Ark-Volume 16 Chapter 7

ACT 7 The Carnival (ⅠⅠⅠ)

“Huhuhu, I will suck every last drop of your blood!”

There was the sound of a wall sliding back and a monster suddenly popped out. It was a production effect to catch people off guard! But the guest just looked at the monster absent-mindedly and sighed before walking past.

‘It really is crazy.’

The person scratching his head with annoyance was Ark. After entering the horror castle and separating from his summons, Ark went up to the 2nd floor by himself. He was in a place known as the ‘Room of Mirrors.’ It was a maze like everywhere else but the walls were made of mirrors. The mirrors on the wall reflected everything around it.

‘I should turn around, damn!’

While he had been thinking, his feet had just been wandering around. Besides…..

“Hahaha, I will suck your blood! Blood! Isn’t it scary?”

The monster who Ark ignored just then stood in front of him and shouted. The monster disguise of the NPC just made Ark’s blood pressure rise even more.

“I don’t want to talk to you so get out of my way, huh?”

“…..Ah, yes. I-I’m sorry.”

Ark used the full force of ‘Intimidation’ to scare off cowardly monster. Ark glared at the monster and continued walking.

“M-Master, it is serious!”

Racard’s voice abruptly shook his eardrums.

“What the? What’s going on?”

“I found Buksil and Baekgu. But they are already surrounded by a group of thieves!”

“W-what? Where? Where are you now?”

“I was dragged by some zombies so I don’t know the exact location. All I know is that it is downstairs.”

“What does it look like? Tell me more!”

“There are various torture tools as decorations scattered around.”

“Okay, wait a minute! No, stop it somehow!”

“B-but there are 10 people there.”

“Dammit, just stop them until I get close!”

Ark shouted urgently and ran through the Room of Mirrors. However, he only walked a few steps before he stopped. Once again, this was the Room of Mirrors. The mirrors reflected in every direction and it was easy to lose his sense of direction in the maze. Ark couldn’t just wander around directionless. But now that the situation was so urgent, how could he find the exit?

‘It is an emergency. I have no time to be lost in a place like this. I need to escape this maze…..’

Then Ark raised his head and looked back at the monster. Yes, that was the fastest way to escape the maze! The horror castle maze was designed to make its customers wander around. What reason would people who weren’t customers have to wander around? Ark turned around and grabbed the monster’s throat before shouting.

“Hey, you!”

“Kyak! What are you doing Sir?”

“I don’t have a lot of time to talk. Do you have a map of this place?”

“M-map? I have it but……”

The monster stuttered as he was grabbed by the neck.

“Shut up! Don’t consider me a guest. A person’s life is at stake. Now give me the map!”

“But Sir, the rules……”

“I said a human life is at stake! Do you also want to risk your life?”

When Ark used Advanced Intimidation, the monster instantly took out its map. Once again, the maze was designed to make the guests wander around so they could be scared. But that only applied to the guests. It wouldn’t do for NPCs disguised with monster makeup to wander around lost. In order to prevent this, the hidden NPCs had detailed maps to prevent this. Ark opened the map he had seized using Intimidation and checked it.

‘As expected!’

Sections marked blue were seen on the map. They were the passages designed for staff to move easily. If he used the passages designed for the staff then he could reach his destination without getting lost.

‘This must be the place Racard talked about.’

The ‘Underground Torture Chamber’ caught Ark’s eye and he headed to that area. Racard said there were various torture tools around so Buksil was probably somewhere in that area. Ark looked for the staff passage that had the shortest distance and ran to the underground torture chamber.

“The problem is where exactly Buksil is being held by those thieves…..”

Ark saw various props lying around as he wandered the complex passages. The ‘Underground Torture Chamber’ matched the atmosphere of the horror castle so it had the widest area assigned. Plus there were coffins and torture tools scattered everywhere. It was impossible to narrow down a specific location. So even when Ark arrived at the ‘Underground Torture Chamber,’ Ark couldn’t move for a while. Then he suddenly lost 500 mana and the information window appeared.

