Chapter 487: What’s there to fear?

"Y-you accept?" Chae-rin’s eyes widened, the words leaving her lips in a shaky stumble.

She honestly didn’t think it would be this easy.

Before arriving here, she had already tried approaching other powerful NPCs, offering them the very same quest.

Generally speaking, just hearing the name "Dreker" was enough to make them grimace and shudder, as if the mere sound of those syllables could bring bad luck down on their heads.

A priest she’d met while still in the Kingdom of Burning Ice had even ordered her, eyes filled with dread, never to repeat that name in front of him again.

"Yeah, I’ll do it." Ethan nodded nonchalantly, leaning back in his seat and resting an arm over the backrest.

"A-aren’t you afraid or anything? I mean... Dreker seems like a pretty scary figure!" Chae-rin leaned forward slightly, her fingers clenching the hem of her clothes.

The response was a loud burst of laughter, echoing off the stone walls of the hall until it nearly startled one of the guards at the door.

"What’s there to fear? A pig that should’ve been dead a million years ago?"

Obviously, Ethan had already heard of Dreker.

The First Sinner. The man who tried to steal the Runes of Death and, upon failing, was condemned to an eternity of suffering in hell.

He was feared throughout all of Estria. Whenever one of his manifestations appeared, terrible plagues would befall the land, crops would rot overnight, and many would die before they even understood what was happening.

Dreker’s curses were, without a doubt, his greatest strength. But Ethan wasn’t afraid of that.

His eyes fell on yet another system notification flashing blue before him.

[The Goddess of Death is pleased with your acceptance. She bestows a blessing upon you.]

[The Goddess of Death’s Blessing has been upgraded! Level 1 -> Level 3]

[Name: Blessing of the Goddess of Death

Level: 3

Effect: +70% resistance to curses, +50% resistance to curses (Nationwide effect), +50% chance for a deceased person’s titles, talents, and a portion of their level to be passed on to their children.]

The boost to the bonus applied across all of Goldenveil was significant, but the new 70% curse resistance was what would serve Ethan best in the upcoming battle.

Being practically immune to curses, he had nothing to fear. Not as long as the Blood Emperor’s Ring sat on his finger.

"Where is this dungeon?" Ethan asked, standing up and straightening his clothes with a quick tug at his collar.

"Hmm... well, it’s a bit far... It’s on the opposite side of Eternal Mountain, near the city of Novenbrusk." Chae-rin nodded, looking a little sheepish, and scratched the back of her neck.

She stood up as well, taking her place beside Seo-ah.

She wanted to stay close to Ethan a little longer, but she knew that he, as a Lord—even if only an NPC in a game—had far too many responsibilities to waste time with her now.

"Hmm... I know that place." Ethan scratched his chin, his eyes taking on a deep, pensive gleam.

Novenbrusk was the closest city to Eternal Mountain in the entire Kingdom of Burning Ice.

A frigid, hostile place. A land full of powerful warriors and snow spectres that roamed among the storms.

Normally, getting there would be difficult, but he still had a few teleportation scrolls.

All he had to do was use them, get there, complete the mission, and return with another scroll.

"We’ll leave in about a week, in the morning. Train hard and be ready. I’ll have Seo-ah call you when it’s time."

Upon hearing that, Chae-rin’s eyes sparkled intensely, and she had to bite her lip to keep from grinning from ear to ear.

Yes. She’d finally done it.

And even better, she’d have plenty of time to explore that dungeon before they reached the boss. All alone with Ethan.

She shot Seo-ah a provocative glance, raising an eyebrow in a way that said it all without a single word.

Seo-ah snorted, pulling out her cell phone and typing with quick, irritated fingers, her nails clicking against the screen.

[If you, Miss Cow-Tits, want to be devoured by hubby that badly, fine... Just don’t choke to death on his dick!] Seo-ah hit send without a shred of hesitation.

Chae-rin blushed all the way to her ears, nearly letting something slip out loud, but she quickly regained her composure.

Ethan didn’t pay much attention to the petty squabbles between the two Korean beauties.

He walked over to Seo-ah, stole a kiss from her soft lips, and smiled gently against her mouth. "You look tired, love... you killed that fake dragon already, didn’t you? Don’t you want to rest a bit and take a shower?"

"No... well, not yet. I have a lot of work to do today."

Obviously, she wanted to take a shower with him, but she still needed to sort out the guild’s rewards and distribute everything.

"Ophelia said she wanted to see you after this, too. She seems to have something important to discuss."

"All right." Ethan gave Seo-ah’s butt a gentle pat. "I’m going to see her now."

Soon after, both girls left Ethan’s palace in high spirits, heading back to their guild’s main building.

Ethan was curious about what Ophelia wanted with him, so he didn’t hesitate to go find her.

The beautiful Chinese-American MILF was in her room, resting a bit and reading a book.

Lying on her back, she had the open book propped right between her enormous breasts, the heavy mounds cradling the pages between them. Her dark eyes scanned the lines calmly.

Ethan knocked gently on the door and let himself in. The room was warm, carrying a faint scent of perfume, and Ophelia lifted her face from the book, her voluptuous figure shifting on the mattress as she flashed him a graceful smile.

"Husband." She lifted the book off her breasts. "I’m so glad you came... You’ve already spoken to Seo-ah and that little friend of hers, haven’t you?"

"Yes." Ethan nodded, closing the door behind him with a soft click.

"Good. It’s Seo-ah I want to talk about. More specifically, her brother." Ophelia patted the mattress beside her, inviting Ethan to sit down.

Of course, that was a subject that greatly interested Ethan. Especially after learning that many Golden Lords carried the destinies of some nations’ great legends.

Well, as long as Seo-ah’s brother didn’t have the Arm-Severing Demon Emperor destiny resting on his shoulders, Ethan was happy.