Chapter 28

[General Quest: Interpreter Jorden]

-Restriction: Users possessing the Old Worn Map

-Reward: ?

-Description: Entrust the old and worn map to the interpreter.

The only interpreter in Idenharc who could decipher the old map.

He was a vagrant and an interpreter, a veteran who traveled all over Idenharc deciphering various maps.

"Could you interpret this map for me?"

Jeong-Hoon approached him and held out the map.

The interpreter, who was examining a map, turned his head and glanced at Jeong-Hoon.

"You want me to interpret the map? Hmm... It seems you came to me knowing who I am."

"Yes."

"Let me see it for a moment."

After accepting the quest, Jorden readily cleared the maps on his desk and placed the map Jeong-Hoon brought on top.

Then he stared at it for a long time.

He was using the skill 'Interpretation' to decipher the map.

'Definitely do that map quest.'

Soon, the secrets of the map would be revealed, and many users would obtain the treasures on the map.

However, the rewards were limited to Epic grade, and the only user who had received a reward higher than that had gotten a Unique grade item.

Simply because they were the first to unravel the map's secrets.

'This time, it's my turn.'

So this time, he would be the one to get the Unique grade reward.

"Hmm... this is pretty tricky." Where did you get this?"

Jorden frowned and roughly put down his monocle.

He had failed to interpret it.

"I obtained it by chance."

"Is that so? It seems we'll need some materials to interpret this."

Jorden took out a yellowed paper and diligently wrote a list with a quill pen.

The list contained the materials needed to interpret the map.

[List of Materials]

-Loudon's Horn x1

-Loudon's Blood 100ml

-Loudon's Tongue x1

There were a total of three materials needed to interpret the map.

And all of them could only be obtained by hunting Loudon.

"Loudon."

Jeong-Hoon muttered softly.

Loudon was a mid-boss level monster in the field, level 60.

But there was another reason this guy was tricky.

It was impossible to defeat him without completing a quest.

He was such an elusive creature that he was a monster implemented for the purpose of quest materials, so you had to earn the right to defeat him through a quest.

"Ah, take this. It should allow you to defeat him."

Jorden held out a small scroll.

[Loudon subjugation unlocked.]

With this, he was able to defeat Loudon.

"Thank you."

"I have the rest of the materials, so just bring me Loudon's materials."

"Yes."

Now it was time to apply for the subjugation team.

The creature was a monster that existed for the quest scenario.

Therefore, it was impossible to hunt him without applying for the subjugation team.

"I'll give you two days. I'll be on the move again after that."

"Yes."

Jeong-Hoon took the quest and left the mansion immediately.

* * *

Earth Korea Management Team.

The employees were watching a user's gameplay on the monitor.

It was the martial artist who had transferred to the hidden class, as usual.

But this time, the video was a bit boring.

"Why is he digging like that?"

"I know, right?"

Hours of repetitive digging.

And this time, it wasn't just one person, but two.

"It's a lower warrior."

"Is that lower warrior a friend?"

All they could know was the user's level and class.

So they couldn't know the exact relationship and could only speculate.

"Maybe they're connected because of a quest? You get an event quest when you reach level 55."

"Ah, now that you mention it."

A quest to help a newbie, which gave a whopping two levels.

Judging by the lower warrior's level of 55, it was certain.

After digging, they entered a dungeon and proceeded with the raid.

"This is amazing... He's not even fazed by hordes of high-level monsters."

"Wow..."

He single-handedly carried the raid, completed it, and then completed a quest with an NPC.

The reward he received after that was an old map.

Why did he do a quest that no one else had done because the reward was so garbage?

"There must be a reason."

Team leader Oh Jin-soo watched the user's gameplay with a tense expression.

"He's entering the mansion."

As he said, the user headed for an old mansion.

It was a mansion where vagrant NPCs rested for a while, a place that most users wouldn't even think of visiting.

But the user entered the mansion and soon met an NPC, receiving a quest.

"Was the map a chain quest?"

The employees' eyes widened.

"I didn't even know that..."

Oh Jin-soo ran his hand over his face with a complicated expression.

Just who was this user?

He had surprised them in the Starting Village, and now he was completing a quest that no one else had done in Idenharc and continuing with a chain quest?

Then what kind of quest would be next?

They couldn't take their eyes off the screen.

* * *

Loudon was a monster that led over 20 monsters under him.

Therefore, there were NPCs who specialized in subjugating Loudon.

"You want to join the Loudon subjugation team?"

"Yes."

"Hmm... Will you be alright?"

[NPC Information]

-Nickname: Asel

-Level: 50

-Job: Subjugation Captain

Asel, who was in charge of the subjugation team, couldn't hide his troubled expression.

Loudon was a level 60 monster.

Not only was its level high, but its defense was also quite high, making it impossible to subjugate it with ordinary firepower.

But the applicant who came to him now was only half the level of Loudon.

However, he couldn't easily reject him as he wasn't unqualified.

"If it's because of my low level, I won't be a hindrance, so please understand."

"No... that's part of it, but the number of people participating in this subjugation is lower than usual. So we won't be able to look after you."

The biggest problem was that the total number of subjugation team members was only 24.

The optimal number for a Loudon subjugation team was 30.

However, six members had recently been withdrawn from the force due to injuries from a failed Loudon subjugation.

This was because the creature, which originally had nothing, suddenly appeared covered in armor, drastically increasing its power.

"It's okay."

"...Don't blame me if something goes wrong."

"Yes."

With this, the application for the subjugation team was complete.

The subjugation was scheduled for 9 a.m. the next day.

Starting with the quest from the old man, the situation naturally led to Loudon's combat power increasing.

It meant that he wouldn't easily give up the treasure, as the reward was great.

