Chapter 271 - Volume 28 (1/2)

9) Second Secret Sword Technique

On the road to Korea University.

Lee Hyun was disgruntled.

“I really can’t understand the heart of a woman. If a formula to understand a woman’s heart was published in a global journal then it would be the best discovery.”

Yesterday Seo-yoon had went to the kitchen without saying a word. She prepared the ingredients and had cooked a dish with a light smile. Then she committed an atrocity by forcefully feeding Lee Hyun curry.

Seo-yoon still looked beautiful despite her tear streaked voice and cruelly sat next to him. Lee Hyun was reminded of his bad relationship with her in the past.

Then Seo-yoon left and Jung Hyo-rin arrived in the evening. She arrived late because she couldn’t cancel her schedule and wanted to go out to a night club as a distraction. Alcohol wasn’t good for his the health and it cost money so it wasn’t his first choice.

However Lee Hye-yeon wanted to go so the three of them went.

It was full of many lights and loud music. He found a quiet room to drink alcohol. Lee Hyun had needed to make a booking for this club. It was the place where Choi Ji-hoon often got the number of girls after a short conversation so he recommended it to Lee Hyun.

“Excuse me.”

The women who followed the waiter left after seeing Lee Hye-yeon and Jung Hyo-rin’s faces.

He wandered about what happened but Lee Hyun just blamed it on his plain face. In the end the three of them drank alcohol and exchanged stories. Lee Hye-yeon and Jung Hyo-rin even sang to brighten up the atmosphere.

So yesterday’s evening disappeared in vain!

Now Lee Hyun was going to school early in the morning. The freshman welcoming party, the MT, the festival and now summer vacation had passed.

“The tuition fee is flying away really quickly. I can see why university professor is listed as a good job.”

Middle school and high school studies who studied a lot really had foresight.

“A cosy job without the possibility of becoming unemployed should be chosen.”

Lee Hyun said as he sat down on the bus. He finally arrived at the school after half-dozing off. The surrounding students stared at Lee Hyun and whispered.

“Isn’t that him?”

“Who?”

“On the school’s website… A member of the virtual reality department.”

“That person?”

“He looks like the student in the MT photos.”

The university students showed an intensive interest in Lee Hyun. Older women and adults also looked at him as he walked to his destination.

“He’s already arrived.”

Lee Hyun went through the front entrance of Korea University. Students kept on pointing towards him as he walked towards the classroom.

“Virtual reality department…..”

“Yes.”

“Can I receive his signature?”

People made a lot of noise and they paid a lot of attention to Lee Hyun. He usually lived an unobtrusive life so the pointing wasn’t usual. Then students suddenly started stampeding as Lee Hyun arrived at the classroom.

“Sunbae-nim!”

“Hello!”

“Yesterday’s battle was really cool. Although it is a little regretful that your myth of invincibility broke.”

“To be so close to Weed the God of War….. Sunbae-nim, can you give any advice about Royal Road?”

“Please recommend a hunting ground for a level 234 ranger.”

The school boards had revealed the identity of Weed the God of War. Choi Sang-jun and his two juniors told their friends and it quickly spread through the entire school and also on their bulletin boards. The prominent Weed from Royal Road went to their school so he had the popularity of a celebrity!

“Sunbae-nim, I really respect you.”

“Can’t you talk a little bit about the battle?”

“How did you obtain the Death Knight?”

Students who hadn’t always been friendly flocked around Lee Hyun. Students from other departments also came to ask Lee Hyun questions. His popularity was enough for a celebrity to run away.

‘This is why I can’t sleep.’

Lee Hyun wasn’t friendly to his fans.

“The secret to being good at fighting in Royal Road…..”

“What is it?”

“Gulp!”

“I don’t know. I just hunt.”

Lee Hyun ignored them and went to his seat. His desk was still uncomfortable as people swarmed around it.

‘Bardray……’

The people who watched on television wouldn’t know any better. In the battle between Lee Hyun and Bardray, Lee Hyun had definitely attacked more fiercely.

‘I couldn’t win.’

Lee Hyun really felt like there was a drastic gap between him and Bardray. Bardray had formidable defense and attack. It was apparent that Bardray’s combat skills were above his. The only area he overwhelmed Bardray in was speed but that was just temporary due to Sculptural Destruction.

‘Bardray… I can fight to a certain extent in a melee match. If I only use skills that it will be impossible to win.’

If this had been a broad terrain then he would’ve died without being able to run away at all. Even if he hadn’t been bound by the magicians, there would be no way for him to win if they fought a little longer.

‘If only I had resurrected with the Power to Reject Death……’

The Royal Road related boards were also actively debating that point. Weed the God of War could resurrect to a more powerful form after dying. He was reborn as an undead and led other subordinates in a miracle like battle. If Weed had revived than there was a lot of expectation that he would’ve changed the situation.

Barkhan’s full set. He had obtained the skull, robe, cloak, boots, necklace, ring and magic book. If he equipped Barkhan’s full set then his power would be comparable to the Hermes Guild’s to a certain extent.

‘But it wouldn’t have changed the situation completely.’

Lee Hyun exerted the largest strength when he becomes a Necromancer. A Lich could create a legion of undead but they were weak in the beginning and would need to be trained. It would be difficult to overcome the interference from Bardray and the Royal Guards to summon the undead.

‘I don’t want to.’

Lee Hyun didn’t want to be defeated because he would lose skill proficiency, experience and drop items. There were a lot of people who still respected Weed as the God of War.

