Chapter 59
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 59
Chapter Title: The World Is Cold (5)
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'Finally... I'm about to get my hands on that mana stone.'
A member of the World Tree Forest elves.
Giradriel, the one in charge of conquering Dino World, had joy radiating from his expression.
A long, grueling conquest.
The moment to put the final period on it had finally arrived.
They were intruders in Dino World.
After battling through countless fights from Zone 1 all the way to Zone 7.
They were now enjoying a sweet rest.
'How much hardship did we go through to get this far... Ha ha, what a.'
About two years ago from now.
Ever since Dino World transferred to the World Tree Forest, this battle had begun.
And before they knew it, it was rushing toward its end.
Dino World.
Assumed to have existed since ancient times like other dungeons.
Yet a dungeon with strangely little notoriety or fame.
'I was skeptical at first, but the elders were right after all.'
Dino World was weak compared to other dungeons.
That statement had been spot on.
Though not blessed ones.
It was a dungeon that the World Tree Forest, the strongest force among elves, could conquer.
It had been a short time if short, long if long.
After endless wars of attrition, Dino World was the first to run out of troops.
It was almost over now.
All that remained was to behead the Dungeon Master, claim the mana stone.
And return home in glory.
Mana stone.
It was the most mysterious gem in this world.
A miraculous substance that could turn stone to gold, paupers to the rich, and ordinary trees into world trees.
It could exponentially extend the lifespans of short-lived races and even long-lived ones.
The so-called Philosopher's Stone, hailed as the most powerful energy source.
The very mana stone he'd only heard rumors about was now within reach.
It felt like a dream.
Giradriel clenched his fist.
With this, the World Tree Forest could advance even further.
From this moment, the elves were one step closer to greatness.
"Ha ha."
He couldn't hide his joy.
"You look thrilled, Sir Giradriel."
"Of course. The entire World Tree Forest force wanted this conquest... What a relief. Aren't you happy too?"
His subordinate elf nodded as well.
"By the way... why did the blessed ones leave a dungeon we could conquer alone?"
His laughter faded into silence.
Giradriel knew the reason.
The blessed ones were the most special beings in this world.
Long-lived races like elves, they possessed the miracle of returning from death.
Beings who could stand toe-to-toe with Dungeon Masters who created life and space like the God of Oblivion.
Clearing dungeons with entry restrictions had been easy in the old days.
Not anymore—it was incredibly difficult now.
Yet the blessed ones still conquered dungeons.
Our lives were finite.
Theirs were infinite.
However.
The blessed ones didn't seek mana stones like we did.
They were mere incidental spoils.
Their purpose for targeting dungeons was clearly different from ours.
Giradriel closed his eyes, recalling the past.
"We're waiting until the dungeon is worth conquering. Like I said before, what makes us stronger can be obtained outside dungeons anyway... Money and fame? We can get plenty without conquering dungeons."
Giradriel had once encountered a blessed one named Avalris.
It was by chance.
At the time, the elves had just started conquering Dino World.
Giradriel had asked various questions seeking advice on the conquest.
Avalris seemed to see right through his heart.
She kindly answered not just conquest tips but everyday curiosities.
Among them were details about Dino World.
The reason blessed ones ignored Dino World.
It simply didn't align with their goals.
Not directly related to conquest, but the doubt had suddenly struck him.
What benefits did blessed ones gain from conquering dungeons?
If not money, fame... or power.
What future were they envisioning that drove them to conquer dungeons?
When he asked her.
"Who knows? No one does. Maybe it'll make us gods who bestow powers like the ones who gave us ours. Or maybe just a sigh-worthy empty reward."
"Heh heh, that's why we challenge it. We're just like you. Who knows what's waiting up in those skies... Charging ahead like moths to a flame without looking back—that's the privilege of intelligent beings, right?"
A cryptic answer came back.
With a sly, fox-like smile, her upturned eyes formed an unforgettable image.
Avalris cheered on the elves.
Dungeon conquests weren't the exclusive right of the blessed.
As long as they didn't barge in mid-conquest.
She wouldn't take offense.
Anyway.
Giradriel ended his reminiscence and stood.
"Blessed one talk isn't urgent right now. Time to move out..."
He thought it was time to advance.
But.
"Hold on. I want to discuss reward distribution again. Aren't you guys doing less work than me?"
Someone interrupted: Icarus.
Swordmaster of the North Kingdom.
The top contributor to this conquest, a sturdy man.
If only he fixed that greedy personality, he'd be a great guy.
"Discuss rewards here? We already agreed you'd take 1/5 of the mana stone before coming in."
"But I've killed more minions than all of you combined. 1/5 is too little."
"Sigh."
This fucking asshole.
The elves had already conceded plenty with 1/5.
Did this guy not know satisfaction?
Giradriel barely swallowed his curses and spoke calmly.
He wanted to punch the guy, but they were mid-conquest.
"Fine. No denying your contributions. But didn't I tell you over and over? You could hunt minions so easily because our World Tree Forest gnawed away at Dino World for two years?"
"Still, 1/5 is too low. Make it 1/4."
What kind of robber is this?
No class.
"Saying that now? If we were gonna give you that much, we wouldn't have brought you."
"You said before entering that rewards depend on performance..."
