Chapter 128 - Dungeon Closer (3)

Only a handful of souls had left the corpses. The several thousand corpses reacted to Woojin’s magic, and every ounce of magic within the corpses were squeezed out.

Kwahhhhhng!

Accompanying the sound of the explosion, which was ear splitting, Dread was vaporized. This allowed Woojin to gain a good chunk of EXP.

He only needed to level up four more times to reach level 80. The incredible explosion happened nearby, but the party was unharmed.

The deafening sound made their ears ring, but if one considered the size of the explosion, they had gotten of with minimal damage.

Zeeeeeeng.

A semi-transparent barrier had enveloped the party. It blocked the heat, sound and debris from the explosion. It blocked everything.

Blanka had his two hands raised as if he was holding up the sky. Then Blanka threw up some blood.

“Kool-rook.”

He had overextended himself in his use of magic, so he tried to calm his twisted insides. He looked at Woojin with resentment in his eyes.

“Couldn’t you have warned us what would happen?”

He had been nervous at the appearance of Dread, so he had prepared his barrier. If he hadn’t, they would have all been swept up into the explosion. However, Woojin just shrugged his shoulders.

“You didn’t have to take action.”

“.......”

Spirit Armor.

The Spirit Armor always hovered around Woojin. If there were any hint of danger, his barrier would form. He had risen to a level where he could block most explosions.

Of course, the party members near him would also be protected. Woojin didn’t need anyone else to block for him.

Woojin had said Blanka’s actions were unnecessary, so he felt aggrieved.

Instead of being thankful, he....

“Uh-whew. You threw up all the delicious things you ate.”

“Tsk tsk. I told you to just watch.”

Hong-sungoo and Baek-jungdoh scolded him, so Blanka felt like crying.

He had forgotten something. Everyone here were Rank A Roused.

They were Roused, who were arguably one of the best in the world. They all had the ability to protect their own lives, so he had had overstepped himself by stepping forward.

‘Isn’t it reasonable for me to step forward?!’

He wanted to yell those words, but he didn’t have the energy to do so. His head was spinning. He was swaying unsteadily on his feet when an unknown energy suddenly entered his body.

“Hoo-ooh.”

His mind relaxed a little bit. He realized Woojin had used an unknown ability to bolster his energy.

‘His abilities are endless...’

He had Summoning skills, battle capabilities, magic and now healing.... He wondered how broad the spectrum of Woojin’s skills was... He couldn’t even guess at how many abilities Woojin possessed.

“I’m all right now. I can heal myself now.”

Blanka indicated his thanks with his eyes, then he started to activate the magical energy that had just been stabilized. He assessed his own body.

“Self Healing is pretty rare.”

Woojin looked at him in fascination.

This man was a Buff Type Roused, yet he was also a Healing Mage. It seemed his ability didn’t rely on Holy powers, so he was an oddity.

“What’s your name again?”

“It’s Blanka.”

“You are fluent in Korean... Did you say you are from the Vishnu Guild? How much do you receive from them?”

“What?”

“Come to Alandal.”

“.......”

Blanka reigned in the energy that was trying to churn once again, and he looked at Woojin.

What was his game? He couldn’t read anything from Woojin’s eyes, yet it didn’t seem like he was joking.

‘What is this?’

Even if this was a Dungeon Raid team that didn’t feel any sense of crisis, how could he try to scout someone in such a situation? However, Blanka had no thoughts on changing his guild affiliation.

“I’m thankful for you words, but the guild master is my close friend. I’ll bury my bones with the Vishnu guild.”

“Is that so? How unfortunate.”

Woojin cleared his palate. When Blanka showed loyalty towards his guild, Woojin coveted him even more. Still, he didn’t push the subject any further.

“That’s too bad. Let’s go conclude this.”

Woojin put the table and chairs into his Inventory, then he started to move. The white beach was nowhere to be seen. Instead, the aftermath of the explosion left behind a huge lake.

The corpses and Bloodstones were all engulfed in the explosion, but he wasn’t sorry for his actions.

In the middle of the lake, there was a purple gem. It was where Dread had died.

Woojin stepped onto the water.

He used a Warrior Class skill that lightened one’s body. His level was still too low to be able to walk across the sky, but he could easily walk across water.

Splosh.

