The Seed Buried in the Junkyard
Chapter 21: The Veteran Trained in Martial Arts for 300 Years
Lee Beom-ho wanted to play in the big leagues. Not in the light, but in the dark waters of the underworld. Rotten from
the roots since childhood, Lee Beom-ho had always wished for this, and finally, his chance came.
"I heard your work is flawless?"
Bang Hyeong-seok. The heir to the Sihyeok Group.
They were just starting to make a name for themselves in Korea, but in truth, they were already famous overseas among
those in the know. Starting out as the Sihyeok Guild, they had grown enough to be called a group and were still a
rapidly expanding mid-sized conglomerate. If they could just keep up this momentum, they were a promising enterprise on
track to join the ranks of massive corporations.
The heir to such a company came to him and tossed him a few under-the-table jobs to handle. It was a test to see if he
was useful, and Lee Beom-ho executed the tasks perfectly.
"Not bad. Take on some more of our work from now on."
"Just leave it to me, Young Master."
"Don't call me Young Master; call me Director."
"Understood. Director."
"Yeah. I like that you understand things quickly."
He groveled like a dog. He didn't just say the words; he truly became a dog and did absolutely everything he was told.
And through that, he finally succeeded.
"This is our main business."
Having earned their trust, he was able to become a true member of the Sihyeok Group and learned about the [Elf Auction].
This was the reason the Sihyeok Group had been able to grow so explosively. The Elf Auction was the secret behind their
strong connections in both political and business circles.
Selling enslaved elves. If caught, it was punishable by death, but it was an extremely high-risk crime where, even prior
to an execution, the Elven Knights from the Elf Forest would reduce everything involved to ashes.
"So, we just have to make sure we don't get caught."
"If we don't get caught, it means we get to run this incredibly lucrative business, right?"
Bang Hyeong-seok smiled more terrifyingly than a monster as he spoke, and Lee Beom-ho bowed his head. It wasn't out of
fear.
"You are exactly right, Director."
On the contrary, he was showing his loyalty by agreeing with him. Bang Hyeong-seok had shown him a secret that could
never be exposed. In a way, it was like putting a leash around his neck, but Beom-ho actually preferred it that way. He
never had any intention of leaving in the first place. Knowing this, the Sihyeok Group chose to develop Beom-ho
Development—a suitably sized shell company that they deliberately nurtured.
So, he thought there was nothing left but a path to success. After all, he had beaten out formidable competitors to be
chosen by the Sihyeok Group.
Or so he thought.
I know Beom-ho Development is connected to the Elf Auction.
This note was plastered inside the junkyard office he had come to inspect.
The junkyard’s purpose had been secretly changed to a warehouse for stacking dungeon by-products related to the Elf
Auction. They hadn't officially reported the business as closed, but they had locked the doors and cleared out all the
personnel.
"I'll be managing this place directly from now on, so make sure no one else enters."
"Understood, boss."
There was no reason for an ordinary civilian to wander into a junkyard surrounded by high walls anyway. Everything
stored inside were things that only those involved in the "business" could recognize. Even then, they were disguised so
well that you wouldn't know what they were unless you came in already suspicious and started digging.
In other words, this was no simple prank.
Whoever it was had moved through a route completely hidden from the CCTVs—which he checked just in case—left the note,
and vanished without a trace.
…They had come knowing everything.
Lee Beom-ho's mind went completely blank, but he soon clenched his fists hard enough to draw blood, forcing himself back
to his senses. Trying to hide a problem like this and handle it alone was a mistake only third-rate idiots made.
Without hesitation, he picked up his phone. Steeling his resolve, he made the call.
"Yeah. What is it."
"…Someone who knows about the Elf Auction left a note at the junkyard."
"……What did you say?"
It was a phone call that wouldn't just stop at Bang Hyeong-seok, but would flip the entire Sihyeok Group upside down.
I know Beom-ho Development is connected to the Elf Auction.
