At first I didn't even think to wonder why I was there.
Thump, thump, thump.
My heart was beating faster than when I fought the Giant of Depths. I felt like an eight-ton truck had crashed into the back of my head. I only came to my senses when he spoke.
«Wow, did you really kill him by yourself?». Although I had only talked to him that way a few times, that voice and tone were things I could never forget.
They are Lee.
The moment I recognized that this was really happening, I realized that there was an old man at his side: the Fallen Scholar. For now, these were the only two I could see in the area.
Are you working with Baekho now, even though they were fighting each other back then?
My mind was in a mess. Aside from the fact that they were apparently teammates now, why were they here? Could it be because of me? No, wait, what happened to Erwen and Amelia, who I left behind? I told them to stay here until I got back.
«How interesting. I've never heard of anyone like you around here», Baekho said.
«Of course», the Fallen Scholar intervened. «You remember the man who was a hot topic not long ago, right?».
Baekho nodded. «Oh yeah. To him. Fits the description».
«Although we still don't know for sure.»
«Then we can find out now. Hey, are you that guy named Schuitz or whatever?» This was an incredibly rude way to start a first conversation, but I was quite relieved.
...So he didn't come looking for me. And that probably means... that he's here for Atlante.
We had been keeping an eye on the people who cleaned up the other Red Rock Island events. It must have been these guys.
So that means this meeting is purely coincidental...
Just when I was thinking that, he said, «When are you going to respond?»
Ha, this rude son of a bitch.
«Why don't you reveal your identity first?»
At my question, he smiled as if he liked my attitude. «Baekho Lee. You?»
«Probably the person you're thinking of».
«Wow, how interesting, running into a celebrity here».
«Celebrity?»
«I heard you fought four on one against those bastards from Noark? How can you not be famous if you appear out of nowhere? Not to mention that that Blood Spirit elf girl is taking care of you».
He had nothing in particular to say to refute that. The population of the maze decreased exponentially as you climbed. Once you even reached the seventh floor, most people knew each other. The appearance of a strange and powerful man whose name and face were unknown must have seemed strange.
«Wait, that means the girl is here too», said the Fallen Scholar.
«Come to think of it, I don't see any magicians. It seems we missed them by teleporting here».
I breathed a sigh of relief at their conversation again. If what they said was true, that meant Erwen and Amelia were safe.
«So what brings you here?». I asked, walking in the direction of the essence. If a fight broke out, he planned to absorb this essence immediately. Although the color was different than what I wanted, I figured it would be useful for the moment.
Just then, Baekho spoke in a playful tone. «Stop there. Don't touch the essence for now».
Essence?
It was a clue that would help me analyze the current situation. It seemed like Baekho was here because of the Giant of Depths essence. Normally that would have been enough of an explanation for me, but my brain, working overtime out of sheer survival instinct, asked questions I would have otherwise overlooked.
Why come here to look for one instead of the ninth floor, where the Deep Giants appear in groups?
This gave rise to one of two possible explanations.
«Come on, didn't you say you beat the game in Times Ten? In ten years, you will be like me. Realistically, I have no further areas to improve...»
One: Despite his claims at the time, Baekho's level was not really that high. Two: He for some reason was not able to go to the ninth floor at this time.
Grifo.
I stopped walking towards the essence for now, as I had no idea how that lunatic would react if I got closer. But it wouldn't be good to appear meek. «This is my loot».
At my slightly belligerent tone, Baekho raised his hands in a gesture to calm me down. «Yes, now. You don't have to be so sensitive. I just stopped you to see if we can make a deal».
«A treatise?»
«What I need is that red essence over there. If you don't really need it, why don't we make a deal?»
To be honest, nothing he said made sense to me. I ended up answering: «Why would you bother making an exchange?». As was evident from his rude attitude, Baekho considered me beneath him. Why did he keep proposing a deal, leaving the easiest path on the table?