His feet touched the water, but the water didn’t reach above his ankles. Woojin walked across the water matter of factly, and he grabbed the gem.

Woojin grinned.

He finally acquired one. He could finally acquire a Dungeon that’ll lead to Alphen.

Woojin put away the purple gem, then he walked across the sea towards Dread’s underground palace. He looked below, and he could see the green light of the Return Stone. He retracted the energy that was maintaining the Air Walk.

At the same time, he activated a skill that increased his mass. He quickly sank to the bottom.

There were still several sea monsters alive, but he was able to ignore them easily. He took the Return Stone, and he shot out of the water.

Poo-hah.

He had invested all his Stats into Intellect and Magic, so his Energy was comparably weak. His previous actions had consumed all of his Energy. He couldn’t reactivate the skill Air Walk and walk across the water.

“Shing Shing.”

Heeeeeng.

Woojin rode the summoned Shing Shing towards his party.

“Let’s go.”

“Ehng? You aren’t going to search for the treasures?”

This was the first Clear of this Dungeon, so there were a lot of Artifacts hidden here. Woojin shrugged his shoulder.

“I can’t stay underwater for a long time.”

The influence of the Warrior Class allowed him to boast an incredible lung capacity compared to a normal person, but he couldn’t stay past the 10 minute mark underwater.

The sea was too large to use the Search Magic to find the location of the Artifacts.

“I have a Buff that allows one to travel underwater without breathing.”

“Huh?”

At Blanka’s words, everyone’s attention was focused on him. It was especially true for Woojin. There was a strange sparkle in his eyes.

‘Isn’t he quite useful?’

If one only considered the Buff skills, Woojin had found someone in India, whose versatility was only second to him.

When they exited the Dungeon after safely clearing the Dungeon, a large group of people greeted the party. There were reporters from the Indian press, high ranking government employees, local bigwigs, people from the Vishnu guild, onlookers....

Normally, Woojin would have summoned his Phantom Steed to escape the crowd. He would have immediately disappeared towards the airport, but Woojin did something out of character. He got on the car that had been prepared for him.

The four people, who cleared the Dungeon, and the Vishnu guild’s guild master Kassim got into the waiting limousine.

[Hahaha. I have to thank you for easily clearing the Dungeon that was impossible for us to handle.]

“He is thanking you for clearing the Dungeon.”

Kassim couldn’t speak English, so he spoke in Hindi. Blanka translated his words into Korean.

“Mmmm. Hindi?”

“Yes.”

It took only a brief time to search through his Achievement Store. He purchased the drug for learning Hindi, then he drank it. Woojin pulled a medicine bottle from mid-air, and he started to drink the content. Kassim looked on in confusion.

[Kassim? Vinshnu’s Guild Master?]

[Oh! My god. When did you learn to speak Hindi?]

[I just learned it.]

[......?]

Kassim tilted his head in confusion, and his expression was full of misgivings. However, Woojin didn’t feel the need to dispel the man’s doubt.

He was short on time, yet he was on a slow limousine that was pushing its way through the crowd. There were several dozen police escorting them as they headed to the airport. He had gotten into the car for only one reason.

[I have a deal I want to present to the Vishnu guild. ]

[What kind of a deal?]

Alandal was called the best guild in the world, because of a single Roused. This was an offer being made by Alandal. Kassim’s eyes twinkled when the conversation turned towards guild business.

[I want you to give me Blanka.]

[Oh. He is my blood brother.]

Blanka nodded his head at Kassim’s disapproval. On the other hand, he felt good, since this man clearly thought very highly of him. The world’s greatest Roused was coveting him. He felt a sense of thrill.

[How much do you want?]

[I can’t sell my brother for money....]

[I’ll give you 100% rights to run this Dungeon.]

[.......]

Kassim looked at him in surprise.

If one went by the measured Energy, this Dungeon might be over 6 stars.

He couldn’t help, but be surprised when he was given all the rights to the Dungeon.

Kassim thought about the massive profit. Then he started to weigh it against the worth of his blood brother, who was a Rank A Roused.....

[H...hyung-nim!]

Blanka was flustered as he spoke. Kassim felt guilty, so he was about to turn down the offer.

[When another Dungeon like this forms in the future, I’ll clear it and I’ll give you all the rights to that one too.]

