Chapter 104: Medusa Raid (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 104: Medusa Raid (4)
Swinging the pillar using Giant's Grasp was merely a performance.
A show designed to catch his opponent's eye and distract them.
'When it comes to deceiving an opponent, visual tricks are always the best.'
The corners of Jinhyuk's mouth curled upward.
There was a reason magicians captivated their audiences with beautiful assistants and flashy outfits.
And if one were to strike the opening created by such a distraction...
Even a boss monster would have no choice but to take a hit.
"Wh-when did you... pull such a trick?!"
Medusa grit her teeth as she stared down at the floor.
Runic characters drawn in blood.
It was a spell formula he had drawn by smearing his boots with the blood of the tanker who had died moments ago.
Medusa tried to quickly throw herself out of the way, but she was already too late.
Far too late.
"I made this especially for you."
If a medium-sized barrier wasn't enough to trap her...
Then he just had to use the entire floor.
Hummmmm!
The massive runic characters drawn on the floor erupted in a brilliant light.
"You won't be breaking this one so easily."
Of course she wouldn't.
The scale of this barrier was on an entirely different level compared to before.
Hummmmm!
[The 3-Star Barrier 'Coffin of Sealing' has been activated!]
This was a notification that only appeared when a flawless process was combined with precise mana control.
For the first time, a star-rated barrier had been activated.
Nice.
Jinhyuk nodded as he watched the rising pillars of light.
He had been a bit worried since he drew it with his feet, but...
It seemed his body remembered the movements perfectly.
They didn't say "form is temporary, but class is permanent" for nothing.
Trapped inside the square barrier, Medusa shrieked.
"Aaaargh! Release me this instant!"
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
No matter how hard she lashed her whip or slammed her tail, the barrier didn't budge an inch.
Like he said.
She wasn't breaking this easily.
"Stop wasting your energy and just stay quiet."
There was a way to dismantle it, of course, but trying to break it with brute force wouldn't leave so much as a scratch even if she tried for a thousand years.
Barriers were delicate things, after all.
Jinhyuk glanced up at the empty air.
Now that he had trapped the boss monster, the status window announcing the quest's success should be popping up.
Right on cue.
Ding!
Multiple status windows popped up in the air one after another.
[The third condition has been met.]
[You have successfully completed the 1st Class Advancement for 'Barrierist'.]
[As you have successfully trapped the highest-grade boss monster possible during the class advancement quest, a 'Hidden Class' has been unlocked!]
[You have advanced to the advanced class of Barrierist, 'Rune Decipherer'!]
No way...!
"Yes! I knew it!"
Jinhyuk let out a triumphant cheer.
The class advancement conditions had stated to trap a boss monster, but they never specified how strong that boss had to be.
Naturally, the rare players who chose to become Barrierists would seek out the weakest boss they could find to fulfill the third condition.
Relatively easy targets like goblins, slimes, or gnolls on the 1st floor.
'Well, that is the normal way to do it.'
Not many people would choose the hard road when an easy one was right in front of them.
But...
A true veteran never walked the same path as everyone else.
Even when faced with a complete lack of information, a veteran would actively seek out the more difficult path—the one that promised even a slightly greater reward.
Because the harder the challenge...
...and the more others avoided it...
...the more they instinctively knew a massive reward awaited them.
And his hypothesis had proven absolutely correct.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
His heart hammered wildly against his ribs.
He couldn't help it.
In the eleven years since the Tower of Trials was released, not a single player had ever advanced to a hidden class.
He had expected some sort of bonus reward for defeating Medusa, the hardest boss in the Gray Temple, but...
...he never imagined it would lead to a hidden class.
'Even I didn't know about this.'
Still, he was more than happy to be blindsided by such a pleasant surprise.
Jinhyuk clenched his fist.
'First, let's check the details.'
It was a hidden class, so it was bound to be amazing, but he still needed to read the fine print.
Gulp.
Jinhyuk swallowed hard and began reading the first line of the status window.
[Rune Decipherer]
Acquisition Difficulty: Over-Rank
Description: While a Barrierist can only construct barriers using existing runes, a Rune Decipherer can grasp the true essence of runes and re-interpret them to create entirely new barriers. Manifesting all creation through the Runic Language—that is the core of a Decipherer's power. Barriers created by a Rune Decipherer are twice as powerful as standard barriers. Furthermore, anyone other than the creator will find it nearly impossible to analyze the barrier's structure, let alone dismantle it.
"Wow..."
He was utterly speechless. It was magnificent.
Best of all, this class met the absolute favorite condition of any true veteran.
The perfect setup for trolling!
'Nearly impossible to dismantle, huh...'
A mischievous smirk played on Jinhyuk's lips.
Instantly, countless scenarios flashed through his mind.
Trapping someone he disliked inside a barrier and slowly dripping acid rain onto their head to induce hair loss...
Placing a barrier over a treasure chest and watching his opponent scream in despair...
Hmm...
Feeding someone laxatives and then blocking the bathroom door with a barrier also sounded incredibly fun.
'For Alice, I could trap some fried chicken and beer inside a barrier.'
As for Cheon Yu-seong... maybe I should seal away his precious sword and tease him?
