Chapter 30 - Black Dragon Party (2)
The extermination squads dispatched from the Black Dragon Party basically considered composure as their main virtue.
For people who lived by the sword, composure was like a lifeline, but even so, the word composure held a different weight for them.
When you think about it, the individual abilities of the Black Dragon Party were clearly flawed compared to top-class Climbers, yet it was that ability that had allowed them to gain fame as an assassination organization.
The exquisite coordination based on the machine-like judgment of each individual would be what the Black Dragon Party themselves considered their greatest strength.
So.
“…!”
“This is…!”
The current situation, where astonished voices were erupting from all over, was a bewildering experience for them.
They themselves were confused about what to point out first, but at least one thing was certain.
They were definitely told that the target was to capture an ‘F-grade Climber’.
If they could just return alive, it was surely a lie so ridiculous that they could punch the client in the face.
How could this ‘monster’ be merely an F-grade?
“Now!”
With that command, the extermination squad members all rushed to the target at once.
A tightly woven encirclement. What encroached within it was a coordinated attack so effective that it would be slightly overwhelming even for a much higher-grade Climber than an F-grade.
To deal with this kind of all-encompassing attack, you would probably need to bring at least a B-grade Climber.
But.
This man.
-!
“…Damn it.”
After a storm-like exchange passed in the blink of an eye, one of the members let out such words without realizing it.
It was understandable, as another one of his comrades had just fallen.
It had been like this from the beginning.
He broke through their coordination head-on, and accurately reduced their numbers one by one.
As if to show off his own skills.
He deflected one side using defensive equipment, parried the other side with his sword, and neutralized the follow-up attack with a shot.
Each of the techniques he used was certainly weaker in power compared to a top-tier Climber, but his skill in utilizing them was so perfect it could be called close to perfection.
‘No, more than that…’
It wasn't just that his utilization was good; this was a feat impossible without a vision that pierced through the entire battlefield.
Among B-grade Climbers, there would be some who were inferior to that man in terms of skill alone.
‘…’
Even the equipment he had prepared, each and every one of them.
The hidden weapons that the Black Dragon Party prided themselves on, which could easily pierce through steel plates, were easily blocked by the magitech device that deployed a force field, the electric bullets that cut off their breathing at critical moments, and the one-handed sword that was steadily subduing them one by one in close combat.
It was full of items that seemed to have been prepared to ‘know in advance’ their combat methods and devour them.
‘Where on earth did a guy like this…!’
The leader of the extermination squad gritted his teeth.
Losing composure was a death sentence for an assassin, but an emotion that seemed to eat away at his mind beyond that was creeping into his head.
This was fear.
They had come to kill that man, yet they were now afraid of him.
“You’re probably starting to have all sorts of thoughts.”
And as if he had really read their minds, the man who was toying with them at will chuckled and opened his mouth.
“Want to make a deal with me?”
“…”
“I’ll let you go alive, so just pass on a message to your boss. Deal?”
All the remaining extermination squad members looked at the man as if he were crazy.
Was he shamelessly suggesting a deal to the people who had just rushed at him to kill him?
It was impossible to even guess how thick his nerves were.
“…You have guts. I’ll give you that.”
“Yeah. Gilding my face won’t get you anything.”
The man who said that chuckled and spoke.
“But, if you guys go back like this, your boss is going to blow your heads off himself, isn’t he? Doesn’t he hate losing a lot?”
“…!”
Everyone present flinched at those words.
Come to think of it, hadn’t he said earlier that he wouldn’t kill them and to pass on his regards to their leader?
This man, what on earth was he to know information about their leader?
“So, want to hear me out?”
A stiff silence fell.
Normally, it would be a story not even worth listening to, so they would have all ignored it.
But they all knew intuitively.
The fact that they were no match for this man.
In the end, the leader, who had been keeping his mouth shut, opened his with a stiff voice.
“…Speak.”
As soon as the man heard that, a big smile appeared on his face.
It was a look that said he had been waiting for just those words.
***
Of course, the most important part of Conqueror was the main characters that the player could directly control.
However, among the NPCs, there were a few, albeit rare, who were important enough to twist ‘major turning points’.
A representative example was a guy like Kim Kang-in, the dean of the boot camp.
Well, it would be a long time before I met him.
But it seemed I had managed to connect with one guy right away.
[ Important Notification ]
[ The leader of the Black Dragon Party, ???, is showing interest in you. ]
Hmm.
I chuckled at the notification window that popped up before my eyes.
Since I hadn't met him yet, he was marked with question marks, but of course, I knew who this guy was and I also knew how much influence I could exert on the main quest to come just by having opened the ‘opportunity to meet’ this guy.
“Hmm.”
I reviewed the checklist in my head.
The remaining period until the ‘countdown’ that appeared in the Tower officially ignited was at most a few days.
I had fulfilled most of the prerequisites to clear it without any trouble, but there were still a few left.
The next thing to deal with was…
“Are you slacking off again?”
As I was continuing that thought in my head, Seo Ah-in, who had stuck her head out from the bed next to me, was looking down at me.
I didn't know what it was, but she looked full of complaints.
“Why? What now.”
“…Why are you looking at me so annoyed?”
She said and then sighed deeply.
“…Never mind, if you’re not going to watch TV, give me the remote. It’s on your bed.”
“Sure.”
I answered, tossing her the remote, and she caught it and operated the buttons with a familiar air.
For an old model, it had a lot of functions, so I had given up on learning it, but it seemed this girl had quickly gotten used to it while staying at the guild dorm.
