[All contamination from the Island of Divine Artifacts, Famiran, has been removed!]
[The master of the Black Sea has perished, and the contamination that had melted into the sea has been cleanly erased! All the life that fled this place will return!]
[You have cleared the 26th floor of the Tower of Myth!]
[Player Eugene Hyuk's synchronization rate increases from 135% to 140%!]
I clenched my fist.
It had been a while since it went up by a full five percent.
Super nice.
[You have defeated the Divine Beast Abkaon!]
[This is your first Divine Beast defeat! The hidden unique trait of the Collector class, 'Divine Beast Bestiary,' has been unlocked!]
# Every Divine Beast in the Tower possesses its own unique power!
# When a Divine Beast is defeated, that power is added to the bestiary!
## Even without defeating a Divine Beast, if it willingly shares the nature of its power, it can be added to the bestiary!
# When a specific combination or number of entries is collected, you can obtain related unique skills or traits from the bestiary!
My eyes widened sharply as I stopped mid-uppercut.
Something I hadn't even been expecting had popped up.
It's a trait that suits a class called Collector quite well.
"Master, there's something there."
Seira pointed to the spot where Abkaon had vanished.
A small, sharp glint lay there, like a needle.
Ding!
[The 'Thread of Divine Artifacts' possessed by the Demigod Kamela Sirin becomes reality!]
[You have acquired the Needle of the Divine Beast Abkaon!]
[Scale of the Divine Beast Abkaon]
# It is imbued with a terrifying level of contamination and the power of division.
# It is a material item used for divine artifacts. If you find a skilled divine artifact craftsman, it can be reborn into a powerful divine artifact.
# Be careful! Those without the proper qualifications may be consumed by the contamination!
The Thread of Divine Artifacts, which had started after defeating Azriel.
It kept talking about materialization and whatnot every day but never gave me anything, so I was starting to think it was a scam.
Finally, it spat out an item.
I can't use it right away, but what's the problem?
Half the residents of Famiran Island are divine artifact craftsmen.
"As expected, gathering them all and killing them was the right answer."
Kamela, who had come down from the rooftop, let out a laugh.
To think he had crushed it so simply and quickly.
I'm almost embarrassed that I worried about Abkaon's coalescence, even for a moment.
Maybe it was because the commotion that had shaken the entire island had ended.
People who had been inside their homes began to trickle out, one by one.
"Oh? The craftsmen's contamination is gone too?"
Completely spotless.
The purple energy that had filled every alley had vanished without a trace.
Kamela shrugged.
"It's going to be hard to adapt for a while. They won't be able to make divine artifacts like before. The number of craftsmen will probably drop drastically."
That's only natural.
Until now, Famiran had relied on the power of contamination to mass-produce divine artifacts easily.
"Sorting the wheat from the chaff, huh."
As Kamela said, many signs bearing the title of craftsman will disappear from the island's streets.
Those who can create excellent divine artifacts without relying on the power of contamination.
Only such people will earn the title of craftsman from now on.
*Thump, thump, thump, thump.*
A cloud of dust was descending from the rooftop.
Khancho and Momo were dragging a burlap sack.
Nia and Rick were sprawled on top of it.
I can understand Nia, who's always napping, but why is Rick like that?
Khancho, who had come right up to me, shook his head.
"This won't do. He's too scared to use it. When Seira blocked the tsunami, he got so startled he fainted, and he still hasn't woken up."
"What's with Rick being more scared than the master?!"
Khancho and Momo watch horror movies with me, but they're so unnaturally calm and unfazed that I'm always the one getting scared, earning me the title of the party's biggest coward.
"Well, at least you brought him back safely without abandoning him."
"Of course! We can't just let our divine artifact mule die!"
Khancho said something terrifying with a bright, innocent face.
Good thing Rick is unconscious.
He probably didn't hear that, right?
"I brought it along since it was made with his father, but..."
Kamela held out Rick's divine artifact.
It had turned into complete rags, probably from the violent clash with the Divine Beast's contamination.
I gave Kamela a thumbs-up.
"Good job bringing it. It's something meaningful to Rick."
I haven't shown it to Rick yet, but I dare to guess it'll be okay.
The divine artifact of Rick and his father that protected Famiran.
Just its existence and traces alone should be incredibly valuable.
"Kuuuuh."
I stretched out lazily.
The 26th floor of the Tower of Myth.
I can confidently say it was the toughest of all the Tower of Myth floors I've been to so far.
'So this is what it feels like when the floor doesn't change due to some trigger.'
I realized it anew.
The Tower of Myth isn't just a convenient place to boost my power; it's a place I have to climb, floor by floor, just like the Tower of Despair.
Looking back, there were occasional floors with similar elements, but most of the places I played through in the game haven't even appeared yet.
'There really was all sorts of stuff.'
A smile crept onto my face as I recalled those memories with interest.
Normally, having all sorts of things would make me worry. But instead, I'm looking forward to it, even feeling excited.
At this point, I wonder if something is definitely wrong with me.
*Grrrrroooowl!!!*
I turned my head at the loud sound.
"What's with Nia growling even in her sleep?!"
"Hey, Momo-ttari! Where do you get off lying?! I heard that sound coming from that mountain-sized belly of yours!"
"How does it feel to be caught?!"
I tucked Momo and Khancho, who were bickering, under each arm.
"Let's go eat."
Then I walked towards Rick's house.
I didn't get the homeowner's permission, but hey, it should be fine, right?
---
Somewhere in the Tower of Myth.
A man with blue hair slicked back got to his feet.
Then he stepped out into the empty air.
