Chapter 17

Chapter 17
## Chapter 17: Beyond Reach

He was utterly untouchable.

*Riiip!*

Massive draconic wings erupted from his shoulder blades.

This was the complete set bonus of Michella’s specialized gear: “Heavenly Dragon.”

The blade, the plate armor, and the helm—once the trio was united, the power awakened. However, during these opening stages of the game, gathering them was an almost impossible feat. He had managed to secure the final pieces through the underground auction house.

‘It was a stroke of luck that I already possessed Michella’s Sword; that’s the rarest of the bunch.’

The breastplate and headpiece were relatively accessible compared to the legendary blade. Indeed, while the sword was nowhere to be found, the armor and helmet were listed for immediate purchase at 200,000 gold each within the secret exchange.

‘I saw plenty of bait items rigged with Twin Talismans, though.’

The Twin Talisman.

It was a specific enchantment that linked two charms, allowing them to track each other’s coordinates.

If a buyer unknowingly equipped one, they were essentially broadcasting their exact location to the seller. Some scammers even masked the item’s true nature by labeling it a “Secret Scroll.”

These traps were rampant on low-level gear intended for players between levels 1 and 5, priced temptingly low to snaring the inexperienced.

‘I can’t shake the suspicion that these “phishing” traps are specifically looking for me.’

He couldn’t ignore the possibility that he was the target. The high-ranking players in the hall were surely aware he had conquered Main Quest 2, and they would anticipate his need for specific equipment to achieve a perfect rating on the third trial.

They would list those exact necessities at a discount, then use the tracking magic to hunt him down and strip his loot. It might have been paranoia, but in this world, caution was the only way to stay alive.

Of course, the rewards of the secret auction house were far too valuable to ignore entirely.

‘…I never expected to stumble upon this.’

He looked down at his feet, a thin smile playing on his lips.

Fortune had smiled on him. Finding this item at this precise moment was a game-changer. Suddenly, the item’s holographic data manifested before his eyes.

—

**【Hermes’ Shoes (Epic) (1)】**

★ Footwear crafted to emulate the speed of Hermes, the God of Wind. Rumored to have originated from the Golden Temple. Grant the wearer the swiftness of a gale, though entry to the “Wind Temple” is forbidden while they are worn.

★ **Equip Requirement:** All attributes must be 40 ($50 – 10$) or higher.

★ **Talisman (Fairy Queen’s Tear):** Decreases the attribute requirements for equipment by 20%.

★ **Agility:** +3

★ **Active Skill:** “Swift”

—

This was a premier epic-tier item featuring a dedicated socket.

It utilized a talisman, provided raw stat boosts, and even granted an active ability. It was an incredibly flexible piece of equipment, though the high entry barrier made it useless for a standard novice.

A requirement of 50 in every stat.

Even with top-tier potential and a powerful class, a player would usually need to reach level 8 to qualify. Typically, primary stats would climb quickly while secondary ones lagged behind.

However, for him, every level gained resulted in a 12-point boost across all attributes. Combined with the Fairy Queen’s Tear, the restriction was effectively bypassed.

‘By the time I hit level 8, these might start to feel underwhelming, but for my current situation, they are unparalleled.’

Most importantly, Hermes’ Shoes provided the perfect synergy with the Heavenly Dragon set bonus.

*-I will dissolve your very souls.*

The Chid Mamba exhaled a dense, emerald fog of venom—an acidic cloud capable of melting through anything it touched.

*Flutter!*

*Whoosh!*

Yet, the corrosive haze failed to advance, pushed back by a sudden, violent updraft. The wings of the Heavenly Dragon combined with the “Swift” ability, creating localized gales.

*Whoooosh!*

The winds didn’t just neutralize the poison; they sent the surrounding Chidworms tumbling away. The Chid Mamba snarled, squinting against the building pressure of the wind.

*-Wind sorcery? Then try to withstand this!*

The Chid Mamba whipped its concealed tail forward. Much like a scorpion’s strike, the tip dripped with a lethal neurotoxin. It moved at a velocity that defied human reaction—if you waited to see it, you were already dead.

However.

‘To the right.’

If one could predict the trajectory before the strike, evasion was entirely possible.

Prior to firing its stinger, the Chid Mamba’s hands would twist in a specific manner. There were precisely 26 distinct variations of this movement, each dictating a different flight path for the barb.

‘Roll.’

He transitioned between rolls, short flights, and sprints—evading every single projectile the Chid Mamba launched.

*-You slippery rodent!*

The beast was consumed by fury.

With its toxic mist neutralized and its ranged stingers failing to find their mark, it was becoming desperate. He lunged forward; a single well-placed strike to the throat would conclude the fight.

‘Halt.’

He exerted massive force into his lower body, bringing his momentum to a dead stop.

