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118
“Quite the sprint.”
-For real, insanely fast;
-Kill each other.
-Black Dragon, aren’t you going?
-The cheetah is laughing right now……
-Match result: 2nd place.
The sight of players scattering like ants was quite a spectacle.
With the heirloom’s location pinpointed, anyone would want to make it their top priority.
But not everyone had run off.
“Hey, why aren’t you going?”
Blood, arms folded, asked.
For someone of a hot-headed nature, the eyes watching the situation were cold and calculated.
“What about you? If you’re late you’ll miss it permanently.”
“If being first mover was an option, you’d have run off ahead. Spit out what you’re thinking, quickly. Information about this fortress too.”
“Anyone watching would think you had it reserved.”
Liwei, listening to the exchange, smirked and inserted himself.
That once again grated on Blood.
“Right, you first.”
Shhk—
One step forward, black light rippling from her wrist.
Liwei moved to bring up his spear in response — but again, no clash occurred.
Crash—!
The large-framed man, Mars, driving his shield down between the two of them.
He looked at Blood and said:
“Do not waste unnecessary time. Our objective is the Snow Drake and nothing else.”
“Uncle, you don’t get it. That guy they call Black Dragon is definitely hiding something.”
“You’d trust someone who plays petty tricks? Uphold the dignity of vanguards. We break through with our own strength.”
Thud—!
Pulling his shield back out, Mars moved his feet into the fortress interior.
-This guy?
-He snooped on the stream to get information himself;
-Vanguard quality, I see.
-If Black Dragon is petty tricks, every vanguard should bite their tongue.
-For real, strip all the ranks.
The casually delivered words set the chat ablaze.
Blood’s reaction was no different.
“Petty tricks my foot.”
She clicked her tongue and glared at Hanbit.
Then, trudging after Mars, she disappeared into the distance.
“Is it really okay to just leave them like that?”
When all the surrounding players had disappeared, Kim Jaeha asked with concern.
Hanbit walked to where the section chief had been standing and crouched down.
Hiss—
The snow-white sphere and gloves discarded on the ground.
The section chief had assumed the White Wyvern’s Heart had served its purpose.
But that was a tremendous miscalculation.
“Let’s go too. First, everyone please have some of this.”
Hanbit took out the lava seed soup from his inventory.
There was enough for six people to share.
“Ugh… why does it taste like this?”
“Lava seeds are not typically used as a culinary ingredient. This is a soup made for performance alone.”
As Avantgarde explained, this soup was entirely focused on performance.
And the effect was definite as a result.
“Haven’t had this in a while.”
“Hmm.”
Zenon and Gorik drank the soup calmly, as though accustomed to it.
Hanbit, the last in line, also brought the reddish liquid to his mouth.
[Effect: Lava Heat Buff applied.]
[Cold attribute resistance gradually increases.]
Checking the message, Hanbit felt the heat slowly welling up.
Not strong yet — but with time it would grow scorching enough to be alarming.
“Let’s move.”
They walked slowly toward the interior.
The fortress’s true nature gradually revealing itself as they advanced.
Gasps slipped from everyone’s mouths naturally.
“…Can a map like this even be realized?”
“To think it would be this level……!”
The fortress space didn’t even fit within a single gaze.
A cylindrical structure surrounded by ice walls like a fortress.
Within it, sculptural icebergs were embedded throughout, forming a complex shape.
Grrk—
Just then, an irregular breathing sound reached them from the distance.
Zenon, ears attuned to it, said:
“No sign of movement.”
Heightening his senses, he listened carefully and grasped the target’s state.
And his assessment was exactly right.
“It’ll be sleeping right now.”
“…There were similar accounts in the legendary records, but is it sleeping even with intruders present?”
“To it, we’re less than gnats. Until its temper is provoked, it will keep sleeping.”
The Snow Drake was powerful.
Its composure was born from this immutable truth.
Ordinary skills hurled at it would likely earn no reaction whatsoever.
But there also existed a condition that would surely wake the Drake.
Grrk—
The breathing growing closer with every step.
Upon reaching near the center, the backs of a dense crowd came into view.
And then.
Whoosh—!
A Snow Drake lying sprawled in a space resembling a shrine came into view.
[Boss: Snow Drake (Lv.500)]
“…We have to kill that?”
“A level 500 boss……”
The sight of it sleeping peacefully triggered an instinctive sense of danger.
A body five times larger than the White Wyvern, covered entirely in sharp snow-white scales.
The massive tail spread out along the floor was difficult to even gauge in scale.
-We’re done;
-How are you supposed to kill that?
-I choose to die.
-Is there anyone who can kill a level 500?
-Looking for the #1 ranked vanguard.
-Whoever you are, for real, come and prove yourself.
The viewers too sensed the subjugation difficulty intuitively.
The atmosphere carried across the screen.
The identity of the number one vanguard was known to no one, but even if they came — could they beat the Snow Drake?
Hanbit was skeptical.
‘At least the composition isn’t bad.’
Blood’s hidden skill ‘Bloodletting’ could chip away at its health.
With Mars, who specialized in defense, added in, some degree of meaningful exchange might be possible.
Of course, actually killing the Snow Drake would be impossible.
Whoosh—!
The master of the fortress exhaling a deep breath.
It reached outward, scattering an aggressive chill.
“Ugh!”
“What kind of cold is——!”
The cold mixed into the breath was like a volley of ice blades.
Not a single player — vanguard or otherwise — could move recklessly.
“That’s where the heirloom is, right?”
“Should we sneak in and grab it?”
“Are you insane? If that thing wakes up, it’s a wipeout!”
Where everyone’s eyes had gathered was beneath the Snow Drake’s body.
