It's a Living Hell...! (2)

Spirits are inherently mischievous by nature. You can tell just by looking at the tales drifting across the Arcana Continent.

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Since most humans can't hear a spirit's voice, spirits often play pranks in place of words.

Traveler, do not be angry if your hat is swept away by the wind. The wind spirit simply wishes to converse with you...

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High El had once been a forest spirit, but now she had been reborn as a {unique spirit}. A position shapes a person, just as it shapes a spirit. Thus, there was nobility to be found in the recent High El, but no trace of mischief.

And to top it off, she was even influenced by Hoyeol.

High El swallowed her words inwardly.

'What should I do, my lord.'

If her heart had its way, she wanted to toy with those five adventurers below. Cheonha Tongil. Whenever she recalled how they had ceaselessly slandered her lord, her honest feelings were...

She wanted to bind their limbs with vines.

But High El did not forget.

"...My deepest apologies, my lord."

The decorum that Hoyeol had emphasized.

High El never forgot her position. She kept in mind that her actions could tarnish her lord's lofty honor.

Once more, she viewed them from Hoyeol's perspective.

And the answer came.

"What should be done with them..."

Chainwalker wavered.

Dwarves were fundamentally indifferent to others. The reason the dwarves were aiding the empire now was purely due to Akkshan and Hoyeol's influence.

Chainwalker looked to High El again.

"Are you not far more knowledgeable about adventurers than we are?"

Who did she take after? Even with his deferential tone and treatment, High El nodded proudly.

Just like someone else, her voice rang out resolute.

"Do you know of it, Chainwalker?"

"Know what, exactly?"

"Of my lord's homeland. The world of the adventurers."

"Hmm. Well."

Chainwalker stroked his beard.

Come to think of it, he knew next to nothing about the adventurers' world. He was too busy focusing on the Arcana Continent.

And moreover, it was Hoyeol's homeland, not just anyone's.

Chainwalker scratched his head.

"I wouldn't know what sort of place it is, but it must be better than the current Arcana Continent, no? Since Sir Hoyeol resides there."

High El shook her head.

"The demons who crossed from the Arcana Continent to the adventurers' world share one thing in common. They find greater satisfaction in the adventurers' world than in the Arcana Continent. Even with my lord's presence."

"Is that true?"

Chainwalker flinched at the unexpected words.

Then he looked back down at the adventurers on the ground.

Chainwalker's eyes narrowed sharply.

"...Could it be because of the adventurers?"

Chainwalker did not forget.

This was a Holy War.

They had Akkshan at their backs.

So he steeled his ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠resolve.

If adventurers were of use to demons, then perhaps he needed to show them cold cruelty.

"It is a more primal issue."

"A primal issue...?"

"Negative emotions never cease in that land."

A chill ran down Chainwalker's spine.

'Does such a world truly exist?'

Even the Arcana Continent was horrific enough. Sometimes the desolation alone gave him goosebumps.

Chainwalker could only admire Hoyeol once more.

'Even in such a world, Sir Hoyeol stands tall?'

Of course, that sentiment didn't last long.

And so.

Chainwalker confirmed once more.

"What shall we do with those adventurers?"

"Do you know the antonym of mercy, Chainwalker?"

"Well... disposal?"

"No."

High El's gaze cooled darkly.

"Indifference and neglect."

Dawn.

Red banners. Cheonha Tongil.

They were the enemies of her lord.

Naturally, her lord's warmth would not shine upon them.

She didn't even want to spare them a glance.

Yet for Hoyeol's sake, High El thought one step further.

'There must be a reason.'

A reason they had set foot on the Arcana Continent, ignoring the rules her lord had established.

High El intended to report their every move to Hoyeol without fail.

The nature of the Arcana Continent and the spirits governing it.

High El, reborn as a {unique spirit} through the [Blessing of the First World Tree], had authority over them.

In other words.

There was no need for her to watch with her own eyes.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

High El withdrew her gaze from Cheonha Tongil's Five Stars.

"Let us proceed according to my lord's arrangements, Chainwalker."

"I understand your intent."

Rumble─!

At last, the massive airship cleaved through the skies.

That sight alone was enough to instill despair in the Five Stars—the five players.

"N-No way."

"NPCs are supposed to welcome players!!"

"You bastards, are we not coming back?!"

However.

The response to their shouts did not come from the Iron Castle Ho.

Wriggle─

It was a demon-race monster drifting across the Arcana Continent.

Demons fundamentally lack any sense of propriety. There are more demons incapable of reading the room than those who can.

However, even a pathetic demon.

Was still level 700.

No matter how prepared they were.

Could players in the level 450 range handle such a monster?

They knew better than anyone.

"N-No! This is suicide!!"

The bravado they'd shown before the access devices was gone.

They all screamed in unison, without regard for who spoke first.

"Log out!!"

...But nothing happened.

Hadn't he warned them from the start?

- "You cannot return to reality through the access devices."

They simply hadn't believed him.

- "I trust you haven't forgotten your mission. We must accurately convey to my lord what is happening on the Arcana Continent."

Only then did the Five Stars realize.

"...No way?"

The reason their lord had granted them use of the access devices...

Was simply to gauge the truth of those words?

Amid the screams, someone shouted.

"Arrrgh! I won't forgive you, Ryu Ojuncheon!!"

