A moment of silence ensued. Sargas, who had been staring at Kim Shimun without a word, “Hah.” let out a short, hollow laugh.
“You must have really underestimated me.”
He spoke with a deeply displeased expression.
“Repeating the same attack would be dodged by anyone who isn’t a fool. Do I look that foolish to you?”
A martial artist wounded in his pride. Faced with such an attitude, Shimun scoffed.
“I didn’t see it that way. Sargas, you’re more cunning than I thought.”
“What did you say?”
“And about underestimating… wasn’t I the one being underestimated?”
Sargas’s eyes twitched at Kim Shimun’s words but did nothing more.
“You dodged by preemptively turning your body. Did you really think I wouldn’t notice?”
“……”
Kim Shimun’s words left Sargas speechless. Finally, “Fine. That wasn’t like me. I’ll admit it.”
Sargas nodded slowly. As if recalling something, he looked down at his right fist, the one that first clashed with Kim Shimun.
“I must have been wary without realizing it.”
His straightforward nature matched his appearance.
“Maybe… I acknowledged you as my worthy opponent.”
Sargas openly admitted. At the same time,
『The five constellations observing the situation look at Sargas with somewhat surprised eyes.』
『The mission conditions have changed.』
A message indicated that the mission had changed. Kim Shimun immediately checked the updated mission details.
『Mission』
Sargas is a dragonkin who is spoken of even among the constellations. Due to his recognition, the five higher-ranking constellations have changed their minds.
Defeat ‘Undefeated Sargas’.
Reward: Achievement Points 10,000
The mission, which originally only required surviving Sargas, now stated, ‘Defeat Sargas’?
Victory over Sargas was explicitly required. Perhaps it was due to Sargas’s unexpected acknowledgment?
Or maybe because the condition had changed from survival to victory.
‘The reward has doubled as well.’
The achievement points had increased from 5,000 to 10,000.
‘Dayna’s quest also gives 10,000 achievement points. If I clear both, I’ll get a total of 20,000 points.’
Kim Shimun had been considering enhancing the World Tree’s seed to increase his growth buff.
Additionally, “I was planning to go all out and acknowledge you, Sargas. This couldn’t have come at a better time.”
Ignoring strength, the ability to see the future was a broken power. Thanks to that, Shimun had intended to exert all his strength. And now, with the added benefit of so many achievement points,
“I can go all out.”
Snap.
With a relieved smile, Shimun snapped his fingers. Above his hand,
Swaaaa.
A semi-transparent crown made of death energy, Kynee, floated.
Swiftly flicking his finger again,
Creak!
A thunderous sound, which should not have been audible underground, echoed through the transport room.
* * *
At the topmost level of the Black Forge, commonly referred to as the research wing, aside from Sargas’s office, it was the tallest structure within the Black Forge.
The reason was simple.
“Hehe! The bang bang is really huge!”
It was because of the enormous creations befitting the height of the fortress-like Black Forge.
And on the second floor of the research wing, where what appeared to be a head was hung,
“Ugh…”
“Cough!”
the air was thick with the stench of blood and the moans of death.
One odd thing was, “You see, see! This is primarily made of Dragonium. Isn’t it odd that it moves just with Dragon Force?”
In such a cruel place, the clear voice of a child could be heard.
However, it wasn’t entirely unusual.
“Unni! Isn’t it super cool? Do you think appa would like it if we take this? Huh? Can’t take it?”
In a place filled with death, whether the occupants were already dead or dying, the sight of a child talking to herself was certainly eerie.
“Hey! Shiyeon got this after defeating them, so why not!”
The child became upset, throwing a tantrum.
“Ugh…”
Near her lay a dragonkin. Once green scales which would have evoked thoughts of nature, now soaked in blood. The dragonkin glared at the angry child.
“Man…iac…”
Possibly due to the blood pooling at her lips, the dragonkin’s voice was barely audible. It was no surprise.
Trickle.
Both arms and both legs, all her limbs had been torn off, leaving no strength to do anything but spit blood. But had the child heard the dragonkin’s slurred curse?
“Huh? Lizard! You’re awake?”
The child, who had been admiring the massive Dragonium creation, leaped brightly down beside the dragonkin.
“My name is… Sar…”
The dragonkin struggled to speak. Sartini tried to hold onto her pride as a noble dragonkin until the end.
