abcnovels
Chapter 160
Chapter 160
Chapter 160
‘Damn it, why isn’t he answering?’
Lee Hwa-rang hadn’t had a single day of peace since he was suspended.
He had worked so hard to get where he was, and now it looked like he was going to lose it all because of a painful one-year penalty.
He hurriedly logged into World Com.
He couldn’t get in touch with Park Jin-Hyeok either, so World Com was his only source of information.
[This is mosaic-ed so you can’t tell, right?]
-(Photo)
It’s Park Jin-Hyeok lol
?No way
?Why would Park Jin-Hyeok from Myth be in the Sanctuary of Warriors? Get real lol
?Just because it’s mosaic-ed doesn’t mean you can make up anything.
?Haven’t there been cases where people got screwed for making stuff up like this?
?(Original poster) Bullshit. A lot of people here saw him.
?I’m a witness here~ I saw him too lol
Lee Hwa-rang’s face hardened.
“That bastard, did he kneel?”
The mere fact that his friend had knelt before that damn bastard made his blood boil.
[Hey, are you busy?]
Just then, a text message came from Park Jin-Hyeok.
Lee Hwa-rang quickly called him.
The phone connected before the second ring.
“Hey! What’s going on?”
[Did you see World Com?]
“Yeah. Damn it, why are you kneeling before that bastard?”
[You were whining so much, so I went and knelt a bit. To ask him to lift your suspension.]
“…Ha, this is driving me crazy. So what was the result?”
[He’ll reduce it by three months.]
“Only three months…?”
It was absurd.
If he was going to reduce it, he should have done it properly.
[Anyway, my role is over. From now on, you’re on your own.]
“Wait a minute! There’s no other way to reduce it further?”
[No. I’m hanging up.]
“What…? Hey!”
The call ended.
Lee Hwa-rang hurriedly called him again, but the call wouldn’t connect.
‘What the hell is going on…?’
He wasn’t the type to hang up unilaterally like this.
Lee Hwa-rang had a bad feeling and started looking through the World Com posts again.
Just then, a new post was uploaded.
[I’m leaving Myth.]
-I’m Park Jin-Hyeok, a level 339 Lord Knight.
-I intend to leave Myth from this moment on.
-I was once an executive, but due to certain events, I was demoted to the bottom ranks and have lost all affection for the guild.
Lee Hwa-rang only read three lines before hurriedly calling Park Jin-Hyeok.
If he was posting on World Com, it meant he was fiddling with his smartphone.
“Damn it! Why are you ignoring my calls!”
It was enough to drive him crazy.
* * *
[Weekly Quest]
-Reward: Experience Points
-Description: Search a designated area and report back.
As it was a repeatable quest, the reward was experience points.
Since leveling up was so difficult, users earned additional experience points through daily, weekly, and monthly quests.
The quest Jeong-hoon accepted was a search quest.
He could earn experience points by simply searching the forest outside the city and returning to report.
“Just think of it as a simple walk in the park.”
“Yes.”
Jeong-hoon accepted the quest and went outside.
[Whisper/Minzi -> Hoon: Breaking news! Park Jin-Hyeok is leaving Myth!]
A whisper from Yeo Min-ji arrived just in time.
‘Looks like it’s started.’
The advice Jeong-hoon had given him.
It was to leave Myth and join Ho-Yeong.
He didn’t think Sa Jae-Hyeok would let him go easily, but Sa Jae-Hyeok wouldn’t want the incident with Lee Hwa-rang to surface, so he would eventually have to let him go.
‘If it’s revealed that Myth attacked Ho-Yeong, they’ll be criticized for breaking the unspoken rule.’
If Sa Jae-Hyeok had any sense, he wouldn’t risk Park Jin-Hyeok’s life.
Park Jin-Hyeok was exceptionally talented as a warrior, but he was far inferior to Sa Jae-Hyeok and was often overshadowed by the presence of Lee Hwa-rang.
To Sa Jae-Hyeok, Park Jin-Hyeok was literally a chicken rib.
Given his personality, it was highly likely that he would choose to abandon Park Jin-Hyeok.
‘If he joins Ho-Yeong and performs well, it’ll really piss him off.’
That was Jeong-hoon’s aim.
Cutting off Lee Hwa-rang’s limbs and messing with Sa Jae-Hyeok once again – wasn’t this killing two birds with one stone?
