The Return of the Legendary All-Master

[Translator - Kiteretsu]

[Proofreader - Kyros]

This is driving me crazy.

What the hell is all this?

After finishing the call, Ha-jin stood in front of the red portal with a complicated expression.

'The Earth recovered after the Great Rift was erased… Does something this absurd even make sense?'

If anyone other than Jeong-hoon had said it, he would've dismissed it as complete nonsense.

But it was undeniable—the Earth that had been swept away had now been fully restored.

Ha-jin wanted to head straight home to rest, but with the warning that if the invasion wasn't suppressed, everything could be wiped out again, he had no choice but to join the defense immediately.

"Excuse me…"

Just as he was about to enter the portal, which had eight hours remaining on the timer, someone called out to him.

Ha-jin turned his head.

Standing there was quite the beautiful woman.

"What's the matter?"

Ha-jin tilted his head slightly.

Her level was in the mid-700s.

Thanks to Jeong-hoon modifying the code, many had explosively raised their levels.

She was probably one of them.

"Are you planning to enter that dungeon?"

Ah, so she's looking to form a party?

"Yes. Why do you ask?"

"Ah… well, I'm actually a main healer, and I could be quite useful. How about we form a party?"

"Are you by any chance an Incarnate?"

"……"

Her silence was answer enough.

'Didn't Hoon say the Incarnates are currently scrambling to raise their contribution scores?'

According to Jeong-hoon, there had been some adjustments to the contribution quest system.

A proficiency test had been added to the contribution process.

The proficiency test required players to complete tasks based on their respective classes to prove their abilities—only then would their contribution scores increase.

'In other words, she's trying to hitch a ride.'

Low-level players who hadn't completed their job advancements yet had weak combat skills, but a healer in the high 600s who had completed the fifth advancement would already possess a substantial set of combat skills.

Besides, after her fifth advancement, she had branched out into flame and ice-based combat skills. With that level of power, she should be capable of clearing the dungeon even without joining his party.

'Looks like she's one of those people Hoon was talking about who can't fully utilize what they have.'

Otherwise, she wouldn't have approached him in such a submissive manner.

"Ahem, sure. Let's do that."

There weren't any rules that said he couldn't form parties.

And if he weren't a high-level player who had completed the sixth round, there's no way these beauties would've approached him for a party.

It felt like his hard effort was finally being rewarded—he couldn't bring himself to turn her down.

"Really?!"

The healer's face lit up.

She had never expected a hidden class user over level 2,000 to accept her offer.

"Yes. But in return, could you give me some information about the quest?"

"Hm? Aren't you an Incarnate?"

"Yes."

Honestly, Ha-jin didn't have a great impression of Incarnates, but since she had a contract with one of the demons under Jeong-hoon's command, he decided not to worry about it too much.

However, if she wasn't contracted to a demon that Jeong-hoon controlled, he had no intention of helping.

'Hoon said he drove them all out, but there's no harm in being careful.'

It was a simple enough request, and Kim Se-ah readily nodded.

"Got it!"

"For me, I need to use specific skills during combat to increase my quest count, and I have to build my skill tree in a way that keeps the party members' HP from dropping below 30%."

"So, there's some sort of quest guide?"

"Yes. By following the guide and meeting the conditions while closing the rifts, you can increase your contribution score."

Fortunately, she fell into the favorable category.

'Whew.'

Ha-jin let out a sigh of relief and sent her a party invite.

"Is it okay if I take the role of party leader?"

"Yes, of course!"

Kim Se-ah quickly accepted, and the two formed a party.

* * *

Level 2,232.

A Death Lord who had completed the sixth round.

Leading an army of nearly 100,000, Ha-jin crushed the Fafos Tribe in an instant.

"Wow… so that's the power of someone at level 2,200."

Kim Se-ah watched from behind, wide-eyed in awe.

After Ha-jin helped her build her initial quest count, he single-handedly wiped out the tribe and closed the rift.

The raid was over in a flash.

The army that had once dominated the battlefield had vanished, and Ha-jin returned alone.

"Did your contribution score go up?"

"Yes! Thanks to you, I raised it quickly."

"Hmm, you seem to have good instincts—you'll probably adapt pretty fast."

Ha-jin was also someone who had explosively raised his level thanks to a fortuitous opportunity.

Even his hidden class, the Dark Lord, was something he'd practically acquired effortlessly through Jeong-hoon.

Despite that, he had insane talent—he was utilizing the Dark Lord class to nearly 90% efficiency.

Even back when he didn't play New World, Ha-jin had dreamed of becoming a pro gamer, and his natural gaming ability was exceptional. That was the foundation that made this kind of play possible.

Kim Se-ah, while not quite at Ha-jin's level, was also highly talented and had excellent game sense when it came to New World.

"Really? Actually, I didn't originally play games…"

"Oh? So you only started after the game became part of reality?"

"No, after Seoul collapsed, I fled to a shelter, and that's when I realized I needed power. At the time, monster levels had significantly dropped… That's when I started."

"I see."

Kim Se-ah had the talent but wasn't the type who originally had an interest in games.

If she had started playing back when New World was still popular… she probably would've climbed quite far by now.

"I also became an Incarnate around that time. I was a complete beginner without any foundation, so I needed someone's help."

"Hmm… Even without becoming an Incarnate, there would have been other ways to get help."

"Do you really think so?"

"Yes?"

"I was a total beginner. Who would sincerely help someone like me in a world where everyone was obsessed with leveling up?"

