Weapon Soul Memories
Weapons of a certain grade or higher are born with a spirit the moment they come into existence. Even those of lower grades can sprout the bud of spirituality if someone cherishes and uses them with affection over a long period.
They may not possess a full ego like an ego weapon, but the soul of the weapon—known as the Weapon Soul—undoubtedly exists.
"Weapon Soul Memory."
Weapon Soul Memory was the ability to read the memories embedded in a weapon. It allowed him to access the abilities once used by its previous owners and wield them temporarily.
'This is...?'
The memories dwelling within the Blessed Sun Sword consisted of three distinct ones. The first was the sacred power of the sun granted at its birth. The second was the moment it absorbed Radin's divinity. The third was Vulcan's own experiences of swinging and battling with it.
He regretted not having memories from prior owners since he was the first, but Vulcan was more than satisfied. No previous owner could surpass the intensity of that moment when it was thoroughly soaked in Radin's divinity, regardless of who they were.
'Insane.'
Thus, Vulcan stuck out his tongue at the list materializing before his eyes. The dark knights were charging ferociously, but a grin bubbled up uncontrollably.
All of them were powerful holy spells. The only downside? They were too powerful for him or the sword to handle.
His body wasn't ready to contain that immense holy power, and the sword's embedded divinity was insufficient. In short, they were fruits painted on the wall—tantalizing but out of reach.
Since these spells relied on divinity rather than mana, they would consume the divinity stored in the Blessed Sun Sword. A wrong choice could deplete it entirely, permanently weakening the blade. He needed to choose wisely.
"Solar Prism."
Solar Prism
"Kyung?!"
Boom-boom-boom!!!
In that instant, dozens of beams of light formed around Vulcan. Rays like sunlight lanced out like lasers, precisely piercing the enemies he targeted.
"Kraaaagh!!!!"
That wasn't all. The sacred light was lethal to the dark knights who wielded dark energy. Even those merely grazed by the beams—without a direct hit—screamed in agony as their killing intent shattered. Their dark energy evaporated in a flash, mimicking mana exhaustion, leaving them sprawled helplessly.
"...It works."
One strike. A single strike had slain or incapacitated every foe. Plus, since it consumed divinity, Vulcan's mana remained untouched.
"Disassemble."
This meant he could use Disassemble to peel off the dark mana stones parasitically attached to the dark knights.
'Weird.'
Activating Disassemble revealed the dark knight's body in a new light. Earlier, he'd seen them as mere objects and dispatched them too quickly to notice, but now it was like peering into an anatomical diagram—internals laid bare. He could even make out the tentacle-like tendrils of the dark mana stone extending around the heart.
Tud's warning that ripping it out would kill them made perfect sense now. But the skill's utility was astonishing. Mana hands and tendrils extended without Vulcan needing to move, delicately probing even the finest areas.
He painstakingly extracted each tendril from the heart. It demanded focus, but he successfully removed the power completely.
As a result, the dark mana stone separated from the dark knight's body. It reached out toward Vulcan's hand like it wanted to latch on, but whether due to Item Master or the Legendary-grade work gloves, it was easily repelled and shrank back.
"Whew. Doing all of them would be a bitch."
Fortunately, the dark knight boy collapsed immediately after the stone's removal. He might regain consciousness soon, but he was no threat now, so Vulcan moved to the next target.
Each use of Disassemble drained significant focus and mana, but Vulcan had his massive mana battery and Draconic Circle. With so many dark knight candidates trapped and training here, lacking either would have prevented him from saving them all—the mana cost was that high.
"Ugh, I'm dying."
After rescuing dozens of boys and girls, he felt like death, but it was rewarding. His body weighed a ton, but he couldn't collapse yet. One more thing to check.
"Disassemble."
The dark knights had reverted to ordinary—or as ordinary as they could be—children, but one check remained: using Disassemble on the troll corpses massacred by Solar Prism.
"...No need for butchering skills anymore."
Applying Disassemble to the troll corpses yielded items impossible through drops alone. It even produced monster byproducts unachievable with butchering or tanning skills.
With this, he could snag free crafting materials. Mana cost was negligible for such broad work, and it regenerated quickly anyway.
"Ugh! Time to rest for real."
With checks complete, Vulcan flopped down and passed out.
The massive rumble from the collapsing ground might have alerted the outside, but he didn't care. They couldn't breach that iron door.
Thus, he postponed detailed investigation for a sweet nap.
"No word yet?"
"No. Not yet..."
Before the massive iron door, Prolant Viscount—flanked by hordes of knights and mages—asked impatiently, irritably.
The moment he heard an Immortal noble had invaded his desperately hidden lair, he'd rushed here with elite forces. But no trace of the bastard. He'd even stationed men at Immortal respawn points, yet nothing.
