◈ Episode 62. That Hard Thing (1)
Ones, tens, hundreds, thousands, ten-thousands, hundred-thousands…….─Current Contribution: 897,340pSo is this high, or low?
With nothing to compare it to, I couldn’t even guess.
And with this personality, it wasn’t as though I could grab someone and ask.
That was when it happened.[You have met the conditions.][Rewards will be issued according to contribution.][Your relationship with Frost has reached the maximum value.][Your influence in Frost has reached the maximum value.][The “Authority” function has been activated in Frost.]……
Fortunately, it seemed I had been spared the trouble of asking.
Roughly nine hundred thousand contribution points.
Apparently, a contribution score of that level was enough to raise both relationship and influence to the maximum.
And as a result, even the [Authority] function had been activated.‘Whoa. Hold on a second.’Experiencing something once was better than hearing about it a hundred times.
I had already tasted the power of the Authority function in the Yusra Kingdom.
Thanks to that, I understood exactly what Authority could do, and what its limits were.
The fact that it had no particular limits was its limit!
The moment the Authority function was activated.
In effect, it meant I possessed authority equal to that of the lord of the relevant region.
To give an example.
In the Yusra Kingdom, the only one who could block my decisions would be Yusra’s king, Hakuna.
But.‘Hakuna, going against my words?’That was something I couldn’t even imagine.
And I had activated such an enormous Authority function.
In Frost as well.
The value of Frost that I had seen on TV, internet news, and communities came vividly back to mind.
Even if it wasn’t on the level of South Korea’s Magic Tower, everyone had expected that it would certainly bring about a tremendous economic boom.‘Though that won’t be possible right away.’It couldn’t be helped.
“This is going to take ages to restore.”
“Just the collapsed buildings alone are no joke.”
“……
More than anything, we have to worry about the residents too.”
The current Frost had literally fallen into a living hell and then miraculously come back to life.
But I wasn’t too worried.
Why, the Yusra Kingdom had been in far worse shape than Frost.‘There wasn’t even a resident, just one lone king.’Look at what the Yusra Kingdom had become after starting from that.
Of course, that had only been possible because Yusra had that much value.
But since people had made such a fuss over Frost’s value, it should be no less than Yusra.
“Looks like only the production-class players are going to be excited again.”
“Considering how much they’ve suffered, we’ve got to acknowledge them for this.”
“Yeah, well. We got plenty of experience points out of it.”
I decided to examine the Authority function gradually.
Right, experience points.
I checked my status window and flinched.[Name: Granfell Claudi Arpheus Romeo][Class: Demon Hunter][Level: 295][Stats]
Strength: 38 / Agility: 42 / Magic: 213 / Luck: 5 / Aesthetic: Low[Available Points: 30]
Demon King, Decarabia.
Just by defeating him, I had gained 30 levels.
Wow, that rose more than I expected.
Wasn’t he the one who descended into the plaza?
He had been attacked from all sides by the players who had gathered there.
In other words, I had shared the kill contribution with them, and likewise split the experience points.‘And yet I still rose 30 levels?’As expected, he spat out experience worthy of a Demon King.
Of course, that also meant I had contributed that much to the kill.
Enough to automatically acquire the loot, that is.[Loot has been automatically acquired due to high kill contribution.]
Inventory open.
I checked the Demon King’s loot.[Pentagram of Impure Knowledge][Grade: Epic][Restriction: None][Effect: Sealed][Description: Its effect has been sealed by a demonic curse. It must be purified in order to learn its proper effect.]
First of all, I did not waver.
An incarnation of integrity and incorruptibility who had transcended material desires.
And as if that were not enough, a temperament that did not rejoice or despair over every little thing.
I was benefiting thoroughly from Granfell’s personality.‘Calmly.’I carefully read the information that had appeared again.[Pentagram of Impure Knowledge].
First, its grade was none other than [Epic].
A tier above [Unique].
That meant it was the highest-grade item currently existing in Arcana.
And more importantly than anything else, there were no equipment restrictions, including level.‘If it had been something like a level 700 restriction, I really would’ve died from frustration.’What did that information mean?
