Chapter 96
Chapter 96
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 96
Chapter Title: Kai'sha the Great's Tomb
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"Kai'sha the Great's Tomb? If you're planning to go inside, you'd better stock up on plenty of food."
The gravekeeper managing the tomb addressed the group.
The man in the black robe didn't look ordinary at all.
'The Dark Zone has spread this far, yet he's still alive. That means one of two things.'
Either he was powerful enough to withstand the Dark Zone, or he wasn't human.
"Why's that?"
"Once you go in, you won't be able to find the exit. But don't worry too much. If you don't make it out within three days, you'll automatically warp back to the entrance."
A sharp glint shone from within the hood that shrouded even his face.
"It's the Great One's blessing."
"......If he's going to bestow a blessing, it'd be nice if he made it easy to just stroll right through."
"Heh heh—."
The gravekeeper let out a faint chuckle at Woojin's words.
"Do you know anything about this, by chance?"
Woojin pulled out the key he'd received from Bensina and showed it to the man.
"......!!"
The glint in the hood wavered.
"You've brought something remarkable. I've been here for ages, and you're the first to show up with one of these."
The gravekeeper took the key from Woojin and examined it closely.
"This unlocks the burial chamber at the center of the tomb. There are only three on the entire continent...... Where did you get it?"
"Isn't there just one?"
"Indeed. It couldn't have come from the Black Dragon, of course...... And it's been ages since we heard from the alchemist Juter...... Don't tell me the Queen of Nemes gifted it to you?"
'I got it from that Black Dragon bastard, though......'
"Something like that. Thanks for the info."
Woojin tucked the key back into his pocket.
"What do you all think?"
"Can I be honest?"
"Of course."
"I'd prefer we hold off."
Peron spoke cautiously to him in front of the tomb.
"Why?"
"Kai'sha the Great's Tomb remains unconquered even after all these years. That means it's not a place you can brute-force your way through."
"Fair point."
True to his title as the King of Labyrinths, the tomb was an insidious maze.
"Master left Torn Bach in such a hurry to make the most of our time, didn't he?"
"Right."
"One wrong step, and we could waste those three days for nothing."
He had a point.
Woojin was curious about the Dragon Knight's legacy, but failure would spell headaches.
Being trapped for three days would mean Torn Bach filling up with people again, drawing all sorts of unwanted attention.
"House Ballan has a private hunting ground. I can talk to my father and get it opened for you."
That was one reason Woojin wanted to reach the Tekan Kingdom quickly.
According to Peron, they could hit level 60 just hunting there—no need to go anywhere else.
'Above all, growing Luen takes priority. I can level up on the side.'
Even if he followed the Fairy Queen's advice and headed to the Great Forest, it was safer to complete Luen's class change first.
Besides, it was the perfect spot for Woojin, who needed a stable hunting ground.
"We could gather intel and tackle it slowly, but we've got the tomb key, right?"
"I agree. A dungeon that's stumped everyone this long won't fall in a day or two."
Woojin nodded at their words.
"Got it."
"I'll help you access our family archives too. So you can find the info you need."
Karlan seemed to agree as well.
'And......'
There was one more thing to investigate.
The alchemist Juter and the Queen of Nemes whom the gravekeeper mentioned.
People with keys to the tomb besides the Black Dragon.
'If they were just connected to Kai'sha, they wouldn't have the keys.'
They were surely tied to Bensina somehow.
'Those two are key to conquering the tomb.'
Woojin decided he'd meet them before heading into the labyrinth.
"Do you know anything about those two?"
"Hm...... I don't know much about this Juter fellow. But the Queen of Nemes? I know her well."
"Who is she?"
"She's the head of Poltergarden, the Druid Union."
Woojin nodded at Karlan to continue.
"It's quite a ways from Tekan...... If you head east from Tekan another few hundred kilometers, you'll reach Lake Yorn. She's the druid leader who lives there."
"Hm......"
Unlike Juter, she was a public-facing NPC.
'Guess I'll pay her a visit later.'
These connections always led from one to the next anyway.
Seeing her would reveal where Juter was too.
"So...... you'll head to Tekan, then? It won't take long now. Half a day more, and you'll hit the village of Yorka."
"......Yorka?"
Woojin nodded at Karlan's response.
The name rang a bell.
'Oh, right.'
"Now that the Dark Zone's gone, you can use the portal there."
Yorka.
