Chapter 238

Chapter 238

Other Guardians began sending messages, proof that Hyukjin’s words had deepened their interest.

[The ‘Merchant of Venice’ is focusing.]

[The ‘Herdsman of Las Vegas’ is having fun.]

The two Guardians took the mound again, exactly as Hyukjin intended. He continued.

“Allow me to speak first.”

This gate would be one of two things. A regular gate that was cleared together, or an independent gate that created a separate instance for every party that went in.

“If it’s a regular gate, I will focus entirely on supporting.”

Hyukjin was an Observer anyway. It was right for him to take a supporting role. It was a given anyway, but he made it sound like he was doing them a favor, like he was actively cooperating with Song Junghye.

‘But it’s likely to be an independent gate.’

He just had a hunch. When he mentioned ‘regular gate’, Song Junghye’s expression shifted a little.

‘Song Junghye thinks this is an independent gate.’

Jackson might have told her in advance. Hyukjin read her summary with Eye of Perception.

Summary: Sovereign of Victory Brimming with Confidence

She was maintaining an expressionless face, but Eye of Perception saw straight through her.

‘Brimming with confidence, huh?’

It seemed she already had clues about the Immortal Fleet from Jackson. She might, for example, have something like a map. Unfortunately for Song Junghye, Hyukjin saw everything from her one summary.

Song Junghye lifted her chin. “I have one additional condition.”

Hyukjin cut her off at the appropriate time with a raised hand. He had to be the one to say the important things. The Guardians were watching, after all.

“I’m not done speaking yet. I’ll propose something first.”

“…”

“Second. If it is an independent gate,” Hyukjin said, “the team that accomplishes the first clear, or makes a record of the fastest time, will get the better rewards.”

“Yes.”

Song Junghye’s summary was still ‘Sovereign of Victory Brimming with Confidence’, which confirmed Hyukjin’s suspicion.

‘These guys have something that will help them get a fast clear.’

Hyukjin almost let out an unconscious laugh. They were speaking under the pretext of a proposal, but this was actually a conversation that exposed all of Song Junghye’s thoughts.

‘Thanks for the info,’ he thought, while saying, “As such, in consideration of the Blood and Iron Lion, we will clear the gate slowly.”

“Are you looking down on us?” Song Junghye’s lips curled into a half-smile, as if she were certain of her victory. “Giantgod should do the best Giantgod can do.”

“…”

“Only then will there be no room for excuses.”

Hyukjin poked the belly of the squirrel in Stealth mode on his shoulder.

‘Kim Darong. Be it a map or something else, go get whatever will help us with this clear. She’s definitely got something. I’ll buy you time.’

He didn’t say anything, but Kim Darong accurately read his master’s intent. The squirrel had been sticking his tongue out at Song Junghye as it was. A [!] popped up over Kim Darong’s head as he scrambled down Hyukjin’s leg.

The theft genius began his thieving. Hyukjin intentionally spoke slower.

“Is it really okay for us to do our best?”

“Naturally,” Song Junghye responded, failing to notice that a theft genius was looting her Inventory. 

In any case, when it came to the result, there was absolutely nothing for Kim Hyukjin to lose. Nothing to lose if it was a regular gate, and nothing to concede if it was an independent one. Hyukjin made a show of conceding everything, but in the end, he didn’t relent on a single thing.

Senia found herself making a quick shake of her head.

‘While buying time, you read your opponent’s inner thoughts and successfully produced a fun scene.’

Guardians sided with the Players they were attached to. Enemies of “their” Players were their enemies as well. Such people were like villains in a novel to the Guardians, making the ‘bamboozling’ Kim Hyukjin was doing right now a hit with the Guardians.

His scene production was a success.

[The ‘Whispering Devil’ has sent a ‘Speak of Peace, Prepare for War Strategy’ as a sponsorship.]

Senia had mixed feelings as she looked at Song Junghye.

