“Arghh!” Siegfried groaned in agony. The tentacles were constricting him with such force that it could only be described as "monstrous." The tentacles tightened their grip on Siegfried and dragged him slowly toward the sewer.
“Argh! Arghh!”
Siegfried fought back against the tentacles, and he channeled his mana to place down both Blaze Field and Shadow Hell.
Sheik! Shwiiik!
The Blaze Hydras and Frost Hydras emerged from the debuff field, and even the Night Stalkers appeared. They fought back against the tentacles and attempted to free Siegfried from its grasp.
“Argh!”
The tentacles slowly eased up, but he still could not swing his +13 Vanquisher’s Grasp due to the tentacles limiting the movement of his arm. Thus, he decided to activate Absolute Zero.
Flash!
A bright white light flashed, and the area around Siegfried froze instantly, as the temperature plummeted to extreme sub-zero in the blink of an eye. The tentacles were no exception; they froze solid under the powerful freezing aura of Absolute Zero.
“Kyuuu! What’s going on, owner punk?!”Hamchi poked his head out and shouted with obvious concern in his voice.
“It’s nothing! Just give me a second!” Siegfried shouted back. Then, he immediately activated the third stage of Overclocking to amplify his stats while using the Super Armor effect to make himself more tenacious.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
The frozen tentacles shattered like ice, allowing Siegfried to break free from their grasp.
Thud! Thud! Thud
Moments later, crimson crystals dropped to the ground.
[Low-Grade Blood Spinel Crystal]
[An energy crystal infused with an otherworldly power.]
[Rating: Unique]
[Effects: Strength +1, Vitality +7, Lifesteal +0.001%]
It was an otherworldly essence, something he hadn't obtained in the battle against Count Arial.
‘Huh? Why are crystals dropping? Shouldn’t the essences come first?’ Siegfried wondered.
Typically, a Red Otherworldly Essence was supposed to drop first, and then a hundred of them could be synthesized into a crystal. However, the synthesized crystal, called Low-Grade Blood Spinel Crystal, dropped right away, which was unusual.
‘Then again, I didn’t get anything in the battle against Count Arial, so…’ Siegfried recalled his fight with Count Arial. No essence or crystals had dropped at the time, so it was possible that these drops varied depending on the soul fragment itself.
‘Oh well, let’s gather these up and get out of here,’ Siegfried thought with a shrug. He summoned his Three-Legged Crow to loot the Low-Grade Spinel Blood Crystals.
Ding!
[Alert: You have obtained Low-Grade Blood Spinel Crystal!]
[Alert: You have obtained Low-Grade Blood Spinel Crystal!]
[Alert: You have obtained Low-Grade Blood Spinel Crystal!]
[Alert: You have obtained Low-Grade Blood Spinel Crystal!]
Just then, Hamchi called out to him again.
“Kyuuu! Are you alright, owner punk?!”
“Yeah! I’m coming up now!”
Siegfried made his way back up from the sewer.
“Kyuuu! What happened down there, owner punk?!”
“There was a tentacle monster down there.”
“Kyu…? A-Are you alright? It didn’t do anything strange to you, did it?”
“I’m fine, but…” Siegfried replied, glancing over his body.
His armor was dented here and there, and patches of his skin were left with bruises that were slowly turning red.
“It feels uncomfortable,” he added.
“Kyu…?” Hamchi tilted his head in confusion.
“Anyway, let’s just go back.”
With Hamchi on his back, Siegfried took flight and headed straight for the Iron Palace.
***
As soon as Siegfried arrived at the Iron Palace, he contacted Cheon Woo-Jin and informed him that he had found the final soul fragment.
Upon hearing the news, Cheon Woo-Jin rushed over to the Iron Palace with the Guardians.
“You found it?”
“Yeah.”
“Where is it?”
“Underground,” Siegfried replied, pointing to the ground.
“Huh? But we already checked the sewers, too.”
“There was a hidden space down there.”
“Eh?”
“I think it’s supposed to be a bunker. But I’m not exactly sure what it was used for.”
