Chapter 224
Chapter 224
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 224
Chapter Title: 64장. Inner World (3)
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6.
Resistance.
Adventurers from Maple World sent no small amount of support to their war for Edelstein's freedom.
Among them were adventurers who directly joined the Resistance.
Kurk was one such.
He was originally a wizard adventurer from Ellinia, a mage recognized for his outstanding talent and ability after receiving teachings from Heinz on several occasions.
At the same time, he was infamous as a tremendous troublemaker of a wizard.
The reason was simple.
“With outlaws and monsters causing suffering all over Maple World right now, why are Ellinia's wizards holed up in Ellinia's library just studying?”
He relentlessly vented his intense resentment toward Ellinia's wizards and his dissatisfaction with their conduct.
And it wasn't just empty complaints.
Kurk took direct action himself.
He formed parties with other adventurers and tirelessly roamed every corner of Victoria Island to rescue those tormented by monsters.
So, when he heard about the Resistance, heading to Edelstein was the most natural next step.
And there, Kurk realized something.
“This is where I belong.”
In that instant, Kurk joined the Resistance.
But that wasn't the end of it.
Kurk made a contract with a Grim Reaper and became a Battle Mage.
It was an enormous decision.
At the time, Kurk was a 5th Circle ice-attribute wizard who had reached an incredibly advanced level.
Contracting with a Grim Reaper meant throwing away everything he had accomplished up to that point!
And once the contract was made, there was no turning back.
Even so, Kurk didn't hesitate.
Afterward, he began his activities as a member of the Resistance.
His exploits truly began to shine once the Mystic Gate era started.
The Resistance fundamentally lacked strong combat prowess against monsters.
It was unavoidable.
Their enemies were the Black Wings, after all.
On top of that, Edelstein didn't have powerful, diverse monsters like those on Victoria Island or the Ossyria Continent.
They couldn't gain experience even if they wanted to.
In contrast, Kurk had already adventured across all of Victoria Island before joining the Resistance.
And not just any adventures—these were hunts targeting monsters that even other adventurers had abandoned!
That wasn't all.
Kurk had spent a long time studying in Ellinia's library, said to hold all the knowledge of Maple World.
In other words, he possessed deep, extensive knowledge about monsters.
For such a Kurk, the Mystic Gate was the perfect stage to shine, and the Resistance supported him without holding back.
As a result, every member of the Resistance said the same thing.
There were comrades stronger than Kurk.
But no one could攻略 Mystic Gates more reliably than him, without a doubt!
Kurk took special pride in that fact.
‘Adventure isn't just about power.’
One thing he always said confidently was that power alone achieved nothing.
It wasn't baseless arrogance.
Kurk had witnessed countless people who charged into Mystic Gates relying solely on strength, only to chew on bitter defeat.
‘No matter how impressive your firepower, you can't adventure on that alone.’
To such a Kurk, El Pam said this.
‘That's how it should be... but what the hell is this guy?’
When power failed, it meant your power was insufficient.
Literally.
‘How is this even possible?’
When El Pam first drew his Fire Arrow, Kurk thought it was some kind of prank.
Fire Arrow—the weakest spell used by 1st Circle fire-attribute wizards!
Aooo!
Against a charging horde of Hectors, it wasn't even easy to inflict proper wounds.
But the moment Fire Arrows began darting around like swallows, Kurk blacked out for a second.
No exaggeration.
Faced with this impossible scene, his mind couldn't process it and simply shut down.
When Kurk regained his senses, thousands of Hector corpses lay sprawled before him.
‘My god.’
The wizard named El Pam had massacred them single-handedly.
All of Kurk's established common sense crumbled.
“Hey.”
And that was just the beginning.
“You're surprised by this?”
El Pam's party wasn't just El Pam.
“It's only the start. Boss! Let's move out together!”
El Pam's party advanced.
And the next day, Kurk saw it.
“7th floor.”
7.
“7th floor.”
El Pam's party had reached the 7th floor in a single day.
Kurk showed no signs of panic at the sight.
A full day had passed, after all.
In that one day, he had fully grasped that El Pam's party possessed strength beyond his wildest imagination.
“I acknowledge it. From now on, you're the party leader, El Pam.”
He accepted the reality.
“I was wrong. You're far superior to me, El Pam.”
Even someone as uncompromising as Kurk—nicknamed Mad Dog—wouldn't bare his teeth after witnessing that.
More than anything, Kurk was confident.
‘At this level, the 12th floor isn't the limit—they could go even further.’
El Pam's party could extract even greater intel from Wing Master Orca.
From the Resistance's standpoint, this was an opportunity they couldn't refuse, even if it cost them dearly!
That was why.
“But things change from here. Starting on the 8th floor, Green-rank monsters show up in earnest.”
Kurk offered El Pam sincere advice.
“Well, you'll handle it fine anyway. Alright, that's my advice done. Now, time to settle the bet.”
Of course, he hadn't forgotten.
“So, what's your wish?”
The wager they'd made.
The first to respond to Kurk's question was none other than Dibo.
“Boss! Can't you just smack this guy's head hard once? Grant that, and I'll fulfill any other wish for you!”
