◈ Episode 347. What Does Not Change Nonetheless (3)
From the moment Yunaxus vanished, engulfed in green flames, until now. If one were to name the three stories most talked about in the world, first would be the noble sacrifice of the cat Tower Master.
“Hey, looks like everyone came except Cheonha Tongil?”
“Even if they aren’t sincere, they’ll at least show up. I mean, come on. An Arcanain Tower Master threw away his life for us. Try pretending you don’t know about that. Could you handle it? The comment bombardment from netizens?”
“So everyone’s making an appearance, if only for image management.”
The second and third stories as well.
They could be found at the Magic Tower.
Murmur, murmur—at the same time as the click of footsteps.
The crowd whispered upon seeing Hoyeol appear.
Among those whispers were Arcanains.
“Chief Lee, your hair has returned to normal?”
“Personally, I preferred the long hair…… He wasn’t wearing his jacket back then, but if I imagine his long hair and the jacket draped over his shoulders fluttering together……!”
“Excuse me, but no one asked about your personal tastes?”
And players alike.
“Couldn’t that have been some kind of skill back then, too?”
“Come on, no matter what, would Arcana have a skill like Long-Hair Transformation? And what reason would he have to use a skill like that while facing a dragon?”
“Style over life. It looked cool, didn’t it? The long hair.”
“That’s something I can’t exactly refute, but……”
Hoyeol’s ever-changing hairstyle.
And the final story that followed.
Thanks to the tactless Dmitry, it was confirmed once again.
The dragon’s spoils that Hoyeol must have obtained.
Did he want to know what spoils he had gotten?
Before Hoyeol’s question in return, Dmitry broke out in a cold sweat.
“N-No. What I mean is, Commander-in-Chief……?”
Was there anything as entertaining as watching a fire from across the river?
Quite literally, Dmitry had brought a beating upon himself with his own mouth.
Among players, there existed a kind of unwritten rule. Unless you had a grudge against someone, or were planning to, you did not carelessly ask those who had succeeded in a raid what kind of spoils they had acquired.
The reason was simple.
“Nothing in the world is more infuriating than backseat raiding.”
After the Cataclysm, raids had become life-or-death struggles.
It was only natural for lives to be on the line in a struggle worthy of being called a raid. To evaluate the spoils was no different from weighing the sacrifices made in the raid against the value of the spoils.
Moreover, the sacrifice in this Yunaxus raid was even heavier.
“Dmitry really crossed the line there.”
It was a battle in which none other than the Tower Master of the Magic Tower had sacrificed himself, and this was the Magic Tower where that very Tower Master’s memorial was being held. To openly mention spoils in such a Magic Tower. And then, of all people.
To have that atrocity discovered by Hoyeol.
Some players turned their eyes away entirely.
“I can’t watch. I feel too bad for him. Come to think of it, didn’t Dmitry get caught by the player-paparazzi back when his proposal was rejected too? Why has he been so pitiful ever since then?”
“Just imagining if that were me…… Urgh, I feel like throwing up.”
“I’m already getting chills. Is that normal……?”
It was a situation where even someone with no tact would naturally develop some.
Someone save me.
Stammering, Dmitry searched desperately with his eyes for an ally, a fellow member of Shining. But neither Rox nor Camilla could be seen, not even a strand of hair or a shadow.
“……
Guys?”
Rox, whose quick wits made up for the tactless Dmitry’s blind spots, had long since slipped away to avoid being caught in the sparks, and Camilla had already pushed through the crowd in search of Jesse.
‘Tra-Traitors……!’
A dilemma.
There was no way out, Dmitry.
Just as everyone waited for Dmitry’s “punishment.”
Hoyeol continued speaking.
For some reason.
Words no one had expected.
“Then wait your turn.”
Wait his turn?
Procedure, along with formality.
It was something Hoyeol always had on his lips, but……
To suddenly tell him to wait his turn.
Leaving only those words behind.
Hoyeol moved on.
Having passed through a life-or-death crisis, Dmitry first let out the breath he had been holding with all his might.
“Ughh.”
He had no mental leeway to think about it.
So once again, he had no choice but to ask those nearby.
Dmitry whispered to a Shining guild member and analyst.
“He doesn’t mean he’ll punish me according to order, does he?”
“Well. It could be interpreted in two ways.”
“……
Two ways? What are they?”
“One would be, as you just said, the order of punishment.”
“Phew, then what’s the other one?”
“The other one, even I’m not sure, but……”
After pondering, the man continued.
“If Player Lee Hoyeol intended from the beginning to reveal the spoils of Yunaxus…… Then his words to wait for the order could be interpreted differently, couldn’t they?”
“……
Oooh.”
Depending on the interpretation, it could go between heaven and hell.
There was only one way for Dmitry to foresee his future. So, what in the world was Hoyeol’s next schedule, when he valued procedure so much?
The magicians of the Magic Tower knew that better than anyone.
In the crowd, Jibril whispered to Klee.
“Come to think of it, wasn’t today the day of the Round Table Conference, Klee?”
*
I’m grateful, Dmitry.
