Chapter 20
Chapter 20
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 20
Chapter Title: To Trinsic! (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
‘But there’s something I need to take care of first.’
He had finished preparing to head to Trinsic at any moment, but there was still one task left.
Selling the secret dungeon.
He hadn’t expected to leave Kton so soon, but fortunately, he had set the auction deadline to just one day. Otherwise, he would have had to go to Trinsic and then come all the way back to Kton just to handle the dungeon sale.
‘Well, it wouldn’t matter if I got a Rune Book.’
If he bought a Rune Book that let him save locations and teleport to them, spatial limitations wouldn’t be an issue anymore. Unfortunately, Rune Books were only sold in second-tier cities like Trinsic. Even if he went to Trinsic and bought one, he’d still have to come back since he hadn’t saved Kton’s location yet.
The cost to buy and use a Rune Book wasn’t cheap either, but above all, time was precious. Would he really need to return to Kton after leaving?
‘By then, inter-village teleportation will probably be updated.’
Technically, he could just tell them how to enter the secret dungeon, but the standard trading method was to demonstrate it in person. Who would prepay for unverified info? On the flip side, they could pretend not to know after getting the details.
‘Contracts will be updated soon, so I’ll put up with it just this once.’
Contract items would be added soon, enabling trades with various conditions, but for now, direct deals were the safest.
‘My login time’s almost up anyway…’
Right on cue, his login restriction was nearly over, meaning he’d have to wait at least five hours before reconnecting.
Rokan had always maxed out his login time, building up considerable fatigue. He figured it was a good chance to rest and do some shopping.
‘Let’s log out for now.’
He parked his character in a corner of the city and logged out.
* * *
Vrrr!
The capsule vibrated, and Young-min’s eyes snapped open.
The capsule was still filled with its special solution. He pressed a button, and the level dropped rapidly.
Once the solution drained, warm air blew out, quickly drying his damp clothes. Since he’d entered in just his underwear, there wasn’t much to dry anyway.
“Wish the capsule suit would come out sooner.”
A dedicated suit for entering capsules was set to launch soon, but it wasn’t available yet.
Young-min quickly grabbed his clothes and put them on, then turned on his computer with his toe. He wanted to check the response to his post.
He could check in-game, but he hated wasting login time on that.
The Lord’s homepage loaded, and Young-min headed straight to the trading board.
“Huh?”
Opening the board, Young-min looked mildly surprised. His post was in the “Hot Posts” section.
Was it because of all the phoenix accusations? Then he noticed the title of another post right below it.
[Secret Dungeon Discovered! There Are Hidden Dungeons Beyond the Public Ones – Honorary Reporter ‘Kruang’s Secret Dungeon Conquest Tale]
‘This is already out?’
Kruang, an honorary reporter for a famous gaming webzine and a “fun gamer,” had revealed secret dungeon info in travelogue style.
Of course, it was a different starting zone from Kton, where Young-min—Rokan—was.
Thanks to that, Young-min’s post, which could’ve been dismissed as bait or scam, was blowing up. Since it was uploaded even earlier than Kruang’s travelogue, suspicions of it being fake had largely faded.
-낙낙: This is legit. Public dungeons aren’t all there is
-방태전사: For real? This scam one-day two-day crap
-어태커: Didn’t see Kruang’s post but secret dungeons are real. Not sure about this one though.
-덜덜덜: This posted before Kruang. Maybe Kruang made a burner to post it?
-차미슬: Nah above. Different secret dungeon from Kruang’s, mobs are different from the start.
-샴샤르: If real, total honey pot. Why sell? If it was me I’d farm skeleton warrior sets and suck the honey dry.
-크앙: Hello, Kruang here! From my experience, this post seems highly credible. Purchase might be tough but if group coverage is possible, please contact me!
-람세스: Sent you a PM.
-헬라딘: Please check PM
-최고가 매입: PM sent. I’ll pay 5% more than anyone else.
Some envied, some coveted, some were jealous. Plenty expressed interest in buying. Over half were probably jokes or scams, but his inbox was full enough to require pagination.
Sorting buyers by ID alone wasn’t easy, but Young-min wasn’t worried. He recognized a few familiar IDs.
“These guys won’t scam me.”
Top of his list to filter: self-proclaimed “guilds” who rushed to form guilds the moment the system updated.
He knew some from his past life, so selling to one of them would do.
Of course, after login restrictions lifted, but for now, he kept a few PMs and deleted the rest. Then he compared offers.
“Filter out the idiots first.”
Most offered game money or cash, but some tacked on ridiculous extras—like equivalent items since they lacked funds, or busing them for quick leveling.
They were all active in second cities, so they could say that, but Young-min—who’d raided Savage Village to hit level 35 while wielding Berserk and confident he wouldn’t lose below level 100—scoffed.
After excluding mismatched conditions and wrong-region players, two remained.
“Guess it’s this one.”
