Damned System

Chapter 107. Tomb Raider (7)

‘This isn’t a place that could be crafted overnight.’

It was astounding that such a large facility had been built without other nations knowing about it.

It was hard to understand why the establishment had escaped to the Empire of Atar despite having such a space, accepting the disgrace associated with it.

The situation was getting increasingly tangled in my mind, naturally wrinkling my brow.

“What do you mean by ‘strange’ exactly?”

To organize my thoughts a bit, I shared what I knew with Yang Taeho.

“Heh? Where did you hear that kind of story?”

“Rather than hearing it, I read it.”

When I rummaged through history books in my spare time, Rashar and Jordan selectively picked the materials for me.

They even brought records preserved in the temple headquarters.

Thanks to this, I was well aware of the major events that unfolded following the monster appearances in Bihar, organized chronologically.

I reflected to see if there were any parts I had missed in the puddle of information.

Of course, even while pondering, the task of killing the evolved species in the facility and destroying the messeo continued.

Fortunately, I was able to formulate a few conjectures during that process.

‘The king of Kairoth wasn’t that trustworthy of a ruler.’

He indulged in tyranny and luxury, and possessed a cruel temperament.

Besides his hotheaded nature, he detested being ignored, leading to frequent conflicts with other nations.

However, not all the subjects under the tyrant shared the same characteristics.

‘At least they must have split into two.’

The faction flattering the king and the opposing faction.

‘What if the latter group came together to invest?’

Building such facilities wouldn’t have been impossible.

They too would have been the establishment with wealth and power.

If they were those discontented with the king, it’s understandable why they kept the bunker construction a secret.

I pondered and speculated back and forth between deduction and imagination, drawing out a few scenarios.

As a result, I had to confront another question.

‘Why did such a large-scale facility collapse?’

While wandering the underground facility, I did not discover any signs of life.

This indicated that there were no survivors in this place.

Could a location meticulously constructed by someone fall apart so futilely in just 4 years?

Even though they had decayed, the quantity of grains left in the warehouse wasn’t small.

‘They had a long-term plan to endure for at least several years.’

Yet why were there no survivors now?

“Ah……”

Whether fortunate or unfortunate, I learned the answer not long after.

I found a split corpse and lowered my stance.

‘The armor tear locations seem to match.’

It meant that it wasn’t the upper and lower bodies of two different people, but one person’s upper and lower body.

Something had cleaved this person in two.

I groped along the wall beyond the remains.

‘Four scratches with almost even spacing.’

Like a trident or claws, marks scratched by something maintaining a steady distance.

The deep marks as though gouged from tofu, the split corpse, and even the sword lodged into the wall.

From the hints laid this bare, the episode that unfolded here painted itself vividly.

‘It’s not a Volpo.’

The evolved species of Volpo couldn’t exhibit such power.

‘If assuming these marks to be from claws, the numbers don’t add up.’

Volpo has only three claws.

The catastrophe here has no relation to the evolved species of Volpo.

Then I should weave in an entirely different variable.

‘Another monster.’

Immediately after conjuring up the short term, I fired up the loosened tension.

Hence, my gaze on the map became a bit sharper.

‘The numbers are small.’

There weren’t as many black dots drifting on the map entirely carpeted in gray without any marked paths or terrain.

The number of Volpo had certainly decreased due to sustained hunting.

According to the mission information, there were two Messeo left.

Based solely on the information in my grasp, it wasn’t a particularly dangerous situation.

‘But there’s no harm in being cautious.’

Estimating the sizes of the scratches on the wall, the interval was roughly twice that of my hand.

‘Assuming these are nails, the size could be around 3 to 4 meters…….’

The tunnel was vast enough that maneuvering wouldn’t be challenging with a size of that magnitude.

There could be a significant anomaly with the hand or foot size, so let’s presume a bulk of at least 1 to 2 meters.

‘From just these traces, it could be an evolved species of at least 3 to 4-star.’

Imagining a fictional monster in my head, I remarked, wielding my spear.

“From now I’ll assume a dangerous battle and proceed.”

Yang Taeho, silently observing my actions, restored his shield and checked his auxiliary weapons without any objection.

About 5 minutes after we began moving again?

We arrived at a passage with particularly many remains piled up.

‘This’s almost like a graveyard here…….’

Even just from scanning with my eyes, it seemed to be around 30 to 40 corpses.

What’s interesting was that there were more remains clad in weapons or armor than those wearing plain clothing.

Of course, both types had ultimately died, which was the same.

Exposed bone joints of the remains, protruding haphazardly, were covered in cobwebs and dust.

Yet incredibly, their presence couldn’t be concealed.

Every time I took a step, the shadow swaying with the light from the torch appeared exceptionally large.

It differed from a shadow produced by ordinary structures.

In common shadows, there were countless hues, but this was just pure shadow devoid of color.

It’s sarcastic to say, but it felt like proclaiming that these were human remains.

For mere shadows, why did they feel so macabre and eerie?

“Tsk.”

I intentionally clicked my tongue as if to dispel discomfort while maneuvering through the remains.

There was a mark not too far away that snagged my attention.

Drawing nearer unveiled something obscured by other remains.

‘Four black stars.’

The remains of an evolved species from a 4-star corrupted area.

I lifted its bones to confirm the hands and feet.

Arms long enough to drag on the ground and the four fingers of consistent length.

‘Width is similar.’

So this guy was behind the scratch found earlier.

In the vicinity, there were three remains of 4-star evolved species while human remains were in the dozens.

