NOVEL NEXT Chapter 18
6. missionary
1.
The next morning.
[It is ten minutes before the appearance of the Chaos Gate].
[An ominous aura of magic surrounds the scene].
“If I had my way, I’d like to have a fight with Shi Yu right now. I like your personality, and you talk funny, kahaha!”
“Mr. Choi seems to be the kind of person who would challenge someone to a fight if he liked them.”
“That’s natural, isn’t that how boys get along?”
I was standing side by side with the Demon Guild’s representative, Choi Seo-jin, waiting for the gate to appear.
There was no sign of Choi Seo-jin, who had tried to eat me to death just yesterday.
No wonder, the negotiations had gone so well and successfully.
My request to the Goblin Guild yesterday was as follows.
“I heard from the Ministry of Ability Management that the Demon Guild is so good at combat. I can’t think of a better opportunity to see how the players of Earth fight. Please allow me to observe.”
I can’t usually spit on a smiling face.
I didn’t want to scratch and claw, so I asked as politely as possible, and Choi Seo-jin, who was eager to fight me, accepted my offer with a big smile.
He said that he liked the fact that I was strong enough to clear the gate by myself and bow my head to him.
Apparently, there was a misunderstanding, but I didn’t bother to clear it up.
After all, my goal is not to take over the gate, but to pick up the missionary of my order from the gate.
What happens after the pickup?
Whatever. I’m sure it won’t go according to plan anyway.
No matter.
The situation I’m in now, standing with Mr. Choi, is a continuation of yesterday’s situation.
I gave a small nod, then slowly turned my eyes to face the road ahead.
As the system message had warned me, a huge, purple, glowing orb floated in the sky.
And beneath it were the combatants of the Goblin Guild, ready for battle.
Some of them looked nervous, but most of them were relaxed and talking amongst themselves.
“I’m proud of my brood. They’re a mixed bag of chicks, but they’ve proven their potential, so I’m sure they’ll settle in quickly and do their part. What do you think of them, Mr. Shi Yu?”
“The veterans certainly have the attitude of veterans.”
They were far more skilled soldiers than I had realized.
They were relaxed but not disorganized, and their formations were plausible.
Starting with heavily armored infantry, then ranged attackers with bows or staves.
Then there were the players standing by in relatively light armor.
When I heard the word guild, I thought of a mercenary group of players, but here they were, looking more like a regular army.
As I watched them, I soon realized that I had a question.
The Ministry of Ability Management’s gate last time, and this one too.
I felt the absence of an integral part of Eden.
“There are no players in charge of healing.”
Mr. Choi responded to my question with a matter-of-fact tone.
“Maybe you haven’t noticed since you’ve only been back on Earth for a short time, Shi Yu, but healing players aren’t that common. Even a little bit of healing ability is enough to get you an A-class Hunter certificate…… and most of them are from the Jeon Chi Association. They’re worse than the quack doctors in my neighborhood, and their prices are unnecessarily high, and they’re freaking difficult to work with.”
I’m guessing it’s the National Association of Healers, or something?
Judging by the way he’s getting angry while talking, it’s not a good feeling.
There’s a shortage of healers.
I didn’t know that detail. I didn’t realize there was a shortage until Eden, when the priests primarily used healing abilities.
This could be quite an opportunity for me and the Order of Limen.
I’m not sure yet, but once the faithful awaken to their divine powers, they’ll be able to heal in droves.
As I was prying information out of Mr. Choi, I heard a bang.
Wooooooooo!
The purple sphere in the sky began to resonate harshly, and soon a violet light emanating from the sphere began to spread out in all directions.
A moment later, a message window appeared in front of him.
[A Chaos Gate is emerging].
[Quest is coming]
[Welcome]
Type: Sub – DLC
Description: In accordance with the agreement between
Conditions: Survival of Missionary
Reward: Relic .
……The Mark of Limen.
The missionary who crossed the gate must have brought it with him.
“It’s been a while.”
As I stared at the message window, I was almost overcome with emotion.
“It’s not often that you get to see our guild in battle, so I hope you’ll take this opportunity to enjoy it to your heart’s content. Hmph.”
Mr. Choi finished his sentence with a chuckle, and then shouted in a voice so loud that it echoed in all directions.
“Let’s go!”
And with that, Mr. Choi’s booming voice.
Krrrrrrr-.
From beyond the gate, which had already taken shape, the trolls began to emerge, hulking monsters with blue skin.
2.
Puuuuuuk-!
CURRRRRRRR!
Eerie popping sounds and troll screams echoed from all directions.
Maybe it’s because the gate was smaller than the others I’d seen, but there were only a dozen or so trolls crawling out of the gate in a vanguard formation.
“With trolls, you aim for the head!”
“Hey, you son of a bitch, are you out of your mind? Who says you can get distracted in the middle of a battle!”
“I heard you guys were the top of the academy! What the fuck is going on now? Does the academy only teach you how to freeze in the middle of a battle? Who the hell taught you!”
Profanity is everywhere.
To the uninitiated, this could be seen as a one-sided assault, but I didn’t see anything out of the ordinary about the scene.
It was veterans pushing the newcomers hard.
And even though they were being verbally abusive, they were still giving the newcomers the benefit of the doubt.
Most of the newcomers to the Goblin Guild were confused by the veterans’ insults and the terror of the trolls.
I watched the scene and said quietly.
“Ignorant, but effective.”
“It’s one of our guild’s proudest traditions.”
By nature, battles are fought under a lot of pressure.
