Beyond the Eternity

Time slowly ticked by.

There was no time limit so I couldn't tell the amount of time we spent. Perhaps a few hours has passed or maybe it was lesser, I couldn't tell. My sense of time was messed up in this place.

This was the power of the Librarian. The library dungeon was his domain, he must altered the flow of time while we were trapped in the stories. He was just like those f*cking constellations. He enjoyed watching our suffering.

It's useless to think about that bastard now. We managed to kill three of the monster kings, leaving only one group of monsters to deal with.

Long white hair, black skin, long ears and silver eyes. Those physical traits were characteristic of a species widely renowned in mythology.

Dark Elves. Also known as 'Black Phantoms'.

They were usually called 'Black Phantoms' because anyone that encountered them will refer to them as such.

They differed significantly from the popular depiction of Elvenkind. According to legend, Elves, particularly the High Elves, were believed to be descendants of the goddess Freyja, embodying beauty and love in their essence.

But these guys were the black sheep of the family. I mean that in a literal sense. The pretty name 'Elf' shouldn't be mixed together with these bunch of abominations.

[The constellations are disgusted by the dark elves.]

See? Even the constellations don't like them. I'm sure some of them must be gritting their teeth at this moment.

Ah, yes. I shall describe our current situation. Once we entered the Dark Elves territory, we were greeted by several phantoms that welcomed us with arrows.

They weren't particularly strong so we killed them quickly. The problem was that when we were deeper into the unknown territory, we found ourselves surrounded by the Dark Elves. There was no escape routes so fighting was inevitable.

Puok!

My sword pierced the phantoms that approached and dark blood spurted. How many phantoms have I killed now? I lost count after the tenth one jumped at my face.

Clang! Clang!! Clllaang!!

Sweeping my gaze around, I noticed the party members holding off the aggressive dark elves. Thankfully, they were able to pull their own weight so I didn't need to assist. But the real problem laid somewhere else.

My gaze shifted towards a particular dark elf with an overwhelming presence. Its aura was incomparably heaver than the other monster kings we killed.

If there existed a boss monster, wouldn't it resemble something akin to that?

The Dark Elf King.

He just observed the battle from a distance while mounted on a dark horse as if the battle was beneath him. What an arrogant bastard. Was it because he was a king?

As if noticing my gaze, the Dark Elf King shifted his head and looked at me. Then...

Grin—

He smiled. He fucking smiled. This bastard, was he mocking me? He must be really enjoying the show.

"Tck!"

I made an irritated sound and then addressed the group.

"Everyone, forget these bottom feeders! That bastard over there is our main target."

"True. That guy has been bothering me for a while."

"Let's use the same strategy."

"Understood."

Upon hearing my words, Jung Yunhee and Angelica leaped out at once while Lee Suhye shot down the phantoms that tried to approach.

It was the same strategy we used to deal with the other monsters. Well, it was the only strategy that was available at the moment.

Gripping the Iron severing sword, I kicked the ground and leaped out.

On the way, a few phantoms tried to block us but Jung Yunhee and Angelica killed them quickly and continued moving as if it was nothing

Seeing us rapidly approaching, the Dark Elf King jumped down from its horse and unsheathed its sword. It was finally taking us seriously.

Should I also get serious as well?

[Private Skill 'Yang Sword Energy' has activated.]

I leaped in the air and swung the sword down while Jung Yunhee and Angelica attacked the boss from both sides.

In the next moment, sparks flew endlessly as monster and humans clashed swords.

Bwoom! Bwoom! Bwoom!

Meanwhile, magic bullets continuously pierced into the skulls of the phantoms. Lee Suhye will keep them busy while we handle the boss.

The battle didn't flow the way I expected. Although the battle seemed favourably for us, we found ourselves being on the receiving end of slashes and cuts.

"Heuk!"

I received a heavy blow and stride back a few steps. Jung Yunhee and Angelica tried to attack but they were repelled by a powerful force.

