Ranker Who Lives Twice
chapter-424

Boom! Waltz slowly pulled her fist back after punching. After the dark energy was released from her fist, steam floated up from it.

[You have successfully subjugated the graveyard keeper ‘Vasuki’.]

[A part of the ‘Dragon’s Curse’ has been removed.]

‘It gets more amazing the more I look at it. The magic of the Draconic species and the Mugong of the One-horned tribe…the Summer Queen chose her successor well.’ The Head Bishop smiled ruefully as he watched Waltz. The first time he’d met her, he’d seriously contemplated whether he needed to awaken the power of the Seven Demon Kings because his strength was lacking in comparison to hers after the Channel with the Heavenly Demon had been disconnected.

‘She really has discovered the secret of the labyrinth. You have to collect the pieces that appear after breaking the protectors?’ The more pieces of Kalatus’ tooth she gathered, the more Waltz’s power returned. ‘And it appears she somewhat knows her way around.’

The Head Bishop still didn’t know how to navigate the complicated labyrinth, but Waltz seemed to have figured it out. The Head Bishop assumed that she had used her draconic magic to help her.

At any rate, the Head Bishop managed to head towards the center of the labyrinth with Waltz’s help, and he reunited with many of his subordinates in the stone rooms along the way. Although seventy percent of the Devil Army’s forces was missing or dead, it wasn’t a bad result considering the difficulty of the labyrinth.

Furthermore, the players that they encountered by chance immediately threw their weapons down and surrendered. Soon, the group following Waltz grew to about a hundred members.

‘White Dragon might be able to build up their position after getting through this danger.’ There wasn’t a better way than this for players to observe her.

‘I have to find the key, too.’ His eyes grew thoughtful. Thankfully, as he began to circulate the power of the Seven Demon Kings, his blocked Channels slowly recovered bit by bit. After it was complete, the only thing he wanted to do was find Yeon-woo, the root of all this.

The moment the Head Bishop was about to ask what she was doing, Waltz muttered first.

The Head Bishop felt chills down his back. “What?”

“The owner of the labyrinth.” Before she could say more, the labyrinth began to shake.

The Head Bishop could feel all his senses and the strength of the Seven Demon Kings fluctuating around him.

『Ha! Haha! To think I’d feel this here!』

『Oh dear…』

『You couldn’t expect any less from the Black King. I didn’t imagine it would be this difficult to find the key.』

『The Crawling Chaos...』

The disconnected Channels began to return one by one. The static made it hard to understand what they were saying, but they were definitely voices belonging to the Seven Demon Kings. However, one of their voices could be heard as plain as day.

『Watch out.』

It was the voice of their leader, the Bull Demon King.

“Everyone get d—!” The Head Bishop was about to shout when realized that it was too late. He clapped his hands together, shooting his magic power around them to form a barrier.

Boom! The labyrinth quaked before exploding. Rumble.

“Th-the labyrinth is collap…aaack!”

“What is this? Aaaack!”

It was a bolt from the blue for those who were occupied with searching for treasure. Many of the players were swept away by the falling rubble and buried alive. Those who were more skilled quickly used scrolls and artifacts to escape the torrent of magic power. The large size of the collapsing labyrinth meant that its impact spread throughout the entire stage.

“What…!” The players who were about to enter the labyrinth after hearing the rumors…

“Damn it! Use your suspension magic! The stage is behaving strangely!” The semi-rankers in the middle of their trials in the Dragon Temple…

“What did that Hoarder do now?” And the rankers who had heard rumors of the ruined thirty-fifth floor…

They all quickly began to retreat from the temple. However, the ground cracked beneath them, and a high-magnitude earthquake burst out with even more destructive force. Innumerable players died or went missing.

Then, a humongous shadow appeared on the ground with a loud roar, paralyzing the survivors with shock. A huge dragon—a species thought to already be extinct—stood tall and bellowed.

[The corrupted dragon king Kalatus has emerged!]

[At Kalatus’ will, the entire 50th floor has been designated as dragon territory.]

[The ‘Dragon’s Curse’ is being applied to the entire stage.]

[The ‘Dragon’s Curse’ has been strengthened by the ‘Crawling Chaos’.]

…

[All players’ Channels have been blocked.]

[All abilities have decreased.]

[All immunities have decreased.]

…

The curse of Kalatus that had been limited to the labyrinth now spread throughout the stage. The sky turned dark as all the laws that made up the stage were sealed, affecting all Channels, powers, and skills.

“Wh-what’s going on…!”

“This can’t be happening!”

