Light of Arad: Forerunner

Chapter 27

Near the landing point of Kagon’s *Magata*, the Iron Wolf Knights had already set up camp.

The first to arrive, of course, was Vice Commander Hartz von Kruger.

“Leny, what’s going on? Where’s the Commander?”

“The Commander is—”

“Still searching on top of Behemoth.”

It wasn’t Leny who answered, but Jinseong.

Hartz glared at Jinseong, as if annoyed, but Jinseong wasn’t intimidated.

“…So the Commander is still up there? And yet you’re down here?”

“I was sent on a mission by the Wizard Guild to investigate Behemoth and Apostle Lotus. Since I’ve completed that task, I came down with Leny, who was acting as my escort. You may recall that was the arrangement from the start… So, would you kindly step aside? I need to report to the Wizard Guild.”

“Tch…”

Hartz grumbled but had nothing to say. After all, Jinseong had already informed him earlier that he might act independently, and there wasn’t much Hartz could argue against.

Leny, caught between them, looked uneasy as she glanced back and forth. Noticing this, Hartz gave her an order.

“Fine. Once the Commander contacts us, we’ll all need to move again. Leny!”

“Y-Yes, sir!”

“Stick with this man. If the Iron Wolf Knights need to move again, we might need him as well.”

Hartz’s intention was clear—he wanted Leny to keep an eye on Jinseong and bring him along if the Knights had to head back to Behemoth.

And as for Jinseong’s reaction?

“Don’t worry~ I’ll be sure to stick with her,” Jinseong said with a grin.

‘Anyway, the quests related to Apostle Lotus on Behemoth aren’t over yet. This is perfect. I was wondering how to get back on top of Behemoth later, but hiding among them is way better than sneaking aboard Kagon’s *Magata*. It’ll also be easier to hide from the player’s monitor this way. Thanks, Hartz!’

Jinseong had his own plans, but moving with the ordinary knights of the Iron Wolf would certainly be much more convenient.

“You! That attitude of yours—”

“Leny, shall we get going?” Jinseong interrupted without paying attention to Hartz’s irritated glare.

“Uh, yes, okay… Vice Commander! I’ll be back!” Leny saluted Hartz, then hurriedly followed behind Jinseong.

Jinseong headed quickly toward the Wizard Guild. Though he was glad that one of his issues had been naturally resolved, it wasn’t the time to relax completely.

“J-Jinseong! After you report to the Wizard Guild, what will we do… I mean, what are we going to do next?”

Leny asked, unsure.

That was also something Jinseong was pondering.

The reason for going to the Wizard Guild? In truth, there wasn’t one.

He hadn’t been hired by the Wizard Guild to investigate Behemoth or Apostle Lotus in the first place.

‘I’ll have to give some kind of explanation in exchange for using *Magata*, but… what I need to do now is—’

Jinseong quickly checked his [Status] window.

Current Level: 28.

What should be done at this point?

‘My adventurer reputation hasn’t changed, but I did pick up some gear from a female Archer user, a wealthy alt character who became a Muse. They’re all magic-sealed items, so I need to figure out how to use them.’

And considering the flow of the upcoming quests, what preparations should Jinseong make?

Jinseong sorted out his thoughts and then abruptly stopped walking, turning to face Leny.

“For now.”

“For now?”

Leny’s red eyes were filled with nervousness and worry.

Gone was her usual haughty and arrogant expression. Jinseong stared at her for a moment, then said,

“How about we go grab something good to eat?”

“…Huh? What?”

“I’m saying we should take a good rest for a day.”

Jinseong felt this was something he needed to do, not just for the future, but for himself as well.

“Out of nowhere? Is this a joke?”

“Nope, no joke. Let’s go. I’ll just borrow some money from the Wizard Guild if necessary.”

“W-Wait! Jinseong!”

Leny had no choice but to hurriedly follow behind Jinseong, confused as she was.

She couldn’t make any sense of it.

—

Sharan couldn’t hide her astonishment.

“Apostle Lotus… on top of Behemoth… heading toward the Middle Ocean?”

“Yes. Lotus can only exert 100% of his power when he’s in the water. Right now, he’s severely weakened as he dries up on top of Behemoth, but he’s gradually taking control of Behemoth’s mind, steering him toward the Middle Ocean. If Behemoth enters the ocean, Lotus will as well…”

Jinseong was using his knowledge of the game *Dungeon & Fighter* to explain to Sharan.

In the world of Arad, Arad refers to both the world of Plane: Arad and specifically to the Arad continent, often called “the ground.”

From Arad, Sky Castle reaches up into the heavens, leading to *Celestia*, but between the two is a middle layer—a buffer zone known as the Middle Ocean, or “the sea in the sky,” which serves as a transition between Arad and *Celestia*.

Thus, the vertical structure of this world, as revealed so far, is Arad – Middle Ocean – Celestia.

Even though the people of Arad are still skeptical about the actual existence of Celestia, they are at least aware of the Middle Ocean above them, and it is commonly believed that Behemoth, the giant whale, came from there.

“Then… that means it’s over for Arad—No, wait, Jinseong knew that? And he still came down here? Was he scared and ran away? I didn’t give him the emergency magic stone to use like that! He should have helped the Iron Wolf Knights—”

“Sharan, I told you about my ‘abilities’ beforehand, didn’t I?”

“…Oh.”

Even Sharan, who was usually able to think rationally, felt a twinge of fear due to Jinseong’s revelations.

She glanced at Leny, coughing nervously. The fact that Jinseong, with a glimpse of the future, was standing here meant this was the best course of action, and there was no point in pressing him further.

