The Misunderstood Magnanimity

However, Zhang Shan, entirely unaware of the true circumstances, couldn't help but be deeply moved. A truly great man, operating on a completely different level from the petty Su Ning (though to be fair, Su Ning's pettiness was largely because the Guild Alliance was so massive and had been plagued by so many incidents lately) or the stingy executives of the Guild Alliance!

"Thank you! Thank you so much!" A sudden wave of intense gratitude washed over him.

"Even though I wrote and submitted those kinds of things..."

"?" Lee Da-bi, who was listening nearby, tilted her head in confusion. What did he write and submit?

But Tae-hyun didn't pay it any mind. He probably just wrote a bunch of insults about me.

"The reason I came here is because I have a favor to ask."

"What is it? I'll do anything!"

"I need you to leak a certain plan of mine to the Guild Alliance. If you do this, I'll give you gold and—"

"I'll do it!"

"Huh? I haven't even told you the terms yet."

Is there really a spy out there who jumps on an offer before even hearing the terms? Tae-hyun was slightly taken aback.

"Just please don't take away my current position! Loyalty! Loyalty! Absolute loyalty!"

"Well, if you're happy with that, I don't mind... but are you really sure?"

"Yes!"

Zhang Shan read the room quickly. If there was one skill he had honed to perfection ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠during his years in corporate organizations, it was reading the room! His spying had just been exposed; if he shamelessly went, Hehe, then please give me a reward too, his head might literally roll. Even if Tae-hyun was a man of great magnanimity, it didn't change the fact that his retaliation was always thorough and devastating.

What an odd fellow.

If I want to keep this position, I have to do whatever it takes!

And just like that, Zhang Shan became Tae-hyun's loyal double agent.

"Wow, this guy really does his job well."

"Who?"

"That guy Zhang Shan. It seems he's found his true calling. The other useless bastards we sent can't even write a proper report to save their lives, but this guy's reports are excellent."

"Ah, him? Yes, I read his reports thoroughly."

Zhang Shan's reports had a clear introduction, development, climax, and conclusion, reading almost like a novel with a rock-solid structure. On top of that, they possessed the sensational entertainment value of a trashy soap opera!

The reports were so gripping that the guild executives would gather around to read them together! Thanks to this, a new set of guidelines was established within the Guild Alliance.

"On top of that, it looks like he managed to secure a position in the Capital all by himself. Honestly, I want to promote him and make him an executive."

"Are ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠you out of your mind? Since he's so good at spying, we have to keep him as a spy."

The executives made remarks that would have made Zhang Shan's blood boil had he heard them! Since they weren't the ones doing the dirty work, they spoke of it so casually.

"But why bring up Zhang Shan now? Did a new report come in?"

"Yes. It's an incredibly important and urgent report. He claims he managed to eavesdrop on a meeting held by Kim Tae-hyun's party..."

The executives opened the report and began to read. Instantly, their faces twisted in sheer horror.

"Ki... Kim Tae-hyun is preparing an Avatar Summoning Ritual?!"

An Avatar Summoning Ritual! To a layman, the term might not register immediately, but to the executives of the Guild Alliance, it was a phrase that sent a freezing shiver straight down their spines.

Sadiq's Avatar!

In all of Pan-On, no ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠one had suffered as much devastating damage from an Avatar as they had.

"That's... that's impossible. An Avatar isn't some joke. How could a player summon an Avatar? I'd sooner believe someone tamed a dragon and was riding it around."

Someone muttered. The others nodded in agreement.

"But... it's Kim Tae-hyun."

"..."

If it was Kim Tae-hyun, he might actually pull it off!

"Sadiq's Avatar was highly suspicious too! Wasn't that his doing as well?"

"I told you, no. As a Priest class, I know this for a fact—an Avatar Summoning Ritual is absolutely no joke! It requires an astronomical amount of resources, starting with actual sacrifices! It's not something a single player can achieve alone. Besides, Kim Tae-hyun doesn't even have a guild. If Sadiq's Avatar had been his doing, we definitely would have caught wind of it."

