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* * *
[Welcome to the Veritas System.]
[Chat┃Yeoun’s official announcement is out (1492)]
(News article screenshot)
Yeah, it’s movement skills~ ㅅㄱ
But what are the acquisition conditions… Isn’t this basically telling us not to get it?
(1492 comments)
-Did it drop?
-Set new records 9 times with an 8-person party? Who else besides Yeoun could do that
└Thousand Sols
└└They can’t do itㅋㅋㅋㅋ Their core power just had funerals a few days ago, what…
-If the difficulty of those acquisition conditions is true, this is a skill even tower owners can’t get
-They’re releasing this for free? Yeoun’s class that even cuts major corporate sponsors… If other guilds got it, they would’ve shut up and hoarded it among themselves and gone for media controlㅋㅋ
└Write your brain theories in your diary
-This is crazy..
-Hey, what’s this in the article? <Guild Master Slope (real name: Kyung Samin) expressed his apologies for the delayed announcement after first acquiring the movement skill, saying ‘We needed time to verify more certain acquisition conditions for fair and safe Veritas Tower conquest.’> Slope talks this politely?
└Well, he can’t tell journalists who keep pestering him to announce when it’s time that they’re being fucking annoyingㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
* * *
[Chat┃I’m a Thousand Sols insider, just know the atmosphere here is fucking terrible (642)]
If I say too much, I might get identified so I can’t give details, but the atmosphere is definitely really bad
Only hunters with good reputation like Gideon, Palate, Imaginary Friend, etc. ended up like that, and the internal atmosphere is a mess, but just know Yeoun’s movement skill dropped and Solaris guild master’s office is getting new interior
There’s a lot to say about sponsor stuff too but I’ll hold back; Yeoun without sponsors scored another mysterious victory today
(642 comments)
-Are you just spouting this without proof for us to believe?
└(Author): You don’t have to believe it, I’m just saying it because it’s frustrating to watch
-Write it on the nickname board, hyung
└(Author): Trying to fuck me over?ㅋㅋ
-This is facts. I don’t know which guild the author is from but even the guild members below are all reading the room because the atmosphere is so bad. I’m wondering if I came here for nothing..sigh
└(Author): I’m just enduring and waiting for Yeoun recruitment notices
└└ㅋㅋ I screenshotted this so if a Thousand Sols person goes to Yeoun, I’ll know it’s you^^
└└└(Author): There’s not just one or two people who transferred from alliances, so not worriedㅋㅋ
.
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-Hyung you’re fucked, Solaris notice is up. If they catch you, immediate expulsion www.solarlessguild.co.kr/notice/382942840
└Their pride is all dead. Solaris saying false information spreading and stuff, but there are several hunters agreeing with this post right nowㅋㅋㅋ Rather cover the sky with your palm
└Isn’t posting a notice like that basically confirming that insider post is real?ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Why is Solaris guild master acting like that?ㅋㅋㅋㅋ
* * *
Yeoun Guild officially announced their acquisition of movement skills through journalists. That alone would have been newsworthy enough, but they boldly revealed even the acquisition conditions they had deduced. While all eyes were focused and hunter-related communities including the Veritas board were buzzing.
Yeoun Guild was conquering floor 54. It was also the last debt of gratitude for Magnetic Lee Doun, who had now firmly established himself as a core member who absolutely could not be missing from the guild.
The absence of one year had been painfully significant, and without his colleagues’ help, he wouldn’t have even thought of standing in this position. Doun’s eyes watching ahead were filled only with seriousness.
All the magical beasts that appeared in the early stages were turned into corpses. However, magic stone collection naturally took a backseat. This was because they had obtained the world’s first movement skill through repeated record-breaking.
Moreover, they had also finished announcing that the movement skill acquisition was true. The tedious time of retracing their path for collection after conquest was over could be dramatically shortened using the skill.
There was no reason to unnecessarily drag out conquest time by insisting on collecting magic stones during conquest. Therefore, Kim Minhyeok and Dong Jiwon, who were in charge of collection, were tactfully participating in combat. Though it was only at the level of assisting supporters.
