Episode 196: Desert of Sacrifice (5)
-Yeoncheon-gun, Gyeonggi-do, Jeil Guild Camp
-Gulp-
Hong Jin-woo, who was watching the approaching undead army from the observation deck, swallowed dry saliva and asked Im Yu-hwan.
“… Hey, Yu-hwan. How many North Korean citizens did you say there were?”
“As far as I know, there are about 25 million people.”
“… Really? Then, by simple calculation, we have to take care of about 3.5 million people?”
“You could say that. Just looking at the guys who have come so close to us, it seems like it’s about that level.”
Hong Jin-woo let out a deep sigh at Im Yu-hwan’s answer.
“Haa… When will I ever catch them all? Even two bodies won’t be enough. By the way, why are they all skeletons? Normally, if they’re undead, there should be zombies or ghouls, right?”
“That’s… I guess it’s probably been rotting for 12 years, so all the flesh has fallen off. Anyway, don’t be too depressed. If you think about it, those are all money.”
-Stop-
At that moment, at the word money, Hong Jin-woo quickly lifted his slumped shoulders.
He opened his mouth as he looked at the red magic stone embedded in the skeletons’ chests with his sparkling eyes.
“… How much is it?”
“In this case, the association does not charge a fee, so even if it is the lowest level magic stone, it will cost about 100,000 won each.”
“100,000 won… Then, if you multiply that by 3.5 million… .”
“Even if it doesn’t work out, it’s still worth 350 billion won. And it’s not like there are only F- or D-grade demons, so even if there are tens of thousands of C-grade demons mixed in, it’ll still be worth twice that amount… … .”
“What are you doing, Yu-hwan? You’re not ready. You should go and make some money quickly.”
“… … .”
Could it be because the guild was already in financial difficulty due to a number of unfortunate events, such as having to pay financial compensation to the families of deceased guild members and the Baekhwa Guild raising its information fees?
Hong Jin-woo couldn’t control his excitement at the pile of money rolling in right before his eyes and tried to run away at any moment.
-Sreung-
So Hong Jin-woo took out his personal weapons, a pair of concubine swords, Ganjang and Moye… .
-Hwaruk-
He then applied the <Fire> magic that he had <Enchanted> earlier to his sword, and at the same time activated his unique ability.
“[Two in One].”
-Tiring-
[Player ‘Hong Jin-woo’s’ unique ability <Two-in-one> is activated.]
-Pfft!-
Then, a bright light appeared, and in an instant, Hong Jin-woo transformed into ‘two people’, each holding a sword in their hands.
“I’ll take care of it, so you take good care of the kids so they don’t die.”
“I’ll take care of it, so you take good care of the kids so they don’t die.”
“Understood, guild leaders.”
Immediately after that, Im Yu-hwan’s answer ends.
“Okay, then let’s go make some money.”
“Okay, then let’s go make some money.”
-Taat!-
The two Hong Jin-woos, with deep smiles on their faces, jumped down from the observation deck and dashed towards the advancing undead army.
one side.
Lim Yu-hwan, who had remained, looked at Hong Jin-woo, who had suddenly become a dot, for a moment, then quickly turned his gaze towards the top guild members and opened his mouth.
“[Emperor].”
-Tiring-
[Player ‘Im Yu-hwan’s’ unique ability <Emperor> is activated.]
-Pfft!-
As Im Yu-hwan activated his unique ability [Emperor], a golden crown immediately appeared above his head.
After that, Im Yu-hwan lifted the glasses he was wearing and activated the derivative skills of his unique ability, [Emperor].
“<Declaration of War>, <Knight’s Oath>.”
-Tiring-
[Activates skill <Declare War>[A]. The morale of all those designated as allies increases significantly.]
[Activates skill <Knight’s Oath>[A]. The leadership and combat power of those appointed as knights increases explosively.]
“The presence of a commander shines even more in war than in battle. I will show you firsthand the power of the Jeil Guild.”
-chuck-
Lim Yu-hwan pointed with his finger at the undead army in front and muttered softly.
“All advance.”
***
– Between Yeoncheon-gun, Gyeonggi-do and Cheorwon-gun, Gangwon-do, Guwon Guild camp
In the midst of an approaching army of millions of undead.
Hyun Si-Hyeon, the leader of Team 3 of the Salvation Guild, spoke in a slightly gloomy voice as he discovered an undead moving leisurely on a throne floating in the sky.
“… Don’t you think we won, Go Jun-ah?”
“I guess so. That’s why our guild was placed in the center. And Senior Hyun Si-Hyeon. I’ve told you this dozens of times, but my name is Jun, not Go-Jun.”
