Starting with the reconciliation between the Dang father and daughter, one good thing after another continued to unfold.
Members of the clan practically lined up to come visit us.
A lot of them must have changed their minds.
When we first visited the Dang Clan, their reactions had been cold beyond belief.
They treated Dang Gyu-young worse than a stranger and even tried to scheme ways to drive her out as quickly as possible.
Considering all that, there really wasn’t much reason for us to help them.
We could have simply stayed out of it and ignored whether they lived or died during the Blood Cult’s attack.
But instead, we risked our lives and threw ourselves into battle, saving countless members of the clan.
No matter how shameless they were, they must have reflected on their actions at least once.
The middle-aged man standing before us was a perfect example.
He had suffered severe injuries from the Iron Jianshi and survived only thanks to us.
He spoke in a heavy tone.
“It seems I’ve been far too narrow-minded all this time. Please forgive me.”
“I’ll accept your apology.”
Dang Gyu-young replied with a faint smile.
Part of the reason she accepted so readily was surely because his apology was sincere, but the luxurious wooden box he handed over likely played a role as well.
There was probably an elixir inside.
The middle-aged man’s expression brightened.
“Thank you. I know it’s far too late, but I’ll do my best from now on.”
Among the next visitors were the siblings Dang Jun-yeop and Dang Hee-yeon.
With somewhat embarrassed expressions, they began to speak.
“I heard you possess Poison Immunity. To think I tried to poison you so confidently without even knowing that… Sun Wukong standing before the Buddha must have felt something like this.”
“I won’t apologize.”
“Of course. It was simply our lack of judgment.”
Dang Hee-yeon picked up where her brother left off.
“If anything, we should be the ones apologizing. We came all the way there just to pick a fight, going on about Yongsal Academy and all that.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Sorry.”
And just like before, Dang Gyu-young willingly accepted their apologies.
Along with the token of reconciliation (items).
Thus, while the Dang Clan’s treasury steadily emptied and Dang Gyu-young’s inventory grew increasingly full—
At last, the Council of Elders Head finally appeared before us.
“……”
Unlike the other clan members, he neither lowered himself nor offered an apology.
He simply stared directly at Dang Gyu-young and began speaking in his usual stubborn and stern manner.
“Do you remember? The difference between upstart rabble who merely expand their influence and a true noble clan?”
“You said it was tradition.”
“Correct. Tradition built up and preserved over long years. If that collapses, then our Dang Clan becomes no different from such rabble.”
“…….”
“That is why someone must protect it. Even if they are criticized as old-fashioned and narrow-minded. Ever since I took on that role, I have never once regretted it. Not even now.”
The Council of Elders Head’s gaze sharpened even further.
“You committed a sin that should never have been committed, abandoning your duties as a direct descendant. Between you and me lies a river that cannot be crossed again.”
“I understand.”
“However,”
The Council of Elders Head paused briefly before continuing.
“It is also this family’s tradition to be clear in both grudges and debts. Regardless of past stains, a debt ought to be repaid.”
“……!”
What emerged from his robes was a book bound in ominous black covers.
A Necromancer grimoire.
“I heard you walk the path of dark magic. We obtained it long ago, but it has done nothing except gather dust on a shelf. You should be able to make better use of it.”
“……Thank you.”
As Dang Gyu-young accepted the grimoire, she quietly exchanged glances with me.
– This works, right?
– Yeah, it increases your slots.
Ironically, the Council of Elders Head, who still disliked Dang Gyu-young, had ended up giving her the item she needed most.
He then turned his head and looked at me.
“I heard the Clan Head has begun searching for several items. An old man like me cannot offer such grand rewards, but if possible, I would still like to show my sincerity in my own way.”
“There is something I need.”
“Speak.”
“If you have quality materials, I’d like to receive them.”
“By materials, do you mean metals and such?”
“That’s right.”
The Council of Elders Head responded as though it were nothing significant.
“I’ll send word to the forge. Take as much as you want.”
“I’m going to need quite a lot.”
“There is no need to worry. The main family is not so stingy.”
After saying that much, he exchanged final farewells with us before leaving the room.
As much as I want, huh.
Even though he said that, he was probably assuming I’d stop at a reasonable amount befitting a guest.
