Chapter 348
Chapter 348
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 348
>Chapter Title: The Real Swamp Keeper
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A foul-smelling toad gripped a spear and dashed after Kang Seol.
"What's the big rush?"
"There's a good reason. So, the help you need is executing someone?"
"...That's right. He's been disrupting my swamp all this time, and now he's finally getting his judgment."
"Ah...."
"This way! Hurry and follow me."
A set of choices appeared before Kang Seol.
[The toad who introduced himself as the swamp keeper is filled with an inexplicable sense of duty. He says he needs your help to fulfill his obligation. But you can't trust everything, so maybe ask some questions.]
1. Who exactly is this guy who's been messing up your swamp?
2. Why do you need my help to execute him?
3. Does it have to be an execution?
4. Couldn't you handle it on your own?
...
Kang Seol smirked at the window full of potential questions swirling in his mind.
Then, he didn't ask a single one.
'I get the gist of how this plays out. Told you it was too suspicious.'
Following the choices might not lead to the outcome he expected, so he kept his mouth shut instead of voicing the questions he should have asked.
Kang Seol and the swamp keeper raced toward their destination without another word.
'Luckily, it's close to the checkpoint.'
If it had been on the opposite side from the next checkpoint, it would've been an automatic failure.
Danger was closing in by the second right now.
"Haa... haa...."
No idea how fast they'd run, but when Kang Seol and the toad arrived, both were panting heavily.
"That's the one, right there."
Kang Seol caught his breath and eyed the bound figure who'd lost consciousness.
It had the head of a crocodile.
Its mouth was tied shut with rope so tight it couldn't speak.
Kang Seol smirked.
"If you need the seal, help the swamp keeper. Kill him for daring to defy authority with his insolence...."
A set of choices popped up.
[The swamp keeper wants to dispose of this one. You have to make a choice. But first, something to confirm.]
1. What did this guy do wrong?
2. Why do I have to kill him?
3. Shouldn't we rethink killing him?
4. Can't I get the seal with some other favor instead?
...
Without asking a single question, Kang Seol did what needed to be done. There wasn't even time for arguments right now.
Slash...
"Yes... Huh? Wh-what are you doing!"
Kang Seol swiftly cut away every rope binding the crocodile's body.
"What do you think you're doing! Why aren't you obeying me? Don't you want the seal?"
Right then, the crocodile's eyes snapped open.
"Whoa... Fell for it again. This is why the swamp's so fun."
"......"
The crocodile stretched lazily and offered Kang Seol a handshake.
"Nice to meet you. I'm the swamp keeper. The sluggard asked me to tidy up the swamp."
Kang Seol nodded and shook his hand.
"I'm Kang Seol. What's that guy?"
"Ugh... Don't fall for it! I'm the swamp keeper!"
He turned to the toad, who was backing away hesitantly.
"If that's the case, why did you need my help? The sluggard entrusted you with garden maintenance."
"That's......"
This was exactly why he hadn't asked any questions on the way. It was a question that would've shut him up fast, and the toad probably would've bolted if he'd asked.
"Obvious, isn't it? Killing the swamp keeper means getting cursed by the sluggard. If I kill the swamp keeper in your place, you dodge the curse."
"...How much do you know?"
Kang Seol had known from the start that the swamp keeper was the crocodile.
He couldn't recall the exact details of his appearance, but it definitely wasn't a toad. No way someone's form changed overnight like that.
Plus, the request he'd made to Kang Seol was highly suspicious.
"Eek... Fine, I'll execute you too!"
Whoosh-!
Swish...
Kang Seol spun around and shot out his leg.
Bam-!
The instant his foot connected with the toad's body, a scream erupted from its mouth.
"Ribbit-!"
He was a bit thrown by the frog-like croak, but he'd at least blocked the attack.
Smoothly...
The swamp keeper adjusted his small, cracked glasses onto his face and said,
"Let him go. Just give him a pass this once."
"...Weren't you almost killed?"
"Who said anything about dying? It was all a joke. Right?"
The swamp keeper greeted the toad with an innocent smile, and it shuddered before vanishing into the swamp.
"Why'd you let him go? He threatened you."
"The swamp's residents are lazy. They need a push like that to get moving. Otherwise, the swamp rots."
"......"
"You just thought that sounded ridiculous, didn't you?"
"...You know me well."
"Heh heh... The swamp folk are cute if you look close. They're just a bit rough. Anyway... Thanks for saving me, human! You're the second one to do that."
Kang Seol had rescued the swamp keeper long ago.
The swamp keeper's requests were the total opposite of his cheerful personality—puke-inducingly tough.
True to form for someone who handled the dirty work, he'd dump equally grimy tasks on players.
But sometimes, you could skip those requests and sub in something else: rescuing the swamp keeper.
Charlie had learned that ages ago by saving him.
"Swamp keeper, the seal."
"Oh, right! If you helped me, I should return the favor. Here!"
Sizzle-!
A swamp emblem etched itself onto the back of his hand.
[You have acquired the Swamp Keeper's Seal.]
[The Sluggard will meet you in private.]
The final seal acquired.
Escape route secured, for now.
Thud...
Rumble...
Boom-!
[The Celestial Dragon Azanic has invaded the underground garden.]
In the meantime, the ruins had given way and let Azanic in.
"Damn it...."
"Whoa, what was that noise?"
"Swamp keeper, can I get the illusory lotus?"
"Of course! You helped me out!"
Kang Seol pocketed the last toxic herb from the swamp keeper and bolted for the next checkpoint.
"Uh... uh... S-see ya!"
"Yeah! Take care!"
He sprinted full-tilt to the next checkpoint and rummaged in his pouch to repeat the same trick as before.
Right then.
Crunch-!
The second checkpoint crumbled.
