The Flying Sword Dream
“Telekinesis...?”
“Why don't you give it a try?”
“...”
Daenyang-i stared at me with the hairpin in hand, then froze.
I stared back at him for a moment before the realization finally dawned on me.
A hairpin was an ornament meant to be worn in one's hair. But a goblin...
...had no hair.
“Y-you can still trigger the effect just by holding it.”
Daenyang-i pressed the hairpin into my hand.
A notification popped up, announcing that the item had been equipped.
◈ Effect: Telekinesis (B)
◈ Allows the user to freely manipulate objects weighing under 5kg within a 5-meter radius.
I focused my mind, attempting to lift a piece of car debris scattered nearby.
...
It didn't budge. Was it over five kilograms?
I pulled my Tokarev pistol from my coat and tried again. The handgun floated up into the air.
“Oh.”
The pistol circled around me in a slow orbit.
With enough concentration, I could even pull the trigger. This meant I could fire from behind cover, completely out of the enemy's line of sight.
I had acquired an incredibly useful tool.
“Tsk...”
Watching this, Kang... what was his name again? Tracksuit clicked his tongue in frustration.
Daenyang-i patted his shoulder as if to comfort him.
They looked strangely close.
I asked Tracksuit, “By the way, were you after this relic?”
“I was.”
“I take it you knew exactly what kind of relic would drop?”
Tracksuit seemed to ponder for a moment, then let out a heavy sigh.
“A Player from Intra-Asan cleared this event once before. The record of it was preserved.”
“Oh, is that so? I didn't know there was a Player in Intra-Asan so obsessed with relics.”
Daenyang-i smiled, looking impressed.
Perhaps he felt like he'd found a kindred spirit who shared his love for relics.
“Then you could have just tried again. Why risk your life over...”
“Don't you know? Once an item drops, an exact duplicate will never spawn again. Every item is unique. For an identical item to appear...”
“...the original item must be destroyed.”
Daenyang-i finished Tracksuit's sentence.
In other words, someone in Intra-Asan used to own this hairpin, and for some reason, it was destroyed.
If they owned such an item, they must have been a Player. And as for why a Player's item would be destroyed...
“Was it a keepsake from someone who died...?”
“No. Apparently, it was smashed during a domestic dispute.”
“Huh?”
“They were a Player couple. They exchanged a hairpin and a jade pendant instead of wedding rings, but they ended up shattering them during a fight. That's why I came to find it.”
“...Was she your wife?”
“What? No, I'm single.”
Even as he spoke, Tracksuit's eyes remained glued to the hairpin in my hand.
“Is this really such a coveted item? I mean, its tactical utility is outstanding, but...”
“Are you truly that clueless?”
“You really don't know?!”
Tracksuit and Daenyang-i raised their voices in unison.
Daenyang-i pointed at Tracksuit and said, “Our friend Kang Seongbeom here is a master of the sword. He possesses a skill that pours all of his processing power into forging a single-molecule blade of impossible sharpness and durability. Do you understand what that means?”
“...No, I don't.”
“It means he is completely devoted to the sword! And for anyone truly devoted to the sword, there is a legendary realm everyone dreams of! The very item that can make that dream a reality is right there in your hand!”
I still had absolutely no idea.
A realm dreamed of by those devoted to the sword?
“The Flying Sword Technique!”
Daenyang-i and Tracksuit shouted in perfect unison.
These two uncles are strangely close, aren't they?
Through CC's message, I could practically see the two of them exchanging passionate glances and nodding in deep, mutual understanding.
I had no desire to insert myself between them, but I couldn't help but ask, “What is that?”
Both of them stared at me, looking utterly scandalized.
“You... don't know the Flying Sword Technique...?”
“Have you never even read a wuxia novel?”
I lost my parents at the age of ten, was dragged into the military, underwent cybernetic enhancement surgery, and was thrown onto a bullet-swept battlefield the moment my scars healed. Wuxia novels? My entire life had been a path through carnage; why would I waste time reading mere figments of someone's imagination?
Ah, I just figured out why Uncle Daenyang and Tracksuit Uncle are acting so chummy.
