The Green Dragon of Shirayen
The people's eyes changed in an instant.
Whoever reached the hunting grounds first would claim the real profit!
Opportunities like this high-grade dungeon didn't come often.
Those who considered themselves skilled dashed forward and vanished beyond the grasslands and forests.
The 3rd Class hunters and those below them kept a close eye on where Kim Hwang-je was heading, clearly planning to trail behind him.
"Sorry, but I can't help you guys."
Kim Hwang-je said to the people hoping for a free ride on his coattails.
He needed to explore this facility as quickly as possible.
"We'll pick everything up for you!"
"Just grab the stuff you don't need and..."
"Hyung-nim!"
"Oppa!"
Since when did I gain this many family members?
Kim Hwang-je didn't bother listening any further.
He intended to follow the path shown on the map and take a back route straight to the top.
He had zero plans to do any hunting.
"See you later!"
With that, he purchased and cast the Blink spell, leaping onto one of the massive branch-like structures soaring high above.
It was a spell that allowed instantaneous movement to any location within his line of sight.
The moment he vanished from their midst, the crowd buzzed with murmurs before quickly giving up.
After all, none of them could cover that kind of distance with teleportation.
"Whoa, the view's incredible."
Kim Hwang-je repeated Blink from branch to branch until he finally reached the very top of the colossal stem.
He was so high up that the people on the grasslands below looked like tiny dots.
Not satisfied yet, he pushed through the leafy canopy and stepped onto the ceiling formed by the intertwined branches.
The tangled stems covered the forest like a lid.
It felt like standing on a cloud made of leaves.
Swish.
A group of people suddenly materialized around him.
"Looks like I didn't even need to warn you."
Poyu paid no attention to the precognitive warning and was snoring away peacefully.
The people surrounding Kim Hwang-je looked quite formidable just from their attire.
Purple cloaks and purple masks.
At first glance, the design screamed we're trying really hard to look important.
Three golden crosses symbolizing a crown were embroidered on their cloaks.
A man wearing a mask with a single golden cross spoke up.
"Your courage is admirable."
"What courage?"
Kim Hwang-je tilted his head in confusion.
"How surprising. To think you'd actually climb all the way up here. I suppose that means you abandoned those people and summoned us instead. Very well."
"I didn't do that..."
"Kill him. Let's rack up some achievements on the first floor."
The Gaya Group hunters gripped their swords and charged.
Kim Hwang-je checked the Auto Combat window.
Estimated Funds: 78,000,000 won
"What the? These guys are cheap trash?"
"What did you say?"
Only in the millions.
Kim Hwang-je was genuinely impressed.
Payment Complete
Capture Initiated
The enemies he'd faced until now had all been too strong.
To think he could handle foes this cheaply?
The moment Kim Hwang-je activated auto combat, mages atop the castle walls fired capture nets.
"Aaaagh!"
"Ughk!"
The Gaya Group hunters charging from every direction were all snared and collapsed.
Immediately after, lightning poured from Kim Hwang-je's body, knocking out everyone trapped in the nets.
"Four spells cast simultaneously without incantation?"
The enemy commander stood with his mouth agape.
He'd at least hoped for a monster within expected parameters, but the man wasn't even chanting at all!
But Kim Hwang-je couldn't care less about any of that.
"Can't let them report back~"
Kim Hwang-je smiled gently as he scooped up every last hunter and swallowed them whole.
Labor Correction Sentence Issued
Shadows rose from all directions and devoured the hunters in one gulp.
Fifteen slaves acquired for 78 million won.
"Huh..."
He suddenly felt like a ruthless slave trader.
No, this isn't my fault. These guys brought it on themselves.
Thinking that way made him feel much better.
Power really does turn people into psychopaths.
At that moment, a flood of alarms popped up.
But something felt strangely off.
A stinging sensation inside his body, as if something was poking him.
A dull, aching feeling like receiving a long injection spread through his stomach.
"What the hell is this feeling?"
The alarms kept coming one after another.
Citizen Alert
The Hunter with Dark Eyes has suffered 'Serious Injury' — [Summon Unavailable]
The Leather Artisan has suffered 'Serious Injury' — [Summon Unavailable]
The Bone-Digging Farmer has suffered 'Serious Injury' — [Summon Unavailable]
"What?!"
This was like a bolt from the blue, smoke from an unlit chimney, or a black dragon rising from an empty toilet on a hungry day.
He'd left auto combat running and they got wiped out.
"What the hell happened? What is this?"
Kim Hwang-je urgently opened the Citizen Summon window to check their status.
Inside the Status Window, what looked like green wings flapping appeared, followed by a scene of something shaking heaven and earth as it flew away.
It was a view of Shirayen Forest.
Green energy blasts rained down, causing explosions everywhere. The three citizens were reverse-summoned and fell into the break room of the Imperial Repository.
"...Whoa! An ugly dragon!"
"It's real?"
Poyu said while staring at the tail of the green dragon flying away.
"Your Imperial Majesty. It is a female green dragon. Her name is Nax!"
