Chapter 125: How a Veteran Wins a Festival (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 125: How a Veteran Wins a Festival (2)
A mushroom with striking, colorful patterns.
It was the [Acid Mushroom], which could only be found on the 6th floor, the 'Elf Forest'.
'Oho. Come to think of it, this was here too.'
Jinhyuk's eyes narrowed.
True to its name, the Acid Mushroom was highly acidic and poisonous.
It was a deadly ingredient that would instantly melt everything from one's mouth to their esophagus upon consumption.
But just as the poisonous pufferfish is a delicacy, the Acid Mushroom, if prepared correctly, could be reborn into an ingredient so exquisite it would bring tears to even the most demanding gourmets' eyes.
'Of course, preparing this isn't something just anyone can do.'
Even a microscopic slip of the knife could ruin the entire mushroom, demanding the absolute pinnacle of a chef's skill.
'Interesting.'
Should he say his competitive spirit was being ignited for the first time in a while?
It was just as Jinhyuk was carefully examining the mushroom.
Silvia emerged from the opposite side of the forest, looking for him.
"Jinhyuk! Um, the Elder is calling for you... Oh?"
Seeing Jinhyuk harvesting the mushroom, Silvia's eyes went wide.
"Are you... planning on eating that?"
"Yes. I was thinking of trying it."
"Ah. You might not know since you're not from here, but that's an Acid Mushroom. It's practically inedible. The recipe to prepare it was lost hundreds of years ago, so even we just leave them alone."
Silvia smiled brightly.
She seemed quite pleased to finally be the one teaching Jinhyuk something he didn't know.
He felt a bit bad about having to utterly crush her expectations, but...
It couldn't be helped.
Now that she'd said that, there was no backing down.
"In that case, I'll just have to give it a try."
"What? S-Surely you don't mean..."
"You can look forward to it. A veteran's special mushroom dish. It's so good that even if two people eat and both die, there won't be any evidence left."
In any case, the postponed festival was scheduled to be held tonight. Elder Penheim calling for him was likely related to that.
And.
The theme of the dish he would present at the festival had just been decided.
* * *
A night sky thickly embroidered with stars.
Moving past the period of mourning for lost comrades and their burned village, the Elven festival was finally underway.
'This is seriously amazing.'
Jinhyuk strolled through the forest with a relaxed gait.
The endless shower of shooting stars and the fireflies dancing through the undergrowth created a fantastical spectacle.
Of course, the crowning glory of it all was the mystical spirits and the elegantly dressed elves.
[The fire spirit 'Salamander' breathes a small flame.]
[The water spirit 'Undine' is startled and rushes to extinguish it with water.]
Water and fire spirits, unseen on the lower floors of the Tower, ran around clutching figs tightly in both hands.
The elves also played various instruments and drank fragrant beverages, thoroughly enjoying the festival.
Right then, ding!
A blue status window blinked in front of Jinhyuk.
[You have witnessed an amazing sight.]
[If uploaded as a Tower of Trials HOT Issue video, you can receive a top-tier banner placement!]
Even the system recognized it.
That this scene was undoubtedly worth being seen by countless people.
After all, where else could anyone witness such a magnificent sight if not here?
For the sake of everyone's eyes, this video had to be preserved for posterity.
"Alright. Let's start recording."
Jinhyuk nodded.
As he activated the Broadcasting System, everything he saw and heard began to be saved.
He didn't know for sure, but once this video was uploaded, it would surely plunge other players—who tried to farm views by showcasing exotic locations in the Tower of Trials—straight into the abyss.
"Jinhyuk! Over here!"
"Ahem! We're here."
"Mosquito!"
Various voices called out to Jinhyuk.
It was Silvia, Alice, and Goguma.
They must have put a lot of effort into this festival, as everyone was dressed to the nines.
Silvia wore a fluttering, translucent traditional elven outfit that perfectly complemented her short blonde hair.
Alice, on the other hand, chose a stunning, dark-toned dress.
Exuding an air of noble elegance and adorned with brilliant jewels, she had clearly gone all out.
In fact, the two of them had spent a whopping three hours pouring their very souls into preparing for tonight.
However.
"Tsk, tsk. In the time it took to do all that, you could have shot another arrow or practiced casting Blood Spear. More importantly, do you really think an opponent would be intimidated by those outfits?"
Jinhyuk's reaction was cold.
He was like an impenetrable iron wall.
"Are you seriously saying that after looking at this? This dress! I captured those dwarf bastards and made them work on it for a whole year! Normally, people are too busy showering me with compliments the moment they see it!"
Alice raised her voice.
Her sharp tone carried a deadly edge.
"No, no. When it comes to attire..."
Jinhyuk, quickly scanning his surroundings, spotted someone and called out loudly.
"Look over there! Right there!"
Where his finger pointed stood Teslon, wearing an expression as though he had just lost his entire country.
Despite it being an occasion where everyone showed off, Teslon still had to pay the price for losing their bet.
Jinhyuk nodded proudly.
Ah.
"Now, isn't that a practical outfit that strikes fear into the hearts of enemies?"
A red mustache, a pink dress, and a magic wand.
It was a veteran's look that would send cold sweat running down anyone's spine just by making eye contact.
'He looks at least three times stronger.'
Honestly, if one were to encounter someone like that in the field, it would be impossible not to tense up.
"Sigh. Jinhyuk..."
"Forget it. Let's not even talk about it. My mistake. I shouldn't have expected anything from him in the first place."
Silvia and Alice sighed in sheer exasperation.
"Master! Clueless mosquito!"
Goguma chimed in as well.
