Chapter 104
Chapter 104
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 104
Chapter Title: Return
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Right after Kim Shin-hwa left the Thousand Gold Pavilion.
Or perhaps after an immeasurably long span of time had passed since then—or maybe even long before he ever reached it.
In a place dark and quiet and chaotic and bright, where even the absolute law of time's flow loses all meaning.
In the abode of the King of Myriad Gold, nothing discernible by human eyes remains.
Neither the dais adorned with a golden dragon, nor the shelves lined with countless compartments, nor the wooden walls, nor the sea hanging in the void in place of a ceiling.
They were mere visual aids prepared for human comprehension anyway.
Now, there is only a pulsing darkness, throbbing like a deep dream.
From within that darkness, the will of the Thousand Gold Pavilion Leader, Seo Cheon-seul, shaped itself into a voice.
"Great King, why have you done this? It is an excessively generous favor for a mere Kim fellow."
The will of the King of Myriad Gold replied to Seo Cheon-seul.
『I desired it.』
"That one is ultimately just another sacrificial offering at the banquet, like all those I've seen before. He will not endure the attention from beyond the veil."
The King of Myriad Gold did not respond.
Feeling impatient, Seo Cheon-seul continued.
"Like all the others before him, he too will one day wish to know what he does not know and to do what he cannot do."
『But none before him have said they have no need of it.』
"That is merely the complaint of one who knows more than others and can do more than others—sated arrogance."
『Do you think so?』
"If you permit me, I will blind him to his knowledge and strip him of his power. That one will immediately kneel before someone not even half his worth and beg to cling to them."
『 』
Strange ripples spread in all directions.
Stimulating waves, as if the darkness itself were convulsing.
Seo Cheon-seul, who had long served the King of Myriad Gold, knew this was the king's laughter, so he waited for it to end.
『Do you desire that?』
"Yes, I desire it."
『You can do so.』
"Thank you."
Now even the will of the Thousand Gold Pavilion Leader, Seo Cheon-seul, had vanished.
In this hollow, dark space, only one pure, solitary will remained.
This immense will, known to many as the King of Myriad Gold, turned briefly to gaze upon the past, the present, and the future.
And the King of Myriad Gold exerted his will once more.
『However, if you come to desire something else, you too can have that.』
At this moment, no one is in the King of Myriad Gold's abode. But this will shall be used at the most opportune time.
Causality matters little.
* * *
[You have escaped the mysterious and beautiful Thousand Gold Pavilion. There were various incidents and encounters along the way. In every scene, you maintained a wise demeanor. The members of the Thousand Gold Pavilion were particularly impressed by you.]
The message window suddenly started chattering excitedly.
"Ah, move."
"Hm? What did you say?"
"No, nothing. I must have misread it."
It was good that it provided information, but the damn thing always blocked his entire field of view whenever it appeared.
'Ugh, better than dying of frustration.'
Unless it was a battle situation where every second counted, this was no big deal.
He extended his mana to form a sensory replacement for his obscured vision.
"We've arrived at the market. Now we can finally catch our breath."
"Indeed. Professor, be careful. There's a manhole cover ahead."
"Ah, right. Thank you."
Simple multitasking like walking and conversing was easy.
The Geumchon Market, sensed not by sight but by extrasensory perception, had a somewhat eerie and desolate atmosphere.
'I was there quite a while, but has the night market already ended?'
Before entering the spirit road, the bustling night market event had been in full swing, yet now there were only shuttered shops and cleared stalls, as if it had never happened.
It didn't matter what happened to the night market. What mattered was that they had escaped the spirit road.
[You have protected the enigmatic figure who introduced himself as Professor all the way to the end. He even made a promise with you for a future meeting right in the heart of that perilous spirit road. You will surely meet him again someday. But will he be the person you imagine at that time?]
Yeah, he will.
I'd seen the Professor over a hundred times in the game, and there were no shocking twists—he was always the same. Always kind, always sacrificing himself for others.
[Quest completed!
[Escort Quest: To the Thousand Gold Pavilion]
Reward: 500,000 XP + 1,000,000 won + 'Thousand Gold Pavilion Entry Ticket']
[You have defeated 'Thousand Gold Pavilion Guardian – Jangseung' (2). Understanding of goblins increases.]
[You exerted strong influence over multiple 'wraiths.' Understanding of undead increases.]
[You have accumulated enough experience to reach the next stage. Level increases by 1.]
[Experience Bonus: You achieved a total of (2) achievements in the Thousand Gold Pavilion.]
[You have accumulated enough experience to reach the next stage. Level increases by 1.]
Now at level 33.
****
Kim Shin-hwa
Class: Abyss-Gazing Wizard
Level: 33
Magic Tier: 3rd Circle
Madnesses: [Mask Obsession], [Ichthyophobia]
Strength 5 + 3 (Ring of Corrupted Flame)
Vitality 7 + 3 (Four Inch Sovereign Sword (Green Rust))
Agility 8 + 2 (Wings of the Night Veil)
Intelligence 30
Mind 15 + 2 (Necklace of the Body Snatcher)
Charisma 18
****
Regardless of anything else, acquiring an SSS-grade artifact and an L-grade artifact to massively boost his stats was the greatest gain.
