The Return of the Genius Ranker’s Myth Warehouse - Chapter 39
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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 39
Chapter 39
“Phew.”
After stepping out of the capsule.
I finally had a proper rest for the first time in a while.
I ate my meals, slept soundly, went jogging and breathed in the fresh air.
For the past week, I’d focused on the game rather than reality to maximize the benefits of discovering the Dungeon first.
“My body feels terrible.”
It couldn’t be helped.
I’d been focused on the game for a week.
Even though the capsule had a conditioning function, spending this much time inside it inevitably weakened my body.
Besides.
‘My body still hasn’t fully recovered.’
I was a body that had been lying in a Hospital in a vegetative state until just recently.
Even though I’d undergone minimal rehabilitation, it only went that far.
Shameless and worried about Hospital bills, I’d left after receiving only the bare minimum rehabilitation.
With a body like that, staying in the capsule continuously meant my condition could only deteriorate.
Well, I’d finished conquering the Dungeon now anyway.
From now on, I’d come out regularly, eat properly, and exercise.
Gaming requires physical stamina after all.
“First, let me check the auction.”
A week ago.
I checked the items I’d listed on the auction house, including the Moonstone.
The auction had already ended, and the item prices were reasonable.
In truth, items obtained from F-rank commissions didn’t fetch much money, even if I’d defeated strong monsters—they were still F-rank monsters after all.
The equipment I’d obtained from defeating the Murderer was what actually paid the bills.
Thinking that it was difficult to earn money at this low level.
My eyes widened as I checked the final item.
“Huh?”
The final item was a ‘Moonstone.’
The lunar ore I’d obtained after defeating the Kobold Lord at Sterling Mine and destroying the wall where the Kobold Lord had been pickaxing.
Of course, I’d thought Moonstone would fetch a decent price since it was a rare ore with unique item effects.
But I’d estimated it at around one million won, or two million at most if sold expensively.
[ 11,000,000 won ]
“The Moonstone sold for eleven million won?”
I never expected the Moonstone’s price to exceed ten million.
It exceeded the original market price by several times, and at this rate, I wouldn’t even lose money if I refined it into an item and sold it.
It seemed Korea’s Most Famous Blacksmith Guild had purchased it.
Following the ‘viscous elixir’ I’d sold before, an unexpectedly large sum had come in.
“Is the value so different from First?”
True, Second is fundamentally a different game from First, even if they share similarities.
In that sense, it’s only natural.
Since I practically soloed the game during my First days, I might lack a sense for money management in games.
Regardless.
“What should I do with this?”
Suddenly, I had over ten million won again.
Since I didn’t need the money urgently, I pondered what to use it for.
“Right, I think the capsule had an upgrade function.”
I checked the capsule page in Second.
The capsule I owned was the most basic model available.
But Second’s capsules offered far more than that.
For additional cost, you could add virtually any option imaginable.
What caught my attention was.
“This.”
[ Stretching ]
[ Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation ]
These two features.
A stretching function that continuously moves your joints while connected to the capsule, preventing tendons and joints from stiffening.
A neuromuscular electrical stimulation function that continuously contracts muscles through electrical stimulation, preventing muscle atrophy and alleviating cramps.
Stretching costs 4 million won and neuromuscular electrical stimulation costs 8 million won.
If you request both functions simultaneously, you get a discount—1.1 million won total, they said.
An absurdly expensive price, but.
‘I’m just getting started. Since I’m committing to Second going forward, now is the time to invest.’
I shouldn’t skimp on this kind of investment.
It’s not like I’m playing Second as a casual hobby.
Since I intend to play Second professionally, this investment is absolutely necessary.
If I save a bit of money and don’t invest anything, I might end up in the Hospital again.
Click.
Only after thoroughly reviewing the reviews did I press the purchase button.
And not long after.
Ding dong.
“You requested a capsule upgrade, right? Let me see—you requested package number one.”
“That was fast.”
“Haha, speed is everything these days, isn’t it? The upgrade will be done quickly, so could you wait just a moment?”
