Chapter 179

Just then, the master of the Phantom Knights, Kim Ahyun, said something weird about the Demon King.

"But… they didn't seem like a person."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm not sure. Before I passed out, I thought I saw someone. But…"

Kim Ahyun glanced behind her. Her eyes seemed to be going to her Phantom Knights, who weren't human and therefore weren't Players.

"They didn't feel like a person."

"Almost like the guys behind you?"

"..." Kim Ahyun was alarmed. She didn't say anything concrete, shrinking back with a vague, "I don't know exactly…"

Maybe she was a little more sensitive because she had a class that handled Phantom Knights? I didn't press the issue. In the future, Wings was known as a guild made up entirely of Players. There was probably a reason why they were keeping it a secret.

"If he wasn't a person, then what do you think he was?"

"Well…"

Kim Ahyun hesitated for a long time, clearly trying to figure out a way to put it but failing to find the words. After struggling for a while, she managed to come up with something.

"It's hard to say. It kind of feels like light and darkness are walking around together." She scratched her cheek, embarrassed by how weird her own words sounded. "It sounds weird to put it like that, but that's how it felt."

Light and darkness walking around together…

'As I thought, people of our level can't comprehend the Demon King.'

In any case, a master of Phantom Knights also said that the Demon King didn't seem like a person, corroborating my suspicion that he wasn't human.

'The Demon King.'

I had the feeling that as time went on, and the more quests and scenarios I cleared, the more often I would be meeting the Demon King.

* * *

I left the D-Tower, which had returned to being the Tutorial Building. After promising Vela that we would meet again, I went back home.

"Oppa!"

Sunhwa seemed to have worried a great deal about me. That being said, the sauce on her lips was evidence of how energetically she was eating the fried chicken she ordered just now.

"Sunhwa. You and I will be moving separately for the time being."

The Gran Seoul Dungeon would open. I would be moving separately from our guild, Giantgod. With Vela, that is.

Sunhwa stopped tearing into a chicken leg, giving me a tearful look. "Then we can't clear the dungeon together?"

"Yeah. Take it bit by bit. You can tackle the dungeon by following the route with the other Players."

And this was just me, but I thought there was a chance Song Junghye would play her tricks. What crap she would try to pull remained yet to be seen, but I didn't fear it.

'I'll watch to see what kind of cute trick you'll try.'

With a look of incomprehension, Sunhwa asked, "Why?"

She set down the chicken leg she liked so much. Granted, her fingers were still grasping it tightly, but she stopped eating.

"I'm super serious right now, Oppa." Sunhwa stared directly into my eyes, starting a pseudo-temper tantrum. "I like Playing with you… How come we can't Play together? What's with the Gran Seoul Dungeon?"

"The difficulty itself shouldn't be hard," I said, patting Sunhwa's head once.

"But I want to do it with you, Oppa…"

This kid's brother complex would probably get better after puberty, right? It had to. The path ahead seemed dark, seeing as she was already saying things like, 'I don't accept that unnie! I won't allow it!' Yes, she would probably… be fine after a few more years. That was my dear wish.

"It's good for you to learn how to work in tandem with other Players, too. There are definitely things to learn from working with people weaker than you."

"Still."

Sunhwa's shoulders slumped, and her face took on a sulky look. Apparently, not being able to Play with me was a big disappointment to her.

"Hunt the monsters. If you hunt them little by little every day and move forward, you'll be able to reach the 2nd floor."

"What happens then?"

"There's a high chance for a certain item to drop from the monster that shows up there."

"An item?"

"Yeah. An item that cannot be traded or given away and can only be used by the Player who acquires it."

Sunhwa's eyes were glued to me. As expected of a kid who found Playing fun, she was very interested in new items.

"Is it an important item?"

"Yeah. It is."

The 'Growth Fruit' that could determine whether a Player could get pass level 40 or not would be dropped on the 2nd floor. Only with that could one get past level 40, though a good number of Players were unable to level past 40 even after eating it. This was definitely the 'domain of talent'.

"Will you buy me chicken again if I listen well?"

"Of course."

Sunhwa bit into her chicken again before speaking like she was doing me a favor. "Alright then. I'll work hard."

She spoke calmly with a mock patronizing tone, but her inner feelings were different.

State: Passion / Desire for Recognition / Greed for Growth

Summary:

Brocon Wanting to Grow Both Inside and Out

Passionate Tank Blazing with Fervor

She pretended otherwise, but her summary told me that on the inside, she had been looking forward to a situation like this.

'Achieving something by her own strength.'

Sunhwa would probably end up playing a pivotal role in the party. If that happened, it would be important for her to learn how to do things on her own, to be a leader.

'That kind of experience is important, too.'

Even more so for someone who had a tofu mentality like Sunhwa. I saw this as an opportunity for her to gain a sense of independence and leadership.

I told the others, too. Yeonseo responded to the news with, "Yeah, got it. Whatever the Boss says, goes. But when are you gonna go on a date with me?"

Yoohyun just agreed without questions or complaints, saying, "Understood. If Hyungnim tells me to do it, I'll do it!"

