Chapter 23 - Bronze Rock Mountain (2/2)

Leaving Triton behind in the lake, the Abyssal Ship continued on to the island.

Influenced by the increasingly colder air, the party members couldn’t help but shiver.

“I never expected this kind of place.”

“It feels like we are in Alaska.”

“Will we encounter a polar bear?”

Icebergs could be seen floating in the water beside the ship.

It wouldn’t be strange even if Penguins which were supposed to live exclusively in the South Pole, appeared.

“Listen closely to what I’m about to tell you.”

As soon as Woohyuk spoke up, their excitement died down as they became focused, staring at the bronze feathers he held in his hand.

“There will be Bronze Rock Golems in the caves of that mountain.”

It was one of the trickier monsters to deal with because their entire bodies were made of a Bronze Rock, giving them an absurd level of Defense. Not to mention that their Bronze properties made them highly resistant to magic as well, an absolute defense.

Hunting them with magic simply wasn’t an option.

“Special tools will be more effective than regular weapons, because the only way to break through their defense and reach their core, was to focus all of your strength on a single point.”

It was the same principle he had used to hunt the Queen Star Snake.

When trying to break apart a rock, a hammer and spike worked far better than an iron sword.

“It might not be possible with the ones we have in our Tool Kit, they are simply too small…”

“We can make our own spikes.”

They just happened to have some good material on hand, the Stymphalian bird feathers.

Their melting point was lower than iron, so it wasn’t all too difficult to cast. The only difficulty lied in making the mould, but even that wasn’t much of a challenge. After all, the shape of a spike was rather simple.

Upon arriving at the island, they disembarked from the ship, and Woohyuk asked his teammates to start a fire.

He took the time to buy all the things he needed for forging from the General Shop. A small semicircular furnace and a stone mould.

Although it was rather primitive, it would do just fine to make the bronze spikes.

As he hammered a chisel in order to create the proper mold in the stone, the party focused on finding timber to feed the fire.

“Hukhuk... I was almost shocked to death.”

“I didn’t expect there to really be polar bears....”

They had also spotted arctic animals such as emperor penguins and arctic foxes within this Bronze Rock Mountain.

That was one of the reasons that the Gremlins living in the caves would often come out to hunt.

“You will have to get used to this place, I’m planning on staying at least three days.”

It would be troublesome if any of his party members were to get injured while he was away. Throwing a wrench into his plans.

Woohyuk immediately started forging the spikes as soon as the mould was done.

“You seem so experienced in this, as if you were a blacksmith.”

“A genius in so many things.”

His party couldn’t help but praise as they watched him work. Shortly after the liquid bronze was poured into the spike’s stone mould.

As soon as what appeared to be a large bronze nail had cooled off, he removed it from the mould and tested it by hammering a nearby stone.

Quazic

Cracks appeared on the rock as it began to crumble.

Decently sturdy. The bronze feathers from the Stymphalian bird were imbued with some magic, so it was a great material, equivalent to black iron.

“Lend me your hammer weapon for the next little while.”

“Sure thing Boss, I can just fight with a different weapon.

Huang Donghwan replied as he held an axe in each hand. They were weapons that he had previously obtained from the Minotaurs.

They looked rather impressive, but Woohyuk shook his head.

“Gremlins are faster than you think. Here, use this instead.”

Elder Lizardman’s Trident.

It was no longer useful for Woohyuk since they’d already left the swamp.

Huang Donghwan bowed enthusiastically with a beaming smile.

“Thank you Boss!”

“Use that axe to cut some trees down, we will be here for some time and need a place to stay.”

Tents and a campfire weren’t enough to stay in such a cold climate if a blizzard were to suddenly strike.

After finding a suitable location with a flat area, Woohyuk used a branch to draw on the floor. Designating where each building should go.

“Just think of it as building a camp in the North Pole.”

It wasn’t going to be some temporary camp that they’d abandon.

Since this location had strategic value, it was worth investing some time into building a proper camp.

Following Woohyuk’s instructions, they quickly went to cut down some trees.

As they struggled to drag a log, an Emperor Penguin suddenly appeared next to them.

“Oh, it’s a penguin.”

“Isn’t this supposed to be more like the North Pole, not the South?”

Curious, Jung Sanghoon tried to reach out to touch it, as the Vampiric dagger flew out, sinking into the Penguin’s neck.

“Kill them as soon as you encounter them. If you let them live, they will bring back other penguins and try to steal our things. ”

These Penguins were scavengers and thieves.

Their image as adorable plushies was instantly shattered.

“What about their taste? Penguin meat shouldn’t be too bad with all the fat they had to keep themselves warm.”

Woohyuk however shook his head in response to Kim Dogyun’s question.

“It has a fishy taste and is too chewy, so it isn’t edible. Unless there is absolutely no other food, I wouldn’t recommend it.”

Even the legendary Cooking King, Hans, had said that penguin meat wasn’t meant to be eaten.

Hearing Woohyuk’s explanation, Nam Kiryang appeared to be quite sad.

“Okay, well at least we still have those Stymphalian birds we can roast. ”

“Today’s dinner will be fish.”

In order to win over Hans later on, he had collected several live Stymphalian birds. As Triton approached holding the live birds in each hand, Woohyuk simply handed him some fishing gear.

“Catch enough for 12 people.”

“...”

Triton received a fishing pole and a net with a sad face, as he was instructed to catch them some fish.

Sending a half-fish fishing, it was too cruel but he simply had no choice.

“Boss, what are the Gremlins like?”

Lee Jaesung asked upon his return.

“It is similar to a Goblin, but more intelligent and crafty. They can resort to all kinds of trickery.”

The big difference between the Gremlins and their cousin Goblins that could be found in Squally Mines, was that the Gremlins were good with tools. They could build rudimentary machinery and were adept at handling weapons.

“Incredible, they are like smart Goblins.”

“Originally they were nothing special.”

That is until they were brainwashed by someone.

Woohyuk looked up at the Bronze Rock mountain.