The Player Who Can't Level Up

Rohan gulped loudly. He was reporting to his great master, which meant he couldn’t afford to make a single mistake. Rohan organized his thoughts to make a concise and accurate report.

-Rohan.

Rohan had forgotten to respond since he was busy organizing his thoughts, so Gi-Gyu called out to him.

Realizing his mistake, Rohan stammered,

-I-I apologize.

-Rogers, you don’t have to be so nervous. Just tell me what happened.

-M-Master, that name is…

Rohan, né Rogers Han, didn’t like to be called by his old name. It reminded him of what he had done; the guilt made him blush.

Rogers was able to infiltrate the Iron Guild by joining it as a player. Within a short period, he had become the deputy guild master of this prestigious group.

‘I was lucky,’ Rohan thought in satisfaction. While Ironshield was away, he had made notable accomplishments by closing the unratable gates. For some reason, he could level up faster than before. Was it because he had become Gi-Gyu’s Ego?

All in all, the only thing Rohan cared about now was pleasing Gi-Gyu.

‘I exist only for the Master.’ This thought fueled Rohan’s greed for a higher position. He wanted to help Gi-Gyu, no matter how small the contribution.

And there was also a time he had almost been caught.

‘I thought Andras would kill me.’ Rohan shivered. Ironshield didn’t realize who Rohan really was, but he thought Andras might. After all, he was connected to Gi-Gyu. He had been afraid that Andras would discover the sync or the fact that he was wearing another human’s body.

When Rohan had first met Andras…

‘Just thinking about that day makes me sweat!’ 

He had actually lucked out. Perhaps it was because Gi-Gyu had been taking the Tower test then, but Andras didn’t discover his secret. Then, he was promoted to the deputy guild master position.

Unfortunately, this rank didn’t really come with much power or authority within the guild.

-Rogers!

-I-I’m sorry, Master!

Rohan stopped reminiscing, realizing he had to start his report now.

-I did exactly as you ordered, Master. As a matter of fact, I don’t think I really needed to get involved anyway.

Rohan continued quickly.

-Choi Chang-Yong volunteered without any prodding. I think he’ll do exactly what you thought later on too.

-...

Gi-Gyu didn’t respond immediately, making Rohan gulp.

-Good job.

Finally, Gi-Gyu complimented Rohan, making him blush. Gi-Gyu asked.

-Were you able to find out anything else about the Caravan Guild or the Iron Guild?

Rohan’s red face quickly turned pale. Because his title was in name only, he couldn’t learn any secrets of the two guilds.

-I-I’m so sorry.

Although “deputy guild master” was considered a high-ranking title, Rohan wasn’t included in any of the secret projects. Inside the Iron Guild, the deputy guild master had to deal with all the annoying tasks the guild master didn’t want to take care of. Rohan rarely got the chance to make contact with Ironshield himself or hear information about the Caravan Guild.

-It’s all right. I’m just relieved that you didn’t get killed.

Gi-Gyu replied. If Rohan were caught by Andras or Ironshield, he would have been killed by now. Gi-Gyu was impressed by how well he had infiltrated the Iron Guild.

Gi-Gyu ordered,

-A player is going to visit you soon. With your new position and this player’s abilities, we will have a better chance of learning their secrets. Make sure you cooperate with him.

-A player?

Rohan asked.

Gi-Gyu answered,

-Yes, that’s right. His name is Go Hyung-Chul.

With this, Gi-Gyu ended their conversation.

***

“Was that Rogers, I mean Rohan?” Old Man Hwang asked. The blacksmith knew about Rohan because Gi-Gyu had told him after he had passed the 50th-floor test. Old Man Hwang also thought this was a good idea, as having a spy in the enemy’s heart could be crucial.

Gi-Gyu replied, “Yes, but he didn’t find out much.”

Disappointingly, Rohan didn’t have much authority inside the Iron Guild.

Old Man Hwang replied, “Well, it’s still better than nothing. I’m sure things will get better once Go Hyung-Chul joins him.”

Gi-Gyu nodded. Just then, he heard the voice in his head again.

-So what do you think? I just offered my help, didn’t I? Did you not hear me?

It was the voice Gi-Gyu had heard earlier. Because he was busy communicating with Rohan, he had been ignoring this voice.

