CH 31

Gi-Gyu asked in disbelief, “Are you sure the machine isn’t broken?”

“I’m sure. It’s old, so I checked it earlier, and everything worked like a charm then. If you think you can’t trust the machine, I can go in myself.” Then, Sung-Hoon quickly began undressing, so Gi-Gyu had to wave his hand in surprise. “N-no! That’s not what I meant. I was just shocked to hear my result.”

“I can certainly understand why you would feel skeptical in this situation,” replied Sung-Hoon. But it was Tae-Shik who put Gi-Gyu’s doubt to rest. 

“It’s simple, Gi-Gyu: You drank the elixir. The number of people who have done that can be counted on one hand. When one obtains the elixir, they do one of the three things. First, sell it to the richest person they can find. Second, feed it to their sick non-player family member. Or third, they hide it away for later use,” explained Tae-Shik, providing the most logical reasoning. 

“Hmm…” Gi-Gyu contemplated what Tae-Shik was trying to say. 

Tae-Shik continued, “As for those who actually drink the elixir…”

“They’re probably all high rankers, right?” Gi-Gyu finished the sentence for him. 

“That’s right. Usually, they are high-level players even before consuming the elixir. This is probably why the elixir’s effects are still unknown to the public.” When Tae-Shik suggested, Gi-Gyu nodded and murmured, “Or…”

“Yes?” asked Tae-Shik. 

“Maybe the elixir’s effect is greater when a low-level player consumes it,” Gi-Gyu suggested, his face filled with an odd certainty. 

***

Every test that could be done in the hospital for Gi-Gyu was completed. His mother’s medical exam was finished as well. The doctor stated that Su-Jin’s body was in a perfectly normal condition. Her body wasn’t displaying any signs of aging, her muscle strength and stamina were better than average, and she was healthier than before overall.

Gi-Gyu teased, “No matter how I think about it, I believe my mom would make an amazing bride.”

“Khoff, khoff…”

Tae-Shik coughed in embarrassment, and Gi-Gyu added, “But I guess the most surprising thing that came out of this is my mother’s new ability.”

“Yeah, totally.” Tae-Shik agreed. Looking at each other knowingly, the two men nodded as they said together, “She can now use player items.”

Thanks to the elixir, Gi-Gyu’s mother gained a special ability of sorts: She could now use player items despite not being one. The elixir gave her the mana necessary to utilize player items. 

Gi-Gyu thought happily, ‘I better get her some good items,’

Gi-Gyu believed his mother would be safer if she had some player items protecting her. Tae-Shik added, “I’m so relieved that both you and Su-Jin are fine. All of your results turned out great.”

“Hmm…” Noticing a frown on Gi-Gyu’s head, Tae-Shik asked, “What’s wrong?”

“I’m wondering about the gift from Lucifer. What do you think?”

“A gift… Didn’t you say that it’s just a mode of communication for now? If it has no other functions right now, I’m not sure if I would call it a gift,” replied Tae-Shik.

“Then what would it be?”

“It should be nothing more than a token of your contract with her.” When Gi-Gyu didn’t comment, Tae-Shik shook his head and continued, “But, we are focusing on the wrong things: We have bigger fish to fry. Just the secrets and work I’ve to do… Ahhh, I worry I can even handle it all.” 

Gi-Gyu nodded in agreement and asked Tae-Shik, “Could you drive my mother back home, Hyung?”

“Hmm?”

“I have someplace I need to be,” replied Gi-Gyu, worrying Tae-Shik. Tae-Shik asked in a worried voice, “Where do you think you’re going? You’ve to stay put and rest for a while.”

“I need to drop by the Dongdaemun Market.”

“Do you want me to drive you there then?” offered Tae-Shik, wanting to help out in any way he could. But, Gi-Gyu shook his head and answered, “No. I’ve got to do some thinking, so I’ll be fine going alone.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I’ll be alright,” Gi-Gyu reassured. Tae-Shik still seemed unhappy, but he nodded in the end. Gi-Gyu had gone through so much in such a short time, so Tae-Shik couldn’t help but worry about him. He knew Gi-Gyu was no longer a hopeless 18-year-old boy, and too much worry on his part could be harmful to Gi-Gyu. 

Tae-Shik asked as his eyes turned serious, “Can I ask you something?”

“You can ask me anything, Hyung. I feel I can comfortably tell you everything without making bones about it.”  

