Chapter 34
“So this game’s just a pay-to-win shitshow.”
That was my first impression after putting on all seven Cycle Rings.
So this is what good gear feels like...
Aside from items I’d received as rewards, I’d never used any gear to improve my stats.
At most, I’d used a translation necklace... or a communication earring.
The difference was impossible to overstate.
And on top of that, I’d gone straight for an endgame build from the start.
Ordinary Hunters couldn’t gear up like this even if they wanted to...
At my level, it was normal to improve your stats bit by bit with magic-grade or rare-grade items.
I did regret not picking up some reasonably cheap items sooner...
But at least I’d gone straight to endgame gear all at once.
Thanks to that, I’d avoided wasting money on unnecessary stuff.
Even if my body had suffered for it...
And then, the robe.
This was Zephyros’s recommendation.
[Elemental Guardian’s Robe of Strict Balance]
[Quality]: Legendary-grade armor
[Description]: A symbol of balance created by the legendary Elemental Guardian, said to protect all elements.
[Details]: The resistance of every element is raised to match the highest elemental resistance value.
This was another item that proved the rule: the shorter the description, the stronger the item.
It wasn’t all that great for ordinary people, but for me, it was incredible.
With No. 3, I could raise my fire resistance to 3,000%.
That was why, although it wasn’t normally an expensive item, the Kaiser side—who knew about my abilities—had tried desperately to keep me from getting it.
In the end, I managed to get one through the power of the state.
A robe that normally went for less than $20 million had been driven up to $200 million by the bidding war.
Probably Kaiser’s doing.
I had even more reason to keep my class information under wraps.
There had to be cheap items that synergized with my bacteria like this. If that got out, they’d become much harder for me to obtain.
Supply and demand applied just as strictly to items, so if I wanted something, it was only natural for the price to skyrocket.
Fortunately, Russia had found one for $18 million at an auction house in Central Asia.
“We couldn’t get the hat. It went over the price range you specified.”
“Well, it can’t be helped.”
That didn’t mean I was going to let them take me for a ride.
If I couldn’t buy it, I could find a substitute or just go without.
I understood how powerful items were, but I also knew they weren’t everything.
Unless Kaiser had an endless money faucet, they couldn’t keep throwing their weight around at auctions and accepting unlimited losses.
I knew this was a warning.
“Then, can I assume you’re ready now?”
“First, I need to go into the Gate and assess the situation.”
“As you know, we Russians are very thorough about these things.”
Arina smiled and continued.
“It would be unacceptable to go in, come back out after a few minutes, and give up, saying it’s too much. But I trust you won’t be so spineless.”
She was smiling as she threatened me.
I asked with a hollow laugh.
“So you’re telling me to die inside if I can’t handle it?”
“You must be prepared for that much, considering how freely you’ve made use of our Russian power, no?”
You didn’t give it to me for free, yet you’re taking credit.
Still, I had to admit it had helped.
“What happens if I give up?”
I had no intention of doing so, but I was curious how far she’d push me.
“Nothing. Every Russian will simply learn what you did to toy with our Russian government.”
That didn’t sound like they’d merely find out.
If public opinion turned against me, the government would act, and with public sentiment and legitimacy behind it, they could do whatever they wanted with me.
Lock me up, force me to become a citizen...
This time, I’d made the offer because I was reasonably confident, but state power was dangerous precisely because it was so strong.
I’d used them to set one enemy against another, but from now on, I should avoid getting involved with them as much as possible.
“Understood. I’ll go in prepared to die.”
“Even so, our Russia doesn’t disregard Hunter rights that badly.”
Since when...?
I’ve seen movies, you know...
Wasn’t your country the one that sent soldiers on human-wave charges with no guns, just bullets?
“Take this.”
“This is...”
[Will of Steel]
[Quality]: Legendary-grade potion
[Description]: A potion created by a great alchemist after years of research. When consumed, it temporarily hardens the skin, granting resistance to all damage.
[Details]: +100% resistance to all types of damage for 30 minutes
This seemed kind of similar to something I knew.
This definitely had a similar description to the Essence of the Volcano...
Don’t tell me you’re made of microorganisms too?
[You use the skill ‘Mician.’]
[The skill ‘Mician’ has detected a microscopic entity in ‘Will of Steel.’]
[The target is too small! The skill ‘Mician’ has insufficient proficiency to identify the entity!]
What? No, that’s unexpected.
This had never happened before, so I was a little flustered...
Without letting my surprise show, I calmly asked Arina.
“Will of Steel?”
“We only have a few of these precious potions left in our country. You should take it before you enter.”
So this was probably how the advance team had lasted thirty minutes.
Come to think of it, even Hunters were human. How could they withstand radiation poisoning severe enough to kill people left and right?
I didn’t think I needed it, since I had the strain Athena had specialized.
I’d hold onto it and give it to Ms. Gyuseon.
If she could mass-produce it, there’d be nothing better.
“So, are we ready now?”
“Let’s go. Time to assess it.”
And so, we headed for Chelyabinsk to assess the obvious.
**
Russia was enormous.
Even getting from Moscow to Chelyabinsk took a long time, even by plane.
By car, it was a 24-hour drive.
Fortunately, our Russian princess had a private jet.
My first impression of flying on a private jet was...
Should I buy one, too?
It did seem like it’d be convenient...
“Do you happen to know how much a plane like this costs?”
“I’m not sure. I didn’t buy it.”
Ah, right.
