The Return of the Genius Ranker of All Times - Chapter 67

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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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Episode 67

Chapter 67.

When the Eye of Truth activated, the first thing Dohyun did was check his remaining time.

[Remaining Play Time: 00:01:17]

1 minute and 17 seconds.

Not even enough time for instant noodles to cook halfway, but sufficient to check that thing’s information. Of course, that was only if he moved quickly.

‘Could it be a Fate Fragment?’

Though he was currently focused on hunting orcs, what he should prioritize most was the Fate Fragment.

Main Quest and Main Stream.

At first glance, they seemed like just a slight difference, but the gap between them was quite significant.

If Main Quests that progressed one by one in quest form were the leaves, then Main Stream played the core role of handling the main trunk.

Well, even explaining it this way, this was essentially a chicken-or-egg argument.

Clearing Main Quests would eventually lead to obtaining Fate Fragments, and accumulating those would eventually clear the Main Stream too.

‘Is this appearing already?’

In that sense, having a Fate Fragment appear now was very exciting.

With hopeful anticipation, Dohyun’s steps quickened.

-Owner? No, here we go again. What’s happening this time?

-Liza liza?

When Dohyun suddenly ran toward the rock, Jihad and Eliza expressed confusion but followed along.

And so Dohyun’s group reached the front of the rock.

The rock was nothing special, just an ordinary rock common throughout this Foul-Smelling Rock Forest. That’s how it looked to the naked eye, but not to Dohyun’s eyes.

‘This area is red.’

Red light was seeping out from one corner of the blood-stained rock.

Even looking at it up close, he couldn’t tell what the difference was, suggesting he never would have discovered it without the Eye of Truth.

Swoosh.

Dohyun instinctively brought his hand to it and frowned at the strange sensation he felt.

‘It’s sticky.’

Should he say it was thick in consistency?

Like a feeling of sweet honey mixed in?

It definitely didn’t feel like blood, and not every part was like this—only the area where the Eye of Truth had activated was sticky.

‘What could this be.’

He had wondered if a Fate Fragment had already appeared, but that didn’t seem to be the case.

That incomparably brilliant light was nowhere to be seen.

His next guess was that maybe this time herbs had finally appeared, but there wasn’t even a trace of herbs to be found.

Ding-.

That’s when the notification sounded.

Since his curiosity had been growing, Dohyun quickly checked the message and his eyes widened.

And for good reason—it was completely unexpected content.

[You have discovered a hidden clue.]

[It will be recorded in the Adventure Log.]

[A Quest has been generated upon discovering the Quest item ‘Ominous Aura.’]

[Ominous Aura]

-Grade: Rare

-Description: You have discovered an ominous aura in Brion’s Foul-Smelling Rock Forest. You sense something unsettling.

The Caretaker ‘Gildeti’ of Lyre Shrine might know the identity of this.

Go find ‘Gildeti’ and deliver the ominous aura.

-Quest Success: Gildeti’s favorability increases, linked Quest ‘Material Search’ generated.

-Quest Failure: Linked Quest unavailable.

“…Hm?”

This was the moment Dohyun discovered his first Quest item in Godseeker.

* * *

Quest.

A system that all users who have played RPGs know, and a system essential for character development.

Like most RPGs, users could be considered slaves to Quests.

Godseeker was no different.

The importance of class Quests goes without saying, and even for low-grade Quests, there was a big difference between accepting and not accepting them.

Even Dohyun had followed the strategy guide’s Quests until coming to Brion.

‘The strategy guide’s Quests aren’t everything though.’

But those useful strategy guide Quests were just the tip of the iceberg.

Godseeker, with adventure as its theme, boasted a vast world, and that much was hidden within it.

Whether related to the Adventure Log or hidden pieces….

The list was endless, and among them were things called Hidden Quests that required meeting hidden conditions to unlock.

Like the emergency Quest that appeared when Dohyun discovered the hidden field, Habitat of the Warriors, with Jihad’s help.

