◈ Episode 151. Seeds of Tears (2)

Grandfell’s iron skin certainly helps with mental management.

If it weren’t for that, I would have been quite surprised.

[Dungeon], even though I was prepared for it, it was a shitty start.

‘As expected, it’s just as rumored.’

I didn’t even realize it was a trap.

Or is it more accurate to say we didn’t even realize it was a trap?

Since all the players did was take a few steps into the rain, including me and Schreig, there’s only one possibility.

Schreig glared at London above us and muttered.

“I suppose it starts with breaking the trap.”

Well, he’s surprised, but he doesn’t look dumbfounded.

He thinks it’s nothing out of the ordinary for a dungeon.

Indeed, he’s experienced.

In that sense, I was glad.

“Schreig.”

“Yes, I’m listening.”

“What does it look like from your perspective, since you know the geography of this place so well?”

Me, well, enough to do an incorrect picture search.

I didn’t know much about London.

No~

Schreig replied, his voice straight and confident.

“Like I said, it’s exactly the same, except that there are citizens over there in London. And as you can see, you’re right about the trap.”

Schreig bit his lower lip.

“Either that, or this. Someone does.”

He’s not quite sure yet.

Then, Schreig turned to the guild.

“Explorers, begin mapping out the trap! The rest of you protect the explorers in case of an ambush.”

Indeed, this is a world-class guild, Second Sun. It’s a world-class guild, which means it has its own explorer class of players that it has nurtured, rather than relying on the Explorers Federation.

Except.

“This is crazy. What, all these traps?”

Dungeon Rift, level 600 minimum, level 900 maximum.

‘There’s no shortage of explorers.’

Even if Fabien, the head of the Explorers’ Federation, were to come, he wouldn’t be able to see through these traps in such a short time.

But as I said, there’s no need to worry.

I glanced across the street at Hiel, who was flapping his wings in London.

“If there’s a time for confrontation, there’s also a time for flexibility.”

sswaaaa─!

Somehow, the outcry was quite grandiose.

If anyone asks what I mean.

I just meant to use the rain as nutrients for the plants.

‘Please, I want this monologue to be drowned out by the sound of the rain…….’

I prayed to myself.

” ……, did you say something?”

Schreig finally heard me.

Damn formality.

Another polite question, another answer.

“You’ll see, Schreig, you’ll see.”

“……?”

Schreig’s eyes followed my gaze.

The presence of Hiel, no doubt.

Recognizing it, Schreig stammered in confusion.

“Hiel? Isn’t that the contract spirit of Lee Ho-yeol? You’re not kidding……! You summoned a spirit to see through the trap? You’re amazing……! Wait, what is that?”

Another London reflected in the sky.

Something reaching out from that sky.

It was a ‘root’.

Yes, the roots of plants that use water as nourishment.

The [Pure Knowledge] is helping me again.

It was the item’s effect.

I spoke shamelessly, as if I had always known.

“Do you remember the summer of the Arcana Continent?”

Silence.

What kind of a memory peddler am I?

They look puzzled.

It was Schreig who answered my question.

“Well, it depends on where you are, but summers in the south, in places like Hesias, were fantastic, because once it started raining, it never stopped, like there was a hole in the sky, just like now.”

Thank you, Schreig, for responding to my rant.

If I were you, I’d give you 10 compliment stickers.

Because it couldn’t have been more appropriate.

“That’s the right answer, Schreig.”

“Yes, what do you mean, the right answer?”

“Have you ever seen Hesias submerged in water?”

“……No, not in my memory. How about everyone else?”

Uh-oh.

The players looked at each other and shook their heads.

As if summer on the continent of Arcana wasn’t enough.

Why else would I bring up the name of the southern city of Hesias?

The roots of a plant found only in Hesias.

The Aquarius Oak.

Because it was the root of the Aquarius oak.

For a moment, Schreig pondered.

“Now that you mention it ……, that’s strange. Hesias isn’t a highland, and it doesn’t have a drainage system like the Imperial Capital, so how did it not get flooded?”

I said nonchalantly.

“That is the power of {nature}.”

[The Desire of Pure Knowledge].

The knowledge of the Aquarius oak tree popped into my head through the effect. The Aquarius oak was a plant that grew from a single tree, a single tree, nourished by an enormous amount of water.

