◈ Episode 337. Also…….

Player, Romeo.

Rumors about him spread quickly, and rightly so. It was Romeo who had literally taken the Arcana Auction House like a storm.

Explorers’ Federation.

Explorers from all walks of life, players and Arcanians alike.

At their center was Park Hwigang.

“You’re not an ordinary player, are you?”

Before the Cataclysm, and even after, potions were considered second-class in Arcana.

There were enough healers to replace them, and potions were hard to come by and expensive for what they could do.

“Is cancer still special just because it was completely eradicated?”

“Ah. Isn’t the potion too strong, Mr. Hwigang?”

“Seriously……! Have you all not even checked?”

“Checked what?”

“Why, if you’re an explorer, you must have put one or two bottles of potions up for sale on the auction house, because they must have been sold.”

At Park’s suggestion, the players accessed the auction house.

It was a time when digging in the ground didn’t yield a single coin. They were explorers with the skill to find a bottle of potion in every rift. Of course, there was as much noise as there was skill.

“No, Mr. Hwigang, I’m just checking, but do you really think that Romeo would have bought potions? Well, no, I don’t think so, because those assholes are too stupid to realize that the starting price is …….”

I don’t think there’s a player in the world who’s going to be happy about this, except maybe a guild member.

Since it was a potion that was only going to be bought by a few people anyway, I listed it for sale at a higher price than the market price just to piss them off.

And then.

“Uh, what?”

“Sold?!”

“Right, right, right, check out the buyer!”

“……, isn’t that Romeo?!”

“I’m Romeo too!”

Park flashed a satisfied smile.

But it wasn’t over yet.

Netizens are sensitive to fresh topic.

Park Hwigang had already gotten his hands on the case.

And so it happened.

The loyalty of the Explorers’ Federation is not limited to potions. Park recounted the information he had gathered from his diligent travels through the Yusra Kingdom.

“Why, it’s rumored among the blacksmiths of Yusra that a player named Romeo has been wiping out all the arrows, low-level equipment, and other items on the auction house!”

“What?”

After hearing that, it sounded like he really wasn’t a normal player.

Then.

Someone raised their hand and asked a question.

“Isn’t he just a simple hoarder? It’s a common tactic, isn’t it? Buying up everything, monopolizing it, and then selling it off later for even more money…….”

Doridori~

Everyone, including Park, shakes their heads.

“That makes sense. Didn’t you learn math?”

“If I did, I wouldn’t make a profit, I’d just break my wallet. Look at the prices on the auction house, they’re all way over market value. It’s not like the potions and equipment are items I’ll ever get again.”

“Well, I could be mistaken. It just doesn’t add up, does it?”

Yes, it does.

One day of Romeo’s behavior.

I couldn’t figure out what he was up to.

“Then I suppose we’ll have to work backwards. First, who is Romeo? If we can find out who he is, we might be able to guess his purpose.”

“Romeo……. Anyone heard of him?”

A few rubbed their chins together, thinking hard.

Explorers are more sensitive to information and rumors than anyone else in Arcana.

As much as I search my memory, nothing about the name Romeo comes to mind.

Besides.

“Wouldn’t a name like that be harder to forget?”

It’s a sympathetic response.

Park nodded in agreement.

Someone had raised a fundamental question.

“Where does a player with a name I’ve never heard of come up with such a huge amount of money……. On this scale. Was he able to literally wipe out the auction house?”

“……!!!”

For players, fame equals skill, and skill equals money.

That’s their common sense.

Park Hwigang tried his luck just in case.

“Could it be the same as that hidden master? Why, it could be a ranker who deactivated the ranking system. It’s blasphemous to compare, but like Hoyeol, it could be…….”

“Ah. That doesn’t make sense to say the least, Mr. Hwigang! To make that kind of money, he should have at least shown his face in the high-level rift, but he didn’t, did he? There’s no player named Romeo in any guild.”

“Well, that’s another story.”

Eventually, the story came full circle.

Romeo stormed the auction house.

And who was he?