Such Hidden Quests weren’t limited to emergency Quests.

You could receive hidden Quests from NPCs by meeting certain conditions, or get them during raids.

And very rarely, you could receive them through items,

“I never thought a Quest item would appear….”

That was the identity of the Quest before Dohyun.

A sweet item that not only filled the Adventure Log but also linked to Hidden Quests.

And it was also an item that Adventure King Barion would go crazy for and rush toward.

Naturally.

For someone prepared to overcome any hardship related to adventure, Quest items would be more attractive than anything else.

‘I couldn’t get this even a few times in Demroc, and now I’m getting it like this.’

Since Dohyun had such bad luck, the number of times he’d obtained the supposedly rare Quest items could be counted on one hand.

To get such a thing just 3 days after starting… Is this what the Eye of Truth class is like?

‘No, Eye of Truth, what are you? Where exactly are your limits?’

You find secret dungeons, you find stealth, and now even Quest items?

It was truly insane performance.

At this point, only being unable to find herbs was actually more unbalanced.

‘Hah… Sweet.’

So what if he can’t find herbs?

It finds every hidden piece there is!

With just the Eye of Truth, Dohyun could hunt down everything from various Quest items to secret dungeons.

‘If explorers knew this fact, they’d die of envy.’

They might not just die of envy but actually try to kill Dohyun.

Still, it was a balance-breaking characteristic to the point where he had nothing to say in defense.

‘Well, actually, Quest items aren’t unconditionally good.’

The value of Quest items lies only in their rarity.

Their difficulty and rewards vary drastically depending on what kind of Quest item it is.

Compared to their rarity, which makes them hard to obtain even when actively searching, they’re too much of a gamble.

The position users held toward Quest items was “nice if you get them by chance, whatever if you don’t.”

‘Adventure King is the weird one.’

Unless you’re an oddball like that gentleman, it’s more of a “why bother?” feeling.

Actually, isn’t the Quest he just obtained rare grade? Most Quest items are probably rare grade.

Since the most common hidden pieces are rare and rare+ grades.

‘I think he obtained a divine beast with a legendary grade Quest item in Cheonoechen….’

Since it was going to appear anyway, wouldn’t it have been great if it were an item containing such high-grade Quests, but that was Dohyun’s greed.

There would be many opportunities in the future, and obtaining a rare Quest was already a good thing.

‘There seems to be a linked Quest too.’

Maybe he could hope for the final grade to reach rare+.

For now, since there’s no time, it seemed I’d have to visit the Caretaker tomorrow when I log in to find out.

[10 seconds remaining until connection ends.]

[Connection will end shortly. Please evacuate to a safe location.]

‘I won’t be able to reach 250.’

Getting the Quest item was a hundred times better than catching one more, but still. It felt like a flaw in a gem, leaving me oddly unsettled.

Having no choice, Dohyun put aside his regret and waved lightly.

“Hey, I’m leaving. Take care, Eliza. I’ll be back tomorrow.”

-…? You said you were hunting Orcs, but suddenly?

-Liza!

Then Eliza jumped up onto Dohyun’s shoulder and rubbed her face against him.

It looked like she was saying goodbye.

‘She really acts like a puppy.’

Hotchi, the dog I briefly took care of long ago, acted exactly like this.

Dohyun chuckled and gently stroked Eliza’s head with his index finger as he replied.

“It’s disappointing, but I got something better so it’s fine. Oh, I’m logging off now….”

Flash.

Jihad’s expression was blank as he stared at the empty space where Dohyun had disappeared.

After staying like that for a while, Jihad let out a sigh.

-Staring blankly at blood-covered rocks, touching blood… He’s my Owner but what a strange fellow. Right, Eliza?

-Liza? Lizaliza!

-What? You think he seems like a good Owner? Good heavens, Eliza. You can’t be fooled by appearances. You don’t know how utterly ruthless the Owner is.

-Liza? Liza!

