Chapter 208

Mok Wooram’s hands felt very dry, and callouses were all over them.

As he tightly grabbed my wrists, he blinked slowly and looked at me.

‘He’s been asleep all his time, how did this happen now?’

I don’t know, but I’m sure I can’t fool Hwang Jiho and Seodol about this.

Hwang Jiho looked a little surprised like he didn’t expect Mok Wooram to wake up like this.

When Mok Wooram stared at me right in the face, he let go of my hand.

“…This is odd. I thought my use was here. Your height and your silhouette don’t match my muse’s.”

Mok Wooram spoke about his muse right after he woke up.

‘The Hyunmoo did say that Mok Wooram found his muse already…’

Was that muse just someone from his dreams?

“Hi.”

Mok Wooram looked around and hurriedly stood up with a look of caution.

His face became a bit distorted, perhaps from the muscle pain he got from suddenly moving after sleeping for a long time.

“If your body can’t handle it, you can lie down while we talk.”

“…Where is this place? Who are you? Are you Korean?”

Mok Wooram asked us in a way that usually only appears in Korean textbooks for foreigners. 

(T/N: Mok Wooram used an overly polite and unnatural tone in the original text.)

It might be because of nervousness. After all, he’d been in a foreign country for a while now.

“We’re in Chengdu City in Tsuwan Province. I’m Jo Euishin from Class Zero of Eungwang High. This guy is Hwang Jiho. And that one over there…”

“You don’t need to know who he is.”

“Ah, why did you interrupt him!? I was looking forward to how Jo Euishin would introduce me!”

Well…

I was also thinking of saying exactly what Hwang Jiho said. Mok Wooram doesn’t need to know who he is.

Mok Wooram ignored Seodol’s whines and looked between me and Hwang Jiho.

“You guys are from the same class and school as I am…!”

Mok Wooram’s voice suddenly filled with life.

“Yeah. Is your body okay?”

“Yes! My body is fine.”

Is he relieved to meet us?

I don’t think a guy who’s never been to school would suddenly feel this happy to see his classmates unexpectedly.

I was grateful for Mok Wooram’s welcoming response, but I felt a bit odd.

“Do you remember what happened? Can you tell us how you got these wounds?”

“Before that, I’d like to ask something of the two of you.”

Mok Wooram looked serious.

He cleared his throat before speaking again. 

It must be a serious matter.

‘What is he going to ask? Something about the Hyunmoo? Or about why we’re in China?’

While I was thinking about possible questions and how I should answer them, Jiho nodded and spoke instead.

“Go ahead.”

“….You guys are students from Eungwang High. Is that right?”

“Yes. Jo Euishin and I are from Eungwang High. We’re also both of Year 1 Class Zero, just like you.”

Hwang Jiho showed his Eungwang High student card in a hologram.

I also opened up my device and showed my student card.

Mook Wooram’s face became brighter.

“Do you two know the violinist Kwon Jein?”

“That’s right. Kwon Jein is currently working at Eungwang High.”

“Is that so? If that’s the case then… You two might know who my muse is!”

I felt like something didn’t make sense.

Is he saying that Kwon Jein is his muse?

No, if that’s the case, then he would’ve gone to England where Kwon Jein’s team was.

They knew each other, so they could’ve just easily contacted one another.

Hwang Jiho asked the exact question I was thinking of.

“Muse? Are you talking about Kwon Jein?”

“No. Kwon Jein is the muse of my teacher.”

“Then who are you talking about?”

Mok Wooram took a deep breath before speaking again.

“My muse is the one who performed alongside the blue violinist. Amid the dark and in front of a huge sea wall!”

He’s talking about Kwon Lena….!

It seemed almost certain.

I double-checked by floating a hologram and showing him a video of the two’s performance posted by Moon Saeron.

“Are you talking about the violinist over here?”

“Yes! It’s that person! Is my muse studying at Eungwang High too?”

Mok Wooram pressed his face against the hologram.

It’s really Kwon Lena.

It’s no odd thing that my playable character became the spark and the source of inspiration for someone else.

“Yes.”

“What is her name, and how old is she? If I go to school, will I be able to meet her? Oh, will I get the chance to have her play the energy violin that I personally crafted?”

This feels like a lie.

The Mok Wooram who lay like a corpse in Hyunmoo’s arms is now the same kid full of energy in front of us.

The question alone made me feel like I was out of my mind.

“Answer our question first.”

“A-ah, yes…! Alright! Please ask anything you like.”

Mok Wooram suddenly woke up yet he was already speaking in such a loud voice. 

He should feel a bit parsed.

I took a bottled water from the fridge and gave it to him.

After giving me a cheerful ‘thanks!’ Wooram drank the water that I gave him.

I saw Hwang Jiho looking over at me.

I think he’s gesturing for me to ask a question first.

“Did something happen to you before you lost control of your mind?”“Yes! Earlier this year, it was when I went out of the Korean Peninsula to look for my muse.”

That was also before he lost his mind, but that was a bit further ago.

I raised my hand to stop him from talking.

I explained further to narrow down the situation.

“Please tell us what happened about a month ago, closer to when you lost control.”

He was a woodpecker wandering around the world looking for his source of inspiration.

He spent most of his money attending concerts in the search for his muse.

One day, he stumbled upon a video of Kwon Jein and Kwon Lena’s performance.

He wanted to head straight back to Korea.

However, he had no money left. 

He said that he tried to gather money for his travel expense by chasing after world transitions in China.

“Why didn’t you get an emergency loan from the Players’ Association? If you asked for help from the school, they would’ve helped you get home too.”

“…That was an option?”

Mok Wooram looked shocked.

