Chapter 171
Chapter 171
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 171
Chapter Title: The Chessboard on Hand (3)
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"M-Master!!"
As Seon Woo-jin rang the bell on the table, two burly men who were waiting outside entered and quickly dragged Kim Baek-hwan away by his arms.
Kim Baek-hwan pleaded his innocence, but Seon Woo-jin didn't change his decision.
Instead, he offered an apology to Xiaohui.
"My apologies. It seems I've failed to manage my subordinate properly. For now, Kim Baek-hwan is the most likely culprit, but just in case, I ask for your patience until we can conduct a more thorough investigation and determine who the real perpetrator is."
Xiaohui's eyes narrowed.
But with the master of a major guild offering a clean apology, it was difficult to press the matter further.
Xiaohui nodded reluctantly and left the room.
'He's going to catch the real culprit? How ridiculous. He knows full well there's no one else it could be, yet he lies so shamelessly?'
Xiaohui gritted his teeth.
The more he thought about it, the harder it was to quell his anger.
Xiaohui thought of the medicinal herbs in his room.
The ones that *must* be taken before consuming the Soshindan.
If one took the Soshindan without eating the herbs, it would act as a deadly poison, leading to death.
Based on that fact, Xiaohui's mind raced.
'If Kim Baek-hwan stole the Soshindan for his own growth, he would have eaten it on the spot, since he wouldn't know about the herbs. Then he would have died. The fact that he's not dead means he didn't eat it.'
Kim Baek-hwan is not the culprit.
Then, who could Kim Baek-hwan have given the Soshindan to?
The answer was simple.
What if Seon Woo-jin had ordered him to steal the Soshindan from the beginning and they had coordinated their stories to feign ignorance?
What if everything just now was a show?
It would all make sense.
'In other words, the Soshindan is in Seon Woo-jin's hands, and since he knows about the herbs, it's natural that he's fine because he hasn't taken it yet. Everything lines up.'
Having thought that far, Xiaohui suddenly stumbled upon a new possibility.
It might be a show, but what Seon Woo-jin needs right now are the herbs required to take the Soshindan.
It would take time to acquire the herbs himself, and the longer it takes, the more likely he is to get caught.
Naturally, it would be most convenient to take the Soshindan as quickly as possible to eliminate the evidence.
And the easiest way to take it quickly would be...
'Don't tell me he anticipated I'd come to him and already had someone steal the herbs from my room in the meantime...!?'
If his decision to detain Kim Baek-hwan and drag out the conversation was just a ploy to buy time...
Xiaohui, who was about to take the elevator, hardened his expression frighteningly, changed direction, and ran down the stairs.
He opened the door, his heart pounding with anxiety.
The room looked much the same as when he'd left.
But he could instinctively tell something had changed.
Xiaohui walked over to where he kept the herbs and hastily checked.
"Damn it...!"
Just as his uneasy premonition suggested, the herbs were gone.
This room was a place that no one below the rank of a Taegeuk Guild executive could easily find or enter.
In that moment, Xiaohui was certain Seon Woo-jin was the culprit.
'Seon Woo-jin, so you've decided to make an enemy of Bonghwang, have you...!'
A long-standing alliance.
This was the moment a crack formed in it.
***
"Oppa, what is all that?"
The twins approached, looking curious.
A large pile of medicinal herbs on one side.
And the 'strange act' I was performing.
While Jo Min-ah was fascinated by the herbs, Jo Min-woo was interested in what I was doing.
"Is that... a magic circle?"
"That's right."
A magic circle about one meter in diameter.
It's the other thing I needed to prepare before taking the Soshindan.
To be precise, the herbs are mandatory, but this is optional.
I'm drawing it because it's necessary for the method I plan to use.
Jo Min-ah's eyes widened.
"Magic circles actually exist?"
"Isn't it a little strange to be saying that now?"
"Well, yes... but the world becoming like this and magic actually existing are two different things."
"That's also true. Anyway, magic does exist. You can find these in the shop, but I guess you haven't seen them?"