“Okay, I’ll keep that in mind, Go Jun.”
“… … Just call me whatever you want.”
Dokgo Jun, the leader of Team 2 of the Salvation Guild, eventually gave up on Hyun Si-Hyeon’s consistent attitude, and soon looked at him with disgust before suddenly asking him a question out of curiosity.
“But, senior.”
“Huh? Why?”
“Why are you dressed like that? Even with the robe over your head, you’re wearing sunglasses and a mask. You look like someone who owes money and is on the run.”
“… … Be quiet. Adults all have complicated circumstances. Children don’t need to know that.”
——————
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“What’s the matter? What on earth is the matter…?”
At that time.
“Ugh… .”
Right behind Dokgo Jun, who was tilting his head.
Yu Ha-rin, the leader of Team 1 of the Salvation Guild, who had been quietly eavesdropping on the conversation between the two, let out a snicker without realizing it… .
“Hmm? Do you know anything, Sister?”
In response to Dokgo Jun’s subsequent question, Yoo Ha-rin opened her mouth and turned her hazel eyes towards Hyun Si-hyeon.
“Can you tell me, Senior Sihyeon?”
“…no.”
“But what if Jun-i makes a mistake because he’s curious? Now that the situation I was worried about has come to pass, Jun-i has to take on the most important role.”
At that moment, Hyun Si-Hyeon judged that Yoo Ha-Rin’s argument was somewhat valid, so she had no choice but to click her tongue and tell him the reason.
“Tsk… That’s because I’m from the Tower of Truth. They must feel like I’m a traitor, so they’re doing this to avoid me.”
“… Yes? You’re saying you’re avoiding it? If the conditions are good, you can change jobs, right? But why on earth… … .”
“That’s why I said it was complicated, Gojun. Anyway, is your curiosity resolved now? As Harin said, Gojun, you are the most important in this operation, so you must not make any mistakes until the guild leader arrives.”
To be honest, Dokgo Jun still had more things he wanted to ask, but Hyun Si Hyun’s attitude was also awkward.
Since I decided that now wasn’t the time for that, I decided to focus on the present situation.
“… Ah, yes. I’ll try my best.”
“Effort alone won’t do. Answer quickly that you will definitely do it. The fate of this Republic of Korea is in your hands~”
-Shake shake-
As soon as she said those words, Hyun Si-Hyeon grabbed Dokgo Jun by the collar and shook him back and forth.
And Dokgo Jun, who had been shaking his sturdy body back and forth under Hyun Si-Hyeon’s touch, soon smiled bitterly and answered that he understood.
“Ha, haha… Yes. I will definitely do it. Don’t worry too much, senior.”
“Big… , yes. I only trust you, Go Joon-ah. Please help me finish this quickly so I can go to the academy.”
“… Hmm? Why are you going to the academy?”
“… I can’t tell you that either, because it’s a complicated situation for adults.”
“You really have a lot of secrets, senior.”
“Keep that in mind. That’s how men become popular, Go Joon-ah. Oh, but I recommend that you get married as late as possible. If it weren’t for our beautiful daughter, I would be… … .”
While Hyun Si-Hyeon was talking to Dokgo Jun.
At the moment when I was about to preach the theory that marriage should be delayed as much as possible, which was always the final conclusion of the conversation.
“Both of you, stop chatting and focus. The enemies are really right in front of us now. Jun-i and I will prepare, so Senior Si-hyeon, please take care of the ‘debuff’ first.”
Yu Ha-rin interrupted Hyun Si-hyeon’s words and suggested that they start the operation soon.
Then immediately.
“… Phew, okay. If we can just finish this without the guild leader having to work so much, let’s finish it.”
Hyun Si-Hyeon, whose aura suddenly changed from that of a simpleton to that of a high-ranking magician…
-chuck-
He stretched out his right hand towards the undead army of millions, and activated the derivative skills of his unique ability [Debuffer] that were not magic.
“<Slow>, <Corrosion>, <Vulnerability>.”
-Woooosh!-
Immediately after that, the advance slowed down noticeably.
The undead army, whose spirited aura of death had been dampened.
In fact, the reason the Salvation Guild took over the center of the defensive zone was not only because of the presence of the strongest player, Cheon Yu-ha.
To the undead army that magic doesn’t work on.
In addition to the existence of Hyun Si-Hyeon, who can apply wide-area debuffs using his unique ability.
“Grit your teeth and hold on tight, Jun-ah, I’ll send you over there in one breath.”
“… Please be as gentle as possible, Sister.”
“Sorry, it’s too late. <Cyclone>.”
-Kwakwakwakwa!!-
Likewise, she has a unique ability called <Witch of the Gust> that allows her to freely use wind magic.
