Lines That Would Scare Off Even a Newbie
"And yet, it's so much fun."
"Indeed, Chairman. Those who don't get it are the strange ones!" Chief Secretary Jeong said, bowing a full ninety degrees.
Thoughts are thoughts, but words are words!
"Let's stop fishing for today and open up the shop."
Chairman Yoo and the fishermen had initially sold their catch to NPC merchants, but they soon realized there was no need. Selling directly to players was far more profitable! Not only did they receive skill bonuses, but the profit margins were also much higher. On top of that, it brought a whole new kind of joy.
"Wow! I've never seen fish this fresh! There isn't even a single scratch on them!"
Chef players gasped in admiration whenever they saw the fish Chairman Yoo caught. It was surprising enough to see such rare specimens, but the skill required to land them was even more astonishing. Fish with modifiers like "Pristine" or "Flawless" were exceptional ingredients that multiplied the yield of any cooked dish.
"Excuse me, elder. Do you have any Snowflake Fish?"
"Oh? You're back again."
Chairman Yoo brightened as he recognized the player. There was a good reason he remembered this particular customer. He was a regular who had visited every single day since the shop first opened! He was a player who sought only the Snowflake Fish, a rare species found in the waters off Bektel City.
"Elder, do you have any Snowflake Fish?"
"Do you have any Snowflake Fish?"
"Snowflake Fish..."
On days when no Snowflake Fish were caught, the man would sigh so deeply it felt like the ground might swallow him whole. It was enough to make Chairman Yoo's heart ache just watching him!
"Why do you only look for Snowflake Fish anyway? Are you a chef?"
"Huh? No, I'm not."
"Then why?"
"As a snack to go with my drinks..."
"..."
Chairman Yoo stared, utterly dumbfounded by the unexpected response.
"It's the absolute best. The umami flavor is just..."
"I-I see."
The man looked to be up there in years, yet the sole reason he bought them so religiously was to pair them with alcohol!
"I can't drink in the real world, you see. My liver is shot... so I end up drinking like this inside the game."
"Right. I understand. Here, here is your fish."
"Elder, you see, I..."
"..."
Chairman Yoo instantly realized he had made a mistake. Without even being asked, the middle-aged man began pouring out his life story.
I was just curious why he only bought Snowflake Fish...!
"Ah, do you mind if I have a drink while we talk?"
"Go... go ahead."
Chairman Yoo watched in sheer disbelief. The middle-aged man had already pulled out a bottle of liquor, sliced the Snowflake Fish into neat sashimi pieces, and begun eating. He even produced a tub of sweet and spicy chili sauce. Judging by his practiced movements, this was far from his first time.
He's surprisingly good with a knife.
His filleting skills were practically on par with a professional chef's!
"Ah! Would you like a glass too, elder?"
"I'm fine."
"Then I'll drink alone."
The man happily took a swig and began sharing his woes.
"I used to have a perfectly good job at a company, but after I got laid off, the fried chicken joint I opened went under too. I had nothing left to do. But back in my youth, I was actually quite the gamer, so I started playing Pan-On..."
"Wait. Hold on a second."
Chairman Yoo cut him off, unable to follow his logic.
"Yes?"
"You lost your job, so why are you playing a game?"
"Elder, Pan-On is incredibly lucrative. Right now, I make a bit more than I did back when I was at my company."
"I-Is that so?"
Chairman Yoo was taken aback. If that was the case, why was he drinking and lamenting like this?
"Are you doing this because you find it painful? Like, you had to quit a job you loved and are now forcing yourself to play a game just to make a living?"
"Huh? No, not at all. The game is way more fun! You can't even compare it to a regular job."
"??"
"I even started a guild with my friends who took early retirement."
Indeed. A newly discovered calling in middle age! The man looked incredibly happy to have found his path through Pan-On.
"Then why the alcohol?"
"Because I like alcohol?"
"..."
He wasn't drinking because he was depressed about losing his job; he was just drinking here because he loved alcohol. Chairman Yoo felt like he had wasted his sympathy!
