NOVEL SIMPLE Chapter 346
Side Story: Weapon Collection – 4
As the door swung open with a bang, Ceres entered, surprising the woman who had been working in her place temporarily.
“What’s up? You came earlier than expected. Where’s the guest?”
“They’re gone.”
Ceres gave a brief response and picked up a hammer. But that didn’t satisfy the woman, who continued to barrage her with questions.
“Who was it? If they came all the way here just to specifically call you out, it can’t have been for nothing.”
“Just… a pitiful person.”
“Pitiful? How so?”
“Let’s skip that. It’s not something I should share with others.”
The woman shut her mouth. However, her silence was far from satisfied. She was dying to know, but hearing that it wasn’t something to share only made her want to know more.
“Then at least tell me why you came here?”
“I had some personal business with you. I can’t say more than that.”
The woman, unable to suppress her curiosity further, was finally kicked out by Ceres who locked the door behind her.
Then Ceres cast a glance at her chest, which was so large it blocked her view below, and smiled contentedly as she began to mold the materials. Her fingers buried deeply into them.
‘What a small world.’
She heard there was someone she wanted to deck, and upon diving into the details, it turned out to be related to Delta—the very person who had saved her life.
‘Was it Fetch?’
She was a woman who really knew how to talk.
When Fetch brought up the past, something Ceres wanted to bury completely, it made her a bit emotional. Yet even then, if the person involved had not been her lifelong benefactor, Ceres would have likely helped her.
Half-convinced and gathering materials, Ceres ultimately shared with Fetch how to create an Enhancement Potion.
She omitted specific ingredients to shorten the duration drastically.
Ceres’s potions lasted quite a long time, but Fetch’s would barely last 30 minutes even if she managed to craft it by acquiring Holy Water infused with light.
What Ceres personally wished for was to see Fetch boasting about her benefactor only to witness them shrinking in real-time—but as just a blacksmith, Ceres couldn’t control such intricate details.
‘I wonder if my benefactor will soon give me a crafting request.’
She stared intently at the ingot she received from Fetch. With not a single impurity mixed in, it could be sold for a pretty penny just as it was—top-grade metal.
‘I’m sure they’ll pop by eventually.’
With a promise to use it on the day her benefactor finally gives her a request, Ceres carefully stored the ingot in a box and began her work with that little hope in her heart.
“Have you heard the news, Delta? They’re announcing a new DLC for Brightest Darkness 4!”
“I’ve heard, Kaiquilia. We’re in a frenzy over it. They’re claiming a free DLC is being released for a ten-year-old game.”
“Why suddenly? Is there something in our world?”
“Probably something.”
“Oh, really? What is it?”
“You’ll have to go back to that world and see it for yourself, Your Majesty Empress Aurora Libanus.”
“Ugh… just a little bit longer…”
I already knew the identity of that ‘free DLC.’ I had heard it from Linne.
Linne said that nobles who visited the alchemy workshop shared some intriguing news. It was a sort of bribe implying they’d be in touch again in the future.
A new dungeon had appeared right on the border between the Empire and the Holy Kingdom in the center of the continent, and the things found within would be materials for crafting items.
Naturally, it was a dungeon created by Eclipse, but Eclipse’s crazy feats didn’t stop there.
[‘World’s Best Developer’]
[Image]
What an absolute win, dropping a major free DLC for a game over ten years old, these guys are serious LOL!!!
At least me first, HAHAHAHA!!!
[3167 views] [1013 upvotes] [7 downvotes]
[Comment]
Not fake I gave it 900 upvotes.
ㄴIt’s fake, you’re a fucking idiot.
ㄴLooking at the upvotes, it’s not a joke, it’s real;
[‘World’s Worst Developer’]
[Image]
Instead of making Brightest Darkness 5, these pricks drop a DLC for a game that’s over ten years old! Huge upvote for that!!! HAHAHAHA!!!
At least me, HAHAHAHA!!!
[2975 views] [1832 upvotes] [102 downvotes]
[Comment]
Not fake, I gave it 1800 upvotes.
ㄴNo way, this idiot’s been trolling since earlier.
ㄴ2900 views and 1800 upvotes, are you out of your mind?
[The cognitive dissonance here is hilarious]
I’m glad it’s a huge free DLC, but I’m still pissed that there’s been no news about Brightest Darkness 5 for ages!!!
But should I be happy about this or mad?
[Comment]
Use Gonnic to curse, then flip over to Logod, they’ll love it.
ㄴYou’re a genius, right?
ㄴI turned on Logod after seeing this!
ㄴBut why turn on Logod?
ㄴI’ll show you soon.
But for real? They’re giving such a huge update to a game that’s over ten years old? And for free? Are they not thinking about money at all?
ㄴYou’re saying they’re serious about the game? Apologize for that word.
