Useless Kindness

There was a saying about useless kindness. That was exactly what this was.

Tae-hyun simply didn't want to disappoint a Silver Tier player of the Archisus Church.

If he parties with me, he might end up getting humiliated...

And what if the player realized Tae-hyun was the Pope? The player might get so embarrassed that he'd quit Pandemonium Online altogether. Where else would he find such a perfect mark—er, customer?

"Since they're offering to help, let's accept it graciously," Tae-hyun said.

"Right. We should take it," Lee Da-bi agreed.

"..."

But Lee Se-yeon and Lee Da-bi were cold. If someone was going to show off in front of Tae-hyun, they had to pay the price. Let's see how well he actually does!

"Now, gather around me."

As the blessed scroll was used, the blessing was shared with everyone nearby. Everyone gasped at the sudden surge of Luck.

"As expected...!"

"So this is Luck!"

Confidence welled up along with the Luck! A completely baseless confidence that whatever they planted now would definitely succeed.

"Let's plant! Dig in!"

"Here, you too, newbie!"

"We already have seeds..."

"We'll take them gladly!" Lee Da-bi immediately snatched the seeds. There was no harm in having more.

Tae-hyun received various bonuses all at once from stats, titles, and achievements! Even with the low Farming skill penalty, it was practically meaningless. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call his hands the hands of God.

On the other hand, Lee Se-yeon...

"..."

A Necromancer was not suited for this kind of work. Although they possessed powerful combat strength, often called a one-man army, they lived with various penalties as a trade-off!

"Urgh..."

As Lee Se-yeon bit her lip in frustration, Lee Da-bi grabbed her hand.

"Let me help you. Golden Grace!"

Flash!

A powerful skill that consumed gold to grant an additional buff. Lee Da-bi had acquired quite a few powerful skills after changing her class to Priest as a sub-class.

It made sense. Traveling with Tae-hyun and clearing all sorts of massive Legendary Quests, there was no way her level, Holy stat, and Contribution Points wouldn't pile up.

...An angel??

For ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a moment, Lee Se-yeon saw something resembling a halo behind Lee Da-bi. Of course, it was just a skill effect, but...

"The Necromancer class is inconvenient for things like this, so don't worry too much about it."

Is she really an angel?

Come to think of it, hanging around with Kim Tae-hyun in the first place was impossible unless you were an angel.

"...If things ever get tough in Team KL, feel free to let me know. I'll definitely help you."

"Huh? But I'm doing really well...?"

Tae-hyun, a combat class to the bone, ignored it even though he knew, but objectively speaking, the Luck stat was more suited for crafting than combat.

Compared to other flashy buffs, the Luck buff seemed like nothing, but it was by no means weak. It was a late-bloomer type of buff that would yield proper rewards if nurtured continuously! Since it was a stat that went well with all kinds of crafting skills, it was bound to be useful.

However, Tae-hyun utilized that stat in the most combat-oriented way possible. Like bombs, bombs, and more bombs...

"Let's go! Let's go!"

"This time it'll sprout! This time for sure!"

This is pure madness.

The players screamed like maniacs in front of the Resurrection Herbs. Even with the Archisus buff, the probability was still slim. The only thing they could trust was prayer!

"I'll spray the potion!"

"Okay!"

Various potions were poured over the Resurrection Herb seeds. Potions that accelerated growth speed were the absolute basics!

"...Pull!"

"Arghhhhh!"

"Ughhhhh!"

"It-It sprouted! Advanced! Advanced!"

"The color! What color is it?!"

"Y-Yellow! A vivid yellow of 255, 255, 0!"

"That really is an Advanced one!"

The players hugged each other in pure joy!

"This is all thanks to Archisus!"

"Thank you, Lord Archisus! If anything good happens to me in the future, I will attribute it to you!"

"Archisus! Archisus!"

I created this church, but it's really full of lunatics, Tae-hyun thought coldly. Even if he was the Pope, wrong was wrong!

"As expected of a Silver Tier!"

"The Silver Tier is...!"

The players crowded around the Silver Tier player of the Archisus Church and praised him. Indeed, a Silver Tier! To make an Advanced Yellow Resurrection Herb bloom on the first try! If this wasn't a miracle, what was?

"Oh. It sprouted."

"Did you get one?"

"Yeah."

Tae-hyun calmly pocketed the Highest-grade Pure White Resurrection Herb. Lee Se-yeon was extremely shocked, but by now, she could accept this level of absurdity ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠calmly. This much was... within the realm of possibility, right?

Kim Tae-hyun is the Pope of the Archisus Church... so this must be normal for him... right?

If I act surprised, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I'll look like a country bumpkin!