‘Steel Loyalty!’

Ark’s eyes instantly flashed. Razak could only use Steel Loyalty when he was within 10 metres of Ark. In other words, Razak was somewhere in a 10 metre radius. And Ark had sent him with Racard so Buksil would be in that location as well!

“That’s it! Radun, Stalking! Track that flow of mana just now!”

Ssak ssak ssak, ssak ssak ssak ssak!

Radun bobbed his head and pointed to one side. Ark confirmed the direction and used his remaining mana on Sprint. After turning various corners, he heard the voices of the thieves.

“What, what the, this guy?” Where did this thing suddenly come from?”

“He is the familiar of that interfering guy. We have to take care of this before that guy comes!”

“Eh? Why can’t my sword hit properly?”

The thieves were perplexed after their sword bounced off Razak. The instant the thieves had herded Buksil into a corner and attacked, Ark had entered the vicinity. So Razak left the coffin and stood in front of Buksil before using Steel Loyalty. After Razak turned into steel, all the attacks from the thieves bounced back. When Razak changed to steel, his defense rose according to Razak’s loyalty which was 926. Thus Steel Loyalty added 926 defense. The thieves were only level 250-300 so it was impossible for them to damage Razak.

“Well done Razak!”

When Ark appeared, the thieves flinched and turned their heads.

“Huk, t-that guy is…..?”

“Racard, Blood Lane!”

“Ohhhh, the blood curse!”

Now was the opportunity to rescue Buksil! Ark sprinted forward and made Racard use Blood Lane. Then Racard emerged from the coffin and spouted blood from his mouth. It wasn’t so strange when it was a bat, but the sight of a boy spouting blood was oddly weird. But despite being a boy or a bat, the effect of Blood Lane was amazing. It flowed up and covered a range of 10 metres like a rain shower. The descent of the cursed blood caused a large number of unusual states. Furthermore, this place the skill was used wasn’t a wide swamp like before. The thieves were gathered in a small passage. The odds of Blood Lane causing an abnormal state were 50%. Among the ten people, six of them were caught by ‘Despair’ or ‘Helplessness.’ Among them, two were also caught by ‘Confusion’ and attacked their colleagues.

‘I’m lucky that Blood Lane is a skill that doesn’t consume mana. Anyway, there are 6 fellows with abnormal states. I need to deal with the remaining four…..’

Ark was very cool-headed and calmly judged the situation. Obviously, dealing with four thieves wasn’t difficult for him. However, that was the usual him…..Ark had recovered some mana but he was still in a bad shape. There were 20 thieves who had entered the horror castle to chase Buksil. Even if he took care of these guys, there were still 10 remaining. Ark wouldn’t be able to endure it if they joined.

‘It is imperative that we escape from Bosaga!’

“Razak, skill off! Sword!”

Ark decided on a course of action and shouted to Razak. Razak then changed into the Saw blade. Ark swung the Saw Blade like a whip and dealt chain damage to the thieves before shouting.

“Now! Buksil, Baekgu, run!”

“Hehehe, I’m a King! Everybody kneel down!”

But Buksil just smirked and started rattling nonsense. The range of Blood Lane was 10 metres so Buksil was also caught by its effects. Fortunately, Baekgu was able to resist and wasn’t caught by the abnormal states.

“That stupid bastard! Baekgu, bite Buksil and run with him to the opposite side!”

“Yes, Ark-nim!”

Baekgu bit the back of Buksil’s collar and quickly escaped. The thieves who weren’t caught hurriedly lifted their bow. After Ark swung the Saw Blade and blocked their attacks, he ran after Buksil using Sprint. At that moment, Racard who had been lying on the ground as a side effect of Blood Lane groaned.

