Chapter 188

Аs thе Undеrgrоund Arenа Тоurnаmеnt ended, the sреctatоrs began tо risе frоm thеir sеаts one bу one.

Just аs Вinsen аnd Веlluа, thе magеs from thе Yellow Маgiс Тower whо had sеrved as safеtу managers for this tоurnаment, were about tо lеave their seats…

“Тhаnk you fоr reаdilу асcepting my suddеn request. I’vе рrеparеd аmрle travеl exрenses, so I hoре you еnjоy а comfоrtable staу in Erindеl fоr the remaining time.”

Aldrik рolitеlу sрokе as he реrsоnally hаnded оvеr а роuch оf mоnеy tо Вinsen and Bellua.

Binsen and Bellua slightly bowed their heads and accepted the money pouch.

“By the way, is Lexar truly not in Erindel? According to the Yellow Magic Tower’s information, the conclusion is that Lexar is currently staying in Erindel.”

“Hoho… As I mentioned a few days ago, I don’t know who this Lexar person is. Let me ask the mayor about it first.”

“Understood. Please do so as soon as possible. Lexar is a terrifying fellow who has learned Dark Magic. If left alone, something terrible might happen to the city.”

“Understood.”

In response to Bellua’s warning, Aldrik answered seriously, seemingly recognizing the gravity of the situation.

“Bellua, let’s go check Districts 12 and 13 once more.”

“Yes…!”

According to the information obtained from the Yellow Magic Tower, Lexar was said to have established himself around Districts 12 and 13.

In truth, they had already investigated Districts 12 and 13 once since arriving in Erindel.

They had found buildings that seemed to be used by Lexar’s Gang, but there was no sign of any presence at all.

‘This time, I need to go and check properly.’

The reason they couldn’t thoroughly investigate the buildings of Lexar’s Gang in Districts 12 and 13 was because magic traps were installed throughout the buildings.

“How long will it take to investigate all the buildings presumed to have been used by Lexar’s Gang?”

“I’m not certain, but it will take at least two days or more. There seem to be so many traps installed all over the buildings.”

This meant they would have to endure hardship for at least the next two days.

Bellua sighed inwardly and headed towards District 12 with Binsen.

* * *

Khan had never used the Ancient Magic Tome even once.

Of course, he had seen other Users in the <Geo Arc> Community use it, but since it was his first time using it himself, there were some aspects that worried him a little.

‘I heard that learning a skill from an Ancient Magic Tome could actually ruin your character… I’m conflicted about whether to use this right away or not.’

The most concerning thing was not knowing what skill was in the Ancient Magic Tome.

Ancient Magic Tomes contain skills that cannot normally be obtained.

If it were a skill related to Dark Magic or a detrimental skill even Khan didn’t know about, he would incur a significant Penalty.

‘Aldrik probably didn’t use the Ancient Magic Tome himself for that reason and offered it as the tournament prize instead.’

[The skill ‘Sage’s Heart’ has been activated.]

Perhaps because his worries were increasing, the Rank 10 Hidden Skill, Sage’s Heart, activated on its own.

Was that why?

Suddenly, without any particular thought, Khan took out the Ancient Magic Tome from his Spatial Pocket.

[Ancient Magic Tome]

• Item Rank: ???

• Level Restriction: X

• Item Description: Upon use, you will acquire one of the skills slumbering from ancient times.

Khan immediately opened the Ancient Magic Tome.

The Magic Tome was in a blank state with nothing written on it.

As Khan understood, if you infused a small amount of Mana while the Magic Tome was open, you would acquire the Magic contained within the tome.

As Khan drew up Mana and infused it into the Ancient Magic Tome, blue Mana began to rise from the Ancient Magic Tome.

It was a considerable amount of Mana, enough to make the entire Inn feel like it shook momentarily.

The Mana that had briefly shone like that gradually lost its power and then seeped entirely into Khan’s body.

Simultaneously, a message appeared before Khan’s eyes.

[You have used the Ancient Magic Tome.]

[The skill contained in the Ancient Magic Tome is ‘Growth Boost’.]

[You have acquired the Rank 8 Hidden Skill ‘Growth Boost’.]

As soon as Khan checked the message, his eyes widened in surprise.

Thanks to Sage’s Heart activating, he could maintain his composure, but even so, he felt his heart pounding.

‘Growth Boost, a Rank 8 Hidden Skill? I’ve never heard of it before.’

As soon as Khan saw the Growth Boost skill, he recalled the skill he already possessed, ‘Growth Acceleration’.

‘First of all, getting a Rank 8 Hidden Skill itself is incredibly lucky. But… what’s the Skill Effect?’

Just as Khan was having that thought, another set of messages appeared before his eyes.

[The Rank 8 Hidden Skill ‘Growth Acceleration’ and the Rank 8 Hidden Skill ‘Growth Boost’ are merging.]

