Chapter 103
Chapter 103
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 103
Chapter Title: Chapter 21: Grave Robber (3)
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‘What the heck is that...?’
Yang Tae-ho stared at the scene in a daze.
But the shocking events didn’t end there.
“Kyaaak!”
“Keeek!”
It felt like a sharp gust of wind suddenly blew in from somewhere, and the monsters swarming the area began screaming as they were torn to shreds.
Yang Tae-ho, who had been standing there dumbfounded like a soulless puppet, suddenly flinched, his shoulders jerking.
He had spotted a figure standing tall amid the collapsing monster corpses.
A white man with brown curly hair.
An especially large pile of monster bodies lay scattered around him.
Only then did he piece together what had just happened.
It seemed that player had stepped in and saved him.
The moment certainty of his safety sank in, Yang Tae-ho’s legs gave out, and he plopped down onto the ground.
“Hoo.”
Part of him wanted to just sprawl out right there and bask in the relief of survival.
But instead of slumping over, Yang Tae-ho immediately started chugging potions.
To replenish his depleted mana.
It was a habit ingrained from wandering through contaminated zones.
Mana management was homework no player could ever neglect.
Today’s urgency had thrown off his timing, but normally, he’d pop a potion before his mana bottomed out to speed up recovery.
On top of that, a stranger had shown up.
The guy seemed to have helped him out, but he couldn’t let his guard down completely.
‘Better safe than sorry.’
Had Yang Tae-ho downed about three potions in a row?
That’s when the unfamiliar player approached the evolved monster’s corpse.
His shoulders twitched once more.
He’d noticed something protruding from the evolved monster’s forehead.
‘What’s that?’
Something sharp and black.
Just as Yang Tae-ho leaned in for a closer look at the mystery object, the brown-haired man reached out.
Black monster blood sprayed out, and Yang Tae-ho’s eyes widened slightly.
He had a hunch what the man had pulled out.
‘A short spear?’
Unlike a standard spear, this one was only about a meter long.
Spears weren’t common among players to begin with, let alone short spears.
Unaware or uncaring of Yang Tae-ho’s gaze fixed on him, the man flicked the blood off the short spear with a sharp shake.
Shwick.
And slotted it into his lower back.
Only then did Yang Tae-ho take in the man’s gear.
“Whoa, mama...”
The man didn’t have just one short spear.
From his right shoulder down to his left waist in a diagonal line, three short spears were secured.
That apparently wasn’t enough to fill his broad back—he was also holding a long spear in his hands.
And it didn’t stop there.
Short swords adorned both thighs, leather pouches hung at his sides, and a leather strap with a small dagger was wrapped around his right forearm.
Most astonishing of all, he was clad in proper armor.
‘That’s the Zeber set, ain’t it?’
From the roaring beast pauldrons to the chest plate, and protective gear covering limbs and other body parts.
The man had the full five pieces of defensive gear named after the Zeber Scouts.
As a tank himself, Yang Tae-ho was well-versed in shop-bought armor.
Which made him all the more shocked.
‘How much did all that cost?’
A full Zeber set would easily top 50,000 mana.
Even Yang Tae-ho, who called himself a tank, only had a chest plate and shield—nothing else.
With magic, potions, and a dozen other mana sinks, you couldn’t dump it all into armor.
He’d been making do with his own toughened body’s natural defense.
Yet this guy had assembled a whole Zeber set.
And on top of that, he wore modular mana accumulators compatible with the Zeber set.
‘Dang, yellow means 5-star, right?’
Mana accumulators came in seven rainbow-colored grades.
Red was the top 7-star, so yellow was indeed 5-star.
Rare-grade items were treasures already, and a 5-star among them?
Just looking at his gear was enough to leave your jaw on the floor.
As Yang Tae-ho ogled the man’s equipment, a sudden realization hit him.
‘He’s solo?’
He scanned the surroundings, but no other players who might be his party were in sight.
Solo play was picking up in relatively safer 1-star contaminated zones lately, so it wasn’t unheard of...
‘But there ain’t no 1-stars around here.’
To reach a 1-star contaminated zone from near Viceta outpost, you had to go through Outpost 2 or 3.
All other outposts only led to 2-star zones now.
Which meant this guy had come into a 2-star contaminated zone all by his lonesome.
‘Must be mighty confident in his skills.’
As Yang Tae-ho observed the man, his eyes suddenly bulged round.
“Gasp.”
He’d overlooked it earlier, distracted by the flashy gear, but now he spotted the symbol.
‘Ain’t that from there? What’s it called, Par... Pare somethin’...’
He racked his brain for the name, but Yang Tae-ho only remembered orders beyond his own Temoria.
‘What was it again?’
All that mattered was what the symbol signified.
There were seven orders players in Bihal could join.
Thus, seven types of symbols floating over players’ heads.
But two in particular were rarely seen.
