emily didn¡¯t expect. That was Ian, not placing much importance on the matter of ¡®contribution¡¯. If Ian had been trying to gather contributions like he meant it, then he wouldn¡¯t have entered unless he demolished all the towers that were outside the castle. However, Ian seemed to place more importance on clearing the quest in the shortest time possible than gathering contributions, which was why the only tower that needed to be removed was demolished as efficiently as possible. Did Lotus give up on the silent competition that they had with Titan? There was no way that could have happened. It was Ian¡¯s strategy to abandon the contribution gathering of the Lotus and to stop the Titan from gaining contributions. After a minimum amount of easy-to-get siege contributions, Shakran was taking time to gather contributions from the named monsters. And while that was happening, a lot of contributions would be garnered by the small and medium guilds and other regular users. However, that didn¡¯t matter much. It was because the small and medium guilds would in no way be able to compete with the contribution figure of the Lotus. Ian didn¡¯t give up on the competition with Titan but made the best choice to clear up the quest as soon as possible. However, Emily had no way of knowing that. There was no way she could know that Ian was performing a time limited quest. Emily bit down her lower lip and mumbled in a low voice, ¡°Are you giving up your contribution and hindering us? That would be a loss for the Lotus too¡­¡± While the others were still in shock, Ian who was riding on the shoulder of Thor leaped into the air and started to give out orders. ¡°Magic corps! All of you target the ghost dragon! 2nd and 3rd cavalry defend the squadron and the rest of you follow me!¡± * * * The elite troops of Lotus along with Ian and the dragon cavalry of Titan came from both sides. The Legion of Darkness began to fall helplessly. ¡°Kwak! Chalian will never forgive you!¡± ¡°Kiyak, to be hit by humans¡­¡± As the battle began, not just Ian but Shakran too showed his best plays. For Ian, there was no other option but to clear the battle quickly so he could clear his quest as soon as possible, and lacking the option to do anything was Shakran. Ian noticed that the Titan and Shakran were going for the named monsters. However, even though the Titan knew that Ian was aware of it, they couldn¡¯t do anything. The only option that the Titan Guild and Shakran had in their current situation was to fight with all their power and kill more named monsters and gather higher contribution than the Lotus. And for Ian, that was the best situation. ¡®Yeah, Shakran! Work hard!¡¯ While smiling at himself, Ian began to control his familiars. From now on until the end of the quest, he decided to adjust his tempo according to the Titan Guild and Shakran. ¡°Kaka, Dreaming Devil!¡± ¡°Okay, master!¡± Kooo-! Kaka¡¯s unique ability which was an enemy to the undead got activated, and they were inside the dark region which made it even better. And the users who were witnessing the ability of Kaka for the first time started to turn a little wary. ¡°Uh, what is this?¡± ¡°I think it is something that Ian is using. Isn¡¯t our vision being obscured?¡± When the dreaming devil ability was cast, there was a ¡®dark¡¯ option, and it reduced the light by 30%. However, the castle that was on the dark region was already dark, and due to Kaka¡¯s unique ability, it turned much darker. All the magicians began to quickly cast their light spells, and the knights immediately pulled back to re-organize their distorted visions. But in that time, there were few shadows that were standing tall in the darkness. Tat- ttat-! They were some assassin rankers who were used to the dark along with Ian and Shakran. Chang-! Ian¡¯s spear was hitting at the flying warrior skeletons that were coming in his direction. ¡®The scene created by Kaka is the best condition for the undead.¡¯ No matter how good the control of Ian was, he wasn¡¯t someone used to the darkness in the first place. However, as the fights went on increasing in the conditions created by Kaka, the movement of the enemy started to get visible little by little. Shakran too having a class that was accustomed to the dark was able to immerse himself into the darkened scene. ¡°Are you trying to take that one down?¡± Shakran stared at Ian while grunting his teeth. At that, Ian just smiled a little and responded, ¡°Uncle, let¡¯s play head-to-head.¡± There was one thing that Ian and Shakran were aiming for. It was the named monster that was riding on the ghost dragon, the Archmage Sigrid. The Archmage Sigrid would definitely contribute much more than the knight of death, Rockper. And if Ian managed to kill Sigrid first, then the position of the Titan Guild would turn unchangeable. It was Titan¡¯s dragon cavalry and Shakran who found Sigrid after killing all those named monsters. Ian¡¯s gaze moved to the undead in the front, and Shakran looked at that direction too. ¡®Oh ho, you¡¯re going to use the dragon cavalry?¡¯ In order for Shakran to be able to hunt down the ghost dragon that was high up in the sky, he had to get on top of the dragon cavalry. And for Ian, the first thing that came to his mind was Pin. ¡®Do I need to call Pin too?¡¯ But the next moment, Ian looked at Ly with some thoughts that were running in his head. ¡°Ly, Rage of Fenrir! Dark Encroachment!¡± ¡°Ahwoo-!¡± Ian¡¯s intentions was unknown, but Ly enabled all the buff skills that Ly had. [Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s¡¯ unique ability¡ªRage of Fenrir¡ªhas been activated.] [Familiar Ly is in a rage.] [All the combat stats were increased by 50% and critical strike chance increased by 20% for 3 minutes.] [Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯s¡¯ unique ability ¡®Dark Encroachment¡¯ has been triggered.] [Familiar Ly is currently in a state of Dark Encroachment.] [For the next 3 minutes, all of Ly¡¯s attacks are critically struck and will negate 70% of the damage taken.] [Ly¡¯s agility has been increased by 50%.] The unique abilities of Ly, the ¡®rage of Fenrir¡¯ and ¡®Dark Encroachment¡¯ were all self buffs. The 100% critical strike effect of the ¡®Dark encroachment¡¯ and the 20% increase in the critical strike of the ¡®Rage of Fenrir¡¯ overlapped, and they were the skills that had to be triggered unconditionally. The reason was because of the additional messages that didn¡¯t appear in the system message. [Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ attacked with a critical strike.] [The cooldown of ¡®Rage of Fenrir¡¯s¡¯ unique ability has been reduced by 5 seconds.] [The cooldown of ¡®Rage of Fenrir¡¯s¡¯ unique ability has been reduced by 5 seconds.] Each time Ly attacked with a critical hit, the cooldown of the Rage of Fenrir decreased gradually. The cooldown of the Rage of Fenrir was around 10 minutes, which meant 600 seconds. If Ly hit 120 times, then the Rage of Fenrir could be used again. And the attack speed of Ly was maximized due to the buff. Slash slash-! Ly had hit 120 critical strikes in less than two minutes. Which meant one attack every second. The next order that Ian had given to Ly was¡­ ¡°Ly, once again¡ªRage of Fenrir!¡± The Rage of Fenrir skill was going to overlap again. [All combat stats are increased by 50%, and increase critical strike chance by 20% for 3 minutes.] The Rage of Fenrir lasted for 3 minutes only, which meant that he had only one second to stay back. But Ly, whose stats were increased by 50%, was bouncing around like a monster. Because of the tremendous increase in Ly¡¯s stats, he was having a monstrous combat capacity of 2.25 times his original stats. In other words, Ly who was currently at level 394, would be showing strength same to a level 880 during the one-minute duration of the buff overlap. Just having a simple high stats didn¡¯t mean that his strength would be in the 800s. However, the destructive power of Ly was high enough to call it a monster. Even then, no matter how strong he was, an air attack was impossible. But Ian had everything planned in his head. ¡°Thor, throw Ly up!¡± Krrrrk- krrr-! Ly¡¯s shadow jumped onto the body of Thor and then leaped into the air. Thor¡¯s hands were already ready as if waiting for the command from Ian. Kiooo-! The pet control option of Ian wasn¡¯t improvised. And this was the first time Ian would be doing this tactic. However, the effect of it was amazing. Ly¡¯s body was soaring on top of the ghost dragon on which Sigrid was riding. And not surprisingly, those turn of events was so bizarre that even the NPC Sigrid was surprised. Sigrid, who was focused only on Shakran, was forced to change his gaze. Awooo-! ¡°A crazy wolf?¡± Sigrid tried to avoid Ly, so he pulled on the reins of the ghost dragon, but before he could do it, Ly had already hit him. Kwang- Kwakwak-! And Sigrid who had already lost a lot of vitality due to the hits from the magic corps was taken down. ¡°Ack-!¡± [Familiar ¡®Ly¡¯ inflicted fatal damage to the ¡®Archmage Sigrid¡¯.] [The vitality of ¡®Archmage Sigrid¡¯ has been reduced by 8,557,094.] [You have successfully defeated the Dark Archmage Sigrid.] [You have defeated a named monster from the Legion of Darkness.] [Episode contribution increased by 695,000.] [Acquired experience points of 97,225,100.] [Acquired fame of 150,000.] Shakran who reached the point late after getting on the dragon cavalry looked like ¡®a dog that goes chasing after a chicken¡¯. ¡°¡­?¡± When he saw that, Ian started to rile up Shakran. ¡°Uncle, is there something that you wanted to do?¡± The perfect design of Ian¡¯s planned provocation. And nerves started to stick outside the forehead of Shakran after hearing what Ian just said. CH 475 A massive expedition against the massive dark legion. Not surprisingly, all the game broadcasters began to broadcast the northern expedition in a huge manner, and viewers were screaming out of joy. What did it mean to broadcast the same content on multiple channels? The northern expedition that was going on, had too much happening and too much to see, and a single channel couldn¡¯t even display 20 percent of what was happening. Therefore, in the current situation, the broadcasters were using expedition videos in various angles according to their respective concepts for the viewers. And if one wanted to see the overall progress of the expedition, the gorgeous controls of the rankers, for those who wanted to see small episodes of the expeditions or a story of the quest, they could just change the channel according to their wish. In order to attract the viewers, the broadcasters were holding their own special concepts and broadcasted them. The smaller the broadcaster, the more original concept they displayed. This was because as there were distinctions from the big broadcasters, there was room for viewers to enter. And in this expedition broadcast, there was one channel that succeeded in the concept. ¨C This is so crazy! A fight between Shakran and Ian¡­! ¨C I agree. TvM or what, I put the channel for the first time, and I stayed looking at it for 5 minutes not even realizing it. ¨C I¡¯ll be using this frequently. I don¡¯t which PD planned for this, but I really commend them. ¨C Keu, it is really a bit hit. When will I be able to play like that? ¨C How many scores have you made so far? ¨C Well¡­ it is a bit weird to say out the scores, however, Ian is still dominant. Maybe, around 7: 6? ¨C What sir? I¡¯ve counted everything so far and it is exactly 6: 8. It just got higher with Ian killing the corps. ¨C Hehe, it is really hard to tell about who had superiority. Honestly, wasn¡¯t it just a difference? ¨C The superiority is hidden, and the gap will widen too. Why you ask¡­ because Ian is a God. The concept of TvM¡¯s game broadcast wasn¡¯t something else, it was the rivalry between ¡®Ian and Shakran¡¯. As the scale of the war was great it had a lot of content in it, which meant it was like concertation for the selection. TvM didn¡¯t exactly focus on the two people from the very start. The original concept of the TvM was to catch up with the rankers. By carefully analyzing the play of the rankers, it was their intention to provide a detailed view of their play. Thus, the first ranker that TvM chose was Ian. It was natural as Ian was the no 1 user in the Korean server ranking, so was the first in order. Since he had the most fans, that could also help attract viewers. However, it didn¡¯t take much time for the broadcast to have a rush, as the main focus changed to Ian. The project PD capturing Ian and Shakran competitively catching the named monster decided to change the concept. Even the title of the broadcast had been changed from ¡®catching up with rankers¡¯ to ¡®Ian vs Shakran¡¯. It indeed was a very stimulating title for the users of the Kailan¡¯s Korean server. In fact, the 1st and 2nd rankers of the human world created the confrontation composition, it something that one couldn¡¯t see even when not playing. As the intent to revive the show, the humans; Ian and Shakran, the expedition were conquering the dark castle. One day or two days, maybe a week later or so. The forces of the human world would finally cross the ¡®river of darkness¡¯. The huge castle of Lich King, which was known as¡ªBlack Castle. And arrive at the ¡®Falcacio¡¯. * * * ¡°Is this Falcacio?¡± Mumbled Ian while looking at the huge wall that was towering over a cliff. It was the first time for Ian to look at the Falcacio castle, however, there had been a few other rankers who had been their before. To be precise, it wasn¡¯t the Falcacio castle, it was a nearby field of the Dark River. It was the best experience gathering hunting grounds that existed. In the case of Ian, as he had to constantly pursue the quests he didn¡¯t have the time to go to a hunting ground, but the rankers who were mainly trying to level up would try to find fields that would give out more experience. And as a result, some of the rankers insisted on hunting the field near the ¡®Dark River¡¯ even at the risk of getting in the eyes of the Lich King. And Shakran was one such user. ¡°Dammit, since the road is opened, now the place will be busy.¡± At that response from Shakran, Ian smiled and answered, ¡°You would¡¯ve sucked in all the good things, why are you feeling so bad?¡± ¡°Kid, I¡¯m not feeling bad. Once this episode gets cleared, there are going to be better hunting grounds than this one right here.¡± Since the war expedition had already defeated the dark castles, it was much easier to reach the ¡®Dark River¡¯ than before, and so many users would find the hunting ground. Two people were talking about it. ¡°Hmm, yeah well. It is always the best to take in the new content as early as possible.¡± ¡°Right. That is why I am playing this according to your rhythm.¡± ¡°Ho ho¡­¡± That was the conversation between the two. And the battle would soon resume. The war against the legion of darkness which had lasted for almost a week wasn¡¯t so easy. The time of breaking through was very fast, however as the strategy was very aggressive, many troops died in the progress. Among the users who were in the expedition, there were a few users who received more than one penalty. Despite the penalty, users didn¡¯t leave the expedition because of the huge contribution and rewards. As the Titan, Lotus and other guilds that were in the top positions gave up on the contributions; because of that, the general users were able to gather huge amount. All thanks to that, the motivation of the general users who were participating in the expedition increased a lot, which lead to an increase in the force. The attempt of Ian to contain and stop Shakran had a positive attack like this. Thud- Thud- Thud-! The loud sound of drums started to announce the beginning of the war, and the sound went through the whole wide plain. At the same time, the orders of all the leaders started at the same time. ¡°All forces, advance!¡± ¡°We turn near the cliff and go to the northeast!¡± ¡°We pierce through the underground passage below the cliff!¡± Thousands of troops quickly scattered in all the directions and began to move towards the Falcacio castle. And the view of watching it from the sky was just spectacular. At first glance, it looked like everyone moved freely, it was because of the formation patterns. Lucia and Hines, who were responsible for the commentary of YTBC, began to comment while overlooking the battlefield. ¡°Ah, Hines, the expedition forces have split into five branches and are trying to take different routes to attack.¡± ¡°That is right. Looking at their movements, it seems like each troops have their own planned strategy!¡± ¡°Hines, could you please explain to me a little about the strategy of the expedition?¡± ¡°Strategy of the expedition?¡± ¡°Yeah. I understand that all the troops should breakthrough by intensively attacking one place like they did before. But, if the troops are dispersed like that, the siege will be difficult.¡± The two seemed to comment very leisurely, however, the two of them were very nervous. Many users were watching the live broadcast, which meant that there shouldn¡¯t be any mistake while commenting. And among those two, Hines, who was in charge of the direct commentary was the most important. Hines began to carefully explain the expedition¡¯s strategy. ¡°Haha, I can¡¯t be sure, but let me tell you about the strategy that I think.¡± ¡°Oh-oh, Hines!¡± ¡°Hmm, since this is just a prediction, my words can be wrong too, you know?¡± ¡°Haha, surely. How can you exactly predict the strategy if you aren¡¯t the head of the expedition?¡± ¡°Then, let me brief you.¡± When Hines was done talking, a video came in front of them. It was a plan about the structure of Falcacio castle from the top. ¡°The Falcacio castle has three points of entry.¡± As Hines continued, he pointed to the floor plan of the Falcacio castle. There were three red spots which indicated the north, east and west sides of the castle. ¡°However, there are two more hidden entry ramps for the Falcacio castle.¡± As Hines said that, two red dots began to move around the southern edge of the Falcacio castle. Lucia, who was intently listening to the explanation of Hines, opened her mouth to help the free flow of information. ¡°Oh, so there is something like a hidden driveway in the south?¡± ¡°Yep.¡± ¡°But isn¡¯t the castle of Falcacio on an extremely high cliff? How would they even manage to climb up that high?¡± As she asked this, Hines smiled and shook his head before answering. ¡°Haha, no way. If they try to climb up the cliff, they won¡¯t be able to reach the walls and will be wiped out way before.¡± ¡°Then¡­?¡± ¡°At the bottom of the cliff is an underground prison which leads to the Falcacio castle. It was a dungeon that a few rankers who were on the quest related to the Lich King have discovered last month.¡± ¡°Such places exist?¡± ¡°Yeah. It had been kept secret as it was hidden till now, however, I, Hines have obtained this information after asking a few people of the expedition.¡± ¡°Oh-oh, really? But is it alright to open the secret information this publicly?¡± ¡°Haha, it is all fine. The head of the expedition has given the permission. And the enemies are NPCs and the battle has already begun too.¡± ¡°Ah right¡­!¡± ¡°According to my analysis, the remaining three units are likely to infiltrate through the underground prison, and attract the attention from the castle.¡± Lucia nodded with a twinkle in her eyes. ¡°Sure! If the underground prison is cleared, it will get really easy to enter the castle grounds!¡± ¡°That is right. Which is why I think that the most powerful ones, Lotus and Titan would be the ones to enter that underground passage.¡± On the screen where Hines was floating, arrows were drawn to help the viewers understand the expedition that was moving. And the excitement was high right from the beginning as the start of the attack on the final boss got initiated. Many viewers were looking at the broadcast without taking their eyes off the screen, it was the same for the chief planner Na Ji-chan. As the rush of the past few days had settled down, he started to watch the broadcast again. Swash-! Na Ji-chan tore open the package of the potato chips as usual and was concentrating on the screen, he was so into the screen that he wouldn¡¯t even know if a thief had entered his home. His viewing point, however, seemed to be very different from what the others would watch. ¡®Huhu, you too are trying to attack the underground passage.¡¯ Staring at the screen, Na Ji-chan¡¯s lips went up to the corner making a nasty smirk. CH 476 The location where the Falcacio castle was located, would be a perfect location to be called as ¡®heavenly fortress¡¯. The best entry point on the south was from the outside of the cliff, and the three access roads had a rugged path which made it hard to reach. The topography was so terrifying that it even made Ian flustered were checking out the territory. He wasn¡¯t able to understand how the wall was supposed to be pierced. Riding on the cliff wasn¡¯t possible, and if they decide to attack via another route, it was obvious that too many troops will be lost while on the way there. It was because the path to turn around was entirely within the range of the defensive tower. In addition, since the Falcacio castle¡¯s defensive tower consisted of the highest-tier, which meant that the firepower of theirs was very great. The siege difficulty of the Falcacio castle was hard-core, it surely was the final boss of the episode. The concerned stricken Ian and expedition team were gathering the information that was enough to open their eyes. Just one day before, there were rankers who attacked the ¡®underground prison¡¯ dungeon of the Falcacio castle. Most of them belonged to the expedition, and it leads to the unexpected discovery of a route that would help them infiltrate the castle. A secret passage that would allow them to infiltrate the castle through the hidden passage. If the passage was used well, they would be able to enter the castle with minimal damage. Therefore, the moment the information was obtained, the last siege was going at a full swing. ¡°This is really like a god¡¯s guidance.¡± ¡°Right. For the people, continue attacking inside the dungeon for the expedition¡­ I¡¯m just glad.¡± ¡°What would we have done if we didn¡¯t have the route?¡± ¡°Phew, even the thought is making me crazy. Maybe as it is still the early days of the episode, all the troops were placed only on the outside.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°I agree. No matter how much we broke through, we don¡¯t have enough troops and might not have been able to resist them.¡± ¡°¡­¡± In the sieges that were done so far, almost half of the operation was done by Ian. Surely the other guilds who had strategists like Emily too were there, but most of them were completed by aligning the strategy with Ian. However, it was different this time. Anyone could see that a good strategy had been established right away, and the siege route was decided as soon as the leaders gathered. Ian had nothing to argue either. Honestly, in those times, he had no intention of raising an objection. ¡®Since there is no place to move, this is the best strategy that one could follow¡­¡¯ After the strategy meeting, Ian was starting to feel a little uncomfortable. Maybe it was something like a ¡®feel¡¯, however, Ian didn¡¯t speak to the other users about those feelings. Tackling with a fixed strategy while not having a solid foundation, it didn¡¯t fit the personality of Ian. ¡®Maybe I¡¯m feeling uneasy as it was very well laid out?¡¯ The reason for Ian to feel like it was simple. It seemed like someone¡¯s ¡®waiting for it¡¯ kind of situation, the solution that had come up was exactly right. Besides, it was the last castle, which meant that it had the highest level of difficulty¡ªthere was no way it would have been designed to be broken that easily, and this amplified the anxiety. However, it would be a simple dumbfounding to change a strategy due to unknown anxiety. ¡°Kheum¡­¡± Ian who was in charge of the elite unit that was going to infiltrate the underground bit his lip. The closer they got to the entrance of the underground prison, the more complicated the thoughts of Ian started to get. Fiolan who was walking right behind Ian asked Ian out of concern. ¡°Ian, what is it? Is something the problem¡­?¡± Ian scratched the back of his neck and put up a small smile. ¡°Ah, nothing. Not exactly a problem¡­¡± But the moment they were going to enter the prison, Ian stopped immediately as if something important had crossed his mind. ¡°¡­?¡± As a result, the troops of Lotus which were following Ian stopped in unison, and the troops of Shakran and the Titan¡¯s elite passed by. ¡°Hyung, what is it suddenly¡­?¡± Hoonie asked Ian with confusion registered in his eyes, but instead of answering, Ian turned his gaze to the back. He gestured to his retainer ¡®Celia¡¯ who was behind the unit. ¡°Celia, would you please come over here?¡± Shocked by the sudden call from Ian, Celia jumped forward. ¡°Yes, your majesty.¡± * * * ¡°Huhu, what did I say? The time of one week, didn¡¯t I tell you that it wasn¡¯t so short?¡± An eerie atmosphere caused by two unpleasantly shining lanterns in the room. A total of six to seven users were sitting together looking at something. And in them was a man with a red cloak and black mask, who spoke with a heavy voice. ¡°Surely Ian¡­ hmm, I admit whom I have to admit.¡± And one of the archer users, who was right next to him narrowed his eyes. ¡°That guy really has a downpour of luck. To be able to come up to the Falcacio castle this quickly, isn¡¯t it all because luck is on his side?¡± The other user who was right next to him nodded and agreed to those words. ¡°Even I agree with you. However, I don¡¯t plan on ignoring him or his abilities, however, I still feel like things are exaggerated around him as he has good luck.¡± The man in the black mask who spoke first shook his head and clicked his tongue. ¡°It seems like the two of you have been disconnected from the human world for way too long, haven¡¯t you two lost your senses?¡± At those words, the archer user was huffing back. ¡°What did you say? Lost our senses. If I had lost my senses, do you think I could¡¯ve placed my Royal Guild in the ranks of Devildom?¡± ¡°Well, I do accept your spirit in that, however, don¡¯t you think that every eyes sees things differently?¡± ¡°Kuem¡­¡± ¡°Ian definitely is an excellent player. So good to the point where no one here can be compared to him.¡± At those words of the man, the discomfort was clearly registered on the faces of all of them. And there was no one who argues against it. And the words of the same man followed again. ¡°Well, it seems like the time is getting closer.¡± This time, the man in a red cloak rose from his seat and opened his mouth. ¡°This time, it¡¯s time for payback.¡± At that time, the man nodded and smiled. ¡°Yeah, ¡®Irahan¡¯. Aren¡¯t you the one who has the most debt to Ian among all of us?¡± Thud-! From the red-cloaked man, who was called as Irahan, a heavy huff left his mouth. A huff that felt ¡®han¡¯ at the end. ¡°Right. I still haven¡¯t decided on how to pay back my debt.¡± Step-! As Irahan took a step, the red cloak on his back began to flutter. And subsequently, all the other characters who were there rose one after the other. And they all started to move to someplace. * * * ¨C Ah, Ian and Shakran! It has been two hours after entering the dungeon, and half of it has already been taken over! ¨C Hines, the last point that they crossed, was it the half point of the dungeon? ¨C Yeah, that is right! The Lich Knight that Ian and Shakran just killed in the air, was the boss of the dungeon. ¨C Aha! Is that so?! ¨C Don¡¯t be so surprised! I heard that this was the point that the first team took one day to reach. ¨C Yeah, really? ¨C Haha, really, that is so great? The first party that had entered the dungeon was of only 15 people, and now the expedition has over a hundred users, but even after taking that into consideration, I didn¡¯t think that they could go through the middle boss in just two hours. ¨C Wow. This is the elite of the human systems first and second place rankers! ¨C Right! If they defeat only three more named, they¡¯ll pass the secret passage to the castle instead of going to the boss zone! ¨C Oh oh, is that the information from the expedition? ¨C Yes, this the information from Emily the well-known ranker of the Titan guild and Carwin of Lotus Guild. ¨C Then it must be true! ¨C That is right. And opening up so much information on air means that they are confident about clearing it up? ¨C Lotus and Titan! I¡¯m just grateful for watching them. The huge screen was illuminating. The voice of the two casters flowed continuously, and a cracked voice responded while breaking the silence that was maintained in the room. ¡°Huhu, clearing confidence¡­¡± Na Ji-chan scoffed listening to the commentary of Hines from the speakers while still seated on the couch. The key creator of all the content was watching it, the Lotus and Titan trying to cross the ¡®River that cannot be crossed¡¯. ¡°Emily and Carwin, did they get any ads in the YTBC? They gave out so many details to Hines.¡± Na Ji-chan leaned back deeper into the sofa while keeping his hand on his chin. It was very difficult to keep his eyelids open due to the fatigue that he accumulated because of the long working hours, but falling asleep seemed a bit too unfair. Soon very ¡®interesting¡¯ scenes were going to follow. ¡®It was a stupid move to spread out information publicly on YTBC¡­ it sure is. Are you saying it all because you don¡¯t know that the episode is connected with the Devildom?¡¯ Na Ji-chan was already getting excited while watching the broadcast. Each component of the dungeon came out of his head, so every single scene where the rankers attacked the dungeon was very interesting to him. Then Na Ji-chan who was watching the broadcast soon began to speak out, ¡°Kya, how did you know of the booby traps that would pop out from the blind spot? Really Shakran¡­ your reaction rate is really amazing. How is an uncle in the 30s able to respond that quickly?¡± ¡°Keu, it hasn¡¯t been long since Ian had obtained the Phoenix; its abilities and how it applies? He really has a great understanding of the game.¡± Na Ji-chan started to feel sick while watching the play of Ian, he immediately went into his room and brought his laptop back to the living room. It was his original plan to not turn on his laptop as he was tired, however, he was getting frustrated while listening to the commentary of Hines as he turned on his laptop. It was frustrating as he wanted to explain the play of Ian god to the ignorant users. Na Ji-chan quickly turned on his laptop, quickly logged in with his nickname ¡®IanHusband¡¯ and went online. ¡®Ian, I hope you exceed my expectations this time too.¡¯ His hands moved on the keyboard as if knocking on a door. It was because the ¡®big event¡¯ was going to start soon. CH 477 The underground prison at the Falcacio Castle wasn¡¯t actually a content that was intended to use a ¡®trap¡¯. However, since the flow of the episode didn¡¯t go as planned, a role that wasn¡¯t thought of was being played. ¡®Human users are going to try for the Lich King very soon¡­ I never even thought of this.¡¯ The underground prison was actually a ¡®link¡¯ between the Devildom and the Legion of Darkness. If the episode had proceeded according to the existing scenario, the Lich King Chalian would have asked the help of Daedmon to help the Legion of Darkness take down the users of the human world. A route that the Devildom users could use to enter the human world was the underground prison of the Falcacio Castle. To be precise, the Chaos Gate that was opened in the third basement of the underground was a passage that was connecting the two dimensions. Na Ji-chan, laughed while watching the broadcast. ¡°In 10 minutes, they will enter the 3rd basement.¡± Was the Chaos Gate available indefinitely? Of course, that couldn¡¯t happen. If that was so, then most of the users of the Devildom would enter, which would cause the downfall of the balance of the episode. The Legion of Darkness itself was powerful enough to take on the human users, and if the infinite flow of the Devildom users came in, then the episode couldn¡¯t be cleared. Because of that, the Chaos Gate could be used by only a limited number of users of the Devildom. The gate could be used by clearing the very difficult ¡®Lich King Quest¡¯. In addition, the Chaos Gate could be available only once. The Chaos Gate would get activated once all the rankers of the Devildom meet the necessary conditions. Once they were near the underground prison, it would blow up. In other words, the Lich King was going with the concept of using the rankers of Devildom as mercenaries. But before the Devildom users could clear the quest of the Lich King, the Legion of Darkness had fallen way too fast. Before the mercenaries of the Devildom that the Lich King called could enter, the expedition of the humans had already reached the Falcacio Castle and discovered the presence of the underground prison. If the siege went according to plan, the underground prison of the dungeon shouldn¡¯t have existed. ¡°This is fun. This unforeseen development is going more exciting than planned.¡± Na Ji-chan was watching TV while laughing, forgetting all the hardships that he had gone through due to Ian. ¡°No no, you couldn¡¯t have taken the shortcut to easily clear the Falcacio Castle. The content of the final episode, right?¡± The underground prison was the ¡®shortcut¡¯ that one could take to easily enter from the defense line. Chalian could blow up the trap any time. That meant that the elite forces of Titan and Lotus had entered a ¡®trap¡¯ that could be blown any time. * * * Tring-! [You have defeated the final boss of the ¡®Underground prison¡¯ dungeon of Falcacio the ¡®Giant Dragon¡¯.] [The fame of all the party members has increased by 50,000!] [You have successfully cleared the ¡®Underground Prison¡¯ dungeon of Falcacio!] [After 2 minutes, you will be automatically moved out of the dungeon.] After defeating the giant dragon, the dungeon clear message had appeared in front of the user¡¯s eyes. If it was a normal scenario, then all the users would¡¯ve checked the maintenance of their equipment for a 2-minute duration before moving out of the dungeon. From the inside of the dungeon, the voice of Shakran rang out. ¡°Search for the secret passage! Somewhere on the 2nd floor, there will be an entrance to the 3rd floor!¡± 3rd floor. That was the secret passage of the Falcacio that would lead to the castle grounds. The rankers who cleared the dungeon accidentally came across the secret passage. However, they couldn¡¯t find the exact location of it. The Boss Zone where the boss of the dungeon was at had a terrain that changed randomly each time someone entered the dungeon. Because of that, all the expedition users ran in all directions to find the entrance of the secret passage. ¡°Emily, you go to the North!¡± ¡°Okay, Ceilron!¡± And Ian¡¯s familiars did the same. Ian went with Halli after activating the Guardian of Wind and began to scout all the corners of the map. [Time left before the dungeon reset (00:01:30).] Once the dungeon had reset, it would automatically warp everyone back to the entrance of the dungeon. Each time a second was wasted, the users would lose their minds. If they didn¡¯t find the entrance of the secret passage before the time limit, they would have to clear the dungeon once again from the beginning. And as time went by, the loss of troops on the outside of the castle would increase, so they had to find the entrance of the secret passage within the time limit. [Time remaining: 00:00:49] ¡°50 seconds left! Move faster!¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think that anyone has been in that direction yet. I¡¯ll move there!¡± The voices of tensed users could be heard everywhere. Not knowing that they were searching the way for the ¡®trap¡¯, the users were desperately trying to find the entrance. 10 seconds or more had passed. ¡°Found it!¡± The voice of someone rang through the dungeon, and a new system message appeared in the sight of all the users who were in there. Tring-! [The expedition member has found the hidden ¡®secret passage¡¯ entrance of the Falcacio Castle.] [The time remaining for ¡®Dungeon Reset¡¯ has been increased by 3 minutes.] [The entrance to the ¡®secret passage¡¯ dungeon leading to the Falcacio Castle has been opened.] [Do you want to enter the dungeon? (Y/N).] The users immediately accepted the system message. And subsequently, the vision of the users began to turn dark. * * * ¨C Indeed, Lotus and Titan! You have turned successful at finding the hidden dungeon in just one try! ¨C A dungeon within a dungeon. ¨C Although the system didn¡¯t give it a specific name, a dungeon that could be accessed through a dungeon was usually called a ¡®hidden dungeon¡¯. ¨C It went along with the word ¡®Hidden¡¯ because the rewards that users would get there were much more than the normal dungeons. ¨C And the dungeon that the users currently entered to ¡®Falcacio Secret Passage¡¯ was the same kind of dungeon. ¨C However, this case was a bit special. ¨C Well, at this point, we have no choice but to call in a special guest! Mr. Foren, nice to meet you! ¨C Hehet, hello, everyone. I am also a viewer of YTBC; it is an honor to be here! Foren was a personal broadcaster BJ who was famous for internet broadcasts. He had a high level of 370; he had good control and talked well, too. He also maintained a high level in the top personal broadcasting rankings. ¨C Nice to meet you, Mr. Foren. You have been watching the broadcast with a lot of excitement?. ¨C That, Miss Lucia has asked me to say that so, I did. ¨C Hahat, Hines. I¡¯m sure that there are many stories that you would like to share about Forens and you, but shall we put them off for now? ¨C That is right! At this very moment, the expedition team has broken through the ¡®secret passage¡¯ dungeon at a high speed, so there is no time to chat. ¨C Kay then, Mr. Foren, would you mind telling us the story when your party attacked the dungeon? ¨C From the ¡®Underground Prison¡¯ of Falcacio to the ¡®secret passage¡¯ dungeon. Since the first party that discovered the passage belonged to BJ Foren, he was invited as a guest on YTBC. Foren started to tell the whole thing. ¨C To think about it¡­ firstly, I only remember that everything is like hell. ¨C Haha, how hard was it for you to compare it with hell? ¨C After catching the giant dragon and before seeing the hidden dungeon. I just wanted to go home. ¨C Ho ho, that is something we don¡¯t easily relate to when we see the expedition of Ian and Shakran. ¨C Haha, it is an honor for our party to be compared with those monster party members¡­ After seeing the video, the viewers might think that it is a scam. ¨C Sca¡­ scam? ¨C Yeah. Firstly, can a level 480 dragon be caught within a time frame of 15 minutes? After seeing those video users like me enter the dungeon, it might just turn into a bloodbath. ¨C I don¡¯t think that is the way a ranker is supposed to speak, but¡­ ¨C In front of Ian God, level 370 would look like 37. ¨C Hahat, you think things like that might happen again? The broadcast was very exciting. First, the ¡®secret passage¡¯ of Falcacio was a dungeon and not a passage, which meant that high-level monsters would make an appearance, and the best rankers were in the expedition group, so great plays would surely be seen. Na Ji-chan, a planner, fell in love with the talk. ¡°Foren, huh? I¡¯ll have to watch some videos of that BJ next time. You¡¯re good at talking man.¡± Na Ji-chan began to fall further deep into the conversation of the broadcasters, forgetting what he was originally watching. However, that was just for a while, when suddenly Na Ji-chan¡¯s eyes began to shine. That was because the expedition team suddenly stopped breaking through the dungeon and started doing their maintenance. ¨C Uh, what happened? Why did the expedition team stop? ¨C Mr. Foren, do you have any idea as to what situation might have occurred in there? ¨C No, I only have vague guesses¡­ Let¡¯s look at the screen of Ian¡¯s. We aren¡¯t able to identify the situation as there is a lot of distance between us. The moment Hines said that the camera zoomed in on Ian. And Na Ji-chan, who checked the system message on the personal screen of Ian, mumbled with a smile, ¡°Ho ho, got it. Got it.¡± A single system message line in a red text was on the corner of the screen. [Chaos Gate has started to work.] [Heterogeneous energy can be felt from the inside of the dungeon.] Checkmate. No matter how great Ian was, there was no way he could escape it. The perfect trap had been triggered. At least that was what Na Ji-chan had thought. CH 478 ¡®Chaos Gate, huh? What the hell is that?¡¯ The anxiety Ian was feeling from the moment he stepped into the dungeon was still there. ¡°What is the Chaos Gate?¡± ¡°The message wasn¡¯t just for me, right?¡± ¡°Yeah, I think it was sent to all the members of the expedition. What could that be?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s calm down for a bit. Be careful and cautious while moving.¡± The party of the expedition that was going through the dungeon in an aggressive manner started to slow down their pace. None of them were able to figure out what a Chaos Gate was, and something that was unknown to them was triggered. They had all the more reason to be cautious. Ian asked the ranker ¡®Taipan¡¯ who was at the front of the party. As he was one of the first ones to discover the dungeon, Ian wanted to get any information he could. ¡°Hey, Taipan.¡± ¡°Uh, yes, Ian?¡± ¡°Do you know anything about the Chaos Gate?¡± ¡°We¡­ well. This is the first time I¡¯m hearing this as well¡­¡± The first discovery party of the dungeon didn¡¯t try the ¡®secret passage¡¯ of Falcacio till then. It was too burdensome for them as they knew that the passage led to the castle of Falcacio. Which was why Ian too didn¡¯t expect much from them, yet he felt a tinge of disappointment in Taipan¡¯s answer. ¡®I guess you don¡¯t know anything either. Even now, I want to get some clues¡­¡¯ Ian still had things he wanted to ask. ¡°Then by any chance, was there anything unusual now compared to the last time you guys were here?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Was there anything different now compared to the last time you cleared this dungeon? Any information you can give me would be helpful.¡± In Kailan, there was a special ¡®reward¡¯ that one would get for the first discovery and clearing a dungeon. In most cases, there were rewards like special connected quests or hidden stories appeared in Kailan. What Ian asked was the same, if he had gotten something of that sort. ¡°Hm¡­ now that I think about it, there was one thing.¡± ¡°Oh, what was it?¡± Suddenly all the heads of the expedition users turned in the direction of Ian and Taipan, everyone was looking intently for his next words. Taipan¡¯s words continued, ¡°I got a hidden episode after I caught the dragon. It didn¡¯t have any special rewards, and the content itself was so little, so I skipped it.¡± After hearing that, Ian¡¯s eyes began to gain a little hope. ¡°What do you remember about it?¡± ¡°Uh, well¡­ it was a story about the underground prison, and how many soldiers of the Devildom were locked up here a long time ago.¡± ¡°Is it possible for you to be any more specific?¡± ¡°Uhm, well¡­¡± The story that Taipan was saying wasn¡¯t special. To summarize his story, the underground prison of the Falcacio Castle was first designed to trap the Asmodians of the Devildom during the invasion that happened thousands of years ago. However, as the northern part of the central continent got sealed by the Gods, the Falcacio Castle became uninhabitable ruins, and the Asmodians inside the prison were forgotten. It was a natural scenario as they were cut off from the outside world by the power of God. Hundreds of years later, the underground prison was rediscovered by the humans who came to explore the northern regions. However, the prisoners were no longer there. Somehow, the Asmodians¡ªwho were trapped¡ªleft the premises without leaving a single trace. Instead, there was a huge explosion that was left in the prison. That was the full story. Ian was puzzled after hearing the story. ¡°That is it?¡± ¡°Yes. And in the last part, the secret passage opened. Maybe the next content would have come if I entered.¡± ¡°Ah, is that so?¡± Ian¡¯s head began to work again. The information that Ian just heard was in fact something Ian knew about. ¡®So this prison was a place where the Asmodians were locked in¡­ What was so special about the Amsodians that they just went up and disappeared? Or the sign of explosion?¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyebrows started to get close. ¡®Taipan thinks the next part of the story might come at the end of the dungeon¡­¡¯ It wasn¡¯t like there was no room analogy, but the scope was too vast, which made it tough for Ian to guess or predict. ¡®The Asmodian soldiers have disappeared to somewhere only leaving the explosion as a trace. What could the next part of the story be?¡¯ And it wasn¡¯t just Ian who was concerned. All the rankers were well aware of the fact that Kailan¡¯s content often left clues in each of its little stories. And while the users of the expedition were trying to use their heads, the party was taking one step after the other. The progress of the ¡®secret passage¡¯ of Falcacio had already exceeded 50 percent. However, after a while, a low voice rang through the whole dungeon. [How dare you all challenge my authority¡­?] [Trivial humans, you will pay the price for your actions!] The voice was rough and low but heavy and creepy. Ian heard the whole dungeon resonate, and the voice seemed somewhat familiar. ¡®What the? I¡¯m sure I heard this somewhere before¡­?¡¯ Ian quickly started to recollect, and with his good memory, he remembered who the voice belonged to. ¡°Ah, Chalian¡­!¡± The King of Undead whom he encountered in the Devildom. This was the voice of the Lich King Chalian. After hearing the mumbling of Ian, Shakran asked, ¡°Chalian? How do you know it is his voice?¡± ¡°I met him the other day.¡± ¡°What is that supposed to¡­?¡± The answer from Ian wasn¡¯t welcomed by Shakran, but Shakran couldn¡¯t ask questions anymore. The situation inside the dungeon began to change drastically. Kung- Kung- Kung! From behind the expedition, a huge roar started to come. ¡°What is that? Our retreat is blocked!¡± ¡°What? This was a trap?¡± ¡°Dammit!¡± The secret passage that the party went through got blocked by huge piles of stones. ¡°¡­!¡± Even Shakran who normally doesn¡¯t get shaken in such conditions was completely shaken at the turn of events. Only Ian who had foreseen this situation to some extent was the only one maintaining a minimum level of calmness. ¡®Even if we overcome this trap, will we be able to continue?¡¯ He was keen to deal with the situation that was to come. Successive system messages started to appear in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. [Chaos Gate has been opened.] [The charging of Chaos Gate has started now.] Woong-! With a huge resonance emerging from the center of the dungeon, a blood-red colored smoke started to bloom. It gradually started to take some form. The system messages continued. [Certain conditions have been met.] [¡®Sudden quest¡¯ has been created.] [¡®Destroy the Chaos Gate¡¯ quest will be initiated.] An unexpected quest window came up in front of the eyes of Ian, who was trying to find a solution. ¨C ¨C ¨C Destroy the Chaos Gate (Hidden) (Sudden) You have succeeded in conquering the underground prison and in discovering the ¡®secret passage¡¯ that was hidden inside of it. The hidden underground passage was built hundreds of years ago leading to the castle grounds of the Falcacio. But in the process of going through the underground, a huge problem arose. The Chaos Gate, which was asleep in the secret passage, began to work somehow. The Chaos Gate is a dimensional portal created by the Asmodian soldiers of the Devildom who had been trapped in the underground as a means to return to their Devildom dimension. It is still unknown why the dimensional portal has begun to work again, but if the gates are left open, the Asmodians and monsters of the Devildom will pass through. Hurry up and destroy the Chaos Gate to avoid the worst outcome. If the Chaos Gate is successfully destroyed before getting fully charged, the magical beasts, monsters, and Asmodians won¡¯t be able to get out. Quest difficulty: SSSS Quest Condition: Creation of a quest of ¡®Chaos Gate¡¯ while attacking the ¡®secret passage¡¯ of Falcacio. Remaining time until the Choas Gate activates: 19 minutes, 59 seconds Destroy the Chaos Gate to complete the quest. Reward: Unknown Rewards may vary according to the user. * Those who read the quest couldn¡¯t help but feel much more flustered. * * * ¡°Kukuku, you¡¯ll surely be flustered. Even though you are Ian, there is no way you wouldn¡¯t get flustered.¡± While looking at the wide TV screen, Na Ji-chan couldn¡¯t help laugh out loud. Na Ji-chan was never this happy when watching the recent broadcasts of Kailan. He wanted to monitor the pain that Ian would experience from it. His heart fluttered whenever Ian displayed anomalous behavior. He always felt like his heart was being pierced. ¡°Yeah, shouldn¡¯t Ian God experience failure at least once?¡± For Na Ji-chan, Ian was a lovable being. As a fan, he had infinite respect and affection for him, but as a planner, he was a terrible content destroyer. Which was why, in the mind of Na Ji-chan, his support for Ian as well as his desire for Ian to fail coexisted. ¡®Huhu, this wouldn¡¯t have happened if you¡¯d not have done the public announcement¡­¡¯ Na Ji-chan was looking at the movements of the rankers of the Devildom along with that of the human world. Because of that, he understood the situation perfectly than anyone else. ¡®Thanks to that stupid Emily and Carwin, you fell into the trap.¡¯ The Chaos Gate must remain active for the trap to work, and as also mentioned in the quest conditions of the quest window. Maybe the party of Ian could be thinking that the Chaos Gate was working as they broke through the dungeon. However, the reality was different. The Chaos Gate¡¯s operation was connected to the quest done my the Asmodians, and not due to the humans. In other words, the rankers who were in the process of doing the quests in the Devildom were able to grasp the whole situation in real-time because of the videos given by YTBC¡¯s broadcast. The Chaos Gate would then be activated then trap the users. Then how would the siege have gone if the announcement wasn¡¯t made public? ¡®Maybe the expedition would¡¯ve never entered the secret passage.¡¯ Normally, the rankers of the Devildom were supposed to operate the Chaos Gate a few days earlier, and the secret passage should have already been closed by the time the expedition reached Falcacio Castle. However, as the expedition¡¯s actions were exposed on the TV broadcast, the Devildom users could use the trap. ¡°Kay then, how long will the expedition last? should I try guessing it?¡± Maybe if Ian, no, Ian, and all the best rankers had to prevent the many legions of the undead before the Chaos Gate got activated. But in the end, the gate would be forced to work, and the rankers of the Devildom were all as powerful as the elites of Lotus and Titan. ¡°Even if they all overcome it¡­ it will be pointless.¡± Na Ji-chan had a menacing smile on his face while watching the broadcast once again. The broadcast was now getting much more interesting for him. CH 479 The huge hammer of Thor fell on the floor with golden energy. Kwang- Kwang-! As the dust spread out around it, the whole area started to vibrate. Seeing the rock crumble, Celia opened her mouth. ¡°This is really¡­. Falling¡­!¡± Kukukung-! As the dust subsided, passages were being created between. The ignorant hammering of Thor created a small canyon. ¡®Surely, our majesty is great!¡¯ Thought Celia with her gleaming eyes while staring at the back of Thor. And it wasn¡¯t just Celia who saw the scene. Hundreds of expedition troops who were behind her witnessed it. ¡°Oh-oh, if we can cross over here, we might really do it!¡± ¡°Yeah. Aren¡¯t we going to cross over the wall before the elite troops even infiltrate the secret passage?¡± ¡°Kue, by the way, why didn¡¯t we hear this operation in advance, why did it come out suddenly?¡± ¡°Well, the thought suddenly came into the mind of Ian. In fact, we didn¡¯t have a lot of troops, wasn¡¯t it a waste to draw the attention from the tower?¡± Before entering the underground prison. Ian gave Celia a special order. ¨C Celia. ¨C Yes, your majesty. ¨C I¡¯ll leave you with Thor, so move over to the east side of the outer wall? ¨C Uh hu¡­? ¨C The defense tower on the west side is too strong, and the terrain is a bit too bent, so there is no solution out there, however, you will be able to get over the rocky peaks if you have Thor with you. ¨C Sorry? Crossing the peaks? I¡¯m not able to understand¡­ ¨C If you look over there, see that relatively low rocky wall? ¨C Ah, yes, I see it. It looks a bit depressed in parts! ¨C I¡¯ll set aside the expedition troops, take Thor and go over there right away. ¨C And then? ¨C What do you think? Take it out. ¨C ¡­! ¨C Those rocks can be pierced if Thor hits on it for an hour. ¨C Do you want to break open that rock? ¨C Yeah. If you manage to cross over there, you can travel straight to the east wall. ¨C Ah! ¨C Celia, please. Trying to put the whole hope on the secret passage is a bit too risky. ¨C Hu¡­ I¡¯ll see to it, majesty! Please believe me! ¨C Thank you, Celia. Feeling some level of uncertainty about the underground prison, Ian though of making the most of the situation that he was in. ¡®If the underground is something like a trap, then the legion of darkness will be concentrated in there than on the outer side.¡¯ Incase what Ian felt was right about the dungeon, he thought of using the situation to breakthrough using another route. ¡®Look for the gap when the enemy troops are in the underground prison. If you can go through that rocky wall and reach the east wall at once, that will be all we need.¡¯ However, if the secret passage in the underground wasn¡¯t a trap, then it wouldn¡¯t be that easy for the strategy to work. If the enemy troops are all normally headed, then it would be difficult to cross the wall with the troops placed on the outside. However, if such a situation did arise, then Ian¡¯s elite group would¡¯ve had already infiltrated the castle, and crossing the eastern wall wouldn¡¯t be needed. Because the troops of Ian who have infiltrated the castle would open the main gates of the Falcacio castle. In other words, sending Celia along with Thor was just like insurance. Kung- Kung- Kung-! Thor was hammering shortly, and slowly a passage was made between those rocky peaks for the expedition team to move while saving time. And Yu Shin, who was in charge of the expedition on the east side, raised his flag and shouted, ¡°Okay, let¡¯s show the skills of our Fulios members too! We can¡¯t leave everything to Ian alone.¡± ¡°Wah!¡± A variable was emerging in the east of Falcacio fields, as well as for the legion of darkness that was in the castle, and Hines was eagerly trying to relay the information of the battle. * * * ¡®How to break it?¡¯ The Chaos Gate that was burning red gradually started to take a form¡­ Finding the information of the Chaos Gate turned them all down. ¨C Chaos Gate Durability: 162,800,000 / 162,800,000 Time remaining until operation: 00: 15: 23 ¡®Is this really a quest that needs to be broken?¡¯ The Chaos Gate had a crazy durability of 160 million. Its defense couldn¡¯t be determined, but it was certain that it couldn¡¯t be broken in any normal manner. Of course, it would work if the gate was attacked constantly for the 20 minutes without any interruption, but it wasn¡¯t like they would be given a situation with no interruption. Many troops of the darkness legion had already entered the battlefield. All that to keep the Chaos Gate into working. All Ian could do was bite down his lip and swing his spear steadily. Kwang- Bang-! [You have caused deadly damage to the named monster ¡®Death Knight Karayan¡¯!] [Vitality of the ¡®Death Knight Karayan¡¯ has been reduced by 1,270,983!] They were far from trying to break the gate, even approaching the gate was tough. And as a result, in the head of Ian¡¯s, his order to Celia and Thor had come up. ¡®Uh, if I knew that such a crazed quest would be generated by coming here, I would have brought in Thor¡­¡¯ However, it was just a thought that rose due to the frustration. The fact that having Thor in there with him wouldn¡¯t have caused much difference and Ian knew that better than anyone. The hammer of Thor was indeed powerful, but it wasn¡¯t invincible. Even if it was Thor, trying to take the gate would have been in the odds. Swooah-! Wide arranged attack spells started to take form due to the spells of Hoonie, and at the same time, Helliem¡¯s new type of dark form appeared, making him disappear into the darkness. Swah-! It was all thanks to the Dark Vision, a unique ability to hit the enemies of the dark attribute in the dark, the combination of Hoonie and Helliem was like a fantasy come true. Kung- Kung-! Helliem¡¯s shadow form flashed into motion assassinating the main units of the legion of darkness. Specifically, the completely alive dark magicians were the main target as they demanded a high level of attack. ¡°Kiyaa, this guy is a dark knight! Isn¡¯t he the son of darkness?! Why is he attacking us?¡± Screamed a dark warrior after taking in a single attack, however, the sword of Helliem didn¡¯t know about mercy. ¡°I am Helliem, the loyal servant for the Lotus!¡± Kwang-! As a result, a purple glow burst out, and the dark magician fell down turning into ashes. In the distance of Helliem was a Knight of death who was about to swing his sword, but unfortunately, Ian had seen that. ¡°Helliem, behind!¡± Tatt-! At the fearful order from Ian, Helliem twisted his waist diagonally. [Retainer ¡®Helliem¡¯ has evaded the attack from the Knight of Death.] [The unique ability of the retainer ¡®Helliem¡¯, ¡®Dark Strike¡¯ has been triggered.] With those two lines of system messages, Helliem once again blended into the darkness. Srrk-! And naturally, he appeared behind the Knight of Death and sent his sword through him. Puck-! It was the passive ability of Helliem, he evaded the incoming attack and appeared behind the target, and dealt with 150% of the damage to the target. At the powerful attack from Helliem when the opponent was in a defenseless state, even a level 430 death knight would have succumbed. Helliem¡¯s damage that was dealt at level 470 was currently the strongest when compared to all the expedition members. [You have successfully killed the ¡®Death Knight¡¯!] [Earned the experience of 32,827,509.] Ian knocked down five named monsters with his perfect control, however, Ian didn¡¯t have a bright expression like he always had. ¡®Is there, is there no way out of this?¡¯ The very moment, time was passing by very rapidly, and even though the gate wasn¡¯t accessed yet, they only had ten minutes of time left. ¡®It seems breaking it would be impossible¡­ that is a fact. I need to find something else.¡¯ After giving up on destroying the Chaos Gate, Ian¡¯s head started to work once again. And the first thing that entered Ian¡¯s mind was, of course naturally, on how to escape. ¡®Should I try using the Beads of Dimension? Is there no way on trying to avoid them for 3 seconds straight?¡¯ Ian¡¯s best choice was to use the Bead of Dimension which allowed him to go to any place that he has been to more than once. However, it took 3 seconds of casting time for the dimensional door to open with the beads, just as Ian said. And in case he takes in even a little damage while casting it, the portal would get canceled. However, that wasn¡¯t the only problem. Even if the portal was opened successfully, it was very obvious that the escape would be devastating. ¡®The gate can¡¯t be entered all at once, the time of the beads might run out too.¡¯ There were too many limitations for using it. ¡®In addition, once the gate is opened, anyone could enter it without any difference. The Undead can enter and hinder our movement. If that happens, then there is no way out of that situation.¡¯ Bounce-! Ian bounced off an Undead and rushed back to take a short breath. Rather than killing the Undead right away, finding a way out of the situation seemed to take priority in the head of Ian. ¡®Jinsung, stay calm. There must be a way. There is a risk of caving in if this collapses¡­!¡¯ But the very moment, Ian¡¯s head stopped working, his eyes went wide at the realization. ¡°Yeah! That is it!¡± He suddenly clenched his fist and shouted out loud. Hearing the voice of Ian in that tone, Shakran approached him and asked, ¡°Did you find a way out, kid?¡± It was the feeling to hold onto even to a straw as the last resort, however, it was the only moment when taking over Shakran, who wasn¡¯t the priority for Ian. ¡°¡­¡± With a smirk on his face, Ian opened his mouth towards Shakran. ¡°Uncle, let¡¯s give up on breaking the gate.¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t that¡­¡± ¡°Oh, hurry up. There is another way.¡± ¡°What?¡± Ian smiled at Shakran who was still puzzled and pointed his finger at the Chaos Gate which was now nearing completion. ¡°Before that gate opens, take me forward please.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Me from here, I¡¯ll take us out of here.¡± CH 480 ¡°Haha, even if it is Ian and Shakran, it will be hard to break the Chaos Gate.¡± Irahan¡¯s gaze was looking at the red gate that was forming in front of his eyes with a smile on his face. ¨C Chaos Gate Durability: 131,751,624 / 162,800,000 (80.92 percent) Time remaining until operation: 00: 03: 11 There was no way to see how the battle was going on through the gate, however, the vitality of the gate could be confirmed from the Devildom. Because of that, the users of Devildom, all had smiles on their faces. ¡°Huhu, this making me jittery all over the body?¡± ¡°Three minutes left, they couldn¡¯t even cut down 20 percent of the durability of the gate till now.¡± ¡°The human world users seem to be much weaker than our expectation.¡± ¡°I know, right. Even I thought that they would be able to cut down around half of the durability.¡± The users of Devildom had a lot of thoughts running in their heads as they were going to fight the human users after a very long time. And that too, as it was a battle that they would never lose. ¡®No matter how powerful they actually are, they won¡¯t be able to take us down when we have the buff of the Lich King.¡¯ Dozens of rankers of the Devildom gathered in front of the Chaos Gate. They were all the users who cleared the quest of the Lich King. And in the course of the quest, the moment they pass through the Chaos Gate they would be given a strong buff. In addition, human users wouldn¡¯t be ready to fight the asmodians. With the human rankers already losing power while fighting the legion of darkness, it just didn¡¯t make sense for the human users to win against a new bunch of amsodian rankers. ¡°Now we have 2 minutes left.¡± At those words of Limlong, Irahan nodded and replied, ¡°Right.¡± Irahan was grinding his teeth and muttering something. ¡°This time, I¡¯ll smash you in the right way, Ian.¡± ¡°Ho, you¡¯re sure about that?¡± ¡°Obviously. If I won¡¯t be able to catch that guy in such a favoring situation for me, won¡¯t it be right for me to just delete my character and leave Kailan?¡± Hearing that whisper between those two, Samuel Jin decided to pull the leg of Shakran. ¡°Well, aren¡¯t you supposed to make promises that you can actually keep?¡± At those words, Irahan turned his head in a very fearsome way and responded, ¡°There will never come a situation where I¡¯ll have to fold off my game in Kailan, so you don¡¯t need to concern yourself with it.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t look like I¡¯m talking to the guy who got 10 levels taken away from Ian.¡± Oops-! In the past, Irahan had experienced more than ten deaths due to the persistent attacks from Ian. In other words, due to the death penalty, Irahan had lost more than 10 levels. That was what Samuel Jin was referring about, that was like a ruin for Irahan. ¡°Man, I¡¯ll start by killing you first.¡± ¡°Really? Then try if you can.¡± Bang-! Irahan and Samuel Jin started to pounce on each other, giving off intensive stares. Limlong who was watching this from the side shook his head and tried to mediate the situation. ¡°Woah, woah. We have one minute left. We should be doing this between ourselves, shouldn¡¯t we go and take down those human users?¡± ¡°Huu¡­¡± ¡°Irahan, your reasoning for that time was the magic-resistance power that Ian had. But now while the legion of darkness is attacking, Ian can¡¯t have his setting to magic-resistance and we have the buff of the Lich King. So Irahan you can actually prove yourself this time.¡± Limlong worked really hard to mediate between those two and tried to uphold the pride of Irahan. No matter how favorable the situation was for them, it would be difficult if they had internal conflicts right before the battle with the human users started. ¡®Hu, they are all idiots with a brain full of sh*t.¡¯ Limlong couldn¡¯t help shaking his head and cursing Irahan and Samuel Jin inside. Gaze went towards the system message that was floating above the gate. * * * ¡°There is another way to break it?¡± ¡°I just said that.¡± ¡°Kid, how do you plan on doing it?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have the time to explain it right now, why don¡¯t you just put some trust in me, uncle?¡± ¡°Kuhm, fine. I¡¯ll trust you, only this once.¡± Though he was hesitant, it didn¡¯t take long for Shakran to decide. Despite the fact that the lives of many guild members were on it, he decided boldly. Although the user was ¡®Ian¡¯¡ªin whom he had a basic level of confidence in what he decided, however, it wasn¡¯t easy to take such a decision in the situation. If it was some other regular rankers and not Shakran, then they wouldn¡¯t have proceeded with the request, unless listening to the whole explanation from Ian. ¡®I like uncle the most when he does things like this.¡¯ A bold decision followed by a quick response. This was enough to show how profound the play of Shakran was. ¡°From now on, focus on the path! Focus all the firepower in the center!¡± After fearful orders fell from the mouth of Shakran, Ian summoned Hargasus. Hing-! It was because in the current situation there was no one who was competent as Hargasus in clearing the path till the gate. ¡®If we are able to descend well, we can absorb more than 90% of the damage.¡¯ The unique ability of Hargasus ¡®descend¡¯ came with the ability to take in all the damage when triggered. But the descend skill, as the name implied couldn¡¯t rise into the air. It was a skill that could be activated by jumping into the air. However, on the current terrain, the story was different. A secret passage that looked like an explosion site. The Chaos Gate that was being created was at the center of a huge crater, so the zone was lower when moved closer to the gate. In other words, it was a situation where he could use descend without having to jump off the floor again. ¡®If the inclination was a bit more, then it would¡¯ve been very comfortable. However, this is fine too.¡¯ Hargasus activated the descend skill and slide down the arena into the air. And in order to absorb the damage, he has to disable the descend and then activate it again. As the moment it gets triggered was the only point where the damage was absorbed. Therefore, with decent control, the descend had to be on and off when the enemy attacks. If so, then could the ability of descend absorb an infinite amount of attacks from the enemy? There was no way that could have happened. The descend could be triggered only when in the air. At the moment of turning the descend on and off, the Hargasus falls vertically. The more the on and off of the descend, the faster was the fall to the floor. In other words, the farther one was from the place, the more often can the descend be triggered. Ian wanted to make the most of the slope and approach the gate with minimal damage. ¡°Hargasus, descend!¡± The black wings spread out of Hargasus and dark energy began to emanate all around it. It was for a passing moment. Ian¡¯s control over the short timing and stopping the attacks were quite incredible. ¡°One dealer, stop hitting the gate, and try to open the path in front of me!¡± Ian ordered in a loud voice and quickly rushed to the gate avoiding the Undead. And his sight noticed something on the gate. [Time remaining until operation: 00: 00: 23] ¡®Nice, I can do it!¡¯ Almost on a touching distance, the Chaos Gate was being approached. Ian clenched his teeth and shook his spear. Kwang- Kwangg-! [You have successfully caused deadly damage to the dark legion¡¯s ¡®Skeleton Warrior¡¯!] [You have successfully defeated the Skeleton Warrior!] [You have successfully defeated the ¡®Death Knight¡¯!] The defense of the Undead wasn¡¯t so easy. Later they knew the fact that Ian was approaching the Gate which made the scattered troops block everything in front of him. ¡®Uh, this part needs to be drilled a little more¡­¡¯ Time limit that was counting the very moment. [Time remaining until the operation: 00:00:07] The remaining distance of the Chaos Gate was very less, almost just 5 meters, however before it could be reached¡ªthree seconds were left. For the plan of Ian to work, there was a need for exactly three seconds. ¡°Haaaa!¡± Ian¡¯s spear hit the dark golem¡¯s thighs that was in front of him. Kwang-! [You have caused deadly damage to the ¡®Dark Golem¡¯ of the darkness legion.] [The vitality of the ¡®Dark Golem¡¯ is reduced by 1,698,092.] Ian used the dark golem as a stepping stone and used it to recoil into the air once again. Right then, the message that Ian had been waiting for had appeared in front of him. [The unique ability of the item ¡®Judgement of the Spirit King¡¯, ¡®Connect¡¯ has been activated.] Ian squeezed onto the handle of the spear nor even realizing it. ¡®Please¡­ guardian of wind!¡¯ The best skill that could be utilized in the current situation with ¡®connect¡¯ was the unique ability of Halli, the ¡®Guardian of Wind¡¯. But among the familiars of Ian which were summoned, there wasn¡¯t any unique ability that could be used. [Familiar ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯ has responded to connect.] [Activated the unique ability of familiar ¡®Bbakbbak¡¯, ¡®Absolute Defense¡¯.] [You will be invincible for 5 seconds. (Because of the physical condition, 50% of the original factor has been applied.)] Bbakbbak¡¯s unique ability ¡®Absolute Defense¡¯ has been triggered. But in the current situation where he had to pass through the Undead in front of him, this was a worthless ability. However, Ian decided to go ahead without any disappointment. ¡®Well, I can do it this way.¡¯ Thinking of a way immediately, Ian raised his spear to the air. And loudly ordered to Pin who was busy attacking someone in the air. ¡°Pin, rush towards the gate!¡± Kiyaah-! All the eyes of the enemy were trying to find a way to fill the gap. Swak-swak-! Pin rushed towards the gate at high speed, almost emitting a large amount of profanity around it. Subsequently, from the mouth of Ian came the skill ¡®Space Warp¡¯ after a very long time. ¡°Space Distortion!¡± Woong-! Ian¡¯s survival skills made Ian move at a speed similar to that of his familiar. Using that, Ian moved over to the gate. And that wasn¡¯t just the end. The time remaining for the gate to operate was exactly 3 seconds. There was a ¡®bead¡¯ that was shining very brightly in the hand of Ian. ¡°Get f*cked, you bastards!¡± And the next moment, another purple shinning gate appeared on top at the very coordinate where the Chaos Gate was opened. CH 481 Ian¡¯s idea of ¡®a great play¡¯ wasn¡¯t something else. It was the Dimensional Bead that he had received from Gripper. The dimensional bead was an item that one could use to move to a place that he or she had visited before. An item that could open a portal anywhere. They would install the dimensional portal at the same time the Chaos Gate opened, and the Asmodians would pass over to another space as soon as they came through it. This was the novel solution that Ian had come up with. ¡®Kue, I think I just admired myself.¡¯ Ian was praising himself out of admiration. However, there was still one thing that he was worried about. It was where to send the Asmodians that were supposed to enter. ¡®Who will be coming from the Devildom? Are the NPC monsters and magical beasts coming, or the users of the Devildom? Where is the best choice to send them?¡¯ The first place that Ian thought of was to return them back to the Devildom where they came from. However, he soon realized that it wasn¡¯t appropriate. ¡®I can¡¯t do that as I don¡¯t know how long the Chaos Gate will be open.¡¯ If the Chaos Gate stayed longer than the dimensional door, then they might come over once again. That strategy was simply an invalid solution. If so, then how should they be stopped? The next place that came into the mind of Ian was the Dragon¡¯s Altar, an unknown portal where Ian almost entered. ¡®Yeah, they won¡¯t be able to come back easily. If my guess is right, there is the Middle-earth¡­¡¯ Middle-Earth. Right among the Dragon Altar. If the Asmodians were sent to the Dragon¡¯s Altar, which was believed to be the domain of the Dragon God Seikaito, they wouldn¡¯t be able to return to the human world. But another thought crossed the mind of Ian. There was a problem with that. ¡®No. Not there either. I still haven¡¯t even stepped in there.¡¯ It was unacceptable for the First to Discover reward of the Middle-Earth to be given to the users of Devildom. Then the last place was¡­ ¡®Yeah, that will be great. I need to have some trust in myself, too.¡¯ As soon as the Chaos Gate opened, another dimensional door was created at the same time. * * * Kang- Ka- Kang-! At regular intervals, a cheerful beep started to ring. In the capital of the Lotus Kingdom, the Pyro Domain, the most prosperous city, construction was happening in a full swing. The most prosperous and fastest-growing city. The Pyro Domain collected the most taxes than any other estate, which was why new buildings constantly got built. The Pyro Domain was the most well-preserved, including its fortification, as it shared borders with other kingdoms. Perhaps they had the most high-leveled tier of a castle or the most outstanding defensive tower of the NPC kingdoms. ¡°Hold on! Not that way, it is this way, Han. Turn a little more to the left side!¡± ¡°Oh, alright! Graham, you are a great architect. There is a reason why our majesty chose to work with you.¡± ¡°Ha ha ha, obviously. I¡¯m the great architect of the Colonnare continent.¡± ¡°Ohhh!¡± The user named ¡®Graham¡¯ had grey hair. A dwarf was having a warm conversation with him. The two of them had been in contact, and their communication had been going on for over a year. The one who introduced them to each other was none other than Ian. ¡®Keu, why is it that I haven¡¯t been gaining many friends in the real word? I met a friend who can understand my architectural philosophy in the virtual reality game¡­¡¯ Park Si-young, a professor in the Department of Architecture at the Korea University, who was a close friend of Lee Jin-wook. His Kailan ID was ¡®Graham¡¯. ¡®Huhu, if I could, I would want to block everything and live in Kailan all day long.¡¯ Graham, or Park Si-young, wasn¡¯t a huge fan of games. He wasn¡¯t in the age to like games, but he was someone who thought that ¡®architecture¡¯ was the only interesting thing in life. In addition, because of his sons who were always playing games, they became tired and got bored with it. However, after he started playing Kailan due to Lee Jin-wook, he was under a completely different idea. Nowadays, his sons felt that he was losing his self-control. And the reason was simple. In Kailan, he was able to do his favorite architecture indefinitely. In the beginning, he used to shake his head when Lee Jin-wook used to ask. At first, he thought that there would be a lack of reality aspect as it was a game. Even then, he was curious about it and wanted to see the game for himself. Almost like a black hole. ¡°How in the word was such an engine physics be developed for the game? Shouldn¡¯t a Nobel Prize be given to such dynamic creations?¡± ¡°This¡­ really crazy, huh?! Here I get to build everything that I want to build!¡± And since then, he had been playing the game like an addict and moved his career up as an architect. However, the road to being an architect was tough. The cost of performing architecture in Kailan wasn¡¯t much different from the real world. He hunted very hard to earn more money, and he didn¡¯t hesitate even if he spent all day hunting. However, one day, he was introduced to a guy named ¡®Park Jinsung¡¯ through his close friend Lee Jin-wook. ¡°Si-young, he is my prized student. He will be able to provide you with infinite work.¡± Lee Jin-wook couldn¡¯t be more correct in saying that. Jin-wook¡¯s student with the ID of ¡®Ian¡¯ really gave him work. It was literally a blessing for Si-young. Lotus, the fastest growing guild in Kailan. From small estates up to the kingdoms, there was no city that was untouched by Si-young. It was the dream of any architect to construct buildings starting from urban planning. ¡°Oh, this city is a work of mine!¡± And the cities that were born in the hands of the prominent architect were more beautiful than any city in Kailan. Though it was a thing to feel proud about, it was all because of the help he had received from Lotus. ¡°Professor that is amazing!¡± ¡°Huhu, you think so?¡± ¡°Now, go to the Milner Domain.¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°Starting with the overall planning of the city, I¡¯ll leave everything to you¡ªprofessor. The budget is 37 billion gold.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± And then one day, fate made Professor Park Si-young met ¡®Han¡¯. The dwarf that Ian had brought from the Devildom. He made a suggestion to Si-young, and it was enough to appeal to the professor. ¡°Human, why not build a fortress with me?¡± ¡°If you¡¯re not aware, I have already designed many of them.¡± ¡°No, no. I¡¯m not talking about any ordinary fortress.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°The range of all the defensive towers and the siege forces. Let¡¯s make a perfect fortress that has a great range of mages and siege weapons.¡± ¡°Oho.¡± ¡°That is at least the level of perfection that can¡¯t be attacked unless one had ten times the defense.¡± Since then, Graham had been the resident of the Pyro Domain. The defense that had originally been built of the estate of Pyro were the works of Graham, but he began to take it down as he wanted a fresh start. And today was the same. There was a castle that hadn¡¯t been used since the imperial war, and Han along with Graham were constantly hammering. For them, the current place was a ¡®work¡¯ rather than their concept of defense. Kang- Kang- Kang-! Each time Han moved his hammer, the defense of the fortress began to take shape. And as he saw it, Graham smiled with satisfaction. ¡°Huhu, if someone falls in here, they would really taste hell.¡± ¡°Right. If we, the ones who made this confusing maze don¡¯t know the way out, how would some random person know it?¡± ¡°Well, the siege won¡¯t be able to get over this, right?¡± ¡°If the siege can get here, that is.¡± ¡°Keuk. If you put it that way, then it means that it is impossible for the enemies to get here.¡± ¡°Well, that is.¡± One word after the other, the two people really went well together. However, Graham suddenly noticed something. ¡°Uh, Han, look over there!¡± ¡°What is it, Graham?¡± ¡°A portal is opening up there!¡± At those words from Graham, Han moved his head in the direction. They saw a purple portal slowly opening. The two had no idea what it was, but they began to look with an exciting look. They saw powerful enemies from the portal. They could see now the true value of what they created. The two were actually hoping for a Devildom wave to start. ¡°Invasion! All defense towers get ready!¡± ¡°Invoke a slow trap at that coordinate!¡± ¡°No one should be able to get to the fortress!¡± The defense troops of the Pyro Domain began to move in unison. But after a while, the excited expression of the two of them went down after a while. They were expecting some mighty magical beast to be summoned out of the purple gate. However, the one who was expecting was the dwarf. There was no way for the two people to check what was going to come out of the portal. The moment the portal started to open, dozens of towers were opened and directed at the point of the portal. Kwang- Kwang-! However, system messages blocked the sight of Graham. [Defense Tower ¡®C-76¡¯ defeated the Devildom User ¡°Irahan¡±.] [Defense Tower ¡®C-63¡¯ defeated the Devildom user ¡®Samuel Jin¡¯.] [Defense Tower ¡®C-92¡¯ defeated the Devildom user ¡®Karer¡¯.] Graham who knew that some kind of situation had arisen, shook his head and sighed. ¡®Maybe there was a bug in the Devildom. To send beginner users of the Devildom in here.¡¯ System messages regarding the defense didn¡¯t go to Han as he was an NPC. Graham just sighed. ¡®Irahan? Samuel Jin? Where did I hear those names? They look like kids who made their ID names similar to that of rankers.¡¯ Graham wasn¡¯t interested in anything but architecture. As dozens of top defense towers were all concentrating their attack at one point, the damage couldn¡¯t be calculated. In fact, when designing the fort, Han had dedicated some part of it to the damage calculation. In addition, he wasn¡¯t interested to go back to the place where he came from, even if famous user IDs such as Irahan would use him. ¡®Dammit, why do those people keep coming over here? How unfortunate¡­¡¯ The only thing that he could speculate was that some poor lambs were being sacrificed by the bugs of Kailan. Han with his eyes wide opened, spoke in the direction of Graham. ¡°Graham, do you have any idea who they are?¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯m not so sure about it either.¡± ¡°Hum¡­ we aren¡¯t able to confirm what just came through the portal. I need you to keep an eye on it.¡± Han who was looking at the situation with a blank face was interrupted by Graham who was walking away from there. ¡°Han, let¡¯s get back to work.¡± ¡°You want to?¡± ¡°Seeing this is not worth wasting our time.¡± Han once again looked over at the point of fight and quickly followed Graham. The two people who moved out were considering the top 0.01% rankers of the Devildom as beginner Asmodians. CH 482 Wheeing-! [Entered the Chaos Gate.] [Moving to the ¡®Human Dimension¡¯.] [You have entered the ¡®Secret Passage¡¯ of the Falcacio Castle.] Dark energy filled the dark ground along with the sound of explosions that were blowing up everywhere. The users of the human dimension were fighting the Legion of Darkness. After seeing that scene unfold, Limlong smiled with a warm expression. ¡®Ho ho, the timing is all good. I¡¯ll sweep them all.¡¯ Limlong was excited with the thoughts of sweeping up the rankers of the human dimension. [¡®Lich King¡¯s protection¡¯ buff has been initiated.] [All combat abilities have been improved greatly.] A strong buff support had been provided by the Lich King to the black-suited assassin. Now all that was left was to hunt through the battlefield and harvest the loot. Swoosh-! Limlong was trying to get past the dark forces. His goal was to take down the healers who were behind the human users. An assassin¡¯s most important role on the battlefield was to incapacitate the support of the opponent soundlessly. ¡®Nice. Is all the personnel over there?¡¯ As soon as he took a step into the human world, Limlong who came past the Devildom turned and looked over at the portal. The Chaos Gate was a structure that a large number of people couldn¡¯t enter at the same time, but by the time he had come, almost everyone from their side had successfully crossed over. But the next moment¡­. ¡°¡­!¡± Limlong was starting to doubt his own eyes. There was a strange colored portal right in front of the Chaos Gate. The remaining users of the Devildom were less than 30% of the total number. ¡®What the¡­ What the hell happened here?!¡¯ No matter how big he made his eyes, the other major ranking Asmodians couldn¡¯t be seen. The first thought that came through the mind of Limlong was if the other rankers of the guild deliberately pushed him forward to avoid any possible trap. ¡®Are they trying to f*ck with me right now?¡¯ Flustered, Limlong immediately opened the party chat by opening the options of the chat window. As he liked to move alone, the chat was always turned off. So if he opened the chat, there was a possibility of knowing what was happening. Tring-! [The party member user ¡®Irahan¡¯ died.] [The party member user ¡®Samuel Jin¡¯ died.] [The party member user ¡®Martin¡¯ died.] ¡®What is this supposed to mean¡­!?¡¯ As soon as he opened the party chat, the messages that constantly came up were unbelievable; the users had died. Even if around thirteen users died, the rest of the users didn¡¯t even reach the gate. Limlong hid in a corner and hurriedly typed in the party chat. Limlong: Guys, what kind of situation are we in right now? Karia: Limlong, you¡¯re alive! That was exactly what I¡¯m trying to figure out. Why is everyone dying as soon as they enter? Larks: Uh, I¡¯m hiding in a corner now. No matter how I see it, this looks like a trap. Limlong: Trap? Larks: Yes. I think that the purple portal is a trap. I saw it from the side, and as soon as they moved, all the people got sucked in there and then died. Limlong: ¡­! Limlong, who just heard that absurdity, started to think. He was under the impression that the human users were the ones falling in the trap; instead, they fell into the trap of the humans. ¡®Whose scheme is it? Ian? Was it Shakran?¡¯ Limlong fully understood it now. The ¡®portal overlap¡¯ by human users, they were being beaten very perfectly. ¡®I survived because I was lucky. I would¡¯ve been a goner.¡¯ The Chaos Gate had a slightly higher area than the mysterious purple gate. Because of the purple portal, the summoned Asmodian users were getting sucked in. It wasn¡¯t something that Ian hadn¡¯t calculated, but it wasn¡¯t that important now. Anyway, more than half of the Asmodians were in confusion, and the other half users weren¡¯t even going to come to the current location. And the core power of the group, the rankers of the Asmodians, were all dead. In that situation, no matter how hard he tried to think of a way, Limlong just couldn¡¯t find a solution. ¡®Shit! Do I have to get back to the Devildom through the Chaos Gate?¡¯ After checking out the remaining time on his ¡®Conceal¡¯ skill, Limlong bit his lip. Martin: Come one, ahhh! [The party member user ¡®Martin¡¯ died.] Larks: Um? Why did Martin die twice? I remember seeing the death message a minute earlier¡­ Limlong: He must have triggered some resurrection relic. Larks: Oh shit, that must have been crazy expensive¡­ Karia: Martin¡¯s resurrection relic cost around 17 million gold, I think. Limlong: Well, it is junk now. Karia: ¡­ He was chatting all funnily, but Limlong wasn¡¯t joking at all. ¡®I have to do something. Well, I can¡¯t really go back to the Devildom without doing anything.¡¯ Even returning to the Devildom wasn¡¯t easy. If he stepped even a little off, then he might end with a black screen in front of him like Irahan or Martin. ¡®How many of the rankers will go back? Or should the remaining ones all step back?¡¯ After thinking about the situation, Limlong looked around the battlefield. At that time, however, a system message appeared before his eyes. Tring-! [Special conditions have been met!] [The quest ¡®Lich King¡¯s Request for Support II (Hidden) (Sudden)¡¯ has been triggered.] Limlong who quickly confirmed the content of the quest couldn¡¯t help but smile. * * * ¡°Ha, ha haa¡­.¡± Na Ji-chan crushed the remote control that was in his hand while he was watching TV with a nervous expression. Na Ji-chan shook his head and leaned back into the couch. ¡°Well, was such a fresh guy there all this time?¡± A strategy consisting of stacking another portal on top of an existing portal and sending the incoming party to another place. That was something that couldn¡¯t enter the mind of anyone no matter how much they thought. The moment that Ian pulled out the shiny beads, Na JI-chan who noticed Ian¡¯s intention couldn¡¯t help but jump out of his seat. Na Ji-chan was surprised because of the quick decision making and response of Ian in such a situation. The solution that Ian found wasn¡¯t something that came to his mind when sitting comfortably on a desk. He thought of such an idea while he was controlling a large number of familiars on the battlefield. The time that was given to them was too short for Ian to come up with any decent ideas. It was surprising as it couldn¡¯t be done. ¡°Huhu, am I still underestimating Ian?¡± Even though Na Ji-chan was just seeing it, he was already sweating. He wiped the sweat off his forehead and started to focus on the TV screen again. ¡°I need to think differently now. Maybe Ian got away from the last trap.¡± The surprised expression of Na Ji-chan went away, and he got excited again. The crisis that would come for the human users wasn¡¯t done yet, and he was the only one who knew about that. Overcoming the Asmodian users entering their world, that was the first challenge that the humans have to face. However, the remaining traps that the humans would face would be impossible to overcome. ¡®By now the surviving Asmodians would be given the Lich King¡¯s support requesting quest. The quest is activated when more than half of the Asmodian users received a quest.¡¯ Just as Na Ji-chan predicted, the successful ones who entered the battlefield and survived were indeed given the quest ¡®Lich King¡¯s request for support II¡¯ quest. The content of the quest was to simply blow up the dungeon. ¡°Ian¡­ how will you survive a dungeon collapsing over you?¡± As long as the Asmodians¡¯ support didn¡¯t work properly, the human users will have the chance to destroy the gate soon. And if they went deeper into the dungeon, they would come across the ¡®Dark Crystals¡¯. ¡®In order for the human users to survive, they must find those dark crystals faster than the Asmodians. That is going to be excitingly chaotic.¡¯ But the fact that the human users had to find the dark crystals was literally ¡®impossible¡¯. As the human users weren¡¯t even aware of the existence of such a thing, the Asmodians have arrived into the human world. However, Na Ji-chan decided to not think about the ¡®impossible¡¯. ¡°So, how are you going to overcome this? Please show it to me quickly, Ian.¡± Na Ji-chan was rather thinking that Ian might be able to overcome this hurdle as well. He was cheering for Ian, forgetting his role as a chief-planner. * * * Many undead monsters were trying to kill the human users who were gathered in front of the Chaos Gate to break it. And words of shock came out of their mouths. ¡°Oh, what¡¯s that portal?¡± ¡°Kya¡­ Ian, what kind of spell did you do?¡± In the meantime, Hoonie who knew that Ian opened a portal shook his head. ¡®Definitely, I should never have that hyung as an enemy. Until I decide to fold the game, I¡¯ll follow that hyung.¡¯ In the past, there were a few thoughts about him trying to get away from Ian. Now, Hoonie decided that it was wrong. Hoonie glanced over at Ian and carefully asked what he wanted. ¡°Hyung.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Where did you send them?¡± He was wondering where the dimensional gate was opened to. ¡°If you are curious, go in and see. Do you want me to throw you there?¡± ¡°Huu¡­!¡± At those words of Ian, Hoonie joined his hands and ran away from him. And that was a natural situation. Going into the place where he didn¡¯t know, that was literally suicide. This time Shakran, who was diligently putting damage to the gate, asked Ian, ¡°By the way kid, do we have to break this gate?¡± ¡°Quest says to break it.¡± ¡°Wasn¡¯t the quest cleared, anyway? The time limit has already passed?¡± ¡°That¡­ isn¡¯t the time limit. It was the gate activation time limit. Does clearing the quest have anything to do with that time? Open the quest window and check it yourself if you want.¡± ¡°Uh, that is true.¡± In the meantime, Ian who remembered the contents of the quest even when he didn¡¯t completely read it with much concentration, clicked his tongue and looked at the gate that was getting attacked by the users. After a moment. Tring-! [You have successfully destroyed the Chaos Gate!] [You have successfully completed the quest ¡®Destroy the Chaos Gate (Hidden) (Sudden)¡¯.] [Obtained experience of 120,930,000.] [Acquired fame of 100,000.] Quest completion messages came into Ian¡¯s sight, and the red gate suddenly started to fade away. With those rewards, the users became very satisfied. ¡°Keu, should we go in quickly?¡± ¡°Obviously. Aren¡¯t we here to break through everything in here to get to Falcacio?¡± Excited users of the expedition began to move enthusiastically. However, right then, the eyes of the users turned alert with the system message that they didn¡¯t expect. Tring-! [The quest ¡®Secret passage Detonation¡¯ has been triggered.] CH 483 ¨C Ah, what has happened Hines? ¨C Please wait for a moment. To know what has just happened, the employees of the YTBC have entered there. ¨C What was the purple portal that Ian had summoned? ¨C I¡¯m not very sure about it, but I guess it was a brilliant strategy of Ian to use ¡®portal overlapping¡¯. ¨C Portal overlapping¡­? ¨C Yes. By placing the portal over the top of the gate from which the asmodians would enter, they will send them directly to another place. ¨C Ah, that can¡¯t¡­! ¨C We still need to check who has come from the Devildom and where they were sent over to, but the ability of Ian God is surely outstanding. ¨C Completely. All thanks to you, Hines, that I know what is going on. Hines, your understanding of the game is amazing. ¨C Ha ha, words of praise? ¨C But Hines. ¨C Go on, Lucia. ¨C Then, how did the asmodians avoid the portal overlapping that Ian made? ¨C That is plain luck. ¨C Yeah? ¨C It is all because of luck, it is because the portal is a bit small. ¨C Aha-! ¨C However, when I think about it, rather than calling them lucky, they are in a much worse situation. ¨C Why? ¨C The other asmodian users moved to another place through the portal, maybe they survived? But for the asmodians who are left on the battlefield won¡¯t be able to avoid the death penalty. ¨C Oh ho, that too. Now that you say it, aren¡¯t you curious to see what is on the other side of the portal? ¨C Hahaha, me too, Lucia. We will find out soon. Bang-! Crumble- The large TV screen that filled the whole living room had suddenly burst with a loud explosion. It was because the man who was watching the TV, threw the remote control onto the Tv, not being able to control his anger. ¡°Ian, this guy¡­!¡± And that man was Irahan. Being dead not knowing, he called over to the headquarters of the Kailan after immediately logging out. Thinking he died of a bug, he called in for penalty recovery. He had work to do after getting reconnected, he had recovered his character as soon as possible. And thinking that his death was purely because of a bug, however, Irahan¡¯s voice was soon stopped by the voice over the call. [Customer, this is a game over that has occurred during the normal gameplay. Sorry for not being able to help you.] It was an answer that Ian could hardly believe. The next thing Irahan did was to switch on the TV with overwhelming anger. To what happened, he turned on the YTBC broadcast. And right then, what he confirmed through the broadcast was truly shocking. Irahan realized that he had died because of the cowardly and despicable trick of Ian. ¡°Uaahh, Ian, this is so not cool!!!¡± Irritated and angry, he screamed! However, nothing could be done. All he could do was just wait for the penalty. And as he looked over, one thing came to his mind. ¡°This time, I¡¯ll smash you in the right way, Ian.¡± ¡°Ho, you¡¯re sure about that?¡± ¡°Obviously. If I won¡¯t be able to catch that guy in such a favoring situation for me, won¡¯t it be right for me to just delete my character and leave Kailan?¡± ¡°Well, aren¡¯t you supposed to make promises that you can actually keep?¡± He remembered the conversation he had with Samuel Jin, the one who always rubbed his face in Irahan¡¯s. ¡°Dammit!¡± And losing the strength to get any angrier, Irahan just slouched back into the couch. If he couldn¡¯t catch Ian again, he rants about deleting the character and quitting Kailan came to his head. Samuel Jin, who was very sly and cunning, there was no way that he wouldn¡¯t remember it. ¡°No way, this wasn¡¯t a legitimate showdown. I have no reason to delete the character.¡± As if thinking something, he was shaking his head and mumbling stuff. Irahan did his best to rationalize. ¡°Yeah well, I didn¡¯t cross my sword with Ian even once¡­ I don¡¯t need to keep my word as anything I¡¯ve said even happened.¡± Irahan was trying to rationalize his thoughts with the most nonsensical words. Whatever was the case, Irahan did say ¡®that he would quit the game and delete his character if he didn¡¯t catch Ian¡¯. But his instincts, however, decided to deny it. ¡°Yeah, after the death penalty, I need to go to that guy and kill him somehow. Then Samuel Jin, that frustrating jerk will definitely say something.¡± Irahan had already lost his reasoning, he forgot that the Chaos gate was long destroyed and his way to the human dimension was long lost. * * * ¡®To stop the explosion of the secret passage¡­ huh?¡¯ Ian read the contents of the quest and felt an alarm bell ring in his head. ¡®This, this is really dangerous. How am I supposed to stop it?!¡¯ The dungeon currently had users overflowing in it for the process of breaking through the secret passage. If the very dungeon collapsed, there was no way to survive. ¡®Even if it does, the time won¡¯t be enough, getting a 24-hour death penalty is a bit too hard.¡¯ Ian quickly climbed on top of Halli and began to give out orders. ¡°Guys, we don¡¯t have time! We have to move in as soon as possible!¡± And with that from Ian, the rankers who grabbed the situation began to rush immediately. They may not be as good as Ian, but they were still the top rankers of Kailan. Just checking the quest window was enough to realize the situation they were in. ¡°Magicians, Haste!¡± ¡°Assassins, run ahead!¡± While using the unique ability of Halli, Ian began to breakthrough the dungeon. Several undead monsters were blocking the way, however, Ian just ignored the monsters and moved further in. There was no time to attack them. ¡®I thought I could¡¯ve killed them¡­¡¯ The asmodians who were left remaining in the dungeon didn¡¯t hold long as they were hunted by the hands of the expedition users. And Ian didn¡¯t even think that there were any surviving asmodian users. ¡®I was a bit too happy. I should have been a bit more precise¡­¡¯ Ian was blaming himself, but it was safe to say that he had no hand in what was happening. The dungeon explosion quests weren¡¯t the once that usually generated in advance, there was no reason to even care about the surviving asmodians users. And Ian and the ranker users, using all their power, they began to move over the undead. Was it 20 minutes? Tring-! The familiar sound of the system messages appeared in front of the users. [The ¡®Dark Crystal¡¯ has responded to the magic.] [The power of the sleeping darkness has awakened.] [In a while, the Dark Crystals will begin to explode.] [Time left until the explosion: 00: 04: 59] ¡°Haa¡­!¡± As soon as he saw those short messages, a short sigh had left the mouth of Ian. At that moment, thousands of thoughts passed through the mind of Ian. ¡®Sh*t, only if I knew this¡­ we wouldn¡¯t have broken the Chaos Gate, we too would have gone through the dimensional door.¡¯ The portal that Ian summoned would¡¯ve closed in after a certain time. And the time duration wasn¡¯t so long. In other words, the moment when the dungeon would explode, the opening of the portal was long gone. I tried using the return stone in his mind, but the message that came in front of him gave him the answer. ¡°You, can¡¯t you the item ¡®Return Stone¡¯.¡± ¡°The dungeon needs to be cleared to return to the save point.¡± What a desperate situation. The expedition users were almost experiencing the feeling of anxiety in the atmosphere, and time was moving forward. However, Ian had no intention of giving up. ¡®If I can think with a clear mind, some other way might come up. The previous situation was miserable too, but we overcame it, didn¡¯t we?¡¯ Ian picked up the Judgment of Spirit King and gave out orders in a loud voice to all the expedition users. ¡°Let¡¯s move further inside.¡± At the word from Ian, the users asked in an eager voice, ¡°Ian, is there another way?¡± ¡°No. We¡¯ll have to find it.¡± ¡°Keu¡­¡± ¡°Are you hoping for the dungeon like this?¡± When Ian was finished, he turned his head towards the further inside of the dungeon. ¡°Yes, that is right. Get up all of you! We aren¡¯t stupid to just give up like this!¡± Shakran walked along Ian. And to their behind, all the other users of the expedition group began to stand. * * * ¡°Huhu, uah!¡± Three dark spheres roaring around. Limlong who was watching them was smiling. ¡°Humans, have you finally decided to give up?¡± Right behind the three crystals, a dark portal opened. The portal was an escape that the Lich King opened to allow Limlong to exit the dungeon. As soon as Limlong entered it, the portal would disappear and the human users would get trapped in the explosive dungeon. There wasn¡¯t even a single way out of there. ¡®Well, if it had been 30 minutes, they could¡¯ve destroyed the iron gate of the secret passage.¡¯ If he went deeper into the dungeon past the section, an iron gate to the castle would¡¯ve appeared. But in the current situation, finding the iron gate in just 5 minutes and then to destroy it was really impossible. ¡°Ian, that guy won¡¯t ever give up¡­ I want you to come till here so I can see your frustrated expression.¡± Limlong was waiting in the dungeon without passing through the portal and was waiting for Ian and the human user. He wanted to enjoy the fact that the human users were in despair when they were going to win. Limlong¡¯s eye moved towards the system message that was present in the corner of the field view. [Time left for Explosion: 00: 00: 47] ¡®Huhu, 47 seconds¡­ now even if the luck is on your side, there is no way for you to survive this.¡¯ Limlong¡¯s mouth curled up into a nasty smile. The appearance of Ian and Shakran running in the dungeon was in his sight. ¡°Keuk, the protagonist is finally coming!¡± Suddenly, the time left for the explosion went to 20 seconds. Limlong laughed at Ian and Shakran who were gasping for breath after arriving at the Dark Crystal. ¡°Ian, your strategy was brilliant enough. Good enough that I almost died.¡± At those words of Limlong, Ian responded with a frown. ¡°I was wondering who was alive to do such a thing¡­ Limlong, it was you, huh.¡± ¡°Huhu, I had a very hard time coming till here. Now get ready to log out.¡± The dungeon would collapse, and it was definite. Even if they use something invincible or a resurrection item, it was a situation where death was inevitable. And it wasn¡¯t because of the damage caused by the explosion, but because the dungeon itself would be the reason of death. Limlong turned his face to see the frowning expression of Ian. However, Limlong¡¯s expression was the one that changed. Ian¡¯s facial expression was completely different from what Limlong had expected him to be. ¡°Well, don¡¯t you want to run away leaving everything behind?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to run through the hole?¡± Rather, Ian was looking at Limlong with a ridiculous expression. Limlong had a lot he wanted to ask Ian, how he had to hurry into the portal. Because he had less than 10 seconds before the dungeon exploded. ¡°I don¡¯t know what is a bluff or what is the truth, either one is great.¡± ¡°Won¡¯t we know in a moment?¡± Limlong looked over at Ian again. The expression and the eyes of Ian didn¡¯t seem to be lying. ¡®This guy, is there really a way to survive this?¡¯ In the end, Limlong not knowing the answer just entered the dungeon. It wasn¡¯t willing to risk his eyes to see what Ian¡¯s next actions were. After a while, the Dark Crystals which were only about the size of a fist, began to swell. CH 484 Three gleaming Dark crystals. And even if one of the three exploded, the dungeon would cave in, it was a situation of despair. When he first checked the quest window, Ian remembered the unique ability of ¡®Nick¡¯. The best ability of Nick¡¯s came to his mind, the Guardian of Sun God. If he cast the Guardian of Sun God at the time the dark crystal explodes, it could absorb the explosion. But there was one huge loophole. ¡®I don¡¯t have time until those three will explode.¡¯ If the three dark crystals exploded at the same time, then it was a method that was worth the try. But if anyone of the three exploded at a later time than the Guardian of Sun Protection, then it would be a disaster. ¡®But, I can¡¯t use a shield¡­ it¡¯s really worthless.¡¯ The shield had the property of completely preventing even the most powerful damage for once. However, there were two reasons why the shield couldn¡¯t be used in the current situation. First, even if the shield does indeed manage to protect the user, the collapse of the dungeon due to the explosion would cause a game over. Secondly, the explosion wasn¡¯t going to happen at once. Since the explosion wasn¡¯t going to happen at a single time, but three consecutive times, there was no way the shield would withhold. It was clear that with the first explosion the shield would go off, and the other crystal would explode with them unarmed without a shield. Ian thought of every possible outcome using his head. But the more he squeezed the hair on his head, the more stuffy he began to feel. ¡®What should I do¡­?¡¯ A large vacant lot was visible, three dark crystals were in the air. And behind those crystals stood Limlong with a triumphant expression. With a jittered voice he spoke to Ian, ¡°Keuk, the protagonists are finally coming!!¡± Ian¡¯s brows lifted when he recognized Limlong. ¡®He was the survivor. Lucky guy¡­¡¯ The strongest assassin ranker, Limlong. The lucky survivor was the assassin class Limlong, and he was the only one who could survive the situation. If there were warrior classes such as Irahan or Martin, they wouldn¡¯t have managed to reach the dark crystals. Limlong started to get closer as they moved. ¡°Ian, your strategy was brilliant enough. Good enough that I almost died.¡± ¡°I was wondering who was alive to do such a thing¡­ Limlong, it was you, huh.¡± ¡°Huhu, I had a very hard time coming till here. Now get ready to log out.¡± Ian¡¯s head continued to work even while conversing with him. The time when 1 second, 1 second was getting by, there was no time for him to get offended by Limlong¡¯s remarks. Rapidly scanning the terrain, Ian discovered the portal behind Limlong. ¡®Limlong this bastard, he was just waiting for us to rile us up.¡¯ Some moment, Limlong would enter the portal and the portal would get closed. However, it was pointless for Ian to attempt to fly till there. There could be something inside the portal, but it wouldn¡¯t change anything if he would go in alone. Ian came up with the wrong idea. ¡®Those dark crystals, I¡¯d like to put them in some kind of a bag and throw them into the portal.¡¯ Of course, that wasn¡¯t possible. If the Dark Crystals were touched, they could explode, wiping them all out. Ian too was just scouting for ideas so he wasn¡¯t going to execute it. At that moment¡­ ¡°¡­!¡± Ian¡¯s eyes went large. ¡®Yeah! Why didn¡¯t I think of that?¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes looked over at Limlong. Limlong had been staring at him with a smirk still registered on his face. Even then, Ian was completely calm. Ian smiled and spoke to him, ¡°Well, don¡¯t you want to run away leaving everything behind?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to run through the hole?¡± * * * ¡°What is it? The atmosphere around Ian changed suddenly!¡± ¡°I know, right. Is there a way for Ian to get them out of this situation right away?¡± ¡°Well. No matter how hard I think, I can¡¯t think of one in my head¡­¡± ¡°Was it just a bluff?¡± ¡°That can¡¯t be. Ian¡¯s face seems very confident.¡± Hines was relaying the battle that Ian was taking part in real-time. A day had passed since the relaying had started, but their expressions weren¡¯t showing in a slight sign of exhaustion. They were explaining the situation with a lot of excitement. ¡®Ian, what are you going to show me this time?¡¯ Hines¡¯s eyes were brighter than ever. Before turning into a caster to comment, he was an avid fan of Kailan. But that didn¡¯t mean that work wasn¡¯t tough. No matter how interesting and fun it was, it was hard when it turned into work. In addition, in the case of the live broadcast of the Kailan, the broadcast this time was endless. The Kailan¡¯s commentator was known for their extreme career which was hard to get. Once the broadcast was over, the exhaustion was tough. However, it wasn¡¯t just for today. There was only a two 10 minutes break for nearly 10 hours of broadcast time, and he wasn¡¯t feeling hungry. The broadcast was so thrilling that it prevented Hines from sensing anything else. ¡®What is it? How are you going to get out of there?¡¯ Only 5 seconds were left for the explosion. Ian¡¯s options were very limited. If Ian solved the situation, Hines would have passed out. ¡°4 seconds left!¡± ¡°3 seconds! 2 seconds! 1 second!¡± Excited Hines and Lucia were shouting the countdown time. Even after 3 seconds, Ian stood there with confidence and no movement. And the leisurely appearance heightened the tension to the others in the very situation. And right then, Hoonie who was behind Ian stepped forward towards the dark crystals. * * * In the eyes of Hines and Lucia, Ian and the others had no other path than it. They literally stood there without any movement while the dark crystals were swelling. What viewers could check was the expression of Ian which was full of confidence. But in reality, it was quite different. Ian: Hurry! There is no time, man! Quickly summon! KanjiHoonie: No, what are you thinking, hyung? Ian: just do what I am asking you to do! 3 seconds left, idiot! Although they weren¡¯t showing any movements on the screen, Ian was exchanging messages with Hoonie. And as there was no time to do anything else, Hoonie finally stepped forward as Ian told him. And Hoonie who came out because of the constant nagging of Ian came out and began to summon the undead. ¡°I command the power of darkness¡­ rise up, dead!¡± In fact, he could have summoned even he didn¡¯t speak out the spell, but even in such a drastic situation, Hoonie didn¡¯t forget to say out the spell. In fact, it was the identity of Hoonie. Woong-! Faint resonance started in front of Hoonie. Hoonie summoned skeletons in front of the dark crystals. Each of the skeletons embraced the dark crystals into their arms. And that was a sight that caused a further commotion. ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°What are they doing?¡± ¡°Do they think that they can stop the explosion by holding it like that?¡± Hoonie and Ian didn¡¯t mind what the expedition users were talking behind them, and the users closed their eyes. Now, one second later, they were going to see a black screen. But the next moment, exclamation came out the mouth of someone who was watching the scene unfold from one corner. ¡°Ah, crazy!¡± ¡°Unbelievable!¡± Suddenly, Elcarix who was in the arms of Ian ran out and reached for the skeletons. ¡°Dragonic Barrier¡­!¡± The skeletons were holding onto the dark crystals. And pure white shield wrapped around the skeletons. With that, the barrier of Elcarix held in the explosion before it could happen. Most of the rankers in there might have thought of shield at least once. But as they all knew the limit of the shields, they didn¡¯t bother thinking further into it. The idea of enclosing the explosion itself and not protecting the allies with the shield was an ingenious thought. And the moment the barrier of Elcarix got triggered, a terrifying loud roar went through the dungeon. Boong- Bang-! And the destructive force that was strong enough to destroy the entire dungeon, the sound of the explosion that came out of the dark crystal was enormous. But contrary to the terrifying sound, nothing happened in the dungeon. Only three skeletons turned into ash. ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°Ahaa, how did this¡­¡± Emily and Shakran who were in the forefront along with Ian, couldn¡¯t help but shake their heads to clear their thoughts. The perfect execution of an unthought idea. And the users of the expedition who didn¡¯t grasp the situation correctly began to mumble in bewilderment. ¡°That, that¡­ the dark crystals were about to burst¡­?¡± ¡°I think so.¡± ¡°What just happened?¡± ¡°Well, well. I couldn¡¯t see it properly..¡± ¡°Couldn¡¯t be a bug right?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think that is the case¡­¡± However, the mumbling which didn¡¯t stop for a while, however, it all stopped the moment Ian opened his mouth. ¡°What are you all doing? Move fast and breakthrough, go inside and open the gate, quickly!¡± As they just overcame a crisis that they thought they would make it, the users ended up forgetting the operation. However, with the words coming from Ian, the users began to move in unison. CH 485 According to the original plan, the secret passage of the Falcacio Castle was supposed to be blown up. The reason why the secret passage had to be blown up was simple. The existence of the secret passage was nothing more than a cheat. The Falcacio Castle was the final content of the episode. It had numerous defense forces built up in it, and while passing through the secret passage more than half of them would turn invalid. On the contrary, what would one think of the current situation where the secret passage exploded? ¡°The game broke¡­ Damn it¡­¡± Muttered Na Ji-chan bitterly while taking a sip of his tea. He really did support Ian, but he didn¡¯t realize that he would find such an answer. ¡°That really is a way that not many would find.¡± Seeing Ian who just placed the overlapping portal made for the Asmodian users made Na Ji-chan thought that Ian might escape the trap. But he didn¡¯t assume that he would opt for such an answer. Na Ji-chan simply didn¡¯t understand how he could possibly stop the collapse of the secret passage. It might not look like a huge difference at first glance, but it definitely made a huge difference to the game. If Ian would have chosen to attack the Falcacio Castle after escaping from the dungeon, he would have to start outwards, but now he prevented the collapse of the secret passage to enter the castle. ¡°All that is left now¡­ is just the Lich King, right?¡± Of course, even before reaching the Lich King, powerful middle bosses of level 400 and above were lined up. However, with Ian and Shakran at the forefront, there was no way they could be stopped. The expedition would literally be able to break into the center and meet the Lich King by the end of the day. ¡°I need to take a breather. I¡¯ll watch the broadcast again after 5 hours. By then, they will be faced with the Lich King already.¡± Chick-! Na Ji-chan turned off the TV and entered his room while yawning. He decided to go and get some sleep to catch the next crisis of Ian. * * * Ian and the expedition users controlled the explosion by the dark crystal and quickly broke through the end of the secret passage. It was mostly due to the expedition users, but the other reasons were important too. Most of the monsters that existed back at the dungeon were high-leveled monsters, and after the Chaos Gate was destroyed, 30% of the combat abilities had been debuffed. It was a situation where the term ¡®abuse¡¯ could be used. ¡°Kya, this is like a bonus stay!¡± ¡°Can they get this weak all due to the debuff?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know about the exact coefficient, but I think they have been nerfed at least 40%.¡± Even with the debuff on the monsters, their rewards and drops weren¡¯t debuffed, so the users began to throw themselves at the monsters. The average level of the users was around 400, and the monsters were nerfed which made them seem like level 300, so that scene was a literal massacre. And of course, the two most prominent ones among them were Ian and Shakran. Tring-! [Successfully defeated the monster ¡®Injured Devildom¡¯s Gladiator¡¯!] [Obtained the experience of 79,809,312!] [You have successfully defeated the monster ¡®Lame Kirkos¡¯!] [Obtained the experience of 82,887,981!] Ian was constantly wielding his Judgment of the Spirit King and kept cutting down the monsters of Devildom that were in front of him. But even in such a perfectly presented situation, Ian was feeling disappointed. ¡®Shit, if only I had more time, I could¡¯ve swept it all away¡­¡¯ The first dungeon in the war for Ian and the expedition was the ¡®Underground Prison¡¯ of Falcacio. That meant that the first dungeon was still going on. Overlapping in the bonus stage, it was the best hunting ground to catch. It was very good in terms of the rewards and the experience. However, Ian didn¡¯t have time to go behind them. He didn¡¯t realize what kind of situation would come while spending a minute or even a second while hunting. The clever strategy to get over the pitfalls safely, but the time limit was limited. However, they couldn¡¯t hold on to the ground as they had to get hold of the Lich King because of the quest. Ian was constantly giving out orders and only focused on breaking through the dungeon as quickly as possible. ¡°Ceilron, Meran, please continue to cover Shakran at the back, and if one of you are dealers, please focus your support at the center!¡± And there were few others like Emily who were questioning the orders of Ian. ¡°Ian, why don¡¯t we take care of them one after the other? Due to the debuff, the monsters are very week, anyway.¡± However, Ian touched his hair and responded, ¡°No. We can¡¯t slow down yet. In this dungeon, we never know what kind of trap would ever appear again.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you agonizing too much about it?¡± ¡°The experiences are a bit of a waste, even then I think we need to get out of this dungeon as fast as possible.¡± ¡°Nice. It does make sense. I¡¯ll let you go ahead.¡± After convincing them, Ian turned away his head. Ian quickly managed to clear the second half of the dungeon. Had it been an hour or so? Tring-! [You have successfully cleared the ¡®Underground Prison¡¯ dungeon of Falcacio Castle!] [You have eliminated all the remnants of the Devildom soldiers from the underground of Facacio!] [Obtained experience of 97,890,989!] [Acquired fame of 200,000!] At last, the dungeon clear message came in front of the expedition users. ¡°Kya! We did it!¡± ¡°We finally came through the dungeon!¡± ¡°Kuu, if it wasn¡¯t for Ian, we would have been watching the other part of the game on the TV.¡± Thrilled voice of the expedition users could be heard everywhere. ¡°Good work, kid. I can¡¯t help but admire your effort today.¡± Even the proud Shakran was praising Ian. ¡°Haha, welcome.¡± However, Ian didn¡¯t forget to stimulate Shakran. Until he defeated the Lich King, he had to use Shakran¡¯s ability to the fullest. ¡°Since I have shown this much, could you still keep up, uncle?¡± And Shakran followed those well. ¡°Huhu, kid, no need to worry. From here on, I¡¯ll show you the strength of the Titan Guild.¡± Listening to the rant from Shakran, Ian couldn¡¯t help but smile. ¡®Uncle, show a little more strength. If I get some hidden dual or something, I¡¯ll give you some congo.¡¯ Expedition users were checking the rewards for a while, they checked their statuses and were making loud noises. However, the hustle and bustle didn¡¯t last for long. Less than a minute after the dungeon clear message came, bizarre sounds came from the iron gate that was blocking the end of the dungeon. Kikkkik- Kuk-! An unpleasantly irritating voice came from the rusty metal bars. However, it wasn¡¯t so bad for Ian. The iron door began to open with a creaking sound. Kukung-! And between the opening of the iron gate, a white light began to pour in. It was the view of the castle that had white snow in the background. After seeing that, Ian¡¯s eyes went wide. ¡®Done¡­!¡¯ He was finally successful in entering the Falcacio Castle. * * * A bizarre fort that rose high. The highest level. At the center of the room was the ceiling that was so high that it was hard to see, and a huge throne that was three times the normal size. And the owner of the throne was the King of Dead, Lich King, Chalian. ¡°You did well, son Asmodian.¡± ¡°Thank you, Lord Chalian. I just did my best.¡± Sitting on the large throne was the Lich King, Chalian who was talking to an Asmodian who was knelt in front of him. And of course, he was Limlong who had escaped from the secret passage using the dark portal. But the interesting thing was that Chalian and Limlong didn¡¯t know that the expedition users weren¡¯t wiped out. ¡°You have done it, surely?¡± ¡°Yes, King of Dead. I confirmed the swelling of the dark crystal.¡± ¡°Kul kul, you should have done that. The dark crystals aren¡¯t things that humans can stop.¡± Chalian had a satisfied expression. He laughed in a peculiar manner while moving his shoulders. Chalian was happy because they were convinced that the expedition users were wiped out. It was because of the system message that Limlong had received that said that his quest that Chalian gave him was a success. The quest which Limlong had received from Chalian was to blow up the secret passage with the dark crystals, and the quest was deemed successful since the crystals did explode. The words of the Lich King continued, ¡°If the explosion succeeded, the insignificant humans would have been severely damaged for sure.¡± Limlong tried to picture the image of Ian and Shakran buried in the explosion. ¡°Yes, King, even the best warriors of the humans were in that group, and now the humans won¡¯t be able to get here.¡± ¡°Surely. Kulkul, humans indeed are foolish beings.¡± Chalian and Limlong were happy for the killings that they did. Limlong was happy with the idea that he had successfully destroyed the humans, and it was the same for Chalian. In addition, Limlong would have his congo increased because his affinity with Chalian increased, so it was natural for the conversation between them to continue. ¡°But, are you the only Asmodian who survived from the Devildom?¡± ¡°Yes, King. However, don¡¯t worry. Until I get by to the world of Devildom, I swear to do well.¡± ¡°Yeah, well. I believe you.¡± Every time his conversation with the Lich King got extended, Limlong couldn¡¯t help but smile because of how much his affinity with the Lich King had been rising. ¡®Huhu, by now you would¡¯ve gone out of the game humans. You probably are wiping your feet, right?¡¯ Even though it was just a thought, it was enough to make Limlong smile. However, he didn¡¯t know the truth. His continued conversation with the Lich King to increase his affinity was actually helping the human users get closer. The long dialogue exchange between Limlong and the Lich King was turning into a distraction. ¡®Lotus and Titan are wiped out. Will it take them at least two days to get in here? Isn¡¯t it too bad to log out like this¡­ to go out in front of the king?¡¯ Limlong was firmly convinced that the expedition users and Ian had died, which made it harder for him to think of any alternative. CH 486 What would be the basic preparation stage for a large-scale siege warfare? It was to grasp the structure of the castle that was going to be captured. Of course, it was an impossible task to find out the structure of the enemy camp. However, in Kailan, there was an air unit, and Ian had a special one called Kaka. Kaka was an entity that didn¡¯t suffer any damage unless it was from a light attribute. Ian used Kaka to figure out the approximate structure of the Falcacio Castle. The first thing Ian did was to escape the dungeon and take a quick look around. ¡®Where should I see¡­ I see the trident at the northeast, so this side is closer to the east gate? This is surprising?¡¯ The ¡®trident¡¯ Ian was talking about was something that was used to mention a giant steeple towering within the Falcacio Castle. Ian called it a trident because three spears were raised in an unusual shape. Ian asked Kaka who was next to him in a low voice, ¡°Kaka, the position that we are in, do you remember it?¡± Kaka nodded with a haughty expression. ¡°Huhu, who do you think I am, master!?¡± ¡°You¡¯re so noisy.¡± ¡°I am an ancient legend from the clan of the Karga Phantom¡­¡± ¡°You don¡¯t seem so busy now? Maybe you¡¯ll like getting hit by El once?¡± The very same moment Ian said that Elcarix threw away the ball she was playing with and clenched her small fists. Kaka immediately flew away with a frightened look. ¡°Hick¡­! If I get hit by El, I might literally die, master.¡± ¡°Then answer the question quickly.¡± Kaka pouted her lips and flew into the air due to the threat from Ian. After looking around for a while, she started to explain to Ian. ¡°I know where we are, master.¡± ¡°Where is it?¡± ¡°If you move straight along the wall over there, you¡¯ll be connected to the surface.¡± However, when he heard the explanation of Kaka, Ian became puzzled. It was because Kaka¡¯s answer was different from what he assumed. ¡°Eh? This definitely looks a lot closer to the gate¡­¡± Ian thought that he was the closest to the East Gate, but was flustered when he heard Kaka mention the surface. After listening to the words from Kaka, Ian nodded. ¡°Right, master. This is close to the east gate.¡± ¡°But?¡± ¡°However, there is a problem. There is no passage going there. If we move to the east from here, our path will only be blocked by a huge wall even before we get to the east gate.¡± ¡°Aha¡­¡± ¡°Even if you wish to go to the east gate, you¡¯ll have to approach it from the opposite direction.¡± ¡°How to cross the wall?¡± ¡°Impossible. If you plan on doing so, I¡¯d recommend going over the wall of the castle.¡± ¡°Yeah, I get it Kaka.¡± The moment he listened to the explanation of Kaka¡¯s, Ian was able to fully understand the structure of the Falcacio Castle grounds. ¡®Indeed, I knew this. Even though it was a secret passage, there was no way for it to get connected to the gate.¡¯ The location where Ian¡¯s party was could be said to be between the castle and the outside. He did succeed in pushing through the underground without any bloodshed, and they were in a position to attack the castle immediately. Then, was there nothing between the castle and the outer wall? Were they in the middle of nothing? Not surprisingly, the last content of the episode was the Falcacio Castle, which meant that it wasn¡¯t going to be that simple. Between the castle and the outside, various defense towers and walls were densely built. And Ian¡¯s obsession with the ¡®east¡¯ was due to the entrance of the castle. Unlike the exterior where there was one door to the east and one on the west, the Falcacio¡¯s castle had only one door on the east. ¡®They might not even know that we have infiltrated, so the door might be open.¡¯ Ian hoped that the secret passage would be close to the castle¡¯s inner gate. Nevertheless, Falcacio Castle wasn¡¯t so green. Before entering the underground prison, Celia had been given the order to pierce through the wall with the help of Thor. ¡®Then, in this situation, how are we supposed to move efficiently to capture the castle?¡¯ Ian¡¯s head began to work again. Now Ian and the other users had some cards they could use. ¡®It is a clich¨¦ strategy, but¡­ the ¡®Sound east hit west¡¯. I need to keep the original strategy. It¡¯s hard to find such strategies.¡¯ Ian turned his head to check the exit of the dungeon. While Ian was thinking about it, most of the expedition users were done with their maintenance. Ian issued an order. ¡°Everyone, follow Kaka. We move to the west.¡± Ian finished talking and quickly took a step forward. At the same time, he was sending a message to somewhere. * * * ¡®Huhu, sweet guys! They haven¡¯t even reached the outer castle.¡¯ After finishing the encounter with Lich King, Limlong was on his way to the outer side of the Falcacio castle. He came to support the Legion of Darkness of the Lich King. And he chose to move toward the west side. ¡°Kay, should we try going there slowly?¡± Limlong wasn¡¯t a person that moved without thinking carefully about it. Like tossing coins in order, they set the directions in an orderly fashion. He was heading to the surface and was accompanied with calculations of his own. ¡®Surely the expedition would have put some troops to the east gate. The most important strategic point is the east gate after all.¡¯ As mentioned, the Falcacio¡¯s entry existed in the east only. In other words, it was easiest to attack there and enter the east gate. Limlong was thinking that most of the expedition users would be concentrated there, and therefore he came to the west. ¡°Ian surely would have chosen the ¡®Sound east, hit west¡¯ strategy. Most of them are against the AI based defense forces, so no other strategy will work well. No, would it be an upheaval?¡± Limlong had no doubt that the expedition that was attacking the surface of the Falcacio Castle were walking toward their demise. The expedition strategy would move to the west side, which was the insignificant one and make the Legion of Darkness move to the east side¡ªthe most notable side. Because of that very reason, he thought that the east gate would fall, and the strategy he took was the best for him to play. He had no intention of just going along with the Legion of Darkness. For Limlong, an assassin class, the castle fight gave him very little opportunity to fight. Then, was he going to fight against the expedition users? It was a warfare where the strength of the assassin class was at its peak. And to go outside the guerrilla warfare was the most efficient and stable to deal with the west side. ¡°Nice picture!¡± Having identified the forces outside as the human world¡¯s users, Limlong was convinced that his guess was indeed right. The number of troops seemed quite a lot, but they seemed to be approaching the west side so far. The number of troops was never meaningful. A dozen powerful rankers like Ian were much stronger than hundreds of normal rankers. ¡®Huhu, humans¡­ this time I¡¯ll let you experience hell.¡¯ While looking down at the humans from the wall, Limlong couldn¡¯t help but smile. He was smiling so much that his white teeth could be seen; that was how big his smile was. * * * Limlong was smart. And Ian was well aware of that fact. ¡®He must have figured out the strategy of this team. The ¡®Sound East hit West¡¯ is an obvious one, but it is the most efficient strategy we can use.¡¯ Ian determined that Limlong would¡¯ve predicted their strategy. Even then, he decided to move along with that plan. It was because he couldn¡¯t abandon the most efficient strategy just because of Limlong. ¡®We have a card Limlong doesn¡¯t know.¡¯ As Limlong predicted, the expedition users¡¯ strategy was indeed to hit the west. Shaking the west and attacking the east, from all sides; it was a simple strategy. There were two reasons why the strategy was considered simple. First, the users of the human dimension knew that there were no ¡®users¡¯ in the troops of the Falcacio Castle, and second, they thought that they had a hidden card called the ¡®Underground secret passage¡¯. To shake the west side and pretend to attack from the east was their plan, but their actual plan was to pierce through the secret passage. However, that strategy was a failed strategy. Both of the reasons for using that strategy were wrong. The Lich King managed to get help from the Asmodians of the Devildom and use the underground secret passage as a trap, so both the reasons for using it were wrong. However, Ian managed to save them from that strategy. The Asmodian users who came were all out of the game, and Ian and the others survived through the explosion of the secret passage. One variable was still out there¡ªLimlong. However, it didn¡¯t seem to matter to him. Even when Ian and the party were passing through the secret passage, Limlong wasn¡¯t considered to be anything much different from an NPC. Which was why Ian came up with a strategy in accordance with the orders that he had given to the troops that were on the other side of the castle. A strategy that would allow them to poke the hull of Chalian and Limlong. Ian was even able to predict how Limlong would decide to move. ¡®Limlong will be looking out to the west. That jerk had really great eyes for this sort of thing.¡¯ Ian started to move swiftly to the west while commanding the elite troops of the Titan and the Lotus guilds. His lips were showing a pleasant smile, and so did Limlong. ¡®I want to pay the debt even though I don¡¯t need to¡­ to find you this quick.¡¯ When he was still a level 50 novice summoner. Ian still hadn¡¯t forgotten the defeat he had suffered in the Rookie league. The fatal betrayal that took place during the siege war of the Pyro Domain. Honestly, Ian wasn¡¯t as bad-mannered as Limlong. ¡°This isn¡¯t the end, this is merely a part of my revenge.¡± Hoonie was closely following Ian when he heard Ian¡¯s murmuring. What Hoonie heard surprised him. ¡°Ho, hyung, what was that? Revenge on whom?¡± Ian smiled and responded after seeing Hoonie who didn¡¯t seem to understand what he just heard, ¡°There was a person. The only one that I hate in Kailan.¡± As soon as he saw Ian¡¯s smile, Hoonie felt the urge to log out momentarily. CH 487 There were uncountable types of defense towers in Kailan. It was established in such a way to build the wanted type of defense tower that would go perfectly with the castle that would be developed. Along with that, depending on the type of resources that would be available around the castle, the building that could be built would vary, so it was natural to have such a wide variety of towers. However, even in that case, did it mean that the defense towers were developed without a chance of elimination? There were three criteria for classifying the towers in the Kailan. The first criteria were based on the type of ¡®attack¡¯. Depending on whether the towers¡¯ attacking properties were physical or magical properties, the classification was divided. In a sense, it was the largest criteria. The second criterion was classified according to the ¡®role¡¯. Some towers specialize in the wide-area attacks; while some inflict powerful damage in a single strike, some can inflict massive damage to the ground instead of being unable to attack in the air, while the others were specialized in the air defense. And there were these special towers with the detection and support capabilities. Finally, the third criterion was the classification based on the tower performance. It could be conveniently labeled as ¡®tier¡¯, and the higher the number before the tier, the higher would be the tower. Falcacio Castle, the last known ¡®highland¡¯ of the Lich King episode. Most of the towers in the Falcacio castle were of the magical attribute. And among the magical attribute, the majority of the towers were of the ¡®dark¡¯ attribute type. And Ian wanted to take advantage of that feature. ¡®The magical towers are characterized by the need for an energy core.¡¯ The magical towers were more powerful, and they had higher attacking capabilities than any physical towers. Instead, the hit rate was rather low than the physical tower, and it didn¡¯t work in the absence of the energy core. And the energy core was a simple facility that provides magical powers to the magical tower. If the tower was within the range of the energy core, the tower will work. There were also ¡®tiers¡¯ in the energy core, the higher the tier of the core, the better the magic towers would perform. This was why the energy core was so important and had to be placed in the vicinity of the magic towers, which were the main defense facility of the Falcacio Castle. So where were these important energy cores located? Too obvious, as safe as they could be placed. The cores would be installed in the rearmost region without losing the range of the energy supply of the towers. And right now, the place where Lotus and Titan were located was¡­ ¡°Surely, it can¡¯t be that it wouldn¡¯t be here.¡± It was in the ¡®back¡¯ area. ¡°Really nothing less of a ghostly view.¡± Looking at numerous energy cores that were in the vision, Herz couldn¡¯t stay silent. Ian, who found the energy cores that were hidden in the complex structure of fortress was very amazing. Fiolan who was right beside him admired it. ¡°How did you manage to find this? Was it Ian who had designed it?¡± At the question of Fiolan, Ian didn¡¯t answer and just smiled. ¡°Was the siege done once or twice? This is really¡­¡± And the users of the Titan who followed in after the Lotus were amazed too. ¡°If we just shake it out here, the real outer line defense will be broken.¡± ¡°Ahe. If all the cores are broken in here, wouldn¡¯t they just get connected to the other cores right away? Wouldn¡¯t that much be prepared for a large castle of this size?¡± ¡°Oh, that? Now that I listen to you, does it make sense?¡± ¡°Phew, someone doesn¡¯t seem like a newbie in the siege.¡± Listening to the conversation, Ian nodded his head. ¡®The words of that user is right. If we destroy everything in here, they will get connected to the spare energy core soon.¡¯ Moreover, as soon as the cores get destroyed, there was a good chance for the Lich King to know about the intruders. If the soldiers on the towers knew that the energy supply was cut down, they would immediately go to report on that matter. Ian¡¯s head started to work to make the best of the situation. ¡®There is only one way. We need to take down the castle troops before they recover. Before the spare energy core work¡­ we¡¯ll have to hit from both sides and tear down the line.¡¯ The large framework of the strategy did sound very simple, but the detailed execution of the strategies that were needed to be maintained was very complex. It was because troops stationed outside and the troops of Ian had to match perfectly. Shakran who was next to Ian asked him in a low voice, ¡°Kid, why did you stop? Those things, shouldn¡¯t they all be destroyed?¡± At the question from Shakran, Ian shook his head answered, ¡°Wait a minute and see uncle. These aren¡¯t things that you decide in a moment.¡± ¡°Arrogant little jerk¡­¡± Listening to the retort from Ian, Shakran just shook his head out of frustration, however, he wasn¡¯t in a bad mood. It was because, while moving along with Ian, he was able to fully grasp the ability of him. Till then Ian was highly regarded, but it was limited only to the ¡®physical¡¯ aspect of the gaming. It wasn¡¯t known that Ian was such a thorough person. Seeing the Lotus, it seemed like they had an excellent person like Emily on their side. Shakran opened his mouth again, ¡°Kid, then how are we supposed to move?¡± Ian took a step forward. ¡°After 1 minute. Once I signal, hit them all at once.¡± * * * Drrrk-! A huge pulley rolled down, and heavy chains were getting released. Keeeek-! The preface of the Falcacio castle began to open with a low grumbling and gritty sound due to the interlocking rings. And inside the door, was Limlong on a huge dark horse, preparing for a run. ¡°Sir Limlong, is this all right? The number of enemies is quite high.¡± A dark magician behind Limlong asked him with concern written on his face. He was a level 470 powerful named NPC whom the Lich King directly had given over to Limlong. Even though he was worried, Limlong was fairly confident. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Sir Dekail. They are just haphazard.¡± Kukung-! As the two men were talking, bright light started to enter because of the gate opening. And in the other place, were human users. Limlong smiled and spoke, ¡°Look over there. Those jerks, they won¡¯t enter the range of the defensive towers.¡± ¡°Even then¡­¡± ¡°It feels like they are trying to pull power, then we¡¯ll ask the tower guards to attack.¡± At those words from Limlong, the dark magician Dekail too moved his head. ¡°Well, Limlong, your words make sense.¡± ¡°Right. Instead of staying here like this, I would rather go out and sweep them off and support the troops of the castle.¡± ¡°Nice. Since our king has delegated the power over to Limlong, we will follow your wish.¡± Kung-! The huge gate which seemed to be around 20 to 30 meters tall and 10 meters wide opened up completely, and the shouts of the dark legion who were waiting inside started to ring loudly. ¡°Kiyaah! Let¡¯s defeat those cheeky humans!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t let the humans step anymore further into the realm of Chalian!¡± ¡°For our King!¡± Limlong looked back and smiled bitterly. The powerful undead legion that was standing behind him would be a great ride for him. ¡®Keu, if we wipe out the humans in front of us, wouldn¡¯t I go into level 2?¡¯ The loot wasn¡¯t everything, but however, the experience that could be gathered was really worth it. In addition, the users of the expedition were all composed of the highest level ones from the human dimension. If the range of the defense towers was accurately used to fight, Limlong could relish it. Srrng-! Limlong pulled the sword from his waist and held it to the sky. It was a rather short sword when compared to a regular sword, however, it was red and long when he pointed to the sky. The enhancement was almost three times more than the sword, the red energy around it was shimmering. ¡°For Lord, Attack! Those arrogant humans need to be killed!¡± ¡°Waah!¡± Multiple legions of darkness rushed towards the battlefield. On contrary to them, the human side users seemed rather quiet. And an obvious factor, as the gates opened the legion of darkness poured out even though they noticed the human users with their own eyes. And Limlong was feeling rather good. ¡®Huhu, as expected. What is left for those nerds to do?¡¯ Tatt-!! Limlong who was riding the horse suddenly took a step on the horse and leaped into the air. He hid in darkness using his skill. In fact, horse riding wasn¡¯t suited for the assassins. What he wanted to do, was to mix himself into the legion of darkness and assassinate as many humans as possible. ¡°Woah!¡± ¡°Charge!¡± As time went, the distance between the humans and legion of darkness was closed due to their speedy movement. Initially, the distance between the two camps was around 100 meters, and it was rapidly decreased to 50 meters and then to 30 meters. The situation changed suddenly, the opponents were now almost so close that their vision could be confirmed. Even then, the users of the human dimension didn¡¯t move. However, if it was someone who didn¡¯t know, they would have thought that the strategy was changed. ¡®They can¡¯t get inside the defense towers with the crossroads, they just can¡¯t help it anymore.¡¯ Then, did the human users chose to not move forward because of the range that the defense towers had like Limlong guessed? If Limlong was only a little more calm, he would have noticed that something was strange. No matter how limited the movement got due to the range of the defensive towers, it made no sense to not move when the army of the enemy was running towards them. Minimizing the troops and taking a step back was a normal movement in such situations. If the battle went like this, around half of the battle was in the range of the defense towers. No matter how stupid the commander of the human camp was, it was unlikely for them to make such a huge blunder. However, Limlong was too convinced with the picture he drew in his head. And in addition, the situation was believed that the most powerful human users were wiped out. He was trying to make the perfect situation out of the current situation, even if it was hard for Limlong. ¡°Huhu, should I try playing with them?¡± With a small satisfying mumble, Limlong shot forward. He triggered the heist tier skill of the assassin class¡ªShadow Blink. But at the very moment, Thud- Thud-! From the human-based camp, which was very quiet, a huge thudding sound started to rise. CH 488 ¡®There? There are?¡¯ The sound of trespassing started, and the entire army started to move in unison. Whether it was a retreat or an advance it was unknown. A huge sound when all the allies one the battlefield moved at once. At first, the sound came from the camp from the human users, and Limlong was under the impression that they were going for a retreat. But somehow. They were all moving forward at once. ¡®What? Are the guys trying to work like a group?¡¯ It was a flustering development that couldn¡¯t have been expected. Limlong was flustered, but apart from that, his eyes were still sharper. The users of the human world took a formation and began to put up the barricades for blacking. It was a tough situation to understand, but the result wasn¡¯t going to differ. Limlong unleashed the spell of concealing to control the legion of undead and shouted loudly. ¡°Army, stop the assault and back off! When they enter the range of the tower, they will get devoured!¡± One, two, three. Limlong was slowly counting to himself. A few minutes later, hell would break loose on the battlefield. The defense tower in the back was already ready to fire, they would all attack at once. And with the powerful spells from the magic towers, a powerful attack that can take down the human users would be used. Chuk-! Limlong was timing the bombardment, he raised his right hand high into the air. The gesture was for loading the shells. Limlong then turned to see that the defensive towers were in working conditions or not. The turrets were slowly opened as ordered by Limlong. ¡®Nice, a little more¡­!¡¯ Limlong¡¯s eyes were shining brightly. In fact, Limlong raised his hand again when the human users began to enter the maximum range of the turret. Because of that, even if the shelling were to start right away, it was enough to inflict enormous damage to the users of the human dimension. However, the reason for Limlong to wait was simple. ¡®I can¡¯t let even a single person live.¡¯ He closed his mouth until he was done calculating the numbers. Swwong- Kwakwang-! And after a while, the distance between the camps was narrowed enough for the undead to reach the human ranged dealers. Now was the time. It would be much better if he would wait a little longer, but if a little more distance was given for them to cover, the undead camp might get damaged too. Limlong¡¯s voice rang all out on the battlefield. ¡°Now it is! Explode them!¡± Chuk-! Limlong pushed his arm forward which was high to the sky. It was a gesture which had meaning to start the shelling. The air was now going to be flooded with numerous shells, and the human users were going to suffer a lot of damage. As soon as the order went from Limlong, he immediately triggered the Shadow Blink again. He was the fastest among anyone to go to the battlefield because he was supposed to sweep away the human users. Ttat-! With his skills intact, Limlong moved to the front with brisk steps. However, after a while, Limlong realized that something was wrong. Puping- Ping-! Clearly, the bombarding started, but it was much smaller than expected. Not exactly, it wasn¡¯t in a poor level. The shots were of shabby physical property were falling on the battlefield. ¡°¡­!¡± The shelling was completely being blocked by the magicians of human users. ¡°What the hell is this? Don¡¯t be a bug!¡± Limlong screamed out in frustration. If the fight went on like this, in less than 10 minutes, it was obvious that they would be killed. Right now Limlong was in the middle of the enemy camp, and no matter how good he was, he had no way out alone. In addition, the users who surrounded Limlong were the top rankers of the human dimension. At that point, Limlong had a choice but to doubt what was wrong. ¡®What? Did the Lich King betray me? This is like feeding the hungry lions!¡¯ But the doubt didn¡¯t last long. Because if the Lich King betrayed, just as how the undead would die, the legion of darkness would fall down helplessly too. Limlong couldn¡¯t figure out what happened, however, he started to scream. The only choice he had was one. ¡°Retreat! All retreat! Let¡¯s go back to the castle first!¡± The maneuverability of the assassin class was superior to any other class. Limlong with his fast movements quickly returned to the camp of the undead. Due to the attack from the human system they were all in rags, however, if they entered the castle they could live. Once they entered the castle, they had a chance to get their life. Woong-! Limlong¡¯s red sword was giving out a magnificent cry, and red energy shot forward. Subsequently, Limlong¡¯s attack came through with energy. Limlong¡¯s main weapon¡ªthe Bloody Revenge¡ªwas the strongest of his weapons. And the unique ability of it¡ªBlood Split was triggered. It was a powerful technique that cuts through everything, it went through all the enemies that were ahead of it. He never imagined that he would be going to use such a powerful attack technique for escaping. ¡®Uh uh, what the hell happened? Why isn¡¯t the tower working? Not all of them but only a few of them have stopped?¡¯ Limlong¡¯s mind started to work very quickly to understand the situation but he could come up with nothing. It was natural. In the beginning, Limlong had jumped to the assumption that Ian and Shakran along with their elite had been wiped out. After a while¡­ Kud-! Inside the white mind of Limlong¡¯s, a picture came. Somehow he was running to the front door to survive, but the entrance door was closing. The gate was 10 meters high, and more than half of it had been lifted, and no matter how Limlong tried he couldn¡¯t go inside. Limlong stood there looking at the closing gate and screamed in a loud voice, ¡°Ahhh!¡± The current situation was a turn of events where he could do nothing but shout. After a while. Puak-! In front of Limlong¡¯s eyes, a golden thunderbolt struck, and a huge shock went into the whole body. And Limlong was able to feel that he was taken out of the game. Almost in an instant, where even 300,000 of vitality wasn¡¯t left, he would die instantly with just a single strike. Limlong felt strength losing from his body and his eyes were turning fuzzy. Between those moments when the vitality gauge was reduced and visions turned dark, his thoughts went back. ¡®Dammit, should I have been just satisfied with grabbing Ian and Shakran?¡¯ However, even before the thoughts could be ended, Limlong had to open his eyes. It was because of the unbelievable messages that came in front of his dark vision. [Human user ¡®Ian¡¯ has triggered ¡®Lightning¡¯s Judgement¡¯] [Human user ¡®Ian¡¯ has seriously damaged you.] [Vitality has been reduced by 1,279,830.] [Vitality has been exhausted.] [Character has died.] ¡®Wha, what just?¡¯ Limlong opened his mouth without realizing. However, he was back in the capsule room. Limlong¡¯s character has already been sentenced to death. And a man¡¯s face was the one that was visible when his vision was darkened. And it was, Ian. ¡°Limlong, I¡¯ll use the weapon well. Meet you later.¡± Ian smiled while lifting up the Bloody Revenge item that he had dropped. At the moment, the view was completely dark and the connection was closed, and Limlong couldn¡¯t get inside the capsule. He was going to lie in for a very long time. ¡°How did he¡­?¡± How did Ian survive the crashing dungeon? ¡°Hahha¡­! Haha!¡± In vain, Limlong¡¯s mouth could only release the sound of laughter. * * * If this happens, Limlong has no place to go now! Alas, Ian is here! Ian threw the spear in his hand at Limlong! Surely it was Ian! Ian who can use the non-targeting skills even while moving, there is no way he would miss hitting Limlong when he isn¡¯t even moving, right?! That¡¯s right! Ian, Ian does it again! Inside the YTBC, it was really crazy. The series of events in the Falcacio was really dynamic. Starting from the battle of the secret passage dungeon, the trap that was in there, to the present situation where Limlong was caught. It was a drama without scripts that were being viewed. And everyone was completely immersed in the turn of events, and could now relax. ¨C It is amazing! Ian is in a better situation because of Limlong! ¨C That¡¯s right! Limlong¡¯s removal of the elite forces of the Lich King will make it easier for the breakthrough! ¨C Who would have imagined that such a situation would happen? ¨C By the way, it really felt very sad for those asmodians. They were just murdered without doing anything. ¨C That is it. If you try to show off not knowing what is happening, you will be unhappy. The game TV who relay teams should be neutral in principle. Of course, the composition of the user vs NPC; the comment would be delivered from the user¡¯s point of view, however, in the current situation with the user vs user, they couldn¡¯t choose one side. But the psychological response of the people couldn¡¯t be as sharp as a sword, so the relay team had been narrating in the guise of the human users. And it wasn¡¯t because they were the fans of the human rankers. Since the human users had been in unfavourable situation so for, they were cheering up for them. In addition, as the situation reversed and the adverse situation was overcome, they were forced to be more immersed. However, that was all matter of the current situation. Even the last remaining ranker of the asmodian, Limlong had seen his death helplessly, and now the commentary began to be on the side of the asmodian. ¨C Hines, I don¡¯t understand. Wasn¡¯t Limlong aware that Ian was alive? ¨C Definitely. Limlong couldn¡¯t even have guessed that Ian would¡¯ve survived that perfect trap. ¨C No, not that. There would have definitely been some asmodian users watching the broadcast, and there could be the acquaintances of the user Limlong. ¨C Ah, that could be. ¨C Didn¡¯t they connect to the game and let Limlong know about it? Then he wouldn¡¯t have been so cornered if that happened. ¨C Ha ha, Lucia. The asmodian users have no way to give the information to Limlong. ¨C Uh? Why so? ¨C Because the dimensions are different. ¨C Ah! ¨C Perhaps there was no chat over the dimension other than the party chat. And that doesn¡¯t even mean much. ¨C Was it because Limlong didn¡¯t have any more party members left behind? ¨C That would be one thing, and after a certain amount of time, the party will get disbanded automatically. ¨C Ah, that so. Awesome! Hines you sure know a lot of detail about Kailan. ¨C Ha ha, it isn¡¯t much. ¨C By the way, the situation of Limlong was very sad. I think that he dropped the item that he used as the main weapon when he died. ¨C Limlong is Limlong, but I think Martin was the most pitiful because he vainly used the revived artifact. The commentator talked about the poor asmodian users and stopped their stories. It was because the rankers of the expedition had begun to advance through the preface and soon turned close to the castle. Expeditionary troops, pushed forward towards the castle like an angry wave. And it was the moment when they reached the western wall of the castle. Kung- Kung- Kung-! Compared to the outer wall, the resistance of the wall right outside the castle was rather weak and collapsed. While Ian was active, Celia infiltrated it with Thor and destroyed the western wall. And that was the highway to the last boss of the episode ¡®Lich King Chalian¡¯. CH 489 The Falcacio Castle was in darkness. In the midst of the magnificent space, a purple energy rose at the center. Woong-! From the top, a shadow fell down, and soon they all knelt down and opened their mouth in an urgent voice. ¡°King, the enemies are entering the castle. The forces of the enemy are much stronger than expected!¡± The voice resonated all over the place and echoed. The interior was huge enough to be compared with that of a dragon¡¯s lair; the ringing went on for quite some time. After a while, with an awkward sound, the throne rotated. Kkkik- Kiiki-! Subsequently, a raging voice flowed through the enormous shadow of the throne. ¡°Do not tremble. I already know.¡± Flutter! With black energy flowing all through him, his shadow slowly rose from the throne. His cape moved and fluttered. In fact, before his minion even reported to him, he already knew of the situation outside. When the outer wall was pierced, it wasn¡¯t noticed by them. However, the moment they stepped through the castle wall, the enemy invasion was immediately detected. It was because the walls of the castle were the last point where the power of Chalian reached. Feeling the unpleasant aura trampling the land of the dead, Chalian took a heavy foot forward. He was cursing the Asmodians inside his head. ¡®Haa! I shouldn¡¯t have believed those stupid Asmodians.¡¯ Of the ones sent by Daedmon, Limlong was the only one who passed through the gate and survived and completed the mission. Chalian deemed him worthy and was even given an elite troop to lead. But somehow, as soon as that guy went out of the castle, all the defense broke. A commonly understood situation. Unless he betrayed and opened the gate, such a situation would have never occurred. ¡®It doesn¡¯t matter now. Everyone will kneel before my power.¡¯ Kukung-! While his cape was flapping, Chalian raised his hands high. Three shadows rose before him immediately. ¡°Did you call us, King?¡± ¡°Rockper. I will receive the command from the king.¡± ¡°I see the king of the dead.¡± All three shadows bowed their heads in front of Chalian at the same time. Looking at their bowed figure, Chalian opened his mouth to speak. At the same time, a black energy began to pour out of him. ¡°I command by the power of the King of¡­¡± The more his words extended, the more vigorously the room shook. Kukung-! ¡°Destroy all the living things on my land!¡± And later, many dark shadows began to make an appearance throughout the dark castle. * * * Out of all the fortresses on the continent of Colonar, the Falcacio was one of a kind since it had a complex structure. Even the space between the castle¡¯s outer and inner wall was full of defenses, and it might be more precise to say that the structure was rather ¡®ignorant¡¯. In cases of a normal castle, the space between the outer wall and the inner was usually filled with a lot of commercial slots and residential areas. However, the inside of the Falcacio Castle grounds had a structure that was rather perfectly opposite to the word ¡®complex¡¯. Far from being a defensive facility, it was desolate; nothing was visible; however, a large number of monuments were lined up. At the center was a sharp towering vault with a magnificent height that seemed to pierce the sky. The situation was so weird that it forced the viewers to be appalled. ¡°Phew, we¡¯re finally meeting Chalian¡­¡± While looking at the throne of Chalian which was in a distance, Ian confirmed it and took a look around. Hoonie who was right behind Ian moved closer and mumbled in a low voice, ¡°Uh, there is something eerie in here?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°This place isn¡¯t like any normal cemetery. It¡¯s like a ghost land.¡± Ian smiled and asked him, ¡°By any chance¡­ are you scared?¡± ¡°What!? No, I¡¯m not!¡± ¡°Ey, aren¡¯t your legs shaking now?¡± ¡°No, hyung, you saw it wrong¡­ I, the Monarch of Darkness can¡¯t be afraid of such places, no!¡± ¡°Speak without stuttering.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian was laughing as he saw Hoonie hide behind him. What Hoonie was doing was rather very cute. ¡®You look like an elementary kid. No, now that I think about it, you always looked like an elementary kid to me.¡¯ In fact, Hoonie¡¯s reaction wasn¡¯t so unusual. The scene that was in front of the users were so bizarre that it would even scare off an adult, even Ian was creeped out by it. In the middle of the dark, with a bloody sunset hanging on the horizon, skeleton rocks were piled up on the snowy field, and numerous tombstones were up and down between them. It wasn¡¯t strange to even see a zombie pop out from between their feet. Shakran who was next to him asked with a heavy voice, ¡°Is Chalian going to be inside the castle?¡± ¡°Maybe.¡± ¡°What are you going to do, kid? It does feel good to get this in once, but¡­¡± Shakran finished his words and pulled out the sword that was on his waist. Ian too pulled out the sword, taking a step forward. Srrrng-! A beautiful sword that shined brightly into the sky. It was the Bloody Revenge he took from Limlong. Ian, who met eyes with Shakran, nodded. ¡°Obviously, that¡¯s what we need to do. But¡­¡± ¡°But?¡± ¡°We shouldn¡¯t slow down. We don¡¯t know what kind of traps are placed in there.¡± ¡°Huhu, I agree.¡± After the quick exchange of thoughts, the two leaders quickly began to rearrange their guild forces. Even Ian, who was in a hurry till then wasn¡¯t rushing. Since they were restlessly running until now, they had some time to spare, and they were already in the last step. They weren¡¯t aware of how tough it was going to be to defeat Chalian, but it was clear that they would see the end of the episode by clearing this final hunt. The rearranged Lotus and Titan troops began to march towards the castle. Tat-ttat-! The users ran across the cemetery with a nervous expression. By the time the users reached the middle of the cemetery, a loud voice rang out. [I command you by the power of the King¡­] Kukung-! A weird and bizarre voice that could send creeps to anyone rang out throughout the place. The whole castle began to vibrate, and Ian was turning extremely nervous. ¡®Are you trying to trigger a large area trap?¡¯ Lich King Chalian was the strongest warlock in existence. He was more powerful than the Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix. And among the black magic, there were numerous attack spells that could cause powerful wide-area damage. Since their current location was a desolate wide-area plain, that didn¡¯t seem like a bad idea. That was the reason why Ian immediately thought of the possibility of a wide-area spell being activated. ¡°Nick, get ready!¡± Kiyaa-! Ian waited for Nick¡¯s unique ability, which could counter a wide-area spell. The next moment proved Ian wrong. [Destroy all the living things on my land!] Kiik- Kiyaaa-! Chalian¡¯s voice resonated throughout and countless undead monsters began to rise from the ground. In addition, the identity of the undead monsters wasn¡¯t just regular undead monsters. Most of them were warriors or knights or an undead monster with higher rankings. ¡®What¡¯s with their crazy level?¡¯ [Judgement of Death: Lv 485] The average level of the undead monsters appeared to be around level 480. Ian instantly judged the situation. ¡®We can¡¯t go against these ones. If we fight like this, then we won¡¯t even last 30 minutes before getting wiped out.¡¯ Of course, Ian and Shakran would be able to deal with those monsters without much problem. But the others in the expedition might not be able to deal with them so well. More than half of the expedition wouldn¡¯t be able to handle a level 480 death knight, and they would surely die one after the other. And without the support of the other users, Ian and Shakran couldn¡¯t face them. ¡®What the? LB wouldn¡¯t be destroying it like this. There has to be a way¡­¡¯ Ian quickly took control of the troops and began to arrange them into a formation. The original unit formation was a triangle to penetrate the enemies¡¯ defenses. He quickly changed their formation into a circle to close in on the defense. He chose to not push through. Ian was determined to preserve as many troops as he could. ¡®Breaking through the level 480 undead monsters is insane. Even if we have to hunt those crazy numbers, we¡¯ll have to take them down one after the other.¡¯ Ian moved his camps a bit closer to Shakran¡¯s and stayed in the highlands as long as they could. Until he could figure out the idea of the planners, he was going to operate the troops while staying on the defense. ¡°No one should die. Surely, if we survive here, there will be a way!¡± Ian was moving around the camp and kept thinking about survival. In the overwhelming force, if one of the camps was broken, all of them could be wiped out at once. ¡°Hunting isn¡¯t important! Hold it and please bear this for now!¡± Their vitality was likely to fall by getting hit a single time. The undead monsters were trying to lure the users. However, the users kept their position and kept up their defense, and as time went by, the camp was turning much more solid. 10 minutes have passed. A huge sound started to enter the ears of the users. Woong-! ¡°¡­!¡± Ian¡¯s eyes turned to the place where the sound was coming from. A bloody red glow was hanging on the horizon. A black crescent was rising up. [The ¡®King of the Dead¡¯ manifested his power] [The Dark Moon came to the sky.] [¡®Dark Legion¡¯ soldiers are now in ¡®Dark Bondage¡¯ state.] [While the ¡®Dark Moon¡¯ is afloat in the sky, the combat ability of the Dark Legion is increased by 25%.] [After the Dark Moon, the state of dark widening will be removed.] [Duration of dark Moon: 00:39:59] Ian sighed with relief after seeing the system message rose up. ¡®If we are forced to break through, we¡¯ll get wiped out.¡¯ Undead power of level 480 with a 25% additional combat ability buff meant their levels were close to 600. If it were an attacking faction rather than defense in the situation, the faction would collapse, and the power of the users would have been destroyed. In addition, the planners intent was clearly understood. ¡®This surely was a vertigo. With 40 minutes of vertigo, it is worth a try.