“Let’s get ready. We’ve reached the mid-boss area.”
Samin’s gaze turned toward a bizarrely shaped tree. It was the area where the floor 54 mid-boss resided.
Receiving Samin’s signal through eye contact, Jang Hyeonseong pulled his bowstring taut. Where there should have been an arrow, a cluster of light was rippling. It was a signal flare to induce the appearance of the mid-boss vulnerable to light.
Jang Hyeonseong transformed formless mana into light to use as arrows. Without precise mana control ability backing it up, the arrow would lose its form and collapse.
Holding his breath momentarily, he aimed his bow toward the bright red tree divided into several branches. He gauged the distance to the target and condensed his mana further. Then he released the bowstring without hesitation.
Pyung―!
Sparkling mana crystals fell where the light arrow had passed in its trajectory. However, the form of light flying toward its target did not blur.
When the light that reached the top of the giant tree with an eerie red glow exploded with brilliant radiance in mid-air.
[Alert: Floor 54 mid-boss ‘Guardian Spirit of the Hidden Blood Tree’ has detected the presence of intruders.]
[Alert: Potion effects are temporarily halved.]
A notification window appeared. The branches of the giant tree standing in a place without a breath of wind shook violently. It looked like writhing in pain.
Kiiiii― Kik― Kigik!
Every time the lush leaves hanging from the crimson branches brushed against each other, they made a bizarre sound that made hair stand on end.
‘It sounds just like animal cries…’
Doun’s neat eyebrows twitched. However, there was no time to contemplate by giving meaning to each of these things.
“5 seconds left for casting!”
From the moment Jang Hyeonseong shot the signal flare, Do Hyeonwoo had been casting magic. At the shout announcing the remaining time, Park Sangyeon positioned himself at the front of the group as if he had been waiting. His body, wrapped in protective buffs, glowed softly before returning to its original color.
Park Sangyeon at the front deliberately stared intently at Doun. As if telling him not to forget his existence. Doun, who made eye contact with him, had a complex expression.
Thud!
The end of the large shield Park Sangyeon quickly summoned was embedded in the ground. And an opaque barrier deployed to a size that fully encompassed the group.
‘…It’s coming.’
Doun glanced upward. Small meteorite fragments wrapped in water vapor and sparks were rapidly falling toward the tree.
Soon, with a deafening roar that made ears ring, everything before their eyes was dyed completely white. Hot heat that stung enough to burn pierced through the intangible barrier Park Sangyeon had deployed and scraped their cheeks.
While the group closed their eyes or braced themselves to endure the aftermath of the meteorite collision, Doun was preparing his next attack.
Park Sangyeon reduced the shock wave damage from the mid-boss’s appearance with his shield, and Do Hyeonwoo dropped a meteorite to destroy the giant tree that was the mid-boss’s hideout. Doun had to step forward before the mid-boss ‘Guardian Spirit of the Hidden Blood Tree,’ whose hideout had been damaged, could counterattack.
‘If we drag this out too long, the mid-boss will keep summoning magical beasts, so we need to kill it in the shortest time possible.’
An ominous-colored aura scattered through the swirling sand dust. A dark red pillar of light shot up from where the giant tree that had been completely shattered by the meteorite had stood.
[Alert: Floor 54 mid-boss ‘Guardian Spirit of the Hidden Blood Tree’ is greatly enraged.]
[Alert: Potion effects are temporarily greatly reduced.]
A notification that was unclear whether it was kindness or a threat flashed. Doun habitually assessed the mana accumulated in his body. He now knew there was no need to inefficiently split mana into several parts. He even knew there were as many as twelve colleagues who would back him up if he made a mistake.
Doun’s eyelids blinked rapidly once.
‘How much recoil would there be if Stigma casting fails? It seems possible, but would the mana recovery time become too long?’
His two eyes shining bright blue judged the life of the magical beast he was seeing for the first time in an instant. He was already considering the mid-boss’s death as natural and only calculating efficiency.