He still harbored a grudge against Kurk.
Naturally, no one took those words seriously.
“There's a limit to nonsense.”
“Goldie, why butt in? Isn't that harsh on a comrade?”
“Because you're a comrade, it stops at butting in. Otherwise, I'd have shot you.”
“Exactly. It was way too ridiculous.”
“Kiri, even you?”
That was when it happened.
“Boss, how about going big?”
Ralph spoke up, his expression more serious than ever.
“Like 1 billion mesos.”
Hearing that, Kurk let out a wry chuckle.
He figured the guy named Ralph was joking.
“Hey.”
The silent Pir finally chimed in again.
“He means it.”
“What?”
“He could seriously demand 1 billion mesos.”
Kurk shot Ralph a dumbfounded look at the explanation. The moment their eyes met, he sensed it.
‘H-He really does?’
He'd never seen eyes more earnest than Ralph's in his life.
Naturally, Kurk grew genuinely worried.
What if El Pam actually demanded 1 billion mesos? The demand itself posed no issue. They'd promised to grant his wish—no conditions or limits specified.
If he asked, they'd have to deliver.
That's when Kurk glanced at El Pam.
El Pam's gaze was dead serious, and Kurk swallowed hard without realizing it.
‘N-No way?’
To the tense Kurk, El Pam said,
“I have one request. Please don't tell a soul outside about anything you see from now on.”
“What?”
“Not a word to anyone—not even Commander Sigmund.”
“W-What do you...”
“Exactly that.”
With those words, El Pam produced a helmet.
“Everything you witness here today stays with you alone.”
Hyperion's helmet.
“Then let's proceed with the攻略.”
8.
Thanks to Heinz's mirror, the Resistance could adventure through Wing Master Orca's inner world.
As one might expect, they'd tackled inner world adventures countless times.
But they always hit a wall at the 12th floor.
No matter how hard Kurk's elite party pushed, they couldn't break past the 12th floor.
And reaching the 12th floor was impressive in itself.
“We got intel on Blue-rank Mystic Gates from the 12th floor.”
That information alone had drastically altered the future the Resistance envisioned.
Reaching the 13th floor might yield at least Blue-rank—or possibly Indigo-rank—details!
That's why they'd challenged it relentlessly.
It was also why Kurk hadn't joined the Blue-rank Mystic Gate攻略.
They had to protect him from any potential risks.
In other words, the door to the 13th floor was the Door of Lamentation.
No matter how many times they tried, it refused to budge.
“13th floor.”
Yet El Pam's party hit the 13th floor on day four after entering the inner world.
Their攻略 speed was on another level.
“My god.”
There, El Pam made his call.
“We're pushing to the 14th floor.”
No time wasted hunting for Wing Master Orca's memories or info here—they'd go straight to the 14th.
Under normal circumstances, Kurk and Pir would have objected.
13th-floor intel was still priceless to the Resistance.
But after witnessing El Pam's party's prowess, opposition was impossible.
‘The deeper the floor...’
‘The greater the information.’
This inner world run might uncover monumental secrets—not just for the Resistance, but about the Black Mage himself.
Of course, it wasn't easy.
El Pam's party reached the 14th floor a day later.
Day five.
Only two days left.
That's when the real dilemma set in.
Take the 14th-floor intel and call it good?
Or aim higher?
El Pam, of course, felt no such doubt.
“We're going to the 15th floor.”
In his mind, the intel they sought lay deeper still—information important enough to warrant it.
Above all, El Pam knew.
‘You have to find your limit.’
This wasn't the last time.
He needed to gauge the caliber of intel available at the deepest depth he could reach.
Of course, it wasn't easy.
“Crazy! Red Dragon Turtles!”
The foes on the 14th floor were Red Dragon Turtles.
Tyrants ruling the depths of Minar Forest!
Even El Pam's party couldn't dominate them outright anymore.
“15th floor.”
They finally arrived on the 15th floor after six days and nineteen hours inside.
“Five hours left.”
They had to scour the monster hordes for memories in whatever time remained!
That's when Pir and Kurk truly stepped up.
The pair unleashed their full potential, probing the pitch-black forest for treasure chests.
And now—six days, twenty-three hours, and fifty-eight minutes since entry—
Everyone spotted it.
“Found it!”
A small treasure chest.
The instant they saw it, El Pam himself cracked it open.
The chest was empty.
But the moment it opened, memories flooded into El Pam's mind—Wing Master Orca's memories.
A recent one.
- Now, Orca, you're no longer needed.
- Gelimer! You bastard!
- My research is complete. Letioxin.
Wing Master Orca's betrayal at Gelimer's hands.
- With Letioxin, I'll remake all of Maple World into androids. Devoid of emotion. Obeying orders alone.
The memory they'd hunted for.
‘Insane poison.’
But not the one they'd hoped for.
For El Pam—for all of Maple World—it was the absolute worst-case scenario.
That was the moment.
- Foolish fool. Everything you do is just dancing in His palm.
Wing Master Orca spoke.
- He has prepared for this. Eight hundred years ago, from that very day. For everything.
That was the moment.
“El Pam!”
El Pam opened his eyes.