Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Originally, when Blink was used in the game, it instantly moved you 3.5 meters.

The direction was set to the point where the mouse cursor was aimed, but that was only in the game.

This was reality.

There was no keyboard to trigger Blink.

Nor was there a mouse to control the direction.

Even so, I did not hesitate.

‘I’ve already used it once.’

It had only been a single time, but I had roughly grasped what kind of mechanism activated it.

I pointed the wand in the direction I wanted to blink and spoke.

“Blink.”

In an instant, my vision changed.

Along with a floating sensation that lingered around my whole body, a chilling feeling brushed down my spine.

Of course it would.

Because I had deliberately used Blink toward the air above.

“Kraaaaaaagh!”

The hydra’s scream struck my eardrums.

I crossed a distance of 3.5 meters in an instant.

‘Roughly…. 3.5 meters. Is it similar to the game?’

By rough estimate, yes.

I would only know for sure if I measured it myself, but well, that was something I could test after surviving here, so there was no need to worry about it now.

As I twisted my body while falling through the air, the spot where I had been standing until just now entered my view.

At the same time, I saw the woman’s face, filled with bewilderment.

It was only natural for her to be surprised when the person who had been standing beside her moments ago suddenly teleported out of nowhere.

Too bad. It was still too early to be surprised.

In a dungeon, surviving with only a porter’s abilities was impossible.

That much, I could say with certainty.

The dangers of a dungeon were not limited to monsters alone.

Aside from monsters, there were traps scattered everywhere, ready to spring out from who knew where.

There were hundreds of types of them alone.

‘If you don’t know, you have no choice but to get caught.’

Traps that could activate anytime, anywhere.

But in other words,

‘if you know when and where the traps will appear.’

And if you could use a dungeon’s traps in the right place at the right time, even a mere porter could survive.

Click.

When I struck the wall with the wand in my left hand, the stone sank inward.

At the same time, a magic circle appeared from the ground where the hydra stood and emitted light.

Moisture seemed to rise throughout the area, and then a cloud formed over the hydra’s head.

Traps were not limited to daggers pouring from the walls or the floor suddenly collapsing beneath your feet.

At times, they also obscured vision and changed the environment.

Tap. After landing calmly, I dashed toward the hydra.

I steadied my breath and adjusted my grip on the wands in my hands.

The wands issued to porters contained only basic magic.

Only enough to protect themselves against monsters around the level of goblins.

The wand in my left hand contained [Static Electricity], while the wand in my right contained [Amplification].

Static Electricity literally created static electricity, and Amplification increased power.

Unfortunately, neither of them was offensive magic. Both were support-type magic.

It was a shame.

Even so, they were enough as cards to deal with that thing.

“Static Electricity, Static Electricity, Static Electricity.”

I aimed the wand in my left hand at the hydra and recited the chant.

Crackle. Static electricity formed throughout the area, and the hair all over my body stood on end.

It was a range that would have been impossible with a single use of Static Electricity, but this was the result of using every spell contained in the wand.

And I did not stop there.

“Amplification, Amplification, Amplification…. Amplification—”

When I wrung out and used every spell stored in the remaining wand, the entire area, including the hydra, became magnetized.

Above the bastard’s head was a cloud filled with moisture.

And there was the hydra’s body, which had become magnetism itself.

Now the preparations are complete.

Tap!

I stepped onto the trap I had already marked out in advance.

What activated this time was a trap that released a weak electric current.

In the game, it was a minor trap that induced the status abnormality [Paralysis].

Originally, it was a trap no more than a small incident, but covering this entire area was static electricity reinforced several times by Amplification magic.

On top of that, there was even the moisture-filled air created by the trap that had activated just before.

Four combinations that would have been nothing as individual abilities came together, and a 4th-grade magic that could never be reproduced with a porter’s ability activated.

“Lightning Strike.”

CRACKLE—!

***

[Using Blink.]

[Remaining Blink Uses (□□□)]

[All Blink uses consumed. Please wait for the cooldown.]

***

CRACKLE— BOOM!

Lightning rained down from the thundercloud on the ceiling.

The hydra writhed and screamed inside the lightning that poured down without giving it a moment to breathe.

Among 4th-grade magic, [Lightning Strike] existed.

Of course, in terms of power alone, this version could not compare to the original, but I had managed to reproduce a similar downgraded version.

And the downgraded version of Lightning Strike was enough to kill the hydra.

[Again Origin] was a game that boasted vast freedom.

As proof, even if they were only for self-defense, if you knew the combination method, you could reproduce 4th-grade magic using 1st-grade magic.

Of course, reproducing magic of a higher grade than that would require much more demanding combinations and conditions.

But against a hydra, 4th-grade magic was enough to bring it down.

‘It really is different from seeing it on a monitor.’

Good thing I used Blink and quickly got myself out of there.

If I had gotten caught up in it by mistake, there would not have been any bones left to collect.

Anyway.

“It’s dead, right?”

I poured that much Lightning Strike onto it. Surely it wasn’t still alive, right?

I had used every means available to me.

The magic stored in the wands had all been spent, and Blink was also on cooldown.

If the bastard was still alive even after all this….

Unfortunately, I would have no choice but to throw the woman to it and look for my next move.

I felt sorry for the woman, but it wasn’t as if we had enough of a bond for me to risk my life… right?

