Level Up Machine

Chapter 57 Armor of the Demon God (2)

After binding the fifteen surviving Judas Guild members with restraints and setting up guards around them, the Salvator Guild members gathered inside the barracks.

Inside the barracks, all the members of the Salvator Guild, along with Yoo Tae-sik, Kim Chan-hyung, and Park Eun-young, were gathered with grim expressions.

“The northern border has fallen, and of all times, why now…”

Kim Chan-hyung let out a deep sigh, his face showing disbelief.

Beyond his personal debt to Tiria, he also harbored a grudge against the Elnote Kingdom itself. For him, this sudden turn of events was extremely frustrating, as it disrupted his plans.

“After investigating various reports, it seems that the information about the northern border being breached is true. The monster horde led by an S-grade boss monster is said to be advancing towards Leopold.”

“The Leviathan Guild hasn’t returned from the dungeon yet, have they?”

Yoo Tae-sik, who had been silently listening, asked.

“No, they haven’t returned yet.”

“Hmm?”

A heavy atmosphere settled in the barracks. Yeong-sik turned his head towards Han-seong and asked.

“What kind of monster is this S-grade boss monster?”

“I heard it’s a Dragonian.”

“A Dragonian… Even regular Dragonians are monsters, but if it’s a boss monster…”

Hearing Han-seong’s explanation, Park Cheol-tae’s expression hardened. Dragonians were each individually elite-level monsters, akin to Ogres.

The thought of a boss-level Dragonian appearing, which would require a group of summoners above level 90 to contend with, was enough to make one feel dizzy.

“There are reportedly at least thirty Dragonians.”

“Thirty!”

Gasps of astonishment came from the guild members at Han-seong’s words. It made sense why the heavily fortified northern border had been breached so suddenly with such a formidable force.

“What are the other guilds doing?”

“They seem to be forming an alliance to counter the monster army. The kingdom is also preparing a subjugation force.”

“Hmmm?”

Silence fell again at his words.

Yeong-sik, who had been listening, slowly opened his mouth.

“Then isn’t this actually the perfect opportunity to attack the royal castle?”

“…Ah.”

Exclamations came from the guild members at his words. Indeed, the kingdom was in chaos, preparing to fend off the monster army advancing towards the capital. If they were planning to attack the royal castle anyway, there wouldn’t be many better opportunities than now.

“But…”

Tiria hesitated at Yeong-sik’s suggestion. Attacking the royal castle under the current circumstances was akin to starting a civil war in the midst of a foreign invasion.

If things went wrong, it wouldn’t just end with rescuing the hostages from the royal castle. The entire Elnote Kingdom could collapse, plunging the entire eastern region into chaos.

The mere thought of how many people might die in such a scenario was overwhelming.

“…I agree with Yeong-sik’s suggestion. However, it’s a dangerous method that could lead to our mutual destruction.”

Han-seong spoke in a calm voice, and Yeong-sik nodded with a composed expression.

“But it’s also true that this is the best opportunity.”

Yeong-sik turned his head toward Tiria.

“This might be the only chance to rescue your family held by the kingdom.”

At his words, Tiria pressed her lips tightly together, her expression filled with deep hesitation. Thinking about her parents, who had raised her, and her precious younger brother made her heart ache.

‘But…

The fear that rescuing her family could lead to the collapse of the entire kingdom weighed heavily on her shoulders. She wasn’t the type to easily accept the idea of thousands, even tens of thousands, of people dying for her goal.

“How about this then?”

Yeong-sik spoke to Tiria, who was wavering in her decision. Once again, the eyes of everyone in the barracks focused on him.

“After attacking the royal castle to rescue the hostages and retrieve the treasures, we join the Dragonian subjugation force.”

“You mean…”

“Yes. It’s true that our actions could put the entire kingdom at risk. So, in return, we participate in the Dragonian subjugation to take responsibility for that.”

At his words, Tiria’s eyes sparkled. Indeed, if everything went according to his plan, it would be possible to both rescue her family held in the royal castle and protect the kingdom’s people.

‘Though I don’t really think we need to go this far…’

Yeong-sik thought coldly as his eyes glinted. In truth, Yeong-sik believed that it was better to attack during the chaos and then swiftly pull back without worrying about what happened to the kingdom afterward.

The root cause of the Salvator Guild’s planned attack on the royal castle was the Elnote Kingdom. If they hadn’t kidnapped and threatened Tiria’s family, there would have been no reason for the Salvator Guild to attack the castle in the first place. Whatever happened as a result was the kingdom’s responsibility.

Nevertheless, the reason Yeong-sik made such a proposal was that he wanted to participate in the Dragonian subjugation himself.

There was only one thing Yeong-sik aimed for in this subjugation.

‘S-grade Memory Cube.’

A treasure that significantly increased the proficiency of his most important structural analysis skill, as well as boosting stats, skills, and even level limits.

While it might be trash to others, it was different for Yeong-sik.

‘Actually, it’s even better because of that.’

Since it was a worthless item to others, obtaining it wouldn’t be too difficult.

If it were an S-grade rare item like the ‘Blessing of the Archangel,’ acquiring it would be a distant dream even if he participated in the monster subjugation.

However, the Black Cube had no value to summoners.

If he could join the subjugation, obtaining the Black Cube wouldn’t be as hard as he thought.

‘So, I must participate in the subjugation.’

If he didn’t join the subjugation force, the chances of obtaining the Black Cube would drop drastically.

Because of these thoughts, Yeong-sik proposed such a method to Tiria.

“Indeed, it seems like a reasonable plan,” Tiria said after a long period of contemplation, nodding. It was a good method to both rescue her family and deal with the monster horde threatening the kingdom.

