Chapter 41: The Ring, the Staff, and the Secret Dungeon

“Seokju? What is it? Did something drop?”

“…Hyung.”

Kim Seokju, who had been staring blankly, came to his senses and replied to Kang Juho’s question.

“Do you want to buy an item from me?”

“An item?”

“Yeah.”

Nodding, Kim Seokju shared the item’s information.

〈Two Birds, One Stone [Heroic]〉
Requirement: Level 200
Durability: 100%
Magic Defense: 2500
Strength +400
On basic attack: Adds 1 extra basic attack

“…!”

Kang Juho couldn’t speak.

He just stared at the item info, stunned just like Seokju had been.

It was a ring called Two Birds, One Stone.

Wearable at level 200.

While its magic defense stat (2500) seemed underwhelming for a Hero-grade item, the other options made up for it.

Especially: “On basic attack: Adds 1 extra basic attack”

This meant one attack would count as two, effectively doubling basic attack damage.
But that wasn’t all.

Kang Juho thought of his skill “Relentless”, which reduced the cooldown of Hammer of Fury by 7 seconds per basic hit.

So:

• Normally: 2 attacks = 14 seconds cooldown reduction
• With the ring: 2 attacks = 4 hits = 28 seconds cooldown reduction

He wondered…

“Wait—would the shockwave count double too?”

Hammer of Fury generated a shockwave on each hit.

If one attack triggered two, it meant massive bonus damage and effect.

“Could I trigger all 4 charges in 2 swings… or 8 shockwaves?”

Excited by the idea, Juho decided to test it.

“How much for it?”

He asked.

“Haha, I’m joking.”

Seokju grinned and sent a trade request.

“I couldn’t take money from you. Just take it.”

He never intended to sell the item.

“Huh? Really? This?”

It was a Hero-grade item with a rare, powerful option.

Highly desirable, especially so early in the game.

“I wouldn’t have gotten it without you, Hyung. Plus, I got a bunch of broken mana orbs too.”

“Still…”

Kang Juho hesitated.

He knew he wouldn’t be here or have the key without Seokju either.

“It’s fine! Just think of it as repaying your help! Without you, I…”

Seokju trailed off.

A heaviness filled the silence.

To avoid it getting awkward, Seokju smiled again.

“Use it well!”

“Thank you. I will.”

Kang Juho gratefully accepted the Two Birds, One Stone ring.

“Don’t mention it! Hehe.”

Seokju laughed, then asked:

“Are we going again right now?”

“Yeah, let’s go.”

They could have waited for a full party of 6 for better drops—but early game was a race.
Speed mattered more.

***

[You have entered the Puren Temple.]

They headed to the iron gate deep in the temple.

“By the way, Hyung—what kind of box are you going for?”

Seokju asked.

“Hmm…”

Juho thought out loud.

“Not sure. Accessories? Materials? Or gamble on armor?”

It was a tough choice.

“What about you?”

“Something new! We’ve seen weapons, armor, accessories, and materials… but what’s the mystery box?”

Gold? Gems? Tattoos?

Seokju was dying to find out.

“I’ll go first this time and tell you what it is!”

“Deal!”

Just then, priests blocked their path.

“Seokju, buffs.”

“On it.”

***

Meanwhile, Yoo Janghyuk finished talking to Kim Yuri and sat at his desk, relieved.

He checked Kang Juho’s current location.

“Huh?”

His expression changed.

‘Puren Temple… Underground?’

He was shocked.

He knew exactly what that meant.

‘He got a key drop? Impossible!’

The Puren Temple’s underground was a rare reward zone, accessible only via key.

That key had a 1% drop rate from the boss High Priest Puros, or a 0.0001% chance from regular monsters.

That Juho got the key from a regular monster was… absurd.

‘And this is his second run?’

He checked Juho’s drop from the first run:

“Whew, just a materials box.”

Materials boxes offered build flexibility but rarely top-tier gear.

Then he checked what Seokju got.

His face twisted.

‘Two Birds, One Stone…’

He recognized the name immediately.

Among Hero-grade rings, it was top-tier—better than many Legendary rings.

‘Is this a dream…?’

He pinched himself.

“Ouch!”

Nope. Real.

“Crazy… absolutely crazy.”

Just then, Seokju opened a second box.

A weapon box.

Janghyuk watched the contents appear—

“WHAT THE—?!”

He swore reflexively.

“Of all the possible weapons… THIS one comes out?!”

There were dozens of weapon types—swords, spears, staffs, bows…

Even among swords, there were countless options.

Yet somehow, the weapon Seokju pulled matched or exceeded Two Birds, One Stone in power.

Janghyuk stared at the monitor in disbelief.

***

“I’ll whisper you the info!”

Seokju touched the box.

Sssshing!

A warp magic circle lit up, and he vanished.

A moment later:

-Kim Seokju: Hyung! It’s a weapon box—turn around!

Juho immediately turned and took the left path.

They had made a plan: since this was the weapon box, Juho would aim for something else.

Only the armor box and the unknown box remained.

He reached the end of the corridor and touched the chest.

[You have acquired a Random Armor Box.]

[Warping to entrance.]

“Armor, huh.”

He smiled and warped away.

At the entrance, Juho saw Seokju again.

And froze.

“…?”

Seokju stood there, once again staring blankly into space.

‘What… dropped?’

Curious, Juho approached.

“What did you get?”

“Hyung…”

Seokju snapped out of it, speaking quietly.

“It’s crazy.”

“Crazy?”

That meant a very good drop.

“Yeah. We can change hunting grounds now. Let’s go grind ogres. Immediately.”

That shocked Juho.

Ogres were level 170 content.

If Seokju was saying they were ready now…

That meant the new weapon was usable and game-changing.

Seokju smiled.

“Here, I’ll share the info.”

Juho waited, eyes full of anticipation.

Then, the item info appeared in the air.

It wasn’t a hammer, as he’d hoped—but a staff.

At first, Juho was disappointed.

But when he read the options—

“Holy…”

He couldn’t stop the gasp.

It was that good.