¡¯ Ian saw for the first time what was called the Dark Moon, but he was familiar with the dark buff. It wasn¡¯t just Ian; it was for the other users, too. ¡®Darkness widening¡¯ was a darkness buff that any warlock knew about. But a warlock¡¯s widening darkness was only a single target buff. The Lich King¡¯s widening darkness could strengthen all of his allies. ¡¯20 minutes of the dark buff. We¡¯ll have to sweep everything within that time.¡¯ Darkness widening was a powerful buff that could be triggered without any conditions but had one side effect. After the duration was over, the same factor debuff took place with the same amount of time. It was a 25 percent dark buff that lasted for 40 minutes, so the debuff was going to last for 20 minutes. Once the debuff got activated, that would be the best time to attack the undead monsters. ¡®Nice. To our defense again!¡¯ Ian, who moved at the center, raised his hand. The shoulders of Ian that was holding Bbookbbook¡¯s shell began to shine with a blue light. CH 490 The overall difficulty of the ¡®Lich King¡¯ episode was set too high when compared to the average level of the users in the Korean server of Kailan. When users first encountered the episode, the level of the undead was too flustering to see. But if one paid close attention to it, the actual level of difficulty was appropriate. The monsters that made up the episode were indeed high leveled, but they were all limited to the race of the ¡®Undead¡¯, and their attack type was mostly of the ¡®dark¡¯ attribute. In other words, the enemy was composed of only one type, which meant that they were easy to attack. In addition, the ¡®Undead¡¯ race had distinctive strengths and weaknesses compared to the other races, and there was a gap in the contribution between the rankers who had a good understanding of the fact and the normal users. And right now, in the last battlefield of the episode, the Falcacio Castle, an amazing performance was being shown. * * * ¨C Uh, Oh oh! Soul Break! Ian is in danger! Soul Break is charged! ¨C Even if it is Ian, I don¡¯t think that he can avoid that this time, right? ¨C Damn! In the time being. All the cooldowns wouldn¡¯t have even returned! The Space distortion had been just used a while back! Oh, Are you maybe going out of the game, Ian? ¨C You need to hang on a little bit more! The Death Knight Shawellon. The named monster Shawellon smashed his ax on the ground as hard as he could. An intense dark energy started to come up from the cracked ground. The soul Break, one of the strongest single attacks, was followed by a dark CC, the ¡®Dark Bond¡¯. The target was Ian, a user who could be considered as the leader of the entire expedition. In a situation where Ian seemed like he would be out of the game any moment now, the relayers sighed in response. ¨C Oh, if Ian gets out at this moment, then things will turn bad real fast! ¨C Hines, Ian can¡¯t survive that. ¨C That¡­ we should see, no? It is a single kill skill with nearly 2000 modulus, and the Death Knight Shawellon is of level 495. There is even a wide dark¡­ I don¡¯t know for sure, but I think that it will give enough damage. ¨C Oh, I see. There is less than a minute until the Dark Moon falls. Ian made a huge blunder at the very last moment! ¨C Honestly, it is a bit vague. ¨C That being said. There is no way to avoid this situation after the trigger of the dark bond. Soul Break was a single attack technique; however, at the same time, it was a non-targeting skill. Dip the weapon as hard as one could to create a crack in the ground, and the dark energy that would burst out from the crack would get shot to the enemy. In addition, the speed of the projectile was so slow that it was almost impossible to hit using it unless it was actually attached to a CC. However, the skill had one interesting feature. It was the manner in which the damage would be applied to the target that would be hit. The final damage of the Soul Break wasn¡¯t determined by the magic damage in the dark energy, but on how strong the floor was hit. In other words, the damage of the Soul Break was a skill that appears to inflict ¡®magic damage¡¯, actually was proportional to the ¡®physical attack¡¯ rather than the casters ¡®magic attack¡¯. Ian was currently pinning the mechanics of the Soul Brake. Which was why he was relaxed. As the relayer said, almost all of his skills were on cooldown. ¡®If I have no skills that I can use, take help and stop it.¡¯ With his feet stuck due to the Dark Bond, Ian began to quickly give out orders. There was no time to order in detail, and there was no need for it too. The moment the orders were given by the target, the minion of Ian who had assisted him countless times before began to move. ¡°Yu Shin!¡± ¡°Okay! Warriors Toukon!¡± The moment the order was issued, as if he was waiting for the triggering moment, Yu Shin¡¯s hands moved in accordance. Golden rays of light spread from the palms of Yu Shin, and Ian¡¯s character was quickly wrapped with it. 50% of all the attack damage would be absorbed, and the buff skill of the top warrior class had been activated. Wooong-! A faint golden glow spread around Ian! And that wasn¡¯t the end. If it was a crisis that could be escaped with the triggering of a single simple buff in the very first place, the commenters wouldn¡¯t have been so worried. ¡°Hoonie!¡± As Ian¡¯s voice came out, Hoonie appeared behind Shawellon and triggered a debuff spell. ¡°Postmortem Rigidity¡­¡± The Postmortem Rigidity was both a debuff skill and a buff skill. Regardless of whether one was an enemy or an ally, it could only be activated for the ¡®Undead¡¯, and increased the defense by 100% instead of reducing the movement speed and physical damage by 50%. The damage of the caster would be halved, and the attacker skill would absorb the damage, minimizing the amount of damage he would receive. It was a great party play that was only possible because of having a complete understanding of the skill ¡®Soul Break¡¯. If the normal damage done by the Soul Brake was around 10 million, then it would have dropped to less than 2.5 million due to the overlap of buffs and debuffs. Again came the scream from Hines in the middle. ¨C Unbelievable! This is indeed a crazy display of wits! A white light fell on Ian. This time, even before Ian could even say any words. ¡°Shield of the High Priest!¡± A beautiful woman with white wings flapping on the air reached for Ian. She was Levya, the number 1 ranking priest. Levya and Remir too joined as the vanguards after the expedition had successfully entered the invasion. And the very same time, the dark energy entered Ian. Kwang- Kwang-! However, the vitality of Ian was in a very bad state. [The skill ¡®Warriors Toukon¡¯ has been activated] [For 5 seconds, all the damage received from the ¡®magic¡¯ attribute will be reduced by 50%.] [User ¡®Levya¡¯ of the expedition triggered the ¡®Shield of High Priest¡¯ skill.] [The ¡®Shield of High Priest¡¯ buff lasts for 7 minutes and 30 seconds.] [Magic defense increased by 30%.] [The defense type is converted to ¡®Divine¡¯.] [Deadly damage has been received from the death Knight ¡®Shawellon¡¯!] [Vitality has been reduced by 193,098!] A miracle had occurred and the damage that was supposed to be around 10 million was reduced to one-fifth in a moment. And the ¡®Shield of High Priest¡¯ that was triggered in the last minute was effective in reducing the damage. The 30% magic defense increase effect wasn¡¯t negligible, but the conversion of the defense properties was the most important part. The attribute that took in the least damage from the dark attribute was the ¡®Divine¡¯ type of defense. And since the YTBC¡¯s relay screen was on Ian to see the progress, the viewers could see all the system messages that came up. As a result, the viewers¡¯ board was busy with the reactions of the viewers. ¨C Lol, Hines, maybe you¡¯ll have to fold the commentary? The damage was only 200,000 not 10 million. ¨C What? That can¡¯t be? I¡¯m a level 280 class warrior, the Soul Break skill dealt me around 1 million damage. ¨C Shit, guys. It¡¯s better you guys stay still and not play the game. Stay still and don¡¯t bother muttering¡­ ¨C I know, right? It was a miracle that they got only 200,000 damage. After that half stiffness and half of the absorption due to the Warrior¡¯s Toukon, and the shield triggered by the priest¡­ maybe if the guys had more time, then the Soul Break probably wouldn¡¯t get 5,000 damage either. ¨C Kya, they are all embodying the reality of virtual reality. Is that even a possible play?¡­ Oh my! ¨C By the way friends, isn¡¯t the support great or is Ian greater? ¨C Well. Isn¡¯t it the support this time? Ian was just standing there. ¨C Right. Even Ian should be accepting it this time. ¨C Standing still you say? didn¡¯t you see that it was Ian God who had given out the orders? ¨C He just called the name, that was orders? ¨C Lol, he at least did that. Maybe, before the Kailan¡¯s broadcast improvement, most of the viewers didn¡¯t understand what was going on. Everything went by in a single moment. However, as the users¡¯ screen was being shared on the screen, some of those who knew Kailan was quick to analyze what had happened. It was a matter of course that Kailan had become much more fun. ¨C While you were talking, Shakran went from behind and ran towards Shawellon! ¨C Ceilron, Emily till Remir! Everyone is pushing Shawellon relentlessly! ¨C Wow! By the way, it was a named monster. Even if the rankers are falling on top of that, its vitality isn¡¯t dropping below 90 percent. The purpose of the expedition is to waste time. The ¡®Black Moon¡¯ will fall at any moment now. ¨C That is right! 15 seconds left! 13 seconds left! 12, 11¡­ At the countdown of the commentators, the black crescent moon that was in the dark red sky gradually fell down. As a result, the black sky began to brighten little by little. ¨C 3¡­ 2¡­ 1..! Hines was shouting the numbers as it dwindled down. After a while, a new message emerged in front of all the users of the expedition. Tring-! [The ¡®Power of the King¡¯ has fallen.] [The Dark Moon has fallen from the sky.] [The ¡®Dark Bond¡¯ on the Legion of Darkness has been removed.] [The ¡®Legion of Darkness¡¯ soldiers are in a state of ¡®burnout¡¯.] [The ¡®Legion of Darkness soldiers¡¯ combat abilities have been reduced by 25%.] Subsequently, the strong voice of Ian echoed from the middle of the battlefield. ¡°Party Time!¡± Hoonie who was next to him tackled him and decided to speak as he was feeling good. ¡°Hyung, you speak English too?¡± ¡°You talk too much. Just catch the Undead.¡± There were hundreds of undead monsters who were close to the level of 500. This was now the time to kill all of them. This made Ian smile from ear to ear. CH 491 On a journey that could be considered long or short as perceived, finally, a period began to appear. After many difficult processes, the only one left from keeping the episode from ending was the ¡®King of Dead¡¯, Chalian. And the journey wasn¡¯t just for the users who were participating in the expedition. During the whole time, many of the Kailan¡¯s users were with it, and it wasn¡¯t an exaggeration to say. Most of them have watched almost every broadcast, and were sincerely supporting the expedition rankers. Viewers were nervous when the expedition was in danger and when they overcame the crisis, they were as happy as winning. In fact, even a novice user in the Kailan was thinking of themselves to be a member of the expedition. The more dynamic the episode progressed, the happier the viewers were. In fact, there were those who were much happier than the viewers. ¡°Kya, Mr. Kim, how does a team dinner sound for today? The taste of Hanwoo meat across the street tastes amazing. The meat just melts in the mouth¡­!¡± ¡°Deal, team leader! Should I contact the production and press offices too?¡± ¡°That sounds good! Those press team ones, they didn¡¯t make it the last time because of the night shifts, it is nice to contact them.¡± ¡°The payment one¡­ right?¡± ¡°This person told me! The audience rating has gone up by so much, I can¡¯t even tell the number, they are already crossing the hundreds.¡± ¡°Uh eue, nice!¡± They were the employees of the YTBC who were broadcasting the episode almost exclusively. It was all because of the expedition broadcast of Ian, which had set an unprecedented number of viewership records in the history of the game broadcasting. Of the many viewership indicators, all but one indicator, the ¡®Highest instant viewership¡¯ was being replaced. Also, the battle with the Lich King remained, so the YTBC was hoping that it would reach even higher ratings. As such a situation had emerged, the employees of the YTBC involved in the broadcast had been rewarded with bonuses, which turned the atmosphere even more cheerful. And among the YTBC crew, there was one huge beneficiary¡­ It was Yoo Jaewoong, the head of the YTBC¡¯s management office and team 1 of the advertising division. ¡°By the way, team leader, congratulations. I heard that you¡¯re going to be promoted to deputy manager this time.¡± ¡°Huh, thank you.¡± ¡°By the way, how did you manage to get Ian God¡¯s video? All messengers in the games had been blocked, and even when we try to contact them through the guilds, they are always busy with the quests. Let me in on the secret too.¡± ¡°Haha, it was just luck. I guess I had good luck.¡± ¡°Aee, you¡¯re being too much, boss. You need to give some tips for your juniors too.¡± Yoo Jaewoong just murmured without answering the question of the subordinate, trying to seem humble. But his words of luck weren¡¯t just out of humbleness. It literally was the truth. He connected with Ian and then got the broadcast, however, he wasn¡¯t the one who approached Ian. When he received the call from Ian, he was under the impression that he got the call by accident. ¡®Hu, I was lucky that I was the only person in the team in the office at that time.¡¯ Yoo Jaewoong looked over past the office and smiled. The team¡¯s subordinates were very excited about the dinner and were packing up their bags and the expedition was still going on and being played on the huge screen in the office. However, his gaze stuck to the screen where the expedition was going on. On the screen was a familiar face. ¡®Poor guy, next time I¡¯ll buy you a meal.¡¯ Yoo Jaewoong¡¯s eyes were on Hines. The most struggling employee in the company right now was Hines. Hines, was commenting on the screen, was the most unfortunate one. * * * Ian¡¯s expedition killed many undead of the legion and had to go through many difficulties after that. They had to pass through the traps of darkness, and they also had to kill the super high- level named bosses who seemed like the direct servants of Chalian. However, the difficulty of the past task made the current difficulties seem easy. As a result, the expedition was able to enter the Falcacio¡¯s castle with the expense of a fewer than ten expeditions. At the end of the task, new system messages appeared before the expedition entered the Falcacio. Tring-! [The strong energy of the dead is coming.] [The dark resistance is reduced by 10.] [The magic resistance is reduced by 5%.] [State of ¡®Fear¡¯, the defense has been reduced by 20.] [You have entered the dungeon ¡®The castle of Dark Empire¡¯.] [You are the first to find the dungeon.] [For 24 hours from now, all the experience gained is doubled.] [For 24 hours from now, all the types of item drop and gold drop will be doubled.] [Increase of fame by 300,000.] (Syncopation) [You have encountered the final boss of the episode, Lich King Chalian.] Numerous system messages filled the view. The expeditionary viewers were much nervous than ever. The end of the long long episode was finally due. Also, the shadow of the Lich King Chalian was now in front of them. ¡°Be ready to turn into a dead man after stepping into the place that belongs to me.¡± The man¡¯s voice was sullen and rang inside the whole dungeon. Subsequently, into the sight of the users, the black cloak of Chalian made the first appearance. The King of the Dead¡ªLick King, was overpowering the crowd. Users were nervous and were hurrying to check the status. No one knew what kind of a power the Lich King might possess. However, they were clear of one thing. Chalian was going to be stronger than any of the boss monster that they have been dealing with. Ian, who was at the forefront of the expedition, slowly walked towards Chalian. However, it wasn¡¯t related to the will of Ian. Ian had the highest rate of contribution and achievement in the episode, and the story developed around Ian. All the users in the dungeon began to be controlled by the AI, the last story of the episode was in progress. Kooong-! Dark energy spread around Chalian with great resonance. And as a consequence, Chalian¡¯s appearance could be seen by Ian. The Lich King Chalian was three times larger than any average human being. And as the giant body touched the ground, a huge sound rang out. Kung-! Resulting in the eye contact between Ian and Chalian. A disturbing voice came out of the mouth of Chalian. ¡°Huhu, the man who challenged my power without any fear.¡± Ian¡¯s mouth too began to move then, ¡°The King of Dead, you remember me?¡± Chalian dipped his face a little low and looked at the curious face of Ian. ¡°Of course. I exist beyond the limits. Since I am the king of the dead, and I forgot how to forget.¡± ¡°That is such a sad story. Oblivion is the best gift given to the man by God¡­ No, not just the ¡®oblivion¡¯ but a thousand things have been blessed onto the humans.¡± ¡°Blessed¡­¡± ¡°Happiness, love, joy. Do these feelings reside in you?¡± At those words of Ian¡¯s, Chalian¡¯s mouth went up. If one looks at it, it might be the image of a smile, but it contained intense anger in it. ¡°Even in the life that I have lived, I have never felt such ¡®blessed¡¯ feelings as you say.¡± ¡°I want to believe that.¡± ¡°Huhu, do you think that they are much more worthy than the ¡®eternal¡¯ life?¡± Ian and Chalian who exchanged a few dialogues between them took a gap to breathe. After a brief pause, Ian opened his mouth again, ¡°If you can¡¯t be happy and if you can¡¯t love¡­ what does it even mean to enjoy eternal life?¡± ¡°How can you say that?¡± ¡°Me, who is right here and those who are all right behind me¡­¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Are the living proof and the fact that we don¡¯t envy you.¡± ¡°You!¡± Chalian with his red eyes burning of anger swept the yellow staff in his right hand. Kwang-! Subsequently, intense dark energy spread from the staff of Chalian. Kwakwakwa-! Because of the dark energy that swept, the expedition users were swept away and suffered a lot of damage, each of them were pushed back more than half the distance. And Ian, who was right in front of him, suffered the most damage. ¡°Keuk!¡± Ian¡¯s vitality gauge cut more than half with just a single swipe. But Ian, contemplating his character, wasn¡¯t surprised, not in the least. The energy that came out from the staff of Chalian, not just Ian, but whoever it was would¡¯ve suffered the same amount of damage. ¡®it¡¯s probably around 60 percent¡­¡¯ In Kailan, the damage that the users suffer while in the control of the AI would never cause the user to die. As a result, when the story proceeded under the control of AI, it was safer than ever. Ian was ready for the story to move ahead, rather than be surprised at the attack done by Chalian. At the same time, he was closely monitoring the structure of the dungeon. And as the conversation with Chalian was still proceeding, it was safe to grasp the inside of the dungeon. ¡®The whole structure is dome-shaped. It seems to be a bit high for a dome¡­ we need to be careful in the center of the dungeon. It is a good shape to put in traps.¡¯ And while Ian was thinking, Ian¡¯s AI and Lich King Chalian¡¯s conversation was coming to an end. ¡°Damn, I shouldn¡¯t have let you live at that time. I should have killed you in the Devildom.¡± ¡°You¡¯re ¡®should¡¯ like you had a chance. It wasn¡¯t that you let me live, it was that you ¡®couldn¡¯t¡¯ kill me.¡± ¡°Kuk, don¡¯t talk like you¡¯re so confident. If I wanted to, I could have killed you there right away. I just didn¡¯t pursue it as an exchange for unlocking my seal.¡± ¡°See, then we made a mistake, one after the other. I freed you by mistake and you let me live by mistake.¡± ¡°Kuaahh, you understand well.¡± ¡°I just spoke the truth.¡± Once again, silence came between them. And with that, the whole body of Chalian was overflowing with dark energy. ¡°Nice, human. Then those mistakes, let¡¯s make them right, in this very place.¡± With those words of Chalian, Ian picked up the red sword that was placed on his back. Srrrng-! In the middle of the dungeon, a sharp sword was pulled out, and that was the only sound that everyone could hear. It was Bloody Revenge, a great sword that was captured from Limlong. ¡°I feel the same, Chalian. I¡¯ll rectify my mistake for getting deceived by the Devil King and to release the seal that was placed on you.¡± Chalian started to rise into the sky, and Ian returned to the expedition users. After a while, the final battle of the episode had begun. CH 492 In the Kailan play, there couldn¡¯t have been many users other than Ian who would have tried the Boss Raids. Once the raid went successfully, Ian wasn¡¯t the one to go back again, and unlike Ian, there were users who went to the boss several times. Among the items that get dropped from the boss, the concept of selling a certain item at a high price existed. Of course, Ian too wouldn¡¯t mind going to the boss again if he had a necessary item, but he had never felt that need, so far. Ian¡¯s items have always been ahead of others. In addition, the bosses that Ian attacked once for the clear couldn¡¯t be hunted again as they were the bosses for the clearing of the main story. And the number of bosses that have tried for Ian, was much less than an average user. Did that indicate that experience was lacking? Not surprisingly, it wasn¡¯t. Ian never tried one boss multiple times, it was because he was the kind to succeed in attacking the one-of-a-kind boss. Specifically, like the cases of the powerful boss who appeared only once in the Kailan story development; Ian¡¯s boss raid experience was richer than anyone else since most of the bosses that appeared so far had been cleared by the hands of Ian. And Ian¡¯s instantaneous situational judgment and the excellent responsiveness were needed more than any skill in the present expedition. Lich King Chalian¡ªthe epic boss, never tried by anyone. In such a situation where the challenge was going to be the first time, Ian¡¯s leadership ability was to shine even better. And as everyone knew about it too well, the expedition users moved according to the orders believing in Ian. ¡°Ceilron, push the right line a little more, Herz, hold the left line!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± ¡°Got it!¡± ¡°Shakran, as of now, can you check the enemies near the damage dealers? And are there any offensive priest users?¡± ¡°Me, me!¡± ¡°Oh, Yuri, please shoot those dark mages from behind. You can just shoot the Holy Arrow and bury them with a debuff.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± Holy Arrow was a ranged attack skill with light attributes, a normal single stack. However, as the range of it was extremely long, it could be a powerful debuff for the ¡®Undead¡¯ like ¡®Unrecoverable¡¯, it was Ian¡¯s favourite strategic skill in the fight against the Undead. The most annoying feature of the Dark Legion was the powerful regeneration skills of the dark mages. And if the holy Arrow¡¯s debuff hits an enemy¡­ ¡°Fiolan, Remir noona, please take down those dark mages so they can¡¯t recover.¡± ¡°Okay!¡± ¡°Understood, Ian!¡± They were going to focus their attacks on the remote damage dealer and remove them one after the other before the debuff would come to an end. Ian moved all over the battlefield and ran the expedition steadily. ¡®It is natural that the Lich King is the opponent, but it is going to be a massive fight before the last boss gets into battle.¡¯ Everytime a flash of purple cam from the staff of Lich King, countless undead monsters rose without fail. Ian who had one Hargasus looked over the battlefield who was ruined by Chalian. Chalian was surrounded by powerful named Undead. The named undead was varied. With several headcounts. There were monsters that looked like the mythical hydra, and there were strong-looking Death Knights with huge swords and black armors. ¡®By the way, what level does Chalian have?¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes went over to the head of Chalian. [Lich King Chalian: Lv???] The level was supposed to be specified next to it, but for some reason the level of Chalian was private. However, it could be inferred as the level of Chalian to be much higher than 500. The named monsters who were summoned to protect him were all of level 500. ¡®And, no matter how many we kill, they will still be summoned¡­¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes were shining ever brightly. ¡®We need to cut those named monster one after the other to make any progress.¡¯ Around 5 minutes after the start of the boss, all the expedition users began to show stable play. It was a perfect discovery of their roles to defend the line of defense against the attack pattern of Chalian¡¯s. It was the moment that Ian and Shakran had been waiting for. ¡°Kid, should we move slowly?¡± ¡°Sure!¡± The number of expedition users who were currently in the castle of the Lich King were around 350~400. Ian was going to take only around 20 or so best-played users and reduce the named monsters one by one. And that didn¡¯t mean that the other 300 players would be moving around and playing. They were going to be the strong support behind the elite who were targeting the named. Tatt-! Shakran leaped into the air in the speed of light and spoke in a small voice, ¡°Where should we start?¡± Ian who heard it quickly posted an order message on the chat window of the expeditions. The first target is Arianes. Watch out for the Corpse Explosion skill. The reason why a named monster was ¡®named¡¯ was due to the unique skill that no one else had apart from it in the Kailan. In other words, the named monster in front of them was all the one that couldn¡¯t be met anywhere other than the castle of the Lich King. Then, how did Ian knew about the unique abilities and features of the named monster? The answer was simple. Ian had faced all seven named monsters in front of him 1-2 hours ago. The named monster had blocked the way of Ian and the expedition until they had reached the Falcacio castle and they were now gathered in front of the Lich King. Ian knew all about their attack patterns and their unique abilities, which was why he was able to place orders without hesitation. ¡®They ran away before without fighting until the end. To be in the finale.¡¯ Seven powerful minions who were now assisting the Lich King. And this could be called as the ¡®Developer¡¯s care¡¯. If they were going to encounter powerful named monsters and face the threatening attack patterns one after the other without any information, the difficulty was bound to increase. Srrrng-! Ian picked up the Bloody Revenge which he had obtained from Limlong and began to approach the named monster¡ªArianes. The monster Arianes was resembling Medusa, from Greek mythology. The reason for Ian to chose this monster as the first target was simple. Named monsters had the most vitality and weaknesses at the same time, and it was because of a variety of difficult CC groups with unique abilities. In particular, the ability of the wide-area petrification which resembled the power of Medusa, a horrible skill that could lead to the destruction of the entire expedition in an instant. Ian started to move towards the monster with eyes gleaming. He was looking for an angle to activate the Bloody Revenge¡¯s unique ability: Blood Split. ¡®A little more left¡­!¡¯ Blood Split was a powerful dash that cuts through all the enemies in a straight line. Despite being a range skill that could hit multiple targets, it had a unique ability of the highest rank reaching a factor of 2,000. In addition; Blood Split was equipped with several conditions for triggering options, it was the beauty for Blood Split. *Killing more than one target with the Blood Split immediately resets the cooldown of the Blood Split. *Accurately attacking the target from behind with Blood Split would increase the damage by 150% and increased the chances for a critical strike by 35%. *Blood Split cooldown resets after every 3 critical hits in a row. Ian often watched the videos of the other rankers when eating or relaxing. Because of that, he watched numerous battle videos of Limlong. And one of the most interesting scenes of the battle footage of Limlong¡¯s was to use Blood Split to assassinate enemies in an instant. ¡®Huhu, Blood Split was a unique ability that works with such a mechanism.¡¯ Blood Split was a skill that seemed to require a high level of control at a glance. However, Ian liked Blood Spit even more because of its unique ability. When one succeeded in the high-level of control, the pleasure that stirred through the body was better than any stimulus. Ian moved secretly as if he was an assassin and jumped into the air. He had learned how to play the Blood Split numerous times in battle, he was already drawing the picture in his head. Papat-! Ian¡¯s new weapon was shinning in red and began to slash through the air. Swooah-! A sharp and intense sound spread in the air. Ian¡¯s all-new red flash went right through the chest of Arianes, and Arianes who was fatally damaged howled with pain. ¡°Kiyaaah-!¡± But the breakthrough wasn¡¯t done with just once. Slash! Slash! Swak-! It was almost like painting the air with red blood. Exactly seven times! After the red energy passed through the heart of Arianes¡­ Swoooah-! The named monster Arianes turned into black ash and disappeared. ¡°This, this is¡­!¡± The rankers of the expedition, who had been working hard on fighting Arianes couldn¡¯t speak and their expressions turned sloppy. In particular, Hoonie who was casting black magic from the front didn¡¯t know how to close his open mouth. ¡°¡­?¡± Unknowingly, saliva was dripping from one side of his mouth. Hoonie tried to sue his head to understand what just happened. But the only thing that came to his mind was¡­ ¡°Monst, Monster!¡± It was a conclusion that the one called Ian wasn¡¯t just a normal person. CH 493 ¡°Gulp.¡± From the speakers that were connected to the TV, the sound of a gulp was heard. The whole battlefield went quiet in an instant. In addition, the commentators were at a loss for words. Unusually, even Hines, who immediately narrated the scene every moment, had nothing to say. It seemed almost as if time had stopped for a while. ¡°Yah, Semi!¡± ¡°What now?¡± ¡°Please explain what¡¯s happening.¡± ¡°Hmmp, you didn¡¯t understand?¡± ¡°Ah shh, I feel like I¡¯m going to faint any moment here so explain it! What just happened? How did he use the skill alternatively seven times without the cool time?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t explain.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Even I didn¡¯t understand.¡± ¡°Awoo.¡± In the corner of a small seminar room at Korea University¡¯s Virtual Reality Department. Semi and Young-hoon, along with four other first graders, were watching the broadcast of the YTBC on the screen. Especially, Semi and Young-hoon were on the verge of getting sucked into the screen. On the TV, the voices of Lucia and Hines could be heard. ¨C Hines, could you please let us know about the skills? ¨C Wouldn¡¯t that be better? ¨C In order to explain what just happened, I think it is a good idea to give out the information about the skill for starters. ¨C Kay. Blood Split is a unique ability that is already known quite widely, so it¡¯s not hard to understand. Following the dialogue between Hines and Lucian, the skill information window of ¡®Blood Split¡¯ popped up at the corner of the TV screen. A very detailed information window starting from the attack count of the skill up to its additional options could be seen. Semi and Young-hoon, who confirmed it sounded very excited. ¡°Oh, the skill information is out!¡± ¡°Oh oh, this was all possible without the cooldown because of the conditional options.¡± ¡°Young-hoon, can you not pretend like you expected that to happen?¡± ¡°Nasty girl.¡± But even with the information window out, the doubts that they had weren¡¯t completely gone. They couldn¡¯t understand how the alternative conditional trigger options could be used. ¡°Initialize cooldown treatment. Did he use that option?¡± ¡°I think so? Each time it gets activated, it looks for the exact angle and seems to hit the other undead that has only a little vitality remaining.¡± ¡°Seven times?¡± ¡°Uh¡­ when you think about it, it doesn¡¯t seem like that is possible. I don¡¯t see the picture correctly, but it was triggered five to six times without the skill.¡± ¡°Three undead with Macta?¡± ¡°Right.¡± ¡°Oh, shit¡­? How is that even possible? Was it a bug?¡± ¡°If it wasn¡¯t a bug, then there is only one way¡­¡± ¡°Are you talking about the 3rd option? The reset cooldown on 3 consecutive strikes.¡± ¡°Yeah. That option. Ah, I¡¯ll rewind it and check it again¡­¡± The other students who had less understanding of the game compared to Semi and Young-hoon were just listening to their ongoing conversation. But then, Hines, who was still on the screen, finally opened his mouth to speak. Let¡¯s go back to that screen. Dear viewers, please focus on this now. As if they had an understanding, Semi and Young-hoon turned their heads toward the screen. * * * Actually, the Blood Split skill was a very famous one. It was because of its unique ability that was like a symbol of Limlong; it appeared every time Limlong activated it in his battles in Devildom. The main weapon of Limlong¡ªthe number 1 assassin class user¡ªwas very powerful and had eye-catching skills. There was no way it wouldn¡¯t be famous. The Blood Split first became famous during the episode of the rebelling ¡®Large ferocious Battle¡¯. There was a scene like the Mad movie, where Limlong killed five wandering Asmodian NPC¡¯s who appeared as rebels at that time, and the main skill used during that time was Blood Split. The control of the Blood Split that Limlong showed at that time was incredible and difficult. He displayed perfect damage calculation and targeting. His hit rate was perfect. It was a scene that would perfectly fit in the ¡®mad movie¡¯. It was something only a few rankers could easily imitate. Interestingly, Hines was the commentator for the Mad movie of Limlong. Hines shook his head and tried recalling the scene that happened at that time. ¡®However, that time, the scene was indeed creepy, but it is still explainable.¡¯ Limlong¡¯s play at that time was quite simple to explain. The Blood Split was used to correctly align the five demons that had little vitality remaining. Each time an Asmodian got killed, the cooldown time was reset, and hence the skill could be used continuously. Just before the red energy disappeared, the skills were activated five times, and the fact that he could hit all five was the amazing part. In other words, it was a play that anyone could think of, but it was impossible for the play to be put into action, and they realized that they were seeing such things. But the play which Ian showed didn¡¯t make sense from the very beginning. If seven Blood Splits were played in a row, at least seven or more Undead should¡¯ve died, but only three of them were killed. The only way that such a thing could be achieved without bugs was due to the 3rd conditional option. The Blood Split resets every time after 3 consecutive critical hits. However, Hines didn¡¯t understand how Ian struck three critical hits in such a short time and how he managed to stack the calculation. He began to focus on the battle of Ian and wiped his cold sweat. He watched the video in slow motion and gave a compelling comment to the viewers at the same time. Hines had a serious expression when he opened his mouth to give a commentary. ¡°Okay, this is where the first Blood Split was played.¡± The moment Ian shined with red energy, the screen moved slowly. Ian passed through Arianes, and at that moment, there was no critical hit. Fatal damage has been done to ¡®Arianes¡¯ the Death Witch. Ian¡¯s new red weapon passed through Arianes and passed through the skeletons that were behind it as well. The skeletons which were behind it had less than half of their vitality, which was why they died. [Fatal damage was dealt to the ¡®Skeleton Knight¡¯!] [You have successfully defeated the Skeleton Knight!] [Killed enemies using the unique ability ¡®Blood Split¡¯!] [Cooldown of the ¡®Blood Split¡¯ unique ability has been reset.] Hines, who had seen that on the video that was in slow motion, started to feel goosebumps. ¡®That¡­ there were already two critical hits, yah¡­!¡¯ Hitting one of the targets was something that most rankers could do without much difficulty. However, hitting more than one target at the same time with a non-target skill that stretches in a straight line? It was a theoretically conceivable development. Hines¡¯s head started to work very fast. ¡®If he got 2 stacks of critical hits here, he can get 3 stacks right away.¡¯ Ian just got 2 critical strikes, killing the Skeleton Knight. That allowed him to reuse Blood Split. That meant, if he used Blood Split to Arianes again, he would be able to hit once more, and his critical hit would stack to 3, and the cooldown would get reset again. As Hines had just predicted, Ian¡¯s Blood Split dealt a critical strike. [Fatal damage has been done to ¡®Arianes¡¯ the death witch!] [Hit three attacks in a row with a ¡®critical¡¯ hit.] [The cooldown of unique ability ¡®Blood Split¡¯ has been reset.] The second skill reset succeeded even as the first option ¡®Reset cooldown on enemy kill¡¯ wasn¡¯t even triggered. Now that the mechanisms were understood, Hines couldn¡¯t help but shout out loud. ¡°This was it! It was the critical hit stack that made it possible to cast seven consecutive skill use against the same enemy during the time when no enemy got killed!¡± On the screen, Ian spurred and moved his position lightly. It was to raise his position in accordance with his next target and to advance Arianes forward. And from there, the same pattern could be repeated. Just as Hines was screaming with realization, Ian used an attack in the middle of stacking critical hits. Seven bloody flashes came in a row and Arianes turned red. After the video was done playing, Lucia who understood the situation jumped up. ¡°This is a huge deal, Hines!¡± Lucia opened her mouth with amazement. Hines was also speaking on top of his lungs. ¡°Oh, the fact that I got to see this scene live today makes me very happy!¡± ¡°Ian God! After all, it was a desolation!¡± ¡°Surely. How is it possible to have such control of the game? No, before that¡­ How could such thoughts even enter his mind?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it natural? It¡¯s gaming sense, right?¡± ¡°Ha¡­ this isn¡¯t a game but an art! It is art!¡± Hines continued to explain and admire the control Ian had on the Blood Split until the afterglow was gone. No viewer was bored. Many of the users were able to understand it because of the explanation, and those who understood it couldn¡¯t help but exclaim. The battle was going on in the meantime. Another named boss had died while the screen was displaying the video that was in slow motion, and the remaining five named bosses¡¯ vitality was decreasing rather quickly. Of course, there were a great number of impactful scenes in the process, but none of it were strong enough to cross the Blood Split scene of Ian. Apart from that, the enthusiasm of the relay had been getting hotter and hotter every second. An hour passed. Thud-! The Ghost Dragon that was standing in front of the Lich King to protect him had been taken down at last. This meant that they were halfway through the Lich King Raid. It was clear that the Lich King himself would become more powerful as time passed, but it wouldn¡¯t be much difficult than the seven minions that they had dealt with. The Lich King who was still in the air went in front of Ian. Thud-! ¡°Kulkul. Humans are indeed subjects of fuss.¡± Around the place where the Lich King had landed, dark energy began to spread around. Ian and the expedition users quickly avoided it and looked at the Lich King with nervousness. They weren¡¯t aware of what kind of phase the next part of the raid would be. After a while, the dark energy spread around everywhere, starting from the Lich King, and system messages popped up in front of Ian and the other users. Tring-! [Killed the minions of Lich King Chalian!] [Fame increased by 150,000!] [Contribution increased by 1.4 million!] [The dark energy that was protecting Chalian has disappeared completely.] [You can now attack Chalian.] Right then, the eyes of Ian, which were reading the messages, went wide for a second. It wasn¡¯t because of the content of the messages. As the messages appeared, the level of Chalian was disclosed. [Lich King Chalian: Lv 500] ¡®What? How can that be?¡¯ The all-powerful Chalian¡¯s level was exactly similar to the minion that he had just killed. Ian had expected the level of Chalian to be above level 550. It was something that was hard to understand, even with common sense. CH 494 In Kailan, monsters could have the same level but not the same combat ability. It was because each monster had a different tier. Starting from the normal rank up to the myth rank. As each tier rose, the combat power of a monster increases exponentially, so the difference was nearly doubled for normal and myth ranks. Even though the Lich King had the same level as his minions, their combat powers would surely differ. Ian wasn¡¯t entirely sure, but Ian thought that the difference was probably between the legendary and myth. With that huge difference, it would be easy to take down the Lich King. ¡®This¡­ am I allowed to be like it?¡¯ Ian looked at the Lich King with keen eyes. Rather, if the level of Chalian was around 550, he couldn¡¯t have helped but move ahead, but when such an unexpected situation came on, he couldn¡¯t get himself to move. It was because something seemed like a ¡®trap¡¯. It wasn¡¯t just Ian that didn¡¯t move. The entire expedition was watching the dynamics of Chalian with keen eyes. Orders too didn¡¯t come out from Ian and Shakran, but they too were embarrassed at the situation they were facing. Shahhh-! With a bizarre sound ringing out, the body of Chalian floated into the air again. His black eyes gave out a gleam of a sort. ¡°You little humans will regret challenging the power in this body with that trivial power of the earth that you have!¡± Whoooooosh-! Subsequently, a strong wind of darkness began to swirl around Chalian. The dark swirl was rushing with tremendous momentum as if it wanted to destroy everything in the world. The expedition quickly backed up in order to not be swept away by it. The users were getting much more nervous. They saw a little bit of wide-area attack deal a huge amount of damage. No matter how bad a person was at observing, one couldn¡¯t help but notice the difference in the level of attack that was done by the minions and the king. The expression of Ian was different from that of before. But unlike the others, it wasn¡¯t an expression of nervousness or anxiousness. Ian rather had a funny expression that looked like he was having fun. Ian found something interesting in the Lich King. ¡®Trivial power of earth?¡¯ Ian knew that there were classes in the dimension. Earlier, when he heard the existence of the Middle-Earth from Lugarix, he learned how the whole dimensional system was built. The earthly system was the place where the humans and Asmodians belonged to. In the Middle-Earth system, a higher level of dimensional systems such as Dragon Haven and Underworld existed. And finally, the Celestial dimension, the place where the Gods were at. Ian¡¯s head began to work fast. ¡®You mean if your power is above the level of the earth¡­ then, did you get your power in Middle-Earth?¡¯ However, the question didn¡¯t just pass away that easily. According to Ian¡¯s knowledge, the power of the Middle-Earth couldn¡¯t be used on Earth. Ian asked Lugarix about the Middle-Earth the moment he found out about it, and he learned a thing or two about Middle-Earth. Ian recalled the conversation he had with Lugarix about a month ago. * * * ¡°Lugarix, how strong are you in the Middle-Earth?¡± ¡°How strong am I?¡± ¡°Yeah like, what¡¯s your level of combat in Middle-Earth?¡± Lugarix had a rather serious expression in response to Ian¡¯s question. Whether he hadn¡¯t thought about it before, or as if he had been thinking about it for quite a while. ¡°Well¡­ I don¡¯t know exactly, but maybe average?¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°Huh. It may be different for other dimensions, but it is more than average in the Dragon Haven.¡± ¡°That so¡­ I see.¡± ¡°But why are you asking?¡± At the sudden question from Lugarix, Ian replied while scratching the back of his neck, It seemed like Ian had unintentionally stepped on the pride of Lugarix. ¡°Hmm, much lower in level than what I had thought.¡± ¡°Wha¡­ what?¡± ¡°Nothing, much. Honestly, you are very strong. I won¡¯t be able to overpower you even if I use all of my summons.¡± ¡°Yeah!¡± ¡°But, if you were in the Middle-Earth¡­ then you¡¯re much weaker than my expectations in the Middle-Earth?¡± At the convincing statement from Ian, the red-faced Lugarix glanced at him. Lugarix seemed like he was being unfairly judged. ¡°That isn¡¯t it, stupid Ian.¡± Elcarix who was listening to their conversation suddenly interrupted after hearing the word ¡®stupid¡¯. ¡°Our dad is a genius!¡± ¡°Ahhh, not that. Whatever!¡± After Ian saw Lugarix tingling around, he felt something strange. ¡®This jerk Lugarix is a bully, but then, he isn¡¯t the one to make a groundless claim¡­¡¯ Being interested in it, Ian began to scoop for more around Lugarix. ¡°If not, then what?¡± ¡°Uhhh!¡± ¡°Is there something I don¡¯t understand?¡± Lugarix fell for the bait that Ian threw. ¡°Of course, you don¡¯t! If I use my power of Middle-Earth¡­!¡± ¡°Oho?¡± ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t know! I¡¯m much stronger than Ian thinks!¡± Ian smiled at what Lugarix said. Lugarix was trying to get a peek of Ian¡¯s face. The guy took the bait; now it meant that he had to pull the fish up. ¡°Aeee, you need to explain what the power of Middle-Earth is.¡± ¡°That¡­ I can¡¯t do that¡­!¡± ¡°What can¡¯t you do?¡± ¡°We mustn¡¯t talk about the Middle-Earth to the beings of the earth.¡± ¡°Yeah? Then, no one would believe that what your saying is true, right?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°The great power that you say is hidden inside of you.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you just believe what I have to say?¡± ¡°Hmm. I just can¡¯t. I can¡¯t believe you until you talk about the power of the Middle-Earth in detail.¡± ¡°Kuk!¡± Ian continued to speak, ¡°You already told me a lot about the Middle-Earth.¡± ¡°Right.¡± ¡°So, it wouldn¡¯t really make a difference if you say more about it, right?¡± ¡°Nevertheless¡­!¡± ¡°Talk quick. Otherwise, I will think that you¡¯re making things up about the Middle-Earth.¡± ¡°Making things up!? Absolutely not!¡± Lugarix fell into the trap laid out by Ian and started to spout things about the power of the Middle-Earth. It was surely an interesting story that wasn¡¯t going to be helpful to Ian right away. ¡®So¡­ the power gathered in the higher dimensions cannot be used in the lower dimensions.¡¯ Lugarix¡¯s explanation was simple. When a qualified person entered Middle-Earth, he would be given the title of ¡®Intermediate¡¯. At the same time, he would be able to practice transcendental powers. While that power was surely greater than the power available on earth. Most of it was sealed. He also stated that despite his transcendental power being powerful, he couldn¡¯t help but not use it in the human world. ¡®It was similar to the Gods not using their powers in the human world.¡¯ Ian found another hidden setting of Kailan¡¯s system, which made him feel very good. ¡®Intermediate. The power of transcendental¡­ I want to go to Middle-Earth as soon as I can.¡¯ He wasn¡¯t sure what the qualification was, but he thought until he knew that, he would keep gathering information about Middle-Earth. ¡®If we catch the Lich King and ask him about the Underworld, I might be able to know everything.¡¯ With the information he gathered from Lugarix, Ian smiled with feelings of satisfaction. * * * Ian¡¯s eyes made contact with the Lich King as he was done thinking. ¡®That guy. Is he trying to use the power of Middle-Earth in here? But Lugarix said that using it here wouldn¡¯t be possible, right?¡¯ No other thoughts came to his mind. Given that the Lich King just displayed his level, he wouldn¡¯t be able to make such a confident statement unless he had the power of Middle-Earth. ¡®Does he know how to use the power of Middle-Earth here?¡¯ Just thinking about that made Ian feel nervous. He realized that he had overlooked something until now. ¡°Lugarix too is of level 500, right?¡± Ian spat out those words without even realizing it. The guild person who was next to him was puzzled, and Ian wasn¡¯t worried about it. ¡®It isn¡¯t just Lugarix. The King of wheels, and Iriel as well¡­ as the level of reinforcement sent by the Gods. Captain Baek Whe-su during the war with the Devildom were of level 500.¡¯ In addition, when he further thought about it, the first time he met Chalian, he was exactly level 500. By this time, Ian¡¯s guess was now a fact and not a guess. ¡®Manrep! It must be a level 500 Manrep! Obviously, this didn¡¯t mean the end of his growth, but the highest level one could raise in the human world was 500!¡¯ As the puzzles fell into place, Ian trembled unknowingly. ¡®It wasn¡¯t unusual for the Lich King to have a level of 500. No matter how strong he was, he wouldn¡¯t be able to go beyond the highest level set on the human¡¯s system.¡¯ Chuk-! After all those thoughts, Ian aimed his red sword at the Lich King. There was some reason for why he was confident, but he wasn¡¯t hesitating anymore. ¡®I don¡¯t know how to use the power of the Middle-Earth, but I need to rush in to get the answer.¡¯ Stomp stomp- Ian, who was ready to face the Lich King, slowly took strides in the direction of Chalian. Chalian smiled and opened his mouth to speak, ¡°Ian, you will be the first person to enter my family of the dead after you die.¡± Ian smiled back at the words of Chalian and responded, ¡°Are you trying to stop me in such a whiny manner? Shut your mouth and show me if you mean it.¡± Ian taunted Chalian to hurt his pride like he usually did. As soon as Chalian heard that, he changed. ¡°Cheeky bastard, you¡¯ll regret your actions soon!¡± As soon as they were done exchanging words, Chalian floated into the air once again. A purple energy began to flow inside his skeletal body. Ian took that as the start of the battle and issued orders. ¡°What kind of magic will you all cast!? Magicians, prepare to cast the Shield magic!¡± As the orders of Ian ended, a resonating sound rose in every direction. Woong- Wooong-! The energy of dark spread over a large area from both the hands of Chalian. ¡®Will this magic be removed if I use Nick?¡¯ Ian was observing Chalian with keen eyes. And at the same time, system messages came in front of him and the other users. Tring-! [Lich King ¡®Chalian¡¯ begun to release the forbidden dimensional magic.] [The ¡®Enchantment of Darkness¡¯ has been settled across the dungeon of ¡®Falcacio Stronghold¡¯.] [The Dimensional Tower of the ¡®Falcacio Stronghold¡¯ has temporarily changed into the ¡®Middle-Earth¡¯.] Ian¡¯s eyes widened as he understood the meaning behind those messages. CH 495 ¨C What is this? ¡®Middle-Earth¡¯? ¨C I know, right. Will there be a new dimension? ¨C Hines, you haven¡¯t heard anything about the Middle-Earth? ¨C Yeah. I have never heard of anything called the Middle-Earth. How is the situation going to flow? In a dark room. A man was staring at the TV screen with a very satisfied expression while leaning onto the couch. He mumbled in a soft voice as if talking with the commentator. ¡°How will the situation go, huh? That stupid Lich King AI is the grave plate.¡± However, the peculiar thing was, the man¡¯s Korean was rather different. The vocabulary was rather perfect like any Korean, but the pronunciation was that of a foreigner. ¡°Is that Ian? Surely, the top class users of the Korean sever are amazing.¡± Mumbled the man with a grin, he suddenly moved and turned off the TV with the remote controller. Ping-! ¡°The result well, it is going to be¡­¡± The man slowly moved and was heading somewhere. And behind him, two men in black suits silently caught up to him. * * * ¡®This is exciting?¡¯ Temporarily changing the dimension type to ¡®Middle-Earth¡¯ caused several lines of system messages to pop up. The most prominent was these, however, it was the level of transcendence, which appeared to be the content of the Middle-Earth only. [The dimensional Tower of the ¡®Falcacio Stronghold¡¯ has been temporarily changed to ¡®Middle-Earth¡¯.] [Transcendence stats are set in accordance with the stats gained from the Earth.] [The Transcendence level applied now.] [The current level of transcendence level of ¡®Ian¡¯ is level 1.] [The leveling up of transcendence is limited until you become a ¡®Qualified Warrior¡¯. (You cannot raise more than level 10)] Ian looked at the system messages as fast as he could and quickly opened the status window to check his stats. ¨C Ian Transcendence level: 1 (0/200 (0%)) Dimensional Rank: none Race: Human Occupation: Summoner (Taming Master) Title: Owner of Cintamani (Myth) Fame: 35,975,250 -Combat Ability Vitality: 96,250 (+ 93,200) Attack: 625 (+250) Agility: 815 (+310) Intellect: 448 (+170) Defense : 495 (+225) All equipment gained from Earth will be reduced to one-tenth of the stats. (Leak) Ian¡¯s eyes went further wide after he read the stats window. ¡®What? What is with the stats?¡¯ Except for the increased number of items due to the level of nearly 10-20, all the combat abilities had been lowered. Even the performance of the item was applied to one-tenth, the stats in the status window were of a complete beginner. Flustered with what he was seeing, Ian quickly looked around and saw that everyone was reacting similarly. ¡°What, What is? All the stats have been reset!¡± ¡°OMG¡­ not just the stats! Skill level has changed to level 1!¡± ¡°Why? My familiars have all turned to level 1!¡± ¡°What¡¯s with the equipment now? My armor defense is weird!¡± It was utter chaos! Ian tried to calmly grasp the current situation. ¡®The maximum level one can raise on the earth is obviously of level 500. The transcendence level appeared just now seems to be a content that can be raised through the Middle-Earth content. If so, the Lich King, will his level change to the transcendence level?¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes went to the head of the Lich King. As Ian expected, the new level appeared on the head of Lich King. Lich King Chalian: Lv 20 (Transcendence) Before the enchantment opened. The Lich King used the word ¡®the power of earth¡¯. As if he had more power than humans. And right now; the transcendence level of ¡¯20¡¯ that was floating on the head of Lich King and it was the power he was talking about. ¡®I can¡¯t guess how much power a level 20 has. Is it impossible to cover it with equipment?¡¯ It wasn¡¯t known how much the stats would rise when the transcendence level rose. If the leveling was similar to that of a normal level, the level difference of 20 would be fully covered by the equipment options. However, since the stats itself¡ªthat was given as the 1st level of transcendence, was 10 times higher than the normal level¡ªwhich made it unlikely to be possible. ¡®Surely that Chalian was proud of himself.¡¯ Chalian raised his skull staff with a triumphant look. A shattering sound came out of Chalian¡¯s mouth. ¡°Kyaahahah, I will make all you deceased ones into my servants.¡± Powerful dark shots sprang from the staff of Chalian¡¯s. And because of their fluster, one user on the expedition couldn¡¯t avoid it and was out of the game. ¡°Kuaaah-!¡± ¡°Oh sh*t, Lokan!¡± ¡°Crazy! With just one shot!?¡± With a very simple attack magic shot, a user with a full vitality had been out of the game. The user¡¯s class was a knight with the best tanking ability. Seeing the users all flustered, Lich King Chalian began to laugh and laugh. ¡°Keeuk, Keekeuk! Foolish humans, can you understand the situation now?¡± Kuooo-! With his long fingers, he stretched out his hands to the sky and began to cast another dark spell. ¡°The King of the Dead. I command you in my name¡­!¡± Purple light similar to that of the electric currents began to emanate from his hands. And the users who confirmed it were even more terrified. ¡°What are the damage dealers doing?! Please stop the casting!¡± ¡°Damages won¡¯t come in because of the Black Shield!¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do it till the damage deal is done!¡± ¡°What are you trying to say, the shield will get lost with just a single shot!¡± ¡°That looks like a huge damage deal! Move to the back¡­!¡± ¡°Magicians, priests, stack up the wide-area shield!¡± ¡°No use! It looks like a channeling skill.¡± The ranking users were all in chaos with just one use of a simple magic skill, and now Chalian was casting a strong spell, and they were expecting that. The only choice for the users was to get out of the range of the attack somehow or the other. Shakran talked with Ian in a languid manner. ¡°Keuhm. What do you plan on doing now, kid? If you stay still, you¡¯ll be wiped out.¡± Shakran who never usually shows any change in his facial expression was now in urgency and was having trouble remaining calm. However, Ian was rather calm. ¡°Wiped out? Why will I get wiped out?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Shakran had nothing to respond to Ian, he seemed like he was dreaming but had a strange expression on his face. ¡°Trust only me. Just me.¡± Hearing that ridiculous statement, Shakran spoke to him again, ¡°What believe you and about what? You¡¯re not expecting me to believe in the Phoenix of yours, right?¡± Even Shakran believed that he wouldn¡¯t get wiped out this time. Many of the top rankers had special skills, and if he could take advantage of the unique abilities that they possess, he could be able to prevent an attack or two. And with the use of the unique ability of Ian¡¯s familiar, Nick. However, if the current one would get blocked, the next one would be a problem. Chalian would surely unleash one after the other strong attacks, and after stopping two or three, they would be out of options. Instead of answering, Ian grinned and moved on the floor. Ttat! Ian who was on Pin gave a loud order. ¡°Users! Gather in as much as you can!¡± Seeing Ian order that confidently, the users started to gain some sense. ¡°It is Ian!¡± ¡°Surely, Ian would¡¯ve thought of something!¡± ¡°Hurry! Do as he ordered!¡± They didn¡¯t know what strategy was going to be used, and it didn¡¯t even matter for them. In the current situation for the expedition users, Ian¡¯s order was like a divine light. A miracle that could make the impossible into possible. After a while, Chalian started to speak once again after he was done casting the dark magic. ¡°Kyaahaha, I¡¯ll turn you all into ghosts!¡± Kwaah-! Purple light moved out from the hands of Chalian and spread all through the dungeon through the air. At that very moment, the unique ability of Nick was triggered just as Shakran had anticipated. [Familiar ¡®Nick¡¯ unique ability ¡®Guardian of Sun God¡¯ has been triggered.] [Familiar ¡®Nick¡¯ can heal 30% per second.] Woong-! A golden glow was emanating that could almost devour the dark currents in the air. But after the three seconds, the glow began to fade away. On the contrary, the dark currents from the Lich King didn¡¯t stop. Shakran who grasped the situation accurately watched Ian¡¯s movements with keen eyes. ¡®What are you going to do now, kid? I don¡¯t think you would¡¯ve expected this much.¡¯ It was even too late to avoid. If he tried to evade the wide-area attack, he would have to leave his camp while the ¡®Guardian of Sun God¡¯ ability of Nick was in play. There was no way to escape from the Lich King as they were trapped in a confined place of the dungeon, at least he could¡¯ve tried to buy some time. And Shakran along with the other expedition users left everything to the orders of Ian. Although this choice might wipe out everyone, no one would blame Ian. ¡®If it weren¡¯t for that kid, we wouldn¡¯t have even made it till here.¡¯ The protection from the ¡®Guardian of Sun God¡¯ was removed, and the dark energy was pouring into a place where the gold light was shining previously. The moment when the darkness had reached there, the expedition users would die right away. At the moment, all the users turned to look towards Ian¡¯s fingertips. ¡°Please¡­!¡± The voice of someone was lingering in the air, and a huge dark current covered the entire expedition. Kyahh-! A huge explosion that seemed like a raid failed. But then, users felt that something was off. ¡°Uh?¡± ¡°What is this? Why isn¡¯t the damage deal coming?¡± The dark currents were stopped by a transparent film and disappeared. After a while. Kyaaa-! Out of nowhere in the middle of the dungeon, the roars of the dragon started to come. Unsurprisingly, the eyes of the expedition went to look in the direction of the sound, and at the same time. ¡°¡­!¡± The Lich King stared widely at the giant dragon that was flying on top of him within his dungeon. There the dragon of darkness unleashed a fearsome roar. [Dragon of Darkness, Lugarix: Lv: 45 (transcendence)] CH 496 The Lich King Chalian episode was meant to last for at least a year. In addition, even the working developers were expecting around 9 to 10 months for clearing the game, as quickly as possible. And it was the same with Yan Kwang Jin, one of the chief PDs of the Kailan development team. ¡°Are you ending up in a queue? That monster like a bastard, Ian.¡± Yang Kwang Jin was muttering to himself while staring at the small screen TV that was inside the development team¡¯s studio. Inside the screen was a giant dark dragon that was roaring. Kyaaa! In fact, Yang Kwang Jin, a senior PD and lead developer, had been involved in the development of the next content for a long time. As soon as the affinity with Lugarix and Ian had reached the maximum limit, the planning team started working even though the episode wasn¡¯t over. But apart from that, this current development of the game was truly something that nobody from the planning development team had expected. ¡®I never thought that the last hurdle would be broken down so easily¡­¡¯ The ¡®last hurdle¡¯ that Yang Kwang Jin was talking about was the temporary attack from Chalian. The Boundary Distortion that temporarily changed the dungeon¡¯s dimension type to the ¡®Middle-Earth¡¯. The difference caused by this plan wasn¡¯t actually something that could be overcome by the concepts of gaming such as ¡®control¡¯, at least confidently for the ¡¯10 months¡¯. There were two ways to overcome the dark enchantment. The first one was to break through the front. Before the user can hit the episode, the media content progressed to some extent and would raise the transcendence level equivalent to that of Chalian. But in order for that growth to happen, a year was enough time. Therefore, it could be said that it was a very meaningful method. The second was to bring a ¡®transcendental being¡¯ into the dark enchanted region. That was actually the key to clearing the Lich King episode. A transcendence being that is in a hostile relationship with Chalian and make the being deal with Chalian. Just like Ian had brought Lugarix. ¡®Finding Lugarix quest and clearing it. Increasing the affinity was obviously not easy¡­¡¯ Ian was a special case. ¡®Hoonie¡¯ was in the quest that was related to the Dragon of Darkness, and so the main quest was in progress. There was the quest ¡®Tame the new Dragon of Light, Elcarix¡¯ which was the only way for the increase of affinity with Lugarix. The original 10 months time given could¡¯ve been cut by half. It was a fortune, it was the result that could never be completed without the ability and understanding of the episode. In the eyes of the developer Yang Kwang Jin, Ian was born just to play the game. ¡°Ehhh, I¡¯ve got to stop thinking about useless stuff and get to work. This time, I¡¯ve got the headcount, so the next piece of content will be a bit hardcore by the planning team.¡± Yang Kwang Jin, who got back his calmness, began to focus on the monitor. He knew that even if one line of code was placed, it would turn into a shortcut for the work. * * * ¨C How dare you clutter with the hierarchy of the Gods and their creations?! Lugarix¡¯s mouth opened, and dark energy got shot to the air. Kwa Kwakwang-! The range wasn¡¯t wide, but the power of destruction was just as strong as the Breath of a dragon. Chalian who managed to avoid it with Blink opened his mouth with a trembling voice, ¡°Uh, You¡¯re Lugarix? How are you here¡­?¡± Before Chalian placed the enchantment of the field, Lugarix was active on the battlefield. But he helped Ian without manifesting into his real body. That was the reason why Chalian hadn¡¯t noticed the presence of Lugarix. Then why was Lugarix battling with the polymorphic form? It was for a simple reason. Rather than using the physical combat attacks in the normal body, using the variety of dark magic in the human polymorphed state would be more helpful in the battle. Surely, magic could be cast even in the form of a dragon, but the casting of magic was much better in the human form. It was common sense that dragons with huge bodies were much more likely to be disturbed when casting spells when compared to the small bodies of humans. But not now. The enchantment cast by Chalian made it possible to use the power of the Middle-Earth¡­ ¡°Darkness, burn it all!¡± Hwrrrk-! The exclusive possession of the dragons and one of the highest tiers of transcendence. He could use the ¡®Dragon Language Magic¡¯. ¡°Kuaakkk!¡± Chalian screamed in pain as he was getting engulfed in darkness. Chalian, the king of the dead, was indifferent to suffering. He was unable to endure the darkness of his own origin which was burning him. The expedition users who witnessed it were looking at the Lich King with a dazed expression. ¡°Wow¡­¡± ¡°Awesome¡­¡± And among them; specifically, the magician users, the degree of surprise was even more high for them. Lugarix was showing a very high level of magic. ¡°Crazy, that is almost a scam¡­¡± ¡°It is almost like a cheat-key?¡± The Dragon Language Magic, in a simple word, is a form of transcendence magic that was of the basic concept of ¡®class¡¯. As the dragon had ¡®Magic Clan¡¯, the magic weapons interacted with the element itself. Because of that, unlike the magic that the users speak, the power to change the ark of the magic was high. Moreover, the moment it becomes the transcendence being¡­ -Magic Clan ¨C Dragons are born with the ¡®magic clan¡¯. Dragons who become complete can use higher magic in proportion to their intellect and can learn new spells through the spellbooks. (However, the power is less than the power of the magician class.) Even the penalties granted to the ¡®magical clan¡¯, would disappear completely. Instead of using the human-generated ¡®Magic meant for humans¡¯, they would use the dragon magic. So the power of Lugarix¡¯s offensive magic seemed to be much more powerful. However, apart from that fact, the greatest reason for the users to be astonished was not because of the strong power of the magic of language. It was a more powerful magic and it was an obvious thing that came along with the move to the higher content. However, they were flustered because of the ¡®special power¡¯ of the dragon language spells. The power was¡­ ¡°How is it able to use magic without even casting?¡± ¡®Casting Time¡¯ a weakness that magicians had to follow, however that didn¡¯t exist in the dragon language magic. Of course, the ranker wizards who cast could reduce their casting time by the use of the magic items, the casting time could be reduced to almost nothing. The difference between almost nothing and nothing was really huge. Lugarix, who was now a magician was pouring out three to four attack spells at once. ¡°Believe in the Trivial powers and do this¡­¡± Everytime Lugarix began to cast, a painful scream came out of Chalian¡¯s mouth. ¡°Rid of the Soul!¡± ¡°Keu, no!¡± ¡°In the name of the Dragon God, I punish you!¡± It was like seeing a fight between a child and an adult. The vitality of the raid monster Chalian was abnormally high, and he had been holding on for a long time. The battle between Chalian and Lugarix was surprising enough for the use of the ¡®battle¡¯. All the dark magic that Chalian had used were scattered by a single gesture of Lugarix, and the vitality gauge of Chalian was falling down each time Lugarix¡¯s verbal spells exploded. And it was a known fact not just to Ian but all the users, and there was a reason why it was affecting Chalian to the extreme. That was it. In fact, Lugarix was the perfect natural enemy for Chalian. The verbal spells had the ability to disable the spells of the same tier magic of the lower tier, and unfortunately, the attributes of Chalian was dark. The level of transcendence was more than doubled for Lugarix, and it was only natural that Chalian was being rod down. Ian was staring at the appearance without much difference from the users, and he suddenly opened the party system messages. It normally didn¡¯t open as it would be an interference with the battle, but in such a situation the options were wide for the onlookers. [Dragon of Darkness ¡®Lugarix¡¯ has done fatal damage to the Lich King Chalian!] [Vitality of Chalian has been reduced by 143,265!] [Vitality of Chalian has been reduced by 178,273!] Everytime Lugarix cast magic, numerous system messages were pouring in. Ian looked at them in detail and was interested. ¡®Even in the transcendence level of 40, the damage is over 100,000 units?¡¯ In the meantime, Ian began to analyze the magical damage caused by Lugarix. If he could analyze the damage of Lugarix; the transcendence level of 45, he could see how much the stats would rise with each level. And it was the thought that came to Ian as he was such a person. ¡®Keu, if the transcendence level is at 100, it will do much more damage than the level 500 of a human dimension. You¡¯d need to have a high number to survive the blow.¡¯ Ian smiled and laughed inside. Ian was aware of it, but the battle between Lugarix and Chalian was coming to an end. ¡°Kyaaa, in vain! If it only wants you Lugarix¡­¡± ¡°That assumption is meaningless, Chalian. The moment you broke the law of dimension, you would have been judged by the God anyway.¡± As soon as Lugarix said that, purple energy began to whip around the body of Chalian. The purple energy turned into chains and the whole body of Chalian was being trapped in them. ¡°Kuek- Keuk-!¡± Chalian was groaning in pain as his whole body was being bound with purple chains. And seeing such a satisfying figure of Chalian, Lugarix opened his mouth, ¡°Stop it now, and go back to nothingness.¡± Huge dark energy that was inside the ¡®Falcacio Stronghold¡¯ was getting sucked inside the mouth of Lugarix. A magnificent view of the black hole which everything was engulfed. The energy that entered the mouth of Lugarix was turning into purple, and the mass that was accumulated was growing into a large sphere as time went. Goooo-! With a huge intense resonance, a sound was enough to make the entire dungeon vibrate. The breath of Lugarix went to engulf the bounded Chalian. CH 497 The Luspel and the Kaimon Empire. In the past, the Colonar was made up of the constant confrontation between those two empires, and the map was made in such a way that the difficulty of hunting became higher as they further moved away from the Capital of each empire. It was because the first-time users selected a country and created a character; the game started in the Capital of either empire. However, since the end of the Imperial War episode called the ¡®Spring and Autumn Period¡¯, the monster distribution structure on the Colonar Continent was changed completely. Originally, the distance between the two capitals was huge. Now, the capitals became numerous and multi-nuclearized. Dozens of starting points have been created as more than a certain amount of kingdoms were created nationally. Even some popular kingdoms, such as Lotus, had two starting points. That didn¡¯t mean that the city couldn¡¯t accommodate all the new users at the same point. The Lotus Estate¡ªthe capital of the kingdom¡ªand the busiest city Pyro Domain. These two were the starting points that could be chosen when the Lotus Kingdom was chosen as the nationality. Among them, the Pyro Domain was one of the hottest starting points in the Korean Kailan server. There were thousands of people waiting for character creation to start from the Pyro Domain. Yu Min, the hottest actress in Korea. She, too, was one of those waiting in line. Tring-! [Miss ¡®Yu Min¡¯, you cannot create a character in the ¡®Pyro¡¯ Domain of the Lotus Kingdom because it reached its limit (185,000/ 185,000)] [Do you want to select another estate? (Y/N)] [If you select another estate, the character creation waiting sequence will be initialized.] [Current waiting number of ¡®Yu Min¡¯: 972.] Yu Min sat down in the capsule with excitement after finishing her schedule. After checking the system messages, Yu Min came out of the capsule feeling disappointed. With pouted lips, she spoke to her manager and unie, Lee Ye Jin. ¡°Ye Jin unie, I¡¯m on waiting today!¡± ¡°Uh? Are you still waiting? What¡¯s your number?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. Was it around 900? I didn¡¯t read it correctly.¡± ¡°That¡­ Is that so? Hehe, I thought you could play today.¡± Ye Jin, who felt a little sullen by the words of Yu Min, opened the capsule that was next to her. Yu Min shook her head and asked her, ¡°Since I¡¯m still on waiting, why did you open the capsule?¡± ¡°Min-ah, why don¡¯t you just start from another estate? You haven¡¯t played the game for a week already.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not possible.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I won¡¯t start the game unless it is from the estate of Ian God.¡± ¡°Ha, a celebrity trying to wait because of a gamer?¡± ¡°Even if I need to wait for another week, I¡¯ll start with the Pyro Domain, unconditionally.¡± ¡°Ugh.¡± Ye Jin shook her head and sat in the capsule. Yu Min was surprised and opened his mouth to speak again, ¡°You¡¯re going to start elsewhere, alone?¡± ¡°Aee, would I?¡± ¡°Then why are you getting into the capsule?¡± ¡°I want to check it. I need to look after our actress.¡± Ye Jin frowned and responded, Yu Min¡¯s expression brightened noticeably. ¡°Haha, Unnie you are the best!¡± Wheeing- chuk-! Ye Jin lay down completely inside the capsule, and the capsule¡¯s head closed automatically. The game started running after that. As it was the capsule that Ye Jin ordered for the Hallyuu star¡ªafter spending billions on it¡ªeven the exterior design was very lavish. She patted the capsule while standing next to Ye Jin¡ªwho was in the capsule. ¡°Hehe, I want to play the game as quickly as possible. I¡¯ll play hard and get into the Lotus Guild somehow!¡± Although her character wasn¡¯t created yet, Hally star Yu Min had a big dream. However, after a while, Yu Min felt that something was off. ¡°What, this Unnie? Does it take this much time to check the waiting number?¡± Ye Jin went into the capsule to check for the waiting number, and even after several minutes had passed, she still hadn¡¯t come out of the capsule. At that moment, an ominous thought entered the head of Yu Min. ¡®Ho, maybe! In the meantime, the waiting sequence was released, she wouldn¡¯t have started the game, right?¡¯ Crazy thoughts ran in her head. Yu Min immediately went to the other capsule that was next to her. She wasn¡¯t able to regain her composure; she couldn¡¯t ignore her instincts. Wheeing-! After a while, the capsule started to work, and familiar system messages came before the eyes of Yu Min. [¡®Yu Min¡¯ welcome to the world of Kailan.] [The Kingdom level of the ¡®Pyro¡¯ Domain of the Lotus Kingdom has been increased.] [The maximum capacity of the estate has been increased, you can now create a character right away.] [Do you want to create a character?] Yu Min, who saw the messages, couldn¡¯t help but feel shocked. * * * [King of the Dead, Lich King Chalian has died.] [Lich King Chalian has been defeated by human heroes.] [The episode ¡®Lich King Chalian¡¯ has been cleared.] [Episode contribution ranking is being calculated.] [Guild Rank] [1st Place: Lotus] [2nd Place: Titan] [3rd Place: Fulios] [4th Place: Valiant] (Other) [User Ranking] [1st Place: Ian] [2nd Place: Shakran] [3rd Place: Ceilron] [4th Place: Levya] [5th Place: Remir] (Leaked) [User ¡®Ian¡¯ has been given the title ¡®The one who ruled the darkness (Myth)¡¯] [User ¡®Shakran¡¯ has been given the title ¡®Rebel against darkness (Legendary)¡¯.] [User ¡®Ceilron¡¯ has been given the title ¡®Rebel against darkness (Legendary)¡¯.] (Syncopation) [The growth experience of the Lotus Kingdom is 15 million.] [The growth experience of the Titan Kingdom is 13 million.] (Leak) The world¡¯s messages, shining in purple light, were flowing in front of the chat window of all the users who were connected to Kailan. The huge episode that was in progress for all the users of the human dimension had been finished, and this wasn¡¯t a natural course of action. Lugarix¡¯s breath that brought in the power of transcendence extinguished Chalian, and the dark lines that were left behind by Chalian had gradually disappeared. Compared to many challenges that they met on their way to Chalian, it seemed a bit too vain. Many users were thinking in the same way. However, Ian wasn¡¯t of the same thought. Ian was the only user who understood all the situations perfectly well. ¡®This was why we couldn¡¯t face Chalian without Lugarix.¡¯ Ian¡¯s thoughts were still going on as he saw the body of Chalian burning. ¡®Catching Chalian, the Middle-Earth content will be opened in a month or two. We need to preempt the Middle-Earth content well.¡¯ But that was for a while only, Ian then turned obsessed with the personal messages that began to emerge following the world messages. In front of Ian, an endless list of personal rewards began to rush in. Tring-! [You¡¯ve achieved the highest contribution in the episode of ¡®Lich King Chalian¡¯!] [Fame increased by 1 million.] [Earned an additional 5 million contribution from the episode. (After the episode is over, you can exchange it for items or gold at the contribution shop.)] [Obtained experience points of 198,742,500.] [Level has risen.] [Level has risen to ¡®403¡¯.] [Obtained the item ¡®Lich King¡¯s, Crystal Buckle¡¯.] [You have earned the item ¡®Amulet of Death¡¯.] (Syncopation) [You have met the first condition to enter the ¡®Warriors Village¡¯.] [Transcendence experience increased by 245.] [Transcendence level has risen.] [Your Transcendence level is now level 2.] Ian¡¯s status window was filled with huge amounts of rewards. Ian looked at each of the messages that came up and smiled with a lot of satisfaction. Ian just received rewards that were so huge to even convert into money. Ian¡¯s eyes continued to read the system messages and then stopped once he found what he was looking for. ¡®Yes¡­ found it!¡¯ He was satisfied with the tremendous rewards he got, and he found clues about the dimension that he was looking for in the system message. [Obatined the item ¡®Underworld King¡¯s Necklace Shard (C) (Sealed)¡¯.] ¡®According to what Kaka said, the total number of necklace pieces of the Underworld king are three.¡¯ The King of the Underworld, the gatekeeper who protects the road to the Underworld. All the pieces of the necklaces that Ian needed for the summon were in his hands. Ian¡¯s mouth went up after seeing the fragments. Three fragments of the necklaces A, B, and C were all shinning in white. Once all the debris on them was taken out and unsealed, the way to the Underworld would open. ¡®I could now attack the Middle-Earth, the Spirit Dimension and the Dragon Haven. These three places, huh?¡¯ Ian began to make a plan for the future. There were three Middle-Earth places that Ian could enter, but he couldn¡¯t go into the three at the same time. The first choice of Ian was the Underworld. ¡®It is inevitable. The first place I will go to is the Underworld. I wanted to go to the Spirit Dimension first, but I don¡¯t really feel like going there.¡¯ The reason Ian chose to go to the Underworld wasn¡¯t that hard to understand. It was because of his deal with Shakran about capturing the Lich King. ¡®If you join the expedition, I will help you enter the Underworld¡¯ That was the deal he had to fulfill. After opening the Underworld¡¯s path for Shakran and the Titan Guild, Ian himself couldn¡¯t go to any other places in the Middle-Earth. It was in a state that Ian couldn¡¯t tolerate. ¡®I need to pre-empt the content of the Underworld of Middle-Earth as much as possible and then go attack the Spirit Dimension. If it gets too late, The Spirit King will get sad. After I get the Behemoth, I need to go see the king without delay.¡¯ Ian nodded to himself and smiled thinking about the Water Spirit King, Elisha. Rough plans have been arranged. While Ian was immersed in his thoughts, the black ash that was left by Chalian began to spread and cover the whole of Falcacio. The castle that was originally tinged with darkness was now changing. It revived into a beautiful ancient palace, shining in white and gold. A few more personal system messages appeared in front of Ian. Tring-! [You have executed the Lich King Chalian and defended the peace of the human dimension.] [You have fulfilled your promise with the hero of Luspel Empire, Muran.] [You have fulfilled the ¡®Hero¡¯s Responsibility¡¯.] [You have successfully completed the quest ¡®Heroes Responsibility (Hidden)¡¯.] This was why Ian was playing crazily for a month. The message that he had completed the ¡®Hero¡¯s Responsibility¡¯ quest had finally come. ¡°Kue!¡± In particular, a line of system message that just popped up made Ian happier than the other rewards he got. [You have earned the Unique Dual Class ¡®Summoner Knight¡¯.] CH 498 There were 8 different careers in Kailan. The first ones were the careers of soldiers, knights, warriors, archers, magicians, and priests that have existed since the launch of Kailan. And the three new types¡ªthe summoner, assassin, and warlock¡ªafter the update. It was a basic fact that everyone who played Kailan would know. Kailan¡¯s career system, however, became more complex as the content was updated. The beginning of the ¡®Dual Class¡¯. When the concept of Devildom was first introduced, the ¡®Half-devil¡¯ was created; that allowed the system to have a play with both a devil class and a human class. And accordingly, a ¡®Dual Class¡¯ was created. Half a year later, the fusion class concept was born. The fusion class was a system that allowed users to possess two different careers, a new class with a mix of vocations. However, unlike the Dual Class that most people possessed and had in common, the fusion class was quite rare. The difficulty of obtaining the fusion class was quest related and getting that quest wasn¡¯t that easy either. Kailan¡¯s career system was always updated with new content. However, that didn¡¯t mean that the content would be added with any specified standards. There was one proposition that never changed; no matter how the vocational system was added, a user could only pick one out of the eight careers. Not only the normal classes but also the hidden classes in all tiers¡ªthe dual classes and the fusion classes. In the end, they all fell into the eight career categories. So what was the concept of the ¡®Unique Dual Class¡¯ that Ian just got? ¡®Since it has the word dual in it¡­ it might be closer to the Dual Class than the fusion class.¡¯ Ian opened the class information, which was flashing with the letter ¡®N¡¯. Class Information Class category: Summoner Summoner (Dual Class) Hidden Class: Taming Master Magical Beast Transmutter (Dual Class) Summoner Knight (Unique Dual Class) (New) (Disabled) Fusion Class: Dark Summoner (Disabled) The ¡®unique dual¡¯ word was in the information window of the class. As soon as Ian saw it, he started to understand it roughly. ¡®Oh ho, it looks like a type of hidden class, so it¡¯s a whole new concept?¡¯ Before looking into the new class of Summoner Knight, Ian decided to look at the concept of the Unique Dual Class. That way, it would be easier to establish the concept. *Unique Dual: a Unique Dual Class that only one user can get in Kailan. This allows the user to have an additional hidden class only if specified conditions are met. (However, hidden class of other careers cannot be obtained.) As soon as Ian read the explanation provided in the class information window, he could clearly see what the concept of ¡®unique dual¡¯ meant. ¡®Ah, so I earned the Summoner Knight, a hidden class from the summoner career, as a bonus through the unique dual concept.¡¯ When Ian first encountered the concept of the Unique Dual, the most questionable part was the four tiers of the hidden class and the Unique Dual Class had the same name. Muran originally wanted to give a 4 tier hidden class Summoner Knight, and the Unique Dual Class was the reward for the changed quest along with the Summoner Knight. But now, that question was answered. ¡®Muran, that beautiful man. He wanted to give me a 4 tier hidden class.¡¯ Ian¡¯s lips started to form a smile. How could he not feel good when he had obtained a new tier hidden class while maintaining the Taming Master class? In addition, from the explanation related to the ¡®Unique Dual¡¯, no other user except for Ian could even get this Summoner Knight in the Dual Class. It was literally Ian¡¯s own unique class. ¡®Now, should I check the information of the newly obtained class?¡¯ While grinning, Ian opened the information window of the Summoner Knight. A 4 tier hidden class Summoner Knight. Ian was very curious about what kind of extraordinary skills it had. Tring-! [Activated the Unique Dual Class ¡®Summoner Knight¡¯ for the first time.] [You have acquired the ¡®Summon¡¯ skill.] [Already possessed the ¡®Summon¡¯ skill. Skill acquisition has been canceled.] [You have acquired the ¡®Capture¡¯ skill.] [Already possessed the ¡®Capture¡¯ skill. Skill acquisition has been canceled.] [You have acquired the ¡®Bing¡¯ skill.] [You have learned the ¡®Blessing of Wind¡¯ skill.] [Already possessed the ¡®Blessing of Wind¡¯ skill. Skill acquisition has been canceled.] (Leak) Summoner Knight, like the Taming Master, was a hidden class originally derived from the Summoner Class. Because of that, the basic summoner skills were mostly termed as duplicates. Of course, the basic skills of other summoners like ¡®Bing¡¯ which the Taming Master class couldn¡¯t learn were created, but they weren¡¯t exactly useful to Ian as of the moment. Then what were the special skills that were unique to the Summoner Knight, and not the basic skills of summoner? Useful skills were quite visible, but among them were three skills that made Ian¡¯s heart pound. First. -Summon Incarnation Classification: Active Skills Skill Level: Lv 0 Proficiency: 0 Percent Cooldown: 10 minutes Duration: 5 minutes The Summoner Knight can summon an alter ego with as much as 50% of his attack power. The alter ego can use all the same skills of the Summoner Knight except for ¡®Summon Incarnation¡¯ that will disappear after 5 minutes. * You can¡¯t summon multiple of the same summons using your ego. * The higher the level of the skill Summon Incarnation, the higher the attack power of the alter ego and the duration of the skill. Each time the skill level of Summon Incarnation is increased by 5 levels, an additional ability to summon will be gained. Currently summonable number of alter ego: 1 ¡®Ku, a self-replicating skill¡­ I get envious to this kind of skills every time I see that Shakran old man.¡¯ The Summoner Incarnation wasn¡¯t a novel skill. Some similar skills existed in other careers, such as the warrior class or the assassin class. However, since its utilization was endless, it was obvious that the synergy other summoners would produce would be completely different. ¡®An additional alter ego each time 5 levels were gained¡­ I can shoot up to 10 levels quickly, so I can operate about three alter egos.¡¯ Coincidentally, the Summoner Knight had another special skill that worked very well with this one. -Vitality Weapon Classification: Active Skills Skill Level: Lv 0 Proficiency: 0% Cooldown: None Duration: 15 minutes The Summoner Knight can only infuse the weapon with Ego. Each weapon is given an AI and can be used in combat even when not being worn. As the skill level increases, the weapon¡¯s AI improves and the maximum number of weapons that can be given a vitality will be increased. * Each time the skill level of the Vitality Weapon is increased by 10, the number of weapons that can be healed will be increased by 1. Current number of available Vitality Weapons: 1 * The more familiar the ego is with a weapon, the more powerful weapons can be unlocked. * ???(Seal): successfully unlocking the full potential of the weapon will unlock hidden abilities. The first powerful three sword drift that Muran had shown when Ian first met him. Ian too had a skill that made it possible now. How exactly would the two skills synergize? ¡®Huhu, if I put up three weapons and then duplicate them as alter egos¡­ just thinking about it makes me excited!¡¯ If he summoned an additional three weapons while playing three ego weapons, he would be able to control a total of 12 weapons. ¡®In total, the number of weapons I¡¯ll be able to control is 16.¡¯ Since it hadn¡¯t been used yet, it was hard to determine how powerful the combination of the two skills would be. But apart from its real power, Ian was feeling well enough that the new skills could be used. Ian¡¯s favorite kind of skills were the ones that had the ability to create a variable. Finally, the last skill. Though this one wasn¡¯t as interesting as the other two, it was still a skill that could be used efficiently. -Harmonize Classification: Passive Skill Skill Level: Lv 0 Proficiency: 0% Cooldown: none Duration: none The Summoner Knight is the most powerful knight in harmony with the familiars. The more summons a Summoner Knight has, the more powerful the Summoner Knight will become. As the skill level and proficiency increases, the buff factors will increase as well. * Increase all combat abilities by 3% per summoned summons. * If you kill an enemy with a basic attack, all summoned summons will be healed by 5%. * The leadership needed to summon all familiars is reduced by 25%. The best passive skill that perfectly matched, ¡®Harmonize¡¯ was in the hand of Ian. ¡®It is a true tier 4 hidden class and definitely matches the price.¡¯ Ian had been a summoner for a long time, but his strength could be compared to that of a warrior class. The skills that made that possible were the buff that was associated with ¡®Selamus Warrior¡¯. Now that Ian had the best character buff skill called Harmonize, it was like giving wings to a raging tiger. Thanks to that, Ian¡ªwho was exhausted due to their battle with the Lich King¡ªbecame filled with energy and was ready to do battle once again. It was because he wanted to try the new skills that he gained as soon as possible. ¡®I need to rest for a little while. If I try to attack the Underworld like this, I might get stunned in the capsule.¡¯ He took a sigh and decided to conquer the Underworld after he had enough rest. Since he would be able to fight in the Underworld, Ian decided to put his greed aside for now. ¡®Wait a while Behemoth! I¡¯ll bring you out of the Underworld.¡¯ Myth Grade. A powerful beast that might exceed limits. Ian¡¯s heart started to flutter every time he thought about creating the strongest magical beast ever with his own hands. CH 499 ¡°Wow! Should we turn on the TV now?¡± Na Ji-chan who woke up after half a day sat on the couch with a refreshing look. ¡°Is the battle with the Lich King is going to begin now?¡± Falcacio Caster. Among that, the design of the castle was carried out by the Planning Team 3, which belonged to Na Ji-chan. Na Ji-chan knew how long it would take from the grounds to the Lich King. ¡°For an average user it takes around 10 hours, so even if it was Ian, it will take more than 5 hours.¡± Na Ji-chan was excited to see the battle between Ian and the Lich King, so he turned on the TV. Eventually, the Lich King will be matched with Lugarix, but the performance of Ian and Shakran could be seen after the Lich King triggers the enchantment. Ping-! The Tv turned on with a familiar sound. Since the channel was always fixed to YTBC, he didn¡¯t have to change it once again. ¡°Isn¡¯t it a bit too early?¡± Na Ji-chan scratched the back of his neck with his eyes on the TV. But the next moment, Na Ji-chan couldn¡¯t help but feel shocked. Not surprisingly, because the screen on the YTBC which was supposed to be the funniest episode of the Lich King wasn¡¯t there. ¡°¡­!¡± At the shocking scene, Na Ji-chan¡¯s eyes went wide. He checked to see if the channel had it wrong, but he could only confirm that the Lich King episode was over. ¡°What? Did they fail to attack?¡± Shocked, Na Ji-chan hastily turned on his smartphone. To check out the internet article. After a while, he checked the titles of the articles on the internet and was forced to seem vulnerable. [With just one try, the Lich King episode has been cleared!] [Middle-Earth, the emergence of new content?] [The identity of the Dragon of darkness, Lugarix?] [Lich King Chalian, turned into a kid in front of Ian God.] * * * After the disappearance of the Lich King Chalian, the devastated land on the northern part of the Shikar desert started to sprout life. The snow began to settle down on the darkness covered land. Many users heard the news and began to move towards the north, as did the NPCs. Thanks to that, the territory of darkness, which was previously an inhabitable environment began to gain life. ¡°We sell the Red Ruby Amulet! This is one of the best option! Cheaper than the original cost!¡± ¡°We¡¯ll build a great house outside the castle of Falcacio! Come to the Rotune Construction Office!¡± ¡°I¡¯m looking for two long-distance damage dealers to go to the gargoyle! Only those of level 250 level or higher!¡± ¡°A new forge will open in front of the Falcacio!¡± And among the vast land of the dark territory, the Falcacio castle where the Lich King resided was the most busiest. The infrastructure in Falcacio castle was just as good as the giant kingdoms of Lotus and Titan. But what interesting here was that all the territories that were in the dark had become ¡®neutral¡¯. The developers had set the area as an inviolable area. No PK was possible in this area, even among those of other races. Surely the asmodians weren¡¯t going to enter the human dimension just yet, but even if the asmodians came, they couldn¡¯t attack each other in the area. Inside the Falcacio stronghold. In the large vacant lot on the back of the castle, a group of twenty-something users seemed to be gathered. The elite users of the Titan guild. Emily, who was standing in front of the group, opened her mouth. ¡°The Falcacio is really coveted. If it just wasn¡¯t for the neutral areas¡­¡± At that, Shakran responded with a smile, ¡°Didn¡¯t you have a deal with Lotus?¡± ¡°Well, I wish we had a good deal with Lotus.¡± ¡°And, it¡¯s upto you to negotiate¡­ I thought we had a good split.¡± ¡°That so? I really like the level of the facilities here.¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to let you talk all that nonsense here.¡± ¡°Huhu, kay master!¡± Shakran saying that, smiled and sat on the huge rock. The others too took a seat one after the other. They were all waiting for someone. ¡°Hmm. By the way, I think it is almost the time to come¡­¡± ¡°I know. Why can¡¯t I even see the tip of the nose yet¡­¡± But then. Just while Shakran and Emily were taking their conversation, it got cut with a huge resonating sound that spread. Woong-! A portal with a familiar pattern had opened up. ¡°Kid, you¡¯re not that good.¡± Shakran rose up laughing as he saw the familiar portal emerged. The first person to appear was Ian. As soon as he saw Shakran¡¯s face, he waved with a smile. ¡°Uh, Uncle. Did you rest well?¡± ¡°Hey kid, you¡¯re going to call me uncle till the end?¡± ¡°Hehe, you did ask me to call you hyung¡­¡± ¡°Hyung, hyung it is idiotic!¡± After the Lich King episode, the two people turned very friendly and in the meantime, about eleven Lotus guild elite rankers appeared. After a while. Shakran who met with Ian, gazed and spoke to him with shiny eyes. ¡°Okay, kid. The time to fulfill our promise.¡± Ian nodded and laughed. ¡°Sure.¡± With that response Ian began to order the Lotus guild members. Then the guild members moved in unison. And it was the same for the guild members of Titan. From the Lotus users to the Titan users. A total of thirty people looked nervous, and stood around Ian and Shakran. What were they going to do? Even though they were in a neutral zone, everyone was in a stance that looked like they were going to enter into a battle. ¡°Okay, let¡¯s start then!¡± Ian took out something from his inventory and slowly moved it forward. Three pieces of transparent and beautiful jewels with brilliant, yet radiant light. They gradually rose into the air, and began to emit much brighter light. Woong- Woong-! With brilliant light, three pieces of fragments began to merge into one. In the process, the purple radiance from the process gradually went down and a large magic circle began to form. ¡°¡­!¡± Ian looked nervous and adjusted the Judgment of the Spirit King that was in his hand. System messages then emerged in front of the eyes of Ian, one after the other. Tring-! [You have collected all the three pieces of ¡®Underworld King¡¯s Necklace Fragments¡¯.] [Intense energy of the dead can be felt.] [The energy of the dimension has started to move.] [The border between life and death. The underworld gatekeepers have been revealed.] Gulp! In that silence, the sound of someone gulping could be heard. Nothing could be seen, but everyone could feel the powerful energy that was around them. 10 seconds passed? Gooo-! The sound of small ringing went louder, and the vacant lot began to vibrate as if an earthquake was going to take place. Followed by the magic circle on the floor, black energy rose everywhere. Swahhh-! Black clouds with chunks began to grow. Purple energy overflowed from every direction. And it felt similar to the time when Chalian appeared. But the presence of the energy was much more when compared to that time. ¡®Underworld King¡­ since it has the King of the Underworld, will it be the highest NPC in the Middle-Earth?¡¯ Ian stared at the black clouds and his eyes were shining. A loud voice began to rise. ¡°It is such a clear air. Is this Earth?¡± The voice of a man was heard. Subsequently, the owner of the voice appeared from the black clouds. It was as dark as black, but had some kind of luster to it, it seemed like clouds made of black pearls. With a black armor all over his body, he looked like one of those riders from the Dragon cavalry from the three kingdoms. Compared to the characters, it was like the equipment? Ian¡¯s eyes met with him and took a step close to him. Ian opened his mouth with excitement, which was clearly noticeable in his voice and said, ¡°Are you the King of the Underworld?¡± The gaze of the man moved to Ian after hearing the voice. ¡°Oho, I guess it is you.¡± Subsequently, Ian responded with a puzzled expression after hearing an unexpected response. ¡°Uh¡­?¡± ¡°The guy who called me to this.¡± ¡°Ah, right¡­¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± ¡°But, can you answer my question now?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°The thing about the King of the Underworld.¡± ¡°Ahah, then what can I say?¡± The man with his chest stretched out was smiling with a grin. ¡°Right. I am Mukan, the seventh King of the Underworld.¡± At that moment, the body of the king was suddenly caught on fire while he was still conversing with Ian. ¡°¡­!¡± The very same time, black smoke rose before Ian. ¡°Careful!¡± What just happened wasn¡¯t known, but Mukan just got teleported with the black smoke. Ian took a defensive position, and put up his spear out of reflex. And suddenly, Mukan appeared right in front of Ian, and looked at Ian with wide eyes. ¡°Hmm, this a bit weird¡­¡± ¡°What, what are you talking about?¡± ¡°You are not a warlock.¡± ¡°That is right.¡± ¡°But I smell death from you.¡± Ian didn¡¯t understand it right away, but he soon understood what was being talked about. ¡®Ah, the fusion class.¡¯ Ian nodded and replied, ¡°Tha is right. I am a dark summoner.¡± ¡°Oh ho¡­!¡± Mukan nodded at the response and took a step back. He shook his head and opened his mouth with a regretful voice, ¡°That is sad.¡± ¡°What is it again?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t understand how you managed to collect the fragments and summon me, but I can¡¯t help a half dark.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Ian was bewildered at what he heard. On contrary, even Mukan was shocked. ¡°Didn¡¯t you summon me to get my strength?¡± ¡°No?¡± Hoonie who was next to Ian; raised his hand up and tried to speak up, but was stopped by Ian. ¡°I , want to have it!¡± ¡°Shut up, idiot.¡± And it was only natural for Mukan to look flustered at the silly thing. ¡°What are you guys doing then? Then why did you call me?¡± Ian left Hoonie over to Yu Shin for management. He turned back to Mukan. ¡°The reason I called the King of the Underworld¡­¡± Ian took a moment to speak, and then spoke one words after other. ¡°To open the path that leads to the Underworld.¡± At that moment, Ian¡¯s words ended. It was almost the time of the whole world had stopped, everyone had stopped moving at once. The only thing that hadn¡¯t stopped was the King, Mukan. ¡°Kuah, hahaha!¡± It was so pleasant that it made Mukan burst out into laughter. After a while, Mukan, took over a completely different mood and opened his mouth, ¡°I met a human who wants to enter the afterlife¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Do you want to know how to enter the Underworld?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± At the answer from Ian, Mukan laughed softly and answered, ¡°There are two ways to enter the Underworld.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°First, if it is okay to do. If I put this crescent blade through your heart, you can go to the Underworld right away.¡± Mukan wielded the moon blade weapon and threatened him. The next words, however, made the party of Ian much more nervous. ¡°Second, triumph over me. If you fight me and win, I¡¯ll take you to the Underworld directly.¡± CH 500 Ian thought that he heard Mukan wrongly. There were just two ways for a user to enter the Underworld. ¡®An NPC might fall to the Underworld when dead, but reborn users can¡¯t enter the Underworld.¡¯ Because of that, Ian¡¯s only way to enter the Underworld was to fight with Mukan and win. Not knowingly, Ian gulped down his saliva. ¡®Can I win over this guy?¡¯ Ian looked at the king, narrowing his eyes. Underworld King, Mukan: Lv 500 ¡®Damn, his level is of 500 surely¡­¡¯ Mukan, a transcendence being¡¯s level was at MAX of 500. It was good news that he was in the human dimension. If they were in the Middle-Earth, there would have been no way for Ian to win over the King of the Underworld. In the Middle-Earth dimension, the King of the Underworld would surely belong to the top talented beings. If there was some way, there wouldn¡¯t be a reason to break through their heads anymore. There was no choice for them but to get past him. To there. Ian took a step forward and placed his Judgment of the Spirit king in front. Chuk-! With a low but heavy voice, Ian spoke, ¡°If I win, you will open the path to enter the Underworld, right?¡± When Ian asked it, Mukan responded with widened eyes, ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Nice. Then¡­¡± Woong-! White glow was emanating from the body of Ian¡¯s. And the golden spear that he was holding in his hand, The ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯ floated in the air. ¡°Should we try playing once?¡± * * * The ¡®transcendence power¡¯ wasn¡¯t the power that could be exerted properly on the earthly dimension. If that was the case, did it mean that it had no meaning? Of course, that wasn¡¯t the case either. The higher the transcendence level, the stronger would be the combat power of the human dimension. However, stats in the Middle-Earth was only 10 and only 1 or 2 things could be used in the human dimension. That was why there was a difference in the combat power among the same leveled beings in the 500s. The same way how Lich King Chalian was much powerful than the minions of the same level. Which meant that the King of the Underworld Mukan would be powerful too. At least, stronger than the Lich King. ¡°Even if this is the earthly dimension, you humans think you have the confidence to take me on?¡± Panic and confusion were clearly written on the face of the Underworld King Mukan. The biggest feeling was the ¡®interest¡¯ of the challenger who took up the offer, there was a bit of ugliness mixed in there. The transcendental beings. They never realized that there would be a time when the humans of the human dimension would challenge those who were higher than themselves. ¡°Long and short paths, not something one can know by seeing.¡± ¡°There are things that you can¡¯t see unless you challenge.¡± Kukung-! Mukan knocked his curved blade on the floor. Black clouds spread around him, pushing back the humans that were around him. ¡°Uh, uhhu?¡± ¡°What is this? Just pushing us backward?¡± The black clouds didn¡¯t cause any damage to the users. But the unknown force just constantly pushed back the users. And undeniable force. However, at the very time, a user who found one person standing inside of the black smokey clouds, opened his mouth feeling surprised. ¡°Uh, why is Ian in there?¡± ¡°Yeah, right? What just happened?¡± In the vacant lot that was created by the black clouds, only Mukan and Ian remained in between. After a while, the voice of Mukan took over. ¡°I will accept your challenge!¡± And with that, system messages came in front of Ian. Tring-! [Underworld King Mukan has accepted your challenge.] [The ¡®Absolute Power¡¯ has been manifested.] [You are in the area of ¡®Darkness Field¡¯.] [¡®Test of the Underworld King Mukan¡¯ quest has been triggered.] -Test of Underworld King Mukan (Hidden) ¨C Mukan, the seventh king to rule the Underworld, the king who guards the path of life and death. You¡¯ve successfully summoned Mukan after collecting all the fragments of the Underworld King¡¯s necklace. You have fulfilled the conditions needed for obtaining the ¡®Power of the Underworld King¡¯, the dream of every warlock. But you, not being a warlock, haven¡¯t been empowered by Mukan and you have asked for unlocking the path that would lead one to the Underworld. Being the gatekeeper, Mukan has informed you that it could only happen by winning the confrontation with him. The challenge is done by a human to the Underworld King. This is a reckless challenge that has never been attempted in the history of the continent. However, you have challenged, and Mukan has already accepted it. If you win over the battle with Mukan, he will open the path to the Underworld. But if you lose, he wouldn¡¯t. You will also receive a ¡®death¡¯ penalty in exchange for challenging the power of the Underworld King. Win the battle over Mukan and be guided to the Underworld. Quest Difficulty: ??? Unknown Quest Condition: User who collects all the pieces of ¡®Underworld King¡¯d Necklace Fragment¡¯ A user with fame of over 30 million. User who has opened the ¡®transcendence level¡¯ system. *If the quest is failed, you will receive a ¡®death¡¯ penalty. *¡¯Death¡¯ penalty: you¡¯ll be in the ¡®Undead¡¯ state and be trapped in the Underworld for three days (While being in the Undead state, you won¡¯t gain experience and items). Time Limit: None Reward: ¡®The Road to Underworld¡¯ will be opened. * * * ¡°Surely, Ian God had to summon the Underworld King right away.¡± After a short vacation, Na Ji-chan headed to the monitoring room straight away to get back to work. The reason he headed to the monitoring room was to watch the personal screen that displayed Ian. It was a natural course of action. He had to watch the situation where a user of the Korean server might end up entering the Middle-Earth for the very first time. ¡°Can Ian manage to win over the Underworld King? Ian and Mukan. It isn¡¯t unusual for either of them to win.¡± This time, Na Ji-chan was also supporting Ian completely 100 percent. And as the content of the Middle-Earth had already been made, and even if Ian did manage to enter the Middle-Earth right away, there was nothing much he could do. The difficulty of the Middle-Earth was more than hardcore. ¡°Even if it is Ian, he needs to shoot up to 450-480 levels to do anything.¡± Na Ji-chan¡¯s eyes started to twinkle as he saw the battle between Ian and Mukan begin. The thing he was expecting from Ian was the ¡®Summoner Knight¡¯. Watching how Ian utilizes the Summoner Knight skill, was the watching point of Na Ji-chan. * * * Wheeing, hooong- Kwakwang-! The golden spear moved in the air, blowing out energy with a powerful lightning strike. The shocking thing was that no one was actually holding onto the spear. The spear began to attack the Underworld King, moving by itself like it had a life of its own. Ian¡¯s new hidden class. Summoner Knight¡¯s unique ability, Vitality Weapon had been activated. Jjjing-! Mukan¡¯s silent moon blade and Ian¡¯s Judgment of the spirit king were facing each other in the air. Mukan¡¯s eyes narrowed seeing that. ¡°This certainly isn¡¯t the power of the human dimension¡­ human, you are using the transcendence power.¡± Listening to Muakn, Ian guessed the meaning behind them. ¡®Is the Summoner Knight actually available in the Middle-Earth?¡¯ It was an unknown setting of Kailan for Ian, but in fact, the classes above the 4th tier could only be obtained by entering the Middle-Earth. Although there were a few 4th tiers classes that were given as rewards for special quests, such as the Summoner Knight; as the basic base for Mukan the transcendence being was the ¡®Middle-Earth¡¯, it could be inferred as such. And Ian¡¯s guess was roughly right. Ian smiled at Mukan. ¡°Uncle, can¡¯t you just lose? I really want to go to the Underworld.¡± Ian made a silly joke towards Mukan and moved forward to summon his familiars. Mukan too smiled and lifted his arm to the sky. At the very same time, numerous deceased summons rose from the ground. ¡°Huhu, kid. If you really want to enter the Underworld, honestly isn¡¯t this battle meaningless?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Even if you die in my hands you will fall to the Underworld.¡± Ian who heard those words couldn¡¯t help but swallow the words that were almost in his mouth. It was because he remembered what was written in the quest. The ¡®death¡¯ penalty that he would get for the quest fail. ¡®Yeah well. I get to see the Underworld even if I get a death penalty.¡¯ Ian began to concentrate on the battle after a small laugh. Even if he had the choice, it was meaningless to die and enter the Underworld. What was the use of entering a paradise when one won¡¯t be able to experience or gain something from it? Ian began to smirk and taunt Mukan. ¡°Uncle, aren¡¯t you saying that because you don¡¯t have the confidence to beat me?¡± Mukan¡¯s brows went close at the provocation of Ian¡¯s. ¡°Man, you¡¯re quite stupid.¡± ¡°If that is not the case, then stop talking useless stuff with me.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Ian who hurt Mukan enough with his verbal power jumped forward and picked up the Bloody Revenge. The Ego weapon Judgment of the Spirit King, that could be controlled even though it wasn¡¯t in his hand. So Ian rushed to the Undead of Mukan that blocked the way ahead. Lich Knight: Lv 500 Skeleton Warrior: Lv 485 Skeleton Knight: Lv 490 Ian who checked the level of all the undead couldn¡¯t help but frown. ¡®Now 500 is the base level.¡¯ However, it wasn¡¯t unexpected. Even the Lich King who was supposed to be at a lower level than Mukan was at the level of 500. And of course, the measures were already in place. A low voice came out of Ian¡¯s mouth, ¡°Summon Ban.¡± Another special unique ability that only the Summoner Knight had, the Summon Ban. CH 501 -Summon Ban- Classification: Active skill Skill Level: None Proficiency: None Cooldown: 20 minutes Duration: None The Summoner Knight has the power to temporarily disable all his summons. When the Summoner Knight¡¯s valor emerges, all summons will be bound to kneel before him due to his powerful power. *When the Summon Ban is activated, all the summons of the summoner within 30 meters radius will be summoned back. (All allied summons are included.) *At the time of the Summon Ban, all the enemies within the yard of 30 meters are banned from summoning for 15 minutes ¡®No Summon¡¯. (When in a ¡®No Summon¡¯ state, the summon skill cannot be cast.) (When in a ¡®No Summon¡¯ state, all the summoned summons can be recalled.) ¨C ¨C ¨C Summon Ban, one of the unique skills of the Summoner Knight. Summon Ban as it literally states, provides a debuff skill that prohibits summoning. Summon was the main skill that could be used by the Summoner and the Warlock, this was a perfect skill that could counter that. It had a range of almost 30 meters. It had a wide area of debuff. Because of such a skill, the Summoner Knight was a direct counter to the Lich King. The Summoner Knight could seal the most powerful skills of the Lich King¡ªthe summon skills. Of course, Ian couldn¡¯t even see the rich summoning power of the Lich King all thanks to his strong helper. Anyway, when one looked at it, it seemed like a very broken skill. However, if one would think about it, one could understand why Ian rated this skill as one of the lower class skills when compared to Summon Incarnation and Harmonize. ¡®The caster is a summoner¡ªa Summoner Knight¡­¡¯ The moment Summon Ban was activated, even the own summons of the owner would get summoned back, which meant that it was a skill that couldn¡¯t be used by the summoner¡¯s side. Especially in the case of the Summoner Knight who received power proportionate to the number of summoned summons. It was a debuff skill that was fatal to the owner. So, when was the Summon Ban going to be useful? The answer? ¡®Once the battle began¡¯. Before the caster could summon his familiars and summons, he could activate the Summon Ban and then summon them. ¡®Why make an alternate cooldown? It is a vague skill to use once the battle starts, anyway.¡¯ Ian was grunting in the inside and triggered the Summon Ban. At the very same time, the summons of the Underworld King that were protecting them, all vanished. ¡°¡­!¡± When the summoned AI vanished, Mukan was shocked. Suddenly, Ian started to glow red. ¡°Blood Split!¡± In Ian¡¯s hand was a Bloody Dagger. Bloody Revenge¡¯s unique ability was triggered again. Swahh-! But this time, however, as shown earlier, the cooldown was not able to activate the skill succession. This was because there were no ¡®jabs¡¯ around that could fit at the same timing. In addition, Ian wasn¡¯t even using the Blood Split to damage Mukan. The only reason Ian triggered Blood Split was to reduce the gap between him and Mukan. Slash-! Along with the sharp sound of cutting through the air, Ian, who was glowing red, moved in front of Mukan. At the same time, Ian began to summon his summons one after the other. ¡°Ly, Pin, Halli, Karceus, summon!¡± Kiyaaa! He summoned everyone starting with Ly, till Elcarix and Bbakbbak. System messages came up in front of Ian, which notified him of all the summons that were summoned in succession. Tring! [Passive Skill, with Harmonize, all the combat abilities will be 3% stronger.] [Passive Skill, with Harmonize, all the combat abilities will by 3% stronger.] (Leak) Summoner Knight, the strongest passive buff skill. Before the summons were fully summoned, Ian triggered one of the Summoner Knight¡¯s unique abilities. ¡°Summon Incarnation!¡± The Summoner Knight¡¯s unique ability to summon an ¡®Alter Ego¡¯ with 50% of the original body¡¯s combat abilities were triggered. Since the skill level was still low, only one alter ego could be summoned, however, Ian was confident enough to create even one variable. The summoned Alter Ego could use all of Ian¡¯s skills. ¡®I wish I could summon a replica of my familiars as well.¡¯ With those thoughts, Ian activated another powerful buff skill that he always loved to use. Hwoong-! ¡°The will of Selamus Warrior!¡± The glow around Ian, which was red because of Blood Split, turned gold. The Alter Ego that appeared next to Ian had a golden glow surrounding it as well. As soon as the Alter Ego was summoned, the skill got activated at the same time. It was a beautiful sight. The buff effects began to overlap. Tring! [You activated a unique ability ¡®The Will of Selamus Warrior¡¯.] [Increases skill rank on all weapons by ¡¯15¡¯ for the next 20 minutes.] [Increases combat abilities by 40% for 20 minutes.] [All active skills are sealed for 20 minutes.] Ian, who thought of all the skills in succession, grabbed the sword in hand with a smile. Just as he had thought in his head, all of his skills got completely linked. ¡®I should be careful and not confuse the play order of the skills.¡¯ So far, there was only one unchangeable proposition in Ian¡¯s skill invocation sequence. He must always activate all the active skills before using the ¡®Will of Selamus Warrior¡¯. Of course, the unique abilities attached to the weapons weren¡¯t going to be affected, but it didn¡¯t matter. And the buff skills and summon skills had to be used first. However, another proposition had arisen. The first skill he had to use was ¡®Summon Ban¡¯ before he summoned his summons. Anyway, Ian, who had a strong fighting power through the stacks of buff, quickly ran toward Mukan. It was a spectacular view. All of Ian¡¯s powerful summons and Ian with two golden spears in the air and Ian¡¯s Alter Ego were approaching Mukan. It was hard to believe how they moved in unison. Some users who were watching the scene from the outside of the enchantment couldn¡¯t help but admire it. ¡°Wow, when did Ian get new skills again?¡± ¡°Yeah. He didn¡¯t have such skills when the episode was going on¡­¡± Ian¡¯s battle scene was so gorgeous that most of them were admiring it. While most of them were verbally admiring the scene of Ian, there were some who felt uncomfortable. ¡°Monster kid, how did you suddenly get such new skills?¡± Unlike the other users who couldn¡¯t reach the standards of Ian, Shakran was feeling rather competitive. If he found out that Ian got his new skills because of the support that the Titan and Shakran had given, Shakran would definitely have a stomachache. ¡®Is the Lotus Guild trying to squeeze all the support from that guy?¡¯ The fact that he alone was supporting made Shakran bite his lower lip. In a moment, he saw a lot of skills of Ian overpower the Underworld King. Shakran wasn¡¯t able to hold his competitive spirit any longer. ¡®Yeah, kid, try harder. The stronger you get, the stronger I will become.¡¯ Ian wasn¡¯t even concerned if Shakran considered him as strong or not. ¡°Uhhh!¡± The moment Ian exhaled, two lightning spells fell from the air. Kwang- Kwangg-! The unique ability of the Judgment of the Spirit King was activated. The Lightning¡¯s Judgment fell from both the spears. However, in the places where the lightning fell, instead of seeing Mukan, Ian only saw dust. ¡°¡­!¡± The first unique ability that Mukan did when he appeared ¡®Blink¡¯ was used again. ¡°Sh*t.¡± Ian cursed under his breath. No matter how high the defense of the Underworld King, if he had just been attacked, the Underworld King would suffer a considerable amount of damage. Therefore, it was regrettable for Ian. ¡°Still a kid.¡± Meanwhile, Mukan who just managed to stop the unstoppable attack of Ian had a change in mood. The ¡®interesting play¡¯ he thought had turned into a serious battle for him. Swahh-! A strong dark energy emanated from Mukan constantly. Ian could feel the power that the energy had, but he couldn¡¯t afford to get distracted by it. Just looking at Mukan, in the beginning, was enough for him to make sure that he was a worthy opponent. ¡°Just hit, you had to avoid it, shamefully?¡± Seeing Ian saw all that, nerves started to stick out of Mukan¡¯s forehead. ¡°Man, I¡¯ll see how long you¡¯ll be able to tease me!¡± Mukan¡¯s form once again disappeared in the air. However, Ian had already figured out how to play the skill. ¡®It sure is a tricky unique ability, but there is no skill that can¡¯t be predicted.¡¯ The moment Mukan¡¯s body was caught in flames, the smoke rose elsewhere at another place at the same time. Since the position where Mukan would appear was that point, Ian was able to cope with it without much difficulty. Kwang- Kwakwang-! In the wake of Mukan¡¯s curved blade, two shields took cover. Just like the Judgment of the Spirit King, ¡®The Dragon Shield¡¯ with an Alter Ego weapon prevented the attack from Mukan. At the same time, the body of Mukan started to get engulfed in black smoke. Swoosh-! ¡®Where is it this time?¡¯ A stream of cold sweat fell down Ian¡¯s back. He knew the cooldown ability of the unique ability was short, but he didn¡¯t know it could be played in succession. Smoke rose at seven different places. ¡°Fake?¡± Ian¡¯s head started to work right away. The smoke rose in seven places, which meant that where Mukan would appear was unknown. ¡®No, Mukan can appear in all seven places too.¡¯ Seven places, all around Ian, which meant he couldn¡¯t move. Ian bit down his lip and snatched the Dragon Shield that was floating in the air. At the same time, Mukan¡¯s voice rang out. ¡°Die, bastard!¡± From the seven spots that surrounded Ian, Mukan¡¯s shadow moved up. Seven uncommon shadows were now rushing toward Ian. Swaah-! Seven wolves flew in unison with ferocious speed. There was no escaping this attack even if it was Ian. Because of the penalty that was attached to the ¡®Will of Selamus Warrior¡¯ ability, even a space warping skill couldn¡¯t be activated. CH 502 The tip of the black spear was shining with a bright white light. And intense purples flames started to burn around it. Seven intertwining shadows with a curved blade in their hands were heading in the direction of Ian with extraordinary force. Kwaah-! Even the purple flames that were around it were burning violently as if it wanted to burn the entire space. One of the Lotus Guild members, who had seen the scene unfold, instinctively closed his eyes. ¡°Ah¡­¡± He imagined the image of Ian burning and covered with scars; he couldn¡¯t help but close his eyes. On the other hand was Shakran, and the members of the Titan Guild, looking excited at what they were about to witness next. ¡®Barrier? Or Phoenix¡¯s unique ability? What are you going to stop it with, Ian?¡¯ Ian had a lot of skills that he could use in the situation, and the brain of Shakran began to work very fast. ¡®I guess the unique ability of Phoenix won¡¯t work.¡¯ Phoenix¡¯s unique ability, the Guardian of Sun God, had the ability to erase all the incoming projectiles on the battlefield. However, it was only limited to attacks with magic attributes. It couldn¡¯t erase real objects such as arrows or a javelin. Therefore, if seven figures with a curved blade that were considered as ¡®real¡¯ were incoming, the Guardian of the Sun God was worthless. Of course, the purple fire that was spreading around could be erased. ¡®Even if you use the barrier to stop one attack, you are in desperate need of a solution. It is hard to avoid more than half of them. You surely can¡¯t survive this one.¡¯ Everyone¡¯s attention was focused on Ian. Woah-! Ian and his summoned Alter Ego with the Summon Incarnation extended their hands forward. ¡°¡­!¡± At the sudden weird action of Ian¡¯s, everyone was focusing too much on the battlefield. Even Hoonie, the person who knew Ian best, was looking with eyes wide opened. ¡®You¡¯re not thinking about stopping it with two shields, right?¡¯ There were two huge Dragon Shield¡¯s in front of the Alter Ego and Ian, but it was impossible for those shields to stop seven weapons. No matter how great the blocking of those shields was, there was no way those shields could simultaneously block incoming projectiles from multiple directions. Hoonie¡¯s eyes became even wider because of what he saw. The two shields moved to the air and began to shine in blue. ¡°Dragon¡¯s Soul¡± A total of six blue translucent shields floated, which made Ian smile. Without realizing anything, Hoonie mumbled in a small voice, ¡°Right, that was there.¡± Hwoong-! Blue translucent shields began to appear exactly on the location where the curved blades would land. Swooah-! The blades flew toward the shield with ferocious speed. However, no explosion was heard. Instead, something got sucked in. Whop! The blades that touched the shields fell on the ground. The blades¡¯ strength was sucked by the blue energy. Thud- thud-! The shield blocked only one out of the seven blades. Kwang-! But that one blade was blocked by the Dragon Shield in Ian¡¯s hand. Kukuku-! The shield in front of Ian was pushed back a few meters because of the impact. The attack was so strong that Ian was pushed to the floor. But that wasn¡¯t all. There was no way Ian¡¯s vitality was just fine. Numerous system messages began to pop up in front of Ian, and the situation was explained clearly. [You have the unique ability of the ¡®Dragon Shield¡¯, ¡®Dragon¡¯s Soul¡¯] [Set the location where the ¡®Dragon¡¯s Soul¡¯ needs to be placed.] [¡®Dragon Soul¡¯ Has been created.] [The Alter Ego (A) ¡®Dragon Shield¡¯s¡¯ unique ability ¡®Dragon Soul¡¯ has been triggered.] [Set the location where the ¡®Dragon Soul¡¯ needs to be placed.] [¡®Dragon Soul¡¯ has been created.] [¡®Dragon Soul¡¯ has blocked the spear of the Underworld King.] [¡®Dragon Soul¡¯ blocked the spear of the Underworld King.] [¡®Dragon Soul¡¯ blocked the spear of the Underworld King.] (Syncopation) [Shield Block has been triggered.] [Defended the ¡®Underworld King¡¯s spear¡¯. (95.57% absorption)] [You have taken 166,125 damage.] * * * In the case where there was no line broadcast, the first person to see the personal video of Ian¡¯s play was So Jin. Because she was the exclusive video editor and designer of Ian, all videos would get sent to her immediately. For So Jin, what she was doing was fun since she was an enthusiast of Kailan. In Kalian, So Jin was the only person who could get the raw personal video of the hottest user in the Korean Server. So Jin was sitting in the studio watching the video of Ian. She wasn¡¯t just watching. It was her job to watch videos and make it good. So Jin had a video of Ian on her monitor. She stopped it momentarily and mumbled, ¡°OMG¡­ a second! This part needs to be played in slow motion, unconditionally!¡± The biggest difference between the personal video and the captured video was the exposure of how skills were used. For example, there was a skill that triggered a simple non-target skill like the flame ball. However, personal videos were different. A personal video screen exposed the interfaces for the convenience of the user, along with the prediction path displayed before the flame ball was fired. The same thing happened with the personal video of Ian. The ego weapon that Ian possessed was the Dragon Shield. The unique ability ¡®Dragon Soul¡¯ was also displayed on the screen of Ian. So Jin rewound the video and played it in slow motion. It displayed the detailed information on the unique ability of the ¡®Dragon Soul¡¯ on the monitor. *Dragon Soul Communicates with the soul of the Dragon Shield and instantly summon a shield in the desired location. The summoned fragments absorb the projectiles for 3 seconds and remain activated for 15 seconds. [You can summon up to three places at once.] [Can be used even when not equipped with the item. (But needs to be in the inventory)] [While the Dragon Soul is being used, familiars will be healed by 1% of their vitality per second.] Cooldown time: 10 minutes Now all she had to do was to make the screen with Ian¡¯s battle be as admirable as possible. It was necessary to help the viewers to understand the skills first. ¡°Well, let¡¯s highlight the few important parts of the info window¡­¡± On the left side of the video, the information of the Dragon Soul skill was set, and the video was being played much more slowly this time. It was to show the scene of Ian triggering the skills much accurately. Wheeing- wheeing-! As the video slowed down, the sound came out slowly too. So Jin was looking at the video with her tongue out on one side. When the screen slowed down, she saw a lot of missed parts in the video. ¡°Oh, a skill set up basely for himself?¡± On the screen, the skill that seemed to be triggered at once was actually having a complex activation process. ¡°First, he activated the skill with his main body. He took three coordinates, then activated the skills on the Alter Ego and then placed them on the reaming coordinates. Oh my¡­¡± As mention above in the skill information, only three dragon souls could be created at the same time. Ian was able to summon six blue shields as he did with his own body. The amount of time where all of these plays took place was¡­ [0.72 sec] Exactly 0.72 seconds. So Jin confirmed the number of the gauge of the video. ¡°You did all that in such a short time¡­ besides the accurate measurement and everything!¡± So Jin looked at the video again and again, like she had nothing else to do. So Jin played the same section a few more times and was able to come up with the editing process after a while. This video was going to be uploaded in You-cast after today¡¯s editing. ¡®I think the title, Ian vs Underworld King, will be enough¡­¡¯ So Jin was willing to devote all her heart to the source of the video. The running time after the completion was approximately 10 minutes. However, the video to be used would be made much shorter. She wanted to edit it as intensely as possible with 2-minute highlights of the battle footage. ¡®Well, if I grab this point¡­ I will be able to make a video that can easily gain millions of views.¡¯ The most important point in the video of Ian according to So Jin was the control and reflex of Ian for summoning six shields at once in the correct place. Due to the request of Ian, the contents of the quest and the contents that weren¡¯t in progress couldn¡¯t be included in the video. ¡®I think I can emphasize this, and I¡¯ll edit this part a bit more.¡¯ Once she was stuck with a video, she wouldn¡¯t turn it off unless she was dying of exhaustion. As a result, the intense and cool video of the ¡®trailer¡¯ for the blockbuster video was getting completed. Click- Click- In the studio, the sound of a mouse clicking was the only thing that could be heard. In the meantime, the sun had already set, but the seated posture of So Jin in front of the computer screen was still the same. ¡®How much time had passed?¡¯ ¡°Ah!¡± A sigh came out of the mouth of So Jin, who was immersed in the video editing process. She finally succeeded in making a satisfactory quality video. ¡°Huhu, if this is the standard, I guess Ian will be satisfied?¡± So Jin opened her mail and sent the edited video to Ian. After all, before uploading the video in You-cast, the permission of the copyright holder had to be removed. ¡°Well then, should I watch the rest of the video until I get a reply?¡± So Jin stretched her whole body and began to watch the rest of the video. On the monitor was the video of Ian Vs Underworld King that she just edited. ¡°There is plenty of stuff that can be used. I don¡¯t feel like leaving out any content in the videos of Ian.¡± The effect wasn¡¯t as intense as the six summonings of the shield to stop the weapons; however, every move was exciting enough to be included. So Jin looked at the video as if she was getting sucked into the monitor. ¡°Oh oh, Ly! Surely the attack of Fenrir can be any less!¡± So Jin¡¯s eyes were moving insanely to catch up with the video of Ian. The video went on for 15 minutes. ¡°What, what¡­?¡± The eyes of So Jin started to tremble. Her gaze was fixed on the monitor, but the screen that was in front of her turned black. After a while, So Jin uttered words that no one would ever expect. ¡°Ian¡­ died¡­?¡± CH 503 Anyone could who would see would instantly admire the battle that was happening between Ian and the Underworld King. Even Shakran was very excited to see the battle of Ian. ¡®The Underworld King¡­ the name surely is NPC type.¡¯ Ian and the underworld king were very powerful, none of them were even weak. And from the standpoint of Shakran who did nothing but see, it was like watching a battle effortlessly. It didn¡¯t mean that he was just enjoying the show. He was trying to put the skills, the attacks and the methods of combat that were being used. Shakran immediately recalled the conversation that he had with Ian the day before. ¨C Kid, How are you going to fulfill the promise now? ¨C How do you think will happen? We¡¯ll call the King of the Underworld and ask him to open the way to the underworld. ¨C Is it definite that the King of the Underworld will actually open the path to the underworld? ¨C It is sure. It is the knowledge that we got from Kaka¡¯s head. ¨C That so. ¨C But, there is one thing that I¡¯m worried about. ¨C What is it? ¨C This King¡¯s necklace. It is a consumable item. ¨C ¡­? ¨C The number of times that the Underworld King can be summoned by using the necklace is three. If we can¡¯t open the road to the underworld at that time, it¡¯ll be difficult for us. ¨C Huh¡­ you think the Underworld King opening the way to the underworld won¡¯t happen smoothly? ¨C Right. Surely we can open the way to the underworld with 3 chances; there won¡¯t be any problem, but by any chance, we fail all three times, then I won¡¯t be able to fulfill the promise. ¨C Of course. It is a content that hasn¡¯t been seen, there is no chance of succeeding. ¨C So what I want to say is. ¨C Hmm? ¨C I have a suggestion to make. ¨C go ahead, kid. ¨C I¡¯ll give you uncle, one of the three opportunities. ¨C Oho? ¨C Surely, if I opened the path to the underworld in the first place; our promise will be fulfilled, but if it fails, the second try will be handed over to Titan. ¨C That is a good deal. ¨C Instead, it is supposed to pay off the debt between us. ¨C Fine. Let¡¯s do it that way. Three chances provided by the Underworld King¡¯s Necklace. Ian and Shakran agreed to share the opportunity for each, between Lotus and Titan. What about the last left chance? It was a tentative decision when both Ian and Shakran failed. ¡®Huhu, the kid failing is a good thing for me.¡¯ And watching the battle that was going on between the Underworld King and Ian, Shakran was getting much more confident. The underworld king was obviously strong, but he had the confidence that he could win over him. It was a well founded confidence. While watching the battle so far, he analyzed the skills of Mukan and thought of ways to break him down. ¡®So, kid, if it is a little hard, give up early.¡¯ Shakran smiled while fidgeting with the necklace in his hand. -Underworld King¡¯s Necklace- Classification: Goods Rank: myth The necklace of the fifth King of the Underworld, Mukan. It was a mythical necklace that can be completed after collecting all three fragments that were scattered around. With the necklace in possession¡ªthe Underworld King Mukan can be summoned, and by passing the test given to you, he will present a gift according to your power. *If the Underworld King¡¯s necklace is present, the amount of dark magic is increased by 25%. *If the Underworld King¡¯s necklace is present, dark spells are cast by 15% faster. *The Underworld King¡¯s necklace loses its strength after three uses. (If the necklace is used three times, it will break into three fragments and will get shattered in the human dimension.) Current tries available (2/3) Waiting time for re-use (359: 15: 27) The number of times the necklace could be used was 2. If Ian failed here, Shakran¡¯s turn would come. ¡®Huhu, I wish I had a chance.¡¯ There was cooldown, but it didn¡¯t matter. There was work that had to be done, and during that time, he could prepare well for the battle. If Ian wins over the Underworld King and passes to the underworld, it was beneficial as they will be able to access the new content quickly. It was an even better situation. Shakran was thinking a lot and began to focus way more on the battle. Was it around 10 minutes? Goo! The momentum of the Underworld King, who was competing with Ian has changed suddenly. ¡°Man, this is right! Well then, stay there this time too!¡± With the Underworld King Mukan in the center, an intense whirlwind began to swirl around him. [Unique ability of King Mukan ¡®Commander¡¯s Roar¡¯ has been triggered.] [You are in a ¡®stun¡¯ state.] [Agility has been temporarily reduced by 10%.] [All combat abilities have been temporarily reduced by 5%.] [King Mukan¡¯s combat abilities have been increased by 15%.] [All dark attribute skill damage increased by 20%.] (Syncopation) [All Summoned familiars combat abilities have been reduced by 50%.] The dark whirlwind slowly spread all over the place. A feast of gigantic buffs and debuffs that were notified by the beep of the system message. In particular, was the last message¡­ ¡®Sh*t. This is a simple summoner debuff? All the combat abilities have been down by 40%, this makes no sense¡­!¡¯ From the point of the Summoner Ian, this was a critical debuff. At the same time, the individual¡¯s combat abilities were similar to that of a warrior, so it will hit less for Ian. Accurately checking each of the debuff figures, Ian swallowed his spit and fixed his word. ¡®Hoh, what to do? This is much easier than I expected.¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes looked over at Mukan¡¯s head. The vitality gauge was exactly halfway. ¡®If I keep going this way, I can win without much difficulty¡­¡¯ Ian wasn¡¯t showing everything that he had got. There were unique abilities that he had saved for the crisis times, and the skills and buffs of the used Selamus were back for cooldown. In particular, Kaka¡¯s skill was one of the skill that was being saved. ¡®What am I supposed to do? Do I need to win here? If not¡­¡¯ Mukan was moving slowly towards Ian while wielding his curved blade. And to go against him, Ian had no choice but to use both his hands to battle. ¡®But it is still too early. If we do power pitch from now on¡­ it is sure that all my buffs will go out before the vitality of Mukan is down.¡¯ Cikcik. Only the sound of Mukan¡¯s footsteps could be heard on the battlefield. Ian started at Mukan with his Bloody Revenge still in hand. ¡®If I by chance fail here, can Shakran uncle manage to succeed?¡¯ If would be really fortunate if Shakran could have succeeded in taking down the Underworld King. Whatever the case, the road to the underworld will be opened. Surely the fame and the other rewards that could be gained from killing the king would be a waste, but that didn¡¯t mean much. ¡®Uh, I¡¯ll give over the leftover chance of the necklace to Hoonie.¡¯ 1 second, 1 second. Ian¡¯s head started to work a lot. But that was it. ¡°¡­!¡± Something passed through the mind of Ian like lightning. ¡®But then, there was one ridiculous easy way, right?¡¯ Since he had only thought about overcoming the Underworld King, so he had never really thought about it, he was wondering why he hadn¡¯t considered the option that was the easiest. Taking down the smile that was on his lips, Ian as before, started to look at the Underworld King. * * * ¡®That kid, what is he doing? Did he do it out of purpose?¡¯ The unique ability of Mukan, Commander¡¯s Roar, didn¡¯t just after Ian. The debuff range was so wide, that every user on the map of the battlefield was affected due to it. Therefore, the eyes of Shakran knew what debuffs would have an effect on Ian. It was such a high range of debuffs that even Shakran wasn¡¯t able to think of an answer. And the slight smile on the mouth of Ian made him wonder a lot of things. ¡®If I was in that spot, maybe I would¡¯ve been better suited.¡¯ Shakran started to grin thinking about it. This increased the chance of developing a best-case scenario. ¡®Kid, you¡¯re more likely to fail. It wouldn¡¯t have been that easy for me either, but I would be in a better situation than you are.¡¯ The most critical part of cutting down the combat abilities of the familiars, that wasn¡¯t such a huge hit for Shakran. ¡®Kid, are you going to give up?¡¯ While Shakran was busy thinking of all sorts of things, the smile on the face of Ian got erased. In the place of his smile was the most serious expression he had ever seen. Tatt-tat-! With light footsteps, Ian¡¯s body began to move. And subsequently, all around Ian to be precise to the point where Kaka was next to Ian, black smoke started to rise. Shakran who confirmed the skill mumbled in a slow voice, ¡°Dreaming Devil¡­ you might just win, kid.¡± However, in the eyes of Shakran, he was looking at Ian as if there was some backlight for Ian. Like the way the sky brightened for a while just before the sun went down. If it was the way, it was virtually impossible for Ian to defeat the Underworld King, and Ian¡¯s move seemed like the last outbreak before his death. After a while. ¡°You did well, human. Stop it now, I¡¯ll send you to the afterlife.¡± As the voice of Mukan rang out, his curved blade fell on the head of Ian. Kwa-Kwang-! And that was the end of the battle. CH 504 Honestly, the odds were half and half. ¡®No, the chances of winnings were much higher.¡¯ Of course, as long as the Commander¡¯s Roar unique ability was in progress, there was no way for Ian to beat Mukan. But he had a ¡®not going to lose¡¯ confidence. Ignoring the attacks, the survival skills were just enough to endure anything. And if he could have survived the duration of ¡®Commander¡¯s Roar¡¯. Then he could have created plenty of odds. ¡®Barrier, Descend. Space distortion¡­ there were plenty of things to survive.¡¯ But Ian hadn¡¯t done those. Woong-! With a low voice, the darkened view slowly brightened. And with that system messages came before Ian¡¯s eyes. Tring-! [Died from the attack of Mukan, the Underworld King.] [¡®Soul Bound¡¯ effect has been triggered.] [Death Penalty (24 hours not accessible) doesn¡¯t apply.] [Experience points have been reduced.] [1 level has been reduced.] [You are in the state of ¡®dead¡¯.] [* ¡®Dead state¡¯ penalty: become ¡®Undead¡¯ and get stuck in the underworld for three days (While in Undead, experience, and items cannot be obtained.)] [Open your eyes again.] Was it 2 seconds since the system messages have come up? Ian¡¯s blackened vision began to brighten once again. ¡®Well, is this the Underworld?¡¯ But the place that Ian looked at seemed very familiar. The place he had lived for the last month. The steep spot where the Falcacio castle rose. ¡®¡­!¡¯ Ian who was flustered looked around immediately. The Underworld King who had won the battle couldn¡¯t be seen anywhere, and the only group of users around him caught his eyes. But the next moment, not knowing just took a deep breath. And right before the eyes of Ian, was the fallen body of his. ¡®Ah, sh*t, scared me to death!¡¯ Was a breakout supposed to feel like that? Ian could feel his whole body have goosebumps. ¡°There was no need to implement this so realistically.¡± Ian mumbled to himself and looked at Hoonie who seemed very sad. Surely his situation gave him creeps too, but apart from that, he was curious and playful. ¡®Should I have some fun with Hoonie?¡¯ As Ian was literally a ghost, no one could actually see him. Ian approached the back of Hoonie and moved his hands towards him. Swoop-! Unfortunately, the translucent hands couldn¡¯t touch Hoonie. [Physical power cannot be done while in a state of ¡®dead¡¯.] ¡°Sh*t¡­¡± Ian cursed and looked around. Realizing that nothing could be done in the place, he was thinking of why he couldn¡¯t find a way to the underworld? But right then, when Ian was about to turn around. The deceased Ian of Lotus, right? A voice of someone was ringing in the ears of Ian, Rather than being heard with his ears, the sound felt like it was echoing all over his head. Ian reflexively turned his head, a mysterious man wearing a huge black camp was in his sight. As if he was walking down to the transparent stairs, the man slowly descended from the sky towards Ian. And when he saw the figure, Ian mumbled under his breath. ¡°Ha, Grim Reaper!¡± The reason for Ian¡¯s astonishment was simple. It was because the behavior of the man was very familiar. A man with a familiar appearance that appeared in oriental tales; which had black shades, and black coat. The man was literally screaming ¡®I am the Grim Reaper¡¯ from every part of his body, and Ian¡¯s response surprised him. -How do you know me? ¡°Uh?¡± -What is your identity?! At the question of identity, Ian responded with a rather silly face. ¡°I¡¯m looking at you for the first time. I don¡¯t know you.¡± -Didn¡¯t you just say ¡®Grim Reaper¡¯? ¡°Ah, that¡­ I did right?¡± -How did you know that I¡¯m the Grim Reaper? ¡°That¡­¡± -¡­? ¡°You look like the Grim Reaper.¡± -¡­! The two people were looking at each other with a rather silly expression. No, a ghost. The side whose mouth opened the first was the Grim Reaper. -Well, is it a ¡®person you remember from a past life¡¯? ¡°What is that?¡± -Ah, not that human. But follow me for now. He shook his head and then pointed his hand to a direction. An empty crack began to appear at a space. Woong- Woong-! A purple portal leading to a dimension was created by distorting the space. To Ian who was witnessing all this with a blank expression, the Grim Reaper spoke in a rather dry manner. -Get in there. ¡°What is in there?¡± -A haven for the dead. ¡°Underworld?¡± -¡­? The Grim Reaper once again narrowed his eyes. But soon the Grim Reaper decided to speak with Ian and opened his mouth again. -Just don¡¯t talk and get in there. ¡°The, well.¡± Ian just nodded and stepped into the portal without any hesitation. The purple energy sucked Ian inside. The Grim Reaper, after watching it from behind, took slow strides with a frown still on his face. ¨C Suspicious guy. As the Grim Reaper entered the portal, the whole portal vanished like it never existed. * * * Tring-! [You have entered the ¡®Underworld¡¯ for the first time.] [Since you are dead, the initial discovery reward doesn¡¯t apply.] [You have discovered the ¡®Underworld¡¯ for the first time.] [Acquired fame of 100,000.] [In ¡®Underworld¡¯ physical power can be exerted even in the state of ¡®dead¡¯.] [You have entered the dimensional type, ¡®Middle-Earth¡¯.] [All the stats from the Earth are rebuilt.] [Transcendence level will be applied.] A whole new dimension, an entirely new dimension type called the ¡®Middle-Earth¡¯, a lot of system messages came up for Ian. ¡®Huhu, I¡¯m going to be the first intermediate.¡¯ For Ian to purposely die in the hands of the Underworld King, a well enough reason was present. And it was extremely intense and computational. ¡®It wasn¡¯t default on the contract of the Titan Guild¡­ so I didn¡¯t do anything wrong.¡¯ The ¡®dead state¡¯ that allowed him to enter the Underworld. It was in fact a penalty with quite a risk. The death penalty, that didn¡¯t allow a login for 24 hours, didn¡¯t apply, and the 1st level down penalty applied. In addition, three days of being trapped in the Underworld without gaining experience or rewards were actually worse than the average death penalty. But that was all ¡®only in general¡¯. ¡®Since I have the Dimensional Beads¡­¡¯ Ian had the Dimensional Beads that would open the path to anywhere if he had been there. If the map was known; the coordinates could be opened, and the door could be opened at any time, which meant Ian could come to the place after the 3 days death penalty. ¡®The Underworld King¡¯s necklace cooldown time was 15 days. Even if Shakran manages to win over the Underworld King, I will be able to enter 12 days early, and first.¡¯ And that didn¡¯t break the contract with Shakran. And the opportunity he was offered was the entry to the Underworld. As he was feeling a bit sorry, he just did method acting. He did his very best and then died trying, it would hurt Shakran to pursue it. ¡®I¡¯m glad that the King was strong, if he was weak, I wouldn¡¯t have been able to enter anyway.¡¯ Ian smiled while he remembered the Underworld King and put his hand through his hair. Even the time that he has to do a penalty in a ¡®dead state¡¯, he had things he had thought of. Ian was going to go through the underworld for three days and then figure out as much content as he possibly could. ¡®Highest efficiency hunting ground, pre-emptive items. I need to know everything that I can possibly get. I need to find the best location to open the dimensional portal¡­¡¯ Ian came up with these and other numerous plans in his head, he started to look around. And the first sight to enter was a large river with no end, and a small ferry. ¡°That can be rode?¡± Mumbled Ian as he slowly approached the small ferry. But after a while, in the plan of Ian¡¯s, came in a huge disruption. The person who disrupted his thoughts had appeared. -Uh, human. Where are you moving in that direction? Ian reflexively looked in the direction of the sound, and there was the Grim Reaper looking at Ian with a ridiculous look. ¡°Uh? Uncle, why are you here?¡± -Huh? ¡°Isn¡¯t this hell?¡± -Right. ¡°Doesn¡¯t your job finishes when bringing me to the next place?¡± At the logical question from Ian, the Grim Reaper seemed a little stunned. -That¡­ that so¡­? Ian spoke to him again, ¡°You must be busy, right?¡± -Me? ¡°Yeah. There are many people who have died apart from me. You need to bring them too.¡± At the question from Ian, the Grim Reaper pulled out a yellow paper into his hands. -Yeah well. I do have a lot of work to do today. ¡°Don¡¯t bother with me anymore, and go on and take care of the next job.¡± -That, that so? ¡°Yeah. I¡¯ll find out and take that ship. Okay?¡± Ian was persuading the Grim Reaper to prevent any disruption in his plan, he moved over and got on the ferry boat. Waving his hands to the Grim Reaper, he spoke loudly, ¡°You did great work uncle. I¡¯ll buy you a meal next time!¡± The Grim Reaper couldn¡¯t help but feel confused at the conversation he had with Ian, he was in a dazzled state. Ian got onto the boat and began to paddle across the river. -Something, something is strange¡­? The Grim Reaper looked over at the ferry boat with a dull expression. His mumbling was the only thing that could be heard in the empty Underworld. CH 505 Splash- Splash-! Each time Ian rowed the oars, a creepy sound would come out. ¡®Uh, uh, my muscles are sprouting up.¡¯ Apparently, the appearance of the river wasn¡¯t much different from that of a normal river, but an unknown sound was spreading inside the water. ¡®Is this some kind of horror experience? Why was this made so terrifyingly?¡¯ He couldn¡¯t even do this with pleasant feelings, he was starting to feel bad for sending away Grim Reaper. ¡®If he would have been here, I would have been less scared¡­¡¯ While thinking of all these weird stuff, Ian began to row faster. Only then would he be able to escape this experience much faster. Splash- Splash-! Ian¡¯s ferry boat moved across the river with the dreadful unknown sound. But after a while, Ian looked puzzled. ¡°Uh?¡± The color of the river, which was dark green, suddenly turned yellow. The next moment, system messages started to appear in front of Ian. Tring-! [You have discovered the river of grief¡ªAcheron¡ªfor the first time.] [Dark resistance has been increased by 3.] [Resistance of ¡®Fear¡¯ has been increased by 5.] Ian read the system messages and scratched the back of his neck. ¡®River of Grief? That name sure is scary¡­¡¯ But apart from that, it was still encouraging to get a 5 point resistance to the fear. It wasn¡¯t that much of an increase that it could be felt, but even that state of resistance was hard enough to obtain. Ian then heard a sullen voice that came from behind him. ¡°You got in my boat without my permission. You seem like a fearless soul.¡± Feeling annoyed, Ian turned in the direction of the voice. An old man with a black robe was staring at Ian intensely. [Voyeur Karon: Lv 25 (Transcendence)] Ian confirmed the information on the head of the old man and swallowed his spit. ¡®Wa, even a voyeur theme person has a higher level than the Lich King?¡¯ For Ian, who was only at transcendence level 2, he couldn¡¯t even dare to think about going against a high leveled NPC. The next moment, however, a question came to his mind. ¡®Hold on, I¡¯m in a dead state now, right? If I die in here, what will happen to me?¡¯ Ian tried to make a few assumptions for his own questions. His first assumption. ¡®Maybe while I¡¯m dead, I¡¯m invincible?¡¯ There couldn¡¯t be any other path to go if Ian dies again. His second assumption. ¡®Maybe this is the same with the original log out with 24-hour no-access penalty like when a user dies in a normal game.¡¯ It was assumed that the death penalty could be placed overlapping the penalty. But since nothing of it was clear, Ian decided to act very cautiously. ¡°Sorry. I didn¡¯t know that there was an owner for this ship. Ha ha ha.¡± Ian apologized while looking down, Karon replied with a softer tone, ¡°Hmmm, I don¡¯t think you¡¯re alive. I¡¯m sure that you¡¯re dead¡­ Didn¡¯t the Grim Reaper tell you about me?¡± At the question from Karon, Ian decided to sell out Grim Reaper. ¡°Yeah, he just left immediately?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°So, I just got on the boat.¡± Seeing Ian act all nervous and confused, Karon¡¯s wrinkled expression turned grim. ¡°That grim reaper dare to be this negligent! I need to tell Lord Mukan.¡± Ian was feeling a little confused. He was convinced that something different had just happened; he then changed the topic. ¡°By the way, Karon.¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°What is at the end of the river?¡± Karon looked lost for a moment and then answered with a smile, ¡°Erebus.¡± ¡°Sorry¡­?¡± ¡°After passing this place, you will arrive at Erebus, the land of darkness.¡± ¡°What is to be done in that place?¡± ¡°That is where the deceased lived. Those who still have some regrets about life.¡± ¡°Regret¡­ huh?¡± ¡°To be precise, something like, the ones who still hold fear about the oblivion?¡± ¡°Ah, is that so!?¡± While the boat was still moving, Ian continued to ask Karon numerous questions, It was because he had to extract more information about this underworld. Thanks to the conversation he was having with Karon, Ian learned a lot. ¡®So, crossing the river is a dangerous act in this place.¡¯ According to Karon, Erebus was divided into three sections. From the river of grief, Acheron, till the river of wailing Cocytos. Beyond Cocytos, to the river of flames, Phlegethon. Finally, beyond the Phlegethon till the river of oblivion, Lethe. In that way, the area was divided according to the river, and once the rivers were crossed, more powerful spirits could be seen. ¡°I don¡¯t know when the river of oblivion will be crossed but don¡¯t cross it so quickly.¡± Ian was puzzled because of what Karon said. ¡°The river of oblivion, it is at the edge of Erebus.¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Is there something after it?¡± Karon shook his head and slowly opened his mouth to speak, ¡°I don¡¯t know that either.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ is that so?¡± ¡°It is because I¡¯m tied to this place.¡± ¡°Ae, you¡¯re tied down in here, but you still know about Erebus, right?¡± Karon laughed in response to what Ian said. ¡°Cocytos or Phelegethon isn¡¯t a single path.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°There are a lot of people who cross over and come back.¡± ¡°Ah¡­!¡± ¡°The deceased wandering all over Erebus always talk. It has been over a thousand years already, isn¡¯t it natural to know?¡± ¡°I guess so.¡± After a pause, Karon continued, ¡°On the other hand, the river of oblivion, Lethe. If it is crossed, that is it.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°So don¡¯t cross that part too quickly.¡± After listening to the story of Karon, Ian felt like something was not quite right. ¡®I have the personality that does what was asked not to be done¡­ Now, let¡¯s take a look at the end of the Underworld, shall we?¡¯ Thought Ian to himself, thinking that the planning team would hear him if he said that aloud. He was getting excited to see new contents. While Ian was occupied in his thoughts, the river of Acheron had finally begun to appear. Shah- Shessh-! The closer the land came, the faster the rowing of Ian had become. Unlike rowing in ordinary water, this didn¡¯t take much effort. But as he was on the boat for a long time, he wanted to get his foot on the ground as soon as possible. But before the boat of Ian could touch the land, Ian was curious about something. ¡°But Karon.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Can someone who hasn¡¯t died yet cross the river of Acheron?¡± When Karon heard Ian¡¯s question, he responded with a very determined look. ¡°This place is the land of the dead. Such a thing can¡¯t be possible here.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°My boat cannot move with the living. If there is any living being, the boat will sink right away.¡± ¡°Is¡­ is that so?¡± After hearing the answer of Karon, Ian became more confused. ¡®You can¡¯t pass the river unless you are dead? Then what does it mean when Mukan said that he would open the path to the Underworld?¡¯ Mukan definitely said that he would open the path to the Underworld if Ian won against him. And Ian as well, felt that there was a way to win over Mukan, at least in the human world. ¡®Did Mukan mean something like before Acheron and outside Erebus?¡¯ The more he started to assume, the more confused Ian started to get. Seeing Ian be like that, Karon spoke again, ¡°But, there are exceptions.¡± ¡°What do you mean by exceptions?¡± ¡°If one has the ¡®Courageous Warrior¡¯ qualification and an intermediate being (Being of the Middle-Earth), then you can cross the river even when not dead.¡± ¡°Ah!¡± ¡°And, how is that possible is still a bit questionable¡­¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°There has been no record of an intermediate being, who was not deceased, and had been to Erebus.¡± When he heard those words, Ian¡¯s eyes began to shine. * * * ¡°Huhu, Ian. Surely, you have a one of kind mind.¡± Na Ji-chan watched the play of Ian for more than three hours in the monitoring room. He then shook his head and laughed. ¡°If Ian hadn¡¯t thought of it, I would have been really disappointed in him.¡± Ian came up with the easiest way to enter the Underworld¡ªusing his dimensional beads. However, it was a variable that was already forecasted by the planning team from the beginning stage. The dimensional beads were surely one of the most broken items, but it was something that took form because of the planning team. ¡®If it wasn¡¯t for the deal that you had with the Titan guild, would you have entered the Underworld in the normal way?¡¯ If Ian had not made a deal with the Titan guild, Ian was bound to have thought of a way to defeat the Underworld King. One might have thought that winning over the Underworld King and entering the Underworld was the best play scenario. And even if that was done, he probably wouldn¡¯t have entered Erebus. Until one¡¯s transcendence level increased and was qualified as a warrior, one couldn¡¯t cross the Acheron River. Then, would it be good for Ian to enter Erebus in such an unusual way? ¡°Huhu, if you want something, you need to move quickly.¡± If it was possible to skip the steps and jump over the top content, it was only natural that the balance of the game was broken. That was why even the Kailan planning team couldn¡¯t have left that possibility out. [This is Erebus¡­!] While looking at the image of Ian stepping onto the land of Erebus, Na Ji-chan couldn¡¯t help but grin. ¡°But if it is Ian God, then I can digest this a little.¡± Ping-! Na Ji-chan turned off the screen and left the monitoring room with a glass in his hand. Having looked at all the important parts, it was now time to move up to the planning team¡¯s office. CH 506 ¡°This is¡­ Erebus¡­!¡± Widely laid, dark grey land. The landscape was magnificently spread. The dark land of Erebus, first discovered from the boat of Karon¡¯s differed greatly from what Ian had imagined. ¡®I was thinking that it would resemble something like the dark land that the Lich King ruled¡­¡¯ There was white snow on the ground, and the sky was sultry and cloudy. There were numerous skeletons everywhere. The land of darkness that the Lich King ruled was a land of death. But what Ian was witnessing right now was completely different from that. ¡®Is this a normal black and white picture of the forest landscape of the commonplace in Colonar?¡¯ Black and white picture. The landscape of Erebus was literally black and white. The clouds floating above one¡¯s head, and the trees that were growing above ground. Even the color of the flowers that seemed to bloom was the same. The brightness and contrast were the only things that differed in the black and white. Therefore, the only color of the water, the yellow water river of grief, Acheron was the only outstanding scene in the eyes of Ian. Kuk- Kuggk-! Along with the sound of awkward rubbing, the ferry boat made it to the base of the river. Ian stepped toward Erebus, as if he had accomplished something. As he was waiting, new system messages began to appear in front of his eyes. Tring-! [The dark energy of the dead can be felt from the land.] [You¡¯ve arrived in the land of darkness, Erebus.] [You have discovered Erebus, the land of darkness for the first time.] [Increased fame by 200,00.] [Since you¡¯re in a state of being ¡®dead¡¯, you won¡¯t get additional item drops or buff.] [*Caution*] [* Even in the state of ¡®dead¡¯, physical power can be used in the Underworld.] [* Even in the state of ¡®dead¡¯, you can still be attacked in the Underworld.] [* When all the vitality is lost in the state of ¡®dead¡¯, you¡¯ll fall into a state of ¡®soul rest¡¯. (Soul Rest: Unable to access the game for a week, the level of transcendence will drop by 1, and the transcendence level 1 won¡¯t further drop.)] Ian started to tremble after seeing the system messages. It was because of the ¡®Soul Rest¡¯ penalty, which he would receive when his vitality got exhausted in the state of being dead. It was just beyond his comprehension. ¡®This¡­ one mistake¡­ would cause a big drop right?¡¯ Honestly, ¡®1 level down of transcendence¡¯ was hard to experience now. He hadn¡¯t gained any transcendence level experience except for the ones that he had gained during the time he killed the Lich King. The reason why Ian was scared was due to the cruel prohibition penalty called ¡®week¡¯. ¡®The 24-hour penalty was huge enough, but a week?¡¯ Right now, the rank of Ian in the Kailan server was 1st. If he gets the Soul Rest penalty, the loss would be truly devastating. And if he played to make money till his heart¡¯s content, then the name value of Ian was so high that it could generate billions of dollars in a day. But Ian had more fears than the financial loss he would have to face¡­ ¡®If I can¡¯t do Kailan for a week, I might get bored and die.¡¯ Not playing Kailan. That was the huge penalty. ¡®It may or may not happen, but to not be able to play Kailan for a whole week, if that happens, I should go on a trip with Harin.¡¯ Ian was having a dark imagination for a while and soon came back to reality. He then shook his head. Ian and Harin were the kind of couple that were happy on a vacation, and they were happy when inside Kailan too. Ian came back to reality and looked back at Karon and waved. ¡°Thank you for lending me the boat. See you next time!¡± Ian finished his farewell to Voyeur Karon. His expression didn¡¯t go well with the rest of the Underworld. Ian began to move forward. No, he tried to move forward. ¡°What?!¡± Some unknown power was making him unable to take a step forward. [Voyeur Karon cast Dark Bondage.] [You are in a state where you can¡¯t move.] ¡°¡­!¡± Two lines of system messages came into his sight, and he could feel the energy flow all through his body. At the same time, his two legs were tied together. Faced with the unforeseen situation, Ian was flustered. ¡®What? What kind of situation is this?¡¯ Cold sweat was running down Ian¡¯s back. For some reason, it wasn¡¯t known, but if Karon had been hostile to Ian, then it was a huge crisis. If he did one wrong move to Karon who had a transcendence level of 25, he might enter the state of Soul Rest. After thinking of all sorts of things, the sharp voice of Karon entered the ears of Ian. And the voice seemed to contain some kind of anger in it. ¡°Where are you going?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to give me my boat pay?¡± ¡°Boat pay¡­ huh?¡± Though the current situation was confusing to him, Ian hastily opened up his inventory. No matter how expensive Ian had to pay, that was better than getting killed by Karon. However, in front of Ian¡¯s eyes, another disaster had happened. Tring- [Can¡¯t open the inventory in the state of ¡®dead¡¯.] ¡°¡­!