Chapter 38
Chapter 38
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 38
Chapter Title: Demonic Armor and Future Plans
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“So you chose the armor and shield set first?”
“The spear was useless to us. Actually, the spear was surprisingly unpopular. No one in our group really uses one.”
Of course, it wasn't just any spear, so it would have been excellent for 'selling' or 'trading'.
But stashing items like that is something you do after everyone is geared up with what they need right now.
Since three different parties were taking turns picking one item at a time, the spear's priority was bound to be low.
Seong Yu-jin was half-reclined on the bed, while Kang-seok and Choi Yu-ra sat on chairs beside it.
Seong Yu-jin's gaze fell on the Demonic Armor Arnac, which lay at the foot of the bed.
“Are you sure it's okay? There must have been a lot of other good items...”
“Nope, not at all. It's not that there was nothing else I wanted, but no matter how you look at it, this demonic armor was the best item from the quest, and it's something that can strengthen you, our party's tank. Besides, for Kang-seok and me, who aren't tanks, it's just heavy and cumbersome. Have you ever seen a rogue demand warrior gear when it drops in a raid? So, it's not like Kang-seok and I made some huge sacrifice. You can just be happy about it. You're happy, aren't you? Right? You are, right?”
Choi Yu-ra, who had jumped in waving her hands, urged Seong Yu-jin on with a torrent of words.
Seong Yu-jin hesitated for a moment before nodding.
“Y-yes. I'm happy.”
Her cheeks even flushed slightly.
Kang-seok spoke gently, as if to soothe her.
“We still made out pretty well. Cimeries had a ton of items.”
Even though Kang-seok's group had secured both MVP and VP, they couldn't just monopolize all the good items.
The right to choose the first item was a massive advantage in itself.
Following the turn order, the next two best items after the Demonic Armor Arnac went to Baek Gi-hyeong's party and Park Hyeong-sik's party, respectively.
There were enough items for all ten Players to get at least one, so the selection process took quite a while.
Kang-seok, who didn't particularly need another weapon, took a belt that slightly enhanced his stamina, and Choi Yu-ra got a necklace that improved her concentration.
“Daniel said it's supposed to be a big help in improving the efficiency of repetitive training. But honestly, besides the stats, I just liked how it looked.”
Choi Yu-ra pulled out a silver necklace she had tucked into her tank top to show them. It bore an impressive emblem of crossed swords and a moon, seemingly a symbol of a god from this world.
“Apparently, it's the emblem of the Green God, one of the Four Great Gods. No idea why a Demonic Beast would have something like this, though.”
The Green God, the goddess of the moon and night.
Despite being a goddess, she was worshipped as the strongest god of war, surpassing even the Sword God Cnut and the God of Honor Galahad.
“Anyway, since Kang-seok and I can't see item stats, we only know what we were told. You should appraise it yourself.”
Choi Yu-ra said, and Kang-seok lifted the Demonic Armor Arnac and handed it to Seong Yu-jin.
Even though it was shaped to protect only the shoulders and upper body, without any parts for the arms or wrists, it looked like it weighed over 20 kilograms.
“Be careful, it's heavy.”
After a nod, Seong Yu-jin carefully took the demonic armor. Her eyes widened, and she let out a gasp of awe.
“Wow... Whoa...”
“What is it? Is it that good?”
Choi Yu-ra asked impatiently. Seong Yu-jin nodded enthusiastically, then appraised the shield. Her reaction was the same.
“It's really, really good. I thought Mr. Leif's shield was high-grade, but this is so much better. Seriously.”
She was even rambling a little.
Seong Yu-jin blinked a few more times, examining the demonic armor, before asking Kang-seok and Choi Yu-ra.
“Are you sure it's okay for me to have something this good?”
It wasn't suspicion, but rather bewilderment and guilt. Choi Yu-ra pinched her cheek.
“Have you been tricked your whole life or something?”
“Like Yu-ra said, if the tank gets stronger, we're all that much safer.”
As Kang-seok shrugged, Seong Yu-jin hugged the demonic armor tightly. A bright, flawless smile spread across her face.
“Thank you both so much.”
“Ugh, I'm being purified.”
