novelraw Chapter 47 : Second Episode
Chapter 47 : Second Episode
Chapter 47: Second Episode
After passing through the familiar security procedures, he arrived at the Running Rabbit.
Yohan sat down in front of the bartender he had met before and ordered a drink.
“Old Fashioned. Right?”
“Wow, you remember. Please put in a generous amount of lemon juice. I’ve got a child’s taste.”
“Hehe. Got it. Ah, and this is your second time, so please, call me Mary.”
The bartender handed over a perfectly made cocktail and added a word.
Mary, huh….
He didn’t know if that was her real name, but considering how she had fired poison darts last time, she wasn’t someone to take lightly.
If the Empire had planted her here, that alone meant she was highly skilled.
“Did you find a request suitable for me?”
“You said the risk doesn’t matter as long as the reward is good, right?”
“That’s right.”
“Well, there’s actually one.”
Mary placed a menu on the table.
Instead of cocktail names, there was a single profile tucked inside.
Well, calling it a ‘profile’ was generous—there wasn’t even a name, just a lone photograph.
“This is someone our side is currently tracking. If you bring this person in, we’ll give you three Holy Snowflakes.”
‘Oh? Look at that.’
Yohan’s pupils glinted with interest.
The Holy Snowflake could only be obtained within the Hestia Empire.
For those who handled divine power, it was precious enough to be called an elixir.
‘Each one consumed increases divine power by at least 10.’
If he had chosen the Priest or Paladin class, it would have been his top priority item.
Though excessive use reduced absorption, up to five was fine without major issue.
“Has it only been a few days? Seems word’s already spread that I use divine power.”
“When it comes to gathering information about someone interesting, one mustn’t be negligent.”
Mary gave a charming smile.
“Then, I’ll take it as you’re accepting the request—”
“Wait.”
“Yes?”
“Well, not that I’m refusing, but I think the reward’s a bit lacking for the task.”
He took a sip of the Old Fashioned.
Even took his time removing the watermelon seeds—acting leisurely.
After dragging it out enough…
…he raised the stakes.
“I’ll need at least two more favors added.”
“The Holy Snowflake is the highest condition we can offer. We’ve already raised it this much because we highly value your abilities, Mr. Yohan…”
Mary trailed off, looking troubled.
Well, she had gone out of her way a bit.
However, Yohan’s way of making deals was to squeeze every last drop of value.
“If the Empire’s offering Holy Snowflakes for this, then this request must be quite difficult. I understand. This one won’t be easy for an ordinary bounty hunter to capture.”
“C-Could it be… you know who this person is?”
A crack formed in Mary’s expression.
The polite smile she always wore vanished, replaced by urgency.
Got her.
“I’m acquainted with her, yes. Her real name is Reina Blaze. You’ve probably found small spider corpses at the sites she’s visited, haven’t you?”
Not in this round,
but in previous ones, they had clashed multiple times.
‘For now, she might seem like a troublesome agent, but she’s actually one of the hidden powerhouses who’ll grow into a major figure later on.’
Meaning—
He had the upper hand, knowing more about the target than they did.
Meanwhile, the Empire’s side clearly didn’t.
That pathetic excuse for a profile was proof enough.
Mary bit her lip, then let out a small sigh.
“Honestly… you’re not easy to deal with. Fine. Let’s hear your requests first.”
“First, I’d like this turned into a spirit pill.”
Baeknyeon Hasuo.
The Empire had plenty of skilled spiritual alchemists, so it should be doable.
“A martial medicine, huh… judging by its size and condition, it’s not extremely aged, but… yes, it should be possible.”
“For the second, I’d like one low-grade magic-type Skill Book as an advance payment.”
He did have some intermediate Skill Books, but those were useless for now.
You couldn’t learn higher-tier magic without following the proper Skill Tree.
So at the moment, it was crucial to collect the lowest-tier skills first.
“Skill Book… yes, I know about those. You can’t gain new skills at the start of an episode without them, right?”
Lately, requests for Skill Books and Skill Stones had skyrocketed.
Every new era brought new essentials.
And the sharp ones knew these two items were at the center of it all.
Of course, the Empire had already stockpiled a few of them.
“For the record, I’m being generous here. I still find the Empire the most interesting option—for now.”
“Eh? What do you mean by that…?”
As Mary pondered the meaning of his words, something clicked in her head.