It was bad news for the players that had barely managed to avoid the earthquake.

Another message popped up.

[All players who have entered the 50th floor ‘Dragon Temple’ are being given a sudden quest!]

[Hunt the boss monster, ‘Corrupted Dragon King, Kalatus’.]

[Quest / Kill the Dragon]

[Description: The ancient dragon Kalatus entered into a contract with an otherworld god, ‘Crawling Chaos’, in order to resurrect his child, Uballa. The knowledge gained through ‘Crawling Chaos’ informed him that his chances of success would increase if he gained holiness and transcendence. He attempted to climb the Tower, but he was blocked by Allforone on the 77th floor. He led the entire species to war against Allforone and initiated the great war that would later be called the Second Dragon Massacre, which resulted in the extinction of the Draconic species.

Barely clinging to life, Kalatus returned to his residence, the labyrinth, to regret his past choices and await death. After only leaving behind a successor, he gave up his soul to the otherworld god as part of the contract and was contaminated.

Now, the dragon king has been summoned due to unknown reasons. Despite his contaminated state, the remnants of his consciousness has made him furious that his haven is being intruded upon. The temple honoring his ancestors is no longer serving its purpose. Kalatus will punish those who have interrupted his slumber.

The angrier he grows, the more he will open the door for the ‘Crawling Chaos,’ whose influence in the Tower will grow. Players currently on the stage cannot escape Kalatus’ territory or request for help. Together, survive the new disaster, Kalatus, or overcome the Dragon’s Curse and successfully eradicate it.]

[Qualification of Participation: Players on the 50th floor]

[Time Limit: 72 hours]

[Rewards:

1. Title ‘Opponent of Dragons’

2. Additional rewards based on contribution]

[Penalties if the quest is not completed:

1. Destruction of 50th floor

2. Prohibition on moving to another floor

3. Death of all participating players]

“A ‘great disaster’. What a crazy problem.” With his subordinates, the Head Bishop landed far away at the ends of the stage. He clucked his tongue. A great disaster was a term used to indicate a quest that was nearly impossible to complete. He’d been on the verge of reconnecting to the Seven Demon Kings only to have his Channels blocked again.

With both escape and a request for aid blocked, how were they supposed to hunt the dragon? “I suppose many will die.” It seemed like thirty percent of the players had already perished, and the Head Bishop’s eyes darkened.

In the distance, Kalatus had unfurled his wings and was soaring up to the sky. The large-scale raid began.

* * *

Yeon-woo quietly landed at a precipice at the edge of the stage. He clenched his teeth. ‘I… didn’t think the real Kalatus would appear instead of his vestige.’ The Summon of the Dead had failed. He’d been hoping to meet Kalatus’ vestige, which knew his secrets, and not the true body which had already been consumed by the Crawling Chaos.

「How pathetic. That’s the king that once led a mighty species?」 The Summer Queen appeared next to Yeon-woo with a smirk, her long black hair flowing. She had still been young when the Second Dragon Massacre began and only remembered him as a noble king. The Kalatus she saw now was a disgrace.

It was already bad that he hadn’t kept his dignity as a dragon, and to think he’d bound himself to a being that didn’t even have a proper identity and was now in that state. She had children—nine of them, in fact—but she couldn’t understand his motivations, nor did she want to.

“You can’t compare children born out of love with children born out of necessity.” Yeon-woo looked at the Summer Queen with still eyes.

The Summer Queen snorted with her arms crossed. 「Looking into a lady’s head? You’re a bum with no class.」

Even though their connection wasn’t as strong as the one he had with Shanon and the others, Yeon-woo and Summer Queen could still share thoughts. Besides, the Summer Queen wasn’t reluctant to reveal her mind, almost as if she were daring him to peek into her thoughts. Considering her lofty and arrogant personality, this attitude was understandable.

However, Yeon-woo just turned back to Kalatus, as if the Summer Queen wasn’t worth thinking about any more. He remembered his mother’s last words to look for his little brother and slowly widened his eyes.

[Draconic Eyes]

His eyes instantly connected to Fiery Golden Eyes and Philosopher’s Eyes and various colors appeared in his vision. Kalatus had soared up high and was spewing black Breath filled with poison, acid, and curses to the ground. Players ran towards him, Effects bursting from their different skills.

The smarter ones had already realized that the “additional rewards” were the legacies of the Draconic species, and they hoped that even with all the debuffs, the combined efforts of the large clans, rankers, and semi-rankers would prevail.

