Chapter 68
Chapter 68
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 68
Chapter Title: The Dragon's Trial
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An invisible power flows through the Thunder Cave.
Many people said that power was the power of thunder. Others called it lightning.
And people say,
Isn't it all the same?
'Not wrong.'
The essence of the word "thunder" refers to the sound of lightning striking.
Sound is part of lightning, too.
In the end, both are lightning.
So, if asked whether the reward hidden in the Thunder Cave is related to his own Lightning...
'No one knows.'
Not all powers of the same attribute yield the same skills.
Just look at lightning-related skills.
Lee Soo-hyuk's Lightning was the most prominent example, but there were countless other electric attribute skills.
In the end, what people were curious about was one thing.
Whether they could obtain Lee Soo-hyuk's trademark Lightning in the Thunder Cave, too.
Step-.
Soo-hyuk kept walking deeper into the cave.
Meanwhile,
he slowly scanned the murals painted on the walls with his eyes.
The picture on the yellow-painted wall was hard to identify at a glance.
If Soo-hyuk hadn't heard about its true nature from Schneider beforehand, he wouldn't have recognized it right away either.
"In my first attempt, I ignored that picture. I was too tense, wondering what kind of test would judge the Qualification of Thunder."
Qualification of Thunder.
The message hadn't explained how it would judge that qualification. It only mentioned whether one had it or not.
"But that picture shouldn't be ignored."
Creak-.
Soo-hyuk's foot stopped in one spot as he walked.
His gaze fixed on a particular point in the mural on the wall.
'Found it.'
One viewer with sharp eyes caught it. It was such a tiny change, barely noticeable.
Wriggle-.
The mural on the wall began to move little by little.
As the movement grew larger, other viewers noticed too.
The mural began to move.
Soon, the picture on the wall came to life and emerged outward.
A tail and thick body, scales gleaming golden.
Crackle-.
Rumble, grrr-.
With thunder and lightning, the dragon flew up to the ceiling of the cave.
"Its role is the same as the Wolf Warrior I met in the Starting Dungeon. Proving the Qualification of Thunder means gaining its recognition."
Looking up at the dragon overhead,
Soo-hyuk recalled Schneider's words.
"But there's one difference."
"Difference?"
"Lee Soo-hyuk, you caught the Wolf Warrior, right? As if you didn't need its recognition."
Schneider seemed to have investigated Soo-hyuk quite thoroughly.
Moreover, they'd clashed directly in the tournament a few days ago.
He'd know that underestimating Soo-hyuk would be like spitting in his own face.
Even so.
"But this one is different."
He said firmly.
"Don't even think about catching it. It's absolutely impossible."
Indeed.
"Well, seeing it in person, you'd never even consider it anyway."
He was right.
Crackle-.
Grrrumble-!
The dragon that emerged from the mural was enormous enough to fill the entire inner cave.
His whole body tingled.
He couldn't even vaguely grasp what kind of being that dragon was.
Don't think about catching it like the Wolf Warrior?
'Who does he think I am.'
It was similar to the Wolf Warrior case. No doubt it was designed as a monster not meant to be caught.
But there had been a way to catch that one somehow.
Of course, because he was Lee Soo-hyuk...
Anyway, this guy was on a whole different level from the Wolf Warrior.
Catching it was impossible.
A voice echoed through the cave.
Soo-hyuk answered the dragon's voice.
"Yes."
The viewers thought Soo-hyuk's reply was cheeky, but they didn't know better.
Soo-hyuk had encountered dragons multiple times while climbing the tower.
'Dragons have no concept of informal or formal speech. Courtesy is faint to them, too.'
For them, communication was merely the transmission of information.
His attitude didn't matter. What he had to be careful of was that his words didn't offend it.
Hooo-.
The dragon lowered its body and began to fly. Its eyes, gleaming smoothly like embedded jewels, descended before Soo-hyuk.
Soo-hyuk felt a bit awkward at the viewers' complaints.
This was different from what Schneider had described.
"The dragon's required proof changes every time. But not all of my dozens of attempts were completely different."
"For example?"
"Various kinds. Enduring lightning, blocking all five senses and resisting fear. Sometimes just summoning a monster to fight."
"Tell me more details."
Soo-hyuk had grilled Schneider for specifics on the dragon's trials.
Everything except the very end of the Thunder Cave would depend on which trial appeared here.
But.
'Pocket?'
The dragon meant the players' inventory.
And there was only one item it would be interested in.
Not bread or jerky for rations.
Swish-.
When Soo-hyuk pulled out the yellow-glowing orb, the dragon thrust its head closer.
"Does having this change anything?"
Hearing that, he wondered if the Thunder Cave itself was an extension of the Lightning Trial.
The one who possesses Lightning. And the one who passed all Lightning Trials and obtained the Lightning Heart.
The Thunder Cave had been waiting for a player who met those exact conditions.
"There must be others besides me who have this."
This was aimed at Schneider.
With countless attempts, Schneider had once broken the slim odds and obtained a Trace of Thunder.
But he hadn't mentioned the dragon reacting like this. He definitely would have if so.
Which meant.
Schneider's case was different from his.
'Because I have Lightning? Or the Lightning Heart?'
Or maybe both.
For now, he couldn't tell if this was good or bad. Nothing was certain.
One thing was clear.
'This won't be a normal trial.'
Even Schneider's info might end up useless.
He'd never heard from him about opening the door to the Thunder Cave.
The dragon looked down at the Trace of Thunder in Soo-hyuk's hand.
"This...?"
Soo-hyuk looked down at the Trace of Thunder in surprise at the surprisingly simple trial.
It looked like nothing more than a shiny useless trinket.
And he was supposed to swallow it?
The viewers thought Soo-hyuk was hesitating because he hated losing the points.
And they were right.
'How much is this worth...'
He really was blinded by points.
His first thought in this situation was the price of the Trace of Thunder.
This could level up Selfish Sacrifice by several stages right now.
On the other hand.
'If I eat it, what happens?'
The outcome was unknown. Pure gamble.
What a troll description.
Grade undetermined. Description vague as hell.
Unknown use, unclear if it even has power.
Yet it traded for high prices because of its value as a 'material item.'
'Using it in crafting adds lightning attribute and boosts power significantly.'
Plenty of players were desperate for it.
So he'd planned to sell it after clearing if no special use...
Eat it?
The viewers were all united.
Soo-hyuk adjusted his mic and sighed.
"You really want me to eat it?"
For some reason, it felt like he was the villain. Looked like the viewers were united in teasing the streamer today.
"...How much is this worth."
This won't do.
Reading the chat would just make him more frustrated.
Soo-hyuk sighed again and turned off the mic.
Then he stared at the Trace of Thunder, lost in thought.
'A gamble worth taking.'
The Trace of Thunder held great power. Proven by its use as crafting material.
Above all, succeeding trials always gave solid rewards to players.
The issue was whether the reward outweighed the item's value.
At least the item itself wouldn't vanish completely.
No, more than that.
'Giving up isn't like me. No.'
Soo-hyuk opened the bottom of his mask and slowly brought the Trace of Thunder to his mouth.
'Not like Lee Soo-hyuk.'
He knew failure would hurt bad.
But skimping on the trial for points wasn't like him either.
More than anyone, like Lee Soo-hyuk.
Wasn't that his streaming motto?
And above all, he was the real Lee Soo-hyuk.
'Like me.'
Chomp-.
He bit down on the yellow crystal.
Crunch-.
Applying force with his teeth, he crushed and swallowed the Trace of Thunder.
Gulp-.
