Chapter 117
Chapter 117
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 117
Chapter Title: The Secret of the King of Benevolence and Righteousness Shin Chang-hu (2)
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The Dark Knight moved for the public good of battling the Demon King’s army.
In fact, players from other dimensions and the guilds they formed were originally created for the public good of fighting the Demon King’s army.
But.
‘They’re often passive about it.’
On top of that, they hadn’t volunteered—they’d been forcibly dragged here.
If you conscript people by force and then tell them to risk their lives defending the Atlantis Dimension against the Demon King’s army?
‘It lacks persuasive power.’
Sure, they promised to send them back to Earth as a reward.
‘But that’s not really a reward.’
They’d been dragged here against their will and forced to work.
Some had died in the process, others had been injured.
Wouldn’t it only be right, in good conscience, to send back those who survived once it was all over?
Given the situation, players naturally felt less of a sense of duty to fight the Demon King’s army and protect the Atlantis Dimension.
‘They act for their own gain.’
Why do players risk their lives hunting monsters?
‘To survive.’
In a world of the strong devouring the weak, power was everything.
They needed power just to survive.
Once the minimum condition of survival was met?
They hunted monsters for a comfortable, prosperous life in the Atlantis Dimension.
Some threw themselves into the hunt to satisfy their desires for strength and power.
But even that wasn’t to prepare for war against the Demon King’s army—it was for personal satisfaction.
‘Fighting the Demon King’s army is an unavoidable choice for survival, not something they want to do.’
So, if they had a choice?
‘Guilds move for their organization’s benefit, not the public good.’
The Balhae Guild was no different.
Yet the King of Benevolence and Righteousness Shin Chang-hu had reeled in.
‘The Sword King Jang Seok-won with just a few words.’
The words were already out of his mouth.
And they fit perfectly with the players’ very reason for existing.
‘He can’t back out now.’
The King of Benevolence and Righteousness Shin Chang-hu boldly drew up the soul contract without hesitation.
The content was simple.
When war with the Demon King’s army broke out, they would lend their full strength to the Dark Knight.
It was easy to say it in words.
But when the situation actually arose?
They could make excuses and slip away easily enough.
But the moment the soul contract was signed.
‘There’d be no escaping it.’
If they wanted to live.
They had to unconditionally follow the contract’s terms.
“Here, go ahead and sign.”
The King of Benevolence and Righteousness Shin Chang-hu handed the soul contract to the Sword King Jang Seok-won.
“Urk!”
The Sword King Jang Seok-won’s face twisted into a mess.
‘If I sign this as is, I’m the only one who loses out.’
He wasn’t a soldier eating from the nation’s coffers or a cop—why should he fight on the front lines for the public good?
“I’d like to request a few revisions.”
In the end, the Sword King Jang Seok-won cautiously raised an objection.
“Which parts?”
Kang Hyun-soo asked the Sword King Jang Seok-won.
“For starters, shouldn’t we band together tightly? I think forming an alliance would be better than a simple cooperative relationship.”
In the Sword King Jang Seok-won’s view, this kind of cooperative relationship was nothing but a loss.
But if they formed an alliance?
‘When I need them, I can borrow the might of the Dark Knight and the Goryeo Guild.’
That would greatly reduce his losses.
No, if he played it right?
‘He could even turn a bigger profit.’
If you couldn’t avoid it?
You had to give what you had to give and take what you could take.
“Oh ho, an alliance.”
The King of Benevolence and Righteousness Shin Chang-hu looked intrigued.
‘Perfect.’
Kang Hyun-soo cheered inwardly.
‘I wanted an alliance from the start.’
He’d thought it might be tough, so he’d aimed for a partial cooperative relationship first.
But the trickiest opponent, the Sword King Jang Seok-won, had brought up an alliance himself.
‘I can more or less guess his intentions.’
But that much?
‘I can accommodate it easily.’
The Balhae Guild and Goryeo Guild were two of Terra Kingdom’s three great guilds.
If those two combined forces with Kang Hyun-soo’s help?
‘They could form Terra Kingdom’s strongest allied guild.’
That was far from a bad thing.
