Chapter 255: Daily Vlog Life in Europe (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 255: Daily Vlog Life in Europe (2)
Greeeeak!
The dimensional rift split open, revealing a space dyed in purple.
It was the gate leading directly to Amuram's Private Warehouse.
I guess it's time to choose.
If he went to the 40th floor and used the seal there, he would be able to use all the sacred relics Amuram had once possessed.
However, if he forcibly manifested items from the upper floors to the lower floors or outside the Tower, he could only bring out a single sacred relic.
And the rest will be destroyed as the price.
In other words, he had to decide whether to use one good item right now, or hold back and use all of them later.
And the best answer in this situation was...
The corners of Jinhyuk's mouth curled upward.
Obviously, "I'm not throwing away a single one."
Why give up one for the other?
He could just summon one of the sacred relics here, make good use of it, and then use the rest on the 40th floor later.
The foolish vampires blindly trusted and followed the system, so they never even imagined another way could exist.
But in truth, even the seemingly perfect system had its loopholes.
A very fatal loophole, at that.
[The unique ability Triple Magic - 'Infinite Magic' is activated.]
Magic circles engraved with ancient runes appeared around Jinhyuk.
One, two, three.
The three magic circles glowed in red, blue, and green, respectively.
[The unique ability 'Blood Demon Qi' blooms.]
A vortex of mysterious light appeared over the red magic circle.
On top of this, he wrapped 'Mental Barrier'—which he had manifested over the green magic circle—around the entirety of the Blood Demon Qi.
Like wrapping a package, this was to preserve the energy of the Blood Demon Qi for as long as possible.
And finally.
[Lv13 'Glacial Shaping' is activated.]
He began to freeze the dummy he had created.
As a chilling frost rose along the blue magic circle, the ice gradually took the shape of a sword.
'Mental Barrier' and 'Glacial Shaping' allowed the dense demonic energy of the Blood Demon Qi to seep out, replicating the unique scent of a vampire.
At the same time, they acted as a strainer, thoroughly filtering out any other traces of mana.
"Phew."
Jinhyuk let out a long sigh.
He had been so focused on this delicately calculated task that he hadn't even realized cold sweat was dripping from his forehead.
Still...
He had finally finished it.
With this, I should be able to trick the system at least once.
By the time the system sensed something was off and tried to patch the error, he would have already achieved his goal.
Now, let's see what I should swap out.
Jinhyuk thoroughly scanned the items inside the rift.
He saw a ring, a necklace, a rapier, an old book, and a painting in a frame.
He had seen the first three before, but even Jinhyuk had never seen the latter two.
It would be nice if I could check them before choosing, but it's a shame I can't.
Simply activating 'Gluttony's Eye' would be considered making a choice, so he had to rely entirely on luck and intuition for this.
Naturally, the safest bet was to choose the items whose stats and performance he already knew.
That way, he could at least guarantee a minimum return on using the seal.
But right then...
"...?!"
Something caught Jinhyuk's eye.
The painting in the frame. To be precise, the characters in a corner of the painting caught his attention.
Characters composed of a multi-layered structure far more complex and difficult than standard ancient runes.
It was the 'Lost Language'.
Furthermore, looking closely, the scenery in the painting also seemed familiar.
It was a landscape painting depicting reality, not some imaginary place.
...It's not just a simple painting.
Indeed. This wasn't a painting.
It was closer to a map.
One that showed where the Lost Language was located.
To think he could uncover one of the Tower's secrets that he had been searching for so desperately.
There was no need to hesitate.
Jinhyuk swapped the framed painting with his ice dummy.
Wroooong!
The system let out a strange resonant sound, but it lasted only a brief moment.
[You have acquired the masterpiece painting, 'Where Silence Seeps'.]
[Where Silence Seeps]
Acquisition Difficulty: Unmeasurable
Description: A painting owned by Amuram de Decasus, the head of the Decasus family. It is a landscape painting of a certain part of the Tower, but its exact location remains unknown. Only those with specific abilities can perceive the true value of this painting.
Only those with specific abilities could perceive its true value...