Black, glossy scales.
Yellow, ominous reptilian eyes.
Those eyes locked onto the final checkpoint far away—the one where Kang Seol was.
The Celestial Dragon Azanic, back in his true born form, stared at Kang Seol.
"...There you are."
The moment their eyes met, Kang Seol felt a bone-chilling terror freeze his body.
Boom-!
Boom-!
Whoosh...
The Sluggard's Forest was a first visit even for Azanic. He hadn't even known about this hidden ruin.
'...Interesting.'
As he smashed the entrance, a massive presence vanished. Like a star falling from the sky.
He instinctively sensed Tankred's death.
"Then her descendant must've fallen to Tantuinu or new allies."
It didn't matter much.
Just an extra step in the process. Her descendant ending up in his hands was inevitable anyway.
No need to rush.
Crack...
He forced open the ruin's entrance and got sucked into the Sluggard's underground garden.
Creak...
Creeeak...
His body began to change.
Far grander and more dynamic than a caterpillar becoming a butterfly.
Not in human form, but as a noble ancient dragon.
Eyes of fire, wings of wind—nothing to fear.
"This form feels sluggish...."
The underground garden's aura prevented him from taking human shape.
"I see. That's why Tankred's residual scent lingers. Did she fall here?"
Tankred's scent cut off here. The scents of her bumbling "allies" and Tantuinu stretched off into the distance.
To think they believed they could escape him— their foolishness drew a sigh.
"That way."
He folded his wings...
Whoosh-!
His massive body whipped up wind and soared in an instant.
At the first checkpoint, he scoffed at the overgrown steel reeds.
"Pathetic intellect."
Huuuuh...
His chest swelled and glowed red-hot.
Fwooooosh-!
A massive blaze scattered the steel reeds.
Boom-!
Crackle...
Thud...
"...Hm?"
A foul stench wafted up.
The stink bombs Kang Seol had prepared, packed with blinking flower spores, ignited and released a vicious aroma.
Already toxic on their own, the fire turned them into a brutal poison gas.
"Hmph."
But alas, Azanic was one of the transcendents. Like the Origin God's fragment, Ilizad, he wielded an authority.
His very flesh was his authority.
A body with high resistance to elements, blades, and blunts. Plus insane regeneration.
That's why he hadn't cared about the poison mixing into his breath.
"Commendable effort, but amateurish."
As proof, his body showed no ill effects. Still, he decided to avoid fire from here on.
Because of the steel reeds' nature.
Most had melted in the dragonflame, but some had hardened further instead. With his enlarged body, he'd need to snap every one to pass—now even more annoying.
Well, just one more step. He'd endure.
Swish...
Crack crack crack-!
He swept his claws, and the steel reeds snapped like twigs.
Coughing from the lingering poison, Azanic moved into the forest.
They're not here either.
Irritation surged at the realization, and he inhaled deeply before unleashing another blaze.
Boom-!
The forest burned in the shape of his flames.
He gazed contentedly at the destruction when someone shouted from afar.
"Dragon! What do you think you're doing!"
It was the forest keeper.
"I'm hunting a human and trolls. Tell the truth, and I'll spare you."
"This is the Sluggard's garden! Do you know what you've done?"
"Sluggard? Never heard of him. No interest in inferior lifeforms."
"...You don't know the Sluggard? Then you won't get to meet him."
"What?"
"No clue! Not telling!"
Flap flap-!
The forest keeper flew off in a flash.
Azanic figured interrogating him wouldn't yield much, so he flew to the next checkpoint. The human's scent was closing in anyway.
Probably catch up after this one.
Another checkpoint sealed with steel reeds.
"Doing the same damn thing!"
Annoyed, he smashed through every reed in the passage with his claws.
Boom-!
Naturally, poison dust billowed up in the process.
Pathetic and irritating, these runaways' pointless efforts.
All futile anyway.
Shake...
He shook off his body, eyes turning to the next checkpoint.
There.
The rat who opened the ruin's door and let Tankred and her crew escape.
"...There you are."
Huuuuh...
As he gathered breath for fire, the checkpoint filled entirely with those steel reeds again. Wary of them hardening on contact with flame, Azanic shot swampward instead.
Boom-!
"Hmph, lucky."
As Azanic flew toward the checkpoint, someone called out.
"What's your grudge with the swamp? Is it for the seal?"
"Seal? What nonsense are you spouting?"
The swamp keeper boldly protested to the dragon, and Azanic shot back.
"You need a seal to meet the Sluggard. That's why you're here, right?"
"No need. No intention of meeting him."
"...Wasted trip, then."
"...What?"
"Nothing. Do as you like."
The swamp keeper slipped away.
Azanic felt a flash of anger at the time thief, but trampling this garden after his goal was fine too.
He coiled his body.
About to rocket to the checkpoint in an instant.
But suddenly...
"Urk...?"
His wings felt heavier than usual.
Only now did he notice the flames' power seemed weaker too.
"...Hmph."
He ignored the ominous signs.
He was a dragon.
A dragon remained a dragon until its dying breath.
"Just catch him and ask."
Whoooosh...
Boom-!
Azanic reached the final checkpoint in a blink and shredded the steel reeds with his claws.
Boom-!
Another poison-dust-filled passage.
Flap flap-!
Azanic flapped his wings to blow it away, but he had to inhale some. With the dust everywhere, avoidance was impossible anyway.
"Annoying... But I've got you."
Soon, he took flight.
Fwoooosh-!
He spotted a human sprinting toward an ancient hollow.
Almost there already.
Azanic smirked in satisfaction and lobbed a small fireball.
Whiiiish...
No plan to kill outright after all the hassle.
The fireball flew straight at Kang Seol.
"No can do. You have to pay for your sins."