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“Hidden quest?”
I also answered only with my lips.
The expression that the woman made when she nodded was the same as the expression that Jonathan made toward his enemy in the past.
Everyone wanted to be strong. It also seemed to be the reason why they had violated the association’s rules and swallowed the quest starter item. I had heard the New Triad was harsh on people of Japanese descent. Just because I didn’t care to manage the details after entrusting the main stage work to Lee Tae-Han, that didn't mean that no one had told me what had happened in the New Triad.
This time, I pulled her neck close and whispered in her ear, “What does that have to do with me? You are the only ones enjoying the reward.”
My tongue touched her ear.
“I don’t get the reward either. That’s not the point. Don’t you want to return to the association?” she answered while flinching as if she had been burned by a fire. She was confident that the captain would become powerful enough to take a part in the association’s leadership after he completed the linked quest. She was saying that she would take me with her after that.
She continued, “You can trust me.”
Then, she only moved her lips for the last part instead of making a sound.
“It’s a jackpot related to the Seven Demon Kings.”
***
Like all the corps under the Seven Demon Kings’ control, the Maruka Clan were also intellectual bipedal monsters. Although their gills fumed out poison and they looked like boss monsters, the ones here were simply E-class. Well, it must have been hell for the other Awakened here.
“Aaaaargh!”
The sound that burst out right after the boss match wasn’t a scream. Even if it sounded like that, they were actually shouting full of joy.
[Attack Squad: You have completed the quest ‘Weapon of the Deep Sea.’]
Everyone reacted differently to the message. One guy swung his clenched fists in the air, and another giggled while lying down. In addition, there was a couple who were acting like they were going to suck each other’s lips, and there was one Awakened who was staring blankly at the body of the boss monster. However, one thing common in all of them was that their eyes had sharpened.
They had already agreed that the first and second-order compensation would be given to the captain and the woman, but now it was the time for them to distribute the mana stones and items dropped from the boss monster.
People gathered on one side under the direction of the woman, and the dropped items and a sack that had mana stones were placed on the ground. Those who gathered around them glanced back at me with a pang of conscience. Some stared at me as they had realized they needed to share these trophies with me, but that was it. No one spoke out that I deserved to have the items and mana stones to the captain and the woman. Only Ryuichi, the snitch, was moving his lips in hesitation.
Then, the woman declared, “Captain and I are out, so you guys should distribute by yourselves.”
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The squad members thought she was testing their loyalty, so they were busy telling her to take some. Nevertheless, excitement filled the air when she didn’t change her decision. It seemed like a part of their physical strength, which they had used up during the boss match, had recovered for a moment.
“Come on, Mr. Kwon! Hurry up!”
More people were making gestures to call me to come. These people were praiseworthy. They exchanged glances with each other, then Ryuichi stepped out as a representative.
“Choose first.”
The boss monster’s drop items were neatly placed on the ground as they stepped aside to make way for me. It meant they would yield it to me. However, I wasn’t interested at all as the items there could be found anywhere in the real Cat Food Warehouse outside.
Ryuichi urged again, “Choose whatever you want. You deserve it.”
His words made me feel sentimental, and for a moment I wanted to believe that the malicious part of the System had completely vanished.
I ultimately shook my head and said, “I’ll step out too.”
Ryuichi grabbed my wrist while opening his eyes wide with wonder. Most of the members respected and followed me, but this guy was special. He hung around me a lot, and I knew it wasn’t simply because they thought that I was in the platinum section. Although my status window seemed outstanding, my current fake status was a fugitive being chased by the head of the Ilsung Corps.
To a fugitive who could get killed when caught by Ilsung?
Looking back, he had cared for me steadily, even before the members started respecting me. His attitude was enough for me to notice that he had his suspicions about me. He probably thought that I was an investigator sent by the association, not a fugitive.
Then, the woman gave me a look filled with tension. She was about to start the linked quest ‘Doom Entegasto’s Destroyed Life Vessel.’
I shook off Ryuichi’s hand and said, “Don’t mind me and go ahead.”
***
The captain didn’t report to the association even after acquiring the Black Fragment. Ryuichi judged that he couldn’t have done it unless he was out of his mind.
The association was unified under the savior Odin. How could he ignore the rules of such a group?’
When Act Two, Stage One ended and he found that the groups had been divided into Camp One Frank, Camp Two Cat Food Warehouse, Camp Three World Awakened Association (3), Camp Four New Triad, and Camp Five Revolucion (12), Ryuichi believed that the four camps except for Revolucion would confront each other. He also thought that he would die on the battlefield as the New Triad’s human shield.
