Solo Max-Level Newbie - Chapter 329: Gate Open - 11 Hours Before (Part 4)
A searing line of flame cut through the air, incinerating every tree in its path.
*BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!*
Although it wasn’t quite on the level of a dragon’s breath, the concentrated blast of fire was unimaginably powerful.
“Gaaahhh!”
“Graaaahhh!”
The Sea Dragons and Armored Drakes behind it couldn’t escape the devastating attack either. Before their screams could even fade, the flames engulfed their entire bodies, reducing them to nothing but ashes.
“My… My God…”
“Was Salamander always this powerful?”
“I’ve met Rankers who are Spirit Masters before, but their abilities were limited to fighting monsters on the lower floors, around the 10th floor at most.”
The players of the Silla Guild swallowed hard.
Especially Yoo Jinah, who looked at Jinhyuk and Salamander with a face completely transformed from before.
[**Yoo Jinah’s Affection** has increased by 30.]
[Exhibiting such immense power indicates a deep bond between the Tamer and the summoned creature. Yoo Jinah reassesses her judgment of you.]
[**Total Affection**: 20]
Jinhyuk scratched his chin, looking slightly troubled by the raging flames.
Hmm.
Did he go too far?
Using his abilities so freely to raise her affection was good, but…
He had made quite a spectacle.
This level of a fireworks display was practically an announcement that there were intruders on the island.
‘Still, as long as Chun Yoosung has drawn all their attention, it should be fine.’
Most of the mana signatures in the area were heading toward the beach.
By the time the enemy noticed and sent reinforcements here, they would already have moved deeper into the island.
But just then…
*Ding!*
[You have an incoming video call from ‘Slave No. 2’.]
[Do you want to accept?]
Slave No. 2… that would be Melena, the one he had planted in the Demon Association.
She was supposed to inform him immediately if anything important happened, but the demons had been quiet lately, so he hadn’t heard from her in a while.
But the fact that she was contacting him now…
“I’ll accept it.”
Jinhyuk activated the video chat.
[An upper-grade mana stone from the other party and your ‘Blood Lotus of the Four Heavens’ from the Sichuan Tang Clan have been consumed.]
[A ‘Third Network’ has been established.]
Melena appeared on the screen, her long red hair cascading down.
“I wanted to contact you sooner… but the surveillance was so tight that I only just managed to find a moment.”
“It’s fine. What’s the situation?”
“You’re on the island in the East Sea, aren’t you? You went there to stop that thing called Shub-Niggurath, right?”
As expected, Melena knew about the classified information shared only among the Association and the top guilds.
“So, it’s not just the upper administrators… even the Demon Association is involved.”
“…Yes. The vampires are also involved. They have terrifying mana, so they must be high-ranking beings, probably on the level of clan heads.”
Jinhyuk’s finger twitched as Braham’s ring vibrated.
Alice was reacting to the mention of clan heads.
“Is there anyone from the Demon Association besides you? For an operation of this scale, at least one of the Round Table members should be present.”
“Yes, and I was going to tell you about that. His codename is Arthur, but he’s better known by his real name, Nietzsche. I know you’re strong, but you should be really careful with this old man. Even before the Tower appeared, he was one of the most wanted criminals worldwide, listed at the top of every agency’s most-wanted list.”
Nietzsche…
Same name as the famous philosopher.
Whether it was a coincidence or not, if even Melena was this scared of him, he wasn’t someone to be taken lightly.
“Any additional information about Nietzsche?”
“He uses the power of Nihilism. When you’re within a certain range of him, all unique abilities and skills are sealed. In other words, you have to fight with just your physical abilities. And with the vampire clan heads acting as his guards, he’s going to be really tough to deal with.”
A combination of a clan head and a player who seals abilities.
Definitely… troublesome.
“If you want, I could try to dig deeper into what they’re planning. It’ll be risky, but if it’s necessary, I’ll do it.”
“No, what you’ve told me is enough. If you dig any deeper, you might expose yourself.”
If he hadn’t known about this, it could have been dangerous.
But now that he had the information, he had time to prepare.
“It couldn’t have been easy to get this information. Thanks. You’ve really helped a lot.”
“Well, I didn’t have much choice with that mark on me. Besides, it seemed like your side had a better chance of survival.”
True. With the Mark of the Soul Imprint on her, Melena didn’t have many other options.
It was like having a bomb strapped to her neck.
“I’ll remove that mark on your body one day.”
“…Really?”
For the first time, a strange emotion appeared on Melena’s face.
The idea of eventually being freed from the oppressive pressure began to give her a small spark of hope.
“Yes. So don’t think too gloomily about things. I don’t plan on using you forever.”
There is a way.
If he ever reached the top of the Tower, he might find a way to lift the restrictions.
Of course.
There was still a long way to go before he reached the top of the Tower.
Until then…
“Let’s just take things one day at a time. Got it?”
He fully intended to make the most of her.
—
The raid team, led by the Silla Guild, moved deeper into the island.
Although they encountered more Sea Dragons and Armored Drakes along the way, the Silla Guild maintained their formation and responded calmly.
*Bang! Bang!*
“Graaaahhh!”
A massive foot crashed down on a shield.
Each strike had such immense weight that the ground itself seemed to crater.
“Raise your shields!”
“Don’t let even one through!”
“Hyung! Two more coming from the side!”
The tanks at the front drew the aggro of the mid-sized Armored Drakes.
“Grrr! Ignore the humans at the front! Target the ones at the back!”
“Avoid the ones in metal! They won’t die no matter how much you hit them!”
The Sea Dragons, riding on the backs of the Armored Drakes, shouted commands.
They knew they needed to take out the dealers and healers positioned at the rear.
