Syrvelis's Sacrificial Sword (3)
“Ki-Kiriri? You’re using holy water again?!”
Ram couldn’t believe it. Kang Hae-il had once again interpreted the orc’s “revival” in exactly the way that made the holy water trick work a second time.
“You’re fine with getting caught?!”
Stealing the kill even at the risk of exposure? Ram couldn’t understand it.
The culprit was herself.
“Well… it’s because you put the coins in way too early, Lady Ram. Julian realized this place was a gold mine…”
Sam’s analysis was spot on. Ram had dropped the sponsorship too quickly, so Julian had seen the gate’s color change. That was why he was willing to take the risk and steal the rewards.
“I-I didn’t think that bastard would actually fall for the kids’ provocation and enter late!”
“That’s why you shouldn’t have spammed the F-rank contempt matrix so hard…”
“Shut up! You don’t know anything!”
Thwack!
Ram spun and smacked Sam across the jaw. She seemed genuinely pissed from all the scratching.
“Story boards are centered around the protagonist! Anything opposing the protagonist is automatically an object of contempt! That’s just the default setting! The opposite of S-rank? It’s F-rank! That’s why they get completely ignored!”
“Ughhh!”
Ram clutched her head in frustration.
“That’s not what’s important… If that guy steals the reward again this time…”
“He won’t be able to take all the contribution points, Lady Ram!”
After getting hit, Sam seemed to regain his senses and tried to comfort her.
“It’s hard for him to act freely. He’s already used up his holy water repertoire. Even though Julian got stronger in the last gate, his porter is still the same. Without the mask, he can’t do anything.”
That much was true. There was no way he could use the items meant for Sagosul while pretending to be a mere porter.
“Ki-Kiriri? Right? He must be out of tricks now, yeah?”
“Exactly!”
Kang Hae-il, completely unaware of Ram and Sam’s panic, gave a thumbs-up.
“Amazing! Holy water really is a direct counter to the undead, huh?”
“It works on anything related to dark magic.”
“Can I have some too?”
“No way!”
Julian’s expression suddenly turned serious.
“Hyung, you’re fire attribute. How are you going to use water-attribute holy water? They’re complete opposites! Do you want to suffer qi deviation?!”
“Ah… I see?”
Kang Hae-il nodded at the mention of attributes.
“I definitely am fire attribute.”
“Exactly. So using any water-related items would be a disaster. Besides, hyung can just punch everything and it’d be better than holy water anyway. A man uses his fists~!”
“Right. A man uses his fists…”
Kang Hae-il nodded even more convincingly.
“Fists really are the answer.”
“Yes!”
Kang Hae-il grinned proudly.
At least he’s showing some will to level up now.
Julian had been worried after Hae-il said he was only F-rank so this was as far as he went. Seeing some motivation now put his mind at ease.
The orc warriors, who were basically trash mobs, were all taken down by Kang Hae-il as they progressed.
Julian didn’t bother joining fights that wouldn’t meaningfully contribute to his score.
“Go, Hae-il! Body slam!”
He simply cheered from the sidelines.
And whenever items dropped, he immediately swept them into his inventory.
The sight of him running around collecting items seemed hilarious to some and utterly repulsive to others.
As they moved deeper into the dungeon, the scenery began to change.
Fewer monsters appeared, and the path grew narrower.
“Whoa…”
Eventually the passage became so tight they could only walk sideways.
“It’s coming, right?”
“Yes!”
Without any lights, the darkness was so complete they had to confirm each other’s positions by voice.
Just as the Constellations said, a boss was clearly about to appear.
Defeat the Dungeon Boss!
A heavy vibration echoed as if something massive had appeared.
Thud…!
“Hae-il hyung! Don’t go too far ahead! Let’s go together!”
The Constellations thought Julian was scared and calling for Hae-il. Given the situation and his tone, it was understandable.
“What the—why isn’t hyung answering—”
Strangely, there was no response from Hae-il’s direction. The moment that thought crossed his mind—
——KWAAAAANG!
“!?”
Oh no. The fight had already started.
A wave of heat surged through the narrow gap.
Kang Hae-il had begun igniting his flames.
Julian scrambled forward even faster in a crab-like shuffle.
“Ah, damn it! Don’t finish it before I get there! Hyung!”
The Constellations finally realized why Julian had told him not to go ahead.
Perfect.
Julian finally slipped out of the narrow passage.
What greeted him was a towering wall of flames and something with a massive frame.
…A troll?
Twice the size of an orc with gray skin covered in stony protrusions.
A huge club with metal spikes driven into it.
[Troll Warrior Lv.32]
It was a troll.
“Who dares set foot in this troll’s domain?!”
Julian was quite familiar with trolls.
They didn’t have the organizational power of orcs, but individuals were often stronger in pure combat ability.
Their basic physique was on another level.
That was probably why this one was set at level 32.
The Constellations watching Julian’s stream had been so desensitized by the Archidia gates that they thought level 32 was easy. But here?
That’s an insanely high level.
Considering the honorable orc warrior Kerak had been level 28, a random troll reaching 32 was incredible.
Can Hae-il win?
He was S-rank, so probably. That complacent thought passed through Julian’s mind, but remembering how badly Hae-il had been beaten by Kerak, he knew he had to be careful.
