Translator: rainbowturtle
âThis is a bit too severeâ¦â
Hyeonu frowned when he felt his health and magic power being absorbed. This was quite different from stage four. The suction was so strong that it couldnât even be compared.
Hyeonu released more magic power in proportion to the stronger suction power. It went without saying that his concentration had increased that much.
âIt is still okay. I can hold on for a minute.â
Nevertheless, it wasnât a big problem. He just had to hold on for one minute, and it would be over. Hyeonuâs health was being reduced by less than 1% per second. In other words, after one minute, more than half of his health would remain.
âThis much every time⦠It might be better than Magic Power Absorption.â
He didnât know what the result would be until after Preparation for Defying the Natural Order was over, but he immediately had such a thought. As long as his concentration was complete, he could repeat Preparation for Defying the Natural Order several times a day.
[After the passage of time, stage five has ended.]
[Preparation for Defying the Natural Order has ended.]
[Your stats are increased as a reward.]
[The strength stat has increased by 17 points.]
[The agility stat has increased by 9 points.]
[Your magic power stat has increased by 22 points.]
[The physique stat has increased by 5 points.]
[The fighting energy stat has increased by 8 points.]
[The dignity stat has increased by 9 points.]
[The fighting energy stat has increased by 32 points.]
The rewards were given neatly. There were more stat points than he expected. Hyeonu had expected his stats to rise by five at most.
âIsnât this much better than hunting?â
It didnât make sense to level up traditionally anymore. Anyone would think so if they could sit still on the throne and gain such a huge stat rise just by moving magic power. Nevertheless, things didnât work so well in the world.
[You have cleared Preparation for Defying the Natural Order.]
[Preparation for Defying the Natural Order will become more difficult.]
[The difficulty will continue to rise endlessly.]
[It takes effort and talent to overturn the sky.]
Hyeonu blinked when he saw the message window that filled his vision.
âI thought it was sucking up honeyâ¦â
The good luck was over with one time. Of course, he hadnât challenged it a second time, so he didnât know how difficult it would be.
âIâm not sure if I can clear the next step right away.â
Hyeonu thought up to here and quickly got off the Throne that Defies the Natural Order. In any case, he didnât know when Preparation for Defying the Natural Order would be activated again.
âMaster dude, what is that?â Tang-E asked Hyeonu who appeared in front of him.
âI donât know either, but it doesnât seem to be a good thing.â Hyeonu didnât think it was as great as Edchan made it out to be. The Throne that Defies the Natural Order was good, but that was it. He didnât understand why it was called Edchanâs masterpiece of a lifetime.
âIt seems like there were more treasures at the dwarf villageâs workshopâ¦â
However, this was Hyeonuâs mistake. Edchan said that the Throne that Defies the Natural Order was his lifelong masterpiece because it could increase stats. NPCs couldnât raise the level and gain stats; they just honed their abilities. For such NPCs, the Throne that Defies the Natural Order was literally a treasure. Of course, it was a disaster for those who couldnât bear the weight of the throne.
While approaching Hyeonu who was talking to Tang-E, Edchan asked, âHow is it? It is the masterpiece of my life.â
There was a great deal of anticipation on his face for Hyeonuâs evaluation. Unlike his words to Tang-E, Hyeonu changed his expression and praised the Throne that Defies the Natural Order: âIt is good. Edchan, I think you are the only one who can make this type of work.â
âHaha, is that so? Hahaha.â Edchan laughed. His gaze was stuck on the Throne that Defies the Natural Order.
âBy the way, the throne has a strange effect⦠Is this what Edchan intended?â Hyeonu asked what he was most curious about.
Preparation for Defying the Natural Orderâwas this what Edchan intended to make or a product of coincidence?
âOf course, it was intentional. I didnât intend to make it like this originally, but⦠I took Supedâs opinion and changed the direction. He already has experience making one such object.â
In the midst of nodding at Edchanâs words, Hyeonuâs eyes suddenly widened.
âIt was intended⦠Huh?â
Edchan said some strange wordsâsomething similar had been made before.
âThere is another one like thisâ¦?â
In Hyeonuâs head, something resembling the Throne that Defies the Natural Order came to mind.
âThe throne where the emperor sits.â
It was the very throne that placed a ridiculously crazy pressure on him. Hyeonu became pale as he recalled the throne that caused his sweat to flow just by climbing a step. His senses came to life vividly when he recalled the memory of that day.
âWill this happen later on?â
Hyeonu turned his head and asked Suped, âIs the throne in the capital the similar thing that Suped made?â
Suped nodded and replied, âIt is also made from dragon scales and bones. I used what was in the empireâs treasure warehouse. Many nobles objected because the two materials could produce numerous artifacts, yet I said I would make them into a chair. It is a natural reaction.â
âI wouldâve thought the same as them. However, I wouldnât have expressed it like them.â Hyeonu agreed with the thoughts of the nobles.
A dragonâs corpse was the best material. It didnât matter if it was for the emperor. It was a waste to use the dragonâs bones and scales simply for a chair where the emperor would sit.
âHowever, there were no nobles who could stop the emperor. I participated in the work to make what His Majesty wanted. It is the prototype of the magic circle used for this. It has already been 20 years,â Suped said.
Hyeonu couldnât close his mouth.
â20 yearsâ¦â
He had no choice but to let his mouth drop open at the mention of this ridiculous number of years.
âIf it has evolved over the past 20 years⦠It is amazing.â
It was clear that the emperorâs ability to endure it and overcome the magic power of the throne would be enormous.