“Yay! Sartini! Wanna play with me again? It’s the most fun playing with you!”
The child, who was beyond monstrous, crushed her pride with a bright smile.
“The others fall over too easily when I touch them! It’s no fun. Let’s play together again, okay?”
Splash.
The child approached, splashing through the puddle of blood as if playing in water. But with all her limbs torn and her body severely injured, Sartini couldn’t move an inch.
“Ugh…”
It seemed the child realized this as well.
“You’re too broken…”
Sucking her short, white thumb, the child pouted.
Then, “Huh? Unni, is that true?”
Perhaps another bout of madness. The child snapped her head up and glanced around.
“A mission? Appa would like it if I break that?”
What kind of being was this ‘appa’ that made this monster so obsessed?
‘No doubt another monster like this one…’
If the creator of such a monster existed, it would be no surprise.
In her ear, “What? Souls? It’s blocking the cycle?”
She heard something that was hard to ignore.
‘Could it be… the Soul Power Plant?!’
If what the monster spoke of was the Soul Power Plant,
‘No! Even if we all die, that must be…!’
It was a facility that must never be revealed to this monster. But unfortunately.
“Hmm?”
Even with the slightest movement, the child did not miss Sartini’s slight tremble.
“Hehe! Sartini, you know something, don’t you?”
“I… don’t….”
Sartini tried hastily to deny it, but that was all she could do.
“Liar. You do know, don’t you? Answer me.”
Before she knew it, eyes that resembled those of the Great Ones were staring down at her. Though lacking compared to those of the Dragon Emperors, “…Yes, I know….”
Even when her body was intact, and now, in her broken state, she couldn’t defy those lesser eyes.
Pleased with the response, “Hehe! Perfect! As expected of you, Sartini! I like you!”
The child’s face lit up with a bright smile. Grabbing Sartini’s tail, “Let’s go! Sartini will show the way, right?”
Like slaughtered livestock, she was dragged out, leaving a long trail of blood.
“Oh! If it’s too bothersome, just tell me the location!”
As the child looked back, chattering away, “Then I’ll make it easier for you without playing anymore.”
A cruel smile was painted across her face.
* * *
Crackle.
A bright light illuminated the transport route. No, a bolt of lightning tore through the air.
“Where do you think you’re going.”
The large dragonkin, the target of the lightning, dodged it with concise movements.
Then,
Crackle!
More streaks of lightning followed. As lightning, it was too fast for most life forms to react, but the large dragonkin seemed to know where the lightning would strike from the start.
Smoothly.
He dodged the barrage of lightning with succinct movements.
Crash!
The dodged bolts tore through various parts of the transport route.
“Hmm…”
The large dragonkin. Sargas glanced indifferently at the remnants of the lightning.
‘Indeed. Worthy of Astrape. Even walls made of Dragonium are easily shattered.’
Astrape. One of the mythic weapons that had made a name during the war with the constellations.
Which raised a question, ‘How does a human wield Zeus’s artifact?’
Moreover, in an empty space,
Swish.
Cutting through it, or rather, as if it had always existed there, Shimun unleashing the Astrape.
If Sargas’s memories were correct,‘That must surely be one of Hades’s artifacts.’
The ashen, translucent crown above Kim Shimun’s head.
At a glance, resembling a helmet, was undoubtedly the Kynee of Hades, a high-ranked Constellation like Zeus.
‘It’s unbelievable to handle even one… to wield two such things.’
Crack!
A bold thunderclap whizzed past his ears. Sargas, who had dodged the strike, covered his left eye with an eyepatch.
Hmm.
He pulled back his body repeatedly in response to the residual images shown by future sight.
Crackle!
Lightning struck exactly where the future sight had shown. Seeing this, Sargas furrowed his brow.
‘This will be endless at this rate.’
He scanned the tranquil area, which one would never suspect as the target of descending lightning.
‘I thought dragging this out a bit would tire him out since he’s human.’
That was a foolish thought. This mysterious human had maintained this stance for over 30 minutes, without showing any signs of fatigue.
It was as if, ‘He has no limitations in using mythic-grade artifacts.’
But Sargas immediately shook his head.
It made sense, ‘Even the constellations who are their masters can’t freely use these artifacts. There must be limitations.’
Yet, ‘Continuing this battle of attrition puts me at a disadvantage…’
Though he didn’t want to admit it, if the battle continued like this, he would eventually be at a disadvantage.