But…
[A wide-area Taunt skill is activated!]
The raid team wasn’t going to let that happen.
The taunt skill caused the Armored Drakes’ pupils to narrow in rage.
“Graaaaahhh!”
“Graaaaahhh!”
With reckless abandon, they charged at the tanks, intent on smashing them to pieces.
“Stupid beasts! This is why low intelligence is a problem!”
“We need to step in.”
The Sea Dragons hefted their tridents.
Their ranged attacks would surely pierce the humans.
But once again, they failed to achieve their goal.
*Clang.*
Players who had climbed onto the backs of the Armored Drakes drew their swords and spears.
“You didn’t think we’d just sit back and watch, did you?”
“Our job is to protect the ranged dealers.”
*Clang!*
A sword deflected a trident.
And then, the battle erupted into a bloody melee.
‘Looks like I don’t even need to step in.’
Jinhyuk watched the battle unfold from the back with a relaxed expression.
Since everyone had insisted that he conserve his mana, he was now able to enjoy a leisurely raid.
‘The balance has already tipped…’
The Silla Guild was handling the enemies without sustaining any losses.
With just a little more pressure, the enemy formation would completely collapse.
But then…
*Crackle!*
A yellow spark appeared in the midst of the Sea Dragons.
“It’s lightning magic!”
Yoo Jinah shouted, sensing the ominous mana.
Multiple bolts of lightning shot out.
[High-Ranking Mage ‘Peshaktu’]
A named monster.
And not just any monster, but one capable of using powerful magic and curses.
“Foolish humans, do you even know where you’ve set foot? The price for defiling this sacred land will be paid with your lives.”
Peshaktu roared with fury.
“Di Er Ta Orgynak!”
With the completion of his incantation in the Sea Dragon tongue…
*BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!*
Massive bolts of lightning descended on the dealers.
It happened so fast that the tanks had no time to react.
The dealers tried to raise their shields, but there wasn’t enough time to gather the necessary mana.
They were about to be hit.
Just as that thought crossed their minds…
[‘Glacial Shaping: Sky Shield’ has been activated!]
*Crackle!*
A gigantic ice wall formed between the lightning and the players.
The lightning magic shattered against the frozen barrier, scattering into nothing.
“You deflected my magic. Not bad.”
“I’m a little surprised too. It was stronger than I expected.”
At Jinhyuk’s words, Peshaktu’s face twisted with anger.
“Are you implying that a mere human like you can evaluate my level? I am Peshaktu, a mage who has trained for hundreds of years within our tribe.”
“Hmm. If you’ve only reached that level after hundreds of years, you must have been slacking off a lot.”
Even if you trained for just 30 minutes a day, you’d think you’d be stronger than this.
“I’ll make sure you beg for mercy. Maybe I’ll turn your limbs to charcoal, but if you last 10 minutes, I might just spare your life.”
Peshaktu pulled out a staff made of red wood.
A malevolent aura emanated from it.
*Sssshhh.*
Jinhyuk also pulled out the ‘Scythe of the Wraithwood.’
As he donned the black robe of a grand mage, it felt as if an ancient sorcerer had manifested in that spot.
“Kiiiieeee!”
The large eyeball embedded in the scythe moved rapidly.
*Rumble! Rumble!*
The enormous mana transmitted through the two items was overwhelming.
“You seem confident in your magic…”
*Snap.*
Jinhyuk snapped his fingers.
“Let’s see how long you last.”
An ice spear, crafted through Glacial Shaping, appeared.
“Kshaktar. Ve Athemak!”
Peshaktu immediately responded with a spear of lightning.
*Boom!*
The two spears collided in mid-air.
At the same time, Jinhyuk began firing off one ice spear after another.
Each spear flew through the air, colliding with Peshaktu’s spears.
*Bang! Bang! Boom! Boom!*
“You’re holding up better than I thought.”
“Don’t… pretend to be calm! Every spell has a limit!”
A limit…
As if to mock that claim, the number of ice spears increased to twenty.
A massive number of spears materialized, far surpassing the previous barrage.
“T-There should be… limits to… to the number… of spells…”
Peshaktu’s voice trembled uncontrollably.
Muttering to himself in disbelief, he looked completely dazed.
“Now, let’s increase the number fivefold.”
[‘Breath of the Fire Dragon’ has been activated!]
All the spears were enveloped in flames.
“I’ll also raise the power to the next level.”
[‘Black Tears’ has been activated!]
Another set of spears dripped with a dark liquid.
“Didn’t you say earlier that if I lasted 10 minutes, you’d spare my life?”
Jinhyuk’s smile turned cold.
“I’ll give you just one minute. If you can survive that…”
If you can.
All the spears vanished at once.
*BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!*
Then, dozens, even hundreds of spears came crashing down like a storm.
Peshaktu fired off his magic wildly, but he could barely withstand even a fraction of Jinhyuk’s attack.
The overwhelming difference in power was clear.
The spears tore the ground apart, completely obliterating the area where Peshaktu stood.
—
Jinhyuk slowly walked toward the ruins.
“Hoo. You managed to survive?”
“Grrr…”
Thanks to his shields and timely use of Blink, Peshaktu had barely clung to life.
But having drained all his mana, his body was now in shambles.
“I’d like to spare you since you lasted a minute, but with your mana running wild like that, you’re going to die anyway. I might as well finish you off cleanly.”
“It’s not… over yet.”
A twisted smile appeared on Peshaktu’s lips.
“I’ll make you… regret ever stepping foot here.”
Without warning, Peshaktu pulled out a dagger and stabbed himself in the heart.
*Stab!*
Blood gushed out, soaking the ground.
The blood quickly seeped into the earth.
And then…
*Thump!*
The ground began to pulse.