Young-min chose MP Guild. Not Mana Point from RPGs, but Manner Play.
True to the name, they helped newbies, hunted PKers, etc. Not powerhouse strong, but they maintained a good rep for a decent while.
They’d never clashed with Rokan in his past life.
“Fits too perfectly. Kinda creepy.”
Sending the confirmation PM with trade details and meetup spot, Rokan lightly shuddered at how smoothly things were falling into place since regressing.
Was it okay for things to go this well?
It was almost unnerving, but he decided not to over-worry. He’d already lived the worst. What mattered was having the power to break through the worst.
What if Rokan had overwhelming power back then?
Stronger than the King of Genesis, able to crush guilds even if they swarmed...
Young-min’s eyes gleamed coldly.
“Time to shop anyway.”
He wasn’t a foodie; something tasty and nutritious would do. Normally he’d bulk-buy online, but today he felt like getting some fresh air.
* * *
Throwing on some clothes, he stepped out into the slightly chilly evening breeze brushing his cheek.
SSM was about a 10-minute walk.
He moved during login restrictions, but he’d lost a lot of muscle compared to early days. He figured walking this much was the least he could do for his conscience, even if proper workouts were out.
It was late September now. Right after semester start, the street by his school should be bustling, but surprisingly, it was quiet.
‘Should be mid-semester… Oh, probably The Lord.’
Like streets emptying after popular dramas aired post-work, small businesses complained about reduced outdoor activity and spending due to The Lord’s popularity. He vaguely recalled the news.
“How many levels you hit yesterday?”
“Lv2!”
“Lucky. I grinded to death for barely Lv1. Level gap?”
“Your controls suck, kekeke.”
Even the few on the street talked only The Lord. University district might be extra sensitive, but he felt the hype.
Walking along, a familiar face appeared ahead.
‘Who was that?’
Long wavy hair loose, a subtly sexy face men liked. Of the couple-looking pair, the woman was familiar.
Weird. He didn’t know many women.
Slowing, he stared. She noticed and turned, face stiffening.
‘Ah…’
He remembered. Ex-girlfriend Im Soo-hee, who cheated and dumped him.
He hadn’t seen or contacted her since regressing, completely forgotten until now.
Four months for her, but for him—including past life—a forgotten relic from years ago.
‘What now.’
No thoughts, no feelings, but tricky to judge. They’d parted badly.
Come to think, the guy next to her rang a bell too. The affair partner, now her boyfriend.
‘He played The Lord a bit, right?’
Memories surfaced. Yeah, this guy played The Lord too. Local expert level at best, but since ex ‘girlfriend’ Im Soo-hee loved games and her ideal guy was ‘better gamer than her,’ he must be decent.
The Lord was perfect for flirty couple play, a solid date spot.
‘Yeah, this direction…’
Coincidentally, they headed not toward capsule rooms, but the motel he and Im Soo-hee frequented as lovers.
“Hi.”
No anger, no nothing, so he planned to ignore, but she spoke first. Misreading his blank expression.
“Yeah, doing well?”
“Yeah. Heard about you. Still… struggling, huh.”
Her tone—neither concern nor pity—slightly twisted Young-min’s face. Who started this rumor…?
‘No choice.’
She was from his dramatic college CC, and to others, he’d basically quit school life after. Rumors fit.
Absurd and annoying, but he wouldn’t confirm them.
“Seems like a misunderstanding. I took leave not because of you, but for The Lord.”
“Good, glad to hear it.”
But Im Soo-hee took it as excuse, scanning him with the same look.
‘Ah, my mistake.’
Too late, Young-min realized. He’d prepped three months pre-launch, but to others, The Lord dropped from the sky just a month ago.
He didn’t bother justifying. More talk would just sound pathetic. She was irrelevant now anyway.
“Keep at it. Oh, if struggling, talk to him. Boyfriend’s a pro in The Lord. I’ll tell him to help once.”
Laughable provocation. The ‘boyfriend’ smirked superiorly down at him. At the lame attitude, Young-min inwardly chuckled.
“Sure, what’s your ID?”
“Piria.”
Seeing it as groveling? Smirk curled Im Soo-hee’s lips.
‘Piria. Girly ID for a dude.’
Unknown in past life, so probably trash. Noting the ID, Young-min nodded and tossed a farewell.
“Ah, got it. Cool, I’ll spare you once next time we meet.”
“What the…?”
“Kwon Young-min, what’s that supposed…”
Ignoring their stunned faces, Young-min brushed past.
She’d get it. He used Rokan ID elsewhere too, not just The Lord.
No point confronting now—just annoying checks and honor-fueled rampages. But someday they’d learn. Who he was. Who they’d messed with.
Whether they’d regret it then, who knew. But they’d realize how ridiculous their words and actions were now.
‘Good enough for someone I won’t see again.’
Young-min shook off the old tie and continued. Loaded up on food and snacks, ordered delivery, headed home. MP Guild had replied.
Deal confirmed.