◈ Episode 199. The Victory Message

A bomb dropped out of nowhere at AAU.

“So, you want me to believe that now? Again?”

The branch president’s video conference.

It wasn’t just Park Minjae, the Korean branch leader.

The rest of the branch leaders got the news late.

Everyone pressed their foreheads together as if they were salty.

My head was throbbing and I couldn’t stand it!

“The duel observation message popped up and I accepted…….”

“Then my vision suddenly changed.”

“I opened my eyes and saw the magnificent Colosseum……?”

“No, how am I supposed to believe this?”

Park Minjae was the last to lament.

“At times like this, I wish I could be a player for a day. Seriously, there’s no reason for our players to lie about something like this…….”

Baker Chat, the London branch leader.

He smirked, intrigued.

“Schreig said he’d never seen a Colosseum so ornate? Not since the days when the Arcana was just a game!”

“A Colosseum built of jewels and gold?…….”

“There are none, not even on the continent of Arcana.”

Even after reliving my developer days and searching through my memories and databases.

There was no Colosseum that matched the players’ testimony.

No, not even the way it was entered made sense in the first place.

“I didn’t even enter through a rift or a portal.”

“Of course not, you just closed your eyes and opened them!”

“Time passes at a different frequency.”

American West Branch.

Joshua had a conversation with Rox about that.

He’d said the duel had been going on in the Colosseum for at least a few tens of minutes, but when he’d checked the time after returning to reality, only a few tens of seconds had passed.

“……Where the hell did you go as a group?”

Anyway, damn arcana!

Once you know one thing, you know a whole lot more.

Park Minjae shook his head in frustration.

He missed the stares of the branch leaders at the back of his head.

“But I’m telling you, Mr. Park.”

“I’m listening. I’m not sleeping, I’m thinking.”

“There’s one person you might know, isn’t there?”

“……?”

Park looks up at the soft voice.

All eyes on him.

The expectant gazes of the branch leaders.

He could feel it in his gut.

“……You mean the general manager of YUSRA?”

A player and the general manager of the YUSRA branch.

At the same time.

The only one who could answer their questions.

Lee Hoyeol.

‘That’s a bit.’

But facing Lee Hoyeol alone was too much for Park Minjae.

It was a burden even for Park Minjae.

So Park Minjae quickly changed the subject.

“That’s right. Speaking of which, isn’t it amazing that he defeated Shegwin with a sword? It’s a big deal!”

To borrow a word from the youths, it worked.

One by one, the branch leaders nodded.

“Shegwin, you’re not actually an NPC designed for players to defeat or confront, are you? You’re an NPC that’s made to be a mountain out of a molehill.”

It was.

In a way, it was the same as a Magic Tower.

Sword Saint.

Literally the pinnacle of the sword.

It was too powerful to be designed to affect the continent of Arcana.

That’s why we had an exclusive setting where it only knew swords.

“Considering the age of the setting……. he would have died of natural causes long ago.”

“I think that’s something we need to talk to the players about a little bit more, because that’s something that’s hard to understand right now.”

A rejuvenated Shegwin.

That alone is remarkable.

After losing his duel with Hoyeol, he became an old man again.

He was engulfed in green flames and disappeared with his sword.

There were only a few witnesses.

“……But even if it were known, it would be hard to believe, wouldn’t it?”

No matter how many players witnessed it.

I wondered if they were hallucinating as a group.

Isn’t it too absurd to be human?

Especially.

“Even if it’s General Manager Lee Hoyeol…….”

You defeated Sword Saint with a sword.

As I said before, Shegwin is not designed to be defeated by the player.

He had deceptive stats and unique skills that players would be shocked to learn about.

So there was some discussion about that.

“Well, there must have been a mistake, right?”

“What do you mean?”

“You see, Sword Saint is a character designed to be a peak. He was designed to be unbeatable with a sword, so he was supposed to be an old man, a character who would naturally exit as the Arcana story progressed.”

“……That’s right.”

“I wonder if it wasn’t a situation where the players were unable to exercise normal judgment. Why, the players’ testimonies speak for themselves: the lavish Colosseum wasn’t enough, and the rejuvenated Shegwin was engulfed in green flames as an old man.”

…… Well, I’m glad we’re back on topic.

As I listened, I was pissed off again.

Park Minjae flashed a rotten smile.

Joshua, how dare you question our general manager?

Especially when you’re farting in front of him.

