The Sinister Gift
Tae-hyun desperately tried to persuade them. Please, just stay exactly as you are right now—loyal and normal! There were already more than enough unhinged, bizarre NPCs in the Valley. What Tae-hyun truly wanted were ordinary, capable, and loyal NPCs.
"-Your Holiness is far too merciful. *Sob*."
"-We do not even have the face to look upon Your Holiness..."
"..."
In this church, the ones who actually needed to feel shame felt none at all, while those who had absolutely no reason to be ashamed were drowning in guilt.
"Thank you all for following me. Once we reach the Valley, I hope you will spread word of your loyalty throughout the church."
"-How could we dare..."
"Spread it!"
"-Y-Yes, sir!"
Tae-hyun was dead serious. Please, if only the rest of the church could be even half as normal as these Secret Assassins!
"Also, before we head out, I'd like to subjugate the monster nest."
Since it was an Archisus Church quest, he wanted to finish the monster nest subjugation. It would be much easier with the help of the church's Secret Assassins, who were highly familiar with the local terrain.
"-But Your Holiness. Wouldn't it be better to let others fight first before we step in?"
"-Indeed. That is how we were taught. The Archisus Church must always be the last to step forward..."
"...You were taught exceptionally well, but since there aren't many people around here we can exploit right now, let's just clear it ourselves."
Besides, Tae-hyun had already brought a large crowd of plunderers with him. There was no one else left to mobilize anyway!
"-In that case, would it be alright if we put those among your followers who do not believe in the Archisus Church at the very front?"
"Of course, I don't mind."
As expected of fellow church members, their minds were perfectly aligned on this front. If you aren't part of our church, you're arrow fodder!
The trial has ended!
You have been permitted entry into the village.
"-Congratulations! You adventurers have been granted the right to enter the village!"
"Whooaaa!"
"Thank you! We won't kill anyone, we won't steal anything, and we'll live good, honest lives inside the village!"
The plunderers, who had been getting beaten to a pulp, rejoiced simply because the trial was over. It had ended rather abruptly, but surviving must have been the passing condition.
"-And rejoice even further! You have been granted the qualification to change your class to an Archisus Secret Assassin!"
"!!!"
"R-Really? Is that true?"
"If you let us change classes, we'll gladly believe in whatever crappy Archisus Church you want!"
The plunderers' reaction was explosive. Who cared about the church if they could change to a Heroic class! They would gladly pay their tithes on time, even if they had to join the notorious Archisus Church to do it.
"Put the guy who just called it a 'crappy' church at the very front."
"-Understood. It shall be done."
The Secret Assassin nodded. When Tae-hyun had first suggested enticing them with the class change, the assassin had reacted skeptically: 'But Your Holiness, the Archisus Church has so many legendary classes. Would they really want to become Secret Assassins?' Yet, the response was incredibly enthusiastic. At their core, player plunderers absolutely adored assassin-type classes.
"-Slay the monsters around here and subjugate their nest! Do that, and you shall be allowed to change your class to a Secret Assassin!"
"WHOOOOOOOOOAAAAAA!"
"Wait. If it's monster slaying, doesn't that mean monsters like the one from earlier?"
"Who cares about that right now! What matters is that we can change classes!"
"No, but it is import—"
"WHOOOOOOO!"
A few plunderers who still held onto their sanity questioned the suspicious difficulty of the quest, but the other players paid them no mind. Celebrate first, think later! The plunderers' rational thinking was severely compromised. After enduring all kinds of hardships to reach this underground village, they had just barely survived a life-threatening trial. Though they didn't know exactly what a Secret Assassin was, everything looked like a blessing in their current state. After all this suffering, the reward had to be good!
"-Now. Equip this gear!"
"Even gear?!"
"Thank you so much!"
Watching the plunderers put on the assassin armor, Tae-hyun asked in curiosity, "What kind of equipment is that?"
"-It is the [ ], handed down through generations. It is armor forced upon sinners."
"...!"
The inside of the armor was lined with special needles. Upon a command from the Secret Assassins, the needles would prick the wearer, injecting a special drug that turned them into a berserker.
"Could you teach me how to craft that as well?"
Recipe acquired!
You can now craft [ ].
Your Blacksmithing skill has increased.
I should use this often in the future! Unaware of the sinister nature of the armor, the plunderers excitedly suited up. Getting such great treatment gave them a wonderful feeling about what was to come.
"If everyone is ready, let's move out. I'll go with you."
Tae-hyun's words deeply moved the plunderers. Kim Tae-hyun didn't even need to change classes, yet he was joining them! Any resentment they held from when he had abandoned them to enter the village alone melted away instantly.