'Even if you know the location of the treasure, you can't take it without the deciphered map. In the end, you have to complete the quests step by step to get it.'

That's why he was doing the quests even though he knew the location of the treasure.

The next day.

Jeong-Hoon arrived at the venue on time.

There, 24 members of the subjugation team were strengthening their resolve.

"We must cut off Loudon's head!"

"Damn bastard, he destroyed my farm!"

"Not only that, he hunted my livestock!"

There were monsters like that.

Monsters that lived in the field but had the authority to invade villages.

Loudon was one such monster.

The subjugation team consisted entirely of victims who had suffered at the hands of Loudon.

In the previous battle, six members of the subjugation team had fallen to Loudon.

So they had to win this battle.

"Are you sure you'll be alright?"

Subjugation Captain Asel approached and asked again.

Jeong-Hoon was the only outsider who had applied for the subjugation team.

That was because he was the only one in Idenharc who had completed the map quest and earned the right to participate.

[You know there's a crazy monster in Idenharc?]

-It's called Loudon, a mid-boss level monster that lives in the field, and it's impossible to hunt, no matter how high your level is.

└Its invincibility is a cheat...

└I heard you have to do a quest in another town to hunt Loudon.

└It's so damn picky...

└Anyway, even if you're level 200, you can't hunt Loudon unless you unlock it through that quest lol.

└The damage doesn't even show up as 1, it's 0 lol. You can't even grind it.

There were two ways to unlock Loudon's subjugation.

One was to obtain the subjugation qualification through an NPC in Corharden.

The other was to obtain the subjugation qualification through a chain quest, like Jeong-Hoon did.

Loudon wasn't popular yet because its hidden rewards hadn't been revealed, but public opinion would change 180 degrees over time.

And Jeong-Hoon held the key to that reversal.

"I'm fine."

At his confident voice, Asel didn't try to dissuade him any further.

The Loudon subjugation began.

* * *

"Uwaaaah! Human! Get out!"

Loudon resembled a wild boar, if you were to compare it to a real-world animal.

However, unlike ordinary wild boars, it could stand upright on two legs and was a giant monster, reaching a height of 3 meters.

Moreover, it commanded smaller monsters called 'Widons', making it a very tricky monster to deal with.

"Front line! Prepare for charge!"

There were a total of 18 Widons.

And the number of subjugation team members, including Jeong-Hoon, was 25.

The average level was 44.

The subjugation team's strategy was to overwhelm Loudon with their superior numbers.

And that strategy worked beautifully.

The level 35 Widons were no match for the strength of the subjugation team members pushing forward with their shields.

"Get him!"

"Take him down!"

The members mercilessly struck the Widons with their axes and clubs.

"Kweeeek!"

The Widons screamed.

Then Loudon, who had been watching, intervened.

"You humans, I won't let you get away with this."

Loudon swung his axe and approached the subjugation team members.

Members tensed, sweating from the intimidating aura.

If they couldn't defeat this damn monster, the damage would continue.

They had to hunt it down.

At that moment, Jeong-Hoon, who had been watching the situation, suddenly jumped out.

"Wh-What?!"

Asel, who was controlling the members, reached out with a bewildered look, but Jeong-Hoon was already standing in front of Loudon.

"A human? The weakest one came out first."

Loudon grinned and swung his axe at Jeong-Hoon.

'Oh no...!'

Asel squeezed his eyes shut, convinced that he was dead.

The sight of a human head being crushed by that axe was disgusting.

"Huh?"

But when he opened his eyes, a surprising scene unfolded.

'H-He's dominating...?!'

Jeong-Hoon, who was supposed to have been killed by Loudon, started hunting Loudon.

* * *

'If I hunt this guy, it's over.'

Jeong-Hoon's target was not the Widons, but Loudon.

So he waited patiently until Loudon came forward.

If he had overwhelmingly hunted the Widons from the start, Loudon would have sensed the danger and fled the scene.

Fleeing meant moving to another field, and if that happened, the subjugation would end immediately.

If it ended, Loudon would become invincible until the subjugation team was formed again, making it impossible to subjugate him.

And as expected, Loudon assessed the subjugation team members and, thinking it was manageable, stepped forward swinging his axe.

It was the moment Jeong-Hoon had been waiting for.

Underworld King's Fist Technique 1st form.

Unfortunately, it was impossible to penetrate Loudon's tough defense with the weapons Jeong-Hoon had.

So he ended it with the Legendary fist technique.

His fist struck the armor.

Loudon's face was filled with surprise, as if the impact was greater than he had expected.

"Damn you!"

The beast swung its axe.

Jeong-Hoon skillfully dodged Loudon's attack with a step.

It was a sharp attack, but the beast's movements were so large that it was easy to read its attack path.

[Martial Artist's exclusive skill, 'Steadfast Will' is activated.]

[You have acquired the skill 'Footwork (Rare)'.]

And another skill Jeong-Hoon needed was added.

'Good.'

Footwork, a step above the ordinary footwork.

It was a skill that controlled not only footwork but also overall body movement, a skill that Jeong-Hoon desperately needed.

'Underworld Kings Fist Technique 2nd form.'

Jeong-Hoon, who had used the 1st form, quickly followed up with the 2nd form, pressuring Loudon.

Every time the beast swung its axe, he dodged with a step and dealt damage with a flurry of punches.

The Underworld Kings Fist Technique was a fraudulent martial art that could deal full damage to a target even if they were wearing armor.

"Kuweeek!"

Loudon finally screamed in pain from the tremendous pain he felt every time he was hit.

But it was too late.

Jeong-Hoon was already using the Underworld Kings Fist Technique 3rd form.

'This is the end.'

His fist, wrapped in black energy, slammed into Loudon's abdomen.