Still, he was curious.
How much stronger has he gotten?
It was important information for Julian to know exactly how strong Hae-il had become.
I need to know his durability before I hit him.
He couldn’t let Hae-il die, but he also had to defeat him. So he needed to gauge his opponent’s ability.
Let’s see how far he can go against a troll.
It was the perfect test subject. Trolls were monsters that endured through their stubborn regeneration, quickly developing resistance to repeated attacks.
That said, it wasn’t necessarily a bad matchup for Hae-il.
They’re weak to fire, after all.
Trolls fundamentally disliked fire. They preferred cold, damp places and couldn’t tolerate heat or dryness.
Crack…!
The fact that cracks were forming in the stones embedded in its skin proved this troll was no exception.
“Grrrr… You dare set fire to this troll’s domain?!”
“Are you scared of fire?”
Kang Hae-il had also noticed the troll feared fire.
He’s definitely improved from before.
After grinding gates alone like crazy, he looked quite comfortable in combat. He immediately recognized the troll’s weakness to fire and was attacking exclusively with ranged fire magic from a distance.
Fwoooooosh!
Fwoosh!
Kang Hae-il’s flames burned much hotter and longer than normal fire.
From the troll’s perspective, it couldn’t swing its massive club freely and was forced to focus entirely on blocking the flames.
“Grrrr! Come here! Come at meeee!”
At this point, Julian decided to take the troll’s side a little.
Come out.
He commanded the wind spirit.
Piiing?
Block the flames.
The spirit nodded.
Soon a powerful wind began to blow, completely extinguishing Kang Hae-il’s fire.
Whoooooooosh——
“!?”
Kang Hae-il was startled.
“The troll… knows magic too?”
It was a boss monster, so it wouldn’t be strange for it to have a few skills.
All the long-range fire attacks were being deflected.
“Guess I have to get close.”
Kang Hae-il decided he needed to approach and strike directly.
The Constellations supporting Kang Hae-il were losing their minds. To them, the wind spirit was clearly visible, and that item had originally been meant for Hae-il.
“I’ll beat you to death myself.”
“Whoa whoa? Hyung!”
Julian sensed something and tried to stop him, but—
“Move!”
“!”
Hae-il’s entire body burned from red to pure white before he shot forward like a blazing engine of destruction.
KWAAAAAAAA—
“!”
The troll’s eyes widened as well.
Whoosh!
It immediately swung its club.
“This is bad.”
For a moment, Julian grew genuinely worried.
What if he actually dies?
That kind of charge doesn’t work against trolls.
Trolls were surprisingly resistant to speed-based tactics. While their intelligence was low, their reflexes and instincts were exceptional.
Against such opponents, curveballs worked better than fastballs.
And Kang Hae-il’s current skill was a pure straight fastball.
“Dieeee!”
The troll swung its club with glee.
Like hitting a perfect home run off a straight pitch, the club smashed directly into Kang Hae-il’s body.
BOOOOOOOOM!
“!”
He flew off like a burning baseball, getting homerun’d into the distance.
Even the Constellations found this one genuinely funny and burst out laughing.
Good grief…
But Julian didn’t have time to laugh.
Srrrng—
He quickly drew his sword.
[Narrative Trick Hwando]
Kang Hae-il flew in a long arc before crashing far away.
Thud!
In that instant, Julian kicked off the ground and reached out.
Flash Step.
Swish!
His figure scattered.
Clatter…!
Kang Hae-il opened his eyes as stone dust rained down on him.
“Ugh…”
He clutched his head and grimaced.
If he had been even one rank lower than S, that would have been a fatal blow. But he only had minor wounds.
Even those were slowly healing as flames flickered across them.
“Cough!”
Kang Hae-il spat out a breath and stood up.
“Hoo… That guy’s faster than I thought.”
He muttered the profound realization he’d gained from getting his head smashed.
“This time…”
This time he would land a proper hit.
But then—
Clap, clap, clap.
Julian clapped his hands.
“Hae-il ham! Nice shot!”
“…?”
Was he mocking him?
Not “troll nice shot,” but “Hae-il nice shot”?
“Didn’t you see?! Hyung’s punch actually landed!”
The troll was collapsed over there, a gaping hole in its chest.
Its heart had been pierced cleanly.
The wound was so neat it looked like it had been carved out with a scalpel.
A perfect strike that radiated murderous intent.
“Ah…? So my attack did hit?”
With his lack of experience, there was no way Kang Hae-il could have known.
Having just taken a home run to the head, he was too disoriented and simply assumed his attack had connected.
“Of course. You’re not an idiot. You wouldn’t have just taken a home run for nothing, right?”
“Haha.”
Hae-il scratched his head.
“That’s a relief. So we cleared it?”
“Yep. But…”
Slide.
Julian reached behind his back and secretly pulled a small dagger from his inventory.
Grade: Legendary
Type: Dagger
A common sacrificial blade, but one that has been touched by Syrvelis. Anyone killed by this blade will have bitter cold penetrate deep into their body, perfectly preserving the corpse. The body is then stored in the demon realm and can later be summoned and bound as a thrall.
*Corpse preservation and resummoning can each only be used once every 24 hours.
It was the sword he had received as a hidden condition reward after dealing with the Death Knight in the Archidia gate.