Solo Max-Level Newbie – Pure Blood

Chapter 12: The Three Great Guilds

Shaa—

Various traits visible only to Yohan appeared before his eyes.

Honestly, even if he had received only up to Episode (3), there would still have been an abundance of choices.

[Aether Blade], [False Malice], [Seed of the Unbeliever], [Beginner Magi-Engineering], and so on.

If he were to list only those crucial for early-game progression, there would easily be more than four.

However—if the range extended all the way to Episode (5), the story changed completely.

Originally, he had planned to choose [Beginner Magi-Engineering].

Though it was a difficult skill to master, once learned, it offered outstanding versatility and growth potential.

The magical tools crafted from it proved useful not only in the early stages but well into the midgame as well.

However—

There was no longer any reason to choose [Beginner Magi-Engineering].

‘If I play this right, it might actually work.’

Originally, he had only intended to secure the bare minimum reward he could get by a hair’s breadth.

But with things turning out this way, he could afford to be a bit greedy.

‘Conveniently, there are several things in this raid party I can make use of.’

The risk factor was certainly high, but to pass up this kind of opportunity would be wasteful.

Shrrk—

The page turned.

To the very end of the selectable episodes.

Upon reaching the page marked (5), traits appeared that made his heart grow heavy just by looking at them.

[Crimson Catastrophe Sword Qi] [Intermediate Dantian] [Emblem of the Broken King]…

There were many he had to pass on with tears in his eyes.

Still, since there were ways to obtain them later, it was best to move on for now.

[Episode (5), Trait [Sacred Flame (聖火)] selected.]

[Remaining save slots: 2]

And thus, his final choice was this one.

A divine power that only devout priests or skilled paladins could wield.

Whoosh!

A pure-white flame blazed to life in Yohan’s hand.

Ordinarily, vampires possessed a constitution where divine power acted as poison.

However, Yohan was a half-blood.

Because half of his blood was human, he could endure the Sacred Flame to some extent—as long as he could withstand a bit of pain.

Who could claim that purebloods were superior after seeing this?

Half-bloods had the potential to wield the strengths of both humans and vampires.

With a faint smirk, Yohan gazed down at the Knight’s Token engraved on the back of his hand.

Next, it was time to use that for a little “drawing practice.”

Ssshhh—

A searing pain flared across the back of his hand.

Several torturous minutes passed.

By the time Yohan finished his “artwork,” countless presences could be felt approaching.

Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa!

Boom!

“Graaah!”

“Hold them off! Just a little longer!”

By the time Yohan reached the greenhouse, the battle between monsters and humans was already in full swing.

Unlike the solo or small-party groups he’d seen before—

This was a large-scale raid of over thirty participants locked in a fierce struggle against monsters.

Positioning himself at the outskirts, Yohan quietly surveyed the battlefield.

‘All three major factions are here.’

Well, that made sense.

They all sought the same objective—inevitably, they would have to face each other here.

The first group to catch his eye was the Priests of the Sun.

One of the three great forces participating in this raid.

If he were to describe them in a single word…

Right.

‘Fanatics.’

That was the most fitting description.

No exaggeration—they were truly deranged.

They held such blind faith that killing a person in the name of divine law or doctrine was utterly natural to them.

In particular, the Priests of the Sun were a sub-branch of the “New Vatican,” wielding immense influence across the globe.

“I shall make hymns of repentance rise from the lips of the heretic!”

A muscle-bound paladin mounted atop a banshee.

KWAANG! KWA-AANG!

He pounded the banshee’s face mercilessly with his silver gauntlet.

He didn’t stop until the banshee, shrieking in agony, began to chant hymns.

He could have simply killed it, but apparently, this was some new form of divine torture.

“Kahahaha! How’s the taste of holy blood?”

Beside him, another paladin poured holy water down an undead’s throat.

Others drove nails through its limbs.

One even crushed a zombie’s head with a massive lawbook.

At this point, the undead almost seemed pitiful.

‘Better not get involved with them if I can help it.’

The bronzed giant leading the paladins looked particularly dangerous.

Of course, not everyone here was a lunatic.

At the front lines stood Lee Junho, the raid leader of the Iron Sword Guild, rallying his hunters.

“Take care of the wounded first! Make sure not a single person gets left behind!”

“Yes, sir!”

“You heard the leader! Those still standing, lend a hand!”

“If I catch anyone slacking off, you’ll regret it!”

He was managing everyone at the center of the field—

Not just members of Iron Sword, but also other guilds, and even unaffiliated rogues and treasure hunters.

