Chapter 60 – Suicide Unit (3)

Even the veterans were in a state of panic after the massacre that led to the death of half of their unit . However, Number 34 was indifferent despite how recently he had been recruited .

“Just what are you?”

Deckard asked the question with honest curiosity in his eyes . Sungchul figured out his intentions .

‘Was I too hurried?’

It looked as though he earned himself some undue attention, so there was now a need to make up some explanation . A brilliant idea formed in that instant . Sungchul spoke in a low voice .

“I am a Former Returnee . ”

Among those who returned to their original world, there are those who have chosen to come back to the Other World . These were people that had tasted bitter failure after being unable to re-adapt into the modern world .
Whatever the reason was, that brought them back here, they are widely regarded as being much more powerful than their status points would otherwise suggest, and a good majority of them actually are .

“A Former Returnee…”

Deckard couldn’t hide his surprise at the news .

“I was at the Demonic Battlefront before I returned . I fought at the Forest of the Lichen Fog of the Varan-Aran alliance . “

“It has been long since that forest got taken over by demons . ”

“In any case, the battle just now was just one of countless that I’ve already experienced on a daily basis . It also looked like the demons were more keen on recapturing the guard post rather than our annihilation . ”

In reality, the Balrog and Baal that led the demons never stepped forth nor did they release their elite troops . It was nothing more than expending their easily replenishable pawns to chase out the meagre humans . Although, it would have taken at least the Balrog himself to take out the frenzied Genghis Aaron .

“Mmm…”

Deckard didn’t appear to be completely convinced, but there was some logic to follow in what Sungchul was saying . Sungchul spoke further .

“The reason I want to find a way to get stronger quickly is to survive . ”

“If you wanted to survive, this is the wrong place . ”

Deckard spoke curtly .

“I am being chased by a nemesis . If I don’t quickly gain strength, I’ll lose my life . ”

As Sungchul pressed on, Deckard let out a sigh as he formed a shining orb and handed it to Sungchul . It was an Orb of Knowledge . Those that placed their hands on it would gain the information within .

“Take it . These are all the quests that are appropriate for you . ”

Sungchul touched the orb to acquire the information within . A quest soon appeared before him in shining letters .

[No Title]
Grave Cleaning – Clean out the swarm of imps that are disrupting the grave of Elven Warriors . / Reward – Magic Power 5, Mid-Grade Magic Power Essence .

Deckard pointed towards a rocky mountain off to the distance with his staff .

“The graves of Elven archers of the Aran tribe are in that direction . The quest itself should be easy to handle even for you, but the problem lies in getting there . ”

“Is it demon territory?”

Deckard nodded at Sungchul’s question then turned his back to walk away .

“Get some shut-eye . Something might suddenly happen at any moment . ”

Despite the warning, Sungchul headed off towards the rocky mountain by noon . Despite it being labelled as demon territory, all the opposition was mostly small parties of patrols . Sungchul lightly evaded their efforts and arrived at the grave of the Aran tribe, then proceeded to clean out the imps that built their nest there .

Once the imps were cleared away, the spirits lingering within the gravesite rewarded Sungchul 5 Magic power and a mid-grade mana essence . It wasn’t anything impressive, but Sungchul knew the advantage of stacking up these unimpressive rewards . He leisurely returned to base and proceeded to start another job past his sleeping comrades . It was alchemy .

Sungchul pulled out Eckheart’s portable alchemic cauldron behind the barracks and began gathering ingredients from his surroundings as indicated by Bertelgia . He then proceeded to synthesise everything . Genghis Aaron approached him as he finished his third Alchemic item .

The healthy man stretched out his arms with a lazy yawn as he walked over to Sungchul and spoke with a look of amusement on his face .

“Recruit? What is it that you are doing?”

“As you can see, I am in the middle of synthesising . ”

“I can see that, but I’m asking why you’re doing it . ”

Rockhead’s response was unusual . It looked as though it bothered him that Sungchul was synthesising alchemic items .

“I wanted to create some useful items for battle . I learned a lot from the previous battle . ”

Rockhead didn’t press the issue any further after listening to such a model response, but instead, he put on a stern face and gave a piece of ‘advice’ .

