The Player Who Eats Steel - Episode 157
157fury.
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Lee Hyun-wook stood alone in the dark in a huge room..
He closed his eyes and stretched his metal control as far as he could in all directions..
The subject was random—it detected all nearby metals, but.......
‘……There really isn't one?’
There wasn't even the tiniest bit of metal in this area, beyond this room..
It was an independent space within Yggdrasil made entirely of the stems of sacred trees..
'In that case, it is okay to open here..’
Of course, Lee Hyun-wook could not sense anything other than metal, such as dirt or stones, but Donald Harris, an S-class elementalist, summoned the 'Earth Spirit' and examined the nearby stones and dirt..
At that time, the spirit of the wind flew in and made the words of Donald Harris in the distance sound like waves..
- Hmm, if it's a spirit colony, I could actually control it.…….
An S-rank elementalist would have been able to subdue a runaway spirit colony..
- ……But if I do that, I might end up becoming one of my subordinates..
As mentioned earlier, Donald Harris had been ‘banned’ from Lake Chad’s spirit world.,
His family members who shared mana with him—spirits—were also unable to enter the spirit world..
- But really... … can you control it?
"yes you can.”
Donald Harris is the best spirit expert in the player world, and it was not easy for him to let go of his concerns. Even if there were no substances with earth properties around, taming them was a different matter..
- But just in case, your metal manipulation skills... … Never use it under any circumstances.
What he said was not a joke. If he had rashly used a skill like 'hard body', his entire body could have been torn apart. To that extent, the 'attribute control' of the spirit that went berserk and prepared for self-destruction was the strongest..
- No matter how you think about it, you can only control it if you have ‘spirit affinity’ or ‘spirit control’.…….
"Yes, I know. But I have one item that can do that..”
- Hmm, I don't know what it is, but if there's a problem, I'll intervene, so just know that..
"Yes, thank you.”
Lee Hyun-wook approached a wooden box placed on one side of the room..
Wow—
When I opened the wooden box, there was a large glass tube inside..
'This is a city vacuum cleaner.’
At first glance, it looked like a vacuum tube amplifier, but inside the glass tube were quite complex devices and magic circuits. Dozens of earth spirits were trapped in this very place in the form of a ‘colony’..
[Item information]
- Name: Spirit Prison (Skilled)
- Effect: Can trap spirits in a state. (43/50)
‘43 spirits who love freedom more than anything are locked up in this small container.…….'
It must have been several years since I was forcibly trapped in that small place. How could I not be angry??
No, it was strange not to go crazy, and most people would already be crazy..
That wasn't all. Those 43 were ‘bound’ as one being and could not be separated..
It was a failed experiment to create a 'Spirit King' from many ordinary spirits..
‘The moment you open this, angry spirits will come out and start rampaging..’
Lee Hyun-wook carefully turned and unlocked the lid-shaped lock at the top of the spirit prison..
That moment—
Pu—huh——!
As if a fragmentation grenade exploded, the entire spirit prison exploded..
“Pfft—!”
Lee Hyun-wook flew several meters, and at the moment of his fall, he rolled on the ground and got up..
This was Lee Hyun-wook's first time opening this, so he didn't expect this kind of reaction..
"shit… … I didn't know it would explode like this right away.……."
My right hand was torn and bleeding. For the above-mentioned reasons, it was not possible to activate rigid body, but since the body was greatly strengthened with 'strong bone' and 'dragon power', it was possible to prevent the hand from completely flying away..
Go—oh—oh—oh——
In front, black energy rises and swirls from inside the spirit prison, where only the bottom remains..
'they come out.’
「Wow——!」
「Wow——!」
「Wow——!」
As many as 43 voices filled this space, including children, men, women, and the elderly..
Among those voices, what particularly stood out were the cries of hatred towards Lee Hyun-wook..
「Human, human, kill—」
「Let's cut it with a stone and bury it in the dirt.—」
「Ugh, where am I??」
"Wait a minute, you want to kill me, a person you don't even know, right now.?”
Lee Hyun-wook raised both hands to emphasize that he had no intention of fighting, but it was useless..
「Yes, humans, kill them all.!」
「Take revenge on wicked people!」
「Oh, I was sleeping well, what happened??」
Fluctuating needles filled with deadly mana surged like waves, surrounding Lee Hyun-wook..
