Chapter 531
After the break, Johannes finished explaining the whole story of why he was here.
“This actually looks promising.”
“Who doesn’t know that? The Veteran Corporation even has the magitech engineer from Replor joining in, right?”
“And that old man. He’s the sage who used to appear on the central fountain screen from time to time. He’s a big shot.”
“We’re finally on the road to glory.”
New reinforcements.
Not just anyone, but those who could be called the upper echelon of the 33rd floor had joined, and the raid party’s morale soared.
The once hopeless raid on the ruins was beginning to seem realistic.
Watching the raid party, Johannes sneered inwardly.
‘Idiots.’
Seeing those fools giggling, not even realizing the place they were being led to was hell, made it hard for him to hold back laughter.
‘Still, I can’t let my guard down. No matter about the others, I can’t underestimate that Kang Jinhyuk.’
Who would have thought they’d actually meet the conditions for the hidden chain quest.
He’d broken into a sweat calming Pendragon’s wrath for hours.
Part of the Crystal Tower even got destroyed.
But, all that disgrace was over now.
Just a bit further…
A place where he could kill everyone at once would soon appear.
Feigning ignorance, Johannes led the group deep into the ruins.
What appeared was a long, single bridge.
A long marble bridge connected two huge cliffs.
“Ahem! Ahem. That ahead is the place I mentioned before, called the ‘Bridge of Illusion.’ Once you cross this bridge, you can enter the innermost part of the ruins.”
“The Bridge of Illusion… Wow, if you fall from here, you wouldn’t even leave a corpse, huh?”
Jinhyuk glanced down.
What faintly glowed with a red light below was probably magma.
If you fell, you’d be dead for sure.
“Haha, there are a few traps… but I’ll tell you the strategy, so you don’t have to worry too much.”
Strategy…
Jinhyuk’s lips twitched.
He tried hard to suppress a scoff.
“If you’re willing to advise us, I’ll gratefully listen.”
“Actually, the Bridge of Illusion literally disrupts your senses. There seem to be countless traps, but most are illusions. As long as you can distinguish the real ones, it’s not hard to cross.”
Johannes rattled off his prepared lines like a storm.
“Do you know how to distinguish them?”
“Yes. Do you see the faint smoke floating around the bridge? That’s a hallucinogenic mist. It’s the type that’s absorbed through the skin.”
Hearing that it was absorbed through the skin, the listening raid members grimaced.
It’s not like you can seal your entire body.
And there was no item to completely block air.
“Hoho. You don’t need to worry too much. Fortunately, if you wear this crystal necklace, you can resist the hallucinations.”
Johannes took out necklaces set with dazzling blue crystals.
“Ooooh!”
“Meeting someone from Replor really was a stroke of luck!”
“All right. I can do this. I really can!”
The players cheered.
Having lucked into such a rare opportunity, it was only natural to be excited.
Jinhyuk also got a crystal necklace.
‘Handing something like this out for free… really a big shot.’
If what Johannes said was true, he was like a giving tree.
If it was true.
[Necklace of Courage]
Acquisition Difficulty: A
Details: A magitech item skillfully crafted from sapphire crystal. When equipped, it increases resistance to ‘fear’ by 130%. Additionally, for each player wearing the necklace, resistance increases by another 1%.
The Necklace of Courage.
In modern terms, it was basically a drug necklace.
It numbs fear and explosively increases adrenaline—a device that makes you lose all sense of fear.
‘The plan is to butter us up with lies and then kill everyone on the bridge.’
So shameless and cruel, it was almost laughable.
Doing this after building up trust only made it deadlier.
It was a well-thought-out plan, but…
Well.
Things wouldn’t go so smoothly.
Still, in this situation, he had to react appropriately.
So as not to arouse suspicion.
“Hmm. The conditions are good, but the mist is so thick. Could you and the others from Johannes’s group take the lead as guides?”
“I’m sorry, but this is as far as we can guide you. Going any farther is forbidden by regulation. More importantly, if a magitech engineer steps onto the Bridge of Illusion, the bridge itself collapses.”
No way to verify, so just trust him blindly… typical.
“…Huu. Understood. Then, is there anything else we should watch out for?”
“Ah, one thing. You must never use any unique ability or skill to clear the mist. The bridge could collapse if you do.”
“Got it. You’ve helped enough; from here, we’ll manage on our own.”
Jinhyuk flashed a bright smile and turned to his party.
“Hyung, will you be okay?”
“Yeah, Oppa. Too much hospitality is a red flag… It’s weird. Usually, the residents of each floor never go this far to help.”
Lee Tae-min and Yoo Yeonhwa gave wary looks.
“Hmm. I feel uneasy too. No matter how much they’re scholars, they wouldn’t want their floor to be conquered easily.”
Alice added, arms crossed.
