Fantasy Realm – Infinite Worlds Adventure-Chapter 278: Cowardice or Wisdom? Early Rewards

[Congratulations for completing the hidden Mission ‘Cleansing the Corruption’.

Rewards will be distributed based on individual Contributions.

In addition, all participating players will receive an increase in their individual mission rating.

Your Ranking: 1]

You received Chest (Gold)

You received 50,000 FC

You received Soul Crystal (Medium) x3

As Aragog's massive body crashes to the floor, the entire Dome of Corruption shudders and collapses along with the remaining Acromantulas, plunging the nest into an unnatural, heavy silence.

Alex blinks at the notification floating before his eyes, managing a tired smile as the gold-ranked chest materializes among his rewards. Yet when he turns to survey the battlefield, any sense of victory evaporates instantly.

Rishi moves toward him, placing a firm hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry for stealing the final blow," he says, his voice calm but carrying weight, "but I figured you could use the assistance regardless."

"Without you, we'd all be dead..." Alex responds between gulps of air, his heart still hammering against his ribs like a wild thing. "That monster was about to explode... thank you, really. What bullshit overpowered shield was that?! Without pure damage we’d all be dead!" he complains.

The scene surrounding them is nothing short of horrific. Only four Centaurs remain standing amidst the carnage, with Magor being one of the few survivors. Alex's stomach drops as he takes in the player casualties - Ben's soldier-team has lost a member, Stefanie lies crumpled on the ground, missing an arm, supported only by a single female teammate who looks equally terrified, tears cutting tracks through the dirt on her face. Even Alicia's team hasn't escaped unscathed, with only three members left, though the self-satisfied smirk playing across her lips suggests the rewards have softened the blow.

A quick count reveals only eleven players still breathing.

“Shit!” Alex curses angrily.

All of that?! For what? I guess I’m happy none of us died and I got a golden chest… but still. Trading lives for chests?! I think we severely underestimated this mission.

The surviving players slowly gather together while Magor and the remaining centaurs kneel beside their fallen comrades, their mournful chants filling the cavernous space. Everyone wears expressions of exhaustion and defeat—everyone except Rishi, who maintains his usual composure, though Alex doesn't miss the faint, unsettling smile that flickers across his face before disappearing like a shadow.

I guess if you only consider our group's perspective… this went as well as could be expected? I got the first place, and I guess Rishi and Tereza will also earn high placements. You did fantastic, Jewel… without you and Tereza, I’d be dead. Thank you, I’ll never forget this.

Dearest Soulmate, such gratitude is unnecessary—this is simply how things should be! Without her Soulmate, Princess Jewel wouldn't even have a reason to live.

Alex's attention is drawn to Aragog's massive corpse as it begins disintegrating, the monstrous form breaking apart like a sand sculpture in the wind, dissolving into nothingness. As the last remnants vanish, the gathered players gasp in unison—where the body once lay, a pulsating dark-purple portal now hums with ominous energy.

When Alex steps closer, a new system message materializes:

[Hidden Dungeon Detected: The Source of Corruption.

Recommended players: 20

Every player can decide if he or she wants to participate.

Once a player enters, the player can’t leave until the dungeon is cleared.]

[Participate YES/NO]

"What the absolute fuck is this bullshit?" Ben's voice booms through the cavern, his words dripping with frustration.

"So this nightmare isn't actually over," Tereza sighs, the words heavy with exhaustion as she leans heavily on her staff.

"It's over! It's fucking OVER!!!" Stefanie suddenly screams, her voice raw and cracking. "No more! This was all one giant mistake!! We could have all gone home in a few minutes, safe and whole!! Our greed has already killed so many! I'm done! You suicidal maniacs can march to your deaths without me!" Her tirade continues for a solid thirty seconds before she finally collapses back into her teammate's arms, both women clearly finished with the mission.

"Well, that settles that," Alicia remarks dryly, examining her nails with feigned disinterest.

"Normally I'm all for high-risk, high-reward scenarios," she continues, her tone businesslike, "but when the system recommends twenty players and we're down to nine? That's pushing even my limits. As party leader, I'm officially withdrawing."

Ben nods vigorously beside her. "I’m a gambler and I like to take risks, but ya gotta know when to quit, especially if you are ahead."

