Chapter 537
The raid ended far too cleanly.
All that remained were the scattered ashes of Creed and the players staring blankly at them.
“We… we won.”
“This is so ridiculous I’m lost for words. This is really real, right?”
“I’d heard he was amazing, but seeing it in person, it’s a whole different level.”
Awe that surpassed mere admiration.
It was a realm no ordinary human could possibly believe.
Especially Lee Tae-min, who kept opening and closing his mouth like a dumbfounded goldfish.
If people could turn into fish, it’d look exactly like that.
“Hyu… hyuuuung?”
“Oppa, no, that ability just now….”
Lee Tae-min and Yoo Yeonhwa pointed at Jinhyuk and the many magic engineering weapons in turn.
A moment ago, he was almost dead, but now he got up perfectly fine as if he’d just had a nap.
The abilities they’d worked so hard to master… No, what he showed was magic engineering at a level so far beyond comparison it was absurd.
Everything was simply unbelievable.
‘It feels like all my efforts have been invalidated…’
Among players, he’d been praised as a ranker and prided himself on never losing to anyone in magic engineering.
But all that meager pride was shattered completely at this moment.
‘As expected, hyung really is a monster…’
Honestly, it’d be better for his mental health to just accept him as an outlier and not compare at all.
“Oppa.”
“Yeah?”
“Don’t touch taekwondo.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Just don’t, okay? Please… Just leave it. Seriously.”
Yoo Yeonhwa hurriedly tried to protect her own domain.
“Ahem. If my contractor wishes for it, I can hand over any ability or skill at any time.”
Only Alice showed no wariness, maintaining a completely nonchalant attitude.
Just then—
[Boss Monster ‘Nanoleaf’ makes another offer.]
The owner of the ruins spoke up again.
This time, the red glow was much fainter.
Clearly, witnessing Creed’s destruction had triggered a big change of heart.
“I’m listening.”
Jinhyuk nodded into the air.
[Given the mutual exhaustion and heavy casualties, how about a three-day truce? As boss monster, I’ll activate the gate to the outside.]
So that’s what this is.
He’d overdone the theatrics so much that it worked better than expected.
Even Nanoleaf now wanted to avoid further fighting for the time being.
Of course, there was no need to accept the offer at face value.
“Hm. Why should I agree to that? Now that I’ve warmed up, I could just push straight through and not waste any time.”
Truthfully, taking a break wouldn’t be bad for his side either.
He needed to separate the clinging players soon anyway.
But showing weakness would be fatal.
If he was going to take a break, he might as well get as much out of it as possible.
[…]
After a moment of hesitation, Nanoleaf spoke again.
[If you accept my terms, I’ll give you ‘Igni’s Flame Stone’ as a reward.]
Now it was Jinhyuk’s turn to be surprised.
He’d expected some kind of incentive, but…
…he didn’t expect it to be ‘Igni’s Flame Stone.’
He was about to get one of the essential items for the linked quest for free.
Jinhyuk suppressed his trembling heart.
Maintaining a calm expression was just a bonus.
“Ahem! Well, it’s not a bad deal. I’d rather regroup and try again than push too recklessly. After all, a ruin deserves to be tackled with proper respect.”
Jinhyuk coughed and reached out toward the red stone floating in the air.
Scorching.
The moment the stone touched his palm, he felt intense heat.
[Igni’s Flame Stone]
Acquisition Difficulty: S
Details: Part of the linked quest. Anyone holding this Flame Stone can dispel hostility when first meeting Igni. Also increases affinity with all fire spirits by 25%.
Good.
He had just gained three days and the Flame Stone at the same time.
⁕⁕⁕
The crystal tower at the center of Replor.
“Uuugh….”
“Cough… cough!”
Here, two sages were trembling in terror.
“…So. In the end, that fool Johannes and the guardian died, and Nanoleaf tucked its tail and let them go.”
Pendragon showed his displeasure.
Chill!
It felt like the temperature dropped by ten degrees.
“A-anyway… there must have been some mistake. If you give us just one more chance….”
“Yes! We’ll make up for it this time, so please don’t be angry with us.”
No matter how much they truly ruled Replor, even sages had no choice but to be afraid.
The dragon before them was on another level, even among dragons.
‘Black Flame Dragon.’
Among Ancient-class dragons, only those who surpassed the limits of their lifespan could gain such a title.
This Black Dragon, an ancient dragon, stood at the pinnacle of its clan.
Pendragon slowly looked over the two sages.
“No.”
The words from his mouth were a death sentence.
“Your role ends here.”
He drew a line, refusing to trust fools any longer.
“W-wait….”
“No, please…!”
Ulkara and Pradok jumped to their feet.
Survival instincts kicked in at the sight of black flames up close.
But it was too late.
Kwakwakwakwa!
“Gyaaaah!”
“Aaaagh!”
In an instant, fire swallowed their entire bodies.
No matter how they struggled, the flames wouldn’t let go.
The stench of burning flesh filled the room.
Step.