Yuharin, who only took the form of magic and not actual magic through casting, was able to deal effective damage to the undead.
finally.
“Wow!!”
Even Dokgo Jun, who entrusted himself to Yuharin’s <Cyclone> that charged forward while crushing the undead army like a blender, entered the center of the undead army in one go.
-Knock knock-
“Whew… my heart almost skipped a beat.”
Because all three team leaders of the Salvation Guild were S-class players who were not bound by the unique characteristics of the undead.
The Salvation Guild was positioned in the center of the defensive area among the seven guilds.
And the unique ability of the Salvation Guild Team 2 Leader Dokgo Jun is… .
-Duribunduribun-
“… Hey, can you all step aside and stop staring at me like that? I want to talk to the guy floating up there alone.”
That’s right, the basic singularity of Lich.
It was the ability to seal the black magic that summoned the undead.
“[Jeongjeongdangdang (正正堂堂)].”
-Tiring-
[Player ‘Dokgo Jun’s’ unique ability <Jeongjeongdangdang> is activated.]
[Player ‘Dokgo Jun’ challenges Arch Rich ‘Nick’ to a fair 1-on-1 duel.]
That’s how scary it is for Dokgo Jun to activate his unique ability, [Jeongjeongdangdang].
-Booooow!-
A white, transparent curtain appeared, pushing all the skeletons around except Dokgo Jun and Nick out of the curtain… .
-Tiring-
[Preliminary prediction results indicate that Arkrich ‘Nick’ will have the upper hand.]
[Grant a strengthening buff to player ‘Dokgo Jun’ for a fair duel.]
[Applies a weakening debuff to Archlich ‘Nick’ for a fair duel.]
Afterwards, along with additional guidance messages that appear.
-Sreung-
Dokgo Jun pulled out his special weapon, Balmung, which was on his back and aimed it at Arch Rich Nick.
And right away.
-Hwaruk-
Dokgo Jun, with a red flame gently surrounding the great sword.
He began to reveal the deep fighting spirit that he had been keeping hidden deep in a corner of his heart.
-Shh-
“Come on, let’s have a proper fight, Warlock. With our lives on the line.”
***
-Inside the desert dungeon where Kim Baram and 5 others were sucked in
“The blood demons, and those extra-human beings that belonged to the blood cult.”
‘… Ugh.’
At that moment, Cheon Yu-ha was spraying threatening purple magic in all directions, trying to squeeze me and the lake.
-Snap-
“I thought you could at least tell the difference between right and wrong, but why did you come all the way here to harass my disciple?”
Fortunately, at the same time my teacher, Baek A-rin, grabbed Cheon Yu-ha’s wrist.
With her green magic power, she pushed away Cheon Yu-ha’s magic power and freed me and the lake from the pressure.
And with that.
-Woong~-
“Yuha, this time I agree with Arin. If you act rashly, I will stop you.”
Jeong Da-bin, who had been watching, also held purple magic power in her hand and warned Cheon Yu-ha not to act selfishly anymore.
Meanwhile, in such a tense situation.
‘Blood horse? Blood cult? Somewhere… .’
As I was chewing over the last words that Cheon Yu-ha uttered… .
‘…ah.’
It was soon clear why she had been acting so abruptly.
[In the world I was in, there were demon groups called Blood Demons and Blood Cult.]
I’ve heard of it… no, I’ve read it in the original.
The group that Cheon Yu-ha fought against until the end in the previous world and its leader.
‘Judging by the described features, it is probably a demon of the vampire family… .’
[Crack! I’m not like that! I’m just a normal, good bat!]
‘Didn’t you say last time that we weren’t a lowly species like bats?’
Anyway, the lake and the vampire are definitely something that Cheon Yu-ha could misunderstand.
He did have a similar ability called [Vampirism].
‘Looking at the shape-shifting thing he did, it looks like the vampire guy transformed into something similar to the lake… .’
But one thing.
There was one obvious difference between the lake and them.
“… Guild Leader Cheon Yu-ha.”
So, I immediately calmed down for a moment and called Cheon Yu-ha, who couldn’t hide his anger… .
“What is it?”
In response to Cheon Yu-ha’s sharp reply, who came right back, he calmly told her the evidence that could clear up the misunderstanding.
“… I think you may have misunderstood it as a dungeon beast or something, but that child is a spirit I’ve been raising. As evidence, I’ve raised it since it was an egg, so it has exactly the same magical power as I do.”
The evidence I presented was the ominous, crimson magic used by demons.
The lake did not possess even a single speck of that crimson magic.