The reason was simple.
Crackle.
“Ugh!”
The lightning grazed his shoulder. Thanks to future sight, he dodged the direct hit, but true to Astrape’s formidable reputation,
Sizzle.
Even a glancing blow blackened the dragonic scales. This was already his fourth such injury. Sargas glanced at his blackened shoulder scales.
‘In the end, I’ll have to make the first move to settle this.’
The moment he decided and began to gather Dragon Force throughout his body,
Thud.
His hands, which had been clenched into fists, suddenly stopped moving.
“This is… Sartini’s…?”
Sargas stared blankly at the ceiling.
Kim Shimun also did the same.
『You have achieved the hidden achievement ‘Defeat Hidden Boss (6/?)’.』
『You have slain the hidden boss ‘Deputy Manager Sartini’.』
『You receive a total of 3,000 achievement points as a reward.』
‘What’s this?’
Kim Shimun, who had been hiding himself with Kynee, saw a message window pop up before his eyes.
‘I killed a hidden boss? Me?’
How could he have dealt with a hidden boss while currently facing Sargas?
‘Could it be that Dayna took care of it?’
But then again, ‘There’s no reaction from the golems.’
Kim Shimun closed his eyes for a moment.
No matter how much he focused, the golems that he had set as guards were simply walking and not taking any other actions.
‘Could it be? Was it taken down by the Astrape shots I fired earlier?’
Even this seemed hard to believe, but at present, it was the most plausible scenario.
‘Whatever happened, it’s beneficial for me.’
After all, he had gotten a hidden boss reward for free.
“Hah!”
Sargas, who had been staring blankly at the ceiling, let out a sudden laugh.
“Of course. It would make no sense to step into this place with just the two of you. It was my mistake.”
Then,
“Human, what’s your name?”
With a self-deprecating smile, Sargas asked.
“Kim Shimun.”
“Kim Shimun, is it…?”
Mulling over Kim Shimun’s name, he placed his giant, pot-lid-sized hand over his covered eye.
Then,
Crack.
The same sound as when Kim Shimun transformed into his dragon form resounded.
And in that instant,
Krrrrrr.
Sargas swelled with a fierce vibration. His stature, originally at 5 meters, grew to almost 8 meters. He stopped growing just before touching the high ceiling of the transport route.
Kim Shimun immediately noticed Sargas’s transformation.
“Manifestation, huh…”
Manifestation.
A power granted only to higher-ranking dragonkin. It was hardly a power at all.
‘It’s just returning to their original form.’
Just as one might turn off the lights in unused areas to conserve energy, the higher dragonkin typically conceal their immense strength.
“Yes. Kim Shimun. Remember this.”
The voice that came was even deeper and more resolute than before, grinding like a whole boulder being crushed.
“You are the only human who has drawn out my full power!”
Roar!
A thunderous roar that one might expect from an airplane. The now larger Sargas’s fist carried a power befitting his enhanced form.
Boom!
A tremendous explosion of sound shattered the air. Was he attempting to completely block any surprise attack using Kynee?
Crash! Boom! Bang!
Again and again, he hammered down upon the transport route.
At that, “Insane.”
Kim Shimun expressed a crisp exclamation of admiration, ceaselessly maneuvering his body.
‘He’s striking without mercy. What if he ends up demolishing the entire transport route?’
Yet, despite these thoughts, Kim Shimun’s gaze never drifted from the rampaging Sargas.
‘Besides, he’s supposed to see the future, yet he doesn’t seem to know my position.’
This was the same during the fight before the manifestation. He evaded the lightning from the Astrape attack, but that was all.
He was completely unaware of Kim Shimun’s camouflaged position or movements. Thus, ‘So he can only see the future when he’s the one being attacked?’
Even so, it was a troublesome ability. While unleashing attacks of immense destructive power, he could simply foresee any incoming attacks and dodge them all.
In any case, ‘Either way, if this keeps up, I’ll be at a disadvantage.’
Originally, the strategy was to whittle him down little by little, even if it meant pouring achievement points into it. But with him destroying everything around, the plan had changed.
Crash!
“How long do you plan to hide like a rat?!”
Sargas continued to destroy the transport route in real-time. If this situation persisted, the entire transport route would be demolished, leaving no place to stand.
Ultimately, Kynee’s invisibility would become meaningless.
