CH 265

“Is that even possible, hyung-nim? I don’t think so…” Seung-Gu said.

“Why should I be the one uncomfortable?” Siegfried pouted before continuing, “Don’t you think we’re going to be a laughing stock if we change sides just because of him? We should make him move instead.”

“That would be ideal, but…”

“I think it’s going to be fun, so let’s stay on the same side as that bastard.”

“Hmm…”

“It says in the community that the papacy pays 1.5 times more than the imperial family.”

‘Let’s not think emotionally. I hate having to see that bastard’s face, but making money comes first. I need money to upgrade my gears,’ Siegfried thought as he suppressed his contempt for Chae Hyung-Seok.

“And…” Siegfried trailed off. He looked around before whispering, “We can pour chili peppers on whatever he tries to do in this war, right?”

“Huh?”

“What’s scarier than an enemy in war is an ally’s friendly fire from the back. For example, what if my fingers slipped?” Siegfried said while flashing a sinister grin.

“Wow! As expected of you, hyung-nim! You’re already planning to stab him in the back before the war even starts! As expected of the King of Backstab—”

“What did you say, punk?”

“N-Nothing…”

Seung-Gu shut his mouth at Siegfried’s glare.

‘Look at that money-grubber,’ Siegfried clicked his tongue while glaring at Chae Hyung-Seok.

Money.

Chae Hyung-Seok obviously participated and sided with the papacy to make money for the compensation he owed Siegfried.

‘It’s nice to see you working so hard!’

Siegfried couldn’t help but feel ecstatic to see Chae Hyun-Seok working his ass off to make money that would eventually end up in his pocket.

‘Allow me to show you how low you can get. Let’s go down lower, Chae Hyung-Seok. I’ll give you a tour of the Earth’s mantle and go further down to the core. All right?’ Siegfried thought while snickering.

He was just getting started.

***

Unfortunately, not all Adventurers could join the new war content. It was obvious, but both sides of the Constantine Holy Empire had limited resources, making it difficult for them to hire everyone who decided to show up.

The imperial family was already going through financial difficulties, so they were conservative in hiring Adventurers. Meanwhile, the papacy was extremely loaded, but even the papacy couldn’t afford to hire millions of Adventurers.

Thus, the first war recruitment of the content titled Constantine Civil War ended with thirty thousand Adventurers on the imperial family’s side against seventy thousand Adventurers on the papacy’s side.

Not many renowned Adventurers and only a few of the top ten guilds joined the war…

Why?

The ‘Constantine Civil War’ wasn’t very attractive for the top Rankers. The top Rankers wanted to join a war that was on a bigger scale, and a good example of this was a nation going up against another nation.

Not only that, most of them felt that their time would be better served grinding at high-level dungeons as the quality of the Adventurers joining the Constantine Civil War was intermediate at most, so they wouldn’t give a lot of Experience Points.

However, the Constantine Civil War managed to attract a lot of attention despite being rated as a gathering of intermediate Adventurers.

Why?

It was the first time that one hundred thousand Adventurers would fight in a war, and the scale was expected to be quite grand. Therefore, the Genesis Guild became the protagonist of the Constantine Civil War.

[V Sports: Genesis Guild joins the new ‘war’ content of BNW!]

[Column: Will the Genesis Guild spread their wings once again?]

[BNW/Interview: Pro Gamer Chae Hyung-Seok after his return—the Genesis Guild will dominate this war.]

The attention of the media and gamers was entirely focused on the Genesis Guild even though the war hadn’t started just yet, as they were the biggest faction joining the war.

***

Chae Hyung-Seok was in a tent of the papacy’s forces.

‘This is our chance to get back up on our feet…’ he thought while looking at a map.

‘More and more guild members are leaving by the day, and even some of the officers are showing signs of leaving. The guild is in danger… I need to increase the guild’s reputation through this war.’

