Chapter 110
Chapter 110
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 110
Chapter Title: Martial Arts Tournament (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Unbelievable power.
Only four of them were left.
And even those who survived weren't in good shape.
Two or three of their limbs had vanished, as if erased.
“It’s not regenerating…”
“Why is a divine beast like that here…”
Of course, Nix, seemingly exhausted, reverted to its original size and landed beside me.
“Ppoyo…”
“You did well.”
I was surprised when it collapsed after I stroked its head, but seeing its chest move, it seemed to have fallen asleep from overexertion.
This had happened before.
“Isn’t our Nix the best?”
“What was that about fire not working? Don’t make me laugh.”
It seemed my companions’ morale was back up.
Thinking we had a fighting chance, I unfurled my wings.
“Was… was he not human?”
“He is human.”
“Human or not, there’s no need to be afraid. The divine beast seems to have used up all its power anyway. That must have been its last-ditch effort.”
Not exactly.
I sent a blade of intent toward the demon trying to calm its comrade, but once again, nothing happened.
“Puhaha, what a dim-witted human. Have you already forgotten my explanation about the difference in our class?”
Is that so?
I charged at the goat-headed demon closest to me.
*Slice—thud—*
The goat demon that had been mocking me spurted blue blood as it was sliced in two and fell.
“Repellius!”
[You have defeated the high-ranking demon, Duke Repellius.]
I still didn't quite understand what they meant by "class."
But I had seen it with my own eyes.
I saw Bio use his will to slice a sword with an indestructible option clean in half.
If my will doesn’t work without a medium, I just have to imbue it into my sword and cut them down.
“Everyone, retreat for now—urk!”
*Slice—thud—*
I had aimed for the neck of the demon next to him, but he reacted, and I only managed to sever an arm…
*Slice—crack—crack—*
Or so I thought, but a flash of golden light burst forth, and the demon—no, what were once pieces of a demon’s flesh—scattered across the floor.
[You have defeated the high-ranking demon, Duke Agares.]
“So all we had to do was cut them directly with our swords.”
Hanna, who had landed softly beside me at some point, said this, and I was genuinely startled.
I hadn’t seen or even sensed her move.
Not a single drop of blood stained her clothes or her sword.
Her claim that she could subdue me in three minutes now seemed like a generous understatement.
*Whoosh—*
A streak of blue light pierced another demon’s heart.
*Crack—crack—*
Ice shards formed from the gaping hole, instantly engulfing its entire body before shattering into pieces.
[You have defeated the high-ranking demon, Duke Valefor.]
“It’s easy once you know the trick.”
Milli said with a faint smile, holding her bow.
It was a technique I’d never seen before.
“…Im…Impossible. Don’t tell me you all… Gaaah!”
I was curious about what he was about to say, but he suddenly screamed as what little was left of his body began to slowly disappear.
As if being erased.
[You have defeated the high-ranking demon, Duke Gusion.]
It felt similar to the feather attack Nix had shown earlier, but when I looked over, Nix was still sleeping soundly.
Ah, wait a minute. I think I saw something similar with the Death Scorpion.
“Timi?”
“Yes. This one requires a bit of concentration, but thanks to everyone buying me enough time, I was able to complete it.”
It seemed it was Timi’s Flameless Fire.
Just as I felt with the Death Scorpion, it was a truly absurd technique.
“Kkyuing!”
The battle between the Demon King and Arpeus was still ongoing, as the Golden Dragon soared into the air.
Right, you need to earn your keep too.
Most of the demons were so obliterated I wasn't sure if I'd be able to loot anything, but thankfully, notifications began to appear.
[You have acquired Gehenna's Horn.]
[You have acquired the Legend Grimoire: Absolute Barrier.]
[You have acquired the Thousand Death Belling.]
[You have acquired the Demon Whisperlance.]
[You have acquired High-Ranking Demon's Heart x4 (Duke-rank).]
