Chapter 62
Chapter 62
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 62
Chapter Title: How the No.1 Ranked Hero Saves the World
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The moment he said that, Baek Sa-hyeon reacted with astonishing speed.
Instead of drawing the bastard sword slung across his back, he snatched a dagger out of thin air with his right hand.
It wasn't the swing of someone who'd only practiced a time or two. The dagger whipped straight toward me without hesitation.
At least he's avoiding the vitals.
Of course, I had no intention of taking the hit, so I raised my sword to deflect the dagger in Baek Sa-hyeon's grip.
“Ugh!”
Unable to withstand my strength, Baek Sa-hyeon's wrist buckled, sending the dagger flying through the air and into the lake.
But before the water droplets from the dagger could even splash up, Baek Sa-hyeon drew another sword from thin air and hurled it at me.
That was no movement you'd expect from a swordsman. Had he turned into an assassin this time?
I clicked my tongue.
“I don't have time to play along with your games. How about listening to me first?”
But Baek Sa-hyeon ignored me. Gritting his teeth, he finally drew the bastard sword from his back for real.
“Chaaat!”
Gripping the hilt with both hands, he brought the massive blade down with a momentum that looked straight out of a painting.
If you'd only seen this, you'd doubt Lee Woo-yeon's judgment that he wasn't a skilled swordsman—the form was that perfect.
But that didn't mean I was going to let it hit me.
I put strength into my forward foot.
Rather than taking the full brunt of the descending greatsword, I'd dodge it and strike his neck before he could recover.
The path was clear as day.
But I didn't move from my spot. Instead, I took the full force of Baek Sa-hyeon's downward swing.
Clang!
At the clear ring of metal, Baek Sa-hyeon's eyes widened. The greatsword coming down from above trembled against my blade.
Baek Sa-hyeon ground his teeth.
“Eek...!”
Now that I'd blocked it directly, I could tell. His body was more trained than I'd expected.
Still, it wasn't enough to take me on.
I pushed up with my arm, sending Baek Sa-hyeon's sword flying back.
He might've held if he could withstand it, but unable to bear my upward force, Baek Sa-hyeon staggered back several steps.
I closed the gap in an instant.
Before Baek Sa-hyeon's eyes could widen, I twisted my sword and thrust out my elbow.
Crack!
A sickening crunch echoed as I felt his ribs warp beneath his skin.
Struck square in the gut by my elbow, Baek Sa-hyeon stumbled back several steps, nearly falling on his ass. The bastard sword clattered loudly to the ground.
“This...”
I reached out and grabbed Baek Sa-hyeon by the collar, stopping him from collapsing.
I hadn't meant to hit him that hard. I couldn't deny it felt satisfying after being called an old fogey, though.
The problem was his reaction. Baek Sa-hyeon's eyes gleamed as I held his collar.
Ah, this guy's not done yet.
I sensed it and tried to pull back, but we were already too close to evade.
Baek Sa-hyeon slammed his forehead into mine.
“Ugh!”
It hit dead-on, my vision spinning. It didn't hurt, but the disorientation made my head boil with anger.
I still hadn't let go of his collar.
“You little...!”
A quick glance showed a new dagger gleaming blue in Baek Sa-hyeon's hand.
“Enough already.”
His tenacity was at least admirable. But I wasn't about to take another hit, so this time I smashed the base of my sword hilt into his wrist.
It connected solidly—pain flashed across Baek Sa-hyeon's face for the first time.
“Argh!”
I felt his wrist bone snap as the dagger clattered to the ground at our feet. Nothing a single potion couldn't fix, though—not significant.
“See? This isn't the time for this.”
A quick check toward the island showed no casualties yet, fortunately, but the goblins were starting to pour out faster.
I needed to wrap this up quickly.
“You're saying that now?”
But Baek Sa-hyeon, down on one knee, glared up at me with bloodshot eyes.
“How the hell did you figure it out? No one's noticed until now.”
From Baek Sa-hyeon's words, I realized one thing.
I see. The very existence of the Actor class still isn't known in Korea.
