Chapter 300: Butterfly Effect
Chapter 300: Butterfly Effect
“Pant, pant, pant, pant!”
A man was running for his life through the forest. After a long sprint, his feet seemed to tangle, and he pitched forward. He must have built up incredible momentum, because he tumbled three or four times before his body finally came to a stop.
“Kugh… Mmph!”
He let out a pained groan before hastily clamping a hand over his mouth. His face was contorted in agony and cold sweat poured down his brow, but though his hand trembled violently, he refused to move it. Soon, as the shaking subsided, the man slowly lowered his hand.
“Hah…”
As if afraid someone might hear, the man took a shallow breath. He tried to stand, but immediately collapsed back to the ground. His gaze fell to his ankle. It was swollen, likely from when he had tripped and fallen. But there was something strange. Normally, a swollen injury would turn red or a sickly yellow, but his ankle had turned a dark, bruised blue.
“Damn bastards…”
The man muttered a curse and fumbled through his pockets. All the while, his head darted around, cautiously scanning for any sign of pursuit.
He was in a wretched state. He wore thick leather armor, but it was severely scorched and torn in various places. It was so tattered that it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it a rag. Moreover, blood was seeping through the tears in his armor, and there was a lot of it. The injuries were too severe to have been caused by scrapes or the fall; it was clear he had been intentionally attacked.
“Ugh… Ugh…”
The man poured a potion he’d retrieved from his pocket onto his ankle. As the swelling began to subside, he sprinkled the rest of it over the wounds on his body. When only a mouthful was left, he brought it to his lips. Gulp. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed, and he immediately pushed himself to his feet. Wounds were still visible here and there, but his expression was far more relaxed than before. The man started running again.
After about an hour, he reached a quiet, narrow path and suddenly stopped. He immediately dropped into a crouch and ducked into a dark spot. Peeking out, he fixed his gaze in one direction. The moment a blue light flickered in his eyes, a group of people appeared from the other end of the path.
The man watched them, his face tense. There were six Users in total. He slowly scanned them from head to toe, and a flicker of hope crossed his face. He immediately stood up and scrambled toward them.
“Wait, just a moment! Pant, pant.”
“Everyone, halt.”
“Excuse me, are you members of Mule's representative clan, Paradise on Earth?”
“…”
The six Users reacted swiftly. The moment the man ran out, they had assumed a defensive posture. The User in the lead watched the man for a moment before slowly raising a hand. He seemed to have concluded that the man, in his current state, posed no threat.
“We are. But… you seem to be badly injured. Let’s get you treated first…”
“No! I’m fine! For now… for now, we have to get back to the city, quickly!”
“Hmm…? Why do we need to return to the city?”
“Something terrible is happening in the forest! My companions were all killed, and I barely escaped! We have to warn the city before they track me down!”
At the man’s desperate cry, the Users exchanged glances. Just then, a voice drifted from among them, “Looks like we found him.” The man’s eyes widened. As a priestess began to chant and slowly approached him, a look of terror flashed across his face. Before he could even stumble back, the priestess’s staff was aimed at him.
“───. ───. ───. Cure.”
“Huh…?”
The man opened his mouth, a look of confusion on his face. The priestess tucked her long, straight hair behind her ear and spoke gently.
“I know. So please, don’t worry too much.”
“What…?”
“We’ve been getting a strange number of missing person reports since last week. We’re the investigation team sent by the representative clan to look into the Black Forest. We just left this morning; I didn’t expect we’d find a lead so quickly.”
“Then…!”
“Yes. It seems you know something about the disappearances. Would you be willing to tell us?”
The man looked as if he was about to burst into tears. He seemed overcome with the relief of having finally been saved, but he quickly glanced behind him. Then, he nodded with grim determination and said—or rather, tried to say.
“I understand. But first, we need to get out of here…”
Whizz! Thwack!
“Gah!”
A faint sound cut through the air, and in the next instant, the priestess’s forehead split open as the sharp tip of a sword burst through. She collapsed with a single scream, and the man reflexively caught her body.
“Heeseon!”
“Dammit, it’s an ambush! Stay sharp!”
“Bro! What about the man and Heeseon…?”
“Get the man, leave the body! Move it!”
Amid the Users’ frantic shouts, the man sank to the ground, his legs having given out. The priestess’s body fell face down, revealing the gaping wound at the back of her head. For a simple thrown dagger, the force behind it was immense.
As the warm blood from her head soaked into the ground, the man could feel it clearly—the presence of dozens of figures rushing through the dense undergrowth nearby.
