Chapter 80 – The Frost Turtle (１)

“….”

Gijun opened his eyes.

He was in the medical facility inside the Hwarang guild.

“Oh, you’re awake?”

Woo Jimin was waiting beside him.

“They said there’s nothing wrong with your body. Do you have any idea how worried I was when you suddenly collapsed?”

“How long was I out?”

“About an hour now. As soon as you fell, our guild members escorted you here.”

‘An hour….’

He hadn’t been unconscious as long as he’d thought.

“Did anything strange happen after I collapsed?”

“Strange?”

Woo Jimin tilted her head.

“No, nothing special. They said it was just exhaustion from fatigue.”

“…I see.”

Meaning no one knew anything about what Gijun had just been through.

Honestly, he was still confused.

Whether what just happened had been a dream or not.

But there was no way.

He could still feel that being’s voice echoing in his ears.

‘I’m sure of it now.’

And at that moment, Gijun was certain.

That there was some kind of connection between the game called Real Spirit and reality itself.

There was no other way to explain the encounter with that being called ‘The Evil One’ and the words it had spoken.

The power Gijun had used within that space was unmistakably the power of an Ancient God.

And that thing had seemed to recognize that power.

‘What the hell is going on?’

But for now, Gijun could uncover nothing more.

Not the fundamental reason why all this had happened, nor what would happen next.

Everything remained shrouded in mystery at this point.

Just then.

“Ah, take a look at this.”

Woo Jimin handed something to Gijun.

The moment he saw it, Gijun’s eyes went wide.

‘This is…’

“Interesting, isn’t it?”

What Woo Jimin had handed over was a handful of reports.

Attached to those reports were photographs.

Photographs suffused with a crimson light.

“The same red light you saw on the battlefield this time — it’s been found in a Level 9 Dungeon too.”

“…!”

He couldn’t be certain just from looking at the photos.

But a very similar red light was indeed enveloping the entire dungeon.

“The red light on the battlefield has disappeared, but we’ve already dispatched personnel to investigate the connection between the two.”

“It disappeared?”

“Yes. They say it vanished about five minutes after you collapsed.”

“…”

“Anyway, good work. They’re saying that because you discovered that light during this overall expedition, we might finally make progress on researching the Level 9 Dungeon.”

“I see.”

Gijun kept his words brief.

Honestly, he couldn’t even begin to grasp where he should start explaining.

But he had managed to obtain one more clue.

‘It might have some connection to the Level 9 Dungeon.’

A powerful premonition flashed through him.

‘Of course, me going into a Level 9 Dungeon right now is out of the question.’

That went without saying.

At his current level, Gijun was certain his body would burst apart the moment he set foot inside a Level 9 Dungeon.

The dense Magi that filled that place wasn’t something just anyone could withstand.

‘I’m curious, but…’

For now, it was better to leave matters concerning the Level 9 Dungeon to the world’s top Superhumans.

‘First, I need to focus on what I can do.’

What Gijun could do.

That was fighting the lords of Tartaros.

Defeating them and uncovering the secrets hidden within.

And then the door opened.

“Huh? You’re awake?”

It was Ha Taehyeong and Jiyun.

“You have no idea how shocked I was — it scared the hell out of me.”

“Oppa¹!”

Jiyun came running over too.

“I’m so relieved. I was terrified, but they said it was because you overexerted yourself… Ah, really.”

“Guess I pushed myself a little too hard.”

Gijun brushed it off like that.

It wasn’t yet time to share the full story.

“Still, look at this.”

Jiyun held out her smartphone.

“It’s already blowing up. Tons of people are worried you might get hurt, Oppa.”

What was displayed on Jiyun’s screen was a news article.

The article covered Gijun’s return from the battlefield and the ominous crimson light discovered there.

As well as a rundown of Gijun’s exploits.

“Ha….”

Gijun let out a hollow laugh.

‘This is all it takes?’

Now fans who called themselves his zealots had even sprung up.

Some were even publicly repenting for having doubted him.

[To be honest, I suspected Mr. Gijun. I thought he was just trying to look like he’d done some hunting by riding Ha Taehyeong’s bus²… I harbored those impure thoughts, but now I’ve seen the light. I won’t doubt him again.]

[Didn’t I tell you? I said don’t doubt him. Baek Gijun proves himself, right?]

[Ah… but this is really shocking. He’s keeping up even in that company?]

[At this rate, you could say he’s climbed up to the level of a solid veteran.]

[But does this make any sense? What kind of drugs did he even take to get this strong this fast?]

[That’s what they call ‘talent.’]

[LOL fr]

The comment section was overflowing with praise embarrassing enough to make you cringe.

‘…Haha, well…’

Just as Gijun wore a wry smile.

“I put in some work too, you know.”

Woo Jimin giggled as she spoke.

“I handpicked only the coolest edited photos and videos and sent them out. How about it? I did good, right?”

“…Yes. Thank you.”

“Hey, what’s with the lukewarm reaction?”

“I’m tired. Let me get some rest.”

At Ha Taehyeong’s objection, Woo Jimin hastily apologized to Gijun.

“Sorry, Mr. Gijun. I just wanted some praise too….”

“No, I really am grateful.”

“Right? Hehe….”

Gijun scrolled through the comments again.

So many people were waiting for him to wake up soon.

And genuinely cheering him on.

“This gives me strength.”

Gijun said with a smile.

He’d just been through something bewildering, but it felt like his mind was clearing up a little.

“Anyway, I’ll let you know about the research results as soon as they come in.”

