Chapter 30

Chapter 30: [Knight Soul] He’s Not Human……! (1)

‘Is this really that hard?’

In that instant, as Ju Seo-jin watched the reactions go beyond heated and outright explode, he tilted his head.

He had not said it out loud earlier, but he had already confirmed his acquisition of Larkranz Style’s Virtual Energy Operation method.

From Ju Seo-jin’s perspective, he could ‘naturally’ do it, so that thought occurred to him.

In terms of sensation, it felt similar to putting together a simple puzzle.

When one looked at the shape of a puzzle that had already been partly completed on the board, it was also possible to fill in the empty puzzle slots.

The sense of déjà vu he had felt from the moment he ‘saw’ Larkranz Style in [Limitless War]─── the absence of its Virtual Energy Operation method had been something like that.

As long as he obtained the puzzle piece that went in the empty space, he could immediately fit it in.

However-.

‘Mmm… well, if they say it’s hard, then I guess it must be hard? Probably.’

The legendary line (?) that would have drawn every kind of aggro did not escape into the outside world.

After all, following his bet with Halkenburg, everyone was showing uniformly positive reactions.

Rather than saying here that it had not been especially difficult, pretending to be exhausted seemed more beneficial.

In many ways.

That was right.

…In the current situation, the important thing was that saying nothing was ‘beneficial’ for Ju Seo-jin.

[ donated ‘10,000 won’.]

━Legendary Physical Skill. I’m shaking, I’m seriously shaking;;;;;;;;;;

[ donated ‘10,000 won’.]

━This is an all-time great Skill Stream, seriously lolololololololol.

[ donated ‘10,000 won’.]

━Pure talent is insane. Holy shit;;

………

……

…

‘…How much is all of this?’

At the same time the sparring match with Halkenburg ended, donations had been going off nonstop.

Should he say it was like people realizing this was not a common street performance, but a world star’s busking performance, and throwing bundles of money?

For something that had simply been a warm-up, far too many donations were pouring in.

Ding, ding, ding───.

‘……….’

A lot.

‘…If everyone becomes happy as long as I stay still, should I really tell the truth?’

Mm.

Thinking about it, he felt like he understood why white lies existed in the world.

As he watched the donation amount pile up, he felt as though even the kindness that had never existed inside him was welling up from within his heart.

Ding-.

‘I see. Is this why they say silence is golden…?’

It was a moment when his collection power, no… his enlightenment rose.

***

For a while, the viewers heated up the chat window, but it did not continue forever.

He had made a bet that, on the condition he landed even a single effective hit in the match against Halkenburg, he would obtain what he wanted.

Originally, he had done it thinking it would be nice if he could get something, even a small reward, but the situation had changed.

Because he had received payment in advance from Halkenburg in exchange for accepting a Hidden Quest.

Swipe-.

Halkenburg turned and began moving his feet, then smiled with a “grin-,” like a crescent moon.

“Good. Follow me, brat. A winner must have a fitting reward. I shall properly grant you a prize.”

“…To express that accurately, isn’t that not granting me a prize, but keeping your promise with me?”

“Mm? It is the same thing. Why split hairs over it? It is cold to speak of such things between master and disciple-”

“I never agreed to that.”

“What?”

In that instant. 

Halkenburg looked back as if dumbfounded, but the answer remained the same.

Ju Seo-jin calmly answered with unwavering eyes.

“I said I was willing to hear a bit if you gave me teachings. I never said I would become your disciple.”

“No. Wait, what kind of nonsense is that? You received my teachings, and yet you are not my disciple? What logic is that?”

“That sounds like a bad-faith customer’s argument.”

“?”

Ju Seo-jin tilted his head crookedly and spoke as if saying something obvious.

“You said you would give me teachings, so I received them. I never agreed to accept anything like that.”

“What is that supposed to-”

“To compare it to a restaurant, isn’t that like handing someone a bill because they took one bite from a sample menu?”

“……….”

“I only spoke the facts.”

-Damn.

-Ah- that’s a good comparison~~~

-...? Now that I think about it, he really didn’t agree to it; what the hell?

-As expected of Teacher Seo-jin. He doesn’t do unpaid labor.

-Halkenburg got caught trying to sneak in an unfair contract. Holy shit;;

It was a fact.

Separate from Halkenburg proposing a master-disciple relationship, Ju Seo-jin had never accepted that master-disciple relationship.

-Then shouldn’t he conscientiously refund the Halkenburg’s Last Disciple title in his Status window..?

-For real lol. There should be a title bonus, but he took that and refuses to be treated as a disciple, fuck lol.

-To compare it to a restaurant, the Halkenburg’s Last Disciple title is like a restaurant freebie he got by buying the sample menu through a loophole.

-└No, fuck, that’s just robbery, isn’t it..?

-└It is.

-└Ah...

At Ju Seo-jin’s words, Halkenburg stood blankly for a moment, then let out a hollow laugh with a hiccuping chuckle before moving his feet again.

“Hic-. How very enjoyable. You have a silver tongue that does not suit you. It seems you even have the talent of a smooth talker.”

