Chapter 37: How to Grow as a Max-Level Oldbie (4)

Time flew by swiftly.

It had been just over 24 hours since Jinhyuk entered the first basement level.

The level, which was once 1, had now grown to level 12.

Name: Kang Jinhyuk

Gender: Male

Age: 27

Level: 12

Strength 8, Agility 8, Stamina 8, Magic Power 41, Gap 100, Luck 10, Adaptability 10

Available stat points: 33

Coins owned: 22740

Job: None

Unique abilities: Fusion (融合), Tomb of the Sword, Blessing of the Stars

Skills: Lv4 ‘Element of Fire’, Lv3 ‘Eye of Truth’, Lv3 ‘Sympathy’, Lv3 ‘Branding of the Soul’, Lv3 ‘Toxic Eater’, Lv3 ‘Shallow Breathing’

The growth speed was insane.

Even Itaemin and Yuyeonhwa, both veterans, took two weeks just to surpass level 10.

However, despite the overwhelming growth, Jinhyuk’s expression was devoid of much emotion.

“It’s a raid with mob hunting and Elis’s support.”

Level 12 is not high. It’s to be expected.

And he was far from satisfied with just this much.

Whoosh!

[Lv4 ‘Element of Fire’ is activated.]

Flames surged behind him.

As the level increased, both the power and versatility of ‘Element of Fire’ changed.

“My combat senses have almost returned to their peak.”

His body had adapted perfectly.

Thanks to the ceaseless battle against the swarming monsters.

At that moment,

“Shall I lure the monsters’ aggro once more?”

Elis, having observed Jinhyuk activate his skill, gently soared into the sky.

Her small wings behind her fluttered continuously.

Jinhyuk snickered at that sight.

“She seems to have mastered her role completely now.”

Although she grumbled, this little queen was fulfilling her role well, ensuring there was never a dull moment.

“Generate more aggro than usual. Oh, and there’s no need to use your restraint this time.”

“Huh? Isn’t it more convenient for me to tie them up?”

“That’s true, but I’d rather conserve your magic power if possible.”

“Conserve my magic power? Why?”

Elis cocked her head, puzzled.

It wouldn’t make sense to her.

If they were portioning out the aggro effectively during the hunt, there would be no need to conserve mana.

Jinhyuk’s gaze shifted to the pit at the center.

From the seemingly bottomless abyss, insects were crawling up even at this moment.

“I’ve warmed up enough. Now it’s time to start heading down there.”

Leveling up and the rise in combat senses.

Both objectives had been achieved.

It was now time to fulfill the last reason why he came here.

“By now, guilds all over the world must be losing their minds over the boss on the third floor.”

It would certainly be chaotic. Generally, people would grow stronger over time and then challenge a boss battle. Instead, they were being forced to clear it unprepared.

But no matter how much they may ponder, there would be no answers.

There couldn’t be any.

A smirk crept up on Jinhyuk’s face.

The boss monster on the third floor that no one has yet to surpass.

Below was the key to breakthrough this ordeal swiftly.

＊＊＊

A medieval-styled, antique castle.

Inside were representatives from some of the world’s major guilds: America’s ‘Titan,’ Europe’s ‘Olympus,’ China’s ‘Chunghwa,’ and Korea’s ‘Fight Fathers.’

In total, four out of the seven major guilds had gathered.

The purpose was singular.

To confer about the 3rd floor’s boss, which had already resulted in eight failures.

“It’s remarkable.”

Theresa murmured under her breath as she watched rankers continue to flood into the banquet hall.

The situation was dire, even more so than she had anticipated.

Seeing these high-ranking members from each guild convening personally spoke volumes.

“They must be feeling the pressure.”

After all, humanity had less than 40 days left.

Doubtlessly, this meeting would yield pivotal discussions.

Right then,

A middle-aged man holding a wine glass began to speak.

An S-rank player attending as the representative of the American Titan guild, Patrick.

“Now that most of us are gathered, let’s begin the meeting.”

The murmuring subsided.

Everyone’s attention turned to Patrick.

“As you all know, our 8th attempt to raid the path to the 4th floor ended in failure. Of the 15 raid teams comprised of 100 people each, only 9 returned alive.”

The raid had been a painstaking effort.

1500 players and 2 relics were put into the critical operation, but despite the massive support invested, they again failed to breach the final gateway to the 4th floor.

What could be the reason?

Was the boss monster overwhelmingly strong?

Numerous tricky traps?

No.

The last boss on the 3rd floor was fairly unremarkable, and there weren’t any notable traps.

“Damn. Even with a relic capable of facing armies, we failed. Then how on earth are we supposed to break through those swarms?”

Yes, the problem was not quality, but quantity.

To proceed to the 4th floor, it wasn’t enough to defeat hundreds or thousands. Tens of thousands of statues had to be overcome.

“In hindsight, we advanced the clearing of the 2nd and 3rd floors too quickly. Look what’s come of it.”

Maria, a magician representing Olympus, chimed in.

If only there was a sufficient number of players above level 15…

The raid teams would never have failed.

But the rush to climb the tower has outpaced the players’ levels.

This trouble was inevitable.

“That’s reasonable. Isn’t it all because of China’s greed for monopolizing mana stones?”

Baek Jinho, the commander of the 3rd attack team of the Dangun Guild, growled, baring his teeth.

Silent until then, a fierce aura started to emanate from the Chinese representatives.

“That remark is hard to let slide. We climbed the tower for the sake of humanity. Accusing us without evidence is a provocation against us.”

Tenwei from the Chunghwa Guild frowned.

