The Art of the Hustle
"What? You tricked someone who was nice to you just to join a quest?"
"I-I'm sorry. I couldn't find any other party heading to the Uruk Region... and I felt like if I missed that chance, I'd never get to go..."
"Good job."
"..."
"Who cares? As long as you clear your quest, that's all that matters."
At Tae-hyun's response, Jeong Su-hyeok nodded with a dazed expression.
"Right..."
"So, what happened next? You went with NPCs from the Demer Church, so it must have been hard to spread our influence."
Crash! Rumble, rumble!
"Paladins, to the front! Fight around the carriages! Block their attacks! Protect the priests first!"
"Sis. Isn't this a bit too much?"
"Y-yeah, I think so too."
As soon as they arrived in the Uruk Region, the party was welcomed by an ambush of furious Orcs.
These Orc warriors were incomparably larger and more rugged than the wild Orcs of the Espa Kingdom!
Every time they hurled an axe, the priests' protective barriers shattered with sharp, cracking sounds.
"I'll help!"
Jeong Su-hyeok shouted, raising his staff. He had practiced quite a bit after changing his class to an Archisus Church Mage.
Of course, it wasn't a class you could easily adapt to just by practicing, but...
Unwavering Faith in Archisus!
Passive Skill: Earth Tremor has been activated.
Ruuuuuumble—
"...?"
"What is that?"
A sound of the earth rumbling from deep within. The paladins and priests tilted their heads in confusion. What was that sound?
"Chwiik! An earthquake! An earthquake! Those creepy bastards brought an earthquake!"
The Orc warriors screamed and retreated. But it was already too late to escape.
Boom! Boom! Crash!
In an instant, the ground split open, and sharp stone spears began to shoot upward.
"Aaaargh!"
"Avoid it! Avoid it! Fall back!"
The paladins were thrown into chaos, but the Orcs were even more terrified.
Hit directly by the earthquake, the Orcs collapsed without being able to put up a proper fight.
How on earth does this guy level up so easily...?
Having tagged along with Tae-hyun, Jeong Su-hyeok had already entered the ranks of high-level players. Yet he was still leveling up with such ease. Tae-hyun's stomach began to churn with jealousy.
"So, what happened after that?"
- Ah, yes! The paladin party that entered the Uruk Region was ambushed by Orc warriors, but we managed to hold out somehow.
The Orc warriors kept coming, and the Demer paladins resisted fiercely. Utilizing the carriages they brought, taking advantage of the natural terrain... Just talking about how they fought could easily take hours.
"No, wait. Hold on."
As the story dragged on, Tae-hyun cut him off.
"So did everyone die? Or did they survive?"
- They survived!
"Fine. Let's start from there, then."
- We barely managed to withstand the attacks and set up a base. Once the base was built, things got much better. But the Orcs still kept trying to attack us, so we had to fight without a moment's rest. I was moving around with Ms. Choi Ha-yeong, fighting Orc scouts, and...
Even though they were talking without seeing each other's faces, Tae-hyun could somehow sense that Jeong Su-hyeok's expression had softened.
"Su-hyeok."
- Yes?
"I really, truly do not care in the slightest about how you got close to Choi Ha-yeong."
- Oh... okay...
Tae-hyun was cold as ice!
"Just tell me what happened to the quest."
- ...I haven't cleared a single one.
"...Right. Don't call me again."
- Senior! Senior! Please don't hang up! I'll do my best!
Knowing all too well that Tae-hyun never joked about such things, Jeong Su-hyeok pleaded desperately.
"Sigh... whatever. It's not like I sent you there with high expectations anyway. Just try not to die. I suppose proselytizing for Archisus is hard when you're surrounded by Demer Church NPCs."
- No, it's not! I'm currently in the process of finding the tribe members and befriending them. Just a little more, and I'll be able to meet the core NPCs of the tribe!
"Huh? What are the Demer paladins and priests doing?"
- I told them I'd persuade the Orcs and bring them back myself.
"..."
In other words, he had told the Demer Church people, "Leave it to me! I'll bring them back!" and was now off trying to clear it alone.
He didn't used to be this kind of guy...
Tae-hyun was glad to hear he was working hard on the quest, but his conscience pricked him slightly seeing how the once-innocent Jeong Su-hyeok had turned out like this.
"Is that so? Then I'll trust you."
- Thank you, Senior!
"By the way, how are the Orcs over there? That's what I'm most curious about. No signs of a large-scale quest brewing, right?"
It was a casual question. Naturally, he expected an answer like, "No signs at all! The Orcs here are just fighting among themselves!"
But the response was the exact opposite.
- Actually, there are.
"What?"
- The Orc tribes that used to tear each other apart have stopped fighting. They've formed an alliance and are conducting large-scale military drills.
"...N-no, wait. That doesn't necessarily mean a large-scale quest is coming. You haven't even been there that long, how would you know?"
- Ah, the Demer paladin NPC who came with us explained it to me. He said the Orcs of the Uruk Region usually never unite because they're too busy fighting each other. But for some reason, they've all gathered, raised their banners together, and are pooling their strength. Apparently, they're sharpening their blades for something big.
