Chapter 2189 – 2189. Dark Moon
We teleported to Taebaek Island, one of the larger islands in the Gangneung Archipelago.
To enter the ancient ruins of Gangneung in Great Korea, one must solve the puzzles here.
‘This is also where Dr. Hong said the pirate forces are located. I think the woman in charge of this island is named Woohee?’
In the original game, they all had similar designs, making it hard to distinguish them. There weren’t any notable named monsters either. In other words, I know nothing about this woman named Woohee.
‘I need to travel to more than 15 islands today and solve the puzzles. I’d like to avoid combat if possible.’
Our group didn’t get a good night’s rest. Our fatigue wasn’t completely gone. Invisible Blade was yawning as if she was sleepy, and Orshia was blinking, looking drowsy.
“We’re not heading to the top of the island, are we?”
“No. The secret of this island isn’t at the top but in the middle. Do you see that cluster of rocks over there?”
“I do. What secret do they hold?”
“It’s nothing much. We just need to move those rocks to the correct places.”
“It might be nothing much for you, Eugene, since you know it. A treasure hunter wouldn’t be able to figure it out without any prior knowledge.”
In the game, there were hints and markers, but reality was different. There were no hints or anything. As Orshia said, even a skilled treasure hunter would have difficulty figuring out the puzzle.
“It was written in an old book. I was lucky.”
I continued to deny it and headed towards the rock area.
Pirates swarmed us. Unlike the residents of Hongcheon Island, they were fully armed. Their level of armament was beyond that of ordinary pirates. They had guns and even armor. If their clothes were cleaner, you could mistake them for a regular army.
In the center of them was a woman wearing an eye patch. She wore a revealing outfit that showed off her cleavage, but her body was muscular, giving her a masculine feel. Her face was angular. In many ways, she was a woman who looked like a man.
“Our mages. It’s troublesome when you teleport into someone else’s territory without warning. There’s even a national law that prohibits teleporting without permission.”
It was quite amusing to hear a pirate talk about the law. Well, it was a real law, but it was limited to cities. There were no restrictions in other areas. The Gangneung Archipelago itself was a lawless area. Laws meant nothing there.
“I don’t have time to play with you pirates. Get out of the way.”
I said.
I opened my astral and raised my mana. The pirates tensed up and raised their weapons. They weren’t afraid of mages. The reason was the weapons they possessed.
‘They have experience winning against high-level opponents.’
Even high-level opponents don’t always win against low-level ones. Especially if the low-level opponents are armed with superior weapons and use tactical movements… the high-level ones would be at a disadvantage.
‘Did I underestimate these guys too much?’
I thought of the incantation in my head, timing the moment to activate the ‘Charna’. I planned to use ‘Charna’ to unleash a series of large-scale spells, then seize control of the surrounding environment and wipe them out with chain lightning.
“Ugh. My whole body is trembling from the hostility of a high-level mage. Is the mana around here being affected? Hey, calm down. I haven’t said I’m going to fight you yet.”
“You come here with armed men and say you’re not going to fight? Are you looking down on me?”
“Well, if I had come alone or if we were low-level, we wouldn’t even be able to have a conversation. I know from how you killed Aman’s subordinates without hesitation. You don’t even consider talking to those below your level.”
“……”
I couldn’t argue. What she said was true. Talk to weaklings? Why would I? It’s more time-efficient to just wipe them out.
“If you’re not going to fight, why are you here?”
“I came to make an offer. Even if we fight here and lose, you won’t gain anything. At most, you’ll just get our weapons. But you’re not really interested in our weapons, are you?”
They were the latest weapons. Selling them would be quite profitable. Since they were stolen goods, there would be a hefty commission, though.
But our goal right now wasn’t to rob the pirates. The relics hidden in the ancient ruins were incomparable to these.
“So?”
“We don’t want to fight and die either. Be a consumable for others? Bullshit. If we were that selfless, we wouldn’t have come to the Gangneung Archipelago.”
“Get to the point.”
“You’re looking for the ancient ruins of Great Korea, right? We’ll cooperate with you on that. In return, give us that information.”
“What nonsense are you spouting… It was a bunch of useless drivel not worth listening to.”
Orshia’s cold voice was as sharp as an ice pick. It was understandable. Reliable information about ancient ruins was worth a fortune in itself.
The ancient times. A very brilliant human civilization. A fragment of that great era was sleeping in the ancient ruins.
Especially the room-temperature, ambient-pressure superconductor, LK-99, was a substance that could potentially propel refined human civilization to new heights.
Sharing that precious information with others? That was impossible.
