𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟒𝟔
“Thunder Strike!”
Kwaaaang!
[Skill Damage! 41,748.]
I struck Beluin’s Thought with a shield imbued with light.
It seemed that my diligent skill training had paid off, as the damage had noticeably increased. However, unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to kill Beluin’s Thought in one hit.
Perhaps it possessed a vitality that most bosses wouldn’t even dare to challenge.
‘Second shot!’
Kwaaaang!
[Skill Damage! 55,942.]
For reference, Beluin’s Thought had no defense.
Instead, it had the ability to reduce all attacks except light attribute by 90%. This meant that the current light-imbued attack was dealing its original damage.
However, rather than marveling at the damage, I was more impressed by the Thought’s resilience, which still remained alive.
Kwaaaang!
[Skill Damage! 70,136.]
[Combat Experience 102,000 acquired!]
Finally, after unleashing my maximum damage of 70,000 and gaining 100,000 experience points, I managed to eliminate the Thought. I frowned, realizing that I was much stronger than I had anticipated.
‘Am I this strong?’
I had heard that I had become twice as strong, but experiencing it firsthand was beyond imagination.
Of course, I could eliminate it with a single Thunder Strike, but for others, it would take at least 5 minutes of intense fighting.
And that was only because light attribute attacks were 100% effective. If it had defense, it might have required a raid.
A raid against a Thought that doesn’t even drop any items……
‘It’s a good thing it has a weakness.’
In addition, although I had been hunting down Thoughts that occasionally appeared in the field, it seemed like it would take quite a while to reach 50.
[Emperor Guild’s ‘Aizen’-nim has invited you to the guild chat.]
[Would you like to accept?]
As I was thinking about that and searching for the next Thought, I received a message from Aizen.
‘Is it about the Main Scenario?’
Considering the timing, I couldn’t think of any other reason for him to contact me. Naturally, I thought of the Main Scenario and accepted Aizen’s chat invitation.
━Rudin-nim. Excuse me, but how are you progressing with the Main Scenario?
‘As expected, it was about the Main Scenario.’
I was making good progress, but I hadn’t mentioned it to the guild, so it wasn’t strange for him to ask.
And judging from the fact that he asked directly, he might be thinking of progressing through the Main Scenario with me.
‘But even without me, there shouldn’t be any problems with the progression.’
Could it be that Aizen contacted me because he couldn’t even handle a single Thought?
Or perhaps he was stuck on the third or fourth quest, but I thought he could just ask about it. So, I answered Aizen’s question first.
“I’m currently on the second quest. No problems so far.”
━Is that so? If you encounter any difficulties, please let me know.
“Are you thinking of progressing together?”
━Yes, I believe the quests themselves won’t be a problem, but Beluin and his Apostles might be challenging.
‘Hmm.’
It felt like my evaluation within the guild had subtly risen since I defeated the First Apostle and completed the Guild Quest alone.
In the past, they would have proceeded regardless of whether I was there or not.
“Alright, don’t worry.”
━Then, please do your best.
In any case, I wasn’t planning on facing Beluin or his Apostles alone either, so I agreed. Aizen ended the conversation with words of encouragement.
‘By the way, how is he planning to handle the first quest?’
I wondered if Aizen intended to clear it alone. Knowing his personality, he would likely involve the executives as well.
Moreover, there weren’t just one or two executives.
The number of executives capable of participating in combat exceeded 30. If all those members were to clear the light attribute quest, it would undoubtedly take a considerable amount of time.
‘Well, they’ll figure it out.’
With the thought that I might be worrying unnecessarily, I began searching for the remaining Thoughts.
* * *
“Haha, to be honest, I thought you were an extraordinary individual from the moment I first saw you.”
“Ah…… yes.”
Fortunately, I managed to defeat 50 Thoughts before the logout message appeared. I returned to the Church of Light and reported my progress. The priest, seemingly very satisfied, greeted me with a smile.
Judging from his reaction, it seemed like not many people had cleared the second quest.
‘Come to think of it, the second quest is meaningless.’
Asking me to hunt Thoughts in the Harpe Empire when there are plenty of them around Beluin in the Pronia Kingdom?
Thinking about it calmly, it was a pointless task.
If there was any purpose to this quest, it was probably to filter out those who lacked the necessary skills.
“Now that I know of your exceptional abilities, Brother, I can entrust you with the next task with peace of mind.”
But how many more quests are there?
There were actually some really long quests that took an entire month to complete.
Of course, in those cases, it was mostly the time spent searching for information, not because the quest itself had hundreds of steps.
‘Considering that, this Main Scenario quest shouldn’t have more than 10 steps……’
Why am I feeling so uneasy?
I had a bad feeling that I would barely finish the quest when Beluin had already destroyed two or three countries.
“Please deliver this letter to our Church in the Ronda Kingdom.”
[A new NPC quest has been generated.]
‘A letter?’
Compared to the previous quests of gathering light attribute or defeating Thoughts, this seemed quite simple.
[Deliver the Letter.]
Description: Please go to any Church of Light in the Ronda Kingdom and deliver the letter.
“……Is that all I need to do? Just deliver this letter?”
“Once you deliver the letter, they will give you further instructions.”
I knew it.
Judging from the current situation, it seemed like I would have to travel to the Ronda Kingdom and continue the quest there.
‘But why the Ronda Kingdom?’
Currently, Beluin is in the Pronia Kingdom.
And right next to the Pronia Kingdom is the Ronda Kingdom. I couldn’t help but feel that they were somehow connected.
