Moment of Transformation (1), Moment of Transformation (2)
“You have to learn what you learn. If the other person is good, you have to accept it!”
In the midst of the executives gathered, X-Large gave an impassioned speech.
Always calm and quiet, it was rare for him to speak loudly.
“How could a Shade Guild with less than 10 members grow so rapidly? System, talent pool, information gathering ability, and most other indicators, even though Darkness is ahead.”
“… … .”
“Because the skills of the Shade Guild members are so outstanding? No, that alone can’t explain it. It is impossible for less than 10 users to create and manage a city, and even change the game of war.”
Amidst the silence, X-Large’s mouth opened.
“The difference is the NPC.”
There was always someone who was not a user near the Shade Guild.
The fact that the border city was guarded by skeletons and managed by celestials was already a famous story among users.
The fact that he summoned tens of thousands of monsters from Carinta Island was evidently due to the power of NPCs Hyun had built up close friendships with.
“We have been overlooking AI beyond 1.5 generations too much.”
It is not easy for a user to gain the NPC’s trust.
If you pay money, he will take care of the mercenary, and if you raise your affinity, he will give you a hidden quest, but that’s it.
Strangely enough, the NPCs recognized the users only as business relationships.
As if users perceive them as pieces of data.
No matter how hard they tried, they couldn’t make friends, so users gradually gave up on forming deep relationships with NPCs.
“Darkness must embrace them from now on.”
But even among NPCs, there are some special ones.
A very few people who are more easily swept away by emotions than others.
The faces of the heavenly man giving a speech on the podium and the female knight terrifyingly chasing May Day were surprisingly vivid.
And the woman who was running with her silver hair fluttering… She had a more desperate expression than anyone else.
They are different from normal NPCs!
While watching Mayday’s broadcast, X-Large immediately sensed the fact.
NPCs called the next generation.
Those who are in charge of the core of the world view were the ones Darkness had to make allies.
“All good, but how are you going to get them?”
Reina, the deputy guild leader, asked a question.
“Meeting the core NPCs in the world is incredibly difficult, and there is no guarantee that you will be able to capture them, right?”
As the saying goes, it was difficult for most users to have contact with high-ranking NPCs.
In addition, NPCs with strong power tended to look down on the weak, so it would be more difficult to form a deep relationship with them.
To Reina’s question, X-Large answered with a smile.
“He who has been successful knows best how.”
“… ?”
“I’m thinking of asking Hyun.”
“… !”
The crowd fell into silence again.
After a while, someone opened their mouth.
“Will he tell you?”
“Of course they won’t tell you for free.”
“Then how… .”
“Because Mayday is trading information with the prefecture.”
With their eyes focused, X-Large muttered slowly.
“In order to obtain Hyun’s know-how, we have no choice but to offer something of equal value.”
“no way… !”
“Right, I intend to unpack that information.”
It was such a waste to take out.
Because that information was almost the only way to check the crazy growth of the Shade Guild.
However, for the future of Darkness, X-Large decided to make a bold decision.
***
‘A temporary alliance?’
Hyun, who heard Genie’s story, felt absurd.
To be honest, the sudden suggestion of Darkness was absurd.
‘alliance? Why should I?’
Darkness and Shade are rivals.
Just as he was aiming for the throne of Assrian, so are they.
There can’t be two suns in the sky!
Even the intention of sending the alliance proposal was questionable, so Hyun tried to reject it without thinking.
It was at that moment that Mayday’s whispers arrived.
「Hyung, did you read the mail?!」
“uh… It looks like you just contacted me about that matter… 」
Is it not enough to send an e-mail, even a whisper?
It is true that he has a slight friendship with Mayday, but Hyun did not intend to accept Darkness’s proposal just because of that.
“We trade information, but there is no reason to form an alliance, right? So it’s a pity, but this offer didn’t exist… .」
“You haven’t read the mail yet!”
Mayday shouted quickly.
“The temporary alliance is an extension of information trading! If you look closely at what you wrote in the email… 」
“yes… ?」
“No, it would be faster if I just explained now!”
Hyun was confused but focused on her words.