Even if he was defeated by Bardray, he was still the user with the best popularity in Royal Road. Everyone still liked Weed the God of War.

‘I don’t want to live like that.’

Lee Hyun wasn’t satisfied with his strength. During his days playing Continent of Magic, he really had a nasty temper. He would step on others, kill anyone who attacked him and sweep away anyone making noise.

The name God of War had a different weight in Royal Road. His true nature was kept unchanged.

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“Fighting until they’re sick. Then they will take a little more from someone else……”

The war between users was fun for Yoo Byung-jin to watch. The development of the Central Continent was high so war constantly broke out in it. There were many sieges in order to expand their power.

After the Hermes Guild occupied the Kallamore Kingdom, other guilds couldn’t make their headquarters there. The surrounding castles, cities and fortresses were eaten. A union tried to actively resist against them. The King had withdrawn like the Haven Kingdom and there were several places far from the guild’s reach where an army was gathered.

The Embinyu Church was also spreading like wildfire by gathering new followers through brainwashing and fear. From the viewpoint of a large guild, the confusion caused was a chance for them and it wasn’t possible to reserve hunting grounds so it wasn’t bad.

If the Embinyu Church occupied an area than urban development would fly away but taking back the plundered riches could secure contributions and public sentiment.

Most of the huge guilds based their growth on aggressive invasion rather than managing domestic affairs.

“If the chaos continues getting out of hand than the Central Continent will go through the Dark Ages.”

Yoo Byung-jin knew information about Royal Road that wasn’t available to broadcasting stations.

The Embinyu Church got its energy from public sentiment. Their rapid spread was enough to make someone tremble with anxiety and their hidden strength transcended imagination!

If they became a powerful force in the Central Continent than it would be difficult to knock them down. If the Embinyu Church developed into a new kingdom then it was likely that the Dark Ages would spread to the rest of the land.

“This will be a historic occurrence. It isn’t surprising that such a thing happened in Royal Road.”

Yoo Byung-jin asked the artificial intelligence system that governed Royal Road.

“What happened to the Hermes Guild and the Black Lion Guild?”

-After the Black Lion Guild was defeated, the Hermes Guild moved everywhere.  The United Supremacy Alliance is still valid and a war is carefully spreading. The Black Lion Guild seems to be shrinking as the users are leaving for other prestigious guilds.

“What happened to the Black Lion Guild’s plan to occupy Tullen Kingdom?”

-They are spending a significant amount of time to control internal affairs. Carlise had power and a high level of popularity but it wasn’t easy to restore his reputation after losing so miserably to Bardray on television.

“The Hermes Guild is quite tricky.”

-They have a large structure, excellent momentum and daring tactics.

The Hermes Guild had trampled the Black Lion Guild in the Melbourne Mine so recovery wasn’t easy. The users lost a lot of experience and skill proficiency and their confidence was shattered by the defeat. The Black Lion Guild had been dragged into the Hermes Guild’s tactics from the start.

Bardray didn’t withdraw even when his boss monster hunt was revealed on broadcast. Carlise and the Black Lion Guild were furious and ran there only to be completely smashed by the full power of the battle company and Royal Guards.

The result would be the same even if the Black Lion Guild  sealed the entrance of the Melbourne Mine and waited. Yoo Byung-jin could see everything through the AI. The Hermes Guild had secretly concealed 200 people around the Melbourne Mine. Their strategy to not withdraw and lure the Black Lion Guild down to them succeeded.

The ones who benefited the most from this battle was the Hermes Guild.

“A guy with decisiveness is good.”

-Lafaye being the Guild Master is justified.

“He has the ability to manage the guild’s external affairs. His schemes seems to be okay since they’ve managed to swallow the Haven Kingdom.”

Yoo Byung-jin surveyed various locations in Royal Road.

Known tourists sights overflowing with people. The cliffs, mountains, volcanoes, lakes, swamps, rivers and oceans. There were superb views and many people were living happily. There were those enjoying farming and picking up fruit. They could have fun and experience various disciplines they couldn’t in reality.

Users were playing the role they desired. Defeating wild monsters for growth and requesting help from others were also important elements. The number of users increased daily but the continent was very wide. Endless risks and adventures could be found. Those who couldn’t invest time in hunting and adventures could stay around famous cities for safety.

“How is the Class Master Quest of the farmer Miretas proceeding?”

-Stage 9 has just been completed and they are proceeding to the 10th part.

The Farmer Master Quest was proceeding a bit slowly because they needed to cultivate the seeds they sowed.

“Adventurer Chase?”

-He can’t find the necessary purple small sword. He hasn’t found the 2 clues necessary for a later adventure.

“He has been blocked for a while on the 11th quest. His ability to solve riddles and sociability is a little low compared to his pathfinding abilities in a dungeon.”

Yoo Byung-jin observed the users challenging their Master Quests one by one. The amount to time associated with each quest was steadily increasing.

The broadcasting stations were eager to get an interview with players challenging the Master Quest or a video of them completing the quest. If Yoo Byung-jin provided the scenes he was currently looking at to the broadcasters than it would lead to great popularity but he wouldn’t do such a thing.

As the Class Master Quest progressed, it could change the lives of users. New products never seen before would be registered, new dungeons opened and even friendship between nations would be affected.

“Weed?”

-He hasn’t logged in yet. Not enough time has passed for him to log in.

If a player died than they couldn’t log in for 24 hours of real time.