PETF 21

Chapter 21

A Little Later, Chiak Mountain Hunting Grounds

After successfully clearing the red-level dungeon Spider Queen’s Nest and escaping, Woo-hyun set up camp near the spot where the dungeon’s portal entrance had disappeared.

The Spider Queen’s Nest was a place discovered quite late in the game, which meant no other players would come anywhere near this location.

Woo-hyun had already obtained everything of value from the dungeon. All that remained now was the “Ten Poisons Immunity” enhancement event.

It was going to bring unbearable pain as it was—but if other players interrupted him during it, he might actually die. So Woo-hyun decided to stay close to the former dungeon area, away from any human presence.

“Phew…”

Woo-hyun prepared a syringe in advance and divided Arachne’s venom into doses according to the amount Elzebet had told him. Taking a deep breath, he steeled himself.

“Let’s do this.”

He picked up the first syringe and, without hesitation, jabbed it into his shoulder, injecting the venom directly into his body.

Puk—

“Gghhhhaaaaaa!!!”

Woo-hyun immediately regretted it—within 0.1 seconds. The pain was excruciating.

It felt as if a hedgehog, its spines bristling, was crawling through his veins. His whole body turned pale and began to shake violently.

[Skill – Ten Poisons Immunity has been activated.]
[Detoxifying Arachne’s venom.]

Elzebet used her blood magic to monitor the toxin concentration in his blood in real time. When she saw Woo-hyun’s eyes rolling upward, she quickly grabbed both his cheeks with her small hands and pulled as hard as she could.

— Cheon Woo-hyun! Snap out of it! If you pass out now, you’ll die for real! —

The skill would only remain active while the player was conscious. If Woo-hyun lost consciousness and his mana flow stopped, he wouldn’t be able to detoxify the venom.

That would mean a one-way trip to the afterlife express.

“AAAGHHHHHH!!!”

Kwaaaaaaa!!!

Unable to bear the agony, Woo-hyun screamed—no, shrieked—and red mana surged and swirled around him.

[Skill – Ten Poisons Immunity has successfully neutralized Arachne’s venom.]

Moments later, the skill finished purging the venom from his system, and Woo-hyun was finally freed from the torment.

“Haa… haa… haa…”

— Stop now. This looks too dangerous. —

Even after only one injection, Woo-hyun was drenched in cold sweat as if he’d been caught in a downpour. Seeing him like that, Elzebet couldn’t help but plead to stop.

But Woo-hyun immediately reached for the next syringe.

“Next one, please, Elzebet.”

He clearly had no intention of stopping. With a deep sigh, Elzebet resumed monitoring the venom levels in his blood.

Puk—

Woo-hyun injected another dose of Arachne’s venom into his shoulder—releasing yet another furious hedgehog into his bloodstream.

“GAAAHHHHHHH!!!”

<A Little Later>

Only twenty minutes had passed, but for Woo-hyun, it felt like twenty hours.

Each cycle of poisoning and detoxification took two minutes—and he had repeated it about ten times.

His entire body was soaked with sweat as though he’d stood in a rainstorm.

At first, he was full of ambition and excitement at the thought of obtaining a high-tier poison resistance skill. But after ten rounds of poisoning and detoxification, only one emotion filled him now—grim determination.

[Skill – Ten Poisons Immunity (F+) proficiency has increased.]
[Skill – Ten Poisons Immunity (F+) has evolved into Hundred Poisons Immunity (D+).]

“You damn thing… you finally showed up.”

Woo-hyun let out a ragged breath but finally curled his lips into a smile.

He took one last syringe and drew venom from the Arachne Queen’s poison gland.

Seeing that, Elzebet panicked and tried to stop him.

— Are you insane?! The Arachne Queen’s venom is nothing like the regular Arachne’s! If you inject that, you’ll die for sure! —

“If a man’s drawn his sword, he might as well cut a radish.”

At his absurd response, Elzebet shouted back in disbelief.

— Radish my ass! You’ve done more than enough already! Stop it now! —

“Just once more.”

Woo-hyun’s stubbornness was unshakable. In the end, Elzebet could only mutter that this would really be the last time.

— This is seriously the last one. After this, I’m done helping you. —

She couldn’t bear to watch him scream in agony any longer. Woo-hyun grinned faintly and injected the Arachne Queen’s venom into his shoulder.

Pukkk!!!

Just as Elzebet had warned, the Queen’s venom was on a completely different level.

It wasn’t an F+ rare monster for nothing—Woo-hyun spat blood the moment the venom entered his body and nearly lost consciousness.

