Chapter 171
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 171
Chapter Title: Curing the Leader
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A burst of holy power's light erupted from Jeong Hoon's hand.
The light was on a level incomparable to the healing used by priests, drawing all eyes toward it.
Ignoring the stares, Jeong Hoon focused solely on treating the patient.
He couldn't restore the severed arm and leg, but the man's ragged, labored breathing gradually steadied.
The internal injuries tormenting him had been healed.
"It's done. He'll come to in time."
Only then did Jeong Hoon withdraw his hand.
The man would surely be disoriented at first without an arm and leg, but that was a trial for the patient to overcome.
"Th-thank you! Thank you so much!"
The guardian woman shed tears, expressing her gratitude repeatedly.
"Could you heal us too?!"
"Yes, us as well!"
"Please!"
Seeing this, the other guardians rushed toward Jeong Hoon without hesitation.
It didn't matter if he was an archer or a priest.
The healing he had just demonstrated was undoubtedly effective.
"Yes. Of course."
Jeong Hoon readily began treating the injured in order.
Archer's Sanctuary.
"Is that really true?"
Acting Commander Roskanto doubted his own ears at the report.
"Yes. After defending the west gate from the Titan Rhinoceroses, he's personally healing the wounded in the infirmary."
"Hah..."
Was such a thing even possible?
A level 201 ranger had effortlessly subdued the charging Titan Rhinoceroses, and that wasn't enoughhe had chased them down and perfectly cleared the boss dungeon.
Even more astonishing, instead of returning to the sanctuary, he had gone straight to the infirmary to give those worthless priests a proper lesson.
And that wasn't all.
The most shocking part was that he was using healing to treat the critically injured patients himself.
'I'll go sweep the monsters and come back.'
At first, it had seemed like nonsense.
Who would have thought it was true?
"He'll probably return to the sanctuary as soon as he's finished with the treatments."
"...But how can he use holy power?"
"That's the question. According to Cedric, the arrows shot by that outsider were definitely filled with mana."
It was impossible for mana and holy power to coexist.
The two natures could never mix.
Yet this outsider was wielding both mana and holy power.
"I suppose I'll have to see for myself."
Roskanto hurried toward the infirmary.
"Gasp... Commander."
"The commander's here... Everyone, get up!"
As the acting commander appeared in the infirmary, the bedridden wounded tried to rise.
Roskanto quickly raised a hand to stop them.
"What are you doing! Don't get up, absolutely not! Recovery comes first."
"Yes..."
"How's your condition? ...You all did an outstanding job. Thanks to you, our city wasn't breached."
Roskanto went around the infirmary, personally checking on each wounded soldier, praising and comforting them.
The injured had improved greatly since being brought to the infirmary.
It was truly a relief.
'There he is.'
As he examined the wounded one by one, the outsider came into view in the distance.
Just as reported, he was personally treating a patient.
"Hey!"
Jeong Hoon turned at the familiar voice from behind.
Roskanto was running toward him.
"Hm? What brings you here?"
Feigning surprise at Roskanto's visit, Jeong Hoon asked.
"...I had some questions. Is it true you massacred the Titan Rhinoceroses?"
He asked in a trembling voice.
"Yes."
Jeong Hoon nodded.
"And this... this is holy power, right?"
"Yes."
Jeong Hoon cast an advanced healing on the patient in front of him.
Holy light sparkled from his hand.
Roskanto was stunned.
"It's insane..."
An exclamation mark blinked above his head.
You have completed the quest.
High contribution! Recalculating rewards.
You have acquired the Archer's Mark.
NPC Roskanto acknowledges you!
NPC Roskanto's trust greatly increases.
Perfect.
The Archer's Mark, obtainable via free pass only by achieving over 95 contribution and performing good deeds.
But Jeong Hoon had no intention of stopping there.
'Completing all quests from Litton gives the Ancient Archer's Mark Fragment.'
The completed Archer's Mark was likely made by collecting those fragments and combining them with the Archer's Mark.
He had done the same with the Warrior's Mark, so it was certain.
Then, a red question mark blinked above Roskanto's head again.
'Hm? Another hidden quest?'
Jeong Hoon tilted his head and checked his quests.
Hidden Quest: Alteer von Askenstone
-Restriction: One acknowledged by Roskanto
-Reward: ??
-Description: Roskanto is handling duties in place of the ruler of the Archer's City. The ruler's well-being is in peril. Resolve the issue.
'So that's it.'
Jeong Hoon realized why this quest had triggered.
The advanced healing he had just shown.
Having witnessed such powerful healing unlike that of ordinary priests, a sliver of hope had sparked in Roskanto's heart.
'SShould I accept the quest?'
He hesitated for a moment.
The ruler of the Archer's City had fallen into a curse-induced coma while preparing for war.
That was why Roskanto was acting as commander, preparing for war.
But according to the lore, the war fell through due to intervention by the allied Thieves' City.
The absence of Ruler Alteer von Askenstone was the problem.
If he accepted this quest and lifted the curse, the aborted war might actually happen.
In other words, his actions could trigger the war.
Yet he couldn't just abandon a hidden quest.
'Alright. Let's catch both rabbits.'
Perform the quest while preemptively blocking the war from happening.
Having decided, Jeong Hoon accepted the quest.
As he did, Roskanto cautiously spoke up.
"Could I... ask a favor?"
"A favor?"
"It's hard to talk here. Would you come with me somewhere else for a bit...?"
"Sure."
Roskanto's face brightened at the ready agreement.
"Thank you!"
The place he led Jeong Hoon to was the reception room of Alteer's residence.
