Chapter 136: Becoming X
“Looks like our Lord Sooho is indebted to someone in Kern.”
The man said this in a dry tone.
I didn’t immediately respond. Without my X ability, provoking him would only expose my limitations.
Then the man exclaimed “Ah!” and scratched the back of his head while extending his hand.
“I completely forgot the formalities. My name is Gray Norreta. You can call me Gray. Kehe.”
“…Park Jeong-yong. Though I assume you already know.”
“Keke. Of course. You’re quite famous in our field these days.”
I shook the hand of the grinning Gray a few times.
During this, my eyes scanned the status window floating in my view.
[Name: Gray Norreta]
[Nickname: 147788258th Official Hero. Night Lord of Crossfade, President of Crossfade Art Union]
[LV. 227]
[Health: 1630/1630 ? Mana: 800/800 ? Physical Condition: Normal]
[Strength: 199 ?Agility: 420 ?Intelligence: 106 ?Hero Sense: 13]
He wasn’t using a pseudonym. Gray Norreta was his real name. This was unexpected.
Moreover, he was a hero. I raised my eyebrows slightly. I had assumed that the head of an information guild would definitely be a native resident.
“So, what brings you here, Mr…”
“This place has a reputation for knowing about legendary weapons. I have a question.”
“Hmm.”
Gray stroked his beard for a moment before smiling and nodding.
“Yes, you’ve come to the right place. The Crossfade Art Union does business not just in information but also in related areas. Kehe.”
“…Business, huh.”
Though it was amusing to hear fence operators talk about business, it wasn’t wise to annoy them, so I kept my expression neutral. After briefly scanning the surroundings, I got straight to the point.
“What I’m looking for concerns a certain sword.”
“Oh ho. A sword? What kind of sword is it?”
“Yes. To be precise, it might be called a dao. It drives people mad while granting immense power. The blade emits bright red flames, literally engulfed in fire. Do you know of it?”
“…”
Gray shut his mouth and fell silent.
I had struck gold. Judging by his reaction, this was the right place. It was the first time I felt divine intervention in my favor.
I reveled in my success while maintaining my expressionless facade and continued questioning.
“If you know of it… or perhaps sold it yourself, please provide all relevant information.”
“Hmm… uh… well, this is quite difficult…”
“For compensation, I’ll offer almost anything immediately. I don’t have much time.”
Gray twisted his lips.
In the faint lantern light, his shadowed face gleamed eerily.
“Sir, having used the Kern branch, you know what our guild requires in exchange.”
“Information for information?”
“Kehe. You understand well.”
Like Reira had done, Gray held up a feather pen and note while staring at me.
I glanced around and briefly looked up at the ceiling before nodding with a sigh.
At that, Gray’s eyes sparkled in the dark.
“Do you know about the extinct country called the Holy State Schultez?”
“…Ah. The black void in the center of the continent?”
“Yes yes. It fragmented and retreated due to the witch’s army, and now it’s an inaccessible contaminated land. Kehehe.”
Recalling the continental map, I responded immediately.
The old site of the Holy State Schultez, known as the “Traces of Ruin”, is always marked dark black like mold in the center of every map.
It’s also why the current four kingdoms are situated like a donut around the continent’s edges.
“Why do you bring up that country?”
“According to legend, Schultez was a theocracy that worshipped the Church of the Holy Sword. When the nation faced a crisis, the Holy Seer always foretold it. The beautiful Seer lady known as the Witch of the Moon.”
“…”
It couldn’t be that after looking at my face, they mistook me for the reincarnation of the beautiful Seer lady. After much contemplation, I finally understood what this gentleman was implying.
And sure enough, his meaningful gaze stuck to me.
“I’m talking about the information about the Resurrection Sect’s attack that you provided to the Kern Art Union. I heard it was impossible information to obtain without a prophecy. Keet.”
“Reira exaggerated. It’s not that extraordinary.”
“Mr. Reira is not someone who makes up nonexistent facts. As a fellow guild member, I know this best.”
“…”
“That secret. Please share it with us. This would be sufficient trading condition… Keet.”
Gray threw out the deal nonchalantly. I scanned the surroundings again. How long had I been staring into empty space?
I gave a sardonic smile.
“Fine. Let me make a prophecy now.”
“Huh? What…”
“You and the 15 assassins lying in ambush around you. You’re about to get a severe comeuppance.”
“…!?”
“Crime: Attempted information fraud. Sentence: Execution. Bam.”
PABABABAK! As soon as I finished speaking, I activated Fatal Thorns. Toward the locations I had pre-identified, I fired two each, a total of 15 volleys of thorns simultaneously.
It was a flash-like ambush that gave no chance to escape.
“Groak!”
“Choke!”
“Aaaagh!”
Poooosh! Rivers of blood sprayed from all directions. The shadowy figures that had been lurking in the dark started to become clear as they were soaked in blood.
Screams echoed from all sides. They came from the ceiling as well.
“Khahk!”
CRASH. Someone fell onto the table and smashed it. It was a masked man who had been pierced through his arm and abdomen while clinging to the cieling.
A Crossfade Union assassin who had been lying in ambush.
“…”
Gray had been silent this whole time.
I moved closer to the man, who had gone mute like a honey-eating bear.