‘Song Junghye. You need to be both a Player and producer, but…’

The Players of Earth had to fulfill both roles simultaneously. But Song Junghye was incapable of that. What kinds of factors were present in the conversation between the two of them, how to seize control over the conversation and how to move forward, what to obtain and what to give up on, and how to package that… Song Junghye had zero concept of such details.

‘In more ways than one, she is no match for Player Kim Hyukjin.’

Senia’s wings quivered. She didn’t know why, but she felt her mood improve.

Kim Hyukjin turned his eyes on Jackson, observing the man as he investigated the area around the Yi Sun-sin statue.

‘Cognitive Dissonance Dispel is drawing a blank.’

The explorer definitely had some kind of secret, but Hyukjin didn’t know exactly what that was. A short while later, Jackson wiped the sweat on his brow.

“I’ve found the gate entrance.”

The Yi Sun-sin statue itself was the entrance. It was possible to click it by looking at it.

[Immortal Fleet Gate]

The soul and will of the Chungmugong (Lord of Loyal Valor) Yi Sun-sin culminated in the Immortal Fleet. Those  who wish to succeed his will and write a new page in the history of conquest, enter here.

*Must be at least level 35 to enter

*Independent gate

*Upon entrance, all Players will receive the quest ‘Battle of Hansan Island’

As Hyukjin expected, it was an independent gate, one where each party would go in and Play separately, but only one team would seize the best reward.

“I have a prior arrangement with the Blood and Iron Lion, so I’ll be working with them,” said Jackson.

As Hyukjin thought.

“Very well.”

“You must concede everything that isn’t a direct reward.”

“Yes, I promise.”

His objective was the ‘Immortal Fleet’ item. Pietro, who had been quietly watching from the back, also realized what was going on.

‘The other side must definitely have something that gives them an advantage.’

As an info merchant, he knew about independent gates. This gate could end up being a big waste of effort. In addition, his ability informed him that the difficulty of this gate was far from low.

‘For now, Guildmaster Kim Hyukjin has the overwhelming win pre-gate.’

The opponent was Song Junghye of Sungshin. Just how many people in Korea could crush Song Junghye so soundly? The only problem was that there was no knowing how things would pan out inside the gate.

‘Let’s wait and see.’

Pietro decided to observe Kim Hyukjin. He could feel that the gate was extremely difficult, but he had a strange feeling.

‘Somehow…’

The back of the man walking in front of him looked broad. Reliable.

‘I can’t wait.’

He entered the gate.

[Entering the Immortal Fleet Gate.]

His surroundings instantly darkened, and Pietro was unable to see a thing. A ‘narration’ started to play.

* * *

Translator – Lei

Proofreader – Ash

* * *

[We set off in the morning and reached the dock at Dangpo straightaway. Twenty enemy ships were moored in a line. We surrounded them and engaged in combat, but one of the big ships seemed to be a panokseon of our country. The mast on the ship was around two jang (6.66 meters) high, and the Japanese commander on the observation platform sat imperiously, unmoving. We let loose a rain of crossbolts, cannonballs, and bullets. When the Japanese commander was struck by an arrow and fell, the entirety of the Japanese forces scattered in a panic.]

This was a familiar record to Kim Hyukjin. It was from the famous ‘War Diary of Admiral Yi Sun-sin’, the diary written by the Lord of Loyal Valor Yi Sun-sin during the Japanese invasions of Korea of 1592-1598. An excerpt from the diary was read out, meaning this scenario was directly or indirectly based on that event.

[The quest ‘Battle of Hansan Island’ has been triggered.]

Fog rolled in, and the darkness faded a little. The cawing of seagulls sounded above, and the ground rocked underneath him.

They were on a ship. As soon as they entered the gate, the quest began.

A rocking ship. The fog began to slowly clear, revealing the world around them. The booms of guns going off. The sharp smell of gunpowder. The wind blowing in from different directions, carrying the reek of blood and salt.

This setting was one that Hyukjin had indirectly experienced before.

‘A naval battle.’

