Chapter 255: Chapter 255

[Translator - Kiteretsu]

[Proofreader - Kyros]

Chapter 255

“Ah, this is driving me crazy...”

Kim Bong-Goo scratched his head nervously.

In front of him, a portal was shimmering.

The final gateway of the 4th Class Advancement.

It was the portal leading to that gateway, but he couldn’t muster the courage to enter.

===

[Class Advancement Quest: Transcendence (2/2)]

- Requirement: Level 301 or higher, 3rd Class Thief

- Reward: 4th Class Advancement

- Description: You have met the qualifications. It is time to unlock the dormant power within you.

===

No matter how many quests he completed, it felt like there was no end.

Even Transcendence (1/2) had nearly killed him.

Had he not reacted properly, he would have died on the spot.

Although his body had healed, mentally, he was utterly exhausted.

But giving up now was not an option.

‘Done with my 4th advancement! Bong-Goo, how’s it going on your side?’

That was Ha-Jin, who had already completed his 4th Class Advancement.

‘Hurry up and finish it.’

Then there was Jeong-Hoon, pressuring him.

The pressure from Jeong-Hoon was especially suffocating, making Bong-Goo feel as if his breathing was restricted.

“Screw it! I don’t care anymore!”

Accepting the class advancement quest, Bong-Goo stepped into the portal.

Inside, a shadowy figure awaited him.

“Shadow King?”

Ah, this was really going to drive him insane.

Bong-Goo’s current rank was Shadow Spirit.

Shouldn’t a clone of a Shadow Spirit appear?

Why was it the clone of the Shadow King, a legendary rank figure?

===

[NPC Information]

Nickname: ???

Level: 350

Job: Clone of the Shadow King

===

To make matters worse, the Shadow King’s level was 350.

Sensing that it would not be an easy battle, Bong-Goo gripped his dagger tightly.

Cold sweat dripped down his back, and his mind went blank.

‘Stay calm. Stay calm.’

In any case, failure would mean death.

Jeong-Hoon would never let him off the hook if he failed.

So, it was all or nothing now.

***

At the same time...

Jeong-Hoon was sipping coffee while on the phone with Yeo Min-Ji.

[“The Death Knight of Rease?”]

“Yes.”

[“I’ve already cleared it and moved on to Darvis… Do I have to clear it again?”]

To move beyond Rease, the Death Knight had to be defeated.

As it was a requirement, countless Death Knights had been hunted.

“You’ll likely need to clear it again.”

[“Hmm, in that case, I should be able to handle it without trouble, right? The Death Knight is only Level 250.”]

“No. It’s no longer Level 250. It’s been raised to Level 1,100.”

[“W-What?!”]

Jeong-Hoon pulled his smartphone slightly away from his ear at the shocked voice on the other end.

‘Almost burst my eardrum.’

The voice was so loud.

Once the phone quieted down, Jeong-Hoon returned it to his ear.

“Anyway, I’m planning to take down the Death Knight soon. You’ll join, right?”

[“If you call, I’ll come. But… why was it reset in the first place?”]

“Who knows.”

Why, indeed?

It was obviously because the higher-ups wanted to block the path to Darvis.

‘Massive update.’

Since the game’s virtualization, a massive update had naturally started.

Without any prior notice, the large-scale update was still ongoing.

The Death Knight’s level rising to 1,100 was one result of that update.

Of course, Darvis itself had also completely changed from how it was in the game.

[“Alright then! When’s the raid scheduled?”]

“It’s not set yet. One of us hasn’t finished their 4th advancement.”

[“Ah, that’s Bong-Goo, right?”]

“Yes.”

[“If he’s a Shadow Spirit, it shouldn’t be that difficult... Strange.”]

“You’re telling me.”

That Bong-Goo guy.

Just wait until he gets back.

If he returns without any solid results, he’ll be put through the wringer.

***

Three days later, Bong-Goo finally returned.

During that time, Jeong-Hoon had completed two additional episodes.

“You’re here?”

“Hyung! I did it!”

Bong-Goo reported back with a face full of emotion.

“You succeeded?”

Jeong-Hoon tilted his head in confusion before glancing at Bong-Goo’s updated stats in surprise.

‘Shadow King?’

Indeed.

Bong-Goo had advanced from Shadow Spirit to Shadow King through the 4th Class Advancement Quest.

“I’m Legendary now!”

“…How did you even manage that?”

Jeong-Hoon hadn’t expected Bong-Goo to advance to Shadow King.