The Genesis Guild could only muster forty percent of their usual forces due to their ongoing crisis. The Constantine Civil War content was vital for Chae Hyung-Seok. He resolved to dominate the war by any means.

The media’s attention was on the Genesis Guild, which made sure that he couldn’t slip up. Fortunately, Chae Hyung-Seok was confident that the Genesis Guild would regain their glory during this civil war.

Why?

It was all because the Genesis Guild’s specialty was to fight in great numbers while maximizing their buffs. On top of that, Chae Hyung-Seok’s class—Holy Saint—was a unique class that synergized quite well with the papacy’s forces.

Most of the papacy’s high-ranking soldiers were priests or holy knights, so it could be said that the Genesis Guild and the papacy’s forces were a match made in heaven.

‘Hah! Who could have known that such great content would come at such perfect timing? And who knew it was going to be the Constantine Holy Empire of all places? As expected, never say never, they say!’ 

Chae Hyung-Seok was thrilled at the thought of making a comeback.

“Kyu! Owner punk! Hamchi wants nuts!”

Chae Hyung-Seok whipped around at the familiar voice.

“Really? Then, take two. You seem to have gained weight recently.”

“Hamchi didn’t gain any weight! KYAAAUU!”

Chae Hyung-Seok grimaced and muttered, “The fuck…?”

His face crumpled in disgust after seeing the person he despised the most in this world, Han Tae-Sung. His creditor entered the same tent as him, along with his pet hamster.

“Hey, why the fuck are you here, you bastard?” Chae Hyung-Seok asked.

“Me? Why else do you think I’m here?” Siegfried asked nonchalantly in response.

“What?”

“I’m here because of the new content. I’m thinking of leveling up and farming some items while I’m at it.”

“So why the fuck are you here? You better move to the imperial family’s side while I’m still asking nicely.”

“But I don’t want to~” Siegfried stuck his tongue out and sneered at Chae Hyung-Seok. “Besides, why should I be the one to switch sides? I like this side more than the other~ Why don’t you move there if you can’t stand me here~”

“You bastard…!”

“Hit me, I dare you~” Siegfried said. He pulled his cheeks apart and smiled sheepishly before saying, “The emperor would be very proud of you if you decide to punch your creditor without paying your debt~”

“Y-You…!”

“I’m here to keep an eye on you. I want to see if you’re working hard to earn money so that you can pay me back. Anyway, you better work hard, got it?”

Ding!

A message popped up in front of Chae Hyung-Seok’s eyes as his figure faded slightly.

[Alert: Warning! Warning!]

[Alert: Danger! Your blood pressure has drastically risen too high!]

[Alert: You will be forcefully logged out by the system if your blood pressure goes up any higher!]

Theft is never good, try looking at bit.ly/3iBfjkV.

His blood pressure skyrocketed at Siegfried’s taunts.

“F-Fuck off… Get out of my sight right now… fuck off…!” Chae Hyung-Seok said while trying his best to maintain his focus.

“But you’re the one who came here? This is my tent, by the way, so you should fuck off.”

“…”

“Hey, fuck off~” Siegfried said while waving his hand and shooing Chae Hyung-Seok away like a fly.

It was then…

—Warning! Warning!

—All holy warriors are requested to gather at the training grounds!

—Warning! Warning!

—The army of the heretics has crossed our holy borders!

—All holy warriors are requested to gather at once!

A message that signaled the start of the Constantine Civil War echoed throughout the Papal Palace.

***

“May the blessing of the Nameless God be with you!”

Right before the mobilization, Siegfried was blessed by the priests of the papacy and was given a coupon.

[Alert: You have obtained Full Indulgence!]

[Full Indulgence]

[A coupon issued by the papacy for the forgiveness of one’s sins.]

[This coupon will forgive all of your sins aside from blasphemy.]

[Type: Coupon]

[Rating: Unique]

[Price: N/A (Limited Edition)]

“Indulgence? What’s this?” Siegfried asked.