「Previously, Hyun told me to inform you of the trend of the regressor guild, right? I recently got super-class information.”
“Express… Is it?」
“Yes, the reason I contacted you was to trade this information.”
“What is it about… ?」
“It’s a story about a conspiracy plotted by regressors.”
The next word that came out was something Hyun hadn’t even thought of.
“Did you know that they are planning to destroy the border city?”
“… !”
Hyun’s expression hardened in an instant.
It was the first time I had just heard it.
Are they going to destroy the border city?
“Is that really… ?」
“I am almost certain. We’ve even figured out that their plan is about 1/3 complete.”
“… … .」
It was an unbelievable story.
According to Salon’s recent report, the security of the city is gradually becoming more stable.
There wasn’t even a precursor to the incident, but was it that some kind of plan was going on somewhere he didn’t know?
“The temporary alliance is a gesture that Darkness will actively help when Hyun solves the case.”
Amidst the silence, Mayday continued to speak.
“I have no intentions other than that. really.”
“… okay.”
After hearing all the stories, Hyun nodded quietly.
He had already figured out what Mayday wanted.
A trade is made when each other needs something of equal value.
When the balance of the scale is tilted severely to one side, mutual trust is broken, and once broken relationships are not easily restored.
“So what do you want?”
Mayday didn’t reply with a whisper.
T-ring! Instead, he sent a long, carefully prepared message.
“… … .」
Hyun read the sent message slowly.
What is written in the message is the name of the NPC.
Most of them were famous enough to be stored in their heads.
On the way, I stopped my gaze at one place and fell into deep thought for a while.
And finally… opened her mouth
“It’s better to give up everything.”
“yes… ?」
“These guys are so stubborn that you won’t even be able to build a good impression on them.”
“That’s right… ? but… !”
Hyun’s whispers were heard once again in the bewildered Mayday’s ears.
“Instead, I’ll give you another name.”
“Who are you?”
“that… .”
For a scale to be balanced, a weight of equal weight must be placed on each arm.
It’s the one who received the offer, so it doesn’t matter how much I put weights on later, right?
“I’m thinking about who to do it with.”
Hyun decided to try to figure out the value of the other person’s information.
***
The central plaza lined with private room portals of countless guilds was the most crowded place in the border city.
A fact that only a handful of users knew, but the private room of the Shade Guild also existed somewhere here.
In such a noisy downtown area.
A bakery owner closed earlier than usual and started walking around the city.
The night streets of the city were gorgeous.
Crossing the bridge of black fog, I also passed the street of art where magic lanterns flashed wildly.
It’s already been 20 minutes since I left the store. He was still walking down a deserted street.
A keen eye would have already noticed something strange.
Everyone who is allowed to do business in the city is a user.
Users who have finished their day’s work do not have to go through the trouble of returning home because they log out immediately.
But where is this man heading after walking for 20 minutes through the city?
“Hyun, just as you said, I found a trace.”
Salon reported to Hyun in a whisper.
No, now he is not Salon, but a lone assassin with the nickname ‘Salgwi’!
The bakery owner had been following him ever since he left the shop.
“Okay, keep going.”
Hyun also replied in a whisper.
While checking the message I received from Mayday once again.
-The Regressor Guild is plotting some kind of plan in the border city.
-The reason the plan hasn’t been discovered yet is that they only move when Hyun and Ain’s location is specified together.
It was a report written by one of Darkness’s spies.
Hyun was referring to the report and passing time with Ain at a cafe near the private room.
Of course, it’s not like a date, but it’s for the purpose of disturbing someone’s gaze.
“Kuhmm, there are certainly no monsters deployed around here. It would be perfect for doing something suspicious.”
Salon groaned.
It was because the actions of the bakery owner were exactly the same as what Hyun had told them in advance.
“I thought back alleys existed even in the border city.”
“Salon, can you do it alone?”
However, when Hyun’s question continued, Salon’s voice immediately began to mix with laughter.
“Hehe, Hyun, haven’t you heard of it yet? Rumor has it that only the cross remains where the flesh has gone.”