In that heartbeat.

*Shrrk!*

A forest of jagged spines burst from the earth directly in front of him. Hidden traps that had been waiting beneath the soil.

*-Y-You even anticipated that?*

The Chid Mamba’s eyes widened in genuine terror.

‘Charge.’

Having exhausted its full cycle of patterns, the Chid Mamba fell into a momentary state of “Confusion.”

It was a fleeting window. If the kill wasn’t secured now, the creature would only grow more resilient and dangerous as the battle dragged on.

*Shwick!*

He gripped his massive greatsword, feeling the surge of power through his frame. He began a slow, deliberate approach toward the stunned monster.

‘Swift.’

The thrust of the heavy blade accelerated to a blur.

*Slash!*

The edge passed through the Chid Mamba’s neck with the ease of a hot knife through wax. As the severed head hit the ground, the light of life faded from its eyes.

《Elite Monster ‘Chid Mamba’ has been slain!》

《Contribution: 100%》

《Commencing absorption of ‘Fragment of the Broken Golden Rule’ (10 minutes).》

《’Fragment of the Broken Golden Rule’ duration: 47 hours 56 minutes 39 seconds.》

《The shadow retreats for a moment.》

《Pangeniar destabilization: 9.1%》

《Item obtained: ‘Lucky Die.’》

—

“Kyaaah!”

The piercing shriek of Kim Seoyeon pulled Kim Hana back to the waking world.

There was blood staining the floor.

There were the severed limbs of Jeong Jinwoo.

And then…

‘It’s that person from before.’

The mysterious figure who had rescued her from the Giant Mantis was standing right there. He was clad in a suit of armor and a helmet she had never seen before. Large, russet-colored wings extended from his back. He looked different, more formidable, but it was unmistakably him.

“A-Ah…”

Kim Seoyeon sank to the floor, her body racked with tremors. She was paralyzed by a deep, instinctual fear.

*Slap!*

“Get a hold of yourself!”

Kim Hana struck Kim Seoyeon’s cheek to break her trance. This was no place to linger. They had to survive.

Lifting the limp Seoyeon over her shoulder, Kim Hana scanned the room.

‘Wait, where is Hyun-myeong-ssi?’

Park Hyun-myeong had vanished.

‘He couldn’t have just run away, could he?’

Kim Hana’s expression darkened. She hadn’t seen him bolt. He had been right beside her when the insectoids invaded, but he had slipped away the moment the female monster appeared. Escaping was better than dying like a coward, but abandoning them was another matter entirely.

With a grunt of effort, she began to move Kim Seoyeon. The only goal was to put distance between themselves and the carnage.

“Don’t go that way! The rear exit is crawling with them! Get to the second floor!”

As they neared the back, a panicked staff member shouted from the mezzanine. The exterior was already lost to the giant insects.

“Save us!”

At her desperate plea, a few survivors from the upper level reached down to help.

*Whoooosh!*

*Clatter! Clatter!*

A massive pressure wave rolled through the hall. The man had cleared the monster’s lethal fog in an instant. Grabbing the railing to keep her balance, Kim Hana looked back.

‘Ah…!’

The beast was unleashing its stingers. They moved so fast they were practically invisible. If that man didn’t win, everyone remaining would be slaughtered in heartbeats. There was no other way out. She could only fold her hands and pray.

“Please… please win…!”

“Is he a Dimension Warrior too?”

“But wait, the other Dimension Warriors were the ones attacking us! We can’t trust him yet!”

The crowd watched from above, their breaths hitched in their throats. That man was their only hope. Yet, after seeing Jeong Jinwoo lose his mind and turn on them, they were terrified of anyone with that kind of power.

“It’s fine. He’s on our side,” Kim Hana said, trying to steady the crowd. Panic would only lead to more death.

Every time a stinger whistled through the air, the people flinched, terrified the man would finally be struck.

*Slash!*

But he evaded every attack with surgical precision, eventually taking the monster’s head in a single, fluid motion. The moment the head rolled across the tiles, the atmosphere shifted.

“D-Did he do it?”

“Look! The other monsters are dissolving!”

“We’re alive! We’re actually alive!”

The room erupted in a mixture of sobs and cheers. With the queen eliminated, the lesser drones simply melted away into nothingness.

“…”

The man turned his head, casting a brief glance at the terrified people huddled on the second floor. Then, with a sudden motion, he pulled his cloak around him and vanished into thin air.

“Where did he go?”

“He’s just… gone?”

It was as if they had been watching a phantom. How could a living person just blink out of existence?

The confusion was cut short by a familiar voice.

“Are you all okay?”

Kim Hana turned at the sound, her eyes narrowing as she spoke.

“…Hyun-myeong-ssi? Where have you been?”

