Chapter 24
Chapter 24
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 24
Chapter Title: Team Leader's Inquiry
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"Hoo..."
A tense sigh echoed through the corridor.
Knock knock.
Clutching a stack of documents in both hands, Ha Jun rapped on the door with a nervous expression.
Instead of his usual shaggy hair and checkered shirt, he wore a neat suit that felt awkward even to him. He checked his reflection in the corridor window several times.
Pinned to his chest was a name tag that now read [2nd Management Team GM Han] instead of Development Team.
'Ha... I'm not about to get chewed out, am I?'
Letting out a sigh like a student summoned to the principal's office, Ha Jun stood before the door.
[2nd Management Team Leader's Office]
'Ugh... Chewed out? Come on, I'm not a kid. If I get reamed, so be it...'
"Come in."
As the door opened, he bowed at a perfect ninety degrees, as if he'd been waiting for it.
"R-reporting for duty, Team Leader!"
"Why don't you come in first?"
"Pardon? Oh...! Yes, sir!"
Ha Jun nodded hastily and shut the door behind him.
Gulp.
A beard that hadn't been trimmed in days, unkempt and wild, paired with eyes deeply sunken from fatigue.
On the desk were layers of coffee cups, and it looked like ashtrays and even liquor bottles were scattered about.
'Smoking and drinking inside the office...'
It was utterly outrageous, yet this man before him was allowed to get away with it.
This was Team Leader Ko Jun-cheol.
Gulp.
Facing the man infamous not just in Management but across the company as the 'Mad Dog,' Ha Jun grew even more tense.
"You saw Khan in the game yourself, right?"
Ha Jun flinched involuntarily at the gaze from Team Leader Ko.
"No need to be nervous. I didn't call you here to reprimand you. It wasn't even Management's request... I feel bad for dumping such a hassle on someone from Development."
"N-no, sir!"
"But we needed manpower. He was such a hot topic... We needed someone impartial like you to observe him without bias."
It was intriguing.
There was an odd sense of trust in his voice.
The team leader rumored to be terrifying among the staff...
His words made Ha Jun feel trusted, lifting his shoulders slightly.
'Still just a kid.'
Jun-cheol could see right through him.
'If anyone else pulled this stunt, I'd have torn them apart...'
He picked up his cup and grimaced slightly.
'What the hell is Director Han thinking? She handpicked the surveillance team, then swaps the roster midway...'
Han Mi-ho, one of the two key figures overseeing [Evil Tail].
'Turns out he's her cousin's little brother.'
Is she planting a lackey?
Ko Jun-cheol eyed Ha Jun with displeasure.
"One question. Did he ever call for an admin?"
He'd half-considered grilling his subordinate downstairs but clicked his tongue and asked Ha Jun instead.
"No, sir."
"Then?"
"...Pardon?"
Their eyes locked for a moment. Jun-cheol downed the cold coffee in one gulp and asked again.
"I'm asking how you met him."
"Oh... Well... I thought verification was necessary."
"What kind?"
"I checked his history. He pulled off an insane time attack in the Goblin Nest."
"And?"
"Honestly, seeing those records, it didn't make sense for an admin—more like it defied developer logic. I was on the team designing Dark Forest's three major dungeons."
"Impossible record?"
"Yes. And it just so happened he was in the Alchemist's Lab. So..."
"You snuck into the dungeon and spied on him."
"Haha."
"...Haha?"
Bam!!!
Jun-cheol slammed the documents on the desk in irritation.
"Are you kidding me? I told you to monitor Khan's behavior, nothing else! If word gets out that an admin was tailing a player, what then?!"
'Director Han, is this her way of screwing me over? Sticking me with this airhead... When we should be investigating on the down-low, he basically advertises that admins are watching.'
Jun-cheol pressed his throbbing temple and sighed.
Player Khan.
Since the logout incident, for better or worse, he remained a hot topic on the [Evil Tail] community boards.
If the community caught wind of this, hyenas would tear into it endlessly.
"9 minutes 40 seconds."
"...What?"
"The time Player Khan cleared the Alchemist's Lab."
Twitch.
At that moment, the team leader's eyebrow twitched.
"9 minutes? You're sure?"
"Yes. I watched it happen right in front of me."
"Crazy..."
Jun-cheol let out a disbelieving chuckle at Ha Jun's report.
"What the hell happened? The guy who was clinging to pant legs in Moretti Plaza, begging for help..."
Hunting the Orc Citadel's hidden boss with Müllenga's pilgrims was one thing, but shattering two dungeon records? Utterly beyond reason.
'Keruga's record is impressive, but it's years old—bound to get broken eventually.'
But this was excessive.
'How did he do it?'
He was curious.
Yet no matter how he racked his brain, he couldn't figure it out.
"How the hell did he pull it off?"
"Weird, right? That's why I went to check."
"Shut it. So what you did was fine, huh?"
