The Seeds of Discord
"Alcott...! I completely misunderstood you. I didn't trust you because you weren't Chinese...!"
Only because he was a ranker did he receive any semblance of respect; fundamentally, Su Ning and his inner circle never truly trusted foreigners. They put on a show of looking out for them, but behind closed doors, it was nothing but cold exclusion. The rankers of the Guild Alliance were far from oblivious. Knowing exactly where they stood, most of them naturally prioritized their own self-interest. It gave these already selfish players the perfect justification.
We're only using each other anyway, so why the hell should I dedicate myself to the guild?
Such a cynical outlook was the norm among rankers... but Alcott had suddenly changed. The very same Alcott who was notoriously self-centered, foul-tempered, arrogant, and obnoxious—the prime target of endless malicious gossip within the guild...
"Why are you so quiet?"
"Y-yes?! Ah, I was just... deeply moved."
The executive flinched as he answered. He didn't just read my mind, did he?
I need to report this to the higher-ups and get Alcott more support.
The Guild Alliance operated on a strict policy of carrots and sticks. A cooperative ranker like Alcott deserved a massive carrot. They needed to parade him in front of the others: "Look. Show us loyalty, and this is how handsomely you will be rewarded!"
"Mr. Alcott. I think I misjudged you."
"...?"
Did he find out?! Alcott panicked for a moment.
"There is no one who cares about the guild as much as you do, Mr. Alcott!"
"Well... of course."
"If anyone tries to slander you in the future, I will definitely tell them about what happened today."
"Ah, no, there's really no need to go that far..."
"No! I will absolutely make sure to tell them!"
Did this bastard eat something bad? Alcott felt incredibly uneasy. The executive was acting strangely kind. He was never like this! Moreover, given Alcott's actual situation, hearing the man promise to sing his praises didn't sound reassuring at all. Can't you just forget about it?
"But Tae-hyun," Lee Da-bi asked.
"Yeah?"
"Will this really be that effective?"
"Well... honestly, I'm only doing this because it raises my Blacksmithing skill and Holy stat. You shouldn't expect too much from things like this."
Tae-hyun answered as his hands flew with practiced ease.
"It was the same back in Pan-On 1. Out of ten setups like this, only about one actually works out. But that's more than enough."
Preparing ten times to succeed once was more than enough! In fact, the reason players in Pan-On 1 had constantly screamed things like, "Does that bastard Kim Tae-hyun see the future? How on earth did he prepare for even that?" or "Is that jerk Kim Tae-hyun using a map hack?!" was precisely because of this relentless groundwork.
You avoided this trap? Fine, I'll just keep digging them until you fall into one!
"Even though the stats don't show up in the item description window, I feel like rankers would notice immediately after putting them on. Personally, I'd notice right away if an item's performance changed."
Standing nearby, Cain and Jeong Su-hyeok stared at Tae-hyun with deeply complicated expressions.
Only you would, you crazy bastard...
Who on earth would notice that?
In a virtual reality game, almost nobody could notice if the actual stats of the equipment they wore differed slightly from the displayed stats.
"So I hope an opportunity to use them comes up before they find out. The negative stats are one thing, but the skills embedded in them are huge. Honestly, that's what I'm looking forward to the most."
For example, Archisus's Armor had a hidden passive skill called Fatal Flaw. It targeted a tiny, specific part of the armor; if that spot was struck, the damage taken by the wearer would skyrocket astronomically. It was a skill designed purely to screw people over!
Meanwhile, Archisus's Bracelet was a piece of equipment that boosted casting speed and MP recovery—stats that would make any mage-class player drool. But in reality, wearing it lowered physical defense, increased damage taken from daggers, and caused misfortune-related penalties to skyrocket. If they ever got hit by Archisus's Curse or Aki-sus's Divine Territory, they would experience the hellish nightmare of constant skill failures!
Cain spoke up, sounding a bit disappointed. "I thought you were going to use this equipment to make the Guild Alliance guys fight among themselves."
