Chapter 206

At the villa of Golden King Alio, the smiths and alchemists had started their work, and the next destination Seojin headed to was a building shimmering with holy light.

“Ah, you’re here?”

Merhen greeted Seojin.

He was in charge here, leading players of divine professions, such as priests and paladins.

Though they would be thrown into fierce battles later, their immediate role was naturally to heal the residents of Moonstone Village.

“Can you do it?”

“Yes, I’ve already healed one. Took some time to figure out the method though.”

“If you’ve found the method, then it’s just a matter of time?”

“It all should be done by the end of the day.”

“That’s good. Do you need to stay here?”

“It doesn’t matter. I’m not that exceptional in terms of specs. I’m just being treated as the guildmaster of Great Red.”

“Come on, then. Let’s talk for a moment.”

Merhen had been waiting just for this. His curiosity had already reached its limits. As soon as they found a quiet spot nearby, Merhen was the first to speak up.

“What’s going on?”

“Things escalated more than I thought. Looks like we’ll have to fight the Empire, and I’ve laid out the groundwork for that. Everyone just need to follow through.”

“…You say as though that isn’t the main point.”

“There’s a place called the Pantheon. In the Empire.”

Seojin explained as simply as he could.

The Pantheon, a temple built under the pretext of housing all of the gods, was essentially the same kind of place as the Tower of Babel from the Asgard era. He also mentioned that the rankers of Asgard were recorded there as lost gods. Of course, this included the major figures of the Empire he had encountered, along with the processes Seojin had been through.

“…Wow.”

The reaction was unsurprising. It was the same reaction he had when Seojin had taken on Valaran, and even back during Asgard.

“Wow, really….”

“Save your astonishment for later. There’s something else you need to know. It’s your role to control the other players.”

“That’s right. My role… What? No, that’s nonsense. With you here, why would you want me to do that? Everyone will think I’ve gone mad.”

“Why would they call you mad?”

“It doesn’t make sense! A lot of people already look down on me for taking the guild master’s position of the Great Red. They’re just letting it slide because I know you.”

“Sounds like an inferiority complex.”

“How high do you think my self-esteem is?”

“Then it’s just a matter of saying a few words, isn’t it? Seojin is performing a more important task. I will fill his vacancy as the guild master of the Great Red.”

“…”

He was right. If they wanted a more competent commander like Seojin, just revealing there was a more important task at hand would suffice. Backing down now would only be Merhen admitting that he couldn’t handle the position.

“…I’ll do it, then.”

“You have to. Who else can I trust and entrust this to?”

“That makes me feel good at least. So, what is it?”

“You know the plan to make equipment with moonstone?”

“Yeah.”

“But that moonstone isn’t just any ordinary ore. I told you I met Luna at the tower, right?”

“You did.”

“Luna has imbued something into the moonstone. Should I say she stored power in it? Anyway, when the moonstone comes into contact with divine power, that’s when it truly reveals its true nature. Comparable to orichalcum, or something like that.”

“I see.”

“Right.”

The conversation paused for a moment. Seojin waited, and Merhen pondered.

And then.

“…Wait, what?”

A belated counter question came out.

“So, when the moonstone comes into contact with divine power, it becomes a stone comparable to the divine minerals… like orichalcum?”

“Yes.”

“You said you had a lot of moonstone too.”

“I did.”

“Crazy. Really crazy. I have no other words, but crazy.”

This time, he fully understood what it entailed. To anyone else, it might be questionable, but from the moment the qualifier Seojin was attached, anything became possible.

“A massive amount of orichalcum… What are you going to do with the equipment made from it? How much will you sell it for?”

“Why sell it? I’ll be handing it out.”

“Holy… For free?”

“Obviously for free. With that alone, the overall strength will increase severalfold. The Empire is not a place where you can compete just by having a high level.”

Merhen knew this too, of course. But surely, knowing it and acting on it were two different matters.

‘How amazing, he really is incredible.’

If Seojin put the equipment up for auction and abandoned the Empire, he would hold an enormous fortune.

Just looking at the prices at which legendary equipment was traded, was enough to give an estimate.

“So…”

Merhen moistened his lips.

“We’ll all be wearing equipment made of moonstone, sorry, I mean enhanced moonstone. Doesn’t that decide the outcome already? I don’t think even the Empire could stop that.”

“In my opinion, it was given because it’s needed.”

“Needed?”

“This is that kind of game, isn’t it? There’s moonstone here, and if divine power touches the moonstone, its power is revealed? They wouldn’t have put such a setting in for no reason.”

“Who? The developers?”

“That’s right, that guy.”

Seojin gestured towards someone in the distance.

A man with striking long blond hair.

“That’s James. Who is that?”

“The developer.”

“…What?”

“Keep this to yourself. Finish up your work well. If there’s any problem, contact me immediately.”

Tap. Tap.

