Chapter 35
Chapter 35
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 35
Chapter Title: Monster Defense
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After the message announcing the start of the fourth trial appeared...
A village inside a cave-like place came into view for the players.
This time as well, the participants from the current zone had all been dropped into the same village, rather than random locations.
Hae-jin looked around the fourth trial's arena and thought:
'Hurry up and tell the players what the fourth trial is about.' The content of the fourth trial was none other than 'Monster Defense.' Hae-jin's companions already knew about this fourth trial, but the other players only learned of it when the system window appeared belatedly.
[Fourth Trial]
Content: Slay the lich targeting the dwarf clan's village.
- Zone 33,333 Participants: 2,489
"They said 2,500 survivors from the last trial arena... where'd the 11 go?"
"Probably died in the real world."
"I heard a lot of people kill themselves because they can't take it."
"Honestly, if you think about it, it's better that way since they're gonna die anyway."
"I'm never doing that. I'll hold out to the end."
"Me too."
"Yeah, let's survive this one too."
"We have to survive no matter what."
That was the players' reaction upon seeing the number of survivors from the fourth trial arena.
The number of survivors in the fourth trial arena had dwindled to less than a quarter of the original 10,000 before they knew it.
A sense of crisis seemed to wash over everyone.
Among that crowd, some were looking at Hae-jin.
"Should we try sticking to the Massacre?"
"Forget it. Don't you remember those guys who latched onto the Massacre in the last trial and died?"
"Oh yeah. But those guys deserved to die anyway, right? And watch your words. The Massacre didn't kill them. They failed to meet the survival criteria."
Everyone had seen with their own eyes the two people, Jung Nam-gil and Kang Hee-soon, who had stuck to Hae-jin during the third trial and ended up dead.
It wasn't that Hae-jin had killed them directly.
It was simply that they had clung to Hae-jin, blindly believed the wrong information, and failed to meet the survival criteria in the trial arena, leading to their deaths.
But even if Jung Nam-gil and Kang Hee-soon were both serial killers who deserved death...
It was ambiguous to say Hae-jin hadn't killed them.
Then, one player posed a question.
"Sure, but... what about the first trial arena?"
"Huh?"
"Were all the people the Massacre picked off there ones who deserved to die too?"
"That's..."
Honestly, it didn't make sense.
The number of players Hae-jin had killed in the first trial arena numbered in the thousands.
Was it really possible that all those thousands were evildoers, and that's why Hae-jin killed them?
Impossible.
Which meant Hae-jin was a 'Massacre' who could kill people who weren't particularly evil.
That perception had never changed.
In the end, those who had been debating whether to latch onto Hae-jin for survival in this trial arena all dropped the idea.
'I just have to survive on my own.' The players who thought that fell into contemplation.
"But does killing the lich mean we survive this time?"
"Killing it? The Massacre will handle that anyway."
"Right?"
"Then what's the survival criteria?"
"Based on contribution to taking down the lich?"
"Who knows?"
No one had any idea what the survival criteria for this trial arena might be. And that made sense. The fourth trial's content only mentioned slaying the lich, nothing more. In the current zone, only Hae-jin knew about it, and across all zones, only those he had told. In that situation, Hae-jin thought: 'Once they've killed enough undead, then we go for the lich.' As Hae-jin had recalled during the third trial arena, anyone who failed to meet the survival criteria in a trial arena would die—no exceptions. So, it was right to wait until most players had at least killed one undead. Hae-jin could rush out right now, slay the lich, and end the fourth trial arena, but that would result in all the players who hadn't killed any undead dying. Moreover, the number of monsters Hae-jin could kill was fixed. While Hae-jin was thinking that, a group approached the players. Seeing them, Hae-jin thought: 'Here they come.' The group Hae-jin had expected. It was the villagers of this place—the dwarves. The group of dwarves approached the players, and an old dwarf in the center stepped forward, leaning on his staff. Seeing the old dwarf, Hae-jin knew what was about to happen. 'Now the dwarf elder will explain things to the players.' The old dwarf who had just stepped forward alone from the center was the dwarf elder. The dwarf elder approached the group of players alone and spoke with emotion.
"Ooh, heroes sent by the gods to save us!"
The dwarf elder called them heroes as he looked at the players. Among the trial arenas, some involved otherworlders, and whenever that happened, the otherworlders would refer to the players as heroes. Having called the players heroes, the dwarf elder explained their current situation.
"Heroes, our village is currently suffering tremendous damage from the undead legion sent by the lich lurking in that corner of the cave. If you prove that you are truly the heroes who will save our village, our clan will craft equipment for you."
The players reacted to the dwarf elder's words.
"What? So you're saying you'll make equipment for us?"
"But it says we have to prove it?"
"Prove what?"
"You don't know? Isn't it to kill the lich?"
"Nah, no way. The trial goal is to slay the lich, right? So doesn't that end the fourth trial arena?"
