The Boiling Depths
A message window suddenly popped up. It was a notification warning that lava was rising from the very bottom of the Three Skulls' Mine.
Lava is rising from the depths of the Three Skulls' Mine!
Lee Se-yeon looked at Tae-hyun in sheer panic. "Don't tell me you...!"
"Unni! Get a grip! No matter how crazy things get, there's no way Kim Tae-hyun could have done this... right?" Kim Hyeon-ah chimed in, but even she faltered at the end.
If it was Tae-hyun, he really might have. They had been traveling together this whole time, but this was Kim Tae-hyun they were talking about!
Of course, from Tae-hyun's perspective, this was completely absurd. "Aren't you guys being a bit too harsh?!"
Cain, who was still standing alone among the Akisus tribe warriors, stepped forward. "I mean, sure, Kim Tae-hyun has caused all sorts of incidents! He unleashed plagues, turned people into Liches, and whatnot!"
Is he actually trying to help me or what? Tae-hyun wondered.
"But even so, how could he possibly pull this off? We're in an alliance, so you should at least show some trust!"
"Ugh." Lee Se-yeon flinched. He was absolutely right. Because she and Kim Tae-hyun were close enough to throw such banter back and forth, it didn't escalate, but if they were in any other party, a fight would have broken out the moment those words were uttered. Once you form a party, you have to at least pretend to trust your partner!
"I'm sorry. I spoke without thinking."
"Don't worry about it. You always do."
"..."
"..."
Lee Se-yeon and Kim Hyeon-ah stared blankly at Tae-hyun, but he remained unfazed. Meanwhile, Cain slunk over to his side.
He whispered in a tiny voice, "But seriously, how did you do it? We've been together the whole time."
"..."
Tae-hyun immediately regretted feeling a brief moment of admiration for Cain.
-Hmm. We seem to have wandered around quite a bit, but as for the gold...
"If you ask for more, even I won't stand for it," Smith warned as the goblin tribesmen subtly nudged him. Smith was polite, but he was no pushover.
-Ah. Look at how prickly this human is.
-Exactly. Can't we even talk? Honestly, wandering around this place and fighting alongside you is exhausting. Look at that lava. It's boiling hot.
"..."
Smith felt a wave of gloom wash over him. It was the depressing realization that he had taken his quest in completely the wrong direction!
I'm too embarrassed to even stream this.
Top rankers rarely broadcasted in real-time anyway. There was always the risk of stream-sniping or having their quests sabotaged. The standard practice was to complete the quest first, then edit and upload the highlight reel later.
In that regard, this was a quest he would be too ashamed to ever broadcast. He felt like he was doing nothing but digging himself into a deeper hole.
-Those guys over there. They didn't believe in the Emperor.
"...? Is that actually the name of their tribe?"
-Why?
"...No, never mind. I'll go try to persuade them first..."
The moment they approached, a fiery welcome poured down upon them.
-Long live the Emperor! Death to the rebels!
Boom! Crash!
As all kinds of magic rained down, the goblins shrieked and fled in terror.
-Huh? I thought those guys didn't believe in the Emperor?
"..."
-Don't look at us like that, human! It's true!
-Goblins like us don't lie! Do you not trust us?
"I absolutely do not."
Though he hadn't been associating with these goblins for very long, Smith's trust in them had already completely evaporated.
"...Let's look around somewhere else first."
Smith began leading his goblin mercenaries to other areas. He could have just attacked the tribe that just assaulted them, but he figured it would be faster to find and persuade the tribes that actually hated the Emperor first.
-Those guys over there definitely hate the Emperor.
-Long live the Emperor! Death to the rebels!
-...
But everywhere they went, they were met with cold rejection!
-T-this shouldn't be happening?
"..."
-Even if you look at us like that, we're not giving back the gold! The gold is ours!
"What exactly are you trying to pull here?" Smith asked, his voice turning dangerously cold.
The goblin mercenaries shook their heads frantically.
-W-we don't know either. Those guys were definitely...
"...!"
Suddenly, it clicked. Smith had assumed the goblins were just playing tricks on him, but then he remembered that Lee Se-yeon was also in this mine.
She might have already swept through this area before him!
Smith quickly scanned his surroundings.
-Detect Evil Energy!