‘If mana potion side effects kick in, it’ll only hold me back. Flash is better. Increase mana output a bit more…’
He was only thinking about easily killing the magical beast that was fearlessly raising mana to prepare large-scale magical beast summoning right before his eyes.
‘It’s the magic circle I confirmed in the video. Casting already? I need to move now.’
His tightly running brain reached a conclusion in an instant. His eyes blinked once more, and Doun immediately leaped out of the shield. The group without thought acceleration were still inside the shield, enduring the shock wave and preparing to enter combat.
Doun often got the impression of watching a very slowly played video when looking at other people’s movements. It was a disadvantage of the thought acceleration skill.
Kieeeek―! Kek!
As he left the area with the cognitive reduction buff, the form of the mid-boss preparing summoning magic flew toward him like lightning. The space around the spirit cutting through space at high speed seemed to ripple for a moment.
With a deafening explosion that seemed to tear his ears, Doun’s bangs fluttered frantically. Without panicking, he immediately swung the staff in his hand widely.
Zzeerong―!
His ears rang from the sound like metal colliding with metal. Doun, who had forcefully pushed the magical beast back, frowned.
“Ugh…!”
The shock delivered to the arm holding the staff that struck the magical beast was considerable. But it was more urgent to gain distance and buy time to cast skills. The skills he was about to cast didn’t have long enough range to use comfortably from inside the shield.
Doun gritted his teeth and endured the pain while immediately raising his mana. A skill instantly surged from the tip of the staff held at an angle.
-Silence (A)
Temporarily restrains the opponent’s skill casting. If a skill of higher grade than this skill is cast, the effect is halved.
If the mid-boss succeeded in large-scale magical beast summoning here, it would become a chaotic battle. The summoning skill had to be blocked first. Even if that magical beast cast an S-grade skill, he could at least make it stop casting temporarily. Blue light rippled and wrapped around the magical beast’s body, absorbing the surrounding noise.
The eerie howling that made spines tingle, the tearing sound from the gale, even the small cloth sounds from combat uniforms rubbing against each other.
When the magical beast with blocked mana flow poured out waves instead of screams, Doun was certain.
‘There’s enough time.’
Without hesitation, he summoned another beam of light.
While Jang Hyeonseong created light from mana to use as signal flares that exploded like fireworks, or Hong Chan often used it to create light orbs to brighten vision, Lee Doun used all light solely for attacks.
Light poured from the tip of Doun’s staff decoration, sharpened like a blade.
Among hunters who had acquired the skill called ‘Flash,’ Doun possessed an unmatched level of mastery. Having to conquer alone with a conquest team that would quickly fall into disarray if he didn’t quickly cut off vital points by targeting only weak spots, and then having to extract magic stones from corpses after conquest was over, he naturally had no choice but to become this way.
As much time had accumulated that he once thought was contribution to the guild while others considered it clear exploitation, the precision of the skills Doun operated was unparalleled.
The extremely compressed light looked like a crack in space at first glance. For an attack method that took lives, its appearance flowing through the air was too beautiful.
The brilliantly flashing light penetrated deep into hard skin, cutting through bone and muscle without dulling. Following attacks trailed like escorts behind the light strand that scattered red light, soaked with sticky blood.
Ice spears with a chill that seemed to freeze flesh just by grazing, light arrows that densely covered the sky, and even black mist wrapping around the magical beast’s torso as if to prevent regeneration.
If another hunter had been in Doun’s position, it would have been bombardment at a level where they’d have to worry about their own life first. However, Doun felt his clear colleagues firmly supporting his back and unhesitatingly aimed for the magical beast’s vital points.
Tsgaaaaaak!
The magical beast’s blood that shot up to the sky fell down to the ground like rain.
Thud.
The grotesque form finally crashed to the ground. It was a death showing no signs of any counterattack or regeneration.
Confirming the magical beast’s death, Doun smiled with relief. The exhilaration of taking another step toward higher places with his colleagues today wrapped around his body. His two eyes, finished using skills, still shone piercingly blue.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
