◈ Episode 277. Starting from zero (1)

Filling the Shame Pool.

In a bizarre quest, I ended up watching [Dragon Lord, Dark Dragon Lee Hoyeol, Roaring at the World] from beginning to end.

‘That’s not me.’

Not me.

It must not be me.

I muttered endlessly.

I was able to regain my composure and evaluate my interview through the eyes of another.

‘I just put gold on my face……!’

There’s nothing wrong with hearing it again.

It’s just misleading.

Especially since he declares that Dark Dragon is only part of it.

-Could it be that he’s still hiding something?

-Lol, come to think of it, he hasn’t even gotten a class yet.

-Isn’t there a Dragon Lord class above the Dragon Knight?

-Lol

There’s a lot of speculation in the community, starting with the class.

Looking at the posts.

I feel like I’m back at the beginning again.

Why, back to the days of slaying Count Ascura upon awakening as a player.

I thought I’d come a long way since then.

The level of hype hasn’t changed a bit.

“One must never forget one’s beginnings in any position.”

Your diction is the same.

Your packaging is still the same, Mr. Grandfell.

But the interview.

No, because a lot of time was spent exploring his anomaly, right?

I hurriedly opened a portal to the Zero Mountains.

The coordinates of the portal were Zero Mountains, Great Alliance Garrison.

“!!!”

The portal suddenly appeared.

I emerged from the portal in a swarm of light.

The players of the Great Alliance must be stunned.

Dilated pupils, open mouths, frozen actions.

All that can be heard in the momentary silence is.

-Lee Hoyeol, Dragon Lord Dark Dragon. A name that will go down in history!

……A story about me, played on players’ smartphones.

I expected it, but it’s still painful.

But as always, I can’t hold back.

I opened my mouth shamelessly.

“Looks like you’re ready to go.”

“……Ouch!”

My words fall out.

The voice returns.

Nam Cheolmin pushed his glasses up and approached me urgently.

‘It’s because I’ve decided to regain my focus.’

I knew Nam Cheolmin from the first rift.

Seeing him face-to-face once again made me feel like I was revisiting the beginning.

By the way, did I mention he’s quitting smoking?

He certainly looks a lot better than he did then.

“I’ve been waiting for you, Commander!”

The damn commander-in-chief…….

‘Do you like Mr. Hoyeol, who is simple and kind?’

I wanted to go back to the way we used to call each other.

It was a different me, carrying so much more than I did then.

In fact, compared to Dark Dragon, the Commander-in-Chief is a nobleman, seriously.

I ask him, sensing something.

“How is the situation in the Zero Mountains?”

“Thanks to your concern, we’re speeding up our efforts to capture the mountains! Of course, the Zero Mountains are so vast…….”

“I understand. The land is not recommended for anyone.”

I’m not trying to be comforting.

While there may be appropriate levels that are not recommended for anyone, there is no walkthrough for the Zero Mountains. But there is a rough scale.

One Hundred Thousand Caves, 100,000 Caves.

So far, the number of caves discovered by the Great Alliance is eight.

That’s less than a dozen, even including the Sea of Lava I discovered. Well, even if you count the caves discovered by the other guilds, including Heavenly Unity and the Shining, that’s a generous fifty…….

“Fifty in a hundred thousand…….

That’s a mere 0.05 percent of the map.

Of course, I did manage to capture the dragon, which is the final content of the Zero Mountains, but……. Nam Cheolmin scratched his head and said.

“Thank you for your understanding! Taemin and the two of them must be waiting by the vanguard, and I’ve been thinking about how to best utilize the commander-in-chief’s power……!”

Clearly, people have different talents.

‘I was really sloppy back then.’

Nam Cheolmin didn’t stand out as a player.

As an analyst, he was looking at the situation from different perspectives.

Of course, things didn’t go as expected.

As he approached the starting lineup, he felt a strange atmosphere.

“Excuse me, Commander-in-Chief.”

