Hehehe~ Sweeping the Flames

"Hehehe~."

In the blinding inferno where he couldn't see an inch ahead, Vulcan relied on his Dragon Eye to collect every last item that had dropped in Hador's nest.

The massive fire lizard possessed fire attributes, but it had no chance against flames as devastating as ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a natural disaster—especially now that Hirros Volcano's activity was imminent, making the blaze even fiercer. Even Vulcan had to brace himself and take care not to get swept away by ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the waves of fire while gathering the spoils.

"Losing the Fire Lizard King set wasn't part of the plan, but this haul more than makes up for it."

Something unexpected had happened in the process. The ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠flames surging through the breached wall were so intense that the Fire Lizard King set he was wearing melted away completely. It had decent fire resistance options since he'd crafted it by tanning fire lizard hide, but even that wasn't enough.

No wonder the level 200s users melted without a fight. Thanks to that, Vulcan was down to his naked apron state, but with no one around to see, he leisurely cleared the dungeon and pocketed the loot.

Among it all, the items dropped by those level 200s bastards were especially pricey.

- Pearls around a pig's neck, huh.

- "Looks like I can take 'em now. Heh heh heh!!"

The swords those two had were both Rare grade. Vulcan had survived without dying, so his gear's durability kept draining until it broke, but the equipment on those who croaked couldn't endure was heavily worn but not fully destroyed.

Sure, repair bills would be insane, but who cares? He could fix gear himself. Naturally, Vulcan cherry-picked the priciest weapons and armor as spoils, more than covering the value of his lost Fire Lizard King set.

Even if the whole set was Rare, items and character levels jumped in huge gaps by the hundreds, creating massive differences in power—and price.

One of these swords alone outvalued the entire Fire Lizard King set.

Bet they're pissed as hell. He could picture them raging in town over dropping their main weapon of all things. And they didn't seem like the type to carry spares, so it had to be a huge hit to their combat power.

Meanwhile, he now had two Rare swords. Not double the attack power, but he could leverage each one's unique options, giving him solid odds even in a straight fight.

"Huh?"

While smugly inspecting his spoils, Vulcan spotted something odd. One of the swords had a hidden option.

"A hidden option here?"

The Pain-Eating Serpent was one item Vulcan knew well. It had a notorious rep as a vicious, underhanded weapon.

Pure attack power and stat bonuses were low compared to same-level Rare weapons, but actually inflicting pain to disrupt mental and physical control—plus the occasional 3-second stun from Unbearable Agony—made it terrifying.

Three seconds was short, but that rigidity let you land explosive damage that ignored attack gaps. And in group fights? Even better. A stun plus party-wide skills could overwhelm any non-tank.

"It grows?"

It was valuable on its own, but the hidden option caught Vulcan's eye. Consume corrupt-powered beings to grow? His eyes sparkled.

Already pricey, but extra attack power or longer stuns would skyrocket its value.

"...But what counts as 'corrupt power'?"

- Usually two types. Cursed stuff or demon realm beings.

- "Ah... Cursed items are tricky to snag too."

Vulcan grimaced at Tud's words. Cursed gear hurt users, so it wasn't popular, but rarity plus niche players and collectors made it scarce. Auction house might have some, but at a premium.

Without knowing growth details or how many it'd take, it felt like pouring gold into a sieve.

- Just feed it what you've got first. You already have some, right?

"Huh?"

At the follow-up jab, Vulcan tilted his head, then remembered: fragments from shattering the Creed of Denial, and the shattered lanterns used as dark ritual mediums in the goblin village.

They'd lost most power when destroyed, but might still feed the Pain-Eating Serpent.

Not sure if it'll grow, but worth a shot. And one more thing to test.

He wanted to experiment now with the hint, but pulling items here risked durability loss or melting. For now, he planned to head back to town, complete the Proof of Power quest from hunting Hador, and exit the pit that was once Hador's nest—now spewing flames like a hot spring.

