You Have Been Invited to the Auction House of the Gods - Chapter 118
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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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118
One dawn, a sudden report came up from Jeonju.
The dungeon cannot be conquered.
The Association went into emergency mode that day.
Is the boss monster strong?
Is the dungeon environment extremely harsh for humans?
It would be fortunate if it were just high difficulty.
If the boss is strong, they could deploy an Upper-tier Raid Team,
and if it’s an extremely harsh environment, they could research appropriate strategies for it.
In a short time, dozens of theories were exchanged.
But none of them could explain the cause of this strange phenomenon.
That day, the Association President must have come to work at dawn.
After making such thorough preparations, the subsequent report exceeded everyone’s expectations.
– There are no monsters in the dungeon.
Upon entering the entrance, there were no monsters,
and a man in peculiar Constable attire was standing there.
The Raid Team judged that he was the conquest condition for this dungeon.
Many might curse it as cowardly for multiple people to attack one person,
but that Constable is not human.
He’s just a monster that has taken the form of a Constable.
That was the Raid Team’s judgment.
The A-rank Raid Team charged at him, but—
not a single wound appeared on the Constable’s body.
No, to be precise, before even reaching the Constable, their attacks evaporated in midair.
The Raid Leader, sensing something was wrong, tried to retreat, but it was already too late.
An indescribable enormous force pressed down on the Raid Team’s bodies.
Is this what it would feel like to be struck by Buddha’s Divine Palm from a martial arts movie?
As if a transcendent being was pressing down on their entire bodies with a giant palm, they couldn’t move an inch.
In that situation, the Raid Team, pressed flat against the floor, could do nothing.
They could only helplessly watch the Constable slowly approaching.
The Raid Leader hung his head and swallowed his regret.
Ah, I was supposed to go to Korean Folk Village with my daughter this weekend…
It’s a promise I’ve already postponed for 2 weeks…
Meanwhile, the Constable had already approached right in front of the Raid Leader.
I’m sorry, daughter.
Swallowing his last words inside, the Raid Leader squeezed his eyes shut.
But he felt no pain whatsoever.
No, rather, he felt warmth.
Ah, at least that’s fortunate.
It seems I died without even feeling pain.
When he opened his eyes like that, the Constable was still standing in front of the Raid Leader.
Along with a desk where unidentified gunpowder was neatly arranged.
And the Constable’s first words that left the Raid Leader dumbfounded.
– Submit the correct formula for gunpowder mixture.
That was the beginning of the Namgosan Fortress Gunpowder Experience Hall.
***
“What? 78,000 won?”
I looked at the staff member wearing a constable costume with a bewildered expression.
Running for a dungeon opening was already absurd enough, but now I had to pay an entrance fee too.
No, setting that aside, this is a public facility managed by the city government—why is it so expensive?
‘Never thought I’d live to see the day I’d pay money to enter a dungeon.’
Despite my inner thoughts, I found myself already handing over my card.
‘Be patient. This is all for the Singijon.’
After receiving the pamphlet, I stepped into the dungeon.
***
The first checkpoint was simpler than I expected.
The courtyard of a building that looked like it belonged in a historical drama.
As if taking some ancient examination, wooden workbenches were lined up in rows.
On the workbenches were various gunpowder containers, thermometers, scales, and measuring spoons.
Looking around, the tourists who had entered earlier had claimed workbenches and were working diligently.
When I sat down at a reasonably empty workbench, a constable walked toward me.
He felt more like an exam proctor than a constable…
Soon, a deep voice flowed from the constable’s mouth.
– Submit the correct formula for gunpowder mixture.
I unfolded the pamphlet I had received when entering the dungeon.
Written alongside the theme guide for this place was the ‘answer sheet’ for Stage 1.
This dungeon had been around for quite a while.
After the possibility of a Dungeon Break was confirmed to approach zero and its stability was verified, this place had been continuously operated as a tourist attraction in Jeonju.
With so many tourists challenging it like today, could there really be no one who had passed Stage 1?
I confidently inserted the measuring spoon into the gunpowder written on the answer sheet.
That’s when it happened.
—Bang!
An explosion occurred at the workbench next to me.