“I only said the truth, so I do not understand why you are laughing.”

“What? Puhahah-! I like you even more. It feels like I found money on a bandit I met on the road. Splendid…!”

“……….”

-Crazy old man;

-...? What kind of comparison is that now, crazy old geezer? I’m losing my mind;;

-What do you mean, not finding money on the road, but finding money on a bandit you met on the road?

-Feeling like you found money on a bandit you met on the road, if you compare it to a restaurant, is like killing a player passing by and robbing them of all their items.

-└You said compare it to a restaurant, but that isn’t a restaurant. That’s just being happy after robbery, fuck;

Meanwhile, Ju Seo-jin thought carefully, then nodded and answered.

“Ah… so bandits give a lot of money. That’s useful information.”

-?

-Useful information..?

-Teacher Seo-jin, that mindset is enough to make even this crazy old man yield a move.

-Advance notice: bandit groups will be designated an endangered species. Holy shit.

While Ju Seo-jin chewed over the gameplay tip (?) that bandits gave money, they arrived at their destination.

Tap-.

The Black Storehouse.

Halkenburg stood before a gigantic building that looked as though it had been molded from basalt, then pushed the door with his hand.

Grrrr───.

And then.

THUD-.

At last, the enormous door of the Black Storehouse opened, and the scenery inside came into view.

-?

-Oh..

-That’s sick.

-Isn’t that a golden storehouse?

“!”

At the same time, Ju Seo-jin opened his eyes wide, and the viewers also let out admiration.

It was only natural.

After all, inside the Black Storehouse, all kinds of items were lined up in a spacious area that looked as though it could easily fit an entire playground.

His gaze naturally went to the sight of equipment such as swords and shields, as well as all kinds of potions being stored there.

Halkenburg pointed at it, popped the stopper of the liquor bottle hanging at his waist with a “pop-,” and spoke while cackling.

“There are only old arms and trifling things here. Even so, they will be of great help to you in your current state.”

In other words-.

“Now, choose what you want from here. You may take as much as you like. I shall permit it.”

-Damn.

-GREAT HAL KEN BURG.

-Warehouse clearance ON. Holy shit.

-He wasn’t a crazy old geezer, but a crazy donation man, fuck;

…An unexpected item-farming time had begun.

***

Items one could obtain near the beginning were usually terrible.

Even if one started gameplay and diligently went around nearby areas farming items, what one could gather was at a miserable level.

In [Knight Soul], farming items especially had a structure where they had to be obtained through repetitive actions, the so-called ‘grind.’

Roaming the field, hunting again and again, and gradually preparing items by paying expensive prices.

It was standard, but it took far too long.

Was that why?

“…W-wow-! This is seriously amazing! How can this happen? Isn’t this cheating?”

Inside the Black Storehouse, Ju Seo-yoon’s eyes sparkled at the sight of the piled-up items.

She had only entered the Black Storehouse belatedly after unlocking her Status.

As she looked at the items placed inside one by one, Ju Seo-yoon ran around here and there with a “patter-patter-,” repeatedly letting out exclamations of admiration.

“Healing Potions, Mana Potions, and even Doping Potions on top of that? Do you know how much the potions alone cost? And we’re getting all this so easily?”

-???;

-‘Easily,’ you say..? This?? Exactly which part??

-Myangbangwool is excited to gobble up items for free while saying it’s easy because she’s not the one who did it... Shameful!

-Balance game) Land an effective hit in a 1:1 against Halkenburg right after unlocking Status VS just grind normally and set up items steadily.

-└I will just live steadily..... I will not act up.. I am sorry..

From Ju Seo-jin’s perspective, landing an effective hit on Halkenburg was ‘not impossible,’ but generally speaking, that was not the case.

Halkenburg was an NPC close to a killing machine, created in [Knight Soul] by training him on the data of actual Pro-Gamers.

It might be a different story after progressing through the game to some extent, but in the early part, even if it was called ‘sparring,’ making him allow an attack was close to impossible.

Naturally.

Ju Seo-yoon also knew this vaguely, but she acted mischievously and scraped at the viewers’ nerves.

“Everyone, it seems you don’t understand. We were able to get this far because a genius brain like me was beside him, you know?”

-?

-So this is how you signal us to prepare blood pressure medicine~ thaaaaanks...!!

-Ge? nius? Brain? What.. does that...??????????

“Actually, it’s not even that we got this far because of my genius brain, right? Since I cheered from behind and sent energy to Oppa, I have combat contribution too!”

-Damn lolololololololololololol.

-Is she now claiming free rewards without even a pretext?;

-She didn’t participate in battle, but she gained combat contribution..? Since she sent energy through cheering, it counts as participating in battle...?

-Is this the Spirit Bomb theory? Like, just by cheering, you can draw on the strength of every Earthling in the world?

“Yes, correct!”

-??????????????????????

-I feel like my brain is rotting.. My head.. hurts.. Uuugh..

-She does seem like a genius brain, yeah; in a different meaning...

