The Elemental Temple

She was definitely excited. Lee Se-yeon tried her best to control her facial expression as she tugged at Tae-hyun's sleeve.

"Captain. Your classes are completely different, so isn't there no point in you teaching Kim Tae-hyun?" Ryu Tae-su asked, looking puzzled.

His younger sister, Ryu Da-young, also nodded and spoke politely. "I think it would be better for my brother, who has a similar class, to teach him."

Because she had joined relatively late, Ryu Da-young was still a bit awkward around the team members, but her respect for Lee Se-yeon was absolute. Of course, in terms of skill, Tae-hyun was respectable too, but Tae-hyun was... well... When you watched him up close, you couldn't help but think, What on earth is this guy doing?

In contrast, Lee Se-yeon was a textbook ranker. She was easy to respect. That was why Ryu Da-young wanted her brother to do it instead of Lee Se-yeon, but...

"...Kim... Kim Tae-hyun uses black magic too."

"...!?"

Surprisingly, Lee Se-yeon didn't back down easily. She retorted in a small, lingering voice.

"He used... black magic?"

"Yeah, Sis. When Player Kim Tae-hyun used black magic was..."

"I didn't ask. Captain. But isn't his main skill set swordsmanship...?"

"N-No. Kim Tae-hyun uses black magic a lot. Especially lately. Right, Kim Tae-hyun?"

"Huh? Oh. Yeah, I've been using magic a lot lately."

Right now, the only thing left for his class quest to reach the Master tier was magic.

I thought I'd max out magic before skills like singing...

When the three tasks were given, he had expected to max out magic before singing or cooking, but the world didn't work out as planned. Tae-hyun's magic skills were currently restricted—forcibly—to a few Unique skills. And because the enemies he faced were so strong, his magic often didn't even scratch them. If he hadn't transformed into the incomplete incarnation of the Plague God, Idergo, his magic skill level would be even lower.

Ryu Tae-su stared blankly at Lee Se-yeon. For a second, Se-yeon's heart skipped a beat, thinking her true feelings had been caught.

"...As expected of the Captain. Amazing. You see things on a completely different level than I do."

Ah. He's an idiot when it comes to Kim Tae-hyun.

Se-yeon felt like she had wasted her anxiety. No need to worry!

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"And here I thought I knew him much better... *sniff*..."

"It happens. Well, then, shall I go guide ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠him?"

Whoosh—

"?"

Along with the sound of wind, a spirit radiating powerful mana appeared. It wasn't just emitting wind. At a glance, it seemed to burn, while its bottom was frozen solid. The center alternated between dark and bright...

"What's that? An enemy?"

"Not an enemy."

"It's not an enemy."

Tae-hyun's group spoke in unison. Lee Da-bi explained in more detail.

"It's one of the professor NPCs here at the Ancient Empire University. If you clear their daily quests, they give you various teachings."

"Ah. Really?"

Despite its violently turbulent appearance, Tae-hyun was relieved to hear it was safe. Here at the Ancient Empire University, there were all kinds of unique NPCs handed down from the days of the Ancient Empire. The primary goal was to clear the quests of these professor NPCs, build intimacy, and obtain skills!

What do spirits like?

Grab.

"?"

The spirit grabbed Tae-hyun's arm. Thick vines grew out of the flickering flames, tightly wrapping around Tae-hyun's arm.

"Is this a greeting?"

"...No...?"

They had never seen a greeting like that before.

Whoosh!

The spirit suddenly lifted Tae-hyun up and began running like crazy.

"...Hey!!!!"

"T-Tae-hyun!"

The kidnapping was so sudden that the group reacted a beat late. Has that NPC lost its mind?!

"Catch it!"

An enraged Lee Se-yeon prepared to cast a spell, but Ryu Da-young hurriedly tried to stop her in a panic.

"W-Wait, we need to think about this. If we attack ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠now, our reputation inside might drop..."

They had built up a reputation here. If they attacked an NPC and it dropped, the entire questline could get messed up. Da-young thought that since everyone here was a ranker, they would understand if she explained.

...But that was a delusion.

"Kill it!"

"That pathetic lump of elements!"

"Trample it!"

Everyone except Ryu Da-young poured out attacks in a fit of rage.

"Descent of the Necronomicon, Darkest Curse!!"

"Archisus's Massive Gold Donation, Gold Consumption, Constraint of Waste, Archisus's Mind Destruction!!"

The two ranged classes poured out brutal attacks. Lee Se-yeon cast a powerful single-target curse, while Lee Da-bi spent gold recklessly to apply buffs before launching a ranged attack.

"..."

"..."

"..."