“The Flying Sword Technique is one of the ultimate pinnacles of swordsmanship. It is the art of freely manipulating a sword through the air without ever touching it.”
One is a chuunibyou sword-nut who calls himself the 'Absolute Sword.'
“The sword literally floats in midair! Don't you get it? You can strike from the enemy's blind spots, attack from a distance...”
And the other is a furry who uses a tiger beastman avatar and mimics tigers with his skills.
“A sword freed from the constraints of human hands can execute forms completely unbound by physical motion.”
(x_x) Both of them are extreme roleplayers...!
“So I guess this is the Flying Gun Technique...” I muttered, watching my pistol lazily orbit around us.
“Tsk...!”
Tracksuit gnashed his teeth and spun around.
He took a few steps, then paused and glared back at me.
“You'd better watch your back when you dive into the Net. I'm backing off for now... but even if I have to destroy that hairpin, I will make it mine.”
Instead of answering, I made the floating pistol waggle in front of his face.
“Ah, Seongbeom-ssi, take this with you.”
Daenyang-i held up the syringe he had confiscated from Tracksuit.
“What is that?”
“It's a Berserker Potion. If you inject it, you lose your sanity, but it temporarily boosts your physical strength to its absolute limit.”
“Can I take a look?”
I took the syringe from Daenyang-i and examined it closely.
It was designed so that pressing it firmly would trigger a spring-loaded needle, automatically injecting the drug.
Data saved.
Seeing CC's message, which had instantly read my intentions, I tossed the syringe back to Tracksuit.
“Is that an item too?”
“No. It's a trump card used by Players from Intra-Asan. Intra-Asan is a city built around a hospital server, you see. Their expertise in pharmacology translates perfectly into the virtual world. Be careful. Almost all Players from Intra-Asan carry those around.”
“Hmm, so each city has its own unique characteristics...”
Wait.
A hospital?
“Hey! Tracksuit!”
Tracksuit, who was walking away, stopped and turned around.
“It's Kang Seongbeom. Absolute Sword Kang Seongbeom.”
“That's not important.”
I held up the hairpin and said, “Do you want this?”
“Are you mocking me?”
“Just listen. This might actually turn out to be a good deal for you.”
I grinned and walked over to Tracksuit.
“So you just gave him the item?”
Guild Leader Yoo Hyeyeon's voice echoed through the cramped Sprout office.
“Yes. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have given it away on my own authority...”
“No, I'm not blaming you. It was meant for you anyway, Juhyuk-ssi... But are you sure you're okay with this? From what I've heard, it sounded like a pretty incredible item.”
Yoo Hyeyeon looked back and forth between me and Daenyang-i.
Daenyang-i spoke up. “I don't mind at all. It's not like the Absolute Sword and I are strangers, and since the item belonged to Juhyuk-ssi, it's only right he uses it however he sees fit.”
“Well, if both of you are fine with it, then I won't pry, but...”
Yoo Hyeyeon sank back into her sofa. She seemed slightly disappointed.
“The Absolute Sword's combat capabilities are already a headache to deal with. It's going to be troublesome if he starts attacking from our blind spots now...”
“So, did that uncle succeed in using the Flying Sword Technique?”
Kang Yeolchan, currently in his Red Goblin avatar, had been listening quietly and asked.
“No, he failed.”
“What? You even gave up the item for him, Hyeong-nim, and he still failed?”
I recalled what had happened back then.
“Uwoooooh! Ohhhhh! Oooooh!”
The man in the tracksuit stood with both hands thrust forward, roaring with effort.
Lying on the ground was his Single-Molecule Cutter, the blade said to slice through anything. It looked as though only the hilt was resting there, but the blade was simply too thin to be seen by the naked eye. It was definitely there.
“Why! Why won't you move?!”
Tracksuit slammed his fist onto the ground, unable to contain his frustration.
“Strange. It really should be working...”
“Is it too heavy?”
I trudged over and picked up the Single-Molecule Cutter.
The moment my fingers slipped under the hilt, I felt a heavy heft.
It felt roughly ten times heavier than my Tokarev.
