Chapter 65: Hidden Stage – The Fallen Necromancer’s Refuge
Skkrrk.
A clean, beautiful slicing sound echoed, marking the end of the malice’s final cries as its form completely collapsed.
To be precise, it was the aggregation of malice encasing it that had crumbled away.
All the negative forces unraveled and dissipated one by one.
〚You have slain the Evil Spirit of malice bound to ??? of Advanced (Uncommon) Rank E+ LV 22!〛
〚Contribution: 100%〛
〚You have received the following rewards: 30 Navy Coins, 1 Advanced E+ Magic Stone, Rune: Domain Expansion – ???’s Frost [Ancient-EX-] ×1, Broken Malice Shard [Advanced-C-] ×6, Purified Soul of ???? [Common-F-] ×1〛
〚Level Up〛
〚You have gained 2 additional points.〛
Nice! Not only did I get a rune as a reward, but its rank also increased by three tiers! It must have been because the system recognized the achievement of perfectly eliminating the enemy.
I immediately picked up the mystical stone lying on the ground.
Unlike the previous rune I had used, this one emitted a blue light, with a massive frost storm raging wildly within.
“I’ve already obtained two runes.”
And both are at the highest grade of the Ancient tier.
Considering they are currently the best runes available, this feels like nothing short of a miracle.
I swallowed hard and activated the rune.
〚You have acquired the Rune: Domain Expansion – ???’s Frost [Ancient-EX-]!〛
〚Adjusting to align with your essence.〛
〚…Adjusting.〛
〚Adjustment complete.〛
〚Your ??? has been identified as Fate.〛
〚Rune: Domain Expansion – Frost of Fate
Grade: Ancient
Tier: EX-
Level: 1 (0%)
Description: A blessing imbued with the power to color the smallest speck of the world with your essence. The domain perpetually storms with the Frost of Fate, harboring both your fortune and misfortune.
Abilities:
- Enables Domain Expansion. (Cooldown: 24 hours)
- Upon expansion, all enemies within the domain are imbued with traces of Misfortune [Legendary].
- Upon expansion, all allies within the domain are imbued with traces of Heavenly Fortune [Mythical].
- The reduced fortune of enemies and the increased fortune of allies are temporarily bestowed to the caster. (Cooldown: 30 days)〛
Unbelievable.
This is a perfect ability for me.
Normally, that final ability would only unlock after reaching a certain level, but it’s already available.
That means the power of the special ability will grow even faster as I level up.
This is an immensely satisfying outcome. It might become a critical counter against the Malice.
I threw all the other items into my inventory before raising my head to the sky.
The last reward I received for killing the malice hovered above me: the purified soul that had once been corrupted and fallen into malice.
《First, I must thank you. You have freed me from the depths of malice’s abyss.》
Purified Soul of ???? [Common-F-]. I can’t even fathom what this reward is.
Since it’s classified as an item, it’s definitely a reward, but…
A soul that can speak and think as a reward?
“Ah… Well, it was just something I had to do.”
I never expected this.
That future version of myself must have only discovered the hidden stage and initiated a mythical quest without killing the malice.
《Still, I’m grateful. You not only cut away the malice but also purified my soul to this extent.》
I looked down at the Purifying Four Tiger Sword.
So it only cut away the malice? I thought I had destroyed everything.
Reading the sword’s abilities again, I realized it could strike spirits, not kill them, but purify and sanctify them.
‘I just used it because it’s the best weapon against spirits…’
Yet here we are. A soul appearing as a reward isn’t bad at all. Maybe it’ll offer something in return?
“Well then, I’ll graciously accept your thanks.”
《Thank you. My heart feels much lighter now. I can finally ascend in peace.》
At those words, I sighed inwardly.
I guess it’s just a trivial soul.
Well, considering I already received a rune that elevated three ranks, wanting more would be greedy.
“Alright. I’ll take my leave as well. I still have tasks to complete.”
《Huh? What tasks?》
“There’s a rat hiding somewhere in this place. Now that I think about it, isn’t it possible that rat caused what happened to you?”
The soul fell silent, seemingly deep in thought. I hoped it might reveal something tied to a mythical quest, but…
《Hmm… I can’t recall anything. Did that really happen to me? Come to think of it, who am I? Why was I here? Ugh!》
Ah, amnesia. Poor thing. Not that I care.
I left the soul struggling to remember and began searching for the hidden stage mentioned earlier.
Navigating the city’s underground waterway was no easy feat, even with the exact location in mind.
Finally, after using the map provided by Braimoon and the markers on the waterway walls, I reached the spot.
“Is this it?”
At the deepest part of the waterway lay a gate connected to the groundwater. Staring at it, I recalled something from my memory.
-It was sheer luck, really. After clearing a quest, I was resting when I stumbled upon the hidden stage. To someone like me, who was stuck at F+ rank, it was nothing short of divine fortune. How did I find it? Haha! I had fled—no, moved—to the wall with a pump connected to the groundwater, and under the gate, I noticed some small text. That text was the key to the hidden stage!
I crouched down and checked under the gate connected to the pump.
Sure enough, tiny letters were engraved there.
Of course, I couldn’t understand it. This was a language from another dimension.