‘There’s a reason why it only grows in Hesias.’

There was no other place in the empire that got that much rain.

In that case, Hiel was indeed my alter ego, my mirror…….

No, it was a contract spirit.

‘You don’t have to say it, Hiel.’

As you rise in rank to Unique Spirit, you awaken your {Nature} abilities.

Hiel could now control the life of plants.

It’s like making a plant grow, as long as you have the power.

It’s not that hard.

“Wait, Schreig. What is that?”

Schreig, who had been mulling over my words, turned his head at the call of his guildmate, and saw it. The roots of an Aquarius oak tree reaching down from the sky.

Schreig looked at me in disbelief.

“……You mean this force of nature you’re talking about?!”

I nodded instead of answering.

Once again, a phrase I use a lot.

At this point, it’s probably easier to understand by watching than by saying a hundred words.

This is no ordinary Aquarius oak.

A unique spirit.

It’s an Aquarius oak blessed by Hiel.

And it’s got a supply of nourishing water.

Soon.

Shush-shush─

The oak tree began to grow at a frightening speed!

“S-Schreig, a tree, suddenly roots from the sky, a tree!”

By the way, Hiel.

I see you like colorful things, too. ……Who do you think you are?

You’ve been using your briefly granted {nature} powers you’ve been granted, as if you were planting a tree. Aquarius oaks taking root in the streets of London.

‘No matter how much the [Pure Knowledge] has increased my magic efficiency, there is a limit.

This is why I was worried that my magic wouldn’t hold up.

…… Strange?

I didn’t feel the slightest bit of magic consumption.

Even if my magic efficiency had improved, it was impossible. As you can see, Hiel was using his magic like it was going out the window right now.

Doesn’t that mean she has a bigger magic container than me?

My doubts were growing.

Suddenly, I remembered the words of Senior Feiyan Lot.

-“Chief, as I’m sure you’re aware, Unique Spirits are different from normal Contract Spirits. They can’t be categorized as a ‘class’.”

Was it because of being reborn as a Unique Spirit?

All of these questions could be explained if Hiel had his own magic container that wasn’t dependent on me. This is how a parent feels when they see a child who has grown up well.

Thank you, Hiel, for growing up on your own.

Steadfastly rooted.

The Aquarius oak trees are gradually increasing in size.

One by one, sprouts began to bloom.

Finally, change was coming.

“……what?”

The dense rain fog began to lift.

The ankle-deep rainwater dried up.

And even the rain that had been pouring earlier.

sswaaaa…….

sswaa…….

ttug…….

ttug….

ttug.

“Rain, the rain has stopped!”

It stopped completely.

At the same time.

I and the players’ vision flickered.

A moment of intense light.

A panoramic view of London.

But something was definitely different.

“……Oh, it’s people! It’s citizens!”

“Shit, I don’t know what’s going on, but wake them up!”

“Hey, are you okay, wake up!”

They didn’t seem to have regained consciousness yet.

I encountered citizens of London who had disappeared without a trace.

I encountered Hiel.

He bowed dignified and said to me.

“I apologize for my tardiness in answering your call.”

There’s nothing to apologize for between us, Hiel.

In fact, I was tempted to compliment you.

But it was always important to assess the situation.

I looked up at the sky.

Nothing but dark clouds.

I couldn’t see any more of London.

Then I turned to Hiel.

“Hiel. Have I, have we, lost our minds like them?”

In response to my question, Hiel answered.

“No, sir, you were simply frozen in place. You didn’t say anything until you woke up, but I could hear the telepathy you sent.”

So, it was a hallucination.

I had been set up properly.

This confirms it.

That [dungeons] are really fucking difficult.

But no matter how I thought about it, I couldn’t just blame the dungeon for this.

‘Out of level.’

If it weren’t for Hiel.

If it weren’t for Hiel, players like me would have been drowning in the rain, out of shape. So yes, I could sense a viciousness there that went beyond the specifics of the dungeon.

As if to confirm my intuition, a message popped up.

[Skill, ‘Natural Enemy’ is activated].

As if demons weren’t enough.

I reflect on my behavior of complaining about the dungeon being created.

The dungeon and demons were a set.

The reality was even worse than I thought.

But like me, the demon hiding in the rain has no idea. Whether it hides in the real world or rolls around on the continent of Arcana.

