I resolved myself anew and moved forward. Of course, traps still lay ahead, and I disarmed them with my body. How far did I go, dismantling the traps with sheer effort? At last, the tedious hallway of traps ended, and a massive iron door greeted me.
“Ahhh! F-Finally, the hallway is over!”
Judging by the pattern so far, this door was undoubtedly locked and trapped. Considering the traps in the hallway, this one was bound to be more sinister, not less—a truly intimidating door.
“Hmm.”
I examined the door. It was thick, rusted, and dark, yet looked immune to easy destruction. Moreover, it seemed never to have been opened since its creation; the layers of dust and rust powder were proof enough.
“Hmm. Damn. This is troubling.”
I looked at the handle. It was wrapped in strange ornaments, and there was a keyhole big enough to fit a dagger. It seemed easy enough to pick with something like a metal skewer. But after the traps I’d encountered earlier, I couldn’t trust this door. That oversized keyhole practically screamed “trap.”
“What should I do?”
It looked dangerous, but I couldn’t give up now, not after coming this far. Besides, if my wild guess was correct and a beautiful maiden was really lying beyond it, there was even less reason to retreat. Then, I noticed that the door was hinged.
“Well, would you look at that? Such a heavy door hanging on those hinges.”
Although the hinges were thick and metallic, they had significantly rusted compared to the door, likely eroded by time. Cutting through them would surely open the door. But it had to be done in one go. If I stayed too long in front of the door, hammering away at the hinges with a rock or something, who knew when the trap would activate?
“In the end, all I can rely on is my sword!”
With that conclusion, I drew my longsword. The sound of the blade scraping the scabbard echoed throughout the quiet tunnel. A tingling sensation prickled my skin. Gripping the sword firmly with both hands, I steadied myself. Cutting through metal with metal—it was questionable whether I could manage it with my current skill.
“Haaaaaa.”
I gathered all my strength and raised the sword above my head. While doing so, I relaxed my body, gripping the hilt lightly with my left hand and guiding the blade with my right, keeping my grip loose and fluid. Then, I closed my eyes.
“Haat!”
With a short shout, I opened my eyes and swung the sword at the hinges. A sharp crack echoed as the blade snapped and flew into the air.
“Damn it!”
I stared blankly at the broken sword before removing my gloves. My left hand was fine, but my right hand was a complete mess. The skin was torn, and blood pooled in my palm. This wasn’t just a blister; the skin had been ripped apart. Damn it. Cutting through iron was still beyond me. I had assumed the rusted hinges weakened by the door’s weight would be easier to break.
Picking up the broken blade, I examined its edge. It was almost completely worn out, dangling by a thread. I placed the broken blade back into its scabbard, along with the handle, then clenched my gloves between my teeth.
“Damn. I thought I had it this time.”
If I had just swung normally, my left hand, which had gripped tightly, would have been the first to give out. But I had tried a new technique, gripping tightly with my right hand at the moment of impact to increase destructive power. As a result, my right hand, which had guided the blade, was torn apart. Still, it seemed somewhat effective.
“What’s this? I cut two of them?”
Carefully approaching the door, I inspected the hinges. As I had thought, I managed to sever two of the three hinges. Wrapping my right hand in cloth from my pack, I approached the door and placed my hand on it. With two hinges cut and the third barely holding on, the door wobbled.
“One, two, heave-ho!”
I pried the door open. But something felt off.
“Huh?”
I stared at the wires connected to the door in a daze. The wires were tied to the doorknob and ran into the room beyond, where, from the ceiling, a spring-loaded arrow-launching mechanism peeked out, waiting.
“What the hell?! This is cheating!”
This was a trap no one could avoid, no matter how skilled they were!
Thwack, thwack, thwack, thwack, thwack!
Arrows rained down mercilessly. How could such a trap be allowed? A little mercy wouldn’t hurt!
“Tch!”
Luckily, I had a makeshift tower shield—an oversized one at that. It was absurdly heavy, weighing around 130 kilograms, but I tilted it to shield my entire body. Yet…
Whoosh!
A strange gust of wind rose. I instinctively sensed another trap and heightened my focus. It seemed this one was linked to the arrows, likely triggered by something installed in the door.
“What kind of dirty tricks are these?!”
If the door had been lighter, I could’ve spun it around to block everything. But I wasn’t some hulking beast. A 130-kilogram door? Most people wouldn’t even be able to lift it, let alone wield it. And yet, something burst nearby, releasing a cloud of white powder. Would it be safe to just let it settle on me?
“Huh?”
I cautiously moved away, keeping my distance. Yet, for some reason, the air felt hot. My skin tingled where it made contact—sizzle—it was burning away. Could it be? Was that… white phosphorus?
“You bastard! Who the hell sets up such inhumane traps?!”
