Chapter 74
Chapter 74
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 74
Chapter Title: ACT.14 Disaster of Verdure (4)
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The great tree began to harden.
Its source of life gone, the main body of the Disaster of Verdure slowly crumbled into dust and vanished.
The faint, black-tinged flames flickered out, leaving a lingering afterimage.
It was my own attack, but that last one bothered me a little.
Its properties were definitely similar to ‘that power.’
[Impossible!!]
‘One Who Covets Treasure’ appeared, screaming.
He must have been certain I would fail, never imagining I would actually succeed in subjugating a disaster in a single day.
[This can’t be happening. Something like this is impossible…!]
“But it did.”
The demon, clutching his head and trembling, shuddered violently.
[Th-this is void!!]
Then, like a child throwing a tantrum for a toy, he began to whine.
[It’s strange that a disaster could be defeated so easily, and it’s strange that you suddenly used a flame ability! I even blocked the use of coins just in case, so how in the world!!]
“I added a condition to allow the use of 5,000 coins, didn’t I?”
[There’s no way anyone could turn the tables with a mere 5,000 coins! What do you mean ‘a little special’ human! Where is the ‘little’ part! You’re a complete irregular!!]
So, the demons and angels know of me as a ‘special human.’
But they never mention why I’m special, and judging by the fact that they don’t seem to know the reason themselves, their knowledge must be limited.
I do wonder how they even know that much about me.
*I was hoping I’d never have to use it because of the penalty.*
It meant sealing away one of my main assets for a whole two weeks.
A skill whose cooldown was reset once with ‘Chronos’s Deal’ couldn't be reset again with any other tricks.
[Hwang Chan-jin! Why didn’t you attack Kim Se-hyeon!?]
His anger suddenly shifted to Hwang Chan-jin.
Did he manipulate something to make Hwang Chan-jin attack me?
He must have been desperate.
To think he’d pull a stunt like that, using up today’s maintenance fee.
If he were bound to me, at least he wouldn't have to pay it.
“I cannot defeat Kim Se-hyeon yet. And the reward you offered wasn’t worth me taking that risk.”
As Hwang Chan-jin snorted and replied, the demon’s face grew even redder.
[Kim Se-hyeon, Kim Se-hyeon, Kim Se-hyeon, Kim Se-hyeon…!!]
The demon’s appearance was comical as he ground his teeth and chanted my name, as if trying to lay a curse on me.
This was the most resistance the demon could muster right now.
“As per the terms of our bet, the winner takes all from the loser.”
[Damn it… damn it… For me, a demon, to lose to a mere human… to a worthless human…!]
The demon suddenly grew in size and charged at me.
To think he’d let his emotions take over, unable to accept defeat even when it was all over.
“This is why you can’t rise above being a low-class demon.”
[The contract will be executed.]
[‘One Who Covets Treasure’ has been subjugated by player ‘Kim Se-hyeon’.]
His fist stopped just short of my nose.
To be precise, his entire body had been bound by chains that appeared from a subspace.
Even if the demon scowled and tried to strike me, he could no longer harm me now that he was my subordinate.
[Dammiiiiiit!!]
In the end, the demon, entangled in chains, vanished just as he had appeared.
[Achievement, ‘One Who Felled the Great Tree,’ has been completed.]
[You have been awarded 10,000 coins.]
[The main quest has been cleared.]
[You have been awarded 5,000 coins.]
*Success.*
I let out a sigh of relief as I watched the system messages flash and disappear.
I’d overcome the first disaster and subjugated the demon.
With this, I now had a connection to both factions.
Uriel on the angels’ side, and One Who Covets Treasure on the demons’ side.
How I would use these connections was a matter for later, but it was a big deal to have resolved one issue in advance.
I could feel an invisible thread-like connection to the demon.
No matter where he was or what he was doing, I would know everything.
“I have a job for you.”
[…What is it. For the record, earning a lot of coins will be difficult.]
The demon, peeking out from the subspace, spoke with a resigned look.
I let out a small laugh.
Judging by the others’ reactions, it seemed only I could see him from now on.
“I know.”
Now that he was bound to me, it would be difficult for him to interfere with the story.
That meant it would be hard for him to rake in coins.
The moment he became my subordinate, the one in charge of collecting ‘usage fees’ probably changed as well.
“But it’s not like you can’t earn any, right?”
The demon’s face crumpled.
“Consider it me covering your living expenses. You will offer up 5,000 coins to me daily.”
[You’re crazy. A human shaking down a demon.]
“Ah, and this is the main point.”
Now having accepted his fate to some degree, the demon wore an expression of enlightenment.
A demon, enlightened?
That sounded strange.
“It might be hard to get a lot of coins, but you can still scrape together cash with your abilities, can’t you?”
[Well, it’s possible.]
“Gather as much as you can. You have three days.”
[Three days? How much do you want?]
“I told you. As ‘much’ as possible.”
[But how much is that… *Gasp*.]
Right now, cash didn't hold the same value as before, but for a while, it would regain its worth.
I planned to squeeze out everything I could during that time.
With the power of ‘One Who Covets Treasure,’ it was more than possible.
As I grinned, the demon’s eyes filled with anxiety, and he spoke urgently.
[W-wait a minute. You know my power has been greatly weakened since I became your subordinate, right!?]
“I know. And I also know that since you’re my subordinate, you have to do exactly as I say.”
[Ugh, my life…]
[The ‘Devil Who Mocks the Heavens’ claps with delight.]
[You have been sponsored 1,000 coins.]