But regardless of their reactions, Jinhyuk admired Teslon's attire with a deeply satisfied face.
Indeed.
'My eyes didn't deceive me.'
That was the ultimate outfit, allowing one to seamlessly transition into combat in case of any unforeseen emergency.
How much time had passed as they laughed and chatted?
"Ahem! Ahem!"
Penheim, standing among the elders, cleared his throat.
All eyes turned toward him.
"Normally, we would begin the concert right away, but before that, allow this old man to say a few presumptuous words."
Pausing for a moment, Penheim looked down at the crowd.
"As you all know, three weeks ago, humans from outside the Tower invaded our village. We lost many of our comrades and a precious part of our forest."
"...Sigh."
"Ugh..."
"..."
The atmosphere plummeted instantly.
It was because the painful memories of losing what they held dear were not easily shaken off.
Of course, he hadn't brought this up to gouge open old wounds.
Penheim continued.
"However, right here, thanks to Kang Jinhyuk, our village was able to survive. That we can mourn those we lost, and that we can look forward to tomorrow—it is all thanks to our benefactor over there."
Gratitude, appreciation, and beyond that, the realization that he had saved their entire race from extinction shifted the mood once more.
Everyone gazed at Jinhyuk with indescribable emotion.
Bow!
Bow...
As their eyes met Jinhyuk's, they dropped to one knee in salute.
The sight of thousands of elves paying respects simultaneously was another rare and magnificent spectacle.
Even the spirits expressed their gratitude for protecting the Elf Forest.
Tiny embers and droplets of water drifted in all directions, and a gentle breeze softly enveloped Jinhyuk.
"Mmm. This is actually pretty overwhelming," Jinhyuk muttered, feeling awkward under the excessive attention and reverence.
"There's no need to feel burdened. Everyone is truly grateful to you, Jinhyuk."
Silvia smiled warmly.
"That's right. Accept it with pride. As my contractor, this much is only natural."
Despite her nonchalant tone, Alice's face was slightly flushed.
She seemed immensely pleased that her contractor was being recognized by everyone.
Finally.
"This old man, this village, and our entire race... we will remember you forever."
Penheim bowed deeply.
* * *
With the brief speech concluded, the festival began in earnest.
To be precise, the concert—the highlight of the festival—had commenced.
As mysterious and beautiful melodies echoed through the air, gasps of admiration arose from all around.
Just then.
"How is it? This is the music of the elves. It's an art on a completely different level from that of humans."
Teslon, who had approached unnoticed, boasted pompously.
Hmm.
"It's hard to take you seriously when you're trying to act all solemn in that outfit."
A pink gay prince showing up with a magic wand...
Oh boy. It was so incredibly majestic and grand that one couldn't help but bow their head in awe.
"Ugh! You bastard...!"
"Don't get so worked up on such a happy day. I already know your music is amazing."
"...Hoh. So your ears aren't just for decoration, then."
"Well, I do hear that I have good hearing quite often. And with music of this caliber, anyone would be forced to admire it."
Jinhyuk shrugged.
He meant it.
Just standing here made all his accumulated stress melt away like snow.
"Speaking of which, I heard you're performing in the concert as well. Is that true?"
"I heard participation is open to anyone. Since I'm here, I thought I'd give it a try."
"Bwahaha! A try, you say... That's good. Despairing over the difference in our levels is indeed a valuable experience. However, keep one thing in mind. I acknowledge your combat prowess, but this is an entirely different realm."
Teslon burst into wild laughter.
This guy had a really bizarre personality.
Since he lost in everything else, he desperately wanted to win in this one area... It felt like the whining, stubborn obsession of an elementary schooler.
This was exactly why people with warped pride were called abnormal.
Of course.
'My pride is just as warped, though.'
The more he saw this, the more he wanted to cast his opponent into the abyss.
Right.
A pink dress and a magic wand were a bit too mild.
That kind of look was practically the weakest tier among veterans.
"Then let's do this. If I win..."
"Win? You?"
"Don't interrupt me, just listen. If I don't win, I'll let you take off those clothes immediately."
"...Fine. Let's hear it."
"You just heard the condition for my failure. Instead, if I win, I'm going to add cat ears, a tail, and fluffy bunny slippers to your outfit."
"W-What kind of bullshit is that?! I'm already dying of embarrassment in what I'm wearing now, so why on earth would I wear something like that?!"
Thud!
Teslon stomped his foot on the ground.
He was so flustered that his face had turned beet red.
"Hmm? Don't tell me you're afraid of losing to a mere human?"
"Of course not! Because that will never happen."
"If you're that confident, then it's fine. You're going to win anyway, so what are you worried about?"
"Grrr! Fine, so be it! I'll make sure you thoroughly experience the difference in class between an elf and a human!"
Teslon took the bait hook, line, and sinker once again.
This was a piece of cake.
If everyone in the world were like this guy, swindlers would be playing Monopoly with buildings in Gangnam...
"You're definitely promising this, right?"
"An elf always keeps his word."
"As expected of a noble race."
Smirking, Jinhyuk turned around.
As he walked up a low hill, various musical instruments came into view.
There was only one to choose.
[Dekartan]
An instrument exclusive to elves, it closely resembled a violin.
Needless to say, it was far more difficult to play than a violin.
'I made a huge mistake here in the past.'
A recorder, of all things.
Thinking back on it now, it was a dark history embarrassing enough to make him kick his blankets in frustration thirty thousand times over.
But things were different now.
'Very different.'
Jinhyuk slowly gathered his mana.
At that exact moment.
[Lv3 'Heavenly Melody' has been activated.]
An indescribable energy flowed from his fingertips and into the instrument.
It was time to begin.