Chapter 197

First, the Premium Growth Fruit.

[Premium Growth Fruit]

If the voluntary growth of Players on all servers is restricted to level 40, all Players must have a 'special talent' to be able to exceed level 40. Whether they have a 'special talent' can be confirmed by ingesting a 'Growth Fruit'. However, a Player will be able to exceed level 40 even without a 'special talent' if they ingest a 'Premium Growth Fruit'.

*Can be mass-cultivated upon fulfilling a special condition

For a moment, I was speechless. I reeled mentally as if an explosion went off in my head.

'Then the reason why a level 40 limit appeared in this world…'

The reason why only those with a special talent could exceed level 40…

'...was because of someone who cleared this Gran Seoul Dungeon hidden field.'

Because that someone destroyed the 'Black-Ringed Clear Crystal'.

'The most likely person to have done it… is Jackson.'

That being said, I didn't intend on condemning his choice. This 'Premium Growth Fruit' could even be mass-cultivated if a special condition was fulfilled. I didn't know whether that was possible or not, but what if it became possible one day?

'Then… world domination isn't just a far-fetched dream.'

How many people were there in this world who could not progress further because of the level 40 wall? There were as many Players who shined radiantly as early bloomers before crumbling like sand castles in the tide as there were grains of sand on a beach.

'A sure-fire means to turn those innumerable Players into your subordinates…'

That was the foreseeable conclusion. You could become the ruler of the world. At the very least, this 'Black-Ringed Clear Crystal' implied that possibility.

Vela looked quizzically at me. "What're you thinking about so hard?"

"I'm thinking about which Clear Crystal to break."

"Huh? What Clear Crystal?"

"Those two."

"Those two? I only see two rocks?"

"..."

Vela rubbed his eyes. Apparently, those Clear Crystals looked like stones to Vela. "You're kidding, right?"

"No."

"Then you're telling me those are really Clear Crystals?"

I nodded.

"Holy shit." Vela flopped to the ground, shaking his head. "If I came here alone, even if I made it this far, I wouldn't have been able to clear it in the end."

He picked up a pebble on the ground. "I won't get in the way, so you figure it out."

He started playing with the pebble, tossing it around as if to say he would amuse himself. From this exchange, I realized another thing.

'The difference between Vela and me… is being a combat or non-combat class.'

And in addition to that—

'Whether we have the Crown or not.'

Those were the two differences. I believed this 'Crown' was the crux. Both the 'King's Road' in the Gwanghwamun Dungeon and the 'Geunjeongjeon Field' I had to clear in the far-off future were related to kings. Additionally, the Gran Seoul Dungeon was a field capable of deciding the ruler of the world.

'What's the Clue Regarding the Sky of Freedom?'

[Clue Regarding the Sky of Freedom]

You will be given a clue regarding the undisclosed region, the 'Sky of Freedom'. Upon destroying the Gray-Ringed Clear Crystal, the 'Sky of Freedom' region will be opened, but the location and time will not be disclosed. The Player who destroys the Gray-Ringed Clear Crystal will earn the right to clear the 'Sky of Freedom'.

*A 'Sky Feather' will be given as the Clue Regarding the Sky of Freedom.

*You will acquire the elixir 'Freedom'.

I could also open another window explaining the elixir 'Freedom'.

[Freedom Elixir]

The final elixir created by the Towermaster of the 7th Magic Tower, Ragnoa. Upon ingesting 'Freedom', you can freely erase one System-stipulated 'penalty'. Applies to all 'settings that impose a restriction'.

'The Black-Ringed Clear Crystal is obviously the better one.'

The Black-Ringed Clear Crystal would give you tremendous influence, power so great you could literally rule the world. If you could successfully mass-cultivate that Premium Growth Fruit and impose a monopoly on it.

'But…'

I had to consider many variables and circumstances. In the past, I suffered greatly because of the words [No Talent]. There were probably many, many other people who suffered because of their lack of talent. There might have even been people who suffered far more than me. That was my past. My memories weighed me down.

'And one more thing.'

Standing here, I recalled one person and what he said to me.

I'll wait for you at Endless Sky.

Endless Sky.

A sky without end. The Sky of Freedom also had 'sky' in it.

'The Demon King left me various gifts.'

Whether I could grasp and benefit from those gifts or not was completely up to me.

'I can't trust the Demon King.'

He was someone who would kill me at a moment's notice if I annoyed him even a little. And yet, all the help the Demon King had given me so far was entirely good, at least to me.

Endless Sky.

Sky of Freedom.

The two might not seem very related, but the 'Demon King' being involved meant I couldn't ignore the possibility that they were.

'I have… to make a decision.'

There was one other thing to consider.

'What about the Guardians?'

Which choice would the Guardians enjoy more? It would depend greatly on their personalities, of course, but I had to satisfy the greater majority of Guardians. I had to make the Guardians who could be of greater help to me happy. In order to make them thirst for me, to make them move as I wanted, I had to produce content they would go wild for.

'I think they'll be divided almost 50/50.'

However—

'I…'

I thought about it a little longer. There wasn't a time limit anyway. The Guardians were probably buzzing with anticipation right now.

'Drag it out a little longer.'

After letting more time pass, I finally made a decision.

[The Gray-Ringed Clear Crystal has been destroyed.]

[The voluntary growth of Players on all servers on the dimension Earth is now restricted to 60.]

Now, it wasn't 40, but 60. A very meaningful change.

'In the end, there won't be any need to clear the Gran Seoul Dungeon, huh?'