But my thoughts were a bit different from Orshia’s.
“Orshia, please leave this to me.”
“…Surely not. You’re not thinking of accepting that absurd offer, are you?”
I stared at Orshia. Her face turned slightly red. Her nose flared slightly, and she took a step back.
“S-since you are the center of this matter, I will respect your decision.”
Wasn’t she giving in too easily? It seemed to be because of what happened this morning.
“Alright. I’ll accept your offer. I’ll give you the information about the ancient ruins, just for you.”
“Really?”
Woohee asked back, surprised. It seemed she had expected me not to accept the offer.
‘Of course, I have no intention of giving you all the information about the ancient ruins. Even if you guys manage to enter the ancient ruins… it’s a different story from getting your hands on the treasures.’
The danger level of the ancient ruins was beyond imagination.
It was a place where the basic rule was, ‘If you don’t know, you die.’
‘Using these bugs as bait will make my job easier.’
The three forces that controlled the Gangneung Archipelago: Taebaek Island, Pyeongchang Island, and Donghae Island. According to what Dr. Hong told me, these guys weren’t friendly with each other, despite appearances.
‘If I make them fight each other, we can save our strength. That’s what you call killing two birds with one stone.’
I nodded to Woohee.
“We know how to open the entrance to the ancient ruins. We’re traveling around the islands for that purpose.”
“…You were acting so recklessly, so that was the reason. How do you open the entrance?”
“I have no intention of telling you that in detail. If you don’t like it, try to attack me.”
Woooong.
Mana fluctuated. Cold air spread in all directions from me. The pirates shivered at the chilling cold that was completely out of place with the warm weather. The tension was rising.
Woohee raised both hands. She was actively expressing that she had no intention of fighting.
“Okay. Fine. We have no intention of fighting you. The information that you can open the entrance to the ancient ruins. That’s for sure, right?”
“It’s obvious information. The Gangneung Archipelago is going to be a mess.”
“There’s also the option of pretending not to know.”
“Are you kidding me?”
Woohee chuckled. Hundreds of subordinates were around her. Could there be no spies among them? From the moment I spoke in front of them, it was impossible to cover up the situation. She continued.
“Even if we pretend not to know, war will break out eventually. This whole thing started with that damn treasure hunter and will end in war.”
Woohee’s eyes changed. I felt the aura of a soldier from her. Woohee must have been a soldier. And a high-ranking officer at that.
“Treasure hunter?”
I frowned. That guy who took the treasures and excellent items from the small and large islands.
“Ah. Weren’t you here because of that guy’s information? Well, since it’s a well-known story, I’ll tell you. A few years ago, a treasure hunter who stirred up the Gangneung Archipelago sold information about the Great Ancient Ruins to a small business. It seems they judged the information to be quite credible, and several companies have been interfering in the Gangneung Archipelago, making it a mess.”
Those companies were supporting the pirates of the Gangneung Archipelago.
Well, it didn’t matter.
In the end, the treasures of the ancient ruins would be in my hands.
We passed by Woohee and headed towards the rocks. Woohee followed behind with a few of her subordinates. I ignored them. It was better to show them to give them confidence.
[Telekinesis]
I moved the boulders with telekinesis magic. I threw away the useless rocks and arranged the rocks according to the small scratch marks hidden beneath them. When the nine rocks were in place, the island began to shake.
Kuururung, Kuurung.
Something huge moved beneath the Gangneung Archipelago.
“This is insane. There was a condition like this… It’s the kind of thing you’d never know if you didn’t already know. This is.”
Ignoring the shocked Woohee and her subordinates, I turned my gaze to the next island.
“Orshia, please teleport us to that island.”
“Understood.”
We teleported to the next island. The puzzle on this island was to burn the trees that stood alone at the four cardinal points.
“Was it really necessary to accept that female pirate’s offer?”
“There are all sorts of dangers in the ancient ruins. We can use the pirates as bait. Above all, we can avoid unnecessary conflicts and save our strength. What Orshia is worried about won’t happen. We have an overwhelming advantage since we know the information about the ancient ruins.”
“I see, I trust you.”
When the trees were burned, a treasure chest that had been hidden in the center of the island popped out.
“A treasure chest?! How exciting. I really love this kind of thing!”
Invisible Blade, who had been hiding, revealed herself. She strode towards the treasure chest and pointed her index finger at the lock. Water created in front of her index finger seeped into the keyhole.
Click.
The lock opened.
Inside the treasure chest was a single glowing potion. The liquid inside the glass bottle was shining like a star.
“I will take this elixir.”
I said with determination. I couldn’t give up this elixir.
