episode_0115

The smoke clears.

The vast space that once seemed expansive has shrunk to the size of a gymnasium.

And in the center of it all is…

“What are you?”

[Heh, hehe. Taesoo has momentarily left his post! I am Taesoo’s direct subordinate! If you dare to mess with me, Taesoo will return and make you disappear without a trace! It’s best for you to run away quickly!]

“No. Your voice sounds the same. Who are you trying to fool?”

Claiming to be Taesoo’s subordinate,

A small fox cowers on the ground, covering its eyes and trembling.

Well, maybe not so small.

It’s the size of a large dog, but compared to the massive furball from earlier, it looks tiny.

[Achievement unlocked]

[Taesoo, meeting with Guiho!]

Finally, the system window pops up.

It seems the massive fox I saw earlier was just an illusion.

This must be Taesoo’s true form.

[Achievement unlocked reward: Ability ‘Sorcery’]

[Ability: Sorcery]

[You can draw runes.]

I obtained the ability ‘Sorcery’ as a reward for unlocking the achievement.

Basic information about sorcery is now etched into my mind.

I can feel magic tingling at my fingertips.

What was once a faint sensation of magic is now something I can directly manipulate, like mana.

‘I can use sorcery now.’

Receiving this ability seems to have forcibly awakened my understanding of sorcery.

Of course, I have no idea how to use voodoo dolls, talismans, or totems.

But feeling magic more vividly means I can learn sorcery in the future.

Based on the simple explanation that I can now draw runes, this doesn’t seem like a very unique ability.

I’ll probably have to ask Genie for help with learning sorcery.

Of course, asking is one thing, but it’s practically mandatory.

[Accumulated amount: 49,980/62,500]

Meanwhile, Cali’s soul accumulation has skyrocketed.

I had about 3,000 from all the hardships I endured, but in an instant, it’s now 50,000.

The magic that Taesoo’s runes held seems incredibly powerful.

‘What will happen when I reach 60,000?’

But in other words, absorbing all of this massive spatial distortion rune still won’t be enough.

I still have 10,000 left.

So what will Cali’s soul become when I fill up the accumulation?

It’s starting to give me chills.

“Y-yes! The chaos is about to explode now! So you better run away without a word?”

“Your efforts are in vain. Why did you not want to show your true form?”

[Heheh!]

I grab Taesoo’s neck as he spouts nonsense.

He quickly gives up resisting and sprawls on the ground, revealing the face of a silver fox with a long snout.

It seems he has finally accepted it.

“What is all this? Why are you resorting to such tricks, Taesoo?”

“You should know now that you’ve seen my true form… I am no longer Taesoo. Just call me Guiho. I suffered a great injury long ago and lost a significant portion of my power. I no longer have the strength to rule this land as Taesoo, only possessing the power of an ordinary spirit. I have been secretly accumulating power here to return to my former glory someday.”

Finally, the mystery is solved.

The reason Taesoo remained silent when the Four Kings attacked.

The reason he died instantly without using his power when the final boss appeared.

Guiho had lost his power as Taesoo long ago.

This rune was created by Guiho before he lost his power.

Guiho can only exert his majesty and power as Taesoo within this space.

So he must have stayed inside until he regained all his power.

Until then, he won’t leave.

I couldn’t just stand still until the final boss appeared, so I prepared my magic and went out, only to be defeated miserably.

The puzzle pieces fit perfectly.

“Hmm. At this point, wouldn’t it be better to just pass on Taesu’s position? There must be plenty of yokai stronger than you.”

[No, I can’t! I can’t let that happen!]

“Is there any reason for that?”

[I just can’t stand being humiliated… I brushed it off as a scratch, but if it’s revealed that I weakened because of that injury… ]

“…”

Avoiding my gaze, Guho muttered with a creeping voice.

Now, Taesu and the demon seemed to be indifferent to a topic that was no longer relevant.

What should I do about this?

“Please don’t expose me! If you promise not to reveal anything about me, I’ll give you my precious magic books or anything you want!”

“No need. I’d rather learn how to distort space.”

“Oh! Oh, okay! I’ll teach you as much as you want! Stay here with me-”

“No. Outside.”

“Huh?”

In a flash, Guho’s expression turned dumbfounded as I grabbed his neck and lifted him up.

A yokai who had accumulated vast knowledge over thousands of years.

Leaving him behind would be foolish.

Now that I could learn magic, learning from Guho would be the best option.

I learned swordsmanship from Tran Silvia, who lived for hundreds of years.

I learned magic from Guho, who lived for thousands of years.

Perfect.

Yeeek!

Then, the room’s lighting turned red, and a loud siren blared.

Guho’s expression changed triumphantly.

“You’re in big trouble now! They must have noticed the intruder at Baekhwa Yoran! Baekhwa Yoran may look like an ordinary gambling den, but it’s actually a powerful organization that protects and hides me! There are plenty of experts who can kill you in an instant! If you promise not to reveal my identity and let me go, I might be able to let you go unharmed…”

“Damn it…”

Does he still not understand the situation?

Ignoring Guho’s warning, I walked up the stairs with the creature in hand.

A forced breakthrough.

***

“Fold.”

Shuffle. Shuffle.

Every time Mijeong rolled the card in her hand and spoke, the gamblers paid close attention to her every move.

But Mijeong’s face remained motionless, like a dead body, and her tone of voice showed no change.

Even her gestures showed no sign of emotion or habit, making it impossible to detect any emotion from her.

A perfect poker face.

The gamblers facing Mijeong felt as if they were facing a machine.

