Chapter 292: Polluted World (1)

It was only allowed a moment to admire the beautiful sky. After all, a dead monster could not beat its wings.

Telgia's corpse slowly started to fall to the ground.

"First..." Seo Jun-Ho pierced the clouds and quickly scanned the ground.

'It'll be dangerous if it falls toward the city. There might still be some people who couldn't evacuate.'

It would be a catastrophe if they were crushed by Telgia.

'It should be better over there...'

He made his decision and twisted the spear piercing through Telgia's head. As his center of gravity changed, their trajectory shifted greatly.

'This should be enough. We'll fall toward the wheat field outside the city.'

The wheat field was still empty because early spring was still too cold to plant spring wheat.

Swoooooooo!

His body started to fall even faster thanks to gravity. Seo Jun-Ho squeezed the spear, unblinking.

'I only have one chance. I have to match the timing well.'

He didn't want to die in such a stupid way after killing Telgia so heroically.

'Now...'

They were roughly two hundred meters above the ground. Seo Jun-Ho let go of the spear and used Freeze on his body. As he started to feel like he was floating, Telgia's body continued to plunge to the ground.

'And...!'

Still floating in the air, Seo Jun-Ho held out his hand and froze the water vapor, creating a long sheet of ice.

Crash!

"Ow!" Seo Jun-Ho fell on top of it and started to go down the ice like a slide.

'Gently. I have to make it as gentle as possible.'

He held out his hands, adjusted the incline of the slide, and landed safely on the ground.

"Perfect." He stepped onto the ground, looking satisfied. He walked toward Telgia, who had fallen first. There was something he had to do before people started to gather.

"Confession of the Dead."

Telgia's memories shot out instantly. Seo Jun-Ho was only looking for one thing.

'Was it implanted with a demon jade? If that's the case, I have to look for some information.'

The video playback began.

***

Telgia was an aloof bird that loved to fly. During the day, it liked to fly toward the moon. At night, it enjoyed traveling beneath the moonlight. It had spent hundreds of years flying without hurting anyone. But its life was flipped upside down in a single morning.

"Tch. Everything's pissing me off."

"My apologies."

The man that had tied Telgia up and forcefully implanted it with a demon jade frowned. "Why must I help with something the Despair Squadron should be doing? What is Gu Shi-On doing?"

"My understanding is that he is carrying out separate orders from a superior."

"...Tch."

The only superior of a Squadron leader was an executive. Refusing to join in on one of their campaigns could lead to your head being cut off. With nothing else to say, the man forced his anger down.

"Thank you for helping us even though you're busy."

"It's annoying, so don't call me again for this kind of stuff."

"Yes, Guladin-nim."

The Despair Squadron members frowned as soon as Guladin left.

"He's so fucking condescending just because he helped us with one little thing."

"He's still a Squadron leader, though. His pride might have gotten hurt. He had to come out to clean up another squadron's business, after all."

"Tch. No offense, but what does the Gluttony Squadron usually do for the Association? All they do is shut themselves up at Paradise in Outland to do experiments."

"They implant demonic energy in the citizens, too."

"Hey, come on. The Despair Squadron still does the most work out in the field."

The sight of the two Squadron members conversing was the final scene before Telgia's memories were cut off. Afterward, all that was left were the memories of a monstrous bird that had lost all reason.

"...There was more useful information than I thought." Seo Jun-Ho quickly sorted through his findings.

'The Gluttony Squadron regularly goes around implanting demonic energy in ordinary people.'

It naturally made him think of a certain person.

'Simus.'

He was the son of Gilleon's city lord, and he had nearly died after his body was filled with demonic energy. If it weren't for Seo Jun-Ho and Skaya, he may no longer be of this world.

'I also received a quest from his father.'

A quest worth a hundred gold. He had begged him to take revenge on the fiend who made his son that way.

'One of the Gluttony Squadron members did that to Simus.'

Gluttony Squadron member, Gluttony Squadron member...

Seo Jun-Ho turned the words over in his head, and his eyes grew cold.

'And...I think I heard something that I can't just overlook.'

Paradise. He was sure that it was the name of the orphanage in Rome. They kidnapped children and made them drink the blood of demonic races, forcefully turning them into fiends. It was an inhumane place.

'...So that means there's a place like that here as well.'

Seo Jun-Ho's clenched fists started to shake. The fiends weren't stupid. They usually wouldn't make the same mistake twice.

'I already infiltrated it once, so the security of this new Paradise should be a lot more thorough.'

The new Paradise was somewhere in Outland. If he wanted to find his way there, he had to prepare himself.

Just as he was lost in thought, he heard the sound of hooves. He watched the nobles' children approach on horseback.

"..."

"You...really killed it."

They looked a little disappointed when they saw that Telgia was dead. It made sense. After all, the game they had been chasing for the past year was killed by another person.

Wagner stood by Telgia's corpse for a long time, staring down at it. He bowed. "Thank you, truly. I thank you on behalf of the whole city."

He lifted his head and hesitated before continuing, "And please forgive the discourtesy I have shown you."

"...Hm." Seo Jun-Ho spoke as he pulled out the spear and sword stuck in Telgia's body. "I'm hungry. I'll forgive you if you buy me lunch."

He was also strongly craving a hot bath.

***

Duke Schubert called for him after he was done with his bath. Duke Schubert looked brighter than he had ever before. "You've worked hard."

"Because it was a commission..."

"Yes. And I should reward you for fulfilling it." He rang the servant bell, and two knights entered the room carrying a large chest. "Take a look. This is exactly a hundred kilograms of Serium."

Jun-Ho opened the chest and checked the mineral.

'I see...'

He thought he finally understood why Graham and Kwon Noya had told him to bring this material. He instinctively felt drawn to it. The mineral emanated a cold air, and it felt somehow familiar.

