Chapter 18: Lounge Channel (3)

‘EX-Rank Special Skill Selection Ticket!’

That’s what caught my eye first.

An EX-Rank Special Skill Selection Ticket?

There’s no way I can ignore that.

Before even checking the lounge channel,

I need to use it right away.

With my will,

the EX-Rank Special Skill Selection Ticket activates.

Fwaaah!

Emerald-colored particles gather before my eyes.

They form words.

「<EX-Rank Special Skill Selection Ticket> has been activated.」

「The special skills available for selection are listed below.」

1. Dragon Blood Awakening (EX)
2. Dragon Soul Bond (EX)
3. Dragon Scale Armor (EX)
4. Dragon…….
5. [5……..]

A dozen or more special skills begin to appear one after another.

All of them are special skills related to my trait, 「 Dragon Oath (EX)」.

‘Every one of these is extraordinary.’

Dragon Blood Awakening.- Just as it sounds, it awakens the blood of a dragon, transforming your physique to resemble that of a dragon.

Dragon Soul Bond – Binds your soul with the dragon you’ve sworn an oath to, allowing you to directly share the dragon’s mana and strength for a limited time during battle.

Dragon Scale Armor – Summons dragon scales to generate powerful armor covering your entire body.

Each and every one of them was a skill I wouldn’t regret choosing.

And the rest of the listed special skills were just as exceptional.

“I’ve decided.”

After a brief moment of contemplation,

I made my decision.

「<Dragon Blood Awakening (EX)> special skill acquired.」

Along with the message before my eyes,

a radiant emerald light envelops my entire body.

「<Dragon Blood> has been awakened.」

In that moment,

a heartbeat like an explosion reverberates through my body.

Thump—!

Hot, immense dragon blood—

I can feel it coursing through my veins.

It’s not just blood; it’s a fiery energy infused with mana and the essence of life, setting my whole body ablaze.

‘Khuh!’

I clenched myself to suppress the energy that felt like it was about to burst from my flushed face.

“Po-po-po-po!”

A very startled voice from Popo, faintly reaches me from the side.

But I didn’t have time to respond to it.

My full focus was on the dragon blood raging through my veins like a runaway train.

“Ku… Popo!”

Again, Popo’s faint voice reaches me.

A cool sensation begins to wrap around my body.

Zzap!

At the same time, a jolt spreads from my spine.

I could feel it clearly now—the awakened <Dragon Blood> had fully taken over my body and was beginning to enhance it.

My blood vessels expanded and strengthened, and a transcendent sensation surged over me, as if I had shed my human form.

“Ah!”

From fingertips to toes, strength welled up.

I could now sense the tiniest particles of mana that had been imperceptible before.

Waves of mana wrapped around me, blessing me as one who had fully awakened the <Dragon Blood>.

“This is amazing.”

I observed the <Dragon Blood> flowing within me, overwhelmed with admiration.

Infinite potential capable of transcending everything—

That potential was contained within the <Dragon Blood>.

“Popo!”

At Popo’s voice, I turned my head.

Popo was coiled gently around my body, surrounded by green and brown particles.

A continuous stream was flowing from Popo’s body.

“Ah…”

That refreshing sensation that had suddenly surged through me when my body temperature had spiked to the point of burning my skin—

It must have been Popo using <Healing Power> on me.

“It’s okay now. I’m fine.”

“Popo.”

At my words, Popo stepped back, making a face like T_T, as if about to cry.

‘Ah…’

This little guy must have truly been worried about me.

“Thank you. Thanks to you, I’m all better now.”

I crouched down and gently patted Popo’s head.

“Popo!”

Popo leaned in and rubbed its head against me.

It felt like it was saying, Don’t get hurt again.

Feeling its sincerity, I couldn’t help but smile.

“Thank you.”

I hugged it once more and patted its back.

“Popo!”

Only then did Popo look relieved, its expression changing to >_<.

Really, this little thing gets cuter the more I look at it.

『Kyuu~! Seojun, you’ve gotten stronger. I feel the same power as me!』

At that moment, I heard Dania’s voice as well.

Shhh

Around Dania and the dragon egg, faint golden particles drifted in the air.

‘Oh……’

Something I hadn’t seen before—

Mana particles.

It seems that after awakening <Dragon Blood>, I was now able to see mana particles.

Mana felt more familiar now, and I had the sensation that I could control it at will.

‘Fire.’

As if entranced, I cast Fire, a Tier 1 spell.

Fwoooosh!

The flames that burst forth were larger and more intense than ever before.

