God-Tier Enhancement: My Upgrades Never Fail-Chapter 163: Episode 32_Is This Lair Really Your Lair_ (4)

Chapter 163: Episode 32_Is This Lair Really Your Lair_ (4)

8.

The first thought that flashed through his mind was an unexpected one.

’Am I allowed to take this?’

It was a tiny scrap of pride, a sliver of conscience that, even after spending more than half a year as a hardcore gamer living more in the game than in reality, allowed him to feel like he was still a functioning modern man. It was an instinct, a lesson absorbed over twenty-five years of life.

’Do not covet what belongs to others!’

In the 21st century, that old-fashioned mindset had been updated slightly to, “It’s not that you shouldn’t covet what belongs to others, just only covet what has no owner.” But either way, the point was that the first thought to cross Han Simin’s mind was a moral one.

’Simin, I’m proud of you.’

He tossed a compliment at himself. No one knows you better than yourself, after all. In a situation where the normal reaction would be to think only of grabbing it all and running, he had actually hesitated—even if only for a single second.

’I’m qualified to steal this.’

His heart settled into a much more comfortable place. Now that he had confirmed he still had at least a shred of conscience left, it was time to do what needed to be done.

He brushed off that one second of hesitation as if it had never happened and moved on to his next concern.

’How much is all this worth?’

This was a dragon’s lair. Or rather, a cave presumed to be a dragon’s lair. And in that cave, treasure was piled up like mountains. There was so much that the thought of carrying it all was daunting, so naturally, calculating its value was just as burdensome.

Forget it. What was the point?

“Eh.”

He cleanly gave up. On the calculations, that is. It wasn’t something he needed to worry about right now. There was a far more urgent problem.

He fell silent.

The question he still hadn’t solved. One he didn’t want to solve, but absolutely had to, right here in this space.

Why wasn’t there a single monster guarding all this treasure? Shouldn’t there at least be a single rat watching to see if anyone tried to covet the hoard?

That was the biggest reason he couldn’t just rush in.

’What if this is a trap?’

If this really was a dragon’s lair, as he suspected—and if it belonged to one of those dragons infamous for their foul tempers—it was entirely possible that some perverted bastard of a dragon had dismissed the monsters guarding the entrance the moment it spotted a human.

And then waited. Waited for them to come in. Waited to catch them in the act.

Even an orc with a single-digit IQ understood human greed; there was no way a dragon wouldn’t. The moment a human went blind with greed and charged at the treasure, perhaps the dragon planned to plunge them into despair, toy with them, and then kill them.

It was a perfectly reasonable suspicion.

But Squeaker did not seem to share it.

“Ppaeaaaeek!”

“Don’t!”

Squeaker lunged for the gold.

Han Simin swallowed a gasp and shouted urgently. Normally, he would have considered it a perfect test subject and just watched from the sidelines. But not now. Not when the subject was Squeaker. It might actually be better for him to throw himself in first to check for danger.

Of course, if it really was a trap, they would both end up dead either way.

’No, wait. If this is a real dragon’s lair, Squeaker is a dragon too. Maybe it wouldn’t kill her?’

So many thoughts rushed through his head at once that he couldn’t sort them out properly. In the meantime, Squeaker had already reached the treasure before Han Simin could make a final judgment.

At the same time, she hurled herself into the pile of gold. It was already spilled milk.

He snapped his eyes wide open and scanned the surroundings, cranking his body’s tension to the max. At any second, a wave of Dragon Fear might come roaring in from somewhere.

He held his breath.

But nothing happened.

“Scree!”

Even as Squeaker burrowed into the treasure and began happily gobbling up gold ingots, picking them out one by one—even as that massive pile of treasure rapidly shrank—nothing happened.

By the time she was about halfway through, a faint smile had already formed on the lips of the wise, cool-headed, and quick-thinking Han Simin.

“Jackpot.”

If there had been no reaction by this point, then he could safely dismiss his negative hypothesis as nothing more than paranoid delusion.

All that was left was the collection.

Any excessive doubts about why such good fortune existed in a place like this?

“It’s because I’ve lived such a virtuous life, obviously.”

The same Han Simin who used to stuff even the tiniest trash item that could be sold for money into his magic pouch now opened his subspace and began dumping out useless items at random, as if he were a different person.

“Hope some nice person picks these up.”

He spewed shameless words as he swept the treasure into his pouch. Then he let out a sigh of relief.

“I’ve been hoarding magic pouches all this time, hoping a day like this would come. So this is what they’re for, huh.”

Life really was impossible to predict.

“Kku-eong.”

The one who had brought them here, Sudal, let out a resentful cry. It watched Han Simin and Squeaker burrow into the treasure pile without even a glance in its direction, as if they had been born solely to scoop up loot.

’You could at least enhance my stuff first.’

But its pitiful wail would have no effect today.

9.

Kardian was a Black Dragon. A dragon who had abandoned the sacred duty of protecting the continent.

A heretic. A traitor among his kind.

When the demons invaded, he had sided with them and fought against his own kin. Which was why his lair could only be located in one of the Four Great Unexplored Regions, which had once served as the demons’ footholds on the continent. And when the demons were defeated and forced to retreat, he had entered a long slumber along with countless others.

Then, after an age had passed, he awoke.

“KRRAAAARARAR!”

A massive body. Jet-black scales. Keen, razor-sharp eyes. The yawn he let out as he stirred echoed beneath the cliff, a spark that sent monsters trembling in terror and instantly flipped the food chain that had ruled this domain.

Mercy? A Black Dragon knew no such thing. He was the one who had turned his back on the dragons’ mission to seek peace and protect the continent, choosing instead to join hands with the darkness.

Annihilation. Death. Those were all that existed for him.

THOOM.