"A-Are you serious?"
"Who was the one who brought you all here? I have to take responsibility."
"As expected of Kim Tae-hyun! He's built different from the rest of the trash here!"
"You wanna die?"
"Kim Tae-hyun! Kim Tae-hyun! Kim Tae-hyun!"
It was enough to make the onlookers green with envy.
The viewers were only watching because the plunderers' antics were entertaining, not because they actually supported them. The guild members felt the same way. They weren't people anyone wanted to cheer for, but watching them cause trouble was fun! ...But seeing those very same troublemakers get carried by Kim Tae-hyun was starting to make them feel incredibly salty.
"Mr. Tae-hyun, can't we just kick out the Rudolf Guild? They've been complaining non-stop."
"Hey! This is our guild's stream!"
"Who the hell talks trash about us on our own guild's stream?!"
While the Rudolf Guild members fumed, Jackal checked his weapons. He felt as though he had experienced a lifetime's worth of shocking Pan-On events in a single day.
'Well, since things turned out like this, I might as well do my best.' Remembering how he had lied to Kim Tae-hyun's face about being in the same guild as Cain made him want to curl up and die of embarrassment... Even if he would kick his blankets in regret later, he had to focus on the task at hand right now. 'Ugh, but seriously, it's so embarrassing.'
Tae-hyun noticed Jackal wasn't putting on the armor and asked curiously, "Why aren't you wearing the armor?"
"Ah. I was worried wearing unfamiliar armor might mess up my controls... Should I put it on...?"
Jackal asked cautiously. He kept his informal speech out of a tiny shred of remaining pride, but in truth, his posture was already mentally bent in half.
"Passed!"
"????"
While Tae-hyun was wandering deep below in search of the Secret Assassins, the rankers who had entered the Ancient Empire University to learn skills were agonizing over the group quest they had received. Most were planning to slay the minions of the Hungry Chaos, but a few bold rankers decided to push their luck.
"Idiots. I'm going to find skills while everyone else is busy."
"You have to know when to gamble to make it big. They don't understand how Kim Tae-hyun got famous. If he had followed the same path as everyone else, would he be where he is today?"
"Exactly!"
Their plan was to scour the Ancient Empire University and snatch up sweet skills while others wasted time clearing the quest! ...The plan was solid, but the Ancient Empire University was not a place to be underestimated.
An Elemental has appeared!
"W-What?! Why is this happening?! Combat is supposed to be banned here!!"
The Ogre Chef has appeared!
The enraged Ogre Chef is attempting to trample you!
For some reason, the Ogre Chef seemed much angrier than the elemental. The rankers scrambled to dodge the attacks and flee. Perhaps because they were inside the university, the professor NPCs had received various bonuses; even when the rankers counterattacked, they couldn't even leave a scratch.
"Are you doing this because we didn't bring the payment yet?! We'll bring it! We'll bring it right now!"
"Stop attacking!"
*Boom! Crash! Rumble!*
No matter how much the rankers pleaded, it fell on deaf ears. After a desperate game of tag, they were completely wiped out! The news spread like wildfire.
The players who had set foot in the Ancient Empire University left dumbfounded posts on the community boards. They had never expected to die in a place like this.
Most of the players refused to back down easily. They had the pride of high-level players. They would survive even if they had to walk a tightrope!
As if mocking their resolve, the Ancient Empire University began issuing the next quest.
"...Are they insane?!"
"How long has it even been since they gave us the last quest, and now they want us to go where?!"
"Is it even possible to clear that place??"
"With the number of people we have here, maybe..."
The players were furious at the demand to enter and clear the newly opened dungeon. A few fearless players ventured inside to check it out, but...
"-Aaaargh! Aaaargh! Gyaaaah!"
"-What kind of crazy dungeon is this! Retreat! Retreat! We're going to get wiped out!!"
The party that entered barely managed to escape on the brink of annihilation. The rankers fell into deep thought. Should they attempt to conquer this dungeon, or should they stay away?
"P-Power...! Power is surging through me! My Constitution too!! It must be the power of this armor!"
"They gave us armor like this for free?!"
"...W-Wait, Kim Tae-hyun. Why is my defense dropping, and why is a notification popping up saying my HP decreases when I stop fighting?"
"There is always a price to pay for power. Now go fight."
"Hey! Hey!!! You son of a bitch, Kim Tae-hyun!"
"Lord Tae-hyun. Why don't we sacrifice that insolent bastard to give everyone a party-wide buff like last time?"
A sharp-witted plunderer quickly chimed in with the suggestion. The other plunderers nodded in agreement. Now that sounds like an excellent idea.
"...I... was just about to say... thank you because this armor is so good..."