He was practically more righteous than the paladins themselves.

Lastly, there was the Daesan Industrial Association—

Who weren’t participating in the battle at all. Instead, they were busy maintaining pickaxes and shovels.

As expected, their target was the Magic Stones.

Essential components for magi-engineering, the demand for magic stones was sky-high.

Supply could never keep up, and prices rose daily.

The deposits here were said to be over three times the usual amount—an extremely lucrative haul.

‘The greenhouse will be cleared soon… then only the boss fight remains.’

The raid already had the upper hand.

“Graaaah! I won’t lose to mere humans…!”

Only one 4-star Skeleton Mage remained.

However, neither Seo Changhee nor the missing Park Yeri were anywhere in sight.

Which meant—

It was time for Yohan to join the group.

He covered himself in dust and made a few shallow cuts on his body.

Rip—

He tore his clothes and tangled his hair.

‘Gotta look a bit roughed up.’

Someone wandering through this dungeon for days without a single wound?

That’d draw suspicion immediately.

They might even assume he possessed an S-rank item and target him.

In other words—

“M-M…muh…”

This was the best way to blend in.

In this “Land of Courtesy in the East,” it was only natural to pity those who appeared poor and wounded.

＊＊＊

“Of course. You must have suffered greatly, coming all this way after losing your comrades. You can rest easy now.”

Lee Junho of the Iron Sword Guild welcomed Yohan without hesitation.

If it had been any other guild, they might have shown more wariness,

but peculiarly, the Iron Sword Guild accepted everyone inside the dungeon.

As if they truly couldn’t bear to abandon even a single person.

Anyone watching would have mistaken them for real Paladins.

Just seeing their gentle smiles somehow warmed the heart.

Receiving cool water and a piping-hot boiled potato, Yohan quietly blended into a corner of the raid party.

And then, at that moment—

“We’ll have to cut it off. Leave it alone, and he’ll die.”

A familiar voice came from the direction of the medical tent treating the injured.

It was Seo Changhee.

“Hey, you lunatic! It’s just an ingrown toenail! Why do you keep talking about amputation? Where are all the doctors and healers? Why is this maniac the one treating the patients?”

“My diagnosis is accurate. Dealing with fools like you is rather exhausting.”

Seo Changhee sighed while flipping through a book.

In his hands was a medical manga.

It looked to be just around the start of volume two.

“Mr. Changhee is right. I’ll prepare for surgery immediately.”

Beside him was a woman who looked like a nurse assisting him.

Her face was full of excitement—apparently thrilled by the mention of amputation.

A psycho doctor and a nurse, huh...

But that wasn’t the end of the problem.

The injured person next to them had his arm bent at an obviously unnatural angle.

“Grrr... P-please... help me... it hurts too much...”

“You’re exaggerating.”

“What?”

“Endure it. To become strong, you must learn to bear pain. This patience will help you grow. Perhaps one day, you’ll even be worthy of following in my footsteps. If that day comes, I’ll accept you as my comrade.”

Having said it himself, Seo Changhee smiled in satisfaction, clearly pleased with his own words.

“Wh—what the hell are you talking about! Forget patience and growth—just fix my arm already!”

The man with the broken arm screamed for help, but Seo Changhee had already turned his back and started walking away.

Then suddenly, he spotted Yohan.

“You are...? Ah, yes. I thought you were no ordinary man since the Mystery Room. So you survived after all.”

“Well... the moment I saw you, I thought the same thing. And sure enough, you’re exceeding expectations again.”

It wouldn’t have hurt if he’d fallen a little below expectations this time, though.

Why was it that this guy never changed from one episode to the next?

“If you’re trying to win my favor through flattery, you can stop. I only judge a person by their inner qualities and talent.”

That wasn’t a compliment.

“Heh.”

Then why did he look so pleased with himself?

Yohan pressed his temples, trying to ease the headache forming there.

At that moment—

“Why, Mr. Changhee, did you run into someone you kn—kyaaaah!”

The nurse screamed as soon as she saw Yohan’s face, as if she’d seen something she never wanted to see again.

A stranger might have been deeply hurt by that kind of reaction.

But her response was understandable.

Because the nurse’s true identity was Park Yeri.

She must have worked well with Seo Changhee during their human experiments, since she was now disguised as an angel in a white coat here.

“You’ve got quite a few wounds. Let’s start with some simple treatment, Ms. Yeri.”

“Y-yes, sir!”

Tremble tremble.

Park Yeri’s hands shook out of rhythm as she treated Yohan’s wounds.

Heh, so she could make that kind of face.

