Chapter 253
Chapter 253
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 253
Chapter Title: ACT.50 Eagle Hunt (1)
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"You..."
The mask came off, revealing his bare face.
Upon seeing my face, Graham's eerie smile vanished, and he handed the mask back with a look of distaste.
"Tsk. A face that ruins the taste of a good drink."
"That's why I was wearing it. Didn't I tell you?"
"I just wondered if it was a face I knew. So many bastards are after me, you see. Since it's not, we're good."
Graham waved his hand in annoyance.
He could have at least apologized, but I guess not.
I put the mask back on.
*I even used the Forger's Brush to draw this, just in case.*
When Graham reached out to remove my mask, my body almost reacted instinctively.
Had I done that, it would have only aroused suspicion.
My split-second decision that revealing my face would be more convincing worked out well.
"As per Harrington's wishes, I'll grant you a certain degree of authority. You tried to save him, so I suppose I owe you that much."
Graham tossed me an authentication key.
It was purple.
This meant I could exercise the same authority as an executive.
And at the bottom, there was a single white line.
This signified that I couldn't interfere with Pentagon Eagle's 'back-end business.'
"Harrington seems to feel a great deal of gratitude toward you, but our business has many sensitive aspects. I can't allow an outsider like you that much access. Now, get out."
Graham stood up and pulled out a large quantity of new liquor from a cabinet.
Could he really drink that much more after all he'd already had?
Seeing it in person made it even more unbelievable.
Was it the power of a player, or was he just a natural heavyweight drinker?
I clicked my tongue inwardly and left Graham's room.
*Still, with this key, I can get into that place.*
Graham, a lover of alcohol, was famous for having built a massive liquor cellar in the basement of the guild headquarters.
And that place also served another purpose.
*An elixir storage.*
He didn't even trust the guild warehouse, so he kept them in a place that no one below executive rank could even enter.
That's how precious elixirs were.
Even then, one could only enter; it was safe to say that only Graham himself could take any elixirs.
As I moved through the building wearing the mask, others glanced at me with curiosity, but because of the authentication key around my neck, they didn't seem to pay me any further mind.
*Still, I should be careful in the liquor cellar.*
Before entering the cellar, I put on the Goblin's Hood.
I quickly knocked out the guard at the warehouse entrance and used the authentication key to get inside.
Passing by shelves lined with obviously expensive liquors, I stopped in front of a cabinet with a distinctly different aura, and the corners of my mouth lifted on their own.
[Elixir of Strength (A)]
[Elixir of Agility (A)]
[Elixir of Mana (S)]
...
Laid out before me were items that, if converted to coins, would be worth well over a million.
Among them, what caught my eye was the S-rank Elixir of Mana.
*That's what I needed.*
My current base mana stat is 80.
To reach the next stage of transcendence, I need two S-rank elixirs.
Up to A-rank elixirs are sometimes sold in the shop under special circumstances, but there's virtually no way to purchase S-rank elixirs with coins.
They are rarely given as rewards for achieving high contribution against disaster-class demonic beasts or completing difficult hidden achievements.
How could I not be thrilled when one was sitting right in front of me?
*Of course, it's also true that I can't just take it easily.*
[Using skill, 'Extreme Eye'.]
On the display case, which had appeared empty, I could now see several concentrations of mana.
Traps and alarms that would activate if someone touched them.
Normally, disarming something like this would require a specific S-rank trait, but I had something that could work as a substitute.
*Swoosh.*
I touched the concentrations of mana with the Black Moon Sword.
Due to the Black Moon Sword's effect of 'dispersing mana', the traps lost their function, turning it into a simple storage cabinet.
How nice of him to gather such precious elixirs for me.
*With this, I only need one more S-rank Elixir of Mana.*
Graham would throw a fit if he found out this was gone, but there was a high chance he wouldn't even notice.
An incident would break out before then, keeping him plenty busy.
I swallowed a laugh and moved on to the next phase of the plan.
***
"Oh my, you're not the one I was told to expect... What brings you here?"
Simila said, twirling her parasol.
Simila's eyes turned to the four individuals.
A boy and a girl who looked like they were just about to shed their middle school appearances.
A prim-looking girl holding a sword, and a woman meeting her gaze with a confident expression.
Choi Yeon-soo wasn't there, but Simila had no way of knowing that.
The thought that they were a strange combination was fleeting, as the woman standing at the front held out a note and said something.
"A pleasure to meet you. I'm the Strategy King."
"The Strategy King...?"
Simila covered her mouth with her hand.
"Goodness. Are you really the Strategy King himself?"
"I came in place of Kim Se-hyeon. He said he had something else to do."
"I think I heard from my informant inside Pentagon Eagle. That the Strategy King and Kim Se-hyeon are colleagues. I had ruled out the possibility that the Strategy King might come here."
Simila smiled brightly.
Jun Bo-ra's expression shifted subtly, but no one made an issue of it.
Reynald scowled and asked.
"Who's the Strategy King anyway?"
"You don't know the Strategy King? He's incredibly famous. A streamer who specialized in EOA. He streamed for almost a year."
"I don't watch streams, so I wouldn't know. To play this trash game for that long, he must have had nothing better to do."