The male student who had been working turned into charcoal and went flying backwards.
A person had exploded, but no one paid any attention.
Even his friend who came with him was giggling and filming a video.
You might wonder when South Korea, once overflowing with affection, had fallen this far,
but as I said, the safety of this place has already been verified.
A moment later, the exploded workbench and the male student were enveloped in light and restored to their original state.
This was an arrangement King Sejong had made for his descendants, so surely lives wouldn’t be at stake.
“Wow… amazing!”
An exclamation came from the mouth of the restored male student.
Well, as the same gender, I understand to some extent.
As you can tell from the number one last words “This looks really dangerous. Let’s try it right now,” men are originally that kind of creature.
Moreover, in a situation where even getting caught in an explosion guarantees your life, how could you not try the challenge?
If I had come here as a tourist, I would have enjoyed it plenty, but I’m strictly here on a business trip.
I placed the gunpowder on the brass bowl according to the mixture written in the template.
But…
nothing happened.
It didn’t proceed to the next stage, and if it was wrong, it should have at least exploded, but there wasn’t even that.
And when the constable and I made eye contact, I was momentarily startled.
A faint light was spreading from behind the constable.
At first I thought it was just simple lighting…
‘…Great King?’
The benevolently smiling King’s royal presence flickered before my eyes.
He lightly wiggled his index finger, seeming to send a silent signal saying “There are still other answers, aren’t there.”
I rubbed my eyes.
Once.
Twice.
“As expected, it was just my imagination.”
There’s no way someone who has ascended to godhood would show themselves so easily.
Divine Descent isn’t something that can be done so casually.
It must be hallucinations from the fatigue of staying up all night.
Just as I was pulling myself together and about to review the answer sheet.
As if what I saw wasn’t a mistake, the Great King hammered certainty into my ears.
– It’s all for your sake. Try choosing other correct answers too.
‘Tsk.’
I clicked my tongue inwardly.
Forge That Tempers Fire must have blabbed.
Otherwise, there’s no way the answers would change to multiple choice on the very day I entered the dungeon.
I let out a short sigh and reached for the gunpowder container for a new mixture.
Bang―!
Boom―!
Boom boom boom bang!
As explosion sounds rang out consecutively from my workbench, the tourists in the adjacent lines slowly backed away.
‘Tsk, being an S-rank Hunter means my body won’t blow up from explosions like this.’
The restoration system here seemed to only activate when participants completely exploded.
But rather, that was actually favorable for me.
Before I knew it, flames were flickering in my eyes.
My hands were already moving on their own among the gunpowder containers.
‘Right, it’s all for me anyway. Let’s see how fast I can do this.’
Whether I’d explode from wrong answers faster, or find the correct answer and move to the next stage faster.
After 2048 explosions like that, I was finally able to advance to the next stage.
***
Stage 2 was gunpowder container manufacturing.
Unfortunately, unlike Stage 1, there was no answer sheet here.
To begin with, most tourists who made it to Stage 2 weren’t even thinking about Singijon.
Each person had a different finished product in mind.
Someone was making bombs, someone was making grenades,
and someone was hammering metal plates, saying they’d make incendiary bombs.
Even looking at the same blueprint, they envisioned different finished works, so how could there be a correct answer?
Seeing that, I could somewhat understand the King’s intention.
At first glance, it seemed like testing Singijon manufacturing techniques stage by stage, but the true meaning behind those trials was completely different.
Experiencing the danger firsthand.
Of course, there was probably an intention to teach the Gunpowder Manufacturing Method,
but the focus was more on making people realize the danger of gunpowder through their bodies.
The fact that you could revive even if you failed,
and making people witness other participants’ explosions with their own eyes was the same.
All these elements were designed to unconsciously imprint ‘the danger of the Improved Singigeon.’
But realizing that intention didn’t change anything.
‘I’ll have to do manual labor for this task too.’
I looked down at the bamboo tube-shaped empty container and dozens of metal materials in front of the Stage 2 workbench.
– Craft a gunpowder container.
The trial task came from the Constable’s mouth.
“Phew…”
I took a deep breath and picked up the gunpowder container.
Hoping that this time there would be only one correct answer…
***
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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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