Hoarding In Hell [EN]: Chapter 91

91. Upgrade (2)

[Difficulty: Hell]

You are entering the Star of the Apocalypse.

As soon as Hyeon-woo entered Hell, he headed straight for the shelter.

As he approached the shelter, he heard a low-pitched flute sound. It was too low for humans to hear, but they could feel their skin tingle.

It was a signal from the goblins that Hyeon-woo had arrived. A goblin hiding near the shelter revealed himself.

“You’ve arrived, Kiruk, Boss.”

“Yeah. Is the modification going well?”

“Kirson, the scouting captain, is out on patrol, Kiruk.”

The goblins were not Hyeon-woo’s subordinates, but because Kirson obeyed Hyeon-woo, they followed him like a master.

The fresh food and necessities that Hyeon-woo brought enriched their lives like never before.

Hyeon-woo entered the shelter. Unlike before, the shelter was empty.

But Hyeon-woo was not flustered and lifted the wooden stairs upwards, heading to the hidden basement. It was a secret fortress created by the goblins by connecting the sewers and basements.

Such spaces formed hideouts centered around the intersection.

‘It’s quite plausible now.’

It was a space he started creating after realizing the importance of hideouts after undergoing the trial from Yogulem, the Starving Star.

No matter how high the walls you build on the ground, the monsters will quickly capture them, and swarms of mosquitoes and bugs will cover the ground. There is only one way to survive in this hell.

To be inconspicuous.

Among them, this intersection was like a restart point for Hyeon-woo.

There’s no solution if you keep dying and getting attacked as soon as you revive. You had to create a place to hide as soon as you revived.

When he arrived at the central room of the basement, Renian was seen sorting items.

“Huh? Oh, it’s Butler. The supplies were a bit of a mess, so I was sorting them out. Goblins have no talent for organizing.”

“Looking at you, you’re the butler.”

“Decorating a cozy home is the job of the wife.”

The timid Renian seemed to be enjoying decorating the shelter.

Hyeon-woo headed to the workshop. There, monster parts, various materials, and crystal mosses that Kirson and the goblins had diligently accumulated were piled up.

“That’s quite a lot.”

“This is for work, and there’s more in the warehouse.”

This alone was a considerable amount. Even the warehouses of large clans would not easily stock up on such rare items, let alone crystal moss.

But even as he looked at it, Hyeon-woo suddenly missed the slaughter facilities in the fallen empire’s prison camp.

‘The equipment and facilities piled up there should still be usable.’

The accumulated monster parts were comparable to the parts of the entire nation, not just the clan.

No, in terms of quality alone, you wouldn’t be able to find such items even if you combined all the materials distributed throughout the world.

It was a facility that could build a small country, but it seemed like it would be a long time before Hyeon-woo could find his way back there.

Just getting out of the intersection was already difficult enough.

‘That was a strange quest.’

No matter how he thought about it, that quest was strange. Hyeon-woo still couldn’t shake the suspicion that someone had put him there to resolve the situation, or wondering if he could resolve it.

The quest is not mechanical. He could feel the intention and gaze of someone he couldn’t identify. But it didn’t seem to be hostile to him.

‘If there is an intention… I might be able to meet them someday.’

Until then, they would use each other.

“But what brings you here? Are you here to make something again?”

“Ah, I had a question.”

Hyeon-woo immediately started making items without any hesitation. The exoskeleton armor made by Dowonkyung.

As written in the blueprint, he laid out the necessary metals and parts and began crafting.

The metals melted in the hot heat of his hand, became a lump, and soon the exoskeleton armor he had conceived in his head was created as it was.

[Dungeon Guard Early Exoskeleton (Rare)]

[Physical Defense: Medium, Magic Defense: Medium, Mana Consumption: Very Low]

[Special Ability: Continuously consumes the wearer’s mana to increase all stats below B to B rank. Increases leaping ability by 120% and sprinting ability by 30%]

[Note: After Dr. Dowonkyung’s death, humanity thought that all knowledge for hope had been lost, but no. An unidentified successor compiled all of Dowonkyung’s knowledge and distributed it in a usable form around the world. However, by then, humanity was close to being beyond recovery. This achievement appeared sporadically around the world and shone, but soon disappeared without sufficient improvement.]

“…Huh?”

Hyeon-woo had created something several times better than what he had made by itemizing Dowonkyung’s enhanced exoskeleton, but he was more preoccupied with the note.

Hyeon-woo didn’t care whether Dowonkyung’s research would save humanity or whatever. What Hyeon-woo paid attention to was the mention of the name Dowonkyung itself.

Until now, Hyeon-woo had thought that the notes he saw through Admiral Ren’s monocle were recorded by a guy named Admiral Ren.

But the fact that he wrote about Dowonkyung meant that Admiral Ren was still alive and watching at the present time.

‘No, what is this guy?’

It might not be a big deal, but Hyeon-woo felt a chill down his spine just from recognizing his existence.

Hyeon-woo had already seen an existence outside the system through Yanok Max’s summoning. This silent observer might also be watching Hyeon-woo.

‘No, don’t be scared. It’s enough to recognize his existence.’

Anyway, he doesn’t know much about the stars. If he hasn’t been involved from the past until now, he won’t do anything other than watch in the future.

Besides, he’s not watching everything. There were items without notes too.

“Boss.”

Kirson was returning from his search. Kirson approached with a look that said, “This is good timing.”

“Boss, I found the guys you told me about before. Their supplies were cut off and their morale was low, so they were holed up in the sewers like rats. It seems like they’ve already eaten each other.”

Hyeon-woo had assigned Kirson to search for the remnants of the Fallen Empire.

