Chapter 7) Demon Slayer

Weed managed to restore the experience lost when he used Sculpture Resurrection. The demon soldiers had high levels so he gained a lot of experience after he dealt the last strike. It wasn’t to the extent that he gained 3 levels but his experience bar was quickly filling.

Ddiring!

A t.i.tle he got from fighting!

As Weed created sculptures and acc.u.mulated stats, he surpa.s.sed his limits and became a stronger warrior. He gained fame, stats and special skills. The Geomchis weren’t interested in production skills which was why they were so strong. However, it wasn’t easy to exceed their limits during battle and there were many cases where they died. Focusing on a safe hunt would prevent the development of his abilities.

‘This will be useful when using the Daemon Sword.’

Right now he was wearing the Red Star but the Daemon Sword was very useful in everyday hunting.

“Now there are 12 more fights….Montus will be waiting.”

“I see.”

Weed responded politely to Roderick.

His magic was full of endless surprises. The magician’s mana consumption was very serious. It was common sense that they would have to mediate for a short time to recover their power. Yet Roderick didn’t need to take such breaks.

“Fever, Blind, Lightning Circle!”

Despite the fact that he recklessly used 3 magic spells in a row and repeated it in battle, he never showed any signs of running out of mana. He only knew Roderick for a short amount of time but Weed boldly asked him a question.

“What is the secret behind your mana not running out?”

“Isn’t that too simple?”

“Huh?”

“It is what the world is made of. The world is filled with mana.”

Everything in Royal Road was composed of mana.

“That’s right.”

“My body can drag in mana from the world in order to have an infinite source of mana.”

“Oh, then it is possible to use magic even if the body doesn’t contain mana.”

“A situation like pulling in mana doesn’t occur that often. But I use advanced magic that consumes too much mana.”

Weed was completely envious of magicians.

‘How good would it be if I mastered magic instead of sculpting.’

It was inevitable that sculptors would be jealous of other professions. Roderick could pull a large amount of mana from his surroundings into his body. A break wasn’t necessary so he could be called the perfect battle magician.

Weed went to the place where Roderick devastated the demons with his magic and picked up the items.

“You seem to be lacking in power. Memorize the power of giants.”

“Thank you very much.”

Roderick chanted a spell that gave Weed, Bahamorg, the paladins and priests the power of the giants.

The magician also mastered secondary magic. The ratio of power that the lower levelled people in the group received was higher. The blessings that priests could overlap so it was very useful. Even if their power was stronger, the paladins were still suffering from the attacks from the demons.

“You couldn’t avoid that?”

“We’re too weak…”

“I’ll chant a spell for swiftness.”

“You don’t need to do something like that.”

“Too noisy.”

Roderick was an arrogant and stubborn old man. He took the lead in battle and the others had to follow his movements. But their trust in him grew the more Weed, Bahamorg and the paladins fought together. Roderick could only exist in this world for another 9 hours and 40 minutes.

‘The path to the destination is going smoothly.’

All the traps were dismantled as they moved along the shortest path. But Weed was seriously strained when 12 demon soldiers appeared. These were demons who hadn’t seen any humans so far.

The intermediate demon commander Bulko!

“Summon Fire Golem!”

Roderick called out his guardian the Fire Golem. No matter how strong the demon was, it couldn’t stand against the huge Fire Golem! Only a high ranking magician could summon golems. The Fire Golem, Bahamorg and Roderick struck at the enemies.

“Grrr, split up and attack the humans.”

The clever demons spread out and attacked. So far, 200 paladins and 32 priests had died after meeting the demons. But the number of demons they killed in the labyrinth was tremendous so it wasn’t an insignificant sacrifice. None of the monsters mutated by Roderick’s research dared jump them.

After he finished eating and resting, Weed approached Roderick.

“We will soon reach the place where Montus is.”

“That’s right. I will send him back to h.e.l.l.”

“Of course. By the way, I was just wondering something.”

“What is it?”

“I heard that you studied radiant beauty along with other sculptors.”

“It was very rewarding. And even I made no progress in it.”

“Can I ask what type of research you did?”

Weed was so nervous his heart was thumping.

“For the sake of research…there were dozens of attempts. I experienced a myriad of failures and there were impossible challenges. It is because we have to surpa.s.s the laws and limits of this world to express radiant beauty.”

“What was specifically involved?”

Weed held his breath as he waited for Roderick’s answer.

“How annoying. You won’t believe it even if I say it…you’ll see when you go to my laboratory.”

“Yes…”

“Go over there.”

There was a fall in intimacy! Roderick played an active role in the battle against the demons. He used ultimate combat magic!

“Sinner’s Bridle.”

A thick iron block formed around the foot of a demon soldier. It was a magic spell that decreased agility and movement speed.

“Flame Cannon, Hand of Evil!”

There was a fire attack strong enough to shake the labyrinth and a blackened hand emerged from the ground to grab a demon’s leg.

“Kyaat! No, I don’t want to be dragged!”

The ground closed over as 5 demons were pulled underneath. It was the end for the demon soldiers caught.