Because.
One of Terra Kingdom’s other three great guilds.
‘Was something he had to crush anyway.’
The Dragon Tiger Guild.
A guild formed by combining the power of its Guild Master, Dragon King Lee Ji-yong, and Vice Guild Master Tiger King Lee Geun-taek. In sheer size, it easily surpassed the Balhae Guild and Goryeo Guild.
‘Even among the three great guilds, the Balhae and Goryeo Guilds would need to combine just to match it.’
It was practically Terra Kingdom’s strongest guild.
The problem was?
‘The guild leadership had contracted with demons.’
It was a case similar to the Cabal Guild.
Though there were a few differences.
‘Not every guild member had contracted with demons.’
Only the executives had.
Also.
‘Unlike the Cabal Guild, they hadn’t worked on their image.’
On the contrary, the Dragon Tiger Guild’s tendencies had always been highly aggressive.
So even after their true nature was later revealed.
‘There were tons of “I knew it” reactions.’
Their exposure happened far sooner than the Cabal Guild’s as well.
Not long after all-out war began, their suspicious actions continued.
Right before suspicion turned to certainty.
‘They stabbed their allies in the back and joined the Demon King’s army.’
The Dragon Tiger Guild’s members?
They were sacrificed as living offerings to empower the higher executives who had contracted with demons.
‘The Dragon Tiger Guild starts expanding its power in earnest from now on.’
It was already massive.
Using the Doppelganger Legion’s invasion—which caused countless guilds to collapse and Terra Kingdom to crumble—as an opportunity.
‘It absorbed players who lost their guilds and former Terra Kingdom soldiers who became refugees, growing its strength.’
At its peak, the Dragon Tiger Guild’s military might rivaled that of a nation.
‘No one knew back then.’
They just thought it was good luck.
But when the Dragon Tiger Guild’s true nature came to light later.
‘That’s when people realized the Doppelganger Legion had been helping them.’
Just like in his previous regression, the Dragon Tiger Guild was undoubtedly cooperating with the Doppelganger Legion right now.
‘The Cabal Guild and Dragon Tiger Guild are different cases.’
Unlike the Cabal Guild, where every member had to be eliminated.
For the Dragon Tiger Guild, removing just the leadership would suffice.
‘Once the Dragon Tiger Guild falls, it’s the world of the Balhae and Goryeo Guilds.’
And if the Balhae and Goryeo Guilds absorbed the players who became free agents after the Dragon Tiger Guild’s collapse?
Their alliance would possess power so overwhelming that even the Terra Kingdom government couldn’t ignore it.
If that empowered alliance of the Balhae and Goryeo Guilds moved at Kang Hyun-soo’s command?
‘They could seize the entire Terra Kingdom in their grasp.’
But to achieve that, one prerequisite was needed.
The Balhae Guild’s Guild Master, Sword King Jang Seok-won, and the Goryeo Guild’s Guild Master, King of Benevolence and Righteousness Shin Chang-hu.
‘Had to come under my command.’
An alliance wasn’t bad.
‘But certainty is better.’
While Kang Hyun-soo reminisced about the Dragon Tiger Guild and planned ahead.
“……I think a mutually complementary relationship like this would be better.”
The Sword King Jang Seok-won expounded passionately on the advantages of an alliance.
“What do you think?”
The Sword King Jang Seok-won asked Kang Hyun-soo.
“Sounds good.”
“Hahaha, then let’s revise the soul contract wording right away.”
The Sword King Jang Seok-won grinned broadly and picked up his pen.
“Before that, one thing I want to ask.”
“What’s that?”
“Don’t you want to get stronger?”
At Kang Hyun-soo’s question, the Sword King Jang Seok-won and King of Benevolence and Righteousness Shin Chang-hu’s expressions hardened.
“What exactly do you mean by that?”
He’d asked the Sword King Jang Seok-won, but the King of Benevolence and Righteousness Shin Chang-hu demanded an answer first.
“It means exactly what I said. Don’t you want to get stronger?”
“It doesn’t sound like you’re talking about leveling up.”
“How strong do you think those two are?”
