novel
| ← Ch.226 | Ch.228 → |
"... That's true."
Ho Sung Lee sadly agreed. Meanwhile, coffee arrived on the table.
While Min Sung sipped on his coffee, the boy, Alfie, loitered around the window.
He appeared to be looking their way.
"He seems to be in an urgent situation."
Ho Sung Lee took Alfie's side.
"How far is Pheus?"
"It's not that far. He's currently at a private vacation house. I heard their guards are very strict."
Min Sung smirked while sipping his coffee.
"And what's that about the sacrifices?"
"I'm not sure about the details. They're keeping quiet about it."
Min Sung sighed and met eyes with Alfie outside the window.
Min Sung finished his cup of coffee and put down his cup.
"Let's go, " said Min Sung while getting up from his chair.
"Yes, Sir."
Just like any other day, Ho Sung Lee's face was filled with nervousness unlike that of Min Sung.
***
Ho Sung Lee borrowed two horses.
If it was far, they would have just traveled by foot.
But it wasn't very far so since Min Sung was the lazy type, he looked into going by horse so that they could travel comfortably.
Click, clack, click, clack!
Min Sung's horses raced quickly.
Bowl was inside Min Sung's pocket, and Ssol was behind Ho Sung Lee with his arms wrapped around Ho Sung Lee's waist.
After about 15 minutes, they started to see something.
"I think it's over there, " said Ho Sung Lee.
Min Sung stopped on top of a hill and looked down where Pheus was staying.
Since the area was high up, he had a good view of where Pheus was residing.
There were a bunch of grey buildings, and they were positioned to look like fortresses around the ocean.
The sun was setting, and not long after would it be dark outside.
Min Sung kicked the side of the horse to get moving again.
***
The sunset didn't last for long.
The sun set in no time, and once it was nighttime, Pheus began his preparations for his sacrifice.
There was a large alter and nearby was Pheus who was sitting in a fancy chair.
The way countless people danced and played instruments in order to offer the sacrifice reminded him much of a religious ceremony.
Once Ho Sung Lee focused on his supporter abilities, he specialized in hiding his visibility and conducting sneaky infiltration.
As a result, he had a very good grasp of what was happening inside Pheus' fortress.
No matter how powerful anyone was, it was hard to detect someone who was hiding their whereabouts.
But since they were not to be underestimated, Ho Sung Lee prepared for the worst and moved in a careful manner.
After infiltrating the fortress as if he was stepping on thin ice, Ho Sung Lee checked up on the people that were captured to become hostages.
And then he moved again to try to get back out.
A moment later, Ho Sung Lee slipped through a small crack as smoke, and once he turned back into his original form, he looked around.
He spotted Min Sung nearby.
And as soon as he spotted Min Sung, Ho Sung Lee almost screamed.
There were 5 bodies on the ground around him.
"... What happened?"
Ho Sung Lee asked in shock.
The place where Ho Sung Lee spotted Min Sung wasn't near the front gates, but it was a place where the guards couldn't spot him.
It was a blind spot for any CCTV angles.
Min Sung said to go inside.
But Ho Sung Lee wanted to play his part as a supporter, so he proposed that he go inside to check on the situation inside, and Min Sung agreed.
"How is it?"
Min Sung gestured toward the inside with his chin.
"Can I smoke a cigarette? I feel like this is my last chance for a long time or forever. It's not that I don't trust you. I don't trust myself."
Min Sung lifted his hand to give him permission.
Ho Sung Lee put a cigarette in his mouth and smoked with anxiousness.
"Huff, huu!"
He smoked at a faster pace than usual.
Min Sung knitted his brows as he watched Ho Sung Lee.
Ho Sung Lee put out his cigarette with his foot and then swept his sweaty hair back.
"There are many of them. Maybe around 200."
Min Sung turned his eyes toward the wall.
"200?"
Min Sung asked to confirm, and Ho Sung Lee nodded in response.
"Are you going to go inside?"
"We can't go back after how far we've come."
"That's true, but there are more of them than we thought... Never mind."
Ho Sung Lee shook his head.
