A Misunderstanding of Legendary Proportions
"No. This is actually our chance! Get ready to break stealth and move!" Gadel summoned his courage. After all, his son was watching from behind!
"I really don't think it's a chance..." Gazen muttered.
"Just watch. Your old man is going to show you how it's done. How many years do you think I've been gaming?" Gadel took a few deep breaths and deactivated his stealth magic. Then, he slowly walked forward with Gazen.
"I'll... get... you... for... this...!"
Meanwhile, Tae-hyun's party brought down the Rotting Flesh Golem. Normally, it would have been a rather annoying fight, but because Tae-hyun's undead had completely bound the golem, the other mages were able to deal damage with ease.
It was a level of meticulous, coordinated movement never seen in ordinary summoned undead! Once the battle ended, the way Baher and his friends looked at Tae-hyun completely changed. Their eyes shone with pure admiration!
As players who mained mages, they couldn't help but respect a player who wasn't just high-level, but possessed genuine, undeniable skill.
I wondered why someone like him would come to a dungeon like this, but he must have come because he was absolutely confident!
Thinking he was just some weirdo was a huge mistake!
Exactly. Unlike Uncle Baha, this guy definitely came here because he knew he could clear it!
Thanks to this, the morale of Baher's friends, who had been dragged here half against their will, soared. If things kept going like this, they might actually make it out of this dungeon without a single casualty!
Wait. These punks? Baha noticed the look in his son's and his friends' eyes and winced. Their respect had completely shifted from him to Tae-hyun.
I can't let that happen! He might have dragged his son to the dungeon half-forcibly, but there was a reason the kids had followed him in the first place. It was because Baha was actually a highly skilled Pyromancer. He had shown off his skills multiple times while clearing quests with them in the past!
If Baha had been a total scrub and suggested going to the Magic Tower Dungeon, they wouldn't have followed him no matter how much he insisted.
◈ Effect: Increases Magic Attack and Magic Defense when slotted into equipment.
◈ Description: A precious gem infused with pure mana.
"...!" The eyes of the mages sparkled as they looked at the item dropped by the golem. True to its reputation as the Magic Tower Dungeon, items tailored for mages dropped quite frequently.
It was an incredibly versatile item that could be taken to a blacksmith to be slotted into gear, or consumed to cast powerful spells!
Even Jeong Su-hyeok and Kim Se-hyeong were staring at it with covetous eyes. Only Tae-hyun remained completely unfazed.
I'd prefer something that increases Physical Attack... A mage in name only!
"Ahem. Shall we roll for it, everyone?" Baha said, clearing his throat.
At this moment, when everyone was about to roll their dice together, Baha felt strangely confident.
I have a feeling my rolls are going to be hot today! There was absolutely no basis for it, but Baha believed in himself.
I'll win that gem and gift it to the kids! It was his burning desire to reclaim the respect that had been stolen from him!
Tae-hyun tilted his head in confusion. Why is this old guy staring at that thing with such fiery intensity?
"Alright! Let's roll!" The dice rolled numbers from 1 to 100. A simple rule: the highest roll wins! *Clatter—* Everyone rolled their dice.
"Ah, man. A 10? Really?"
"34..."
"I got 47!"
"What did you get, Su-hyeok?"
"62."
"Better than me, at least."
"88! 88! 88!" Baha threw his hands in the air and shouted. An 88 was almost a guaranteed win!
"Baher! Did you see that? Your dad rolled an 88! 88!"
"Stop it, you're embarrassing me...!"
Hearing Baher's mortified voice, Tae-hyun nodded in deep empathy. He had suffered through this countless times in his childhood because of Kim Tae-san!
"..." The other parents at the sports day had stared coldly at Kim Tae-san, but he hadn't cared in the slightest. And after Kim Tae-san left, rumors began to spread.
"I heard his dad is a mob boss." "No wonder he looks so scary! Look at those eyes!" And that was back in elementary school.