Baekho's response was completely unexpected. «So what, I kill you and steal it from you? To be honest, it bothers me that you came here for nothing... but it's not like you cheated or anything. Complaining just because you came first would be rubbish on my part».
«...What if I reject the deal?»
«And good? Then I'll be disappointed and come back next time».
This thought process was too normal. It left me speechless, but looking back, I understood. This guy's ultimate goal was to return to Earth, right? He probably followed some kind of personal code of his own, as I had done until now.
"Good."
Surprisingly, the situation was developing more peacefully than I thought. At worst, I even considered the possibility of a fight. At this point, however, I didn't think things would go that far. The proposal for an exchange didn't seem bad to me either.
«What will you give me in exchange for the essence?».
Baekho seemed to look at it for a moment before posting the object in the exchange window. «Another essence of a Giant of the Depths. I've been killing them regularly these days. I have blue and green...».
I immediately cut him off and responded: «I'll stick with the green one». This was good news, at least for now.
«What, did you want that one?»
«Green sells more expensive on average. Plus, I can save a test tube». Baekho nodded accepting my response and took out a test tube from his subspace. «But how can I trust it to come from a Giant from the Depths?».
«If I was going to scam you, I wouldn't have proposed a deal, would I?».
Jeez, don't look at me just for being a little suspicious.
«So the deal? Are you going to accept it or not?».
«…Trust you this time.»
In response, Baekho threw the test tube at me. Throwing it at me was an act of disrespect that I didn't quite accept, but hey, I still took it.
«Now that you have what you want, can you get out of the way? This old man is too scared to go there».
When I widened the distance between us, Fallen Scholar stepped forward to put the essence into a test tube. Thus concluded our exchange.
So it wasn't for Baekho. So you plan to give it to a teammate?
As I reflected on this, Baekho spoke to me. «Schuitz, right?»
«That's right.»
«So tense. Speak comfortably.»
«This is comfortable for me.»
«If you say so. Anyway, I want to ask you something, is that okay with you?». When I waved his eyes to continue, Baekho decided to be direct. «Are you Bjorn Yandel?»
This guy doesn't really have brakes, huh?
Hit!
My heart dropped, but I didn't show it. I reacted as if the question seemed ridiculous to me. «Why do you ask that?»
«Someone with an unrecognized name and face suddenly appears out of nowhere, and that elf girl is following that person around, calling him «Sir»? I'm sure she's not stupid, so it's strange, isn't it?»
It was logical. The members of the Round Table were also suspicious of me for the same reason.
«So, your answer?» Baekho glared at me. It was obvious what he was doing.
He's using a lie detector. If I keep my mouth shut, he'll interpret it however he wants. He may even get aggressive.
I quickly put my thoughts in order. There were two contenders for Baekho's alleged lie detection ability. One gave him the ability to distinguish between true and false, and the other only identified lies. You could argue that they were the same thing, but they were completely different because of the gift he had of Auril Gavis. If I had this last ability and his dexterity did not react to my words, I would accept anything he said as truth.
...you might even be able to figure out what essence it has.
It didn't take me long to make a decision. «I'm not Bjorn Yandel», I responded, my eyes fixed on his.
Baekho giggled. «Really? What a shame».
From his voice and expression, he didn't seem to doubt me. Thanks to that, I was able to identify one of the many essences he must have taken. After all, if it had been the first choice, I wouldn't have been able to accept my statement so easily. It would have been natural for him to wonder why something I said couldn't be classified as true or false.
Well, I expected it, since I didn't doubt anything I said before, but this confirms it.
With this, he had identified a way to gain an advantage in conversations with Baekho. But I wasn't satisfied with that alone. «Can I ask you a question too?»
«Yes, well, give and receive. You can ask».
I immediately got free rein to ask a question on my own. I took a moment to think about it.
«Aren't you going to ask?».
There were mountains of questions I wanted to ask.