“Awooooo, blood…..blood…… Master…….you are abandoning me…… I…….help……”

“Go to your house. Summon release!”

Racard disappeared as Ark commanded without even looking back.

“Stand up!”

The four thieves shouted as they wildly shot arrows. However, they had already made it quite a distance thanks to Ark’s fast judgement of the situation. Arrows flying from a distance place wasn’t a problem. Ark hit the arrow with his Saw Blade and ran to an exit.

“To the right, this time it is the left side!”

Ark checked the map as he ran and soon the exit appeared. When he saw the dim light of the fireworks outside, Ark sighed with relief. When Baekgu ran through the exit, he immediately slammed on the brakes and stopped.

“What are you doing?”

“Ah, Ark-nim, there…..!”

When Ark shouted angrily, Baekgu indicated in front of him and stuttered. Ark followed Baekgu’s finger and stiffened. He had barely found Buksil and came to an exit. When the 20 thieves entered the horror castle, they wanted to block the exit to the village. So they contacted the chasing thieves scattered about the village using ‘Feather of Whispering’ and made them gather at the exit.

‘Dammit…..I came all the way here……!’

Ark’s face darkened. He had no mana left. Racard had also returned to his vampire castle. In such a situation he encountered 10 thieves. With the four thieves behind him, he couldn’t escape back into the horror castle. The situation couldn’t be worse than this.

‘But……!’

The only lucky thing was that this was a village. Furthermore, Ark’s current exit wasn’t far from the central square. If the 10 people caused a scuffle here than the guards would gather. Once the guards gathered than the thieves couldn’t attack Ark anymore. In addition, the four thieves had killed NPCs in the horror castle so they were chaotic. He had to run away before the situation became larger. The problem was whether he could endure and protect Buksil at the same time……

‘But there is no other way! I have to hang in there!’

Ark made a firm resolution and clenched his sword. Then one of the ridiculous thieves wearing a mask of Sailor Moon said.

“Heh, did you want the guards to come?”

“Even with all of you, it will be hard to catch for you to take care of me. Do you want to confirm it?”

“No, that’s not necessary. We’ve already confirmed your skills in the swamp. I even admired your skills which took care of Jepeteu hyung-nim. In other words……”

The Sailor Moon’s voice suddenly became cold.

“I honestly want to step on you. But you’re not our purpose right now. We’ll take care of your later once the pig is caught.”

“Then try to kill me before the guards come.”

“Ah Ark-nim, to go that far…..!”

Baekgu looked at Ark with impressed eyes at his resolution for death. The dog was still unaware of the situation. It was natural since his owner Buksil didn’t know anything either. Anyway, Baekgu had some unexpected misunderstandings but Ark had no choice but to protect Buksil.

“Let’s see? Is it really like that?”

At that time the Sailor Moon took out a strange scroll from his bag. It was a scroll with gold letters on it. He wasn’t familiar with the scroll. However, he thought he had seen it somewhere. After staring at the eye-catching scroll for a while, Ark realized what it was too late.

‘That’s impossible…..no, there’s no doubt! That is the [Banish] scroll Buksil previously used!’

Yes, it was the rare [Banish] scroll Buksil used in Seutandal on the Red Man. It was a scroll which sent the designated person to a place 10 km away! And the Sailor Moon was planning to use the [Banish] scroll on Ark! It wasn’t necessary to say but the effect of the scroll was absolute. Didn’t the [Banish] scroll exert tremendous havoc on the Red Man? There was no way for Ark to stop the effect of the scroll. If Ark was blown away 10 km then the situation would be over. Without Ark there to sabotage it, the thieves would seize Buksil and rob him of the memory crystal!

‘Oh my god, this is……!’

While Ark was sighing with despair, the Sailor Moon used the [Penetration] scroll on Ark. They needed his name in order to use the [Banish] scroll. Ark used footwork to try to avoid it but he couldn’t avoid the absolute power of the scroll. Once the Sailor Moon figured out Ark’s name, he was convinced of victory and lifted the [Banish] scroll.

