Chapter 60: A Connection with the Bureau

Bae Yeongseok.

A mid-tier superhuman at level forty-seven.

“This is driving me insane.”

He let out a deep sigh together with his teammates.

“Giant insects, out of nowhere. What kind of disaster is this?”

“Exactly. Sigh.”

Their team had mainly operated near the Taebaek Mountain Range in Gangwon Province, so they were among those hit hardest by the sudden appearance of giant mantises and spiders.

“I hear the non-forest dungeons are already completely saturated.”

“That figures. Everyone must have rushed there.”

“So we just sit around and wait until a countermeasure shows up?”

“Ugh, I’ve got so many expenses coming up. This is bad.”

“What if we form an alliance with other teams and try clearing it together?”

“If we enter with too many people, there’s barely any experience or loot left to go around.”

“Yeah. And if someone gets injured for nothing, it’s a total loss. A complete loss.”

The sighs grew deeper.

The sudden situation left everyone feeling as though they had lost their jobs overnight.

‘What if this drags on?’

Anxious thoughts crept in, including the fear that they might have to swallow their pride and run low-level dungeons.

In the worst case, the grim possibility that they might never break through the level fifty bracket lingered in their minds.

Then it happened.

“Huh? Mage Lord posted that he’s selling an insect-type monster repellent spray.”

Kim Yeongseok, the team’s vanguard, blurted out suddenly.

“What? An insect repellent?”

“What kind of childish joke is that… Wait, but if Mage Lord posted it, that changes things.”

If anyone else had posted it, they would have dismissed it as a scam or cheap bait.

But when the name Mage Lord was attached, it was different.

Mage Lord was someone whose name alone carried considerable weight.

Especially within Korean superhuman society.

“What does it say… No, I’ll check myself. It was posted on Superhuman Net, right?”

They logged into Superhuman Net.

And soon found Mage Lord’s post.

Author: Mage Lord

Title: Insect-Type Monster Repellent Spray Listed on the Exchange

Content: This is a repellent effective against the recently troublesome giant mantises and spiders.

It is also effective against other insect-type monsters under level sixty.

The spray is manufactured in a handgun-like form, allowing single-shot firing.

It can also be used as a mist spray via the small groove on the back.

When sprayed on the body, it produces a repellent effect.

I hope this spray will be of some small help to superhumans thrown into confusion by the sudden appearance of giant insects.

[Insect-Type Monster Repellent Spray: five hundred Coin]

[Refill Concentrate for Spray: one hundred Coin]

[Limit: one per person]

Bae Yeongseok and his teammates read the post slowly.

Honestly, if the author had not been Mage Lord, it would have looked like a suspicious scam.

“Is this… for real?”

Suspicious looks were exchanged among the team.

Five hundred Coin was not a trivial price, and the very concept of a monster repellent spray sounded absurd.

But the issue was the name attached to it: Mage Lord.

If it was Mage Lord?

That changed everything.

He was not someone who had built his reputation on rumors or empty bravado.

Everything he had sold so far had already proven its value to countless superhumans, and those who trusted him were far from few.

“Five hundred Coin.”

Five million won in local currency.

It was a heavy burden, but—

After hesitating briefly, Bae Yeongseok made his decision.

“Let’s buy it. Even if we get scammed.”

He immediately pressed the purchase button.

The team watched him with mixed expressions of hope and anxiety.

“Please, let it work.”

Their last hope rested on a five hundred Coin spray.

Could this really be the breakthrough?

Flash.

Bae Yeongseok examined the spray that appeared in his hand.

“It really looks like a handgun.”

“Calling it a spray gun would be more accurate.”

“That’s not important right now. Just try using it.”

At his teammates’ urging, Bae Yeongseok aimed at a nearby tree and fired.

Pshhk!

Thud!

A small amount of golden liquid burst out at high speed, exploding at the target point and scattering powder in all directions.

The discharge speed was fast and powerful, comparable to a mana-infused crossbow bolt.

“Nothing special. Just a bitter smell, like dirt mixed with grass.”

Bae Yeongseok sniffed the air as he spoke.

“Hmm… Are we really trusting this?”

“Mage Lord made it. It could be legit.”

“Yeah. Let’s try. If it doesn’t work, we bail immediately.”

With that, Bae Yeongseok’s team headed toward the Ghost Forest.

After spraying the mist over their bodies, they cautiously began exploring the forest.

In the dark, eerie woods, they dealt with forest crows and several forgotten warriors, gradually pushing deeper.

Even so, everyone felt something subtly different amid the tension.

Then it happened.

“Screeech!”

The sharp cry of a giant mantis rang out nearby.

At the same time, several giant house spiders slowly emerged from the forest shadows.

Bae Yeongseok and his team tensed.

“They’re here… Get ready!”

