I Became a Mythical Hunter After Killing the Golden Goblin - Chapter 65

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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Chapter 65. Hidden Stage – Decayed Black Mage’s Hideout
Schwick.
A clean, beautiful cutting sound rang out, and with a final groan indistinguishable from the death throes of malice itself, its body crumbled completely.
Or more precisely, the collective masses of malice that had enveloped it collapsed inward.
All negativity tumbled down in succession.
〚You have defeated the Spirit of Malice subordinate to Uncommon-Rank E+ LV 22 ???!〛
〚Contribution: 100%〛
〚As a reward, you receive: Navy Coins×30, Uncommon E+ Magic Stone×1, Rune: Domain Expansion – Frost of ???[Ancient-EX-]×1, Shattered Malice Fragment[Uncommon-C-]×6, Purified Pure ????’s Soul[Common-F-]×1!〛
〚LEVEL UP〛
〚Your Free Points increase by 2.〛
Nice! Not only did a rune appear as a reward, but my rank jumped up by three entire tiers! This must be because the system recognized the Achievement of perfectly eliminating the enemy.
I immediately picked up the mysterious stone that had fallen to the ground. Unlike the rune I’d used before, this one gleamed with a blue light, and within it, a colossal frost storm swirled in frenzied rotation.
“I’ve already obtained two runes.”
And both of them were Ancient-grade with the highest tier. Considering these were the highest-caliber runes to have appeared at this point, it was nothing short of a miraculous stroke of fortune. I swallowed hard and activated the rune.
〚You acquire Rune: Domain Expansion – Frost of ???[Ancient-EX-]!〛
〚The ??? will be determined to align with your essence.〛
〚…Determining〛
〚Determination complete.〛
〚Your ??? is Destiny.〛
〚Rune: Domain Expansion – Frost of Destiny
Grade: Ancient
Rank: EX-
LV 1(0%)
Description: A blessing imbued with the power to tint even the smallest speck of dust in the world with your own color. Within that domain, the frost of destiny—carrying your fortune and misfortune—will ceaselessly assault all within.〛
Abilities
-Domain Expansion available. (Cooldown: 24 hours)
-Upon Domain Expansion, all enemies within the domain receive a speck of Misfortune[Legendary].
-Upon Domain Expansion, all allies within the domain receive a speck of Good Fortune[Mythic].
-Upon Domain Expansion, the reduced fortune of enemies and increased fortune of allies are combined and temporarily granted to the caster. (Cooldown: 30 days)〛
Insane. This is exactly the ability I needed. Normally, that final ability would only unlock after leveling up to a certain threshold, but it’s already available.
That means when I level up, the power of this special ability will grow even faster.
An incredibly satisfying effect. It could become a crucial counter against Misfortune.
After stuffing all the miscellaneous items into my inventory, I lifted my head and gazed into empty space. The final reward from slaying malice—a soul that had been corrupted and fallen, bound together by malice itself—looked down upon me.
《First, I should offer my thanks. Thank you for saving me from the depths of that abyss of malice.》
Purified Pure ???’s Soul[Common-F-]—I couldn’t even guess what kind of reward this was. Since it was classified as an item, it’s definitely a reward, but…
A soul that speaks and thinks is a reward?
“Ah… yes. Well, it was something I had to do anyway.”
I never expected this. So that one didn’t kill the malice monster and instead only discovered the Hidden Stage to begin a Mythic-tier Quest.
《Even so, gratitude is gratitude. You even purified my soul after severing only the malice, didn’t you?》
I gazed down at the sign of purification. I only cut away the malice? I thought I’d killed it entirely.
Upon reviewing the Saber of Purification’s abilities once more, I realized it could strike the soul, but rather than killing, it possessed the power to purify and guide spirits to enlightenment.
‘I had been using it simply because it was the best equipment for striking ethereal beings….’
So this is how it turned out? In any case, the spirit that appeared as a reward wasn’t bad at all. Would it offer me something in return?
“Then I shall accept your gratitude.”
《Thank you. My heart feels so much lighter now. Light enough that I can ascend to heaven with peace of mind.》
At those words, I sighed inwardly. So it really was just an ordinary spirit after all? Well, it did raise my Rune’s rank by three levels, so I shouldn’t be greedy asking for more.
“Yes, then I’ll take my leave. I still have matters to attend to.”
《Hm? What business?》
“A rat has snuck its way in here. Now that I think about it, wasn’t it because of that rat that you ended up like this?”
At my words, the spirit fell silent, seemingly lost in deep thought. I even harbored a faint hope that, as a reward, it might reveal something connected to the Mythic-rank Quest!
《Hmm…I can’t remember anything at all. Did I do that? Come to think of it, who am I? Why was I doing this here? Ugh!》
Amnesia. How pitiful. But I couldn’t care less.
I grabbed my head and, while the spirit struggled to piece together his fragmented memories, I began searching through the Underground Aqueduct for the hidden Hidden Stage he had mentioned.
Since the Underground Aqueduct utilized the entire underground of the city, finding its exact location proved difficult despite knowing the general entrance.
Finally, after traveling for quite some time using the map Braymun had given me and the location markers written on the aqueduct walls, I was able to locate it.
“Is this the place?”
The deepest part of the aqueduct, where an opening connected to groundwater existed. I gazed at it and then traced through my memories in my mind.
-Truly, I could only call it good fortune. I discovered the Hidden Stage while moving about to rest after clearing a Quest! For someone like me who couldn’t escape F+ rank, it was nothing short of divine providence. How did I discover the Hidden Stage? Hahaha! When I ran—no, moved—to the wall where the door connected to the pump that draws groundwater was located, I found small characters written beneath the door. Those characters were the key to the Hidden Stage!
I immediately crouched down and examined the area beneath the door connected to the pump. Sure enough, there was a single character written in small letters below it.
