A Civilized Ceasefire

Since Kim Tae-hyun had given his permission anyway, the Woodstock Guild Leader connected the whisper call between the two. The person handling the negotiations for the Guild Alliance was the ranker, Mike.

Mike's mind was in a state of chaotic turmoil. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠The Guild Alliance forces currently participating in the siege felt an immense pressure to resolve this situation favorably. If they mobilized this many players and resources and walked away empty-handed, what would happen? The participating players would have to shoulder all the blame.

Furthermore, if they gained nothing and suffered a counterattack from Tae-hyun on top of that?

That would be truly disastrous!

Mike suddenly thought of Su Ning. Su Ning, who had said with a mocking sneer, "Sure, you guys give it a try."

At the time, Mike had thought, Hmph, that pathetic loser is all talk... but thinking about it now, Su Ning suddenly felt like a towering giant.

Su Ning, did you foresee all of this...!

But regret came too late. What was done was done. He had to salvage the situation somehow.

Mike had only one goal: to use the captured Cain and the players remaining inside the castle to force Tae-hyun to back off quietly.

Though this was a far cry from their original objectives, they had no other choice now.

Tae-hyun stuttered slightly, but Mike failed to notice.

The golden rule of negotiation was never to show weakness. Although Mike was anxious, he put on a tough front. On the surface, Mike still held the advantage. Even if Chese-do had become a Lich, Odan Castle was still completely surrounded, and Tae-hyun would be trapped if he didn't escape quickly.

Mike was flustered. Tae-hyun's group was supposed to be alone, occupying the tower.

The answer came not from Tae-hyun, but from Mike's own guild members.

"Mike! The magic portal in Arene City just exploded!!!"

"What?!"

"The players over there are in a complete panic! No matter how you look at it, Kim Tae-hyun—"

"Shut them up! Don't let anyone upload videos! Start repairs immediately and claim it was an accident!"

Mike responded frantically. Currently, only a select few guild members knew that Tae-hyun had infiltrated Arene City to wreak havoc. If this fact leaked to the public, it would be an absolute embarrassment! They had to cover it up at all costs.

Since the only disturbances so far were the tower and the magic portal, if they handled this well...

"Bwahaha! You absolute morons! Do you really think that bastard Kim Tae-hyun would agree to such an unfavorable trade just to save me?!"

Cain, currently bound and captured, mocked Mike.

"Don't bluff! We already know you and Kim Tae-hyun are close. No matter how much he bluffs, he can't ignore your safety!"

"I'm telling you it's not like that, you idiots!! Listen when someone talks!"

The captive Cain continued to shout.

"Hey, there's no point in keeping me captured, so just log me out."

It was sincere advice! However, the Guild Alliance completely misunderstood Cain's words.

He's trying to sacrifice himself so he won't be a burden to Kim Tae-hyun!

As expected, their friendship is as solid as steel, just like the rumors say.

"Hmph. Ignore Cain. He's only saying that because Kim Tae-hyun ordered him to."

"Ah, you motherf— mgh! Mghhh!"

Cain, thoroughly annoyed, began spewing a long string of curses. The Guild Alliance members quickly gagged him.

"No matter how much he bluffs, Kim Tae-hyun must have a limit—"

"Mike! Arene City's main street just exploded too!"

"No, is this crazy bastard Kim Tae-hyun for real?!" Mike screamed in frustration.

Did this guy not even know the basics of negotiation?!

In truth, what was happening right now was not Tae-hyun's intention at all.

*Boom!*

"What? Why did it explode now?"

"Didn't we send the blacksmiths earlier and agree to let them self-destruct when the set time came?"

"Ah, right. We did, didn't we? Well, it's not my city anyway."

Mike was genuinely terrified. Did this guy really not care about his friend at all?

What kind of bullshit is that!

Mike blurted out his true thoughts in his panic. Normally, this was a final concession he should have held onto until the very end, but Tae-hyun's relentless explosions were simply too terrifying.

Even as they tried to negotiate, bombs were detonating at one-minute intervals!

The Mechanical Engineering Blacksmiths, who had been starved of action for so long, completely lost their minds the moment they were given the chance to blow things up.

Unaware of this fact, Mike believed these explosions were all part of Tae-hyun's masterfully calculated scheme.

Ultimately, Mike abandoned his arrogant attitude and began to beg.

You son of a bitch...

Even so, Mike begged and pleaded, finally managing to secure a successful negotiation. He had laid bare his absolute bottom-line conditions.