*
I was dragged all the way to the warehouse before I finally came to my senses. In front of me, my brother’s eyes were burning with intensity as he scanned the equipment. He looked like a man on a mission, determined to protect his younger brother at all costs.
As I watched him meticulously select piece after piece of gear, I had to work hard to explain the equipment I was already wearing. The TOPG, the Orthros Long Boots, and even the Glory of Heaven and Glory of the Sun—I had to explain and explain until my mouth was dry.
After some time, my brother seemed to have a decent understanding of my gear. I probably should have stopped after explaining that my magic defense was incredibly high. But I just had to add an unnecessary remark.
My brother thought for a moment, then asked, “Then what about your physical defense?” I replied that I had a Coat of Plates but wasn’t wearing it because it was cumbersome. That was my mistake. His hands, which had briefly paused, began moving with renewed speed.
If Jinha hadn’t come in with Victoria’s Glory, the Haemil Clan’s entire stock of swordsman equipment might have been cleaned out that day. I’m not kidding.
In the end, after over two hours of bickering, I was finally able to escape the warehouse.
And now, we were back at the table. Three pieces of equipment shimmered beautifully upon it. One was a pair of elegant earrings that glowed with a pure white light. Another was a soft-looking t-shirt that emitted a gentle golden sheen. The last was a sleeveless garment worn over the shoulders, a cloak that rippled with the light of a calm sea.
All three items had an appraisal mark on them. I let out a soft sigh and looked up to see my brother’s still-dissatisfied face, and beyond him, the Haemil Clan members shaking their heads.
When he saw me staring blankly, my brother quickly fixed his expression and offered an awkward smile. He gave me a slight nod, as if telling me to read the descriptions. I licked my lips and activated Third Eye.
『Victoria’s Glory』
(General Description: This is the ‘King’s Sword,’ symbolizing the Kingdom of Victoria, which was called the strongest nation in a distant, ancient era. Countless kingdoms have risen and fallen, but Victoria was one of the longest-surviving. People from other kingdoms called them a ‘warrior race’ due to their belligerent nature. Although they fell into decline after 200 years of reckless wars of conquest, it is undeniable that Victoria was once a prosperous nation that aimed to unify the Hall Plain continent. ‘Victoria’s Glory’ is a historic sword passed down through the royal family, and legend says that only one with the qualities of a king can draw out its true power.)
(Detailed Description: 1. As the King’s Sword passed down through generations, it possesses immense pride. It judges and chooses its own master. If one worthy of being its master appears, it will release its earring form and reveal its true shape as a sword. (It can be converted back into an earring at the wearer’s will.) 2. Stamina increases by 2 points. (However, this effect will not apply if the wearer’s Stamina already exceeds 95 points when first equipped.) 3. It invigorates the wearer’s body. Physical activity and the flow of magic power become much freer (this does not signify a stat increase). It provides partial resistance against malicious energies like curses, miasma, and other malevolent energies attempting to invade the body. 4. When its true form is revealed, the wearer can exude an aura of dignity (Charisma) based on their Magic Power stat. 5. When its true form is revealed, the wearer can use the sword’s latent ability, ‘Sword Flash.’)
『Noble Mithril Shirt』
『Blue Dragon Knight’s Cloak』
Whoa.
Reading the description, my jaw dropped. I had seen the Noble Mithril Shirt and the Blue Dragon Knight's Cloak in my first playthrough. But now that I thought about it, I had no memory of Victoria’s Glory. I looked up, wondering what was going on, and saw my brother wearing an expression that said, “What do you think? You like it, right?”
“Hyung, this…”
“It’s fine. Take it. The sword is so proud that it hasn’t accepted anyone in our clan.”
“Still… it might not accept me either.”
“Take it anyway. Just wearing it as an earring gives you a pretty good effect. Oh, your Stamina isn’t over 95, is it?”
I nodded silently. The mention of the Stamina stat made me suddenly curious about my brother’s Player Status. Third Eye was still active. I immediately looked at him.
Player Status
1. Name: Kim Yoohyun (Year 2 User)
2. Class: Thunder Emperor (Secret, Lord of Thunder, Master)
3. Nation: Barbara
4. Clan: Haemil (Clan Rank: Under evaluation.)
5. True Name · Nationality: He Who Governs Thunder and Lightning, Doting Brother · Republic of Korea
6. Sex: Male (26)
7. Height · Weight: 180.7cm · 70.8kg
8. Alignment: Blood and Iron · Cool
[Strength 70] [Durability 87] [Agility 88] [Stamina 97] [Magic Power 97(+2)] [Luck 94]
(Remaining stat points: 0)
Stat Comparison
1. Kim Soohyun: 562 Points.
[Strength 96(+2)] [Durability 92] [Agility 98] [Stamina 90] [Magic Power 96] [Luck 90(+2)]
(Remaining stat points are free stat points, totaling 6.)
