Chapter 27. The Chosen Ones (3)
Chapter 27. The Chosen Ones (3)
"I, I......."
After a long while, the Sword Saint opened his mouth.
The hunters were watching the Sword Saint. The old man's lips were parched dry.
"I, to Kim Gong-ja......."
Here, the Sword Saint could have said many things.
Above all, he didn't have to trust the Paladin. There was no reason to. No matter how famous the Paladin was for integrity and fairness, she was still one of the powers of the Five Great Guilds. Why should he trust her?
'You bastards are all in cahoots, deceiving me!'
The Sword Saint could have raged.
Or rather... the Sword Saint could have revealed his skill card. [Detective's Insight]. An ability that showed the target's kill count. Revealing his skill to others wasn't exactly a wise choice. Still, it would have been enough to serve as grounds for an excuse.
'I didn't suspect Kim Gong-ja because I'm some stubborn old fossil. It's all the skill's fault! The skill says so, so what am I supposed to do? Isn't it only natural to trust your own skill over rashly trusting another person?'
When people commit wrongs, they generally end up distrusting others or making excuses to them.
'Though there are psychopaths like the Flame Emperor who just kill the other party outright.'
Distrust. Excuses. Silencing.
Just as the Flame Emperor had chosen the method of [silencing] and thereby proven himself a psychopath... the Sword Saint, too, would determine what kind of man he was by whichever method he chose.
That was all there was to it.
"Hm."
The Sword Saint's lips twitched.
And then he decided.
"...Your name was Kim Gong-ja, was it?"
"Yes."
"If you truly did not massacre innocent people... no, never mind. This isn't it."
The Sword Saint shook his head mid-sentence.
The old man sheathed his sword. Ssreureung. As the blade was put away, sighs of relief flowed from all around the audience chamber. The hunters surrounding the Sword Saint relaxed a little. Amidst that, the Sword Saint straightened his necktie stiffly.
"Let me say it again."
The aged swordsman bowed his head deeply.
"I am truly sorry."
The old man had apologized.
"I was wrong. I thought lightly and misunderstood lightly. ...And so I nearly killed a man lightly. Until now, I have believed that those who deserve death must be killed and erased from this earth one second sooner, by my own judgment. I have killed according to that belief."
The Sword Saint bowed his head a little lower.
"But from now on, such a thing will never happen again."
The old man's voice flowed low through the audience chamber.
"Apologizing with words alone is useless. I shall grant whatever you wish... if only I could say that, it would be splendid."
Self-deprecation mingled with the low voice.
"Please, only spare my life. I beg you. I still wish to live. I wish to live and set foot on the top of this Tower. ...I have committed a grave wrong, and nearly killed you. Even so, will you forgive this unsightly old body and let it go on living?"
The palace audience chamber fell quiet.
The old man could have chosen otherwise, as much as he liked. He could have distrusted the Paladin. He could have made excuses with his skill. But he did not. Instead, the aged swordsman admitted that [perhaps he himself might have been wrong].
"......."
The Paladin glanced at my face. Our eyes met. She gave a silent nod. No words passed between us, but I knew well what the Paladin wanted to say.
'It's the truth.'
That everything the old man had said was true.
That he was sorry, and that from now on he would not kill people based on [Detective's Insight]. And not only that—that he did not want to die.
That he wanted to keep living.
That he was begging for forgiveness.
-What a fossil of an old man.
The guardian spirit muttered. But he didn't add anything more. He merely watched the old man who had once been his disciple with eyes that seemed tinged with a hint of regret.
Did that mean he was leaving it entirely up to me whether to forgive the Sword Saint or not?
"Hm."
Hearing that silence, I made up my mind too.
"Sword Saint."
"Speak."
"Teach me the sword."
"......."
The Sword Saint lifted his bowed head and looked up at me.
"Teach me, or rather... whenever I ask for a spar from now on, please accept it. I did manage to find a swordsmanship teacher somehow, but I still don't have a proper sparring partner. It would be great if you, Sword Saint, would be my sparring partner."
I had also made a promise with the guardian spirit on the 11th floor.
That I would seriously train my swordsmanship before clearing the 20th floor.
To keep that promise, taking the Sword Saint as a training partner here would be suitable.
And as a result, it would lead to my benefit and growth.......
"......."
No.
That's not it.
That's not what I wanted to say.
I shook my head.
"I'm sorry. Let me say it again."
"......?"
"Honestly, I can forgive you without asking for anything in return. But."
I opened my mouth.
"Then it's kind of embarrassing, isn't it? It makes me look like a much bigger person than you, Sword Saint. I'm not that great of a person. I'm just, simply satisfied with the fact that a strong hunter like you, Sword Saint, will no longer be hostile toward me."
"......."
"But we already went as far as swinging swords at each other, so just going 'Okay!' and forgiving you here is a bit embarrassing. Pretending to be some magnanimous big shot for no reason is also mortifying. I just don't like it. So, the most valuable thing you have, Sword Saint. Teach me swordsmanship, at least."
