...

Shin was running along the Valley of the Forgotten Time, tracking back the path that he took previously when he was luring the Berserker Wolves. He was also looking at his virtual map to check Charlotte's current location from time to time.

As he was traveling, he was also checking his surroundings regularly to make sure that he was avoiding all of the members of the Venimuex Guild along the way. After all, it was going to be quite troublesome if they somehow spotted him; they would surely suspect him as the one who stole the King Class Boss earlier.

Shin could already imagine how enraged the commander of the 100-man team earlier the moment he stole the last hit of the boss alongside all of the loots that were dropped by the boss.

Speaking of the loots, Shin couldn't hide how he felt as he took a look at the drops that he got. There were quite a lot of items dropped from the boss' body after he killed it; most of them were super rare materials that could be used to craft top-quality weapons.

And among these materials, what he got happened to be what he was currently lacking for the upgrade of his main weapon.

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Item Name: Fire-Ice Stone

Item Type: Miscellaneous

Item Rank: Black Mithril

Details: A special material that was formed due to the dense amount of elemental mana. It was a special elemental stone that had the composition of both Fire and Ice Elements.

Note: This item could be used to craft high-quality equipment or weapon. But if it was not handled properly, it could suddenly explode due to the opposing powers of the Fire and Ice.

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Item Name: Frost-Flame Origin

Item Type: Miscellaneous

Item Rank: Black Mithril

Details: A special core of a monster that possessed both of the powers of fire and ice. And despite having the opposing properties of heat and cold, this core somehow had a strange harmony and tranquility.

Note 1: This material could be used to craft high-quality equipment and weapons.

Note 2: This material could also be used to awaken the hidden abilities of particular items which had the properties of fire and ice.

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With these two items, Shin was now only lacking a single item to upgrade the [Yamato], and that item was 'Meteorite'. It was a special item that couldn't be found easily.

Even Black Hammer was not sure where to find that item exactly. The blacksmith could only guess which monsters had the possibility of dropping that item based on the properties and abilities that they had.

Aside from those two items, Shin also got quite a lot of materials that had different elemental properties. Most of them were similar to the first two materials but with slightly different pairings just like the items that had the elements related to lightning, light, and darkness.

But among all of those special materials, there was a particular material that piqued Shin's interest.

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Item Name: Chaos Core

Item Type: Miscellaneous

Item Rank: Obsidian

Detail: A special monster core that was composed of all of the elements that existed in the Atlas World.

Historical Note: It was said that this item existed since the beginning of time and it held one of the secrets of the world.

Note: This material can be used to create specialized weapons with the highest quality.

Warning: Using this item could be dangerous. (Assistance of a Grand Craftsman is required)

???

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It was the first time for Shin to see an item with Obsidian Rank, so he was quite curious what it could do. But from what he could see, it seemed like he needed some help from an expert to properly see its full details since even his 'True Sight' observation skill couldn't see anything aside from its basic information.

Aside from these items, there was also some high-quality equipment and weapons among the loot. But none of them had any use for Shin which was why he ignored them and put them at the corner of his inventory, planning to sell them with a good price later. Or he might even be able to trade them off with the items that he could use in the future.

But aside from all of that, there was a particular item that could be considered as the most important drop among all of them.

It was a strange egg that shouldn't be among the items that he got since the monster that he killed earlier was a golem. It was an elemental being, so it shouldn't have an offspring, much less in the form of an egg.

If what Shin was thinking was right, then this egg was most likely a pet and someone with a very high life rating on top of that.

Unfortunately, he couldn't see any of its details aside from the very basic information even with the help of his 'True Sight' ocular skill.

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Item Name: A Mysterious Egg

Item Rank: ???

Item Type: ???

Details: A special egg that was formed within the body of the Seven Elemental Golem after absorbing all of the residual elements that were flowing through the golem's body that were not being used.

Note: Look for a Specialist to take a look at this item to further uncover its mysteries.

???

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"I am really convinced that this little guy is really a pet. And it also looks to be in the same category as Arthur's Golden Dragon," muttered Shin as he took another look at the egg. And quickly after that, he started contemplating what he was going to do about it.

"I think trading off this one is quite a waste," muttered Shin to himself until he thought about Cloe. "Oh~! Yeah! Should I give it to her? Her bear pet seems to be an ordinary one, so this guy should be a good replacement to that one."

"Maybe I should find someone with a Pet Trainer second profession. And they should be at least in Master Rank or more," he added while knitting his eyebrows.