"..."
Suddenly, a chill ran down Tae-hyun's spine. He had pinned the blame entirely on Cain, but a guilty conscience still made him shiver!
"I-I see. Got it."
- Thanks to that, we've been getting attacked less. It seems the Orcs have something else on their minds, so they retreat without fighting to the death against intruders like us.
"..."
Normally, after clashing with Orc warriors a few times, a massive wave of reinforcements should have followed. But because the Orcs were preparing for a massive war, they only had to deal with scouts.
This was good news for Jeong Su-hyeok, Choi Ha-yeong, and Choi Ha-jun, but for Tae-hyun, it only made his spine grow colder!
- Why do you think those Orcs are doing that, Senior? Who are they planning to kill?
"You punk, you're not doing this on purpose, are you?"
- Pardon?
"Never mind. I got it. Thanks for telling me, and work hard on your quest. Don't push yourself too hard."
- No, Senior! I want to be of help to you! I will absolutely persuade the tribes here and bring them into the Archisus Church!
"Sure. I don't really believe you can do it, but good luck."
At this moment, Tae-hyun had absolutely no idea what kind of trouble Jeong Su-hyeok would stir up in the future.
- Yes, Senior! Good luck with the Archisus Church as well! Since the Sadiq Church took a heavy blow recently, this should be an even better opportunity for you!
"...Huh? When?"
- What? Senior, didn't you watch Evangeline's video?
"She uploaded a video? Sorry, I didn't know. I'm not interested."
- ...
Jeong Su-hyeok was slightly taken aback. She was a comrade they had fought alongside, and it was a pretty popular video... Why was he so indifferent?
- I'll send you the link right now.
"I'm really not that interested... Is there something important in it?"
- It's a video of her Sadiq Church tracking quest.
"Those guys are like cockroaches, they just won't die. Fine, send it over."
After losing their headquarters and fleeing, the Sadiq Church had gone completely underground. As a result, large-scale subjugation quests no longer appeared. Instead, individual tracking quests occasionally popped up for players hunting down the Sadiq Church.
Evangeline must have gotten one of those.
Tae-hyun clicked the link without expecting much.
"I-is the video running? Is it actually recording?"
An anxious voice. The video began with Evangeline looking around nervously as she spoke. Anyone could tell it was her first time recording a video! Even though she was clad in thick armor and a helmet, her awkwardness was palpable.
She really is such a loner.
This was Tae-hyun, a loner himself, calling someone else a loner.
Evangeline awkwardly fidgeted with her fingers, then cleared her throat.
"W-well then... Quest start!"
Tae-hyun checked the view count below the video. People weren't fools. No one would normally pay attention to such an awkward, clumsy-looking video.
?!
Yet, the video Evangeline uploaded was proudly sitting in the top 10 of this week's player video rankings.
What? I guess she did a good job after this part?
Tae-hyun's prediction hit the mark.
Evangeline, who had been awkward and restless when the recording started, showed her true strength once the battle began and there was no more need for words. Overwhelming combat power! There were many factors that made a stream popular—eloquence, a pleasant voice, good looks—but in the end, gameplay skill reigned supreme.
Once the battle commenced, Evangeline didn't utter a single word as she began to obliterate the Sadiq priests and paladins left and right.
Forgetting all about her awkward opening lines, people cheered at Evangeline's heavy, powerful impact. Of course, to Tae-hyun, who knew the truth, it looked entirely different!
She totally forgot she was recording, didn't she...?
Unaccustomed to recording, she had completely forgotten she had turned it on. That was why she was focusing on the quest in absolute silence!
A few who recognized Evangeline's appearance mentioned Tae-hyun's name. Since she was on broadcast, it was impossible to ignore! People's memories were far better than expected.
"...?"
Tae-hyun tilted his head. What kind of wild imagination was this?
Evangeline was fighting the Sadiq Church to find a way to lift her curse. And the only reason she was doing that was because Tae-hyun had sent her to create another enemy for the Sadiq Church! There was no such thing as a linked quest.
Yet, people were already writing long analysis posts and speculating on their own.
[Analysis of Kim Tae-hyun and the Sadiq Church Quests]
[What is the True Relationship Between the Archisus Church and the Sadiq Church?]
[On Player Evangeline's Current Quest Region - Possibility of Future Quests]
Tae-hyun had done it without much thought, but several lengthy analysis posts had already been uploaded!
...Well, whatever.
From Tae-hyun's perspective, he would only be grateful if more players went to fight the Sadiq Church. He was already wary of the Sadiq Church due to the upcoming Archisus Church revival event. The Sadiq Church obviously wouldn't be happy about it. If he were to rank those who held a grudge against him, they would easily be number one!
Tae-hyun continued watching Evangeline's video while browsing the comments and analysis posts.
"Do you want to die? Crawling all the way here."
A gruff voice echoed from afar as Evangeline fought. It was a face Tae-hyun recognized. It was Burford, a player belonging to the Sadiq Church who had also participated in the royal palace raid quest!
My ring!
Of course, to Tae-hyun, Burford wasn't a player remembered by his name. He was remembered as the guy with his ring.