An Unwanted Reunion

Tae-hyun doubted his ears. What?

"You have come to ruin our ritual, but we shall ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠never back down! Our ritual will not be stopped!"

"Uh..." Tae-hyun was taken aback, but he quickly played along. "I have indeed come to stop your evil ritual! I already know everything you're up to!"

"As expected...!"

"Say what you want about the Pope of the Archisus Church, but he sure knows how to beat down evil gods!"

The noble NPCs standing behind them clapped in admiration. The Archisus Church might be wicked, despicable, cheap, filthy, and cunning, but when it came to dealing with evil god cults, there was rarely an ally as reassuring as them.

"What? 'Say what I want'?"

"Ah, no! That's not what I meant!"

"You fool! Stop saying weird things in front of His Holiness!"

The other nobles quickly turned on their companion. Meanwhile, the assassin of the Idergo Cult gnashed his teeth and shouted,

"Just you wait, you Archisus bastard! Once the ritual is complete, Lord Idergo will punish you!"

Tae-hyun and Carbanog stared at the quest window in utter bewilderment. What?

Well, I guess it's not a bad thing. Tae-hyun had already crossed a point of no return with the Idergo Cult anyway. If it was hard enough to reconcile with the righteous god cults, how much harder would it be to make peace with the evil ones?

Well, I suppose that counts as reconciliation in its own way. Right now, the Sadiq Church had forgotten its ancient grudges, joined hands with the Archisus Church, and was living happily ever after. ...Of course, if the Sadiq Archbishop or the Holy Knight Commander ever found out, they would probably pass out from sheer rage, but still...

"It looks like the Idergo Cult is up to something. I should search the interior thoroughly."

"With so many players around, won't they just end up flushing them out on their own?"

Currently, the secret temple of the Idergo Cult was absolutely packed with players.

Because Tae-hyun's name was attached to this, along with the King's, players had swarmed the area in droves. In a situation like this, any hidden entrance or secret passage inside the dungeon was bound to be discovered immediately!

"That's true, but secret passages or quests related to religious cults are usually..."

"...hard to find unless you have the relevant skills or information," Lee Da-bi finished his sentence.

Tae-hyun nodded. For someone like him with an absurdly high Luck stat, these exploration quests were actually quite easy. If nothing else, being the Avatar of Archisus did have its perks! But without such advantages, one would have to search every nook and cranny manually, or possess specific information about the Idergo Cult to find anything.

"With so many players, it's going to be hard to go in and search."

"Even if we tell them to leave, they won't listen, right? Should we at..."

"...tack them? Absolutely not," Lee Da-bi cut in.

"...ask them politely to leave."

Do Dong-su and Jekas stared at each other in panic at the chaotic noise echoing from the floor above. Although they were a Thief and an Explorer respectively, the two had joined the Idergo Cult and had been steadily climbing its ranks. Their goal was simple: to get revenge on Kim Tae-hyun... Well, that was part of it, but in truth, they just hadn't had any better opportunities.

Of course, it would be great if they could become successful and exact their revenge on Kim Tae-hyun later, but they currently had their own hands full just trying to survive.

The Guild Alliance bastards they used to be close with had secretly joined hands with Kim Tae-hyun and were now enjoying the sweet taste of capital. Meanwhile, the top rankers from Pan-On 1 who used to despise Tae-hyun had backed off, muttering, "That Kim Tae-hyun guy is annoying, but we have too much to lose if we fight him now." Consequently, those left in a tight spot were players like Do Dong-su and Jekas, who had openly made an enemy of Kim Tae-hyun.

They couldn't get help from the Guild Alliance, nor could they expect aid from other rankers. To make matters worse, Tae-hyun's fanatical followers would shout, "Look, it's Do Dong-su! There's Do Dong-su!" and try to hunt them down for bounties. In such a desperate situation, they didn't have many options—other than joining a newly emerged evil god cult like the Idergo Cult!

"Should we stream this..."

"I told you to stop talking nonsense about restarting your personal stream!" Jekas snapped in irritation.

It had been quite a while since either of them had streamed. The moment they turned on their broadcasts, they would be hunted down, making it impossible to stream. To stream again, they would either have to hide their faces or establish a secure foothold, which meant focusing on building their strength for the time being.

"I didn't mean turning on *my* stream! I meant the bastards running wild upstairs must be streaming, so let's watch *them*!"

"Ah. So that's what you meant."

Many of the players currently clearing the dungeon with excitement were indeed broadcasting. The two quickly pulled up the streams.

"That bastard Kim Tae-hyun?!"

"How did he even get here?!"

Jekas glared at Do Dong-su. Did this idiot run his mouth somewhere?

Do Dong-su glared back at Jekas. Did this bastard sell me out to curry favor with Kim Tae-hyun?

As expected of two people who stuck together, their levels of paranoia were perfectly matched.

"...Well, he won't be able to reach this deep area so easily."

"R-Right."

"Let's pack up quickly and get out of here."

