Level -99 Archmage - Chapter 105

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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 105. Crafting Dedicated Equipment
Each one exceptional, each one supreme—one hundred thousand treasures.
Among the dazzling riches that could steal the soul from any who gazed upon them, Aheta had hidden three ‘masterpieces.’
Those blinded by the brilliance would never find them.
No one but herself could possibly discover them!
She had buried them beneath time limits and endless rules.
As a result, he couldn’t determine the equipment’s Grade or abilities.
Looking with his own eyes, touching them, weighing them carefully—no better method presented itself.
It was, in short, a perfect disguise.
Even if he possessed a Demonic Eye that could perceive Mana patterns, he would never have found them.
But.
‘She never dreamed I could amplify the wave and read the pattern itself.’
Park Chan-woo could sense Mana Waves.
He had even awakened the technique to amplify the wave and confirm the Mana pattern.
Every possibility, layered upon the others, had finally led him here.
“……It’s certain. These three.”
All three pieces of equipment bore patterns he’d never seen before.
Of course, roughly one percent of the treasures here showed patterns unfamiliar to him.
But the strength of their Mana Waves compared to these three was negligible—barely a drop in the ocean.
And that wasn’t all.
When he amplified the wave, what emerged wasn’t merely pattern.
‘Something is sealed within these.’
Sealed equipment.
Not unheard of, but rare.
Powerful Mana Waves, unfamiliar Mana patterns, and an unknown ‘seal’ besides.
When these three elements converged, only then could he be certain.
Aheta did not wish these to leave this place.
It was one of two things.
Either they were hidden because they were too extraordinary.
‘Or there exists a reason they must be hidden at all costs.’
Wasn’t he curious?
What could be sealed away?
Why had Aheta gone to such lengths to conceal them!
She had ensured that simply entering this place—the Hidden Treasure Vault—was not the end.
To enter a Hidden Treasure Vault that should be impossible to breach, and then conduct a search that should be impossible to complete, only then could one lay hands upon these three treasures.
Park Chan-woo examined the three treasures once more.
One was shoes, one was a belt, and the last was a sword.
Armor, an accessory, and a weapon.
‘All three emit similar waves.’
It was only a hypothesis, but these three seemed to be a ‘Set.’
The kind of Set where bringing all three together would fully break the Seal.
However, only one treasure could be taken from this Vault.
…He couldn’t help but deliberate.
He had to choose whichever would be most useful to him.
‘Conveniently, all three are the kind I need.’
Currently, he wore Hermes’ Shoes (–92 Lv, Ancient) and the Intoxicating Belt (–95 Lv, Unique).
He needed a sword as well.
If he was to fully express the abilities of a Mage Swordsman.
Due to the Hidden trait Eternal Sword, even if he borrowed another’s weapon, there were limits.
He couldn’t keep borrowing forever, after all.
‘The most urgent are the sword and belt.’
Hermes’ Shoes still had their use.
They increased movement speed by fifty percent, and allowed him to traverse obstacles with ease.
In many ways, they were well-suited to compensating for his poor physical endurance.
However, the Intoxicating Belt was useless except when drawing aggro from Orcs.
He did have the World Tree Staff (–98 Lv, Eternal) as a weapon, but it fell somewhat short of fully expressing the Mage Swordsman’s inherent capabilities.
He truly needed a sword.
Above all, the World Tree Staff itself would soon be due for replacement.
His current Level was –84.
Efficiency was highest when replacing his entire equipment set roughly every twenty Levels.
‘I’ve stretched the staff’s lifespan a bit with a latent ability scroll, but…….’
With Health increased by 10 and Attack by 100, it would be usable down to about -70 levels.
Still, the day would come when the World Tree Staff needed replacing.
There was no harm in preparing ahead.
Or better yet, securing a substitute entirely.
‘A sword, then.’
He didn’t own a single blade among his current possessions.
Even if he couldn’t wield it simultaneously with the staff, switching between them was possible.
…Five minutes remained.
He had to decide within that window.
This was truly the dilemma of the century.
All three carried similar patterns and resonance, so whichever he chose wouldn’t make a dramatic difference.
Besides, the moment he carried it out, it would be completed as Dedicated Equipment.
In other words.
It would undergo one final enhancement here.
Naturally, astronomical materials would go into enhancing it as Dedicated Equipment.
Aheta would sustain another devastating blow.
Not only losing one of her most precious treasures, but pouring all the resources needed to complete that treasure as Dedicated Equipment.
Therefore, he needed to choose equipment that would deliver the maximum benefit.
‘A sword or a belt. One of the two.’
Hermes’ Shoes had utility.
If he’d just swapped them out only to lack any option related to ‘movement speed,’ it could actually be a net loss.
Once he’d grown enough that traversal and movement speed options became unnecessary, they’d be quite an attractive choice—but not now.
Ding!
《One minute remains on the time limit.》
《If you do not exit within one minute, the entrance will vanish and you will be trapped forever.》
《Be warned. If the ‘entrance’ disappears, the Moon Lord Aheta will enter.》
《However, as long as the ‘entrance’ exists, Aheta cannot enter, nor can she observe what lies within.》
One final minute.
His heart thundered like it might burst from his chest.
This single choice would fork his future sharply in two.
A sword, or a belt.
Both were equipment for positions he desperately needed.
《Thirty seconds remain on the time limit.》
The deliberation would not end.
