Chapter 138

Chapter 138
## Chapter 138: Final Twilight

Even witnessing it personally, the reality refused to sink in.

The idea that I would manage to acquire a unique-grade piece of equipment in such a manner was staggering.

Yet, what truly caught me off guard were the specific titles appearing on the list.

The vast majority were unique-tier armaments that had never surfaced before.

These were undiscovered treasures, items whose very existence had been unknown to me until this moment.

Sword of the Victor.

Inside his private study, Master spent the entire day with a deep scowl etched onto his face.

His gaze was fixed intensely on the parchment map of the continent spread across his desk.

Tapping. Tapping.

He drummed his fingers against the southern territories of the map before letting out a heavy, weary sigh.

‘No matter how many times I run the scenarios, my only path forward is through the Black King.’

The undisputed ruler of the southern lands.

The Black King’s reach was stretching toward the central continent at an alarming rate.

It was clear evidence that even the central empire’s authority did not intimidate him.

This was the source of Master’s torment.

He was debating whether he should throw his lot in with that rising tide.

‘A crimson deluge is about to drown this continent. Everyone will be forced to decide which shelter they’ll crawl into.’

The threat wasn’t limited to the Black King.

Since the conclusion of the Great Expedition, the geopolitical landscape had shifted violently.

The central empire.

The Black King dominating the south.

The White King reigning in the north.

Even the reclusive elves of the west.

And that wasn’t the end of it.

‘If those whispers about the Demon King’s resurgence are accurate…’

The Great Expedition led by Wilhelm had ended in disaster.

Though Wilhelm had perished, it appeared he had managed to inflict some level of injury on the Demon King.

Following that event, the movements from the demonic territories had ceased entirely.

However, recent reports suggested the Demon King had achieved a total recovery.

To survive the coming gale, picking a side was no longer optional—it was a necessity.

Furthermore, by aligning with the Black King, he could finally crush those who had looked down on him.

He could carve the name of Master back into the empire that had used him and into the hearts of the players who had treated him like a joke.

‘I cannot afford another setback.’

Master’s desperation was fueled by a string of recent failures.

Every scheme he had recently put into motion had collapsed.

While his rivals were charging ahead, he was the only one losing ground.

‘If I continue to hesitate, my ruin is guaranteed.’

He was backed into a corner.

The fiasco at the auction had crippled Rundella’s treasury, and his standing back on Earth was in shambles.

He needed to make a move before his options vanished.

He had to act while he still possessed the agency to do so.

‘The Black King’s true strength far exceeds the public rumors. His armies and his personal might are beyond reproach.’

Moreover, his private inquiries confirmed that the Black King was a reliable patron.

The deeper he investigated, the more he was stunned by the hidden resources the Black King commanded.

There was a legitimate reason why he treated the empire and the White King with such indifference.

If the Black King truly committed to a campaign, it was hard to imagine who could possibly stand in his way.

The only thing stopping him was his own ego—he loathed the idea of bowing his head to a monster.

As he struggled with his pride.

《A ‘new talent’ has been awakened.》

《The ‘Crack Tower’ has manifested.》

Sudden system alerts flashed before his eyes.

Master cocked his head to the side.

‘A new talent? The Crack Tower?’

He scanned the public logs immediately, then settled back into his chair, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

Once the implications became clear, he let out a sharp breath of astonishment.

“This is… a goldmine.”

What exactly was a talent?

It represented growth potential and the trajectory of a character’s future.

However, the true value of talents lay elsewhere.

‘Hidden traits.’

These were the unique abilities unlocked when specific talents harmonized.

The fact that a new talent had emerged across several fields meant only one thing.

‘It means entirely new hidden traits have become available.’

These were undiscovered paths.

He didn’t know the exact combinations yet, but it was certain that powerful hidden traits would stem from these new talents.

These traits would be fundamentally different from anything seen previously.

After all, the appearance of a brand-new talent was a historic first.

