Chapter 235
Seojun looked at the group standing a little away from the entrance of the blacksmith map.
‘They must have been waiting.’
There were three of them, and judging by their nicknames, it was safe to assume they were viewers.
SwordGod999, SwordGod998, SwordGod997.
That’s why he called them a group.
- What’s with those guys? lol
- Where’s SwordGod1000? lololol
- Looks like they were waiting for the streamer
If the three didn’t know each other, their nicknames would never have been like that.
‘Something’s off.’
Normally, if they were his usual viewers, the moment he met them, he would have unconsciously anticipated what kind of three idiots they would be this time.
‘Is it because of the masks?’
But these three had their faces covered with masks, so he didn’t get that feeling.
Rather, they seemed threatening.
An animal mask, a mustache mask, an opera mask.
The three were giggling as they approached him.
‘No sense of unity at all.’
Seojun waited briefly and habitually scanned the chat window.
A message had arrived in the travel chat window with SnackCorner that he’d put up on the stream for his viewers to see.
[SurvivingOnSupermarketSamples: Hey guys, do you know something?]
[SurvivingOnSupermarketSamples: In Solarin, most users don’t buy or wear masks?]
[SurvivingOnSupermarketSamples: It’s because all the bad-mannered users wear masks and run around lololol That’s Solarin for you!]
So what SnackCorner was saying was that in Solarin, masks were a badge of unmannerly users.
That meant it wasn’t the case in Lunaron.
If it were the same in Lunaron, they wouldn’t have specifically said “in Solarin.”
And right now, they were in Lunaron.
‘There must be a reason they went out of their way to send that chat.’
- What’s your point, you punk
- Solarin is seriously...
- Because it’s the demon realm!
- A fact that shocks Lunaron users lololol There’s an actual manner guild in Solarin!!
- Whoa, shiver
While Seojun was deducing, the three masked men arrived in front of him and greeted him.
“Hello, SwordGod-nim.”
“Yes, hello.”
Seojun replied to the ordinary greeting calmly and carefully observed the three’s gestures.
The atmosphere was strangely chilling, and Dangso, not liking it, stepped back.
By the way, Taewoo still hadn’t come out of the map.
“You see the nickname above us, right? We’re fans, fans.”
Animal—specifically, the rabbit mask—pointed a finger above their head.
“Yes, I see.”
It was different from a fan telling a celebrity they’re a fan.
More like someone approaching with ulterior motives.
‘Ah, they’re not fans.’
Seojun, meeting the eyes beyond the mask, smiled lightly, so no subtle war of nerves broke out.
The rabbit mask smirked and asked Seojun kindly.
“So, can I ask you a favor? Since we’re your fans and all?”
“Yes, what is it? I’ll decide after hearing it.”
- What’s with them asking for a favor and all
- This feels unsettling
- The streamer’s not going to listen to anything weird anyway, so no worries
- fr lol
- No, if they try any tricks, they’ll get beat up, you know?
- lolololololololol
“Could you possibly let us three join your party?”
“No, I can’t.”
“Hahaha. You decide way too quickly, don’t you?”
“I do.”
“You only have three people right now, so there are plenty of spots. You need to gather five more.”
“That’s true.”
Hmm.
‘Were they just another bunch like Dangso?’
He recalled Dangso, who had appeared throwing a shuriken from the very first meeting.
Even a nice kid like that loses their mind when playing games.
“Then you can just accept us.”
“You don’t have the skill.”
“We do, though?”
Of course, seeing the tone where they smiled, pushed their stubbornness, and scratched lightly, they were a different sort from the blatantly foolish Dangso.
In that case, it’s best to strike first, right?
“Why don’t you take off your masks first.”
“Hmm?”
“You said you want to join the party, right? Shouldn’t you show your faces?”
- fr lol
- Sneaky bastards, why the masks!
- Special note) Everyone freaking out about masks now is from Solarin
- The demon realm...
“Well, since it’s an avatar, we could open them...”
“Then please open them.”
“Hmm...”
Look at them hesitating.
The rabbit mask glared at him.
“SwordGod-nim. Even if we take off these masks, it’s not our real faces anyway, you know? Is there really a need to take off masks just to join a party?”
Games don’t have many systems that let you fiddle with your avatar on its own.