“As I said earlier, the choice is yours, Tiria. I will follow your decision.”

Yeong-sik spoke with a faint smile. At his words, Tiria’s face flushed slightly.

“Th-thank you.”

Despite not having known Yeong-sik for long, she found him to be incredibly trustworthy for some reason. Listening to him gave her an inexplicable sense of confidence, as if she could accomplish anything.

‘What if…’

She wondered what it would have been like if Yeong-sik had been the leader of Salvator.

‘If that were the case, such tragedies wouldn’t have occurred.’

Tiria thought with a bitter smile. Her experiences had painfully taught her that she was lacking as a leader.

‘But…’

Tiria clenched her fists. She had a goal. Fulfilling the promise to her precious friend, who was now gone, was what kept her going as the leader of Salvator.

“Alright. Then, as Yeong-sik suggested, we’ll attack the royal castle during the chaos.”

Tiria’s words caused the guild members to tense up. No matter how chaotic things were, they were about to invade the royal castle of a kingdom.

It was natural to feel nervous.

“…Then, I will outline the main objectives of this operation.”

Upon hearing Tiria’s words, Han-seong stopped any further objections and began briefing them on the attack plan.

“Before that.”

Yeong-sik interrupted Han-seong. He turned to Tiria.

“What do you plan to do with the Judas Guild members we have restrained?”

Tiria, who had postponed the decision due to the sudden news, pressed her lips tightly together. She closed her eyes, recalling Yeong-sik’s words about leaving the guild if she didn’t make a decision.

‘I have to decide.’

She bit her lip and slowly raised her head.

“…I cannot forgive those who turned their blades against their guildmates, even if it was due to my mistakes.”

The primary reason for Yong-chan’s betrayal was her incompetence.

She knew this well.

But saying, ‘Since there was enough reason to betray, let’s forgive them’ was not right. It was selfish of her as the one who caused the problem, but she couldn’t forgive them.

“…Understood.”

Yeong-sik nodded with a faint smile.

“Then let’s resume the operation briefing.”

Han-seong spoke with a serious expression.

“The primary objective of this operation is to rescue the guild master’s family. The second objective is to retrieve the ‘Blessing of the Archangel’ from the royal castle’s treasure vault.”

Han-seong continued in a calm voice, handing out sheets of paper.

“This is a map showing a cross-section of the royal castle. It marks the underground prison where the Erman family is held and the royal treasury.”

“Wow… Where did you get something like this?”

Yoo Tae-sik looked at the cross-section of the castle with an impressed expression. This was top-level confidential information.

“The plan to raid the royal castle was conceived back when the Salvator Guild had immense influence.”

When Tiria’s family was first taken hostage, the faction supporting Tiria planned a raid on the castle to rescue the hostages. This plan, which had been prepared almost to its final stage, was thwarted by the civil war instigated by Jung Yong-chan and other traitors.

“So, the royal treasury… We can’t just walk in there, can we?”

Yeong-sik frowned and asked Han-seong. Han-seong nodded in agreement.

“No, the entrance is blocked by a very powerful magical device.”

“Then how?”

At Yeong-sik’s question, Han-seong turned his head towards Yoo Jin.

“But we have a magician who can bypass spatial constraints.”

“Hmph.”

Yoo Jin scoffed and turned his head.

“Even the royal treasury, don’t they have measures against spatial teleportation?”

Yeong-sik tilted his head, puzzled. It didn’t make sense that in a continent where not only summoners but also natives wielded magic, they wouldn’t have considered teleportation.

Yoo Jin answered his question.

“Of course, they have wards against teleportation. But with my hidden class, I can ignore certain spatial freezing wards and teleport. I’ve seen the royal treasury once before. If it hasn’t changed, I should be able to bypass the wards.”

“Hoho?”

Yeong-sik looked intrigued by his words.

“Then, will we use Yoo Jin’s magic to infiltrate the castle?”

Remembering that he hadn’t heard how they planned to enter the castle, Yeong-sik asked. Han-seong smiled wryly and shook his head.

“No matter how powerful Yoo Jin is, he can’t warp such a large group at once.”

“Then?”

“The royal castle has a secret passage leading to the Sirenium Mountains for the royal family’s emergency escape. We plan to enter through there.”

“Ah?”

Only then did Yeong-sik understand why Han-seong and the other guild members were stationed at the top of the Sirenium Mountains. This was originally the entrance to the royal castle.

“How did you find such a secret passage?”

“Haha… I’ve been planning this raid for a long time, a very long time.”

Han-seong’s expression was bitter as he spoke. The heavy emotions in his face made Yeong-sik decide not to ask further.

“When do you plan to start?”

Yeong-sik turned to Tiria and asked. Tiria thought for a moment before responding.

“If Han-seong’s information is correct, the troops from the castle will move out to subdue the Dragonians. We’ll strike at that moment.”

The guild members nodded at her words.

After the meeting, Yeong-sik returned to his tent and lay down on the makeshift bed, lost in thought.

‘The royal treasury, huh…’

He recalled the time he stole items from Han Cheol-ho’s warehouse. Even as a guild master, Han Cheol-ho’s warehouse contained an enormous amount of items. He couldn’t imagine the wealth contained in a kingdom’s treasury.

‘There won’t be a Black Cube, though.’

Yeong-sik sighed with a regretful expression. To him, the Black Cube was more valuable than any rare item, but he didn’t think it would be stored in the royal treasury.

‘It would be nice to find something useful besides the Blessing of the Archangel.’

With that thought, Yeong-sik closed his eyes.