Chapter 96
[Appearing everywhere, advent of the enemy of injustice!]
“Do you know about the rumored criminal?”
“There are rumors that say he hunts chaotic players who have committed crime!”
[Who is he? The one who steals all Chaos player’s items?]
“The rumor also said that he’s giving back most of the stolen items back to society.”
“What a righteous man!!”
[The true enemy of injustice of this era! His name is…….]
“His name? Of course it’s ‘Yoo Gil-dong’”
….The words above, which doesn’t seem awkward to be used as an intro to any work, seems to be talking about me.
This situation was really awkward because I was always ‘hunting’ the protagonist as their adversary wherever I go.
‘Me? Righteous…?’
I was nothing but a thief.
The reason I robbed bandits was because they were carrying a lot of ownerless items that couldn’t be tracked by guards anyway.
My reason for giving back the items to the society?
Firstly, it was difficult to carry all of it around due to the limited space of my inventory. However, I also couldn’t put the items I robbed from the bandits into the auction because there’s a chance that the original owner will come and make a ruckus. Besides, the currency of this world was useless for me.
There’s another option of using the black market. But how could I know about something like that when I have only been in this world for a few days? If I get hit in the back for no reason, it would be a headache.
Thus, I decided to give back most of the items I got to society.
“Let’s help Yoo Gil-dong, let’s defeat the Chaos player too!”
“Let’s go!!!”
And that’s how my image solidified.
But it doesn’t matter anyway. In the first place, I made the pseudonym Yoo Gil-dong as a joke. Even my face was barely revealed.
So far, I’ve been working hard for two weeks and collected numerous items. However, except for a few useful accessories, I haven’t found any piece of equipment that could be useful for me.
I was thinking of doing it for a few more weeks.
However,
“Are you the rumored Yoo Gil-dong?”
『Player who live with SSS-class luck』
…..The protagonist has come.
“Would you like to be my colleague?”
[The new episode of Protagonist Perutius has started ‘You, Be My Friend! (1)’!]
* * *
<…Wouldn’t it be dangerous?>
“Don’t worry. Everything is going according to the plan.”
<I see!>
I am very sorry to the system who believed my word right away, but I can’t help it because the situation has developed in a really strange way.
It wasn’t that bad since I’ve become the protagonist’s companion. I would be able to figure out a way to hunt him after collecting information about him little by little.
‘But, why now?’
I haven’t finished my item farming yet.
I want to wear a hero grade suit and wield a hero grade sword too.
But that reason alone wasn’t enough for me to turn down the offer to become his companion. Also, I accepted it because it seems like a necessary build-up to properly ‘hunt’ him later.
Okay! Let’s think positively. I have a lot of time until the deadline right?
‘Can I take his item?’
After a close examination, I decided it was impossible. Most of the items he had were ‘Legendary’ grades, while the maximum grade of the items that I could bring back to Earth were hero-grade.
By the way, I also realized that ‘luck’ stat was extremely good. All of his items were legendary-grade. Even the enchantment level of every equipment was quite high. In particular, the weapons.
For weapons, the higher the item enhancement level is, the brighter the ‘Aura’ around the weapon shines. And Perutius’s weapon was very dazzling.
‘Should I punch him on the back of his head?’
I looked at Perutius who was walking in front of me.
The back of his head was really sturdy. It was as spacious and reassuring as the mighty sea.
I think I could hold a soccer match on that back.
Kwa Kwa Kwa Kwang!!
“Oh, Braveheart! You are really strong!”
“……”
Having confirmed that the area in front of him explodes in a fan shape neatly after just one attack, I nearly gave up on facing Perutius right now.
And there’s one more reason why I’m giving up on facing Perutius right now.
It was his other companion.
A Muscular Ax Warrior (Male, 31 years old)
A priestess of Light (Female, 20 years old)
A glasses Magician (Male, 29 years old)
A spirit Archer (Female Elf, 23 years old)
In addition, Perutius was a tank with a holy sword and a shield, so when the battle begins, I will have a 5v1 battle. How can I, who became the ‘Rogue’ class of this party, win?
I’ll be lucky if I didn’t explode to death as soon as the battle began.
“Indeed! The Braveheart’s ‘Ethereal Storm Blade’ is a skill that spreads out his mana into a fan shape and triggers 1890 particle collisions per second! In addition, he altered the direction at the last moment to prevent the damage from spreading towards the elf who was shooting her arrow right next to him! Amazing! Only Braveheart can handle that power at will!”
“Haha, it’s not a big deal.”
“……”
The magician constantly flapped his mouth during the battle by explaining his skill in great details. I don’t know if it was a show of loyalty or whatever, but he was so noisy.
“Rogue. Please release the trap!”
“Ah, yeah….”
I unequipped my ether long ago in order to pretend to be a rogue class. Throughout the battle, I was only standing in the back of the party while holding a dagger. I walked ahead to unlock the trap of the dungeon. Of course, I didn’t have any ability to release a trap.
Modern science is what you need in this case.
[Scanning the wearer iris.]
[Confirmed.]
When I took out a pair of glasses from the inventory and put it on, the ‘essence’ energy detection function was activated.
These glasses were specially made to grasp the flow of magical power that the ‘Library of the White Witch’ did not know. It was equipped with a multi-function display operation.
In other words, I could detect not only most of the traps in this world which were mostly made of magical power, but also primitive traps such as poison arrows or falling rocks.
[Scanning….]
Will it be at least Hero-grade equipment if I sell these glasses as an item? All the rogue-class players will want it.
“Unbelievable! To be able to deactivate a flare blinker trap that connects to another trap by only destroying the detonator with such thorough calculated hand movement…! As expected from the rumored Yoo Gil-dong!”