Ugh, just thinking about it makes me cringe. Tae-hyun stopped his train of thought and rolled his die.
🎲 Dice Roll Result: 100
"88! 88! 88!"
"Dad, that guy rolled a 100..."
"88! 88... Ei... Eighty-eight? Wait, what?"
"Dad, you didn't just swear, did you?"
"Of course not! What kind of person do you take me for?!"
Startled, Baha quickly checked Tae-hyun's roll. But it was undeniably a 100!
Argh...! With trembling hands, Baha offered his congratulations.
"C-Congrats on rolling a 100..."
"You don't sound happy for me at all."
Tae-hyun said this, but he made sure to pocket the gem. Then, he tossed it to Kim Se-hyeong.
"?!"
"Here, you take it." Tae-hyun threw it with a cool, nonchalant attitude, as if saying, I just found it on the way here.
Dazed, Kim Se-hyeong caught the item and tilted his head. "Uh, is it really okay for me to have this?"
"Yeah."
Tae-hyun had absolutely no use for it, and Jeong Su-hyeok needed it even less. But to Kim Se-hyeong, it was incredibly touching.
He acts like he doesn't care, but he's actually looking out for me...! The rumors were true! The rumors that Tae-hyun might seem prickly on the outside, but was secretly incredibly caring!
Of course, those rumors were completely baseless, but Kim Se-hyeong had no way of knowing that. Meanwhile, the others were watching this scene unfold with wide eyes.
I should have done that! Baha beat his chest in regret. If he had pulled off a move like that, his "Respect" stat with the kids would have gone up by at least 10 points!
While Baher and his friends stared at Tae-hyun with eyes that practically screamed, Wow, he's so cool, Gadel and Gazen, who had been creeping closer, witnessed the whole thing.
"See? See? He doesn't seem like a bad guy. I told you. If he were a bad person, he wouldn't have partied up with them in the first place."
"..." Seeing his father's supreme confidence only made Gazen feel more anxious. But seriously, where have I seen that guy before?
Jeong Su-hyeok, who was standing between Tae-hyun and Kim Se-hyeong. His face looked strangely familiar.
"Alright, let's go!"
"W-Wait, Dad..."
"Hello there!"
Gadel raised his hand and called out loudly, walking forward with an air of confidence. In situations like this, hesitating or acting cautious would only arouse suspicion!
"??"
"What the? Gadel?"
"Baha! I didn't know you were hunting here too—Gah!"
Gadel couldn't even finish his sentence. Tae-hyun had attacked him instantly.
"You've finally shown your true colors. How dare you target me!" Tae-hyun immediately sent his undead wraiths to tear into Gadel.
When dealing with a mage, the most important thing was to prevent them from casting. Once a mage successfully cast a spell, its destructive power far surpassed the skills of any other class.
Target is afflicted with a status ailment. Spellcasting is interrupted.
"Pffft-gah! Why?!" Gadel flailed helplessly amidst the wraiths, unable to resist. For a mage player, getting ambushed without preparation made it nearly impossible to break free on their own.
"O-Oh no..." Gazen hurriedly tried to cast a spell, but Jeong Su-hyeok wasn't about to stand idly by. Since Senior Tae-hyun attacked, I'm attacking too! He didn't know what was going on or who they were, but he was going to strike first!
I don't know the situation, and I don't know who you are, but I'm blasting you first! Tae-hyun's rigorous training was finally bearing fruit.
Kahladan's Lightning!Cr-crack! Jeong Su-hyeok's specialty, a bolt of lightning magic, tore through the air. Gazen hastily threw up a barrier to block it.
Random Spell Triggered: Earth Tremor
"Argh!" Gazen was struck and blown backward. At that exact moment, it clicked. That guy...!
"J-Jeong Su-hyeok!"
Hearing Gazen's shout, Baher looked puzzled. "How does Gazen know Su-hyeok's name?"
