Chapter 149: A Brief Pause (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 149: A Brief Pause (2)
[Powet's Necklace]
Acquisition Difficulty: Overrank
Description: A necklace completed by the High Priest Powet with the help of deities. It specializes in 'sealing' and is particularly effective against dark-attribute entities. (Note: Only one target can be sealed with this item.)
A special item capable of sealing.
'So they brought this to lock Alice up again.'
He was momentarily taken aback by the sheer absurdity of what had dropped.
Judging by their actions and words so far, he had assumed they were trying to kill Alice. He never expected them to have a re-sealing in mind.
'Is there a reason they can't kill her? They must have known the risk of her escaping.'
Jinhyuk's eyes narrowed.
There seemed to be some hidden motive.
A reason why they decided to keep Alice alive instead of killing her.
'For now, I'd better keep this safe.'
An item capable of sealing a high-ranking vampire would surely come in handy in many ways.
Jinhyuk stored Powet's Necklace in his subspace inventory.
Just then.
Rumble!
The gate of the Blood Wayport began to collapse.
Caracal and his Frostblade Tribe had successfully dealt with the golems and destroyed the magic crystals that served as the gate's foundation.
'As expected, they're quite useful.'
Jinhyuk watched the crumbling debris of the gate with a complex expression.
He felt that many things would change because of today's events.
But that was a worry for later.
Yes.
At least, not today.
* * *
'Now, I just need to grab the Phoenix Feather and get out of here.'
All the major tasks were wrapped up.
Jinhyuk turned and began walking toward the center of the island.
Crunch.
The softly falling snow and the sound of his footsteps stepping on it blended together, creating a rather poetic atmosphere.
How long had he been walking?
A dense grove of frozen, white trees came into view.
A cold far more biting than anywhere else pricked his skin.
It certainly deserved its reputation as the coldest place on the 7th floor.
Even with the cultivation technique he had copied from Yu Cheon-yeong, it was hard to keep his body from shivering.
"This place is literally a freezer."
Being this cold made him crave a piping hot bowl of ramen, topped with thick slices of chopped ham.
With some sour kimchi and cold rice to mix in, he wouldn't envy anyone in the world...
He was lost in these trivial thoughts when—
Whoosh!
A violent blizzard swept past.
[The temperature has dropped below -65°C!]
[Your HP has begun to decrease rapidly due to the extreme cold!]
[You are at risk of severe frostbite!]
Warning system windows popped up one after another.
At the same time, something glowing with a red light began to appear in the middle of the forest.
'There it is.'
It was the Phoenix Feather he had been looking for.
Normally, an ordinary player would have been terrified by the bone-chilling cold and fled immediately.
When you're about to freeze to death, who cares about some Phoenix Feather?
However, that was precisely the Phoenix Feather's defense mechanism to protect itself.
'If you retreat, the temperature actually drops even lower.'
It was designed to deny cowards the right to possess the feather, while making overconfident fools pay the price for their reckless bravado.
On the other hand, pushing forward through the freezing cold was actually the path to survival.
'It sounds easy, but I froze to death several times before I figured this out.'
Back then, he had paid a hefty tuition fee in the form of massive amounts of lost EXP.
But thanks to that, he could now reap benefits worth several times the tuition he had paid.
Jinhyuk strode forward.
[The temperature rises to -55°C.]
[The rate of HP depletion due to the cold has significantly decreased.]
[Frostbite symptoms are easing.]
The system windows updated rapidly, but Jinhyuk maintained an indifferent expression as he quickened his pace.
And finally.
He arrived in front of the red feather resting in the center.
[Phoenix Feather]
Acquisition Difficulty: AA (Material Item)
Description: One of the feathers left behind by the mythical beast, the Phoenix. Simply possessing it increases cold resistance by 500%. When combined with compatible materials, it can be used to craft an item with highly unique abilities.
He had gained so much from coming here.
Not only did he level up 13 times, but he also gathered new items and skills, along with various other miscellaneous loot.
'I've secured Caracal and the Frostblade Tribe, and I can use Ophelia as a pawn, so that's a pretty sweet deal too.'
Truly, flawless perfection.
That was why Jinhyuk was absolutely certain.
Out of everyone currently inside the Tower, the one who had milked the most benefits was none other than himself.
* * *
The 39th floor of the Tower of Trials.
Inside an ancient castle bathed in cool moonlight, several men and women were gathered.
Beings with snow-white hair and crimson-tinted eyes.
They were vampires, known as the Nobles of the Night.
And among them, those present here were the heads of the Great Six Families.
Atop a large table illuminated by dim candlelight, various delicacies unique to the Tower of Trials were laid out.
Crystal glasses were filled to the brim with a somewhat viscous, crimson liquid.
However.
Despite the array of luxuries, the faces of those seated around the table were far from bright.
It was only natural.
They hadn't gathered here simply to enjoy a dinner banquet.
"Things have gotten complicated. To think Michael would fail..."
A middle-aged man with an impressive, stylish beard spoke first.
As if waiting for this, the other family heads chimed in one by one.
"I was surprised as well. For one of the titled Elite Guards to fall to a mere human..."
"Still, he was strong. His raw strength is surprising, but his combat sense is insane. Honestly, his timing with skills seemed even better than mine. It's only because his mana pool is low, but he's going to be a real headache later on."
A woman with short hair and another with long, straight hair reaching her waist shared their impressions.
