Chapter 60
Chapter 60
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 60
Chapter Title: The First World Quest
-----------------------------------------------------------------
# 60
The second place Kang-seok's party visited inside the lair was the dining hall.
Unlike the treasury, the hallway was so short it was almost nonexistent. As expected, it consisted of one large room and one smaller room.
It seemed that most of the facilities within the lair were designed to accommodate both Andras’s true form and his transformed one.
“The kitchen’s completely empty. We’ll have to give it a good cleaning if we want to use it again.”
Dust was piled high everywhere in the kitchen, and skeletons were scattered about wherever one looked.
With the shelves and pantry all empty, they would have to bring in ingredients as well.
Nodding in agreement with Choi Yu-ra, Seong Yu-jin examined the kitchen's cooking utensils one by one.
“There’s a furnace… and the ventilation seems surprisingly good. With a little work, we could use this right away, don’t you think?”
Although the two of them hadn't yet discussed the “guild hideout” with Kang-seok, they were subconsciously guessing his intentions.
Kang-seok's party had obtained quite a lot after defeating the Demonic Beast Andras.
The value of the gold and jewels was beyond estimation, and the new magic items they acquired would surely prove useful.
But if one were to discuss the greatest prize of all, it would undoubtedly be Andras's lair itself.
In truth, from the perspective of a “home,” the location in the Sauerland Mountains was the worst possible.
For one, supplies were hard to come by.
Even to get to the nearest city, Aachen, one had to ride a horse.
Moreover, the surrounding area was swarming with monsters. Monsters were encountered the moment one stepped outside, making it impossible for an ordinary person to live there.
But from the perspective of a guild hideout rather than a home, everything changed.
Perhaps their judgment was skewed by the various games they had played until now, but considering the hideout's defense and concealment, the Sauerland Mountains were the absolute best location.
Furthermore, being far from any city or town meant they wouldn't have to deal with unnecessary interference from the natives of this world.
As Seong Yu-jin inspected every corner of the kitchen with sharp eyes and deft hands, Choi Yu-ra narrowed her eyes and asked.
“Yu-jin, are you a good cook, by any chance?”
“No, just a little.”
She smiled and demurred, but she didn't say she couldn't cook. It was like the predictable humility of a top student asked if they did well on a test.
Feeling playfully irked, Choi Yu-ra pinched Seong Yu-jin's side.
* * *
Leaving the dining hall and kitchen, the party followed Alberto to the bathhouse.
The bathhouse, made of marble, was truly magnificent and even equipped with a sauna.
“There’s no separate bath for men and women?”
“Why, you want to bathe with me?”
“N-No, I don’t!”
Although Yang Jun-gyu immediately denied it when Choi Yu-ra teased him, his blushing face showed he was secretly looking forward to it.
Choi Yu-ra giggled and hugged him, while Kang-seok spoke with a lukewarm expression.
“We can just set different times for people to use it.”
“And then accidents can happen when someone goes in at the wrong time?”
“It's fine, since you're the only one we have to worry about.”
Kang-seok was slowly getting the hang of dealing with Choi Yu-ra.
Meanwhile, amidst the commotion, Seong Yu-jin was diligently observing every part of the bathhouse by herself. Seeing how she had gotten excited every time the topic of bathing came up before, she must really love baths.
After looking around the bathhouse, the party headed to the toilet.
“Ugh, it’s the same here.”
Choi Yu-ra wrinkled her brow, and Yang Jun-gyu also wore a pained expression.
It was fairly clean, but in the end, it was still just a toilet with a hole in the ground.
“It would be nice to… modify it a bit. Yes, modify…”
Nodding at Seong Yu-jin's words, Kang-seok turned to look at Alberto.
“Is that all there is to see?”
“The guest rooms and the bedroom still remain. Which would you like me to guide you to first?”
“The guest rooms, please.”
“This way.”
Alberto led Kang-seok's party to a corridor lined with several rooms.
“There are a total of ten guest rooms. Five double rooms and five single rooms. They are all currently vacant.”
Rooms lined the left and right of the corridor, which, like the rest of the lair, was made of stone, giving it a cold and desolate feel.
Standing in the middle of the hallway and looking at the rooms on either side, Choi Yu-ra let out a dry laugh.
“As if he’d ever have guests. Why so many?”
Kang-seok asked Alberto.
“Did he usually have visitors?”
“Since I began my duties, this is only the second time guests have visited.”
