CHAPTER 259: UPGRADE

Drip-.

He already knew that dwarves were serious about beer.

But he didn’t expect them to shed tears.

“Excellent taste. Truly excellent.”

“You, you’re really on your way to creating the ultimate beer.”

Clap clap clap-.

The three elders applauded.

-You have achieved an accomplishment!

-You have gained likes for achieving the [Taste of Emotion] accomplishment.

-You have gained ‘5’ likes!

“With this level of skill, we have no choice.”

“We’ll open it! Go check if what you’re looking for is in there.”

***

Creeeeak-.

With a loud noise, Tartaros’ secret warehouse was opened.

Ethan immediately went inside.

‘It’s here.’

Inside, he saw a jewel engulfed in brilliant flames.

“That’s the Flame Stone. Is that Flame Stone the ingredient used to make the ultimate beer you’re looking for?”

‘It’s not the jewel.’

The holy relic wasn’t that Flame Stone, but the shabby-looking hammer behind it.

“Um, unfortunately, it doesn’t seem to be the item I was looking for.”

“So… does that mean you can’t make the ultimate beer?”

“Not right now, at least.”

The three elders looked dejected.

“But don’t worry. When I make a beer better than the one you just had, I’ll be sure to treat you to it. Thank you for opening the warehouse for me.”

“Hmm, it’s a shame we couldn’t be of help. The ultimate beer… we could have tasted it right away.”

“What about the other items? We don’t know how that item you’re looking for helps in making the ultimate beer, but there are many useful things here.”

“We can give you one if you want. Of course, the most important Flame Stone is off-limits. The Flame Stone is the living flame of Tartaros. It’s something the Great Hammer must protect at all costs.” ɽâꞐ𝖔𝖇ËŞ

The three elders had already opened their hearts to Ethan after tasting the beer he made.

‘I did make it well.’

Ethan very naturally picked up an old hammer.

“Then, as a token of remembering my promise to the three elders, may I take this hammer?”

The dwarf elders nodded at the shabby-looking hammer.

“Hmm! You could have chosen something better.”

“I heard you were a merman, but to be this humble.”

“Actually, I’m not a merman, but a pure-blooded human.”

“A pure-blooded human? How can a human be this humble! All the humans I know are nothing but greedy bastards.”

The three elders crossed their arms and nodded simultaneously.

“You, if you come to Tartaros with good beer next time, be sure to find us. We’ll make an item you want.”

-You have cleared the quest!

-It’s an overwhelming achievement!

-Your reward is enhanced!

-You can now request equipment crafting from the dwarf elders!

-Additional rewards will be given. If you request equipment crafting with materials, you can make any equipment.

‘I didn’t expect this.’

Who are these dwarf elders? They are the former kings of Tartaros, called the Great Hammers.

‘It means I can ask them to make any S-class or higher equipment.’

The equipment they make is S-class by default. Plus, there’s nothing they can’t make.

“Of course, don’t forget to bring the materials too.”

“I’ll definitely come to see you again.”

***

Ethan placed his hand on the old hammer. Just like Watopia’s holy relic, this old hammer also had a powerful god’s power imbued in it.

‘Each holy relic feels different.’

This was already the third one.

As Ethan absorbed the power of the holy relics, he could discern the characteristics of the power imbued in each holy relic.

‘This one has a burning power.’

Ethan summoned Lyuka.

“Keep it safe, Lyuka. I’ll take them all back later.”

“Kyung!”

‘If I absorb the power of this holy relic too, I’ll essentially be absorbing up to the limit my body can handle.’

Unless he improves his body condition, he can’t accept any more power.

‘I need to fill it to the brim. Regrettably, I’ll have to accept some loss.’

Shaaaaah-!

As the god’s power imbued in the holy relic entered his body, he once again felt the sensation he had experienced when absorbing the god’s power in Watopia.

‘I feel it again.’

The feeling of something about to break.

Something blocking the way was about to shatter.

Crack-. Crackle-.

If Watopia’s holy relic had caused cracks,

This power he was absorbing now was breaking through the cracked wall.

Crunch-. Crunch crunch-.

‘The power of Moonforce…!’

