Chapter 905

While approximately one thousand five hundred Head Crusher Guild members launched an assault on the eastern harbor of Marine City to draw attention—

“Let’s go.”

Siegfried led the remaining one thousand guild members into the city’s underground sewer system.

A horrible stench coming from the rotting filth, sludge, and unidentifiable waste hit them the moment they entered the sewer, and this was made worse by the stagnant air in it.

The air reeked with the horrible stench of organic matters decomposing with a touch of the salty scent often found in coastal cities.

“

Ugh...”

Even for Siegfried, who had been through his fair share of horrible stenches, could not help but grimace at the stomach-churning stench.

If he was to rank the stench coming from the Marine City’s sewers, it was probably the worst compared to anything he had ever smelled.

“Hold up,” Siegfried suddenly stopped in his tracks and signaled.

“

Kyu?

What’s wrong, owner punk?” Hamchi tilted his head and asked.

Siegfried frowned and grumbled, “I was just wondering... Why the hell do I always end up crawling through sewers and stinky places?”

Now that he thought about it, he always seemed to find himself in a sewer whenever there was an infiltration, covert ops, or ambush missions.

When it came to slipping past heavily fortified defenses, no other routes were as effective as the underground tunnels. Thus, it was a logical choice to infiltrate using the sewer systems, as it spread throughout most cities, making it difficult for the enemy to guard every point.

“

Kyuuu!

Did you only notice it now? Hamchi knew it long ago! Owner punk loves sewers!”

“What did you say, you little punk?”

“Owner punk always complains about the smell, but you still keep coming back for more! You’re a total sewer freak!

Kyuuu!”

“Why you little—!”

Just as Siegfried was about to lunge at Hamchi—

Ding!

A message popped up in front of his eyes.

[Alert: Congratulations!]

[Alert: You have acquired a new title!]

[Alert: You have obtained the title: Reality Stinks!]

[Reality Stinks]

[A title bestowed upon those who frequent the sewers.]

[You might carry a lingering stench, but this title is incredibly useful!]

[Type: Title]

[Rating: Unique]

[Effects: +50% Attack Power in Sewers, +30% Movement Speed in Sewers, Grant Nearby Allies +30% Attack Power and +10% Movement Speed in Sewers.]

[Warning: You will emanate a foul stench for 10 minutes after leaving the sewer.]

“...”

Siegfried was speechless after reading the details of his new title. He stared at the screen in stunned silence for a few minutes. He managed to forget about it for a while, but the damned system would never miss a chance to screw him over.

The moment it saw an opportunity, it would immediately strike and slap him with yet another humiliating title.

Ding!

An icon depicting a wet and dirty sewer-dwelling rat appeared above his head...

Rumble

Then, a surge of energy coursed through him.

[Alert: Attack Power has increased by 50%!]

[Alert: Movement Speed has increased by 30%!]

And it was not just him—

“Oh?!”

“Whoa! This buff is insane!”

The guild members following behind him also received a boost to their stats.

But...

“

Pfft!”

“Reality Stinks? Yeah, okay.

Hahaha!”

“Kekekeke!”

“What’s with that rat above his head? I can’t—

BWAHAHA!”

The guild members burst into laughter at the sight of the filthy sewer rat floating above Siegfried’s head.

As if that was not bad enough—

Buzz, buzz, buzz!

A swarm of flies suddenly appeared, circling around Siegfried after getting drawn in by the disgusting aura he was emanating.

Siegfried’s face twitched violently.

Kwachik!

“

Arghhh!

This fucking piece of—!”

If there was one thing he hated, then that was none other than flies. This was not the first time he had to deal with them. Back when he absorbed the Terramog's core, he got a debuff called "Skunk" for thirty days.

‘

No way... Is it going to last for thirty days again?’

A chill ran down his spine. At least Skunk had a fixed duration before disappearing, but it was different this time. There was no mention of any duration in his new title[1], none at all.

And that scared Siegfried more than anything else in this world right now.

***

‘No way. No way in hell. It will disappear after I leave the sewers... It has to...’

Siegfried tried his best to stay optimistic while venturing through the sewer.

It was then.

“Intruders!”

“How dare you set foot in this place?!”

The Fallen Angels guarding the sewer spotted them from a distance and immediately took up their battle stance.

“

Tsk...

Just die, will you?” Siegfried grumbled, already in a foul mood.

He swung his +16 Vanquisher’s Grasp at the Fallen Angels blocking his path.

Wooong!

A powerful burst of shockwave erupted from the +16 Vanquisher’s Grasp, spreading out and completely devouring the Fallen Angels.

“...!”

Three, two, and one!

Swoosh!

The Fallen Angels disintegrated into dust, vanishing without leaving a trace.

Siegfried’s skill, the Wave of Annihilation, truly lived up to his name.

[Alert: You have gained Experience Points!]

[Alert: You have gained Experience Points!]

[Alert: You have gained Experience Points!]

(omitted...)

[Alert: You have gained Experience Points!]

He gained a ton of experience points from each of the angels he killed.

[Alert: Congratulations!]

[Alert: You have reached Level 320!]

Siegfried finally leveled up after filling up his experience bar, which was just slightly away from a hundred percent after killing the Coral Warrior, Sirius.

“

Whoa...”

“D-Did you see that damage just now?!”

“No way...”

On the other hand, the guild members were in complete shock upon witnessing the sheer power that Siegfried had displayed just now.

Taking down even one Fallen Angel was no easy feat, yet Siegfried had erased an entire group with a single skill.

Of course, Siegfried didn't really care about that right now.

‘

So, they do have guards. I guess we will have to be prepared for one big battle later,’

Siegfried thought as he continued forward.

About ten minutes later...

After walking through the cramp tunnels, they arrived at a massive septic tank where all of the city’s wastewater was being collected.