The answer was both funny and sad, prompting different expressions from Seong Yu-jin and Choi Yu-ra. Feeling inexplicably awkward, Kang-seok scratched the back of his head and asked again.
“If the second time is now, who was the first?”
“It was Lady Raum, one of the 72 Demonic Beasts.”
One of the 72 Demonic Beasts.
Kang-seok's expression changed.
“Can you tell me more about Raum?”
“A strong and beautiful being. That is what my former master thought of her. I have nothing more to say beyond that.”
“What about her appearance?”
That was Choi Yu-ra. Alberto paused for a moment as if reviewing his memories before answering.
“She wore a blue dress. On her back was a pair of large, beautiful blue wings. Her hair was a blue so dark it was nearly black, and her eyes were green. You may imagine a beautiful woman with milky-white skin.”
The information wasn't particularly helpful. Just as Andras had, Raum could have also ‘transformed’ into a human form.
‘In any case, it seems the 72 Demonic Beasts had some form of interaction with each other…’
What were the 72 Demonic Beasts, and what was their goal?
Perhaps they were simply ‘inhabitants’ of this world. Ordinary beings born, raised, and living in this world.
The square guest rooms were so devoid of furniture that they felt more like prison cells than guest rooms.
Like the kitchen, they were well-ventilated, so it seemed their only option was to decorate them well later.
“Next is the bedroom?”
Choi Yu-ra asked Alberto, her face slightly flushed with excitement. Alberto, as stoic as ever, replied and opened the door leading to the bedroom.
The bedroom corridor was also short. And the party was more disappointed than they had been with any of the rooms they had seen so far.
“Huh, this is the bedroom? There’s no bed or anything?”
Yang Jun-gyu asked, blinking his eyes. It was called a bedroom, but it was just a large, desolate space.
Choi Yu-ra and Seong Yu-jin, who had been expecting a cozy and luxurious bedroom like those in movies, also looked visibly disappointed.
Kang-seok laughed in resignation.
“Well… I guess he was most comfortable in his true form.”
The bedroom was, quite literally, a space for sleeping. Since Andras's true form was a monster forty meters long, a wide-open space like this was indeed perfect as a bedroom.
“Master, next to the bedroom is a study. Shall I guide you there?”
“Please do.”
“This way.”
In a corner of the wall was a small stone door. Choi Yu-ra, who had secretly hoped the stone door would lead to a small room for the transformed body, like the other places, was disappointed once again.
Just as Kang-seok was about to open the stone door.
[I believe you can find a clue to the World Quest inside the study.]
Iris’s voice retightened the tension that had been completely slack.
The three of them, excluding Yang Jun-gyu who couldn't see the letters of light, exchanged glances. Steeling himself, Kang-seok opened the stone door.
* * *
The study, too, had a cold, hard feel to it.
Although there was a large fireplace in the middle of one wall, not a single ember could be found, failing to offset the study's chill.
“Is this bookshelf made of stone, too?”
Large bookshelves were lined up in a row, much like in a library.
While Choi Yu-ra lightly tapped on a bookshelf, Seong Yu-jin looked over the books arranged on it. The letters were ones she had never seen before, but just as in the Labyrinthos dungeon, she could understand their meaning.
Thick books with leather-bound covers. As Seong Yu-jin reached for one of them, Yang Jun-gyu quickly intervened, raising his voice.
“Don't read it carelessly. In games, books in places like this are always cursed or something.”
“Oh, okay.”
Startled by how quickly Yang Jun-gyu had rushed over, Seong Yu-jin took a step back from the bookshelf. It seemed unlikely that every single book in a personal study would be cursed, but it was still better to be cautious.
Instead of the bookshelves, Kang-seok turned his attention to a desk placed near the fireplace. It was slightly slanted, making it suitable for placing a book to read, and a book large enough to be used as a weapon was sitting right on top of it.
A red leather cover with gold thread.
“The Book of Andras.”
Reading the letters engraved on the cover, Kang-seok swallowed dryly. He looked back at Seong Yu-jin, Choi Yu-ra, and Yang Jun-gyu, who had gathered by his side, and said.
“This has to be it, right?”
Iris had said they would find a clue to the World Quest in the study.
When Seong Yu-jin and Choi Yu-ra nodded, Kang-seok took another deep breath. Instead of touching the book directly, he asked Alberto.
“Alberto, do you know what this book is?”
