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Translator: penny
Chapter: 174
Chapter Title: Time to Spare
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I quickly looted all the hero party's items.
Most of them were shattered, but a few were salvageable. The most useful one was this.
"What's that?"
"A subspace backpack."
"!!"
Subspace Backpack: A pouch imbued with the power of an ancient god. Despite its appearance, it can hold a vast amount of items.
If a regular subspace pouch could hold about the volume of two duffel bags, this one could fit an entire small room—roughly one square pyong.
Talk about insane capacity.
'Snagging this here of all places.'
It was an item you couldn't even dream of in the normal route. I'd heard rumors but was skeptical—never thought it was real.
'Only one backpack, huh.'
Even so, just this one made the farming run a success.
'The corpses are too mangled to take.'
The bodies were too damaged. I considered burying them but gave up. The scavengers would just dig them up anyway.
"Seo-yeon."
"Got it."
Whoosh! The hero party's corpses burst into flames, quickly melting away until only traces remained. That should do it. I turned to leave.
That's when a few people approached our position.
They flinched when our eyes met, glancing around nervously. Then I figured out why.
'While everyone else was frantically searching for the monster spawn, these guys were sneaking around for scraps.'
Pretty sharp bunch. Looking closer, they had slaves in tow.
'No wonder they were so sly. Human Hunters.'
The group of nineteen, slaves included, took our spot as we left and started scanning around.
"The hero party should be around here. They must've dropped some gear."
"Hey, you bitches. What're you waiting for? Search!"
The standard play was to infer from the quest details like they were doing, then scour the area for bodies.
"What the hell? Just trash items?"
"Damn it, did those guys earlier clean everything out?"
...But since I already knew all the info, I didn't need their deductions. That let me move faster than anyone. I retraced our steps.
Sasasak—
I froze.
"Dickhead, what's up?"
"...Nothing."
Anyway, the blood scent would start drawing them in soon enough.
I didn't know how the hero party took down Dracalon, but for such a massive beast to die, it must've taken fatal damage somewhere.
Sure enough, the damp grassy smell was faintly laced with blood.
I eyed the shadows darting swiftly between the dense ancient trees, underbrush, and felled logs scattered like they'd been logged.
'If they're starting to gather, I need to hurry.'
Time was tight.
I picked up the pace, backtracking. The Dracalon corpse I'd left for farming loomed closer fast.
Sasasak—
"Huh? Something just passed by, right?"
"...Something's around us."
The ones scouting us from afar were closing in. Even my party sensed it clearly now, going on alert.
"Mr. Min-jun, it feels huge. Bigger than a human."
Kim Yu-rim, bringing up the rear, stared intently at the intact underbrush beyond the trampled patches and made her call.
She was right. Even the lowliest monsters in the Primordial Forest were bigger and stronger than humans.
Sasasasasak—
'Still some time left.'
I reached the Dracalon corpse and followed its body toward the head.
"Kwaaaagh!"
"W-what?!"
Screams echoed during our move. From the Human Hunters rummaging the hero party's bodies earlier. A few rustled past our bushes too, but even within striking range, they didn't attack.
'Still just small fry, then.'
Mountain Dragon Dracalon was the apex predator of the Primordial Forest.
Even as a corpse, its presence intimidated the small ones from approaching. They'd smelled blood but lacked the guts to check if it was dead. So they targeted weaker prey like lingering humans instead.
Tadadadot—
"What was that just now?"
"Scavengers."
"Scavengers?"
"You see vultures or hyenas flock to dead bodies in Africa, right? Same principle."
The problem? There's no such thing as a clean scavenger.
Scavengers happily hunt anything weaker, and sometimes even non-scavengers act like them to feed on corpses.
Wolves, lions, bears, tigers... Otherworld monsters aren't much different.
Aaaagh!
"We need to warn everyone about this."
"No."
"Huh?"
Spreading it now would make everyone bolt. Too soon. Especially since...
Clang! Clang!
"Ah, shit! This thing's tough as hell!"
"Scales won't even scratch, but our blades are ruined!"
...The best loot was still up for grabs.