Gi-Gyu coldly asked, “How are you able to talk to me?”

Because Old Man Hwang and Lou knew about this creature, they only silently watched Gi-Gyu.

Gi-Gyu continued, “I didn’t open the seal at all, so you shouldn’t be able to talk to me.”

Suddenly, an idea popped into Gi-Gyu’s head.

The playful voice replied,

-You got it.

The voice, which belonged to Jupiter, sounded amused.

Gi-Gyu still couldn’t be certain of who Jupiter was exactly. He was either a mixture of Lou and something else or a combination of Gi-Gyu and Lou.

It was also possible that Jupiter was a completely new existence.

Jupiter explained,

-It feels like this contaminant holds my power as well. So, I assimilated the contaminant and used it to squeeze myself out of the seal. Don’t worry, though, as I still can’t kill you. Kekeke.

Jupiter laughed in amusement.

Noticing Gi-Gyu’s frown, Old Man Hwang asked, “What’s wrong?”

Gi-Gyu waved his hand to ask Old Man Hwang to be quiet. He then asked, “So, the contaminant—”

Jupiter interrupted him and replied,

-Chaos. I’m not sure what else is in it, but I think it has Chaos.

Gi-Gyu became even more rigid. Just who was Andras? At first, he thought Andras was a demon who wanted to cause trouble in the human world.

Just another demon that had left the gate.

But it seemed that there was so much more to Andras. The more Gi-Gyu learned about him, the more surprised he became. It was obvious he was incredibly powerful and resourceful, and it seemed that he had a secret purpose.

-Stop talking nonsense and just answer me. Do you want my help or what?

Jupiter seemed to think he had the upper hand. He offered arrogantly.

-I will absorb the contaminant for you. It won’t cause you any problems.

After a short contemplation, Gi-Gyu asked, “And what do you get out of this? I doubt you would offer this for nothing.”

Jupiter laughed even louder as he replied,

-Kekeke. If you die while trying to absorb the contaminant, I’ll die with you. You and I are one after all… You’re such a weakling, so I’m only trying to help you not die.

This made sense to Gi-Gyu, but he believed that there had to be more. He insisted, “You have another reason though, don’t you? If you don’t explain it to me, I have no choice but to refuse your offer.”

-Hmph, so you’re gonna be difficult, huh?

Jupiter stopped laughing. Instead, he replied in a frustrated voice,

-The Chaos inside the contaminant has properties similar to mine. If I absorb it, I can influence you even more. Is that explanation enough?

Gi-Gyu thought for a moment before nodding, as this seemed logical.

Gi-Gyu replied, “Then I accept your offer.”

Realizing Gi-Gyu had made a decision, Old Man Hwang asked, “What just happened?”

“Hey!” Lou seemed to be concerned as well.

Slowly smiling, Gi-Gyu replied, “I think it’s going to work out.”

Suddenly, a stream of gray smoke erupted out of Lou.

“...!”

***

The area around Bukhan River was still in the process of transforming into a gate after Gi-Gyu had declared it his landmark. Yangpyeong, a city nearby, was in a state of emergency.

“Just what is happening?!” one non-player citizen of Yangpyeong asked.

“I heard it’s really bad in the Bukhan River area,” another whispered. The locals chatted among themselves while watching many players gathering around the gate. This area already had hundreds of players making preparations, and there were still more players on the way, so the business in Yangpyeong was unexpectedly booming.

Ironically, the locals welcomed this sudden economic upturn, but they still couldn’t hide their fear and anxiety. It was understandable, as their neighborhood city had a giant gate that could break anytime. Unfortunately, most of them couldn’t just leave their homes and businesses.

Yangpyeong was the closest city to the Bukhan River area, so this was where the rankers had gathered to make their plan.

“Dammit.” Choi Chang-Yong clicked his tongue in annoyance. He muttered, “What kind of magic is that?”

He was staring at the Bukhan River area, which was covered in complete darkness. It was as if a black curtain was drawn around it because no one could see anything inside. Gate breaks were no novelty; usually, it meant a bunch of monsters would jump out of the gate but never had an entire neighborhood transformed into a gate. The energy the players could feel from it was very unusual.

Choi Chang-Yong asked his scout team, “What measurement did you get?”

“We couldn’t rate it.”

“Dammit.” Choi Chang-Yong swore again.