"The important thing is that he probably knows more about EOA than anyone else."
Simila's parasol spun energetically.
*So she expresses her mood with her parasol,* Jun Bo-ra thought with a wry smile.
"Then you all must be the Strategy King's companions?"
"No? We're Hyung's..."
"Quiet, you idiot!"
As Jo Min-woo answered thoughtlessly, Jo Min-ah and Cha Eun-ha subdued him from both sides.
Leaving Jo Min-woo to scream silently as his mouth was covered and his sides were pinched, Jun Bo-ra quickly interjected.
"I'll explain Kim Se-hyeon's plan. If we combine our strength with yours, we can definitely bring down Pentagon Eagle."
"Interesting. But honestly, it'll be difficult with just us. The number of guilds willing to declare themselves anti-Salvatio... or rather, anti-Pentagon Eagle, isn't large enough. Most are staying neutral, afraid of unnecessary losses."
"To be precise, they don't want to make a move without a clear justification and tangible benefits. It's because we know what happened in EOA—how they were suddenly swallowed up by Pentagon Eagle when it began its activities—that we're trying to stop them like this."
Cha Eun-ha's eyes narrowed slightly.
The word EOA, appearing yet again.
What on earth was it, that those who knew of it knew so much?
The twins, having experienced this situation often, seemed to just accept it, but this only made Cha Eun-ha more suspicious.
*'You and your master. In EOA, you were destined to die. You've lived this much longer, that should be enough.'*
Cha Eun-ha clearly remembered the words Marker had said while choking her.
"I can solve that problem."
Jun Bo-ra's lips curled up slightly.
Justification and benefits.
Frankly, the benefits were overflowing.
If Pentagon Eagle disappeared, the many things they monopolized and their talented personnel would flood the market as free agents.
The important thing was the justification.
"Pentagon Eagle's dark side. There's plenty of circumstantial evidence, but it's hard to find concrete proof. We have a reliable witness."
"What kind of...?"
"You'll find out when the time is right."
The spinning parasol came to a sudden halt.
For the first time, Simila closed her parasol and her smiling eyes turned serious.
"We, the Onyx Griffon."
The pendant around Simila's neck swayed, and the embossed griffin crest glinted.
"From this moment on, pledge to stand with the Strategy King and his companions."
Jun Bo-ra, who had wondered if she'd said something wrong due to Simila's sudden change in mood, finally allowed a smile to grace her lips.
***
L-Team is a team under Pentagon Eagle.
If there's nothing special going on, they should be here.
L-Team was crucial to this plan.
*Did they receive some kind of mission?*
I roamed throughout the building wearing the Goblin's Hood, but there was no sign of L-Team.
I remember all the faces I saw back then. Even their names.
I even checked their individual rooms, but there were only signs that they hadn't been back in a long time.
Except for one person.
Roberto.
*He's almost recovered.*
Roberto was wandering around inside the building.
He sometimes went outside, but never for long.
If he needed a place to recuperate from the wounds inflicted by the Black Flame, there was no safer place than the Pentagon Eagle headquarters.
At the very least, Roberto had no choice but to remain here.
Wounds from the Black Flame aren't impossible to heal. They're just tricky.
After this much time, it was only natural in a way.
Good.
The conditions are perfect for proceeding with the plan.
Just then, Zeta emerged from the shadows and carefully handed me a photograph.
A single photo that made it look like Roberto was having a secret meeting with the Strategy King.
Nothing in the photo was manipulated. The photo itself, that is.
Except for the fact that the person in the photo was Choi Yeon-soo, transformed by Polymorph.
"Damn it. That many coins and items, they're demanding something absurd. Dammit, should I just force it and suppress them? No. If I do that, bastards like Onyx Griffon or Sunset Unicorn will seize the opportunity to pick a fight... Aaargh!?"
William, who was walking and muttering to himself with a scrunched-up face, was suddenly dragged into the darkness that appeared out of nowhere.
With this, the final condition is met.
The fact that the photo came via Zeta must mean Jun Bo-ra's side has finished their talks with Onyx Griffon.
Now, it's time to hunt the eagle in earnest.
"Zeta. Tell Choi Yeon-soo she can begin."
***
"Lord Graham. Would you take a look at this?"
Graham stopped drinking and narrowed one eye.
William couldn't possibly be unaware that he hated being disturbed while drinking.
Yet, there was only one reason he would approach him.
When there was something just that important.
Graham moved his body with a creak.
What William handed him was a single photograph.
"...What is this?"
A photo that seemed to show Roberto talking with an Asian woman.
The seemingly unremarkable photo displeased Graham.
"I don't see why I need to know who Roberto is meeting or what he's doing."
"That will change once you know the woman's identity."
"What is it? Spit it out."
"It's the Strategy King. From Korea."
The focus returned to Graham's eyes.
The Strategy King. How could he forget that name?
The player to be most wary of in Korea, and a colleague of Kim Se-hyeon, the one who had tarnished the name of Pentagon Eagle several times.
And also, the one who had rejected his offer to join them.
Graham's hand, holding the photo, tightened.
"The Strategy King, huh? So this bitch is the Strategy King."