Anyway, it’s filthy.

Some of them have no pride whatsoever.

“Haha-”

Park Min-jae’s true nature was about to burst out when he slammed into Raymond Sean.

An urgent message was sent to each branch leader.

“?”

It was an update on the Arcana official website.

Someone shouted in frustration.

“It’s not even Thursday, is it an emergency update?!”

Luckily, it wasn’t the worst.

It wasn’t the update that came to mind.

Instead, I saw a video on the homepage.

“……Arcana Official Account? This was uploaded by Raymond Sean? Wait, Raymond uploaded a video? That’s the first time I’ve ever seen anything other than an update?!”

“Calm down. Let’s play it.”

Soon, a video shared in the branch office chat room.

“……!!!”

Joshua, who was unusually talkative, fell silent.

The video played, and all that came to mind was the Colosseum.

The figure of Hoyeol facing the Sword Saint.

And the spectacular end of the battle.

After defeating the Sword Saint, Hoyeol stood tall.

*

Yeah, it’s bound to be a hot topic.

‘Even I was surprised.’

The duel with Shegwin, as shown on the official Arcana website.

It wasn’t filmed from the player’s perspective.

There were cameras everywhere.

And blockbuster movie editing.

There’s only one person who could have done this.

‘Raymond Sean.’

The community went into a frenzy over a simple action movie rip-off.

They even put it in slow motion when he exchanged blows with Shegwin. He didn’t just wrap it up, he covered it in gold leaf.

-Is it a true story? Hahaha. He looks more like a sword saint than a sword saint.

-Even if I slowed it down, my eyes couldn’t keep up.

-I recognized you from the time you fought with an umbrella…your sword skills.

Naturally, I can’t relax.

That move didn’t come from my swordsmanship.

It was all the Ego Sword.

A [Legendary] grade item.

It’s all thanks to your Gwicheol……!

‘Anyway, I’m an iron face.’

But from my face.

The truth could not be revealed.

It wasn’t that I was surprised to see it.

The expression was so serious that even I could be fooled.

Indeed, it was a duel for the position of Sword Saint.

Dalcack─

I put down a teacup with a tea bag in it.

But even if I understood.

There’s no way Grandfell’s temper is going to tolerate this.

I opened my mouth to speak.

“Raymond Sean, you don’t deserve it.”

The last word.

Shegwin’s blue sword force radiated.

He had regained his pride.

Or perhaps it was the effect of the title [Sublime].

I cannot know.

But one thing is certain.

“He deserves a spectacle.”

I do not rebuke those who cheer in triumph.

They don’t know what happened between Shegwin and me. They don’t know why the hellfire consumed him at the last moment. They don’t even know what hellfire is.

But.

You know everything, Raymond Sean.

And yet you do.

Because the pride of Grandfell would not allow it.

“I look forward to our meeting one day.”

I don’t know when that will be.

I’m looking forward to it.

You’re the cause of all this, Raymond. You are.

I mean, I owe you something.

‘If it wasn’t for you.’

If only I didn’t have to worry about the shame!

Okay, enough with the lamentations that the other side won’t hear.

Besides, I had something to check right now.

Victory in the duel of space and time.

The reward for victory.

It was gold coins.

One hundred to be exact.

“Gold coins…….”

Innocence.

I know full well that you are not obsessed with wealth and fame, Grandfell.

But these aren’t just any gold coins, so be patient.

[Spacetime Gold Coins]

[Rank: Epic]

[Restriction: Transcendent]

[Effect: Can be used as currency in spacetime].

[Description: A gold coin that can be used as currency in the realm of the Transcendent.]

The gold coin of space and time.

In short, it was the money of the [Transcendent Community] and
『SpaceTime』.

I could only guess at the details of its use.

The AAU had given me some information, but I’d have to experience it for myself to know how it was implemented, just like the duel in space and time.

At least I already know how to use it in a social hall.

“Mmm.”

Look at this.

I need to order tea, so I let it slide.

How much do you really value teatime?

Of course, the rewards for winning didn’t end with gold.

A video of the duel has just been uploaded to Arcana’s official website.

The profits from the duel would fall to me.

It was truly a fortune and honor, so it was a useless reward to me.

‘…… Think of it as a savings account.’

If I save it, I can use it in my old age.

Anyway, that’s it for the formal victory rewards.

Now comes the real reward.

I checked the title.