“So that bunker was connected to the sewer?”
“Yeah.”
“Hmm…”
“Hold on a second.”
Siegfried left Cheon Woo-Jin for a while and summoned the NPCs who were former officials of the Zavala Kingdom. He instructed them to retrieve the blueprint of Feiogh, as he needed the actual layout to do anything.
Inzaghi’s Clairvoyance was being interrupted, after all.
Fortunately, the blueprints were safely preserved in the archives of the Iron Palace, even though it had been hundreds of years since they were made.
“Let’s see…” Siegfried muttered as he examined the blueprints carefully. Then, he noticed a completely different one on the last page, “This is it.”
He turned to one of the officials, who had once been a record custodian for the kingdom.
“Is this the map of the underground bunker?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“So, there was a facility like this hidden underground?”
“I heard it was constructed around four hundred years ago to prepare for a dragon attack. Records show that once they built this city, dragon raids became so frequent that they had no choice but to build the bunker.”
Apparently, the founding king of the Zavala Kingdom, who chose Feiogh as the capital, was not an avid real estate guy judging by how he chose a place easily picked on by dragons instead of anywhere else.
“I see… Could you make a copy of this map so that it will be easier to read?”
“Please give me some time, Your Majesty.”
After requesting a better copy of the map to be made, Siegfried called for Quandt. His armor had been so damaged by the tentacles that he needed it to be repaired immediately.
“It’s quite banged up. Do you think you can fix it?”
“Hmm… This was crafted by Seol-Hwa. All right, I will fix it up for you.”
Quandt immediately noticed that Siegfried was using an armor crafted by Yong Seol-Hwa.
“Thank you. Ah, and also…”
“Yes, Your Majesty?”
“The others participating in the upcoming mission are going to be using this kind of armor. Can you add sockets to them, too?”
One had to possess otherworldly energy to face the Soul Fragment of Apocalius. In other words, their armor needed to have sockets to embed the crystals that would allow them to participate in combat.
“Certainly. We do have plenty of Otherworldly Essence left, so I can work on them immediately the moment you send over the armor.”
“Thank you.”
“Haha! Don’t mention it, King Siegfried!”
“I will leave it to you.”
After entrusting the request to Quandt, Siegfried began gathering party members who would be participating in raiding the Feiogh Underground: Old Air Raid Bunker.
“The raid will commence tomorrow at nine in the morning. We will set off as soon as the armor and maps are ready. For those of you whose armor lacks sockets, please leave them here. I will have the necessary adjustments made.”
After giving these instructions, Siegfried looked back at Cheon Woo-Jin.
“Hey, you remember our deal, right? You have to level me up straight to Level 299 once I clear this quest.”
“Like I’d forget? Don’t worry; once we take down the boss, I’ll get you straight to Level 299.”
“All right.”
Siegfried became extremely motivated for the raid.
Clearing this quest would allow him to reach Level 299 instantly, which would bring him to the brink of becoming a Master. The highest level in the game so far was Level 299, so he'd be at the peak level-wise.
Well, there were other players who had transcended Level 299, and a good example of this was Beowulf, who had already reached Level 300. There were also probably a few other unknown Adventurers who had yet to show themselves to the world.
Anyway, with that, Siegfried concluded the meeting and logged out to rest in preparation for the upcoming raid tomorrow.
***
The next morning, Siegfried received a redrawn copy of the Feiogh Underground: Old Air Raid Bunker that was far clearer than the one found in the archives.
[Alert: You have obtained Feiogh Underground: Old Air Raid Bunker Map!]
Siegfried uploaded the map to his mini-map, and the layout of the Feiogh Underground: Old Air Raid Bunker was displayed on the left side of his screen.
The interference from the Soul Fragment of Apocalius made it difficult to see the layout of the bunker with Inzaghi’s Clairvoyance, but he could simply use the map he had obtained to secure a path forward.
“Let’s move out!”
Siegfried, accompanied by around fifty Adventurers and one hundred Guardians, made his way to one of the entrances leading to the Feiogh Underground: Old Air Raid Bunker.
