Chapter 49: Rising Airflow - (2)
There were many posts in the Predation Network containing information about players who had become 'prey' in this way.
Some posts mentioned that someone had chosen a target, or that they wanted to.
Among them was:
[This time, I devoured Jean Cluyd. His constellation was the Immortal Marathoner. That's why his endurance was so high.]
It was a post left by Luca Viole, the very person Sanghyun had been worried about.
To someone unaware, it would appear as a chilling statement. The claim of having eaten a person.
The post left by Luca Viole had received more than 100 likes. This meant that many people in the world sympathized with and enjoyed such cruelty.
"I've rested for too long."
The man stroked his chin.
Constellation Predators like himself had an extremely slow growth rate through normal means.
That was simply the price of contracting with such a constellation—the ultimate temptation of corruption and evil. The result of that contract.
[I want to hunt the Korean player, Shin Sanghyun. It’s too much to handle alone. Anyone want to join me?]
At that moment, a new post appeared.
It was about Sanghyun, the very person the man had been interested in.
The profile he had been viewing was also attached to the post.
He left a comment.
▶ Nietzsche: The more cautious you are, the better. Wouldn't it be wiser to gather more information first?
▶ Tory (Author): Are you in Korea too?
▶ Nietzsche: I live in Seoul, so I can investigate Shin Sanghyun more closely.
▶ Tory (Author): Do you live near him?
▶ Nietzsche: Close. Much closer than you think. Hold on. More intel is needed.
▶ Tory (Author): Then leave me a private contact. And don’t even think about tracking it improperly.
▶ Nietzsche: Even a passing dog knows not to try that. Don’t worry.
Thus, their secret plot came to an end.
Gulp.
The man swallowed his saliva once more.
Shin Sanghyun was known to have various status-inflicting skills.
Perhaps his constellation specialized in such abilities, or maybe Sanghyun himself was also a Predator.
If he could devour such a player, his stats, abilities, and skills would undoubtedly upgrade.
His anticipation grew.
The most delicious thing in the world was, after all, preying on weak, young animals before they reached their full potential.
Sanghyun had rested well.
For three days, except for a brief trip to the convenience store, he hadn't left his home at all.
Moreover, he left a clear status message for those who had added him as a friend on his messaging app.
[Resting for three days. Phone is off, won’t answer or check messages.]
During a short outing, he happened to run into Igah Hee, but she didn't have much of a reaction.
He had expected her to bring up the Player Union, but she was simply enjoying a walk with her dog.
All he heard from her was a simple greeting, "Hello! Nice weather, isn’t it?"
The only other external activity he had was a brief interview with journalist Park Jungmin.
It was a short 30-minute interview, something he had previously scheduled and had to follow through on.
Aside from the interview, he learned some personal intel from Park Jungmin.
[Overseas guilds have requested background checks on Shin Sanghyun, and while the Union provided information, they also issued a warning—not to attempt recruitment.]
[This is a typical case of the Player Union trying to prevent talent from being poached internationally. Generally, only players with a Tier 3 interest level or higher receive such protection.]
[Interest levels range from Tier 6 at the lowest, increasing as the player is deemed more valuable.]
This was information regarding the Union.
To be classified as Tier 3 interest, a player typically had to be at least level 200 and considered a rising talent.
In any case, the fact that the Union was blocking external interest indicated that they had their own plans for him.
Of course, they had no authority to enforce anything. The warning was the most they could do as a gesture.
Swish!
As Sanghyun pulled back his blackout curtains and enjoyed the bright, clear sky, his phone rang.
It was a call from Kim Miso.
"Oh, Miso."
<Oppa! Are you free in three days?>
"For what?"
<Just tell me if you're free first!>
"I don’t have anything planned."
Since he was a solo guild member and a freelancer, his schedule was extremely flexible.
Resting for three days straight would have been impossible if he belonged to a large guild or organization.
Groups like that always had set schedules and responsibilities. It was an unavoidable fate.
<Our guild got an opportunity to participate in a North Korea-related event!>
"North Korea? Where exactly?"
<Kaesong!>
"Kaesong?"
He had many memories of North Korea from his past life.
Currently, North Korea was practically a lawless land.
Unlike South Korea, where rifts were swiftly dealt with, all of them were left unchecked there.
What this means is that monsters that emerged through the rifts are roaming the wild.
At this time in his past life, Sanghyun had to participate as a porter in a dungeon for an extended period, so he couldn't hear any outside news.
Later, he vaguely heard that players from the Association and guilds had been to Kaeseong.
There were quite a few casualties, but he also heard that they gained considerable loot, and that was all.
The participants kept their mouths shut about the details, so he couldn’t find out more.
This event would later be recorded in the chronicles under the title "First Kaeseong Subjugation Battle" with just two lines of brief explanation.
The Kaeseong Subjugation Battles that would draw the attention and interest of players would be the third and fourth ones, scheduled for next year.
