A/N: "My book just crossed 100 power stones! Thanks for the support, everyone—here's a little bonus chapter for you all. Enjoy!"
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The descent from the Frostlight Mountains was supposed to be a victory lap. Arthur and his party, now towering at Level 150, moved through the lower-altitude pine forests like mountain deities draped in the hides of beasts.
But as they neared the foothills, the majestic scenery gave way to a landscape of stagnation.
They reached Grey Village, a cluster of stone huts that looked as though the color had been leached out of them by despair.
The air here didn't hum with the industry of Winston or the magic of Reinhardt; it smelled of damp earth and slow decay.
At the village entrance stood Elder Griswold. His back was bowed not just by age, but by the weight of a dying community.
When he saw Arthur—a man whose very presence radiated the "dignity" aura—a flicker of desperate hope ignited in his clouded eyes.
Before Arthur could offer a greeting, the System intervened.
[Quest Notification]
Difficulty: C
Quest: The Iron Tomb of Grey Village
Objective: Purge the Undead occupying the Grey Iron Mine.
Rewards: 10 Silver Coins, Village Safety, and the "Friend of Grey Village" Title.
Description: A undead infested mine, with countless undead roaming.
Arthur saw the reward, it's so negligible due to the village's poverty. Most adventurers would have mocked this request.
"We... we only have this much to give," Griswold whispered, his voice cracking as he held out a small, frayed pouch. "Ten silver. It is an insult to a man of your stature, I know. But the mine was our lifeblood. Without it, we are just waiting for the winter to take us."
Arthur looked at the 10 silver. For a man who had just liquidated 13 million gold in the capital, this was less than the cost of a single whetstone. But Arthur saw the faces of the children behind the Elder—thin, pale, and hollow.
"I accept," Arthur said, his voice resonant. He has enough gold, this time he will do some good deeds, after all one day he'll become their king. So it should be king's responsibility to protect his people.
The party didn't hesitate. They didn't care about the gold; they were a unit forged in the fires of the North. If their leader walked into the dark, they followed.
Elder Griswold led them to the maw of the mountain. The entrance to the Grey Iron Mine was choked with thick, black vines that felt cold to the touch.
"I can't go any further," the Elder said, bowing deeply. "Please... bring back the light."
As the party stepped into the gloom, the system chimed.
[Location: Skeleton Knight Graveyard]
Warning: The ambient death energy is high. Level 80 recommended.
Arthur felt the "Chilled" and "Fear" debuffs attempt to latch onto their soul, but Arthur's passive party buff and Nana's Sun Sword's passive aura incinerated the status effects before they could manifest.
"Efficiency check," Arthur commanded. "Alfia, clear the chaff. Cecil, Nana, stay on the wings. Meteria, watch the shadows."
Clack. Clack. Clack.
From the darkness of the mine shafts, hundreds of pinpricks of blue light ignited. Skeleton Soldiers, their rusted armor rattling against yellowed bone, emerged in a tide of clicking teeth.
"Low-level trash," Alfia muttered. She raised her weirwood staff. Instead of a complex chant, she flicked her wrist. "[Magic Missile—Multi-Cast]."
Usually a basic spell, but Alfia's version was terrifying. Dozens of glowing white bolts of pure mana streaked through the air, each one possessing the force of a kinetic slug. They didn't just hit the skeletons; they shattered them into white powder.
[Skeleton Soldier Slain: 10,250 XP]
[Skeleton Soldier Slain: 10,250 XP]
The party moved deeper. The air grew heavy with the "Miasma of the Grave." Cecil was a blur of motion, her twin spears spinning like the rotors of a helicopter. She didn't just kill the undead; she dismantled them. She would strike the joints of a skeleton, then use the momentum to impale the one behind it.
"They don't even have enough meat on them to feel my blades!" Cecil laughed, her Blacksmith-Berserker blood pumping.
After two hours of systematic culling—clearing exactly 159 skeletons—they reached a vaulted chamber where the iron ore veins in the walls pulsed with a sickly purple light.
In the center sat a Death Knight. It wore heavy, black-iron plate armor that had fused with its bones. It held a rusted greatsword that hummed with necromantic energy.
"The finale," Arthur sighed. He checked his XP bar. The 25% boost from his Prince of the Eternal Sun class was helping, but at Level 150, these Level 80 mobs were like eating drops of water to quench a desert thirst.
The Death Knight rose. Its hollow eye sockets flared with pale blue fire. It let out a silent roar—a shockwave of mental pressure.
"I'll take this one," Arthur said, stepping forward.
The Knight lunged, its greatsword descending in a vertical cleave that would have split a boulder. Arthur didn't dodge. He raised his Deluxe Sword.
CLANG!
[A Perfect Parry!]
[Damage Received: 0]
Arthur felt the weight of the strike, but his strength stat was overwhelming. With a flick of his wrist, he redirected the Knight's momentum into the ground. Simultaneously, his right hand—the Prodigy Sword—moved with surgical malice.
"No skills needed," Arthur whispered.
He thrust the Epic blade directly into the Knight's left eye socket.
