by Park Saenal
Lauel was once known as the hero of the Ten Rookies. If he had chosen a combat specialist class as his third advancement class, he would’ve become much stronger. But Lauel sacrificed himself.
Rather than enhancing his individual strength, he chose the ‘Flow Master’ class. He could temporarily change the weather and terrain, but his combat power was the lowest.
“I have been lagging behind for a while and can only hunt vampires, but… why are you raising your level here? I will pass this area by releasing my sealed self and causing bloodshed. You should go on a new adventure.”
“…”
Anyway, Lauel’s tone was really annoying. The Overgeared members scratched their heads like they were embarrassed by him and explained.
“Didn’t we discover the presence of the Behen Archipelago because of Grid?”
“If it wasn’t for Grid, it would be hard to figure out how to move the East Continent.”
“Won’t it feel like a mutiny if we go to the East Continent before Grid?”
“It’s like pouring cold water on him.”
“…”
Lauel’s blue eyes shook as he heard the Overgeared members’ explanation. He was thrilled.
“You were trying to maintain your loyalty to My Lord. Isn’t this good?”
One of the basic conditions for establishing a strong force was camaraderie. And the Overgeared members already had it. Lauel smiled and proudly said, “How wonderful. Then stop your solo play and join a party with me.”
“Eh…?”
“Shouldn’t you be loyal to me as well?”
“…”
Party play had the advantage of hunting much faster than solo play, but it also had the disadvantage of sharing experience and items. It was a loss to do party play in an area where the number of monsters was limited.
But the Overgeared members couldn’t refuse Lauel’s request. They knew better than anyone, even Grid, how hard he worked for the guild.
***
[Your level has risen.]
[12 stat points have been acquired.]
[Six points have been forcibly invested into intelligence due to the influence of the second class, Legendary Great Magician.]
The 59th island.
It was a hell-like space where monsters level 420 or higher popped up on a large scale. Grid had to deal with at least three or four monsters that were 114 levels higher than him. It was a desperate situation for anyone, but Grid could earn a lot.
The 400 extra points in agility and intelligence, as well as Weapons Mastery and Magic Mastery helped a lot.
[Weapons Mastery level is beginner level 6.]
[Magic Mastery level is beginner level 4.]
[The Sword Mastery of ‘God Hand’ has increased to intermediate level 7.]
[Your memphis Noe has risen to level 202.]
[Doppelganger Randy has risen to level 161.]
‘It’s hard.’
It was big. The difficulty meant that Grid achieved a fast and steady growth.
‘It would be nice if I had more potions.
In fact, Grid couldn’t predict that the difficulty of the Behen Archipelago so much. He didn’t have enough potions in the middle of his raid.
Chaeng! Chaaeng!
Grid felt regret as he was immersed in battle. Noe and Randy kept one monster tied up, while Grid faced two monsters at the same time. He faced each remaining monster one by one, as blue flames rose around it. He activated Blacksmith’s Eyes, a skill that he acquired through a hidden piece like Item Combination.
[Blacksmith’s Eyes (Lv. 1) has seen through the target’s item.]
[You have explored the function of the armour that the Troll Lord is wearing!]
[Time Worn Leather Vest]
Defense: ???
Option 1: ???
Option 2: ???
Option 3: Reduce damage of stabbing attacks.
‘Ah, I got it.’
He felt something was unusual when using Kill and Link.
Chaaeng!
Due to his rise in agility, he could swing Grid’s Greatsword faster than before. The moment he defended against the troll lord’s axe, he used Pagma’s Swordsmanship, Pinnacle Kill.
Seokeok!
[You have dealt 90,300 damage to the target.]
[You have lost 4,500 health due to the influence of Pinnacle Kill.]
Kiyaaaaaah!
Trolls were monsters with high health and regenerative ability. Among them, the troll lord was at the peak. But the boss was shaky in front of the destructive power of Pinnacle Kill, which completely ignored defense. Grid hurriedly withdrew from the monster that lost 90,000 health at once and scattered yellow blood.
“Ah, really.”
Grid knew that he shouldn’t give a troll a chance to act. However, the troll lord’s blood was highly acidic. Blood sprayed every time there was an injury, so Grid couldn’t easily link combos. He had to widen the distance.
Kudu! Kududuk!
The troll lord quickly recovered from Grid’s wounds. It sent Grid a provocative smile. It was like saying ‘you can never hurt me.’ Grid thought it was ridiculous.
“You aren’t a named boss.”
What were the four God Hands doing while Grid was fighting?
Shuuuuong!
“…!”
The troll lord’s eyes widened.
Flashing golden hands came out from a cave and gave a new weapon to Grid.
“This is called Item Combination.”
Kuoooooh-!
It was a blue shark-shaped greatsword with red lights scattered around it like cherry blossoms. It was the beautiful harmony of Iyarugt and Failure.
“Pagma’s Swordsmanship, Linked Kill Wave.”
Kwa kwa kwa kwa kwa kwa kwa kwa!
“Ki…! Kieeeeeek!”
So what if it was difficult to get close due to the acidic blood? He would attack from a distance. Grid laughed as the troll lord turned to grey ash. However, he couldn’t laugh for long. His skills were on cooldown and new monsters were gathering.