Alex turns to Rishi and Tereza, seeing his own exhaustion mirrored in their faces. “It’s the smart thing to do. Without your special ‘finisher’ Rishi, we would all be dead now!”

Tereza nods immediately in agreement. "We've pushed our luck far enough already."

Only Rishi seems displeased, though he eventually concedes with a sigh: "Attempting this with just three players would be pure suicide. Besides, we're nearly out of time—we’d need to regroup, resupply, and actually prepare before even thinking about another dungeon."

As the group continues their discussion, another notification appears before them all:

[Remaining Mission Duration: 0 hours 59 minutes 59 seconds]

Alex nods and decides to open his chests.

He starts with the Blue Chest, dropped by Lucius Malfoy.

You received Noble Robe

You received 10,000 FC

“[Noble Robe] is merely a Deep blue robe that increases the effect of spells,” Alex notes, glancing over the item. He sees that it only increases MNA and CHA by 3 each—a respectable amount of stats, but not really necessary for him.

“I’ll take it. I’ll give you a Soul Crystal for it,” Rishi offers, as they immediately complete the trade.

You received Soul Crystal (Small)

[Bloody Chest R2]

World: Fantasy Realm

Level: 6

Rank: 2

Effect: Grants the owner three chances to obtain a random Item, FC, Soul Crystal, or a skill in the form of a skill book belonging to the deceased player.

Note: Can’t be traded

Alex quickly opens the two Bloody Chests, instantly using all six chances.

You received 5,000 FC

You received nothing

You received 4,000 FC

You received nothing

You received Soul Crystal (Small)

You received Skillbook: Flames

Not bad! Flames is a Light-Blue skill. It looks fairly useful. I bet I can sell that one for quite a lot of money. If I had more free skill slots, I might have kept it.

“Only one thing left to open,” Alex says with determination as he opens his chest.

You received Soul Crystal (Medium)

You received 27,000 FC

You received Rank Upgrade Token (Gold)

[Rank Upgrade Token (Gold) R2]

World: Fantasy Realm

Quality: Gold

Effect: Raises the rank of a weapon/equipment type item by 1. Limited to Gold Items and below.

Note: Can’t be traded!

Note: Can only be used on base-rank items

This seems useful! I can immediately rank up one of my Gold-quality items! This is incredible.

Looking pleased with his loot, Alex decides to share the results—though his mood remains sour.

Not only have they lost quite a few comrades, but they also feel the sting of failure for not truly "completing" the mission, having given up at the final step.

Rishi, despite his best efforts to maintain a calm demeanor, is obviously disappointed. The only one who seems relieved is Tereza.

“Thankfully, we all made it! That’s worth something as well. There’s no reason to be greedy!” she says.

“I know you’re right, Tereza… still, it’s a bit complicated,” Alex responds.

“Realistically, this is already as good as it’s ever going to get, but that realization hurts quite a lot. This is almost too much for me,” Rishi says, this time clearly bitter.

“What do you mean?” Alex questions his teammate.

“Simple… we might not be able to clear this hidden dungeon, but others might have done so. The Realm is balanced—if a dungeon exists, it’s possible to clear it. Those players capable of clearing it would be the very top the Realm has to offer… we better be really careful. This is a clear sign that we aren’t at the very top yet. From now on, we need to be extremely cautious—not only about the players capable of perfectly clearing missions like these but also about our future enemies. They might be beneath us in terms of potential, but for now, they have levels and numbers on their side,” Rishi explains.

I see… Roja’s guild… let’s hope it doesn’t come to that!

Despite their disappointment, the players promise each other to stay in contact. After all, even with this result, their cooperation had been quite successful.

Finally, as the mission time ticks down, Alex finds himself back in the familiar void. He is slightly surprised to see his results, as his achievements are no longer neatly listed like before—another indicator of the growing difficulty. By now, Alex has to guess and analyze what he did that affected his rating, unable to rely on the system for a neat summary and lesson each time.

[Player has completed his mission]

Overall Rating: S

You have received 15,000 Fantasy Coins and 7 stat points.

Your player level has been increased to 5.

After a few minutes of complete darkness, Alex finds himself in an unfamiliar room.

Alarmed, Alex carefully inspects the room he’s in.