That’s because you set up your virtual reality avatar before entering.
Gamers could use their real-life body as-is, or use it as a base for slight cosmetic adjustments.
And it was also possible to completely disguise yourself as someone else with those slight adjustments.
So the faces behind those masks might not be their real ones.
Then what’s the reason for wearing masks?
“Still, you’re going to play Lacl with that face, aren’t you? It’s not like I’m actually curious about your real face, is it?”
“Haha...”
First off, modifying your face was an incredibly annoying task.
So much so that there were even avatar-related professions for it.
If you’re a malicious user, it’s better to just wear a mask and play rather than keep changing your face around.
Just like now.
- ...This really smells fishy
- Why can’t they take off their masks?
- Are there cursed binding items in Lacl by any chance?
- As if? lolol Those masks are even cosmetic items
“So you’re not taking them off?”
“This is my identity, you see...”
Oh.
“Just now, that was a bit like Dangso.”
“Excuse me?”
“Why are you summoning me all of a sudden!”
He meant they seemed not just bad people, but simply lacking in brains.
“Anyway. I won’t be accepting you. Join the guild first. Since it’s first-come, first-served, your waiting number will just be at the back.”
“……”
“Is there anyone among the other two who’ll take off their mask right here? If you do, I’ll prioritize inviting you to our guild.”
Even after saying this much, the two shook their heads.
Meaning they wouldn’t take off their masks.
The subtle tension continued to linger, so Seojun smirked and said.
“Ha. No, you guys. They say they can’t take off their masks not because they’re shady, but because they’re ugly. Let’s just pity them. You shouldn’t say things like that.”
- ???
- ??????
- Who said that
- This bastard’s chat distortion has started again lolololololol
- “Ah. I’m sorry. The investors are being quite mischievous.”
The rabbit mask stared unpleasantly at Seojun, then gave a wry smile.
“Is that so? I see. But if you knew we had the skill, would you accept us into the party?”
Seojun answered without a moment’s hesitation.
“Yes.”
- No, why do they keep doing that?
- What?
- Streamer, just ignore them
The chat response was bad.
They were demanding what’s called “ignoring the crazy patient.”
Of course, Seojun was already planning to add something more.
“If you’re better than me, I’ll accept you. No, I’ll invite you to join.”
- lololololololol
- Ah lol if they’re better than the streamer, of course you have to invite them
- That’s practically a declaration that you won’t accept them lololol
“Hoo, I see.”
“Yes. Go on. Or are you going to follow us? Since you’re fans and all?”
“Perhaps today... no. Have a fun game.”
The rabbit mask smiled unpleasantly until the very end.
“Yes, goodbye.”
SwordGod997, 998, and 999 walked away like that.
Each riding their own mounts.
Seeing that sight, Seojun narrowed his eyes, and SnackCorner said a word.
“They’re all mileage mounts.”
“They are.”
“Yes. You have to spend a lot to get those. I just searched Laclin and none of those three had visible sub-accounts in Lunaron, and their equipment level was 300. Like newbies who just got a skip ticket.”
- Whoa
- No way, then?
- Shiver shiver shiver
“I see.”
“What is it?”
“Like Taewoo, they must have spent 3 million won to hit level 300.”
“Whoa.”
Just as he finished saying that, Taewoo came out of the blacksmith.
If he had come out just a little earlier and heard it, the timing would have been art.
As if it was perfectly staged.
And Taewoo shouted.
“I was watching the stream, you bastard!”
I see.
“Good timing coming out. Then let’s go. Now, lead the way.”
Seojun ignored Taewoo. He couldn’t come near anyway.
“Yep. Everyone summon your mounts and follow me.”
Dangso was the first to summon a mount. Taewoo also climbed onto a strange turtle, having bought it in advance.
Seojun climbed onto the Golden King’s Crow he received from a viewer, then sent a message to SnackCorner.
Setting it so viewers couldn’t see.
[JinSeojun: You said you were going to check your luck earlier, right?]
[SurvivingOnSupermarketSamples: Yeah]
[JinSeojun: How about going to a PVP related place instead?]
[SurvivingOnSupermarketSamples: ?????]
[JinSeojun: To see if those guys from earlier show up. It’ll be fun, right?]
