Chapter 159
Chapter 159
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 159
Chapter Title: Blood Goti
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Lucifer's heart had melted away without a trace.
I checked the system message too.
With this, preparations for the next round were complete, and the mission for this round was definitively finished.
“……My lord.”
Gawain, who had been silently staring into the distance, whispered lowly.
“What?”
“He’s coming.”
“……The one you mentioned earlier?”
“Yes. He’s just set foot in this place.”
“Appearance?”
Gawain furrowed his brow, focusing his eyes.
“……He just looks like a shadow.”
“……I see.”
If the guy was a player, his class was limited. There was only one class with stealth skills. Assassin.
“Hey, Jeongwoo.”
“Huh? What?”
“Looks like we have a guest. Wanna loosen up a bit?”
“A guest?”
“Yeah, a pretty strong one, apparently.”
Jeongwoo’s eyes sparkled.
“Sounds good.”
The bone dragon, which had been fighting the demon, suddenly stopped moving. Not by its own will, but by someone else’s.
Black liquid stretched out from all directions like octopus tentacles, wrapping around the bone dragon’s body.
-Kieeeek!
The bone dragon thrashed about, but it couldn’t shake them off. With its strength stat in the thousands, to be subdued so easily?
Among the people I knew, only one could use such an ability.
“……Goti.”
The jet-black assassin, Blood Goti.
Srrrrk—
The black liquid flowed across the ground right up to me.
“First time meeting, but it’s been a while.”
The liquid crept up and formed the shape of a person. The human form that slowly took shape was quite striking.
He had the look of a warrior, to the point where you could call him one.
A large X-shaped mark slashed across his face, unkempt hair and beard, and pitch-black armor that would blend into the shadows.
“Nice to meet you, Kim Cheonjae. The way here was rough, so I tied up your dragon for a bit.”
“You’re Goti?”
“……Yeah.”
“You’re older than I thought.”
“You’re younger than I expected.”
“Yeah?”
I smirked.
Goti also smiled, clearly glad to see me.
“Why’d you only show yourself now? Seemed like you were hanging around nearby.”
“We’ll talk about that slowly. First, what did you do with Lucifer’s heart?”
“Lucifer’s heart? Melted it, obviously.”
“……Well done. You found the place with his traces remarkably well.”
Jeongwoo, who had been fully prepared to fight, shouted in delight. Seeing the Goti he’d admired so much in person, he couldn’t help but yell.
“Y-You’re Goti? The one I hunted with?”
“Yeah. Ma Jeongwoo, you’ve aged more than I thought.”
“Huh? Oh! No! This is just how I look in the game.”
“Haha! I know. Just teasing you.”
“Oh…. Right? Is your appearance changed in the game too, by any chance?”
Goti shook his head.
“Nah, this is pretty much my real self.”
“Oh…. So should I call you bro? Or mister?”
“What? Just call me Goti by name. No need for bro or mister now….”
“Right? Anyway, great to meet you!”
Jeongwoo hugged Goti.
Those two had a really tight bond. Jeongwoo played this game with me too, but I heard he’d been in contact with Goti even before we met.
Before meeting me, they’d played other games together besides Land of Ruin, so their friendship ran deep.
Goti patted Jeongwoo’s back a couple times and pushed him away.
“What’s this, all gross between guys.”
“Haha…. By the way, Goti, why’d you only show up now? That guy Yi Ryanghun said he was moving with you last time.”
“……Heh.”
“What? It’s true?”
“Yeah. Back then, I was moving with Yi Ryanghun.”
Jeongwoo shot him a disappointed look.
“Wha…. Why?”
“I could get info from him.”
“From him?”
“Yeah. Mind if we move spots first? The sulfur smell here is too strong for talking.”
As I listened to their conversation, I pointed at the bone dragon with my finger.
“Goti, mind releasing the dragon? Let’s move by riding it.”
“……Got it.”
Goti placed his hand on the ground, and the black liquid binding the bone dragon seeped back into the earth.
The bone dragon growled lowly, flapping its wings and glaring at Goti.
I waved my arm to turn its head away, then continued.
“Looks like this’ll take a while. How about the cathedral?”
“Sounds good. We’re all together—time to catch up.”
“Then…. Bone dragon! Head to the Burning Cathedral!”
-Kuaaaah!
* * * * *
After moving to the Burning Cathedral, we went to the innermost room and talked.
Kim Yeonhee gazed at Goti with eyes full of admiration. The assassin player everyone in this game dreamed of meeting.
“……Sorry, but can you move this girl aside?”
I pushed Kim Yeonhee’s head away with my finger.
“Step back a bit.”