“Moving forward, what’s your plan?” Tae-Shik asked with a subdued voice, as he didn’t want Su-Jin to hear them. He continued, “What’s your game plan for the future? Too many things have happened, so don’t you think you’ve to prioritize what you need to do? You’ve made enough money, which is great, but I don’t think you can retire after what happened with Lucifer.”

Gi-Gyu nodded in agreement. Lucifer had done too much for him, so he owed her a great deal. Gi-Gyu planned on repaying that debt no matter what, but there was one thing that bothered him to no end: What if Lucifer never let him go? She did say she didn’t care about him, but this was Lucifer they were talking about. She would not let her investment walk away before squeezing it dry. And yes, Gi-Gyu was the big, fat, creamy investment in this analogy.

Although he was just as worried and confused as Tae-Shik, Gi-Gyu calmly  answered, “I have already decided on my priorities.” After licking his dry lips, he added, “My top priority… To become strong.” 

***

Gi-Gyu took the subway to the Dongdaemun Market. As he was traveling from Chuncheon, it took him a long time to get there. Gi-Gyu took a seat, closed his eyes, and contemplated. After leaving the maze, he had to take care of many things, so he never got the time to think. 

Now that the doctor had given Gi-Gyu and his mother a clean bill of health, it was finally time to organize his thoughts. 

‘A single high ranker could be as strong as a nation’s entire army.’

This was what Gi-Gyu had learned recently. Lucifer, Ironshield, and Athena. They could easily hold their own against an entire nation’s army. And if these high rankers went all out…

‘It would be devastating.’ 

Gi-Gyu had witnessed only a small part of Lucifer’s power, but he now felt certain of one thing: An all-out fight, no- An all-out battle between high rankers could level an entire nation. 

‘All the average players combined won't be enough to handle these high rankers.’

This was why Gi-Gyu didn’t desire the strength that various guild masters had. If what he wanted in life were to rule and control others, such might have been necessary. However, Gi-Gyu wasn’t aiming for that. He just wished for his and his family's safety and…

‘Revenge.’

The elixir had completely healed him, but his body still throbbed with pain. His body still remembered the gruesome torture it suffered—the phantom pain was agonizing.  

‘Ironshield!’

The one responsible for this pain, Ironshield, would come after him. The high ranker knew Gi-Gyu’s face, so finding him shouldn’t even be a problem. Gi-Gyu trusted Lucifer, but there was no way of knowing how long she could hold off Ironshield. Gi-Gyu knew he shouldn’t be surprised even if Ironshield found him tomorrow and destroyed everything he loved. 

Tae-Shik was a capable man, but he wouldn’t be enough to protect Gi-Gyu’s entire family from the Iron Guild.

‘Rogers Han.’

Then there was a matter involving Rogers Han, who could still be alive. Gi-Gyu suspected Rogers Han could’ve somehow survived despite being stabbed in the neck. He didn't want to fear the unknown or feel resentment toward the fact that he lost a target of his revenge. So, Gi-Gyu decided to focus on preparing for the worst situation. He had to prepare himself for the day he would finally destroy them. 

“Haa…” Gi-Gyu opened his eyes slowly. Now, he had to find a way to become strong. How was he going to gain enough power to not only survive the world’s strongest guilds and players but also kill them? 

‘Lou, El, and the other Egos.’

His greatest weapon was his unique ability. Lou was getting stronger with each monster it killed, and El recently found a way to get stronger too. 

The Empress of Holy Swords: This was El’s true identity. Quietly, Gi-Gyu opened El’s status screen.

[El]

[Title: The Empress of Holy Swords]

[Level 29]

[Power: 60] 

[Speed: 42] 

[Stamina: 55] 

[Magic: 80]

-Abilities-

[Accessory]

[The Empress of Holy Swords: It can absorb the abilities of inferior holy swords.]

[Calleon: It can block a single fatal attack.]

During Gi-Gyu’s brief fight with Ironshield, El absorbed a small part of Ironshield’s holy sword, Calleon. The result was an astounding increase in El’s stats and two new abilities called The Empress of Holy Swords and Calleon. With the title of The Empress of Holy Swords came the ability to absorb stats and powers from other holy swords. Based on what happened when El clashed with Ironshield’s Calleon, the number of stat points El could absorb from the other holy swords depended on Gi-Gyu. This meant that if he became strong enough to battle Ironshield, El could absorb Calleon completely. 