“The Cross… ?」
“It’s a mark left where this body has gone.”
“hmm… I think you know roughly what it is.”
Hyun cautioned Salon not to become too immersed in his role.
“Anyway, don’t get caught too early.”
“Kuh, that’s my specialty!”
Salon looked around with cold eyes.
It was soon discovered that there were five watchers in this back alley.
That’s right, a total of five of his prey!
Salon decided to deal with the game located in the most remote corner first.
Tuck, Tuck.
Salon’s new model, which was quietly walking on the streets at night, disappeared at some point… he reappeared
There really was no sound, no screaming.
When I closed my eyes for a moment and opened them, the five watchers were reduced to four.
‘It’s easy.’
Hiding the dagger, Salon felt dejected.
Assassins are said to live in silence, but it was still too quiet.
Aren’t the other four still unaware of their colleague’s death?
Then Salon walked slowly, slowly, toward his next prey.
‘transparency,’
Slowly, he melted himself into the air once more.
‘Combo Memorize!’
– Acquire the same effect as the highest combo value in the last 1 hour.
When the invisible sword penetrated the vital point, the prey was unable to scream again and scattered into the light.
‘It’s too easy.’
Each time the skill’s cooldown returns, one soul is lost.
Yes, Salon was using ‘invisibility’ as if it were his own skill.
Transformation with the power of chaos is the most optimized skill for PK.
Seeing his enemies dying silently at his blows, Salon felt like a legendary assassin.
It didn’t take long for all five watchers in the back alley to die.
A cross engraved on every floor where a soul has disappeared.
If there were no traces of it, no one would know that Salgwi had visited this place.
Continued in the next volume
Records sent by Mayday.
There was a lot of useful information in the report that the spy wrote individually.
Reading the report, Hyun was able to grasp the plans of the regressor guild in detail.
– NPCs from the Holy Kingdom already exist in the border city.
-They are the ones who entered the city by digging a loophole in the boarding procedure of the transport ship.
-Now I am drawing a magic circle next to the regressor guild. It is presumed to be a magic circle with a ‘movement’ or ‘summon’ function.
– If the magic circle is completed and NPCs from other castle kingdoms enter the border city, it is difficult to respond with the power of the Shade Guild. It is very likely to be fatal.
Hyun smiled bitterly.
To think that such a plan was going on in the city without his knowledge.
– Under the circumstances, it is presumed that there is a collusive relationship between the Regressor Guild and the Holy Kingdom.
– The Regressor Guild will continue to be hostile to the Shade Guild in order to strengthen its relationship.
The more I read the report, the more I thought about another future, the more I got goosebumps.
If Mayday hadn’t told me, he wouldn’t have discovered the buds of trouble that still exist in the city, right?
「Hyung, I finally found the magic circle. how will we do it?”
Hyun’s spirit flashed in Salon’s voice.
“Did you figure out the location of the magic circle?”
“okay.”
“Then there is no need for further acting.”
I took Ain and stood up from a chair in a cafe near the private room.
“Okay, wait there. Ain and I will go there now.”
“By the way, what if I assassinate them all before you even arrive?”
“There must be some guys who don’t work with invisibility, can you do it?”
High-level NPCs can read signs.
If he could draw a magic circle, he would definitely be a high-ranking priest, so it might be dangerous to deal with Salon alone.
“Well, if you want to try it, I won’t stop you… 」
“no… Hehe, just wait.”
a while after that.
Hyun arrived at the place where Salon was with Ain.
Immediately, I could see the faces of the puzzled users and NPCs.
“hyeon… ?”
“You said you were always there! How did you find this place?”
“Hey, what’s going on?”
“I don’t know, just fight!”
Hyun did not listen to their shouts.
The NPCs were weaker than expected, and the players were not the members of the regressor guild they knew.
It didn’t take long for a few buildings on the quiet streets to disappear entirely.
It was the moment when Hyeon turned the plan that the Regressor Guild had been preparing for months into nothing.
‘I finished it easily, but… .’
Roar, roar!
Looking at the debris scattered by Ifrit’s claws, Hyun fell into thought for a moment.
