A Veteran in a Dead Game - Chapter 185



Only Noblemtl

185. Pre- and Post-processing (1)

“Phew.”

Partshet’s head was completely shattered, and the erosion iron was also cleanly split. Everything that needed to be dealt with immediately was dealt with.

However, the situation was not so good. Kyle’s own injury was not serious.

He tried to take the potion out of his glove with trembling hands and drink it, but failed. The potion bottle slipped from Kyle’s hand and fell to the ground.

“…….”

It was only then that Kyle realized that he only had two fingers on his right hand, an index finger and a ring finger.

Now, it seems that even the Source of Life skill has reached a point where it cannot do anything to heal the injury.

‘Your eyes are a mess too.’

A shotgun pellet from a close range strike appears to have pierced one eye. The remaining eye is also heat-damaged and clouded.

Kyle had difficulty even walking, as all his other senses were functioning like torn rags.

However, since I managed to defeat an enemy with a tier 1 skill without dying, it was a good deal. Although the injury was serious, if I took the time to consume the appropriate potions, it was not something I couldn’t recover from.

‘What a pity.’

Kyle looked at Parth Chet’s mangled body and felt this way.

What if Part Shet had not been distracted by the machine factories or the dragons? Then he would have been a much more reliable ally.

If it were that gigantic steel serpent, wouldn’t it be able to go toe-to-toe with a tidal wave in the sky or an approaching volcano?

They could have given the refugees a full complement of firearms. They could have used aircraft as mobility and reconnaissance assets.

Because the wind-up craftsmanship skill has truly endless uses.

Part Shet’s own fighting power, including the form of the fake bird, is also of a great level. Part Shet even has the will to overcome the current situation of this world.

but.

‘It all means nothing now.’

Part Shet made the wrong choice. In the end, he ended up a corpse. What good does it do now?

Kyle made up his mind. After all, he had wanted to overcome the disaster on his own. There was no need to be concerned about the abilities of others.

“This, really. I didn’t know this would happen.”

At that moment, Gruto approached from over there.

His voice was shrill and hard to hear, as his neck was half-torn and his head was dangling.

“…….”

Kyle forced himself to feel nervous. His opponent was the famous Cardinal of Destruction. Even if he were to use his skills to kill Kyle right now, Kyle was confident that he wouldn’t be surprised at all.

“I’m tired, huh.”

But fortunately, Gruto didn’t seem to have any intention of doing anything more than this.

It looks like Gruto has no more strength left.

He walked with a dragging motion. It was more like he was staggering or unsteady than walking properly.

“flaw.”

Gruto passed Kyle and stood in front of the corpse of Part’s Sheet. He looked down at Part’s Sheet for a moment, then said:

“If I stand before the legion with this voice.”

“Gruto said, perfectly imitating Partshet’s voice.

“Can the empire be completely destroyed?”

“That would be impossible. You can’t raise the steel serpent.”

Even if you can steal Part Chet’s voice and face, you can’t imitate his Clockwork Craftsman skill. Unless you can replace the first-class skill of Clockwork Craftsman, it’s absolutely impossible to act as Part Chet.

Of course, Gruto also knew this fact well. It was just a bad joke.

Gruto laughed and searched through Part’s body, taking several items. Many of the items were damaged, but some were still intact.

“I’ll take my share.”

Gruto, who had gathered a few items from the remains of Part Shet, began to walk away, dragging his feet. To leave the Empire.

Surprisingly, after all this chaos, Gruto was content to leave with only a few items, even though none of the items he had brought with him were particularly outstanding.

“Are you leaving?”

Mirad Jirel, who had just appeared, spoke to Gruto’s back.

“The Legion Commander has left behind many legacies. Is that enough?”

Gruto answered without even looking away.

“Work is becoming a hassle.”

From Gruto’s point of view, it was a reasonable decision.

The Priest of Destruction is someone that all other groups hate. Even Gruto is the one who caused the rebellion in the Legion to grow so much.

Even Mirad Jirel is currently in a position to be harmed by Gruto’s trickery. Although he briefly worked with her in the process of confronting Part Shet, his feelings for her are unlikely to be good.

So, if he stayed here for no reason, he wouldn’t be able to see a good end. Gruto knew that fact all too well.

‘I was originally a guy with no greed.’

Gruto’s motivation for action is solely to offer a slightly better quality of destruction to the God of Destruction.

All the skills he possesses, all the plots he has hatched, and even Gruto himself are just tools for praying to the god of destruction. He is truly a fanatic.

“It was a tough day, but it was a very satisfying day.”

Since the goal has already been achieved, the attitude is that it doesn’t matter if there are any remaining beans, or if they aren’t.

“but…”

But this time, it seems like something has changed in my mind.

Grotto, who had not even glanced at Mirad Jirel’s words, suddenly stopped walking.

Just a few more steps away, when his figure was obscured by the fallen debris, Gruto slowly turned his head to look at Kyle.

“…….”

Surprisingly, Gruto did not immediately bring up the matter. It was unusual for Gruto, who had never hesitated when he wanted to say something, to show such an attitude.

“I still have a question. What is a dragon?”

While Kyle and Gruto were talking to Parth Shet, they briefly saw the presence of a scarecrow, namely a dragon.

‘I see.’

Gruto was a priest with exceptionally deep faith. He believed that the twenty-seven gods of heaven and nine gods of the underworld were the proper rulers of this world.

In the midst of all this, I couldn’t help but feel nervous because I had indirectly encountered a transcendent being called a dragon.

Of course, there is no way that Gruto’s faith will waver now. His faith has become as bitter as loneliness over the years.