Benedict shouted.
He chewed his lip anxiously from above.
"Well... even after all this time, it makes sense that a dragon wouldn't have died yet..."
A merciless roar echoed from within the screen.
"KRRRRRRRRRRAAAAA!"
It sounded like the creature had about ten vocal cords in its throat, all vibrating wildly with the wind.
The dragon roared once more before vanishing.
A dragon for an opponent? Isn't that a bit much?
[Are you still alive?]
Kim Hwang-je sent a status message to the three who had been knocked into the Imperial Repository.
The hunter in particular looked absolutely terrible.
Your Majesty... I have failed you. I knew there were descendants of the Sloth Dragon, but...
Nataeryong.
The ancient demon dragon that the last emperor had fought and slain.
[You knew and still went?]
[Normally they accept tribute and let us pass. But this time they took the money and attacked us anyway. Damn dragons!]
Good grief, look at the poor hunter.
His eyepatch was in tatters and his entire body was covered in blood.
His thick hide had been torn open in several places, exposing raw red muscle, yet he still knelt respectfully to deliver his report.
[I'll give you medicine. Apply it immediately.]
[Your Majesty. I am deeply grateful, but my body is already a mass of secret techniques. Unless it's a special medicine...]
But the hunter swallowed hard when he saw the Arbocil that had suddenly appeared right in front of him.
That legendary potion would heal him 100%.
The problem was...
[Right now.]
[Uwaaaaah! Your Majesty, I shall humbly accept the price of my failure! Aaaaaaaaagh!]
The hunter humbly accepted the cruel emperor's punishment.
He lightly applied the Arbocil to his body and screamed as he rolled around the break room of the repository.
No.
This wasn't punishment. It was treatment.
He had wounds exposing muscle. If he didn't apply medicine because it hurt, he'd die from complications!
It was true.
He wasn't angry.
While the hunter screamed and writhed on the floor, Kim Hwang-je asked the artisan.
[How are the others? Are you okay?]
The artisan replied.
[Ah. Your Majesty. The tin can bastard's head was cut off...]
"Whaaaaat?!"
Was that all that guy ever did? Smash up a Chinese factory and die?
Well, that alone was enough to make his life worthwhile.
Farewell, extreme environmentalist...
Wait a second.
[Without him, doesn't that mean we can't get the World Tree roots?!]
[Do not worry, Your Majesty. I am currently suturing him. This time I will make him especially obedient.]
Come to think of it, he was right.
[Yeah, he does need to be a bit more obedient.]
[Hehe. Indeed, Your Majesty. For the sake of a guilty conscience, I shall insert a triangular thorn into his stomach that will cause him to roll around in agony whenever he spouts nonsense or lies.]
Was this some kind of scene where they forcibly transplanted an Indian tribe's conscience?
[...You seem completely fine. No, you actually look happy?]
The artisan looked perfectly energetic.
[Ah, mages have traditional self-defense measures, Your Majesty. Of course I am currently cursed and cannot be summoned... but my body is perfectly fine.]
[What is it?]
[It is called 'Friend Shield.']
Don't you need that conscience more than anyone?
[Aaaagh, Your Majesty! That damn black-belt archaist bastard used a body-swap spell on me the moment he was about to get hit by the breath!!]
The hunter shouted as if the memory had just returned to him.
[Your Majesty. I would die if I took a breath attack, but that friend would survive even if hit. What are friends for? What's so hard about taking a few hits in his place?]
[That... actually makes sense!]
[How could my babies live if I died?! Your Majesty! I beg you to scold me severely!]
[Your Majesty. According to imperial combat doctrine, when a mage is in danger, even a non-combatant should throw their body into harm's way. That is the correct course of action.]
The artisan smiled faintly.
[Not to mention, the greatest master of dinosaur techniques and the one once famous as a Dino Ranger would surely know this.]
[My babies! My babies!]
['My babies'? Haha... Combat dinosaurs belong to the emperor. How could they belong to a ranger? And in reality, you cannot even call them 'babies', can you?]
Why are you two fighting while looking at me?
[Uuuuugh! Of course they are Your Majesty's, but they are still my babies!]
Kim Hwang-je clutched his forehead.
They got beaten up together, came back together, and now they were bickering together.
From the person who gave them the job, this was enough to drive anyone insane.
[Hunter.]
[Y-Yes... Your Majesty!]
A bottle of Arbocil potion dropped right in front of the hunter.
The hunter was so shocked he could barely breathe.
[Huk... Again, Your Majesty?]
[Later, if the artisan gets hurt, you will be the one to apply the Arbocil.]
[Uhehe, uhehehe, I understand completely, Your Majesty!]
The hunter was overjoyed while the artisan's eyes widened in horror.
He had clearly seen the hunter rolling on the ground screaming after applying that medicine just moments ago.
[Your Majesty!?]
[Artisan.]
[Yes!]
[From now on, prepare your strategies so that the hunter does not get injured. If he is hurt meaninglessly, I will give you the same... pain.]
[...Understood, Your Majesty.]
The artisan's voice was grave.