About a minute passed under that tension.

Fortunately, amid the misfortune, the catastrophe I feared did not occur.

When the thundercloud cleared, I saw the hydra reduced to a black lump of charcoal.

[You have defeated the hydra.]

[You have conquered the dungeon.]

[Calculating feats.]

“…Haha.”

Once the tension loosened, a hollow laugh escaped me.

Meanwhile, when I turned my head, I saw the woman’s face in one corner, deathly pale.

For some reason, she looked even more bloodless than when she had encountered the hydra.

“Wh… What in the world happened…. Were you… a mage?”

What was she saying now?

I wondered about the woman’s intent for only a moment before immediately accepting it.

‘Ah, well, I guess it’s understandable for her to misunderstand.’

For me, this was a plan designed by using all the knowledge I had from the game, but to the woman, who did not know the circumstances, it would not look that way.

I briefly dismissed that matter.

“I was just lucky.”

“Th… Then I suppose so. Ah, come to think of it, we haven’t even introduced ourselves, have we? May I ask your name…?”

“Sung Ha-jin.”

It was the name written on my ID.

It was also the name I had set before starting the game.

Since it would be troublesome if the conversation dragged on, I replied with a short answer.

Aside from the fact that the background of the character I had possessed was that of a porter, I had no knowledge.

Even if I made something up, the longer the tail, the more likely it was to get stepped on.

It was only a one-in-ten-thousand possibility, but it would be troublesome if the woman went outside and tried to dig up information on me.

Any made-up story would be exposed quickly.

Of course, that probably would not happen, but there was no harm in being careful.

‘I should prepare a suitable excuse.’

It would be troublesome if I met one of this character’s acquaintances outside.

The most ordinary option would be amnesia, perhaps.

Saying I ate a memory-loss mushroom during the exploration, or that I developed amnesia from the shock, would be plausible enough.

“I’m Seo-rin. Um… Is there anything you’re curious about regarding me? I’ve worked as a porter in this industry since I was young. If I’m by your side, Mr. Sung Ha-jin, there might be something I can help you with!”

In the middle of all this, she was trying hard to scrape up even the falling bean-powder crumbs.

“You talk a lot.”

Or maybe she simply had no sense.

“Be quiet.”

“Eek… Yes, sir!”

“And what happened today is a secret. It would be a little troublesome if it became known to the world.”

“Mmph, mmph…!”

When I said that while placing a finger over my lips, the woman covered her mouth with both hands and nodded fiercely.

Her exaggerated behavior made me chuckle.

‘She doesn’t need to go that far.’

But if she felt more comfortable that way, I had no intention of stopping her.

If what happened today spread through the world, there was a high possibility that I would get dragged into troublesome matters.

On top of that, I did not know the background of my own body.

Not my family relationships, nor even what had led me to work as a porter.

‘The part about receiving the Lich King’s curse is unclear too.’

The Lich King was a monster that appeared in the middle section of this game.

I also needed to find out how this body, which was nothing but a mere porter, had ended up cursed.

At any rate, I wanted to exclude uncertainty as much as possible.

For that, I judged there would be nothing good about letting my name become known.

It was in the middle of that.

Ding! Ding!

Along with notification sounds in my ears, a system window appeared.

[Unbelievable Achievement Accomplished!]

[You have accomplished the feat of reproducing 4th-grade magic as a non-mage.]

[You have accomplished the feat of subjugating a hydra as a porter.]

[You have subjugated a hydra with less than 10% damage taken.]

……….

…..

…

.

[Rewards issued.]

[Special Ability Reset Elixir issued.]

-Upon use, the special ability’s cooldown is reset.

[Again Origin] had an achievement system.

As expected of the setting of being inside the game, it seemed even that part had been implemented.

On top of that.

‘Holy shit.’

My eyes shot open.

A special ability reset?

That was an item that was rarely obtained even in the game.

On top of that, the cooldown of my [Instant Kill] was 30 days.

I could erase a full month’s worth of waiting in an instant.

[The hydra’s core has been destroyed.]

[The dungeon is disappearing.]

System windows appeared even after that, but there was no way they would register in my eyes.

Something more precious than gold and treasure had fallen into my hands, so how could I care?

Wait… In the game, after clearing a dungeon, a clear message appeared according to the contribution.

What happens to that part?

[Reading total subjugation score.]

As if it had noticed my question, a system window immediately appeared.

[You have achieved 1st place in contribution.]

[Congratulations. MVP achieved!]

[MVP rewards are being calculated. Please wait.]

Uh, hold on.

“MVP?”

In the game, when you achieved MVP, the nickname you had set would be sent to all users through a message.

If even that part had been perfectly implemented?

‘Wait…. My nickname in the game was….’

Uh, uhhh?

Hold on. That can’t happen.

Stop… Stop!

Inside the collapsing dungeon, my mind turned into a blank white page.

***

[The dungeon has been subjugated.]

[MVP: Pingkkyu Gyongdyu]

“His name is Pingkkyu Gyongdyu? Who the hell is this bastard?”

“Does the surname Ping even exist in our country? Ha… damn it! Who the hell names themselves like that…! Hey, search every genealogical record in our country! If we look, we might find at least one!!”

Korea was turned upside down.

All because of a two-line system window that had appeared out of nowhere.