However, Lee Hyun-wook stood tall in his place and smiled..
"so… … How are you going to kill me??”
At that moment, the spirits that were pouring out evil words as if they were rapping all fell silent..
「.......」
The souls were floating in the air and spinning slowly, looking like they were looking around..
「……Uh, no, no.!」
「How can this happen??」
「There is no stone, dirt or iron!」
They realized that there was no substance at all with specific ‘properties’ that they could differ from..
「Oh, that's ridiculous! A space like this cannot exist unless it is in the sky or the sea.!」
Anger that was so strong that I lost my senses had no choice but to break down in the face of helplessness..
"If you're looking for something metal or something, how about this??”
At that time, an item appeared from the engraving on Lee Hyun-wook's right wrist..
Sissi Sissi——
「—There it is, there it is!」
It was the ‘Iron Golem’s Core’. Since it was metal, they reacted sensitively..
‘metal creation—’
Hyunwook Lee then created metal from his grasp..
「Oooh—humans create metals!」
However, they were immediately sucked into the core of the ‘Iron Golem’ without any time for the spirits to snatch them. In this way, a very small iron golem was born, weighing 105cm and 25.5kg..
「Oh, it's a metal doll.!」
「I have that one.!」
Because it was the only metal in this place, 43 earth spirits rushed at it..
They seemed to be struggling with thirst, like people who discovered an oasis after crossing the desert..
- caution! The master authority of 'Iron Golem' is lost due to an unknown force.!
Yes. A total of 43 earth spirits were possessed by the ‘Iron Golem’ at the same time..
‘Okay, caught..’
Just then, Lee Hyun-wook took out another item from the left engraving..
[Item information]
- Name: Golden Reins of Athena (Hero)
- effect
1) Controller of the battlefield: The maximum number of followers increases significantly for 15 minutes.. (+50)
2) Raising Spirits: If you give this rein to a monster, you can tame it into a ‘servant’..
It was an item used by Bellerophon, a hero in Greek mythology, when he tamed Pegasus..
Lee Hyun-wook threw it at the small iron golem, who was waddling as if he had not yet adapted to it..
- Use Athena's Golden Reins to 'capture' the monster. (Level 1)
* All abilities of the monster are temporarily greatly reduced.. (-30%)
「Wow—let go of this.—」
It started jumping around, but now it was just a small 25.5kg metal doll..
After pressing down with force, Lee Hyun-wook wrapped the reins around his hands twice and held them more tightly..
- Use Athena's Golden Reins to 'capture' the monster. (Level 1)
* All abilities of the monster are temporarily greatly reduced.. (-30%)
And the longer the golden reins are worn, the greater the reduction in the monster's abilities..
‘And in the end, I can completely subdue them and make them my subjects..’
However, Lee Hyun-wook had no intention of subjugating them by force. If he did that, he would not be able to draw out the spirit's power to its full potential, and he could be betrayed at any time, so he was dangerous..
"Now, why don't you all just calm down and listen to me??”
「Hey—let go of this.—!」
「I got caught again this time…….」
「No, I don't want to be trapped again.!」
"If you make a contract with me, I can grant your wish.!”
「what? You guys make a contract with us?」
「you don't deserve it!」
「But, don’t you need to listen to it??」
"Okay, listen to your wishes... … It's revenge?”
「shut up—!」
"I'm not saying you're going to kill just any human, but I'm going to help you kill the person who imprisoned you.?”
At that point, I felt the resistance weakening somewhat..
「Uh, what now??」
This seemed to really stimulate their desires..
「What did you say you could help me with now??」
「Ah, it’s frustrating… … just listen!」
Among the various voices flowing out, there were also voices that had not yet let go of reason..
Lee Hyun-wook eased some of the pressure on the golden reins and spoke in a soft voice..
"You guys remember, right? A place called the Society of Elementalists, and the Black Elementalists.……."
Here, black elementalists refer to those who subjugate spirits through force and treat them like slaves. Those with just such tendencies carried out terrible experiments on these 43 spirits..
‘A woman who is currently the Vice President of the Spiritualist Association and will later become its head.…….'
He was one of the key villains that Lee Hyun-wook had to deal with at some point..
