Chapter 348. Hidden Place on the 19th floor (2)
Crown of defeat.
As a holy relic that only the most violent and combative can possess. This crown has always created a great upheaval in the tower.
More than half of the large-scale incidents inside the tower were related to the change of owner of the crown.
so that.
Jinhyeok was on the move to get his hands on the crown faster than anyone else.
It was obvious that if the powers in the upper echelons knew this information, they would flock to the 19th floor like bees.
and present.
In the sand dunes of the desert located on the 19th floor…
two shadows were facing each other.
“….”
Skinny height reaching 2m.
The tail of the mouth raised cheerfully.
At first glance, it seems like watching a famous movie star.
But that’s just a means to get rid of the sense of incongruity when walking around the human world.
The figure of the body he kept in his shell was far from pleasant, even far from it.
Nyarlathotep.
As a messenger and herald serving Azathoth. Except for the manager, he is the only deity on the 50th floor who can freely float on the tower’s stairs.
In front of him…
stood an elderly gentleman wearing a bowler hat and monocle.
A white beard suits you so well.
The owner of the top and the middle manager of the top. It was Rick Hennessy.
“It was a mistake to come down here so soon after work. I’d rather send a deputy or use another manager.”
Rick made no secret of his displeasure.
“Gee-kick. Oops, I must have offended the great Rick Hennessy.”
Then Nyarlathotep let out a snarling sound.
He shrugged and buried himself on the soft sofa in the middle of the room.
I also didn’t forget to pour a full glass of nice wine.
“Would you like a sip? No, did you have that strange coffee or not?”
“If it’s alcohol, I’ll decline it. Instead, answer me. Why did Nyarlathotep leave the Crown of Doom without immediately retrieving it?”
“Ah… that?”
Receiving the sharp question, Nyarlathotep fiddled with the wine in the glass with his fingers.
Keep going!
At that moment, all the wine in the glass was sucked through his fingers.
“I also wanted to retrieve it quickly, but my mother said we should keep it as entertainment.”
“You mean you wanted to show respect for the Heavenly Demon?”
“No way, he must have been simply interested. In the first place, in front of my mother, I couldn’t even consider the residents living downstairs as enemies.”
“That’s true too.”
Rick nodded as if he understood.
“Rather than that, is that person okay? Was it Kang Jin-hyeok? I know you’re a person you care about, but you’re interfering with our plans more than I thought. If the arrow of doubt were directed at you, it would be a headache.”
“I’ve built up a good friendship with Kang Jin-hyeok. The target he’s heading to must be limited to Hastings. I’ve already scattered information about him through Gabriel.”
“Ohh. Did you enlist Eden?”
“No. She doesn’t know the inside story. She just believes that Hastings is behind all of this.”
Rick waved his hand lightly into the air.
Whoa!
A space beyond imagination that had not been seen before opened up, and countless items appeared.
“It smells good.”
Rick savored the coffee.
“Hwiyu! Looking at it again, your subspace ability is amazing. I must say that mother’s words about owning the tower itself are not exaggerated at all.”
Nyarlathotep, whistling, added a word.
“Kuhk! By the way, Hastings would faint if he found out about this. He firmly believed that he was the only one chosen by us? You should have seen him crouch.”
“He has to believe he’s in control. I like being one step behind.”
“That’s right. That’s right. It can be managed more reliably.”
“Enough of this cheesy conversation. Be sure to retrieve the crown this time, Nyarlathotep. If things go awry any further, you will pay the price too.”
“Don’t worry. We’ve already recruited great people. You’re the one who makes sure the Necronomicon doesn’t fall into that human’s hands. The book… Ha. Please, I hope it’s gone forever. I really care. It’s not used.”
“Okay. I’ll take care of that part separately.”
“Okay. I’m just counting on you. Our eternal companion.”
Nyarlathotep also filled his wine glass with a happy face.
***
Wheein!
A sandy wind blew with a frenzy.
A storm with small grains of sand is a threat in itself.
In fact, most of the monsters that inhabited this place did not even show their noses as they burrowed into their nests during storms.
“It’s really amazing.”
Chun Yuseong muttered as he looked outside.
We arrived at the temporary base following the guidance of Uasis.
Caves filled with stalactites made excellent shelters from storms.
“The 19th floor is really fortunate that you can store the food you brought in from outside in the subspace inventory. You won’t be able to leave until the storm stops anyway. In the meantime, I’ll serve you some nice French food.”
Teresa rolled up her arms as if she wanted to show off her skills.
Beef full of marbling, sea urchin and lobster from the Mediterranean Sea. Even fine red wine there.
Even at a glance, unusual materials appeared one after another.
Arrabiata sauce, a spicy tomato sauce, served with scallops and shrimp meat, and the mouth-watering aroma pierced the tip of the nose.
what is this
Are you here for a raid? It’s to the point where I can’t tell if he’s here to shoot a mukbang.
Even Alice, who was completely frozen, could feel the clamor in the ring.
If I do well, I don’t know if I’ll be able to get rid of the pouting thing?
While cooking is in progress like that.
Jinhyeok approached Uasis.
“Mr. Yuasis.”
“yes?”
“Wait, I want to ask you something. Do you have time?”
“Ah. Yes, of course. Which one?”