It meant that as long as I removed the demon’s curse, I could immediately check the effect of an Epic-grade item……!
Removing a demon’s curse.
At least for me, that wasn’t such a difficult task.
As you can see, just look at the items in my inventory.
Decarabia.
The three items I had used as sacrifices to invite him to the ritual.[Possessed Famous Sword], [The Noblewoman’s Jewel Box], [Choking Necktie].
Those three items were sitting neatly in my inventory, purified.
So.‘……
Thank heavens. Truly.’That I wasn’t swept away by this jackpot feeling, I mean.
Agitation leads to mistakes.
Thanks to that, I could keep a cool head and think.
My personality really is so goo…….
Just as I was about to shamelessly praise myself.
“?”
What is it, sparkling again?
My eyes went to the blinking quest window.
When I checked, it was a class quest I hadn’t even expected.─Defeat the Demon King Decarabia. (Success)[Class Quest: Demon King Subjugation].……
Wait, come to think of it.
I reflexively looked toward the place where the Demon King had been.
Count Ascurra and the Seven Deadly Sins, Greed.
After defeating those guys.
Thick smoke had risen from their remains.
Unlike back then, Demon King Decarabia had been burned away without leaving even a handful of remains. And yet……. Smoke was rising into the sky all the same.
Because smoke was rising from all directions.
The others didn’t think much of it.
But to my eyes, it was clearly visible.
An especially dense smoke.
It was rising from the air where Decarabia had been.
I looked at the smoke and counted.‘That makes three, then.’The class quest I had cleared in the past.
There had definitely been a mention of a “beacon.”
Then does that smoke serve as a beacon?‘So, who is this beacon being lit for?’I was thinking of it lightly.
“……!”
A new class quest appeared.[Class Quest: Akshan’s Legacy]
The beacon of survival has been clearly delivered.
O last demon hunter.
Recover your legacy, lost to evil.─Train your weakened body. (Repeat)……
Wait. What?!
Akshan?!
The Akshan I know?!
And on top of that, legaaacy?!*Decarabia.
The moment the Demon King descended.
The world fell into despair.
Overwhelming pressure!
A giant pentagram formed of blood and flesh.
The figure of Decarabia floating above Frost’s plaza was nauseating even from afar.
Not only the viewers, but even the studio guests could not hide their bewilderment.
“To think they are facing a Demon King like that. The players are astounding.”
Fear felt instinctively.
Before that fear could even fade.
Breaking news began arriving one after another.
“A-according to the news that just came in, the demon presumed to be the Demon King had been disguising himself as Frost’s lord! And the one who saw through that fact was…….”
“Don’t tell me, was it Player Lee Hoyeol again?”
“Yes, that appears to be the case!”
Breaking news delivered by the players at the scene.
Yes, we had Lee Hoyeol.
Just as everyone was easing their fear with one heart.
Rustle—the script that was turned over contained a statement released by AAU.
“Wait a moment. According to AAU, the Demon King’s identity is Decarabia……!”
At the same time, reference footage of Decarabia appeared.
It contained information that shocked everyone.──────Possesses knowledge of all minerals.
Expected to be immune to earth-attribute attacks, including attacks involving minerals.──────“Earth-attribute attacks, you say……?”
The first thing that came to mind was, naturally, Lee Hoyeol.
Earth-attribute attacks.
That was one of Lee Hoyeol’s primary means of attack.
At the same time, the screen changed.
The distance between Lee Hoyeol and Decarabia had visibly narrowed.
“Expert, how do you see this?”
“It’s an extremely dangerous situation……. That is how it appears to me.”
“I agree. Each skill has its own proficiency, doesn’t it? And to raise that proficiency, effort is absolutely necessary. The reason Player Lee Hoyeol was able to freely use earth-attribute skills? It must have been because he invested all that effoort and time!”
Yes, skills were the same as stats.
Even digging only one well was difficult.
As a skill’s proficiency increased.
The time and effort required to raise that proficiency became far from ordinary.
No matter how great Lee Hoyeol was.
He surely couldn’t use skills of other attributes as freely as he summoned stone pillars or stone stairs…….
Fwoosh—!
“Wh-what is that!”……
It had been only common sense to expect as much!