‘This may not be the end.’
Suddenly, a feeling of uneasiness welled up.
Is this the only conspiracy the regressor guild has been plotting?
Their malice towards themselves, which has continued since the previous work, was not to be taken lightly.
In the future, I will continue to face a crisis similar to today.
I was lucky this time and was able to nip the buds ahead of time, but will I be able to do that next time? Even after that? continue… ?
‘I’ll have to say thank you to Mayday for now.’
The turmoil that might have turned into a big deal ended with such a small happening.
But you can’t think that only happenings like this will continue forever.
Protecting is several times more difficult than breaking.
Hyun felt the need to devise some countermeasures with this incident.
***
The information transaction ended safely.
The members of the Darkness Guild, including Mayday, were delighted, and Hyun breathed a sigh of relief, so it was a win-win deal for each other.
After sorting things out so roughly.
‘It’s not an ordinary thing to pass.’
Hyun began to analyze the incident carefully.
‘It was more serious than I thought.’
Large guilds do not collapse just because they are attacked once or twice.
This is because the bases possessed by the guild organically complement each other, and the damage suffered over time is naturally restored.
However, Hyeon’s heart skipped a beat when he realized that part of the border city was almost destroyed.
The Shade Guild would be doomed if it lost the City of Borders.
‘Due to abnormal growth, these side effects occurred.’
All bases of the Shade Guild were concentrated only in the border city.
Just as the old adage says don’t put all your eggs in one basket, super-large guilds usually have multiple bases.
For example, even if Demonia Gorge disappears overnight, Darkness will not be ruined.
It was clear that the many facilities that had existed before and thousands of guild members would move organically to restore the lost parts of Demonia Gorge.
But what about the Shade Guild?
As soon as the border city collapses, contracts with all corporations are terminated.
You can no longer research or produce firearms.
The shade points distributed to the users would all be blown away, causing countless cries.
Thousands of skeletons that served as the city’s guards would become unemployed and eventually return to the arms of Scotanatos.
The reason why the regressors persistently aimed at the city was probably because they knew that the entire guild would stumble if they hit the border city.
‘It can’t go on like this!’
Hyun’s thoughts deepened.
Similar raids will continue to occur unless the entire structure of the guild is changed.
How should I resolve this situation?
‘for a moment… .’
At some point as he continued to think about it, a thought flashed through Hyun’s head.
Hyun tried to expand his thinking a little.
Maybe he was too narrow-minded.
‘It’s not just a physical base like a city or a building.’
Assrian is not just a place for users.
It is a world where users and even more NPCs live together in harmony.
Among users, his name has more ripple power than a celebrity, but to NPCs, he is just one of hundreds of millions of users.
‘What if I had fame?’
Is there nowhere to go if the emperor of the empire leaves the palace?
An emperor is an emperor wherever he is, and he is treated with utmost hospitality even when he goes to another country.
That’s right, those with an overwhelming reputation won’t get caught up in the noise around them.
After laughing at the enemies who use insignificant moves, they only punish them later.
‘Yes, I need fame.’
Creating a new foundation is not easy.
This is because it requires a long time, countless efforts, and manpower.
But gaining fame is simpler than that.
Assrian’s users were able to acquire fame relatively easily.
‘Hall of Fame!’
In the past, he was hesitant to gain fame.
Because a user with high reputation has to endure the attention of NPCs.
He had to refrain from registering for the rankings in order to avoid the eyes of those pursuing Louise.
But now things have changed.
Right now, by Louise’s side, there were only monsters serving her.
There was also a force of harmony in the sky that would protect Louise.
It meant that even if the border city collapsed, Louise had a place to go.
Hyun’s head began to spin rapidly.
What can you do with fame?
What else should I watch out for?
Hyun thought of many situations, and finally nodded.
Now was the time to take a step forward.
‘I’ll have to register for the rankings right away.’
On that day, a new ID appeared in the Hall of Fame, and communities around the world were excited all day long.
***
27th – Hyun (Lv.254)
The new ID that appeared in the rankings made many people excited and tilted their heads again.
