◈ Chapter 70. I Can’t Wait (1)

[Quest: Marcelo’s Research].

The first quest that flashed up was Marcelo’s.

Approach to Anomaly (In Progress)

Attack the Crack. (Repeat)

Witness the continent of Arcana. (Successful)

Attack the Crack.

A new quest objective appeared beneath it.

The word [Success] spoke again.

Quernberg Machine Tower.

That’s the real Arcana out there.

My memory of the continent was twelve years ago.

That was when Arcana was just a game.

Yes, it must have changed a few times over the course of its history.

“But.”

It’s not like the mountains have changed, is it?

The forests and land burned.

The smoke that enveloped the area.

Villages trampled without a trace.

Walls in ruins.

It told me that the city was no different.

But more than anything else.

“Demons as far as the eye can see.”

I’d been expecting that for a while.

A short time.

Considering the influence of the demonic monsters on reality.

The situation on the Arcana Continent was as bad as it could be, if not worse.

‘To say the least, this is a serious situation…….’

The exact situation on the Arcana Continent?

Of course, I couldn’t know.

Why, the view of the Arcana that I’m looking at now is just a reflection of the Quernberg machine tower.

But it was enough to make me realize the gravity of the situation.

“Think calmly.”

I was surprised by the unexpected sight.

Once again, the setup of the Grandfell didn’t disappoint.

I was able to stay calm and think rationally.

‘Reality is always the most important thing.’

『Anomaly』, itself.

The connection between the Arcana continent and reality.

The ideal where the crack exists.

The crisis on the Arcana Continent is just that.

A crisis that will befall reality.

“We can’t rely on updates anymore.”

It’s not that I’m distrusting the update history in general.

In the first place, they were meant to help players.

It was all because of the demons, the devil.

They’re hiding their identity.

Possessed by ‘something’.

The more they hid their true selves, the more likely they were to flood into reality through the cracks.

“How cowardly.”

Now that he knew.

The pride of Grandfell would not stand for that.

No monsters, but demons walking the streets?

It’s not in the Grandfell dictionary.

“I’ll have to be more serious about attacking the crack.”

It’s not enough to explore weirdness, you’ve also touched my pride.

In the end, it will be me and my struggling legs that die……!

At that point, it’s not a strange thought.

“This landscape is also unbearable.”

I said.

Yes, for me.

No, because Grandfell had work to do.

The demon on the loose, as you say?

Now that I’ve seen it, I can’t let it go.

Even if it’s on the continent of Arcana!

In reality, it’s impossible to interfere with the Arcana Continent.

But in the cracks, in the realm of the [Anomaly]?

It may be possible to interfere with the Arcana Continent.

As if to prove the possibility.

Another quest was flashing.

[Class Quest: Legacy of Akshan].

The torch of survival has been passed.

Last of the Demon Hunters.

Reclaim your legacy from evil.

─Train your weakened body. (Repeat)

Investigate the Quernberg machine tower of the War Machine. (Success)

Activate the Quernberg Machine Tower. (Ongoing)

Activate the Quernberg Machine Tower.

You’ve identified a new objective.

Crack─!

Easy profit─!

The mechanical device slowly comes to a stop.

A magnificent sight unfolded in front of them.

Huge cogs and mechanisms interlocked with each other.

Search for the [Quernberg Rising Lever].

I thought I had a rough idea of the structure of the tower.

The giant device was designed with a circuitry far more complex than a lever.

“It’s like a heart.”

I exclaimed.

At the same time, a message popped into my head.

[Quernberg Machine Tower – You have entered the top floor].

This is the top floor of the machine tower.

If you have eyes to see, you will recognize it.

This is where the Quernberg Machine Tower will be activated.

I knew it would be on the top floor.

I did not hesitate.

Another angle.

I approached the giant mechanical heart.

Anyone who saw it would be worried and ask.

Is it okay to touch it?

Could it break down if I did?

It’s an understandable concern.

As I said, the mechanical heart had a pedantic, intricate structure that even Grandfell’s talents couldn’t immediately grasp.

But.

“Knowledge is not what you need to hunt demons.”

Indeed.

Complexity, immense technological prowess, whatever.

After all, the Quirnberg Machine Tower was Akshan’s legacy.

The ultimate weapon for hunting demons.

