The Rescue Coalition's Betrayal

As the players plunged beneath the ship, the others who had come to kidnap—no, rescue—him shivered with a profound sense of betrayal. How could he do this?!

"Kim Tae-hyun! I told you! We came to save you! Why!! Why won't you believe us?!"

"Those bastards are lying to you! The Black Rock Sect is rotten to the core!!!"

"..."

The members of the Black Rock Sect felt incredibly wronged. Who the hell is lying to whom right now?!

We're the ones being tricked and worked to the bone by Kim Tae-hyun. Is he really the type of guy to get tricked by us?

They're talking absolute nonsense.

Despite the heart-wrenching cries, Tae-hyun remained cold and indifferent.

"Attack anyone who tries to stop the ship or climb aboard. Tell everyone not to interfere with our escape!"

— My lord, who are those people?

"They must be from the Archisus Cult," Tae-hyun replied simply and clearly to Persmes's question.

Since they were trying to stop the ship and climb aboard, they had to be from the Archisus Cult!

Persmes nodded, seemingly convinced by the explanation.

— Indeed...

"Kim Tae-hyun!! Listen to us, ahhhh!"

Splash! Splash!

The players who had managed to climb up were pushed back into the water, and the grappling hooks they had thrown were cut loose. The guilds and parties that had rushed ahead flinched at the sight. They had just watched a live stream of what happened to the idiots who tried to climb aboard.

"W-what do we do, Guild Master? Do we go up?"

"Wow. Kim Tae-hyun is no joke. I thought he'd go easy since we came to rescue him, but his temper is exactly the same."

Zombie Man, a paladin from the guild, shook his head. He was a veteran ranker from Pan-On 1, but fortunately, he had rarely crossed paths with Tae-hyun. He had only seen mines blowing up from a distance... But watching several players get blasted away on the live stream brought back vivid memories of the past.

"Can't we just go up? If we keep climbing, surely Kim Tae-hyun won't keep killing us?"

"He absolutely will."

"..."

The guild members smacked their lips. There was treasure on that ship, but they couldn't even climb aboard!

They had hoped to use the chaotic "rescue" atmosphere to grab onto the ship and climb up, thinking Tae-hyun would get swept up in the mood and think, 'Ah, they came to save me. I can't really attack them, this is awkward...'

Instead, Tae-hyun's reaction was cold and razor-sharp: 'Who the hell are you to stop my ship and climb up? Die!'

"For now, follow the ship! Escort it! Kim Tae-hyun will have to choose someone! We must catch his eye somehow!"

"Understood!"

"Shout our connection to him! Make sure it reaches his ears!"

"Uh... no, that's a bit embarrassing."

"What's embarrassing about it?! Can't you hear the shouting around us?!"

In fact, the surrounding area was incredibly noisy. All sorts of players in small boats were screaming about their connections to Tae-hyun.

"Kim Tae-hyun!! I'm a Gold-tier member of the Archisus Church!!! My family ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠is all Bronze or higher!!!"

"Mr. Kim Tae-hyun, don't be fooled by that bastard! I'm a founding member with a house in The Valley!"

"Kim Tae-hyun! Remember our history with the Guild Alliance! Who else helped you grow as much as we did?!"

Everyone was shamelessly inflating whatever connection they had, real or imagined. Fortunately, Zombie Man's guild actually had a history with Tae-hyun. They had participated in the management of Mora City and crossed paths during quests... Either way, compared to the others, their connection was practically deep.

"Quick! Shout the guild name loudly so Kim Tae-hyun remembers!"

"...The guild name is too embarrassing..."

"What did you say???"

While the ships clung to the sides and caused a ruckus, Tae-hyun ignored them and pressed forward. As the vessel accelerated, it completely pulled away from the Plague Fleet, drawing closer to the main fleet ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of the rescue coalition.

Murmur, murmur—

As Tae-hyun's ship approached, the players on the larger vessels began to whisper. They weren't trashy enough to cling to the sides in tiny boats, but they were just as eager to accompany him to the Erangs Kingdom.

It was a battle of wits!

'Should we speak first?'

'I don't want to get rejected like those guys earlier.'

While they hesitated and whispered, Tae-hyun's ship leisurely began to weave through them.

— Master. I believe this is as far as I can go. Thank you for summoning me!

"You worked hard."

The animated ship shuddered and came to a complete halt. It had actually moved much longer than originally expected.

'And we wasted quite a bit of time being caught by the Plague Fleet...'

It was a relief that his high Engineering skill had granted a duration bonus, otherwise things would have been quite troublesome.

As Tae-hyun's ship stopped, everyone looked on in confusion. Why did it stop?

"...Can we go closer?"

"Let's go."

Slowly, dozens of large ships began to close in. Unlike the small boats from before, the sight of these massive vessels surrounding them was quite intimidating.

— T-this is terrible! We are in trouble!

Captain Polomyus of the Plague Fleet was shocked. He had been so distracted dealing with the ghost ships, the Archisus Cultists, and the adventurers...

By the time he regained his senses, the ship carrying Persmes was already far away.

— Did no one stop them while they sailed away like that?!

— W-we are sorry!

