A Spirit of Self-Sacrifice

A spirit of self-sacrifice unseen in any other ranker! Even those who used to bash Cain had to admit that much.

"By the way, don't you think there might be something profitable on the Prica Continent?"

"That's a wonderful idea, Tae-hyun! Shall we look for something?"

Lee Da-bi looked at Tae-hyun with an admiring expression. Tae-hyun flinched. He had only mentioned it in passing, but Lee Da-bi was far too enthusiastic.

"I-I didn't really think too deeply about it."

"Oh. Is that so?"

Lee Da-bi's face fell slightly. She had hoped that if it was a matter of making money, she would have a chance to shine...

"...But there's bound to be something, so let's take this opportunity to look for it."

"!"

If Cain had been next to them, he would have cried out in injustice, "Wow, talk about double standards!"

If Cain had brought up the idea of making money, he would have been nagged with, "You have time to worry about that? Go level up your skills instead!"

"That's great! I hope we find some new crafting materials."

"Do merchant classes get a lot of EXP from finding things like that and establishing trade routes?"

"Yes, we do."

Lee Da-bi nodded. Just by finding crafting materials, gathering them in bulk, and selling them, a merchant class could gain EXP. It was a special privilege of the merchant class!

Usually, parties with some leeway would keep at least one merchant player. They were just that convenient.

They didn't have to worry about weight limits from miscellaneous junk, they could restock consumables on the spot, and the merchant provided various additional bonus buffs to the party.

Tae-hyun's party was also heavily benefiting from Lee Da-bi's help. Especially since Lee Da-bi was one of the top-ranking merchants in the game. Following Tae-hyun's group around and handling all sorts of rare items, there was no way her level wouldn't skyrocket.

"Even if they look like the same crafting materials, their performance varies slightly, right? If you monopolize and sell as much of the good or trendy ones as possible, the profits jump exponentially..."

High-Quality, Exquisite, Rare, Ancient, Blessed, Cursed, and so on. The performance of an item varied wildly depending on these numerous prefixes.

Merchants, with their specialization in appraisal skills, could see more information than others and monopolize the better items.

"I've mostly been self-sufficient and haven't worked as a merchant, so I don't know much about that."

"Unless you're a merchant, you wouldn't really know. There's no real need to, either."

What crafting materials were popular these days? Which guild, which player wanted which items in bulk? Anticipating these trends, preparing them in advance, and selling them was the mark of a first-rate merchant player!

...Wait, isn't that basically the stock market?!

No wonder all the merchant players had that glint in their eyes!

"Usually, high-level players prefer to find rare equipment and sell it for a high price, but merchant players actually prefer to secure bulk quantities and sell them in mass."

"Then crafting materials are the way to go."

"Yes, exactly."

Combat ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠class players didn't pay much attention to crafting materials even if they were scattered all over the road. But a merchant saw money in them!

Hmm. Carbanog. Are there any useful crafting materials around here?

But you are a god.

Having immediately recalled its own identity, Carbanog made a suggestion.

Huh, that's actually a pretty good idea.

Carbanog's suggestion was surprisingly plausible. Tae-hyun immediately activated his Rabbit Domination skill.

Rabbit Control, one of the authorities lent to him by Carbanog!

Rustle, rustle—

Rabbits from the vicinity popped out and began to follow Tae-hyun's commands.

Are rabbits better than an undead army?

Well, that's true.

Even if the undead were better at fighting than rabbits, they would probably be at a disadvantage when it came to finding materials!

Sending the rabbits scattering in all directions, Tae-hyun set off again with Lee Da-bi.

To find the Phoenix in the volcanic region, they would have to keep searching the surrounding area!

Even when I use Divine Foresight, multiple paths appear... It must be quite far away.

"Tae-hyun. Looking at the stream, it seems you do all the housework..."

"Huh?"

"Wouldn't it be better to split it?"

It was at a level where even Lee Da-bi thought it was a bit much! As Lee Da-bi looked at Tae-hyun with a deeply worried expression, Tae-hyun waved his hands in embarrassment.

"No, it's fine. This much doesn't really get in the way. It's perfectly manageable."

"But..."

"And honestly, if I let Cain do the housework, I'd be too anxious."

"...!"

So that was the reason?!

Meanwhile, Tae-hyun quickly changed the subject.

"Anyway, Da-bi. Putting me aside... how have you been doing lately?"

"I've been doing really well."

Lee Da-bi made a circle with her fingers.

Pan-On revenue + streaming revenue + guild management revenue + pro player salary = filthy rich!

"...Not money... I meant other things."

"More ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠money?"

"...I meant how you spend your day."

"I wake up, send my sisters to school, clean up the house, check the Power Warrior Guild reports, log into the capsule, do some light exercise..."

As Lee Da-bi counted on her fingers, Tae-hyun wore a dubious expression. Do you do nothing but play games?!

"No, don't just play games all the time! Do something else! Go meet some friends!"

"...I don't think you're one to talk, Tae-hyun..."

"......"

"And my friends are inside the game."

Lee Da-bi said, pointing at Tae-hyun. Tae-hyun was left speechless.

