BXBX NOVEL Chapter 29
Chapter 29
Chapter 29: Trap (3)
8.
For adventurers, party composition was crucial. Who would take on which role?
These roles were broadly divided into three categories: tank, dealer, and supporter.
Among these, the most unique position was that of the supporter.
Fundamentally, supporters were mages.
They were those among mages who possessed the talent to cast support magic, such as healing and recovery spells.
However, in the world of mages, supporters were classified as an entirely different profession.
At the same time, supporters were treated differently within the adventurer community.
“Before embarking on an adventure, adventurers establish a priority order for who dies first in dangerous situations. Except for the supporter.”
Supporters received the most precious treatment within adventurer parties.
The reason was simple.
“After all, if the supporter dies, everyone dies.”
A supporter’s abilities were directly linked to the lives of their party members.
Therefore, adventurers went to great lengths to secure a supporter with exceptional abilities.
Dibo was no exception.
“Finally, the party is starting to feel like a real party!”
He initially rejoiced at the news of seeking a supporter.
‘I won’t have to die.’
From Dibo’s perspective, who always had to be at the forefront as a tank, the presence of a supporter was nothing short of reassuring.
At the same time, he was also filled with anticipation.
“Surely you’re referring to someone extraordinary if the boss remembers their name?”
El Paume would not bring an ordinary supporter.
“So where is this Ralph?”
Dibo, filled with anticipation, asked El Paume.
“Over there.”
Dibo pointed in the direction El Paume was indicating, and his brow furrowed in confusion.
“Isn’t that the Slums Ground?”
The Slums Ground.
It referred to a section of the northern part of the port city of Erebos, a place filled with all sorts of unpleasantries, as the term “slum” implied.
Of course, most cities had slums.
It was inevitable.
Kerning City had slums, and even the magical city of Ellinia had slums.
“Boss, isn’t that a dangerous place?”
However, Erebos’s Slums Ground was notorious even among such slums.
And for good reason.
As a port city, Erebos attracted adventurers from all over Victoria Island, not to mention Maple World.
Naturally, criminals also gathered, and as a result, the security and quality of life were worse than in any other slum.
Even seasoned adventurers rarely dared to set foot there.
“It could be dangerous.”
Of course, it was a danger that meant nothing to El Paume.
El Paume had already reached the 3rd Circle.
Moreover, El Paume was confident.
He believed that hunting adventurers was easier than hunting monsters.
“Don’t worry too much. I’m not going to cause trouble.”
Crucially, El Paume was not going to hunt someone.
Dibo let out an awkward chuckle at El Paume’s words.
“Who’s worried about the boss?”
Dibo wasn’t unaware of that either.
Right now, even Dibo wasn’t that afraid of the random criminal adventurers here.
‘I’m worried about taking a human from this place.’
The problem was that the adventurers here couldn’t be decent people.
‘Especially a Bishop.’
Moreover, the adventurer they were going to find this time was a Bishop, a support class.
These were the ones responsible for the party’s lives.
And yet, they were going to put a criminal in such an important position?
El Paume, knowing Dibo’s concern, said,
“He’s not a criminal.”
“Is that so?”
“He just likes money.”
“Huh?”
El Paume didn’t elaborate further to Dibo’s surprise.
He simply took a step.
And so, El Paume visited the gambling dens that overflowed throughout the slums of Erebos.
And soon, El Paume arrived.
“I found him.”
The one he had been searching for.
At those words, Dibo, who had suffered quite a bit following El Paume, said with a smile,
“Who is it?”
“Over there.”
Dibo, turning his head at El Paume’s words, tilted his head in confusion.
“Hey? There’s nothing but big, brute-looking bear-like humans over there!”
“That’s him.”
“Huh?”
“That’s him.”
Dibo reacted with disbelief.
“Are you sure you’re not seeing things?”
El Paume didn’t respond to Dibo’s repeated question.
There was no reason to.