Kirson seemed pleased, as if he had been wronged by the Ratmen. He twirled the Winter Reaper’s Scythe and asked.

“You’re going to wipe them out, right, Boss?”

He didn’t really intend to. He had helped end the Fallen Empire, but not because he had a grudge against them.

But in order to achieve Hyeon-woo’s goal, it seemed like it wouldn’t be much different from wiping them out.

“Lead the way. Bring your weapons.”

***

Splash, splash.

Deep in the sewers where water was stagnant, the Ratmen wandered around anxiously, their yellow eyes shining.

The sewers, which stretched like spiderwebs under the city, were their territory, but they were by no means a safe place. There were many other monsters who liked this dark and damp space.

Especially since the Fallen Empire had completely disappeared and support and supplies had been cut off, they were now nothing more than prey.

And there were eyes watching those rats in the darkness.

[Ratman Conscript (LV 21)]

‘What, their level has dropped by 10?’

Hyeon-woo frowned as he examined the Ratmen. Moreover, the modifier “Fallen Empire” had also disappeared.

Hyeon-woo wondered if it was just one of them, but the others were the same.

The Ratmen’s classes remained the same, but all the modifiers had disappeared and their levels had dropped by more than 10. The higher the class, the greater the drop.

At this rate, they were similar to goblins. Perhaps that’s why the Ratmen looked weaker and more pathetic than before.

‘Did the disappearance of the Fallen Empire have some kind of impact on their status?’

Whatever it was, there was a way to suddenly plummet the abilities of an entire race.

Hyeon-woo, who had made all sorts of preparations just in case, felt his tension ease.

Even in the Fallen Empire, Hyeon-woo had never won a head-on fight. That’s how strong and scary the Ratmen were.

Of course, they’re like sacks of shit in reality.

Of course, there aren’t any monsters that aren’t like that in reality, so never mind.

‘I might not have to step in myself.’

Hyeon-woo suddenly thought of the final boss of the Severed Head Dungeon, the Ratman King, whom he had brought as a subordinate in reality.

What do the guys here think of the Ratman King? Still, the General Secretary or whatever was the leader, so did they achieve democracy in a somewhat misguided direction? Or will they diligently serve him as king again?

‘Well, I should try it.’

Hyeon-woo summoned the Ratman King. The Ratman King, who walked out from beyond the darkness, still had a blank expression.

Because of the covenant that was strangling his neck, the Ratman King was still absolutely obedient to Hyeon-woo’s orders.

Hyeon-woo subtly pushed the Ratman King towards the group of Ratman stragglers.

The Ratmen flinched and stepped back at the approaching presence.

They knew the opponent was a Ratman and relaxed their guard somewhat, but they quickly noticed something was wrong.

‘Hmm, it’s definitely different when you put it like this.’

The Ratman King, despite his name, was adorning himself with rags, all sorts of bones, and wearing a crown made of woven fangs on his head.

On the other hand, the Ratman stragglers, even though they were stragglers, were equipped with unified uniforms, well-forged metal armor, and weapons. Compared to the Ratman group, the Ratman King looked like a homeless person.

Then one of them opened his mouth.

“Yanok Max?”

At the same time, there was some noisy commotion among them for a while.

Hyeon-woo watched with expectant eyes. Come to think of it, Yanok Max was also a hamster like the Ratman King.

Could it be that the bloodline of a leader flows in the hamster lineage? If they obeyed the Ratman King, it could be a big help.

But before one of the Ratman conscripts shouted “Kek!” with a dissatisfied voice and started aiming his glaive [a polearm weapon], the others did the same.

It seemed like they had a lot of complaints about Yanok Max. Judging from the situation, obedience seemed to be out of the question.

‘Well, I guess they would have a lot of complaints since they’re conscripts.’

But before the Ratmen tore the Ratman King apart, the situation unfolded in another direction.

“Kek.”

Suddenly, the Ratman King coughed. The Ratman King staggered unnaturally, and then collapsed to the sewer floor with a thud.

The stragglers who were watching the Ratman King trembling and convulsing began to waver. Hyeon-woo knew very well what those symptoms were.

‘…Fine dust.’

The Ratman King, who came from reality, had no immunity at all. It didn’t change even though he was Hyeon-woo’s subordinate.

The Ratman King died without receiving any help. He didn’t die at Hyeon-woo’s hands, so he wouldn’t be able to revive him. There was nothing particularly regrettable.

The Ratmen started poking the Ratman King’s body with their weapons as soon as he fell. But as soon as they realized that the Ratman King was definitely dead, they suddenly screamed and began to wildly stab him with their weapons.

Watching that, Hyeon-woo could be sure of one thing. Bringing someone from reality is of no help. Unless you develop at least toxic resistance, you can’t break through the fine dust barrier.

‘Then the plan will go back to square one.’

Hyeon-woo took a step into the sewer.

The Ratmen, who were stabbing the Ratman King’s corpse, discovered a new enemy and roared again. Their eyes were filled with madness and hunger.

Hyeon-woo watched the approaching guys and took out Tam. And he muttered briefly.

“Now.”

Pweet, pweet, pweet! Along with a short burst of air, the sewer was filled with the sound of fierce mosquito flapping.

The ear-sensitive Ratmen screamed and stopped, and hell darts were embedded all over their bodies.

Kirson and the goblins revealed themselves from various dark places in the sewer, holding blowguns.

Only one Ratman, unlike the other Ratmen, was standing with a staff, covering his ears.

Hyeon-woo narrowed the distance in an instant with Tam in his hand. The guy belatedly discovered Hyeon-woo and began to chant a spell.

The distance was sufficient.

However, when Hyeon-woo scattered Tam into the air, the poisonous blood sprayed from the end of Tam covered the Ratman’s body like a sprayer.