Chapter 86: Chapter 86

[$!@! Elixir]

Even though the description was completely garbled and he couldn’t understand it, Jeong-Hoon knew the effect of this elixir.

‘It’s for leveling up.’

What Jeong-Hoon needed right now was to level up.

To leave the Autobahn territory, he had to reach level 151, and since leveling up after level 100 was so difficult, it would take a lot of time to level up just by hunting.

But thanks to this bug city, he had reached level 138, and if he consumed this elixir, he would be able to surpass 150.

‘Let’s drink it.’

He opened the tightly sealed lid.

Purple smoke billowed out.

‘I thought I might die if I drank this.’

He had heard that Maximus had also agonized over drinking it at the time.

The description was broken, it looked strange, and it even smelled awful.

If his friend hadn’t reassured him that it was an opportunity, he wouldn’t have swallowed it.

‘Now, let’s see how much I level up.’

Jeong-Hoon started gulping down the liquid.

He almost gagged, but he managed to hold it back and drank it all.

‘I’ve never been told that I have a weak stomach.’

It tasted so bad that it made him nauseous instantly.

[Level Up!]

[All stats have increased by +1.]

[Bonus stat +1 has been granted.]

Messages about leveling up started popping up rapidly.

One. Two. Three….

‘Crazy.’

A satisfied smile appeared on Jeong-Hoon’s lips.

He had thought of just surpassing 151, but he had reached level 156, far exceeding that.

[Detailed Stats]

– Strength: 227(+22) -> 249

– Agility: 221(+24) -> 245

– Vitality: 223(+24) -> 247

– Defense: 214(+21) -> 235

– Wisdom: 204(+20) -> 224

– Mana: 283(+28) -> 311

– Divine Power: 285(+28) -> 313

– Mental Strength: 199(+22) -> 221n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Upon reaching level 156, his detailed stats also increased significantly.

His mana and divine power increased slightly with each level up, surpassing 300.

‘Not bad.’

It was still far behind the rankers, but this gap would gradually close over time.

‘So where should I invest?’

He had 52 bonus stats.

‘It would be good to increase mana and divine power.’

Mana and divine power were energy sources.

If he lacked energy, he couldn’t use skills, and he couldn’t even heal his wounds.

Jeong-Hoon adjusted his mana and divine power to 330.

He had 16 stats remaining.

He invested the remaining 16 points, 8 each into Strength and Agility.

“Done.”

Mana and Divine Power at 330 at level 150.

He had achieved at level 156 what others usually achieved at levels 220-240.

And with the rest of his stats already exceeding 200… he was a monster compared to others at the same level.

“The only thing left is Mukho.”

Jeong-Hoon looked at the workshop.

That Mukho guy.

He hoped he was behaving himself.

[Hey? Hey? Get your hands off me?!]

“Oh my… A soul stone embedded in this grade of equipment…”

[I said get your hands off! Do you want to go to heaven?]

“I’m glad you’re still alive… I never thought I’d see such a rare piece of armor in my lifetime.”

Tears welled up in Irno’s eyes.

[…Hey, don’t cry. It makes me feel like trash.]

Mukho finally shut his mouth.

“Then let’s begin.”

Irno wiped his tears and picked up the magic stone.

* * *

Since he had some time left, Jeong-Hoon logged out for a while.

Whoosh-

Jeong-Hoon came out of the capsule.

He went to his bedroom and saw that his mother’s capsule was open.

‘Is she resting?’

Just then, his mother came out of the bathroom.

“Son, are you done with the game?”

“Yes. How about you, Mom?”

“I’m going to stop here for today too.”

His mother was diligently leveling up.

She said she was engrossed in shooting, but it was physically tiring to play all day, so rest was essential.

“Then would you like to have a meal together? I have something to tell you.”

“That sounds good.”

Jeong-Hoon went to a nearby restaurant with his mother.

The menu was stir-fried octopus.

The spicy food seemed to relieve his fatigue.

But Jeong-Hoon’s body suddenly froze while he was eating.

“What did you just say?”

“Huh? I said it’s a shame I couldn’t meet Min-Ji.”

“No, before that.”

“It seems there are missing users in the guild. They haven’t logged out, but their location can’t be traced.”

“…Is that so?”

Jeong-Hoon narrowed his eyes.

The fact that they had gone missing bothered him.

The reason Ho-Yeong collapsed was because the guild leader and executives went missing.

And it was probably around this time.

‘Did a clue appear?’

Ho-Yeong was an indispensable shield for Jeong-Hoon at this point in time.

Because if he could focus on growth and not worry about his mother’s growth, it would be the best of both worlds.

“Are you worried?”

His mother’s words snapped him out of his thoughts.

Jeong-Hoon nodded with an embarrassed look.

“Ah, a little.”

“It’ll be fine. I heard Min-Ji is a ranker, right?”

“Yes.”

“If a ranker is involved, it’ll be resolved quickly.”

It seemed his mother had also realized the status of rankers while playing the game.

“I guess so.”

Jeong-Hoon agreed with his mother’s words.

But his thoughts were different.

‘I should look into it.’

* * *

Jeong-Hoon logged back in after 8 hours.

“Oh! You came just in time. It’s just been finished!”

Irno had completed the enchantment of Mukho right on time.

“Really? That was faster than I thought.”

It was a bit unexpected.

There was no way that Mukho would have been quiet during the enchanting process.

He had thought that Irno would have been bothered by the noise and the work would have been delayed.

“I promised to finish it within 8 hours.”

Irno grinned.

An exclamation mark appeared above his head.

[Quest completed.]

[Irno’s trust level has increased significantly.]

Jeong-Hoon completed the quest, and his trust level with Irno increased significantly.