Patting his shoulder as if to say good luck, Seojin walked away.

After a brief pause, Merhen eventually sighed.

“Holy crap, this is absolute nuts. How deep does this go?”

* * *

James seemed to be in a good mood. At least, that was how Seojin saw it.

Usually, his face seemed a bit off-focus, but now his eyes were quite clear.

“James?”

“Oh, it’s you. What do you think of this approach?”

“Not bad. I can accept it. But I’m not speaking from a developer’s perspective. From a team’s perspective, there are some puzzling aspects.”

“Team?”

“Why are you here?”

“To see you of course.”

It was the obvious answer. Seojin shook his head.

“That’s problematic. The only people I’ve brought on board are those I’ll be fighting alongside. If I had brought everyone who just wanted to meet me, even Martini’s fleet wouldn’t have been enough, would it?”

“That’s because I am…”

“Special? Because you’re the developer? Because you designed this world?”

It was a pointed question. That was the tone Seojin used. It was sharp, not exactly friendly towards James. Of course, James was not the type to care about the mood of others.

“So you know.”

“Then, you’ll have to go back. I don’t need fans here. If you’re not helpful in this situation, there’s no reason for you to stay.”

“What are you talking about? Go back? You said it was okay if it’s this way!”

“Make notes.”

“…Notes?”

“What you were doing last time.”

“Ah.”

James took out his notebook again, the same one Seojin had seen at another location in the Pantheon.

“Even if you create a character yourself, going around declaring you’re a developer makes it meaningless.”

“Meaningless… noted…”

“Creating a character yourself means you should play under the same conditions as other users, through the appropriate stages.”

“Appropriate stages…”

“Exactly. Enjoy this world fully. Don’t come with any half-baked motives. If it’s too hard because you created it, then don’t even start the game. Why invest time in a hobby that isn’t enjoyable?”

“Alright. I’ve written it down. ‘Don’t invest time in a hobby that isn’t enjoyable.’ What else?”

The question almost seemed cheerful. Seojin sighed softly and said,

“Open your status window once.”

“Open the status window once…”

“No, don’t note this. I’m telling you to do it now.”

“Oh, right? Okay.”

James Lv. 100 has invited you to the party.

You have joined the party.

The invitation came as if there were no regrets.

Seojin checked the status window that he had opened first. His level was just about the cutoff for entering the Empire. His profession was a warrior.

‘He didn’t really tinker with anything.’

So far, it was ordinary, and there were no signs of developer privileges being abused in the equipment window.

“Did you buy all this equipment normally?”

“I spent some dollars.”

“How did you level up?”

“You of all people should know. Experience capsules are almost the only way.”

“You came here by normal means. That’s commendable… aren’t you going to note that?”

“Should I note this too?”

Grumbling, James was already filling his notebook with Seojin’s words.

“You don’t like it, but once you’re here, you teach me quite a bit.”

“It’s a basic safety measure.”

“For what?”

“To prevent you from disrupting the balance of this world.”

“Oh, balance. That’s very important. Continue.”

“So, why did you come to see me? To learn such trivial things?”

“I came for advice.”

“Now it’s my turn to ask. For what?”

“Before I answer that, let me ask you just one thing. Think of it as testing your qualifications or checking if you’re suitable for a survey. Will you answer?”

“Sure.”

“What’s the purpose of this world’s existence?”

“You’re asking about the purpose you put in it?”

“That’s not entirely wrong.”

“That’s obvious.”

James’s eyes sparkled with anticipation. Seeking advice was one thing, but coming all this way for this question was not an exaggeration. And Seojin perfectly satisfied that expectation.

“The process of imperfect humans transforming into perfect beings. A perfect being here being god, and that’s why players encounter a symbolic structure known as a tower.”

“…What does the tower signify?”

“Ascension. To prove that the current you has improved over the past you. Midgard might be a sequel to Asgard. But, well, it’s questionable whether being released later justifies the term sequel nowadays.”

“What do you mean?”

“Nothing much. It’s strange, isn’t it? If Asgard is the past, then we are moving towards the past here.”

Now, James’s face was at its brightest.

He looked at Seojin as if he had encountered the most beloved being.

“Then let me ask.”

“Go ahead, by all means.”

“What advice are you seeking?”

“What advice, you say…”

James smiled, with a smile full of pure joy. For the first time, he could share a goal he had always kept to himself, with someone else.

“I wanted to create a real world.”

He spoke as if tossing out the words.

As if it were nothing.

“A real world?”

“Do you know how much effort I’ve put into this world? I sincerely tried. But it wasn’t enough. The world may call me a genius, but even a genius can’t reach the realm of a god.”

“So, you agree you’re a genius?”

“If I’m not a genius, then everyone else is excessively stupid.”

“…I’ll concede that. So?”

With such confidence, Seojin had nothing more to say. Locking eyes with Seojin, James shared his dilemma.

“I needed possibility.”