Tsk. People these days...
If the man had been in real trouble, Yoo had planned to help him out a bit for the sake of customer loyalty!
"Still, it's intriguing. You don't even participate in tournaments, so how do you make money?"
"We sell items, we sell information... You don't have to be a famous pro player to make money. Elder, our guild is..."
What a tragic name for a guild, Chairman Yoo thought.
"...very skilled at that sort of thing."
Contrary to Chairman Yoo's worries, this middle-aged man, Lee Jung-seop, was actually a decent high-tier ranker. While his mechanical reflexes might lag behind the younger crowd, he was highly experienced and seasoned by real-world grit. He was quite famous on community sites for taking on various commissions and selling accurate information and items!
"To be honest, the reason I only buy your fish isn't just because your fishing skills are amazing. It's also because I feel a sense of kinship with you."
"...???"
"You got laid off too, didn't you?"
An elderly man spending so much time logged into Pan-On, doing nothing but fishing? Chairman Yoo's jaw dropped in sheer disbelief. However, Lee Jung-seop seemed to misinterpret his reaction.
"It's alright. The bastards who fired you are the bad guys!"
"Well... you see..."
Chairman Yoo was utterly at a loss for words.
"Shouldn't we early retirees stick together and support each other? Elder, if you ever need anything, just let me know. It's not just our guild; we're close with other similar guilds too."
When it came to making an income, playing as a pro like Tae-hyun or managing a territory as the leader of a massive guild like Su Ning weren't the only flashy ways to do it. There were dozens of ways to earn a living in Pan-On. Receiving broadcasting or advertising revenue like Lee Da-bi, selling items, selling information, taking commissions, and so on... Even if it wasn't glamorous, there were plenty of steady ways to make money. They were livelihood players! Lee Jung-seop banded together with other early retirees, sharing information to survive. To survive long-term as a livelihood player, one needed various tricks of the trade—like which dungeons were lucrative, or which guild commissions were worth taking...
"If you'd like to join us, elder, you're more than welcome."
"...I'm fine."
Chairman Yoo prepared to clear up Lee Jung-seop's misunderstanding. The man might be disappointed and leave, but it couldn't be helped! Actually, I am...!
"Ahem. You see, my friend. Actually, I..."
"By the way, elder, I've been wanting to learn how to fish. Would you mind teaching me?"
"...!"
Chairman Yoo stopped mid-sentence.
"Oh. Weren't you about to say something?"
"I was actually... going to say that I indeed got laid off from my job. You want to learn fishing? That is an excellent idea."
"Yes, I think it'll be fun to try it myself. Where did you get laid off from?"
"The... Yuseong Group."
"Yuseong Group! Wow, elder. You worked at an incredible place."
It was one of the top conglomerates in Korea, after all. Lee Jung-seop was deeply impressed. I guess that's why someone from a major conglomerate is running a kingdom like this!
"For Yuseong Group to fail to recognize a talent like you, how foolish..."
"Is that so?"
Chairman Yoo's mood subtly lifted.
"Who else has a kingdom in Pan-On? Not just anyone can pull this off."
Although it was somewhat looked down upon for not being a territory on the Central Continent, Chairman Yoo was still strictly a king. Lee Jung-seop believed there was absolutely no reason for him to be ignored.
"Come to think of it, didn't Yuseong Group have to pay a massive fine back then? They really are bad guys."
"That wasn't the chairman, it was that bastard president...!"
"Pardon?"
"It's nothing."
Chairman Yoo muttered, stroking his fake beard. It was an item that made the wearer look distinguished and elderly! Earlier, when he was mistaken for a jobless retiree passing the time with fishing, he had thought about throwing it away, but now he felt it was better to keep wearing it.
The White Knights of the Erangs Kingdom have arrived!
"We're saved!"
Evangeline and Choi Sang-yun let out long sighs of relief.
The Salavian Order had fled to the Erangs Kingdom! To put an end to the Salavian Order, the two had endured dozens of linked chain quests.
