Chapter 205
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 205
Chapter Title: The Dragons' All-Out Assault
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Like the saying goes, "Though your beginning was small, your latter days will be very great."
Swarms of honeybees filled the beekeeping farm.
But the greatness of the honeybees wasn't just due to the queens and princesses tirelessly laying eggs.
Bzzzz~
Bzzzzzz!
As if to prove the adage "hard work never betrays you."
The vigorous activity of the honeybees, working tirelessly from the moment they emerged.
Collecting honey, expanding their territory, and more.
After they completed their given tasks without a hint of laziness, the next role fell to Seong-hyeok, the beekeeper.
“Full again today.”
Harvesting the honey that filled the hives, then processing and refining it.
A satisfied smile blossomed on Seong-hyeok's face at the feast of honey that endlessly filled the jars, no matter how many times he scraped it out.
“I'm always grateful for your hard work, everyone.”
Bzzzz~
Bzzzzzz!
The cheeky swarm of bees responded to Seong-hyeok's thanks by wiggling their bottoms.
They had a charm as irresistible as their sweet honey.
Now, some might wonder how much money could possibly be made from harvested honey...
Owned Coins: 135,560,001,000
Surprisingly, the income structure was such that the money just kept pouring in, enough to easily dismiss such questions.
[The 'Guardian's Aged Nine-Honey Bee Venom Strawberry Honey Tea (★★★★+)' you listed on the Exchange has been sold.]
[You have acquired 43,500 coins after a 10% commission fee.]
[The 'Guardian's Aged Rubydot Honey-Strawberry Clown Juice (★★★★-)' you listed on the Exchange has been sold.]
[You have acquired 190,000 coins after a 10% commission fee.]
[The 'Guardian's Aged Dark Lilyzer Honey-Strawberry Propolis Cosmetic (★★★★+)' you listed on the Exchange has been sold.]
[You have acquired 552,000 coins after a 10% commission fee.]
...
The immense capital earned from selling honey-based products, which might seem simple to some.
It was inevitable. It was a strategy of selling large quantities for a small profit margin, yet it was also a monopoly, as only Seong-hyeok, the Honeybee Guardian, could produce such marketable goods.
With buyers flooding in under these conditions, wasn't it only natural for money to roll in according to the principles of supply and demand?
Moreover, selling honey wasn't the only way Seong-hyeok made money through his bees.
【Jeongrichung: Honeybee-nim. I'll send you the full list and locations of those who wish to lease bees and receive bee venom therapy!】
【Honeybee: Thank you as always for your hard work.】
【Jeongrichung: Not at all. I should be thanking you for the work. Ah! And most of those who are currently leasing bees wish to extend their contracts.】
The recently started bee venom acupuncture and the long-running bee rental business.
Thanks to his devoted bees, he was raking in a massive, nonstop stream of profit.
The total amount was a staggering 100 billion.
He didn't know about the economies of other dimensions, but at least on Earth, there was almost no one who could compare.
If he wanted to, he could sweep up every item in the regularly held auctions with money to spare!
[The Transcendent Being, Mad Inquirer Bo, shrugs, as if to say you're already dominating everything.]
[The Transcendent Being, Insect Queen Nineto, smiles, wanting your bees to do whatever they please.]
[The Transcendent Being, He Who Endures, Sion, nods his head.]
...Of course, as Seong-hyeok was known as the 'whale' of honeybees, he had already swept through several auctions, monopolizing the items.
And was that all?
[The 'Guardian's Ruby Gem Honey Tea (★★+)' you listed on the Exchange has been sold.]
[There is no commission fee. You have acquired 2,000,000,000 coins.]
【Jeongrichung: I've sent the proceeds from the auction!】
With a much smoother supply of wild honey and highly concentrated honey, Honeybee now held his own auctions through Jeongrichung.
Buying and selling were easy thanks to the large-scale dimensional tunnel Kang Yeon-ah had installed, and funds were even transferred through a dedicated, commission-free exchange!
[The Transcendent Being, Great Golden Goblin Lord Macherati, chuckles that if you were of the Golden Tribe like him, he would have taken you as his disciple.]
“I'll take that as a compliment.”
Low-margin high-volume sales and premium auctions.