"Don't you have other frie—no, never mind. I asked a useless question."

Tae-hyun himself didn't exactly have many friends in the real world either!

Seeing that Tae-hyun seemed worried, Lee Da-bi quickly added, "B-but I keep in touch with other players too, so this is more than enough!"

"Oh? With whom?"

"Uh... first of all, Evangeline."

"!?"

Tae-hyun was startled. "Why her?!"

"She occasionally asks me things related to Pan-On."

"I-I see... Well, I suppose she could."

Lee Da-bi was a guild leader, so she naturally possessed more information than average players. She was the perfect person for an outsider like Evangeline to ask!

"And sometimes Lee Se-yeon contacts me too."

"!??!?!?!?"

Tae-hyun was several times more shocked than before!

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"Why would she contact you?!"

"Ah, it's not like Lee Se-yeon contacts me outside of the game. She leaves anonymous messages on the guild account, saying the videos are fun and asking us to upload more..."

"......"

"I think she tried her best to hide her ID, but it's completely obvious from the admin account."

She had left comments like, 'This is fun ^^ Please upload more ^^' on videos featuring Tae-hyun's quests! Lee Se-yeon herself believed she had thoroughly hidden her identity, but everything was visible from the administrator's perspective.

"I... I see. I guess that's more than enough friends..."

Honestly, he wondered if friends were even that necessary!

"And actually, when I go outside, quite a few people recognize me now..."

"Ugh."

Tae-hyun let out a guilty groan. It was true that ever since he became famous, he had to be mindful whenever he went outside.

"O-oh, no! I'm not complaining. I'm grateful when fans recognize me."

"Come to think of it, we promised to go out and play again, but we haven't been able to. Is there anywhere you want to go?"

"Ah, about that. Now that I think about it, there's a much better way."

"?"

"We can just hang out in Pan-On!"

Lee Da-bi exclaimed as if she had hit upon a brilliant idea.

Come to think of it, the only reason she had been obsessed with going outside of Pan-On was because of the other teammates. As long as the other teammates weren't around, there wasn't much difference between being inside Pan-On or outside, was there?

No prying eyes, plenty of places to go, and lots of things to do—it was the perfect solution!

"...D-Da-bi. Even to me, that seems a bit..."

"Why, though?!"

An idea shocking enough to stun even Tae-hyun, a certified Pan-On addict!

"Ugh. Here we go. The sauna."

"What's a sauna?"

"There is such a thing."

Players entered the Kaf Volcanic Region in small groups. The moment they stepped in, a sweltering heat washed over their entire bodies! This was a place people rarely visited unless absolutely necessary. Who would enjoy panting and sweating?

"...Wait a minute?? What's that? Who are those guys?"

"Why? What is it?"

"Those guys weren't here earlier, were they?"

The players realized something was off. Players who definitely hadn't been in the party area earlier had suddenly appeared! Where did they come from?!

"Who are you guys?"

"What? You looking for a fight?"

"No... not a fight. Where did you come from? Did you come to clear a quest in the Kaf Volcanic Region?"

At that question, the others smirked.

"We came to clear a quest, of course. Why else would we be here?"

"!!!"

These bastards...! They heard Kim Tae-hyun put up a quest!

From those smirks, the players realized. The rumor had already spread!

"A Nodranche Expedition Pass. Who could possibly just stand by and ignore that?"

"Where on earth did you hear that?!"

"With so many people, did you really think it wouldn't get out? Besides, it's Kim Tae-hyun. Do you have any idea how many people rushed here the moment Team KL's stream ended?"

The players were dumbfounded. Once again, the sheer popularity of Team KL was mind-blowing! The moment Team KL's stream ended, countless players had moved to the Prica Continent.

It was an overwhelming level of popularity. Of course, not everyone came with the same intentions.

Where there is great popularity, pests naturally gather! The more absolute Tae-hyun's reputation became, the more people would try to step on him to climb higher. No matter how terrifying he was, there would always be those blinded by greed!

Thanks to that, the Kaf Volcanic Region was suddenly teeming with people, looking like a popular hunting ground. The gathered crowd was whispering among themselves!

"Hey, there are way too many people..."

"Is it really okay to steal Kim Tae-hyun's quest in this atmosphere? Won't we get beaten to death?"

"W-well, so what? We don't even need to fight Kim Tae-hyun. Just stealing the quest he's aiming for will make us famous for months."

The players who came with ulterior motives whispered to one another. Taking down Kim Tae-hyun would be the ultimate jackpot, but honestly, that seemed a bit out of reach... Just stealing Kim Tae-hyun's quest would be more than enough!

A passing party of players turned their heads and asked, "Did you just say you're going to steal Kim Tae-hyun's quest?"

"...No. I was asking if I could participate in Kim Tae-hyun's quest."

"Ah, really? I must have misheard."

Whew.

But the players weren't fools. They immediately exchanged glances.

While countless players rushed madly into the volcanic region, Tae-hyun and Lee Da-bi entered at a leisurely pace. To anyone else, they would have looked like they were on a date!

What is it?

...???