‘For not taking an interest in my long hair like certain people…….’
The shock of last night still had not faded.
It had rung in my hand from beginning to end.
The shock of the anomaly.
—Smartphone notification vibration
—I mean.
—wtf Hoyeol what’s with your hair??
—freaking goosebumps lolololol
—What’s so goosebump-inducing~ It suits him well~
—Unnie, are you just going to spoil him every single day?!?!
—Yerim, you know kids are really honest, right? But our Arang was making such a fuss, saying her uncle looked like a real prince. Haha.
—She never once tells her aunt she’s pretty, though ㅡㅡ
Numbers Two and Three, who tormented me as always, were one thing.
Even my eldest sister, who had offered comfort that was not quite comfort.
I had never resented them so much……!
I had braced myself, but the aftermath was cruel beyond measure. If there was a silver lining in misfortune, it was that once [Heaven Above, Heaven Below, I Alone Am Supreme], a skill damned from its very name, was released, as you could see, my hair returned to normal.
‘And if there’s a misfortune within that fortune.’
It meant that if I activated it again, my hair would become long and trailing again……! Strength that could only be obtained in exchange for shame. It might be fine for now, but I worried about the future.
[Understanding of Darkness (Curse): Greatly increases affinity for suitable magic. However, you must face the past that is the source of that suitable magic.
- Current suitable magic affinity: 10%]
If, through [Understanding of Darkness],
I came to know Granfell’s past.
[Heaven Above, Heaven Below, I Alone Am Supreme (10%): An unparalleled genius, a peerless prodigy who blasphemes even the goddess. Manifests the talent of Granfell Claudi Arpheus Romeo.]
Then the proficiency of [Heaven Above, Heaven Below, I Alone Am Supreme]
would also rise. I was worried that if I mastered the skill, I might end up literally sweeping the floor with my hair……
So I could not help but be grateful.
‘To think you refreshed the atmosphere with a question about the spoils.’
Thanks to that, I was able to attend my next schedule, the Round Table Conference, without receiving questions from anyone. And in accordance with procedure, I stepped up onto the podium of the Crystal Hall where the Round Table Conference was held.
As the Commander-in-Chief of the Holy War Alliance, I opened my mouth.
“Yunaxus no longer exists in this world.”
Many players had participated, but the ones who had led the Yunaxus raid were unquestionably the Holy War Alliance. That meant it was my duty to settle the results of the raid.
“It is thanks to your noble sacrifices.”
Nam Taemin, Hisagi, Leonie, Skal……
My gaze moved to each in turn.
Finally, the place where my gaze stopped was Harkon.
Harkon had lost both legs in this battle.
With both legs crushed, the plate armor that had melted while being engulfed in extreme flames had worsened his injuries. To the point that neither modern medicine nor the healing magic of the Magic Tower could restore them.
“Those sacrifices deserve respect.”
I nodded to Harkon.
Harkon had lost his legs while leading the Holy War Alliance in my place after I had unexpectedly been absent for six whole days. I wanted to show him far greater respect, but my damned neck remained endlessly stiff even at times like this.
However, in my stead.
Clap, clap, clap—
Everyone attending the Round Table Conference rose to their feet.
They applauded Harkon.
Harkon smiled, looking awkward.
“My, my…… This is embarrassing in its own way.”
Around the time the applause subsided, I continued speaking.
“Yunaxus was a formidable enemy incomparable to any Demon King or great evil. It was thanks to all of you that we were able to protect reality from such a Yunaxus.”
“……!!!”
I could feel the audience flinch.
Who was Granfell, after all?
The owner of a fussy personality who rarely uttered praise.
And yet lavish praise was pouring out of that very Granfell’s mouth. Not only the magicians of the Magic Tower, but also the players attending the Round Table Conference for the first time thanks to the Magic Tower being fully opened, were visibly surprised.
Not knowing there was a complicated underlying meaning.
‘Even in the middle of this, look at him puffing out his chest.’
In any case, the one who had contributed overwhelmingly to defeating Yunaxus was me.
I had not attacked Yunaxus directly, but while Yunaxus burned in splendid extreme flames until the very end, I was the one who had fully endured that heat.
‘In the end, it means I’m the greatest.’
As proof, even after breaking through the wall of level 800.
[Level: 826]
My level had risen by no less than an additional 26 levels.
On top of that, thanks to my high contribution to the kill, I had automatically acquired all the spoils left behind by Yunaxus. Yes, I had stood on this podium to reveal that fact.
After all, shouldn’t words once spoken be realized?
“I shall reveal to you the legacy left behind by that Yunaxus.”
*
AAU Korea Branch.
It seemed as though a storm had swept through once.
Seong Hyeonjun and Yun Sugyeom were catching their breath.
Beside the two men, two refreshing iced Americanos were set down.
“Huh?”
And large venti-sized ones, at that.
“……
Branch Manager Park?”
Branch Manager Park Minjae, the miser.
A man who, rare in this day and age, loved canned coffee and instant coffee mix.
For some reason, he had set down café iced Americanos.
Was the sun rising in the west?
Or had he won the lottery?