And with the continuous income from rentals and bee venom therapy, Seong-hyeok's profit structure was mind-boggling.
It was hard to imagine what more he could possibly need, but,
[The Primeval Golden Troll Empress and her royal guard are visiting your farm.]
“The opportunities to make money are just overflowing.”
The K-Honeybee of the Korean server.
Honeybee's business empire, which had expanded beyond Asia to the entire world, was now poised to spread throughout all dimensions.
* * * * *
The Primeval Golden Troll Empress.
A being with a formidable level of 88, the same ???+ grade as an Elder Dragon.
[Primeval Golden Troll Great General Gwint Lv. 87 (★★★★★+) - ???+]
[Primeval Golden Troll Strategist Gul Lv. 83 (★★★★★+) - ???]
[Primeval Golden Troll General Dwal Lv. 83 (★★★★★+) - ???]
[Primeval Golden Troll Porter Mu Lv. 72 (★★★★★+) - Disaster-class Boss Monster]
...
And most importantly, following behind her were the colossal Primeval Golden Trolls, befitting a 'Dimensional Magnate'.
Of course, they bore significant penalties due to movement restrictions.
And the number that had crossed over was surely just the tip of the iceberg, just as it had been with the dragons.
However, Seong-hyeok felt no need to worry about their arrival, nor was he excited at the prospect of gaining experience.
“Ooh! Yes, right there! That spot has always been aching!”
“Hmm. This part might hurt, so clench your teeth.”
Stab! Staaab!
The remarkable scene of the Troll Empress enjoying Seong-hyeok's special bee venom service in a corner of the beekeeping farm.
Was there any truth to the saying, 'There may be a troll who's never tried it, but there's no troll who's tried it only once'?
It was as if all her blocked meridians had been cleared during the previous bee venom experiment.
Jebo now boasted more flexible joints and smoother skin.
Although she had a past of becoming 'material' after underestimating bees and humans during their first encounter, the current Jebo was by no means hostile to Seong-hyeok.
Time had passed, and they had already conducted two more transactions since their first meeting.
“You could have come alone. Are you planning to pick a fight with me again?”
That's why the current situation was puzzling.
The question was whether this creature, who had become the biggest fan of bee venom therapy, was now planning to attack Seong-hyeok.
But that question had been answered long before it was even asked.
Bzzz~
Bzzzzzz~
“Uhahat. That tickles. You sweet thing.”
“Grrr! It smells sweet.”
As if their hive mind sensed not hostility, but only goodwill, the bees approached the Golden Trolls and rubbed against them.
What that implied was obvious.
Thump, thump, thump—
Thud—!
“Your honey is delicious. We will protect you.”
“Dragons? To us, they're nothing but mere reptiles!”
“The entire dimension is seeking your products for their incredible effects. And on top of that, this magical acupuncture that relieves a hundred years of fatigue and stiffness. We can't afford to lose such a talent to those dragon bastards!”
Unlike the dragons who were targeting Seong-hyeok, these ???-grade and ???+-grade forces had come for the purpose of protection.
He understood their clear intentions from Jebo and her followers, who were reliably thumping their chests and showing off their strength, but it wasn't without its problems.
“I'll say this upfront, I can't pay you a hiring fee. It's not that you wouldn't be helpful, but even without the Golden Trolls, I'm not so weak that I'd lose to the dragons.”
Providing this level of military support would surely come at a price.
But who was Seong-hyeok?
Having already hunted an Elder Dragon, he was in a position to handle any high-grade enemy without issue.
Especially since, even without the Golden Trolls, Seong-hyeok's farm had the High Elves and Murion.
Weren't they an undeniable force of the forest races?
In fact, among them, the Disaster-class boss monsters, excluding the Dig King, had long since ascended to the '???' grade.
In such a situation, there was no need to pay an additional cost and accept help from the Golden Trolls, who might have some hidden agenda, but,
“Hohoho, don't you worry. This royal guard is merely my small gift for a business partner. Just make sure they're fed on time. I've ordered them to obey your words as if they were my own, so I swear on my name that no unexpected incidents will occur.”
[You have met the conditions to use the Eye of Truth.]
[Jebo's statement is true.]
“Okay, thank you!”
