The Return of the Genius Ranker of All Times - Chapter 130

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 130

Episode 130.

Hidden NPC.

A type of hidden piece referring to NPCs that cannot be met through ordinary methods.

Since you had to achieve difficult hidden conditions to barely meet them, naturally they weren’t easy to encounter.

So much so that even Adventure King Barion had only met four of them so far.

‘Since it’s the first time since Gamillion, is this the second one?’

He had already met such beings twice at only level 41.

It was certainly an incredible opportunity, but Dohyun was feeling tired for some reason.

-It was already miserable avoiding the Outlaws, and having no one to help made it so difficult… Though one group did decode my map, but what good is decoding it? They couldn’t see me and just passed by.

“I see.”

-So after thinking about it for a long time, I decided to just change my method. Leaving my location wasn’t going to work.

“…Skip.”

-So what I did was… Are you listening?

This hidden NPC called Jin Ruddell was an incredible chatterbox who somehow reminded him of Zrinna from Raven.

‘Wow… I think my ears are going to bleed, Owner.’

‘Risa, Risa…’

‘Just say the word anytime, my lord. I’ll handle it.’

‘But you’re not even visible.’

‘Ahem…’

So much so that even Jihad, who was quite talkative himself, threw up his hands in surrender.

Especially since the guys couldn’t even be seen and were just listening to that murderous length of speech, they seemed to feel even more tired.

‘Interesting. From what I can tell, other players couldn’t even hear his voice.’

If they could hear his voice, Jin Ruddell wouldn’t have bothered leaving codes or maps.

Was it because he as the owner recognized that man that the Guardians could also hear his voice?

That seemed to be the case based on the circumstances.

[Eye of Truth is activated.]

‘If you’re going to let me see, why not just let everyone see…’

It was ambiguous and confusing, but what could he do.

Even Dohyun couldn’t be 100% certain he fully understood the Eye of Truth trait itself.

He should be grateful that at least the Guardians could hear the voice.

Otherwise, he would have had to summarize and explain that too-much-talker’s long speech.

-Ah, sorry. It’s been so long since I talked to someone that I got carried away. You try being cut off from people for a few years, then you’ll understand, right?

“…It’s fine.”

-Still, I feel bad for talking too much by myself. You must be curious about a lot of things with a ghost suddenly appearing, so why don’t you speak up too?

Blessings come to those who endure, they say.

There was reward for exercising superhuman patience to resist the strong urge to punch him.

Finally seeing Jin Ruddell shut his mouth and prepare to listen, Dohyun organized his thoughts.

‘He talked so frantically that I can’t even organize it properly.’

What he managed to understand was just the part about speaking to someone for the first time in a few years.

If what he said was true, it meant he was the first to discover him.

This was important.

Hidden pieces were important in themselves, but hidden pieces discovered for the first time had even greater value.

‘Phew.’

Calming his excited heart, Dohyun spoke calmly.

“There are three things I’m curious about.”

-Oh ho, what are they?

First, what were those Outlaws doing and what were they looking for.

Second, why was Jin Ruddell in the forest and leaving traces for people to find.

The answer to that came quickly.

-Only on nights when the full moon rises, filled with lunar energy, can those things and I descend to the mortal world. More precisely, it’s because of a special item their leader possesses…

The explanation was long, but to summarize it was this:

On the day those things first descended to the mortal world through an item with special energy, Jin Ruddell happened to die.

Thanks to that, before he could find peace, he was drawn by that energy and descended to the mortal world.

Thus losing his way, unable to stay in either the afterlife or the mortal world, that was his current situation.

-I don’t know where those damn things came from… but they’re definitely planning something. It seemed like they were carrying out someone’s orders.

“…Then are you just wandering around aimlessly?”

-Hey, if that was all, it would be manageable. Those things are desperate to catch me. The Lycanthropes can see me so they bark every time they spot me… I’m quite busy running around avoiding them all.

“Hm?”