Simply put, since they seemed suspicious, he was suggesting luring them out as bait.
SnackCorner paused typing for a moment, then resumed.
[SurvivingOnSupermarketSamples: ...You’re really out of your mind lol]
[SurvivingOnSupermarketSamples: k]
Seojun grinned, and at Dangso’s urging to hurry up and go, SnackCorner stuttered as they set off.
“L-Let’s go!”
* * *
The Golden King’s Crow was about the speed of a bicycle that was faster than running.
And even moving at that fast speed, it took quite a long time before they arrived at their destination.
“Why is there no fast travel? Hurry up and explain.”
“M-Me?”
“Yes, you. SnackCorner-nim. You’re a veteran, after all.”
They spent about 10 minutes traveling from the west end of the Peron continent to the east end.
How many maps had they passed through?
“Because it’s the romance of RPGs? No, when moving between continents, there is fast travel, you know...?”
“Hmm. I think it’s to sell mounts! Isn’t that right, Heavenly Demon!”
“That could be it. Dangso, you’re surprisingly smart? Why didn’t you know this, SnackCorner-nim?”
“……”
- lolololololol
- SnackCorner’s fingers are getting itchy again lololololol
- Countless swear words pouring into the private chat window lolololololololol
“So explain. Where is this?”
“This is Peron’s second city.”
“Oh.”
“Peron has two concepts. Looking at this, doesn’t it make you think of something?”
Seojun slowly examined the village buildings, then turned his head sharply to look at Dangso.
“For the chivalrous?”
- Oh that’s right
- lololololol it’s been a while
- Dangso has come to his hometown
- It’s just Eastern-style, you punks lololololololol
- Info) Peron is at the very eastern end of the map. So the eastern part of Peron has a setting that it was influenced a lot through exchanges with residents of lands further east that haven’t been revealed yet.
- Thank you, Speedwagon!
“Indeed! Have we returned to the hometown in our hearts? Huhuhu, now.”
Dangso approached Seojun.
“It’s truly time for me to return as a real Heavenly Demon!”
He lightly ignored it.
“So what do you do here?”
“Follow me.”
- Could it be that?
- You said you were checking luck, but this isn’t luck, is it?
- PVP on
They headed to the outskirts of the city.
And after standing at the entrance of a massive building surrounded by walls and waiting about 1 second to transition maps, the scenery flipped in an instant.
As they entered the building, Taewoo asked.
“Where is this?”
The party slowly moved along the wall, looking at the center.
On a giant training ground raised about 30cm from the ground, four people were in combat.
“It’s the testing ground of the NPC master over there. If you pass the test, you get a skill enhancement ticket as a reward? Just simply put.”
“Yes.”
“It’s a place where up to 30 people have a free-for-all individual PVP on that training ground.”
“Why?”
“If you look at those users, they have timers above their heads, right?”
“Yes.”
6 minutes 33 seconds. 4 minutes 17 seconds. 1 minute 53 seconds.
There were timers above the users’ nicknames, and the numbers were decreasing in real time.
“Seeing those tells you how long those people have survived up there. They’re all 10-minute timers. If you die, it resets.”
“Ah.”
“The moment that timer ends, the quest is a success.”
Just then, the users all began rushing in unison toward the user with 1 minute 48 seconds left.
Shouting, “Did you think you’d make it!”
“So if you don’t die for 10 minutes, it’s a success, and you get a skill enhancement ticket as a reward.”
At Dangso’s summary, Taewoo muttered.
“So it’s a gathering of people who want to get skill enhancement tickets and people like JinSeojun who want to stop them?”
- Ah!
- When I had nothing to do, I used to go there and be a wall of lament for newbies lololololol
- Ah lol once you see the ones with low numbers, you just go kill them no matter what
- There’s always at least one person who camps there and harasses newbies no matter the time lolololol truly gem-like bastards lololol
“It’s a famous PVP spot.”
At SnackCorner’s words, Seojun raised the corners of his mouth in satisfaction.
“Indeed, it is a famous spot.”
Even during the explanation, SwordGods were entering the map one by one behind SnackCorner.
“Did they come?”
“Yes.”
Right on cue, the masked trio with nicknames SwordGod997, 998, and 999 also appeared.