I felt embarrassed for some reason.
No, my cheeks were twitching.
"This way, I won't be embarrassed either... and you, Sword Saint, will save face too."
"......."
"......."
Fuck!
Was baring my inner thoughts always this mortifying?!
Good lord. How had the Sword Saint managed to say "please forgive me because I value my life"? He seemed so proud, too. Amazing. Insane. Can a person sincerely apologize to someone? Can they beg for forgiveness? I could never do it. I wouldn't. I'd rather die.
"...Good heavens."
The Paladin murmured.
"Astonishingly... it's all true."
Silence sank over the audience chamber again.
It was heavy.
It should have been the same silence, but the atmosphere was completely different from before.
"Uh."
The Viper was the first to gape.
"Really? You can ask the Sword Saint for anything, but showing off is embarrassing...? So you just want him to be your sparring partner?"
"Hard to believe, but according to my skill, at least, it's the truth."
"What is this rookie? Is he some kind of natural monument?"
Shut up before I boil you into snake soup.
"...Refreshing."
The Witch said, looking nonplussed.
"How should I put it. After only seeing kids who scramble tooth and nail to grab even a little more profit... seeing a hunter like Kim Gong-ja is a first in a very long time. You've managed to survive without dying all this time, huh."
I died. I died a whole lot.
Specifically, over 4,000 times. Happy?
"Ahhh."
For some reason, the Heretic Questioner's eyes were growing moist.
"One who truly apologizes and one who truly forgives! What a beautiful sight! Indeed. Humans endlessly fight. But, paradoxically, precisely because of that, they can endlessly forgive! This is a holy miracle! Ah, everyone. I......."
"Shut your trap, you're noisy."
"Yep."
At the Viper's single word, the Heretic Questioner actually shut his mouth.
That was a somewhat astonishing miracle.
"Hey. Seems like it ended all nice and friendly. But doesn't that mean my 10,000 gold was wasted for nothing?"
No one paid any attention to the Count's lament.
I sighed. I was seriously craving soju.
"Anyway, that's how it is. Sword Saint. There's no need to train swordsmanship right away. When I ask, you can join me then. Please be my sparring partner."
"......."
The Sword Saint said nothing for a while. He just stared fixedly at my face. Then, suddenly, the old man slowly opened his mouth.
"To think,"
The old man's lips were trembling along with his mustache.
"To think I misunderstood such a virtuous young man!"
"Uh......."
"Ohh! You asked me to teach you the sword, did you? You asked me to be your sparring partner, did you? Of course! Gladly! I shall be your sparring partner as much as you like!"
Grab. The Sword Saint seized my hand with both of his.
"Uh, hey. Sword Saint?"
"Call me Grandpa Marcus!"
"Excuse me?"
"Young Gong-ja, how old are you? Hm. Judging by eye, you can't be past 30 yet. I left behind a very kind granddaughter in the outside world. A gentle-hearted girl. If my granddaughter ever enters the Tower, I shall actively promote young Gong-ja's charms to her!"
"No. Really, it's fine......."
I had no interest in romance. More than that, my hand hurt. My hand.
As if to prove he hadn't taken the rank 1 spot for show, the Sword Saint's grip strength was tremendous.
"What? You're saying you have no interest in my granddaughter?"
"Uh, yes. Sorry, but not just your granddaughter, Sword Saint—right now I don't have much interest in romance itself......."
"Eoheo! Then that's a terrible state of affairs!"
His grip strength leveled up by one stage.
"In youth, the spring breeze of love ought to blow. There's no need to marry, of course. But romance is essential! When you fall in love, you begin to see sights you'd never seen before, and you come to know many things you hadn't known! Indeed. Above all, you come to know just how ugly you yourself can become!"
"Ah, yeees......."
"Do you know how important it is to come to know your own ugliness? Let me tell you about my case. It was when I was 16, back when I still looked down on everything in the world. But after meeting her, a girl my own age......."
Huh?
This old man had suddenly become terrifyingly annoying.
His face was too close, too. I could see the sebum pores and blackheads on the sides of his nose.
Honestly, it was overwhelming.
I wished he would back off quickly.
-I told you he was a fossil of an old man.
The guardian spirit clicked his tongue.
-He's a fossil in both the bad sense and the good sense. Do you know what a fossil is? It's someone who doesn't listen to other people. Grandpa Marcus doesn't listen to people. Put nicely, he has convictions. Put badly, his convictions are so staggering he's practically ascended to heaven.
I had no idea.
I didn't want to know, either.
"Anyway, don't you worry. Young Gong-ja! From now on, I shall take proper care of you. Ah, do you need some spending money by any chance? I've just been piling my money up in the Merchant Alliance vault, and it's gotten to the point where I can't manage it all."
"Hey. I earn my own money, too. And spending money? I'm a perfectly capable adult......."