***
[You have entered the 60th island.]
[This is a save point. Would you like to register?]
[You have been registered. When you enter the Behen Archipelago later on, you will start from the 60th island.]
“Heok… Heok… Wow, I thought I was going to fall behind.”
Grid broke through the 59th island and sat on the ground. He wanted to Meditate to restore health and stamina, but it wasn’t easy to enter the state.
‘I can’t adapt to the new skills.’
The condition to activate Blacksmith’s Eyes was to watch the equipment for at least 3 seconds. Was this hard? Of course it was difficult during a battle. His field of view narrowed and he often missed the target’s movements, exposing a gap.
The problems didn’t end there.
‘The information of the items covers my vision.’
During a battle, the item information window seriously disturbed his view. It felt like the navigation screen was hidden while he was driving. Anyway, it seemed like he would take a long time to adapt.
‘I can gradually adapt.’
Grid looked at his immediate problem. The islands in the 60s. Would he be able to progress through here? The difficulty of the Behen Archipelago was amplified every 10 islands. The last island in the Behen Archipelago was the 66th island.
It was possible to infer that the difficulty of the islands from 60 onwards would be incomparably higher than before.
‘Originally, I wanted to clear this place before the National Competition.’
It seemed to be an impossible task. Grid sighed as he thought about it. Did it read his anxiety? The cooldown time of Assimilation ended and Braham’s soul woke up.
[Challenge it first.]
“Braham!”
Grid had increasingly started to rely on Braham. Grid welcomed Braham’s voice and asked.
“Do you mean I can win if I challenge the Behen Archi
pelago?”
Braham scoffed.
[You are too arrogant. I said that this is a playground made by Pagma. You haven’t reached Pagma’s full capacity yet and don’t have the ability to clear this place. I want you to challenge it to realize that you are still weak.]
“…I wondered about this before, but what do you mean by a playground that Pagma created?”
[Do you know about the original Behen Archipelago?]
“I heard from Sticks. It was a Hall of Fame that celebrated the achievements of legends and a training ground for current legends.”
[That’s right. It’s a shameful place for those who are hostile to legends.]
“Those who are hostile to legends?”
[Great demons. They saw an opportunity to destroy the Behen Archipelago, which connects legends. In order to prevent this, Pagma installed various gateways.]
“A space created to prevent the great demons…”
Grid suddenly felt some doubts.
“How did Pagma make this space?”
Pagma was a legendary blacksmith, not a god. He could install various devices, but it wasn’t possible to summon the monsters, reproduce past trials, or clone the contestants.
‘It might be different if he was a magician.’
Then Braham spoke meaningful words to Grid.
[It’s possible for a great demon.]
“What?”
Chapter 403
Chapter 403
[It’s possible for a great demon.]
“What?”
Pagma was a great demon? It was ridiculous.
‘Wait.’
Grid attempted to deny it when he suddenly stopped. He didn’t know enough about Pagma to judge, and Braham’s nature was also odd.
‘In fact, isn’t Braham a vampire, rather than a human?’
A legendary great magician was a demonkin, so it wouldn’t be strange if a legendary blacksmith was also one. But why?
‘Why isn’t it mentioned in the legends?’
Braham sensed Grid’s confusion and laughed.
[Aren’t you an idiot, to take my words at face value?]
Grid frowned.
“I have taken the intelligence elixirs, so why are you still seeing me as an idiot? No, what does that mean?”
[To put it more accurately, Pagma is a human who accepted the power of a great demon.]
“He accepted the power of a great demon?”
[Baal.]
“…!”
Grid was startled. Did he know the weight of the name Baal? No. It was because Grid felt Braham’s anger. The anger was deeply imprinted in Braham’s soul like an abyss and it slowly boiled up. Grid held Braham’s soul, so he was also angry.
[Pagma was Baal’s contractor.]
“…!”
Grid was once again surprised. Questions filled his eyes.
“What is Baal’s contractor?”
[…Hah.]
It was the first time Grid discovered that souls could also sigh.
***
The 1st great demon, Baal. As the peak of the 33 demons, he reigned as the master of hell. It was easy to call him the demon king. He was an absolute existence that even the dragons guarded against.
[He is more faithful to his instincts as a demon than anyone else. He is proud, destructive, and does anything for pleasure. Plantings seeds of chaos through contracts with humans is very entertaining for him.]
“Why did Pagma sign with such a bad demon?”
[Ironically, he had to borrow Baal’s strength to protect the Behen Archipelago.]
“Eh?”
The words were confusing. Pagma wanted to protect the Behen Archipelago from the great demons, so he borrowed the power of a great demon?
[It’s as you said. Baal likes taunting and deception.]
“So?”
[It is irrelevant to Baal whether the target being deceived is a human or a great demon like himself.]
“…”
The Grid in the past would’ve been frustrated without understanding to the end. But now it was different. He properly interpreted Braham’s remark using his developed thinking ability.
“Baal wanted to enjoy the entertainment of protecting the invasion of great demons with the power of a great demon, so he signed a contract with Pagma?”