“I was in the restroom.”

The restroom?

‘Is that… blood?’

Kim Hana was observant. On Park Hyun-myeong’s ankle, right where his sock had slipped down, there was a tiny, drying droplet of crimson. In this chaotic scene, blood was everywhere—it wouldn’t be strange to have some on you.

But the only person who had been bleeding out was Jeong Jinwoo, and Park Hyun-myeong had supposedly disappeared long before that happened. If he had truly been hiding in the bathroom, he shouldn’t have been near any spray.

Whose blood was that?

‘It couldn’t be…’

Furthermore, the timing was too perfect. The man appeared as Park vanished; Park returned just as the man disappeared.

‘No, that’s impossible…’

She dismissed the thought. It was too far-fetched. Kim Hana looked back and forth between the empty space where the warrior had stood and Park Hyun-myeong.

“Is there something on my face?”

“No… nothing…”

She convinced herself it was a coincidence. Park Hyun-myeong couldn’t possibly be a Dimension Warrior. But if—by some astronomical fluke—he was? If he was the same man from the photograph she kept as a lucky charm?

Kim Hana’s mind became a whirlwind of conflicting emotions as she stared at him.

—

The following day.

The world was once again gripped by fear. This marked the second major incursion from another realm. While the Dimension Warriors had successfully repelled the threat, the attacks were clearly escalating in power.

Voices in the media were already calling for all players to register and cooperate with the government, but the players themselves were divided.

“Is that Randolph?”

Inside a dimly lit, high-tech operations room, a group of ten individuals were focused on a single task: tracking down “Phantom.”

They were meticulously scrubbing through every social media post and YouTube upload. The number of Korean “players” had surged to 178, a significant jump from the initial hundred. Hidden talents were starting to reveal themselves.

They suspected Randolph might be hiding among them. On one monitor, footage from a high-end steakhouse in Cheongdam played on a loop.

“Hermes’ Shoes. Those have a brutal stat requirement, don’t they?”

“If he’s only just finished the second Main Quest, there’s no way he meets the criteria to wear them.”

It was a valid point. The requirements for those shoes were far beyond the reach of a beginner. A level 4 or 5 player shouldn’t be able to put them on.

“But look at the wings—that’s the Heavenly Dragon set.”

“Even if he bought the helm and chest from the auction, where did he find Michella’s Sword?”

“And he’s the same one who showed up with the ‘Hydragon’s Soul’ previously.”

Even if this wasn’t Randolph, the questions were mounting. Michella’s Sword had a drop rate that was practically non-existent. There were maybe ten in the entire world.

And what about the Hydragon’s Soul? The rumors said only one existed per server, owned by a ghost—some even whispered it belonged to an administrator.

“Are we suggesting he’s an ‘admin’?”

“Just watch the way he handles that Chid Mamba. He’s dodging every single pattern by millimeters.”

“…Yeah. Who can read movements like that? Who could possibly replicate that level of control?”

“…”

Any of the ten people in this room could kill a Chid Mamba, but none of them could dance through its patterns with such mechanical perfection. The beast’s AI was notoriously erratic. It wasn’t like a Hydragon or a Giant Mantis. No one had ever fully mapped its behavior for a solo run. Most players preferred to simply out-level it and crush it with raw power.

Yet, the man in the video was performing a perfect execution.

“Unbelievable.”

Even after multiple viewings, it was staggering. The margins for error were non-existent. He was baiting the beast, evading, forcing a confused state, and delivering a killing blow in one seamless sequence. There wasn’t a single wasted movement.

‘It’s like watching a master at work.’

It was pure artistry. They watched with their mouths slightly open. To someone who didn’t know better, it looked like he was seeing into the future.

*Clap, clap, clap!*

The man seated at the main console began to applaud.

“He remains our top recruitment target.”

“Zero is currently ‘MintChocoDelicious’.”

“Hmm. Ranking aside, both of them are essential for our ‘Alliance.’”

“Regardless, the other factions are starting to move. We need to make our move before the first major rift opens.”

These individuals were the “Hero” Alliance. Unlike the others, they were genuinely preparing for the impending rifts. The looming threats were unknown, making the recruitment of “Phantom” their highest priority. He was the wildcard who could handle anything.

But the rival alliances were already active in the shadows. Losing Phantom or MintChocoDelicious to their competitors would be a devastating blow. They had to find them first.

The only saving grace was that both targets appeared to be Korean. The man in the black mask at the center of the room spoke with gravity.

“Begin the search in that sector immediately.”

—

“Cough!”

Hudson nearly choked, spraying his coffee across the table. He stared at me with wide, disbelieving eyes, as if hoping he had misheard my words.

“…S-So… you’re telling me you actually used the Fairy Queen’s Tear…?”