Return To Level Up

Chapter 172

After completing the work in Antarctica, Ha-jin Kang obtained two more ruins according to the information Renat gave him.

Since he was a very light relic, he registered it, but to no avail.

Still, he felt better every time he registered his relics.

For some reason, it felt like the flow of Earth’s magic was gradually stabilizing.

He couldn’t figure out the location of another crack that might be somewhere.

Jason kept a strict separation between those sent to Antarctica and those sent elsewhere.

He thoroughly managed so that there were no contact points to prevent information from being exchanged with each other.

He also took great care in maintaining secrecy so that he would not disclose information.

Those in Antarctica have no reason to keep the secret in the future, but those in other places do not know Jason’s identity yet, so they will thoroughly follow the intentions of the Defenders.

‘And even if I find it, I still don’t know how to do it.’

At the South Pole, there was a crack controller, which allowed the crack to shrink. But how about cracks in other places?

If there was one more crack controller, I would use it, but without it, the only thing that strong Ha-jin could do was return the power like when closing the hole.

Still, I told Renat to hand over all the information about the ruins I got in Antarctica and find a similar one, so if I’m lucky, I might be able to find another rift controller.

Since the Antarctic Rift is connected to Neusnemid, the rift on the other side is probably connected to the Demon Realm where Marbas is.

At first glance, that is more dangerous. We’ll be able to stop Marvass only if we block it properly.

However, Hajin Kang thought that this might not be the case. Especially these days, I’ve been thinking about it more.

Why did Jason come to Earth?

Could it be that something is wrong with their world?

Even if that’s not the case, that’s a problem.

Even though the world is fine, what the hell is it that people as strong as Jason and Ash, who have much greater power than Jason, have come to Earth?

Could it be that he came as a spearhead of the invasion, or that the world had fallen and fled?

If that’s the case, if a dungeon is created due to a crack in that world, wouldn’t it be possible for those terrifying monsters to come over?

“It’s getting more and more complicated.”

Ha-jin Kang muttered while shaking his head sharply.

We have to stop Marbas’s invasion, we have to contain the Defenders, and we also need to find cracks that might be somewhere.

I thought it would be nice to have a few more bodies.

Ha-jin Kang returned to Korea and handed over the photos and videos taken at the new ruins, as well as some relics to Renat.

Renat has been obsessed with finding new ruins these days.

He enjoyed the fact that he could find the ruins indirectly through Ha-jin Kang, even though he couldn’t visit it himself.

And it was Renat’s new dream and goal to visit all the ruins once if he had a chance later.

For that to happen, the guardian must become stronger, and he must find more ruins himself.

So he was whipping himself up every day and devoted himself to research.

Ha-jin Kang gave Renat information and chatted for about 10 minutes, both greetings, and then went to Kyung-min Yoon.

Now, the Guardians ran well on their own, even without Hajin Kang doing anything.

“Master, are you here?”

“Your face has improved a lot.”

“As my skills grew, my performance got better.”

Kang Ha-jin was startled by those words.

“Health now has a sleep effect. 8 minutes of sleep gives you the benefits of 8 hours of sleep, so you’re wasting less time.”

When Ha-jin Kang stared at her, Kyung-min Yoon smirked and continued her pride.

“I tried it with people I work with, and it worked perfectly. Would you like to try the Master too?”

“I’m done. I’ll tell you later when I need it.”

“Now then, let’s start the report in earnest.”

Yoon Kyung-min continued to speak with his eyes shining.

“Once the construction on the Paju side has entered the final stage. The rest will be expanded gradually and the construction will continue.”

“Good for you. So when can we go in there?”

“You can move in right away. The house construction has been completed. But no one has entered the castle yet.”

Hajin Kang smiled brightly as he remembered Reidros Castle.

It was impossible to enter the castle without Kang Ha-jin’s permission. After the construction was completed, Ha-jin Kang planned to open the castle when she moved the guild headquarters to Paju in earnest.

The interior space of Reidros Castle was very large compared to the space it occupied.

Because the space was expanded, it was several dozen times larger than it looked from the outside.

And Reidros Castle was guarded by knights, wizards, and soldiers.

If you tried to enter the castle recklessly, you could die.

“Then we will open the castle, so let’s move it right away.”

After that, we discussed the details of the use of the building that will be vacant in the future and the management of the Guardian area created in Paju.

In fact, there was nothing to discuss. It was about confirming that Yoon Kyung-min had done everything.

In the middle, there were a mixture of things that Hajin Kang had to do himself, so he had to decide on that and it was over.

When the story about the relocation of the Guardians headquarters was over, Yoon Kyung-min brought up the matter about the Defenders with a serious expression.

“The Defenders are moving very aggressively. The new member Ashira is doing a great job.”

Kyung-Min Yoon showed several videos of Ash’s activities on the tablet.

Kang Ha-jin’s eyes lit up when he saw that.

It was definitely a great skill. Ash’s fighting style was colorful and powerful. The video was full of sights.

‘This is not my skill.’

It was a video to show. The battle itself is real, but in Hajin Kang’s view, there was no need to move so flashy if Ash used his strength properly.

With just a few flashes, you’ll be able to crush all monsters.

‘Can’t we check the information even if we meet in person?’

