ACT 6 Dark Soul VS Beast Master

That was fairly profitable.

Ark smiled warmly at his bags.At first he thought it would be easily solved but the work had taken ten days. But this time he didnt think it was a waste of time.No, it was a highly profitable ten days. During the ten days it took to devour the wendigoes and Soul Eater, his Spiritual Power had increased by 549!Currently Ark had 956 Spiritual Power.He never thought it would be a number that was possible. There was also the Blessing of Fire and Descent of the Fire Draconian skills after the quest completion.But was that all? He also carried the Fire Stone and rare Hearthstone he found in Dragonian.Since the wendigoes were level 300~350, he didnt gain that much experience despite all the time hunting but he still managed to gain 9 levels.The results were more of a jackpot than he expected.

Honestly, at first I thought I had made a mistake.

When he first entered the chaos space and hunted the wendigoes, he hadnt made that much profit. If he hadnt figured out Soul Extortion then he wouldnt have been able to survive the wendigoes and the Soul Eater.

As expected, I cant throw away any skills. When I first received Soul Extortion, I thought it was just a skill I would seal up. Excavation was also like that but there is a way to make use of all of them. Besides..

While hunting the wendigoes in the chaos space, he received half as much experience and items. It was to the extent that his bags were bursting with japtem.

Some rare ingredients were dropped by the Soul Eater but everything else are relatively cheap items. There are several magic items with the japtem so I should receive at least 100 gold for it. What should I do next after organizing all the japtem?

He had finished all Fire Draconians quests. He couldnt complete the Demon Magura quest because he needed more Knowledge of Ancient Relics.

Once in town then I can gather more information about new quests and dungeons. Ive come to Bristania after a long time so I should do everything possible.

Ark decided on a plan for the future and descended Hwaryong Mountain. Then he found a small cave hidden on the bottom of the mountain.This cave was a safety zone that he found while looking for the Fire Draconians.No matter how many monsters wandered around New World, there were always hidden safety zones present.The place that Ark told Buksil to wait was this cave.

Ten days have passed so I wonder what Buksil has been doing?

Once he was on the mountain than that person would have no motivation. Buksil who had lost Baekgu had been causing Ark quite a lot of stress.Ark entered the cave to look for Buksil. Then his foot caught on something and he fell down.

Huh? What is this?

He looked down and saw an empty bottle of alcohol.

What the? This liquor bottle? That brat Buksil. Was he drinking while I wasnt here?

Ark made a disgusted face and kicked the empty bottle. It wasnt just one. Empty bottles were scattered on the ground at the entrance of the cave while boxes of alcohol were also piled up.It was at least hundreds of bottles!The cave seemed like an alcohol warehouse.

This cheeky bastard. I told him to gather ingredients instead of just waiting around Yet now hes having a drinking party? He lost his head completely after being depressed. Where on earth did he get this much alcohol..

Ark was grinding his teeth together when he suddenly realized something.

Wait? That guy. Where did he get the money to buy this much alcohol?

Even if a merchant like Buksil entered a village to buy it, alcohol was quite expensive in New World.The cheapest bottle was at least 2~3 gold. In some cases, it wasnt rare for a bottle to go for 10 gold. Even hundreds of bottles of cheap alcohol would cost several hundred gold. Buksil only received a small allowance from Ark so he wouldnt have hundreds of gold.Then what was with these bottles?

Dont tell me that bastard?

Ah no! There is no way! That Buksil bastard!

Ark shrieked as he thought of the worst situation and dived into the cave. He quickly arrived at the campsite inside the cave.

?

An improbably scene was unfolding in front of his eyes.

Kuah. Good! Hehehe!

Buksil rubbed at the fat on his stomach and set the bottle down. It was good up to that point. Arks eyes popped out at the other people present.

Uwah, uwah, the alcohol is good, the alcohol is good!

His eyes felt like it would fall out from looking around so much.On one side was a pair drinking alcohol and Baekgu who he thought had become dog soup in Bosaga. It was incomprehensible.But this was not the end.

Hahaha, is it delicious? Delicious?

Wah, it is absolutely delicious. It is the first time Ive tasted something so good.

Oh, you understand the taste of alcohol. I really do like you!

The huge figure who patted Baekgus back while holding the alcohol bottle was Bread.

Hey, dont do that. I dont want dog hair to fly in this narrow area!