The Explorers Federation, of course.

After heating up the community as well.

Only one thing was revealed.

-Auction house anonymity, which is weird, right?

-Some kind of conspiracy theory?

-No;; only partial usernames are revealed in the auction house.

-ㅇㅇ

-But why is Romeo the only one with a full name???

-……When I heard it and saw it, it really seemed like that???

-Isn’t it some kind of auction house privilege?

Romeo.

Even if we don’t know who he is.

That he’s a player with enough influence to overcome the anonymity system.

Yes, no one was guessing right now.

Ro me o.

Those three letters.

a mere fraction of a name.

To the killer’s common sense, …….

*

The beads of sweat running down my shirt are not unpleasant in the slightest.

For once, pushing myself to the limit is welcome.

I wonder if I’d be better off banging my head on the floor and passing out.

Seriously, it’s probably because I had that urge…….

Stop doing push-ups.

Inhale.

Spit out a snout on the exhale.

“Everyone praises your imagination.”

There you go again, Raymond Sean……!

If you’re going to make an anonymous system, shouldn’t it be completely anonymous? Why did you have to give away part of the ID? Of course, for the average player, it’s completely anonymous.

‘Three or four characters at most. Five or six characters at most.’

And even then, it’s only one character.

It would be impossible to identify the other person.

But my full name, “Grandfell Claudi Arpheus Romeo” is a whopping long characters, and yes, it’s all because of this overly long name.

“Romeo, he is also me.”

Please don’t say something horrible, even to yourself, please!

Even on the Arcana continent, only a few people know my full name. And those who do know the weight it carries. I have faith that it will not be spoken so easily.

‘But the reality is a different story.’

I mean, look at the reaction right now.

If he’s Romeo, where’s Juliet?

To jokes about getting ready to go on a cruise ship.

It’s amazing how much attention is paid to a name that’s only a few letters long.

Of course, even that was filtered through a pride filter, and then there was Grandfell…….

“I understand that the weight of a name is immeasurable.”

I really don’t feel the least bit relieved.

My karma, my black history.

Because I’m starting to feel it pressing down on me in real life, too!

[You’ve fulfilled your condition].

I wish I could hit you over the head and knock you out.

Is it because my strength and tenacity are rising rapidly?

Even that’s not easy now.

I checked my status.

[Name: Grandfell Claudi Arpheus Romeo]

[Title: Last Adventurer, Sublime, Transcendent, Dark Dragon]

[Class: Demon Hunter]

[Level: 776]

[Stats]

Strength: 182 / Agility: 178 / Magic: 677 / Luck: 12 / Aesthetics: High / Tenacity: 6

[Points held: 4]

I’ve finally broken through the one thousand mark in terms of stats. Of course, being a demon hunter, my promiscuous stats were a bit of a joke to anyone who saw them.

‘It’s past time to blame the class.’

After all, this was the direction I decided to take.

I might regret it later, but I shouldn’t be indebted to it.

It would be like spitting in my face.

Of course, Grandfell’s pride was much higher than mine.

“Only a thousand. If you’re judging me, you’re still a long way off.”

He’s not satisfied with 1,000, which is impressive in many ways.

Next, I looked at my remaining points.

If you ask me, why did I vaguely have four points left?

Now was the time for [Luck].

[Absorb (Item Skill): The parasitic creature Envy absorbs a target. Envy gains a new unique effect based on the target it absorbs. Envy’s hunger determines the number of unique effects it can store. Current Envy Satiety – 100% / Stored Unique Effects: Dark Understanding]

Envy has finished digesting.

Now I can’t blame the gap of over 10 years.

I’ve gained more than a decade’s worth of experience since my awakening as a player. My prediction was right on the mark: after swallowing the suitable magic, Envy would awaken a unique effect related to black magic.

This is the unique effect created in that way.

A superstition that I am not superstitious about.

That’s why I’m spreading my hands over my Luck stat.