-Her brain is only genius at making people angry and rationalizing free rides.

“Hmhmhmm.”

Ju Seo-yoon hummed, ignored the sound of the viewers clutching the backs of their necks, and slowly reached out her hand.

“Now, then, shall we start farming items? Is it okay to get a free ride like this from the start, hm? This is so grea-”

But then.

Smack-.

“You have no manners, little one. Do not touch as you please. It is not yours.”

“……….”

Halkenburg suddenly swatted away Ju Seo-yoon’s hand with displeasure.

With his arms crossed, Halkenburg raised only one eyebrow and continued speaking coldly.

“What is a spellcaster trying to take? A porter does not need such things.”

“A p-porter? Who? Me? Are you talking about me right now?”

“Little one, there is no spellcaster here other than you, is there? There are things worth getting confused over, and then there is this. Tsk.”

“……….”

-Peaceful.

-Free ride cuuuuuuuut!

-A porter? What a ridiculous overrating;

-She’s not even a porter. She’s a commentator who adds cheering, exclamations, and reaction lines..

With a crooked-looking expression, Halkenburg turned around sharply and pulled an old book from some display bookshelf before throwing it.

[Theory of Magnetism Magic]

“If you are a spellcaster, you can simply learn Magnetism Magic. There is nothing more useful than that for a porter. Do you understand?”

“……….”

-Legendary mage hatred;;

-Magnet pet, fuck lololololololololol.

-But it really is perfect.. His coaching ability is max level, old geezer?

Ju Seo-yoon was staring down with hollow eyes at the magic book she had accidentally received when it happened.

Swipe-.

“Mm. I think that’s fine, though? Wouldn’t it be good to have a magnet function?”

Ju Seo-jin, who had gone deep inside the Black Storehouse, appeared without a sound and said that.

However, considering he had wandered around inside the Black Storehouse for a long time, there was not much different about him.

Except for the antique black longsword hanging at his waist.

[Sword of the Dragon Knight Order]

*A sword made for the elite knights of the Dragon Knight Order, with a sharp energy dwelling within it. 

It is said that the keen blade, made by melting down dragon scales, can cut through even rock with ease.

━Durability: 19817/30500

━When Equipped: Additional Attack Power +40 / Overall Attack Power +2.5%

-Fucking busted item.

-This is.. a starting item..? Then what was I, when my sword broke and I hunted barehanded..?

-└You can just clear the Hidden Route too. Just succeed in landing an attack in a 1:1 against Halkenburg. Easy, right?

-└I’ll just go around barehanded. Boxers are romantic by nature.

It was not an endgame-tier item, but it was a fairly decent weapon.

It was a shame that it was used, not new, but it was the best equipment he could obtain in the current situation.

Other than that, Ju Seo-jin simply came out holding nothing. 

Seeing that, Ju Seo-yoon looked puzzled and showed her confusion.

“Oppa. Why did you only bring that one? It looks good, but what about the others?”

“Not particularly. I did look at things like armor and shoes too, but they’re cumbersome.”

“Huh?”

“If I can just avoid getting hit in the first place, there’s no reason to lower my mobility by wearing things like that, is there?”

“……….”

-Ah.. yes....

-A sudden talent flex. Holy shit;

-Sudden talent flex (X) Habitual talent flex (O)

-If I can just avoid getting hit in the first place, why should I lower my mobility? <<< That’s nonsense, but when Teacher Seo-jin says it, it sounds like orthodoxy..

Halkenburg, too, nodded beside him and agreed with a satisfied smile.

“Yes, indeed. If you do not get hit even once, you will never be injured, so that is correct. Excellent!”

-?

-This is a world where common sense is reversed.

-Seems like there’s something that lets crazy people communicate with each other, yeah;

-You might get hurt in battle, so you should wear protective gear.. (X) Then dodge. (O)

The viewers were appalled by the conversation where common sense had gone off track, but it did not last long.

“Hm. Now that you seem to be armed well enough… how about showing me what you can do?”

“What I can do?”

“Yes. Surely you do not intend to back down now? Taking rest for too long clouds the mindset of a knight, so going out to the battlefield is inevitable.”

“Ah.”

Ju Seo-jin also realized what Halkenburg’s words meant.

“It is a test. Before obtaining a Knight Soul, try dealing with the foolish necromancer dwelling in the Old Castle.”

In other words, a ‘Boss Quest.’ After Trinex, he was receiving a mission to face a proper boss.

“However, without any time restriction, this would not be difficult for you to resolve. So I shall set one condition for your sake.”

-Huh?

-Uh.. if that’s the case?

-Wait.. maybe??

However, unlike an ordinary Boss Quest, Halkenburg’s words made it clear that an additional condition was attached.

“I will give you three days.”

In other words-.

“If you deal with the necromancer of the Old Castle before three days pass and return, I will give you power befitting that achievement.”

To put it simply, that was what it meant.

-Isn’t this a Speedrun Quest?

‘Speedrun.’

A mission had been set that could make the Streamer’s Skill Stream even more entertaining.