But the situation unfolded in an unexpected way.

“Huh?”

“What’s going on?”

The giant mantis and spiders suddenly stopped, crouched down, and assumed wary postures.

They even began retreating step by step, hastily trying to hide back in the forest.

“Screeech!”

“Bzzzz!”

Even the giant mantis and spiders blocking the path started fleeing in a panic.

Their behavior looked as though they were deeply repulsed by something.

“What the hell?”

Even in the chaos, Bae Yeongseok stayed calm.

He aimed the spray at one of the fleeing spiders and pulled the trigger.

Pshhk!

Thud!

The spray shot hit the spider squarely on the back.

“Bzzz—!”

The spider twisted violently, convulsing as if seized by a fit.

It thrashed on the ground, then collapsed and stopped moving.

“…!”

The team was left speechless.

They stared at each other in disbelief.

Then someone burst out laughing.

“Hahaha!”

“This is insane!”

“It’s real!!”

Grinning with joy, they rushed toward the fallen spider.

Finishing off a completely incapacitated monster was effortless.

Only then did they realize that this dungeon was no longer a hell-level avoid-at-all-costs zone.

It had turned into a literal gold mine.

“Hey! Wipe them all out!”

“Now I get why everyone says Mage Lord is incredible.”

“This is a blessing from Mage Lord himself. Farm it while we can!”

Encouraging each other, they launched into the hunt.

The Ghost Forest was no longer a place of fear, but a field of blessings for the team.

A frenzied hunt began.

Jackpot! Mage Lord’s spray actually works. Buy it before it sells out. Now I get why there’s a one-per-person limit.

Is it really that effective?

Yeah. It’s insane. Giant mantises and spiders are basically free kills right now.

What does free kills mean?

Walking bonuses. They give great experience and drop tons of mana stones. Mantis carapaces, spider venom fangs, and webs sell for high prices. With the spray, it’s basically free money.

Damn. Buying it right now.

The rumor spread instantly.

Even a single use let people feel the immediate effect.

Dungeon clears became far easier thanks to the spray.

With far fewer participants than the recommended number, successful clears became possible, allowing participants to keep all the experience and loot.

In particular, giant spiders and mantises provided substantial experience and high-value drops.

Once this became known among superhumans, fear of the dungeon quickly turned into opportunity and profit.

Mage Lord’s spray exploded in popularity.

Title: Mega Jackpot! Super Mega Jackpot! Buy Mage Lord’s Spray for Sure!

Content: Five hundred Coin is totally worth it. One dungeon run and you already get your money’s worth. There’s plenty too, enough for over five runs.

Does it really lower the difficulty that much?

There’s literally no reason not to buy it.

Mage Lord’s stuff is always legit. Trust it.

Title: Are they not lifting the one-per-person limit?

Content: Our team is buying one each and taking turns using it, but once it runs out, we can’t buy more?

Yeah, that’s what worries me too. Mage Lord… Please lift the limit.

Please! I’m begging you too.

Title: Everything’s great, but there’s one thing I don’t like.

Content: Why is it called a spray? I almost didn’t buy it because the name sounded lame. A spray in a dungeon just felt wrong.

The name works against it. At least call it a spray gun.

Maybe Mage Lord wanted only those who truly believed to buy it. The early buyers who trusted his name are raking it in now.

Exactly.

Given how things were, it did not take long for the news to reach the Superhuman Management Bureau.

“What? What is this supposed to be?”

Director Kim Docheol’s eyes widened as he listened to Section Chief Lee Jeongwon’s report.

“That bug spray was real?”

“Yes. To be precise, it’s an insect-type monster repellent spray, but—”

“That or this, same thing!”

Kim Docheol said heatedly.

“Mage Lord. He’s definitely a Korean superhuman, right?”

“Yes. He’s listed at the very top of this year’s rising superhuman list that was submitted previously.”

“Why was he ranked at the top?”

Lee Jeongwon sighed inwardly.

‘He didn’t read the report at all. As expected of a signature machine.’

Holding back his frustration, he replied.

“Mage Lord’s estimated level exceeds ninety. The basis is that he sells spirit herbs and elixirs believed to be above level ninety, and those items played a major role in Han Seolhwa and Aleksei breaking past the level eighty wall.”

As the details kept coming, Kim Docheol’s jaw dropped wider and wider.

“Contact him immediately! Make recruitment the top priority, and if that fails, at least establish a connection!”

“That’s a relief.”

After hearing that the insect-type monster repellent spray was working, I let out a sigh of relief.

“It worked?”

“Yeah. Everyone did well.”

“Oh, thank goodness!”

“Chuchu!”

At my words, Bellerin and Chuchu threw their arms into the air in celebration.

‘I can keep selling it while coordinating with the government.’