[Critical Hit!]
[You have dealt 250,501 damage!]
[Target is Blinded in one eye.]
The Knight thrashed in a frenzy, swinging its blade in a 360-degree arc. Arthur simply stepped into the blind spot, his movements like water. He fired a point-blank Magic Missile into the remaining eye.
"Checkmate."
Arthur rained down a flurry of basic slashes, his high Agility making him appear as three people at once. The Knight's armor shattered, and with a final, elegant thrust through the cervical vertebrae, the monster collapsed into a heap of scrap metal.
[Skeleton Knight Defeated!]
[700 Gold Acquired]
[Claymore Greatsword (Rare) Acquired]
[Level Up! You are now Level 151.]
"Arthur, look," Alfia said, pointing her staff toward the back wall. "The mana ley lines don't end here. They're being pulled through the rock."
She tapped the wall, and the stone rippled.
[Hidden Dungeon Found: Necromancer Archillus's Lab]
[You are the First one to Discoverer this hidden dungeon.]
[Reputation through continent risen by 2,000]
They stepped through the illusion into a place of nightmares. The room was a sterile, cold laboratory. Giant glass vats lined the walls, filled with green preservative fluid. Inside were humans, orcs, and beasts—perfectly preserved, looking as if they were merely sleeping.
"He wasn't making mindless zombies," Meteria whispered, her hand trembling as she touched the glass. "He was trying to preserve life... or something close to it."
In the back of the lab was a private chamber. On a bed of white silk lay the body of a beautiful woman, untouched by time. A plaque at the base read: "Leah."
Sitting in a chair beside her was a slumped skeleton wearing tattered violet robes. In its bony lap lay a leather-bound diary.
As Arthur reached for the diary, the room turned ice-cold. The skeleton's eyes flared with Crimson Flames.
"Who... disturbs... our... rest?" the Lich croaked.
[Boss: Undead Lich Archillus]
"Girls, no holding back! This one has a name!" Arthur shouted.
Archillus slammed his staff down. "[Call of the Grave]!"
Twenty Elite Skeleton Soldiers and a spectral Skeleton Knight erupted from the floor.
"My turn!" Nana cried. Her Sun Sword erupted in a pillar of solar fire. "[Sun Wave]!"
She charged through the center of the mob. Every skeleton she touched didn't just break—they vaporized. She was the natural antithesis to the undead.
Cecil followed in her wake, her spears dancing like lightning, puncturing skulls before the skeletons could even raise their shields.
Alfia and Archillus traded spells in a chaotic display of arcane superiority. Archillus threw a [Greater Fireball], but Alfia intercepted it with a [Magic Missile], the small bolt of mana piercing the heart of the fireball and causing it to detonate prematurely.
"You're outclassed, Archillus," Arthur said, his voice echoing with the authority of the Sun.
Arthur activated his high-tier swordsmanship.
"[10,000 Army Severing Sword]!"
A horizontal line of golden light cut through the room. It bypassed the summoned minions and struck the Lich across the ribs. The energy of the strike interacted with the Lich's dark core, causing a chain reaction of internal explosions.
[Lich Archillus Slain!]
[507,052 XP Acquired]
[Level Up! You are now Level 152.]
[Archillus's Diary Acquired]
The room grew silent. The crimson flames in the Lich's eyes flickered out.
"There's a chest," Cecil noted, pointing to a small, obsidian box tucked under Leah's bed.
Arthur walked over. Then he flipped the lid.
The world seemed to stop. A pillar of white and black light shot up from the chest, then merged and etched into Arthur's hand.
[You have acquired the 'Rune of Sins and Virtue'.]
[Warning: This is a World-Class Unique Artifact.]
[The Rune has bonded to Arthur. It cannot be dropped or stolen.]
Arthur stared at the notifications in sheer disbelief. He knew the lore of Satisfy better than anyone, yet he had never heard of this item being in a Level 80 mine.
[Rune of Sins and Virtue]
Rating: Mythic (Growth Type)
Effect: Opens the Sin and Virtue Special Stats.
* Sin Value: Earned by killing the "Righteous" or through acts of cruelty.
* Virtue Value: Earned by killing the "Sinful" or through acts of mercy.
Abilities:
* Unlocks one of the Seven Original Sin Skills for every 1,000 Sin points.
* Unlocks one of the Seven Original Virtue Skills for every 1,000 Virtue points.
* Dominance of the Origin: Deal +20% damage to all beings.
* Essence Theft: When defeating a "Named" opponent, you may permanently acquire one of their skills (Up to 10 Sin/10 Virtue slots).
"This is..." Arthur's voice failed him.
This wasn't just a gear upgrade. This was a System Modifier. By acquiring the "Sin and Virtue" stats, Arthur had just stepped outside the traditional class boundaries of the game. He could now harvest the powers of his enemies.
"Arthur? You look like you've seen a ghost," Alfia said, stepping closer.
"No," Arthur said, a slow, dangerous smile spreading across his face as he looked at the Rune in his back of the hand. "I've just found the real reward of the quest."