What in the world was that flame storm, as though it were alive and moving?
Tremendous heat.
The helicopter pilot urgently raised the altitude.
The camera hurriedly zoomed out and captured the full shape of the flame storm.
“What am I looking at……?”
The cameraman filming muttered without realizing it.
“……
Doesn’t that look like a person?”
No, it wasn’t an illusion.
A live broadcast.
The studio, watching the same screen.
“That isn’t just a flame storm. Isn’t that a person?”
“A face, long hair, and isn’t that something like a hand?!”
“It is not an optical illusion. That is definitely the form of a woman!”
“Expert, what kind of skill could that be?”
“How would a humble person like me know! Just watch.”
That form was like that of a woman gently embracing and supporting Frost.
As if to keep it from falling into hell.
Fwoosh—!
The flame storm became a sturdy shield for the players, and at the same time an inescapable prison for Decarabia. There were no further reversals.
“It’s over, everyone. The Demon King has fallen……!”
It was an utterly overwhelming victory.
However, they could not simply rejoice.
There were undeniably victims.
“But it is a victory filled with wounds.”
The camera closed in on Frost’s residents, who had collapsed to the ground.
Was the sky trying to comfort those steeped in sorrow?
Soon, large snowflakes began pouring down from the sky.‘Yes, if this were a movie or a drama, that is.’This would be the perfect point to cut it off.
A hero who defeated evil had appeared.
Peace had returned once more.
A clean ending while hinting at the next season.
But this was reality.‘A reality where there are still sordid details left to haggle over.’Producer Hyeon Yongseok, who had been watching the angle, spoke solemnly.
“Let’s catch just one more shot.”
What Hyeon Yongseok was aiming for was none other than Inazuma.
If you had even a little sense.
You could predict what would unfold from now on.
‘It happens all the time.’
Frost had appeared in the new update.
What was the reason the governments of each country had been so on edge over that news?
Because the economic value attached to Frost was tremendous.‘The Japanese government must be dancing right about now.’When Frost appeared in Hokkaido, the northern island.
Their black intentions had quickly been revealed.
They had done everything in their power to hold back other guilds, excluding their own nation’s guild, Inazuma. It was clearly a violation of an international agreement, but they must have judged Frost to be valuable enough to violate it.‘They withdrew quickly thanks to the Demon King popping out, though.’People always change their tune once they leave the restroom compared to when they entered it.
Now that the Demon King had disappeared.
It was obvious that the Japanese government would once again bring up territory and assert their rights over Frost.
Who would be the greatest obstacle to the Japanese government?
Naturally.‘The person who made the highest contribution in the recapture quest.’It would be Lee Hoyeol.
“……
I knew they’d come out like that!”
Yes, the flow proceeded exactly as Hyeon Yongseok had expected.
All members of the Inazuma Guild, led by Hisagi.
They had begun approaching Lee Hoyeol.
Hyeon Yongseok ordered.
“Can we catch the sound?”
-That might be a little difficult.
“Okay. We’ll have to be satisfied with the picture. Pull in for a close-up.”
-Focusing on expressions and lip movements? You don’t have to tell me. I know that much.
“Good.”
If nothing else, it wouldn’t be bad to infer the situation from their expressions and lip movements.
No, it wasn’t even a matter of settling for less. They had to get that one shot.
Korea-Japan conflict.
He couldn’t guarantee anything else, but it was guaranteed to bring ratings.
Soon, Lee Hoyeol and Hisagi Kazuma faced each other.
“……
Huh?”
But no matter how far they zoomed in.
They could not capture Hisagi’s expression or the shape of his mouth.
Of course, that was only natural.
Hyeon Yongseok blinked, unable to believe the screen before him.
“……
Hey, Jongjin. Wh-what am I looking at right now?”
How could one see the faces of people whose heads were bowed!
But this, too, was reality.
Having grasped the situation, Hyeon Yongseok urgently said.
“H-hurry and put up the caption!”
Breaking news appeared at the bottom of the broadcast screen.──────All members of the Inazuma Guild, including Hisagi Kazuma.
Appear to be bowing their heads to Lee Hoyeol in gratitude……!──────