Chapter 291: The Black Goats (1)
“Salamander.”
At Jinhyuk’s call,
Buzz!
A spatial rift opened.
Soon after, a much larger fire lizard than Johansen’s spirit beast appeared.
Its scales gleamed with a lustrous sheen.
Sharp teeth and splendid flames.
“Roooaaar! Master! I’m here! What’s up?”
Whoosh!
Vivid flames soared high.
“Yeah, yeah. Nothing much. Just called you over. Can you make the flames a bit stronger? Yeah, make them blaze.”
“A m-middling… no, that’s an advanced spirit beast, isn’t it?”
Johansen’s pupils dilated as if they would burst.
What kind of close-combat dealer could summon an advanced spirit beast?
It was unbelievable.
Even existing spirit summoners struggled to maintain lower-level spirits.
However, his shock was only momentary.
“Heh! Don’t be ridiculous. I can summon more than one spirit.”
Johansen composed himself and focused his magic again.
Buzz!
With a bright light, a water spirit appeared.
“You called?”
The female-formed spirit respectfully clasped her hands.
A spirit summoner who could control two spirits.
That would be enough to prove his greatness.
But then…
“Undine. You too, come out for a moment.”
With Jinhyuk’s words, the situation took another strange turn.
Johansen’s water spirit flinched and gently lifted her water skirt.
“I-it’s an honor to meet the great water spirit.”
“You know me?”
“I saw you once in the spirit realm. Of course, it was from a distance, so you probably don’t remember. It’s an honor to meet you.”
“Alright.”
Undine nodded.
“What brings you here?”
“What else? I’m trapped by a terrible demon. If I don’t come when called, hell awaits.”
Undine put a water candy in her mouth.
Steam billowed out.
“Sigh… Don’t live like me. Find a good master and walk the flower path. Life is tough.”
“You seem… very weary.”
“Yes, this is ‘life’. The water candy tastes bitter today.”
Her sigh was long and deep, filled with the hardships of time.
“What on earth… are you two…”
Johansen’s lips trembled.
A spirit only shows such reverence to a much higher-ranking spirit.
In other words…
The opponent’s spirit summoning skills were incomparably superior.
“What on earth is happening…!”
A scream close to a wail echoed.
—
About an hour later.
“…”
Johansen, who had been so full of himself, was completely deflated.
He had experienced firsthand just how feeble his spirits were in the battles with the bugs in the passage.
– Oh, two spirits, and they’re both lower-level. I see.
– Haha. Of course, spirit summoning is just a hobby, right? Not your main job?
– Oh dear, it’s your main job. Wow. Titan Guild must be desperate, hiring jobless folks. Even rare spirit summoners shouldn’t be this bad.
– Are you holding something over the Titan Guild Master? Like a secret video or hidden ledger?
– Just kidding. Don’t look at me like that. It’s unnerving. Anyway, it’s a relief you became a spirit summoner. If you had another job, you’d be stuck doing goblin raids on the first floor.
Jinhyuk had summoned all five of his spirit beasts.
The scene of his spirits working in perfect harmony, using coordinated techniques to deal with the bugs, was breathtaking.
It was hard to imagine how much rigorous training they had undergone to achieve such precision.
“You have some impressive finishing moves, right? Though with just two, it might be hard…”
“I-I have at least one finishing move…”
“Ah, your spirit summoning is the finishing move itself. It lulls the opponent into a false sense of security and makes your allies collapse from high blood pressure.”
Jinhyuk smiled slyly.
“Master, that guy is crying.”
A small gnome in the shape of a golem pointed at Johansen.
“If you laze around all day, you’ll end up making contracts with people like him when you grow up.”
“I don’t want a weak master like that.”
“Right. His magic is too weak for us to stay in the physical world.”
“I’d rather bite my tongue and die.”
“I’ll train hard from now on, Master!”
“Quiet down, all of you. My head hurts.”
The spirits, though mischievous, praised Jinhyuk.
Even with a prickly personality, a contractor with ample magic was more reliable.
Meanwhile, for Johansen, who had to listen to all this firsthand, every second felt like hell.
Humiliation and disgrace.
Beyond that, his very human dignity was trampled, akin to a cockroach’s hind leg.
“You’re quite mischievous.”
Aidan smiled wryly.
He had watched silently to show the overconfident newcomer how tough the world was.
But the lesson had been excessively brutal.
To the point where it might have shattered his will to live.
“Haha… Damn old-timers, damn talented brats. Just die. All of you, die. Die. Die.”
Johansen mumbled to himself, walking at the tail end of the raid group.
It seemed the psychological impact was severe.
Was it too much?
…No, not at all. He needed to instill PTSD deeply so he wouldn’t dare rise again.
‘It seems his spirits have taken a liking to my Undine and Salamander. I should break his contract and recruit new slaves.’