Weed was quick and used his accurate judgement to build up achievements in battle. The paladins and priests also fought the demons wandering around. Roderick was attentive to some extent but was mainly interested in getting rid of the demons.

“My magic isn’t the same as before. If I had a reagent and auxiliary item then I would be able to show a stronger power.”

Roderick already had fearsome magic so his words were absurd.

‘Stronger than right now…I wonder if he was more powerful than Barkhan in the past?”

The decorations on the walls before flas.h.i.+er as Weed moved further into the labyrinth. There was a thick crust of dust but the hallways were filled with sculptures and artwork of knights. Of course, they had received serious damage over time so he couldn’t get an increase in stats or sculpting proficiency unless they were restored.

‘It is valuable. If only there was enough time…”

Weed had found some work. Restoration of all the art in Roderick’s Labyrinth! If he cleaned it perfectly then it would be a wonderful palace. While he was lost in his thoughts, they arrived in front of the large doors leading to Montus.

Despite the many long journeys through the labyrinth, this was the first time someone arrived in front of these doors. Weed wanted to know the place before the battle started so he asked Roderick about the room.

“What is beyond those doors?”

“It is a s.p.a.cious room where visiting kings used to stay. I used it for my magic research and Montus is probably in there.”

Gulp.

Weed swallowed his saliva. No one on the Versailles Continent had arrived at this place in Roderick’s Labyrinth but it was difficult to imagine fighting against even a lower devil.

‘If this is a dream then it is definitely a nightmare…’

Despite that, excitement and tension rose. He would die if he lost but it was exhilarating to think about fighting against a lower devil. This might be the last battle so there was a long break this time. Bahamorg, the paladins and the priests’ equipment was repaired like they were new.

“Let’s meet again alive.”

“We can definitely win.”

They exchanged words and had a generous meal. He used more than half of the remaining supplies Mapan had provided. He had been prepared for a long and risky fight against the demons from the beginning.

‘If I die then I won’t be able to take these goods out.’

He used his advanced cooking skills to create first cla.s.s food. It even impressed Roderick who had eaten with kings on the continent.

“I haven’t eaten for a long time.’

Roderick didn’t need to recover mana and had a perfect physical body.

“I’m going.”

8 paladins pushed open the doors.

“It is starting now.”

Weed changed his body to Kub.i.+.c.hya and equipped the Red Star. The doors were fully opened and the devil Montus was waiting for them.

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Myeongdong’s bond market was necessary for South Korea’s economic development. Corporate bonds, corporate loans, discounted bills, etc. were all involved. Of course, there wasn’t just the positive side of the process. The high rate of interest meant that politicians or criminals could take advantage of it.

Vicious loan sharks occupied a deep position.

“When are you collecting the funds from SA Construction?”

“One week later. The president asked for an extension, Hyung-nim.”

“Collect the full amount.”

“They won’t be able to repay, Hyung-nim.”

“I heard that President Park bought land in the metropolitan area under the company’s name and is developing it.”

“I understand what you mean. I will definitely handle it.”

The loan shark deliberately devoured the a.s.sets of businesses. There were many cases of people who borrowed money from load sharks in order to urgently fund a building or factory.

This was a rising market in Myeongdong over the past 3~4 years. In the past, the high interest rates were aimed to the general public but now the targets were companies.

Of course, loans to the general public was still an important business. The financial sector was rapidly evolving and loan sharks were the target. Thanks to the cultural development of over-consumption of goods, the loan shark businesses had bright prospects.

Han Jin-sup meticulously combed through his ledger.

“The earnings for this month is good. Any news?”

“The store at Dongdaedum seems bad. The initial loan was around 4,000 and the interest has increased it to 9,000. Even if we clean out the store, only 2,000 would be recovered.”

“The family?”

“One daughter and two sons. One son is still in junior high school.”

“2 people should be able to pay it off.”

The system of money lending had changed a lot from the past. If the loan amount was large, the women would be handed over to bars. If was effective to squeeze a debtor but it was a crime so the company would be dissolved if caught. The funds were hidden in different organizations in advance but the risk was still considerable.

Thus they changed it into a legitimate business.

Over time, Royal Road had become the trend!

They rented a warehouse and gathered items before giving people jobs to repay their debt. The room and board wasn’t free and there was even a fee to use the game capsule so their debt didn’t decrease. It was a place that they couldn’t leave once they entered. It was a business that could get employees without paying a monthly salary.

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Geomchi’s Weapons Mastery reached 50% of advanced level 9.

“Now I feel like I’ve become a little stronger.”

“The trainees have reached beyond advanced level 8.”

They went hunting without the instructors around the clock. The trainees quickly trained their Weapons Mastery skill. They were familiar with a sword but they tested all sorts of weapons in combat like bows, spears, axes, hammers and maces.

Their proficiency in various weapons also increased Weapons Mastery. Even though their basic weapon was still a sword, they also carried a bow and had a small hand axe stuck at their waist.

Geomchi-100 liked looking at his reflection in the sword.

“I look like a valiant warrior.”

