Chapter 170
Chapter 170
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 170
Chapter Title: ACT.31 The Chessboard in Hand (2)
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“If you had something like that, was it really necessary to do things so... elaborately?”
Choi Yeon-soo asked on the way back.
“I did it because it was necessary.”
I had used the ‘Suggestion’ I gained from my Stigma to alter Kim Baek-hwan’s memory before sending him back.
Suggestion fundamentally requires eye contact with the target.
Plus, since it was only C-rank, there were various conditions that had to be met.
He met the Jakgol brothers. That much had to be true.
“He met the Jakgol brothers. That part is true. What they talked about afterward—that’s what I can cover with Suggestion. You understand the rest, right?”
“But you can deceive him about whether the Jakgol brothers he met were real… I see. For the Jakgol brothers who came to deliver it, the fact that they met Kim Baek-hwan will also remain true, which means we can twist things in the middle.”
Choi Yeon-soo grinned and nodded.
I had implanted the suggestion that they met, but a problem arose with their task, so they couldn't bring the item.
“Kim Baek-hwan will insist the Jakgol brothers never gave it to him, and in that state, if the Bonghwang Guild calls the Taegeuk Guild to confirm, the Taegeuk Guild will naturally say they haven’t received it yet.”
The Jakgol brothers, having confirmed he knew the password and details about the Soshindan’s appearance before handing it over, wouldn't think a ‘third party snatched it.’
After all, that was information only a select few within the Taegeuk Guild even knew.
Naturally, from the Bonghwang Guild’s perspective, they would suspect the Taegeuk Guild of taking it and playing dumb.
And the Taegeuk Guild would naturally be furious that the Bonghwang Guild was framing them.
Choi Yeon-soo, who had been listening quietly, narrowed her brow.
“Couldn’t they figure out right away that you used Suggestion?”
“Suggestion is quite rare to obtain through means other than a Stigma, and there are so few players with that ability that it’s hard for anyone to even consider it was used.”
“But you’re saying they do exist.”
“There’s one. And because there’s only one, it’s all the safer.”
All they would need to do is check that one person’s alibi.
As long as a clear alibi exists, the possibility of ‘Suggestion’ is naturally ruled out.
That would be the conclusion they’d reach.
“I suppose you wore a robe to hide your face as much as possible, considering they might recruit another player with Suggestion later on to check Kim Baek-hwan’s memories.”
“That, and… I’m going to make sure they don’t even have time to recruit that other person anyway.”
Deepen the conflict between the two guilds to delay China’s intervention.
In the meantime, I would take them down one by one. It was entirely possible.
Obtaining the elixir was a bonus, but this was the real aim.
‘I can’t take this right away, so I should head back for now.’
Things with great effects require proper preparation.
I smiled faintly and vanished into the darkness, leaving the place behind.
***
“The day has finally come.”
Xiao Hui hadn't been able to stop the corners of his mouth from twitching since last night.
Who was he?
A rising star fully backed by the Bonghwang Guild, a guild that could be said to represent China.
The best rookie player.
The 3 billion won man, in Korean currency.
All these phrases were used to describe Xiao Hui.
‘It arrives today.’
The Soshindan!
Among the pills exclusively produced by the Bonghwang Guild, it was the second most effective. A divine pill true to its name, of which only one could be crafted per year.
Countless players were desperate to get their hands on it, and this year, the one chosen to take it was Xiao Hui.
‘It means I’ve been fully acknowledged.’
And it was well-deserved.
A chosen genius who had awakened as an S-rank.
While it was true he’d gone through all sorts of elite training, his constant effort and willingness to take the lead must have made a good impression on his superiors.
Thinking that he was finally about to reap the rewards of his hard work made his smile widen even more.
‘Did they say it would arrive before dawn?’
The perfect time to take the Soshindan.
Xiao Hui unfolded a piece of paper that had been neatly placed on the table.
It was a list of medicinal herbs that had to be consumed before taking the Soshindan.
Taking the Soshindan without them was not only dangerous but also rendered it far less effective, even if one managed to endure it.
He had already procured all these herbs in advance.
All that was left was to wait for the Soshindan to arrive.