‘The ones with doctrines of kindness and charity, I reckon.’
He didn’t know the names, but players from those two orders were hard to come by.
They were so rare that this was Yang Tae-ho’s first time laying eyes on either symbol in person.
Meaning the player count in those orders was tiny.
The Kindness order had zero passers of its initiation trial.
The Charity order had occasional sightings and some community activity, but...
‘Not a whole lotta ‘em.’
Community guesses put it at a few hundred at most.
A pittance compared to the other five.
Just his own Temoria order had over 10,000 initiates.
Easier ones like Pinelphania or Agnatia topped 20,000.
And now, further growth was unlikely.
Most players had crossed 10,000 mana and picked sides.
Without a third wave of players, numbers wouldn’t shift much.
So the odds of running into one from that order were slim.
No wonder he was stunned.
‘There really folks who joined that one?’
Staring at the man, Yang Tae-ho felt a bit incredulous.
Not even minutes had passed since he appeared, and he’d already been shocked who-knows-how-many times.
The situation felt so unreal that he sat there blankly, until the man turned around.
Their eyes met head-on, startling Yang Tae-ho to his feet.
Then he strode toward the stranger and spoke first.
“Truly grateful, yessir. Thought I was a goner for sure, couldn’t even twitch.”
The man gave Yang Tae-ho a once-over, then nodded lightly.
And in a casual tone, like he’d stepped out for a stroll, he said,
“Planning to keep hunting here?”
“Huh?”
Yang Tae-ho was shocked yet again.
The white man’s lip movements and voice matched perfectly.
He was speaking Korean.
‘What’s with the perfect pronunciation?’
Mixed heritage? Lived in Korea a long time?
Questions flooded Yang Tae-ho’s mind.
“There’s two 2-star contaminated zones overlapping deeper in...”
But the man pressed on in his level tone, unperturbed.
“Field mobs are pretty thick here. About three times a normal spot?”
Yang Tae-ho flinched at the number.
“That many evolved ones too. At least twenty I’ve confirmed—and that’s a lowball.”
The man continued undeterred.
“Looks risky solo. Maybe head back?”
Before Yang Tae-ho could respond, the man raised his spear.
“That way.”
He pointed southeast, 4 o’clock direction.
“Cleared a path hunting. Should be safe for a bit.”
As the man finished, Yang Tae-ho swallowed hard without thinking.
‘At least twenty?’
He and Phoenix Party had taken down three evolved ones so far, four including the one just killed.
Twenty more even after that?
He’d never seen a contaminated zone this packed with evolved monsters.
‘Dang, this place is a real deathtrap.’
Thanks to the man’s intel, no need to agonize.
No way he could solo-hunt here.
A cleared path meant a safe exit alone.
Sprint it, and he’d reach the outpost before monsters regrouped.
‘Don’t get greedy—time to bail.’
Having brushed death once made the choice easy.
Plus, he needed to get back safe to grill Phoenix Party on ditching him and claim his promised share.
Decision made, Yang Tae-ho extended a hand.
“Thanks for the advice. And the save—much obliged.”
The man eyed the hand for a moment.
But soon gripped it for a firm shake.
“Take care.”
A greeting so plain it bordered on dry.
Yang Tae-ho turned toward the direction indicated.
But after just three or four steps, he stopped.
Then looked back at the man.
“Need any potions by chance? Ain’t much repayment, but I got some to spare.”
“I’m good. Got plenty.”
“Glad to hear it. Stay safe, then.”
“Yeah.”
He took another three or four steps before halting again. Why?
‘He worried or somethin’?’
In a spot where scraping by solo was tough, fretting over another was laughable.
Phoenix Party ditched him to save their own skins, didn’t they?
If roles reversed, would he have chosen different?
This game demanded ruthless plays to survive.
He knew that, yet heart and head pulled apart.
His feet dragged, and he kept glancing back.
‘Guy’s out here solo.’
Confident enough to enter this hellhole alone, sure.
Still, leaving him high and dry tugged at him.
‘Seemed wind-element from earlier.’
Wind balanced offense and defense well, but often criticized for lacking punch.
Earth for defense, fire for attack—better picks.
‘If my lifesaver bites it, I’ll have nightmares somethin’ fierce...’
But volunteering help? He’d nearly died minutes ago.
Stay out of pity and risk another brush with death?
He’d regret not leaving, for sure.
Selfishly, bailing now was right—but some stubborn humanity in this cursed game held his ankle.
Maybe broach it? As he hesitated,
“Best go before it’s too late.”
“Huh?”
The man, who’d been watching him, spoke first.
Right then—boom, boom, boom!
The ground rumbled. Classic sign of an evolved monster approaching.
Amid the sudden panic, a calm, almost monotone voice reached Yang Tae-ho’s ears.
“I’m in the middle of luring them for a hunt.”
No sooner had he spoken than monster roars erupted from all directions.
Goddamn System