Chapter 77

Chapter 2. Report of Olympus (2)

Yeonwoo felt as if his vision went dark in an instant.

Astrape, broken!

Astrape was the weapon that was considered the strongest among the many treasures of Olympus.

I finally thought I had it in my hands.

But it disappeared right before my eyes without even a moment to savor the joy.

Moreover, I never expected it to be connected to the black bracelet.

‘What is this thing?’

An artifact obtained after capturing Akasha’s snake. The options of Soul Requisition and Black Blade were so excellent that even Yeonwoo often used them.

However, I never felt that this was as special as Vigrid...

Yeonwoo clenched his teeth.

First, I need to understand the situation.

‘Appraisal.’

He fully opened his Dragon Eye.

[Despair of the King of Darkness]

Category: Wrist Guard

Rank: ???

Description: In the past, the ??? had no means to stand against the great and supreme King of Darkness, and they lived in constant fear.

Eventually, they betrayed him and imprisoned him in the darkness.

The King of Darkness, for an immeasurable amount of time, trembled with betrayal and erupted in rage. As a result, the three restraints that bound him transformed into his limbs.

The resentment contained within the restraints is so malevolent that it will constantly test the owner.

Be cautious not to be consumed by the power.

* Soul Collector

The owner can collect the souls of those they kill. In this process, the souls fall into the state of wraiths, losing all their former power and retaining only deep resentment.

The collected wraiths are bound to the collection and can never escape. The size of the collection can significantly increase with the owner's proficiency.

* Wraith Servitude

The wraiths in the collection will always resent the owner who killed them. However, when this resentment is completely suppressed, the owner can consume a certain amount of mana to evolve a wraith into a Wraith (邪鬼).

The Wraith will become a loyal servant to the owner, happily performing any command.

* Black Aura (黑氣)

An enhanced form of the Black Blade. The owner can convert mana into dark energy by consuming wraiths. The power of the dark energy is enhanced by the number of wraiths consumed.

The owner can freely control the converted mana until it is depleted.

* ???

Inactive state. (Sealed)

* ???

Inactive state. (Sealed)

**This artifact is ‘Unique’. Only one exists in the Tower, and it fully belongs to its owner. It cannot be traded or transferred to others.

**Some functions are sealed. They can only be unlocked with certain qualifications or conditions.

**Some information cannot be viewed. The owner must meet certain qualifications or conditions to gain access.

‘King of Darkness?’

Yeonwoo frowned at the name he had never seen before.

Given the ‘King’ title, it’s clear he was a ruler.

Moreover, if he left behind an artifact that used the divine weapon Astrape as a material, he must have been a transcendent being who reached the level of a god.

However, no matter how much Yeonwoo thought, he couldn’t figure out who the King of Darkness was.

Even a quick scan of his brother’s diary didn’t help.

The term ‘King of Darkness’ was not mentioned at all.

If I knew who the original owner was, there would be countless ways to use the artifact.

But with the loss of Astrape, Yeonwoo felt frustrated that he had to figure out how to properly use the black bracelet.

The only remaining clue was a meaningful line in the description.

‘Imprisoned?’

The description of the black bracelet clearly mentioned this.

It said that Akasha’s snake missed its master who never returned and cherished the master’s belongings.

If the master of Akasha’s snake was the King of Darkness, and the reason he couldn’t return was due to betrayal by his subordinates...

‘A being so excellent that it could use Akasha’s snake as a limb.’

Given this, Yeonwoo decided to think positively.

There was no point in worrying about something already lost. It would be more beneficial to focus on how to efficiently use what he had now.

‘If I could know the hidden parts, it would be easier to deduce the identity.’

Yeonwoo’s mind was a mess.

‘Should I have chosen Aegis instead of being greedy?’

He briefly considered this.

‘But even if I had chosen Aegis, it might have ended up the same way.’

He soon shook his head.

The exact reason why the black bracelet changed was unknown.

Was it simply because Astrape was originally a part that could be separated, or did it consume an epic item to break the seal?

If the latter was the reason, then it would have ended up this way regardless of what he chose.

‘I need to find out more about who the King of Darkness is.’

Yeonwoo organized his thoughts.

He wasn’t the type to dwell on what he had lost.

What’s lost is lost.

It would be more beneficial to confirm what he had now and think about how to use it better.

So, Yeonwoo rechecked the description.

The content had completely changed.

‘The two existing options have new names and many more functions added. There are also activation conditions.’

Soul Collector was an enhanced form of Soul Requisition, and Black Aura was an enhanced form of Black Blade.

The content was more diverse.

For Soul Collector, the ‘Collection’ could now hold a significantly larger number of wraiths. The size of the collection would continue to grow with the owner’s proficiency, allowing for an increasing number of wraiths to be held.

‘The more wraiths I can requisition, the more advantageous it is for me. There are many ways to use them.’

Yeonwoo had already used various strategies involving wraiths from the tutorial to the 10th floor.

Now, the scope has significantly expanded.

There was no downside.

In fact, it was better.

In this sense, Yeonwoo also liked the enhanced Black Aura.

Until now, the Black Blade could only be used for attacks by being embedded in weapons, and it was difficult to apply it to a wider range.

However, Black Aura removed this limitation.

It could be used not only on weapons but also to surround the body for defensive purposes. It might even be possible to use it for physical enhancement in certain situations.

And the newly added Wraith Servitude.

Yeonwoo had already encountered Wraiths.

During the tutorial when he raided the Arangdan’s base, the sacrificed ghosts were strengthened by the mana he provided.

Unlike wraiths that only spew negative energy and forget who they are, Wraiths could act with their own will.

They could perform various tasks due to their physical capabilities.