If Beluin moved as expected, the next target would be the Ronda Kingdom.
‘Well……’
I’ll find out when I get there.
With that thought, I nodded towards the priest.
“Yes, I understand.”
After leaving the Church of Light, I headed straight for the Ronda Kingdom using the Teleportation Device without hesitation.
The Ronda Kingdom, where a vast sandy desert stretched out beyond the town.
Due to this environment, it wasn’t a particularly popular country among players. However, I could still see quite a few players roaming around.
Or perhaps it was just because it was the weekend.
‘If the third quest also leads here, the number of players might increase even more.’
Anyway, I didn’t have time to sightsee, so I immediately headed towards the Church of Light.
I was able to easily locate the Church of Light after asking a nearby NPC, and as expected, it was still crowded with players due to the Main Scenario.
“Ah…… how do I gather light attribute?”
“I heard you can clear it with materials or potions made from those materials.”
“Materials? What if I don’t have them?”
“Well, you’ll have to gather Magic-grade items with light attribute as an option.”
‘At least everyone seems to know the method.’
Even those still stuck on the first quest knew how to complete it.
It was understandable, considering two days had passed.
Information in Twilight spread rapidly, appearing on the bulletin board within hours, if not minutes. It would be more strange if they didn’t know.
However, regardless of that, acquiring the materials depended on individual capabilities, so it seemed like most players were stuck there.
‘If it weren’t for the dungeon owned by the Emperor Guild, I would have struggled as well.’
Anyway, I didn’t have the luxury to worry about other players, so I decided to approach a nearby priest and deliver the letter.
“Yes, Brother. What brings you here?”
“I have a letter to deliver from the Church of Light in the Harpe Empire.”
“This letter is…… please follow me this way.”
After handing the letter to a nearby priest, he examined the seal and realized it wasn’t something he could handle. He led me somewhere else, where I saw a bishop, unlike before.
“Welcome. I am Bishop Arus, in charge of this regional Church.”
“I’m Rudin.”
“Yes, Rudin-nim. Please allow me to see the letter first.”
[NPC quest completed.]
[500 Divine Contribution Points acquired!]
The NPC who introduced himself as Arus read the letter I had brought, and accordingly, a message appeared indicating the completion of the quest.
Arus nodded as well.
“I see. First of all, thank you for assisting our Church. And this letter suggests that, trusting in your abilities, Rudin-nim, you should take the Trial of Light.”
“The Trial of Light?”
“It is a trial that only the best paladins in the Church could take in the past. However, the last successful attempt was 50 years ago, so it is a trial that no one takes anymore.”
“It seems like quite a difficult trial.”
“If it weren’t difficult, it wouldn’t have remained unconquered for 50 years.”
It seemed like the fourth quest involved taking some kind of Trial of Light.
“However, if you pass the Trial of Light, it will be as if you wield a powerful weapon against Beluin.”
‘This quest keeps getting harder and harder.’
If the final objective of the Main Scenario quest was to confront Beluin, it seemed like I would be fighting with less than 10 people.
But I still didn’t know what the Trial of Light entailed, so it was too early to jump to conclusions.
“Of course, this is not mandatory. We will respect your decision regarding the Trial of Light, Rudin-nim.”
‘Huh?’
[A new NPC quest has been generated.]
He offered me a choice, and a new quest appeared.
Perhaps this time, it was a quest where I could make a choice. I opened the quest information window.
[Two Choices.]
Description: Bishop Arus, who received the letter, has presented you with two options. One is to take the Trial of Light. The other is to build a defense line in preparation for Beluin’s invasion. Please choose one.
‘If I’m going to face Beluin, it would be better to take the Trial of Light……’
But what would happen if I failed the Trial of Light?
All the Main Scenario quests I had received so far resulted in the quest disappearing upon failure. Therefore, I felt uneasy about the Trial of Light as well. However, I couldn’t ignore it completely because something felt off.
“If I pass the Trial of Light, will I be able to defeat Beluin?”
“Beluin is a god. It is impossible for a mortal to defeat a god. However, you might be able to stand against him.”
‘What’s so ambiguous about that?’
However, it seemed certain that passing the Trial of Light would be beneficial when confronting Beluin.
I didn’t know what kind of benefits it would provide, but……
If that was the case, then the quest I had to choose was clear.
“I’ll choose the Trial of Light.”
“Are you sure? As I mentioned, the Trial of Light is extremely difficult, with no one having succeeded in 50 years.”
“I have to do it. Because I’m going to face Beluin.”
To be honest, even if I chose Defense Line Construction, I didn’t think there would be many players.
Defense Line Construction was the fourth quest, which meant players had to clear the first and second quests to reach it. It would be strange if there were many players at this stage.
Perhaps if I chose Defense Line Construction, I would only be accompanied by NPCs belonging to the Church of Light.
“Hmm, I see your point. If even one person manages to pass the trial, it would certainly be helpful. Very well.”
[The quest details have been changed.]
Perhaps because I chose the Trial of Light, a message appeared indicating that the quest details had been changed.
[Pass the Trial of Light.]
Description: You have chosen the Trial of Light from the two options. Now, please take the Trial of Light and pass it.
‘Title and Skill Enhancement?’
Were those the powers I would gain to face Beluin?
I had a rough idea of what Skill Enhancement entailed, but the Title remained a complete mystery.
I didn’t know how good a Title had to be to be considered helpful against Beluin, but I didn’t have time to dwell on it. Arus guided me towards the location of the Trial of Light.
“Follow me. I will lead the way.”
Leave a Reply