Mountain Dragon Dracalon. Some had already ditched searching to farm its corpse.
"Peel off just one scale, and we're set for life!"
Great minds think alike.
People were belatedly realizing the early Trial's value and attempting farms.
Some circled the Dracalon corpse hunting drops, others tried prying useful items from its body.
'But monsters don't yield easy meat.'
Normally you'd take meat, hide, heart—but something this massive was impractical.
Especially the huge scales: too heavy to carry, and they dulled blades instead of cutting.
Eventually, they tried the head scales, the smallest ones.
"Ugh, won't budge! They designed it so we can't farm this?!"
Even that failed; no one succeeded. I scanned the area.
'Fewer numbers than before.'
Not all scavenged already... They'd scattered far while searching?
Seeing Hao Zifeng and Kim Jin-woo guarding with guildmates confirmed it.
Most of Jeju Nohyung Union and Cheongbang's forces were out.
Clumsy newbies and unaffiliated folks were the ones left, struggling to farm.
I slipped into distant bushes, clucking my tongue at the fading presences of two guild members.
...Pathetic.
The hardworking die, the lazy survive.
"Too damn hot. What kinda weather is this? Got any water?"
"Drink mine. You didn't even bring your own?"
Idiots chattering away, oblivious to approaching danger.
Forgetting you had to kill it before it evolved.
"Ugh, so freaking hot. Hope we bag it quick and move on."
"Same. How long you think?"
"Third-ranked guild, so maybe today or tomorrow?"
They'd despaired at the mountain-sized beast, hoped when hearing it'd be killed first—then forgot it all, lounging in Dracalon's shade, gossiping.
At least the scale-grunters were diligent.
"This isn't the time for this."
"What're they doing?"
Even my party looked disgusted. That said it all.
'No need to risk warning these losers.'
Even survivors here would die in upper Trials anyway.
So, expendable lives? Use them freely.
"E-eh? M-Mr. Min-jun? You're just gonna go?"
I headed for the beast's back.
Mountain Dragon's back scales were tougher than belly ones. No contest on value.
I stopped in an empty spot, facing a massive scale.
"You gonna farm this? Looks insanely tough."
"Won't cut with our weapons."
Clang!
Han So-hee swung her magitech sword full force—barely a hairline scratch. At nearly 70cm thick, no amount of pounding would work.
Party grimaced at her chipped blade.
"Don't worry. We've got one hardworking kitty."
"Ah, shit. Don't yank that."
Shin Seo-yeon glared, clenching her butt. Cat tail—surprisingly fun to tug.
"You know how, right?"
"Of course."
Crimson Flame Witch drew her sword confidently.
"Auntie, whatcha doing?"
"Hmph. Watch closely, kid."
I'd trained her often alongside me.
In the first run, she'd bossed me like a servant to co-develop techniques. Now, with my knowledge, she begged for new ones—her routine was slurping my dick eagerly.
She'd regained much of her first-run prowess.
"Here goes."
Shin Seo-yeon wreathed her sword in flames.
Whoosh!
Flames danced like sword aura along the blade.
Primordial Flame that burns all.
Even world-ending monsters were mere kindling before it.
Sizzle.
Blade touched scale— it melted, dripping like lava.
"Incredible."
"Hard to believe my eyes."
"Auntie, where'd you learn that?!"
Seo-yeon beamed at the praise.
Shed earned it—eight hours under my ass, tongue working furiously for this one trick.
Even without, she'd snapped over a thousand swords perfecting it.
Failed control melted them via Primordial Flame.
Sizzle!
I signaled when the blade fully pierced.
"This much."
"This size?"
"Yeah, perfect."
Flame-wreathed sword sliced Dracalon's scales effortlessly. Tough as they were, transcendent grade outclassed.
It took time, but...
Clatter!
Scales sheared off, hitting the ground one by one.
"Whoa!"
Dracalon's Scale: A scale from the Mountain Dragon Dracalon. Grants extremely high physical and magical resistance.
Mythic scales no one could claim—maybe by design.
Now in our hands.
'Perfect. Destruction Dragon's breath is sorted.'
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