[That’s right.]
In other words, Baal screwed over his own people. Grid couldn’t understand Baal. Braham laughed at his confusion.
[Don’t look at great demons with the prejudice. Don’t humans also betray and hurt their own people?]
“But isn’t Baal the master of hell? Isn’t he the king of the great demons? A king sacrificing his servants just for entertainment… I guess there are some.”
When he thought about it, there were many crazy people in the world. Grid was convinced and defined Baal as a psychopath great demon.
“Um… Yes, this is why the Behen Archipelago changed in this way.”
If so, there was another question. Why did Pagma leave the Behen Archipelago in this state? He protected the Behen Archipelago with a contract with a great demon, and then the Behen Archipelago eventually deteriorated and the original function was lost. If Pagma truly wanted to protect the Behen Archipelago, he would’ve returned it to its original state after the great demons were repelled.
But he didn’t…
‘Was there a chance that the great demons would invade again?’
Or maybe Pagma had no more power left.
Grid asked a question.
“What happened after Pagma contracted with a great demon to protect the Behen Archipelago? Did he die? Or is he still alive?”
[Why do you think he is still alive?]
“He contracted with a great demon, so wouldn’t his lifespan increase?”
[That’s a ridiculous notion. The reason why demons contract with humans is to basically take their life force and soul.]
“Isn’t something strange? Pagma lived for a long time, right? Didn’t you say that he lived for hundreds of years? Wasn’t it because of his contract with the great demon?”
[You are mistaken. Pagma made the contract with Baal 100 years ago, not 300 years.]
“…Ah!”
Grid belatedly recalled that Sticks mentioned the Behen Archipelago being fine 200 years ago. Then a new question arose.
“Does that mean that Pagma can live for hundreds of years, regardless of the contract with a great demon?”
What was Pagma’s identity?
“How can a human live that long?”
[…]
The silent Braham didn’t answer, anger filling him again. Grid’s spine became soaked with cold sweat before Braham finally broke the silence.
[The reason why Pagma could live for hundreds of years, despite being a human, was because my lifespan was taken.]
“What?”
His words didn’t make sense. Obviously, Braham was a vampire. Unlike humans, they had a life expectancy close to infinity so there might be a way to transfer his lifespan to someone. It wasn’t strange for a non-human and legendary great magician to do something that was beyond common sense.
However, Braham said that his lifespan was ‘taken.’
“Does that mean you didn’t give it willingly? Weren’t you and Pagma close friends?”
[What if I was deceived and betrayed?]
“…”
He wanted to hear more of the story. Grid was curious, but Braham didn’t want to talk about it anymore.
[Well, if you want to know more about Pagma, reach the last island. Move to the 61st island. Then after experiencing the difference between your skills and Pagma’s, see if you can challenge it again.]
What on earth was on the islands in the 60s that Braham was so sure he couldn’t overcome? Braham spoke to the troubled Grid.
[It is your duty to break through this place, so don’t think about giving up.]
“I won’t give up, even if you hadn’t said this. I’m just a little worried ab
out how dangerous it can be.”
[What do you have to fear with an immortal body? As I said repeatedly, challenge it once.]
It was as Braham said. The Behen Archipelago was deeply related to Pagma, and there was a high possibility that a quest related to Pagma’s Descendant was hidden here. Grid felt a need to investigate the islands.
“Okay.”
Grid moved towards the gate of the 61st island with determination. Then Sticks, who had been watching silently, urgently called out.
“Braham is a demonkin. You must not be misled by him.”
“I know that elves and demonkin have a bad relationship. But shouldn’t you cool your head? Aren’t you the one who is the most desperate for the Behen Archipelago to be purified? I can also get rewards, so I have to move forward.”
“…”
That’s right. He wasn’t someone who would be dazzled by Braham’s existence.
The enlightened Sticks followed behind Grid.
***
[You have entered the 61st island.]
Kuooooh!
An island covered with fire. The lush forest was burning and the river running through it was an ominous red.
[The temperature is very high.]
[You are affected by the heat.]
[Health and stamina are being continuously consumed.]
[You have resisted.]
‘The legendary passive is a scam.’
Satisfy fully implemented the five senses. Users naturally felt the heat and cold, causing climate to be a disaster to them sometimes. However, Grid didn’t feel it due to being Pagma’s Descendant. He was able to maintain a proper body temperature and play the game in a much more pleasant environment than others.
“Pant pant…”
Unlike Grid’s refreshed face, Sticks standing behind him was sweating like a dog. It wouldn’t be strange if he collapsed immediately.
“If you’re a sage, shouldn’t you have a countermeasure for the heat?”
“There are a few ways, but I don’t have the materials…”
“Can’t you use magic?”
“It’s hard to use mana because of my illness…”
“…”
Please don’t die. Grid desired Sticks as a tutor for Lord, so he prayed while moving forward.
‘There are no monsters or missions.’
The shape itself seemed different from the other islands.
“…”
Grid crossed the blazing island, looking to the left and right. His attitude was more cautious than ever. He was extremely concentrated as he prepared for any sudden attacks. However, it was meaningless in front of an strong enemy that couldn’t be defended against.