The woman who threw the bottle at Bread was his partner Redian.People he never expected were gathered inside the cave and having a drinking party. Now all their eyes simultaneously concentrated on Ark when he ran in yelling.

An awkward silence flowed within the cave for a short time.

W-What on earth is going on?

Ark was the one who showed a response first. But Ark ignored Baekgu, Bread and Redian and just headed towards Buksil.Ark grabbed Buksils collar and shook him.

You, you bastard. What is going on?

Ouch, what, what the?

The alcohol bottles! Did you buy then alcohol bottles with my money? Did you sell them? Did you sell them? Did you sell my japtem?

Yes, that was the reason Ark rushed in.It wasnt necessary to say again but Buksil was Arks personal cameraman. The japtem that Ark gathered was left in Buksils bag.Ark was worried that Buksil wouldve emptied out the bag while he was gone for a week. If Buksil disposed of all those items then wouldnt he receive hundreds of gold?Normally he wouldnt have thought of that.There was a contract where Buksil would receive a huge penalty if he disposed of Arks goods selfishly.But the supposedly dead Baekgu was alive so he didnt know what Buksil would do from the shock.Ark couldnt see Baekgu, Bread or Redian anymore. Now the most important thing was money!He needed to know if Buksil had really embezzled his money.

Japtem? Sell? Heh!

Buksil looked at him stupidly and snorted. Then he removed Arks hand and shrugged.Needless to say, it was possible to drink alcohol in New World. The person would return to normal after a bit, but they really were drunk while drinking. That was the state Buksil was in.Buksil had at least 10% alcohol in him judging by the smell and he shouted.

Youre always like that. Money, money, money! Do your eyes only see money?

..What, what the?

Baekgu has returned alive and the first thing you talk about is money? Its always about earning money.. Im tired of it! Damn! Yes, I sold a little bit of japtem and drank alcohol. Why? Cant I do that? Cant I drink a bit of alcohol after following you every day and being exploited? I sold all of it to buy alcohol. What will you do?

He sold my japtem for the sake of drinking alcohol?

Ark looked at Buksil dumbly.Then a cold voice emerged from his mouth.

Do you want to live?

Buksil flinched and took a step back but it was only for a brief moment.

Why are you staring at me like that? Damn, Im also a person too! You think Im afraid after hearing your words? Ive been enduring it so far. But now I cant stand it. No, I wont put up with it. Then go ahead and kill me! Do it, do it!

Buksil lost his mind after drinking alcohol.Ark also lost his mind after hearing that his japtem was changed to alcohol. Ark looked at Buksil with anger and laughed before moving.

Kill.

Kill? Yes, kill me!

Wait a moment!

Then Bread pulled the collar of the excited pig and moved forward. He looked at Ark and said.

Thats not it. Is there a reason to react like that in this situation? Dont you know? Shouldnt you react to my presence first?

Let go of the pig.

No, no, I wont. No, there seems to be some misunderstanding about where this alcohol comes from. Im the one who bought it, not him.

What?

Arks eyes started to return to normal. Then Bread scratched his head and sighed.

Hah. He didnt know what was going on but he calmed down after that guy explained. He seemed to want to talk to Ark. Thats right, I bought the alcohol for everybody. This guy just drank the alcohol. By the way, dont you seem to be quite hated? He only drank a little bit yet he keeps on cursing you.

Is it true?

What? That he cursed you?

No, that my japtem is safe.

He already knew that Buksil was full of complaints.Naturally the talk about his japtem would be more important for him.

Why would I lie about it? Do you want to see the receipts?

Ark gave a huge sigh of relief.After that, he finally realized that the people in front of him were Bread and Redian.

By the way, why are you guys here?

You finally asked.

This bastard, what do you want? Are you now holding hostages?

Hostages?

Arent they hostages? Then why are you here with Buksil?

Then Buksil shouted angrily from behind Bread.

Hey, dont mess with him. Bread is the one who brought Baekgu back!

What?

Lets clear up the situation. Please sit down. Ill explain.

Bread put the liquor bottle away and indicated a seat.Ark looked at Bread and hesitated.He hadnt noticed it because of Buksil but the situation was quite serious.Bread and Redian were his enemies. And it would be difficult for Ark to avoid both their attacks in this narrow cave. He couldnt guarantee his odds even in a 1-on-1 fight. It wasnt necessary to talk about 2 against 1.But it wasnt possible to run away.Even if he could get away, Bread already noticed the relationship between Ark and Buksil.If he didnt then he wouldnt be waiting for Ark in a place like this. The moment Ark tried to escape then Bread would use Buksil as a hostage.

