Thanks to Ju Donghyeon

It was thanks to Ju Donghyeon.

A man who held both Future Sight and Clairvoyance could fairly be called capable. No — it would not be too much to call him the most absurdly overpowered player in the Tower of Infinity. The only flaw was that none of it was combat power.

Lucky.

If Hong Yeji had not prattled on and on about the Kingdom of Sitahel at the very start, he never would have put Ju Donghyeon in his debt.

Yujun also checked the effect of the Legendary title he had just obtained.

Fitting for a Legendary title, the effect was entirely to his liking.

"Mr. Ju Donghyeon."

"Yes."

"It seems the mastermind is in the Koruna Kingdom."

"So I heard."

"What do you intend to do?"

"The Koruna Kingdom is vast. I can't pursue revenge right away."

"Not right away... so you're taking the long view?"

At Yujun's question, Ju Donghyeon nodded.

That was when Hong Yeji spoke.

"Donghyeon. Couldn't you go see your father, just once?"

"......"

Ju Donghyeon's expression darkened. Any mention of his father brought that look to his face.

"I-I'm not forcing you. But I agreed to take the request for a huge sum of money, so I might end up in a bit of a tight spot..."

Hong Yeji pleaded, earnest. When even Yujun — who had arranged to take half that money — turned his eyes on Ju Donghyeon, the man nodded as if he had no choice.

"All right. I'll go. But not immediately. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Even if I do, it will be after I've confirmed Christina's condition."

"Of course! You don't look like someone who'd break a promise, so I'll trust you, okay?"

"Yes."

Hong Yeji broke into a brilliant smile.

A question occurred to Yujun then, and he turned to her.

"Would you mind showing me a skill?"

"A ski...ll? Why all of a sudden?"

"I'm curious. I've never actually seen you use one."

Hong Yeji hesitated. She seemed a little reluctant to show her skills. But without Yujun's help, she never would have completed the mission at all, and at last she nodded.

"Fine. Showing a skill isn't hard."

"Make it your signature one."

"I only have the one skill anyway. Well — strictly speaking, not just one, but you have to use the two of them back to back for them to really work."

"Is that so?"

"Yep."

She didn't seem to be lying.

"Oh. So this is it?"

"Yep."

"An ability that finds weak points... That's a good skill."

"The top rankers always call me in whenever they run a boss raid. They pay well, too."

"If I called, would you come?"

"Yes! Of course. So long as you pay me..."

Hong Yeji smiled, sweet and calculating. Perhaps because she was so small and compact, he couldn't quite bring himself to dislike it.

"Well, that's simple enough. I'll call if I need you."

"You've got a lot of money, don't you, Yujun?"

"I do."

"I thought so."

"What made you think that?"

"You're strong! Get strong, and the money just follows. Not that it compares to people who actually run businesses, but..."

"Businesses?"

"There are people who operate guilds, or manage merchant companies. Those types handle truly astronomical sums."

"What do they even do with that many points?"

"Money calls money. They pile up more points. You can get good items on the black market, or buy something later at an event the System hosts."

"Hoh..."

Stack points that way, and you really could pull several steps ahead of everyone else. They said the gap between rich and poor on the Continent — the residential zone of the Tower of Infinity — was even starker than on Earth.

"Let's head for the Kingdom of Sitahel. We should see what's become of the plague."

The others nodded.

It took about half a day to reach the Kingdom of Sitahel, and only because the party ran at full speed.

"Whoa."

"They're really back?"

Dwarves lay sprawled all through the Kingdom of Sitahel — not in the monstrous shapes the plague had twisted them into, but restored to their original forms.

Hong Yeji let out a breath of relief.

"Thank goodness. So we weren't wasting our time after all."

Beside her, Ju Donghyeon's face was bright with feeling.

"I-I'll go on ahead."

With only those words, he ran for the cathedral. As he should. Yujun swept his gaze over the surroundings.

"Looks like nothing can be done for the dwarf zombies who were already dead."

"Seems that way."

"Would've been better if we'd found a way to end the plague a little sooner."

"Even this is a good outcome. Everyone worked hard. Especially you, Yujun."

"Me? Hardly."

Hong Yeji and Shin Jiwon had fought hard too, but neither compared to Yujun.

"Jiwon, where are you headed?"

"Hmm... dungeon runs, probably. Once I find a party."

"Be careful. I hear a lot of players are pulling robberies these days."

"Yeah."

"Where are you going, Yujun?"

"Mm. I'll think about it. Haven't decided yet."

"So we split up here?"

"Yes."

"Message me and I'll answer the second it comes in, so don't hesitate to reach out. Got it?"

"Yeah, yeah."

"And don't forget to have the points ready!"

Yujun let out a short laugh.

"See you later."