This was the Ancient Empire University. It was basically the spirit's home turf. A level of strength on a completely different dimension!

...Despite this, Lee Se-yeon didn't care.

"We're chasing it. You bastard. You're dead."

"I'll spend gold to apply buffs."

"We don't need defense, so invest everything into attack power."

"Of course."

Clank, clank—

"?"

Before they could even give chase, a new NPC emerged from a side alley. It was a golem made of steel and brass. An NPC the group hadn't seen yet!

"...That bastard took him!!" Lee Da-bi pointed her finger at the elemental spirit and shrieked. She was so furious that her voice trembled, and tears were practically welling in her eyes.

Seeing this, Ryu Da-young was so flabbergasted she said, "U-Um, Player Lee Da-bi. You can just meet him when you log out of the game..."

"It's that bastard! Chase him!"

Clank, clank, clank!

The Brass Golem quickly began to give chase.

"We should chase too—"

Thud, thud, thud—

"...What is it this time...?"

An ogre, easily a head taller than most giants, appeared holding a massive kitchen knife. Its terrifying appearance made the group instinctively grab their weapons.

Thud, thud, thud!

The ogre began running after the golem. Only now did the group slowly begin to grasp the situation.

The NPCs related to crafting skills were about to compete to take him, so that elemental spirit bastard snatched him away in advance! It was a terrifyingly fast judgment.

Can I beat him up?

While being kidnapped, Tae-hyun had a similar thought to his party. If he hit it, would his reputation drop and penalize his future quests?

Should I hit him, should I not, should I hit him, should I not...

Wait, what?

Tae-hyun was startled. As expected of an NPC from the Ancient Empire, its magic skill was incredible. It had merely wrapped him in vines, yet it raised his skill failure rate this much... Even though Tae-hyun had his Luck stat and various divine Authorities! No matter how prestigious the Ancient Empire University was, this was an astonishing level of strength.

But I have to beat him up.

Tae-hyun made up his mind. It took less than a second. The fact that the opponent sealed his skills meant there was a high probability of some wicked scheme. He had to strike first!

"..."

Slide.

Tae-hyun quietly withdrew his hand, which had been reaching for a bomb. Now that he thought about it, attacking an opponent who hadn't even attacked him yet seemed like a bad thing to do. Shouldn't they try talking first?

"!"

The Ancient Empire University was a place where one could never predict what lay inside. A mysterious place where a vast hall could exist inside a shabby-looking shack, and a desolate tomb could lie inside a grand royal palace.

The place Tae-hyun was currently kidnapped—no, invited—to was a temple-like area where various elements blazed in different spots.

- Is this the student Master brought?

"?"

Hearing a voice from below, Tae-hyun looked down. A uniquely colored slime was speaking to him. A slime whose color changed every time he looked at it!

"Who are you?"

- I am Master's butler.

A summon summoned by the spirit! Tae-hyun nodded and asked, "I don't know if ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I was 'brought' here, but I'm here anyway. Why did you bring me here?"

- Is there any other reason to come to the Elemental Temple?

"!"

Tae-hyun was startled. He wasn't surprised by the quest's appearance, but by its contents.

There's an NPC who owes a favor to the Archisus Church??

Well... hearing the stories from the past, they did fight a lot of different battles.

Few players in Pandemonium Online had as much information about the Ancient Empire era as Tae-hyun. After all, his class was directly related to it. Thanks to that, he could estimate the state of the Ancient Empire era to some extent.

Demons pouring out of the Demon Realm, the empire collapsing from all sides, communications cut off between various regions, and so on. Back then, the Archisus Church fought fiercely against the demons by setting fire to the empire, drying up rivers, and summoning massive typhoons.

...The methods were a bit bizarre, but they fought nonetheless. They could have easily earned a favor in the process!

"..."

- ...

The spirit was flustered by the sight of Tae-hyun, who couldn't even use fire itself, just as it was about to begin the most basic fire magic lecture.

"...I can use it in a different way, though. Corpse Explosion!"

- ...????

The spirit was even more flustered. Aren't you the successor of Archisus??

"I stole this!"

...Isn't it understanding a bit too easily?

Even though he succeeded in persuading it, Tae-hyun found it a bit absurd. He expected it to ask more...

Beside him, the slime spoke.

- Master says, "You should have said so in the first place."

"...Well, anyway, I'm glad you understand..."

- Master asks you to show the magic you can use.

"Hmm..."

The magic he could use right now...

Corpse Explosion, Bone Shield, Summon Skeleton...

Should I just insist that I can't use a single spell?

A lineup that would make anyone ask, "Is there something wrong with your magic?"!

Even Tae-hyun himself thought it was an outrageous lineup.