By the way, Breads attitude seems a little different from before. Hes not attacking recklessly like last time.

When Ark didnt lower his guard to sit down, Bread explained the situation.The reason for this situation went all the way back to Bosaga village.When Ark had set the guards on Bread and Redian, they had planned to escape from Bosaga. They escaped the guards and hid around the outskirts of the village. They planned to track Ark when he left the village.But it was the bandit group that caught Breads attention.The thieves who missed Ark had captured Baekgu and dragged him out of the village. And then they hung him upside down and tortured him to get Arks next destination.

Then I appeared.

Bread bragged.Even though there were 10 thieves, Bread and Redian were furious about the animal cruelty.After rescuing Baekgu, they decided to return the pitiful dog to his owner. It was only after they asked Baekgu that they discovered he was in Arks party.

Isnt that like jumping from the frying pan to the fire? This stupid dog!

Ark shot a glare at Baekgu who was just eating in a corner.However, Baekgu had his own reasons for telling them Arks destination. Baekgu didnt tell the thieves Arks destination no matter how much he was tortured. He knew the goal of the thieves was Buksil. However, Breads goal was Ark.As long as Buksil was okay, he honestly didnt care what happened to Ark. But the biggest reason he blabbed about Arks destination was to get back to Buksil.

Ugh, Ark.. Im disappointed.

Baekgu also smelt of alcohol.

I heard everything from Bread-nim.

Why is he referring to Bread so formally while talking informally to me?

The dog crept closer to the pig when he saw Ark frowning. Since the entire group was drunk, Baekgus nerves had become stronger.

What are you looking at? Didnt Bread-nim ask you for an honourable warriors fight during your confrontation at sea? Arent you the one who deceived him using various lies and ran away? Are these the actions of Hero Mabans descendant? Arent you embarrassed? Im disappointed, disappointed! Ah. The elder believed in you so much and even gave you the Three Marvels fragment

What? Embarrassed? Disappointed?

Ark glared back.But Baekgu just snorted and took a gulp from the bottle. Thats right. Baekgu had instantly blabbed about Arks destination for this reason.Although he was branded a traitor, he still felt pride as a member of the honourable Wolrang clan. Furthermore, Bread was the one who saved him from the thieves. After Bread explained the reason why, Baekgu became indignant and guided Bread here for justice.

Thats right. You made the mistake!

Buksil shook an empty bottle and shouted. Arks blood pressure instantly soared.

These brats really..!

Buksil and Baekgu had waited with Bread for Ark. After one day, two days, three days They were bored waiting for Ark after such a long time so Bread decided on a drinking part and Baekgu and Buksil became drunk.Baekgu and Buksil then shouted in unison.

Shameful! Coward! Accept a fair showdown!

This group is really annoying me.

The pig and dog were causing a huge commotion. No, it was inevitable sooner or later.Right now the drunkards werent the problem.

Why is this happening? What did I do that made you pursue me like this?

When Ark raised his voice angrily, Bread scratched his head and murmured.

Well, that. The reason is It doesnt matter right now. It is unrelated to why Im here now. Since my competitive spirit has been fired up.

Competitive spirit?

I cant give up now that weve come this far. Isnt that right?

Thats just you! This is a nuisance to me!

Bread waved his hand with a serious expression.

Ive been reflecting.

Reflecting?

Yes, when I first met you I thought you were a cowardly guy who ran away. But I asked Baekgu. There was a situation then. You needed to create an Immortality Pill? I realized that I was wrong once I reflected. I just wanted to beat you to death without questioning the circumstances. Anyway, I will forget about the past after knowing the situation.. Thats why I went to the guild and prepared this.

Bread took a scroll out of his bag and handed it to him.

-Warriors Challenge. Bread=Ark

High ranking members of the Warriors guild can issue this challenge.

The duel will proceed immediately when the opponent who receives this agrees. When the duel starts, nobody except for the users concerned can participate. Unlike regular PVP battles, no penalties are applied. You will not become chaotic if the opponent if killed. If you die than you wont drop any items and will be revived on the spot. However the winner of the duel will take 500 fame from the loser.

<Winner: +500 Fame. Loser: -500 Fame>