However, in Yeon-woo’s eyes, they just seemed like foolish soldiers. Although the others couldn’t see it, his eyes showed him the black tentacles dangling from the sky around Kalatus’ body. It meant the Crawling Chaos had borrowed Kalatus’ body to interfere in the Tower.

‘The reason why we only have seventy-two hours is likely because that’s the maximum amount of time that the dragon territory can take over the stage. After that…Allforone and the Bureau will have to get involved.’

Allforone wouldn’t leave Kalatus alone now that he was a servant of the Crawling Chaos. ‘But it’ll be the end of everything if that happens.’ Unlike the other players, who just had to kill Kalatus, Yeon-woo had to find a way to take the dragon away from the Crawling Chaos.

「Should I help you?」 Just then, the Summer Queen asked with a smirk, reading Yeon-woo’s thoughts. She sneered, 「I was once called the last dragon. I know many secrets that I could never teach to other species.」

It was tempting, but Yeon-woo couldn’t force the Summer Queen to help him like he could with Shanon and the others. If she offered herself, it would be another matter, but…“Stop bothering me and go away.”

「Hahaha! You’re definitely an amusing human. If you had asked me to help, you would’ve died right then and there.」 The Summer Queen was about to lick her red lips when Boo suddenly appeared in front of Yeon-woo with a growl.

「Do you…want to…die...」

「Don’t stick your nose into this conversation. Go kill yourself, you lowly being. How dare a servant step forward?」

“Both of you stop.” Yeon-woo ignored the battle of words between Boo and the Summer Queen and slowly stood up. If the others knew he was planning to take Kalatus from the Crawling Chaos, they’d think he was insane. ‘But it’s not impossible.’ Yeon-woo rubbed his left hand, which contained Bathory’s Vampiric Sword, and turned to another direction.

“A dragon, a real dragon! Hahahaha! Meat! Give me meat!” The Gluttony Emperor had stopped fighting the leaders of Green Dragon and Black Dragon and ran to Kalatus. He was half-crazed, saliva drooling out of his mouth. The Stone of Gula shook inside his stomach. It seemed like the Dragon’s Curse that bound it had been loosened.

‘If I use that…’ Yeon-woo’s eyes darkened as he thought it through. Then, he called the small fairy, Ubala. “Uballa.”

The fairy nodded. 『Do as you wish. You are already the new master of the labyrinth and Laftel.』

“Thanks.” He stretched his hand down towards the cliff, activating all the systems related to Laftel through Uballa. The labyrinth exploded, and the pieces of Kalatus’ tooth scattered throughout it floated up in the air. They whirled around Ubala, who stood in the center and quietly closed his eyes. Clack.

[You have successfully completed the hidden quest (Curse Immunity I).]

[You have been rewarded ‘Dragon’s Blessing’.]

[You have completed the related quest (Curse Immunity II) and quest (Curse Immunity III) in that order.]

[You have made an achievement that is not easily accomplished. Additional karma will be provided.]

[You have acquired 100,000 karma.]

[You have acquired an additional 200,000 karma.]

[‘Dragon’s Blessing’ has been strengthened.]

[You have additionally been rewarded…]

[The artifact ‘Dragon Root’ has been completed.]

A square chip fell in Yeon-woo’s hand. It was the main processor of the labyrinth, Uballa. The true process of the quests was to be acknowledged and learn about the system. Yeon-woo pushed the Dragon Root into the back of his right hand, tearing his skin slightly. The Dragon Root smoothly settled into the Atman System and began to support his path of thinking and circulation.

The great minds of the dragons were too much for Yeon-woo to handle, and so Kalatus had created the Dragon Root with this in mind.

[The related quest (Curse Immunity IV) has successfully been completed.]

[‘Dragon’s Blessing’ has been strengthened to release you from ‘Dragon’s Curse’.]

[All Channels have been restored.]

…

[All abilities have been restored.]

[All immunities have been restored.]

[All powers have been restored.]

Yeon-woo was the only one on the stage to be freed from Kalatus’ curse.

[5th-Step Dragon Body Awakening]

[Full Power Release]

He opened his Channels and spread his Sky Wings more powerfully than ever. ‘There are five of the Nine Kings here: Waltz, Tom, Magnus, the Head Bishop, and the Gluttony Emperor. Today, at least two of them will die.’ His black and red wings spread like fire and darkened the sky.

He extended his hand forward.

[The hidden true name of ‘Vigrid-???’ Arondight has been released.]

[Folklore: Decapitation of dragons]

Yeon-woo slashed Vigrid down, and a column of fire bristling with hundreds of lightning bolts descended from the sky.