“If you want to survive, I suggest you keep up your physical strength . Anyways, it looks like we’ll have plenty to eat today? Seeing as we’ve cut down on the number of mouths to feed . ”

Seeing him spit out such tactless remarks, it was obvious how he earned his nickname . However, Sungchul got the impression that Genghis Aaron wasn’t as simple as he appeared . He was especially cunning when making his report to headquarters . He seemed to have realised the age-old issue of the Demonic Battlefront that was the antiquated organisational structure and seemed to be actively using it to his benefits . It wasn’t something he could do if he were truly an idiot .

It soon became evening . Genghis had started up a raucous party . The portions of food and alcohol allocated for the dead were given out to soldiers . The mourning for the dead lasted a full 10 seconds .

Sungchul chewed on the tasteless but overly abundant food while sipping his drinks by himself . The night sky of the Demonic Battlefront had a reddish tint . It was because of the light emitted from the flames of **** that never went out .

“Status Window . ”

He pulled up his status window that he hadn’t seen in awhile . The unadjusted screen of the full status window overwhelmed his vision .

<’The one who Demolishes’ Sungchul Kim’s Status Window>

[Blessing]

Covenant
(Unknown) Indomitable Spirit
(Immunity to Mental Attacks) Blessing from the God of Chaos
(Strength, Dexterity, Vitality 10% increase) Heir of Heracles
(+100 Power) Bloodline of Berserkers
(Large amount of Healing when below 10% Vitality) Champion of Humanity
(+50 Will) Rapid Bow of the Kingdom of High Elves
(+30 Dexterity) Heart of an Ancient Warrior
(+5 Strength, Resolve, Vitality / Resilience)

[Curse]

Covenant
(Unknown) Final Declaration of Grand Mage Balzark
(-10 Intuition) Blessing of Blademaster Karakardra
(+ 1 Dexterity, -1 Strength) Ancient God’s Champion, Arrak – Garr’s Criticism
(-3 Strength) Dark Dragon Groteus’s Karmic Curse
(- 20 Strength, -20 Vitality) Adelwight of the Haunted Forest’s Common Curse
(- 5 Strength, Erectile Dysfunction) Enemy of the Kingdom
(Faction: Nemesis of Human Kingdom, Blank Check Reward) Destroyer of Hora Mountain Sect
(Faction: Nemesis of Hora Mountain Sect, Destroyed) Destroyer of Mewra Sect
(Faction: Nemesis of Mewra Sect, Destroyed) Enemy of the Coalition of Mages
(Faction: Nemesis of Coalition of Mages and affiliated guilds) Steel Fist Curse of Crimson Orc Chief, Drakuul
(Race: -30 Orc Favor) Recorded on Dwarven Log of Villains
(Race: -200 Dwarf Favor) Recorded on Merchant Coalition Blacklist
(Faction: Trade impossible with Merchant coalition and their affiliated factions)

[Class]

Main Class – Primordial Warrior (Mythic)
Sub Class – Echo Mage (Legendary)
Sub Class – High Class Chef (Rare)
Sub Class – Alchemist (Rare)

[Stats]

Strength 999+ Dexterity     853
Vitality    801  Magic Power 193
Intuition 173   Magic Resist 621
Resolve  502   Charisma       18
Luck 18

[Soul Contract – 6 Slots]

Soul Harvester
([Legend] Vitality Leech 15%, Vitality restored from fallen enemies) Thunder Shield
([Legend] All Magic Damage reduced by 50% / Negate all mental attacks below legend rank) Eye of Truth
([Legend] Negate all blessings below Epic rank / Identify all items, consumables, and skill details) Soul Storage
([Epic] Can store 1500 different items) Deceiver’s Veil
([Rare – High Tier] Conceals status window)
– Blank –

[Weapon Proficiency]

Blunt Weapons – Max Proficiency Sword – Master (85% until next level) Axe – Expert (22% until next level) Spear – Expert (18% until next level) Bow – Master (82% until next level) Polearm – Expert (11% until next level) Staff – Veteran (44% until next level) Unarmed – Grand Master

[Achievements – 592 in Total]

Member of the Original 500 First Warrior Killer of Kobold Chief Garlagu Veteran of the Battle of Avaron

588 more…

The status window was a type of epic; a memoir of the path an individual had taken during their life in the Other World . How many conflicts had he been involved in until now? Every single day he had experienced battles that would otherwise be called ‘a battle of a lifetime’ for anyone else . He received countless blessings, but also terrible curses . He was also hiding power that he could not yet reveal to the world .