ㄴWhy don’t these serious gamers make Brightest Darkness 5?
ㄴDamn it.
ㄴCan’t argue with that LMAO!
ㄴIt’s only serious for the Brightest Darkness series, not for just Brightest Darkness 4~
Free DLC for Brightest Darkness 4 and delaying Brightest Darkness 5 by ten years, vs having no updates for Brightest Darkness 4 but having Brightest Darkness 5 out within a year.
ㄴBrightest Darkness 5 probably hasn’t even started development yet, why are you being confrontational?
ㄴFor real LOL.
ㄴIf they were working on something, they would’ve released at least one gameplay video over ten years; seeing nothing proves they’re just talking.
[One who made the Dark Lab Mode is now famous]
I made a mod for Brightest Darkness 4, and now the development company has bitten the bait! HAHAHAHA!!!
At this point, isn’t this a blissful convergence of gaming and creation?
[Comment]
For real LOL.
For real LOL.
For real LOL.
That guy probably gets to try out Brightest Darkness 5 early, how jealously sweet.
ㄴThere probably isn’t anything to see, but yeah, who knows something’s up?
ㄴThey sometimes pop by the community, maybe I could ask if they’re really making it?
ㄴThey won’t be able to speak anyway; if they say something carelessly, they’ll get sued.
I heard in an interview that mods played a huge part in development. I’m terrified to think how brutal the game will be since this Dark Lab Mode is already too hard; I can’t even get past the early areas yet!
ㄴYou’re still a newbie? That’s so cute!
ㄴI’ve only got 2700 hours played, so I guess I’m a newbie?
ㄴYou wanna die, old man?
ㄴThat’s right! I am a hardcore player with 15,000 hours; anyone under 10,000 is considered a newbie.
This is a mess.
After browsing for a bit, I shut off my phone. The gathered souls who had reached their limits and the resurrected undead were wreaking havoc, making it absolute chaos.
There was a coexistence of the world’s worst and best developers, while the ancient undead were already showing off their character creations in today’s Brightest Darkness gallery.
Honestly, it was a combination that couldn’t help but cause chaos. After all, this was the fourth DLC, and now, eight years later, we were graced with a free update for Brightest Darkness 4.
As someone benefiting from this, it’s great—but why? It made me exclaim. The people here didn’t know that the developers of the Brightest Darkness series were goddesses from another world, so it was understandable.
“A dungeon where all the bosses from the main game appear even stronger… Just hearing the explanation makes it an intriguing space.”
“We shouldn’t have our sights set on it yet, Aunt. First, we need to advance through the rounds. What good is it to play with bosses there while we’re delaying the story?”
The purpose of the free DLC, Chaos Dungeon, was clear. It was meant to allow me to acquire weapons from Brightest Darkness 4 in a scenario where all the bosses had vanished.
I suppose it was a method knowing I tend to avoid depending too much on my goddess.
‘I didn’t expect to hear this from Linne.’
I briefly questioned why we weren’t the first to know that a new dungeon was being released, but then remembered the issue lay with us.
Everyone had been holed up in my apartment. With every major figure of the Empire and Holy Kingdom confined here, how would they catch wind of the happenings in that world?
Currently, the Empire’s work was being handled by Aurora’s doppelgänger, and the real Aurora and the unoccupied Kaiquilia were wholly devoted to gaming here.
Minerva had no particular interest in anything outside of the mage tower, aside from scrolls, while the knight commanders were busy enjoying the local cuisine here.
The popes had been sent off voluntarily by the Holy Kingdom to deepen their bonds with the Holy Ones, while the former Inquisitors were closely aiding the popes.
Lastly, Nix hadn’t left my bed at all, so none had paid mind to the other side.
Although I occasionally dropped by that world, after finishing my tasks, I would return here immediately, making it a cycle where I could hardly hear the news.
‘Well, that’s that.’
I sat in front of my computer and booted up Brightest Darkness 4. Whatever it was, new content had been released, and I couldn’t just sit idle as a hardcore player. I had to lap up every last drop.
While I’d eventually dive directly into that world, I should enjoy it through gameplay first.
“Oh, are you joining in too, Delta?”
“Of course! Just how much time have I put into this game?”
“Oh.”
Aurora chuckled awkwardly. Now both of them were in a situation to play, so they knew just how absurd the figure 30,217 on my playtime was.
Even if one played nonstop for 24 hours a day, they’d have to stay glued to it for over three years.
‘I should play it pretty ordinarily on my first try.’
While rifling through the save files to decide which character to go in as, I pulled up a save file with a max-level character. I could always try a barehanded run or a level one run once I got used to things.
With a cheerful heart, I entered the Chaos Dungeon.
—You died.
“…Huh?”
It had been ages since I faced an ordinary death, not from a concept play, but from standard gameplay, by welcoming the presence of a certain character.