So that's why she chose the most certain method.

"There would have been someone."

Ha-jin harbored a deep-rooted negative perception of the Transcendents.

And it seemed that this belief would never change.

Kim Se-ah didn't try to persuade him otherwise.

After all, everyone sees the world differently.

What one person may see as justice, another may see as profound evil.

Absolute good does not exist.

At least, that's what she believed.

"Anyway, thank you so much."

"Are you planning to find other party members once we get out of here?"

"Hmm… If I asked you to keep helping me, would you?"

"If you offer me a reasonable reward."

"Sorry?"

"I'm not a volunteer. I only move when there's something in it for me."

"Uh… In that case, let's just stop here."

The only reason they could form a party was because she had provided him with quest information.

Now that she had shared that information, she had no more cards to play.

"Who says you don't?"

"Sorry?"

"Let's grab a meal together."

"Um…?"

Ha-jin grinned.

"At least that much, if you want me to carry you again."

"Wait… are you serious? You're not joking?"

She could tell he was hitting on her, but Kim Se-ah deliberately pretended not to notice and asked again.

She actually liked his appearance, and more than that, she didn't dislike the attention from someone this powerful.

"If I were joking, I wouldn't have even come in here in the first place."

"…Okay."

"Cool! Then shall we move on to the next one?"

* * *

At that moment.

Jeong-hoon let out a wry laugh as he received a report about Ha-jin.

"Ha-jin?"

"Yeah. Seems like that guy's hitting on the human I made a contract with."

"Just let him be."

It would be weird to try and control a friend.

Ha-jin would surely figure it out on his own.

More importantly, there was the issue of the suppression rate after the quest modifications.

'The suppression rate keeps dropping—what should I do?'

It wasn't simply because he added the proficiency tests that the rate was falling.

The suppression rate kept falling because the amplification had been reactivated.

Even so, it wasn't like before when their levels would exceed 1,000. They were now just strong enough to withstand the debuff Jeong-hoon had placed on them.

Which meant there were still far too many people who had gained levels in vain.

[Hey! Don't go into the portal. The monsters in there are no joke.]

– Unless you're really confident, don't even think about going in.

└ I heard people have already died in there…

└ Isn't this the dungeon where even people at level 900 get wiped out?

└ Sigh… Basically, they're saying if you don't have control, don't go in.

Survivors who had experienced the dungeon all complained in unison.

'Even after removing the amplification and lowering their levels, this is still happening.'

Of course, these monsters were different from the usual ones people had hunted.

After all, even the ones invading now were beings who had survived just fine in other dimensions.

[We can't just brute-force our way through anymore.]

– I'm an Incarnate. After defending against several invasions, I wanted to write down what I've learned.

The monsters inside the portals are intelligent beings just like us. That's why people who try to power through without thinking are getting caught in their traps and dying.

So we need to prepare properly before entering.

By the way, Incarnates are also being tested on proficiency and are receiving guidance to help them fully utilize their abilities. If you're interested, becoming an Incarnate might not be such a bad option.

└ Lmao this tone though

└ But they're not wrong? Levels skyrocketed so fast that skill proficiency couldn't keep up.

└ Seriously, what a disaster. It's like they've thrown mastery skills in the trash.

└ Bro, you're missing the point. Just because you have mastery skills doesn't mean your brain magically levels up. The problem is people can't make split-second decisions.

└ Wow… Can't believe I'm the same level as people like this. It's pathetic… Do we have to spoon-feed decision-making now?

└ The real issue is they let even brainless idiots level up.

└ Can't we just forcibly downgrade those who don't deserve it?

"Good job."

After scanning the community posts, Jeong-hoon gave his approval to Thanatos.

It was actually Thanatos who wrote that post under Jeong-hoon's orders.

"Heh, those humans would pass out if they knew I was the one who posted it."

Thanatos chuckled gleefully, but Tenebris, wearing a disapproving expression, spoke up.

<And what difference does posting that make?>

"It does make a difference."

<It does?>

"Thanatos, what's the current suppression rate for the non-Incarnates?"

"84%. Honestly, you can say these guys are the ones dragging the suppression rate down."

Compared to the Incarnates, about 80% of the defenders had no contract with Thanatos.

And that 80% had a suppression rate of only 84%. No matter how hard the Incarnates worked, the overall rate wasn't going to improve like this.

So, Jeong-hoon concluded it would be more efficient to push people toward becoming Thanatos's Incarnates so they could receive proper support.

'Master, didn't you absolutely hate the Incarnates?'

'Yeah, I clearly remember that.'

Mukho and Anima's questions were only natural.

Jeong-hoon had once harbored extreme hatred toward Incarnates.

Because they had served the Transcendents and accelerated the world's destruction.

But are the Incarnates accelerating the end now?

No.

Right now, they were doing everything they could to protect Earth under Thanatos's command.

"It's fine. Once Earth is secured, I'll terminate their Incarnate contracts."

Thanatos scratched his head with a confused look at Jeong-hoon's words.

"So… once this invasion is over, I'm done?"

"No, not just this invasion. I mean when everything is over."

"Oh, gotcha."

Thanatos nodded in understanding and turned his attention back to the Incarnates.

"We need to get their proficiency up as fast as possible."

If Psyche's words were true, an invasion from the higher races would happen soon.

To stand against those races, they would need to grow several levels beyond where they were now.

This invasion would serve as the stepping stone for that growth.

[Translator - Kiteretsu]

[Proofreader - Kyros]