“His name is Ark? I’ll remember that. But today you have to disappear. Target Ark, [Banish]!”

The red light from the scroll impacted with Ark. It was an attack he couldn’t avoid! Once it touched Ark, a red warning message appeared.

‘Ah, no-!’

At the same time, there was an enormous sucking force and he was propelled into the air. Ark would be blown away 10 km in a blink of an eye.

‘It’s over. The memory crystal……’

At that moment, a miracle idea appeared in Ark’s head. The opponent had used a rare scroll. This was truly the effect of a rare scroll. But he couldn’t afford to think about it now. The moment he was sucked into the air, Ark reflexively shouted. It had only been a few seconds since the scroll hit but Ark had already flown 20 metres.

“Radun, [Magnetic] scroll!”

Ssak ssak? Ssak ssak ssak ssak!

Radun spat out the scroll and Ark triggered it.

“Target Buksil, [Magnetic]!”

“Hehehe, I am the King…… Huh? Waaahhh!”

It was at that time. The abnormal effect disappeared and Buksil flew through the sky after Ark. Yes, the desperate method Ark came up with was to use a scroll to oppose the effect of another scroll! However, [Banish] was a very expensive and rare scroll. The scroll to stop it was probably another rare scroll. Ark’s purpose wasn’t to oppose the scroll but to escape with Buksil. So he came up with the method of using the [Magnetic] scroll! It was a scroll to pull the target to the user. It had been dumb luck that he bought the scroll from Ronnie. In fact, [Magnetic] was completely cheap compared to the [Banish] scroll. However, he had managed to use the effects of the cheap scroll to counteract against the rare scroll. That was the charm of using scrolls in New World! Anyway, Buksil flew towards him when he activated the [Magnetic] scroll. The Sailor Moon looked at the distant Buksil and Ark with disgusted eyes.

“What, what the? This is?”

Ark and Buksil managed to escape thanks to the [Banish] scroll. The thieves were lost for words at the absurd situation.

——————————————————————————————-

‘Damn!’

Ark glared at Buksil. Buksil instantly froze as he saw the look. But he didn’t care if Ark was staring and just continued crying.

“Sob sob sob, Baekgu! Baekgu!”

The reason that Buksil had shed tears for several hours was Baekgu. When Ark had been hit by [Banish], he used the effect of [Magnetic] to save Buksil. In fact, he had a few more [Magnetism] scrolls. Ark thought that Baekgu was important so he also wanted to save Baekgu. However, he only used [Magnetic] after he had been hit by [Banish]. The effects of [Banish] only worked within a certain range so it was a miracle that he had managed to save Buksil. Anyway, Baekgu had been abandoned while surrounded by the thieves. Even if he couldn’t see it, Baekgu’s fate was clear. During the hot summer, the faithful dog Baekgu was unfortunately simmering in a pot thanks to his Master. After escaping from Bosaga village, Buksil was in a crazy state. It was to the extent that Buksil tried to attack Ark.

“Why did you rescue me? If I die then I would be resurrected but Baekgu won’t!”

“Damn, do you think I did it on purpose? Don’t I look troubled as well?”

“I don’t know! It’s Ark-nim. Ark-nim killed Baekgu! Waaaaah, Baekgu should be alive! Ahh, poor Baekgu. Sob sob sob! Baekgu!”

Buksil lay soulless on the ground and continued shedding tears. But that wasn’t the reason Ark was annoyed. Ark also felt pain at the death of Baekgu the faithful dog. Anyway, he had succeeded in defending Buksil and the memory crystal. Thankfully, the [Banish] scroll had also sent him 10 km away from those guys. The destination of [Banish] was random. And because it left no marks, the thieves wouldn’t be able to track Ark. Fortunately, Ark had been moved near a village. He waited until Buksil calmed down before mentioning the main subject.

