The Return of the Genius Ranker’s Myth Warehouse - Chapter 1
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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 1
Chapter 1
First.
The world’s first virtual reality game.
And the name of a game called a failure.
Sluggish response times, crude graphics, countless bugs, and absurdly unbalanced gameplay difficulty.
In that game, which everyone had turned their backs on despite bearing the title of the world’s first virtual reality game.
“Exhale.”
There was one person who remained until the very end.
A man standing confidently before First’s final boss monster, the Golden Dragon of Greed.
First’s Rank 1 player, Mir.
That was my nickname.
“ROOOAAARRR—!!”
The Golden Dragon, befitting its status as First’s final boss, was the strongest monster in First.
Naturally, it was impossible to hunt alone—only Guild-scale raid hunts were possible against this monster.
Facing such a monster, my hand gripped a weapon befitting my Rank 1 position in First.
[ Zeus’s Lightning, Astrappe ]
Divine lightning gleaming in golden radiance.
Merely holding it caused electricity to crackle in all directions, spreading a vast electromagnetic field.
A Mythic-grade weapon.
The highest-tier divine weapon among all items existing in First.
And among them, the weapon of the Celestial God—Zeus, known as the god of gods.
A thunderous crack—!
It was hurled toward the Golden Dragon.
Tremendous velocity.
Astrappe, traced in golden light, advanced with the speed of lightning itself.
An attack that could neither be dodged nor blocked.
Against that assault—using a divine weapon as though it were merely a disposable projectile.
“ROOOAAARRR!”
The Golden Dragon shrieked.
With lightning embedded in its neck, its entire body stiffened as electricity consumed its flesh.
Indeed, a divine weapon.
Not only its devastating destructive power, but only Astrappe could paralyze First’s final boss monster, the Golden Dragon, to such an extent.
However, the opponent was undoubtedly First’s final boss monster.
Even as the Golden Dragon was electrocuted by Astrappe, it never lost the gleam in its eyes.
In just a moment more, the Golden Dragon would endure even divine lightning and its claws would move.
But I did not simply watch this unfold.
“Luke.”
– Yes, Master.
At my call, black flames flickered above my palm as an item materialized.
[ Poseidon’s Trident, Triaina ]
If Astrappe was the weapon of the sky god Zeus, then Triaina was the weapon of the sea god Poseidon.
I drew the trident born alongside the black flames and hurled it toward the Golden Dragon of Greed.
Whoooosh!
An overwhelming pressure as if the entire vast ocean had been compressed into a single moment.
Triaina pierced through the Golden Dragon of Greed’s scales and embedded itself deep, nearly reaching its heart.
If only it ended here, but Triaina too was a divine weapon.
Just as Astrappe unleashed lightning, seawater erupting from Triaina took the form of a sea dragon, binding the Golden Dragon of Greed’s body.
Crackle!
“Roooaaarrr!”
The seawater and lightning created a synergistic effect, further restricting the Golden Dragon of Greed’s movements.
[ Artemis’s Golden Bow, Chryselakathos ]
The next weapon I drew was the goddess’s bow, Chryselakathos.
On the bowstring, pulled back with all my strength, rested the goddess’s arrow, Iokeira.
Whoosh—
Boom boom boom!
True to its meaning of “arrow rain shower,” hundreds and thousands of golden arrows became a downpour, assailing the Golden Dragon of Greed.
[ Hermes’s Staff, Caduceus ]
Next, the power of Caduceus closed the Golden Dragon of Greed’s eyes.
[ Demeter’s Sickle, Chrysaor ]
Chrysaor dug into the Golden Dragon of Greed’s throat.
Each weapon I wielded was worthy of being called the strongest weapon in First.
Unique weapons that existed only once in First, each so difficult to obtain that acquiring even a single one was considered an extreme ordeal.
All of them now shone in my hands.
“Krraaaagh!”
The Golden Dragon of Greed screamed, unable to swing even a single claw or tail.
Only after eleven of the Twelve Olympian weapons had been driven into its body did I prepare my final attack.
[ Ares’s Sword, Enyalios ]
The sword of Ares, god of war.
Among the Twelve Olympian weapons, it was called the greatest in pure destructive power, and now it was wielded in my hands.
“Krraa—”
Slice.
In an instant, the Golden Dragon of Greed’s neck was severed.
The Golden Dragon of Greed, called the final boss monster of First, fell in merely twelve attacks.
And all by a single hand.
The fallen Golden Dragon of Greed’s body scattered like dust, leaving behind a golden spear that resembled the dragon’s scales.
Among the spears that existed in First, it could be said to possess the highest performance excluding divine weapons, but I paid the golden spear no particular attention.
“Again.”
‘Again.’
Yes.
This wasn’t the first time I’d defeated the Golden Dragon of Greed.
A thousand times, to be exact.
As if to prove this unbelievable fact, a System Message blazed brilliantly above my head.
[ Achievement Unlocked: Nightmare of Dragons ]
Condition: Defeat the Golden Dragon of Greed 1,000 times
Reward: +100% probability of obtaining high-grade items
“Now that only one’s left, what good is this reward anyway?”
Despite my complaints, a smile played across my face.
