Solo Max-Level Newbie

Chapter 248: Dragon Slayer Sword ‘Valmung’ (2)

“I never thought an expedition would turn out like this.”

Phesis couldn’t help but deny reality multiple times upon witnessing the horrific scene unfolding before her eyes. It was far removed from the thrilling adventure she had expected.

“Screams! Please, save me!”

“Master, I’ve been hit by a bone. A real bone!”

It had become almost routine to see Tibon and the ancient soldiers freeze whole or burst into flames. Bodies split in half were hastily mended with mana before being thrust back into the next trap. But the shock didn’t end there.

As higher-level traps that the undead couldn’t handle appeared, Jinhyuk summoned new creatures—elemental spirits of the five main elements that every Elemental Mage dreamed of contracting.

“O…Oh! You’ve made contracts with the elemental spirits too?”

Phesis’s voice rose an octave higher.

The sight of elemental spirits of the five main elements gathered together was a rare one, hard to come across.

“Ah, these guys?”

“Yes. I know beings like them rarely contract with humans, but seeing a player who’s contracted with all five is a first for me. It’s rare to find someone among the residents with such high affinity.”

“I told them they’d taste hell if they betrayed me… not really. They opened their hearts when treated with genuine warmth and love. Right, guys?”

Jinhyuk flashed a wry smile. As the creatures hesitated, his smile grew broader.

“Why the late reply? Am I wrong?”

“Eu-eung.”

“We think the master is the best in the world.”

“I wish it’d been longer since we last met… I kind of hoped it would have been much longer…”

The elemental spirits shuddered thinly as if to demonstrate what a ‘learned fear’ was.

“You see? They’re all happy.”

“…I see.”

“Let’s continue, please guide us again. We need to hurry if we are to return before dawn.”

Humming to himself, Jinhyuk resumed his steps. More traps unveiled but thanks to Phesis’s guidance and the summoned creatures’ efforts, they narrowly escaped.

After several hours had passed…

＊＊＊

Breaking through the treacherous path, they reached a large cavern, open to all sides. The vast abyss was so immense that it left the path ahead completely obscured. However…

‘I can feel it.’

The magic of the Dragon Slayer Sword, that had made its mark in legends, reverberated through Jinhyuk’s entire being.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

His heart pounded rapidly. If he could just overcome this final step, he’d finally obtain the new sword.

Flames erupted from about ten ‘Primal Fires’, scattering the shadows within the large cavern.

The first thing to appear was a massive skeleton sprawling dozens of meters long.

The demonic dragon ‘Fafnir’.

The remains of the dragon that had met its end at the hands of Sigfried were visible. And amidst it, impaled in the ground despite the countless years, was a sword that had yet to lose its aura.

‘It’s been a while since I last saw you.’

That was the Dragon Slayer Sword, Valmung.

Jinhyuk yearned to rush straight to it, but the malice surrounding Fafnir’s corpse was too ominous. Blind desire for the sword would likely turn him to bloody foam before he could even take a few steps.

“We’ve finally made it here.”

Muttering with anticipation, Jinhyuk took in the sight of the sword. All the hardships of the past hours seemed to melt away instantly.

“The most difficult trap still awaits us… but the summons are exhausted. I’m not sure if we can manage.”

Phesis’s gaze fell upon the creatures.

“Master… don’t let them know of my death…”

“Clatter.”

Tibon and the ancient soldiers rolled around on the ground, badly mangled. Some had their heads frozen solid while others mix-matched their limb bones. Indeed, it seemed like they had seen quite a bit of hardship.

Maybe it was time to treat them to a calcium-rich milk bath or something.

“Master. I feel as if I can no longer move a finger.”

“I was happy to meet you again after so long, but it seems to be the biggest mistake of my life.”

“Cough. Cough.”

“Everyone, quiet down. My head hurts.”

The elemental spirits of the five elements also collapsed, moaning with discomfort.

“Mogiieei…”

Even Potato, with its tongue hanging out to one side, seemed to have had a rather strenuous time.

There was no other choice.

“Everyone, just take a breather.”

Jinhyuk poured out a plethora of ingredients from his spatial inventory. Only available in the Tower of Trials were the Rainbow Shrimps, Quadruple Mushrooms, eggs of the great phoenix. Cheese from goats of the Black Mountain and so on.

A spread of true delicacies complemented with 3kg of magical stone powder would be the perfect restorative meal.

[Lv4 ‘Another World’s Cuisine’ has been activated.]

The cooking skill that even satisfied the palate of elves who lived on nothing but dew and fruit would be enough to gratify the tastes of the summoned creatures as well.

One by one, a variety of steaming dishes started to come together. Fantastic visuals and scents were enough to make saliva dribble uncontrollably from everyone’s mouth.

“I never realized our master would prepare such delicacies for us. I thought you were just a ruthless slave driver who only cared about your own profits…”

“The exterior is rough, but the interior is warm-hearted. Hehe.”

“Master, I’ve always admired you the most.”

“What are you talking about, a Fire Lizard like you. The master said I’m the leader among the spirits! Everyone, get in line properly.”

Undine fluttered her tiny arms left and right.

“Master, I feel like my osteoporosis is being cured.”

“Clatter.”