The moment he awoke, he heaved his heavy body into motion and left the lair, the escort monsters that had guarded him for centuries following in his wake.

“KROROROAR!”

It was a low roar, a growl of displeasure at how much the world had changed over the centuries.

FWUMP.

His enormous wings spread wide as his will rippled outward.

’Follow me! I will cleanse this place.’

The monsters who served the dragon obeyed without a word. The dragon took to the sky, and his legion followed. No one—not even the dragon himself—spared a thought for the fact that his lair was now unguarded.

From the very start, the very idea of “clearing out” the vast expanse beneath the cliff was something only a dragon could even conceive of. Even the apex predators who had ruled this place until now had never been able to fully control it.

Who would dare to loot a dragon’s lair just because its owner had stepped out for a bit? No—who would even dare to approach? This was one of the Forbidden Lands, a place no one had set foot in for centuries.

After a long, yet not-so-long time, the Black Dragon returned.

“KROROROROAR!”

He had announced his overwhelming presence, so things should have quieted down. His followers would soon arrive. First, he would shake off the last remnants of his long sleep, then reveal himself once more to the continent and flaunt his existence. And he would help again. Help the demons invade.

Just thinking about the days ahead left a sour taste in his mouth. Though centuries had passed, those years of defeat still felt like yesterday, since he had spent them in deep sleep. The unpleasantness was at least somewhat washed away by the exertion. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

His massive form slipped back into the lair. He would make a few simple preparations, then fly toward the human world. The thought of watching humans tremble in terror from nothing more than a light touch of his Dragon Fear filled him with exhilaration.

“KROROROR!”

Roaring his joy, the Black Dragon stepped into the lair—and froze.

“Kr?”

A puzzled grunt escaped him as his memories fumbled. In the dragon’s mind, which never forgot anything it had seen, the image of the lair from barely half a day ago flashed by. The picture formed quickly. It was not fully drawn yet, but one thing was clear.

Before he left, it had not been this much of a wreck.

“KROROROROR!”

That could only mean one thing.

An intruder!

Some bastard had not only dared to trespass into his lair, but had wrecked the place from one end to the other. Swallowing his rage, he strode deeper into the cavern. If the entrance alone was this much of a disaster, the inside would be even worse, but he still had to see it with his own eyes.

He did not bother with any foolish hopes. And the result was exactly what he expected.

“Grrrrrr...”

The moment he confirmed that his treasures were gone, his fury erupted. Scorch marks and gouges were left everywhere, as if someone had done some rough excavation work. The treasure was gone. And as if to mock him, all sorts of trash had been piled up in its place.

A rage deeper than what he had felt when he sided with the demons and lost the war boiled up inside him.

The Black Dragon took to the air.

10.

The opening ceremony of the Guild Selection Tournament began. Countless guilds had gathered, and since more than two-thirds of them were composed of NPCs, it was an event for the entire continent, not just for players. A true festival.

—Wow. This is insane.

—Look at all those people. Holy crap.

—Check out the muscles on those NPCs. What level do you think they are?

—The only thing I know for sure is that even those no-name guilds over there are a higher level than any of the players right now.

—Can’t argue with that.

Even the viewers watching through player streams felt intimidated by the sheer scale. It was only natural. To the viewers—most of whom lacked the level or the guild to even dream of coming here—this gathering of NPCs who could whip up gusts of wind and shatter rocks with their bare hands looked like a different world, even though it was the same game.

Someday, that gap would narrow. But for now, this was reality.

Which was why most of the players mixed into the crowd were shrinking back and just watching. Player bravado? Of all the users on the community boards who had declared they would show up and assert the greatness of adventurers, not a single one was out there trying to dominate the field.

That was the terror of the group. The atmosphere. If you acted up here, you would be crushed. If you were only going to play for a day or two before quitting, you might as well shout something bold for the viewers’ sake. But among those who had come all this way to participate, who would dare? There was nothing to gain from picking a fight with the NPCs who had staked out this turf.

The game had grown, but for now, players were still subordinate.

In that hall filled with silence, with the NPCs warily watching the adventurers who were rapidly catching up—

“PPAAEAAAEK!”

A cry rang out from above, shattering the quiet.

Every gaze, including the Emperor’s—who had been about to launch into his ceremonial address—turned to the sky. And they saw him. The face they had all been searching for.

“Whew!”

He had the gall to stretch and stroll over, utterly carefree, after making an unauthorized crash landing in the Imperial City. It was a display of sheer nerve that no other player had dared to show. On top of that, despite being late and ruining the atmosphere, he brazenly walked right up to the Emperor.

“Made it just in time, right?”

The Emperor remained silent.

“Oh, and I heard there was some kind of reward for getting me to the Guild Selection Tournament on time. My guild, the Specialists, passed the word along, so I’ll trust you to take good care of that.”

Silence stretched between them.

Then, with hollow eyes and a body caked in dust, he trudged down and slipped into the ranks.

“Ugh, I’m beat. Let’s get this over with so I can go crash.”

His expression and tone showed not the slightest greed for the tournament’s grand rewards. It was like watching a beggar who normally pounced on any scrap of food walk into a feast, stuff himself, and then not even glance at a bowl of noodles. The Specialists, who had arrived early, tilted their heads.

Unable to contain her curiosity, Kang Yeseul walked over.

“Simin, what the hell? Why do you look like a homeless guy?”

“Hey, Yeseul.”

“Yeah?”

“I think it’s time.”

“Time for what?”

“I’ll buy you a meal, so recommend a decent building for me to buy.”

She looked at him in confusion.

“I picked up some money while I was wandering around.”

Instead of answering her question, Han Simin tossed out something completely off the wall. Before she could ask what kind of bullshit that was, his voice came through the guild chat, and Kang Yeseul’s jaw dropped.