Chapter 262: Chapter 262

[Translator - Kiteretsu]

[Proofreader - Kyros]

Chapter 262

[Would you like to move to the Special Energy Vein?]

It appeared.

A fortuitous opportunity.

The Special Energy Vein.

The experiments conducted here were all for the sake of this energy.

If the energy could be absorbed without rejection, it granted unimaginable Mana.

‘Alessandro and Sophia took control of this vein, didn’t they?’

Alessandro Bryden.

Sophia Stephanie Agaret.

The two significantly boosted their Mana by claiming the energy vein.

Of course, that wouldn’t happen this time.

‘Because I’m going to take it.’

When Jeong-hoon accepted, his body was sucked into the portal.

His vision darkened, and when it brightened again, a massive stone came into view.

“So this is what it looks like.”

He had only heard stories about it, but seeing it in person felt surreal.

This was the first time he encountered a stone brimming with such energy.

‘This is incomparable to any place I’ve been before.’

The closest comparison was the Hidden Theme of the Primordial Village.

It resembled the abundant magical field there but held an even greater and overwhelming amount of energy.

And yet, they conducted grotesque experiments, injecting this energy into people to force adaptation.

This energy was not something to be used carelessly.

Absorbing it without a sufficient reserve of Mana caused rejection within the body, leaving one crippled.

Jeong-hoon reached out his hand toward the stone.

As if waiting, a surge of energy flowed into Jeong-hoon’s hand.

Throb—

In that instant, intense pain coursed through his body.

Jeong-hoon grimaced as he circulated his Mana to control the energy.

‘If I had to pick one of my worst experiences, it would be Bern.’

‘I agree. Back then, I really thought I was going to die.’

Alessandro and Sophia shuddered as they recalled those memories.

Although they had gained immense power, the process was anything but smooth.

Just as it wasn’t now.

“Cough!”

Jeong-hoon spat blood from his lips.

His muscles spasmed uncontrollably, and his internal organs twisted as if caught in a vortex.

[Master! Are you alright?!]

‘Let go immediately! It’s dangerous!’

Jeong-hoon shook his head.

He couldn’t give up now, not after coming this far.

Besides, even Alessandro and Sophia had succeeded in this endeavor.

Would he falter at something of this level?

‘Go ahead, rampage all you want. In the end, I’ll win.’

Jeong-hoon smirked and continued channeling his Mana.

In response, the energy surged wildly as if retaliating, constricting him with overwhelming force.

Even with his Mana, controlling it was proving to be difficult.

And understandably so.

Sophia herself had once shaken her head, saying that absorbing this energy was only possible because she and Alessandro worked together on it.

But Jeong-hoon was alone this time.

What had been a task barely achieved by two people now had to be accomplished solo.

Even so, Jeong-hoon’s expression remained calm and confident.

‘I see. I think I know how to control it now.’

Jeong-hoon concentrated his Mana to confine the energy in one place.

Whenever more energy entered, he would carefully open a small channel to guide it while ensuring it couldn’t escape again.

The confined energy gradually transformed into Mana and began to settle within Jeong-hoon’s body.

[Mana increased by +1!]

[Mana increased by +5!]

[Mana increased by +3!]

Messages popped up endlessly before Jeong-hoon.

As the energy converted into Mana, his stats climbed rapidly.

But that wasn’t all.

[Absorbing immense energy has increased the rank of ‘Black Field’ by one level.]

As Jeong-hoon absorbed the vast energy, his spells also leveled up.

[Absorbing immense energy has increased the rank of ‘Brainwash’ by one level.]

[Absorbing immense energy has increased the rank of ‘Lightning Bolt’ by one level.]

While Legendary-tier spells remained unaffected, the lower-tier spells quickly advanced in rank.

The Unique-tier Black Field was upgraded to Legendary-tier in an instant.

Brainwash advanced from Rare to Epic-tier.

Lightning Bolt progressed from Epic to Unique-tier.

‘This is insane.’

Black Field had initially started at Rare-tier and grown to Unique-tier. However, progress toward Legendary-tier had been painstakingly slow, and he had written it off. Who would have thought it would leap tiers so suddenly here?

Jeong-hoon continued absorbing the energy without stopping.

***

- Mana: 1,211(+121) -> 1,332

By the time he absorbed all the energy, Jeong-hoon’s Mana soared beyond 1,000, reaching an astonishing 1,332.

“This is incredible.”

Jeong-hoon released his hand from the stone, a satisfied smile on his face.

Having completely drained it of energy, the stone lost its brilliance, becoming no different from an ordinary rock.

[So, this was a fortuitous opportunity to raise Mana.]

‘My magical reserves are now incomparable to before. It’s not much different from that of our kind.’

Naturally so.

Once a stat surpasses 1,000, raising it further becomes exceedingly difficult.

From this point onward, even leveling up no longer automatically increases stats.

‘You need to level up three times just to raise one stat point.’

And that’s only if all bonus stat points are invested into a single stat. Essentially, it’s six times harder to progress now.

That’s why this range, starting from 1,000, is often called the "zone of patience."

At such a high stat threshold, leveling up becomes grueling, and even when you do, your stats barely increase.

But surpassing not just 1,000 but reaching over 1,300?

It was an absurdly high figure.

No wonder Jeong-hoon had blurted out, "This is incredible."

“Alright. The first plan in Bern was a success.”

It was now time to move on to the next phase.

When Jeong-hoon stepped outside, the situation had already been resolved.

“Master! As you instructed, we ensured everyone escaped safely.”

The captives had all fled, leaving only the alchemist’s lifeless body behind in the lab.