"That's not what's important right now! The point is, we barely managed to take down Sadiq's Avatar, and now a new Avatar might be unleashed!"

Gulp.

Even the incomplete, mindless Avatar of Sadiq had been a walking apocalypse. To take down Sadiq's Avatar, the Guild Alliance had been forced to burn down a third of the Auston Kingdom, and they still hadn't fully recovered from the damages.

If not for that Avatar? They would have cleanly unified the territory, Su Ning would have declared himself king, and they would have launched a continental unification war with their overwhelming, unscathed might.

Yet here was Kim Tae-hyun, preparing to summon a brand-new Avatar. If a proper, complete Avatar was summoned and fell into his hands, the sheer horror of the consequences was beyond imagination.

They had to stop it at all costs!

"Summon all executives immediately!"

"Call Lord Su Ning!"

In an instant, the meeting room erupted into absolute chaos.

"So... he's trying to summon an Avatar?"

Su Ning asked in a heavy, grim voice. Everyone nodded.

"We must stop him, no matter what!"

"But aren't we currently in a ceasefire with Kim Tae-hyun? Attacking first would..."

"Is this really the time to worry about public opinion?! If Kim Tae-hyun actually succeeds in summoning it, we won't be able to stop him!"

Surprisingly, the Guild Alliance did care about public opinion to some extent. Pan-On was a game played by people all over the globe. While the Guild Alliance boasted overwhelming numbers as a single coalition, they didn't outnumber the rest of the world combined. Considering their future prospects, they couldn't completely ignore public perception.

But right now, they didn't have the luxury to worry about such things. Even if they were branded as treacherous bastards who broke a promise and stabbed someone in the back, they had to stop him! Su Ning reached his conclusion.

"We strike Kim Tae-hyun! All executives, select elite guild members and infiltrate them secretly into ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the Capital. According to Zhang Shan's report, a mere handful of men won't be enough to stop that bastard's ritual, so mobilize every available hand. I authorize the use of mercenary NPCs and soldier NPCs under Deception as well!"

"Yes, sir!"

"What about the coronation ceremony?"

"The coronation will proceed as scheduled. Are you suggesting we alter the coronation schedule just because of Kim Tae-hyun?"

"N-No, of course not."

As Su Ning glared, the executive who had spoken quickly shut his mouth.

The order was given. An order to break the ceasefire and attack Kim Tae-hyun! While Su Ning and the executives had steeled themselves to issue the command, the shock felt by the rank-and-file guild members was far greater.

Fighting in someone else's territory was inherently disadvantageous. The guild members already suffered from a chronic, deep-seated Kim Tae-hyun phobia; now they had to infiltrate his territory under disguise and wait to strike. The sheer tension was unbearable! Try as they might to hide it, complaints and anxiety naturally leaked out.

"Well, relying on Zhang Shan alone won't be enough."

Tae-hyun didn't place much trust in Zhang Shan. For starters, it was highly doubtful whether Zhang Shan had executed the task properly, and even if he had reported it correctly, there was no guarantee the Guild Alliance would buy it.

I should find a few more spies and feed them fake information as well.

Normally, these kinds of schemes required a slow, steady, and patient approach to yield the best results—

"Oh. Apparently, the Guild Alliance is preparing to attack us."

"...Really?"

At Lee Da-bi's words, Tae-hyun's face blanked in utter disbelief. What kind of guild bites the hook the absolute second you throw out a single piece of bait? Don't these bastards have any skepticism at all?!

I guess Zhang Shan was way more trusted within the Guild Alliance than I thought. That was completely unexpected.

Tae-hyun had absolutely no idea that Zhang Shan's fictionalized reports had deeply touched the very souls of the Guild Alliance executives!

