MAEPG: Episode 256

Episode 256 The Zhuge Clan (2)

“Hmm.”

While gathering helpful information online,

I stretched comfortably and let out a short sigh.

“Things are progressing smoothly, which is good… but his personality has become too aggressive.”

Harris, the High Elf wreaking havoc in Ganghwange.

He had finally received a formal invitation from the Zhuge Clan and entered their stronghold.

Their first encounter hadn’t been very pleasant, but now he was being treated with a certain level of hospitality.

‘…To be precise, they probably have no choice but to treat him with respect.’

The Zhuge Clan had reached their current position thanks to their unique and powerful sorcery and formations, not through overwhelming martial arts prowess. Not a single one of them had reached the Mysterious Realm, let alone the Transcendent Realm.

It was said that their combined formations and sorcery could even subdue a Mysterious Realm expert, so…

‘…Of course, if their opponent *is* a Mysterious Realm expert, they would need the help of their meticulously prepared formations. Even then, it would only be for defensive purposes.’

That's why they were helpless against Harris, who was far beyond their level.

Of course, in a world where strength was everything, there was also a certain level of respect for a powerful warrior who had already proven his abilities.

However, I, the one behind it all, couldn’t easily accept Harris’s change in behavior.

“Hmm, is it because of the surrounding environment?”

Harris was a being who was sensitive to his surroundings, whether it was due to his innate nature or his acquired skills.

So it wasn’t strange for him to react strongly to a world where Ki, the very foundation of its power, was dwindling.

‘But it’s not a major problem. I was planning to send him back to Auterica soon anyway.’

It had been five days since Harris was transferred to Ganghwange.

Half of his allotted time was already gone.

He hadn’t done much besides wreaking havoc, but the results were satisfactory, so it was a successful start.

‘Speaking of which.’

I found something interesting while browsing the system window.

A change that seemed to have occurred after Harris successfully entered Ganghwange.

『Item Purchase – View Details』

└Auterica

└Ganghwange

The option to purchase items from each world by paying Karma.

The sub-menu, which had only listed Auterica before, now included Ganghwange.

‘So it works this way too.’

I nodded slightly.

I had been worried that it might only work for Auterica, his designated dimension, but the system seemed to be more flexible than I thought.

I immediately entered the ‘Ganghwange’ menu and browsed the listed items.

‘Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng, Yin-Yang Fruit, Sky Blue Stone Oil… Just the names sound impressive.’

The first things that caught my eye were the various elixirs.

Rare and precious treasures with diverse properties and uses.

If the Murim warriors of Ganghwange saw this, they would be ecstatic…

‘…But I don’t need to worry about that. I have Harris, the ultimate elixir hunter.’

I could sense several elixirs even in Yungjung Mountain, where he was currently located.

And Mount Wudang, renowned for its powerful Ki and rare herbs, was nearby.

‘It’s a place with exceptionally strong Ki, even among Dragon Veins. I wonder what kind of elixirs grow there.’

I recalled the sacred mountain I had glimpsed while traveling to the Zhuge Clan and licked my lips.

It would be fun to collect those treasures later.

There were also many famous elixirs listed in the shop, like the Great Revolving Elixir and the Purple Haze Divine Elixir.

And there were even secret manuals from various sects and mystical weapons, practically magic tools of the Murim world.

There were even a few items with exorbitant prices.

『Ten Thousand Children’s Blood Jade (1,190,000)』

『Eternal Glacier’s Thousand-Year Ice Essence (780,000)』

『Incomplete Dragon Orb of a 999-Year-Old Imugi (1,530,000)』

『…』

I didn’t know much about Ganghwange yet, but the names themselves sounded ominous.

Their prices reflected their value.

‘Imugi are real. I wonder if there are actual dragons here too?’

But they weren’t important right now.

I had other things in mind.

I entered the desired criteria in the 『Item Purchase』 menu and filtered the results.

And after browsing the list—

I smiled with satisfaction and began purchasing the items, sending them to “Avatar Cloud”.

____________________

Clang—! Clang—! Clang!

‘Hmm? What’s that sound?’

Zaonic frowned, pausing his work as he entered his workshop.

He recognized the sound of hammering, but… something felt off.

“Huh…?”

He couldn’t understand it, no matter how hard he tried to focus, so he headed towards the source of the sound.

Clang—! Sizzle—!

The rhythmic sounds of forging and quenching continued.

Howard, stripped to the waist, was sweating profusely as he worked diligently.

A truly admirable and inspiring sight.

“What… What in the world is that?”

But Zaonic’s gaze was fixed on something else.

His jaw dropped, and a gasp escaped his lips.

“Wh-what is that metal? How? What…?”

The Dwarf master was speechless, stammering in confusion.

He had never seen anything like it in his life, a metal so alien that he couldn’t even comprehend its existence.

