After they successfully blocked the fourth wave in advance, rewards poured out. Seon-Hu wasn’t the only one who got them as Seong-Il also received these benefits. However, the older-looking man couldn’t focus on them despite the brilliant light that was being emitted by the box because during this round Seon-Hu had sent more monsters to him than he ever did before. He had no choice but to fight doggedly earlier against an endless onslaught, so the newly created item dropped helplessly from his hand.
Seong-Il only stopped moaning after Seon-Hu gave him a narcotic painkiller. Seon-Hu also picked up Seong-Il’s items that he had gained as a reward, then carried him on his back. Seong-Il became relieved after he was able to view the whole village from afar.
All we have to do is wait for the boss monster.
In order to use the inventory system, which was a hidden reward for Act One, they needed five Fragments of Time and Space. Each fragment could be acquired beyond the boundary until the fourth wave, and the last one could be earned after defeating the final wave’s boss monster.
[What an amazing speed. You guys are ranked at the top of all the Awakened. I must have underestimated you. I should try to live up to your expectations next time. So, just rest for now. I’ll be back. (๑ˇεˇ๑) ]
Seong-Il waited anxiously for the next message. Fortunately, nothing else popped up. There wasn’t another fucking quest that required them to do something like sacrifice another life.
It’s doing whatever it wants.
He couldn’t say that sarcastic thought out loud as he was afraid that the Spirit might be listening to him from somewhere nearby.
“You are going to go in as soon as the next wave quest comes up, right?” he asked.
Seon-Hu nodded.
It was obvious that they had to upgrade their stats by monopolizing the waves while waiting for the final wave’s boss monster. Since Seon-Hu had successfully maintained the world’s economic system, his next target was the Seven Demon Kings. They were a single group that should have been dealt with by a few elites with outstanding abilities instead of trying to fight them with a group of Awakened as they did in his past life. However, it was necessary that the Awakened be unified as they would have to handle the corps that accompanied the Seven Demon Kings later.
Seon-Hu said as he checked Seong-Il’s injury, “Starting from the next wave, stay in the town. I’ll leave it up to you if you decide to become the spearhead or not.”
The older-looking man shook his head vigorously. “I don’t want to. You saw what happened before.”
Seong-Il recalled the lieutenant’s appalling dead body.
***
“I’m saying that I want to help you guys. You can just look up my records. Don’t you have it?” Seong-Il asked.
The other man shrugged. “We lost it, and things have changed a lot.”
Seong-Il patiently reintroduced himself, “My name is Kwon Seong-Il and I’m forty-one years old. Anything else you need?”
“Please tell me about your skills, stats and items.”
Cheol-Yeong was being cautious because a man believed to be a member of the World Awakened Association was watching him from afar, and the guy in front of him seemed to have changed noticeably after he had followed Seon-Hu. It was easy to tell just by looking at how he was now attired. Seong-Il was wearing a leather vest with geometric shapes over a blood-soaked T-shirt, and there was a circular iron decoration that was wrapped over the bare skin on his muscular arms.
On top of that, the blunt point of the weapon in the guy’s hand seemed to be perfect for breaking things. Cheol-Yeong briefly imagined the guy brandishing the weapon, and the image that came to his mind horrified him. After the lieutenant who had controlled the situation had died, Cheol-Yeong couldn’t relax his vigilance. In lawless areas, violence was the power.
Seong-Il suddenly asked, “Let me ask first. I know your name is Yoo Cheol-Yeong, but you seem so young.”
Cheol-Yeong nodded. “Yes, I’m thirty-four years old.”
“Oh, I thought you would be at least ten years younger than me, but you look very young. How come you are the boss?”
“Excuse me?”
“This one.”
Seong-Il raised his thumb[1]. While Seong-Il had been blocking the fourth wave with Seon-Hu, there had been a change in the power structure inside the village.
Cheol-Yeong responded, “It’s because I’m a doctor.”
“Oh, yeah? But we don’t need a doctor. I’m not trying to be offensive, but that’s the reality of our situation,” Seong-Il remarked.
Cheol-Yeong replied with a smile, “Yes, we need professional combatants. I think people ended up liking me as I performed emergency treatments and relieved their pain.”
Seong-Il raised an eyebrow. “That’s the reason why you’re the leader now? I don’t know all the details, but I’m pretty sure that you would have been just a medic[2]. That’s not even a soldier.”
“I served the military as an ordinary soldier, then took the MCAT.”
Seong-Il nodded with an awkward expression, then began speaking again, “Your uniform is perfectly fine. Oh, your field cap as well.”
Cheol-Yeong nodded. “The lieutenant assigned me as a non-combatant. I wanted to fight, but… I’m sorry for those who passed away in the war.”
“Yeah, those were purposeless deaths.”
Seong-Il felt heartbroken all over again. Kyu-Bum didn’t leave a good impression on him initially, but he was a true soldier who had quickly settled down the situation and comforted people. No one had expected that he would die that fast.
“Anyway, my items are those as you can see, and my skills and stats are…”
Seong-Il finished his explanation after displaying his status window.
Cheol-Yeong gasped, “Wow, you are amazing.”
Seong-Il’s Strength was already at E-class, and he also had more than three skills.
The older man shrugged. “Nah, all I did was just follow Odin.”
When Cheol-Yeong heard the name, the god from Norse mythology came to his mind first. Considering that Joshua von Karjan, the head of the German-based global group, was an important figure in the World Awakened Association, the organization was likely to be mostly made up of foreigners. Therefore, Cheol-Yeong thought that Odin was just the English alias of a Korean guy who was a part of a foreign organization.