「I remember, I remember that bad girl—!」
「I have to kill those bastards…….」
Whether captured by force or coaxed, they knew who their enemies were..
Lee Hyun-wook focused his attention on that very point by stimulating the most intense desire: anger—revenge..
"Yes, I promise with my life that I will give you a chance to kill them..”
「that is … … Is it true??」
「No, don't trust me!」
「But I really want revenge!」
"And I will take away all the spirit stones that those children have and help you become spirit kings..”
Just as humans have a desire for self-actualization, all spirits had a dream of becoming a spirit king..
「But how good are you that you make such a guarantee?!」
「That's right, we're asking you to believe that a guy who isn't even an elementalist is us.?」
"Haha—yeah, right......."
At that time, Lee Hyun-wook produced metal from his body and made a 2kg iron ball..
- Use Athena's Golden Reins to 'capture' the monster. (Level 1)
* All abilities of the monster are temporarily greatly reduced.. (-30%)
「Oh, it's metal that can be manipulated!」
"Can you control it? If you can, try it.”
The earth spirit colony began to pull the metal, and Lee Hyun-wook also stretched out his left hand..
yes——
An iron ball vibrating back and forth in the air with force applied in all directions.…….
hook—jaw—
But the place we eventually arrived at was in the palm of Lee Hyun-wook’s hand..
「Uh, what is it?!」
Now these guys' strength has decreased by half, and their anger has subsided.,
Lee Hyun-wook's control of metal was able to surpass these guys' control of properties..
「Wow—that's a lot of metal control.!」
「What, it seems like he's stronger than us?」
And the beings called spirits were quite proud of the ‘territory’ they handled..
In that sense, if you beat them in an earth attribute power struggle, there was a good chance you would be recognized..
"Yeah, if you're as strong as me, we can kill them together.?”
「Honestly, I think this is possible.…….」
「But why on earth do you show such kindness??」
「Ouch! Doubt, okay, let’s kill it first.!」
"Of course, I can't do that for free and you have to help me do it too..”
「As expected, their intention is to use us! Wow!」
「They fooled us like this too, you can't be fooled!」
「Oh, it's noisy! Just listen to the end!」
"Stay calm and think carefully. I was the one who released you from that spirit prison in the first place..”
「Something like that... … It's the same, but?」
"In that case, I would have attacked and taken away those Black Elementalists.?”
「ah… … is it?」
"Of course you didn't see it for yourself, but it's true. So it's not difficult twice.”
At Lee Hyun-wook’s words, the spirits began to stir. It seemed like they were probably having a meeting(?) or something..
And since he was subdued by Lee Hyun-wook in the first place, there seemed to be no reason to worry for too long..
After a while—
「Okay, I've decided.!」
It was the voice of a boy so innocent that it was hard to believe that this was the guy who had been running wild just now..
108The small metal doll, 1/2 inch tall, was waving its arms and talking, making me feel like a kid..
Now that I think about it, among the many voices before, it was the voice that never let go of reason..
「Let's sign a temporary contract! Since you're not an elementalist, the dependency contract is restrictive.!」
"Phew—I’m glad we’re still talking..”
「And now I'm going to speak on behalf of you, so just know that.!」
At that moment, a system message appeared before Hyunwook Lee’s eyes..
- Would you like to make a 'contract' with the land elemental colony? (Y/N)
* Earth elemental colonies now have the power to 'share' your mana.
* Since you are not an elementalist, you do not get the additional effect.
Anyone can make a contract with a spirit, but unless it is an elementalist trait, it is virtually impossible. In that case, there was no need to borrow the power of a spirit that was not suitable for the player..
‘However, if it is an earth spirit, it will have the best synergy with my abilities..’
Blah blah blah——
Lee Hyun-wook stripped the metal from the iron golem and recovered only the core..
But strange symbols began to be engraved on its surface..
'Item information has changed.’
[Item information]
- Name: Elemental Basel (Special)
- Effect: Unknown
Since Lee Hyun-wook is not a spiritist, he needed a separate space for the spirits to stay..
The earth spirits modified this iron golem's core so that it could fulfill its role..
"Okay, from now on your names will be… … Maruda.”
Maru, a pure Korean word meaning ‘world’.
「hmm… … Is it too weird? What does that mean? Everyone is making an uproar.」
“……doesn't mean much.”