“It’ll forgive your sins.”

Siegfried tilted his head in confusion and asked, “Why do I need this?”

“Well, a person is bound to sin in war. For example, murder.”

“Oh?”

“Our papacy wishes to alleviate the guilt of our holy warriors even by a little bit. We hope that this will placate your conscience.”

“I-I see…” Siegfried muttered while thinking, ‘What horseshit is he spouting? How can a piece of paper forgive someone’s sins?’

Siegfried was an Adventurer, so he had never felt even an ounce of guilt from killing other NPCs.

“That coupon has legal value as well, so it is not only to alleviate your guilt, but the truly important thing is one’s heart. Do you agree?”

“I think so?”

“Our church sells not only the Full Indulgences but also different kinds of indulgences! If you ever happen to sin in our Constantine Holy Empire, then…”

“…?”

“I advise that you buy the corresponding indulgence and have your sins forgiven.”

“Hahaha! That is a very unique and convenient system! So I will be forgiven no matter what kind of crime I commit?”

“You can think of it as making an offering of atonement to the Nameless God.”

“Ah~ I see~ Fuck this shit!”

“Pardon me?”

“No, it’s nothing,” Siegfried replied as he waved his hand. Then, he walked past the priest while thinking, ‘Way to go, Church of Capitalism. They’re forgiving people’s sins with money now? Are these guys crazy?’

He figured that the papacy was probably not an ordinary organization.

***

Siegfried was among the many Adventurers making their way to the place that the Imperial Forces had attacked.

“Hello, nice to meet you,” he greeted the Adventurers, but…

“…”

None of them responded to his greeting.

“Hello? Hi?” Siegfried greeted them again, but none of them responded.

“Let’s go over there.”

“Why is it so hot over here? Let’s go get some fresh air over there.”

“What the fuck is wrong with this place…”

The Adventurers seemed to be avoiding Siegfried for some reason.

“Ah, my mood is soured now…”

“Fuck, it stinks…”

“I should move to another battalion or change factions altogether…”

“Ptooey!”

In fact, some of them even outwardly displayed their hostility toward him.

“What’s wrong with them…?” Siegfried tilted his head in confusion.

“H-Hyung-nim…?” Seung-Gu said as he poked him on his side.

“I don’t think the mood is good here,” he added.

“Yeah, what’s wrong with them? Do they hate me or something?”

“Hyung-nim…”

“What?”

“I’d react the same if I were them…” Seung-Gu said while flashing an awkward smile.

“Why?”

“Look at your title, hyung-nim…”

“My title?”

Siegfried checked his titles at Seung-Gu’s behest.

His titles were quite diverse, and he even had many decent ones, but those weren’t the problematic ones.

“Wait, could it be that…” Siegfried muttered.

“Yes, you’re right…” Seung-Gu nodded and said, “Your public image is rock bottom, hyung-nim.”

Seung-Gu was right.

Some of Siegfried’s titles gave off a negative impression despite their effects.

[Seggs Stamina King]

[Bald Phoenix]

[Hammer Murderer]

[Skull Breaker]

[Vulgar Walk]

[Pesky Brat]

★[King of Backstabbing]★

The title that stuck out the most was the title he had obtained recently—King of Backstabbing.

[Effects: +20% Increased Back Attack damage, +20% increased Back Attack Damage to the head, +15% chance to fool an NPC when lying.]

[Warning: This title is not an honorable title.]

In addition, the stars flanking the King of Backstabbing title ensured that everyone would see it.

Buzz, buzz, buzz! 

In addition, the stench he was emitting and the flies buzzing around him made everyone avoid him instinctively.

Plop!

A tear dropped from Siegfried’s eye as the negative titles he had obtained decided to synergize perfectly in public.

“So that’s why everyone has been avoiding me…” Siegfried muttered.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Multiple explosions echoed from out of nowhere before a rain of mortar shells descended upon them.