Chapter 8

“Hmm...”

Woojin stopped outside the boss room to think.

[Time Since Dungeon Entry - 3 minutes 32 seconds]

Amazingly, he had killed fewer than ten goblins on his way here.

[“Grrk... Grrk...”]

Only the likes of goblin champions had even attacked him, costing him a little time. The rest simply hid like that, not daring to come at him.

“The Dungeon Board does let you hide your name... but would an utterly ridiculous record cause trouble?”

The players might not find out right away, but at the very least, he would not escape an investigation by the administrators.

“Well...”

But a moment later, he laughed. He was worrying about something that did not need worrying about.

“Whether I clear it in five minutes or ten, there's no avoiding attention.”

Why? Because he was alone.

Taking first place with a solo record? That should have been impossible in the first place.

“If they're going to suspect me anyway...”

He might as well leave a lasting impression rather than a half-hearted one.

CRASH!!

Woojin violently kicked the branches blocking the entrance.

[Entering the boss room.]

[“Human...”]

An old goblin sat on a crude chair made of wood and stone inside the musty, dilapidated room.

[“How dare you... This is...”]

SLICE.

“You talk too much.”

Closing the distance in an instant, Woojin drove his sword into the Goblin Lord's shoulder.

[“Krr... KRAAAAGH!!”]

The Lord screamed as if in agony. But the more it screamed, the deeper Woojin's sword sank into its body.

“A boss really is different.”

Woojin pulled out his sword and addressed the Lord.

“The others died in one hit, so I never got to give this a proper try.”

[“Krr... Grrk...!! You...! You bas...tard!!!”]

Dragon Heaven, First Gate - Severance

BZZT...! BZZZT...!!

Blue sparks sprang from Woojin's blade.

He put a little strength into his sword.

SLICE.

The Lord's body was sliced through as smoothly as tofu.

[“... Grrk?”]

It stared blankly at Woojin, as though it had not even realized it was dead.

[You have defeated the Goblin Lord.]

Like a death sentence, the system announced the death on behalf of the creature, whose eyes had yet to close.

[Congratulations.]

[You have leveled up.]

▶ 10 → 12

As the Goblin Lord turned to ash, a wooden chest appeared where it had stood.

It was a reward chest.

'It's a beginner dungeon, so there probably won't be anything too impressive inside...'

Just as he reached for the chest, notifications rang in his ears.

[Time Since Dungeon Entry - 5 minutes 12 seconds]

[The Dungeon Board record is being updated.]

[Would you like to register your name?]

Woojin shook his head.

There was no helping the administrators finding out, but the players were another matter.

'My stats are still only on par with someone in their thirties in level. If my name gets out, the ten great clans might get in my way.'

For a moment, he considered getting recruited by one of the ten great clans instead, but shook his head.

'The skill and the runes both came from the other world. My stats are beyond anything you can reach through normal play.'

Seeking their protection to avoid their interference would only arouse more suspicion.

[You will be listed on the Dungeon Board as ??? instead of your name.]

[The Dungeon Board record has been updated.]

[1st: ??? (1 member) 5 minutes 12 seconds]

[2nd: Kerga's Party (4 members) 15 minutes 37 seconds]

[3rd: Tramel's Party (4 members) 16 minutes 21 seconds]

“Good.”

Woojin chuckled as he looked at the records on the Dungeon Board.

[Congratulations.]

[You have reached first place on the Dungeon Board.]

[You have acquired the title - Quick Hunter.]

[Your updated Dungeon Board time is under 10 minutes.]

[Everyone will be amazed by your remarkable hunt.]

[The title's effects are changing.]

[Quick Hunter is changing to Agile Hunter.]

[The number of participants has been confirmed as 1.]

[Your hunt has reached the realm of the divine.]

[This unprecedented record will become known throughout the continent.]

[The title's effects are changing.]

[Fleet-Footed Hunter → Hunter of Swiftness.]

“Oh...?”

As the title took effect, green light enveloped Woojin's body before scattering.

[Hunter of Swiftness]

▶ Grade: Heroic

▶ Description: A title awarded for achieving first place solo in the time attack for the field dungeon - Goblin Nest.

▶ All Stats +5

▶ Trait: Swiftness - Physical Speed +10%

▶ Trait: Presence - Monsters take a little longer to notice your presence.

▶ Skill: Acceleration - Doubles the speed of all skills for 1 second.

▶ The title's effects increase each time you set a new ranking in a dungeon with a time attack.

(However, if someone surpasses the title holder's ranking, the current effects will decrease, and the title may disappear.)

“Ha...”

The title's effects left Woojin speechless.