Pendragon strode past the two sages as they burned alive.
“I should’ve handled this myself from the start.”
He thought it would be enough without moving directly…
But now, he had no choice but to act.
It was better than trusting the stupid upper-level deities or anyone else.
‘A new Ancient Species, huh…’
Pendragon’s mind was filled only with the black dragon Jinhyuk traveled with.
Its unique, bizarre mana and profound presence.
It was definitely an Ancient Species, one of his own kind.
And yet, its true name remained unknown.
⁕⁕⁕
After leaving the ruins, Jinhyuk headed straight to the workshop where the magic engineers gathered.
He was set to meet the halfling ‘Isaac’ who had started the linked quest, and the blacksmith ‘Orun’ whom he’d told to be ready within an hour.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Whoosh!
Hammers moved and fierce flames blazed.
The ten-story workshop was filled with countless magic engineers.
Jinhyuk climbed the stairs to a personal workshop on the third floor.
He was sure it was around here…
At that moment—
“Oh? Player Kang Jinhyuk!”
Isaac spotted him and waved.
“I didn’t interrupt your work, did I?”
“No, no. I was just about to take a break. Hehe. How have you been? I heard you were raiding a ruin, but you came back quicker than expected?”
“Things went smoothly, so I’ve got a little time now. By the way, why are you hiding over there, Orun? I can see your butt, you know?”
“Ahem! No, no, I, uh, just dropped something on the floor. That’s all.”
“I assume you’ve finished repairing [Napoleon’s Crown]?” (T/N: Changing it to Crown instead of Napoleon’s Coronation)
“Well, actually…”
“If it’s not done yet… that’d be a real disappointment. And when I get disappointed, I lose my temper…”
Jinhyuk’s voice went ice-cold.
Before anyone noticed, a dagger from his subspace gave off a chilling aura.
Orun gulped.
“Just a week—no, just three days—no! Just give me one more day! If you give me just one day, I swear on my life I’ll have it repaired!”
“You said one day, right?”
Jinhyuk started the timer.
A clock appeared at Orun’s neck, ticking away.
Exactly twenty-four hours left.
If he failed within that time, the time bomb on his neck would automatically explode.
“Heek!”
Face drained of color, Orun grabbed his hammer and sprinted back to the forge.
With the worker’s motivation reignited, it was time to take care of the linked quest.
Jinhyuk took out ‘Igni’s Flame Stone’ and handed it to Isaac.
“Whoa!”
Flames danced in Isaac’s eyes.
Seeing such a rare item, the craftsman in him couldn’t help but burn with excitement.
“Use this, ‘25mg of Salamander’s Blood,’ ‘2.5 Arkshop roots,’ twelve medium-grade ruby crystals, and three third-class Estine-style circuits to combine it. The fusion reaction probably won’t go smoothly, but I trust your magic engineering instincts to pull it off.”
“Uh…”
Isaac trailed off in surprise.
“Um, Player Kang Jinhyuk? This is a really novel combination method, but if we do it like this, there’s a good chance we’ll just ruin all the materials.”
A formula he’d never seen before.
The method was enticing for how it pushed the fire attribute to the limit, but the risk was outrageously high.
Even without detailed calculations, the chance of failure easily exceeded 90%.
And with the precious ‘Igni’s Flame Stone’ on the line, gambling like this was insanity.
However.
“Just do it.”
Jinhyuk only smiled with utter confidence.
Isaac wanted to say more, but closed his mouth.
‘This guy is different.’
He recognized a talent no one else ever had. He cleared linked quests that not even residents or players dared attempt.
A monster in a league no one could even imagine.
So…
…even this insane demand didn’t seem out of line for Jinhyuk.
He didn’t hesitate long.
“Yes. Leave it to me.”
Isaac immediately gathered the needed materials.
Wooooong!
With dazzling light, the items began to merge into one.
How much time passed?
Isaac was drenched in sweat.
After more than ten hours of intense labor, his limbs trembled with exhaustion.
“If I mix this now…”
As the medium-grade ruby powder fell into the furnace, brilliant, colorful smoke rose.
The final step in the recipe was done.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Isaac watched the furnace with a mixture of worry and anticipation.
He’d been impressed again and again by how smoothly the whole process flowed.
If other magic engineers had seen this—
No, even the sages in the crystal tower would have drooled watching this process.
That’s how perfect the formula Jinhyuk had given him was.
At that moment—
[You have successfully obtained the 15th Linked Quest item, ‘Fragment of Fire’!]
A message appeared announcing success.
At the same time—
[The 16th Linked Quest is being generated.]
A status window signaling the long-awaited final act appeared as well.
“Wow! It worked. It really worked! How do you know so much about magic engineering? I’ve seen a lot, but this is… innovation itself… huh?”
Isaac’s pupils suddenly widened in shock.
Kukukukuku!
A massive fireball loomed outside the window.
A magic even more powerful than anything he’d felt on the 33rd floor was being unleashed.
It was targeting this entire workshop.