¡± With that, even if it was Ian, his mental strength started to drown. ¡®Uh, what am I supposed to do¡­?¡¯ Ian wasn¡¯t in panic, but he wanted to cry. Thankfully, a quest window appeared in front of Ian¡ªalmost like a light of salvation. Tring-! -Demand of Voyeur Karon- After arriving in the Underworld as a dead man, the river of grief¡ªAcheron¡ªcan be crossed in the boat of Voyeur Karon. However, in order to ride the boat of Karon, the law of the Underworld requires a fixed payment for the boat. If one got in the boat of Karon without paying, the payment will be taken after arriving in Erebus. In five hours, save five Death Coins and return them to Karon. If that can¡¯t be done, Karon will surely find you. Quest Difficulty: F+ Quest Condition: A user who used the boat of Karon without paying. Time Limit: 180 minutes. Reward: Active Connected quest. Increased affinity with Voyeur Karon. *If the quest is declined, Voyeur Karon will antagonize you. *If the quest fails, Voyeur Karon will antagonize you. Ian was both relieved and surprised at the same time. ¡®F rank difficulty? I can¡¯t even remember that there¡¯s an F difficulty. Was this level of difficulty really there?¡¯ He was shocked at the terrible penalty of Karon being hostile with him, but after checking the difficulty of the quest, he was able to feel at ease. ¡®Yeah well, I need to get through this quest quickly without accepting any other quests.¡¯ In fact, in the state of ¡®dead¡¯, Ian couldn¡¯t even move for the quests. And in that state, he wouldn¡¯t be able to get any actual rewards such as the experience or items. Ian¡¯s plan was to gather as much information as possible on the high-level areas of the Underworld for the next three days. As soon as he arrived at the Underworld, he sent away the Grim Reaper for that purpose. However, the quest from Karon was an impossible one to refuse. In fact, Ian was thankful that he wasn¡¯t going to do a difficult quest. After deciding it in his mind, Ian nodded and opened his mouth to speak, ¡°Surely, I need to pay you. I wouldn¡¯t have thought of any other way.¡± Ian uttered words that he never expected he would say. ¡®If this is a quest, I need to at least get the reward.¡¯ It was rather an abstract reward, the affinity with Karon. But it was Ian¡¯s gaming philosophy to even take 1 point. And Ian¡¯s stance worked well, and Karon¡¯s voice softened a little. ¡°Hmm, I don¡¯t think that you would just runway without paying me, but I just told you since I thought that you might not know.¡± ¡°That is true.¡± ¡°The pay is five coins. The currency of Erebus, Death Coins.¡± [The Dark bondage status has been removed.] [Agility is back to normal.] As soon as those system messages came, the dark energy around Ian faded away. However, Ian couldn¡¯t move into Erebus right away. ¡°By the way, Karon.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°How can I get those Death Coins?¡± Being deceased for the first time, it was normal for Ian to ask that. After listening to the question of Ian, Karon responded as if he was waiting to be asked, ¡°Walk for 15 minutes along the forest on the road to your right. You will then arrive at the city of dead ¡®Tanatos¡¯.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± ¡°There is a butcher in the southwest of Tanatos. Take a rabbit skin and sell it there. You¡¯ll be able to get the coins easily. I¡¯ll give you a piece of it. You can sell a total of five rabbit skins.¡± ¡°Rabbit¡­ skin? Where can I get that?¡± ¡°That isn¡¯t so hard to get. If you walk along the path of the forest, there are many rabbits.¡± Listening to the story so far, Ian responded reluctantly, ¡°Uh, understood. I¡¯ll get that soon.¡± ¡°Good, will 3 hours be enough?¡± ¡°Of course! I¡¯ll come back right away.¡± ¡°Yeah. I will rest here till then.¡± The quest content seemed so easy. ¡®Yeah, well, it is an F level difficulty. You can catch the rabbit and just peel it off.¡¯ Moving away from Karon, Ian hurriedly moved along the path. It was obviously an easy quest, and the content was less too. However, it was a time-based quest, and the variables weren¡¯t known either. It wasn¡¯t so long since Ian had moved along the forest road, but then he realized that all his thoughts were completely wrong. CH 507 Karon wasn¡¯t wrong. In less than 2 minutes after Ian had entered the forest road, a grey rabbit jumped out of the grass. Psssh- Psssh-! A rabbit stuck out like a bullet and then bounced into some other place. That action made Ian very excited. ¡®Huhu, this is fun and refreshing, huh?¡¯ The penalty was one level down, but the level of Ian was already over 400. And at this point, hunting was what occupied the mind of Ian. ¡®Let¡¯s see, where is my bow for hunting the rabbit.¡¯ To catch a fast and slender rabbit, the ranged weapons were much more advantageous for such kind of things. And Ian naturally tried to open his inventory to swap weapons. And of course, the inventory didn¡¯t open. Tring-! [Inventory cannot be opened in the state of ¡®dead¡¯.] ¡°Hu¡­¡± Ian had his crying face on. ¡®I need to catch the rabbit with a spear¡­¡¯ Rabbits were basically herbivores. Because of that, they had a weak attack skill, but they did have great agility. That was also the case for a rabbit that was in the beginner¡¯s hunting ground in the Colonnare continent. Many beginner users used ranged weapons and stuff, but the rabbits didn¡¯t even bother to look at the users. It was all because the rabbits moved with agility were very bad for the hunting efficiency. ¡®Hu, even then, what to do? I have no choice.¡¯ Ian tried to make up his mind and placed his hands around the sword. The weapon that was in the hands of Ian was the Bloody Revenge. It was what he had taken from Limlong, the weapon that was in his hands when he was being cut down by Mukan. ¡®It¡¯s great that I wasn¡¯t holding the Judgment of the Spirit King.¡¯ The Bloody Revenge was like a feather-like sword that had the advantages of a dagger and a sword too. On the other hand was the Judgement of the Spirit King, which was a spear. It was clear for anyone to realize which of the weapons would be beneficial for killing a hare. ¡®There is Blood Split.¡¯ A rushing attack technique like Blood Split would be a great tool for pursuing a fast rabbit. Ian decided to make the most of the skill. ¡®Should I go and find one first?¡¯ Ian, slowly moving towards the grass, carefully opened the grass in front of him. Pussshk-! Ian killed, then tried to stop all the entering voices into his head and pushed his head through the grass. Then the next moment, Ian¡¯s impression crumbled again. ¡®What is this? A dead rabbit ¡­?¡¯ [Dead Rabbit: Lv 3 (transcendence)] The level of the rabbit was 3. ¡®Hu, can¡¯t you just be a rabbit?¡¯ The Kailan level, it never lied. Ian¡¯s transcendence level was currently 2. And the level of the rabbit was higher than that of Ian, so it was natural for him to be cautious. In addition, the lower the level, the greater the difference between the levels. Rustling. As soon as he approached the grass, Ian approached the targeted rabbit with light footsteps. He could have used the Blood Split to approach it at once, but it was better to hold onto it until the rabbit noticed the presence of Ian. Blood Split was a non-target skill, the closer the distance, the easier it was to hit. And Ian walked just one meter behind the rabbit¡­ ¡°¡­!¡± Capturing the rabbit¡¯s hind limb movement, Ian instantly triggered the Blood Split. Phat-! [Unique ability ¡®Blood Split¡¯ has been activated.] Ian¡¯s none-target skill hit rate was unmatched. Even the archer rankers who are good at hitting with a non-targeting skill would admire the skill of Ian. Ian, wasn¡¯t able to hit the rabbit that was one meter away. Phak-! [¡®Dead Rabbit¡¯ has been damaged!] After all, Ian triggered the weakness capture, and precisely hit the critical point! But the next thing was the problem. [Vitality of the ¡®Dead Rabbit¡¯ has been decreased by 685.] [The ¡®Dead Rabbit¡¯ is now in ¡®hostile state¡¯.] The dead rabbits just like the rabbits in the Colonar continent was like a monster that wouldn¡¯t show hostility unless attacked first. Which was why the message of hostility had come up. But that wasn¡¯t the problem. ¡®685? Didn¡¯t the damage deal get stuck?¡¯ Obviously, it was just three digits of damage even though Blood Split was a critical hit. Ian¡¯s eyes naturally turned over to the vitality gauge. ¡°¡­!¡± Ian was shocked at what he had just witnessed. The vitality of the rabbit was hardly cut. Was it around 2 or 3 percent? That was from the damage deal of the Blood Split, which meant that a normal attack would result in a two-digit damage deal. ¡®Even if it is the Middle-Earth, my attack should have been around 1,000¡­¡¯ At level 2, Ian¡¯s current damage rate was exactly 1,350. But only half of the damage was done, which meant that the defense of the rabbit was higher than the attack of Ian¡¯s. ¡®What is wrong with this rabbit?¡¯ And at the same moment, Ian was further surprised. Puak-! The rabbit bounced and hit the torso of Ian. [Damage caused by the ¡®dead rabbit¡¯!] [Vitality reduced by 6,798!] ¡°Crazy sh*t¡­!¡± Ian had no choice but to curse. With the 90,000 extra vitality with the item heal, otherwise, the attack could¡¯ve killed Ian in a single shot. Ian¡¯s current vitality, minus the item bonus, was only 5,000. And this time, it was a bunny rabbit that gained the edge over Ian with just one air kick. Ian¡¯s head started to work fast. ¡®I can get a thousand points with just hitting it in a flat manner.¡¯ Maybe fighting like this didn¡¯t make the rabbit tired. The rabbit¡¯s torso is quite fast, but it wasn¡¯t undamaged. (Of course, if he fought with everything, Ian could win.) The problem, however, was the time limit. It took Ian 20 minutes to catch one of them, then that made it hard for him to get five of those in just three hours. ¡°Hu, I¡¯m having to summon, for a rabbit¡­¡± Mumbled Ian to himself, and eventually decided to borrow the power from his summons. ¡°Summon, Karceus! Summon, Bbookbbook!¡± But the next minute, the system messages frustrated the hell out of Ian. [You cannot summon ¡®Karceus¡¯.] [In the state of ¡®dead¡¯, only the dead summons can be summoned.] [You cannot summon ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯¡­] In the state of ¡®dead¡¯, only the ¡®dead¡¯ summons could be the only one summoned. And in the battle with the Underworld King, Mukan, Ian was the only one who died. ¡°Ahhh!¡± The word that best described the visit of Ian to the Underworld. -Ian¡¯s Underworld Exploration. (Ian POV) So, what did I do? How did I deal with that kind of situation? I fought very hard with a rabbit. One might laugh, but I was very serious. The time it took to catch one guy was over 10 minutes¡­ It made me think that catching Death Knights was times easier than that. But the problem was, that didn¡¯t end there. In the state of ¡®dead¡¯, even the item drop didn¡¯t happen. The skin didn¡¯t drop for three, have you ever heard the sky sing? It was like the planning team was playing a joke with the rabbit skin drop rate, and that went all the way. But when thought about it, the system messages really did inform me very kindly. There couldn¡¯t be a complete idiot. And after realizing that I caught the three rabbits without thought, I picked up the bodies of the rabbit and started to move without knowing. The time took for collecting five rabbits¡­ was around two hours. Phew. It was really hard¡­ This was difficulty F? Maybe be the F difficulty meant ¡®Fantastic¡¯. It was a fantastic quest. It¡­ Somehow, I managed to catch all five rabbits and I would hand them over to the butcher and get the five Death Coins. Didn¡¯t I really dream that I would succeed in the quest within 5 minutes? But after the quest, I will finally get some free time for myself. It was then time to go around the Underworld and get something called ¡®information¡¯. When I arrived at the Thanatos village, I started to wander around the underworld. The time remaining until Shakran uncle and the Titan to enter the Underworld is approximately 14 days. I had to get as much information as I could before then. Of course, If uncle doesn¡¯t win against Mukan, then he might not even enter the underworld. But do you know what¡¯s really fun? After the 14 days, when Shakran uncle opens the portal to the Underworld, I won¡¯t be with them. Unlike those who won¡¯t be able to cross the Acheron river, I will be able to open the portal into the town of Thanatos. The other members of the Lotus Guild, excluding me, will move with Titan. On the contrary, there were many hunting grounds to raise the level of transcendence before crossing the river Acheron. And Shakran uncle will surely do his very best in there, (I feel like he probably is suspicious¡­) Besides, the ¡®living¡¯ inside the Acheron, Erebus had a side effect, and it was a huge risk to take. Kay, then! Then why did I remain in Erebus all till the end even with the doubts and suspicions? Originally, I planned to get as much information as I could until Shakran uncle won against the Underworld King, and I was planning to enter through the door once uncle opens. Haha, wonder why? But that, if one thought a little more, one will understand. Do you know what I wanted to find the most in the underworld? Huhu. To find it right away. Easier than one thought. And quick too, before he started to hunt in Erebus, I had ten days in hand. This is, is a story a day or two before Shakran uncle caught the Underworld King. CH 508 After three days of ¡®death¡¯ penalty, Ian finally entered the underworld in a living state. ¡®Now I will be able to properly explore the underworld!¡¯ But that was a perfect miscalculation on the part of Ian. The land of Darkness, ¡®Erebus¡¯, wasn¡¯t a place that the ones in ¡®living state¡¯ could enter. First problem that Ian had realized, if he dies from the attack of a monster from Underworld, he would get penalized again. Underworld King Mukan, was also an NPC of the underworld, because of that he died and received a ¡®dead state¡¯ penalty. And this was all comprehensible. And surely the death penalty was going to be a level higher than the normal death penalty, but it was still risky. However, for Ian, there was something that was much more terrifying than that¡­ An NPC, an ¡®overseeing inspector¡¯ which was called as the ¡®Keeper of Underworld¡¯. ¡®It was good at getting the most information out of Thanatos. It would have been a real deal for me if that woofer uncle didn¡¯t cross my path. If I just wandered around and met that inspector¡­ even thinking about it is terrible.¡¯ In the Kailan, it was against the God¡¯s order to wander around the Land of Darkness, Erebus in the state of ¡®living¡¯. Therefore, if he was caught by the ¡®overseeing inspector¡¯, he would make the intruder receive a ¡®Dark Judgment¡¯. What is dark judgment? [Dark Judgement: prisoner of the Underworld, being trapped in the Tartarus for 10 days, and being trapped in the Tartarus reduced 1% of experience every hour.] A terrible punishment that caused him nothing to do for ten whole days and a chance to lose the experience of more than two levels. And because of these penalties, Ian could hardly hunt in the underworld. Most of the hunting grounds near the Thanatos was under the constant inspection of him. Because of that, Ian carefully visited the place, precisely Erebus, while avoiding the inspectors. So far, Ian briefly summarized the information that he had obtained out there. 1. The ¡®Living state¡¯ one can live in Erebus too, but if caught by the overseeing inspector, that one would get held in the Tartarus for 10 long days. 2. Before crossing the river Acheron, the outside of Erebus called¡ªDark Abyss exists. 3. When the transcendence level is low, good hunting grounds are present in the Dark Abyss when compared to Erebus. 4. Normally, the soul of the dead doesn¡¯t enter the Dark Abyss and flows directly from the Erebus. And will stay for a duration of one year. 5. The Death Coins, the currency of Underworld, which can be obtained from the village of Alba of Thanatos, can be used everywhere, and the Death Coins got from the Dark Abyss were very hard to get. 6. If one possesses the Death Coins, one can enter the hidden dungeon in the Dark Abyss. The better the dungeon, the more the Death Coins required. 7. If killed by a monster of the underworld, instead of being subject to the existing death penalty, one would get the penalty that was a ¡®dead¡¯ state. And the time it took Ian to gather all the information was about ten days. And if he included the time he worked as dead, then it was thirteen days. He spent a lot of time. However, Ian was very satisfied with his achievements. ¡®Because I got some really great information.¡¯ Which was the core information of the seven things of Ian? Other information was surely attractive enough, but the most important thing for Ian was the fourth option. It was an important clue for Ian to find the Behemoth. ¡®When I killed Behemoth¡­ was 4 to 5 months ago. So his soul will surely be still in Erebus.¡¯ That was what Ian had come up with. The behemoth that Ian had himself hunted in the Devildom would surely still be in Erebus. So where was the dead behemoth that died in the hands of Ian, now? He learned from the information of the town chief of Thanatos, Uras Kane. -There are four rivers in Erebus. And the area is dived around them. Did you know that? -I know that it is divided into three sections, chief. -Right. Seems like Karon has told you. -Yes. -Okay then, I¡¯ll explain it in an easy way. -I¡¯ll listen then. -Right now, where the village of Thanatos is. In other words, the first section of Erebus, the soul of the dead stays for 5 months. -Ah, I guess it differs based on the zones. -Right. After staying here for a minimum of 5 months, the soul is entitled to the Cocytos. -Ah, then you said a ¡®minimum¡¯. -Right. Even when qualified, it doesn¡¯t have to move. -I understand. -Nice, then I¡¯ll keep going on. The souls which have reached the Cocytos and arrived at the second zone of Erebus are given only 4 months to turn eligible for crossing the next river. -You mean the river of flames, Phlegethon. -Oh oh, you know about Phlegethon, that¡¯s good. Anyway, if the river of flames is crossed; the third zone will be reached, and within three months, one will be eligible for the river of oblivion. -5¡­ 4, 3. That is a total of 12 months. -Yes, that was why I said that one would stay for at least 12 months in Erebus. ¡®If it wasn¡¯t my really bad luck. Then the Behemoth wouldn¡¯t have crossed the Cocytos river yet.¡¯ Ian had hunted the behemoth 4 to 5 months ago. And even if the five months have passed because of the miscalculation, there was a high probability that the behemoth hadn¡¯t moved to the second zone yet. ¡®I need to find that Behemoth. Only if I get that behemoth, I¡¯ll be able to set aside the Underworld and attack the Spirit dimension.¡¯ Based on the obtained information Ian had obtained so far, most of the main content of the Underworld was in Erebus. And to be an active user in Erebus, one had to become an Intermediate being by obtaining the ¡®Valor¡¯s qualification¡¯. ¡®The only thing that can be done in the Dark Abyss is to raise the transcendence level. And the transcendence level can be raised even by hunting on the grounds of the Spirit Dimension or this Underworld.¡¯ And unlike the Dark Abyss hunting ground which Ian had to share with the Titan¡¯s, Ian could probably monopolize the spirit dimension. ¡°Nice. Then should I move slowly?¡± Ian¡¯s transcendence level was just 2. It was because he couldn¡¯t hunt while trying to avoid the confrontation with the ¡®overseeing inspector¡¯. But catching the Behemoth wasn¡¯t such a worrisome matter for Ian. Ian had the ¡®Spirit Magic Seal Stone¡¯ he had obtained from Gripper. Spirit Magic Seal Stone ¨C Classification ¨C Miscellaneous Rank ¨C Hero This is an artifact that can be used to seal the spirit of a specific magical beast, it was created by the Dimension¡¯s Keeper Gripper, by using his magical engineering. If you process the seal on the magical beast, then you will be able to acquire the spirit segment of that specific magical beast. Only one soul can be sealed at a time, and once used, it can¡¯t be used once again. It is a one-time use monster. At the time of sealing the spirit, you can acquire a minimum of 30 to a maximum of 100 spirits at a random. Can¡¯t be used on humans and humanoid species. Can¡¯t be used on living targets. Can¡¯t be used on a named boss monster. Gripper has said that it had to be used in less than 1 minute of death. -How is this meant to be used? That is simple. Hunt the behemoth, and activate the spirit magic seal stone against the carcass to extract the spirit power. It needs to be done in less than a minute. And now Ian, who died, understood the meaning for that one-minute time gap. ¡®One minute from death, before the grim reaper comes to pick it up.¡¯ When Ian had turned dead, it took the grim reaper one minute to meet Ian. It was probably the basic setting of the Kailan world. Then what about the behemoth that was already in the underworld, dead? ¡®If I activate the seal in front of him, it will get sucked in.¡¯ And for Ian with the transcendence level of 2, there was no way to face the behemoth. But if he could activate it earlier, he wouldn¡¯t even have to fight it. ¡®I need to seal the behemoth¡¯s soul as soon as possible and leave this creepy-ass sh*t place.¡¯ Ian¡¯s steps went faster. If it was five months, then it most probably was staying near the Cocytos river. He had to get it before it crossed over the river. Otherwise, getting the Behemoth was going to be impossible. * * * Ian worked very hard in the village of Thanatos and collected quite a lot of Death Coins. Alba was what the village was called, and was relentless with the call of the NPCs, but Ian had managed to collect more than 300 coins. But the coins that were in the hands of Ian¡­ Reserved Death Coins: 57 coins. Only 57 coins. And the reason was simple. ¡®If it weren¡¯t for this, I wouldn¡¯t be able to even find the behemoth.¡¯ He had purchased an artifact called the ¡®Death Cloak¡¯ which was only available in the village of Thanatos. -Death Cloak- Classification: Cloak Rank: Only The woofer, a blacksmith in the town of Thanatos has created this with great care. If this cloak is worn upside down, the energy of death can erase/hide the vitality. *This item can be used to evade the overseeing inspector. *Cloak no longer activates when the combat begins. It was impossible to hunt in Erebus even if he had this cloak, but for Ian, it was a currently needed item. Ian turned the cloak upside down and had been looking through the Cocytos river for a week. ¡®I feel like it is time for it to come out¡­ there are very few places which I left behind.¡¯ Ian¡¯s guts were unmatched, however, the week¡¯s journey had been tough for him. He would rather have fought or taken a quest, but all he was doing, was to walk around the underworld looking for a behemoth while hiding inside a cloak¡­ It sure would have been hard and boring to do. ¡®He is not the kind who can hide that well, he has low intellect¡­ where the hell is he?¡¯ Anxiety started to take shelter in the mind of Ian as he thought that the behemoth would have crossed over. Moving those thoughts away by shaking his head, Ian started to move by trying to get some strength. The damp and swampy riverside of the Cocytos. Right there. Kukung-! The calm marshlands suddenly started to vibrate with a loud sound. ¡°¡­!¡± CH 509 With three large, wicked horns on its head and a red huge horn on the nose. A huge body that would make one think of a dinosaur and a face that matched with a rhinoceros. As soon as Ian saw the huge bump on its tail along the dorsum, Ian couldn¡¯t help but feel elated. ¡°Uhaaah! I saw you!¡± As soon as Ian screamed out loud, another voice overlapped his. Kyooo-! It was ¡®him¡¯, that devastating roar that Ian had been searching high and low for. Behemoth: Lv 19 (transcendence) The last piece of the puzzle, and the main key that was needed for Ian to create the strongest beast possible. But thanks to a certain someone. The behemoth that was in Devildom turned into an extinct creature that could no longer be found. ¡®This guy, if I just seal this guy¡­!¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes were filled with joy. The egg of the Behemoth, which had been in the corner of his inventory for several months, could now be hatched. One of the two things that were needed for hatching the eggs of the behemoth¡ªthe ¡®extreme fire¡¯¡ªhad already been prepared, and now he only had to seal the spirit of the behemoth and complete it. ¡®There is nothing that my Gripper uncle doesn¡¯t know!¡¯ Excited, Ian put aside the Judgment of the Spirit King that he had in his hand and pulled out the spirit magic seal stone he was handed by Gripper. Now it was time to approach him and use the seal. Grrrrng-! The behemoth who saw Ian stared at him with ferocious eyes. Witnessing that, Ian couldn¡¯t help but gulp. ¡®If that guy gives me one correct hit, I¡¯ll die right away. I can¡¯t ever let that happen.¡¯ Ian was nervous as he was approaching him. However, Ian realized that something was strange. ¡°¡­?¡± The Behemoth which had seen Ian was moving back and further back. ¡®What is this? Why is the one with the higher level doing such a thing?¡¯ Ian who didn¡¯t understand this just pushed away the thoughts from his mind; however, the reason why the Behemoth was moving back was pretty clear. In the memories of the magical beast, the strong image of Ian in the Devildom remained hard in its memory. -Kukk, kukku-! (Don¡¯t come near me, you monster!) The behemoth was vigorously moving its body and trying to flee from the sight of Ian. But Ian had no idea why he was behaving like that, and his nervousness increased further. ¡®Why are you behaving like that? I¡¯d rather hope for you to attack me, that is an easier way to approach¡­¡¯ Originally, it was Ian¡¯s plan to use the stone as the Behemoth would rush towards him for attacking. Though the attack power of the Behemoth was huge, his movements were dull which gave enough time for Ian to avoid the impact. However, the guy on the other side was showing unexpected behavior. Instead of trying to attack Ian, his body was moving back. And the situation turned further troublesome for Ian. ¡®Trying to get closer with its unpredictable body movements is a gamble¡­¡¯ The Behemoth¡¯s four legs were thumping and smashing everything in the swamp, and his huge tail that was moving in his back. Since Ian was small, any misdirected approach could pull him into the muddy water. ¡®huh¡­ is this the only way?¡¯ Ian stepped back and summoned both Pin and Bbookbbook. -Kiyaaa-! -Bb0ok-! Into the ear of Pin, an order was given in a low voice. ¡°Pin, take Bbookbbook on your back and then drop it onto the behemoth.¡± The Behemoth had a giant dinosaur-like appearance, and he needed all four legs on the ground to hold up. So no matter how much it was struggling, there was no way it could prevent something from falling from the sky. Unless it was lying on the ground. ¡®This may be a little dangerous, but in the end, I have no choice but to use the space distortion.¡¯ Once Pin dropped Bbookbbook from the sky, Ian would change position with Bbookbbook. On the other hand, without being aware of what was happening, Bbookbbook who was held by the toenails of Pin looked back at Pin and asked, ¡°Bbook! Pin-ah, why are you doing this, bbook? Is it because I ate your meatballs secretly yesterday?¡± Even with Bbookbbook acting out of character, Pin faithfully followed the orders of Ian. The reason why Bbookbbook was chosen for this operation was simple. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah, it couldn¡¯t be helped since you¡¯re the smallest and the hardest.¡± ¡°Mas¡­ Master. I was in the wrong bbook!¡± With the polymorph, the smallest size, the back of the Behemoth could be approached more likely, and excluding Bbakbbak, the next one with high defense was Bbookbbook, so it was chosen. And as Bbookbbook was taken away, Ian started to move much more aggressively to keep the attention of the Behemoth on him. ¡°Friend, it has been a while, right? You have no idea how hard I had to work to find you.¡± -Kkukkk! Kiyaaaa! (You came to the afterlife to search for me!? Even in the afterlife you¡¯re not leaving me!) ¡°I will resurrect you onto the earth. Can¡¯t you just believe this hyung and follow me?¡± -Kuk-kkkuk-! (No! I hate you!) The behemoth was really disgusted by Ian. He continued to beat through the swamp with his huge body making the area unapproachable for Ian. And after a while¡­ -Kwah? The behemoth became scared because he felt something on his back. He felt like something was pinching his back. The next moment, Ian triggered a spell. ¡°Space Distortion!¡± From somewhere, a small turtle appeared in front of the behemoth¡¯s eyes. ¡°What are you looking at bbook? Is this the first time for you to see a turtle?¡± The behemoth somehow felt that the unusual-looking turtle was familiar to him. -Kwah? Kuakk-? (Why does it feel like I had seen this turtle somewhere before?) ¡°Not saw it somewhere, saw these a lot bbook. You really are a stupid lizard bbook.¡± -Kiaaa! (I¡¯m not stupid!) Maybe he was able to understand the words of the behemoth, so Bbookbbook immediately started to insult him. And finally¡­ -Kwaahh! Kiyaaah! (You ugly turtle! I will never forgive you!) The behemoth which seemed to be in a rage. It opened its mouth to the sky. ¡°Bbook, Bookbok!¡± After looking at the Behemoth that looked like it wanted to swallow the turtle, Bbookbbook who was terrified began to take a step back. But that was for a moment only. Woong-! With a huge sound, the whole body of the Behemoth was engulfed in white light. ¡°Phew, I almost died Bbook.¡± Bbookbbook shook its head and sat on the ground. The body of the behemoth which was covered with white light got sucked into the sealing stone that was in Ian¡¯s hands. Kwahh-! At the same time, new system messages started to emerge. Tring-! [You have used the item ¡®Spirit Magic Sealing stone¡¯!] [You have successfully sealed the magical beast, ¡®Behemoth¡¯!] [¡®Spirit Magic Soul Stone¡¯ use has been a success!] [The Sealing Stone has absorbed the power of the Behemoth¡¯s spirit.] [Transcendence experience increased by 57.] Ian stood all alone in the place where the Behemoth had disappeared. ¡°At last¡­!¡± After achieving what he came for in the Underworld, a wicked smile came up. * * * Swahh-! The swampy riverside of the Cocytos river. A lingering sound was ringing, and two shadows which were wearing robes were there. Woong-! Along with the short resonance, the shadows that appeared had a giant sickle in their hands. A low moan came out of the mouth of one of the black men. ¡°Khum.¡± The man began to move very slowly. Smoke rose from his feet. It was almost like a new form was moving around. ¡°You missed it again this time.¡± At the statement of the first man, the other one responded while nodding slowly, ¡°That rat-like guy dared to walk around Erebus, avoiding the eyes of the Overseeing inspector.¡± The two men were the overseeing inspectors of the Underworld. They had been moving along the trail left by Ian for a few days. ¡°Lord Mukan will be angry¡­¡± ¡°We can¡¯t do anything about that. We just have to catch that guy somehow.¡± The expression of the two men which were already dark for not being able to catch Ian turned much darker. ¡°I won¡¯t miss the next time.¡± The two of them clenched their fists. But both of them didn¡¯t realize. That it was their last chance to catch Ian. * * * ¡°Ah, this is because I¡¯m getting a little older.¡± East end of the Colonar continent. Quite a lot of users were moving in and out, but there was a dimensional tower that people couldn¡¯t find. Gripper was playing with Selipa in the backyard of the tower while leaning onto a chair. ¡°It is taking time for that one to grow these days.¡± Prrrng-! At the last visit of Ian, Gripper had given Selipa the Regression Pill. In other words, It was reset to the level of 1 and started to grow again. It was because he had learned from Ian about the perfect way to bring up a summon by applying the ¡®Summons Cultivation¡¯. And what he learned from Ian was very amusing. Even though the level of Selipa was still in the double digits, it had grown even stronger compared to the time before its level was reset. ¡°Huhu, surely Ian is like a scholar. It is a pity that he is a summoner.¡± Gripper who was thinking about Ian for a moment started to climb into the tower after feeding Selipa. He had spent the whole day cultivating Selipa, and now he wanted some rest. And before entering the stairs of the tower, Gripper couldn¡¯t help but grumble. ¡°The rainy season is hell. Maybe I should try developing that ¡®Aircon¡¯ that Ian spoke about last time.¡± Surely Gripper could cool the lab with his magic. He could even teleport himself into the portal while using ¡®blink¡¯. But using magic was annoying too, and the thing that Ian said about the aircon could keep the room cool all the time. Gripper finally climbed the stairs and opened the door to his lab. The next moment, Gripper¡¯s face frowned and wrinkled again. ¡°What is this! Why is it so hot in here?¡± It was because he was feeling tremendous heat from the lab, almost like someone had left the stove on. The lab, on the top floor of the tower, had to be a cool place as it had blowing breeze from the sea, but this situation made Gripper feel like he was being betrayed. ¡°I need to freeze everything.¡± Angry at the temperature, Gripper raised his hands and cast Ice magic. No matter how annoying it was to cast magic, he couldn¡¯t hold himself anymore. He was planning on activating Freeze for the entire tower. But after a while, the casting that Gripper was doing with all his might suddenly had to be halted. ¡°Wait, hold on, Gripper! Look for a second!¡± From the lab, the urgent voice of someone could be heard. And that voice was a very familiar one. CH 510 ¡°So, what you mean to say is¡­ you really went to the Underworld to catch the Behemoth?¡± ¡°That is right.¡± ¡°Oh my, it seems to be possible¡­¡± ¡°Huh, it was possible because of you!¡± ¡°No, that¡­ I did¡­¡± ¡°Is there some problem?¡± ¡°Problem? There sure is.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°You are still a human.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°If you caught Behemoth in the Underworld, you surely would¡¯ve entered Erebus.¡± ¡°Right.¡± ¡°How could a being of ¡®living state¡¯ not being an intermediate being be able to enter the Middle-Earth?¡± ¡°Haha, now that is a secret.¡± ¡°You monster¡­¡± In the top floor of the tower of Gripper. In it were Ian and Gripper talking about stuff. But what was interesting was what they were doing. The two men were sitting and looking at the huge hot flame in front of them. ¡°By the way, Gripper.¡± ¡°What? You monster kid.¡± ¡°Those guys¡­ they can be hatched safely, right?¡± ¡°If the materials are related to them, then it is sure to hatch.¡± ¡°The things are related, perfectly.¡± ¡°Then, wait and see.¡± A process that made the entire lab of Gripper steamy. It was because of the extreme flame that Ian had given. Ian used all the extreme flames he had at once, and due to that, the lab of Gripper became hot and smokey. There were three blue eggs placed side by side inside the flames. ¡°Behemoth¡­ Break those eggs and come out.¡± The eggs were the eggs of the Behemoth that Ian hunted. ¡®Kue, just thinking about this is making me excited. A magical beast transmutter with the huge body of the Behemoth.¡¯ When Ian was hunting the Behemoth, he wasn¡¯t exactly hunting all by himself. Hoonie and Canoel were with him when he hunted the Behemoth. Because of that, the three eggs had to be divided between the three of them. However, all three eggs were with Ian because of the price he had to pay. ¡®Hmm, Hoonie was satisfied with the Behemoth leather, and I gave enough gold to Noel.¡¯ If Ian had just planned to take in the Behemoth and foster him, he might not have needed the three eggs. But Ian had planned the making of a magical beast. And that was why he needed all three Behemoths. ¡®Come on out, come on!¡¯ Ian stared at the three blue eggs while crouching down. It was as if he was about to split open the eggs with his eyes. But then it did. Crack-! One of the three eggs began to crack little by little. Gripper who just saw that jumped out of excitement. ¡°Oh oh!¡± Ian clenched his two fists. ¡°Nice!¡± System messages started to appear in front of Ian right away. Tring-! [The conditions have been met.] [The Legendary magical beast Behemoth has begun to hatch.] [Would you like to use the ¡®Behemoth Spirit Magic Sealing Stone¡¯? (Y/N)] The sealing stone was floating in front of the three eggs with a purple glow all over it. And without hesitation, Ian nodded. ¡°Of course! Use it right away!¡± At the confirmation of Ian, the sealing stone began to break into pieces. A powerful energy wave came out of it and started to surround the Behemoth eggs. Woong-! With a low sound, system messages began to pop up again in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Tring-! [The legendary Magical beast ¡®Behemoth¡¯ egg has begun to crack. (Hatch rate: 7 percent)] [The legendary Magical beast ¡®Behemoth¡¯ egg has begun to crack. (Hatch rate: 4 percent)] [The legendary Magical beast ¡®Behemoth¡¯ egg has begun to crack. (hatch rate: 3 percent)] [For successful hatching, the magic energy of the Devildom needs to be used.] Ian, almost like he was getting sucked into it, began to think of power while clenching his fists and not averting his gaze. Gripper just looked at the smiling Ian. ¡°Ian, that thing¡­ you have that magic stone with you, right?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Are they by any chance, advanced leveled ones?¡± ¡°Are two of the advanced leveled ones enough?¡± ¡°Ohho.¡± ¡°Why the magic stones suddenly?¡± Ian was rather puzzled. The magic stones, which were originally a mineral found in the Devildom mines, usually increased the success rate of the beast transmutation. Which was why he didn¡¯t understand why Gripper had mentioned that. The advanced level magic stones, which even Ian had a very few of, were very expensive items. It was a rare item that wasn¡¯t even listed in the auction house, but a price had to be placed on them. It would cost around 20 to 30 million gold each. ¡®Let¡¯s see, there needs to be around three of them in the inventory right now, so that they match perfectly¡­¡¯ The problem wasn¡¯t just the price. The reason why Ian kept the magic stones on him was to use them for the beast transmutation. If he used all three of them right away, it would become difficult for him. Of course, a little more of mining in Devildom could bring in a few more of them. However, Ian¡¯s thoughts were interrupted when Gripper¡¯s voice entered his ears. ¡°If you have the magic stones, it¡¯ll happen quickly. It is only effective before the eggs are hatched.¡± ¡°Three of them¡­ before they hatch?¡± ¡°No, one of it will be enough. It would be useless to place any more of them.¡± Upon hearing the response from Gripper, Ian pulled out the magic stones from his inventory. Subsequently, new system messages have appeared in front of Ian. Tring-! [You have used the ¡®advanced magic stone¡¯ item.] [¡®Advanced magic stone¡¯ has been melted by the intense fire.] [Strong spirit power is spreading through the air.] [¡®Behemoth egg¡¯ is hatching faster.] Whether or not the eggs were strengthened by the millions of offerings, the three Behemoth eggs began to crack faster. Crack- Crack-! The eggs¡¯ hatching rate had risen to 1 percent in almost 5 to 10 seconds and then went three times faster. 2 minutes had passed. The Behemoth had begun to hatch. It finally broke through the eggshells and revealed its appearance. Tring-! [The legendary magical beast ¡®Behemoth¡¯ was hatched successfully!] [You have hatched the legendary magical beast ¡®Behemoth¡¯ for the first time!] [Increase of fame by 250,000!] [Leadership has increased by 300!] [Devil energy has increased by 3,000!] (Leak) When the Behemoth Jr. hatched in the middle, the two of them began to break off too. Thanks to that, Ian¡¯s vision was blocked by numerous system messages, and he was feeling like he was on cloud9. ¡®Keuuu. At last¡­! I can finally go to Cervian!¡¯ Krrrg- Grrrrng-! Krrrr-! Three beasts were growling and snarling because of fear as to who was going to be their leader. Ian looked at the guys with a calm face, and Gripper was looking at Ian with envy. ¡°Ian.¡± ¡°Yeah, Gripper.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you give one to me?¡± Gripper was staring at Ian with shiny eyes. But instead of responding to the question of Gripper, Ian hastily opened the dimensional portal. ¡°Gripper, I¡¯ll see you later! I¡¯m a little busy now¡­!¡± In an instant, Ian disappeared into the portal, taking the three behemoths with him, leaving Gripper pouting. ¡°Ah, my Selipa needed a friend¡­¡± * * * Ultimate Magical Beast transmutation. What did the ¡®strongest beast transmutation¡¯ that Ian wanted mean to him? It wasn¡¯t so simple; it couldn¡¯t be explained in a single line either. [Gathering the most powerful magical beast that existed and to create a magical beast out of it.] That was what Ian had been dreaming about¡ªthe ¡®Ultimate Magical Beast Transmutation¡¯. So what did he need for having a string beast? To understand that, the system had to be understood correctly. Kailan described the combination of magical beasts as follows. -Magical Beast Transmutation The magical beast transmutation was a forbidden magical skill that could help create powerful beasts by combining two or more magical beasts. The higher the alchemy ability of the master, the higher the chances for the transmutation of the magical beast that would be created, and the success rate of the beasts would increase. Basically, the magical beast transmutation required the main beast for the main body of the new one as a means and an additional one or more beasts for what they possess. If it succeeded, one would be able to gain much more buffs based on the main beasts. The beast that was going to be placed as the body needed to be of a higher level or on an equal level of the other materials of the monsters. If the magical beast transmutation failed, the materials would vanish. But the monster that was supposed to be the main body of the alchemy wouldn¡¯t disappear. *Once the magical beasts were transmutated, special materials like the ¡®magic stones¡¯ or the ¡®beast ability stones¡¯ could be added. And as it could be understood from what was given about, the first thing one needed was the main body of the beast that was going to serve as the base for the process. Ian chose behemoth as the main body of the beast. Why did Ian choose the behemoth when there were many more legendary beasts? He went into the Underworld and went through a lot of hard work to get it back. Naturally, there was a reason for it too. It was the first secret that Ian had discovered in the process of alchemy by doing it thousands of times. It was related to the ¡®Special recipe¡¯ that Cervian had taught Ian. CH 511 In the 107th district of the Devildom. The place was normal, it was one of the hunting grounds for the players of the Devildom. But a few months ago there were a lot of users crowded in there, Most of them were the users of the Summoning class¡¯s Devil-summon class. To be precise, they were gathering in the outskirts of the 107th district for the Institute of Cervian. Ian had made the content of the ¡®Magical beast transmutation¡¯ known to all, which was why many users wanted to transmutate the magical beast that had come into the institute of Cervian. General users who weren¡¯t ¡®Magical Beast Alchemists¡¯ went to the lab of Cervian to get equipped, and that was the only way for them to do the task. Which was why the laboratory of Cervian was very lively today. ¡°Uahhh! Failed again!¡± ¡°OMG, did you make up your mind and decide to place lower level magic stones? Huh?¡± ¡°Yeah, hehe, maybe I should raise the level first?¡± ¡°Hold on, kid. I used an intermediate magic stone and lost it.¡± There were some users who were sharing their saddened stories of unsuccessful beast transmutations¡­ ¡°Oh, success!¡± ¡°Oho, what? Intermediate? Advanced?¡± ¡°Kiyaahh, this hyung has finally succeeded in forming a higher-level magical beast!¡± ¡°OMG, it¡¯s a python. Shouldn¡¯t you be sharing that recipe to us too?¡± And there were users who successfully were screaming on top of their lungs for getting a higher rank magical beasts. However, Cervian, the owner of the institute, wasn¡¯t so pleased with the guests who were filling the institutes. ¡°Oh, those despicable people. I am not able to find a nice guy even if I try to brainwash myself into liking them.¡± Not even a single user who had been there for the beast alchemy had been successful in raising the teaching institute of Cervian. Surely, because of the costs that were paid for the magical beast transmutation, the lad had grown ten times when compared to the past, but it was an entirely different matter. ¡°I should head to my room and do some research¡­¡± Cervian was grumbling as he stepped into his lab that was at the innermost level of the lab. There was one assignment that he was stuck with, the one that Ian had given to him. It was more of a curiosity than an assignment. Arriving into the lab and fell into the chair that he loved. ¨C Cervan, I have something I¡¯m curious about. ¨C Oh, my student is asking me a question after a very long time. Yes. Ask me. I¡¯m not so sure if I can answer it right away. ¨C Of the existing magical beasts, which one of them is the most compatible with combat? ¨C Hmm¡­? Isn¡¯t that a bit of a too vague for a question? ¨C What is? ¨C Nothing, just think about it. You might know it too, there aren¡¯t just one or two factors which define the combat ability of any creature. In addition, the magical beasts are all from the same category. ¨C Aha, I didn¡¯t ask what magical beast was the strongest, Cervan. ¨C Hmm? Then what did you want to ask? ¨C I literally meant ¡®combat ability¡¯. ¨C ¡­? ¨C To place it simply, the beast with the highest stats. ¨C Aha. ¨C It doesn¡¯t matter if the guy is crazy smart like Kaka, it doesn¡¯t matter if the balance of the stat is good. All I want is a magical beast that has the highest total of all the stats. ¨C Hmm, then that¡­ Wasn¡¯t it around three months? Cervian recalled the conversation with Ian that he had in the past and gathered the attention. ¡°Well, why was he so curious about it?¡± The highest sum of all the stats certainly wasn¡¯t going to be a meaningless indicator. But that didn¡¯t lead to actual combat itself. Efficient combat power could be exerted when the stats distribution was configured efficiently. Cervian¡¯s thoughts continued. ¨C Oh, Cervian, you know that right? ¨C Huhu, you¡¯re not overestimating me, are you? ¨C Huh? ¨C No matter how much I move across a region, I can¡¯t possibly know all the existing magical beasts stats. ¨C Ha, that so? ¨C But I can certainly answer you. ¨C Hmm? ¨C You, said that you had faced ¡®behemoth¡¯ the other day, right? ¨C Yeah. That is right. That muscular pig¡­ ¨C There is a recipe that I have, and I am certain that it will be of a huge help. ¨C Oh oh, what is that? ¨C Just wait a minute. Actually I put it in the corner of the lab as I thought that it wasn¡¯t very useful to me anymore. Cervian opened his eyes. And he began to mess around the parchment while writing something in dark red letters. [¡®Giant Behemoth¡¯ Magical Beast Transmutater Recipe] ¡°Will that Ian really be able to make a giant behemoth?¡± Like the behemoth, the giant behemoth too was one of the ¡®legend¡¯ rankers magical beast. The giant behemoth was the perfect beast that Ian had always wanted. If he could succeed in making the transmutation, then that would be a magical beast with outstanding stats that none of the current ones have. ¡°That guy is surely great for the stats. He would be one and a half times more powerful than the normal behemoth, nah, two times stronger.¡± However, there was a problem with that. ¡°But what to do? He is the type who is so dull, that nothing can¡¯t be done¡­¡± All those stats of vitality, power and ¡®devil energy¡¯ surely were great. In a nutshell; the beast had a lot of defense and attack power, but the agility was so low that it was much lower than that of the normal behemoth. Ian¡¯s goal was to create the strongest magical beast. And that was the same for Cervian as well. Which was why Cervian wasn¡¯t able to understand why Ian had taken that recipe. The magical beasts that were being combined for the making of the giant behemoth, they seemed like the strongest magical beasts from every direction. ¡°What is it? Am I not able to sleep because of this curiousness?¡± Cervian was mumbling in a small voice, shook his head and laughed at himself. His student Ian must surely show something tremendously great. * * * Tring-! [You have successfully captured the intermediate level magical beast ¡®Giant Cowell¡¯!] [You¡¯ve captured 300 ¡®Giant Cowell¡¯ magical beasts so far!] [You have earned the title, ¡®Cowell Specialist¡¯!] [Fame increased by 50,000!] Seeing the system¡¯s messages appearing in front of his eyes, Ian wiped off the sweat on this forehead. ¡°Phew, 300 huh¡­ wouldn¡¯t that be enough?¡± The giant Cowell was a giant tanking beast that looked similar to that of an elephant. Among the intermediate magical beasts, the tankers were the most efficient ones, and it was one of the most favorite summon for the Asmodian-summoners. It was all because of the good efficiency when compared to the leadership that was needed to operate the guy around. And Ian too was holding onto that one right now, but he wasn¡¯t trying to use them for the purpose of battle. ¡°Hmm, I need to sit down for now, and then start the disassemble?¡± Ian had already been in the Devildom and had been going around hunting down the magical beasts. And that¡¯s all because of the giant behemoth recipe that Ian had taken from Cervian. To build the best magical beast, Ian thought that he needed a giant behemoth, and the work that he was doing all this time was to gather the ingredients that went into the recipe. ¡°Magical beast disintegration! Magical Beast disintegration!¡± A unique skill that was only possessed by the Magical beast alchemists. ¡®Magical beast disintegration¡¯ had started to resonate the succession with the words that flowed out of Ian¡¯s mouth. And as a result, system messages began to appear in front of him. Tring-! [You have successfully disintegrated the magical beast ¡®Giant Cowell¡¯!] [Magical Beast Disintegration skill has been increased by 0.02 percent!] [You have earned the item ¡®Cowell¡¯s Hard Ivory¡¯.] [You have earned low-level magic stones.] [You have earned the ¡®intermediate experience beads¡¯ item.] [You have successful disintegrated the magical beast ¡®Giant Cowell¡¯!] [Magical Beast Disintegration skill has been increased by 0.02 percent!] (Syncopation) [You have successfully disintegrated the magical beast ¡®Giant Cowell¡¯!] [You have obtained a rare material item!] [You have earned the item ¡®Cowell¡¯s Hem¡¯!] ¡°Ah, the first one!¡± Cowell¡¯s Hem, one of the key items that were needed for making the Giant Behemoth. But the drop rate was almost 1 percent, so Ian¡¯s hunt had been endless. And he had to gather around a total of 5 hems for it. And the Cowell¡¯s Hem wasn¡¯t the end. ¡°Heart of Parphs. Dark Golem¡¯s magic stone. I¡¯m busy. I have to get everything by the week¡­¡± Ian didn¡¯t rest. No, he couldn¡¯t rest. Even at the moment, Shakran along with the Titan guild would be in the Underworld hunting and having fun. ¡®Yet, there are limits for hunting in the Dark Abyss¡­ but I can¡¯t be relieved.¡¯ For Ian, the non-stop hunting was boring but at the same time, it was addictive. And as a result, Ian realized that a week had passed in an instant. * * * ¡°Nice!¡± Ckuk-! The Lotus Castle, the Capital of the Lotus Kingdom. Entering his spacious room, Ian pulled out all the ingredients that were needed to create the giant behemoth. ¡°Firstly, I¡¯ll have to set up the main body¡­¡± Ian took the best of the three behemoth juniors. The monster that will become the next ingredient¡­ ¡°Kid, come here.¡± He was the other one of the three behemoth juniors. In order to make the giant behemoth, two behemoths were needed. Woong-! The transmutation circle was floating in the air and vibrating, then continued giving out energy. And the two legendary grade magical beasts entered the circle and another layer of the circle intensely began to emerge. [From now, the magical beast transmutation will start.] [Do you want to set the legendary being ¡®behemoth¡¯ as the main unit?] ¡°Okay.¡± [Do you want to set the legendary being ¡®behemoth¡¯ as the material 1?] ¡°Yes.¡± After setting up the two magical beasts that were the base for the transmutation, an additional message came in front of Ian. [You can set additional items and magical beasts needed for the transmutation.] Along with the message opened the inventory of Ian. Ian was concerned for a while and pulled out the advanced level magic stone that he had saved. ¡®According to Cervian, this is a recipe with a low probability of failure¡­¡¯ Just because the failure probability was low, it didn¡¯t mean that it would work great. And this wasn¡¯t something that ever had to fail. By knowing the basic chances of the magical beast transmutation, one would put in the magic stones right away, but one couldn¡¯t figure out unless the system code was opened. Along with the magic stone, even the tear of Ian had dropped. [Added the ¡®Advanced Magic Stone¡¯ as a material.] [Synthesis success chance increased by 50%.] And then Ian put the ingredients of the recipe that he collected into the magic circle. [Added the item ¡®Giant Cowell Hem x 5¡¯.] [Added the item ¡®Heart of Parphs¡¯.] [Added the item ¡®Dark Golem¡¯s Magic stone x 25¡¯.] (Syncopation) [Added the item ¡®advanced sprit stone¡¯.] With all the ingredients, Ian gulped with his dry throat and slowly activated the magic circle. [Once all the items have been set up for the transmutation, the magical beast transmutation can be started.] In front of Ian, two behemoths were floating in the air and at the same time, the magic stone which was sucked into the magic circle started to give out intense brilliance. ¡°Please¡­!¡± The most important transmutation Ian had ever done till now, wasn¡¯t supposed to fail. Ian¡¯s hands slowly went into the air and devil energy came out from it. Two behemoths were wrapped by it. Kuoo-! Mysterious red air and white light combined. After a while, white light filled the whole room and a new magical beast was born. Tring-! [The ¡®magical beast transmutation¡¯ has been successfully completed.] [The magical beast transmutation skill has been increased by 8.5%.] [Transmutation rank: C+] [Since the level of rank is below B, the rank of the beast doesn¡¯t increase.] [Legendary beast, ¡®Giant Behemoth¡¯ has been born.] C+ rank¡ªa certainly disappointing one. But Ian¡¯s expression wasn¡¯t sad or embarrassed. The result that Ian had received was the exact thing that he wanted. CH 512 Ultimate Magical Beast Transmutation 3 Ian¡¯s discovery of the ¡®secret¡¯ was the result of his great deal of devotion and constant hunting. This was what had happened in the past when Ian was roaming around the Devildom with his loyal person no 2, Kanoel. * * * ¡°Yah, Noel-ah.¡± ¡°Yah, hyung!¡± ¡°I heard it from Hoonie.¡± ¡°What¡­ did you hear?¡± Kanoel¡¯s eyes were shaking a little. As soon as he heard Ian say it, he felt something instinctively. ¡®Maybe this hyung, has heard that I had obtained an exclusive legendary rank summoner belt?¡¯ Kanoel was feeling anxious as Ian was looking at him. When Ian had asked the question, he wanted to be thorough. In fact, if the belt was sold, the gold that would come wasn¡¯t that bad either. And for Kanoel, the 3rd conglomerates¡¯ son, money was nothing but infinite. However, this time, the belt that Kanoel had obtained wasn¡¯t an item that could be bought with money, it was rare. Kanoel was nervous. However, not sensing it, Ian¡¯s words went casually. ¡°Noel-ah, you, you got an infinite hunt quest this time?¡± ¡°Ah, right, hyung. L¡¯Operin quest, I finally got it. ¡± Kanoel¡¯s expression slightly lightened. ¡®Huh, this is great, Ian hyung doesn¡¯t know the news about it yet. Since Hoonie isn¡¯t such a guy who lacks loyalty.¡¯ It was because he felt that the reason for Ian to find him wasn¡¯t the rare belt that he had. Ian¡¯s words went on, ¡°That quest was probably a quest to capture Hippos and L¡¯Operin?¡± ¡°Oh, right hyung. Hyung, did you clear this quest too?¡± ¡°Obviously.¡± Listening to Ian¡¯s answer, Kanoel¡¯s face lightened. ¡®Isn¡¯t Ian hyung going to come and help me in my quest? Maybe this hyung is a much kinder person than I imagined.¡¯ Kanoel¡¯s current quest was one of the best quests that could be received for a summoner in the Devildom. However, at the same time, it was also a quest that most summoners had to do. The quest rewards were rather great to look at. It was a fact that anyone would have realized while looking at the quest window. -Betting Intermediate Asmodian L¡¯Opern (Hidden)- As a middle-aged asmodian and summoner, L¡¯Opern is a proud asmodian. L¡¯Opern, who didn¡¯t like to lose to anything, loved to bet. Then one day, L¡¯Opern made a mistake. He told his summoner friend Martel that he could capture a hundred Hippos and Rafions within a week. And L¡¯Opern who just ended up in a quarrel with Martel eventually made a bet. L¡¯Opern¡¯s capacities were actually very poor. But it was his self-esteem that he didn¡¯t want to lose. L¡¯Opern wants you to capture three hundred Hippos and Rafions. Capture a total of six hundred beasts in a week so that L¡¯Opern can win the bet. If you show six hundred beasts on the date, L¡¯Opern will end up winning the bet. Quest Difficulty: AAA Quest Condition: 70 or more affinity with L¡¯Opern Summoner Level 300 or higher. Limited time: One week *The quest will be completed if the captured 300 Hippos and Rafions are released in the ¡®100th division Devildom farm¡¯. Reward: Leadership + 150 Acquire the title ¡®Master of Capture¡¯. A rare hunting quest that required one to capture intermediate beasts like Hippos and Rafions. It took quite a bit of effort to capture those magical beasts, so the quest could be considered a bit extreme to be completed in a week¡¯s time. Nevertheless, the clearing would give a whopping +150 leadership stats. With a twinkle in his eyes, Kanoel asked him. ¡°Hyung, are you going to help me with my quest?¡± Kanoel¡¯s eyes were bright. And the answer of Ian met those eyes with expectation. ¡°Surely. This hyung has come to help you with your quest.¡± ¡°Oh, oho!¡± Kanoel was really thrilled. If anyone had more skill in the capture skills, then Ian could be called as the master of it, and the quest could probably be cleared in a day. ¡°Yo, hyung!¡± Kanoel was so moved that he wasn¡¯t able to speak. Ian patted Kanoel on his shoulders and smiled. ¡°Kay then, Noel-ah, let¡¯s start moving.¡± ¡°Kay, hyung, what of section 75 and 78 should I do?¡± The section of 75 was a Hippos nest dungeon and the area 78 on the map was the cave dungeon of Rafions. Therefore, it was Kanoel¡¯s thought to go to different maps and do the work. Ian nodded and responded to it, ¡°I¡¯ll catch the Rafions so you can go get the Hippos.¡± ¡°That, you sure it is okay?¡± ¡°Sure!¡± Although the beasts were the same, the level of Rafion was much higher than that of Hippos. And the higher the level of Rafion, the more difficult the capture was going to be. Kanoel was more than thrilled. ¡®Ah, awesome Ian hyung! To do such things for his juniors¡­ I will be at my utmost loyalty for you in the future!¡¯ However, the expression of Kanoel soon turned into contemplation. ¡°But Noel, there is a condition.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Noel was nervous and gulped. And Ian¡¯s words followed. ¡°After the quest, I get to take all the captured beasts. Okay?¡± The end of the L¡¯Opern quest was done once Martel confirmed the collected beasts. And due to the end, the captured beasts would be able to get back. What Ian wanted were those six hundred beasts. ¡°Ha ha ha, hyung, where will you take those beasts and use them?¡± In fact, Kanoel knew the answer. On where Ian was planning to use those six hundred magical beasts. ¡®Since you have a hidden class, you¡¯ll use them to transmutate the beast.¡¯ Kanoel was actually planning to go to the lab of Cervian with the captured beasts at the end of the quest. If he used the six hundred, then one high-level magical beast could be rescued. And Ian¡¯s answer was exactly what Kanoel expected. ¡°What would I do with six hundred beasts? Magical beast transmutation. So deal?¡± Kanoel nodded, realizing that there was nothing he could do. * * * The L¡¯Opern quest was cleared in less than a day. After the quest, the reward from L¡¯Opern was taken and he disappeared somewhere, and Ian along with Kanoel were the only ones left in the farm in the 100th district of Devildom. ¡°Now, let¡¯s start the experiment, kay?¡± Ian looked around at those six hundred beasts. And Kanoel. Who was right next to him, almost wanted to collapse onto the ground. ¡°Hyung, hyung aren¡¯t you tired? No, not tired, the time is almost 4 in the morning¡­ aren¡¯t you feeling sleepy?¡± ¡°Huh. I can¡¯t sleep now, yah.¡± ¡°¡­¡± After hearing those words, Kanoel just decided to sit on the ground. It was because he thought that he might log out by falling asleep. Of course, the quest was done, it wouldn¡¯t even matter to log out, but Kanoel didn¡¯t want to do that. ¡®I¡¯m curious what this hyung is up to¡­¡¯ His hyung had taken a six hundred beast, he was overflowing with wonder. And while Kanoel was in those thoughts, Ian¡¯s show began. Woong-! Woong-! Loud resonance was going around everywhere due to the constant alchemy. Kanoel began to look at Ian much closely and concentrated on his mouth. ¡®Hmm, this is already the fifth transmutation. And three of the five of them were successful¡­ magical beast transmutation class, this is a scam.¡¯ Kanoel lifted his heavy eyelids and began to analyze the work of Ian. ¡®What are you going to do with them hyung? You have already made more than ten of them¡­ you didn¡¯t even change the recipe?¡¯ When the summoners do the transmutation, it was natural for the recipe to be changed after a success. Ian continued to say the same recipe and the same beast was being made. And Ian didn¡¯t change the recipe until five of the same kind of magical beasts were made. ¡®What are you doing¡­?¡¯ For Kanoel, who knew Ian wasn¡¯t a normal man and yet understood him, it was tough to even guess. But then, the recipe of Ian changed. Ian had replaced the base Rafion into a secondary magical beast and had done the same to the Hippos too. Kanoel who noticed that couldn¡¯t help but feel confused. ¡®Hyung, did he check the official community? Going backward in classes is the wrong recipe¡­¡¯ Hippos and Rafions were the magical beasts which were referred to as ¡®Reicas¡¯. And the beast transmutation based on the Rafion was a fairly well-known one to all the users. And to put the Hippos as the base, and to add in the Rafion as an additional was the ¡®wrong recipe¡¯ as no one had ever succeeded in doing it. ¡°Ahhm.¡± Watching Ian¡¯s work, Kanoel couldn¡¯t stop his yawn and wiped away the tears forming from his eyes. Without realizing, the drowsiness had begun to come again. Ian who succeeded in three out of five times had already consecutively failed for ten successive beast transmutation. ¡®Since the recipe is wrong, even if it is this hyung, nothing can be done¡­¡¯ And the drowsiness began to take over. Right then, just then, the moment Kanoel had given up on the curiosity and began to fall into sleep. ¡°Did it!¡± The hands of Ian which had been failing till now rose to the sky with a shout. With the so-called ¡®wrong recipe¡¯ that he was trying to do, he succeeded in making a magical beast transmutation. ¡°Oh!¡± Once again, Kanoel who was seated beside him woke up and went to Ian. It was all because he was curious about the magical beast that was made out of the wrong recipe. But before he could get past the sleepiness, a sigh came out of Kanoel¡¯s mouth. ¡°Ah, what is this hyung? It is Raicas after all.¡± The beast which was barely made with the wrong recipe was the same one that would¡¯ve come with the correct one. But unlike Kanoel, who was rather disappointed, Ian wasn¡¯t feeling that down. Rather, he had an expression of joy and happiness on his face. ¡°Huhu, yes, my thoughts were correct!¡± Kanoel couldn¡¯t help but feel that Ian was ridiculous seeing him like that. Ian had really found a very important matter, by going on a trip that really didn¡¯t matter to him. ¡°The stats of the Magical Beast Transmutation is based on the distribution of the Magical beasts ability that goes in as the material 1.¡± And in front of Ian¡¯s eyes, two Raicas stats were floating. Both of them had been made with the magical beasts transmutation, but the recipe for one of them was rather unusual. But what was most interesting about the two magical beasts with the same names and the same level was that they had completely different combat abilities. And it was possible in Kailan for the same individuals at the same level to have different stats. But the scope for the difference wasn¡¯t that huge. Especially if it was level 1, no matter how huge, it could go past a minus or plus 10 difference. But the Raicas that were in front of Ian, made no sense at all. If the combat stats were looked closely, the two of them¡­ Raicas: Attack: 17; Defense: 19; Agility: 8; Intellect 5 Raicas: Attack: 18; Defense: 9; Agility: 16; Intellect: 4 Despite the fact that the sum of all the abilities were going to be similar, the distribution of the stats had been completely different. And of course, it was all strange due to the order of the transmutation. ¡®The first one was Rafion with base and the Hippos as the sub. And if the stats distribution is looked at, it follows the Hippos stats configuration.¡¯ Rafion was a slender magical beast specialized in attack and agility, like a lion. The Hippos, on the other hand, was a damage dealer type beast which looked a lot like the Hippo. ¡®And Raicas, which is made by the combination of these two is a bear-like guy, with a huge damage deal.¡¯ On the other hand, was the second Raicas which had the attack stats configuration of the Rafions. The dull appearance still remained the same, but the stats configuration followed that of the slender Rafions. And the magical beast that was used as the material for the transmutation was Rafion and not the usual Hippos. ¡®It is done! If I use this system properly, I will be able to really make the strongest magical beast¡­!¡¯ Thanks to the exploitation of Kanoel, Ian was finally able to find out the structure of the transmutation system. And in them, there were two most important secrets. 1. The total number of combat abilities of the transmutated magical beast was set based on the base beast. 2. The combined ability of the magical beast was set according to the stats of the magical beast that was used as the first material. If the two above mentioned facts could be put to good use, Ian could make the perfect magical beast that would suit him. The magical beast to be used as the base needs to be of high stats¡ªwith the possibility of being the highest and first magical beast that would enter as the material needs to have the most efficient stat ratio. And the low ranked magical beasts could be added to the transmutation. And at least, the base magical beast had to be a ¡®legend¡¯. Only then will a myth magical beast be born. ¡°The theory is all perfect now¡­ all I need is to get the right ingredients.¡± This was why Ian had invested two precious Behemoths to form a giant behemoth. The reason was right there. CH 513 ¡°Yo! Cervian, it has been so long!¡± After a long time, Ian visited section 107 of the Devildom and greeted Cervian. And Cervian who saw Ian couldn¡¯t help but smile broadly. ¡°Oh oh, Ian, it has been so long. Why have you come so late?¡± ¡°Ah, I had a lot of things that had to be taken care of.¡± ¡°If the busy work is done, come see me more often. I¡¯m so bored these days. I was getting thirsty waiting for you to come.¡± Cervian was being exaggerated after seeing Ian. After seeing that, Ian couldn¡¯t help but chuckle. ¡°For what did you wait like that?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it natural for a teacher to want to see his student?¡± ¡°Maybe it wasn¡¯t because you were longing for me, but you wanted to solve the question that I threw at you the last time?¡± ¡°Haha. There is no reason why it won¡¯t be.¡± After having a very pleasant conversation with each other, Ian and Cervian moved into the lab. And not being able to calm himself anymore, Cervian asked Ian, ¡°Fine, talk now.¡± ¡°About what?¡± ¡°Giant Behemoth.¡± ¡°Huhu, my teacher surely would have been curious about that.¡± ¡°No way, did you really¡­ do the transmutation?¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°You put two of the Behemoths and made such a useless magical beast.¡± Ian nodded while looking at Cervian who was shooting bullets out of his mouth. ¡°Obviously. If I wasn¡¯t going to make it, why would I take the recipe?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°And in order for it to not fail, I put in the advanced stones too.¡± Cervian, who listened to Ian, couldn¡¯t help but slump down into the couch in the lab. ¡°Crazy¡­ you really must be a crazy guy¡­¡± The Behemoth was a legendary class magical beast which held the title ¡®The first magical beast¡¯. That in itself meant that it was a superlative magical beast with tremendous combat power, and that creature was a top-class for the magical beast transmutation. And there was no way for it to be saved now. To sum it up, the Behemoth was a beast that couldn¡¯t even be bought with gold. ¡®And made a garbage by using the two of those things.¡¯ The giant behemoth, on the other hand, had high stats, but it was a useless summon. Rather, it could be different if it had special abilities like Ian¡¯s Thor. The unique ability that takes advantage of the enormous heat stats. However, the giant behemoth¡¯s unique ability was even worse than a normal behemoth. In other words, a friend with no rebirth. Seeing Cervian look that desperate, Ian opened his mouth to speak, ¡°Cervian.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°You are curious, right?¡± ¡°About what?¡± ¡°Why I made such a crazy thing?¡± ¡°Just tell me¡­¡± Ian opened his mouth again to speak since Cervian was looking lost, ¡°You¡¯ll be really surprised to hear this.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°I found some revolutionary things about the magical beast transmutation.¡± Ian scratched the curiosity of Cervian. And eventually, Cervian couldn¡¯t hold himself anymore. ¡°What the hell? Don¡¯t keep making me curious; just tell me now!¡± This was exactly what Ian had wanted. That was because only by maximizing Cervian¡¯s interest would Ian be able to get what he wanted. Ian¡¯s words continued, ¡°I¡¯ll tell you, Cervian.¡± ¡°Fast!¡± ¡°However, there is a condition.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°The Magical Beast Encyclopaedia that Cervian has. I¡¯ll do it for that.¡± ¡°Tha¡­ that¡­!¡± Excited, Cervian turned shocked after what Ian said. Ian asked for the Magical Beast Encyclopedia which was one of Cervian¡¯s favorite things. Ian glanced at Cervian. ¡®Was asking for the encyclopedia a bit too much?¡¯ When Cervian didn¡¯t answer, Ian decided to give up. ¡°If that is a little hard, please make a copy.¡± ¡°Co¡­ py?¡± ¡°Yeah. If I go to the nearest village and ask for a copy, they will make a copy in 10 minutes.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± ¡°If you are bothered by that, I¡¯ll take it with me and copy it.¡± Cervian closed his eyes and was in deep thought. He felt like he was falling for the words of Ian. ¡®But I am very curious as to why he made that Giant Behemoth¡­¡¯ Cervian, who had been thinking for a while, decided to pick up the white flag. ¡°Okay then. I¡¯ll accept the offer.¡± Ian¡¯s face went bright after hearing that. ¡°Yeah! That¡¯s my teacher! A wise man indeed!¡± It would have been different if it wasn¡¯t Cervian and some other teacher. ¡°However, it won¡¯t be fun if what you have to say isn¡¯t interesting.¡± ¡°Huhu, you don¡¯t have to worry about that.¡± After receiving the magical beast encyclopedia, Ian immediately began to recall what he had found. In fact, Ian too wanted to share his findings with Cervian as soon as possible. No one could even understand the value of Ian¡¯s words except for Cervian. And Cervian too began to get excited than Ian¡¯s expectations. ¡°Oh ho, is that so?¡± ¡°So, my plan is this¡­¡± ¡°Oh oh, if what you¡¯re saying is really that, then you would¡¯ve made a very crazy beast!¡± ¡°Huhu, right?¡± ¡°Keu, Ian, you really are amazing!¡± * * * The reason why Ian had asked for the Magical Beast Encyclopedia from Cervian was simple. ¡®Because we need to find the magical beasts with great stat ratio.¡¯ Ian was on a huge mountain because he successfully created a giant behemoth¡ªa base for cultivating the strongest magical beasts. Now that the base for the transmutation was set, the second thing Ian had to find was the magical beast that would be the main material. Ian was planning to put one with a tremendous stat amount. ¡®I need to figure out which magical beast has the best stat ratio, regardless of the rank.¡¯ As mentioned earlier, the main beast of the transmutation had to be a ¡®legendary¡¯ rank. Which meant that he had to find a legendary rank for it. Because of that, Ian had to find the materials with the ¡®legendary¡¯ grade. However, Ian, who fully understood the formula of the magical beast transmutation, was confident in making magical beats while using any ranked beast. If the low ranked magical beast looked to have a good stat, he would evolve it step by step into a legendary rank and then use it as a material. ¡®If it is possible, I want to have a higher ranked one.¡¯ Ian immersed himself in the couch that was in the lab of Cervian and began to read through the encyclopedia all the way from the beginning. Ian wasn¡¯t interested in books, but for making the strongest magical beast, he wanted to read as much as he could. ¡°Hmm, this guy seems fine, but a little off¡­.¡± Ian mumbled to himself and turned the pages of the book one after the other. Quite a lot of beasts were passing, but he didn¡¯t feel like looking into them. In fact, the stat ratio which had to be completed may be the most important task for the beast formation. Two hours had easily passed. ¡°This is it!¡± Ian, who was still reading on the couch, jumped out of his seat and clenched his fist. * * * Ian pursued a very clear battle style. Rather than casually pressing it, it meant that he preferred efficient battles that could provide maximum effect with minimum damage. Ian was looking for two styles. First, a beast that was mainly composed of stats on the attack power and agility. Second, a magical beast composed of stats mainly of agility and intellect. ¡®To get the best efficiency out of the battle, agility is needed¡­ If the other stats are struggling, other than the attack or intellect, it will be good.¡¯ Damage stats literally meant the damage of the summon. But to be a bit more precise, it would be the ¡®physical¡¯ attack power. On the other hand, the ¡®intellect¡¯ stat has two effects on the combat abilities of a summon. First literally meant the intellect of the summon. That was the effect of the summon¡¯s AI. Second was the ¡®magic attack¡¯ of the summon. Because of that, Ian had been wanting a stat configuration with intellect and attack. And the most efficient choice was to make both the physical and magical damage high. ¡®Is there no magical beast with intellect or attack that could not go to zero?¡¯ The sum of the stat that would be determined by the magical beast¡¯s total stats of the base beast. And if one low efficient stat converged to zero, the abilities would get shifted to another stat. After several hours of searching the encyclopedia, Ian had found the guy. -Devil Fairy Level: 4~7 Classification: Humanoid Rank: Lesser monster Personality: ??? No evolution Attack: 0-6 Defense: 14-27 Agility: 34-49 Intellect: 37-52 Vitality: 590-770 A cute devil elf that lives at the start of the ¡®Blue Devildom Forest¡¯. And unlike its cute looks, they like to fight. They use strong energy balls. ¡®Huhu, this is good. No matter how much I look into this, I can¡¯t find anything better than this.¡¯ The only downside of it was its rank was too low, but it could be changed. Until the desired rank was achieved, the beast could be transmuted a hundred or a thousand times until the desired scale was achieved. ¡®I need to go to the Blue Devildom Forest right away. If I can catch at least a thousand of those, I can get the one I want¡­¡¯ The most ideal stats Ian wanted were, Attack: 0 Defense: 14 Agility: 49 Intellect: 52 Vitality: 590 ¡°Huh, if that will get into the Giant Behemoth, I¡¯ll be like having a myth summon who is much more intellectual than Kaka and more agile than Ly.¡± Excited, Ian ran out of Cervian¡¯s lab. His destination was the ¡®beginner¡¯s hunting ground¡¯ in the ¡®Blue Devil Forest¡¯ for the Devildom users. CH 514 Before going into the ¡®Blue Devildom Forest¡¯, Ian stopped by at the auction house for a moment. It was because there was a necessary item that he needed. [You have paid 7.55 million.] [You have acquired the item ¡®Devil¡¯s Mask¡¯.] The Devil¡¯s Mask was a miscellaneous item that many low-level Asmodians searched for. It could be worn like a helmet, and when worn, it would increase the rate of one¡¯s devil energy. In addition, there was no limit to wearing it; it was a honey-like item for low-level Asmodians. That was why that was Kailan¡¯s ¡®must-have item¡¯¡ªthe Devil¡¯s Mask. Of course, Ian¡¯s reason for purchasing the Devil¡¯s Mask wasn¡¯t for the same reason. ¡®If I can use this, it would be a perfect camouflage.¡¯ There was one additional option that wasn¡¯t given much attention to in the Devil¡¯s Mask. *It hid the status information of the user who wore it. (This wouldn¡¯t work if the opponent had a higher level than the user.) Ian purchased the Devil¡¯s mask item because of that option. ¡®I don¡¯t think that walking around the Devildom is a good idea.¡¯ Of course, there was an option in Kailan that could make one¡¯s personal information ¡®private¡¯. However, even if one¡¯s settings were set as private, there were a few parts which couldn¡¯t be covered, such as ¡®race¡¯ ¡®occupation¡¯ and ¡®identity¡¯. And now, Ian was a celebrity. In the world of Devildom, if a human race user belonging to the ¡®summoner¡¯ class and with the status of a ¡®king¡¯ was noticed, even without having to see the identity, everyone would confirm the user as Ian. ¡®I want to move in quietly.¡¯ The Asmodian rankers who suffered from the ¡®portal overlap¡¯ plan of Ian would surely not let him have a peaceful time. In the current situation, if Ian¡¯s location got exposed, his plan would definitely fail. Ian wanted to avoid such troublesome situations as much as he could. ¡®Well, let¡¯s go now.¡¯ After all the preparations were done, Ian began to pick up his pace. It had been a long time since then. * * * ¡°Wah, I am envious of him. The Devil¡¯s Mask¡­¡± ¡°Hmm, maybe I should start buying after I get my pay?¡± ¡°Yan, that is over 7 million gold. Will you be able to come up with that amount with two to three months of your salary?¡± ¡°Kuek, even in the game bing spending¡­¡± Since Ian was moving around with the Devil¡¯s Mask, the novice users were looking at him with envious gazes. And it was just natural for those users to feel that way. If one could wear a Devil¡¯s Mask in level 1, one would be able to level up almost 5 to 10 times faster compared to other novice users. From level 1, almost 10 levels could be gained. As Ian wore it, the other beginner users weren¡¯t able to take their eyes off him. Ian didn¡¯t even care. ¡°Wah, did you say that the fairies habitat is in the Blue Devil Forest?¡± Right now, Ian¡¯s only concern was to find the coordinates of the ¡®Devil Fairy¡¯. ¡®To catch the Devil Fairy with the highest rank that I want, I¡¯ll have to catch at least a thousand of them.¡¯ Because of that, it was important for him to settle down. After 10 minutes of searching the Blue Devil¡¯s Forest, Ian settled with a good party. ¡®Okay, shall we start now?¡¯ Dozens of devil fairies were staring at Ian, who was smiling. Ian decided to catch them first. ¡°Capture¡± The other users who saw Ian¡¯s actions felt like he was doing something ridiculous. ¡°What is it with that guy? Doesn¡¯t he know the basics of a summoner?¡± ¡°If you try to capture a magical beast, you need to bring down the vitality of it first. No matter how low ranked the beast is, it is easy to do it that way.¡± ¡°Oho, maybe the game started recently, so not quite as many knows of the game.¡± ¡°Shit.¡± The users¡¯ responses were natural. No matter how low the level of the Devil Fairy was, it would be difficult to capture any summon without any damage. One might not know it, but if the level of capture was at mastery, it was possible to capture the magical beast without causing any damage. And a high-level user wouldn¡¯t possibly be in the hunting ground. But the next moment, the users who were laughing at Ian were flustered at what they saw. Woong- Woooong-! The red light that gathered in front of the Devil Fairy swallowed him and then disappeared. It was clearly an effect that could happen only when the capture was successful. ¡°What¡­ What was that?¡± ¡°OMG! How can that happened?¡± The flustered users tried to find the reason for how such a thing could be possible. ¡°Surely some relic was used!¡± ¡°Right. That person must have had some kind of capture relic.¡± ¡°Wah, should I log out and then search through the community right away?¡± ¡°I get it. Even if such an item exists, it would be so costly that it can¡¯t be bought by us.¡± ¡°Huhu.¡± The users who tried to draw rational conclusions with their own heads were much more envious of Ian. ¡°Keuk, I feel like crying today.¡± ¡°Yah, should we try to get along with that person?¡± ¡°What? Why would that guy get along with us?¡± ¡°If we treat him as a hyung, then won¡¯t some kind of congo fall?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know how old that person is, but he is crazy enough to not be called as hyung.¡± ¡°Kerk, trying to be na?ve? When someone has money, then everyone is my hyung.¡± ¡°¡­¡± However, the surprise that Ian gave them didn¡¯t end there. Ian wasn¡¯t able to capture all the Devil Fairy¡¯s at once, so he started to catch them at random. Woong-! Wooong-! Ian had already captured more than ten of the Devil Fairies, and he did it in less than a minute. The users who were witnessing it were still in shock. ¡°What? That guy, he already has got fifteen already.¡± ¡°No matter what kind of elves they are, there is a need for 30 leadership to catch more than 10.¡± ¡°Is this some kind of artifact power?¡± Few more users were trying to place some more statements trying to understand it. The Devil Fairy captured by Ian was dealing damage amounting to three digits after two digits. ¡°May¡­ maybe an operator?¡± ¡°Yah, whatever! Let¡¯s just go somewhere else. I am not able to hunt because of him.¡± ¡°Yeah. That obviously looks like a GM. Why does he have to come to the beginners hunting ground?¡± Eventually, after a lot of staggering, they left the hunting ground. After a while, Ian finally stopped the capturing process. ¡°Phew, I just got 100 of them. Let¡¯s see one of that and check if it is right?¡± Ian¡¯s mouth went up. * * * When he first headed to the Blue Devil Forest, Ian expected a rough half-day worth of work. It wasn¡¯t an easy task to capture a devil fairy with a probably good stat ratio, but he still thought that he could manage to do it¡ªto catch the one thousand fairies he needed in half a day. However, Ian¡¯s expression was completely off. When Ian tried to capture his desired number of fairies, it was almost a day later. And perhaps, at least a thousand of them could have been caught. ¡°Phew, at last¡­!¡± Ian rubbed his eyes and opened the information window of the fairy that he just caught. At that moment, the fruits of his constant hunting came. -Devil Fairy Level: 5 Classification: Humanoid Rank: Lesser monster Personality: ??? No evolution. Attack: 0 Defense: 16 Agility: 38 Intellect: 52 Vitality: 595 This is a cute devil elf that lives at the start of the ¡®Blue Devil Forest¡¯ of the Devildom. Unlike its cute looks, they enjoy fighting. They use strong energy balls. The reason why finding the desired number of Devil Fairies was more difficult for Ian was due to the fact that he insisted on capturing the ones with 0% attack power. Demon Fairy stats ranged from 0 to 6, with the stats 0 appearing at an extremely low probability. In addition, he tried to get the ones with an intellect that had a maximum of 52, so it was natural that the probability of getting that kind of Demon Fairy would be lower. ¡°Intellect MAX and 0 attack. The defense was slightly higher than the minimum¡­¡± Ian calculated the stats one after the other and began to analyze them thoroughly. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for the little agility, but it is worth it because the intellect has increased.¡± Ian¡¯s rate of intellect for the Devil Fairy was close to 50 percent of the whole stat. In addition, the ratio of agility stats accounted for more than 30 percent, which was an abnormal rate. ¡®It is a bit abnormal, but it is going to be the strongest in the case of efficiency.¡¯ Although the defense and the vitality were very low, it could be overcome with huge numbers. Even if Ian¡¯s magical beast was completed at the current ratio, it was definite that he would have a better tanking ability than Ly. The total stat of the Giant Behemoth, which was the base of the magical beast, was already twice the size of any legendary summon. ¡°Now, should I try doing the transmutation¡­?¡± Now it was time to make the ¡®legendary¡¯ magical beast that he had always wanted to make. Ian¡¯s skills were already at a master level and only using either intermediate to advanced magic stones would still create a 100 percent chance of creating a hero level. ¡°On my way back, I need to get one or more magic stones. I¡¯m going to make a legendary level in just one shot.¡± Now Ian¡¯s heart was starting to get faster as he realized that it was just a few days until he met the ¡®ultimate magical beast¡¯. Ian¡¯s pace got faster. * * * Two days had passed More time had gone by. It was exactly twice as long as Ian had expected. ¡®I never thought that it would take such a long time to get the ingredients.¡¯ He prepared the most difficult Giant Behemoth, so he thought that he could finish the rest of the work in a week¡¯s time. Ian even managed to get the first material too. That too, luckily, did not fail to raise the rank to legend. In the process, two advanced magic stones had to be used, but that was an acceptable investment. Since the Devil Fairy had to go in as a material and not the base, the finished legendary grade was a completely different magical beast. What kind of material would Ian take? There were more than ten different ingredients, but Ian was suffering with two things. The first one being, ¡®The beast ability stones¡¯. The thing that Ian wanted to save for last was the beast ability stone of the legendary beast ¡®Tarverus¡¯. Ian wanted to include the turning time ability among the unique abilities of the Tarverus in the magical beast transmutation. -Dark Hourglass Ability Stone Classification: Goods Rank: Legendary A beast ability stone that contains the unique ability of the legendary magical beast Tarverus, ¡®The Dark Hourglass¡¯. When this material is placed into the Magical Beast Transmutation, there are high chances to equip the new beast with a unique ability. The drop rate for the magical beast ability stone was extremely bad. And the Tarverus wasn¡¯t a creature that could be found that frequently in the Devildom either. For that very reason, Ian had to go through a lot of suffering to acquire that. ¡®Huhu, I couldn¡¯t do the transmutation without this. I would surely regret not using this later.¡¯ The last one that Ian suffered with was¡­ It wasn¡¯t a material that wasn¡¯t surprisingly related to the magical beast¡¯s ability for completion. -Creator¡¯s Clay Classification: Goods Rank: Hero The clay that the creator would use to bring things to life. A rare item with divine power that can be used to change the appearance of a beast when performing the magical beast transmutation. *Appearance is determined randomly and is irreversible. *Appearance is practically affected by the ability of the beast that will be used in the transmutation. *Increases the ability of the magical beast to be completed by -1.5 to +1.5 percent. Ian went through the whole community and the auction house, and it was the last ingredient after Ian had gone through all the auction houses. He was only after that item because he really needed it. ¡®It is okay to change it; it is just the appearance of the Giant Behemoth!¡¯ Ian located the lab of Cervian, and drew the magical circles in place and placed the other ingredients in it. Cervian who was next to him started to get excited. ¡°Oh oh, at last¡­!¡± As a matter of fact, Ian, as an alchemist, had no problem with the transmutation even if Cervian wasn¡¯t in the lab. But Cervian wanted to witness the historic moment with his own eyes; he decided to do the process with him in the lab. ¡°Hu!¡± Ian calmed himself while taking a huge breath. The number of materials that went into the transmutation was astronomical, so even if it was Ian, he had no choice. ¡°Let¡¯s start now!¡± Ian extended his hands to the magic circle. After a while¡­ Wooong-! Ian¡¯s magic circle started to give a red glow. CH 515 Although he had seen numerous things, he had never witnessed anything as huge as that. ¡®Please¡­ please! Go above the rank of B!¡¯ Ian was in a very dire situation and was hoping for a B. The red circle of the beast transmutation was shining bright in front of Ian. It was because it contained the ¡®integer¡¯ of all the research and effort so far. And it would be great if an A grade or S grade would appear, but it didn¡¯t matter. As by getting over the B rank or anything else itself would present a myth rank beast come out. Kooo-! The magic circle which had turned into red now began to vibrate. And subsequently, above the magic circle, the two beast materials began to float. ¡°Huh!¡± After taking a deep breath, Ian began to move his hands very carefully. And then, the other ingredients in the center of the magic circle began to get sucked in one after the other, and the last advanced magic stone got taken in with huge brilliance. ¡®There shouldn¡¯t be a mistake.¡¯ The magical beast transmutation wasn¡¯t a task that was just done after opening the magic circle. Following the red rays of the complex magic circle, it was a difficult task to manipulate the magic without any mistakes. In addition, the higher the level of the magical beast that was being transmutated, the higher the level of difficulty. The beast that Ian was trying to make was literally the ¡®the strongest magical beast in existence¡¯. Along with the magic circle and the fast-moving light rays. Ian¡¯s hands were busy controlling them. And around 10 minutes have passed. Kyooo-! The red light started to cover with the white light of the magic circle and created a mysterious scene. Swahhhh-! A small scream came out of Ian¡¯s mouth. ¡°Uhmm!¡± He had tried countless magical beast transmutation so far, but it was the first time for Ian to see such intense flames. The huge brightness was starting to burn the eyes of Ian¡¯s. But Ian didn¡¯t close his eyes. It was because he wanted to check the magical beast that would be born in a flash. After a while, the white light started to replace the burst and a new beast was born. Subsequently, Ian¡¯s eyes saw the numerous system messages that came in front of him. Tring-! [You have successfully completed the ¡®Magical Beast Transmutation¡¯!] [The beast ability stone and the ¡®Dark Hourglass¡¯ item have been taken in successfully.] [The ¡®Creator¡¯s Clay¡¯ material item has been successfully absorbed. (The beasts combat ability has been increased by 1.25 percent)] [Increases the skill efficiency of ¡®Magical Beast Transmutation¡¯ by 55.72 percent.] [The level of the ¡®Magical Beast Transmutation¡¯ has been increased by 1 level.] [Current Magical Beast Transmutation: Master 3 Level] [Transmutation grade: SS] [As the transmutation is higher than double SS, the rank of the magical beast increases by two levels.] [¡®Myth (transcendence)¡¯ rank magical beast, ¡®Black Unicorn¡¯ is born.] [You are the first to create a myth rank magical beast.] [Fame increased by 500,000.] [Leadership increased by 1,500.] [¡®Magical Energy¡¯ increased by 3,000.] [Magic resistance has been increased by 1.5 percent permanently.] (Syncopation) ¡®Crazy. This is crazy¡­!¡¯ Ian was reading the system messages with clenched fists. Ian was feeling so thrilled that tears were forming in his eyes. ¡®Double S, I didn¡¯t know there was a grade of that sort¡­!¡¯ In front of Ian¡¯s eyes was the result of the successful magical beast transmutation. It was very encouraging, and a crazy transmutation grade of SS was created. In addition, he finally liked the appearance of the magical beast that was made. ¡®I don¡¯t know what it is, but it surely is very cool?!¡¯ The white light that was previously there, disappeared slowly, and one dignified beast appeared. With scales covered all over the body, and it looked like a mix of Hargasus and dragon. In addition, everytime that it moved the body, ¡®black stuff¡¯ of sort rose up everywhere. ¡®Rather than Hargasus, it is a bit closer to a unicorn? The horns on the forehead really make it look like that.¡¯ But that was just the beginning for Ian¡¯s surprise. Hiiing-! When he lifted its front foot and cried for a long time, his large black wings spread over his smooth back. Rather, it would be precise to say that the wings suddenly came, rather than being on the body. And purple light began to come with its widespread wings. Ian who had a rather pleased expression approached him very slowly. And slowly stroke down the black fur of it, which was nicely laid down. And the beast feeling okay with the touch, placed its head on the arm of Ian. Prrrng- Prrrrng-! And Ian was more satisfied than ever. ¡®Keu, I feel like I have the whole world in my hands right now.¡¯ And the overwhelming feelings were just for a little while. It was the time to know more about the guy. ¡®By the way, the myth rank was done, what did it mean by two levels increase?¡¯ With shining eyes, Ian opened the magical beasts information with a thumping and interested heart. And inside the window, he saw the name of the magical beast. -Black Unicorn Rank: Myth (Transcendence) Lv. 1 Ian¡¯s eyes narrowed seeing that. ¡®Transcendence? The transcendence? Does it have something like two ranks?¡¯ Ian didn¡¯t just ask one or two questions about the new guy. Ian hurriedly opened the information window of the new magical beast, the Black Unicorn. -Black Unicorn Level: 1 Classification: Devil Magical Beast Rank: Myth (Transcendence) Personality: Less than more Complete Attack: 0 Defense: 26 Agility: 61 Intellect: 83 Vitality: 925/925 Detailed abilities (Expand) Unique abilities *Doom¡¯s Eye (Passive) If eyes are met, it then puts the opponent in a state of fear for 0/2 seconds. ¡­syncopation¡­ The first thing that Ian had always looked at the information window of his summons or any magical beast was the ¡®rank¡¯ and the ¡®attack¡¯. And since the rank was already known, before opening the information itself, Ian directly checked the attack ability of the Black Unicorn. And in all the things that it has, the first thing he noticed was the attack. ¡®Keu, success! The attack is at 0¡­ it looks so good, right?¡¯ It was almost like he had been rewarded for his work. Ian then confirmed the remaining stats of the magical beast and then saw something. ¡®Is this really a magical beast of level 1? I did make it, but surely is a monster.¡¯ So far, Ian had kept the level stats of the summons that he had raised. And Elcarix¡¯s total was only of three digits. But this guy that Ian had made, the intellect stats itself was around 83. ¡®Should I compare it with the stats of Elcarix?¡¯ Ian pulled out his small record book which he always kept in the corner of his inventory. Elcarix/ Black Unicorn Attack: 19/ 0 Defense: 25/ 26 Agility: 15/ 61 Intellect: 45/ 83 Total: 10/ 170 Vitality: 1,527/ 952 Among all the myth familiars of Ian, Elcarix was the one with the highest combat abilities. In addition, the stat ratio was a beautifully composed one, mainly in defense and intellect. ¡®But the intellect is almost twice of Elcarix.¡¯ Even more surprising, even the defense which had to be of low, was rather higher when compared to Elcarix. Not to mention the agility. ¡®The vitality is a bit down, but it is still much stronger than Ly.¡¯ As he was in thoughts, Ian decided to enter the next step. ¡®Na, should I look into the unique abilities now?¡¯ Ian moved to the bottom of the information window. * * * A peaceful plain lush green area. In the middle of that region, some kind of resonance started to rise. Woong-! After a while. Phat-! With a blue burst, a blue portal had opened. And subsequently, from the blue portal, a shadow appeared. ¡°So, this is¡­ the Spirit dimension?¡± A slender woman wearing a white and emerald robe with silver hair flowing down. The woman who just crossed the portal slipped to the ground. Slip-! After a while, another woman followed her out of the portal. ¡°Ah, Unnie, you almost couldn¡¯t move in the portal!¡± ¡°Noisy, Vanessa. And who¡¯s slowing whom down?¡± But what was surprising was the appearance of the two. The two of them had the same face, almost as if they had been scanned. And the equipment that they were wearing was the same, it wouldn¡¯t be easy to even tell them apart. They were like twin sisters from every direction. The two of them were verbally fighting as they moved. ¡°By the way, Sarah Unnie?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Unnie maybe, did you get the first discovery reward?¡± ¡°Umm, let me see¡­!¡± ¡°Right, you didn¡¯t get it?¡± ¡°Yeah, I didn¡¯t. You too?¡± ¡°What? Did some other users find the way into this before us?¡± ¡°That¡­ could that have happened?¡± The two of them were flustered, they couldn¡¯t move any further and were looking at each other clearly being in shock. The conversation went serious. ¡°If that was so, then it could be Michael, Ripper, Gilma or Linue¡­¡± ¡°No. They are too busy fighting at the moment, they couldn¡¯t have had the time to care about any other place else.¡± ¡°That¡­ that could be, then?¡± ¡°Then, who the hell could have?¡± ¡°An unknown mysterious ranker?¡± ¡°Well. I don¡¯t think there are people of that sort¡­¡± The expression of the two was that of agony. But after a while, the one called ¡®Sarah¡¯ began to move again. ¡°Let¡¯s move, for now, Vanessa. We can¡¯t conclude anything by thinking right away.¡± ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s do that.¡± ¡°If we clear the content of the quest, we will eventually find out.¡± ¡°Nice, Unnie. Then should we move to the ¡®Wind¡¯s Plain¡¯ right away?¡± The moment the talking was done, Vanessa clenched her right hand and her lips narrowed. And in front of her, a huge dragon got summoned in front of her. ¡°Called, master?¡± A big-blue dragon which as big as Karceus or Elcarix that Ian had possessed. The two women got on the back of the dragon, like they were used to it. ¡°Let¡¯s go, Kortus. To the Wind¡¯s Plain.¡± As soon as Vanessa was done saying it, the dragon spread out its huge wings and flapped them. Soon after, the huge body of the dragon quickly moved away. CH 516 As Ian had expected, the Black Unicorn was born with satisfactory abilities. Next to Ian, was Cervian who couldn¡¯t stop admiring it. ¡°Keu, you made a really great guy!¡± ¡°My words were right, right Cervian?¡± ¡°Yes. Completely right. You are a genius, a huge one. To find out the secret of the beast transmutation that nobody even knew about!¡± ¡°Huhu, all because I am Ian.¡± ¡°I praise you. Halleluiah!¡± But it wasn¡¯t just the stats that were so satisfactory. ¡®Let¡¯s look at the unique ability of the summon¡­¡¯ The guy who was just born had six unique abilities in him. In addition, not even a single ability was discarded. -Unique Ability *Doom¡¯s Eye (Passive) Makes an opponent enter the state of fear after eye contact for 0.2 seconds. *Dark Wings ( Cooldown of 25 seconds) A huge pair of dark wings are created on the back of the Black Unicorn, which will allow the user to fly forward immediately. Inflicts 350% of magic damage on all enemies in the flight path of the Black Unicorn. All the affected targets enter the state of fear for 2.5 seconds. *Magic Explosion Chain ( Cooldown of 1 minute and 30 seconds) A powerful magic explosion that occurs within a radius of 15 meters around the shadow of Black Unicorn. Inflicts 350-750% of magic damage on the enemies in the area of the Magic explosion. (Inflicts 300% of additional damage to the enemies who are in ¡®fear¡¯.) *Shadow Evasion (Passive) The Black Unicorn stays in the state of ¡®dark¡¯ for a duration of 5 seconds every time it dodges the attack of an enemy. (If the map is in the ¡®dark¡¯ state, the duration of the ¡®dark¡¯ state will increase up to 10 seconds.) In the state of ¡®dark¡¯, the being isn¡¯t exposed to the vision of the enemy, and the damage of dark from all the unique abilities deal increased by 100% damage. While attacking an enemy in the state of ¡®dark¡¯, it will cause the target to enter into a state of ¡®fear¡¯ for 2.5 seconds. (While attacking the enemy or getting attacked, the dark is removed.) The Black Unicorn heals for 375% of intellect per second while staying in the state of dark. *Lord of Fear (Passive) The Black Unicorn restores 1 second of the cooldown on all the unique abilities each time the enemy is put into the state of ¡®fear¡¯. *Dark Hourglass (40 minutes cooldown) Returns the allies¡¯ time for 3 minutes back. All the vitality and the unique ability of the allies revert back to 3 minutes. Allies killed within 3 minutes can be revived. (Applies to all familiar and retainer.) (Not applicable to party members.) The Devildom sea, the source for the devils and the vessels that contain them. It is the deity of the Devildom which was born there. A transcendence being with the power of transcendence, a lord of terror than would scare everyone. ¡®The concept of the guy is¡­ fear?¡¯ Ian, the best user of all time, understood the game well. He glanced over the skills and found over 90 uses for the Black Unicorn. ¡®Yeah, the skill also has an unconditional option attached to the taste.¡¯ Ian considered that among the six unique abilities that the Black Unicorn possessed, the ¡®Lord of fear¡¯ and the ¡®Shadow Evasion¡¯ were the most important ones. ¡®The black unicorn planning intention was to accumulate the fear stacks and endlessly block with the dark wings and the chain explosions.¡¯ In fact, the black unicorn¡¯s offensive abilities ¡®dark wings¡¯ and the ¡®magic explosion chain¡¯ didn¡¯t have such a high attack coefficient. Even when compared to the other mythical creatures that Ian had, it was rather scarce. But the cooldown of the two offensive skills was very short. Each time the ¡®fear¡¯ got stacked up, the cooldown was reduced for a duration of 1 second, which meant that the wide range magic could be used constantly based on the ability of control of the user. ¡®The more the enemies it has to face, the crazier he will go to.¡¯ Having fully understood the mechanism of the intrinsic abilities, Ian began to stimulate the battle scenes in his head. Ian imagined the battlefield that would be good for the black unicorn. ¡®The battle should begin by entering the center of the enemy with dark wings and stack 5 dodges to trigger the effect.¡¯ The tanking ability of the black unicorn was less than average when compared to the other mythical familiars. Therefore, at first glance, the idea of entering the enemy camp with the ¡®dark wings¡¯ skill seemed reckless. But the black unicorn had another passive skill called ¡®Shadow Evasion¡¯. The best survival skill that made the black unicorn which went into a state of ¡®dark¡¯ after dodging the attack of the enemies for five times. When the shadow evasion gets triggered, the black unicorn will enter the dark state, and the aggro that was focused on the black unicorn will disappear. Without the ability to detect for the black unicorn in the dark state, the focus disappears the moment the being disappears from the view. ¡®If we subsequently hit as many enemies as possible in the magic explosion chain, the dark wing skill cooldown will come back.¡¯ And if the black unicorn attacks an enemy in the state of ¡®dark¡¯, the target will fall into ¡®fear¡¯. In other words, if he can hit twenty-five or more monsters with the explosion chain, he can reuse the ¡®dark wings¡¯ with a 25-second cooldown. ¡®If it can hit even 20 of them, then the cooldown will be back.¡¯ Besides, what about the unique ability of the ¡®dark hourglass¡¯ that Ian suffered a lot and put in? The horrendous ability which he had to face while dealing with the Tarveros didn¡¯t even have to be explained. The more he remembered the battle, the more excited Ian was. ¡®Keu, my body is getting sick again¡­?¡¯ Ian liked the new addition to his family very much. And in that too, the thing he liked the most was; Ian¡¯s other summons and the combat concepts didn¡¯t overlap at all. But that didn¡¯t mean that it was all perfect. The only regrettable thing of the ¡®black unicorn¡¯ of Ian¡¯s was that all the deal would converge to 0, except for the time when the attack skills are activated. Since the normal damage is 0, the normal damage wouldn¡¯t enter. ¡®I wish I could have a simple magic attack that can be used instead of general attacks¡­¡¯ The skill that Ian wanted would still be a skill with the lowest tier of attack. For example, a skill like the ¡®magic arrow¡¯. Even if the damage of such ones were weak, the basic skills could be activated at any time without a cooldown. ¡®When will the use of the summon skill be granted?¡¯ Ian recalled the ability to grant the summon skill, which he had used when he was a summoner novice. -Summon Skill Grant Classification: Active skills Skill Level: Master Proficiency: 100% Cooldown: 24 hours Gives the summon one skill at random. Each time this skill grant gets used, 20 percent of the targets summoned potential will be consumed, and when the skill is granted again to the summon, the previously granted skill is converted to a new skill. *The higher the skill level and proficiency, the more likely for the familiars to obtain advanced skills. *Master level proficiency. Up to 3 tiers of unique abilities can be granted. ¡®Summon Skill grant¡¯ was a sweet skill that granted a new unique ability after consuming 20 percent of the familiar¡¯s potential. And Ian had been using the skill for a long time. And the reason was simple. Unique abilities that can be obtained by the granted skills, was due to the poor performances of Ian¡¯s familiars. The best unique ability that could be obtained from the Master level of ¡®Summon Skill Grant¡¯ was tier 3. And the tier 3¡¯s unique ability were the skills that summons with hero ranks could be used. And Ian¡¯s summons, which had more than four tiers of uniqueness, this would be rather useless stuff. And if a usable passive skill would be created, then it could be better than nothing. However, there was no guarantee that passive skills would appear twice or thrice. And if he had bad luck, then it could generate more than 10 useless skills. So, consuming 20 potentials were too much of a waste for Ian. ¡®But not this time. I just need to create attack magic. Even the black unicorn needs the lowest tier offensive magic.¡¯ And not surprisingly, the lower the tier of the unique ability, the more likely for the skill to be generated. Which was why Ian thought that it was worth trying. ¡°The potential is around 98 for this guy¡­¡± ¡°What does that mean?¡± ¡°Wait a minute, Cervian. I¡¯m trying to think of something very important right now.¡± The skill grant could be activated 4 times in total. In four attempts, any of the basic attack spells could be generated. And at this point, the proficiency level was resentful. If the proficiency was 0, the lowest tier¡¯s unique ability would be generated. ¡°Kay, my unicorn is nice, would you like to come here?¡± Prrrng- Prrrng-! Ian stroked the black unicorn and brought it to the front, and then triggered the summon skill grant. The potential was exhausted but handed to professor Lee, then it could be used again. It was such a waste of time. ¡°Skill Grant!¡± Subsequently a white light appeared on the unicorn and disappeared. [You have used the ¡®Summon Skill Grant¡¯ to ¡®Black Unicorn¡¯.] [20 potentials of Black Unicorn has been consumed.] [Summon magical beast ¡®Black Unicorn¡¯ gained the skill ¡®Berserk¡¯.] ¡°¡­¡± Ian couldn¡¯t help but feel bad. ¡®This is like some kind of D¨¦j¨¤ vu¡­¡¯ Berserk was a unique skill that Ly had for a while. It was the ability that Ly had gained the moment Ian had used the ¡®Summon Skill Grant¡¯ when he first gained it. ¡®Ah, of all the skills, why did this have to be the one?¡¯ Berserk was a buff skill that was totally useless for the Black Unicorn, which lowered the defense and increased the attack and agility. Feeling sad, Ian used the skill grant again. ¡°Skill Grant.¡± However, the skill grant couldn¡¯t be activated in a row. [The cooldown of the Summon Skill Grant hasn¡¯t returned.] [Skill not available.] A 24-hour cooldown. Ian just sighed. ¡°Heee, I thought that I would get it by once¡­¡± As soon as it had happened, he wanted to move to the Lotus castle as soon as possible. For the duration of the 24 hours till the cooldown returns, he could try to regain the potential. The full potential of 20 wouldn¡¯t recover in 24 hours, but it was better to do something. And the reason for not using the ¡®training¡¯ skill was simple. In order to maintain the ¡®training¡¯ state, he had to summon it. It was difficult to proceed with the other quests while summoning a level 1 guy. ¡®Huh, I¡¯ll leave this guy with the professor for now, and I¡¯ll go on ahead with the quest for the Spirit Dimension.¡¯ Ian recalled the conversation he had with Elisha¡ªthe spirit king of water who was waiting for him. ¡®I¡¯m sorry, auntie. I had a lot of work to do, so I was a little late.¡¯ Ian was already of level 430. The original plan was to enter the spiritual dimension the moment he touched 400, but it got delayed due to the unexpected episodes. ¡®Well, it is a little late but I don¡¯t care. No one can go there before me anyway.¡¯ Ian summarized his thoughts and began to move. Ian left the black unicorn with professor Lee Jin wook and was planning to head straight to the dimension. In order to move to the spirit dimension, Ian needs to go to Gripper with the Spirit king¡¯s Necklace. ¡°Well, unicorn. Let¡¯s move quickly. Hyung is a little busy!¡± Ian attempted to unsummon the Black Unicorn. But he didn¡¯t even buzz. ¡°¡­?¡± Ian was slightly flustered. But as a veteran summoner, he could understand it right away. ¡®Ah, right! I haven¡¯t named it yet!¡¯ It was because he hadn¡¯t named it. ¡°Hmm¡­ okay. I need to pick a pretty name.¡± Listening to the murmur of Ian, Cervian quickly stepped in. ¡°Roxy.¡± ¡°Yah?¡± ¡°Roxy, how is it?¡± ¡°What does it mean?¡± ¡°It means ¡®shining dawn¡¯. Wouldn¡¯t it be a good name for a friend born in the dark?!¡± Cervian was rather very satisfied with himself for saying the name. But Ian shook his head and refused it. ¡°Not liking it.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t say that.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian closed his eyes and turned away from the depressed Cervian. ¡®Hmm, some kind of a cute name would be nice.¡¯ Ian¡¯s brows have frowned a little. As always, he was stuck with the pain of creating a name. Ten minutes have passed! Ian was finally able to name the Black Unicorn. ¡°Kay, from today you will be called as, Blackie.¡± Prrng-? ¡°Pretty name right, Blackie?¡± Prrng- Prrng-! Whether the name was good or not, Blackie rubbed its head against Ian¡¯s arm. [¡®Blackie¡¯ like his name.] [Affinity with ¡®Blackie¡¯ has been increased. Affinity increased by 5.] As always, there was no meaning behind it. ¡®Just because its whole body is black¡­¡¯ Even in the dark, the silhouette would be hard to find as the whole body was dark. And looking at it, Cervian couldn¡¯t even try to comprehend it. CH 517 ¡°Hmm, is this the Elisha¡¯s necklace?¡± ¡°That is right, Gripper.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think that it is fake. If it were a fake, it wouldn¡¯t be able to hold on to such strong water power.¡± ¡°Obviously. When did you ever see me cheating, Gripper?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think¡­¡± ¡°I know.¡± Ian handed Gripper the Spirit King¡¯s necklace, and he looked at every corner of that brilliant sapphire embedded in the center of the necklace. After a while, he nodded. ¡°Yeah. You are right.¡± ¡°About what?¡± ¡°With this necklace in possession, the door to the spiritual dimension can be opened.¡± ¡°Then open it now.¡± Gripper¡¯s wrinkled eyes looked at Ian. He then asked Ian while slightly smiling. ¡°Just like that?¡± ¡°Huh ?¡± ¡°Huh, if you like freebies, then you are gonna be down in the dumps.¡± ¡°Ah, Gripper, you¡¯re going to be like this?¡± Ian and Gripper had the best affinity between them. And it wasn¡¯t just a story that was going on. Although he was an NPC, Gripper and Ian were close enough to consider themselves as old friends. Ian guessed exactly what Gripper wanted. Ian waited for a moment and opened his mouth to speak with a subtle voice. ¡°You are curious about the secret of the Magical Beast Transmutation, right Gripper?¡± At the question of Ian, Gripper¡¯s expression brightened immediately. ¡°Huhu, you pretended like you didn¡¯t know. That¡¯s why I like you.¡± ¡°Ha, I don¡¯t have much time¡­ I am a very busy person. Can¡¯t you just ask Cervian instead of me?¡± ¡°I already asked you.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°That nasty old man won¡¯t tell me.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Come back later as I am busy with the magical beast transmutation; he gave me those orders.¡± ¡°Haaa.¡± Ian sighed. He guessed the kind of situation it was. ¡®Cervian, that old man, he is trying to test the theory of the magical beast transmutation.¡¯ Cervian was the kind of person, who when he falls in love with something, he didn¡¯t get bothered with anything else. Therefore, the orders he gave Gripper were quite understandable. ¡°If you let me know the secret of the Magical beast transmutation, I¡¯ll give you the corresponding information.¡± ¡°Inform¡­ ation?¡± ¡°Yeah. How is that? Now, do you feel like letting me know?¡± In fact, Ian had been planning to give Gripper the formula of the Magical beast transmutation. He knew about the personality of Gripper, who always got curious about something and could never let it go. But as things turned out, Ian¡¯s interest began to arouse in the ¡®information¡¯ that Gripper was talking about. Acting as if he was uninterested, Ian took the bait. ¡°Ay, I need to know what the exchange information is about. Do you have any idea how hard it was to find the formula of the magical beast transmutation¡­¡± Gripper took the bait almost immediately. ¡°Huhu, nice. Then I¡¯ll let you in.¡± ¡°Let me listen to it.¡± ¡°It is about the ¡®Marion Khalifa¡¯s Soul Stone¡¯ that you had before.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°I wanted to talk to you about it¡­¡± Ian¡¯s eyes went wide after hearing about it. It was all because of what Gripper said. ¡®What? This old man¡­ has been a fortune teller in his past life?¡¯ Ian felt goosebumps on his whole body. Gripper mentioned Marion Khalifa¡¯s Soul Stone. There was one thing that Ian was curious about with that item. And as Gripper¡¯s story continued, Ian had no choice but to be astonished. ¡°Ian. In your inventory, there probably is a Khalifa¡¯s Soul Stone. You would have placed it in the magical beast transmutation, but it got rejected from the magic circle, right?¡± ¡°How¡­ how did¡­?¡± ¡°Huhu. How did I know? You think there is anything that this Gripper doesn¡¯t know?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know about the magical beast transmutation formula.¡± ¡°That¡­ that¡­! Humph, whatever. Can¡¯t you think of me as some doctor while talking and stay quiet?¡± The dimension war with the Devildom¡ªthe final battle. It was Ian who defeated the Marion Dragon Khalifa, who had been the last boss at that time, and Ian was able to get the item ¡®Marion Khalifa Soul Stone¡¯. And this item was none other than the strongest material for the beast transmutation. ¡®I decided to create the strongest magical beast because I had this item.¡¯ Ironically, however, at that point, when Ian had succeeded in making the strongest magical beast, Ian¡¯s inventory still had the soul stone. The reason was simple. The soul stone of Khalifa would bounce off from the magical beast transmutation magic circle. With a questionable message, it couldn¡¯t be used as a material. ¡®How did Gripper know that?¡¯ Ian gulped and opened the information window of the Soul Stone. -Marion Khalifa¡¯s Soul Stone Classification: Goods Rank: Myth It is a soul stone that has been left after the destruction of the Marion Dragon Khalifa. Anyone who has mastered the transmutation can draw the best magical beast with this. A good beast tamer can resurrect the Khalifa through the soul stone, or perhaps create another completely different dragon. If you succeeded in transmutation using the soul stone, an ultimate beast can be created. *Only available for the Alchemists over the level of 10. *When offered at the Dragon God¡¯s Altar, it can be exchanged for a mythical gearbox. *This item belongs to the user ¡®Ian¡¯. The item cannot be dropped or sold or transferred to another user. Ian, who read the information window once again, looked at Gripper with trembling eyes. He then opened his mouth to speak. ¡°Ni¡­ nice, Gripper.¡± ¡°Huhu, surely I thought you¡¯d need to know.¡± ¡°Nice. Let me tell you about the formula of the magical beast transmutation. In return, let me know of the information that you possess.¡± ¡°It isn¡¯t much of an information, right?¡± ¡°No way. It is the same.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°I bet you can get more than you can imagine.¡± At the rant of Gripper, Ian began to calm himself down and explained it to him. It was a bit annoying before, but when he started to explain it, he started to get immersed in the topic. And it was natural for Gripper, who had heard the explanation, to be astonished. ¡°Key, that is so cool! Deep!¡± Seeing Gripper firing up, Ian was satisfied. ¡°Huhu, it is a theory that contains the essence of magical beast transmutation.¡± ¡°I admit. I admit.¡± And then came out the question from Ian¡¯s mouth. ¡°Kay, now tell me. What is wrong with the ¡®Marion Khalifa Soul Stone¡¯?¡± At the question from Ian, Gripper laughed a little. ¡°Wrong? Why do you think that something was wrong with the soul stone?¡± ¡°Obviously. If not, there wouldn¡¯t have been any plausible reason for it to bounce off the circle.¡± Gripper shook his head and slowly opened his mouth to speak. ¡°No. there is no problem with the Soul Stone of Khalifa.¡± ¡°Then¡­?¡± ¡°It just didn¡¯t match with the recipe.¡± Ian was confused at the incomprehensible story of Gripper. ¡°What does¡­¡± But before Ian could respond, Gripper cut him off. ¡°Kay then, take this first.¡± In front of Ian came the system messages. Tring-! [You have earned the item ¡®Initial Marion Dragon Recipe¡¯.] Ian opened the information of the item right away. -Initial Marion Dragon Transmutation Recipe Classification: Goods Rank: Myth (Transcendence) Base Monster: A monster of the dragon race with ¡®myth¡¯ rank or higher. Material monster: An original magical beast with ¡®myth¡¯ rank or higher. Material A: Soul stone of Marion Material B: Devil God¡¯s Blood. Material C: Sky dragon¡¯s scale. Material D: Advanced elemental stones *The recipe can only be done by an alchemist who has reached the level of 10. *The probability of the recipe is very low. It is recommended to combine it with the stones of level ¡®legend¡¯ or higher. *This item belongs to the user ¡®Ian¡¯. It cannot be transferred or sold to other users and won¡¯t drop when the character dies. Ian confirmed the recipe, and it made his eyes open wide. ¡°Wah! Wah! If you had this recipe, you should have shown it sooner!¡± ¡°Why should I?¡± ¡°Is our friendship only worth this much, Gripper¡­?¡± Gripper calmly responded at the intense reaction from Ian. ¡°Ha ha, don¡¯t get so excited, Ian. I found this recipe a while ago. The recipe I stumbled on while I was searching through the old documents of the Devildom.¡± ¡°Those lies¡­ can I even believe those?¡± ¡°Lies you say!? That is so sad. If I did know this recipe in advance, I would have shown it to you first.¡± ¡°Huh¡­ fine I¡¯ll believe you for now.¡± Gripper managed to calm Ian down and then continued to speak. ¡°Anyway, now I¡¯ll explain the story which made you curious.¡± Ian¡¯s expression was very serious. The information he got from Gripper was much more advanced than he was expecting. In fact, Ian had no reason to regret over what Gripper had said. Even if Gripper gave him the recipe, it was invaluable to him. Gripper¡¯s words continued, ¡°If you see the recipe, how can the base monster be set?¡± ¡°It is a dragon race magical beast with a ¡®myth¡¯ rank or higher.¡± ¡°Right. And the reason for that is right here.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°The Dragon soul stone can be only used as a material when the base is a dragon race.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± Exclamation leaked out of Ian¡¯s mouth. The question was solved. ¡®So, that was why the magic circle didn¡¯t accept it.¡¯ Ian opened his mouth again. ¡°That¡­ Was it written on the ¡®Old Parchment¡¯?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± A much simpler answer than he thought about why the soul stone was bouncing off the circle. After all the talk, Gripper looked at Ian with a tender smile. ¡°Kay, I will open the door to the spirit dimension as promised.¡± When he finished, Gripper threw the necklace of the spirit king that was in his hand. ¡°¡­!¡± Surprisingly, blue light began to emerge from the necklace. As time went by, the blue light began to change into a large portal. The portal to the Spirit dimension. Towards that, Ian¡¯s eyes couldn¡¯t stop shinning and Gripper opened his mouth. ¡°Ian, do you know the ingredients in the recipe called the ¡®elemental stones¡¯?¡± ¡°No. This is the first time I¡¯m hearing it.¡± ¡°Surely.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to the spirit dimension, so get those from there.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Get me those elemental stones when you go to the spirit dimension. The elemental stones are material items that can be found very easily in the spirit world.¡± ¡°Ah!¡± ¡°But it is hard to find the best ones.¡± ¡°Oho.¡± By this time, Ian was sorry for pretending in the beginning with Gripper. ¡®Surely Gripper is a very generous person¡­¡¯ There was just too much information from Gripper. ¡°Get as many high-class elemental stones as possible that you can. It is also needed for creating the ¡®Marion Dragon Transmutation¡¯, and it is also a material that can be used for creating a powerful relic.¡± ¡°Okay, Gripper. I¡¯ll get a lot of them and give you some too.¡± ¡°Huhu, I would really appreciate it if you could do that.¡± After saying his goodbyes to Gripper, Ian took a step into the Spirit dimension portal. ¡®Finally¡­ the spirit world.¡¯ While laughing to himself, Ian closed his eyes. New content was going to be unfolded in the near future that was seconds away. The very anticipated one. CH 518 Tring-! [You have entered a new dimension, ¡®Spirit Dimension¡¯.] [The dimension system of the ¡®Spirit Dimension¡¯ is ¡®Middle-Earth¡¯.] [Transcendence level applies now.] [Transcendence level stats are all set in proportion to the stats gained in the Earth Dimension.] [The current transcendence level of user ¡®Ian¡¯ is Lv3.] [The leveling up of transcendence level is limited until you become a ¡®Qualified Warrior¡¯. (You may not go over level 10.)] [You have found this home of the spirits, The Spirit Dimension.] [Spirit magic (transcendence) has increased by 10.] [Summon power (transcendence) has increased by 30.] ¡­ Syncopation ¡­ A very refreshing air. With green lush glass spread out everywhere. Arriving into the Spirit dimension, Ian spread his hands wide and took a deep breath. ¡°Huah, this is the spirit world¡­!¡± Ian quickly scanned the system messages that were in front of him. ¡®The spirit dimension is also a part of the Middle-Earth. By the way¡­¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes quickly moved up and down in search of something. He then became flustered after a while. ¡°What is this? Why didn¡¯t I get the first discovery¡­?¡± The first discovery buffs and rewards that he should have received hadn¡¯t come yet. ¡®What?¡¯ Ian looked around. It was to find if someone had entered the space before him. But in the wide map, he couldn¡¯t find anyone. ¡®Who could it be? Shakran? Maybe, Devildom rankers?¡¯ Ian started to frown. The absence of the initial discovery reward wasn¡¯t a huge blow for Ian. The problem was that his plan was now out of place. ¡®I was very happy. I should have come to this place a little faster.¡¯ In fact, Ian had already been in a position to enter the Spirit Dimension two to three months back. It had been nearly three months since the Spirit King¡¯s quest of reaching 400 was touched. ¡®Phew, three months time was long, but I¡¯m not even sure who could have found this place in that time¡­¡¯ Ian thought hard. ¡®No matter how hard I¡¯m thinking, there couldn¡¯t have been anyone who would¡¯ve come here before me. At the very least, maybe Levya or Remir noona. And Limlong or Shakran¡­¡¯ As Ian knew, Levya and Remir were both busy with class tier up quests in their possession. Ian knew that Shakran was going to hunt very happily in the Abyss of the Underworld, and Limlong would have been suffering in the Devildom trying to recover the damage he had suffered from the hands of Ian. If someone entered the Spirit dimension first, then it could be someone he hadn¡¯t thought of. And a moment later¡­ ¡°¡­!¡± A thought went past the mind of Ian. ¡°Ah, maybe?¡± Long ago, the story that Lugarix had told Ian had popped into his mind. ¡®Yeah, if what he said about having a master was real¡­!¡¯ Listening to the story at that time, Ian was under the impression that the concept of the new dimension would be something that would lead to the servers that were all around the world. And even if it was of that sort, it wasn¡¯t entirely strange even if someone arrived into the spirit dimension before Ian. It was because the information of the overseas ranker servers were often wrapped in veils, unlike the Korean servers. By this time, Ian was convinced that his idea was spot on. ¡°This¡­ looks so fun.¡± Ian began to smile. The plan to pre-empt the spirit dimension was out of the track, but a lot more fun was in place. ¡°Whatever the case is, this is so exciting¡­¡± Ian smiled and took a step. Understanding the approximate situation, it was now time to move diligently. But right then¡­ Tring-! A new system message had come in the eyes of Ian. [¡®Friends of the Spirits¡¯ quest has been triggered.] -Friends of the Spirits (Career Quest)- Long ago, a summoner were close friends with the spirits. However, after the spirit dimension had been infiltrated by the mechanical civilization, the lost spirits could no longer cross the walls of the dimension. The spirits are now in need of help from their old friends. Find the ¡®Frost Cave¡¯ in the ¡®Reindeer Forest¡¯. Deep inside the Frost Cave, the legacy of an ancient summoner is asleep. If you find the legacy and accept the power, you will have the power to fight with the mechanical civilization. Quest Difficulty: D+ Quest Condition: Level 400 or higher Summoner class user. Time limit: None. Rewards: Unknown * * * The ¡®Reindeer Forest¡¯ wasn¡¯t that far away. Following the coordinates that were written in the quest window, it took less than 30 minutes for Ian to arrive there. Ian took 30 minutes because he was too eager to hunt. ¡°Ly, stop them from running!¡± ¡°Karceus, Breath!¡± The spirit dimension was a real heaven for Ian. The game was so full of color for him; there was no one but Ian on the whole map. Ian wanted to quickly increase his level of transcendence. He was still at level 3 and had to reach 10. ¡®About what the village of warriors is, I need to get some information about it.¡¯ It wasn¡¯t easy to raise the level of transcendence. Raising the level from 3 to 4 was much more difficult than raising one¡¯s level to reach 300 in the normal dimension. At best, level three and above was great, but level 4 was really like hell. Apart from that, Ian made some changes in his party. ¡®Chirpy¡¯ the one that he had got a long time back was added to the party. ¡°Jack, Jajack-!¡± ¨C Chirpy (Lightning Spirit) Spirit Power: 57/ 5000 Attribute: Lightening Class: Medium Spirit Summon Duration: 525 minutes (Recall time: 800 minutes) Attack: 427 Defense: 218 Agility: 511 Vitality: 8,250 *When the spirit power reaches MAX, it will evolve into a higher spirit. (Each time a summon spell is used that requires a lightening, a certain amount of Spirit power can be gained.) The higher the Summoning power of the summoner, the longer will be the duration of the summon be. Unique Ability: Charge *Takes 10% of the damage inflicted by the Lightning Spirit Magic as vitality. Ian summoned Chirpy simply because he was in the spirit dimension. Anyway, this was the home of Chirpy, so he thought of calling it once. However, Ian who summoned Chirpy couldn¡¯t help but feel shocked. It was maybe because he was in the spirit dimension. The stagnant ¡®spirit power¡¯ of Chirpy had risen. In addition, as of the moment, Chirpy was a ¡®non-existent¡¯ being. ¡®This is the real power of Chirpy!¡¯ Normally in Earth, the role of the spirit was to merely be a vessel for the use of spirit magic. However, the Chirpy who was summoned in the Spirit dimension was equipped with all the power necessary for combat, from attack to vitality. Chirpy seemed to be so powerful that it couldn¡¯t be compared to the other familiars. Chichichik-! Chirpy went to the sky and spread its wings wide. Powerful currents of sort were flowing from it in a straight line. That too, to a place, where the vitality gauge of the spirit cut to pieces. Tring-! [The spirit ¡®Chirpy¡¯ has done fatal damage to ¡®Contaminated Silp¡¯!] [The vitality of ¡®Contaminated Silp¡¯ is reduced by 274.] [¡®Contaminated Silp¡¯ is in a state of ¡®paralysis¡¯.] The damage of 274 might seem like a weak one at first glance. But it was in the Middle-Earth, with the transcendence stats in place. Because of that, the damage of 274 was a pretty average figure for Ian¡¯s party. Considering that Chirpy didn¡¯t help much on earth, this was a fairly great development. Ian, who confirmed that the attack had been done, quickly jumped forward. Tatt-! With the newest addition, Ian began to pursue the ¡®Silp¡¯ that was trying to run. ¡°Where!¡± The Silp was grey-white in color because it was contaminated, but the Silp was a spirit of the wind. And like any spirit of the wind, it was fast. ¡®But it is different when you are paralyzed. A totally different story.¡¯ Ian¡¯s spear was very fast. Hitting the spirit in the exact spot, the spirit fell down deprived of power. Kiik-! And with that, the usual system messages came in front of Ian. Tring-! [Contaminated Silp has received devastating damage.] [You have successfully defeated the ¡®Contaminated Silp¡¯.] [Earned 6 transcendence experience.] [Spirit magic can not be obtained.] Ian had already killed more than a dozen of the contaminated Silps. Ian smiled looking at Chirpy who had stopped flapping its wings and settled on the shoulder of Ian. ¡°You did well, Chirpy.¡± Jack- Jajack-! When he looked at the messages, there was a line that caught the attention of Ian. ¡®What is up with the last message?¡¯ It was a message that came every time a Contaminated spirit was killed. Seeing that message, Ian couldn¡¯t help but look into the spirit magic. ¡®Kailan never just send such messages. The reason being is its conditions is met. Then I can get the spirit magic.¡¯ Ian had ignored the messages the first two times, but as it kept coming up, Ian couldn¡¯t help but be curious. ¡®Should I open the information window and see?¡¯ Among the stats of the summoner class careers, there were two things that were related to the spirit. Ian decided to check it and opened the information window for a moment. ¡®It was a forgotten stat¡­¡¯ And with that, the information windows popped up before Ian. -Spirit Magic The stat needed to summon the spirits. The longer the spirit is summoned or the stronger the spirit is, the more spirit magic is needed. *This ability is not related with level up. *The higher the spirit skill is, the stronger the spirit magic will be. -Summon Magic The ability affects the power of the summoned spirit. The more the spirits summoned by the summoner, the stronger the summon magic is needed to be. *Ability is not related to level up. *The higher the spirit skill, the stronger the spirit magic will be. The spirit magic and summon magic were very useful abilities that Ian had used in the early days of his summoner career. But the higher the level, the lower the efficiency, so it was no longer used. As described in the description window, the spirit magic and summon magic were not the level up abilities. ¡®When I reached around the level of 300, I had no use of it at all.¡¯ But after reading the window, he had a few doubts. CH 519 The reason for Ian¡¯s surprise wasn¡¯t something else. One line of text at the bottom of the two stat descriptions. It was because he just found out that the higher the proficiency of the ¡®Spirit power¡¯, the stronger he would get. ¡®Uh? This description wasn¡¯t there originally¡­¡¯ In fact, the spirit magic and the summon magic were elements never had any stats to raise. The only way to increase both stats was to clear a few class-related quests that were listed on the summoner tower. However, in the description window of the stats that he checked after a long time, there was a new way to increase the two stats. ¡®Spirit power¡­ proficiency increase?¡¯ Ian couldn¡¯t help but feel ridiculous. He didn¡¯t even know there was a concept called ¡®Spirit spell¡¯. Of course, the ¡®spirit combat power¡¯ itself was expressed in the word ¡®spirit power¡¯, but there was no such concept in the gaming system. ¡®What could it be? Will I be able to know what it is if I go through the quests of the Spirit dimension?¡¯ All he could guess now was the information window had a change in the two stats, and it was after he had discovered the ¡®spirit dimension¡¯. ¡®Spirit spell¡­ I¡¯ll need to find a way to know about it first.¡¯ Ian cleared his thoughts and stopped the hunting that he was constantly doing. ¡°Kids, stop the hunting! Gather up!¡± The summons of Ian that were scattered all over the map, slaughtering the ¡®contaminated spirits¡¯ returned to the point of their master. ¡°Master, what is it Bbook? It has been less than an hour since we have started hunting, Bbook.¡± ¡°Krrrg, something feels wrong. I never saw our master call us back from hunting this quick.¡± Krrrk- Krrrku-! The faces of all the summons of Ian were of disbelief. Once Ian started to hunt, it would take at least half a day until he calls for a break. Ian looked around at the anxious faces of his summons and opened his mouth, ¡°Kay, I¡¯ll give you missions from now on.¡± ¡°Bbubbook?¡± ¡°What mission, dad?¡± Ian lifted his spear and pointed to the ¡®reindeer forest¡¯ map. ¡°There is a dungeon called the Frost Cave in this map, see?¡± Gulp. The atmosphere was so quiet that the sound of gulp could be heard and Ian continued to speak, ¡°I¡¯ll give you 30 minutes starting now. And within 30 minutes find the entrance of the ¡®Frost Cave¡¯ and mark coordinates.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°And to the friend who is the first to find the Frost Cave, I¡¯ll give 2 hours of free hunting.¡± And the ¡®free hunting¡¯ that Ian meant was, ¡®hunting nonstop¡¯ without the involvement of any special quest, and this was a very great thing for the summons Even if Ian logged out, the ¡®free hunting¡¯ was a tremendous privilege for the summons. ¡°Two, two hours?¡± ¡°bbook! I will find it Bbook!¡± ¡°BBookbbook-ah, aren¡¯t you a slowpoke?¡± Grrrk- Grrrrk-! And with the end of the words from Ian, all the summons that were in front of him vanished in a second. * * * ¡°This idiot, do I have to suffer because of you?¡± ¡°Ugh, I didn¡¯t know that the level of the Windy plains was so high!¡± ¡°Oh. Surely, it would have been right to start from the ¡®Reindeer Forest¡¯¡­¡± Emerald and white baggy robe. On top of a Green Dragon were twin sisters and were mumbling something while heading somewhere. ¡°By the way, do you know the coordinates, Vanessa?¡± ¡°Yeah! Of course. See, Unnie will show you the way¡­!¡± ¡°Show the way or see the way? Just keep your eyes on the road.¡± ¡°Ugh¡­!¡± The conversation between the two sisters was rather noisy, but the dragon who heard of it opened its mouth, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Sarah. The master can¡¯t be trusted, but you can place your trust in me.¡± ¡°Well, then¡­ I guess I¡¯ll believe you.¡± ¡°What? Kortus, are you really going to be like this?!¡± Apart from the friendly conversation, the movement speed of the dragon was very fast. Because of that, within a while, the twin sisters could reach the Reindeer Forest which was their destination. ¡°Woah-!¡± Arriving at the Reindeer forest entrance, the sisters descended from the back of their Dragon Kortus. Till the current location, the land was a plain so he could fly very easily, but Kortus couldn¡¯t do that anymore. The Reindeer Forest was a thick and dense forest. The ground couldn¡¯t even be seen from the sky, and they had to find the Frost Cave that was located somewhere in the Reindeer Forest. ¡°Unnie, I¡¯ll move this way, so Unnie I think that I¡¯ll move in the northwest.¡± ¡°Kay Vanessa. Then, lets find it and then share the coordinates.¡± Arriving in the Reindeer forest, the two began to move in the opposite directions. Unlike the average level of the monsters that appeared in the wind plain were of level 5 Transcendence, the spirits in the Reindeer forest were of transcendence level 3 at most, so moving separately wasn¡¯t a big deal for them. But after a while, the two of them who moved came back together again. Vanessa: Unnie! Unnie! Seeing the message of Vanessa, Sarah¡¯s eyes widened. ¡®What? Has she already found the Frost Cave?¡¯ Only 3 minutes after the two of them had broken up, a message had come and she had no choice but to think otherwise. But as the conversation continued, Sarah was even more surprised. Sarah: What is it, Vanessa? Did you find it? Vanesa: No, it isn¡¯t that. Sarah: then why did you message? Vanessa: In the Reindeer Forest, there seems to be someone else other than us. Sarah: ¡­? Vanessa: the more you move to the east, the more the traces are of the extinguished spirits. Sarah: don¡¯t move, wait there! I¡¯ll be there right away. Vanessa: Understood, Unnie. Sarah who turned of the 1:1 message window, soon began to cast spells while waving her wand. Woong-! Unlike his younger sister Vanessa, Sarah was a wizard class, so she could move anywhere using the teleport magic if she had the coordinates. Of course, it wasn¡¯t possible to use teleport to move into dungeons or other dimensions, but there were on the same map, so there was nothing wrong. Swoong-! Sarah¡¯s figure was surrounded with a white light and then quickly disappeared. * * * Tring-! [You have entered the ¡®Frost Cave¡¯.] [Due to the cold temperature of Frost Cave, the body temperature has gone down sharply.] [¡®Cold Resistance¡¯ was reduced by 10.] [Increases the damage of the Ice attributes by 5%.] In front of Ian¡¯s eyes have come the system messages, three to four lines of messages. And Ian¡¯s eyes who saw the messages were shinning. ¡®Well, this wasn¡¯t the first discovery either.¡¯ Ian was the number one user of the Korean server. And since LB hasn¡¯t revealed, though not precisely, Ian could be one of the top ranker in the top ranking list of every servers in the world. However, on the servers other than the Korean, there would be two to three rankers on each server who could be compared with Ian. Not only Korean servers, but the other countries too open the servers the same time, even the far countries who were late to the game could now close in on the gap. And if the content of ¡®Middle-Earth¡¯ had been shared with the other servers, then it wouldn¡¯t be so strange if several users already entered the spirit dimension. Ian entered the dimension after three months of reaching the needed level of 400. ¡®It wasn¡¯t like I was hunting leisurely. I don¡¯t know the guy who entered the spirit dimension so fast, but I need to do my best to catch up with him.¡¯ Ian¡¯s hunting, of course, wasn¡¯t of a quality that could ever be described as ¡®relaxed¡¯. It was only Ian who thought him like that. Jack- Jajack-! Chirpy sat on the shoulder of Ian, and Ian couldn¡¯t help himself but smile at it. ¡°You look good after coming back to your home.¡± Jack- Jajajack-! ¡°Whether it is the mechanical civilization or not, let¡¯s a take step from here on now.¡± Jack-! Ian decided to move with Chirpy and began to move with a serious expression. Before he could even take ten steps, a system message emerged in front of Ian. Tring-! [¡®Friend of the Spirit I¡¯ quest has been completed.] [Linked quest has been triggered] -Friend of the Spirits II (Career quest) In the past, the Reindeer forest had a forest keeper called as ¡®Laokun¡¯. Laokun, who inherited some of the spirits power was a spirit that existed from the very beginning, and his mission was to defend the spirit dimension. But the mechanical civilization invading the Spirit dimension had too much power. Eventually, the spirits were defeated, and Laokun, who fought for the Reindeer forest till the end, used the last power that the God has left to defend the spirits he crossed paths with. Laokun who used the unbearable power had extinguished, but thanks to his effort, the Reindeer forest was able to preserve its power of nature. The ¡®Frost Cave¡¯ is an artificial ice cave the was created by Laokun using the power of God. At the bottom of the Frost Cave is the legacy of Laokun, the spirit Pan. If you manage to pass all the tests that were placed by Pan, you might gain his legacy. Pass the tests of Pan, and earn the legacy to help the spirit dimension from the suffering placed by the mechanical civilization. Quest difficulty: C Quest Condition: Party of a Summoner User of level 400 or higher. Time Limit: None Reward: Acquire ¡®Spirit spell¡¯ skill (If not a summoner class, then you¡¯ll get a different reward). Ian looked very interested as he read the contents of the quest, ¡®Mechanical civilization¡­ something vaguely familiar, it was a word that Elisha had used.¡¯ The first NPC that informed Ian of the existence of the ¡®Spirit¡¯ dimension. Ian smiled while remembering the Spirit King Elisha. It was because of the strong energy that he could feel from her. ¡®If I get over all the spirit quests, maybe I can even win over the spirit kings too?¡¯ Ian was thinking while reading a long quest message. But in a while, his eyes widened while looking at the last part of the quest. ¡°Spirit spell!¡± It was because he had recently discovered the existence of ¡®spirit spell¡¯ in the stat description earlier. ¡®A first new content?¡¯ Ian started to move quick trying to align his thoughts. The new content of the Summoner class, it has been very long since such a thing had happened, and Ian wanted to complete it as fast as possible. ¡®Maybe because it is the top floor? Why aren¡¯t there any monsters in here?¡¯ Ian didn¡¯t slow his pace but just entered the dungeon very cautiously. Fast movement and moving around radically were two entirely different concepts. But then, there it was. Drrrrk-! The clear sound of footsteps in the dungeon. The loud sound of the footsteps in the Frost Cave that was covered with snow all over. ¡°¡­!¡± And naturally, Ian moved in the direction from which the sound was coming. And Ian found something, there was a gush of wind that came in his direction. ¡°Ugh¡­!¡± There was a familiar silhouette in the place where the sound had come from. Chubby with short four legs. With shells on top. A big round head that looked very heavy to hold. As if the video got paused, Ian and his party froze at once. CH 520 ¡®What the hell¡­¡¯ Ian gulped down staring at the creature in front of him. And the reason for the whole party of Ian to be shocked was simple. The appearance of someone who was crawling out of the cave was very similar to the ¡®one¡¯ member that was in their party. ¡®Maybe a family-related one of Bbookbbook¡­!¡¯ When looked carefully, the tortoise that came out of the cave looking similar to that of Bbookbbook was different. He had a slightly smaller head and his eyes were a lot rounder. However, it was still easy to distinguish between that and Bbookbbook. Though it looked similar, the color of the shell was completely different. Its shell was of the color of pure white snow, like the Frost Cave. Prrrk- Prrdk-! The guy who crawled out of the cave came in the direction of Ian and stopped at the feet of Ian¡¯s. And opened its mouth, ¡°Bbook, who are you guys Bbook?¡± And at that moment, Ian completely lost it. ¡®It speaks the same was a Bbookbbook¡­!¡¯ Smiling, Ian opened his mouth and answered to the tortoise of Frost Cave. ¡°I am a summoner, Ian. These are my summons¡­¡± And the word of the summoner, the tortoise seems to be very elated. ¡°Nice to meet you Bbook. I am the guardian of Frost Cave. I am Pan¡¯s friend Prettybbook, bbook.¡± Watching the tortoise introduce itself as ¡®Prettybbook¡¯, Ian was starting to feel very crazy. ¡°Prettybbook-ah? Who has given you such a name?¡± ¡°Obviously my friend ¡®Pan¡¯ was the one who gave me.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian took a closer look at the so-called Prettybbook. ¡®Maybe this one is a female¡­?¡¯ But looking closer, there wasn¡¯t any kind of indication that could determine the gender of it. Ian just shook his head and opened his mouth while looking at his Bbookbbook and the new one. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah, I feel like you have a friend?¡± However, even as Ian said it, Bbookbbook didn¡¯t move a muscle. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah, what is it?¡± Ian waved his hand in front of Bbookbbook¡¯s face, but it was of no use. Bbookbbook¡¯s eyes were intensely fixated on the Pretty bbbook. And seeing that, Ian was convinced that the sex of the new friend was indeed a female. ¡®It is a female. And our Bbookbbook¡­ I think he is in love.¡¯ Bbookbbook¡¯s eyes were shining. It wasn¡¯t sure if he was nervous or starstruck. He was like a statue for a while, and then with a trembling voice, Bbookbbook opened his mouth. ¡°Prettybbook¡­ pretty.¡± And Prettybbook who heard the praise from Bbookbbook made a daunting look. ¡°Bubbook. You look like a tortoise who knows his game, bbook¡± * * * The role of Prettybbook in the Frost cave was to guide the users who came to the cave and triggered the ¡®Test gate of Pan¡¯. In other words, she was the guardian of the Frost Cave. It wasn¡¯t even long before Ian to get to the place that seemed like the first gateway. Bubbook. Prettybbook stopped in front of Ian and spoke in his direction. ¡°Ian, how much do you know about the spirits, bbook?¡± At the question from Prettybbook, Ian responded while scratching the back of his neck. ¡°Well. To be honest, I don¡¯t know much about it yet. The spirits that I grew is Chirpy.¡± Ian pointed at Chirpy who was seated on his shoulder, and Prettybbook nodded her head. ¡°Bbook¡­ then it will be better to challenge from the first test gate.¡± Bbook- brrrok-! A purple light started to shine on the white snow. And a stone statue rose on the right. Prettybbook approached in front of it and put her sole to the side of the statue. Surprisingly, a gate began to appear at one corner of the barrier. Grrrrrng-! And a few words came from Prettybbook¡¯s mouth, ¡°Let me give you a few notes before entering the first gate, bbook.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± Ian, who was naturally moving for the gate got stopped by the words from Prettybbook. And Prettybbook continued what she was saying, ¡°First, no summons can be summoned inside the gate.¡± ¡°Even spirits?¡± ¡°Yeah, bbook.¡± ¡°Huh¡­¡± Ian¡¯s expression changed a little. The condition of not being able to use his summons was a rather huge penalty for Ian. ¡°And second. There is only one chance given to challenge the gate, and there are three gates in total.¡± ¡°So no trying again if it is failed?¡± ¡°Yeah, bbook.¡± Prettybbook looked around for a second. And opened her mouth, ¡°And at last¡­ this gate can be challenged only with a party of five.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± ¡°However, the difficulty of the challenge doesn¡¯t change with the number of people, bbook.¡± ¡°So, you¡¯re saying that it is a disadvantage for a single person to challenge it alone?¡± ¡°Right bbook. You are a smart human bbook.¡± Ian heard the whole explanation and was feeling troubled. ¡®Hmm, what should I do¡­?¡¯ If it weren¡¯t for the things that Prettybbook had said, Ian would have entered the gate without any hesitation. And as the quest difficulty was just C, he had the confidence of being alone. However, when he heard that only once was there to challenge the gate, Ian had no choice but to be cautious. ¡®Do I have to open the portal and wait for the kids to come?¡¯ Ian started to think of some names in his mind. ¡°Huhu.¡± ¡°Awo, running would do well.¡± Two look-alike women appeared before Ian. Ian looked at the faces of the two women, while still in thoughts. ¡®Twins¡­? Are these NPCs?¡¯ Ian opened his mouth directed at the two women who appeared before him. ¡°Who¡­?¡± But the words that came out of the woman¡¯s mouth were things Ian had not thought of. ¡°What is this? Is there any person who doesn¡¯t know me? Maybe not a user?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Ian looked at them with a condescending expression. But excluding Ian, the two girls started to fight. ¡°Vanessa, are you stupid?¡± ¡°What did I do now?¡± ¡°No, that person there, did you see him about to take the quest? Even saw an NPC that does a quest?¡± ¡°Uh¡­ makes sense when I think about it.¡± Ian watched the two women have their conversation, and they didn¡¯t think of stopping. ¡°But Unnie, how can a user not know us?¡± ¡°Well. Even I am curious about that.¡± The conversation was sounding very silly, so Ian decided to jump in. ¡°Hey¡­¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°To think that all the users will be able to identify you¡­ where the hell do you guys come from?¡± At the question from Ian, Vanessa stopped talking for a sec. ¡°That, that¡­¡± Instead, the sister who was next to her was the one who answered, Sarah. ¡°That, she is the 4th ranked one.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°And I am 7th ranking.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± ¡°Are there any users in Germany who wouldn¡¯t know of the ranking duo ¡®Sarah and Vanessa¡¯?¡± And that words from her, Ian was able to understand. ¡®Ah¡­ these friends are the rankers of the German servers. However, if the twin sisters are 4th and 7th rankers, then no one in Germany can¡¯t know them.¡¯ Meeting a user of a foreign server all of a sudden, Ian hadn¡¯t even thought of that. ¡®But if they are from Germany¡­ how are they able to talk with me? Is there any simultaneous interpretation in Kailan¡¯s function?¡¯ Ian was once again feeling marveled at the LB technology. But that was just for a second. It was more important to make a decision about the two sisters. ¡®Should I check if the PK option is available?¡¯ Sarah and Vanessa maybe famous rankers in the German server, but it was the first time for Ian to see them. Ian had no idea what they were thinking. So the first thing was to see if PK was possible or not. Ian glanced at Vanessa and thought of swiping a debuff skill. [Activated the spell of summon ¡®Elcarix¡¯, ¡®Slow¡¯.] [¡®Debuff¡¯ is not available.] ¡®I don¡¯t think that PK between users is available¡­¡¯ Ian¡¯s mouth turned into a smile. If the PK wasn¡¯t possible, that meant the utilization of the twins was endless. ¡®Nice. Should I move with them for a while?¡¯ Ian was feeling good. If they could be used well, they could be used as his labor force. Then, there would be no reason to rush and bring in Hoonie or Noel. After he summed up his thoughts, Ian¡¯s mind started to think of something else. ¡®From what they are talking¡­ maybe they already know of the Middle-Earth?¡¯ Sarah and Vanessa were under the impression that Ian was ¡®naturally¡¯ German. Which meant that the spirit dimension wasn¡¯t based on the integrated servers. Then Ian thought that they didn¡¯t have to be brought the information that they weren¡¯t aware, just yet. And Ian started acting. ¡°Ah, yeah? You guys are 4th and 7th huh?¡± Ian tried to look surprised, looking between the two women. Vanessa nodded and put her head down liking the response of Ian. ¡°Right? I am the 1st ranking Summoner too!¡± ¡°Oh-oh!¡± Ian was very surprised and reacted to the words of Vanessa. Sarah and Vanessa started to talk among themselves with excitement, and Ian worked very hard on his acting. ¡°How come you did not know about us?¡± ¡°Yeah, if you were able to enter the spirit dimension¡­ you must be at a good ranking.¡± ¡°Ah, I always play the game alone.¡± ¡°Oh, that so?¡± ¡°And when I think about it again, I feel like I heard your name.¡± ¡°Obviously! I knew you would know!¡± But after a while, Prettybbook touched Ian¡¯s leg. Maybe it was boring for her to hear their conversation. ¡°So Ian, will you challenge it with them?¡± But it wasn¡¯t Ian who answered the question of Prettybbook. The two sisters seemed to have gotten too close to Ian that now they were the ones who answered it. ¡°Right, Ian? You will party with us, right?¡± ¡°Obviously Unnie! Since we will carry it, Ian would love to be with us, right?¡± And the two of them fell into the hands of a beast called, Ian. CH 521 After looting the Bloody Revenge from Limlong, Ian had set the Bloody Revenge as his default weapon. The Bloody Revenge wasn¡¯t as great as the Judgement of Spirit King. But Ian had the Summoner Knight¡¯s unique ability Vitality Weapon. The Vitality Weapon, a unique ability that gave vitality and life to an Ego Weapon only. If such a unique ability was used, even if he didn¡¯t have the Judgement of Spirit King in his hand, he would be able to use it. But the current situation was a bit different. In a situation where all the skills and item abilities were sealed, it was right to use his most powerful weapon¡ªthe Judgement of Spirit King. ¡°Vanessa, get out of the left side!¡± ¡°Ian, please cover the Salamander!¡± Moving in the dim dungeon, only the voice of Sarah could be heard, without pause. Ian just played along and acted according to the orders of Sarah. Kang- Kakang-! Normally, Sarah had the position of ¡®order¡¯ in her grasp as she was very good at identifying the battlefield and placing the right orders. ¡®Surely a¡­¡¯ However, that didn¡¯t mean that the orders Sarah was giving were perfectly fine for Ian. Her orders surely were excellent, but there was a difference in their combat styles. ¡®I feel like taking over the order right away¡­¡¯ Staring at Sarah, Ian made a leap towards the Salamander for covering it. What had to be done before taking over the order was to show his skills. After the two sisters recognized the skills of Ian, they must give up on the order so that he could paint a perfect picture. Tat-! Ian, who landed by squatting on the floor, looked at the spirits that were surrounding the Salamander. Gnomes that were similar to Silpid of the earth were the ones surrounding the Salamander. Gnomes had the same form as dwarfs and were made of mud. They were slower and much duller than Silpids but had higher defense and vitality. ¡®I can¡¯t use a strategy of one shot to take them down like the time I deal with the Silpid.¡¯ The strategy of using all the skills at once had a major flaw. Once all the skills were used, a state of Burn Out will occur. It was a fine situation if the enemy could be killed in one shot, but otherwise, they were all in danger. With the doubled tanking ability of the Silpids, the gnomes were impossible to destroy in one shot, no matter how perfectly the skills were linked. There was something more. ¡®This is the major problem.¡¯ These gnomes were born with tanking abilities. *Reliable Friend (Passive Unique Ability) Earth spirit Gnome is a strong and reliable spirit friend. The more friends you have for defending, the stronger the Gnomes become. All allies within 3 meters increase the defense of Gnome by 10% and vitality regeneration by 15%. Each time allies within 3 meters are attacked, the damage of Gnome is increased by 3% and the attack speed is increased by 1.5% (up to 100 stacks). When an allied spirit dies, all the vitality of Gnome would be restored. The easiest and the most powerful skill that could be used by Ian and his party was the Silp ¡®Twister¡¯ and the salamander¡¯s ¡®Small Flame¡¯. A strategy that inflicted damage by gathering enemies close together with the gust of wind and then throwing a small flame. But the unique ability of Gnome, ¡®Reliable Friend¡¯ was a perfect counter for the skill linkage. ¡®For the gnomes to turn into a monster¡­ is it an error to use the twister?¡¯ Ian¡¯s party had to face a total of 12 Gnomes. If he could gather them all with the Twister, it was like getting a nasty buff with an increase of armor by 120 percent and vitality recovery by 180. ¡®Maybe the small fire damage¡­ won¡¯t even touch it.¡¯ It would be faster to recover if he could continue to blow flames using the cooldown reset. That wasn¡¯t the end. ¡®If we kept on attacking, we¡¯ll get a dealer class damage from a tanker.¡¯ Inflicting flame damage on a group of 12 Gnomes simultaneously increases the damage of all Gnomes by 30% and their attack speed by 15%. If attacked a couple of times, they would have to encounter a gnome with nearly twice the attack power in a flash. Hweee-! Ian, who jumped back to the air to avoid getting hit, spoke in a small voice. ¡°Attack it in once and then retreat.¡± To the hard guys like the Gnomes with such unique abilities, what was the easiest way to deal with them? The methodology was actually very simple. It could be done after the disabling of the unique ability ¡®Reliable Friend¡¯. Isolate them one after the other, then concentrate all the projectiles on the one that had to be removed. However, it wasn¡¯t so easy to execute, at least not as simple as running away. ¡°Vanessa, with the help of Ian keep them away!¡± ¡°Okay, Unnie!¡± ¡°Pillar of Earth!¡± Kung- Kukung-! One of the twelve gnomes was barely pulled out, but it wasn¡¯t easy to prevent the other gnomes trying to get close to it. The vitality of the gnome was cut in half, but when the other gnomes began to get close, then an obviously difficult situation would come. ¡°Uh, I lack firepower!¡± ¡°Can¡¯t be done. Ian, come over to this side and deal damage! That guy needs to be taken down before he approaches the others!¡± The closer the gnomes were getting, the more nervous the twins were starting to get. Ian was being called from the most outermost position to stop the approach of gnomes; he had to put in a deal. However, Ian didn¡¯t follow the orders of Sarah for the first time. Tat-! Ian took the Silp that he brought along with him and pushed the gnome further into the battlefield. The two sisters couldn¡¯t help but feel shocked at what they were seeing. ¡°Ian, where are you going?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear the order?¡± However, Ian was busy scanning the coordinates instead of answering the question. It was definite that it was quicker to show them with actions rather than words. ¡®The range of twister is 5 meters. I moved around six steps now¡­¡¯ The passage to the gate was a narrow and long structure. The width of the passage was somewhat between 5 meters. Kakang-! Ian wielded his spear and hurt an approaching gnome. ¡°Silp, Twister!¡± Sarah and Vanessa who listened to the orders of Ian were getting tenser. ¡°Ian, are you crazy?¡± ¡°What use will it be if you use the twister against them?¡± Sarah and Vanessa fully understood the unique powers of the Gnomes. Because of that, even the ¡®twister¡¯ brought about by the spirit came to their thoughts. But it was all for a while. ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°What the¡­?¡± It didn¡¯t take long for the twins to understand what the intentions of Ian were. Wheeeing-! The twister was summoned far away and began to suck away the gnomes and only sparing one. Sarah who realized what was happening couldn¡¯t help but feel creeped out. ¡®Is that even possible? That¡¯s so dope.¡¯ A dark and misty pathway. The range calculations of Ian were ridiculously accurate in the narrow map, which was very difficult to locate for everyone. In fact, the idea of using the twister to reverse the movements of the gnomes was ingenious but not unthinkable. But in the midst of all these calculations, doing a distance calculation of five meters and then putting it into practice¡­ ¡®How is such a user not known yet?¡¯ In theory, was put to play. ¡°Don¡¯t stay dumb and hit it!¡± At the sudden voice of Ian from afar, Sarah regained her thoughts. She just saw Ian deal with the gnomes at an unconditional time. Piping-! Salamander¡¯s flame and the magic circle of Sarah fired and quickly burned the vitality of the gnome. [Party member ¡®Sarah¡¯ has done devastating damage to the Earth Spirit ¡®Gnome¡¯!] [The vitality of Gnome has been reduced by 275!] [Vanessa¡¯s spirit ¡®Salamander¡¯ inflicted devastating damage on the Earth Spirt ¡®Gnome¡¯!] [The vitality of Gnome has been reduced by 301!] The vitality of Gnome fell from 40 percent to 10 percent in an instant. The attacks were being alternated to prevent the other gnomes from coming together, so stable damage-dealing was possible. ¡®The Twister lasts for 10 seconds. This guy can be cut out.¡¯ Sarah¡¯s gaze moved toward Ian once again. She was forced to wonder what Ian was doing for the duration of the Twister. Sarah, who saw Ian opened her mouth without realizing. Pupuck-! Ian and Silp were taking care of the gnome that was in the twister. ¡°That¡­ that¡­!¡± Unsatisfied with cutting off one gnome, Ian blocked the other gnome that was outside. [Party Member ¡®Ian¡¯ has done critical damage on Earth Spirit ¡®Gnome¡¯!] [Vitality of Gnome has been reduced by 359!] [Vitality of Gnome has been reduced by 331!] Ian snuck into the gust of wind and wielded his spear. Ian¡¯s Silp shot a gust of wind while it was on his shoulder. The gnome was struggling to avoid the two, but Ian wasn¡¯t so willing. Because of that, the Gnome that was pulling the force of the twister began to get pushed out. Surprisingly, the vitality of the gnome was being cut down! If he had a stack of buffs when the gnomes gathered, it wouldn¡¯t have been possible to cause such damage. ¡®That means that he is out of the range of the buff?¡¯ It was possible because Ian used the difference between the ¡®Twister¡¯ and ¡®Reliable Friend¡¯. Since the range of the twister was just two meters wider than the range of ¡®Reliable Friend¡¯, the gnome that was pushed by Ian came out of the buff range. Sarah, who understood the situation, shouted while spreading out her wand, ¡°Pillar of Earth!¡± Sarah summoned the two remaining pillars one after the other¡­ Kung- kukung-! Knocked down by the pillar, the gnome was pushed out of the range. In the meantime, Vanessa cleaned up the first gnome. Tring-! [You have successfully defeated the Earth Spirit ¡®Gnome¡¯!] [Transcendence experience of 13 has been acquired.] The gnome that Ian was attacking was going to die soon as well. ¡°Silp, let¡¯s finish it!¡± Sllr-! The gust of wind could reduce an enemies¡¯ defense, and since it was also paired with Twister¡ªa wind attribute skill¡ªthe Gnome would surely be devastated since wind attributes were strong against land attributes. Puping-! [You have successfully defeated the Earth Spirit Gnome!] [Transcendence Experience increased by 14.] The gnome which was hard to grasp was soon defeated by Ian. By this time, not just Sarah but Vanessa too had realized that something was strange. ¡°You¡­ what are you?¡± Vanessa was a bit frightened. Ian grinned while holding his spear. ¡°Kay, from now on¡­¡± Ian¡¯s mouth went into a smile. ¡°I give the orders. No objections?