[You have acquired Orb of Trait x6.]
[You have acquired Blessed Armor Enhancement Scroll x4.]
[You have acquired Blessed Weapon Enhancement Scroll x4.]
Looking at the notifications, the count of four for items like hearts and enhancement scrolls suggested that the demons Nix had killed were so completely annihilated that nothing could be recovered from them.
Fortunately, it seemed enough fragments remained from the ones my companions and I defeated to salvage this much.
The items themselves looked quite good just from their names, especially the Legend-grade grimoire, which was a first for me.
I took out the book adorned with a golden cover that was first in my inventory.
[Absolute Barrier (Legendary)
A grimoire containing the ultimate defensive magic, Absolute Barrier.]
The description was quite simple, but as expected, it was a legendary item.
Normally, the Golden Dragon would have swallowed it whole, but it seemed safe, perhaps because of the mythic item it ate last time.
“Timi, take this.”
“Hyeon… Hyeon-ung, are you giving this to me?”
“You’re the only mage among us, right?”
The ultimate defensive magic. I could worry a little less about my companions from now on.
“Thank you.”
Timi, with a look of pure elation, hugged me and peppered my cheek with kisses.
“You little fox! What do you think you’re doing! Do you want to die?”
Of course, Rina wouldn’t stand for it.
She rushed over and grabbed Timi, but Timi lightly shook her off.
“Deal with it! It’s not like you can do anything here.”
Now where did she learn to talk like that…
Was it Ha-young?
“Mister, why didn’t you dodge? You just let her?”
Rina scowled, glaring at me.
“No, it’s not that I let her…”
“You jelly? Go on, you try it. Oh, wait, Rina’s a little kid, too short to reach. Bet that stings, huh?”
I was 100% sure she learned this from Ha-young. It would be better for my mental health to ignore them and check the items.
The other items seemed quite decent as well.
I opened my inventory again, and the first thing that caught my eye was a spear nearly two meters long.
[Demon Whisperlance (Unique)
A cursed spear imbued with the sweet whispers of a demon.
Handle with care, as even the user may fall for its whispers!
Attack Power 99, Strength +30, Mana +40, Agility +50
Damage Increase 180%, 100% Additional Damage to Light-attribute targets.
Special Ability:
Devil's Whisper
- 50% chance to inflict a random status ailment (Bleed, Paralysis, Blind, Frostbite, Burn, Confusion) on the target. Can be stacked.
- Prolonged use will erode the user's mind (erosion rate is inversely proportional to the user's mental strength).]
…Hmm, this one is a bit tricky.
The random status ailments that can stack, along with the incredible attack power and bonus stats, make it a top-tier Unique, almost Legendary-grade.
However, the fact that it erodes the user’s mind with prolonged use is a bit concerning.
Since it’s a spear and not a sword, I was thinking of selling it, but I’d feel uneasy selling something like this…
It’s probably best to feed it to the Golden Dragon the next time it eats an item.
I put it back in my inventory, and oh, a blue bow I hadn't seen before appeared.
I thought the pattern was just bell-shaped markings, but they were actual bells… My goodness, the bow was flashing with a brilliant golden light.
[Thousand Death Belling (Legendary)
The bow used by the continent's legendary master archer, Kapiros.
The moment an arrow is loosed, a thousand bells ring out at once.
Attack Power 105, Strength +50, Agility +100, Mana +50, Stamina +30, Luck +100, Accuracy Correction 100%, Damage Increase +200%, Indestructible.
Special Abilities:
Arrow of Death
- Imbues all arrows nocked on the bow with the aura of death, regardless of arrow type.
(5% chance of instant death on hit.)
Double-Edged Eternal Belling
- Final damage increases in stages according to the number of times the bell sound is heard.
(1 time: 10%, 2 times: 20%, 3 times: 40%. Can be stacked up to 10 times, but stacking 5 or more times will incur a penalty to the user's stamina and mental strength.)]