[You have acquired the Rank 8 Hidden Skill ‘Infinite Growth’.]

The fusion of Hidden Skills.

Khan had never seen or heard of such a thing before, so he slowly checked each message again.

‘Infinite Growth, a Rank 8 Hidden Skill? What on earth is this?’

The Rank 8 Hidden Skill ‘Growth Acceleration’ that Khan had coincidentally obtained while progressing through the Tutorial.

The Growth Acceleration skill was a skill that increased the Experience Points gained from hunting Monsters. It had a decent effect, but that was about it.

‘The original Growth Acceleration skill had too many downsides to be called a Rank 8 Hidden Skill, but for it to merge like this…’

In truth, Khan had secretly hoped for an incredibly powerful skill to be inside the Ancient Magic Tome, so he felt a bit deflated that a Passive-type skill like this came out.

‘Still, I obtained the Rank 8 Hidden Skill Growth Boost, and it merged with my existing Growth Acceleration skill, so the skill’s performance must have increased tremendously.’

Khan checked the information of the newly evolved Rank 8 Hidden Skill, ‘Infinite Growth’.

[Skill: Infinite Growth]

• Skill Rank: Rank 8

• Skill Description: All Experience Points gained by the skill owner are increased by 50 times.

• Cooldown: X

• Mana Consumption: X

“Wha, what…?!”

As soon as Khan checked the skill’s information, he opened his mouth and exclaimed.

While he had seen some absurd skills a few times over the years of playing <Geo Arc>, this ‘Infinite Growth’ skill he just obtained was on a different level.

‘If all Experience Points increase by 50 times, that means the Experience Points gained from clearing Main Quests also increase, right?’

If this skill was real, Khan could achieve overwhelmingly rapid growth.

‘I might be able to see the game’s ending much sooner than I thought.’

First, he needed to verify if the description written for the ‘Infinite Growth’ skill was accurate, but it was certain that he had obtained a monstrous skill through the Ancient Magic Tome.

“All the hardship endured to win the tournament was worth it.”

Just as Khan was muttering to himself like that, a Main Quest-related message suddenly appeared.

• [Lexar’s Gang Building Search]

• Will you accept the Hidden Quest?

• If refused, the Hidden Quest will be deleted.

• Reward: A considerable amount of Experience Points, progression to the next Hidden Quest

As if urging him to test the newly acquired Rank 8 Hidden Skill ‘Infinite Growth’, the Main Quest appeared, so he accepted the Quest.

[You have accepted the Main Quest.]

He wanted to go with Byutek and Sharin, but wanting to test the ‘Infinite Growth’ skill even a little sooner, Khan quickly headed towards Districts 12 and 13.

* * *

Already about four hours had passed.

Where Lexar’s Gang had been, a large temple was also situated.

There were small buildings around, with magic traps installed throughout.

Binsen and Bellua were blocking the magic traps flying towards them while checking if there were any clues related to Lexar’s whereabouts.

“Phew, he really isn’t showing up…”

“Indeed. How is it that there isn’t a single piece of material related to Lexar’s Gang inside the buildings…”

Bellua and Binsen had found nothing in the four hours they searched.

It was suspicious whether anyone had even lived here.

Just as the two continued searching the buildings.

A very familiar person revealed themselves in District 12.

“Huh? Look over there, Sir Binsen! It’s Khan, Khan…!”

“What? Why did that guy come here?”

“That’s what I’m wondering…”

Binsen and Bellua saw Khan suddenly appear at the temple and moved their steps in that direction.

Binsen and Bellua approached Khan.

Bellua asked in an aggressive tone.

“What are you doing here?”

Why on earth had Khan come to the temple used by Lexar’s Gang?

Moreover, judging by his reaction, it seemed like he had been here several times before.

“Be, Bellua…! Don’t speak so aggressively; we need to deal with him calmly. Step back for now. I’ll talk to him.”

“Yes…”

Because Bellua’s tone was too aggressive, Binsen stepped forward again and cautiously asked Khan.

“We meet again. But may I ask why you came here?”

“Ah, I came here for a brief errand.”

“Huh? What kind of errand could you have here?”

“It’s a personal errand. I don’t think I have any reason to tell you.”

“……Of course, if this were an ordinary place, that would be the case, but we need to know why Sir Khan came here.”

“Why?”

Khan asked expressionlessly.

His expression was so cold that Binsen felt himself shrinking back a little without realizing it.

“This is a place where a man named Lexar, who betrayed the Yellow Magic Tower, stayed. We came here to find and kill the traitor.”

Upon hearing Binsen’s words, Khan pondered for a moment.

‘I need to make up something plausible.’

He couldn’t say he came because of a Quest.

Khan slowly opened his mouth.

“I killed that guy named Lexar. I came here to see if there was anything useful left.”

“……!!!”

“……!!!”

Upon hearing Khan’s words, the eyes of Bellua and Binsen widened greatly.