When You Say "Borrow," It's Not Borrowing!

Having played Pan-On 1, Lee Se-yeon knew exactly what Tae-hyun meant. To him, "borrowing" meant taking by force!

Regardless of her protests, Tae-hyun ignored her and began drawing up his plans.

"I'm not sure whose dungeon we should borrow. Should we draw straws?"

"Can't we just ask them to lend it to us?" Jeong Su-hyeok asked, posing the obvious question.

Lee Se-yeon let out a sigh of relief. At least there's one sane person here!

"No way. If we ask, they'll just get shy and refuse," Tae-hyun replied.

"..."

"Hmm. It's probably best not to mess with the Guild Alliance right now, right?"

There was no need for Tae-hyun to be the one to break the peace treaty first. After all, he was the one who needed to buy time right now.

"Alright. I'll decide using an extremely fair method."

"...?"

Tae-hyun pulled out his phone as he spoke. Lee Se-yeon tilted her head in confusion. What on earth is he trying to do now?

Tae-hyun opened a news aggregator and searched for the gaming team that had mentioned his name the most among all the professional teams worldwide.

Huh? Tae-hyun blinked, wondering if he had misread. Looking closer, the last one wasn't a news article but a forum post cursing him out.

"Perfect. Team X. Since they've used my name so much, they won't mind if I use their dungeon a bit."

"..."

"..."

"What? Anyone got a problem with that?"

"Nope!"

"Not at all!"

"Absolutely not, sir!"

The answers shot back instantly. Tae-hyun nodded in satisfaction and turned to Lee Se-yeon.

"See? Isn't our team's synergy amazing?"

"...Y-yeah. Sure."

"Great. Once I finish this quest, I'll have to check out our exclusive dungeon. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I should ask Lee Da-bi where it is."

"Huh? Your Guild Leader?"

"Yeah."

"Isn't she a merchant class? Are you sure it's okay to have her on the team?"

"Why not? Everyone has their uses."

It was extremely rare for a professional gaming team to include players with non-combat classes. In official tournaments, non-combat classes were at a massive disadvantage.

"Since you're saying that, you must have calculated everything beforehand."

"...O-of course."

"...?"

Lee Se-yeon caught the slight stutter in his voice. For a split second, she suspected, Wait, did he just put her in without thinking? But she quickly shook the thought away. No matter how chaotic he was, surely the Kim Tae-hyun wouldn't make such a basic oversight.

"By the way, where is your Guild Leader? Is she staying ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠in a different lodging?"

"Uh... well... yeah. Something like that."

"What? Are you guys the only ones staying in a nice place like this?"

"N-no. Her place is really nice too."

"You're acting really weird today."

The PD was listening to Tae-hyun and Lee Se-yeon's conversation with a pleased smile when a staff member next to him spoke up.

"PD-nim, didn't you say you wanted to include footage of the team's training in the broadcast?"

"Ah, right."

He had completely forgotten because everyone on this team spent the entire day locked inside their capsules.

"...They're not going to just dive back into their capsules and never come out again, are they?"

"If that happens, we could just use in-game footage of their training. That wouldn't be a bad alternative."

"True. Let's do that."

The PD sent a quick text message to Tae-hyun.

"...?"

"Uh..."

"What is it?"

"They say they want to film our training..."

"Then just show them."

"...It's a secret."

There was no way he could admit to Lee Se-yeon, Actually, we haven't been doing any training at all. It was a matter of pride!

"Ah, that makes sense. A team of your caliber is bound to have a lot of rivals trying to analyze your strategies."

Fortunately, Lee Se-yeon had completely misinterpreted his hesitation. Tae-hyun immediately nodded along.

"Exactly! That's why I'm keeping it under wraps."

"...You are definitely acting weird today..."

In any case, thanks to Lee Se-yeon, the PD was able to leave fully satisfied. Tae-hyun didn't have to drag his players to Yang's Gym and beat them up for the cameras. Consequently, the players back at the gym narrowly avoided a disaster they would never even know about.

"Well then, we'll contact you soon, so please come down to the studio."

"Huh? Why?"

"Pardon? You have to come to the studio to watch the recorded footage and commentate on it."

"...I thought we were done?"

"Tae-hyun-ssi, don't tell me you've never actually watched our show..."

Lee Se-yeon quickly jabbed Tae-hyun in the ribs and stepped in to smooth things over.

"He probably just forgot. He knows how it works, so don't worry."

"Haha, is that so? Well, I'll be in your care, Tae-hyun-ssi. You can look forward to the broadcast!"

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

The PD left with a cheerful expression. Tae-hyun let out a weary sigh.

"Speaking of which, the quest..."

"Huh? Why didn't you leave with them?"

"..."

When Lee Se-yeon picked up a nearby water bottle and looked ready to bash Tae-hyun over the head with it, Choi Sang-yun and Jeong Su-hyeok rushed to hold her back.

"Pay me back for helping you."

"Haha, it's a good thing for a celebrity to get on TV. Why are you being like this?"

"Oh, really?"

Lee Se-yeon smiled sweetly. Tae-hyun felt a sudden chill run down his spine at that smile.

"I didn't know you felt that way. I'll make sure to pass that along to my uncle."

"For the record, I'm not a celebrity—"

"You're famous enough. No need to be modest."

"Isn't running to your uncle a bit petty?"

"Not at all. If you don't like it, you can run to your uncle too."

