Always Have a Plan B
One must always have a Plan B for when things go sideways! Alcott felt a swell of pride at his own preparedness. After being tormented by Kim Tae-hyun so many times, he had naturally learned to prepare like this...
Wait. Hold on. This is actually depressing.
"So? What kind of scheme are they cooking up?"
"Ah. Well, about that."
Alcott cleared his throat. Cain tilted his head at the gesture.
Is he feeling guilty about exposing his own guild's weakness?
Of course not. Alcott had just cleared his throat. Without hesitating for even a second, he spilled everything that had been going on lately.
"...So, they joined hands with the demons and agreed to temporarily suspend all demon subjugation efforts in the Auston Kingdom."
"Those wicked bastards!"
Cain yelled, overcome with indignation. No matter how much they had suffered at Kim Tae-hyun's hands, joining forces with demons was crossing the line!
"Uh... well..."
"Cain. Let's not get angry. It's embarrassing."
Unlike Cain, however, the rest of the party couldn't bring themselves to be outraged. Why? Because exploiting demons was Tae-hyun's absolute specialty!
"N-no, wait. Our exploitation is the good kind, and theirs is the bad kind..."
"Your mental gymnastics are truly admirable... but anyway, the Guild Alliance joined hands with demons, huh? Hmm. They used their heads."
Tae-hyun was genuinely impressed. A truly great scheme was one where you lost nothing even if it failed, but gained massive profits if it succeeded. Just like what the Guild Alliance had done!
Even if it failed, the Guild Alliance wasn't directly involved, so they wouldn't suffer any losses. If it succeeded, it would be so incredibly satisfying that they'd sleep like babies for days.
'If I quit the game, wouldn't the Guild Alliance throw a massive festival?'
Carbanog notes that even if you merely trip and fall while walking down the street, that day will become a national holiday for them.
The Guild Alliance was copying a tactic that Tae-hyun used all the time. As the original creator of such schemes, he didn't feel particularly bitter or anything...
Though they are quite cheeky.
"Aren't you going to think of a countermeasure?"
"What countermeasure? Ah. Infiltrating the Guild Alliance's territory to spread a plague? I was actually considering that."
"N-no, that's not what I meant..."
What kind of heinous plot is this crazy bastard cooking up?!
"The demons are going to march here any moment now."
"Ah, that. Yeah, probably."
"...Then shouldn't you be preparing?"
Facing demons was always a quest of terrifying difficulty. The Demon Realm had opened relatively recently! Before that, players would instinctively freeze in fear whenever a demon appeared. But...
"Why make a fuss about it now?"
"No one who crams for an exam the night before ever gets a good grade."
"Exactly. We should face it calmly, with our usual mindset..."
"????!"
Alcott was aghast. Had these people gone completely mad as a group?!
"Hey! I said demons! They're demons!"
"I know they're demons. I heard you, dude."
In the past, the mere mention of demons would have sent them into a panic. They would have run around in all directions, borrowing NPCs and frantically preparing! But...
That was then, and this is now.
He wasn't about to get scared just because a few demons were coming. Tae-hyun had built up far too much for that.
In particular, The Valley was not a place that could be easily ransacked by a mere demonic army. It was the headquarters of the Archisus Church! Dozens of temples were erected there, teeming with paladins and priests (Tae-hyun still found their combat power a bit suspicious, but their recent performances had been outstanding). The outer perimeter was fortified with triple stone walls and all kinds of terrifying defensive structures. On top of that, the number of high-level players residing here had skyrocketed recently.
They wanted to attack a place like this? Honestly, he wanted to invite them in.
The experience points will be delicious.
"Unless a Demon Archduke shows up in person, we have nothing to worry about. In fact, the territory's players are going to be thrilled."
"Right? Ah! I need to prepare my shop...!"
For the territory's players, this would be an exciting quest. Whoa! Look at all those experience points rolling around beneath the walls!
"Holy water, blessed weapons, blessed arrows... silver arrows would be good too."
"What about blessed bombs...?"
"Only let those who have learned some Mechanical Engineering use them, or tell them to use them outside the walls. Let it be known that if anyone starts messing around with bombs on top of the walls, I'll throw them off myself."
Just as there was a saying in billiards that players under a 300 handicap were banned from attempting massé shots, a similar rule existed in The Valley: Anyone below Intermediate level in Mechanical Engineering is banned from playing with bombs in the streets!
"That should do it, right? If we sound the alarm that demons are coming soon, everyone will be delighted."
"Yes. That sounds perfect."
"......"
Alcott had to desperately hold onto his sanity as he listened to their conversation.
These arrogant bastards...! Don't come crying to me when the demons completely wipe you out!
"Your face is full of discontent, Alcott."
"Aha. Is that guy a spy?"
"How many times do I have to tell you I'm not! It's just that you guys are taking the demons far too lightly."
"We're not taking them lightly; we're objectively analyzing the situation. Aren't you the one taking our territory too lightly? Besides, Alcott, you came here asking to clear a quest together, but if you keep insisting the demons are so strong, what do you expect me to do? If they're really that powerful, I should stay in my territory and help my people defend it."
"...!"
Ah...! H-he's right?!
"Come to think of it, I feel like our people can easily hold them off even without you!"
"Look at this smug bastard. Just because it's not his territory..."
"Senior. Let's just kick him out."
"No, seriously, it's a really good quest! Why do I have to be treated like garbage when I brought core information for a Legendary Quest?!"
Alcott wailed at the sheer absurdity of the situation.
"Hmm... It would be a shame to pass it up, but if we can resolve it, we might as well."
Just as Alcott said, there was no telling how severe the Curse of the Volcano would get. But above all...
A Legendary Quest was always worth clearing if possible. Where else could one obtain such massive experience points and rewards?