“Maybe a ritual.”

So I didn’t hesitate.

I placed my hand on the machine’s heart.

I began a ritual only a demon hunter could perform.

[The ‘Quernberg Machine Tower’ was chosen as the sacrifice].

[Skill, ‘Ritual of the Exorcist’ is activated].

Thud!

The mechanical heart begins to beat.

Chirp─!

Chi-chi-chi-chirp─!

The entire tower begins to vibrate as the giant machinery interlocked.

A Exorcist ritual to slay a demon.

The Quernberg Machine Tower is its sacrifice.

Sacrificed until it was no longer operational.

I will hunt the demons that roam the continent of Arcana.

[The Cirnberg Machine Tower begins to operate].

Koo-koo-koo-koo-koo-koo!

Vibrations and shaking gradually intensify.

In my shaky vision, a message appeared.

[You have cleared the crack in the Quirnberg Machine Tower].

Clear.

The crack will soon be closed, the space of the [Anomaly].

When your vision returns, you’ll wake up in the real world.

But I know.

“Legacy of Akshan.”

No, I believe it.

“May it live up to its pride as a war machine.”

The Quernberg machine tower will be the last of its kind.

to hunt the demons of the continent of Arcana.

As if he wasn’t wrong.

In my blurring vision.

One message after another popped up.

Activate the Battlecruiser Quernberg. (Success)

[You have fulfilled the condition].

[You have unlocked the secret of the Quernberg Machine Tower].

[The Battlecruiser Quernberg Mech begins to fight back].

[The Battlecruiser Quernberg Mech accumulates experience].

[Prestige has been accumulated in the Battlecruiser Cirnberg Mech].

[For information on accumulated experience and prestige, see…….]

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. https://pindangscans.com

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[You have cleared the Quernberg Machine Tower Crack].

…… is Lee Ho-yeol.

Eventually, Lee Ho-yeol cleared the crack.

The message echoed through the Quernberg Machine Tower to all players.

Another jaw-dropping performance. Above all, this was an unimaginable speed of capture.

“No, how did you get to 30 points so quickly?”

“The last time I checked, I was at 21 points.”

“What’s with this deal anyway?!”

Koo-koo-koo-koo-!

Isn’t this thing going to collapse?!

The machine tower was shaking to the point that it made me shiver.

Their questions and curiosity only increased.

“What happened upstairs?”

“If you cleared the crack so quickly, what was it?”

“At least it wasn’t a self-destruct, right?”

“Oh, I’m so frustrated, isn’t Lee Ho-yeol going to do something like streaming?!”

I was so curious that I wanted to throw a ridiculous tantrum!

But the mood didn’t last long.

Soon, the players were getting the message.

[Someone has unlocked the secret of the Quernberg Machine Tower].

[The Battlecruiser Quernberg are launching a counterattack].

“!!!”

For once, I knew immediately.

That someone is Lee Ho-yeol!

He had indeed uncovered the secret of the Quernberg Machine Tower in such a short time.

But wait, what did he mean by a Battlecruiser?

The faces of the players gradually began to change.

“…… is launching a counterattack? Counterattack? What counterattack?”

“So it’s just shaking, not collapsing?”

“No way, was that a transforming robot or something?! This?!”

Shock, shock, shock─

And so on and so forth.

But I couldn’t stay surprised forever.

Crack cleared.

Just like the system said.

When I opened my eyes again, I was greeted by the landscape of reality.

A dumbfounded moment.

The rift that had been created in the Yusra Kingdom.

The players who entered the machine tower through him thought.

‘……Ah, Lee Ho-yeol!’

‘Where is Lee Ho-yeol?’

‘……If I can get a word out of him, I’ll win big!’

They looked around.

I decided to grab him by the ankles and hang on to him.

Seriously, the messages came like a storm.

What had happened upstairs?

What are the secrets of the Quernberg machine tower?

They’re launching a counterattack, but against whom?

What kind of weapon is this?

It was a truckload of questions.

And I’m sure the viewers, the world, too.

So the answer, if there is one, is.

“…….”

I’ll do it for the world’s right to know.

The players gird their nerves.

Finding a spot in the crowd?

That wasn’t too difficult.

From the hair to the silver hair.

The presence of Ho Yeol from his silver hair cannot be buried.