"It seems the Guild Alliance is planning to secretly infiltrate a massive force to launch a surprise attack."

"A textbook move. Absolutely textbook."

It was the classic, textbook method to disrupt a quest taking place in rival territory. If Tae-hyun had been in their shoes, he would have done the exact same thing!

They'll definitely send over a thousand players, right? Given the population of this city, they'd have to send at least that many to make an impact.

"First, I need to prepare a fake ritual. Hmm... but whose ritual should it be?"

Tae-hyun did possess the Authority to summon Sadiq's Avatar, but he couldn't actually use it. First of all, summoning an incomplete Avatar was a suicidal act of pure madness with zero benefits! Unless he wanted to burn down his own Capital and quit the game forever, it was something he should never do.

Furthermore, even if he was just pretending to perform a fake ritual, getting entangled with Sadiq brought nothing but trouble. If some weird rumors started spreading...

Then, is Archisus the safest bet after all? But I don't know a single thing about Archisus's Avatar Summoning Ritual. I wonder if Galakpad knows... Hmm, is there any other information available on Avatar rituals?

"..."

Sure, well... if you're up for it...

Since it was just a fake ritual, it didn't matter if it was for Carbanog or Archisus. It just needed to look convincing.

"A giant rabbit statue made of blessed holy steel. Why on earth are we making this?"

"Who knows? Maybe because rabbits are cute?"

The players had no idea what the purpose was, but they moved regardless. After all, Tae-hyun had asked them to do it!

If I accumulate enough contribution points, maybe I can secure a position for myself too.

"Adventurers! Please receive this blessing!"

An Archisus Priest NPC shouted at the top of his lungs. Seeing this, the players hesitated.

"Should we buy that?"

"The effects are great, but it's a single-use item... Do you even have the money?"

Before hunting, receiving various blessings and purchasing consumable items from an Archisus Priest had already been proven highly effective.

Item drop rate boosts and various bonuses! The only problem was that in the Capital, these weren't free.

This was Pelmas's policy!

It might have been different if they were at the headquarters of the Archisus Church, but in the newly acquired Capital, they had to implement aggressive policies like this.

"Hmm. I wonder if I have any points left..."

"Points?"

"Yeah. Look, they accept points over there too."

"??"

If you didn't have money, they would accept items instead. Pelmas would appraise various items and exchange them for points! He was truly, consistently thorough.

"It's free!"

"?"

"What? Free? No way! This is a scam, right? What kind of ulterior motive do you have?"

It had only been a short while, but the players had already completely figured out the nature of the Archisus Church priests! However, the priests remained dead serious.

"It is absolutely true. Here, take this armband and wear it. Oh, and even after the effects of this armband wear off, it's highly recommended that you keep wearing it."

"Why?"

"...It's just good for you. We'll even credit you with more church points."

"Oh! In that case, I'll definitely wear it!"

Watching this scene from afar, Pelmas quietly wiped away a tear.

Do you have any idea how much all of that costs...

An order had been handed down directly from Tae-hyun.

Preparations were progressing smoothly. Looking down the streets, almost everyone was walking around with a vibrant Archisus Church armband wrapped around their arm.

Clean. Perfect.

His plan was to halt the distribution the moment the Guild Alliance members began to trickle in. Of course, the Guild Alliance might manage to get their hands on a few of those armbands, but it would only be a handful of them at best.

Their entire focus will be glued to the ritual I'm preparing. They won't have the mental capacity to worry about individual armbands.

Soon, the ritual would commence in the Capital. Of course, this ritual was not an Avatar Summoning Ritual, but a Demon Duke Summoning Ritual! And once the Demon Duke was summoned, Tae-hyun fully intended to pin the entire blame on the Guild Alliance.

I should get to crafting some arrows.

Now that the preparations to welcome the Guild Alliance were complete, it was time to prepare a welcome for Demon Duke Mosrak. Mosrak was about to receive an incredibly warm and fiery welcome.