CHAPTER 116

-Have you gained new enlightenment?

In the dead of night, the lion statue watched Jae-Hyeok perform the ceremonial drill under the moonlight. It could no longer hold back and couldn’t help asking this question.

-Your blade now carries a different type of heat.It might seem impatient at first glance, but there is a ferocious edge to it. It feels quite good.You seem to have grown...

“Really?”

Jae-Hyeok also felt that his technique was particularly good today. There was more strength behind his sword, but it was a subtle difference, something he thought others would never notice. To his surprise, the lion statue had recognized it.

This statue has a discerning eye.

The lion statue had been in one place for hundreds of years, and according to its claim, it had watched countless boys and girls grow up to be knights. It made sense that it had an exceptional eye.

“It’s probably the effect of watching that person who’s always burning with determination.”

Jae-Hyeok reenacted his earlier sword swing. Compared to his usual style, Jae-Hyeok put more force in his back leg and lowered his shoulders slightly.

-You’re referring to Baek Do-Jin.

The lion statue immediately knew who Jae-Hyeok was talking about. After all, Jae-Hyeok visited it almost every day and shared his experiences. By now, the lion statue had memorized the names of Baek Do-Jin, Chae Da-Hee, and Park Hae-Rin as well as the members of the Shooting Club and the First Year Class B students. Sometimes, it felt like it had already met them personally.

-That child’s swordsmanship inspired you.However, bold swordsmanship naturally exposes weaknesses. You should be careful.

“Thank you for the advice.”

In fact, Jae-Hyeok knew even without the lion statue’s warning and had already accounted for the possible weaknesses. That was why he had allowed his swordsmanship to become slightly bolder; he had judged that much was fine.

-By the way, you said that child Park Hae-Rin danced a sword dance?

“Yes. I think it’s called Link? It’s really unusual.” Jae-Hyeok’s voice became a bit excited. “It’s one sword dance, but it changes so much that it looks like a completely different dance every time. And depending on her form, the buffs she gives also change.

A dancer was a rare case among buff Professions, so there was little information about them. Even Jae-Hyeok, who had played Player Manager, was unfamiliar with it. But the Profession was clearly rare.

Hae-Rin’s buffs increased the attack, defense, speed, and recovery rate of all allies according to the situation, so she was almost an all-rounder—if such a great Profession were common, there would be noticeably fewer people killed or injured in the gates.

-Link?

The way the lion statue repeated the name of the Skill piqued Jae-Hyeok’s interest. “What, do you know of it?”

The lion statue sneered.

-Didn’t you say that Link gave buffs?

“So?”

-Then no. I don’t know it.

The lion statue changed the subject as if it was uninterested in discussing it further.

-By the way, the number of times I’ve smelled that foul stench has been increasing recently.

“Really? Has the nearby orc habitat been completely occupied by a high-level monster?”

A monster’s body odor was far more pungent than a wild animal's. And the bigger the monster, the worse the odor, which was why Jae-Hyeok speculated that it was a high-level monster. After all, most large monsters were also high-level, as the relationship between size and strength was roughly proportional among monsters. A good example was the ogre that Jae-Hyeok had killed.

-What’s the point in asking me?You should go investigate and report back to me.

“Uh, that’s true.”

Jae-Hyeok nodded obediently. This wasn’t an issue to be taken lightly. If I can find the source of the problem and take care of it, then I should.

The lion statue couldn’t move even a step away from this place, and now it had to suffer from an unidentified stench. The satisfaction in its already boring life would drop exponentially.

Jae-Hyeok came down from the stage and crossed the red line marking the border of the restricted area. As he drew toward the dark forest, he felt his senses tense up.

This was a dangerous area that students were prohibited from entering.

From here on out, he was no longer in Lion’s Castle, but Pearl Island. He was entering the wild ecosystem of the super-large gate

Come to think of it, I haven’t seen any orcs lately.

Looking back, they were really lucky.

Because he hadn’t wanted to awaken at the time, Jae-Hyeok had initially avoided killing the orcs, only beating them to the brink of death. Later, after a few more visits and a few more beatings, the orcs had become very obedient. They still visited Jae-Hyeok when he came to train, but they no longer attacked and only quietly watched.

Did they get eaten by that monster?

Jae-Hyeok’s heart became a bit bitter as he remembered those orcs’ dazed faces. It wasn’t that he felt bad for the monsters, but...

It is okay to feel some pity.

Even a fleeting connection could feel heavy.

Jae-Hyeok’s expression distorted as he came to a realization. If people could even feel sympathy for monsters, what did that say about the former vassals of the Kang family, who so easily turned their backs on Duke Kang and only cared about themselves?