“I’m sure.”
No one else knew Ralph better than El Paume.
‘I can’t forget the moment he killed all my comrades.’
At that moment, memories of that day flooded El Paume’s mind.
9.
The moment monsters began to emerge from the Mystic Gate, the world turned into hell.
Everyone was in despair at the appearance of the monsters.
And so, the world was unaware.
That the followers of the Black Mage were starting to move in earnest, taking advantage of the chaos.
And so, the followers of the Black Mage dealt a blow to Maple World that was beyond words.
One of the most representative examples was the death of Mikhail, the Grand Master of the Cygnus Knights, who could be considered the heart of the order.
The Black Paradise, a group of adventurers who followed the Black Mage, killed Mikhail, the Grand Master of the Cygnus Knights.
Even after that, the Black Paradise roamed Maple World, hunting countless adventurers.
El Paume’s party was one of those unfortunate groups.
In fact, it couldn’t even be called a hunt.
It was a one-sided massacre.
Only one survived, El Paume.
It was a full four years after that day that El Paume finally succeeded in avenging his fallen comrades.
At that time, El Paume hunted down all the adventurers who belonged to the Black Paradise, the adventurers who followed the Black Mage.
At the end of that hunt, the last one he faced was Bishop Ralph.
One of the core members of the Black Paradise, Ralph had survived to the end, and so El Paume was able to hear.
[TL/N: Can u guys confirm (if anyone has played the game) that is Black paradise related directly to black mage or not (I want context/spoilers abt this guy, hehe)]
“Why did you follow the Black Mage? There must be a reason, right?”
Ralph, the reason why he followed the Black Mage.
“He just said he’d pay me the most.”
It was a laughable reason.
And that laughable reason was what brought El Paume here.
“You’re Ralph, right?”
“Yes, but?”
“I have a proposal. I’d like you to join my party.”
El Paume, he made a party offer to Ralph.
It wasn’t easy to understand.
El Paume and Ralph had a bad relationship. It was a grudge that was as deep as it could be.
The Black Paradise, which Ralph belonged to, had killed all of El Paume’s comrades, and El Paume had completed their revenge.
They had fought to the death.
Even Ralph was a follower of the Black Mage.
Nevertheless, there were two reasons why El Paume made this offer to Ralph.
One reason was Ralph’s exceptional skill as a supporter.
‘Without him, the Black Paradise would never have been able to kill Mikhail.’
And not just any supporter, but one who had taken down the Grand Master of the great Cygnus Knights.
There was no doubt about his abilities.
The only question was his character.
“You’re suddenly coming here and talking like this, you do know that it’s not normal, right? Are you sick somewhere?”
It couldn’t be good.
But whether it was good or bad, it didn’t really matter.
El Paume had seen a lot.
He had seen that in a world overflowing with monsters and where the followers of the Black Mage ran rampant, things like character didn’t really matter.
That was certainly the case for El Paume himself.
The last adventurer, El Paume, didn’t earn his holy and noble title because of his good character.
What was important was something else.
“I can give you a deposit.”
The ridiculous reason he had mentioned earlier.
“Deposit? How much can you give me?”
“10 million mesos.”
The fact that he was willing to follow the Black Mage for money meant that he loved money more than anyone else.
El Paume’s prediction was spot on.
The moment the amount of 10 million mesos came out, Ralph’s expression changed.
Dibo’s did too.
“Boss, what are you talking about? 10 million mesos?”
Dibo was also not one to turn down money.
From Ralph’s perspective, it was hard to fathom that a random person he didn’t know from anywhere was suddenly offering him 10 million mesos.
To be more precise, he couldn’t even comprehend the conversation itself.
‘No way, boss! You don’t have 10 million mesos?’
El Paume had spent most of his money, even more than 10 million mesos, to repay his debt to the Gafor Merchant Union.
This meant he couldn’t show the money right away.
“Do you have 10 million mesos now?”