‘One Who Covets Treasure’ made a show of wiping away tears before vanishing.
This was payback for all the times he’d made things difficult for me.
And for payback, I think I was letting him off easy.
After confirming the demon was gone, I stretched my arms wide.
The others were also busy with their own things.
The achievement for defeating the Disaster of Verdure was shared among all party members, so they were likely spending the large sum of coins they’d received.
Starting from Chapter 8, the area of activity expands significantly.
The restriction on our ‘area of activity,’ a constraint we had in exchange for being able to undertake quests, had been slightly loosened.
With our operational range expanded to all of Korea, the restriction was practically gone.
There were still national boundaries, but that would take a little more time.
*Clatter…*
From the spot where the gate had vanished, a dark blue stone rolled out.
I picked it up and saw a familiar item name.
Anomalous Dimension Stone.
The same material I’d obtained after closing the rampaging gate, its purpose still unknown.
*Again?*
It had appeared after the goblin gate incident, and now again.
It consistently appeared at gates that were far more difficult than they should have been.
Once might be a coincidence, but twice is a pattern.
Now that I had some breathing room, it seemed I needed to thoroughly investigate what this was.
[Additional settlement will be provided.]
[For eliminating the disaster with outstanding performance, you can acquire a hidden reward.]
*Finally.*
My eyes sparkled.
This was the best reward one could get for defeating a disaster.
A choice between a skill or an item imbued with the disaster’s power.
If I chose the skill, I’d get ‘Solar Beam.’ If I chose the item, I’d get the ‘Sword of Verdure.’
Having used both, I knew getting the skill was the better option.
I immediately made my choice.
“Acquire skill.”
[Skill, ‘Solar Beam (A)’ will be… $#odf2d8]
[@3gh(a*f4]
*What?*
The system message flickered and glitched as if it had encountered an error.
I frowned, staring at the incomprehensible string of characters for a few seconds.
It eventually returned to normal, but it wasn't what I had wanted.
[You have acquired the Trait, ‘Disaster Eater (S)’.]
*Disaster Eater?*
I’d never even heard of such a trait.
Being S-rank from the start meant it couldn't be bad, but since it came at the cost of a skill that would have been a mainstay for me later, I wasn't exactly thrilled.
The Solar Beam skill wasn't absolutely necessary for me.
As long as one person in our party had it, that was enough.
Jo Min-ah doesn't use a sword, so she must have received it.
“Check trait.”
[Access Denied.]
[Information on the Trait, ‘Disaster Eater,’ cannot be viewed.]
You have got to be kidding me.
Sometimes, even high-rank things were traps.
Or, they were good on their own but had poor synergy with what you already possessed, making them useless.
I needed to know what kind of trait it was to figure out how to use it.
[Absorbing the remnants of the disaster.]
[The stack for the Trait, ‘Disaster Eater,’ has increased.]
[The effect is enhanced.]
What?
My eyes shot open at the additional message.
My body felt lighter, and I could feel the amount of mana circulating within me increase.
Could it be?
[Character Information]
Name: Kim Se-hyeon
Gender: Male (26)
Strength: 60(+16) Stamina: 50(+16) Agility: 59(+16) Mana: 62(+20)
Unique Ability: ???(EX)
Traits: One Who Started from the End (S), Accustomed to Battle (B), Wind and Moon (B), Lord of Darkness (S), Disaster Eater (S)
Skills: Extreme Eye (S)
There was no doubt.
All my stats had increased by 2.
Disaster Eater.
Based on the name and the change that just occurred, I could only infer one thing.
*The trait gets stronger every time I defeat a disaster.*
Since I couldn't view the trait's information, the only thing I knew for sure was that all my stats increased by a certain amount.
If it was an increase of 2 per stack, then this trait was a late-bloomer type.
Besides, an S-rank trait couldn't possibly end with just this effect.
There were many more disasters to face, which meant it would strengthen on its own over time.
This wasn't bad.
The only question was what its other effects might be.
“That was a close call, but we managed to stop it somehow.”
Jun Bo-ra stretched as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders.
Jo Min-ah’s face brightened slightly.
“I-is it over? Are the monsters… all gone now?”
“What are you talking about? This is just the beginning. Besides, the Disaster of Verdure had many ways to weaken it and was incredibly weak compared to the others. You can’t let your guard down.”
“Oh…”
“Give the kid some hope, will you?”
“Mind your own business.”
Jun Bo-ra smirked and stuck her tongue out slightly.
“Well then, shall we head back…”
“In that case, our alliance is now over.”
With a murderous glint in his eyes, Hwang Chan-jin suddenly swung his sword at me.
It wasn't a genuine attempt to strike me, more of a threat.
The briefly relaxed atmosphere grew tense once more.
I didn't need to dodge, so I stood still, but I couldn't just let it slide.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
“Have you forgotten? We were only cooperating because of the Disaster of Verdure.”
He scoffed as if I’d asked the obvious, leaving me dumbfounded.
I thought our relationship had improved a little, but that wasn't the case at all.
Just as Han Hyeok-jun was about to step forward in anger again, Hwang Chan-jin looked back and forth between me and Jun Bo-ra and continued.
“I know the end of this game.”
“……!”
Only Jun Bo-ra and I could immediately understand what that meant.
Han Hyeok-jun, his brow furrowed, looked between my and Jun Bo-ra’s hardened faces.
…This was getting interesting.
Hwang Chan-jin, of all people, was claiming to know the ending of ‘End of Apocalypse.’