The Korean Player Association’s warehouse was empty. The mithril door of the morgue that had been attached until last night was now in a pile on the floor.
Shim Deok-Gu stared at the metal, deep in thought.
‘Jun-Ho and Skaya said they moved the other Heroes, so…’
There was no need to keep the mithril door. But the Seoul History Museum’s morgue was symbolic, so it would remain.
“…Should we do it?”
As Shim Deok-Gu stared at the mithril, the old, ridiculous dream of his popped into his head. He wanted to create a great statue in front of the Association building. Of course, the statue wouldn’t be of him. That would be embarrassing…
‘We should make a statue of Specter.’
Because he was the greatest Player that had ever come out of the Korean Player Association.
“Hmmm, with this much, we should be able to make it?really?big.” He smiled, satisfied.
Just then, Seo Jun-Ho came rushing in. “Oh, it really?is?here.”
“…What’s the occasion? Why’re you here?” Shim Deok-Gu asked, worried that it was something urgent.
“Oh,?it’s nothing big.” Seo Jun-Ho pointed at the scattered pile of mithril. “Can I have that?”
“You mean…” Shim Deok-Gu looked at the metal and paused. They were in lumps, and there were a lot of them.
‘Well, since there’s so much…’
He nodded slowly.
“Yeah, sure.”
“Thank you so much.” Seo Jun-Ho began to hungrily pick up the lumps of mithril like a starved animal. They quickly disappeared inside his inventory.
Surprised, Shim Deok-Gu reached out. “Hey, hey… What are you going to do with so much mithril?”
“Huh??Ah, Black Armor was destroyed, so I wanted to make a new set of armor. Kwon Palmo said that it would be nice to have some mithril. Do you need some too?” he asked.
“… No, why would I?”
“That’s a relief. Then, I’m going back to the Workshop. Thanks, you really saved me.” As Seo Jun-Ho smiled brightly and left, Shim Deok-Gu’s shoulders slumped.
“Well… I suppose it’s better to use the mithril on the real Specter, rather than a statue of one.”
It would be the more honorable choice for the mithril as well.
Shim Deok-Gu spotted the tiny amount of metal left and snorted. “I suppose I’ll at least be able to make a figurine.”
Of course, he wouldn’t be able to place it in front of the Association building.
‘I should probably clean my desk.’
He would display it in his office.
***
“Where did you get all of this?” Kwon Palmo’s jaw dropped. It was shocking enough that Seo Jun-Ho had returned in 20 minutes, but he had never imagined that the Player would bring back this much mithril.
“Is it not enough?”
“N-No…Not at all. On the contrary…”
The gears started to turn in Kwon Palmo’s head as he stared at the pile of mithril. His original plans dissolved, and he decided to come up with a whole new plan.
‘With this much mithril…’
Originally, he planned to strengthen the joints of the armor if Seo Jun-Ho brought a little bit of mithril. The blacksmith had expected Seo Jun-Ho to bring 1 kilogram at most. But with this amount, Kwon Palmo could make an entire suit of armor out of mithril.
“I should mix it,” he said, eyes sparkling.
“Huh??Mix what?” Seo Jun-Ho asked.
“Originally, I was planning to remake Black Armor with dragon bones and coat the joints with mithril. But I can do something totally different with this much mithril. I’m going to ground the dragon bones into powder and melt down the mithril to make a new material for your armor.” He breathed heavily as if he was excited by the mere idea. “What’s your current level?”
“60.”
“… Huh??You’re level 60?” Considering that Seo Jun-Ho had only been a level 20 rookie when he received Black Armor, his growth rate was unthinkable. Kwon Palmo had never met a Player who had leveled up so quickly in his life.
“Tsk.?It’s your fault for applying normal standards to him,” Kwon Noya said as he descended the stairs.
“It’s been a while, Noya.”
“You’re supposed to greet people when you visit them, you rascal,” the old man grumbled.