‘I am a tool for my purpose . ’

Sungchul’s eyes flashed a single time within the darkness . Deckard approached him in that instance . He plopped down onto the dirt beside Sungchul and spoke while staring off into the sky .

“Is Sarasa doing well?”

Sungchul nodded .

“That kid… how is she? Pretty?”

Sungchul was about to shake his head but nodded instead . Deckard, who hadn’t seen Sungchul’s hesitation, continued to look towards the sky while speaking with a voice wet with emotions .

“That kid… she was so much more beautiful before she took on that form . The entire school made a fuss whenever she was around, and her power was so strong that she broke that Soul Absorption Stone . That kid… she did something not even I could . ”

Deckard looked happy as he spoke of his daughter, but he would undoubtedly grieve if he saw the current state of her changed face . Sungchul didn’t say anything .

“Anyways, you said you were a Former Returnee?”

Deckard changed topics . When Sungchul nodded, Deckard took a gulp of booze and spoke again .

“You’re in quite the rush . Seeing as you’ve come here of your own volition to harden yourself . ”

“I could even go places rougher than this . ”

“That’s quite the resolve . ”

“Didn’t you also come here to grow stronger?”

Deckard nodded .

“That’s right . I came here seeking strength . ”

“Because of the demon tribes?”

“That too, but there is also another reason . ”

A meaningful smile formed on Deckard’s lips . He looked up into the rosy night sky and spoke again .

“According to a rumor, there is a dungeon around here created by an ancient magician . A dungeon filled with an unbelievable amount of magic power . ”

“Who made this dungeon? The Seven Heroes perhaps?”

Deckard shook his head .

“This person existed before them . In the era of a calamity before the calamity resolved by the Seven Heroes . A forgotten age lost to time . ”

“Quite interesting . ”

The era of the Seven Heroes was even considered ancient, and barely any records remained . Their names were not being recorded properly, and only a handful of people remained with the correct knowledge of it . He was talking about something from a time before this . In other words, an individual from an unfathomably ancient and bygone era .

“I came to this place following its clues . It was one of the reasons I got sent to the Suicide Unit too . The Suicide Unit always operates on the front lines, but there is another benefit . It is a good place to cultivate your skills . ”

“I agree . ”

The demons were strong, and their numbers were endless . That meant that as long as you could survive, it was possible to drive yourself into life-or-death battles that tested your limits . The warrior class was meant to bloom within combat .

Sungchul had also cultivated his abilities on his own by slaughtering countless devils, and he continued to challenge himself with danger; trusting his stats as a foundation in order to steadily gain power that exceeded the limits of humanity . Deckard must have come to the same conclusion .

“Thanks to it I think I have reached a point where I can confidently say I am quite strong . It’s probably about time for me to challenge that place . ”

“Where is that place?”

Deckard pointed to his feet in reply to Sungchul’s question with a smile on his face .

“It’s somewhere below here . It is a place called the Underground Kingdom from a forgotten era . Even I don’t know where the entrance is, but I have some threads I have yet to pull on . ”

“The Underground Kingdom…”

It sounded familiar . At a distant past, there was a story of a group of people of the forgotten era that attempted to escape the calamity by digging underground and eventually forming their own kingdom . It felt like a story worthy of a good folklore or a bedtime story, but Deckard seemed to have discovered something .

“Now that winter is approaching, the demons will be attacking less frequently . Since you and I are both people constantly thirsting for strength, why not go together to check it out sometime?”

He was a good person . He was good natured, but also very considerate . Sungchul judged him as such, but good people don’t last long in the Other World . The demons ambushed the base within the cover of the night .

The demon’s attack was easily repelled mostly due to Aaron’s efforts, but he couldn’t prevent casualties from occurring .

“… . ”

Deckard had received a critical wound and had fallen unconscious . Even Sungchul was helpless .