Another unratable gate.

Just like the one they had closed in Gangnam. This meant that it had to be an S-Class or higher.

“And no scout that was sent inside returned?” asked Choi Chang-Yong.

“No. Actually, none of them could even enter it.”

“Dammit.”

Choi Chang-Yong needed to lead a team into this gate, but the more he heard about it, the more anxious he became. “What about the volunteer guild that’s supposed to arrive today?”

“They’re on their way.”

Choi Chang-Yong nodded. His guild had arrived much earlier than the set time, so he couldn’t complain. And even if this guild was late, he wasn’t in a position to complain.

As a matter of fact…

‘I should be thankful they even agreed to help,’ Choi Chang-Yong thought in relief. He would love it if things worked out the way he wanted. But, he knew it wouldn’t be as easy as he hoped. And if his assumptions were wrong, then…

All those revered as the top ten Korean guilds would…

‘We’re all gonna die,’ Choi Chang-Yong thought grimly. And the mid-sized guilds would be just cannon fodder.

All he could hope for was that things would go as he predicted. Praying silently, Choi Chang-Yong watched the Bukhan River.

“They have arrived,” one of his subordinate players announced.

Choi Chang-Yong, who had been deep in thought, replied, “All right. Let’s go.”

This guild Choi Chang-Yong had requested had arrived, so he left to greet them.

***

"It is a great honor to meet the famous Blue Dragon Guild’s high ranker, Guild Master Choi Chang-Yong,” a player offered his hand to Choi Chang-Yong with flattery.

Choi Chang-Yong shook his hand and greeted, “I’ve heard that your guild is growing very fast, Guild Master Kim Sun-Pil of the Morningstar-Child Guild.”

“Thank you for remembering me,” replied Kim Sun-Pil, who looked a little tired.

The man standing next to Kim Sun-Pil offered his hand to Choi Chang-Yong as well. He introduced himself, “Hello. I’m Kim Dong-Hae.”

“Thank you both for making the difficult decision to come here.” Choi Chang-Yong was genuinely grateful. The co-guild masters nodded while Choi Chang-Yong studied the area. He then used his senses to detect if anyone was nearby. Just as he wanted, there were only Kim Sun-Pil, Kim Dong-Hae, and himself.

Choi Chang-Yong rigidly whispered,

-Do you remember everything I told you before? Please just answer me by nodding or shaking.

Communicating silently through magic was a special ability only the high-rankers could use.

Kim Dong-Hae and Kim Sun-Pil nodded.

Choi Chang-Yong continued,

-I’ve heard that Kim Gi-Gyu is here. I know that you two are well acquainted with him. If it’s really Kim Gi-Gyu inside that gate and he is still the same man he was before, then we can return alive from this trip.

Choi Chang-Yong added quickly.

-But… if my assumption is wrong, then…

His voice turned even more serious as he explained,

-We will all die. The energy from inside that place is enough to make me tremble. So it’s not too late for you. You don’t have to gamble away your lives.

Choi Chang-Yong was trying to scare the two players, but Kim Dong-Hae and Kim Sun-Pil both shook their heads. They moved their lips and spoke silently, ‘We’re ready to do this.’

-Thank you.

Kim Sun-Pil and Kim Dong-Hae. The Morningstar-Child Guild, led by these two players, had been growing very fast lately. Their close relationship with Kim Gi-Gyu was a well-known fact, so it was odd that their guild could continue to be so successful.

Kim Sun-Pil and Kim Dong-Hae were feeling guilty. It wasn’t intentional, but they were thriving while Gi-Gyu was in serious danger.

Choi Chang-Yong wondered, ‘Did they betray Kim Gi-Gyu?’

Did they betray Kim Gi-Gyu to maintain their titles and growth? There were many rumors that indicated this. Everyone knew that the Caravan Guild and the Iron Guild were after Kim Gi-Gyu. So, why would they—the two guilds currently running Korea—leave the Morningstar-Child Guild alone?

The three players were thinking about different things when suddenly, Choi Chang-Yong’s eyes glowed. It was because he had felt a strange yet familiar energy.

“It’s Rohan. May I come in?” Rohan, the deputy guild master of the Iron Guild, entered the tent where Choi Chang-Yong was having a discussion with the Morningstar-Child Guild’s guild masters.