That was none other than Raoul's hometown.
"In that case, we have to stop by."
Luckily.
He could fulfill Raoul's request sooner than expected.
"Um......"
"What?"
As the two talked, Peron spoke up with a worried look.
"You shouldn't go to Yorka. Better to push on to the city of Kashan, even if it's a bit farther."
"Some kind of problem?"
"It's Genesis Unit territory."
"Hm...... So?"
"I know Master doesn't mind them...... But it's not like the Dark Forest. They've got numbers there."
"Doesn't matter. We ran into them here too."
"......Pardon?"
"Some guy named Colson was in Torn Bach. Looked like he was there for me......"
"Wh-what happened? What did you do?"
"What do you think? Sent him packing."
"Phew...... That's a relief. Glad it ended peacefully......"
Peron let out a quiet sigh of relief at Woojin's words.
"To the shrine."
"......"
Peron and Woojin stared at each other.
"Ah, no! How long have you been on the Central Continent, and you're already stirring up this much trouble?!"
"Stirring up? I was just sitting there, and they came looking for me."
Woojin replied innocently.
"Aigoo, what a headache......"
"Why'd Yorka fall to Genesis Unit anyway? I thought their base was way off from here."
"It is, but Genesis Unit has outposts all over the continent, like a cult."
"That much?"
"Yeah. Even some of the top ten clans are smaller in scale."
Peron spoke in a low voice.
"You know JR Group? The number one in IT."
"......Number one?"
Woojin frowned slightly at that.
'JR of all groups is number one......?'
"Their second son is the head of Genesis Unit. Name's Karyu. No sponsors to answer to, so he does whatever he wants, and their power exploded."
JR Group's second son.
Woojin knew him well.
Nomura Shun.
'The idiot who tried to outpace the [R&C Technology] I built—siphoned funds from HQ, rushed development, and tanked his own company......'
He'd even spread all sorts of rumors and dirt to drag Woojin down.
But with Woojin gone, [R&C Technology] was gone too.
Which apparently let JR Group claim the top spot.
Tsk.
Remembering those real-world headaches soured Woojin's mood out of nowhere.
"JR Group's massive funds let Genesis Unit buy up villages and land everywhere."
"Why bother?"
"That's the weird part. Kingdoms were happy to sell off remote, unimportant villages for big money."
"And?"
"Then jackpots hit every bought village."
"Jackpots?"
"Dungeons popping up, mines discovered—stuff like that."
"Oh! I saw it on the forums. They resold those villages to kingdoms at huge markups for massive profits."
"Exactly. But Karyu never sells certain ones. Yorka's one of them."
"What's there?"
"A mana mine."
Mana stones.
Unlike runes with fixed stat boosts, mana stones gave random stat increases when consumed.
But they overlapped with rune consumption limits, so pure stat gains were inferior.
Still, mana stones were in higher demand as materials for alchemy, magic, and more.
Unlike monster-drop runes, they could be mined cheaply, serving as substitutes for players without runes.
"......"
Woojin's face hardened at his words.
"Don't tell me...... They're using villagers as mine laborers."
"That's exactly it. Most of the village probably works digging mana stones."
Crunch—.
His hardened expression twisted into rage, and Woojin ground his teeth fiercely.
Mana stones were in high demand with stable supply.
But despite the perks, they had one massive flaw.
Mana poisoning.
Unrefined mana stones were potent toxins.
Mana poisoning came from prolonged exposure to the raw ore.
"That's why kingdoms banned mana mining. But Yorka's private land now. Genesis Unit restarted the operation."
"Fucking moron. Even in business, he picks the shittiest plays......"
"Pardon?"
"Nothing."
"So, best avoid Yorka if possible. We're not on good terms with Genesis Unit anyway...... Wouldn't want trouble over a portal."
Peron advised Woojin.
"Like you said, Master, rushing to Tekan is priority, right?"
"Yeah."
Woojin nodded.
"True...... But something more important than time came up."
"What do you mean?"
"My benefactor's mother lives there."
The group tilted their heads at his words.
'He's only just arrived on the Central Continent......'
'When did he make that connection......?'
"Sorry for going back on my word...... But now that I know about the mana mine, I can't just ignore it."
"Shall I pass along a message to watch out for colds?"
"......Pardon?"
Woojin recalled Raoul's words.
"......My mother suffered from pneumonia her whole life."
His final request.
"I don't have the face to meet my benefactor."