“I’ll be able to get it as a deposit when I finalize a contract with the Gafor Merchant Union soon.”
“Soon?”
From the listener’s perspective, such words held no weight.
“Against the Gafor Merchant Union? Are you crazy for that money?”
That was usually the case.
However, El Paume understood.
The man before him was someone who had become a follower of the Black Mage and fought against Mikhail, the Grand Master of the Cygnus Knights, for money.
That was no ordinary feat.
Most sane people wouldn’t fight Mikhail, the Grand Master of the Cygnus Knights, even for 100 million mesos.
That’s how much Ralph was obsessed with money.
For someone like him, the bait of 10 million mesos was enough to make his heart race.
“That’s an interesting proposition.”
Just then,
“Mr. El Paume, I see you’re here. Excuse me for a moment.”
An uninvited guest appeared between El Paume and Ralph.
“I’m Bayz from the Kania Guild. I’m here to make an offer to Mr. El Paume.”
10.
“I’m Bayz from the Kania Guild.”
Upon hearing those words, Dibo and Ralph were simultaneously surprised.
They couldn’t help but be surprised.
‘Bayz? Isn’t he Ibok’s left-hand man, the guild master of the Kania Guild?’
This was a name that anyone living in the port city of Erebos would know.
Of course, El Paume was different.
“I’m here to make an offer to join the Kania Guild.”
The moment he heard that, El Paume thought,
‘This is a trap.’
The Kania Guild.
El Paume knew them well.
‘Followers of the Black Mage.’
He knew what kind of people they were.
In fact, El Paume had already been aware that the Kania Guild had been following him.
It couldn’t be helped.
He had visited twelve gambling dens in the slums of Erebos.
If he couldn’t notice the tail that was following him after visiting so many places, El Paume would never have become the Last Adventurer.
Of course, the fact that the Kania Guild was making an offer to join them was unexpected by El Paume.
But he could understand their intentions.
‘They’ve come here after understanding my situation.’
From the Kania Guild’s perspective, who needed to somehow lure El Paume in, the situation of him haggling with Ralph must have looked appealing.
In El Paume’s position, where he was losing the negotiation, he couldn’t help but welcome the appearance of the Kania Guild.
“So you’re here to make an offer to join?”
“I’ve heard that you’re asking for a deposit of 10 million mesos from the Gafor Merchant Union.”
It was a tempting offer.
“Will you give it to me?”
However, the Kania Guild wasn’t stupid enough to actually give him 10 million mesos.
“We’ll give it to you if you pass a test.”
As mentioned before, the Kania Guild simply wanted to take advantage of the situation.
But Ralph, unaware of this fact, was different.
Ralph’s eyes changed.
‘Could it be real?’
El Paume’s 10 million mesos no longer sounded like a bluff.
The condition was to pass a test, but the fact remained that a large sum of money was at stake.
This was a good opportunity for El Paume.
‘Ralph has already made up his mind.’
The money-obsessed man would now give El Paume’s offer the okay without any hesitation.
Of course, El Paume knew.
“A test?”
‘It must be a trap.’
He knew that the Kania Guild had no intention of actually giving him a deposit of 10 million mesos.
Bayz said to El Paume, who was skeptical,
“There is a Mystic Gate. The rank is orange. There are three scratches.”
The moment they heard that, Dibo and Ralph had the same thought.
It wasn’t a bad place for a test.
The orange rank was the optimal rank for El Paume, a 3-circle adventurer.
Also, three scratches were not a small number, but it was an appropriate number to check his skills.
In other words, it didn’t smell like a trap at all.
El Paume’s thoughts were the same.
He couldn’t tell if it was a trap or not just from this.
So, more information was needed.
“Where is the Mystic Gate?”
To that question, Bayz said,
“It’s in Henesys.”
At that moment, El Paume could recall a memory from his past.
‘Could it be that Mystic Gate with a hundred scratches?’