Chapter 343
Chapter 343
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 343
Chapter Title: The Archmage Joins
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Shocked by the bombshell, Jin-un stopped working on the formation.
Hielz's face was all smiles. Unhyang couldn't pull her hand away from her chest, as if her pounding heart refused to calm down.
It took Soo-hyuk a long moment to speak.
"...Why?"
She'd called it shocking news, and it truly was.
Hielz, of all people, wanting to join their guild.
That was as good as saying she was leaving the Red Tower.
"Don't you want me?"
"Who wouldn't?"
The group behind him nodded at Soo-hyuk's retort.
As if they wouldn't. A grand archmage, no less, offering to join them.
"I'm asking because I'm genuinely curious. It's not some simple reason like hating the Red Tower or liking it here. You're too smart for that."
She might look young and emotional on the surface, but Hielz was sharper than anyone. She knew her position and influence better than most.
It wasn't like she and Soo-hyuk were close enough for her to switch guilds just because she liked him.
And sure enough, there was a clear reason behind her decision.
"I didn't know who you were back then, but I mentioned it before. That we're trapped by something."
Soo-hyuk's gaze lifted to the sky at her words.
A blue sky. Clouds and sun.
Hielz claimed that sky—which looked utterly real—had an end. No matter how high she'd climbed, she'd reached it.
"You feel it too, right? That we can't just stay stuck like this."
"You mean the Guardian?"
"Yes."
Hielz scanned Soo-hyuk and the others behind him.
"No other guild can take down the Guardian."
It was already widely known that the archmage hadn't joined the recent Guardian raid party.
Back then, everyone wondered why.
"So you saw no hope from the others."
"Even our Tower Master was a total pushover, as you saw."
"He was."
The response came from Si-woo, who had fought Neila. He'd taken some burns but still beat her and the Red Tower's elite mages at once.
"Would you go on a Guardian raid with those guys, Si-woo oppa?"
"Absolutely not."
Si-woo agreed emphatically. Ye-ryeong nodded beside him.
But Soo-hyuk saw it differently.
"I heard the last raid was led by Kim Il-su and Jin Do-ha?"
Those two were no Neila. Kim Il-su had long been the guild's second-best after Soo-hyuk, and Jin Do-ha outclassed even him.
In other words, Hielz judged that even with her joining them, the Guardian was unbeatable.
"That tough, huh?"
Now Soo-hyuk was getting really curious.
What the hell was the 9th floor Guardian like?
For the first time, he wondered if their stall wasn't entirely due to his absence.
"Very. Extremely."
Her expression was the most serious he'd ever seen.
No long explanation needed.
That alone was reason enough for her to want to join.
She had a clear goal and resolve. Soo-hyuk extended his hand.
"No reason to refuse. Hell, I should be begging you to come."
"D-Did I pass the interview?"
"Yeah. Perfect score."
"Knew it."
Hielz took Soo-hyuk's hand.
"Looking forward to working with you, Guild Master oppa."
Jin-un finished the formation in just a few days. He was already skilled, but now he had an exceptional assistant.
"This equation would be more effective with Nine Directions than the Eight Trigrams."
"This array pulls in mana via the Seven Stars Formation. I can boost how much it pulls."
"Why'd you do it this way? Oh... I see! Formations are like magic circles but different. So fun."
Formations and magic were fundamentally similar. The main difference: formations harnessed nature's power, magic the player's.
Hielz dove headfirst into Jin-un's formations—similar yet distinct from magic.
Even if the fields differed slightly, help from the world's top archmage doubled his speed.
"Am I not bothering you?"
"Bother? This makes it easier. The others just want to boss me around."
"Glad I came?"
"Yeah. Perfect score."
"Yay."
Hielz blended into the group faster than expected.
Thanks to her, the formation finished days early—two days instead of five more.
Stepping inside revealed a vast, comfortable plain.
"Wow..."
"This is straight-up magic."