Naturally, I couldn’t understand it. This was a language from another dimension.
《!@#$!@#$!. When radiant ascension becomes despair, return to this place.》
At that moment, I was startled by a voice coming from behind me. It was the spirit. He seemed surprised by his own words, his eyes widening in shock.
But that was nothing compared to what came next. The moment he spoke the precise pronunciation and meaning, the characters began to glow brightly.
Kwaaaa-guguung…
The pump, which had been frantically drawing groundwater through the door, ceased its operation, and the tightly sealed mysterious door slowly began to open.
And the message that appeared before my eyes was more than enough to leave me bewildered.
〚You have discovered the Hidden Stage: Decayed Black Mage’s Hideout for the first time across all dimensions!〛
〚You are rewarded with 1 Orange Coin!〛
〚Experience and reward acquisition rates within the Ancient Ruin have been significantly increased!〛
“What is this?”
This isn’t the Hidden Stage I knew about.
In the past—or rather, in a future that will never come to pass—the Hidden Stage that he discovered was a place called 【A Certain Black Mage’s Secret Vault】, which could be entered by infusing mana into those characters.
It was there that he would discover clues leading to a Mythic-rank Quest, and the system would grant him a Quest toward a Mythic-rank class.
But…a hideout instead of a vault?
I tightened my grip on my sword. Man-byeon had already projected a different blade instead of the Saber of Purification.
A variable unknown to my knowledge. And variables always brought one entity in their wake.
〚Misfortune, which had been crouching and waiting for its chance, reveals itself!〛
Misfortune finally exposed its presence. It smiled at me with a sardonic grin, as if challenging me to overcome this trial as well, and unleashed its power.
〚Twisted, vicious, and erratic Misfortune blocks your path forward!〛
I couldn’t help but click my tongue. Feeling that entity, which had been waiting for this moment to pour all its strength into the Hidden Stage before retreating into my psyche once more, I furrowed my brow.
“Phew… yes, I suppose I saw this coming.”
I had known from the start that this adventure would not unfold smoothly. For every treasure gained, I understood there would be a proportional trial to match—a burden equal to the blessing.
I steeled my resolve. There was no turning back now. The Emperor of Ten Thousand Spirits was one of the most crucial pillars in my plan, after all.
Besides, I had “that” with me, so there was no reason to fear. I straightened my posture once more and turned to regard the spirit.
Its translucent form was barely discernible, yet its face was twisted in a terrifying grimace as it glared toward the Hidden Stage.
“Will you come with me?”
《May I? My memories elude me, but… a murderous intent churns within me like madness. I sense that entering that place might help me recover even a fragment of what I’ve lost.》
I nodded. Yes, this was indeed the orthodox route. Not some shortcut like that creature had taken, but the true, proper path through the Quest.
‘If that’s the case, my class should improve as well, shouldn’t it?’
Then there was nothing left to hesitate over. I pushed my body through the doorway, and just as when I had used the Abyss Portal, a dizzying sensation seized me alongside an inexplicable suction that pulled me in. The moment the spirit and I vanished completely—
Thud!
The door swung shut, and the pump resumed its work as if nothing had happened, drawing up groundwater once more.
***
Meanwhile, at that very moment, the Primordial City – Terraium was in turmoil. The reason was simple: information about Quest 478, which had been carefully hidden until now, had been made public.
“Damn! The rewards are insane!”
“So someone accepted the Quest and it got revealed?”
“Right, I heard the information goes public once someone meets the conditions and accepts it.”
“Crazy. You can advance to the next stage by clearing it. And it gives a Cardinal’s Letter of Recommendation from the Holy Kingdom, no less.”
“Shit. You can become Holy Kingdom nobility? Isn’t that the highest-ranked kingdom among those in Stage-1?”
“Yeah. The first Saint cleared a Quest in the Holy Kingdom and received the Saint title, which is how a Saint was born on Earth. That’s how prestigious it is. Since it’s fundamentally a religious kingdom, its influence is enormous.”
“From what I’ve heard, Holy Kingdom people exist all the way up to double-digit stages.”
“Insane, seriously. I’m genuinely jealous. Whoever it is, they’re set for life, right? They’ll become a ranker in no time?”
Stage-0 was simple enough—merely to experience the feeling, one needed only clear a single Quest to earn the right to advance. But actually entering the next stage was another matter entirely.
Countless kingdoms existed in Stage-1. It was even called the final stage that players from virtually all dimensions had completely conquered. To enter that place, one had to choose a kingdom and receive its citizenship.
Naturally, obtaining that citizenship was no trivial matter. This was precisely why so many stagnant players remained trapped in Stage-0.
But to possess a Letter of Recommendation? Not ordinary citizenship, but noble citizenship. And moreover, a Cardinal’s Letter—and there were only four Cardinals in the entire Holy Kingdom?
In terms of other kingdoms, this was equivalent to being granted the rank of Count outright, such was its influence.
This was why everyone envied it so. And they all thought the same thing.
They desperately hoped the unknown person would fail the Quest and not clear it. So that the opportunity might come to them instead!
For stagnant players, it could hardly be called easy, but if enough people gathered, the difficulty was certainly manageable.
So foolishly, they believed that if given the chance, they too could succeed. Unaware that courage and recklessness were separated by but a hair’s breadth.
And a small minority took action. Rather than waste time repeating envious complaints like the others, they moved directly—gathering information and seizing opportunity.
The Quest was cleared? No matter. They would find the person, kill them, and steal the rewards.
The rewards from a Quest of that difficulty were essentially the greatest treasure obtainable in Stage-0. They dispersed immediately to gather intelligence, and by this morning, they had finally obtained information about Shin Ju-ha, who had departed somewhere with the guard captain.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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