134. To Think That I Would Be a Laborer Even in the Demonic Realm
Jong Ho and I continued to take out the monsters near the Gate while we waited for our Warp to go off its cooldown.
It was because if we returned to where Karin was right away, there was a chance that we"d run into Ladin and the demon king.
According to what Jong Ho relayed to me, he wouldn"t be able to face Ladin, let alone the demon king.
To be more precise, I would be able face Ladin at the least.
However, unlike the regular monsters, he seemed to possess a special offensive ability.
If I fought him without learning what that was, I was sure that I"d be severely injured.
Not only that, but the demon king and Ladin were moving together as a pair.
They must be moving on the premise that the humans are here to eradicate the demonic races.
The ring of resurrection that we had as insurance was already consumed.
The only thing I could now do in the worst case scenario was to cast Status Denial.
Due to Status Denial being a healing type skill, it could not be stored in Balrock"s Treasure Storage ring.
Jong Ho could not cast it, so that only left me who was able to cast it.
This meant that if either or both of us were to take a fatal blow, due to the long 24 hour cooldown of the skill, I could only save one of us.
That was why we needed to be even more careful from now on, to the point that we had repurposed our travel skill Warp as a defensive measure of escape.
We waited the 11 hrs that was left on the cooldown of the Warp spell without a single bite of food or a sip of water.
It was because both the duffel bag and Karin"s pocket dimension storage were near Ladin"s castle.
Jong Ho, who was taking down the monsters, hurriedly called me over.
"Hey, Min-Cheol. Come over here! What is this?"
"What is it?"
At Jong Ho"s call, I ran over at once.
He must have found something important.
Where Jong Ho was pointing was an item that was plenty important enough to get my attention.
"Oho……?"
"I thought that only bloodstones dropped in the demonic realm?"
"I thought that was the case too, at least from what Karin had told me……."
"Isn"t this place just like a dungeon? The entire world here is just one giant dungeon."
The item that dropped after killing all those monsters was a jewel.
Karin had said that artifacts and skill books do not drop in the demonic realm.
He had said that only bloodstones dropped, and the weapons that the monsters were wielding were crafted from them.
Of course, those weapons did not have any stats on them either.
However, a jewel had dropped right before Jong Ho at this very moment.
“Karin had said that the appearance of artifacts and skill books were an abnormal occurrence, similar to the appearance of the Awakened on Earth……."
"But a jewel just dropped here."
"It seems that things will work out far easier than I had thought?"
"…….."
"It must be that only humans can obtain artifacts by slaying monsters. That"s the only explanation that makes sense in this situation. Even if the drop chance is absolutely abysmal, it seems that this is a huge opportunity for us."
"Good…… A good news amongst misfortune. Ah, it seems my Warp is finally off cooldown now."
"Is that so? Then we"ll ask Karin for details. Shall we go?"
"Hm….. I wonder if he"ll be okay. But is there really a reason for both of us to move together?"
"Yes, I think it"s important that we do so."
"……."
"Are you worried that the demon king is near Ladin"s castle?"
"Yep. Then it would be best if you, who has a higher chance of survival, go instead…… You have Status Denial, and I could just weigh you down."
"You"re right. But what if they arrive here instead?"
"Then I"ll have Warp near Ladin"s castle."
"Hyung-nim, does your cell phone work right now?"
"No. Do you really think that a cell phone will have signal in the demonic realm? I don"t even have global data."
"As expected."
"Ah……."
"The demonic realm is beyond comparison in terms of size with Earth, and we don"t have any methods of contacting each other. The only reason we are able to regroup right now is that we"re using Ladin"s castle as a landmark."
"That"s true."
"If the demon king and Ladin take over this Gate, then we"d be cut off without a way back home"
"You"re right. If you think about it that way, it"s probably better to move together."
"Even if we do encounter them and have to fight, I"ll make sure to keep you alive, so don"t worry too much."
"I"m not sure how much longer we"ll stay in the realm, but let"s make a promise."
"A promise all of a sudden? What is it?"
"If we get into a situation where only one of us could survive……"
"…….."
"If it comes down to that, I want you to be the one who lives."
"It won"t come to that. Don"t worry."
"Of course. Still, promise me. Promise me that you will."
"Hyung-nim, if we go down, we go down together. Don"t act so weak after being beaten by them once."
"I know, so that"s why I"m saying it. Looking at it from an objective standpoint, it"s true that you have far greater combat potential."
"Yes."
"As you said, if we fail here, then everything is lost. But if worst comes to worst….. Shouldn"t we bet on something with a higher chance of succeeding, no matter how small that difference is? I"m saying that you"re the one with a higher chance of succeeding."
"I understand what you"re saying. Let" just drop all this serious talk……"
"Answer me."
"Alright….. I will do as you say."
"Good. Thank you."
"Always have to say something odd to make people worry about you. Such an odd personality. I don"t understand why So-Hyeon noona likes someone who"s so serious and lame."
"It"s probably because I"m like this that she"s dating me."