‘I guess if it’s Cheon Yoo-ha, he’ll be able to tell right away… .’
By the way, the reason I mentioned the dungeon’s demons and added an extra note in front was simple.
It was to subtly appeal to Han Su-yeon and Cheon Yu-ha that I had no understanding at all of the blood demon and blood cult that Cheon Yu-ha had mentioned.
‘Besides, this would give Cheon Yu-ha an excuse to escape… . I was suspicious because I was being friendly with a creature that was presumed to be a demon… Well, it’s roughly this kind of scenario… .’
In this urgent situation, a meaningless fight was unnecessary.
At that time, whatever it was, it was much more valuable to find at least one more clue regarding dungeon raiding.
Anyway, fortunately enough.
[Hehehe! Go, it tickles! Don’t do that!]
Cheon Yoo-ha seemed to immediately understand the intention of my words, as if she was pouring her magic into the lake’s body and examining it.
A little while later.
Did you realize that Ho-su and I were truly innocent?
“… … .”
[…I’m sorry, Ah-ha-ya.]
Even though it is a sound that only I can hear, it is a sound that is heard only by me.
Given Cheon Yu-ha’s personality, he apologized, something he would never have done normally.
-Swoosh-
He released the hand that was holding the lake and tried to gently return the lake to me.
and.
-Prrrr… –
As soon as I was released from Cheon Yu-ah’s grasp, the lake flew towards me with powerful wings flapping… .
[I was scared, Master…]
He kept rubbing his eyes as if he was really scared, and soon he started digging deep into my body.
-Pavabak!-
Not long after that.
The lake, which had dug into my shirt and settled completely against my side, seemed to have regained its sense of stability and spoke to me in a tone that seemed to be in a better mood than before.
[From now on, this is a restaurant. Come to think of it, eating outside was too defenseless. It’s definitely not because I’m curious about what the blood on the side tastes like!]
‘Okay, okay. Do whatever you want.’
Meanwhile, I was patting the struggling lake and trying to reassure the guy as much as possible… .
“Hey, Mr. Cheon Yu-ha. Apologize to my disciple quickly… … .”
-Snap-
In addition, he immediately got up and grabbed Baek A-rin’s pure white hand.
-Dori dori-
He turned his head slightly left and right toward Baek A-rin, who was looking back, and gave her a look that said it was okay.
‘Right now, clearing the dungeon is the top priority… I’ve already received an apology… .’
At that, Baek A-rin’s face showed a little bit of dissatisfaction.
“… Are you really okay?”
“Yes, I’m fine. Thank you for caring and saving me, Master.”
Fortunately, you understood what I meant, so I’ll end with that question and my answer.
I decided not to mention this any further and just let it go.
‘Whew… , no matter what happens, I have to avoid getting involved with Cheon Yu-ha as much as possible from now on. If I keep doing this, I won’t be able to survive… … .’
-Tiring-
[Player ‘Kim Baram’s’ unique ability <Irregular> is activated.]
[You have gained the favor of the character ‘Cheon Yu-ha’. You will receive 200 VP. Cheon Yu-ha’s current favorability toward Kim Baram is ‘Interest’.]
… No, why on earth?
What did I do wrong… .
***
Anyway, after the fight that was caused by Cheon Yu-ha’s misunderstanding was somehow settled.
“Then let’s begin. <Signal Flare>.”
-Pee-yung~-
-Puff puff-
After a few more minutes of discussion, the three decided to focus on clearing the dungeon again.
The conclusion was, ‘Let’s just catch as many demons as we can in the dungeon.’
The reason for this conclusion was simple.
This was because the only things that existed in this desert dungeon were sand and two types of demons.
So, naturally, I thought that the dungeon’s uniqueness would be highly related to them, and I concluded that I would first gather the demons and try to capture them.
And the <Signal Flare> that Jeong Da-bin shot into the sky a little while ago could be said to be a kind of signal flare magic, used to gather Bold Eagle with the light and sound that was emitted.
“I will also begin.”
-Kwaaaaang!-
Meanwhile, the sand worms living in the sand were lured by the technique that Cheon Yu-ha had just used called ‘Jingak (震脚)’, which created vibrations in the sand.
Oh, by the way, after tasting the blood on my side, the lake seemed completely relieved and happily went out to scout in the direction I pointed.
‘If you see anything special or encounter any dangerous situations, call me right away, Hosuya.’
[Huh! I’m not a kid, master! I know how to do that without you having to tell me!]
‘It’s your first day of life… no, of your life as a rat… .’
[Kishyaat! I’m not a bat!]
‘You said it was right earlier…’
Anyway, while I was talking to the lake for a while.
Could it be because the lure operation worked better than expected?