As Jeong Hoon sat in a chair, Roskanto sat across from him.
"Nice and tidy reception room."
"Thanks for the compliment. Care for a drink? Something you enjoy?"
"No, I'm fine."
Jeong Hoon intended to get straight to the point.
"I see."
Understanding, Roskanto dismissed everyone around.
Now, only Jeong Hoon and Roskanto remained in the reception room.
"Go ahead and tell me. Why did you bring me here?"
"The truth is..."
Roskanto slowly began his story.
Starting from the poor relations between the Warrior's City and the Archer's City, to the recent dungeon discovery in the Warrior's City drawing many users.
That territory had originally belonged to the Archer's City, so they had been preparing for war for half a year to reclaim it.
The problem was that the leader who ordered the war preparations, Alteer, had suddenly fallen under a curse, which persisted to this day.
"So you want me to lift that curse?"
"Exactly... Those damn Holy City bastards demanded 1 million gold to remove it."
1 million gold.
With the finances strained from war preparations, how could they possibly gather that much so quickly?
"Hm, well... I'll need to examine it, but lifting the curse should be possible."
"Really?!"
"Yes."
Roskanto brightened.
If true, it wouldn't be impossible for the leader to awaken.
"Then, could you go now?!"
"Sure."
Roskanto guided Jeong Hoon to Alteer's bedroom.
NPC Information
-Nickname: Alteer von Askenstone
-Level: 200 (Level reduced due to curse)
-Job: Ruler of the Archer's City
He had lain in bed for so long that he was skin and bones.
His face was also blackened.
'Definitely cursed.'
What curse is that?
Mukho showed interest.
'I've seen this curse before. Same symptoms as Sleepbloom poisoning.'
Anima gave the correct answer.
Sleepbloom.
Similar to roses but entirely blackened.
Named for the curse it imparts when ingested in large quantities: eternal sleep leading to slow desiccation.
'Must have ingested a lot.'
'Yeah. Otherwise, he wouldn't be in such a deep coma.'
Alteer had been asleep for three months.
Yet he clung to life thanks to potions on the bedside table.
Potions procured long ago from the Holy City were administered in small amounts at intervals to sustain him.
Jeong Hoon reached toward Alteer.
Using Detox.
The Unique-grade Detox activated, and dark red blood flowed from Alteer's nose.
"Cough...! Cough!"
Soon after, he began coughing up dark red blood.
"Leader..."
Roskanto's eyes trembled as he watched.
"It's part of the recovery. Don't worry too much."
Jeong Hoon reassured Roskanto, who watched from behind.
"That's recovery?"
Alteer was continuously vomiting dark red blood.
"Yes."
Jeong Hoon nodded and repeatedly cast Detox on Alteer.
'It wasn't a large single dose but prolonged ingestion over time.'
'Seems so. How much did he consume to produce this much?'
A large short-term dose would dissipate the curse after a couple of vomits.
But the abnormal volume of blood Alteer expelled indicated very long-term ingestion.
Using Advanced Healing.
Jeong Hoon also used advanced healing.
Without it, Alteer might perish during the detox process.
After repeatedly applying Detox and healing, the curse entrenched in Alteer's body fully dissipated.
"Ugh... Where am I..."
Only then did Alteer slowly survey his surroundings with a dazed expression.
"Don't approach yet."
Jeong Hoon warned Roskanto not to come closer, then gripped Alteer's chin to meet his eyes.
Using Brainwash.
Brainwash level has increased.
The Brainwash activated, and its level rose.
'I need to max it out quickly and upgrade to Unique.'
Skills acquired through opportunities like Black Field required max level to reach Unique grade.
Brainwash was currently level 6, still Epic grade.
However, Alteer was not in a normal state.
Regardless of grade, he was perfectly susceptible to Brainwash.
Alteer's pupils dilated as he stared blankly at Jeong Hoon.
The Brainwash had taken hold perfectly.
"You will never start a war. Withdraw all war preparations and seek peaceful resolutions."
Jeong Hoon whispered softly into Alteer's ear, inaudible to Roskanto.
"Yes..."
Alteer nodded.
Only then did Jeong Hoon release him and cast one final healing.
"L-Leader? Do you recognize me...?"
At Roskanto's words, Alteer's head turned toward him.
"Yes..."
Alteer nodded laboriously, and moisture gathered in Roskanto's eyes.
"Thank you... Thank you so much..."
He had thought the leader would never open his eyes again.
It was all thanks to Jeong Hoon.
Sobbing, he repeatedly thanked Jeong Hoon.
Time passed, and Alteer gradually regained his senses.
"...How long was I asleep?"
"Three... three months, sir."
"I see..."
Alteer suppressed his confused emotions.
Since becoming leader, he had struggled with insomniano, overwhelming sleepiness.
At first, he dismissed it as overwork, but sleep duration gradually lengthened, eventually leading to days-long slumbers.
That day, an unusually severe drowsiness hit.
His eyes kept closing against his will.
He finally abandoned his work and went to bed earlier than usual.
That was his last memory.
'But three months asleep...'
According to Roskanto, it was a curse, but when did he get cursed?
No matter how he thought, he couldn't guess.
"How's your body feeling?"
The outsider beside Roskanto asked.
Apparently, this outsider was the reason he escaped the curse.
Alteer nodded.
"Much better than before."
"You've been bedridden for three months. The curse is gone, so you'll recover quickly."
"Truly grateful. Could you tell me what curse afflicted me?"
"Sleepbloom poisoning."
"Sleepbloom...?"
He had never heard of it.
"Yes. And it seems the culprit is among us."
"Someone who cursed me is here...?"