“The prophecy has come true. Are you satisfied?”
Why had I kept anxiously looking around since the beginning?
When my eyes clearly saw nothing, status windows kept appearing wherever I turned my head. Different names and stats appeared with every shift in angle.
I recalled Reira’s case.
These people always kept an ace up their sleeve.
‘Low self-esteem works in my favor in situations like this.’
Whenever such things happen, I first suspect whether my senses are malfunctioning.
It turned out my senses were indeed flawed. Accurately speaking, the assassins’ concealment skills were disproportionately advanced compared to their level. No wonder Crossfade was the top information broker.
“…Se, Mr. Who exactly are you?”
The fear in Gray’s eyes when he looked at me had intensified.
It was the same gaze that Reira, Guin, Kern residents, Tara, and… Luce in my dream had shown me.
The unpleasant feeling bubbling up in my throat transformed into curses.
“Go to hell, X bastard. My estranged son of a bitch.”
The accompaniment ends here. Trading? Go screw yourself.
They drew their fangs behind my back first. I feel no guilt whatsoever.
Because I’ve had many unpleasant experiences in my previous life, I’m rather sentimental right now.
-Shall I Master? Shall I kill them?
“Go ahead Zandarkan.”
-Eh!
Lord Brother Sooho came up with an impeccable timing gag. The correct response would have been “No, restrain yourself,” but I frankly didn’t want to.
I immediately drew Vestark.
“Don’t fuck around with my head. Clean your own teeth if you don’t want to die.”
I pressed Vestark, which had red letters crawling on it, against Gray’s throat.
Gray suddenly stiffened and looked at me. For how long did I meet his trembling gaze? He soon started nodding frantically.
“Mr. I did not recognize your stature… Please forgive my rudeness! I will tell you everything…!”
“Good good.”
I twisted my lips cruelly and sheathed my sword.
I leaned back in the chair and swung my leg up onto the table.
Gray hovered awkwardly at his spot for a while then whispered something to the uncle at the counter, before hurrying to open the inner door and going in.
“…Ah, I was rude earlier. Please… my lord.”
The uncle who had been guarding the counter fumbled with preparations while replacing the table.
The scatterbrained young man looked like a girl who had received a love letter, which was rather unpleasant to look at. I dismissed the uncle with a wave of my hand.
“O, You’ve waited long.”
After quite a while, Gray came out again with a pile of documents in his hand.
He dumped them all on the table and briefly looked at me.
“The traded item and the dialogue records at the time… A, and the approximate information of the trading partner.”
Finally, the conversation was heading in the right direction.
I nodded and gestured for him to continue. Gray, whose hands were now trembling from tension, enthusiastically explained to me.
*
Creeeek. The gate to the black market slowly opened. I headed outside.
Was it because I was in the dark for a while? I squinted as my eyes struggled to adjust to the light.
When my eyes finally adjusted, I saw Luce and Seseona staring blankly at me.
“Let’s go. I’m done here.”
I gave a smirk and urged the two to follow, and they quickly caught up to me.
Seseona suddenly asked,
“Was everything settled successfully?”
“Yeah. They sucked me dry.”
“…”
When I responded with a lecherous smile, Seseona gave a somewhat awkward smile in return.
-Pi Jeok Dal Jwa… Really impressive.
And sure enough, Lord Brother Sooho kept exclaiming in admiration.
Of course. I knew Lord Brother Sooho would recognize this coolness. Satisfied, I nodded.
“How about that?”
-Jon nae charisme awsum. That’s why chicks go crazy.
“Agree?”
-Yeah, agree.
Being recognized by a fellow Korean makes it twice as enjoyable.
I shrugged smugly as I turned my steps toward the residential district.
“Where to now?”
Luce asked offhandedly.
Probably annoyed from being kicked out of the weapon shop, she had a stack of two irritations. Three stacks would definitely cause an explosion, so I decided to tell the truth this time around.
“To Gena’s place.”
“…Gena? The pointy-eared girl?”
“Yeah.”
As I answered Luce verbally, I recalled the information I got from Gray in my head.
-That sword… is called the Ruin Annihilation Sword. Its material is so unclear that it was quite troubling to acquire.
-We, we don’t know exactly, sir. It’s always been mysterious, a sword that appears suddenly in someone’s hand during the Spirit Market and then mysteriously disappears along with its owner’s life.
-The sword’s body has a dragon pattern, so it might be of Dragon Empire origin… But there are also speculations that it’s related to this year’s Spirit Market item, the Dragon Annihilation Sword. The names are similar after all.
Ruin Annihilation Sword (滅凶劍). Roughly translated, a sword that destroys evil.
Evil destroyer? Hell no, it’s the name of that sword emanating ominous energy like electromagnetic waves. The person who named it must have been blind.
“Hey hero, do you even know where they are?”
Luce suddenly asked again as she caught up behind me. I gave her another lecherous grin.
“I said it already. I sucked them dry.”
I cast a look at the scrap of paper I was holding in my hand.
The information they wrote about their trading partner… the note about Zenon.
-A red-haired pointy-eared…? Yes. That’s right. That person! That person bought the sword!
-Though not exactly accurate, according to our findings, their residence…
Step by step. My steps following the map were without hesitation.
They were filled only with repressed anger ready to burst.
