"Wait, You're Really Leaving It Behind?"
"No. Are you really leaving it behind? Isn't that going too far?" Cain asked in a flustered voice.
Tae-hyun looked at him as if he were pathetic. "Cain. What did you even learn while playing as a Raider? Do you not even know the basics?"
"Cain. It's because you play as a Raider with such a half-hearted attitude that you ended up ruined," Alcott added.
Tae-hyun and Alcott scolded him simultaneously! Cain felt extremely wronged.
No, what kind of crazy...
People played as Raiders to have lighthearted, casual fun. Who the hell took it so seriously!
No wonder all his items got looted and his guild went under, Alcott sent him a pitiful look. Of course, Cain didn't notice that look.
"Cain. The absolute basic rule of playing a Raider is never to put all your eggs in one basket. You have to minimize your losses when you die."
Tae-hyun was slightly different from a typical Raider, but he was someone who had done just as much PK'ing. He was at a level where he could write a self-help book on the subject! Thanks to that, the actions of Raider players were entirely within the palm of his hand.
Hiding valuable items somewhere before heading out, intentionally filling their inventories with cheap items, wearing gear they wouldn't mind losing...
If they were pulling those kinds of tricks, one shouldn't attack them right away. You had to coax them gently to make them spit out the truth!
"I feel like we could just attack and threaten them..." Cain muttered.
Alcott looked at Tae-hyun and asked, "How on earth do you drag him around with you?"
"Cain might look like this, but he gets the job done when it counts. ...Probably."
"Probably?!"
The waiting group realized something was off. Even after waiting, the three hadn't appeared.
Did they notice? Tae-hyun wondered. There shouldn't have been any reason for them to notice.
Enduring such a freezing place naturally clouded one's judgment. And in that situation, their guild members had flown in! In a lonely situation with no one to help, very few people could refuse help that literally flew in.
Then what is it?
The answer came quickly.
-W-We got caught! We got caught!
-You're coming to save us, right??
"?!"
"You hid it well, right?"
"I told you not to worry."
"I'm just worried someone might take it."
Naturally, the three had hidden the stone tablet before coming out. It was a precaution against any unforeseen circumstances! They had used their own little tricks.
However, the situation had twisted in a strange direction.
-Halt!
"?"
"???"
"What do you mean, halt?"
The area near the cave was clearly a desolate, barren ice field. It was a place where icy storms whipped up every few minutes, making it hard to see even an inch ahead!
But standing right there...
Heavily armed warriors!
They're strong!
Their level is at least 400? No, could they be over 500??
Is that an Ice Drake??
An Ice Drake, known to appear only in freezing regions! It was famous for being tricky to deal with due to its ferocious nature and cold-attribute attacks.
And they were riding them!
Wait a minute. The appearance of those warriors is too bizarre...? What are they? Undead?
Their skin was mottled as if stitched together, one eye was large while the other was small...
One warrior even had three arms.
No. There's too much flesh on them to be undead. I don't think they're undead.
Try using a skill secretly.
-Intermediate Species Identification!
The target's race is Chimera!
This race, which abandoned its original race to become mutants for various reasons, possesses highly unpredictable characteristics.
"!!"
Chimera! A special race created when one's race changed due to magic or various accidents!
Normally, it was a rare race that one would never see. Even among Pan-On players, those who obtained the Chimera race were extremely rare.
...And it wasn't even a good enough race to go to such lengths to obtain! Since it wasn't a normal race but a mutation, everything from racial stats to skills was completely random.
Yet, a whole troop of such Chimeras was standing there, fully armed. It was bound to be bewildering.
"Are you loyal to the great and glorious Ancient Empire, or are you insolent and disloyal?"
"L-Loyal! We are loyal!"
In front of powerful NPCs, anger management came naturally! The three Raider players answered in a polite, submissive posture.
"Good! That is an excellent answer!"
The Ancient Empire Prisoner is pleased with your answer!
Phew. We're saved.
Actually, isn't this a good thing? I don't know what they are, but they look pretty strong...
Right? They might even take us to a town.
The three instantly filled with hope. What if they found a town in this desolate Frozeland where nothing could be found? On top of making a discovery that no other player had achieved, they could monopolize all the sweet rewards for themselves.
"We shall take you to where we reside."
"Is it... a town?"
"A town? It is much larger than that."
"A c... city?!"
"Indeed. You could call it a city. Haha!"
"Ohh... Ohhh...!"
"Hey. We were supposed to meet up with our guild members."
"Screw them! Do you think we care about meeting them right now? We don't need those guys!"
Living a good life finally brought them such luck! The three were incredibly excited. If things went on like this, they would reap massive profits all on their own without needing any help...
"Once we arrive at our stronghold, we shall change you to make you strong as well."
"T-Thank you!"
They were even going to shower them with skills and items?! They were being so nice it was almost terrifying!
Wait. Hold on.
Not "make you strong," but "change you to make you strong"? Something... something sounded off.
"How... how will you change us?"
"First, we must have you cast off your weak races. Do not worry. There will be a new race perfectly suited for each of you."
"......"
"......"
The faces of the three turned pale. They were going to turn them into Chimeras?!
Crazy...!
How are we supposed to know what mutation we'll get!
Cain, who had six arms, often faced ridicule like, "Are you an Asura?" but Cain was actually extremely lucky. Even if his appearance was a bit ugly, hadn't he obtained mutation traits that were excellent for combat? ...Even if his appearance was a bit ugly, that is!