‘This warrants immediate investigation.’

Just as he was reaching his limit, a new lifeline had been extended.

This opportunity could be the very thing that propelled him back to the top.

Why else would a tower designed to provide SP appear at the same time as the talent?

‘The person who masters these new hidden traits will rule.’

The first player to claim one would become a king among men.

The rest of the world hadn’t realized this truth yet.

Only he, with his extensive history of experimenting with hidden traits, could see the pattern.

Realizing this, Master let out a low, trembling laugh, overcome with a sense of frantic joy.

This was his final shot to seize the tower and take control of the narrative.

At that precise moment.

《The Honor Hall standings for ‘Main Quest 8’ have updated.》

In an instant.

The joy drained from Master’s face as if it had never existed.

His expression turned stony, his brow knitting together in a deep furrow.

‘That’s impossible…’

He tried to dismiss the thought.

No.

It couldn’t be.

The objective of Main Quest 8 was to cleanse a city’s sources of corruption.

Master had been at the forefront of that effort.

He had secured the top spot with a massive lead while purging Rundella.

He was positive that not even that man could overtake his score.

“What on earth…?”

As he pulled up the leaderboards, Master’s breath hitched in his throat.

He actually rubbed his eyes, convinced his vision was failing him.

But the text remained unchanged.

《1st Place: 1,500 points. Randolph》

《2nd Place: 430 points. Master》

…Had he ever encountered such a madman?

1,500 points?

He had never witnessed a score of that magnitude.

Prior to today, he hadn’t even been certain that four-digit scores were possible.

In fact, he had never even seen anyone come close to 1,000.

‘What kind of exploit is he using?’

Randolph’s performance in previous Main Quests had been dominant, but never this nonsensical.

Before, they were at least within the realm of logic.

But this score was indefensible, no matter how much leeway he gave it.

‘Unless he somehow purified an entire continent on his own!’

Cleansing every inch of Rundella had only granted him 430.

He couldn’t even fathom what kind of feat would reward 1,500.

‘The rankings for Main Quest 8 dictate the interest shop.’

The newly accessible marketplace.

The inventory of that shop was tied directly to one’s rank.

As the former leader, Master had already profited immensely from the interest shop.

*Creeaaaak!*

‘If I got all that, what the hell is he going to get with 1,500?’

The quality of the rewards scaled with the points.

At that score, even lesser constellations would likely intervene to upgrade the reward tiers.

Master shook his head, trying to remain rational.

‘…No. Regardless of the score, Main Quest prizes should cap at Mythic grade.’

There were limits to these rewards.

Mythic was the highest tier he was aware of.

Above that was Unique, but he had never heard of a Unique item being handed out as a quest reward.

‘He’ll probably just walk away with two or three Mythic-grade pieces.’

The quantity would be higher, certainly.

It was still a massive gain.

Though, compared to a 1,500-point achievement, it felt almost like a consolation prize.

However, Master’s assumptions were completely off base.

《A new ‘Unique-grade armament’ has been forged!》

…Because it happened.

The notification for a newly forged Unique item appeared at that very second.

There was no chance someone else had crafted it.

This was, without question.

‘…Randolph just obtained a Unique-grade item.’

Randolph!

That man had snatched it.

It was clearly the prize for his 1,500-point performance.

It seemed scores exceeding 1,000 triggered a conversion into Unique rewards.

But how?

Even if he was Phantom, and even if he understood Pangeniar better than anyone—how could he pull off such broken maneuvers back-to-back?

*Grind!*

Master ground his teeth again.

He clenched his jaw so hard it felt like his teeth might splinter.

Everyone was leaving him in the dust.

While everyone else walked, Randolph was flying in a supersonic jet.

‘I have to climb higher. I have to.’

The feeling of being the only one left behind was driving him to the brink of insanity.

Then.

《A ‘?? Unique-grade armament’ has been birthed!》

…Wait.

It wasn’t over?

