Chapter 2628 – 2628. Dark Moon

There are elements that are indispensable in RPG games.

Dungeons.

Of course, the original game, Dark Moon, also has dungeons. However, in this game, dungeons are one-time use. Once cleared, you can never enter them again. And some dungeons have entry conditions.

‘The most common entry condition is that you can only enter when the Dark Moon appears.’

In this world, dungeons are a kind of singularity space. Usually, it’s a place where space is distorted and strange powers arise due to the Dark Moon. Broadly speaking, special ancient ruins could also be considered dungeons. For example, the Sebitseom Floating Islands.

‘In the original game, you can reach levels 1 to 6 just by leveling up. But to break through to level 7 or higher, you need special quests or items in addition to leveling up.’

Level 7 is relatively easy. You can reach level 7 just by clearing a dungeon that matches your class.

‘After level 7, leveling up becomes incredibly difficult, and the number of items you need to collect and quests you need to complete increases… No, there’s no reason for me to worry about level 8 right now.’

The only concern is that unlike the game, this is reality.

‘Game elements aren’t 100% implemented in reality. I’ve already confirmed that.’

For example, in the original game, there are boxes hidden throughout Neo London where you can get items or money. But when you look for them directly, there are no boxes. Of course. If there were boxes, would people just leave them alone?

‘I hope it’s not a wild goose chase.’

I put on the No.6 Phantasm and changed my face with Absolute Polymorph. It was a face that was roughly based on my memories of my past life, with some personal desires mixed in.

‘Eugene Meyer has become too famous. Even country kids know my face. If I move around openly, I’m likely to get caught up in unnecessary things.’

I also put on a robe and pulled down the hood. An outfit that screams “wizard.” It’s a bit old-fashioned by current standards, but some wizards dress like this, so it’s not unusual.

‘Hardly anyone talks to a wizard openly. This is perfect.’

People subtly moved aside as I passed by. They don’t get close to wizards. It’s basic common sense in this world.

I arrived at a small village on the border of Neo London. But for a small village, there were a lot of people. Most of them were armed mercenaries.

Their destinations were divided into two places. One was a pub, and the other was a bus terminal.

My steps led me to the bus terminal.

The bus terminal building was made of pillars and a tent. It seemed like they weren’t doing even the bare minimum of maintenance, as the tent was torn in several places. Under the tent were bus drivers wearing reinforced armor. They were leisurely enjoying tea time, sipping coffee and smoking cigarettes.

The mercenaries didn’t easily approach the bus drivers. They were also careful with their words. A driver is a combat weapon with at least level 4 or higher combat power. And they’re wearing reinforced armor? They’re no different from tanks with mobility. They’re not opponents that mercenaries can mess with.

The mercenaries waited quietly, trying not to upset the drivers.

*Ting-a-ling! Ting-a-ling!*

A cheap alarm clock on the drivers’ table rang. One of the drivers sitting down got up from his seat with a sour expression.

“Haa.”

“Heh heh. Is it your turn? Suffer.”

“Shut up. You’re on night duty.”

“But I’m resting like this now.”

The driver gave his colleague the middle finger and headed to one of the buses parked next to the tent. And he looked around at the mercenaries at the entrance.

“This bus goes to the Raven Zone in the battlefield. The bus fare is 500,000 credits.”

One of the mercenaries timidly protested.

“500,000 credits?! It was 400,000 credits just a week ago! How can it suddenly go up by 100,000 credits in just one day?!”

“Enemy activity has increased this week. If the fare is too expensive, give up. Our Raven Knights don’t force anyone. It’s your choice to walk to the battlefield if you think the bus fare is too expensive. And it’s the result of your choice if you die on the road.”

“……”

The driver was nonchalant, whether the mercenaries glared at him or not. The power dynamic was clear. The mercenaries had no choice but to open their wallets. It seemed that 500,000 credits was within their expectations, as there were no mercenaries who lacked money.

It was my turn. I was the last one. I handed the driver five 100,000 credit bills.

The driver took the bills and said,

“Take off your hood. There are so many crazy bastards, I need to see your face.”

I quietly took off my hood.

The driver’s eyes widened when he saw my face.

“Well, you’re handsome. I see why you were wearing a hood. Women must go crazy every time you go somewhere. And you don’t seem like some average wizard. What’s your name?”

“Cha Eun-yu.”

“Damn it. Even your exotic name is cool.”

The driver, who seemed frustrated, gritted his teeth and looked down a little more, staring at my crotch. His eyes, which had seemed somewhat desperate, soon turned to despair.

“…Get on. Life is so unfair.”

I put my hood back on and boarded the bus with a raven painted on it. I looked around. There were quite a few empty seats.

‘The condition of the bus… isn’t too bad. At least it doesn’t smell like sewage, so that’s a relief.’

I headed towards the back of the bus. The seat I had my eye on was already taken by another mercenary. The seat in front of the very last seat. The very last seat was surprisingly uncomfortable, so I chose the seat in front of it. It was a seat where I could see the inside of the bus clearly.

“What’s up, wizard? Can’t you see I sat here first? Get lost.”

“That’s my seat. Move if you don’t want to die.”

“What?”

*Whoosh.*

Flames rose on my palm. The mercenary took a quick breath. I cast a spell without incantation. That alone made him realize that I was no ordinary person.

*Crackling!*

Blue sparks flew around the flames. The sight of me handling two elemental magics at the same time made the mercenary shrink back.

“I’ll give you five seconds.”

“…You son of a bitch!”

The mercenary jumped up. He walked towards the front of the bus, avoiding me. He was putting on a brave face, but his body was trembling. The mercenary spoke to the driver standing in front.

“Driver! Look at what this crazy bastard is doing! He’s causing a ruckus on the bus! Is this okay?!”