"Ayy, that's asking too much. Unless they're complete idiots, why would they fight like that? They've probably already decided how to divide up equipment like this."
"This armor is mine! I made the biggest contribution during the Sadiq's Avatar subjugation quest last time! Yet, just because my last hit was stolen, I lost both the territory and the rewards. I have a rightful claim to this!"
"Stop talking nonsense! Who has the highest Heavy Armor skill here? It's me! That means I'm the one who can make the best use of it!"
"Cut the crap, please. It's not like this is a heavy-armor-exclusive piece, and it doesn't even have a single penalty!"
The executive clutched his throbbing temples. The rankers were hurling curses and shouting at the top of their lungs! These rankers, who were usually far too busy with their own affairs to gather, had swarmed in without even being summoned.
These people didn't even show up when I called them when we actually needed them last time... look at their eyes.
Their eyes burned with raw greed! He didn't know where the leak had come from, but rumors had clearly spread that powerful Archisus equipment had fallen into their hands.
While many rankers cursed and slandered Tae-hyun, none of them denied his skill. If anything, they acknowledged his sheer ability and desperately wanted to steal his secrets! In such a situation, hearing that Archisus equipment had dropped made them completely lose their minds.
I wish they would follow Alcott's example even half as much.
Alcott, who had selflessly dedicated all these items to the guild! Compared to him, these rankers were truly...
"Isn't this bracelet practically made for me?"
"You're not even a mage!"
"Are mages the only ones who need MP?! I need it too!"
"Want to plant a duel flag?"
"Who do you think is scared of a duel? Plant it!"
The end of every argument was, of course, a real fight!
"You're all talk for a guy who lost to Kim Tae-hyun!"
"W-what?! Watch your mouth! And what about you? You're the one who said Kim Tae-hyun was no big deal, so why are you drooling over his gear?"
"I-I'm not drooling over it because it's Kim Tae-hyun's gear! I'm doing it because the options are good!"
"Everyone, stop!" the executive shouted loudly. "The equipment will be distributed based on strict criteria."
"And what are those strict criteria? Don't tell me it's just being close to the guild master..."
The foreign rankers cast suspicious glances. They were already well aware of the Guild Alliance's subtle discrimination. Knowing this, the executive flinched.
"No, it's a completely fair method."
"So what is it?"
"First, the Archisus's Elixir will be rolled for right here, right now. The highest roll gets it."
Ideally, he wanted to attach conditions to all of them, but doing so would likely make the rankers explode. He had to appease them to some extent!
"Hmm..."
"Mm..."
The Archisus's Elixir was an incredibly powerful potion that cured all status ailments and restored HP upon consumption, but it didn't seem that appealing in this room. That was because there were other, far more spectacular items on the table!
"Fine. Let's say that's that. What about the rest?"
"The other equipment will be given to those who perform exceptionally in the current Guild Alliance quests."
At those words, the guild rankers immediately let out deep sighs. A few grumbled openly in discontent.
"Again?"
"We're already busy enough with our own quests."
"They don't even appreciate it when we do it, so why should we step up?"
Ignoring the complaints, the executive shouted, "The Archisus's Ring will be given to whoever handles the elves currently attacking Bektel City in the north!"
"What? McPhil already went there, didn't he?"
"Yeah, McPhil went."
The executive was slightly surprised. To think these rankers would yield to another ranker? And just because he went first!
"If McPhil went first, it's not a fair competition, is it?"
Of course, there was no way they were being generous.
"Let's invalidate all the contribution points McPhil has accumulated so far, yeah?"
"Since he had a head start to prepare, let's have him start with negative points."
If McPhil heard this, he would have slammed his axe into their skulls in a rage! The executive firmly refused.
"No, that is not allowed. Besides, McPhil cannot progress alone right now, so the contribution points won't differ by much."
"Really? Is that so?"