¡± Sarah and Vanessa shook their heads unknowingly. CH 522 Sarah and Vanessa had no objections with Ian taking over. On the contrary, it seemed like they were trying to be a little more faithful to the orders of Ian. It was quite a surprising one for Ian. ¡®I thought that they would act a little full of pride¡­¡¯ This was an attitude that was never seen in ordinary rankers. However, Sarah and Vanessa were different. The only things that seemed to matter to them were to ¡®play well¡¯ in the game. ¡®I don¡¯t know where this guy came from¡­ but, with Ian, we might be able to get past Linus.¡¯ Linus was the second-ranked user, and the 1st ranked magician in Germany. But for Sarah, Ian¡¯s skills seemed to be much better than Linus. ¡®I¡¯m glad I met this guy in the Middle-Earth. If I met him in earth, his skills wouldn¡¯t have been that watchable.¡¯ Sarah misunderstood Ian as a ¡®starter¡¯ who started the game a bit late. She guessed the level of Ian being around mid 300s. If Ian had reached the level of 400, there was no way that the German servers wouldn¡¯t mention it. Of course, the level needed to enter the spirit dimension was 400, but she thought that he would have entered the dimension with some other route. In addition, the gap of 50 levels in the Earth dimension could be covered with one or two-level difference in the transcendence level. In any case, thanks to the orders of Ian, the twins could easily breakthrough the first gate. Tring-! [You have successfully cleared the first gate!] [Contribution is being calculated.] [Ian: 1,021 A+] [Sarah: 995 A] [Vanessa: 893 A] [If the contribution is less or equal to D, then you will be dropped from the gate.] [If you got dropped out due to lack of contribution, you will be able to try again.] Arriving at the end of the first gate, the tightly closed iron gate opened and white light started to enter. System messages kept coming. [You have successfully completed the quest ¡®Summoner Pan¡¯s test I (Career) (Linked)¡¯!] [Transcendence experience of 100 has been earned.] [Acquired fame of 100,000.] [Remaining time: 5 minutes 24 seconds] [Clear grade: A+] [Cleared with A or higher grade.] [Gained 30 spirit magic (transcendence).] [Gained 12 summon magic (transcendence)] Ian read the messages and looked very happy. Both the spirit magic and the summon magic had increased a bit. ¡®I get what I give in the spirit dimension.¡¯ When Ian entered the spirit dimension, the sum of all the spirits and the summoned magic was 40 to 42. If one used it like that, it might not seem like a huge deal, but the stat was in transcendence terms. The proficiency level 100:1 would translate into transcendence, so in the Earth¡¯s system, it was nearly 4,000. Ian opened his window and checked his stats after a long time. [Spirit Magic: 127 (transcendence)] [Summon Magic: 76 (Transcendence)] ¡®In case of the summon magic, I gained more here than that of the earth system.¡¯ Ian was feeling very excited. After getting through the gates of the test and gaining the ¡®Spirit magic¡¯, it was possible to use ¡®spirits¡¯ in the battle again. It was still a long way ahead, but if he could collect just 5 times the current stats, it could be used. When Ian finished all the preparations, Ian glanced at Sarah and Vanessa. Like Ian, the two of them too seemed like they were checking their stats. ¡°We¡¯re going to the second gate right away, right?¡± The two of them nodded at the same time that Ian asked. ¡°Obviously!¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go until the last gate!¡± Seeing the two sisters all excited, Ian smiled. ¡®These two are simpletons too.¡¯ Breaking past the first gate, Ian found out a few things about the twins. He realized why the two of them stuck together. ¡®Vanessa does a lot of physical. But she lacks gaming sense and instant judgments.¡¯ According to Ian, Vanessa seemed like a top-class player with just control. Though it was a bit exaggerated, he could see much difference when he compared her to himself. The problem was that the control was limited to one dimension. ¡®Maybe if I am a beginner with no skills or summons, and I go against Vanessa on a one-on-one PK, then I¡¯m not sure if I can win¡­¡¯ However, Vanessa was lacking a lot apart from control and skills. Without the orders of Sarah, it would have been hard to be rankers. ¡®Sarah, on the other hand, lacks the physical. Instead, she has a huge outlook and her game sense is amazing. Excellent application skills too¡­¡¯ The physical of Sarah wasn¡¯t so bad. However, if compared to the ones in the top 10 rankings, it wasn¡¯t enough. The game understanding and sense of Sarah wasn¡¯t lacking and was top class. Vanessa worked perfectly according to the orders of Sarah. And Sarah perfectly supported Vanessa with her summons. It was a twin duo battle. However, there was no way for the party to not have limits. ¡®Because of Sarah¡¯s weak physical, she couldn¡¯t bring out the best play of Vanessa.¡¯ If Vanessa¡¯s physical was 100, Sarah was only able to understand 80 to 90 of it. It was because she hadn¡¯t ever come across 100 abilities. So even though she could give better order, there were limits on them. However, Ian was different. Ian had the ability to understand all the abilities of Vanessa and had more game sense than Sarah and had better situational judgment. That was why Ian¡¯s orders could raise the parties¡¯ ability to a higher level. The twins who saw a new person were getting addicted to the orders of Ian. ¡°What is it, Ian? Let¡¯s move fast!¡± ¡°Right, right!¡± Vanessa put her leg into a huge muddy puddle, and she didn¡¯t realize it. ¡°You aren¡¯t tired, right?¡± She tried to provoke Ian. Ian smiled and raised his thumb. ¡°Nice attitude, Vanessa. Let¡¯s run ahead!¡± Then came the new system message in front of the party. Tring-! [Start of ¡®Summoner Pan¡¯s Test II (Career) (Linked)¡¯] [Spirit ¡®Silp¡¯ has been summoned.] [Spirit ¡®Salamander¡¯ has been summoned.] [Spirit weapon ¡®Pillar of Earth¡¯ will disappear.] * * * The first gate of Pan, which was a narrow and long passage. The second gate was entirely different. ¡°Are you going to climb that tower?¡± At the mumbling of Sarah, the second gate was a huge tower. The tower was of great height; it seemed to be around 20 to 30 story high. Subsequently, in front of the group of Ian, a quest related to the second gate was created. Tring-! -Summoner Pan Test II (Career) (Linked) After passing the first gate, you have the chance to challenge the second gate. At the second gate, you will be given a new spirit (Spirit weapon). You must go through the gate using the given spirit, and if any of the spirit given to the party dies, then you will fail to pass the gate. Successfully kill the contaminated spirits and reach the entrance of the third gate. Quest Difficulty: C+ Quest Condition: The user who has received the quest ¡®Summoner Pan¡¯s Test II¡¯. A summoner class or a summoner class member in the party. Time limit: 20 minutes *Breakthrough all the monster waves to reach the third gate and complete the quest. Reward: Transcendence experience of 125 Fame of 100,000 ¡®So the choice of choosing a spirit is gone?¡¯ Ian who read the quest window was feeling intrigued. It was expected what spirit would be given to him. As Ian had thought, system messages suddenly came to his sight. Tring-! [Water Spirit, ¡®Undine¡¯ has been summoned.] [All the unique abilities of the item that were limited will be restored (Items won¡¯t be restored)] ¡°Oh oh¡­!¡± The voice of Vanessa who was excited could be heard. Ian smiled upon hearing Vanessa. ¡®Yeah. I want to use the unique abilities attached to the item.¡¯ Ian seemed to like the place of ¡®Pan¡¯s Gateway¡¯. He never experienced this before; this was a fresh dungeon. The dungeons which needed the use of mind were much more interesting than the simple breakthrough dungeon battles. ¡®Item¡¯s stats only restore their unique abilities at 0.¡¯ Ian was thinking and then changed his gear. [Item ¡®Judgement of Spirit King¡¯ item has been removed.] [Item ¡®Bloody Revenge¡¯ has been equipped.] [Item ¡®Dragon Shield¡¯ has been equipped.] The biggest drawback of the ¡®dragon shield¡¯ equipment was that it greatly reduced the ability of two-handed weapons that were worn. However, in the current situation where the stats were all set to 0, there was no weapon as efficient as the shield. ¡®The indigenous ability attached with the spirit king is surely great but enough to create a variable like the Bloody Revenge.¡¯ Ian who was done selecting his items looked over at Sarah and Vanessa to see what king of spirits and weapons they were given. ¡®Vanessa was given a gnome, and Sarah was given the staff of fire.¡¯ He also realized another fact. ¡®The spirits and the spirit weapons weren¡¯t given randomly.¡¯ Water had been given to Ian who had wind, and Vanessa who was a fire had been given land. Lastly, Sarah who was fire had been given land. They were given the opposite of the attribute they chose at the first gate. Ian once again felt that the combination that was given at the first gate was the most important one. Since the first gateway was well balanced, the second would be well balanced too. Ian smiled while looking at the two sisters. ¡°Are you ready?¡± The twins answered immediately, ¡°Go!¡± ¡°Obviously!¡± * * * If the Fire attribute salamander was a spirit with magic attacks, then the Earth spirit gnome was a pure tanker. The wind spirit Silp was an offensive supporter, and the water spirit Undine was a full-on support spirit. -Undine (Water spirit) Spirit Power: 0/200 Attribute: Water Rank: Minor Spirit Summon Duration: 250 minutes (Recall summon time: 300 minutes) Attack: 65 Defense: 105 Agility: 67 Intellect: 185 Vitality: 3,120 Unique ability *Blessing of Water (30-second cooldown) -Blessing of water creates a thin shield on its target. The shield absorbs all the damage and heals the target with the absorbed amount. The shield lasts for 3 seconds. *When the spirit power reaches MAX, it evolves to a higher spirit. (Each time a spell that requires a water attribute is summoned, a certain amount of spirit power is gained.) *The higher the summoners summoned magic, the longer will be the duration. Ian was very fond of the unique ability of Undine. ¡®On the first gate, there were no unique abilities available. The spirits were the main dealers¡­ now it¡¯s my turn.¡¯ Taking advantage of the unique powers of the Bloody Revenge and the Dragon Shield, Ian was confident to exert more power than all the spirits together. For that reason, the unique ability of Undine which was ¡®support¡¯ was the most efficient for Ian. It would be much more helpful to support Ian than to use offensive magic. Ian started to move into the tower and suggested something to Sarah. ¡°Sarah.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°I think it is better for you to see the orders this time.¡± At the unexpected suggestion of Ian, Sarah couldn¡¯t help but blink. ¡°Why so?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know the unique abilities that are attached to the equipment that you have. Sarah, you, on the other hand, you will know the unique abilities of Vanessa.¡± ¡°That is true.¡± ¡°So this time, Sarah. I¡¯ll leave the orders to you.¡± ¡°Well, then¡­¡± Sarah, who received an order position from Ian nodded her head. There was nothing wrong with it. However, Ian¡¯s words weren¡¯t done yet. ¡°Instead, give me a free role.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°I¡¯ll clear the front for you.¡± ¡®Free Role¡¯ was a term that was used in soccer, it literally meant ¡®unlimited position¡¯. Ian would be able to stir around the battlefield freely, regardless of orders and positions. A position only given to the ace of the team. Ian was going to head into the game at full speed. CH 523 A 25 story glacier spiral structure. Ian and his party went to the fifth floor at a tremendous speed. And it was a natural scenario. The difficulty was significantly different from the first zone, and all of the unique abilities all the items which were removed were opened. The time it took for Ian and his party to reach the fifth floor was exactly five minutes. However, Ian wasn¡¯t so satisfied. No, he wasn¡¯t able to feel satisfied. ¡®The time limit is too short¡­¡¯ It was because the time limit was too short, even though it seemed like it could not break through that quickly. They were drilling one layer per minute, the problem was that they had to go through 25 floors in just 20 minutes. Ascending at that rate, the top floor cannot be reached before the time limit expires. [Passed through the 5th floor of Gate 2 ¡®Ice Spire¡¯] [Entered the 6th floor of ¡®Ice Spire¡¯.] As soon as the 6th floor was entered, the dungeon¡¯s aspect changed. Ku- Kung-! New spirits which haven¡¯t been seen from the 1st to 5th floor started to appear. ¡°They look like higher class spirits, right?¡± In response to Sarah, Vanessa nodded. ¡°Right. There is a guy named ¡®Casa¡¯. Lesser fire attribute spirit. I¡¯ve summoned it and used it.¡± Listening to Sarah, Ian turned a little firm. For those of experiences who have to be gathered for evolving Jack, Ian knew how big the difference of the spirits would be. ¡®I have to find some way.¡¯ Re positioning the handle of the sword, Ian quickly glanced at the map of the 6th floor. Kailan¡¯s planning couldn¡¯t have made it impossible to clear. And with that, Ian¡¯s eyes started to shine. ¡®Till the 5th floor it was stopped, but is it open from the 6th floor?¡¯ Till the 5th floor of the spiral, it was a very simple structure. Breaking through the interior of the tower and moving to the other side, was a way upstairs. But from the 6th floor, it seemed to be the whole structure of the top floor. Stairs that rose endlessly in a spiral shape till the top. And many of the lower spirits were standing of the wide stairs and guarding them. ¡®We can¡¯t arrive in time after passing these.¡¯ The vitality of the lesser spirits weren¡¯t known, but they should be at least high. Ian thought that it would take more than 30 minutes from their current point, no matter how fast they try to kill all those that were blocking their path they¡¯ll have to attack all the spirits in the way. ¡®If this is physically possible, we must try to ignore the monsters.¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes turned forward. Suddenly, Sarah and Vanessa started to climb upstairs. In any case, Ian was given a free roll, so the two of them were doing their jobs. Right then, an unexpected idea came to the mind of Ian. ¡®If I break through the gate¡­ wouldn¡¯t at least one person can reach the last section?¡¯ Nowhere in the quest window was it mentioned that the monsters had to be annihilated. In addition, considering that the case of the first gateway, Ian¡¯s assumptions seemed more plausible. ¡®Right. At the first gate, I was the one who arrived first at the last point. And the completion message came to me before the other two arrived.¡¯ Of course, Ian¡¯s first arrival was only of a small difference that took less than a few seconds. If there was much difference, Ian would have noticed something right away. ¡®Fine, let¡¯s go somewhere and try it.¡¯ Ian grabbed the Bloody Revenge and the Dragon Shield with both his hands and gave orders to Undine. ¡°Undine, you need to catch up with me but stay behind me.¡± Scoop- Scoop-! Undine responded to Ian with a small nod. At that moment, Ian flew to the sky. Phaat-! Bloody Revenge¡¯s unique ability, Blood Split. ¡°Uh, what?!¡± At the bloody colored shadow that was at her side, a surprised voice came out of Sarah¡¯s mouth. The red shadow exploded in front of the spirits that Sarah and Vanessa were attacking. Kwang-! In front of the eyes of the three people, system messages came up. Tring-! [Party member Ian has triggered the unique ability ¡®Blood Split¡¯.] [Lethal damage was done to the lesser spirit Casa.] [You have successfully defeated Casa!] Sarah who was surprised for a moment touched her chest. ¡°Oh, I was shocked. I thought my heart was going to fall off for a second there.¡± Vanessa looked at that with a pout expression. ¡°There are so many others in the front, why did you waste your unique skill in this spot?¡± But the very next moment, the twins couldn¡¯t help but be more surprised. Ian¡¯s form was once again in the air after killing the Casa. But what was shocking, was the spot that Ian had landed. He was at the center of the dungeon. ¡°Why did you go up and come down?¡± ¡°I¡¯d rather pierce through from the front!¡± The place where Ian was using the blood split was at the edge of the stairs that would lead them to the seventh floor. From there he jumped back to the center, which made them think that he would fall back into the 6th floor. But their expectation was completely off. Red blood color began to shine around Ian who hadn¡¯t landed yet. The cooldown reset of Blood Split. Ian¡¯s eyes began to scan sharper than ever. ¡®One guy for now. And two behind.¡¯ With all the equipment stats at zero, it was impossible for killing a spirit with Blood split. Because of that, Ian was about to hit as many spirits as possible with the blood split. ¡®Can¡¯t use weakness capture, so on the safe side, at least five need to be touched.¡¯ If the weakness capture was available, then Ian was likely to hit 100 percent of the critical strike. But the ability to use other items than the ability was itself a probability of hitting 50/50. The location of the critical strike couldn¡¯t be accurately identified. 1 stack of critical hit stacked in the first kill of Casa. And 3 critical strikes will return the cooldown of the Blood Split. With the blood split, he was needed to deal with critical damage to two or more spirits. The whole body of Ian who was shining with red light moved. ¡®Now¡­!¡¯ Pang-! At the same time, Ian¡¯s form who lost the strength in the air fell down and then went to the top again. A bloody flash cut through the air. An intense flash glanced through the spirts that were gathered on the steps. [Lethal damage done to the lesser fire spirit Casa.] [Damage done to the lesser land spirit ¡®Noes¡¯.] [Lethal damage done to the lesser wind spirit ¡®Silap¡¯.] Ian, who held onto the Bloody Revenge, jumped to the group of spirits. And undoubtedly, a red blood fog rose. ¡°How is that possible?¡± Seeing Ian jump up to the eighth floor in a moment, Vanessa couldn¡¯t get her mind clear. She didn¡¯t know the unique ability of blood split. Looking at the blank face of Vanessa, Sarah explained, ¡°It is a unique ability with a conditional cooldown reset option.¡± ¡°Tha, that one?¡± ¡°but the initial conditions are so easy to do¡­¡± While the two sisters were talking, Ian¡¯s form jumped to the upper level again. And then continued more times. [You have met the conditions.] [Reset cooldown on ¡®Blood Split¡¯ unique ability.] Ian quickly climbed to the 10th floor. Pang-! However, the successive use of such skills like blood split wasn¡¯t possible. Unfortunately, less stacks of critical hits would eventually shorten it. The skill linkage would fall. Ian climbed to the eleventh floor, and sighed looking at the gathering spirits. ¡°I cut faster than I thought.¡± It wasn¡¯t an entirely unexpected situation. Ian raised the shield and moved to the spirits. ¡°Kay, should I get exactly five of them?¡± Ian¡¯s mouth went into a smile. * * * Ian was surrounded by numerous spirits. Sarah and Vanessa were both worried and started to shout for Ian. ¡°If you feel like you¡¯re going to die, just jump down!¡± ¡°Yeah, we¡¯ll try to save you somehow.¡± It was natural for having such a concern. Ian¡¯s skills were excellent, but the situation he was in was dangerous. For them, more than a dozen low-level spirits, which they were collectively gathered were supposed to aim at Ian. However, Ian looked rather relaxed. ¡®Should I take out the second card?¡¯ Ian¡¯s second card was a unique ability granted by the dragon shield. The shield¡¯s unique ability, ¡®Dragon Soul¡¯ and the ¡®Wrath of Dragon¡¯ were as good as the Blood Split. ¡®The option of 8 percent transcendence is a bonus.¡¯ These two abilities would help Ian stand tall. *Dragon Soul Communicates with the Dragon Soul, allowing to instantly summon a shield in any wanted location. The summoned summon absorbs all the projectiles for 3 seconds and remains unshattered for 15 seconds. -It can be summoned in three places at the same time. -Can be used even when not equipped. (But must be in the inventory.) -While the Dragon¡¯s soul is in process, all the familiars are healed for 1% per second. Cooldown: 10 minutes *Wrath of Dragon If succeeded in defending an enemy attack, there is a 15% chance to return 50% of the absorbed damage. In addition, each time you block an enemy attack, you gain 0.5% buff and if you accumulate 100 times, you become invincible for 5 seconds. -Buffs can be accumulated up to 100 times and last for 15 seconds. -If the attack is successful before the buff expires, the duration is reset. The ¡®Wrath of Dragon¡¯ was the strongest buff skill and the most survival skill. ¡®Till the blood split come back, let¡¯s catch just five.¡¯ Tat-! Ian set the new target and jumped forward. The first thing that tried to stop him was a ¡®Silap¡¯, a low spirit. Kakang-! The spear in the hand of Silap and the sword in the hand of Ian hit each other, creating a rumbling sound. ¡®This guy seems to be a physical attacking type like Silpid.¡¯ The lesser fire spirit Casa and the wind spirit Silap. They were the two kinds of enemies that were surrounding Ian. ¡®In order to take a lead of the battle, I need to know the unique ability of Casa.¡¯ Silap¡¯s unique ability was already known to a rough extent. As he ascended to the top, he saw a few scenes of the unique ability of Silap. A short-range damage deal skill that swings the spear rapidly and pokes forward. On the other hand, the unique ability of casa wasn¡¯t known yet. ¡®Should I draw the aggro?¡¯ Ka-gang-! Ian pushed the rushing Silap as hard as he could and used the reaction to jump to the other side. And began to observe Casas in detail. ¡®If the unique ability is a non-targeting range skill, I will start casting it by now¡­¡¯ The faster the target moves and the better the skill, the more difficult it becomes to hit with the non-target-able skill. But somehow, the non-target-able skills were inevitable, it was time to jump to the air. Unless it had a unique ability, there was no way it could change the direction of the attack. And predicting the drop point of a target wasn¡¯t so difficult once the target jumped, and the projectile could be released in advance to that point. As monsters with a certain level of AI were designed to activate the skill aimed at that drop point. Ian was aiming at that system. ¡®Surely¡­!¡¯ And the expectations of Ian were on point. Woong-! Red flames began to rise all around the five Casas that were near Ian. CH 524 Ku-kung- Kung-! ¡°What is that?¡± At the Ice spire, on the 25th floor. With a loud vibration coming from the bottom, a man looked down to see what was happening. And the other guy who was next to him asked, ¡°Ralph, what was that? The time limit is very short!¡± ¡°I know, Chesk. There are exactly 5 minutes and 30 seconds left. ¡± ¡°Don¡¯t act too freely, Ralph. Don¡¯t you think that it is better to clear it a little sooner?¡± ¡°Wait a minute now. I think there is someone below us.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Kalian¡¯s Ralph was a top-ranked US server and the second-ranked warrior class user. A few days ago, he succeeded in forming a base party for the Spirit Dimension. The number of party members was 4, including the party leader Ralph. Ralph ranked 2nd in the warrior class of the US server, Chesk ranking 4th in the archer class. And a priest of 14th rank¡ªMuel, and a 7th ranking summoner, Inisco. In fact, Ralph knew about the Spirit dimension a week ago. The reason why he couldn¡¯t enter was because he couldn¡¯t find a summoner who met the conditions. Currently, there were less than 10 summoners in the US server with a level of over 400. It was just yesterday that Ralph had entered the spirit dimension. Which was why he was a bit shocked by the situation. ¡®Has the information about the spirit dimension been leaked already? How could a late comer get inside, already!?¡¯ Currently, most of the rankers in the US server were extremely dedicated to clearing the Lich King episode. As far as Ralph knew, there was no one who would come to attack the spirit dimension in a given situation. Ralph¡¯s eyes which were looking below the stairs were shinning. ¡®Who could it be?¡¯ Since the spire was completely open in the middle, it could be seen. And the staircase just wrapped around the corners of the spiral tower. Ralph¡¯s eyes were quickly scanning for the intruder. After a second¡­ ¡®Found it!¡¯ His eyes came across a man with a sword in his hand. A man who seemed to be wearing a knight class equipment. Ralph¡¯s face soon took a ridiculous expression. ¡°What? Don¡¯t tell me¡­ he came in alone?¡± Chesk who heard the mumbling of Ralph stepped in. ¡°What? There really is someone?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± Chesk tried to look in the direction where Ralph¡¯s eyes were stuck to. ¡°That one, what kind of a guy is he?¡± ¡°Any guess as to what kind of a ranker he is?¡± ¡°No, can¡¯t say. He looks like a knight class from the looks of it¡­ but can¡¯t confirm, as the helmet covers the face.¡± Ralph¡¯s face was turning crumbled. He had given up all the contributions of the Lich King episode just to monopolize the new content, that was the whole reason he had come to the spirit dimension. ¡®If only I could just PK¡­ this is getting one of my nerves.¡¯ Chesk grabbed Ralph¡¯s hand and opened his mouth, ¡°Let¡¯s worry about it later, let¡¯s move to the next section, Ralph. Muel and Inisco are waiting for us.¡± ¡°Khum, think so?¡± ¡°And, there is no need to worry.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°That guy will barely make it to the gate.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°How can a knight class user who had lost all the party members even come till here?¡± ¡°Lost the party?¡± ¡°Think about it. How could he even enter here without a summoner?¡± ¡°Ah¡­!¡± ¡°He came in with a party, just like we did, but is left all alone.¡± Ralph shook his head and tried to clear all the negative thoughts with the reasoning of Chesk. He was too embarrassed to have missed such a simple theory. It was a prerequisite condition that a summoner was needed to enter the Gate of Pan. And this time, his face turned normal and brighter. ¡®Yeah well. The difference is a lot.¡¯ Dozens of spirits were surrounding the knight class assumed user, and without any concern or regret, Ralph took another step forward. The fact that a latecomer had entered the spirit dimension, meant that the content information about the Spirit dimension had spread throughout the world. Which gave him another reason to hurry. * * * From the mouth of the spirit, lava sprung out endlessly. A unique ability of the ¡®Casa¡¯ which was similar to the water cannon¡ªa ¡®Lava Cannon¡¯. Fire streams of canons started to flow into Ian who was about to land. No matter how one saw it, there was no place he could retreat to, and it didn¡¯t seem like it could be escaped. Ian looked at the point where the lava cannon would hit. Woong-! With a low resonance, Ian¡¯s shield began to shine with a blue glow. ¡°Dragon¡¯s soul!¡± From the mouth of Ian, words came out a bit sloppily. And blue light began to shine around Ian. Three translucent shields were created around Ian. Wheeing-! Mysterious shields with three coordinates appeared around Ian. Three shields which were created in a noticeably short time began to block the incoming stacks of the lava. Though the angle or the coordinates of the shields were a bit misaligned, the three shields were summoned in the wanted positions. Kwakwakwa-! However, that wasn¡¯t the end of the crisis yet. It wasn¡¯t three Lava canons that were shot at Ian. The other two lava canons were still rushing in his direction. An instant situation. If Ian fell to the ground, then the lava would hit Ian. But at that moment, Ian came down and swung the shield¡¯s angle. ¡®Now¡­!¡¯ Kwahh-! Under the pressure that was being exerted by the Lava canon, Ian was pushed back a little. Thud-! Using the force of Lava, he landed in the place a little behind where he should have originally landed. And as Ian got pushed out of his direction, the last stream of Lava canon hit the original trajectory. Swhho-! And subsequently, lines of system messages came before Ian. [You have successfully blocked using the shield!] [Absorbed 88.95 percent of the ¡®Lava Canon¡¯.] [Vitality has been reduced by 174!] [¡®Wrath of the Dragon¡¯ unique ability has been triggered.] [Attack damage has been increased by 0.5 percent.] The control that Ian just displayed was perfectly designed. Starting from the coordinates of the three summoned shields, using the Lava as a recoil in the last minute. All the actions were calculated. ¡®The time difference is much worse than I imagined.¡¯ The five Casa¡¯s unique ability was triggered at the same moment, but their distance from Ian was different. Ian first blocked the three lava canons nearest to him and then went to block the farther ones. Using the time difference between the two Lava canons with the largest distance, the coordinates for landing was changed. It was theoretically possible, with calculation and movement. Ian confirmed his cut down vitality and mumbled to himself, ¡°Much stronger than I thought?¡± Ian had absorbed nearly 90 percent of the damage and took in 174 damage. In other words, if they were hit in the earth, then he would have suffered nearly 1600 damage. ¡®Three stacks and I would have died.¡¯ With all the item stats at 0, Ian¡¯s transcendence vitality was less than 5,000. If the damage was about 4,800¡ªit was natural he would¡¯ve been goaled. Although the amount of damage they had was unexpected, it turned out cool. ¡®I¡¯ll have to stay on.¡¯ Ian recovered the shield. It was time to fight back. ¡®Should I start with the ones who lost their unique ability?¡¯ Ian glanced around and jumped forward. Tattat-! The wind spirits ¡®Silap¡¯ were rushing in, and the target Casa¡¯s were in the back. Kakang-! Ian moved his shield against the Silaps lightly and began to wield the Bloody Revenge. At the same time, system messages came in front. [¡®Wrath of the Dragon¡¯, unique ability has been triggered.] [Attack damage is increased by 0.5 percent.] [¡®Wrath of the Dragon¡¯, unique ability has been triggered.] [Attack damage is increased by 0.5 percent.] Ian had a simple strategy. With the fast attacks from the Silaps, he was trying to stack in the maximum buffs. An attack buff with the ¡®wrath of the Dragon¡¯ unique ability that stacks 0.5% for every successful shield block. And preventing the Silaps from attacking, it would allow him to get a maximum of 100 stacks. Kakak-! In addition, the Wrath of the Dragon had a 15% chance of reflecting the absorbed damage. [¡®Wrath of the Dragon¡¯, unique ability has been triggered.] [Given damage to the lesser wind spirit ¡®Silap¡¯.] [Inflicted 487 damage to Silap!] Spirits with vitality less than 10,000, but the cumulative damage of 400 to 500 wasn¡¯t negligible! And so by just blocking, Ian was able to cut down their vitality little by little. ¡°What¡­?!¡± Ian tried to squeeze through the spirits and began to attack the nearest Casa first. Swack-! Since the buff was already superimposed, Ian¡¯s blade was very sharp. In addition, the Casa was a magic offensive spirit and because of that, the tanking was much weaker than that of the Silap. [Lethal damage done to the Fire spirit ¡®Casa¡¯!] [Vitality of Casa has been reduced by 502.] [Vitality of Casa has been reduced by 635.] As soon as the attacks started to get hit, the vitality gauge started to fall. And the vitality of Ian wasn¡¯t that great either. [Vitality left: 2,984] Successful shield blocking doesn¡¯t account for 0 damage, so the accumulated damage had been made. Of course, he can¡¯t stop or dodge all the time, so he decided to get attacked. Ian regularly checked the vitality and the stacks of the ¡®Wrath of the Dragon¡¯ buff. ¡¯38 overlapping¡­ it will be hard to hold on till the stack gets full.¡¯ When the wrath of the dragon gets a 100 stacks, the buff would come, but another ability could be activated. For 5 seconds duration, he would be completely invincible. But before the 100 stacks could be made, it looked like the vitality of Ian would be running out. ¡®Then, I can¡¯t help it.¡¯ Ian started to move much more aggressively and began to attack the ¡®Casa¡¯. Did it take 20 seconds? Ian took down one of the Casa and almost died at the same time. That moment, the unique ability of Undine, the water spirit which was behind Ian followed. [The water spirit ¡®Undine¡¯, unique ability ¡®Blessing of Water¡¯ has been initiated.] A shield began to flow all around Ian with a light blue glow. Ian jumped in front of the Casa with his backed shield. A fireball had come flying from the Casa, but it didn¡¯t matter. No, he had to get hit with the fireball straight on. Only then would they fill up the lost vitality. [¡®Casa¡¯ has been seriously damaged!] [¡®Blessing of Water¡¯ has been triggered.] [Vitality has been restored by 1,209.] In addition, the attacks from the Silaps from the back were received. [Vitality has been restored by 598.] [Vitality has been restored by 759.] Due to that, Ian¡¯s vitality which dropped to the bottom was back to a safe level. The ¡®Blessing of Water¡¯ was a unique ability that lasted for 3 seconds, but it was enough for Ian. Whoong-! A transparent protective film which fulfilled the role vanished into the air. And if the Blessing of Water had to be used again, Ian had to wait for another 27 seconds. ¡®There is wrath of the dragon. I¡¯ll hold it till then.¡¯ Ian, who completed the battle cycle, began to run wild. He started the damage calculations and all the designs were done perfectly, so there was no reason to falter. [¡®Wrath of the Dragon¡¯, unique ability has been triggered.] [Invincible state has been triggered.] Ian wielded a sword with blood and cut things crazily. However, though Ian was raging out, not one spirit had died. Only a dozen of them had got their vitality cut to half or less than half. Ian wasn¡¯t aiming for that, but he was trying to bring down as many of spirits as he could. How much time had passed? Tring-! Once again, a system message came in front of Ian. [¡®Blood Split¡¯, unique ability is ready to be used.] And with that, the bloody red color of the sword began to shine again. CH 525 ¡°Vanessa, let¡¯s drill on the left side! Please cover me!¡± ¡°Kay, Unnie!¡± Ian had slipped out of the party¡¯s range, but the twins were climbing the tower. During the five minutes taken by Ian, they climbed three floors. He climbed a floor every minute, and Ian¡¯s speed hadn¡¯t fallen. But now, if one thought about it, with just 10 minutes away from the time, the situation seemed rather grim. ¡®Heu, won¡¯t¡­ won¡¯t we fail if we continue things this way?¡¯ Sarah thought to herself as she looked ahead at the stairs. They were now really expecting some kind of variable to be created by Ian. ¡°I should have brought a wand which had the unique ability of Blink¡­¡± In fact, the gate they were all moving at was rather difficult, as all the skills excluding the unique abilities to the items were all limited. If it was possible to use the skills, then they would have been able to reach the top part of the tower by using the teleportation spell ¡®Blink¡¯. Just as Sarah said, it would have been easy for them if they had an item that had Blink as its unique ability. Suddenly, Sarah¡¯s mind drifted to Ian, who had moved up first. Ian had smashed through with a strange way, taking advantage of the Bloody Revenge¡¯s unique ability. ¡®Since I didn¡¯t get a party message, he couldn¡¯t have died¡­ where and what is he doing?¡¯ Ian had gone up ahead of them, but their party message board was rather quiet. They didn¡¯t know what he was up to, and they didn¡¯t even get a message saying that he had killed any spirit. ¡®He surely is a great guy but¡­ it is better to tone down my expectations on him, right?¡¯ Sarah had a bitter smile on her face. To think that failing a quest that can¡¯t be cleared in a single try was a natural thing. But then. Ring-! The sound of a system message notification came. [Party member ¡®Ian¡¯ has defeated the fire spirit ¡®Casa¡¯!] [Transcendence experience increased by 16.] ¡°Oh¡­?¡± ¡°Uh?¡± Both Sarah and Vanessa looked up at the message and then looked to the ceiling of the tower at the same time. It was unexpected as they had got a system message about Ian after 5 minutes of not getting any information about him. ¡°What could have happened?¡± Mumbled Vanessa to herself, looking at the ceiling. But then, a lot of system messages began to pop up in front of them. Tring-! [Party member ¡®Ian¡¯ defeated the fire spirit ¡®Casa¡¯.] [Party Member ¡®Ian¡¯ defeated the fire spirit ¡®Casa¡¯.] ¡­ Syncopation ¡­ [Party member ¡®Ian¡¯ defeated the wind spirit ¡®Silp¡¯.] ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°What is this?¡± At the incomprehensible situation, the twins were both wide-eyed. In less than three seconds, messages started to come in front of them, more than a dozen spirits were killed off. The messages were rather inconceivable for the two who never witnessed the battle of Ian. ¡°How is this¡­ even possible?¡± Vanessa mumbled to herself with a stupid expression, forgetting that she was facing an enemy. At the moment, the shadow of a red figure appeared in front of the two sisters. * * * Sack- Swaswak-! Along with the sounds of sharp objects that were cutting through the air, a red fog started to rise in all the directions. In the middle of the steeple covered with white snow, a red shadow was flashing. And where the shadow passed, the body of the spirits was falling down. A picture that looked like a scene added an effect to the blood split ¡®reset the cooldown on skill¡¯. It was a spectacular sight. Tring-! [Specific conditions have been met!] [You have earned the title ¡®Spirit Slayer¡¯!] Unexpected title, but Ian didn¡¯t care for it. It was hero rank due to the purple color. Among the titles Ian had, a lot of them were legendary and that was why he didn¡¯t care for the current one. He couldn¡¯t even afford to care. The important thing for Ian right now was to break through the 25th floor. Phat-! Instantly annihilating the thirteen spirits, Ian leaped to the air. He then looked up at the sky of the tower, which would go straight to the top floor. ¡®If this is the distance¡­ then it is possible enough!¡¯ Wooong-! With subtle vibration, Ian¡¯s figure started to turn red again. It was the beginning of a gallop. Pang-! Ian shot vertically with an intense sound. Since it wasn¡¯t a diagonal jump, Ian broke through three to four floors at the same time. And that wasn¡¯t the end. Pang- papang-! At the same time, the momentum of the Blood split that was activated disappeared, and the unique ability got activated again. That continued four times in a row. Swwooah-! Ian¡¯s shadow danced in all directions and soared to the top of the spire. Ian managed to land on a place where two gates could be seen. The 25th floor of the spire. Tat-! Ian landed lightly on the floor and sighed in relief. ¡°Wow, I did it!¡± Ian smiled. He wiped the sweat off of his forehead and looked proud. Even this time, Ian wasn¡¯t sure whether he would be successful or not. But how did Ian managed to trigger Blood split four times in a row? That too, in the air, where no monsters exist. The reason why was the ¡®Critical hit¡¯ stacks. Conditional option in the blood split that could reset the cooldown after 3 critical strikes. Ian had accumulated more than 12 critical strike stacks. In fact, building four or more critical stacks was impossible under normal circumstances. When the critical stack was three, the cooldown of the skill would come back because the stack would disappear. But there was an exception. Despite three or more critical strikes, Blood split was active. There was only one way to make that situation possible. Killing an enemy at the moment of the third critical hit. If the Blood split was triggered, and the enemy died, the cooldown would return regardless of the critical stack. Ian used the system to collect the spirits without killing them. Over a couple of death crisis. The strategy of waiting for the blood split¡¯s cooldown on a tightrope, as one could see, the situation worked out perfectly. ¡°Well, then¡­ should I finish it now?¡± Mumbling to himself in a small voice, Ian quickly moved toward the destination of his. There were spirits rushing in, but he had no time to deal with them. It was because the contribution would be high if it was cleared a little early. 25th floor. A white portal in the north direction. Arriving there, Ian jumped in without hesitation. The system messages that he had waited appeared in front of Ian. Tring-! [Successfully broke through the second gate!] [Contribution calculated.] [Ian: 1,765 SS+] [Sarah: 497 C] [Vanessa: 510 C] [If your contribution is below D, you will be dropped from the gate.] [If you got dropped out due to lack of contribution, you can try again.] Pleasant messages about the successful breakthrough appeared. As expected, if just one person arrived at the gate, the test would be cleared. The system messages were still going. [You have successfully completed the quest ¡®Summoner Pan¡¯s Test II (Career) (Linked)¡¯!] [Earned transcendence experience of 125.] [Acquired fame of 100,000.] [Time left: 8 minutes 26 seconds/20 minutes.] [Clear grade: S+] [Cleared as S or higher] [Gained 50 Spirit magic (Transcendence)] [Gained 30 summon magic (Transcendence)] Seeing as much as 50 spirit magic and 30 summon magic, Ian was on Cloud 9. ¡®Surely, the A-class clearing and the S class clearing are highly different.¡¯ And Ian¡¯s view brightened as more messages came into his sight. Tring-! [You have met the transcendence level requirement.] [Transcendence level has risen.] [Transcendence level 5!] * * * [The quest ¡®Summoner Pan¡¯s test III (Career) (Linked)¡¯ begins.] [Sprit ¡®Undine¡¯ will be summoned.] [Spirit ¡®Gnome¡¯ has been dismissed.] [Spirit weapon ¡®Fire wand¡¯ will be destroyed.] According to the Prettybbook, who was the guardian of the Frost cave, the gates of Pan were three. And that meant that Ian was finally at the last gate. ¡°Phew!¡± After taking a deep breath, Ian took a step forward. At the same time, two shadows appeared right behind Ian. Woong- Woong-! It was the shadows of the twins who were staring at Ian from the 8th floor. ¡°That was¡­ that was awesome!¡± ¡°What kind of spell did you do?¡± The twins. Vanessa took the hand of Ian and was shaking it violently. ¡°Ian, that was amazing!¡± ¡°From today onwards, I have decided to respect you!¡± ¡°You are really something!¡± In fact, the linked quest was much more important and meaningful for the summoner Vanessa than her magician sister Sarah. The chance to get ¡®spirit magic¡¯ that was similar to the summoner¡¯s new content depended on the success of the quest. Ian smiled at the twins and told them, ¡°I¡¯ll take your thanks after we clear it till the end.¡± ¡°Okay. After I finish all the quests of the spirit, I¡¯ll say that again!¡± ¡°Right right. Come to Frankfurt to play. I¡¯ll feed you meet till your stomach burst.¡± Looking at the two excited twins, Ian just shook his head. ¡®Frankfurt huh¡­ I haven¡¯t even been to Jeju.¡¯ For Ian who hadn¡¯t taken a single flight yet, Germany was too far away. In any case, the three of them arrived at the final gate and looked around the map. The first gate was a long passage. The second gate was a spiral stair to the top. The third gate was a large vacant lot. In the middle of the large vacant lot was a huge crystal of sort. ¡®What is that?¡¯ A crystal made of a translucent material, much similar to that of ice. There was something inside of it, but it was hard to make out what it was as the light was being refracted. ¡°Would we go there to that side?¡± At the question from Sarah, Ian nodded. ¡°Yes. I feel like there is something in there¡­ in it.¡± Ian and his group took a careful step forward toward the crystal. The third quest hadn¡¯t come up yet, nor did they know about the kind of variables that would come for them. The three of them reached forward. Woong-! A white light began to shine from the inside of the crystal. Tring-! The final quest came to the sight of Ian and his party. -Summoner Pan¡¯s Test III (Career) (Linked) The final test of Pan awaits you as you safely passed the second gate of the Frost cave. At the third gate, you will be given a new spirit (Spirit weapon). You must survive the last gate using the given spirit, and if the spirit given to the party dies, the test of the party will be failed. Survive from the contaminated spirits till the end, and let¡¯s take the vision of the spirit left by Pan. Quest difficulty: B Quest Condition: The user who cleared the quest ¡®Summoner Pan¡¯s Test II¡¯. A summoner class or a summoner in the party. Time limit: None *Survive all the monster waves and kill all of them, and the quest clearing conditions will be met. Reward: Transcendence experience 200 Fame of 200,000 ¡®Is this a survival quest or an annihilation quest?¡¯ Ian quickly read the quest window and mumbled to himself. At the same time, a message came up that informed them of the conditions of the last gate. [Flame Spirt ¡®Ignis¡¯ has been summoned.] [All the constraints have disappeared] And with that, the final battle in the Frost Cave had begun. CH 526 Chapter 526: New Content, Spirit Spell 6 All the constraints were lifted. In other words, it meant that one could summon all the summons and all the skills could be used which were blocked till then. As soon as that message was checked, Ian and Vanessa started to summon their summons as if they were competing. ¡°Ly, Halli summon!¡± ¡°Rakuming, summon!¡± ¡°Karceus, summon!¡± ¡°Cortus summon!¡± The rather vacant lot began to get crowded with numerous summons. As a top-ranking user of Germany, Vanessa had a great number of summons as well. After all the summons had been summoned, Ian thought to himself. ¡®Tch, if only Lugarix had been here, most of the Middle-Earth mediation would have been done¡­¡¯ Lugarix with a transcendence level of 45. If the whole party of Ian tried, they wouldn¡¯t be able to win over Lugarix in the Middle-Earth. Ian wanted to get the ¡®Valor¡¯s Qualification¡¯ and tackle Lugarix. ¡®While I¡¯m going for transcendence level of 10, I¡¯ll have to find out about the Warrior¡¯s village, too.¡¯ While Ian¡¯s mind was drifting in thoughts of such, a white light began to shine from the bottom of the spacious dungeon. The monster wave was about to begin. But before the battle began, Vanessa sneaked behind Ian. She then said with a trembling voice, ¡°I¡­ Ian.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°You¡­ what¡¯s your identity?¡± Vanessa¡¯s eyes swayed, looking at the summons of Ian. ¡°What was that? What do you mean?¡± ¡°Nothing. It¡¯s just¡­ does this make sense?¡± Vanessa lifted her finger and began to point at the far right side where BBookbbook was. She pointed at Bbookbbook, a giant dragon with blue scales. ¡°That is an Abyss Dragon.¡± ¡°yeah.¡± ¡°Next to it¡­ Dragon of War?¡± ¡°Right.¡± ¡°Halican, and a Sovereign Fenrir and Griffin. In addition to it a Phoenix¡­ that¡­ what is that dragon-shaped tortoise?¡± ¡°That is Bbakbbak.¡± ¡°Bbakbbak?¡± ¡°So you know them all.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Vanessa was a summoner in the German server rankings. She would definitely know about all the summons. In front of her was Ian¡¯s ridiculous summons. ¡®How can a user have two God dragons? Is this possible with the Kailan episode?¡¯ In addition, it was her first time seeing a giant skeleton warrior and a balrog like summon. ¡®Furthermore, they all seem to be above the legendary level¡­ how much leadership does he have?¡¯ It didn¡¯t end there¡­ The thoughts of Vanessa were disturbed due to a voice. ¡°Hey, auntie.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Why did you forget about me?¡± A girl in pure white clothes approached Vanessa and smiled brightly. Vanessa met her eyes and went stiff for a whole moment. She went crazily angry the moment she heard the word ¡®auntie¡¯. ¡°What? Aun¡­ auntie?¡± However, her anger couldn¡¯t continue much further. The pretty girl¡¯s body started to grow bigger and bigger. Swwoong-! A moment later¡­ A dragon with pure white light glowing around it appeared. The Dragon Elcarix, the Dragon of light, following the Abyss Dragon and the war dragon. ¡°¡­!¡± Vanessa was at a loss of words, and Ian¡¯s voice could be heard right then. ¡°Kay, let¡¯s work hard till the end!¡± Vanessa barely noticed and looked around. The spirits of the contaminated ones were rushing toward the party of Ian. * * * ¡°Ralph, hold on a little longer!¡± ¡°Fuck, I wish we had some knight class for this situation.¡± ¡°Muel, heal faster!¡± There was a huge spirit that had the form of a golem that composed of lumps of rocks. Four users were going against the earth spirit ¡®Cruel¡¯ and were struggling a lot. They were the party of Ralph, the ones who appeared at the third gate before the party of Ian. Bang-! Mumbling to himself, Ralph bit his lip and barely managed to avoid the rocks that were falling from the air. ¡®Surely, maybe this was something that 5 had to try?¡¯ The dungeon NPC¡ªthe tortoise¡ªhad recommended trying with a 5 member party. Ralph, however, ignored those words and launched into the dungeon. It was due to several reasons. First, he was confident. Second, he was busy trying to pre-empt the content. Third, he didn¡¯t want to share the content with any more users. Until he cleared the second dungeon, the idea of Ralph was indeed fine. The party member ¡®Muel¡¯ had the unique ability of a speed buff of a top tier relic so they managed to pass through the gate easily. The ¡®Blessing of Miro¡¯, the strongest known unique ability as of the moment. The God of Wind ¡®Miro¡¯ was the one who blessed the unique ability, and the effects of it were amazing. The downside of the skill was that the enemies couldn¡¯t be attacked while the buff was in place, but all the members of the party were temporarily invulnerable, increasing their movement agility by 300 percent. Of course, it indeed was a meaningless ability when it came to battle that needed monsters to be killed. But in the second gate, it was almost like a cheat skill. Thanks to that ability, they were able to reach the 20th floor easily, and they had to just go through 5 floors within the time limit. ¡°Inisco, protect the spirits! If any of the spirits dies, the quest fails too!¡± ¡°Okay, Ralph!¡± However, it had been three hours since they entered the gate. The enemies were being killed and killed and being created endlessly. There was no time to rearrange themselves. Even the first ranked ¡®high-spirits¡¯ just seemed too impossible to be dealt with. Even if they did had another party member, how would they do it? It was like they were walking on a tightrope, but in just 10 minutes, the whole party would get wiped out. If anyone of them lost concentration and made even a single mistake, it would annihilate the whole party. ¡°Chesk, get yourself together! Muel almost got stunned!¡± ¡°Ralph, please stop them from coming in!¡± ¡°Euahh!¡± A hell-like survival marathon where their blood dried up and their sweat fell down. At the bottom of the Ralph party, a green circle of magic began to form quickly. ¡°¡­!¡± Ralph who realized it couldn¡¯t help but feel devastated. ¡°Why did this have to come out now¡­!?¡± The earth spirit Cruel¡¯s unique ability ¡®Swamp land¡¯ had been activated. A powerful range control CC (Crowd Control) unique ability to immerse all the objects within its range into a ¡®petrified¡¯ state for a certain duration. The downside for the users was that the casting time of Swamp land was only 5 seconds, which meant they were doomed. As long as the magic circle had been drawn, there was no way to get out. Kung-! Instantly, a grey energy started to shine from their feet, and the bodies of all the members of Ralph¡¯s party went stiff. ¡°Ah, no!¡± Huge rocks rushed toward them. Ralph who realized it closed his eyes. Checkmate. There was no other way for them to try anymore, it was because they were in an unknown land. And then came the system messages. Tring-! [The vitality of fire spirit ¡®Ingnis¡¯ has been exhausted.] [The vitality of party member ¡®Muel¡¯ has dropped to 5 percent.] [The vitality of party member ¡®Chesk¡¯ has dropped to 5 percent.] ¡­ Syncopation ¡­ [You have failed to break through the 3rd gate.] [Moved to the entrance of the Frost Cave.] * * * Numerous boulders and debris were laid out in front of the huge crystal. The wreckage of the land spirit ¡®Cruel¡¯ had caused the ground to break here and there and started to shine in green. Swoong-! Starting with that, the bodies of many of the spirits which were piled onto the floor scattered. Woong-! Depending on the attributes of the spirits, many colors of lights were scattered in all directions. However, Vanessa¡¯s eyes were stuck on just one thing. Dump-! Vanessa, who was sitting on the floor, shook her head and mumbled something, ¡°This¡­ finally¡­ being¡­¡± The last gate of the Frost Cave, a weird dungeon that roughly looked like the last battle of an episode. Of course, if they had a five-member party, the gate could have been cleared much easier. However, the trio seemed to be a crazy number to try, yet they could try to pull it off. Sarah, who was seated next to Vanessa, mumbled in a low voice, ¡°That is a real monster¡­¡± Vanessa responded to Sarah, ¡°Yeah, totally. I never knew that higher spirits were so powerful.¡± But Sarah shook her head and looked to the side. ¡°No, not that monster.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± ¡°Not that one. That is the monster I¡¯m talking about.¡± A small exclamation came out of Vanessa¡¯s mouth when she realized what Sarah was talking about. ¡°Ah¡­¡± At the place where Sarah was pointing at, a man who was standing still appeared. He was very lively. Vanessa opened her mouth, but she couldn¡¯t speak. In front of them came system messages which reminded them of their quest. Tring-! [Successfully broke through the third gate!] [Contribution is calculated.] [Ian: 1533 S+] [Sarah: 987 B+] [Vanessa: 1025 A] [If the contribution is below D, you will be dropped from the gate.] [If you drop out due to lack of contribution, you can try again.] Vanessa and Sarah both sighed out of relief at the same time. ¡°Pheww.¡± ¡°Phew¡­¡± It was because they were anxious whether or not their contribution would be below D. They were sure that it wouldn¡¯t be the case. But even then, they were thinking about what if that was the case. It was possible to re-challenge as long as the contribution was low, but that wasn¡¯t the problem. The thought of trying this dungeon again made them feel creeped out. That too without Ian. [You have successfully completed the quest ¡®Summoner Pan¡¯s Test III (Career) (Linked)¡¯!] [You have earned transcendence level of 200.] [Acquired fame of 200,000.] [Total time: 2 hours 47 minutes 52 seconds] [Clear Grade: S] [Completed with S or higher grade.] [Gained spirit magic (Transcendence) of 50] [Gained summon magic (transcendence) of 30.] As the rest of the messages came up, the eyes of the twins started to look lively. They wanted to take a break right away, but the reward seemed so sweet to do it. Subsequently, the large crystal floated in front of them and created a portal for the party of Ian. A familiar tortoise was coming out of it. ¡°Good job bbook. You have passed all the tests bbook!¡± They saw the NPC that led them to the dungeon, Prettybbook. With a glad expression, Ian asked, ¡°Is it all done now, Prettybbook-ah?¡± ¡°Yeah, yeah. This much is enough for you guys to deserve the legacy that was left behind by Pan bbook!¡± As soon as her words were done, the crystal that was shining scattered. It created a white shiny power all through the place. CH 527 After the quests related to the Frost cave were completed, all the rewards began to spread before the eyes of Ian¡¯s party. Staring with the transcendence experience, many stats related to spirit were coming up. And there was a ¡®spirit spell¡¯ content specifically for a summoner. Needless to say that both Ian and Vanessa were both smiling till their ears. Tring-! [You have used the item ¡®Pan¡¯s secret instructions¡¯ item.] [Acquired ¡®intermediate spirit¡¯.] [New content of ¡®Spirit spell¡¯ has been opened. (Only for the Korean server of Kailan.)] [From now, the summoner class will be able to learn the ¡®spirit spell¡¯ from all the spirits of the Spirit dimension.] [Have pioneered the spirit spell.] [Increase of fame by 500,000.] [Obtained spirit magic (transcendence) of 100.] [Obtained summon magic (transcendence) of 60.] [¡®Affinity¡¯ (transcendence) increased by 15.] [Leadership (transcendence) increased by 17.] When the spirit spell opened, Ian was being surrounded in five different colors. After a while, all the rays of light that were circling around Ian got sucked into the chest. Since it was the first content of the Middle-Earth that was opened, there was nothing else extraordinary than the rewards. However, Ian wasn¡¯t wondering about those stuff. With the next messages that popped up, he was trying to gather any information that could mean anything. ¡®So¡­ if failed, it is a quest can¡¯t be tried again. I guess there was a reason for it.¡¯ In fact, the penalty for failure as no more re-challenge was a terrible one. At first glance, it was like the new content of ¡®spirit spell¡¯ could be lost forever with a single fail. So Ian, in the beginning, determined that the difficulty of ¡®Pan¡¯s Gate¡¯ wouldn¡¯t be that difficult. If the ¡®spirit spell¡¯ couldn¡¯t be obtained in the first quest and fails, the sense of deprivation would be enormous for anyone. But Ian¡¯s predictions were all wrong. The quest difficulty was much harder than he had imagined. Even the last gate, even if it was Ian, there was no way that he could have cleared it all by himself. Therefore, Ian determined that there could be other ways to obtain the ¡®spirit spell¡¯ in the forest in addition to the quest in the Frost Cave. If another quest is given or maybe there was another way, there could be other manners for the spirit spell to be obtained. And from the messages he just confirmed, he realized that part of his guess was indeed right. If just one person per server clears the quest, the summoner users of that specific server will be able to learn the spirit spell. Thanks to the effort of Ian, the summoner users of the Korean server, if they could enter the spirit dimension, then they would be able to learn the spirit spell without much difficulty. ¡®Well, there is nothing majorly wrong with that. The stat rewards are ridiculously great.¡¯ Starting with the spirit magic and leadership. Ian¡¯s mouth smiled as he confirmed the reward. The increase of the affinity and the leadership with 15 and 17 did seem a bit too insignificant, but that wasn¡¯t the case at all. The proficiency multiplier if the Middle-Earth and the earth were 100:1. The leadership of 1700 meant another mythical beast of a level 400 or higher. And again, there was a few more important information in the message. ¡®Content that could be used by the Korean server users only¡­¡¯ With that information, Ian was able to speculate the direction of Kailan¡¯s ¡®Middle-Earth¡¯ planning. ¡®I think they want to put in competitions between the servers.¡¯ Depending on the speed of the opening content, the speed of the development of the server users would depend. And Kailan¡¯s servers were split by countries. And as Ian had guessed, if the competition between the countries would be created soon. ¡®Soon the Middle-Earth with PK will be opened.¡¯ After completing the analysis, Ian stared at Vanessa and Sarah. Simple-minded Vanessa was just moving around, but Sarah was quite serious about something. Ian was thinking to himself. ¡®Huhu, if one understands the game well like Sarah, they would¡¯ve noticed that I¡¯m not a user of the German server.¡¯ At least would be able to guess that Ian wasn¡¯t a user of the German server¡­ When the message of ¡®only for Kailan 00 server users¡¯ had come up, a little more could be understood, then the truth could be inferred. A small laugh escaped from the mouth of Ian when his eyes met with Sarah¡¯s. Sarah had an expression which said she wanted to ask a lot. And it was something that could be talked about after getting out of the Frost Cave, but Ian had another important thing he had to do. It was time to check that new content of ¡®spirit spell¡¯. -Beginner Spirit Spell Classification: Passive Skill Level: Lv 0 Skill proficiency: 0 percent Magic consumption: none It is the ability to summon and communicate with the spirits. The higher the skill level and proficiency of the ¡®spirit spell¡¯, the more summoned spirits and the spirit magic could be used. The combat abilities of the spirit will increase in proportion to the affinity stats of the summoner. Spirit magic increases in proportion to the summoner affinity stat. *Current extra stats (Based on the level of skill 0.) Summoned spirit¡¯s battle ability is increased by (100%) as of affinity stat. The summoned spirit¡¯s magic is increased in proportion to the ¡®affinity¡¯. ¡°¡­!¡± ¡®Beginner spirit spell¡¯, the eyes of Ian which just checked the information went wide. With the things that were written in the information window of the Spirit Spell, one of the questions which were lingering in his mind had been put to rest. ¡®Indeed! Until now, I was thinking about the affinity stats of the summoner career that was too low¡­¡¯ The stats that were of the highest value for a summoner were the leadership, affinity and the training. It was the three stats at the top of the stats window. Leadership, as everyone knew was the most important stat for a summoner. The higher the leadership, the higher-ranked familiar could be used. And in the case of training, it was related to the term ¡®control¡¯ of and with their familiars, which too was very important. The higher the training, the more agile and accurately the familiar would respond to the orders of its masters. Lowe rank and low-level summons would give maximum assimilation rate even with a low level of training, but the higher the level of summons, the higher will be the need for the training to control them. However till now, unlike those two stats, the affinity was a rather vague concept. The role of the affinity till then was to make it easier for the summon to be captured. So that they can be more familiar with the masters. The above two were necessary and though the affinity was needed, it wasn¡¯t as essential as leadership or training. Affinity was a structure that would maximize at some point or the other and for the summons, there were many other ways of how they could be captured. However, when the content of the ¡®spirit spell¡¯ began to start, the importance of the affinity stat went up tremendously. The higher the affinity, the higher the power of the spirits and the spirit magic would grow. ¡®I guess¡­ there is no unimportant stat in Kailan.¡¯ Ian¡¯s head was filled with rough estimation and calculations of the affinity conversions. With the affinity of Ian¡¯s of the Earth; even if they are the lowest level spirits, 300 of them could be summoned. And to such a deep thinking Ian, Prettybbook approached. ¡°I was surprised bbook. My friend Pan was a really great summoner. In particular, Pan¡¯s spirit spell was a number among the ¡®Intermediate beings¡¯ bbook.¡± Thinking about Pan, Prettybbook had a longing expression. And by then, Ian¡¯s eyes moved. ¡®Is there any information that I can strip off her?¡¯ By now, it was possible for Ian to draw a rough picture about the content of ¡®Spirit spell¡¯. But now, he was just one step ahead and Ian was very curious. Ian looked at Prettybbook and opened his mouth, As always, it was necessary for him to remove as much information as he could from the NPC while it was off guard. ¡°Yeah, surely Pan was a great summoner. And to preserve ancients spirits in their top form is amazing.¡± ¡°Bbook-bbokbok!¡± ¡°I never knew about such a great summoner till now, I need to reflect on this.¡± ¡°It is fine Bbook! Since you know now bbook!¡± Ian looked at the excited Prettybbook with a blank expression. Seeing the conversation that was going on between the two, the two sisters were looking at them with a silly expression. ¡°Unnie, that is weird.¡± ¡°That, that it is. That definitely isn¡¯t normal¡­¡± And the next moment, both of them couldn¡¯t help to continue on. In the dialogue between the two, the information about the spirit spells began to pour out. * * * ¡°Phew, what are you going to do now, Ralph?¡± ¡°What do you think? Now there is nothing more to see in here, let¡¯s head back to the windy plains.¡± ¡°Ha¡­ too bad. If there was just one more person, it was needed.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t feel too down Inisco. In addition to the Frost Cave, there maybe other quests that would give the spirit spell.¡± ¡°Yeah, well Ralph is right. If the linked quest is broken, then surely other chances will be given.¡± At the entrance of the Frost Cave, where blue chills were raging. In front of it was a small vacant lot, four users were seated feeling disgusted. And it was the party of Ralph, they were frustrated about the Pan¡¯s gate. Inisco, the only summoner user of the party sighed and spoke, ¡°Phew, even I think the same, Muel. But when we are on linked quests, someone else will clear the gate of Pan.¡± At those words from Inisco, Muel went silent. It was undeniable as they just confirmed a latecomer to the dimension. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Inisco continued, ¡°The thing I feel bad about it, not being able to pre-empt the content.¡± Chesk who listened to it tried to comfort Inisco. ¡°That won¡¯t be Inisco. What we couldn¡¯t do, won¡¯t be that easy for anyone who tries to do it. It surely won¡¯t be any easy for any party to clear such a thing.¡± But with those words from Chesk, Inisco¡¯s expression turned dark. Pan¡¯s Gate was the most important dungeon for a summoner and that was the most depressing thing for Inisco. He just nodded his head realizing that talking was not going to do any good to him. ¡°Hey, okay Chesk. I hope that is the case.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t stress, Inisco.¡± Muel who was silent till then spoke again. ¡°Cheer up, Inisco. It is a good idea to head to the Wind plains once the linked quest is cleared.¡± ¡°Yeah well, Muel is right. And none of the party members had been out of the game, right?¡± ¡°Well, if even one of us died, we can¡¯t go to the wind plains.¡± After a while, the party of Ralph recovered from the shock of the quest failure and began to rearrange their settings. By failing to clear the Pan¡¯s gate quest, it wasn¡¯t like they hadn¡¯t received anything. Despite the failure, a linked quest was created for them. Beyond the wind plains and arriving at the Spirit Sanctuary, there was another content that can be pre-empted. ¡°Kay, would you like to leave?¡± At the question from Ralph, all the party members nodded. If they traveled by Inisco¡¯s summon ¡®Griffin King¡¯, they would reach the wind plain fast. And when thought about the next piece of the content, the party began to seem lively again. But right then, Inisco who was trying to summon his ¡®griffin king¡¯ stopped. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°What is wrong Inisco?¡± The party members asked Inisco with a puzzled expression, however, he hadn¡¯t answered. Instead, he just lifted his finger and pointed. And the eyes of the other three moved in a direction where he pointed and went shocked. Three users were walking out of the Frost Cave. Of all four, Ralph was the most surprised one. ¡®The knight that I saw at the second gate!¡¯ It was because he saw the ¡®knight¡¯ user who mysteriously broke through the second gate. Ralph¡¯s head was working hard. ¡®Why is he coming out of there now?¡¯ He was expecting them to be a party that failed to clear the second gate. And if that was the case, they should have come out of the dungeon a few hours ago. But coming out in that timing¡­ ¡®Don¡¯t tell me that he¡­ cleared it?¡¯ Ralph¡¯s eyes started to waver. CH 528 After clearing the gates, Sarah and Vanessa learned about the identity of Ian. Ian was the one who explained it to them, but it was a weird situation that they knew but couldn¡¯t pinpoint to. Thanks to the system message, they realized that the spirit dimension was a shared dimension among the summons, and because of the weird abilities that Ian had manifested. Because that was the combat ability that could be shown only by a top ranker of one server. And by this time, Vanessa had almost become a follower of Ian. As long as they realized that they were not the users of the same server, there was no competition. After completing all the quests, they were on the road to leave the frost cave. And Vanessa caught up with Ian and was shouting in his ear. Vanessa had too many questions that she wanted to ask Ian. ¡°Ian, how did you come across the God Dragons?¡± ¡°Vanessa, you have one of them too.¡± ¡°Cortus, that was because of luck¡­¡± ¡°I guess it was luck for me too.¡± ¡°Tch, you¡¯re too much¡­¡± And Ian too surely wanted to check things with Vanessa. And among them, the most curious things he wanted to know was if the summons with unique names existed on the same servers. For example, a dragon-like Karceus or Elcarix. But those questions were pushed out. They were much more interesting that it had to be organized. ¡®Spirit spell¡­ it sure is a lot more fun than what I anticipated.¡¯ The additional information that Ian¡¯s party got from prettybbook was like a gem. Many of them were even unexpected for Ian too. Ian recalled the conversation he had with Prettybbook. ¡°The spirits can be divided into two types?¡± ¡°Yes, bbook. Four Grand spirits and derived spirits. According to the attributes, they can be divided into two.¡± ¡°Four Grand and derived spirits?¡± ¡°First of all, the Grand spirits are¡ªwater, fire, land, and air. These four are the attributes that a lot of them have bbook.¡± ¡°Oh¡­¡± ¡°And these four spirits are the original spirits that were the basis for all the spirits.¡± ¡°Do all the spirits of the other attributes are derived spirits?¡± ¡°Right bbook. You sure are smart bbook.¡± ¡°Hmm, then what is the difference between them and the four grand spirits?¡± ¡°Derivative spirits don¡¯t have unique names. And no matter how much spirit power is collected, it can¡¯t be grown to the level of ¡®spirit king¡¯.¡± That was the shocking part. Which meant that Jack¡ªwhich was obtained a long while ago couldn¡¯t be a spirit king. But apart from that, there was another important content. ¡°If that is so, among the spirits of the dimension, the four grand spirits are the strongest ones?¡± ¡°That can¡¯t be taken like that bbook.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°Just because they can¡¯t be grown to the level of a spirit king, they aren¡¯t all that bad, they have the advantage that only derivatives of the spirits have.¡± ¡°What is good about that?¡± ¡°In the case of the four grand spirits, all the stats are fixed while the derivatives are of the same stats and the same attributes, their stats are entirely different. Even the appearance differs.¡± ¡°So¡­ something similar to that of a normal summon?¡± ¡°Right bbook. And that is why the some outstanding spirts of derivatives are on the same level of the spirits kings and sometimes they are rather superlative than all.¡± ¡°Oho.¡± ¡°Furthermore, even if they are the four grand spirits, it isn¡¯t easy becoming a Spirit king bbook.¡± ¡°Well, that would surely be tough.¡± ¡°No. It should be just thought to be ¡®tough¡¯ bbook. ¡®Spirit King¡¯ is a divine being, and there can only be one for each attribute. It is impossible for the spirit with many attributes to grow into a spirit king bbook.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± Perhaps if it was a normal user, they would have shook their heads after listening to the explanation of Prettybbook. Because the explanation was a bit complex, it couldn¡¯t be completed in a moment. But Ian was different. As soon as Ian heard that stuff, a question came to his mind. ¡°Then Prettybbook.¡± ¡°Go on bbook.¡± ¡°Then in the spirit dimension, are there any spirit kings in the four grand spirits?¡± ¡°Well, there isn¡¯t bbook.¡± ¡°Then?¡± ¡°The spirit kings that I know of are, Elisha and Trowell. Only two of them are the spirit kings. Ragnaros and Esilon were extinguished in the fight against the mechanical civilization.¡± ¡°Elisha is the spirit king of water¡­¡± ¡°Yeah, bbook. Trowell is of earth. Ragnaros is the spirit king of fire¡­ Esilon is of wind.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ that so?¡± It was a matter of course, Ian thought that at least one of them should be the king if the concept of the Four Grand spirits existed. And it was natural for him to have a desire to raise it. As a result, Ian wanted to get a Four grand spirit that could grow as a ¡®spirit king¡¯ as soon as possible. And from the words of Prettybbook, the spirits of wind or fire had to be raised for him to become a spirit king. ¡°If that is so Prettybbook, where can I get a summon spell that could summon any one of the Four Grand spirits?¡± ¡°There is a place called the ¡®spirit sanctuary¡¯ in the wind plains bbook.¡± ¡°Spirit¡­ sanctuary?¡± ¡°Yes, Bbook. And if you go to the spirit guardian ¡®Syarlon¡¯, he will show you the way.¡± ¡°Thank you very much, Prettybbook. You are smart and beautiful.¡± ¡°Bbukbbook! You are well-known my friend bbook!¡± To thought about it for a moment and then began to walk. As he kept on walking, the dark frost cave started to end and light began to shine on the corner. As they neared the entrance, the cave began to turn bright. Did they walk another 5 more minutes? After a long passage, bright light started to enter Ian¡¯s eyes. And in the sight of Ian, strangers came. * * * Ian, who was walking quickly opened the party chat. Ian: Sarah, Vanessa. Sarah: Huh? Vanessa: What now all of a sudden? Ian: Those users over there¡­ do you know them? Vanessa: No, I don¡¯t. Sarah: I don¡¯t know either. I don¡¯t think they are from the German server¡­ not Korean server users? Ian: Nope. I don¡¯t even know their faces. Definitely not the Korean server rankers. Sarah and Vanessa were both on board with Ian. They had shared a lot of information from Prettybbook and together, they seemed to have earned some trust for each other. But they weren¡¯t like that. Which meant that they had to be as careful as possible. ¡®They might not know that the Middle-Earth is a shared dimension between the servers.¡¯ Ian decided to make the twins tight-lipped. Ian: We should probably hide this thing about the server as much as we could. Vanessa: Huh? Sarah: Okay, fine. I was planning on doing that before you said. Information was more powerful when withheld. And the information that everyone knew wasn¡¯t information any longer. The information that everyone knew became a ¡®common knowledge¡¯ from that moment. However, if the users were going to walk alongside them, then the information could be opened. Just as he did with Vanessa and Sarah. ¡®At least we can¡¯t open the information to them until we know their purpose and reason.¡¯ Ian decided what had to be done and slowly approached the questionable user. He opened his mouth and spoke, ¡°Wah! There are a lot of rankers in this spirit dimension!¡± At those words of Ian, Vanessa looked at him with ridiculous expression. Pretending to know who they were when he clearly doesn¡¯t. And Sarah seemed rather blanked face. It felt like Ian was throwing random stones at them. ¡®What are you doing?¡¯ Sarah looked at Ian with an interested expression. And the man in the front who seemed middle-aged had caught the stone Ian threw. ¡°Hahat, that is that¡­ this is a face I¡¯m seeing for the first time. I don¡¯t think you are a top ranker, how did you get here?¡± On the head of the man was the ID ¡®Ralph¡¯. Seeing that, Ian¡¯s eyes went bright. All the information was private except for the user ID, but it was all that Ian needed to lead the conversation. Ian¡¯s words were literally flowing. ¡°That friend had obtained a special quest.¡± At the end of those words, Ian pointed his finger at Vanessa. Vanessa looked bewildered, but Ian didn¡¯t mind. ¡°Because of that, we were able to enter the spirit dimension a little early and raised the transcendence level. Well, and the Pan¡¯s gate¡­ as you can see, we failed.¡± Seeing Ian lie with utmost devotion, Sarah clicked her tongue. ¡®Wowo¡­ look at that expression. Even I would have fallen for that lie.¡¯ Ian¡¯s words continued, ¡°Ralph, did you pass through the gate?¡± At the question from Ian, Ralph took a moment. It wasn¡¯t easy to say that he had failed the gate, all because of pride. But Ian too had said that he failed, so there was no reason for the others to hide it. And with a bitter smile, Ralph opened his mouth, ¡°No, we failed too. The third gate wasn¡¯t easy for use either.¡± ¡°Ah, I see. We didn¡¯t get to see the third gate, but it sure would have been great.¡± Ian led the dialogue very naturally. And the other rankers with Ralph started to take part in the conversation. ¡°Hoho, this is a bit unfortunate that you only recognize Ralph. My name is Chesk, archer ranker.¡± ¡°Nice to meet you, I¡¯m Inisco.¡± ¡°Nice to meet you too, this is Muel.¡± At this point, the twins who stood far behind Ian introduced themselves too, and the conversation went on naturally. And in the process, Ian gathered some information. The biggest one was, they found out the server place where the rankers came from. ¡®US server rankers¡­ this is getting fun.¡¯ The US server was the first server to open at the same time as the Korean Server. In terms of the user size, it was the second-largest server right after China. And hence Ian was expecting more than that when he met the German server rankers; Sarah and Vanessa. In particular, Ian was the most curious about the ability of Ralph who was the 2nd warrior ranker. ¡®As long as there was no huge difference, I¡¯m thinking he might be the same level as Irahan or Shakran oldie.¡¯ Ian was concluding his thoughts. And right then, Ralph talked about something. ¡°Then you are a knight class. And the twins are a wizard and summoner?¡± Ian was called as the ¡®knight¡¯ class. ¡®What is this? Why would he even think that I am a knight class?¡¯ Ian went dumbfounded for a second but was able to respond quickly, ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Nice. Move with us. Since the destination is going to be the same.¡± He was going to tell them the truth later. ¡°Nice. Then, thank you so much. We get to be on the same boat of rankers.¡± At the words of Ian, Muel who was next to Ralph responded. Muel was the only female user of the ranker position in the US server. ¡°It is nothing. Entering the spirit dimension means you have great talent.¡± ¡°Ha ha, not at all. It is embarrassing when a ranker says that to me.¡± And Chesk added something, ¡°Not at all, we were in need of a tanker. Thank you very much Ian.¡± ¡°I will help out.¡± The party of Ian and the party of Ralph quickly became friends as they began to move. Ralph and his party moved on the Griffin King that Inisco had, and Ian moved with his party on the Cortus that Vanessa had summoned. And their destination was the ¡®Windy Plains¡¯. That was the beginning of ¡®Thoughtless dreams¡¯. CH 529 While moving to the Windy Plains, Ian asked Vanessa a few more questions. He found some interesting facts. ¡°So the guy we are riding on¡­ is called the ¡®Earth Dragon¡¯?¡± At the question of Ian, Vanessa nodded with a proud expression and smiled. ¡°Right, Ian. This is the guy I received after clearing all the linked quests of the ¡®Earth¡¯s Savior¡¯. It was a super unique hidden quest which I received directly from the God of Earth.¡± ¡°That¡­ so?¡± ¡°However, it is a quest that can¡¯t be received anymore, so if you¡¯re planning to get Cortus, it¡¯s better to just let it go.¡± At the story of Vanessa, Ian looked puzzled. ¡°Why? You got it in the German server, and I¡¯m from the Korean Server. So can¡¯t a land dragon be obtained in my Korean server?¡± Vanessa clapped her hands and then spoke again. ¡°Even then, everything remains the same.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°At the point where the Dimensional war had long ended, you cannot get a quest called the ¡®Blessing of the Land¡¯.¡± After hearing what Vanessa said, Ian nodded. It was because he understood her words. However, he was thinking about something else. Vanessa¡¯s story was able to draw a few facts. Ian thought of a memory that was deep in his mind. ¡®The God Dragon of land in the Korean server¡­ wasn¡¯t Cortus.¡¯ In fact, Ian tried to remember the God Dragon the moment he saw Cortus. A dragon with beautiful dark green scales was the only God Dragon that was seen very briefly in the dimensional war. But after hearing the name ¡®Cortus¡¯, Ian thought that maybe what he saw wasn¡¯t a God Dragon. The God Dragon of land in the Korean server was named ¡®Miaica¡¯ and not Cortus. ¡®The existence of the God Dragons are the same in the servers, but each of them had a unique name and identity.¡¯ A weird thought came to Ian¡¯s mind. ¡®If I meet the new god dragons from other servers in the Dragon Haven, can I tame two of the same attribute dragons?¡¯ He had another question he was curious about. Ian smiled to himself and asked, ¡°Then, Vanessa?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Do you remember the name of the Land Goddess?¡± Vanessa narrowed her brows as she heard Ian¡¯s question. Since it had been a long time ago, she didn¡¯t seem to come up with a name. ¡°Uhmm? Nope, I don¡¯t remember.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± ¡°But there is one thing that I can surely say.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°That a Land Goddess doesn¡¯t exist. The god of land was surely a man.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Ian¡¯s eyes were twinkling a little as he heard that. Though he didn¡¯t find the answer to his question, he found out what he was curious about. His hypothesis was indeed right. ¡®If the God of Land is a man¡­ then surely it is different from the Gods of the Korean server.¡¯ At the time of the dimension war, Ian was in the center of the episode compared to any other user. He clearly remembered all the Gods who had made an appearance. In the memory of Ian, the God of Land was surely a woman. The Land Goddess, Sandiana. Ian had been right in front of her, so he saw her very clearly. ¡®If that is so, then all the gods that govern the human dimension on each server are individual?¡¯ Ian¡¯s conversation with Vanessa allowed him to get a nice outline on the worldview. After a while, Ian and his party had reached their destination. Tring-! [Entered the ¡®Windy Plain¡¯.] [Strong winds are blowing in your direction.] [The spirits of ¡®wind¡¯ attributes are stronger in here.] [From now on, the magic attacks of ¡®wind¡¯ attributes are stronger.] [From now on, the spirits with ¡®wind¡¯ attribute will now scale 50% faster.] Checking the messages, Ian started to get excited. ¡®Uh, I wish I had a wind spirit right now.¡¯ With a light gesture, he jumped off the back of Cortus. Tat-! Ralph who arrived there first approached Ian. ¡°Friend, is this your first time here?¡± ¡°That is right.¡± ¡°Then from now on, we will take over the planning.¡± Looking at Ralph, Ian nodded. ¡°Well, first¡­ let me hear it, then we¡¯ll see.¡± * * * It was only natural, but it wasn¡¯t just Ian who was wary of the strangers. While arriving at the Windy Plains, Ralph¡¯s party talked a lot. Ralph: Do any of you know those guys? Chesk: Nope? I know no one of those three? Ralph: Still, they would have to be rankers¡­ not even a single one of them is known? Inisco: Ralph hyung, you think there are just one or two people in the server rankings? There are many rankers. How can we know all of them? Muel: Yeah, Ralph oppa. Yesterday¡¯s statistics show that there are more than 1,000 users with a level above 400¡­ summoner level of 400 is very rare, but for a knight to be of level 400 is quite common. Ralph: But¡­ Inisco: And Ralph hyung, you said that the guy was a knight a while back. Ralph: Well? Inisco: They would¡¯ve entered with huge luck on their side and that special quest. Ralph: That could be. Inisco: From what I know, the summoner with the twins is probably level 400. Ralph: That¡­ so? Inisco: Of course. I know most of the summoner rankers in the top, and she wasn¡¯t one of them. Chesk: Hmm, Inisco is right. And then, the other two friends would be in the late 300s or something. Ralph and his party tried to figure out things about Ian and his party and concluded it to some extent. The conclusion was very far from the truth. Ralph: Hmm¡­ if this is so, it is still a bit vague. Inisco: Vague? Why? Ralph: Those friends, they seem like they¡¯ll be a burden. Chesk: In that case¡­ it would certainly be so. Inisco: Well, it may be so. There is no way the rankers can save a person. Muel: I think a bit different. Ralph: Hmm, yeah? Muel: If it was the human dimension there could have been a huge difference, but this is the Middle-Earth. Ralph: That is true. Muel: And the level of transcendence is similar, then it doesn¡¯t mean that there is a big difference between us? Inisco: Ah, Muel. That isn¡¯t it. Ralph: yeah. Inisco is right. Muel: Why? Ralph: Levels and stats are important, but the difference in physical power may be too much to cover. Chesk: Right. Even if they are rankers, it is difficult to compare us with some two-digit or three-digit rankers. They could be of help on the Windy Plains but, won¡¯t they be a burden the moment we enter the valley? Muel: Uhm¡­ Inisco: Right, Muel. You can go into their party while entering the Abyss Valley, and then you will get killed along with them. The wrong conclusion of Ralph¡¯s party was the biggest mistake. Ralph: But since they have come here, don¡¯t we have to use them somehow? Inisco: That is right, hyung. It will be embarrassing to come all the way here and move away separately because of the level. Chesk: So, you¡¯re not going to let them join us? The content is a bit lacking for us, and do you plan on sharing it with them? Ralph: No way. Muel: ¡­ Chesk: Then what? Ralph: I have a nice idea. Inisco: What is that? Ralph: The gorge of the gusts in the Abyss Valley. Do you remember that? Inisco: Of course. We got whisked there, and then we got sent back to the frost cave. Chesk: ¡­! Ralph: Leave the monsters in there to those people. Inisco: Ah, that is a good idea. Ralph: And then we¡¯ll cross over the Abyss Valley. * * * Both sides had no idea they were thinking about each other. Apart from that, the party began to move smoothly. Anyway, the purpose of crossing the plains was shared, so they had no conflict. And interestingly, Ian was playing the role of a tanker with not even a single summon. ¡°Ian, Please cover Chesk!¡± ¡°Ian, let¡¯s move straight through the middle! Take the lead!¡± Ian had the Bloody Revenge in his right hand and the Dragon Shield in the left. Ian had myth rank transcendence weapons in both of his hands. He was showing a perfect play which would make anyone believe that he was a knight. Kwang-! [¡®Shield Block¡¯ has been successful!] [Absorbed 93.35 percent of the power ¡®Wind Slash¡¯!] [Vitality reduced by 12!] [¡®Wrath of the Dragon¡¯ unique ability has been triggered.] [Attack damage increased by 0.5 percent.] The biggest role of a knight class user was ¡®how much stable damage can you receive alone¡¯. The requisite for that role was the ability to control the shield. Even with the same amount of defense and vitality, the total amount of damage that could be dealt with was depending on how well one controlled the shield for blocking, and it varied a lot. Knight class users with control and block had 80 percent absorption rate, while physically degraded knights often have less than 50 percent of absorption. Even with the same equipment and stats, the difference in efficiency could be doubled all depending on the control. The user¡¯s shield blocking control skill of the knight was clearly visible. Because of the absorption rate of the shield, a special effect was triggered. It was like a calming wave that spread throughout the shield, an effect that occurred after absorption of more than 70 percent of damage. Specifically, when more than 90 percent of the damage absorption was triggered, blue colourful waves spread. If anyone saw the system of it, it would be easy for them to see how good of a knight class user he was. Pang- Pa pang-! The blue color spread out from the shield. And Sarah, who was at the back, thought to herself while biting her lip. ¡®Don¡¯t tell me, are all the rankers on the Korean side of this level? I really can¡¯t believe this guy.¡¯ A fresh blue wave would make anyone admired the great knight class. But it was all being done by a summoner. However, from Sarah¡¯s standpoint, it was all absurd. Vanessa: Unnie. Sarah: Huh? Vanessa: Those people, do they really believe that he is really a knight class user? Sarah: Wouldn¡¯t you believe? Vanessa: But¡­ if I were them, I wouldn¡¯t believe that he wasn¡¯t a knight class. Sarah: Me too¡­ Vanessa: No matter how much I look at him. Sarah: Right. How are you able to even look at him? He is a monster. Vanessa: Right. Right. The twins were eagerly discussing about Ian on a 1 on 1 chat at the party play. It wasn¡¯t just Sarah and Vanessa who were surprised with the play of Ian. The party of Ralph was chatting in their own private group chat as well. Chesk: Ralph, those friends¡­ they aren¡¯t as bad as we thought. Ralph: Hmm, think so? Inisco: The twins are pretty good, but that Ian guy, he is really something, hyung. Ralph: That definitely is a great level of shield control. Chesk: Right? Ralph: But that is it. He can¡¯t use the knight specific skills properly and is trying to solve everything with his shield control only. Inisco: Well, I think it is because he likes that shield too much, maybe he is depending on it that much. Time passed quickly as if they were dreaming differently in the same place. Three to four hours had passed as they tried to break through the spirits of the Windy Plains. Finally, the end of the windy plains seemed to have come. At the end was a deep and dark valley that was awaiting the party. CH 530 The dark fog made it impossible to see anything. The name itself had the term valley in it, but the place they were looking at couldn¡¯t be considered as one. The endless cliffs on either side seemed as if someone had split the land in half. The appearance was surely magnificent that it made those who went there feel impressed. ¡®What is this? It looks like the Grand Canyon.¡¯ Ian stared up and down and bit his tongue. The place where Ian and his party had entered was the middle of a high valley. The starting point of the map was a narrow sidewalk on a steep cliff. Between the valleys, black objects that seemed to be clouds were floating around; the atmosphere was rather scary. ¡®Hmm, so we have to go through this valley?¡¯ According to the information given by Prettybbook, there was a certain ¡®spirit sanctuary¡¯ beyond the valley. If they went there, one of the four grand spirits could be obtained. ¡®Hehe, it would be nice if I get a fire or wind spirit.¡¯ Ian was already feeling glad about getting a new summon added to his family. Ian and his party slowly stepped in, and the system messages began to emerge. Tring-! [Entered the ¡®Abyss Valley¡¯.] [Powerful gust will begin to blow.] [The spirits with ¡®Abyss¡¯ attributes are more powerful now.] [The attack magic of the ¡®Abyss¡¯ attributes are more powerful now.] [Spirits with ¡®Abyss¡¯ attributes will be 50% faster.] As the system messages indicated, strong gusts of wind started blowing in the valley. Even in the Windy plains, there were winds that were blowing strong, but these ones were different in every way possible. It was the first time for Sarah and Vanessa to have come to such a place, and they were speaking among themselves. ¡°Unnie, isn¡¯t the map too tricky in here?¡± ¡°Yeah. All the projectiles will be blocked away by the structure.¡± Except for the wide-area magic which would trigger based on the location, most of the wizard¡¯s attacks were non-target skills. In other words, it was a way to drive out the projectile in the direction of the target. On top of that, Vanessa¡¯s weapon was a bow which made it the worst kind of situation for the two sisters to fight in. Also, the huge gusts of wind made it trickier for them to even think of fighting. But unlike the twins who were concerned with how difficult the map was, Ian was interested in other things. ¡®Abyss attribute¡­ Bbookbbook-ah might like this?¡¯ As the name suggested, the valley was of an Abyss, and it supported rare Abyss types. Even if that wasn¡¯t the case, if Bbookbbook used breath in there, a tremendous change could be brought to the team for sure. While Ian was thinking about all of that, Ralph came toward him. ¡°Kay, you all need to be really careful from here.¡± As soon as Ralph said that, Ian asked, ¡°Do you think the difficulty will be high?¡± Ralph nodded with a serious expression. ¡°Yes. To the level where the windy plains would be nothing compared to this.¡± ¡°Hm¡­¡± ¡°We¡¯ll give you the information first and then we¡¯ll move in.¡± Ralph began to talk about the Abyss Valley in a very clear tone. There were three things that could sum up the information he had given. First, there were two attributes of contaminated spirits that would come from the Abyss Valley. ¡°The spirits in the Abyss Valley have two attributes, and they are the ¡®Abyss¡¯ and ¡®Zion¡¯ attributes.¡± ¡°Zion¡­ is that an attribute name?¡± ¡°It¡¯s also my first time seeing that attribute. But the spirits with that attribute were very difficult to deal with.¡± ¡°Why so?¡± ¡°They are basically powerful and a nasty vitality recovery.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± ¡°So when a spirit with Zion attribute appears, it must be taken down unconditionally.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°If we can¡¯t take down two or three monsters, then we won¡¯t be able to find the real answer.¡± Second, once the body touched the dark clouds floating around the Abyss Valley, it would be damaged by the Abyss attributes. The clouds had a vitality of some kind. If it bursts, a magical explosion would occur. ¡°Watch out for the cloud. I don¡¯t know how, but when it bursts, it¡¯s game over.¡± ¡°It¡¯s¡­ that bad?¡± ¡°If you¡¯re that curious, then give it a try. You¡¯re a knight class user. I¡¯m sure you can handle one.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Third, as soon as the beginning of the valley and the Abyss Gate was passed, the speed of the monsters would begin to increase. ¡°As soon as the gate is passed, the quest window will appear. You can check it out in full detail.¡± ¡°Well, let¡¯s do that.¡± After the explanation of Ralph was over, Ian naturally moved to the front-end position of the party. That was because the role Ian was playing right now was that of a ¡®knight¡¯ class. ¡®Well, a summoner knight is a knight, so¡­¡¯ Ian smiled and stroked his shield. In the Windy plains, Ian didn¡¯t use any other skills other than the unique abilities that were attached to the shield. But now, it looked like he had to use the other skills. ¡®Hide the blood split as much as possible. I¡¯m going to have to use my self-defense in this situation.¡¯ The self-defense that Ian was talking about was the alter ego of Ian, which was the Summon Incarnation, a unique ability of the Summoner Knight. Currently, Ian was able to use Summon Incarnation, which would last for 5 minutes straight. Checking the skills, Ian opened his mouth while lifting the Bloody Revenge that was in his hand. ¡°Kay, let¡¯s move in.¡± From that point, the attack of the Abyss Valley began. * * * Pang- Pang-! The purple projectiles in the size of a fist were moving fast toward the party. Most of them were getting blocked and destroyed by the shield of Ian. [¡®Shield block¡¯ has been successful!] [Absorbed 95.12 percent of the damage of the ¡®Abyss Gun¡¯!] [Vitality reduced by 14!] [¡®Shield block¡¯ has been successful!] [Absorbed 91.05 percent of the damage of the ¡®Abyss Gun¡¯!] [Vitality reduced by 17!] [¡®Wrath of the Dragon¡¯ unique ability has been triggered.] [Attack damage has been increased by 0.5%.] [Attack damage has been increased by 0.5%.] The Abyss Valley, a narrow and long canyon. It was narrow enough that it would be possible to reach the other side of the cliff if one tried hard. And the role of Ian was much more important than ever. Most of the spirits were in the front, and almost all the attacks were naturally headed to the forefront of the party. The speed of the map would break down depending on how much damage Ian would take. Muel got behind Ian and mumbled, ¡°Wah, because of you Ian, the difficulty seems to have been reduced by half.¡± Her words made Ian smile. He then asked, ¡°That so?¡± ¡°Yeah. When we came here together, it almost took us two to three hours to get to this very point.¡± ¡°Then¡­ you couldn¡¯t have done anything in that situation.¡± Ian was now blocking almost all the attacks; more than 90 percent of the damage was getting absorbed. If they were in a situation where they didn¡¯t have a tank with them, Ralph would have been at the forefront, and he couldn¡¯t believe what was happening. If the damage Ralph had taken was 100, Ian¡¯s damage was less than 10. And the real thing was, the healer Muel couldn¡¯t resist herself from being grateful. Unlike the last time where she had to heal until all her divine power was gone, this time it hadn¡¯t even been used. Muel¡¯s divinity wasn¡¯t supposed to fall below 70 percent. ¡°Surely a tanker is needed at a party.¡± ¡°Huhu, obviously.¡± Ian was happy seeing Muel all excited and bursting out. However, Vanessa who listened to Ian and Muel¡¯s conversation couldn¡¯t help but feel absurd. ¡®Ha, that one isn¡¯t a tanker¡­¡¯ Whatever it was, all thanks to Ian, the party¡¯s damage dealers were able to squeeze more damage forward. Ian blocked all the incoming projectiles without leaving a single one out, so one damage dealer got a position close to a free deal. And in the current party, there was one person who had no work to do. ¡°Chesk, right! Muel, provide a shield for Vanessa!¡± The Warrior class Ralph, a short range dealer, had nothing to do but just order around. ¡°Kuek, Ralph hyung, you have nothing to do?¡± ¡°Yeah. Should we leave Ralph and take Ian in?¡± ¡°Shut up idiots!¡± The party was moving into the valley with warm feelings. But in a moment, a slight nervousness could be heard from the voice of Ralph. ¡°Zion on the right!¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°Take down the Zion first!¡± As the voice of Ralph came, Ian¡¯s gaze shifted to the right. In there, unlike till now, was an unusual appearance in a white color. ¡®What? A snowman with wings?¡¯ The appearance of the spirit was indeed cute. It made Ian more nervous though. Ralph said that the spirit attribute with Zion had to be given a lot of attention, and it was all because they could get neglected due to their appearance. Shuk- shook-! Archer Chesk and the arrows of Vanessa from her main weapon were rushing toward the spirit called Zion. But despite hitting their arrows precisely, the vitality of the spirit Zion didn¡¯t buzz. Wheeing-! Wheing-! To be precise, its vitality regenerated at a wonderful speed. And the next moment¡­ Woong-! With the spirit that was flying in front of them, a white light began to settle. Ralph yelled at Ian immediately after seeing that, ¡°That must be stopped at any cost!¡± Ian would have surely done that even without Ralph saying it out loud, but when he noticed the nervous tone in his voice, he observed the skill much closely. ¡®What is it? Is that a charging skill?¡¯ And the next moment. Kwkwkwkwa-! From the very cute appearance of the Zion, strong light rays began to start emanating. Papapang-! And subsequently, system messages began to come in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. [¡®Shield block¡¯ has been done successfully!] [Absorbed 91.12 percent of the ¡®Zion Beam¡¯!] [As an ¡®Abyss¡¯ attribute had been used, 4.8% of additional damage has been absorbed.] [Vitality of 35 has been reduced!] [¡®Shield block¡¯ has been done successfully!] [Absorbed 89.75 percent of the ¡®Zion Beam¡¯!] [As an ¡®Abyss¡¯ attribute has been used, 4.6% of additional damage has been absorbed.] [Vitality of 17 has been reduced!] [Party member ¡®Muel¡¯ has used ¡®Life of Light.] [85 vitality has been restored.] As Ian had anticipated, the Zion Beam was a charging skill, and a powerful damage came. Poong-! The charging was quickly cut off by other remote damage dealers, but apart from that, Ian was still very interested. Because of the system message, he found another fact. ¡®Oh ho, the Zion attribute seems weaker than the Abyss?¡¯ A shield made out of the shell of Bbookbbook, the Dragon Shield. The nature of the shield was Abyss attribute, and it was learned from the system message. And the reason why it was interesting for Ian was not something else. It was because this was his first time to discover the affinity of the Abyss attributes which wasn¡¯t there till now. CH 531 Ralph and Chesk together with Inisco; Muel was sharing a common chat group and was feeling very uncomfortable. ¡®I don¡¯t think this is¡­¡¯ Though it was natural for them, they were actually on a plan to drive the party of Ian into the fight. Ralph: Was it the third cave after the gate? Inisco: Yes, hyung. Ralph: there was a golem-like guy guarding that thing, right? Chesk: Right. We just need to remove him as soon as possible and then get the marbles needed to open the last gate. Ralph: Kay, good. Chesk: And then we can send Ian and his party to the last sixth cave, and we¡¯ll flee from there with the beads. Inisco: Right. Chesk: Ralph¡¯s head sure works in great ways. This way we won¡¯t have to meet the monsters. Muel wasn¡¯t without greed to complete it. Because she knew what a huge deal it meant to pre-empt a new content in the Middle-Earth more than anyone. And whatever was the content, the smallest number of people would get the biggest reward. So if Ian and his party had been from a competing guild¡ªand was from a hostile guild, they surely would have joined the plans without hesitation to let them down. But Ian¡¯s party didn¡¯t. ¡®For them to go on until this¡­¡¯ Muel was now thinking that the party of Ian was around 300 levels or such. In the ranking level; they would have been in some 500-1000 position and that was their guess. In other words, from the point of view of a 10th rank priest¡ªhe wasn¡¯t a competitor of any kind. In addition, she was feeling guilty as Ian and his party were innocent enough to walk into the trap laid by her team. ¡®Yeah. No matter how much I think, it makes no sense.¡¯ Muel¡¯s heart was determined. Just because of the interest of the guild; she couldn¡¯t betray another party, and that too when the party of Ian didn¡¯t even harm a single of them. ¡®Should I let loose a little?¡¯ And as she was thinking, the first Abyss Gate had appeared. ¡°Kay, this is the real thing. Are you all ready?¡± At the words of Ralph, everyone looked at him. And then at the gate, the party which was being headed by Ian stepped into it. Like a mirage, Ian and his party got sucked into the black abyss. * * * As soon as they entered the gate, system messages began to emerge in front of the party and Ian. Tring-! [You have entered the Abyss Gate.] [From here, all the ¡®abyss¡¯ attributes will be amplified.] [From here, all the ¡®zion¡¯ attributes will be amplified.] Just as Ralph had mentioned before, the quest was being played. [The winds will get stronger.] [You have entered the dungeon ¡®Gorge of Blasts¡¯.] [The quest ¡®Into the blast¡¯ has been initiated.] -Into the Blast (Epic) (Hidden) The Abyss Valley had been a very warm and cozy place for the abyss spirits. The Abyss valley, where everyone could feel the safest feelings and warmth when compared to any other place, wasn¡¯t just a haven for the abyss spirits but for many other spirits. However, after the mechanical civilization¡¯s invasion, the Abyss valley took a completely different change. Most of the spirits in the valley had been contaminated and the valley, which had been a safe place was fortified to stop the enemies. In the end, even the Abyss valley got completely encroached by the mechanical civilization and now only the contaminated spirits remain. Well, you are brave, you have defeated the contaminated spirits and found the Abyss gate. And now, if you can find the Abyss Orb which is somewhere in the gorge of the blast and bring it to the altar on the north, you will be able to purify all the contaminated abyss valley. Once the valley is cleared, the blocked path to the Northern side will be opened. Find the Abyss Orb and purify the valley, then follow the path on the north to the Spirit Sanctuary. Find the guardian of the Spirit sanctuary ¡®Syarlon¡¯ and he will thank you. Quest Difficulty: C+ Quest Condition: User who has found the Abyss gate. Time limit: None Reward: Obtain the title ¡®Keeper of Abyss¡¯, ??? *As each minute of the quest increases, the agility of the monster regeneration increases by 10 percent. *This quest cannot be refused. The content of the quest wasn¡¯t so difficult to understand. The story surely was long, but there was just one point it conveyed. ¡®So, we need to find the orb and take it to the altar.¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes moved to see the altar which was at a distant view to them. A magnificent altar of a mysterious atmosphere where purple haze flowed. In the center of the altar was a rounded groove and no matter how it seemed, it was clear that it was the spot where the orbs had to be placed. Ian¡¯s gaze quickly followed the entire map. ¡®So, around the altar, there are six caves¡­¡¯ The altar was towering on a high ground in the north. Six caves with tall cliffs on both sides of the altar. ¡®We need to go through the caves to find those orbs.¡¯ Reading the quest window, Ian nodded to himself. It was because the contents of the quest didn¡¯t seem to be much different from the regular instant quests in the general dungeons. However, the special thing was that the agility of the monster¡¯s regeneration rate would get faster with time. ¡®This is like a time limit in a way.¡¯ Even if it was Ian, the monsters that rose to infinity would be hard to overcome. The key to clearing the quest was to complete it as soon as possible. And while Ian was coming up with the ideas, the quest began. [From now ¡®In the Blast (Epic) (Hidden)¡¯ quest will begin.] [Time elapsed: 00:00;01] Ian recalled what Ralph had told him before entering the gate. * * * ¡°Listen carefully to what I have to say from now.¡± ¡°Go on.¡± ¡°Like I told you before, we¡¯ve already been here. Before moving to the Frost Cave, we tried this place first.¡± ¡°yeah, you said that.¡± ¡°If we go inside the gate, there are six caves and one of which had a key to clear the dungeon.¡± ¡°Kay.¡± ¡°And we, we have been in the two of them on the left.¡± ¡°And you couldn¡¯t find the orb in there?¡± ¡°Bingo. It is nice to have a friend whose brain works.¡± ¡°Continue.¡± ¡°As you might have expected, as soon as we enter the dungeon, we¡¯ll start searching from the third cave.¡± ¡°Anyone would do that.¡± ¡°Yeah. But we are going to split into two teams. Four of us will be on one team and the three of you will be the second team. We go from the third cave and you will move from the last cave.¡± ¡°That doesn¡¯t seem so bad.¡± ¡°Nice, then once we enter the dungeon, you three can run over to the left side.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s do it that way.¡± Ian hadn¡¯t believed what Ralph had to say from the very beginning. Ralph didn¡¯t look like a bad guy, but because of the content pre-empt¡ªa betrayal could have happened to anyone. Due to constant suspicion, Ian could feel it. ¡®Huhu, there is no way I can think this will be easy.¡¯ The order which Ralph had given to Ian was reasonable. In order to shorten the clear time of the dungeon, they were dividing into two teams to find the Abyss orbs. But in the very order, Ian could ¡®smell¡¯ the betrayal. ¡®For starters the team configuration is wrong.¡¯ In order to divide the seven members of the party in the best order, the members of both Ian and Ralph had to be mixed. It was true; the ranking of Ralph¡¯s party was high and the balance of power between the divided team was just too much. ¡®Even if we aren¡¯t mixed, at least our party should be given another member to have a certain balance.¡¯ From another point of view, the power of Ian and the twins were considered to be half of the party of Ralph. Ian and the twins hadn¡¯t revealed theirs skills just yet. And when the thoughts started to make sense, the doubts started to solidify. ¡®If Ralph was indeed trying to make an effective order, he should have at least talked about the instructions after finding out the orbs.¡¯ If it was Ian and not Ralph who had given the orders, then he would have given a detailed direction for the team which would find the orb first. Ralph on the other side, didn¡¯t even bother to comment on the situation after finding the orb. It was as if, ¡®I don¡¯t care what the next situation was¡¯. ¡®This is suspicious. Very suspicious.¡¯ Ian looked over at the sixth cave that Ralph had asked them to take. Inferring the whole situation that had come, one conclusion had come to their mind. ¡®Maybe they are planning on leaving us here and try to break the quest by themselves.¡¯ It was a very convincing doubt, but he couldn¡¯t afford to turn Ralph to an enemy. It was stupid to follow an order which was suspicious. So what had to be done now, they had to go even though there was a risk. In the situation, even if the quest would fail, it was more important to identify who the enemy was. Ian deliberately slowed down and watched the movements of Ralph¡¯s party. ¡°Ian, what is it?¡± ¡°Why did you stop now?¡± ¡°Shhh!¡± Ian put his finger to his lips; shushed them and turned back. After those people entered the third cave, he was going to sneak back. If he ran into Ralph later, he would say that it was impossible to clear the cave with three. That wasn¡¯t entirely wrong either. But the next minute, Ian had to fold his plan completely. It was because something unexpected was happening. ¡°¡­!¡± Muel, whom he suspected to be with the party of Ralph was running in the direction of Ian¡¯s party. For the first time, Ian was shocked. ¡®What? Didn¡¯t Ralph just try to throw us away?¡¯ If Muel joined their party, then Ian had to throw out all the assumptions. Ian was getting much more confused. ¡®Was my calculation wrong?¡¯ While Ian was pestering his mind, Muel approached them. Muel then spoke with a smile, ¡°I think it is a bit too much for three to handle. Is it fine if I enter?¡± With a light face, Ian nodded without realizing it. CH 532 The spirits started to appear in the Gorge of Blasts dungeon and they were of three types. Firstly, all three types were extremely cute to look at. One had a fairy-like appearance with pointed ears, an archer with a longbow that was much larger than its body. Another kind was a dwarf-like one with a small hammer and shield in its hands. The last one, an elephant-like guy, a lot bigger than the first two. Two of those types were of Abyss attributes¡ªthe two cute ones. Both of them gave out tremendous damage, but their tanking ability was rather weak. The one with a longbow was a long-distance damage dealer and the guy with the hammer was a close combat damage dealer. ¡®If only these were there, it would have been much easier to deal with¡­¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes were quickly scanning the battlefield. Ten abyss attribute spirits were rushing around and blowing out projectiles. And in the center of them was a big white guy. Ian who was looking at the damage dealer suddenly moved his line of vision towards the guy which looked like an elephant. It was a spirit with the Zion attribute and was with the position of the ¡®Magic Tanker¡¯. ¡®Anyway, I need to get rid of the meaty one first¡­¡¯ Unlike the Abyss spirits which were everywhere, the Zion spirit was just one in the middle of the battlefield. But the presence of it was much bigger than that of all the Abyss, he was like a hefty-guy. The white shield that he used was the biggest problem. Zion spirit used the shield to protect the Abyss dealers, so it took too much time to kill each of them. However, if the tankers were targeted first, the Abyss spirits will shoot arrows. Each step forward wasn¡¯t painful but even if a few hits were taken in, they might die. In addition, the tanking ability of Zion was considerably good, so it wasn¡¯t easy to eliminate it quickly with the damage deal of Sarah and Vanessa. ¡®I need to go in further if it gets dangerous.¡¯ At the dwarf which was rushing forward with its hammer, Ian moved his sword. Swah- swak-! His gaze went to Muel who was behind. ¡®I still can¡¯t believe it but, it gets hard to keep hiding some skills.¡¯ As before, the role of the tankers alone couldn¡¯t perform the quest properly. Ian decided to move much more aggressively. Ka-gang-! Ian¡¯s shield blocked the hammer of the dwarf and began to shine in blue. ¡®Wrath of the Dragon¡¯ stack was almost full. Finally, Ian who blocked the arrow that was flying in¡ªhad made a leap to the front. [Wrath of the Dragon, unique ability has been triggered.] [Attack damage increased by 0.5 percent.] [¡®Wrath of the Dragon¡¯, unique ability has been triggered.] [Attack damage increased by 0.5 percent.] [¡®Wrath of the Dragon¡¯, unique ability has been triggered.] [You are in a state of ¡®Invincible¡¯.] * * * The reason why Muel joined the party of Ian was simple. After the three people including Ralph exited the Abyss valley, they would try to escape while using the party of Ian as bait and then by using the unique ability of Muel¡¯s¡ªthe ¡®Blessing of Miro¡¯, the ultimate survival skill they can use to pass through the last cave. Of course, using the Blessing of Miro; Ian and his party couldn¡¯t cross the valley. As they had to kill the ¡®monster-like¡¯ guy which was in the last cave. But on the contrary, they could get out of the Abyss gate. And in that way, Ian¡¯s party would be able to avoid the death penalty. ¡®Yeah well, if I can do that much, then I will do as much as I could. I won¡¯t be feeling guilty.¡¯ Muel herself would be failing the quest, but she was willing to take the result. If it was failed once, since the current cave wasn¡¯t like the Frost Cave (which couldn¡¯t be challenged anymore), this could be tried again. But after joining the party of Ian, Muel could feel that something felt strange. ¡®Uh, uh?¡¯ The ability of the party of Ian which entered the cave changed in some way. ¡°Muel, follow me, quickly! It has already been a minute!¡± ¡°Ah, okay, Ian.¡± Vanessa and Sarah moved according to the orders of Ian. The power of the three was obviously different from what Muel witnessed a while back. ¡®What is this, why are they all so great all of a sudden?¡¯ Muel, a top-ranked priest class user, saw astonishing control of Vanessa and the high-end magic spells of Sarah. But the biggest surprise was Ian. The unusual knight class user, Ian who was considered to have entered the ranker position with just his blocking skills was suddenly stirring the whole battlefield. ¡®He, is he even a knight?¡¯ The shield was just there. Ian, who had been a perfect tanker till then, began to damage deal like a mad person wielding a red bloody colored sword. And he looked like a warrior class than a knight class. Woong-! Low resonance was sounding everywhere and a golden shield came around Ian. Ian quickly swapped his weapons. ¡®What are you going to do now?¡¯ Suddenly putting in a shield and the sword, Ian pulled out a spear. Muel couldn¡¯t take her eyes of Ian¡¯s movements even if she was performing heal. There was a lack of common sense. ¡®You are going in there alone?¡¯ She didn¡¯t know how strong the gold shields were. However, the one thing she knew was that it would be suicide to dive into the center of the spirits with just one spear. And Ian ordered at the very moment. ¡°Vanessa, drag that thing to the left a little!¡± ¡°Kay, Ian!¡± ¡°Sarah, get me some slow!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± Wheeing-! Ian ordered for skills and they were activated at the same time, Ian¡¯s form dug into the middle of the enemy. And then, the attacks of the spirits poured all at once towards Ian. Swahk-! The situation in the game seemed like he would be out of the game any moment. But then, Ian¡¯s form split into two. In the meantime, the projectiles which passed to him were in vain. ¡®Alter¡­ ego?¡¯ Muel was astonished. A knight class user has summoned alter egos, and it was something that she had never seen before. And the controls? If the timing that the alter ego had been summoned was misplaced, then the damage would¡¯ve been taken. Ian then split into two and threw the spear at the same time before the alter ego was gone. Kwang-! The two spears that were flying with a golden radiance, went right through the body of the contaminated spirit. Muel opened her mouth, ¡°Ah¡­¡± From her mouth astonishment came. The play which Ian had been showing would have been hard for even the 2nd ranker of the warrior class Ralph to imitate. ¡®Ralph is the second ranker and his controls are a bit lacking¡­¡¯ But her shock didn¡¯t end there. ¡°Muel, shield please!¡± ¡°Oh, okay!¡± At the orders of Ian, Muel quickly put up a shield. Meanwhile, holding out his weapons. The weapons which he had picked up were; the red sword and the blue shield. This time too it seemed like he was going to do something, and the anticipation started to rise for Muel. ¡®Will you recover that spear later?¡¯ And just like her expectations, Ian perfectly responded. * * * That to the invincible effect of the ¡®Wrath of the Dragon¡¯ unique ability and the shield of Muel, Ian was able to successfully approach the elephant-like one. But from that moment, it was standing on a real ice sheet. Numerous eyes were flying towards Ian and would turn into a pulp if he even made a single mistake in the game. ¡®Three in the front. Placed on the rear side¡­¡¯ Ian grasped the positions in advance, opened his hands and activated his unique ability. ¡°Dragon Soul!¡± And then, Ian and Ian alter¡¯s shields started to shine in blue again. Woong-! A total of six blue shields were wrapping Ian. And the arrows were all pouring onto it. Shik- shishik-! Ian summoned the shield and didn¡¯t even bother to look at the directions from which the attacks were coming. Instead, he just moved on to the next step that was in his head. Tat-! Ian ran towards the Zion attribute spirit which was standing in front of him. And the alter ego of Ian was moving in the same direction. Hweik-! Ian threw the shield that was in his right hand and grabbed onto the Bloody Revenge with both his hands. Subsequently, he began to control the two Judgment of the Spirit Kings that were lying on the floor. Vitality Weapon¡ªthe ability to create alter egos and the ability of the Summon Incarnate to give vitality to those weapons. The synergy of the two skills has begun to maximize. ¡°Phew!¡± Ian completely fixated his eyes on the spirit of Zion and began to concentrate extremely. If both the Summon incarnation and the Vitality Weapon were activated at the same time, the difficulty of the control goes up like crazy high. Of course, if he didn¡¯t want to control the alter ego and the weapons one after the other as they have an AI, it wouldn¡¯t be a difficult situation then. In addition to the self-immolation, but also giving the vitality to the weapon they had a basic AI. If they were left alone, they would play an active part. But since the level of AI is extremely low, control was crucial. ¡®There needs to be a mix of control and artificial intelligence.¡¯ Ian had set the target for the Judgment of the Spirit King and moved the shields to a defensive position. And four of them moved in unison. Judgment of the Spirit King went past the shield that was blocking the incoming arrows. Shocked at what was happening, Zion spirit was very flustered and tried to cast a shield. And this was what Ian had wanted. It was only possible to remove that guy if the shield wasn¡¯t out. ¡®Now¡­!¡¯ Ian and his alter ego jumped towards the spirit at the same time. The red sword in their hands began to emit a red smoke at the same time. Swaah-! With a very creepy sound, the two swords were getting close. The two red figures of Ian began to scramble all over the region. CH 533 ¡°How much time has passed Inisco?¡± ¡°Just a moment back, 17 minutes have passed!¡± ¡°Uh, this is bad!¡± Ralph¡¯s party moved into the third cave of the Blast; they were moving in perfect unison. They already knew about it; the place where the Abyss orbs were being kept. However, there was one variable. Muel who had to be with them wasn¡¯t with them at the moment. ¡°Huh, if we only had Muel, it would have been over.¡± ¡°Right. Muel really considers all the worthless things.¡± Ralph just shook his head after hearing Inisco¡¯s grumbling. They could hardly understand the actions of Muel. ¡°But for Muel to head over there isn¡¯t a bad situation for us.¡± ¡°What is that supposed to mean, Chesk?¡± ¡°Think about it clearly. If he headed back to us afterward, won¡¯t it be a bit too embarrassing for us to face them?¡± ¡°Surely.¡± ¡°But since Muel has sacrificed herself, they won¡¯t be able to know that they were used by us.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± ¡°Surely they wouldn¡¯t be that big of a threat to us even if they realize that they are, but the farther they are from the truth the better, right?¡± ¡°Now that Chesk pointed it out, it does make sense. Thanks to Muel, the steam around us disappeared.¡± At the words of Chesk and Inisco, Ralph looked back at them. ¡°Yeah. Well¡­ it is good if it works out.¡± Kung-! Chesk picked up the orb that was lying behind the golem that they just knocked out. Having now the orb with them, they had to run toward the altar in the north to finish the quest. ¡°So we are now supposed to meet that ¡®monster¡¯ in there?¡± At those words from Chesk, Inisco shook his head and replied, ¡°Ah, that can¡¯t be hyung. Muel might have joined them but¡­ with their power, they wouldn¡¯t have even reached the middle of the cave yet, right?¡± ¡°I¡­ I think so? Well, if that monster guy begins to run then there is no way the dungeon would be this quiet.¡± ¡°Kuk, Chesk. You seem to think too highly of those people.¡± ¡°Or maybe we underestimated the difficulty of the dungeon.¡± The three people were talking. They were chatting as if they had cleared the quest; their faces were filled with joy. ¡°Kay, Inisco, cover the back to prevent the spirits from coming in.¡± ¡°Kay, hyung.¡± The three people who sat on the back of Inisco¡¯s summon quickly moved up to the blue magic circle that was hidden inside the cave. If they went there, they would directly head outside, and if spirits entered that place, the magic circle wouldn¡¯t work. Wheeing-! With a low resonating sound, the three of them vanished into the air. And after a while. Kung- kung-! With gigantic roars, the entire dungeon began to vibrate. * * * The ¡®Gorge of the Blast¡¯ dungeon surely had a lot of monsters in it, but the regen speed of the monsters wasn¡¯t so fast. However, after almost twenty minutes after entering the dungeon, the monsters were now able to get close enough to cause damage. It was all because of the special condition that was attached to the ¡®Into the Blast¡¯ quest. *As each minute passes, the monster regen speed will increase by 10%. Ian, who defeated the spirit that appeared in front of him, mumbled to himself. ¡®After about 10 minutes, it will get much faster than the killing rate.¡¯ Ian drew a rough simulation in his head. As a result, he concluded that no matter how late it was, the orb had to be found within 20 to 30 minutes. ¡®It would be nice if the orbs were here¡­¡¯ Ian and his party moved faster than before in the cave and began to search through the caves. Now, most of the spirits in the cave had been killed, so they were able to move around and explore the cave. ¡°Vanessa, don¡¯t you see any orbs over there?¡± ¡°Huh, Unnie! Not here! Not there either?¡± ¡°Can¡¯t see anything in here!¡± ¡°Ian, there?¡± ¡°Nope, nothing here!¡± Even after searching through all the corners of the cave, they couldn¡¯t find anything that looked like an orb. ¡®What should I do? Should I summon all my summons and search through all the other caves?¡¯ Except for the third cave which Ralph and his party entered, there were only two caves left. It took them 20 minutes to get through each cave, so the time was very tight. ¡®Let¡¯s move to the fifth one quickly.¡¯ Determined to get the orb, Ian called for Muel. ¡°Muel, there isn¡¯t one over there, right?¡± In the corner, Muel replied with a little flustered voice. ¡°Ah, yeah! Nothing is here, Ian!¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Ian noticed something was off. The suspicion he had on Muel for entering his party wasn¡¯t fully cleared. The moment he heard the nervous voice of Muel, he realized that something was strange. ¡®What? Is Muel hiding something from us?¡¯ Instead of finding an answer, Ian quietly began to move in the direction of Muel. * * * A large iron gate made of black iron. Before it was a woman in a white dress that was of a priest and looking at it nervously. And she was Muel. ¡®This door shouldn¡¯t be opened no matter what.¡¯ The gate that Muel was currently keeping her eyes on was where the ¡®monster¡¯ that Ralph and his party were going to trap. Muel deliberately stood in front of the iron gate to prevent Ian and his party from opening it. Since the iron gate was bound to move once Ralph placed the orbs on the altar, she felt that the gate shouldn¡¯t be opened in advance. If the iron gate was opened forcibly, the cave would start to work. ¡®If the gate really starts to open¡­ it¡¯s really going to be over.¡¯ It was like a pitfall in a dungeon. The orb had to be found by opening the gate, but if the gate broke, hell would open up. They would be trapped in the dungeon with that monster. The reason why Muel knew this was simple. Since she had come to this place with Ralph and his party, only one of them could survive if the gate was broken. ¡®Hu, just the thought¡­¡¯ Even if the monster appeared, they could escape using the unique ability Blessing of Miro. After clearing her mind, Muel looked at the black iron gate. If that iron gate started to move, she was going to get out of there. She would find Ian and the twins and escape together. ¡®Now it is time to find the orb in that direction¡­¡¯ When she first joined the party of Ian to help them, she came with a heavy heart, but since she was a human, there was a bit of regret. However, she wasn¡¯t feeling anything of that sort now. Because she saw the truth about Ian and the twins. ¡®Yeah, the blood split control¡­ it was fantastic.¡¯ Many spirits in the dungeon were taken down with the blood split; that was the most shocking for her. She didn¡¯t know what kind of a hidden class Ian had, but she thought that he would enter the top ten soon. As time went by, she thought that he would be good enough to get the 1st or 2nd place in the US server for the knight¡¯s class. ¡®Maybe it was the best choice to help them¡­¡¯ She was able to get to know a new talent from Ian, which was related to Ralph¡¯s class. Muel thought that her choice was a godsend. ¡®The quest try needs to be stopped.¡¯ ¡°Phew.¡± After sighing briefly, Muel once again examined the unique ability of Blessing of Miro. Right then, from her back, a ferocious sound started to come. Swoosh-! Muel reflexively turned back to look at it. The next moment, both her eyes went wide at what she saw. ¡°¡­!¡± A golden spear with powerful lightning was flying in at a terrible speed. ¡°Ah, don¡¯t!¡± Muel screamed on top of her lungs before even realizing it. But before she could even react, the spear shot past her and went to the iron gate. The sound that came next was intense. Kwaang-! From the darkness, came out Ian. ¡°Muel, what are you doing here?¡± ¡°That¡­ tha¡­!¡± ¡°Were you hiding something from me?¡± Muel wanted to explain to Ian about what would happen. But she couldn¡¯t do it. Since the spear that Ian threw went to the iron gate, things started to change. Thud-! From the black iron gate, a heavy sound began to ring. The monster which was inside the iron gate had awakened. Ian¡¯s gaze shifted to the gate instinctively. ¡°What was that¡­¡± Muel began to pull Ian¡¯s arms, quickly. ¡°Run!¡± ¡°No, explain what is happening¡­!¡± ¡°There isn¡¯t time to explain! We must get out of here, quickly!¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Using the power, Ian recovered his Judgment of Spirit King and began to flee due to the hand of Muel. He couldn¡¯t tell what was happening, but her expression seemed sincere. ¡°Vanessa, Sarah come over here quickly¡­! There is no time!¡± As soon as the four of them gathered, the ¡®Blessing of Miro¡¯ buff was going to be triggered. For that to happen, before the monster could even come through the iron gate, all the people had to escape together. If the iron gate broke, the structure would change and everyone would get locked in there. However, all her hard work was in vain. Kwaang-! The iron gate broke before the four people could gather. ¡°Ah¡­!¡± A sharp exhale came out of Muel¡¯s mouth. She couldn¡¯t do it anymore. No matter how powerful Ian and his party was, it was impossible for them to take down such a monster. ¡°What is it, Muel?¡± ¡°What is up, Ian?¡± The twin sisters who were a bit late in reaching them asked Ian and Muel with eager eyes. The next moment. Tring-! In front of their eyes, new system messages began to appear. [The conditions have been met.] [You have been disconnected from the outside.] [The party that was broken up is reorganized.] [Current party members: Ian, Vanessa, Sarah, Muel.] The contents of the system message was something Ian never thought would come up, and that made his eyes go wide. ¡®Isolated from the outside..? Party is reorganized?¡¯ Things didn¡¯t end there though. [Hidden quest has been triggered.] The quest window that he saw the first opened. ¨C Kill the Guardian Machine (Breakthrough) (Hidden) The mechanical civilization does not want the Abyss Valley to be purged. So in the deepest part of the valley, they left a powerful guardian. And he was now awake. The guardian will not forgive you for waking him from his sleep. He will try to hurt you, and your chances for survival are close to nil. However, if you were to kill him and survive, you will get a hidden legacy of the mechanical civilization. Defeat the rampaging mechanical guardian and escape from the cave. Quest Difficulty: A+ Quest Condition: Destroy the Iron Gate of the Abyss Valley. Time Limit: None Reward: ¡®???¡¯ blueprint. Advanced essence (Attribute: Random) Advanced spirit (Attribute: Random) CH 534 ¡°Chesk, cover for me please!¡± ¡°Inisco, cover the monster in the back!¡± The north passage of the Gorge of Blast dungeon. At the road that would lead them to the altar, three men were sweating like hell while fighting. And countless Abyss spirits were attacking them in all directions. ¡°Ugh, hold on just a little longer!¡± ¡°Ralph hyung, isn¡¯t it better to just step in and get it? If we push in any further, we might end up with dangerous aggression!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t hang on the orders, Inisco. It is done once we arrive at the altar, anyway. That¡¯s it!¡± ¡°Okay¡­ uh, hyung. But we still have three minutes ahead of us!¡± ¡°That is all we need!¡± In fact, the Gorge of Blast dungeon wasn¡¯t a large map, and the distance from the third cave to the altar wasn¡¯t that far either. However, that road was the last part of the dungeon to be cleared, so the number of monsters that appeared and the level of difficulty was a bit harder. Because of that, the strategy was this, killing one monster and then taking a step in. If they just ran toward the monsters, they would get surrounded by the spirits. The situation of Ralph¡¯s party was similar to that. Kwang- Kwang-! Numerous purple bullets flowing in the sound of an intense explosion came in from all directions. Subsequently, a system message appeared in front of Inisco. Tring-! [The summon ¡®Linkis¡¯ has been damaged fatally!] [The Vitality of summon ¡®Linkis¡¯ has been reduced by 1,029!] [The summon ¡®Linkis¡¯ has been damaged fatally!] Linkis was a legendary summon in the shape of a giant bean beetle. It was the most powerful tanking familiar of the highest tier compared to all tanking summons in the higher tier, and it could provoke the aggros and draws in the aggros to prevent an enemy attack. But even that kind of guy wasn¡¯t able to endure the intense bombardment of the powerful abyss spirits. The vitality of Linkis eventually got exhausted. Tring-! [The summon ¡®Linkis¡¯ vitality has been drained.] [The summon Linkis has been summoned back.] ¡°Dammit!¡± Inisco cursed under his breath. If he went in slowly without overdoing these stuff, then he wouldn¡¯t have had to lose Linkis. Of course, it wasn¡¯t like the orders of Ralph were incomprehensible. The ¡®monster¡¯ guy was up there before they went to the altar. Because of that, they tried to take down the party of Ian and run out of the altar. All the plans they had put together would be in vain if it didn¡¯t work out. But apart from that, Ralph¡¯s orders were too self-centered and that was inevitable. ¡°Ralph hyung! This is just too much!¡± ¡°It is done! Just 20 seconds!¡± Kwaah-! Ralph¡¯s sword was stained in red, giving out tremendous heat waves in all directions. And in the place where the heatwave exploded, a wide path had opened up. Not all monsters were gone, but the explosion was big enough to push the monsters back a few feet. Ralph recovered his sword and jumped in without delay. With the altar within their reach, they were hoping to clear the quest. Tatt-! ¡°Ahhhh-!¡± Ralph leaped forward with all his strength and might. At the same time, an unexpected system message had come up before his party. [The conditions have been met.] [The terrain will be changed. Some party members will be disconnected.] [The divided party will now be reorganized.] [Current party members: Ralph, Chesk, Inisco.] Chesk and Inisco who noticed the system messages asked out loud about what they just saw, ¡°Uh?¡± ¡°What is this? Why would the party split?¡± But Ralph, who put his head into work, smiled out of realization. ¡°Idiots, can¡¯t get the situation still?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°What is that supposed to mean, hyung?¡± Arriving at the altar, Ralph smiled and pulled out the orb from his inventory. He then opened his mouth and looked at Chesk and Inisco. ¡°Why did the party split?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°Those dumbasses smashed the iron gates; they are trapped inside the cave.¡± ¡°Ah, because of that¡­?¡± Only then did the other two people managed to understand the situation. And their expressions brightened. If Ian and his party were trapped in the cave with that ¡®monster¡¯, then they had a longer time in their hands. Smiling, Ralph put the orb on the altar. Blue light began to dance around the altar. Woong-! Ralph, Chesk, and Inisco were very elated, seeing that scene unfold in front of their eyes. They didn¡¯t have to fight anymore. The moment the altar began to work, all the monsters which were surrounding them would get wiped out. Kung- Kung-! At the same time, a loud vibrating sound rang out from the altar, and the blue light started to spread on all directions. Subsequently, they were all shooting toward the monsters around them. Pung- Pong-! And with a sound of crackers bursting, all the spirts and monsters were taken down in a second. As the altar started to work, the Abyss Valley began to get cleared. ¡°Done! Told you we could do it!¡± Ralph clenched his fist and looked over at the cave where the monster was trapped. In fact, putting the orb on the altar had been successful when they tried that previously. Nevertheless, the reason why they failed to clear the quest was because the altar began to work, which made the monsters come out and destroy the orbs. If the orbs got destroyed before the valley got purified, then the last gate won¡¯t activate. In other words, the road to the ¡®spirit sanctuary¡¯ wouldn¡¯t open. So Ralph still couldn¡¯t feel assured even though the altar worked. If that monster broke out of the cave and came running in their direction, it would turn into another fail. It was not over until the messages said that the gate was active. ¡®Please, don¡¯t come on this side!¡¯ As if planned, all of their eyes were stuck onto the entrance of the cave with the desire to not cross path with the monster again. Their hopes seemed like it would come true. 10 seconds, 20 seconds, no 1 minute. Yet, the monster didn¡¯t come out. But the three still wouldn¡¯t celebrate. ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°What is this?¡± ¡°Nothing? Is something up?¡± The monster didn¡¯t appear, and the gate to the spirit sanctuary didn¡¯t activate either. Right before their eyes came messages which they hadn¡¯t seen before. Messages they wanted to deny so badly. [¡®Abyss Orb¡¯ is now active.] [The conditions have been met.] [The Abyss valley has begun to get purified.] [Purification rate 10¡­ 25¡­ 70, 80, 85, 90 percent.] [Some areas of the valley have been cut off by an unknown force.] [Purification of Abyss Valley was failed.] Woong-! With low resonance, violent vibrations around the altar began to subside. The blue energy surrounding the altar began to disappear like it never existed. ¡°No, no way¡­¡± Chesk started to get nervous. In front of the three people, an additional line of system message came up. [Purification was failed, the contaminated spirit has been recreated.] Abyss spirits began to form again in front of the three who looked like dead people. * * * Grrrrk-! An audible sound was heard; a monster stood in front of the party of Ian. Kung-! To be more specific, rather than a monster, the more appropriate term was a giant monster. ¡®What kind of monsters are here? They¡¯re bigger than Thor.¡¯ With the name guardian machine, he had a very complex appearance made up of numerous hardware components. Ian really couldn¡¯t help but admire the appearance of that monster. ¡®Keu, cool! I want to have a summon that looks like a mechanical monster!¡¯ However, Ian¡¯s thoughts didn¡¯t last long. Muel who was next to him was feeling rather down. ¡°We are so done now¡­¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Since you smashed the gate, we will all get wiped out.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± Muel was shaking her head with a desperate expression. Ian couldn¡¯t understand her because the accident hadn¡¯t occurred from her side. ¡°What is that supposed to mean? Why will we get wiped out?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think I saw a phrase in the quest window which said that we would get wiped out.¡± ¡°Eh?¡± Ian pointed to the mechanical being which was in front of him and asked, ¡°That guy over there. Can¡¯t we get out of here if we catch him?¡± ¡°That¡­ that is true, right?¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s get that lump of iron now!¡± Ian smiled at Muel and took the Judgment of the Spirit King in his hand. Muel stared at Ian and shook her head. ¡®Well, it sure is nice to be confident¡­¡¯ As mentioned earlier, Muel did acknowledge Ian¡¯s skills. But even then, she didn¡¯t think that Ian would be able to kill that monster. ¡®That monster isn¡¯t a thing that could just be defeated easily¡­¡¯ The ¡®Guardian Machine¡¯ in front of their eyes wasn¡¯t just a powerful monster. Starting from his vitality to all his combat abilities, everything was enormous, and he was a monster that had a nasty ¡®attribute¡¯. ¡®How is a Zion boss monster of 100,000 transcendence vitality be taken down¡­?¡¯ The term Zion had appeared for the first time in the spirit dimension. The monsters with that attribute were characterized to have tremendous vitality recovery rate. Zion normal spirits were hard enough to kill, and how were they going to kill a boss monster which had dozens of vitality compared to normal ones. A mechanical guardian whose vitality never went below half even after the pole deal done by Ralph¡¯s party. No matter how good Ian was, she thought that it would be impossible to take that guy down. ¡®Well, maybe it would work if Ralph¡¯s party manage to arrive here as well, right?¡¯ If they knew that the strength of Ian¡¯s party had a great deal, then maybe Ralph would have attacked the boss along with them. However, it all made no sense. Muel, shook the thoughts out of her head as she was starting to think of silly stuff. She went behind Ian¡¯s party to prepare for the battle. Even though she thought it was a worthless fight, she couldn¡¯t help but join in because of her pride. [Kuek. Who¡­ dares¡­ to wake¡­ keuk¡­ humans¡­] Thud-! The guardian machine began to approach Ian¡¯s party with thudding footsteps. Kiyaaa-! After a while, a white light started to emanate from the body of the guardian. It was a very familiar effect that the party of Ian had witnessed from the Zion earlier in the dungeon. ¡°Zion¡­!¡± A word left from the mouth of Vanessa. Zion, which was the most difficult attribute of the dungeons¡¯ contaminated spirits. Because of that white and cloudy energy which was shining around it, it could be considered that the mechanical guardian had a Zion attribute. On the other hand, there were characters who were responding quite differently. ¡°Zion attribute¡­ looks fun, right?¡± And Muel who heard that couldn¡¯t help but feel shocked. Ian wasn¡¯t feeling down, not one bit, even after realizing that the huge machine was of a Zion attribute. On the contrary, he was feeling rather elated. ¡®What kind of confidence does he have?¡¯ Her shock didn¡¯t end there though. Ian and the twins were having an incomprehensible conversation. ¡°This¡­ We can¡¯t help it anymore.¡± At those words from Ian, Vanessa added, ¡°Yeah, Ian. We cant get wiped out after coming all this way, right?¡± Sarah who was right next to her joined the conversation. ¡°It is a miracle that you were able to hide it so far.¡± ¡°Right. That ridiculous Knight cosplay¡­¡± ¡°You know what is really creepy, Vanessa? This was harder for those who knew the truth.¡± ¡°Right, Unnie. In addition, this current situation wasn¡¯t a normal one.¡± Unable to understand their conversation, Muel just kept staring at them. After a while¡­ Woong-! Along with a resonating sound, a flash of light began to surround Ian one after the other. A summoner skill that only a summoner could perform. Subsequently, a number of summons began to appear around Ian. ¡°What is this!?¡± Muel wasn¡¯t able to close her mouth for a long time. CH 535 A quest difficulty of ¡®A+¡¯. That was a ridiculously high level of difficulty. Of course, Ian did clear quests with triple S difficulty several times, but the current A+ was a totally different case. ¡®A+ difficulty in the Middle-Earth¡­¡¯ In other words, A+ with the transcendence level. Which made Ian nervous. And paved the way for a carefully planned strategy. ¡®Since there is no time limit, we need to target it as safely as possible.¡¯ The Gorge of Gusts was a special map that gave certain attribute monsters and spirits the advantage of the combat in the map. And that was one of the biggest reasons for the difficulty for the dungeon. The targets battle stats showed that it was of Zion attribute, and all the monsters in the dungeon were of either Abyss or Zion spirit. Due to that, though most of the dungeons were composed of lower-level spirits, the actual experience felt like fighting intermediate level ones. Kukung-! The mechanical guardian rushed towards the party of Ian making bizarre sounds. ¡°Kulkul¡­ I¡¯ll tear you all off¡­¡± And it reminded him of the giant King Kong. To be more precise, it was a mechanical structure that looked like a King Kong. ¡®It looks like it is similar to the higher level spirits that we faced at the last gate in the Frost Cave¡­ and has a buff on it, anything else I¡¯m missing?¡¯ The mechanical guardian just raised his fist in the direction of Ian. Kwang-! Like a meteorite that fell, the whole cave trembled and the fist created a pit where it fell. Tatt-! Ian avoided it by jumping lightly and began to give out orders. ¡°Vanessa, summon a few of your familiars to protect Sarah and Muel.¡± ¡°Okay, Ian!¡± ¡°Sarah, I need some debuff, please!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± Bababang-! The cave was completely isolated from the outside, it was like a Boss Room. In it, numerous units were moving in unison. The party members were only 4 even after including Ian, but when Ian and Vanessa summoned their familiars, the place got crowded to a full party level. Seeing Ian¡¯s swiftly moving familiars, Vanessa thought to herself. ¡®How does one even control so many familiars?¡¯ No normal summoner would run with so many summons. Summoners usually operate three to four of their most common ones, the Novice summoners have a lot of difficulties controlling just one. And Vanessa had about seven. ¡®I like exactly seven of them¡­¡¯ Vanessa too had many more familiars with her. However, the limit with the leadership was less, and having too many familiars made it difficult to get a good control over them. Surely Vanessa had a great combat ability, but being to multi-task was a whole other thing. Therefore, the size of familiars that Vanessa could manage in the combat were of two myth class familiars, three legendary ranked, and two hero ranked magical beasts. And of all of them was Cortus, the land dragon that could be called as the main summon. Then what about Ian? Let¡¯s see from the myth class rank first. With the familiars that were summoned onto the battlefield, Karceus, Bbookbbook, Elcarix, and Thor. There were four of them in total. And that wasn¡¯t the end. One wasn¡¯t with them and had to be in the training camp because of its potential. And including that it was 5. Myth rank alone, 5. There were much more legendary ranked familiars. The first member of Ian¡¯s family, Ly, and the Bbakbbak who has been a very great tanker. Halli, with the strongest maneuverable, and Pin, a very good dealer. From the legendary magical beasts, the best supporting dealer Nick, who has a legendary amount of damage. And the case of ¡®Evolvable¡¯ for Grrr. The potential was there, so it could be a myth rank at any time that it met the requirements. If the normal summoners had even just one of Ian¡¯s top summons, they would rise to the top ranks in no time. ¡®How many alternatives did Ian have?¡¯ Vanessa shook her head once again after looking at all the summons of Ian. She didn¡¯t know the ranks of Ian¡¯s familiars. But from just rough estimation, there seemed to be no one below the hero ranks. It was an unrealistic power. Maybe if Ian introduced himself as a GM, the twins would have believed him with no doubt. ¡°Halli! Guardian of Wind!¡± Grrrng-! Krrrng-! Ian who climbed on top of Halli moved along with the wind and headed in the direction of the guardian. Following them were Ly and Pin. Kiyaaa-! Krrrng-! Excluding the three, the other summons moved a little back and created a camp. Even the tanker, Bbakbbak. Vanessa was completely puzzled looking at it. Because of the orders from Ian, when all his summons moved back, so did the summons of Vanessa. In other words, there were no tankers at the forefront of the battlefield. ¡®You want to fight while avoiding it?¡¯ It could be a possible theory. But if all the deals can be avoided, the whole purpose of the tanker loses its meaning. And Ian wasn¡¯t moving with that intention either. Swask-! With the Judgment of the Spirit King in his hands, Ian rushed towards the mechanical guardian with gold light. And the spear went right to the forehead of the guardian. Tring-! [You have done fatal damage to the ¡®Guardian Machine¡¯!] [The vitality of the ¡®Guardian Machine¡¯ reduced by 587!] Powerful damage was stuck for an attack which didn¡¯t mix skill coefficients. But considering the enormous coefficient of the vitality and the resilience of the machine, it was pretty great. Wooong-! The energy of Zion wrapped the whole body around the machine and was restoring the vitality back to its normal size. ¡°kukung- petty guys-!¡± The angry guardian machine roared into the air in the middle of the dungeon. A white wave spread out everywhere. Wheeing- wheeing-! It was an inevitable kind of debuff. [¡®Guardian Machine¡¯ casts a unique ability of ¡®Guardian¡¯s shout¡¯.] [Agility has been reduced by 20% for 30 seconds.] [Defense reduced by 10% for 30 seconds.] [All attack skills are unavailable for 90 seconds.] [You are in a state of ¡®fear¡¯ for 5 seconds.] [Resisted.] Ian who read the system messages quickly checked the conditions of his familiars. There were three summons in the range of debuff. And two of them were in a state of fear. Ian quickly ordered Muel, pointing to Ly and Pin who were in a panic. ¡°Muel, Pin and Ly!¡± ¡°Kay!¡± He hadn¡¯t spoken precisely what had to be done, but Ian¡¯s order was to use the skill ¡®release¡¯ on Ly and Pin. Priest class unique ability, ¡®release¡¯ skill was triggered and the state would be released. It wouldn¡¯t have been possible for Muel and priest class user to not understand it. From the staff of Muel, who was waiting for the orders¡ªwhite light came out. At the same time, Pin and Ly¡¯s conditions went back to normal. The duration of fear was for 5 seconds, and in less than 2 seconds they were released from the state. In the meantime, Ian, who approached the guardian machine, struck his sword. By using the unique ability of Summoner Knight to wield the Judgment of the Spirit King, Ian was wielding the Bloody Revenge. Bang-Ba-! [You have done fatal damage to the ¡®Guardian Machine¡¯!] [Vitality of the ¡®Guardian Machine¡¯ reduced by 295!] [Vitality of the ¡®Guardian Machine¡¯ reduced by 177!] Though huge sounds were echoing, not much damage had been caused. And Ian¡¯s eyes which read the message narrowed. ¡®It wasn¡¯t an attack that I do normally, but¡­¡¯ The attack done by the vitality weapon wasn¡¯t bringing out that great of damage. Rather than saying that it wasn¡¯t bringing out damage, it wasn¡¯t moving in the perfect manner that he wanted. If Ian had been able to move the Judgment of the Spirit King in the exact way that he wanted, then the damage would have been much more. ¡®lack of practice I guess¡­¡¯ Ian was grumbling to himself while controlling Halli. The result was suffocating enough and it was the time for the attack to come up. ¡°Kwaahk- germs, you¡¯re all like germs¡­!¡± Roaring out loud, the guardian machine¡¯s body was pounding on his chest with its fists. A number of projectiles rose from the back and were beginning to fire from all the directions. Swack- swack- Spreading all through the dungeon, huge amount of balls started to fall. Muel who saw that gulped. ¡®Yeah, this was it. All of us went to death at the same time.¡¯ The iron bullets fired close to each other were the most dangerous of the monster¡¯s unique ability. Because of that, Muel reflexively triggered the shield. Ian¡¯s order didn¡¯t even fall, but without the shield, they would have been wiped out. Woong-! However, that was a mistake on part of Muel. Kiyoo-! A beautiful phoenix emerged from somewhere; radiating a brilliant gold shade and wiped out all the projectiles that were spread across the battlefield. * * * When dealing with the first time with the boss monster, it was always necessary to understand the attack pattern of the enemy first. And it was most important to get the least amount of damage in the process. ¡°Cowards, run away¡­!¡± This was why Ian had initially approached it with an agile driven familiars. The reason why they pulled back the tankers wasn¡¯t because he was confident in avoiding all the incoming attacks. No matter how great Ian was, there was no way that he could avoid all the attacks from the boss monsters. That too when the variables that would occur weren¡¯t even known. However, if the idea of attack was abandoned and they went to ¡®avoid¡¯, the story could be different. If the attack on the boss was neglected and the focus was kept on the movements of the boss, then they would get close to avoid 100 percent of the attacks from the boss. And through the previous observations, Ian was able to sully grasp the attack pattern of the opponent. ¡°Yeah, you speak well. Even if you didn¡¯t I wouldn¡¯t have fought with my all.¡± Ian smiled and aimed his sword at the machine. Then, the summons and his admirers moved forward. ¡°Sarah, Vanessa, ready?¡± ¡°Obviously!¡± ¡°Sure!¡± The two sisters who were accustomed with the battle style of Ian quickly understood what his order meant. Unlike the two, Muel was half a beat slow, and Ian gave the orders. ¡°Muel, support Bbookbbook a lot.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± ¡°That guy over there, the Abyss dragon.¡± ¡°Ah, okay.¡± With shining eyes, Ian looked over at Bbookbbook. And with a nasty smile on his mouth he spoke, ¡°Bbookbbook-ah.¡± ¡°What, what is it Bbook?¡± Bbookbbook replied with a trembling voice as it was feeling very anxious for some unknown reason. And that anxiousness of Bbookbbook took a nasty turn into reality. ¡°From the very moment¡­¡± ¡°bbook?¡± ¡°You are a tanker, healer and the main damage dealer.¡± Bbookbbook¡¯s eyes started to water. ¡°Bubbook? What is that supposed to mean bbook?¡± Except for the dragon Breath, there were no unique abilities for Bbookbbook. He could use the magic clan to use the magic abilities, but that was a lot less efficient on physical damage and needed intellect. But nevertheless, Bbookbbook had a nearly boastful level of DPS. It was just because the battle stats were high. ¡®The magical clan ability of magic seems more tricky than originally thought.¡¯ Each time the energy was absorbed the stats were reinforced, and the unique ability of Bbookbbook was empowered only. The current state of ¡®Magic enhancement¡¯ was as follows. -Magic Enhancement The abyss dragon becomes much more powerful each time they absorb divine spirits. (Every time the spirits are blocked, the defense, vitality, and damage are permanently increased.) Current Attack Damage: 7,524 (250 Transcendence) Additional defense: 5,725 (190 transcendence) Current additional Vitality: 1,257,565 Even with just the bonus stats from the Magic enhancement, a general summoner could be able to get to 100 levels while having Bbookbbook in hands. The combat itself was more powerful that Karceus and Bbakbbak, so there was no need for further explanation. The only regretful thing with Bbookbbook was that it just didn¡¯t have a high coefficient attack. But from now, that shortcoming would mean nothing. And now, the attack skills were almost impossible to use because of the debuff skills of the Guardian Machine. ¡®It has been long since I went with BBookbbook.¡¯ In addition, BBookbbook was of Abyss attribute. Until that moment; the Abyss attribute existence was not known, but with that¡ªBbookbbook was in the strongest attribute buff. Bbookbbook was going to be the one which would be using one of the two buffs that the dungeon would provide, it was because of its attribute and the affinity. In addition, the Guardian Machine which was in the front was of Zion attribute¡ªan attribute that Abyss could probably eat. ¡°Bbubbook.¡± ¡°Bbubbok?¡± ¡°You have some pent up hunting stress right?¡± ¡°Bbook!¡± Ian lifted his spear and pointed it to the guardian. Chuck-! And laughed. ¡°From this very moment, that is your sandbag.¡± ¡°Bbook¡­?¡± ¡°Hyung will look after your back, you go ahead!¡± CH 536 -Bbookbbook/ Abyss Dragon Muel was puzzled when she confirmed the information that was floating on the head of the little tortoise. Anyone would be, because the appearance of the tortoise wasn¡¯t that of an Abyss dragon that she knew. ¡®If it is an abyss dragon, it must surely be that cool navy colored dragon that appeared at the end of the dimensional war¡­¡¯ But when the battle began, her eyes widened. It was because the guy who Ian had been calling as Bbookbbook was surrounded with a blue light and turned into a cool looking dragon. ¡°¡­!¡± Ian¡¯s voice pulled Muel out of her thoughts. ¡°Muel, come on, the buff!¡± Muel hurriedly poured out all the buffs she could play. ¡°The Barrier of light! Goddess Blessing!¡± And then, the entire body of the giant Abyss Dragon started to shine in white light. Wheeing-! And the one who triggered the buff wasn¡¯t just Muel. ¡°Attribute enhancement!¡± ¡°The Light of Valor!¡± Vanessa and Ian too triggered all the buff skills they had. It wasn¡¯t precisely the buff skills that they possessed; it was the magic of Ian¡¯s familiar Elcarix and Vanessa¡¯s familiar, Cortus. Woong- Woooong-! Sarah then cast her magic! ¡°The wall of Magic!¡± The Wall of magic, a spell that can be used by the wizards of 7 classes or more. It was a utility magic of the strongest level for a wizard. -Wall of Magic. Classification: Auxiliary magic Class: 7 class Magic consumed: 4,500 Creates a ¡®magic wall¡¯ at the specified coordinates, amplifying the power of all the attack skills passing through the wall. *Amplification increases in proportion to the intellect of the caster. Current amplification rate: 219 *Duration increased based on the caster¡¯s skill level. Current duration: 3.6 seconds Depending on the caster¡¯s level, it amplifies up to 200 percent or more power, which was a huge factor. Of course, it was tricky to use because of the short duration, but it wouldn¡¯t be a problem for the rankers. As soon as the casting was done by Sarah, a purple translucent wall got created in front of Bbookbbook. Wheeing-! And immediately, Bbookbbook opened his mouth and took a huge inhale to release the dragon breath. Kwaaaa-! [The familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ has triggered ¡®Dragon Breath¡¯.] [The power has been amplified by the relation with the target.] [Power has been boosted by the ¡®Attribute Enhancement¡¯ buff effect.] [Fatal damage has been done to ¡®Guardian Machine¡¯!] [The vitality of ¡®Guardian Machine¡¯ has been reduced by 5,798!] [The vitality of ¡®Guardian Machine¡¯ has been reduced by 4,989!] [The vitality of ¡®Guardian Machine¡¯ has been reduced by 5, 370!] An estimate of 30,000 began to fall off the machine rapidly. Huge attack that hasn¡¯t been seen before coming at it. ¡°Kwaa! These guys!¡± At the moment, a guardian machine who lost more than 100,000 rushed towards Bbookbbook. The vitality restoration; the lost vitality could be recovered with that, but because the damage has been so high, the recovery wasn¡¯t happening that quick. And in the meantime, a total attack of the other summons began to pour in. Kwa- Kwang-! Ian and Vanessa¡¯s familiars began to rush onto the Guardian machine insanely. ¡®We must not give it the time to recover!¡¯ Suddenly, after casting all the magic¡ªElcarix, the Dragon of Light began to charge its breath. And so did Karceus and Cortus. Kwaaa-! The successive breath attacks. Of course, it wasn¡¯t comparable to the breath that Bbookbbook did with all the buffs, but theirs wasn¡¯t negligible either. Ian, who was in control of his familiars, glanced at the vitality gauge of the guardian machine. Half the vitality was there and it was blinking. The very moment. Thud-! The guardian machine thumped on the floor. Kwaaah-! The ¡®Guardian¡¯s shout¡¯ was triggered. All the active skills get locked with the debuff. ¡®Sh*t, a lot of skills haven¡¯t been used¡­¡¯ Ian clicked his tongue but didn¡¯t seem to be flustered. Since the most powerful active attack skills ¡®breath¡¯ has been used, there was nothing to be upset about. And all that was left was to believe in Bbookbbook. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah, forward!¡± ¡°Okay, Master!¡± It had been a while since Bbookbbook had been in the dragon form and talked. ¡®Surely my Bbookbbook is the cutest when he is in the full form.¡¯ However, it wasn¡¯t the time for such things. The next moment, the guardian machine¡¯s next move continued. A guardian crouched and bowed down. On the surface, it seemed like a move that would stop all the incoming attacks, but that wasn¡¯t the case for Ian who knew it, as he knew the pattern of the boss attacks. The guy who just crouched down on the floor would soon jump up and pound his chest like a King Kong. Ian started to think. ¡®Nick¡¯s unique ability cooldown will be back¡­¡¯ In fact, the best way to absorb the unique ability of the guardian machine which would soon release bullets from it. While the unique ability power was out, the guardian machine was almost defenseless, which was the best for dealing damage. If all the flying bullets were erased with the unique ability of Nick, then while his unique ability was in effect, we can put in a pole deal. But Ian decided to spare the unique ability of Nick. Boss monsters usually triggered their most powerful abilities when their vitality would drop below 30 percent. And they hadn¡¯t figure what that was, so he decided to save Nick¡¯s ¡®Guardian of Sun God¡¯. Of course, that didn¡¯t mean that Ian would be able to match the unique ability of the Guardian Machine. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah, blow it up!¡± Kyahh-! Receiving Ian¡¯s orders, Bbookbbook which was close to the target raised his right foot and thumped it on the machine. Kwang-! Numerous pieces scattered all over the place and a few pieces were stuck to the ground. And then, Bbookbbook twisted his whole body with his right foot axis. And the heavy tail of Bbookbbook stuck towards the crouched machine. Swaack-! [Familiar ¡®BBookbbook¡¯ has done devastating damage to the ¡®Guardian Machine¡¯.] [Vitality of the ¡®Guardian Machine¡¯ has been done by 3,980.] The body of the guardian watchmen, who was stuck to the hard tried to wobble to the sides. The very same time, white light started to gather in the heart position of the machine. The unique ability that was going to be activated was canceled by Ian, just as he intended it to be. ¡®Done.¡¯ Tat-! Ian jumped on the back of Pin with a light gesture. Subsequently, Ian threw down the Judgment of the Spirit King that he was holding in his hand. And Ian¡¯s form too started to flood. Ian was holding out the Bloody Revenge. Woong-! A red light began to leak out of the sword and spread through Ian. Ian¡¯s new form started to be covered by a bloody red colored mist and shot down to the unbalanced guardian mechanic. Swaak-! The blood fog wrapped the golden lightning and dig right into the guardian machine¡¯s heart. Kwakwat-! Subsequently, system messages came in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. [Activated unique ability ¡®Blood Split¡¯.] [¡®Guardian Machine¡¯ has been fatally damaged.] [The vitality of the ¡®Guardian Machine¡¯ has been reduced by 1,420.] [The vitality of the ¡®Guardian Machine¡¯ has been reduced by 1,798.] All of the attack skills were locked due to the debuff placed by the guardian. Then how was Ian able to use ¡®blood split¡¯ in that situation? While watching Ian play, Sarah felt her body creep. ¡®Did he do it intentionally or did he do it to use that?¡¯ Unless Ian was being watched closely, Ian wasn¡¯t using the Bloody Revenge weapon at the time of the Shout. That allowed the Bloody revenge weapon to escape the debuff effect, and so the effect of Blood Split remains available. ¡®How could he think of this during a crisis situation?¡¯ In fact, the theory itself was very simple. If an equipment was taken out after the area¡¯s debuff has been triggered, the unique abilities placed on the equipment aren¡¯t affected. But Ian¡¯s great thinking was that he calculated that time gap he had in the middle. Sarah couldn¡¯t help but think that Ian¡¯s brain had been wired differently from the public. Kwakwanh-! Suddenly, the guardian watchmen whose vitality fell turned mad. Without any preliminary actions, he started to randomly pour out those bullets. However, Ian who saved the unique ability of Nick ¡®Guardian of Sun God¡¯ was for the very reason. Wheeing-! As the golden waves spread out, all the projectiles were wiped out. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah, let¡¯s finish.¡± ¡°I will.¡± Abyss dragon replied with a heavy voice and rushed towards the violent guardian machine. Abyss Dragon opened his mouth and bit on the nape of the machine. Crack-! And in that state of dying, it wasn¡¯t able to even fight back. ¡°Krrk- Kddk- I am hit¡­¡± The giant machine spit out powerless words with the mechanical sound before it fell on the ground without power. Thud-! And as it fell down, the large claws of Bbookbbook went through the heart of the fallen guardian¡¯s chest. Slash-! That was the end of the ferocious battle. [Familiar ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ has done devastating damage to the ¡®Guardian Machine¡¯.] [The vitality of ¡®Guardian Machine¡¯ has reduced by 2,561.] [The vitality of ¡®Guardian Machine¡¯ has reduced by 3,038.] [The vitality of ¡®Guardian Machine¡¯ has been exhausted!] [You have successfully defeated the Guardian Machine!] [Earned the Transcendence experience of 579.] [Transcendence level has risen to seven.] [Successfully completed the quest ¡®Annihilate the Guardian Machine¡¯!] In front of Ian¡¯s party came the system messages. Subsequently, the body of the machine swept away with white scale light had scattered everywhere. [You have earned the item ¡®Paillette relic¡¯] [You have earned the item ¡®Lesser Machine summon Blueprint¡¯.] [You have earned the item ¡®Advanced Flame Essence¡¯.] [You have earned the item ¡®Advanced Water element stone¡¯.] Ian¡¯s eyes which checked the list of rewards started to shine brightly. CH 537 In the Ulphir mountains in the central continent, the northern part of the Shikar desert. A new area had been created where the former Lich King lived. The dreary landscape where the ice capes were piled up had now turned into a beautiful meadow and forest where vegetation could grow. And of course, the field which was completely filled in with undead monsters were also replaced with the kind of guys who matched the current map. It truly was a beautiful landscape. But there could never be such a peaceful story in Kailan. ¡°Remir, please give a slow!