That sounded like a thrilling way to court death.
Of course, since he wouldn't be able to handle the consequences, he couldn't actually do all of these things.
'But the possibilities are still endless.'
A choice he had made simply to keep things interesting had snowballed into an incredible jackpot.
On top of that...
[The 'Mark of the Moon' is being engraved.]
Sssss!
Along with the brief message, a white crest began to glow, spreading from Jinhyuk's wrist all the way up to his shoulder.
This was the medium that would allow him to activate barriers with a mere fraction of the usual mana cost.
With this, his first class advancement was complete.
* * *
"Wow..."
"Nice, nice."
"Very nice."
It was while Jinhyuk was busy marveling at his status window that a voice spoke up.
"Wh-what do you plan to do with me?"
Medusa muttered from inside her barrier.
"Huh?"
"...Are you going to kill me after all?"
Her previous arrogance was entirely gone. Now, she looked like a cornered rat, filled with nothing but anxiety and dread.
She was terrified.
At this rate, she was going to lose her life.
Jinhyuk flashed a knowing smile.
"Well, let's see. I'll probably chop off your head and use your skin to craft some decent armor. I hear snake-skin gear is in high demand among players these days."
"Wh-what?!"
At his chilling words, Medusa's eyes shook with terror.
Hearing about how she would die and how her corpse would be harvested wasn't exactly a pleasant topic of conversation.
At least, not for Medusa.
"I'm just kidding. But if you keep a fuss, I might actually make myself a new snake-skin wallet."
Normally, clearing a dungeon meant killing the boss monster. That was common sense.
The experience, the rewards, the items...
The benefits were endless.
However, the Gray Temple offered far fewer benefits compared to other dungeons.
Once taken outside the temple, Medusa's head lost its petrification ability. Furthermore, armor made from her skin retained its toxicity, dealing continuous damage to the wearer.
Of course, he would still get experience and other drops, but...
...there was a much better way to handle this.
Jinhyuk opened the Coin Exchange.
'Let's see... what do I need?'
"A brass bowl, one liter of Trihorn goat blood, six hind legs of a swamp grasshopper, and a Blue Lotus, right?"
[You have paid a total of 3,350 Coins.]
Since they were all cheap, common items, it barely made a dent in his wallet.
Besides, his recently uploaded videos were currently pulling in tens of millions of views anyway.
"Now, the first step is..."
Splash!
Jinhyuk poured the goat blood into the tarnished brass bowl and floated the Blue Lotus on top.
Finally, he placed the swamp grasshopper legs one by one around the edges of the lotus.
Instantly...
Hummmmm!
The brass bowl began to vibrate violently.
The crimson surface rippled for a moment before settling down.
[This is... utterly absurd.]
A deep, dignified voice echoed from the bowl.
The man let out a soft sigh before adding another word.
[Player Kang Jinhyuk. How on earth did you get ahold of this contact frequency?]
The owner of the voice was none other than the librarian of the Great Library and the master of the merchant guild...
...Rick Hennessy.
"Oh? I just bought a bunch of random stuff and mixed them together. How did this happen? Haha. What a strange coincidence."
Jinhyuk chuckled sheepishly.
Using this method was essentially barging into someone's living room without an invitation.
But what choice did he have?
The gate to the library was closed, so this was his only option.
[That does not answer my question... Tell me. I haven't even shared this frequency with the deities yet. How did you find it? I must know your method.]
Rick's voice grew cold.
He clearly had no intention of letting Jinhyuk dodge the question.
In that case...
"Oh! Come to think of it, look at this monster I found!"
Jinhyuk abruptly changed the subject.
[......?]
Rick fell silent.
Since this communication item shared the caller's field of vision, Rick could see exactly what Jinhyuk was looking at.
"And... drumroll, please!"
Jinhyuk turned his gaze to Medusa, who was coiled up inside the barrier with a miserable expression.
Immediately...
[Gasp! Th-that monster is...?!]
Rick audibly gasped over the connection.
Just as he thought.
'I knew he'd be interested.'
The corners of Jinhyuk's mouth curled up.
There was a certain deity who was absolutely obsessed with collecting anything related to Greek mythology—whether it was relics, records, people, or even monsters.
And Rick happened to have a very close relationship with that deity.
If it was "Made in Greece," they would drool over a chipped clay pot. So what about a living Medusa?
It was a no-brainer.
Rick, always quick to calculate profit, was undoubtedly thinking the exact same thing.
"I know it was rude of me to contact you out of the blue. But I had my reasons... If you're really that upset, let's just forget I called. I'm perfectly happy just harvesting Medusa's remains."
Jinhyuk channeled mana into his Twin Dragon Sword.
Crackle!
As Grave of Swords manifested, the blade was dyed in a deep, inky black.
[W-wait! Hold on a second! You must not kill her. Absolutely not!]
Rick cried out in a panic.
My, my.
This was the first time he had ever heard the man sound so flustered.
It was a good thing they were far apart; if Rick had been here in person, he probably would have sprinted over in his underwear.
"I'll ask you one last time."
Jinhyuk pointed the tip of his sword at Medusa.
"How I got your contact frequency... do you still think that actually matters?"