[Whisper/Hoon -> Minzi: Park Jin-Hyeok will probably come to Ho-Yeong soon.]
[Whisper/Minzi -> Hoon: Huh? Why would he come to Ho-Yeong?;;]
[Whisper/Hoon -> Minzi: To join the guild.]
[Whisper/Minzi -> Hoon: Whoa… You’re not suggesting we accept Park Jin-Hyeok into Ho-Yeong, are you? We’re not a trash disposal service?]
[Whisper/Hoon -> Minzi: Haha, you don’t have to accept him.]
[Whisper/Minzi -> Hoon: Oh, haha, is that so?]
[Whisper/Hoon -> Minzi: Yes. This is just to mess with Sa Jae-Hyeok and Lee Hwa-rang one more time.]
[Whisper/Minzi -> Hoon: Hmm… So I can personally interview him and reject him if I don’t think he’s a good fit, right?]
[Whisper/Hoon -> Minzi: Yes.]
[Whisper/Minzi -> Hoon: Okay, got it.]
Jeong-hoon closed the whisper window.
[So where are you going for the search?]
Jeong-hoon was heading towards the border of the City of Warriors.
If he crossed over a little from here, he would enter the City of Archers, and if he didn’t have entry permission, he would be considered an intruder and showered with arrows.
The reason he was searching this dangerous place was simple.
‘An undiscovered dungeon.’
An undiscovered dungeon that hadn’t been revealed yet.
Jeong-hoon had discovered several undiscovered dungeons since his return.
However, the undiscovered dungeon he was about to find this time was on a different level.
‘Whether I’m the first to discover it or not, as long as I enter and clear it, I’ll receive a massive reward.’
The problem was that this dungeon wouldn’t be discovered until much later, after the realization of reality had taken place.
By then, many users would have already lost their lives.
If this dungeon were to open sooner, wouldn’t more users be able to benefit?
‘The reason I’m revealing this dungeon to the users.’
He was certain that if this dungeon surfaced, countless users would flock to it.
However, opening this dungeon required a specific condition.
“Oh? What’s this, why are you here?”
As he reached the border, he ran into Liandor, who happened to be taking a walk.
“I have some business to attend to.”
“Is that so? This is a rather dangerous place… Well, I suppose there’s no need to worry with you around.”
“Why are you here, Liandor?”
“I had nothing to do, so I was just wandering around.”
“Is that so?”
Jeong-hoon looked beyond the border.
He could sense the presence of several archers around the bushes.
Originally, until a few years ago, this place belonged to the City of Archers, so they were always looking for an opportunity to reclaim it.
The reason Liandor had built a cabin and was living here was to keep an eye on them.
The moment they invaded this place, the war would start again.
“You sense it too, don’t you?”
“Yes.”
The warriors belonging to the City of Warriors were also keeping a close watch on them from around here.
“It’s alright. Those cowards won’t dare to invade.”
“Is that so?”
Liandor laughed heartily.
“Look over there.”
He pointed to the ground.
Not far away, a red line was drawn.
“Is that to detect intruders?”
“No, if an intruder crosses that line, a debuff will automatically activate and tear them to shreds.”
“I see.”
“Heh, I don’t like it, but the head of the City of Mages did us a favor.”
The reason the City of Archers couldn’t invade recklessly.
It was because the City of Mages was involved.
The ruler of the City of Mages sided with the City of Warriors.
Unlike Liandor, the mage who still hadn’t stepped down from his position as ruler.
It was because Glinsmann had a very close relationship with Liandor.
It was what they called an alliance.
Because of that, the City of Archers also hastily formed an alliance, and that was with the City of Thieves.
It was because they also had a very bad relationship with the Warriors.
‘The other cities have the mindset that as long as no one crosses into their territory, it’s fine.’
The remaining cities hadn’t formed alliances.
Because they wouldn’t act unless their territory was threatened.
“Well then, I’ll open the dungeon.”
“Open a dungeon? Here?”
Liandor tilted his head in confusion.
“Yes.”
Jeong-hoon grinned.
* * *
City of Warriors.
The bandits were diligently weeding the fields of the tenant farmers.
“Today’s workload is 7,000 pyeong.”
7,000 pyeong.
Kukri wanted to hit the heads of the tenant farmers who were resting, pretending to supervise with their shovels.
How much longer did they have to do this tedious work?
‘Should I just kill all these bastards and run away?’