It had to be cleared once in order to prevent the dungeon break, but it wasn't something that absolutely needed to be cleared. The Gran Seoul Dungeon wasn't nearly as important as it was in the past, at least until level 60.

'It'll be amusing if I can put Song Junghye's efforts to waste.'

A new scenario instantly came to life in my head. Done well, I would be able to deal a significant blow to Junghye's spirits.

[Receiving the 'Clue Regarding the Sky of Freedom'.]

[Receiving a 'Sky Feather' as the 'Clue Regarding the Sky of Freedom'.]

I also got an additional bonus.

[The dungeon title 'True Ruler of the Gran Seoul Dungeon' has been generated.]

[The dungeon title 'True Ruler of the Gran Seoul Dungeon' is a hidden reward given to the Player who destroyed the Gray-Ringed Clear Crystal.]

A hidden piece even my Observer's Eye had failed to pick up was triggered. There might have also been a hidden reward attached to destroying the Black-Ringed Clear Crystal. But… 'True Ruler'?

I already had a title called 'Ruler of the Seoul Station Dungeon'. Unlike regular titles, dungeon titles often didn't have much use, and they only applied inside the relevant dungeon. But the 'True Ruler' title turned that notion completely upside down.

[True Ruler of the Gran Seoul Dungeon]

Grants you the authority to fully control and govern the Gran Seoul Dungeon. The True Ruler of the Gran Seoul Dungeon exercises great power in every Gran Seoul Dungeon field.

*Unlimited resurrection within the Gran Seoul Dungeon.

*Can invoke 'Death Sentencing' within the Gran Seoul Dungeon.

*Can adjust Gran Seoul Dungeon entry conditions.

*Can adjust Gran Seoul Dungeon difficulty.

My jaw dropped without me realizing it.

'What the hell… is this?'

I had never heard of a title like this. Regular 'dungeon titles' had worse effects than normal titles. But this one? It would be no exaggeration to call this an absolute title.

'Unlimited resurrection… Death Sentencing…'

At least within the Gran Seoul Dungeon, I could reign almost like a god. Of course, things would be different if some kind of authority with a higher setting parameter than this title were to be exerted. But at least in the beginner period, no, in the intermediate period, there probably weren't any Players with those kinds of authorities, no matter what manner of Irregular they were. For the time being, there shouldn't be any Players capable of overpowering this title.

'This is insane.'

The title effects were just too busted.

"What's wrong? Why the face?"

"It's nothing."

Vela grumbled. "Tch. It was super hard and complicated to get in here, but I only got a measly 3,000 Coins and one linked quest."

Sorry. I took the lion's share of the rewards, so not much was left for poor Vela. I probably maxed out the rewards here.

"A linked quest?"

"Yuh. I got some kind of labyrinth map. It looks like this is something I need to find and clear on my own. It's also linked to my class scenario."

Just one question, and he voluntarily blabbered all the details on his own.

"Aren't you miffed about this? We went through all that, and this is all we get as a reward."

"..."

I didn't give him an answer. This single-celled organism truly saw the world through rose-tinted glasses. He hadn't even begun to suspect that he got so little because I had taken so much.

'There's… no need to correct his misunderstanding.'

But I did feel indebted in some ways to Vela and fully intended on volunteering my assistance if he was ever in trouble later on.

"By any chance…"

Vela came up to me, his expression quite serious.

'Oh? Did he notice it?'

With a look of utter seriousness, he asked, "Could you introduce me to some good Korean restaurants? Korean food is super delicious."

* * *

After clearing the Gran Seoul Dungeon's hidden field, I went to the Player Center in the DMC to meet Song Kiyeol.

"The importance of the Gran Seoul Dungeon has now faded."

"...How come?"

I could understand how this might be baffling to Song Kiyeol. I explained the whole story, summarizing it with the fact that the Growth Fruit was no longer necessary, for the time being.

"It feels like we've toiled in vain," he said, his expression calm. He didn't seem terribly displeased, but he was still voicing his opinion.

'Good.'

Yes, it was important to voice one's opinion. I didn't want my partner to be someone who foolishly followed my every order. It was only right for the guildmaster of Taeguk Shield to make some complaint.

"If you think that, then I have no choice but to be disappointed in you, Guildmaster."

"..."

Song Kiyeol thought in silence for a moment. He had clearly picked up on the barbs in my words. The reason why I was disappointed in him wasn't because he complained. I was disappointed because he failed to see past this situation and think ahead.

'But Song Kiyeol as he is now…'

He would be able to figure it out. A little clue would be enough for him to understand. Before long, his expression brightened.

"I see. I understand what you mean." He continued calmly, "If we use this situation well…"

Because he hesitated a little, I answered for him.

"We can crush Miss Junghye. At least once."

"..."

"With a very legal and reasonable method. From what I saw, she is once again using Players with gate abilities to occupy the Gran Seoul Dungeon."

It wasn't unexpected, considering she knew from Jackson and Song Kiyeol that the dungeon was very important. But things were different now. The flow was greatly altered by my clear of the hidden field.

"..."

As her older brother, Kiyeol was incapable of enthusiastically approving the 'crushing' of his sister. But our thoughts were probably not very different. Song Junghye lacked both the qualifications and capability to represent this country.

"Alright then, let's draw the concrete picture."

"The concrete picture?"

I smiled lightly.

"We'll meet CEO Song Kiyoung. The two of us, together."

And,

"Leak that information to Miss Junghye, too."

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