It wasn’t as if a gigantic being was about to emanate.

‘It’s murderous.’

It was simply the look on the players’ faces.

It’s definitely serious, though.

If only he hadn’t noticed my shuffling footsteps.

‘What the hell is going on?’

For a moment, I wondered.

I was convinced.

Apparently I didn’t have the presence of mind to pay attention to the other side.

The red insignia.

The players of the Heavenly Unity, Nam Taemin, Hisagi, and Leonie.

The players of Heavenly Unity were facing off against the Masters of the Great Alliance.

I thought I had killed two birds with one stone.

Suddenly, the guild members turned around.

“What is it, you bastards?”

Nam Taemin muttered to himself, and Nam Cheolmin rushed over.

“Taemin, what’s going on?”

“Uh, hyung. It’s not something else……. No, Hoyeol?!”

“Oh no. It’s disrespectful of you to keep the commander-in-chief waiting.”

“……Uh huh.”

Nam Taemin, Hisagi, and Leonie.

After a few moments of mixed reactions.

Nam Taemin spoke up.

“Heavenly Unity, they usually don’t talk to us.”

I’d heard of Heavenly Unity’s closed-mindedness.

But I didn’t realize they wouldn’t even talk to other guilds.

Nam Taemin shakes his head.

“They think they’re the center of the world, and their noses are so high, so we’ve been wondering what the hell they’re talking about. They come into our territory, and we’ve never seen them before. What kind of nonsense are you looking at right now?”

Nam Cheolmin, who was listening, adjusted his glasses and said.

“If you consider yourself to be the Heavenly Unity……. I’m not going to ask you if you’ve seen or heard of them. Apparently, there’s been an incident inside Heavenly Unity. So much so that they’re rushing to find the source of the incident.”

“There’s a crack inside the Heavenly Unity……?”

“Eh? How do you know that?”

Hisagi and Nam Taemin questioned.

I felt the same way.

I can’t believe you can guess such information from a single word.

I’m not an analyst for nothing, am I?

Nam explained his reasoning.

“The Heavenly Unity players had a movement speed buff. It’s a skill that takes a lot of magic to maintain, so they don’t use it in combat. It was purely for the purpose of talking to us, the Great Alliance.”

I nodded gently.

‘If you just shut up, you’re halfway there.’

The psychology of a player is something that not even the great Grandfell can read.

Of course, I, Lee Hoyeol, have confidence in that.

High-level monsters, including demons.

And I have an enviable experience of dealing with Arcana people.

As for direct conflicts with players, see…….

‘Certainly rare.’

I’m glad to hear that.

I had a huge alliance of Gaon, Inazuma, and Berserker behind me.

Of course, it was against my pride to rely on the experience of others.

I opened my mouth.

“You don’t have to worry, I’m here.”

Okay, so I let you go because the timing wasn’t quite right, but don’t expect me to go back next time, Heavenly Unity.

‘Ideal for killing three birds with one stone.’

We’ll make it work one way or another, me and Grandfell.

By the way, at my words, Nam Cheolmin gives a small laugh.

‘Analyst’s sharp sense…….’

With that gaze.

I wondered if he was laughing at my shamelessness.

Nam Cheolmin looked at me and said.

“I’m sorry, I thought I heard you say something like that when I first met you. It was a new sensation for me……. I realized that you still haven’t lost your roots!”

It’s definitely this damn big mouth.

I would have said something similar to what I said now.

At the sound of that, Hisagi narrowed his eyes and muttered.

“It’s the Commander-in-Chief’s original root that I don’t know…”

Nam Taemin and Leonie respond.

“I don’t know either. You don’t know either?”

“I don’t know. But I know better than you.”

…… I wondered what the three of them were talking about.

Leonie shrugged her shoulders in an odd way, and I was convinced.

‘Well, in order of how I got to know you, you’re the one with the brightest face……?’

Nam Cheolmin, whom I met in my first rift.

Then Leonie.

Then I met Taemin and Hisagi………?

