The Player Who Can't Level Up

Three days had passed since the abandoned factory incident. Gi-Gyu didn’t go hunting during this time; instead, he returned home and stayed there because he needed much time to think about what had happened. And today, he had a meeting with Tae-Shik.

Tae-Shik commented when he saw Gi-Gyu, “You look pretty good.”

“Well, since I don’t have to worry about money anymore, I can’t help but look relaxed,” Gi-Gyu joked. 

They were meeting at a cafe near the Bukhan River. It was a quiet and well-decorated place with a fantastic view. Most importantly, it was usually empty on the weekdays, so it was safe to talk freely here.

“Wow…  I heard the Phoenix Guild is no more,” commented Gi-Gyu.

“I told you I would show you the association’s true power,” bragged Tae-Shik as he continued to pour some syrup into his Iced Americano. When it became more syrup than coffee, Gi-Gyu shivered and asked, “Ugh… Isn’t that too sweet?”

“Nope.” It was quite evident now why Tae-Shik preferred cheap instant coffee over fancy Americano. 

“By the way, did Kim Min-Su really commit suicide?” When Gi-Gyu asked, Tae-Shik grinned as he looked straight into Gi-Gyu’s eyes. He replied, “Why do you ask? Are you wondering if the association killed him?”

“That thought did cross my mind.” Gi-Gyu nodded because it was the truth. Before Tae-Shik answered him, Gi-Gyu added, “Well, it wouldn’t matter to me even if you killed him.”

“You’re a jerk. The association isn’t as clean and ethical as I would like it to be, but it’s not that corrupted. After all, both the old man and I like to keep things clean.” When Tae-Shik replied with a shrug, Gi-Gyu teased him, “Is that the silver spoon in your mouth speaking? Oh, wait, it would be a diamond spoon in your case.” 

“Shut up.”

Tae-Shik took a sip of his drink and determined its sweetness had finally hit the sweet spot. With a pleased smile, he continued, “Kim Min-Su definitely killed himself. After seeing a part of Choi Won-Jae’s memory, you said that Kim Min-Su couldn’t raise Yeon Nam-Ju himself because of his enemies and his ill wife, right?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Well, his wife died not too long ago. Kim Min-Su looked everywhere for the longest time to find the elixir for her, but he was never a strong enough player to get his hands on it,” Tae-Shik explained. Gi-Gyu scratched his head awkwardly at the mention of the elixir as Tae-Shik continued, “And his enemies… It makes sense that he had many since Kim Min-Su wasn’t exactly a model player. Yeon Nam-Ju didn’t turn out all twisted and evil just from his unhappy childhood. An apple doesn’t fall far from the tree after all. Anyway, by the time the association got to him, Kim Min-Su had lost pretty much everything. His life was over, so I supposed death was his only way out. Even the strongest player is still a human.”

“I see,” agreed Gi-Gyu. The Phoenix Guild was almost completely disbanded by now. A few innocent players quit the guild and joined another, while the rest involved in Kim Min-Su’s dirty works were taken care of one way or the other. Gi-Gyu killed many in the abandoned factory, and as for the rest, including the corrupt association agents like Yeo Sung-Gu…

“We decided to send everyone involved in the Phoenix Guild’s dirty work away.” When Tae-Shik shrugged, Gi-Gyu asked, “You’re referring to Gehenna, right?” 

Tae-Shik nodded. Gehenna was a secret place where criminal players were sent. The place was hidden deep somewhere, maintained and supervised only by the association. Rumor had it that not even the strongest player could escape this place. All criminals there were sent for life, so it was basically a death sentence. Many chose to commit suicide rather than be sent to Gehenna. It was nicknamed “The Hell,” as no one could ever escape from there. 

Gi-Gyu asked, “Is Gehenna really a gate like the rumors suggest?” 

Many wondered how a place could confine even high rankers since no human-made structures could imprison them. So, if Gehenna wasn’t in the Tower, it could only be a gate.  

Gi-Gyu continued, “I heard it’s a gigantic sustained gate that the association just uses to imprison criminals.”

“Who knows?” Tae-Shik shrugged and replied, “I have no idea since I’ve never seen it before.”

“Hmm… Then you should try going inside someday, Hyung.” When Gi-Gyu teased, Tae-Shik yelled with mock anger, “What? You jerk!”

Both Gi-Gyu and Tae-Shik chuckled at the thought. Yeo Sung-Gu and everyone involved in the recent incident would all be sent to Gehenna, leaving Gi-Gyu with nothing to worry about. 

After a long, peaceful pause, Tae-Shik asked quietly, “Have you had some time to organize your thoughts?”

“Yes,” Gi-Gyu replied confidently.

“Can you tell me about it?” Tae-Shik was asking Gi-Gyu what conclusion he came up with. 