“Ha! Talking about humanity, as if. How many have you killed just to establish your own power in Chunghwa? Everyone here knows.”

“If you say that one more time…”

“And if I do? What will you do?”

“Enough!”

As the confrontation escalated, Patrick intervened.

“This is no time to squabble over the past.”

The present urgent issues were pressing.

Now was not the time for power struggles and assigning blame.

“Do you have a plan in mind?”

“Yes, there is one way to overcome this situation.”

Patrick’s face was shadowed, as though he hadn’t expected to say what he was about to.

But resolutely, he explained the reason for convening this meeting.

“Yesterday at dawn… we were contacted by ‘The Mine.’ They’re willing to help us under one condition.”

With Patrick’s words, a massive stir erupted in the hall.

“What?!”

“You mean to accept their offer?”

“They’re nothing but a band of internationally wanted refuse.”

“We can’t work with roaches. Not at all!”

The guild representatives were appalled.

The large guilds had power rivaling governments, making their public image crucial.

A single word or action could have immense repercussions.

So naturally, they were exceedingly reluctant to be associated with “The Mine.”

“Tsk, tsk. Calling them trash—that must sting the ears of the trash listening.”

It was at that moment that something stirred in the shadow of the bonfire.

A sinister and bizarre shadow.

Writhe, writhe!

The shadow soon took on a human shape.

An emaciated old man with a white beard, but one couldn’t dismiss him based on his appearance alone; the magic emanating from him was too menacing.

“Pride is all very well, but you all know well enough that you can’t do it on your own, don’t you?”

The old man taunted.

“How audacious! How dare you come here?!”

“Patrick. You brought this scum here?”

“I’ll slash that filthy neck of yours right off!”

Swoosh!

Click!

Various weapons were drawn.

As magic surged, the peaceful banquet hall instantly descended into chaos.

Bang, bang, bang!

The old man clucked his tongue.

“Full of enthusiasm, aren’t you? But listen to our terms and you might change your minds. We have the power to break through the boss.”

“Nonsense! How are a few supposed to break through that legion?”

The Mine’s forces were minor in numbers.

An individual group could never hope to win in a war.

Not even raid teams made of thousands were able to withstand three days before being annihilated.

“Hmm. Numbers are made up, aren’t they?”

The old man pounded his skull-staff onto the ground twice.

Bang! Bang!

A dull noise reverberated through the hall.

At that moment,

[Unique ability ‘The Gravedigger of the Cursed Tomb’ is activated!]

Rumble, rumble!

Numerous cracks appeared in the marble floor.

“What the—?”

“This is…!”

People scurried to avoid the sudden fissures.

And then, from the depths of the earth, skeletons emerged one by one to the surface.

“Clever. So these lands are filled with quite usable corpses. Thanks to them, we can get quality soldiers.”

Even a cursory look revealed hundreds of skeletal soldiers.

Their armor was worn from the ravages of time, but their swords and shields had not lost their former glory.

“We counter forces with forces. As you can see, many in The Mine are skilled in necromancy or summoning.”

“A Necromancer… was it? But to handle this scale…?”

As Tenwei mumbled, he suddenly widened his eyes.

“No way, that staff!”

The staff held by the old man.

He had seen it before.

Exactly when, he had a memory of seeing it while playing in the Tower of Trials.

“Oho? Someone recognizes this?”

The old man caressed his staff proudly.

The staff of greed, a special item that could only be made by collecting 99 different materials.

Though it was not easy to create due to the bizarre and brutal components required, if successfully synthesized, the item would bestow the greatest abilities for a necromancer.

“Indeed… With the staff of greed and a necromancer, we might have a chance. The 9th attempt may be viable.”

“Tenwei! You can’t be serious!”

Maria’s eyebrows knotted in disbelief.

“If they’d intended to approach us with some half-baked trick, I wouldn’t stand for it. But this strategy isn’t bad.”

“Hmm. I apologize, but this time I agree with that Chinese guy there. Of course, provided it’s kept away from the public eye.”

Baek Jinho also spoke gravely.

One by one, the atmosphere shifted.

Towards accepting The Mine’s offer.

＊＊＊

Watching all this, Teresa bit her lip hard.

‘How did things come to this?’

Even so, to think about joining hands with The Mine.

She wanted to protest immediately.

That this shouldn’t be accepted.

But in a situation where there was no other viable solution, it wasn’t her place to simply object.

‘If only Jinhyuk were here to participate.’

If that were the case.

All of this concern would’ve been unnecessary.

Unlike the ‘fakes’ here, Jinhyuk was the only ‘real’ high-level player she knew.

Considering the many feats he had shown in the impenetrable ruins, he must know a way to the 4th floor, too.

But,

‘I can’t do anything alone.’

Yes, it was out of her hands.

Her lone opinion couldn’t overturn the situation.

However, at that very moment,

Woosh!

A blue status window activated in front of her.

[You have received an incoming video call request from outside.]

Normally, she wouldn’t have given another player’s call a second glance.

But,

Thump! Thump! Thump!

Reading the content, Teresa’s heart began racing.

[The caller is player Kang Jinhyuk.]

It was a call.

[Will you accept the call request?]

From the person she had wished for so earnestly.

“Jinhyuk… Sir!”

She shakily accepted the call, and a familiar face appeared.

His relaxed expression and confident demeanor.

It was the same Jinhyuk she knew so well, full of confidence.

And Jinhyuk began the conversation in a manner that was essentially him.

“What’s with these osteoporosis-inflicted skeleton freaks?”