“Birthed,” not crafted—what did that even mean?

He barely managed to hold back a scream of frustration.

His pride no longer mattered; he was in a state of emergency.

Finally, Master made his choice.

He would take the Black King’s hand.

—

What should I pick?

The list was extensive, but I was permitted only a single selection.

That was fine with me.

Aside from the actual item, I had gained something far more significant.

‘This is pure data. Invaluable intel that no one else possesses.’

Every name on this list represented a Unique-grade item.

It was likely a comprehensive list of every Unique-tier object currently in existence or possible within this world.

This knowledge was worth more than any currency—it was a literal treasure map.

‘I can deduce their locations based on these names.’

For instance, ‘Primordial Light’ was a clear reference to a specific elven territory.

It likely originated from the ‘Primordial Forest.’

‘Horizon’s Resistance’ suggested a location near the ‘World’s End.’

By cross-referencing these names with world lore, I could hunt down other Uniques.

‘…This is a difficult choice.’

It was a wonderfully stressful situation to be in.

The rewards from previous Main Quests seemed like toys compared to this.

Naturally, I needed to choose the one that maximized my current build.

‘The Glorious Hero King’s Throne reached its conclusion, which pushed the reward to the Unique tier. That means a weapon related to him should be listed here.’

One thought kept returning to me: the Glorious Hero King’s Throne.

It was the only entity that had shown a genuine interest in me.

It had vanished after fulfilling its purpose.

A reward tied to that legacy was likely buried in this list.

The difficulty lay in choosing based solely on a title.

In Pangeniar, information was synonymous with power.

‘Out of all these, I recognize two: The Bow that Targets God and the Dragon God’s Helm.’

Those were two items I had once intended to craft myself.

I’d abandoned the idea because the materials were impossible to find, but I knew the extent of their power.

The ‘Bow that Targets God’ was particularly broken, allowing one to strike an enemy from an infinite range.

Picking a known entity would ensure I didn’t end up with a useless item.

‘Single-word names usually indicate a high concentration of power in one specific function. Especially titles like Twilight or Lament.’

Those two were the hardest to evaluate.

Their meanings were vague; those two syllables might hide a function that didn’t help me at all.

The safest route was to stick with what I knew.

However, there was a detail I couldn’t ignore.

‘Every title has an associated visual effect.’

Flickering embers, crackling bolts, radiating light.

Every name on the list came with a description of its aura.

They were fitting for Unique items—extravagant from the moment of their birth.

‘Starlight remains.’

One particular name was associated with ‘starlight.’

My gut told me.

That starlight was the remnant of the ‘Glorious Hero King’s Throne.’

I made my decision and slowly reached out toward the interface.

And then.

《A new Unique-grade armament has been forged!》

《The Glorious Hero King, the progenitor of all ancient champions.》

《The ‘Twilight’ he left behind as he faded now resides within you.》

《The Hero King and the Twilight have accepted you.》

《‘Final Twilight’ has reached completion.》

Final Twilight.

It was the parting gift from the Glorious Hero King’s Throne.

However, Final Twilight wasn’t a physical piece of gear.

It wasn’t a blade or a suit of armor.

It was… a rune.

A series of characters inscribed by a transcendental being.

Typically, such ‘runes’ were carved directly into the ‘soul.’

Much like the ‘Hydragon’s Soul.’

It was the imprinting of an existence itself.

‘Where should I place this rune?’

I extended my hand.

The North Heaven Ice Sword was already gripped firmly in my palm.

Without a moment of hesitation, I pressed ‘Final Twilight’ into the blade of the North Heaven Ice Sword.

A deluge of starlight cascaded downward.

《A new pact is engraved above all existing contracts on the ‘North Heaven Ice Sword.’》

《The ‘North Heaven Ice Sword’ reclaims its true essence.》

《‘Winter’ is now yours in its entirety.》

《‘Final Twilight’ further transcends the rank of this blade.》