That's why even someone as sharp as Lee Woo-yeon hadn't caught on.
Baek Sa-hyeon had only ever claimed to be a swordsman.
No wonder the fox had sensed something off.
Skills fundamentally awaken in response to a player's soul.
Yet a swordsman who couldn't properly wield a bastard sword had unlocked a skill like wide-area taunt that required massive stamina—any experienced hunter would feel the discrepancy.
Lee Woo-yeon just didn't know the 'Actor' class existed, while I did, so I spotted it first.
“...I just knew. There was something off about how you handled the bastard sword.”
I gave a vague answer to avoid saying I knew a better actor than him, which might complicate things.
It was partly true, too.
For someone wielding a heavy bastard sword two-handed, Baek Sa-hyeon's arm balance was off. His stance was narrow, his steps light.
Just as Lee Woo-yeon said, his actual swordsmanship wasn't impressive.
But Baek Sa-hyeon scowled, dissatisfied with my response.
“You figured it out just from that crap?”
“It's not crap. You didn't even summon your greatsword when I attacked you.”
At my point, Baek Sa-hyeon's face twisted like I'd caught him off guard.
In truth, the most telling part was that even after I attacked him out of nowhere and revealed myself, he hadn't counterattacked.
Even though I'd given him time to draw his sword.
Instead of drawing, Baek Sa-hyeon had tried to talk it out, revealing his intentions.
He'd probably been stalling through conversation to select the 'class' most advantageous to him as Baek Sa-hyeon.
Just like when he'd ambushed me as an 'assassin.'
“But... does it really matter how I knew? Honestly, I didn't expect you to react this sensitively.”
“You call that talk, you bastard?!”
His snarling face was downright vicious.
Looking down at it, I was mildly impressed.
“So this is your true face.”
It held far more vivid emotion than the embarrassed look he'd worn earlier when his number ploy failed.
Baek Sa-hyeon gnashed his teeth.
“You mocking me right now? What the hell is this?!”
“Then why are you overreacting like this?”
I still couldn't understand.
Sure, revealing his class exposed his weaknesses. I'd expected some pushback.
But not him charging at me like this.
The Actor I'd known as a mercenary didn't bother hiding his class much.
He fought as a swordsman most of the time, but could become an assassin, or even blend in as a monster in a horde.
He could act as anything he'd raised his proficiency on.
Becoming something completely different from himself.
That was the Actor class's unique skill.
And knowing someone was an Actor didn't give you an absolute advantage.
Class changes required specific conditions otherwise, but Actors could switch freely to match their foe.
There was a time limit, apparently, but it was still enviable. Train your body to a certain point, and you could handle any situation efficiently.
But Baek Sa-hyeon thought differently.
“You call that talk? You'll think I'm a fraud now too!”
At the unexpected word, I tilted my head.
“A fraud?”
“Yeah! You must've been laughing while I played the national hero! Now you'll sell me out to the press!”
His face was flushed red without a single pale spot left.
Almost pitifully so.
Seeing it, I realized something.
“Ah, I get it.”
The guy sees himself as a fraud.
All the questions about his behavior clicked into place.
No wonder he obsessed over his image and celebrity syndrome comments.
“Y-you get it?!”
Baek Sa-hyeon looked shocked at his own words, as if he'd been struck.
He resembled a drenched puppy.
“So you're showing your true colors now? Go ahead, sell me out!”
Bloodshot-eyed, Baek Sa-hyeon yelled at me.
“What the hell did I do wrong? I was just acting the way people wanted!”
No, he wasn't talking to me. This was self-reassurance.
“I didn't do anything wrong! After all my hard work...!”
I stared at the shouting Baek Sa-hyeon in bewilderment.
I just couldn't grasp why he was so worked up.
“Yeah, you're right.”
Wasn't Baek Sa-hyeon correct?
When I agreed readily, he stared at me in disbelief.
Why the look? I meant it.
“Is acting bad?”
Truth be told, I wasn't much different from Baek Sa-hyeon.
I'd been acting for a long time too, ever since my class randomly became Hero.
I'd never thought like a hero should, but acting the part brought rewards.