“Slowly… She’s cheating.”

Since earlier, the table had started to change.

Ordinary guests were replaced by professional gamblers.

Instead of the dealer who left due to illness, the new dealer was clearly using tricks.

Every element of the table seemed determined to take all of Mijeong’s chips.

Having noticed all of this, Mijeong said, “No fun. I’m leaving.”

“Wha-?! Just when we were about to have some fun?”

“I’m tired. Bed. Time.”

“This can’t be happening!!!”

Ignoring the protesting staff and spectators.

Mijeong loaded the piled chips onto a cart and took them to the exchange counter.

As she exchanged the large sum of cash and put it in her bag, the staff could only watch.

If she had exchanged a little later, they would have reduced the fees.

If she had stayed a little longer, they would have provided the hotel accommodation and room service for free.

Despite various temptations, Mijeong remained indifferent.

“Alright. I’m going to have fun and leave Baekhwa Yoran.”

As Mijeong left Baekhwa Yoran, a while later.

“Why-why-why-why!”

The sound of sirens echoed throughout the entire Baekhwayoran.

This caused a commotion.

Customers fled from Baekhwayoran without even knowing what was happening.

Inside, a few remaining employees began to arm themselves.

Although they were dressed like ordinary casino staff, as soon as they picked up swords and axes, their demeanor changed significantly.

The sound of the sirens meant that there was a problem with Taesu.

The employees stood tense in front of the hidden room’s door.

“Beyond this! Be careful. The intruder who penetrated through concealment is not to be underestimated-”

Crash!

With a loud noise, a hole appeared in the wall.

A man wearing a black mask swiftly emerged and began to flee, holding a silver fox in his hand.

At the door, the employees who were waiting for it to open were left speechless.

“Capture him! Capture the intruder!”

“Captain! The inside is empty!”

“What?”

“Taesu has disappeared!”

Shocked, the captain opened the door and peered inside, only to be stunned.

The space inside was distorted and boasted an immense size.

Yet, all that could be seen inside was a room much smaller than that.

Taesu was nowhere to be found.

The captain shouted in frustration.

“Chase him! He must have done something to Taesu!”

“Insect! Activate the magic circle!”

“Insect? What does that mean?”

As the employees looked puzzled, a giant spider lurking in the sewer began to move quickly, growling.

“Goodness! How much magic do I need to use!”

Muttering to himself, the giant spider expanded its sleep magic extensively.

It was not difficult.

Having already drawn the floor plan of Baekhwayoran and laid out the magic circles, adding sleep magic was a simple task.

But the crucial point was still the amount of magic.

As Baekhwayoran was such a large building, the amount of magic being absorbed was immense.

Therefore, the power was significantly weakened.

Nevertheless, the spider managed to complete the sleep magic circle.

“Block them with the illusion spell!”

The employees rushed forward, blocking the man’s path.

Now, it seemed like there was no way for the man to escape.

“Insect! Now!”

But as the man’s voice echoed loudly, the magic circle covering Baekhwayoran attacked.

The employees blocking the man’s path fell asleep and collapsed.

“Damn it! What trick did he use!”

However, not everyone fell asleep.

For the masters who had trained day and night, this level of sleep was just a slight heaviness in their eyelids.

They slapped their cheeks and chased after the man.

“A fox? What is that?”

The man held a large silver fox in his hand, but they could not grasp its true identity.

Surely, it couldn’t be Taesu emitting such a weak and feeble aura.

They could only think that it was a fox with fur similar to Taesu’s.

“What is this guy doing! Chase him to the ends of the continent and catch him. We will find out how you made Taesu disappear!”

The man began to move further away.

All of them had trained their bodies to the extreme for nearly 20 years.

The man dodged the memorization and arrows they shot at him as if mocking them.

He must be caught.

Even if he slipped away here, they would chase and catch him until the end.

The captain made a silent vow and accelerated even more.

He had gained everything to eat, wear, and a place to stay from Taesu.

And all the blessings in the north were thanks to Taesu, the owner of the north.

Taesu couldn’t let that guy escape in order to repay his favor and show loyalty.

“Hahaha! Curious about my identity?”

“Drew your sword?”

“Rabbit! Now!”

At that moment, a man who laughed heartily drew his sword and called out for a rabbit.

At first, the sword drew a line in the air.

A sharp wind flew along the edge of the sword, attacking the martial artists.

Surprised, they tried to block the wind with their swords and shields.

The martial artists were bewildered.

The swordsmanship that could create a sharp wind with a sword.

As far as they knew, there was only one person who could use such swordsmanship.

“T-Tran Silvia?”

“That’s right! It’s me! Tran Silvia! The narcissistic swordsman with the beauty of a courtesan, who spent hundreds of years using her body as a weapon to finally become the strongest! If you want Taesu back, find me, Tran Silvia! Hahaha!”

“······.”

Shouting like that, the masked man fell off a high cliff and disappeared.

They couldn’t chase after him any further.

For a while, the martial artists stared down at the cliff.

The swordsmanship was the ancient swordsmanship that only Tran Silvia could use.

The voice was not very clear in their memory, but it sounded somewhat similar.

Except for slightly less chest muscle, it was undoubtedly Tran Silvia.

“Tran Silvia! That bastard assassin dared to touch Taesu!”

“Madman! Not afraid of the owner of the North?”

“It was a big mistake to reveal your identity! Find him at all costs! Be prepared!”

They all swore to capture Tran Silvia, the bloodthirsty one, no matter what, pondering over their defeat.