“The limit is five kilograms. Since it's a single-molecule blade, the edge itself shouldn't be heavy... Shouldn't you swap out the hilt?”
“It's not that simple,” Daenyang-i explained. “It looks like an ordinary hilt, but that itself is an item. It has an effect that enhances the sword's cutting power.”
Why on earth would you need to increase the cutting power of a Single-Molecule Cutter that could already slice through anything?
Tracksuit, who had been slumped on the ground, stood up.
“...I won't give up. There must be another item out there that amplifies item effects. I'll find it and increase the weight limit of the hairpin.”
“You think an item that perfectly fits your needs just exists?”
“You never know. New items are being generated even as we speak, so the item he's looking for might be out there somewhere,” Daenyang-i said, stroking the fur on his chin.
“Once I master the Flying Sword Technique, I will definitely show you!” Tracksuit declared, pointing at me.
The resentment and anger that had filled his eyes earlier were completely gone.
I looked him dead in the eye and gave a brief reply.
“No, thanks.”
The Goblin's Forest was always quiet.
In a world where the struggle for survival was the norm, the forest had been designed with good intentions—to help Maetan's citizens hone their basic combat skills.
However, far fewer people enjoyed fighting than the creators had anticipated, and mere goblins weren't enough to satisfy those who actually did.
On top of that, because it was styled as a tutorial map, it was bound to remain deserted in Maetan, where new recruits were practically nonexistent.
As a result, there were plenty of places where I could be alone even after clocking out.
Deep within a secluded corner of the Goblin's Forest, I spoke to CC.
“Can you do it?”
Of course I can. Who do you think I am?
“Alright. Do it.”
Light began to coalesce in the empty air before me.
I reached out and grabbed the light.
The glow solidified, taking on color and form until it transformed into a hairpin adorned with a golden phoenix.
A notification window popped up, announcing the acquisition of the item.
◈ Effect: Telekinesis (B)
◈ Allows the user to freely manipulate objects weighing under 5kg within a 5-meter radius.
“It worked.”
I hadn't given the item to Tracksuit out of pure charity.
The moment I saw CC's message about copying the syringe's data, a thought had struck me.
Could we copy items too?
The result was a resounding success.
But it won't last very long.
In the right corner of my vision, red numbers were rapidly ticking down.
“It's dropping by the second. Is the world's strongest AI really struggling this much just to materialize a single item?”
Do you have any idea how difficult this is? I have to calculate and replicate every single warped law of physics... It's practically like calculating the four fundamental forces from scratch. And...
“And?”
The real issue is heat dissipation. I can handle the calculations, but your prosthetic arm's cooling system is too poor to sustain them. Why don't we strip off the outer casing? It's going to be summer soon anyway.
“No thanks. It's not an ability I'll need to use for long periods anyway. I'll just pull it out for brief moments when necessary.”
Wait. Someone's coming.
The Phoenix Ornament Hairpin dissolved into light and vanished from my palm.
Something was approaching from beyond the bushes.
As I watched quietly, a small green body emerged from the shadows.
A short, ugly body just like mine.
However, unlike me, who held a dagger, he carried a fairly long sword in his hand.
Senior Janggo...
The man who had once told me to keep my distance walked up to me.
Then, he began to repeatedly squat and stand in front of me.
The only form of emotional expression a goblin could perform during working hours.
Even though our shift was already over, he was trying to express his complex emotions through that repetitive movement.
“...”
No words were needed.
I joined him, squatting and standing in unison.
“Huh? What are you guys doing?”
Out of nowhere, the Handaxe Goblin Senior came running toward us.
“What are you doing? Shift's over. Why are you guys doing that?”
We didn't answer. Instead, we squatted and stood even faster.
“Geez... you bastards.”
“Acting like you'd never see each other again just yesterday...”
“...Ah, what the hell!”
The Handaxe Goblin Senior joined in, squatting and standing along with us.
In the Goblin's Forest, three goblins performed a merry dance.
“Hey, rookie.”
After our long dance finally came to an end, the Longsword Goblin Senior spoke.
“Thanks for the skewers. My wife loved them.”