Sure enough, the memories from a few hours ago must have been nightmarish.

After getting her neck sliced off and then being tortured with pebbles,

trauma was an inevitable result.

Holding a pebble-shaped potato, Yohan quietly chewed his food.

Twitch.

The awkward expression on Park Yeri’s face—probably just his imagination. Maybe.

“Anyway, how was the item I recommended?”

“Not bad. I wasn’t expecting much, but turns out it was exactly what I needed.”

Pop!

When he flicked open the Zippo lighter, a white flame rose up.

[S-rank item ‘White Flame Lighter’ has been activated!]

It stored good deeds and allowed their value to be exchanged for luck.

Well... whether those deeds truly counted as “good” was another question.

The White Flame Lighter had a special trait: if its owner truly believed their actions were righteous, then even evil deeds would be recognized as good.

That was why Yohan had said, back in the Mystery Room, that it was the perfect item for Seo Changhee.

That narcissist sincerely believed every one of his actions would save the world.

‘Even if he’s half a quack, he must’ve treated quite a number of people... He’s probably stored up a great deal of luck by now.’

Perhaps enough to not only discover a Hidden Piece— but something beyond even that.

“Good. Glad it was useful. My treatment’s fine now. You look busy, so go take care of the urgent ones first.”

“Alright. I’ll see the other patients and come back. Ms. Yeri, please prepare to cauterize the patient in Tent B. According to volume three of this book, when someone keeps coughing,

you need to keep them warm.”

“Yes, sir.”

As Seo Changhee left, Yohan’s gaze turned to Park Yeri.

“W-what now?”

She looked guilty, like a kid caught stealing ice cream from the freezer.

“I’m just looking.”

“If you’re going to cut off my head again, at least give me a warning first! I can’t even use my powers for now!”

“Forget the head.”

Yohan leaned in slowly, bringing his face close enough for their breaths to mingle.

“This is an A-rank item called [Physical Potato]. If someone lies while answering my question, it’ll mercilessly crush them.”

What he pulled out was a freshly boiled potato, still steaming.

Anyone would’ve thought it was just a supply ration, but Yohan’s expression was dead serious.

“You’re joking... right? You’re saying this thing is an item? It even has a bite mark on the corner!”

“If you’re curious, we can test it.”

“Sigh... fine. What do you want to know?”

“The reason you’re staying here. And just to be clear, I won’t accept any crap like

‘I’ve reformed and decided to help people.’”

If she told the truth, she’d live.

If not—

Gulp.

Swallowing dryly, Park Yeri confessed her purpose with resignation.

“Honestly... I was planning to summon a Guardian here to trigger the boss’s appearance. The strong Hunters would survive, but the mediocre ones would get shredded to pieces. Then I could collect their hearts freely, play around with the ones screaming in agony for fun, and pick up a few items along the way. That was the plan.”

Even though she had submitted to a stronger opponent, her lips still curved into a bloodstained smile.

‘So she’s already killed a few here too.’

The faint scent of blood clinging to her body gave it away.

Her nurse disguise was clearly meant to keep suspicion off her.

What a cruel woman.

Anyway—

‘So that was her plan.’

With a raid of this size, they’d eventually take down the boss, but not before descending into chaos.

It would be a chance to seize items, gear, magic stones, and even extra hearts.

And completing the dungeon raid would also secure an exit route.

For Park Yeri, there couldn’t be a better opportunity.

Unfortunately for her, using the [Physical Potato] would have to wait.

“That sounds fun.”

“Fine, fine. I’ll give it up—wait, what?”

“Do it. Just as planned.”

A Guardian and a Boss.

An 8-star and a 12-star monster— that would make for quite the entertaining situation.

“You’re serious?”

“Of course. But I’ll tell you where to summon them. Make sure you do it exactly there. And also...”

Yohan glanced over at Seo Changhee, who was making his rounds nearby.

“Bring me that lighter he’s carrying.”

The White Flame Lighter.

By the fifth day, the luck stored within it must have nearly reached its maximum.

“You want me to steal from him? And you’re saying I’m the villain?”

“That’s harsh. I’m just asking for a short-term loan. I’ll give it back once I’m done with it.”

Seo Changhee might want to use the White Flame Lighter to find an Opportunity in this place, but unfortunately, Yohan couldn’t allow that.

If he let the man monopolize the Hidden Piece, the entire dungeon raid would collapse.

In other words, this was all for the greater good.

Not out of personal greed— but in the hope of a higher success rate, to save humanity and those trapped within the Tower of Trials.

Yes, exactly that.