“But you’re gonna go back up as soon as you finish your business…”
“Ahem.” Kwon Noya shook his head, unable to tell Jun-Ho that he’d been waiting this whole time.
As soon as he discovered the mithril, Kwon Noya’s eyes brightened with a youthful light. “Oooh,?mithril…It has been decades since I’ve seen this much of it.”
“Is it hard to acquire mithril these days?” Seo Jun-Ho asked.
“Of course it is. Mithril is extremely rare in the first place, but people with money and power have been using it to make their own gears throughout the years. As such, it has only become even more coveted.” Kwon Noya sat in a chair and nodded toward Black Armor. “Seems like you’re gonna get a whole new set of armor, eh?”
“Yes. I’ll be in your grandson’s care.”
“A-hem.” Kwon Noya opened the fan he was holding and started to fan his face. It was a habit of his to do that whenever he was made uncomfortably aware of his age, and Kwon Palmo knew this.
“Grandpa, would you like to make it together?” he carefully asked.
“Ha,?did I say anything? The customer hasn’t even said anything…” He snorted as if he was offended. But despite what he said, he looked expectantly at Seo Jun-Ho.
“This old man is so easy to read.” The Frost Queen cackled. She was hiding from the blacksmiths.
‘But you’re just as easy to read…’
Seo Jun-Ho thought. He always seemed to attract these kinds of people.
Seo Jun-Ho sighed as if it couldn’t be helped. “Noya, are you busy these days?”
“Busy? Geez.?If I opened commissions, I’d be busy for the next ten years,” he huffed.
“Really? Then I suppose you won’t be able to help out,” Seo Jun-Ho said.
“I’m not taking commissions, though.”
“Then, you aren’t busy?”
Swoosh. Swoosh.
The room became silent save for the sound of the fan.
‘This is fun.’
Seo Jun-Ho decided to stop teasing the old man. He chuckled. “Please help me, Noya.”
“…Hmph.” Usually, Kwon Noya wouldn’t give in right away, but this time he stood up as if he had been waiting for this moment. He walked over to the workbench and studied the dragon bones and mithril. “Do you have a plan?”
“I was planning to mix the two materials for now,” answered Kwon Palmo. ．𝒄𝙤𝙢
“I see…” Kwon Noya looked impressed as if he had been thinking the exact thing. But after a few moments, he barked. “Hey, what’re you doing standing there like an idiot? If you’ve made a decision, you should draw up a design and a plan.”
“Ugh.?I’ll do that.” Kwon Palmo scratched his head and disappeared.
“It’ll take ten days at most,” Kwon Noya said.
“That’s longer than before,” Seo Jun-Ho commented.
“But this one will be incomparable to the first version. It’ll still be a Spread armor, of course, but with the mithril, we can have state-of-the-art effects… Mithril has natural magic resistance, and we can make it lightweight…” Kwon Noya rambled on and on, using jargons that only he knew. He gave a satisfied smile. “I’ll be able to make a decent one, for once.”
“Wasn’t Black Dragon Fang pretty good?” Seo Jun-Ho asked.
“This one will be even better. Think about how much more will go into it… Of course, it’ll be more.” He chuckled. “And I saw the articles. Skaya’s awake now, isn’t she?”
“Yes…”
“So why hasn’t she visited me yet? I should scold her the next time we meet,” Noya muttered, sounding disappointed.
“Please let it go this time. We’re going to the 2nd floor, so she has to prepare a lot,” Seo Jun-Ho explained.
“Tsk,?I’ll let it go because I got to see you. And… Tell her to come here if any of her weapons or armor break.”
“… I’ll do that.”
Despite the sharp way that he spoke, Noya obviously cared about her. He scratched his nose awkwardly as he patted Seo Jun-Ho’s shoulder. “And… It must’ve been hard. You have really done it this time.”