“My apologies. I have never visited the study for any purpose other than cleaning, so I have no knowledge of the books stored here.”
In the end, they had no choice but to face it themselves.
Kang-seok turned his gaze back to the Book of Andras. But this time, Seong Yu-jin interjected.
“Wait, let me appraise it first.”
Without waiting for an answer, Seong Yu-jin placed her hand on the cover. She looked up into the air, reading the letters of light.
“The Book of Andras.”
“And?”
When Choi Yu-ra asked, Seong Yu-jin frowned.
“There’s nothing else. But it doesn’t seem to have any magic cast on it.”
Seong Yu-jin's appraisal had its limits. She remained in that state, stroking the cover a few more times, then suddenly activated the Magic Armor Arnak. Raising her shield, she spoke to everyone behind her.
“Everyone, stand back.”
“Yu-jin?”
“I'll open it. Just in case, go to the corner of the study.”
Frankly, this was being overly cautious, but there was no harm in being careful. There was always the possibility of an unforeseen event.
Facing the determined Seong Yu-jin, Kang-seok took off the Rune of Flame from his neck. He placed it around Seong Yu-jin's neck and said.
“Just in case.”
Seong Yu-jin nodded happily, and the other three all stepped back. Taking a deep breath, Seong Yu-jin finally opened the book.
Light erupted.
There was no other way to describe it. Pure white light filled the study, momentarily blinding everyone.
[It's alright! It's just ordinary light. It's not a harmful spell. Everyone, calm down.]
[It will cause no harm.]
Shortly after Iris's voice faded, the light disappeared. Above the head of the tense Seong Yu-jin, red letters of light appeared. Not only that, but a vision unfolded in everyone's minds.
[The First World Quest]
[The Tower of the Demonic Beast Raum]
[On the day Luminus and Selene become one, the Tower of Raum shall appear in the land ruled by the Sword God's heir.]
[Defeat the Demonic Beast Raum and conquer the Tower of Raum.]
[The first to conquer the tower shall enjoy the glory befitting their achievement.]
Kang-seok saw an island floating in the sky.
A tower situated right next to the island. A tower so tall it seemed to touch the clouds, so wide it could contain a castle within.
The faint cry of a bird could be heard.
Blue feathers scattered in the air.
And Kang-seok's party was not the only one to witness this scene.
* * *
Kim Kang-san, who had been holding hands and chatting with a barely-awake Park Han-yeong, shot his eyes wide open.
Hunt, who had been sharing drinks with adventurers, also saw the floating island and the tall tower.
In the garden of the Richmond Merchant Guild, Park Gwang-sik, who was pouring wine for Masha Richmond, blinked, oblivious to the fact that the glass was overflowing.
It wasn't just those nearby.
Those far away witnessed it too.
Baek Gi-hyeong's party, on their way to the headquarters of the Gawain Cult, all shot up from their seats in their inn room.
Park Hyeong-sik's party also looked at each other in surprise at the World Quest announcement.
And even farther away.
All across the world.
All eight thousand Players who had passed the tutorial witnessed the World Quest.
“The first World Quest. So there are those who are pulling ahead, is that it?”
Park Chang-ho murmured softly, stroking the hair of a soundly sleeping Natasha.
The headquarters of the Seven Sword Knights, the first guild created by Players. The guild master's bedroom, located in its deepest part.
He could picture the faces of a flustered Khalid and Asuka. Watching them and teasing them would be fun, but for a moment, Park Chang-ho erased the faces of his two executives from his mind. He focused on the letters of light that appeared after the information about the World Quest.
“I see, yes. People don't act without a proper reward.”
The news of a World Quest is delivered to all Players.
If so, is there any need to strive to discover a World Quest? One could just wait for someone else to find it.
It was a classic free-rider problem.
And the one who caused the Great Summoning, the one who built this system, was by no means a fool.
[World Quest Discoverers: Choi Kang-seok (M) / Seong Yu-jin (F) / Choi Yu-ra (F) / Yang Jun-gyu (M)]
[* An appropriate reward will be given based on the contribution to the discovery of the World Quest.]
The first World Quest, the Tower of Raum.
The World Quest itself was not important to Park Chang-ho. To him, something else felt more important.
“Choi Kang-seok, Seong Yu-jin, Choi Yu-ra, and Yang Jun-gyu.”
The discoverers of the World Quest.
Park Chang-ho engraved their names deep into his mind.