Chapter 188
Chapter 188
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>Translator: penny
>Chapter: 188
>Chapter Title: The Inherited Ring
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Meanwhile, at that very moment, Kaiser—no, Do-hyun was...
[You have used a Teleport Scroll.]
[Teleporting to the designated location, 'Back Gate of Pratel Royal Castle.']
[Location has changed. Guardians are forcibly summoned.]
“Phew, that was brutal.”
He let out a sigh of relief at the back gate of the royal castle, where the only signs of life were the guards.
-Ughhh... I seriously almost died there.
-Li...za...
-Ungh...!
Jihad and Eliza groaned the moment they were summoned along with him.
Even Charlie, who always tried to act all dignified, wasn't denying it, so it must have been hell.
[HP is at 4% or below.]
[Mana is fully depleted.]
No wonder, really.
Do-hyun's status window alone was a total wreck.
The others were only marginally better off than him, but they were right at their limits too.
‘Talk about a surprise ambush out of nowhere.’
The problem was that the fight had broken out right after Luidra drained all their power.
Without those ice skills, he wouldn't have been able to thin their numbers so smoothly in the early game.
It was living up to its reputation as a skill that shone even more in PvP than PvE.
The most useful ice skill he'd used lately, hands down.
‘That said... there's no patching things up nicely with Hero Guild now.’
He'd unintentionally turned them into sworn enemies.
He'd been pushing the main quest while holding a unique trait and a god, so he'd wanted to steer clear of needless complications.
But here he was, tangled up with a massive organization way too early.
‘Hero Guild—top of the Top 100 Guilds.’
Do-hyun, on the other hand, was just one guy.
Could he take them on solo? Honestly, he had no idea.
If it was those punks from before, he was confident even against a hundred of them at full health—but that was only if the battlefield was Pratel.
‘Empire level cap is 71 to 100.’
And in the late game, a single level bracket made all the difference.
Higher brackets had way better odds at high-grade drops, so 71 and 81 might as well have been different worlds.
Facing off against a max-level Berge—who had probably even hit 'that' milestone—in a situation like that?
Not just Berge, but his entire guild?
‘This is gonna be rough.’
No matter how freakish Do-hyun's stats were, this was a hard no.
If he'd at least broken level 80, maybe—but slamming headfirst into them at 71? No path to victory in sight.
He wished it'd happened just a little later...
‘Sigh. Like anything ever goes to plan.’
It always felt like things twisted into knots at the worst possible moments, but enemies like this weren't exactly new.
He'd rarely had it easy, so Do-hyun was used to it by now.
He shook his head to clear the swirling thoughts and scanned his surroundings.
‘It'll work itself out somehow. I'll figure it out later.’
What was done was done.
Brooding over it now wouldn't change a thing.
Better to zero in on growth, even if just a little.
And right now, he had the perfect chance.
[You have acquired the Spark of Purification and completed the quest.]
[Go find Gilberun.]
The Spark of Purification quest that would wrap up his main quest.
Time to finish it and claim the rewards.
Everyone had suffered through hell for exactly this moment, but Do-hyun decided to put it off for just a bit.
[There are unconfirmed items in your inventory.]
[There are unconfirmed notifications.]
[Would you like to confirm?]
‘Gotta check this first.’
The essence orb he'd harvested from Luidra.
He still hadn't looked at the guaranteed equipment items and rewards from it.
‘Let's see what dropped.’
Do-hyun grinned and opened the notifications. A flood of items greeted him.
The first ones that caught his eye were the pieces of gear from taking down those guys.
[Artisan's Beniuod Bow]
[Staff Imbued with Wind Cutter]
[Artisan's Beniuod Boots]
[Bajital Sword]
‘Kuh... nice haul.’
The situation hadn't let him loot everything, but he'd scooped up what he could piecemeal and ended up with five pieces.
All Rare to Rare+ grade gear.
Nothing insanely pricey, but given the level bracket, selling these would net him hundreds easy.
Still, the real jackpot came from that freakish bastard who'd come charging in screaming at the end.
[Rock-Cleaving Ring]
[Grade: Hero]
[Description: A ring imbued with the power to cleave rocks.
It grants the wearer the strength of a mountain, amplifying the power of their next strike. It earned its name when its wearer cleaved a rock in a single blow.]
[Level Limit: 60]
[Equip Limit: Melee Classes]
[Physical Defense: 245]
[Magic Resistance: 217]
-Strength +5
-Stamina +1
-HP +500
[Special Option: When activated, the next attack is infused with the strength of a mountain, enabling a heavier, more powerful strike. (Cooldown: 5 minutes)]
‘Hero grade!’
A Hero-grade ring, no less!
High-grade accessories were rarer than armor, so this was massive.
Same tier as Gamilion's Ring—the exact level of Do-hyun's current accessories.
