Chapter 876
Chapter 876
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 876
Chapter Title: God's Atlantis
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"We will now reveal the rankings for the top five in the hunting competition scores.
1st Place: Kidin Yustia
2nd Place: Ojam Stinger
3rd Place: Seira Arphis
4th Place: Sung Yu-jin
5th Place: Kang Myung-jin"
Kidin Yustia was the third prince, and Ojam Stinger was the master of a massive legion.
Kang Myung-jin had to take third place. Even if his skills were a bit lacking, he'd maximize the information he had to hunt monsters and hold onto third. But with Seira and me joining in, things had taken an unexpected turn.
'The wrath of the Moon Hunter made it so that any monster spotting us didn't run away—they came at us with everything they had.'
I shook my head after a moment of thought.
Whatever.
Kang Myung-jin, gunning for third, would handle it himself. A guy like him would find a way to outmaneuver both me and Seira.
We'd followed the suspicious bunch and spotted Kidin Yustia a short distance away.
He was a handsome man with golden curly hair and red eyes. His eyes had a slight droop at the corners, giving off a refined young noble vibe. He was with four other nobles his age and five escort knights. Those nobles were Kidin's followers—and witnesses to the incident about to unfold.
And right in front of Kidin was Kang Myung-jin. Just like in the original story, they were in the middle of dinner. Kang Myung-jin would get caught up in it here, save Kidin, earn some merit, and draw attention from all sorts of people.
'It's playing out just like the original. Elena and I didn't need to come.'
Figuring out identities would be easy too. Just chase down one of the fleeing guys and grab him.
"Who are you? Showing up out of nowhere like this is rude. Take off your masks and show your faces."
The third prince Kidin rose from his seat and addressed the shady figures. His calm voice carried a restrained killing intent. His acting was top-notch. The escort knights drew their swords, and Kang Myung-jin gripped his spear. The nobles backed away with trembling eyes, watching the scene unfold.
"Your Highness, why do you think we wore masks for no reason? Apologies, but you need to die right here."
"You're after my life. Who's behind you?"
Kidin said with a stiff, hardened expression.
"You think we'd tell you that ourselves? We're just doing our job. Attack."
The terrorists charged at Kidin, clashing with the escorts.
Boom! Kwang! Boom!
Sparks flew, and ice pillars shot up. One of the terrorists was a mage.
"Kill the third prince!"
"Protect His Highness!"
They fought fiercely.
Terrorists and escorts killed each other. It was so intense, no one would mistake it for a staged act. I glanced at Elena. Arms crossed, she watched quietly with her blue eyes.
Seira asked Elena, looking baffled.
"How long are we just going to watch? Two of the third prince's escorts are dead. At this rate, his life could be in danger."
"...No. Doesn't look like we need to step in. They can handle this themselves."
"We're falling back to the rear."
"The rear?"
"Easier to catch the fleeing ones that way. And running into the third prince won't do us any good."
We turned our backs to the screams—whose they were, I didn't know—and moved away.
Grrr...
A beast's growl rumbled. Our steps halted naturally. We all looked up and toward the distant forest.
About 500 meters away stood a wild boar. A massive one, over 5 meters long. No ordinary monster. Even from afar, its presence was overwhelming.
The black-skinned boar glared with red eyes and charged. Straight at me and Seira.
I immediately clocked the cause of this mess. The Moon Hunter's wrath. Damn that spinster.
"Your Grace, has the magic worn off?"
"No. It just didn't work on that boar. It's no ordinary beast. Probably because of you lot... Deal with it yourselves."
Elena grumbled and withdrew with her knight.
"D-Duchess Valderte? I'm Lady Seira's escort knight!"
"Help me instead of cleaning up after those idiots."
Elena dragged the knight away. Seira just glanced at her knight without stopping her. She gripped her greatsword with both hands and assumed a battle stance.
"Sir Yu-jin. I'll draw the boar's attention up front. You focus attacks from behind."
"Yes, my lady."
Seira collided with the boar. Kwang! A shockwave shook the ground like an earthquake. Kang Myung-jin and Kidin had probably noticed the giant boar and were heading this way. That's why Elena had bailed.
My eyes widened as I held Stormbreaker and readied a javelin throw. Seira's body flew upward from the boar's tusk uppercut.
"My lady!!"
"I'm fine! Attack!"
Crackle.
Lightning sparked from my body, gathering on Stormbreaker.
'Astrafe.'
I activated the skill. It packed more punch that way. Lightning wrapped around Stormbreaker. From afar, it'd look like I was holding a bolt of thunder.
Astrafe (B)
Lightning concentrates on weapon for enhanced strikes
Timing aside, I hurled the javelin at the boar's head. A brilliant bolt tore through the air with a sky-shaking roar. The boar moved its head again, trying to bat Stormbreaker away with its tusk.
And ridiculously, it succeeded. Stormbreaker spun wildly into the sky.
The boar charged me again.
But it ignored Seira. She dropped from above, swinging her greatsword and carving a deep gash into the boar.
Squeeeeal!