He must be inside that door, but for some reason, the opening spell failed. They could only wait.
"The tunnel?"
"They're digging, but the ground's too hard—slow progress."
It had been ages already. Fed up, Prolant had laborers dig a new tunnel, but it was no easy task. The bedrock here resisted picks and shovels.
That's why he'd built the secret space, but he never imagined it'd backfire like this.
"We must seal their lips, no matter what. Until 'those things' are complete..."
But the bastard was trapped like a rat in a hole. Unless he suicided out or opened the door himself, he'd starve or die isolated.
Bribe, threaten—whatever it took to silence him. Even if it meant trapping him in that undead-not-dead limbo Immortals feared most.
"Outside traces?"
"Wiping them as best we can. Moved the trolls elsewhere too."
Exposure was bad, but discovery before completion was disastrous. Post-completion, the subtle dark aura might raise temple eyebrows but not alarms. Not yet.
If busted now, temple wrath was certain.
"Chance he called for help?"
"None. Adamantium ore buried between surface and depths blocks dark energy leakage. All magical signals outward are cut—no comms or spells."
So they'd nab him here. Prolant's eyes blazed.
"Milord, disaster!!"
"Wha...?"
Moments later, a soldier came sprinting from the rear, pale-faced. An ominous premonition hit as Prolant demanded answers—and got the unbelievable.
"A mage legion appeared in the territory. On Alter Count's orders, they're ransacking the castle, arresting knights and soldiers..."
"What bullshit is that?! How the hell do they know about here!!"
"Dunno. They just showed up and started grabbing everyone—I barely escaped."
Alter's mage legion. Private forces rivaling the royal guard—one of the kingdom's strongest—looting his territory while he was away.
How? Vulcan inside couldn't contact out. Knights were under strict watch—no prior moves possible.
"That bastard was with them too. Some Viscount Vulcan with kids..."
"What?!"
Prolant froze like he'd been punched. How? Wasn't he inside? Fooled? Twins? He denied reality with wild thoughts, but it changed nothing.
If true, it was over. His meager forces couldn't dent a mage legion, let alone fight it.
Dark knights weren't made for that anyway.
"It's done for."
Prolant muttered in despair and emptiness. Such a massive search meant they knew everything.
Still, how Vulcan altered the door spell and escaped remained a mystery.
"Hm? Someone talking about me?"
At the same time, Vulcan—having handed cleanup to the mage legion—lounged in the lord's castle forge, picking his ear.
Mana restored and kids recovered, he'd led them out, contacted Alter via comms orb with the situation.
"Heh! Who knew adamantium ore was there. Jackpot."
- You thieving bastard.
"Hey! It's just looting bad guys—call it Robin Hood stuff."
- Hogging it all solo ain't Robin Hood.
Mana restored, Vulcan tried contacting Alter to escape, but underground blocked comms orbs. However, Dragon Eye was a divine authority skill, not magic. Adamantium blocked spells, not dragon sight.
Thus, he scouted the forces outside via Dragon Eye and dug an alternate path with mining—straight to the surface.
Bonus gains too. While checking ground for safe digging, he spotted anomalies: adamantium ore chunks embedded sporadically between surface and depths.
Why there? No clue, but Vulcan mined and inventoried them pronto.
"Anyway, use 'em well. My stuff counts as well-used. Ehihit!"
This haul could craft a full adamantium arrow, not just tips like Arrow of Denial. Telekinesis wouldn't work on pure, but partial use opened options.
Including adamantium, this quest yielded plenty: level up, 200-level job quest cleared, new skills with potential.
"But is it just personal deviation?"
Main scenario progress? Ambiguous. Quest cleared, dark mana stones and knights found, but per the mage legion leader aiding for busy Alter: the creation method wasn't unique.
- Could be. Clear purpose.
Forbidden human-target spells/research, but viable without demon realm ties.
Goal obvious too: territory war. Docs showed Prolant, unsatisfied with his rural speck, bred dark knights for conquest.
Personal greed, no kingdom/human harm intent—hard to tie to main scenario.
- But check the power's source. Easy spells, but no local experts.
Details needed more probe. Alter's legion was scouring; something would turn up. Lord'd be nabbed soon.
"Leave investigation to them. I'll do what I can."
Time and legion would sort it. Till then, max his to-dos fast.
This fight showed it: current gear had limits against future foes.
"Let's start."
Level 200 fresh, max craftable item level: 300. Peak results needed for desired grade, but no more delays.
Had to push 300-level items to high rarity for solid spec-up. Shadow Hunter Set wouldn't cut it anymore.
Vulcan's eyes sparkled as he gripped the hammer, beginning his custom gear—the next show of item power.