「And it's a condition of the contract that you give it a name.?」
“No, just use the floor..”
Immediately afterward, on one wall of the room—trees began to open left and right..
And that's where Donald Harris walked in..
"……Do you have the Prophet trait??”
He asked that question with all his might, and Lee Hyun-wook couldn't help but make a puzzled expression..
"Otherwise, how come they do such strange things every time??”
"Haha—is that so? I'm always a little lucky.’’
"Honestly, I didn't expect you to tame a colony of elementals.……."
He frowned and spoke somewhat displeasedly..
But what was behind that expression was a strange wonder..
“Hmm—I guess the thing Emilia was praising so much was the fact that she was into men........"
***
「So, as an advance payment on the contract, I will give you a grade 1 spirit stone, this is it.?」
Behind Lee Hyun-wook’s back, inside his backpack, Maru asked that question..
"Okay, so try to be quiet for a little while. It feels like I'm talking into thin air..”
Hyunwook Lee was currently walking through the ‘commercial district’ of Yggdrasil. And of course, he was wearing disguise to hide his identity. Since all around him were eyes and ears, he needed to be as careful as possible..
「Really, should I have written in the contract that mutual communication is important??」
“……You've been locked up in a spirit prison for so long, why are you so fine??”
「Hehehe—I don't think this is exactly what crazy looks like.?」
Ah, that could be true..
"Anyway, a level 1 spirit stone is definitely good for you.?”
「Yes, but… … It feels a bit expensive for a down payment on a contract.?」
'0| Dude, you're quick-witted.?’
The reason why I went to the trouble of obtaining an expensive, highest-grade spirit stone was for a certain favor..
Tomorrow, we were scheduled to enter Lake Chad's spirit world, and we had to leave these guys to guide us..
‘At that time, it could get out of control as we have to leave everything to this guy's guidance..’
Those crazy spirits might have other thoughts, so I needed to keep my mind on it..
The method, of course, was money. If you stick with this person, you'll lose out on good things.…….
"Hmm, anyway, just stay quiet for a little while..”
Hyunwook Lee was looking down at the magical city of ‘Yggdrasil’ in the Republic of Chad from Hugin’s perspective..
I had visited this brilliant city several times in my past life, but this was the first time I had seen it as well as it does now..
The buildings, with a refreshing feel through the appropriate harmony of white and blue, gave a strange sense of stability..
‘When I first came to this area, it was after several major terrorist attacks..’
And at that time, the atmosphere was grim because a saint who was one of the pillars of Yggdrasil had also been assassinated..
‘This was when the South Tower was in good condition.?’
South Tower, the name of the magic tower on the west, was high enough to be visible from quite a distance..
Later, when the World Wizard Player Forum was held there, a villain carried out a terrorist attack..
「Oh—that elementalist guy over there has pretty solid potential.?」
At Maru’s words, Lee Hyun-wook turned his head to one alley..
There was a street stall in a dark alley, and the owner of the place was a player..
- Player (LV：34)
And the three people standing in front of him were all players too..
- Player (LV：29)
- Player (LV：41)
As expected, there were as many players as ordinary people on the streets of Yggdrasil..
This was because players from all over the world came to study or travel abroad..
‘But when the invasion starts, they'll all run away…….'
Few players were righteous enough to rush into a disaster that had nothing to do with them..
But then, an unexpected variable was caught in Lee Hyun-wook’s field of vision..
"huh?"
This time it wasn't a player, it was a monster.
To be precise, it was a monster that was ‘polymorphed’ by the player..
Even that…….
- Dark Elf Elementalist (LV)：61)
“……What is this again??”
And there were more than just one or two of those guys..
Walking at a certain distance, sitting in a car, drinking cola at a restaurant.......
- Dark Elf Forest Warrior (LV)：59)
- Dark Elf Forest Hunter (LV)：41)
- Dark Elf Forest Hunter (LV)：48)
Apparently, the dark elves had come for a preliminary inspection prior to the invasion..
‘If this happens... … I unintentionally stepped on its tail.?’
Lee Hyun-wook began to secretly follow their footsteps..
And as a result of overhearing their conversation through Hugin, I caught one shocking word..
- ……The Spirit King's daughter has been secured..
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