Were they all sociopaths?

I don’t really understand it.

Those people had once filled the Kang estate and stood with them like a single family. How could the proud warriors of the Kang family, who had once worn a hwando at their waist, end up like this?

Jae-Hyeok’s eyes gradually darkened in anger, but he suddenly regained his calm. A stench far worse than how the lion statue had described it wafted into his nose.

Jae-Hyeok focused his senses, searching for the source of the stench. His senses were greatly enhanced thanks to his high Insight stat, and soon, he’d scanned every degree of his surroundings.

However—

There’s nothing.

It seemed the source of the stench had already left the area, and what he had smelled was nothing more than a lingering scent in the air.

If I had come a bit sooner, I would’ve met it...

Jae-Hyeok estimated how long ago the monster had left the area from the lingering intensity of its smell, even as a chill went down his spine. The lingering smell was already so pungent. It’s definitely strong.

He felt relieved that he hadn’t met the culprit tormenting the lion statue.

This forest was originally home to orcs. However, as he traveled, he noticed there were no traces of the orcs. In fact, there weren’t traces of any other beings either.

Had Jae-Hyeok arrived a bit later, he wouldn’t have even caught that monster's lingering stench and been non-the-wiser about what kind of existence lurked in this forest.

A monster that took over a territory but continues moving around outside it?

Was there such a monster? He’d never seen anything like it in Player Manager.

Maybe I would’ve known if I had paid more money.

The so-called whale players, who spent a vast amount of money in the game, had access to top-tier content that Jae-Hyeok could never approach. Thinking of the whales, Jae-Hyeok clicked his tongue. He wondered if those people had even sold their house for the cause.

In any case, he couldn’t afford to lose all his father’s compensation money and his aristocratic stipend just to catch up with those crazy people who spent billions of yuan on the game.

And now I don’t need to.

Currently, he was a student at South Korea’s best player-training institute, Lion’s Castle. He was in a different position from the past, when he couldn’t step out of the mansion and had to rely solely on Player Manager and the Internet.

I’ll ask Teacher Kim Jin-Myeong.

If Kim Jin-Myeong didn’t know, then he could spend some points in the Community.

I could probably get the answers for free if I ask A Conscientious Merchant, Jae-Hyeok thought.However, since he had been mistaken for the Thunder Emperor, Jae-Hyeok had no intention of exposing his inadequacies to A Conscientious Merchant. After all, he planned to make use of this misunderstanding to earn at least hundreds of thousands of points in the future.

Let’s go back.

Jae-Hyeok couldn’t get any additional information after looking around, so he gave up and went back to his dormitory.

***

“Teacher, is there such a monster? This is the first time I’ve heard of it.”

The next morning, Jae-Hyeok visited the teachers’ lounge before class started, hoping for answers. However, Kim Jin-Myeong didn’t meet his expectations and even laughed.

“Jae-Hyeok, even a great aristocrat like you... no, even a student like you can sometimes get caught up in the rumors spread by the Community ghosts, huh?”

I guess I’ll have to search the Community. Although he didn’t get what he wanted, Jae-Hyeok quickly overcame his disappointment. Visiting the teachers’ lounge had brought its own benefits.

Kang Jae-Hyeok.I have to capture him.

The moment I get my hands on Kang family’s secret techniques is the moment my life turns around.

Jae-Hyeok could sense the occasional hostility and greed from the surrounding teachers. Because they were all at least B-class players, they were complacent around freshmen like him. And that careless attitude had provided Jae-Hyeok with a considerable amount of information.

Oh, so the homeroom teacher of Class F is also targeting me.

The identities of his enemies, which he’d been struggling to identify, were now revealed one by one.

It was the result of his hard work and the battles he’d fought. At his level, his Insight stat was enough to distinguish the teachers’ intent.

Just as Jae-Hyeok was still feeling proud of himself, a welcome voice reached his ears.

“A severe stench, obsession with a safe hiding place, and moving around outside of their territory—there are definitely monsters with these traits. But most commonly, those traits are seen in beastmen.”

“P-Professor Lee?” Kim Jin-Myeong jumped up from his seat. It wasn’t just him. All the surrounding teachers were flustered by her arrival.

The professor of Mana Studies, Lee So-Yeong, was a top-tier A-class player with the title of Great Master.

The teachers’ lounge was too shabby a place for someone like her to visit. The teachers were shocked.

Lee So-Yeong was staring up at Jae-Hyeok without even looking at the other teachers.

“Where did you see such a thing?”