Chapter 200

[Translator – Prøks]

[Proofreader – Prøks]

Chapter 200: Abyss (2)

Park Siwoo, awakened by the commotion, was startled.

“Whoa, what the hell are those numbers…!”

The scene outside the tent was truly hellish.

Tens of thousands?

Hundreds of thousands?

He couldn’t tell.

A horde of rats, too numerous to count at a glance, surrounded them. The skeletons fought valiantly, but they were outnumbered by the rats swarming and biting from all sides.

Crack!

A chill ran down Park Siwoo’s spine as he watched an undead collapse helplessly.

Rumble!

A bolt of lightning erupted from Merhen’s hand and struck the ground.

Tens of thousands of rats were burned to death in a single blow.

The problem was that there were far more rats rushing in than those that had died.

Park Siwoo let out a hollow laugh.

“Noona, next time, how about bringing some rat poison?”

“Just get your weapon out.”

Seo Yerim retorted sharply and quickly summoned her divine bow.

A white aura swirled around Han Siah, who had also summoned her holy relic.

‘Don’t panic.’

She had fought on countless battlefields in the retest zone.

She had fought against the Death Lord’s army. Back then, there were far more undead than rats. Considering that, the current scene was nothing.

[‘Han Siah’ uses Prayer of Salvation (S)!]

[Attack and defense of all party members increased by 50%!]

[All recovery speed increased by 50%]

[Senses are greatly amplified!]

The prayer, enhanced by the power of the holy relic, enveloped her companions.

Seo Yerim, feeling the effects, was inwardly impressed. She was a high-level Awakened.

Naturally, she had experienced numerous Gates.

Priests were one of the essential classes in a party.

It was only natural that she had received many buffs in the past.

But she could confidently say she had never received a buff like this before.

‘Did she say she was level 162?’

A mere level 162 was casting a buff that even S-rank priests over level 500 couldn’t manage.

Of course, there was a fatal flaw in a priest who cast buffs like this.

Their combat abilities were close to nil. They were strong against the undead, but against other living creatures, priests weren’t a particularly strong class.

“This is crazy, crazy!”

Park Siwoo, empowered by the buff, jumped around excitedly. His holy sword, which had previously killed hundreds of rats with each swing, was now slaughtering over a thousand.

Seo Yerim didn’t stay idle either.

With her significantly expanded vision, she could see a swirling mist in the distance. While mist and fog was the most common sight here, this fog was very different from what she had seen before.

‘Aren’t those eyes?’

Two red eyes glowed in the center of the mist.

Creak.

The bowstring of the divine bow was pulled taut.

Three arrows flew and pierced the two eyes accurately.

―…!

The fog let out an unpleasant noise. The rats began to rush madly, as if in a frenzy.

“Minwoo! That thing, it’s a monster! It seems to be controlling the rats…!”

“Let’s break through the encirclement and chase it.”

There were so many rats that even Merhen’s magic couldn’t seem to reduce their numbers. Dealing with them first was the priority.

Fortunately, he had a skill specialized for one-sided battles.

[Land of Death (SSS) activated….]

The moment he used the skill, the pitch-black ground completely engulfed the surroundings like a blooming flower bud. It even covered the area where the rats were charging.

The range expanded significantly.

The rats began to collapse helplessly due to the massive poison damage.

[Land of Death (SSS)’s absorption capacity has reached its limit!]

[(100,000/100,000)]

The 100,000 rats, which had been rushing madly just moments ago, changed direction and started biting their own kind.

It served as a minimal barrier.

Even a brief delay on the ground caused the rats to die en masse.

They were the weakest monsters in the open sea.

And because they relied on overwhelming numbers, they were a terrible matchup for Kim Minwoo.

[Level up….]

[Level up….]

‘Yeah, this is it.’

A devastating level-up with a single click.

Necromancers were truly blessed.

Once the tide of the battle turned, it was only a matter of time before the rats were driven away.

“Phew. Cleanup complete!”

Park Siwoo, wiping away the sweat that had dripped down from the tension, looked at Kim Minwoo.

“Bro, that skill, was it always like that?”

“Land of Death?”

“Yeah. It seems quite different from before. Is that the skill you used the skill enhancement ticket on?”

“That’s right.”

“The rewards from that Heavenly City place are truly amazing….”

