Chapter 133: Chapter 133

‘Unique?’

Kim Bong-Goo’s class was Shadow Combat.

It was Epic-grade.

He was originally an Assassin, but during the previous event he participated in with Jeong-Hoon, his class had been upgraded to Epic.

He had already considered that to be more than he deserved, and now Jeong-Hoon was telling him to upgrade to Unique for his 3rd class advancement?

That was absurd!

“Let’s go again.”

Whoosh!

Jeong-Hoon, starting on his own accord, swung the dagger widely.

This time, it was an attack that was clearly visible.

[Shadow Slash activated.]

Kim Bong-Goo tried to counter Jeong-Hoon’s dagger with Shadow Slash.

Since it was a training dagger, he thought he could overpower him with his item’s stats.

However, just as the daggers were about to clash, Jeong-Hoon swiftly lowered his dagger.

Then, using his movement technique, he quickly slashed Kim Bong-Goo’s side.

“Ack!”

The burning pain in his side was momentarily overwhelming, but Jeong-Hoon closed in again and swung his dagger.

Clang! Clang!

Kim Bong-Goo barely managed to block Jeong-Hoon’s attacks.

‘Damn… What the hell? Why is he so good with a dagger?’

Even with the weapon proficiency bonus from his class, he was struggling to defend against Jeong-Hoon’s attacks.

So he was proficient with a bow, a sword, and now even a dagger?

“Remember, if it seems like it can’t be tuned, it’s getting scrapped.”

Flinch.

Did scrapped mean discarded?

He suddenly felt better.

How happy would he be if he could escape from this Viper?

He would probably feel like he owned the world.

But looking at that damn look in Jeong-Hoon’s eyes, he didn’t think he would be let off easily.

‘He doesn’t mean he’ll get rid of me, does he?’

As if to confirm his fears, Jeong-Hoon smirked slightly.

It meant he was right.

‘This bastard!’

[Shadow Step activated.]

He used Shadow Step to create distance between himself and Jeong-Hoon.

Jeong-Hoon also used his movement technique to close in on Kim Bong-Goo.

Just before stepping, Kim Bong-Goo activated the mark he had placed on the ground.

[Shadow Mark activated.]

With the activation of Shadow Mark, Kim Bong-Goo teleported to the location where he had placed the mark.

‘Not yet.’

There was a trace of Kim Bong-Goo left behind after his teleportation.

[Shadow Explosion activated.]

The trace exploded, engulfing Jeong-Hoon.

[Stealth activated.]

[Shadow Step activated.]

He then used Stealth and Shadow Step to create as much distance as possible.

‘Phew, phew, damn it. Is this enough?’

He didn’t even expect to defeat Jeong-Hoon.

He just hoped that Jeong-Hoon was somewhat satisfied.

“Oh, that was a bit surprising.”

As expected, Jeong-Hoon was completely fine despite being caught in the explosion.

But perhaps because he received a compliment,

Kim Bong-Goo felt a bit relieved.

[Shadow Shuriken activated.]

However, it wasn’t over yet.

Three black shurikens appeared in Kim Bong-Goo’s hand.

[Target designated.]

[Target designated as user ‘Jeong-Hoon’.]

‘Hah!’

Kim Bong-Goo threw the shurikens with all his might.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The shurikens, locked onto their target, flew accurately and pierced Jeong-Hoon.

‘I did it!’

A smile appeared on Kim Bong-Goo’s face.

If he could just attack a little more like this…!

“Okay. You weren’t just playing around. You pass.”

A chilling voice came from beside Kim Bong-Goo.

Jeong-Hoon was standing next to him.

Three shurikens were still embedded in his chest.

“Ahhh!”

Kim Bong-Goo screamed in surprise, his Stealth deactivated, and he collapsed on the spot.

“Why are you so surprised?”

Jeong-Hoon pulled out the embedded shurikens with his own hands and healed himself.

He had intentionally let himself get hit, and the damage was decent.

If this was the case, obtaining Unique might not be impossible after all?

A training curriculum quickly formed in his mind.

“So… I passed, right?”