“I didn’t want to say this but Baekgu’s death is your fault.”

“What are you saying?”

“The thieves were chasing you so desperately for the memory crystal.”

“Memory crystal? What do you mean? You can buy that at any store……”

“That’s not what I mean. Those fellows want the video stored in your memory crystal.”

“V-video?”

“When you saw those guys for the first time, weren’t they doing some sort of business? They think that you recorded the scene with the magic projector. It’s because of the magic projector on your head. The uproar is because they want to take away the memory crystal with the video preserved in it. How about it? I’ll confirm it first. Did you take a video of those guys?”

“I haven’t checked the scenes yet. The video was filmed from the crystal inserted in my eyeball.”

Ark sighed with relief at Buksil’s answer. What if there had been all that commotion just to discover Buksil hadn’t taken the video? Then Buksil asked in a voice that indicated he didn’t understand.

“But why? The video is the same as everybody else!”

“That……”

Ark finally explained the whole story. In reality, the thieves were a part of a wanted criminal syndicate. And Buksil had accidently filmed a black market transaction by the criminals. If the police saw the video of the transaction then they might be able to discover some clues to where the criminals were hiding.

“That’s why those fellows were pursuing you so much.”

“That’s such a ridiculous thing…..!”

As expected, Buksil’s face became ridiculous when he heard the explanation. That was the reason why Ark confessed it. Buksil wasn’t in a normal state from losing Baekgu. If he just told Buksil to take out the memory crystal then he didn’t know how Buksil would react. But if he talked about a criminal organization, then Buksil would shrink with fear and take out the memory crystal. That was what he thought. However, Ark made a mistake in confessing everything.

“Do you see now? It is really dangerous. Luckily, I know a detective really well so hand me the memory crystal. He’ll take care of the rest.”

“I don’t want to.”

Buksil said as he turned his head. Ark stared with stunned eyes at the unexpected situation.

“What? You don’t want to? Why are you saying that now?”

“Yes. What about it? In the end, Baekgu died because of that memory crystal. So shouldn’t I keep the memory crystal that Baekgu risked his life for?”

“What are you talking about? The dangerous criminals are targeting that!”

“Sheesh! Don’t make me laugh. A crime organization? I’m not afraid of those guys. Anyway, they only know my New World ID. If the police can’t find someone using just the ID then how can the criminal organization? And aren’t they wanted criminals?”

Buksil was surprisingly smart. However, he still had a trick up his sleeve to persuade Buksil.

“Yes, they’re wanted! It is an obligation of the public to cooperate with the police!”

“It is my freedom to decide whether to cooperate or not. Korea is a free democratic country!”

……But his trick failed. Ark tried a few more times but Buksil wouldn’t budge.

“I was contracted to film scenes of Ark-nim. So Ark-nim has no rights to any other videos that I take. The memory crystal was also bought with my money.”

His words did make some sense. Buksil had been with Ark for a long time. It was natural for him to pick up some things. But Ark really was in a horrible situation. Why did that guy have to be so smart at such a time? In addition, if he tried to kill Buksil to retrieve the memory crystal then he would just revive in Bosaga. So he had no way to make Buksil cooperate.

Of course there were methods to take away the opponent’s goods in New World. One common method among chaotic users was to use the [Robbery] and [Seize] skill. The thieves were probably planning to use this method on Buksil. However, Ark had no such scrolls. While he bought a lot of scrolls from the thieves, only chaotic NPCs sold the [Robbery] or [Seize] scroll. It was impossible that Ronnie would have those sorts of scrolls.

‘Even if I have the scrolls…..’

No matter what, he didn’t want to use the scroll on his colleague and then kill him. In addition, if he used the scrolls clumsily and then Buksil disconnected then the problem would be even more serious. Not only the memory crystal but the japtem he entrusted to Buksil would fly away.