âUnfortunately, it canât be helped.â
Hyeonu was still disappointed. Time was essential to see the proper effect of the throne, but Hyeonu wanted items that would shorten the time he needed to become strong.
âNo. Why do I need this?â
Hyeonu realized once again that he didnât need to rush. He was no longer a professional gamer. Nor was he the head of a household who carried his family on his back.
âThank you, Edchan. Suped as well. The grace you showed by making such a precious thing⦠I will never forget it.â Hyeonu bowed to Edchan and Suped and sincerely expressed his gratitude. Then he hugged Tang-E and disappeared.
After confirming that Hyeonu had disappeared, Edchan opened his mouth and said, âHe asked for a favor⦠I donât know what he is thinking.â
Suped shook his head. There was no need to think about a horse on a chessboard. He replied, âHow can we know what he is thinking? It is just our role to move as weâre told.â
âIndeed⦠I didnât even think about rejecting it⦠What a contradictory idea.â
***
Hyeonu traveled to Etono with Tang-E. There was no time to waste in Phinis.
âThe remaining citiesâ¦â
âSighâ¦â Hyeonu sighed as he thought of the remaining cities. There were eight more cities to be recorded on the map.
âOnly Etono and Penn are recordedâ¦â
Thinking about it, Hyeonu had been traveling from Penn to another city when he saved Kalui and the other descendants of the Luos Empire.
âI have to go back to Tendmulâ¦â
He also had to walk as he didnât have a mount.
âViscount Garcia mustâve left already.â
Hyeonu had told Viscount Garcia to leave, so the latter would naturally have left by now and headed for where John Blake would be.
âTang-E, shall we walk?â
âAre you crazy, Master dude? Isnât there a mount?â Tang-E didnât want to walk.
âI will go to Penn and find a mount.â
âYes.â Hyeonu nodded and accepted Tang-Eâs comments. He naturally didnât want to waste time walking. Having time to spare and wasting time for nothing was clearly different.
Right then, someone approached Hyeonu and pretended to be surprised: âUh? Hyeonu?â
âWhoâ¦?â Hyeonu turned his head at the voice calling out to him.
A beautiful woman in white armor entered Hyeonuâs sights.
âReina?â he uttered. Reina was standing there with the players of the New York Warriors.
âWhat are you doing here?â Reina asked.
Hyeonu stroked Tang-E and answered, âIâm going hunting. What about you, Reina?ân/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
âWe just met up.â
âAh, is that so? Then I will go since you must be quite busy.â Hyeonu waved his hand and tried to leave.
âCan we hunt together?â Reina interjected.
âHunt together?â
âJust me. We were just about to split up,â Reina said to Hyeonu in an urgent voice.
âUmâ¦â Hyeonu was stumped by Reinaâs words. He had never thought about leaving here with someone.
âIt should be fine if there is only one personâ¦â
It would be very difficult to take 12 people. Moreover, he didnât have the heart for that.
Hyeonu wasnât a kindergarten teacher after all.
âReina isnât weakâ¦â
Reina was a close-range player who could fare well on her own.
âYes, thatâs good. I think itâll be fine with just Reina,â Hyeonu said.
When Hyeonu allowed it, Reina was delighted.
Hyeonu stroked Tang-Eâs head without paying much attention to Reinaâs appearance.
âTang-E, is it okay?â
âIt is okay, Master dude. Isnât she quite strong? Of course⦠she canât get into that city.â
After going to Bung Bung Island and reading some books, Tang-E was now aware that it was unusual for Hyeonu to be able to freely wander around the cities in the demon world.
âYou will manage somehow with the two of you. Nothing will happen before I come back.â
It would be impossible even for a demon noble to subdue Tang-E easily. Tang-E was already that strong. In fact, he had even somewhat surpassed the level of some rankers.
âBy the way Master dude, I have a question.â Tang-E looked at Hyeonu and blinked.
Hyeonu stroked Tang-Eâs head and asked, âWhat is it?â
âWhat type of gift should you give to make the other person happy?â
âWhat do you mean all of a sudden? Do you want to give gifts to your parents?â
Tang-E ignored Hyeonuâs words and urged him for an answer: âIn any case, just tell me quickly.â
âUm⦠I would like anything you give me⦠However, wouldnât you be happier if you give something you value or something that the recipient likes?â Hyeonu taught Tang-E a universal fact.
âReally? Thank you, Master dude.â
Despite Tang-Eâs gratitude, Hyeonu was only wondering about how Tang-Eâs question came up.
He just didnât ask because it was obvious that Tang-E wouldnât answer him.
âA gift? Ah!â
Hyeonu was thinking about Tang-Eâs words of a gift when he looked up and saw Reina standing in front of him. There was something stuck in his inventory.
âThat bracelet!â
It was the bracelet he received after healing Chen Long.
âThe attribute doesnât fit me anyway.â
It would be fortunate if it could be used. Moreover, it would be a great benefit if he could clear up any debt he owed toward a senior ranker like Reina. Due to this value, Hyeonu scattered a considerable number of items to the rankers he was close to. It wasnât just Kim Seokjung and Gang Junggu but also the Crescent Moon players, Liu Shei, and so on. He paid back his debt to them at least once.
âI think I gave her a rig as wellâ¦â
Of course, Reina was a bit special. Hyeonu had given more than just one or two gifts to her. Everything related to the ice attribute just went to Reina.
âGiving one more here doesnât change anything.â
Hyeonu offered Reina a luxurious box from his inventory. âReina, do you want this?â