So I acted.
Knowing deep down I wasn't hero material, I sometimes felt consumed by the role I created.
But I didn't think it was bad.
“Who cares what others say. Tell them to try it themselves.”
This was sincere too.
Baek Sa-hyeon not being a real swordsman didn't make his life-risking deeds fake.
If anything, it deserved praise.
“No matter what people say, your achievements are real. You're the 38th highest contributor in this country.”
Anyone could open the system window once inside a dungeon.
But raising those stats? That was all on the individual.
This was Baek Sa-hyeon's hard-earned result.
I took his hand and pulled him up, but he just stared blankly.
His dumbstruck face was kinda cute, so I grinned.
The goblins' clamor was growing louder in my ears.
“So act properly. To the end.”
An actor can't be late for curtain.
* * *
- You have accepted the quest.
- The System Administrator is observing your quest performance.
What a nasty sound.
I dismissed the system window and turned to Baek Sa-hyeon.
Arms crossed with a sullen face, he stood at a distance, watching me.
I'd quickly explained only what he needed to know while he was dazed, and he'd been like this ever since.
As I approached, Baek Sa-hyeon flinched and took another step back.
“If you think you can't do it, just say so now.”
“Does that mean I don't have to if I can't?”
“No, I'd beat you until you could.”
“Then what's the point... Never mind.”
He was fidgeting with his fingers, like he had something to say.
I tilted my head, and after a long pause, Baek Sa-hyeon sighed deeply.
“...You'll see soon enough.”
Then he clammed up.
No interest in prying if he didn't want to talk, so I focused on my own tasks.
The nearby artificial island still shimmered with a faint barrier.
Goblins clung to it everywhere. The barrier wouldn't hold forever, but it was enduring for now.
- Instructions relayed. Barrier will deactivate in 5 minutes.
Choi Min-hyuk's voice came through the Bluetooth earpiece I'd borrowed from Baek Sa-hyeon.
After finishing with Baek Sa-hyeon, I'd called Choi Min-hyuk and passed on what was needed. He'd been waiting for my contact and promptly turned my words into orders for government hunters.
- Apologies, but additional support will be difficult in this situation...
“No choice.”
He'd also informed me no extra backup was coming. Something had broken out in Yeouido, pulling all available personnel there.
Not bad for me.
Even with the mask, what I was about to do would stick in people's memories.
I stood at the lake's edge, sword in hand.
Goblins swarmed the pale barrier like flies on food waste.
Goblins love playing cruel pranks on lost humans, making them a headache if you get caught.
Meaning they had a certain level of intelligence.
Unlike slimes that ran on pure survival instinct, even among low-grade monsters.
And I could see small wings on the backs of the ones appearing now. System-wise, they'd classify as goblins, but strictly speaking, those were gremlins.
Their mobility wasn't to be underestimated.
Plus, goblins lived in packs, led by a chieftain.
From experience, if a dungeon break's monster was goblins and left alone too long, a Goblin King would spawn. That turned it into a real headache.
Fighting a leaderless mob was worlds apart from battling hundreds under orders.
In the worst case, that island could become a goblin breeding ground.
Like so many places on the Tartarus continent.
So I needed to take out as many as possible, as fast as possible.
That's where Baek Sa-hyeon came in.
- But... are you sure you can pull this off? It could lead to civilian attacks if mishandled.
Choi Min-hyuk's worried voice came through the earpiece.
Exactly.
The worst scenario was the barrier breaking and goblins scattering every which way into the city.
Small as they were, an untrained civilian wouldn't last against them.
No room for error.
Knowing that, I grinned.
“I'll give it my best.”
But goblins had weaknesses.
Fallen, evil trickster fairies.
Smart enough for packs, but still monsters.
They couldn't resist the urge to kill. If weak prey appeared before them, monsters lunged to tear it apart—that was their nature.
So, if bait showed up right in front of them.
Irresistible bait.
Instinct would draw the monsters to one spot.
That's what I was aiming for.
I turned to Baek Sa-hyeon.
“Alright, ready to be the perfect bait?”