He couldn’t choose lightly.
Even with ‘Set’ equipment, there would be subtle differences.
Whichever offered even a touch more benefit to him now.
Whichever carried even slightly better options.
《Ten seconds remain on the time limit.》
《Nine seconds remain on the time limit.》
《Eight seconds remain on the time limit.》
…….
《Three seconds remain on the time limit.》
《Two seconds remain on the time limit.》
《One second remains on the time limit.》
Thud!
After all the anguish, Park Chan-woo made his choice and hurled himself through the door, equipment in hand.
Creeeeak!
Bang!
In the same moment the door slammed shut.
《’Selection’ is complete.》
…….
…….
《The Moon Lord Aheta enters the ‘Hidden Treasure Vault.’》
* * *
“…….”
The Moon Lord Aheta.
Aheta’s form was incomprehensible, like a shadow itself—her very existence defied perception.
A figure stained only in absolute darkness, Aheta stood motionless, surveying the expanse of the Hidden Treasure Vault.
Then he turned his gaze to the two treasures that lay directly ahead of where the ‘entrance’ had been.
“……How did you even find them?”
He had found all three.
And he had taken one of them.
Even if some absolute being had aided him, the moment he entered this Hidden Treasure Vault, all connections would have been severed—assistance would have been impossible.
Even if that were somehow possible, these three treasures should not have been found at all.
Had he grasped what these three pieces of equipment signified, he would surely have tried to return here again.
Yet they could not be moved elsewhere.
Items placed in the Hidden Treasure Vault existed under a single rule: they must remain here and nowhere else.
This rule even Aheta could not break.
《’Dedicated Equipment’ creation requires currency expenditure.》
That was when it happened.
A message materialized before Aheta’s eyes.
This too was a rule established to cloud the minds of those who entered the Hidden Treasure Vault.
The promise of creating Dedicated Equipment was meant to tempt them into choosing carelessly, never to regret their selection.
But…….
he had taken the one treasure he should never have touched.
《The Grade of material destined for ‘Dedicated Equipment’ is far too high.》
《Insufficient currency.》
《To compensate for the shortage, treasures from ‘Treasure Vault (1)’, ‘Treasure Vault (2)’, and ‘Treasure Vault (3)’ will be forcibly seized.》
“…….”
Three additional treasure vaults had been emptied.
Treasures Aheta had accumulated over an entire lifetime.
Treasures procured through countless wars across eons.
All reduced to dust in a single moment.
That three of his hundred-odd treasure vaults would be completely seized—he had not foreseen it.
“…I can remain idle no longer.”
On the night the full moon rose, the ‘Night’ continued.
The first Night had failed, as had the Second Night.
‘The Third Night will be different.’
Painful though it was, it had also kindled interest and amusement.
It had been a long time.
Since the dragon race, no species had shaken him so profoundly.
No race had ever conquered his ‘Night’ so completely.
Therefore.
For the Third Night, I shall prepare properly.
So thoroughly they will not even remember this Second Night.
I will achieve victory without mercy.
The problem was Han Shin.
A question remained: whether to leave Han Shin as he was, or to invest further in him.
‘…Han Shin still has utility.’
This time, fortune had favored him.
On the brink of death, he had suddenly received a blessing and been resurrected.
Having consumed the Doppelgänger and ‘evolved’ as a result.
Han Shin.
He had become something ambiguous to call merely ‘human’.
What consequences this might yield, he could not say—but one thing was certain: possibilities had emerged because of it.
‘I shall employ you until the Racial War.’
The Racial War.
Han Shin would exhaust his usefulness there.
Until then, investment was necessary.
Han Shin could not grow stronger quickly without his aid, after all.
They were using each other, in a sense.
Such a relationship was acceptable.
Yet.
“…….”
The single treasure that had been seized still weighed on his mind.
It had been crafted into Dedicated Equipment and slipped entirely from his grasp.
No method existed by which to reclaim it.
……It was in that moment.
《’Dedicated Equipment’ has been crafted with overwhelming success and begins to shine brilliantly!》
《’Dedicated Equipment’ crafting requires ‘additional resources’!》
“……?”
What?
What on earth is this supposed to mean?
Dedicated Equipment crafted with overwhelming success?
I know the odds exist, but they’re abysmal.
The probability of overwhelming success was less than one percent.
Yet there was no mistaking what I saw.
《To compensate for the insufficient resources, treasures from ‘Hidden Treasure Vault (4)’ through ‘Hidden Treasure Vault (10)’ are forcibly requisitioned.》
Even Aheta, who had lived through eons uncounted, had never encountered anything so preposterous.
Ten percent of her entire hoard had vanished.
All to craft a single piece of Dedicated Equipment.
“…….”
Aheta found herself at a loss for words.
Who in blazes could it be?
What creature dared plunder her treasure vaults?
“I shall…….”
Never forgive this.
Aheta’s entire frame burned crimson with rage.
She had never burned with such fury, not even against the Dragon Clan itself.
No matter what it takes, she would find the culprit.
“……I will kill them.”
* * *
《’Easter Egg (001)’ activates.》
《A flood of ‘Luck’ rushes in!》
《’Dedicated Equipment’ has been crafted with overwhelming success!》
《’Dedicated Equipment’ shines brilliantly!》
《You have obtained ‘Baal’s Belt (-84 Lv, Brilliant Dedicated Equipment, Zero Grade, Set)’!》

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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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