The game difficulty has gone crazy
Chapter 21
Click, click—
The steady sound of heels echoed through the corridors of the Demon King’s Castle.
Penelope, the owner of that sound, wore a grave expression as she reviewed what had just happened.
‘I survived…….’
Demon King Rupellos had intended to kill Penelope for disobeying his orders and moving her legion on her own.
However, at the moment of crisis, when she spoke the words Glen Wordsworth had taught her, he canceled even the legion commanders’ meeting and left the Demon King’s Castle, radiating ominous killing intent.
—If Rupellos tries to harm you, say that you met an undertaker. And if he asks about the destination, tell him he headed for Elchisco.
Those were the words Glen had said to Penelope when they first met.
It had already been over a decade since she became a legion commander and began meeting the Demon King, but Penelope had never once seen him shaken.
Yet, at that unknown word, the Demon King showed a violent reaction she had never seen before.
‘Just what in the world is an undertaker?’
Various hypotheses came to her mind, such as the possibility that the undertaker was the true identity of that man who used the alias Glen.
But they were nothing more than groundless guesses.
Still, one thing was clear.
Thanks to the short words Glen taught her, she had saved her life.
‘Betting on that man was the right choice.’
After withdrawing her troops at Avenue,
while traveling from the legion’s garrison to the Demon King’s Castle, Penelope had agonized dozens… no, hundreds of times.
—Can just a few words like that really save my life from the Demon King?
—Should I just disappear like this? But if it’s the Demon King, he’d find me no matter where I hide……
—But back then, I really had no choice.
Questions piled on questions, clouding her mind, and during that time she could not even swallow a cup of tea, let alone eat properly.
But in the end, Penelope listened to Glen’s words and survived.
‘Yeah, maybe this is an opportunity.’
If she was going to remain stuck as the lowest-ranked legion commander anyway, it was better to let go of the rope she was holding and grab a new one.
—If you move well according to my instructions…… hm, yes. I’ll help you a little with the rank games you desire.
Following a mysterious man who saved her life and even promised her a path to advancement was far better than serving a Demon King who would kill her without mercy for a single mistake.
Imagining the current situation in a way favorable to herself, Penelope’s snake-like red eyes gleamed.
“……He told me to make contact regularly, didn’t he.”
By coincidence, the Demon King had departed for Elchisco, which lay in the exact opposite direction of Wordsworth.
This seemed like the perfect moment to go and meet that new lifeline.
An unexplored land.
Veronia, the northernmost territory of the Holy Papal State. And beyond even its northern edge, at the very end of the continent.
Even before the Queen of the Banshees, who had been expelled by the Holy Papal State, occupied the forest, this place had never been touched by human hands and had remained an unknown, undeveloped region.
A desolate winter land ruled by cold ice and snow, black trees, and undiscovered monsters.
Because of that, it was known as a place with no useful resources, a land where development would only waste manpower.
However, even such an unexplored land was part of the stage of Gray Eden, and it held elements prepared for players.
By the system of Gray Eden, which thoroughly rewarded player effort and attempts, there was something to gain even in such a barren land.
And the harsher and less-visited a place was, the better the hidden rewards tended to be.
‘High risk, high return, right?’
If one could survive in this place—where there were no animals to hunt for food, where it was difficult to maintain body temperature against blizzards, and where monster attacks could happen anytime—then the reward would be worth it.
‘Of course, none of that is difficult for me right now.’
Inside a bear’s den that sheltered him from the winter wind,
using the bear he had killed there as a chair, Glen gulped down a cup of hot tea.
“This is insanely comfortable.”
《Lunatic Inventory》
《Effect》
: 『Lunatic Carrier』 – You possess an unlimited subspace storage. The user can store not only ordinary items, but all things classified as items or artifacts.
: 『Time Freeze』 – All objects stored in the subspace have their time frozen. No matter how long later they are taken out, they remain in the exact same state as when they were stored.
Perhaps because this was a cold region, the effects of the Lunatic Inventory were several times more useful here.
With Lunatic Carrier, he could store months—no, even a year’s worth of food and drink.
And with Time Freeze, he could use hot water anywhere he wanted.
Thanks to that, even the deadly winter winds raging outside the bear’s den were nothing more than scenery to enjoy alongside a warm cup of tea.
Not only that, Glen had not fought a single monster even once while traveling to the midpoint of the unexplored land.
‘The Gray Ring’s penalty hasn’t even ended yet… and considering what’s coming later, there was no need to waste strength now.’
On top of that, Glen had more than enough means to avoid unnecessary battles.
Namely, Lawern’s Blessing, a legendary artifact he obtained from a party dungeon he once entered with Romina.
《Lawern’s Blessing》
《Rank》 : Legendary
《Type》 : Cloak
《Option》
: 『Assimilation』 – You can assimilate with nature such as grass, trees, rocks, and water to conceal your appearance and presence. If the wearer possesses a spirit ring, the effect is further enhanced.
Thanks to this, Glen could hide his appearance and presence in the complete natural environment of the unexplored land, avoiding unnecessary fights with monsters.
Despite being in an extreme land, by eliminating threats to his life, the journey to his destination was peaceful itself.
When was the last time his mind had been this calm since his tea time with Tris?
“Nice. Feels like I’m camping.”
On the other hand, Nelfers, who was searching for Glen, would be having a miserable time.
‘He has to search for one human while pushing through this insane cold.’
With his upright and righteous personality, Nelfers would surely come searching for Glen as soon as the cursed mist lifted.
However, since the group consisted mostly of priests with relatively weak bodies rather than physical knights, it would be difficult to push through such blizzards.
And the high-level monsters that attacked from time to time would surely be annoying as well.
Of course, since Nelfers, a 7-star priest, would be leading them, it wouldn’t become a serious problem—but still, it would be troublesome.
“……Not my problem.”
Since their hardship had nothing to do with him, Glen simply brought the steaming white tea to his lips leisurely.
Only after the murderous blizzard outside calmed down somewhat did Glen end his short rest and resume walking.
Whooooo—
The blizzard had ended, but the biting cold wind that felt like it would tear flesh apart still remained.
But no one there had the leisure to worry about such things.
“Gwoooooar!”
Pushing aside trees that blocked its way with brute force, a White Troll charged forward, brandishing a club.
“Black Horse Knights, forward! Second row, deploy the Light Barrier to protect them!”
Nelfers, the commander of the search party, shouted loudly.
At once, about fifteen knights in black armor rushed forward and formed a formation.