At this point, Dohyun couldn’t help but tilt his head.

Those things wouldn’t attack unless you bothered them first, so he couldn’t understand why he was running from them.

Unless he had done something to harm them…

-I stole what those things were preparing to offer to some unknown higher-up.

“…”

Well, that changes things again.

Dohyun nodded as his questions were instantly resolved.

The first thing he saw upon dying and opening his eyes were those creatures with their creepy appearance, and he thought to steal from them…

‘Should I call this impressive, or not normal…’

He couldn’t tell whether to call this bold or crazy.

-Don’t look at me like that. I had no choice.

Had his impure thoughts shown on his face?

Jin Ruddell protested indignantly.

-I heard those things laying out plans to enter the castle and wage war, and you expect an Apostle to just stand by? Hey, if you stand by, you’re not a man.

“…”

-I’m already dead anyway, so I thought if I get caught, I’ll just die twice, and went for it. I may not know other things, but I was pretty good at thievery. Hehe, thanks to that, those guys became blind fools. They can’t even get out of the forest.

‘My goodness.’

If what he said was true, his one bold theft had saved the city.

Not only did Jin Ruddell’s theft ruin the Outlaws’ plans, but it seemed to have created various restrictions as well.

The birth of a legendary hero came from thievery.

Looking at his appearance, he would have been in his early thirties when he died, but what incredible ambition.

‘…Is it not Dobong but God-bong after all?’

As his image of rogues was changing a bit.

-Well, I think that’s enough of the story… So what’s the last thing you’re curious about?

Seeing Jin Ruddell shrug and ask, Dohyun came to his senses, straightened his expression and answered.

“It’s nothing much, but I was wondering if you know a way to meet the Lord. I really need to meet him but he won’t arrange a meeting.”

Naturally, he didn’t ask with any expectations.

He was a legendary thief worthy of being remembered in history, but whatever he was, he was still a thief. How would someone of a thief’s status know a way to meet the Lord?

Even when he was alive it would be unlikely, and now that he was already a spirit, it was even less credible.

‘It’s not like I have a choice right now.’

Still, the reason he bothered to ask was simply a question born from grasping at straws.

A formal question with no expectations whatsoever.

-Huh? The Lord? You mean that Lord I know? The owner of the castle?

That’s definitely what it was…

-Perfect! I was just wondering if it would be shameless to ask a favor, but now there’s nothing to worry about!

“You know the Lord?”

-Of course I do. He’s my nephew.

“What…?”

That straw hit the jackpot.

* * *

On a night when the full moon rose, deep in the forest.

There was a cave there. A cave so massive you’d think bears might live inside.

It wasn’t hard to find since it was right out in the open, but no one set foot in this place.

Specifically, not on nights when the full moon rose.

“You’d have to be crazy to go there during a full moon.”

“The rewards are the same, so why bother going during a full moon? It’s not even a graduation quest.”

“The boss stats increase by 30% but the experience and items stay the same – isn’t that just crossing the line?”

“You can’t even party up either. No wonder it’s another brick game sequel.”

All the rewards stay the same but the difficulty skyrockets like crazy?

And that dungeon is a solo dungeon on top of that?

Anyone who went to clear this would really be strange. Especially in Godseeker with its death penalties.

But there are always people with their own circumstances.

“Ah, I have to clear it because of the quest time limit…”

“Mine’s a class quest. Ah, shit… Why does the full moon have to rise right now?”

“Sigh… This is stressing me out. Should I go buy some gear?”

People who had to clear class quests or important quests had no choice but to go there reluctantly.

Dohyun was one of them.

-Owner, you look like you’re in a good mood.

“Of course I’m happy, man.”

But unlike the others, Dohyun’s expression was extremely bright.

No, it was so bright that his mouth looked like it might split at the corners.

It was because of the quest window floating before his eyes.

[Jin’s Request]

-Grade: Rare+

-Description: The thief who became a hero of the city without anyone knowing, Jin Ruddell.