[Koo...koo-hmmmm.]

These were very risky Dungeons that couldn’t be cleared by the current Roused. The profit would be massive if he could clear these Dungeons. He would earn the rights to two Dungeons over 6 stars for the price of a single Rank A Roused.....

[I’ll add one more.]

[I’ll accept the offer.]

Blanka looked at Kassim with a ridiculous expression.

[H...hyung-nim.]

Kassim patted Blanka’s shoulder.

[Try to put what happened five years ago out of your mind. Let us settle all the debt within our hearts.]

When the Dungeon Shock swept across India five years ago, Blanka had saved Kassim’s life. The light within Blanka’s eyes shook.

[Didn’t I save you?]

Blanka had save Kassim from danger. As thanks, Kassim had befriended him, and they had become blood brothers. Kassim coughed in embarrassment.

[How can I keep you to myself in the guise of repaying my debt? Shouldn’t I want you to play in bigger waters? ]

[Huh....]

Woojin smirked as he listened in on their conversation.

[You two settle everything.]

He grabbed Blanka’s shoulder.

“Welcome to Alandal.”

“.......”

“Wow. Mr. Blanka agreed to come to our side?”

The conversation had been held in Hindi, so Sunggoo had no idea what had transpired. He rejoiced as he looked at Blanka. Blanka would be able to support them with his Buff magic. He had a variety of Buff magic, and they all had good effect.

It was amazing enough maximize every power by half.

If he joined Alandal, he wouldn’t be of much help to Woojin. However, he would be of great help to the other Roused like Sunggoo and Haesol.

“...it feels like I’ve been sold.”

Blanka let out a resigned sigh, and Sunggoo laughed.

“Heh heh. Who cares if you were sold? I was caught as a collateral, yet look at how I turned out.”

“......?”

“How great is it that you didn’t join us after you died? Ooh-heh-heh.”

“......!”

Blanka’s pupil dilated, and he looked at Kassim with desperate eyes. Kassim avoided his gaze.

Woojin’s actions generated news everyday.

Each country’s most prominent press followed Woojin. They shared every movement made by Woojin. The world’s interest was focused solely on Woojin.

- Continuous Clear of Dungeons about to Break!

- Break was about to occur in one hour. Paris is saved.

- World Tour. He is saving Earth.

- Earth’s final defense, Dungeon Closer Kahng-woojin!

While Kahng-woojin was clearing the Dungeons, there was someone, who was busily working every minute and every second of the day. It was Alandal’s vice president... No, Jung-minchan had become the prime minister now.

- Japan wants to establish national friendship.

- Interview by Dubai’s Prince Mahad: Alandal is our brother country.

- US & China establishes diplomatic relationship with Alandal. Alandal consolidated its position as an allied country.

- Delhi’s hero, Alandal.

- France has dispatched an envoy to Alandal. Requesting help from Korea.

.......

Kahng-woojin and Alandal.

He had become a worldwide sensation when he swept through the Middle East. However, it felt as if his coverage had reached its zenith.

It was especially true for the war correspondents, who were rescued by Woojin in the Middle East. With those reporters as the core, there was a strong presence in the media that personified Woojin as a hero. There were even some grass root movement to deify him.

The world’s attention was focused on Alandal, and the closest nation to Alandal was Korea.

Korea was shaking at its foundation.

Cheongwadae President’s Room.

“Ha-ah. Oh well.”

President Kim-byungmahn let out a deep sigh.

“It won’t matter if we enter into the treaty or not.”

“Yes. We have no options now.”

The prime minister shook his head as he faced the President.

The entire world had already acknowledged Alandal as a country. The US especially tried to characterize Alandal as their closest friend and ally. The US President revealed this fact in several official meetings.

The US, Japan and every country in the world was fighting to be the next one to accept Alandal as a nation.

What could Korea do now?

“How’s the public opinion?”

“They see it as a done deal.”

“.......”

It didn’t matter if they allowed it or not. Alandal had already become an independent nation. If the citizens of Korea already consider it to be a done deal....

There was no way they could stop it.

“Start the national referendum.”

“Understood.”

Alandal had gotten too big for Korea to sit on.

If they couldn’t keep Alandal under their thumb, then they would have to keep Alandal as close as possible even if it was as a friend.