The Dark Elf King was the Dark Monarch when he was alive. He was a more formidable opponent than any of the other boss monsters we had encountered.

"Again!"

I consumed some enhancement pills and leaped out again. System messages continuously rang in my ears.

[Enhancement Ampoules has been consumed.]

[All stats will greatly increased for five minutes.]

[Constitution Lv. 20 -> Stamina Lv. 30]

[Strength Lv. 20 -> Strength Lv. 30]

[Agility Lv. 20 -> Agility Lv. 30]

[Magic Power Lv. 20 -> Magic Power Lv. 30]

The Dark Monarch outclassed us in every aspect. If I could close the gap in stats then it would be good but that wouldn't be enough.

I swiftly activated a skill. It was a skill best suited for slaying demonic beasts like the one infront of me.

But that was not enough.

[Exclusive skill 'Soul Purifying Sword' has activated.]

[Exclusive skill 'Endless One' has activated.]

[Soul Purifying Sword Lv. 1 –> Soul Purifying Sword Lv. 10]

[Karma points has been consumed.]

A dense aura enveloped my sword and transformed it into a white flaming sword. It was a massive transformation. If I couldn't use the writing skill to cause changes 'directly', then I just needed to use the skill 'Indirectly'

The newfound power surging through the blade could be felt immediately and I leaped out at once.

I leaped out into the air and swung the flaming Iron-severing sword downwards. My target was the demon infront of me.

Clang!

Both swords crashed and sparks flew in the air. This time, it was the boss monster's turn to be pushed back.

"!"

The Dark Elf King's eyes widened at the power of the Iron-severing sword. Now he was faced with the reality of being the weaker opponent.

The boss made an irritated sound as if lamenting about this turn of events and swung the sword in order to create distance. However, he came face to face with the unreasonable speed of the Assassin class.

Clang!

It was Jung Yunhee.

Angelica recovered from her injury and joined the battle at once. Seizing this chance, we quickly began a combined assault on the Dark Elf King.

Kakakakak!

Swords clashed endlessly. Once a slash was blocked, another person would swing the sword and the cycle continued. It was a combined assault that left no openings for the boss to counterattack.

In such a situation, slashes and cuts began to slip through his defence. The boss's agility was gradually hindered by mounting wounds inflicted upon its body.

Finally,

Stab!

Jung Yunhee seized an opening and thrust her katana into the boss's shoulder.

"Keuahahahk!!"

For the first time since the battle started, the Dark Elf King spat out a painful cry. He has been defending against our combined assault rather freely until now.

It was bound to get tired or run out of breath sooner or later. This was our chance.

"Now!"

Hearing my shout, Jung Yunhee and Angelica jumped out and pierced both of the Boss's arms with their sword.

"Keo-heok!!"

The boss groaned as its sword fell from its grip. The boss twitched around and tried to break free itself only for several bullets to flood its vision.

Bwoom! Bwoom! Puok! Puookkk!

The magical bullets showered its body like a gentle embrace, though they won't be enough to kill the Monster King. To begin with, the intent behind that attack was not to kill, but weaken.

Grit!

The boss's eyes turned bloodshot and forcefully freed its arms.

[The 'Dark Monarch' has used King's Authority.]

"Uwaak!"

"Heok!"

Jung Yunhee and Angelica were blown away rather pathetically by the powerful aura of the Dark Elf King.

"Keuahahahahk-!!"

It was still able to fight in such a state. The boss was really stubborn, just like a certain character I know.

Sweeping my gaze around, I noticed the battlefield was littered with the cold bodies of fallen phantoms.

I smiled. Lee Suhye has really been busy.

The boss also noticed the situation and realised it was alone. Perhaps it was the reason why it became more agitated.

Kiaah!

As predicted, the boss roared and jumped towards me in a dangerous charge. What a simple fellow. Indeed, it was nothing but a cornered animal.

Should I put an end to its suffering?

Swish! Puoook!