There were entrances located on the north, east, south, and west sections of Feiogh, and one could also enter through the sewer pipes. However, there was no need for them to go through the narrow, cramped pipes when there were other entrances.
Siegfried chose one of the available entrances.
“The tentacles are very strong, so be careful,” Siegfried warned Cheon Woo-Jin and Yong Seol-Hwa.
“Got it.”
“I understand, oppa.”
The two replied at the same time.
Siegfried used his +13 Vanquisher’s Grasp to destroy the lock of the heavy iron door before pushing it open.
Creaaak!
The massive iron door that probably weighed several tons swung open, revealing a dark corridor that stretched endlessly into the darkness.
“Grab a torch and follow along if you can’t see in the dark. We’re heading in first,” Siegfried said. Then, he looked to his side and said, “Let’s go, Hamchi!”
“Kyuu! Let’s go, owner punk!”
Siegfried and Hamchi charged into the darkness without carrying any torches. The character, Siegfried van Proa, had already reached a point where his stats allowed him to see with infrared-like clarity even in complete darkness.
In other words, Han Tae-Sung, the gamer, had no trouble navigating the pitch-black surroundings.
“You’re slowly turning into a monster, aren’t you?” Cheon Woo-Jin grumbled, clicking his tongue.
“Wait for me!” Yong Seol-Hwa exclaimed, following after them.
The two had Legendary Classes, so they had no trouble seeing in the dark.
“...”
However, it was not the case for the other Adventurers and the Guardians.
They hesitated at first and were slightly surprised when the trio charged into the darkness without carrying any torches, but they quickly lit their own torches and followed after them.
The Old Air Raid Bunker was eerily quiet, and only the sound of footsteps echoed through the dark corridors. There would be occasional sounds of water dripping from the ceiling, but that was about it.
As they advanced deeper into the dark corridor, Siegfried struck up some conversation with Cheon Woo-Jin. Just like that, they chatted as they walked.
It was then.
“Hey, I’ve been curious about something.”
Siegfried suddenly turned to Cheon Woo-Jin after a question popped up in his mind.
“What’s up?” Cheon Woo-Jin asked in response.
“What’s your deal, anyway?” Siegfried asked.
“Huh? What do you mean by that?”
“I mean, how are you so rich? I always wanted to ask but keep forgetting.”
“Oh, that,” Cheon Woo-Jin replied with a chuckle. Then, he answered, “Actually, my father is—”
“Kyuuu! I hear something, owner punk!” Hamchi exclaimed. He had the sharpest hearing among all of them, and his ears were perked up.
“Huh? What sound?” Siegfried asked.
“Kyuuu! It’s the sound of someone panting! It sounds like a girl!” Hamchi replied.
“What girl?” Siegfried asked, tilting his head in confusion. Then, he said, “Ah, I can hear it now too.”
Help! Help! Please, help me!
It was the desperate tearful voice of a young girl begging for help. Judging by how the echoes were growing louder, she seemed to be running toward them.
“Sounds like it’s pretty far away,” Cheon Woo-Jin said.
“This place is like a cave, so the sound’s probably being carried from afar,” Siegfried replied.
“Hmm… Maybe about three kilometers?” Cheon Woo-Jin added.
Siegfried nodded and headed in the direction of the sound.
After moving around two kilometers—
“Help! Please! Huff… Huff…! Please, help me!”
A girl soaked in blood with bruises all over her body emerged from the darkness. She stumbled toward Siegfried’s group and desperately pleaded for help.
Then—
Thud!
The girl collapsed to the ground, huffing and puffing.
“Are you alright?” one of the Guardians asked while moving toward the girl.
Whoosh!
Before the Guardian could reach her, Siegfried’s +13 Vanquisher’s Grasp moved quickly.
Pukeok!
The +13 Vanquisher’s Grasp smashed down brutally, shattering shattered the girl’s skull.
“...!”
The entire party was stunned by the sight that had just unfolded before them. None of them expected that Siegfried would be so ruthless as to crush the head of a helpless little girl in danger, begging for help.
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