It even felt like it consumed less mana.

There was no doubt—I had become stronger.

Stronger than before.

I checked <Dragon Blood Awakening> once again.

「Dragon Blood Awakening (EX)」

Awakens the blood of a dragon, transforming the body into a dragon-like physique.

Upon reaching a certain level of mana, the <Dragon’s Heart> can be awakened.

Upon advancing further, the body can be transformed into <Dragon God Form>.

.

.

“Oh!”

An exclamation escaped my lips.

Dragon’s Heart? Dragon God Form?

Just by the names, I could tell that they meant fully awakening the power of the dragon.

“Nice. I really like this.”

I couldn’t hide the smile spreading across my lips.

『Kyuuuung. Seojun? You feeling good?』

“Popo!”

At my reaction, Dania and Popo tilted their heads.

“Haha. Yeah. I’m feeling really good right now.”

『Kyuu! If Seojun’s happy, then I’m happy too!』

“Popo~!”

As I laughed, Dania and Popo laughed with me.

Dania’s egg wobbled back and forth.

Popo’s eyes curved like n_n as it bounced up and down.

The cheerful laughter filled the entire lair.

“All right then, guys. Just give me a moment.”

There were still things I had to check.

The Lounge Channel.

A place I had only heard of in rumors.

I focused my will to enter the Lounge Channel.

「Platinum Lounge」

「Gold Lounge」

Two choices appeared before me.

‘Let’s start with the Platinum Lounge.’

Flaaash!

My vision turned emerald.

「Platinum Community」

「Platinum Lounge Shop」

[Platinum Lounge Skill Shop]

[Platinum Training Facility]

[Platinum Commissions]

[Platinum ……]

A dozen or so listings, lined up one after another.

“Whoa.”

With a short exclamation, I clicked into the “Community” section.

‘Nothing here.’

As expected.

Because I’m the first user of the Platinum Lounge.

‘Then…’

Shall I leave the first mark here?

……….

Username: Archmage Emperor (EX)

Title: Hello, this is Archmage Emperor.

Content: Kyuu. It’s an honor to be the first to post here. ^_^

……….

I added Dania and Popo’s signature for a nice touch.

As soon as the post went up, a sense of accomplishment swept over me—kind of like when you leave the first footprints in fresh snow.

Especially memorable was how the EX rank next to the Archmage name glowed emerald green.

“Nice.”

Smiling with satisfaction, I next took a look at the Platinum Lounge Shop.

[Sword of the Sky (EX) – 9,999,999,999 Coin]

[Grimoire of Infinity (EX) – 9,999,999,999 Coin]

[Armor of Immortality (EX) – 9,999,999,999 Coin]

[Crystal of Time (EX) – 9,999,999,999 Coin]

[Veil of the Abyss (EX) – 9,999,999,999 Coin]

[Sacred ……]

“Wow. Insane.”

I cursed without even realizing it.

EX-rank items?

Wait, EX-rank items actually exist?

That’s ridiculous.

“The prices are even more ridiculous.”

9.99 billion coins.

Converted to real money, that’s about 99 trillion won.

You’d need to raid a national treasury just to afford one of these items.

“Out of reach for now.”

I clicked my tongue.

Looks like I’ll need to start selling more elixirs from the dragon’s lair.

I hadn’t planned to grind coins anytime soon, but…

After seeing this, I changed my mind.

Then I checked the Platinum Lounge Skill Shop, and that thought became even more solidified.

Why?

[Special Skill Selection Ticket (EX) – 9,999,999,999 Coin]

The same kind of <EX-Rank Special Skill Selection Ticket> I used earlier to get Dragon blood Awakening (EX) was being sold here.

And, of course, it cost 9.99 billion coins.

“So that means what I just got was worth 9.99 billion coins.”

In other words, I just earned 9.99 billion coins a moment ago.

When you think about it like that—lucky me.

I let out a short laugh and skimmed through the rest.

They were all things I couldn’t use for now.

“Still, I get what the Lounge Channel is all about.”

The Lounge Channel is clearly focused on supporting user development.

On the other hand, SuperNet was more about player-to-player trading and free interaction.

‘Enter Gold Lounge’

This time, I stepped into the Gold Lounge.

Flaaash!

A swirl of golden light painted words in the air before my eyes:

[Gold Community]

[Gold Lounge Shop]

[Gold Lounge Skill Shop]

[Gold Training Facility]

[Gold Commissions]

[Gold ……]

The structure wasn’t much different from the Platinum Lounge.

But—

……….

Username: Jenuxin (SS)
Title: Don’t dungeon breaks seem more frequent lately?