“Hey now. It’s not good to be so suspicious of people who approach with good intentions. Just stick close behind me and you’ll be fine.”
Jinhyuk, wearing the necklace, took the lead.
“Hyung, why are you drawing your sword?”
“And boosting your mana to the max…?”
“Contractor. Is that bridge really safe?”
Everyone asked anxiously.
But Jinhyuk climbed onto the bridge without answering.
[You have entered the ‘Bridge of Illusion’!]
Step.
As he stepped into the thick mist, his vision blurred.
It’s not new, but this bridge was insanely difficult.
Even though he’d experienced it several times, it was enough to make his palms and feet sweat.
‘Johannes has his reasons for being so confident.’
So.
He had to do something even crazier here.
Jinhyuk started timing in his head.
The others, uneasy, followed him onto the bridge one by one.
Thanks to the effect of the ‘Necklace of Courage.’
Three seconds… two seconds, one second.
Once everyone was fully on the bridge.
Vwoooom!
A terrifying tearing sound echoed.
What appeared through the mist was a hand the size of a house.
Just a single finger was as big as an elephant.
“Uwaaah!”
“Ah, it’s an Iron Golem!”
A golem clad in iron.
No, with thick crystals embedded in its surface, it had to be a far higher grade.
‘Eternal Golem…’
Jinhyuk’s eyes narrowed.
A monster that could be called the pinnacle of magitech had appeared.
Rumble, rumble, rumble!
Thick fingers appeared through the smoke.
The players panicked and tried to dodge.
But on a bridge only about 7 meters wide, there was nowhere to run.
Then—
Boom!
The golem’s finger stopped in midair.
[Lee Tae-min activates the unique ability ‘Machine Lord’!]
[According to the magitech trait, all abilities are increased by 200%!]
A full 200%.
Reinforced drones gathered to block the golem’s strike.
From the drones that succeeded in blocking, magic bombs poured out.
Boom boom boom boom!
Boom!
Blue flames blossomed everywhere.
Whenever the Eternal Golem tried to attack, Lee Tae-min’s drones darted around, counterattacking mercilessly.
“Not a chance!”
Fueled by overflowing mana, Lee Tae-min rampaged.
The exhilaration of being several times stronger than usual thrilled his heart.
At this rate…
He might even be able to use an 8-star skill.
Lee Tae-min steadied his excitement and focused.
[Machine Lord – Auto Pilot Mode, ‘Storm Saber’ activated!]
…Success!
Armor covered his entire body.
Boarding his robot, Lee Tae-min drew a pair of plasma swords in both hands.
Zzzzt!
Beautiful rays extended about 2 meters.
“Graaagh…!”
Sensing something off, the Eternal Golem changed its attack pattern.
Not melee, but ranged.
He planned to burn the intruders on the bridge to ashes with the energy stored in its crystal core.
[The Eternal Golem uses the unique ability ‘Magitech Quantum Cannon’!]
Zzzzt!
Yellow lines gathered in the distance.
⁕⁕⁕
‘Hmm…’
Johannes, watching the battle, stroked his beard.
He’d thought with the unfamiliar terrain and the sudden golem attack, he’d finish things quickly.
No matter how incredible Kang Jinhyuk was, on the ‘Bridge of Illusion,’ he shouldn’t be able to use his strength.
But what was this?
Among the raid party, there was someone who could use magitech.
And at a very skilled level, too.
“This could be more troublesome than expected.”
“Don’t worry too much, Sage. Even if by some chance they get past the golem, isn’t the ruin’s strongest guardian behind it?”
“That’s right. The guardian is formidable, but the temple at the innermost part of the ruin is a forbidden zone even for us.”
The other residents added reassuringly.
Of course, as they said, once you set foot on the bridge, leaving alive was impossible.
If you were lucky, maybe one.
At best, maybe the magitech engineer would barely escape with his life.
And yet, for some reason…
Johannes couldn’t shake his anxiety.
And the reason soon became clear.
…Huh?
Johannes’s gaze met Jinhyuk’s head-on.
Too perfect to be a coincidence.
More than anything, the ominous smile Jinhyuk showed the moment their eyes met made Johannes’s heart pound.
…Something was going wrong.
His instincts screamed in warning.
-Do not use any unique abilities or skills to clear the mist.
The one and only restriction about the Bridge of Illusion.
“Ah, no!”
Johannes hurriedly reached out to stop Jinhyuk.
But—
“I can.”
It was too late.
[Unique ability ‘Domain of Wind’ activated!]
The smoke enveloping the bridge vanished like a lie.
At the same time—
[The guardian of the ruins awakens.]
[All beings within the guardian’s detection range are recognized as enemies.]
[Absolute judgment ‘Illusion’s Barrier’ is activated!]
[Until the guardian is destroyed, no one within the ruins can leave.]
One notification after another announced the worst-case scenario.