Chapter 116
Chapter 116
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 116
Chapter Title: Diverging Paths
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"...Granddaughter? I have no idea what you're talking about. My son hasn't even gotten married yet."
Woojin gave a wry smile at the words that had slipped out unbidden.
"Just something I said off the cuff. I only meant I hope you live a long, long life."
"Foolish talk... Even without your concern, I'll do just that."
Aswell sheathed his sword, as if declaring he had no desire to fight any longer.
"I need your help."
He spoke to Woojin in a voice thick with sincerity.
"Won't you fight alongside me to help Tekan unify the Federation?"
[Esten's Alchemists → Three Kingdoms War]
📍 Linked Quest Discovered
⏰ Continue the quest?
"If war is declared, Dalus will surely side with Esten."
No matter the Sword Emperor's prowess, facing two kingdoms at once would inevitably bring heavy losses to Tekan.
Not because he was weak.
Even the strongest man had only one body.
"I can't cover every battlefield alone. They'll pin you down and strike elsewhere."
Tekan's national strength was negligible outside of Aswel Balan's Red Knight Order.
Without him, an assault from the Esten-Dalus alliance would devastate Tekan.
"That's why I said I need your help."
Aswell knew this problem all too well himself.
"If you defend the capital, I can strike the two kingdoms without worry."
"With you here, Tekan will surely unify the Federation. But what meaning is there in winning this little war?"
Yet Woojin shook his head.
"Tekan's king would just become fodder for the five great kingdoms."
"So in the end... you refuse to join me."
"I only hope an incompetent king doesn't gain more power. I don't want more people to suffer."
"...So that's why you suggested I take the throne?"
Aswell laughed coldly.
From that laugh, Woojin could tell.
Loyal to the bone.
A man who served not a person, but a house.
That was who he was.
He had to accept that their paths could never align.
"I could execute you here for inciting treason."
Shing―.
The sword tip pointed at Woojin's face.
One more step forward, and death would be certain.
"Even so, my thoughts remain unchanged."
"...Is it because you've escaped Death's Rule? You foreigners speak so casually of such things."
"It's not that I'm unafraid of death."
Thud―.
Woojin stepped forward, right toward the blade aimed at him.
As he entered his range, surprise flickered in Aswell's eyes.
"I'm saying this for your sake."
"......"
A brief silence fell, and Aswell withdrew his sword with a sigh as he regarded Woojin.
"...It seems this is where our paths end. Go home. House Balan can no longer protect you... Take your household and leave."
It was regrettable.
But even as he spoke, Woojin knew he couldn't sway Aswell's heart.
'Is there another way to save him?'
The power of the throne.
Luen's words back in Yorka Village came to mind.
Absurd as it was, if by some chance he became king, could he win Aswell over?
Woojin soon shook his head.
'Even if I topple Tekan by force, I won't gain him. He'd choose death alongside Tekan instead.'
Grip―.
Was he just to watch events unfold?
Woojin felt his own weakness keenly once more.
"Still, I won't give up on finding a way to save you."
"Hearing such words from someone weaker than me is amusing."
Aswell laughed.
But Woojin's words didn't seem to displease him.
"It'll take about a week to get back."
As Aswell passed Woojin on his way to Esten Castle, he said,
"I hope this serves as our farewell."
A warning to leave within that time.
Grip.
Woojin bit his lip, striving to hide his emotions.
Only the notification lingered in the spot where Aswell had departed.
"...I-I thought we were dead."
Ed finally exhaled the breath he'd been holding and collapsed, legs giving out.
"Whoa... I thought I'd seen it all, but getting intimidated by sheer presence? First time for everything."
Ed clutched his chest and shook his head in exasperation.
"The Sword Emperor lives up to his name. It was so oppressive I couldn't tell if this was a game or reality."
"...You did well."
"Nah, no big deal. I got a rare experience out of it. But... what about this guy?"
He pointed to the bound alchemist.
Fresh stab wounds marred the alchemist's thighs, evidence that Ed had kept up the fight.
'Looking back, this was pretty insane too.'
In combat, logout was impossible.
A standard rule from old games, now exploited in VR like this.
It had been the same when they'd imprisoned Weden in Torn Bach.
Virtual reality teetered on the knife-edge between 'virtual' and 'real,' legal and illegal.
"Hey... isn't it time to let me go?"
The captive alchemist pleaded with Woojin.
"The contract's exposed, your lab's been ransacked—what's the point of keeping me? Right?"
He spoke urgently.
"Come on, it's just a game. We've gone far enough. I only did it 'cause a quest popped up!"
Anger rising as he spoke, he yelled in fury.
"Honestly, aren't you guys the weird ones? This is a game!! I didn't kill real people... Ugh, they made this game too good. Can't even tell reality from the game, you freak!"
A necromancer digging up graves for corpses.
