"I Could Not Contain My Anger and Lamentation"

"I could not contain my anger and lamentation upon seeing this wicked statue. *Ahem.*"

"..."

"..."

Pelmas and Ed-an kept their mouths shut. But they couldn't hide the look in their eyes.

"I see! I shall help you completely destroy this wicked statue!"

"No, Yohas. That is not it!"

"?"

"We must not simply destroy this wicked statue, but holily purify it. Would that not be the more righteous path?"

"!"

"Indeed! We shall turn this demonic statue into a depiction of a miserably subdued demon."

"I shall assist you!"

Yohas happily cast all sorts of buffs on Tae-hyun, wearing a joyful expression. He even used Phytos's authority skill!

Yohas was so pitiful that even Carbanog was worrying about him. Of course, Tae-hyun ignored this completely and focused on breaking the statue.

Clang, clank, clink...

Tae-hyun felt his entire body tense up for the first time in a long while. The hardness of the material was one thing, but the fact that even the slightest mistake would be irreversible was the real pressure. There could not be a single millimeter of error!

With superhuman concentration, Tae-hyun continued to strike with his hammer.

It's done!

How much time had passed? Tae-hyun had finally succeeded in recreating the statue. The statue that once overflowed with wicked power was now reborn as a holy monument depicting a vanquished demon!

"Whew."

Tae-hyun wore a deeply satisfied expression. The results were even better than expected. Not only could he reuse the statue, but it also came with an unexpected debuff effect against Mosrak. On top of that, the shattered fragments could be melted down and recycled into arrows!

Now, all I need to do is lure Mosrak here...

"Is there anyone we can offer up as a sacrifice?"

Tae-hyun gathered his companions for a meeting. The topic of discussion: Who to sacrifice to Mosrak!

"The Guild Alliance, obviously, right?"

"The Guild Alliance..."

"I think the Guild Alliance is the best choice too!"

The overwhelmingly popular choice: the Guild Alliance!

"So the Guild Alliance wins by majority vote. Su Ning would be thrilled." Tae-hyun nodded. "But there's a catch. For now, the Guild Alliance and I are in a truce."

They both knew they were waiting for a chance to backstab each other, but officially, they were still under a truce. If he broke it first, they would definitely cry foul and call him a man without morals.

"Since I'm the one who needs something right now, I don't want to make the first move unnecessarily."

The Guild Alliance's power was nothing to scoff at. They only looked weak because they kept getting beaten by Tae-hyun, suffered internal conflicts, and couldn't coordinate properly. If they actually pooled their raw numbers and strength, they were a massive force.

"Then it would be best to lure the Guild Alliance in without you launching a preemptive strike, Tae-hyun."

"Exactly. And honestly, those guys are always looking for a chink in my armor, aren't they? If we play our cards right, this could work."

Everyone nodded. It was common knowledge that the Guild Alliance was desperately searching for Tae-hyun's weaknesses. Why else would the community boards be flooded with posts about his supposed vulnerabilities?

Of course, most of those posts were written by members of the Power Warrior Guild, but the Guild Alliance had no idea.

"Oh, come to think of it, the number of players in the Capital has skyrocketed because of this Expedition quest. We've secured a lot of territory too."

"Right?"

Originally, the vast majority of players in the Atali Kingdom were those who liked Tae-hyun or were his fans. Otherwise, there was no reason to travel all the way there when there were so many other cities to play in.

However, after the Expedition quest and acquiring the Capital, the number of regular players had grown exponentially. Tae-hyun's group was well aware of this.

"The number of suspicious characters has increased too. We've spotted a few Guild Alliance members."

"It'd be weirder if they weren't here."

"How about we use those people to leak some fake information?"

"Hmm... It's a good idea, but I don't know if they'll bite."

Leaking fake info was harder than it seemed. Even if you prepared it meticulously, there was no guarantee it would reach the target, or that they would believe it and act on it.

"Actually, one of our guild members has had their eye on someone."

"?"

Tae-hyun and Lee Da-bi went outside and headed toward the Capital's gates.

"Garrison! Raise spears! Yes! Good! Ten thrusts at the scarecrows!"

Zhang Shan, who had been appointed as the 4th Guard Captain of Mora City, was busy completing a quest. A garrison training quest! A daily quest where he trained NPC guards and received rewards.

In truth, Tae-hyun was the weird one for only doing massive, epic quests; most players leveled up by completing these small, highly efficient daily quests. In that regard, this daily quest was incredibly cost-effective. It was far better than anything he had ever received in the Guild Alliance. There was a reason Zhang Shan was working so hard.

"Charge with spears! Yes! Excellent!"

Tae-hyun, hiding behind a wall with Lee Da-bi, spoke.

"But why is he suspicious? He looks perfectly normal."

