Emperor of Solo Play

Chapter 107 - Catacombs (2)

The familiars summoned by the Necromancers could be developed in such a way that they gained combat AI through battles.

This was especially effective if the familiars fought a large number of similar type monsters.  Moreover, it would be best if one minimized the losses taken by the familiars in battle.  As the familiar gains numerous victories against the monsters, their combat AI increases to an altogether different level.

This was why numerous Warlord Users mothballed their current character after seeing the Hahoe Mask's Skeletons.  They had been tempted into growing a Necromancer.

The Necromancer didn't even need to command the familiars.

When a monster appeared in the big tunnel, the Skeleton Knight was the first one to face the enemy.  

While the Skeleton Knight was occupying the monster, Hyrkan threw one or two Skeleton Fragments to the other side of the Skeleton Knight and the monster.  That was all he had to to do. This simple action allowed him to form a formation where his Skeleton underlings attacked from the front and the back.

Since the Skeletons were fighting one type of monster here, they had become specialist after fighting the same monsters several hundred times.  The Skeleton Warriors and Skeleton Knight held the numerical advantage, and they were placed in advantageous positions by Hyrkan.  The outcome of the battles were basically settled.

The one-sided battle continued to happen.  It was so one-sided that Hyrkan didn't have the chance to do anything! It was so bad that he could take his eyes off the battle.  He watched some unknown guild's Raid video.

In many ways, the Catacombs Dungeon was too ideal for Hyrkan.

“Jeez!  Really!”

It would have been perfect except for one thing.

“Why did another dead-end appear here!  Why? What's the reason? I just want to go forward!”

The Catacombs was a maze Dungeon.

“Ooh-ahhh. Really!”

Hyrkan was pretty poor at finding the right route in the maze type Dungeon.

If it wasn't for this fact, the exploration of the Catacomb would have been like a vacation instead of work.

This one factor drove Hyrkan nuts.

“What are you looking at? Shut your mouth!”

In the end, Hyrkan became hysterical towards the Skeleton Warrior, who was staring at him with its mouth open.

At that moment, the light within the Skeleton Warrior's eyes changed.  The two globes within the socket of the skull started to burn.

Was the Skeleton Warrior resentful at being exploited? Was it angry towards its vicious master, who beat on it whenever he had a free time?  Did the Skeleton finally snap?

Of course, that wasn't the case.

After the light within its eyes changed, the Skeleton Warrior immediately turned around.  It looked towards its back. The light above the Skeleton Warrior's head illuminated the surrounding, and a Chimera Skeleton came into its view.

The Skeleton Warrior got ready to charge into battle.

However, Hyrkan moved before the Skeleton Warrior could move.  Hyrkan raised Ivan's Sword, and he charged in towards the Chimera Skeleton before his Skeleton Warrior could get there.  The battle started immediately.

The sword was hovering around the Chimera Skeleton like a satellite, and his constant sword swings crushed the Chimera Skeleton's armor.  He broke its bones, and when a thick piece of bone was cut away, he tossed it far into the distance.  The sight made one feel sorry for the Chimera Skeleton.  The battle was that one-sided.

The battle reached its peak when Hyrkan was successful in stealing the Chimera Skeleton's skull.  When he stole the skull, he let his Skeleton Warrior finish the battle, and he started to have fun by hitting the skull as if it was a bongo drum.

It had been a week since he had entered the Catacombs.  

This was a solution he had found, which relieved his hysteria.

[Those who Find the Wall]

- Stamina +2

Recently he had gained a new Title.  Ahn-jaehyun tightly closed his eyes when he saw it.

‘Shit.  I received this one again.’

Those who Find the Wall.

In a maze type Dungeon, one acquired this title when one encounters a certain number of dead-ends.

The Title Option wasn't that great. These were Titles one could only gain when one finds a deadend.  Users with time on their hands intentionally searched out deadends to gain these Titles.

On the other hand, when one received this title unintentionally, it caused anger instead of happiness.

‘The Quest isn't progressing at all.’

This was the reason why Anh-jaehyun was mad.

In truth, the Catacombs Dungeon was Ahn-jaehyun's most optimal hunting ground.  The EXP given was quite high, so the level up pace was very good.  Moreover, the hunt wasn't difficult, so he barely used any consumable Items.