So that’s it.
‘If Yohan knows the identity of an intruder the Empire itself hasn’t figured out, it means he possesses immense intelligence-gathering power on his own.’
Besides, his feats at the Louvre Museum had been dazzling.
He’d already proven himself worthy of being treated as a VVIP.
Someone like that wouldn’t limit himself to taking requests from just one faction.
‘He’s weighing his options.’
Trying to determine which side would yield the greatest benefit.
That had to be it.
After all, wasn’t there always someone named Scarlet by his side—someone who didn’t belong to either the Empire or the European factions?
An unidentified girl.
She was likely from another civilization brought over by the Second Impact.
In the worst case, she might even be connected to the Dark Continent.
‘What an intriguing man. No wonder my superior told me to recruit him as our top priority.’
For now, she had to win his favor.
She needed to make the Hestia Empire seem far more appealing than any other power.
And after that…
Mary made her decision.
“Understood. I’ll have the Skill Book prepared within an hour.”
“Thank you. I’ll be waiting.”
Yohan smiled in satisfaction.
Thus, the first request began cleanly.
“By the way, your companion’s quite something. He seems much stronger than the last time you came.”
Mary glanced toward Seo Changhee in the arena.
The Colosseum was absolute chaos.
Some lunatic was wielding a book of quotations in one hand—
—and a weapon in the other, beating everyone in sight.
“‘Everyone has talent. What is rare is the courage to walk into darkness with it!’”
A pure white beam of light materialized through Word Spirit.
The power of spirituality gained through equivalent exchange with the world infused the metal rod.
It was like holding a level 99 club.
Seo Changhee’s body trembled with exhilaration.
“Yes… courage. What I needed was the courage to take a single step forward…!”
“What the hell are you babbling about, you lunatic?!”
“He shattered an axe with a club… that’s insane!”
“Stop already! I surrender!”
Thud! Thwack! Bam!
The arena, drenched in blood and screams, was fulfilling its purpose perfectly.
As expected of our protagonist.
Watching him grow so rapidly filled Yohan’s chest with pride.
The prize for this match was a fairly useful weapon, so it would serve him well for a while.
But just then—
Ding! Ding! Ding!
A loud alert echoed throughout the Colosseum.
At the same time, a status window appeared before everyone’s eyes.
[#Main Episode (2) – ‘Beta Apocalypse’]
Duration: 30 days.
Content: In 12 hours, an Apocalypse will occur somewhere in the world. Those within the selected area will be unable to leave until the time limit expires, while those outside may enter the area chosen for the Apocalypse. (However, supplies such as food, water, and batteries cannot be brought in.)
Objective: Survive for 30 days or defeat the regional Boss.
Reward: Traits and Skill Books or Skill Stones will be awarded according to performance. (The grades of Traits, Skill Books, and Skill Stones vary.)
Failure: None.
An Apocalypse unfolding in a randomly selected region.
It was a sort of beta version—a preview of what the changing world would soon become.
Those unlucky enough to be within the chosen area were forced to participate.
For everyone else, it was a matter of choice.
You could join—or not.
‘Of course, to be exact, it’s not entirely random.’
The country chosen was determined through agreement among high and mid-level administrators, focusing on nations with the most promising players.
Then, only the city and region within that country were selected randomly.
Naturally—
The country itself had already been decided.
Korea.
‘The place where I, Scarlet, and Seo Changhee are.’
Since they had played the biggest role in clearing the first episode, this outcome was inevitable.
Ding!
[Selected Country: Republic of Korea]
[Selected Region: Daejeon]
Additional status windows flashed.
Exactly as he expected.
“Hah, Korea got selected? Out of all the countries, how does that even make sense?”
“They must’ve factored in Hunter levels or national performance. It’s probably not pure chance.”
“Guess we should be thankful it’s not Seoul, at least….”
Murmurs spread.
Even inside Running Rabbit, people grew restless.
Everyone had expected the United States, Europe, or China—regions brimming with major guilds and Hunters—to be chosen.
But all predictions had been overturned.
A metropolitan city with about 1.4 million residents—
That was now confirmed as the stage for the second episode.
‘Daejeon, huh….’
Not a lucky draw.
Among the Boss Monsters that could appear on the Korean Peninsula, one of the more troublesome ones would likely be assigned there.
No—
Depending on who entered the episode, it could even become the worst-case scenario.