He leaped to the surface.

"Phew. Time to head back to town..."

"Kyaaaaah!!!!"

That instant, a nearby user spotted Vulcan and screamed.

"Huh?"

"P-P-P-Pervert!!!!"

"Naked apron?! No shame, pulling that concept crap!!"

The shout drew everyone, turning the mood hostile. His underwear was indestructible and non-removable, but pervs rocking weird concepts or acting creepy were fair game for public hate.

"N-No, it's not... This is..."

Vulcan started defending himself, then gave up. Even he had to admit his look—gear gone, just apron over underwear, jumping from a pit—left no room for excuses.

"...Agility boost."

"Grab the perv!!"

"Screenshot! Post that freak on the forums, make his face famous...!"

In the end, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Vulcan bolted. Explaining or gearing up now wouldn't clear the misunderstanding.

He ran without looking back, swapped into spare gear in a deserted spot, looped around, and slipped into town.

Ding-ding-ding-ding!

"Hurry! Evacuate now!"

"If the volcano erupts, ash will bury the whole town! Grab valuables and go!!"

The town's vibe was dire and urgent on his return. A Hirros eruption could swamp it in lava—or even without, ashfall could smother everything.

Real eruptions? Ash over vast areas was scarier than lava or debris.

Maybe from living near it so long, the NPCs knew eruption terror and were already packing to abandon town.

Users panicked most. NPCs providing quests, consumables, services—everything—was bailing, paralyzing shops.

No repairs, no pots. Only general store and warehouse NPCs half-functioned, with the store's stock slashed.

Some users got the gravity and tried evacuating like NPCs, but too late. No wagons to other towns; they had to hoof it.

"Score! Jackpot!!"

"Dude, run—!"

Psssh!

Some idiots looted abandoned goods or raided packing NPCs. Fine in reality maybe, but huge mistake here.

Guards, more riled than usual, escorted evacuees. Touching NPCs or their stuff? Instant execution.

Watching guards hack them down, users swarmed for criminal drops—chaos. Vulcan slipped to the warehouse, then Kabura Temple.

"To think you'd actually slay Hador...!"

"Will you believe in me now?"

"Ahem. Very well. A promise is a promise. Truth be told, the fire spirits of Hirros Volcano have been acting strange lately. I suspect this crisis stems from them."

Vulcan averted his eyes guiltily at High Priest Hipella's words. Things were veering off weirdly.

"We were observing them and seeking ways to restore their original state, but I didn't expect this to blow up so fast. Preparations are short, but if we don't act now, Hirros will erupt and raze the area. Vulcan, could you escort them?"

"Of course."

Seemed like a misunderstanding, but solid terms. Ring of Fire was a long-grind temple reward: boosted fire resistance and added fire attack power, enabling elemental strikes without enchanter buffs.

"We'll leave minimal power to subdue the spirits, but they'll fight alongside you, Vulcan. Please take care."

Plus generous success conditions: 6/10 Devotees reaching the crater. Even if eruption happened, fine by him?

No reason to refuse. And with fire immunity, he'd survive a failure anyway.

Easy mode.

Quest planned 4 casualties upfront, "Devotees" name screamed high difficulty, but Vulcan was confident. Dragon Eye for the win.

He already sniffed the trick, smirking as he met the Fire Devotees and prepped to head to the crater.

Bonus: perfect to off those tails.

Trailing him: the Hadors nest survivors, doggedly stalking again. Couldn't strike in guarded town, so ambushing post-exit.

Devotees were a curveball, but maybe they'd see it as opportunity.

Tough guarding these while fighting...

Devotees topped level 100-ish NPCs; one level 200 could wipe them easy. Protecting them gave leverage.

But Vulcan wouldn't play their game.

I'll set the board first.

Lure them his way. Done right, they'd even help him.

With a wicked grin, he fondly stroked his new weapon—the star in offing those bastards.