A few minutes earlier.

“What kind of being is the Dragon Guardian?”

That was the question Intern Park had asked as he set down the instant coffee Team Lead Kim had requested.

Without taking their eyes off the monitor, Team Lead Kim answered.

“It’s the dragon’s ultimate weapon. The Dragon of Ruin created the mine and hid the Dragon’s Heart inside it. Worried that if trouble arose later, it might be something that could save them, Balladra hid it away. But Balladra also feared that greedy humans would come searching for Dragon’s Mine, so using the hundreds of dwarves they kept as slaves, they succeeded in creating the Dragon Guardian as the final weapon. And having received multiple blessings from Dragon Balladra, it has overwhelmingly high magic defense and magic attack power.”

“As you know, the same level doesn’t mean everything is equal. Its HP and defense are about twice as high as boss monsters of the same level, and its attack power, once it starts using skills, rises by two to three times as much. On top of that, the Dragon Barrier won’t break under normal circumstances. In this fight, it’ll be hard to find any chance of victory.”

But a short time later, even Team Lead Kim and Lee Jihee had risen from their seats at what unfolded.

Intern Park was the same.

Just like Team Lead Kim explained, when the Dragon Guardian uses a skill attack, it exerts power two to three times greater than a normal boss monster. In that state, he used the power called One Who Protects No Matter What and stored it in Golemmy.

Intern Park too was gradually coming to understand Ares, and he was stunned.

The time between the Dragon Guardian taking the stance to swing its greatsword and the moment it did so was incredibly brief.

Yet in that span, the judgment User Hyunsoo made had been astonishing.

He shattered the Dragon Barrier in one shot with the power Golemmy had stored up twofold. Like someone who’d been waiting for that exact moment... Could it be that User Hyunsoo had anticipated the bastard would have power like that?

Until not long ago, Intern Park himself had been just another user, so he knew the general talk surrounding Master Blacksmith Hyunsoo.

Wasn’t everyone saying his control was garbage?

That was what he had believed from the commentators’ and high-rankers’ evaluations.

And if Park thought back to the footage from about a year ago, it had been a reasonable thing to say.

But now, one year later.

It was different.

There was no wasted motion anymore. He observed the Dragon Guardian’s tiny bodily movements, dodged, twisted his footing—

CLAAANG—!

—and stabbed the bastard.

A thrill-filled smile spread across Intern Park’s lips.

At least,

until Hyunsoo’s HP dropped to 0 in an instant.

But when he was startled to see Hyunsoo remain instead of scattering away,

Intern Park saw Team Lead Kim and Associate Lee Jihee, both standing, unable to tear their eyes from the monitor.

The instant coffee in front of them had gone cold.

Intern Park thought it was because the two of them were admiring the awakening little hero, but it wasn’t.

“Intern Park.”

“Yes.”

With a dazed expression, Team Lead Kim’s gaze turned toward somewhere on the monitor.

There, at the place where the timer first appeared upon meeting the Dragon Guardian, the count remained visible.

“What did I say earlier about that timer?”

That timer was both the time until KyooKyoo was tainted by Absolute Evil and the test of how quickly the Dragon Guardian could be hunted down.

“...The timer created by the Dragon Guardian is initially set to 20 minutes. Of course, that 20 minutes is both the amount of time until KyooKyoo is tainted by Absolute Evil and the clear time. And if it’s cleared within those 20 minutes, the highest reward is obtained. If the clear fails within 20 minutes, then 40 more minutes are added, and even if the player returns after a forced logout, it still applies as time passes, and the reward is cut in half.”

“And?”

“If they still can’t get past the 40-minute wall, the time limit disappears, and the reward drops to one-third of what it would be for clearing within 20 minutes.”

At that, Team Lead Kim looked down at the now-cold coffee and said,

“...That’s right. The longer it takes, the more drastically the reward decreases. And if it’s cleared within the original 20 minutes, you get the best reward.”

After downing the cold coffee in one shot, they mixed a fresh cup, and Intern Park looked at them.

“Here’s the question. Then what happens if it’s cleared within the time shown on the monitor?”

Intern Park, who had just been relieved that today’s review session had safely ended too, turned his gaze.

“...!”

There, the current elapsed time was displayed.

[Dragon Guardian clear time. Current time: 7 minutes 31 seconds.]