Thinking about this, he suddenly remembered someone who fought him before. "Ah! Speaking of pets, that guy should be a high-level Pet Trainer, if I am not wrong!"

"What is his name again? I'm pretty sure that his title is Beastmaster or something… Hmm… Ah! That is right, his name is Akailu if I am not wrong!"

"Maybe I should contact that guy once I am not here," he muttered to himself as he continued heading towards Charlotte's location.

But not long after, he couldn't help but knit his brow as he felt that he seemingly forgot about something. "Why do I feel that I am forgetting about someone?"

Though, he quickly dropped that idea since he couldn't recall what he was forgetting.

************

In the meantime, somewhere in the borders between the Dwarf Kingdom and Beast Glade Kingdom, there was a pair of players traveling together as they crossed the borders of the two kingdoms.

One of them had a pair of weapons on him which was quite strange for the current classes that were available for the players of the game. There was a rifle on his back which supposedly meant for Musketeers and a longsword hanging on his waist that was for Swordsmen.

He was walking behind the other player who was currently ordering a group of monsters in front of him to create a path for them in a dense forest.

"Oi, Beastmaster! Are you sure that we are heading in the right place? We've been walking for a long time already," complained the first player while trying to drag his feet while following the other guy.

Akailu, the Beastmaster, suddenly whipped his head around and snarled at the other person. "F*ck! Can you at least shut your mouth for a moment? You've been complaining a lot since your journey. My head is already spinning around because of your nonstop chatter!"

He then paused for a moment before asking with a deep frown. "Anyways, what's the deal with that double identity yours? So, how am I going to address you now? 'The Sword King: Sairen' or the 'Gun King: Roger'?"

Hearing that, the other guy couldn't help but shake his head because of how ironic Akailu was acting. So, he just waved his hand and said in a casual manner. "That is not important, you can call whatever."

"In fact, you can even call me 'Van Helsing' if you want," he added with a smirk, seemingly trying to provoke Akailu.

Understanding what he was trying to pull, Akailu suddenly looked at the other guy with a death glare before asking. "Are you picking a fight with me? You are basically telling me that I am the monster that you are trying to hunt."

"Don't get too confident about yourself. You may have a higher standing than me on the last Shadow Ranking Cup, but you also need to remember that it is only because I encountered that monster in the early stages of the tournament," he added with a deep tone while his beast summons started growling at the latter.

But despite being surrounded by the monster beast from all sides, the other guy was still wearing the smirking look on his face while staring back at Akailu. It was as if he was telling the latter to test him if he wanted.

The staredown lasted for a few moments before Akailu finally retracted his gaze and turned around. "Tsk! You should be thankful that I currently have a more pressing matter right now."

Seeing that, the other player suddenly smirked before saying with a sneering tone. "Heh! You and your excuses."

This time, Akailu suddenly halted his steps and looked over his shoulders. "But that doesn't mean that I will let you go after we are done with our quest."

After that, Akailu turned his head in front once again before closing his eyes and calming himself down. Then he resumed walking forward to continue heading towards their destination.

"Anyway, why did you decide to reveal your real identity now after going through all the trouble of hiding it?" he asked without turning his head.

Hearing that, the other person turned silent for a moment before smiling bitterly. "Let's say that there is no longer a point in continuing that façade. I no longer have the reason to play both of those roles."

He then paused for a few moments before continuing after some hesitation. "And someone also knocks some sense into me and wakes me up in my delusion. So, starting now, I am going to forge my own path where there is no longer a shackle restraining me."

Reaching this point, his features started to change, revealing his true in-game appearance. He had a black full-body leather armor and a gentleman's hat over his blonde hair. Alongside these changes, the air surrounding him also became a little heavy due to the pressure that was being emitted by his body.

Sensing that, Akailu suddenly turned around and took a good look at the other person. And after seeing how strong the latter was, he couldn't help but feel a little competitive and wanted to test the latter's strength.

Having that in mind, he quickly activated a skill that made him fused with his summoned monsters which made his body increased in size and became a muscular humanoid beast with razor-sharp claws and threatening fangs.

"Now, this is something interesting. I guess we should start warming up a little before facing those so-called Messengers of the Corrupted Cult later?" he said with a hoarse voice before asking. "But before that, how about telling me your real IGN first?"

Hearing that, the other guy slightly raised his head and pushed his hat with his finger to look at Akailu. And with those actions, the shade cast on his face moved up a little and revealed the canine tooth sticking out from his mouth. "This time, I will go with the name-… Alucard."

...