Icarus wouldn't budge.
The talk dragged for about thirty minutes, looping the same points.
The mood grew hostile; it could erupt into a fight.
The mana stone was within reach.
They couldn't ruin it over this.
Giradriel swallowed his anger and ended it.
"Conquest isn't over yet. We'll talk after grabbing the mana stone. Okay?"
"Tch... Fine."
The mana stone was within reach.
That fact cooled their tempers.
Ten elves remained, including himself.
And one damn but intact Swordmaster.
Conquering Zone 8 should be a breeze.
Why did it feel so ominous?
"No minions around?"
The area was empty.
Zone 8 was a cave.
In past zones, remaining minions and the Dungeon Master had fought desperately.
"Use detection magic."
"Pardon?"
"We confirmed no jamming from Zone 8 onward last time. You frustrating idiot. Use detection magic."
"S-sorry..."
He'd suspected some trick.
But the subordinate reported nothing here.
They were clustered in Zone 10 with the healing spring instead.
Changed the final battlefield? Whatever.
They advanced.
"Hm?"
Where had he seen this before?
In the middle of Zone 8, Giradriel spotted two familiar statues.
Oh right.
He remembered seeing them in the swamp zone before.
Like a weeping person frozen solid.
Incredibly lifelike decorations.
A wyrm with an eye for aesthetics.
Not just Giradriel.
The party dismissed the statues.
The moment they passed them.
Crack! Crunch!
An impossible sound rang out.
Everyone turned.
"Ah...?"
The two statues clutched necks.
Elves' necks.
One per hand.
Four elves dangled limply in the air.
Like prisoners on the gallows.
Dead without a final scream.
Giradriel blinked.
What the hell happened?
It was an instant.
No warning whatsoever.
The statues had stepped forward, proving they could move.
As the elves froze in shock.
"Struggling to the bitter end."
Shing—
Icarus drew his sword.
He grinned ferociously, like a man who'd calculated everything.
Excited to deliver justice to this insolent minion.
"Honestly surprised. No killing intent. Thought it was just a normal statue, but it's a monster..."
Swordmaster of the North Kingdom.
Icarus brimmed with pride in his skills.
Only seven such honorable titles in the kingdom.
"If you're gonna aim, aim at me."
The world's greatest swordsman.
His blade would cleave rocks, foes, and eventually mountains.
Assuming equal lives.
Even blessed ones rarely beat Icarus one-on-one.
He was the youngest Swordmaster.
Meaning the highest potential among living swordsmen.
A pitiful struggle.
Dismissing it as a block from a crumbling dungeon's trash minion was foolish.
I've sliced far bigger, stronger monsters in one stroke.
Icarus assumed position.
A prime heavy swordsman.
His overwhelming mana fueled auras that sharpened his rough technique.
"If you won't come, I'll go to you!"
Icarus lunged.
But.
Unlike his confident face, Giradriel sensed something wrong.
No. This minion doesn't feel like that...
The fight had begun.
"Ho... You withstood that strike!?"
The statue didn't budge.
If legendary adamantium existed unbreakable, it'd feel like this.
Yet Icarus's offense didn't falter.
"Ha ha ha! Fun. Yeah, that's how you do it!"
He was thrilled instead.
Determined to topple the statue before him.
"Now for the real deal...!!"
His aura blazed brighter.
Crimson to blue; veins bulged on his arms at the limit.
"Sir Giradriel... Sh-should we help?"
"Y-yeah..."
Right.
The core room was close.
Behead the Dungeon Master.
Grab the mana stone and go home.
An unexpected trial.
But still.
"H-help Icarus first!"
They had to win somehow.
"From now on, I'll go at you seriously" (swinging sword at the anomaly)
lol this is fucking hilarious ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ holy shit
ah fuck I shouldn't laugh ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
but it really is hilarious ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
ow my stomach hurts from laughing ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
Is this average Swordmaster IQ??
What kind of enemies has Newbie been up against all this time;;
that guy's face rotting in real time is so funny ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
but guys this is partly thanks to me;;;
My dungeon is so simple it induced confirmation bias...
Stop mocking those guys ffs... I almost died to them, it's embarrassing ㅠㅠ...
tbh we've been smashing everything so far...
hard to think "this minion has rules, gotta figure it out" ㅋ...
just haters ㅇㅇ...
but "earthquake" ㅅㅂ ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ...
What's earthquake??
short for "from now on, I'll go at you seriously"...
"Earthquake"
short for "from now on, I'll seriously fuck Newbie"!
WoW...
"See? I'm not a bad guy. It's almost over, so have some jerky and wait a bit more."
The posts look reassuring.
High chance of total wipe. Probably.
Anyway.
I befriended the goblin.
"Kek, keherruk..."
Won't see it again after releasing, but.
With eyes, nose, mouth in place, it's kinda cute.
Gnawing jerky like a monkey at the zoo.
"Urp."
Hey, no jealousy.
My favorite minion is you, Squishy.
I patted Squishy and sighed.
"Tough. Real tough."
Glad no one figures out situations fast.
Honestly a bit scared until just now.
Like Yuben suddenly going "I got it! The anomaly's core!" or whatever.
Couldn't rule out 0% chance of countering.
But seeing them stupidly challenge the anomaly.
Finally relieved.