Chapter 18

Redin watched them for two days.

He didn't know how many enemies there might be inside, how they patrolled, and if there were any traps.

The result.

Redin discovered that he needed a special item from a slave trader to enter the waterfall.

There are about ten of them in total.

Judging by the fact that the slaves they're capturing are children, he doesn't think they're very skilled.

As for what happened to Bahad.

Most likely because he was exhausted and his level of fitness was not very great at the time of his escape.

"Let's get moving."

Redin kept his gaze on the waterfall, ready to move at a moment's notice. And so he waited for the wagon.

As the bright day grew dark again, the moon rose in the night sky.

*Swoosh*

The waterfall parted to reveal a wagon. The man sitting next to the coachman held a key.

An item that emits a yellow glow.

Getting that is the first objective.

*Dag-dag! Dag-dag!*

Redin pulled on his cloak

The wagon was moving relatively slowly on the mountain road. He edged closer to the road, settled in, and waited.

As the sound gets louder.

When the horse-drawn wagon arrives in front of him.

He drew his sword, stamping the ground, and sprinted forward. With a light leap, he aimed for the man next to the coachman.

*Whisk!*

"Kuck!"

The head rolled on the floor, blood splattered, and the coachman screamed.

"Aaaahhhhh!"

"Heeeeeee!"

The hard pull of the reins startled the horse. It caused the moving carriage to fall sideways and crash.

" Argh!"

"What the hell just happened!"

Before the armed men could think, Redin swung into action. It's dark, and they're sleepy, so the battle is in his favor.

*Bam!*

*Plop!*

Redin made quick work of the two dazed men, stabbing them through the heart for a quick kill, then slashing at the throat of the one who had reached for his sword.

"Krug!"

The last one was shaking with the loss of his will, not even bothering to pull out his sword.

"Please… help me… please… I won't do this again."

He dropped to the floor, flat on his back.

He raised his hands above his head, sobbing and rubbing his hands together.

"Lift your head."

"You're… letting me live?"

After checking the eyes of the guy who raised his head slightly, he swung his sword and cut his throat.

"This… sh*t… croak…"

Redin used to be naive, too.

When he was at the peak of his fame in the game community, He got a lot of bad press, some of it slanderous.

Whenever he meets with the party, They always say the same thing.

I was wrong.

I will never do that again.

Just give me another chance.

Redin thought they were truly repentant and would never do it again, but then he realized they're doing the same old thing.

People don't change easily.

After so many years of experience, He naturally lost faith in people.

"I have a wife and a daughter… Spare me once, and I will not forget your favor."

Redin turned his head to look at the coachman.

"Why did you do this when you have a daughter?"

"I… owed them money, and they threatened to take my wife and daughter if I didn't help them with this…"

Redin slowly approached him and placed his hand on top of the coachman's head to check his status.

[Reto].

Strength: E

Agility: E

Stamina: D

Mana: E

Luck: D

Talent: E

-Possessed Skills: Carriage Driver (A), The One Who Wants to Protect (A), The One Who Is Frightened (B), The One Who Regrets (C), The One Who Repents (A)….

If it's a recompense, there won't be any worries about betrayal.

Maybe he can run some minor errands until Marek's casino arrives.

"I'll let you live."

He removed his hand from the coachman's head and took a yellow stone from the corpse of a nearby man.

"Follow me."

"Yes? Yes!"

Redin went to the waterfall and handed the yellow stone to the coachman. He was perceptive and immediately opened the entrance.

A cracked waterfall.

Redin ran right inside and quickly subdued the two men standing guard.

"Is there anyone else besides these two?"

"Uh… no."

A green path in Arrakis's eyes.

Walking inward along it, he saw the slaves that had been captured by the slave traders a few days ago.

Children to be sold into slavery, to be exact.

Prisons made of iron. The children locked inside were shaking with fear.

"Take all the kids out and wait for me, and if there's any way to get them something to eat, feed them."

"Yes!"

Turning, he followed Arrakis's eyes inward.

Now it was time for the Hidden Piece.

* * *

The cave was pretty darn winding.

There were many branching paths, and he had to walk for a long time. A hidden piece that would never have been found without Arrakis' eyes.

How the hell did he find this?

Redin thought to himself, whoever found this place, beat the dungeon, and took a picture of themselves doing it is pretty awesome.

"Oh, here it is."

A red glow appeared in front of him.

It was a spiral of red energy, constantly spinning.

In the game, they were called portals.

Initially, they were referred to simply as dungeon portals, but they were categorized over time.

Black is a dungeon portal.

These are areas that can be cleared by defeating the remnants of the demonic cult, monsters, and the Boss Monster in the dungeon.

The blue color indicates a Trial Portal.

A dungeon where you have a limited amount of time to complete a given task. If you fail, you won't die, but you won't be able to enter the same dungeon again.

Finally, red is the color of Mythic Portals.

These are the legacies left behind by heroes, lesser gods, and transcendent species who made their mark in ancient times.

They are the highest ranked of all dungeons.

The items and skills that can be obtained from them are unimaginable.