As if that wasn’t enough, this time he had Nam Tae-min, a hunk of muscle, by his side.

But.

“… … omg.”

It’s the right to know, and it’s a spleen resolution, and what.

The moment I came face to face with Ho-Yeol.

My lips froze, but didn’t fall.

When I asked, it came to me.

The cold demeanor Ho-yeol had shown to the public all these years.

-Not doing anything??? Forgot the question?

-You’re making me subscribe twice.

-Just ask him something, please! Or are you collecting money?!

That was even scarier than the angry chat from viewers.

Weren’t they players themselves?

As in the crack in the Quernberg machine tower.

There was no way they wouldn’t run into Ho-Yeol again.

But if they ever did, would they be able to tell him……?

“…… Holy sh*t.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Ho-Yeol in action in a passing machine tower.

He walked through the trap with grace.

A 10-game winning streak in a tournament where it was hard to win a single game.

I witnessed it myself.

“I’m crazy!

Like a bunch of clueless reporters.

They couldn’t get to Ho Yeol.

Yes, you can see what you know.

The players knew Ho Yeol.

I couldn’t just grab him by the ankles and hang on.

“Go first.”

The crowd parted at Ho-yeol’s words.

So Ho-yeol stood out from the crowd.

He left without a single wrinkle or dust on his clothes.

“……whoa.”

A sigh escaped him.

Excuses came from the remaining players.

“No, we couldn’t help it, could we?”

“Didn’t you see that sour look? It’s not really his……!”

“Unsubscribe? Do it. It’s views, it’s comments, it’s dislikes, it’s terrorism, it’s whatever, I’m way more scared of Lee Ho-yeol than that sh*t!”

* https://pindangscans.com

I headed straight for the portal.

Arrive at the Magic Tower.

I climbed the stairs and opened the door to the lab.

Thunk─

It was only after I closed the door that I realized.

……I must have hit the jackpot.

The top floor of the Quernberg machine tower.

The last message I saw there.

[Experience is accumulated in the Cirnberg Machine Tower].

[Prestige accumulates in the Battlecruiser Quernberg Machine Tower].

[You gain access to the accumulated experience and prestige].

Experience and prestige!

It’s not the other way around, it’s the experience and prestige earned by the Quernberg Machine Tower, which has the prestigious label of being an Ultimate Weapon.

And I’ve seen it with my own two eyes.

I’ve seen the tower’s technological prowess with my own two eyes.

……Maybe we shouldn’t blame level anymore?

This is the Quernberg Machine-Tower, the final weapon in the counteroffensive.

It will hunt down demons on the continent of Arcana and gain experience,

He will naturally play an active role and accumulate fame..

‘And that’s what I’m giggling about…….’

It’s no wonder my heart is pounding with anticipation.

I was too shameless to be carefree.

Dalcak─

I was already sipping my teacup.

“With great power comes great responsibility.”

You’re a hard person to cheer up. Really.

Of course, in retrospect, it was too early to be happy.

He’d earned the right to acquire it.

‘It’s not like I acquired it.’

I mean, the experience points and the reputation accumulated in the Quernberg machine tower.

Somehow I had to ‘acquire’ it to make it mine.

How to do that, I couldn’t immediately tell.

The Quernberg Machine Tower was on the continent of Arcana.

Dakkak─

So I guess it’s best to let this excitement die down for now.

Yes, let’s consider it a savings account and forget about it.

I’ll be able to stand tall in front of the level.

I’m not going to be a wimp anymore.

I’m saving up for the future.

Myself.

Of course, my hands are not for mental victories.

They were busy earlier.

Writing on a parchment with a feather pen.

The addressee was, of course, the chief mage, Marcelo.

[Marcelo’s Research], the quest objective fulfilled.

I also learned something new at the Quernberg Machine Tower.

‘I’ll have to talk to Marcelo about that.

The situation on the Arcana Continent as seen from the crack.

The possibility of interfering in Arcana.

The mystery of the Quernberg Machine Tower.

I had a lot to say because I had discovered a lot of things on my own.

Myself–

Marcelo’s reply appeared on the parchment.

Clearly, he had a lot to say.

“……!”

The first sentence left me speechless.

The Quernberg Machine Tower.

I thought the technology was pretty cool.

……This is where the “race” comes from?!