‘So far, that guy hasn’t quit playing the game despite the many abuses he went through. But now Buksil is insane from Baekgu’s death. I can’t be assured of his actions.’

In this situation, Ark eventually lifted the white flag. In fact, Ark knew this. Buksil wouldn’t give it up even if he had to die. He meant it when he said he wouldn’t give the memory crystal. However, Ark also didn’t want to beat up Buksil. But personal feelings aside, he still needed the memory crystal.

‘I guess Buksil’s request will be to improve his treatment.’

……Okay. Then what do I have to do to make you give me the memory crystal?”

When Ark asked in a weakened voice, Buksil immediately replied like he had been waiting for it.

“800 gold.”

“What?”

“Didn’t you hear me? 800 gold!”

“Y-you want money? Weren’t you upset by Baekgu’s death just now?”

“I’m saying this because Baekgu died protecting the memory crystal.”

Buksil said tearfully as he thought about Baekgu.

“Didn’t you say the memory crystal had a clue about the crime organization? If what Ark-nim said is correct, Baekgu was a smart dog who helped the real police. If we be terrible if such a smart dog devoted his who life to it only to receive no repayment!”

“……..So?”

“I will use the money from Ark-nim to build a statue of Baekgu in the square of Schudenberg’s capital city, Selebrid. Once I accomplish it, everyone will know about Baekgu. I checked and 800 gold should be enough to erect a statue in Selebrid.”

“You want money just to build a statue of a dog?”

Ark muttered with amazed eyes. Then Buksil shouted with a displeased expression.

“It’s not a dog, it’s Baekgu! The smart dog Baekgu! Baekgu is…..ugh, Baekgu!”

Buksil once again started wailing as emotions welled inside him. Then Racard muttered with an impressed face.

“Ohhhhh, I really can’t see this scene without tears. I don’t know anyone who would think about building a statue for their pet dog. Normally they would throw them away once dead from old age or illness. Huk, I would’ve preferred to meet such a Master. I’m sorry for ignoring you in the meantime Buksil. You really are a great owner.”

“Shut up, huh?”

Sparks flew from Ark’s eyes as he glared at Racard. No, sparks also flew between the left and right side of his brain. 800 gold? 800 gold for a pet dog? No, apart from the price. Wasting 800 gold just to build a dog statue? He really thought the guy needed a bullet in his head. Even without the bullet inside his head, the pig needed his sanity back. Unfortunately, the person holding the gun was Buksil. Just like Buksil said, there was no way for the criminals to find him in real life. That also applied to Ark and Isyuram. With no way to find Buksil in real life to get the memory crystal, his hands were tied.

‘But 800 gold for one memory crystal……’

He wanted to put aside the investigation. But he knew how important it was for Isyuram. Isyuram was the one who wanted the information so he could pass on Buksil’s request of 800 gold to him. But Ark didn’t have the same thought. Isyuram was more than a simple taekwondo teacher to Ark. Ark was in Isyuram’s debt. If it hadn’t been for Isyuram then Ark would’ve ended up in hospital from the gangsters Andel sent after him. And knowing Andel’s character, he would’ve continued sending gangsters after Ark.

‘At that time, Teacher was the one who talked to Andel’s father. In fact, Teacher might’ve even been disadvantaged by that incident. But Teacher didn’t waver.’

Normally he wanted money for favours. However, Ark didn’t think about money when helping Isyuram. If Ark was in danger than Isyuram wouldn’t hesitate to jump in. Ark always paid back any grudge. That was Ark’s cardinal rule. With one word from Buksil it would be over and he wouldn’t be able to help Isyuram. Now he strongly wanted to leave the money to Isyuram. No, how much money was needed to build a dog statue in New World?

‘Yes, I can’t ask Teacher for 800 gold. If I tell Teacher the 800 gold is for a dog statue……ah, that’s not money well spent!’