Three holy relics.

It was the Moonforce energy residing in his body that absorbed the three divine powers imbued in them.

Eventually, the Moonforce energy that had absorbed the divine power flowed vigorously throughout his body.

Shaaaaah-!

For a moment, Ethan felt an intense chill. But that was only for a moment.

Shaaaaah-.

Cold energy slowly began to leak from his body.

Eventually, the ground of Tartaros, which had been boiling with heat, began to freeze.

‘It’s much stronger than before.’

Ethan stomped on the ground hard. Instantly, a large area centered on where he stepped froze over.

-You have learned the Eternal Frost skill!

-Skill added: Eternal Frost (SS)

-You have learned the Full Moon skill!

-Skill added: Full Moon (SS)

‘SS-class.’

Ethan was surprised as he looked at the frozen ground.

SS-class is the grade just below Legendary, and even in MePan, obtaining SS-class skills or items was a rare occurrence.

‘This is practically an awakening.’

If you really think about it, it could be seen as an awakening of the profession.

The power of Moonforce had risen not just one level higher, but several levels higher.

“Eternal Frost.”

Ethan used the Eternal Frost he had just learned. The powerful cold energy residing in his body enveloped Ethan like a protective barrier.

When he stomped his foot, the cold energy spread instantly from that foot, and when he gripped his sword, a barrier of cold energy covered the blade.

“As expected.”

The ultimate reason Ethan decided to obtain the Moonforce descendant profession was for defense.

This skill perfectly matched that reason.

“Originally, my body wouldn’t have been able to handle it.”

Thanks to the awakening and the Pope’s treatment, he was now able to use this Eternal Frost.

‘I should completely alleviate the Pope’s worries.’

“And one more.”

Ethan hadn’t just learned Eternal Frost.

“Full Moon, huh.”

Ethan immediately used Full Moon.

Kwaaaaang-!

Suddenly, there was a tremendous explosion sound as if something had burst.

At the same time, his whole body exploded.

Kwaaaaang-!

It wasn’t an ordinary explosion.

An explosion of cold energy.

Who would have thought that the cold energy imbued in his entire body would explode all at once.

Full Moon was a technique that exploded all the cold energy in the body to release its power while simultaneously freezing one’s own body for protection.

‘Good grief.’

This Full Moon was a kind of ultimate technique.

‘The answer was here.’

Ethan had once searched for a god optimized for defense through the New World.

As a result, he met Hang Woo.

Attack is the best defense.

What he learned from Hang Woo was the power of unity between offense and defense.

But the real unity of offense and defense was here.

The power to defend oneself while attacking simultaneously.

‘This technique is truly the technique of unity between offense and defense.’

Full Moon was a technique that momentarily emits strong cold energy to attack the opponent while perfectly freezing oneself at the same time.

Currently, Ethan was frozen in the same posture he had used Full Moon in.

‘It’s a defensive technique, but conversely, it also restricts my movement.’

Crack-.

Kaaang-!

Ethan thawed the ice and came out.

“I can break it myself, but it takes some time.”

But it was certainly an amazing technique.

‘How wide is the range?’

The cold energy didn’t seem to have spread as widely as he thought.

Ethan grasped a few of the minerals scattered around with his hand.

Shaaaaah-!

The frozen minerals crumbled into pieces right away.

“The effect increases when held in hand, huh.”

Ethan grinned.

“I only have things to be grateful for to the 5th Apostle.”

If it weren’t for the 5th Apostle, he wouldn’t have even known that the holy relic was here.

“I’ll eat well and go.”

***

He had secured the holy relic in Tartaros and even gained two SS-class skills.

But Ethan was still in a state of worry.

‘Now there’s only one thing left to secure. To find the real Sigma Roadhammer.’

He had secured the holy relics of Watopia and Tartaros, which were the top priority of the 5th Apostle.

But in the current state, Ethan couldn’t be considered to have an advantage.

To reveal that he was a fake, he needed to find the real Sigma Roadhammer.

‘And the 5th Apostle know this very well too.’

Ethan pondered for a moment.

‘The places where it can be hidden are limited. It has to be a place where it will absolutely not be discovered. Watopia and Tartaros are bound to have a high possibility of being discovered.’