When are you going to use the Renaissance Stone you are rumored to have? How did you join forces with the Fallen Scholar?
The...
«That woman is now Baekho Lee's teammate».
Why did Clown say Missha is his teammate? Where is Missha? How the hell did he cheat on her?
I swallowed the many questions I wanted to ask right now. The moment he did, he would show even greater interest in me than he already had. Now was not the time. After all, he had no idea how he would react when I told him it was Hansu Lee. I still didn't know what kind of dots this guy was connecting.
«Baekho Lee», I said, and he laughed at my best attempt to pronounce his name like a local. «Since we're talking about Bjorn Yandel, let me ask you this».
«What is it about?»
«Why did you spread the rumor that Bjorn Yandel is an evil spirit?».
Baekho's mouth tensed slightly. «You... Did you already know who he was?»
«Of course. You're famous».
«Really? Well, anyone seems to know me these days». Baekho was momentarily taken aback by my question, but did not seem suspicious. «Anyway... I guess Blood Spirit managed to find out, huh? That I was the one who started that rumor».
«So, your answer?»
Baekho tapped his waist with a finger, pondering my question.
«His comrades are coming».
However, before he could say anything, the Fallen Scholar spoke, having finished storing the essence in a test tube. Baekho's expression changed accordingly. «Really? So I guess we have to bounce».
«Is it even necessary?»
«It would be annoying to run into them. Maybe not for me, but I'm sure they'll go after your weapons. Kitty said it: don't touch her former teammates».
«But how will he be able to find out what's happening here?».
At Fallen Scholar's words, I reflexively grabbed my hammer tighter.
Just then, Baekho's cheerful smile fell and his cheerful voice cooled. «...Grandpa, don't go overboard».
«...It was a joke. I will use a Multi Teleport spell».
Although that relieved me, it also made me angry. «Kitty» had to refer to Missha. I was suddenly struck by a sense of loss I hadn't felt when I had only been told that Missha had become Baekho's teammate.
«Wait», I said, appeasing all my emotions. «I want you to answer my question before you leave».
«Oh, sure. You asked why I started that rumor, right?». Baekho, who seemed to have completely forgotten, glanced at Fallen Scholar. Fallen Scholar blurted out a tut and nodded.
By some reason, this dream I produce a déjà vu. I felt that I lived in a state in this very situation. Why? Why is it familiar to me? In the moment when I was asked this thought, a magical circle was formed, an alluding circle of Fallen Scholar, which emitted a blue light.
¡Shaaaaaa!
What happened?
This turn of events was so sudden that it took me a while to realize what was happening.
Is it an ambush?
Just as that possibility appeared in my confused mind, Baekho proceeded to make the most obvious performance I had ever seen. «Ah! That! Grandpa! Don't activate teleportation in the middle of a conversation! So I can't answer you! Schuitz, right? I'm sorry, I'll tell you next time I see you. It's not because it's a difficult question to answer, really. OK? Okay...»
¡Flash!
Baekho's voice faded and disappeared the moment the light came on. It was so ridiculous that I was speechless.
Aprieta.
Right, I forgot I was Korean. It had been a while since he had touched me. Since I came into this world, I was always the one playing with someone else.
No wait...
A late thought occurred to me and I quickly broke the test tube.
[The Essence of the Giant of Depths is being absorbed by your soul].
Fortunately, the essence was real.
***
[Bjorn Yandle
Level: 7
Physical: 1,461.40 (New +231.01)
Spirit: 521.3 (New +78)
Special ability: 1,807.65 (New +62.4)
Item level: 8305
Overall combat power: 5866.60 (New +371.41)
Acquired Essences: Orc Hero – Rank 5 / Ogre – Rank 3 / Bayon – Rank 3 / Storm Jet – Rank 3 / Vol-Herchan – Rank 3 / Gachabone – Rank 6 /Deep Sea Giant – Rank 3 (New)].