¡± ¡°Yu Shin, shut off the rear!¡± ¡°Fiolan, finish it up!¡± Kuwahh-! With a little less than a 20 guild party, the Lotus was hunting a huge golem. And above the head of the golem was a simple information. [Giant Forest Golem: Lv 500] ¡°A little bit more! I almost got it!¡± ¡°Noel-ah! Is Breath not ready yet?¡± ¡°It just came out now!¡± ¡°Herz hyung, get some cover!¡± A huge golem that gave a tremendously overwhelming sense to the group. The hunt wasn¡¯t so hard for the Lotus Guild members though. Thud-! [The party member ¡®KanjiHoonie¡¯ inflicted fatal damage to the Giant Forest Golem!] [The vitality of the ¡®Giant Forest Golem¡¯ has been reduced by 1,598,039.] [The Giant Forest Golem¡¯s vitality has been exhausted.] [You have successfully defeated the Giant Forest Golem.] ¡°Nice, Hoonie!¡± ¡°Keu, Herz hyung, the cover in the end was great.¡± ¡°Not at all.¡± Since the end of the Lich King episode, the Ulphir mountains have been very quiet. The dead domain had disappeared, but ironically, the users¡¯ movements were far less. And surely, the place wasn¡¯t that great even before. Immediately after the disappearance of the Lich King¡¯s army, many users had gone to the mountains for expeditions. But it took less than a week before the crowd disappeared. The reason was because of the monsters which were appearing in the field. ¡°Phew, The Ulphir mountains too will one day get filled with users like other hunting grounds, right?¡± At the question from Hoonie, Canoel responded, ¡°Well, wouldn¡¯t it take at least a year?¡± ¡°Maybe. It would take over a year since the average level is around 450.¡± The average level of the field monsters in the Ulphir mountains was 500. All the monsters that were appearing in the Ulphir mountains were of level 500. Therefore, the party that could hunt in the grounds of Ulphir mountains in the Korean server could be counted with one¡¯s fingers. Even the Lotus Guild, which had been considered having the strongest powers, could only make two parties for the expedition on the Ulphir mountains. The recommended level for hunting in the Ulphir mountains was listed at 450 in the official Kailan community. Now, the average level of the Lotus party where all the rankers were gathered was about 430, so one could guess the difficulty. ¡°Let¡¯s take a short break here! Let¡¯s fix our things up and start hunting again in five minutes.¡± At the order from Herz, Fiolan nodded and said, ¡°Yeah. We have been running for an hour without a break; my spirit is low.¡± Canoel who was right beside her also said, ¡°Right. I can feel pain on my back.¡± Hoonie ran over to Harin and asked, ¡°Harin noona, please open the lunches!¡± At the corner of the map, the Lotus party began to open their lunch boxes, forgetting the stress. In fact, Harin¡¯s level wasn¡¯t enough to come to the Ulphir mountains, but she was brought in for the sake of the party. The sweet snack time during the hunts. The stats increase due to the added effect of the cuisine was a bonus for the hunt. ¡°By the way, noona¡­¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°When will that hyung come out of the spirit dimension?¡± At the question from Hoonie, Harin shook her head and responded, ¡°I¡¯m not so sure. Was it yesterday? He was feeling good for finding a mechanical summon blueprint.¡± At the words from Harin, Remir opened her mouth with a questionable expression. ¡°Hold on, Harin. Aren¡¯t you living with Ian?¡± ¡°Right.¡± ¡°Then how can you not know about his plans.¡± Harin scratched the back of her neck and replied, ¡°We promised not to talk about the game when we¡¯re out of the Capsule.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°He spends 20 hours out of 24 hours in the game. It¡¯s too hard to talk about the game in that short period of time left.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± At those sad sounding words from Harin, the others nodded and said, ¡°Yeah, now that you mention it, it makes sense.¡± ¡°Keu, I have nothing to take his side.¡± ¡°Cheer up noona, fighting.¡± After a while, Remir shook her head and opened her mouth again. ¡°Actually, when I heard that Ian was in a relationship, I thought that I might have misheard it.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°What do you mean why? His average playtime is more than the hours a human is supposed to be awake, so there was no time for him to have a relationship.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°If it wasn¡¯t for Harin noona, Ian would have been solo forever.¡± ¡°Agree.¡± ¡°I too agree.¡± ¡°Same here.¡± ¡°¡­¡± With such a friendly atmosphere, the break time of the Lotus Guild party had passed. Before the hunting began again, Canoel mumbled something under his breath. ¡°If Ian hyung was here, we wouldn¡¯t have a break like this, right?¡± Hoonie who heard that shouted at Noel, ¡°Don¡¯t you dare go around saying scary stuff like that, Noel hyung.¡± Harin also said, ¡°When Jinsung comes back to the party, can I leave the party?¡± ¡°¡­¡± At that very moment, a voice entered the ears of all the party members. ¡°Yo, are you hunting well?¡± Everyone¡¯s eyes moved in unison to where the sound was coming from and surprisingly, there stood Ian. The reason why Ian had come to the human dimension wasn¡¯t so difficult to guess. The one which he left for the training could be taken. Finally, he was ready to level up. ¡®The skill creation took longer than expected.¡¯ Ian had been going back and forth to the training centers several times even from the Spirit dimension while performing quests. Whenever the potential went to a hundred, Ian went to use the skill. After seven attempts, a nice skill had been obtained. -Dark Magic Bomb Classification: Basic Magic Attack Cooldown: None. Casting time: 1 second Creates a dark sphere of magic and fires fast to the front. The magic bomb will explode as soon as they hit the enemy, deals dark attribute damage proportional to the intellect against the enemies within 2 yards. *The damage is reduced if an enemy is far away from the explosion. *The damage of the Dark Magic Bomb reduces the resistance of the dark attributes by 3. (No resist) ¡®I wish it had a shorter casting time. This is still good though.¡¯ Unique ability with the ¡®Basic magic attack¡¯ classification was similar to a wizard¡¯s regular attacks. Power was much lower than the other attacks of magic, but the cooldown and the magic consumption were little or none. Because of that, the ¡®basic magic attack¡¯ was important to have a very little casting time as possible. Casting meant the attack speed. And a 1 second casting time was fast enough for the basic attack magic. ¡®In order to use Blackie in the Middle-Earth, it must be at least level 350 right?¡¯ The transcendental level would be applied in the Middle-Earth, but that didn¡¯t mean that the level up of the human was meaningless. The level 1 of transcendence was similar to that in the human dimension. Ian went to the Spirit sanctuary and then came down to the human world. Hoonie who saw Ian ran down to him and asked, ¡°Hyung, how long have you been in the spirit dimension? Did you get blocked in a quest? Do you need me?¡± Hoonie wasn¡¯t able to see Ian for a long time, so he couldn¡¯t stop himself from blasting him with questions. Ian shook his head and answered while smiling, ¡°Have you ever saw me get blocked in a quest?¡± At those words from Ian, Hoonie couldn¡¯t respond. ¡°¡­¡± Subsequently, the Lotus guild members all gathered around Ian and began asking him questions as well. It was because they were curious about the recent appearance of Ian from the Spirit dimension. ¡°How difficult is the spirit world? Can you proceed?¡± ¡°Have you found any clues about the high spirits, hyung?¡± ¡°How difficult is it compared to the human one?¡± After some time, Ian replied after the party was done questioning him. Ian took a huge sigh and then said, ¡°Phew, everyone seems very curious.¡± Hoonie and Remir grumbled at the same time. ¡°You should have taken us with you.¡± ¡°Right! Trying to poison all the content by yourself? Tch.¡± Ian smiled and opened his mouth. ¡°Once we become level 500, we¡¯ll all go together, kay? What are your levels now?¡± ¡°I¡¯m 439.¡± ¡°445.¡± ¡°What is this, you haven¡¯t caught up with my level yet?¡± ¡°Is¡­ is that so?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ian¡¯s level was 447. Although he had been in the Middle-Earth, Ian was still at the top of the ranking list. Of course, that was only possible because all the rankers like Shakran who were following the ranks were also in Middle-Earth just like Ian. When Hoonie and Remir went quiet, Ian started to do calculations in his head. ¡®At this rate, the others will get ahead of me.¡¯ At present, the top rankers of Kailan South Korean server entered the Underworld. As the new content had been found, all eyes were on it. But the Lotus Guild, on the other hand, was dedicated to leveling up in the human world. Even Ian¡¯s retainers were dedicated to leveling up. Helliem, who was level 470 when he was taken in, was already looking to cross over level 490, and Kaizer too was going over the level of 470. And that was the instruction given all throughout the Lotus Guild by Ian. ¡®If we take over the human dimension quickly, it will turn efficient in many ways.¡¯ The reason why Ian was under that impression was as followed. First, it wasn¡¯t of any significance to raise the level of transcendence until they find a clue about the ¡®Warrior village¡¯. Once they got to the Warrior Village and then take the test to get the mark, most of the Middle-Earth content would be released. Even without a mark, as it was impossible to level up after 10, there was no need to rush. Second, most of the top rankers were inclined to level up their transcendence levels, and the hunting grounds in the human dimension would be left open. Especially in the case of Ulphir mountain, the Lotus Guild had charted it all. The hunting environment was very comfortable. Third, it was very advantageous in many ways if they went to the Middle-Earth fields with a high level of human levels. The higher the level of a human dimension user, the higher would be the stats of the first level of transcendence, and the less time it would take for it to level up. On the other hand, no matter how high the transcendence level was, it didn¡¯t affect the human stats. If so, then why did Ian enter the Spirit Dimension? The reason was simple. ¡®I must know the content one after the other to move the guild members as efficiently as possible.¡¯ All of Ian¡¯s movements had been calculated as always. Unlike the other guild members, Herz was quietly listening on their conversation and then opened his mouth after he carefully thought things through. ¡°But why are you here all of a sudden? It would take another month or two to get your ground.¡± At the question from Herz, Ian looked rather irritated. ¡°Ah, I forgot it the moment I saw you guys. I came down here because of one thing.¡± Ian looked around as if he was looking for someone and then called Celia who was in the corner. ¡°Celia.¡± ¡°Yes, your majesty.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll leave this guy to you. Please raise him well. He is someone I care for very much.¡± Ian summoned his black magical beast. On the head of that beast came a simple window. [Blackie (Black Unicorn)/ Lv 1] CH 538 Chapter 538: Getting a New Spirit 5 There were a few ten meters tall trees that were around five meters wide. A cool breeze blew through the vegetation. Wheeing-! Riding with the wind, small spirits were playing around. -Ah, bored. Is there anything interesting today? -There is no such thing in this narrow sanctuary. -Right. I want to get out of there quickly. There would be a lot of fun things outside. -Nevertheless, Syarlon told me to not go outside. He said that going out of the sanctuary is dangerous. -Hmph, isn¡¯t it okay to just play carefully? -No. Syarlon will get angry at us! The spirit dimension had been taken over and contaminated by the mechanical civilization. However, there were areas that weren¡¯t contaminated yet. There were four sanctuaries that were located in the east, west, north and south side of the spirit dimension, and there was a sanctuary located at the center of the mountain as well, the Mother Nature. The mechanical civilization hadn¡¯t yet conquered five places in the spirit dimension, and those places were the strongest ones. The spirit sanctuary that Ian cleansed from the Abyss Valley was on the Southern side. Wheeing-! With low resonance, blue light started to rise. After a while, a blue gate started to form. ¡°Oh.¡± The figure who appeared from the gate was Ian who had left to bring back Blackie. After a moment, System messages appeared in front of Ian. Tring-! [You have entered the ¡®Spirit Sanctuary¡¯!] [This area is restricted for combat.] [The spirit power of the spirits will rise by a little.] Ian checked the messages and mumbled to himself in a small voice. ¡°What did Prettybbook say¡­ She told me to go and find the spirit guardian, Syarlon¡­¡± Ian wandered and looked around. Only gigantic trees were towering all around, and no artificial roads or paths could be seen. ¡°Phew, do I need to contact those twins and get some coordinates¡­?¡± After winning the battle with the Guardian machine, Ian, the twins, and Muel broke up to look after their works and stuff. It was safe to say that they came to that decision because Ian had something to do, so the other three went into the sanctuary. Ian had to stop by the human dimension because of his settings. And while Ian was in the human dimension, they decided to first search for the information about the sanctuary. Ian, who registered with all three friends, opened the chat room immediately. Ian: Sarah, Vanessa. Where are you? In less than 10 seconds, they replied. However, the answer was slightly different from that of what Ian had been expecting. Sarah: We¡¯re back in the human dimension right now. Vanessa: I¡¯m hunting in the human dimension right now! Muel: I¡¯m in Dark Abyss. We¡¯re moving with the server guild party and are targeting the Underworld. ¡°¡­!¡± Ian was a bit embarrassed. He was, of course, thinking that he would be entering the spirit sanctuary along with those people. He thought that they would be waiting inside the sanctuary for Ian to proceed with the next quest. ¡®Everyone has gone down to the human dimension, then there is no quest to proceed with¡­¡¯ However, Ian¡¯s shock didn¡¯t last long. The next moment, a thought came to his mind. ¡®Just as I thought. Maybe the Spirit dimension has the same content restrictions as that of the Underworld? Though my expectations are a bit too early.¡¯ The Underworld, the place in Middle-Earth where Ian entered. Most of the content in the Underworld had been blocked if one didn¡¯t have the ¡®Warrior¡¯s Qualification¡¯. Karon wasn¡¯t going to give him the boat unless he had that qualification. If he didn¡¯t get on Karon¡¯s boat, there was no way to enter Erebus, and most of the content of the Underworld was inside Erebus. In fact, the whole main content had been blocked. Dark Abyss was the only place where a user could enter without the mark. And since the Spirit dimension was in the Middle-Earth, that kind of situation could be expected. ¡®Unless one had the ¡®valor¡¯s qualification¡¯, they can¡¯t enter the Middle-Earth content.¡¯ The Abyss Valley, the Windy Plains, the Reindeer Forest map which had the Frost Cave, were all similar to Dark Abyss. Ian, who inferred those things in an instant, spoke again in the chat window. Ian: Was there a need for the Valor¡¯s Qualification for proceeding with the quests? Ian asked the twins and Muel who couldn¡¯t help but feel shocked. For those people who had been to the Spirit dimension as their first Middle-Earth place, such an assumption couldn¡¯t be possible. Sarah: OMG? Vanessa: What? How do you know? Muel: Ian, what was that? That is so scary. After seeing their reactions, Ian was able to confirm that his prediction and assumptions were right. ¡®Indeed¡­¡¯ Ian just shook the thoughts from his head and texted again. Even if the main content progress was going to be difficult, he had to meet the spirit sanctuary guardian Syarlon. And in order to not get lost and confused, there was a need for information to be gathered. Ian: There is a way to know everything. Vanessa: The cheats! Be honest, you are a GM, right? At the response from Vanessa, Ian shook his head while laughing. Ian: Vanessa, don¡¯t say weird stuff. Just tell me the coordinates of the Spirit Guardian. The map of spirit sanctuary was much wider than what Ian had expected. As a sanctuary, he expected the size to be of a small square, it was because the so-called ¡®spirit sanctuary¡¯ was in the middle of the mountain peaks. ¡®I did well getting the coordinates from Vanessa.¡¯ Ian shook his head and looked at the huge tree that stood in front of him. According to the information he got from Vanessa, there was a spirit guardian named Syarlon living on top of that tree. Receiving the coordinates, he thought that he would have to walk through the forest for over an hour before he could find it. And because of the numerous number of trees in the forest, it wouldn¡¯t be easy to find the one where Syarlon was living. ¡°Pin, let¡¯s go up there.¡± Grrrk-! Ian summoned Pin and quickly flew into the air. After a while, they found a cabin that was built on top of the tree. ¡°Came.¡± Ian stepped onto the wood with a light jump and approached the cabin very carefully. But at that moment, the closed door of the cabin opened up. ¡°There are a lot of people coming these days. Is the Abyss Valley purified?¡± An old man appeared in front of Ian as the door of the cabin opened. Ian who saw the old man was getting excited. The old man that he saw was someone that he had never seen before. The old man was slightly bent with a white long beard. A large horn was protruding through his white hair on top of his head like a mountain goat. ¡®This is really interesting.¡¯ Ian concealed his thoughts to himself and greeted the man politely. ¡°Nice to meet you. Are you maybe the spirit guardian, Syarlon?¡± At the question of Ian, the man nodded his head. ¡°Hmm, I don¡¯t know how you knew my name, but yes.¡± And Ian naturally continued trying to have a conversation with him, ¡°I met a girl called PrettyBbook in the Frost Cave. She was the one who let me know.¡± Those words from Ian made Syarlon narrow his eyes. ¡°Oh ho, so you met the Abyss Guardian. Then, have you challenged the gates of Pan?¡± ¡°Yes, I did.¡± ¡°Then you must have passed all the gates.¡± ¡°How did you know that?¡± ¡°If you didn¡¯t pass through the gates, the Abyss Guardian wouldn¡¯t have told you about me. Hehehe.¡± Listening to the words of Syarlon, Ian could feel that he found an interesting person. ¡®Syarlon is the spirit guardian, and Prettybbook is the Abyss guardian¡­ so there seems to be an attribute called ¡®Abyss¡¯ within the Spirit dimension, so then there would be other guardians in the Spirit dimension.¡¯ While Ian was in his thoughts, Syarlon continued, ¡°If you passed through the gate, you would have gotten the legacy of Pan¡­ The spirit spell, you must have mastered it?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Nice. If you did get the Legacy of Pan that was left behind, then I guess I can expect a little from you.¡± After speaking a few strange stuff, Syarlon decided to enter into the cabin. Kiik-! Subsequently, Syarlon, who reopened the old door of the cabin, stepped in. ¡°Come inside.¡± Tring-! [You have fulfilled the conditions necessary.] [You have entered the ¡®Cabin of Syarlon¡¯ for the first time.] ¡®What was that?¡¯ New system messages came into the sight of Ian as he entered the cabin of Syarlon. It was an unexpected message. ¡®First time. I was sure that the twins and Muel would have entered here?¡¯ Ian couldn¡¯t have known about it, but the twins and Muel hadn¡¯t entered the cabin. After meeting Syarlon outside the cabin, they distributed the rewards of the quest ¡®Into the blast¡¯. Starting with the ¡®Abyss Guardian¡¯ reward, they got quite generous rewards, and nor did Syarlon regret not asking them in. Syarlon didn¡¯t give them any additional quest. It was natural from the way they responded. Then why did Syarlon go out of his way and treat Ian in such a manner? Before that question could be answered, a few more messages appeared in front of Ian. Tring-! [Guardian ¡®Syarlon¡¯ is on his guard.] [¡®Guardian Enchantment¡¯ has been triggered.] [Cabin of Syarlon has been sealed with a strong bondage.] [You can¡¯t get out of the Cabin of Syarlon until it is unlocked.] ¡°¡­!¡± Ian was starting to get confused as the situation was turning out of his expectations. Unimaginable developments were starting to unfold. ¡®I don¡¯t get it. I didn¡¯t do anything wrong so why?¡¯ Ian decided to stay calm. There was never an episode in Kailan without a reason. Ian gulped and calmed himself before asking Syalron, ¡°Why are you doing this?¡± Syarlon responded, ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°Weren¡¯t you the one who trapped me in this cabin?¡± Syarlon¡¯s eyes started to shine. ¡°Oh ho. You are great. You are aware of the barrier.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°However, it is nothing to be concerned about.¡± As the eyes of Ian met with that of Syarlon, he took out a unique colored marble from his hand that he had been hiding. ¡°If I get a proper answer from you about why I feel the energy of the machines from you, then everything¡¯s going to be fine.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Ian started to think back. ¡®The energy of machines, huh?¡¯ He was now aware of why Syarlon was mad at him. He was the guardian of the Spirit sanctuary, and if he felt the energy of machines from Ian, it was natural for the guardian to turn hostile toward Ian. Ian tried to figure it out. ¡®Why would you feel the machines¡¯ energy from me?¡¯ While Ian was still trying to find a reason, Syarlon opened his mouth. ¡°Do you see these greyish-white hues on the beads?¡± ¡°Yeah, I see it.¡± ¡°This is proof that there is some kind of energy of the machines in you. The beads of Mother Nature don¡¯t lie.¡± Syarlon¡¯s explanation went on, and Ian still didn¡¯t know what to tell Syarlon. But apart from that, Ian looked calm. There was something that he thought of. Syarlon stood, and Ian pulled out something from his inventory. He then carefully placed it on the table. ¡°If you are feeling the energy of the machines, then it is probably from this thing.¡± Looking at Ian, Syarlon¡¯s eyes drifted to the thing he placed on the table. The moment he saw the item next to Ian, his eyes went wide. ¡°This¡­ this?¡± Ian smiled and spoke. ¡°Go ahead and check it out.¡± After a while, new system messages came up in front of Ian. Tring-! [Conditions have been met.] [Hidden quest has been triggered.] CH 539 Chapter 539: Getting a New Spirit 6 There definitely were minor faults in the Kailan too. However, the quest associated with the main episode would never happen out of mistake. In other words, every event and every situation had a definite relationship between them. And of course, there was a reason as to why the hidden quest had occurred only for Ian. ¡®Well, Kailan surely doesn¡¯t have any useless catch items in it.¡¯ An item which was in the size of a child¡¯s fist was on the table. It was an item called as the ¡®Paillette relic¡¯¡ªwhich had dropped after Ian had killed the Guardian Machine. And it was an unknowable item for Ian, but the ¡®Paillette relic¡¯ was not an item that could be obtained so easily. It was an item that had been designed to drop for only the most contributing user of the party that would kill the Guardian Machine. The guardian Syarlon was carefully looking at the piece that Ian had placed on the table, and Ian was looking at the figure of him. ¡®What kind of quest is going to¡­¡¯ As the system message had already stated that a hidden quest had been triggered, it was certain that a hidden quest was going to be created. Ian¡¯s concern was of, what kind of rewards would that quest generate. While Ian was trying to think of plausible rewards, Syarlon who was observing the piece of item on the table, opened his mouth after careful thought. ¡°This thing¡­ how did you get it?¡± ¡°I got it from the Guardian Machine in the Abyss Valley, the Gorge of Blast.¡± Letting the answer sink in, Syalron opened his mouth once again with a much more serious tone. ¡°Khuem, did you by any chance kill that one?¡± ¡°Yeah, I did.¡± ¡°It wouldn¡¯t have been so easy to deal with that thing¡­¡± Ian was turning rather puzzled. Ian thought that it was just natural for the Machine to be killed for the purpose of the Abyss Valley to be cleansed. And now Syalron was seemingly surprised at the fact that the guardian machine had been killed. Which made it seem like the Abyss Valley purged and killed the Guardian Machine were two different things, which made it weird. Ian whose curiosity had been triggred turned to the direction of the old man and asked. ¡°Was there a way to cleanse the Abyss Valley without killing him?¡± ¡°Well, killing him off is the best way to do it, but there were other ways that could be approached too.¡± ¡°Then, what were they?¡± ¡°While the altar purifies the valley, time had to be passed or he has to be kept occupied so that he just doesn¡¯t approach the altar.¡± ¡°Aha.¡± Syarlon picked up the piece of iron which had been on the table and pointed at the marble that was in his other hand. Woong- woong-! With an intense resonating sound, the greyish-white hue which was around the bead started to sway away. Syalron continued to talk. ¡°It is really hard to believe, but this item is very real.¡± ¡°Obviously.¡± In addition, the voice of the man was shaking a little. ¡°I¡¯m very sorry for the misunderstanding. I didn¡¯t know that you were a hero.¡± As soon as he finished, a familiar sound rang. Tring-! [The ¡®Guardian Bondage¡¯ has been laxed.] [Syarlon has broke the bondage.] [Increases the affinity with Guardian ¡®Syarlon¡¯ by 10.] And then came in the reward message for the quest of ¡®Into the Blast¡¯. [You have successfully completed the quest ¡®Into the Blast (Epic) (Hidden)¡¯!] [Gained transcendence experience of 1,050.] [Special conditions have been met.] [The Clearing tier goes up one level.] [Clear Grade: SS+] [You have cleared with S or higher.] [Gained 100 spirit magic (transcendence).] [Gained Summon Magic of 70 (transcendence).] [You have earned the title ¡®The Watcher of Abyss (Legendary)¡¯.] Seeing those messages, Ian¡¯s mouth unknowingly displayed a smile. The spirit and summon magic was indeed great rewards, especially it was because he had received more than 1000 experience. And that 1000 experience of transcendence, wouldn¡¯t have been possible for Ian even if he had hunted the whole day. Moreover, the rewards didn¡¯t end there. [Obtained the item ¡®Ancient Spirit Summon Magic¡¯ item.] [Obtained the item ¡®Advanced Fire elemental crystals¡¯.] [You have earned ¡®Medium nature marble¡¯ item.] Ian¡¯s eyes which had just confirmed the messages went wide. * * * ¡°Chesk, why didn¡¯t Muel join?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t know. Looks like there was a work in the guild. They were lacking in Healers to hit the Dark Abyss.¡± ¡°Hmm, it could have been.¡± ¡°By the way, Ralph.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Is it possible to clear it, this time?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry Chesk. The power and strength are different from the last time.¡± ¡°Well if you say so.¡± At the end of the Windy Plains. Abyss Valley access road, a group of people were lined up. They were the US server rankers, who were being led by Chesk and Ralph. Ralph and the three others failed in the last moment of ¡®In the blast¡¯ quest, unlike the party of Ian. In the end, the altar that was purifying the valley had stopped and so they escaped from the dungeon. Of course, if they knew that Ian and his party would kill the Guardian machine, they wouldn¡¯t have escaped from there. And they would have cleared the quest. But the people below Ralph who had been under the impression that Ian¡¯s power was below theirs, couldn¡¯t find such a mind of working together. They had been thinking that Ian and the others had been wiped out and that they decided to pursue the quest at latter time. So Ralph¡¯s party came back to the Abyss Valley with full preparations. Abandoning their desire to take in the content, they created a pool party of more than ten members. But as they entered the Abyss Valley, they were feeling that something was weird. ¡°Ralph hyung, Chesk hyung.¡± ¡°What is it, Inisco?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t this a bit strange?¡± ¡°What is?¡± ¡°This is so different from the last time, right? The map looks very bright and the structure is different too.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°On top of that, we didn¡¯t see any contaminated spirits right?¡± Ralph and Chesk who entered the Abyss Valley without any thoughts started to look around after the words of Insico. And their faces went hard. ¡°What is this? Inisco is right?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t tell¡­ me. Did the other ones cleared the quest in the meantime?¡± ¡°Ahe, no way¡­!¡± Realizing the seriousness of the situation, Ralph¡¯s party began to speed up and entered the valley much faster. And at the moment, they reached the Gorge of Blast¡­ ¡°Ha¡­¡± ¡°Sh*t.¡± ¡°Dammit¡­!¡± At the same time, all three of them cursed under their breaths out of despair. It was because bright lights were coming from the altar, which had been previously blocked by the dark energy. The fact that someone had cleared the quest before them could be seen, and there was another reason for their despair. And the quest of ¡®Into the Blast¡¯ had disappeared, as it was a one-time quest. In other words, they just missed the ¡®limited edition¡¯ quest. And in most cases, the one time quests had greater generous rewards than the normal ones. Three people who thought that the quest had been taken away from their hand, moved towards the portal. ¡°Let¡¯s get in.¡± ¡°Yeah well, I don¡¯t know what kind of people did this, but it hasn¡¯t been long since the quest has been cleared.¡± They had lost the quest because of their decisions, but they thought that they would pre-empt the other content before. * * * Of the three item rewards that Ian had earned for completing the quest, the ¡®Advanced Fire element crystals¡¯ was an item he already knew about. The recipe for the ¡®The Primal Marion Dragon¡¯ which had been handed to him before entering the spirit dimension had it. The recipe contained the ingredient elemental stones in it. And of course, the elemental crystals needed for the recipe were of the highest grade and the items that Ian had obtained were of the higher grade too. However, Gripper had said, ¡°Please get as many elemental crystals as you can, because they are needed to transmute the original ¡®Marion Dragon¡¯, and it is also used for creating powerful relics.¡± Because of that, Ian could vaguely understand the use of the item ¡®Elemental Crystals¡¯. The same went for the ¡®Ancient Spirit Summon Magic circle¡¯ item. Surely it was an item that he was seeing for the first time, but he was able to infer its use by just seeing the name of it. But the only thing that he wasn¡¯t able to know was. ¡®The medium nature marble¡­ what the hell is that?¡¯ Ian decided to check the item information. -Medium Nature marble Class: only (transcendence) Classification: Goods A mysterious marble condensed with the energy of the great mother nature. If spirits absorb the marble, they can gain a large number of spirit power in an instant. *As soon as the spirit uses this, the spirit¡¯s spirit power increases by 6,000. ¡°¡­!¡± Ian who checked the item window of the item couldn¡¯t help but be shocked. ¡®Spirit power of 6,000 in one shot?¡¯ By just reading the information in the item window of the ¡®Medium Nature marble¡¯, the value of the item reached high. ¡®Well, let¡¯s think about it¡­ the spirit power that Chirpy needs for evolving is 5,000.¡¯ In order to evolve into a higher spirit, Chirpy which was currently a medium spirit required a total of 5000 spirit power. And the spirit power needed to evolve the lower spirits of Chirpy into the Middle-Earth spirit was 1000. In other words, if this nature marble was fed to the lower spirit Chirpy, it would immediately turn into a higher spirit. As Ian knew how difficult it was for the spirits to evolve, he thought he just hit a jackpot. ¡®This is awesome! I¡¯ll save this one first. If I get a fourth spirit, I¡¯ll use it right away.¡¯ Ian quickly checked the next item he had to verify. Although it was necessary for him to verify it, he wanted to know the exact information of the ¡®Ancient Spirit Summon Magic circle¡¯. -Ancient Spirit Summon Magic Circle Rank: Legendary Classification: Scroll This is a magic scroll item that contains the ¡®Ancient Spirit Summon Magic Circle¡¯. If you tear the item, a magic circle would be created in the air, and a random spirit with a random attribute can be summoned. *All spirits are summoned randomly from lower-higher. *Increases the chance of spirit summon to be summoned by 30%. *When the spirit is summoned, the lowest spirit is summoned unconditionally. *Put an ¡®attribute essence¡¯ into the circle for increasing the chance of the spirits that would appear (different odds vary depending on the ranks of the item). *It is a one-time use item which would disappear. A mysterious piece of golden parchment with gold energy. Ian¡¯s eyes were glistening after checking the item information. ¡®According to PrettyBbook, the clue to summoning one of the Four Grand Spirits was with Syarlon.¡¯ And in a sense, the item which Ian needed the most was the ¡®Ancient Spirit Summon Magic Circle¡¯. Ian wanted to get the spirits which belonged to the Four Grand Spirits the most. And among them, Ian wanted an attribute of the wind or fire, that could be grown into a Spirit King. This magic circle item was perfectly tailored for Ian. If it was correctly used for the detailed options given below the item, he could surely get the desired attribute spirit. Ian looked at the details again and rolled up the piece of parchment. ¡®Where to see¡­ to get a fire and wind, I need to put in an attribute essence?¡¯ It felt a bit similar, the ¡®attribute essence¡¯ and the ¡®element crystals¡¯¡ªbut were different items. Both were the items that could be obtained by killing the contaminated spirits in the spirit dimension, but the ¡®attribute essence¡¯ was much more common than the ¡®crystals¡¯ and the use was completely different. Originally, the purpose of the ¡®essence¡¯ was to be used to increase the power of the spirit by adding it to its attribute. ¡®And I have a higher fire attribute essence.¡¯ The essence of the higher attribute, which he had obtained after clearing the quest ¡®Kill the Guardian¡¯. The attribute was flame, and Ian was no longer in shock or awe. He never thought that he would get a higher grade of attribute essence. ¡°Syarlon.¡± ¡°Go on.¡± ¡°This magic circle¡­ can I use it here, right away?¡± Ian asked, and Syarlon nodded while smiling. ¡°Of course. If used in this sanctuary full of spirits and sprit power, a good spirit can be summoned.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°There is something I¡¯m curious about. Which spirit would respond to the hero¡¯s call after defeating the Guardian Machine?¡± Talking to himself, Ian grabbed the parchment with both his hands. Holding the parchment vertically, the piece was torn. Chak-! At the same time, a white halo of some sort began to form. CH 540 ¡°Are all the team leaders in here?¡± ¡°Yes. General Manager.¡± ¡°Would you like to start the meeting, sir?¡± The planning team of Kailan had gone through numerous changes. Initially, it started with three teams¡ªbut as the game expanded, the organizational structure continued to reorganize. Now, it has been born as the planning headquarters, which had consisted of seven planning teams and one designing team. The head of the planning team was Kim In-Cheon, who was in charge of the entire planning teams. Kick-! As Kim In-Cheon opened the door, a total of eight team leaders who were seated in the meeting stood up. ¡°Let¡¯s sit down. There are many important things we need to discuss in today¡¯s meeting.¡± After everyone sat down, Kim In-Cheon looked around at the room. And saw Na Ji-chan who was seated on the left side, who spoke while smiling, ¡°Our Ji-chanie has already become a team leader, isn¡¯t that a kind of inspiration?¡± ¡°Haha, thank you. General manager.¡± Na Ji-chan was the last employee of the planning team, who had been directly selected by public recruitment when Kim In-Cheon was the team leader. With his good track record, he quickly became a team leader. Kim Yu Hwan who was seated right next to Na Ji-chan mumbled out loud. He had been about a year senior to Na Ji-chan when he joined. ¡°This kid has been climbing up lately, General manager. And now he is the same as me, a team leader. Now he talks back.¡± ¡°When did I do that?¡± ¡°Right now, this idiot.¡± And while watching the two of them fight, the other team leaders nod their heads. ¡°Kuku.¡± ¡°They are always noisy when they meet.¡± ¡°Well it is a nice fight, feels good to see that too, right?¡± Na Ji-chan was an unprecedentedly fast-moving case in the LB, but the other team leaders weren¡¯t jealous at all. The reason was simple. Throughout the who LB, there had never been another person who worked as much hard as Na Ji-chan. The work time was one thing, but the work performance was almost double that of any other ordinary employee. ¡°Kay, stop talking now.¡± Kim In-Cheon calmed the noise with his heavy voice and pressed the remote control towards the screen. And on the white screen came up various graphs. ¡°Everyone here knows the topic of today¡¯s meeting.¡± The attention of all the team leaders gathered onto the screen. And at the top of the screen, in bold letters, was written a line of text. [Ranker Status by Servers] ¡®Hmmm, there are quite some surprising numbers?¡¯ Na Ji-chan looked interested as he saw the graphs on the screen one after the other. Na Ji-chan has not been able to monitor Ian for a while as he was due a lot of projects which he took up since becoming the team leader. But in the meantime, Ian¡¯s level fell away a lot. ¡®This can¡¯t be¡­ in the top 20.¡¯ There were around 30 servers for the Kailan in the whole world. Therefore, even in the top twenty, each of the 1st ranking users of the server had to be there. And the level difference between the 1st place to the 20th place would be about 2 and 3. However, it was shocking for Na Ji-chan that Ian who had always been in the 1st and second fell down to the 20th. ¡®What is it? If it was on the 10th then I can remain calm¡­ but this couldn¡¯t happen.¡¯ Na Ji-chan opened up the smart tablet that was on the table to get a detailed chart view. And soon was able to find a few interesting facts. ¡®Ian¡¯s level has been the same for two weeks already?¡¯ And that didn¡¯t mean that Ian stopped playing. He was almost connected at full time like he always was. ¡®What is going on?¡¯ Much more interested, Na Ji-chan began to tear down the information of Ian one after the other. Then, not long after, he was able to find out why the level of Ian had been stagnant. ¡°Middle-Earth!¡± ¡°What was that, team leader?¡± ¡°Ah, nothing. GM.¡± Na Ji-chan who brought in the attention of the GM smiled and looked over at the chart of Ian. ¡®Indeed¡­ there wouldn¡¯t have been a reason for the level of Ian God to have fallen.¡¯ Na Ji-chan¡¯s eyes were fixed on the graph that was floating in the middle of the tablet. And in that, Ian¡¯s play had been in the first place with an overwhelming score. -Level Ranking (Transcendence) -Rank 1: Ian. Transcendence level: 7 (53 percent) -Class: Summoner Lv. 447 -Play Score: 100 -Rank 2: Mark Oliver. Transcendence level: 6 (42 percent) -Class: Magician, Lv. 431 -Play Score: 67 -Rank 3: Wang Wei. Transcendence level: 6 (36 percent) -Class: Summoner, Lv. 436 -Play Score: 63 -Rank 4: Sharkran. Transcendence level: 6 (26 percent) -Class: Warrior, Lv. 446 -Play Score: 55 The difference between transcendence levels 6 and 7. The difference between 1 level could be considered as ¡®overwhelming¡¯ as this wasn¡¯t a normal leveling, but the transcendental. The experience system itself was different from the level with the earth system. Among them, the experience tables between 1 and 10 were more unusual, and it was designed to make it very difficult to shoot over the level of 10. Especially from level 6, the required experience to level up increases exponentially. For example, the time needed to make level 6 to 7 was much longer than the time needed to reach level 5 from the first level. ¡®And the difference between the second place and the experience¡­ the field hunting is almost full.¡¯ Besides, that wasn¡¯t the only interesting thing. At the top of the ranking charts listed from the bottom of the transcendental level rankings, Ian¡¯s name was there. -Quest Score -Rank 1: Ian. Quest Score: 109,512 -Hunting Score (Transcendence) -Rank 1: Ian. Quest Score: 978 -Raid Score (Transcendence) -Rank 1: Ian. Quest Score: 81,092 But after a while, Na Ji-chan¡¯s eyes went wide as he was looking at further information in the charts. ¡®Uh uh¡­?¡¯ A name that shouldn¡¯t have appeared on the list of Ian¡¯s had been there. -Quest in Progress: Contaminated spirits on the Spirit Mountain (Epic) (Hidden) * * * A sphere of white light was floating in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. It soon began to wobble and shake the branches of the tree. ¡°Oh¡­¡± Exclamation leaked out of Ian¡¯s mouth. The pattern of the magic circle made in the sky was thin and because of the colourful features in it, it was incredibly complex. And after a while. Woong-! After the magic circle had been completed, a line of system messages popped up in front of Ian. Tring-! [The Ancient Spirit Summon Magic Circle has been completed.] [Summon medium has to be chosen (Attribute essence)] Ian opened up his inventory. And among the five-colored beads in there, he picked up the brightest red bead. ¡®Please, a fire spirit¡­!¡¯ After taking a deep breath, Ian activated the magic circle. [You have selected a medium.] [Magic Circle has been triggered.] Wheeing-! The attribute essence of the fire spirit which had been placed in the center of the magic circle began to shine very vividly. And the magic circle which had been white from the beginning gradually began to turn into red. ¡°¡­!¡± An ancient spirit summoning magic circle filled the hut of Syalron. The eyes of both Ian and Syarlon were fixed in the center of the circle, and the pattern of the red circles began to generate rapidly and was rotating¡ªmerged into the shape of the base magic circle. Kwah-! Subsequently, in the middle of the circle, a huge pillar of red flames sprang up. Tring-! [The Ancient Summoning magic circle has worked successfully!] [Increased the chance of summoned spirits!] [The Advanced Essence of fire has turned extinct.] [Increases the chance for summoning a fire spirit.] [Spirit power has been amplified.] [A strong powerful fire has been summoned.] In between the huge pillar of fire that stood in the center of the magic circle, a faint shadow caught the eyes of Ian. And it gradually began to take a shape. ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± Ian who was looking at it with utmost concentration tilted his head. The silhouette that started to shine in the pillar of fire was very different from what had been imagined. ¡®What? That is¡­ looking like an egg?¡¯ However, next to Ian was Syarlon who seemed to have a rather opposite reaction. ¡°Oh oh, om my god!¡± Syarlon had opened his mouth as if he had seen something very incredible. Next to Ian¡¯s eyes came some system messages. Tring-! [The spirit summon has been completed.] [Minor fire spirit, ¡®The red fire¡¯ has been summoned.] [Do you want to make a contract with the spirit?] The fire pillar that burned up suddenly faded away and a red sphere began to float in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. And Ian who didn¡¯t understand what was happening at that moment was just dreaming. Ian was confused. ¡®There is a concept of egg in the spirit dimension too?¡¯ Once the fire spirit was summoned, it could be said that he had obtained his desired one. But what Ian expected was like a salamander, the spirit of the lowest flame. He didn¡¯t even know that these eggs could be summoned in the first place. But the confusion didn¡¯t last long. ¡®If this is hatched, will I get a salamander?¡¯ Anyhow, it was successful in getting the fire spirit, even if that meant that it would take a little more time in hatching and growing it. Ian opened the info window of the guy. -Red fire egg (Fire spirit) Spirit Power: 0/1000 Attribute: Fire Rank: lesser spirit Summon duration: unlimited *Eggs hatch when the spirit power reaches the Max. -Each time a summoning spell that requires a fire attribute is used, a certain amount of spirit is gained. (This wouldn¡¯t apply when in the state of an egg.) -Fire attribute essence (or Nature marble) can be used to fill the spirit power. Least essence: 2 Lesser essence: 14 Intermediate essence: 98 Higher essence: 686 Advanced essence: 4,802 *The higher the summoners summon magic, the longer will be the duration of the summon. (This doesn¡¯t apply when in the state of an egg.) ¡®Fortunately, it isn¡¯t difficult to hatch it.¡¯ If it was what Ian had learned from his experience, it would have been almost impossible for eggs to hatch. And it would have been impossible to use an ¡®essence¡¯ to a spirit even before seeing the spirit. But that wasn¡¯t the case now. So far, if he used all the lowest level of the essences he had collected from the spirit dimension, almost half of the spirit power would be filled. In addition, Ian also had obtained the ¡®Nature marble¡¯ which he had acquired for clearing the quest. ¡®Huh, should I start with the essence first?¡¯ Ian began to use the essence of fire which was in his inventory. [Use the item ¡®Lowest fire essence¡¯.] [Increases the power of the ¡®Red fire egg¡¯ spirit by 2.] [Use the item ¡®Lower fire essence¡¯.] [Increase the power of the ¡®Red fire egg¡¯ spirit by 14.] And behind Ian was Syarlon, who spoke after a long gap of silence. ¡°The Fire King, a legend is waking up¡­¡± CH 541 ¡°You, do you by any chance know about the legendary Fire king?¡± At those words from Syarlon, Ian stopped using the attribute essence and turned to him. ¡°Nope, hearing it for the first time¡­ What¡¯s the fire king?¡± After gulping, Syarlon began to speak again. ¡°Fire King. Literally, the Great King of Fire. And the legendary Fire King¡­¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Among the spirits of the fire spirit, there are a few spirits which are sometimes born with fire power above a certain limit¡­ and they sometimes grow up to be the spirit king called the ¡®Fire king¡¯.¡± At those words of Syarlon, Ian¡¯s eyes began to shine. ¡®This smells like something huge is in here!¡¯ Syarlon couldn¡¯t come up with such a statement without a reason. Therefore, expectations began to swell inside the mind of Ian. ¡°Does this red fire egg have the energy of a king?¡± And Syarlon¡¯s answer met the expectations of Ian perfectly. ¡°Yes. No normal spirits would be born from eggs of these sorts.¡± ¡°Ah¡­!¡± ¡°Furthermore, the energy I feel from this is that of the Fire king¡­ this is an energy that can be felt from at least an medium level spirit.¡± Ian started to get much more intrigued by the words of Syarlon and asked, ¡°However, this spirit hasn¡¯t even been born yet¡­¡± The two people shifted their gaze and looked over at the red egg at the same time. Whether Ian had added the fire essence attribute, the egg began to glow in a higher dark shade of red. The egg was burning much more redder than when it first appeared. ¡°This one is surely the fire king.¡± ¡°Kue!¡± A sound of excitement came out of Ian¡¯s mouth. ¡®The great king of fire! The name itself sounds so cool!¡¯ Ian, who barely managed to stop himself from cheering out loud, pulled out the nature marbles into his hands. He then spoke while looking at the side of Syarlon. ¡°Syarlon, you too are curious as to what kind of guy will come out, right?¡± ¡°Obviously.¡± ¡°Then, let¡¯s do it now. Hatch it up.¡± Syarlon nodded his head and replied, ¡°Okay. I don¡¯t know, but if it is a nature marble, then there won¡¯t be a lack of energy.¡± Syarlon added, ¡°But don¡¯t get your hopes up.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°It is clear that he is the seed of the king, but he won¡¯t be as great as a king until he becomes a real spirit king.¡± ¡°That¡­ is true.¡± Ian looked a little sad. Because he was under the impression that he would be growing up a king. ¡®Well, I don¡¯t know how long it will take until he becomes a spirit king, but¡­ even then, he is so much better than a normal fire spirit.¡¯ Ian once again looked over at the fire king¡¯s egg. ¡°Hoo¡­!¡± Taking a deep breath, he slowly brought the nature marbles in front of the egg. ¡°Kay, hatch up!¡± At the same time, the nature marbles began to shine brightly. Tring-! [The item ¡®Nature¡¯s Marble¡¯ has been used.] [Lesser spirit ¡®Fire spirit egg¡¯ has been increased by 6,000.] [The conditions have been met.] [The ¡®Fire spirit egg¡¯ woke up.] Crack- Crack-! With the sound of an egg cracking, all the sides of the egg began to crack on the red surfaced ostrich egg. As the light from the marble got soaked in, the egg started to burn redder and cracks gradually spread all over the surface of the egg. Crack-! Subsequently, fire burst through the cracks with a loud sound. And after a while¡­ Plop-! The egg¡¯s shells scattered everywhere, and a small shadow appeared. Tring-! [Fire lesser spirit, ¡®Agbi¡¯ has been earned.] [You have earned one of the ¡®Four Grand Spirit¡¯ for the first time!] [Earned transcendence experience of 500.] [Acquired fame of 150,000.] [Gained spirit magic of 100 (Transcendence).] [Gained summon magic of 70 (transcendence).] [You can now use the spirit magic of fire attribute.] [The resistance to fire attribute has been increased by 3.] [Fire attribute damage increased by 2 percent.] In front of Ian¡¯s eyes, the information window of ¡®Agbi¡¯ had appeared. -Agbi (Fire attribute) Spirit power: 5,925/ 10,000 Attribute: Fire Rank: Lesser Spirit Summon Duration: 225 minutes (Recall summon time: 300 minutes) Attack: 1,225 Defense: 717 Agility: 937 Vitality: 15,750 *Unique ability -Devil¡¯s Fire Agbi can cast a spell again if a magical attack spell that has been used by the use of the spirit spell is a critical hit. -Fiery Wisp Agbi throws a fire that bounces off when the nearby enemy is hit. The bounced fire deals 80% of the original damage and can bounce up to five times. *When the spirit power reaches its MAX, it evolves to a higher level. -Each time a spell that uses the fire attribute is used, you gain a certain amount of spirit power. -The spirit power can be filled in with Fire essence (Or natures orb). Least essence: 2 Lesser essence: 14 Intermediary essence: 98 Higher essence: 686 Advanced essence: 4,802 *The higher the summoner¡¯s summon magic, the longer will be the duration of the summon be. The spirit called ¡®Agbi¡¯ was a cute one. It had an appearance that was similar to that of a human, with small horns and a pointed tail, reminiscent of that of a little devil. ¡°Oh!¡± Contrary to what Syarlon had said about this spirit not being as great as the other spirit kings, the stats which Ian had seen was simply amazing. ¡®This seems fun¡­?¡¯ The first thing that was surprising for Ian was the two unique abilities that Agbi had. It had a tremendous superiority compared to what Jack had. In the case of Jack, the lower spirit had no unique abilities and gained just one when he turned into an intermediary spirit. And Agbi, which was also a lesser spirit, already had two unique abilities. ¡®Yeah, well, this guy might just have three unique abilities once he becomes an intermediary spirit.¡¯ And that wasn¡¯t just that. Its combat capabilities were also much better than what Ian had expected. Agbi¡¯s combat abilities despite just being a lower spirit were better than that of Jack, an intermediary spirit. Even in the case of offensive capabilities, he was superior to any of the familiars that Ian had and far more than what Ian was expecting. ¡®This guy is not as great as the other spirit king¡­ Do all four spirits have such abilities?¡¯ Of course, there weren¡¯t only positive traits. While the stats were all superior to that of Jack, the spirit power needed for it to evolve was at a tremendous level too. When Jack had to be evolved to an intermediary spirit, the spirit needed for him was just 1,000, but now the new one needed at least 10 times more. In short, it was ten times harder to evolve. Ian, who was curious, called Syarlon. ¡°Syarlon.¡± ¡°Go on.¡± Chrip-! Ian summoned Chirpy and then spoke. ¡°I have another summon, an intermediary lightning spirit.¡± Looking at Chirpy, who was flapping its wings, Syarlon nodded his head and said, ¡°I see that.¡± ¡°The difference between this guy and Agbi¡¯s combat ability is way too great. According to Prettybbook, the difference between the Four Grand spirit and the normal spirit isn¡¯t that huge¡­ is Agbi a special case because he is the seed of the king?¡± At the question of Ian, Syarlon immediately shook his head. ¡°Not at all.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know exactly, but maybe the combat power of Agbi is similar to that of the other spirits.¡± ¡°Then, were the words of Prettybbook wrong?¡± Syarlon once again shook his head. ¡°That isn¡¯t it either.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°The one you have is a lightning attribute spirit. It is a ¡®high-speed growing¡¯ type.¡± ¡°High speed¡­ growing¡­ type?¡± According to Syarlon, the stats of the non-four spirits vary widely. In the case of Jack, the combat power wasn¡¯t set as low, but the spirit power needed for its growth was very low. As soon as he heard that, Ian touched his temple and nodded. ¡®No wonder¡­ the spirit power difference is too big.¡¯ If the difference in the amount of spirit needed for the evolving the two was calculated, then the combat ability of Agbi was certainly convincing. Ian started to clear his head. The spirit content. Whether it was real or not, was endless. Nevertheless, one thing was for sure. This time, the guy called ¡®Agbi¡¯ was a very special one. ¡°Huhu.¡± Ian wanted to try this guy as soon as possible. In addition, he wanted it to grow quickly and evolve into a spirit king. ¡®In order to do that, we must first learn the spirit magic of fire attribute.¡¯ Ian, who was feeling good, looked over at Agbi who was floating in the air. He then stroked him slightly and mumbled, ¡°Let¡¯s do well from now on, kid.¡± Then, the mouth of the kid opened and said, ¡°Nice to meet you, master.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Ian, who was surprised, widened his eyes. ¡°You¡­ can speak?¡± Till now, Ian had never seen a spirit speak. Which was why he was amazed when the spirit Agbi spoke. Syarlon, who was watching Ian from the side, asked. ¡°Huhu, are you witnessing a spirit speak for the first time?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± Syarlon laughed once and said, ¡°All the spirits can talk.¡± ¡°Uh?¡± ¡°It is just that the lower leveled ones find it hard to communicate with humans. Even the lowest spirits can speak to each other.¡± ¡°Ah, I see!¡± Syarlon turned toward Agbi. ¡°For a spirit to communicate with a man¡­ this is surely is the right one.¡± Listening to Syarlon, Ian started to feel better. The newly obtained spirit was excellent, which made it hard for him to be disappointed. Ian stroked Agbi and said, ¡°Let¡¯s grow it well, Syarlon.¡± ¡°Hoho. You need to do that. It is the seed of the fire king, you know. It is very precious.¡± ¡°I will make sure that it grows to be a spirit king.¡± ¡°If you did kill the guardian machine, you can be trusted.¡± Looking into the eyes of Ian, Syarlon gave a tender smile. Seeing Ian, he opened his mouth again. ¡°That is what I mean¡­¡± ¡°Go on Syarlon.¡± ¡°Can you do me a favor?¡± Upon hearing those words from Syarlon, Ian¡¯s eyes began to gleam. The quest was waiting to be played. ¡®Is this going to be a hidden quest? Finally!¡¯ Ian quickly answered Syarlon, ¡°Of course, I will do as much as I can.¡± At the delightful response of Ian, Syarlon looked rather pleased. ¡°Huhu, thank you. It was a work I had to do awhile back, but I couldn¡¯t just leave this place as I didn¡¯t have a reliable friend.¡± System messages came up at the corner of Ian¡¯s eyes. Tring-! [The quest ¡®Contaminated Mine in the Spirit Mountain (Epic) (Hidden)¡¯ has been triggered.] * * * ¡®This surely is a quest that can progress only with the possession of a Middle-Earth title in possession, at least that¡¯s what I remember¡­¡¯ Na Ji-chan¡¯s gaze was fixed on the tablet throughout the meeting. He was very curious about what Ian was doing right away, so he couldn¡¯t concentrate on the meeting that was taking place. ¡®The location of the contaminated mine is obviously inside the Sprit mountain. How did this quest even get triggered?¡¯ On the map of the spirit dimension, the spirit mountain had a map connected to the north of the spirit sanctuary. In order to get there, he had to get the ¡®Warrior¡¯s qualification¡¯. However, as Na Ji-chan knew, no server in the human dimension had found the Warrior village, rather a warrior. The content hadn¡¯t even opened yet. ¡®What could this be? Isn¡¯t this a bug?¡¯ Anxiety started to strike the mind of Na Ji-chan like a storm. CH 542 ¡°Oh, for such a place to be in the middle of the dense forest¡­!¡± A sanctuary that was in the middle of the thickly grown trees. Ian, who walked along the road for 10 minutes, found a small village that was hidden inside the forest. The name of the village ¡®Pneuma¡¯ had been written at the entrance of the place. ¡®So the name of the village is Pneuma¡¯. Ian wandered around and began to explore the region. The village of Pneuma was much smaller than the village of Thanatos in Erebus. But everything was present in that place. ¡®Do we need to get any other currency of gold in the village?¡¯ In the village of Thanatos, all the transactions had been carried out with the currency of the Underworld, death coins. Because of that, Ian couldn¡¯t help but think that there would be some specific currency in the spirit dimension too. And his thoughts were on point. -Spirit¡¯s Dojo/Admission fee: 500 Aster A small hut in the corner of the village. Ian saw a signboard that was attached to the entrance and mumbled to himself. ¡®Aster is probably the currency in here. By the way, what am I supposed to do in this place by paying the admission?¡¯ With the curiosity in him, Ian opened the door that was on the cabin next to him. On the door of the cabin, something was written in small letters. -Magic Store. * * * Pneuma village was located to the west of the spirit sanctuary. On the other hand, in order to proceed with the quest that Syarlon had handed to him, Ian should be visiting the ¡®Spirit Mountain¡¯. Then why did Ian move to a remote village? ¡®I wish there is a good fire magic in here¡­¡¯ It was because he wanted to raise ¡®Agbi¡¯ a little faster. By learning to use the fire spirit magic, it was possible for Agbi¡¯s spirit power to fill faster. Surely he could get them in the summoner tower that was in the human dimension too. However, most of the spirit magics that could be obtained from the summoner tower were very rare and of ~ only grade. Sometimes there were hero or legendary ranking ones, but there was no guarantee that they would be good enough for Ian. In the meantime, he heard about the story of Pneuma village from Syarlon, and he had no choice but to come. The spirits shop in the village that sold the spirit magic, and it was surely going to be better than the one that the summoner tower would sell in the human dimension. ¡°Oh ho, I¡¯m seeing a human guest after a long time.¡± ¡°Hello.¡± ¡°Yeah, what kind of things are you in need of?¡± Said an old dwarf who was seated inside the magic store. -Magic Merchant: Harnew Seeing the old man who looked similar to Syarlon, Ian thought to himself. ¡®Is there some race that specifically has horns on their heads?¡¯ But those things weren¡¯t so important to him. Ian had something else he was curious about. ¡°Maybe I can¡­ sell these things?¡± Ian rushed over to the dwarf with the items of various attribute essence that were in his hand. Those were the attribute essence that he had obtained after killing the contaminated spirits. Apart from the fire and lightning, the others weren¡¯t of major importance. The old dwarf who saw those essences that were piled up in the table said, ¡°Of¡­ of course. Where did you even get so many essences?¡± ¡°I got them from the windy plains by taking down the contaminated spirits.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ that so.¡± Most of the essences that he had brought out were of the lowest level. Because of that, it was common for the quantity to be high. The magic merchant Harnew was a bit ignorant about the amount. ¡°The lowest essences are of three asters. The lower essences will give you 30 asters. How much would you like to sell them for?¡± At the question from Harnew, Ian responded without hesitation, ¡°I am selling everything.¡± ¡°Okay. Just hold on for a minute.¡± Harnew took a huge sack that seemed to have the essences in it and soon the system messages came to his eyes. Tring-! [You have earned 81 asters by selling 27 items of ¡®Lesser water essence¡¯.] [You have earned 57 asters by selling 19 items of ¡®Lesser wind essence¡¯.] ¡­ syncopation¡­ [You have earned 120 asters by selling four of ¡®Lesser Abyss essence¡¯.] After selling hundreds of essences, Ian¡¯s inventory was filled with quite a lot of Aster. ¡®Let¡¯s see¡­ I got 1,500 aster.¡¯ Ian scratched the back of his neck. It was because he wasn¡¯t sure how much the currency of ¡®Aster¡¯ was worth. ¡°My young friend, there isn¡¯t anything else you want to sell, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Nice. If you collect essences next time, please bring them over and sell it here.¡± ¡°Okay, Harnew.¡± Ian, who roughly cleaned up his inventory, looked at Harnew and said, ¡°Say, Harnew.¡± ¡°Go on.¡± ¡°By any chance, do you sell Spirit magic spells?¡± At the question of Ian, he nodded his head and answered, ¡°Of course, What do you need my friend?¡± ¡°I want to get the spirit magic spells with fire attributes.¡± ¡°Fire attributes? Just hold on a minute.¡± Harnew wandered towards a bookshelf that was in the corner of the shop and pulled out several books. He then placed them on the table that was in front of Ian. ¡°Kay, these are all the things I have at the moment.¡± ¡°Is it alright if I take a look?¡± ¡°Definitely. Take your time.¡± Harnew sat down in his chair with a tender smile, and Ian began to look into the books. Whenever Ian opened a book, its information and price appeared in front of him. [Name: Fire Explosion; Class: rare (transcendence); Price: 520 aster] [Name: Fire Speaker; Class: General (transcendence); Price: 195 aster] ¡­ syncopation¡­ [Name: Infernal Fire; Rank: Rare (transcendence); Price: 575 aster] [Name: Land of Fire; Rank: Only (transcendence); Price: 1355 aster] A total of ten books with fire attribute spells were there. And Ian¡¯s mind was thinking of taking the last book that he saw, the Land of Fire. That was because the rank of the Land of Fire was the highest of them all. ¡®Let¡¯s see, it looks like a wide area magic spell, and the coefficient is 450? This surely is much better than the ones that can be bought in the summoner tower¡¯ ¡®The Land of Fire¡¯ was very satisfying. The skill itself was a very basic magic, but the attack coefficient to determine the power was quite high. And it was almost double the factor when compared to the one that Ian uses, the heroic spirit spell. ¡®Even then, maybe I should read the other magic spells too?¡¯ Ian started to read the Fire explosion and then started to read the other books. However, after a while, Ian¡¯s eyes caught something. ¡®Oh ho.¡¯ A book that was titled as rare (transcendence) was called ¡®Infernal Fire¡¯ -Infernal Fire Classification: Active Skills Skill level: Lv 0 Skill class: rare (transcendence) Proficiency: 0 percent Consumes: 100 spirit power. Cooldown: 100 seconds. Borrowing the fire spirits, it summons a burning longbow. Grab the handle of the summoned longbow to automatically generate an arrow to hit the enemy, and deals will inflict 40% damage of fire attribute equal to the summoned magic. Enemies which are hit by the arrow will have a mark of ¡®hell fire¡¯ for a duration of 10 seconds, and the marked target takes 4% more damage per summoned magic per second. *As soon as the arrow leaves the bow, new arrows will be reloaded. (Up to 20 shots are available) *If an arrow misses or at least 20 arrows were used, the summon of the Burning Longbow is dismissed. *The mark can be stacked up to 10 times, or when the stacking is at its maximum, it will cause a powerful explosion to destroy the target. (When the mark explodes, the stacked mark will cause all the damage it can during the leftover duration.) (When the mark explodes, the cooldown of ¡®Infernal fire¡¯ magic spell will reset.) *Skill Acquisition condition: can only be acquired while learning the passive skill ¡®Fire spirit summoner¡¯. *Skill activation condition: skill can be activated only when the fire attribute spirit is summoned. *It is growable magic. If the conditions have been met, it can be evolved into high magic. Kailan¡¯s skills normally had a more complicated mechanism for activation. The advanced skills were more difficult to use. But right now, Ian found the skill, despite being a rare (transcendence) rank, to have a much more complicated mechanism than the one with only a unique rank (transcendence). ¡®growable magic¡­ is it because of that option?¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes were twinkling. It was because the option ¡®growable magic¡¯ seemed like the ¡®evolvable¡¯ options for his summons. ¡®It surely is low for a rare ranked one¡­¡¯ The attack rate of the Infernal Fire was indeed less than 10 percent of the Land of Fire magic. Even with the lasting deal with the mark, the arrow would have to hit 6 times on the mark to get higher damage than the Land of Fire. In addition, the Land of Fire was a wide area skill. Up to that point, the ¡®Infernal fire¡¯ wasn¡¯t a good skill. No, not a bad skill but the worst in the situation. ¡®Unless the additional options have been attached.¡¯ Ian¡¯s mouth started to turn dry as he read the additional options of the skill. Each and every other one of its optional features was attractive. First was the option of the sniper which Ian liked. ¡®If it constantly hits, would at least 1 out of the 20 could hit the enemy?¡¯ If the hit rate was 100 percent, it was possible to give a crazy amount of deal. In addition, if 10 arrows could hit within 10 seconds, a third additional option would get triggered. As soon as the mark exploded, the cooldown of the skill would reset¡­ ¡®This is it. This is it!¡¯ Depending on the ability of the user, it was a skill that could make stars. To sum it up easily, the Infernal fire skill wouldn¡¯t even be a useful skill when used by a user who lacked the skills for archery by 100%. On the other hand, if theoretically shown, it could be possible to generate a few thousands of damage. In addition, Ian had a friend who would make the skill work much stronger. ¡®Agbi! This skill was made exclusively for Agbi!¡¯ Ian¡¯s spirit¡ªAgbi¡¯s¡ªfirst unique ability, the ¡®Devil¡¯s Fire¡¯. With that ability, the speed at which the marks accumulate would be twice as fast. ¡®I¡¯m going to hunt right away!¡¯ Ian, who drew a picture in his head, called Harnew while holding the spellbook. ¡°Harnew, I¡¯ll do this!¡± New powerful fire spirit Agbi. The ultimate spirit magic that would go in perfect synergy with it. Filled with excitement, Ian¡¯s heart began to beat faster. CH 543 After the meeting, Na Ji-chan ran into the monitoring room. The arranged meeting was indeed important, but this was much more important than that. ¡®I need to check for the bugs first!¡¯ The world of Kailan had been going through a very important time. The users of the humans/ asmodian (terrestrial system) users were going into one or two places in the Middle-Earth, in easy words¡ªit was a transitional time. And it would be fatal if a bug had formed at this point, it would turn to be an irreparable balance breakdown. Ping- Piping-! Na Ji-chan, who just entered the monitoring room with the employee ID, ordered the employees inside. ¡°Mr. Lee, please free up the monitoring computer.¡± ¡°Okay, team leader.¡± ¡°Yoon, send over the month¡¯s worth of play data of Ian.¡± ¡°Yes, team leader!¡± They weren¡¯t able to figure out what had been going on, but the monitoring room moved. From the looks of Na Ji-chan, it looked like he was very concerned about something. Wheeing-! Na Ji-chan who received all the data onto the computer first checked the analysis table connected with the development team. And he was able to take a relaxed sigh. It was because he hadn¡¯t found any error code. ¡®Phew, there is no system error or bug in here.¡¯ The most fatal of all the bugs was the problem with the game system itself. So, if the system wasn¡¯t so faulty, then it was like the worst had been avoided. But that didn¡¯t mean that he could be relieved just yet. If there was no problem with the development team, it was most likely a mistake on the planning team¡¯s side. Then, Na Ji-chan, the team leader of planning team 3, will be partly responsible for it. ¡®I hope it isn¡¯t a big deal¡­¡¯ The problem was, ¡®Contaminated Mine in Spirit Mountain¡¯ quest. Na Ji-chan wasn¡¯t directly involved in the planning of the quest. Because of that, it wasn¡¯t going to be easy to identify where the problem actually lied. After drinking a cup of cold water, Na Ji-chan sat down in front of the screen. After playing the video of Ian. He began to skim through the data. He had decided not to rush into things and then decided to take at least a day¡¯s time. ¡®Kay. Where could it be if it wasn¡¯t system error?¡¯ And Na Ji-chan, who was seated in the monitoring room, couldn¡¯t get out of the room even after the team members had left. * * * Kailan¡¯s early days were vaguely remembered. No, to be much more precise, it wasn¡¯t so long after the career of ¡®Summoner¡¯ had come. When Ian had first encountered the content of ¡®spirit¡¯ was created in the Summoner Tower. At that time; Ian, with the overwhelming number 1 ranking of Summoner, was the first to enter the Summoner career tower and within the tower, he was able to obtain a skill book related to the spirits. And with Ian being the starting point, the spirit spell user started to gain attention among the summoners too. For the summoner who had to fight with weapons of the different classes without a single attacking skill, the spirit spell users seemed very attractive. However after a while, with the passing of half-year, the spirit spell users died down. As the level of the user kept on growing, the efficiency of the spirit spell user continued to fall. At that time, the spirit spell users were lacking too much. ¡®I really wanted to know why Kailan even created the content.¡¯ First of all, the spirit spell User was just like a medium for the summoner to use spirit magic. Summoned spirit had never had a combat power for itself. In addition, the maximum degree that the spirit could evolve to was also limited to medium spirits, and the merits were bound to fall more. There was an even little scope for the ¡®Summon magic¡¯ stat, which had been the most important factor in determining the power of spirit magic. In other words, as the spirit grows, the spirit spell user must grow stronger too, and it was abandoned as there was no way to improve the spirit magic. Ian too at that defined the spirit spell at that time. -Summoner up to the level of early 50 ¨C 100, with the intent to make a play of the summoner easily. Guerrilla content. However, when he had entered the spirit dimension and began to look at the proper spirits, Ian had no choice but to change his thoughts. And he could see why the content of the spirits that were available in the human dimension had been limited. The spirit spell user was initially a content to be opened after the Middle-Earth. There were numerous reasons for Ian¡¯s thoughts, but the biggest reason was because of this. *Occupation stats are interoperable with the earth system and the Middle-earth at the same ration (ration 100: 1). That was a part of the description of the middle-Earth set forth in the official community of Kailan. Then what was the top of the sentence? *The combat stats of the earth system directly affected the combat stats of the Middle-Earth. *On the other hand, the higher the transcendence and the transcendence combat stats don¡¯t raise the stats on the earth (Though intangible combat abilities increases, it is but insignificant.) According to the explanation, the increase in the combat abilities due to leveling up and farming in the Middle-Earth had very little effect on the human dimension. In other words, no matter how hard they tried to move up the transcendental level, the stats of the human dimension wouldn¡¯t change. Then what about the career stats? If the transcendence career stats is raised by 1, then the career stats of earth system goes up by 10. However, both the stats that determine spirit power was included in the Summoner¡¯s Career Stats. What did that mean? ¡®In this situation, practicing spirit magic was the most efficient for growth.¡¯ Ian summoned back all of his familiars in order to grow his spirits. At least, in the time that he spent controlling his familiars; if he could use spirit magic, then the speed at which the spirits would grow would be faster. And the level of the familiars couldn¡¯t be raised above 10; however, the spirits can surely grow, so the choice of Ian was a natural one. Hurrying out of the Pneuma village, Ian moved to the north of the sanctuary. It wasn¡¯t long before he found a blue gate. ¡®Is there an entrance for the Spirt mountain?¡¯ Ian took heavy strides and went in the direction of the gate. The NPCs which had been standing on both the sides of the gate approached Ian. They too were the guards with an unusual appearance of goats. ¡°Hold on. Nobody can pass through this place.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°There are a lot of dangerous monsters in the Spirit mountain.¡± The guards blocked Ian, however, Ian didn¡¯t move back. Because he had already heard of the story from Syarlon. ¡°Syarlon was the one who asked to investigate the contaminated mine.¡± At the mention of Syarlon¡¯s name, the two guards went shocked. ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°Is that true?¡± ¡°Yes, indeed it is. You can confirm by asking Syarlon.¡± The guards were too flustered. It was because it was Syarlon who commanded and controlled the movements of the place. And Syarlon was the kind of person who would only allow an intermediate being to pass through, and now he believed a human and gave him the mission. No matter how shocking it was, there was no way that they could overrule the command of Syarlon. As far as the spirit sanctuary was concerned, the words of guardian Syarlon was the law. ¡°Ho, I don¡¯t think that it is a lie¡­¡± ¡°To entrust the mission to a human and not a intermediate being¡­¡± The two NPCs were glancing Ian up and down, and nodded with an ugly expression of disgust. ¡°Yeah well, Syarlon would have thought it too.¡± ¡°Go on then, friend. Just be careful. The monster machines are stronger than you think.¡± Listening to their permission, Ian smiled and stepped up. ¡®It¡¯s all a matter of judging whether one is dangerous or not, my friends.¡¯ Ian stepped inside the gate without any hesitation. Woong-! * * * White light entered from all the directions and then Ian¡¯s sight went black. And as the light faded, the first thing that came into Ian¡¯s sight were the numerous messages. Tring-! [You have entered the ¡®Spirit Mountain¡¯.] [You have discovered the ¡®Spirit Mountain¡¯ for the first time!] [Fame of 300,000 has been increased.] [For the coming 48 hours, the rewards that will be gotten from the monsters in the Spirit mountain map will be doubled (If the dungeon has been discovered for the first time, the experience gained will be applied).] [Permanently gains 50 spirit magic (transcendence).] [Permanently gains 50 summon magic (transcendence).] [For the 24 hours the spirit skills will be increased by one and a half times.] [For the 24 hours, the ¡®Spirit Savior¡¯ buff will be applied.] [Spirit Savior: the spirit magic and the summon magic will be increased by 30 percent.] ¡­syncopation¡­ ¡°Wow!¡± Ian spoke up without realizing it. This was because it was the first time that he had found a buff of such high quality. In particular, the doubling buff that had been applied when the dungeon had been found was honey like. ¡®Well, now if I find the contaminated mine, will the double buff come up again?¡¯ Excited, Ian checked the coordinates of the specified place in the quest window. He opened the mini map and checked where the mine would be located. ¡®It is not as far as Syarlon had stated.¡¯ Ian turned and walked to the north. Obviously, there were going to be plenty of monsters to hunt in the spirit mountain field, and then he would have the chance to hunt efficiently before the buff runs out. ¡°Kay, Agbi, Chirpy, let¡¯s move this way!¡± Ian, who ordered his spirits, and picked up the pace. However, it had been a while. Kkik- Giiki-! Somewhere in the dark forest, the awkward sounds of the machine began to work. Next to Ian were numerous machine monsters that looked like little monkeys. -Kariophitecus: Lv 11 (transcendence) * * * ¡°Uh, this Kim¡­ he surely did not check it!¡± It had been 10 hours since he had been killing time in the monitoring room. Na Ji-chan was very fortunate to find the wrong plan before the dawn. And it was the work of Kim Ji-yeon, a subordinate of Na Ji-chan. ¡°Ha, I should have at least checked it much more closely¡­¡± The words were surely like that, however, the expression of Na Ji-chan wasn¡¯t so dark. It wasn¡¯t that there wasn¡¯t any problem, however, it was clear that it wasn¡¯t a bug. ¡®The fact is Ji-yeon is the problem, Ian is the problem¡­¡¯ The monitoring took a lot of time, but the reason for the problem was simple. The problem was that Ian broke a quest that he shouldn¡¯t have. The quest in the question, of course, was to Kill the Guardian Machine quest. This quest was originally a quest that needed one being to turn into an intermediate being and then get cleared. It was because, the named boss monster machine was designed to be unbreakable with the level below 10. And as it was, the skills of Ian weren¡¯t an exception in that. Even though Ian had a great combat power, he had a single digit transcendence level which won¡¯t be able to handle the quick-recovering ability of the Machine Guardian. No matter how well the patterns of the boss were known for avoiding damage, it was impossible to kill unless the DPS was stronger than the recovery rate. The problem, however, was the variable called as the ¡®Abyss Dragon¡¯. Even not entirely, the killer stats of the Abyss Dragon had been strengthened, and was the only one that could to block a zion attribute was the Abyss. ¡®If the quest trigger condition had to be put as an intermediate being, this wouldn¡¯t have happened¡­¡¯ Na Ji-chan sighed by leaning back into the sofa. If it was Na Ji-chan who had seen Ian countless times, he would have never made such mistakes. ¡®Well, not a big deal. I just need to see what Ian is going to do¡­¡¯ Fortunately, the quest wasn¡¯t a linked quest. Ian surely entered the spirit mountain in an unusual way, but after the end of the quest, he would have nothing to do. If he doesn¡¯t become an intermediate being; the other quests wont get activated and the transcendence level cannot be raised above 10, so he wont be able to enter the other deep areas of the spirit dimension. No matter how crazy Ian was, he won¡¯t be able to go against those monsters which have twice the level of transcendence. ¡°Uh, stress!¡± Na Ji-chan jumped up from the sofa and opened a cupboard that was in the corner of the monitoring room, then took out a pack of potato chips that he hid. Opening the packet he lied on the couch. It had been a while since he had watched the videos of Ian. Ping-! As Na Ji-chan operated the remote control, the screen changed. And Ian¡¯s live video began to play on the screen. Na Ji-chan focused his mind on the screen with a little annoyance. CH 544 Kkiiki- Kigik-! Kiirgk-! Three monkeys, made of machines came in the direction of Ian with bizarre sound. -Kariophitecus: Lv. 11 (transcendence) Subsequently, Ian who had confirmed the transcendence level of them started to get tense. ¡®This isn¡¯t a difficult level right away.¡¯ This was the second time Ian had experienced a two-digit transcendence in the field. When he got closer to Cocytos, the second river of Erebus, Ian had encountered the first two-digit transcendental monster in the field. And surely, during that time, he couldn¡¯t have fought. ¡®For starters, it is better to cut off one after the other.¡¯ Ian who quickly looked at the surrounding terrain threw the Judgment of the Spirit King at the forefront. Swaach-! And the machines which were shocked jumped into the air. Kkik-! The Judgment of the Spirit King, which just missed the target was stuck to the ground as the monkeys had moved. And at a glance, it would have looked like Ian had made a mistake, but that was never the case. Ian was the one who wanted the monkey to jump. Monsters that couldn¡¯t fly, had trouble changing directions in the air. Because the monster on the ground had jumped into the air, and the best was to take down the target would be with arrows. Hwwwk-! And soon came the red flames from the longbow that Ian was holding onto. To be precise, it was because the arrow was made of flame. Swak-! The arrow with flames flew through the air and was aimed exactly at the chest of the machine monkey that was floating in the air. And the most interesting thing was, the arrow that hit the monkey wasn¡¯t one, but two. [Activated the spirit magic ¡®Infernal Fire¡¯.] [Inflicted deadly fire damage to the machine monster ¡®Kariophitecus¡¯!] [The vitality of ¡®Kariophitecus¡¯ has been reduced by 454.] [The fire spirit ¡®Agbi¡¯ has triggered the unique ability of ¡®Devil¡¯s Fire¡¯.] [Inflicted tremendous fire damage to the machine monster ¡®Kariophitecus¡¯!] [The vitality of ¡®Kariophitecus¡¯ has been reduced by 390.] Agbi¡¯s unique ability, ¡®Devil¡¯s fire¡¯, has the ability to duplicate the spirit spells of the fire attribute used by his spirit. In other words, as soon as Ian had summoned the infernal flame and shot it at the monkey. The fire arrow was shot from his hand. As the two-footed arrows were struck, two markers had overlapped. [Monster ¡®Kariophitecus¡¯ has been marked with ¡®Hellfire¡¯. 10 seconds from now, you will gain additional damage of 46 per second (1 stack).] [Monster ¡®Kariophitecus¡¯ has been marked with ¡®Hellfire¡¯. For 10 seconds from now, you will gain additional damage of 38 per second (2 stacks).] And Ian¡¯s attacks didn¡¯t end there. Swoah-! For a former archer ranker like Ian, it was like breathing to hit arrows with a passive skill. Pauk-! Before the machine monkey leaped into the air, the arrow of the bow cut through the air in succession, making the torso get hit. And since Ian wasn¡¯t just shooting the arrows for fun, 10 stacks had quickly piled up. [ Max ¡®Hellfire¡¯ mark stacks has been overwritten.] [The marker will cause a powerful explosion.] [Deadly fire damage has been done to the machine monster ¡®Kariophitcues¡¯!] [The vitality of ¡®Kariophitceus¡¯ has been reduced by 2,110.] The coefficient of the flame was only 40 percent. Because of the arrows released one by one, the damage was much weaker than what Ian had thought. But as the marks had been piled up, the story changed completely. Compared to the Blood Split, which was the unique ability that increased the speed of attack rate, its damage wasn¡¯t lacking by much. Kikkik-! The angry machine monkey rushed towards Ian with much more violence. However, one of the three had died already. Ping-! And the combination of Ian and Agbi followed again. The monkey fell down in no time. Tring-! [You have successfully defeated the machine monster ¡®Kariophitecus¡¯!] [Obtained transcendence experience of 44.] [Obtained 6 aster.] As soon as one of their companion had died, the other two monkeys began to move with much caution. After confirming that Ian was the one who had fired the projectile, they clearly approached the trees with constant cover. It was a high-level AI that wasn¡¯t seen normally in the field monsters of the earth system. However, Ian didn¡¯t panic because of it. Since he had the Infernal fire and Agbi alongside him. ¡°Electricity multiplication!¡± When the monkey peeked its head out of the tree branch, a mass of electricity had been generated from the hand of Ian¡¯s immediately. And the lightning sphere went right to the head. Kkkir-jrrrk-! [Target hit with electricity multiplication skill. Inflicts damage of 679 lightning attribute on ¡®Kariophitecus¡¯!] The machine monkey had suffered less damage than that of the fire arrow, but nothing can be considered less in the situation. But the problem here wasn¡¯t the 679 damage. The current multiplication was literally a unique ability for splitting, and the moment it was hit, the attack split into four directions. Jjrrrjik-! [The multiplied current inflicted 196 additional damage on the machine monster ¡®Kariophitecus¡¯!] [The multiplied current inflicted 234 additional damage to the machine monster ¡®Kariophitecus¡¯!] Even when they were hiding in the dense branches of the forest. And the sphere of current which had multiplied had broken off and hit some other one in the bush. As a result, even the other monkey couldn¡¯t help but be shocked. [The ¡®Kariophitecus¡¯ is in a state of ¡®paralysis¡¯.] [The movements of the ¡®Kariphitecus¡¯ has been slowed down by 30 percent, and will suffer additional damage from the ¡®attack¡¯ attribute.] [Current multiplication cooldown has been reset.] Tatat-! Ian, who was able to create a situation that he wanted, moved his feet and went to the side. Then in his hands came the longbow of flames. Ping- Ping-! And of the two machine monkeys, had no other way but to get hit by the arrows from Ian. The two machine monkeys began to melt in the heat of the fire and melted onto the floor without any power. Tring-! [You have successfully defeated the monster ¡®Kariophitecus¡¯!] [Transcendence experience of 42 has been gained.] [Obtained 8 aster.] [Acquired transcendence experience of 46.] [Obtained 6 aster.] Ian laughed a little after confirming the reward. It certainly was a double reward, but the amount of the transcendence experience he had received was surely huge. ¡®It is almost like, 50 for a head? If I find the dungeon and I get a duplicate buff, I¡¯ll get points close to 100.¡¯ And it wasn¡¯t much, but the monsters were dropping aster. Perhaps after completing the quest if he went back to the village, using his collect aster, he could buy something in the shop. ¡°Well done, Agbi, Chirpy!¡± Feeling good at what they had done, Ian raised a thumb in the direction of Agbi and Chirpy. Although the guys who were appearing at the beginning of the map were the weakest ones, since they were able to fight without the help of the other familiars, it seemed like an encouragement. Listening to the praise from Ian, Agbi waved both his hands and said, [I usually do well, master.] And subsequently, Chirpy who had been sitting on the shoulder of Ian raised his beak and chirped. Chirp- jack-! The spirits of Ian seemed to be a little ignorant, however, it was just a minor problem. ¡°Yah, are you going to be this arrogant right from the start?¡± [The spirits always speak the truth, master.] Chrip- Chrip-! ¡°¡­¡± After all, Ian, who had a good start decided to move into the forest to his destination. Some additional mechanical monkeys appeared along the way, but they didn¡¯t pose much a threat. With the ¡®paralysis effect¡¯ of the electricity multiplication and the hellfire, the monsters haven¡¯t been able to even touch Ian¡¯s hair. Just seeing the spirits and the spirit skill being useful, Ian was starting to feel joy. ¡°Nice. Until the buff ends, then this is going to be endless.¡± Ian ran towards the north excitedly. And, was it around 10 minutes that had passed? ¡®Found it!¡¯ The mine had come in front of the eyes of Ian. * * * While watching the video of Ian, Na Ji-chan went blank and forgot to chew the potato chips that were in his mouth. ¡°Crazy¡­¡± The scene of Ian sweeping of the monkey was way too unrealistic. Of course, machine monkey wasn¡¯t such a tricky monster to deal with, but with the level of 7, it was quite hard to deal with them. If it was any other ranker, it would have taken at least 3 to 5 minutes to hunt one of them down. And it wasn¡¯t just Na Ji-chan who was surprised. ¡®Where did he even find the skill of such sort?¡¯ Ian was madly shooting the arrow of flame, ¡®Infernal fire¡¯ skill. ¡°Why did that even go into this guy¡¯s hand¡­¡± The infernal fire wasn¡¯t just a tricky skill. Although it had the ability to evolve, such a skill was easy to find in the Middle-Earth. Even with the balance test-data, it was one of the ordinary common skills. Rather than a low coefficient and difficult to use, the general user would surely avoid such skills. It was a skill that had a low coefficient, it was hard to find the meaning of why it was even in the game. However, depending on the user¡¯s ability to increase the power was changed. Na Ji-chan still remembered what Kim Yue Hwan had said when planning such a skill. -How great will it be to see the archer skills of a summoner and not an archer? On top of that, there are no coefficients, who would even use such a skill? This is a fix! Of course, the words of Kim did make sense. Na Ji-chan thought, that the conditional trigger effect of the marked overlap was the only advantage the skill had. But if the player was a user, the story was different in all directions. He was the strongest combat player in the human dimension and was considered as a monster with his previous former archer rank. Ian wasn¡¯t always a user of the ¡®Summoner¡¯ category. ¡°Ha¡­¡± Na Ji-chan sighed looking at his legs and shook his head. Ian didn¡¯t seem to have noticed it, but there as another feature in the Infernal Fire that wasn¡¯t known yet. If Ian managed to figure it out, then a whole new disaster would come rushing for the planning team. And Ian, whom Na Ji-chan knew very well, wasn¡¯t a person who would fail to find out. ¡°Please do it right, Ian hyung.¡± Na Ji-chan who looked at the screen had dark eyes. Ping-! Na Ji-chan turned off the monitor screen by hitting on the remote and began to move the couch. Going home from work might be a little sooner, but right now it seemed like a good choice for his mental health. If he was going to work overtime and night shifts, he was going to need to save his strength. ¡°Ha, I was under the impression that the Real Middle-Earth was far away¡­¡± The back of Na Ji-chan which seemed to exit the monitoring room seemed somewhat depressed. CH 545 -The Contaminated Mine in Spirit Mountain (Epic) (Hidden) Before the invasion of the Mechanical Civilization, in many parts of the mountain, there were mines for the mining of pure elemental crystals. But after the invasion of the mechanical civilization, almost all of the mines turned polluted or disappeared. That was because the mechanical civilization, which had coveted the powers of the spirit, carried out the mining randomly. The mechanical civilization that occupied the mines were based on there to produce the machine monsters. The elemental crystals that were mined in the mines were a very good material product for the powering of the machine monsters. This was the trouble that the Guardian Syarlon had been facing. There was a contaminated mine in the Southern side of the Spirit Sanctuary, where Syarlon was a guardian. The machine monsters which used to produce the mine had periodically plundered the sanctuary, and the young spirits got frequently injured. Syarlon had been facing this problem for quite some time. The intermediate beings who kept the sanctuary safe, including Syarlon, were all tied down to the sanctuary. Which is why Syarlon wants you to investigate the contaminated mine on his behalf, investigate the mine and find the source of the mechanical civilization, destroy them and return to Syarlon. If you return successfully after completing the mission, you will be able to get valuables from Syarlon. Quest Difficulty: A++ Quest Condition: Defeat the Machine guardian and achieve the highest contribution. Time limit: None. Reward: Spirit pickaxe Guardians Bead, ??? The contaminated mine quest which was located in the spirit mine was marked with Epic and Hidden. Among them, ¡®hidden¡¯ really meant ¡®hidden¡¯. It was a formula that could be recognized by anyone who had played the game even for just a little while. Then, what did the term Epic mean? First, the dictionary meaning for the word ¡®epic¡¯ meant ¡®huge¡¯. The meaning of ¡®epic¡¯ in the quest windows of Kailan or items was not so different. In Kailan the term ¡®epic¡¯ meant narration. The words ¡®epic¡¯ could be interpreted to mean that the quest or an item was related to the main scenario. Therefore, the quest of ¡®Contaminated mine in Spirit Mountain¡¯ was a similar quest which was closely related to the main scenario of the Spirit dimension. ¡®If we read this quest very carefully, we can know how the spirit dimension works.¡¯ In the spirit dimension, at the current point of time, the ¡®mines¡¯ were like a strategic base for the mechanical civilization. In order to drive out the mechanical civilization from the spirit dimension, it was probably necessary to purify all of the mines in the mountain. Gulp. After gulping down, Ian started to take slow steps toward the mine. Ian was quite nervous. The quest difficulty was lower than the Guardian Machine one, so it was obvious that it could be an easy battle. As he had entered the mine, the vision of Ian got dimmed and the system messages began to appear. Tring-! [You have entered the ¡®Contaminated Mine C-01¡¯] [The Contaminated Mine C-01 dungeon has been discovered for the first time!] [Increased fame by 100,000.] [Rewards are doubled for the duration of 48 hours when taking down the monsters of the ¡®Contaminated Mine C-01¡¯.] [Permanently gained Spirit Magic (transcendence) of 20.] [Permanently gained Summon Magic (transcendence) of 15.] Seeing the messages pop up, Ian couldn¡¯t stop himself from smiling. It was all because of the duplication of the first discovery reward buff. To level up, there was a tremendous need for transcendence experience, but with four buffs in place, it would be quite easy to do. ¡®Nice, Nice. I¡¯ll take the level 8 of transcendence in a while.¡¯ Feeling better, Ian began to enter the dungeon with Agbi. After moving a bit inside, the dimness had faded and the mine could now be seen. The body of Agbi which was a fire spirit had flames all over its body, and that created an additional effect of illuminating the dark. ¡®Will the guys which appear here be higher than the monkey?¡¯ Ian had started to look at the mine with all his five senses active. Suddenly¡­ Gggng-! Somewhere in the mine, a loud sound could be heard. ¡°¡­!¡± In front of Ian came system messages. Tring-! [The machine inside the mine has begun to work.] [The first phase has been triggered.] [The ¡®Room of Rock¡¯ has been opened.] ¡®Room of rock¡­ huh?¡¯ Ian looked at the direction of the sound with a puzzled look. The stone walls on both sides, which seemed to have been blocked until then, moved up and a new space was revealed. On the path where Ian was moving, a huge iron gate fell, blocking the passage. Thud-! When the engine stopped working with a heavy sound, the shape of the dungeon changed entirely. The shape of the dungeon, which had been extended to the front, had now turned into a vacant lot. Subsequently, another system message had appeared in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. Tring-! [You have been completely disconnected from the outer dimension.] [From now on, all kinds of ¡®Summon¡¯ skills have been limited.] [From now on, all kinds of ¡®Return¡¯ skills have been limited.] [Machine monsters with rock attributes will begin to appear.] [Defeat the monsters and the Rock Key to escape from the room.] [After 30 minutes, the monsters¡¯ regen will increase by 10% every minute.] After reading the messages, Ian had no choice but to panic. Unlike the machine monkeys that appeared on the field, there were now going to be machine monsters with ¡®attributes¡¯. ¡®And they are rock attributes¡­¡¯ However, the most terrifying part was that the ¡®Summon¡¯ skill had been limited. Which meant that no matter how critical the situation turned into, Ian wouldn¡¯t be able to summon any of his familiars. ¡®Oh, maybe I was a bit too careless.¡¯ Ian bit his lip. The summon ban message he saw hit Ian back to reality. In any case, the stone was thrown and Ian had no choice. He was supposed to clear the dungeon with his two spirits. Ian tried to find his composure and began to think. Ian was able to figure out how the dungeon was working. ¡®There won¡¯t be just one or two rooms. And the attribute will change along with the rooms.¡¯ Ian was convinced that the first phase was going to be more difficult to challenge than the next ones. The reason is that the attribute of his spirits was bad with rock. No matter attribute monsters appeared in the future, they couldn¡¯t be worse than the rock attribute. * * * Kailan had a number of attributes. So far, there had been more than dozens of known attributes, and there had been a number of attributes that weren¡¯t known yet. And the attributes, each of them had a relation with other attributes. The same goes for the rock attribute. Ian was trying to memorize all of the relations. ¡®The rock attribute is strong against fire and electricity. Of the two, it is most resistant to electricity¡­ and weak in ice and grass attributes.¡¯ Attributes relationships have a lot to do with combat, but it was especially important with magicians and spirits. If the attack damage of other classes feels that of 20% even with the addition of spirit attributes of normal ones, then magicians which used a specific attribute would give out 100% damage. In other words, when attacking water attributes with fire attributes, in case of the sword or spear, the damage would be reduced in the area of attack, but in case of the spirit magic, the whole attack power would be reduced. ¡®At least, the fire attack might work, but I¡¯d better not use the current multiplication.¡¯ The monsters with light attribute rarely got damaged by the attacks of a lightning attribute. It was because their resistance to lightning was at a maximum. Even though Ian wasn¡¯t exactly sure of the figures, around 90 to 95 percent of the damage would be absorbed by the resistance. Kung-! Kung-! With a rocky appearance, the monster had approached the direction where Ian had been standing. And in the hands of Ian, who had just seen the battlefield, was a longbow with red flames all over it. ¡°Kay then. Let¡¯s see who wins.¡± With a shining arrow, Ian aimed for the monster, which was in front of him. The moment the arrow left the bow. Ping-! The first battle of the contaminated mine dungeon had begun. * * * The transcendence level of the monsters in the ¡®Room of Rock¡¯ didn¡¯t differ much from the machine monkeys. From the lowest level being 11 to the highest level of transcendence being 13. However, the difficulty of dealing with them and the dungeon was entirely different. The transcendence level was only a difference of a digit or two, but the difficulty of the dungeon was almost double. Kwakwang-! [Hellfire marks have been overwritten at MAX.] [The mark will cause a powerful explosion.] [Inflicts deadly fire damage on the monster ¡®Reprobot¡¯!] [The vitality of Reprobot has been decreased by 627.] When the hellfire mark had blown up, the damage done to the machine monkey was over 2,000. However, due to the high defense of the rock attribute monster, the damage was reduced to almost a quarter level. ¡®Dammit, pig-like bastard¡­¡¯ Was it three minutes since the battle had begun? What Ian did so far was to cut the vitality to just half. The only good thing was that they were incredibly slow. Even with rough arrows, it was still easy to build up the stacks of the marks. In addition, having slow attack motions, it wasn¡¯t hard to avoid that guy. Perhaps this wouldn¡¯t even be difficult to clear even if they took their sweet time to clear the room. Of course, Ian had no time to spare. ¡®The time limit is the problem.¡¯ In fact, it wasn¡¯t just the time limit. Just like in the Gorge of the Blast dungeon, the monster started to get faster as time went by. Running out of time didn¡¯t mean that the quest would fail. However, Ian actually thought that it had to be done in 40 to 50 minutes. ¡®If I don¡¯t find the key, the whole room will be filled with monsters.¡¯ There were a total of nine rock monsters in the room, and Ian still wasn¡¯t able to kill even a single one of them. Which meant that from the start, the speed of the monsters¡¯ regen was getting faster. There was still a room to spare, but in 30 to 40 minutes the whole room would get filled with rock attribute monsters. No matter how talented as a user Ian was, he couldn¡¯t avoid all the attacks. There was no room to avoid. ¡®Which one of them has the key? I need to figure it out.¡¯ Looking around the monsters, Ian continued to fire his arrows. Ian¡¯s rate of firing the arrows was quicker than when he was against the monkeys. Of course, that didn¡¯t mean that the skills had increased. The targets were all too big and too slow. Papahk-! Before the first arrows hit the target, Ian was able to release another four arrows. The arrows Ian and Agbi were constantly stuck to the body of the monster, and the mark continued to burst. Boom-boom-! After a while, the first rock monster fell. Khung-! [Monster ¡®Reprobot¡¯ has been fatally damaged!] [Reprobot¡¯s vitality has been exhausted.] [You have successfully defeated Reprobot!] [Acquired transcendence experience of 112.] [Obtained 18 aster.] Ian¡¯s mouth, which checked the messages, smiled. The transcendence experience and the aster rewards were higher than he expected. ¡®Nice, I just need to find the key¡­¡¯ Ian was looking for his next target with gleaming eyes and with the intention of getting a clue about the monsters. Killing all the monsters would surely be the best way, but he didn¡¯t have the luxury of time. It was urgent to get the key somehow and then escape the room. The next moment¡­ ¡°¡­!¡± Ian¡¯s sight fell on a shiny key-shaped object. A necklace on one of the rock monsters. ¡®That guy?¡¯ Ian jumped right toward him but wasn¡¯t able to continue. He stopped midway and started to get confused. The reason being¡­ ¡®What is this!? It isn¡¯t just one guy with the key!¡¯ All of the other rock monsters there had a similar shaped necklace around their necks. CH 546 ¡®Somehow I thought that I solved it easily.¡¯ Ian squeezed his lower lip with his fingers and began to think again. No matter how flustering it was, he wasn¡¯t going to kill himself rushing into it. Ian bounced back into the air. Tatt-! Where Ian stood prior, a huge stone got struck. Thud-! Ian escaped through the scattering rocks and moved back and forth while trying to avoid the rock monsters. He needed much more accurate information about the situation. ¡®The key surely didn¡¯t drop from the monster I just killed.¡¯ There were two possible scenarios. One, the guy Ian killed wasn¡¯t wearing a key necklace around him at all, or maybe the drop didn¡¯t happen as the guy was wearing one. If the latter was the right one, then the situation turned rather difficult. To hunt one who had a key on his neck meant that no key would drop. Ian¡¯s expression, which had confirmed the body of the fallen monster, was slightly distorted. ¡®Dammit. This is difficult¡­¡¯ The first guy Ian took down had a necklace hanging around his head. ¡®If so, I need to check it for sure¡­¡¯ Ian moved quickly. The eight rock attribute monsters were still on the battlefield. It was necessary to figure out how many of them even had the keys. As a result, all those who had a necklace of a key on their necks had to be killed. Kung-! Thud-! Massive fists made of rocks fell one after the other in succession toward Ian. However, due to the agile movements of Ian, those attacks didn¡¯t even touch him. Ian looked around the battlefield. Kung-! An additional rock monster had been summoned. Ian quickly looked over at the neck of that guy. ¡°¡­!¡± There was no key. Ian, who saw it, smiled. ¡®Nice. There is a chance then¡­!¡¯ The number of rock monsters that were summoned when the room had been built was eight. Despite killing one, the number of rock monsters currently summoned was nine. Six minutes after opening the room, one more monster started to grow. However, Ian¡¯s expression got a bit dark. It was because he still seemed to have a good chance of winning. ¡®The remaining time is approximately 24 minutes¡­¡¯ In Ian¡¯s head, the information so far had been summarized into three. First, two additional monsters have been summoned since Ian had entered the room, and neither of them had any key around their neck. Second, all eight existing monsters had the keys around their necks. Third, Ian took about 4 to 5 minutes to kill just one. On the other hand, it took around two to three minutes for the rocks to regenerate. An information that could be considered as nothing special, but Ian was able to think of a few alternatives with that information. It allowed him to write some scenarios and come up with the most efficient strategy. ¡®I don¡¯t want to touch those guys who are going to regenerate again in the future. As soon as possible, I¡¯ll have to kill eight of them.¡¯ Ian already killed one of them and seven rock monsters remained. Ian took four to five minutes to kill just one, so killing all seven of them would take 30 minutes. By the time only two golems remained, the regeneration speed of the monsters would increase rapidly. ¡®By the time only one of them remains, almost fifteen new golems will be created.¡¯ After completing his calculations, Ian bit his lip. If he was lucky and the key drops, there wouldn¡¯t be much difference, but if it was the last one which had the key, then the fight wouldn¡¯t be easy. Ian didn¡¯t intend to leave the quest in the hands of luck. Due to the nature of Ian, he already assumed the worst-case scenario. ¡®I shouldn¡¯t go behind one. Somehow I need to shorten the kill time.¡¯ Piping-! With the longbow in his hands, arrows began to hit the targets. Surprisingly, however, the arrows were going toward different targets. Puck-! Seven arrows were shot, and seven golems had been hit by those arrows. * * * The ¡®fire¡¯ attribute couldn¡¯t damage the ¡®rock¡¯ attribute. It was because it would lose half of the power in the relation. Then why did Ian continue to use the fire spirit magic despite being able to swing his spear with normal type attacks? The answer was simple. Despite the loss of power, the magic DPS was slightly higher. In addition, the weapon had to be used in a close range, but the fire arrows were ranged ones. If Ian used the arrows, the risk of getting hit would be lower. Nevertheless, there was a specific situation for which weapon had to be used. And that was when all of the spirit power got exhausted. ¡®I can¡¯t help it. To push the DPS to the limit¡­!¡¯ Currently, Ian¡¯s transcendence spirit magic was just over a thousand. And the Infernal Fire magic spell consumed 100 transcendence spirit magic each time it got triggered. Assuming that Ian¡¯s arrows wouldn¡¯t miss, a total of 200 shots would consume all of his spirit magic. Of course, the spirit magic would continue to rise over time, but even after considering that, it meant that magic couldn¡¯t be used indefinitely. Ian had been using spirit magic as efficiently as possible. Once the ten marks exploded, the Infernal Fire¡¯s cooldown would be finished, and the spirit magic would be reactivated only after the remaining arrows were used. When he built up a mark with Agbi, he actually shot five arrows with marks, and the marks carefully stacked up. He tried to shoot the remaining 20 arrows without missing. ¡®However, this is the only way for me to change the strategy.¡¯ Ian relentlessly shot his arrows and began to drive the rock monsters into a corner. Until now, his strategy was to cut down one monster after the other, but he now decided to randomly hit one. Ian, who had been pulling his right hand with a lot of thought, now began to pull the string of the bow without hesitation. Piping-! With unbelievable speed, the arrows began to scatter into the air. [Fatal damage has been done to ¡®Reprobot¡¯!] [The vitality of ¡®Reprobot¡¯ has been reduced by 77.] [The mark ¡®Hellfire¡¯ reached its MAX.] [The mark caused a powerful explosion.] [Fatal damage was done to ¡®Reprobot¡¯!] [The vitality of ¡®Reprobot¡¯ has been reduced by 669.] Ian¡¯s rate of shooting arrows had been excellent until now. He was shooting almost two arrows per second with a tremendous accuracy rate of 100%. It was just a blood bath now. If anyone could see it, they would probably think that Ian was just throwing the arrows at an insane speed. [The mark of hellfire reached its MAX.] [The mark caused a powerful explosion.] [The mark of hellfire reached its MAX.] [The mark caused a powerful explosion.] Kwang-! Once every two to three seconds, the mark exploded. It was only possible because Ian drove the rock monsters at a corner and was shooting them randomly. It didn¡¯t matter what was right, and it didn¡¯t matter if he missed a shot. If he could focus on the mark until it accumulated, it was bound to cooldown. After the mark was done, ten to fifteen arrows were left for use. Kwakwag-! Ian¡¯s spirit magic began to build up rapidly. [¡®Infernal Fire¡¯ the spirit magic has consumed 100 spirit power.] [¡®Infernal Fire¡¯ the spirit magic has consumed 100 spirit power.] In less than two minutes, all the spirit power had been exhausted. [¡®Infernal Fire¡¯ the spirit magic has consumed 100 spirit power.] [Spirit power is lacking; hence the spirit magic cannot be used.] Ian¡¯s eyes confirmed the system message. Ian¡¯s gaze quickly shifted to the vitality gauge of the rock monsters. ¡®While the spirit power is still full, one of them has to be killed.¡¯ The vitality of the rock monster he continued to mark was currently less than half, and the rest of them had been evenly cut by 5%. It would take a minute or two for the spirit power to be regained. In the meantime, he planned to remove the lowest vitality one. ¡°Hmph!¡± All of a sudden, Ian brought out the Judgment of the Spirit King and stretched his arms. Swak-! Subsequently, the Judgment of the Spirit King shot intense lightning strikes on the chest of a rock monster. Kwakwa-! [The monster ¡®Reprobot¡¯ has been fatally damaged.] [The vitality of ¡®Reprobot¡¯ has been reduced by 395.] It didn¡¯t end there. Immediately after throwing the spear, Ian equipped the Bloody Revenge and began to pump blood mist. Woong-! With an intensified resonance, Ian¡¯s color turned red. Ian¡¯s body was shining red. He then rushed toward the monsters. Swack-! [Activated the unique ability ¡®Blood Split¡¯.] [The monster ¡®Reprobot¡¯ has been fatally damaged!] [The monster ¡®Reprobot¡¯ has been fatally damaged!] [The monster ¡®Reprobot¡¯ has been fatally damaged!] [The conditions have been met.] [¡®Blood Split¡¯s¡¯ cooldown has been reset.] The rock attribute monsters were very dull. So it was very easy to hit a critical hit. Ian pierced three rock monsters with the Blood Split. Ian¡¯s new form was once again engulfed into the bloody mist. Swark-! [Activated the Unique ability ¡®Blood Split¡¯.] Flashing red lights hit the monsters in succession from one monster to the other. Of course, it was possible to activate the blood split indefinitely. Anyhow, the probability of a critical hit was not 100%, and the skill linkage would be broken if Ian didn¡¯t land three consecutive critical hits. However, the DPS of Ian was unreal. Kwang-! [The monster ¡®Reprobot¡¯ has been fatally damaged!] [The vitality of ¡®Reprobot¡¯ has been exhausted.] [You have successfully defeated Reprobot!] [Gained 109 transcendence experience.] [Obtained 17 aster.] A red light was flashing every time Ian moved his sword, and another rock monster had collapsed. The time it took to kill a rock monster wasn¡¯t much faster than before, but the situation was completely different. The remaining monsters¡¯ vitality were damaged evenly by 10%. Thud-! The rock monsters fell, and massive tremors occurred around the vacant lot. The key wasn¡¯t obtained again, but Ian wasn¡¯t disappointed at all. He was going to kill the eight ones with the keys. Tat-! Ian stepped onto the body of the monster and pushed in his sword. The spirit magic came back, and it was time to start over. Suddenly¡­ [Master, it is dangerous!] Agbi, who was flying in the air, shouted toward Ian with concern. Behind Ian, a huge fist was flying. Kwaah-! Ian didn¡¯t panic. Ian already saw the attack coming. Thud -! From the back of Ian, a shield appeared and blocked the huge rocky fist. [Successfully blocked with a Shield!] [Absorbed 91.95% of damage.] [Vitality reduced by 198.] In that duration, Ian jumped away from the monsters. ¡°You pigs! Stop now, please!¡± Once again, fire started raining from above. CH 547 ¡°Kay, Remir noona, please!¡± ¡°Okay. Go!¡± The guild party of Lotus was hunting peacefully today. At first, the guild party of the Lotus Guild was just hunting on the outskirts of the Ulphir mountains, and now they were far into the depth. In the meantime, as the level had risen, and the party power had enhanced. Kwakwakwang-! Explosive sounds on the battlefield could be heard, bondage skills were tied. Kwaah-! Kyaahh-! Hoonie¡¯s Greater Bondage and Remir¡¯s Greater Flame Magic were linked, and a powerful synergy had been triggered. And as soon as the flame magic was summoned by Remir, the various magic spells started to come on the battlefield. Chang- Chang-! The most outstanding one was Fiolan¡¯s ice magic skill, Frozen Hell. Which seemingly had less power than that of Remir¡¯s magic, but now, in the process of hunting right now, the magic could be seen as a core. The extra option of the Frozen Hell, ¡®Chill addiction¡¯ was a very useful option against the trolls. *Chill Addiction -It spreads a powerful chill to poison the targets, reducing their agility and the attack speed by 50% for a duration. Also, the vitality of the target¡¯s regeneration would be reduced to 90% until the condition has been resolved. The chill addiction effect was one of the top tier options among the many ones. It was because the debuff was much stronger than any other. In particular, the effect of reducing 90 percent of the vitality regeneration was a disaster for the trolls. The biggest weapon for the trolls was their tremendous regeneration speed. The trolls in the Ulphir mountains would be able to heal in 20 seconds if they were close to death. However, the recovery rate had been suppressed by 90 percent, which was a very hard counter. Ugh-! The fragments of ice spun like a tornado and began to circle around the whole body of trolls. Subsequently, the skin of the trolls which had been affected with the ¡®Chill Addiction¡¯ had turned into blue. ¡°Fiolan, nice!¡± ¡°Kay, finish it now!¡± The party members rushed towards the five trolls who were almost in a state of death. The trolls were so powerful that they could kill an archer or a magician with one wrong move, but with the Chill addiction in effect, there was no reason why it can¡¯t be attacked. And the trolls were swinging their clubs very sluggishly. ¡°Yu Shin, let¡¯s start with the ones in the back!¡± ¡°Okay! Leave it to me!¡± The Lotus dealer was very excited about the Trolls which weren¡¯t able to move any longer. The effect of chill lasted for just 10 seconds, so by killing them off, the battle would end. But, at that moment. Puaahh-! From somewhere in the Forest that was behind them, a loud horn started to rise. ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°Crazy, what is it now?!¡± And the faces of the party members started to hear the sound went stiff. As the horn rang out, the Troll priest had appeared. ¡°Sh*t! Do it quickly!¡± ¡°Remir noona, didn¡¯t the cooldown comeback?¡± ¡°No! I just used it a while back!¡± The reason why the Troll priest was creating a buzz wasn¡¯t because of the fighting ability. The tricky thing was that it would support the other trolls. Various powerful buffs would be used, and the heal of the other trolls could be freed from the debuff. And now, if that priest troll got rid of the Chill Addiction, then the situation would take a turn for worse. ¡°F*ck! Should we maybe move out?¡± Mumbled the leader of the party, Herz. If they retreat now, there wasn¡¯t going to be any damage to the party, but the trolls whose vitality had been shaved so far would be going to waste. Right then, from behind Herz came a voice. ¡°You are speaking in a low voice, Herz Grandeur.¡± Herz who realized who was speaking didn¡¯t even bother to look back and answered, ¡°Then what are we supposed to do in this situation, Kaizer. Even if we do have you and Helliem with us, his situation is a bit¡­¡± However, Herz wasn¡¯t able to speak anymore. It was because, suddenly from the back of the party, huge shadows began to pop out. ¡°¡­!¡± And Herz who saw that was shocked. They were the retainers that Ian had left behind. Them moving without any orders being placed was the first time for Herz to see. ¡°Uh, uhoh¡­?¡± The other party members were flustered too. In the situation where everyone should have retreated, the NPCs were rushing out to do an excessive attack. The most shocking part was¡­ ¡°Blackie, why is he there?¡± Blackie which had been in the back till then was at the forefront. ¡°What would a level 300 do in such a situation?¡± Hoonie stared at Blackie with an expression that wasn¡¯t comprehending what was going on. However, after a while, the whole party¡¯s shock and fluster turned into amazement. Swack-! With black wings spread on either side and moving to the front with a rush. Swaack-! Blackie, with its wings spread out, went past the five trolls. And just as the shadow of Blackie had passed¡­ Ping-! A huge explosion of darkness had occurred and swallowed the trolls. ¡°¡­!¡± Herz, who was looking at the vitality gauge of the trolls, couldn¡¯t believe what he just witnessed. ¡®Doesn¡¯t make any sense¡­!¡¯ Blackie just had the level of 300, and the attack that it just did, caused significant damage to the trolls. Surely, the 15 percent of vitality that the trolls were left with, was now down to just 10 percent, but considering the level difference between their powers, it was just great. Herz was busy scanning the battlefield. Although Blackie had done quite a lot of damage, the vitality of the trolls was still there. However, at the appearance of the priest, all the excitement had been lost. ¡®It sure was amazing, but what now¡­?¡¯ Herz didn¡¯t know about the unique abilities of the retainers of Ian. And as he was in the party with them, he was able to figure out what skills they had, but he didn¡¯t know the conditions or the consumption values of their skills. So now, he had no idea as to how the situation would turn to. ¡®Dammit, we can¡¯t retreat with the retainers of Jinsung out there¡­¡¯ Herz wasn¡¯t able to even give an order in the situation which seemed rather unpleasant. And the next moment, all the troubles of Herz disappeared. Bang-! From the air, Helliem¡¯s form had moved, and started to get engulfed into the darkness as they began to break off the heads of the trolls. Bang-! [Party member ¡®Helliem¡¯ activated the unique ability ¡®Dark Vision¡¯.] [¡®Helliem¡¯ has inflicted deadly damage on the ¡®Forest Troll¡¯.] [The ¡®Forest Troll¡¯ vitality has been exhausted.] [Successfully defeated the Forest Troll!] Bang-! [The ¡®Forest Troll¡¯ vitality has been exhausted.] [Successfully defeated the Forest Troll!] Kwang-! [The ¡®Forest Troll¡¯ vitality has been exhausted.] [Successfully defeated the Forest Troll!] The unique ability of Helliem, Dark Vision, allowed him to teleport to the location of the target and cause ¡®dark attribute damage¡¯. And when the target or enemy dies with the use of Dark Vision, the cooldown of the ability was reset immediately. The wide-area attack caused by Blackie made the vitality of the trolls to fall to 10 percent. And the Dark Vision, with a continuous teleportation attack, had come out of nowhere. In the meantime, Kaizer was keeping the priest away. Bang-! At the same time, the trolls began to collapse. Phuck-! Fluttering his black cloak, Helliem landed on the ground. And Hoonie, who was looking at the scene, mumbled to himself with an expression of doubt. ¡°This hyung¡­ he carries the fight even when he is absent.¡± * * * At the same time. Trapped in the Room of Rock, Ian was struggling. He started to miss the retainers which were there with him. ¡®Dammit! It would have been so much better if Kaizer or Helliem would have been here!¡¯ With his teeth clenched, Ian was literally like a crazed bowman. Despite maximizing the DPS, the number of rock monsters didn¡¯t decrease. In the end, there was a weird balance of their regen and Ian¡¯s skill. ¡®Just a little more! After moving this hump, the other humps will be easier.¡¯ The muscles were starting to hurt due to the non-stop use of them, however, Ian couldn¡¯t stop. The moment he took a break, the monsters would accumulate. And during the place where the area for combat was lacking, if another monster got created, then clearly, the worst was going to happen. ¡°Agbi, from the left!¡± -Okay, master! Agbi who responded immediately flew through the space with fire. Agbi¡¯s unique ability, Devil Fire, had been activated and the fire bounced off the side. Ian watched the vitality of the rock monster fall down. ¡®Now!!!¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes were fixated on the two rock monsters which were on the side. Both of them were in a state of dying, and Ian was about to give the final blow to them. ¡®It is enough if the overlap explosion happens.¡¯ The explosion that happens when the marks start to overwrite, a large scale attack that would deal damage within a certain range. Due to the large size of the rock monsters, it wasn¡¯t easy to put more than two in the range, but now it seemed possible. Using Agbi to drive them into the corner, the were almost within a meter. And the arrow which left the hand of Ian from the bow went and stuck to the body of the two monsters. And before the arrows were run out. [¡®Hellfire¡¯ mark has been overwritten at MAX.] [¡®Hellfire¡¯ mark has been overwritten at MAX.] Two lines of system messages which Ian had been waiting for had come up. Kwang-! And when the two markers had burst at the same time, a loud roar spread. Just as he had expected, the vitality of the two rock monsters was down. [The vitality of ¡®Reprobot¡¯ has been exhausted.] [You have successfully defeated the ¡®Reprobot¡¯!] [You have successfully defeated the ¡®Reprobot¡¯!] [Gained transcendence experience of 107.] [Gained transcendence experience of 112.] Ian gulped and ran towards the fallen two bodies of the monsters. ¡®Please¡­!¡¯ And the keys were hanging on the necks of the remaining two monsters which had fallen. With the two that he had just killed off, Ian had killed a total of eight, and he thought that the time for the key was here. Tat-! Ian who jumped on the shoulder of the rock monster reached towards the dead ones. And came the system messages in front of him. Tring-! [Obtained 16 aster] [Obtained 18 aster] [You have acquired the ¡®Medium rock elemental crystal¡¯] [Obtained the ¡®Key of Rock¡¯ item] [Obtained the item ¡®Broken Decoder¡¯.] ¡®Done!¡¯ When he had seen the Key of Rock, Ian couldn¡¯t help but make a fist. After such extreme situations, he was able to barely get his hands on it, so he felt much gladder than he always did. The very next moment¡­ ¡°¡­?¡± Ian who confirmed another message that was written in the last, couldn¡¯t help but feel odd. ¡®Broken Decoder?¡¯ In the head of Ian, a memory passed. CH 548 After defeating the Guardian Machine, Ian had a questionable item in his hand. That was the ¡®Lesser Machine Summon Blueprint¡¯ item. When he first got it, he was filled with excitement. It was the discovery of a new content that could provide him with the new kinds of summons. However, the excitement was just for a moment. Kailan wasn¡¯t ready to open the new content for Ian that easily. It just threw out tow lines of information to Ian who was tying to check for the item information in detail. [The legacy of Sealed foreign civilization!] [To unseal it, you need the item ¡®Password Decoder¡¯.] For that very reason, Ian had no choice but to put that blueprint back into his inventory. The information about the so-called ¡®decoder¡¯ wasn¡¯t even known to the No.1 Explorer class user, Lilson. He utterly had no clue on how to release the seal, and the quest to the spirit dimension was still in progress. Of course, Gripper might have known it too, but the thought just lasted for a moment. Since he had many other quests that he had to proceed with, he thought that he might be able to get a clue along the way. It was all because the episode of the spirit dimension was moving along closely with the Mechanical Civilization. And Ian¡¯s thoughts were on point. Like that, he got that item called the ¡®password decoder¡¯ from the rock monster. Although it was a half-sized ¡®faulty¡¯ one, he still had it in his possession. ¡®Once I clear of the contaminated mine, I need to think about it.¡¯ Ian took in the items obtained and quickly placed them to the inventory as he had to head towards the iron gate. The rock monsters were chasing him, but with the agility that they had, it was close to impossible for catching Ian. And arriving at the iron gate, Ian inserted the Key of Rock into the large keyhole in the corner. And as the size of the key itself was that of a baseball bat, it wasn¡¯t so hard to place it in. Grrrr-! Ian placed the key and turned it clockwise, and the dungeon began to make sounds again. Creak-! And the remaining rock monster began to collapse. Kyahhh-! ¡®Done!¡¯ A sigh of relief came from Ian¡¯s mouth as he confirmed that the key was working. If there were any mishaps like the key not fitting and such, Ian¡¯s heart would have collapsed right there and then. After a while, came in the system messages. Tring-! [You have successfully escaped from the ¡®Room of Rock¡¯!] [The limit of the Summon skill has been released.] [The limit of the Return skill has been released.] [The first phase has been cleared.] ¡®Nice!¡¯ Ian wiped off the sweat that was flowing down his forehead and released the muscles on his right arm a little. As the muscles were used way beyond their limit, they wouldn¡¯t open up that quickly nor did the pain go away. If the combat would have gone for another 10 minutes, Ian would not have made it alive. ¡®Well, what is next?¡¯ The space, which had been a large rectangular room had then turned into a long passage. And Ian stepped in. The restrictions on both his Summon and Return had been lifted, but it was no longer meaningful for him. By using the return scroll, he didn¡¯t want to give up on the quest at all, and he had no thoughts of summoning anyone else other than Chirpy and Agbi. If someone else would have heard the intentions of Ian, they might think that Ian was being foolish. As he had just passed the first gate, barely, he might have wanted to be stubborn by sticking up with them. However, Ian wasn¡¯t the kind of person. Ian was anticipating that the gate that would appear in the future was going to be much easier than the ¡®Room of Rock¡¯ that he had just passed. ¡®Unless another room with the rock attributes comes up again.¡¯ The main spirit of Ian, Agbi, was a fire attribute. And there were just two attributes in the Kailan that went poorly with the fire attribute. And they were the rock attributes and the water attributes. However, since he had just passed the rock attribute, it was more likely that it would appear again, and the only remaining paranormality was the water attribute. If so, would Ian go ahead with a mindset of ¡®I don¡¯t think that there would that many water attributes out there, right?¡¯ That wasn¡¯t it either. Even if the phase of water attribute did come out, Ian was confident about clearing it. It was because he had a spirit with the ¡®lightning¡¯ attribute, the most powerful which went against the water. Ian had ¡®Chirpy¡¯. ¡®Besides, I have the unique ability of Judgment of the Spirit King with a little lightning attribute.¡¯ And with that kind of thought, Ian entered the dungeon without any hesitation. In the process, the machine monsters from the beginning had appeared, however dealing with them wasn¡¯t so hard. Unlike the guys in the attribute room, the guys in the passage of the mine weren¡¯t much different from the machine monkey¡¯s in terms of power. Maybe 12 minutes of a walk? The system messages had come up for Ian, about the second phase. Tring-! [The machines installed in the mine are moving.] [The second phase has been triggered.] [¡®Grass Room¡¯ has been opened.] ¡®Bingo!¡¯ Ian who had checked the system messages couldn¡¯t help but smile. This was because the second phase has begun with the ¡®grass¡¯ attribute, which was vulnerable for Ian¡¯s fire attribute but strong for the lightning attribute. Kkung-! The mine started to work again, and the chamber which was similar to that of the first phase had been created. And subsequently, huge monsters of tree sizes had been summoned throughout the space. ¡°Ohohoh.¡± Ian immediately summoned his longbow with a wicked smile. This was the time to release the stress that he had piled up from the rock monsters. * * * Kiik-! The door opened with audible friction. Harin¡¯s head turned in the direction of the sound. In the place where the door had opened, no one could be seen. Whenever a door opened, someone had to come in, but the door had opened as if a ghost had entered. That was creepy enough, but Harin smiled. ¡°Hut.¡± It was because even without seeing who had come in, she knew just who was there. Looking back into the kitchen, Harin continued to do what she was doing. Bubble bubble. Swirl swirl. The kitchen was filled with delicious smells that would make anyone drool. And between that noise, came another weird sound. BbubBbook-! And Harin opened her mouth with a smile. ¡°You come here often, Bbookbbook-ah?¡± The ghost which had come into the room was Bbookbbook. The door opened and no one could be seen because Bbookbbook was short. And as the kitchen table was covered with the utensils, the end of the door wasn¡¯t visible. As he walked up to Harin¡¯s side, Bbookbbook opened his mouth and said, ¡°I¡¯m hungry Bbook. I want to eat the creamy meatballs like the ones in the last time, Bbook.¡± Like a five-year-old kid asking his mom for food, Harin, and her kid. Harin stroked the head of Bbookbbook with a gentle voice and spoke, ¡°Hold on a second. I will make them soon.¡± ¡°Bbook! Harin is the best!¡± With a satisfactory smile, he leaned next to Harin and began to wait for the food that she would make. And Harin was making the ¡®cream meatballs¡¯ he asked. ¡°But Bbookbbook-ah.¡± ¡°BBook?¡± ¡°Why are the vacation so long these days?¡± ¡°Master is raising the spirit friends these days, so busy.¡± ¡°Ahha.¡± ¡°You have been very busy for a while. So it is good to have a long vacation.¡± Harin and BBookbbook were having a daily talk. At first glance, the conversation would seem very absurd for anyone else. However, if one looked at it a little more, it could be seen that BBookbbook was in a very different situation right now. Bbookbbook wasn¡¯t summoned by Ian, however, he seemed to be stalking the human world. Ian, of course, had a special skill that came from raising the Taming Master to the Top tier. A sympathetic skill. Even if the summoner wasn¡¯t present, the summons could still be present without being called by the summoner, and can even keep them while staying logged-out. And now, Bbookbbook was moving around with no skill in place. If Bbookbbook had been summoned under the sympathetic skills, he would have been in the kitchen of Harin. If Ian had connected with the skill, he could see everything that Bbookbbook would be doing. And Ian had no idea where Bbookbbook was. ¡°Bbook- Bbook-!¡± Bbookbbook was scratching the neck of his with his short legs. He was walking around the human world like an anime character searching for his past self. Bbookbbook was currently stalking the human world as if he was searching for a Hero, and sweet Harin kept BBookbbook happy as he was deviant from Ian. ¡°Hungry Bbook! It is like my stomach is attached to my shell bbook!¡± ¡°Wait up boy. I¡¯m almost done.¡± ¡°Boy huh¡­ I¡¯m hurt Bbook. Don¡¯t speak like master BBook.¡± ¡°Noisy.¡± ¡°Bbok- Bbook-¡± The two were soon done and sat down at the table to start eating. The creamy meatballs were the favorite of BBookbbook, and the favorite snack of Harin too. Harin who saw BBookbbook take in the meatballs, asked with a concerned voice, ¡°BBookbbook-ah.¡± ¡°What is it Bbook?¡± ¡°Maybe, are you worried about something these days?¡± ¡°BBook?¡± ¡°Like feeling a bit depressed. Just the words¡­ don¡¯t you miss hunting?¡± At the question from Harin, Bbookbbook shook his head. ¡°BBook! Now way BBook!¡± ¡°Well, then why is your expression so dark¡­? If there is something that is worrying you, talk to me. Who knows? Maybe I can help?¡± ¡°Bbook?¡± Harin¡¯s subtle words made the eyes of Bbookbbook shake. And Harin noticed that. ¡°Come on, say it. What is the problem? Are you getting fat so your shell is getting tighter?¡± Bbookbbook shook his head. And looked at Harin¡¯s face. ¡°I¡¯m just talking with Harin right, bbook.¡± Harin heard BBookbbook¡¯s words and started to get excited. Seeing the expression of Bbookbbook, Harin thought that something very interesting would come out. ¡°Okay. I won¡¯t let anyone else know about it, tell me.¡± ¡°Bbook¡­¡± As if thinking about how it was supposed to be put, BBookbbook closed his eyes. And after a while, Bbookbbook opened his mouth and the excitement started to flow for Harin. CH 549 ¡°Hmp! So the thing¡­ is that?¡± A sigh left the lips of Harin as he heard BBookbbook¡¯s story. Bbookbbook, who noticed the reaction of Harin, pouted his lips and looked at her seriously. ¡°Actually bbook, I¡¯m very serious right now bbook. Don¡¯t laugh!¡± The expression BBookbbook had was similar to the time when someone tried to snatch away his meatballs. However, in the eyes of Harin, everything he did was plain cute. ¡°Okay, I get it, Bbookbbook-ah. Noona is sorry.¡± ¡°Bbuk- Bbook-!¡± ¡°So, you were saying?¡± Harin, who was very interested, asked for the continuation of the story that BBookbbook was saying. ¡°I saw the most beautiful tortoise in the world in the Frost Cave of the spirit dimension, and I got sick.¡± ¡°Ah, that so¡­¡± Seeing BBookbbook with such a lost and cute expression, Harin looked like she was going to burst out with laughter any moment. However, if she laughed out loud, she knew that BBookbbook would be scarred as he was a sensitive kid. After a while, she opened her lips with a calmed expression. ¡°BBookbbook-ah?¡± ¡°Bbook?¡± ¡°Maybe that Prettybbook came into your eyes every time you close your eyes?¡± ¡°Bbookbook?!¡± ¡°Even in dreams, she keeps coming up.¡± ¡°BBook-!¡± ¡°Your heart starts to beat very hard at the thought of Prettybbook?¡± ¡°Bbubbook! How do you know bbook?¡± Surprised by Harin¡¯s perfect assessment, Bbookbbook looked at her with his round eyes. There was no way he wouldn¡¯t be surprised, as Harin had experienced love at first sight which was similar to that of BBookbbook. In the eyes of BBookbbook, Harin was someone who knew his pain. Excited with the reaction of BBookbbook, Harin continued to do her diagnosis. ¡°What do you mean by how did I know?¡± ¡°Bbook?¡± ¡°I can tell all that by just looking at your expression.¡± ¡°You are amazing Bbook!¡± Nothing but respect was registered in the eyes of Bbookbbook toward Harin. He was so involved with Harin that he forgot about the meatballs that were still lying on the plate. Harin then said, ¡°This disease¡­¡± The moment Harin said that, Bbook gulped nervously at what he heard. ¡°Gulp.¡± And Harin, with her eyes fixed on BBookbbook, opened her mouth. ¡°There are just two ways to treat this thing. And the treatment is very difficult.¡± ¡°BBook! What is that!? Tell be Bbook!¡± From her mouth came out words which seemed as calm as the sky above. ¡°Either you make Prettybbook like you, or maybe find someone much better than Prettybbook to like you.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll have to do either one of those things.¡± As if an earthquake came, the pupils of Bbookbbook were moving rapidly. Just as she said, the treatment indeed was very difficult. BBookbbook who went back a little bit inside his shell opened his mouth without energy. ¡°This disease¡­ is it incurable?¡± Bbookbbook who seemed very withdrawn looked over at the blank space in the room. With that response, Harin was rather flustered. If he was talking like this, she knew that Bbookbbook wanted to earn the trust of Prettybbook. Harin opened her lips once again. ¡°BBookbbook-ah, there are two treatments. Why would this be incurable?¡± A sigh left the mouth of BBookbbook. ¡°Bbook¡­ firstly, there is no way I would ever find anyone who is much prettier that Prettybbook.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°She is just perfect bbook.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Harin with a foolish expression looked at BBookbbook and shook her head. ¡®Hu, he is about to cry anytime soon.¡¯ Seeing that BBookbbook had tears in his eyes, she looked at Bbookbbook with a very pleasant smile. She then said, ¡°Okay. Let¡¯s say that¡¯s the case¡­ then why is it impossible to get the heart of Prettybbook?¡± As Harin¡¯s words ended, she was shocked once again. It was because of the expression that BBookbbook had. It was like he was going to cry anytime soon. ¡®What? Did I say something bad?¡¯ With a sulky look, BBookbbook looked at Harin. And with a low voice, Bbookbbook answered, ¡°That too is impossible bbook¡­¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± ¡°Prettybbook¡­¡± ¡°¡­?¡± With his eyes that were looking at the floor, BBookbbook tried to bring out some energy to speak out. ¡°She has another tortoise, bbook.¡± The words that came out of Bbookbbook¡¯s mouth was something Harin hadn¡¯t thought of. * * * After the rock attribute, the grass and ice attributes were the next ones. Ian had already passed through the third phase of the ¡®Room of Attribute¡¯ and was feeling good. ¡°Keu, this is what honey is!¡± During the phase, he gained tremendous experience. It was almost like he gained three to four days of experience in just half a day. Thanks to the transcendence experience, level 7 was almost within arm¡¯s reach. The reason this was possible was because of the ¡®attribute¡¯. The second and the third phase attributes were the best for the fire attribute spirit Agbi. The grass and the ice attributes were the most vulnerable against fire, and that allowed both Ian and Agbi to soar higher. ¡°Good work, Agbi.¡± At the praise from Ian, Agbi looked very emotional. -Not at all, master. Amazing. The lesser spirit Agbi still wasn¡¯t that good at speaking. However, it was at a level where the intention of the words could be identified. The expression of Agbi was very respectful and admiring. ¡®Hoho, this kid, he loves my combat skill.¡¯ Ian smiled at him, feeling satisfied. At first glance, it might seem like Ian¡¯s thoughts were wrong, but Ian was correct. As a proof, Agbi¡¯s loyalty¡ªwhich was 60¡ªbecame 100. ¡°Kay, should we slowly move into the next one?¡± -Nice, Master. Agbi was a fire spirit, but not a normal spirit. As Syarlon said, he was the fire king¡¯s seed. He thought Ian didn¡¯t know about it. In the legends of the spirit dimension, the spirit kings were known to be very aggressive monarchs. Ian couldn¡¯t help but feel glad when such a spirit was working alongside him. Ian stepped into the next phase, mumbling to himself as he looked around. ¡®Hmmmm, this won¡¯t be the end here¡­ maybe there are other attribute rooms?¡¯ The difficulty of the second and the third phases wasn¡¯t so easy to clear, and they were the quests with the difficulty of A++. There was no way the quest would just end this way. ¡®I think there will be a boss phase¡­¡¯ Ian checked the dungeon information, which was on the corner of his line of sight. [Current Progress: 92%] His speculations were right. The dungeon¡¯s progress was very ambiguous. There was too much progress for the boss to appear, but the dungeon couldn¡¯t just end there. Right then, Ian¡¯s ears took in the sound of someone¡¯s sharp voice. It was like a mechanical sound, and it sounded like an old one. -How dare you enter my lab! I will never forgive you for this! Ian¡¯s eyes naturally turned in the direction of the sound. Thud- thud- With heavy footsteps, three unknown shadows started to appear out of the darkness. Seeing their appearance, Ian couldn¡¯t help but feel shocked. To be precise, the guy in the middle was the most surprising. ¡°¡­!¡± His appearance was similar to the Guardian Machine that Ian dealt with. The only difference was that these ones were much smaller than the one in the Abyss Valley, and their skin was dark red. ¡®What? Guardian Machine¡­?¡¯ Kkikg-! With audible machine sounds, the guys were getting closer. Subsequently, the system messages emerged before the eyes of Ian. Tring-! [The mechanical engineer ¡®Charlies¡¯ has appeared.] [A new quest has been created.] ¡®Uh¡­?¡¯ The moment Ian confirmed the message, the quest window appeared. -Charlies Laboratory (Sudden) (Hidden) As you were exploring the contaminated mine, you found the mechanical engineer Charlies, who was hidden deep inside the mine. The laboratory of Charlies has a huge machine. Perhaps the machines that Charlies has created are the ones responsible for the production of the machine monsters. Defeat the mechanical engineer Charlies and enter his lab to shut down the machines. Once the machinery stopped working, the contaminated mine will be cleared up. Quest Difficulty: A++ Quest Condition: In possession of the quest ¡®Contaminated Mine in the Spirit Mountain (Epic) (Hidden)¡¯ Time Limit: None Reward: Unknowm. * * * Harin fell in love with the story of Bbookbbook. BBookbbook¡¯s story was just like watching a typical good romance movie. The story began like this. -Prettybbook come with me. There isn¡¯t anything delicious in here, and it is cold and lonely. After Ian entered the contaminated mine. BBookbbook went to the Frost Cave secretly without informing Ian. It was because he wasn¡¯t able to forget the beautiful face of Prettybbook. He didn¡¯t want such a beautiful woman to be all alone in a cold and lonely place. He tried to persuade Prettybbook. It was a bit embarrassing, but he really wanted to be with her. However, she flat out rejected BBookbbook. -I¡¯m sorry, Bbookbbook. I can¡¯t leave this place. -If¡­ if you come with me, I can give you delicious meatballs bbook! -Even then, I can¡¯t bbook. -What am I supposed to do bbook¡­!? BBookbbook, who didn¡¯t know what giving up was, decided that he could persuade her somehow. Even if it took him a lot of time, he believed that if he could get her to believe him, then Bbookbbook could somehow be with her. But that thought didn¡¯t last so long. From the mouth of Prettybbook came words that shocked him to the core. -There is a tortoise I¡¯m waiting for, bbook. -¡­! -And once he comes back, I need to be here. -BBook? -For hundreds of years¡­ even if it takes a thousand years, I¡¯ll stay here and wait for him, bbook. Bbookbbook felt a shock that couldn¡¯t even be compared to the time when his meatballs were snatched away from him. CH 550 [You have been disconnected from all the external dimensions.] [Moving forward, all of the ¡®Summon¡¯ skills have been sealed.] [Moving forward, all of the ¡®Return¡¯ skills have been sealed.] Three monsters appeared as the Boss phase started. The system messages came up and disappeared. A very concise information came up on top of their heads. [Caliclops: Lv 15 (transcendence)] [Macan Hound: Lv 14 (transcendence)] [Earth Gigant: Lv 14 (transcendence)] All three had different appearances. The left one, the Macan Hound, was a monster with two lion heads. In the middle was the one called, Caliclops, and as mentioned before, he looked very similar to the Guardian Machine that Ian killed in the beginning. Ian looked at him and began to be much more cautious. ¡®Let¡¯s check out their attribute first?¡¯ The most distinctive feature of the machine monsters in the contaminated mine was their ¡®attributes¡¯. Even with a small number of attributes, they were great enough to be compared with the spirits. The machines, as of the moment, seemed like they had attributes. Therefore, it was important to figure out what kind of attributes they possessed before entering the battle. ¡®The lion on the left seems to be a fire attribute, and the Gigant was golem is of land. The guy in the middle is¡­¡¯ The attributes of the lion and golem were not so difficult to grasp. The lion was throwing fire, and golems had always been made of land. In addition to confirming the information of the monster, it was possible to even check their attribute information. However, the problem was the guy in the middle. The attribute window of the guy in the middle had ¡®???¡¯ floating on top of its head. ¡®What? Could this really be happening now?¡¯ Ian was facing the guy who looked similar to the Guardian Machine like guy. However, the texture he had and the aura he gave out was entirely different from that Zion attribute monster. It felt to them as if some other soul had been merged into the body of the Guardian Machine. The dark stains and burnt marks of the monster before them looked as if lava had been poured onto it. ¡®If it looks like that, then it can¡¯t be a fire attribute¡­.¡¯ When Ian looked at the one in the middle, he was sure that he was going to be a fire attribute monster. He gave out the feeling of a lava¡¯s raging heat. However, if it was indeed a fire attribute, there was no reason to block that information. Ian could feel that it was getting much more interesting. ¡°So this is your lab, huh?¡± -Yes, human. Did you come in here without knowing?? ¡°Stupid, how am I supposed to know if this is the first time.¡± -Eiik! Disgusting human, die! Ian was trying to rile him up, and the machine monsters rushed in his direction. As that was happening, a hardcore battle began which was as tough as the first phase. * * * ¡°So, where did that tortoise that Prettybbook is waiting for go to?¡± ¡°Is that important now, Bbook? There is already another one in her heart bbook¡­¡± Tears of sadness were about to come out of BBookbbook. The eyes of Bbookbbook were losing focus. Staring at Bbookbbook¡¯s pitiful face, Harin spoke about it again. ¡°So you¡¯re going to give up so easily?¡± ¡°BBook?¡± ¡°Are both the meatball and Prettybbook important?¡± ¡°Of course¡­¡± Bbookbbook gulped down and opened his mouth. ¡°Obviously, Prettybbook is important!¡± ¡°You seemed like you weren¡¯t so sure a while ago¡­¡± ¡°No! There was nothing I wasn¡¯t sure about bbook!¡± Bbookbbook answered by shaking his head. Harin smiled. ¡°Can you live without the meatballs?¡± Bbookbbook always answered that question within the duration of 0.1 seconds. ¡°No bbook.¡± ¡°Then you can¡¯t live without Prettybbook?¡± ¡°Is it alright to say that bbook?¡± ¡°Surely! Prettybbook is much more important than meatballs!¡± Harin said quickly to Bbookbbook who was concerned and confused. ¡°If there is no one more beautiful than Prettybbook, then there is no other option for you.¡± ¡°BBook?¡± ¡°Love is war.¡± Harin clenched her fist and directed it at Bbookbbook. ¡°So what I mean to say Bbookbbook-ah, you need to know about the tortoise that Prettybbook is waiting for.¡± ¡°Is that so important Bbook?¡± ¡°Obviously! Or you¡¯ll be ruined! If you know your opponent, then fighting a hundred years is not so dangerous.¡± As Harin was able to convince BBookbbook with a plausible explanation, he became lively. ¡°BBook!!!¡± ¡°So go and talk to her. Do you know his name?¡± Lost in his thoughts, BBookbbook closed his eyes to remember the name. After a while, he shook his head and responded, ¡°I don¡¯t know his name bbook. But I know why he can¡¯t come back bbook.¡± ¡°Oh ho?¡± Harin¡¯s eyes began to twinkle like a little kid¡¯s eyes because of that. Bbookbbook met her eyes when he was about to give the reason. ¡°That tortoise was said to be taken away by a bad human called ¡®Charlies¡¯ bbook.¡± * * * In the window of the Kailan quest, the quest difficulty of the quest wasn¡¯t always on point. Of course, the quest difficulty fluctuated depending on various factors. Those factors were the party power at the time of the quest and the combat abilities of the users. Due to various unpredictable factors, the difficulty presented in the quest might vary. The quest difficulty of Ian¡¯s ongoing quest¡ª¡¯Charlies laboratory¡¯¡ªwas A++. The quest Ian cleared in the past¡ª¡¯Killing the Guardian Machine¡¯¡ªhad a difficulty of A+. It was obvious that the difficulty of the Charlies lab was higher. However, there were some other factors involved. First, Ian had three party members when he was doing the Guardian Machine quest. Second, the transcendence level of Ian was much higher now than the time when he was doing the guardian machine quest. Given those factors, the real difficulty of the Charlies lab quest was going to be a bit lower. Ian¡¯s transcendence level was higher now. However, it wasn¡¯t high enough to fill the gap of the party members he had before. Which was why Ian guessed that this current quest would be of the same level of difficulty as the guardian machine quest. He was under the impression that the three monsters in the boss phase weren¡¯t going to be as strong as the guardian. Unlike the guardian machine which had a tricky Zion attribute, the bosses now had no Zion attribute. But Ian¡¯s predictions missed completely. ¡®Huuh¡­ who has such kind of damage?¡¯ Ian¡¯s gaze was fixed on the red gorilla after he wiped off the sweat on his cheeks. Among the three of them, the combat power of the current one was well above the expectations of Ian. Surely, he didn¡¯t have the hard recovery that ¡®Zion¡¯ had nor the resilience of the guardian. However, his combat power, especially his magic attack power, was much stronger than that of the guardian watchmen. Kwakwang-! The annoying sound of constant explosions could be heard all around Ian. Ian quickly fled and avoided the projectiles that were coming his way. ¡®Shit.¡¯ Ian was able to avoid the explosions, but he still suffered some damage from its impact. [Damage incurred from the boss monster ¡®Caliclops¡¯.] [Vitality of 2,908 has been reduced.] [Vitality of 3,102 has been reduced.] Ian quickly checked his remaining vitality. Despite the multiple heals he had due to the special ability of the Judgment of the Spirit king, less than half of his vitality was remaining. On the other hand, the vitality of the Caliclops was more than 70 percent. ¡®It surely was right to focus on one guy first.¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes moved to the side, heading towards the Macan Hound and the Earth Giant. The vitality of the Macan Hound was almost exhausted, and the vitality of the Earth Giant was only around 30 percent. ¡°Agbi, let¡¯s get this guy first!¡± -Understood, master. Ian jumped into the air and pulled the strings of his bow in succession. The arrows of flames began to produce a line of fire when they left Ian¡¯s bow. Due to the fast shooting of the arrows, it was as if an illusion was being made. Papapak-! Suddenly, Ian changed his target and surprised the Hound, which made it jump to the left. However, it wasn¡¯t so easy to avoid the arrows of Ian. [Deadly fire damage has been done to the ¡®Macan Hound¡¯!] [The ¡®Macan Hound¡¯ suffered 209 damage!] [The ¡®Macan Hound¡¯ suffered 221 damage!] ¡­ syncopation¡­ [The ¡®Hellfire¡¯ mark has been overwritten to MAX.] [The mark will cause powerful explosion.] [The monster ¡®Macan Hound¡¯ was killed by the deadly fire damage!] [The ¡®Macan Hound¡¯ suffered 2,245 damage!] [The mark will cause powerful explosion.] [The ¡®Macan Hound¡¯ suffered 2,245 damage!] The Hellfire was showing nearly three times the destructive power than the time it was attacking the Reprobot, a rock-type tanking monster. Of course, there were two more guys that Ian had to deal with, but Ian was obsessed with the Macan Hound. Thud-! Ian was able to knock down one of the three. [The vitality of ¡®Macan Hound¡¯ has been exhausted.] [You have successfully defeated the Macan Hound!] However, Ian wasn¡¯t feeling that great. Even though he defeated that monster, the vitality of Ian was getting low. ¡®At this pace, it may not be possible to clear¡­¡¯ The Room of Rock surely was a difficult one, but at least there was a way for him to clear it. The robot in the room was very sluggish and hence the control could be limited. But the boss phase was a bit different. If the monsters kept on doing a wide-area magic in such a limited area, then even if it was the great Ian, avoiding the damage would be impossible. He was able to use his best play even with the lack of control in the Room of Rock, but in the current room, clearing it seemed like a long shot even with the best control. There was only one way for Ian to clear this boss phase. That being, the battle stats of Ian being high. Before all of his vitality got shaved down, the only way to get rid of the other ones was to perform much more offensive power. ¡®Huhu, it¡¯s a bit too early to give up¡­!¡¯ Gulping down, Ian held the fire longbow in his hand. No matter how difficult it was, giving up wasn¡¯t something that went well with Ian. Right then, with a loud rumbling sound, the Caliclops which was running in the direction of Ian, stopped. ¡°¡­?¡± Ian then heard a voice. -Just a simple human. But that simple one has come all the way here. In Ian¡¯s ears, a typical villain type speech resonated. And when the dialogue was done¡­ Wheeing-! With a loud machine-like sound, Caliclops jumped with his body. Kwaah-! Ian who wanted to place more deal continued to throw arrows in his direction, but they were of no use. They all got blocked by the black energy that started to spread around the guy, and all the arrows just vanished. ¡®Is the phase shifting?¡¯ Ian was staring at him with anxiety. If that one got any stronger, then the odds of winning would be zero for Ian. However, Ian¡¯s eyes, which were looking at it, went wide. The hound which had been dead on the ground and the body of the Gigant was glowing with a red aura and then broke into the air. ¡°¡­!¡± The body of the two monsters burst into a hundred small pieces in the air. All the particles started to fly toward the Caliclops. Ching- Ching-! Huge sounds rang all throughout the dungeon. Ian, who was staring at it intently, forgot that he was supposed to fight. ¡®This isn¡¯t some collective robot¡­¡¯ As the particles of the other robots were absorbed, the body of the Caliclops began to change. CH 551 Tring-! [The body of ¡®Caliclops¡¯ has been rebuild.] [The combat of ¡®Calicops¡¯ has been enhanced.] [The transcendence level of ¡®Caliclops¡¯ has been increased to 17.] Ian was just chewing on his lower lip. A bizarre-looking machine monster was right in front of his eyes. The size of the guy was bigger than that of the Guardian machine, and the appearance was much worse and frightening. And just by looking at it was enough to realize that the guy had a tremendous fighting ability, and there was no need of the system message to even inform Ian. ¡®This¡­ I can¡¯t solve.¡¯ Just a minute back, the situation was dark, but now, it was a literal game-out feeling. Ian started to get blank. ¡°Kulkulkul! What will happen to you now, human?!¡± The scorched voice came out of Caliclops¡¯ mouth. And it was the voice of the guy called Charlies, the mechanical engineer. ¡®Is he, maybe inside that one?¡¯ Ian bite his lip and looked at the new Caliclops. And with the fire arrow on his Infernal Fire bow, he pulled on the string. ¡°What do you think.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°It has been long since the game was this good, kay then.¡± ¡°What¡­?¡± Thud-! Arrows of fire got shot from Ian¡¯s bow, one after the other. The fact that it was impossible to clear it, even Ian accepted it right away. Nevertheless, he decided to not be an idiot and do his best until the end. ¡®Even if I die, I should be able to at least get that boss pattern into my head. ¡® And since he wasn¡¯t going to be able to catch him right away, he was thinking of taking as much data as he could. The only part he didn¡¯t understand about the quest, was the difficult part. If it was a dungeon where such a weird boss monster would appear, then Ian was under the impression that it should be rated above S+. ¡®No matter how many times I try¡­ I will get this guy.¡¯ Thinking about that, Ian smiled in a wicked way. * * * The story that Bbookbbook had said was very long. But nevertheless, Harin hadn¡¯t found it boring, not in the least. The love story of Prettybook and the tortoise, if changed with the characters of the human, could be made into a great movie. ¡®This is like¡­ some kind of a melodramatic movie with a tortoise as the main lead.¡¯ She sure was feeling sorry for Bbookbbook, but she wanted to support the love of those two tortoises. Harin, who had listened to the whole thing, suddenly asked, ¡°But, BBookbbook-ah.¡± ¡°Bbook?¡± ¡°According to what Prettybbook has said, the tortoise that she is waiting for is probably dead¡­ right?¡± At the words from Harin, BBookbbook nodded his head slowly. ¡°Maybe he is bbook. It looks like even Prettybbook thinks that way bbook.¡± ¡°Huh¡­ really? Then why is she still waiting for him?¡± ¡°Even I¡¯m not so sure¡­ maybe she is trying to not have any regrets bbook.¡± ¡°Regret?¡± ¡°Yeah bbook. Prettybbook has put it like this bbook.¡± ¡°He told me that he would come back here, which is why I will stay here and wait bbook. He might not even come back here, but until he returns here¡­ I will wait for him bbook.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± Tears formed in the eyes of Harin. The words of prettybbook had touched her heart. However, Harin wasn¡¯t going to get involved in the love story of the other two. She was planning on saving the poor soul of Bbookbbook. ¡®Yeah well, that male tortoise surely is a pitiful character, but my Bbookbbook is also feeling the same¡­¡¯ Harin wiped of the tears from her eyes and opened her lips. ¡°Bbookbbook-ah.¡± ¡°Bbuk?¡± ¡°According to what I think, it seems like there is a way for you to get hold of the heart of Prettybbook.¡± ¡°Huh, what is that Bbook?¡± There was a small ray of light in the face of Bbookbbook who had been engulfed in depression. With its eyes wide open, he was looking at Harin with a lot of inquiry. Taking a moment, Harin responded, ¡°BBookbbook, you¡­¡± ¡°BBook?¡± ¡°Should find that tortoise that is missing.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± At the unthinkable words of Harin, Bbookbbook went stiff. And her words continued, ¡°There is a need to know where that tortoise is. And then in the heart of Prettybbook feelings of some kind will start for you. If the tortoise was indeed mistreated by that Charlies, then you will avenge him¡­¡± ¡°Bbook¡­!¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t Prettybbook open up her heart for you?¡± Bbookbbook¡¯s eyes began to move around at the words of Harin. * * * ¡®Ah¡­!¡¯ As the mouth of Caliclops opened, a huge fire appeared in the air. Nothing but a sigh came out of Ian¡¯s mouth. ¡°Phew.¡± Ian¡¯s vitality had now been constantly flickering. With just 5 percent of his vitality left, Ian would die the moment that wide area fire magic touches him. There surely was a lot of time for him deal with the magic attack due to the casting time, however, if the problem was that then he had no other way. ¡®If the dungeon was just a little wider¡­¡¯ With that magic being a wide area one, there was no room in the area he was to even escape to. He did try using the Dragon Shield, however, that didn¡¯t seem to work. Not only couldn¡¯t it be blocked entirely, the attribute of ¡®abyss¡¯ just wasn¡¯t the right one for the situation. The attribute of Caliclops was still unknown, but it was the first natural attribute for the Abyss. In the end, he was going to get defeated. He did his beast till the very end, but what can¡¯t be done, can¡¯t be done. ¡®A 17 transcendence level beats a 7th level.¡¯ Ian was grunting to himself and stroked the head of Agbi which was floating right next to him. ¡°You did very well, Agbi. Take a day rest.¡± Ian was thinking about summoning back Agbi. Surely the spirit death penalty will be over by the time Ian reconnects to the game, but he just didn¡¯t feel like letting him die. However, after a while, Ian couldn¡¯t help but panic. ¡°Huh?¡± Despite the summon dismissal spell, the body of Agbi didn¡¯t move from its place. Of course, there was not to mention the words of Ian. ¡°Yah, go back, fast!¡± In panic, Ian kept asking him to go back. The hot fire that was forming on the other side was going to explode anytime soon, and the moment it was released, both Agbi and Ian would turn into ashes. But nevertheless, he was still there. ¡®What? Don¡¯t tell me, they even blocked dismissal of the summon?¡¯ That was quite plausible. However, it hadn¡¯t taken long for him to realize what was wrong. Already, just a 5 minutes back, he had dismissed Chirpy. ¡®Then what?¡¯ Flustered, Ian kept his gazes on the back of Agbi. The next moment, the huge red fire that was burning near the mouth of Caliclops began to burst. Kwaaah-! Like the flames of hell, the fire came close for engulfing Ian and Agbi. Ian who realized what was going to happen, closed his eyes. Even if he didn¡¯t see, eventually he was going to see the black screen. ¡®Ha¡­ next try, I need to drag my summons to clear the quest.¡¯ If there was just Nick or Elcarix, the number for him to win would have gotten much higher. Ian returned to reality and shook his head. ¡®Uh?¡¯ The very moment, he could feel that something was off. By then, his body shouldn¡¯t be moving as he was supposed to be dead, but he was able to shake his head. ¡®Why didn¡¯t I log out, yet?¡¯ Obviously, despite the fact that he was still standing in the middle of the area where the magic attack had come, he didn¡¯t get the message saying that the game was done. And not being able to know, Ian decided to open his eyes, and he could see that a few messages had indeed appeared. However, among those lists of messages, he couldn¡¯t see the one which said that he was out of the game. [The ¡®Fire Spirit¡¯, ¡®Agbi¡¯ spirit power has reached maximum.] [Intense firepower has been born.] [The conditions have been met.] [The Fire spirit ¡®Agbi¡¯ has evolved.] Kwaa-! Ian opened his eyes and could see that the fire was just passing by him. The next moment, he found a shadow that was blocking the attack from reaching him. ¡°¡­!¡± A human, maybe around the age of eight years? A red shadow of a little boy was blocking the attack with just his hands. Ian looked at it feeling dazed. [The lesser fire spirit ¡®Agbi¡¯ has evolved into the fire spirit ¡®Magbi¡¯.] [Fire spirit ¡®Magbi¡¯ has cast the unique ability ¡®Shield of Red Flame¡¯.] [The fire spirit ¡®Magbi¡¯ has blocked the ¡®Hell flame¡¯.] [Absorbed 97.55 percent of the damage.] [Restored 37.42 percent of damage.] [The vitality of Magbi has been reduced by 805.] [The vitality of ¡®Caliclops¡¯ has been reduced by 9,823.] Srrk-! The storm of fire, which had been filling the sight of Ian began to fade away. And in the ear of Ian, the flustered voice of Charlies could be heard. -What, what the hell did you do? The voice of Charlies brought Ian back to reality, and Ian tried to grasp the situation. There wasn¡¯t just one or two things that didn¡¯t make any sense, however, one thing was certain. ¡®The battle isn¡¯t over yet.