[Current time: 7 minutes 32 seconds.]

[Current time: 7 minutes 33 seconds.]

[Current time: 7 minutes 34 seconds.]

Intern Park politely accepted the instant coffee being handed to him.

There was an eternal truth he had learned in the Special User Management Team.

“In ways we can’t predict, the reward is maximized.”

And Intern Park downed the coffee in one shot, felt his throat burn, and realized why Team Lead Kim had said that.

“Congratulations on your first night shift.”

Like his burning throat, Intern Park’s heart felt like it was burning too.

*****

[Hero does not retreat.]

[You become invincible for 4 seconds, and all stats increase by 10%.]

[All skills rise by 1 level.]

[HP recovers to 3%.]

A moment ago, when the forced logout notification appeared, Hyunsoo had let go of everything.

But the words does not retreat cleared Hyunsoo’s mind.

A strong enemy.

There had been countless strong enemies he had defeated until now.

Calamity Jack, the Troll King, the demon Grout, the continental war, Blood King Brad, the great archdemon Gremory.

And nine hundred ships.

Within all of that, the little hero, having crossed that line of death, had learned one thing.

It was this.

[The Dragon Guardian, having used Guardian Bombardment, has all of its power restricted for 10 seconds!]

The feeling that he would win. In other words, for ten seconds, the bastard could not use any skills.

[Dragon Guardian HP falls below 64%.]

“This is the last chance. None of you let it get away!”

The moment Hero settled over him, Hyunsoo’s eyes turned blue, and he raised the Hero’s Twin Dragon Sword at a right angle.

[Twin Dragon Sword]

[Legendary Artifact. The Guardian’s Annihilation Sword shatters.]

[Legendary Artifact. The Guardian’s armor shatters.]

[Dragon Guardian defense decreases by 31%.]

At that moment, Pretty did not miss the chance.

“Meow.”

An enormous moonlight shone down only on the Dragon Guardian.

[Brightest Moon]

[All stats decrease by 16%.]

[All attack power and all defense decrease by 16%.]

The Dragon Guardian turned its head and looked at Hyunsoo, whose blue glare burst forth, and panicked under the overlapping restrictions.

[Overwhelm]

[The number of Overwhelm stats surpasses the Dragon Guardian’s status ailment resistance.]

[It cannot resist.]

[It feels the status ailment Fear.]

[All stats decrease by 5%.]

[Its movement slows from fear, and its body does not move easily!]

[It is stunned.]

KUUUUUNG—!

The weapon forged by dragons stiffened in place.

Then Hyunsoo swapped to the Sword for the One Who Follows the King like a flash.

Even though Longing had already activated at the start, back then it had only dealt twenty to thirty thousand damage.

But not anymore.

KWAJAAAAK—!

[You dealt 35,310 damage.]

[You dealt 31,311 damage.]

[Critical Hit!]

[You dealt 63,130 damage.]

“...!”

At last, the Dragon Guardian’s body, which had been so solid, was finally starting to break.

But the Dragon Guardian thought it only needed to endure for eight more seconds.

Eight seconds later,

it would be able to use Guardian Bombardment once again.

But Hyunsoo, counting down those seconds in his head, revealed the skills of the Sword for the One Who Follows the King that no one had seen yet.

First.

(Blade of Longing)

Active Skill

Mana Cost: 2,000

· Six blades that protect the king appear.

· The six blades exert the same power as the user’s normal strike damage.

The Dragon Guardian, freed from stun, tried to smash Hyunsoo with its broken greatsword.

At that moment.

KWAARRRRRRR—!

The six blades protecting the king burst out all at once and struck the greatsword upward from below.

KARARARARANG—!

In the instant the Dragon Guardian faltered in confusion, the blades did not stop. From above—

KWAARRRRRRR—!

From below—

KKARRRRRRR—!

All six struck downward at once. Then upward at once.

And because those six blades followed the damage of Hyunsoo’s ordinary strikes and all six dealt damage, they carried enormous damage output.

[You dealt 45,313 damage.]

[You dealt 51,108 damage.]

[You dealt 51,391 damage.] 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

[Dragon Guardian HP falls below 38%.]

Watching the Dragon Guardian have its attacks restricted by the six blades, Hyunsoo grinned.