I shouted in frustration as I quickly twisted my body and dove behind the door. Breathing in white phosphorus and scorching my lungs was far worse than dealing with arrows. Damn it! That kind of pure white phosphorus could be traded for its weight in silver, and they used it in a trap? Who’s behind this madness?!
Just as I was thinking that, the hail of arrows began to subside.
“Yahh!”
With a spirited shout, I launched myself forward, rolling across the ground. Behind me, the flames roared with a ferocity close to an explosion, spreading rapidly.
“Ugh!”
Feeling the searing heat closing in from behind, I grit my teeth. Fortunately, I had put enough distance between myself and the inferno to avoid burns, though it had been a close call.
“Heh heh heh! Talk about getting fired up!”
My blood surged as I glanced at the flickering torch. Judging by the dying embers, the resin was almost entirely burnt out. Wiping the sweat pooling on my chin, I walked forward. The sensation of my arms, legs, and body slightly sizzling from contact with the phosphorus was disgusting, but strangely… I couldn’t feel much pain, almost as if my mind had flipped a switch.
The trap, cursed as it was, had been dismantled by sheer endurance. Beyond it lay a wide chamber.
The room was massive, with a ceiling at least four meters high and an expanse so large that an entire squad of Velkysus Rangers could comfortably host a retreat here (even if it was in a cave).
“Huh?”
In the center of the room stood a large stone monument. I approached cautiously, wary of another trap, and carefully read the inscription.
“Congratulations on making it this far, partner. Here lies the final relic of my Seven Treasures. Best of luck.”
What… what was this nonsense? Baffled, I stepped closer to the monument. It was black, massive, and large enough to bury a person whole. Suspicious, wasn’t it? My suspicion was confirmed when I touched the stone, and it clicked open like a wardrobe.
Though it felt like stone, it wasn’t. It wasn’t wood either—it was smooth, light, and warm to the touch. What could it be? Curiosity piqued, I reached inside.
“…A journal?”
What I found was a small notebook labeled Adventure Log and a peculiar necklace. What… what was this? Hmm. The notebook aside, the necklace seemed to harbor some hidden power. With its embedded gemstone, even selling it to a jeweler would fetch a fortune. Yet, considering the cost of setting up the traps here, even the necklace wouldn’t cover it.
Sure, I wasn’t an invited guest but an intruder. Still, to go through such deadly traps only to end up with this? What a letdown!
“…Nothing’s happening?”
Could it be like the old tales? Just in case, I tried rubbing the necklace. Maybe a jinn would appear and grant me three wishes? Personally, I’d prefer a beautiful jinnia over a muscular male djinn, though.
“…”
Nothing happened. As I rubbed the necklace, I started questioning if I was just making a fool of myself. Was I wasting time on something pointless? If nothing came of it, I’d just look like an idiot.
“Sigh! What is this? It’s nothing. Damn it. Should I just sell it?”
But there was no telling. Reluctantly, I opened the notebook. Its pages were filled with hastily scrawled notes, as one would expect from a journal.
Wait, it said Adventure Log, so it was more of a diary. But… huh?
“Page 1700?”
Startled, I flipped to the last page. Or rather, what I thought was the last page—it seemed like the book had only been opened to the halfway point. Yet the page number was—
“20,000? Ha… hahaha. You’ve got to be kidding me!”
Unbelievable. What sorcery was this? Out of curiosity, I drew a doodle on page 20,001 with a piece of charcoal I had on hand. When I flipped back to it, the page number 20,001 had automatically appeared at the bottom. From the outside, the book still looked as if it were only half-opened. Was it impossible to truly reach the end of this book?
“What… what is this? A magic notebook? Hmm. Was this the owner’s doing?”
Cautiously, I flipped to the first page, and what I saw made my jaw drop.
“What?! Ha… Heidelroc Windwalker?!”
In an instant, I clutched the notebook tightly to my chest. Heidelroc Windwalker?! The legendary rogue! Known for his unmatched arrogance, mischievous streak, and whirlwind-like exploits, he earned the moniker Windwalker. By the time of his death, the bounty on his head was a staggering 500,000 Monarchs, and the value of what he’d stolen exceeded 10 million Monarchs!
He wasn’t just a rogue, though. He was the greatest adventurer, thief, and assassin the world had ever known.
Some of his most infamous feats included paying 3 million Monarchs to the Kingdom of Lionia to abolish slavery, walking into the unescapable Imperial Southern Prison of Seram and leaving just as he pleased, and infiltrating the camp of Tianweiliang, the armed general of the Yan Empire, to decapitate him amidst an army of 200,000 soldiers.
What’s even crazier is that he wasn’t all about theft. If I recall correctly, he graduated as the valedictorian of the medical department at Saint Palma Empire’s Antwerp Academy. A true genius of both mind and muscle.
And this was his adventure log! One of his legendary Seven Treasures!