But the boss was too scary.
It felt like Leas would chase him down and kill him no matter where he ran.
So attacking the tenant farmers was out of the question.
Just then.
“Hey! Kukri!”
He heard a voice calling him from a distance.
It was a man he had never seen before in his life.
‘Hah, who’s that bastard?’
Judging by his appearance, he wasn’t a tenant farmer, but some random guy who wandered in, right?
Alright.
He had come at the right time.
Kukri would take out his frustration on this guy.
Kukri strode towards him with his shovel.
“Did you call me?”
Just say one more word.
He would smash this guy’s head in with his shovel.
He gripped the shovel tightly.
“The boss is looking for you. Your boss.”
“The boss…?”
At the mention of the boss, his grip on the shovel loosened.
“Yes. And don’t glare at me like that. I’m the boss’s most trusted subordinate.”
“…”
“Oh, you’re not answering? Should I tell the boss?”
“N-no, sir.”
“Hurry up and follow me. I’ll let the tenant farmers know.”
Michael said so and asked the tenant farmers for permission.
“Of course! Take him away as long as you need!”
They couldn’t interfere with the benefactor’s work.
The tenant farmers readily agreed.
* * *
Michael returned after a long time.
“Boss! I brought them!”
Behind him stood Kukri and five other bandits.
“Well done. Go in and rest.”
“Wait a moment!”
As Jeong-hoon was about to send Michael away, Michael shouted urgently.
Jeong-hoon tilted his head in confusion.
“Why?”
“It’s been so long since I’ve been outside… Is there anything else I can help with?”
Since the 2nd Cataclysm, he hadn’t been summoned at all, and it was the first time in a long while that he had been called upon.
He didn’t want to go back after completing just one command.
“Is that so? Then do one more thing before you go.”
Jeong-hoon readily agreed to his request.
“Thank you! You bastards! Stand up straight!”
As soon as Jeong-hoon gave his permission, Michael, as if he had been waiting for it, pointed out the posture of the bandits, including Kukri.
“Y-yes, sir!”
Kukri, with his discipline tightened, stood in line with the other bandits.
“Boss! What should we do then?”
“Here, take this.”
What Jeong-hoon handed over was a torch.
The top of the wood was wrapped in cloth and soaked in oil, ready to burst into flames at any moment.
“Should we each take one?”
Jeong-hoon had prepared these torches in advance.
“Yes.”
Jeong-hoon had Michael, Kukri, and the five bandits each take a torch.
Next, he instructed them to disperse, one by one, to designated locations and wait.
They stood at the positions Jeong-hoon had assigned and lit their torches.
The torches began to blaze brightly.
“…So, if you place them separately like that, the dungeon will open?”
Liandor had a puzzled look on his face.
“You’ll see.”
Jeong-hoon moved and stopped at one spot.
The weeds on the ground grew as high as Jeong-hoon’s waist.
‘If I remember correctly, it’s here.’
It was the chronicler, Damian Loud, who had discovered this undiscovered dungeon.
While recording, he belatedly realized that this place was unusual.
At that time, Jeong-hoon had also been watching from the side, so he knew how to open it.
Jeong-hoon cut down the weeds with Leviathan and then dug into the ground with a shovel.
Clang!
Even though he hadn’t dug much, he felt something blocking his way.
Jeong-hoon removed the shovel and cleared the dirt with his hand.
Beneath it, a hexagonal plate appeared.
An old metal plate densely engraved with hieroglyphs.
Hieroglyphs that couldn’t be deciphered in New World.
Nevertheless, Damian Loud had succeeded in deciphering these difficult hieroglyphs.
‘Block the hexagonal passage with the energy of fire, and breathe life into it with divine power.’
The energy of fire meant flames.
As instructed, he surrounded the edges of the hexagon with torches and infused divine power into the metal plate.
Jeong-hoon reached out and channeled divine power into the metal plate.
Then, the old metal plate began to shine brightly.
Woooong-
The metal plate vibrated and then melted into a liquid, seeping into the ground.
Jeong-hoon stepped back.
Soon after, the ground glowed bluish, and a portal formed.
A dungeon that was originally supposed to appear much later.
That dungeon had just appeared.
[You have discovered an undiscovered dungeon! You will be rewarded with 1,000 achievement points.]
“Oh my…”
Liandor, who was watching from a distance, was astonished.
———