[Dark Understanding (Curse): Greatly increases your affinity for suitable magic. However, you must confront the past that is the source of your affinity. – Current Suitable Magic Affinity: 0%]

This is neither a passive nor a standard skill.

What is written in parentheses is [Curse].

It’s the same curse I unexpectedly experienced not long ago.

The basement of the Magic Tower, Mugan.

A demon worshipper, formerly an elder mage.

The curse on the wall he left in his will.

[Curse, an irresistible flow].

As I entered the Curse, I witnessed the end of the Seorn continent as it was destroyed by the number one demon, Bael, and his minions. Indeed, as befits the name of the curse, a feeling of helplessness enveloped my body.

Especially with Bael’s formidable abilities.

If it weren’t for Grandfell’s mental strength…….

I wouldn’t have been surprised if it had broken my heart.

In other words.

‘I hope I’m not pushing my luck.’

I don’t know if luck really has that effect.

But every time I’ve invested points in my luck stat, I’ve gotten good results, and I’m desperate enough to cling to that little jinx.

A source of suitable magic power.

In other words, Grandfell’s past.

Confronting the atrocities of the Claudi family.

Of course, it was me, Lee Hoyeol, who was worried.

Even though my body was in such a state.

I was calmly sipping my teacup.

“I admit it, you also like green tea.”

My body was hot from training.

It meant that I was relaxed enough to cool down with cold green tea.

I know, having experienced it countless times.

This is Grandfell I know.

Even if it is a curse from his past.

He would face it and destroy it.

No matter what.

I was the only one who couldn’t face the past. I couldn’t face the atrocities of the Claudie family that might have been my fault.

But I made a promise to myself, Hoyeol.

I will take responsibility.

To take responsibility for the past.

Chunibyou.

The pride of a man who has overcome a difficult time.

I invested all my remaining points in luck.

[Luck: 16]

[Luck : 16]

Considering the value of 4 levels in the 700s…….

I had a bitter taste in my mouth.

At least it’s not a lowly business.

‘I wonder what Matisse will think when I tell him?’

Spirits, magic, and even legendary-grade equipment.

Affinity was an essential stat in Arcana.

But my suitable magic affinity was zero.

‘Zero percent to manifest such black magic.’

It is not yet known to what extent an suitable magic affinity will increase black magic.

But it’s one thing to have nothing and another to have something. If it’s just one percent, that’s a significant difference.

Even if it doesn’t, we can’t take it away now. I’d have to grow more than I already am to avoid collapsing under the weight of my burdens.

‘Let’s get this done as quickly as possible.’

Nothing good will come from putting it off.

In that sense, I started by looking at the procedures and schedule.

Do we have to select a 20-member advance team starting tomorrow? Of course, there is no confirmed position. I can’t guess where Grandfell’s whims will lead.

‘How long will it take?’

Even time flies by in Mugan.

As a result, the curses I experienced in Mugan were of little use to me.

No matter how hard I try, I can’t come up with an estimate.

Still, it was nothing to worry about.

“I’m sure you guys can do it.”

According to strict procedures. There were others who could fulfill my role in my absence, in the Magic Tower, in the AAU Yusra branch, and even in the Holy War Alliance.

‘After all, as long as I’m good, there shouldn’t be a problem.’

So there was no need to hesitate any longer.

Then, the amount of suitable magic surged from Envy.

A message appeared before my eyes.

[Enter curse, ‘Dark Understanding’].

.

.

.

jeobeog─

Marcelo stands at the lectern, his face thinner than usual. There is no smile on the face of the elder mage, Yugweed. Even the Tower Master who was always sagging, sits upright and maintains his position.

“…….”

Vangrit and Bensch.

Even the two normally talkative seniors don’t open their mouths. Matisse’s face is frighteningly dark. In the Crystal Hall, where only the top members of Magic Tower are seated, Marcelo speaks.

“At this point, the Magic Tower officially declares.”

His voice trails off.

“Chief Lee Hoyeol whereabouts are unknown…….”

Chief Lee Hoyeol.

How long has he been missing?

It was exactly five days later.