1st Place In The Ranking Is A Villager

1st place in the ranking is the villager

- Volume 3 Episode 19

19. Cursed Underground Temple (1)

"It's me! The merchant I met in Komia!"

Hoya looked back at the player's words and was able to recall him.

The player in front of me was a merchant player who had always bought potions in Komia.

"Oh, that's him. I'm sorry I didn't recognize you."

“It’s okay. To Hoya-sama, he must have been a passing player A. Where is the thing that remains in your memory?

He was very happy to see Hoya here again.

If you do well, you might be able to earn a share.

"Ah, I'm asking you to count."

"Yes."

"......"

"......"

A brief silence followed.

Seha coughed in a reaction different from his own and went straight to the point that called him.

"Hoya-sama, would you like to make a deal with me?"

"A deal? I've already bought all the potions..."

"I don't want to trade in potions."

Hoya, who remembered that he had made a good profit selling a large amount of potions before, said sorry to him, but it wasn't the potions he wanted to trade.

"I don't just buy and sell items. What I want to trade is information."

Seha smiled and walked up to Hoya and said softly.

"You know the Cursed Underground Temple? Information that may have something to do with the Hidden Peace there."

Hoya was interested in his words.

It was the Hidden Peace that was difficult to find and difficult to achieve.

However, even knowing the conditions was the equivalent of getting halfway to the Hidden Peace.

Because it was a little more difficult and difficult to find out the conditions than to achieve it.

After seeing Hoya's reaction, Seha continued.

"You seem to be interested. But it's not certain information, it's just 'information that may have something to do with the Hidden Piece'. There's a 50/50 chance that it will actually be related to the Hidden Piece. What would you do?"

He spoke frankly about the information he was about to trade now.

Because the merchant had credit first.

Now, it can be deceived by saying it is 'certain' information, but then, if there is a rumor, only fewer traders.

"...what do you want me to do in return for that information?"

Before Hoya answered his question, he asked for the information he wanted from him.

It was not right for him to readily accept a transaction without knowing what he was supposed to give in exchange for the information.In response to Hoya's question, Seha pulled out an item from her inventory.

"What I want Hoya to do in return for information is to wear it for a month... no, only two weeks."

What Seha took out of her inventory was a golden ear cuff twisted like a tree trunk.

It was characterized by pearly white jewels hanging like berries on the lower part of the earlobe.

As it is a decorative item, the ear cuff itself did not have a special effect, but the appearance was not disappointing.

"This? Are you really okay with just that?"

"Yeah, I'm more profitable."

The ear cuff that Seha gave to Hoya was the item he currently signed an exclusive deal with with the producer.

I thought it would be popular with female users due to its excellent appearance, so I paid a lot of money to sign a contract, but the sales were lower than expected due to poor publicity, so I was not alone in my worries.

While thinking about it, I met Hoya by chance.

A walking signboard that is getting a lot of attention right now.

Among the items he currently equipped, Crocodile's robe, whose type was clearly known, became popular enough to be traded at twice the price compared to before.

Even at such a high price, it was difficult to obtain, so there were some who raised the price and reselled it.

However, such things are on sale.

There were so many people who wanted to have equipment like Hoya.

Although it is a verbal contract, it was a huge publicity effect if Hoya was exposed even once through screenshots of players while wearing ear cuffs even for a few days.

So, in return for the information, Seha requested to wear ear cuffs.

Hoya was not in a condition to suffer any losses, so Hoya readily accepted the transaction.

When he put on the ear cuffs, Seha apologized to him and took a screenshot like a paparazzi shot so that the ear cuffs could be seen clearly.

After checking the screenshot, Seha smiled satisfied and began to whisper the price of the deal to Hoya.

[Seha: Recently, a text was found in the corner of the cursed underground temple.]

If you hunt monsters and move forward only to attack, most of the characters were worn and faintly left on one side of the wall in the deep corner, even among the corners where your gaze would not go.

When we see through the lies with a single proof and everyone confirms each other's existence, we will receive the price of our trials.

It was the only character that existed in the cursed underground temple.

There is no way Neo Wars would have put useless content in the dungeon.

Those who found it thought so, and thought it was a hint of something.

Any hints for dungeon raids?

It was a dungeon he had been attacking well before he discovered it.

During the dungeon attack, there was no possibility of an attack hint because it did not require an action similar to the one written in the text.

Then, there is only one thing left, a hint about the hidden piece of the cursed underground temple.

People thought so.

"I also think that there is a high possibility, but there is also a possibility that it is not. It may be a hint of something, but it cannot be called a hidden piece."

Still, it is said that a small number of players who have heard of the word are trying to capture the dungeon in accordance with the word in hopes and expectations.