“Thank you.”

===

[Mukho]

– Type: Armor

– Grade: Legendary

– Defense: ? (Adjusted according to the wearer’s level – 1.2x applied)

– Evasion: ? (Adjusted according to the wearer’s level – 1.2x applied)

– Physical Damage Reduction: 30%

– Magic Damage Reduction: 30%

– Remaining Durability: 100% (Durability recovers automatically.)

– Special Ability (1): X (Ability lost due to the aftermath of the seal)

– Special Ability (2): X (Ability lost due to the aftermath of the seal)

– Special Ability (3): X (Ability lost due to the aftermath of the seal)

– Special Ability (4): [Active: Vajra Body] Available

===

The stats had increased overall.

Defense and evasion were 1.2 times higher than the original values.

And physical and magic damage reduction had increased to 30%.

‘At this rate, it’s incomparable to other Legendary items of the same grade.’

The abilities that were still question marks could be restored later, and the newly added special ability was amazing.

Jeong-Hoon’s lips curled up.

Originally, this special ability was supposed to be Maximus’s.

‘Vajra Body Magic Stone.’

That’s right.

This special magic stone was a magic stone that granted the special ability Vajra Body.

[Vajra Body]

– Type: Active

– Level: 1

– Grade: Legendary

– When the skill is used, defense and evasion are doubled.

– Cooldown: 20 minutes

Double defense and evasion.

Mukho’s defense and evasion would increase as Jeong-Hoon’s level increased.

Moreover, if he used Vajra Body while already having a 1.2x bonus, it would further double.

‘I don’t have to worry about defense anymore.’

Jeong-Hoon put on Mukho.

[…Wow, you’re finally back.]

Mukho’s annoyed voice rang out as if it had been waiting.

‘It couldn’t be helped. The work took 8 hours.’

[I was so bored I almost died.]

‘That’s strange.’

[What is?]

‘That means you were quiet, doesn’t it?’

[Ha… Let’s not talk about it.]

Mukho was embarrassed and didn’t say anything more.

“Oh, look at my memory. There’s a fragment of the magic stone left.”

Irno placed the fragment on the table.

The fragment was a piece left over after the enchantment.

Since he had imbued the refined power within the magic stone, it was a useless piece for Jeong-Hoon, but it would be different for Irno.

It was proof that he had handled a Special grade magic stone.

“I’ll just give you the fragment.”

Irno’s eyes widened at those words.

“Are you serious?!”

Jeong-Hoon nodded.

“Yes.”

“…Thank you so much! Thank you!”

Irno’s eyes welled up with tears, as if he was touched.

[That damn old man is crying again.]

Mukho reacted gruffly.

“It’s okay. You even enchanted it for free, so I’m just doing what’s right.”

“Why don’t you stay and have a meal with me?”

“Ah, I don’t think I can.”

All his plans in Autobahn were finished.

There were no more opportunities left to gain here.

His level had also reached 156, surpassing 151, so he had to move on to the next village quickly.

Irno nodded with a disappointed look.

“I understand. I can’t keep you if you’re busy.”

“I’ll come again next time.”

He was determined to entrust Irno with any future enchanting needs.

With his trust level greatly increased, Irno wouldn’t refuse.

“Haha… It’s been a long time since I retired as an enchanter, but you’re always welcome.”

“Yes.”

Irno and Jeong-Hoon smiled at each other.

At that moment, a whisper came from Yeo Min-Ji.

[Whisper/Minzi -> Hoon: Help! Lohais Territory Lv. 139 Fruhneum!]

Jeong-Hoon’s face slowly hardened as he checked the whisper.

‘This is it.’

* * *

Lohais Territory.

Lv. 139 Fruhneum.

Yeo Min-Ji had entered Fruhneum and defeated the boss monster in 30 minutes.

“Miss, I can’t see anything unusual here.”

However, there was no trace of the missing users.

“Is that so…?”

It was strange.

This was where the traces of the missing guild members ended.

“Hmm… Maybe they ran away?”

“From Ho-Yeong? And they haven’t even left the guild.”

“Ah, you’re right.”

The guild member nodded awkwardly.

“There must be a trace somewhere here.”

Her intuition told her so.

The guild members said that something had gone wrong while clearing the dungeon.

Yeo Min-Ji checked again to see if there was any place she had missed.

And then a bush caught her eye.

“Did you search there too?”

“Yes. There was nothing.”

“Really?”

She smelled something.

Yeo Min-Ji pushed through the bush and moved forward.

But there was nothing.

“Sigh, this isn’t it either.”

Yeo Min-Ji turned around after finishing the search.

That was when it happened.

[A trap has been triggered.]

A message popped up.

‘It’s a trap!’

Yeo Min-Ji hurriedly sent a whisper to the person she had whispered to recently.

But before she could finish typing, the scenery in front of her suddenly changed.

“Where am I…?”

She was standing in a small white room.

[You are trapped in the Dimensional Labyrinth.]

It seemed that the other guild members had also been caught in this trap.

Yeo Min-Ji hurriedly checked the whisper she had sent.

‘…I sent it to Jeong-Hoon.’

It was strange to suddenly ask for help, but she had written the village and dungeon, so he would surely understand.

Of course, she had to break free from this trap with her own power if possible.

“Miss!”

At that moment, the missing guild members were approaching.

“You were here.”

Yeo Min-Ji’s face brightened.

But their faces were pale.

“Miss… We can’t get out.”

“We keep going around in circles!”

“We can’t even log out!”

They can’t log out?

“Is that really true?”

“Yes!”

At their words, Yeo Min-Ji hurriedly tried to log out.

‘What the…’

She really couldn’t log out.