A beam of light shot from the crescent moon in the night sky toward me. Grateful for the system's advance warning—it let me prepare. And the Lord of the Heavens was pissed. His intervention had only made it worse. Astrafe (B) was my fault too, but the root cause was him.
'Stormbreaker!'
I reverse-summoned and resummoned Stormbreaker right in front of me. I shifted its form to a shield.
Stormbreaker was a weapon I'd barely used till now. Suddenly wielding it like a pro would pique interest, naturally. The system didn't react much. Maybe used to it? Or just observing for now.
I drew up mana to reinforce my body, focusing on my legs, and raised the shield with both hands.
Dodging wasn't an option from the start.
'That's a god's arrow. Homing's probably standard issue.'
A half-assed dodge would just get me hurt. Better to block it solidly.
The moonlit arrow slammed into the shield.
No sound. It was literally moonlight. But the force behind it was no joke. My body got pushed back. I channeled mana into aura around the shield. Still, I kept sliding backward.
Thud!
My back hit a tree. Crack. It splintered, shoving me further. Four trees toppled in sequence.
I gritted my teeth. The moonlit arrow vanished sometime ago. I knelt on the ground, catching my breath. Drip drip. Blood fell from my nose.
"Yu-jin! You okay?!"
Kang Myung-jin rushed over, grabbing my shoulder to help me up. I nodded and stood with his support.
"The boar?"
"The third prince joined in; they're fighting it. That lady... Seira Arphis? Where's Duchess Valderte?"
"Went after the terrorists. Can't let it get out that Elena's here."
"Got it. We'll keep quiet like we discussed."
I looked at Kang Myung-jin. He seemed unfazed—no alert for him. Makes sense; he hadn't even fought the boar. Zero contribution.
"Myung-jin. Your goal's third place, right? What now?"
"Plenty of time left, and I have ways. But Seira Arphis entering was unexpected. So... could you handle her for me?"
"With my skills?"
"Just harass her enough. Plus, you already know her. Sung Yu-jin, please. The third-place reward is essential for Bya to grow."
"Fine, sure."
I agreed without much thought. I'd never cared much about placing in the hunting comp anyway. Seira probably felt the same.
"Problem is, the Moon Hunter hates my guts now."
"...Saw that moonlit arrow. Probably fallout from one of your contracted divinities."
Kang Myung-jin nodded knowingly. Talking to him was easy since he had different intel from me.
"Got any good tips? Like a spot with no monsters...?"
He went quiet. His eyes shifted slightly—I could tell. He'd spent AP to block the divinities' gazes.
"...Sung Yu-jin. Know where we are?"
"Where else? Zone 2,350, the Moon Hunting Grounds."
"Guessed the Moon Hunter's true name, right?"
"Artemis."
"Spot on. She's the goddess of the moon, and this is her domain. Fitting for a hunting ground—prey everywhere. But one spot has none. Where the goddess rests."
"Where's that?"
"Hidden, tricky. Got a notepad?"
I handed him a notepad and pen.
"Head toward the crescent moon. You'll find a small stream. Don't follow it—look for blue flowers nearby. Where they're clustered thick, find a small pond. Dive in, and you'll hit the safe zone. Even divinities can't see it, so you can rest safe from Artemis."
"Ho."
News to me. Had no idea about that setting.
"Key part next. Something you must absolutely follow."
"Must?"
"Block divinity gazes with AP and go. Leave one hour before sunrise. Better yet, two hours for safety."
"Sweet intel. Thanks."
I stood. Just a nosebleed from the strain—body was fine.
Kang Myung-jin stared piercingly, then nodded.
"...Heh. Already figured out what it is, huh. Figures, with you."
He admired me on his own.
No clue what he meant, but I nodded along.
He'd always rated me highly. No harm in his trust, so I let it slide.
"Pleased to meet you. Heard about you from Lady Arphis—sub-master of Kang Myung-jin's legion, right? Took down that mad boar and scored points. Owe your legion today."
"Sung Yu-jin. Your Highness Kidin."
I greeted the prince. Short chat, then we split. Kidin feigned distress over his escorts' deaths but didn't seem too upset. His plan had gone off without a hitch, after all.
Seira and I moved out. Elena would handle herself. Worst case, she'd catch up with magic. One of the Empire's Five Dukes, the Illusion Duke—no need to worry. She was stronger than me; who was worrying whom?
"This the place you mentioned?"
"Yeah."
I peered into the pond. Looked shallow, but Kang Myung-jin's info was solid.
I dove in. My body sank smoothly into a cave. And the sight before me left my jaw dropping.
"A human man?!"
"Kyaaah!"
"Lady Artemis! Save us!"
Five naked beauties were in an open-air bath. No way Kang Myung-jin knew about them; he'd just shared blindly.
'My luck stat's high for a reason! Jackpot!'
I grinned wide.
I'd figured it out. Why he'd said to block divinity gazes.
The Lord of the Heavens and King of the Myriad Heavens, my contracted divinities, were exempt from gaze blocks. They wouldn't screw me over anyway. Save AP when you can.
'Heh. This is Artemis's bathhouse.'