Chapter 209: Parting and Meeting
Chapter 209: Parting and Meeting
“You fucking son of a bitch! Stop spouting bullshit and hurry up… Huh? Huh?”
“This crazy bastard, really…!”
Thwack! Clatter!
A short shout was followed by a dull thud. I quickly turned my head to see a man with a nasty look on his face tumbling to the ground. Standing over him was another User, panting and breathing raggedly. Judging by the Golden Lion emblem on his clothes, he seemed to be a member of the Golden Lion Clan, chosen as a Discipline Instructor.
As if one punch wasn’t enough to vent his anger, the User began kicking the man on the ground.
“You—dare—defy—the Golden Lion Clan—in Barbara?”
“Khk, ack, ghk, ugh!”
The instructor’s voice broke with each kick he delivered. The man screamed in pain, naturally drawing the attention of those nearby. The general murmur was too loud for him to capture everyone’s attention, but it was enough to catch the eyes of the new Users trembling with anxiety nearby. And in the eyes of those watching, a flicker of fear appeared.
I couldn’t help but shake my head at the sight. Strictly speaking, Discipline Instructors were authorized to impose appropriate sanctions on people who continued to disobey legitimate orders to an excessive degree and incited the crowd. (Of course, even that had its limits.) It had been the same when I arrived in my second playthrough. Back then, Park Donggeol had been beaten and dragged to the center of the plaza, where he was humiliated in front of everyone.
However, considering the current situation, choosing to beat someone in a public place was a mistake.
These Users were like blank slates, having not yet experienced the Hall Plain firsthand. While oppression might work for a moment, it would also leave the new arrivals with the first impression that the people controlling them were vicious. It would have been better to beat him up in secret, as they had done with Park Donggeol, and then publicly explain the reason after the situation had been clarified.
In any case, I had a feeling the Golden Lion Clan would regret choosing that User as a Discipline Instructor. A quick glance told me he wasn’t a high-year User, but a moderately skilled second- or third-year User. A veteran would have handled the situation with more finesse, or perhaps subtly dragged the man to a secluded spot. But this instructor, far from grasping his clan’s current situation, seemed drunk on a sense of pride.
I felt a little pity for him, still buried in past glory and unable to wake up to reality. The Golden Lion Clan was not what it used to be. Back then, their pride as the top clan could cover anything, but now they had fallen to a state where they were just as hungry as any other clan. In other words, their lofty pride would no longer work. Considering the fierce competition among clans to recruit new Users, this was something to watch.
At least some of the other Discipline Instructors nearby had the sense to belatedly restrain their colleague. I was about to walk past when a good idea struck me. These new Users, these white canvases, were being stained by the Golden Lion Clan. It was unfortunate for them, but it could be an opportunity for me. I would have to compete with various clans behind the scenes for the next three months, so it seemed like a good idea to start building a positive image now.
I slowly walked toward them. Even while being beaten, the man was constantly running his mouth, shouting things like, “He’s hitting me!” and “Look at this!” Most people would quiet down after a few hits, but he seemed to have a stubborn streak. The Discipline Instructor seemed to have quite a temper himself, as he had even rolled up his sleeves.
Shaking off his colleagues, he drew his arm far back. Just as his fist was about to slam down on the man, who was struggling to his feet, I quickly stepped between them.
Smack!
The sound of the instructor’s fist meeting my palm rippled through the air. He must have put a lot of force into it, because the impact on my hand was quite heavy. I could also feel a faint magical reaction. I let out a silent, humorless laugh. No matter how justified the control, this had clearly crossed the line.
“Wh-what! Who are you!”
“Huh…? Hey!”
The instructor who had just thrown the punch seemed a bit startled, his voice high as he turned his head. Slender fingers quickly grabbed his shoulder. The female colleague who had been trying to stop him recognized my face and cried out in shock. A second or two passed. She immediately smacked the instructor on the back of the head and let out a horrified shriek.
“Ah, fuck… Why’d you suddenly hit…”
“Shut up, you fucking idiot. The Mercenary…”
She cursed loud enough for me to hear, then glanced at me before grabbing the instructor’s ear and whispering to him. Soon, his fuming face slowly began to change into a flustered expression. Only after watching his expression shift did I speak in a calm voice.
“I came because of the commotion. What’s all the noise about?”
“Gr-greetings, Mercenary Lord. Ah, that’s not it… This man was disobeying orders and being incredibly loud…”
“Even so, that punch just now didn’t seem very light. It was strong enough to seriously injure a new User.”
“N-no… It’s just… There were so many people acting out of line… Th-that…”
Finally seeming to come to his senses, he stammered, his face pale. My goal wasn’t to push these two into a corner, so I figured it was best to let it go at this point.
“Alright, I understand. Since I’m also involved here, I should help with the situation. It looks like you’re short on hands.”
“Th-thank you. Hoho. The number of new arrivals was much higher than we expected.”
As the male instructor hesitated, the female User beside him quickly interjected. I nodded once and turned to the side. There, the man was sitting on the ground, staring at us with a dazed expression.
“Please, get up. Are you alright?”
I offered him my hand. A look of surprise flashed across the man’s face. He seemed to hesitate for a moment before finally taking my hand. The instant he did, I tightened my grip and forcefully pulled him to his feet.
“Sh-shit. Who the hell are you… Gasp!”
The man I pulled up was quite brawny. He looked to be well over 190 centimeters tall, and his upper body was packed with bulky muscle. When I effortlessly lifted a man of his size with just one hand, small gasps of surprise erupted from the crowd.
After staring at me with a confused expression for a moment, the large man coughed loudly and spoke.