¡¯ Suddenly, Agbi. No, Magbi. Ian opened the information window of his and smiled. Magbi was now a medium spirit and had the greatest combat ability. -Agbi (Fire spirit) Spirit: 0/100,000 Attribute: Fire Class: Medium spirit Summon Duration: 450 minutes (recall summon time: 600 minutes) Attack: 2,325 Defense: 1,317 Agility: 1,795 Vitality: 28, 750 ¡­ syncopation¡­ And the best of all, the new unique abilities. *Shield of Red Flame Magbi crosses both his hands for a duration of period and temporarily absorbs all the damage in the range (absorption rate: 90-99 percent). *Converts 30-40% of the damage into fire attribute damage and returns it to the enemy. *The unique abilities can be cast when the red fire bead is full of fire (Charge Fire energy: 0.25/100). *Each time Magbi dealt critical damage to the enemy, the energy of fire in the bead is charged slightly. With the Shield of Red flame, it was possible to turn over the plates in the game once again. CH 552 The unexpected evolution of Agbi, the lesser spirit. Of course, Agbi was filled with more than half of the spirit power from the very beginning because of the user of the nature marble, but the timing of evolution was just plain fast. And thanks to him, Ian was going to be able to escape the crisis. ¡®I don¡¯t know the reason as to why, but that is something to think at a later time¡­¡¯ As Agbi evolved into a medium spirit Magbi, Ian¡¯s power became even more powerful. Magbi¡¯s combat power had been doubled almost twice, and at the same time, the fire spirit magic ¡®Infernal Fire¡¯ has been doubled. But even so, it was unreasonable to consider that the new spirit would be able to beat the nasty robot. If the situation was the same, then it was impossible at the beginning, then was now a situation that needed a worthwhile try? It still was a daunting opponent, and just one thing could be said. ¡®Magbi¡¯s fire charge needs to be focused as much as possible.¡¯ In the current situation, the best chance for Ian was to use the unique ability of Magbi, ¡®Shield of Red Flame¡¯ that could go against that powerful wide-area magic of the Caliclops. Ian thought that he was going to need to change the strategy a bit for that to happen. ¡®I should pay a bit more attention to the control of Agbi.¡¯ Till now, the role of Magbi had been to assist Ian from the rear. Whenever the arrows of the Infernal Fire was shot or at a critical strike, Magbi used its inherent ¡®Devil¡¯s Fire¡¯ ability. However, the current situation had to change a little. Not just relying on the unique ability of the Devil Fire, which reproduced the spirit magic, it was now necessary to depend on Magbi as much as possible. And in that way, it would speed up the charging time of the unique ability ¡®Shield of Red Flame¡¯. ¡°Magbi, move a little forward.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s do it your way, master.¡± And with the increase of age, the vocabulary too had increased. Magbi¡¯s fireball was much shorter than the range of his fire. Because of that, he might be having to fight a bit closer to the enemy. ¡°Can you put as much damage as possible on my arrows?¡± When Ian put the arrow on the weak spot of Caliclops, he used the ¡®Weakness Capture¡¯ skill. Therefore, if Magbi hits the right point, almost all of the attacks will be critically hit. Magbi nodded and replied in a confident tone, ¡°Of course, master. I¡¯m excellent.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Seeing the behavior of Magbi, Ian couldn¡¯t help but shake his head. And the battle was about to start from that point. -I don¡¯t know what you did but¡­ Caliclops, who raised his body with a wild look, roared loudly. ¡°The result won¡¯t change!¡± And the shadow of Caliclops moved towards Ian and Magbi. * * * The special feature of the spirit magic feature of ¡®Infernal Fire¡¯ which Na Ji-chan had been talking about earlier. What was that? ¡°Keu, the timing was just perfect, exactly perfect.¡± Na Ji-chan who was seated comfortably on the couch of the monitoring room was laughing and watching the screen. The screen was displaying the battle scene of Ian. ¡°Even if he was Ian God, I wanted to see him fail at least once¡­ you¡¯re so lucky. No, he is just full of luck, right?¡± Na Ji-chan mumbled to himself while snacking on the chips. And the female office staff that was in there with him, asked him, ¡°Team leader, you can¡¯t say that he is full of luck? No matter how I look, it doesn¡¯t look like luck to me!¡± Na Ji-chan shook his head and replied, ¡°Miss Kim, think about it a little more. I sure am a fan of Ian God, but not the kind of person who would distort the truth for feeling good about him.¡± ¡°Hm¡­ no matter what I think, this feels like a distorted fan feeling¡­¡± ¡°Phew¡­¡± Na Ji-chan couldn¡¯t do anything but just sigh at her words, and asked Miss Kim, no Kim Ji yeon. ¡°You, when the planning of the ¡®Infernal Fire¡¯ was going on, you were under the team leader of Kim Yu hwan, right?¡± ¡°I did.¡± ¡°Then, the skill that Ian God is using, you need to know about it better than anyone.¡± And Kim Ji yeon nodded with a very proud expression. ¡°Absolutely. That was my first skill planning.¡± ¡°¡­¡± With a bit of mischief on his face, Na Ji-chan opened his mouth, ¡°Then, Miss Kim.¡± ¡°Yes, team leader.¡± ¡°What was the biggest advantage of that skill?¡± ¡°Obviously, the increase of the DPS based on the user¡¯s skill was enormous.¡± ¡°And?¡± ¡°Hmm, and? Hm¡­¡± Na Ji-chan was ready to answer after looking at the thoughtful expression of Kim Ji yeon. ¡°The biggest advantage of the skill was if the stacks could be placed correctly, then it could be continued again and again with the cooldown reset.¡± ¡°That was the advantage that I mentioned.¡± ¡°Noisy, listen first.¡± ¡°Tch.¡± Even as Kim Ji yeon was pouting, Na Ji-chan continued to speak without giving a second thought about her. ¡°Kay, Miss Kim. What is the most common way for one to build up the spirit power in the spirit?¡± ¡°That is by using the spirit power to perform the spirit magic.¡± ¡°Right? Then think about it when someone uses the spirit magic as crazy as Ian does.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°I think that he is using five times more spirit magic in the same time where others would use it a single time, then wasn¡¯t it natural for Agbi to have reached the spirit power limit?¡± ¡°That, that?¡± ¡°There is one more.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± ¡°If Miss Kim is able to think well about the matter¡­ the ¡®Infernal fire¡¯ has a special feature on the spirit magic.¡± Na Ji-chan threw a hint at Kim Ji yeon and smiled at her. ¡°Ah!¡± And within a while, as she had remembered something, she stood up and clapped her hands. ¡°Kim Yu hwan added one last private option for it!¡± ¡°Yes, that one right there. All thanks to that, the fire spirit is already a medium.¡± At the words of Na Ji-chan, Kim Ji yeon shook her head and mumbled under her breath, ¡°That is true. If such a perfect timing could be achieved, then it surely is probably because of tremendous luck then.¡± Kim Ji yeon, who was trying to accept the fact about the luck, looked over at the monitoring screen that was being played. She started to look at the video of Ian that was being played with admiration for him. Surely, considering the private option, it was a definite 100 percent luck for Ian to have escaped the crisis. At the very moment, the two people who were seeing the monitoring screen were thinking about the same thing. ¡®If Kim Yue Hwan knows about this, he¡¯ll probably die of feeling sick¡­¡¯ Kim Yue Hwan had been on the planning team of the Kailan, since the development stage of the Kailan. He hated Ian extremely due to the ¡®Overtime¡¯ he got because of him. To be precise, rather than the word ¡®attraction¡¯, the extreme level of hate was higher than anyone he had ever loved. And if Kim Yue Hwan, now found out that Ian was taking the fruits of his well-planned options and skills, or if he finds out that his most disliked person was probably going to give him many more night shifts¡­ ¡®Maybe his blood pressure will rise and fall over.¡¯ While Na Ji-chan and Kim Ji yeon were thinking this and that, the battle that was being displayed on the screen was coming to an end. The boss monster ¡®Caliclops¡¯ still had a bit of vitality left, but it was impossible for him to get killed. In the original scenario of the Spirit dimension, both Caliclops and Charlies weren¡¯t supposed to be killed over there. And seeing the battle come to an end, Na Ji-chan spoke with a low voice, ¡°Miss Kim¡­¡± ¡°Yes, Team leader.¡± ¡°Is there nothing coming to your mind while seeing that video?¡± With a sigh, Kim responded, ¡°Just one thing. I¡¯ll stop resting and get back to work.¡± ¡°Okay, Let¡¯s stop watching this heartbreaking video and go up with the proposal.¡± ¡°Kmh¡­¡± With a very sad conversation, the two of them stepped towards the door of the room. And in the monitoring room, where no one was left, the huge explosion of the ¡®hellfire¡¯ surging could be heard at a very high speed. Bang-! The sound of the ¡®hellfire¡¯ activation. The hidden option of the ¡®Infernal Fire¡¯ spirit magic, was no more hidden. Each time the mark of ¡®Hellfire¡¯ exploded, the spirit power of the spirit was increased by 1 point. * * * Kwakwang-! In succession, the mark of Hellfire kept on burning, as the explosive sounds caused by Magbi had intensified and filled the whole dungeon with the rumbling sound. Through the explosion, the giant arms of the Caliclops could be seen. Kwwrk-! The arms of the Caliclops stretched with the intent to hit Ian. However, Ian had slipped out of the range of the attack. ¡°Can¡¯t let you do that.¡± While Ian was pulling the aggro, Magbi hurriedly went to the back of the Caliclops and threw the flame balls in a row. Pop-! And as the flame balls burst on the enemy, system messages started to come up for Ian. Tring-! [Fire spirit ¡®Magbi¡¯ has done fatal damage to the monster Caliclops!] [Magbi¡¯s charge of the ¡®Flame Bead¡¯. (Current charge: 98.75/ 100)] [Fire spirit ¡®Magbi¡¯ has done fatal damage to the monster Caliclops!] [Magbi¡¯s charge of the ¡®Flame Bead¡¯. (Current charge: 99.95/ 100)] [The charge of the Flame Bead has been completed.] [The unique ability of the ¡®Shield of Red Flame¡¯ has been activated.] The battle pattern of Ian at the moment, the unique ability of the Shield of Red Flame, was like insurance. When the Shield of Red Flame got activated, it wouldn¡¯t be an exaggeration to say that a single life could be saved. Therefore, the message which stated that the charge of the Red Flame was done, made the play of Ian to a much more daring one. ¡®There is still about 2 minutes time until that guy summons that seal. I need to do everything that I can in this meantime.¡¯ After calculating it thoroughly, Ian jumped into the air. Till the moment, Ian had been attracting the aggro and Magbi had been the one to attack, but that plan wasn¡¯t necessary any longer. As long as the Shield of Red Flame was active, the most important thing was to raise the DPS. Swooah-! All of a sudden, with the summon of the Infernal Fire longbow into his hand, fire arrows started to burst. And Ian¡¯s eyes naturally went towards the corner of the Caliclops. To check the remaining vitality that was left. ¡®Uh, stubborn guy.¡¯ Shaking of the vitality which had seen of the Caliclops, Ian decided to get his head in the game. It had been two to three hours since the battle had begun, and only now, the vitality of his started to shine. No matter how strong of a guy he was, Ian began to think that he wasn¡¯t an A++ difficulty level boss. And if the target wasn¡¯t going to drop nice and good rewards, Ian would probably be bursting up in flames. ¡°Hmmph!¡± With a single huge breath, Ian shot another arrow. With the insurance of the ¡®Shield of Red Flame¡¯ in his hands, the most important thing for Ian to do was to get the vitality out the target. However, Ian who had been working so hard till then had no other option but to stop. ¡°¡­!¡± The same effect which had been witnessed from Caliclops an hour back was happening again. ¡®What, is he going to do that changing stuff once again?¡¯ The arrows shot by Ian suddenly got blocked once again by unknown energy. However, within a second, the ugly creepy voice of Charlies entered the ears of Ian. ¡°Cheeky human¡­ I am glad that I am not here.¡± At the unexpected dialogue for Charlies, Ian asked him, ¡°What is that supposed to mean?¡± And Charlies spoke once again, ¡°If he had just a little more spirit power, he could have killed you and your guy.¡± When Charlies was done talking, Ian was still trying to understand what he was trying to convey. ¡°Surely the lab has gone to waste, and I need to leave this place.¡± Charlies, no Caliclops who had been speaking the words of Charlies, made fists and threw them to the floor. Thud-! The very next moment, a complex magic circle began to form and Caliclops was stepping in. Woong-! And during that course of the scene, Ian wasn¡¯t able to do anything. It had been a long time since he was controlled by the AI, so Ian¡¯s body didn¡¯t move on his will. Kukung-! The dungeon kept resonating, and the magic circle began to shine with much more radiance. And after a moment. Swosh-! The brightness from the magic circle had swallowed the huge figure of the Caliclops. In front of Ian had come the system messages. Tring-! [¡®Magic Circle of Charlies¡¯ has been triggered.] [All the machines in the mechanical civilization have stopped working.] [You have met the clearing condition for the quest ¡®Contaminated mine in the Spirit Mountain (Epic) (Hidden)¡¯.] [You have successfully completed the quest ¡®Charlies Laboratory (Sudden) (Hidden)¡¯.] In the place where the huge light had disappeared, they were huge machines. CH 553 ¡®Wah, what is this?¡¯ There were numerous machines with a complex structure that could make any man turn dizzy. The machines that were in front of Ian looked like a car assembly process factory in the real world. ¡°Was this a factory that produces machine monsters?¡± Ian glanced inside the factory after entering it. Because there were complex structures, it felt like he would be able to at least gain something from them. ¡®Syarlon told me to destroy it all, but it¡¯s too bad if I just smash through them¡­¡¯ Due to the nature of Kailan¡¯s vast world, the ¡®Machine Civilization¡¯ must be an important role in its content. The probability was high that the content would not be a one-time content and would just end in the spirit dimension. ¡®Maybe, in here, I might be able to find some clue to unseal the machines.¡¯ The machine blueprints were still asleep in the corner of his inventory because Ian still didn¡¯t know where to use it yet. When he thought about being able to find their use, Ian¡¯s heart began to flutter. ¡°Huhu, this looks much more complicated when looked closely.¡± Approaching the front of the machine, Ian ripped the structure in detail with a frown on his face. Ian, who had no idea about mechanical engineering, couldn¡¯t figure things out by just looking at them. Eventually, Ian gave up the thought of finding something and started to wander around the entire factory setting. ¡®Hmm¡­ are there any catch items that I can just put in the inventory?¡¯ Was it around 10 to 20 minutes? Ian just shook his head. Despite the fact that the large factory was really eye-catching, there was nothing in there that Ian could figure out. His anticipation soon turned into shame. ¡®I had to do all this just to destroy it? This huge complex structure?¡¯ Ian narrowed his eyes and then summoned his longbow of flames. He was feeling down, but he had to destroy the place because of the quest. Kkik-! He pulled the bowstring with all his might. Ian was aiming for the center of the machine. To destroy the supporting shafts one after the other, Ian had to start with the large pillars that were in the center and the machinery would collapse. Ian was still feeling unsettled; he was hesitant to pull the bowstring. Right then, something entered the line of vision of Ian. ¡°¡­?¡± Ian began to shine. There was a small line that seemed like the outline of a ¡®door¡¯ at the center of the iron pillar that was supporting the entire machine. ¡®For a door, it sure is small¡­ but it sure is worth opening. ¡® Ian put his bow away and approached that place. The moment he reached the place, Ian¡¯s expression turned brighter. As he looked closely, there was a handle on it just like the one on any normal door. ¡®Nice!¡¯ Feeling good, Ian held the knob of the door and pushed it to the side. He was expecting a hidden place inside a hidden place. The next moment, Ian shook his head out of shock at the hidden one. ¡°What!¡± The door didn¡¯t open. However, some kind of powerful current had passed through Ian¡¯s palm. [You¡¯ve taken light attribute damage.] [Your vitality has been reduced by 192.] [You have been electrocuted.] [You have been paralyzed temporarily.] ¡°¡­¡± Ian was flustered by the unexpected trap he had encountered. Flustered for a while, Ian¡¯s eyes began to shine again. The fact that a device had been installed on the handle meant that there was a high probability of something inside it. Ian began to take a closer look at the area inside of the handle. He thought about breaking the outer wall to check what was inside, but he couldn¡¯t do it. If there were a mistake, then the whole structure would collapse. New system messages began to appear in front of his eyes. Tring-! [Energy charge mechanism.] [A small amount of spirit power is needed for operating.] ¡°Huh¡­?¡± Ian checked the message and was shocked. He thought it was a trap, but the message just now didn¡¯t seem like his thoughts were correct. ¡®Spirit power? How is it supposed to be charged with spirit power?¡¯ Ian¡¯s head began to work. ¡®If it is spirit power, the spirit power that is needed for the evolution of the spirits¡­¡¯ In order to fill the spirit power of the spirit, one had to use the energy of the spirit and then use it for the spirit magic. There was also another way to fill the spirit power using the essence of attributes or the Nature¡¯s marble. ¡®Yeah, the attribute essence!¡¯ Ian¡¯s gaze shifted to the door that had the handle. As he went close to the handle, he could see some kind of light flickering on it. ¡°I knew it!¡± Ian immediately took out some attribute essences from his inventory and started to feel them one after the other. Among them, he could feel a single essence stone that would fit into the mark on the door. -Minor lightning attribute essence. Ian picked up the essence with a pounding heart. He carefully put it toward the mark on the door. The motionless door that had been on the iron pillar started to have a faint white light around it. [The ¡®Lighting power¡¯ has been charged.] [The machine can be operated.] Woong-! The whole area started to tremble so loud that it made Ian cover his ears. Checking the system messages which had come up, Ian went to place his hands on the handle once again. He then pushed it to the side. Creak-! The small door which was the same size as a child opened with a very cheerful creaking sound. Ian¡¯s eyes tried to look at what had been placed inside of it, as his eyes noticed something in there, they went wide. ¡°Kulggk! Thank you so much for saving me, friend.¡± A boy with a huge head appeared. The boy was small. His height was only up to Ian¡¯s waist. With the advent of the NPCs with a rate that reminded one of the SD characters, Ian was confused. At first glance, the boy looked like someone who was related to the machines, but he thanked Ian. ¡®What is this? Isn¡¯t he someone who belongs to Charlies?¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes were looking for any other possible clue. He was under the impression that it was going to be a trap. But all the machines that were around the room were completely quiet, he looked over at Ian and Ian asked, ¡°Who are you?¡± ¡°Grrrk, Grrk. Did you just ask me?¡± ¡°Okay. Is there anyone else here apart from you?¡± At the question of Ian, the boy who came out of the room looked around. He opened his mouth, looking at Ian. ¡°I am P-77. The manager of this workshop.¡± ¡°What was that?¡± ¡°But who are you?¡± ¡°Me? Hmm, I am Ian.¡± ¡°Thank you, Ian. If it wasn¡¯t for you, I wouldn¡¯t be able to get out of there.¡± Ian looked at P-77 with a lot of doubt. His head was filled with thoughts that kept running through his mind. ¡®If you call yourself the manager of the workshop, then you are related to the machines. You¡¯re the same as the machines¡­ What kind of situation is this supposed to be?¡¯ However, Ian couldn¡¯t continue to think anymore. He heard the whine of a machine on the other side. Kkikng-! The boy spoke to Ian with urgency in his tone. ¡°Ian, I am sorry, but can you help me out a little more?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± ¡°Before all the machines in here blow up, we need to repair the main circuit.¡± ¡°Repair? Why would I do that?¡± Ian thought about listening to the weird request the boy had. Ian wasn¡¯t sure what the boy was even trying to do, but he could feel a very interesting hidden quest coming up. Ian¡¯s guess was right. Tring-! [A hidden quest has been triggered.] Following a cheerful message for Ian, a new quest window that would make him happier had appeared just a second later. -The Request of P-77 (Hidden) The robot that had been managing the machines was P-77, the manager. You have rescued him, who had been trapped in the machine just before the collapse. However, P-77 isn¡¯t completely safe yet. The superior robot was designed to be with the hardware. The moment the hardware was damaged, the workshop would collapse. Which is why P-77 has asked for your help. It was because there is a need for certain materials to stop the collapse. Hear out the request that he has and help with the hardware. In case you decide to help him, he will thank you. Quest difficulty: None Quest Condition: Win the battle with ¡®Caliclops¡¯. Find the ¡®machine facility management¡¯. Time limit: 3 minutes Reward: ??? As the quest window came up, a small message had been created at the corner of Ian¡¯s sight. [Time left: 00: 02: 59] Ian, who read it, immediately looked over at 77 and asked, ¡°Okay, I will help you out. What am I supposed to do?¡± At those words from Ian, 77 seemed to be half glad. ¡°Thank you, really! I¡¯ll make sure to pay you back!¡± ¡°Since we don¡¯t have a lot of time, you will have to tell me what I am supposed to do.¡± ¡°Okay, then¡­¡± 77 looked over at the broken machine for a while and opened his mouth turning toward Ian. ¡°Ian, do you have any attribute essence?¡± ¡°Huh, yeah.¡± ¡°Then, would you please put them in here?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Ian got the attribute essence from breaking through the dungeon. Ian felt like he was being robbed, but for now, he decided to go along with him. ¡®Phew, I am going to hold on just because it is a hidden quest.¡¯ Ian, who quickly pulled out the essences from his inventory, placed it in the position that 77 had shown. A white light came out, and the attribute essence vanished. Tring-! [You have used the ¡®Lesser Fire attribute essence¡¯.] [The energy of the machine has been charged.] [The time limit of the ¡®P-77 Request (Hidden)¡¯ has been increased by 6 seconds.] ¡°Uh?¡± Ian, who checked the system messages, looked over at the corner of his sight to see the time. Just as the system message said, the quest time really did increase. ¡®This is my first time seeing such a quest.¡¯ Ian still wasn¡¯t sure about the direction where the quest was heading to. For the time being, he decided to place the essences in the places he was being directed to. A similar message came up. [You have used the ¡®Lesser Fire attribute essence¡¯.] [The energy of the machine has been charged.] [The time limit of the ¡®P-77 Request (Hidden)¡¯ has been increased by 42 seconds.] Ian heard 77¡¯s voice inside his head. ¡°Ian, we are still running behind. Recharge the energy until the repair is over!¡± Ian, who was shocked, asked 77 out of instinct, ¡°How long will it be until everything is done?¡± At the question of Ian, 77 took a moment to respond. 77¡¯s response made Ian shocked. ¡°No matter how quick we are, we need at least 3 hours!¡± 77¡¯s response made Ian¡¯s head spin CH 554 Before entering the contaminated mine, Ian visited the magic shop that was in the spirit village and sold off all the attribute essences that he had. The attribute essences that he got from breaking the dungeon weren¡¯t that small, but it wasn¡¯t enough to accumulate three hours¡¯ worth of time. ¡®Uh, isn¡¯t it a waste to use medium essences?¡¯ The lowest essences gave 6 seconds. The lesser ones gave around 42 seconds. If a medium essence was placed, it would give 294 seconds. That would be five minutes. ¡®I have around 7 medium attribute essences¡­ if I use them, then I can earn another 35 minutes at max.¡¯ Ian checked the time limit. If he placed the lowest and the lesser essences in there, it would give him around 30 minutes. Even then, it still wasn¡¯t enough to accumulate three hours¡¯ worth of time. Far from the needed 3 hours, Ian could only accumulate 1 hour. The quest would definitely fail. Fortunately, 77 wasn¡¯t the kind of guy who would give an impossible task. ¡°77!¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°How can I place all of the attribute essences?¡± Ian, who had been busy using medium quality essences, asked 77. It seemed like there was a way. After a moment, 77 entered the control room without saying anything to Ian. ¡®What is he going to do?¡¯ A few seconds later, 77 came out and gave something to Ian. Tring-! [Obtained the ¡®Spirit Pickaxe¡¯ item from P-77.] ¡°¡­?¡± 77 spoke to Ian as soon as the system message appeared. ¡°Ian, do you see the small cave out there?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Go inside and mine there.¡± ¡°Mine?¡± ¡°Yeah. If you can enter there, you will be able to mine attribute essences.¡± Ian looked at 77, then shifted his gaze toward the mine. He felt a bit dissatisfied. ¡®Is this bastard ordering me around?¡¯ After a while¡­ Tring-! [You have entered the spirit mine A-12 zone.] [You have entered the mine for the first time.] [For the next 12 hours, the mining¡¯s success rate is increased by 15%.] [For the next 12 hours, the chances of obtaining high-grade minerals have been increased.] [Fame increased by 100,000.] [Instant map.] [This area is accessible only during the quest of ¡®P-77 Request (Hidden)¡¯.] Ian, who found the reward and the buff, couldn¡¯t help but be happy. The dissatisfaction he felt toward 77 a while ago had disappeared. * * * ¡°Uh, Chesk. Did you find anything on your end?¡± ¡°Yeah. The content that can be done right away is over.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t get it. What kind of Middle-Earth content is this? Does the content end here?¡± After Ian swept through the content, Ralph¡¯s group arrived late to the spirit village and was completely filled with displeasure. The Abyss Valley Quest which they had found after numerous trials had been snatched away, and it was impossible for them. When they proceeded to the next map, the sanctuary that came after the valley was in a twist. However, if they had any other quest, the situation would have been different. ¡®I shouldn¡¯t have given up on the expedition of the Underworld to come here.¡¯ Ralph was grinding his teeth. To be honest, even if he did go to the Underworld, there wasn¡¯t great content there either. They were going to be blocked at the Acheron river, so no further progress could be made. However, if he went to the Underworld, the guild would get more support with its expansion. There was no other party that could be as efficient as a guild party hunting. ¡®I could have at least leveled up by an additional 6 transcendence¡­¡¯ Ralph was in a bad mood as he sighed. On the other hand, the other members of the party who had entered the Spirit Dimension didn¡¯t have expressions. Ralph, whose head was filled with millions of thoughts, spoke to Chesk. ¡°By the way, Chesk.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Inisco, why isn¡¯t that guy coming?¡± ¡°Yeah. It has been quite a while. Maybe he found some kind of content?¡± At those words from Chesk, the expression of Ralph became nastier. ¡°Hmm.. he isn¡¯t trying to take in the content all for himself, right?¡± ¡°Ah, there is no way¡­¡± However, both the faces of Ralph and Chesk were filled with anxiety. After a while, their anxiety was cleared because they saw Insico approaching the from the distance. Ralph gulped. Insico was the last person to come back after searching for quests. If he came back without any information, it was like coming back empty-handed. As Insico got near them, Ralph, who was restless, asked him. ¡°Insico, have you found anything?¡± The moment Ralph had asked, all the eyes of the party members turned toward Inisco. Inisco¡¯s mouth dried up. ¡°What? No one other than me has found any content?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Everyone couldn¡¯t help but feel shocked at what they heard from Insico. It was like Insico was trying to tell them that he had found something. ¡°Don¡¯t twist your words and tell me what you¡¯ve found out quickly, Insico. Did you find anything? Is that what you are trying to say?¡± Insico nodded and responded, ¡°Hyungs, we are a bit too stupid.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°The quests always start from the village.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± At the words of Insico which seemed to be endless, Ralph was rather puzzled. He already talked with NPCs in the spirit village. ¡°Ah, this is frustrating. Tell us already!¡± At the urging of Chesk, Insico smiled and spoke. ¡°You all remember the ¡®Spirit Seal¡¯ that was in the village, right?¡± At the words of Insico, all the party members nodded their heads. ¡°I know. You are talking about the shabby building at the entrance of the village?¡± ¡°Right.¡± All the party members looked at Inisco once again. ¡°Then, by any chance, has anyone of you went in?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± All the party members shook their head with blank expressions, and Chesk who was shaking his head asked, ¡°We couldn¡¯t get inside¡­ Were you able to enter?¡± ¡°You couldn¡¯t go in, so why is it that no one can enter that place?¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°If we pay 500 asters, we could get in.¡± At the words from Inisco, Ralph asked, ¡°Aster? What is that?¡± ¡°I think it is some kind of currency in the Spirit dimension.¡± ¡°How did you know that?¡± ¡°How d¡¯you get it?¡± Taking a moment, Inisco took out a small attribute essence from his hand and spoke again. ¡°Everybody will probably have this in their inventory. We can go over to the magic shop and then get some aster, kay?¡± ¡°Oh!¡± Honestly, the idea of selling something at a store and getting the currency needed was something that anyone could think of. The only reason why Inisco was able to be in the party was because he was the only summoner who could be contacted. The shops in the spirit dimension sold items that were only related to the spirit content, so the users of the other classes had nothing to buy there. On the other hand, Inisco, like Ian, tried to purchase a skill book that was related to the spirit magic, and in the process, he was able to obtain information about the aster. Inisco continued, ¡°Somehow, I paid 500 aster and was able to get inside. And after clearing the first stage, I came here.¡± ¡°The first stage?¡± ¡°Uh, yeah, the first stage has been cleared by me, and I got these.¡± Inisco proudly shared the item information in the party window. -Lowest Enhancement Stone (Transcendence): Miscellaneous item The party members who had checked the item information window were very surprised. ¡°¡­!¡± None of them knew what it was and how it would work, but it was the very first time for them to see such an item. What Inisco said next surprised everyone even more. ¡°Once the 500 hundred aster has been paid, until one fails or decides to give up, the stages will continue.¡± ¡°Uh, this is interesting, right?¡± ¡°And since I am doing the content with you guys, I did exactly one stage and then got out of there.¡± Chesk rubbed the hair of Inisco and exclaimed in joy. ¡°Keu, you are indeed our junior!¡± ¡°Haha, right?¡± However, Ralph wasn¡¯t deceived by Inisco. ¡°Tell me everything clearly and honestly.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°The first stage was hard to break, right?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°The first stage was too hard for you to break, so you came to get us for the second stage?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°You needed the party¡¯s help.¡± ¡°No, that isn¡¯t it!¡± At the keen insight of Ralph, Inisco could feel cold sweat dripping from his forehead. * * * Kang- Kang- Kang-! Inside the dimly lit mine, a bleak sound of something breaking could be heard. [You have successfully mined out minerals!] [High mining technology maintains the grade of the minerals.] [Obtained ¡®Lesser Fire attribute Essence¡¯ item.] Each time he saw the system message pop up, Ian couldn¡¯t help but grin. His ability and mining skills were entirely different from the time when he first mined in the mines of Devildom. He overcame his lack of talent in mining with effort. ¡®Keu, great! Before I get out of here, I need to rip this mine off.¡¯ Ian was being greedy. At least in the game, he was greedier compared to anyone else. That was why he had a ton of quests. He wanted to get as much reward as possible. ¡®With an average of 10 seconds of mining, the lowest essence¡­ and with 20 seconds, the lesser essence, the medium level is taking 40 seconds¡­¡¯ Even while mining there, the mind of Ian wasn¡¯t calm. His mind was constantly working. ¡®If I dig like crazy without stopping, I will be able to keep a whole lot of minerals with me even after accumulating enough time for the time limit.¡¯ While using the lowest attribute essence, the quest time would be increased by 6 seconds. On the other hand, the mining time was about 10 seconds, so he was going to lose around 4 seconds. However, the lesser essence had a different story. The lesser essence took around 14 to 15 seconds and would extend the time limit by 42 seconds. The medium essences could be mined from time to time. It could extend the duration of the time limit for an additional 5 minutes. Ian hadn¡¯t mined a higher grade essence yet, but he was certain that it would add a lot of time to the quest¡¯s time limit. ¡®I¡¯m going to try for the lesser and the medium attribute essences. I won¡¯t be getting out of here until the discovery buff is over.¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes were shining in the dark. Ian picked up the axe and hit the ground¡­ [You have successfully mined the minerals!] [Due to your high mining technology, mineral grade has been maintained.] [You have obtained the ¡®Higher Wind essence¡¯ item.] [You have mined an attribute essence of a higher grade for the first time!] [Transcendence experience has been increased by 300.] [Fame has been increased by 50,000!] Ian was filled with greed as he read the system messages that appeared. CH 555 Ian was really a thorough gamer. So, in most cases, he would be able to predict the flow of the quest with the little clues he got. However, the ongoing quest of Ian¡¯s¡ª¡¯P-77 Request¡¯, wasn¡¯t heading in the direction that Ian wanted to be thought it would go to. Tring-! [P-77 has made a grave mistake while repairing the machine structure.] [Spirit energy has been consumed.] [The time limit for the ¡®P-77 Request (Hidden)¡¯ quest time limit has been reduced by 525 seconds.] [The remaining time for the quest end: 72 seconds.] ¡°What was that?¡± Ian despite being worn out, without rest was hitting the pickaxe for the quest completion. He was trying to collect as many essences as possible before the time could run out, and was trying to get a few for himself, but the situation took a dire turn into that he never thought of. ¡°Ahhh!¡± The time lost due to the mistake of the 77 was about 9 minutes. Which meant that he nearly lost about 2 medium attribute essences, if Ian opened his mouth, a fire could probably come out of frustration. ¡®I need to increase the time and then come back here.¡¯ Ian, who was literally grinding his teeth, hurried out of the cave. And subsequently, he began to place the lesser and the lowest ones which he had collected for 30 minutes. Tring-! [You have used the ¡®Lowest Water attribute essence¡¯.] [The energy of the machine has been charged.] [The quest time duration for ¡®P-77 Request (Hidden)¡¯ has been increased by 6 seconds.] [You have used the ¡®Lesser Water attribute essence¡¯.] [The energy of the machine has been charged.] ¡­ Syncopation¡­ [The quest time duration for ¡®P-77 Request (Hidden)¡¯ has been increased by 42 seconds.] Ian placed the lowest and the lesser attribute essences. He then rechecked the time left. And as soon as he confirmed it, he couldn¡¯t help but feel anger rise in him. ¡®Huuu, I can¡¯t even recover the time that 77 lost?¡¯ The time that was lost by 77¡¯s mistake was 525 seconds, but less than 400 seconds were restored with both the lowest and lesser attribute essence. Ian was carrying inside and placed two more medium attribute essences. [The quest time duration for ¡®P-77 Request (Hidden)¡¯ has been increased by 294 seconds.] [The quest time duration for ¡®P-77 Request (Hidden)¡¯ has been increased by 294 seconds.] And the time left for the quest had changed to 17 minutes. ¡°Kuk.¡± A low painful screech escaped the mouth of Ian after he placed the two medium essences. Ian¡¯s furious gaze turned to 77, who was busy repairing the machine. All the lump of minerals that he had been mining in the mine without a single second of rest, so there was no way that Ian wouldn¡¯t be angry at 77. After one hour of non-stop mining, the only things that were left in the hands of Ian was three medium essences and 1 higher grade. Ian was feeling that he was working like a passionate part-timer. Maybe he felt the eyes of Ian burning his back, 77 turned while scratching the back of his neck and looked at Ian. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Ian. I was in a hurry to fix it, so I made a mistake¡­¡± Ian was very upset with 77, but he decided to hold back a little. ¡®Yeah well, it has turned out like this. Let¡¯s try to win this in one try!¡¯ Ian tried to calm himself and slowly opened his mouth to 77. ¡°77.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to get it done so quickly, take your time and get it done.¡± ¡°Hu, okay?¡± ¡°We have 12 hours ahead of us.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°No, we have around 11 hours, so I hope you wouldn¡¯t make any mistake and just gradually repair it.¡± Listening to what Ian had said, 77 was shocked. It was because even after making a mistake, Ian had just said that he would provide him with 11 hours, but no matter how long he took or how long he was relaxing, there was no way it could take that much time. With stuttering words, 77 spoke to him. ¡°Thank, thank you, Ian. But no matter how slowly I work, it will just be around 5 hours¡­¡± And Ian just dismissed the words of 77. ¡°You are so noisy, it will take 11 hours. And just don¡¯t make any mistakes in the future, okay?¡± At the resolute words from Ian, 77 nodded. ¡°Ah, okay!¡± The requirements of Ian was strange, but the generosity of time given to him was very wide. * * * The intentions of Ian were very simple. He was thinking about how to get as many proficient minerals as he could before the buff on the mine would run out. And in order for that to happen, the quest shouldn¡¯t end until the buff ran out, and 77 just shouldn¡¯t make anymore mistakes. ¡®Until this quest ends, I need to get at least three or more higher grade attribute essences.¡¯ Ian went back into the cave and started to pick up the axe which he had left when leaving. Kang- Kang-! [You have successfully mined the minerals!] [Due to the high mining technology, mineral grades have been maintained.] [Obtained the ¡®lesser land attribute essence¡¯ item.] [You have successfully mined the minerals!] [You have successfully mined the minerals!] Just like Ian had asked, the 77 hadn¡¯t finished the repairs for 10 hours. And 77 without finishing up the repairs, he sat beside Ian looked at him work. ¡°Ian, with just one part more, the repairing will be done!¡± Kang- kakang-! ¡°How long is it going to take?¡± ¡°Around 5 minutes?¡± Kang- ¡°You aren¡¯t making even a single mistake, right?¡± ¡°Obviously! Now the task is so easy that it can even be finished with my foot!¡± Ian who just rechecked the remaining time left for the first discovery buff nodded and responded, ¡°Then let¡¯s take exactly 5 more hours, and then we can finish it 77.¡± ¡°He he. Okay, Ian! You really do look like a very kind friend!¡± 77 who was excited, ran around Ian. 77 who had been working non-stop from the moment he was born, was very interested in the concept of ¡®nothing to do¡¯. However, Ian wasn¡¯t a kind friend like 77 was assuming him to be. ¡°77.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Maybe, is there another pickaxe in the management room?¡± Without giving it much thought, 77 nodded. ¡°Uhu, there. Why?¡± As soon as 77 answered the question of Ian, a nasty smile spread on his face. ¡°77, shall we have some fun?¡± ¡°Really? I¡¯m excited! What will we do?¡± With a chuckle, Ian spoke in a low voice, ¡°Maybe¡­ have you ever heard of the ¡®mining game¡¯?¡± * * * This was the time when Ian had been in an unexpected hell like non-stop. The official community of Kailan had been raging non-stop too. The huge server traffic simmered until just before it had to explode. And all that because of a single post that was placed in the morning. -Title: Breaking News! The Secret of the Middle-Earth, revealed today! Writer: Alancra- Titan Hello, this Alancra from the Titan Guild. There might be those who know me as a ranker and those who don¡¯t know me too. Which is why I¡¯m not sure as to how many will accept the information that I¡¯m going to divulge¡­ But I¡¯m under the impression that most of you will probably welcome the news I have brought to the present. ¡­ Syncopation¡­ Alancra, one of the person who had been in the Titan guild from the very beginning and has been very popular among the Titan. But, just because a ranker had posted some information, the traffic in the community server couldn¡¯t just blow up. The reason why the post had hit a hundred of views was because of the content that it had in it. -Oh sh*t, what was that? -Is that true? Is the Middle-Earth an integrated server? -Crazy! Kue! So the Titan Guild has met some US sub rankers in the Underworld? -Kya! If this is how it is going, then won¡¯t there be wars between the servers? -Kue, somehow, I was under the impression that the Middle-Earth content was a bit lame¡­ but if this is the case then I feel good! Surely Kailan is awesome! Alancra¡¯s post was quite a lengthy one which needed anyone to scroll to hell. However, the contents that were given could be arranged in just a single line. Middle-Earth, the place where all the servers were connected to one single server. Till the moment every user of a particular server in Kailan hadn¡¯t interacted with the other ones, which definitely made it great for everyone to read it. -Wow¡­ this isn¡¯t some kind of trick, right? -Could that be possible? It wasn¡¯t something written by a freshman, it was posted by the ranker of the Titan Guild¡­ -No, leave that part aside. There is solid evidence in that shot. -? What? What solid evidence are you talking about? -There was a snapshot posted on the US server by a user. -Ahh, how would you know if it really was a US server user? -Hmm, there is no clear way to know, and I realize that. But no matter how uninterested one is in the game, there was no way for one to not know Mark Oliver? -Who is that? -The one who is standing in front of them all with a blue robe. He is a legend in the US server, a magician¡­ -Oh, really? The 1st ranker of the US server is a magician? -No, I didn¡¯t mean that. I meant it like a separate level 1st ranking. But in the category of recognition, it is considered that Mark Oliver is number one. -Oh oh! The words that were said by Alancra were spread quickly. The size of the content she had written was very large, but the concise proposition was linked to so many possibilities. And among them, the thing that piqued the interest of the reader was about the ¡®World Ranking¡¯. Who was the best ranker of each of the servers? A huge super concern for the users. -Of course, Ian is no 1 right? That should be a speculation, but it is a fact. -But all that is your thought. There are many servers in the Kailan world. Wouldn¡¯t there at least be three to four rankers who are high above Ian in the US right now? Starting with Mark Oliver, someone else said about Britling, Ralph, etc¡­ -Not just the US server. There are so many monsters in the Chinese server and the Mad Movies makers in Europe. -No no. Mad Movie, the hell¡­ they probably can¡¯t handle Bbookbbook all alone. -I can hear the sound of our Bbookbbook losing its shell. And before the heat could even cool down. The official page of LB, a powerful notice had been posted. [Massive Update ¡®Warrior¡¯s village¡¯.] Like someone had been planning for everything to happen accordingly. CH 556 Tring-! [The repair of the ¡®Machinery¡¯ has been completed successfully!] [The conditions have been met!] [You have successfully completed the quest ¡®P-77 Request (Hidden)¡¯!] [Fame of 100,000!] [Gained transcendence experience of 500!] [Transcendence level has risen to 8!] In one way, the quest of 77 was hard as the fight with the Caliclops. Ian was exhausted, his whole body was exhausted like it could fall down at any moment, it was just his eyes which looked like they were still shining. After he had been able to bring in 77, he was able to achieve more than he had planned. ¡®Ehh, I am going to save five higher attribute essences!¡¯ The attribute essences seemed to be a very valuable asset in the content of the spirit dimension. It was an item that could fill up the spirit power with just one use, and was the easiest way to collect the currency of the Spirit dimension ¡®Aster¡¯. ¡®Let¡¯s see how much spirit power do we need to evolve Magbi into a higher spirit?¡¯ [Medium Spirit Magbi: 89/ 100,000] The medium spirit Magbi needed 100,000 spirit power to evolve into a high level. Ian who had confirmed the number couldn¡¯t help but feel shocked. When it first evolved, he wasn¡¯t able to confirm the amount of spirit power needed as he was in an insane battle. ¡®This, when will it be done?¡¯ More than ten times the tremendous need of the spirit than the Medium spirit Chripy. Of course, the battle stats were all incomparable, but even then, it was a shocking amount to see. ¡®So some more higher essences?¡¯ Ian remembered that the spirit power of the higher attribute essences was just 686. Unless 100 of them are used, Magbi won¡¯t be able to evolve. ¡®This is a bit too¡­¡¯ Ian sighed incredibly when he realized the reality after looking at the information of Magbi. The very next moment. ¡°Uh¡­?¡± Ian¡¯s eyes which saw the bottom of the information window zoomed in slightly. * When the spirit reaches MAX, it evolves to a higher spirit. ¨C Each time a summon magic that requires the fire attribute, a certain amount of Spirit power is gained. ¨C Fills the spirit power with the Fire essence (Or Nature¡¯s marble). Least Attribute Essence: 6 Lesser Attribute Essence: 42 Medium Attribute Essence: 294 Higher Attribute Essence: 2,058 Greater Higher Attribute Essence: 14,406 The level of spirit power that got filled by the essence was too far for Ian to figure. ¡®Why did it change like this?¡¯ It was three times higher than the time he checked for the information of Agbi. Ian opened up the information window of the spirit spell and began to look at every small detail that it might have. ¡®Ah, the increasing amount of spirit power that can be obtained by using the essence is proportional to the Spirit spell!¡¯ Ian¡¯s proficiency in the spirit spell was level 3. He was at level 1 when he had obtained Agbi and was growing ever since, three times higher, in proportion to the amount of spirit power that can be raised by the essences had also increased. ¡°Oh¡­¡± Ian¡¯s head was full of how his game should proceed. ¡®I don¡¯t know how much spirit spell level has to be, but¡­ this is way too much for a level 10 manrep?¡¯ This was what Ian had found out. If the Spirit Spell was at level 10, he could use a higher attribute essence to fill up around 7,000 spirit power at once. And with just 14 of the high attribute essences, Magbi could be turned into a higher spirit. ¡®If it is greater essences, then two are all that is needed.¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes began to shine. If he had given all the essences to Magbi without thinking it through, he probably would have regretted doing it later on. And somehow, Ian discovered another new fact about the spirit content. He was able to complete the quest with a pleasant look. ¡°You did well, 77.¡± ¡°Not at all, I did alright Ian. You were the one who worked hard.¡± And unlike the answer, the face of 77 was rather unpleasant. Listening to the powerless voice of 77, Ian smiled and approached him. And he had completed the quest of the contaminated mine, but it felt like he had to know something more and hear something more from 77. ¡°77, what are you going to do now?¡± ¡°What is that supposed to mean?¡± ¡°Charlies, who used to give orders to us, is gone, and you don¡¯t have to run this machine workshop anymore. So¡­ is there a reason for you to be in this place, there isn¡¯t, right?¡± As soon as Ian was done speaking, the eyes of 77 regained a little light. ¡°That is true but¡­. I can¡¯t just leave, Ian.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°If I go out of this mine, I will stop working.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Charlies has designed me that way.¡± 77 had a very depressed look. Even Ian was feeling sorry looking at him. ¡°Is there any way that I can help you?¡± As the eyes of Ian and 77 met, 77 opened his mouth with a cautious voice. Ian¡¯s request was both selfishness and heartfelt sorrow. 50% expectations of a hidden quest and 50% of wishing to really help 77. Ian looked at his eyes and 77¡¯s eyes were shaking. ¡°Really¡­?¡± And Ian¡¯s animal senses took over as he could smell the scent of a quest. Tring-! -The Melancholy of P-77 (Epic) (Hidden) P-77 is a robot that has been created by the mechanical engineer Charlies. It had been helping Charlies manage the machine shop, which was why he wasn¡¯t ever able to leave the mine. The moment that it takes a step out of the mine, it will then stop working. But for a long time, p-77 had the desire to run away from the mine. So, if you help free 77 from the mine, it will be of great help to you. Listen to its story and listen to the request that 77 has. If you promise to help it out of the situation, you will be able to use the machinery of the mine. Quest Difficulty: Unknown Quest Condition: Clearing the quest ¡®p-77 Request (Hidden)¡¯ Time Limit: None Reward: Unknown * * * The Major update on the LB¡¯s official website was the introduction of ¡®Warrior¡¯s Village¡¯. That was enough to make the users stay sharp on their senses. At the same time, it was the first update to be officially released as the content related to the ¡®World Integration Server¡¯. It had included the content related to the restrictions that were currently in the ¡®Middle-Earth¡¯. -¡®Warrior¡¯s Village¡¯ massive update notice. The gate that allows entering the ¡®Warrior¡¯s Village¡¯ has been activated. A warrior canyon, the battlefield where the ¡®Valor¡¯s Qualification¡¯ which would certify one as an intermediate-being will be provided. Inside the so-called canyon of the Warrior, there is the ¡®Warrior¡¯s village¡¯ where there is a place for one to prepare for being a warrior. In the future, the users of all the servers will have to go through the Warrior¡¯s Village and prove their abilities for being heroes and the Intermediate-beings. The gate to the Warrior¡¯s Village will open on the ¡®Ulphir Mountain¡¯. However, you can only enter the gate if you have been recognized as a ¡®Hero by the ancients¡¯ who are asleep at the Ulphir mountain. *Only users who have reached the level of 10 in transcendence can enter the Warrior¡¯s Village. *Upon getting the ¡®Valor¡¯s Qualification¡¯, the level can be increased to 11 or higher. *One must gain the ¡®Valor¡¯s Qualification¡¯, to be recognized as an Intermediate-being. *Users who have earned the ¡®Valor¡¯s Qualification¡¯, can no longer enter the Warrior¡¯s Village (Only the Brave Canyon can be entered). Once every six months, in the beginning, the first week of December, the ¡®War of Heroes¡¯ will take place in the Brave Canyon. In the ¡®War of Heroes¡¯, the rankers of the world will be ranked according to the order of the highest contribution (Regardless of the general level or transcendence level). The invitation to the event will be sent. *The event will be held in Seoul, the capital of South Korea, and tickets will be sent over to the overseas rankers. Kailan¡¯s night event¡­ ¡­ syncopation¡­ It was a natural course of action, as soon as the notice had come up, each of the top guilds took that as an emergency situation. Firstly, it was clear that this content was going to be the most important gateway for the ¡®Middle-Earth content pre-emption¡¯, and secondly, if the guild member could be in the ¡®World Rankings¡¯, then the level of the guild fame, would all rise astronomically. Just by looking at the amount of the prize money which had been predetermined as 500 million won, it was clear how big of an event it was. And the emergency was taking place, in the Lotus Guild. ¡°Wah, I feel like they should have been much more vigilant and trying to do things in a shot.¡± At the words from Herz, Fiolan nodded and answered, ¡°I know right. I thought that it was going to be a big update, but this is like a nuclear bomb.¡± ¡°If this is the case, aren¡¯t we supposed to go and hunt to increase the transcendence level?¡± ¡°Ah, we need to talk about this as soon as Ian gets back. Why is Ian disconnected at such an important time¡­?¡± Right now, the Lotus Guild was ranking in the 1st place of the Kailan¡¯s Korean server. And in Korea, was the ¡®slave country¡¯ in which Kailan had been developed. From the Lotus¡¯s point of view, the update and the ¡®War of Heroes¡¯ content, was like a prideful moment which they had to get. But the rankers in the Lotus Guild, because of Ian¡¯s guidance, not a single member has even reached level 3 in transcendence. It was because Ian had instructed them to be in the human system so far. The head of Lotus was feeling impatient. Hoonie who was seated on the other side of Herz opened his mouth, ¡°Hyung, we sure are at a lower level when compared to the other guilds, but¡­ but we aren¡¯t at a disadvantage.¡± ¡°Hmm? The Titan Guild now currently has an average transcendence level of 6, you know?¡± ¡°The level of transcendence that we have is a bit lacking, but the progress of the ¡®Ulphir Mountain¡¯ is the highest for us.¡± ¡°Ah, that is true.¡± ¡°The other guilds might probably take a month more to get through the gates. In the meantime, we can try to raise the level of transcendence.¡± At the claim of Hoonie, Fiolan nodded her head. ¡°What Hoonie says, makes sense. But will we really be able to catch up with the other rankers with higher transcendence levels in just a month?¡± The whole room went quiet for a while listening to the words of Fiolan. The Lotus had to earnestly raise their transcendence level. Except for Ian who was still in the spirit dimension. ¡°Phew, we¡¯ll know what to do once Ian hyung comes back.¡± Everyone nodded at the words of Canoel. All their eyes immediately went in the direction of Harin, who was sitting in the corner of the meeting room. ¡°Harin noona, call Ian hyung over to the meeting room. The time is too short to wait for him.¡± At the words of Hoonie, Remir tagged along with a nod. ¡°Right, Harin. I don¡¯t know what quest Ian might be doing, but it can¡¯t be much more important than this.¡± All the other leaders in the room nodded with a sympathetic look, and Harin agreed with them. Harin who naturally lacked the understanding of the game and the content when compared to the other rankers felt that this current content was much more important. ¡°Okay. Then, I will log out right away and will bring Ian out of the capsule and then enter with him.¡± Harin immediately closed the connection. She then left all the other users waiting, and they were all waiting for Ian with a nervous look. CH 557 Chapter 557: The Incarnation of Non-Stop Hunting 3 The story of 77 had lasted for more than 10 minutes. His story wasn¡¯t so complicated. ¡®So¡­ the blueprint of the mine management robot can be obtained.¡¯ 77¡ªthe robot¡ªthat was designed by Charlies was a ¡®mining robot¡¯. 77 himself said that apart from himself, there were other management robots all throughout the spirit dimension. Charlies had built robots on every mine in the Spirit mountain to look after the machine workshops. So the blueprint was bound to exist, and that was the request of 77. There was also another thing. He also stated that if Ian helped him, he could use the item and then work. ¡°As long as you are in possession of the blueprints, you¡¯ll be able to erase the system code that has been embedded in my body. If you can get rid of that¡­ I will be free.¡± ¡°You mean I need to disassemble your body and then reassemble it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s similar to that.¡± ¡°Then, who will do that work?¡± ¡°I can do it myself. I¡¯m different from humans. I don¡¯t feel any pain.¡± Ian looked at him, not sure what he was supposed to say. He sure was a difficult guy to understand. ¡®Well, I will just break through the quest.¡¯ Ian just shook his head and said, ¡°The blueprints, where can I get them?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not 100 percent sure, but they are probably in the Horlus underground base.¡± ¡°Horlus¡­ underground base?¡± Hearing it for the first time, Ian felt excited. If he went to the underground where the blueprint was, it seemed like they were a lot of hidden secrets related to the mechanical civilization. 77 continued, ¡°The Horlus underground is in the middle of the Spirit mountains.¡± ¡°The center of the Spirit mountain¡­ isn¡¯t that a bit too much of an explanation?¡± At the question of Ian, 77 shook his head. ¡°That is true, but even if I explain it in detail, it won¡¯t work.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°With your abilities, you won¡¯t be able to climb to the middle of that mountain yet.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°In the middle of the Spirit Mountains¡­ there are powerful robots which can make Caliclops seem like nothing.¡± ¡°And?¡± ¡°The monsters there are as strong as five Caliclops.¡± Ian briefly thought about the powerful robots he was being told about and came to a conclusion. Considering the description that 77 was talking about, the monsters there probably had a transcendence level of 30 to 40. ¡®So it is a quest that can¡¯t be cleared until I get that ¡®Valor¡¯s qualification¡¯.¡¯ Ian couldn¡¯t cross the transcendence level of 10 until he got that ¡®Valor¡¯s Qualification¡¯. Even if he hunted non-stop with Agbi to evolve it to a higher spirit, with his current transcendence level, it would be difficult. In the end, the combat ability of Agbi was proportional to its spirit spell level and spirit skills. ¡®Unfortunately, I have no choice but to do this quest some other time.¡¯ Ian cleared his mind after a while and realized that there wasn¡¯t any other linked quest he could do at the moment. He entered the spirit dimension, but the quests were blocked. Ian looked at 77. He surely wouldn¡¯t be able to proceed with the quest, but there were still a lot of things he wanted to ask 77. ¡°77.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll surely become strong enough to attack the Horlus underground base, okay?¡± ¡°That¡­ is that even possible?¡± ¡°It won¡¯t be easy, but for you, I will try.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± The expression of 77 became brighter because of what Ian said. 77 was impressed. System messages appeared. Tring-! [Affinity with the management robot ¡®P-77¡¯ increased by 3.] [The conditions to use the ¡®Machine Workshop¡¯ was met.] Ian, who decided to take advantage of 77¡¯s feelings, made a proposal to 77. ¡°So then, 77.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°The machine workshop, let¡¯s get that thing working.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°You have to build a powerful machine summon, or I won¡¯t be able to attack that Horlus underground as soon as I can.¡± 77 promised that he would help to the extent where Ian would be able to use the machines. However, he didn¡¯t say what exactly he would do with the machine workshop. However, Ian knew that this 77 machine had been producing the machines, but of course, it was just a hunch. With a very nervous expression, 77 looked at Ian. ¡°I obviously want to get out of here, Ian.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°However, I can¡¯t do that right away.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because of the blueprints I needed for the machine robots. If it was Charlies, he could have done it even without the design, but I am not that capable.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Ian wasn¡¯t expecting what 77 just said, so he was shocked. ¡®Uh, hold on. Then¡­¡¯ Ian soon felt that he was being filled with happiness. In his mind, an ¡®item¡¯ that was in his inventory appeared. Ian opened his mouth. ¡°I have it!¡± ¡°What? What?¡± ¡°A blueprint.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°I am not sure as to what kind of blueprint it is, but I have a blueprint in possession!¡± 77 couldn¡¯t believe what Ian just said. Ian just opened his inventory. He took an item called ¡®Lesser Machine Summon Blueprint¡¯ which was in the corner of his inventory. He then handed it to 77. 77 confirmed the blueprint and was surprised. ¡°This¡­ is this? This really is a design!¡± Ian became excited at the unexpected chance he got. He nodded and said, ¡°Indeed! I knew you would understand that.¡± Ian gulped then spoke with a lot of pride. ¡°Kay then, 77. This design¡­ what kind of robot can you make with this?¡± Receiving the blueprint, 77 began to look at it very closely with a serious expression. After a while, system messages appeared in front of Ian. Tring-! [The blueprint has been decrypted.] [The item ¡®Lesser Machine Summon Blueprint¡¯ will be unsealed.] [You have earned the item ¡®Robot Heart Blueprint¡¯!] ¡°Hmm?¡± Ian was a bit puzzled when he saw the message. Although it was labelled as a ¡®lesser¡¯ class, the name of the robot in the message seemed to be weaker than a ¡®lesser¡¯ class. However, unlike Ian who was disappointed, the eyes of 77 were sparkling. ¡°Wow, Ian! How did you even get this?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°It is a low-end robot, but the blueprints of the production aren¡¯t so easy¡­!¡± ¡°Production robots? Is that good?¡± Before Ian responded to 77, he started to think. ¡®A production robot? So that¡¯s what this heart robot is called¡­? Can he mine?¡¯ As his thoughts began to filter, Ian¡¯s face began to turn bright. If he could make a mining robot, then Ian might be able to continue to receive attribute essence. He surely might not be able to re-enter the event map¡ªwhich he could have entered¡ªbecause of the quest of 77, but there were mines all over the place. Ian could have one mine in the mountains and then put that robot there to mine for infinite essence farming. Ian¡¯s expectations were getting high. ¡°Of course! There are so many things that this guy can do! This guy could do basic chores and mine without constantly ordering him to do so.¡± At the description that 77 gave, Ian became excited. With the blueprint, he thought that he could produce a number of workers and have them as mine slaves. In the mind of Ian, the mine in the Devildom which he owned had entered his thoughts after a long time. It was because he was paying huge salaries for the miners who were running the mine. If he could make a lot of workers with the blueprint, then the productivity of the mine in the Devildom would increase too. ¡°Oh ho! Shall we make a robot with this blueprint?¡± However, the content of Kailan wasn¡¯t going to allow that, and Ian¡¯s expectations got shattered to million pieces. ¡°Sorry, it is impossible.¡± ¡°Huh? What is that supposed to mean?¡± ¡°This is a disposable design.¡± Ian didn¡¯t understand what 77 was saying. ¡°Can blueprints be disposable?¡± ¡°On the surface, it looks like a simple iron plate with a design on it, but it has a system chip inside.¡± ¡°System¡­ chip inside?¡± ¡°It is the kind of chip that contains an algorithm for moving the robot.¡± ¡°Ah!¡± ¡°Perhaps, once the robot is completed according to the scheme and design, the chip is supposed to be inserted. That might make the robot operational.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± Ian looked rather sullen, but it wasn¡¯t so bad. Thanks to 77, it was easy to unseal the blueprint, and the existence of the production robot seemed like a great help. ¡°Nice, 77. From now on, let¡¯s quickly make this robot guy. I want to finish it and then use it as soon as possible.¡± Looking back at Ian, 77 nodded his head. ¡°Okay, Ian. The blueprint isn¡¯t so complicated, and I¡¯ll be able to build it in about a day.¡± ¡°Okay!¡± ¡°Would you like to get some materials while I analyze the blueprint?¡± ¡°Materials?¡± ¡°If you look into this pattern, you will know what kind of materials you will need.¡± Ian, who was given the blueprint, tried to look at it again. In front of Ian came a system window which he had never seen before. -¡®Robot Heart¡¯ Blueprint This was a blueprint for making a lesser robot heart. (This is a one time blueprint. Once the robot is completed, the blueprint will disappear.) -Robot Information Classification: Production Robot Rank: Rare (transcendence) Production Success rate: 75% (If the production of the robot fails, the blueprint will not disappear.) (If the production of the robot fails, half of the materials will disappear.) *Stats -Combat Ability None -Production Ability: 50-75 Productivity: 15~25 Dexterity: 5~18 Energy Efficiency: 3~12 (Production capacity is expressed in 0~100 depending on the rank.) -Special Ability: None Consumable Materials Medium iron ore x130 Higher Iron ore x50 Greater iron ore x2 Greater Magic Stone x12 Least fire essence x45 Least wind essence x30 Lesser fire essence x15 ¡°Hu¡­¡± Ian could feel the back of his head hurt. ¡®This is so much harder than just buying a machine from the shop.¡¯ Ian didn¡¯t know that he needed to gather the materials for the blueprint that he had. However, fortunately, Ian had all the materials that were needed for making it. He got the iron ores in Devildom¡¯s mines, and he got the essence attributes from his non-stop mining a few moments back. ¡°The materials, can you get them, Ian?¡± ¡°Yes, I¡¯ll get them as soon as possible.¡± ¡°Will you be able to get them today?¡± Ian nodded his head in agreement. All he had to do was to go non-stop since he already did quite a lot of mining today. Even with a 25 percent chance to fail, he decided not to think about failure. ¡°Sure¡­!¡± Ian¡¯s words were interrupted. After a very long time, a call from his ¡®wifey¡¯ came. -tring ¨C tring ¨C tring There¡¯s a call from the outside Since the situation isn¡¯t a battle, you can terminate the connection. Do you want to terminate the connection? CH 558 Chapter 558: The Minimum Qualifications 1 ¡°That idiot Jinsung needs to be in the human system. What is he even doing now?¡± Harin was back in Kailan and wondering. When she arrived in the game, the place where she spawned was at the Pyro Manor. She recalled the conversation she had with Jinsung. Open the back gate of the Pyro Manor. Why all of a sudden? Let¡¯s talk more about it in the game. I¡¯ll be there when you enter, so we¡¯ll talk there. If you can¡¯t enter through the gate, message me. ¡°What does he mean by ¡®not being able to enter¡¯ the gate¡­¡± Harin shook her head and began to move. After a moment, she found the gate of dimension that Ian told her about. ¡°Should I go in¡­?¡± Cautiously, Harin took a step into the gate without hesitation. The moment she entered, new system messages appeared in front of her. [You have entered the gate.] [Moving to another dimension system.] [You have entered the map of ¡®Spirit Mountain¡¯.] Woong-! With a familiar resonating sound, the eyes of Harin which had been filled with darkness began to see light. A familiar silhouette appeared in front of her. Ian and Harin looked at each other. And somehow, Ian started to shake. ¡°Oh, oh, oh! It worked? It did work?¡± Harin who didn¡¯t understand what he was talking about narrowed her eyes. ¡°I told you there was something urgent. Why did you call me here?¡± However, instead of responding to Harin, Ian talked about something else. ¡°What do you mean by why? This was a test!¡± ¡°Test? What did you test?¡± ¡°Harin you¡­ Where do you think you just stepped on?¡± ¡°This is the spirit dimension.¡± At the answer from Harin, Ian smiled a little and pointed his finger somewhere. ¡°Do you see that monster over there? The level of the monster to be exact.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Are you talking about that monkey-like-robot monster?¡± ¡°Right.¡± ¡°Uh, level 13? Is this the beginner¡¯s hunting ground?¡± The mouth of Harin which had been talking opened wide. Rather than being a beginner¡¯s hunting ground, she realized that it was a level 13 transcendence monster. ¡°Huhu, do you understand now?¡± With her eyes still stuck on it, Harin spoke. ¡°Uh, uh¡­ level 13 transcendence monsters are coming out¡­¡± The information to the Middle-Earth had been officially opened. It had been officially released by LB, but before that, a lot of the rankers had already been entering the Underworld. Among those informations, the fact that the current middle-Earth system had been opened was like a ¡®trial version¡¯, and that was what everyone had been thinking, including Harin. It meant that all the content after the transcendence level of 10 got locked in Middle-Earth. In the case of the Underworld, the highest level of monsters that one could fight against was level 10, and a large update notice had been released right after that. It indicated LB¡¯s note, which mentioned the need to be an ¡®Intermediate-being¡¯. The things that Harin knew weren¡¯t different. And she was now looking at a transcendence level 13 monster. Which meant that¡­ ¡®Don¡¯t tell me¡­ Did he already turn into an intermediate-being?¡¯ Surprised, Harin opened her mouth again. ¡°How in the world did you even get here?¡± With a bright smile, Ian spoke with a rather arrogant tone. ¡°How do you think? I got in because it¡¯s me!¡± At the words of Ian, Harin became more nervous. ¡°You are not using bugs, right?¡± ¡°What the!? I came to this place in a very normal way!¡± ¡°Then, did you become an intermediate-being?¡± ¡°My transcendence level is only 8, so I still can¡¯t be one.¡± Harin looked at Ian with a suspicious pair of eyes. ¡°You¡¯re not an intermediate-being, but you¡¯re here¡­ and you¡¯re saying that you didn¡¯t use a bug?¡± ¡°I told you, I didn¡¯t!¡± ¡°Hmm, fishy¡­¡± Harin who heard about the Ian Bug User theory couldn¡¯t get her doubts out of her mind. However, Ian seemed to be very excited. ¡®Keu, this is done!¡¯ Ian¡¯s dimensional beads, the gate that could be opened. It wasn¡¯t an item that had no restrictions. For example, it did have a specific condition that wouldn¡¯t allow a user to bring in another user who hadn¡¯t met the conditions of the dungeon or the region. Using the gate like that was dubious. Intermediate-beings were the only ones that could enter the place where Ian was currently at. However, Ian himself got into that place because he needed Harin. ¡®If I¡¯m gonna be here for a while, then I need some lightrep.¡¯ The transcendence levels of the machine monkeys were around 11 to 13, and they would be very tough to deal with for users below the level of 5. Of course, the only user who could probably hunt there was Ian, but he was in need of a few rankers and wanted to ride the bus easily. ¡®Hoonie, Yu hyun, Fiolan, Remir and a few more. If I can get around five to six members and get them to level 6, then hunting here will be possible.¡¯ With his rough plans, Ian asked Harin to join his party. [Guild member ¡®Ian¡¯ requested you to join his party.] [Do you accept? (Y/N)] Seeing the system messages, Harin was rather flustered. ¡°Uh? Why a party all of a sudden? You need to meet with the guild members because of the update, remember?¡± ¡°I know, I know. Tell the guild chatroom to wait for 10 minutes. What I¡¯m doing now is related to the update.¡± ¡°Ah, okay.¡± Harin nodded and with a little sloppy look, she posted in the guild chatroom exactly what Ian had asked her to do. Harin: I just met Ian, and he said to wait for 10 minutes. He said he has something he needs to try. Less than a minute later, the members of the guild chat, including Fiolan, responded. Fiolan: Yeah, 10 minutes, so okay¡­ I¡¯ll have some snacks and then come back. Remir: Uh, okay. I too haven¡¯t had the chance to have a meal because of the morning update. But the very next moment, beyond the surprise of Harin, the one who was already surprised turned stiff. The system messages which were covering up the guild chat window were so unrealistic. Tring-! [Party member ¡®Ian¡¯ has successfully defeated the monster ¡®Kariopitecus¡¯!] [Obtained transcendence experience of 26.] ¡­ syncopation¡­ [Obtained transcendence experience of 34.] ¡­syncopation¡­ [Transcendence level has risen to 2.] [Transcendence level has risen to 3.] * * * It seemed like something very complicated was going on, but what Ian was doing at the moment wasn¡¯t so easy. Aside from the mass update about the ¡®Warrior¡¯s Village¡¯, the most urgent task at hand was to reach transcendence level 10. In addition, in order to collect the materials which were needed for making the robot, he had to hunt non-stop. Furthermore, the plan to collect attribute essences was laid out in detail. ¡®I need to ride the bus with the guild members¡­ and I need to take the attribute essences that are dropped with the bus play ratio. Haha.¡¯ Ian needed one day to collect all the essences he needed for the production robot. It would take around 5 days for the guild members to reach the transcendence level of 6. If he could do an infinite hunt with all of them, maybe Ian could reach level 10 quicker. ¡®Let¡¯s see, there are exactly 20 days until the update¡­¡¯ Ian¡¯s goal was to be at the gate that was at the Ulphir mountains. He needed to reach transcendence level 10 to be able to enter the Warrior¡¯s Village. And so, as soon as the server opened after the update, his goal was to enter the Warrior¡¯s Village. Of course, being a transcendence level 10 wasn¡¯t enough. There was another condition which stated that the user had to be recognized by the ¡®ancient heroes¡¯ who were guarding the gates. However, Ian didn¡¯t have to worry about that. Ian had the ¡®Champion¡¯s Mark¡¯ which he previously got from the Courageous Commander of the Dragon Cavalry, Camires. ¡®I¡¯m not sure until I try it out, but¡­ I do have a hunch.¡¯ There was no way for him to know until the update was done, but Ian guessed that it was an item that was probably related to the ¡®ancient heroes¡¯. He believed that the item would help him be recognized as someone worthy. ¡®Huh, the time is a little short. Even if I do it on a tight schedule, it would take around 3 to 4 weeks before I get to level 10¡­¡¯ Ian clenched his fists. He established a goal. And once he established that goal, all he had to do was run toward it. ¡°Okay, if I stay overnight, I¡¯ll be able to reach level 10 before the opening day.¡± With various plans running in his head, Ian was ready for the challenge. Woong-! The gate began to vibrate, and familiar faces started to show up. Harin, who entered the gate, showed up with the guild members starting from Herz, Remir, Fiolan, Yu Shin, Hoonie, Canoel, Carwin and Colban A lot of retainers were there along with the guild members. Soon, the calm mountain began to get crowded. ¡°Ah, Is this the spirit dimension?¡± ¡°Why is the air so fresh here?¡± ¡°Right. This is just what I had been thinking about, the spirit dimension.¡± The guild members were talking among themselves. But it didn¡¯t take long for them to turn stiff and nervous. ¡°Kay, you have all slept well and connected, right?¡± The first words that came out of Ian¡¯s mouth were freaking scary for them all. * * * Kang- Kang-! Drrrrk-! The machine workshop in the contaminated mine had crystal clear sounds of beeps and buzzing of machine sounds. And in such a place, two beings of unusual appearance were standing side by side. To be precise, they weren¡¯t exactly standing beside each other. Sitting on the shoulder of a boy that seemed to be around ten years old was a small creature that looked like a winged lizard. Those two were Kaka and 77. ¡°You said it was Kaka?¡± ¡°Yeah, robot friend. What can I call you?¡± ¡°Haven¡¯t you heard from Ian? I am P-77. Feel free to call me no. 77.¡± ¡°No. 77, huh? Calling you that feels a bit awkward. I¡¯ll just call you 77.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± The reason why Kaka was left at the machine workshop was for supervision. Kaka¡¯s role was to make sure that 77 wouldn¡¯t have the time to be lazy. However, unfortunately, the scene wasn¡¯t going in the direction where Ian intended it to go. ¡°Kaka, have you ever seen anything like this?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°If you do me a favor, I can make you something like this¡­¡± What 77 was showing Kaka was a small figure that was similar to a toy robot. A high-quality robot that had a blue light shining from its body. Since it was Kaka¡¯s first time to see something like that, her eyes couldn¡¯t move away from it. ¡°This¡­ what is this!? It is so cool!¡± ¡°Right? It¡¯s cool, right?¡± ¡°Tremendously! How could you even make such a thing!?¡± When 77 touched a small remote, the figure started to move around on its own. Kaka started to look ecstatic. ¡°What¡­ what is the favor you wanted to ask, robot friend!? Ask me anything you want!¡± CH 559 Ian¡¯s terrifying question about them having a good night¡¯s sleep; all the heads of the guild members shook automatically. It wasn¡¯t like they were feeling sleepy right away, but they knew that hell was going to unfold for them if they nodded their heads. ¡®This Devil isn¡¯t going to rest nor let us rest until the day of the update.¡¯ ¡®Even if I won¡¯t be feeling sleepy, I should just do it even 1 minute. Need to sleep before coming here.¡¯ ¡®Okay well. After exactly half a day I¡¯ll be fine to come.¡¯ ¡®No. I need a whole day to rest and do some maintenance. We have been hunting in the Ulphir mountain until the very morning.¡¯ ¡®Nice. I¡¯ll rest exactly until tomorrow morning!¡¯ The eyes of the guild members were desperately looking for answers. It was a very important issue for their survival. And the negotiation¡­ ¡°Nice, since it is exactly 6 o¡¯clock in the evening now, let¡¯s get together exactly twelve hours later.¡± The Lotus Guild members were able to get a very valuable break of 12 hours. ¡°Okay, Ian. After 12 hours, we will all meet here at 6 in the morning?¡± At the words of Fiolan, the faces of the guild members turned sad. ¡°Kuk, 6 in the morning¡­¡± ¡°Ian hyung isn¡¯t early morning 6 a bit too much? Shouldn¡¯t we start the game once the sun rises?¡± At the thoughtless words from Honnie¡­ ¡°Then, how about 5 am? The sun comes out at 5 these days.¡± ¡°Sor, sorry, hyung. No matter what anyone says, 6 is awesome.¡± At the question from Ian, Honnie was overwhelmed and shook his head violently. ¡°Kay let¡¯s all get some rest and then meet here! There is no time to rest until all of you reach the level of 10. Do you understand?¡± * * * All the guild members closed for getting rest, but Ian didn¡¯t. ¡®If I want to reach the transcendence level of 10 within 20 days, wasting 1 second is like wasting 1 minute.¡¯ Normally, until one day of the hunting schedule, no matter how much elated he felt, Ian would take rest to save up stamina. But he wasn¡¯t in such a situation now. The update that Ian had been waiting for was right around the corner. ¡®I need to get back to the spirit sanctuary to complete the quest, and hunt till 12.¡¯ Ian was humming to a recent song as he took steps towards the sanctuary. After completing the quest of ¡®Contaminated Mine¡¯ which Syarlon had given, he was thinking about going back to the spirit mine. ¡°Pin, I request you!¡± Grrrk-! It had been a long time since Ian had summoned Pin, touching him on the head, Ian climbed onto him and sat. With a slight gesture indicating Pin to move, Ian went in the direction of the Spirit Sanctuary. Was it around 10 minutes that had passed? Ian went to the cabin of Syarlon. Tatt-! He climbed onto the tree and called for Syarlon in a sweet voice, ¡°I have come, Syarlon.¡± Ian was currently in a situation where he felt nothing but happiness. After completing the high-level quest, before getting the rewards, it was the happiest time for all the users of the Kailan. He was feeling much happier thinking about the things he might get. Ian was thrilled with the idea of getting rewards from Syarlon. ¡®I got a spirit pickaxe from 77, will I get a Guardian Orb from Syarlon?¡¯ Ian wasn¡¯t sure what a Guardian Orb was, but because he was unaware of it, it was exciting for him. In addition, there was an unknown reward marked as ¡®???¡¯, and Ian wanted to know what it was. Creak-! The wooden door of the cabin opened with a disturbing creaking sound. Syarlon who opened the door welcomed Ian. ¡°Oh, you came back fine, Ian. Are you back after exploring the Contaminated mine?¡± At the question of Syarlon, Ian smiled and answered, ¡°Yes, Syarlon. I found the machine workshop inside the mine and stopped it.¡± ¡°Oh oh!¡± ¡°The machine monsters from the contaminated mine, they will no longer be hurting the younger spirits.¡± ¡°I knew it! Thank you, my friend! I knew you were trustworthy!¡± And Ian¡¯s eyes had been waiting for the system messages¡­ Tring-! [You have successfully completed the quest ¡®Contaminated Mine in the Spirit Mountain (Epic) (Hidden)¡¯!] [Earned transcendence experience of 1,550.] [Acquired fame of 100,000.] [Special conditions have been met.] [The clear tier raises one level.] [Clear Grade: S+] [Completed with S or higher grade.] [Spirit Magic (Transcendence) of 120 has been obtained.] [Summon Magic (Transcendence) of 80 has been obtained.] The eyes of Ian which had been reading the system messages shined a lot more. It was because of the message which said ¡®special conditions¡¯ being satisfied and a clear grade of S and higher has been achieved. ¡®I thought that getting that grade would be hard, but¡­ it seems good.¡¯ When clearing the quests of the human system, the quest clear rank had a very important value. It was because the experience and reputation earned by the quest depended hugely on the quest clear. However, it wasn¡¯t related to the grade. It would have been very depressing to get the lowest level of clear grades such as C or D, and it wouldn¡¯t be so bad to get grades of A or higher. However, in the Spirit Dimension, there was a reason for getting an S grade. ¡®Gathering the Spirit magic and the summon magic is much more important than fame and experience¡­¡¯ Great spirit magic and summon magic stats could be obtained only when the quest got cleared with an S grade or higher rank. That, Ian thought was much valuable than any reward. ¡®If the clear tier had gone up one level higher, was it because of the request that 77 had?¡¯ Syarlon opened his mouth towards Ian who was closely analyzing the rewards he had obtained. ¡°You have worked really hard, Ian. Because of you, the children here can sleep in peace once again.¡± ¡°That was nothing. Magbi here has worked way more than me.¡± ¡°Ho ho.¡± Syarlon who was laughing turned towards Magbi who was floating next to Ian. As he noticed the change, his eyes went wide. ¡°You, you will be a very great summoner.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°You have already made the seed of the king into a medium spirit in just a few days¡¯ time.¡± ¡°Haha, it was because I had luck on my side.¡± Looking at Ian who was rubbing his neck, Syarlon spoke again, ¡°You sure are a good summoner, it wouldn¡¯t be a bad thing for me to entrust these things to you.¡± When he said that, he showed something of his palm. A bit red light to deep purple, the marbles were brightly colored and changed from time to time. Ian who looked at them was able to find out what they were. ¡®Guardian Orbs?¡¯ The Guardian Orbs were the rewards for the quest. Syarlon handed them to Ian, and at the same moment, system messages started to pop up. Tring-! [Obtained the item ¡®Guardian Orb¡¯.] Ian immediately checked for the information of the item. -Guardian Orb Classification: Summon Beads Rank: Rare (transcendence) Wear limitations: Summoner, ¡®Spirit spell user¡¯ mastery. Attack: 567- 825 (The spirit magic is increased in proportion to the damage caused by the weapon.) Durability: 950/950 Options: +35 all battle abilities Leadership +5 (transcendence) Affinity +5 (transcendence) Spirit Magic +350 (Transcendence) Summon Magic +100 (transcendence) The vitality of all the summoned spirits will be given an increase of 25% vitality and a 35% attack. *Magic Charging -Basic Passive effect When performing lethal damage to an enemy with normal attacks, it restores the summoning magic proportional to the damage dealt. -Usage effect After 80% of the vitality is left remaining, it restores the summoning magic. (60 second cooldown time) *Guardian¡¯s Protection When the enemy attacks, the spirit shield is triggered. The generated shield will absorb 5% to 95% of the damage and heals the caster after 1 second of the damage. The more accurately it is activated for the time of hit, the higher will be the damage absorption rate, and if the time has been misplaced, no shield will be created (Even if the shield hasn¡¯t been generated, the skill will be considered used.) (Reuse Cooldown Time: 30 seconds) *This item belongs to the user ¡®Ian¡¯. This cannot be transferred or sold to other users, and wouldn¡¯t drop even if the character dies. *This is a growth item. If the conditions are met, it can be evolved to a higher level. It was used by the guardians of the ¡®Pneuma¡¯ village. It was lost and sealed, it still hasn¡¯t found its strength yet. The quest of the Contaminated Mine was one of the most difficult quests which Ian had acquired after entering the Middle-Earth. Which was why Ian had been looking forward to the reward item ¡®Guardian Orb¡¯. ¡®But this is¡­ much more than expected?¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes which had read the information of the item were shining like lanterns. Surely it might look like a much lower item when compared to the Judgement of the Spirit King at a glance, Ian knows that this was a good thing which meant not to be judged. ¡®Evolvable followed by spirit magic¡­ this is so great!¡¯ The damage options of the Orb were surely much lower than the Judgement of the Spirit King. Not just the low damage it gave, but it had just two unique abilities attached to it. However, the advantages of the orb were far more than the offsets it had. ¡®The Spirit magic increasing as much as the weapon damage¡­ this surely is an item for the Element spell users.¡¯ After all, for the spirit spell users, it didn¡¯t matter how great the weapon was. It was because the normal attack or the magic attack had nothing to do with the spirit magic. And this Orb was different. In the beginning, the weapon damage was greatly influenced by the spirit magic, and the ¡®magic charge¡¯ was a unique option that gave the option of summon magic. ¡®In addition, the Guardian Orb¡¯s Guardian protection option was a very unexpected one.¡¯ The cost of using the spirit magic and summoning a spirit was the need for the ¡®Summon Magic¡¯. And for Ian to summon a fire spirit, Ian was in need of the summon magic. Thus, the ¡®magic charge¡¯ unique ability was enough to make the orb feel worthy enough. Easy supply of the summon magic meant that he had a faster chance to grow the spirit ¡®Magbi¡¯. ¡®Uhuh, I will be able to grow Magbi to a Spirit King.¡¯ As a medium spirit, Magbi was surely playing an enormous role in the group. And if such one gets to be a spirit king, Ian himself wasn¡¯t sure what kind of a monster he would turn out to be. ¡®Adding another goal before hunting! Let¡¯s fill up the spirit power that Magbi needs!¡¯ Ian who got a better item than he was expecting was feeling much more motivated. This could be once seen as a content pre-emption, and so his motivation hadn¡¯t died. Syarlon told something, ¡°And Ian.¡± ¡°Hu, Syarlon.¡± ¡°If it is you, I think that it will be possible¡­¡± ¡°Go on.¡± As Syarlon put his arms out, he pulled out an old plaque. And he passed it to Ian and opened his mouth again, ¡°Have you ever been to the place called ¡®Spirit Dojo¡¯ in Pneuma Village?¡± ¡°Spirit dojo in¡­¡± Ian stopped halfway. He had surely heard the name Spirit dojo somewhere. And it wasn¡¯t so hard to bring it from his memory. ¡®Ah, the one that I didn¡¯t enter because I was asked to pay for an admission fee¡­ that old building?!¡¯ As he remembered, system messages came into Ian¡¯s sight. Tring-! [Obtained ¡®Unknown Nameplate¡¯ item.] Syarlon continued, ¡°This Necklace can take this there to the Spirit Dojo?¡± At the request of Syarlon, Ian nodded. ¡°Uh, well¡­ this isn¡¯t such a difficult task.¡± However, as the words of Syarlon continued, Ian¡¯s expression began to change. ¡°If you can go up to the 15th floor of it, give it to my younger sibling ¡®Syarlion¡¯.¡± ¡°It looked so small¡­ it has 15 floors?¡± ¡°Not 15 floors, it has 100 floors.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°That isn¡¯t the important one.¡± After that, Syarlon said, ¡°If you give this to my younger sibling, you will get another Guardian gear. And maybe if you are good enough¡­ try doing it.¡± ¡°Oh!¡± ¡°How¡¯s that, will you try?¡± Without even thinking, Ian nodded. If he could get the same item as a Guardian orb, then he wouldn¡¯t mind doing any quest. For Ian, Syarlon had one last request. ¡°However, be careful. The Spirit Dojo is much harder than you think.¡± CH 560 -Syarlon¡¯s Errands (Hidden) In the old village of Pneuma, there is a ¡®Martial arts Dojo¡¯ to practice for self-improvement. The name of the place is ¡®Spirit Dojo¡¯. The Spirit Dojo is an age-old heritage of the Goral and is a place that gives them huge pride. The twin brother of Syarlon, Syarlion is one of the masters who have kept the Spirit dojo for many years. Member, and you¡¯ll be able to get a lot of fame and a guardian gear. Challenge the Spirit Dojo to earn the qualification of the Honorary Conduit. And this would be considered to be the first step to becoming the ¡®Spirit Guardian¡¯. Quest Difficulty: B+ And Syarlon has been impressed with your abilities. And he has recommended you to his younger brother, Syarlion as an ¡®Honorary Conduit¡¯. If you meet Syarlion, hand over the nameplate over to him then get recognized as an Honorary Quest Condition: Affinity of 100 with Spirit Guardian Syarlon. Time Limit: none Reward: Affinity with the ¡®Goral¡¯ race by 10 permanently. Fame of 500,000. Guardian Mask. Ian who had read all the contents of the quest which he had received from Syarlon, headed in the direction of the Pneuma Village. The newly obtained quest, it wasn¡¯t sure how much time it would be taking for a clear, but Ian wanted to finish it as soon as possible so it wouldn¡¯t interfere with the hunting schedule. ¡®By the way, I got to know some interesting facts with the quest.¡¯ The Kailan¡¯s view of the world was so great, that it really went well with the game. What it meant was, even a small NPC with a little role¡ªhad an edge of their own¡ªand stories of their own. And because of such minor information that could be received from the quest, even though it wasn¡¯t so useful right away, it would still be efficient in the future. And in the quest, Ian¡¯s ¡®minor¡¯ information had two points. First one, it could be said that the spirit guardian race of Syarlon, who had huge horns on their heads were called¡ªGoral. Secondly, the spirit guardian which had been referred to as Syarlon wasn¡¯t a position for him alone, but for a user too. ¡®Information which might help someday.¡¯ Ian nodded while trying to make himself remember these things in mind. And while reading the quest, Ian was able to reach the village of Pneuma. ¡®Kay, I think it was around this way¡­¡¯ Ian found out the Spirit Dojo without much difficulty. And it was because the size of the Pneuma village wasn¡¯t so huge. Krrk- krrk-! When Ian pushed open the handle on the door, the sound of the old wood creaking started to ring. And inside, Ian found an NPC guarding at the counter. ¡°I want to go into the dojo, how am I supposed to do it?¡± Similar to Syarlon, but a lot younger than Syarlon, the NPC looked at Ian thoroughly. It wasn¡¯t much difficult for Ian to know that he belonged to the Goral race. ¡°If you can pay 500 asters, I¡¯ll give you a ticket.¡± ¡°That so.¡± ¡°By the way, this is my first time seeing you¡­ first time to a dojo?¡± ¡°Ah yeah. This is my first time here.¡± ¡°Then, there are a few things I need to explain about this.¡± ¡°Explain¡­?¡± ¡°Yes. I will explain it to the first-timers who come in here, so the information I give will turn out to be useful when challenging the dojo.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± ¡°And there is a need for the information giving too. In case one doesn¡¯t know about it, it can be dangerous in time of the challenge.¡± At the end of the talk of the NPC, a old parchment paper came into the hands of the NPC. As he unfolded the parchment, he looked at it from the top to the bottom. ¡°¡­?¡± And handed it over to Ian. Ian began to read about the contents in the paper with a lot of anticipation, and the parchment paper did indeed have interesting things to say. Challenging Instructions: First, the dojo consists of 100 floors, and each of the floor has to be challenged one after the other. Each time a floor is conquered, a special reward and a ¡®Hero score¡¯ will be provided. *Special rewards can be only earned on the first conquest, and Hero score can be earned through the repeated challenges. (Hero Score can be exchanged at the entrance of the Dojo for a transcendence box.) *When the first conquest is done, double rewards are received. Secondly, there won¡¯t be death when challenging the dojo but will be summoned outside of the Dojo. *There is a chance to lose fame if the level of transcendence is too low. Third, a party with three can challenge the dojo, and the difficulty will increase according to the increase of the members. Fourth, on the 15th, 30th, 70th, 90th floors, you will meet the ¡®Dojo master¡¯, and if you can win against the master, you will get a transcendence gearbox right away. (Challenging the same master more than that can¡¯t be done) In addition, if you win against the master, you can try to take up the dojo from the very beginning if you want to re-challenge. *If you win against the 99th floor dojo master, you will be able to enter the 100th floor which opens only once a day. Fifth (Attention!), if you challenge a duel with another challenger(s), you will battle out with the challenger first. And if you win over the battle, naturally, you will be declared to have cleared the floor, but if you lose, you will be summoned to the front of the dojo. *On the contrary, if you are attacked by the other challengers during your dojo battle (On being attacked, the existing battle will be paused and the vitality lost due to the dojo battle won¡¯t be restored). *If more than one challenger is dueling, you need to wait until the duel ends. *The challenger can be either a ¡®User¡¯ or an ¡®NPC¡¯. *All the information of the other challengers will not be revealed (Level, class, etc.). the number in the party and the remaining vitality won¡¯t be revealed either, so be careful when challenging the other challengers. * * * ¡°Wah, what is the number of the tries?¡± ¡°Well, I gave up counting after the 10th floor try¡­¡± Ralph, Inisco, and Chesk. The trio had already been killed by the Spirit Dojo for three days straight. Ralph¡¯s other party members were not fine with it and went back to the Human system everyday, but the other three of them had been trying to do it for the purpose of clearing it. And the reason why they have been so stubborn wasn¡¯t difficult to comprehend. The reason why they have been trying so far was due to the Dojo master they get to meet after the 14th floor. And if they manage to win against him, ¡®Transcendence gearbox¡¯ was the reward that they would be getting. The rewards till the 13th floor weren¡¯t bad, but all of them were the miscellaneous items or the materials. However, the reward on the 15th floor was a gearbox. A reward that had to be obtained. In addition, unlike the situation where all the rest of the group didn¡¯t even reach the 10th floor, the three-member party was barely failing the 14th. If this wasn¡¯t a greedy situation, they couldn¡¯t have been called as the rankers of Kailan. But after the major announcement had been done, the three started to get a bit nervous. ¡°Ralph, why don¡¯t we just stop over now?¡± ¡°Yeah, Ralph hyung. Chesk hyung is right. It is great enough that we came till the 14th floor. Even if we don¡¯t go till the 15th floor¡­¡± ¡°Yeah. We need to level up the transcendence from the moment. I don¡¯t even know how long it will take for us to shoot up to the level of 10. It will be easier if we come here with a level 10 and take the challenge.¡± But with the persuasive tactics of Chesk and Inisco, Ralph glared at them. And Ralph wasn¡¯t the kind who would give up the transcendence gearbox so easily. ¡®Uh, we were very close to obtaining it¡­¡¯ Surely, even if they didn¡¯t win over the dojo master, they would still get the transcendence gearbox. They could buy one with the Hero Score. But the problem was the price to get the box was pretty nasty. ¡®1st floor 1 point, 2nd floor 2 points¡­ what time would I collect 10,000?¡¯ There were a total of 10 types of transcendence gearboxes sold at the entrance of the dojo. However, even the lowest rate gearbox had to be purchased with 10,000 points. And the score that Ralph¡¯s group had obtained after non-stop hard work was 1,500. In the future, the more they went higher, the higher the possibilities of them to buy the lowest rate box. Ralph took a deep breath and slowly opened his mouth, ¡°Phew¡­ even I know that. But¡­ but isn¡¯t this a bit too disappointing?¡± ¡°I understand that¡­¡± ¡°It sure is, but this is already our third time.¡± ¡°¡­¡± A moment of silence between the three. And after a while, Ralph spoke again, ¡°Let¡¯s do it one last time, really.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t have been so obsessed with this if we weren¡¯t the first challengers.¡± Ralph bit his lip and looked at both Inisco and Chesk. After a short sigh, both of them responded, ¡°Well¡­ Ralph, you do make some ridiculous sense. When we get the first clear reward, it¡¯ll get us two gearboxes, which would mean that it is a time well spent.¡± ¡°Uhuh, sure is a bit¡­¡± Both Inisco and Chesk looked at each other. After a second, they faced Ralph and nodded. Chesk was the first to say, ¡°Okay, Ralph, let¡¯s do it just one last time.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Inisco shook his head and spoke, ¡°Let¡¯s burn our souls till the end this time, Ralph hyung. There was a lot of content which had been stolen away by the other guys, so let¡¯s pre-empt this one too.¡± Ralph clenched his fists and agreed with them. ¡°Nice! Let¡¯s get this done!¡± The three men were able to enter the same opinion and discussed about their last battle. And in a moment, they entered the Dojo again. At this point, however, the three didn¡¯t know. That their single decision they took at the moment, would really burn down their mental strength to the core. CH 561 Exactly 5 minutes¡­ The time Ian took to clear the first floor to the fifth floor of the Spirit Dojo was no more than five minutes. It was a known thing for such a situation to happen. It was a matter of course. In the Spirit Dojo, each level of the opponent that appeared was according to the challenger¡¯s level. The monsters¡¯ level of transcendence, which Ian was hunting, was around 13 to 14 so clearing the 5th floor wasn¡¯t an easy task. Tring-! [You have won against the trainees!] [You have successfully cleared the 6th floor of the spirit dojo.] [You have acquired the item ¡®Medium Wind essence¡¯.] [You have earned 5 points.] ¡­ Syncopation¡­ [You have successfully cleared the 7th floor of the Spirit Dojo.] [You have successfully cleared the 8th floor of the Spirit dojo.] Clearing 8 floors one after the other, Ian could feel the greed rise inside himself the more he kept looking at the dojo. ¡®The reward is surely great. Maybe I should have come here before going to the Contaminated Mine?¡¯ Ian smiled while thinking about it. While Ian was busy doing the Spirit Mountain quest, someone had already pre-empted the content there. Maybe around the first clear, he was thinking that it would have been very rewarding if he came here first. ¡®Uh, I don¡¯t know who was that user who came in here first, but I just hope that they haven¡¯t cleared the 15th floor yet.¡¯ Ian¡¯s goal and the quest achievement was to defeat the dojo master on the 15th floor. As much as he wanted to get the ¡®Gearbox¡¯ on the 15th floor, he wanted to get double the reward. ¡°Huhu.¡± A greedy laugh came out of Ian¡¯s mouth. The thought of clearing the quest and then opening two of the transcendence gearbox made Ian feel so good. Ian quickly stepped into the gate that would take him to the next floor. System messages appeared. Tring-! [Do you want to challenge the 9th floor of the Spirit Dojo?] ¡®From the 9th floor, the trainees will be at the same level as me. I need to be a bit more careful.¡¯ Ian nodded to himself. Ian¡¯s form quickly got sucked into the gate. * * * Wheeeing-! The gate opened with a low resonance, and the quiet hall was disturbed. ¡°Huk, huk!¡± ¡°Wah, that was close.¡± ¡°Yah, Chesk, we would have almost slipped out of the 13th floor because of your mistakes!¡± Ralph¡¯s hard voice could be heard all over the place. One would already know what happened on the 13th floor just by hearing their voices. ¡°I should have been out if hyung didn¡¯t hit that paralysis arrow!¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I have been playing for so long that my arms are getting numb.¡± Ralph and the others just cleared the 13the floor. They were gathered in the waiting room, wiping off the sweat from their foreheads. If they slipped out of the 13th floor instead of reaching the 14th floor, then he would have lost all of his enthusiasm. Tring-! [You have successfully cleared the 13th floor of the Spirit Dojo.] [Hero score of 13 points has been achieved.] [Vitality has been restored.] [You have entered the waiting room.] Looking at the messages, Ralph just shook his head. He had seen the same messages a dozen times already. ¡®Yeah, well, we need to clear the next floor unconditionally this time. We¡¯ll have to break through the 14th floor and then find out what is on the 15th floor¡­ I¡¯ll clear it at all cost.¡¯ Ralph was adamant and quickly checked his condition. After entering the waiting room, all of their vitality and skills were reset, but it had become a habit for rankers to just verify and maintain everything. Ralph looked at it and moved ahead with a firm look. His whole body had already reached its limit because of being in the tower for three days, but he was still trying to keep himself standing with his mental power. Tuck- Tuck-! Ralph, who reached the gate with heavy steps, looked back at his two other party members. He opened his mouth with a very low voice. ¡°Well, the spirit of Inisco had just evolved, so let¡¯s clear it this time.¡± ¡°Kay, Ralph.¡± ¡°Nice, Hyung.¡± Ralph¡¯s gaze went toward Chesk and spoke once more. ¡°Chesk, if you make such mistakes again, I won¡¯t tolerate it.¡± ¡°Okay, I will get myself together.¡± The three men with firm faces alternately stared at each other. After a while, they were ready to step into the gate. Swoong-! The gate began to emanate blue light and started to suck in the three people. The waiting room once again turned silent after the three left. Was it around 30 minutes since the party of Ralph had disappeared? Woong-! At the gate where they appeared, a new resonating sound came out. Someone other than Ralph¡¯s party had cleared the 13th floor. Subsequently, the shadow that appeared at the gate mumbled to itself, ¡°Phew, it wasn¡¯t so easy. I cleared it all somehow until I get here.¡± Tat- tat-! The shadow began to walk in a relaxed manner toward the gate. He was none other than Ian. Surprisingly, Ian climbed up the 13th floor easily when Ralph¡¯s party had to try three times to clear it. ¡°So I¡¯m going to the last gate before I meet the Dojo master, right?¡± After checking his equipment, Ian looked at the gate with his alert eyes. It took a couple of hours to get to the 13th floor, and it surely was tremendous when compared to the party of Ralph. ¡°I¡¯m here.¡± Standing in front of the 14th floor, Ian took a step without hesitation. A system message that Ian wasn¡¯t expecting appeared in front of him. Tring-! [The other challenger has entered the gate.] [You will have to face the other challengers first.] [Do you want to proceed with the challenge?] As soon as he checked the message, Ian smiled. ¡°Oh ho, looks like I am late?¡± Of course, the probability that the challenger was on the 14th floor wasn¡¯t excluded. Ian himself knew that there were other users there. They probably were the ones who had intercepted the first rewards till the 13th floor. Ian¡¯s head started to work again. ¡®What should I do? Should I accept the challenge even though I know that it is risky?¡¯ Ian had two options. First, wait in the so-called waiting room until the challengers complete their fight. Second, try to know who the challengers were and defeat them first. Not surprisingly, the second option had a lot of risks. Challengers entering the 14th floor might have a higher power than Ian. The odds of having to face a single user one-on-one like Ian was very slim, but it was likely for a party to evade. No matter how great Ian was, it was arrogant of him to think that he would be able to turn out victorious against two or more rankers of other servers. Ian¡¯s decision was the second option¡ªthe risky one. ¡°Even if there is a risk in it¡­ I think it is a situation that I¡¯ll face one way or another.¡± Ian was willing to go ahead with the challenge, even if it meant losing to other challengers. Even if he was defeated, he would just be pushed out of the dojo. On the other hand, if he took the risk and accepted the challenge, he would likely get the buff and the reward for the 14th floor. Ian decided that it was worth a try. ¡°Kay, let¡¯s see what kind of friends are waiting there¡­¡± Ian¡¯s eyes started to sparkle as he looked at the series of messages that appeared. Tring-! [You have challenged.] [To challenge the 14th floor, you must first duel with the challengers on the 14th floor.] [A duel with the challengers has been registered.] [Moved to the duel room.] Ian¡¯s vision began to get engulfed with a white light. * * * Gulp. In the quiet room, the sound of someone gulping could be heard. Tension could be felt everywhere. The four men, confronting the spacious room, began to look with keen eyes. In a duel, all the information of the opponent was covered, so the only thing they knew was their opponent¡¯s equipment. Even their opponent¡¯s face was covered with a mask, so even if they had met the person their facing before, they wouldn¡¯t be able to recognize them. ¡®Dammit, this was an important moment¡­!¡¯ Looking at the man on the other side, Ralph bit his lip. In fact, this wasn¡¯t his first time to participate in a duel. They have been in the dojo for three days, and he had met a challenger NPC a few times. Which was why when he saw the ¡®Challenger has entered¡¯ messages, he wasn¡¯t that surprised. He just felt like he had rotten luck. ¡®This is the first time for a challenger to come after the 10th floor¡­ Can we win?¡¯ Ralph didn¡¯t think that the challenger would be a user. It wasn¡¯t like he wasn¡¯t expecting to be faced with a user. He just thought that if there was a user, he wouldn¡¯t show by himself. For a single user to come up to the place where three people tried hard to go to, no matter how hard Ralph thought about it, that made no sense to him. He thought it wasn¡¯t much of a deal. If the challenger was a normal user, he would have surely waited for the other ones to complete the floor and then challenge it. ¡®Yeah, I¡¯m positive about it. Unless that one is a high-leveled NPC, he won¡¯t be able to take down three rankers.¡¯ Ralph quickly began to give out orders in the party chat. Ralph: Let¡¯s move slowly and surround him. Chesk, keep your bow ready. If it looks like he will cast magic, shoot him down to cancel his casting. Chesk: Okay, Ralph. Inisco: Okay, hyung! Equipped with a weapon which looked like an Orb, the guy was most likely to be a warlock or a wizard class. For that reason, Ralph thought it would be important to narrow their distance to the opponent. After narrowing the distance and interrupting their enemy¡¯s casting, there was no way they wouldn¡¯t be able to kill a wizard with weak tanking abilities. ¡®We all have low vitality¡­ but if Chesk can manage to cut off the enemy¡¯s magic, then it could be a huge problem for him.¡¯ After his calculations, Ralph moved. In order to not give him the time to cast any magic, he rushed over to him. But the very next moment. Ralph couldn¡¯t help but panic. ¡°¡­!¡± He was holding a fiery longbow in his hands; the man, who was equipped with an orb, now had a bow. In Ralph¡¯s short duration of hesitation, the man already began shooting his arrows without giving a second thought. CH 562 Chapter 562: The Reckless Challenger 2 Ian had a good look at the scene. As soon as he entered the duel room, he was able to recognize the identity of the three, which was Ralph and his team. ¡®What is this? I thought someone else was here¡­ It was these idiots?¡¯ One warrior, an archer and finally a summoner. All the information had been covered up, and it wasn¡¯t an easy task for Ian to identify the warrior as Ralph since the users in the room were turned into pitch-black shadows. However, unlike the two, the summoner Inisco, gave away too many clues that enabled Ian to identify him. Specifically, the Griffin King, his main summon. Among all the summons that he had, it was the only unique one. That summon was like Karceus and Elcarix. That was the Griffin King. Given all those details, Ian was convinced that the identity of the three shadows was Ralph¡¯s party. ¡®Huhu, their friends, huh? This sure is worth trying.¡¯ If Ian and the party of Ralph went against each other after their information was displayed, then victory wasn¡¯t guaranteed for Ian. After all, they were the strongest rankers in the US server, and no trick would be able to overcome them together. However, the situation was different now. Ian knew about the trio, but they didn¡¯t know about him. They didn¡¯t know anything about Ian at all. ¡®They knew me as a knight class last time¡­ Unless Muel decided to stab me in the back, there is no way that they would know.¡¯ Ian, on the other hand, knew everything about their powers. ¡®I just need to catch Ralph first. Chesk too does a great amount of deal, but once Ralph is taken cared of, he won¡¯t be able to do anything¡­¡¯ Ian stared at Ralph and Chesk and then turned towards the direction of Inisco. From the mouth of Ian came a bloody laugh. ¡®Inisco? That jerk has the confidence to come all this way, huh?¡¯ The level of Ralph and Chesk in the human system would be the same as Ian. However, what Ian felt from Inisco was that he was way below Ian. In fact, it was almost impossible for him to touch Ian even though they were both Summoners. In addition, there was no one who was able to understand the mechanism of the Summoner¡¯s combat capabilities as much as Ian. Because of that, for Ian, Inisco was the easiest one to deal with. However, there was something that was bugging Ian. Unlike Ian, who recalled all of his summons to hide his identity, Inisco appeared along with all of his familiars, why? Was Inisco disregarding the challenger? Or was Inisco stupid? Surely, it could be both. The ¡®Spirit Dojo¡¯ was a content that was made to favor the challenger. Unlike the party of Ralph, which had been forcefully summoned from the middle of the battle with all their summons and equipment out, Ian came in from the waiting room. In short, Ian had the time to prepare for the battle and the party of Ralph didn¡¯t. ¡®Huhu. Since my class is Summoner¡­ you won¡¯t be able to predict that, right?¡¯ In the short time he had, Ian tried to analyze as much as he could. And then, his most awaited system messages appeared. Tring-! [You have entered the ¡®Duel Room¡¯.] [The Duel will begin after a while.] [All kinds of ¡®return¡¯ skills and items are prohibited. No one can exit the battlefield until the battle is over. (No log out)] [The battle will begin after 5 seconds.] [The battle will begin after 4¡­] Ian, who read the system messages, shook both his hands. Before the battle began, he was simulating in his head on how he was supposed to tackle and attack. ¡®Start, archer, their guys.¡¯ After a while, the battle began. ¡°Magbi, Summon!¡± In the hands of Ian came the longbow with flames all over it. * * * ¡®This¡­ what is this¡­?¡¯ Ralph rushed to the one whom he thought was an NPC and was confused with the unexpected attack. Of course, he was shocked. The opponent whom he assumed to be a wizard was suddenly holding a bow. There was a spell in the Wizard class, where the user could summon a bow and shoot arrows. But the opponent was a madman; there was no way a wizard could summon a bow without a second of casting time. ¡®What? He was an archer? Then, what is that strange fire thing floating next to him?¡¯ Feeling confused, Ralph tried to avoid the incoming arrows. If he was a bit calmer, he could have realized that the thing was a spirit, but Ralph wasn¡¯t in his right mind. The arrows of Ian, which had been coming his way, weren¡¯t giving him time either. Ping- Piping-! Ian was throwing his arrows to the spot where Ralph landed after evading. It was as if Ian could predict Ralph¡¯s movements. It was like the arrows knew where should they fall. ¡°Euh¡­!¡± Puck-! [You have received devastating damage from the ¡®challenger ???¡¯.] [Vitality has been reduced by 789!] [You have received devastating damage from the ¡®challenger ???¡¯.] [Vitality has been reduced by 425!] [Vitality has been reduced by 688!] The vitality of Ralph kept getting cut down one after the other and the messages kept on showing up. ¡®Crazy, why does an NPC have such a hit rate?¡¯ Ralph held his lips tight and read all the messages that came up. He tried to relax. Apart from the immense bow skills of Ralph¡¯s enemy, its damage was stronger than he thought. ¡®Kuem, if this is how much the deal is, then I should give up that narrowing distance thing¡­!¡¯ However, it didn¡¯t take long for him to realize that he made a mistake. After a moment, he gave his back to the arrow, a huge shock came from that. Kwang-! [The ¡®Hellfire¡¯ mark exploded.] [Vitality was reduced by 4,179.] [The ¡®Hellfire¡¯ mark exploded.] [Vitality was reduced by 3,897.] ¡°¡­?¡± Ralph¡¯s transcendence vitality was around 150,000. However, that was if his vitality was full. He had less than half of his vitality when he got summoned to the duel room. As soon as the battle began, in less than 30 seconds, he took over 10,000 worth of damage. If he allowed the opponent to attack at the same pace, he would be out of the game in just three minutes. ¡®Crazy! What is this!? What¡¯s with the deal all of a sudden!?¡¯ Ralph¡¯s gaze went in the direction of Chesk and Inisco. His orders were wrong from the very beginning, but he had to figure out what they were even doing. * * * The monitoring room of LB for Kailan was located deep in the underground of the headquarters building. It was a controlled area where not everyone could enter. And it was intended to be that way. It was because the PCs in the monitoring room of Kailan contained all of its videos. If the staff could just freely walk in there, then the personal information of the users could be leaked. As a result, only the members of the monitoring room and some of the planning teams were able to enter and exit the monitoring room. But even with that, there were a few exceptions. In the face of the major update that was coming in the upcoming days, a few members of the marketing team were given access to the monitoring room. The reason was obvious. The marketing team had to pick a source for the promotional video. Of course, the planning team or the monitoring team could have done that, but that would look bad for their team. Not only did they have to find the right video source for their marketing team, but the planning and the monitoring team were also busy too. Anyway, for that reason, the two designers of the marketing team were seated in the corner of the monitoring room. One of them was Park Ki-hoon, who was placed in the monitoring team before being in the marketing team, and the other one was his new associate, Kim So-young. ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­ now, we have gotten a little bit of video, right, So-young?¡± ¡°Yes, sir. It will be necessary to ask for the understanding of the users, but it doesn¡¯t seem like it will be that difficult.¡± ¡°Nice. Let¡¯s find the main dish.¡± ¡°Yep! Okay!¡¯ ¡°Keep your eyes open and look, So-young. I need at least 2 to 3 main dishes today.¡± At the words of Park Ki-hoon, Kim¡¯s eyes went wide. Although Kim was a new employee, she knew how hard it was to monitor. ¡°Huh? There is a lot to monitor. Would that even be possible? I thought that getting one would be great enough¡­¡± At the words from So-young, Park Ki-hoon laughed. ¡°Huhu, So-young.¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± ¡°How many times do you think I have done this work since joining here?¡± ¡°This work¡­?¡± At her question, Ki-hoon spoke again, ¡°Content update, promotional video sources.¡± ¡°Ah, that¡­ maybe around ten times?¡± Ki-hoon shook his head. ¡°What ten times are you talking about? I did that over twenty times.¡± ¡°But¡­ But why would you¡­?¡± Ki-hoon smiled and looked at So-young who was puzzled. ¡°What do you mean why? I will show you the know-how from now on.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°In one hour, shall we pick up a video?¡± At the confident words from Ki-hoon, So-young¡¯s eyes went wide. What he said was true. If that was the case, then she shouldn¡¯t miss whatever it was she was about to learn. It was about finding a source that could be used as a main promotional video by scrutinizing the video of Kailan¡¯s many users. If she could learn some tips and shorten their work, then she was willing to not even go home for the day. Tak tak-! Ki-hoon opened the search engine in the PC of the monitoring room and quickly hit the keys. The users¡¯ playtime appeared after a while. So-young who checked the video asked, ¡°Ian? This guy is ranked 1st among the Summoner class, right?¡± ¡°Right. After all, So-young who know nothing about the game, know Ian God¡¯s ID.¡± ¡°Well, it has been a while since I have joined, but he has been the name of the user which I had heard the most in the office.¡± ¡°Huhu, obviously, that would happen.¡± Kim Ki-hoon nodded his head and opened a video by clicking the mouse. At the top of the video, a brief information appeared on the screen. User: Ian User IP: KR/ 453.217.11.375 User Condition: Online Play Time: One Hour ago~ currently Viewpoint: Third person Subsequently, in the large screen of the monitoring room, the shadow of a man appeared. And around him were three fallen users. CH 563 Around 10 minutes before the battle could start. It could be said that the party of Ralph was completely in a state of panic. The NPC which was in front of them had stopped them from moving to the 15th floor, had an AI that was tremendous. On top of that¡ªit wasn¡¯t sure as to how the opponent was even thinking¡ªeven after the 10 minutes fight that they had entered, they weren¡¯t even able to guess the class of the so-called NPC. ¡®Wah, this is crazy! What the hell were they even thinking when creating such a character in such a state?¡¯ Ralph nodded to himself, rather thinking about it he had to find a way. If it went along like this, then in just a few more minutes, the whole party would get wiped out. ¡®I need to check for a way.¡¯ Honestly, if the challengers¡¯ information was all present, then the three of them would have given up their plans. But that wasn¡¯t the problem. The stats and specs of the challenger; they were the things that the three people had no clue about. And the damage that kept coming from the deal of the challenger was too much for them to deal with. ¡®As high as he can be, the transcendence level seems to be 11 to 12¡­ but what is that thing floating over it?¡¯ The assumption of him having a level of 11 to 12¡ªwas the same as the spirit dojo trainees that were on the 12th floor¡ªand also had the same difficulty. And it meant that it wouldn¡¯t be so hard for the three-member party to clear it. But that crazy man on the other side wasn¡¯t going to make it so easy for the three-member party. And with a blood-red sword in his hand for a second, till the bow that had flames all over it. From the beginning to the end, he even brought out a spear to battle¡ªwhen such drastic changes were seen in the battle¡ªthey couldn¡¯t help but feel nervous. ¡®Huh, how are we even supposed to catch such a guy, is that even possible?¡¯ Ralph was now turning to get nervous as the vitality had fallen down to 20%. Both Inisco and Chesk around 30 to 40% of the vitality left on them, but it still was a very low vitality considering the class and abilities they had. It sure was a situation where the vitality they had before entering the duel room was strained, but the fight that happened here took down their morale along with the vitality. Biting on his lip, Ralph once again looked over at the challenger. The next moment, they gazed at each other. And from the mouth of the pitch-black challenger, came out some words, ¡°Tch, three against one is so boring¡­¡± ¡°This, this bastard¡­!!!¡± Ralph got angry. The challenger spoke those words directed to the US server ranker. Who would have done such a thing? And spoke back to the one whom he thought as an NPC. ¡°Man! You¡¯re dead¡­!!!¡± Ralph who was ready to curse out, exploded out of anger. And the body of Ralph started to blow out red fumes as he was getting ready. * * * ¡°Wah¡­ he really is a crazy one¡­¡± ¡°Surely is very cool too.¡± In the monitoring room of LB company. The ones who were looking at the screen, Park Ki-hoon and Kim So-young, were both looking at the screen with wide eyes. They were watching the video of the battle from the start again. ¡°Ha, So-young, when the game isn¡¯t played, feeling such things is impossible.¡± ¡°Feel¡­ does it have anything to do?¡± ¡°So-young, you like soccer?¡± ¡°Huh, my boyfriend is a huge fan of soccer¡­¡± Looking at her, then after a moment, Park Ki-hoon opened his mouth, ¡°Right now, if you consider the things on the screen with soccer¡­. They are like Messi, to Park Ji-suk and other top players who think of the three in that manner.¡± ¡°Uh¡­? They are that good?¡± ¡°Yeah. Surely Ralph, Chesk, and Inisco aren¡¯t as great as the soccer players, but even then, they are the rankers of the US server.¡± And Ian, on the other hand, was someone they had met for a brief period. He had used three weapons to go against the three users of the US server. No matter how much of a video it was, it looked like an all-action film from a few angles. And right then, the last moments of the battle were approaching. The two people who were looking over at the battle video got up from their seats in excitement. ¡°Wah!!!¡± ¡°Uh, that was dangerous!¡± * * * The moment that Ralph moved to avoid the projectiles, Ian jumped into the air. And as Ian moved, the three people were trying to follow him. And the projectiles of the three people who didn¡¯t have a chance started to move in the direction where Ian was moving, and no matter who saw it, it would be a situation one couldn¡¯t get off. Maybe it would have been different if he was on the ground, but Ian just jumped into the ground and there was no way to avoid projectiles in the air. An inevitable situation. But the very moment, something has appeared in the hands of Ian. ¡®Should I try it out now¡­?¡¯ Even as the familiars of Inisco were heading in the direction of Ian, he wasn¡¯t at least a bit shocked or tensed. Instead, he had a smile on his lips, and that smile went wide further. Puck- Ping-! All the projectiles and deal went the direction of Ian from the party of Ralph. However, the vitality of Ian hadn¡¯t fallen down by much. No, the vitality of Ian had decreased very less than it was supposed to. [The ¡®Guardian Orb¡¯ has been activated.] [The ¡®Guardian¡¯s Protection¡¯ has been activated.] [The ¡®Guardian¡¯s Protection¡¯ has absorbed 94.5% of the attack from A(Unknown) challenger.] [The ¡®Guardian¡¯s Protection¡¯ has absorbed 82.48% of the attack from C(Unknown) challenger.] [The ¡®Guardian¡¯s Protection¡¯ has absorbed 75.48% of the attack from B(Unknown) challenger.] [Because of not being able to absorb, your vitality has been reduced by 15,783.] [For being able to successfully avoid, the vitality has been increased by 33,850.] The Guardian Orb item which Ian had received from Syarlon. From that orb, the unique ability of Guardian¡¯s Protection had been used. ¡°¡­?!¡± ¡°What is this¡­?!¡± The unique ability of the Guardian¡¯s Orb which was being used had the cooldown of 30 seconds when it could be used again. And for the one second when the ability got activated, there was a heal option that was attached to it. And Ian had used it knowing very correctly. Once he knew the exact timing of the attack, then the attack could be met in the very perfect manner as possible. Then the whole attacks which had come in from the party of Ralph, got recovered in just a span of 1 second? No, that couldn¡¯t be the case. Which was why, the moment that the Guardian¡¯s Protection has been activated, Ian added another skill. [The familiar ¡®Elcarix¡¯s¡¯ unique ability, ¡®Dragonic Barrier¡¯ has been activated.] [All the aggro has been absorbed.] [Attack from ¡®???¡¯ has been avoided.] [The durability of Dragonic Barrier has been decreased by 25.] [The durability of Dragonic Barrier has been decreased by 17.] The moment when Ian had activated the Guardian¡¯s Orb, he set the timing when it recovers and used the skill of Dragonic Barrier of Elcarix¡¯s. This was the skill connect which Ian had used for the purpose of efficiently avoiding the incoming deals. If Ian would have used the Dragonic Barrier from the very start, maybe the barrier would have ended before it could have even stopped all of the projectiles. And if that happened, then Ian would have received a minimum 30,000 damage. And in the Middle-Earth, the transcendence level of Elcarix was still 4, no matter how bright the specs of it were, it would still be lacking when it came to battle. However, with the activation of the ¡®Guardian Orb¡¯ in the beginning, he took in the major damages and the first. The barrier had to only take down the after damages. It was effective when it came to absorbing all the other secondary damages which had come with it. ¡°What kind of skills is he using?¡± ¡°This is a bug!!!!¡± Ralph was flustered and began speaking to himself, his expression changed in a moment. And surely what just happened, would have left anyone flustered and confused. Till now, the casting that he had done with the use of the skills of Elcarix, was something they wouldn¡¯t understand as they didn¡¯t know that Ian was a summoner. And for those who weren¡¯t able to understand the working and mechanism of Ian and his skills, the situation would surely make them feel bad. Ian smiled and thought to himself. ¡®Bug? Stupid users should die¡­!¡¯ Ian who jumped into the air came close to the ground for landing. Ian who had held onto the Judgment of the Spirit King waved his spear. Kwang-! That wasn¡¯t the end. At the top of Ian, right when he had waved his spear, huge shadows had come across and covered him. Kwaaa-! With very huge bodies, they all took down the vitality of the party of Ralph in an instant. [Summon ¡®Elcarix¡¯ dragon breath has been triggered.] [Summon ¡®Karceus¡¯ dragon breath has been triggered.] [Summon ¡®Bbookbbook¡¯ dragon breath has been triggered.] The summons of Ian which hadn¡¯t been summoned for long were summoned and directed all their attacks at the party of Ian. Ralph and the party members who were just done with the attacking didn¡¯t even have the time to react or to avoid the incoming projectiles. [The challenger ¡®C(Unknown)¡¯ has lost.] [The challenger ¡®A(Unknown)¡¯ has lost.] [The challenger ¡®B(Unknown)¡¯ has lost.] Without even knowing what hit them, the party of Ralph were out of the challenge. * * * ¡°Kyaa¡­!¡± ¡°Kue, this!¡± The ones who were watching in the monitoring room were screaming on top of their lungs. It was the screams that came from watching the video of Ian. And the eyes of all the ones in the room were directed towards the screen. And the moment the battle ended, their eyes went back to normal. ¡°Wah, they really were the rankers of the US?¡± ¡°Kue¡­ all in one moment. The video highlight was that one moment.¡± ¡°What a surprise!¡± ¡°Have you gone to the community and saw what happened recently? The rankers are what¡¯s special recently.¡± ¡°Ahah.¡± ¡°If the video of Ian going against Ralph will be uploaded¡­ this video would go top in the search.¡± And among the planning team 3 was the team leader Na Ji-chan and Kim Ji-yeon. ¡°Wah, surely Ian is Ian.¡± ¡°Miss Kim, you seem surprised once again.¡± ¡°Everytime I see him, it seems so new. I knew that he was an adventurous one, but didn¡¯t know that he would be able to take down 3 of the US rankers.¡± Kim Ji-yeon shook her head as she was trying to regain her composure. However, Na Ji-chan spoke with a blank expression, ¡°Uh? The control sure is as great as ever, but wasn¡¯t the battle easy from the start?¡± ¡°Sorry?¡± ¡°Honestly, Ian surely defined the last moment. But if in the very situation it wasn¡¯t those three idiots and some other user, then the situation wouldn¡¯t be so easy for us to predict.¡± ¡°Huh? Why would that be? Then Ian wouldn¡¯t have been waiting till the end to summon his familiars?¡± Na Ji-chan and Kim Ji-yeon were talking, the whole of the monitoring room went silent. In the huge company of LB which made the Kailan, there was no one who was as knowledgable as Na Ji-chan when it came to the game, and everyone wanted to know his thoughts. ¡°The reason why Ian hadn¡¯t summoned his familiars till the end was, did you think that it was to see the abilities of the opponents?¡± ¡°Yeah¡­ is it not?¡± ¡°Surely.¡± Na Ji-chan shook his head. He looked over at the screen once again and then spoke, ¡°Have you seen the level of the summons of Ian?¡± ¡°Uh, let¡¯s see¡­ around level 4, level 3, level 5¡­ the average seems to be around 4.¡± ¡°Right.¡± ¡°Ian is of level 9¡­ why is the level of his summons so low?¡± ¡°That, because Ian was trying to grow his spirit so that he would level up, understood?¡± ¡°Ah, ha¡­!¡± As she knew the unexpected answer, she shook her head. At the words of Na Ji-chan, Ms. Kim who wasn¡¯t able to understand the battle strategy of Ian was able to know it. ¡°The level of Inisco¡¯s summons were of level 6. The Griffin King was of level 7. Both Ralph and Chesk were of level 7.¡± ¡°Yeah, sure.¡± ¡°This situation, if he opened the up with his summons, how do you think that the situation would be?¡± Asked Na Ji-chan after smiling. And after a moment, Kim Ji-yeon opened her lips slowly, ¡°The summons would fall down one after the other from the beginning.¡± ¡°Right. The level of the tanking summon Bbakbbak was the lowest, so it would be the least.¡± ¡°Ahha¡­!¡± ¡°Which is why Ian hadn¡¯t summoned his familiars till the very end.¡± As the words of Na Ji-chan explained, all of them looked over at the screen. And the play of Ian was going on again. Na Ji-chan and Kim Ji-yeon were done talking and began to monitor again. After they had talked over about the fight of Ian and the battle strategy, they began to think stuff through. Once again they looked over at the screen, and with a light expression he looked over at the screen which had Ian in it. ¡®Yeah well, Ian, the War of Heroes¡­ the 1st of the world rankings who will that be? I surely will have to see that.¡¯ From the screen where Ian was there, the names of numerous users of the world started to appear. And for Na Ji-chan who had known the highest information about the game, knew that he would be able to see Ian go against users who were of the same category as Ian. And the moment when Ian would meet them, thinking of it made Na Ji-chan¡¯s heart flutter. CH 564 Chapter 564: The Last Preparation 1 [Challenger ¡®???¡¯ has won against the challenger team.] [You can challenge the 14th floor of the Spirit Dojo.] [Do you want to challenge? (Y/N)] ¡­ Syncopation¡­ [You have won against the trainees!] [You have successfully cleared the 14th floor of the Spirit Dojo.] [The first clear reward has been applied. [You have acquired the item ¡®Transcendence essence x2¡¯.] [You have earned 28 Hero Scores.] After successfully pushing out the party of Ralph, Ian had shortly challenged the 14th floor. And it wasn¡¯t so difficult to clear it. ¡®It was much easier than the 13th floor.¡¯ Surely the difficulty of the 14th floor was much higher than the 13th floor. However, the reason why the 14th floor was easy for Ian was due to the ¡®Commonplace¡¯. The 14th floor trainees were summoners, and for Ian, the summoners were the easiest opponents. ¡®I got to taste honey because of the Summon Ban skill.¡¯ Summon Ban, the unique ability of the Summoner Knight. There were a few conditions, but it was a skill that could completely neutralize the summons of the summoner opponent, which was a disastrous skill for Ian¡¯s opponent. Moreover, as Ian had expected, the first clear reward got applied for the 14th floor. ¡°Key, now, the real last jump?¡± After a little maintenance in the waiting room, Ian took a deep breath and slowly moved into the gate. The next moment¡­ [Moved to the 15th floor of the Spirit Dojo.] With that line of messages, Ian¡¯s vision went dark. Tring-! [You have entered the 15th floor of the Spirit Dojo.] [You have entered the test gate for the first time.] [Acquired fame for 50,000.] The darkened vision of Ian gradually brightened up, and new system messages had appeared before him. And in front of him, a familiar man was standing. ¡°Oh ho, it has been a while since a challenger came here.¡± When he heard a squeaky voice, Ian¡¯s mouth opened with a known voice. ¡°Syarlon¡­?¡± The appearance of the NPC in front of his eyes was exactly like the Guardian spirit Syarlon. And the NPC listened to Ian and moved a step forward out of curiosity. ¡°You know my brother?¡± At the end of the NPC¡¯s question, Ian nodded and replied, ¡°If you are referring to the Guardian Spirit, Syarlon, I know.¡± ¡°Ohoh.¡± ¡°I came all the way here because of his request.¡± Ian realized that the opponent in front of him was the brother of Syarlon, Syarlion. And he figured out what he was supposed to do in the situation. Ian pulled out the card which he had obtained from Syarlon. ¡°This¡­?¡± Syarlon¡¯s eyes widened as he found the wooden card, and the words of Ian continued, ¡°It is something that Syarlon has asked me to do.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°Syarlon has asked me to give this to you.¡± Syarlon was intrigued at what he had and accepted the nameplate Ian had. Then, the quest system message had emerged. [Spirit Dojo. Handed the Recommendation plaque to Syarlion.] [Quest conditions have been met.] And Syarlion began to read the words which were on the backside of the plaque. ¡®Hmm, I hope that this quest is just completed without any other problems¡­¡¯ The words on the back of the card were in an language that Ian couldn¡¯t read. But Ian could roughly infer what the content would have been. Based on the information written in the quest window. ¡®But, it can¡¯t happen. It is just a letter of recommendation.¡¯ According to the quest window and the information it had, Syarlon handed it over to Ian as a recommendation to recommend him as an ¡®honorary conduit¡¯. And to be that Honorary conduit, one had to pass the test of Syarlion. Ian stood there in front of Syarlion waiting, and soon the man on the opposite side opened his mouth again. ¡°Huhu, it is funny. A letter of recommendation from my brother¡­¡± Swak-! Syarlion, placed the plaque on the table and pulled something out of his hand. And Ian¡¯s gaze directly went in the direction of the object. ¡°That mask¡­ what is it?¡± At the question from Ian, Syarlion opened his mouth. ¡°The orb that you are holding.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± ¡°It was something that was born with him.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Ian¡¯s heart began to pound. At the words of Syarlion, Ian was able to realize the kind of mask it was. ¡®The Guardian Mask¡­!¡¯ The ¡®Guardian Mask¡¯, was a reward for the quest of Syralon¡¯s errand, which was another Guardian item. The most important reason for coming till the 15th floor of the spirit dojo was for the same purpose, and the object had appeared way before he imagined. Tring-! [Entered the Spirit Dojo, ¡®Test Gate¡¯ for the first time.] [You are currently in the process of ¡®Syarlon¡¯s Errand¡¯, hence special restriction will be applied.] [All unique abilities other than the ¡®Spirit Spell¡¯ have been sealed. (Unique ability of the item can be used.)] The place where he was fighting fiercely with the party of Ralph. On a map which looked fairly similar to it, Ian and Syarlion stood facing each other. But the interesting thing was that the ¡®Guardian Mask¡¯ was on the face of Ian. The Guardian Mask was an item that Ian was supposed to get after he had cleared the quest which he got from Syarlon. Would Ian clear of the quest if he went and passed the gate test of Syarlion? ¡°Let me know when you are ready.¡± ¡°Okay, Syarlion.¡± ¡°There is nothing to get nervous over, so no need to hurry.¡± In conclusion, the test of Syarlion hadn¡¯t even begun. For now, Syarlion had lent the mask to Ian to proceed with the test. ¡®Hmm, this is the first time for such a quest to go like this¡­¡¯ Syarlion¡¯s test was a kind of test which he had never encountered. Naturally, Ian thought that he would clear it by just fighting him, but the test gate was far different from that. Ian immediately recalled the conversation he had with Syarlion before entering the duel. ¡°How do I pass the test?¡± ¡°You have to show me the qualities of the guardians that you possess.¡± ¡°Qualities¡­ in the sense?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°How am I supposed to show it?¡± ¡°The way isn¡¯t so difficult. The Guardian Mask which I have just lent to you has the power. it can bring out every last ability in you.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°What I just meant, you will naturally understand it once you compete with me.¡± Syarlion hadn¡¯t mentioned whether he had to duel with him or not. Instead, he just lent the Guardian equipment and said it drew out the maximum ability of the item. ¡®The best of the abilities¡­ first, let¡¯s see what the item can do.¡¯ Ian opened the information window of the mask and began to read it thoroughly. Syarlion also told Ian that there was no need to rush it, so Ian planned on taking as much time as possible and see what the test actually was. Ian was convinced that the key to clearing the quest would be somewhere in the item information window. -Guardian Mask Classification: Incantation Mask Rank: Rare (transcendence) Wear restrictions: Summoner, need to be a ¡®Spirit Spell¡¯ Attack: 319 Durability: 770/770 Options: damage +125 (Increases spirit power by the proportion of weapon caused damage.) All combat abilities +20 (Transcendence) Leadership +5 (Transcendence) Affinity +5 (Transcendence) Spirit Magic +450 (Transcendence) Summon magic +200 (Transcendence) All the cooldown of the unique abilities of the summoned spirits has been reduced to 20%. *Spirit Fairy Tale -Basic lasting Effects When using all the spirit magic, the summoned power has been reduced by 15%. -Use Effect For a duration (25 seconds), the spirit magic without the summon magic can be used. (Cooldown time: 500 seconds) *Spirit Mask Spirits can be masked and it would still allow them to use their abilities. The four grand spirits (Fire, Water, Land, and Wind) will be encased in the mask, and after each passing second, the spirit¡¯s attribute will be changed. After 4 seconds have passed, or after the spirit power has been used, the ¡®Spirit Mask¡¯ will be removed. The ability to use a certain attribute will depend on the Spirit Mask. -Fire Spirit: Fire burns around the caster, causing powerful fire damage to the surrounding area. (The target receiving the fire damage will bounce in the opposite direction.) -Water Spirit: A pool of water is created around the caster for a duration of 5 seconds, inflicting water damage to the enemies within the range (While the water pool is being maintained, it slows the enemies within the range by 80%). -Land Spirit: Infuses the land with energy from the caster and stiffens the surrounding for 3 seconds (While the spirit or the caster stays on the land, all the damage will be reduced by 70%). -Wind Spirit: Summons a powerful whirlwind in the front and attacks all the enemies within the range. The enemies caught in the whirlwind turn unprotected for 1 second (If the unprotective enemies are attacked, the defense will be ignored). (Cooldown Time: 20 seconds) *This item belongs to the user ¡®Ian¡¯. This item cannot be transferred or sold to other users and wouldn¡¯t drop even if the character dies. *It is a growable item. If the conditions are met, a higher level can be achieved. It has been used by the guardians of ¡®Pneuma¡¯. Has lost its owner, and hasn¡¯t found one yet. ¡®Hou, if it is a spirit mask¡­ I don¡¯t think I have ever seen such unique abilities.¡¯ As far as all the Kailan play has been considered, Ian had never used such a myriad of unique abilities. But right now, the so-called ¡®Spirit Mask¡¯, has such a complex mechanism for its unique abilities. ¡®In that case, when a needed attribute spirit is present, the unique ability should be activated¡­¡¯ Ian decided that he had to use the unique ability of the ¡®Spirit Mask¡¯. Since the cooldown of the skill was just 20 seconds, using it wouldn¡¯t interfere with the duel. [The unique ability of the ¡®Spirit Mask¡¯ has been triggered.] Swahh-! A familiar system message came to his mind, and a ghostly sound rang out from the mask. And on top of the mask, a blue swirl started to form. ¡®Is this a water attribute?¡¯ Since the mask was present, Ian wasn¡¯t able to see the face of the mask, and all he could do was to assume what kind of spirit it was from the energy. But even then, Ian tried to activate the ¡®spirit power¡¯. Shat-! Again, came the ghastly sound, and then the energy of the land spirit began to spread. ¡®Ahha, this is how it works?¡¯ Ian decided to withdraw his ability and watch the mask change. And the energy of the mask quickly changed from the water, land, wind, and fire, and soon concealed the energy. [After the time limit, the Spirit Mask will disappear.] Ian¡¯s face saw the system message and was feeling great. ¡®This is fun?¡¯ The unique ability of the Spirit Mask which he wasn¡¯t able to understand with the explanation, soon entered the head of his. And within a while, the cooldown had returned. Ian once again triggered the ability. This time the spirit attribute that was summoned the first was of fire. Swath-! Ian, the moment the fire attribute got summoned, soon unleashed his power. ¡°Ability activate!¡± Kwakwang-! Intense fire burst out in the close vicinity of Ian. Just like it had been written in the skill information window. ¡°Oho.¡± Ian smiled and waited for the cooldown to return. Pung-! Swah-! He had remained in the same position for quite a long time and repeatedly exercised the unique ability. Of course, each time the ability of the spirit mask proceeded, the attribute changed. Did he take around 10 minutes? ¡°Syarlion, get ready!¡± Ian who gazed into the eyes of Syarlion smiled. CH 565 The Guardian Mask like the Orb had two unique abilities. It was superficial, and it was quite hard to say that the mask had two unique abilities. The second unique ability of the mask¡ª¡¯Spirit Mask¡¯¡ªwas actually a combination of four skills. ¡®I¡¯ll have to stay calm.¡¯ Depending on the attribute of the masked spirit, the ability of the ¡®Spirit Mask¡¯ was to activate four active skills. Ian thought that using that such an ability would be the key to passing the test. The whole test thing seemed like a questionnaire of some kind. Woong-! As the battle began, the whole energy of the duel had changed. All that was because the momentum of Syarlion had changed completely. ¡°I hope that you won¡¯t disappoint me.¡± ¡°There is no way that would happen.¡± Ian, who had received the provocation of Syarlion, quickly moved forward and summoned the fire bow. Hwark-! He started to shoot his arrows in the direction of Syarlion who was just standing still. Ping- Piping-! The arrows, which had left the bow, went to the spot where Syarlion was standing. However, Ian thought the arrows wouldn¡¯t hit Syarlion. The reason being was that the trajectory of the arrow was too perfect. He didn¡¯t want to hit him at all. ¡®I¡¯m still just looking into things, anyway.¡¯ Unlike the battle with Ralph, Ian was still in the dark about Syarlion and his abilities. At first, it was necessary to draw out and take a look at the unique abilities of Syarlion. That way, he could probably think of the appropriate ways to play and respond. It was not different from attacking a boss monster. Ian focused his eyes on Syarlion and had no intention of missing even a single shot. However, after a while, Ian couldn¡¯t help but panic. ¡®¡­!¡¯ Of course, Ian was under the impression that Syarlion would move to avoid the incoming arrows, but he didn¡¯t even move a single step. ¡®What?¡¯ Nervous, Ian focused on Syarlion¡¯s movements. The next moment, he couldn¡¯t help but feel surprised. Swooah-! Shortly before the arrows reached Syarlion, his whole body got wrapped in a blue light and disappeared. [¡®Infernal Fire¡¯ missed.] [The ¡®Fire Longbow¡¯ summon has been canceled.] However, the surprise of Ian didn¡¯t last long. Syarlion, who looked like a summoner, used magic to move, and it was an unexpected situation. However, Ian was already keen to deal with the unexpected situation that he might encounter. ¡®Where?¡¯ Ian¡¯s head started to work. Syarlion¡¯s ability was obviously the magic skill, Blink, which allowed its caster to move somewhere instantly. If one used Blink to move to another location on the map, the most likely place for one to move to was behind the enemy. Once Syarlion moved behind Ian, he would surely attack Ian with his magic relentlessly. Ian¡¯s prediction was right. Swak-! With a heavy force, the magic sphere started to form toward the back of Ian. Tat-! Ian, who checked it out in an instant, swapped out his weapon and took out the Bloody Revenge. [Unlocked the item ¡®Guardian Orb¡¯.] [Item ¡®Bloody Revenge¡¯ has been worn.] Even before checking out what was behind him, Ian activated the unique ability of Bloody Revenge. [Unique ability ¡®Blood Split¡¯ has been activated.] Tah-! In a split second, Ian¡¯s whole body began shining in red light. The direction where Ian ran to was the opposite direction. The magic spheres, which was flying in the direction of Ian, were forced to lose its target. ¡°¡­!¡± Syarlion, who directed the magic spheres, was flustered to an extent. ¡®What is this¡­!¡¯ He was rather shocked at the blow; he quickly figured where Ian was trying to run to. The most remarkable thing in the scene was the response of Ian. ¡®I couldn¡¯t even check it with my eyes¡­!¡¯ Syarlion gulped and moved his cane to the front. Apart from his admiration, Ian¡¯s attack had to be stopped. With the staff which Syarlion had moved forward, a white shield spread out. Wheeing-! And the next moment¡­ Kwang-! With a huge crash, the figure of Ian bounced back. [Dojo master Syarlion triggered ¡®Reflecting Shield¡¯.] [Taken damage of 1,274.] ¡°Huh-!¡± Ian bounced more than five meters above the ground. Ian lost his balance due to Syarlion¡¯s unexpected defense. ¡®Dammit¡­!¡¯ If his summons could have been summoned, then space distortion could have been used, but with the constraints that were placed on the quest, it was impossible to do such things. Syarlion wasn¡¯t going to miss the opportunity. Pang- papang-! With the shield in place, Syarlion moved his staff and two to three magic spheres began to rush toward Ian. The place where the spheres were shot at was where Ian would land. Ian had no intention of taking in that damage. [¡®Spirit Mask¡¯ unique ability has been triggered.] Swaah-! A smoky sound resonated and a golden wave began to swirl on Ian¡¯s mask. The spirit of wind was inside the guardian mask. Feeling the wind whirl, Ian quickly turned his head. ¡®Just 1 second, I just need 1 second¡­!¡¯ And just before Ian crashed into the ground. Swaah-! A ghastly sound started to ring, and the mask was burning this time. After the wind spirit, the fire spirit came out next. At the same time, an explosion rang out around Ian. Piing-! [¡®Spirit¡¯s power¡¯ has been used.] [A powerful fire explosion has occurred.] [The ¡®Masked Spirit¡¯ will disappear.] The spirits of the fire had the ability to explode or expel flames. Then what about the projectiles that wouldn¡¯t move out of their way so easily, where would the reaction go? ¡°Who!¡± Ian, who bounced into the air using the explosion, was able to regain his balance. In the meantime. Swahk-! Flying magic spheres were forced to fall under the feet of Ian. Tat-! Ian, who was on the floor, stared at Syarlion and smiled. Maybe Syarlion had felt the eyes of Ian on him, so he turned around. Syarlion was feeling beyond surprised at the moment. Unexpected situations were unfolding one after the other. ¡®To see it as a coincidence, the skills were used very perfectly¡­¡¯ To cause a fire explosion and to bounce right back into the air, it couldn¡¯t be anything less than the most troublesome thing to perform. The problem was that Ian was using the mask skillfully even though it was just given to him 10 minutes ago. The situation was so urgent that it was too difficult to react to. ¡®Have you really mastered using the mask in that short span of time?¡¯ Syarlion felt goosebumps all over his body. He had never met anyone, who was able to use the Guardian Mask perfectly in a short span of time. In most cases, users had a hard time understanding how the Guardian Mask worked. It was tough to understand how to use the mask¡¯s unique ability, the ¡®Spirit Mask¡¯. ¡®I have to confirm if it wasn¡¯t just a confidence.¡¯ At the moment, the ability of Ian in using the Guardian Mask wasn¡¯t great enough to say that he had mastered it. So if he could understand that it wasn¡¯t just a coincidence, Syarlion would end the test. Looking at Ian with a strange expression, Syarlion opened his mouth with a heavy voice. ¡°From now on you¡¯ll have to be more nervous.¡± Ian heard that. He laughed and said, ¡°I see. But Syarlion¡­¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Nervousness? Maybe Syarlion has to face some of it too.¡± The moment Ian said that his whole form once again turned red. Swah-! Ian¡¯s mask once again started to get infused with the image of spirit. * * * ¡°Wah, this isn¡¯t right!¡± ¡°Hah¡­¡± Ralph and the others with him were kicked out of the Spirit Dojo. They all lost the light in their faces, and they looked very desolate. They weren¡¯t even angry. They just couldn¡¯t believe what had happened. It was obvious that they were fighting a very fierce fight, but they couldn¡¯t even guess the class of their opponent. ¡°What the hell are you doing?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think it was a wizard¡­ archer? Warrior?¡± ¡°No. I saw him summon the spirit and then summons¡­ maybe he was a summoner?¡± ¡°Aee, make some sense, Inisco. When did a summoner ever shoot a bow with such accuracy? And if he was a Summoner, he should fight with his other summons.¡± ¡°Ha, that¡¯s true.¡± Ralph, who had lost all of his strength, lay down on the floor. The other two lay down on the floor with Ralph. ¡°By the way, Ralph hyung.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Maybe that challenger¡­ was a user?¡± At the words of Inisco, Ralph immediately sat up. ¡°That can¡¯t be¡­!¡± Chesk thought it was ridiculous and said, ¡°Yah, if that monster really is a user, then¡­ I need to call the Kailan headquarters immediately to protest.¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°Think about it. If a user showed such a play, then it is obvious that it was a bug. He was a warrior and an archer, and at the end, he used some strange magic.¡± ¡°Kue¡­¡± After those words from Chesk, the three became quiet. The three were no longer in the position to open their mouths. Was it 10 minutes or so? Ralph got up and opened his mouth with a powerless and tired voice. ¡°First¡­¡± ¡°Hu?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s sleep for just 6 hours and then come back.¡± ¡°Haa.¡± At the words of Ralph, Inisco nodded and agreed. ¡°Yeah, Ralph is right. Once we replenish our stamina, we can do whatever we want. I just want to close my eyes right away.¡± Chesk sighed and then looked away. ¡°Phew, we¡¯ll do that then. We¡¯ll see if we move to the hunt or if we have to try it once more.¡± ¡°Nice. Well, in the meantime, the other users can¡¯t even break all the way till the 15th floor.¡± ¡°Phew, if it wasn¡¯t for that freak, we could have really broken through it this time¡­¡± The three people, who gathered their thoughts, immediately logged out. Fortunately, the Spirit Dojo was in a village, so they were able to log out immediately. However, little did they know, they¡¯ll be seeing him again. The ¡®monster-like¡¯ guy they saw. CH 566 Syarlion was powerful. A lot better than what Ian expected. However, that didn¡¯t mean that Ian¡¯s motivation and drive had vanished. The stronger Syarlion was, the more determined Ian was to take him down. ¡®Where to? Let¡¯s take this till the end.¡¯ Ian¡¯s vision was filled with countless spirit shadows. The most difficult, unique ability of all the abilities that Syarlion possessed, ¡®Spirit Replica¡¯. Wong- Woong-! A low resonance was filling the room in a row, and the spirits of Syarlion began to replicate. It was the kind of magic that was unheard of. Just a little while ago, Ian managed to see the magic. ¡®Is the cooldown time back already? What is this¡­ the duplication magic would have been an easy one to deal with?¡¯ The Duplication, one of the high-level spells of the wizards, was a spell that duplicated the target. However, the replicas created by Duplication wasn¡¯t the same as the original. It was because the replicas¡¯ stats were inferior to the original one, and the replicas couldn¡¯t use the abilities of the main body. Rather than fighting and going against the enemy, the main purpose of the replicas was to disrupt the magic of the enemy. However, the spirit magic performed by Syarlion was different. The duration was much shorter than the duplication magic spell; however, it was able to replicate in large numbers, and the spirits were able to use their own abilities. Unlike the Duplication, the spirit cloning could put in a powerful combat attack. ¡®I was busy running away earlier¡­¡¯ Ian was focusing on the movements of the incoming spirits. He began to ¡®draw¡¯ a picture in his head. ¡®This time, I need to break through!¡¯ The first time Ian had witnessed the replica, the only thing that Ian could do was to hold back until the replica spirits were done. From his past experience, he realized that it shouldn¡¯t be the case. If he ran away from the spirit replicas for 3 minutes, then the vitality of Syarlion would start to get restored. ¡®I need to go out at once.¡¯ While standing behind the spirits, Syarlion was controlling them with absolute focus. Ian, who checked the vitality gauge of Syarlion, noticed that there were 30 to 40 percent remaining, and he jumped into the spirit crowd. Tat-! On the face of Syarlion, signs of fluster and shock could be seen. ¡®What are you planning now?¡¯ In the battle that had been going so far, Syarlion had already recognized the abilities of Ian. As a result, the quest conditions had already been met. Then why were the two of them still battling? The reason was simple. Apart from the quest conditions being met, the quest wouldn¡¯t continue until one of them was defeated. Either Ian won or Syarlion won. One of them had to win and control the quest¡¯s direction. Of course, in most cases, if Syarlion won over Ian, the quest would still continue. With Ian not even having a transcendence level of 10 against Syarlion, winning was a huge task. Also, Ian had everything sealed, excluding his spirit and the unique ability of his spirit weapons. Even then, the battle between the two was very close. Which was why Syarlion was feeling confused. ¡®Is he really a human from the earth? Or is he some kind of greater being that I haven¡¯t come across till now?¡¯ Syarlion was turning desperate; he was controlling his spirits with utmost dedication and concentration. Although he was the weakest of the dojo masters, he wouldn¡¯t be able to handle the disgrace if he was defeated by a man which wasn¡¯t even an intermediate-being. Looking over at Ian who was keenly observing the spirits and Syarlion, his eyes shined. ¡®The land ability could be used to breakthrough¡­ even if it was used, would it be hard to hold?¡¯ Swak-! After thinking for a while, Syarlion lifted his staff up high. A golden energy started to form over the heads of the Spirit. Wheeing-! In the sight of Ian, new system messages came up. [The Dojo Master ¡®Syarlion¡¯ used the spirit magic spell ¡®Soul of the Wind¡¯.] [For a limited duration of time, ¡®Eltika¡¯ spirit¡¯s attribute is converted into ¡®wind¡¯.] [For a limited duration of time, ¡®Ellen¡¯ spirit¡¯s attribute is converted into ¡®wind¡¯.] Upon confirming the system messages, Ian¡¯s eyes went wide. ¡®Dammit!¡¯ Just like the thoughts of Syarlion, Ian had been using the power of land to endure his spirits. Originally, most of the attributes which Syarlion had summoned were of ¡®water¡¯ attribute, so by placing the strong land buff on the water attributes, it was possible to withstand all the attacks from the water. However, the situation took a 360-degree turn. Since Syarlion used the ¡®Soul of the Wind¡¯ spell, all the attributes of his spirits had turned into wind, which was great against land. Since the spirit mask¡¯s fire attribute had just passed, it was impossible to activate fire right away. Ian was going to have to wait another 20 seconds to trigger a fire. Ian had actually jumped forward, so the situation was much more urgent. Ian, who started to think, shed away the spirits of the land and activated the wind power. [Spirit power has been used.] [A powerful whirlwind has risen.] [The ¡®Spirit Mask¡¯ will disappear.] The whirlwind, which had been summoned by the wind, was like a broad CC skill which was like the Abyss Hole of Ddukdae. However, unlike the Abyss Hole, it couldn¡¯t damage the enemies, but it was a powerful enough attack to put the others in a state of ¡®unprotected¡¯ for a long time. Kwaa-! As the spirits of Syarlion got sucked into the whirlwind, Ian urgently moved back. In order to overcome the inertia, he triggered the blood split in the opposite direction. Swack-! Thanks to the blood split, he was able to pass through the air without any damage. But Ian¡¯s skill management didn¡¯t end there. [¡®Blood Revenge¡¯ item has been unlocked.] [You have equipped the item ¡®Guardian Orb¡¯.] Hwwrk-! As soon as Blood Revenge was over, Ian swapped equipments. Before he could even take control of his own body, Ian triggered ¡®Infernal Fire¡¯. [The Spirit magic ¡®Infernal Fire¡¯ has been activated.] Hwwk-! With the appearance of the longbow of fire in his hands, the fire arrows started to get released. The targets of the arrows were the spirits of Syarlion, and Ian shot his arrows at the spirits. Piping-! Pipiping-! Ian pulled on the string of the bow crazily. Without even a single concern about his accuracy, Ian¡¯s rate of firing the arrows became even faster. ¡®Before the defenseless part ends, I need to place the mark.¡¯ The more intense the whirlwind turned, the more urgent Ian felt. Before the whirlwind ended, he had to explore the marks to inflict as much damage as possible. According to the calculations of Ian, the sprits wouldn¡¯t be able to withstand the explosion mark. With a poor attribute and negligible defense, there was a chance for massive damage to be inflicted. The arrows were shot by Ian and Magbi quickly turned the whirlwind red. Followed by the next move. Ping-! [¡®Hellfire¡¯ mark has reached the maximum overlap.] [The mark will cause a powerful explosion.] [¡®Hellfire¡¯ mark has reached the maximum overlap.] [The mark will cause a powerful explosion.] Damage more than what Ian had thought was occurring. [Inflicted fatal fire damage to Syarlion¡¯s spirit ¡®Ellika¡¯.] [Due to affinity, more powerful damage occurred.] [Syarlion¡¯s spirit ¡®Ellika¡¯s¡¯ vitality had been reduced by 10,987.] [Syarlion¡¯s spirit ¡®Ellika¡¯s¡¯ vitality had been reduced by 9,788.] Ian and Magbi had grown considerably. In the case of Ian, his transcendence level had risen, and the proficiency of the ¡®spirit spell¡¯ had increased by a lot. However, even then, the damage caused by the mark of explosion at the time would be 3,000 to 4,000. No, not just at the time of using the fire. It was the first time Ian dealt over 10,000 damage in Middle-Earth. Because of that, Ian started to admire his skills. ¡°Keu!¡± ¡®Due to the defense, it was common, so the damage is doing great!¡¯ However, he wasn¡¯t in a situation where he could stop and admire himself. Ian, who successfully reversed the situation, ran toward Syarlion. Tatta-! And the same time, Ian was swapping weapons. [Unlocked the ¡®Guardian Orb¡¯ item.] [Equipped the item ¡®Judgment of the Spirit King¡¯.] Ian understood the situation Syarlion was in; he couldn¡¯t use most of the skills he had. The Spirit Replica had quickly broken through, and his skills¡¯ cooldown was not done yet. Perhaps the only magic that Syarlion could use right now was the ¡®reflecting shield¡¯. Because of that, Ian took out the Judgment of the Spirit King. He threw it toward Syarlion. Swak-! The spear rushed forward like it was tearing up the space. The golden spear was shot with intensity. And with the golden shine that it had around it, the Judgment of the Spirit King looked like a single lightning strike going forward. Syarlion couldn¡¯t help but feel shocked by Ian¡¯s attack. ¡°¡­!¡± Kwang-! A huge explosion rang, and it pushed Syarlion back. [Deadly damage is done to the Dojo Master ¡®Syarlion¡¯!] [Vitality of ¡®Syarlion¡¯ reduced by 2,398.] [The item Judgment of the Spirit King has been swapped.] [¡®Bloody Revenge¡¯ item has been worn.] While Syarlion was being pushed back, red streaks were shot in. Swak-! [Unique ability ¡®Bloody Split¡¯ has been used!] [Deadly damage done to the Dojo Master ¡®Syarlion¡¯!] [The vitality of Syarlion is reduced by 3,198.] If Ian had used the Blood Split first, he would have been blocked by the Reflecting Shield just like what had happened in the beginning. However, by throwing the Judgment of the Spirit King at a high speed, he had broken the magic flow of Syarlion. ¡°Keuk-!¡± Ian¡¯s red sword continuously made contact with Syarlion, who had already lost his balance. Syralion tried to cast the shield magic, but it was of no use. Kwakwakwang-! With just a few explosions, the shield was broken down quickly. The last explosion was the end of the battle. Tring-! [The vitality of Dojo Master ¡®Syarlion¡¯ has dropped to less than 10 percent.] [You have won the battle against the Dojo Master ¡®Syarlion¡¯.] [The duel has ended.] [Successfully cleared the 15th floor of the Spirit Dojo.] [Cleared the 15th floor of the Spirit Dojo for the first time.] [The first clear reward has been applied.] [You have ¡®transcendence equipment box (Lv. 10~ 20) x2¡¯ item.] [Earned Hero Score of 30 points.] Numerous pleasant system messages started to appear in front of Ian. [Cleared the quest ¡®Syarlon¡¯s Errand¡¯.] [You have met the hidden requirements for the quest ¡®Syarlon¡¯s Errand¡¯.] [Moved to the waiting room.] After confirming the last message, Ian clenched both his hands unknowingly. CH 567 The waiting room of the 15th floor of the Spirit Dojo. There were paintings on the walls of the waiting room on every floor, but the waiting room structure of the 15th floor was special. On the 15th floor, the ¡®Dojo Master¡¯ was on one side of the waiting room. Syarlion, a dojo master protecting the spirit dojo. Ian entered the room and talked over to Syarlion with a pleasant look. ¡°Huhu, you said that I should be nervous, right?¡± ¡°I was very nervous, and dealt with you very seriously.¡± ¡°Huhu.¡± ¡°The perfect defeat. Congrats on being the first honorary conduit.