Hell, factoring in the level limit, this was arguably a step above.
[Ring equip slots are full.]
[Please select a ring to replace.]
‘Ah.’
One problem: Do-hyun already had all his ring slots filled.
He'd have to swap one out...
‘Karuk's Essence Ring for the shield, or Gamilion's Ring for the burst damage...’
Both options were too damn useful to pass up.
More than useful—they synergized beautifully when used together.
Killer combo for turning the tables and creating openings.
‘Gamilion's overlaps a little with this one, though...’
Gamilion's would probably hit harder overall, assuming he tanked a turn with Karuk's shield and popped it at max stacks.
The downside? Gamilion's had a pretty rigid window to use it in.
The Rock-Cleaving Ring traded a bit of raw power for total flexibility—usable anytime.
‘Could always ditch Karuk's and run these two for a pure burst build.’
Not a bad play either way, but he hesitated, that nagging 2% sense of waste holding him back.
[Both the equipped ring and the ring to replace are the same grade.]
[You can use the Inheritance Stone (Permanent).]
[Would you like to use it?]
“Huh?”
The sudden notification made Do-hyun freeze for a second before he let out an exclamation.
‘Right—this thing.’
The reward from clearing Sargis's graduation quest.
He'd had no reason to use it, and with all the chaos lately, it'd slipped his mind.
Buzzing with excitement, he checked the message and nodded.
‘Confirms same grade... so only works between equals, huh.’
Made sense for balance, but he couldn't help feeling a twinge of regret.
If it'd worked across grades, he could've crammed all the best niche options from lower tiers onto a Legend piece.
Whatever—that ship had sailed.
‘Gotta do it.’
Only three uses, so he had to be smart, but this was the perfect spot to burn one.
No telling when a Legend ring would drop, let alone two.
Boosting his power now beat holding out for some distant future.
Especially with the entire Hero Guild gunning for him.
‘Can always recharge it after all three, anyway.’
The special mats for recharging would be a nightmare to farm, no doubt, but the option existed.
Decision made, Do-hyun moved his hand.
[Using Luidra's Inheritance Stone (Permanent).]
[The options of 'Karuk's Essence Ring' have been inherited onto 'Rock-Cleaving Ring.']
Flash!
A brilliant yellow light burst out, bathing the surroundings.
A small cubic shape appeared next.
Like something out of ancient legend—covered in bizarre, time-worn runes, the boxy cube twisted as the two rings floated into the air.
Shhh—
The light winked out in an instant.
The dazzling glow vanished like a lie, replaced by a new message.
[Congratulations. Inheritance complete.]
['Rock-Cleaving Karuk's Essence Ring' has been created.]
The resulting ring blended the best of both worlds in appearance.
The red-and-blue hues of Karuk's Essence Ring mixed with the rugged design of the Rock-Cleaving Ring, giving it a fiercer, more intimidating vibe.
But the real star was the options.
[Rock-Cleaving Karuk's Essence Ring]
[Grade: Hero (Inherited)]
[Description: A ring imbued with rock-cleaving power, infused with the essence of a great goblin warrior.
It amplifies the power of the next strike with the strength of a mountain and grants the power to overcome peril in dire moments.]
[Level Limit: 60]
[Equip Limit: Melee Classes]
[Physical Defense: 245]
[Magic Resistance: 217]
-Strength +5
-Stamina +1
-HP +500
[Special Option: When activated, the next attack is infused with the strength of a mountain, enabling a heavier, more powerful strike. (Cooldown: 5 minutes)]
[Inherited Option: When HP reaches 5%, generates a shield that blocks 15% of max HP in damage for 15 seconds. (Cooldown: 2 hours)]
‘Jackpot...’
A Hero-grade ring with two options to boot.
Options' quality and quantity were what defined grades, so this was Hero+ territory at least.
[The Inheritance Stone (Permanent) has 2 uses remaining.]
Even crazier? He could do this twice more.
Worth every second of agony taking down Pain.
Still riding the high, Do-hyun powered through the rest of Luidra's rewards.
[Confirming rewards harvested from Luidra's Essence Orb.]
[First-clear bonus: 3 equipment items.]
[Dream Dust]
-Grade: Hero
-Description: Dust radiating the aura of the Dream Witch.
Might come in handy for something special?
[Source of Nightmares]
-Grade: Hero
-Description: A fragment broken off from the Nightmare Swamp, brimming with the energy of death.
Looks ominous.
‘...Pass for now.’
Hero grade, sure—but junk.
Hero in name only; total trash item.
‘Still Hero grade, so it'll have some use.’
Alchemy or something, probably.
Decent for a hidden named raid boss, maybe, but utterly useless to Do-hyun.
He skipped past quickly and turned to the real prizes—the three legit pieces of gear.
His eyes went wide.
“Whoa... insane.”
Rewards that blew past every expectation.