These two places were unfamiliar to the 5th Apostle, so it was natural. But if these two places were excluded, there was nowhere left to hide.

‘It couldn’t have been hidden on the ground.’

That rift isn’t like a portal that allows comfortable movement between different places.

‘If it were to be used for such a purpose, there would be no reason to use such an inconvenient method.’

“Where could it be?”

Where could Sigma Roadhammer be hidden?

A place where no one can find it, and not on the ground.

‘Unlike Watopia or Tartaros, a place familiar to the 5th Apostle.’

Suddenly, a place popped into Ethan’s mind.

‘No way.’

***

“You mean Mr. Ethan? He said earlier that he was going to look for the rift.”

“Which rift are you talking about?”

“The rift in the plaza.”

The rift in the plaza was a very special rift among the rifts in this Watopia.

That’s because Sigma Roadhammer and the dwarves came to Watopia through that rift.

“…No way.”

The merman managing the rift looked at Sigma with a puzzled face.

“Is something wrong?”

“No, nothing. So, did Ethan Whiskers perhaps.”

“Ah, yes, that’s right. He said he wanted to check if it’s really connected and went over to Tartaros.”

Sigma’s mind became complicated. Tartaros is a much more closed-off place than Watopia.

To be precise, the dwarves of Tartaros don’t particularly like humans.

No, they don’t like other races to begin with.

Dwarves are beings who are solely obsessed with creating good equipment by hammering.

That’s why Sigma Roadhammer, no, the 5th Apostle also had a hard time securing the holy relic of Tartaros.

He could just kill everyone and take it, but he couldn’t do that because of the words of the top 3 apostles.

There are still undiscovered strong individuals in each race, so they need to make thorough preparations without provoking them.

Therefore, the 5th Apostle came up with his own plan.

He came up with a method to secure two holy relics at once and even secure souls.

“He did a foolish thing.”

“Pardon?”

“Nothing, just talking to myself.”

That’s why he could grin.

This was Ethan Whiskers’ self-destructive move.

With this, the 5th Apostle could definitely grasp Ethan and judge his next plan.

It’s right to kill him.

“If you’re going to deceive, you should have deceived thoroughly and proceeded with the work.”

The holy relic of Tartaros and the holy relic of Watopia.

To obtain these two holy relics, he should have blinded his eyes.

“Anyway, even if he goes to Tartaros, he won’t gain anything. They don’t communicate. They’re like beasts.”

The 5th Apostle chuckled. At the same time, he recalled the unpleasant experiences in Tartaros.

The reason he failed when trying to secure the holy relic on the Tartaros side first was because of their considerable vigilance.

Although the Great Hammer is certainly the king of Tartaros, it’s not an absolute position like the king of humans or the king of Watopia.

Basically, that position is like an elected position that is won by ability.

That’s why even with the authority of the king, it’s not easy to enter the secret warehouse that has been passed down for generations in Tartaros.

It required the permission of the dwarves called elders, but from the 5th Apostle’s standpoint, there was no reason to take the risk of meeting the dwarf elders.

Anyway, if the plan proceeded, Tartaros would naturally become empty.

It would be enough to take advantage of that opportunity, deal with the elders, steal the key, and open the door.

“If you simply took the holy relic with the intention of interfering with me, I can’t just leave you alone.”

The 5th Apostle thought that Ethan Whiskers could never have obtained the holy relic of Tartaros.

At the same time, if he did this simply to ruin his plan, he was thinking of not killing him gently.

“I have some business with Mr. Ethan Whiskers. Tell him when he returns.”

Just as he was about to leave after leaving those words.

Kuguuuung-!

The rift began to shake.

And someone walked out of that rift.

Step-. Step-.

The one who walked out was one of the two humans stationed in this Watopia.

Ethan Whiskers.

But there was someone else beside him.

“Urghh.”

The one groaning and being supported by Ethan was a dwarf.

“N-no way.”

“What is this…”

“Impossible!”

The dwarves next to Sigma were shocked. Then they looked back and forth between the Sigma next to them and the dwarf next to Ethan.

There were two Sigmas.

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