Choi Yu-ra pretended to be in agony, like a vampire facing the sun.
Some time passed with their laughter and chatter. Once the mood settled down a bit, Seong Yu-jin asked Kang-seok.
“So, what's the plan from here on out?”
“Mr. Baek Gi-hyeong's party is heading to the Grand Temple of Galahad since they need to get Mr. Oliver's arm treated. They all earned a lot of Kron this time, so they won't have to worry about money for a while.”
“What about Hyeong-sik's group?”
“They're going to stay at the Temple of Galahad a bit longer. There might still be some monster remnants, and it's not a bad place to earn Kron.”
Although they had defeated the Demonic Beast Cimeries, the presumed cause of the monster outbreak, there was no guarantee that everything was resolved.
Seong Yu-jin let out a long sigh.
“So everyone's splitting up again after all.”
They had only been together for a short time, but she'd grown quite fond of everyone.
Seong Yu-jin didn't dwell on it for long. A ten-person party was inefficient from the start.
‘Maybe someday we'll actually form something like a guild.’
After all, the more friendly Players you had, the better.
“What are we going to do now?”
Though it had never been officially decided, Kang-seok was the group's leader.
Before answering, Kang-seok reached into his clothes. Just as Choi Yu-ra had done, he pulled out a golden necklace he had hidden inside.
“Yu-jin, you remember this, right?”
“The Hero's Necklace.”
The locket necklace containing a portrait of a beautiful woman.
“Iris mentioned the '72 Demonic Beasts' this time. Demonic Beast Cimeries. Does that ring a bell?”
Kang-seok hadn't been able to speak with Iris since the battle with Cimeries. Choi Yu-ra also said she hadn't communicated with her at all since a brief conversation about items right after.
So, for now, Kang-seok decided to focus on what he knew.
72 Demonic Beasts.
Demonic Beast Cimeries.
Both were terms he'd heard for the first time. However, the expression 'Demonic Beast' reminded him of something.
Seong Yu-jin's eyes widened.
“The master of the dungeon Labyrinthos, the Demonic Beast Barbatos.”
72 Demonic Beasts.
A phrase that clearly implied there were more.
Demonic Beast Cimeries and Demonic Beast Barbatos.
“There's definitely a connection. It might even be related to that 'World Quest'.”
If they see the 'ending,' they can return to their original world with all the power they've gained here.
The one and only promise given to the Players.
And to see that 'ending,' they had to clear seven World Quests.
Kang-seok took a deep breath. He was talking about grand things, but he had only just found the barest of threads.
Choi Yu-ra added.
“Mr. Jade said he didn't know what the '72 Demonic Beasts' were either. But I don't think Iris would have made such a fuss for no reason. It's a new keyword we'll have to keep in mind on our journey. Anyway, let's get back to the original topic...”
Choi Yu-ra trailed off and looked at Kang-seok. She turned her lightly clenched fist toward him, as if passing him a microphone.
What would be their next destination?
Kang-seok began to explain.
“After we finished distributing the items, I had a chat with Mr. Jade. We talked about a few things, including Mr. Leif.”
Leif Ericson.
The adventurer who left behind the guide to the dungeon Labyrinthos.
The quick-witted Seong Yu-jin's eyes seemed to light up. Kang-seok didn't delay any further.
“Mr. Jade said he'd heard the name 'Leif Ericson' before. It seems he was a pretty famous adventurer, just as we suspected.”
“Then the hero's name, too?”
“No, Mr. Leif was famous as an adventurer party's 'pathfinder.' He didn't know anything about his companions.”
It had been a hundred years since monsters began to appear. In this world, besides the military forces of nations, there were also 'private' military forces that dealt with monsters.
Mercenaries and adventurers, common in fantasy novels and games.
Of course, with established nations, such private forces couldn't grow beyond a certain size, but it was at least possible for 'renowned adventurers' to exist.
“For now, I'm thinking of tracking Mr. Leif's movements. The commercial city he used as his base of operations will have a lot of people, which means a lot of information... If we're lucky, we might even hear something about Kang-san and Han-yeong there.”
At the mention of Kim Kang-san and Park Han-yeong, Seong Yu-jin's expression brightened. She asked, her face full of anticipation.