Ark thought like that. No, he might go crazy if he thought about it too hard. Fortunately he still have the monthly salary from Global Exos and thanks to his new sale strategies, he had been receiving more money for his items. But when he tried to hand over the money, as expected his hands stopped moving. Ark was tortured for a while before he made a suggestion.

“Okay. I’ll give you 800 gold for a dog statue.”

“Eh? R-really?”

When Ark obediently agreed, Buksil looked at him with shocked eyes. Of course, Ark was agreeing obediently.

“There is one condition.”

“Condition? Are you trying a trick?”

“No, that’s not it. Didn’t you say you wanted to build a statue of Baekgu in Selebrid square?”

“…….So?”

“Then can you wait for the money until we return to Selebrid? I don’t have 800 gold on me right now. Give me until we reach Selebrid for the deadline for payment. How about it?”

Buksil looked at him suspiciously.

“You’ll definitely sign a contract?”

“Of course! Do you think I would trick you?”

“Aren’t you going to look for a way to cheat me in the meantime?”

That was correct. He really was a sharp fellow! As more time passed, the pig’s awareness of his tricks only increased. At Ark’s expression, Buksil spoke in a decisive voice.

“I won’t hand the memory crystal to you until you write the contract. Don’t try to decrease the amount of money. Once again, Baekgu sacrificed his life to defend it. This time I won’t back down. The amount is 800 gold. No matter what happens, that payment amount won’t change. The date of payment is until you reach Selebrid and it can’t be longer than a month. Once a month passes, you have to pay immediately no matter what. It is the Baekgu statue establishment fund.”

“Okay, I understand. Write the contract! Stop talking about Baekgu so much!”

Ark was fed up and forced him to write up the contract.

It was a humiliating contract.

‘That dog statue really will be built with my money.’

Whenever he saw the contract, a sigh automatically emerged. In fact, Ark had a plan when he decided to write the contract. He needed to pay Buksil the money after arriving in Selebrid. However, Ark was presently in Bristania and had no intention of returning to Selebrid yet. He thought it was possible to give excuses and delay payment for infinity while he never returned to Selebrid. However, Buksil had become smarted and embedded a payment date of 1 month. Even his last plan had been blocked.

‘Dammit, during that one month I have to think of a way to save my 800 gold.’

Fortunately, not long ago Ark had threatened Agathe and received 2000 gold. The payment extended over 6 months so in two months he would have around 670 gold. Two months in game time was around 20 days so he had already secured 670 gold. If he continued hunting and collecting japtem then he should be able to raise enough. Of course, he still had to pay the bill even if he dragged it out for 20 days. It didn’t change the fact that money would still be lost. However, it wasn’t possible to take the money he currently had in his pocket so he devised this method. Anyway, Ark was handed the memory crystal after the contract was written. After the video files were extracted, the memory crystal was soon destroyed. The video files he paid 800 gold for! Ark searched through the videos but couldn’t find a clue.

‘Did I lose money for no reason?’

Ark suddenly had that thought as he received the video files. Well, this was police work so Ark didn’t want to intervene anymore.

“Anyway, the situation is finished with this!”

Ark sighed with relief as he sent the video file to Isyuram’s email. Despite receiving 800 gold, Buksil was still crying over Baekgu but Ark shook off his displeasure. He felt a sense of accomplishment after helping Isyuram. And now that the dire situation was over, an item popped into his head.

‘Now I can finally eat my Necromancer’s Immortality Pill!’

Yes, it was the Necromancer’s Immortality Pill that he left at the Magic Institute warehouse in Ciel! With 81 hours required, it had finally been completed after four days. That was the reason Ark came running to a village with a Magic Institute branch. Yet he had no intention of going back to Ciel through the Letter Movement. Not only was it hard to endure but the Letter Movement was too expensive. One use cost 50 gold! He received a discount as a full member of the Magic Institute but it was still 42 gold and 50 silver. Anyway, it wasn’t necessary for Ark to return to Ciel. The private warehouse for a Magic Institute member could be accessed from every branch.