"What's the point of us arguing? Just ask. Hey!"
The players debated among themselves after hearing the dwarf elder, and one of them raised his hand high. The dwarf elder saw the player and said: "Yes, speak. O hero!"
"What do we have to prove?"
"That you are heroes who can save us from the lich targeting our village."
"So how do we do that?"
The player was asking precisely what they needed to prove. But Hae-jin already knew what the dwarf elder would say. 'He'll tell us to bring back the 'Black Magic Stones' that drop after killing undead.' No sooner had Hae-jin thought that than the dwarf elder pulled something from his bosom.
"If you slay the undead sent by the lich, you'll obtain orbs like this. This is called a 'Black Magic Stone.' It is the source that animates the undead."
What the dwarf elder held was an orb with a purple hue close to black. That was the 'Black Magic Stone' Hae-jin had recalled. After showing the Black Magic Stone, the dwarf elder continued.
"For basic qualification, gather ten or more Black Magic Stones. For greater support from us afterward, gather a hundred, a thousand, or ten thousand. And for repairs, one at a time."
Hae-jin knew exactly what the dwarf elder meant here too. The Black Magic Stones the dwarf elder wanted collected. Depending on the number, the dwarves would provide equipment of different grades. 'Ten for high-grade gear, a hundred for rare, a thousand for special, ten thousand for hero-grade.' Even similar equipment was inherently one grade higher if dwarf-made. That was why completing the hidden trial in the third trial arena could be seen as exchanging for something one grade higher. But Hae-jin hadn't chosen that. For now, Hae-jin was wearing Joo-hyuk's equipment. Joo-hyuk's gear was the highest grade, 'divine-grade.' So there was no reason for Hae-jin to seek better equipment. Even dwarves, renowned for crafting, couldn't make divine-grade items. Divine-grade could only be obtained as hidden pieces or by synthesizing with special materials from myth-grade gear. In any case, the equipment exchange voucher held no meaning for Hae-jin. So what did Hae-jin need? An equipment purchase voucher? He didn't need that either. The purchase voucher allowed buying gear one grade higher than what the dwarf elder described, using Black Magic Stones. In other words, for the hidden trial reward from the third trial arena, Hae-jin had obtained an equipment enhancement scroll. Equipment enhancement scroll. An item that added options to a designated piece of equipment. Unless acquiring genuinely higher-grade gear, adding options was the way to go. 'Once the other players focus on hunting, I'll have a private talk with the dwarf elder.' While Hae-jin thought that, the dwarf elder made his final remark.
"Come, heroes! Prove yourselves against the wicked lich's undead legion!"
"Let's hurry. If the Massacre rampages again, we won't get anything!"
"Right!"
"Charge!"
"Chaaarge!"
The players rushed ahead into the cave the dwarf elder had pointed to, fearing Hae-jin would take all the undead if he went first. Watching them, Hae-jin smirked. 'I wasn't planning to sweep the undead myself this time anyway.' If he did it all alone, the remaining players would all die, and he'd be reassigned to another current zone. He had to avoid that mishap. There was also one more reason. 'To clear the hidden trial, we head out around when everyone's about to move to the boss area.' With that thought, Hae-jin simply watched as all the players went off to gather Black Magic Stones. Then the dwarf elder approached.
"Hero, are you not going to gather Black Magic Stones?"
"I have business with you first."
He spoke casually to the players but used polite speech with the NPC dwarf elder. No point in lowering affinity by being rude to NPCs. At Hae-jin's words, the dwarf elder pointed to his own face with his index finger.
"With me?"
"Use this to enhance my equipment."
Hae-jin pulled a single parchment from his inventory. It was the equipment enhancement scroll. Seeing it, the dwarf elder looked surprised.
"You are already a hero more than qualified."
A hero fully qualified. It had to be. By their lore, dwarves believed only those acknowledged by dragons could bring them purchase vouchers, exchange vouchers, or enhancement scrolls. Having received the equipment enhancement scroll from Hae-jin, the dwarf elder said: "Then, which equipment shall I enhance for you?"
Originally, upon regressing with Joo-hyuk, Hae-jin had planned to use the equipment enhancement from the third trial's hidden reward on the hidden piece from the second trial arena, the 'Greatsword That Grows by Devouring Blood.' But this time, since he had Joo-hyuk's job 'Lord of Chaos' instead of his own, he couldn't obtain it. To get his original weapon, he needed the Rune of Massacre and the Blood Berserker job change—two conditions. So this time, the enhancement scroll had to go not to his original greatsword, but to the weapon inherited from Joo-hyuk. To the dwarf elder asking which equipment, Hae-jin held out his twin swords.
"Enhance these weapons."
The dwarf elder looked at Hae-jin's twin swords and made an awkward expression.
"Hero."
"Yes?"
Hae-jin wondered why the dwarf elder had that look. To the puzzled Hae-jin, the dwarf elder explained.
"I cannot enhance these for you."