A true legendary item is in a class of its own.
The attack power and other options were one thing, but the final effect, Double-Edged Eternal Belling, was completely broken.
The damage increases exponentially, so a 10-stack would be a whopping 5,120%.
Of course, there was a penalty, but even with that, it was ridiculously overpowered.
“Milli.”
“Yes?”
Milli, who had been watching Timi and Rina with a worried expression, trotted over.
“Use this from now on.”
I handed it to her without a moment's hesitation, but she just stood there, looking flustered, not taking it.
“Um, Hyeon-ung… is it really okay for me to take this?”
“Of course. If not you, Milli, who else would use it?”
“…Ha-young uses a bow too… I’m fine if you give it to her…”
So it was about Ha-young.
I could tell from her eyes that she desperately wanted it.
“It’s much better than what you’re using now, so take it.”
The bow Milli was currently using was a Unique item I had bought for her before.
White Zero, was it?
I remember its options weren’t bad, but it couldn’t compare to the Thousand Death Belling.
“Hyeon-ung…”
“Ha-young is a precious little sister to me, but you’re my precious companion too. And Ha-young didn’t even participate in this battle. It’s right for you to use this.”
“Hyeon-ung…”
She must have gone through a lot teaching Ha-young all this time.
She bowed her head deeply with an incredibly moved expression.
“Thank you. I’ll take great care of it and use it sparingly.”
I gave it to her to use in battle, what's the point of using it sparingly?
“What do you mean, use it sparingly? Use it as much as you want. No, wait. It has that penalty, so be careful with it.”
“Yes! Don’t worry!”
Seeing Milli smile, hugging the bow to her chest as if she loved it, warmed my heart.
“Mister, is there anything for me?”
“Hold on.”
There was still one more piece of equipment left.
The last one is a sword.
I thought Rina would be a little disappointed as I took it out, but… wow, this final sword was also emitting a brilliant golden light.
[Gehenna's Horn (Legendary, Sealed)
A demonic sword crafted from the horn of Gehenna, the sole goddess of the demon world who governs destruction and the end.
*Partially sealed. Conditions must be met for its complete release.
Attack Power 125, Mana +200, Luck +200, Stamina -300, Agility +200, Strength +200, Damage Increase 300%, Indestructible.
Special Abilities:
50% chance to inflict Curse on hit.
40% chance to inflict Bleed on hit.
30% chance to inflict Paralysis on hit.
20% chance to inflict Weakness on hit.
10% chance to inflict Sleep on hit.
??? (Sealed)
??? (Sealed)
??? (Sealed)]
I was speechless.
Even in its sealed state, it wasn’t far behind Kalisina’s Nightmare.
Once unsealed, it might be even better than Kalisina’s Nightmare…
Unfortunately, after tapping here and there, I couldn’t find any information on how to unseal it.
Since it’s a demonic sword, maybe killing a lot will do it?
I can ask Bio about it later.
“Hanna, do you want to use this sword?”
“No, I’m fine.”
“This is a legendary item.”
“Even if it’s legendary… Hyeon-ung, that’s a demonic sword.”
“A demonic sword? It says it’s made from the horn of a demon god.”
Hanna’s expression soured even more.
“Swordsmen who used demonic swords have always met bad ends…”
Hearing Hanna’s words made me a little worried.
There could be a penalty among the sealed options.
I’ll have to ask Bio, and if he doesn’t know, I’ll either store it or feed it to the Golden Dragon.
****
*Rumble— Rumble—*
Even though we had moved farther away from the temple, the ground was still shaking violently.
Of course, everyone was used to it by now, so none of my companions were surprised.
Ha-young, too, looked unfazed.
Three days ago, after finishing the battle with the high-ranking demons, the first thing I did was use Red Hare to go down to the first floor and bring Ha-young back up.
Bio had appeared and said the battle wouldn't end quickly.