However, the Quest progress was basically stalled compared to the hunting speed.

The Catacomb Dungeon's maze was bigger than expected, and it was complicated.  Moreover, the maze was pitch black, so it increased the difficulty of clearing the maze.  On top of all of that, he had no clue on how to solve mazes.  From Ahn-jaehyun's perspective, the maze was driving him crazy.

‘I'm sure Users, who are good at this kind of stuff, would have solved this immediately.  Why is my luck so poor?’

Of course, luck was a big factor in all of this.  If he had luck on his side, he would be able to get past this place in a single breath.

This fact was evident by seeing the map of the Catacomb Dungeon that was being updated by Ahn-jaehyun. If a User was lucky, the maze map would look simple and fragmented.

However, Ahn-jaehyun's map was too detailed.  He had run into too many walls, and he had marked all the dead-ends he had encountered.  He had so many route marked that he could sell it later as a comprehensive map.

However, it just made Ahn-jaehyun's insides burn.

‘This game is a real mother fucker.’

In the end, Ahn-jaehyun had to take an emergency measure to help his sour stomach.  He didn't take a digestive medicine.  He used a more sure-fire method. He checked the current summary of his bank account.

A happy smile formed around Ahn-jaehyun's lips when he saw the balance.

‘My stomach feels full from just looking at this.’

With the help of his successful Waltz video, he was getting a constant stream of ad money and donations. He even received support fund from his recently signed sponsor. The amount was quite large.

If he wanted to, he could immediately leave his one room behind. He could probably find a 20-30 pyeong apartment near the metropolitan area.  He would be able to purchase a small or medium sized apartment. He would also be able to buy a car with a lump sum.

However, Ahn-jaehyun's standards differed from others.

‘If I save a little bit more, I can purchase a level 130 Unique defensive Set.  Shall I buy it for my Skeleton Knight?  No, it might be better to equip all my Skeleton Magicians with Unique Rank weapons. Should I purchase a Skill book?  If the Skeleton Magicians can use the Dark Flame skill....  However, a single Skill book is worth 10,000 gold, and it is rarely put up on the market.  Maybe it would be better if I just abandon that idea?’

Ahn-jaehyun's thought about his happy  troubles made him thirsty, so he opened his fridge.  In a surprise, he decided to take out the milk carton.  Ahn-jaehyun didn't even bother to pour the milk into a cup.  He just drank it straight out of the carton.

The milk was more expensive than Ramen, but Ahn-jaehyun downed the whole thing.  He smiled with a milk mustache on his face.

‘This makes me feel like I’ve been a bit successful.’

The milk helped erase the sensation of his insides burning.  It disappeared like melting snow.

Ahn-jaehyun once again focused on the map on the Tablet PC.  He calmly thought it over as he looked at the map.

'I've pretty much discovered every route.  I just have to be patient.  It'll be done soon.  Yes, there is no reason why I have to get discouraged.  You weren't wrong, Ahn-jaehyun.’

After regaining his calm, the light within Ahn-jaehyun's eyes became cold.

Hyrkan noticed the definite change.  He caught sight of a Chimera Skeleton wearing a different armor.  It was very similar to the ones he had seen up until now, but Hyrkan didn't miss the clear difference.

‘I finally get to see it.’

Hyrkan had searched for a difference, and he had found a faint emblem imprinted on the armor.

It was circular emblem, where three snakes were biting each other's tails!

‘The three snakes are Prince Dean's Crest.  I finally get to see it.’

In one viewed the world of Warlord, there was a faction, who had the most territory and the strongest forces.   In the era of the monsters, the Hiban kingdom was at the frontline of fighting the monsters.  When the third prince was born, castle of Bayan was given to the prince.

Before he was born, the great Archmage Bokan gave the prince a name. The name implied the prince would drive away the nightmare descending on the world with martyrs on his side. The name he had given was Dean.  

Moreover, as the father and king ruling over the Hiban kingdom, the prince was given the title of Un Northland.  It meant he was the protector of the Northern lands.

Bayan Dean Un Northland.

Then the crest with the three snakes was bestowed on him.  The three snakes was named Martial Arts, Wisdom and Destiny.  He was symblolized as being the trigon prince.

‘I've finally arrived at the edge.’