Traces of undead summons lingered in the air, and signs of battle were visible nearby. It was undeniable; Lee Se-yeon had been here.
I'm a step too late!
She had moved far faster than he had anticipated.
What do I do now?
Since Lee Se-yeon was already ahead of him, trying to recruit the remaining tribes was a losing battle.
Should I just leave the mine...? Smith pondered.
Should he just abandon this place entirely? Once things tilted this far out of his favor, clawing back was incredibly difficult.
-Human. I have a great idea.
"...Let's hear it," Smith replied, his voice dripping with suspicion. He didn't trust them one bit.
-Don't look at us with such suspicious eyes!
-Yeah, yeah!
"So, what is it?"
-There's an incredibly powerful monster at the very bottom of the mine. If you capture and tame it, all the tribes here will look up to you in awe.
"...Fine."
Smith was skeptical, but he decided to check it out. If it didn't work, he could just give up then.
At his agreement, the goblins grinned wickedly.
-Hehehe. Yes, let's go! Let's go!
• The ambient temperature is extremely high!
• Movement speed penalty applied...
• Continuous HP damage is being taken...
• Intense heat is overwhelming your senses...
The underground depths of the mine were insanely hot, waves of heat shimmering in the air.
Smith frowned, his face contorting in discomfort. "Is this the place?"
-Yes! Yes! Look!
The goblins pulled out bombs and hurled them into the lava.
Boom! Crash! Kaboom!
With a deafening roar, the lava erupted upward.
-Look! It's coming out now!
As they spoke, the goblins simultaneously blasted Smith in the back.
-Fire Air Cannon!
Bang!
With a sharp crack, Smith was sent flying straight toward the pool of lava.
"?!?!"
-White Knight's Shield!
Shhhk!
Even as he was blindsided and pushed back, Smith managed to trigger his skill. It was a reaction speed worthy of a top ranker.
• You have fallen into boiling lava!
• Continuous massive damage is being taken...
• Resisting burn status effect.
"What do you think you're—!"
Realizing the goblins had betrayed him, Smith gnashed his teeth in fury. Those little bastards!
-Bwahaha! Foolish human! You fell for it! You fell for it!
-The monster here will tear you to pieces! We're taking your gold!
The goblins gleefully scrambled to hide behind a nearby boulder. Soon, the monster would emerge and slaughter the foolish human, and then all his gold would be theirs...
"...?"
Smith turned around in alarm, but no monster appeared.
"What is this?"
-T-throw more bombs! Maybe it didn't hear us!
-Why isn't the giant waking up? Come out, Golem Giant!
Thud! Crash!
The goblins threw more bombs, but the Adamantium Golem remained completely still.
-Why the hell isn't this guy waking up?!
"...Gentlemen?" Smith called out, his voice dangerously calm.
-H-human... let's make up!
"Die!" Smith roared, lunging forward.
The goblins, realizing there was no way out, abandoned their plans and drew their weapons.
Crash! Bang!
-Aaargh! This human is brutal!
"Look who's talking!"
-This human is too strong!
There was no way they could defeat Smith in close-quarters combat. Fuelled by pure rage, Smith went on a rampage, slicing through the goblins. Even when their bombs detonated around him, Smith shrugged off the blasts.
Boom! Crash!
Too many explosions have occurred. Please exercise extreme caution.
A message window popped up, but the enraged Smith completely ignored it. And then...
• The core of the Three Skulls' Mine is exploding!
• Lava has begun to boil over. Please evacuate immediately!
"I bet Smith did this," Tae-hyun speculated.
After all, Smith was the only one in this mine who would do something so reckless.
However, everyone else was skeptical.
"Come on, Smith wouldn't..."
"Yeah. Why would Smith go that far?"
"Smith isn't that kind of person. Definitely not."
Lee Se-yeon, Kim Hyeon-ah, and even Cain spoke in unison.
"Oh, so I'm the kind of person who would do this?"
"Uh... well... um..."
"Mmm..."
"Ahem..."
"...Fine, whatever. Anyway, I still think Smith is highly suspicious."
"I do wonder if Smith would really do something like this... but then again, people change. He's been screwed over by you so many times, maybe he learned a thing or two from watching you..." Lee Se-yeon nodded, finding her own logic convincing.