That single-sentence message wouldn't just stop at Beom-ho Development; it would throw the entire Sihyeok Group into
chaos. The contents were simply too dangerous. Left behind without being caught on CCTV and without a single
fingerprint, this was far beyond the realm of a prank.
The most important point was that they couldn't deny the possibility that the person who left the note knew not only
about Beom-ho Development, but the Sihyeok Group as well. Because of this, neither Beom-ho Development nor the Sihyeok
Group would have the luxury or the resources to bother Sun-woo's family anymore. They would have to risk their lives
searching for a "ghost" who didn't seem to exist.
Their heads would be splitting just trying to figure out the intruder's intentions for leaving a note and disappearing.
And the plan didn't stop there.
To be precise, what Beom-ho Development had been trying to seize was the dimension beyond the gate itself. They wanted
to use it as a place to secretly store some of the items related to the [Elf Auction]. However, the crucial detail was
that this wasn't an official company project, but a space for Bang Hyeong-seok's personal hobby.
Yes, since they dealt in elf slaves, the official system was inherently strict and thorough. But because this was Bang
Hyeong-seok's private endeavor, that flawless system wasn't perfectly applied—leaving a vulnerability.
Sun-woo intended to stab right into that vulnerability. And since he lacked the power to do it himself right now, he
would use a proxy.
That person was Chairman Kang Su-hyeok.
The Chairman of the Changseong Group, representing South Korea. One of Changseong Group's greatest strengths was its
exceptionally friendly relationship with Elves. This was possible because Kang Su-hyeok hadn't stopped at a mere
business relationship; he had genuinely become friends with high-ranking Elves.
Naturally, Kang Su-hyeok's Changseong Group fiercely antagonized anyone who enslaved and trafficked Elves. Among them,
the rapidly growing [Elf Auction] was a faction they had been tracking with blazing eyes.
Sun-woo passed a clue to catch the Elf Auction to Kang Su-hyeok through Kang Han-na. The dungeon by-products piled up in
the junkyard that served as Beom-ho Development's base. If it was the Changseong Group, which had amassed massive
amounts of data to catch their enemies, they wouldn't fail to recognize the materials used to enslave Elves hidden
within.
These materials weren't there by coincidence; they were thoroughly hidden, like hiding a tree in a forest. He took
photos of them and sent them in a message to Kang Han-na's phone, meaning they would undoubtedly reach Kang Su-hyeok.
This plan relied on the essential prerequisite of knowing Kang Han-na's phone number, but that was no issue. Throughout
his repeated timelines, Sun-woo had carved her number so deeply into his memory that he could never forget it.
‘Good.’
Sun-woo nodded. Looking back on it, it was a plan worth anticipating. If he could uproot Beom-ho Development and the
Sihyeok Group at this stage, the benefits would be massive.
The relationship between humans and Elves had to remain amicable. That was the only way they could join forces in the
final chapter. However, the [Elf Auction] constantly drove a wedge between humans and Elves, frustrating the players to
no end. It was the reason why, no matter how much you built up your reputation with the Elves in the early game, they
would still slam the door in your face. Even after utterly destroying the faction in the mid-game, you had to grind
miserably just to recover that lost affinity.
Therefore, if he could succeed in this [Story Alteration], he would reap numerous benefits that could only be described
as a "godsend."
There was just one catch. Whenever he progressed the story like this, a problem always arose.
By the mid-game, when he usually reclaimed his stolen house and crushed Beom-ho Development and the Sihyeok Group
following the "official history (canon)", he was guaranteed to obtain a specific item. It wasn't just any item; it was
essential for the protagonist's growth and virtually required to reach the ending in multiple ways.
But whenever he destroyed them early, he failed to get it.
It wasn't something handed to him automatically; it was an item found only by scouring the map that served as the stage
for that part of the story. So, he had forced the issue in the past, thoroughly searching Beom-ho Development's junkyard
and Sihyeok Group, but he had never found it. At the time, he had no choice but to conclude it simply wasn't there yet.