Besides, while the goblins on the first floor were no threat to Ha-young, there were other summoners there.
Fortunately, Ha-young was perfectly fine, and we returned to the 67th floor.
“Oppa, this time it’s Elaine unni, Timi unni, and Master Milli coming, right?”
“That’s right. It’s finally our turn.”
The labyrinth would be closing soon, but the battle between the Demon King and Arpeus still hadn't ended.
According to Bio, who had briefly appeared, it would take at least a month…
“Jealous, Rina?”
At Timi’s provocation, Rina’s cheeks puffed out.
“No, I’m not! Besides, mister said he’s going to some tournament this time. He won’t have time to play with you guys.”
Come to think of it, once this labyrinth session ends, I’ll be heading to the imperial capital for the martial arts tournament finals.
The capital was one thing, but I was also curious who would be going with me.
If nothing unexpected happened, it would probably be Chil-seong…
“Don’t jinx it!”
As I watched my bickering companions with a smile, a blue light suddenly flashed, and my vision changed.
A familiar plaza and numerous summoners came into view.
[Oh Hyeon-ung, you are currently ranked 1st among surviving summoners for reaching the lowest floor of the Kramis Labyrinth. You will retain the Pioneer title.]
[You have acquired a Random Item Box.]
“Oppa? Are we back?”
“Looks like time was up. Let’s move before it gets more crowded.”
Normally, when the labyrinth closed, the surroundings would shake and crumble.
But this time, we probably didn't notice because of the aftershocks from the battle between the Demon King and Arpeus.
I’d be summoning Milli, Timi, and Elaine again, so that wasn’t a big issue, but I didn’t even get to say a proper goodbye to my other companions.
I’ll probably get an earful the next time I go to the labyrinth.
I hope the battle is over by then.
“Let’s go. I’ll walk you.”
“No, I can go by myself. I know the way.”
“It’s crowded.”
“I’m not a baby. And you must be tired, Oppa. You have to summon the unnis too…”
“It’s fine. It won’t take long.”
She was entrusted to me, so I should see it through to the end.
Of course, I doubt they’d scold me for sending her alone, but I’d feel more at ease this way.
I escorted Ha-young to the entrance of the Golden Lion Guild’s guildhouse and returned to Kabisa.
I considered going inside to say hello, but I was tired, and I needed to summon my companions quickly.
I returned directly to Kabisa, but huh?
A familiar face was waiting for me at the entrance.
“Where have you been? The Lord is looking for you.”
It was Kasat, the commander of the Lord’s personal knights.
Come to think of it, when I enter the labyrinth, Alice would naturally be reverse-summoned.
From the Lord’s perspective, he’d probably prefer I didn’t go into the labyrinth.
Wait, maybe that’s why he hesitated last time.
“Ah, I was seeing a friend off… Let’s go.”
I summoned Red Hare and quickly arrived at the Lord’s castle.
With the knight commander, I passed through the security check without issue and was able to meet the Lord right away.
“My apologies. You must be tired.”
“It’s about Lady Alice, isn’t it? I should have come sooner. That was thoughtless of me.”
“Haha… no, it’s not that. And I have something to tell you.”
“Is it about the martial arts tournament?”
“Yes. We will be departing tomorrow morning, and we’ll be staying in the capital for a total of five days.”
Oh, that’s longer than I expected.
Can my companions come along?
“Excuse me, Lord, would it be possible for my companions to come with me?”
“That’s not a difficult request. I don’t see why not, but…”
“Is there some other problem?”
Have the angels made a move?
I was warned to be careful, as they can operate in the outside world too.
That was also why Bio was a bit reluctant about me going to the capital.
“No. That’s not the problem.”
The Lord let out a deep sigh and shook his head.
“The problem is the other preliminary winner who will be going to the capital with you.”
It’s not Chil-seong?
The Lord sighed again and told me, and I was utterly shocked.