Normally, he would fall straight down, but the man didn't fall.
He just leisurely walked forward.
As if there was a path there too.
The man stopped at a certain point and bent down.
"Hmm."
A massive fishbowl spread out below him.
On its surface, a single fish was floating dead.
It was the individual he had planted a fragment of the Divine Beast Abkaon into.
The man stared at the fish for a long time before clicking his tongue lightly.
He wasn't annoyed.
But he was angry.
How dare someone lay a hand on my Divine Beast?
"What kind of reckless beetle has lost all sense of fear?"
You never touch the property of the master.
It's an unwritten rule of the Tower, and they had blatantly broken it.
The man sighed and shrugged.
Well, let's just wait patiently.
As long as that reckless beetle keeps climbing the Tower, no matter how much it tries to avoid me, we're bound to meet eventually.
That's just how the Tower is.
"I'll shove you into the fishbowl as a replacement."
He got up and walked back the way he came.
As he did, his eyes narrowed slightly.
A small question mark formed in his mind.
But how did they kill it?
Abkaon is one of the most difficult Divine Beasts to kill.
'Was there anyone capable of that?'
The man kept track of every climber ascending the Tower.
But none of them seemed like the type to pull off such a bold move.
'Or maybe...'
The man stopped walking and looked up at the sky.
Maybe it was just another whim of this damn Tower.
It often acts like it's not there, like air, but then occasionally pulls off something absurd.
"Tch! Pointless meddling."
He shook his head.
In the old days, the Tower's tricks might have worked, but not anymore.
This world now has clear distinctions between the strong and the weak, with unbreakable rules and balance.
Who dares to create a crack in this balance?
The man curled the corners of his mouth.
This kind of entertainment isn't bad either.
There's a certain satisfaction in trampling on things like this.
He sat down on an invisible chair and rested his chin on his hand.
Though it was tiny, something had definitely formed in the man's mind.
A tiny fragment called interest.
---
Island of Divine Artifacts, Famiran, Rick's house.
*Slurrrrp!!*
Momo, standing on a chair, chugged the crab shell she was holding firmly.
"Ahhh!"
Momo, who had downed the rich sauce in one go, let out a groan pulled from her core.
At first, she said she wouldn't eat it because it was ugly without eyes.
But after tasting the rich and sweet sauce, she devoured it in the blink of an eye.
"Soooo delicious!!"
"The sauce is perfect! Maybe because it has no eyes, the meat is incredibly sweet too!"
I don't know what that has to do with anything, but hey, if the Khancho-Momo duo is satisfied, that's what matters.
"Sis! The crabs are all gone!"
Rimuna, who was in the kitchen, poked her head out.
"Huh, Momo, you ate them all already?! I brought you a ton."
"This furry one ate them all!"
*Prick!*
Khancho lifted his face from the pot he had buried it in.
"Every time you open your mouth, it's a lie! It wasn't me, that pig over there ate them all!"
Maybe he didn't want to turn the peaceful meal into a mess.
Khancho's fluffy finger pointed at Nia, who was fast asleep after eating her fill.
Whether it's Momo or Khancho, every time they open their mouths, it's a lie.
*Slurp!*
After quickly finishing the rice mixed with crab sauce, I walked over to the window.
Even though the night was deep, the Island of Divine Artifacts, Famiran, was brightly lit.
Famiran was currently in complete chaos.
And it wasn't just because of our fight with the Divine Beast today.
It was because everything was meticulously recorded in the documents left behind by Raghvar von Edillen.
Everything that had happened in Famiran from ten years ago until now.
*Creak.*
The door opened, and Rick, who had gone to the Edillen mansion, returned.
He had a cart loaded with something.
"Accepting apologies isn't easy either. They said they were sorry and gave me all sorts of things."
The island residents had finally realized that Rick's father had been right all along.
So every time they see Rick, they apologize and shove something else into his hands.
"I think there will be a fairly long mourning period. No one says it out loud, but they all seem to feel a lot of guilt."
It can't be helped.
Even though they didn't know, they had been making divine artifacts using contamination that was infused with the lives of the residents.
"Huh!?"
Momo's eyes lit up, and she ran to the cart.
"Rick, how are you going to eat all this by yourself?!"
"I know, right? I probably can't."
"I totally get it! At this rate, those precious blue crabs will go to waste! Momo will help you!"
"If you want it, just ask for it."
"Give it to me!"
"Fine."
I swallowed dryly.
She's not holding a knife, but she's practically a crab thief.
"Momo-ttari! How can you just demand things like that?!"
As expected, the dignified Yordle Ranger Khancho.
Looks like he's going to teach his soulmate a lesson... *Click!*
"Leave everything behind and get out while I'm still being nice!"
He's even going a step further, telling her to give up the house.
Rick shook his head and walked over to Kamela.
"The Needle of Abkaon. It already has some form of a divine artifact, so I think I can make it quickly."
"Oh, is that so? That's a relief."
"I was thinking of mixing it with the divine artifact you used and making it into a small dagger. What do you think?"
"Would that be alright? That divine artifact was made by you and your father together."
"My father always said that there is no greater blessing for a divine artifact than to be used by someone who understands its value. I sincerely hope you will use it, Lady Kamela."
Kamela smiled.
"Then I'll leave it to you."
"Yes! Please wait a little while!"
Rick rolled up his sleeves and entered the workshop.
Given everything that had happened, he must be tired, but it seems he's really gotten into making divine artifacts.
I smiled and leaned my back against the wall.
The new divine artifact of the Demigod Kamela Sirin.
I hope it's finished soon.
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T/N:
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