Mercenaries who did anything for money.
Assassins leveling by killing players, not monsters.
Things that would be disasters in reality, but as he said, this was a game.
"...Does doing this bring you fun?"
"Huh?"
"Is playing the game like this fun?"
Woojin asked in a weary voice.
From rock bottom to the road to success.
For him, who'd lived fiercely, games had been a brief respite.
That was why he loved them.
Even if now he flailed just to survive.
"Fun? I'm not doing this for fun. I'm doing it to survive."
"...What?"
"It's all to make money. To put food on the table!! Fun my ass... Easy for you to say."
Ptoo!!
The alchemist spat, lips twisting.
"Half the people on the Central Continent do it for cash. You think anyone enjoys grinding herbs, brewing potions, or weaving cloth 365 days a year?"
Unexpected words.
"Hilarious, right? Playing a game to earn money? But what can you do—it pays. People are that hooked on this crazy game!"
300 million concurrent users.
1.5 billion total subscribers.
Sponsors, ads, media—a vast web. Evil Tail was undeniably a massive enterprise.
"You go have your fun. Overimmersed weirdo who can't tell what's real."
His words hit Woojin like a hammer to the head.
'Real reality...'
To him, thrashing to return to reality, Woojin must have looked like a mere player to this man surviving by gaming.
"Ha... haha."
All strength drained from him.
"I see."
Woojin nodded slowly.
"You're right. We're all on different paths. But we're the same in gaming to survive."
Shing―.
He slowly raised his sword.
"Don't let me see you again."
"...Stop!!"
That was when it happened.
Bang―――!!!
A gunshot rang out—rare in Evil Tail.
"...?!"
Woojin ducked hastily.
Whirr―!!
A whip slithered snake-like toward him in erratic motion.
-Master!
As Setsuna tried to cast a skill,
-Mmph...?! Mmph?!
Suddenly silenced, Setsuna's eyes widened in panic.
'A mage?'
Woojin whipped his head around, scanning the surroundings.
Whirr...!!!
The whip coiled around his wrist tightened further.
"You bastards...!!"
Ed hurriedly drew his dagger to sever the whip, but
Bang―!!!
Another gunshot echoed.
"Kugh!!!"
The bullet pierced Ed's shoulder.
With a pained scream, Ed crumpled at Woojin's feet.
'Three in total?'
"Hand him over."
A voice from the darkness.
The woman who emerged, whip in hand, spoke sharply.
'A whip... Never faced one before.'
Unfamiliar with the weapon, Woojin braced his wrapped wrist, lowering his stance to hold ground.
"And if I refuse?"
"...?!"
Crack―!!
The woman yanked the whip.
"Kuh?!"
Caught off guard by Woojin's strength, she strained to resist.
Thud―!!
Woojin lunged forward, extending his pulled arm, and the woman lost balance, falling flat on her butt.
Bang―!! Bang-bang――!!!
Bullets flew, but couldn't match Woojin's speed.
Swoosh―――!!!!
A sharp wind blade targeted Woojin from the opposite side.
Whirr...!!!
But in that instant, Woojin yanked the whip with all his might, dragging the woman into his arms.
He shoved her forward like a shield.
"Damn it!!"
A coarse shout, and the incoming blade vanished abruptly.
"...Cough!!"
The mage's pained cough echoed from the sudden spell cancellation backlash.
"Don't want to see her die? Come out then."
Woojin growled at the two still hidden in shadow.
"...?!"
Two figures emerged from the dark.
Woojin couldn't help but be startled at the sight.
"Gares?"
Woojin removed his mask, addressing the approaching dwarf with a baffled expression.
"Khan...? Why are you here?"
Khan couldn't hide his own shock, and Woojin recalled the alchemist's earlier words.
"That bastard tailing us!! Without him, we could've finished the Esten quest... Damn it...!!"
'So that dwarf... was Gares.'
"Sorry for the sudden attack. We thought you were his accomplice, smuggling him out. Figured you were killing to resurrect him."
"Ah... Yeah, I can see that."
With faces masked, it was plenty to cause misunderstanding.
"But why's this guy...?"
"The Alchemist Association [Platz] triggered a quest. On illegal alchemy. Ever hear of human golems? One of the summons their gang crafts."
"Oh, yeah. Dealt with one in the Great Forest too. Monsters made from NPC corpses, right?"
"What if they made them from players?"
"Players into human golems? But players resurrect at temples—no corpses."
Flinch.
In that moment, Woojin stared blankly at the alchemist.
"Not using corpses as materials, then...?"
"Right. Gotta do it live."
Monster research. Human experimentation...
The puzzle pieces clicked with Gares's words.
"Hey."
Grip―.
Woojin seized the pale alchemist by the collar, hoisting him up.
"That changes everything. Doesn't it?"
His eyes blazed as if ready to cleave the man in two right then.