"We don't really have many reasons to use the shop. We spend most of our coins on raising stats..."
Considering their situation, that made sense.
The gear I provided them is excellent, so they don't need to buy any from the shop, and since I'm leading the quests, there's no reason for them to buy items for clearing them.
Eventually, the twins will need to help me on the front lines, but that's still a ways off.
"All done."
The magic circle was completed while we were chatting.
It was a simple process: buy the blueprint for the magic circle from the shop, trace it, and then channel mana into it.
It doesn't have a particularly grand effect.
It just continuously heals whoever is on top of it.
If we had a dedicated healer, it wouldn't be necessary, but our party doesn't have one.
And bringing in an outsider would mean leaking the information that I took the Soshindan, so that wasn't even worth considering.
"Whoa..."
"Wow. That looks expensive."
When I took the Soshindan out of its box, the kids' expressions changed.
Well, it does look expensive at a glance.
If I had several, I would have shared them with the kids, but right now, my priority is getting stronger.
"I'll give you some next time I get them."
"Oh, no! We were just curious."
"That's right, Oppa. You've already given us so much. You don't have to worry about us like that!"
I chuckled inwardly.
They say that, but I can see their eyes darting toward the Soshindan.
"Anyway, I'll be defenseless for a while, so if anyone comes looking for me, just tell them I'm not here and send them away."
After speaking, I sat in the center of the magic circle.
The twins exchanged glances, nodded, and went out to the living room.
'Normally, I should eat the herbs first...'
The herbs neutralize the toxic components in the Soshindan.
But since the toxins are part of the elixir's ingredients, neutralizing the poison also means diminishing the elixir's effects.
'I'll reverse the order.'
Take the Soshindan first, then eat the herbs.
This method minimizes the reduction in the elixir's effectiveness.
Of course, it also entails an equal amount of pain.
"Kuhk...!"
I swallowed the Soshindan in one gulp.
It melted the moment it touched my tongue, and a powerful energy spread throughout my body.
It's hot. It felt like a fireball was using my body as kindling, and worse, like my internal organs were melting—a horrific sensation.
Just when I thought I would really die if I held out any longer, I shoved the herbs I was holding in my hand into my mouth.
An indescribably bitter taste filled my mouth.
Still, because the pain spreading through my body was so intense, the bitterness felt like nothing.
I endured, swallowing the herbs, and focused on the energy within my body.
'It's already impossible for the story to follow the original plot.'
Focusing on my breathing, I tried to control the flow of ki as if I were manipulating mana.
'There will be many unexpected things, but the information on the major enemies that appear will remain mostly unchanged.'
As long as I become strong enough myself, that part won't be a big problem.
And this time is different.
I'm not just growing alone; I've made arrangements so that the people around me can pull their own weight.
'There are also the additional enemies Jacob mentioned, like the 'moderators', but I can't do anything about that for now.'
I have Extreme Eye.
With Extreme Eye, I can get information, and with information, I can always come up with a strategy.
In the end, any enemy will be fighting with powers that exist within the game.
Through repeated playthroughs, I've handled or fought against almost every power that existed in the original work.
It's not for nothing that I'm the only person to have reached the 00th ending.
Strategy King.
To live up to that name, I must climb even higher.
[You have successfully absorbed the 'Soshindan'.]
[Character Information]
Name: Kim Se-hyeon
Gender: Male (26)
Strength: 70(+23) Stamina: 70(+30)(+1%) Agility: 70(+29) Mana: 80(+20)(+6%)
Unique Ability: Main Player (EX)
Traits: One Who Started from the End (S), Accustomed to Battle (B), Wind and Moon (B), Lord of Darkness (S), Disaster Eater (S), Diamond Body (S)
Skills: Extreme Eye (S)
'So Strength and Agility went up by 2, and Stamina and Mana by 1.'
The Soshindan, an A-rank elixir, normally grants a permanent +1 to all stats when consumed the standard way.
By using a method to increase its efficiency, I gained an additional +1 to Strength and Agility.