In fact, he had a secret about his birth – though he was excommunicated now, he was once the uncle of the current lord.

He says there’s something he must deliver to the lord.

The problem is that the item is hidden in the Lair of the Shadow Lycanthropes.

Find the item in place of him, who has become a ghost.

-Jin Ruddell’s Items (0 / 3)

-Quest Success: Jin Ruddell’s favorability increases, chain quest ‘Uncle’s Items’ generated.

-Quest Failure: Chain quest impossible and quest deleted.

‘Kugh.’

Jin Ruddell.

A hidden NPC and a man who was actually the uncle of the Lord of Sargis.

-There’s information I must tell that guy. I never planned to return here, but I came back because of that. But as you can see, I died before I could, haha!

‘…That’s all well and good, but why is it in such a place?’

-That’s where I died, you see. I thought I had hidden it well and gotten away… but I happened to run into them there, tsk. I guess this is why you shouldn’t do things you’ve never done before.

‘…’

At the same time, he was also a man with absolutely terrible luck.

Anyway, it was because of his request that Dohyun had come to this place.

‘So this is how it turns out.’

To think that someone he’d just considered a legendary thief was actually someone as important as the lord’s uncle.

If coincidence went this far, it was destiny.

Is this why Gamillion kept shouting about destiny?

‘Well, this probably wasn’t a quest you could get this easily originally.’

This wasn’t just a simple guess.

-Since I was just exposed to that mysterious energy, people can’t see me properly. It’s hard to exert proper physical force too…

-So I tried to mark the location of the items as much as possible… Why can’t everyone figure it out? No, I could understand not figuring it out. But why do they go there and then leave the items behind! They should bring them with them! Then maybe they’d see me or something!

The items hidden in the cave.

Originally, this was a hidden quest that started only after acquiring those items.

He couldn’t bear to go there himself, and given the lycanthropes’ trait of being able to see ghosts, he was too scared to go.

Jin Ruddell’s appearance as he burst with frustration and delivered an impassioned speech was still vivid.

‘Just how did he hide them that no one could find them?’

Was this a problem because they were hidden too well? Were the traces Jin Ruddell left as hints too messy?

Or was it that the players lacked sense?

He was suddenly curious, but whatever it was, it wasn’t his concern.

Thanks to the Eye of Truth, he could easily get his hands on the hidden quest.

‘The Eye of Truth really is overpowered.’

There was no cheat like this cheat.

Even though he experienced it constantly, he could only marvel at its amazing performance.

-But Owner…

“What.”

-…Don’t you think there are quite a lot of people here? The atmosphere seems a bit strange too.

-Risa risa…

Jihad and Eliza asked cautiously while looking around.

The two were right.

Murmur murmur-

There had been no people on the way here, but a considerable number were gathered in front of the cave.

Considering the full moon was up and this should be a situation to avoid, it was strange.

No matter how many people had no choice but to clear it, this number didn’t make sense.

Of course it didn’t.

“These aren’t all people who came to clear the dungeon.”

Their purpose wasn’t the dungeon.

Probably 90% of those gathered here had their sights set on something else.

-Huh? Then?

-Risa?

-Hmm.

The two tilted their heads in confusion, and Charlie made a sound as if he couldn’t understand.

But they would soon find out.

“Ah, shit! It’s brown again!”

“Nooooo!!!”

“Hey hey, you gotta pray first, you bastard. That’s why we came here.”

“Ah, right. Thanks. If yellow comes up, I’ll buy you a meal.”

“Sure thing, bastard.”

A man possessed by Twosome Dragon crying out and a man kneeling and sobbing in rage.

And even groups praying while looking at the full moon outside the cave.

When he turned his head slightly at the utterly abnormal scene, he saw Dohyun praying while looking at the full moon like those groups.

-Ah.

Jihad nodded.

-So this was what was strange.

The atmosphere had seemed strange but oddly familiar somehow.

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