The Salavian Order was no pushover, and there had been many truly perilous moments, but now that the White Knights of the Erangs Kingdom were charging in, the quest was as good as cleared.
Once they crushed the Salavian Order hiding in that cave fortress in the middle of the mountain...!
"That took forever...! Why did I have to get stuck with this job...!"
"You're at least Kim Tae-hyun's friend! I have absolutely nothing to do with this, yet here I am!"
Evangeline felt a fresh wave of resentment. A long-term quest dumped on her simply because she was a fellow Vampire: "Well, since you're a Vampire, you should do it!" Looking back, she felt like she had been scammed from the very beginning. Tae-hyun had slyly handed it over to her and washed his hands of the matter!
"You're both Vampires, shouldn't you deal with it?"
"No, we're not!"
"We just need to defeat the Archbishop, so I hope the knights wrap this up quickly."
Choi Sang-yun quickly changed the subject.
"Of course you'd say that, you're just like Kim Tae-hyun..."
"Aren't... aren't you being a bit too harsh?!"
Choi Sang-yun was genuinely hurt! Compared to Tae-hyun, he prided himself on being an incredibly wholesome and good-natured player.
The White Knights of the Erangs Kingdom are retreating!
"Aaargh! Retreat! Retreat!"
"To use such foul sorcery! You wicked fiends!"
"They're too strong! Aaaargh!"
"????"
The knights of the Erangs Kingdom were retreating? The two stood frozen, unable to process the situation.
The sinister voice of the Salavian Order's Archbishop began to echo loudly across the area.
"Foolish mortals! Did you truly believe your pathetic kind could withstand the power of Lord Salabian? Bow your heads to the dirt and beg for mercy while you still can!"
"..."
"..."
"Let's call Kim Tae-hyun."
"Yeah. We have to call him."
Their minds were in perfect agreement. They couldn't handle this crap anymore!
The Steel Hammer Dwarf Tribe enters to greet the new master of the lair!
"The humble Steel Hammer Dwarf Tribe pays respects to the great Black Dragon."
"Y... Yes."
"...???"
The dwarves, who had arrived laden with heavy tributes, wore expressions of utter confusion. Why was the dragon... so tiny?
Heuk-heuk, act natural. You don't want to see every dwarf in the vicinity marching here to subjugate you, do you?
The moment word got out that the new dragon was a pushover, every dwarf in the region would charge in. All their pent-up resentment would explode! Recalling those words, Heuk-heuk snapped to attention.
"How dare you look around in my presence!"
"Hieee! We beg for your forgiveness, great dragon!"
The dwarves instantly prostrated themselves. Though the creature had shrunk significantly, it was still a dragon. If they acted insolently, their entire village could be wiped off the map.
"Indeed! For what purpose have you sought an audience with me?"
"We have come to pay our respects to the new master of the lair! Please accept these gifts!"
Clatter! The dwarves grunted as they wheeled in a cart. The cart was overflowing with dazzling gold and silver. Heuk-heuk was deeply moved by the sight. This is it! This is the true life of a dragon! Not trailing after some bizarre, minor deity and suffering endlessly, but a life filled with lavish material rewards!
Heuk-heuk, control your facial expression.
S-Sorry.
Heuk-heuk, who had briefly lost his composure, quickly pulled himself together. He couldn't afford to let his guard down yet. When Heuk-heuk remained silent, the anxious dwarves spoke up.
"We are terribly sorry! We know it is a meager offering!"
...?
Heuk-heuk was bewildered. This was already a massive fortune, the likes of which he had never seen before!
"We apologize for bringing such small and ordinary treasures! Sniffle!"
"If you could grant us just a little more time, we will craft far more beautiful treasures and return!"
Hakkaras had been extremely fastidious. He was never satisfied with raw gold and silver. They had to craft beautiful sculptures out of them just to receive a single word of acknowledgment! The dwarves began to carefully wheel the cart back out. Watching them go, Heuk-heuk grew frantic.
"W-Wait...!"