Looking at my stats again, I let out an inward gasp of admiration.
All my stats are approaching 100, and with bonuses, some have even surpassed 100, gaining amplification effects.
I've never had this kind of insane growth at this point, not even when I played the game.
There was a bug that forcibly removed the stat cap, but it only happened once by chance, didn't last long, and never happened again.
"My traits are also set up quite nicely."
Wind and Moon is a trait gained from an item, so its rank can't be raised.
It's a shame to have it take up a trait slot, but taking off the Hwarang's Bracelet would mean losing the all-stat boost, which is also a waste.
I'll have to decide what to do when I get a chance to acquire a new trait.
"Oppa, are you awake?"
Jo Min-ah was staring at me intently.
Her eyes were filled with considerable worry.
I pushed myself up, my body still numb.
"How long has it been?"
"Almost four hours? You were so still, I thought you might have fallen asleep sitting up. We heard you scream before that, too."
Jo Min-woo answered, peeking his head over the sofa.
He must be talking about what happened before I ate the herbs.
I had been prepared for it, but the pain was even more excruciating than I'd imagined, so I couldn't suppress a scream.
I gave a bitter smile.
Four hours, huh? It felt like maybe 20 minutes.
In the game, it was just a "Time has passed" message, so it was over in the blink of an eye.
I looked at the twins and was lost in thought for a moment.
Should I tell the kids something about the existence of the Strategy King?
'...Not yet.'
I'll reveal it someday, but I had no intention of telling them just yet.
Especially now that I know 'moderators' like Jacob are active all over the world.
There's no way they don't know about the Strategy King.
I, the real Strategy King, am hiding my identity, while the impostor, Jun Bo-ra, is openly claiming to be the Strategy King and gathering forces.
With all the attention naturally drawn to Jun Bo-ra, there's no reason for me to reveal the truth and attract it to myself. She makes an excellent shield.
"Oh, and someone came looking for you, Hyung."
"For me?"
"Yeah. That... hyung named Han Hyeok-jun. The one you fought with last time."
While fighting Cheon Jin-ha, we were moved to another location thanks to Jun Bo-ra's quick thinking.
Jun Bo-ra came right back, so after the move, the two of them must have fought again.
I had no doubt that Han Hyeok-jun would be the winner.
The only strange thing, if any, was that it took a little longer than I expected.
"Did he leave?"
"When he saw you, he said he'd kill some time nearby and left."
He wasn't just leaving to do something else; saying he'd wait meant he had something to say.
I immediately put on my coat and got ready to leave.
"Jun Bo-ra unni came by too. When we told her she couldn't see you right now, she just left."
"Did she?"
We haven't met since we defeated the Disaster of Solitude, have we?
She probably came to talk about that, so it's fine to discuss it later.
"And there's one more thing..."
"A guild meeting I have to attend?"
"Huh? How did you know?"
"It's about that time."
Normally, I would have sent Choi Yeon-soo in my place, but this time, I have to go myself.
It's that important of a matter.
"Um, Oppa. Can I... come with you?"
Just before I walked out the door, Jo Min-ah asked cautiously.
"Why?"
"I just have... a bad feeling. I want to go with you this time. Can I? I know I'm being childish, but still..."
Has Jo Min-ah ever asked for something like this before?
It was an unfounded anxiety.
However, even in the original story, Jo Min-ah had pretty good intuition.
I reviewed my upcoming plans and nodded.
Indulging her once in a while wouldn't be so bad.
"Alright. That's fine. Min-woo, are you coming too?"
"Of course!"
Jo Min-woo's face instantly brightened, and he nodded his head frantically.
I smiled faintly and checked their statuses with Extreme Eye for the first time in a while.
They're both roughly B-rank now.
A situation where their stats can't keep up with their traits.
That's something that can be fixed by putting them in real battles.
I thought of the faces I would see at the guild meeting.
'Lee Min-hwa.'
Lee Min-hwa's resentment hasn't completely faded yet.
She took a liking to the twins, so bringing them along might help to soften her hostility a bit.