Human factors had always been the biggest wildcards in every round.
Still—
‘Who’ll come to Korea this time?’
Surely, some would crawl their way in, lured by the promise of rewards.
They could be divided into two groups: those who would definitely come, and those who might or might not.
Preparations would have to be made for both.
[All residents of the ‘Daejeon region’ are now unable to leave from this moment onward.]
[The second episode will begin exactly 24 hours from now.]
The status window blinked repeatedly, coldly declaring reality.
Only 24 hours were given.
Within that time, everyone had to decide whether or not to participate in the episode.
＊＊＊
Inside a Gate undergoing closure procedures.
In the place once inhabited by Murgan and the elite warriors of many tribes, unfamiliar shadows appeared.
They were priests of the Requiem Cult.
“It’s even more horrific than Priest Kim Geunsik’s report described.”
“To have wiped out an army of this scale… what kind of being could have done this?”
They had planned an alliance with the Orcs and intended to publicly announce the Cult’s presence through the Egg of Darkness.
They had prepared thoroughly, controlling every variable to perfection.
But the result was disastrous.
All the priests who had infiltrated the Louvre Museum were slain by Kang Yohan, and even Murgan—who had been ordered to invade Britain—was eliminated by some unknown entity.
Still, there was no need for despair.
Murgan and the Egg of Darkness were merely the first buttons in their grand design.
There were always alternatives.
[Intermediate Priest ‘Cain Belmire’ activates the Trait ‘Thought Extraction’!]
Black magic began to flow out of Murgan’s corpse.
“Will you finish in time? We must complete this before the second episode begins.”
“It’ll be possible if you stop flapping your mouth. Kindly refrain from disrupting my focus, will you?”
“M-my apologies.”
But just then—
Tap… tap.
Someone was approaching the priests of the Requiem Cult.
A slender staff.
Scarlet-red hair reaching her shoulders, golden eyes that gleamed faintly.
And over it all, a black robe drawn up as if to conceal her features.
A strikingly beautiful girl swiftly closed the distance.
“That’s odd. There should’ve been a barrier over there….”
“What are the Black Knights doing? How could this happen?”
Their voices filled with confusion.
To avoid interference during Thought Extraction, a full company of Black Knights and priests had been stationed in this area.
No one was supposed to enter this closing dungeon—and even if someone did, the guards should have intercepted them.
Yet here she was, walking in without a sound.
Cain finished extracting the last remnants of thought from Murgan’s corpse and looked at the girl.
The girl looked back at him.
“…No way.”
Cain’s voice trembled in disbelief—
Crash!
Jet-black thorns erupted from the ground.
It was impossible to discern what kind of magic or sorcery had been used.
That’s how fast—and deadly—it was.
“Cough—?”
The priests coughed up blood.
Their bodies were pierced through by black thorns.
Most were killed instantly.
Tap… tap.
The girl began walking again.
As she passed between the corpses—
“Hooh. Impressive. You survived a hit from my thorns.”
She stopped before Cain.
Even with thorns impaling his heart and abdomen, Cain was still alive.
And not just alive—he was calmly observing her every move.
As if to say, you can wound me, but you can’t kill me.
“Was it you?”
“What do you mean?”
“The one who created this massacre. The one who killed Murgan. Was that you?”
“No, it wasn’t me.”
The girl smiled faintly and shook her head.
“But tell me…”
Her expression suddenly turned cold.
Crackkk—
From behind her, twisted black blades emerged, writhing unnaturally.
“Who said you could ask questions?”
A chill ran down the spine.
The killing intent pressing over the area felt like a hand squeezing one’s heart.
An overwhelmingly powerful foe.
Her rank must be one befitting such wrath.
“There’s no chance of winning this fight. But I’ll remember this interference with our great plan.”
[Intermediate Priest ‘Cain Belmire’ activates the Skill ‘Step of the Dead’!]
Cain turned into smoke and vanished.
The girl made no move to pursue him.
He wasn’t her purpose for coming here.
Her gaze shifted toward a flowerpot placed near Murgan’s body.
“A yellow rose… Don’t tell me the Exile really broke the Covenant?”
Her golden eyes trembled violently as she stared at the single bright yellow rose.
There was only one person who left such a mark after a hunt.
Vivian Astraia.
The Witch of the Maple Tree had emerged from her nest.