Geomchi-150 was looking down like he was sleeping. A large axe was in both hands.

“It is the same for me, Sa-hyung. I have confidence in every type of battle.”

The beginners who were crossing Pes.h.i.+l River using Alkazar Bridge were startled to see them.

“Bandits!”

“Not monsters?”

“I’ll give you everything I have so please spare me. This is 3 gold!”

Their appearance was enough to not need a job for the rest of their lives!

Geomchi gathered the instructors and trainees together. A soft and warm smile was on his face because his girlfriend arrived in the north not long ago. He had shown her around the north on dates so there was a slight smile on his face.

‘The last time he smiled like that, he punished us all night…’

‘He made us go into the mountains for survival training for 10 days.’

A murderous smile that was even worse than Weed’s rotten one! Geomchi spoke in a soft, gentle tone.

“Hey everyone.”

“Yes! Teacher-nim!”

The answer promptly came out like they were in the army.

“We will now challenge the Master Quest.”

“Yes! Teacher-nim’s words are the truth.”

They replied without any objections.

“Where are Geomchi-3 and Geomchi-5?”

“They are up to the 13th quest. We have to catch up with them.”

“So far there haven’t been any difficult points?”

“They managed to kill everything. There are some tricky martial arts to learn but if we fail then we can attempt it a few times.”

Despite the degree of difficulty, it was simple for people who lived their lives wielding the sword. It wasn’t possible to import their real bodies but their mentality and judgement was the same.

But they didn’t always use these strong points as they didn’t like calculation or memorization. That’s why sometimes several attempts were needed for a simple quest.

“Then let’s start the quest.”

“Yes, Teacher-nim.”

Geomchi moved with the gathered instructors and trainees. They were able to use all types of weapons due to Weapons Mastery. They took the weapons of the ogres, orcs and trolls after fighting them. They became even more ignorant when united.

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“Montus!”

“Roderick! I spent hundreds of years trapped here because of you.”

“Shut up. I will fix my mistake today.”

“I’ll chew up your heart just like in the past.”

Weed didn’t care about the dramatic reunion between Roderick and Montus. His priority was to check for other enemies.

‘Uhh, this won’t be easy.’

There were 30 demon soldiers! There were also a few medium sized monsters that normally lived in h.e.l.l. They weren’t as high levelled as the demon soldiers but had strong resilience.

The walls, ceiling and floors looked different from previous images he had seen of the labyrinth. A liquid was flowing from eggs that hung everywhere. The eggs would hatch into an unknown creature.

“That is probably the eggs of a Talloss.”

There were many travellers who became writers. There were many old books stored since the early days of Royal Road and NPCs also wrote some.

Later the area that users explored widened and they wrote down stories. The users could also obtain special hints from adventurer’s notes. A traveller who went to h.e.l.l drew pictures of eggs similar to this on their notes.

“They are born fast and harder than steel.”

They resembled spiders with 12~16 legs and could move quickly on the ground while attacking. They were troublesome even in h.e.l.l. A very long time was needed before the eggs hatched. And they would wake up hungry so they would eat the closest prey.

Pasasasak!

The odds were against them if the Talloss eggs hatched! There were many Talloss eggs around this place.

“If they all awaken…and there are also 30 demon soldiers.

Prepare for combat!

This is a fight where we’ll have to risk out lives.”

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“3 seconds before we go live!”

Today was a special day at the broadcasting station.

Since the broadcasting stations started showing Royal Road, the number of viewers increased every day. Funds were invested into the broadcasting stations and they greatly expanded to their current form. They broadcasted for 24 hours and even simultaneously sent it to foreign countries with subt.i.tles.

The PDs and technical teams were done for the day but they were on emergency standby. Today was the day that Weed’s adventures in Roderick’s Labyrinth was going to be shown.

G.o.d of War, conquering Roderick’s Labyrinth.

Weed’s song part 1, part 2 and part 3.

Weed the Demon Slayer.

Weed’s adventures in Roderick’s Labyrinth up to the current point was shown on Sunday and continuously got high ratings. The individual stations could only compete in video quality, narration and music. They received the video in advance so it obviously went through some edits.

“Mom, I want to watch a cartoon.”

A young child tried to touch the remote.

“Eun-bi, please be quiet. If you keep doing this then I won’t help with your homework.”

“Che…Mom, aren’t you supposed to pick up the table?”

The daughter’s grumbling didn’t move her mother.

“I had the man deliver it. Mother doesn’t want to go anywhere today. Go read a book. Tell me when the delivery man arrives.”

The live broadcast of Roderick’s Labyrinth started in the morning and went all the way into the evening.

The roasted chicken stores were also busier than public holidays.

Phone ringing!

“Apartment in Cheongdamdong, semi-seasoned and half fried…”

“There are no more chickens!”

If there wasn’t a chicken store then it was a Chinese restaurant.

“Sichuan sweet and sour pork?”

“If you order now then you’ll be waiting 3 hours.”

A boom in the delivery industry! There were more people watching Royal Road then dramas and movies. Needless to say, the ratings were very high in other foreign countries apart from South Korea.

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