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Chapter 211: One Question, One Answer (1)

Chapter 211: One Question, One Answer (1)

Jinhyuk pressed his temples with his index fingers, broodingly.

Was this the reason he had put on the air of a knight and poured out such grave words? Indeed…

‘As I expected.’

This turn of events had been set in stone from the moment Penheimer first made contact.

In fact, he had been worried about how to approach this had they not brought it up themselves. It was fortunate they had initiated the conversation.

‘But, the more serious I look, the better the payoff should be.’

Feigning difficulty and inconvenience. Playing hard to get would surely make Penheimer feel even more burdened to make his request.

And as expected, his prediction hit the mark.

Feeling perhaps that his ask was a difficult one, Penheimer quickly added something.

“Of course, I am not asking this without offering something in return. Naturally, for your troubles, you are entitled to an appropriate reward. If you agree to this task, you may choose anything you desire from the imperial treasury. His Majesty the Emperor has already consented, so please, feel no burden.”

“……!”

Jinhyuk’s pupils shook like an earthquake.

Hmm.

He had thought they would offer something significant, but he never expected them to be this generous.

It seems he had gravely underestimated how much Penheimer wished to protect the Emperor.

After all, an opportunity from the treasury of one of the wealthiest empires from the upper echelons cannot be missed.

“Ahem! If it’s for the empire and Lord Penheimer, no matter how difficult it is, I will surely illustrate my capabilities. You do know that it’s not because I am tempted by the treasure, right?”

“……Yes, of course.”

When Penheimer responded with an uncertain tone,

“……!”

“Oomph….”

Elise and Jinhyuk, who were eating, sensed something caught their attention.

Footsteps approaching towards the shantytown.

Not those of ordinary people.

The magical power emanating from their bodies was something that no ordinary person could possess.

The murmuring voices from the shantytown had all but vanished.

“It seems we’ve stepped on the tail of some pests.”

A beat too late, Penheimer also realized the anomaly.

“There are quite a few… Could it be the nobles who sent them?”

“I’m not sure. This place is known to only a very few within the empire, how could they possibly…”

Penheimer shook his head, indicating he was clueless.

If it wasn’t the nobles, then it probably indicated another party.

Jinhyuk concentrated his senses, and started to discern the number of the incoming foes.

Twenty-seven in total.

An unpleasant magical force seeped from outside the door.

As it drew near, it was clear that the ones outside were not ordinary foes.

The energy piercing the mind’s eye was distinctly unsettling, inducing a sense of dread.

‘It looks like we have no choice but to fight.’

Aside from the single door, there was no clear exit from the confined space.

“They’re coming.”

As soon as Elise finished saying those words:

Boom!

The door shattered into pieces.

＊＊＊

What appeared was not human.

“Keeeehh…”

“Ghhhaaaack!”

Or more accurately, it was better to describe them as former humans now turned into something else, dribbling black saliva.

Clang!

From the windows, multiple dead creatures began to force their way through.

Their attempts at struggling inside were so grotesque, it was downright macabre.

“I’ll take the left.”

Penheimer drew his sword.

“The right’s mine.”

Elise gathered droplets of blood to form a sharp skewer.

And as the creatures came within range:

Slash!

Boom-boom-boom-boom-boom!

A bluish aura blade and the crimson skewer sliced through the corpses.

The undead ripped apart like pieces of paper.

Each strike carried an indescribable magic, and their fragile flesh and bone structures stood no chance against it.

Yes.

That was the expected outcome.

“Kiiiieh…!”

“Keeehaaack!”

But the mutilated undead didn’t fall.

The torn flesh and bone instantaneously reattached, even increasing in size, becoming more grotesque than before.

New black spikes grew from the wounds, as an extra touch.

Ssshhhk!

A greenish liquid spewed from the spikes, scorching whatever it touched upon the walls with a hiss.

“This, this monstrous thing….”

“Dammit. It’s not a good match for us.”

Penheimer and Elise expressed disgust, narrowly avoiding the attack.

Then, at that moment.

Thwack!

A white flash erupted from the bow made from the tooth of Pentagris.

The lead undead had a hole now where its forehead used to be.

Jinhyuk swiftly nocked another arrow.

Thwack!

“Keeeaaack!”

A second foe found its head similarly ventilated.

It was a clean, accurate strike, each movement with the bow bringing forth an elegance.

However.

Gurgle-gurgle!

Cackle-cackle!

Even with their heads destroyed, the undead horrifically twisted their forms and rose again.

Aura blades and Elise’s powers may not be the most efficient against the undead, but…

Could the arrows, buffed by ‘Blessing of the Stars’ and ‘Daylight,’ really be ineffective?

This was an unprecedented occurrence for Jinhyuk.

“Interesting.”

The corners of Jinhyuk’s mouth curved upward.

How long had it been since he faced an unknown enemy?

Crrrrk.

Jinhyuk smoothly rearranged his magical power.

[Lv2 ‘Heavenly Net, Earthly Trap (天羅地網)’ activates!]

Transparent waves extended from him to the enemies surrounding him.

‘Fifteen in front, six on each side, spread out.’

After pinpointing the number and positions of his assailants through Heavenly Net, Earthly Trap.

[Lv11 ‘Glacial Sculpture (氷河造形)’ activates!]

The area crowd-control effect of Glacial Sculpture ensnared their legs.

Frost rapidly formed over the floor, binding the undead’s feet to the ground.

