Lacking All Grace (2)
Manifestation. I reshaped the statue.
I thinned the muscular legs supporting its massive body. Kududuk—! The statue lost its balance and dropped to one knee.
All this was possible only because the statue wasn't a monster.
Not a monster. How could I be so sure?
Because I'd confirmed it in the update log.
New rift, 'Count Askyura's Citadel', has been added.
New named monster, 'Count Askyura': Lv.430
Count Askyura's Citadel. The only monster that appears is Count Askyura himself.
Which meant direct interference might be possible...
And that judgment had proven spot on.
Not being a monster also meant it wasn't a demon. The [Natural Enemy Relationship] hadn't activated.
There was some mana drain, but it was fine.
"What was that sound just now...? H-hek?!"
"...Did everyone see that? Took down that monster in one shot!!"
"Everyone, move! This isn't the time to get distracted!"
There were plenty of players even without me.
My entry through the main gate had been the signal flare. Toppling the gatekeeper statue had driven it home.
Players were flooding into the castle interior like a tidal wave.
I couldn't just stand around either.
Click—
Above all, I had a clear objective.
Hunt the Vampire (In Progress)
📍 ● Notify that the hunt has begun. (Success)
📍 ● Make them feel the terror of being hunted. (In Progress)
Take down Count Askyura alone? That would be the height of arrogance.
Even looking at levels alone, it didn't add up.
Lv.100 VS Lv.430
But I had the [Exorcism Ritual] card up my sleeve.
And I'd come prepared with a proper demon item as an offering.
So my task was simple.
Make Count Askyura feel even a sliver of terror through the exorcism ritual.
The rest of the process...
Leave it to the other players.
It would count as some contribution. I'd get experience, of course.
And if luck was on my side, maybe even some spoils.
Yes, so...
How about walking just a bit slower, my legs?
It was a rational judgment grounded in evidence...
But I brimmed with even greater confidence than that.
As if striding a runway.
I was boldly prowling the castle interior.
"Does looking at such a pathetic portrait not ruin your appetite? What strong nerves you have, Askyura."
Suddenly, reaching a massive dining table, I unleashed my critique.
The portrait hanging on the opposite wall. It seemed to depict Count Askyura.
...Wasn't it drawn a bit too realistically?
Never mind the gaunt features.
The red eyes, the protruding fangs.
The figure in the painting was a vampire incarnate.
And the gloomy castle atmosphere made the portrait even more terrifying.
Of course, I viewed even that portrait through the lens of aesthetics.
"The detailed rendering and shading are clumsy. It's embarrassing to even call it a painter's work."
...It felt like I was just spewing venom in someone else's house.
But let's call it a blessing.
If I didn't have this attitude, I couldn't operate solo like this.
"Like the statues, this is a fail."
Click—
*
Count Askyura's Citadel.
As expected, no rift to take lightly.
Cold sweat beaded on the players' faces.
Tense expressions as they cautiously scanned their surroundings.
"...Feels like I can't breathe."
"Even with buffs, this pressure..."
"Doesn't look that bad? Everything here just gives me the creeps."
It wasn't whining.
From the moment they entered the castle, players suffered all sorts of status ailments.
[Your mental strength is too low.]
[Status Ailment: Terror has occurred.]
They hadn't even faced Count Askyura yet.
Just the red pupils in Count Askyura's portraits hung everywhere, watching the players.
"...Found it!"
Fwoosh—!
Spotting the portrait and incinerating it with a skill finally eased their breathing a bit.
The players clicked their tongues.
"Damn. The whole castle interior is one big trap."
"Thought it was just creepy staging. Guess not."
"Worthy of the level? Tricky as hell."
Indeed.
Not mere staging.
Statues.
Portraits.
Even the books on the shelves.
"...What? 'Human Cuisine'? What kind of title is that?"
"Hey! Don't touch that!!"
"...?!"
Everything inflicted status ailments on players.
Gaon Guild. The analysis reached Nam Taemin.
> So everything in the castle interior is a trap, right?
"Vicious, really. I can feel the malice."
> It's a vampire castle for a reason.
Nam Taemin reflected on past experiences.
Including when Arcana was still a game.
No matter how he thought, this concept was fresh.
"Back in the day, I'd have loved this."
As tricky as it was, conquering it would've been satisfying.
But not anymore.
Failure no longer meant logout—it meant death.
And the responsibility weighed heavy.
Perhaps sensing the anguish in his faint sigh.
Nam Cheolmin's voice came through.
> Don't get too frustrated that there's no easy way.
"...What? Out of nowhere."
> Figured you were beating yourself up again.
> Don't. Everyone understands.
> You're not soloing ahead and overdoing it for nothing.
> Won't do anyone any good.
Blood can't lie.
Nam Taemin let out a wry chuckle.
"What, you know me that well? Anyone'd think it was your experience talking."
A laugh came back in reply.
> Haha. Spot on, huh?
"...Spot on? What, it is from experience?"
> Who knows? Anyway, advice from a life senior—listen up.
That was when.
