Chapter 248: Dragon-Slaying Sword, Balmung (2)

“Never did I imagine exploration would turn out like this,” Pesis muttered to himself as he repeatedly denied the reality unfolding before him. The situation was a far cry from any thrilling adventure, a grotesque deviation instead.

“S-save me!”

“I-I’ve really broken a bone!”

T-Bone and the ancient soldiers had become so accustomed to being frozen solid or blazing alight that it was almost routine now. If their bodies were bisected, they would be diligently restored with magic and thrown back into the next trap, a repetitive ordeal.

Yet, the shock did not end there.

When traps that were too tough for the undead emerged, Kang Jinhyuk summoned new creatures—elemental spirits of the five fundamental elements, a sight even summoners dreamt of.

“Oh… Ohhh! You’ve contracted even the elemental spirits?” Pesis’s voice rose an octave.

Rarely seen together, the gathering of spirits from all five elements was a truly extraordinary scene.

“Ah, these guys?” Jinhyuk responded with a grin.

“Yes. It’s rare to see a human form contracts with one, let alone five. It’s hard to find someone with such affinity among the residents.”

“It’s not about threatening them with hell… Rather, it’s treating them with genuine warmth and love that opened their hearts. Right, guys?”

Jinhyuk’s smile deepened as everyone hesitated.

“Why the delayed response? Did I say something wrong?”

“Uh, um…”

“We love our master the most in the world.”

“It feels even better since it’s been a while… I wish it had been longer.”

The elemental spirits shivered slightly, a testament to what learned fear could teach.

“You see? They are all happy,” Jinhyuk remarked.

“…So it seems.”

“Please, continue guiding us. We need to hurry if we are to return before dawn.”

As Jinhyuk hummed and stepped forward, numerous traps continued to appear, but thanks to Pesis’s guidance and the summonses’ efforts, they barely managed to escape.

After hours of perilous journeying…

They arrived at a vast cavern, open on all sides, with an abyss so vast that one couldn’t see even a foot ahead. Yet, the magical presence of the legendary Dragon-Slaying Sword, Balmung, stimulated Jinhyuk’s entire body.

Thump, thump, thump!

His heart raced with excitement.

Just one more challenge, and the new sword would be his.

Flurries of ‘Primeval Flames’ flickered, slowly clearing the darkness of the enormous cavern. The first thing visible was a massive skeleton—several tens of meters long.

The corpse of the demon dragon, Fafnir, slain by Siegfried, lay before him, and amidst its bones, a sword that had not lost its aura despite the eons, was embedded.

“It’s been a while since I last saw it,” Jinhyuk thought, gazing at Balmung.

He wanted to rush over immediately, but the venom emanating around Fafnir’s corpse was too intense. Blinded by the sword, he might have turned into a pool of blood before even taking a few steps.

“We’ve finally made it here,” Jinhyuk murmured with anticipation.

Seeing the sword seemed to wash away the fatigue of the past hours.

“The toughest trap still remains… I’m not sure if your summons are too exhausted to handle it,” Pesis noted, looking towards the summons.

“Master… don’t announce my death yet…”

“Clatter.”

T-Bone and the ancient soldiers, battered and bruised, rolled on the ground.

One had his head frozen; another had his arm and leg bones swapped. It was clear they had been through a lot.

“Perhaps it’s time for a calcium-rich milk bath,” Jinhyuk mused.

“Master. I don’t even have the strength to twitch a finger.”

“I regret being glad to see you. It was the biggest mistake of my life.”

“Cough, cough.”

“Everyone, quiet down. My head hurts.”

The elemental spirits fell to the ground, moaning.

“Goguma… groaned, his tongue lolling to one side. It seems we’ve pushed them too hard.”

With no other choice, Jinhyuk said, “Everyone, just catch your breath for a moment.”

He then pulled out a plethora of ingredients from his spatial inventory: Rainbow Shrimp from the Tower of Trials, Quadruple Mushrooms, eggs from the Great Phoenix, and cheese from the goats of the Black Mountains—truly a spread of exquisite delicacies.

Plus, with 3 kg of Magic Crystal Powder prepared, it was going to be the ultimate nourishing feast.

[You’ve activated Lv4 ‘Interdimensional Restaurant’.]

A cooking skill that transcended species was triggered, satisfying even elves who lived on dew and fruit.

Soon, various dishes steamed invitingly, their fantastic visuals and scents drawing saliva from everyone’s mouth.

“To think you’d prepare something delicious for us… I thought you were just a ruthless, greedy boss exploiting us,” one summoned creature lamented.

“The boss is tough on the outside but warm inside,” another added with a giggle.

“Master, I’ve always respected you the most.”

“What nonsense, you salamander. I’m the leader among the elemental spirits, remember? Line up properly,” Undine waved her small arms.

“Master, it feels like my osteoporosis is being cured.”