-Kirurururuk!-
In the sky, six Bald Eagles, having spotted the light, rushed straight towards us with their beaks thrusting at us at a fierce speed… .
-Keeeeeek!-
And at the same time, five sand worms, sensing the vibrations in the sand, jumped out of the sand and immediately attacked us, baring their vicious teeth.
-Sreung-
however.
“Flying sword.”
“Fallen flowers.”
-Crunch-
Their ferocious momentum was inevitably reduced to nothing by the swordsmanship of SS-class players Cheon Yu-ha and Baek A-rin.
‘Wow, that’s so cool… .’
The second form of Cheon Yu-ha’s Yuha Sword Technique, Flying Sword.
And the second form of Baek A-rin’s Baekhwa Sword Technique, Nakhwa (飛劒).
Cheon Yoo-ha shot compressed black energy into the sky, instantly cutting off the necks of the Bold Eagles.
Baek A-rin slaughtered the sand worms in an instant, feeling the gorgeous flower petals falling down.
“Heh. I caught one more, Baekhwa.”
“… This sand worm, you called it.”
As a side note, while Cheon Yu-ha was dealing with Baek A-rin’s demons.
The three disciples, including me, were naturally watching them quietly inside the <Absolute Barrier> magic created by Jeong Da-bin.
‘To deal with a B-class demon, you need to be at least A-class… .’
Of course, Baek Yoo-seong was an A-class player.
Since I was currently injured, I honestly thought I would win if we fought now.
“Please do it one more time, Dabin.”
“Okay, <Signal Flare>.”
-Pee-yung~-
-Puff puff-
Anyway, while watching the activities of each of the teachers, I was hoping that Ho-su might bring some good news.
“… Are you okay, Kim Baram?”
Han Su-yeon, who was sitting next to me and watching Cheon Yu-ha and Baek A-rin’s swordsmanship, suddenly asked me if I was okay.
“… Huh? What?”
So I turned my head towards Han Su-yeon and tilted my head as if I didn’t understand the meaning of the question, and Han Su-yeon immediately opened her mouth with an apologetic expression on her face.
“… I’m talking about how the teacher treated you rudely earlier. I think you misunderstood something. Of course, you do have a bit of an odd personality, but… Anyway, if you felt bad, I’ll apologize on your behalf…”
“Oh, that. It’s not that bad, so don’t worry about it. I knew you were that kind of person… .”
But at that moment.
‘… Oh no, did I speak as if I knew Cheon Yu-ha too well?’
I quickly realized that I had answered absentmindedly and made a slip of the tongue… .
“… Huh, you speak as if you know everything.”
Contrary to my earnest wish that it would pass safely.
As expected, Han Su-yeon did not miss my mistake and immediately began to stare at me with a look of suspicion.
‘… Could it have been a trap?’
At that moment, I suddenly thought that Han Soo-yeon’s attitude had changed and that she might have been trying to get me to leave.
“Uh… there’s that… .”
Because I thought that the most urgent task right now was to get rid of Han Soo-yeon’s suspicions.
I tried to stretch out my words as much as possible and use my superhuman brain power to come up with a reasonable excuse.
In the meantime.
Maybe heaven helped me at that moment.
“Oh, that’s true… .”
“What on earth is it that you are dragging your feet on?”
An excuse that fit the situation perfectly crossed my mind, and I soon spoke to Han Su-yeon, whose suspicions were growing, in a troubled voice.
“That’s right… It was two days ago, I think? I went to the principal’s office to run an errand and ran into Guild Leader Cheon Yu-ha. At that time, he bullied me just because I was the master’s disciple.”
“… … .”
“If the principal and teacher hadn’t stepped in and given me that advice, I probably would’ve fainted right then and there. Anyway, I knew right after that day. He was a bit of an eccentric person.”
“… … I’m sorry on your behalf.”
Immediately after that, did my excuse work perfectly?
After that apology, Han Su-yeon started avoiding eye contact with me and acting like nothing happened.
one side.
‘Whew… That was good, Kim Baram. That was a very good improvisation.’
At the same time, I felt relieved that I had escaped Han Soo-yeon’s trap investigation.
I am proud of my quick reflexes… .
At that time.
[Master, I found it! Something unusual!]
-Shock-
Suddenly the lake’s urgent voice echoed through my head… .
‘What?! What is it? Take a look.’
I hastily reacted to the voice, immediately closing my eyes and using the lake’s ability, [Shared Vision].
-Pfft!-
Then what I see before my eyes is….
‘…huh?’
All that was around me now was sand made up of golden waves.
‘This son of a bitch… Is it possible that he lied because he resembles his master?’