“…”
But there was no news.
An hour. Two hours. Then three.
By the time the sun had long since risen and it was nearing lunchtime, Xiao Hui’s patience finally ran out.
“When the hell is it getting here!?”
*CRASH!*
He slammed his fist on the desk in a fit of anger, but it wasn't enough to quell his rage.
Xiao Hui seethed, his fists trembling.
‘This won’t do.’
Xiao Hui shot up from his seat.
No matter how he thought about it, there was no way it hadn't arrived yet.
He would just have to ask the Taegeuk Guild’s master, Seon Woo-jin, directly.
That was what Xiao Hui was thinking.
“Huh?”
The moment he got on the elevator to move to another floor, Xiao Hui ran into Kim Baek-hwan.
Xiao Hui knew Kim Baek-hwan well.
He was the liaison with the Bonghwang Guild and also the one in charge of transporting the Soshindan this time.
Since he had left the guild at dawn, his presence here now meant he had obviously brought the Soshindan.
Having reached that conclusion, Xiao Hui rushed over to Kim Baek-hwan and grabbed him by the collar.
“Hey!”
“Gasp!? What are you doing!?”
“What am I doing? You’re asking me that!? What happened to my item! You should have come to deliver it to me as soon as it arrived!”
“I-Item!?”
“What’s with the act! Someone from the Bonghwang Guild came and gave it to you at dawn, didn’t they!”
“I was just on my way to report about that! They said there was a problem with their task and they couldn't bring the item, so they left right away!”
“What?”
As Kim Baek-hwan spoke with an aggrieved tone, Xiao Hui let out a disbelieving laugh.
“You’re saying they didn’t bring the item? The Bonghwang Guild called to confirm if we had received it safely.”
“What are you talking about! How does it make sense for them to call and confirm receipt when they never even gave it to me?”
Kim Baek-hwan shouted, looking genuinely wronged.
It wasn't a feigned act of injustice; his voice and expression were those of someone who was truly aggrieved.
Xiao Hui’s face momentarily contorted as he cursed inwardly.
‘So that’s how you’re going to play this.’
Kim Baek-hwan was a mere A-rank.
He wouldn't have the audacity to pocket it and act so brazenly.
He lacked both the guts and the power for that.
If he had intended to take it, he wouldn’t have even returned to the guild.
Then, naturally, there was only one person who would have pocketed the Soshindan and ordered Kim Baek-hwan to feign ignorance like this.
The master of the Taegeuk Guild, Seon Woo-jin.
Xiao Hui irritably shoved Kim Baek-hwan away and ground his teeth.
‘Seon Woo-jin…! Are you trying to make an enemy of the Bonghwang Guild?’
The Soshindan was certainly valuable enough to warrant such an action, providing a sufficient motive.
It was an elixir that significantly raised stats upon consumption, and only one was produced per year.
Its value was easily in the billions if traded for money.
‘I’ll have to confront him.’
His eyes turning cold, Xiao Hui strode purposefully toward Seon Woo-jin’s room.
***
“It’s empty.”
I entered the room through the open window.
This was the room where Xiao Hui, sent from the Bonghwang Guild as support to the Taegeuk Guild, was staying.
I remembered its location from having visited it for various reasons in the game.
The room looked just as I remembered, and I grinned.
The specific medicinal herbs required to take the Soshindan.
There was no reason for me to gather them myself.
‘I can just take the ones he’s already collected.’
This place was, of course, located in the heart of the Taegeuk Guild, but getting in wasn’t difficult.
By summoning Zeta and using the naturally enhanced stealth ability, I went completely undetected.
Even if I had been caught, I could have just ordered Zeta to knock them out, but it was best to avoid such incidents altogether.
‘Taking the Soshindan requires specific herbs, so Xiao Hui, who was planning to take it, would surely have them.’
It was difficult and troublesome to acquire them on my own.
I offered a silent thank you to Xiao Hui for preparing them for me in advance.
‘By now, Xiao Hui has probably gone to see Seon Woo-jin to get to the bottom of this.’
Someone sneaks in during the brief, perfectly timed moment the room is empty and disappears with only the medicinal herbs.
And they knew the exact location where the herbs were hidden.
