Chapter 52 Part4 (2/2)

Was Ms. G.o.ddess over here always such a chatterbox? If not, then was it because of Lee s.h.i.+n Woo's actions thus far? Either way, he wouldn't be happy, so he just urged her to continue. G.o.d continued her explanation whilst grumbling.

[The quest rewards.]

”Ah, I see... Especially the 12 General quests, right?”

[Yep, exactly.]

G.o.d scratched her head as if she felt like this was a pain in the a.s.s.

[The reason the 12 General quests were set up that way was because I thought beating them was just that difficult and that they wouldn't be defeated so frequently. At the time, I didn't think a hero would show up that would kill seven of the 12 Generals by himself.]

”Ah, as I thought. I kind of get it. It all happened because I was too good, right?”

[Yeah, you bugged player.]

If Lee s.h.i.+n Woo were to liken the situation to a game, then it would be something like 'when all the goods are pushed onto one side, then the game's balance breaks'. With the emergence of an irregular like Lee s.h.i.+n Woo, G.o.d's delicately balanced influence broke.

[It's quite ironic, but the situation's less severe than it could've been; all because of your Joker karma. If you didn't have it, then the hero system would've failed a long time ago. You don't seem to be aware of it, but you've already halfway transcended the world. Meaning you're not recognized as one of the inhabitants of this world. Of course, that probably doesn't matter to you.]

”Since I just need to trick it.”

Lee s.h.i.+n Woo replied plainly. To be honest, he already knew that. As his Joker karma grew stronger, he felt more and more isolated from this world's rules. Even G.o.d acknowledged that as well.

But who cared? If he stayed on this world, then it would become his home. Lee s.h.i.+n Woo was already prepared to kick back and live peacefully on this world.

[Anyway, most of my power went to you, which made the problem even worse. Not only am I less and less able to interfere with what happens in this world, but the power I've already used is also starting to weaken as well. And he just happened to take advantage of this opportunity...]

”The Archmage.”

[That's right. It would've been impossible with normal mana, but that b.a.s.t.a.r.d has learned an innate element.]

At first, Lee s.h.i.+n Woo wasn't 100% sure it was the Archmage that had invaded the chatting channel. Since the mana pattern he'd remembered differed from the one within the chatting channel.

So then why wasn't Lee s.h.i.+n Woo able to confirm that it was the Archmage, even though he was familiar with his mana? It was simple. As Lee s.h.i.+n Woo had suspected, the Archmage was using some sort of mana he wasn't familiar with... In other words, he was using an innate element!

He didn't even want to think about it, but... there was a high chance that he'd awakened an innate element from his battle with Lee s.h.i.+n Woo and Seagald. 'You're just an undead, yet you're growing!?', thought Lee s.h.i.+n Woo; though he wasn't one to talk!

[In any case! You can't use the chatting channel anymore. That's not all. The other heroes probably won't be able to go to the secret shop anymore. He seems aware of how dangerous it would be to invade the secret shop though, as he hasn't dared to enter, so I don't have to worry about Pleine.]

”Wow.”

[Do you get it? I can't summon new heroes or provide you with supplies anymore. ...Everything's on you now. You have to do it. If you fail, then it really is the end. ...If that happens, then I'll have to intervene and start everything anew.]

Of course, he'd roughly expected this, but he felt somewhat odd hearing it from her. Lee s.h.i.+n Woo contemplated on what she'd said and then asked.

”Does that mean the world will end?”

[...If you're playing a game with your character, Hero AAAA, but you find you can't beat it, then what do you do? You erase that character and try again with Hero DDDD.]

”Be more creative with your names.”

[...So I ask of you, Hero AAAA. It's really tiring to make a new game from scratch... and it's really sad too.]

She genuinely bowed before him. He couldn't even imagine her doing this, considering how their first meeting went.

Hero AAAA... Err, Lee s.h.i.+n Woo shrugged his shoulders and stood up. If he failed, he would die too. There was no need to answer her.

”Ah, one more question.”

[What is it? Oh, Pleine's a virgin. Isn't that hilarious?]

”Thanks, I really wanted to know that. No, not that.”

[Seira's a virgin too.]

”I knew that already. So what exactly is Invisible Heart?”

G.o.d's eyes widened slightly. But she didn't seem surprised. Perhaps she was waiting for him to ask her that. She soon narrowed her eyes and smiled.

[Even if I were to tell you, you wouldn't understand. But if it's you, you may be able to figure it out by yourself soon enough.]

”You're really no help at all, you old bag.”

[Then, take care, Lee s.h.i.+n Woo. It's been such a long time since I've played around with someone who could understand my 'level'. Come back and play with me again.]

The next moment, Lee s.h.i.+n Woo had returned to the secret shop. Pleine and Seira were watching him with eyes wide open, as he'd disappeared and suddenly reappeared. He remembered what G.o.d had said and in embarra.s.sment, turned his head around.

”What's the matter, Mr. s.h.i.+n Woo?”

”Never mind. It's nothing. Nothing at all.”

Lee s.h.i.+n Woo couldn't handle the awkwardness any longer, so he was thankful that the Erems had suddenly sent him the report that he'd been waiting for.

[1] T/N: The word she uses can mean either the world or above ground/surface in Korean. That's why she clarifies it.

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