When the power of Corruption left over by the Fallen Kingdom was found, Prince Dean sought to steal the throne with his new found power.  He had conducted numerous evil deeds as he dreamed about creating his own era.  He was the Immoral Prince.

The tracks of Prince Dean had finally appeared.

It meant Hyrkan was on the right path.  It was evidence that he was carrying out the Immoral Prince episode correctly.

Of course, Hyrkan didn't care about the epic storyline related to Prince Dean.

The important thing right now was that he had discovered a Chimera Skeleton wearing an armor engraved with Prince Dean's crest.  Basically, he had found the breadcrumbs left behind by Hansel and Gretel.

‘I can finally get out of the Catacombs now.’

If he followed the breadcrumbs, he'll find the witch's house, then the delicious cookies making up the house will show itself.

Hyrkan raised his head as he looked into the darkness.

Che-sulyun was checking out someone's youtube page through her smartphone.  A slight wrinkle formed on her cold face.  The wrinkle had formed near her bewitching eyes.

‘Why isn’t he uploading any videos of it?  I purposefully special ordered it from a designer.’

It was akin to gifting your significant other with a handmade scarf. This was like the boyfriend coming to the next date without the scarf around his neck.  This was how she felt.

Of course, she had never felt this kinds of feelings before, so she couldn't identify what was fouling her mood like this.  The fact that she couldn't identify this feeling meant it kept worsening her mood.

At that moment, the smart phone's screen suddenly changed.  It was an incoming phone call. The call was coming from the Stormhunters guild.  It was Hatch.  It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that he received the most abuse from Che-sulyun in the Stormhunters guild.

- Master.

“What is it?”

- Uh…….

It was the effect of him being constantly berated by her.  Hatch felt nervous when he heard Che-sulyun's voice. He knew he was sticking his hand into boiling oil.

Unfortunately, he had to continue on with his conversation.

- There is someone, who wants to speak directly to master.

“Is he someone important?”

- At the very least, he is more famous than me.  He also possesses very high level, and he holds a high position.  His rank is a bit too ambiguous to describe it.

The light in Che-sulyun's eyes changed when she heard the expression he used.  There was only one organization within Warlord where that particular turn of phrase was used to describe them.

“Are you talking about a head of the Hydra guild?”

- Yes.

Hydra guild.

The nine heads possessed ranks that differentiated them, but at the same time, they were all heads.  They were treated as equals.  The organization didn't have the structure of boss, officers and underling. This was why their ranks were described as being a bit ambiguous.

Of course, this wasn't the immediate point she wanted to go over.

“Just say he is from the Hyrdra guild.  Do you really have to speak in such a roundabout way?”

- The person insisted I describe it like that.

“Is he next to you?”

- Yes.

“Did you secretly make some kind of deal with a head of the Hydra guild?”

- No way! I am contracted to be within the Stormhunters until 2050.  I would never dare to do such an act. The other side approached me first.  He wants to have a conversation about a Quest, and he asked to speak to someone of similar rank as him.

The heads of the Hydra guild was similar in rank as the Stormhunter's guild master.  Che-sulyun was the only  one, who fit the description.

This was the reason why Hatch had to call her.

The problem was the fact that Che-sulyun wasn't in a good mood.

Che-sulyun immediately answered him.

“I bet he is trying sound out the relationship between our guilds.  If he wants a conversation, then tell him to go through the official channel.  The one, who wants something, should be the one crawling on the floor.”

- What?

Before Hatch could reply, the call ended.

The screen immediately changed to the Youtube page she had been viewing.  However, there was a slight change on the screen.

“Huh?”

He had uploaded a new video.  The light within Che-sulyun's eyes changed as she played the new video.

In the video, a User wearing a Red Skeleton set appeared. A slight smile formed on Che-sulyun's lips when she saw the figure.  When the video ended, she immediately called Hatch's phone.

- Ah, master! He says this business is really important.  I'm sure this is a negotiation regarding the Main Scenario Quest....

“I'll take the call now, so make room for him.”

- What?

“Didn't you say he is next to you? Give him the phone.”

After several seconds, she heard someone else's voice.

- I'm the 5th head.  We've acquired a crucial clue regarding the Main Scenario Quest.  We want to carry out the Quest with your guild.