《!@#$!@#$!. When the brilliant flight becomes despair, you shall return here.》
Hearing the voice behind me at that moment startled me.
It was the soul. He appeared as surprised as I was, his eyes wide open at the words he had spoken.
But that was the least of my concerns.
When he pronounced the words clearly and imbued them with meaning, the engraved letters began to shine brightly.
Kwakwang!
The pump that had been madly sucking up groundwater through the gate stopped, and the tightly sealed, mysterious door began to open slowly.
The message that appeared before me was enough to leave me utterly bewildered.
〚You have become the first in all dimensions to discover the Hidden Stage: The Fallen Necromancer’s Refuge!〛
〚Reward: Orange Coin ×1〛
〚Reward: Significant increase in experience and rewards obtained within the ruins!〛
“What is this?”
This isn’t the Hidden Stage I know.
In the past—or rather, in the future that will never happen now—the Hidden Stage that the other me discovered was a place called The Secret Vault of a Certain Necromancer, which could be accessed by imbuing magic into those engraved letters.
He found a clue there that led to a mythical quest, and the system granted him a path to a mythical-class profession.
But now… it’s a refuge, not a vault?
I tightened my grip on my sword.
By this point, the Manbyun had shifted from the Purifying Four Tiger Sword to another blade.
An unknown variable beyond my knowledge. And whenever there was a variable, one entity always followed.
〚Misfortune, which had been biding its time and waiting for an opportunity, reveals itself!〛
Finally, Misfortune made its presence known.
It seemed to mock me, smirking as though daring me to overcome its interference once again, all while manifesting its power.
〚Twisted, malevolent, and anomalous Misfortune blocks your path!〛
Clicking my tongue was all I could do.
The moment I sensed it pouring all its power into the Hidden Stage before retreating back into my subconscious, I grimaced.
“Hah… Well, it’s not like this wasn’t expected.”
I knew this adventure wouldn’t go smoothly.
Having gained so much, I also expected an enormous trial in return.
I steeled my resolve. There’s no turning back. The Eternal Emperor is one of the most crucial pillars of my plan.
And with “that” in my arsenal, there’s no reason to fear.
Straightening my back, I turned to the soul.
The translucent, barely discernible face of the soul was twisted into an expression of rage, glaring fiercely at the Hidden Stage.
“Are you coming with me?”
《May I ask for your help? Though I can’t remember, a wild murderous intent surges within me. I feel like I might find a fragment of my memory if I enter that place.》
I nodded.
As expected, this seemed to be the proper route—the genuine, orthodox way, unlike that other me who had exploited a shortcut to start the quest.
‘If that’s the case, perhaps the profession I unlock will be even better?’
There’s no reason to hesitate.
I pushed myself through the door.
Much like using an Abyss portal, I felt a strange dizziness and an unknown suction pulling me in.
Both the soul and I disappeared completely.
Boom!
The once-open door slammed shut, and the pump resumed drawing groundwater as though nothing had happened.
***
Meanwhile, at that very moment, the city of Teraium was in turmoil.
It was because the information regarding the long-hidden Quest No. 478 had been revealed.
“Wow! Look at those rewards!”
“Who accepted the quest to unlock this information?”
“Yeah, I thought you had to meet specific conditions and accept the quest for it to be made public.”
“Unbelievable. If you clear this, you can move to the next stage. And they’re even offering a recommendation from a cardinal of the Holy Kingdom.”
“No way. Does that mean you could become a noble of the Holy Kingdom? That’s the top-tier kingdom in Stage-1, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. Remember how the first Saintess cleared a quest in the Holy Kingdom and earned the title of Saintess? That’s how highly regarded it is. With its ties to religion, its influence is unmatched.”
“I heard the Holy Kingdom’s people even exist in two-digit stages.”
“This is insane. I’m so jealous. Whoever it is will have nothing but a smooth path ahead of them, right? They’ll become a ranker in no time.”
While Stage-0 is just a tutorial meant to get your feet wet, clearing any quest here grants you the right to move on to the next stage.
But entering Stage-1 is a whole different story.
Stage-1 is home to countless kingdoms.
Known as the final stage fully conquered by players across all dimensions, entering it requires obtaining citizenship from one of these kingdoms.
Naturally, acquiring citizenship wasn’t easy.
This was why many veteran players remained stuck in Stage-0.
But a recommendation? And not just any citizenship—noble citizenship?
And from a cardinal of the Holy Kingdom, one of only four in existence?
In terms of other kingdoms, that’s equivalent to being granted the rank of earl outright.
It was no wonder everyone was so envious.
And every single one of them thought the same thing:
They hoped the anonymous quest taker would fail so the opportunity could fall to them.
Veterans knew the difficulty was no joke, but they still believed it was doable if they gathered enough people.
Ignorantly, they clung to the belief that courage and recklessness were separated by only a fine line.
However, selected few began to act.
Instead of sitting idle and wallowing in envy, they moved to gather information and seize the chance.
If the quest was cleared? No problem.
They’d track down the individual, kill them, and steal the rewards.
Given the quest’s difficulty, the rewards were bound to be the best obtainable in Stage-0.
Spreading out, they started collecting information.
By morning, they had uncovered the identity of the individual—Shin Juha—and learned that he had left with the Guard Captain Braimoon.
—
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