“So, what now? What should I do?”

“Prepare *Magata* for departure… make sure it’s ready to leave at any time. And—”

Jinseong paused as he recalled the quest flow related to Behemoth.

Though the game’s events were “condensed,” meaning they happened faster in the real world, he knew there would be a brief window of time—maybe a day or two—before the next big event.

During that time, Jinseong had to take care of his own preparations.

And what did he know about when that would be?

“Keep an eye on Iris. She’ll likely call for adventurers soon. That’s when we’ll head back up to Behemoth.”

“Is that all?”

Sharan confirmed in a serious voice.

Jinseong double-checked everything.

They were inside the Wizard Guild, where NPC Sharan was stationed. Since Leny was in a nearby waiting room, there were no other users around to overhear their conversation, which was fortunate. At this stage of the game, most players wouldn’t seek out Sharan for quests anymore.

Still, to be safe, Jinseong glanced around once more before speaking.

“Yes. That’s all I need from you, Sharan. Oh, and is what I asked for last time ready?”

“…You have no idea how much trouble it caused Roton and the alchemists at Hendon Myre and West Coast to make this.”

As Sharan spoke, she tossed a few small bottles onto the table, their clear liquid sloshing inside.

Jinseong’s excited expression slightly dimmed as he stared at the bottles.

“Is this… correct?”

“Yes, is there a problem?”

“No, no. It’s great. As long as it works, that’s all that matters.”

“As long as it works? Of course, it works. I tested everything. Our guild members worked hard to make this—”

“Thank you, Sharan. I’ll make good use of it. I’ll probably need a few more later, though, hehe.”

Jinseong bowed deeply to Sharan, although his excitement had lessened since the potion’s color was different from what he remembered.

But since Sharan had already tested it and confirmed it worked, there was no reason to be disappointed.

‘If anything, it’s probably just like the magic stone I have now… an item that works differently from the game’s, one that only I can use.’

Jinseong pocketed the potions and was about to approach Leny when he suddenly stopped.

“Oh, Sharan?”

“Yes?”

“Could you also take a look at this item for me? It’s sealed with magic, and I don’t think I can unseal it on my own…”

It was an item Jinseong had obtained on Behemoth, something that a player had missed.

In the game, a “magic-sealed item” could be unsealed with a simple right-click of the mouse, but that wasn’t possible here. He would need Sharan’s help.

“That’s easy enough. I can do it right away—”

While he was at it, another thought

crossed Jinseong’s mind.

“Oh, and could you lend me some money? I need to buy a few things.”

After all, that was the most pressing issue at the moment.

The travel funds he had received from Linus had dwindled down to about a thousand gold, which wasn’t enough.

“Money…”

“It takes a lot to get things done, you know. I’ve brought back valuable intel about Apostle Lotus on Behemoth, so I think we both know who’s benefiting here.”

“R-right… Yes, I’ll give you some.”

Sharan hesitated but couldn’t resist Jinseong’s assertive tone.

The information Jinseong had brought back was invaluable at this stage. Aside from Van, Aganzo, and the “players,” no one else knew what was happening on Behemoth, making his intel incredibly valuable.

With a clinking sound, Jinseong pocketed the pouch of gold Sharan reluctantly handed over.

He then approached Leny, who was sitting in the reception room inside the Wizard Guild.

“Leny! Let’s go. Do you have anything you’d like to eat?”

“Are we really taking a break? Even in this situation?”

“Resting when you need to is the best way to stay efficient. Oh, have you ever been to Hendon Myre?”

Leny was still anxious, but Jinseong seemed completely unbothered.

With his usual friendly smile, he asked her another question, and Leny’s furrowed eyebrows finally began to relax.

“Hendon… The capital of the Duchy? No, I haven’t. The Commander and Vice Commander have been, but I haven’t had the chance…”

“Hehe, then let’s go. I have a friend who makes great snacks, and there’s a place that sells drinks and food. It’s a great spot. Plus, we can get what we need while we’re there.”

Though the last part revealed his true intent, Leny didn’t understand that. She just looked at him in disbelief, as if unable to comprehend how Jinseong could talk about snacks and drinks in this situation.

“Hendon Myre is so far away! How could we go there right now? We don’t have the time! The Commander could come down at any moment!”

Cutting off Leny’s protest, Jinseong pulled something out of his pouch.

It was the potions Sharan had given him.

“…What’s this?”

Leny asked, staring at the potions in confusion.

Jinseong grinned.

Right after descending from Sky Castle, this was the first thing Jinseong had wanted to secure.

With no certainty about what quests he might face or where he might need to go next, keeping up with the players’ pace in this real-world scenario came with a significant penalty. To close that gap—

“It’s a ‘Teleportation Potion.’ It’s a little different in color from the I remember, but it’ll work.”

In the game *Dungeon & Fighter*, were a common item, and Sharan had successfully recreated them.

Though the in-game item had a yellow liquid, Sharan’s version was as clear as water, which had surprised Jinseong. But as long as it worked, there was no reason to complain.

‘There’s no level restriction, right? Originally, you had to be level 60 or above to use this. Hehe, this is a sweet deal for me.’

Jinseong uncorked the potion with one hand while extending his other hand toward Leny.

“Hold my hand.”

“Oh, okay…”

Leny, unsure how to react, hesitantly took Jinseong’s hand.

Feeling the warmth from her hand, Jinseong had to compose himself.

“Let’s go. Drink up!”

─────────────!

How much longer would he be able to feel the warmth of this hand?

Only Jinseong knew that his interest in Leny wasn’t rooted in affection or love, a fact that no NPC could understand at this moment.