Hmm. Was that enough of a warning?
It had been a while since he'd used that low, commanding tone. His throat felt a bit scratchy.
[So. Does this mean you two cannot go to Shirayen anymore?]
[You must either make Nax agree to 'negotiate,' or create a team capable of hunting a dragon before entering, Your Majesty.]
[Negotiation, huh...]
The only negotiation tactic he knew was sticking a gun barrel in someone's face.
What could he possibly offer a dragon to make it allow people into its territory?
Wait, if a dragon was guarding a mere elf village, what kind of monster was guarding the other places...?
Just what kind of hellish world was this?
[Ah. But it seems we won't need to negotiate with her. I'm currently inside the New Moon Tower.]
[Whaaaaaat?!]
The artisan was visibly startled.
[Your Majesty, how is that possible? How did you break through Shirayen Forest faster than us?]
[Your Majesty, have you resolved the gigantism curse? Or are you currently paying the cost?]
Both of them spoke urgently.
To be honest, even Kim Hwang-je found the situation hard to understand.
He hadn't broken through the forest. He'd entered an Earth dungeon, and it turned out to be the imperial facility known as the New Moon Tower.
[I shall explain that.]
Benedict joined the conversation.
Since he was inside Kim Hwang-je'sEmperor's Talisman, he could both see the status windows and participate in the discussion.
[My hypothesis is this. This ancient imperial facility has become a single 'bridge.' It connects to Shirayen Forest above and to Earth below.]
[A bridge, you say?]
The hunter's dreamy voice could be heard.
Just being with the holy knight seemed to put him in a dreamlike state.
[Indeed. Imperial facilities were designed to share the empire's fate. Unless the very 'concept' is destroyed, the facility cannot be demolished.]
[I see. So instead of destroying it, they exiled it?]
The artisan said.
[Correct. In my opinion, it is like a thorn stabbed from the Brikia Continent into Earth. If someone possesses the proper qualifications, they may be able to pass through the dungeon and emerge in the opposite world.]
The artisan listened quietly before speaking.
[That is a convincing theory. Unlike a person's death, a nation's and magic's 'death' is to be forgotten from memory. It would have been impossible to dismantle this facility through ordinary means.]
Kim Hwang-je still didn't fully understand what they were talking about, so he simply listened in silence.
The artisan added.
[It is a hypothesis full of holes, but it is convincing. Last Holy Knight.]
[Hmph, hey Mister Artisan! How dare you speak so casually to the Holy Knight? That man fought until the very end to protect the empire!]
[I know that. No, I know it better than you, so be quiet, Dino Ranger. Anyway, this is wonderful news, Your Majesty. You have obtained a shortcut.]
Now that he thought about it, it was quite satisfying.
Not only had he gained a shortcut, but it seemed he could claim the entire facility as well?
[Not bad. Right now we're heading to the top floor to catch Jo Chun-ki. If Benedict's hypothesis is correct, we can take this facility too, and afterward there should be a path leading to Shirayen Forest beyond it.]
[If possible, we might even obtain the thing called 'moonstone' and examine the empire's records.]
[In that case, Your Majesty, please take care of your august body. We cannot answer a summons at present.]
The artisan said.
Because they had suffered serious injuries, there was a cooldown before they could be resummoned.
"Hmm..."
Now that he thought about it, that was true.
The fact that he couldn't summon them in this situation meant his combat strength had taken a serious hit.
Should he retreat and come back later?
But this facility was already Kim Hwang-je's.
If Jo Chun-ki escaped to another location afterward, it would only become more troublesome.
[Rest well for now. If necessary, I can call the 'Fisherman' or the 'Melancholy Bard.' And if that doesn't work...]
[Your Majesty... please do not bring out the sewer golem. If you do, Your Majesty's dignity will be severely... I am worried!]
[Yeah... but I can't make any promises.]
Was it too cruel to want to see Jo Chun-ki jumping around in a cesspool?
[By the way, is the Melancholy Bard strong?]
[...Yes. He will be helpful.]
[Then that's fine. I'll call him depending on the situation.]
[Yes, Your Majesty.]
Soon after, Kim Hwang-je repeated Blink and arrived in front of the target elevator.
Having a map really was convenient in situations like this.
Kim Hwang-je lightly tapped the massive, beautiful tree.
The tree split open, revealing an elevator.
"Haha. I never would've imagined this."
Riding this elevator would take him straight from the first floor all the way to the fifth.
Kim Hwang-je stepped into the elevator and examined the map.
Most of the hunters were completely absorbed in hunting mid-grade monsters for the first time in a long while.
Moreover, the map clearly showed Garak Clan hunters hiding in every corner, waiting to ambush him.
"Sorry for ignoring all of you and going straight up."
But they wouldn't even catch a glimpse of the back of his head.
And on the top floor, besides the Garak Clan members around the altar, there were unfamiliar white dots scattered everywhere.
"Let's catch Jo Chun-ki and see if we can head straight to Shirayen Forest."
Kim Hwang-je rode the elevator directly to the top floor.