[Transcendent: Your transcendent state is enough to be called a transcendent. – Current achievements: Circle (all magic expression power increased by 1,000%) / Incomplete Quick Sword / None / None… ….]

An incomplete swordsmanship that emerges with new accomplishments.

That’s right.

Once again, it was Grandfell’s talent.

Just as he had witnessed magic, he could replicate it.

Even Shegwin’s swordsmanship had been witnessed in a duel.

Eventually, he mastered it.

‘It’s still incomplete, so the effect isn’t specified…….’

If you polish it.

Maybe I’ll come up with a proper effect like Circle?

For me, it was a harvest that was far more valuable than gold coins or money.

A Sword Saint unlike any other.

I had mastered Shegwin’s swordsmanship.

I chanted.

“I will walk in the path of your sword.”

That’s a noble turn of phrase, Grandfell.

“At least to achieve true victory.”

And after all, this is no joke, Grandfell.

What is true victory?

The Demon of the past.

The victory in the Holy War, of course.

Shegwin was tempted, but at the last moment he regained his pride. And the most evil of all was the demon who preyed on Shegwin’s weakness and deceived him.

‘Here you go again, putting pride on pride…….’

What’s the use of struggling for a hundred days?

I’ll take other people’s pride if I have to.

But as I said, everything is my karma.

Still, let’s think positively.

‘…… That’s right, what’s not stuffed on the homepage?’

An embarrassing name, no matter where you put it.

[Name: Grandfell Claudi Arpheus Romeo].

I’m glad I took my personal information back to private, seriously…….

.

.

.

An spacetime social hall.

All I could see was a woman sprawled across the table.

…… How long has she been doing that?

The man who entered the social hall clicked his tongue.

“Witch, do you use all the gold coins you earn to buy New Year’s Eve?”

“Why don’t you shut up?”

“……Bam, I’m so scared I can’t even talk.”

Sunrise.

The short, black-haired man sat down.

Clink.

He took out a gold coin and placed it on the table.

Immediately, a cup of water appeared out of thin air.

“Huh.”

A gold coin’s worth of Moon Purifying Water.

It was too much to swallow, but it washed away his physical fatigue.

He looked over at the social hall.

“… … Witch, I always feel it. Isn’t buying tobacco made from precious elixirs overconsumption, no matter how much gold coins you have? Well, I’m not bragging about having a lot of gold coins.”

A tobacco that costs ten gold coins per cigarette.

That’s precious, as always.

Except for the stiffly smoking Witch of the South Sea.

There was no sign of the other Transcendents.

The man shrugged.

“I guess they’re all busy with other things.”

Given the state of affairs on the Arcana Continent, that was understandable.

Now is the time for the Transcendents.

It’s their time to make their mark.

In that sense, it was unexpected.

“For some reason, I don’t see any signs of old man.”

Shegwin.

Unlike the other Transcendents.

An old man, driven only by his sword.

“I was hoping to ask you something.”

Shegwin had regained his youth, or whatever.

It didn’t matter to the man.

Anyway, other than discussing the sword, neither of us had any interest in the other.

Suddenly, a parchment came into the man’s view.

A glance.

The man glanced at the woman, who was still in the midst of her New Year’s Eve.

“You didn’t check this, either. Am I going to criticize you?”

It’s not every day that news arrives at the social hall.

I can’t even answer her, it’s an addiction, an addiction.

The man shook his head and unfolded the parchment.

The man’s face became agitated.

” ……died in a spacetime duel?”

……Shegwin, the old man?

I had spoken to him a few times.

Shegwin, that he was a swordsman of considerable skill.

Wasn’t he a transcendent like himself in the first place?

“……Who is this?”

The man confirmed the other’s name.

He was stunned.

It was a name he’d never heard before.

And only one person he could guess.

“New guy.”

It was.

The man’s name was not revealed during the performance evaluation.

It was written on a parchment.

The man recited the name.

“Grandfell Claudi Arpheus Romeo.”

“……?!”

It was then.

A thud!

The witch sprawled beside him straightened up.

Opening her fierce eyes even more sharply.

She said to the man.

“Say again.”

“……What are you talking about?”

“The name, say it again.”

“……the name?

It was long and I didn’t hear it right.

The man mumbled again.

“Grandfell Claudi Arpheus Romeo.'”

Then the witch repeated.

“Grandfell……. Claudi……? K, House of Claudi……?!”

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