The moment he parted from the others, Yujun headed straight for the Koruna Kingdom. In truth, he had something to do: uncover what had really happened with the plague.

He had not believed everything the Plague had told him then. Even if those words were true, what the thing knew might not be the whole of it. That was why he meant to look a little deeper.

It just doesn't sit right.

He couldn't shake the sense that some enormous mastermind lay behind it all. Spreading a plague for no better reason than a trade agreement falling through.

Well, maybe. But I doubt that was the only reason.

He had never been the sort who could leave a curiosity alone.

I've already looked into the Koruna Kingdom. And my strength is more than enough now.

Yujun was confident. The Plague and the Bulk had possessed power on par with greater demons, and even they had failed to withstand a single one of his attacks. He had not even fought at full strength. Whatever danger he was dragged into, he had a way back out of it. There was no reason to hesitate.

He arrived at the capital of the Koruna Kingdom. From his inventory Yujun drew a mask that covered his entire face, and a cloak both thick and oversized — things that would hide who he was. Masked and cloaked, he went to the royal palace.

The palace was incomparably larger than the one in the Kingdom of Sitahel. The gap in national power between the two was unmistakable.

They said the Kingdom of Sitahel, a nation of dwarves, holds a somewhat special place — but it's still closer to a minor kingdom.

The Koruna Kingdom, by contrast, was a great power. Every race lived gathered there, and the country had both military strength and money. Somewhere in this place was the one who had ordered the plague unleashed.

The Root of Darkness... a name I'd never heard.

He had played War of the Gods for a long time, and even so, Yujun had little idea what the Root of Darkness was. He didn't know how to use the Root of Darkness sitting in his inventory, either. Trying to check the item's information only returned that it was impossible, by the System's own rules. He had no intention of digging too deeply in any case. If things went wrong, he was prepared to simply run — and he was just as prepared for the opposite.

Maybe I should start with Marquis Lucas.

The man himself had claimed he'd given the order to the Plague. Pry into the marquis, and something was bound to come out. Now he had to get into the palace, and he could not simply walk in.

My level's past 250, so...

Yujun drew one more item from his inventory.

A remarkably useful item. He had favored it for infiltration work back in the game. Spending a Rainbow Sticker on it had felt like a waste, so he had never equipped it until now — but with his level past 250, he could wear it at no cost at all.

Yujun slipped on the Invisibility Ring and infiltrated the palace. Not a single player standing guard noticed he was there. Thanks to the ring he entered without spilling a drop of blood, and the first place he sought was the grand council chamber.

The reason was simple. The most eminent nobles of the Koruna Kingdom were said to be gathered in the palace at that very moment. With the plague sweeping the Kingdom of Sitahel, the matter was hardly someone else's problem, and they had convened to settle on a response. That council had dragged on ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠for days without progress.

The palace was so vast that finding the chamber cost him real effort. He found it all the same.

Is Marquis Lucas in there?

No one had noticed him yet. Step inside, though, and the odds of being caught climbed sharply. Too many skilled players were gathered within; he had to be as careful as he could. Yujun pressed his ear to the chamber door.

"A lamentable affair, granted, but what can we do? We, at least, must see to our own defenses."

"Which is exactly what I'm asking. How do we mean to defend ourselves?"

"The plague will not spread this far regardless. Do not trouble yourselves."

"And how can you be so certain of that, Marquis Lucas? You know the plague's contagion as well as any of us."

"I do, but... we've been perfectly fine until now, haven't we? And the Kingdom of Sitahel sealed itself off quite thoroughly."

"Have you not heard from the relief forces? They say the monsters there exceed all bounds of common sense."

"Even that remains within what we can control. We are not a small country like the Kingdom of Sitahel."

"Which is precisely why it is worse. Because we are not a small country, the moment the plague reaches us, it will be the end. Beyond any recovery."

A smile touched Marquis Lucas's lips.

"If you are truly so uneasy, let us bar outsiders from entering for a time."

"A lockdown, you mean?"

"Yes. Is there any method more certain than that?"

"And what if we end up like the Kingdom of Sitahel for nothing? Should the plague begin to spread from within..."

"Set your mind at ease. That will never happen."

"Marquis Lucas. By any chance..."

"Now, now. We will end today's meeting here."

"Y-Your Majesty! We still have no proper measure in place..."

"We shall think on it ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠tomorrow. That will be all for today."

"...Understood."

And so the meeting came to an end.

Listening from outside the chamber, Yujun smiled faintly.

So the Plague wasn't lying outright.

Nobles began to emerge from the grand council chamber. Yujun drew back and studied each face as it passed. Then, all at once, he caught sight of a noble who looked like a rat. No — the man seemed in fact to be a beastman of the rodent kind.

Marquis Lucas.

The waiting was over. Yujun fell in behind Marquis Lucas as ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the man moved off with his secretary.