Marks of fierce battle lingered before a half-collapsed iron door.

‘Looks like they were guarding something.’

What could be in there?

What were those people trying to protect before they died?

Filled with questions, I carefully approached the half-collapsed door.

Although there weren’t monsters reflected on the map, I didn’t relax my guard.

The data reflected on the map is based on my Mana Detection magic.

‘Detection level is 3.’

Having undergone consecutive training, my proficiency increased by one level, making the detection range a whopping 1km.

With an expanded range, the volume of accessible information grew accordingly.

However, that didn’t mean Mana Detection was foolproof.

Casting mana within a core could inevitably evade detection magic anytime.

Other methods to dodge detection magic exist, like using Invisibility magics.

Gripping the spear more firmly, I advanced past the dangling iron door.

As I extended the torch to secure visibility, a shiver involuntarily ran down my spine.

Contrary to the watchful eyes, there was no danger awaiting.

“Phew!”

Instead, there lay a collection of treasures so overwhelming that it left Yang Taeho, who followed me in, gaping.

Gold and jewels that remained hidden in darkness revealed their luster under the torchlight.

It seemed a desperate attempt to lure humans attracted to light.

I guess the substantial sum indicated by the recommended mission stemmed from these.

‘2.7 billion…….’

Despite being aware of the approximate scale of the loot.

Seeing it with my own eyes made me instinctively gulp dryly at its sheer volume.

‘I planned to survey post-destruction of the messeo.’

To come across it without a thorough search, should I call this fortune?

Despite witnessing the horrors outside, my mind wasn’t exactly at ease.

‘Money isn’t guilty.’

There was no reason for me not to claim it.

After all, the time I invested in coming here was precisely to seize that money.

‘But just to be sure.’

Having heard ample cautionary tales from Ahel about trap magic, to the point my ears were sore.

I took out a magic stone, purchased from the store, and shattered it.

A blue mist resonated from the magic stone, dispersed in a circular radius, then disappeared.

It’s a magic designed to locate fixed mana arrays within a certain range.

‘No traps detected.’

If there had been a solidified mana array in the vicinity, the blue mist would have converged around it.

Since no such phenomenon occurred, it meant that this location was devoid of magic-induced hazards.

Without any further delay, I grabbed the sack lying at foot and spoke.

“Let’s collect and go.”

Behind me echoed the sound of Yang Taeho swallowing nervously, his breath appearing somewhat disrupted from usual.

Yet instead of looking back, I picked up a sandbag on the ground, layered with dust.

Along with it came an arm merely up to the elbow—devoid of all but bones, hence more accurately called a skull rather than an arm.

Caught in the sight of that, seemingly about to fall into deep contemplation, I forcefully moved myself.

Despite a slightly worn-out condition, the sack I picked seemed adequate for holding small items like coins.

With each gold coin and piece of jewelry I tossed into the sack, jingling sounds brought forth a pleasant sensation.

Hearing that sound, my expression naturally softened.

In strict financial weight, Vellego’s vault held far greater sums.

But of course, money is good when more.

With a light and almost breezy gesture, I gathered the loot.

“Uh, what was it, you know.”

Abruptly, Yang Taeho initiated a conversation.

“Wouldn’t it be better to ask for help moving them?”

Wondering over his words, I glanced back.

“There are limits, you know. I have space, so…… maybe I could help put some.”

“…….”

“Don’t look at me like that, it’s not that I’m being greedy. I sincerely mean to help……”

Yang Taeho stammered awkwardly, anxious to spill his words.

Seeing I simply regarded him silently for a moment, he appeared to have misunderstood.

To clear up his misunderstanding, I responded lightly.

“It’s fine. I bought an expansion pack.”

“…… Expansion pack? What’s that?”

It was a reward awarded when clearing the first recommended mission post the server connection.

‘The title Tomb Raider.’

Attached to it, the effect allows increasing the inventory’s weight limit by the amount of mana invested.

Increasing 1kg in weight requires 10,000 mana.

Honestly, calling that price cheap would be a mistake.

‘10,000 mana isn’t just some dog’s name.’

It’s the equivalent of killing about 5 to 600 Sebolphos to accumulate that much mana.

Given some of the mana is collected as order points, I would actually need to hunt even more.

Saying it wasn’t regrettable would be false, but the investment bore value.

Post acquiring full set equipment, the spare room in my inventory was always lacking.

Thus, over recent months, I steadily started allocating some absorbed mana into my inventory.

Moreover, now, dressed in full gear, ample space existed.

Hence, moving these wasn’t problematic.

Even had there been an issue, I wouldn’t have borrowed Yang Taeho’s inventory.

His inventory had something in mind designated to be placed separately after all.

“I’ll handle my share, so go ahead and store your portion in the vacant area.”

“…… Really?”

An almost dumbfounded reflex drew a slight chuckle from me while I gestured towards the remaining heap of loot.

“Don’t you remember? 30%.”

Yang Taeho’s face flushed crimson like a sudden surge in blood pressure.

Despite the abrupt change worrying enough to raise health concerns, Yang Taeho didn’t face any issues due to blood pressure.

No issues arose; if anything, he briskly began securing the loot faster and more accurately than ever.

Truth be told, parting with it stung slightly.

‘But a word once spoken must be kept.’

As Yang Taeho secured his share, I concentrated on mine once again.

Simultaneously ensuring I didn’t let my guard down, I cast surreptitious glances at the map.

Damned System