“Pretty sick, right? My grandpa made it for me. But—”

Putting strength into the foot planted on the ground, he burst forward.

CLAAAAANG—!

Toward the bastard’s swaying body, Hyunsoo drove in the sword gripped in both hands.

“It’s not over yet!”

The second effect of the Sword for the One Who Follows the King.

(Extinguishing Flame)

Active Skill

Mana Cost: 2,000

· It drives into the enemy a power that causes explosions with 300% damage, 12 times in succession.

· There is a 1% chance it ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) drives in 18 times.

Hyunsoo’s sword struck the Dragon Guardian directly.

KWAJAAAAK—!

The Sword for the One Who Follows the King, with attack power in the one-thousands, triggered an additional 300% damage.

POPOPOPOPOPOPOPOPOPOW—!

[You dealt 113,301 damage.]

[You dealt 131,851 damage.]

[You dealt 113,084 damage.]

[You dealt 111,987 damage...!]

A total of twelve times.

By the chain of explosions erupting from the struck point, the Dragon Guardian’s body continued exploding over and over.

But the Dragon Guardian felt relieved, thinking that the restriction on its skills would soon be lifted.

[Dragon Guardian HP falls below 6%.]

At the same time, the Dragon Guardian possessed one special power.

Though its attack skills were restricted, the Dragon Guardian also had the concept of passive skills.

The moment the power called Extinguishing Flame struck just now, the power of the Sword for the One Who Follows the King was temporarily controlled.

[The durability of the Sword for the One Who Follows the King temporarily becomes 1%.]

Click—

But Hyunsoo had already equipped the power gauntlet descending from the sky and drew back the bowstring.

“Want to see something I made this time?”

It was nearly simultaneous.

[The Dragon Guardian’s restriction is released.]

CHRRRRAKAKAKAK—!

Sections all over the bastard’s body opened up, revealing dozens of vents that blazed with light.

At that moment.

[It is the most perfect trinity.]

Before that light could erupt with force, the rebounding Aegisal Arrow shattered the bastard’s head at point-blank range.

KWAJAAAAAAK—!

Its head smashed apart, the giant body collapsed.

KUUUUUNG—!

DING!

[You have hunted the Dragon Guardian.]

Hyunsoo looked at KyooKyoo first.

The eyes of KyooKyoo, which had darkened black, were returning to their original color.

[The energy of Absolute Evil is extinguished.]

Golemmy approached KyooKyoo.

“I am, Golemmy...”

Golemmy had always feared the second, but after the recent incident with the fifty Black Hawks, it was Golemmy who had come to respect KyooKyoo more than anyone.

And KyooKyoo too had been deeply moved by Golemmy’s performance.

So Golemmy, eyes brimming with tears, expected a hot embrace from big brother KyooKyoo.

“...”

But KyooKyoo did not lose its consistency.

“Kyoo—”

You smell like golem.

“...Golemmy.”

[Golemmy feels dejected.]

Hyunsoo let out a hollow laugh. It was like watching the real second and fourth, after all.

What is golem smell supposed to be...? Is it like sweat or something?

But Hyunsoo heard it.

[KyooKyoo and Golemmy become closer.]

That their KyooKyoo had come to cherish Golemmy even more.

And just as Hyunsoo, relieved, was about to sink down and drown in the reward notifications—

...What? Why are these two fighting?

Lucky Lump and KyooKyoo had started arguing.

*****

KyooKyoo.

Having awakened part of its memories, it knew about the Dragon’s Heart.

KyooKyoo said Lucky Lump had to be the one to receive it.

“Mang, mang!”

No, it couldn’t.

Lucky Lump refused it.

From Lucky Lump’s point of view, it couldn’t do that.

It was something its younger sibling had left behind in the past.

“Mang!”

There was no way it could take that for itself and grow stronger!

On the other hand, KyooKyoo knew this.

That this would be far more valuable in Lucky Lump’s hands than its own.

“Kyooo.”

The Dragon’s Heart has to be taken by the one who is qualified...!

At that, Lucky Lump’s eyes even reddened as it lowered its body and growled.

While the love fight between the two beings went on for quite a while, Hyunsoo spoke.

“Guys, there’s no need to fight, because...”

Going by the reward notifications, he was facing the truth.

“There are two Dragon’s Hearts.”