Suddenly, a presence ahead.
Another guild? But only one set of footsteps.
"Who's there?"
Hawkeye. One guild member used enhanced vision to identify the presence.
"Not Count Askyura... It's a woman? Blonde hair down to her waist... Wait, she's insanely pretty?! Even with the hat covering her upper face, just the lower half screams beauty...! Ow, why hit me?!"
Fuu—
What to do with that.
As Nam Taemin shook his head in disbelief for a moment.
Nam Cheolmin's voice rang in his ear.
> Alone, right? Only one person could roam this castle solo.
> Appropriate level: 400~450. And with status ailments popping everywhere.
Nam Taemin nodded.
"Yeah, only one person."
A mage beyond mages.
Jessie Haynes.
It had to be her.
*
My sharp critiques continued.
"The structure shows no thought whatsoever."
Anyone would think I was house-hunting.
Good thing no eyes were on me.
I recalled the castle layout I'd passed through.
Entrance → Garden → Corridor → Banquet Hall → Study
And the staircase before me.
Nothing problematic so far.
Nothing particularly odd either.
Well, if I had to pick one thing.
The excessive number of Count Askyura portraits.
Which let me unleash nonstop barbs.
Structurally.
This was the only staircase to the upper floor.
No need to check the opposite path.
If Count Askyura had appeared, there'd be some commotion.
So Count Askyura likely spawned on the second floor.
"Failing to properly welcome honored guests is also unacceptable."
No players had reached the second floor before me.
No one had found this staircase either.
I was certain.
Even I thought my pace was blisteringly fast.
Confident.
Striding with legs extended straight.
As I approached the staircase with those steady steps.
"Ah!"
A delicate cry rang out.
Turning, I saw a massive pointed hat.
More precisely, a woman wearing one.
Before I could say a word, she approached.
But what was this speed.
Wings on her legs? I checked, but.
I was even more shocked.
...Levitation.
Her legs floated in midair!
I wanted to cry.
Some of us invoke science to save mana...!
While others splash it around like water.
The mana wealth gap hit hard.
But I didn't show it.
The pointed hat looked up at my face.
...Would she even see me like that? As I thought.
The hat tilted back, revealing her face.
Blonde hair.
Green eyes.
Snow-white skin.
...A face I felt I'd seen somewhere.
A face I recognized meant a hugely famous player, probably.
That thought eased the sting a bit.
Yeah, not just anyone could levitate like that.
"I saw it!"
"?"
"That super mysterious magic of yours!"
She blurted it right out.
Anyone'd think I was named "Super Mysterious Magic."
But those sparkling eyes.
Seemed like genuine, harmless curiosity.
"What skill was that? It was my first time seeing it too! I rewatched that video dozens of times! Still couldn't figure it out! I've never not known a magic-type skill before!"
Ah, that kind of thing.
The video rewatched dozens of times was probably the plaza battle.
The magic I'd used there was just simple wall and pillar manifestation.
But of course she couldn't recognize it.
Because it was magic, not a [skill].
"I-I just couldn't hold back my curiosity!"
Suddenly—!
I stared at the face thrust toward mine.
Pure curiosity, no doubt.
If it were the old me, I might've answered. Regardless of whether she'd understand.
Dazzled by that charming face, even.
"Could we talk about that mysterious magic?!"
But not now.
I opened my mouth.
"Mind your manners."
"...Pardon? Manners?"
"That is the bare minimum for one who seeks to learn."
That should've sufficed.
Yet I added one more line.
"Insufficient qualifications. Fail."
"Gasp...."
Exclamation to question mark.
Then to period. That about sums it up?
The life drained from her face.
Even college rejection wouldn't draw that expression.
A chilly silence hung for a split second.
Suddenly, text appeared in my view.
[Natural Enemy Relationship]
The message's meaning was simple.
Count Askyura's Citadel.
The sole monster: Count Askyura.
He'd appeared.
I reflexively looked up the staircase.
There stood Count Askyura.
A vampire identical to the portraits.
"Askyura."
I spoke, and he replied.
"Count Askyura. Weak human."
A fishy blood scent wafted from his breath.
How many lives had those fangs claimed?
The stench was thick.
Squeeze—
The woman, lost in a daze, pulled her hat low and gripped her staff tight.
But in that same instant.
I felt only one emotion.
I smiled.
"Count? That joke passes muster, Askyura."
"...Joke? I said plainly. I am Count Askyura...!!"
"No. You are no noble."
I drew the demon item.
"Deceiving ugly curses as authority. Bestowing them as your own power only to reclaim them. And every tasteless decoration in this graceless castle."
"...What?"
"It means you hold not a shred of noble pride, Askyura. And yet..."
I fired the final shot.
"Why does an ugly vampire still dare call himself a noble?"
That provocation was the signal.
"Shut your mouth!! I'll kill you!! Filthy human vermin!!"
['Necklace Infused with Blood Curse' has been selected as offering.]
[Exorcism Ritual has activated.]
[Inviting Vampire, Count Askyura, into the 'consciousness.']