The Achievement system.
A game mechanic designed to guide players toward completing specific objectives.
In truth, unlocking this Achievement was proof of my abysmal luck—that I couldn’t obtain the item I wanted until I’d slain a thousand Golden Dragons of Greed.
Yet seeing the Achievement pop up filled me with an inexplicable joy.
After all, having already achieved rank one in First, my true goals were to collect every item in First and unlock every Achievement.
With the Achievement’s probability boost, my chances of obtaining that final item would improve considerably.
“But the real test comes now.”
I turned away from the fallen Golden Dragon of Greed and pressed forward.
The chamber at the end of the Dungeon.
In the center of this room, brimming with gold and treasures, sat an enormous treasure chest.
“A one in one million chance? That’s absurd. And it’s the final reward, no less.”
I stood before the treasure chest.
Unlocking the “Nightmare of Dragons” Achievement was gratifying, but the real challenge lay ahead.
If the item I sought didn’t appear, I’d have to defeat the Golden Dragon of Greed again and again until it did.
Until I pierced through that nightmarish 0.0001% probability and obtained the final item.
Of course, combining various luck-enhancing items, potions, and Achievements, my odds were substantially better than the base rate.
Still, I was burning through my last remaining luck amplification potions.
I opened the Golden Dragon of Greed’s treasure chest.
And then.
Whoooosh!
[ Heart of the Golden Dragon of Greed ]
“It came!”
That item—it appeared before me.
The Heart of the Golden Dragon of Greed.
The final item in First, obtainable only from a treasure chest that opens after defeating the Golden Dragon of Greed, dropping at an impossibly low rate.
Given my mediocre luck, I had no idea how many more times I’d need to defeat the Golden Dragon of Greed.
Yet I obtained the Heart of the Golden Dragon of Greed far faster than expected.
“Was it thanks to the Achievement?”
The Achievement, Nightmare of Dragons.
As an Achievement that increased the probability of obtaining high-grade items, I’d certainly benefited from its blessing.
As I grasped the heart with trembling hands, my ultimate goal materialized before my eyes.
[ You have obtained all items that exist in First. ]
[ Achievement Unlocked: Master of All Things ]
Condition: 100% Item Compendium
Reward: All Item Performance +150%
“I did iiiiiiit!”
A cry of exultation burst from my lips unbidden.
Pure, unadulterated joy.
A thrilling rush of euphoria.
At last, I had collected every single item that existed in First.
But that was not all.
[ You have achieved all Achievements in First. ]
[ Achievement Unlocked: Akashic Record ]
Condition: 100% Achievement Completion
Reward: Savior of the World
Achievement. Akashic Record.
An Achievement that only those who have completed every single Achievement in First could obtain.
With this, I had achieved every Achievement that existed in First.
A true Achievement that no one else had ever accomplished.
“I did iiiiiiit!!”
Thud.
I had thrust both hands skyward and screamed, but my legs gave way beneath me, and I collapsed backward onto the ground.
The gold coins that filled the room clinked softly as they cushioned my fall.
“It’s over….”
I had collected every item in First and achieved all the Achievements.
I had blazed a trail that everyone else had abandoned, and finally arrived at this destination.
An overwhelming sense of satisfaction, fulfillment, and exhilaration welled up within me.
“…Now, I suppose I should quit?”
Having collected every item and Achievement in First meant.
There was nothing left for me to do.
Technically, from this point on I should be running the game primarily through duels, but in a failed game like First, proper duels would never take place.
Even if duels did occur, there was no opponent capable of challenging me, who had already exhausted all of First’s content.
“Sigh….”
As I logged out of the game, my vision rapidly darkened.
Not the clumsy sensations unique to First, but the vivid, genuine sensations of reality came flooding back.
Even though it was called a capsule, it was one built to run an early-generation virtual reality system—nothing like the refined capsules you read about in novels.
Moreover, the capsule price for First was far more expensive than I had anticipated, so I was using the lowest-tier capsule compatible with First’s operation to afford it.
The performance was crude, but I had still managed to achieve First’s Rank 1 position with it.
Well, most users had already dropped out long ago, so there wasn’t much competition anyway.
In any case, I was trying to exit the capsule quickly when.
Tick-.
“What’s this? Why is this happening?”
When I exited the game, the locking mechanisms that should have naturally disengaged remained stubbornly sealed.
Though startled, I reasoned it away—after all, this wasn’t a First-exclusive capsule but a compatible model, and an older one at that.
I decided to accept it and attempted to manually disengage the locks.
But then.
*Click—*
“Why is it acting up today? Seriously.”
The locking mechanism refused to budge, more stubborn than usual.
Moreover, an unsettling sound drifted from somewhere nearby.
My desperation to escape only made my hands tremor, and the locks grew even more resistant.
Then, in that moment.
I steadied myself and moved my hands with deliberate calm.
*Click.*
“Phew.”
The instant I disengaged the lock and began to rise.
*Crackle—crackle—crackle—!!*
The image of the Golden Dragon of Greed convulsing under Astrappe’s electrocution flashed through my mind simultaneously.
“Gaaaahhhhh!”
A searing shock ripped through me, and I collapsed where I stood.
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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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