[You obtained much and learned much in the Thousand Gold Pavilion. These will greatly aid your future plans. But before that, you must overcome the trial looming right before you. It is the inevitable fate approaching the owner of the Four Inch Sovereign Sword.]
Nah, I'll handle that slowly.
He'd mulled it over the whole way out of the spirit road, but no matter how he thought about it, now wasn't the time to go hunting rivals for this tiger-slaying blade.
There was over 500 days on the time limit anyway—why rush it now?
[Now, please continue enjoying the chaotic future.]
The message window finally vanished, restoring his field of view.
"Now to the cafe. You did well."
"Ah, no problem."
It was late at night, but as always, Basilisca was open for business.
It was a bit quieter than when they'd left, and Tudor, who had been giving instructions to Orb at the counter, spotted him and greeted him gladly—.
"Why did you bring that back!?"
"Back? Oh, this?"
He slightly thrust his waist forward to show the Four Inch Sovereign Sword.
"Kyaaah! Don't come any closer!"
Tudor fled to the opposite side of the hall in a panic.
"Hey, Tudor. This thing's been purified."
"Ah, no! Leave it with Orb and come in. Actually, you don't have to come in! Professor! Over here!"
With that, she darted into the office.
'Looks like the Four Inch Sovereign Sword's death curse is why she's freaking out.'
The Professor gave him a bewildered look for a moment before wheeling toward the office.
"For now, I'll go ahead and settle the commission. Leave that with them and come in slowly."
"Yes. Go on ahead."
While the Professor headed to the office, he approached Orb and greeted him.
"Hey? Orb. You heard what Tudor said earlier, right? Hold onto this for me."
"Hel.lo? Kim.Shin.hwa. Two.weeks. Passed."
"Hm? Two weeks?"
"Yes. Two.weeks. Kim.Shin.hwa. Left. And.re.turned. After.two.weeks."
Instead of Orb's head, the monitor displayed a dot-matrix image reading '2 WEEKS'.
"Tch, so that's it. Or rather, so it is."
As the saying goes, time flies when you're having fun with immortals, unaware the handle rots.
Time flows differently in the spirit road from reality.
Discrepancies often occur between perceived time and real time.
'Usually it's just a few hours' difference, though.'
It must have gotten badly distorted from the audience with the King of Myriad Gold.
Truth be told, the scale of events in the Thousand Gold Pavilion was such that even "returning to find centuries had passed" wouldn't be undeserved.
Divine beings living infinite time feel no particular difference between two weeks and centuries.
'Ugh, I did warn it could happen like this before leaving, but two whole weeks...'
The mansion should be fine, right?
Maybe he shouldn't dawdle here and should hurry back. What if some random squatter had taken over?
'No, I need to say goodbye to the Professor.'
They might not meet again.
"Ah, darling, you're back?"
Tudor, who had fled in horror earlier, now welcomed him with a bright smile.
"I just finished handling things with the Professor."
"Ah, that was quick."
Well, the Professor wasn't the client anyway. The money came from Geumchon Pawnshop's elder, Jeong Eun-taek, so detailed settlement would be with him.
The Professor gave him a faint smile and bid farewell.
"I am deeply grateful. Thanks to you, I got to see something rare."
"It was a rare experience for me as well. Heading back now?"
"I hear two weeks have passed in that time. I've been away longer than expected, so I must return to the university soon."
"I see."
"Honestly, I don't understand why a wizard of your caliber does this kind of work in Paju. You must have your own plans?"
Tudor, standing beside him, made a wincing face out of the Professor's sight, mouthing 'Whaaat?' But the Professor, unable to see it, peacefully finished his thought.
"But if other plans arise, let me know anytime. Our university alone has tons of work suited to you."
He'd said something similar on the way to the Thousand Gold Pavilion. Maybe it really was an offer to become a grad student.
"I appreciate it, but I have no intention of quitting this job anytime soon."
"Ah, I spoke out of turn. Sorry. It's a professor's habit to urge talented people toward academia."
Ugh, so it really was about grad school?
The Professor chuckled awkwardly for a moment, then pulled a business card from his pocket and handed it over.
"As we discussed in the spirit road, stop by anytime if you need anything. If there's university-level support needed, I'll do my utmost to help."
"That's welcome news."
The Professor's university was a formidable magic den, not unlike Paju.
It hid plenty of useful quests and artifacts. Not worth a special trip, but good to swing by if routes aligned.
"Then, until we meet again."
With those words, the Professor left Basilisca. Once the formal goodbyes and such were done, Tudor latched on.
"Darling, how was the Thousand Gold Pavilion? Did you get the entry ticket?"
"The Thousand Gold Pavilion was, well, fun."
"That's it?"
"And I got the entry ticket safe and sound."
"Eee! Awesome, you did it. As expected of our ace!"
She was thrilled enough to jump for joy. To repeat, this was the same Tudor who had bolted like she was having a fit earlier.
Perhaps sensing his gaze hidden beneath the mask, Tudor cleared her throat awkwardly a few times before continuing.
"Ahem, ahem. So, darling, what are you planning to do next?"
"Hm? Next?"
"How about partnering up in business with me?"
"......?"
After rejecting the out-of-left-field grad school pitch, now a business proposal?