“By the way, you’re surprisingly good with machines.”
“What on earth do you see me as?”
“No, image-wise, if I gave you a new portable device, it would seem like it would take you two days to figure out how to use it.”
“…”
Seo Ah-in’s face crumpled, and then she sighed and conceded.
“…At least that’s probably right. I’ve never had a portable device in my life.”
My goodness.
“…Really?”
“My family forbade it.”
No.
I knew your family had a strict environment, but isn't this a bit too much?
This girl, she’s from a rich family, but isn't she basically a barbarian?
“…I feel like you’re thinking something strange.”
The girl who said that then played a video on the TV.
It was a video that looked like someone had filmed it with their phone camera. The quality was shattered as if the lens was broken, but the content was more or less understandable.
No, in the first place, it was impossible not to know.
It was a scene of me fighting the Black Dragon Party in the middle of the city.
I had deliberately gone to a deserted place, but it seemed someone had managed to film it somehow.
Thanks to the poor quality, my face was hidden, but my movements were clearly recorded.
“This has 3 million views in one day. I don’t know who it is, but they’re a star now.”
Seo Ah-in, who said that with a deep sigh, scrolled down and popped up the comment section.
[LMAO fakeㅋㅋㅋ What Climber fights in the middle of the city instead of the Towerㅋㅋㅋ]
ㄴ[Could be a movie shootㅋㅋ]
[Are the people in the comments above blind? The quality is shit, but that’s definitely a real fight. Can’t you see the space warping from the mana resonance?]
[Real fight or not, one thing’s for sure, he fights damn well, doesn’t he? Fucking awesome.]
[That’s true.]
[LMAOㅋㅋ]
“…”
Looking at these raw comments made me feel a little embarrassed.
But what stood out more was that, surprisingly, even ‘big shots’ were interested in this video.
Starting with the official channels of the Hunting Alliance and Jeokpungdae, various large guilds had all left a comment or a heart mark.
It seemed everyone was curious about who this mysterious Climber was.
‘Hmm.’
If nothing else, the fact that these large groups were interested in me seemed like it could be used somehow.
As I was thinking that, the TV, which had finished playing, automatically brought up another video.
[In response to the mysterious text that appeared in the Tower, the Hunting Alliance decides to dispatch an expedition team…]
“Oh.”
Come to think of it, it was about time for this to happen.
This was something being done not by Seo Hye-in’s side, but by the guys in the opposite faction.
Their own position was falling, while Seo Hye-in’s was on the rise, so they were taking a gamble out of impatience.
If they succeeded, they would have achieved a great merit that would bury Seo Hye-in’s minor achievements in one go.
“…Other large guilds will be on their toes. To make such a big announcement, they must be forming an expedition team with an elite team.”
I just nodded at Seo Ah-in’s muttering and picked up the phone.
There was a place I had to deliver the news to.
“Uh, Ho-jun? How much did you invest in the Hunting Alliance?”
Seo Ah-in, who heard that, smirked and answered.
“As expected, Mr. Kim Gyu-sik also highly values our guild’s skills…”
“Pull out everything you put in. It’s going to hit rock bottom soon.”
“…”
I chuckled at the speechless Seo Ah-in and hung up the phone.
I felt sorry for this girl, but.
That expedition team was bound to fail.
In the first place, unlike the 1st floor, which could be conquered smoothly if you just had the proper quantitative stats, from above that, it was a structure where you would unconditionally fail if you entered without a ‘countermeasure’.
“Ah, but there is a part I agree with you on.”
“Pardon?”
“That other large guilds will also be on high alert.”
Regardless of the result, the important thing was that the members to be put in there were ‘publicly’ organized.
The expedition activities of other guilds, who had been watching to see what to do until now, would probably pick up speed.
The employment of Climbers would expand, capital would circulate actively, and the atmosphere of the entire market would be tense.
So what did that mean?
‘It’s the perfect condition to take the initiative.’
Thinking that, I picked up the phone again.
Because I had to meet the guy who was essential to grasping the key to turn the situation as I wished.
***
“It’s grown so much…”
Those words escaped me as I looked up at the building that required me to crane my neck.
This building was now entirely owned by Gusegyo.
When they were treated as a cult, they probably lived in a place whose shabbiness was comparable to our guild building, but it seemed life had gotten better after their reputation was overturned.
I chuckled and walked to the place I was guided to.
As I reached the destination I was told, a magnificent room that looked like it was used for important talks came into view.
“Let’s see…”
As soon as I pressed the doorbell, there was a sound of something violently breaking and shattering.
It seemed to be a disaster caused by someone rushing out.
“…”
Well.
I didn’t know how hastily she was coming out to make such a sound.
As I was thinking that, the door burst open and a familiar face ran out.
It was Darien, much more lively than before.
Her brittle blonde hair was now lustrous and flowing, and her coarse gray robe had been replaced by a pure white priestess’s robe with gold embroidery.
“Hey. Nice to see you. It seems you’re doing well these days…”
As I was saying that.
Darien came up to me abruptly and took both my hands.
Her face was flushed as if it would burst with heat, and her bright smile made it seem like she was about to fly away with joy.
“Welcome. I’ve been waiting.”
“…Uh, yeah. Nice to meet yo…”
“Come on in! I have a lot of things I want to talk to you about!”
“…”
Uh, so.
What.
What’s with her being so excited?
I already knew she had some good feelings for me, but this was a demeanor as if she were treating a benefactor she hadn't seen in 10 years.
In the end, I had no choice but to be dragged into the room by Darien, who was holding my hand.