Ha Jun gave a sheepish grin under Jun-cheol's glare.
"But the Alchemist's Lab can't be soloed, right? Needs elemental attacks."
Tsking, he asked Ha Jun.
"Well... He hired a mercenary."
"Mercenary?"
Jun-cheol nodded at the answer.
"Makes sense. No party, so mercenaries are the only option."
"But..."
"What?"
Ha Jun glanced at him cautiously, moistening his parched lips before speaking.
"Not sure if it's coincidence... but the NPC he picked bothers me."
"What're you on about? NPCs? The mercenaries in Dark Forest are all lowbies anyway. Anything special?"
"You probably wouldn't know, sir. Only devs would think of it."
"Oh? Trying to draw lines between Management and Dev now?"
"No way, sir."
Oddly, Ha Jun's voice, which had seemed scatterbrained moments ago, now carried weight.
'Hmm?'
Jun-cheol felt a spark of interest at the shift.
"Luen Pirbas."
Ha Jun emphasized each syllable.
"She's the main character in one of the next major scenario updates: [Ulldin's Revival]."
"...Next update? Never heard of it."
"Of course not. Even Dev only built it—no release date set."
"What does that mean?"
"Major updates trigger under [Ethan]'s judgment."
"Hmph... That AI again."
Ko Jun-cheol tsked in distaste.
"Fine. So 'built' means... the update data's done?"
"Yes. By [Evil Tail]'s launch, we'd finished up to the third update."
"Third?"
Twitch.
Jun-cheol's cheek spasmed.
"And all scenarios and data up to the third are already on the in-game cloud."
"So it could update anytime?"
"Theoretically, but... I doubt it. We can't trigger them, but we can guess progress."
[Evil Tail]'s updates weren't mere bug fixes.
"It'll completely overhaul the game—like a revolution."
Requiring countless conditions.
"One minimum: clear Labyrinth Tower floor 30. In five years since launch, we're barely at 10."
Devs estimated at least another five years.
"Minimum five years..."
'Plenty of time for players to grow strong.'
"A key NPC for the next update isn't an issue with that timeline."
Ko Jun-cheol nodded.
"Got it. Anything else?"
"N-no, sir."
"No more freelancing. Just observe quietly. Clear?"
"...Yes, sir. Understood."
Click.
"Hoo..."
After closing the team leader's door, Ha Jun finally exhaled the breath he'd held.
"Whew... Thought I was gonna suffocate."
He'd heard the guy had a scary rep in Management, but...
Shuddering as if to shake off Ko Jun-cheol's piercing gaze, Ha Jun trembled.
"Should I have mentioned that too?"
He lingered, hesitating to leave.
'Nah. No point spilling yet—we don't know how he'll grow.'
Ha Jun muttered under his breath.
During the second update dev, per [Ethan]'s scenario, Luen Pirbas had 72 possible class paths.
From mercenary like now, to hunter, adventurer, spirit mage... even thief or wanted criminal.
Her route would shape her future class wildly.
"Whatever path, she'll play a major role in the second update..."
Except one.
Unique to her alone.
The Elf Queen.
"...Queen?"
Woojin couldn't hide his bewilderment.
"The one who protected us from the Collectors."
He'd spotted the woman standing before the bowing elf.
An elf with hand over heart, offering a light nod.
Woojin stared at her blankly.
'...It's Luen.'
Time's passage?
She wasn't the youthful girl he remembered; this was a mature woman.
'And her hair's not pure gold—more pale lemon.'
Above all, her aura was different.
Even Woojin, unable to wield mana, sensed the alien power emanating from her.
'Luen as the Elf Queen's...'
What on earth had happened?
'This is shocking in its own way.'
"Don't push yourself."
Several elves supported her.
Pale face.
Her condition looked dire.
'Mana Blood Disease... They couldn't cure it?'
"Could you pass this to her? Might help, not sure..."
Woojin pulled a [Plain Potion] from his pouch—dropped from Sig Elric—and handed it to the elf.
"Such a treasure..."
The elf's eyes widened at the potion.
'Treasure?'
A world where even unseen runes dropped from gray wolves.
Yet a mere plain potion—not even mid-grade—is rare?
Woojin blinked in confusion.
"After the Alchemist Union fell fifty years ago, no more potions have been made... You still have one?"
'I see.'
No guarantee past items lingered in this future timeline.
Game commons had become rarities here.
'Stock up on potions from the exchange next time.'
Unprepared for such sudden returns, Woojin nodded silently.
"Thank you."
Luen cradled the potion in both hands, sipping it bit by bit.
"May I ask what happened?"
Tension rippled at his question.
'Did I slip? Something too sensitive?'
No—they wouldn't have brought him here if so.
Guiding him meant they needed his help.
Don't get swept up and back down.
Press harder.
"Tell me."
At that moment,
Luen's lips parted.