'When everyone sees through the lies with a single token and everyone confirms each other's existence', what is a single token?

Many players thought it was just that they were each wearing the same item.

Some copied the two-piece cartoon, which has been popular since ancient times, and drew pictures on their arms.

What Hoya thought a token meant was an 'item'.

And Hoya needed Doban's help to try it.

So, Hoya bought a cuff from Seha in line with Doban and gave it to Doban while explaining the writings of the temple.

"Would you like to visit the underground temple one more time?"

Doban, who was staring at the ear cuffs Hoya had bought him, lifted his helmet slightly and put it on his ear to express his positive intention.

When the helmet is lowered again, the ear cuff is not visible.

Dovan and Hoya changed their destination from returning to the hunting grounds to the cursed underground temple.

When I went down the stairs to the place where the altar was and looked around, I saw that a small number of parties were doing the same item infrequently.

From necklaces to cloaks, it's not uncommon for parties to tailor their gear.

So, to those who have never heard of the phrase, it will appear that they are just wearing the same item to show off the party and express themselves.

Since the cursed underground temple had already been attacked several times before, Doban and Hoya went straight into the dungeon.

Unlike back then, one infant is missing, but it will be fine.

As soon as Hoya, the party leader, responded positively to the system message asking if he would like to enter the dungeon, his view changed.

A corridor with impressive stone walls and floors that exudes a gloomy atmosphere.

In front of it was a stone door carved into the face of the priests.

As soon as you open that door, monsters will appear.

"I'll go right away..."

Hoya was talking to Doban, but immediately stopped talking.

Doban, who should be with him, was nowhere to be seen.

He turned his head back and forth to check the hallway, but he was nowhere to be seen.

The door was still closed, so there was no way Doban would have gone ahead.

Hoya felt something strange and immediately sent a whisper to Doban.

[You cannot use whispers.]

[You cannot use whispers.]

⋮

For some reason, the whisper was not sent.

This was the first time this had happened.

Let's be calm, be calm.

In an embarrassing situation, Hoya, the real Hoya, tried to summon Badu first as usual.

[Pet cannot be summoned.]

It was impossible to summon Badu.

And Hieros could not be called either.

I wondered why it had changed from before, but Hoya decided to move his body to find Doban first.

It would be okay to find out later about the changed situation.Kugugu-.

The stone door at the end of the hallway opened with a heavy sound.

Beyond the door, monsters that looked like spherical articulated dolls were walking around the temple wearing old black priest's uniforms, moving their joints awkwardly like zombies.

So far, it's not the same as before, but there is one difference.

They had eyes, noses, and mouths on the faces of those with egg-ghost faces, and they were letting out low voices.

'Even the monster has changed...'

With that thought in mind, Hoya moved one step and made a sound, and all the monsters in Hoya's field of vision turned their heads in an instant.

It was like a horror movie scene.

"Woah-!"

The monsters who screamed as if echoing from the cave rushed at Hoya.

Kwajik!

They are monsters with weak joints, so if you aim at the knee joint, they can't move, so they can hunt easily.

It was a method he had used before, and Hoya was still using it today.

With the sound of something breaking, information about the monster came to mind.

The name of the monster used in the information that came to mind was 'Traces of the Curse'.

When attacked before, the monster's name was 'Rock Priest'.

However, there must be a reason for the sudden change in the situation.

"...Is the Hidden Peace really achieved?"

Thinking about it that way, things got a little bit better.

Previously, there was a change in the level of the boss monster by achieving the Hidden Peace in the foggy and snowy fields.

I wondered if that was the case this time too, but if I thought so, the question arises as to why the message of the achievement of Hidden Peace did not appear.

The questionable tail continued, but Hoya decided to put it aside and start looking for Doban as he had first decided.

Although the monster's name was changed, there was no significant difference in strength.

Hoya went forward by hunting monsters while sparing her skills as much as possible in case of unforeseen circumstances.

The monsters were cleared up faster than expected.

It ended too quickly.

He was hunting even the monsters in the area he had not yet gone to.

Hoya thought Doban was hunting and ran around the temple quickly to find him.

He and he managed to find one monster.

A monster wearing a worn-out black priest's uniform.

Up until that point, it was not much different from the monsters that had appeared so far, but the monster had an unusually long arm, and a clenched fist at the end was larger than its head.

It was the first monster I had ever seen.

It was a monster that had definitely undergone a change that was different from the fact that monsters had eyes, noses, and mouths.

Without delay, Hoya swung his sword at the very monster.

Chaeeng-!

The monster that blocked Hoya's attack with its long arm with a sound of metal clashing swung its other arm, which was empty, and a black wall rose from the floor aiming at Hoya.

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