Only after Tae-hyun's party left did the Silver Tier player of the Archisus Church finally remember the "newbie."

Where did they go?

He looked around, but they were nowhere to be seen.

Ah. They must have gotten a low-grade one, felt disappointed, and left!

His heart ached. Having no luck wasn't a crime, yet they left in disappointment! Everyone went through that when they were newbies.

I wonder what they got...

"A-A-A-A Highest-grade Pure White Resurrection Herb sprouted!!"

At the player's shout, the people nearby rushed over like mad... or not.

"Ah, another liar."

"We won't fall for that again."

Because competition was so fierce in this area, all sorts of people came by crying wolf, shouting, "Hey! A Highest-grade sprouted!" to play pranks. People no longer fell for it.

"It's real! Look here! The traces!"

"If you're lying, you're dead... Gasp! It's real!"

"R-Real???"

"Who planted it? Who took it?! Find them! Find them!!"

The players searched frantically for Tae-hyun. They had to find that mysterious player! They had to buy it from him or at least learn his secret.

"How did you do it! Sob!"

"Please tell us...!"

"I have brought it."

"What?"

"You really brought it?"

"Unbelievable. Unless you got a fake from somewhere..."

"...?"

[?]

Both Tae-hyun and Carbanog were bewildered. Wait, he wouldn't be attacked even if his disguise was blown...?

What does that mean?

Tae-hyun was also puzzled by this message window. Normally, if a disguise was blown, no matter how high the affinity was, NPCs would attack, shouting, "You dared to deceive me!"

But not being attacked even if the disguise was blown...

Does it mean they'll forgive me?

What kind of nonsense is...

Tae-hyun stopped mid-sentence. For some reason, it sounded plausible.

If it was the vassal NPCs who truly detested Dorango, it wouldn't be surprising if they reacted to Tae-hyun with, "Should we just consider this person our new young master?" and "Shall we?"

"Very well. Follow me. I shall grant you an audience with the Count."

"Thank you!"

"He really doesn't seem like Dorango, though..."

While walking inside following the vassals, Tae-hyun ran into the Third Prince walking from the opposite direction. Of all places, the Third Prince was wandering around the Count's camp!

"Kuo... Kuooo."

The Third Prince pointed at Tae-hyun and asked something.

"What is he saying?"

"Ah... He says it is admirable of you to come see the Count."

It was nothing major.

"Kuooo!"

The Third Prince suddenly flew into a rage and threw the object he was holding. The vassals screamed as they were pelted.

"W-We are sorry! Your Highness!"

"We failed to understand Your Highness's will! Please forgive us!"

...Wait. They were just guessing?

Come to think of it, he was only making "kuo" sounds through his helmet, so there was no way they could understand him. It was only natural for the vassals to make wild guesses!

"Kuo... kuooo. (Where did you come from?)"

"!"

However, Tae-hyun was a master of speech with the Supreme Eloquence skill. He was someone who could persuade even giants, so understanding the voice of the cursed Third Prince was child's play.

"I am Dorango, here to see Count Besgo."

"Kuooot! (You understand my words?)"

The Third Prince was shocked. Because of this body covered in cursed armor, he was frustrated to death by the people around him who couldn't understand a word he said, but this bastard son understood him perfectly. To think such a talent existed here!

"Kuo. (Passed!)"

"?!"

"?!?!?"

"!?!?!?"

"Kim Tae-hyun... this is going according to plan, right...?" Lee Se-yeon, who was watching from behind, asked in bewilderment. No matter how she looked at it, it didn't seem like Tae-hyun had calculated this. Who could have predicted the Third Prince would suddenly pop out?

"Actually, this is better. We wanted to meet the prince anyway to find out what happened to the King."

"So you're saying it didn't go according to plan...?"

"Come on, let's go! Se-yeon!"

"You're avoiding the question on purpose, aren't you?"

By the way, what kind of contract did this Third Prince make to end up in this state?

Looking at the armor, it was clearly cursed, and it didn't seem like an ordinary contract. At times like this, he had to coax him gently.

"Your Highness. Your Highness's stature is truly magnificent to behold."

"......."

The Third Prince did not reply. Lee Se-yeon whispered in a panic.

"Isn't that having the opposite effect?!"

Telling someone who couldn't take off their armor due to a curse that they "looked good" was not exactly great rhetoric.

"Kuooo... (You recognize true greatness.)"

"..."

"..."

Wait, he actually liked it?!

"!"

Tae-hyun's face stiffened at Carbanog's warning. He had suspected it, but did the prince really make a contract with an evil god? If he was going to do it, he should have contracted with Sadiq or Idergo. Why...

I know, Carbanog.