The ritual currently being conducted by the Idergo Cult was none other than summoning the Avatar of Idergo to the continent. Since all the gods had departed the continent, temporarily summoning an avatar was a ritual of monumental difficulty, requiring immense preparation and patience. Fortunately, the Idergo Cult possessed several holy relics, and the timing was perfect—the continent was in utter chaos! To summon the great God of Plague and Devouring, Lord Idergo, they had to fill the Plague Jars. Fill the Plague Jars in each secret temple to the brim...

The two had managed to secure decent positions within the Idergo Cult. They had received official ranks. As their ranks rose, so did the difficulty of their quests and their responsibilities. If nothing else, they absolutely had to secure the Plague Jars. If these were destroyed, there would be hell to pay.

Whoosh!

"Huh?"

At the sound of something burning, the two turned their heads. Flames were spreading from above.

"What the—?! Extinguish it! Put it out!"

They frantically tried to put out the fire.

However, it wouldn't go out easily. Sadiq's Flame was stubborn and long-lasting.

"W-What do we do, Standard-Bearer?"

"We escape! Abandon the temple and run!"

"Who cares about the temple right now?! Kim Tae-hyun might already be right next to us!"

An astonishing thing happened. When Tae-hyun politely asked them to leave, the players actually filed out of the dungeon in an orderly fashion.

"No way!"

Tae-hyun himself wore an expression of utter disbelief. How did this make any sense?

I thought I'd have to detonate at least a few bombs in the dungeon to get them out...

"Player Kim Tae-hyun, your sincerity has reached them. Even in the desolate world of Pan-On, a warm ray of sincerity can touch hearts..."

"I think it's more because they're terrified of Kim Tae-hyun...?"

"Shh. Lee Se-yeon, let's not ruin a touching moment."

No matter how one looked at it, rather than "sincerity reaching them," the thought process of the players was likely: Kim Tae-hyun asked us to leave? -> Wait, Kim Tae-hyun is telling us to get out? -> What? He said he'll kill us if we don't? Eek!

"First, I should spread Sadiq's Flame."

"Sure... Wait, what???"

Lee Se-yeon was taken aback, but Tae-hyun had already entered the dungeon and was indiscriminately scattering Sadiq's Flame everywhere.

"Why?!"

"The Idergo Cult bastards are wicked and persistent. There's no telling what they'll do. We have to be prepared."

Tae-hyun suspected there might be powerful monsters or high priests hiding deep inside the secret temple. Of course, there was no such thing... but if he scattered Sadiq's Flame everywhere, they would surely come running out!

A moment later.

"They're not coming out."

"They ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠must have been caught inside."

"Did your EXP go up?"

"Alright, let's head inside. We need to search the rest of the place."

"It didn't go up, did it? I don't think it did."

Tae-hyun prepared to head deeper inside. At that moment, the item Tae-hyun was carrying began to react violently. It was none other than Idergo's Fragment, which he had ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠obtained after subjugating the Idergo Cult once before! It was a holy relic containing a powerful concentration of Idergo's energy.

Looks like there's something here. As Idergo's Fragment tried to move on its own, Tae-hyun began to follow the direction it was pulling him.

Clack!

"Let's go!"

"Right!"

"Where are you going?"

"Where do you think? Obviously to another temp—Wait."

Why did that voice come from the front instead of behind them? Do Dong-su raised his head. A very familiar face was standing right there.

"K... K... K...!"

"What's wrong with you? K...!"

"?"

Tae-hyun was puzzled as the players who had just emerged stared at his face and could only stammer the letter "K." Had they gone ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠mad as a group?

Well, it doesn't matter. They were clearly players who had joined the Idergo Cult! He needed to squeeze every bit of information they had about the cult out of them.

"You guys are players who joined the Idergo Cult, right?"

Hearing Tae-hyun's words, the two realized the situation.

This bastard Kim Tae-hyun hasn't recognized us!

Their outfits were completely different, and their faces were covered by plague masks. Kim Tae-hyun clearly thought they were just random Idergo Cult players. If so, they had a way out alive!

"Please spare us! Spare us! Joining the Idergo Cult isn't a crime, is it?!"

"Hmm. Hearing you say that actually makes me feel a bit soft-hearted."

As someone who had been forcibly registered into the Archisus Church, this appeal resonated deeply with Tae-hyun. Indeed, from the perspective of players who had simply joined the Idergo Cult and were working hard, it must feel incredibly unfair!

"But I have a quest to clear too..."

"We'll answer any question you ask! Just please don't force us to log out!"

"Is that so? Hmm."

Since they were begging like this, should he spare their lives?

"Alright, fine. Let's talk face-to-face first. Take off your masks."

"..."

"..."

At Tae-hyun's casual request, their faces stiffened beneath their masks. They were doomed!

"I said, take off the masks."

"T-This is, well, a cursed item! We really want to take it off too, but we can't!"

"Oh dear... I guess it can't be helped then."

Phew.

"I'll remove it for you."

"...!"

Jekas screamed internally. Kim Tae-hyun, you bastard! You weren't this kind back in Pan-On 1!!

Thanks to Tae-hyun's sudden act of kindness, everything was about to go down the drain.

Please don't let the curse break, please don't let the curse break, please don't—

SLAM!

Tae-hyun swung his Ancient Hammer and smashed it directly into their faces. A critical hit triggered, and the masks shattered into pieces.

"..."

"..."