However, what the Council of Elders Head failed to realize was—
I’m a man with absolutely no conscience.
Compared to world peace, things like that were a trivial concern.
***
The forge, or blacksmith workshop.
It was the place where countless weapons and tools were forged, including hidden weapons.
The one who greeted us was a man whose entire body was covered in muscles, quite unlike what one would expect from the Dang Clan.
At a glance, he looked like someone who had spent plenty of time swinging a hammer.
In fact, it seemed he had been doing exactly that just moments ago.
“Come this way.”
Soon, he led us to a storage room in the back.
Ingots and lumber of all kinds were piled up like mountains.
“You may take as much as you want.”
“Are you sure that’s alright?”
“The Elder Council Head has already given his orders. Besides, compared to the lives of the clan members, this is cheap.”
“Thank you for saying that. Then I’ll get started.”
Now that I had received final permission, I pulled an item out of my inventory.
[Greedy Material Selection Ticket (C)]
▷ Growth-type item
▷ Can consume material items to gain experience.
▷ Exp: 88.65%
Enjoy your meal.
Soon, the ingots began vanishing at a terrifying speed.
Shashashashak—
[Greedy Material Selection Ticket (C)]
▷ Exp: 95.33%
[Greedy Material Selection Ticket (B)]
▷ Exp: 8.78% → 26.53% → 55.88%
In the blink of an eye, one side of the warehouse had been completely emptied.
Only then did the man seem to realize something was very wrong.
“Wait.”
“I’ll keep taking more~”
Shashashashashak—
[Greedy Material Selection Ticket (B)]
▷ Exp: 70.31% → 91.53%
[Greedy Material Selection Ticket (A)]
▷ Exp: 3.14%
In an instant, it had surpassed B-rank and reached A-rank.
Naturally, more than half the warehouse had also disappeared in an instant.
Apparently deciding he could no longer let this continue, the man coughed awkwardly.
“Ahem, young man—”
“Once again, thank you so much.”
“Forget the thanks, but perhaps we should stop around here—”
“What you said earlier, about how this was ‘cheap compared to the lives of the clan members,’ really moved me. I swear on my name that I’ll put everything you’ve given me to good use.”
“…….”
The man had no choice but to shut his mouth again.
If he took back his own words now, he would become “the bastard who valued materials more than lives.”
Meanwhile, true to its name, the Material Selection Ticket greedily continued devouring the ingots.
Shashashak— Shashashak—
[Greedy Material Selection Ticket (A)]
▷ Exp: 32.00%
It managed to accumulate experience far beyond A-rank.
Now, only 68% remained until S-rank and the materials for the Golden Pocket Watch.
At this rate, I’d probably complete it after running a few dungeons once the semester started.
“Thanks for the meal~”
I bowed as politely as possible.
Then I turned and walked away, leaving behind the dazed man and the completely emptied warehouse.
***
With the external enemies defeated and the internal conflicts resolved, there was now only one thing left to do at the Dang Clan.
Training.
Build up as much strength as possible before winter break ended.
Seo Ye-in was also in the middle of progressing through her Hardship quest.
As she bravely charged forward wearing a pot over her head, Ahn Jeong-mi’s toy hammer came crashing down without mercy.
Boing! Boing-boing-boing-boing!
Meanwhile, the hologram Seo Ye-in approached from the side.
She swung hard at the hologram pot, but the cheerful impact sound never rang out.
In an instant, Ahn Jeong-mi had dodged and appeared behind the chattering Sloth.
Before there was even time to react, the toy hammer descended.
Boing!
Unlucky Chattering Sloth and Unlucky Sloth looked at each other and sighed.
“Hard…….”
– Feels like my body’s dragging for some reason.
“No luck either…….”
– Must be the side effects of the ultimate move.
As the two sluggish sloths drooped around, Ahn Jeong-mi offered words of encouragement.
“Young miss, this is precisely when you must persevere. If you overcome it, it will become a precious asset in the future.”
“Impossible to overcome…….”
“I firmly believe you can do it. Now then, here I go.”
Boing-boing! Boing-boing! Boing-boing!
Ahn Jeong-mi continuously swung her toy hammer.