“Still, I remember it was under a hundred million dollars. It was a custom order, so it cost a little more.”
Cheaper than I thought?
There’d be pilot salaries, fuel, and all sorts of other costs, but a hundred billion won seemed affordable?
If I’d heard myself say that just a few months ago, I’d have thought I was insane, but it was true.
How long was I going to keep living like a small-time commoner?
I’d talk it over with Zephyros and get one when I got back to Korea.
“Do you know anything about Chelyabinsk?”
“...Meteorites?”
Wasn’t it the town where a huge meteorite had fallen and caused a commotion years ago?
“You know your stuff. There are actually meteorite dungeons all over Chelyabinsk. The Star Spirit Valley we’re going to is one of them.”
“So there must be quite a few dungeons that produce Star Relics.”
“Unfortunately, Star Relics have only been found in Star Spirit Valley. That’s why it’s all the more important.”
“... Are there other dungeons that emit radiation like this?”
“No, there aren’t.”
So this was the only dungeon that produced both radiation and Star Relics...
Something seemed suspicious.
Something Zephyros had drilled into my ears.
His theory was that there were no coincidences in dungeons.
He believed that, in the end, everything was connected by necessity.
Then there had to be a connection between the two.
After listening to Arina’s briefing for a while—most of which I already knew—we arrived at the airport.
As soon as we got off, we boarded a limousine that was waiting and headed straight for the dungeon.
We were moving at almost ridiculous speed.
We passed along a quiet country road and reached the Gate entrance, which looked to have about thirty thousand skull signs planted around it, if I exaggerated a little.
“Oh, right. We should make sure this is covered in the contract.”
“What is?”
“A clause saying I won’t be held responsible if the dungeon environment changes as a result of my clearing it, or changes in an undesirable direction.”
Seonggwang Group hadn’t included that clause. Some of what happened was their own fault, but they’d still ended up having to pay an enormous amount in damages. It was a little unfair.
I wasn’t going to let the same thing happen to me.
There was no guarantee a dungeon that had changed once wouldn’t change again.
What if I cleared it and it turned into an even more hellish place?
“...You’re thorough.”
“I have to be.”
I was dealing with a state power on Russia’s scale. I had to be this careful.
We added the relevant terms to the contract, then sent copies to the Russian lawyer I’d hired, my Korean lawyer, and Zephyros for review.
After some back-and-forth and a few revisions following legal review, we finally had a contract both sides could accept.
Of course, they’d have had lawyers, but there were quite a few nasty clauses I would’ve been screwed by if I hadn’t.
They really didn’t let me drop my guard.
“Are we done now?”
After negotiations that continued to the very end, Arina glared at me as she wiped the beads of sweat from her forehead.
I answered with a satisfied smile.
“We’re done.”
“Then hurry up and go in.”
She seemed a little sulky. Not my problem.
“Of course, Your Highness.”
Smiling, I stepped into the dungeon that had become hell.
**
[You have entered the Stage 17 Gate, ‘Mutated Star Spirit Valley.’]
Contrary to what I’d heard, the valley was more peaceful than I expected.
I spotted the Star Spirits floating around...
The moment our eyes met.
“Huh?”
A Star Spirit flew toward me, closing the distance in an instant.
Claws several dozen centimeters long sprouted from its round, cute-looking body.
One of the Star Spirits that lunged at me with a roar instantly crumbled into dust.
Hmm, that seemed a little slow.
[The activity of Perpetuus Exomodulus is being restricted by the high radiation level!]
[Your high Control prevents mutations in the bacterial strains caused by radiation!]
Even in radiation this intense, my No. 1 only suffered the penalty of slowing down a little.
And the number of organisms I currently commanded... No. 1 alone had a population of five hundred billion.
I revived the dead organisms I’d prepared in advance.
That was more than a hundred times the few billion I’d had before.
The small spherical colony now circled around me as a massive black cloud.
Even so, there was no need to leave the environment like this any longer than necessary.
I took out my staff and deployed the No. 5s.
About a hundred billion No. 5 organisms spread across the ground and fanned out through the entire dungeon in search of prey.
All I had to do in the meantime was scatter the cloud and turn the mutated Star Spirits to dust.
Aside from the first one, they all disappeared before they could even find me and attack.
[Your level has increased.]
[Congratulations! You have reached Level 20.]
[You have received a ‘Skill Proficiency Increase Ticket (Below Proficiency A)’ as a reward.]
Reaching Level 20 was just a bonus.
At this rate, I was going to clear the place when I’d only come to assess it.
I knew it’d be easy, but this was too easy.
It happened at that very moment.
[Deinococcus Radiodurans has completely purified part of the ‘Contaminated Star Relic’ vein.]
[The Star Relics are shining once again!]
[Emergency Mission! Purify and collect all the Star Relics, and grant peace to all the Star Spirits in the Stage 17 Gate, ‘Mutated Star Spirit Valley.’]
[On success: The Gate will change to the Stage 1 Gate, ‘Perfectly Purified Valley.’]
[On failure: The current Gate state will be maintained.]
“...What?”
System messages appeared one after another.
The moment I finished reading them, I snapped to attention and desperately stopped the No. 1 organisms that were flying toward the last Star Spirit remaining in the dungeon.
Hey! Don’t kill it!
What was the best thing about dungeons?
Whatever happened inside, no one outside would ever know.
I wondered if the Russian princess outside had ever heard the expression.
‘Take the money and run.’