The complaining rankers quieted down. Only then could the executive breathe a sigh of relief.
"Wait a minute."
"Yes?"
"What about that armor?"
The armor that the most rankers were drooling over! From its appearance to its performance, it was impossible not to want it.
I really want it!
"T-that armor... for now, the guild will keep it in storage..."
"......"
"......"
The rankers' eyes instantly grew sharp.
"What? Storage? Why isn't there a quest assigned to that one?"
"W-well, there isn't a quest for it yet..."
"What do you mean there isn't? There are plenty of quests related to the Guild Alliance."
The rankers had already caught on.
"Don't tell me Su Ning is just going to take it for himself? I don't care if he's the guild master, that's crossing the line."
"Alcott didn't hand it over just for Su Ning to have it, did he? He dedicated it to the guild! Is this how you're going to play?"
As the executive floundered, a Chinese ranker close to Su Ning stepped forward.
"It's not even confirmed that Su Ning is taking it, so why are you guys like this?"
"What? Then that means Su Ning isn't taking it, right? Give us a straight answer. If we see Su Ning wearing it later, you're taking responsibility, right?"
"Why should I take responsibility? You bastard. You've been sounding like you have a massive grudge against the guild for a while now. If you're so unhappy, just leave!"
"What? You guys were begging on your knees back during the Guild Alliance days, so we came to help, and now you're telling us to leave? Are you out of your mind?!"
Another conflict erupted! A discord far more intense than Tae-hyun had anticipated was breaking out.
"You know, there's that old story where someone threw a single golden apple and a war broke out."
Cain hadn't given up. Wouldn't the Guild Alliance fracture over this?
"That's just an old story, Cain. Reality is different."
"Is it?"
"Um... when are we going to build our Shiiba Cult shrine...?"
"Uh-huh. Gorsuk. Wait a bit."
"......"
"It's not that I don't want to talk to you, but did you see the elves here? If you get caught, I won't be able to protect you."
"......"
Gorsuk retreated, looking dejected. Tae-hyun watched him with a satisfied expression.
He hadn't intended for this, but somehow Gorsuk was becoming more and more anxious and desperate. It was a good sign.
Gorsuk is feeling extremely anxious.
You can demand more when building the shrine.
The situation revealed by his Supreme Eloquence skill! At this rate, he could squeeze Gorsuk for even more.
Hmm. I made them some siege weapons, and the Guild Alliance forces got beaten up and retreated... Is it fine now? Maybe it's time to slip away...
Although Gellendel was a crazy elf, he wasn't an idiot. Even if he went to hunt Orcs, if he was attacked first, he would fight back well on his own.
It's not like this place won't be attacked.
Currently, Bektel City was a city of outlaws. It didn't mean the city itself was lawless. The city itself ran perfectly fine under Gellendel's command. It was just that bandits running rampant all over the Auston Kingdom came up to Bektel City when they wanted to rest or restock items.
The only safe haven in the Auston Kingdom!
The bandits would gather in a friendly atmosphere, sharing information about who plundered more, and sometimes even forming parties.
These were players whose Infamy hadn't even been 10 not too long ago—what an amazing transformation!
A large amount of gold has temporarily entered Bektel City. A bonus is applied to the city's atmosphere!
To all players in the city...
......
A Statue of the Plunderer has been built at the city entrance. A bonus is applied to all plundering.
A few of the players had even crafted a statue for their fellow bandit players. A statue made by melting down plundered items! Rather than its performance, its effect of making the Guild Alliance clutch the back of their necks in frustration was much greater.
Tae-hyun wiped under his nose as he watched the outlaw city run itself.
Excellent. You guys will do just fine on your own now!
Now, time to leave...
"Hey! They say rankers from the Guild Alliance have arrived?!"
"What? And not just one? How did they come grouped up like that?"
"R-right? I guess they didn't end up fighting among themselves just because some gear was distributed."
"It seems the Guild Alliance is more united than we thought..."
The two muttered seriously.