It was only natural that he would come from the same world as Jason or Jennifer.

“So what is the situation?”

“Still, we have the upper hand. No matter how hard we try, it is not easy to reverse the image we have built up in an instant. But it is clear that we are catching up little by little.”

The Guardians were also working hard, but the impact was weak.

Slowly, it was time to show the proper impact once.

And probably the same goes for the Defenders. It is not easy for them to surpass the Guardians as they are now.

A strong room was needed.

“First, we are gradually strengthening our influence by sending a large number of guild members to countries with good existing relations.”

After talking up to that point, Yoon Kyung-min predicted the next move of the Defenders.

“Maybe we will announce a new potion. It seems that we have established a mass production system as well as development.”

“That’s the first room the Defenders prepared.”

“Yes. I hope we can respond appropriately.”

It was not for nothing that Kyung-min Yoon said such a thing. Because there was enough hand to respond to this side as well.

“How is the potion development on our side?”

At Ha-jin Kang’s question, Kyung-min Yoon grinned.

“The 1st round is over, the 2nd and 3rd rounds are in progress. We expect it to be completed within three months.”

“Isn’t the first car similar to what the Defenders announces now?

“For once, yes. So, how about we slow it down a bit?”

“You’re late? Then the image of a latecomer will be strong, right?”

“The newly developed process is being tested. It is said that the potion’s efficiency can be increased by at least 10%.”

Kang Ha-jin was startled by the words.

“Is it 10%?”

“Yes. I was also surprised to hear the report. This is an idea from one of the newly recruited researchers.”

A variety of talented people recruited with the help of Jeong A-yeon slowly entered the right place and started to play an active role.

At this rate, it seemed that not only potions but also magic engineering could not be greatly pushed by the Defenders.

“Then we do it. We are higher on the PR side, so it might be better to announce it later.”

“There are a lot of dungeons these days, so the level of the Awoken has risen significantly, so if the efficiency is 10%, most will choose us.”

Kyung-min Yoon continued to talk with a smirk.

“We’re going to give it a lower price, too.”

“Can you make the price cheaper?”

“If the newly developed process is successful, the cost can be significantly reduced. It is a process that not only increases the efficiency of potions, but also increases the efficiency of using materials. We anticipate savings of at least 15%. If we go into mass production, additional savings are possible.”

Kang Ha-jin looked at Yoon Kyung-min with surprised eyes.

“I will feed you properly this time.”

At the end of Yoon Kyung-min’s mischievous smile, Kang Ha-jin also laughed.

The Guardians and the Defenders were no longer just a rivalry.

The Guardian’s key figures knew everything about Jennifer’s attempt to kill Kang Ha-jin in the Hawaiian dungeon.

Their hostility toward the Defenders was beyond imagination.

The Guardians risked their lives with the mindset that they should unconditionally win anything related to the Defenders.

It was the same with Kyungmin Yoon.

“The Potion side will proceed like that. And… recently, huge dungeons have started to appear.”

“How far have you been?”

“Currently, one or two have appeared in each country.”

Of course, there were countries where none appeared, and there were countries where several appeared at the same time, but on average, there were one or two each.

One appeared in Korea, but it was already closed due to a joint operation between Dungeon Breaker and the Guardians.

“A whopping 12 giant dungeons have appeared in Japan.”(Read more @ wuxiax.com)

“Still, there’s no problem there, right?”

“For now, there is no problem with our base. Two dungeons appeared nearby, but they said they were already closed. The problem is the strongholds in other countries.”

“why? Did you ask us to cooperate there again?”

Now, the situation is not so good for Japanese bases in other countries.

It may be possible to maintain itself, but without much support, it would eventually collapse.

“no. I asked the Defenders.”

Kang Ha-jin smiled strangely at Yoon Kyung-min’s words.

“Did you ask the Defenders?”

“Yes. It looks like the Defenders have lobbied a bit in that area.”

“Well, let it be done. We focus on the huge dungeons that appeared in other countries. Did you send guild members?”

“It has been sent to countries that have been consulted with each government, and is waiting for countries that have not.”

In the case of countries where they usually set up a branch, they had a good relationship with the Guardians, so permission to attack the giant dungeon fell without much noise.

However, in the case of not, it also took some time to get permission because it had to compete with the Defenders.

“Don’t rely too much on lobbying, and give up boldly if negotiations are sluggish.”

At Ha-jin Kang’s words, Kyung-min Yoon’s eyes widened.

“Is that okay? And then you can be beaten by the Defenders.”

“Right now, only one or two giant dungeons have appeared, but more dungeons will be opened soon.”

“Is that true?”

“If you look at the situation, it is certain. The Defenders are probably expecting it to some extent.”

“Certainly, the reaction was a little different from usual. It didn’t seem like they were lobbying for anything other than intervening in the Japanese side.”

“So be prepared for the future. Maybe a dungeon that is much bigger than what has appeared so far.”

“Yes. Okay.”

After a few discussions, Kyung-Min Yun hurriedly returned.

Ha-jin Kang alone, a man, checked some news and reports from In-hyeok Myung through the tablet.

There was nothing special about it.

But Hajin Kang knew. The fact that something special is about to happen soon.

Now, sooner or later, the third plague will come.

A few events await before that.