"But honestly, I thought someone else would have solved it by now even if I didn't step in."
Tae-hyun didn't mind, but surely there were plenty of other players who were desperate to clear it. What on earth was everyone doing?
"Do you know what Lee Se-yeon is up to lately?"
"She's still hunting ancient giants in the mountains."
"Seriously?!"
"Yes. It was on her stream."
"I hope she fails."
Everyone pretended not to hear Tae-hyun's mutterings. We heard nothing!
"Or maybe she slips and falls off a cliff... or gets hit by a giant and loses her gear..."
"T-Tae-hyun. Let's get back to the main topic."
"Ah. Sorry."
Alcott spoke with confidence.
"Of course, there are quite a few rankers who are seriously trying to clear this quest. The Guild Alliance is trying to clear it too."
The culprits were truly causing a nuisance everywhere. Naturally, everyone was trying to clear it!
"But just because you want to clear it doesn't mean you can. You need capability! Real capability."
"Is he bragging about his own capability right now?"
"Wow. What a deeply obnoxious guy."
Choi Sang-yun and Cain muttered, but Alcott ignored them.
"And I have that capability. In fact, I deployed the tracking team and caught those guild members."
"That's your subordinates' capability, not yours..."
"Cain. Stop teasing him and let's listen. Anyway, Alcott. If you caught them and found out their location, you should have just gone and finished it. Why are you here?"
"......"
Alcott hesitated for a moment before speaking.
"...They apparently fled to Frozeland."
"!"
"!!!"
Frozeland! Among the many unexplored territories of Pandemonium Online, it was relatively the most well-known.
A cold, desolate land of ice located even further north of Cain's territory, Nodranche!
Thanks to explorer players who roamed the unexplored regions and uploaded walkthrough videos, there was a decent amount of information available about Frozeland.
"Why on earth did those lunatics go to Frozeland?!"
Cain shouted in anger. Alcott asked, bewildered.
"What's wrong with him?"
"Ah. Cain was once blown away to Frozeland."
After being blown away to Frozeland, Cain had run into Galakpad, who was wandering around searching for an Authority.
Even though he hadn't stayed there long, it was a horrific memory! He would rather endure Tae-hyun's nagging than Galakpad's relentless torment.
"They used their heads. I suppose going to a dangerous place makes it harder for people to pursue them."
Besides, even Frozeland must have changed quite a bit by now because of the Curse of the Volcano.
"Kim Tae-hyun. Let's go catch them together! Your party—excluding Cain, of course—will definitely be able to perform well even there!"
"Didn't that bastard just glance at me?!"
Cain was highly suspicious, but Alcott was dead serious.
"I thought you'd squeeze him for more."
"No. Honestly, information like that is incredibly valuable."
Tae-hyun accepted Alcott's proposal. A quest was always worth clearing if possible! And frankly, the information Alcott brought was indeed spectacular.
After all, it pinpointed the exact location of the thieves who had run off with the dragon's treasure.
"And you guys do realize Alcott plays a pretty crucial role, right?"
"What? A guy like him?"
"...Alcott is currently one of the executives of the Guild Alliance..."
"Ah...!"
At Tae-hyun's words, Cain slapped his knee. Come to think of it, he was!
"Since a guy like that is cooperating with us, we need to treat him well. What if he pouts and stops helping?"
"......"
"......"
Tae-hyun's words left everyone utterly speechless. Wait... haven't we been bullying him relentlessly?
Of course, whether the party teased him or not, Alcott had absolutely no intention of betraying them at this point. Still, the party suddenly began to feel anxious.
Ugh. I should probably treat him a bit better from now on.
"Besides, Frozeland is a great place."
"What? What makes it a great place?"
Carbanog wonders if you mean it is a great place to die.
"It's a great place to test out our newly crafted gear."
"Ah...!"
The party's faces lit up. They had temporarily forgotten because of Alcott, but Tae-hyun had just finished working with the Adamantium.
That was right. It was finally complete!
"C-can I really accept something like this? Truly?"
"We got the materials by doing the quest together, so why not? Don't feel burdened."
"Exactly. I didn't think twice about it either. Just wear it comfortably."
"You should wear yours with a heavy sense of burden."
"!?"
Cain was bewildered by the sudden scolding. What did I even do wrong?!
Flash!
But his bewilderment vanished the moment he equipped the gear.
This... this is truly...?!
This is broken! Tae-hyun, you crazy bastard...! What on earth did you make?!
Choi Sang-yun was utterly shocked by the equipment's stats. Choi Sang-yun was a melee damage dealer who relied on evasion and control. Naturally, he wore light armor, which meant his defense was on the lower side...
Yet, even though this Adamantium Armor was crafted in the form of light armor, it possessed an absurdly broken defense stat. It easily put mediocre heavy armor to shame! How could such an overpowered item even exist?!
If this ever hit the auction house, it would turn the world upside down...
Large guilds would probably wage war just to get their hands on a single piece of this gear. What if they equipped a top guild ranker with this armor? Just thinking about it gave him goosebumps. It would essentially unleash a monster onto the battlefield during territory wars. No matter how incredible Adamantium was, this was insane!
"Do you think other people know that crafting gear with Adamantium yields stats like this?"
"Who knows? Even if they guess it'll turn out generally good..."
Tae-hyun fell into thought. This masterpiece was created by combining Bekelf's assistance with Tae-hyun's own Blacksmithing Skill, Engineering Skill, and his Avatar of Archisus class skills.
While there might be players with a higher Blacksmithing Skill level than Tae-hyun, it was highly unlikely that any player possessed all of these elements combined.
"They probably have no idea."
"...Let's keep this as hidden as possible for the time being, everyone!"
Choi Sang-yun spoke with firm resolve.