“Ah, you’re here?”

Howard, finishing his current task, turned and greeted him, but Zaonic was too stunned to respond.

He had been somewhat unconcerned when Howard had brought back rare minerals from the Northern Mountains, assuming Hubert’s Trading Company, with its vast resources, had simply acquired them through trade.

‘…But this is different. Completely different. Did such a thing even exist?’

The metal Howard was currently working with.

It was something he, a Dwarf who prided himself on his mastery of all metals, blessed by fire and metal, couldn’t even begin to understand.

It defied his very understanding of metallurgy.

But it was undeniably real, right before his eyes.

“Ahem! Hubert sent it to me. He said he found it in the Northern Mountains. Would you like to take a look?”

Howard coughed lightly and, seeing Zaonic’s dumbfounded expression, offered him a piece of the metal he had just taken from his subspace.

‘There’s more?’

Despite his inner turmoil, Zaonic instinctively reached out and took it.

‘Ah!’

And the moment the metal touched his hand, he knew.

His initial feeling hadn’t been a mistake.

“What… What is this? How can such a metal exist?”

He muttered, his voice barely above a whisper, and his hands moved unconsciously.

He stared intently at the metal, caressing its surface. He flicked it with his finger, feeling its vibrations and listening to its resonant hum. He brought it to his nose, inhaling its scent.

He even licked it, savoring its taste, and then, unable to resist, he popped it into his mouth and began to chew.

‘…Is he alright?’

Howard watched him with a slightly concerned expression.

He understood the old Dwarf’s excitement, though.

The metal in his hand was ‘Ten Thousand Year Cold Iron’, a rare and precious material from Ganghwange, a world with a different energy system.

‘He recognized it right away. As expected of a Dwarf.’

Howard smiled faintly. He hadn’t expected anything less.

‘Magic tools from other dimensions don’t work in a world with a different energy system.’

That was common knowledge among returnees. The magic tools they had painstakingly collected were useless paperweights in other worlds.

But that didn’t mean the materials themselves lost their inherent properties.

‘It can’t be imbued with additional mystical properties… but Ten Thousand Year Cold Iron is an exceptional metal in itself.’

Its unique characteristic of repelling otherworldly energies could even be considered an advantage.

For example, an incredibly durable armor that ignored all magical effects.

‘It doesn’t even need to be entirely made of Cold Iron. A thin layer would be more than enough.’

Of course, it would be difficult to work with due to its unique properties, and adapting it to this world’s technology wouldn’t be easy… but that’s what challenges were for.

He was a Dwarf, a master craftsman, blessed with an innate talent for creation.

“Heavens! This is… This came from the Northern Mountains? What in the world is happening there? Could it be… the Immortal King? What has he done?”

Zaonic finally snapped out of his trance and muttered in disbelief.

There were still other metals left, like Black Iron and Meteoric Iron…

‘…I’ll reveal them slowly.’

He still needed Zaonic’s help. It wouldn’t be good for him to collapse from shock after seeing too much at once.

____________________

Five days had passed since Harris entered Ganghwange. It was now the sixth day.

He briefly left the Zhuge Clan’s territory and returned shortly after.

“Harris, where did you suddenly go? And… who is that?”

He wasn’t alone.

The Second Elder, who was guarding the entrance, frowned as he saw the unfamiliar figure accompanying Harris.

He was already annoyed by Harris’s disrespectful behavior, and now he had brought an outsider into their territory without permission.

“Ah, it seems you haven’t received the message yet? I informed you I would be bringing a guest.”

“…Is that so? There must have been some misunderstanding.”

Harris had simply declared his intentions and left, but he calmly replied with a straight face, as if nothing was amiss. He had become much more brazen.

“Then, may we enter now? I’d like to introduce my friend.”

“Hmm, please wait a moment. I’ll inform… Ah! You may enter.”

The Second Elder, his face troubled, nodded after receiving confirmation from within.

He didn’t want to deal with them any longer, so he quickly stepped aside, silently urging them to enter.

He hoped they would just disappear inside.

But they didn’t move as he expected.

The young man who had come with Harris approached him.

And then, bowing politely, he greeted the bewildered Second Elder.

“I apologize for the sudden intrusion. I’m sorry for any inconvenience, warrior.”

“…It’s fine. I’m just following orders.”

The Second Elder also bowed in response to the polite greeting.

He had assumed the newcomer would be similar to Harris… but he seemed to be more… normal.

“My apologies for the late introduction. It’s a pleasure to meet you. I am…”

And then, the young man, dressed in fine martial arts attire, with a sword at his waist, smiled brightly and continued.

“…Ha Seung-hoon.”

Ha Seung-hoon, the name Hesperon had also used.

The new alias of ‘Hugo’, the avatar who had followed Harris into Ganghwange.

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