And the second skill El gained was named after Ironshield’s sword, Calleon. Gi-Gyu suspected that this new skill was one of Calleon’s skills. Despite being a single-use skill, it was a welcome addition, as it could save him from a fatal attack. It was akin to having an extra life. 

What pleased Gi-Gyu the most was that El had “absorbed” this skill from Calleon, not “copied” it. So when Calleon lost this skill, Ironshield also lost his extra life to Gi-Gyu.

Pfft…

Gi-Gyu couldn’t help grinning as he asked his Egos silently,

‘The giant sword, Calleon, is that an Ego too? Are all holy swords Egos?’

-No.

-Not all of them are Egos. Then again, I just learned that I am a holy sword, so I don’t know much at this point, Master.

‘Then, please let me know when you learn more about it, El.’

-Of course, Master. I’ll always help you to the best of my abilities. 

‘Thanks, El.’

Now, Gi-Gyu’s duty was to find as many holy swords as possible for El’s growth. This would be a difficult task because he just found out they existed, but he was still pleased. After all, he just found a way for El, and in turn, himself, to become stronger. 

Gi-Gyu closed his eyes again.

‘Lucifer.’

Another thing of worry was the “gift” Soo-Jung gave him. He wondered if he could really trust the power she gave him. The answer came to him rather quickly.

‘No.’

It was true he owed Lucifer a great deal. However, Gi-Gyu remembered her heading toward the keeper’s room immediately after finding him, which meant she knew where it was. There was only one explanation for this: She was there when he was being tortured, watching calmly. Lucifer watched Gi-Gyu being tortured for days, yet she only appeared at the last minute when he was about to die. 

Lucifer disguised herself as a young girl to approach him. When Gi-Gyu was caught by Ironshield and was in danger, she hid without a word. Gi-Gyu didn’t know the reason behind her actions, but the fact was that she treated his torture as a sideshow. Based on what he had seen of her power, Lucifer could’ve easily saved him from all the pain, yet she chose not to help him. 

Tap.

Gi-Gyu suddenly felt someone nudging his leg. He saw a middle-aged man kicking his leg when he opened his eyes. It was obvious this man was heavily intoxicated. When Gi-Gyu looked around, there were plenty of empty seats around them: The man was trying to pick a fight.

The drunkard yelled, “Hey! You bastard! You should be standing up and giving your seat to your elder! I’ve been standing here for a long time! Hic!”

There were many empty seats around them; evidently, this man was being unreasonable. There were several other passengers nearby, but they did what spectators do. 

“There are plenty of empty seats here. Please just take one of those,” Gi-Gyu replied politely. Maybe Gi-Gyu’s polite voice somehow convinced the drunkard that he was scared, as the man began yelling even louder. 

“You jerk! How dare you talk back to your elder?! Is that what your parents taught you to do? When your elder asks for something, you should just shut up and do it!”

Gi-Gyu frowned at the man’s rude behavior. Unfortunately, this was a common occurrence nowadays. After the Tower appeared, not all changes were positive. Due to the sudden industrial developments, many people became jobless. This, in turn, caused an increase in violent behaviors in public. Many became dependent on alcohol as they wasted their lives away. Gi-Gyu often saw these drunkards picking fights with innocent bystanders on the news. 

-The next stop is Hwegi Station.

This was Gi-Gyu’s stop. When he stood up to get off, the man gleefully yelled, “There you go! That’s right! Do you have any idea how hard my generation worked?! You young people are having such easy lives, all thanks to us! Do you realize that?! Do you?!”

Gi-Gyu, now standing and towering over the man, looked down at him quietly. He had always been a tall guy, but he felt he had gotten even taller after drinking the elixir. He said to the man, “It’s people like you who give a bad rep to your generation. Unlike you, many men your age out there work very hard for their families.”

Gulp.

The drunkard swallowed audibly. Glaring at the pathetic man, Gi-Gyu announced, “Get out of my way.”

“Hiuckkk!” When the drunkard met Gi-Gyu’s eyes, he stumbled, trying to take a step back. No one got up to help him as Gi-Gyu added, “Please stop getting drunk like this and get some help. You should stop annoying innocent people like you did today.”

Gi-Gyu got off the subway as the drunk man stared at him fearfully. “H-h… hiuck! H-his eyes! What the heck was that? Dammit!”

The man’s pants were wet by the time the subway door closed behind Gi-Gyu.

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