"It wouldn't be like you to not go inside, but there's something I'm worried about. This is Beatrice. This isn't earth nor is there a lot of information like there is of the devils, so if we go in without having the proper manpower, we could face some trouble."
"So what do you suggest we do?"
"We'll go in together, and I'll use my support abilities to give you information on the numbers and location, and you can get rid of them one by one to decrease the number."
"Is that really necessary... ?"
"Sir, we don't have much information. We might have had a smooth ride until now, but there's no guarantee it'll continue that way. This is Beatrice, and it's where all the best hunters of the world are gathered. It doesn't hurt to be careful."
"Then do that. Let's begin. Go right now."
Ho Sung Lee looked back toward the wall.
"I can turn into smoke and cross the wall, but do you have a way?"
"Of course. Go first."
"... Yes, Sir."
Ho Sung Lee tilted his head and then turned into smoke in an instant.
His smoke then penetrated through the small crack in the wall.
He then heard the sound of knocking from the other side of the wall.
Min Sung swung his fist.
Pow!
The wall came tumbling down.
Since it was a thick wall with no magic cast onto it, he was able to easily knock down the wall with his fist.
Min Sung took Ssol with him and crossed the wall through the hole.
Ho Sung Lee stared at Min Sung in shock.
"If you were going to do that, why did you get me to go first? And the players will come rushing over because of that sound."
"It wasn't that loud, and they're already loud from offering sacrifice, so not many guards will react to a noise like that."
At that moment, they sensed a movement.
"They're coming, " said Min Sung as Ho Sung Lee turned back into a cloud of smoke.
Min Sung hid behind a tree without making a sound.
'The number of players under Pheus' rule is 200... '
'That's a lot. '
While Min Sung had that thought, he saw the backside of 2 guards who came to check up on the hole in the wall.
Min Sung took out his Gungnir without the thundering noise and approached them quietly.
As soon as they turned around after talking about the wall, Min Sung's Gungnir attacked them from behind.
The Gungnir slashed through one of their faces, and after that, Min Sung's left hand grabbed onto the other guard's neck.
"Ugh! Ugh!"
The player within Min Sung's grasp was unable to use his strength.
The life drained out of him and turned into a mummy.
Min Sung threw the body to the ground. He put his weapon away and turned around.
There stood Ho Sung Lee.
"Shall I begin the search now?"
Ho Sung Lee asked.
"Wait."
Min Sung wiped his sword of blood and opened his item shop.
If he was a ranker ruling over 200 players, that meant he had quite the reputation.
Min Sung used his +12000 experience points to buy items.
After buying all of the items, he only had +4000 points left, but he wasn't sad about it.
He just wanted to finish off the responsibilities he was given.
At that moment...
Ding!
An alarm sound went off along with a quest.
[Pheus is committing evil acts of offering sacrifice. Since he has an evil reputation, you'll gain great honor if you defeat PHeus. ]
[You must act quickly since the lives of Beatrice natives are on the line. ]
[In the case that you defeat Pheus, you will receive a large reward as well. ]
[You're now qualified to receive ranker missions. ]
[Success Condition A: Defeat Pheus]
[Success Condition B: Save the Beatrice Natives]
[Success Condition C: You'll receive a higher reputation and reward the more people you save. ]
[You cannot refuse this quest. ]
That was all of the messages that Min Sung saw in front of his eyes.
He had to do it anyway, but the fact that the more people he saved, the higher his reputation and reward would be made him feel burdened.
But in order to get out of this disgusting world and enjoy a peaceful life, he had to complete all of the quests.
Min Sung looked annoyed as he sent Ho Sung Lee a message via trill.
Hurry up. We don't have much time.
After hearing the message, Ho Sung Lee nodded. He bowed and then disappeared after turning into a cloud of smoke.
While Ho Sung Lee moved first to become Min Sung's eyes, Min Sung checked the time on his watch.
How long would it take to defeat Pheus, who is the leader of Haikman Port City?
No, how many minutes would it take?
Min Sung decided on 10 minutes and started his time watch.
| ← Ch. 226 | Ch. 228 → |