Even Tibon and the ancient soldiers were tantalized by the sight of ogre milk, boasted to have a 99% calcium concentration.

“Mogi!”

Unable to resist any longer, Potato grabbed the largest shrimp and took a huge bite.

Good.

If you were going to work them this hard, this was the way to do it. Using the whip alone could breed resentment or cause them to become twisted. And giving them only carrots could make them lazy from being too full. The best training was a mix of both the whip and carrot. Just like now.

‘And, after all, psychology says if you treat someone well ten times and badly once they complain, but if you treat them badly ten times and well once, they’re grateful.’

As everyone enjoyed a short but warm respite…

[‘Coin Exchange’ has been activated.]

Jinhyuk alone reviewed the coin exchange.

He needed six items in total.

[Peshan Mountain’s Mist Tree – 35,000 coins]

[Intermediate Purification Stone – 15,000 coins]

[Whisper of Steel (material) – 150,000 coins]

[Disintegration Accelerator (material) – 22,000 coins x3]

[Golden Thread (150,000km) – 50,000 coins]

[Melmothian Healer’s Ointment 500g – 15,000 coins]

A total of 331,000 coins.

‘Damn expensive.’

With his current coin balance around 83,000 coins, he still needed about 250,000 more.

‘Hopefully, the Hall of Fame video got enough views…’

With trepidation, Jinhyuk logged into the Tower of Trials community.

[An Unknown Player Has Been Offered the Title of Duke from the Empire? (Feat. Magnificent Undergarment)]

-Views: 30,563,225

-Popularity Rank: 1st

Fortunately, the video in the Hall of Fame was receiving tremendous popularity. Considering that it hadn’t even been six hours since release, the figures were astonishing.

-Drunken Rudolph: lmao, how can a player receive a noble title? Does that even make sense?

-National Institute of Korean Language: Well, a comment with all wrong spellings doesn’t make sense either.

-Blue Would Be Nice: It’s impressive, actually. Not just any noble title but a dukedom, no less, which means autonomy from the empire!

-choigh-lonk: Does any guild in the world have a domain like that right now? Including the 7 major guilds and other emerging forces.

-Our Jungler’s Healing Nurse: None. Guilds have been scrambling to claim domains recently, but most struggle just to fend off monsters and invasions. Most of the domains aren’t even that good.

Two main topics consumed the guilds: to be chosen by the residents of the tower and to secure a domain in the upper layers to consolidate their position. Very few guilds had succeeded in both, and those who had mostly obtained worthless rural domains.

-Earth Defense Force Avengers: Obviously, you can’t compare those scraps to the high-rollers like Highwater Corporation. Look at their members.

-The Pride of Ronaldo, The Fouls of Ramos, The Fragility of Bale: Agreed. It’s a dream team with Sword Saint and Holy Maiden among them, all top-notch talents. And Kang Jinhyuk is an exceptional outlier.

-Cyber Recovery Vehicle: There’s a rumor that the Indra Gondara Guild recently got wrecked by the empire, opposed by Highwater Corporation.

-Fanclub #1 of Highwater Corporation: Wow, impressive. But Unknown isn’t seen in the video. Where did he go?

-Kimchi Stir-fried Rice: Probably just showed a gesture of collaboration initially then went off to handle his own affairs. Top-rankers are always busy.

-Fresh Oxygen Wind: Maybe. Or maybe Unknown and Jinhyuk aren’t comfortable in the same space.

From the comments pouring out, the current excitement was palpable.

“Haha… over 30 million views.”

Jinhyuk’s grin flickered non-stop.

This was a hit.

With this, buying items wouldn’t be a problem at all.

No, if he could upload more diverse and sensational videos and secure solid subscribers, he could even aim for superior relics, not just material items.

A thrill surged from deep within as he contemplated such a future.

But his joy was short-lived.

With light footsteps,

“This is truly surprising. We went through all sorts of ordeals to find this entrance, but I’d never imagined that simply following you would lead us straight to Valmung.”

A strange voice emerged from behind Jinhyuk.

It was a skilled being whose presence he hadn’t sensed at all, and who hadn’t been caught by his magical detection―a man with silver hair and red eyes.

“Vampire…”

Precisely, a pureblood vampire like Ellis, no doubt.

“Mogiieei!”

“Master!”

“Master. There’s a foul, ominous scent.”

The summons expressed hostility. Having clashed with vampires several times before, they instinctively rejected them.

“Interesting. Even after contracting with a traitor, you recognize me right away. Quite impressive for mere humans and summons.”

“Spending all day hearing ‘noble’ this and ‘noble’ that naturally made it easier to recognize.”

It seemed vampires all adhered to this peculiarly arrogant manner of speech. Perhaps they received group elitist education from early childhood.

“Indeed. We are beings of a different caliber by birth.”

“So… which house do you come from? Another pureblood sent by the Decarous house?”

“Half right, half wrong.”

Jinjo shook his head.

“Half right? What do you mean?”

“I belong to the Decarous house, that’s true, but no one sent me. I came here by my own volition.”

By his own volition…?

Jinhyuk’s pupils narrowed sharply.

“Let me introduce myself. Amulam de Decarous. I am the master of the Decarous house.”