Username: Kandok (S)
Title: Heard an S-rank dungeon break happened in Yangyang, Gangwon -0-

Username: Bavice (SSS)
Title: Anyone know what’s up with Taesan lately?

Username: Samyoung (S)
Title: (blank)

……….

When I entered the Community, I saw a flood of posts.

New ones were being uploaded in real time.

A completely different atmosphere compared to the lonely post I had left in the Platinum Lounge Community.

“Whoa.”

Then, a certain username caught my eye.

……….

Username: Spicy Nuclear Punch (SSS)
Title: Hello, it’s Spicy Punch! ^^

Hello again, everyone. Some of you may know me—it’s been a while since I’ve been active due to health issues. Thanks to a mentor who gave me a life-changing kindness, I’ve recovered and even earned the honorable title of Eleventh Heaven. I’ll be around often like before, so I hope you all welcome me warmly.

…..

[Bavice (SSS)]: Oh! Spicy Punch! It’s been a while. So glad you recovered, and congrats on reaching the Eleventh Heaven! A true treasure of Korea!!

[Spicy Nuclear Punch (SSS)]: You flatter me, hahaha.

[Nexton (S)]: That mentor of yours… is it who I think it is? That hotshot, Archmage?

[Spicy Nuclear Punch (SSS)]: Yes, exactly! My lifelong mentor, hahaha.

[Kotsunol (?)]: I’d love to buy some elixirs from that guy too. I’ve been stuck at level 69 for three years now…

[Defamas (SS)]: Same here… T_T

…..

Hong Seolhwa.

It was her post.

“Well, this is a pleasant surprise.”

I hesitated for a moment—should I say something or not?

‘Lets Leave a comment.’

Right.

She’s treated me with such special regard, even calling me her lifelong mentor… I should at least leave a comment in return.

…..

[Archmage Emperor(?)]: Spicy Punch, It’s good to ee you here again. Truly, congratulations on your recovery, and also on reaching a new level. Wishing you continued success. I chose to hide my rank.

…..

I felt it was still too early to reveal that I’m at EX-rank.

Fortunately, there’s a function that displays “?” if you don’t want your rank to be shown.

…..

[Spicy Nuclear Punch (SSS)]: Wow! Archmage!! I figured you’d be in the Gold Lounge!! So happy to see you here again! I was planning to reach out to you separately soon, but I’m glad to run into you like this!!

[Defamas (SS)]: Whoa! It’s the Archmage!

[Kotznol(?)]: Ooh! Archmage.. First time seeing you post in the Gold Lounge!! I have a question. Are you really tackling the top floors of the Abyss Tower?

…..

[Bavice (SSS)]: You hid your rank. I was curious what it was!

……….

The comments kept coming, one after another.

I quietly stepped back from the flood of replies to my appearance.

[Gold Lounge Shop]

[Gold Lounge Skill Shop]

I took a look around those two areas as well.

• Flame Spear (SS) – 1,510,000 Coin
• Staff of Ice (S) – 1,001,000 Coin
• Battle Armor, Dagger of Darkness (S) – 989,000 Coin
• Lightning Bow (S) – 1,320,000 Coin

Mostly SS and S-rank equipment and skills.

Okay.

Now I get the feel of the Gold Lounge.

“Looks like I’ll be using the Gold Lounge for a while.”

Realistic items and skill shops I can actually afford.

Nice.

Lounge channel exploration complete!

As I exited the channel, hunger suddenly hit me.

“Already?”

I was confused for a second, then realized something.

“Ah! Is it because I awakened the Dragon Blood?”

Well, that’s a lucky bonus, isn’t it?

Now I can consume elixirs right away.

Which might help me hit level 25 very soon.

***

“Dania, Popo! Aren’t you guys hungry?”

I called out to them.

Huh? No answer.

I turned my head and saw Popo sitting perfectly still in one spot, staring at something.

Dania, judging by her posture, seemed to be looking at the same thing.

“What is it? Something going on?”

“Popo!”

As I got closer, Popo had a +_+ expression on his face.

A look of fascination.

Curious, I leaned over to see what it was.

“Oh!”

A short gasp escaped my lips.

Why?

Poof!

Right where Popo was looking, a tiny sprout the size of an index finger had poked its head out.

And the seed planted in that very spot was…

“A Immortal Peach!”

Right, that ridiculously rare seed known for its extreme difficulty in cultivation—

had sprouted in less than a day.

Popo, what kind of magic did you cast on this soil?

“Popo?”

+_+.