The driver had a nonchalant expression. He picked at his ear with his pinky finger.

“My ear itches. Sounds like some weakling is barking…”

“Driver!!”

“Shut up. I’m not your mom. Go whine to your mom. Oh, is your mom in hell? You can go to hell after you die and whine to your mom then. Should I send you to your mom myself?”

The driver exuded killing intent. The mercenary stammered and backed away. The mercenaries nearby laughed and mocked him.

I looked at the mercenaries sitting in the back seats.

“Why aren’t you guys leaving? Do you want me to burn you?”

“You’re going to take up all these seats by yourself? Are you kidding me?”

“It’s annoying to have you guys behind me. Do your parents live in hell too?”

“…Damn it. Okay, okay. This is fucked up. You damn wizard…”

The mercenaries cursed and vacated their seats. I seriously considered burning these uncivilized mercenary bastards who were insulting this noble, but I gave up.

‘If I really cause trouble here, I’ll get kicked out by the driver.’

I even paid 500,000 credits to ride the bus. It’s also tiring to walk to the battlefield when I have transportation. The reason why the bus fare is ridiculously expensive is because it’s relatively safe, in addition to the speed.

“We’re departing. The bus won’t stop for five hours. If you make a fuss about needing to pee or poop, I’ll smash your face. Anyone who pees or poops on the bus will be thrown out.”

The driver stepped on the gas pedal. The speed reached 200 km/h in an instant. The bus sped across the prairie.

The bus was fast. The problem was that it was only fast. The inside of the bus shook like a roller coaster because it wasn’t a proper road. Some of the mercenaries didn’t look good even though it hadn’t been three minutes yet. But they would endure it. They weren’t ordinary people either.

I looked out the window and thought about the battlefield.

The battlefield.

The center of the continent.

A place overflowing with all kinds of resources such as monsters, plants, minerals, and dungeons. As a result, it’s a place where wars constantly break out to seize resources.

To prevent it from escalating into a major war, and to prevent a specific country from monopolizing it, an international treaty was created for the battlefield.

According to the international treaty, countries cannot interfere in the battlefield. Of course, that means they can’t do it openly. They were interfering behind the scenes.

Forces supported by countries and corporations were occupying areas of the battlefield and mining resources.

‘The reason why the conflict in the battlefield never ends is because the resources are infinite. Or rather, the resources regenerate.’

The center of the continent is heavily influenced by the Dark Moon. Even if you mine resources, they recover when the Dark Moon appears.

Resources that pour out infinitely as long as there is time. It’s a region that any country would covet, so conflicts never cease.

‘The international treaty was created to limit the battlefield in order to prevent a world war that could be caused by the conflict in the battlefield.’

A country that openly crosses the line in this battlefield becomes a public enemy of the world and is destroyed.

At first, the international treaty was not well observed, but 150 years later, it was being observed reasonably well.

At least, countries were not openly interfering in the battlefield.

About an hour after the bus started, a man on a motorcycle sped towards the bus from the right.

Behind the masked biker, a herd of over 30 water buffaloes was charging fiercely.

Red-eyed water buffaloes with thorns sticking out all over their bodies. They were monster thorn water buffaloes.

“What the hell! Who is that crazy bastard?!”

“He’s coming this way!”

While the mercenaries were panicking and gathering their belongings, the driver, who was chewing on a cigarette in his mouth, distorted his face.

“Don’t panic, you rookie mercenaries. It’s always like this in the battlefield. They’re trying to kill us before we arrive to reduce the competition! What are you doing! You idiots! Are your guns just for show?!”

“Are you going to support us with bullets?!”

“If you go to hell because you’re saving bullets, your mom will welcome you? Huh? You moron?”

“……”

The mercenaries cursed and fired their guns out the window.

A barrier automatically unfolded around the man on the motorcycle, blocking the bullets. Some mercenaries tried to break the barrier using magic bullets, but it was in vain.

“That’s a barrier of at least level 5 or higher!”

“Does anyone have magic bullets for large monsters?”

“Do you know how much that costs? Even if they have it, they’ll pretend they don’t.”

As the mercenaries’ mood worsened, I also opened the window. The wind coming through the window was stinging.

[Fireball]

A fireball created in mid-air flew towards the biker. The biker couldn’t ignore the fireball like he did the bullets pouring down. He quickly turned the handle to try to dodge. It was the moment when the fireball barely grazed the biker’s shoulder.

‘Explode.’

*BOOOOOM!*

The fireball exploded. The impact broke the barrier, and the biker fell off the motorcycle and was trampled to death by the charging thorn water buffaloes.

“Yes! That bastard is dead!”

“Serves him right! You son of a bitch!”

“But that herd of water buffaloes isn’t stopping!”

The thorn water buffaloes, whose eyes had already turned red, were not satisfied and charged towards the bus.

[Fireball]

[Fireball]

[Fireball]

Fireballs flew towards the herd of water buffaloes in succession. The fireballs exploded as soon as they touched the herd. The body parts of the water buffaloes, whose bodies were shattered by the impact and heat, flew everywhere.

The fireballs that poured down in succession were no different from missiles.

Three fireballs wiped out half of the herd, but the herd did not stop. I continued to chant.

[Fireball]

[Fireball]

[Fireball]

[Fireball]

[Fireball]

Around the time when my mana road started to feel a slight strain from the continuous magic casting.

The herd of thorn water buffaloes that had been chasing the bus was annihilated.

“……”

Instead of cheering, the mercenaries were watching me. The mercenary who had a brief argument with me was trembling all over.

In the chilly atmosphere, despite the use of fire magic, the driver’s hearty laughter echoed.

“Hahahaha! There was a real one among the losers!”