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This violin master craftsman seems to lack some common sense.

There was one more part of Mok Wooram’s story that bothered me.

“A player who’s good enough to get into Eungwang High went after enemies, yet they didn’t compensate you enough for you to afford plane tickets?”

“I was going after enemies with my bare hands. I was limited in catching just the low-rarity enemies.”

Something’s odd.

Although, it’s true that unwanted enemies with low rarity weren’t rewarded as much.

Even so, it didn’t make sense that he didn’t make enough money to buy plane tickets.

I pointed it out, and Mok Wooram answered me.

“Hmm? Well, it’d be hard to pay for a day’s lodging and food even if I defeated an R-rank enemy by myself.”

It seems like the oblivious Mook Wooram lived like a pushover over here.

I don’t know the exact amount that he was paid, but I feel like he’s been paid for less than 1% of what he worked for.

“Please check all the routes later. I’ll report it to the General Headquarters of the Players’ Association.”

“Ah, sure!”

I don’t know how well the Chinese Players’ Association will be working, but we decided to do whatever we can.

The tearful journey of Mok Wooram the pushover continued.

“When we came through the Chinese borders, a scout approached me with a proposal.”

“A scout? Where?”

“I’m not sure about that. He told me to follow him if I wanted a detailed explanation but I refused immediately.”

The day after he refused the scout’s proposal.

Mok Wooram began to be chased by someone.

He managed to run away and survive, but it is said that the number of people chasing him gradually increased and it reached a point where it became unbearable for him.

And in that moment of crisis…

“The last thing I remember is a man wearing black clothes.”

Hearing his story, it seemed that Mok Wooram only remembers up to when the Hyunmoo intervened. 

Hwang Jiho asked something.

“On the first day of them attacking you, they destroyed your device, correct? If that’s the case, then they’re no ordinary people. Do you have any idea about who attacked you?”

“There was something that bothered me.”

“What is it?”

“The chasers were very similar to each other. I think it’s a triplet or even a quadruplet…”

“You saw their faces?”

“Everyone used masks, and also hidden items on top of that.”

I was also concerned with the fact that the attackers looked like each other, but his last remark bothered me the most.

Perhaps I wasn’t the only one perplexed by it.

When Hwang Jiho glanced at Seodol, Seodol raised his palm and exuded some energy wave.

Fwaaaa….!

The gray smoke has turned into a mask shape, a rhombus mask with only its eyes opened.

The shape of the mask embodied as a dysfunctional wave was very sophisticated.

Mok Wooram was impressed by the skill demonstrated by Seodol.

“Did their masks look like this?”

“Yes! Except for the color.”

Hwang Jiho and Seodol’s eyes shone sharply at Mok Wooram’s answer.

“Have you seen anything inside of the mask?”

“No, I haven’t. I was lucky to have peeked below their hidden items to see their masks.”

It was a pity that he wasn’t able to see anything further, but one thing became certain.

The Oath of the Three Knights was up to something.

That same team was involved in both Mok Wooram’s case and the incident at the Player Training Center.

Just then, Hwang Jiho clucked his tongue as he checked something in his device.

“Looks like one of the plans is about to go wrong.”

“What is it?”

“Do you remember the player we mentioned before? The one who learned how to perfectly control their light skill explosion?”

“Yeah.”

“That player is going to take care of the players who caused the commotion today. We won’t be able to see that player for a while.”

I guess there’s not just one person we’re supposed to be concerned about today.

The Oath of the Three Knights, the people who attacked Mok Wooram, the players who caused today’s energy wave storm, and the unknown blonde person.

“Are you all done with your questions? Tell me about my muse as you promised!”

The thirsty Mok Wooram gulped all the water in the bottle.

I took another bottle from the fridge and handed it over to him.

“The person in that video is also in our class.”

“Our class…! So my muse is in the same class as me? Will I be able to meet her if I go to school?”

“That’s right. Although, it’s still the summer vacation so you might not be able to go there yet.”

“Is that so? What is that person’s name?”

Mok Wooram spoke in an increasingly stiff Korean, perhaps because he was getting too excited.

With tearful eyes, he played the video again. He asked several more questions.

I answered all his questions sincerely.

There was something I wanted to ask him in return.

‘The similarity between the Fate of Unkown and the description of the energy violin item.’

However, I can’t ask that in front of Hwang Jiho and Seodol.

* * *

At Tsuwanseong Fortress, the border between Chengdu City and Yaan City.

A black-clad figure stood upright between the dozens of disfigured bodies.

Step, step….

Behind Hyunmoo was Li Wei.

Hyunmoo covered his eyes with a black silk cloth, but Li Wei turned to face him as if he could see his bare face.

“Li Wei, are you hurt anywhere?”

“No. Many of them have been undertaken by you, Hyunmoo-nim.”

Fwaa!

When Hyunmoo shook the silk sleeve collar slightly, the remains of the head gathered in one place.

“I didn’t mean to intervene this much. I liked the stars of the dawn more than I expected.”

Hyunmoo wrapped the masks with a black silk.

The masks were all the same shape. There was a rhombus-shaped hole in the eyes.

“I might not be able to see him out, but I want to help him spend the rest of his journey comfortably.”

* * *

After we arrived back at the hotel where the other members of the newspaper department were.

I stayed in my room alone. I organized my thoughts as I changed my clothes.

Dingdong.

A message has arrived.

It’s from Saeum of April.

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[Saeum of April] Euishin! Where are you right now? Are you in China? When will you come back?

All the kids from our class know that Hwang Jiho and I were on a trip with the newspaper department.

I wonder what’s going on all of a sudden.

Before I could even ask, Saeum sent another message.

[Saeum of April] Please help Hani!