¡± Syarlion, who smiled bitterly, offered something to Ian. It was a small thing, the texture and size were similar to the wood plaque that he had been given by Syarlon. Tring-! [You have earned ¡®Sign of Honorary Conduit (Beginner)¡¯.] [You have become the ¡®Honorary Conduit¡¯ for the first time.] [You have successfully completed the quest ¡®Syarlon¡¯s Errand¡¯.] [Fame increased 500,000.] [Affinity with the ¡®Goral¡¯ race had increased permanently by 10.] [You have earned the item ¡®Guardian Mask¡¯.] Seeing all the rewards come up successfully along with the quest completion message, Ian couldn¡¯t hide his laughter. The miscellaneous item, ¡®Sign of Honorary Conduit¡¯ was an item with a decent option according to Ian. -Sign of Honorary Conduit (Beginner) Classification: Goods Rank: Rare (transcendence) This certificate proves that you have become an Honorary Conduit of the Spirit Dojo which is located in the Pneuma village on the south side of Spirit Mountain. If this certificate is present, you will be given the least recognition as the Intermediate being. Also, if the Spirit Dojo is re-challenged anytime, the challenge can be resumed from the 16th floor. *Option Leadership: +10 (Transcendence) All battle abilities: +10 (Transcendence) Transcendence Fame: +50 (Sealed) (Sealed options aren¡¯t active unless the ¡®Intermediate-being¡¯ has been obtained.) *This item belongs to the user ¡®Ian¡¯. It cannot be transferred or sold to other users and will not drop if the character dies. ¡®The transcendence leadership is 10, and all are 10. And transcendence fame¡­¡¯ The concept of the transcendence fame was the first time for Ian to come across. But it wasn¡¯t so difficult to guess what it was from the name. ¡®There is a fame that applies in the Middle-Earth. Somehow, my fame is over 10 million units and the NPCs here ignored it¡­¡¯ And at the self-explanation of Ian, another piece of information was provided. The statistic of transcendence is a stat that has been opened since becoming an intermediate being. But the sign of Honorary Conduit was encouraging it as an ¡®Unexpected Harvest¡¯. ¡®Huhu, this is really my own item.¡¯ Ian flicked the white mask that was on his face. From the very moment, the mask would be of a very great hep for Ian and the spirit spell. Feeling better, Ian bowed slightly towards Syarlion. ¡°I¡¯ll use this mask in the right way, Syarlion. Thanks to you, I was able to get a valuable item.¡± And at the gratitude that Ian was showing, the bitter expression on the face of Syarlion turned brighter. ¡°Not at all. After all, that mask has a master now.¡± The gaze of Syarlion was fixed on the Guardian Mask. And his words followed again, ¡°If you wear that mask in the future, don¡¯t ever lose it to anyone. That is the honor of the Goral race beings.¡± At the serious expression of Syarlion, Ian smiled and joked, ¡°I understand Syarlion. I¡¯ll take it off if I¡¯m going to lose.¡± ¡°¡­¡± And with a friendly atmosphere, Ian and Syarlion talked. And in it, he was trying to know what the ¡®hidden condition¡¯ meant. ¡°By the way, what does it mean to be an honorary conduit?¡± ¡°Uhm, well¡­¡± As he heard the voice of Syarlion, Ian¡¯s eyes began to sparkle. From the tone of the voice, it looked like an important story was going to start. After a while, Syarlion¡¯s words continued, ¡°Firstly, I¡¯ll have to explain the concept of ¡®conduit¡¯.¡± The explanation that Syarlion had given was quite long. The content couldn¡¯t be summarized simply. Firstly, the ¡®conduit¡¯, means the practitioners who guard each floor of the Spirit Dojo. But the conduits can only be of the Goral race. Secondly, the ¡®Honorary conduit¡¯ was a system designed to give the position of a conduit to a competent person even if they don¡¯t belong to the ¡®goral¡¯ race. Thirdly, the honorary conduit was not given all the duties and privileges of the conduit, but he could serve as the true conduit as the master instructs. ¡°So, what I want to say is, you have been appointed as a true conduit in our Spirit Dojo. In fact, there are no examples that I can think of about non-intermedite beings assigned as the conduits, but I feel that you will be great at it.¡± After listening to the explanation of Syarlion, Ian¡¯s eyes went wide. It seemed like a very interesting content, but the constraints on them were too great. ¡°So, Syarlion, so am I supposed to obey this dojo like any other trainee?¡± ¡°That is right.¡± Ian was flustered at what he heard. ¡°I need to stay here for 365 days and get the challengers¡­ is that what you are implying?¡± Seeing the shock registered on Ian¡¯s face, Syarlion laughed. He understood what kind of concern was going over Ian¡¯s head. ¡°Huhu, I know what you are so concerned about, but don¡¯t worry.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± ¡°Have you ever shared a word with the other trainees besides me?¡± Ian started to go down the memory lane. And soon he spoke, ¡°Ah, nope. I don¡¯t think so.¡± Syarlion shook his head and continued the explanation, ¡°Okay. Obviously. They¡¯re just the illusions replicated by the power of spirits.¡± ¡°Aha!¡± And Ian was able to understand the system of it in just a matter of seconds, and Syarlion was saying it the cleanest way possible. ¡°From the very moment, you will be a conduit guarding one floor like the other trainees. To be precise, your illusion represented by the spirits¡¯ power.¡± ¡°I understand, Syarlion.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­you could be on the 9th floor. How¡¯s that sound?¡± ¡°Huh, well, sure.¡± At the suggestion of Syarlion, Ian just nodded his head. ¡®I don¡¯t have to be here by myself, so I guess it is okay.¡¯ And after the conversation with Syarlion, Ian began to see the new system messages. Tring-! [Appointed as the gatekeeper of the Spirit Dojo.] [Since the transcendence level is of ¡®level 9¡¯, you will be placed at the gateway of the 9th floor.] [All the current stats will be duplicated creating a ¡®Spirit Form¡¯ (If the level of the character or the stats increase, it won¡¯t be reflected in the spirit form)] [Each time your Spirit Form wins over the challenger, you will gain 9 Hero Score.] [If your ¡®Spirit Form¡¯ is defeated by the user, you will be disqualified as a ¡®gatekeeper¡¯.] [To re-qualify as a ¡®gatekeeper¡¯, you will have to go to the Dojo master who oversees the section.] After reading all the messages, Ian looked a bit disappointed. ¡®Sh*t, I thought too much about the reward.¡¯ Collecting a hero score of 9, that was just too easy. Of course, it wasn¡¯t like a one time reward. And Ian was under the impression that there were way too less contenders to challenge the dojo. Not to mention the number of users who could even enter the Spirit Dimension, not to mention, he never even saw an NPC challenger. In addition, if the users lose against the gatekeeper once, he thought that it would be a good thing if he got three or four rewards. ¡®Well, this is the main part¡­¡¯ Ian tried to keep his mind clean and was ready to say goodbye to Syarlion. ¡°You worked hard, Syarlion. I¡¯ll have to go now.¡± At the greeting from Ian, Syarlion looked surprised. Ian, who had defeated him with a penalty, if he wanted then, he could go up to the 20th floor. ¡°Oh ho, you¡¯re going to move out without challenging the 16th floor?¡± Ian nodded his head and answered, ¡°Yes, I have a lot of things that I need to do. I¡¯ll try to take on the 16th floor later on.¡± ¡°Ah ha, you have something busy to do.¡± Seeing the sad expression on Syarlion¡¯s face, Ian smiled. He too wanted to go past the 16th floor, but too much time had passed. ¡®I can sleep for only 5 hours even if I log out right away.¡¯ He actually decided to recharge along with the guild members for 12 hours, but had lost more than 7 hours due to the unexpected quest, ¡®Syarlon¡¯s Errands¡¯. ¡®I have to log out right away and get some good sleep. I don¡¯t have to rush, as there is no way that the 30th floor could be broken.¡¯ Ian summarized his thoughts and came out of the dojo without regret. And immediately exited the game. * * * ¡°Right, Chesk! The cover was good!¡± ¡°This is great!¡± ¡°Inisco, block the retreat.¡± ¡°Okay, hyung!¡± Ralph and their teams had come back to heal the mental strain they had due to the mysterious challenger. They were able to clear the dojo at a ¡®Ka-boom¡¯ kind of pace. Tring-! [You have won against the trainee!] [You have successfully cleared the 6th floor of the Spirit Dojo.] [This section has already been cleared, additional rewards cannot be obtained.] [You have earned 5 Hero scores.] ¡­ Syncopation¡­ [You have successfully cleared the 7th floor of the Spirit Dojo.] [You have successfully cleared the 8th floor of the Spirit Dojo.] And thanks to the rest, their teamwork and their fighting were much better and coordinated than before. ¡°Nice, Chesk. We should have done it this way!¡± ¡°Huuh, I wasn¡¯t myself yesterday.¡± ¡°Hmm, Chesk hyung. The combat is different from yesterday. Taking a break and then trying it.¡± As soon as they entered the waiting room on the 8th floor, Ralph and the entire party stepped to the next floor. And, the 3rd to 12th floors were the sections that weren¡¯t so hard to clear, even when the condition wasn¡¯t so good. When Ralph, the leader, stepped into the 9th floor, a system message had come up in front of the three people. Tring-! [You have entered the 9th floor of the Spirit Dojo.] [Since the number of the party are 3, the stats of the conduit will be increased accordingly.] [The battle will commence in a while.] Ralph and the party looked over at the messages. ¡°The 9th floor huh? was it the Berserker warrior class?¡± ¡°Right, hyung. I memorized the kind of opponent that we will have to face on the floors.¡± ¡°It isn¡¯t so tricky, let¡¯s get rid of this in no time!¡± ¡°Nice!¡± The three were so motivated again, and set foot to take over. But the next moment. Woong-! Seeing the resonance and the silhouette on the other side of the duel, the three of them went stiff at the same time. ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°How did this happen?¡± ¡°This right now¡­ really?¡± Too familiar, no, a familiar that couldn¡¯t be anything than familiar. With a mask that they were seeing for the very first time, but the three of them knew who it was. The guy infront of them was the killer who had turned their mental ability into powder. Ralph, the first to speak, spoke to Chesk and Inisco. ¡°Kay, lets figure it. The silhouette is definitely similar, but¡­ maybe he isn¡¯t the same guy?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± ¡°And even if it was the same guy, we are at our best condition this time. Unlike the last time, our vitality is at the maximum this time.¡± After hearing the slightly encouraging words from Ralph, the two were feeling good. And with his words, the situation surely seemed to be different from the last time. ¡®Okay. That time, we were at a loss of power after the 14th floor.¡¯ ¡®Nice. Let¡¯s do this in one try¡­!¡¯ Unlike the killer who was waiting for them very silently, the three people were burning with desire. But there was one thing that they all over looked. And that was, the level and spec of the trainee that they were facing weren¡¯t the same. As soon as they entered the 9th floor, a line of system messages came to their eyes. [Since the number of the party are 3, the stats of the conduit will be increased accordingly.] The spirit form of Ian in front of their eyes, was a replica with almost twice the amount of stats at this time. CH 568 Twilight, early dawn, even the moonlight couldn¡¯t travel to the west. In an empty lot at the Spirit mountain, a cheerful voice could be heard, ¡°Yah. Are all of you here?¡± Like the uncles who usually gather at the sauna after a warm bath, everyone had sleepiness in their eyes and there were people everywhere. And they were none other than the elite members of the Lotus Guild. ¡°Uh, I am sleepy. Save me¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sleepy as I have been sleeping, but I¡¯m scared of what would happen in the future.¡± ¡°Same here.¡± The lotus rankers, half-asleep were checking at the condition of the characters, they looked like a group of zombies. But unlike the zombies, the head of them was somewhat (?) vivid. ¡°The goal is to go to the level of 8 before the update. Do you understand?¡± When their head had spoken out, dissatisfaction flowed from every side. ¡°No, we are just starting now. Isn¡¯t that a not-possible kind of plan, Ian?¡± ¡°Wah, not even 7 but level 8, huh? there is no one who has even take the level transcendence of 8 till the moment¡­¡± The dissatisfaction of the zombies was all wiped away at one response, ¡°No one who has taken the level 8? I¡¯m at level 9.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°That, hyung you¡¯re not included in it.¡± There was a bit of turmoil, but somehow the Lotus members soon finished the maintenance. Although they were mumbling and grumbling, they were the top rankers. And it was already known to everyone that transcendence was a very important factor which had to be taken before the update. It was necessary to enter the Warrior¡¯s village faster than anyone else to pre-empt the content. Which was why the attitude of the guild members was unique. Herz looked over at the guild members and clenched his fist thinking. ¡®I¡¯ll put the name of Lotus as 1st in the guild ranking of the world.¡¯ The massive update of ¡®Warrior¡¯s Village¡¯, was much more important than any other update that had ever existed in the history of Kailan. Till the very moment, in every update, users have been competing in their own servers, but this was the very first time that the users from all over the world would be competing. When the turmoil subsided and everyone was ready for battle, Ian spoke with his golden spear in his hand. ¡°Kay, let¡¯s get started.¡± * * * The Archeron river, the river that divided the boundaries between living dead and the dead, the most famous river in the Underworld. The reason why the Archeron river was so famous in the underworld was simple. And yet, no other user other than Ian had ever seen the other side of the Archeron river. Of course, it didn¡¯t mean that there weren¡¯t users who hadn¡¯t crossed the Archeron river. Just like Ian had crossed the Archeron river thanks to the Underworld King, there were users who had crossed the Archeron river in the Underworld by deliberately dying. But unlike Ian, they couldn¡¯t open the dimensional door, and according to the situations, they couldn¡¯t go deep into the Erebus. So, Ian was the only one who had been able to see Cocytos, the second river. And the famous river, Archeron, had become famous in the Underworld for this and that reason. Around the Archeron river, numerous rankers and guilds were camped to raise their transcendence level. Since the 9-10 transcendence level undead were appearing in the hunting grounds of the Archeron river, it gave a good amount of experience to the users. And the good aspect of it was, the Underworld and the Archeron river were endlessly long. Despite numerous guild parties of the world servers entering the Underworld, they didn¡¯t have to suffer due to a lack of hunting ground. And of course, the Titan Guild rankers were all the hunting grounds of Archeron. In addition, the transcendence level of the Titan Guild could be considered at a top of all the servers. And the Titan guild was the guild which had taken the place in the hunting ground of the Underworld the very first. The flag of Titan Guild was flying along the Archeron River. And underneath, the leaders of the Titan were in a meeting. ¡°Emily, have you got anything about the Lotus?¡± ¡°Yes, master.¡± ¡°Huhu, maybe they have tumbled down¡­ where are the Lotus Guild members now?¡± At the question from Shakran, Emily responded with a smile, ¡°They seemed to have hurriedly entered the Spirit Dimension the very morning.¡± ¡°Huh? not the Underworld but the Spirit¡­¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be natural for them to choose a place lacking with users like the Spirit Dimension and not an overcrowded region like the Underworld?¡± ¡°That is true.¡± Shakran was feeling good. Because of the big update, they were having the opportunity to beat Lotus. ¡®Huhu, Ian, this guy doesn¡¯t seem to have made a good decision this time.¡¯ After the underworld had opened, the Lotus hunted in the Underworld for a few days, and then the guild members suddenly went to the human system. And it was learned by Titan that it was the instruction of Ian. Before raising the level of the transcendence, Ian had ordered them to raise their human level first. ¡®Because of that, we were able to raise our transcendence levels much more easy. We were able to get a read on the main and the best hunting ground.¡¯ The first time Shakran had heard about Ian¡¯s order, he felt anxious. He couldn¡¯t understand why Ian had given such an order to his mates. The content of the terrestrial system was old, and the content of the Middle-Earth was new, and it was natural that he wasn¡¯t able to understand why the level in the human dimension was being given a top priority. But after digging into it a little more, he figured out. -Anyway, the Middle-Earth that had opened was just an ¡®Experimental Version¡¯ and the level of 10 could be raised, so it seemed wise to raise the level in the human system. At first, the found information about the Lotus seemed very reasonable. In addition, if there were many levels in the human system, the power difference when the nation war breaks out would be great. But in the end, Titan and the Shakran decided to stay on their original plan. As the level of transcendence couldn¡¯t be exceeded more than 10, he was determined to level up to the limit first. Shakran, realizing that it was an update which could be updated at any point in time, thought that it was important to access that content immediately. ¡®In the end, my decision was the right one.¡¯ Shakran, which had a pleasing smile, asked Emily, ¡°So, Emily, have you figured out the transcendence level of the Lotus Guild yet?¡± At the question of Shakran, Emily answered immediately. ¡°Firstly, the transcendence level of Ian was around 5, and it would be near 7-8 by now.¡± ¡°And?¡± ¡°I couldn¡¯t know about the rest of them. Except for Herz who is of level 3, the others are with level 1.¡± At that response, Shakran laughed out loud. ¡°Huhu, yeah. That would be about right.¡± ¡°Ah, by the way¡­ there was something that took me by surprise.¡± ¡°Surprise¡­?¡± ¡°That, the Lotus Guild chef class user.¡± ¡°Ah, I know. The one called as Harin¡­¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°What about that friend?¡± ¡°I was a little surprised when that person had taken the transcendence level of 5. All the other users were around 1, so I wasn¡¯t able to understand how she was able to shoot to level 5 by herself.¡± At those words of Emily, Shakran smiled, ¡°Huhu, that surely is unexpected. However, it isn¡¯t something that had to be taken into consideration right? Nobody in our Titan Guild has even taken the level 6 yet.¡± ¡°That is right, Master.¡± The meeting of the Titan Guild was being held in a friendly atmosphere. The biggest rival of Lotus which had always been behind it, so they were trying to set up the strategy. ¡°Then in the end, in the Korean server we need to vary the Asmodian rankers, I guess.¡± ¡°That is right, master. There has been a story about Limlong reaching the transcendence level of 8. I haven¡¯t confirmed it right away.¡± ¡°Limlong¡­ he sure is a very dangerous one.¡± ¡°In fact, the most dangerous person in the Devildom is Limlong.¡± The head of the Titan Guild, who had been able to establish a rough plan till the date of the update, ended the meeting in a cool manner. And as the rough plan had been made, it was only a matter of days until the update, and for them to go crazy hunting. ¡®This may be the last chance to cross the Lotus¡­¡¯ Shakran, who thought of Ian couldn¡¯t help but smile. The first person who would enter the transcendence level 10 and enter the Warrior¡¯s Village, Shakran thought that he would be the person. * * * Late evening, in the office of the Kailan¡¯s planning team 3, a full swing at night. The team had always been a night working team, but it was a bit too much lately. The massive update was just one week away, and the users were taking on the content faster than expected, even after the work hours, the work didn¡¯t end. Even though it was around 10 o¡¯clock, none of the members of the planning team 3 went home. ¡°Team, have we found any planning errors in the Spirit Dimension?¡± Na Ji-chan responded to the frustrated voice of deputy Hong Ji-yoon, ¡°Ah, really Hong, how about you tone down the voice a bit? If you keep talking like that, my heart might fall down.¡± ¡°How can one not speak like this in such a case?¡± ¡°Huhu, at least pretend to care¡­¡± ¡°That isn¡¯t so important now anyway. From the support team, we got compliant.¡± Looking at Hong Jiyoon who was all tensed, Na Ji-chan just shook his head. But, his mood wasn¡¯t so bad. Rather, it was a bit of an unfortunate situation for all the team members to remain at work. ¡®After, after this project is done, I¡¯ll have to go and grab the Korean beef with all these.¡¯ Na Ji-chan thought to himself, and looked over at Hong Ji-yoon and opened his mouth, ¡°So what, was that a complain? I told you to take care of them at some point.¡± ¡°Right, ¡®at some point¡¯ you said.¡± ¡°Right, that I said¡­¡± ¡°But, this doesn¡¯t seem like something that can be placed into that simple category.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± Hong Ji-yoon¡¯s words made Na Ji-chan feel anxious. ¡®What? Has something huge happened again?¡¯ Na Ji-chan thought and then opened his mouth trying to repress the anxiety that was deep inside of him. ¡°The, what was that problem?¡± At the question of Na Ji-chan, Hong Ji-yoon responded quickly, ¡°You know about the Spirit Dojo that Ian tried last week? The public relations video was pulled from the planning team¡­¡± ¡°Yeah, the Spirit Dojo. There is no way I won¡¯t know that.¡± ¡°In the meantime, the new users in the Spirit Dimension had done a lot of tries.¡± ¡°And¡­ so?¡± ¡°The problem is with the Spirit Dojo, the complains we got were about the balance in the Spirit Dojo.¡± Na Ji-chan was puzzled at the words of Hong Ji-yoon. The Spirit Dojo balance, there was no problem with it at all. Just one week back, he had personally monitored the battle scene of Ian. ¡°Yeah? There was nothing wrong with the balance in the Spirit Dojo¡­ I monitored it myself.¡± ¡°You¡­ you did?¡± Na Ji-chan frowned slightly and spoke again, ¡°Maybe that thing, was it from the guy who had been trying constantly?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so. The IP addresses of the complaints were from all over the world.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± And the words from Hong Ji-yoon continued, ¡°The content is the same.¡± ¡°Summarize it.¡± ¡°There is nothing to summarize. They state that the difficulty of the 9th floor was so hard, that they are assuming that the planning team had made some mistake.¡± ¡°Huh¡­?¡± Na Ji-chan seemed much more flustered, and immediately was hitting on the keys of the keyboard. To load the information of the NPC currently set on the 9th floor of the Spirit Dojo. To check and see if there was a balance problem immediately. Tatt-! Na Ji-chan hit on the keyboard in a moment, and the information came on the monitor. And Na Ji-chan went stiff at what he saw. ¡°¡­!¡± Hong Ji-yoon was getting tensed as he looked at Na Ji-chan who stared blankly at the screen. ¡°What is it, team leader? Is it true that the balance of it has collapsed? Is there a problem?¡± However, even as the questions kept on piling up from Hong Ji-yoon, Na Ji-chan didn¡¯t answer and was still looking at the monitor. With a weak voice, Na Ji-chan was embarrassed as he spoke, ¡°Balance collapse is right, but it isn¡¯t a problem.¡± The entire planning team 3 was in confusion at the response from Na Ji-chan. The day in the office of the Kailan¡¯s planning team 3 was going peaceful, and a day or two later the long-awaited ¡®Warrior¡¯s Village¡¯ update was on schedule. CH 569 Ja-Jajack-! A fresh and clear sound of a bird could be heard. Yet the morning at the Ulphir mountains was not so peaceful. Of course, one would already know just by looking at what was happening. ¡°Nice, hold on a little more Bbakbbak! Elcarix, barrier!¡± Kwang- Kwakwang-! The first thing that would come into one¡¯s mind when one thought of the Ulphir mountains were the level 500 monsters. Monsters from the general rank to the hero rank, the legendary and the boss monsters weren¡¯t an exception there. On the other hand, the top level of the current Korean server users were still in the mid-400s. Because of that, the Ulphir Mountains couldn¡¯t be played alone. Except for just one person. ¡°Celia, give me an Abyss Hole at the right time. Helliem, you know that you¡¯ll have to clear it all in the end, right?¡± ¡°Yes, your majesty.¡± ¡°Understood!.¡± In line with the orders from Ian, the familiars and the retainers were moving in unison. It was like a well-woven cog-wheel that went right. Kwahh-! A large roar came from the mouth of Dukdae that was being controlled by Celia. As the provocation skill of BBabbbak began, the Abyss Hole was placed. Kwaahh-! Along with the Abyss Hole being activated, a vortex of Abyss swirl had been created. The huge vortex started to emit intense waves; the monsters all around the field began to get sucked in. Once they all entered the range of the Abyss Hole, no matter how great the manrep was, the monsters couldn¡¯t escape. Unless they had an anti-CC skill set. In addition, the monsters in the field were the air monsters called ¡®Happy¡¯. With a huge crowd control caused by the Abyss spiral, the air units like the Happy were rather weak. Large ground units weren¡¯t usually easy to pull in, but small air units like the Happy had no other alternative to overcome being pulled by the Abyss Hole. As the Happys began to get sucked in, Ian¡¯s next order fell. ¡°Kaka, let¡¯s start!¡± ¡°Understood, master.¡± Subsequently, the low familiar resonating sound rang throughout the battlefield. [Darkness¡­ come upon.] Kooo-! Kaka¡¯s small body floated into the air and darkness started to spread. And with that being done, the party of Ian ran earnestly. In the eyes of Ian, the battlefield was like a gunpowder. All that he had to do was to ignite the wick. ¡°Blackie, now!¡± Prrrrng-! With the orders from Ian, the final weapon of the familiar party had been called, ¡®Blackie¡¯. All this time, by giving in the hands of Celia, Blackie had been raised to a level close to 400. [Blackie (Black Unicorn)/ Lv. 398] Swak-! Showing off his dignified chic black appearance, Blackie began to rush toward the Abyss Hole. The black horse was running with electric power and created intense winds on all directions. It was as if it was tearing off the space. ¡°Blackie, Wings of Darkness!¡± Prrrng-! When the orders reached the ears of Blackie, the pitch-black rings on its back were stretched out horizontally. A black thing jumped off Blackie and the horse sh*t toward the Happys. Kwakwang-! [The familiar ¡®Blackie¡¯s¡¯ unique ability ¡®Wings of Darkness¡¯ has been triggered.] [The monster ¡®Happy¡¯ has been fatally damaged.] [The vitality of Happy has been reduced by 4,980,982.] [Monster ¡®Happy¡¯ has been put in the state of ¡®fear¡¯ for 2.5 seconds.] [Since the enemy was put in a state of fear, the cooldown of all the skills were reduced by 1 second.] [Since the enemy was put in a state of fear, the cooldown of all the skills were reduced by 1 second.] The claws of Blackie which did damage to the Happy soared into the sky. Subsequently, as the height was sufficient, the Wings of Darkness were spread out. Blackie once again attacked the Happys. [The familiar ¡®Blackie¡¯s¡¯ unique ability Magic Chain Explosion has been triggered.] [The target is in the state of ¡®Fear¡¯, so additional powerful damage has been applied.] Kwang-! Blackie was the god bird born from the darkness. However, on the contrary, the unique ability ¡®Magic chain explosion¡¯ was a skill that could only be triggered when there was light. In order to see the shadows, light was needed. In order to cast Blackie¡¯s unique ability, shadow was needed. [The monster ¡®happy¡¯ has been fatally damaged!] [The vitality of ¡®Happy¡¯ has been reduced by 7,250,982.] [The vitality of ¡®Happy¡¯ has been reduced by 6,982,450.] A powerful chain explosion came out of Blackie¡¯s wings. Once the dark bombardment was done, the Happy¡¯s were pushed further into the Abyss Hole. The Happys, who tried their best to get out of the Abyss Hole, fell into a state of ¡®fear¡¯ and lost all of their ambitions. The more frightened the enemy, the more powerful the attack would be. And having frightened the targets, the battlefield was now owned by Blackie. [The enemy has been in the state of ¡®fear¡¯, reducing the cooldown of the skills by 1 second.] Since the state of ¡®fear¡¯ was in effect, the cooldown reset of the unique abilities was in process. Swak-! Fear was like the cage of a bird that was hard to escape from unless the captor released its victim. And right now, the skill link was something that was similar to a situation from a monsters¡¯ point of view. Before even falling out of the state of fear, they were already in the state of fear again, so the linkage of the skill didn¡¯t end. A chain of explosions that came from Blackie¡¯s Dark Wings exploded. Kwakwang-! Covered by the other summons¡¯ wide-attack, no matter how high the monsters¡¯ level was, they couldn¡¯t just hold up. ¡°Karceus, Elcarix. Breath!¡± Kyaaa! Once the breath started to form, the sword of Kaizer began to move. And then, the number of Happys, which had been very hard to count, in the beginning, was reduced. After the Abyss Hole was done, the crowd control was released. However, the power of the happys was already cut down to half. ¡®There is no need to link; we can finish it like this.¡¯ At this point, when the monsters¡¯ vitality was close to half, it was the perfect time for Ian to use the masks¡¯ ability. By sucking in the Happys once again with the power of the wind, they were going to jump directly into the guys who were in a defenseless state. But as soon as it was done, the battle was ended by Helliem. Woong-! Kwang-! Because of the skill of Kaka and the attack from Blackie, all the Happys were already consumed by darkness. The unique ability of Helliem, Dark Vision, was a skill that went through the darkness and cut down his enemies. In addition, the skill¡¯s cooldown would reset every time the enemy was killed using Dark Vision, and it was perfect for the situation. Helliem¡¯s Dark Vision would always be enough to kill all the Happys even those that were already on the floor. Kwakwang-! Every time the darkness flashed, the Happys turned into ashes. After a while, the Happys which were in the sky turned into ashes, giving a huge amount of experience. Tring-! [You have successfully defeated the enemy ¡®Happy¡¯.] [Earned experience of 58,798,000.] [You have successfully defeated the enemy ¡®Happy¡¯.] [Earned experience of 58,798,000.] ¡­ Syncopation¡­ [You have leveled up; you have reached level 448.] * * * Ian cleared up all the remnants and ran up to the large rocky peaks that were connected to the field. The peaks were the very reason he came to that place. Tat-! Ian jumped onto the rock and cheered. ¡°Kue!¡± The very field, where he had just hunted the happys at, was the highest point in the Ulphir mountain, so Ian being able to climb there was good. Tring-! [You have discovered the ¡®Wilderness of Ulphir Mountains¡¯.] [Fame has risen by 10,000.] After seeing the system messages, Ian took a deep breath. As the fresh air had entered his lungs, his mind felt at ease. ¡°Phew, this is the last one, right?¡± Ian smiled as he wiped the sweat off his forehead because he had achieved all of his goals, which he had set to reach before the update began. In addition to achieving the transcendence level of 10, which was a difficult goal, he also managed to conquer the Ulphir mountains. That was everything he wanted to do before the update along with a 1 level up bonus. ¡°I think we have cleared all the peaks of the Ulphir mountains¡± After climbing on a huge rock, Ian looked around. The seven high peaks of the Ulphir Mountain entered Ian¡¯s eyes, including the peak which he was on. ¡°Will I have enough stamina till the end of the update?¡± In a moment, the server would close, and a large update would begin. And from the information that had been around till then, on one of the seven peaks, the Warrior¡¯s path would be created. ¡®Seven ancient heroes who guard the path of the warriors¡­ It¡¯s probably related to the seven peaks.¡¯ And maybe, after being recognized as worthy heroes in the eyes of the ancient heroes, the users might be able to enter the gate at the end of the path. ¡°The Warrior¡¯s Village, and the Brave Canyon¡­¡± Ian was sitting on a rock as he thought about those things. The next day, at the right time, it would be done, and the competition with the world rankers would start. Of course, Ian did come across the server rankers in the Spirit Dimension content recently, but none of them caught Ian¡¯s attention. In particular, the US server¡¯s ranker stats holder, 2nd place user Ralph of the Warrior class, was a bit too serious when it came to the standard that Ian had. ¡°What kind of content is waiting for me on the Warrior¡¯s Village? I¡¯m so looking forward to it.¡± The smile on Ian¡¯s face was enough to send creeps down the spines of the planning team members if they saw it. BBookbbook was seated beside Ian. Ian looked at Bbookbbook¡¯s eyes and said, ¡°By the way, BBookbbook-ah?¡± ¡°Bubook?¡± Bbookbbook was gazing at the distance as if he wasn¡¯t sure if he had to respond or not. His posture looked very lonely. However, Ian didn¡¯t think much about it. ¡®Why is he like this lately? Is it because it is autumn¡­?¡¯ While smiling, Ian lay down on the rocks. He had been running on sheer willpower alone, so he had no more strength to move. ¡°Hmmp!¡± After yawning, Ian shut his eyes. 10 minutes had passed? [The server check for the update had begun.] [The server check will run for 12 hours¡­] Ian¡¯s vision began to turn dark, and the system messages began to appear one after the other. [After 5 seconds, the connection will be automatically terminated.] [After 4 seconds, the connection will be automatically terminated.] [After 3 seconds, the connection¡­] And finally, a single line of message filled Ian¡¯s view. [The connection will be terminated.] [A massive update of the ¡®Warrior¡¯s Village¡¯ is starting.] CH 570 Ding-dong Ding-dong! Minsu heard a ringing sound and mumbled something, ¡°Ah, I already know who it is just by listening to the bell¡¯s sound.¡± From the other side of the door, the voice of a woman could be heard. ¡°Yah, Minsu, open the door! I¡¯m gonna die here!¡± ¡°I¡¯m coming so shut up!¡± After a year, Minsu, Young-hoon, and Semi took their first-time off. The famous trio of the virtual reality department gathered in Minsu¡¯s room. Despite it being a weekend, the reason why they decided to come out of their capsule world was simple. It was because of the latest server update in Kailan. The game couldn¡¯t be accessed. Then why did they have to come and meet in Minsu¡¯s room? ¡°Yah, aren¡¯t we late? It didn¡¯t start yet right?¡± ¡°God! We aren¡¯t late so don¡¯t worry and sit down. We still have two more minutes left.¡± ¡°Phew, thank god. That idiot Young-hoon-ie was late, so I thought that we would be late too.¡± As they were talking, both of them looked over at Young-hoon who was pouting. ¡°It was late for just about a minute or 2¡­¡± ¡°Shut up! Don¡¯t talk rubbish, call the chicken house.¡± ¡°Ha¡­¡± Young-hoon quietly took out the smartphone with a sigh. Semi, who tossed over her coat at the corner of the room, sat on the couch with her eyes on the screen. After a while, Minsu said the words that they all had been waiting for. ¡°It is starting!¡± Everyone¡¯s eyes went in the direction of the TV; the huge title appeared on the enormous screen. ¡®Middle-Earth and Brave Canyon¡¯. Ask the planner directly! * * * Kailan, the only game ever to have such a huge topic compared to any other game on earth. The games that existed currently as well as any other games that were popular in the past, Kailan had an overwhelming presence compared to those games. 1st for having the most concurrent users. 1st for having the most cumulative number of visitors. 1st in annual sales. 1st in virtual reality assimilation. Etc. Even though Kailan was a famous and world-renowned game, it wasn¡¯t easy for the developers who contributed to the game to be famous. Users were usually interested in the game and not in the people who have made the game possible. The developers, who developed the game, were sweating and were invisible to the users. But just like everywhere, there were exceptions. One of those exceptions was the guy in the game station of the newsroom in YTBC. ¨C Hello, this is Kim Incheon, nice to meet you. ¨C Wow, you really are Kim Incheon? ¨C Hahat, what is that supposed to mean? ¨C I¡¯m so amazed. I have been a huge fan of Kim Incheon since my student years. ¨C Hut hut, I am a fan too, Miss Lucia. I¡¯m not sure how to respond if Kailan¡¯s goddess is my fan. Kim Incheon, the GM of the Kailan¡¯s current planning division and the creator who had written numerous myths in the Korean gaming industry. Any Korean gamer had heard of him at least once. In addition, for Jinsung who lived in the game, Kim Incheon was a name he heard numerous times. ¡°Wah, that uncle is coming on TV¡­ I never even expected that to happen?¡± At the mumbling of Jinsung, who was next to Harin, she asked, ¡°You know him?¡± ¡°Yeah, he is a very famous uncle.¡± As they were talking, the program on the TV was going on. ¨C The viewers too might feel that way, honestly, we too are a bit nervous. ¨C What Hines is saying is true. Today¡¯s program is a corner show made by LB at YTBC, but we never expected that you will be the one joining us. ¨C But you are here! So we¡¯ll dig into the deepest secrets of Kailan. ¨C Absolutely! How does that sound? Hines and Lucia were asking. The appearance of Kim Incheon was rather natural compared to the other two. ¨C Huh, these guys, I¡¯m scared! I feel like everything will be out by today. ¨C Ha hat, you were the one who came here willingly. You can walk out whenever you feel like! ¨C Thank you! The veteran MCs like Lucia and Hines led the conversation. They were chatting for a moment, but the main stream had begun. ¨C Kay, let¡¯s talk about the ¡®Brave Canyon¡¯ content, which the viewers are most curious of. ¨C Haa, I am very curious too! Please tell me, Mr. Planner! As the story began, Jinsung became absolutely focused the moment it began. He couldn¡¯t even hear the voice of Harin, who was right next to him. ¡°The ¡®Brave Canyon¡¯ in the Warrior¡¯s Village, Jinsung?¡± ¡°¡­.huh? what?¡± ¡°Heu¡­ nothing, I¡¯ll ask you later.¡± Kim Incheon seemed to be in his early twenties, but he didn¡¯t look that way at all. Although he had been in the spotlight for a long time, he was the youngest. That was the reason why he was an active planner for a long time. -In fact, we have always been dreaming of the ¡®World Integration Server¡¯ since the beginning of Kailan¡¯s planning. But that wasn¡¯t an easy one. -Isn¡¯t LB the best technological company in the world? How was that not easy? -Well, there were a lot of problems, the biggest one being the ¡®maximum number of users from the servers being accommodated¡¯. At those words from Kim Incheon, Hines smiled and asked again. ¨C Hmm¡­ I don¡¯t understand. With the server¡¯s technology, you could know that hundreds of millions of people would connect at the same time? Kim Incheon smiled and responded. ¨C The problem wasn¡¯t with the skills. ¨C Then what kind of problem was it? ¨C It was a matter of ¡®human resources¡¯. ¨C ¡­? ¨C In the LB planning team, we always had a desire to make Kailan the perfect world. A world which would really feel like another ¡®reality¡¯ for the users. Kim Incheon paused and then spoke again. ¨C Because of that, our planning team gave a uniqueness to every NPC in Kailan. A story for every single one of them. At those words, both Hines and Lucia nodded. Kim Incheon¡¯s explanation was something that anyone who played Kailan could relate to. ¨C In that sense, Kailan¡¯s maturity is amazing. In fact, we have planned and implemented the world as it is, but from now on, the human resource is a matter of fact for further growth. ¨C I agree with what Lucia had said. But Mr. Planner, I still have a question. ¨C What is it? ¨C In my understanding, the current world of Kailan is huge enough. Wouldn¡¯t it be great if all the worlds¡¯ users were connected to the present-day Kailan without expanding the world further? The map of Kailan was huge. The terrestrial system that users used so far. Among them, the human system alone could be compared to a small continent in reality. The question of Hines was something that anyone would have thought of. A large number of people played Kailan all around the world, but in reality, they wouldn¡¯t even exceed 10 percent of the world¡¯s total population. If the Human Dimension and the Devildom were to be combined, it would be more than 10% of the world¡¯s landmass, so fitting millions of users in it wouldn¡¯t be a problem. Kim Incheon smiled and shook his head. ¨C Of course, that isn¡¯t an impossible task, Mr.Hines. However, if we do that, Kailan would be a lot less fun. ¨C Why? ¨C One of the biggest reasons why Kailan is fun is because the ¡®users¡¯ are very special and unique. ¨C Hmm¡­? ¨C And in the world of Kailan with hundreds of NPCs living in it, all the users will have to be the ¡®heroes¡¯. Hines and Lucia chewed on the words of Kim Incheon and waited for his next words. Kim Incheon continued. ¨C In the world of Kailan, someone has to be ordinary. Some users have to farm, and some users have to carry bricks. ¨C But that ordinary person should be the user. ¨C Right. That is it. Silence filled the newsroom for a while as well as Jinsung and Harin¡¯s living room. The words of Kim Incheon felt like a firm conviction. After a while, it was Lucia and not Hines who broke the silence and asked. ¨C Then, Mr. Kim Incheon, what is the maximum number of users that a single server of Kailan could accommodate? Without a speck of hesitation, Kim-Incheon answered. ¨C A single server can accommodate around 50 million users. ¨C What basis? ¨C When we first planned Kailan, our planning team was under the impression that all Koreans would want to play the game. ¨C Ah¡­ ¨C Which was why from the very beginning, we planned based on our assumptions that 50 million users would play in one nation. So in China, which has a relatively large population, we had no choice but to open five servers from the very beginning. And that too is almost half full. At the words from Kim Incheon, Hines asked. ¨C A rough estimate maybe? ¨C As far as I know, the number of Chinese users currently in Kailan is 1.1 billion. ¨C OMG, that much? ¨C In fact, in terms of ratio, Korean servers are amazing. Of the 50 million people, more than 9 million play Kailan. And China has over 13 billion people. At the unique and low voice of Kim Incheon which was saying the story, everyone was sucked in. The stories that he was talking about were strange yet attractive. ¨C And for that reason, our planning team was a bit concerned. We wanted to create a server that would be able to integrate the whole world while satisfying the users from all over the world. ¨C Ahha¡­ ¨C Which was why we thought of a ¡®parallel world¡¯. ¨C Parallel¡­ world? ¨C That is right. Firstly, the servers in each of the countries with the same worldview exist with the concept of ¡®parallel world¡¯. The plan was to set up a server with the concept of ¡®Higher dimension¡¯ that the parallel world would connect to. At the words of Kim, Jinsung nodded his head. For him who understood the worldview of Kailan much more deeply than any other user, the agony of Kim Incheon could be understood. ¡®It was really shocking when I heard about the concept of the Middle-Earth from Lugarix.¡¯ There have been numerous games before Kailan, which had tried to consolidate the servers all around the world. But Ian had never seen an integration server be opened with such ease in the structured world of Kailan. The efforts of the planners were the driving force that made Kailan a flawless game. ¨C Then Mr. Planner, this Brave Canyon, which is supposedly going to open today, will serve as the first gateway for users all over the world to enter the ¡®integrated server¡¯? Veteran host, Lucia summed up all the points. Jinsung wasn¡¯t able to easily predict the next words that would come out of Kim¡¯s mouth, so he waited. Kim¡¯s answer was surprising and outside the expectations of Ian. ¨C Hmm, not necessarily. The Warrior¡¯s Village, there will be gateways in there too, but they will be different from the Brave Canyon. ¨C Huh? ¨C The Brave canyon is a battlefield that will select users. Upon hearing what Kim Incheon said, Ian¡¯s eyes went wide. CH 571 [System: Due to an excessive number of concurrent connections, the connection has been temporarily delayed.] [System: Please wait for a moment.] [System: Queue number: 178,490] [System: estimated waiting time: 95 seconds] ¡­ Syncopation¡­ [System: Queue number: 7] [System: estimated waiting time: 1 second] [Iris recognition needed.] [¡®Ian¡¯, welcome to the world of Kailan.] Pat-! Along with the countless familiar sounds, Ian¡¯s dark vision turned bright. And after a second, the blue sky with no clouds could be seen. ¡°Phew, I think I clicked at the right time¡­ queue number of 100,000 already?¡± Lying on the ground, Ian grunted as he got up after a moment. Tat-! The last-minute Ian logged out, he was on one of the peaks at the seven mountains of Ulphir Ian looked around. With the massive update patch happening all over, there was a possibility to enter the ¡®Warrior¡¯s Path¡¯ which was supposedly being created somewhere along that region. ¡®Kay, where is it?¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes were searching for it. There was a thick cloud which had between the peaks, something that wasn¡¯t there before the update. Not sure, but probably related to the ¡®Brave Path¡¯. Ian summoned Pin immediately and rode on it, and moved in that direction. Because of the white cloud, the naked eyes couldn¡¯t easily find the so-called ¡®Brave path¡¯. Swak-! Pin which had been summoned after a long time flew through the fog. ¡®I need to find it, even just a little faster¡­!¡¯ According to the analyzation of Ian, there was no one other than him in the Ulphir Mountains. Perhaps somehow, it was clear to him that Ian was the first human user in the Korean server. The problem, however, was that it wasn¡¯t a competition between the ¡®human¡¯ users of the ¡®Korean¡¯ server. In the Ulphir Mountains of the human system, in a similar manner there was a Pakalio Canyon in the Devildom that would open the Brave path, and the competition wasn¡¯t just between the Korean servers but from all over the world. The rankers of more than top 20 rankings from every country would be rushing for the new content, so he had to be cautious. Without stopping, Ian picked up the speed and flew around. Was it 15 minutes? ¡°¡­!¡± Ian who noticed something stopped Pin. What caught the eyes of Ian was a magnificent stone statue that never been seen in the Ulphir mountains. ¡®No, it doesn¡¯t seem like a stone statue, and it feels like a rock sculpture¡­¡¯ A large colossal stone statue, possibly ten meters in length. The interesting thing being, the giant statue was holding something in its hand that was lifted high. A large shape similar to an ellipse, with white energy pouring down from it. And the white energy that was constantly oozing out of it seemed to be broken down in the air, creating the cloud which was covering the Ulphir Mountain. Ian pulled on Pin and flew quickly. His intuition was telling him that it was the Warrior¡¯s path. Honestly, it would be too embarrassing to say that it was Ian¡¯s intuition. Whoever would have seen that means they would have made the same judgment as Ian. Swoosh-! Ian and Pin were vertically around 10 meters across the wind. Soaring up to the ellipse, Ian naturally looked down to see it and jumped from the back of Pin. Ian¡¯s figure on which he jumped fell into the white light and disappeared somewhere. * * * The place Ian had jumped into was a giant portal. As soon as he had entered there, he was able to enter the Brave Path just as he had expected. Tring-! [You have entered the ¡®Brave Path¡¯.] [Due to the dimensional movement, the summon ¡®Pin¡¯ has been recalled.] [You have entered the ¡®Brave Path¡¯ for the first time from a Korean Server.] [Fame increased by 200,000.] Upon seeing the simple system messages which had come up, Ian was seemingly interested. ¡®What? The first from the Korean server¡­?¡¯ There had never been a modifier of ¡®Korean Server¡¯ when receiving a first discovery reward. In addition to the qualifier that was integrated with the world servers, Ian was the first Korean server player that has entered, and not the first one in the world. ¡®So much fun, right from the start!¡¯ Ian smiled and looked to the front. A mysterious landscape had unfolded before the eyes of Ian. An endless cloud path in the blue sky. And a subtle gold shines around the path. Ian stepped on it without any hesitation. There was just one road, and he had to hurry up. But the next moment, Ian stopped again. Woong-! Along with a resonating sound, someone had blocked Ian. -Those who set foot on the transcendence path¡­ A heavy voice ringing in his head. A warrior with white wings was blocking the path of Ian. And surprisingly, however, the first thing that Ian could think of when seeing the man was. ¡°King of Rings?¡± The dragon fleet and the army of Heaven came down on the call of Ian during the dimensional war with the Devils. Excluding the color of the armor which was pure white instead of golden, the man had a similar appearance to the commander of the dragons fleet. The man who heard Ian speaking under his breath stepped forward. Nervous at what had happened, Ian gulped and looked. ¡°How¡­ how do you know about the celestial dragon fleet?¡± At the question of the man, Ian immediately answered, ¡°In the past, the castle of the King of Rings helped the human world.¡± ¡°Oh ho, you must have participated in the dimensional war.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°But¡­ during that time, I had passed the brave path.¡± At the man who was nodding his head, Ian asked, ¡°Are you also one of the heaven¡¯s army?¡± The man shook his head and laughed. ¡°No, I¡¯m not. Well, it is a bit complicated to say.¡± He looked at Ian once again from the top to the bottom. And the words came again. ¡°I need you to follow me.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°At the end of this road, there is someone who is waiting for you.¡± ¡°For me¡­?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know who either. I¡¯m just his servant for the time being.¡± When the man was done speaking, he reached his hand out to Ian, and Ian grabbed his hand. The next moment¡­ Woong-! The white energy spread out and started to spread to the hands of Ian. Tring-! [The conditions have been met.] [Being moved to ¡®The Decision Room¡¯.] A short two lines of system messages had appeared in front of Ian¡¯s view. At the same time, Ian with the new man disappeared and moved to someplace. * * * The ¡®Brave Path¡¯ was a ¡®gateway¡¯ kind of thing for the Warrior¡¯s canyon. Originally, there were thought to be a total of 7 gateways. Seven ancient heroes who will judge the qualities of the user who have passed through the seven gates and arrived at the ¡®decision room¡¯. And to make it interesting, if the gate wasn¡¯t passed at the trial, then the users wouldn¡¯t be eligible to challenge it for one whole month. If a user made any mistake while passing through the gate and missed the qualification, they will have to wait for a month. ¡°Of course, Ian will be having a hard time, but seeing him get a free pass like this makes my stomach hurt¡­¡± The face of Na Ji-chan began to crumble right after a few moments, the massive update was done and the server got opened, as he was looking at the personal monitor of Ian. Less than 20 minutes after the start of the monitoring, Ian¡¯s play was out of expectations. Of course, Na Ji-chan had guessed that Ian would be the first user to arrive at the Warrior¡¯s Village from the Korean server. That was the very reason why he was monitoring him. But apart from that, it was inevitable for him to be upset. Ian had passed the Warrior¡¯s path which the planning team had designed all night long, without even taking a few steps. ¡°Ahhh.¡± Na Ji-chan exhaled strongly and turned at Kim Ji-yeon who was next to him. ¡°Miss Ji-yeon. Please show me the status board.¡± ¡°Yes. Sir.¡± She slightly passed her hands on the tablet, and a small note had popped on one corner of the screen with Ian¡¯s image on it. -System Table Server Name: The Brave Road 001 Server class: World Condition: well Map: Brave Path Number of Concurrent users: 27 Maximum Progress: 99.25 percent. Bug report: 0 ¡­ Syncopation¡­ And Na Ji-chan who had just checked the situation of the board spoke again, ¡°Uh? In that one moment, did we get more than ten?¡± ¡°Yeah. One just increased right now.¡± The number of the concurrent users, written in a small font was on the status board, and it was the number of users who were on the Brave Path. And the number of 27 was the number of users from all over the world, but Na Ji-chan was still shocked. When Ian had just entered, there were just 5 concurrent users and just 30 seconds back, there were 10 people. Then how come Ian didn¡¯t meet a single user? Simple reason. The ¡®Brave Path¡¯ was designed in such a way where one user wouldn¡¯t be able to meet another. The only room where users could encounter the other was when they reached the ¡®Decision room¡¯. ¡°How many from the Korean sever?¡± ¡°Well¡­ Ian, Limlong, and Shakran. Three in total. Irahan seems to be coming in soon.¡± ¡°Oh ho.¡± Listening to the report from Kim Jiyeon, Na Ji-chan¡¯s face brightened. Apart from Ian, the Korean server users were usually expected to be strong users. ¡®To have three in 27¡­ they surely are a delightful bunch.¡¯ But the very next moment, his eyes went wide as they confirmed something. ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°Uh?¡± Number of Concurrent Users: 24 Brave Path, couldn¡¯t be exited once it was entered till the end. However, the number of the concurrent users who was 27 a while ago, suddenly decreased to ¡¯24¡¯. What could that mean? At the same time, both Kim Ji-yeon and Na Ji-chan were screaming, ¡°How can that be?¡± ¡°How could three people pass already?¡± Na Ji-chan which once again confirmed the number of users sighed. ¡°Khuem¡­¡± Things started to get much more complicated as the pace was much faster than the planning team had thought of. Kim Ji-yeon checked the data and opened her mouth again, ¡°Yes, sir. The Warrior¡¯s Village¡­ three members have passed already.¡± Na Ji-chan bit his lower lip and gave instructions to Kim Ji-yeon, ¡°Tell all the monitoring teams to wait.¡± ¡°Already?¡± ¡°You know too, Ji-yeon. The ¡®first team¡¯ is the most important one.¡± ¡°Ha, understood team leader.¡± Kim Ji-yeon nodded and called someone. Although the number of 23 hadn¡¯t changed since then. ¡°Two more to pass¡­ how long will that take?¡± If another two moved to the Warrior¡¯s Village, then a total of five would be gathered in there. And the number of ¡®5¡¯ was a very important one for the Warrior¡¯s Village. That was the first condition for the quest generation. CH 572 How many NPCs were in the Kailan server? The exact number has to be checked by looking into the database system, but from research, it has been stated that there were around 8 billion NPCs in the human world. And there were 800 million who could speak, which was a tremendous number, well over 10% of the world¡¯s population. In addition, there was no NPC that was repeated in Kailan. There were no NPCs made with Copy (paste+paste). Then how did I, no Kailans planning team designed so many of these NPCs one after the other? Did we really make the settings and do one after the other? The answer is ¡®No¡¯. Though not known externally, only a few thousand NPCs have been compiled by Kailan¡¯s planning team to cover all the stories and specific settings. (I am not a practitioner, so I don¡¯t know the exact number.) Of course, the number of thousands wasn¡¯t small but was less than 0.1 percent of the total number of 800 million. Then how was Kailan able to give birth to so many? The secret lies in the fundamental system of Kailan. The basic source was provided by the planning team, but the results of the intertwining sources were determined by the system. Starting with the appearance, personality, stats and etc. If numerous cases feature those the NPCs have, the system randomly mixes it. Something as small as the eyes or the eye color was also made to not repeat for the NPCs, and the relationship with each other was formed naturally like a ¡®society¡¯ was born. The different stories between the NPCs ad the numerous Sub-quests that arise from them, weren¡¯t even the stuff that the planning team had to take care of. So, if you have read till here, a question probably is going through your mind. The thousands of NPCs mentioned earlier were designed from A-Z all by the planning team. Why were they even needed? A very simple reason. Their role was to give a direction to the Kailan, and these were all named NPCs. I and the Kailan¡¯s development team controls them. Why was there a need for making such a long and complicated story¡­? In Kailan, there were so many variables that even I and the planners weren¡¯t able to guess. Yeah, I wanted to make that excuse. The reason why we didn¡¯t have full control over the Kailan¡¯s control system. Ian, Mark Oliver, and Lichao. These three people, to be in the Warrior¡¯s Village at the same time¡­ It was a very clear ¡®accident¡¯. -Expert planner ¡®Kim Incheon¡¯s report¡¯. * * * Ian, who extended his hands to the unknown NPC had arrived at the Decision Room. Ian surprisingly met a familiar NPC. And he was¡­ ¡®The dragon cavalry commander Camires!¡¯ The best bus driver (?), who had helped Ian in the war against the Undead army, and gave a huge ride for Ian and Elcarix, was the one waiting for Ian. However, the surprise didn¡¯t last long. No matter how one saw, it wasn¡¯t surprising to see Camires in there. ¡®The Mark of Courage which was given to me was a clue to enter the Warrior¡¯s Village.¡¯ Ian, who had head to head competition with Camires, greeted him with a very happy face. ¡°Oh, Camires, it has been really long!¡± And Camires too was the same. ¡°Haha, who could this be? Isn¡¯t he the Cintamani¡¯s master who was recognized worthy by the Dragon God?!¡± ¡°How have you been?¡± ¡°I am fine. I knew that I¡¯d see you someday, but I just didn¡¯t expect to see you this soon.¡± Looking at Camires, Ian¡¯s head began to work again. ¡®Camires¡­ the content that he could share about the Warrior¡¯s Village surely wouldn¡¯t be so small.¡¯ There had been no kind of information as to what kind of a village the Warrior¡¯s village was. Even in the notes, no information about the content had been made public. Only two things were clear. Camires gave Ian the Mark of Courage, and it had given a free pass to Ian on the Brave Path. In addition, he was sitting in the ¡®Decision Room¡¯ that would decide his position in the Warrior¡¯s Village. Therefore, Ian decided to try for Camires. ¡°Haha, isn¡¯t it all because of Camires? I would have been able to come till here without the help of Camires and the Mark of Courage.¡± ¡°Huhu, you are too humble my friend! I¡¯ve confirmed your courage and valor with my own two eyes.¡± ¡°It is a compliment. If Camires hadn¡¯t been diverted in that situation, maybe you would have been the one who won.¡± And the sweet-talking skill of Ian. Commander Camires began to favor Ian rapidly. ¡°Huhu, this friend, I like you so much.¡± [Affinity with the White Dragon Cavalry Captain ¡®Camires¡¯ increased by 3.] And as he checked the system message, Ian stopped his praising for a while. He found something in the system messages which had come up. ¡®White dragon cavalry captain? What? Did your position change?¡¯ Just a few months ago, the Camires he met had the title of Courageous Commander. However, the change in the position during the meantime meant that the position of the NPCs could change as the story progressed. Ian went back to asking Camires. ¡°By the way, you¡¯re not the courageous commander anymore?¡± Camires smiled and replied, ¡°After the competition with you was done, I was appointed as the guardian captain.¡± ¡°Aha.¡± ¡°The Courageous department that I was in-charge was under the White dragon Guard. The Courage division was the most powerful unit in the White Dragon Guard.¡± ¡°That so.¡± And the thoughts of Ian¡¯s mind didn¡¯t end there. ¡®So, in the meantime, he got promoted ¡­ nice. And the guy who brought me till here was someone in the white dragon cavalry.¡¯ The heaven¡¯s army, the exact name was ¡®Army of the King of Rings¡¯. And the commander of the Heaven¡¯s army was Beak Whe-su. ¡®The dragon cavalry and the army of the King of Rings. And the Courage division from the Dragon God, Seikaito too.¡¯ The King of Rings who had sent the Heaven¡¯s Army wasn¡¯t the King Ashoka who ruled the Empire of Maurya. King Ashoka was just the name of the forefathers of the castle king, and somewhere in the new world, there could be a real king. An army of gods sent by the ¡®real¡¯ King of Rings. That army was the Heaven¡¯s Army. ¡®And Seikaito is the one who sent the courageous division cavalry is surely one of the gods from the new world¡­¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes were shining bright. ¡®The Heaven¡¯s army and the White Dragon Guard¡­ there is some connection between the King of Rings and Seikaito.¡¯ They both had dragon cavalry of sky dragons and had a similar meaning to them, they could be seen as brothers. Ian was forced to ask Camires. ¡°Then, Camires.¡± ¡°Go on.¡± ¡°Do you know what kind of a person the King of Rings is?¡± At the question from Ian, Camires looked at Ian foolishly. ¡°How can I not know?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°He is the lord that is above me.¡± Ian¡¯s eyes which didn¡¯t understand what Camires was saying went wide. * * * The concept of ¡®Heaven¡¯ was the name of the dimension that had been mentioned in the dimensional against Devildom. But no one had ever known about the reality of the term Heaven. That applied to Ian too. ¡®When I heard of the word Heaven, I thought that it was simply the enemy of the Devils.¡¯ In the last battle of the dimensional war, the celestial dragon cavalry from the Heaven had confronted the Devils. Defender, Commander Beak Whe-su, had clearly stated that too. ¡°If this was Heaven, I would have wiped them all off.¡± That was the first time that Ian had heard of the word Heaven. And Ian, who had heard it, unconsciously thought that the Heaven system was a dimensional system similar to the Devildom. Like the human world, which was in the terrestrial system, just like the Devildom, a new dimension was thought to open. And it was regarded as another force created for the purpose of confrontation against the Devildom and the Asmodians. But when he heard of the dimension being mentioned in the conversation with Lugarix, Ian was forced to rethink his opinion. According to what Lugarix had stated, among the dimensions in the Middle-Earth, there was a dimension called as the ¡®Heaven¡¯. But, after hearing the story from Camires, Ian had to think once again about all the stuff. ¡°Heaven doesn¡¯t just seem to be a dimension. There seem to be around five, including the Dragon Haven. And all of them are considered as Heaven.¡± The new worldview he learned from Camires, shocked Ian. Never before had he ever thought of associating with the Dragon Haven. ¡°And in that, the King of Rings is the one who reigns over the holy heavens, he could be called as the master of the skies. Even Sekaito whom I serve is like his son.¡± The army of Sekaito is headed by the White Dragon Guard, which is led by Camires. But as Sekaito is the son of the King of Rings, and the King of Rings was known to have a higher position, so there was no way he wouldn¡¯t be the Lord of Camires. And listening to the story, another question had popped into the mind of Ian. ¡°Then, Camires.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­?¡± ¡°The Brave Path. No, what does the Brave Canyon have to do with the Heaven?¡± It was natural for that question to be asked. On the Brave Path, which had been vaguely known to be ¡®a place through which one had to pass to be declared as an Intermediate-being¡¯, had men dressed in similar costumes to Camires. At the question from Ian, Camires smiled and responded, ¡°Huhu, the relationship of Heaven to this¡­¡± Taking a pause, Camires continued, ¡°That isn¡¯t so difficult.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°To simply put it, this place exists to select the ¡®Heaven¡¯s Army¡¯.¡± ¡°You are selecting the Heaven¡¯s Army from the Earthly beings?¡± Camires nodded and responded, ¡°Obviously that would be. Excluding the ¡®God¡¯ and ¡®Spirit¡¯, almost all of the Intermediate beings are from the earth. It is very rare for one to be born as Intermediate beings.¡± ¡°Ah¡­!¡± Listening to Camires, Ian nodded reflexively. Almost like he had found the pieces of the puzzle which had been lying around for quite some time. But that feeling was just for a while. ¡®Then, the Devildom users? Didn¡¯t they said that the Warrior¡¯s Village and the path would be opened for the Devildom?¡¯ Ian who thought of the Asmodian users whom he forgot about, once again got confused. And asked immediately, ¡°If this is the place where the Heaven¡¯s forces are selected, then the Asmodians won¡¯t be able to become the Intermediate beings?¡± Camires shook his head and answered, ¡°That¡¯s not it.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Why do you think that the Warrior¡¯s Village is just one place?¡± ¡°Sorry?¡± ¡°If this Warrior¡¯s Village has been made by the Gods, then there is a Warrior¡¯s Village made by the Devil Gods on the other side of the Canyon.¡± With those words from Camires, Ian felt his head be clean from all the doubts. It was because of the new content and its flow had been understood. In particular, the content of ¡®War of Heroes¡¯, which was stated to be held in the Brave Canyon every half year. ¡®I thought that it would be like a nation¡¯s war, but eventually, it will flow out to be a fight between the Asmodians and the Humans.¡¯ After a while, Camires opened his mouth again, ¡°Kay, I spoke a lot since we met after a long time.¡± ¡°I learned a lot because of that, Camires.¡± ¡°Haha, nothing at all. If you entered the Brave Canyon, you would have come across all these in a matter of moments.¡± ¡°Even then, thank you.¡± Ian sincerely thanked Camires. He still wasn¡¯t able to figure out what kind of contents would be available when he entered the Warrior¡¯s Village, but it was clear that it was a place which existed for the sole reason of preparing for the War in the Canyon. And if he could make good use of the information that he got from Camires, he¡¯ll surely be able to get many benefits. ¡°Kay, now let¡¯s go.¡± As Camires reached out his hand, a mysterious energy started to emanate from the white gate that was behind him. ¡°The Hero who stepped on the path of transcendence, will you walk down the path?¡± Ian was grinning as he saw Camires asked the question. And the answer¡­ ¡°YES.¡± Obviously it was ¡®YES¡¯. CH 573 Tring-! [The first one to enter the ¡®Warrior¡¯s Village¡¯ from the Korean server.] [Outside items cannot be used in the Warrior¡¯s Village.] [All items will be locked.] [Fame increased by 200,000.] [Obtained 30 Hero Score.] As the white light had filled his view, the first thing that entered the eyes of Ian was the system messages. And Ian, who read the system messages, couldn¡¯t help but feel weird. ¡®Outside items can¡¯t be used?¡¯ Ian, which confirmed the last line, found it interesting. ¡®There is a Hero Score in here? Oh, ho.¡¯ The points which he had tried to collect, when trying the Spirit Dojo, were the Hero Score. Immediately after checking the status window, Ian found out that the Hero Score he obtained was of the same concept. ¡®I thought they were just points that can only be used in the Spirit Dimension¡­¡¯ A thought just entered Ian¡¯s mind. ¡®Is this Hero Score, a currency in the Warrior Village?¡¯ All the items were banned, and he was given 30 Hero Score. Ian guessed that this was the planning team¡¯s intent upon seeing those two messages. Although his guess was more like an ¡®intuition¡¯, Ian had faced this situation almost twice. So Ian was convinced that his gut feeling was right. ¡®If I knew it then, I would have worked harder there.¡¯ And while Ian was trapped in his thoughts, he heard someone¡¯s voice. ¡°You look like a bandit, a new entrant maybe?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Ian¡¯s eyes turned toward the source of the sound, and there it was, a heavy armored Knight. And on top of the knight, the information of the NPC was there. -¡®Commander Parker¡¯/ Lv. 20 (transcendence) And the words of ¡®Parker¡¯, who stood far from Ian, continued, ¡°I¡¯m a little worried about putting in untrained ones, but I can¡¯t help it. There are no trained recruits in the village.¡± ¡°Huh? What are you¡­¡± ¡°There are less than 30 minutes until the battle begins. Hurry and get ready!¡± Ian, who hadn¡¯t been able to determine the situation he was in, felt embarrassed with this encounter. The only words he said was to get ready on the first meet. Instead of panicking, he thought it was weird. ¡®No, doesn¡¯t he have to tell me what the battle is?¡¯ Ian was thinking about how to ask ¡®Commander Parker¡¯. But before he could, the system messages popped up. Tring-! [The conditions have been met.] [¡®Quest Trip Preparation¡¯ quest has been triggered.] -Trip Preparation Recognized worthy on the Brave Path, you have arrived safely at the Warrior¡¯s Village. You have taken the first step in being an ¡®Intermediate-being¡¯. But to be a true Intermediate-being, you need to be accepted by the Warrior¡¯s Village. And in order to be recognized, you¡¯ll have to earn ¡®Merits¡¯. In the southern part of the Brave Canyon, the Battle of ¡®Dimensional Mirror¡¯ is about to begin. Make sure that you are well prepared when joining the advancing Heaven¡¯s army. When you¡¯re ready, go to the commander, Parker, and he will join you. Quest Difficulty: None Quest Condition: Recognized by the Ancient Heroes. Time limit: 25 minutes 32 seconds. Reward: 15 Hero Score A quest window, which had put the concern and doubts of Ian to rest, appeared. After confirming the quest, Ian was more convinced with his initial guess. ¡®The Hero Score is surely the currency needed to buy an equipment here.¡¯ With a satisfied smile, Ian stepped forward. The village was huge and was lined with buildings on either side, but looking at the signs, it looked like they were stores. ¡®Kay, should I get to work?¡¯ Shopping was always fun. And Ian began to walk faster. * * * ¡°Um, Team leader.¡± ¡°What is it Miss Ji-yeon?¡± Na Ji-chan, who was writing a report with a good mood, looked over at Kim Ji-yeon. After listening to her tensed tone, he was sure that something interesting had happened. Kim Ji-yeon gulped and looked into Na Ji-chan¡¯s eyes and opened her lips. ¡°I just got a call from the monitoring team.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t drag it, just spit it out.¡± ¡°The first three rankers who entered the Warrior¡¯s Village have gotten the quest of Dimensional Mirror battle.¡± ¡°Uh¡­ mirror¡­ dimensional battle?¡± Na Ji-chan, who was thinking about the Dimensional Mirror Battle, had no choice but to gulp as he remembered what it was. It was because the ¡®Dimensional Mirror¡¯ map was a map that users shouldn¡¯t be able to enter yet. ¡°I don¡¯t get it, Miss Ji-yeon, why did the Dimensional Mirror Battle start all of a sudden?¡± At the question from Na Ji-chan, Ji-yeon scratched the back of her neck and responded, ¡°Today is Sunday, Team leader. And it hasn¡¯t passed 12 yet.¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°The Sunday quest? The Dimensional Mirror Battle quest? Did you forget it, sir?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± His head began to spin as he heard what Kim Ji-yeon said. It didn¡¯t take long, and he understood the situation little by little. ¡®Then, the quest event of the week was in the 9 to 10-hour duration? Then the time right now¡­?¡¯ Na Ji-chan, who was feeling dizzy, checked the clock. The time on his smartphone was exactly 9:45 pm. ¡°Haaa¡­¡± There were many quests in the Warrior¡¯s Village. But the most important quests were the main quests, which came on Sunday. They were the quests that were related to the promotion of the system. After the promotion, the title, ¡®Elite soldier¡¯, would be given to a user who became an ¡®Intermediate-being¡¯. And as it was, a user couldn¡¯t participate in the Sunday quests until that user was done with basic training quests. The commander, ¡®Parker¡¯, was supposed to speak to a user after that user completed the ¡®Basic Training¡¯ and obtain the title ¡®Trained Recruits¡¯. There were no trained recruits in the Warrior¡¯s Village. That was why Commander Parker had created such a situation. ¡°Dammit¡­¡± A light sigh came out of Na Ji-chan¡¯s mouth. It was, in fact, a problem that even they hadn¡¯t considered about. The ¡®Brave Path¡¯ was a place that took around half a day for it to be cleared. Meaning, the users weren¡¯t supposed to enter the Warrior¡¯s Village on Sunday even if the server had opened. That too before 10. ¡®But for seven users to pass so quickly¡­¡¯ While rubbing his forehead, he sat down and explored the quest that was triggered in the Warrior¡¯s Village. First, he had to understand the situation, and in that manner, he would be able to understand what kind of problems might arise in the future. Kim Ji-yeon, who was seated beside Na Ji-chan, was quietly looking over at the monitor, and after a while, the two of them talked. ¡°Hew, this isn¡¯t as troublesome as I thought.¡± ¡°Looks like it, that¡¯s fortunate.¡± ¡°Hu uh, Ian himself was horrible enough, but now, we have seven content destroyers¡­¡± Na Ji-chan once again looked at the list of the rankers and shook his head. Kim Ji-yeon looked at him and cautiously asked, ¡°But sir.¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°There is always that one thing that you used to say.¡± ¡°What¡­?¡± While looking at Na Ji-chan who didn¡¯t quite understand it, Kim Ji-yeon spoke with a very clear voice. ¡°We need to always think of the ¡®worst¡¯ case scenario.¡± ¡°I sure did.¡± At the acceptance of Na Ji-chan, Kim Ji-yeon continued, ¡°What if in the Dimensional Mirror Battle, the rankers in the platoon are promoted?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°Then those users in the platoon might not be able to join the main quest.¡± The main quest of the Warrior¡¯s Village was a linked quest that started from the ¡®Basic Training¡¯. And to receive the basic training, a user had to be a ¡®trainer¡¯. However, if a platoon with rankers was promoted, they would be promoted from the training class to the ¡®new recruit¡¯ class. In other words, they wouldn¡¯t be able to receive the Basic Training, which was one of the most important content. ¡°Haa¡­¡± From the mouth of Na Ji-chan, a sound of realization had leaked; a lament filled with desolation. Of course, the probability of being able to do it was very small, but who were the users there right now? The top rankers of the world. It was also possible that they would be promoted right from the start. ¡°Can¡¯t be helped, Miss. Ji-yeon.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± The voice of Na Ji-chan was depressing as ever. ¡°We¡¯re doing night shifts this time, too.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°The same with team 2 and team 1. Spread the news quickly.¡± As soon as the words fell from Na Ji-chan¡¯s mouth, a gloomy air began to settle in the office of the Planning Team 3. * * * Meanwhile, Ian, who had no idea of the tragedy the planning team was in, was humming a song while enjoying shopping. ¡°Hiya, it has been a while since I have seen these simple options.¡± Ian was a very high-level user in the ground, almost at a full level. Which was why the items he had used had a blast of colorful options. However, the items on display at the ¡®Brave Forge¡¯ were not only ordinary, but they also had shabby options. -Strong Hero Ironblade Classification: one-handed sword Rank: general (Transcendence) Wear Limits: Power 50 or more (transcendence) Above ¡®trainer¡¯ Attack: 277~325 Durability: 215/215 Options: Power +15 (transcendence) An iron sword crafted by the blacksmith ¡®Tiver¡¯. Among the weapons that have been made in the Warrior¡¯s Forge, these are of great quality. Ian, who had confirmed the item information, mumbled something with a smile. ¡®But, I have no choice here¡­¡¯ Ian didn¡¯t like the items there. All the colorful and bright items of Ian were in his inventory, and he couldn¡¯t wear them. ¡®There isn¡¯t much time left. I need to find an item right away.¡¯ Ian confirmed the time remaining until the quest of Warrior was over and picked up the item he had selected. As he guessed, the currency used in the Warrior¡¯s Village was the Hero Score. Ian had a total of 150 Hero Score, including the 30 Hero Score he obtained when he entered the Warrior¡¯s Village, but he only used 25. Ian definitely wanted to buy a better item, but he didn¡¯t see anything desirable. ¡°These are the only weapons that are given to the trainees.¡± And for that reason, the only equipment that Ian could buy was a bow and a pair of leather armor. The orb-like item he got in the Spirit Dimension that increased one¡¯s magic didn¡¯t seem to exist in any of the shops there. [You have equipped the item ¡®Strong Hero¡¯s Bow¡¯.] [You have worn the item ¡®Tough Hero¡¯s Leather Armor¡¯.] ¡°Well, good luck to you, my friend.¡± ¡°Thank you!¡± After greeting the blacksmith, ¡®Tiver¡¯, Ian began to move slowly. The quest ¡®Trip Preparation¡¯ had around 10 more minutes remaining. ¡®Well, something crazy is about to happen, but is it really starting?¡¯ With a calm expression, Ian moved forward. However, Ian didn¡¯t know that the moment he came out of the forge, two users had jumped in. CH 574 At a small vacant lot at the center of the Warrior¡¯s Village. Ian and three other users stood in the vacant lot. In front of them was the NPC Commander ¡®Parker¡¯. ¡°Kay, everyone has arrived here in time.¡± Parker nodded his head and checked the faces of the three men. ¡°All ready?¡± ¡°Yes, I am.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°I am always prepared.¡± Parker just nodded at their response. Each of them was curious about the quests that the other had than the ones they were given. It was already obvious that the users weren¡¯t new since the only ones who could enter the Warrior¡¯s Village were top rankers of other servers. Ian stared at them and started to guess their identity. ¡®The one on the left brought a staff and a robe, looks like a typical wizard class¡­ oh ho, the guy there didn¡¯t even have an armor on and equipped double swords? However, with 30 Hero Score, it is tough to buy more than one item for a trainee.¡¯ The Warrior¡¯s Village didn¡¯t ban PK since there was no reason for one to be hostile, yet Ian looked at the users carefully. He might not have to go against the swords, but even then, it was a fierce competition. While Ian was in his thoughts, Parker continued, ¡°From now on you will move to the battlefield of the ¡®Dimensional Mirror¡¯.¡± The user that seemed like a wizard class asked Parker, ¡°Where is this Dimensional Mirror battlefield?¡± Parker smiled and responded, ¡°That¡¯s a good question. There is a need to know about the battlefield.¡± He waited for a while and spoke, ¡°If you have been through the Brave Path, you already know that you are in the ¡®Warrior¡¯s Village¡¯, which is a training institution to select the army.¡± Ian and the other three users waited for the response of Parker, and the words which followed were much more serious. ¡°You need to get enough training here and have your abilities be recognized, and only then will you be able to be a true ¡®Intermediate-being¡¯.¡± After explaining about the Warrior¡¯s Village, the words of Parker continued for quite a long time. First, there are three ¡®Battle Day¡¯ in the Warrior¡¯s Village. The battlefield was open on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, and one could earn Hero Scores and ¡®Public Points¡¯ there. Second, ¡®Hero scores¡¯ were needed to get an equipment and ¡®Public Points¡¯ were needed to promote one¡¯s rank. *In order for a trainee to become a ¡®Recruit¡¯ a user needed 100 Public Points. Third, in the Dimensional Mirror battlefield, if a user¡¯s vitality had fallen below 10%, that user would be taken out from the field automatically and be returned to the village. Fourth, the ones who could survive until the end of the battle would be promoted, and no matter how the participant did, a special rank would be given. Parker, who talked for about 3 minutes, stopped talking. ¡°I want to talk to you about how you are supposed to fight, but there isn¡¯t enough time to explain it. I¡¯ll explain it here and move to the battlefield.¡± Parker¡¯s explanation got interrupted in the most important part, so Ian couldn¡¯t help but feel fooled. ¡°No, isn¡¯t that part the most important one?¡± Parker smiled and responded, ¡°No need to worry about that. It isn¡¯t that complicated. Once you experience it, you will understand¡­¡± Parker lifted his spear to the sky and opened his mouth. ¡°I wish you all good luck.¡± The moment the words from Parker were done, Ian and the other three people got engulfed in white light and disappeared. In the place where the three people had vanished, a faint afterimage lingered. * * * Tring-! [You have entered the battlefield of ¡®Dimensional Mirror¡¯.] [You have been assigned as a platoon member of the ¡®7th Platoon¡¯.] [The battle will start after 5 minutes.] The darkened vision of Ian began to turn bright. He then heard a stranger¡¯s voice. ¡°Nice to meet you, beginners. I¡¯m Hexar, the leader of the 7th platoon. I don¡¯t understand why a trainee is on our platoon, but¡­ well, it isn¡¯t my concern. Surviving is based on how you do.¡± Hexar, who introduced himself as a Platoon leader, was an NPC with a different image from Parker. If Parker was the typical image of a knight, then Hexar looked a bit sloppy compared to Parker. ¡°In here, you can just fight to the death. In the end, if you fight harder than the Devildom ones, you win.¡± After the greetings, Hexar continuously talked. Instead of listening to him, Ian turned over to look at the structure of the battlefield. The words of the Platoon Leader weren¡¯t so intriguing. In addition, the unkind NPC didn¡¯t seem to give any details about the battlefield, so he needed to find the information on his own. ¡°It doesn¡¯t look like the map is wide¡­¡± The place looked like a small snowy field that seemed a bit wider than the Warrior¡¯s Village. The map gave two things that Ian had to note. First, it was a sealed map surrounded by rocky cliffs with high directions, and second, there was a tower of white light shining at the back of the battlefield. The interesting thing was that there was a huge ¡®Mirror¡¯ hanging on top of the tower. ¡®Why is the name of the battlefield Dimensional Mirror?¡¯ Things were never what they seemed to be. However, one thing was certain; the battlefield was by no means an ordinary one. ¡®A platoon had around 10 members in them¡­ and there could be around 100 in one too, but the opponent can¡¯t be seen. The map is blocked on all sides and hence there is no way for the enemy to come in¡­¡¯ There was no portal or gate where the enemy could appear from. The battlefield was empty. Ian didn¡¯t understand how to fight the soldiers of the current place. ¡®If a monster is summoned, it will almost be a battle with the Asmodians¡­¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes slightly narrowed. Ian, who had a lot of gaming experience, wasn¡¯t the kind of person who tended to worry too much. While Ian was in his own world of concern, someone suddenly talked to him. A wizard user began to talk. ¡°By the way, we¡­ we haven¡¯t even introduced ourselves?¡± Ian¡¯s eyes reflexively moved to the direction of the wizard and so did the eyes of the others. The words of the wizard continued, ¡°I¡¯m Mark Oliver from the US server. May I know your names?¡± The man who just introduced himself, Mark Oliver, seemed to be a very polite guy. The atmosphere seemed to have turned bothersome. With a sulky expression, Ian answered, ¡°Ah¡­ I am ¡®Ian¡¯.¡± Somehow, the rest of the guys were far more unique than Mark Oliver. ¡°Nice to meet you miniatures, I am Lichao¡ªthe romantic swordsman. I really want to see my bros in action.¡± As he twisted his double swords along with his unique manner of speaking, cold sweat flowed from Ian. ¡®What¡­ what is this? This guy is like Hoonie¡­¡¯ Unlike Ralph, whom he had met before, the two of them seemed a bit innocent, but Ian wasn¡¯t ready to take down his guard. The party of Ralph was easy to control because they had no idea where they were heading to. ¡®But Mark Oliver¡­ I heard this name quite a lot¡­¡¯ Ian had never been interested in overseas server users. However, that didn¡¯t mean that he was underestimating the other server users. He knew that there were users that he would have trouble fighting with. But the problem was that there were too many rankers to even look at. Since there were too many rankers, Ian wasn¡¯t even sure of whom he was supposed to analyze. Of course, he could have checked the topmost rankers on every server, but Ian had been very busy lately. Nevertheless, the name ¡®Mark Oliver¡¯ struck something in him right away. ¡®The Wizard ranker in the US server, Mark Oilver¡­ Noel has said something like that.¡¯ Canoel, the English-speaking member of the Lotus Guild, was constantly monitoring the overseas server. Around two months ago, he had a conversation with Canoel. ¨C Hyung, the wizard class user in the US server called Mark Oliver is really something. ¨C Oh, yeah? What¡¯s his level? ¨C I can¡¯t say much as it was in a video, but he isn¡¯t lacking even a little bit when compared to Remir Noona. ¨C Oho? Then how about Hoonie? ¨C Hmm, to compare with Hoonie¡­ well, I feel sorry for Mark Oliver to compare him with my friend¡­ ¨C Owww! Why are you talking about KanjiHoonie like this¡­! He might not give you a buff next time? ¨C Ahh, why are you saying that? It was a joke, a joke! ¨C Tch. ¨C But I mean it, he really has the talent. Ian remembered the conversation he had with Canoel. ¡®This is gonna be fun.¡¯ Canoel, who was a game contender, still lacked control compared with other Lotus Rankers. But apart from that, his ¡®eyes¡¯ were incredible. If Canoel said so, then this Oliver was probably different compared to other rankers from other servers that he had met so far. ¡®But he is one of the three who managed to enter the Warrior¡¯s Village.¡¯ After Mark Oliver, Ian looked at Lichao. Somehow, he wasn¡¯t a good impressionable looking person, but it was obvious that he had potential. While Ian was thinking about that, Mark Oliver seemed to be thinking about the same thing. ¡°Oh ho, you are the famous Korean server user, Ian?¡± At the words from Mark Oliver, Ian¡¯s eyes went wide. ¡°You know me?¡± ¡°Of course. I have a lot of interest in the Korean Server. Since Korea is the ¡®singular country¡¯ of Kailan. And you are the top ranker in the Korean Server.¡± Whether it was interesting to meet Ian or not, Mark Oliver scanned Ian from head to toe. On the other hand, the swordsman Lichao had no idea what was happening. ¡°Well, nice to meet you, Mark Oliver. I too have heard your name.¡± ¡°Oh oh! Really? It is such an honor!¡± Mark Oliver became as energetic as a kid when he found out that Ian knew him. And while they were talking¡­ [The battle will begin in 30 seconds.] The first battle in the ¡®Warrior¡¯s Village¡¯ was about to start. CH 575 In the middle of the isolated vacant lot surrounded by cliffs. Over a hundred military soldiers were in a combat stance, forming an wonjin (a battle strategy). Ian was prepared to pull on the bowstring at any time with little effort, a message had rung in the silent ground. [The battle begins.] [Phase 1 starts.] With that signal, loud resonances and huge sounds started to ring in the lot. Woong-! [Devil Dimensional Cavalry will be summoned.] Checking the messages, Ian glanced over at the battlefield. The developments on the battlefield were interesting. ¡®The devil dimensional Cavalry¡­¡¯ And then, after identifying the enemies that appeared, Ian couldn¡¯t help but feel puzzled. The enemies which had been summoned all over the map with a blue shine seemed farther away from any Asmodian he had ever seen. -Devil Dimensional Cavalry/ Lv. 10 (transcendence) ¡®I¡¯m sure that I heard we were going to fight the Asmodians, so what happened?¡¯ Soldiers covered in blue light were all around. They didn¡¯t feel like the Asmodians at any glance. The signs of Asmodians were the dark skins and the peculiar reddish-brown hair. Of course, it wasn¡¯t because the skin color wasn¡¯t white, it was just that the atmosphere didn¡¯t feel like it. However, there was no time to think. The enemies were coming into the camp at a very tremendous speed. Thud- Thud- Thud-! At the end of the army camp, a loud shout rang out. ¡°Try to destroy them with all your might! The Castle King is with you!¡± ¡°Wah!¡± As the commander ¡®Parker¡¯ said that, the whole army flocked towards the others with a whole loud sound. And Lichao who was in the same 7th platoon along with Ian was in the forefront. Mark Oliver, who confirmed the intention, looked at Ian and asked with a smile, ¡°We can¡¯t be staying still, right?¡± Ian nodded and smiled. ¡°Obviously.¡± After that short exchange of words, the two spurred and bounced off the ground at the same time. The very next moment. Wheeing-! All around Ian summons were summoned. Kyaaah-! Grrrng- Grrrng-! Staring with Ly and Halli growls till Karceus and Bbookbbook¡¯s roars. And, the black wings of Blackie and the medium spirit Magbi. Ian got on top of Halli and pulled on his bow. Ping- Piping-! And then, as always, the arrows that left the bow of Ian¡¯s moved as smooth as ever. Puck- Puck¨C! As soon as the arrows hit the enemies, Ian quickly checked on the system messages. [You have dealt damage to the ¡®Devil Dimensional Cavalry¡¯!] [The vitality of ¡®Devil Dimensional Cavalry¡¯ reduced by 195.] [The vitality of ¡®Devil Dimensional Cavalry¡¯ reduced by 177.] [The vitality of ¡®Devil Dimensional Cavalry¡¯ reduced by 212.] The guys who were referred to as the Devil Dimensional Cavalry were the opponents which Ian had been facing for the first time. Ian had no information about how much damage dealt would be or how much power they have. Ian didn¡¯t use the Spirit magic and was using normal arrows. Unlike the spirit magic, which combined various spells, such as spirit magic or the attribute resistance to deal with any kind of damage, normal attacks only damage the simple physical and defense damage. So, if he could look at the damage dealt by general attacks, then he would be able to measure an approximate number of power that his opponent has. ¡®Hmm¡­ with the transcendence level of 10, the combat power surely is higher than that.¡¯ It was obvious that the calculations weren¡¯t accurate. There were many variables included. But it was Ian¡¯s intent to get some kind of details. And what he achieved was enough. ¡®If this is the difficulty of the Warrior¡¯s Village, it¡¯s easier than what I had expected?¡¯ Ian judged that the combat power of the dimensional cavalry was roughly around the monsters of level 12-13. And if that was the level, then it was going to be much easier than the contaminated mine. Of course, Ian wasn¡¯t fully equipped and was weaker than before, but even then, it was worth a try. ¡®Well, since this is the first phase, they are easy, I need to be alert.¡¯ ¡°Haha!¡± Ian who spurred on the back of Halli moved onto Pin and swelled into the air. After confirming that there were no ranged attackers, there was no reason to stay on the ground. Kiyaaa! Pin went into the air with the flame form of Ian. As Ian pulled on the reins, Pin turned to the side rapidly. And in the meantime. Ian¡¯s hands started to be engulfed in fire. Borrowing the power from Magbi, he activated the spirit magic. Hrrr-! [Spirit magic ¡®Infernal Fire¡¯ has been activated.] The flame longbow began to emit strong fires. A fiery flame that surrounded the arrows and it was very different from the shabby arrows which had just been shot a moment back. The flame arrows began to pour onto the dimensional cavalry. Piping-! * * * Tring-! [The transcendence level has risen.] [You have achieved the transcendence level of 9.] In just one week, Hoonie¡¯s mood was great. All thanks to the unexpected gift from Ian, he had been able to achieve the transcendence level 9 at a tremendous rate. ¡®Huhu, these trivial scraps of metal! Kneel before the power of darkness! Hahaha!!¡¯ Holding onto a black staff that was taller than him, Hoonie was bursting the mine. Hoonie had fallen into narcissism and enjoyed the fact that he just achieved level 9 while stroking his staff. From both ends of the staff, a strange mix of energies of black and dark color shades began to radiate. [Warlock Deceit Staff/ Only (Transcendence)] [The staff of the ancient evil dark Warlock deceit. Contains powerful dark energy.] And to his surprise, the staff¡¯s rank was ¡®only (transcendence)¡¯. Given the fact that Ian still lacked the only transcendence equipment, it was surely surprising. And Hoonie who hadn¡¯t yet proceeded with the Middle-Earth content in earnest, couldn¡¯t have obtained the precious items directly. The staff, which Hoonie had received from a lot of love, was nothing but a gift from Ian. And it wasn¡¯t just Hoonie who had suddenly received a gift from Ian. Yu Shin, who was hunting with Hoonie at the moment, was also equipped with a leather armor from Ian. ¡°Yah. Hoon-ah!¡± ¡°What hyung?¡± ¡°Where the hell did Ian even get these items?¡± ¡°Said he picked these up from somewhere.¡± ¡°You believe that?¡± ¡°If Ian God says, there is nothing we can¡¯t believe.¡± Hoonie who was filled with admiration for Ian recalled the memory from the day. ¡°Hoonie, take this with you.¡± ¡°Uh, staff? Is this good?¡± ¡°I picked it up.¡± ¡°Ah, you picked it up from somewhere and are giving it to me?¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter if you hate it. I will just give it to the other guild members.¡± ¡°Wait! Even then, I¡¯ll just check the options!¡± Hoonie, who touched the skull of the staff sighed out of relief. ¡°If I hadn¡¯t taken this from my hyung, level 9 would have been impossible in this week¡­¡± Yu Shin heard the mumble for Ian and nodded. ¡°What I have here is surely great, but I¡¯m sure that the staff is much greater.¡± Unlike the staff of Hoonie, the leather armor of Yu Shin was rare (transcendence). Surely it was a great item, but even though it just had one rank difference, the gap between them was huge. Why did Ian even give out the weapons to them? If he just placed them on the auction, it would have gotten at least million of won. Did he care for the two of them more than that sum of money? Or was that amount a bit too much for Ian? Nope, neither of it. Even if it was Ian, there was no way where he could pass on an item where millions were in place. The staff that Hoonie was looking at wasn¡¯t any different. If the high-end weapons entered into the hands of the other guilds on such competitive terms, which was why these couldn¡¯t be placed for sale. But for Hoonie and Yu Shin, who were simple-minded, such complicated thoughts never entered their brains. They were plain impressed with the grace of Ian. And the most famous Ian loyalist, the no. 1 supporter of Ian, Hoonie was much motivated with it. ¡°Keu, Ian God! Praise the Lord! Loyalty!¡± Hoonie¡¯s eyes were filled with respect for Ian. Reading the information window of the staff, Hoonie¡¯s heart went thudding again. Then, where did Ian get the items? There was no way he could have just picked them up. Rather, the two pieces of equipment was a sad story for Ian. The two transcendence equipment boxes he had obtained from the Spirit Dojo for breaking the 15th floor. They were obtained by opening it. Not sure how sad that story was, but it was surely devastating for Ian. He was under the expectation that one of the two equipment would be for a summoner. But when such a warlock-only item came out of it, Ian¡¯s whole body started to hurt. And thanks to that act of Ian, Yu Shin and Hoonie reached the level 9. ¡°Yu Shin hyung, this isn¡¯t the time to be this way.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°We need to quickly reach the level 10 and go help Ian hyung.¡± ¡°Yeah, Ian will be disappointed if he knows we are resting this way.¡± The two men with a burning desire moved to the next hunting ground. * * * Pung-! [You have successfully defeated the ¡®Dimensional Cavalry¡¯.] [You have earned the Hero Score of 1 in the Warrior¡¯s Village] [The contribution of the ¡®Platoon 7¡¯ increased by 10.] [Earned Hero Score of 2.] The devil dimensional cavalry fell while crumbling down in the hands of Ian. And Ian, who had defeated the first cavalry, looked at the rising system messages. ¡®Hero Score for public value¡­ and the platoon¡¯s contribution is related to the promotion. The experience doesn¡¯t seem to rise¡­¡¯ But after a while, Lichao¡¯s eyes were shining. In the hands of Ian, the devil dimensional cavalry broke down and scattered and had disappeared in a white light. Swooah-! It was the ¡®Devil Dimensional Mirror¡¯ which had absorbed in the cavalry. It wasn¡¯t just the cavalry that Ian had killed. All the dimensional troops killed on the battlefield were sucked in by the mirror. In addition, the souls which were taken in by the mirror were gathered and flew in somewhere. And Ian, who discovered it began to think. Surely, his limbs were working greatly. ¡®What? Why would the dimensional cavalry get to be taken by the mirror? Where are they being sent to?¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes looked over at the metal plate below the mirror. There was a simple phrase like this. -Surviving Devil Dimensional Cavalry: 95 -Surviving Celestial Army: 99 ¡®We have killed five so far, and one army has been taken down.¡¯ And then it was. Woong-! A huge wave of wind in the sky of the battlefield which went right to the dimensional mirror. And the light which hit the mirror split and fell all over the battlefield. Wheeing-! Wheeing-! And subsequently, new cavalry and army were summoned. ¡°What the?¡± Ian was shocked. In a series of situations, there was no way he could know what the mirror would do. In addition, the battle just returned to the original plot because of the recalled cavalry. -Surviving devil dimensional Cavalry: 100 -Surviving Celestial Army: 99 ¡®No, isn¡¯t this the beginning one? One ally died¡­!¡¯ Ian just shook his head. What Ian discovered was that a white light fell down when the cavalry was going to be absorbed, and a red light came down when the cavalry was summoned. And if the battle went that way, they would eventually be wiped out. If he tried to kill them, they will just keep coming back. ¡®The battle won¡¯t end if this keeps going on.¡¯ Ian was flustered and couldn¡¯t understand the situation. And came the new shock for Ian. Around five minutes later or so, an incomprehensible number came on the metal plate. -Surviving Devil Dimensional Cavalry: 101 -Surviving Celestial Army: 92 The cavalry just went higher than the number that it started out in the beginning. CH 576 After the massive update of the Warrior¡¯s Village, all the users around the world had kept a keen eye on the content update of Kailan. And because the update was a very monumental one in the history of Kailan. It was a bonus that the content which had been released was interesting. But right after the update server had opened, the fiery interest and drives faded away. No. Rather than saying they have faded away, it would be better to say that it was ¡®temporary¡¯ loss of interest. The Warrior¡¯s Village content itself was for the top 0.01 percent users, so normal Kailan users couldn¡¯t even access it. Of course, even if they couldn¡¯t play directly, there were many users who were enthusiastic about the plays of the ¡®star players¡¯. The actions of the top rankers were the focus of attention for the other users. The problem however, was that there was no window for the users to see the plays just yet. Since all the top guilds around the world dealt with the information of the content were in secret, and no update related content had been leaked through any medium. Of course, there were some users who couldn¡¯t put up with the building curiosity and posted their dissatisfaction on the community. ¨C Ah, let¡¯s do some proxy satisfaction. There surely must be a lot of rankers who would have tried for the warrior¡¯s path, share some damn information! ¨C Sir, would you have shared the information? This is such a very important time¡­ maybe all the top guild members are trying to bite a little content of the game? ¨C Right. Even if you are curious, try to hold yourself back for a while. You need at least to wait till the Korean server guilds wipe out the world rankings. ¨C Kyaa, just the thought is making my heart flutter¡­! ¨C Ha¡­ even then, I¡¯m curious about the content! ¨C Even if you are so curious about the content, don¡¯t act like that in here, go to the headquarters of Kailan. ¨C Huh? LB company? What are you trying to say? ¨C Quickly open the content related to the Warrior¡¯s village program like the YTBC. If you do that, they might let you know. ¨C Oh, too much of a hassle. ¨C Keu, that would be really great. I hope there is an organized regular broadcast corner. ¨C If that is done, maybe the ratings of the channel would explode. Even though there was a debate about the new content, there wasn¡¯t much to say about the content, as the content of the update hadn¡¯t been made public. But, exactly the morning of the update, an update about the new content coming out went crazy. And it started with the LB¡¯s official website. Almost all of the communication with the users were carried out by the official Kailan community, which was why the homepage of LB was rarely visited. A user had accidentally discovered a temporary channel that was opened in the corner of the homepage. The channel¡¯s name was: -CH: 0025 (temporary) -Day event in the Warrior¡¯s Village (Week): Dimensional Mirror Battle * * * Just three minutes after entering the battlefield, Ian wasn¡¯t thinking hard enough about the content of the ¡®dimensional mirror¡¯. It just wasn¡¯t an easy thing to do, of course, this was very easy for Ian who had battled till death with the monsters of the other Middle-Earth. But it didn¡¯t even take more than 10 minutes for him to realize that it was all just an illusion. The moment when he came to understand the identity of the content, he realized how much harder he was supposed to fight. ¡®Crazy¡­! This, this isn¡¯t the kind where one after the other can be taken down?¡¯ A situation made by the ¡®Mirror Tower¡¯. And the screams of the commander ¡®Parker¡¯. ¡°Soldiers, don¡¯t you dare be pushed back by the Asmodians!¡± ¡°Take one down and take another one down!¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t know that the gap gets harder for the purpose of the win, right?¡± ¡°Sweep all those Asmodians and send them back to their place!¡± Ian was able to see the mechanism of the ¡®dimensional mirror¡¯ and what it was designed for. ¡®So, even the Asmodians are fighting the cavalry on the other side¡­ if we catch one in here, then it is like catching one for them.¡¯ It was a very simple thing, but it hadn¡¯t been witnessed till then. When he understood the structure of the content, Ian realized how he was supposed to play. ¡®It is needed to take them one by one down. We have no chance if we fight like this, this isn¡¯t an easy task.¡¯ Ian looked over and found Mark Oliver in the middle of the battlefield. Ian approached him as fast as he could and opened his mouth, No, before Ian could even open his mouth, Oliver was the one to talk. ¡°Ian, did you understand the content?¡± At the question of Oliver, Ian jumped a little. He nodded and answered, ¡°Uh. To some extent¡­ I think I understand.¡± It wasn¡¯t much time since they have fought together, but Ian was able to understand the gameplay of Mark Oliver. So, before even talking about what he thought, he wanted to listen to what Oliver had to say. And Oliver began to talk about the things that Ian expected. ¡°I don¡¯t know, but you must have felt it, but it is important to get rid of one rather than to go for a wide-area attack.¡± ¡°Surely, I saw that.¡± ¡°For now, let¡¯s choose the ones which are easy to cut down the vitality.¡± At the response from Oliver, Ian nodded. ¡°Nice.¡± Although the points that Oliver had stated were important, there was something much more important than that. ¡°But, Oliver.¡± ¡°Uh?¡± ¡°Are you able to trigger recovery or shielding skills?¡± Oliver looked a bit puzzled but soon nodded. ¡°Available.¡± ¡°Then, as much as taking down the number of enemies that are needed, it is better to be careful about keeping the allies safe.¡± ¡°Ha¡­?¡± ¡°As time keeps moving, the number of allies that are safe will be proportional to the speed of killing the cavalry.¡± And listening to that of Ian, Oliver couldn¡¯t help but be shocked. When he had heard the opinion of Ian, something in his head was telling him that it was the right decision. ¡®Why didn¡¯t I think of that?¡¯ Till the moment, Oliver had been thinking of killing them to raise the public value. And that was a very natural one. The battle that was happening was just with NPCs, and rather than trying to save their allies¡¯ life, it was important to raise the Hero Score even if it was just 1 point. Of course, they would help the platoons of the same, but even that would be for the purpose of the promotion of the platoon. But listening to what Ian had said, Oliver realized that his goals were shortcomings. ¡®Now that I think about it, there was no time limit of the battle. And if we can¡¯t win over the Asmodian camp, then there won¡¯t be any rewards either.¡¯ For the platoon to be promoted, the troops of the platoon had to be alive. And for all the platoon to survive, the only way we had was to win the battle. If they were defeated in the battle, then it would turn into a situation where all the army troops would be wiped out. In addition, like Ian had said, if even one of them could be saved using a shield, then the DPS would be high. And fully understanding what Ian had to say, Oliver nodded his head. ¡°Nice. Then, I¡¯ll use the magic just as you have said.¡± ¡°Good to know.¡± It was a very short exchange of ideas, but the two of them knew what the other was meant to say, and jumped into the battlefield at the same time. Lichao who had been busy wielding his double swords wasn¡¯t able to afford to deliver the strategy. Unlike the two distance dealers, he was a combat dealer, so he wasn¡¯t of much help in strategy making. ¡®Like when we broke the rocks in the spirit mine¡­ I¡¯m just going to pull on my blow like a crazy person. And I need to make use of El¡¯s barrier and Nick¡¯s area saves.¡¯ Ian glanced over at the mirror tower and checked the status board. The numbers were constantly changing. -Remaining devil dimensional cavalry: 102, 101 103, 100, 102¡­ -Remaining celestial army: 91, 90, 90, 89¡­ The number of the army was decreasing, but it wasn¡¯t easy to take down the devil dimensional cavalry. Even then, the army was constantly taking down the dimensional cavalry, and it was the same with the Asmodians too. Instead of reducing the dimensional cavalry, they were getting pushed by the Asmodians. ¡®If the cavalry on this side is 102, and the camp on that side is 98.¡¯ Such a difference was hard to overcome with time. Over time, the differences will increase and blow up in their faces. ¡®This is going to be hard to change. I need to change this situation somehow.¡¯ It was just 10 minutes since the battle had started. Ian seemed like he was trying to brainwash himself. ¡°From this very moment¡­¡± In a firm murmur, ¡°No one gets to die without my permission.¡± And subsequently, at the front of the battlefield, Nick¡¯s ¡®Guardian of the Sun God¡¯ began to unfold. * * * Killing the cavalry and maintaining their troops. Those two were very hard to weigh when placed side by side. But, it was proportional to the fighting ability of the users. The stronger were the power of the users in the battle, the more important would it be to take down the enemies, and the weaker they get, the more troops they get to maintain. Depending on the combat of the users, the DPS will be present. For the very reason, Ian decided to focus on the part of saving an ally than reducing the enemy. And in the current situation, two to three elite troops gathered could provide better DPS than Ian, so it was better to defend them. In particular, the commander who led the platoon wasn¡¯t allowed to die no matter the situation was. ¡°El, Dragonic Barrier!¡± ¡°Okay, Dad!¡± Upon the order from Ian, El jumped up, raised and gathered both her hands while she was in the air. Creating a white glow of white light which shielded most of the nearby armies. At the same time, the unique ability of BBookbbook, ¡®Blessing of Abyss¡¯ began to unfold. Woong-! Low resonance rang out everywhere and a blue abyss energy started to pour out of Bbookbbook. Most of the NPCs in the army began to recover their lost vitality. ¡°Oh-oh, the power!¡± ¡°I can fight more bravely now!¡± Receiving the strong barrier and heal, the swordsman began to wield the swords again. Surprisingly, the chart which seemed to lean on the efforts of Ian began to return to the origin. -Remaining devil dimensional cavalry: 102, 100, 101, 99, 100¡­ -Remaining celestial army: 89, 89¡­ And came the familiar voice of Kaka, the darkness began to spread on the field. ¡°Darkness¡­ come upon us¡­¡± Woong-! Kaka¡¯s ¡®Dreaming Devil¡¯ a unique ability that Ian frequently used. The special advantage of the unique ability was the dark attribute. It buffs the allies with dark attributes and debuffs the enemies with dark attributes. And with the basic buff, there was a 5 percent attack buff attached to it. It was a buff which increased the attack damage of the allies regardless of the attributes. And when more than a dozen of the 5% gathered, it could do quite a lot of damage. [The ¡®Devil Dimensional Cavalry¡¯ has been killed!] [The ¡®Devil Dimensional Cavalry¡¯ has been killed!] ¡­ syncopation¡­ [You have successfully defeated the ¡®Devil Dimensional Cavalry¡¯.] [The ¡®Merit Score¡¯ of the Warrior¡¯s village has been increased by 1 point.] [Contribution of the 7th Platoon increased by 10.] [You have earned 2 Hero points.] And just as he had noticed that Kaka¡¯s buff was a channeling skill, Mark Oliver quickly triggered the detecting magic to hide the location of Kaka. [The party member ¡®Mark Oliver¡¯ has triggered ¡®Detecting Illusion¡¯.] [For 240 seconds, ¡®Kaka¡¯ will no longer be exposed to the enemies (detecting will be disabled when attacking or attacked.)] The channeling skill of Kaka, ¡®Dreaming Devil¡¯, was a skill that needed the caster to stand still while invoking it. And if she was attacked while the skill is in use, the buffs and debuffs would disappear. In the meantime, Mark Oliver, who caught onto the fact, provided proper support. As the efforts of the two combined, the lives started to fall rapidly. -Remaining Devil Dimension cavalry: 99, 97, 98, 95, 94¡­ The ¡®snowballs¡¯ that Ian and Mark Oliver had hoped for, began to roll. CH 577 On the first day, a total of seven users entered the Warrior¡¯s Village. Three of them were from the Human system. It was obvious, but the other four were from the Devildom system. One of them was the top-ranking Chinese User ¡®Ryu Chen¡¯. ¡®Why is this being pushed all of a sudden?¡¯ While watching the Devil Dimensional Cavalry fall down one after the other, Ryu Chen¡¯s sweat started to turn cold. The Battle of the Dimension, which had been going smoothly till then, began to take a turn. The other rankers out there with him were shocked. ¡°What is this all of a sudden? Are the numbers increasing?¡± ¡°The difficulty increased all of a sudden!¡± The four rankers were surprised, but they weren¡¯t stupid. They understood very well the principle of the mirror battlefield. After recognizing the situation he had to face, Ryu Chen quickly began to use magic. ¡°Illusions of Devil, rise up!¡± Woong-! As Ryu Chen recited the spell, shadows¡ªin the form of a beast¡ªbegan to appear everywhere. The red shadows began to swipe across the battlefield of the Dimensional Cavalry. Ahh! Kyaaa-! At first glance, Ryu Chen seemed to have a skill or power similar to that of a summoner. However, Ryu Chen wasn¡¯t a summoner. He was a Warlock. Of course, Warlock wasn¡¯t his only class. If that was not the case, he wouldn¡¯t be able to produce a spectacular view on the battlefield. Ryu Chen, one of the most popular Mainland China users, was well known for his special hidden class. His hidden class was the Warlock Illusionist. He also had a hidden dual-class¡ª¡¯Trickster¡¯. ¡°Hmph!¡± ¡°Tat-!¡± Ryu Chen inhaled briefly and jumped. The moment he landed on the ground, a dark red smoke started to form around him, and it then moved to the air. The very next moment¡­ Phat-! As he stretched out his hands to the front, dark green rays spread out in all directions. The beams began to distort to a wide area. Woong-! His dual-class, the trickster, was a class he gained while he was in the Human system. Originally, it was the main class instead of a dual class, but as his race got converted to Asmodian, it naturally changed into a dual-class. The Trickster class was the very reason why he was able to maintain his top-ranking spot in Kailan. The class information looked like this: -Class information Class classification: Incantationist Magician (Dual Class) Hidden class: Illusionist Trickster (Dual Class) Fusion Class: None (disabled) Ryu Chen was using magic and illusion magic to keep the Devil Dimensional Cavalry in place. By using the tactical formations, he was able to keep the Dimensional Cavalry in place. Therefore, they were able to bring down the Dimensional Cavalry¡¯s numbers one after the other. It wasn¡¯t just Ryu Chen there. Thud-! Along with a huge eerie sound and a red beam, the Dimensional Cavalry that was being held by Ryu Chen was being cut down. After seeing that light, Ryu Chen looked shocked after seeing the source of the attack. ¡®Was that the ranker Limlong of the Korean server? He sure is amazing.¡¯ The unique ability of ¡®Trickster¡¯ was a magic that could trap the enemies and confuse them. That was why Ryu Chen worked well with assassin class users. Limlong didn¡¯t seem to be lacking in skill compared to other top-ranked assassins that he had seen. That was why Ryu Chen was so eager to see the full extent of Limlong¡¯s abilities. However, Ryu Chen¡¯s thoughts didn¡¯t last long. Wooong-! In the meantime, another Dimensional Cavalry came out of the mirror. ¡®For now, I need to concentrate on the battle.¡¯ While biting down his lip, Ryu Chen began to reach for the battlefield again. * * * -Remaining Army: 77¡­ 77¡­ 76¡­ -Remaining Devil Army: 42¡­ 39¡­ 35¡­ Remaining Dimensional Cavalry: Celestial faction/ Devil faction- 56/ 144 Na Ji-chan, who was sitting in the monitoring room and watching the ¡®Dimensional Mirror¡¯ battle, laughed. ¡®Hehe, it¡¯s inevitable. No matter what you guys do, it would last for another 5 minutes or so.¡¯ Unlike the Celestial Armies who never would have thought of falling to the 70s, the number of the Devil Soldiers started to decline fast. That meant the battle was won by the Celestial Platoon. ¡®I thought the humans would leave this time¡­¡¯ Na Ji-chan, who was staring at the screen, just shook his head. The result of the battle looked more precise than ever, but Na Ji-chan had never imagined that the battle would have such developments. ¡®The combination of Ryu Chen and Limlong was surely a sight to see in the Dimensional Mirror. But it was too bad that the Devil Faction had no healers.¡¯ Na Ji-chan, who confirmed the rankers on both sides of the camps which entered the battlefield, was sure that the devil side would win. It was because the Devil Camp had more rankers than the Human Camp. Also, Ryu Chen and Limlong were there. It was obvious that the combination of those two was surely going to be the best in the Dimensional Mirror. It was almost like they had no reason to lose. For the first ten minutes, the predictions of Na Ji-chan were on the mark. At least in the very beginning, the Devil¡¯s camp had a clear advantage. However, when Ian and Mark Oliver turned defensive, the situation changed completely. Apart from reducing the number of the Dimensional Cavalry, the number of the army didn¡¯t decrease. The gap became unruly as the devils began to decrease. ¡®Who¡¯s head came up with that strategy? Ian? Mark Oliver?¡¯ Na Ji-chan, who was writing down a report with an excited look, sighed while looking at the coffee on his table and went back to the screen. Na Ji-chan¡¯s task was to monitor, and it was something that only he could do. Na Ji-chan alternated between drinking coffee and eating potato chips while monitoring the Dimensional Mirror Battle. After a while, he read the system messages, which reminded him that the battle had ended. Tring-! [All the troops of the ¡®Devil Army¡¯ had been killed.] [Remaining Army: 72] [Remaining Devil Army: 0] [Remaining Dimensional Cavalry: Celestial faction/ Devil faction: 12/188] [The Battle of the ¡®Dimensional Mirror¡¯ is over.] [The ¡®Celestial Army¡¯ has won!] Na Ji-chan, who checked the screen, shook his head and mumbled, ¡°There¡¯s an overwhelming difference¡­ but there¡¯s definitely no one who can say how this battle will turn out at the beginning.¡± Na Ji-chan read the messages that appeared and started to hit the keyboard. Tak- Tatak-! It was time for him to return to the planning team after finishing his report. However, the sound of Na Ji-chan hitting on the keys stopped. ¡°¡­!¡± He saw something that flustered him. His gaze was stuck to the corner of the screen. [The conditions have been met.] [Platoon 7 has been promoted.] [The rankers of the Platoon 7 will rise one step.] A very unexpected message appeared on the screen, saying that Platoon 7 was promoted. ¡°7th Platoon¡­¡± Na Ji-chan checked the data of the platoon with trembling hands. As soon as he looked into the details, nothing but a sigh came out of his mouth. -User Information User Name: Ian Class: Summoner (Taming Master) Etc. Transcendence Level: 10 Warrior¡¯s Rank: Recruit ¡­ Syncopation¡­ * * * [The ¡®Celestial Army¡¯ has won!] [Platoon 7 has been promoted as the conditions have been met.] [Special class 1 is now a ¡®Recruit¡¯. (Daily Rank specials are only possible once a week.)] [All the shops in the Warrior¡¯s Village can now be used.] [Build Merits in battle and earn Merit points.] [Because of the ¡®Platoon Promotion¡¯, Merit points have been doubled.] [You have earned 212 Merit points.] [Points remaining for a ¡®Combat Soldier¡¯: 212/300] [Hero Score of 100 points have been achieved.] ¡­ Syncopation¡­ A white halo began to come out of the mirror, and the messages began to pop up, saying the battle was over. Subsequently, a huge light had gathered for the left out cavalry on the battlefield. Specifically, around Platoon 7 and Ian, a much brighter light was shinning. It was probably the effect of the 1st class performance. ¡°Kue, finally, I¡¯m not a Recruit anymore!¡± ¡°Euah, I¡¯m a Fighter at last!¡± Platoon 7¡¯s NPCs were cheering around Ian. Ian, who was just a trainee, had just become a ¡®Recruit¡¯, but the other military ranks in the army were all raised into ¡®Combat Soldiers¡¯. ¡°Hmm, this 1st class effect sure looks good, but it would have been better if the public value was applied first. A specialty was applied so much at the beginning.¡± Ian said after checking the system messages. The points needed to be a Recruit were 100. Which was why, if the public value was applied first, then he would have become a ¡®Combat Soldier¡¯ already. In addition, due to the 1st class effect, the ranks of his fellow combatants had risen. However, the special stats had been applied first, and the public values were added later. That was why Ian didn¡¯t become a ¡®Combat Soldier¡¯. ¡®Well, I just need to collect another 90 public points.¡¯ Feeling bad, Ian looked over at the information window of the classes. There were a total of five ranks in the Warrior¡¯s Village. ¡®Trainee, Recruit, Combat Soldier, followed by Elite and Brave rank.¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes moved toward the rank called ¡®Brave¡¯ rank. Being promoted to Brave rank was the ultimate goal in the village. As soon as he became a Brave rank, he could become an Intermediate being. ¡®I need to graduate from here as soon as possible¡­ and I need to pick up Lugarix.¡¯ While thinking of Lugarix who had the transcendence level of 50, Ian smiled to himself. Once he got Lugarix, he would be able to get a bus ride of 40 to 50 transcendence levels very comfortably. Mark Oliver and Lichao came to Ian. ¡°That was great, Ian. We won because of you.¡± ¡°You are a great sidekick. Lichao is very impressed with you.¡± ¡°¡­¡± When the two notable men opened their mouths, Ian¡¯s face was rather elated. ¡®Oliver sure is fine, but I need to do some research on this Lichao.¡¯ He wasn¡¯t able to confirm anything because of the battle, but the ability of Lichao was similar to that of Shakran. It made sense for him to be in the village. However, Ian had a strong feeling that Lichao was holding back. ¡®If I have the chance, I¡¯ll introduce him to Hoonie.¡¯ In the mind of Ian, a picture of Hoonie and Lichao had formed. ¡°Huhu, you both have worked very hard too. Now let¡¯s get back.¡± Ian greeted the two and stepped toward the blue portal that was created under the tower. ¡®Let¡¯s see¡­ I need to see the shops for the recruits. I¡¯m looking forward to it.¡¯ While smiling to himself, Ian checked his Hero Score, which was known to be the currency of the Warrior¡¯s Village. But the next moment¡­ ¡°¡­!¡± Ian looked surprised when he saw his Hero Score. The number of Hero Score, which he had just seen, was ridiculously large. [Current Hero Score: 1,525.] ¡®Ho, I just have around 100 before I came here¡­¡¯ When he first entered the Warrior¡¯s Village, Ian¡¯s Hero Score was around 150. He used dozens of points when he purchased equipments, and the Hero Score he got on the battlefield was only 100. ¡®Why did I have more than 1,000 now?¡¯ Ian¡¯s head started to roll. After a while, Ian figured out what had caused this phenomenon. ¡®Is it because of this¡­?¡¯ CH 578 After the update of the Warrior¡¯s Village. The difficulty of entering Middle-Earth was much easier than the users¡¯ expected. To be precise, rather than all the Middle-Earth, the most well-known ones, the ¡®Spirit Dimension¡¯ and the ¡®Underworld¡¯. (How many of the Middle-Earth were there wasn¡¯t known yet.) And the reason wasn¡¯t something else. The portals to the Spirit Dimension and the Underworld were opened in the Ulphir Mountains and the Heinz plateau. Of course, there was a significant level limit of 400, but it was clear that the barrier to the entrance was lowered greatly. Originally, it was only accessible through the special hidden quests, so only a few top guilds were able to monopolize the Middle-Earth content. And between the Spirit Dimension and the Underworld, the Spirit Dimension was the one with a lot of users. Unlike the Underworld, where users had to pass the Acheron river to enter the village and become an Intermediate being, users could go to the village in the Spirit Dimension before entering the Spirit Mountain. Anyway, for that reason, the Spirit Dimension had begun to get crowded with numerous users. There was a village at the southern end of the mountain called ¡®Pneuma¡¯. The village was crowded with top-class users of the world, and it looked similar to that of a crowded city in the human world. ¡°I am looking for a Knight class I can hunt with in the Windy Plains! There is just one spot left! Take the spot fast!¡± ¡°Ah, can I join it then?¡± ¡°Sir, can I please know what your transcendence level is?¡± ¡°I just entered the Middle-Earth, so of course it is level 1.¡± ¡°Sorry. We are only taking in transcendence level of 4 and above.¡± ¡°I¡¯m at a Human level of 430. Can I not join?¡± ¡°No matter how much your human level is, transcendence level of 1 is a no-no. Sorry.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t get it. I just entered Middle-Earth. I wanted to shoot to level 4 with a party. I guess I need to look for a new way.¡± ¡°Sir, you could do that with parties in the Reindeer Forest.¡± ¡°Uh, where is that?¡± ¡°It is a hunting ground that¡¯s just a little further in the South. If you take a party of 2 to 3 to the Reindeer Forest and enter the Frost cave, you will be able to get up to 5 levels.¡± ¡°Ah, I didn¡¯t know that there was such a hunting ground. Thanks.¡± Although only the rankers of level 400 and above were the only ones gathered there, the Pneuma village square had been a bustling place with users from servers all over the world. Traders who specialized in Transcendental equipment have established themselves as a group. However, it was funny since there were many of those in the village square, but users were gathered in a different place. [Spirit Dojo/ Admission Fee: 500] The place where Ian had cleared the Hidden Quest. From the time when Ian first challenged the Dojo with 500 asters, the Spirit Dojo, which was just a small hut, had grown ten times. The number of teams that could challenge the Dojo at once increased too. [The challenge team in Zone B has passed the first gate.] [Waiting team entry is possible.] ¡°Nice! It¡¯s our turn at last!¡± ¡°Ku keu, we can surely clear the fifth floor this time!¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go, friends!¡± A team waited in front of the long line at Zone B to fight. The users behind them shook their heads and mumbled, ¡°Tch, the 5th floor is so fucking hard. That team won¡¯t even make it to the ¡®Wailing Wall¡¯.¡± ¡°Yeah, well, we can clear the 5th floor even with our eyes closed, but the 9th one is just impossible to beat.¡± ¡®Hm?¡¯ Lancom was waiting in line to challenge the Spirit Dojo and couldn¡¯t help but feel intrigued after hearing their conversation. ¡®9th floor? Wailing wall?¡¯ Lancom was a well-known ranker in the UK server. He was known as one of the Five Fingers of the Archery class in the UK server, and due to his strong fists that were well known, he was nicknamed the Fighter Chicken. For that very reason, he became interested in the ¡®Wailing Wall¡¯. Lancom approached the two people who were talking. ¡°I am a bit curious about the Wailing Wall; can you explain it to me?¡± Upon hearing Lancom, the two looked at him at the same time and replied, ¡°Ho, you don¡¯t know the Wailing Wall? This must be your first time here.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°The Wailing Wall isn¡¯t different. We call the 9th floor the Wailing Wall. That place earned that nickname after half a day.¡± ¡°Hmm, is that related to the 9th floor¡¯s difficulty?¡± ¡°Not quite. It¡¯s just as its name says; it literally is just a wall.¡± ¡°Ah, is that so?¡± ¡°Though there are world rankers here, no one had gone past the 9th floor.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°We were able to clear up to the 8th floor, and it is already our third time trying to challenge the 9th floor.¡± After listening to the two, Lancom sensed something good. Knowing that ¡®nobody has cleared¡¯ the 9th floor yet was enough to motivate him. ¡®Huhu, no one has gone past it¡­ then¡­ is this my chance?¡¯ Lancom looked at the two and decided to get more information from them regarding the 9th floor. ¡°Maybe you could tell me more about the 9th floor?¡± However, the two people, without even being bothered, began giving him confusing information about the 9th floor. ¡°Well, it isn¡¯t that difficult.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°First, the Gatekeeper of the 9th floor is a Summoner class. The weapon he uses is a bow and quite a few Archers stated that he is good enough to hold everyone down.¡± ¡°In addition, that Summoner¡¯s unique abilities are so diverse that we haven¡¯t been able to figure out his attack pattern even after trying for the third time.¡± Lancom was now really eager to enter after being told that this Gatekeeper was much better than any archer. ¡®What nonsense are these guys talking about!? These guys had probably never seen a decent Archer before.¡¯ Apart from being angry, Lancom didn¡¯t intend to show them that. It was because they were very kind, and they told him about the details he needed. After listening to their explanation, Lancom bowed to them to give his thanks. ¡°Thank you. You have given me a lot of valuable information.¡± The two just shook their heads and said, ¡°Ah, there is no need for that. If you try once or twice, you¡¯ll end up knowing this information as well.¡± ¡°Right. But the information you gave me will be very helpful¡­¡± Lancom was feeling the heat bubble up inside of him since the two didn¡¯t seem to believe that he could clear the floor. ¡®You guys really think that me¡ªLancolm¡ªcould not clear this floor!?¡¯ But after thinking about it a little, he understood their position. ¡®Well, these mates do not know that I am a top ranker who had already achieved the transcendence level of 9.¡¯ However, there were two things Lancom didn¡¯t know. First, the people who gave him the information about the ¡®Wailing Wall¡¯ were levels 8 and 9. Second, they were also top rankers of other servers. * * * Kailan¡¯s message windows were very smart. Depending on a user¡¯s settings, the range of the messages displayed could vary. Ian changed his settings so that he could only see information regarding the map he was currently in. Therefore, Ian had to check the ¡®last message box¡¯ to see the messages that had accumulated from the other maps. [Repelled the challenger of the Spirit Dojo.] [Hero Score increased by 9.] [Repelled the challenger of the Spirit Dojo.] [Hero Score increased by 9.] ¡°Keu, this is something that I had never even thought of!¡± On the 9th floor of the Spirit Dojo, Ian¡¯s Alter Ego was killing it! Of course, Ian knew that his Alter Ego could bring in some Hero Score. Even though it was just his Alter Ego, he knew that he could win over some challengers. But not to this extent. Once the other top rankers started coming in, he thought that his Alter Ego would be defeated sooner or later. Ian came to that conclusion not because he was underestimating himself or overestimating the rankers. Ian just didn¡¯t know that his Alter Ego would be able to raise its stats based on the number of challengers. ¡°Nice, my other self! If this continued for another week, I can accumulate more than 10,000 Hero Score!¡± In half a day, Ian¡¯s Alter Ego earned a tremendous amount of Hero Score. As Ian said, it wouldn¡¯t be so difficult to collect more than 10,000 points, which was the price of an equipment box. Ian remembered the transcendental equipment box, which he had donated to Hoonie and Yu Shin with tears in his eyes. ¡®Equipment boxes are equipment boxes, but maybe I should try enjoying shopping at the Warrior¡¯s Village?¡¯ Ian was now a recruit and had all the access to the shops of the Warrior Village. And with 1000 Hero Scores with him, he could probably shop like a rich man. Woong-! [You have returned to the ¡®Warrior¡¯s Village¡¯.] With a small message, a white light shone on Ian as if he was being welcomed. The moment Ian arrived at the village, he began to move. Before entering the Dimensional Mirror, he wanted to enter a few shops that had caught his eyes. And before leaving the village¡¯s vacant land, he had no choice but to stop. In front of him, an interesting sight had unfolded. ¡°My lads. Here, this is the Warrior¡¯s Village. Welcome. I am the commander who will train you and turn you into a brave.¡± In a corner of the vacant lot, approximately ten people were lined up. It was the first time for Ian to witness such a thing. In addition, the ones whom Ian was looking at were surely ¡®users¡¯. ¡®Oh ho, these many users came into the village?¡¯ Curious, Ian glanced at them. He wanted to know what exactly were they doing. ¡®The Dimensional Mirror Battlefield is a weekly item, so it would be impossible to go there now¡­ What quests are these guys trying to get?¡¯ Shopping was an important task for them, but what was more important was getting quests. Only by receiving quests would they be able to get public points, and that was the fastest way to graduate from the Warrior¡¯s Village. After a while, Ian¡¯s eyes went wide as he heard the conversation that was going on. ¡°Kids, the training process of a warrior will never be unsatisfactory. Make sure that your heart is firmly prepared!¡± ¡°Yes, understood!¡± ¡°Of course!¡± Just as Ian had expected, the ones were gathered to do some quests. ¡®Then, maybe I should join in too?¡¯ He wasn¡¯t sure what the ¡®training¡¯ was, but it was definitely a quest which would give him Public Value. Ian stepped along and joined the group without hesitation. No, he tried to join them. ¡°Hey, you, recruit!¡± ¡°Uh? Me?¡± ¡°Yeah, there is no one else who is a recruit other than you in here!¡± The commander ¡®Prime¡¯, who was leading the users, prevented Ian from joining. ¡°Why is a recruit that was already trained trying to go to the training center again?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°You cannot join our company so go back.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Ian¡¯s eyes began to waver as he heard the words of Prime. He could feel that something wasn¡¯t right. CH 579 The system of the Warrior¡¯s village was designed to move around the main quest. Users who entered the village proceeds to the main quests one step after the other, and in that process they would accumulate the public values and the promotion was a big goal of the content. In that process, to participate in the battlefield of the weekly quest would give them additional public values, but that was just an incidental factor. Without the public value from the main content, promotion design was going to be very difficult. ¡°Uh, this is really messed up!¡± Na Ji-chan mumbled while holding his head. It was because he never knew that there would be users who could win the platoon at once and get the rank of ¡®new recruit¡¯. Na Ji-chan was trying to think of what had just happened. Kim Ji-yeon, who was right next to him, opened her mouth in a low voice, ¡°Team leader.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just Ian and the other three users who made an exception to the training center, isn¡¯t it?¡± At the question from Kim Ji-yeon, Na Ji-chan shook his head and smiled weakly. If it was such a simple problem, he wouldn¡¯t be worrying about it. ¡°Miss Ji-yeon, you might not be aware of it, but the worldview of Kailan should never be touched artificially.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because there are so many AIs in the worldview who have close relationships with each other, so we will face a huge variable and error if we do it wrong.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± ¡°If something wrong is touched, and a fatal problem is caused¡­ we can¡¯t really afford for that to happen.¡± The words of Na Ji-chan couldn¡¯t be understood precisely, which was why Kim Ji-yeon shook her head and asked, ¡°Then, what is needed to be done?¡± ¡°Um¡­¡± Na Ji-chan was thinking about it while pressing his temple on both sides. And soon he opened his mouth very slowly., ¡°Without breaking the existing framework, we should create an opportunity for the three people to make up for the unexpected loss.¡± ¡°Uh¡­¡± ¡°In that process, the balance with the other users shouldn¡¯t be broken.¡± ¡°Sounds difficult.¡± ¡°Not sounds difficult, it is very difficult.¡± It wasn¡¯t possible to change the existing rules. The only thing the planning team could do at the moment was to create something new. They weren¡¯t supposed to reward the three users directly, nor was it supposed to break the balance with the other users. Na Ji-chan chewed on his lower lip and sighed as he opened his mouth, ¡°Can¡¯t be helped.¡± ¡°Uh? What do you mean by that?¡± ¡°You know the content that we planned until yesterday.¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°From now, I need to stop all of it.¡± ¡°Sorry?¡± Kim Ji-yeon was very flustered at what Na Ji-chan had said. The project they had been working on was very tight. Na Ji-chan watched the expression of Kim Ji-yeon get sulky. Even he had been getting the dark circles till his chin, he once again sighed and spoke, ¡°Until we leave today, let¡¯s think of a new content.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± And as Na Ji-chan turned his gaze to the screen, the three rankers and Ian were on the screen. ¡°A content for those three people.¡± Kim Ji-yeon who heard the words of Na Ji-chan, seemed like she was going to burst into tears. It was all because his words meant that the night shifts and overtime work was confirmed. * * * A day had already passed since the dimensional mirror battle. And Ian was convinced of one fact. The fact that something was surely wrong. ¡®Why is this so twisted? This can¡¯t be a systematic error, but obviously, it is a mistake on the planning stage.¡¯ After realizing that he could access the main quest, Ian looked through the Warrior¡¯s Village. There was no weekly quest until Wednesday, and he wanted to do another quest that would get him the public values. But the result was despair. There were a lot of shops and contents that can be upgraded using the Hero Score, but there were no ways to raise the official value. Then it meant that he had to be like a baby sucking on his fingers until the next battle would be held. In addition, the information that he had received from Hoonie who had passed through the Warrior¡¯s path and entered the main content made Ian much more depressed. -Warrior¡¯s village Main Quest A-Training center completion Quest occurrence condition: a user of ¡®trainee¡¯ rank Achievable public value: 100~ 500 *If a certain level of achievement hasn¡¯t been met, the quest will be reset. B-First Mission Quest Occurrence condition: a user who has completed the ¡®training center¡¯. Achievable public value: 250~ 500 *50% reduction in earned public value if the mission is neglected. *Quest re-challenge possible. C-Colony Annihilation Quest Condition: a user who successfully completes the first mission. Achievable public value: 300~ 600 *70% reduction of public value if removed during the mission. *quest re-challenge is possible. F-Dimensional Giant Raid Quest Condition: user of the elite class Achievable public value: 600~ 1,200 *100% reduction of earned public value is removed during the mission. *quest re-challenge is possible ¡­ syncopation¡­ What Hoonie had sent was a list of newly created main event quest window. And the content was enough to push Ian into depression. ¡°Hah, if this is like this, I¡¯ll have to catch up soon?¡± According to the occurrences of the conditions of the quest, Ian could join the main quest from the tier F quest of, ¡®Dimensional Giant Raid¡¯. Until that time, the condition for the quests was to clear the previous quests, and Ian who hadn¡¯t entered the training couldn¡¯t do that. Then isn¡¯t he supposed to get the tier F quest as easily as possible? It wasn¡¯t that easy either. In order to challenge the ¡®Dimensional Giant Raid¡¯, they had to be an ¡®elite¡¯, the next level of combat soldiers. And the public value necessary to become an elite was¡­ ¡®Ha, how am I supposed to get a 3,000 worth of public value without any main quests?¡¯ A whooping 3,100 public value if the 100 needed for the combat soldier was included in it. The promotion which is the fourth one in the Warrior¡¯s Village. And in that, till the ¡®combat soldier,¡¯ the public value was relatively low. But the next level of the combat soldier, Elite. And till the last class the ¡®Brave¡¯, the public value was increased exponentially. ¡®What the hell is this?! How can they suddenly increase it from 300 to 3000?!¡¯ Ian, who confirmed the specific information on the ¡®class system¡¯, was in panic. ¡®Ah, catching up won¡¯t be the problem, but the gap will widen.¡¯ It wasn¡¯t known when the weekly quests would come, but no matter how many public values he would get, he couldn¡¯t even be an elite. And in the meantime, the other top list users who entered the main quest were sure to hit the elite. ¡®After the elite is the Brave¡­ and if one gets a warrior, they¡¯ll graduate from here.¡¯ Ian¡¯s heart was stressed. The place where he worked so hard to enter, the Warrior¡¯s Village, had now turned very sensitive where his efforts were turning meaningless. The very moment, something hit the head of Ian. ¡®Well, what is the official value for being a Brave?¡¯ The less the public value he needed for the elite was the better situation for Ian, but the number of public value he would need for being a Brave could be troublesome. While Ian tried to narrow the gap between the elites, the elites shouldn¡¯t be given the chance to turn to warriors. As soon as he saw the public value he needed for becoming a ¡®Brave¡¯ class, Ian was able to relax to some extent. The amount of public value needed was tremendous. [Rank: Brave] [Required Public Value: 100,000] ¡®Huhu, this is so lucky for me!¡¯ Ian¡¯s head started to work fast. Since the content wasn¡¯t entirely known, it wasn¡¯t definite for sure, but the public value of 100,000 wasn¡¯t an easy thing to gain. ¡®It will at least take a month.¡¯ And at the same time, he could have come across something that could reverse the situation again. ¡®In the situation, the best thing I could do is to use the content of the village in the best way possible and raise the specs.¡¯ The only opportunity for Ian to raise the public value was for the weekly quest. Before Wednesday, he had to make the best use of the score and create specs. The biggest weapon Ian had right away was the huge ¡®hero score¡¯ he had from the Spirit Dojo. ¡®Yeah, well, it is too early to give up. First, I need to get back to the village shops. And analyze everything and then use the best ones.¡¯ Ian, who had been sitting on a rock for more than half a day, decided to move. Both Mark Oliver and Lichao had logged out to save their vitality, so Ian was the only one who had remained there. But the moment he was about to walk, there was one thing that Ian hadn¡¯t grasped. In the corner of the warrior¡¯s village, a new building called ¡®combat training ground¡¯ had begun. * * * A large training ground at the northern end of the warrior¡¯s village. Here, right then, a dozen of users had been moving fiercely to clear the quest. Starting with the basic technique. Chang-! Chachang-! Tat-! Tat-! It surely could be a boring content, but the eyes of the users were much more serious than ever. The one who would be the fastest to clear the quest, that person would be the world¡¯s first user to do it. Also, after the relatively boring phase, and interesting linked quest was about to come. However, the atmosphere that looked to be serious, a user with a peculiar atmosphere around him could be noticed. ¡°Kkkuk, Kkrrk.¡± A man with a strange smile kept on moving. No, rather than a man, he looked like a kid. ¡°Uh uh uh, this Mr. Hoonie can¡¯t show some seriousness.¡± It was Hoonie, the one who shared the information with Ian. Was the most passionate than ever. ¡°At last, the opportunity to pass over Ian hyung has come for the Monarch of Darkness! Kuek!¡± In the current situation, Hoonie seemed to have an opportunity. ¡®Because of the mark that the Immortal had given, I was able to pass the Brave Path in an unthinkable manner.¡¯ Just the way Ian had passed through the ¡®Brave Path¡¯, Hoonie too was able to freely pass the path, allowing him to join the ranks of the top line. Although Shakran was right next to Hoonie, the progress of Hoonie from the Korean server in the Warrior¡¯s village was the fastest. ¡®Huhu, I¡¯ll show the true power of the Monarchs! And at the battle in the canyon, I¡¯ll become a global star!¡¯ In the golden future, his heart was already pounding. But, all that was left to see was, if Hoonie¡¯s future was going to develop in the way he was predicting. CH 580 In the Warrior¡¯s Village, numerous kinds of shops were present. Starting from the basic equipment shops, potion shops, smiths and the magic stores. Ian was looking around every one of them and began to use the Hero Score very boldly. Tring-! [Purchased the item ¡®Hero¡¯s Lightweight leather armor¡¯.] [You have spent ¡¯80¡¯ hero score.] [Purchased the item ¡®Hero¡¯s tough leather shoes¡¯.] [You have spent ¡¯50¡¯ hero score.] The items that Ian had purchased, were the highest performance items that can be purchased in the ¡®recruit¡¯ rank. But the weird thing was that Ian had bought the same item several times. He also bought the weapons of the same kind. Tring-! [Purchased the item ¡®Hero¡¯s sharp dagger¡¯.] [You have spent ¡®100¡¯ hero score.] [Purchased the item ¡®Brave sharp dagger¡¯.] ¡­ syncopation¡­ [Purchased the item ¡®Strong Hero¡¯s armor plate¡¯.] [You have spent ¡¯95¡¯ hero score.] Purchased the item ¡®Hard Warrior¡¯s steel helmet¡¯.] ¡­ syncopation¡­ Ian didn¡¯t like the heavy equipment. In particular, he always desired to minimize the weight of the armor. Which was why he would never even think of buying an armor plate. Then, why did Ian bought the equipment which didn¡¯t even match his combat style? That too, not one but several. ¡°Uh, this is a bit like gambling¡­¡± After using of around 1,000 hero score, Ian left the store without any hesitation. And the place where he was heading to¡­ ¡°Hello, Mister Tiver!¡± ¡°Oh, come in!¡± The place where Ian had arrived was the ¡®Brave Forge¡¯. What was the difference between an equipment shop and a smith forge? Both places sold brave equipment. ¡®There are more equipment in there than here, and the smithy can do other things.¡¯ At the equipment shops, huge variety of equipment were available for the recruits. On the other hand, there was just one equipment available for each rank in the forge. However, the advantages of the forge were different. ¡®Disassemble and assemble. I need to try and make the most of it.¡¯ It literally was a content that goes well with the name ¡®forge¡¯. Honestly, the content wasn¡¯t something for a ¡®recruit¡¯ stage. At the time when the ¡®hero score¡¯ was lacking, he would have run out of score with just a few tries. But it wasn¡¯t a story that was relevant for Ian. At the moment, Ian¡¯s hero score was constantly rising. ¡°The great recruit who has won the dimensional mirror?¡± ¡°Haha, not at all.¡± Ian and Tiver had only met once, but the affinity with Tiver was very high. The reason, of course, thanks to the active days on the battlefield. ¡°Yeah, what are you going to do today? Have you come to buy new equipment?¡± Blacksmith Tiver asked Ian who shook his head. ¡°Nope, I¡¯m not here to buy an equipment this time.¡± ¡°Umm, then¡­?¡± ¡°So that I can use the ¡®anvil¡¯ which is over there.¡± ¡°Ohh.¡± At the response, Tiver was very interested. He had been in the forge for a long time, and he had rarely ever seen a recruit use an anvil. ¡°Of course, you can use the anvil. If you can pay the fee.¡± ¡°And how much would the fee be?¡± ¡°Since you are a recruit¡­ it is 50 hero score for a day.¡± At the words of Tiver, Ian nodded. As he approached the anvil, system messages had appeared in front of him. Tring-! [Wish to use ¡®Tiver¡¯s Anvil¡¯?] [Usage fee: Hero Score 50/ day.] Ian nodded once again. Then Ian grabbed the hammer on the anvil. And came the system message once again. Tring-! [Hero score of 50 has been consumed.] [You will be able to use ¡®Tiver¡¯s Anvil¡¯ for 24 hours.] [The ¡®Tiver¡¯s Anvil¡¯ function has been activated.] Ian was very excited looking at the system window which had come in front of him. The content information window, he had a rough idea about, but his eyes shined as it was the first time he was actually going to use it. -Tiver¡¯s Anvil This is an anvil in the forge of Tiver¡¯s, the forger of the Warrior¡¯s Village. Anyone who challenges it for becoming a warrior can use the anvil for a certain fee. A. Item enchantment *Can enhance the gear with the item ¡®Brave Hero enhancement magic essence¡¯. Brave equipment max level +10. B. Item Creation *Create a new brave equipment by combining the materials obtained from the ¡®Brave Canyon¡¯. The better materials that are used, the better will be the durability of the craft, and the better performance of the crafted item. C. Item disassemble *You can disassemble all of the ¡®Brave equipment¡¯. When dismantling the equipment, you can obtain the materials needed for crafting. There is a chance to earn the Brave Hero Enhancement Magic essence item. ¡®Hu, it will be nice if this goes according to my thoughts¡­¡¯ In a nutshell, what Ian was trying to do was to build an equipment that was for the recruit. He was going to make an equipment that could only be purchased by combat soldiers or higher in the ¡®production system¡¯. Trying to take advantage of the loophole which only had a limit on the purchase and not on the wearing limit. And that was in fact like gambling. He wasn¡¯t sure nor didn¡¯t he know if a higher level equipment could be made from the materials after disassembling the recruit equipment. ¡®Well, it is still worth a try, the resources are endless.¡¯ Ian, who still had more than 3 thousand Hero Score, chose the anvil¡¯s option. Tring-! [You have chosen ¡®Item Disassemble¡¯.] [Please select the item for disassembling.] Ian began to select the items without hesitation. [Disassemble of ¡®Strong Hero¡¯s Armor Plate¡¯.] [You have acquired ¡®Leavy leather¡¯ material item.] [Obtained the item ¡®elastic string¡¯.] [Disassemble of ¡®Sharp Hero¡¯s Dagger¡¯ item.] [You have acquired the ¡®Iron of Good ore¡¯ item.] [Obtained the item ¡®Low abrasive¡¯ material item.] At the time of 10 minutes? All the equipment that Ian had purchased at the equipment store had turned into materials and the inventory was piled up. * * * The monitoring room in the basement of the LB company which everyone had left after work. Only one shadow had been there, sitting in front of the monitor. And she was the planning team 3¡¯s youngest employee, Oh Hye-jin. ¡°Uh uh, I might die from drowsiness.¡± Her job was to monitor Ian and the three others. Her task was to record and report how the three members would be able to access the new content that the team 3 had prepared. It was a very important task, and Na Ji-chan had given such a task to her, she was forced to open her eyes and concentrate on the monitor. ¡°By the way, that Ian, what is he even doing?¡± In front of the girl, there were three monitors. And it was the monitor of Ian, Mark Oliver, and Lichao. However, unlike Mark Oliver and Lichao who were in the battle camp as planned, Ian hadn¡¯t left the blacksmith for an hour. And from the standpoint of the monitoring, it was boring. And, she was concerned if the Korean ranking server would be lagging behind the other two. ¡°You need to enter the training center quickly, don¡¯t fall behind¡­¡± Mumbling to herself, Oh Hye-jin was recoding the play of the three users. However, after an hour or two, Oh Hye-jin¡¯s eyes which had been on the screen began to close. To monitor at the night shift was difficult as hell. Snore-! Oh Hye-jin, the youngest of the team had fallen asleep. And while she was asleep¡­ -Done! The voice of Ian had come from one of the three monitors. * * * Tring-! [The light of blessing is rising from ¡®Tiver¡¯s Anvil¡¯!] [You have successfully done the ¡®item production¡¯!] [A tremendous rank items had been produced.] [You have earned the item ¡®Brave Celestial Dragon Warlord Orb¡¯!] With radiating light. A blue orb floated on the anvil. Ian confirmed it and burst into tears without knowing. ¡°Done!¡± Ian reached it with trembling hands. At the same time, the item information had opened in front of Ian. -Brave Celestial Dragon Warlord Orb Classification: Summoning orb Rank: Only (Transcendence) Wear limit: Spirit power 200 + (transcendence) Summoner with ¡®Spirit spell user¡¯. Attack: 775~ 1,035 (the spirit power increases with proportion to weapon damage.) Durability: 511/ 511 Option: +50 on all combat (transcendence) Leadership +0 (transcendence) Affinity +10 (transcendence) Spirit Magic +600 (transcendence) Summon Magic +400 (transcendence) All summoned spirits have a 35% increased vitality and 25% increased damage. All the summons have an increase of 10% in combat. *Dignity of Celestial Dragon Warlord -Basic Passive Spirit magic deals critical damage to enemies, reduces the cooldown of all the orb¡¯s unique ability by 1 second. -Use effect Deplete all the remaining summon magic, silencing the enemies within the 50 yards for 10 seconds (Cooldown Time: 60 seconds) *Celestial Dragon Summon When the celestial dragon fury is full, the spirit power can be used to summon the Celestial dragon, and release it towards the enemies in the front. The summoned dragon has 1,550 percent of spirit magic, and when hit, it bounces to another enemy closest to you. (Only fires when the enemy is within 5 yards and bounces up to 10 times.) (When the Celestial Dragon¡¯s fury gains 3 points for each kill.) Current dragon rage: 0/ 100 *This item belongs to ¡®Ian¡¯. It cannot be transferred or sold to other users and will not drop when the character dies. *This item was for set ¡®Celestial Dragon Warlord¡¯. A set option has now been created for times when the celestial dragon warlords items are acquired. (Seal) A weapon of celestial dragon warlord made by the user ¡®Ian¡¯. ¡°Keu, Kuee!¡± Ian who confirmed that options of the Orb, had no choice but to admire. After burning a thousand of Hero Scores for almost 4 to 5 hours, he finally got the desired level of the item. ¡°Wait, if it is to this extent, then what rank can be brought from the store?¡± Ian looked at the things that the ¡®blacksmith¡¯ Tiver has sold. After looking at all those, he was able to be a bit more confident. That his choice of using a huge hero score wasn¡¯t in vain. ¡®Keu, even in the elite class weapons, no weapon of this class is present!¡¯ The warrior weapon that Ian had used so far was a bow with no options. Which was why, even without the ¡®set items¡¯ option, he¡¯ll be able to use more than twice the amount of power if he was equipped with the orb. ¡°Nice, the hero score I have remaining is 700¡­¡± The hero score would surely pile up one after the other, but even with that in consideration, it would be unreasonable to pick another equipment. Ian thought, that it was all because of luck that he was able to get such an item with his hero score. ¡°Should I move now?¡± CH 581 The item that Ian made in Tiver¡¯s Forge wasn¡¯t just the Celestial Dragon Warlord Orb. The best pieces of equipment made with each part of the weapon were combined into one. Of course, all other items had a lower performance than the Orb, but it wasn¡¯t comparable to the first one. Once all of his equipment had been equipped, Ian¡¯s combat power became stronger than ever. That was a bit of an exaggeration though since their specs were just 70 percent of the original equipment. If he went back to the Dimensional Mirror with the current specs, Ian might really be able to fly. So where was Ian heading to after making satisfactory specs? ¡°Battle Training Camp¡­ However, do I still have to make a growth?¡± Ian hastily went to the ¡®Battle Center¡¯ coordinates. After being stuck in the smith, Ian was surprised when he heard that a ¡®Battle Center¡¯ was created. And it wasn¡¯t that Ian was there because he didn¡¯t know of the training center. Surely, he wasn¡¯t aware at first, but Mark Oliver, who had found the center, told Ian through a personal message. However, Ian at that time had already selected the option of ¡®item production¡¯ in the smith, which turned him a bit impatient. Ian recalled the conversation he had with Mark Oliver. Mark Oliver: Ian, where are you? Ian: I¡¯m setting up equipment in the forge¡­ What is wrong? Mark Oliver: I¡¯m in the south of the village with Lichao right now, and I discovered a new content called the ¡®Battle Center¡¯. Ian: Oh oh, really? I never saw that even after exploring the whole village. Mark Oliver: Me too, I think the building was created just recently. Ian: By the way, why would you share this advanced information with me¡­? I¡¯m not sure if I can be of any help to you. Mark Oliver: Hahaha, as you might have already noticed, the content of the Warrior¡¯s Village is a composition that opposes the Devil. Maybe the ones in the same faction need to help each other in order to win. ¡®That Oliver guy, is a real character.¡¯ Impressed with Mark Oliver¡¯s message, Ian was feeling like repaying him with one or two pieces of equipment. ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­ I think this is about it.¡± Ian went south to the vacant lot of the village. There was a building there that he had never seen before. Ian smiled as he moved toward the entrance. Tring-! [You have entered the ¡®Battle Center¡¯.] [Since you¡¯re a ¡®Recruit¡¯, you can enter the B grade difficulty training room.] Ian, who went inside the training center, looked around. The first thing he looked for was Mark Oliver and Lichao. However, the two couldn¡¯t be seen anywhere. ¡®Hmm, I guess the training is done individually.¡¯ Ian shook his head as he once again thought about the information that Oliver had given him. According to Oliver, the training center could supposedly raise one¡¯s ¡®special ability¡¯. Mark Oliver: We need to find out more, but I think we have to practice some ¡®special ability¡¯ in here. Ian: Special ability¡­? What is that? Mark Oliver: I think it is a new kind of stat that has never been seen in Kailan before. I just entered, and I don¡¯t know anything yet. Perhaps we¡¯ll find it at the end of the battle practice¡­ ¡®He hasn¡¯t contacted me yet. Oliver doesn¡¯t seem to have finished his training yet¡­¡¯ When he found room B¡¯s door in the training center, Ian smiled. There was only one day left before the event was over. In the meantime, if only the content of the combat training would be advanced enough to satisfy Ian, then he might be able to get a lot of public value. ¡®The special ability stats seem a bit nice, isn¡¯t it?¡¯ Ian stepped into the door without hesitation. Ian¡¯s form was caught by a blue light and was sucked in somewhere. * * * Creating a new piece of content in Kailan wasn¡¯t easy. Overnight work didn¡¯t mean that it could be finished. For that very reason, Na Ji-chan and the other planning teams decided to open the content by modifying the previously scheduled contents. That was the ¡®Battle Center¡¯ and ¡®special ability¡¯. Originally, it was intended for the content to be released once the users reached the elite ranks. When Ian including the other two with him had the content cut off, they opened it quickly for them, creating the same content with a lower level of difficulty than the original one. It was virtually impossible to add new content to raise the public values in the village, so it would provide a way to catch up with the later public values much faster. Of course, the existing main content of the users wouldn¡¯t be able to use the Battle Centers. However, in their case, it was only a matter of time for the trio to get back what they lost. During the main quest, they weren¡¯t able to enter the training center. And just before the exhausting work was done, Na Ji-chan said, ¡°Hu, this should be good enough¡­ The trio might be able to extract more than what they have lost.¡± Just as Na Ji-chan said, the content of the ¡®Battle Center¡¯ was in many ways better than what Ian was expecting. First, the difficulty of the training center. It wasn¡¯t that hard for Ian, but looking at the difficulty, quite a few users weren¡¯t able to complete it with a single try. ¡®Surely, I did the right thing when I decided to invest time in equipment first.¡¯ Perhaps, if it wasn¡¯t for the equipment that Ian had made, he might have had to spend more time there. Second, the special ability was a reward from the training camp. [You have successfully completed the first training course.] [Cleared the training room difficulty B, you are now qualified to challenge C difficulty.] [You can now choose a Brave ability.] [Warrior Ability, an ability that works only in the ¡®Brave Canyon¡¯.] [After being promoted to the ¡®Brave¡¯ rank, all of your Brave Abilities will be reset, and you will be allowed to choose more powerful ones.] [You can open up to two Brave Abilities. Please choose carefully.] [Talk to ¡®Remit¡¯, the battle instructor of the Battle Center, to reset all of your warrior stats.] The special abilities were called ¡®Brave Abilities¡¯. They were much more diverse and interesting than Ian had expected. ¨C Brave Ability A. Valor As the ¡®Valor¡¯ ability increases, the ¡®attack¡¯ ability of the warrior increases significantly. But in proportion, the ¡®defense¡¯ stat will be lowered slightly. (Check Details) B. Indomitable As the ¡®Indomitable¡¯ stats increases, the brave ¡®defense¡¯ ability increases significantly. But in proportion, the ¡®Agility¡¯ stats will drop. (Check Details) C. Will As the ¡®Will¡¯ increases, the warrior¡¯s ability to heal and gain resistance increase significantly. In proportion, however, the ¡®attack¡¯ stat will be reduced slightly. (Check Details) D. Explosive Force As the ¡®Dimensional Magic¡¯ stats increases, the damage dealt by all the attacks of the unique ability (magic) increases significantly. But in proportion, the damage of ¡®normal attacks¡¯ will drop slightly. (Check Details) E. Expertise As the ¡®Expertise¡¯ stat increases, all the ¡®career¡¯ gains in the warrior increases significantly. In proportion, however, all combat abilities will be reduced. (Check Details) F. Overload As the ¡®Overload¡¯ stat increases, the ¡®intellect¡¯ stat increases significantly. But in proportion, the ¡®Vitality¡¯ stats will drop. (Check Details) G. Hypertrophy As the ¡®Hypertrophy¡¯ stats increases, the warrior¡¯s ¡®Vitality¡¯ increases. But in proportion, the ¡®Agility¡¯ stat drops slightly. (Check Details) H. Runaway As the ¡®Runaway¡¯ stats increases, the warrior¡¯s ¡®Agility¡¯ increases significantly. But in proportion, the ¡®defense¡¯ stats will be lowered. (Check Details) After completing the first training. There were over twenty kinds of special abilities that appeared in front of Ian. Because of that, Ian wasn¡¯t sure what he wanted to pick. ¡®There is¡­ a lot of them.¡¯ There were many kinds of ¡®Brave Abilities¡¯. However, there was one thing that these abilities were similar in. That was to strengthen one stat and in exchange, downgrade another. For that reason, a user that was selecting a special ability had to choose a stat that went well with his or her play style. ¡®I need to see it, Valor and Will. And the Explosive Force. Expertise and Runaway too¡­¡¯ Ian recalled his usual combat style and compared each of them to the abilities. However, with every comparison, he started to like each one. ¡®I¡¯ll have to see which one is the most efficient one for me.¡¯ Ian started to look at each of the stat and started to analyze the efficiency of each one. It took quite a lot of time, but he thought it was worth it. ¡®Well, Valor isn¡¯t so bad, but after all, it won¡¯t be as efficient as the Explosive Force.¡¯ Rare stats increase the attack power, and explosive stats increase skill damage. If Ian was a warrior or an archer, or before using the magic of the spirits, he would have opted for Valor instead of Explosive Force. Rather than the attack factor, it was more helpful to have a higher DPS. But Ian had a great magic skill as of the moment called the ¡®Infernal Fire¡¯ and the best spirit ¡®Magbi¡¯. In a situation where Fire was being used as a normal attack, skill damage was more efficient than attack power. ¡®Kay, the only ones left to compare each other with are Explosive Force and Expertise.¡¯ In the case of Expertise¡¯s stats, it greatly enhanced the career stats. And for Ian, who uses spirit attack as his primary attack, this stat could be a minor stat. The spirit magic¡¯s damage affects the spirit spell, and it was a stat that boosted the summoning power needed by the spirit magic. In addition, other occupation stats such as leadership and affinity would be helpful to manage other summons. However, unlike the other ones that just downgraded one stat, this one downgraded one¡¯s whole combat stat. ¡®Attack, defense, agility, and vitality, etc. The overall combat was a big risk, but¡­¡¯ Ian was carefully analyzing Explosive force and Expertise¡¯s stats. And the result¡­ ¡°Well. I¡¯ll take ¡®Expertise¡¯ as the first special ability.