"Now that I look, your clothes are far too shabby! Eoheo, a person's mind only becomes clean once their clothes are neat. I happen to know a skilled tailor. How about getting a suit tailored?"
What is this.
Could this also be a form of [Request of Countless Handshakes]?
Receiving goodwill from the current rank 1 hunter should have made me happy, but I wasn't happy at all. Rather, I was seriously mortified. It felt like listening to a real grandfather brag about his grandchild in real time right next to me.
Why was I the one who had to be embarrassed?
'What do I do? Should I just kill myself and restart today?'
-You lunatic.......
That was the moment.
[Welcome, Hunter Kim Gong-ja.]
[You have conquered the 11th floor in 1st place.]
A voice rang in my head.
As if it had only been waiting for my fight to end.
3
'Ah.'
I reflexively looked around.
Most people were sighing in relief. Expressions that said they were glad the Sword Saint had quietly stopped fighting. No one seemed to have heard the voice yet.
'I'm the first!'
A smile formed.
'I don't know why, but there was remarkably little conquest information for floors 12 through 20.'
Had there been media control? There was no way to know the details. But before I regressed, having overcome 4,000 deaths, information on the other floors had been widely available, while information on floors 12 through 20 in particular had been scarce.
As if the giant guilds had allied to forcibly hide the information.
[The 11th-floor clear reward is being granted.]
I soon learned the reason.
[The Goddess of Protection presents you with a reward.]
[The Demon King of Fall Rain presents you with a reward.]
[Choose one of the two rewards.]
'Huh?'
I blinked.
'Choose a reward?'
Voices I had never heard in the previous stages came one after another.
As if responding to my surprised reaction, a selection window floated up before my eyes.
+
[Goddess of Protection]
Description: The goddess who protects the Aegim Empire has been moved by your devotion! The goddess has decided to entrust you with an important position in the empire.
You may become the empire's chancellor, its grand general, or the commander of its knight order. If you choose a position, the abilities and fame of that position will be inherited as well!
Warrior of the goddess! Join forces with your fellow warriors.
And destroy the Demon King's core located on the 20th floor!
※However, if you choose the Demon King's reward, you cannot choose the Goddess's reward.
+
I read the reward carefully.
I nodded.
'Up to this point, it's exactly what I already knew.'
So-called role-playing!
The hunters would move as actual people of the Aegim Empire. Someone could become the empire's chancellor, and someone else could become the commander of the empire's knight order.
It wasn't simply taking over the position. If you became the knight commander, you inherited the knight commander's abilities and fame as well.
[Displaying special classes selectable on the 12th floor.]
And hunters who had conquered the previous stage with high rankings were given a reward.
The right to choose a 'special position' one step ahead of everyone else!
+
[Chancellor of the Aegim Empire]
[Grand General of the Aegim Empire]
[Minister of Finance of the Aegim Empire]
[Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Aegim Empire]
[Knight Commander of the Aegim Empire]
[Captain of the Imperial Guard of the Aegim Empire]
.
.
.
+
Truly splendid positions stretched on in a long line.
'Whoa.'
I admired it inwardly.
'In the past, I could only choose roles like Guard A.......'
Of course, I had climbed to the 12th floor before experiencing regression. But back then, the situation had been completely different. Not just the knight commander—even positions like guard captain had been monopolized entirely by mid-to-upper rankers.
But what about now?
'Stage rewards really are good.'
I could now choose to be the empire's chancellor or grand general.
What a world of difference.
The saying "row when the tide comes in" was right a hundred, a thousand times over.
'...But what's this Demon King's reward?'
I turned my gaze.
There, content I had never seen before in my life was written.
+
[Demon King of Fall Rain]
Description: The Demon King marvels at your exploits. The Demon King proposes that you secretly cooperate with him. He promises exactly the same reward as the goddess, but adds one more gift.
Kill all the warriors ranked in the top 10, excluding yourself!
Then, the Demon King will exert his Authority and instantly transport you to the 99th floor of the Tower.
※However, only 1 person among the top 10 may receive the Demon King's reward.
※If multiple people choose this reward, only 1 among them will be selected at random.
※If no one chooses it, the Demon King's reward will vanish.
+
"......."
I was at a loss for words.
When I belatedly reacted, two voices overlapped in my mind.
'What?'
-Hah?
It was the guardian spirit and me.
We blinked and read the Demon King's reward once more.
But even reading it again, the same sentences were engraved there.
[Kill all the warriors ranked in the top 10, excluding yourself!]
[Then the Demon King will exert his Authority and instantly transport you to the 99th floor of the Tower.]
It was unmistakably written that way.
I looked around. The Sword Saint, the Witch, the Heretic Questioner, the Count, the Viper, the Paladin, and so on. The top rankers with whom I had already built some acquaintance stood there.
'If I kill these people.......'
If I killed them all.
'I can instantly clear up to the 99th floor?'
I swallowed.
Finally, the voice rang out.
[Hunter Kim Gong-ja.]
[Choose one of the two rewards.]