Once someone bares their teeth, it’s best to crush them thoroughly so they never dare again.
Just then.
[Ding!]
A slightly different notification sound echoed.
It wasn’t a personal status window.
All Titan Guild players in the passage, including Jinhyuk, saw the status window.
[A ‘partial’ system breach has occurred.]
[External communication has been connected.]
[Conditions have been met.]
[Something indescribable is manifesting!]
The blood-red status window was unlike anything they had seen before.
Chilling.
The air froze.
“Could it be…”
Only Jinhyuk knew exactly what this meant.
At the same time.
[Player Chun Yoosung has sent a message.]
[Player Teresa has sent a message.]
[Resident ‘Andrea’ has sent a message.]
Messages flooded his view.
…It had begun.
Much sooner than expected.
“Player Kang Jinhyuk. What is going on?”
Aidan asked urgently.
He too was receiving numerous messages from his guild’s headquarters, along with the red status windows.
“The Japanese prophet said we had a week…”
Yes, Takeshi did say that.
But Takeshi’s prophecy was that the ‘Black Goat’ itself would descend in a week.
He must have missed the part about its vanguard minions coming first.
‘…This is risky. This time.’
Jinhyuk’s heart began to beat rapidly.
—
Another monotonous day.
A life that seemed boring and dull.
Humans naturally crave stimulation.
But all that changed from this moment.
Buzz!
Buzz!
Simultaneous breaches occurred inside and outside the tower.
Black smoke seeped through the flickering surfaces.
On the 5th floor of the Tower of Trials. ‘The Arena.’
At the border between the martial arts world and the empire.
In the United States, France, China, Australia, and Korea.
The entrances of seven gates shook violently, as if something was about to burst out.
“Everyone in the tower, gather at Daejeon. Yes, Daejeon! Immediately!”
Kim Kitae of the Saoulabi Guild shouted frantically.
Han Sangjin, the head of the Korean Awakener Association, and rankers from other major guilds also moved quickly.
“Gather the necessary personnel. Notify the police and military to start the evacuation process. What about overseas support?”
“They’re also in chaos. We can’t contact them due to the gates appearing in their own countries!”
No support.
The atmosphere among the Awakener Association staff was heavy.
They hadn’t measured it directly, but even from a broad scan, the magic from the gate in Korea far exceeded measurable limits.
Just then.
“Japan…! The Samurai Guild has promised support!”
A staff member responsible for communications shouted urgently.
“Japan?”
“Yes. The ranker Takeshi, who prophesied this event, said he owes a great debt to Player Kang Jinhyuk. They’re coming to support us, so hold on a bit longer.”
Kang Jinhyuk.
Another person indebted to him emerged.
Han Sangjin’s face was a mix of gratitude and self-deprecation.
Despite leading the Korean Awakener Association, he felt overshadowed by one player.
But he also felt a sense of pride that such a reliable player was on their side in this crisis.
“Where is Player Kang Jinhyuk now?”
“We confirmed he entered the 16th floor.”
“Keep searching for him. It’s our top priority.”
If there was one person who could resolve this situation…
…it was him alone.
Han Sangjin clasped his hands together. They trembled.
Thus.
Time passed, every second crucial.
Japan’s Samurai Guild moved to assist Korea.
India’s Gandhara Guild moved to assist China.
Normally acting in their own interests, they united against an overwhelming enemy.
For humanity’s sake.
And calculating that if the front lines fell, they would be next.
＊The current gate in Korea was centered over the Gapcheon River in Daejeon.
A massive gate floated above the water.
“Is this… a dream?”
“Why is that here? What on earth…”
Ordinary citizens stared blankly at the water.
The surreal sight made time seem to stand still.
“Stop gawking and evacuate. There’s no time. Hurry!”
“Please move quickly. Guild members are coming, so clear the roads and board the military buses.”
Police and soldiers controlled the roads.
Guild players gathered by the minute.
“Have you seen anything like that, Jang?”
A melee dealer gulped as he looked at the gate.
“Damn. This is new for me too. I thought I’d seen a lot in the last year in the Tower of Trials, but this is on a different level. Not just the size… the magic is suffocating even from this distance.”
“How are we supposed to handle that… ha… ha…”
“We need to buy time. Until stronger rankers arrive.”
That was the best they could do.
The hundred or so gathered couldn’t face whatever came through.
Just then.
“Woooooo…”
A bizarre cry echoed.
Something unimaginable began to emerge from the rift.
“It’s coming!”
“Damn it. Civilians haven’t fully evacuated yet…!”
“Form up! Damn it. We have to hold out!”
Rumble!
The gate fully opened as ripples spread.
A colossal creature, resembling a black goat, appeared.
And at that moment.
“Argh!”
“Screaaam!”
Players let out horrified screams.