The installation technician arrived and began working on the capsule.
Just as the upgrade was beginning.
Beep beep, beep beep.
A call came from Kang Ju-hyuk.
Since I had so many messages piled up, I had replied to them, and it seemed he called immediately after realizing I wasn’t logged in.
“What is it?”
– Hey, hey! You haven’t contacted me in a week! I was about to come looking for you, thinking you’d collapsed again!
“I’ve been focused on the game, trying to maximize the benefits from discovering a dungeon.”
– What? You’re talking about the first discovery bonus?
“Yeah.”
– Wow, how did you even find one? There shouldn’t be many undiscovered dungeons left except for the high-level areas we haven’t entered yet.
“I got lucky.”
Well, that’s actually true.
I really did get lucky.
I never expected to make a bet with the Tower Guide, succeed in early promotion, and receive a special commission from the Guild Master.
If things had gone according to my original plan, I’d be grinding through E-rank commissions and focusing on leveling up by now.
Even then, I never would have reached level 100.
I just got there faster—level 100 was the kind of milestone that ordinary players needed to dedicate several months of grinding to reach.
– Then you must have leveled up a lot? With your skills plus the first discovery bonus dungeon… you might have already hit level 50?
“Level 50?”
– Ah, maybe level 50 in a week is too much? But you’ve at least hit level 30 or 40, right?
Level 50.
It seemed Kang Ju-hyuk was seriously underestimating me.
I would have surpassed level 50 long ago just by doing ordinary Hunter Guild commissions, let alone special ones.
So I gave Kang Ju-hyuk my exact level.
“I hit 104.”
– What? Speak clearly. It sounds like you said 104.
“104 is right.”
– …?
Silence fell for a moment.
Then, shortly after.
– 104?!?!
Kang Ju-hyuk’s shout struck my eardrums like a hammer.
I grimaced and held the phone far from my ear, but his amplified voice still came through crystal clear.
– You’re not joking right now, are you? You’re not lying—you really hit level 104?
“Why would I lie to you?”
– So you really hit level 104? You’ve only been playing for just over a week!
“I’m telling you. If you don’t want to believe it, don’t. You’ll see soon enough anyway.”
– Wow, insane. This is insane, seriously. You hit level 104? How is this even possible?
The guy was rambling incoherently at the unbelievable situation.
Still, despite finding it unbelievable, he did trust my word.
After repeating words like “wow,” “insane,” and “unbelievable,” he finally collected himself and continued.
– If this is real, you might actually have a shot at the tournament?
“I’m going to win it.”
– Come on. You could climb high, sure, but first place is impossible. There are so many promising players waiting at level 200 for the tournament.
“There is a bit of a level gap.”
– Reaching level 104 is quite the achievement, and it seems like you could climb even higher. Still, first place is impossible. The level gap is just too wide, isn’t it?
“What if we narrow the level gap?”
– Even for you, you’d need to hit level 180. The stat difference is something you absolutely can’t ignore, you know?
Kang Ju-hyuk denied it, but I didn’t see it that way.
Certainly, if the stat difference was large enough, I could be trampled regardless of skill.
But in a duel against a player, a 100-level gap seemed like something I could overcome with experience and equipment differences.
Besides, didn’t I have Luke?
Using Black Flame, I could dramatically boost my stats in an instant.
At level 104, using Black Flame wouldn’t let me surpass 200 levels, but getting close should be possible.
If our levels were similar, I was confident I could beat anyone.
“Anyway, let’s meet up before the tournament starts.”
– Fine. Can’t we do it now?
“I have some things to take care of right now. I’ll contact you once my schedule is clear.”
– Seriously. And here I thought my level was something. Who’s waiting for whom? Fine, do as you please.
As I finished the call with Kang Ju-hyuk.
“We’re done! Both upgrades have been applied successfully, so even if you log in for extended periods, you won’t experience stiffness or weakness anymore.”
“Thank you.”
