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Chapter 114 – Heimer’s Reward
It was a buff-type skill with a simple description, but its power was anything but simple.
‘It’s a skill that makes Moonlight Slaughter (월광섬), which I can use every ten minutes, usable in one second.’
It was only for ten seconds, but Crimson Moon was a skill that let him use Moonlight Slaughter (월광섬) consecutively.
‘One second to gather Moonlight Slaughter (월광섬)’s energy, and then a one-second cooldown. That means I can use Moonlight Slaughter (월광섬) every two seconds.’
A skill he used once every ten minutes—now he could use it five times in ten seconds.
It felt like he’d gained another finishing move.
‘Now, once I complete the escort and get the EXP reward and the separate reward the dwarves give…’
There was nothing more to take from the dwarf caravan.
“All right, we’ve dealt with the monsters, so let’s start exposing traitors again!”
After that, the exposing operation continued, and some were killed.
However, it seemed some of the traitors were assassins, because every time the exposing operation happened, they slipped out neatly with invisibility.
[Current Headcount Status]
└Participants: 190
└Traitors: 5
“Ha… there are only ten minutes left, and there are still five traitors?”
“Is there anyone we haven’t attacked?”
“Who knows… I feel like we stabbed everyone…”
“This is ridiculous. Even after making everyone attack each other to expose them, none of them get caught—seriously.”
While they blocked 29 out of 30 monster waves, they carried out the exposing operation many times.
And yet, the traitors didn’t get caught.
Every time the operation began, if they simply avoided the area—or if they used an invisibility skill as assassins—they could evade it without much difficulty.
‘With 200 people, it’s not like the number is tiny. It won’t be easy to find them.’
On top of that, with monster assaults coming every ten minutes, there was no time to spare to search for traitors.
Of course, there was the method of doing a full inspection whenever there was time, but—
‘For that, someone has to take the burden and lead it… and no one’s doing it.’
They were already busy to death dealing with orc assaults—who had the stamina and leeway for that?
And if they tried to squeeze time and investigate, they couldn’t even memorize individuals one by one because nicknames weren’t visible.
As a result, the players’ worries were no small thing.
“Hm… are you sure you stabbed everyone?”
“I’m telling you, yes. We tried more than ten times now.”
“Then why are there still five traitors left?”
“Why are you asking me that?”
“Then who am I supposed to ask, huh?”
“This bastard suddenly starts speaking informally?”
“What? Bastard? You f*cking bastard.”
Maybe because they were exhausted from killing orcs, everyone was on edge.
“Stop! Everyone, stop fighting!”
In the overheated atmosphere, someone stepped in to mediate.
“Fighting like this doesn’t solve anything.”
“Then do you have some good method?”
“First, we need to talk and see if there’s anyone we haven’t stabbed.”
“I said we stabbed everyone.”
“Then what about Black Scythe? Did you stab Black Scythe too?”
“Black Scythe?”
“Stab Black Scythe?”
“Could anyone do that without being insane?”
“Then no one stabbed him?”
“I couldn’t. Heh heh.”
“What if Black Scythe is a traitor? My head would fly off.”
“True.”
“So… no one? Nobody?”
The muttering reached Ryu Min’s ears too.
People’s attention was focusing on him.
‘They look like they’re suspecting me.’
Around now, someone would appear who’d take the burden and step forward.
Right now.
“If you don’t have the guts to stab him, I will?”
“Go ahead and stab.”
Ryu Min answered instantly, as if biting the bait.
“If you’re confident, stab me.”
“…!”
At that blade-sharp momentum, the player flinched—then burst out laughing.
“H-ha… judging by how you’re threatening me, I guess you really are a traitor. Haha.”
“When did I threaten you?”
“J-just now—you stared like you’d kill me if I stabbed you.”
“Should I smile at someone who’s suspecting me? I’m human too. If I get suspected, it pisses me off.”
Acting out a displeased expression, Ryu Min said it again.
“If you want to stab me, then stab me.”
That kind of person, when you actually set the table, can’t eat.
Ryu Min understood that, so he deliberately came on strong.
Sure enough, the guy who’d been shouting confidently started backing away like a dog getting scolded by its owner.
Among them, there was no player with the guts to stab Ryu Min.
‘That doesn’t mean the suspicion is completely gone, though.’
Just as Ryu Min expected, people muttered.
“Seeing that reaction, isn’t Black Scythe really a traitor?”
“No way.”
“Is it really true that nobody stabbed him even once?”
They thought they were speaking quietly, but Ryu Min heard everything.
However, it seemed Ryu Min wasn’t the only one who heard the muttering.
“There’s no need to suspect Black Scythe-nim! I stabbed him already.”
Someone defended Ryu Min.
It was Min Juri.
At her claim, players who had been benefiting from her buffs went, “Uh—uh,” and swallowed their words.
“Really? Buffer-nim stabbed him?”
“Yes. It’s true. I stabbed him, and it bounced off with a ting sound.”
“Hm… if Buffer-nim says so…”
It was more effective when someone else defended you than when you insisted you weren’t a thief yourself.
As if to prove it, people nodded and turned away.
Reading their thoughts, Ryu Min couldn’t help being surprised inside.
‘The guys who were suspecting me a moment ago completely erased their suspicion from one sentence of Min Juri’s.’
It seemed they felt it would weigh on their conscience to suspect the Buffer too, right after Black Scythe.