“Such a pity. I should’ve made his death more agonizing.”

Siegfried clicked his tongue, clearly displeased.

[That psycho streak of his still hasn’t changed.]

Mukho casually muttered, causing Jeong-hoon to stifle a laugh.

“Has he always been like this?”

[Can’t say I remember everything perfectly, but… he used to be worse.]

“Really?”

[Yeah, just don’t mess with his temper. It’s bad for your mental health.]

“Noted.”

Jeong-hoon nodded while glancing at Siegfried, who tilted his head in confusion.

“Master, who are you talking to?”

“My clothes.”

“Your clothes?”

“Yes.”

“Fascinating. Talking clothes. Mind if I tear them apart to see what’s inside?”

“Do you think I’d allow that?”

“Haha, just joking.”

Siegfried laughed heartily, prompting Jeong-hoon to chuckle as well.

Meanwhile, Mukho was far from amused.

[Did that lunatic just say he’s going to tear me apart?]

‘That’s what it sounded like.’

[He’s insane. Can’t we just get rid of him?]

‘He seems pretty useful, though.’

[Ugh! Just get rid of him already!]

Jeong-hoon ignored Mukho’s grumbling without a second thought.

“Master, what should we do about this place?”

Michael gestured at the now-abandoned laboratory.

“Leave it.”

Now that the treasure was gone, there was nothing left of interest here.

Jeong-hoon sent Michael back and exited the building.

However, outside, a few people who hadn’t fled were waiting for him.

“The savior has appeared!”

“Woooah!”

They cheered loudly upon seeing Jeong-hoon.

‘What’s this?’

Jeong-hoon tilted his head in confusion.

The reason was simple—above one of their heads, a glowing red question mark was blinking.

A red question mark, not the usual color.

In other words, this was a hidden quest.

[Hidden Quest: The Missing Third Prince]

- Requirement: Escort the Third Prince, Karvan, to safety.

- Reward: ?

- Description: You have rescued the missing Third Prince. Safely guide him to the Imperial Capital.

Among those Jeong-hoon had saved was none other than the Third Prince.

‘The Third Prince… so there was such a quest.’

The prince was a boy barely over ten years old, in critical condition, requiring Jeong-hoon’s most advanced healing spell to survive.

Had Jeong-hoon been even slightly delayed, the boy likely wouldn’t have made it.

This explained why no one had information about this quest prior to Jeong-hoon’s regression—the prince had died before he could even appear.

‘The Empire, huh… this is convenient.’

Jeong-hoon’s goal in coming to Darvis was purely to monopolize its hidden treasures.

By claiming them, he could accelerate his growth. His plan was to complete the episode and move on to the next phase.

Since this quest aligned with his direction, he accepted it without hesitation, confident it wouldn’t disrupt his plans.

‘If I’m lucky, I might even unlock the hidden episode.’

Hidden episodes were rare and valuable.

Darvis itself was part of a collectible series of episodes, so a hidden episode likely existed within it.

However, no one had ever managed to complete it. Many assumed it was impossible, likely due to critical NPCs dying before quests could be triggered.

Jeong-hoon was certain this hidden quest was connected to the episode.

“I plan to head to the Imperial Capital now. Does anyone want to accompany me?”

Jeong-hoon asked the group.

Most of them were residents from the outskirts.

At that moment, a boy stepped forward and raised his hand.

It was none other than the Third Prince, Karvan.

“May I accompany you?”

“Of course. Let’s go.”

The quest officially began.

***

The journey to the Imperial Capital was anything but smooth.

[You cannot proceed to the next area unless the dungeon in this region is cleared.]

Due to the quest, Jeong-hoon had to clear specific dungeons to move forward.

Worse still, every dungeon had a level requirement exceeding 350, and the sheer number of monsters was abnormal, requiring a significant amount of time to clear.

"Wow..."

Karvan, who was accompanying Jeong-hoon, couldn't stop marveling at his skills.

Each monster exuded an overwhelming aura.

Even watching from a distance was enough to make one feel crushed.

Yet, Jeong-hoon cut down such monsters effortlessly. It was impossible not to be impressed.

“Let’s move.”

After slaying the dungeon’s boss monster, Jeong-hoon exited the dungeon with Karvan.

Ideally, Jeong-hoon would have preferred to enter the dungeon alone, but the quest required Karvan to be present for the clear to be recognized.

After clearing dozens of dungeons, they finally arrived at the Imperial Capital.

The gates to the capital were heavily guarded.

“Halt!”

As they approached the gates, the guards stepped forward to confront Jeong-hoon.

“I’ll handle this,” said Karvan, stepping forward for the first time since the journey began.

“Huh? Prince Karvan?!”

“The prince has returned!”

The guards, recognizing Karvan, were startled and immediately checked on his safety.

“I’m fine. Open the gates.”

Though he was just a young boy, Karvan issued his command with the dignity of royalty.

“Understood!”

“Hurry, open the gates!”

The guards quickly opened the gates, though their wary gazes lingered on Jeong-hoon.

“This man saved me. Show him proper respect!” Karvan shouted, his voice full of authority.

Only then did the guards bow respectfully to Jeong-hoon.

“Our apologies...”

With that, Jeong-hoon entered the Imperial Capital, walking alongside Karvan as they made their way toward the Imperial Palace.

Their goal was to announce Karvan’s safe return.

‘The course of history has changed.’

The return of the Third Prince, who should not have existed in this timeline, had disrupted the original flow of events.

How would the episode unfold now?

With those thoughts, Jeong-hoon moved forward, recalling the events of the episode from his previous life.

[Translator - Kiteretsu]

[Proofreader - Kyros]