“Yes, please do.”

Gijun replied to Woo Jimin’s words.

Honestly, I’m already dying of curiosity.

“Oh, and by the way, have you decided on your next destination?”

Woo Jimin asked.

Her eyes were sparkling.

A look that seemed to hope Gijun would show them something amazing again.

“Ah, there I go, being presumptuous. To someone who’s resting….”

Then, as if catching her mistake, Woo Jimin lightly tapped her own mouth with her palm.

“….”

But Gijun shook his head.

He was going to bring it up anyway.

About the next destination.

“Of course I’m planning to go to the battlefield.”

At that, Woo Jimin’s eyes lit up again.

“If there’s another place where an anomaly is occurring, please let me know right away.”

Gijun intended to head back to the battlefield.

To the battlefields where anomalies were happening, just like KR-444 this time.

“Got it. Trust me on this.”

*

“This side’s a mess too.”

While Gijun stepped away for a moment, Real Spirit was still churning at full throttle.

“They really couldn’t care less about reality, could they.”

The crimson light discovered recently barely registered on Real Spirit’s players’ radar.

Right now, Tartaros was a far hotter topic for them.

Whatever happened in Tartaros, any post even tangentially related to it exploded in view counts.

And that wasn’t all.

Even items that were nothing special shot up to sky-high prices if they were marked as ‘from Tartaros.’

The price of Manta’s Jewel, in particular, had soared beyond words.

Of course, being able to hunt Manta was a stroke of luck granted to only a select few.

The Saint guild kept the giant guilds in check, preventing them from monopolizing Manta’s Jewel.

Thanks to that, countless players competed over Manta, and those lucky enough to get their hands on a Manta’s Jewel would shout:

[Got a Manta’s Jewel! Life-changing score!]

Life-changing.

And it wasn’t an exaggeration—Manta’s Jewel was trading at a price that made that claim feel cheap.

Like the pioneers of old who scoured for gold mines, the players yearned desperately for Tartaros.

[Posting my loot list from Tartaros.]

[Tartaros EXP is absolute garbage, by the way.]

[I got cursed out and kicked for talking to some NPC named Hamal because she was pretty.]

[Why is this bastard Amalta still here? He’s just as insufferable as ever.]

‘Hamal must be sick of it too.’

A few names familiar to Gijun caught his eye.

Names like Hamal and Amalta.

Still, not many had actually made it into Tartaros yet.

Videos and posts predicting future content based on their testimonies poured out without pause.

‘Hmm…’

Gijun was browsing through some of those videos himself, at least in a general sense.

‘A lot to think about.’

He took a gulp of water.

‘If this is truly connected to reality…’

No—it was definitely connected.

Gijun could vouch for that.

That left only one question.

‘Just how deep does the connection run?’

The Spirit World and Earth.

How connected were the two worlds by now?

And how far along was the current progress?

Further still, what would happen if they became completely one?

That, he couldn’t know.

But one thing felt certain: it wasn’t far off.

If that was the case, Gijun had only one thing to do.

‘I have to get as strong as I can.’

He had grown stronger already.

He was acknowledged well enough, but this level wasn’t enough.

He needed to become strong enough to stand shoulder to shoulder with the top-tier Superhumans.

Hadn’t he nearly died just from facing a fraction of that being called ‘Evil’?

This wouldn’t do.

He had to become strong enough to oppose that thing—strong enough to fight and win.

That’s when his smartphone rang.

A message had arrived.

It was a message from Hera.

[Hera: Master Jun. I’ve found it.]

*

Gijun had already left Hamal by now.

Thanks to Hera keeping his identity as hidden as possible, slipping out of Hamal quietly hadn’t been too difficult.

And right now, Gijun was in a city called Eret.

It was a city a bit of a distance from Hamal—a place where players mostly in their 300s came and went.

That was when Hera’s message arrived.

[Hera: My guild members should be waiting to the north of Eret now. If you head that way, they’ll guide you from there. Unfortunately, I can’t accompany you directly for now. If I showed up, it’d draw too much attention.]

[Yes, thank you.]

Hera was right.

Right now, Gijun was moving to forge the Sain-geom.

And in that process, he had to avoid drawing any attention at all.

If another user got involved or interfered, it could delay the forging of the Sain-geom far too long.

After checking the message, Gijun immediately left Eret.

[At last, it begins.]

Libre said, her voice brimming with excitement.

[I’m itching to see that Sain-geom finished for myself—I can barely stand it.]

That went without saying.

Once the Sain-geom was complete, Gijun would finally get his hands on that ‘light’.

“Same here.”

Gijun was just as curious.

[And above all, we must soon bring down that woman. The Monarchs will be opening their eyes before long.]

“…The Monarch. They’re strong, right?”

[Of course. I’m sorry to say this, but with your current strength, Master, you won’t be able to face them so easily.]

“Well, that’s—”

Only to be expected.

[But nothing is impossible. Haven’t I already acknowledged your talent, Master?]

“Thanks for the vote of confidence, at least.”

[You don’t think I’m all talk, do you?]

“Of course not.”

Gijun knew.

Libre wasn’t the type to say empty words.

[You’re growing stronger quickly, and before long, you’ll be strong enough to reach the power of a Monarch.]

Gijun gave a small nod and kept moving forward.

1. Oppa — an affectionate term a younger woman uses for an older man she is close to; literally “older brother.”

2. Bus — Korean gaming slang: a stronger player “drives the bus,” carrying weaker players through content for easy rewards. “Riding the bus” means being carried.