2. Kim Yoohyun: 533 Points.
[Strength 70] [Durability 87] [Agility 88] [Stamina 97] [Magic Power 97(+2)] [Luck 94]
(Remaining stat points: 0)
?
The first thing that came to mind when I saw my brother’s stats was a question mark. No, honestly, I was completely bewildered. While the total stat points were important, mages generally had high Magic Power at the cost of lower physical stats. Judging them by their total stats was foolish.
But even so… for a mage, these stats were shocking.
Is this why he was so incredibly agile…?
I was so stunned I didn’t even think to look at his achievements or his unique, special, and latent abilities. As I stood there with my mouth agape, Jinha’s gentle voice reached me.
“It’s all right, Young Lo— Mercenary Lord. We already settled this in the warehouse. You don’t need to feel so burdened. We had planned to sell several pieces of equipment to obtain an Elixir, and some were already at auction. Now we can retrieve all of them. Looked at that way, this has reduced our expenses as well.”
“That’s right. To be honest, I was a little reluctant to part with the Clan Lord’s equipment that raises Agility and Luck. In any case, this worked out well.”
It’s not that I feel burdened… but what did he just say?
You mean his Agility and Luck go up even more from there? Of course, my Stamina would go up if I took Victoria’s Glory, but the surprise didn’t fade.
“Really, Soohyun. I’m just sorry I couldn’t give you more.”
“N-No. This is more than enough.”
“Good. If you had refused, I was going to force you to wear it anyway, so I’m glad. Now, why don’t you place your hand on Victoria’s Glory? I’m curious to see what happens.”
“…”
I suddenly felt a cold sweat run down my back. My brother was smiling brightly, adding words of encouragement, telling me not to be too disappointed even if it didn’t work. I glanced to the side and saw Ahn Sol watching me with sparkling eyes, and two others covering their mouths, looking like they were about to die from laughter. It felt like meeting my brother had caused all the dignity I’d built up as a Clan Lord to come crumbling down. I sighed again.
“Huu. Don’t get your hopes up.”
“I know. It rejected me, after all. Still, I think you can do it, Soohyun. So don’t feel too pressured. Haha.”
What was he even talking about? Was he telling me to feel pressured or not?
I slowly raised my hand and gently placed it on the earring. At that moment.
Vmmm!
It didn’t even take a second. The moment my hand touched it, the earring transformed into a sword as if it had been waiting. On the table now lay a sleek, majestic sword, exuding a soft white glow and showing off its form. Stunned, I looked up and saw the others mirroring the exact expression I had worn just moments before. Including my brother.
*
“Soohyun! I’ll come to Monica soon!”
“Soohyun. My brother-in-law is calling for you.”
“Let’s pretend we didn’t hear him.”
“Soohyun! You have to take care of yourself! You must! Soohyun!”
The louder my brother’s voice got, the faster I walked.
After the compensation issue was settled, I immediately said my goodbyes. My brother tried his best to keep me there, insisting I stay for dinner, but I flatly refused, using the excuse that I had work to do. It was, in every sense, for my own good.
He was the brother I had so desperately wanted to see, and it wasn’t that I didn’t want to spend more time with him. But I was afraid of what would happen if I gave in and stayed a little longer. I had a feeling that if I started leaning on him once, I would do it a second and a third time. I didn’t start my second playthrough just to be protected by my brother again.
In any case, my reunion with my brother was over. But there were still a couple of unresolved issues.
The first issue was that the User I had saved was the Guardian of the Northern Continent. The second was whether to tell my brother the truth. I had considered both, but for now I decided to defer the decision. Hyoeul would not wake until she had recovered from the aftereffects to some degree, and I possessed at least a little information about the Guardian.
Saving the Guardian of the Northern Continent. Hyoeul’s and Ahn Sol’s True Names. And finally, telling my brother the truth.
For these three things, it seemed better to take my time and think deeply rather than making a decision based on my current emotions. And to do that, I needed to resolve the matter at hand first.
First, let’s finish recruiting the old man.
Yes. For now, we had confirmed that we were both alive. That was enough.
I must have been there for quite a while, because the sun, which had been high in the sky, was now beginning to glow with the colors of sunset. It was time to head to the Warp Gate.
“Soohyun! I’ll just walk you there! Huh? Just to the gate…!”
“I told you not to come out!”
In the end, I broke into a run.