That was only natural—up to now, they’d received buffs from her for free.
‘This is kind of irritating. She’s controlling people better than I am.’
Was drawing people in through good influence more effective than making them submit through force?
As if she didn’t know she’d stirred people’s hearts, Min Juri grinned and whispered in a quiet voice.
“Black Scythe-nim. I did well, right? Don’t worry. I’ll protect the secret that you’re a traitor.”
“A traitor? I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Come on, you don’t have to play dumb with me.”
Smiling brightly, Min Juri hummed as she moved away.
If she was seen talking with Black Scythe, she might be suspected, so she was distancing herself.
‘She’s really excited—really. Did she want to help me that badly?’
Min Juri, who had always only received help from Black Scythe, couldn’t contain her joy at being able to help like this.
But not far away, Seo Arin was watching that scene.
With a face that looked like she regretted not being the one to defend him.
For Ryu Min, it was the kind of situation that made him want to press his palm to his forehead.
‘Why is my surroundings full of people who want to help me?’
When Ryu Min didn’t even need any particular help.
Then people shouted.
“Monsters! Monsters!”
“They show up again with ten minutes left?!”
Ryu Min knew.
That this was the last assault.
‘Since it’s the last one, should I do a full wipe?’
Whoooom—
A curtain of darkness covered everything in all directions.
Using Night of Death, he slaughtered orcs with a 50% increased attack speed.
And for the finishing blow, of course—
Wheeeeeeeng—
‘Moonlight Slaughter (월광섬).’
Flash—
The slashed radiance swept away fifteen orcs lined up in a straight line all at once.
[Your level has increased!]
His level had already risen to 62.
Even though the EXP reward hadn’t come in yet, it was a fairly satisfying growth speed.
After completely wiping out the orc pack—
[Time until arrival at destination: 00:00:00]
The moment the timer hit zero, the dwarf caravan stopped the wagons.
“Warriors of the Otherworld, thank you. I believe the escort can end here. We’ve passed the dangerous section.”
Heimer lifted his short arm and pointed forward.
“Our destination is there. From here, we will go on our own, so you may return. Thanks to you, we were able to transport the goods safely. Thank you again.”
After saying thank you again and again, Heimer suddenly climbed down from the wagon and walked somewhere.
Following his gaze, he went to none other than Ryu Min, who was still transformed into a Lost Yak.
Heimer took Ryu Min’s hand and expressed personal gratitude.
“Warrior of the Otherworld—no. The Forerunner. Thank you truly for saving my life.”
“It was nothing.”
On the outside he acted cool, but inside, Ryu Min was expecting it.
The reward he’d been waiting for.
Sure enough, Heimer pulled something from his chest.
“It cannot compare to the value of a life, but I wish to repay you. Please accept it.”
Rather than refusing, Ryu Min accepted it immediately.
[You have received ‘Rune Fragment of Durability’ as a reward from Dwarf Blacksmith Heimer.]
In case he demanded it back, Ryu Min used it right away.
[Using ‘Rune Fragment of Durability’.]
[The acquired rune is automatically engraved into the player’s body!]
[Rune of Durability]
-Effect: The durability of equipped items recovers by 1 per second.
At the reward he’d been waiting for, Ryu Min’s lips split into a long grin.
‘Perfect. Now I won’t need to ask Russell to fix durability anymore.’
Until now, he’d returned to reality and gotten the Orb of Eternal Sleep (영면의 구슬) repaired, but he wouldn’t need to anymore.
Even without a blacksmith, he could restore durability on his own.
‘With this, I can wear the Orb of Eternal Sleep (영면의 구슬) and raise stats infinitely.’
Of course, in reality, there would almost never be a time to use the orb.
Because stacks only rise if you kill monsters.
‘Some might think they can raise stacks by killing mealworms, but mealworms aren’t monsters. They’re bugs.’
Only the Rune of Slaughter, which rises when you kill a target, would apply to mealworms.
‘That doesn’t mean I can’t use it at all in reality.’
He said there would almost never be a time to use the orb—not that there would be none.
Which meant monsters would appear in reality as well.
“Then, The Forerunner. I look forward to meeting you again next time.”
After saying that, Heimer led the caravan away.
Once the caravan disappeared so far it couldn’t be seen, the same message appeared in the players’ view.
[You have safely escorted the Dwarf Merchant Caravan to the destination.]
[You have completed the ‘Escort the Dwarf Merchant Caravan’ quest.]
[Shortly, all participants will receive EXP as a success reward.]
[The EXP granted will be twice the amount of monsters hunted by you and your party members.]
“Ohhh, is this real? Twice the EXP of the mobs we’ve killed so far?”
“That’s a lot.”
“It’s a party, so we’ll all level together, right?”
It was regrettable that they hadn’t exposed all traitors, but hearing “double EXP” loosened the players’ mood.
When the reward finally came in, voices of admiration rose from all around.
Min Juri and Seo Arin were the same.
“Waaah, the EXP is pretty sweet, Black Scythe-nim. I’m already level 38.”
“Yeah? Congrats.”
“What level did you reach, Black Scythe-nim?”
“Me?”
As Ryu Min parted his lips, Min Juri asked back.
“Sorry—what did you say?”
Like she thought she might’ve misheard.
“I’m level 70.”
No wonder—because it was a level shocking enough to make you doubt your ears.