However, that didn’t happen because the most inferior Revolucion (12) had merged the entire camp into one. It wasn’t an underdog’s revolt. The rumors about the savior Odin were proven to be true because the only blood on the ground belonged to the Frank Guild’s executives. The New Triad was reckless and strong, but they crawled into Odin’s arms without even fighting them.
Odin was indeed a savior. Thanks to him, Ryuichi was able to break off the shackles of being a slave. That was the reason why the captain should have reported his findings to the association. He knew the captain desperately wanted vengeance against the Chinese Awakened as the New Triad had treated the Japanese horribly. However, he still had to follow the association’s rule no matter what ability was in the fragment. If he was rewarded for that, then he should have shared it with his subordinates, but the captain took all the benefits and had instead brought in a huge threat to his entire squad. That was why Ryuichi had no choice but to become a snitch.
However, it was weird that nothing had happened after that. Ryuichi had thought the captain and vice-captain would be taken to the main building of the association, but it was just like any other day. Then, a fugitive named Kwon Ki-Cheol joined the squad. Apparently, he had coveted the woman of Kim Ji-Hoon, a commander of the Ilsung Guild. Ryuichi thought he was the craziest guy in the world.
As always, there were names people must know when there was a big change in the power structure of the stage. The Chinese names of the New Triad were the main ones in the previous stage, but they were now hidden by the names of people under the great savior Odin. Kwon Seong-Il, Lee Tae-Han, Kim Ji-Hoon, Kim Ji-Ae, Angela, Gunnarson, Idema, Mason, Cheney, etc… Everyone could see that these people were trying to make the stage work reasonably here, so they appreciated the association’s sincerity and hard work. Nevertheless, they couldn’t deny that this world was still run by the law of the jungle.
That was why Ryuichi wondered what trick Ki-Cheol had used to lure Kim Ji-Hoon’s girl. Also, he was curious about what made the Ilsung commander risk his position by trying to surreptitiously kill Ki-Cheol because it was obvious that Kim Ji-Hoon could get any woman he wanted. He couldn’t stop feeling prejudiced against the odd Korean man.
However, Ki-Cheon soon revealed his extraordinary capabilities. It didn’t take long before Ryuichi realized Ki-Cheol was a special man. He was a strong, experienced and brilliant Korean Awakened. Even though he was never the leader type, everyone trusted and followed him.
Therefore, Ryuichi began to wonder.
Kwon Ki-Cheol… Is he truly foolish enough to covet Kim Ji-Hoon’s girl? Is it a coincidence that he joined at a time when there was no response from the association?
The more time Ryuichi spent with Ki-Cheol, the more difficult he discovered it was to find out anything about the other man. In particular, his veteran combat skills were close to mechanical movements. The overwhelming atmosphere he created around him during maintenance time was indeed amazing. The captain and vice-captain were often weighed down by his charisma.
Ryuichi’s question turned into doubt, then into conviction. Ki-Cheol had certainly appeared because he had tattled, and he was definitely sent by the association. As the association had cared about Black Fragments for a while, they would have sent an elite of the elites. Someone who could easily overpower the captain and vice-captain and snap off their necks.
“Choose whatever you want. You deserve it.”
“I’ll step out, too. Don’t mind me and go ahead.”
Ryuichi moved according to the association’s agent’s instructions. A bountiful of spoils awaited him.
“What about Mr. Kwon?” one guy asked.
Ryuichi responded, “He said he doesn’t want it.”
“Why?”
Ryuichi shrugged. “How am I supposed to know? I’m sure he now knows how much we care about him, though. That’s all it matters.”
“He must have studied the captain’s face.”
“Nah, he is not that type of a guy.”
“Yeah, that’s true.”
“Then… since six are dead and three stepped out… sixteen in total.”
“Why don’t we distribute mana stones evenly and roll the dice for the rest?”
“With the System?”
Ryuichi took out an actual dice from his backpack and answered, “No, with these.”
People smiled at each other, but those smiles didn’t reach their eyes.
The game had begun. Every time the two dice stopped, it got loud. People either sighed or cheered. Everyone else's eyes were fixed on the two small dice, but Ryuichi was looking at the side where the captain, vice-captain, and Kwon Ki-Cheol were gathered. The expressions of the captain and vice-captain bothered him because he couldn’t find any joy that they should have had after conquering the E-class Maruka Clan. Instead, they were staring at the person sent by the association with heavily dependent eyes. Ryuichi didn’t know what was going on, but there was no doubt that the three of them had a secret among them.
Good luck, Mr. Kwon!
Ryuichi moved to an area close by where the three couldn't spot him. Then, he deliberately raised his voice to uplift the atmosphere so that no one could see what was going on between the three.
“Please! Please!”
The dice spun in the air, then fell to the ground.