Gi-Gyu silently turned toward the Bukhan river. It looked so calm and beautiful without a single ripple in the water. 

“When I first became a player, I knew I might end up killing a person someday. But for a while, I didn’t have to worry about it since I couldn’t even level up.” Gi-Gyu smiled playfully before continuing, “And when I was being tortured by the Iron Guild, I swore to kill every one of them. I did almost kill Rogers.”

“That’s true.”

“When I killed him, I didn’t feel anything. In fact, when I heard he was alive, I felt relieved. It didn’t feel right because it was… an easy kill.”

Tae-Shik nodded because he could understand how Gi-Gyu felt. 

Gi-Gyu added, “I still haven’t changed my mind about killing every member of the Iron Guild. I also can’t back out from the deal I made with Lucifer. But”—Gi-Gyu’s face turned dark—“it was different in that abandoned factory. It’s not that I feel guilty about what I did. Those bastards deserved to die, and it sounded like they had killed dozens before me. It makes sense since the Phoenix Guild became stronger because of their dirty dealings and corruption. Had I been just a helpless victim that day, Yeon Nam-Ju would’ve continued to kill innocent people. So, I don’t feel a shred of guilt because I did what I had to do.”

Slurp.

Tae-Shik continued to suck through the straw loudly while listening. Gi-Gyu turned toward Tae-Shik and murmured, “But… when I was torturing them and amputating their limbs, I didn’t feel discomfort, guilt, or even that I was doing the right thing.” 

After a short pause, Gi-Gyu added, “I just felt pleasure.”

This was what confused Gi-Gyu the most. When Gi-Gyu seemed troubled, Tae-Shik calmly commented, “There are plenty of other players who enjoy killing people. And it’s not just players because many non-players enjoy it too. You can meet many like that if you go to prison.” 

In a soft voice, he continued, “You may disagree with me, but this is what I think: It’s… okay for someone to enjoy killing another person. What matters the most is if they can control their impulses.”

“I knew you would say that,” replied Gi-Gyu. He had known Tae-Shik for many years now, so he knew how Tae-Shik’s mind worked. 

Gi-Gyu agreed, “That’s exactly what I think too. What’s important is if I can control myself or not.” 

Standing up, he added, “Or more specifically, if I need to control it or not.”

Slowly, the concern that filled Gi-Gyu’s face disappeared.

***

“My right eye turned violet, right? It must have something to do with the gift Lucifer gave me, doesn’t it?” Gi-Gyu asked his Egos.

Inside the abandoned factory, Gi-Gyu’s right eye turned violet as well. And then there was Lucifer with violet eyes. The connection seemed obvious. 

-Probably.

-I’m sure it’s from that woman, Master. 

“That’s what I thought. I wonder if it happened because of my emotional state at the time.” Gi-Gyu thought out loud. He was still organizing his thoughts, and he was curious about what happened that day. Could it be that Lucifer’s “gift” weakened his will? Was that why he lost control and tortured those players?

-It’s possible.

“Then I better go meet Lucifer.”

Now Gi-Gyu had one more reason to rush the meeting with Lucifer. He murmured, “I had to meet her someday anyway. I guess it’ll be sooner than later.”

Gi-Gyu swung Lou, which was followed by a monster splitting in half. It had been a while since he last hunted; his body felt lighter than before. 

“Do you think the power she gave helped me trounce Choi Won-Jae?

-Maybe.

“Hey, you need to put more effort into answering my questions.” 

Gi-Gyu knew that no one except Lucifer could give him the answer, but he still couldn’t help but let his thoughts wander. Choi Won-Jae was a ranker, so Gi-Gyu shouldn't have been able to defeat him even if he was much stronger now. Apart from that, there was also something concrete that convinced Gi-Gyu he got help from Lucifer: He couldn’t recreate the power and speed he enjoyed that day no matter how hard he tried. 

-You have to understand that I also don’t know much at this point. Once you meet that wench, I’m sure you’ll find all the answers you want.

Gi-Gyu picked up the crystal from the ground and insisted, “Then tell me stuff that even Lucifer can’t.”

-Haa… I don’t know why you’re doing this to me.

“It’s because, as you know, your master went through something huge recently.”

Gi-Gyu walked on, trying to find the next monster to slay. He murmured, “Egofying a gatekeeper, egofying a devil, and egofying a human.”

Slash!

Gi-Gyu slew another monster before it could even notice his presence. He continued to mumble, “What’s an Ego? And how am I supposed to use the egofied Chang-Gyung and the fragment?”

Annoyed by Gi-Gyu’s endless questions, Lou begged,

-Can’t you just focus on hunting?

“But these are all important questions.”