Therefore, ‘Before the transport route is completely destroyed, I need to launch an attack that he can’t avoid, even with his knowledge of the future.’
But how?
He had effortlessly dodged even the lightning from Astrape. Furthermore, it seemed that his manifestation wasn’t just about increasing his size.
Crash! Boom!
He was now attacking at a much faster pace than before the manifestation. His ability to foresee the future had likely improved drastically as well.
Indeed, “Show yourself, Kim Shimun! Don’t disappoint me!”
His uncovered left eye emitted a foggy radiance, exuding intense Dragon Force.
Roar.
Kim Shimun hovered in the air, dodging Sargas’s punches. He looked down at the dissipating Astrape, rebounding back into invisibility.
‘What if I use the Eye Command to create an opening for Astrape to hit?’
He had already saved the Eye’s Command for a decisive moment, hadn’t he?
But, ‘No, the Eye Command alone won’t be enough.’
Kim Shimun shook his head. The stronger the dragonkin, the higher their resistance to the Eye Command. In his manifested state, even a second of the Eye Command would be pushing it.
‘I need a more certain ability. Something like… yes! Odin’s Gungnir!’
Gungnir.
Fabian, the dual-speared High Ranker from his past life, frequently used this weapon. A weapon of the Constellation Odin, the spear was famed for never missing its target.
With such a weapon, even if Sargas could see the future, he wouldn’t be able to dodge it. Especially since it was a mythic-grade weapon.
However, there was one issue.
‘Gungnir lacks the attack power of Astrape.’
The problem was precisely its offensive power. The items Kim Shimun usually associated with—Astrape and Laevateinn—boasted the highest attack power among mythic-grade weapons.
Though Gungnir’s attack power was significant for a mythic-grade weapon, it didn’t compare to Astrape or Laevateinn.
In that case, ‘I need a weapon with Gungnir’s accuracy but Astrape’s attack power.’
The thought made him chuckle helplessly. Owning just one mythic-grade weapon was enough to easily secure a Ranker’s position.
Where could he find a weapon that combined all the advantages of mythic-grade artifacts?
Then it struck him.
‘Wait a minute.’
A possibility flashed through Kim Shimun’s mind.
‘Why not?’
He had already defied the rule of one player being bound to one patron Constellation. He was connected to no fewer than five constellations.
But that wasn’t all.
‘I’m already using multiple mythic-grade weapons as needed, aren’t I?’
Even the High Rankers of his past life could only use the weapons their patron constellations possessed. Yet he had already used weapons from various constellations multiple times.
And the foundation that made such a miracle possible was none other than alchemy.
‘If I can already create replicas that mimic the abilities of the originals, why can’t I create a weapon that combines the necessary abilities?’
The moment he grasped this principle,
Hmm.
At the very center of Kim Shimun’s chest, the Philosopher’s Stone emitted a faint hum.
It wasn’t that the Philosopher’s Stone was speaking to him.
‘Ah…’
It was a resonance emanating from the realization of an alchemist, or the awakening to a certain truth.
Just like when he had obtained the method to create a homunculus.
Humm.
With erratic sounds, something unknown inscribed itself into his brain, or perhaps his soul.
Entrusting himself to this indescribable flow,
Snap.
he snapped his fingers without realizing it.
Then,
Boom.
Lightning struck from his right hand.
Swoosh.
A golden spear emerged from his left hand. Following the grand flow that guided him, by merging the two spears into one,
『A sufficient amount of alchemy energy is required to complete the fusion for the desired weapon.』
『The Philosopher’s Stone demands 5,000 achievement points to establish equivalent exchange.』
『Accept? (Yes / No)』
A familiar message window appeared before his eyes.
Naturally, Shimun selected ‘Yes.’
And so,
Crackle!!
The two mythic-grade weapons began to fuse, emitting vigorous alchemical sparks.
Perhaps due to its impact, the invisibility of Kynee was lifted.
“There you are!!”
Sargas immediately swung his house-sized fist. But Kim Shimun, with a serene expression, simply watched the destructive punch approach.
“Ars Magna…”
He recited the great truth that swept over his entire being.
Ars Magna, Fusion.
The guaranteed hit of the thunder spear.
A new myth was realized.
TL’s Corner:
Shiyeon being creepy. A hidden boss got beat up off cam.
And Shimun fusing mythic weapons.