Somehow, she even seemed to be enjoying herself.
Meanwhile, Dang Gyu-young and Jegal So-so also appeared to have temporarily paused their sparring to take a break.
When our eyes met, Jegal So-so made a dissatisfied expression before walking over.
“Kim Ho. Kim Ho.”
“Yes, noona.”
“I heard you learned a new skill.”
“I did.”
“Then why did you leave me out and only give Sloth-Qyu a chance?”
Apparently, she was upset that we had tested [Invitation] while she wasn’t around.
Dang Gyu-young snorted before answering.
“What kind of obvious question is that? Of course you prioritize the VIP first.”
“You should care about attracting new members too.”
“We’re not accepting any more. We’re full.”
“Ghost Demon said otherwise, though?”
“As far as I can tell, he’s a fraud.”
“Sounds accurate to me? I heard you’re greedy.”
The atmosphere looked like it was about to devolve into bickering again, so I stepped in to mediate.
“It’s not like I was prioritizing VIPs or anything….well, maybe a little. Efficiency was the bigger issue. Please understand.”
“If you use it normally, the cooldown is 10 days, but if you use it on someone you’ve formed a bond with, it’s reduced to 7 days.”
At that, Jegal So-so looked slightly sulky.
“I understand, but it still feels a little disappointing. You could’ve at least let me watch from the side.”
“Then let’s do this instead. I actually learned two skills.”
“You’re going to test the second one on me?”
“If you’re willing.”
“Let’s do it right now.”
Jegal So-so immediately accepted my proposal.
Soon, we stood facing each other in one corner of the training grounds.
As we began sparring, I pulled up the skill description again.
[Diamond Freeze (F)]
▷The next freezing effect you apply becomes ‘irremovable’ for 10 seconds.
▷Cooldown: 10 minutes
It was a type of buff skill.
After activating it, you would chain it into a freezing spell.
For example, like this.
[Activated ‘Diamond Freeze.’]
[Cooldown 00:09:58]
Then I met the gaze of Jegal So-so as she approached with nimble movement technique.
[Activated ‘Octopus Limbs’.]
[Activated ‘Mutual Destruction Eyes’] ×5
[The target has been inflicted with the ‘Poison (B)’ status effect.]
[The target has been inflicted with the ‘Freeze (B)’ status effect…….]
[The target has been inflicted with the ‘Freeze (B)’ status effect…….]
…….
[Cooldown 00:24:59]
Crackle,
Jegal So-so’s left ankle became encased in ice.
She glanced down to check it, then casually used a debuff removal skill.
Fwoosh!
A faint wave of energy spread outward…….
But her ankle remained frozen.
“Huh, what?”
Fwoosh!
Another wave of energy spread out, but nothing changed.
Only then did Jegal So-so look at me.
“Why isn’t this coming off?”
“It should wear off now.”
In the meantime, the 10-second duration had already passed.
For reference, once the 10 seconds pass, the freeze doesn’t automatically break. It simply changes from “irremovable” to “removable”.
Meaning you have to use a debuff removal skill again.
At that, an awkward expression appeared on Jegal So-so’s face.
“All my skills are on cooldown, though?”
“Then I guess you’ll just have to wait.”
As we just saw, if you use a debuff removal skill on [Diamond Freeze]?
Naturally, it doesn’t come off, and only the cooldown gets consumed.
In crude terms, you could say it gets eaten.
With ice still hanging from one foot, Jegal So-so waddled over to Dang Gyu-young.
“Kind Qyu-Qyu, would you please remove this for me?”
“I don’t have one either, Ice Sho-Sho.”
“Oh, come now and help me out. My foot is freezing.”
“I really don’t have one. Just think of it as icing the area and wait.”
Most people have one or two debuff removal skills, but surprisingly few can be used on allies as well.
Skills and traits become harder to obtain the more versatile they are, and people generally don’t invest that heavily into countering debuffs in the first place.
In the end, Jegal So-so had no choice but to wait several minutes before finally escaping her fate as Ice Sho-Sho.
She shot me a rather unfriendly glare.
“That skill seems ethically questionable in a great many ways.”
“It’s my favorite skill.”
I replied with a bright smile.
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