.

.

.

What is a monarch?

A monarch must think ahead of their vassals.

If the vassals can fathom the monarch's intent.

It means the monarch is unfit.

Whoosh─

Ryu Ojuncheon's cold gaze turned toward the access device.

Everyone had vanished into the Arcana Continent.

This made the twentieth.

"I will not forget your sacrifice for me."

The guild members dropped onto the Arcana Continent.

Whether they cursed him or not.

It mattered not.

That was the nature of [Lord-Vassal Relationship].

A ruthless voice echoed.

"So die with pride."

* ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠AAU.

"What dream job? Seriously."

Even before the cataclysm, back in the Cosmo days.

And now after the cataclysm, with Cosmo transitioned into AAU.

Seong Hyunjun was seen as the blessed one among his ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠friends.

To be fair, he had been sucking on the sweet life quite a bit until now.

Until recently.

Slurp─

Seong Hyunjun, with his hollowed eyes, extended his life with an Americano.

He hadn't properly slept in days.

It was all because Yusra branch director—Hoyeol—had dropped a bomb.

"Not content with the mega-evil dragon, now it's a simultaneous raid on the Hundred Thousand Caves, plus a legendary item, Excalibur? Just thinking about what to tell the press gives me a headache, senior."

Yoon Sugyeom's situation was no different.

The reason was simple.

He clenched his hair tightly.

"Excalibur... that thing shouldn't have been there..."

Excalibur.

The highest-grade item in the Arcana system, just as players and the press speculated.

Even if it wasn't something meant to appear back when Arcana was just a game.

Its location and coordinates had been clearly set.

Yoon Sugyeom muttered with a complicated expression.

"Of course, it's a relief that the director acquired it... but why was it in the Zero Mountains' Hundred Thousand Caves? Damn it. How much of a mess has the Arcana Continent become...!"

"Senior, why aren't you answering me?"

"No way it was originally buried underground, right?"

"...What? Did my voice not reach you?"

Freeze.

Seong Hyunjun urgently pinched his cheek with desperate fingers.

There was pain, he could feel his flesh, and his hand didn't pass through the desk.

He didn't seem to have collapsed from overwork and left his body...

The two men made a fuss simultaneously.

"Is the goddess there as foreshadowing or something?"

"N-No way. Did you die, senior?!"

"Damn this cursed Arcana!"

"Senior, look at my face!"

It was total chaos.

Three days without going home.

Perhaps staying sane was the odd thing.

But the real pandemonium was only just beginning.

"Emergency!!"

Thud thud─

Who else in the AAU Korea branch could bellow like that at the top of their lungs?

Only the branch chief, Park Minjae.

Park Minjae searched for the two with a face drained white.

"Yoon Sugyeom, Seong Hyunjun! Emergency! Emergency!"

Emergency?

The real emergency was zoning out during work hours.

Or perhaps a boss rushing in like this?

Their wandering minds snapped back.

"What is it, Chief?"

But Park Minjae wasn't overreacting.

There was an even greater emergency.

Words spilling from trembling lips.

"The Yusra branch director is visiting."

"...R-Right now?! Here?!"

"Yes!"

Excalibur, the goddess, the mega-evil dragon, and now a visit!

How was it that the director gave them no room to breathe?

Before asking why, they checked their appearances.

They asked each other.

"Should I, like, wash up real quick?"

"No, fix that tie first."

"How's my face looking?"

...Park Minjae's face wouldn't improve from inspection, but.

He nodded anyway.

The three hurried to the branch chief's office.

The appointed time was approaching.

"By the way, what's the visit for?"

"Something he wants to confirm in the settings."

"...Settings?"

It was baffling.

How could it not be?

From magic to demons, and recently even forming ties with Akkshan, which everyone thought deleted.

Didn't the director possess knowledge of Arcana far beyond their own?

Park Minjae smacked his lips.

"Now you get why I called it an emergency?"

It wasn't just the three of them.

The AAU Korea branch. No, all branches knew well of Hoyeol's efforts.

So they had been waiting for a chance to repay him.

'It felt pretty good back then.'

Park Minjae had gladly bridged the connection to the president at Hoyeol's request.

But this time, he wasn't confident.

Arcana's ceaseless erosion.

And AAU had already dropped the ball once amid it all.

Seong Hyunjun spoke in a gloomy voice.

"Yeah... If anything, we have mountains of questions. Can AAU really answer the director's doubts?"

As known, the AAU database wasn't omnipotent.

If it wasn't a setting fixed from when Arcana was just a game, they couldn't even predict how it manifested.

Park Minjae shrugged.

"Still, we have to do our best."

"Then we'll cheer from outside."

"Huh? Outside? We go in together."

"...Pardon?"

Despite efforts.

The boomer vibes lingered.

Park Minjae joked.

"What, shouldn't we brew some green tea on the side?"

The banter lasted a moment.

Rooooar─

"...!!!"

At the appointed time, a portal opened in the branch chief's office.

Hoyeol appeared without delay and took his seat.

He moistened his throat with the green tea Seong Hyunjun had personally prepared, then spoke.

Park Minjae's face lit up.

"If it's about the Mage Tower's settings...!"

It seemed he could meet Hoyeol's expectations.

"Leave it to me!"

Finally, time to earn his keep.