¡± With hesitation, Ian chose the ¡®Expertise¡¯ stat. A new system message appeared in Ian¡¯s mind. Tring-! [You have opened the Brave Ability ¡®Expertise¡¯.] [¡¯20¡¯ expertise has been given by default.] [All career stats increased by 10 percent.] [All combat stats reduced by 5%.] [Users can practice their Brave Abilities by using it repeatedly in the Training Center.] [Once the first Brave Ability has been trained up to 100, the second warrior ability will be unlocked. (A Brave Ability can be trained up to 100.)] Ian¡¯s head began to work once again. ¡®I don¡¯t know how long it will take for the special ability to reach 100¡­ but maybe it won¡¯t be long.¡¯ Special ability stats could only be used in the Brave Canyon. Moreover, given that the maximum could be initialized at any time, users didn¡¯t need to spend a lot of time maximizing them. ¡®After Expertise reach 100, the job will increase by 50 percent, and the combat will drop by 25 percent.¡¯ Ian, who checked it all, left the training camp B level. And with no hesitation, he went to room C that had a higher difficulty. ¡®My equipment level is far from elite, but just a few more and I¡¯ll be able to go to rank D.¡¯ The higher the difficulty of the training center, the faster the special ability would rise. Ian planned to practice the ¡®Expertise¡¯ stats as much as possible. If he could make up to 100 points, then he would have the chance to get the ¡®Explosive Force¡¯ stat. Tring-! [Entering the room with difficulty C.] Along with a small message, Ian¡¯s shadow got sucked in. While Ian was heating up in practice, the next morning came. CH 582 The long-awaited Wednesday had come. It took three days to do the Mirror Battlefield on the Sunday battle. And in the eyes of Ian, which could hardly get any sleep for three days, it was insignificant. ¡®Uh, once the battle today is over, I¡¯ll lie down.¡¯ Users, who came through the normal procedure, just entered the training center. Ian wondered how much public value did the ones who have entered the main quest got? Curious about it, Ian sent a message to Hoonie. Ian: Hoonie, what is your rank now? Hoonie, who wanted to brag about his progress, replied in the blink of an eye. KanjiHoonie: Uhhh, Kueahhh! This Hoonie is going to surpass you. Are you scared? Ian: Don¡¯t talk rubbish and show me the rank. KanjiHoonie: Tch, okay. Around 8 hours ago, I just got promoted into a Combat Soldier, and the public value I got is 1,600. Maybe by tomorrow, I¡¯ll be able to shoot till Elite? Unless the quest breaks. Ian: What about the other rankers? KanjiHoonie: Well, there is no way that they would possess the public value that I have, but most of them are in a similar situation. As of the moment, we have all been promoted into a Combat Soldier. Ian: Hmm, okay. KanjiHoonie: I¡¯ll see you soon, hyung. We are going to join the battlefield soon. Ian: Okay. After their conversation, Ian sighed. ¡®Phew, I expected all of this¡­ but everything is progressing faster than I expected.¡¯ At present, Ian needed 100 public value to be a Combat Soldier. Compared to Hoonie, there was a gap of 1,700. ¡®Hu, no matter how much I suffer in the battle, I won¡¯t be able to follow them.¡¯ Anyway, Ian got the highest public value that Sunday. Of course, he participated in a battle with weak specifications, but he ended the battle and was in the first place. Ian¡¯s achievement in that battle was just 300. The number of rewards that would appear in the battle days wouldn¡¯t vary a lot, so the public value that one would gain wouldn¡¯t be that much either even if one¡¯s specs were all up. ¡®Can I get at least 500 points?¡¯ While Ian was trying to get 500, the other users weren¡¯t going to be playing around. Maybe the gap that could be narrowed would grow too. Ian bit his lower lip and slowly left the training camp. It was just 30 minutes until the battle day. It was no longer the time to enter the training center. ¡®If I go in with a lower rank and turn things around, maybe I¡¯ll go up another stat¡­¡¯ Ian just shook his head and sat on the rock in the vacant lot. Pushing till the last for just one stat wasn¡¯t an efficient plan. ¡®Huhu, but this surely is good for what I did in one day.¡¯ With a pleased look, Ian opened the Special Ability information window. -Hero Ability Status Retained ability: Expertise A. Expertise Current Stat: 67 Training progress: 37 percent -All career stats increase by 33.5 percent -All combat stats will drop by 16.75 percent *¡¯Expertise¡¯ has been polished nicely. You will be much more powerful in your area of expertise. Ian¡¯s lips turned into a smile after checking the information window. ¡®Keu, that is a 33.5 percent rise in all of my stats. Losing 16 percent isn¡¯t that bad of a sacrifice.¡¯ Since he would be sacrificing his combat stats, Ian suffered a loss in vitality, defense, and agility. Of course, there was going to be attack and agility, and it was just a numerical damage value; it didn¡¯t exactly have any significant effect on the actual battle. The intellect stats were almost never affected unless one was a Wizard, and if items such as the Judgment of Spirit King and Blood Revenge were used, it was a bit upsetting to lose a little damage, but Ian had the best weapon with him, the ¡®Celestial Dragon Warlord¡¯ Orb. If Ian would be put in a situation where he needed to use the Orb and the Infernal Fire, the general attack was almost meaningless. ¡°Uhah!¡± Ian stretched his hands and legs to release some stiffness in his muscles. After a while, the shadows of two familiar people approaching him entered his sight. They were none other than Mark Oliver and Lichao. ¡°Oh, Ian, you came here fast.¡± ¡°Yeah. I just finished the training, and there wasn¡¯t enough time to go for another round.¡± At the words of Ian, Oliver nodded, and Lichao looked at Ian with bright eyes. ¡°Ian, by the way, what stat did you choose in there?¡± At the question from Lichao, Ian responded with good faith. There was no particular reason for him to hide it, and Ian himself was wondering about the ability that Lichao picked. ¡°I¡­ I took the ¡®Expertise¡¯ one.¡± ¡°Oh oh, may I know the reason?¡± ¡°Well, that is simple. My combat style is mostly affected by the Summoner class stats.¡± At that response from Ian, Lichao looked at Ian with respect. Mark Oliver, who was right next to him, was in his thoughts. With one hand on his chin, Oliver was thinking about something. ¡®Oh oh, the Expertise stats¡­ it doesn¡¯t match one bit with Ian¡¯s combat stat.¡¯ The reason wasn¡¯t something that was incomprehensible. Ian was involved in battles in the same amount of time as his summons. Oliver thought that Ian would have chosen the ¡®Valor¡¯ or the ¡®Runaway¡¯ stat. ¡®If that is what he took, then the fire bow that Ian is using is probably related to the Summoner career stat.¡¯ The three people sat around the battlefield until it was opened, and as a result, Ian was able to hear the Special Abilities that the other two chose. The Magician Mark Oliver took the ¡®Overload¡¯ one, while the Warrior Lichao chose the ¡®Runaway¡¯ one. The Special Abilities they chose were the standard ones. ¡°Well, it¡¯s time for the Wednesday battlefield to open.¡± When Oliver got up, Ian and Lichao slowly got up as well from their seats. At that very moment¡­ Tring-! The system messages appeared in front of all the users who entered the Brave Canyon. [Weekly ¡®Day Event¡¯ is starting.] [If you want to participate in the day battle, please go to the ¡®Brave Square¡¯.] * * * The ¡®Dimensional Mirror¡¯ Saturday Battlefield was broadcasted on the official website of Kailan. The time it aired was just 10 minutes, but the waves it created was enormous. Out of that 10 minutes, 6 minutes were recorded by a user in the Chinese server, and that user uploaded it to ¡®You-cast¡¯. For general users who were curious about the content of the Canyon, it was like rain in a drought. As soon as the video was uploaded in You-cast, it quickly turned into something huge and was spread all over the world at a tremendous speed. In the middle of the video were Ian and seven other rankers. In addition, at the bottom of the video were numerous comments in languages from all over the world. ¨C Wow! This is the class of World rankers! ¨C The Human rankers are a huge deal, but the Asmodian rankers are amazing too¡­! This is a real play. ¨C But what is that unusual magic there? Was there no Magician ranker like that in the US server? ¨C That person, a user in the Chinese server with the ¡®Tactical Formation¡¯ class. Keu, that wide area magic combined with that Assassin¡¯s skills is really a form of art! ¨C Ah, that Magician is a Chinese user. Then what country is the Assassin from? Any ideas? ¨C That user is ¡®Limlong¡¯, a Korean server user. The first ranking Assassin user in Korea. ¨C Wah, Assassins are cool. But what was interesting was that the rankers of the Asmodians were the ones who became a huge deal. The Mirror Battle was won by the Humans, so why did the Asmodian users got all the attention? Simple. The part being shown was the first half of the battle in which it looked like the Asmodians were about to win. The ranks of the Humans, who were in a bit of trouble in the beginning, were relatively less compared to the Asmodians. Of course, Ian, Mark Oliver, and Lichao were good enough, but they could do nothing in the ¡®comparative aspect¡¯ of things. ¨C Ah, too bad the video was too short. That must have been an hour-long battle. ¨C Where can I get the full version? ¨C If it was there, it would have already spread. ¨C Right. Maybe this was accidentally leaked by LB. ¨C Tch, nasty. They could have leaked the full version. ¨C By the way, did the Asmodians win that battle? ¨C Isn¡¯t that obvious? ¨C I think so too. The Humans are lacking one user, and I think it¡¯s hard for them to do battle in that kind of map structure. ¨C But, that is that. ¨C Uh, I¡¯d like to go to the Warrior¡¯s Village. ¨C It would take around a year for me to go to the village. Hehe. The first leaked video of the Battlefield was from the Sunday night one, just after the Brave Canyon content was opened. After the video was released, other users began to try harder in entering the new content; it was exhilarating for them to even see. Before the fire in their eyes could even be extinguished, the announcements on Kailan¡¯s homepage made them even more thirsty. -Brave Canyon Battle Broadcast Guide. *Starting at 9 pm today, the day battle in the Brave Canyon will be aired on the official website and community page. The video was a live broadcast that happened in real-time, and there are several events related to the video. EVENT 1 Guess the side of the Battle! The ones who have guessed right in the Wednesday battle will be given a ¡®Brave Equipment box¡¯. The ¡®Brave Equipment Box¡¯ contains between 10 to I million gold. EVENT 2 Guess the heroes of the Battle! The item ¡®Brave Hilt¡¯ will be given to the users who would be able to guess the hero in the battle that would gain the highest contribution points in the Wednesday battle. The ¡®Brave Hilt¡¯ is a ¡®Myth¡¯ rank item and accessory whose details and options will be revealed later on. ¡°Ahh!¡± Semi, who was looking at the monitor, was screaming. ¡°Myth accessory¡­ this is awesome!¡¯ The accessory items have a minimal effect on the combat power. It was because they didn¡¯t seem to have more than three options, and the number was very limited. But the advantage of the accessory was that there was no level limit, and it was rare. In addition, the accessories that would come from the events were limited edition ones. ¡°If I get that, its starting price will be around 10 million won.¡± Whole clenching her fist, Semi opened the event page. And without hesitation¡­ A: Human System B: Ian The answer was placed and submitted. CH 583 ¡®What kind of battle will it be this time?¡¯ Immediately after gathering in the open space for the purpose of entering the battlefield for the Wednesday battle. Ian¡¯s first thoughts were. ¡®Can¡¯t be more than the Mirror Battlefield¡­ no, maybe they will be going to come out with a fresh content?¡¯ The ¡®dimensional mirror¡¯ battlefield was fresh enough to admire, even for Ian. Having experienced such content, it was inevitable to be expecting something more from the battle. And a roaring voice entered the head of Ian. ¡°Kay, have you all gathered?¡± A man, standing on the platform of the open space with a very heavy bass voice. Ian thought that he might be a higher level NPC, than any NPC of the village that he had come across in the Warrior¡¯s village. ¡®Parker was a Platoon head, is this one the captain?¡¯ It wasn¡¯t comparable to Cameres who was on the Hero¡¯s Path, but the armor that he wore, was very very flashy. And while Ian was in such thoughts. ¡°I am the Celestial Dragon General, Hansen. Among all of you, I will select the ones to join the battlefield.¡± Listening to Hansen, everyone turned puzzled. Surely they were all under the impression that they would be entering the battlefield, but none of them expected the ¡®select¡¯ part. Even before they could even try to calm themselves, Hansen continued, ¡°Here, you and you. And you. This side.¡± While the users were in a frenzy, Hansen was selecting the warriors very quickly. And Ian too was called, moving to the back of the platoon. ¡°Hmm, yeah. Till this friend, it is 24, right?¡± At the response to Hansen, lieutenant Parker responded with a stiff look. ¡°Yes, General.¡± Hansen looked around and nodded his head. ¡°Nice, you move to the blue gate. The rest of you go to the white gate behind there.¡± Not just Ian, everyone couldn¡¯t understand what was happening. Something seemed to be going on, but no one was able to find an explanation for the situation. The NPCs were too unfriendly. ¡®I think that there are around 50 people in the square¡­ why did he just choose 24?¡¯ Ian was thinking hard to guess. And it was the same for Hoonie who was beside him. ¡°Hyung, what is even happening here?¡± ¡°Well¡­¡± ¡°This, getting picked is a nice thing right?¡± ¡°I think the same. All of the selected users are of a higher rank than a combat soldier.¡± ¡°Hyung, you¡¯re a recruit but you have been chosen, why?¡± ¡°Hmm? Which is why we need to see.¡± Ian who was talking with Hoonie once again fell into thoughts. Sixteen users were selected by the General of Celestial Dragons, except for Ian, every one of them were Combat soldiers. In addition, a few combat soldiers weren¡¯t picked up too, so he wasn¡¯t able to understand the standards. But there were no more things to deduce and no longer did he have the time to think. ¡°There, friend. What are you doing? Move quickly.¡± Lieutenant Parker shouted, and Ian had no choice but to move quickly. ¡°Ah, yup. Going.¡± Ian was one of the 24, whom Hansen had chosen. Which was why he moved towards the blue gate. And the moment Ian stepped on the blue gate. Wheeing-! With huge resonance, a new system message had emerged in front of Ian¡¯s eyes. [Welcome to the battlefield of ¡®God¡¯s Piece Board¡¯.] * * * The busy Korean university campus at 9 o¡¯clock in the evening and most of the students had withdrawn. However, there was just one crowded place and the large classroom of the virtual reality. The largest classroom in the virtual reality department, which could accommodate more than two hundred people. However, the classroom was entirely full. And the number of 200 students in there, were all the students of the virtual reality department. And among them, Semi and Young-hoon were seated. ¡°Huuh, looking forward to it. Semi, you? Did well in the event?¡± ¡°Obviously.¡± ¡°What was the answer?¡± ¡°Maybe the same answer as everyone in this room?¡± ¡°hu hu, that was a natural one, right?¡± Unlike the usual lecture time, the two people were seated in the front row for some reason. The expressions too weren¡¯t the same as the lifeless depressing expression waiting for the lecture to attend. Rather, were full of excitement. And was the same of all the other students. Then, why were so many students gathered in the classroom? The reason for that could be seen on the screen which lighted up the whole room. ¨C Kay, the documents have just arrived from the LB. ¨C Oh, Hines, let¡¯s open it up. I¡¯m curious as to what kind of content the Kailan¡¯s planning team have come up with this time. ¨C Haha, I feel the same way, Lucia. So, shall we look at the rules of the new battlefield together? ¨C Quickly do it. There isn¡¯t much time before the game starts. It was the first thing that came up on the classroom screen was the game broadcast YTBC. And the students in the virtual reality were all gathered in the huge room to watch the Brave Canyon¡¯s battle. ¨C Oh ho, the name of the battlefield is ¡®God¡¯s Piece Board¡¯. ¨C ¡®God¡¯s Piece Board¡¯¡­ what could that be? ¨C Well? The first thing that enters my mind listening to it, nothing other than a chessboard. ¨C Ho oh, yeah. Is this really related to chess? ¨C I¡¯ll know once we open it up. The crowd of 200 people and the noise-filled classroom suddenly became silent as if everyone had died. It was because they started to talk about the battle on the screen. Due to the silence in the room, both Semi and Young-hoon were whispering, ¡°What? Chess? How will that even work?¡± ¡°Yeah. I can¡¯t even imagine it.¡± And then came the conversation between Hines and Lucia. ¨C Kay, let¡¯s look at the file sent by the LB for the viewers. ¨C Ah, this is so exciting. This isn¡¯t even related to me, but why is my heart pounding like this? ¨C Huhu, isn¡¯t that because you want the Korean rankers to be active? And on the screen that Hines and Lucia were there, a new screen had appeared. A huge peak that rose to one side of the Brave Canyon and a mysterious silverly clouds hanging around. The screen which had been showing the mysterious landscape from afar, gradually enlarged, and Semi who looked at it, mumbled in a small whimpers. ¡°Oh, that really is a chessboard?¡± Young-hoon too nodded and said, ¡°Ri, right? Seems like a chessboard¡­ but is it a bit unusual?¡± ¡°No, look closely, it is a bit different from chess, it is a Shogi chessboard.¡± ¡°What is?¡± ¡°the boards are much denser.¡± ¡°That so?¡± Huge rocks on top of peaks. The top of the rocks was cut flat and smooth and with a familiar shape. Like Semi and Young-hoon said that it was Shogi board¡¯. A mysterious sight that excited the viewers. And subsequently, on the board, a silhouette began to appear, just like a ¡®Shogi piece¡¯. Woong-! At the same time, Hines explained, ¡°The name of the Brave Canyon¡¯s battle is ¡®God¡¯s Piece Board¡¯. And I will explain the rules of the board from now on.¡± After gulping, Hines began to read the documents from LB which seemed very complicated. It was something that would be very hard to understand by reading once or twice. But one thing was definite, the content was going to be very interesting. ¡°Wah, this is awesome!¡± Young-hoon unknowingly began to admire. This was the brief summary of what Hines described. 1.24 of the best users will be selected by the Celestial camp and the Asmodian Camp. (User selection criteria are ¡®battle power¡¯ and ¡®class¡¯ and the combat power is measured on the user¡¯s stat and equipped equipment.) (The unselected users can gain 100 contributions if the camp of theirs win.) 2. The selected users are moved to the battlefield from the blue gate and placed on the board according to the ¡®God¡¯s Choice¡¯. 3. The position of the board determines the position of the user, and the range of movements depend on the position. *Position -High General: Located in the middle of the back row, it can move up to five spaces in turn. If the High general dies, the battle is lost. (An additional two spaces can be moved if an enemy is killed, and can battle another time.) -Advisor/ Minister (General): located at the right and left of the High general, can move up to three spaces in turn. When an enemy attacks, the stats are increased by 10 percent. (When standing near the general, he can be supported.) -Assault Captain: located on either side of the row, and can move up to 10 spaces in one turn. Attacking an enemy increases the stats by 5%. (If there are allies or enemies on the route, it can jump once.) -Aide: located on both sides and can move up to five spaces per turn. Only one of all heroes who can use the recovery skill and heal up to 2 allies per turn. Each time an ally is healed, the target is healed for 30%. (Only a ¡®priest¡¯ class user can be selected. And cannot attack an enemy first, but when it is attacked, it can fight back.) -Soldier/ pawn: placed at the front of each faction, and can move upto two spaces in a turn. 4. The celestial camp and the Asmodian camp will move alternatively, and the order comes in the order given by the system. 5. When the pieces meet, the battle occurs, and a battlefield is created in the center of the board, and the battle between the two users begins. The defeated user becomes a ¡®dead piece¡¯ and is summoned outside the battle. And during the battle, the vitality cannot be recovered except for the help of ¡®aide¡¯ and even after the battle, the vitality doesn¡¯t restore. * * * Ian who had heard everything from General Hansen, looked interested at the difficulty. ¡®Wah, what kind of a board game is this?¡¯ From Ian¡¯s point of view, the battlefield of the ¡®God¡¯s Piece Board¡¯ was a level of showing the power of the planning team. Each turn was like a 1:1 tournament, but the rules and methods were long like a never-ending chess game. Ian was able to roughly understand the situation and looked at the battlefield. ¡®The titles are so diverse. I wish I could be a general or an assault captain¡­¡¯ Ian wanted to be in the center of the battle to have some kill point, calmed his heart and waited for the battle. If the position was taken properly, then the game could move in a superior manner. ¡®Please, High General¡­!¡¯ After a while, new system messages began to emerge infront of Ian. [The positions of each camp users have been determined.] The users of the Celestial camp were called one after the other with the system messages. [¡­ user, your job title has been set to ¡®General¡¯.] [¡­ user, your job title has been set to ¡®Aide¡¯.] [¡­ user, your job¡­] And at the end of the message. [¡®Ian¡¯ user, your job title has been set to ¡®Soldier¡¯.] A line of messages had come to his sight and depressed the hell out of Ian. CH 584 Ian¡¯s equipment was obviously much better than any user who was on the battlefield of ¡®God¡¯s Piece Board¡¯. In addition, Ian¡¯s stats were incomparably high. And the rank increase didn¡¯t seem to have an effect on the stats, he was just one rank lower than the combat soldier, and yet the level of combat stats raised by him in the battle training was much higher than any user there. Then, why did Ian entered into the battlefield in the lowest title available? ¡®Maybe because of the rank.¡¯ Ian was entirely convinced that in the Brave Canyon, the rank played a vital role in electing the positions on the battlefield. Ian was able to be a normal soldier, while Mark Oliver and Lichao couldn¡¯t even participate. And in the case of Ian, the item level and the stats seemed to have made it possible. And thinking about the reason, Ian was biting down on his lip. ¡®A soldier how? If I stick and win, it¡¯ll stop.¡¯ However, after a while, the system messages started to come once again in front of Ian. [¡®God¡¯s Piece Board¡¯ battlefield, detailed settings.] [First, the stats of the users will be corrected by default.] [Soldier: +0% for all the combat abilities/ +0% for all career abilities.] [Aide: +0% for all combat abilities/ 50% for all career abilities.] [Assault Captain: +35% for all combat abilities/ +25% for all career abilities.] [Advisor/ General: +70% for all combat abilities/ +50% for all career abilities.] [High General: +100% for all combat abilities/ +100% career abilities.] ¡®Ha, why is it so bad for a soldier?¡¯ Ian who checked the messages, couldn¡¯t help but feel deceived. Stat buff due to the position was too huge. ¡®Even with all the training, I might be trying to endure being a soldier?¡¯ He wasn¡¯t asking for an unreasonable 70 percent of stat buff like the adviser position, but even a 35 percent stat buffs were worth it. ¡®Then the soldier isn¡¯t fun to play in the game?¡¯ Seeing the other positions with extra stats and special abilities unlike his soldier rank, Ian sighed deeply not even realizing it. ¡°Phew¡­¡± In the situation, to have as much public points as possible, all Ian could do was to kill as many opposite camp members as possible, but even that task was going to be limited. And maybe the dissatisfaction of Ian was heard, messages began to come up again. [Second, for the ¡®Soldiers¡¯ and the ¡®Aide¡¯ ranks, at the rise of 3 kill points the rank increases (moving up to an ¡®adviser¡¯ is possible).] [Thirdly, when a user who starts with a ¡®soldier¡¯ rank kills the enemy ¡®High General¡¯, the achievement gained in the battle is increased by 300 percent.] The sullen expression of Ian came to life. ¡®Kue, right, right! No way Kailan could disappoint me!¡¯ Clearly, the position of a soldier was the most unfavorable position on the battlefield. As Ian thought, it was a ¡®bullet taking position¡¯. The biggest reason Ian had been dissatisfied wasn¡¯t just because of the ¡®pulley¡¯. When overcoming all those disadvantages, there was no corresponding reward for it. If one had 10 kills of a soldier or 10 kills as a general, there wasn¡¯t much one could do, if there weren¡¯t any rewards associated with it. ¡®But it is different if this is the case.¡¯ Ian¡¯s eyes sparkled. Everytime he earned a kill point, he could be promoted, and if he could do three times the public value by killing the opposite general, then it surely was worth a shot. ¡®Nice, I need to put a strategy¡­¡¯ While Ian was thinking of this and that, additional system messages came to his sight. [Fourth, all the attack ability is increased by 15% in the battlefield.] [Fifthly, if the ¡®defensive mode¡¯ is activated, your turn is skipped and your combat ability is increased by 10% for the next turn (The defensive mode can¡¯t be activated if moved one step)] And Ian, who checked the messages, turned his eyes to the ground. ¡®Nice, now that I understand the rule¡­ I might get the neck of the enemy.¡¯ Ian¡¯s greed was burning. The disadvantage of the title of ¡®soldier¡¯ was quite great, but the rewards that came back with overcoming the disadvantage was very sweet. As Ian¡¯s will to fight rose, a blue light began to engulf him and the other ones. [Move to your spot.] And in the place of Ian¡­ ¡°¡­!¡± Who was at the very forefront. Wheeing-! Along with the usual resonating sound, the heroes of each camp were summoned on the board. 24 for each camp, and forty eight members on the God¡¯s Piece Board. The positional structure of the 24 was as follows. High General 1 (High General) Assault Generals 2 (General) Defending Generals 2 (General) Medical Aides 2 (Special Soldiers) Aides 2 (Aide) Lance 3 (officer) Knights 3 (officer) Soldiers 9 (Soldiers) Of course, there were 9 soldiers on the front line for each camp. The only thing which was interesting was that it wasn¡¯t just the soldiers who were lined up. The positions of the soldiers were all arranged in a zig-zag, back and forth places. To put it precisely, there were five soldiers in the front row, and four soldiers in the back row right behind. And Ian¡¯s place was in the center of the battlefield. ¡®Uh, this doesn¡¯t look good¡­¡¯ Too obvious, the center of the field was always a place for targeting when it came to the attacks of the enemies. And Ian never had the intention of standing out. If he was targeted by the enemy general or any officers, he could be out of the game before trying anything. ¡®I need to move as carefully as possible.¡¯ Ian bit his lips and calculated the distance till the opposite side. The distance between the soldier opponent of Ian was exactly three spaces. ¡®The first mover will be at a disadvantage.¡¯ In the battle, the second was always at a benefit. In particular, if one could attack an enemy who hasn¡¯t activated the defensive mode yet, then he could create a stat gap that could cover the difference of rank. Because of that, the three spaces made it impossible for moving. Since the soldiers could move two spaces, with just one move, the enemy soldier would make it to them. ¡®In the first turn, all five soldiers in the front lane of both camps will activate the defensive mode.¡¯ The soldiers of the front line couldn¡¯t move immediately until the camp was earnest. But between the four soldiers in the back row, there was an option to move around. Rather, one had to move two spaces first so that the opponent soldiers couldn¡¯t move forward. ¡®Well, there was an assault general who can jump into enemy lines¡­ are these all so meaningless?¡¯ Ian turned a little to see Hoonie. And Hoonie who was right behind him was laughing. Hoonie¡¯s position was that of a defending general. ¡®Huhu, I surely want to beat this hyung¡­¡¯ The defending general was like a general position. Which meant that Hoonie¡¯s rank was the fifth position among the human users. Ian smiled and stretched his fingers. ¡®But that won¡¯t be easy, huhu.¡¯ Ian exchanged glances with Hoonie. Subsequently, in front of all the users on the battlefield, system messages that reminded them about the start of the battle were appearing. [The team that wins on the Saturday battle will be awarded the ¡®First Place¡¯.] [Turn is given to the ¡®Celestial¡¯ camp.] [From the ¡®celestial¡¯ camp, the user ¡®Jonas¡¯ is given the turn.] * * * The first turn on the battle was given to Jonas, a warrior ranker of the German Server. And he with the nickname of ¡®Berserker of War¡¯, was the 1st ranker in German warrior rankings. In addition, Jonas was ranked 2nd in the all class server rankings of German. And as he ranked at top, he was full of confidence. ¡®Nice. I need to show them what this Jonas really is capable of to the whole world.¡¯ Clenching his fist, Jonas looked around at the battlefield. His position was that of an assault captain. It was a lower spec than a general, but it sure was the best rank for him. ¡®Keu, where should I start?¡¯ The range of the assault captain was the longest of all the positions and could go on the enemy side at once. In addition, the location was just behind the soldiers, allowing him to reach all the targets of the enemy excluding the High general and the aide. Even the enemy¡¯s assault captain could be reached in just one chance. ¡®I think it will be best to kill the assault captain or the medical aide¡­¡¯ Jonas was in a concern for a while. But the agony didn¡¯t last for long. Before his eyes could loom for a spot, a message came to urge him. [If you don¡¯t move in 5 seconds, your turn is over.] [If you don¡¯t move in 4 seconds¡­] Flustered by the situation, Jonas targeted the enemy who came into his glance the next moment. [The Devil Camps, ¡®Medical aide¡¯ Lilis user has been attacked.] And that choice, led to the worst outcome. [The battle between the user ¡®Jonas¡¯ and ¡®Lilis¡¯ will start.] [The ¡®Defensive captain¡¯ of the Devil faction, user Alpine has joined the battle.] The defensive commander had a much shorter range than the assault captain. He could only move up to three spaces at one time. However, the defensive captain¡¯s special abilities were second to the High General. *Allies within the range of attack can be engaged in combat when attacked (When engaged in combat, the combat ability is reduced by 40%). And Jonas hadn¡¯t even thought about the ability of the defensive captain. At the first look of the ¡®God¡¯s Word Board¡¯, no one could figure out the number and the cases. ¡°This, this¡­!¡± But it had already been done. ¡°Waah!¡± ¡°Is he an idiot? No matter how strong he is, how can he even deal with them¡­?¡± ¡°And isn¡¯t one them a healer?¡± ¡°Right. Got one kill because of that idiot.¡± At the ridicule of the devil users, he was turning mad. Tring-! [The battle is over.] [The assault captain of the Celestial army ¡®Jonas¡¯ user has been defeated.] [Jonas user has been summoned outside the battle.] And Ian who watched the scene just sighed. ¡°Huu, this is so twisted right from the beginning¡­¡± The role of an assault captain on the battlefield was similar to that of a come and go position. Which was why the mistake of Jonas made the whole celestial army go silent. CH 585 The mistake of Jonas was critical. Being an assault general, he died without even taking a kill, and he hadn¡¯t caused any damage to the opponent. It wasn¡¯t like he hadn¡¯t done any damage. However, the defensive general of the opponent got his vitality restored from the medical aide, just before the battle was over. But in contrast to the general mood of the whole Celestial camp, Ian¡¯s expression hadn¡¯t changed. ¡®Surely that ally of mine, Jonas, was an idiot, but surely the other ones on the other side will make mistakes too.¡¯ Of all the content that had existed so far, the rules of the battlefields of the God¡¯s Piece Board were very complex to even place them on one¡¯s fingers. And this was the first battle that had been generated since the new content had been created. This wasn¡¯t the type of content that all the rankers could get into their heads. Most of the rankers were all body and no brain. Ian calmly looked at the battlefield and thought to himself. ¡®This might be an opportunity for me.¡¯ Ian was a member of the Celestial army, which meant that winning the Celestial army was a good thing. But there was something more important than just the camp winning, and that was his public value. No matter how much they win, if they died without fighting, then winning made no sense. ¡®The Assault Captain on the left knew, and their attacks will all head that way.¡¯ Jonas, who was just out of the game, was positioned at the center. The powerful position of the Assault Captain had disappeared. The Devil camp will surely focus their attacks in that spot. And naturally, Ian was going to be out of focus. ¡®If I wait, then chances will surely come!¡¯ Ian continued to stimulate the flow of the battle in his head. Unlike Jonas, who knew the game rules for a long time, things might be a little different for Ian. Though it surely was the first time for Ian to be on such a battlefield, by watching the movements of the previous user, he began to adapt to the battlefield. If he had no ideas in his head when his turn came, he wouldn¡¯t be able to show his best performance. As time passed, another 10 turns passed between the Celestial and the Devils. [The battle is over.] [The ¡®Celestial¡¯ camp has won!] [The soldiers on the ¡®Devil army¡¯ camp will be summoned outside the battlefield.] [¡®Devil¡¯ camp has won!] [¡®Celestial¡¯ camp has won!] ¡­ ¡­ The battle was flowing just as Ian expected. ¡®Fortunately, there are a few idiots in the Devil camp.¡¯ Like Jonas, who was trying to hit the healer, one of the Assault Captains of the Devil side died in vain. Whenever they saw the chance to attack the High General of the army, they would jump in as if they were possessed. And the result was, of course, defeat. [The ¡®Celestial¡¯ camp has won!] [The Assault Captain of the Devil Army has been defeated.] Some of the users on the Devil camp were more horrible than Jonas. Not just the High General, but the opponent had to deal with two Medical Aides behind him too. And then the score¡­ -Battle Status *Celestial Kill Points: 260 Survival status: High General 1, General 2, Special Forces 1, Officers 6 and Soldier 4 Remarks: 1 Double Kill *Devil Kill Points: 310 Survival status: High General 1, General 3, Special Forces 1, Officers 5 and Soldiers 5 Remarks: None The Devils were dominating but not high enough to be overwhelming. Two consecutive kills in one turn, even though it was a good fight, the Assault Captain of the enemy was out. And the funniest thing was that no one had even attacked Ian till then. ¡°Hmph¡­¡± Ian¡¯s head turned from one side to another, looking at his allies and the enemy camp. ¡®Hu, I guess it is time for my turn¡­¡¯ And the moment Ian¡¯s mumbling could even end¡­ Tring-! [The turn is given to the ¡®Celestial¡¯ camp.] [The turn is for the Soldier of the Celestial camp, User ¡®Ian¡¯]. The turn had come for Ian who was waiting. * * * ¡®Why is he just a regular Soldier?¡¯ After seeing the message in front of him, Limlong wasn¡¯t anything less than flustered. Ian, whom he was assuming to be in the position of a General, wasn¡¯t given the General position but was in the Soldier position instead. ¡®Am I supposed to be¡­ relieved?¡¯ Limlong was one of the people who knew Ian better than anyone else. Not only did he face Ian¡¯s swords directly, but it was because he had a keen eye on him. More than just what he could see, Limlong had excellent gaming skills and combat, and that was why he knew Ian¡¯s skills well. ¡®I don¡¯t know why he is a Soldier but¡­¡¯ Limlong, who saw Ian being called for the first time, thought that Ian still hadn¡¯t joined the battlefield. However, as soon as he realized that he was a Soldier, he thought that Ian had no choice but to be the target of killings. ¡®I need to get rid of that jerk first.¡¯ Limlong turned his gaze toward Ian. Limlong, the Assault General of the Devil camp. As the turn passed, the next turn would be going to Ian. ¡®Let¡¯s see. I can¡¯t reach him with one. I need two spaces.¡¯ Limlong, who escaped the Defensive Captain¡¯s movement and defeated the Aide of the Celestial army, was deep inside the other side of the board. It wasn¡¯t possible for him to reach Ian who was at the forefront with just simple movements, but he would have to kill him after two turns. And in that two turns, no matter how great Ian was, there was no way he could be promoted to a higher position. 3 kills were needed for one to become an officer but not a general. With just two turns ahead, that situation was impossible. But it didn¡¯t take long for Limlong to realize that he was wrong. * * * When the turns came, the time given for the users was just 10 seconds. It was obvious that time played a role when it came to strategizing and counting cases. Therefore, most users on the battlefield were taking full advantage of the 10 seconds time for choosing the order. However, it was different for Ian. [The Soldier of Celestial Camp user ¡®Ian¡¯ moves.] Upon seeing the message that his turn had come, Ian¡¯s words started to flow. ¡°What? Where is he going to go?¡± Ian moved two steps forward. The people who saw that couldn¡¯t help but be dumbfounded. The best action for a weak Soldier on the battle was to choose the defensive mode as early as possible, and in fact, all the Soldiers, who had been given a turn, did the same. ¡°Crazy! Not taking the defensive mode¡­ he isn¡¯t even in the General position!¡± ¡°Right. If he moves forward like that, he¡¯ll just be crushed.¡± As explained before, the distance between the opponent Soldier was just three steps. The spaces that a Soldier could move was 2. So if Ian went two spaces forward, it was like feeding the Devil camp soldiers. And in the defensive mode, even without a stat bonus, they would be given a round start. ¡°Ha, that isn¡¯t the problem, he¡¯ll have to withstand the first attack.¡± ¡°Maybe he won¡¯t last? Everyone is of the same rank¡­ How do you even win against an attack that comes in with the winning buff? Even if he is also going against a Soldier.¡± But the very next moment, all the users were further astounded. Ian moved one space forward, and he moved diagonally for his second move. ¡°¡­!¡± The side spot where Ian had moved to was toward the cavalry user of the Devil camp. ¡°Wah, what kind of confidence does he have?¡± ¡°No. that¡¯s better than moving two spaces forward.¡± ¡°How so?¡± ¡°Nothing can be done when in a defensive mode, it¡¯s better to get the winning buff and attack an officer.¡± ¡°Then, will he be able to cover the rank differences?¡± ¡°Compensating for the rank difference is going to be tough¡­ but making him lose some strength is a good thing, I guess.¡± ¡°That is true but¡­¡± The users, who weren¡¯t able to participate in the battle, were looking at the field with excitement. Within a very normal going game, a funny user had appeared. After a while¡­ [The user ¡®Ian¡¯ of the Celestial camp attacked the user ¡®Makaron¡¯ of the Devil camp.] [The battle between the user ¡®Ian¡¯ and ¡®Makaron¡¯ begins.] The messages emerged, and the battle began. [Since you have launched the first attack, all of your combat stats are increased by 15%.] Ian¡¯s form was summoned onto the battlefield with the buff trigger. Wheeing-! On the other side of the field, the Asmodian user, Makaron, was summoned. ¡®Huhu, should I be thankful? For coming all the way here and giving me kill points.¡¯ When the eyes of Ian and Makaron met, both of them smiled. For the opponent, Ian just made a dumb decision. No matter what buff he was given, the stat bonus difference between a Soldier and an Officer position was 35 percent. Even with a 15 percent buff, there was still a huge difference of 20 percent. In addition, Makaron already had 1 kill. And if he killed Ian, having 2 kills, he could get promoted to the General position. Of course, Ian knew that. Ian smiled, which made it look like a provocation. ¡°Well. Kill point one¡­¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°I¡¯m attacking your space because you look like the weakest one.¡± While looking at the sneaky smile on Ian¡¯s face, Makaron could feel the temperature rising. ¡°¡­!¡± But at that very moment, Makaron quickly cooled his temper and spoke to Ian, ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll let you know what I am made of right away.¡± After seeing that, Ian felt a bit bad. ¡®Tch, the taunt didn¡¯t work on him.¡¯ Since they were all rankers of the world, their mentality was stronger than expected. But even then, Ian had plenty of chances. ¡®It¡¯s just the mind. No matter how strong you are, you will lose your cool after a few hits. There is no such thing as stability.¡¯ That wasn¡¯t a groundless statement. ¡°Huhu.¡± Ian was certain that the Asmodian user in front of him could be tackled with that. CH 586 Ian didn¡¯t know much about the user ¡®Makaron¡¯. This was also his first time seeing this user on the battlefield. However, Ian saw Makaron¡¯s first battle before. Makaron¡¯s first battle was quite fierce. Makaron had shown everything that needed to be shown in that battle, so Ian was able to quickly understand his class and how he fights. ¡®Summon Warlock¡­ it is very suitable for the wealthy.¡¯ The Warlock class could be grown in various ways depending on a user¡¯s capabilities. However, there were two known stems in the Warlock class¡¯s infinite possibilities. Those were the Magic Warlocks and the Summon Warlocks. Those two literally meant the warlocks who used magic and those who used Undead summons. The Summoner Warlocks were the same as Ian¡¯s class. In all of Kailan¡¯s classes, it was the least friendly one for Ian¡¯s class. With a little exaggeration, Ian was confident that his summons would be twice as powerful as the Warlock ones. Woong-! [The battle begins after 3 seconds.] [The battle begins after 2¡­] As the message came announcing about the start of the battle, Ian and Makaron began to focus on each other. It was the battlefield of the world rankers, and they were both decent players. No matter how confident one was, it was necessary to be cautious of the opponent. Makaron had no information on Ian. If he had known Ian earlier, then he would know that he was a Summoner, but it was Makaron¡¯s first time to see Ian. [The battle starts!] Ian summoned his fire bow and pounced forward as soon as the message appeared. Hwark-! Tat- tatt-! Makaron, who was looking at the scene, started to think. ¡®What? Is he an Archer? Or a Magician?¡¯ With the long flame bow in Ian¡¯s hands, Makaron couldn¡¯t guess what Ian¡¯s class was. Makaron couldn¡¯t determine if the fire bow in Ian¡¯s hands was some kind of magic or an item. However, Makaron still kept his composure. At least Ian didn¡¯t seem to be an Assassin class user. ¡®Remote dealer¡­ I¡¯ll deal accordingly.¡¯ Makaron, who was ready to match Ian¡¯s pace, began to cast his own summoning spell. The most important thing in dealing with long-distance dealers, such as Wizards and Archers, was to stay out of their range. Warlocks were long-range dealers too, but Makaron was a bit different. He was an extreme class full of summoning magic and not the hybrid summon and magic that Hoonie used. The black magic that he operated was of secondary skills, and his main power was to summon powerful undead. Shaaa-! Ashes began to bloom around Makaron with a hissing sound. 2 seconds had passed after the start of the battle, and Makaron had already summoned his biggest undead ¡®Bone Knight¡¯, and that was going to be hell for Ian to deal with. The Knight, who could move through the darkness and attack quickly, was going to be a disaster for long-distance dealers. ¡®That cheeky guy. Let me educate you what this truly is.¡¯ After a while, Makaron¡¯s mouth curled up into a smile. However, the smile of Makaron quickly vanished. Woong-! With a resonating sound that came out of nowhere, incomprehensible system messages had come up. [User ¡®Ian¡¯ has used his unique ability ¡®Summon Ban¡¯.] [All the summon skills have been prohibited.] [The ¡®Bone Knight Summon¡¯ Summon Knight has been canceled.] ¡°¡­!¡± Ian was a Summoner. However, the skill he used was something detrimental for Summoners. It was the unique ability of the ¡®Summoner Knight¡¯¡ª¡¯Summon Ban¡¯. -Summon Ban The Summoner Knight had the powerful ability to temporarily disable all the summons. When the Summoner Knight¡¯s valor emerges, all the familiars would kneel before that power. Of course, Summon Ban had conditions that needed to be met in order for it to be activated. In order for the Summon Ban to be activated, the distance between the target and its caster had to be shortened, and there was a way to release the Ban. Anti-magic skills such as magic resistance could release Summon Ban¡¯s effects. One thing was certain; everything was over for Makaron as he had already fallen into the Summon Ban. There was no one who could help him now. ¡°What is this¡­!¡± Makaron, who went through training and became a ranker, hadn¡¯t lost his cool. But in the same situation, if it was someone other than Makaron, then they would have surely been shaken. ¡®Dammit, what kind of magic is that?¡¯ Makaron was flustered. He quickly cast a spell and widened the distance between him and Ian. Somehow, in the duration of the Summon Ban, he had to survive from Ian¡¯s relentless arrows. ¡°Into the Darkness¡­!¡± The magic that Makaron used was a Darkness Entering one, one of the best spells of the Warlock class. Darkness Entering magic was a magic that allowed a user to enter the darkness and hide there. This skill was Makaron¡¯s favorite. Because of its short casting time, it was a magic that could save its user¡¯s life. Even without a spell, it could be cast. But all his efforts burst like a bubble. In the ears of Makaron, a low voice from somewhere entered. -Darkness¡­ fall upon. Pitch black darkness began to fall on the ground. At the very same time, Makaron, who was supposed to be hidden in the dark, became very visible. Kaka¡¯s unique ability¡ªDreaming Devil¡ªthat maximized the dark attribute of her allies and incapacitate the dark attributes of her opponent had been activated. ¡°¡­!¡± Makaron was overwhelmed with shock. Ping- Ping-! Red fiery arrows came rushing toward him. Piiing-! The Warlock class, which had a vitality that was as fragile as glass, had begun to fall. ¡°Keuk-!¡± As if there was a leak in the gauge, Makaron¡¯s vitality began to fall. * * * ¡°Keu, I was so done!¡± ¡°See, see, what did I tell you? That stat buff is worthless against Jinsung senior, right?¡± ¡°Ha, then isn¡¯t he going to get 3 kills just like that?¡± ¡°Why won¡¯t he. Since he is Ian god, surely, he¡¯ll take down everyone and go till he becomes a High General.¡± The classroom was noisy as hell. The whole classroom was filled with heated discussions. The students of the virtual reality were immersed in the cradle of enthusiasm. It was as if they were watching a soccer match finale. Semi and Young-hoon, who were at the front, were of no exception. ¡°Wah, what just happened? That Warlock ranker didn¡¯t even get to do anything, right?¡± Semi looked to answer Young-hoon, who was mumbling under his breath. ¡°Wanna know what happened?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Ian god is God; the one and only religion.¡± At those words from Semi, Young-hoon clenched his fist out of excitement. ¡°Yes, I need to believe!¡± ¡°Right!¡± ¡°Keuu!¡± Semi and Young-hoon were cheering for Ian. ¡°Nice! A continuous kill!¡± It wasn¡¯t just the students of the virtual reality who were excited. The YTBC casters, who were broadcasting live, were also screaming on top of their lungs for Ian. ¨C Yipeee, that was Ian! To take down the world¡¯s highest Warlock ranker just like that!? ¨C That was really great, Ian! Look at those fire arrows over there and the weapon swaps. Makaron wasn¡¯t even given the chance to cast any spell. ¨C Indeed. Since Ian narrowed the distance with his amazing movement, there was nothing that Makaron could do. ¨C Uh, by the way, I feel very bad for Makaron. To be done in like that¡­ could hurt his game. ¨C But, Hines, why didn¡¯t Ian use his weapon right away when the battle began? He didn¡¯t even shoot five arrows in the beginning. ¨C That, well, I¡¯m not so sure about that. However, there surely had to be some reason for that. On the screen, Ian¡¯s battle had been relayed numerous times. As Ian¡¯s turn ended, there was just a short time left for the game to proceed. Semi, who was looking at the screen, opened her mouth once again to talk to Young-hoon. ¡°You-hoon-ah, do you¡­ know that?¡± ¡°What?¡± At the words from Semi, Young-hoon was puzzled. She smiled and spoke again, ¡°Ian god still hasn¡¯t even summoned one of his summons.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± * * * Ian, who took down Makaron, rushed to him to do a close deal. The weapon that he used for it was a spear that he made in the forge. The reason why Ian was swapping weapons was to block the next magic that was cast by Makaron as Hines explained. Of course, he could have used his bow, but he had no intention of taking an attack from Makaron. No matter how great Ian¡¯s archery was, he couldn¡¯t get a satisfying deal, and if he missed, the attack he could receive from Makaron could be devastating. Then why didn¡¯t Ian use the weapon from the very beginning? Not one but there were two reasons for that. The first one was to confuse the enemy camp. ¡®Maybe there are a lot of confused people now.¡¯ For Limlong, who knew about Ian, there was no reason why he would be surprised. He knew everything about Ian¡¯s class and what kind of skills he had. But the rankings were different. Some of them, like Makaron, didn¡¯t really know who Ian was. Even those who knew about the user called Ian, they didn¡¯t know any information about him. Overseas rankers knew that Ian was a top-ranked user in the Korean server, and his class was a Summoner class. The battle Ian just participated in just infused them with a lot more confusion. He shot arrows with his bow. He used a spear and didn¡¯t even use any of his summons. The 2nd reason was to make Makaron careless. Honestly, Ian wasn¡¯t afraid of not narrowing the distance between him and Makaron. Ian first seemed like a long-distance dealer with a bow in hand, and Makaron confirmed that right away, so he loosened his guard and unconsciously allowed the distance between them to be narrowed. That made it easy for Ian to trigger the ¡®Summon Ban¡¯ for him to quickly end the battle. ¡°Hmph¡­¡± With a rugged breath, Ian quickly glanced over at the battlefield. He stared at the soldiers of the Devil camp, who were at a distance from him. ¡®On my next turn, I¡¯m going for this guy.¡¯ The Celestial camp was the first one to start the turn, and it wasn¡¯t difficult to predict the turn. [The ¡®Devil camp¡¯ has been given the turn.] [From the ¡®Devil camp¡¯, it¡¯s the Soldier user Chris¡¯s turn.] The Devil army user called ¡®Chris¡¯ upon his turn. He looked at Ian with a slight astonishment. He was a bit flustered at Ian¡¯s unexpected performance. ¡®Huhu, sure everyone is confused now. He¡¯s worried as to what is supposed to be done.¡¯ Chris was in a dilemma because of that. He couldn¡¯t attack Ian, but even if he did try to attack him, then he wouldn¡¯t be able to turn on the defensive mode. He couldn¡¯t even figure out how Ian defeated Makaron, so he was feeling burdened, and if he decided to take the turn, then he would move right next to Ian as there was just one space between them. ¡®If it is hard for you to choose, shall I help you out?¡¯ Ian, who looked at Chris¡¯s side, opened his mouth with a smile. ¡°Hey, you¡¯re thinking that I¡¯ll take the win buff and skip a turn, right? I haven¡¯t even been in the defensive mode yet.¡± To defeat Ian, who wasn¡¯t in a defensive mode, his enemies had to create a 30 percent stat buff gap. In other words, even if they were in the same rank, there was a buff gap that made too wide of a difference in their stats. Thanks to the advice of Ian, Chris, quickly overcame the dilemma and stepped toward Ian. ¡°Dude, your words, I¡¯ll make you regret saying that.¡± And Ian, who got his desired situation, was just grinning. CH 587 Chapter 587: Soldier¡¯s Counterattack 3 From the general to the High general, there were many senior positions, from officer to generals. And the number that Ian chose, was really the ¡®God¡¯s choice¡¯. By taking advantage of the first power, to have managed to destroy a high-ranking officer without any damage to himself, and creating a situation in which the soldiers were forced to attack him. And the position of Ian was at the point where the 3 devil army soldiers could come to him. With diagonal space between him and the two soldiers, and two squares away from a soldier who had an empty space behind. And the 3 soldiers of the Devil army were bound to attack him. And if they just leave Ian like that, then Ian who received the winning buff would run towards them. But to attack him at an unprotected state, was also a chance that one won¡¯t be able to raise for killing a soldier. And as the first turn passes, the opponent soldier¡¯s turn would return and they won¡¯t be having any other choice but to attack Ian. ¡®If only two of the three would attack me, I will be promoted to an officer without much difficulty.¡¯ Ian had already gotten 1 kill. And with another two more battle wins, he would be promoted to an officer post. Before the first turn and before getting targeted by the opponents, the primary goal of ¡®ranking up¡¯ had to be achieved. And if that first goal was successful, the probability of Ian¡¯s big picture becoming into reality was more than double. ¡®Of course, if the pieces fall into the places just as planned, there is a necessity that I shouldn¡¯t be defeated.¡¯ Kakang-! Ian¡¯s sword and the sword of Chris slashed as they hit one another. And with the same forms, the battle between the two seemed very fierce. No, it was beyond fierce, rather Chris seemed to be the one with the upper hand. Ian was in the field, but Chris seemed to be constantly pushing him. ¡°Screw you!!!¡± With blazing fire emanating from Chris¡¯s sword, his new form shot forward momentarily. ¡®Inferno Descend¡¯, the most powerful attack technique used by the warrior users of the Devildom. And as the name implied, it was Inferno Descend, but the expression of Ian was rather calm. Chris who noticed the expression of Ian¡¯s face bit his lip with concern. ¡®Soon he won¡¯t be looking like that¡­!¡¯ Inferno Descend was a powerful attack skill in the Kailan, with an attack coefficient in the top 1%. And unless the opponent was a knight class, he wouldn¡¯t be able to stop or end the massive blow. Ian was perfectly cornered with no room to escape. But not surprisingly, however, things didn¡¯t go as Chris had thought. Woong-! With a weird resonance in the vicinity of Ian, his new form got evaporated in an instant. ¡°¡­!!¡± A situation which he hadn¡¯t predicted and Chris lost his cool. Swak-! Ian¡¯s swords which had appeared behind Chris went through the back. ¡°Kyaa-!¡± With the blowing wind, the vision of Chris turned to black. Tring-! [The battle has ended.] [The Devil Camp, user ¡®Chris¡¯ has been defeated.] [User ¡®Chris¡¯ has been summoned outside the battle.] Chris¡¯s body turned black. And in front of Ian¡¯s eyes, system messages began to emerge. [The ¡®Celestial Army¡¯ soldier user, ¡®Ian¡¯ has won.] [Ian user¡¯s kill point: 2] [Acquired public value, and accumulated additional 50.] Ian¡¯s smile curled up seeing them. * * * ¡°¡­!!!¡± The YTBC¡¯s studio went silent for a while. And what had broken the silence of the studio was Hines, who was so excited. ¡°Wah. What was that?! How can one show such skill in that single moment?!¡± With a sloppy expression, Hines stared at the screen and jumped out of his seat in excitement. There was a little late in understanding the skill management and control that Ian had just shown when defeating the user named Chris. And everyone in the studio, excluding Hines, were still silent. Lucio, who was curious asked Hines, ¡°Hines, what just happened? Don¡¯t just enjoy it alone, explain it fast.¡± After hearing the request from Lucia, Hines finally came back to sense and began to comment. ¡°It all happened so quickly and I can¡¯t say it for sure¡­¡± Hines gulped and signaled the broadcast PD. And the battle scene was edited and played slowly. Hines spoke again, ¡°Ian just seemed to have used the ¡®Space Distortion¡¯ skill.¡± ¡°Space distortion means¡­¡± Lucia, who thought for a while, opened her eyes and thought of Ian¡¯s distortion skill. ¡°Isn¡¯t the space distortion skill which changes the location of Ian and his familiars?¡± ¡°Right.¡± ¡°Then how did¡­?¡± Hines pointed to the blue light which had appeared and then disappeared on the screen and spoke, ¡°You see this blue light?¡± ¡°Hmm, it is very faint.¡± ¡°That is the summon effect. It is the afterimage of the blue shell which is blurry¡­ It looks like Bbookbbook.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°So I can explain it a bit easily, in that second, Ian had used three skills.¡± And only then did she realize the situation, a late realization sound came out of Lucia¡¯s mouth. ¡°Ah¡­! After summoning his familiar behind the asmodian user, he used the space distortion to swap and then dismissed the summon!¡± Hines shook his head and answered, ¡°That¡¯s it.¡± What Ian had just done a moment back, was very similar to the unique ability of the magicians, which was exclusive for them, ¡®Blink¡¯. At first glance, it looked like Ian used blink to fall right behind Chris. ¡®Inferno Descend isn¡¯t a skill that needs casting time¡­ so how did Ian manage to do it in that short time?¡¯ To summon in Kailan, the coordinates of the place the summon had to land needed to be selected. And with the control that Ian had just shown, he had to have placed a coordinate for the summon. And the Space distortion had to be triggered again at the summon¡¯s coordinates, and then the summon was dismissed right away. That wasn¡¯t such a difficult task, but it wasn¡¯t such a task that could be done in a short time. It was such a short time that others couldn¡¯t even react to until they would be hit by a skill. ¡°It is really creepy.¡± At the mumble of Lucia, Hines could feel goosebumps rise on his body. ¡®Perhaps the overseas user didn¡¯t even realize what Ian had done.¡¯ Unless one knew that Ian had a skill called Space Distortion, they could never grasp the movement. Hines began to broadcast once again in an unsettled voice. * * * The battle was flowing just as Ian had expected. After Chris who was attacked by Ian, the other soldiers immediately began to advance to Ian. And the result according to Ian¡¯s plan¡­ Tring-! [The battle has ended.] [Devil Army soldier user ¡®Srikes¡¯ was defeated.] [User ¡®Srikes¡¯ has been summoned outside the battlefield.] [The Celestial Army user ¡®Ian¡¯ has won.] Ian¡¯s victory ended. [User Ian¡¯s kill point: 3] [Acquired public value, accumulated an additional 50.] The crowd of the Devil side went silent. The atmosphere which wasn¡¯t so serious until Ian had taken the second victory, was completely different. ¡°Haa¡­ those loser bastards, why couldn¡¯t they even go against a normal soldier?¡± ¡°Our side ones were soldiers too.¡± ¡°But even then, we had the buff going on.¡± ¡°Yeah¡­¡± ¡°That too, with the consecutive battles. The medical aide didn¡¯t even heal once.¡± ¡°Ha, this hurts me so much.¡± The Devil camp users didn¡¯t get nervous about Ian¡¯s skills. It was as if Ian had purposely not revealed the kind of power that he uses. Apparently, with the exception of the first questionable battle, the rest were in the heat battles. Then what was the reason why the Devil Camp users feeling settled down? It was because of the system messages which had popped in the succession. Tring-! [The Celestial Army, Soldier ¡®Ian¡¯ has performed 3 kills on the God¡¯s Word Board.] [Conditions have been met.] [User ¡®Ian¡¯ has risen to the position of ¡®Officer¡¯.] The power gap between the soldiers and officers wasn¡¯t so negligible. Ian had raised 3 kills and succeeded in the promotion, and that resulted in much more gap. Their soldiers just broke down because of one ¡®Soldier¡¯. Of course, although the Devil camp was still more advantageous, the rise of the Celestial Faction couldn¡¯t be ignored. And it was natural for the Devil Camp users to burn while seeing this. On the other hand, the celestial users¡¯ momentum had begun to flow. Wah¡­! Sweep all the Asmodians!¡± ¡°This is the attack of the soldiers, you devils!¡± ¡°Nice! Let¡¯s turn the table like this!¡± In the same place where gloomy expression was present, the laughter and smiles were back to the faces of the celestial camp. Even on the mouth of Ian, a small smile could be seen hanging. The first challenge, the most difficult of all the challenges had been crossed successfully. ¡®Nice, one step at once¡­¡¯ And with the next consecutive messages, Ian began to feel much better. [Successfully ¡®promoted¡¯, and vitality restored.] [Achieved ¡®Valiant Soldier¡¯!] [After the battle, the settled public value will be increased by 15%.] For Ian, who had been thirsty for the public value, the message was like a blessing! And that didn¡¯t end there. The next messages were much more important for Ian. [You have been promoted to ¡®Officer¡¯.] [Choose your career title.] [Electable Positions: Aide/ Lance/ Knight.] [Which position would you like to select?] CH 588 Chapter 588: Super Recruit 1 There were three types of positions in the officer rank. First of all, there was the aide, who defends the Generals and plays the role of the last Bulwark. And secondly, there was the Lance who pierced through the enemy loopholes with maneuverability almost to the level of Assault generals. Then lastly came the Knights, who were at the forefront of the battlefield with observable maneuverability and breaking through capacity. And of the three, there was one position that Ian didn¡¯t even consider taking. ¡®Aides are so bad, but they are too defensive.¡¯ And for the current battlefield, the position of the Aide was much more important than that of the Generals. It was because the skills of the aide¡¯s would determine the life or death of the High General. The life or death of the High General was directly connected to the victory or loss of war. In particular, if one could make good use of the synergy with the defensive general who could participate along with the aide in battles, the aide could be a position like a reserve in an adverse situation. But for Ian, who was already in the middle of the enemy camp, the position of aide made no sense. As he was too far away from his own camp, he was nowhere in reach of the generals. That left Ian with just two choices. What position did Ian choose between the lance and the knight? [The celestial army user ¡®Ian¡¯ has chosen the position of ¡®Knight¡¯.] [The combat stats of user ¡®Ian¡¯ will be reset.] Along with the system messages, a golden light spread around Ian. On the battlefield, it was a gorgeous effect that announced the first promotion. Ian¡¯s position was that of the ¡®knight¡¯. Knight Rank: Officer Movable distance: 5 spaces (No backward movement) Located in the back row of the front soldiers, you can move up to five spaces. When you move along a straight path (including the diagonal lines), each move increased the attack by 2%. (If ever turned in any direction during the movement, the attack buff doesn¡¯t apply.) Attacking the enemies with a maximum of 5 space movement in a straight line will deal an additional 15% increase in attack damage. *If with charge you reach the last row of the enemy line, you will be summoned to last row of allies. The Knights and Lances had their own advantages and disadvantages. The lance had a range of eight space movement similar to that of the assault generals, but there were the disadvantages that caused the combat stats to drop when attacked by the enemy. On the other hand, the knight had a fatal flow as to not being able to move backward, but it had the merit of moving five spaces and a range of extra buffs when moved in a straight line. Which was why Ian had to think a lot before making a decision. ¡®Lance is surely more stable, but for me in this situation, the knight is surely better.¡¯ The difference in movement between 8 to 5 wasn¡¯t neglect-able. Especially when in the midst of the enemy, one space was all it needed for occupying a position. But Ian had taken the knight. The reason was that the current position of Ian was perfect for taking advantage of the knight. ¡®Catch one with one turn, and the next turn escape immediately.¡¯ Ian was currently just seven spaces away from the last row of the enemy camp. Which meant that he could move to the end in just two turns. Once he reached the end of the map, he could warp into his friendly camp using the unique characteristics of the knight. If he went to the last row of the enemies, he could be moved to the last row of the allies¡¯ side. Then who was going to be the target that Ian wanted to catch? It was the ¡®aide¡¯ who defended the High General of the Devil Army. The aide position was exactly five spaces from Ian. If the aide didn¡¯t move and held onto the defensive mode for the next turn, then he would be able to make the most out of the knight buff. ¡®2 percent per square plus 15 percent buff. A total of around 25 percent buff.¡¯ Surely, unlike the assault captain¡¯s offensive buffs, only the ¡®attack¡¯ stats were going to be increased, and not the entire combat stat, but even that was very high. And if the win buff was added to the current buff, then surely an uncanny power could be exerted. Considering that the equipment of Ian was at least twice as good as the other users, the aide could be cut. ¡°The variable is the Devil Army¡¯s defense captain¡­¡± Ian¡¯s eyes went to the right side of the Devil Camp which had the ¡®defense captain¡¯ standing. And the right side was the route that Ian had taken to attack the enemy line. And the defense captain was slightly ahead. As the captain had come forward, the soldiers would be able to move much more confidently. ¡®In the next turn, I need to move two spaces forward. I need to do that.¡¯ If the defense captain came to another two steps forward, then Ian could attack the aide with any interruptions. And Ian was sure that he would. The general always guarded the two aides but it wasn¡¯t going to be dangerous, it was natural for the defense captains to be more aggressive at the later part of the game. ¡®Nice, the operation is perfect¡­!¡¯ With shining eyes, Ian looked at the enemies. And in the meantime, the turns of both camps began to pass. [The battle is over.] [The ¡®Devil¡¯ army has won!] [Soldier of the ¡®Celestial¡¯ army has been summoned outside the battlefield.] [The ¡®Devil¡¯ army has won!] [The ¡®Celestial¡¯ army has won!] Each time the turn passed, the two sides of the factions began to disappear one after the other. Ian looked at them and analyzed the interesting movements of all the users who were playing in there. ¡®Phew, what kind of confidence is that jerk having?¡¯ ¡®Oho? That person looks like he is using the head well?¡¯ Ian was enjoying the time even while he was waiting for his next turn to come. In the meantime, some guy who wanted to be out of the game as soon as possible attacked Ian. [The Devil Army lance user ¡®Wang Choi¡¯ has attacked the knight user ¡®Ian¡¯ of Celestial Camp.] [The battle between ¡®Wang Choi¡¯ and ¡®Ian¡¯ will begin.] ¡®Are you alright?!¡¯ In the case of the lance squads, the stats got reduced during the first strike. Of course, the win buff didn¡¯t go away, so the loss won¡¯t result to a fall in the original stat, but it still was going to be weaker than the other ones of the ¡®Officer¡¯ position. Without realizing, the smile of Ian went till his ears. ¡®Keu, to attack me with the lance, are you that confident in your skills?¡¯ Of course, he wasn¡¯t vigilant. And the users on the battlefield were all the rankers of the world. And Ian really was doing his best when dealing with them. And was turning it into a Hellish experience for the Opponent. * * * Wang Choi was ranked among the top ten players in the Knight User class of China¡¯s Kwangdong region. In terms of all the combined rankings, the ranking would be around 50th. Surely, that was a very good enough level, but that wasn¡¯t sufficient for the current situation. Of the whole world, just 48 people had been chosen for the battlefield. Wang Choi too knew that. ¡®This will be the perfect opportunity to raise my rank further.¡¯ Wang Choi was able to be there because of the incredible ¡®luck¡¯. It was because the commander NPC of the Devil Warrior¡¯s Village was related to a hidden class related to Wang Choi. And as a result, Wang Choi was able to pass through the Brave Path and gained the best equipment as a bonus. And such elements created the synergies allowing Wang Choi who was in the 50th server ranking to be in the battle. ¡®Huhu, surely the game is fun.¡¯ In the first turn, Wang Choi had already defeated two soldiers of the Celestial Army. He made the most of the 8 space movement and went into the side of the Celestial Army. And as one soldier attacked him, he killed him off without much difficulty, and the momentum he created wasn¡¯t seeming like it would stop. ¡®Keu, the attacks of soldiers, they can¡¯t even scratch my armor!¡¯ No matter how great it was, he could pierce any further into the enemy camp. No matter how great his kills were, he could just enter the region where the defense General stands. And the eyes of Wang Choi naturally fell back to the devil camps side. And there was Ian, who was running first with the kills. The sloppy back of Ian, who had managed to get 3 kills and dig deeper into the Devil Army. But for Wang Choi, whose aim was just to get the title of ¡®No.1 kills¡¯, Ian was nothing more than an eyesore. ¡®Three kills for soldiers. I¡¯ve been very lucky till now my friend.¡¯ Ian was too coveted for Wang Choi. All of the merits for the knights would be triggered when attacking, so if Wang Choi took the first strike, then Ian would have to face the enemy without any buffs. Even if it was Ian, there weren¡¯t any other alternatives. The defense captain had to stand up to the enemy camp, and the remaining of them were all in defensive mode. He had to go in and then go out. ¡®Well, surely killed 3 soldiers and got kills. Now be ready for a rich class advancement!¡¯ Wang Choi, who was under the impression that he already defeated Ian and promoted himself to the ¡®Assault Captain¡¯, was drawing a picture in his mind. [The battle between ¡®Wang Choi¡¯ and ¡®Ian¡¯ will begin.] Wang Choi provoked Ian as soon as the battle began. ¡°Why don¡¯t you stop looking tough and just give up, my friend?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°If you were a soldier you must have taken the ¡®Combat soldier¡¯ position, however, those skills and equipment of yours don¡¯t work on me.¡± Listening to Wang Choi¡¯s provocation, Ian scratched his neck and responded, ¡°Hmm, I¡¯m a ¡®new recruit¡¯ still.¡± At those words from Ian, Wang Choi looked even more confident. ¡°Ah, you are a recruit? That is too crappy.¡± Wang Choi clenched his fist and was ready to rush. Seeing that Ian smiled sneakily and added another word, ¡°But you should be wary.¡± ¡°Of what?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not just a new recruit¡­¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°I am ¡®Super Recruit¡¯.¡± Seeing the face of Wang Choi in confusion, Ian made a broad smile. CH 589 In general, the Knight class, when doing PVP, was a class that was above average. Its dealing ability was lower than the other classes, but its tanking ability was way stronger compared to other classes. The Knight class had a harsh defense with vitality and recovery. If one could continuously put a deal using a weapon along with his strong points, the opponent would eventually get tired and lose their vitality. ¡®And like now, surely the equipment performance difference is a lot¡­ but a Warrior class can never beat a Knight.¡¯ Seeing Ian rushing toward him, Wang Choi smiled wickedly. Wang Choi was already convinced that Ian was a ¡®Warrior¡¯ class user. He saw the skills that Ian showed in the previous battle and decided for himself. ¡®His physical is great, but if his attack can¡¯t pierce my defense, no matter how great his physical is, it is going to be pointless.¡¯ Wang Choi guessed that Ian¡¯s sword tier was at least two tiers below his armor. If that really was Ian¡¯s weapon¡¯s level, then the deal that it could do would be like the footprints of an ant. ¡°Hmph!¡± While gathering energy, Wang Choi was ready to face Ian. However, Wang Choi¡¯s eyes widened all of a sudden. ¡°¡­!¡± Ian, who was rushing in, suddenly had a shield in his hand. ¡®What? Does a Warrior class have a shield?¡¯ Wang Choi couldn¡¯t even think anymore. Ian immediately began hitting Wang Choi with his sword and shield. Kang- Kakang-! Ian kept giving Wang Choi a beating. ¡®How dare this guy use a shield when going against a Knight class?¡¯ In Kailan, the Knight class¡¯ role in PVP was often referred to as ¡®Shields¡¯. In most cases, a user¡¯s ability to control a shield would determine the outcome of the battle. It was a fight about who could absorb more damage. Ian took out a shield and was taunting the enemy to come for a war of shields. Wang Choi couldn¡¯t understand Ian¡¯s ¡®reckless choice¡¯ no matter how hard he thought about it. ¡®Do you really think you have a better shield than me?¡¯ Wang Choi focused on Ian¡¯s movements. He needed to kill Ian¡¯s confidence by showing him an overwhelming shield work. But as the battle began, a much more amazing sight began to unfold. Papang-! Whenever the form of Ian and Wang Choi moved, two lines of waves came out from their shields. That happened because of the bursting effect that could be achieved by shielding more than 90% of the absorption. A sight that could only be seen by looking at a top PVP Knight class. The others, who were watching the battle, had no choice but to doubt their eyes. ¡®What? Wasn¡¯t he a warrior class? What the hell is he?¡¯ ¡®No other class could do such shield work!¡¯ The control of Ian and Wang Choi¡¯s shield was very close. However, there was one trap. Wang Choi was a Knight class, and Ian was a Summoner class. For the Knight class, there was a level of control correction when using the shield blocking. Therefore, Ian was showing a similar level of absorption rate The tight balance slowly began to tilt a little to one side. Kkakang-! With a disturbing hitting sound, Ian¡¯s sword scratched Wang Choi¡¯s shield. And the next moment¡­ Puck-! A dull sound different from the other sound that rang a while ago reverberated throughout the battlefield. ¡°Kuah-!¡± Ian brushed Wang Choi¡¯s shield. Ian then thrust his sword through Wang Choi¡¯s shield and plunged it into Wang Choi¡¯s abdomen after figuring out the texture of the shield. Wang Choi, who confirmed that his vitality had dropped, had no choice but to doubt his eyes. ¡°What the¡­!?¡± With a deadly blow, even if it was such an attack, the level of vitality that got cut off was high. ¡®How can I¡­ take 5 percent of damage with one strike?¡¯ 5 percent vitality might not seem that much at first glance. But the problem was that Wang Choi was a Knight class user, which meant that it would be twice more for other classes. Also, the Knight class was the class with the highest defense. In addition, Wang Choi¡¯s equipment was at least one to two tiers higher than other users. In conclusion, the damage that Wang Choi had received was twice more than what he had expected. ¡°Huhu.¡± After giving him a fatal strike, Ian jumped back and looked at Wang Choi. Of course, Ian didn¡¯t forget to strike Wang Choi¡¯s mentality. ¡°Are you really going to be beaten by a recruit?¡± ¡°This bastard¡­!¡± Wang Choi, who felt the rage burn in him, ran toward Ian like a bison. Ian saw that and thought to himself. ¡®How did you get 2 kills with such low-level skills¡­ This is one overconfident one.¡¯ Actually, he didn¡¯t see it, but Ian was a bit surprised by the airborne attack. There were 2 reasons for it. First, the physical disparity of Wang Choi was surprising. Of course, it wasn¡¯t that Wang Choi¡¯s physical was bad. Though it might be unfair, he was better than Herz when it came to physical. The problem was that it wasn¡¯t a general battlefield. Only 50 people had been selected from the whole world, so it was like the Battle with the Stars. For someone who had 2 kills, Wang Choi¡¯s skills were extremely lacking. Second, Ian was surprised by Wang Choi¡¯s defense and offense, which exceeded his expectations. In short, he was surprised by Wang Choi¡¯s ¡®weapons¡¯. ¡®Did he did it like me? How did he even get to hold such high tiered weapons?¡¯ Ian wasn¡¯t sure about the weapons¡¯ options since he hadn¡¯t seen it yet, but Wang Choi¡¯s items were better than what Ian had. Of course, they were weaker than the ¡®Dragon Warlord Orb¡¯, which was in Ian¡¯s inventory, but they were superior compared to what Ian had. While Ian was thinking about that, Wang Choi¡¯s sword had begun to narrow the distance between them once again. However, Ian was still very relaxed. ¡®He still hasn¡¯t understood the situation¡­ stop hitting a hundred.¡¯ And soon, Wang Choi¡¯s sword moved. But he lost his target because he lost his balance. Wang Choi was trying to hold his anxiety back as hard as he could. ¡°¡­!¡± After making Wang Choi flustered, Ian¡¯s form changed. Pung-! A soft explosion was triggered. As the sound resonated, Wang Choi¡¯s form emerged into the air. Wang Choi was hit by a scarf stroke. ¡°Uh ah¡­!¡± The shock launched Wang Choi into the air, and that made him scream his lungs out. Pu-Puck-! Wang Choi landed with his back faced to the ground, and Ian indiscriminately scrambled him. [Fatal Damage was done to the Devil Army user Lance ¡®Wang Choi¡¯!] [Fatal Damage was done to the Devil Army user Lance ¡®Wang Choi¡¯!] Wang Choi was confused. But it didn¡¯t end there. Ian¡¯s sword was stuck on Wang Choi¡¯s back. Puck-! At that moment¡­ The system messages, which were hard to believe, came into Wang Choi¡¯s eyes. [Deadly damage was done in a defenseless state.] [The durability of the ¡®Marion Plate Armor¡¯ dropped by 30%.] [The ¡®Marion Plate Armor¡¯ has been ruptured.] [The defense of the ¡®Marion Plate Armor¡¯ has been reduced by 63%.] ¡°Keuk¡­!¡± After being indiscriminately attacked by Ian, Wang Choi was thrown and rolled down on the floor. Although he still had more than half of his vitality, Wang Choi had already lost a lot of vitality. ¡®My¡­ my armor¡­!¡¯ The Marion Plate Armor was a small item that made a difference in the Brave Canyon. The fact that it had been ruptured meant that it wasn¡¯t functioning. It wasn¡¯t impossible to have it repaired, but it was going to be tough to get it back to its original form. In general, once an item was ruptured, the performance of the item would be reduced by around 50%. Instead of using the Marion Plate Armor, it was better to just wear any ¡®combatant¡¯ level armor. ¡°This¡­ this¡­!¡± Wang Choi was screaming while banging his fists; complex emotions rushed in him. However, Ian didn¡¯t give enough time for Wang Choi to mourn. ¡°Kay, that was pretty hard¡­ now go and rest.¡± With an intense force, Ian ran toward Wang Choi. Of course, Wang Choi still fought back, but his movements were different than before. His armor was ruptured, and he didn¡¯t have the right mentality to continue fighting. His former bashful self wasn¡¯t there anymore. Puck- Puck-! Even though he was still holding on to his shield, Wang Choi couldn¡¯t block any of Ian¡¯s incoming attacks. Ian¡¯s blue shield began to spread like it did in the beginning. Paang-! Around 10 minutes had passed. [The Devil Army, lance user¡¯s ¡®Wang Choi¡¯ vitality has been exhausted.] [The knight ¡®Ian¡¯ of the Celestial army has won.] [Wang Choi has been summoned outside of the battlefield.] The message that came at the end appeared in front of all the users on the battlefield. Tring-! And in front of Ian came the most satisfying messages. [You have won over the defense.] [Current Kill Point: 4] [You have achieved 4 kills in a row.] [You¡¯ve acquired an additional 150 points of public value.] CH 590 Ian¡¯s presence gradually grew on the battlefield. The first Soldier to ever kill an Officer; a Soldier whom nobody cared about. After raising 3 kills and being promoted to an Officer, he had become a dangerous man. And again, as Ian¡¯s turn came, everyone¡¯s attention was on him. It was because Ian¡¯s moves always proved to be more than what they had been expecting. They were very curious. In fact, Ian¡¯s interest began to grow as he chose the Knight position. An ¡®advanced¡¯ position that only a Knight could do. Ian, who was at the starting point of the enemy camp, chose to be a Knight, and he was now willing to go further into the enemy camp. ¡°Kay, the super recruit¡¯s turn will come again.¡± ¡°How will he move again?¡± ¡°How will he move, huh? He¡¯ll move further to the side and try to catch the remaining Soldiers first. The Soldiers are the best choice, right?¡± ¡°However, even if I was in his place, I¡¯ll target the Soldiers first. I¡¯ll kill two more and then become a General.¡± ¡°Aye, not hard?¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°There is the Defense General on that side. No matter how great that guy is, he won¡¯t try to deal with that.¡± The opinion of the crowd was divided. No matter how he moved, the situation was dangerous for Ian. Most of the opinions came down to one though. One of the Soldiers on the outermost side was in the Defense Generals¡¯ range. ¡°Will he move there, eventually?¡± ¡°I think so. He¡¯ll probably try to get a Soldier and then wait for the Celestial users¡¯ support.¡± But right then, when Ian¡¯s turn came¡­ [The battle is over.] [It is now the Celestial Army¡¯s Knight user ¡®Ian¡¯s ¡® turn.] Everyone was surprised. ¡°¡­!¡± As soon as Ian¡¯s turn came, Ian walked forward without any hesitation. ¡°That crazy bastard. What is he doing?¡± Ian¡¯s moves were getting closer and closer to the ¡®High General¡¯. All the Devil users were holding onto their breath. While watching Ian¡¯s movements, even the Celestial camp¡¯s side became anxious. Ian was walking forward calmly. [Moved one space forward.] [Attack is increased by 2% because of the ¡®Knight Sprint¡¯.] [Move ahead one space.] [The ¡®Knight Sprint¡¯ effect has been applied¡­] Everyone on the battlefield knew what the ¡®Knight Sprintt¡¯ was. And everyone knew that Ian had to attack the ¡®Aide¡¯, who was five squares away from him, which was the maximum spaces that he could take. However, all of the users there knew that that would be suicide. Ian had already fought four battles, so the others thought that going on consecutive battles might have taken a toll on him and might affect his winning chances against an Aide. Of course, with the promotion, Ian had recovered most of the vitality he lost, and in his previous battle with Wang Choi, he didn¡¯t even lose a speck of his vitality, but the others didn¡¯t know that. Ian was the only one who saw the system message saying that his vitality had been restored. Chuk-! While standing in front of the Medical Aide of the Devil camp, Ian pulled out his sword. [Celestial camp, Knight ¡®Ian¡¯ attacks the Devil camp Medical Aide ¡®Aremis¡¯.] [The battle between Ian and Aremis starts now.] The current battle was now turning into a good turning point for the God¡¯s Piece Board battlefield. * * * Most of the users would have already noticed that, but Ian had the most complicated numbers of fights. On the surface, it might look like a simple gunfight, but Ian used his head very hard to determine his battles¡¯ outcome. ¡®In this battle, I need to win as overwhelmingly as possible.¡¯ Ian never intended to take down the Aide. Not only did he have a lot of hidden card up his sleeve, he also had a 25 percent attack boost due to the ¡®Knight Sprint¡¯ effect and the win buff. Ian¡¯s only problem was what he would do after he defeated the Aide. Once Ian defeated the Medical Aide, he would be attacked by the High General, who was standing two spaces away from them. Then, was Ian in the impression that he could win against a High General? ¡®It isn¡¯t going to be like that, and it is dangerous.¡¯ Ian wasn¡¯t ready yet to take on the High General. No matter how many summons he brought out, it still wasn¡¯t going to be easy to take him down even with the win buff. Ian¡¯s plan was to prevent the High General from ¡®attacking him¡¯. * * * Na Ji-chan, who was watching the battle, had his mouth hanging without even realizing it. After he realized Ian¡¯s plan, he was creeped out. ¡®How can that crazy guy think of something like that?¡¯ When Ian moved toward the Medical Aide, even Na Ji-chan doubted his eyes. Of course, just like the other users, he was under the impression that Ian would be able to face the Advisor/General. Na Ji-chan was well aware of the performance of the items that Ian was equipped with and about the power that Ian possessed. And he guessed that it wouldn¡¯t be hard for Ian to beat a Medical Aide. The reason why Na Ji-chan was shocked was that he thought Ian didn¡¯t consider the General, who was next to the Aide. Surely the General was going to attack the next turn, and it would look like Ian made a very basic mistake. But when he thought hard about it, it seemed like everything was going according to Ian¡¯s calculations. ¡®One, two, three¡­ exactly ten squares. Ian might¡¯ve realized that and moved there¡­!¡¯ Behind Ian, the Assault Captain of the Celestial camp was there. The Assault Captain wasn¡¯t near Ian, but the Assault Captain stood exactly ten spaces diagonally away from Ian. In that very situation, if Ian managed to defeat the Medical Aide and the High General defeated Ian, then the General would be in the range of the Celestial camp¡¯s Assault Captain. Ian was going to be killed, but the General would then stand on the spot where Ian was. In addition, the High General, who would stand there, wouldn¡¯t have any Aide to back him up. It was natural for Ian to kill the Medical Aide on the right, so the High General would move away from the left Aide since he would take three spaces. If the High General decided to attack Ian, he must make sure that he would be able to win with little damage. And if Ian didn¡¯t suffer that much damage, then the Assault Captain of the Celestial camp would surely take advantage of that. ¡®No, does this guy have an alternate brain structure? Can someone really think of such things when they¡¯re on the battlefield?¡¯ Na Ji-chan was sure that the High General wasn¡¯t going to attack Ian. Not just the High General but any other positions would be in the same situation. His move was going to be very conservative since he was the ¡®High General¡¯, and if he was defeated in the battle, it would be over for them. Na Ji-chan could now see Ian¡¯s next moves after he thought hard about it. ¡®Ha, this crazy guy is probably thinking about taking down the Aide then warping to the other side.¡¯ The only one close to the aide was the Defense Captain. And Ian, who would have his turn next, was going to exit the enemy camp. He could use the special ability of the Knight and step into the last space of the enemy camp and be warped to the Celestial camp side. ¡°Turned around. He really turned it around¡­!¡± Na Ji-chan was unknowingly spitting out words. Kim Ji-yeon, who was next to him, nodded and sympathized with him. ¡°Surely, Ian seems crazy.¡± Listening to Kim Ji-yeon, Na Ji-chan asked, ¡°Miss Kim, do you understand what Ian is trying to do?¡± Kim Ji-yeon¡¯s understanding of the game was the lowest in the entire planning team. It sounded very unrealistic that she was able to understand Ian¡¯s play. But as soon as he heard her words, Na Ji-chan had no choice but to laugh. ¡°Absolutely. Do you think I¡¯m some kind of idiot?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Ian is about to kill himself along with the aide.¡± ¡°Hm¡­?¡± ¡°Since the Knight can only move forward, he won¡¯t be able to run away. So he¡¯s trying to get rid of the Aide and then die patriotically. Even with one Aide being taken down, he still has twice the power than them.¡± ¡°Ha¡­ Haha¡­ Kim, you have grown a lot, aren¡¯t you?¡± Kim Ji-yeon was thinking a lot of things when she expressed her thoughts so confidently. And her predictions were plausible enough. It surely was a high-level analysis that was beyond her usual level. But Na Ji-chan knew that it wasn¡¯t like Ian to do that. Ian was never going to be the one to sacrifice himself for the victory of the army. Na Ji-chan laughed and opened up to Kim Ji-yeon. ¡°Kay, Miss Kim.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Then should we¡­ have a bet?¡± ¡°What bet?¡± ¡°Bet? Team leader, I want to do it too!¡± ¡°Me too.¡± Upon hearing Na Ji-chan spoke the word ¡®bet¡¯, all the members of the planning team gathered together. For the planning team members who were tired of the simple labor of monitoring, the word ¡®bet¡¯ was like beer. As the people gathered, Na Ji-chan looked at the screen and opened his mouth again. ¡°In this situation, what would Ian do?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°what?¡± Na Ji-chan continued to speak as the thought of doing that bewildered the team members. ¡°Miss Kim over here just said that Ian would kill himself along with the Aide.¡± ¡°I heard that too. It was a bit persuasive.¡± ¡°Right.¡± After a momentary silence, Na Ji-chan spoke again. ¡°But I on the other hand, have a different opinion.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± The whole team became interested as to what Na Ji-chan would say. Na Ji-chan yawned. He then smiled and said, ¡°Ian will defeat the Aide and will come out unscathed. He will then be promoted to a General in the next turn or so.¡± * * * The field was quiet. No, there was an overwhelmingly scary silence. And the reason was the system messages which had popped up in front of the users¡¯ eyes. [The vitality of the Medical Aide of the Devil Army ¡®Aremis¡¯ has been exhausted.] [The Knight user ¡®Ian¡¯ has won.] [Aremis user has been summoned outside of the battlefield.] Destroying the expectations of everyone, Ian had won. No, it was beyond everyone¡¯s expectations. It was a ridiculous sight to see. ¡°What¡­ what just happened?¡± ¡°Is he a bug user?¡± ¡°What is this? This is scary.¡± With just three minutes after the battle had begun, it took Ian just 3 minutes to kill the Asmodian user Aremis. A duration of 3 minutes felt very short for the audience. Hiing-! In the deep silence, where even the sound of a needle could be heard, a creepy sound of a horse that was screaming rang throughout the battlefield. A summon with dark wings landed lightly on the ground. Tat-! Someone then jumped into the air. ¡°Summon dismiss.¡± All the shadows standing around Ian were sucked into his hand. From a ferocious wolf to a dragon with huge wings, various summons could be seen. When the last summon got sucked in, the battlefield became silent again. And in that place, Ian¡¯s voice rang. He was talking to the High General of the Devil camp. ¡°Take one step forward.¡± Ian wore a confident smile and said, ¡°This game will soon come to an end.¡± CH 591 While everyone was breathing, the silence flowed again. The words that Ian had said, everyone had realized what they meant. Ian who jumped into the middle of the Devil Army was a situation that no one would be able to divert their eyes from. Each of the users in there were creeped out while looking at Ian, and curiosity was filled in their minds to see the situation progress. Although the Devil Camp was still in an advantageous situation, it looked like it was just a matter of time before Ian could break off the momentum. Even the stormy scene that Ian had shown was huge enough to overwhelm the rankers of the world. Surely Ian¡¯s skills were great, but it was so overwhelming that the atmosphere had changed. As the eyes of Ian met with the High General, a little more time had passed. And at that time. The silence was broken with a heavy voice. And that was the voice of the High General of the Devil Camp. The No.1 ranking Warrior class user Kai of the US server, the High General of the Devil Camp. He opened his mouth very slowly. ¡°You look like a friend who uses his head.¡± The voice of Kai was very calm. And in his voice, the undeniable admiration could be heard. The things that Ian had shown, he was feeling excited with them. And his admiration was only for the fights that Ian had done, and not for the battle ability of Ian¡¯s. On the contrary, Kai who was witnessing the true power of Ian was getting a boost. And Kai wasn¡¯t looking down on Ian or something. It was just related to the disposition of the gameplay. ¡°Head huh¡­ I¡¯m a bit upset about it being expressed like that. It¡¯s not head, it is called ¡®strategy¡¯ my friend.¡± Seeing Ian accept his words with a smile, Kai too smiled. And again spoke to him, ¡°I feel like fighting you right away, but¡­¡± Kai¡¯s gaze went back to the battlefield from Ian. And in the place he was looking at was the assault captain of the Celestial Camp. Kai¡¯s mouth opened again, ¡°I don¡¯t think that friend will stay still.¡± ¡°Huhu.¡± Ian smiled really pleased. There was no way Ian could feel bad. He right away felt like a ¡®God¡¯ who was controlling the battlefield. The battlefield was called as the ¡®God¡¯s Word Board¡¯ and Ian was currently controlling them. All the pieces on the board were moving according to the plan he had woven. Kai¡¯s words hadn¡¯t even ended. ¡°And honestly, I feel rather good after a long time.¡± At the unexpected words from Kai, Ian¡¯s face showed interest. ¡°Why so?¡± Kai smiled and replied to him, ¡°I don¡¯t see much sense in attacking and trying to win over you.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°The High General Kai has won over Knight Ian¡­ it¡¯s not that I didn¡¯t win over you.¡± * * * The High General Kai, a famous user in the US server whom everyone knew. He was also at the topmost position in the warrior class rankings with an overwhelming lead, and he was the best player in the field. He loved PVP so much, he had the nickname of ¡®fighting dog¡¯. So the users of the US server knew well how serious the words of Kai were. And the other servers could think of it as just a buff. And Ian too could see the seriousness in his eyes. ¡®Well, I¡¯m meeting all the unusual guys in here.¡¯ When the words of Kai are relayed to self, even with the win buff, there was no way that Ian would be able to fight with him. And that kind of thought process was something that Ian too didn¡¯t understand. The in-game buffs, the position and the movement¡¯s, Ian thought that they were all the part of a user¡¯s skills. Unless one was using a bug, Ian thought that ¡®winner always win¡¯. But apart from that, the character of Kai was very interesting for him. Surely he had become the High-General of the Devil camp, which meant that he had sufficient skills. ¡®Why am I looking forward to seeing the kind of skills that he has?¡¯ In fact, Ian was going to make a situation that Kai was hoping for. Face to face, with the exact same buff. Even if Kai wasn¡¯t wanting it, he was still going to create the situation. ¡®The High-General buff is 100 percent, and the generals buff is 70 percent¡­¡¯ Anyway, the promotion of a general had a limit. In general, no matter how many kills were done in a general¡¯s position, one couldn¡¯t become a High-General. But on the battlefield, there was an additional buff concept called ¡®Win buff¡¯. ¡®And if I have the general buff along with the win buff, I can fight with the similar stats buff.¡¯ Ian thought about this and that and looked at the battlefield. The battlefield which was initially looking favorable for the Devil Army was now balanced and looking fierce. After a while. [The battle is over.] [Celestial Army Knight user ¡®Ian¡¯ turn.] The turn of Ian had come, and he moved again without any hesitation. And for that turn, he couldn¡¯t do anything other than going straight and warp to the friendly side. [Moved one space ahead.] [The ¡®Knight¡¯s Sprint¡¯ effect has been applied, and increasing the attack by 2%.] [Moved one space ahead.] [The ¡®Knight¡¯s Sprint¡¯ effect has been¡­] Ian was walking by the Medical aide of the Devil camp, and when he was reaching the last space. The very moment. ¡°¡­!¡± Ian¡¯s eyes narrowed suddenly. An unexpected message had come in front of his eyes. [You have stepped on the last space of the Devil Army.] [Successfully broke through the Devil Army!] [The unique ability of ¡®Knight¡¯, the ¡®Golden reverberation¡¯ effect has been activated.] [Warp to the rear of the Celestial Army.] [All the vitality lost will be restored.] [All the stamina consumed will be restored.] In the God¡¯s Word Board, the stamina meant the movable distance. In other words, the effect of the ¡®Golden reverberation¡¯ being triggered, the turn of Ian was back. And Ian who read the system messages twice had no choice but to call in. ¡®Keu, it is working because I worked hard.¡¯ Wheeing-! With a low resonance, the golden waves rose around Ian. Chuck-! At the very same time, Ian had been moved to the Celestial camp side. And exactly three faces ahead of him, a familiar face had caught the attention of Ian¡¯s. ¡°Yo, it has been so long.¡± Spoke Ian as he looked at the eyes of the man who was standing in front. However, the expression of the man who met the eyes of Ian, wasn¡¯t as satisfied as he looked at the face of Ian. ¡°Ha¡­ it is always a bad thing with you.¡± The Devil camp¡¯s knight was a Korean Server Devildom ranker. The face of ¡®Irahan¡¯, was distorted. * * * Irahan had the skills to do much more than Ian. But the difference between buff stats was high, and Ian wasn¡¯t a weak opponent. Even with the same knight rank, Ian had the buff along with the ¡®Knight¡¯s Sprint¡¯ buff. And the buff too was beyond the limit due to the ¡®Golden reverberation¡¯ which he had just obtained. Going five spaces ahead was the sprint, but as the stamina was placed back, he had eight spaces to move. And the attack that would have risen with the sprint would be around 31 percent buff. Irahan wouldn¡¯t even be able to touch the collar of Ian, he would probably die in an instant. With the fire-throwing arrow of Ian¡¯s, he turned into a burnt barbecue. With the buff that Ian would get, the arrows of Ian were like nuclear bombs. [The Devil Army Knight, ¡®Irahan¡¯ vitality has been exhausted.] [The knight user ¡®Ian¡¯ has won.] [User ¡®Irahan¡¯ has been summoned outside the battle.] And as the activities of Ian had continued, and the morale of the Celestial army was high. ¡°Wah!¡± ¡°That was crazy, awesome!¡± Starting with the very least soldier, and getting a ridiculous six kills in three turns. And by that time, the overseas user had started shouting for Ian God. ¨C Jesus, Ian God! ¨C Magician. Ian God!! The word ¡®Ian God¡¯ which had belonged to the Korean Server was spreading quickly among the netizens of the whole world for the Celestial camp. The word ¡®Ian God¡¯ could be heard without any exception on almost all the channels which were watching the ¡®God¡¯s Word Board¡¯. ¨C Which country is Ian God from? ¨C Don¡¯t know, maybe a Korean server user? ¨C Keu, surely Kailan¡¯s start country. ¨C Dammit! I¡¯ll use You-cast from today. I¡¯ll collect the battle of Ian God and see them until I go mad! After a while¡­ The heat had faded away temporarily. No, it would be right to say that they were holding their breath rather than saying they were losing interest. Ian raised a 3 kill again, and all the users were aware that he was going for a promotion of rank once again. System messages started to come once again. Tring-! [The Knight user ¡®Ian¡¯, added 3 kills to the battlefield.] [The conditions have been met.] [The position of user ¡®Ian¡¯ rises to ¡®General¡¯.] Ian who was pleased to see the messages smiled and the others on the battlefield were waiting to see his choice. But unlikely his choice, when he was promoted to the officer. The users were able to predict the position that Ian was most likely going to choose. Ian¡¯s tendency to combat had been revealed, and everyone knew what position would be able to carry his tendency. [You have been promoted to a ¡®General¡¯.] [Choose the career title.] [Selectable positions: Assault Captain/ Defense Captain. Which position would you like to choose?] And the system messages come onto the battlefield again. And after a while. Once again the choice of Ian was beyond the understanding of everyone. [The knight user ¡®Ian¡¯ of the Celestial Army has gained the position of ¡®Assault Captain¡¯.] [The combat stats of User Ian will be reset.] CH 592 As the assault captain, Ian began to fly. Flashes on the east, flashes on the west. All towards the prey on the battlefield started to run crazily. And as Ian took the lead on the battlefield, there was no one other than the High General who had more buff than Ian. Ian¡¯s movements were relentless. [Assault captain user ¡®Ian¡¯ won.] [Assault captain user ¡®Ian¡¯ won.] Three more turns had passed later, and Ian had gotten 2 more kills. It was very small when compared to the first 3 turns when he managed to raise 6 kills, but it was tremendous considering that he was in the middle of the battlefield. Overtime, only the top tier ones remain, and most of them would move only in the range of the defensive captain. Thus, the kills that Ian had made till then¡­ [Rank 1? Celestial Assault Captain Ian: 8 Kills] [Rank 2? Devil High General Kai: 6 Kills] [Rank 3? Devil Assault Captain Limlong: 4 kills] [Rank 3? Celestial High General Fredrick: 2 Kills] The 8 kills was a huge figure. ¡°That crazy dude¡­ does it make sense to have 8 kills on this battlefield?¡± ¡°Wow. He did all that by himself.¡± ¡°Yeah. So far there have been 15 kill points on the celestial camp, and 8 of them were handled by him¡­¡± ¡°Excluding the 2 kills of the High General Fredric, who else got the other 5 kills?¡± ¡°The defensive General called as KanjiHoonie had gotten 1. And the assault captain who just died seemed to have gotten 2 kills¡­ the other 2 kills were taken by the officers.¡± ¡°Ha, is this a record that can be broken?¡± ¡°Very hard. That crazy one, I think that he¡¯ll do another 2 kills in the near future.¡± ¡°Oh my, two more are going to come?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°Ha¡­ to see that happen, he started as a soldier.¡± ¡°Goosebumps.¡± Outside the battlefield, the words ¡®Ian¡¯ and ¡®Crazy¡¯ were repeated. Because of the lack of specs, the rankers who weren¡¯t able to participate in the battle were able to watch the play. By watching without knowing the users on the battlefield, then what they were talking about could be the ¡®massacre of the rankers¡¯. But everyone of them were busy admiring the play of Ian! [Celestial camp, medical aide user ¡®Loika¡¯ vitality has been exhausted.] [The assault captain user ¡®Limlong¡¯ of Devil camp has won.] [User Loika has been summoned outside the battlefield.] The system messages which took away the rise of the Celestial camp had echoed in the battlefield. * * * When watching a football game, people often have the habit of screaming and grunting. ¡®Ah. Why wasn¡¯t he able to see the side?¡¯ ¡®If he just held on a little more then there would have been an opening. Ah, this is disgusting.¡¯ ¡®That was an empty spot. Pass it.¡¯ And just the above grumbles. It was because the people knew just how well the players they are supporting moved. And if they could actually be placed in the field, the viewer would realize just how difficult it is to actually see how wide the field was. It was never easy to see with so many players rushing in and out of sight. And it was the same with the field of ¡®God¡¯s Piece Board¡¯. Of course, as there was a turn-based movement, there was much more time to think, rather than a football field. But on the other hand, the variables and cases that could change were much higher. Each unit had a different distance, and there were many different types of buffs. And while keeping all those in mind, it wasn¡¯t an easy task to fight. But just like the crowd watching the football game, the viewers cheering the army were forced to scream. The defensive side of the Celestial camp was very painful to look at. [Ha, they were doing good, what is with them now?] [Why would you open the path and give the kill to Limlong?] [Wah, sh*t. A development I never thought of.] [It is such a huge deal. It isn¡¯t a complete downside but if the medical aide just dies at this point then¡­] In the ¡®God¡¯s Board Battlefield¡¯ the only unit that allowed the recovery was the medical aides. The role of the medical aides was therefore very important in giving at least two heals. Only with the presence of the medical aide, the successive survival of the battle could happen. At the critical point, however, the medical aide of the celestial army was ruined. And the aide who just died was the last medical aide that the celestial army had. ¡®This is huge¡­¡¯ Ian who checked the message could feel his head hurt. With too much attention from attacking the others, he didn¡¯t realize that one side was open. And it was a situation which shook Ian a little. Ian¡¯s position was at the forefront. And if it had to be placed in the category of someone¡¯s mistakes, then it was either because of Hoonie or Fredric¡¯s mistake. It could be called as the mistake of the aides. And Ian decided that he would play the blame game in his current situation, but decided to think about Limlong. ¡®Got stabbed perfectly.¡¯ Ian bit his lip and look at the back of Limlong. The eyes of the two had met. On the mouth of Limlong, a subtle smile could be seen. And the expression of Limlong was asking Ian, ¡®Kay, what are you going to do now?¡¯ Ian bit his lip much harder. ¡®That surely was a very huge loss¡­ but I will be the one smiling at the end.¡¯ It was surely a fatal blow to have all the aides go out, but he had to come up with another way to overcome them. Everything that he tried for so far would be regrettable. And if Ian didn¡¯t win on the battle, then the contribution which would be cut was huge. And everything would be lost without the win, and that wasn¡¯t supposed to happen for Ian. Then Ian started to think. And started to place every thought in his head into a simulation. * * * Over time, the battle moved ahead. The users watching the battle were much more immersed in the battle. It wasn¡¯t like the killing at every turn which happened in the beginning, but as the numbers of pieces left on the battle were less, the speed of the game progress was faster. ¡°Wah, a consecutive kill?¡± ¡°Keu, I¡¯m not able to assess the personality of the High General.¡± ¡°I think that the defensive captain was much better? Hoonie? He too is from the Korean server?¡± ¡°This isn¡¯t a joke. This is almost at a crucial point.¡± ¡°This is so fun that I can¡¯t even think about doing anything else.¡± And as time passed, the pieces on the battlefield were turning hard to read. Eventually, the best users of both camps remained on the board. In the process, the scores of both sides began to change. As a result, the score was as follows. ¡ª Battle status * Celestial Kill points: 540 Survival status: High General 1, General 2, Special forces 0, officers 2, soldiers 0 Remarks: 2 triple kills, 1 double kill * Devil Kill point: 560 Survival status: High General 1, general 2, Special forces 1, officer 1, soldier 0. Remarks: 1 triple kill, 3 double kills The remaining users in both the camp were five each. And the last ten were left. But the interesting thing was that three of them were Korean users. Which was why most of the comments of the community were in Korean. ¨C Wow, three of ten are Korean. Is that true!? ¨C the other nations have just more than one¡­ awesome. As expected from the Kailan¡¯s nation. ¨C I expected it from Ian and Limlong, but I never thought that Hoonie would manage. ¨C Were just looking down on Ian¡¯s no.1 loyalist? ¨C lol, the loyalist fans. ¨C By the way, wasn¡¯t Irahan there till now? I went to the bathroom at Irahan¡¯s turn. There should have been 4 Korean users. ¨C Have you been sitting in the bathroom for an hour? ¨C Huh? What is that¡­? ¨C Irahan, he was taken down by Ian. ¨C What? I have been watching it the whole time, where and when did Irahan get out? ¨C Well, could have missed it. It was done in just 3 seconds. Ian hit him with a couple of arrows and Irahan was out? ¨C Lol, crazy¡­ once again dead by the hands of Ian? ¨C Huh huh. ¨C Irahan always dies when he meets Ian. What kind of fate is that? ¨C ¡­ death class¡­ Unlike the festive atmosphere, the aura on the battlefield was very fierce. The ten rankers were moving around with every turn. There were two to three moves without any battle too, the ten users were gathered in at the center of the battlefield. And again, the turn of Ian had come. * * * ¡®Huhu, somehow we have come till here.¡¯ Taking a short breath, Ian looked closely at the users who were left. Five users from each of the camps, unite together in the center of the battlefield facing each other. It was a tight situation to be in from the viewer¡¯s point of view, but in fact, the Celestial camp was in an unfavorable situation. The number of the remaining users were surely just five, but the level of the left ones was different. Unlike the Devil camp which maintained more than 80% of the vitality and ranks, the ranks of the celestial army were a little lower with half vitality down. Nevertheless, is was the result which would come with intense operations. By closely moving with the position of the High General and Defense captains, minimal damage could be avoided from the devil camp. If the battle had continued without any plan, then the battle would have been over. Unlike the Devil camp who recovered after the battle, the damage of the celestial side was accumulating. ¡°Huu¡­!¡± Ian took a deep breath and looked ahead. It was time to move ahead as he had been avoiding a battle for quite a few turns to create the wanted composition. ¡°Hoonie. Can I move ahead?¡± At the question of Ian, Hoonie nodded his head with a stern look. ¡°Sure.¡± ¡°Kay, then let¡¯s try playing?¡± The turn was of Ian. And only Ian could move in Ian¡¯s turn. Then why did he ask for Hoonie¡¯s permission? Tuck- Tuck-! As Ian moved, everyone was looking at the place where he would move to. And his destination was unpredictable as ever. ¡°What are you trying to do now?¡± ¡°Are you trying to commit suicide?¡± ¡°Can¡¯t he see the defensive captain behind the aide?¡± Each step that Ian took, the concentration of the users turned much more intense. And as he reached for the end. Tring-! [User ¡®Ian¡¯ the assault captain attacks the Devil Army High General ¡®Kai¡¯.] [The battle between ¡®Ian¡¯ and ¡®Kai¡¯ will begin.] He stood in front of ¡®Kai¡¯ the High General of the Devil Army. CH 593 At first glance, Ian¡¯s actions looked like ¡®Suicide¡¯. Right behind the High General Kai was the last Aide of the Devil camp and a Defensive Captain. If the battle started, then it was going to be Ian. No matter how great Ian had performed until now, it was a battle where he had no chance of winning. Also, the remaining Devils were the best ones amongst them. It was a ridiculous number to even go against. ¡°This is more than just self-confidence¡­¡± At the quiet battlefield, the mumbling of someone could be heard. The users who heard that person¡¯s mumbling nodded in agreement. ¡®Right. Even if it is Ian, it is going to be tough.¡¯ ¡®Why would he even do such a thing? I don¡¯t understand.¡¯ All that commotion didn¡¯t last for long. Ian, who was standing in front of the High General Kai, took a step forward, and the users who understood the significance of that were shocked. ¡°Uh uh¡­?¡± ¡°Is this what he was aiming for?¡± ¡°¡­!¡± What kind of move did Ian do that the others started to get shocked¡­ [The Assault Captain ¡®Ian¡¯ of the Celestial army attacked the High General ¡®Kai¡¯ of the Devil army.] [The battle between ¡®Ian¡¯ and ¡®Kai¡¯ will start.] Ian¡¯s location was just in front of Kai. A few steps forward and Ian would be entering the Devil army¡¯s side. However, Ian didn¡¯t care that he was about to enter enemy territory and took a step forward. Ian moved one space forward and attacked Kai from a diagonal position. The Aide was in between Ian and Kai. What did that mean? [The Defense Captain of the Devil camp, user ¡®Ryu Chen¡¯s¡¯ special ability, ¡®Combat Support¡¯ has been triggered.] [The combat ability of ¡®Ryu Chen¡¯ has been reduced by 40%.] [User ¡®Ryu Chen¡¯ joins the battle.] [The Medical Aide ¡®Makuba¡¯ will join in as an ¡®Assist¡¯ in the battle.] [User ¡®Makuba¡¯ joins the battle.] Seeing the messages come up in succession, the users nodded in understanding. It was a natural situation and everyone had been expecting things to turn out like that. However, when they checked the additional messages, they were all surprised. [The Defense Captain of the Celestial camp ¡®KanjiHonnie¡¯s¡¯, special ability ¡®Combat Support¡¯ has been triggered.] [The combat ability of ¡®KanjiHoonie¡¯ has been reduced by 40%] [User ¡®KanjiHoonie¡¯ joins the battle.] As soon as the message had come up, the people jumped off of their seats. They were beginning to understand the situation that he created. ¡°Wah, this is crazy! He¡¯s back!¡± ¡°There was such a way? How did he even come up with this?¡± ¡°Kue, I almost lost my balance!¡± There were quite a few who couldn¡¯t understand how Hoonie had managed to join the battle. ¡°What? How did that even happen! Someone explain it to me!¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t the defensive have just three spaces?¡± The distance between Ian and Hoonie was four spaces. That wasn¡¯t a space that a Defensive Captain could move to. Then how did that happen? First of all, ¡®Combat Support¡¯ was a special ability that only Defensive Captains had. *Defensive Captains were located on both sides of the camp at the center. They were the users responsible for giving support in battle. Their stats would increase by 15% when the enemy attacks, and their defense increased by 15% when Defensive Mode was triggered. *Combat support was the Defensive Captains¡¯ ability that allowed them to support their allies participating in battles that occur within their range. (The combat abilities will be reduced by 40%.) The Defensive Captains had the special ability to support their allies who were within their range. Interestingly, however, their movable range was based on the tiles in which the battle would take place. Hoonie was 4 spaces away from Ian. However, the distance that he had with the Devil camp users, who were going to be in battle, were 3 spaces. The tile in which the Medical Aide stood was the 3rd space, and that made it possible for him to enter the battle. Would Ian battle the High General in front of him without moving to the left? Then the Aide, who was two spaces away, would move one space closer to Ian, and Hoonie wouldn¡¯t be able to participate. Ian was 5 spaces away from the Aide, and the distance an Aide could move was 4 spaces. It was the result of Ian and Hoonie¡¯s scheming together for three or four turns. ¡°Hya, it is still a disadvantageous fight. Even then, it was a worthy try for Ian.¡± ¡°Right. 3:1 and 2:1, the feel is different.¡± ¡°If Ian picks Kai off, then I¡¯ll be an Ian God fan forever.¡± ¡°What? I¡¯m already a fan.¡± The crowd, who realized Ian¡¯s plans, was getting noisy. In particular, the audience of the Celestial camp was very excited. It was natural for that to have happened. They were eager to see how Ian was going to turn the situation in their favor. Even without participating in the war, if the celestial camp won, then they would get contribution bonuses and a hero score. ¡°This was so much fun.¡± Kai looked at all the system messages and smiled at Ian. Ian smiled at him as well and said, ¡°Still have the confidence?¡± ¡°Obviously. You are who you are. You need to have confidence in what you believe in, right?¡± ¡°Huhu.¡± ¡°1:3 and 2:3¡­ you think you still have a chance?¡± Once again, Kai was admiring the play that Ian had shown. That was one of the best chances that the Celestial camp had in the current situation. And it was the best possible outcome. Ian didn¡¯t want to think that the ¡®best outcome¡¯ was going to bring victory for the camp. Kai saw this as a last hit before the opponent camp went down. Although the number of the pieces were the same, the pieces of the Devil camp were filled with power and vitality compared to the Celestial camp¡¯s side. Following a brief exchange between Ian and Kai, the battlefield with five users was created. Wheeeing-! At the same time, all of the users¡¯ eyes were focused on the battlefield. * * * The battlefield in God¡¯s Word Board was a large situational board that could be identified by the crowd. It was because the content was made to be broadcasted in their minds since the initial stages of planning. A battlefield where the kill points and the scores of both sides, as well as the details of the battle, could be seen. There was a lot of information on the board that was displayed on the God¡¯s Word Board. * Buff Status ¨C Devil Camp * High General Kai -Base Buff: High General (+100% combat ability/+100% career ability) -Additional Buff: None -Final Buff: Combat ability: +100%/+100% career ability * Defensive Captain Ryu Chen Base Buff: General¡¯s Valor (+70% combat ability/+50% career ability) ¨C Additional Buff: Combat Support penalty (Combat ability: 40%) Final Buff: Combat ability +30%/Career ability +30% * Medical Aide Mokuba ¨C Base Buff: Officer (+35% combat ability/+25% career ability) ¨C Additional Buff: None ¨C Final Buff: Combat ability +35%/+25% Career ability ¨C Celestial Camp * Assault Captain Ian ¨C Base Buff: General¡¯s Valor (+70% combat ability/+50% career ability) ¨C Bonus Buff: Attack Buff (Combat ability +15%) ¨C Final Buff: +85% combat ability/+50% Career ability * Defensive Captain KanjiHoonie ¨C Basic Buff: General¡¯s Valor (+70% combat ability/+50% career ability) ¨C Additional Buff: Combat Support penalty (Combat ability 40%) ¨C Final Buff: Combat ability +30%/ +50% Career ability On the battlefield, detailed buffs of every situation were displayed. The buffs were created with a variety of variables. The complex information on the board was already arranged in Ian¡¯s head. ¡®The Defensive Captains would receive a lot of debuffs because of the combat penalty, but the weakest is still the Aides.¡¯ Due to the debuffs, Defensive Captains¡¯ combat was similar to Aides, but their career buff was twice more powerful than the Aides. In addition, Mokuba, who was a Knight class rather than the Warlock Ryu Chen, was a huge deal for Ian. In a straight voice, Ian ordered Hoonie who was next to him. ¡°Hoon-ah, use your magic once the debuffs are on. I¡¯ll take care of the deals.¡± Ian¡¯s orders were a bit dissatisfying for Hoonie. ¡°Ugh, are you planning on doing all the cool things again?¡± But Ian had no such views. ¡°You¡¯re so noisy, idiot. You have a 40% debuff. How could you even place a deal?¡± ¡°I can do it!¡± ¡°Stop overestimating yourself and just do as I say. That is the best way we can deal with this.¡± ¡°Kay¡­¡± Hoonie tried to sway Ian and piss him off, but he intended to follow Ian all the way. It was thanks to the performance and strategy of Ian that he was able to come to that place. But the reason why he was a bit restless was because he had something in his mind. This time he was planning on being the hero of the battlefield, but that was just making him look like a firefly who was dancing close to the sun. He couldn¡¯t help but feel bad as his hopes were put down. ¡®Is this hyung¡­ is he just thinking about me as a specification?¡¯ Hoonie sighed. But then Ian talked once again. And it was a sweet temptation for him. ¡°Your role is the most important thing in this battle, Hoonie.¡± ¡°That¡­ that so¡­?¡± ¡°You see that guy over there?¡± ¡°The Defensive Captain?¡± ¡°Right. That one is the best Warlock in the Chinese server.¡± ¡°¡­!¡± Hoonie¡¯s eyes shone brightly as he heard that. Ian continued, ¡°Can you win, Hoonie?¡± ¡°Su¡­ sure¡­!¡± ¡°If he is the best in China, you are the best in the universe.¡± After listening to Ian, Hoonie became really motivated. Hoonie¡¯s head was filled with the words ¡®the best in universe.¡¯ ¡°Nice!¡± At that very moment¡­ [The battle will start in 5 seconds.] [The battle¡­ 4¡­] The system message came announcing the start of the battle. [The battle will begin.] [If a camp defeated the High General user of their enemy camp, the battle will be over.] A familiar tone of messages rang all over the battlefield. The final battle that would determine the victors and the vanquished had begun. CH 594 A total of 48 rankers had entered the battle. And they were all the best rankers of all the servers from the world. But that, however, didn¡¯t mean that the rankers there were ranked 1st to 48th in the global scale, respectively. They just fulfilled the conditions for entering the canyon, beginning with passing the Brave Path and the special hidden pieces. Because of the many variables which were present, the Brave Canyon¡¯s contributions weren¡¯t necessarily ranked in the best order. There were rankers who had been pushed ahead for unknown reasons like Ian, and there were users who were able to enter the top 48 because luck was on their side like Wang Choi. And that meant that the title of High General was not necessarily the best user in the field. The difference between the Devil camp¡¯s current High General ¡®Kai¡¯ and the Celestial camp¡¯s High General ¡®Fredric¡¯ could be seen very clearly. Since Fredric was a Warrior class like Kai, it was easy to compare them, so Ian began comparing them. In Ian¡¯s eyes, Kai had skills that he had never seen in any of the rankers he met so far, but Fredrick was a bit vague. ¡®Fredrick¡¯s skills don¡¯t seem that eye-catching like uncle Shakran or Yu Shin.¡¯ And for that reason, Ian left Fredrick out of his strategy. If Fredrick made even a single mistake by using an attack, he would lose the game. Kai¡¯s skills, on the other hand, were good enough to make Ian nervous. ¡®Kai¡­ is maybe better than uncle Shakran¡­¡¯ That was the reason why Ian knew that the battle was going to be difficult. One mistake could lead to defeat. Woong-! As soon as the sound of the battle rang throughout the battlefield, all the summons began to be summoned. Kyaa-! Grrrrk-! ¡°Demonic Illusions, rise up!¡± Swahh-! As the summons were all being summoned, the battlefield became crowded. Ian¡¯s familiars were large, but the place that Hoonie and Ryu Chen took was larger. Ryu Chen¡¯s summons particularly took up a large space. His summons¡ªthe Demons¡ªreminded everyone of the Dimensional Wave. ¡®Ryu Chen¡­ will surely be a great support to Kai.¡¯ There was just one thing that was on the positive side of the Celestial army. The number of pieces, who were involved in the battle, didn¡¯t include the ¡®High General¡¯. And though it might sound lame, it was true. The High General was a powerful weapon, but it was a piece that was also a huge weak point. Ryu Chen and Mokuba would obviously move a lot around Kai. The two¡¯s top priority was to protect and aid the High General. ¡®Then¡­ should we try faking it a bit?¡¯ ¡°Haa¡­!¡± Ian jumped forward and stepped onto the giant shell of Bbookbbook. Tat-! And soon, Pin flew and went toward Ian so he could sit on his shoulders. At the very same time, Ian¡¯s flame bow began to draw out fire. Ping-! Ian made a stunt that could only be seen in the movies. Hwarrk-! Along with the blazing fire, the arrows began to move toward Kai. Ian¡¯s arrows were shot consecutively and formed a straight line. It was a scene that would go well with the word ¡®rapid-fire¡¯. Swack-! However, Ryu Chen¡¯s reaction rate was surprisingly fast. All of a sudden, magic began to be cast from Ryu Chen¡¯s staff. ¡°Protective Shield!¡± A short spell came out of Ryu Chen¡¯s mouth. A translucent red film formed in front of Kai The shield had a very brilliant pattern engraved on it, and it was a shield-based magic. Subsequently, five arrows were held off in succession. Chung-! The timing of Ryu Chen¡¯s response was perfect. Not even one arrow passed through the protection. Despite shielding the attacks perfectly, cold sweat still flowed down on Ryu Chen¡¯s back. ¡®Well, this kind of damage¡­!¡¯ Ryu Chen was still surprised even after holding back five arrows. However, it didn¡¯t end there. ¡°¡­!¡± A griffin, who was carrying Ian, began to rush toward the shield. ¡®What? Are you trying to break the shield by ramming your summon¡¯s body on it?¡¯ Ryu Chen was trying to think about what Ian was doing. Suddenly¡­ Ryu Chen became even more surprised. The bow that was in Ian¡¯s hand changed to a long spear. In a short amount of time, he was able to swap his weapons. ¡®Where did he¡­!?¡¯ Ryu Chen began to think faster. It was clear that the shield would break because of Pin¡¯s acceleration and the spear¡¯s strong attack. And once the barrier was broken, it was going to be Kai¡¯s turn. Kai wasn¡¯t going to be hit that easily, but Ian wasn¡¯t going to stay still either. Trying to arrange his thoughts, Ryu Chen signaled Kai by raising his hand and by casting magic. Ryu Chen and Kai had already worked together in the ¡®Dimensional Mirror¡¯ battle. Therefore, a small eye contact was enough to relay their intention through the other. ¡°Marion Enchantment!¡± Wheeng-! Ryu Chen cast another spell, and a red film was summoned before Kai. It was a second barrier made as an addition to the first one. As the shield was made in the exact location that Ryu Chen had intended, his mouth curled into a smile. At first glance, it would be hard to see if there were two shields in that place. ¡®This can¡¯t be avoided.¡¯ And at that very moment, Kai, who had been standing still all this time, moved. Srrng-! He pulled his sword that was diagonally placed on his back and raised it. The tip of Kai¡¯s sword started to suck in a brilliant light. Koong-! With a magnificent color, golden and red strikes combined into the air. One of the spectators that noticed it said, ¡°Lightning Storm!¡± Kai¡¯s strongest unique ability was the ¡®Lightning Storm¡¯. It was a very popular technique that all of the users in the US server knew about. When the rankers in the US were being defeated by Chalion, Lightning Storm was the ability that made Chalion bounce back. However, it was a skill that rarely appeared in PVP. Boasting with a tremendous attack coefficient, it required a long charging time of 2 seconds. Moreover, by activating the skill, it put its caster into a defenseless state for 0.5 seconds. And if the right skills that could match him were used, he was at risk of being attacked. That was why as the barrier got activated, Kai was confident that he could take Ian on. And the next moment¡­ ¡°Get lost¡­!¡± Kwaaa-! The sky turned red, and a tremendous roar came out of the sky. * * * The second spell that Ryu Chen used, ¡®Marion Enchantment¡¯, wasn¡¯t actually a shield. It wasn¡¯t the kind of magic that was needed to be used for stopping something. Its role was to twist the space. If the caster took another coordinate immediately after summoning the enchantment, the object that passes through it would warp the location. And because of that, Ryu Chen used that spell often. Of course, this time it was going to be a good counter-attack. ¡®With the sudden difference in time, no matter how great your reflexes are, there is no way you could avoid this.¡¯ Ryu Chen and Kai were planning to use that enchantment for an attack. Ian was surely in a rush to break through the barrier, and he was going to be warped in front of Kai. Ryu Chen placed the coordinates right in front of Kai. At the right time, the storm from Kai would fall. And Ian¡¯s ashes would scatter on the battlefield. No matter how great Ian¡¯s reflexes were, there was no way he could avoid a Lightning Strike once he was warped in front of it. But the very next moment¡­ Kwang-! In the place where the lightning fell, Ian¡¯s shadow couldn¡¯t be seen. ¡°¡­!¡± Instead, there was a tortoise with a grim look. ¡°Where is this bbook?¡± Flustered by the unexpected situation, Ryu Chen tried to find Ian. And the place where Ian was found was¡­ ¡°Keuk!¡± Right behind the Aide, Mokuba. ¡°That is Ian! A stab right on the back!¡± ¡°Wah, a simple interjection. He is almost dead. Mokuba is almost dead with just one hit. Hines, isn¡¯t Mokuba a Knight class?¡± ¡°Mokuba is a Knight class and has a high defense, too.¡± ¡°Then how could such a massive amount of damage be dealt to him?¡± ¡°Pin¡¯s acceleration hadn¡¯t decreased yet, and its inertia gave Ian¡¯s spear more power.¡± ¡°Ah, I see. Even though Ian wasn¡¯t able to kill Mokuba, it still was a powerful luck.¡± ¡°Right. If Mokuba responded a little late with hesitation, then he might have surely died.¡± Hines and Lucia were relaying the battle happening on the battlefield. The control that Ian had displayed was just great, but the situation was very intriguing. The battlefield that was called the ¡®God¡¯s Word Battle¡¯, where only the best rankers in the world could join. Two Korean users were leading the final battle. And if one was a fan of the Korean server, they wouldn¡¯t be able to help but feel excited. ¡°By the way, the users of the Devil camp are amazing.¡± ¡°Right. Mokuba¡¯s response was surely amazing, but Ryu Chen and Kai are incredible as well with that support and attack strategy.¡± ¡°Really, it would be hard for normal users to play like that. They are like the stars of war.¡± ¡°Stars of war¡­ that is a really good expression.¡± ¡°I hope the stars that will survive in the end are Ian God and Hoonie.¡± ¡°It may be that way. No, it will be that.¡± Lucia and Hines were speaking with excited voices. There were numerous broadcasts in Kailan, but there was never a situation where both of them were so excited. ¡°Ah, Kai is so persistent! He is trying to get Hoonie out by all means.¡± ¡°Just hold on a little longer! Just a little more Hoonie, Ian God will surely bring down Mokuba!¡± The pace of the battle went very high and intense. The commentators were being a bit different as well, but they managed to catch the flow. The attacks from both sides were so fierce that the commentators had no time to relay what was even happening. However, from the stands around the battlefield, a great sound erupted. ¡°Oh oh, Oh oh oh!¡± ¡°Crazy, what is that?¡± Three swords started to rise around Ian at the same time. CH 595 A red wave was falling, and in between it, wild shadows were jumping. Kiyah-! Countless red beasts roaring everywhere. And in the middle, surrounded by them was Ian wielding his sword insanely. ¡®Dammit, what is the volume of these?¡¯ Kang-Kang-! Ian who bounced off from the attacking beasts took a breath and quickly looked around. Who he was looking for was the aide, Mokuba. Killing of Mokuba who had just a little vitality left was the most urgent task in hand. Mokuba, who was almost in the stage of getting killed wasn¡¯t a problem for Ian and Hoonie, but the passive skills which he had were the most intimidating thing for the team play. The aura of the knight class increases the combat abilities of the many magical beasts by nearly 20 percent. ¡®Found!¡¯ Ian who found the shadow of Mokuba quickly jumped in that direction. Ian moved towards Mokuba. The vitality of Mokuba was still the same small amount, with just one or two strikes he could be killed. However, the attempt of Ian was once again blocked by Ryu Chen¡¯s enchantment. Giyang-! [Blocked by an unknown power.] Bounced off by the barrier, Ian quickly balanced and bit his lower lip. ¡®I need to take him down and help Hoonie¡­¡¯ Hoonie was in a serious fight against the High General Kai. No, rather than fighting, it was Kai who was just ¡®bursting¡¯ through the undead summons. Surely he was good at the buffs, but he wasn¡¯t able to face Kai. ¡®5 minutes. Just 5 minutes more. I need to defeat Mokuba in that duration.¡¯ Before Hoonie could be killed by Kai, Ian had to defeat Mokuba, and need to balance off the battle. But the control of Ryu Chen and Mokuba was pretty big. And among those two, the skills of Ryu Chen were extremely quick. The movements of Ian and his summons were being blocked, so Ian wasn¡¯t even able to approach Mokuba. ¡®The only way is space distortion¡­¡¯ The fastest and easy way to take down Mokuba was the space distortion. However, there were two conditions for the warping to happen. First, a summon needs to be close to Mokuba. Secondly, there was a 0.5 to 1-second cast for the warp to happen. ¡®Only Halli can be trusted, I guess?¡¯ After planning, Ian started to guess the angle with his keen eyes. However, Ryu Chen who had already grasped Ian¡¯s space distortion didn¡¯t make that gap near Mokuba. On the contrary, he was very bent on trying to cut off Ian¡¯s familiars, and it was hard to stop him from attacking. And if Halli approached Mokuba, there wasn¡¯t a chance that Halli could fend for himself with the incoming monsters. ¡®I need to create an opportunity with Elcarix and Nick¡¯s unique ability.¡¯ With a calm look, Ian focused his mind on trying to create a single opportunity. He no longer had the time to hesitate. ¡°Nick, Wings of Flame!¡± Kiyyo-! The spheres of magic that the monsters had fired were in the sky. Hwaar-! The flames from Nick¡¯s wing covered them all. But the fire had covered the magic didn¡¯t disappear, and the vitality of Nick began to decrease rapidly. [Summon ¡®Nick¡¯ has been hit with deadly damage!] [Summon ¡®Nick¡¯ has been hit with deadly damage!] And after checking the vitality of Nick, Ian and Halli began to move towards Mokuba. ¡®A little more¡­!¡¯ But they hadn¡¯t expected so much damage would be taken by Nick. It was just a temporary plan to hide their plan from Ryu Chen and Mokuba! And as the fire began to spread, Ian got on Pin. Kwaah-! And with ¡®Smash¡¯ of Pin added with the flames of Nick, the sky of the battlefield was completely covered in flames. ¡®What? Was it an attempt to wipe out all the monsters?¡¯ Ryu Chen who misunderstood the intention of Ian was smiling to himself. ¡®Huhu, stupid guy.¡¯ The reason why sweeping them off with a flame was bad because they could handle it. Most of the beasts of Ryu Chen were mostly flame attribute. If only they were ¡®real¡¯ monsters, then they wouldn¡¯t be able to multiply again. But exactly 3 seconds later. With a smile on the lips of Ryu Chen. ¡°Crazy, stop them! Start with the Phoenix!¡± And from the flame, the other summons of Ian had come out. Narrowing the distance between Mokuba. The Phoenix which was just at the forefront was very close too. Kiyoo-! Ryu Chen was shooting magic to prevent Pin from approaching. But even before the ability of Ryu Chen and Mokuba could react, the next talent of Nick was getting triggered. The whole battlefield was dyed in golden flames, and the projectiles which were in the air began to get absorbed. [Summon ¡®Nick¡¯, unique ability, ¡®Guardian of Sun¡¯ has been triggered.] [Summon ¡®Nick¡¯ has become ¡®Invincible¡¯.] [Vitality of ¡®Nick¡¯ has been restored.] [All the attacks within the range of the ¡®Guardian of Sun¡¯ have been invalidated.] Woong-! Ryu Chen who saw the unique ability of Nick unfold was confused for a second and lost the casting. The golden effect had been mistaken for a wide-area attack. And as he missed the gap, Halli¡¯s wind began to get fast. [Summon ¡®Halli¡¯, ¡®Guardian of Wind¡¯ skill has been triggered.] [The agility of ¡®Halli¡¯ has been increased in proportion with remaining combat stats.] Kwahh-! The form of Halli with extreme agility began to move on the battlefield at a crazy pace. After discovering it, Ryu Chen calmly cast a summon spell again. ¡°Fire Replicas!¡± And the replicas of magical beasts filled the battlefield once again. The same bunch which was surrounding Ian, in the beginning, were currently guarding Ryu Chen and Mokuba. And the long-range attackable beasts began to attack Halli. And with the buff of Mokuba, the monsters couldn¡¯t just be ignored. Kwakwang-! The vitality of Halli had fallen to half in an instant. Kuah-! Halli, however, didn¡¯t care and just moved forward through the beasts. By using extreme agility, he tried to avoid as many attacks as he could. And the next movement, the last plan Ian had planned for was invoked. ¡°El, Barrier!¡± ¡°Okay, dad!¡± The last card Ian had prepared, the Dragonic Barrier of Elcarix. Wheeing-! On the battlefield, there was no one other than the Medical aide who could use the vitality recovering magic. However, the shield magic could be used without any limitations, and the barrier of Elcarix was the best support for Ian. Papang-! The Dragonic Barrier of El absorbed the attacks from the magical beasts and completely protected Halli. Ian shook off the beasts and kept a close eye on what was happening. ¡®Just a little more, Halli¡­!¡¯ Perhaps he heard the wish of Ian, Halli moved very quickly as he approached Mokuba. Halli was getting into a close range of Mokuba. And Mokuba, who confirmed it, stopped raising the shield for others and began to place a shield for himself. Mokuba was a knight class, with the sluggish maneuverability of knight class, he couldn¡¯t avoid Halli any longer. And Ryu Chen who saw that thought the image was distorted. ¡®Dammit, for this to happen¡­¡¯ Once again Ryu Chen¡¯s head began to work. ¡®There is no way but to stop the casting.¡¯ The moment that Halli went close to Mokuba, Ian was going to use Space Distortion. The last way to stop Ian was to not to give him the time to cast the space distortion. Ryu Chen decided to gamble. ¡°Power of Marion¡­!¡± Goo-! From both hands of Ryu Chen, red energy began to come out. All the magical beasts got sucked into it. The very next moment. Woong-! All the magical beasts were once again surrounding Ian. ¡°¡­!¡± Ian who understood the intention of Ryu Chen was busy wielding his sword. ¡®Dammit, for this to have happened¡­¡¯ The technique of space distortion required very little casting time. But even in a situation where he was surrounded by the magical beasts, the situation couldn¡¯t be ignored and used. If he was attacked during the moment of the skill¡¯s activation, the casting would get canceled. ¡®I need to make a time gap somehow¡­!¡¯ With the monsters coming at Ian and his summons by his side, Nick and Halli made their way forward, and they managed to reach close to Mokuba. Mokuba, however, as if to prove that he was a ranker was fighting with two summons holding onto his last bit of vitality. On the contrary, Mokuba had an advantage over Halli. In other words, if it was possible to make a small gap, then the persistent life of Mokuba could be taken down. ¡®Dammit! I need to do it!¡¯ Ian clenched his teeth and swung his sword to prevent the beasts from attacking him. Apart from blocking all the attacks, it would be impossible to even withdraw for a second, but it could be possible to trigger the space distortion. ¡°Hmph!¡± Ian who placed his strength into his body, made the sword explode. The very moment. Tring-! And the unexpected messages came in front. [Extreme fencing has succeeded!] [Summoner Knight¡¯s unique ability ¡®Vitality Weapon¡¯, will be unsealed.] Subsequently, the sword in the hand of Ian was stained with white light. At the very same time Hwooong-! Three white swords rose around Ian. CH 596 The ancient hero who had founded the Luspel Empire, Muran¡¯s ¡®Summoner Knight¡¯. The legacy of him was certainly great, but Ian always had a question about it. It was about the utility of the Vitality Weapon, one of the unique abilities of it. Ian had increased the skill of the vitality weapon till then, but he had never used it in an important field. It was all because the ¡®efficiency¡¯ of it wasn¡¯t good. ¡®Surely it is a good skill, but something just seems to be very ambiguous.¡¯ Not long ago, the specs of the vitality weapon of Ian¡¯s were: ¨C Vitality Weapon Classification: Active Skills Skill Level: Lv. 21 Skill proficiency: 57 percent Cooldown: None Duration: 15 minutes Summoner Knight, only the weapons with Ego can be given life. Each weapon which has gained the vitality would be provided with an AI and can be used in the combat even when not equipped. As the level of the skill increases, the AI of the weapon improves and the maximum weapons who can be provided with vitality will be increased. * Each time the skill level of the Vitality Weapon increases by 10, the number of the weapons that can be given will be likely to be increased by 1. Current number of the weapons available: 3 * The more familiar the weapon is with ego, the more power the weapon will be able to unlock. * ??? (Sealed): by successfully unlocking the full potential of the weapon will unlock the hidden abilities. The ¡®Vitality Weapon¡¯, it literally injected vitality into the equipment. And as it could create a numerous amount of variables, it fits well with the battle style of Ian. Then Ian, why did he feel that such a nice skill was ¡®ambiguous¡¯? The reason was the ¡®AI¡¯ of the vitality weapon. ¡®The AI is surely comfortable in a few ways, but it is frustrating if it is completely out of my control.¡¯ As the level of the skill increases, the level of AI improves, but it was never as satisfactory as the direct control. Currently, the control of the weapons of Ian was giving orders directly. And as his concentration is in various places, the control wasn¡¯t as sharp as he always did, and he never used it for practice. But the moment the seal had been released. The scene had completely changed. [Extreme fencing has been successfully done.] [The Unique ability of Summoner Knight, ¡®Vitality Weapon¡¯ will be unsealed.] [Summoner Knight¡¯s new unique ability has been opened.] [Ability ¡®Illimitable Sword¡¯ acquired.] ¨C Illimitable Sword Duration: 120 seconds Cooldown: 30 seconds Summoner knight is the master of fencing. Being aware of the extremes of a sword, the Summoner Knight can temporarily infuse a single sword with powerful vitality (Can be used on a sword with no self, can¡¯t be used on weapons other than swords). The vitality gained sword will be given additional attack (+42 percent), creating multiple illusions at the same time. But the number of illusions will be lacking a self. (The number of illusions summoned is proportional to the number of swords that can be given vitality.) (The summoner illusion power is proportional to, skill level x2.) (Other weapons can¡¯t be given a vitality while triggering the Illimitable sword. If there already is a weapon with vitality, that weapon will be taken down.) *Summoned illusion will be reduced with 5 seconds of cooldown when an enemy is killed. In a nutshell, the illimitable sword could be considered as an ¡®evolutionary¡¯ form of the vitality weapon. Unlike the existing abilities that allowed the vitality only into the ego weapons, this new one could be activated on the normal weapons too, and the illusions had granted much more attack power. However, there was a disadvantage that can¡¯t be activated for any weapon other than swords¡¯ and ¡®There is no AI, as there is no self¡¯. But the two weren¡¯t a major disadvantage for Ian. Normally Ian had a liking for a weapon which he could move. And the absence of AI was a huge help for Ian. ¡°Let¡¯s turn this around!¡± Along with the increase of the morale of Ian, three summoned swords scattered in every direction. And with a strong wind, the beasts surrounding Ian were being pushed out. Kwang-! And Ian couldn¡¯t miss that gap. Ian¡¯s form flashed away before anymore magical beasts were awakened. ¡°Space Distortion!¡± Ian had appeared right in front of Mokuba! Krrrng-! [The Devil Camp aide ¡®Mokuba¡¯, has been inflicted with fatal damage!] [The vitality of user ¡®Mokuba¡¯ has exhausted.] [The user ¡®Mokuba¡¯ will be summoned outside the battlefield.] And with that, the first button for victory had been sewn. [The assault captain of celestial camp, Ian earned a kill point.] * * * Why has the vitality weapon unsealed at that critical moment? Was it just the luck of Ian? Surely Ian had a stroke of good luck and that was an undeniable fact, but it wasn¡¯t just the luck. The extreme control with the ¡®sword¡¯ was successful, and that was why the seal had been raised. Then did Ian lack the control for the seal to open? Of course, that wasn¡¯t it either. Ian couldn¡¯t use it till then as Ian hadn¡¯t used the sword. If Ian would have put much more attention on the skill, then maybe he would have been able to unseal it already. In the past, the Hero Muran had used the very skill, and if Ian could recall it a bit more, then it could be helpful. And with the launch of the ¡®Illimitable sword¡¯, the edge on the cliff situation for Ian and Hoonie was changed. ¡°Really, this is so crazy! Keu, even in the most extreme situations, Ian God never misses our expectations!¡± ¡°It is really amazing! It is a very constantly creepy battle, Hines!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. In this tremendous battle, the performance of our Korean server users will be watched by all the users of the Kailan all over the world!¡± Although not overseas domination, YTBC was still a very well known channel. Which was why Hines didn¡¯t use the expression of ¡®Ian God¡¯ in the broadcast. But as of that day, neither of the casters could ¡®control¡¯ themselves. It was because they were already drunk with the performance of Ian, who showed his performance in succession and was shaking the hell out of the battlefield. ¡°Now, it¡¯s really a 2:2 situation guys!¡± ¡°Lucia has said it! This is really, the situation where I want to say the word ¡®Victory¡¯.¡± Ian, who eventually defeated Mokuba with his amazing skills, eventually succeeded in saving Hoonie who was in the risk. Hoonie was almost going to die by the attack of Kai, but he succeeded in creating another variable at the right moment. And with that, the situation began to change little by little. The devil camp still had a lot of power, but the force of the celestial camp was higher. Ian who was driven by the momentum began to push on Kai with the help of Hoonie. ¡°Summon Incarnation!¡± Another unique ability of Summoner Knight. The form of Ian had divided into three when moving towards Kai. Kai was swinging his sword at Ian, who lost his calmness when he saw the targets get changed. However, he tried to get himself to calm very quickly and activated his own abilities to prevent getiing hit by the sword of Ian. ¡°¡­!¡± ¡°Ghost Step!¡± Ghost steps were a series of skill often used by Kai. It was the ability to move five steps at a time and use them as a means of ¡®linking¡¯ skills. But Ian, who already knew about the existence of the ¡®Ghost Steps¡¯, immediately moved his summons to block Kai¡¯s retreat. Kakang-! Watching the sword(s) of Ian with swords around it, Kai couldn¡¯t help but laugh inside. ¡®This is a real surprise.¡¯ Right then, Kai had to face nine swords. Ian had created three swords with Illimitable sword and made his own alter ego, and each of them had three, so 9. ¡®Nice, should I try it once?¡¯ Seeing Ian¡¯s insane scandal, Kai quickly crossed his hands. However, he quickly corrected his posture and decided to try. ¡°Explosive Swords!¡± Kwakwang-! Because of the explosion, the alter egos of Ian had been pushed back in steps. As it was done without casting, the power of it wasn¡¯t so strong, but the knockback effect was applied. ¡°Illusion Soldier!¡± The next moment. The voice of Ryu Chen was heard, and a red light formed around Kai. And the body of Kai had divided into three, just like Ian¡¯s summon incarnation. * * * Kai had no alter ego inherent abilities. However, Ryu Chen, a warlock of illusion and magic, had a unique ability that would allow the duplication of an ally. Interestingly the clones which would be created were in the control of the subject and not by Ryu Chen. In short, Ian and Kai were at war with each other. Kwakwang-! Series of hits and bangs were ringing in the ground, and the alter ego¡¯s of Kai and Ian were entangled in the fights. Not just them, Hoonie and Ryu Chen too were in a fight. The battle between Ian and Kai was literally like ¡®Dragon Vs Dragon¡¯, so it all depended on how they were going to be supported. ¡°Honestly, this level of fight is because of the fusion class of Ian and Hoonie.¡± Na Ji-chan who was watching the final battle on the screen, mumbled to himself. In recent times, Na Ji-chan had never seen Ian fight so hard, which made him much more excited. ¡°The power surely is on the side of Kai and Ryu Chen. But the synergy of teamwork is much superior on Ian and Hoonie¡¯s side.¡± Na Ji-chan¡¯s statement of ¡®power¡¯ wasn¡¯t just about the skills of the users. The users skills, the stats in the current game, and the careers. Judging from all that, the devil camp was still in favor. However, with the synergy of Ian and Hoonie, they were able to fill in the gap. -Darkness Fall upon¡­ And one of Ian¡¯s trademark-must-use skills, the voice of Kaka filled the battlefield. Nodding his head Na Ji-chan smiled. ¡°So, both sides are going all out now¡­ it is time for the conclusion.¡± Like a smashing rally, nothing could be seen apart from the strikes of the weapons. But in any kind of rally, there was always an ¡®end¡¯ that would be reached. CH 597 In the case of the Korean server, comparing the Devils and the Humans, the Humans surely had a very clear advantage. Rankers and skills, the power of the Lotus Guild and the Titan Guild were way too overwhelming. However, it wasn¡¯t the case for all the servers. If one looked at the US server, the Devils were much more powerful than the Humans. That was the difference between the 1st ranker Kai and the 2nd ranker Ralph. The difference in Kai and Ralph was just one rank, but the difference in their combat power was huge. And right then¡­ Ian, who had faced swords with Ralph, could feel the difference. ¡®Strong. This guy is really¡­!¡¯ When he was against Ralph, Ian could feel that his power was pushing the enemy. And right now, of course, that was obvious. Ian, without active skills apart from the sword, was going against a Warrior class¡ªKai¡ªwithout the help of any summons to win. He had to exert everything he had to win. But for Ian, who went against many Warrior classes in the past, the new thing was a strange experience. ¡®I never fought completely with Shakran till now¡­ but to feel this? No. This guy is surely stronger.¡¯ Right now, Ian¡¯s summons were facing Ryu Chen with Hoonie. Hoonie had less vitality compared to Ryu Chen, which was why Ian had sent all his summons over there. Ian¡¯s original plan was to eliminate Kai in a one-on-one while Hoonie went against Ryu Chen along with Ian¡¯s summons. After taking down Kai, he was planning to help Hoonie kill Ryu Chen for a clean victory. But Kai¡¯s combat power turned out to be much more troublesome. It wasn¡¯t the time to be feeling content with how the way things were going. ¡®I need to change the plan.¡¯ Kang-! Ian, who was smashing swords with Kai, jumped back using the force that their attack had created. Using the space distortion, he once again changed position with Pin, who was flying in the air. ¡°¡­!¡± Kai was flustered because of Ian¡¯s sudden retreat. He didn¡¯t expect Ian to back out suddenly since their fighting equally just now. ¡°Where are you running to!?¡± Kai, who turned in the direction of Ian, jumped straight into the air. Kai turned black and was sucked somewhere. In order to chase Ian, he reflexively triggered Ghost Step. However, it was an unreasonable act for him to do since Ian was using Space Distortion. It was because Ian¡¯s position, which had just changed, was high in the air. Ian, who just got teleported into the sky, summoned Hargasus. Kiiing-! Ian took out the fire bow. Ping-! Ping-! ¡®I need to get that Ryu Chen with a surprise.¡¯ Unlike Kai, who was capable of tanking, the defense and vitality of the Warlock Ryu Chen were like a paper. And if Ian could ambush Ryu Chen, then Ian could take him out. For Ian¡¯s ambush to be successful, the guards, who were covering Ryu Chen, had to be destroyed at once. ¡®How can we combine a skill that would completely penetrate that line?¡¯ At the moment while he descended with Hargasus, dozens of ideas were quickly going through Ian¡¯s head. And the next moment¡­ ¡®Yeah, if that would be¡­!¡¯ Ian, who thought of something, raised his right hand. And as usual, Ian never liked the whole party play thing. Except for the times when he needed to attack a dungeon or take part in wars, he felt that they were less efficient compared to going solo. However, there was one person who Ian preferred partying with. It was Hoonie. Among all the users in Kailan, the best fit for Ian was Hoonie, and it was because their classes were compatible. That was the very reason why Ian joined the final battle; it was because the Defensive Captain was none other than Hoonie. ¡°Hoon-ah! Wind it up!¡± ¡°Okay!¡± In the urgent battles that were going on, they couldn¡¯t afford to give out specific battle orders. However, Ian and Hoonie did it by just glancing and gesturing at each other. With just a few words, they could understand what the other person was relaying. They communicated like that regardless if they were faced with a simple or complicated situation. [The Defense Captain ¡®KanjiHoonie¡¯ has cast ¡®Darkness Clockwork¡¯.] Darkness Clockwork was a magic that randomly controlled the ¡®time¡¯ of a particular target. This magic allowed one to control the time of a target in proportion to the caster¡¯s casting time. The caster could wind up the time up to 10 seconds, and once all the winding was done, then the subject¡¯s time would go back to 5 seconds. Darkness Clockwork was generally used as a kind of survival skill. He could rewind the time of an ally just before that ally was about to die and save this ally from death. Ian wasn¡¯t trying to use Darkness Clockwork for himself. Ryu Chen¡¯s defense was with tremendous endurance; they were intended to be broken at once. ¡®9¡­ 8¡­ 7¡­ now!!¡¯ Ian was measuring the time that Hoonie needed for casting the skill, and the spell got summoned. Woong-! As soon as Ian¡¯s magic was triggered, a giant figure appeared. Kung-! It was summoned into the battle at once; Ian¡¯s secret weapon, Thor! Thor got summoned into the battlefield, and he raised the huge hammer that he was holding. Kwaah-! [Summon ¡®Thor¡¯, unique ability ¡®Hammer of Destruction¡¯ has been activated.] [The defense of Thor has been temporarily increased by 200%.] An intense golden wave started to get sucked inside Thor¡¯s hammer. Kwaah-! * * * Na Ji-chan slightly wiped his sweat as he was looking at the screen while his eyes narrowed. ¡®What? How is this going to turn out to?¡¯ In his view, Ian was obviously trying to destroy the defense with the ¡®Hammer of Destruction¡¯. The defense was made of ¡®non-living¡¯ types of materials such as walls, which would add to the extra crushing damage on the destruction. The Hammer of Destruction inflicted 50 to 500% additional damage on targets such as walls, defense towers, or non-invasive shields. In paper, this was great for Ian. However, there was a problem. ¡®You have already failed on the first attempt.¡¯ In the early stages of the battle, Ian had already tried a similar strategy. He also succeeded in inflicting strong damage to the defenders in there just as he had intended. The problem was that the defense couldn¡¯t be broken with just one shot of the hammer. In other words¡­ Ian summoned Thor to his death. ¡®But to try this again¡­ is this a gamble?¡¯ The additional damage inflicted by the Hammer of Destruction, as mentioned earlier, would range from 50% to 500%. The limit factor would go close to 500%, and it might be able to break the defense this time. The reason Na Ji-chan thought Ian¡¯s move was a gamble was because Ian was hoping for the attack to have a high coefficient. ¡®This kind of strategy isn¡¯t Ian¡¯s style¡­¡¯ But Na Ji-chan, no matter how much he had thought of it, couldn¡¯t understand what was going to happen. That was why he was focusing on the screen with eyes filled with curiosity. Five seconds after the end of the charging, he was wondering what was going to happen. After a while. Kwang-! Along with a massive sound, the hammer of Thor fell toward the line of defense, And Na Ji-chan, who confirmed it, had a bitter smile in his mouth. Tremendous damage was dealt to the defense, but it wasn¡¯t going to collapse. ¡®Surely, this is a failed attempt. What will happen now¡­?¡¯ However, his disappointment didn¡¯t last for long. ¡°¡­!¡± The fallen hammer of Thor got lifted again. Kuung-! Subsequently, the hammer fell toward the defense. Kukung-! ¡°What is¡­!¡± Na Ji-chan was shocked. * * * Thor needed 5 seconds to charge his hammer and produce maximum power. And Hoonie¡¯s clockwork could rewind the state of anything to 5 seconds ago. That was Ian¡¯s plan. ¡®If the time is wound up, then the hammer would fall twice in a row.¡¯ If the hammer fell and was reset to its form 5 seconds ago, then Thor¡¯s hammer would be ready even without charging it. That would ignore the 15-minute cooldown, and two hammers could fall one after the other. Kwang-! Ian¡¯s strategy succeeded. Creak-! Shhrk-! The shields, which were guarding Ryu Chen¡¯s surroundings, exploded like mines. Ian didn¡¯t miss that opportunity and jumped on Hargasus¡¯ back. Ian began attacking with his bow. To cast the defense line once again, Ryu Chen cut off the magic he was casting. Ping-! Piping-! A black unicorn flew quickly in Ian¡¯s direction while he was moving to the ground. Prrrng-! The Wings of Darkness weren¡¯t just a ranged skill; it was something that could also help Ian move for a long-distance. Ian got on Blackie and rushed toward Ryu Chen. Swak-! Behind Ian was Karceus, who had his wings spread wide along with Bbookbbook. Kwaah-! Kyaah-! The two giant dragons opened their mouths! Kwa-! Both were breathing forward, and the illusion beasts that were trying to block Ian were pushed and melted. Thanks to that, Ian arrived right in front of Ryu Chen without any interruption, and he pulled out the sword he had. Kwang-! And with the gears engaged. The linked play of Ian fit the picture! It was impossible for Ryu Chen to stop Ian¡¯s perfect attack. ¡°Keuk¡­!¡± Ryu Chen was pierced three times with the ego weapons and had to go out of the battlefield. [The Defensive Captain of the Devil camp ¡®Ryu Chen¡¯ has been inflicted with devastating damage!] [The vitality of user ¡®Ryu Chen¡¯ has been exhausted.] [User ¡®Ryu Chen¡¯ has been summoned outside the battlefield!] In the end, Ian made the kill that seemed impossible. [Celestial camp, ¡®Ian¡¯ earned a kill point.] ¡®I did it¡­!¡¯ Ian clenched his fists without realizing it. The thrill of executing a theoretically possible solution rushed through Ian¡¯s body. But all that was just for a while. In front of Ian¡¯s eyes had come the system messages. [User ¡®Kai¡¯, the High General of the Devil camp, has defeated the Defense General ¡®KanjiHoonie¡¯.] [User ¡®KanjiHoonie¡¯ has been summoned outside the battlefield.] [The High General of the Devil camp ¡®Kai¡¯ has earned a kill point.] CH 598 The game of ¡®God¡¯s Board¡¯ was being broadcasted live on the YTBC channel. However, not all of the interested users were watching it through the YTBC channel. On the contrary, the Ian user enthusiasts were enjoying the broadcast over the Internet rather than on the TV. By connecting to the channel that was streaming the broadcast, a group of people was watching it. And the same was happening overseas as well. Users represented their own countries even overseas, which was why many users were watching the broadcast from the Internet. The fans, who admired Ian¡¯s plays and other rankers, were going crazy while watching the broadcasts. That was because of Ian¡¯s godly plays were. Each step Ian took on the battlefield reached the hearts of the users who were watching it. [Ian God must be the god of Kailan. If not, this wouldn¡¯t be possible!] [Oh oh¡­ praise Ian God! They need to be defeated; we have God¡¯s grace¡­] [I need to reset my character tomorrow. Why am I using a stupid Magician class when I could be a Summoner?] [Friend, I don¡¯t think a level 25 magician should say those words.] [Shut up. Anyway, I¡¯ll stop trying to be a Wizard and change into a Summoner.] [From what I see, Summoner is just a career, and the class looks like Ian¡­] However, in those chats¡­ There were a few hate comments directed to Ian. And their hate for Ian seemed to be a lot. [Tch, that guy is irritating!] [What did I say? I told you he was suspicious from the start. Huhu¡­] [Bro, what are you even talking about? When did you even meet Ian?] [I did. Maybe you too?] [Hmm¡­?] [The 9th floor of Spirit Dojo. Do you remember the gatekeeper standing there?] [Shit! Are you talking about the wailing wall on the 9th floor.] [Yeah. I¡¯m sure that¡¯s him. That¡¯s Ian.] [Fuck! How many Hero scores have I lost because of him?] [Phew¡­ Kai hyung¡­! Just hit that guy and teach him a lesson will ya¡­!!] But one way or another, he seemed to have gotten the attention of the whole world. The final battle of God¡¯s pieces was heading to a climax. There wasn¡¯t a single scene that could be considered as disappointing. What was happening was indeed the most beautiful battle ever. And from that battle¡­ The person who would win would either be Ian or Kai. The viewers who chatted constantly went silent. They didn¡¯t want to miss even a single second of the battle. * * * Ian and Kai were aiming for each other in the middle of the battlefield. Breaking of the silence, Kai¡¯s mouth opened. ¡°After all, this is happening, Ian.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Chuk-! Bringing down the sword that was in his hand, Kai slowly walked toward Ian. And with that, Kai¡¯s words continued, ¡°On the battlefield. You and I have become the battlers.¡± However, Ian hadn¡¯t responded to Kai¡¯s statement. He just smiled a little. ¡°Why are you smiling?¡± At the question from Kai, Ian laughed a little and smiled once again. Kai stood still for a second and was waiting for Ian¡¯s answer. Ian then said in a low voice, ¡°You think it is just us two here on the battlefield?¡± At the words of Ian, all of his summons began to appear slowly behind him. Grrrng-! After seeing that, Kai shook his head and said, ¡°No, the summons are¡­ well, they are a part of you.¡± Chuk-! And once again on the silent field, the sound of footsteps could be heard. The two began to approach each other. They stopped at the same time. ¡°This will be the end, Ian. Do your best¡­ but, I¡¯ll take you down.¡± Srrng-! Kai picked up the sword which he put down and aimed for Ian who was in front of him. After seeing what Kai did, Ian smiled. ¡°I feel very sorry, but¡­ it doesn¡¯t seem like today¡¯s your day.¡± Woong-! As Ian said those words, a white radiant glow began to emanate from his sword. And as it emerged around Ian, like before, three swords floated around him. After seeing the confident expression on Ian¡¯s face, Kai couldn¡¯t help but feel strange. Kai acknowledged Ian¡¯s greatness, who came this far into the battle, but he couldn¡¯t understand what was the source of his confidence. ¡®Why are you still so confident? You don¡¯t even have that much vitality left.¡¯ However, at that moment¡­ Kai didn¡¯t want to drag the battle any longer. Ian had already poured out a lot of his strength, and his vitality was almost exhausted. Kai didn¡¯t want to give Ian any more time to recover or take cover. ¡°Ghost Step¡­!¡± As soon as those words came out of Kai¡¯s mouth, Kai¡¯s shadow got sucked it. The distance between him and Ian was enough for Kai to reach Ian. Kai swung his sword with all his might. No, he tried to swing it but¡­ ¡°¡­!¡± Kai couldn¡¯t. Kai¡¯s body couldn¡¯t move. ¡°What is this¡­?¡± As Kai was feeling flustered, a sound suddenly entered his ear. [Dark Bondage¡­!] Just as his sword was about to fall, he heard Hoonie¡¯s voice. Although it seemed to be a bit blunt and emotionless, it surely was Hoonie¡¯s voice. Kai was so flustered that he wasn¡¯t able to recover from the shock; he then heard Ian¡¯s voice. ¡°Today¡­ I seem to have won.¡± Wheeing-! Ian¡¯s form quickly split into three surrounding the area around Kai. The nine swords that floated around Ian rushed toward Kai. Slash- Slash-! And with that¡­ ¡°Keuak-!¡± The final battle of God¡¯s pieces ended. [The High General of the Devil camp ¡®Kai¡¯ received fatal damage!] [The vitality of user ¡®Kai¡¯ has been exhausted.] [User ¡®Kai¡¯ has been summoned outside the battlefield.] Koong-! The sky of the battlefield, which was covered with dark clouds, split into two, and white light started to rush in Ian¡¯s direction. [The Assault Captain of the Celestial army ¡®Ian¡¯ has won over the Devil army¡¯s High General ¡®Kai¡¯.] [Celestial army user ¡®Ian¡¯ has earned a kill point.] [The Devil army has lost their army.] [The battle is over since the High General lost.] Ian raised his sword after checking the messages. Additional system messages came in front of Ian that was only meant for him. [You have accomplished the achievement ¡®Legend Begins¡¯.] And that was Ian¡¯s ¡®First Step¡¯ toward the world stage.