"You idiot! It's Jeong Su-hyeok! You don't know him?"
??"
"Kim Tae-hyun!"
"Ah...!"
Only then did Baher realize what Gazen was talking about. That Jeong Su-hyeok! The player who had performed incredibly well in the tournament qualifiers and was known to be close friends with Kim Tae-hyun.
Baher and his friends pointed at Tae-hyun, Jeong Su-hyeok, and Kim Se-hyeong, nodding in realization. "Ah...! Then this person must be Kim Tae-hyun!"
"Since that guy is Jeong Su-hyeok..."
"Then that means that guy is..."
Finally, all eyes fell on Kim Se-hyeong. For a split second, Kim Se-hyeong felt a surge of anticipation. Could it be that my name has become famous too? We haven't even been traveling together for that long...
Oh my god. Am I a celebrity now?! Should I start streaming...?
"...Cain!"
"You're right! It's Cain!"
Overwhelmed with frustration, Kim Se-hyeong shouted, "No, I'm not!"
"Seeing him deny it, he's definitely Cain!"
"Yeah, yeah! I saw it on the community boards!"
"His face looks different, but he must have disguised himself!"
* * *
"Whew. Thank goodness. I was wondering who this high-level ranker was, but it's just Kim Tae-hyun..."
"Who said you could decide it's a relief?"
"?!"
Before Gazen could even finish his sigh of relief, Tae-hyun replied coldly. "You guys stalked us from behind using stealth, and now you're trying to casually brush it off just because you recognized us? Not happening."
"D-Dad! You said we wouldn't get caught!"
"...Well, we did."
"Is that really what you should be saying right now?!"
Tae-hyun stared at the two of them with utter disdain. From the looks of it, they were completely disqualified from being assassin players. Players who specialized in PK (Player Killing) needed to be shameless.
They needed to be able to act when necessary, pretend to be friendly, and even if they got caught later, maintain a straight face and insist, It wasn't me! I was just trying to be friendly with pure intentions!
Of course, Tae-hyun was the master of tricking and robbing those exact kinds of people... but regardless, these two didn't possess a single ounce of that shamelessness.
"Any last words? Not that I have any intention of listening to them. Farewell." *Whoosh!*
"N-No, wait! We weren't targeting you, Tae-hyun!"
"Right, right. Everyone says that. 'I wasn't targeting you, I was targeting your quest, I was targeting your gear, I was targeting the helmet on your head...' Next time you log in, try to come up with a more creative excuse."
"No! We were targeting those guys!" Gazen pointed frantically at Baha and Baher.
"Huh?"
"What?"
The father and son, who had been struggling to keep up with the rapidly unfolding situation, were completely taken aback.
"Us?"
"Wait, Gadel. Why me?"
"Uncle Baha won some money from him playing Go-Stop last time... so he wanted revenge..."
"..."
"..."
The atmosphere suddenly turned ice-cold! Gadel hung his head, unable to look anyone in the eye. Tae-hyun's look of utter pathetic pity grew even more intense.
"A-Anyway, you understand that we weren't targeting you, right?"
"Well, I understand what you're saying, but I don't see why I should believe you. We're in a party right now, and you expect me to believe you were only targeting them and not me? Hmm?" Tae-hyun said, tapping Gazen's head with his staff.
"It's the truth..."
Seeing this, Baha approached Tae-hyun with an apologetic expression. "I'm so sorry about this, Deok-su."
"Just call me Tae-hyun."
"Ah, Tae-hyun. That guy isn't a bad fellow—well, actually, he is a bit of a jerk—but we always bicker like this. I had no idea you'd get dragged into our petty squabble. I'm sure he didn't mean any harm..."
Hearing Baha's explanation, Tae-hyun shrugged. He turned his head to look at Gazen.
"Fine. I'll believe you."
"...!"
Only then could Gazen let out a proper sigh of relief. As expected of Kim Tae-hyun! He's so understanding and generous, just like a true ranker!