“Clatter.”

T-Bone and the ancient soldiers drooled over the Ogre Milk, famed for its 99% calcium content.

“Tweat!”

Goguma couldn’t resist and bit into the largest shrimp.

Good.

This is how you utilize them.

Too much stick and they might grow resentful or twisted; too much carrot and they become complacent and lazy.

The best training, as now, was a mix of both.

“And human psychology goes like this: if you do well ten times and fail once, they complain; but if you fail ten times and do well once, they are grateful.”

As everyone enjoyed a brief moment of harmony, an announcement popped up.

[The ‘Coin Exchange’ has been activated.]

Left alone, Jinhyuk surveyed the Coin Exchange.

He needed six items:

[Fogwood from Peshan Mountains – 35,000 coins]

[Intermediate Purification Stone – 15,000 coins]

[Whisper of Steel (material type) – 150,000 coins]

[Decay Accelerator (material type) – 22,000 coins×3]

[Golden Thread (150,000km grade) – 50,000 coins]

[Melmoren Healing Salve, 500g – 15,000 coins]

Totaling 331,000 coins.

“Darn expensive,” he muttered, possessing only about 83,000 coins.

He needed about 250,000 more.

“Hopefully, the views from the Hall of Fame have been good…”

Jinhyuk nervously logged into the Tower of Trials community.

[A player has received the title of Grand Duke from the empire? (Feat. Magnificent panties)]

• Views: 30,563,225
• Ranking: 1st

The video in the Hall of Fame was incredibly popular, a staggering figure considering it had been posted less than six hours ago.

• The Drunken Rudolf: Who gets a noble title as a player? Does that even make sense?
• National Institute of Korean Language: The one who makes all grammatical mistakes in one sentence is you, actually making less sense.
• I Prefer Blue: But seriously, it’s impressive. Not just any noble but a Grand Duke! A principality guaranteed independence from the empire!
• choigh-lonk: Is there any other guild in the world that holds such a scale of headquarters? Including the Seven Major Guilds and other emerging forces.
• Our Jungle’s Eternal Substitute: None. Guilds have been madly securing strongholds recently, but they’re all struggling just to fend off monsters and other invasions, and even then, the good strongholds are rare.
• The Earth Defense Force Avengers: Naturally. You can’t compare those losers with a veteran corporation. Look at the members.
• Greed of Ronaldo, Fouls of Ramos, Glass Body of Bale: Agree. It’s a dream team. Sword Saint and Saintess are all top scouting priorities. And Kang Jinhyuk is a monster beyond standard.
• Cyber Tow Truck: Rumor has it that the Indra Gandhara Guild went to the empire recently and got completely destroyed. They were up against a veteran corporation.
• No.1 Fan of Ancient and Veteran Corporation: Wow, really impressive. But I don’t see Unknown in the video. Where did they go?
• Kimchi Fried Rice: Probably just made a gesture of joining initially and then went to do their own thing. Top rankers are always busy.
• New Generation Sayer: Maybe. Or it could be awkward for Unknown and Jinhyuk to be in the same place.

The flood of comments alone showed how hot the interest was.

“Ha… over 30 million views.”

Jinhyuk’s lips twitched continuously.

It was a jackpot.

With this popularity, buying items was no issue.

In fact, if he could continue to upload more diverse and stimulating videos, he might even aim for higher relics in the future.

He savored the thrilling exhilaration.

However, the joy was short-lived.

With light footsteps approaching, a stranger’s voice rang out.

“It’s truly amazing. We went through all sorts of trouble to find this entrance, never imagining it would lead directly to where Balmung is.”

Jinhyuk hadn’t sensed anyone approaching, nor had they triggered any magical detection—an individual of immense skill.

A man with silver hair and red eyes.

“Vampire…”

Specifically, a pureblood vampire, like Alice, undoubtedly it was Jinzo.

“Tweat!”

“Master!”

“Master, there’s a nasty, ominous smell.”

The summons showed hostility, having clashed with vampires several times before, instinctively feeling aversion.

“Interesting. Even though you’ve contracted with a traitor, you recognize me right away. Not bad for mere humans and summons,” the vampire sneered.

“Spending all day around someone who constantly talks about being noble, it’s natural to learn,” Jinhyuk retorted, noting the vampires’ distinctive arrogant tone, probably ingrained from early childhood group education.

“That’s not incorrect. After all, we are beings of a different class from birth compared to other races.”

“So… from which family do you come? Did the Decassus family send another pureblood?” Jinhyuk probed.

“Half right, half wrong,” Jinzo shook his head.

“Half right? What does that mean?”

“I belong to the Decassus family, but no one sent me. I came here of my own will.”

His own will? Could it be…

Jinhyuk’s pupils narrowed.

“Allow me to introduce myself. I am Amulam de Decassus, the head of the Decassus family.”