'I'm looking forward to this.'

He wondered what kind of armor they would make out of this mineral. Seo Jun-Ho grinned and put it away into his Inventory.

"Thank you. I almost wonder if my actions were worth as much."

"Then, give it back..."

"Um... I said that for the sake of courtesy."

"I was joking." Duke Schubert chuckled. He didn't look like the type of person to make jokes. As such, he had to be in a really good mood today. "Are you leaving?"

"I should..."

"Do you have any thoughts of becoming a knight?"

If he became a knight, he would at the very least belong to the family and at most to the empire. Seo Jun-Ho didn't like the stuffiness of it and instantly declined.

"I see..." The duke didn't seem very disappointed. He had merely asked just in case, but he didn't think Seo Jun-Ho would accept his offer. "If I ever need your help again..."

"I have an information guild called Moonlight in Maliva. Please send your commissions there."

"Moonlight in Maliva... I understand."

After promoting his small business, Seo Jun-Ho bid farewell and headed to the Teleport Gate.

"Where would you like to go?"

"Gilleon."

It was time to go back to Earth.

***

"How did you..."

Graham and Kwon Noya were speechless when they saw just how much Serium he had brought with him back. They did tell him to bring as much as possible, but they had never imagined he would bring this much.

Kwon Noya erupted into laughter. "What did I say? I told you we didn't need to plan to spread it thin."

"...I never would have thought he would bring such an abundant amount. We must re-do the blueprints."

Seo Jun-Ho gave a small smile and turned to Graham. "I tried out the saw-toothed sword. It was really nice."

"That is good to hear. There is nothing else you would need to catch monsters if you have that."

"I agree. Oh, and I even gave this one a name." Seo Jun-Ho took out the spear made of cold iron from his inventory. He grinned.

"Ah, a name. Tell me, what is it?"

"Cold Spear."

"...A what spear?"

"Cold Spear."

Cold Spear vibrated. Seo Jun-Ho felt it react under his hand and smiled slyly. "I think it likes it, too. Every time I call it that, it responds like this."

"No...That's not it." As a dwarf blessed by the God of the Earth, Graham could hear the voices of the soil and metal. He slapped his forehead. "It's because it's disgusted..."

"I can't hear the voice of metal, but it's obviously acting like that because it's angry, you brat," Kwon Noya scoffed.

Seo Jun-Ho blinked and looked at Cold Spear. "...Why? Does it not like the name?"

"Must you ask? You have always been terrible at naming things, Contractor." Even the Frost Queen joined in. Seo Jun-Ho frowned, having no other choice but to give in.

"Then, well...I suppose I'll visit a fortune teller and give it a proper name."

Cold Spear vibrated again as if relieved.

"When will the armor be done?" Seo Jun-Ho asked.

"A month... No, it may take as long as two months."

"That's a long time..."

"Seo Jun-Ho. That is how valuable the armor is," Graham announced confidently.

Seo Jun-Ho couldn't do anything but nod. "I understand."

"Will you wait here?" Graham asked.

"It's too long for me to do that."

"Then take your time..."

"I'm counting on you."

After leaving the workshop, Seo Jun-Ho went to look for Shim Deok-Gu.

"I saw that you have accomplished something again," his friend said.

"It was nothing. All I did was catch a bird."

"And that one bird had been causing Duke Schubert a headache for a year now." Shim Deok-Gu chuckled and swiped the hologram article over to him. "The 3rd floor was cleared this morning."

"...That was fast."

Seo Jun-Ho skimmed through the articles.

[Silent Moon defeats Phanactos, the 3rd Floor's Floor Master.]

[Sword Saint Kim Woo-Joong decides to take a 4-week break to recuperate from his injuries from the Floor Master.]

[The Big 6 Guilds head right to the 4th floor.]

[Humanity is finally free of the shackles of the 2nd floor! Onward.]

...

"...What do the experts think?" Seo Jun-Ho asked. It was a random question, but Shim Deok-Gu answered in tandem.

"They predict that we'll reach the 5th floor by the end of next year," he said.

"That's really fast..."

"It just goes to show how long we had been stuck on the 2nd floor."

It was because the Players had grown far stronger than their former level 120 limit.

"When are you planning to go to the 3rd floor?" Shim Deok-Gu asked.

"I'm planning to go there for a bit soon enough," Seo Jun-Ho said.

"...'A bit'?"

"Yeah, I'm planning to stop by the 3rd floor before going to Outland in Frontier," he explained.

"Outland? Why are you going to such a dangerous place?"

"Do you remember Paradise?"

"The orphanage in Rome?"

"They made another one in Outland."

A new Paradise managed by the Chef himself. Considering what they had done in the Paradise in Rome, it was clear what they were doing right now.

"They're probably doing all sorts of inhumane things," Seo Jun-Ho said.

"It would be dangerous to go alone, though."

"I'm going to contact the others, and if they're not busy, I'm planning to go with them."

As for the 3rd floor, Seo Jun-Ho wanted to go there because he had the S-grade Title 'Bringer of Spring.' As soon as he entered the 3rd floor, all his stats would increase by 30.

'I'm going to a dangerous place after all, so I need to be prepared.'

It would also be nice to go sightseeing on the 3rd floor. Seo Jun-Ho finished his glass of orange juice and stood.

"I'll be back, then."

"Wait, you're going to the 3rd floor now? You think it's a reading room or something?" Shim Deok-Gu said.

"Well, there's no need to drag it out, is there?" Seo Jun-Ho countered. Aside from his title, there was another reason why he had to go up to the 3rd floor. "You said that the temperature would go down if I froze the altar, didn't you?"

To make the 3rd floor accessible to all, he had to get rid of its hellish heat.