They say if you love free things, you'll go bald, but for Seong-hyeok, who had no worries of hair loss thanks to bee venom therapy, there was no reason to refuse something free.
* * * * *
The Eye of Truth, one of the powers of a Transcendent Being that distinguishes truth from lies.
It confirmed that Jebo had no ulterior motives, but the problem lay elsewhere.
“...I feel like I've been tricked somehow.”
The condition Jebo had mentioned—just to provide 'food'.
He knew they'd be big eaters, fitting their massive size, but their appetites far surpassed his imagination.
Watching one of them devour what would be nearly 500 servings for a human was astounding, but if asked whether he regretted it, the answer would be no.
[The Disaster-class boss monster 'Shadow Specter Scar (★★★★★+)' and its duplicates have been born.]
[Shadow Specter Scar Lv. 74 (★★★★★+)] - Disaster-class Boss Monster
[Shadow Specter Lv. 68 (★★★+)] - Disaster-class Monster
...
The monsters that occasionally respawned on the beekeeping farm.
Since it was a Disaster-class boss, it was a critical situation that could even harm the bees, but now, he had no worries in that regard.
“Gwint. Time to earn my keep!”
Fwhoooosh—!!!
Thwack! Thwack! Thud! Crack!
Along with the merciless swing of a golden club, the Shadow Specter's wretched form was literally crushed.
The creature's absurd grip strength resolved the problem in an instant, without Seong-hyeok needing to lift a finger.
“Mu, move it!”
The cleanup was neat, too. Born with powerful bodies and fully armed with 5-star+ grade equipment befitting a Dimensional Magnate's royal guard, they had no greed for spoils.
“Want to barter.”
“Sure. Pick whatever you want.”
A Disaster-class boss monster. For an ordinary player, it was a chance at a fortune, yet this creature was content to trade it for mere food.
Of course, the trade was for wild honey like rock honey or tree honey, but that couldn't possibly compare to the potential of a Treasure item.
“Well, I guess what's good is good.”
What did an insane food bill matter?
In any case, preventing harm to the bees and residents was the best possible outcome.
“You rascals. Is it good?”
“Oh my, you all eat so well.”
“Khahat! This food is so delicious. It's an incomparable honeyed taste! I'm so happy!”
“If there's anything hard to move, leave it to Mu.”
For their menacing appearance, they had simple personalities and ate with a hearty appetite.
With their decent guarding abilities, they had now befriended the cooks, including Yeon Su-hee and Lee Yeon-bun.
But was the Troll Empress's foresight at play in stationing these forces at the beekeeping farm?
[The Transcendent Being, Goddess of Abundance Prepion, shouts for you to be careful.]
[The Transcendent Being, Archangel Seriel, nods, saying this too is a trial.]
[The Transcendent Being, He Who Endures, Sion, warns of a coming threat.]
[The Transcendent Being, Insect Queen Nineto, lets out a scream.]
...
The sudden clamor of notifications from the Transcendent Beings.
However, it didn't take long for the reason to become clear.
[The Transcendent Being, Dragon Lord Kalash, smirks sinisterly, declaring that all preparations are complete.]
He was on anything but good terms with Seong-hyeok.
The Dragon Lord, an enemy he'd personally flipped off and taunted.
There was a reason such a being was sending a blatant message to Seong-hyeok.
[The Transcendent Being, Dragon Lord Kalash, consumes his lair as a sacrifice to use the power of ■■■. The conditions for movement restrictions are temporarily and drastically eased.]
[Special Situation, you have met the conditions for the Dragons' All-Out Assault. -> More than 20 dragons have gathered.]
______________________________
[The Dragons' All-Out Assault]
* Category: Special Situation
* Effect: Movement restrictions are largely ignored for the dragon race. However, some abilities will be downgraded due to the power gap.
* Description: As a consequence of sacrificing his own lair, the Dragon Lord's power of ■■■ creates a massive rift in the dimension.
※ The 'World' is watching the Dragon Lord due to the massive dimensional rift.
______________________________
A grave matter that, even at a glance, could not be taken lightly.
[An entity that ignores movement restrictions is being summoned.]
[An entity that ignores movement restrictions is being summoned.]
[An entity that ignores movement restrictions is being summoned.]
...
They, along with a continuous stream of notifications, soon began to blacken the sky.