He didn’t know the name of the skill, Land of Death, but he had seen its rough mechanism during the Giant Dungeon party play and the Super Rookie Selection Competition.

It was a skill that dealt minor damage and then resurrected the dead opponent as an undead.

But now it was clearly different.

No matter how weak the rats were, to die in just two seconds after stepping on the ground?

Furthermore, the skill’s range and the number of resurrections had also changed significantly. At a glance, it seemed to resurrect nearly 100,000 rats.

It had become an incredibly powerful skill that he had never seen before.

A skill that could rival his holy sword.

“Jealous?”

“Super jealous. Hehe. You’ll sponsor me too, right? I’m sorry to Siah, but… I’m second in line, right?”

“Yeah, I got it.”

Park Siwoo had some seniority too.

He might not know about Seo Yerim, who had spoken earlier, but he couldn’t be behind Han Siah.

A pungent and bitter scent wafted from all directions. The corpses of rats, burned, poisoned, and bitten to death, were scattered everywhere.

After leaving the cleanup to Merhen and the undead, he looked at his companions.

“But, where’s Leluya?”

“She’s probably sleeping?”

“Huh?”

Kim Minwoo tilted his head in confusion.

Sleeping in the midst of all this chaos?

Did that make sense?

Under his puzzled gaze, Han Siah scratched her head.

“I went to wake her up, but she wouldn’t budge. She looked very tired… so I just left her alone. She worked hard today.”

Worked hard?

Well, absorbing the Three Legendary Potions was hard work, but did that mean she just slept through this?

He immediately opened Leluya’s tent.

Three heads poked out from under the blanket. They were all snoring soundly.

He shook her body.

—Mmm…

The witch merely stirred slightly, never opening her eyes.

His chest tightened with frustration.

This girl was truly legendary.

* * *

After the chaotic ordeal, the group gathered together after waking up.

Blink.

Everyone stared at the witch, who was blinking her eyes.

—Do you have something to say?

“No.”

“Um…”

“Do you not know what happened yesterday?”

—I know.

—The Lord scouted.

—That’s probably why they swarmed.

Kim Minwoo stared at Leluya with a dumbfounded look. The Lord scouted, she said.

‘Then that swirling vortex with eyes was…’

Was it the Abyss Lord?

That aside…

“You knew that and didn’t wake up?”

—I told you, it was scouting. I thought you could handle some rats.

“If you had woken up and chased the Lord, we could have caught it quickly.”

—No. The Lord is a kind of spiritual entity.

—Yesterday was just scouting, it only sent a tiny part of its soul.

—The main body of the soul is elsewhere, so chasing it is pointless.

“So you just slept?”

—If I had woken up, it would have been difficult to replenish my depleted energy. But now I’m full of energy. By the way… that’s strange.

“What is?”

—It’s very rare for a Lord to come out to the open sea. Even if it’s just a part of its soul.

“Um, excuse me.”

[Translator – Prøks]

[Proofreader – Prøks]

Han Siah raised her hand and spoke.

—What is it, Priest?

“You said what came today was just a small part, right?”

—That’s probably the case.

“But, even if it was just a small part, it still controlled millions of rats. Doesn’t that mean it could be even worse in the inner sea?”

—That’s likely.

“Then… wouldn’t that mean the Abyss Lord is incredibly strong?”

—The Abyss Lord’s main body isn’t a strong monster.

—It specializes in controlling swarms and mental attacks.

—Think about it. Isn’t that Necromancer over there its natural enemy?

“Oh, is that so?”

—Lady Ananke told me. She said that Necromancer’s mental fortitude is exceptionally strong.

—He also controls a large swarm. If Lady Ananke thought he couldn’t handle it, she wouldn’t have sent me in the first place.

—Don’t worry about the hunt. Just hope it’s in the inner sea. Things will get very tricky in the abyss. Oh, by the way, Necromancer.

“What?”

—I checked yesterday, and the effects of your potions are quite impressive.

—Lady Ananke was also impressed. She said they were at least on par with the best when it came to mental attacks.

—So, how about we exchange recipes?

“Exchange?”

—The Raven School has quite a few recipes.

—We have many valuable recipes too. There are some you might be interested in.

—If you’re willing, I’d like to do some trading.

Kim Minwoo’s eyes sparkled.