……I really want to beat that guy.
* * *
In conclusion, becoming Braveheart’s companion wasn’t a bad choice.
Firstly, I was able to find out about him and his companion’s level.
Their fighting capabilities weren’t that good. The combination of their skills was not well-suited either. Nevertheless, the reason why they always win was simply because protagonist correction was with them.
The average level of Braveheart and his party was in the early to mid-100’s, but from now on they’ll always meet enemies that could only be beaten by them, so can I really defeat them?
Secondly, I discovered a special hidden secret of the Braveheart.
“Liat! We did it again today!”
-Yes! Braveheart is amazing!
It was the fact that his level-10-enchanted legendary weapon, the holy sword, was an ‘ego sword.’ It was a sword that speaks a lot.
Third, the purpose of the warrior.
“Why am I traveling? Of course, to defeat the Black Dragon King!”
“Why?”
“Isn’t it natural? The ‘system’ that sent us players to this world said that the Black Dragon King is said to be an evil destroyer.”
“……”
As I put a suspicious look, the system said.
<The ‘system’ he talked about is presumed to be similar to the ‘constellation’. They have the power to do that.>
‘Hum…….’
Well, I knew very well that the constellations did many weird things for their own fun because I had experienced it firsthand the other day.
And the last and fourth reason. This is the most important.
“Oh, Braveheart! You picked another hero-grade item!”
Most of the items I earned during two weeks I acted as a robber were either unusable or low-grade, so I had to discard them. But unlike me, Braveheart who went around the dungeon always got usable items!
“Haha. I was lucky. Oh, but this is something I can’t use. Do you want to have it?”
“Thanks!”
In addition, Braveheart always distributed items he could not use, to his companions who needed it.
‘Leaching from the protagonist like this isn’t so bad?’
<Hunter Yoo Seodam….>
‘Oh, don’t worry. I wouldn’t let my personal feelings affect the quest.’
I’ll kill him anyway. Just like how villain hunters shut their emotions off when they hunt villains, I’ll also shut my emotions off while hunting protagonists.
I feel that way just because he was the most useful protagonist among all protagonists I’ve ever met so far.
Since then, I have been active as the colleague of the protagonist for another week.
That day, Braveheart and his party sensed something was off from me.
“But Rogue-nim why don’t you use your skill?”
“Yeah. I have never seen you use any skill.”
Yes. I couldn’t use any ‘game skill’ because I don’t have the system. In contrast, players were able to do all sorts of ridiculous movements through their ‘skills.’
“Flame Sword!”
“Ark Buster!”
“Rainbow Step!”
Have you ever seen someone activate an advanced technique with a single word? Or throwing 20 knives in succession without missing? Or even a movement that completely defies the law of physics?
Unlike the skills I had so far, their skills have more amazing effects.
“Uh, um…. That…..”
“Ah. Perhaps, Rogue-nim are you a genuine player?”
“Pardon?”
“What is a genuine player?”
While I was unable to answer the mage’s question, the priestess asked another question.
“Genuine players are people who do not raise their level and skill proficiency. They only care about their ‘Training’’”
“Ah! right. Come to think of it, I do see them from time to time.”
“I don’t know why they do that.”
“They don’t know that it will be easier if they level up. If your skill proficiency increases, you will surely train them too.”
“And they’ll get items too while going around dungeons.”
Hence, they cast aside their suspicions towards me.
It has been only two years since players have come to this world. However, the strongest player amongst players has already achieved S Rank, that is, the level of ‘Sword Expert’.
‘…When I think about it, it’s really strange.’
Even when I rose into A rank within a year, I had 15 years of hard training and life experience. It was only possible because I absorbed the ‘probability’ and skill of the protagonist I hunt.
But what about players? They achieved S rank in only two years by only going around the dungeon for a few hours a day without performing any form of training.
In order for a talented swordsman to become a Sword Expert, they need to train for at least 10 years and at most 20 years. By the way, don’t they become strong too easily while skipping all the training?
‘Wait a minute, this…….’
Players weren’t the only one who lived in Pleidin. In the first place, there is a much higher proportion of natives compared to players.
Yes, it was good to defeat that Black Dragon King, Black Curtain or whatever its name is. But will they really go back to their original world just by doing that? If not, what will happen if the players continue to remain in this world?
‘…Didn’t they say that the strongest swordsman of the empire was a sword master?’
There’s a total of thirty strongest non-players in Pleidin. and all of them were Sword Masters.
Their long years of training were nothing in front of the players. No matter how much blood they spill while swinging their swords, it wasn’t as efficient as a player’s way of gaining strength who only needed to catch a few monsters to level up.
If things go on just like this… Players will easily outperform the world’s strongest non-player, who have been training for decades, in three years.
<…..This is a chronic problem in every world with game system setting.>
A fusion fantasy world with a game system setting.
Players use the system to grow stronger, destroy evil, and have a happy ending. But after that? What happens to the world where the power balance has completely collapsed?
How long will players remain as heroes of this world?
It wouldn’t be forever.
In the near future, players will thoroughly dominate this world.
If that happens.
<Before the world is destroyed by probability, it is more likely that it will be destroyed by war…>
The system said resolutely.
<There are more reasons to hunt the protagonist. Come on, hurry…>
“As expected from you Braveheart! That’s great! But can you give me one glove?”
“Oh, haha! I almost forgot. Here, it’s yours now. Rogue-nim.”
<You have to hunt….>
“Oh oh. Thank you! But I also worked hard this time. Please give me one more.”
“Hmm? I see. Have this too.”
<Seodam…?>
Her empty voice reverberated inside the dungeon, but I was so busy trying to sort the items that I heard those words quite half-heartedly.