Meanwhile, Kim Bong-Goo, unaware of what awaited him, was relieved by the single word “pass.”

“Yes. So let’s get started for real now.”

“Huh? What do you mean for real?”

“We need to tune you up properly.”

Jeong-Hoon smirked.

Kim Bong-Goo’s face paled at that devilish smile.

* * *

Ha-Jin, having passed Caryan’s training, slept for 24 hours straight.

He had been training while sleeping only 2-3 hours a day, so fatigue had accumulated significantly.

Ha-Jin turned his smartphone back on.

Now that the training was over, he didn’t need to keep his smartphone off, right?

As soon as he connected to the data network, KakaoTalk notifications from Jang Dae-Hwi popped up repeatedly.

[Hey! Check the view count quickly!]

In short, it was telling him to check the YouTube video.

“What did he upload that he’s so excited?”

Ha-Jin hadn’t participated in this video.

Moreover, because of the training, he hadn’t even heard from Jeong-Hoon about what kind of video it was.

He had been too tired to pay much attention during their last call.

[Wyvern’s Nest: There was a hidden route? (Boss just melted)]

[Views: 15,543,212]

“F-Fifteen million?!”

Ha-Jin’s eyes nearly popped out of his head when he saw the view count.

How long had it been since the video was uploaded, and it already had over 15 million views?

#1 in real-time rankings.

#1 in trending videos.

And the views were still increasing in real-time.

The comments were also approaching 100,000.

[HoneyTube]

[Subscribers: 976,000]

With just one video of the Bone Lord Wyvern raid, they were close to reaching 1 million subscribers.

He had never seen such explosive growth before.

“Wow…”

Just how did they defeat it to become this popular?

Ha-Jin clicked on the video and started watching.

And as soon as the video ended, he hurriedly logged into the capsule.

“Hey! Hoon…?”

Ha-Jin stopped mid-sentence.

Jeong-Hoon was diligently training Kim Bong-Goo in Training Ground.

“Ugh!”

“What are you doing? If you parry like that, how are you going to defend against the next attack?”

“Y-You’re right…”

“Then why do you keep making the same mistake?”

“…Honestly, I don’t know what to do here.”

“Then get hit some more. You’ll start to see it as you get hit.”

Jeong-Hoon gripped the dagger again and pressed Kim Bong-Goo.

‘There’s no way I can interrupt this, is there?’

In the end, Ha-Jin sat down at a distance and watched their training.

It looked like Jeong-Hoon was relentlessly tormenting Kim Bong-Goo, but upon closer inspection, he was attacking Kim Bong-Goo in a repetitive pattern.

Whenever Kim Bong-Goo counterattacked, Jeong-Hoon would find an opening and launch his next attack.

‘…It’s like watching Caryan.’

It was the same method Caryan had used to train him.

It was a rather brutal method, but thanks to it, Ha-Jin was able to learn a lot in a short period.

That was probably what Jeong-Hoon was aiming for too.

‘I shouldn’t interfere right now.’

Ha-Jin got up and left the training grounds.

He then went down to the underground prison where Caryan was working.

“You’re here?”

Above his head, a question mark was blinking, something that hadn’t been there before.

[Hidden Class Advancement Quest: Dark Lord (1/3)]

– Requirement: Recognized by Caryan

– Reward: Hidden Class Advancement Quest: Dark Lord (2/3)

– Description: Listen to the story of the Dark Lord’s Memoir from Caryan.

“Yes. Please tell me now.”

Ha-Jin’s eyes were filled with seriousness.

* * *

[Crafting completed.]

72 hours had passed, and the crafting was finished.

Jeong-Hoon approached Kim Bong-Goo, who was covered in dirt and groaning, and used healing on him.

[Using Intermediate Healing.]

“Alright, that’s enough training for today.”

“Th-Thank you…”

“Good work. Now go and become Unique.”

“Is the training really over…?”

“Yes.”

“…Thank you!”

Except for 3 hours of sleep and meal times, the rest of the time was spent in repetitive training.

Jeong-Hoon had thoroughly pushed Kim Bong-Goo for 72 hours.

[Wow, you can really push someone that far.]