“…” Seo Jun-Ho smiled wordlessly. Those simple words were worth more than any sort of flattery he had received so far. “I haven’t done anything praiseworthy yet. There’s still three of them left.”
“You can do it. Because you’re you.”
“I can do it. Because I’m me.”
Knowing that even one person had such unwavering faith in him made Seo Jun-Ho’s heart swell. And once he freed his remaining comrades, that number would increase by three.
He closed his eyes, imagining that?day.
‘I’ll save you no matter what.’
One day, he would see it in real life.
***
Before the two Heroes left for the Dimensional Elevator, they met together with Shim Deok-Gu.
“When will you come back this time?” Shim Deok-Gu asked.
“I’m not sure. Contact me if the fiends cause trouble, though. I’ll come right away,” Seo Jun-Ho said. Shim Deok-Gu smiled at that and placed a hand over his heart. He turned toward his other friend, looking at her awkwardly.
“Good luck. Be safe, and be healthy,” he said to Skaya.”
“Is that all you have to say?” She asked.
“Um,?well…”
“Alright. You stay healthy too.” She turned away. “Let’s go.”
“Um,?okay.” Seo Jun-Ho quickly waved goodbye and followed her.
Once they arrived at the Dimensional Elevator, he confronted her. “Skaya, are you still that mad at Deok-Gu?”
“Not really…”
“Then why were you so cold to him?”
“Your friend keeps pissing me off. Is ‘be safe’ all he can say? Is he a butler or something? It’s funny. It’s his first time seeing my pretty face in 26 years, but he apparently has nothing he wants to say despite me being gone for so long.” She scowled, uncharacteristically cold.
One might think that she was the Frost Queen.
“Um…?Well, don’t take it out on me. You guys should figure it out.”
“Don’t mention that idiot again. That bald idiot.”
“… He’ll be hurt if you call him that,” Seo Jun-Ho muttered.
“Really? Then I’ll make sure to say it to his face next time.” She was properly pissed.
They received a basic inspection like last time before they stepped into the Dimensional Elevator.
Seo Jun-Ho looked mischievously over at Skaya. “You’ve probably never experienced anything like the way it feels to go to a different planet.”
“…Really?” She swallowed in anticipation. She then inspected the Elevator with her signature curiosity befitting that of an Archmage.
‘She’s probably a lot more excited than I was.’
He glanced over and found that the Frost Queen was also watching Skaya with an expectant look. She had decided to hide from the mage.
“Now, I expect that she will experience the same overwhelming disappointment that I did.” She giggled.
“Yup.”
Skaya pressed the button with a trembling hand as the two of them snickered.
And then it was over…
[The doors to the 2nd floor are now opening.]
Seo Jun-Ho laughed when he saw Skaya’s frozen face. “Hahaha,?how was it? Isn’t it disappointing? Actually, when Frost and I first went up…”
“That’s amazing…”
“…What?”
He hadn’t expected this. Skaya started to inspect each corner of the Elevator excitedly.
“Even though we have teleported across planets and dimensions, there wasn’t a single trace of magic. And there was no motion sickness at all either… Just who was it that made this elevator? I need to meet them…I’m sure they’ll be able to teach me a lot more about magic. Maybe it’s a god? Oh,?or maybe it’s one of the Administrators you mentioned. Don’t you think?”
Seo Jun-Ho and the Frost Queen stared at her, shocked. They had experienced the same thing, so how come she was this excited and they hadn’t felt anything?”
“I… feel like an idiot,” Seo Jun-Ho finally said.
“I agree. This is disheartening…”
Seo Jun-Ho sighed and stepped out of the elevator. He bowed respectfully. “I will escort you to Baron Vashti’s estate, Skaya-nim.”
“Huh? Oh…?yes.” Skaya quickly pulled herself together as she noticed all the people staring at her and realized what was going on. She looked thoroughly entertained as she looked down at Seo Jun-Ho. “Lead the way, Player Seo Jun-Ho.”
She was definitely enjoying this.