<The subjugation has been decided. And Oppa can be used as a cooperative guild member on our guild’s level.>
“Is this consideration?”
<It’s also the discretion I received. I was allowed to bring one person of my choice.>
A smile formed on Sanghyun’s lips.
As expected, she was the type to give back as much as she received. She had a clear give-and-take mindset.
If he had no connections with her, he wouldn’t have even known about this top-secret operation involving only upper-tier guilds.
Her trust in him and belief in his skills were stronger and deeper than he had realized.
The advantage of the subjugation battle was that various byproducts could be obtained. Moreover, it greatly helped with leveling up and increased the chance of acquiring artifacts.
The downside was that he had to take full responsibility for all crises and problems. In other words, high risk, high return.
“I’ll participate.”
<I already submitted the list with your name on it, knowing you’d say that.>
“Already?”
<There’s no way someone as greedy for growth as you would pass up an opportunity like this, right?>
“You seem to know too much about me. Sorry, but I’ll have to kill you.”
<What the heck, where did you learn such a boring joke? It’s horrifying.>
“Anyway, thanks for considering me. I think I got a great opportunity.”
<I was going to deliver the related materials myself, but someone else will be coming instead. We have a volunteer.>
“Who is it?”
<Taeri unnie!>
“Out of nowhere?”
<She’s very interested in you. I think you’re one of her research subjects. She’s desperate to figure you out.>
“Got it. Shin Taeri knows my contact information, right?”
<Yes. She’ll probably contact you tonight.>
“Alright. I’ll prepare well.”
<Our guild will be moving as a team, but you’re not bound to us. Do as you please.>
“Okay, got it.”
<Hanging up now!>
Through an unexpected opportunity, he got to participate in the Kaeseong Subjugation Battle.
The more he got involved in matters related to North Korea, the more it helped his growth—as long as he didn’t die.
And as soon as he hung up, another call came in. This time, it was Ham Jiyeon.
“Ham Jiyeon?”
<Do you have a moment? I’ve got an arm-related artifact.>
“Where should we meet?”
<Could you come to our orphanage if you don’t mind?>
This time, it seemed like he’d have to go out.
A while later.
Sanghyun was driving toward the orphanage Ham Jiyeon had mentioned.
The Kaeseong Subjugation Battle was in three days, and Shin Taeri was supposed to come at night, so he had nothing planned during the daytime.
“An orphanage, huh.”
The existence of orphanages wasn’t surprising.
Ever since the Player Era began two years ago, rifts and great rifts had been appearing countless times.
Even at this moment, somewhere on Earth, people were losing their lives due to a sudden rift.
Especially in Australia, where the land was vast but the population was small, the damage was immense.
After driving for about an hour, he arrived at the orphanage, which was larger than he had expected.
It had a fairly spacious area and various facilities.
Many children were running around energetically on the natural grass field, and there were quite a few people who seemed to be caretakers.
As Sanghyun parked and got out of the car, Ham Jiyeon waved at him with a bright smile.
“Hello! Shin Sanghyun!”
She shouted so loudly that all the children and caretakers turned their heads to look at him.
Still unused to being the center of attention, Sanghyun hesitated for a moment.
‘Is it gluttony?’
Even as she walked toward him, Ham Jiyeon was busy eating ice cream from a cup in one hand.
He still vividly remembered how she had been devouring pizza like crazy the last time he saw her at Hyunjung Market.
“I’m here to buy an artifact.”
“You must’ve had a hard time coming all this way. Today’s a busy day for our orphanage because we’re getting some new facilities, so I had to stay here.”
“It wasn’t far, and I enjoyed the drive as a bit of a mood booster.”
“It looks a little weird, doesn’t it?”
“You mean the eating?”
“I get nagged a lot about it. You don’t look very used to it either.”
“Is there a reason for it?”
“It’s because of my constellation. If I don’t eat, I struggle to maintain both my mood and my abilities. It also hinders my growth.”
‘A constellation related to gluttony, huh.’
Sanghyun immediately guessed.
There were all kinds of constellations, including bizarre ones like this.
The constellation contracted with Luca Viole was of a similar type—a devouring constellation. One that embodied ultimate viciousness.
“What kind of artifact are you selling? I’d like to see it right away.”
“Aren’t you rushing a bit? Take a look around the orphanage and relax a little. I did all the landscaping myself!”
“Oh.”
At Ham Jiyeon’s words, Sanghyun started looking around the orphanage.
He could tell a lot of effort had been put into it. Various character decorations that embodied the innocence of children were placed throughout the area.
In the meantime, Ham Jiyeon went into her private room and came back with an artifact, casually handing it to Sanghyun.
It was a talisman, about the size of a small biscuit that one would have with coffee.
“A talisman?”
“Yes, that’s right. A fire-related talisman. Of course, it has some defects, just like the previous ones.”
A fire talisman!
Though he hadn’t checked its exact details yet, he thought this talisman could potentially expand his elemental abilities.
Sanghyun’s eyes gleamed.