In his view, just advancing to Shadow Spirit was already a significant achievement.

That’s why he had been understanding of the delay in the 4th Class Advancement Quest.

But to think Bong-Goo would climb even higher to become a Shadow King!

‘He’s now on par with Yeo Sunwoo, who was once one of Korea’s Top 7.’

Shadow King Yeo Sunwoo.

He, too, had advanced to Shadow King during his 4th Class Advancement, rising to the top of Korea’s thief rankings.

Now, Bong-Goo had achieved the same by advancing to Shadow King in his 4th.

‘And not just in a game, but in reality.’

In a game, dying means you can respawn and try again. But in reality, dying once is the end.

In other words, Bong-Goo had completed the advancement quest without dying even once.

“Hyung… I really thought I was going to die,” Bong-Goo said, his eyes brimming with tears.

“I can imagine… Advancing from Shadow Spirit to Shadow King isn’t a small feat.”

“Exactly! Those crazy developers ramped up the difficulty to absurd levels as the quest went on!”

“…You did well.”

Jeong-Hoon had planned to put Bong-Goo through the wringer once he returned, but that idea vanished instantly.

“That Shadow King clone at the end… I can’t believe I made it. It wouldn’t have been strange if I had died a dozen times there…”

“How did you pull it off?”

“Well, if I failed, I knew you’d kill me anyway… So I went all out, and luckily, I managed to take it down.”

“That’s impressive…”

Kim Bong-Goo, this punk.

You’ve grown!

This time, you deserve recognition.

“Alright, good job.”

Jeong-Hoon cast a top-tier healing spell on Bong-Goo, soothing his physical and mental exhaustion.

While his body was visibly battered, his spirit must have been equally worn out.

Bong-Goo’s complexion quickly improved under the effects of the healing.

“Thank you, hyung!”

“Alright, shall we get going then?”

“Huh?”

Bong-Goo blinked in confusion.

Jeong-Hoon tilted his head at the reaction.

“We agreed to head to Rease after your 4th advancement, didn’t we?”

“Well, yeah, but… I just got back…”

“That’s why I healed you.”

“Even so, shouldn’t I rest a bit…?”

“Do you know how long we’ve been waiting because of you?”

It had taken far too long.

Still, Bong-Goo couldn’t hide his look of protest.

“But I advanced to Shadow King! You have to give me credit for that!”

“Exactly. That’s why I’m letting this slide without saying much.”

“Then… can’t I just rest a little longer…?”

Bong-Goo pleaded with a desperate expression.

Jeong-Hoon chuckled and nodded.

“Fine. Take two days off.”

“Wait, what?”

“What? You don’t want it?”

“No, I just didn’t think you’d actually let me…”

“I was joking. You achieved something significant, so pushing you right away would be too harsh.”

“Hyuuung! I swear on my life, I’ll serve you forever! Vroom vroom! This Bong-Goo van is at your service!”

“Alright, alright, just pipe down. We’re heading out in two days, so rest up until then.”

“Yes, sir!”

***

Bong-Goo returned home with a beaming smile.

At home, Bong-Goo’s father, mother, and older sister were all gathered.

“You’re back?”

“Bong-Goo, come and have a seat.”

Kim Bong-Goo, once the problem child of the family, had now become an indispensable presence in their home.

After all, he was the only one in the family who had surpassed Level 300.

“Yes!”

Bong-Goo grinned brightly and took a seat.

“What’s with the cheerful mood, Bong-Goo? You’ve been gone for days without a word,” his sister said, unable to hide her annoyance.

It had been far too long since Bong-Goo last came home.

“Hehe, don’t be too surprised. I finished my 4th advancement.”

“Your 4th advancement?”

His sister’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“Yep, I’ve been busy completing it over the past few days.”

“Then you should’ve said something before you left! We were worried sick, thinking something had happened to you!”

“Ah, sorry. I didn’t think it’d take this long.”

“Sigh… Anyway, so you’ve advanced?”

“Yep.”

“To Shadow King…? Wait, is that… Legendary?!”

Having checked the information, his sister’s eyes grew even rounder.

Bong-Goo scratched his nose, pretending to be shy.

“Hoho, finally figured it out, huh?”

“Is this for real…? Not some kind of hidden camera prank?”

“Come on, why would I joke about this?”

“This doesn’t make sense. How did a ‘rusty van’ like you hit Legendary?”

“Wow, that’s harsh. Don’t you think you’re crossing the line?”