“I’d like to take out the item I left in the private warehouse at the Ciel’s Magic Institute branch.”

“I understand. What’s your name?”

“It is Ark.”

“Ah, you are Ark-nim. I’ll send it immediately.”

All the magicians at the Magic Institute were familiar with Ark. The magician who transferred it had a respectful expression, just like Rabent the branch manager in Ciel. Fortunately, Ark finally regained his Survival Cooking pot after 4 days. Inside the pot was a small black pill.

‘The Necromancer’s Immortality Pill!’

An information window appeared as soon as Ark grabbed it.

“I finally finished it!”

Ark lifted the pill with trembling hands. When calculating the time used to gather the ingredients, he had invested several months into it. Then the immortality pill was finally completed after a long 96 hours. Was making it easy? When thinking about the trouble he went through on the ferry to prevent the degree of completion from falling, he really felt like crying. However, he finally received a tangible item for his enormous time and effort. He couldn’t know the effects before he ate it so he wouldn’t be able to sell it, but that wasn’t a problem……

‘Even if it is possible to sell it, I never even though of giving up an item I put so much effort into. Besides, it has been strangely noisy around me lately. Apart from the thieves, it would really be a headache if I encounter Bread and Redian again. I need to increase my stats a bit more.’

Ark tried to calm his heart and swallowed the pill. With a loud sound effect, the information window appeared.

“Ohhhh, it is indeed an A class immortality pill!”

Ark exclaimed at the sight of the information window. The additional bonus was all stats +8, Intelligence +20, Magic Resistance +20% and Resistance to all Diseases +20%! If he included intelligence, it was like he had gained 7 levels. There was also addition magic resistance and disease resistance! A lot of high level monsters caused disease so it was a very useful stat. But was that all? A new stat and skill were also created.

“I don’t need to see anything else. Dark Fog is a jackpot!”

Dark Fog was similar to the Resilience stat he learnt when he ate the Slime’s Immortality Pill. But there was one part that was decisively different from Resilience. The stat increased his attack and defense against the dark attribute. It didn’t apply to his general skills but most of Ark’s profession-specific skills were of the dark attribute. In other words, wasn’t it a stat specifically for his profession?

‘There’s also Soul Extortion…….’

Ark looked at the information for Soul Extortion with an ambiguous expression. Recently Ark had really noticed the shortage of Spiritual Power. Even before he changed professions, Ark had been worried about his lack of Spiritual Power. Then he received the Area Declaration skill Glory of the Night which consumed 400 Spiritual Power and 2000 mana. The Area Declaration used 400 Spiritual Power with just one use. Spiritual Power also had an unusually slow recovery time so he wouldn’t be able to summon his familiars. In addition, the Ghost Knight Corps skill also required 300 Spiritual Power. When considering that Soul Extortion could increase Spiritual Power beyond its maximum, it really was a jackpot. However, the information window didn’t explain how he could successfully use Soul Extortion to raise Spiritual Power beyond its maximum. It would be useless if it only increased his Spiritual Power by 1 since he would have to use it hundreds of times. Besides, there was also an effect on the user. Soul Extortion had to deal 70% of the damage to have a proper effect? It only did 50 damage so how many times would he have to attack to deal 70% of the damage?

‘Well, it is a skill that doesn’t eat mana……’

Ark was content with the skill since it could hopefully raise his Spiritual Power. Even without Soul Extortion, the bonus stats and Dark Fog were rewarding enough. How many users in New World would be able to receive such stat bonuses at once?

“Now that is finished. All that’s left is the <Home of the Fire Draconian> quest!”

Ark’s next destination was Hwaryong Mountain in the north of Bristania! After eating the immortality pill, Ark ran across Bristania filled with motivation.

“Baekgu~!”

With tears and a runny nose, the pig followed behind him.