Flipping the table when things got disadvantageous wasn't typically Smith's style, but since he had been a victim of Tae-hyun's antics multiple times, it wouldn't be surprising if he had picked up some bad habits. After all, even she had resorted to using bombs during the dungeon tournament.
Tae-hyun turned to the tribe members and asked, "What happens if the lava boils over?"
-We all die, right?
"...??"
The Akisus tribe warriors answered with bright, cheerful faces.
Dumbfounded, Tae-hyun asked again, "No, I mean, doesn't it stop rising at a certain point?"
-Nope.
"...Are you serious?"
Tae-hyun looked at the giant Golem. The Golem nodded in agreement.
-Kuoh.
"Then why are you guys so calm?"
-We can survive even inside lava.
"What? Really?"
-As long as we believe in Archisus...
"Right. I get what you're saying."
Tae-hyun ignored the Akisus tribe and shifted his gaze to the NPCs of the other tribes.
-We're doomed! The end is nigh!
-We have to get out of here!
-Tell the tribe! We must run!
They were jumping up and down, panicking in a frenzy. Strangely, seeing them act like normal, rational beings brought Tae-hyun a sense of relief and comfort.
Tae-hyun smiled warmly.
-Kuoh?
Carbanog asks why you are laughing.
"I have my reasons... More importantly, those tribal guys look like they're going to run away, but what about you?"
-Kuoh!!
The Golem gasped in shock. Now that it thought about it, if the lava rose, its home would be completely submerged! While the Golem didn't take damage from lava, it couldn't exactly live inside it forever.
-Kuoh! Kuoh!
"Hey, even if you look at me like that, what do you expect me to do? Am I a god?"
-Kuoh...
"There's only one answer."
-Kuoh?
"Pack your bags and get out."
-...
"And make sure you dig up that Adamantium vein and bring it with you! Don't you dare leave it behind!"
For some reason, the Golem's eyes seemed to flash with a hint of hostility.
But there was no other choice. Even a giant Golem couldn't stop the rising lava.
Ultimately, the Golem waded into the lava, hoisted the entire mineral vein from its lair onto its back, and marched out.
-Kuoh...
"If that's too heavy, Cain here can carry it for you."
-Kuoh!
The Golem huffed in irritation. It used to be such a gentle creature, but it was rapidly learning how to express negative emotions.
"Wow... how are we going to deal with the aftermath of this...?" Lee Se-yeon muttered, looking around with a massive headache.
A massive crowd of tribesmen was pouring out of the mine entrance. As the Three Skulls' Mine began to fill with lava, the inhabitants had no choice but to flee to the surface.
The tribes residing in the Three Skulls' Mine were notorious for being fierce and powerful. If they weren't provided with a proper place to settle, they would either lash out in anger or turn into bandits, pillaging the surrounding areas.
Find a New Home for the Displaced Tribes
The tribes residing in the Three Skulls' Mine are notorious for their ferocity and strength. If you do not find them a suitable place to live, they will either lash out in fury or turn into bandits, pillaging the surrounding lands. Secure a proper settlement for them!
If you succeed, the tribes will be deeply grateful to you.
🎁 Reward: ?, ???
"Uipoatl won't throw a fit, will he? Since they've technically sworn loyalty to the Emperor... maybe we can have them settle near the borders of the Empire..."
While Lee Se-yeon was deep in thought, Tae-hyun stepped forward and addressed the crowd.
"Is there anyone who wants to come with me? It's a bit far, but there are no taxes, the Archisus Church is there, and it's full of trustworthy NPCs."
-We do! We do!
The Akisus tribe members excitedly raised their hands.
"You guys are obviously coming."
-Hooray! We're going to where Lord Archisus is!
However, the other tribes looked highly skeptical.
-Just how far is it?
-The Archisus Church? Is that really a safe place?
-Who exactly are these 'trustworthy NPCs' you speak of?
-Why is the territory named like that?
As Tae-hyun tried his best to explain, he found himself stumbling over his words. No matter how shameless he was, he couldn't outright lie about things that didn't exist, or deny things that did!
Is there any way to change the subject?
Just then, he spotted another group of tribesmen emerging from a nearby entrance in the distance.
And walking among them was a player clad in glittering knight's armor!
It was Smith.
"Look, it's Smith! Smith is over there!"