It was then.

“Intruders!”

“Kill them all!”

Dozens of Fallen Angels poured in through multiple sewer tunnels, quickly filling the massive septic tank.

A battle broke out immediately.

‘

You guys just made a big mistake. It’s quite cramped here, you see?’

Siegfried thought with a smirk.

The greatest advantage of the Fallen Angels was their aerial mobility.

But here? This was a giant septic tank where all of the city's wastewater was gathered.

The ability to fly was absolutely useless here.

“

Argh!”

“Damn it!”

The Fallen Angels fell victim to the Embrace of Despair filling the entire septic tank, and they struggled to move properly.

“Fall back!” Siegfried shouted at his comrades right after ensnaring the angels in a debilitating slow debuff.

Without uttering any questions, the guild members immediately retreated several meters. Then, Siegfried leapt into the center of the septic tank and activated his skill, Absolute Zero.

Flash!

A blinding white light flashed, and a chilling frost covered the Fallen Angels.

“Wha—!”

“

Ack—

!

”

“Ggr—!”

The Fallen Angels did not freeze to death, but they were completely frozen, unable to even move an inch.

“Kill them all,” Siegfried gave the order.

Waaaaah!

The guild members charged in, smashing the frozen angels into pieces.

[Alert: You have gained Experience Points!]

[Alert: You have gained Experience Points!]

[Alert: You have gained Experience Points!]

(omitted...)

[Alert: You have gained Experience Points!]

Siegfried did not bother joining the one-sided destruction. His guild members were already doing a good job, so there was no need for him to intervene.

Just like that, the Battle of Septic Tank ended, and the Fallen Angels were wiped out without being able to put up any real resistance.

‘

Hmm? What’s that?’

Just as Siegfried was about to move onward, something glimmering near the pile of angel corpses appeared in the corner of his eye. He decided to take a look before moving on.

[Gray Feather of Fallen Angel]

[A feather left behind by a Fallen Angel who has met their demise.]

[It was originally black, but it turned gray upon death.]

[Type: Material]

[Rating: Unique]

[Note: It contains traces of divine power. Collecting enough might allow you to craft wings.]

This was Siegfried's first time seeing the so-called "Gray Feather of Fallen Angel." It seemed that it was an item that only high-level Fallen Angels would drop.

‘

It doesn’t really concern me though, right?’

Siegfried already had the +10 Black Crow Wingsuit, so even if he could craft a pair of wings with these feathers, the wings wouldn't be that useful for him.

Still, he thought that it would be a waste to leave them behind, so he summoned the Three-Legged Crow and ordered it to collect the feathers.

However, the Three-Legged Crow was not flying this time.

Perhaps it was because its feathers were missing?

Instead of soaring majestically through the air like it always did, it sprinted across the ground and frantically gathered the feathers.

[Alert: You have obtained Gray Feather of Fallen Angel!]

[Alert: You have obtained Gray Feather of Fallen Angel!]

[Alert: You have obtained Gray Feather of Fallen Angel!]

(omitted...)

[Alert: You have obtained Gray Feather of Fallen Angel!]

Thanks to his luck, Siegfried managed to gain sixty percent of the feathers thanks to a series of lucky dice rolls.

Meanwhile, the guild members were baffled, some even doubting their eyes.

“D-Did you see that just now?”

“Yeah, but I have no idea what that was...”

“Was that a raw whole chicken[2] running around...?”

They had seen something, but the Three-Legged Crow ran so fast that none of them were actually sure what it was.

‘

Ah, you must be embarrassed to show that side of you...’

Siegfried could not help but feel a little sorry for the crow, who ran around at lightning speed to collect the loot before vanishing without a trace.

With that, the encounter against the Fallen Angels in the septic tank concluded, and Siegfried led his guild members onward.

***

One hour later, Siegfried emerged from a drainage tunnel roughly twenty kilometers away from the Temple of the Sea God, which was the headquarters of the Church of Neptune.

It would have been ideal to go all the way through the sewers leading to the temple’s vicinity, but it wasn't an option for them. The passageways became extremely narrow the deeper they went until it was barely wide enough for a full-grown adult to pass.

There was no way a thousand people could crawl through such a tight space at once.

Upon reaching the surface, Siegfried quickly divided the guild members into five groups, each consisting of two hundred people. He then assigned each group to different locations throughout Marine City.

“Cause as much commotion as you can. The key is to spread out and lure them, but avoid engaging in combat if possible. Should things get bad, retreat into the sewers immediately.”

With that, the five groups dispersed to wreak havoc across the city and lure the Fallen Angels away from the temple.

Meanwhile, Siegfried and his elite squad would use the distraction to infiltrate the temple and rescue the stranded clergymen.

“Let’s go.”

Leading a team of around twenty elite guild members, Siegfried set off toward the temple. Reaching the temple was not going to be easy. The Fallen Angels patrolled the night sky, keeping watch over the streets and alleys.

Any sudden movement could draw attention, while moving too slowly could leave them exposed on the streets.

However, Siegfried maintained his cool and waited patiently. He moved slowly, using the terrain to his advantage, hiding while on the move.

The five groups would soon cause a ruckus that would attract the attention of the Fallen Angels, so he had no reason to move quickly and risk getting spotted right now.

About ten minutes later...

Flap! Flap!

The flapping of wings echoed through the night sky as the Fallen Angels flocked toward a specific direction.

‘

Now’s our chance!’

Siegfried immediately recognized what was going on. His guild members did their part, and the angels had taken the bait.

‘

Good.’

Everything was going exactly as planned.

At this rate, he would be able to reach the temple, rescue the High Priest and his followers, and escape Marine City without any issues.

1. It doesn't say whether the title is permanent or temporary ☜

2. Veela: LOOOOL ☜