Which meant one had to possess the ability to decipher runes.
More precisely, they had to know that this was the Lost Language.
Since it was written in multiple layered runes, he couldn't tell exactly what the characters meant as a whole, but...
'Fire.'
A part of the runes definitely read like that.
It was likely designed to exploit the fact that, logically, no one would do something as crazy as setting a painting on fire.
Well, no idiot would burn such a valuable item.
Jinhyuk concentrated mana at his fingertips.
Whoosh!
The Primordial Flame nibbled at the corner of the painting.
At that exact moment...
As if by magic, the scenery inside the painting began to change.
The sunlit forest and plains vanished.
In their place, a location with twelve towering black pillars appeared.
...This place is.
And the changed location...
Was a place Jinhyuk knew as well.
* * *
Thirty minutes later.
Jinhyuk gathered his scattered companions in one place.
"From now on, Yeon-hwa and Tae-min are going to take a quick test. Nothing grand—you just have to duel an opponent I designate."
"Individually?"
"No, you two will form a team. You've been working together all this time, haven't you?"
Since both of them would play crucial roles in climbing the Tower in the future, he needed to check how much they had grown.
And while he was at it, he planned to make a promotional video for the Veteran Corporation.
Now that our faction has grown to a mid-sized scale, we do need a proper main video and a website to match.
Indeed.
Company promotion.
In truth, this was the core objective.
They had been sponsored a gorgeous location, and the cast was spectacular. Since the production costs could be covered by "passion pay," there couldn't be any better conditions than this.
Most of all, he loved the fact that the people here had absolutely no idea they were starring in a promotional video for his company.
Of course, as time passed, they would eventually realize they were being exploited, but by then, they would already be trapped in the depths of hell.
"Are you sure about this? It'll be tough for just one person to face both of us."
"Hyung, you shouldn't think of us as we used to be. The number of labyrinths Yeon-hwa nuna and I cleared together is in the double digits."
Yu Yeon-hwa and Lee Tae-min stepped forward confidently.
Indeed... the aura radiating from the two of them was completely different from before.
He recalled a video ranked near the top of the 'Strongest Duo' list voted by the Tower of Trials community.
The comments had been flooded with praise, saying that Korean veterans were truly on another level.
In that case...
"Andrea."
Jinhyuk called out to Andrea, who was standing beside him.
"Me?"
"Yes. You may use the 'Fox Bead'."
"...Okay. I'll give it a try."
Andrea nodded.
[Andrea has used the beastification spiritual beast, 'Gumiho'!]
Rustle...
Nine fluffy tails, imbued with flames, sprouted behind Andrea.
Pointed ears grew on top of her head, and her pupils turned a vibrant yellow.
This was going to be a hit.
He could already feel the view count skyrocketing.
On the other hand...
"...Tae-min."
"Yeah. Now I see why hyung told us to fight her together."
The smiles vanished from Yu Yeon-hwa and Lee Tae-min's faces.
They felt it instinctively.
Their numerical advantage of two to one was by no means a guarantee of victory.
Rumble!
Pure, clean mana began to condense around Yu Yeon-hwa's arms and legs.
The refined energy of the Grand Purity Hwarang Heart Method soon took a complete form.
She was a martial artist boasting outstanding close-combat capabilities.
Boom!
Yu Yeon-hwa kicked off the ground and dashed forward.
[Lee Tae-min activates the unique ability 'Machine Lord' - 'Apocalypse Guardian'!]
Lee Tae-min also activated his ability.
Clank!
Tae-min's entire body was encased in silver armor.
Ho.
Jinhyuk's eyes narrowed.
Unlike before, when he mainly used drones and small turrets, this method allowed the caster to engage in combat directly.
It was a structure similar to the Titans he had seen in the Empire.
Tae-min must have mastered quite a bit of his Machine Lord abilities in the meantime.
This was getting more and more exciting.
If he just added some killer BGM and a decent narration, it would make a perfect prologue video.
Jinhyuk recorded every single scene without missing a beat.
* * *
How many hours had passed since then?
A rather bizarre spectacle was unfolding in the garden of the Rosenberg Mansion.