The finishing blow was, much like at Bairodom, through the fusion of multiple skills into a new one.

[Unique ability ‘Mandala (曼茶羅)’ and unique ability ‘Thousand Poisons (千毒)’, skill ‘Giant’s Grasp,’ begin fusion!]

Wooooom!

A blinding light burst forth.

A rare trinity of skills were fusing together.

While it placed a great strain on his body, against such abnormal creatures he had to resort to abnormal methods.

[Fusion successful!]

[You have acquired the unique ability ‘Titan’s Strike!’]

[The fused ability will be stored in ‘World’s Memory!’]

Continuous alerts cascaded before him. And at that moment, centered around Jinhyuk’s fist, a white vortex emerged.

The rapidly spinning magical power gathered to a singularity.

And when the rotation reached its apex:

‘Now!’

A tempest unimaginable in its ferocity shot forth in a straight line.

Boom-boom-boom-boom-boom!

A blinding flash obliterated everything in its path.

If a fist is intended to destroy.

Titan’s Strike was meant to punish.

An indiscriminate sentence devoid of mercy.

Undead with their upper bodies obliterated crumbled where they stood.

“Phew….”

Jinhyuk regained control of his breathing.

‘Securing a barrier to minimize collateral damage while also reducing noise isn’t easy.’

The sheer amount of magical power consumed in an instant was immense, the pressure threatening to crumble muscles and scorch blood vessels.

However.

“You’re kidding, right?”

The undead, despite taking the full force of the strike, did not stop.

They twisted their bodies grotesquely, and started to rise again.

Jinhyuk swallowed his saliva dryly.

……This is definitely not the work of the nobles.

Their propensity to vehemently loathe sorcery branded as heretical wouldn’t permit such an act.

Moreover, the level of monstrosity they fielded was beyond the means of those nobles.

Eliminating the most likely suspect, the next probable candidate climbed up the list.

They had the scale of power and resources to dabble in such sorcery without hesitation.

And at the same time.

‘They harbor strong hostility towards me.’

There could be only one such group.

“The Mana Association.”

Jinhyuk spoke the name slowly.

As he did, the movement of the undead stopped as if by a spell.

Step.

A Western man with a notably sly smile stepped out from among the undead.

“Ha ha. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Player Kang Jinhyuk. Initially, I intended to wear you down a bit more before showing up, but I suppose my timing has gone astray thanks to your performance.”

“Do you know me?”

“How could I not? The one who fed us misinformation about the Unknown, who led Chun Yoo Sung here. Because of you, I ended up spending an entire day trying to find his apartment to confront him.”

“Ah….”

Recalling the incident, Jinhyuk remembered relaying that information in the psychiatric ward to Heosenbelt, who bore the title Lancelot.

He also remembered how Chun Yoo Sung’s ordinary day off was interrupted by his apartment being half-destroyed, and how he had nearly drawn his sword in rage.

“So, does that mean you’re also a member of what, that Round Table or something?”

“Yes. You can simply call me Gawain.”

Gawain, huh…

As always, they had quite the penchant for dramatic names, not unlike that of an adolescent fantasy. But, right now, his name was irrelevant.

The important question was why he had come here.

“It seems you’ve brought quite a peculiar toy. But the fact you’re not attacking right away suggests you have something else in mind?”

Despite having brought such unnervingly resilient undead, Gawain himself was not actively engaging in an assault.

He was only tightening the noose, without going further than intimidation.

“Just for the sake of intimidation?”

“As expected, you catch on quickly. The truth is, I have a proposition for Player Kang Jinhyuk.”

“I hope it’s not some nonsense about bowing down to the Mana Association. Like I said before, I’d rather die than share a ship with those I despise.”

“No, it’s not that. We both are well aware that, even if we joined hands, the end result would be daggers at each other’s throats, isn’t it so obvious?”

Water and oil; they could never truly mix.

The ending of this story was predetermined.

Aware of this, Gawain cut through the pretenses and got down to the point of the matter.

“Then what is your proposition?”

“An exchange of information. You may ask me anything that piques your curiosity, and likewise, I shall inquire about my own curiosities.”

This was quite the intriguing offer.

There were a few points about the Mana Association that he was curious about, and if he could inquire directly, it would be beneficial to fill in the blanks.

‘Perhaps I should play along to buy some time.’

During their conversation, Jinhyuk noticed Penheimer doing something on the floor.

Though it was a shabby house, if it was called a safehouse, it meant they had some contingency prepared.

“How can we be sure that neither of us will lie in response to the questions?”

“You need not worry about that. My unique ability ensures that we cannot break the trust.”

[Gawain activates his unique ability ‘Scales of Trust’!]

[Both parties will take turns asking each other questions, and are bound to respond truthfully to those questions.]

[Silence entails surrendering information of equivalent value to the question.]

[Those who breach this will face the judgment of the scales.]

Suddenly, a pair of large bronze scales materialized beneath Jinhyuk and Gawain, with sharp, saw-like blades visible.

According to the system messages, should they lie, it would surely lead to a ghastly event.

“It seems trust is secured then.”

“May I ask the first question, if that’s all right?”

“Go ahead.”

He preferred defense to offense in this case. Using the slight details gathered during their conversation would help direct more piercing inquiries.

“Well, then…”

Gawain slowly began to speak.

And the first question that followed…

…was entirely unexpected and took Jinhyuk completely off guard.