"Glad you"re such a big catch. Really. Now let"s go! We"ll be in big trouble if our food storage goes cold."
"Yeah."
Even while we were heading towards Ladin"s castle. I did not let down my guard for a split moment with my Eye of Insight.
Despite the constant vigilance slowing us down, it wasn"t something that we could do without.
We were finally able to arrive at the area near Ladin"s castle that we had designated as a base camp.
There stood Karin.
Just as Jong Ho had asked him to, he was waiting there still.
To think that he would follow instructions so well.
Even though it was to guarantee his own survival, it almost made me feel bad for treating him as a simple food storage.
As expected, Karin also saw us.
Jumping up and down from where he was, he greeted us.
"Heck. To think that he had a cute side……."
"Keruu! You forgetful humans!"
"Hm?"
"Kel! Do you know how long I"ve waited?"
"So you weren"t greeting us, but instead angry? Know your place!"
"Hey hey, Min-Cheol. I"d be mad too if I was in his shoes. He didn"t just wait an hour or two, but a whole 12 hours instead. Cut him some slack."
"If it wasn"t for Jong Ho-hyung, I would have pilfered everything from your pocket dimension and killed you!"
"You……. don"t know how scared I was! Kehelel."
"What. You"re crying? You"re really crying? Why are you making me feel bad."
"Human! Please don"t leave me alone! Keh eh eh! I thought the demon king would come back! I thought the stealth casted on me would expire! Do you know how anxious I was!"
"Alright, alright. I"ll cook lots of steak for you."
"Keruk. Let"s get away from this place. I don"t want to be here anymore."
"Yep, let"s do that. I have questions for you as well."
After Min-Cheol and Jong Ho went through the Gate, many Awakened were on standby at the entrance of the Gate.
On top of that, many news crews had come to obtain footage of the scene, causing the area to be overcrowded.
Of course, the news crew were prevented from getting too close to the Gate though.
Just like that, an hour had pa.s.sed.
However, no monsters came out of the Gate.
Instead, the Gate silently wavered like the rippling surface of water.
However, the commander Yoon Jong-sun and the Awakened deployed from the global Awakened a.s.sociation did not let down their guard.
Abnormal events with the portals were continuing to occur in Korea.
While the portal explosions were artificially created by the the radical faction, the fact still remained that a Gate leading to the demonic realm formed here.
Not even for a moment did they let down their guard.
Ho Jin, who stood guard next to the the commander, spoke.
"Commander, it"s too quiet."
"Hm….. I hope that it stays this way, but……"
"I also hope for that as well."
It was then.
The portal that pulsed serenely suddenly began to tremble violently.
Noticing the change in the portal, the commander"s expression soured instantly.
He knew better than anyone else what that meant.
It wouldn"t be long before the monsters showed their faces.
"Everyone, group up! It seems that the monsters will be coming out soon!"
"d.a.m.n it. It really is happening……."
At the commander"s orders, all the Awakened gathered near the Gate at once.
A Fear roar skill that sent shivers down everyone"s spine echoed from the Gate.
"KUWUHHH!"
"KURURU! KURURU!"
"If we fail here, an unspeakable disaster will fall upon this world! Tanks at the front! All healers, cast shields and buffs on the tanks. Focus on healing spells on the tanks! And please cast debuffs on the monsters!"
"Yes!"
"Yes, commander!"
"All magicians, please prepare single target spells instead of area of effect spells! AoE spells will not only damage the tanks, but will pour mana into the Gate itself! These monsters will definitely have some form of resistances. Awakened of the warrior and a.s.sa.s.sin cla.s.ses, prepare to attack alongside the tanks."
Thanks to his vast experience in combat, he was able to organize a proper formation and lead it.
The commander was well respected by all Awakened of Korea.
Since even the national organization recognized his accomplishments, none disobeyed his orders.
When the radical faction cause the portals to artificially explode, they had done so by infusing the portals with a ma.s.sive amount of mana.
Currently, this Gate was connected to the demonic realm.
It was obvious that monsters far superior to those found in the dungeons were in there.
However, the commander wasn"t sure if this Gate would be the same as the other portals.
That is why he had commanded the group to position themselves into a formation with safety in mind.
"We do not know how many monsters will come out, but we have to focus our attacks to take them down one by one! Show them our determination!"
The monsters emerged from the Gate that was completely surrounded by the Awakened.
They were completely trapped in by the Awakened.
Trying to reduce the amount of damage the tanks would take from the monsters, he casted an aggro pulling skill from afar.
The lower ranking monsters charged towards the commander with their gazes fixed on him.
However, they could not get near the commander.
The monsters were easily dispatched by the Awakened that surrounded them.
It seemed that things were progressing more smoothly than what he had originally expected. However….
"KUAHACK!"
"KUUUUAAA!"
"These….. These monsters attack by exploding! Tanks and warriors, do not let them get close to you!"
"Kuack! Commander! They"re pouring out endlessly!"
"Kuu…….. We have to hold! Do not fall back!"
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