Before it could reach me, magic bullets pierced both of its eyes and the monster king screamed.

At the same time, I jumped into the air and swung the flaming Iron-severing sword downwards.

Slash! Spurt!

The Dark Elf King's head rolled across the floor in a pathetic manner. And the expected messages popped up right away.

[The 'Four Monster Kings' has been slain.]

[The Fourth 'Conclusion' has been reached.]

[Main Actors: Kim Jakga, Jung Yunhee, Angelica, Lee Suhye.]

[You have obtained 500 coins as compensation.]

[As the main contributor, you will receive a special reward.]

[Fate has realised your achievement.]

[You have obtained the Divine Authority 'Monster Extermination']

What?

My eyes slowly widened. Indeed, this was a great surprise.

I was expecting to receive a small reward from this story but I received something much more bigger instead.

But wasn't it too early to receive a Divine Protection?

It was understandable if I received it later in the story but why did I receive it now?

Divine Authorities can only be obtained when a significant achievement has been realised by<Fate> such as swinging the sword a thousand times or gaining enlightenment. Or you can simply obtained by having your guardian constellation bestow their blessings onto you.

My gaze shifted downwards. The Monster King of Dark Folk was laying there, motionless. Perhaps this person was a more important character than I realised.

In the next moment, the surrounding space distorted and we returned to the library dungeon. We wasted no time and immediately entered the next floor.

[You have entered the fifth floor, the exhibition room.]

As we entered the spacious floor, Lee Suhye looked around suspiciously.

"Is it another story?"

"Relax. It's just a treasure room."

Countless glass tubes were displayed throughout the exhibition hall. They contained the heroic relcis wielded by various heroic figures during the mythical era.

It wasn't limited to only Korean mythology, but Japanese, Greek, Egyptian mythology and several more so. To summarise everything, all historical relics was here.

Everyone looked around in awe. The main purpose of coming to the Library Dungeon was the 'compensation' of the fifth floor. It was the perfect place to farm for artifacts. Of course, the items here were just replicas of the real thing.

Something caught Jung Yunhee's eyes and she approached a glass tube.

She opened eyes wide as if she could not believe it.

"Is that what I think it is?"

My gaze landed on the name of the Katana displayed inside the glass tube.

[Muramasa – Replica] S+ Ancient Relic.

Jung Yunhee looked at the glass tube with sparking eyes as if she was a child that just found a new toy.

I smiled and opened my mouth.

"It seems like you found a great sword."

"Naturally, it's a sword crafted by Senji Muramasa."

Jung Yunhee removed the katana from the glass tube and swung it excitedly. In fact, it was the first time I was seeing her like this.

Muramasa, a Japanese sword forged by Senji Muramasa, was renowned for its extraordinary sharpness, capable of slicing through anything. However, this particular sword was just a replica and possesses limited cutting power. Even so, it was far better than the low quality sword she bought from the shop for a few coins.

According to my memory, Jung Yunhee's mother was Japanese so she must have learned alot of things about Japan from her when she was a child.

[The reward items are limited to one per person.]

"Tck!"

What's the point behind going through four trials, only to select one item from the reward room?

The Librarian was a wicked bastard, I tell you. If I didn't receive an authority, I would have thrown a fit.

Sweeping my gaze around the hall, I noticed two items were already missing. Soo Jinyoung and Sung Jaewon... they had already passed here.

"Let's move quickly."

I approached an artifact that seemed usable and removed it from the glass tube.

[Athena's Aegis – Replica] S-rank Artifact

This was good. Even though the item didn't have the defensive capacity of the original Aegis, it was still a good item. I quickly equipped the item and looked around.

Lee Suhye looked around for a bit before she picked the [Reinforced Chest Armour]. It was an S-rank Artifact that protected the user from physical attacks but was weak against mental and soul attacks.

Meanwhile, Angelica stood and looked around the exhibition hall as if before she could not decide. After a while, she made her decision and walked over to a glass tube.