Most importantly,

‘Wraiths retain some of their memories from life. If I can obtain wraiths who were excellent in life, they can become a significant force.’

Yeonwoo thought that if he used this well, it could be a great help in climbing the Tower.

Of course, obtaining the wraiths of such powerful beings wouldn’t be easy.

After confirming all the rewards,

[Astrape was chosen as the reward.]

[The door of the Olympus Report closes.]

Clank, clank—

The space around Yeonwoo was enveloped in pitch-black darkness, and it gradually narrowed as if the hinges were closing, eventually swallowing Yeonwoo in the darkness.

When he opened his eyes again,

A familiar face was in front of him.

A goblin in a neat tuxedo with a monocle over one eye.

Eveke, the manager of the tutorial and the overall manager of the beginner area, greeted him with a smile.

“Oho! Congratulations. Even though it’s the beginner area, to clear it with such an overwhelming score is impressive. I thought you were great during the tutorial, but now you’re on a whole different level. We are all amazed. Congratulations on your return.”

Eveke’s sincere attitude.

He was genuinely praising and admiring Yeonwoo’s performance.

However, Yeonwoo remained calm.

Perhaps it was because he met the great being Hermes, or because he saw Astrape disappear right before his eyes.

He should have felt some excitement or pride, but instead,

He suddenly thought, ‘This is how it was supposed to be.’

It felt like he had simply returned to where he belonged.

If others knew how he felt, they might call him arrogant.

But Yeonwoo really felt that way.

Perhaps, after spending a long time on the battlefield, the emotion of joy had worn thin.

Moreover,

Yeonwoo had many questions for Eveke.

“Why did Astrape disappear?”

“Oho. It’s a trade secret.”

“Then who is the King of Darkness?”

“Also a trade secret.”

“Why was this bracelet given to me?”

“The Tower only rewards players based on their achievements. There are no other reasons.”

Eveke adjusted his monocle and smiled.

He looked like a cunning snake hiding something.

“We are merely the executors of the Tower’s will. This is the result of the achievements you have made, and the rewards the Tower has given. The path you will take is something you must forge yourself, and we can only answer within very limited bounds.”

Behind the monocle, his intelligent eyes sparkled.

“While we do monitor you, you are just one of the millions or even billions of players we manage. Please remember that.”

“Alright.”

Yeonwoo nodded.

As Eveke said, from the manager’s perspective, he was just a player who could be easily replaced without much impact.

However, the mention of the path he would take kept bothering him.

‘You have a path to walk.’

He remembered the words Hermes said when he refused the seat of the Apostle.

What did they mean?

‘A path for me to walk.’

Yeonwoo furrowed his brow.

Gods oversee and observe all things.

As absolute beings, they do not lie.

Hermes must have seen something about Yeonwoo and said those words.

But he couldn’t understand what they meant.

Was it related to the King of Darkness?

Yeonwoo shook his head.

Thinking too deeply wouldn’t yield any answers.

If this was the path he was meant to walk, as Hermes said, he would eventually encounter something.

For now, he needed to focus on the present.

“You seem to have organized your thoughts. Let’s move on to the next reward.”

Eveke laughed heartily and clapped his hands.

Crack!

[Total Merit Points: 1,420,119 Points]

“Truly, such an absurd amount of merit points. Impressive. In addition to this, you can receive 9 reward artifacts for each floor, a reward for breaking records, and a reward for the cumulative merit points for all beginner areas. In total, you can receive 12 rewards. Would you like to see them now?”

Yeonwoo shook his head.

“I want to combine all the merit points from the rewards into one.”

Eveke smiled brightly, as if he expected this.

“Is there anything specific you want to receive?”

“Astrape.”

“You know it’s already gone, yet you’re teasing me.”

“I’m not joking.”

Yeonwoo lightly clicked his tongue, but Eveke pretended not to hear.

“If there’s nothing specific, we will calculate and give it to you.”

The 1.4 million merit points instantly dropped to ‘0’, and the 12 light clusters orbiting Eveke merged and disappeared.

Then, as Eveke spread his palm,

“What is this?”

Yeonwoo’s eyes widened slightly.

The artifact floating on Eveke’s palm was a familiar weapon.

A shield made of nine layers of petals.

Aegis.

“Your achievements are something no one has ever accomplished. It’s not strange for you to receive this.”

Yeonwoo finally realized.

What his achievements meant to the Tower.

He had wondered what reward he would receive if he combined the highest merit points, but he never expected the result to be this.

“Will you accept it?”

Yeonwoo nodded.

[Obtained reward ‘Aegis of Athena’.]

Aegis fell into Yeonwoo’s palm.

Yeonwoo caressed the Aegis, which was surrounded by a light pink glow and slightly transparent on the outside.

Despite having nine layers, it was surprisingly light, like a feather.

“Since all the rewards are complete, I will take my leave.”

A window appeared above Eveke’s head as he bowed.

[All trials are complete. Would you like to ascend to the 11th floor?]

Yeonwoo nodded.

A blue portal opened beneath his feet, and he was sucked into it.

The light clusters illuminated the space.

* * *

The moment Yeonwoo left the final section of the beginner area,

A giant window descended through all the floors of the Tower.

It was a notification that would be sent to all floors whenever the record of a floor was updated.

The content was simple.

A player with an unknown identity had updated the records of all floors in the beginner area and entered the Hall of Fame.

When it was revealed that this player had dominated the tutorial with an overwhelming score, the players’ attention became even more focused.

Some were pleased by the emergence of a new strong player.

They had tried so hard to erase the name Artia, which they could not erase, and which they thought would remain a legend in the lower floors.

The nickname ‘Solitary Eater’ was deeply etched into people’s minds.

* * *