“H-hey! Are you this guy’s superior? Where the hell is this place that I have to go through this shit? Huh? W-we had to survive for a whole week in that strange place, the Rite… of Pa… what? We had to survive against monsters!”
“Th-that’s right! Where are we? Isn’t this South Korea? Japan? No, are we even on Earth?”
“Send me home! Please, please send me home!”
“Where is this place… I barely survived… Mom… Dad… I miss you… Waaah…”
Seeing me handle the two instructors, the crowd must have thought I was someone important. Starting with the large man, a flood of questions erupted. I waited patiently for their voices to die down. Soon, someone started crying, drawing everyone’s attention for a moment. I used that opening to speak in a calm voice.
“You’ve gone through the Rite of Passage and met the angels, so I don’t believe you are completely clueless. Of course, I understand your current confusion.”
“Yeah! They called it a Rite of Passage!” the man growled in response.
I shot him a glare with a faint hint of killing intent in my eyes and saw him flinch. After confirming this, I slowly retracted my killing intent and continued.
“Let me tell you one thing. We who are here now are in the same situation as all of you. We went through a similar Rite of Passage, met the angels, and entered this place called the Hall Plain. The only difference is whether we arrived earlier or later.”
I spoke softly, but I had imbued my voice with magic, so everyone should have heard me clearly. A sudden silence fell over the noisy Users. After a moment, I sensed someone cautiously raising a hand off to one side.
“Th-then, does that mean we can’t go home? Is there still more to come?”
A young-sounding voice, tinged with tears, reached my ears. Answering this question could lead to a long explanation, so I thought it best to be brief. I shook my head slowly and spoke with more force in my voice.
“An explanation regarding that will be given shortly. We will soon move to another location and explain the current situation in detail. In a chaotic situation like this, you won’t be able to hear anything anyway. So even if you’re curious, please be patient for a little while longer and follow the guidance of the Discipline Instructors for now.”
When I finished speaking, I could feel the commotion subsiding, though not completely. The Discipline Instructors standing next to me had embarrassed expressions. To be honest, I felt a little bad. The male instructor had created an atmosphere of fear by beating the man, and I had just slipped in and resolved the situation. Of course, my own abilities played a part, but in the end, life is all about timing.
Once things seemed to have settled down, I turned to face the two instructors.
“I have a question. There aren’t many officials in the plaza. What’s going on?”
“Ah, well, an unexpectedly large number of new Users have arrived. We’ve requested support from the Clan House, but for now, we’re making do with the personnel in the plaza…”
“Hmm. I see. Understood. Then please proceed with the escort.”
“Yes. Thank you for your help.”
The two of them bowed their heads in gratitude. I caught a glimpse of their necks, which were slightly red, as if they were embarrassed. I nodded and stepped aside to let them take control. The two instructors resumed their duties. The new Users still looked anxious, but they were comparatively calmer than before.
I took a few steps back to survey the overall situation. As support personnel began to arrive one by one, the chaos gradually subsided. The murmuring remained, but the situation had improved from a complete madhouse to just barely controlled chaos.
Soon, I saw the entrance to the fifth inn open for the last time. A crowd of over fifty people began to pour out. I was worried that the influx of additional people would throw the plaza back into chaos just as it was starting to stabilize.
However, there seemed to be some experienced Users among them, as they quickly brought the situation under control. After watching for a moment, I slowly turned away. With this, all five inns had opened. All that was left was to go to the plaza and wait.
*
Barbara Central Plaza. About forty minutes later, the first column of new Users began to arrive. I had expected it to take at least an hour, so the speed was unexpected. The atmosphere was also completely different from before. The thick anxiety that had been present when I was there had now dissipated considerably, to the point where it was almost gone.
As I tilted my head in confusion, I saw Park Hyunwoo and Sung Yubin entering the central stage from a side path. They soon spotted me standing on the stage and, after a light greeting, began to speak.
“Mercenary Lord. You’re here early.”
“No. I should have been here before the portal closed, but I was delayed by some circumstances.”
“It’s fine. You’re still plenty early.”
Park Hyunwoo shook his head with a bitter expression and turned his gaze toward the plaza stairs. I followed his line of sight and saw the instructors sorting the new Users by class and seating them on different levels.
One of the female Users slipped out of the group and came scurrying over to where Park Hyunwoo and I were standing. She looked familiar, and upon closer inspection, I realized she was the User who had been trying to stop the agitated Discipline Instructor earlier.
She looked startled to see me standing next to Park Hyunwoo. I gave her a reassuring nod and took a step back, signaling for her to speak comfortably. After clearing her throat once or twice at my consideration, she began to report in a dainty voice.
“Personnel report. Inn 1: 47. Inn 2: 51. Inn 3: 52. Inn 4: 50. Inn 5: 52. Total is 252.”
“That’s a lot. It’s a far cry from four years ago, but compared to recent arrivals, it seems to be nearly double. Do you happen to know the difference?”
“Eh, th-that is…”
The woman stammered, flustered, as if she didn’t know that information. Just then, Sung Yubin, who had been standing quietly behind us, spoke up.
“Inn 1 had 19, Inn 2 had 43, Inn 3 had 22, Inn 4 had 29, and Inn 5 had 17, for a total of 130.”
Ah. She must be talking about when I arrived. Park Hyunwoo nodded once or twice before continuing.
“What’s the breakdown by class?”
“Melee Combat Class: 126. Ranged Combat Class: 59. Magic-Talent Class: 38. Priest Class: 29. We have not yet identified the specifics for Secret, Rare, and other classes. Ah. And there is one unusual matter to report.”
“Unusual matter?”
When Park Hyunwoo repeated the question, the woman turned her head toward the stairs. Her eyes darted around as if searching for someone, then she raised her finger and pointed. Her lips parted slightly.