“Do you know about the imaginary world?”

“I’ve heard the name before.”

“It is the place where all traces of the system’s involvement flow. The dragon is a transcendent being that resides there.”

There’s no need to keep it a secret. If Gruto helped us catch Part Shet, he deserves to hear this much.

“A transcendent being… how blasphemous.”

Gruto’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“Only gods are truly transcendent in this world.”

“Anyway, it’s clear that it’s not an ordinary being. Dragons can sculpt reality and twist the system a little.”

“Hmm.”

“It’s none of my business what you think about dragons… but I have one request. Don’t be absorbed in his words. Dragons only do things for themselves.”

This time it’s the same.

Would the dragon have shared his wisdom to help Partshet? That would be impossible.

What the dragon wants is not the salvation of humanity or the independence of this world. What it wants is to return to its original place.

It is unknown whether it is the seat of God or whether it is intended to replace the system… but for that purpose, the dragon will sacrifice anything, be it a human or this world.

Parth Chet, from the dragon’s perspective, would have been just one of the research subjects to exploit the system’s vulnerabilities.

‘That’s why I also threw away the part sheet as soon as I judged it to be broken.’

It is true that the dragon helped Kyle in this matter. Thanks to the dragon bursting the taint of the imaginary water, the timing of Part Shet’s full power was delayed.

‘But will it really be possible for this to continue in the future?’

The dragon now wishes for the world to remain intact.

The current situation, where destruction is vaguely postponed, is the most appropriate opportunity for the dragon to exploit the system’s loopholes.

But, if Kyle defeats the disasters one by one, and if the current situation where the world is dying in an ambiguous manner shows signs of being sorted out.

The dragon at that time may no longer be a partner, but may become another enemy.

‘The dragon spoke as if he highly regarded me.’

Don’t forget. To Yong, Kyle is nothing more than a test subject that can be used. It would be a shame if he were to disappear, but that’s about it.

Just as he discarded the Parth Sheet, the dragon will be willing to get rid of Kyle whenever necessary.

“Keep that in mind.”

Saying that, Gruto finally left this time.

“Phew.”

Mirad Jirel sighed. His gaze briefly rested on the shattered Imperial Legion Commander, Parth Shet.

“…may you find rest.”

Mirad Jirel closed his eyes and prayed for the repose of Parth Shet’s soul. He could not savor the victory because he truly respected the commander.

However, Mirad Jirel did not harbor such feelings for long.

“Okay, then.”

Even with one arm completely blown off and black cracks forming all over his body and blood gushing out, Mirad Jirel’s gaze remained clear.

However, with that look in his eyes, Mirad Jirel spoke as if he was in trouble.

“How do I organize this?”

*

Needless to say, the state of the empire was truly dire. It was as if the entire city had been boiled to a pulp and then covered in ashes.

But even though the empire was in shambles, it had nothing to do with Kyle.

With the surviving Vanguard Commander Mirad Jirel and several other high-ranking members of the Legion still in place, there was no reason for Kyle to take on such a burden. Kyle had no ties to the Empire in the first place.

“…….”

In addition, Kyle’s own physical condition was not such that he could do anything. Kyle had been concentrating on recovery for three days already. Even though Kyle had acquired superhuman regenerative abilities, this injury was not normal.

There were few unbroken bones, countless torn muscles, and no part of his body that was unburned, so Kyle was practically a corpse.

If Kyle’s injuries were divided among ten normal people, all ten of them would die on the spot.

Even the potion that could create all sorts of miracles couldn’t help it this time. Since I was using the potion at a level that didn’t cause the potion addiction condition, there was a limit to the recovery speed.

The fact that he has recovered to some extent on the third day of his recovery was also thanks to the Legion sending personnel with regeneration skills.

‘Still, the harvest is not small.’

Of course, Kyle didn’t just lie in bed. He was able to look around the property that Part Shet had amassed and take a lot of good stuff.

The Ring of the Sea, which reduces debuff effects, and the Necklace of Harmonia, which slows down aging and slightly increases the buff effects received.

A unicorn horn that increases the performance of faith skills, and a blue seed talisman that increases the efficiency of potions consumed.

The Underground God’s Seal Ring, which reduces damage taken from the Celestial God’s Faith Skill, and Bucephalus’ Horseshoe, which increases movement speed.

This time, there were more than one or two items that came into Kyle’s hands.

‘Among them, the two that are worth remembering are the Book of the Lion and the Golden Cauldron.’

The Golden Cauldron is an item you’ve already seen when performing warehouse raids. The Golden Cauldron itself doesn’t have any special abilities, but performing the proper ritual will give you the chance to obtain powerful rewards.

Originally, it was supposed to be a fairly long quest to figure out how to do the ritual, but that wasn’t the case for Kyle.

I had already memorized the ritual method by performing the related quests several times. Although my memory was slightly blurred, it wasn’t difficult to recall it again.

‘And the Book of the Lion.

A single piece of papyrus with Egyptian-style drawings, this item has extremely unique properties.

‘You can save the skills of the dead.’

Of course, this doesn’t mean you can just steal everything and save it. If that were possible, it would be a huge scam item.

Only one skill can be extracted from a single corpse. Also, only one skill can be stored at a time, and even that skill is consumed after being used once, so a new skill needs to be stored again.

So, it is an item that extracts and stores disposable skills from corpses.

‘You can’t save 1st-class skills, but… I guess we can’t hope for that.’

As my thoughts reached that point, there was a knock on the door.

Kyle told him to come in right away, since he had already been told that he would visit.

“Long time no see!”

“Are you feeling better?”

The members of the regeneration club, Sarah and Lardin, appeared.