Just then.
"You've all gone blind. Didn't I say it time and time again? It's not that the human is amazing, but that leaving it to the idiots of the Decasus Family was the mistake. If my family had stepped up instead, we would have sealed that arrogant Alice and kept the Blood Wayport running smoothly."
A man with sharp features scoffed.
At that.
"How dare you insult the Decasus Family!"
An angry roar erupted instantly.
Rumble!
The dining table began to vibrate violently.
Clatter!
Crash!
Tableware fell to the floor and shattered into pieces.
The suffocating bloodlust filling the castle interior was enough to choke anyone.
"Hmm. Have you gone senile and forgotten? Do you really think you can defeat me, you toothless tiger of the Decasus Family?"
"It seems you're the one who has forgotten after all this time. Who it was that contributed the most to ruling this floor."
Boom!
The atmosphere grew increasingly hostile.
Their materialized mana had grown so immense that it began to scrape against each other's skin.
The family heads, who stood at the absolute pinnacle of the True Ancestors, were on the verge of clashing.
It was obvious that the entire castle would be obliterated.
Ultimately.
"Fighting is your prerogative, but you will have to bear the consequences."
The middle-aged man who had spoken first intervened.
Flinch.
The two family heads froze.
On paper, the heads of the Great Six Families held equal status, with only one exception.
This man.
Exencion of Ataraxia.
The one who had taken over the headship of the Ataraxia Family after Alice.
The title of 'The Strongest Living True Ancestor' was not given to him for nothing.
"Most importantly, what matters to us right now is discussing our next steps. This is no time to be engaged in a petty power struggle, is it?"
"Well, that's true. I was just a bit irritated because things went sideways. So don't lower your voice like that."
"...I agree. I shall restrain myself as well."
The two family heads implicitly backed down.
Once the situation calmed down, Exencion took a sip of the blood in his crystal glass.
It was the only glass on the table that hadn't shattered.
"As you all know, the resources we poured into this operation were astronomical. Perhaps we, who reside on the upper floors, shouldn't have interfered with the lower floors of the Tower in the first place."
By law, beings of the upper floors were not supposed to carelessly interfere with the lower floors.
To bypass that rule, a corresponding price had to be paid.
Such as massive amounts of Coins, magic crystals, or suitable sacred relics.
The Great Six Families had poured an unimaginable amount of resources into this endeavor.
For one reason alone.
To expand their influence and ascend to higher floors.
And.
To challenge the final floor of the Tower once more...
"But this operation is a failure. Now that the Blood Wayport has collapsed, gathering enough forces to strike the Empire is impossible."
"Indeed. Then, are you suggesting we abandon the plan entirely?"
The short-haired woman asked.
"No,"
Exencion's lips curled up slightly.
"We will use another method."
Though they wouldn't be able to act as openly as before.
There were always loopholes and shortcuts in this world, rather than just the direct approach.
* * *
A period of rest followed the fierce battle.
Having successfully completed their respective roles, everyone gathered at the freshwater lake to raise a toast.
Cheon Yu-seong, Teresa, Yu Yeon-hwa, and Lee Tae-min also relieved the fatigue of their hard-fought battle.
The ice trolls of the Frostblade Tribe also fully enjoyed their hard-won freedom.
And Jinhyuk...
...decided to show off his long-honed culinary skills to give everyone a proper feast.
[You have activated Lv.3 'Isekai Restaurant'.]
A skill capable of satisfying the palates of various races.
Its efficacy had already been proven even against elves, who were notoriously indifferent to food.
Because the environment was so harsh, he couldn't prepare much, but Jinhyuk managed to whip up a decent meal using fish from the freshwater lake and edible plants.
Paired with the alcohol the Frostblade Tribe had brought, it became a magnificent feast.
"Glory to the great chieftain, Caracal!"
"To the human who granted us our freedom!"
"Ohhhhh!"
Roars of celebration erupted from all sides.
Most of them were praises dedicated to Jinhyuk and Caracal.
"Thank you... human."
Caracal also expressed his gratitude with deep sincerity.
His eyes trembled slightly as he spoke.
For so long.
How could he not feel grateful to the savior who had rescued them from a lifetime of slavery?
However.
'Hmm...'
He felt a bit bad having to say this at a time like this, but business was business.
"No, well, there's no need to thank me."
Smiling brightly, Jinhyuk handed him a sheet of paper.
"What is this?"
"What do you think?"
An invoice, of course.
The cost of the fish he had painstakingly caught from the lake, the various ingredients gathered from here and there, and not to mention the labor costs for cooking.
Oh, and of course.
The price of granting them their freedom was something that couldn't possibly be measured in mere money.
"T-This is outrageous... Twenty... twenty thousand magic crystals? And if we can't pay, it increases by two thousand every month? Wait! At this rate, we're basically becoming slaves again!"
"Now, now. Slaves? What a harsh word."
If the Ministry of Employment and Labor heard that, they'd have a fit.
This was strictly a fair compensation for labor.
"Normally, I should charge fifty thousand, but I gave you a generous acquaintance discount. I slashed the price so much that I'm barely making a profit, you know? I'm basically doing business at a loss here. Whew."
Jinhyuk let out a small sigh.
No, seriously.
Sometimes he genuinely wondered if he was being too generous.
'If the world were full of people like me, we wouldn't even need laws or police. Yep, absolutely.'