And in order to win a battle, you must fulfill your role under that pressure.
In that sense, the guild’s training for new recruits was effective.
It’s just too primitive.
I quickly realized who the creator of this ridiculous newbie training was.
“You’re a good fit for the boss.”
“You’re being flattering. Hahahaha.”
In Eden, there was another person with a similar personality to Lee Choi.
He was called the Mercenary King, and his straightforward and quick-thinking personality was exactly the same.
“But if the gate is this easy, is it necessary for Mr. Choi to come personally?”
In response to my question, Mr. Choi looked at me and shook his head.
“Lately, there have been a lot of unstable gates and dungeons. Our elites can survive anything we throw at them, but the chicks can’t. They’ve trusted us with their lives, and we can’t let them die in an accident.”
There’s also loyalty.
He seems like the kind of man who would have fit right in as a mercenary if he had been born in Eden.
Mr. Choi raised the corners of his mouth.
“The main body will be here soon.”
The moment he said that, the formation of the Demon Guild members who were organizing the vanguard changed drastically.
“Everyone, stand back!”
“The main force is expected to be at least fifty. Keep your distance and change to formation B!”
“Chicks stay behind the marksmen!”
The formation change was swift.
It was also a testament to their discipline.
They moved swiftly, spreading their formation wide, and as expected, the gate shifted once more.
[The Chaos Gate is expanding in earnest!]
Crackle-!
Lightning struck down from the violet sky, and the area of the violet gate increased several times in the blink of an eye.
And from within, another group of trolls began to walk out.
“All troops, battle order…….”
Seeing this, the fighters of the Goblin Guild quickly regrouped and prepared for battle, but they froze in place at the bizarre scene that soon followed.
Trolls were walking out of the gate, no doubt.
But the trolls were in a strange state.
KEEEEEEEEEEK-!
Keeeeeeeeeeee!
They were running as if they were being chased by something.
They didn’t have the fierce fighting spirit or life that trolls usually exude. Their eyes were constantly fluttering, and some of them crawled out of the gate with missing limbs.
It was no longer the look of an invader.
Rather.
“They look like hapless refugees.”
As Mr. Choi said, they looked like prey running away from a predator.
“Stop, stop!”
“Don’t panic!”
As the players slashed at the frantic trolls, their eyes never left the gate.
Or, more accurately, they were conscious of the predator that was approaching from beyond the gate.
I looked at the mutilated trolls and sighed heavily.
Mr. Choi looked at me and said.
“Is that what Mr. Shi Yu said he was looking for?”
“I think so.”
“It’s been a long time since I’ve seen such blatant power……, I don’t think I can stand this.”
Roar-!
A red-colored magic power flowed out from Mr. Choi’s body and covered his body.
The magic power, as intense as Mr. Choi’s personality, began to burn brightly.
He spoke in an agitated voice.
“Khhhh. I’m telling you in advance, I can’t give in, that’s my prey.”
“Well, I don’t expect you to listen under the circumstances…… it’s not a matter of me yielding or not, and prey is not a very good choice of words.”
“Hmph. No matter what you say, it won’t work. Last time you ate Lich all to yourself, and now you’re going to eat something so precious all to yourself! You’re just plain greedy. But as far as I’m concerned, you’re not even worthy.”
His eyes were beginning to burn with pride.
He must be fatally mistaken, but there’s nothing I can do in this situation.
He’s already gone mad.
If I could have stopped him, I would have, but even God can’t stop a madman.
……In my case, should I say that even Limen can’t stop him?
In any case, yes.
I quickly gave up trying to convince them and turned my attention to the gate.
The gate that had been crawling with trolls just moments ago was nowhere to be seen.
Only a heavy silence descended upon the place.
How long had it been silent?
Tsk-.
From beyond the gate, one of the trolls’ heads rolled nonchalantly, a very large head, many times the size of the others.
A moment later.
“All troops, man-to-man formation A!”
“Humanoid monster. We have a humanoid monster!”
“All rookies, move to the back! Only those with PvP experience move to the front! Hurry up!”
From beyond the gate, a man walked out silently.
Dark ombre hair slicked back neatly and a monocle with a white chain.
A high-powered forehead that seemed to say ‘Principle’ on it, and a black priest’s robe that looked like it might burst at any moment from the muscles of his upper body.
In his left hand, the ‘man’ held a thick white book, and his right hand, which was clad in black gloves, was dripping with fresh troll blood.
I knew the man’s name. No, I couldn’t not recognize him.
“Why are you…….”
Leo Lumen.
The head of the Congregation for Doctrinal Studies of the Order of Lumen, and a man who had risen to the rank of archbishop at the tender age of 29.
He was a principled man, but his most famous nickname was.
“……The Mad Dog of the Holy Father.”
“The Mad Dog of the Holy Father,” a man who would force anyone to follow his principles.
I wave lightly at Leo, who bowed politely as soon as he saw me, and muttered.
“Fucked.”
The question here.
What happens when a madman and a mad dog meet?
The answer is this.
Mr. Choi, who was standing next to me just a moment ago, suddenly landed in front of Leo and shouted.
“You are my prey, and I will not yield to anyone else! Try to excite me. Come on!”
Leo frowned as he watched Mr. Choi’s sudden behavior.
Kwaaaaaaang!
He grabbed Mr. Choi by the hair and threw him to the ground in a fiery kick.
The scene quickly resembled a funeral home.
In the eerie silence, I spoke to myself once again.
“This is so fucked.”