Just a short while ago, I had been contacted by a superhuman who was a section chief at the Crisis Response Headquarters of the Korean Superhuman Management Bureau.

They reached me through Ahn Jaeseong.

When I declined a meeting, they offered to help ensure smooth distribution of the spray instead.

‘Not a bad offer.’

The reverse-gold marigold had successfully entered large-scale cultivation.

I had planned to continue supplying it and lead mass distribution of the spray anyway, and now the government was offering to handle it.

From a commercial standpoint, working with private companies would be ideal, but being trapped in Rare made that difficult.

‘I’m not trying to maximize profit with this.’

I checked Superhuman Net as well.

Due to this incident, concerns about growth stagnation were widespread among Korea’s mid-tier superhumans.

So I decided to take only a fair price.

Rather than obsess over profit, I chose stable supply through cooperation with the government.

Thank you. I will report to my superiors and contact you again.

That was how I established a connection with the Korean Superhuman Management Bureau.

‘That’s settled.’

Crunch.

I took a bite of the mandragora roast in my hand.

A mild, nutty flavor like roasted onions filled my mouth.

Mandragora roast was a true delicacy.

‘Level has increased.’

I had already gained several levels from eating spirit herbs earlier.

And just now, a single bite of mandragora roast brought me to level fifty-four.

One more level to reach level fifty-five.

‘At level fifty-five, the next passage should open.’

And at level sixty, the next guardian room.

Before reaching level seventy, I should be able to open at least two more passages and summon one more guardian.

‘Let’s keep this pace.’

Crunch.

I took another bite and looked around Rare.

‘Frozen fruit, tasty!’

Dania was enjoying frozen fruit for dessert.

Thud, clang, thud, clang!

Bellerin was diligently hammering away at the dimensional amplifier.

“Show me one more time.”

‘Understood, Keron.’

Ziiiiing!

Azkai was focused on watching Arkeron slice space with Dimensional Severance.

‘Why does he keep watching that?’

I tilted my head at Azkai’s behavior.

It was not something he could imitate anyway.

‘Hmm.’

My gaze then turned to the spring of Azure Sky Oil.

It had leveled up again earlier and was now level one hundred four.

I did not know how far it would go, but it was a very welcome development.

‘For a while, just rotating mandragora, fresh dew, Azure Sky Oil, and Lunar Solar Essence should be enough to reach level seventy without issue.’

Time was on my side.

Unless something went wrong, I would reach level seventy soon enough.

‘But when will Mandrian wake up?’

After absorbing the essence of the forest, Mandrian was still deeply rooted in the ground, asleep.

Looking closely, its petals, stem, and leaves were all thicker and larger than before.

Something significant was clearly happening.

‘It’s still alive, right?’

It looked fine on the surface, but a flicker of worry crossed my mind.

I had thought it would not matter much even without Mandrian.

Yet now that it was absent, I felt an odd sense of emptiness.

‘Tomorrow, I should summon Emilia again and have her check on it.’

Crunch.

Chew, chew.

I stuffed the remaining mandragora roast into my mouth.

‘Now then. Let’s try using the star.’

With that thought, I reached into my chest to take out the star.

But then—

At that moment.

‘Keron. A large-scale enemy has been detected.’

Flash!

A red light flared in Arkeron’s eyes.

“Awooooo!”

“Awooo!”

Shadow wolves.

They had more than earned their keep.

They had eliminated all the spider wolves approaching Elatrium in advance.

As a result, the spider legion had been unable to pinpoint Elatrium’s location.

However—

The situation changed.

“So it was the phantoms of shadow interfering.”

Arachne.

She spoke, her eyes gleaming seductively.

“They are annoying, but if we catch just one, the rest will follow easily.”

The weakness of the shadow wolves.

Their strong bonds.

They formed packs based on family units.

When one member was in danger, all the others would leap into the fire without hesitation to save it.

Despite their absurdly excellent evasion and mobility.

This fatal weakness was why they had been pushed to the brink of extinction.

“Arkenes, Terkala. Set traps throughout this area.”

“Yes.”

“We receive your order.”

The spiders’ snares spread toward the shadow wolves.

And shortly after—

“We’ve got one!”

One unfortunate individual was caught in the spiders’ trap.

“Awooooo!”

“Awooo!”

And then—

The shadow wolves, without hesitation, rushed into the spiders’ traps to save their packmate.

The situation unfolded exactly as Arachne had designed.

“As expected of the Queen.”

“Not a single miscalculation.”

“Do not kill them all. That way, we can more quickly learn what traces they were so desperate to erase.”

At the moment the shadow wolves were pushed to the brink—

‘Arkeron. Sortie preparation complete.’

Kraaaaaash!

From the very start, Arkeron, already in combat readiness level four, charged in at the speed of light.