A place piled high with gold and treasure — and amid it all, a hammer radiating a vivid brilliance.
Crunch—
Gorik clenched his fist and glared at the Drake.
But moving rashly would only mean death.
“The records were accurate.”
Zenon, keeping the monster in his sights, said.
The Snow Drake’s records remaining in a few of Ifrit’s legends.
Treated as exaggerations, but actually facing it made that thought vanish entirely.
“This is a calamity. It would be best to move quickly and withdraw before it wakes. Seeking help from other cities is the path that at least raises our chances.”
Zenon proposed retreat again.
If the Snow Drake woke — total wipeout.
That was the only outcome visible.
Looking at the surrounding players, Hanbit raised a question.
“What if we take it without waking it? We got this close and it still hasn’t reacted.”
“Hmm…….”
The hammer placed beneath the Drake’s belly was quite visible.
If they moved carefully, it might just be possible to retrieve it covertly.
“I won’t say it’s flatly impossible…… but my view has not changed. Let us first return to the city.”
-Fair point.
-But it might be worth trying to take it stealthily?
-There are so many vanguards here, can’t we just kill it?
-Really?
-Seems like it’s already over, should we just go for the stream angle?
The viewers’ opinions were divided as well.
“Ha.”
Just then, Kim Jaeha standing behind them furrowed his brow.
Letting out a sigh, he approached Hanbit.
“The section chief sent a message.”
“A message?”
“Hold on. I’ll forward it.”
Kim Jaeha immediately relayed the section chief’s message.
「Taeyul Corporation — Section Chief Lee Hojoong」
「Hey, is it really true you can steal the heirloom stealthily? But why is Black Dragon just standing there? If you don’t talk straight, I’ll file charges right now.」
The threat that had now become habit was just laughable.
If the section chief actually went through with filing charges, Yeonwoo on standby would immediately deliver a counterstrike.
What kind of expression would he make when that petty scheme he trusted so firmly crumbled?
The thought made him a little curious.
‘Time to send him off.’
He had intended to string him along longer, but even that was stress for Kim Jaeha.
Now was the right time to exit him.
Hanbit changed his system settings and sent a message directly to the section chief.
「Black Dragon」
「Stealing it is possible, but you’re too cowardly to ever do it. Even back there when the tendrils grabbed you, all you did was scream like you were dying. I almost thought you were crying.」
Ding—
「Taeyul Corporation — Section Chief Lee Hojoong」
「Hey, who’s cowardly? I’m someone who’s been through everything life can throw at you! Some kid who’s never had a real taste of the world is running his mouth about——」
Poking him in the soft spot made the section chief’s eyes roll back as he reacted with a heated response.
For someone claiming to have been through everything life can throw at them, the capacity of his character was quite meagre.
Ignoring the lengthy message, Hanbit sent a reply.
「Black Dragon」
「Don’t push yourself unnecessarily, just give up. You couldn’t beat a vanguard, let alone an elementary school kid. Even just looking at your physical frame, there’s not a shred of athletic ability to be found.」
「Taeyul Corporation — Section Chief Lee Hojoong」
「Talking doesn’t make it true. Hey, if I succeed, what are you going to do? Can you take responsibility?」
「Black Dragon」
「On the off chance you actually steal the heirloom, I’ll hand over every piece of hidden skill information I know. Not that it’ll happen.」
「Taeyul Corporation — Section Chief Lee Hojoong」
「You little——, I just saved all those messages. Just you try saying something different later.」
The messages stopped there.
Glancing around, the section chief’s figure had disappeared into the crowd.
“A fight with the Snow Drake sounds fun too. And then a competition with Blood…….”
Liwei’s blood was already boiling.
Blood’s gaze, on the other hand, remained fixed solely on the Snow Drake.
“What are you going to do?”
“…Hmm.”
Even at that question, Mars quietly stroked his chin in deliberation.
A level 500 boss.
The debuff had been dealt with as much as possible through items, but no genuinely meaningful strategy was coming to him.
“For now, hold position and grasp the structure of the fortress first. Looking for elements that could help with debuff removal or combat…….”
“Hm?”
Just then, someone’s voice cut off Mars’s words.
His expression fully soured as he shifted his gaze.
But.
Rustle—
Someone suddenly revealed themselves from near the base of the Snow Drake’s tail.
“What is that?”
“A player?”
“Isn’t that the person who was with Black Dragon?”
Running in a tasteless sprint from where everyone’s eyes were fixed — a single man.
It was Lee Hojoong, section chief of Taeyul Corporation.
-?
-What is that guy doing?
-Troll mode ON.
-Please just stay still;
-Seeing him like this, he looks so stupidly dumb. Lol.
“…Huh?”
“What is he doing?”
A flustered Kim Jaeha and an Avantgarde watching with curiosity.
Most reactions were similar, but the vanguards were different.
“Could that be——!”
“Tch. Stop him.”
They quickly issued instructions to their subordinates.
Thump—!
People moving toward the section chief in response to the order.
That felt like an enormous threat to someone faint of heart.
“Eek!”
Startled, the section chief scrambled in a panic and burrowed beneath the Snow Drake’s belly.
And grabbed the silver hammer lying on the floor.
“Got it, got it! The hidden skill is mine——!”
Smack—!
Suddenly, with a tremendous sound, something snow-white crashed down on the section chief.
His form had vanished in the blink of an eye.
Grrk—
The throaty growl that followed rang out exceptionally loudly in everyone’s silence.
Thud—!
A footstep shaking the ground and a massive tail swaying.
The awakened Snow Drake slowly raised its colossal body.
And with blue eyes blazing, it turned to face the intruders.