“Still, it would be good to exercise regularly. Even though it prevents muscle atrophy, it’s not perfect, they say.”
“Yes.”
The capsule upgrade was complete.
On the surface, there didn’t seem to be much visible change.
Since stretching and neuromuscular electrical stimulation functions had been added, I’d be able to feel the effects at my next logout.
After ending the call with Kang Ju-hyuk and sending the technician off.
I lay down inside the upgraded capsule.
[ The Second World. ]
[ Welcome to Second. ]
Soon after, the world of Second greeted me.
* * *
The main scenario quest, Sign of Great Evil.
Its destination was the Fallen Altar that the Sage Instructor had mentioned.
The problem was that I didn’t know the location of the Fallen Altar, and the quest window didn’t provide proper information either.
‘No matter how much I think about it, it seems like it has to be the Black Worm God’s Altar.’
When I spoke with the Sage Instructor.
I could be half-certain.
That the first Fallen Altar he mentioned was none other than the Black Worm God’s Altar that I had destroyed back in First.
Among the evil gods at the altar I destroyed, the Black Worm God was the weakest, and the “Black Star” that the Sage Instructor mentioned was also referring to the Black Worm God.
Therefore.
‘Let me go.’
I decided to follow my instinct and search for the Black Worm God’s Altar.
Finding the location wasn’t particularly difficult.
Though the geography of First had changed considerably, most of the changes were in place names and nations.
The continent’s form itself remained largely unchanged from the First era.
So if I unfolded a map and relied on my memories from that time, I could manage.
“It should be around here.”
Vaguely, I was able to pinpoint the location where the Black Worm God’s Altar had once stood.
Upon verification, the place where the Black Worm God’s Altar had existed was now marked on the map as “Ruins Root Forest.”
Seeing that name only strengthened my conviction.
This was the place where the Fallen Altar I had destroyed lay.
The distance was considerable, but what was my current level?
104.
Having surpassed level 100, I could summon a mount faster than Granny’s without incurring any penalties.
Whiiiiii—!
The moment I blew the whistle to summon my mount.
“Roooaaarrr!”
A fierce howl echoed as a wolf materialized before me.
A level 100 unique-grade mount.
A wolf with a massive frame large enough for a person to ride, pristine white fur, and sharp fangs bared.
It was White Fang.
The moment White Fang appeared, it bowed its head to me, and I climbed onto its back.
“Let’s go.”
“Grrrrowl!”
White Fang surged forward rapidly in the direction I indicated.
A cool wind brushed across my face.
True to its higher level requirement, White Fang moved faster than Granny, who had been a unique-grade mount.
Moreover, wolf-type monsters could achieve even greater speeds on plains like the terrain we were crossing now.
“Let me see, the shortest route is….”
I unfolded the map and found the shortest path leading to the Fallen Altar.
The road to the altar was blocked by various natural terrain—mountains, rivers, and more—but if I could bypass all of them, I could arrive much faster.
The method was the same as when I had traveled from Labelt to the Ash Ossuary.
For rivers, I would mount an aquatic-type mount to cross; for canyons, I would use a flying-type mount.
Passing through various other natural formations, I charged in a straight line toward the Fallen Altar.
After some time had passed.
“We’re almost there now, aren’t we?”
I had reached the “Ruins Root Forest” marked on my map.
True to its name, the forest floor was completely covered with thick and thin roots.
Unnamed trees grew across it, and the terrain was generally hillside-like.
After climbing partway up the hill.
“Luke, pull out an axe for me. The best one suited to my level.”
– Yes, Master.
[ Ondal the Fool’s Axe ]
( Non-Tradeable )
Type: Axe
Grade: Heroic
Restrictions: Level 100 or higher, Axe Mastery Lv 10 or higher, Strength 400 or higher
Description: A logging axe said to have been used by Ondal, a general of Goguryeo once called a fool, to strip bark for sustenance during his years of hardship.
I pulled an axe from my subspace.
Then.
Crack!
I brought it down with tremendous force toward the ground.
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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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