Unhyang and Ye-ryeong, entering with Soo-hyuk, marveled.
The grass, sky, breeze—all felt utterly real, not illusory.
How expansive was it?
As Soo-hyuk strained to see the horizon, Hielz approached.
"What's the plan here?"
She'd helped so eagerly because Soo-hyuk asked.
"This, first."
Soo-hyuk pulled out a black ring. Hielz's eyes widened.
"Isn't this the Black Soul Ring?"
"Good eye."
"It's infamous. Divine-grade item, too."
Her eyes sparkling, Hielz examined the ring closely.
"Thought Clementine had it... Bought it with points? Must've cost a fortune. No way she'd sell it."
She tilted her head puzzled.
"She even asked me if I'd sell mine."
A top hat floated above Hielz's head—Poof, like it was saying "me."
It was her divine item, Ebony Wing.
"The price was insane. Explains how you got two divine items."
"How much?"
"Fifty million points."
"Fifty million...?"
For a split second, Soo-hyuk considered reselling it. Talk about money-burning.
But no chance. No matter how vital Selfish Sacrifice's level was, selling a divine item?
Especially this Black Soul Ring, which he desperately needed.
"Guess it's worth that much."
Venue ready.
Soo-hyuk spent every point from Clementine.
It felt like flesh being carved off.
All those hard-earned points, wiped out in one go. Tears welled briefly at the zeroed balance.
But that passed quickly.
Regret vanished as the skill leveled up, granting far greater effects.
'No wonder it suddenly demanded ten times more...'
Soo-hyuk's fingertips trembled.
Lost points forgotten, he itched to unleash Lightning and test it.
But restraint now, more than ever.
Lightning devoured its user. He couldn't delude himself into perfect control.
'Slowly. Stay calm.'
Deep breath. He stared at his palm.
Selfish Sacrifice leveled, but not done.
He held a divine item. Known for tying to user's vitality.
Deep breath. He slipped the ring on.
That instant—Whoosh.
All light in the world snuffed out.
A world devoid of light and sound.
Unlike Mersian's darkness, which Soo-hyuk could see through. This was absolute, unyielding.
No fear, though.
Elite players had survival instincts. His screamed safety.
This darkness posed no threat.
Soo-hyuk eyed the Black Soul Ring on his finger.
The pitch-black ring emitted no aura. Appraisal failed as before.
'Where are you taking me?'
What was this ring's trial?
Clementine gave vague answers—different for everyone.
Darkness didn't last.
Shades emerged in the black void.
Not brighter. The world around him stayed dim.
In a fortress of jet-black walls, Soo-hyuk sat the highest throne like its lord.
The ceiling gaped open. Rain would pour right in. Night sky visible above.
Ten moons hung in that sky. Alien world.
'This place...'
Turning, he spotted a gem on the throne.
His reflection in it shocked him.
He was a skeleton, stripped of flesh.
Place, body—all changed. But one constant: the Black Soul Ring.
It bridged reality and illusion.
"This you?"
No reply expected.
"Figures. Who else? So what am I supposed to do here?"
Answer from unexpected source.
Step—.
Someone entered the fortress.
Steps cautious, fear in each one.
Obvious target: Soo-hyuk alone here.
Or rather, the skeleton hosting Soo-hyuk.
Another skeleton, cloaked in black robes reeking of death, hunched in carefully.
It halted twenty paces from the throne, kneeling.
"God of Death."
The Black Soul Ring's creator.
Soo-hyuk inhabited that god's body.
"No more time left."
Time for what?
Before questioning, he addressed the skeleton.
"Who are you?"
The skeleton flinched, shoulders shaking.
No surprise at the odd question. More like fretting if he'd offended.
How could it know? Better assume the god forgot than possession.
"I am..."
Bowing deeper to avoid mistakes, it spoke.
Then—
"Hades, from the underworld."
That lowly skeleton's name matched one Soo-hyuk knew.