Uasis, who was curling up her legs in a bread pose, smiled brightly.
“Nothing else, but I have a question about where we are going this time.”
“It’s the Dune of the Sun.”
The hidden place of the 19th-floor ruins, “Dune of the Sun”.
It is a place where the sun does not set 365 days a year.
As if to prove that it is a place where all light gathers. The further you go inside, the higher the temperature rises.
‘Because there is a saying that the deepest part is comparable to the sun.’
I have visited this place in the past, but I have failed to go to the deepest part.
At that time, there was no goal of becoming a crown. Because there were far more interesting things than attacking the dunes of the sun.
“I need a map with the rooms in the dunes written on it.”
“…A map…?”
“I know it’s passed down from generation to generation in the dryad race. As a tool for the guardians of the forest to carry out their duties smoothly.”
Due to the nature of the sand dune, it tends to suck in objects with strong magical power.
If there is a crown, it should be in the deepest part of the sand dune.
In order to find the crown within a limited time, you must have a map with its interior written on it.
“Really… Player Kang Jin-hyuk doesn’t know anything. How do you know all the secrets of our clan?”
“I’m sorry, but I can’t tell you. Besides, what’s important is not the source of the information, but what it can solve… that’s the point.”
At Jinhyeok’s words, Uasis paused for a moment.
In a normal case, you would have to figure out the source of the secret even if you had to draw a weapon.
Is there a spy inside? Or else I had to figure out if there was a hole somewhere.
however. Those things are not a priority.
At least for now, like what Jinhyeok said. You must complete the mission using the given information.
“all right.”
Uasis pulled out a flower from her hair.
Whoa!
The petals grew in size as they grew in size….
Within a moment, a huge map made of petals appeared.
All rooms and locations in the Dunes of the Sun are listed.
‘good.’
Jinhyuk slightly clenched his fists as if satisfied.
With this, finding the crown will be much easier.
But just then
“…uh?”
Uasis suddenly raised her head.
“Is there a problem?”
“That, that’s…”
His face suddenly collapsed.
There was a deep sense of bewilderment in his shaking pupils.
It had to be.
Even at the moment of our conversation, the dryads she had placed outside the waterfall were dying.
“Sisters… all… what kind of bastards… so cruel…”
Uasis muttered blankly.
It was unfortunate that all of my colleagues died, but there are more serious things than that.
Jinhyuk’s head spun rapidly.
‘It’s not just players or residents who came to the ruins.’
If so, I would have faced the dryads and tried to talk to them, or I would have given up on the raid.
It is undeniably true that ruins are attractive. That’s the story of when the effort versus output comes out.
There was no reason to go inside while slaughtering the forest clan.
That is.
As long as there is nothing to be gained by risking all that.
‘Hasting… did you know about the crown?’
Other than that it made no sense.
Hurry up.
I have to move right now.
***
The meal was postponed, and instead, Jinhyuk confided to everyone about what had just happened.
“I understand the situation. So let’s go through that storm? Are you saying this sanely?”
“Mr. Jinhyeok…”
Cheon Yuseong and Teresa expressed disapproval.
“…the odds of survival are less than 3%.”
Frey also calmly conveyed the reality.
Aside from being completely blocked from sight, it was clear that if I was digging through that blade of sand, my body would be in tatters in less than 30 minutes.
Because even protecting oneself with magical power had limits.
“It’s okay. Actually, there’s a way to get around in there.”
“Is there a way? Is that really it?”
“Yeah. There are some restrictions… but now that it’s like this, I’ll have to try it.”
Jinhyeok gathered the water droplets at the end of the stalactite.
Parts!
As rune magic was injected, the water droplets began to turn blue-green.
“Why did you not tell me until now because of some restrictions?”
“You have to have really deep magic or internal energy, but it’s effective. It’s me… I’m fine, but I’m a little worried that the rest won’t work.”
“That’s… I can’t just pass it over.”
Chun Yuseong raised his eyes.
“It sounds like you mean I’m worse than you… is that really what you mean?”
“No, it’s not that I’m ignoring you or anything like that, it’s that you’re really worried about the one-in-a-kind case?”
“Sheesh! That’s an act of ignoring me!”
Chun Yoo-seong stole the water drop as if snatching it.
Then, he immediately activated ‘self-defense’.
A soft light emitted and Chun You-seong’s body was completely covered with strong energy.
Let’s add the effect of the water drop. A rather plausible-looking armor was created.
“Look carefully. I’ll break through that storm before you. Just follow along so you don’t fall behind.”
Cheon Yoo-seong confidently walked through the sandstorm.
“Isn’t Jin-
hyeok going ?” Let’s watch for a bit.”
Teresa asked, but Jinhyeok didn’t seem to want to move.
Instead, he observed Cheon Yoo-seong with a cautious face.
After a while.
“Kuaaa! shit. Is it true that this works? Lord, I think I’m going to die…!”
Chun You-seong’s screams echoed from beyond the storm.
Hmm. I
guess that was too much.
It seemed like a much older stalactite would be needed if Chun You-seong was in pain.
” Come to think of it, there seems to be a way to move inside the cave. It’s so old that it’s hard to see, but it’s safer that way.”
Jinhyeok quickly corrected his course.