The Three Legendary Potions were quite popular potions.

As Leluya said, they were highly specialized in defending against mental attacks. In particular, the survivors of the Super Rookie Selection Competition had spread the word about their effectiveness.

Thanks to the automatic publicity, sales were also soaring.

They would sell out quickly if he supplied them to the Ilsung store. So, the value of the recipe was high, but…

‘The Witches’ Coven isn’t a competitor anyway.’

They were witches who flew high in all dimensions. Even if they learned the recipe, it wouldn’t affect his sales on Earth.

‘I need new recipes too.’

Kim Minwoo was a veteran.

He had scoured countless communities and read numerous recipes. So, he knew many recipes, but there was a blind spot.

They were all Earth-related recipes.

The Gates on Earth weren’t high-level. The highest grade was S-rank. The level of recipes was inevitably limited to that range.

But the Witches’ Coven?

‘It must be very different.’

They probably knew a lot of good stuff.

There was no reason not to trade.

However, he had to see what they would offer.

“What kind of recipe would I be interested in?”

—One is an elixir.

—A much higher level elixir than what you’ve taken.

—The other one is…

Leluya glanced at him and said.

—A potion that increases potential.

“…Potential?”

—It’s hard to believe… but Lady Ananke said your potential is rock bottom. Is that right?

“Huh?”

“What?”

“What does that…”

The guild members tilted their heads in confusion.

If you were to ask who the hottest rising star on Earth was, it was undoubtedly Kim Minwoo.

They had also gained some fame, but it was incomparable to his.

But to say his potential was rock bottom?

What kind of nonsense was that?

Everyone was puzzled.

On the other hand, Kim Minwoo was quite surprised. Even the Sword Saint hadn’t been able to see through his lack of talent.

But Ananke was different.

‘She figured that out?’

Of course, they had cast a spell to share their physical conditions. Even considering that, to figure it out in one go from such a distance…

Perhaps the Grand Witch was indeed a Grand Witch.

Gulp.

He couldn’t help but swallow.

“You’re right. It’s rock bottom.”

“Hold on, bro. That can’t be true. How can you be rock bottom and still be so…”

“Siwoo, do you think I’ve grown? In terms of swordsmanship.”

“Of course you have! You’ve gotten much faster and stronger… huh?”

Park Siwoo, who had been answering hastily, tilted his head.

He was suddenly puzzled.

Kim Minwoo had definitely gotten stronger.

Faster and stronger.

He had also acquired many skills.

His equipment had improved.

He could craft many things.

But those were just quantitative factors. Getting stronger because his stats increased with level-ups.

It was something all Awakened experienced.

‘What about swordsmanship?’

Until now, he had naturally assumed he was growing.

He had never even questioned it.

He took a moment to think calmly.

Park Siwoo had also grown a lot, so he could analyze it.

The Sword Saint used the Heart Sword.

The realm of the mind.

Kim Minwoo had reached the stage right before that.

He had been at that stage from the very beginning.

And he was still there.

If his swordsmanship skill was 100, it was still exactly 100.

The feeling of getting faster and stronger was due to his increased stats, not because his swordsmanship had become sharper.

“It doesn’t feel like your talent itself has grown… but maybe that’s because your realm is too high?”

“That’s right. It took Grandpa decades to reach the Heart Sword.”

Maybe he was just stuck for a while, not that there was no room to grow.

If that were the case, it would have been impossible for him to have a skill level of 100 in the first place.

The body and mind couldn’t be that disconnected.

And crucially,

Seo Yerim had heard a story from the Sword Saint.

“When you fought Lucas, didn’t you use the Heart Sword?”

“It was a skill.”

“…Not your actual skill?”

Kim Minwoo smiled bitterly at those words.

“I’ve been Awakened for six months, and not once have my stats increased through training or hunting.”

“…What?”

“No way.”

“That can’t be…”

“The same goes for skills. Not a single one has been generated.”

“…Not even Necromancer skills, apart from swordsmanship?”

“Yes. I didn’t intentionally hide it, I just didn’t see the need to mention it, but…”

Kim Minwoo’s specialty:

Talentless.

His body was always honest.

That’s why he couldn’t help but covet the potential potion Leluya mentioned.

[Translator – Prøks]

[Proofreader – Prøks]