— Rescue Lord Persmes! He is the successor to the Plague Bishop!

Polomyus shouted at the top of his lungs, but there was little the Plague Fleet could do. The distance was simply too great. With the front lines packed with ghost ships and enemies, they couldn't possibly reach the distant vessel.

— Lord Polomyus, do not worry. Surely they won't kill Lord Persmes.

— What nonsense is that! Go rescue him immediately!!

Polomyus raged in fury.

— The Holy Knights escorting Lord Persmes were quite skilled. Perhaps they can escape with him.

— Yes. There is still hope. Once they break through, they can immediately...

But there was no such thing. Tae-hyun's ship was immediately surrounded, unable to escape, and came to a dead stop.

— Believing in those Holy Knights was a mistake! I should have handled it myself!

Polomyus immediately changed his tune.

Of course, they weren't exactly captured, but...

— My lord, where are you going?? Persmes asked in confusion.

Setting aside the adventurers surrounding them, Tae-hyun was preparing to abandon the ship and cross over as ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"This is bad. The enemy numbers are too great, and we are surrounded. We can't fight any longer."

— How could...!

Of course, Tae-hyun was the one who had sailed straight into the encirclement, but Persmes's trust in him was absolute. He merely lamented the situation without blaming Tae-hyun at all.

— Let us fight to the end! For the glory of Lord Idergo!

"No, we cannot do that! I cannot let a talent of Lord Idergo like you die here!"

"..."

"..."

The Black Rock Sect members stared in disbelief at the dramatic exchange. What on earth are you guys doing?

Chairman Yoo, who had arrived to help with an excited heart, also stared in bewilderment.

"What are they doing?"

"I-I don't know?"

"Looks like the Idergo Cult...?"

Regardless of their reactions, Tae-hyun cried out solemnly.

"I surrender! You can kill me however you want, but do not touch Lord Persmes here! I swear on the name of Lord Idergo, I will never forgive you if you do!"

"Wait... uh..."

"Kim Tae-hyun...?"

Chairman Yoo's subordinates, who were ignorant of the context, were utterly baffled. Aren't you the Pope of the Archisus Church?

Furthermore, many of the fishermen present were members of the Archisus Church. Seeing their Pope proudly shouting the name of another deity left them in complete disarray.

"...Let's just play along for now!"

"Y-yeah."

"Mwahaha! You have fallen into the clutches of our Archisus Cult! You foolish Idergo Cultists!"

Chairman Yoo's subordinates laughed villainously and tied Persmes up tightly.

"Take him inside!"

"No! You bastards! Lord Idergo will not forgive you!"

As soon as Persmes was dragged away, Tae-hyun stopped shouting.

"Phew. That was exhausting."

"..."

"..."

Everyone got goosebumps at his instant 180-degree attitude shift. This... this absolute bastard...!

"You went through a lot of trouble to get here."

"Haha, what trouble."

Chairman Yoo was unusually warm and kind. It was all because of the Ancient Empire University Admission Ticket!

'He's being so nice, it's actually making me uncomfortable.'

"Our Player Kim Tae-hyun went through the most trouble. Here, drink this. It's warm, it'll help you relax. Share some with your friends too."

When Chairman Yoo's men brought out hot tea, the Black Rock Sect members were deeply touched. They thought this place was filled with nothing but lunatics, but there were actually kind people here!

"Wow. I thought the King of Arantis Kingdom would be scarier, but he's warmer than expected."

"Yeah, he seems really gentle. He has a great personality."

Tae-hyun held his cup, watching the others drink before finally taking a sip himself.

If it had been in the past, Chairman Yoo might not have noticed, but with his accumulated Pan-On experience, he could tell exactly what Tae-hyun was doing.

'Is this bastard worried I poisoned the tea?!'

What did he take him for...?!

Yet, he couldn't help but admire that flawless vigilance. Who else would doubt a cup of tea in this situation? Just ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠look at the Black Rock Sect members and Silved—they were completely relaxed.

"Kim Tae-hyun, it's all over now, right?"

"Once we get back to land, I never want to see Kim Tae-hyun's face again."

"Hey, don't say guild chat out loud!"

Unlike the whispering guild members, Tae-hyun shook his head.

"The way back won't be easy."

"Huh? Will the Plague Fleet chase us?"

"No, rather than them, the players will chase us."

"Wait... isn't it all over?"

They had abandoned the ship Tae-hyun arrived on and boarded Chairman Yoo's fleet. For all intents and purposes, the rescue was complete. Chairman Yoo had successfully saved Tae-hyun, hadn't he?

Tae-hyun looked at them as if they were idiots.

"How on earth have you guys been playing Pan-On? How can you say it's over in this situation?"

"???"

The Black Rock Sect members simply had a different mindset. There was bound to be a vast difference in perspective between a small, friendly guild that avoided brutal conflicts to complete their quests, and a man who had survived by fighting giant guilds at every turn.

"If I were them, I would have rammed my ship into us to steal the prize already."

"...No, you're just the weird one!!" the guild members shouted in unison.

No matter how jealous they might be, would the rescue coalition that had just fought together really do such a thing?