“……Hey, why! I wanna talk to Goti too!”
“We’ll talk after.”
“Huh?! Separately?”
“Yeah. Right, Goti?”
Goti nodded reluctantly.
“See? So wait and we’ll talk later.”
“……Fine.”
Kim Yeonhee retreated with a sullen face. After sending her off, Jeongwoo and I started talking as a trio.
I spoke first.
“Where to start? So many questions.”
“We’ve got time, so ask slowly. No rush.”
“Hmm…. Ah! First off, why haven’t you met up with us until now? We could’ve cleared rounds faster together.”
“……Simple. My goal in this game was different from yours.”
“Hm? What’s that mean? You don’t wanna leave this game?”
“No, not that. Difference in how to end the game.”
Difference in how to end the game.
Since he moved with Yi Ryanghun, I could guess what that meant without more explanation.
“You were gonna kill them all.”
“……At first, yeah.”
“Okay, that makes sense. You being an assassin class and all.”
“Thanks for understanding.”
“Then next question. Why team up with Yi Ryanghun? Just because you saw eye to eye?”
He shook his head side to side at my question.
“No, not just that. He knew a way out of this game.”
“……”
“Until you found another way, I thought his plan was the only one.”
“Ah! So our ultimate goal was the same?”
“Yeah. Nobody wants to stay in a place like this forever.”
Jeongwoo, listening, tilted his head. He started to say something a few times, then finally blurted it out.
“So you’re joining us from now on?”
“……”
“Goti, you’re teaming up with us?”
Goti shook his head again.
“No. Sorry, but I’ll keep moving separately like now.”
“What?! Why?!”
“To reach the same final goal as you, I have my own preparations to make.”
“Preparations?”
“Yeah. We can’t repeat the mistake we made in the past this time.”
The conversation stopped.
Silence flowed.
The mistake he mentioned was unsealing Lucifer too early and wiping out all the other players.
The one and only mistake, unforgettable.
I cleared my throat a few times and said to him.
“That won’t happen again.”
“Don’t get complacent.”
“Of course.”
“……Your confidence is still as strong as ever.”
“Naturally. I learned it from you, after all.”
“……Puhaha!”
Goti burst out laughing. Watching him, I put a cigarette in my mouth.
“Want one?”
“Nah, I don’t smoke.”
“You look like you would.”
“Thinking I smoke just ‘cause I look rough is a logical error.”
“Heh…. True….”
I lit my cigarette and gave a wry smile.
“But really, was that the only reason you moved with Yi Ryanghun?”
“……Doesn’t seem like it?”
“Obviously not. If you’re the real Goti, he had to have some special info at minimum.”
“……”
“Like being connected to an operator. Or holding a core key as the ‘Opener’ of this game.”
Goti gave a subtle smile as he listened.
“As expected of Kim Cheonjae. Rank 1 isn’t handed out.”
“……One of my guesses hit?”
“Yeah.”
“Heh….”
I’d half-expected it.
Goti wasn’t one to show emotions lightly or team up without reason.
A thoroughly selfish guy who followed profit alone.
“His brother was one of this game’s operators, apparently.”
“……How’d you find out?”
“Ran into him in a dungeon. He attacked, so I was gonna take his breath.”
“Tell everything or die?”
Goti drew a dagger from his waist and showed the blade.
“Opposite. Spill everything you know or live in agony.”
“……You’re more of a perv than I thought.”
“Could be.”
“……Man, I like you too much. Your actions and personality fit us perfectly.”
“That’s why we stuck together so long.”
I got unexpected info.
Yi Ryanghun was connected to one of the operators, receiving secret special messages and learning ways out of the game.
And there was more than one way. Goti extracted all the info and then cut ties with him.
“So what now? Gonna move with us?”
“No, I plan to gather more data until you open the final round.”
“……I see.”
“And wait for the Royal Palace Hunter Jigun, who hasn’t met you yet.”
“……Jigun!”
Royal Palace Hunter Jigun.
The past master hunter who chose the orc race.
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say every player worldwide progressed using Jigun’s hunting methods and strategies.
I’d followed paths he paved more than once or twice, and the boss strategies I’d used earlier were his creations too.
A genius with unconventional ideas unlike ordinary people.
“Jigun’s in this game?”
“Yeah. Don’t know where exactly now. But one thing’s sure: he’s in this round.”
“……This round?!”
“Yeah.”
Unthinkable.
We thought we were leading the rounds, but someone arrived first.
‘Heh….’
I glanced at the remaining time. Not even a day since the mission started.
Plenty of time to search for Jigun.
“……Goti, mind giving me some info on Jigun?”