If the regular Arachne’s venom felt like releasing a hedgehog into his veins, this was like unleashing a giant porcupine several times larger.

“GAAAAAHH!!! I WON’T DIE HERE!!!”

Woo-hyun roared, barely clinging to consciousness—and right then, the system message appeared.

[Skill – Hundred Poisons Immunity (D+) proficiency has increased.]
[Skill – Hundred Poisons Immunity (D+) has evolved into Thousand Poisons Immunity (B+).]

“It… worked…”

After seeing that message, Woo-hyun finally lost the last thread of consciousness and collapsed.

<A Little Later – In the Car Heading to Seoul>

“Elzebet, please don’t be mad. I was wrong.”

On their way back to Seoul, Woo-hyun was desperately apologizing to Elzebet, who had been terrified when he passed out. Sitting in the passenger seat, she munched sulkily on the blood sausage he’d offered as a peace gift.

Chomp, chomp—

— Shut up. Just drive properly. —

“When we get back to Seoul, let’s go get some ox-blood soup too.”

Woo-hyun kept coaxing her, trying to ease her mood. Elzebet pouted, her lips sticking out like Serin’s when she was upset.

— Fine. But promise me you’ll never try anything that crazy again—and next time, I’m not helping. —

Holding a piece of blood sausage almost as big as her own body, she made her condition clear.

Woo-hyun immediately nodded.

“Yeah. I never want to feel that kind of pain again. I swear, I won’t do anything like that.”

Even though he was playful by nature, Elzebet knew he wasn’t lying about something like this. Reluctantly, she forgave him.

— Halmae’s Ox-Blood Soup. Extra-large. —

At her quiet demand, Woo-hyun finally smiled.

“Got it! Halmae’s Ox-Blood Soup, extra-large! Coming right up!”

And with that, he drove straight toward the restaurant.

<A Few Hours Later – National Forge, Seoul>

After appeasing Elzebet with the promised ox-blood soup, Woo-hyun headed to the National Forge in Seoul.

Behind the counter, a yawning blacksmith’s eyes widened when he saw Woo-hyun walk in, carrying the same familiar gear.

“You… came back alive?”

The blacksmith looked at him in disbelief. Woo-hyun smiled and nodded.

“Yes. Thanks to your help back then, I got a great sword out of it. I came to thank you in person.”

At his words, the blacksmith grinned and said,

“Let me see that sword.”

Woo-hyun drew Dracula from his belt and handed it over.

The first thing the blacksmith noticed was the dark stains on the handle—marks left by countless hours of use.

“Judging by the wear on the grip, you really did fight with this.”

“Yes. At this point, I can’t even fight properly without it.”

Hearing that, the blacksmith smiled in satisfaction.

“I’m glad I wasn’t wrong—about the sword or about you. A blade like this belongs on the battlefield, not sitting in a barrel collecting dust. Good to know it’s being used right.”

He could’ve been bitter about selling such a fine weapon for cheap, but instead he looked genuinely pleased. Woo-hyun smiled faintly back.

“Looks like I was right about you too.”

Taking Dracula back and sheathing it, Woo-hyun spoke again.

“I’d like to commission an Order Made.”

Order Made.
A term used when a player commissions a craftsman to create a personalized piece of equipment—made to their exact specifications and for a hefty price.

The blacksmith raised an eyebrow.

“You’ve probably made good money since buying Dracula, but for an Order Made, you’d be better off going to a private forge, not a national one.”

Order Made commissions were already expensive, but in the player industry, prices were often several times higher. Rather than immediately accepting, the blacksmith honestly suggested a private forge instead.

That only made Woo-hyun trust him more.

“You recognized Dracula’s true worth, so I know your skill is the real deal. And for this commission, trust matters more than skill.”

The blacksmith studied him for a long moment, then nodded.

“Alright. Follow me to my office.”

<A Little Later – Inside the National Forge Office, Seoul>

“Now that I think about it, we never exchanged names. I’m Jin Sung-wook.”

He offered a handshake. Woo-hyun clasped his calloused hand firmly.

“I’m Cheon Woo-hyun.”

After a brief greeting, they sat facing each other on the office’s guest chairs.

Jin Sung-wook spoke first.

“Just so you know, I’m not really forging these days. That’s why you saw me manning the counter. Are you sure you still want to commission me?”

Woo-hyun replied without hesitation.

“As long as you’re willing, I’d like you to handle it. Like I said before—this time, trust matters more than skill.”

At that, Jin Sung-wook gave a faint chuckle.

“We just exchanged names a few minutes ago, and you already trust me that much?”