Kang Hyun-soo pointed at Song Hana and the Fist Emperor, who had been standing quietly like scarecrows until now.
“I heard they repelled a massive Doppelganger horde attack all by themselves. I’d estimate around level 1100 to 1200.”
At the King of Benevolence and Righteousness Shin Chang-hu’s words.
“Could you open your level status windows?”
Kang Hyun-soo asked Song Hana and the Fist Emperor.
“Sure.”
“Yeah, no big deal.”
Song Hana and the Fist Emperor opened their level status windows.
Player Level: [801]
Player Level: [821]
Song Hana’s level was 801.
The Fist Emperor’s was 821.
“Heh.”
The King of Benevolence and Righteousness Shin Chang-hu was greatly shocked.
And so was.
The Sword King Jang Seok-won.
‘The old man wouldn’t lie.’
The King of Benevolence and Righteousness Shin Chang-hu had clearly said those two repelled a massive Doppelganger horde attack.
So it must be true.
Moreover, the King of Benevolence and Righteousness Shin Chang-hu was famous for his sharp eye in judging players.
On top of that.
‘From what I saw earlier, their skills are on par with those guys. And they’re only early 800s?’
Early 800-level players were rare.
Exceptional experts who could walk around with their heads held high anywhere.
But.
‘You can’t compare them to named players.’
Yet those two had the power of named players with top-tier titles.
It was an impossibility made real.
But having seen the status window levels with his own eyes, he couldn’t deny it.
“I have a skill that can raise other players’ stats.”
At Kang Hyun-soo’s words, the Sword King Jang Seok-won and King of Benevolence and Righteousness Shin Chang-hu’s eyes widened.
“Is that true?”
“Of course.”
“It doesn’t seem like a temporary buff. Is it permanent?”
“Yes.”
“How much do the stats increase?”
“At least 40% across all stats. And it’ll keep increasing from here.”
“Amazing. So what’s the price for that permanent buff?”
The King of Benevolence and Righteousness Shin Chang-hu, assuming it couldn’t be free, smiled as Kang Hyun-soo replied.
‘Not some naive fool ignorant of the world.’
More realistic than anyone.
‘Yet he upholds benevolence and righteousness.’
Not just anyone could do that.
“You have to join the Dark Knight. No leaving, either.”
No sooner had Kang Hyun-soo finished speaking.
“Is there a penalty for leaving?”
The Sword King Jang Seok-won asked.
“No need for penalties. Once you join, withdrawal is impossible, whether voluntary or not.”
“Then, as a Dark Knight, are there obligations?”
“You follow my orders.”
The Sword King Jang Seok-won fell silent at Kang Hyun-soo’s words.
At least 40%.
Anyone who didn’t covet that would be lying.
No, he coveted it madly.
He felt like grabbing Kang Hyun-soo by the collar and demanding how it was possible.
You could boost stats with items and skills, but.
40% required SSS-Rank items.
And.
‘All stats.’
Items or skills that permanently boosted all stats were exceedingly rare.
Most only boosted a few.
‘Achievements boost stats, sure.’
But that was fixed values, not percentages.
‘Even EX-Rank achievements cap at +50 to all stats.’
The Sword King Jang Seok-won’s current level was over 1300.
His total stats exceeded 15,000.
A 40% increase across all?
‘That’s a 6,000 total stat boost.’
An unbelievable surge, even hearing it.
It was like gaining stats equivalent to jumping 600 levels in one go.
He nearly blurted out his acceptance.
‘But I have to hold back.’
He forced it down.
‘I’m the Balhae Guild’s Guild Master.’
For him to go under the Dark Knight.
‘Would mean the Balhae Guild becomes their subordinate organization.’
It was a grave matter tied to his and the guild’s fate.
“Are those orders absolute?”
The King of Benevolence and Righteousness Shin Chang-hu asked Kang Hyun-soo.
“No. You can judge autonomously and decide whether to accept or refuse.”
“Then I accept.”
The King of Benevolence and Righteousness Shin Chang-hu answered decisively.
“Old man, are you insane?”
The Sword King Jang Seok-won stared at him in shock.