"Fine, fine. What do you want to know? What about the quest?"

"I wanted to ask if you were interested in the undersea kingdom that opened up recently."

"Not interested. I'm busy enough as it is."

"Ah. Did you say you were clearing a quest in the Atali Kingdom?"

"Wait. How do you know about that?"

"When you walk around so openly, people are bound to post about it. 'I saw Kim Tae-hyun today' and all that."

Indeed, he hadn't worn a mask while running around sowing discord among the religious orders. It was only natural that players who spotted him would post on the forums: I saw Kim Tae-hyun today!

"It's a shame you're not going to the undersea kingdom. I guess the Guild Alliance will have a huge advantage..."

Lee Se-yeon trailed off, sounding genuinely disappointed. She had no desire to see the Guild Alliance thrive either.

"What about you? Are you going?"

"I can't. I'm in the middle of a quest of my own. It's a difficult one, so I don't have the luxury to do anything else."

"What kind of quest is it?"

"It's a quest to track down and subjugate a cult worshipping an evil god... and the enemies that appear are no joke. What about you? What quest are you doing?"

"It's a secret."

"..."

Lee Se-yeon felt a sudden urge to commit murder. He had asked everything he wanted to know, only to completely shut his mouth when it was her turn.

"Just kidding. I'm going to head over there."

"Why there?"

"There are trapped players there. I have to save them."

"No, really, why are you going?" Lee Se-yeon asked, not believing a single word.

"Because a quest popped up."

"Ah, now that makes sense."

"Put this luggage over here."

"Actually, on second thought, over there seems better."

"Wait, thinking about it again, maybe on top of the watchtower would be best?"

"You guys are completely useless. Just throw it under the deck. Why did none of you offer any advice while I was giving these orders? The Phytos Church is truly pathetic!"

"..."

"..."

Having taken command of the Expedition, Tae-hyun had specifically chosen to board the vessel provided by the Phytos Church, out of all the ships offered by the various orders. Boarding the Demer Church's ship would have been the most peaceful and pleasant option, but...

Regardless of their feelings, Tae-hyun did not stop badgering the Phytos Church. Their relationship was already at rock bottom because of his previous scams anyway. A little more torment wasn't going to change anything.

Splash!

The religious orders' ships were a cut above anything players could obtain. On top of that, with the priests constantly casting various holy spells, the ship's speed and defensive capabilities were vastly superior.

"Why are there so many ships around us?"

"Aren't they all heading to the undersea kingdom?"

"Can't we go to the undersea kingdom too? If we lead this entire force there, it would be legendary."

"As if that would work. No way."

If Tae-hyun suddenly told the religious NPCs, "Let's go to the undersea kingdom and claim the throne!" very few of them would actually agree. They would jump at the chance to oppose him instead!

While Tae-hyun was chatting with his companions, Hugo, the High Priest of the Phytos Church, approached with a displeased look on his face.

"Count Kim Tae-hyun. I do not know what you are doing right now, but..."

"My goodness! Priest Hugo! Are you speaking so rudely to me, the commander of this Expedition?! Surely my ears deceive me!" Tae-hyun gasped, acting utterly shocked.

Priest Hugo ground his teeth and spoke.

"Count Kim Tae-hyun... I do not know... what you are doing, but if we are to head to the Exile to lift the curse... *grind, grind*... we need a map."

"A map to go to the Exile? What an incredibly brilliant suggestion. It's almost as if no one else could have possibly thought of—"

"I am saying we need a map! Do you have a way to obtain one?!"

"Hmm. Do you have one, Priest Hugo?"

"I have heard that there are maps of the Exile currently circulating in the market."

Tae-hyun flinched inwardly. He knew exactly where those fake maps had come from.

"We must acquire those maps and verify our location."

"...I don't think that will be very effective."

"For the commander of the Expedition to make such an irresponsible remark! Then what do you suggest we do?"

"At the very least, I don't think buying those maps is the answer. They could be fake."

"How can you know that without even looking at them! Fine, let us do this. I will gather our paladins to verify the maps, so you, Count, may simply sit back and wait!"

"Shall we do that then?"

"...?!"

Priest Hugo was taken aback. Had Count Kim Tae-hyun lost his mind? However, he quickly composed himself, a cunning glint flashing in his eyes.

"Then we shall do exactly that."

Returning to his quarters, Priest Hugo gathered his subordinates and declared:

"This is our chance! I do not know what Count Kim Tae-hyun is thinking, but this is a blatant mistake. To act so complacently when he has only just taken command of the Expedition... He must think all the other orders will wag their tails for him like the Demer Church. Move as quickly as possible and bring back those maps. Once we have them, we can rally the other churches—excluding the Demer Church—and strip Count Kim Tae-hyun of his command. We have no need for an incompetent leader!"

"Yes, sir!"

Having witnessed the ominous conversation taking place behind them, Choi Sang-yun muttered, "Hey, I think they're plotting to kick you out."

"Let them. They won't be able to anyway."

Tae-hyun pulled out the real map from his breast pocket. When he had commissioned those fake maps, he had never imagined things would play out quite like this...

Tae-hyun was utterly dumbfounded by the completely out-of-nowhere claim. What dragon?

Chairman Yoo had received an unexpected letter. Even so, he had simply planned to test out his newly unlocked class skills and enjoy some quiet fishing.

However, the members of the Power Warrior Guild wailed and clung to him desperately.