"I-I am... the ultimate sword of the Veteran Corporation. The Sword Saint, Cheon. Yu. Seong... Like hell I am! Damn it! Why on earth do I have to do something this ridiculous?!"
Cheon Yu-seong threw down the sword he was holding.
His chest heaved up and down with rage.
How unprofessional of him.
"I'm telling you, the scene of you drawing your sword really works. If you set the mood right and lower your voice, the views will go through the roof."
"Don't make me laugh. It's obvious this only benefits you anyway. There's no reason for me to do something so embarrassing."
Cheon Yu-seong drew a hard line.
Hmm...
"I guess it can't be helped. Wolyeong, you play the role of the Sword Saint instead."
"Me, My Lord?"
"Yeah. Honestly, you don't fall behind in terms of skill or looks, so you're more than qualified. In fact, your skills might even be a cut above his."
Jinhyuk glanced at Cheon Yu-seong.
His face had turned pale, indicating he was thoroughly pissed off.
"My... skills fall behind?"
"Officially, yes. Since this video is also meant to establish our company's hierarchy. Wolyeong will play the Sword Saint from now on, and you... let's just put you down as Passing Soldier C."
The kind of role where the protagonist swings a sword and you get hit and die in the distance.
An extra among extras, barely appearing on screen for a second, was perfect for him.
"Urgh! Move aside. I'll do it."
Cheon Yu-seong grabbed his sword again.
Just as expected.
Classes at Hankuk University were starting soon, and even Cheon Yu-seong would want to avoid being introduced as Passing Soldier C in front of his fellow medical students.
Right then, Jinhyuk's gaze shifted to the other side.
There, Goguma and the spirit beasts were posing in neat rows.
"Earth..."
"Fire..."
"Wind..."
"Asseeeemble..."
Their exhausted voices carried absolutely no energy.
Since they were already on their 78th take of the Spirit Special Forces & Ancient Species flight collaboration video, it was only natural they were exhausted.
Due to repeated NGs, black smoke was rising from Salamander's mouth instead of flames.
Gnome's body had turned into soggy mud instead of dry, crumbly soil.
However...
"No, no. That's not it. Let's do it again with more passion and energy! You know, make it more intense and impactful. Like fireworks exploding, yet grand and majestic. Beautiful and spectacular, too. You get the general vibe, right?"
Jinhyuk clapped his hands, demanding a 79th take.
Finally, unable to take it anymore, Sylphid stepped forward as their representative.
"M-Master, we feel like we're going to die. Even spirits have the right to demand a 50-hour work week and a 10-minute break for every hour of work."
"You want to rest?"
"Yes."
"There was someone else who said the exact same thing just an hour ago. Aren't you guys curious why Undine isn't here?"
Jinhyuk smiled brightly.
The water spirit, Undine.
Come to think of it, one of the spirit beasts' spots was indeed empty.
"W-Where is Undine, Master? She's resting comfortably, right?"
"Hmm. How should I put this?"
"Answer me, Master! Where is Undine right now?!"
"She said she'd rather die than do this any longer."
True to her nature as a water spirit, she had said she wanted to relax in flowing water.
So, he let her rest.
In the lake right in front of them.
But then, rough waves began to violently churn the surface of the lake, which should have been calm.
"Master, why are there waves in the lake?"
Salamander flicked his tongue.
"Oh, that's because I released 'Blood Piranhas' in there to eat during dinner."
The Blood Piranha was a specialty found only in the Tower, known for its flesh becoming firmer the more violently it moved.
And Undine was probably playing a very intense game of tag in there.
"Hieeeeek...!"
"M-Master! I think I just heard Undine screaming?"
"It's just your imagination. Undine is resting very comfortably right now. Of course, if you're curious about just how comfortable she is, I can let you rest with her."
"..."
"I love filming movies. It has always been my dream to become a superstar of the Spirit Realm."
"Me too, me too!"
"Hehe. I want to shoot again as soon as possible."
There were no more complaints from the spirit beasts.
Dripping with cold sweat, they all began to passionately discuss how they could strike more perfect poses and create better scenes.