I lamented to myself.

‘In the end, it’s all about pride.’

Childish, everyone!

Grandfell.

Because you spread the pride of being a middle school student to others.

You’re all competing to be as childish as middle schoolers, aren’t you?

‘There are a lot of sins, really.’

It’s not enough that I’ve got the Arcana continent, I’ve got to bring my middle school disease to the real world……. No, to pay the penalty for contagious pride. I guess I’ll just have to be diligent.

“As I’ve already told you, in order to maximize your power. Our Great Alliance will attack three caves at the same time.”

In that case, it was a good plan.

‘If I go through three times as much trouble, I won’t have time to worry about random thoughts.’

Let’s see, the appropriate level for a hundred thousand caves.

[Appropriate level: 800]

[Appropriate level: 750]

[Appropriate level: 850]

I don’t know one, but three at the same time.

It was a difficulty level that kept me nervous, even for me.

No, I’ll be honest, it’s a little overwhelming.

Of course.

‘Because the magic power consumption won’t be normal.’

Three caves.

All at the same time.

What’s the biggest reason?

“I’m sure you can manifest a portal from one cave to another, which would allow us to continue our expedition efficiently without spreading our forces around!”

Indeed.

My magic manifestation power has entered the realm of [『Anomaly』].

However, I can tell you from experience that it’s going to take a lot of magic power. Just because the [First World Tree Blessing] is activated doesn’t mean it’s going to increase my magic power to its maximum.

‘In effect, it opens a portal from rift to rift.’

Depending on the situation, players from great alliances will also use the portal.

‘Just thinking about it makes my legs feel wobbly from exhaustion.’

But.

This overestimation.

Grandfell was all too familiar with it.

“A flawless plan.”

The opposite of arrogant.

From now on, to realize the overestimation.

The time has come to struggle diligently beneath the calm waters.

*

The Heavenly Unity.

Gulp─

I gulped down the [Intermediate Magic Recovery Potion] like water.

Its value was comparable to any other equipment item, but I had no choice. I needed to manifest [Stealth] in addition to the movement speed increase skill, [Swift Footwork].

[Skill, ‘Stealth’ is activated].

The Great Alliance.

They say they know nothing of its whereabouts.

But it’s an unbelievable story.

They wouldn’t just disappear for no reason.

There is not a single party that has violated the lord’s order to assemble, to the number of ten. Not a rebellion, for it is impossible that the lord could have failed to recognize the signs while they were conferring.

‘It must be the work of an outside force.’

It was the Heavenly Unity that declared defeat.

Those who would look at the Heavenly Unity with unfavorable eyes?

The Zero Mountains were overflowing.

Especially the Great Alliance.

‘Especially beasts and snake eye.’

Since the days of Gaon and Inazuma.

Nam taemin and Hisagi, who had been victimized by the Heavenly Unity, would have a grudge against the Heavenly Unity. There were plenty of opportunities for them to show their true colors.

Didn’t we even confirm it in our face-to-face meeting a little while ago?

The Great Alliance has amassed a considerable force.

Of course.

‘No sign of battle.’

Those who have not been heard from?

Although they are not as strong as 5 Stars, they are powerful people who are well-known even within the Heavenly Unity. They looked too fine to say that they had fought to the death.

‘But, everything is better.’

Especially information.

Even if it was just a hiccup, information about the Great Alliance would be useful to their Monarch, so the players of Heavenly Unity ducked down and waited for the Great Alliance to make its move.

And then it happened.

“……?”

Ttogak─

Unexpected.

No, out of the ordinary.

He opened his mouth.

“Are you a rat eavesdropping on conversations?”

……Don’t panic.

“If you can’t tell the difference between day and night.”

There’s no way he could be stealthy at this distance…….

“I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to give you eternal night.”

Nope.

I will give you eternal night.

To say such confident words.

“……!!!”

He, Lee Hoyeol, must have seen through the cover of our hiding……!!!