“Has Odin changed his mind?” Cheol-Yeong asked.
Seong-Il shook his head. “Do you think he would tolerate the crap you all did? He will never look upon you all kindly. If I was him, I would have killed you all already. You said your name is Cheol-Yeong, right? I’ll speak casually since I’m older than you.”
“Okay, Hyung[3].”
Seong-Il began lecturing him, “Having a high level of education doesn’t mean the individual is wise. You should know how to play cheap tricks and when to be tactful. That’s how you survive.”
Cheol-Yeong grimaced slightly. “You are right. I feel ashamed when I think about that day, and if I could go back in time… That’s all I’ve been thinking about lately. That the people who weren’t supposed to die had passed away.”
Seong-Il continued, “It would be nice for the villagers if Odin became the leader. They shouldn’t have decided to sacrifice Odin. How many times did I tell you guys not to? You should remember that I was the only one who was against the idea.”
Cheol-Yeong nodded. “Yes, I do. Do you think it’s a good idea to talk about that day to Odin?”
“He will never change his mind.”
Cheol-Yeong sighed. “I must ask for forgiveness.”
“Nah, don’t bother, Odin said to go through me if you have something to tell him. But he also mentioned not to say anything if it’s not urgent. Okay?” responded Seong-Il slightly sympathetically.
“…”
“Okay?”
Cheol-Yeong grimaced. “Then, when will I be able to talk to Odin in person?”
Seong-Il sighed. “Ah, this is frustrating. Should I repeat myself?”
“No.”
Seong-Il was quiet for a moment, then he swore after pondering deeply before finally saying, “Put my name down for the scouting line, Cheol-Yeong. You should think well and make the best formation ever.”
Only then did Seong-Il notice that Cheol-Yeong was staring at something. He looked back and saw that Seon-Hu, who had previously been staying on the outside of the boundary, was walking towards them.
“Wait here.”
Seong-Il limped and approached Seon-Hu.
***
“His name is Yoo Cheol-Yeong, and he seems like a decent guy. He looks like a child, but he is thirty-four.”
“Same as me,” Seon-Hu casually threw out.
Seong-Il widened his eyes in surprise and asked, “When were you born?”
“1985.”
Seong-Il’s jaw dropped. “You? No way! You look much younger! Were you actually born in 1985? What the hell… Ah, anyway, did you change your mind? Are you going to forgive the villagers? In my opinion, even the Buddhist saint wouldn’t forgive them.”
“Did you think that I didn’t intervene because I was mad at them?” Seon-Hu asked.
Seong-Il blinked. “Then, what was the reason?”
Seon-Hu responded, “No. I still have no intention of intervening with them if I don’t need to. If you don’t like the way I do things, I won’t mind if you leave. But if you want to stay in my group, I want you to follow me quietly as I do what I need to do. This is a separate matter from the personal stuff, so I’m letting you know in advance.”
Seong-Il frowned slightly. “I appreciate you telling me early, but… it’s disheartening.”
Seon-Hu shrugged. “That’s how things work in this world. After all, we just met a few days ago.”
Seon-Hu then grinned and passed by Seong-Il. It was true that he had completely taken his mind off of the village, but a minimal amount of intervention was needed as their power structure had changed. Those with the strongest mentalities had all died in the second wave.
The first stage that Seon-Hu had experienced in the past was different from what was occurring now. That lady had consistently brainwashed people to cling to those in power and value their presence. She explained that it wasn’t reasonable in the long run to go all in on the first wave. She also succeeded in unifying people’s opinions by promising that she would provide survival supplies, items, and compensation after the Stage of Advent ended.
From Seon-Hu’s perspective, the village would be annihilated if things continually went on like this. The only survivors would be himself and Seong-Il.
“Hello.”
Seon-Hu stared at Cheol-Yeong, who had greeted him.
“No need for introductions.”
The reason why Seon-Hu had decided to intervene even a little this time was simply because the Spirit had given them plenty of time to prepare for the next wave. That was different from what had occurred in the past. It might have been because the members of Revolucion and Tomorrow were completing the quests quickly, or maybe it was because the System had scheduled the time for each stage in advance.
“You ran out of food, right?” Seon-Hu asked.
Cheol-Yeong nodded. “Yes, I know you had a conversation with the lieutenant.”
Seon-Hu continued bluntly, “That was with him, not with you. I’m letting you know that the areas that I have cleared are under my jurisdiction from now on.”
The other man responded quickly and deferentially, “Of course. As you are aware, things have changed a lot. We are ready to follow your lead at any time.”
Seon-Hu refused his offer, “No, you guys should take care of yourselves.”
The Stage of Advent didn’t end with Act One, Stage One. Therefore, people needed to become strong and learn how to survive on their own.
Seon-Hu took a mana stone out of his pocket and handed it to Cheol-Yeong before explaining, “This is called a mana stone. Each monster has it inside of its body like organs. Go tell the villagers that if they bring me a mana stone, I’ll exchange it for water and food. By the way, you’d better not think about bringing it from the dead monsters left in town because I’ll collect them all right now.”
1. A thumbs-up means a boss or a leader in Korea. ☜
2. In Korea, those who study medicine or work as medical doctors can serve in the mandatory military as medics. Medics only go through basic training and usually have no experience in fighting in the war at the frontline. ☜
3. How men call their older brother or close men who are older than them. ☜