“What's the name of the city?”
Kang-seok didn't answer right away, but smiled with his eyes. He held out a business card he had prepared in advance and said.
“Rozelburg. It's one of the cities Mr. Locksley mentioned.”
* * *
Players, with their superior physical abilities, also required less time to recover from injuries.
After resting for one more night, Kang-seok didn't delay any longer and hurried to set off.
“May the blessing of Lord Galahad be with you.”
Not only Priest Jade, but all the Players who had fought alongside them came to see Kang-seok's party off.
Baek Gi-hyeong's party planned to stay for one more day before leaving.
In front of Oh Su-min, who looked undeniably disappointed, Choi Yu-ra grinned. She ruffled his hair once, and then, as if on a whim, planted a quick kiss on his forehead and said.
“See you later, kiddo.”
Oh Su-min flusteredly stammered something, but it was impossible to make out what he was saying.
He had a look on his face that said he might ask to go with them if left alone.
After the noisy farewell, the party left the Temple of Galahad behind.
Once they were far enough away that their voices couldn't be heard, Kang-seok asked Choi Yu-ra.
“Just how did you win that kid over?”
His first impression was of a rebellious teenager, but now he was like a puppy. It was understandable why Oh Su-min had looked so flustered the whole time.
“Well, I'm just pretty, you know?”
Choi Yu-ra grinned, crossing her arms, and Kang-seok quickened his pace to walk alongside Seong Yu-jin.
At the blatant dismissal, Choi Yu-ra pouted.
“Hey, why no answer? Huh?”
“We should get a carriage or something when we get to a city. Traveling is taking too much time.”
Kang-seok nonchalantly changed the subject, and Choi Yu-ra puffed out her cheeks. Seong Yu-jin, smiling faintly at their little skit, made a suggestion to Kang-seok.
“How about we just get horses? There's a pretty big village nearby, right?”
The party was currently heading west from the Temple of Galahad. Their goal was to reach Rozelburg, located in the southwest, by passing through the villages to the west.
Choi Yu-ra, who had fallen slightly behind, quickened her pace and squeezed in between Kang-seok and Seong Yu-jin. She linked arms with Seong Yu-jin and asked.
“First Alphonse, and now this. Do you like horses?”
Seong Yu-jin was the one in the group who doted on Alphonse the most. She smiled brightly again and nodded.
“Yeah, they're cute.”
Kang-seok and Choi Yu-ra glanced back at the enormous horse for a moment, then narrowed their eyes. Choi Yu-ra was the first to shrug.
“Well... liking animals is a good thing. Yep.”
“What, isn't he really cute?”
Seong Yu-jin muttered, sounding a bit displeased. Instead of jumping in, Kang-seok changed the subject.
“Anyway... we need to stop by a village for supplies regardless, so it's not a bad idea. Nothing is more precious than time, so getting horses like Yu-jin said is a good plan. We can get rid of the cart and divide the luggage among the horses.”
This world was vast.
A distance that took more than half a day on horseback was considered 'a stone's throw away,' which said it all.
The land was vast and transportation hadn't particularly advanced, so getting horses was their best option.
At Kang-seok's words, Seong Yu-jin's shoulders trembled slightly as if she were delighted just by the thought, while Choi Yu-ra's gaze drifted into the distance as if organizing her thoughts.
“Hmm, horseback riding. Traveling by horse. Being summoned to this world isn't all bad, is it?”
It was a typical Choi Yu-ra-like comment and gesture, nothing out of the ordinary.
But Kang-seok found himself stopping in his tracks.
A strange sense of unease.
An emotion that flickered on Choi Yu-ra's face for an instant before vanishing.
“What are you doing?”
A few steps ahead, Choi Yu-ra and Seong Yu-jin turned to look back at the motionless Kang-seok.
Seong Yu-jin was blinking, and Choi Yu-ra tilted her head.
“Oh, yeah.”
Answering awkwardly, Kang-seok quickly started walking again to match their pace.
‘Did I see that wrong?’
An expression that couldn't be described merely as bitter.
It was a look so unsuited for Choi Yu-ra that Kang-seok soon shook his head.
He erased the small sense of unease and doubt that had surfaced in his mind.