“How’s that harsh? I’m just stating facts. You sure you didn’t scrape by?”

“There you go again. Seriously. At least I can roll forward. You’re like a plastic bag blowing in the wind.”

“Are you out of your mind, punk?”

As always, the sibling bickering escalated quickly, prompting their father to step in.

“Is this really the time to fight? You should be celebrating instead! Both of you, knock it off!”

Their mother chimed in as well.

“Exactly! Bong-Ja, Bong-Goo, both of you stop now.”

***

Two days passed.

Everyone had gathered at Jeong-Hoon’s house.

“Is everyone ready?”

The group nodded in unison.

“Hyung! Vroom-vroom! I’m ready to go anytime!”

Bong-Goo seemed to be in top condition after two days of rest.

Given the top-tier healing he received and the rest he took, it wasn’t surprising.

“Good. Let’s head out, then.”

Portals to Rease were set up all across the regions.

Although their locations weren’t public, Jeong-Hoon knew exactly where to find one.

“Oh, by the way, Jeong-Hoon, are you planning to record this trip too?”

Bong-Goo was referring to YouTube.

The rapidly growing platform, HoneyTube, was proving to be a phenomenon.

“Yes, I plan to record this one too,” Jeong-Hoon confirmed.

There was, of course, a proper strategy to defeat the Death Knight, no matter its daunting Level 1,100.

Jeong-Hoon intended to show that as long as they followed the correct strategy, the supposedly formidable foe could be taken down with relative ease.

His goal was to encourage as many players as possible to venture into Dalbis and progress further.

After all, the more people who grew stronger, the greater the chances of shared fortuitous encounters in the future.

“It’s a shame. If Dae-Hwi hyung were here, this would’ve been a lot easier.”

Unfortunately, Jang Dae-Hwi hadn’t reached Level 301 yet.

As a result, he was ineligible to participate in this expedition.

“It can’t be helped. I’ve already contacted him. Once we’re done, I’ll send him the footage.”

“Ah, got it. Sounds good.”

“Alright, the portal to Rease is right here,” Jeong-Hoon announced, pulling up a map on his smartphone.

The map displayed coordinates he had marked in advance.

“This is Seongsu-dong, isn’t it?”

“Yes.”

Seongsu-dong.

[TL/N: Actual Location in Korea]

It was there that the portal to Rease shimmered, waiting to be discovered.

***

Seongsu-dong

“Wow, it’s Ho-Yeong.”

“Look at those levels… every single one of them is over 300!”

“This is insane…”

“Wait, isn’t that person over Level 400? Hold on! Is that the martial artist who was all over the news?”

The moment Jeong-Hoon appeared in Seongsu-dong, all eyes turned toward him.

A convergence of three phenomena:

- The presence of Ho-Yeong, a famed figure.

- A group of adventurers with visibly high levels.

- The newsworthy martial artist, whose level exceeded 400.

It was only natural for the crowd to react.

“Let’s ignore them and keep moving,” Jeong-Hoon suggested, brushing past the attention.

He led the group with confidence, guiding them to the top of a building.

The rooftop was locked with a padlock.

“We have permission from the owner, so feel free to break it open,” Yeo Min-Ji said, having secured approval from the building's owner by offering generous compensation in both money and points.

“Understood.”

Jeong-Hoon grasped the lock and casually crushed it in his hand.

As the rooftop door opened, two portals came into view.

One was a dungeon portal designed for Level 220 adventurers.

The other was the portal to Rease—vastly larger and radiating an intense magical energy that was impossible to ignore.

“Wow, the portals are on a whole different scale,” someone remarked.

The sheer size of the Rease portal, coupled with the overwhelming mana spilling from it, was in stark contrast to the smaller dungeon portal.

“...Are we sure it’s safe to enter just like this?” Yeo Sunwoo asked cautiously, his expression tense.

As the leader of this expedition, Jeong-Hoon’s opinion carried weight.

“Yes, don’t worry too much,” Jeong-Hoon reassured him.

“But… a Level 1,100 enemy is no joke. We can’t underestimate it,” Sunwoo insisted.

“Did you forget that I defeated the Colossal Golem Ursus? Trust me, we’ll be fine. There’s a method to this.”

Jeong-Hoon’s confident smile was enough to quell Yeo Sunwoo’s doubts.

With a nod, the group prepared to step into the portal.

[Translator - Kiteretsu]

[Proofreader - Kyros]