“Time to pay the price.”

Survivor of Akshan and last demon hunter.

You never thought you’d see me alive and well.

Now that the rain has stopped, thanks to the Aquarius oaks.

The rain fog that obscured my vision was no longer there.

It means I can see clearly.

Where you are hiding, you inferior race.

I turned to Schreig.

“Schreig, may I ask you to complete the directions?”

“Ah, yes, of course.”

“Is there a building at the end of the street that can be said to be symbolic?”

“Speaking of symbols, I think that near Chelsea Bridge Road is…….”

*

Everyone knew this day would come someday.

There was no guarantee that the new rift would be the same as the old one, and the best way to prepare for it was to expect the worst.

The AAU’s Apocalypse Declaration was intended to do just that.

But what happened in London was far beyond our expectations.

The UK was hit by a direct hit, and it was chaos.

The press conference room.

The nervous man could barely get the words out.

-“We will do everything we can to resolve the situation.”

10 Downing Street, home of the Prime Minister, and the royal family at Buckingham Palace.

The leaders of the United Kingdom, and countless citizens.

Vanished into the dungeon rift, into the rain.

It was not enough for the army to move now.

Only players can access the Rift, the Rain Fog.

Naturally, the eyes of the world would turn to the British guild, Second Sun. But why? Second Sun’s guild master, Schreig, was unmoved.

“What’s wrong with him?”

“Did he see the appropriate level and get frustrated?”

“No. Isn’t this the kind of situation where you have to pretend you’re not?”

“Well, there’s no way he’d do that with his personality.”

“……Wait, that’s a weird angle.”

He wasn’t scared, he was freaked out.

The rain falling near the rift triggers an status abnormalities.

It didn’t take long for everyone to realize the truth: Ho-yeol, the man with the long umbrella, was there.

AAU Korea Branch.

The three men watched the spectacle.

Sung clenched his fist at Ho-yeol’s appearance.

“You’re stirring up some emotions, aren’t you? A black long umbrella!”

“It’s just an umbrella.”

“……I don’t really want to know what kind of sentimentality that is. Hyunjoon.”

By the way, Yoon Soo-gyeom looked at the branch manager, Park Min-jae.

‘……Isn’t this the time when you should be busy with an emergency meeting?’

It was a big enough event to require a meeting of the branch leaders.

Park Minjae noticed the stare.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“No, I’m just wondering if it’s okay for you to be here.”

“Things you only look for when you’re disappointed. What’s the point of being pretty?”

Lee Ho-yeol proved himself again today.

A government that surrounds itself.

As if he didn’t care about the rest of the world.

He stood tall.

He appeared in England like a hero.

But I, Park Min-jae, have a vessel not so wide.

“I’m not going, even if I have to.”

AAU.

Although it’s a single organization, it’s safe to say that each branch is actually an independent organization. You can’t get in trouble for skipping a few branch meetings.

Why, the UK branch has already skipped dozens of…….

“……!”

Wait a minute.

For a moment, Park felt uncomfortable.

……Why England?

The AAU London chapter hadn’t been in touch lately.

And a [dungeon] rift created in London not long after.

Could this really be a pure coincidence?

“……Damn.”

Park Minjae couldn’t figure it out on his own.

Isn’t it obvious?

You have to know something to think about it.

But Park Minjae didn’t stand still.

He quickly pulled out his smartphone.

“What’s wrong, Mr. Branch Leader?”

He shook his head.

His fingers tapped on the sparse keypad.

The caller was Lee Ho-yeol……. If only.

‘I need to know the number. one.’

So there’s only one leg to stand on.

The sender is Nam Tae-min.

The message was summarized in three lines.

[The key to the dungeon is to identify the location of the dungeon’s core.

This rift, the dungeon core, is located near Chelsea Bridge.

Very likely to be the AAU London Branch].

.

.

.

“Did ……AAU find out anything?”

I immediately forwarded the message to Ho Yeol.

I hope it’s helpful.

Yiying─

Ah, a reply?

Mr. Ho has already checked the message?

I hope it’s helpful…….

Nam Tae-min nervously checked his phone.

“……Hahaha.”

He spat out a laugh.

The reply from Ho Yeol was again four letters long.

However, the content was slightly different.

-I know.

“Is it because it’s so infinitely deep that you can’t predict it?”