To the two men staring at him blankly, Park Minjae opened his mouth.
“……
My wife treated.”
“No wonder. Did Madam come by?”
“Yeah, while you two were hammering away at your keyboards like your fingers would fall off……”
But if you think about it, doesn’t that mean I treated too……?
Just as Park Minjae’s eyes were about to grow sorrowful.
Seong Hyeonjun quickly cut in, perceptive as ever.
“Waaah, thank you so much! Branch Manager Park! Coffee really does taste best when someone else buys it. Ah, and did you happen to check? Breaking news has been going up like crazy in the media since earlier.”
“Breaking news? About the Magic Tower?”
“Yes.”
Just in case, Seong Hyeonjun turned the monitor toward Park Minjae.
Park Minjae scanned the monitor once, then nodded.
“Of course I read every single one of them without missing a thing.”
“It finally feels like it’s properly over now.”
“You can say that again.”
Wriggle, wriggle—
Park Minjae subtly tried to pick up Yun Sugyeom’s coffee.
But Yun Sugyeom’s hand was faster.
Quickly bringing his lips to the straw, Yun Sugyeom asked.
“Would you like some bottled water instead?”
“……
Tsk. No, forget it.”
“More importantly, what in the world did that bastard do?”
That bastard, of course, was Raymon Sean.
They were dragons who had followed Hoyeol, calling him the Black Dark Dragon. He had thought there was no reason for such a dragon to suddenly breathe its breath at reality and players now, and yet.
“Yunaxus, who swallowed the Evil Fruit. The ‘Evil Fruit’ attached at the front must have been the cause.”
“So I searched through the Cosmo database again like crazy. But while there was a Fruit of Good and Evil, there wasn’t even a concept for something called an Evil Fruit. I even dug through deleted data, but nothing. Seriously, where did this get twisted from……?”
“Well, isn’t it only natural that we wouldn’t know? Judging from the emergency update, it seems like even that bastard Raymon Sean didn’t expect it either.”
“That’s satisfying in its own way.”
Slurp, slurp—
Seong Hyeonjun and Yun Sugyeom nodded as they sucked on their Americanos.
Still, speaking of something unexpected……
Seong Hyeonjun opened his mouth.
“I never imagined the Yunaxus raid would end like this. To be honest, I did secretly expect Executive Director Lee Hoyeol of Yusra to resolve the situation for us, but……”
“You didn’t expect him to appear with long, flowing hair?”
“Th-that’s true, isn’t it? Still, the General Manager is someone who always comes through. I have boundless faith in him, after all. So it wasn’t all that surprising to me.”
“Is this testimonial hour or what?”
He’s no different from me, is he?
Park Minjae had only just swallowed a snicker.
Seong Hyeonjun continued.
“But Yunaxus swallowed the Fruit of Evil, turned into an evil dragon, and caused no small amount of damage to reality. I never imagined he would be remembered and recorded in this way.”
“Really?”
At Seong Hyeonjun’s words, Park Minjae recited the headline of the breaking news.
“Lee Hoyeol says, Yunaxus’s Dragon Heart opened a portal to the Arcana Continent. From now on, free entry into the Arcana Continent is possible through the Magic Tower’s portal. Will the era of fighting over access devices come to an end…….”
Yun Sugyeom added.
“No one could have imagined it. That he would use the Dragon Heart acquired as loot as a medium leading to the Arcana Continent.”
Because Hoyeol treated things like wealth and honor as trivial.
Because it had fallen into the hands of such a Hoyeol.
This was a development that could only have happened thanks to that.
Park Minjae suddenly recalled the setting of the Arcana Continent Chronicles.
“Wasn’t that basically the final content of Arcana Continent Chronicles that we planned in Cosmo’s early days? The Zero Mountains, and the dragon living at their peak?”
“It was.”
“Even if the Cataclysm hadn’t happened, the players would have succeeded in hunting a dragon someday. Of course, even then, Arcana Continent Chronicles wouldn’t have ended there. New content would have been added endlessly.”
“That’s true, too.”
“Even so, the dragon raid would have become a major turning point of sorts. Because that would have been the moment the world expanded beyond the Arcana we had planned.”
Seong Hyeonjun and Yun Sugyeom let out exclamations at the same time.
“Oh…… Somehow, the situation fits perfectly, doesn’t it?”
“In any case, the Yunaxus raid has become a turning point. Thanks to it, a portal has opened to an entirely different world, the Arcana Continent. That’s truly a perspective I never would have thought of, Branch Manager.”
“Really?”
These guys were worth buying expensive coffee for.
Park Minjae shrugged for no reason.
And yet, he thought.
Yes, the truth had always been one.
Only the perspective from which one viewed it differed.
In that sense.
From a place so endlessly high.
So distant that its end could not be fathomed.
He looked down upon everything.
It was an unchanging perspective and interpretation.
Park Minjae let out a sigh without realizing it.
“Even the evil dragon that nearly burned the world, the Extreme Flame Dragon Yunaxus. General Manager Lee Hoyeol of Yusra saw him as a torch that would light a new era called the Arcana Continent…….”