An ultra-rare portal that can only be found by those who have been ordained by the sky.¹

"In game, it was a Trial Portal…"

It seems that when Bahad got the reward, it turned into a trial portal. Right now it's red because no one has gotten the reward.

It seems that the attack method of the user who left the screenshot in the forum will not work.

But it's no big deal.

It's a portal that Bahad, who was much weaker than he is now, cleared, and Redin also had the Eye of Arrakis that he had.

There is nothing to be afraid of.

Huuuu

Redin composed himself and stepped into the portal. He felt dizzy in a way he'd never experienced using a teleporter.

He was unsure if his sight was clear or not.

Whether he was breathing or not.

He couldn't hear anything, couldn't feel anything, just a spinning motion and a lightheadedness.

How long has it been like this?

As his darkened vision brightened, all his senses returned. Redin clenched and unclenched his fists, and shifted his feet.

Everything seems fine.

He raised his head and surveyed his surroundings.

*Crackle!*

There was a temple in a great cavern, and blue flames roared around it. It wasn't hot or suffocating.

He swallowed hard.

Arrakis's eyes confirmed his suspicions. The green path led into the temple. He took slow steps.

The entrance to the temple.

As he stood in front of it, the door opened.

-I will test you to see if you are worthy of my power.

A woman's voice rang out, majestic.

With it, flames rose, melting the temple. An intense heat that had never been felt before.

He stepped back, gathering up his mana.

Redin moved some distance away and stared at the site of the temple. The site of the temple burned to the ground, until there was nothing left. A giant bird stood there, flapping its wings.

A blend of red and yellow fire.

Its billowing wings and tail fill the cave.

Looks exactly like the giant firebird from Phase 2 of the Bahad raid. One of the mythical transcendent species.

Phoenix

As its wings flapped, the voice from earlier came back.

-Survive and prove it.

-For those who fail to attest, there is only death.

A gaping mouth of a Phoenix.

Inside, a sphere of fire was created. Yellow to red, red to blue.

One glance and Redin knew it was going to hit him.

*Ppaaaaaa!*

As expected, it flew to me.

A long blast of flame stretched out in a spiral.

An attack that encompassed a wide area.

There was no room to hide.

He stood and stared into the flames.

Arrakis's visible glowing arrows and guiding light told him to stand still.

He believed in it and didn't move.

Soon a gust of flame fell upon my head. A gust of wind centered on where I stand.

Searing heat.

Flames rose to the ceiling.

The heat burned for a long time, then instantly died down. I could see the cave clearly through the flames.

The floor had melted away.

Everything except the narrow strip of ground on which Redin was stepping was gone. An abyss where you can't even see the bottom.

If he had moved to escape the flames.

He would have vanished from this world along with the ground. Once again, Redin realized that this is a hidden piece that he would never have gotten without the Eye of Arrakis.

-The courage of a champion who isn't afraid of fire, but embraces it, makes one admire it.

-You deserve to have my power.

A voice, a little gentler than before.

Flames burst forth from the darkness of the abyss, and a much smaller phoenix emerged.

About the size of a palm.

It spread its wings and flew quickly. The moment it touched his body, the phoenix flared up.

The flames flowed into the center of his body.

When he removed his shirt and looked at his heart, he saw a phoenix-like symbol on it.

[Chosen of the Phoenix].

[You've gained Fire of Purification (S)].

[Fire of Purification (S)]

-The purifying power of the phoenix burns away all negative influences affecting the target.

– Significantly increased fire attribute resistance.

-Active skill.

[Ding!]

[You have met the special condition].

[Indomitable (A) is transformed into a Blazing Soul (EX) by the power of the phoenix].

[Blazing Soul (EX)]

-When you are completely depleted of health in battle, the power of the Phoenix in your heart is activated.

-Fully restores the user's health and injuries, and all abilities are tripled for 10 minutes.

-Cooldown: 7 Days.

-Passive skill.

-Phoenix Power: You can rise from the dead once. While doing so, all stats are increased by tenfold.

One dispel skill.

And one extra life.

"Is this a Mythic Portal reward…"

Redin was so shocked that he couldn't even close his mouth.

Although it's not his place to say.

Bahad, this fucker ate this scam skill completely by accident.

* * *

Leaving the portal and returning.

He followed the green light that still remained, and found himself in a twisting and turning cave with signs of human occupancy.

A room once used by a slave trader.

A search of a hidden compartment in one corner revealed a large amount of gold coins. He snatched it up and returned to the entrance.

Reto with the children.

"Oh… you're here?"

"You didn't run away?", Questioned by Redin while looking at the haggard appearance of Reto with the freed slave children.

"You spared my life… how could I.." Reto answered.

He grabbed a fistful of gold coins and handed them to Reto.

"Those with parents will be sent home, and those without will be sent to the Basta Academy of Swordsmanship in the Valheim Estate."

"Yes."

"You keep this."

Redin took two gold coins separately.

"Thank you!"

He was about to leave them behind.

He glanced at Reto, just in case.

Playing amongst themselves.

Redin figured that if he followed a slave trader, Reto might as well know a drug dealer.

"Do you know Heatherlock? I hear he's a drug dealer."

"I've heard of him."

"Really?"

** ** **

TL/N:

1. Someone blessed by immense luck