-Hm? Despite all that, it doesn’t seem like I dislike the Owner? Well….

Jihad paused for a moment, pondered deeply, then blurted out.

-…Well, he’s more tolerable to travel with than I expected. It’s just my kind nature accommodating him. You know how amazing my legion is, right?

Feeling embarrassed, Jihad brushed his nose and changed the subject while showing off.

Eliza tilted her head as she watched Jihad when it happened.

[Moving to Guardian Room.]

-Ah.

-Liza?

What was bound to come had finally arrived.

It must have appeared in front of Eliza too, as her eyes widened in confusion. Having experienced it once, Jihad calmly reassured her.

-We guardians get moved to another world when the Owner is away. Don’t worry though. You’ll be moved somewhere comfortable.

-Liza….

-I’m disappointed too, but… he said he’d be back soon. See you tomorrow, Eliza.

-Liza!

After a light greeting of touching hands, his vision flickered and the scenery changed.

To a landscape where countless worlds seemed to coexist.

This mystical world where clouds connected to earth, and glacial regions coexisted with volcanic regions, was now familiar.

-It’s my first time seeing this but it feels somehow comfortable.

Yesterday I dismissed it as being locked up and seeing the outside world for the first time, but experiencing it again today, it definitely felt comfortable.

I don’t quite understand it, but good things are good, right?

This fresh air and the moderately cool breeze wrapping around my skin probably contributed to it.

-Yesterday I slept all day, so maybe I’ll look around today.

This was what I liked most about this place.

Just walking a little reveals new scenery, so it never gets boring and makes you want to take walks. Just as I was about to step forward with such anticipation.

-Hm?

Jihad’s eyes showed interest.

-Was there something like that?

Something new that wasn’t there yesterday came into view.

A small cottage sitting alone in the empty field.

The weathered wood showing traces of time was something Jihad knew well.

-…That’s my house?

It was the house Jihad used to live in back in Raven.

Seeing it after so long felt both welcome and bewildering.

Why did something that wasn’t there until yesterday suddenly appear?

Approaching with curiosity, Jihad gulped and opened the door.

Creeak-.

Hearing the sound of old wood rubbing together as he entered, the interior welcomed Jihad exactly as it had been when he lived there.

A reasonably livable size with utensils, a table, and chairs.

There were three chairs total, and on the one sitting alone on the opposite side, a cushion was laid out.

It was Eliza’s seat.

The house, unchanged from when Jihad left, seemed as if time had stopped.

-…Right, it was like this.

Seeing it after so long, did memories come flooding back?

Jihad’s expression became somewhat bitter.

She probably waited for me up there for a hundred years. Thinking that made his chest feel tight.

Whoosh-.

That’s when it happened.

The moment Jihad reacted to the strange presence felt behind him.

-Liza!

-Huh?

With a familiar sound, he felt a fluffy sensation on his shoulder.

Turning his head quickly, he saw Eliza grinning brightly.

-Eliza!?

-Liza!

-What, why are you here??

-Liza? Liza!

-You just opened your eyes and found yourself here? How is that possible?

-Liza!

Jihad’s eyes, which had widened in disbelief, soon became clear.

He didn’t know why, but that wasn’t important.

What did the reason matter?

-Well, who cares. Eliza, shall we go for a walk together after so long?

-Lizaliza!

What mattered was that he could reclaim past memories again.

Eliza jumped up and climbed onto Jihad’s head. Eliza had always loved being on top of Jihad’s head.

Maybe because of the ears sticking out on both sides, she said it felt stable and comfortable to ride.

-You’re still the same.

-Liza!

-Right, let’s go. You’ll be amazed when you see this place. It’s completely amazing.

-Lizaliza!

-Ah, should we take this with us? What, you were still keeping it at home. Never mind, it’s just us here anyway so you don’t need to wear the necklace.

Time in the cottage that had stopped was flowing again.

* * *

And at that moment.

The Godose community, which had been rather quiet for a while, was bustling as if on fire.

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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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