Sunghyun also agreed, giving me a positive answer in the form of, "I am lacking, but I will try my best."

Only Choi Sung-gu was a little different.

"Shabam. You want me to go into a dungeon without you? That's a nope. I can't. I'm a total coward, man." Followed by, "Sung-gu booboo is a scaredy cat. Boohoo~"

His poor attempt at being cutesy had him trembling on the other end of Isabel's blade.

"H-Hey. Hyukjin. Isn't this a damn strong sword? Won't I fly into the sky and go to a planet far, far away if you poke me with this for real? G-Got it. I'll go. I just have to go, don't I?"

This guy would only wise up after getting a taste of the blade.

[You're placing me against this dirty neck? Are you mad, Hubby?]

[You would put me against the neck of another man? What do you see my purity as? A dishrag?]

[I'm Isabel. Isabel! The Queen of Swords!]

[Hubby! Are you listening to me?]

I simply ignored her "screams".

The Gran Seoul Dungeon was a place that had to be Played in several sections. Every monster in every forked path had to be hunted. The dungeon could be cleared much more easily with an outstanding Player heading each path.

Wings would also enter the Gran Seoul Dungeon, as would the guild members of Taeguk Shield.

'With a roster like this…'

They would take minor damage, but they would be able to safely clear the 1st floor. The 1st floor could be settled with Giantgod, Taeguk Shield, and Wings as a core. I imagined Song Junghye would try something in the process, but that wouldn't be much of an issue.

I had to approach the dungeon with a slightly different method apart from them.

Vela and I got together.

"Let's start our own clear now."

I had to clear the hidden scenario of the Gran Seoul with the Player who had flown to Korea from Italy, the future Fight King Vela. I combined the map fragment I received with Vela's piece to make a complete map.

[Map of the Gran Seoul Dungeon]

A piece of a map bearing information about the Gran Seoul Dungeon's hidden piece. Only those with this map can activate the hidden piece. Additionally, this map acts as an entry ticket for a new entrance.

The problem was that this "map" was entirely blank. It was just a slip of paper without anything on it.

"Where do you think the new entrance is?" asked Vela.

"I'm not sure."

I diligently investigated the area around the Gran Seoul Dungeon, but I couldn't find any clues.

'I don't think I can find it with my current abilities.'

It might not be an issue of skill, but the lack of a driving scenario. There might be a new entrance that could be activated by a Player who was working on some kind of quest and had some kind of scenario.

"The map doesn't tell us to find the entrance."

The entrance didn't exist… yet. If we assumed that, then it was meaningless to look for it. I examined the description again.

Additionally, this map acts as an entry ticket for a new entrance.

It didn't tell us to make a new entrance. We gained the right to enter a new entrance, and only that.

'The fact that it's not showing up, even though we've come this far…'

Meant there was another Player who could make a new entrance.

And that Player… could be the Great Explorer Jackson. Jackson had appeared in every single puzzle up until now, and if not for me, there was a high chance Vela would have gone into the Gran Seoul Dungeon with Jackson.

"I think we'll need the help of an explorer class Player."

"An explorer?"

"And one with top-notch skill."

Explorers of average skill would fall behind me in competence, after all.

"Does someone like that exist?"

"Yes."

Jackson should be able to find a new entrance.

'If I want to get Jackson to help…'

Jackson was in a business relationship with Song Junghye, and Song Junghye really disliked me. It wasn't that easy for me to procure Jackson's direct help.

'...it'll require a deal.'

There was no way a person like Jackson would have chosen Song Junghye as his partner for life. They were just working together because there was profit to be gained from each other. So if I proposed a mutually profitable trade, Jackson would gladly accept.

Also, I knew something that was worth trading. I called Jackson with the number he had given me in the past.

–Jackson. There's something I need to discuss with you.

–Is it related to Playing? I'm a little busy right now…

–It's related to Playing. I would like to make a deal with you.

I met up briefly with Jackson. The location was in front of the Gran Seoul Dungeon. Jackson scratched the back of his head.

"I just happened to be working on my quest in the vicinity, but we keep ending up in the same place, don't we?" Our paths kept crossing. Jackson continued. "What kind of deal did you want to strike?"

"You were looking for an artifact related to a king, correct?"

I remembered Jackson asking me about it.

–Do you happen to have an artifact related to a 'king'?

Back then, I answered no. The situation was different now.

"Yes, I was. Did you happen to find any clues?"

I looked Jackson straight in the eye. I remembered what he said back then word for word.

–Is there perhaps a crown in the future you see?

I already had the Old Crown back then; I just pretended I knew nothing about it.

"I acquired a crown. From the Gwanghwamun Dungeon."

"A crown?"

"But it is no ordinary crown."

The crown in my possession was an item I received from clearing 'Early Adopter – ver. Gwanghwamun Dungeon', the 'Old Crown'.

"The item I obtained is called the Old Crown."

"..."

Jackson stared at me in silence for a while.

"Shall I share my scenario quest details with you?"

I didn't know why he was suddenly offering to share those details, but I nodded. A quest window popped up in front of me.

'Hrm?'

The Great Explorer's quest was linked to the Old Crown I possessed.

Our stories were intertwined.

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