There were two types of Guild Alliance members wandering around the Atali Kingdom. One type proudly wore their guild emblem, boasting, "I'm with the Guild Alliance!" They weren't a threat; they just wanted to show off. The other type thoroughly hid their affiliation. These were the ones with suspicious motives.

If they wanted to find a spy, they had to look for the latter. But finding them was no easy task. How did Lee Da-bi and the Power Warrior Guild manage to sniff him out?

"Because he refuses to take bribes and works incredibly hard."

"..."

Tae-hyun doubted his ears for a moment. What?

"You're joking, right?"

"Pardon? No, I'm completely serious."

Why do people want titles and positions? It was because of power. The authority that came with a title! Even a position like "Stable Manager" in Pandemonium Online had players lining up to get it. Though the name sounded humble, once you got it, you gained various privileges.

-Alright, alright! Line up if you want to rent a horse!

The Stable Manager had the authority to rent out horses from the Capital's stables. In Pandemonium Online, there were far more players without mounts than those with them, and they often rented mounts in cities. Of course, the number of horses in the stables was limited, and their stats varied. What if you wanted to rent a good horse before anyone else?

-Hehe. Mr. Stable Manager, here's a little something...

-I brought this for you to eat instead of gold. It's a dish made by a famous chef in the Capital. It's delicious.

-I brought a weapon. Take this and...

-Ahem. Oh, you shouldn't have.

These players were thoroughly enjoying the perks of their positions, which they had earned as rewards for accumulating contribution points in the Expedition.

But Zhang Shan was completely immune to such bribes.

-If you take this, could you just lend us one garrison guard for our quest...?

-No! What if they die while lent out?!

-Isn't that fine? You won't get fired for just that.

-No! I might get fired! And if I get fired, I'll never get a position like this again!

-Heavens, you're after my job, aren't you?!

-What? No, what are you talking about...?

-Get lost! Shoo, shoo!

He had a fierce obsession with his very first official title! On top of that, because he was a spy for the Guild Alliance, he had developed a paranoid ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠fear.

"...And that makes him a spy?"

"Yes. It seemed highly suspicious, so we investigated, and it turns out he really did work for the Guild Alliance. We even found someone who recognized his face."

They found him, but it felt somewhat bizarre. Tae-hyun nodded with a slightly awkward expression.

"Right... Well... that's good, I guess..."

"Zhang Shan?"

"Who's... *Gasp!*"

Zhang Shan spun around and nearly jumped out of his skin. Kim Tae-hyun was standing right there.

"Hieeeek! I'm sorry! Please forgive me!"

Zhang Shan immediately threw himself to the ground. The terrifying rumors about Tae-hyun he had heard in the Guild Alliance flashed through his mind.

-They say if Kim Tae-hyun targets you, he'll kill you, wait at your respawn point, and kill you again.

-That's nothing. I heard he'll hunt down three generations of your family in-game.

-I heard even if you quit and play another game, he'll track you down and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠kill you there too.

-Does that even make sense?

-Who knows?

Rumors, once spread, only grew larger, never smaller. Only top rankers like Su Ning dared to target Tae-hyun (and even they weren't entirely fearless). To ordinary guild members, Tae-hyun was practically the Grim Reaper.

Moreover, Zhang Shan had a very guilty conscience right now!

I'm doomed! Sob! He must have found out I came here to spy! I worked so hard to get this position! What a waste. Sob... Why did I ever join the Guild Alliance? I didn't even get anything decent out of them!

Zhang Shan wept internally, filled with regret.

But since I didn't report his actual weaknesses and only sent fake ones, maybe he'll show some mercy? Wait, what did I write again?

Thinking about it, he couldn't rest easy just because the reports were fake. Zhang Shan had written a fake report claiming Tae-hyun had a highly promiscuous personal life! If anything, that seemed like a report that would get him beaten up even worse than a real one.

Ugh. Why did I write that? I should have just written praises instead...!

Of course, since it was a "weakness report," he had to fabricate a weakness, but Zhang Shan was too consumed by regret to think rationally.

"Calm down, Zhang Shan. There are plenty of people like you. I have no intention of making a fuss about it now."

Tae-hyun spoke in a relaxed tone. And he meant it. Given the sheer number of enemies he had faced, he wasn't about to get worked up over a player like Zhang Shan.

"Pardon? Really?"

"Indeed. Did you think I was the type to get angry over something ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠like this?"

Zhang Shan stole a glance at Tae-hyun. He really didn't look angry.

My goodness! He isn't even angry after I submitted a report like that! He truly is a man of immense character! Sob!

Of course, Tae-hyun had no idea what kind of report Zhang Shan had submitted. If he did, Lee Da-bi would have struck first before Tae-hyun could even react.