It hadn’t made its debut yet, but later, naval battles would erupt in various parts of the world. One such battle was the ‘Bali Naval Battle’ that jump started the Blood and Iron Queen Song Junghye’s worldwide fame.

Hyukjin heard a voice.

“Seek life to die, seek death to live.”

It was a sentence Hyukjin had already heard. Words murmured by Schultz, the German Player who lost his life in the Dewinged Angel Statue Gate in the past. Famous words spoken by the great Yi Sun-sin.

Those who seek death shall live, those who seek life shall die.

A naval battle was raging on with no heed to Hyukjin and his party. Ships clashed hull to hull, and shouts rang out around them.

Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!

The drums thumped a heart-pounding beat, and a steel rain of arrows spanned the sky. A few vessels sank, and ‘faceless soldiers’ fell into the sea. He heard a voice again.

“Help us and annihilate the enemy.”

A quest to annihilate the enemy?

‘Is it really that simple?’

If it was, all they had to do was take this fleet’s side and destroy the other side’s fleet.

‘No.’

That wasn’t all. Hyukjin pulled out a compass. It was one of two items Kim Darong had swiped from Song Junghye’s Inventory, a compass and a hangover elimination item called ‘Miracle’.

The compass pointed at one ship floating serenely in the distance.

‘That’s the flagship.’

It was, so to speak, the boss.

‘Aha. It’s a tool that tells you who the boss is.’

Why was this item necessary? Was victory conferred to whoever destroyed the flagship? Hyukjin had a suspicion it wasn’t that simple.

“Boss Hyukjin,” said Yeonseo. “What should we do now?”

“We’ll take this side and destroy the other one.”

“Is that all?”

“No.”

“I thought so. Something’s weird.”

Yeonseo had picked up on the strangeness of the situation as well. She couldn’t quite put a finger on what it was, but something was off. The info merchant Pietro put that strangeness in concrete terms.

“This side has an overwhelming advantage in strength. So much so that they don’t need our help.”

In this battle between two fleets, their side had just twelve vessels, while the other side obviously had over fifty. But despite that, the battle was going extremely well for their side. The twelve ships were spread out in a wide crane wing formation, effectively surrounding countless enemy ships.

Just from the deluge of mana bullets alone, one thing was clear.

‘This side is way stronger.’

So why? Why were they given a quest requesting their help?

Ba-boom!

Boom!

Ba-ba-boom!

Every time the ships from this side fired a cannonball, every time they fired arrows, every time they shot some unknown beam of light, the ships of the other side were quick to splinter or break. Maybe their side was being protected by a special barrier, because they didn’t take the slightest amount of damage.

“This side is overwhelmingly stronger, but we were given a quest to help them.”

A naval battle scenario, raging on regardless of the Giantgod Guild’s presence.

‘This gate’s name… is the Immortal Fleet Gate.’

So that was what it was. Hyukjin realized what this gate wanted from Giantgod Guild, what it was demanding from the Players.

‘Those guys are the Immortal Fleet.’

They were weak, but—

‘They’ll revive nonstop.’

Their side might be overwhelmingly stronger, but with time, the other side would creep closer to victory. They were, after all, the ‘Immortal Fleet’. They would constantly revive, almost like monsters respawning.

‘There’s no need to drag things out.’

The longer they took, the more disadvantageous the situation would become.

‘I bet Jackson clued into it faster than me.’

It was highly likely Jackson grasped the scenario as soon as he came in. Thankfully, Hyukjin’s party had the compass.

“We’re going for the flagship.”

As well as the target within.

“There’s a boss on that ship. That’s the flagship.” Hyukjin pointed. “The ship with the flag with a red circle on it. It’s the crux.”

Choi Sung-gu tilted his head. “How are we gonna take it down? It’ll be tough with just me and Sunghyun. It’s too far away, and it looks like it has a shield.”

“I’ll be the main DPS.”

Sung-gu looked at him in puzzlement. “Huh? How? You don’t have the Blackfire Bow anymore.”

Hyukjin continued without answering Sung-gu’s question, telling the party what they should do and how they would clear this place.

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