In Korea, where Hyun lives, the reaction was the same.
-Is that a real string? Aren’t they the same name??
-I know that there was no ID like that among the rankers… .
-Chin?
-But why is the level so low, I thought it was around 400.
– It’s really surprising that it’s not even in the top 10.
The most response was, of course, related to the level of Hyun.
Nutrient-less articles on the subject were also frequently posted.
<Why is Hyun’s level lower than expected? (Please vote!)>
1. Busy running SHA company – 34 votes
2. Being on academic probation this semester – 114 votes
3. Because Ain will become an adult this year! – 1064 votes
-Ah, number 3 is acceptable haha
– ㅋ ㅋ ㅋ ㅋ Where is the time to play games ㅋ
-What does it mean? I’m pure, so I don’t know… .
The answer is because the main quest and the final awakening quest overlapped.
As of a few months ago, number 1 was at least close to the correct answer, but the number of votes for that option was disastrously low.
<Why did Hyun get out of the shade?>
<The business world pays attention to the steps of a young man in a one-man conglomerate!>
Even though it was just a ranking, articles on the Internet poured in.
Interestingly, the name of the prefecture sometimes appears in economic or social aspects.
-But what kind of change of heart did Hyun have? It’s the first time you’ve registered for a ranking since starting Assrian.
– There must be some reason.
-It seems to be related to the renewal of the history quest this time.
– Only Shade Guild members should know why.
… …
「Hyung, why did you register the ranking?」
「Hyeon, why did you register the ranking alone?!」
Contrary to someone’s expectations, the guild members didn’t know the reason either.
Ginny and Salon, who heard the news first, sent a whisper.
TarrTar: Brother, what’s going on?
And Tartar, who was at school, also sent a text message through a capsule messenger.
Looking at Hyun, who was sending replies here and there, Louise asked quietly.
“Did something big happen?”
“I guess Hyun was inducted into the Hall of Fame.”
Hyun looked busy, so Ain accepted Louise’s words instead.
“What does that mean?”
“Well, it’s a decision made by the prefecture, so it won’t be meaningless.”
Only the two of them, Ain and Louise, remained calm.
Ain lay on the sofa in the private room and waited for Hyun’s work to be finished.
After a while, Hyun, who had some spare time, looked away.
It was to explain the situation to the two in the private room.
“Ain, Louise, I need your help too.”
“Hmm… ?”
“My help?”
To the two staring at him, Hyun said with a determined expression.
“I have to gain fame from now on.”
“Fame?”
“huh. A reputation greater than the Emperor of the Empire.”
“Oh, you’re finally going to go the king’s way!”
“Well, you can see it that way.”
“Ask for anything! I promised to make you king!”
Looking at Louise with both hands on her waist, Hyun smiled awkwardly.
She hadn’t said it yet, but she might have even enlisted the help of her men.
“How are you going to get fame?”
On the other hand, Ain asked for a specific method.
She had experienced Asura Online once.
He knew that just registering his name in the rankings was not enough to compete with the emperor for fame.
In the reality where the internet has developed, only moderately big events become big news, but that is not the case in Assrian.
In particular, in order to gain a reputation similar to that of the emperor, he had to leave a footprint worthy of being called a feat.
“You should think about that now. uh… ?!”
While smiling awkwardly at Ain’s question.
T-ring! A sudden alarm sound rang in Hyun’s ears.
“Yes… ?”
At the same moment, Ain’s eyes also became round.
Ain shouted, waving his fingers in the air.
“Something’s here!”
“quest?”
“Hyeondo?!”
“What, you too?”
Hyun and Ain glanced at each other and slowly opened the quest window.
<Quest: Angel’s Message>
-To you who want fame.
– Spread my name far and wide on earth. Spread the idea of harmony to the ignorant!
(Reward: Your fame will spread as well!)
The alarm went off at the same time, but the quests that Hyeon and Ain came up with were not the same.
Ain’s quest consisted of much shorter sentences than Hyeon’s.
<Quest: The Devil’s Deal>
– My apostle.
– You know what to do, right?
(Reward: I’ll do anything as long as my strength allows)