Since then, brave and greedy players had tried to go and pull mutation traits, but those with bad luck had suffered terribly. Even if they could tolerate things like Pig's Nose or Asymmetrical Eyes, if a crazy option like Incurable Itch appeared...
From then on, they had no choice but to risk everything and keep pulling the gacha.
-Legs...! I need more legs! they would cry out.
Just pulling mutation traits was terrifying enough, but to be turned into a full Chimera?
"W-We are perfectly fine as we are..."
"How humble. But it is fine. We do this because we want to. Not many of those we captured survived the Chimera transformation ritual."
"......"
"......"
"So... we are doing this to increase the number of our comrades, so there is no need to feel burdened."
"Ah, yes."
You crazy bastard, of course we should feel burdened! The three shrieked internally.
Should we run?
We have to run. Do you have any smoke scrolls left?
I have one. If we use it, we can immediately...
Swoosh—
The moment one of them reached into his bag to pull out the smoke scroll, a Chimera warrior swung his sword with a sharp *whoosh*.
Gasp!
In the blink of an eye, the blade stopped right in front of his neck!
"Ah. My apologies. It has become a habit. Just in case, do not do anything foolish."
"...Yes..."
With that single move, all three of them froze. The moment they pulled out a scroll, they would be sliced in half!
...Hey! Call for help! Call for help!!
At this rate, we're really going to become Chimeras or die!!!
"They say they got caught? They're asking if we can come save them?"
"????"
"Caught by who in a place like this? How dare these bastards lie to us...!" Alcott was furious. To tell such an obvious lie! If they got caught, he would find their resurrection point and kill them over and over again!
However, Tae-hyun was surprisingly calm.
"No. It might not be a lie."
"What do you mean! I'm telling you, they're looking down on us and making fun of us!"
"Alcott."
"Huh?"
"If you called me to help, shut your mouth and listen when I speak."
"...Okay..."
With a single sentence, Tae-hyun silenced the raging Alcott. The guild members watching were deeply moved by his charisma. That was it! That was Kim Tae-hyun!
"If they suspected us, they would have cut off contact. If they were setting a trap, they would have told a plausible lie. Why would they tell such an absurd lie?"
In Pan-On, the most absurd stories were often, surprisingly, the truth.
"Ask them for details. Find out exactly what the situation is."
"Y-Yes!"
"We'll do that!"
Seeing how submissive the guild members were, Alcott found it suspicious. They were way too obedient! Alcott asked Cain:
"Don't you think it's weird how obedient those guys are? Normally, they should be talking back more and plotting something..."
"Huh? Everyone is always like that in front of Kim Tae-hyun."
"......"
Well, that was true!
"N-No. That's not what I meant..."
"???"
"Forget it. Why am I even talking to you."
"Is this bastard trying to pick a fight with me?!" Cain flared up. Kim Tae-hyun could look down on him, but no other bastard could!
Meanwhile, Tae-hyun was extracting all the necessary information from the guild members.
"An unidentified group called the 'Ancient Empire Prisoners' consisting of the Chimera race came, said 'Khehehe, we'll turn you into Chimeras too!' and dragged them away?"
"I-It's true! It's really true! Please believe us, Lord Tae-hyun!"
"Please...!"
The guild members cried out in desperate voices. Although they were Raiders, at this moment, they were dead serious. Tae-hyun...! Believe us! Believe our sincerity!
It matches what Carbanog said.
Carbanog's story about the prisoners of the Ancient Empire being locked up in Frozeland's prison! The name "Ancient Empire Prisoners" was too coincidental to be made up.
Carbanog triumphantly asks what it told you. It insists you must always watch out for the undead.
They said they're Chimeras, not undead.
Same difference!
"Fine. I believe you."
"...!!!"
The guild members felt like they were about to burst into tears. Even while speaking, they had only thought, Tae-hyun won't believe us, and What if he doesn't believe our words?
But for him to believe them! It felt like the first time in their lives they had experienced such a thing.
"Uwahhh...!"
"To think he would actually believe us...!"
"???"
"Why are they crying?"
"W-Who knows?"
While the guild members wept and swore their loyalty, the rest of the party whispered in bewilderment.
"We move immediately. Follow me!"
At Tae-hyun's command, the party began to move at once. Frozeland was a pure white land where it was hard to distinguish one place from another, but Tae-hyun miraculously recognized the surrounding landmarks and found the way.
"This won't do. Yong-yong. Heuk-heuk. Fly up and check the location."
-Understood, Master.
-Understood.
Normally, Tae-hyun didn't let the dragons fly in unfamiliar places. They could be attacked by flying monsters. However, they were currently racing against time! He had to take the risk and check.
Alcott and the guild members followed closely behind Tae-hyun with tense faces. They naturally felt the tension. Alcott asked in a nervous voice:
"Kim Tae-hyun. If a fight breaks out, should we jump in first? Or should we wait?"
"? What are you talking about?"
"...??" Alcott was flustered by Tae-hyun's bewildered expression. "W-Wait, aren't we going to rescue them right now?"
"No?"
"????"
"Once we confirm where they got caught, we're going to search the place where they were hiding. We need to confirm where they were captured so we can find where they hid the stone tablet."
"...!!!!"
Th-This bastard is really...! Just how many steps ahead is he looking?!