“The effects increase every time I get onto a Dungeon Board...”

It was already incredible. What would happen if he smashed all the other records too?

“Status window.”

Name: Khan

Class: Warrior

Level: 12

Total Points: 230

Remaining Points: 10

Traits: Adventurer, Solitude, Dragon Slaying, Indomitable, Swiftness, Presence

Title: [Hunter of Swiftness]

'Even Conviction and Tactics went up, and runes can't raise those.'

After checking his stats, Woojin nodded with a satisfied expression.

Several years had passed since [Evil Tale] launched, yet one attribute remained poorly understood.

[Conviction].

It clearly existed in the status window, but debate still raged over its effects and how to raise it.

'Some say you need high Conviction to become a Saintess or Paladin in a religious order for your second class advancement...'

There were many theories: that it could be raised through holy objects and relics found in dungeons, or that players needed to hunt undead monsters.

But no one had reached level 99, when the second class advancement became available, so no one knew whether [Conviction] really was an advancement requirement.

'It's strange, though. Why do they insist that an attribute called Conviction has to be holy-related?'

At some point, posts in the in-game community had begun treating [Conviction] as an essential attribute for priests.

As a result, the holy objects and relics occasionally dropped in dungeons were trading at exorbitant prices.

'You have to meet certain conditions or accept a quest before you can absorb holy power from holy objects and relics to raise Conviction...'

That was the accepted theory. The problem was that not one person had proved they had absorbed holy power from a holy object or relic.

'People are just being blinded by rumors that the [Glory Alliance], one of the ten great clans and the one with the most priests, is still collecting holy objects and relics.'

It was the blind faith of the weak: surely what someone stronger than them was doing must be right.

'The Glory Alliance hasn't said a word about the Conviction attribute.'

Even if they were collecting those items for an entirely different reason, most people would be unable to simply disregard their actions.

'Whether they intend it or not, the actions of the ten great clans are bound to sway people's minds.'

Unless someone appeared who could overwhelm them, [Evil Tale] might never escape the grasp of the ten great clans.

CLICK.

Woojin opened the lid of the reward chest.

[Would you like to inspect the reward chest?]

All he had done was clear a dungeon inhabited by goblins, creatures considered the weakest of the weak.

But it was the beginning that heralded the arrival of that overwhelming figure.

* * *

▶ Magic-Infused Goblin Hide × 10

▶ Crude Potion × 1

▶ Contaminated Mana Potion × 1

▶ 30 Silver

▶ Goblin Lord's Swollen Mana Stone

Opening reward chests was always enjoyable, but as befitted a low-level dungeon, the rewards were mostly nothing special.

One item, however, caught Woojin's eye.

'A Goblin Lord's mana stone?'

Mana stones were quite expensive in [Evil Tale]. Stones with a specific name attached fetched even more than ordinary ones.

'Still... it's just a Goblin Lord. How much could it be worth?'

Even the beginner areas were teeming with magical monsters such as nagas and nymphs, whose stats far surpassed those of goblins.

What intrigued him was the modifier attached to “mana stone.”

'Was there something like this?'

Name: Goblin Lord's Swollen Mana Stone

Grade: Rare

Description: A variant mana stone occasionally formed when a magical monster is killed just before casting a spell.

▶ Contains more than twice the magical power of an ordinary Goblin Lord's mana stone.

▶ Please handle with care.

▶ The swollen magical power can cause a violent explosion with even slight physical force.

As his puzzlement suggested, it was a mana stone he had never seen before.

▶ When used, the [Swollen] effect increases your Magical Power stat to 1.5 times its current value.

“...”

Reading the mana stone's description, Woojin rubbed his eyes without realizing it.

'... One and a half times?'

Absorbing a mana stone increased magical power by a set amount.

But that increase was a flat number, never a multiplier.

'If mages find out about this... they'll go crazy.'

An item that multiplied magical power would be of immeasurable value to players who possessed it.

'Why didn't I know something like this existed?'

Woojin thought for a moment, then chuckled.

It would have been impossible in the first place.

Dungeons had level limits.

Players could still enter after exceeding the limit, but monsters they killed would not drop items.

'A high-level player could easily one-shot the Goblin Lord, but the level limit would keep them from getting any rewards.'

Even wearing the strongest equipment in existence, a level 15 player could not currently kill the Goblin Lord in one hit.

'They probably added it to the server in advance for the next update.'

The question was when that update would arrive.

This might be an item that would not become obtainable for months, or even years.

'This won't be the only one.'

“Every last remaining dungeon...”

Woojin's eyes gleamed as he looked at the Dungeon Board displaying his record.

“I'm going to smash them all.”