Of course, both sides knew. This was merely a temporary ceasefire; they could clash again at any moment.

"Wh-What??"

"Get lost already!"

"Did Kim Tae-hyun really give up? Hey, you guys are being tricked! He's not that kind of guy!"

"Ah, I said get lost!"

Cain, utterly bewildered, tried to speak to the Guild Alliance members. However, the furious players only hurled curses at him instead of answers.

"These bastards, even when I'm being nice and telling them the truth!"

Cain grumbled as he walked out. He saw other players escaping Odan Castle. They, too, looked completely baffled by the situation.

"Is it over?"

"Why are they letting us go?"

Cain replied casually, "Kim Tae-hyun went to their headquarters with bombs and threatened them."

"...As expected of Lord Tae-hyun!"

"For our sake...!"

"No, that's not it! You idiots!"

Only then did Cain snap back to his senses and scream in frustration. He had kept quiet earlier to avoid lowering morale, but now that it was over, there was no need to hide it. He would expose Kim Tae-hyun's wicked intentions to the world!

Of course, most people wouldn't believe him, but at least the people who had suffered alongside him should know the truth.

"So that's how it happened!"

Cain explained the facts with burning passion.

However...

"Oh, come on, keep your jokes reasonable."

"Exactly. No matter how close you are, you should watch what you joke about."

"Cain, that's a bit much."

"......"

Nobody believed the truth!

Tae-hyun just abandoned you guys and ran away, and while he was running, he went to rob their empty house and this happened! Even when he told them, nobody believed him.

"Sigh... my life..."

-No. I believe you.

"?!"

Cain was startled. Heuk-heuk had spoken to him.

"Really?"

-Of course. Master is more than capable of doing exactly that!

"Wait, you're really backing off?"

The Woodstock Guild Leader looked incredulous. Honestly, he had expected Tae-hyun to reject the negotiation and turn Arene City into a sea of fire.

"Why? Am I not allowed to negotiate?"

"N-No. It's not that..."

Tae-hyun's reason for accepting the negotiation was simple.

If we fight right now, I'm the only one who loses...

After causing such a massive ruckus, even if Tae-hyun's territory was heavily fortified, the Guild Alliance would immediately prepare for a full-scale war. When people suffer damage past a certain threshold, they stop calculating profit and loss and just charge blindly out of sheer spite.

But since the other side had desperately offered a peace proposal first, there was no reason for Tae-hyun to refuse.

Beating them half to death and then making peace! How ideal!

"What if they betray us?"

"They won't be able to betray us first. If this negotiation is leaked, more than a few heads will roll within the Guild Alliance."

Tae-hyun knew exactly why they were acting so submissive. The Guild Alliance was not a tightly-knit organization united under a single leader. It was an alliance of multiple guilds! Naturally, they constantly checked and fought each other. Admitting a massive blunder in this situation was extremely dangerous. One mistake and they would be finished.

"But it's such a shame to defuse these bombs. They're like my own children..."

"......"

"......"

Tae-hyun and Lee Da-bi stared at Gabriel with horrified expressions. Gabriel was gently caressing the bombs with a sorrowful look.

"Gabriel, let's just leave some of the weaker, unused bombs installed."

"Yes?! Really?!"

"Yeah. The suspicious Guild Alliance bastards will definitely sweep the tower once we leave anyway."

Even if Tae-hyun backed off, the paranoid Guild Alliance wouldn't just let it go. To ease their suspicion, it was better to leave some bombs for them to find. They would find them and think, Aha! We found the bombs! As expected of that bastard Kim Tae-hyun! He was trying to pull a fast one!

And if they didn't find them? That was even better.

"Wait, before we go, I'll do a final check upstairs."

Tae-hyun said so and went up to look at the winged demons one last time. The people below had no idea what he was doing up there.

"You're doing well."

-M-Master. You'll be back soon, right?

"Yeah. Instead, I'll give you this as a gift."

-?

Tae-hyun pulled out a bomb and handed it to the demon.

"Keep a good hold on this. If you get caught, feel free to detonate it!"

-...But won't I die too?

"Well, I'll be off then!"

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

-Master? Master?!?!

"Hey, you bastard Kim Tae-hyun! No matter what, how can a human being do that! You took Lee Da-bi with you, but left me—"

"Shall we practice Fantasy Craft?"

"......Now that I think about it, it seems we each had our own roles to play!"