-Haa…

Gi-Gyu carelessly picked up another crystal from the ground and muttered, “And why can’t an average monster be egofied?”

He had killed tens of thousands of monsters until now, but unlike the gatekeeper, Perez, and Choi Won-Jae, the Cannibalism skill didn’t work on them.

-Hmm… I might have an idea about that.

“What is it?” Gi-Gyu paused and asked. This was the first time Lou was offering something useful. 

-You believe you got Cannibalism after killing Talon, right?

“Yes.”

Gi-Gyu received his first notification regarding this skill after he killed Talon. Similarly, he got the Strong Will skill after killing Chang-Gyung. Gi-Gyu believed Lou absorbed the Cannibalism skill from Talon. 

-I believe I’ve always had the Cannibalism skill. Or maybe it’s something I developed from having you as my master.

“...”

Gi-Gyu began to walk again as Lou continued,

-As for egofication…

Lou trailed off before continuing, 

-All I know is that an Ego is a powerful entity with consciousness. Both El and I know that we’re Egos, but we can’t explain what we are. So I can’t tell you what egofication means.

Slash!

Another monster fell to the ground helplessly.

-So just keep climbing the Tower. I’m sure you’ll eventually find the answers if you climb high enough. All the answers are inside the Tower.

***

In Gi-Gyu’s case, time fixed the majority of his problems. Once the Phoenix Guild was disbanded, the other guilds that protested the association’s decision and the public’s excitement and concerns all died down. Even Gi-Gyu’s own worries lessened over time. Humans were oblivious creatures, and this wasn’t such a bad thing for Gi-Gyu.

Sung-Hoon waved as he greeted Gi-Gyu, “Long time no see.”

“How have you been?” Gi-Gyu asked in concern. Sung-Hoon looked so gaunt that he resembled a corpse. Gi-Gyu added, “You don’t look so good.”

“And who do you think is responsible for that? How could you say that to me when it’s all your fault?!” Sung-Hoon glared at Gi-Gyu. Sung-Hoon was in the abandoned factory with Gi-Gyu, so he witnessed every single gruesome detail, but he still treated Gi-Gyu the same as ever. He didn’t look at Gi-Gyu strangely or show any fear. Gi-Gyu suspected that either Sung-Hoon was more strong-minded than he looked or had seen even worse things in his past. 

Gi-Gyu apologized, “I’m sorry.”

“Gosh! I mean, the culprit is right here! That man standing in front of me is the one who did all the work in that factory! So why was I questioned and investigated?!” Sung-Hoon cried out loudly. 

After what happened in the abandoned factory, the association finally had everything they needed to take down the Phoenix Guild. The association had to thoroughly investigate what happened to go ahead with their plan. Under normal circumstances, Gi-Gyu would’ve been the one under the microscope. However, Gi-Gyu avoided that because he was under the association president’s protection. This left Sung-Hoon stuck with all the work. 

Sung-Hoon complained, “I don’t know how many times I had to repeat myself. Haa… I’m so glad you kept the dash cam memory card safe. The association also sent players with psychometric skills, so things went relatively smoothly.”

Sung-Hoon looked up at Gi-Gyu and grumbled, “I thought I would die from having to talk so much.”

“Umm… Sung-Hoon, your bank account number is still the same, right? So I can just send the bonus there, right?”

“Yes, and I will always be at your service, Sir!”

When Gi-Gyu laughed, Sung-Hoon grinned and added jokingly, “From now on, please just use your association ring first. If that doesn’t work, you can think about breaking necks. It will be so much easier that way. Or maybe we should’ve let them follow us to the Tower and hunt them down there! That way, there would’ve been no investigation.”

“I understand. I just thought I would see what happe—”

“So you did this on purpose!” When Sung-Hoon began to scream indignantly, Gi-Gyu quickly covered his mouth and changed the subject. 

“So you said the association president is looking for me?”

“Haa… Yes.” Sung-Hoon replied with a sigh. He came to see Gi-Gyu because he was asked to bring Gi-Gyu to President Oh Tae-Shik. 

Gi-Gyu asked with a grin, “Couldn’t he have just called me?”

“Well, you went through a lot recently, Player Kim Gi-Gyu. So I think the president wants to make sure you’re okay and talk to you in person.” 

“I’m thankful for his concern, but I have to admit that it’s annoying. Now, I have to go all the way to the association building.” Gi-Gyu was just thankful that the president wouldn’t make him explain everything again. Gi-Gyu also didn’t expect Oh Tae-Gu to be the “consoling” type. All his previous conversations with the man had been straightforward and emotionless. And that was exactly how Gi-Gyu liked it. 

Sung-Hoon announced, “Well, we better go now.” 

Then, he led the way, and Gi-Gyu followed him without a word. 

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