Stealing herbs that were largely meaningless unless one was taking the Soshindan.
These three facts would widen the small crack that had already formed between them.
Naturally, Xiao Hui would think the Taegeuk Guild had also stolen the herbs in the meantime and would no longer trust them.
[‘The Scheming Shadow’ smiles with satisfaction.]
[You have been sponsored 400 coins.]
“Found it.”
After pinpointing the location where the herbs were hidden using Extreme Eye, I took out the bundle of herbs from its hiding place.
Then, without the slightest hesitation, I left.
***
“Master Seon Woo-jin.”
Looking into Xiao Hui’s aggressive eyes, Seon Woo-jin instinctively knew that something had happened.
Something of the unpleasant variety.
“Aren’t you the one who took the Soshindan?”
It was a question, but one that was half-certain.
His tone was like that of a parent giving a child a chance to tell the truth, an opportunity to confess.
Seon Woo-jin had a rough idea of what had happened, but he posed a question first.
“That’s a baseless accusation. Why do you think so?”
“I received a call from the Bonghwang Guild asking if the item had been delivered safely. They said they were certain it was someone from the Taegeuk Guild because they had gone through several tests, including the password and information about the Soshindan’s appearance. But the Soshindan itself never arrived. According to the liaison, the item never arrived in the first place!”
Xiao Hui raged, grabbing Kim Baek-hwan’s clothes and pulling him forward.
Seon Woo-jin’s gaze naturally shifted to Kim Baek-hwan.
“…What happened, Kim Baek-hwan?”
“I-I’m being framed! I just told the truth!”
Kim Baek-hwan cried out pitifully, as if begging for his life.
Seon Woo-jin remained silent.
Who was telling the truth?
Judging by the atmosphere, neither side seemed to be lying, but if both were telling the truth, it created a logical contradiction.
One of them was lying.
Seon Woo-jin calmly organized his thoughts.
‘Kim Baek-hwan isn’t that bold. But he can easily understand how precious the Soshindan is, and since he’s been stuck as an A-rank for ages, he could have been overcome by greed in the moment.’
If he hadn’t known what the item was, it would be a different story, but because he had been given some information for verification purposes, the motive was sufficient.
In fact, Kim Baek-hwan had lamented his stagnant growth on several occasions.
However, there was a decisive factor.
‘Most importantly, I received the password and information about the Soshindan just a few hours ago and gave it directly to Kim Baek-hwan myself. It’s virtually impossible for anyone else to have obtained that information.’
There was only one other possibility.
An ability to read or manipulate memories.
If someone with that ability had read and altered Kim Baek-hwan’s memories in the meantime, it was plausible.
But that was purely hypothetical.
After all, one could never say with absolute certainty that something was ‘0% possible.’
‘There’s only one player with the power to read or manipulate the memories of an A-rank, and since there’s only one, he would know better than anyone that he’d be easily identified as the culprit, so he wouldn't do it. Besides, how could he target Kim Baek-hwan for the Soshindan from the start without even knowing about it?’
He hadn't ruled out a Stigma.
But even if that explained a second player with the ability, it didn’t solve the problem of them knowing about the Soshindan.
The incident with the intruder at Gyeryongsan came to mind, but Seon Woo-jin shook his head.
And was that all?
How could someone know what power was contained in a Stigma and devise such a meticulous plan?
There were too many things that didn’t add up.
‘This is difficult.’
Seon Woo-jin’s eyes slowly blinked.
Circumstantially, the probability of Kim Baek-hwan being the culprit was high.
From Xiao Hui’s perspective, there was nothing to be gained from causing such a commotion after receiving the item.
However, there were ambiguous points that made it difficult to say for sure.
If it was Kim Baek-hwan, why didn't he run?
That point constantly prevented him from reaching a firm conclusion.
‘If he thought running away would make him look guiltier, did he not consider he’d be investigated like this? Or did he think he could get away with just lying?’
His mind was a mess.
If only he could see inside people's minds.
Had there ever been a time he desired that power more desperately than now?
In the end, Seon Woo-jin shook his head and came to a decision.
“For now, we will detain Kim Baek-hwan.”