If he could somehow find it later by mobilizing every possible means, it would be fortunate. But seven times out of ten,
he never found it. And those runs failed disastrously. Granted, he had never reached his desired ending regardless, but
the conclusion was always significantly worse when he failed to secure this item.
[Attempting to alter the story.]
[Success Probability: 0.00003%.]
[It is recommended to follow the original story.]
[Y/N]
‘…Maybe.’
It suddenly occurred to him: perhaps this was the reason why, despite everything he had done, the success rate remained
infinitely close to failure.
Through countless [Restarts], he had tried every conceivable approach from this point. If a result showed promise, he
would refine and perfect it. But always, just when things seemed to be going well, the success probability would plummet
abruptly.
And then.
‘……Right?’
"……!"
It felt like a flash of lightning connected everything in his mind.
This story was never just about Beom-ho Development and the Sihyeok Group. The narrative didn't end with them; it
extended further. The storyline tied to that item was also part of the story that needed to be [Altered].
‘Hmm…….’
As the wave of realization receded, Sun-woo's expression settled. The problem was that the story alteration had already
progressed past the point of no return. He could retrieve the physical note from the office, but he couldn't unsend the
message to Kang Han-na.
Because of the changed timing of this [Restart], he had been completely unprepared and had been forced to proceed this
way. It was the best option he had at the time. Since it had come to this, he had to push the story in a direction where
he somehow found the item this time.
‘……Huh?’
Deep in thought, Sun-woo suddenly froze and lifted his head. At first, he thought it was an illusion. A trick of the
mind brought on by thinking so intensely about the item.
‘……Really?’
But it wasn't. It was unbelievable, and incredibly faint, but he could suddenly feel the aura of that item. Sun-woo's
senses immediately sharpened to a razor's edge.
‘Wait a minute.’
Now that he thought about it, this was the first time he had ever entered the junkyard at [this exact time]. In his
previous lives, he had never possessed the strength to infiltrate this place so early.
Hoo—
He calmed his mind and regulated his breathing. As his mind settled, the physical senses honed by the Yeonsin Geukgigong
(Physical Refinement Breathing Technique) sharpened immensely.
Swoosh…
‘It's not an illusion.’
He could feel the item's unique aura even more clearly now.
Sun-woo, who had been on his way out of the junkyard, stopped in his tracks. Turning around, he carefully avoided the
CCTV sightlines and headed deeper into the yard.
One of the piles of dungeon by-products stacked for camouflage. Judging by its location, it was a pile about to be
shipped off soon. The aura was emanating from within it. Uncaring that his hands were getting filthy, Sun-woo dug
through the pile. The deeper he dug, the stronger the leaking aura became.
Thump!
His movements grew faster in response, and soon enough...
‘It was real.’
He saw it with his own two eyes. At a glance, it was completely unrecognizable. It looked like a stone the size of a
baseball, formed from clumps of dungeon dregs that had failed to become a mana stone.
Even Sun-woo wouldn't have noticed it if not for the Yeonsin Geukgigong, which allowed him to absorb the energy of
nature into his body. It truly looked like something that belonged rolling around in a junkyard.
Ding—
[Obtained SSS: Seed of the World Tree.]
It was the Seed of the World Tree, the entity that sustained the fractured world of the Elves.
The item that was guaranteed to be obtained while progressing the story in . The item that was practically mandatory to
see the ending. Unbelievably, it had been buried in a pile of dungeon garbage in a junkyard.
And then.
Ding—
[Story alteration success probability fluctuating.]
[Success Probability: 87%.]
Finally, the success rate for the story alteration skyrocketed.
‘So this was it.’
Right here. Finding the Seed of the World Tree at this exact moment was the mandatory condition for the story
alteration.
Moving past the prologue that had finally begun, Sun-woo learned yet another truth.