‘Even a demon would cry.’

[Come to think of it, you’ve seen demons, haven’t you? What were they like?]

‘At this rate, even demons would give a standing ovation.’

Jeong-Hoon chuckled at Anima’s serious response.

“It might be tough, but he’ll thank me later.”

He was sure of it.

[But why did you keep repeating the same attack?]

Every time Jeong-Hoon attacked Bong-Goo, his first move was always aimed at his left chest.

Thanks to that, Bong-Goo, who initially couldn’t react at all, could now withstand up to 32 moves.

“Because I need to make him Unique.”

It was like attribute training tailored for the next class advancement quest.

If he couldn’t achieve Unique-grade even after this training… Jeong-Hoon wouldn’t let him off easy.

“Oh, you came just in time.”

When he arrived at the workshop, Verman greeted him warmly.

On the table lay the item crafted from the Bone Lord Wyvern’s heart.

===

[Black Heart Ring]

– Type: Ring

– Grade: Unique

– Special Ability (1): When the ring’s dark mana is drawn out, it increases the power of all the wearer’s dark magic by 10%.

– Special Ability (2): Increases the control speed of dark mana by 10%.

– Special Ability (3): [Debuff Skill Registration Possible]

===

It was only Unique-grade, but its stats were incredible.

The insane option of increasing the wearer’s dark magic power by a whopping 10% and also increasing the control speed by 10%.

Plus, it was a ring that allowed for additional debuff skill registration.

‘No wonder Sophia was frustrated.’

She had lost 15% of the power of this amazing ring by not being able to utilize it fully.

“Thank you.”

Visiting Verman had been a very successful choice.

However, Verman’s expression wasn’t very bright.

“Hmm… But about that ring. I couldn’t remove the ‘dark mana’ from it, no matter what I tried. I apologize for that.”

Dark mana, different from normal mana.

It was the ‘black mana’ used by those who walked the path of dark magic.

It was a natural consequence, considering that the source of the Bone Lord Wyvern’s heart’s mana was dark mana.

“It’s fine.”

“…But you won’t be able to use it.”

Jeong-Hoon wielded mana and holy power.

Honestly, if he put his mind to it, he could probably handle dark mana as well, but he had no intention of learning it, now or in the future.

“The ring has a different owner.”

“A different owner?”

“Yes.”

Jeong-Hoon returned to the training grounds and immediately summoned Michael.

“You called, Master?”

Michael greeted him politely, but his eyes darted around nervously.

He had only been doing odd jobs lately, so he was wondering if this was another chore.

Seeing his attitude made Jeong-Hoon suddenly reluctant to give him the ring…

But it was best to give it to someone he could trust.

“Michael, I have something for you.”

“For me, Master?”

“Yes.”

Jeong-Hoon held out the ring.

Michael’s eyes widened as he received the ring.

“Th-This is…?”

“It’s a ring that will make your necromancy even more powerful.”

“Gasp! Such a precious item…”

Michael, with an incredulous expression, fiddled with the ring and checked its stats repeatedly.

It was a ring with undeniably powerful options.

It was natural for him to react this way after suddenly receiving such a ring.

“I’m giving it to you as a token of appreciation for your continued assistance.”

“Th-Thank you! I will devote my life to serving you, Master!”

Michael knelt and declared loudly.

[Achievement Unlocked! ‘Summoned Creature Item Given’ completed! 3,000 Achievement Points awarded.]

[Summon: Michael’s stats slightly increased.]

Michael’s face was filled with confidence.

With the ring, his stats had increased by 10%, so he had nothing to fear for the time being.

While making Michael stronger was one of his goals, the main objective was to intercept the ring that Sophia Stephanie Agareth was supposed to get.

Having achieved that goal, Jeong-Hoon had completed everything he needed to do in Märchen.

Now all that was left was to reach level 201 and proceed with his 3rd class advancement.

‘Of course, there’s more to do before that.’

The New World signal, which he would miss if it didn’t appear.

It was about time for the event to start.

‘The Second Cataclysm .’

The event that would later be called the Second Cataclysm was about to begin.

——–