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Chapter 145: Star, Abroad (2)

After closing his book, Joachim raised his head and answered in English, “Yes, that’s me.”

His typical German accent made him look more dignified.

“M-mister Lee Chang-Sun said he’ll see you now,” the nurse stuttered.

“Ah, is that so? Thank you.” Joachim’s face brightened up for the first time in so long. He had been waiting to hear that for three days, so he was starting to get sick of just blindly waiting. When Joachim stood up, Ernst, who was waiting by his side, quietly picked up Joachim’s jacket and stood up as well.

“B-by the way…” the nurse continued.

“Is there anything else?” Joachim asked.

“Would it be okay to ask for your autograph?” the nurse requested with a bit of a reddened face, like a fan who had met a famous singer. Joachim was quite handsome, comparable to a Hollywood actor, and he acted like a gentleman, earning popularity overseas. Nevertheless, Joachim’s eyes still widened because he didn’t expect he would receive such a request in a small eastern country.

“I-if it’s too much…” The nurse lowered her gaze to the floor.

“No, not at all. Of course, I can do that for a beautiful lady like you.” Joachim made a cool autograph on the whiteboard that the nurse was holding. Watching the nurse shriek and leave, Joachim smiled contentedly, but Ernst, who stayed as still as a wooden sculpture, quietly shook his head.

“What? Did I do something wrong?” Joachim asked.

“Don’t you think ‘beautiful lady’ is too old-fashioned? I cringed so hard that I thought all my bones were going to break,” Ernst calmly replied.

“Saying that has become second nature since I grew up in a very conservative family. I can’t just get rid of it.” Joachim chuckled.

Making small talk with Ernst, Joachim went up to the eighth floor, which was where Chang-Sun was confined. There were only single rooms on the floor, and they were all limited to VIPs.

“Anyhow, I’m going to finally meet him after waiting for so long. I really hope he’s the man we’ve been expecting him to be.” Joachim smiled.

“Didn’t you already see him in the Dungeon?” Ernst asked.

“Things were too chaotic back then, so I didn’t really have a chance to talk to him and figure out who he really is. I only saw one side of him.” 3, 4, 5… Joachim watched the number inside the elevator go up. “I can’t help but hope that he’s the same man on ordinary days too, though. ”

Ernst sensed faint excitement in Joachim’s voice. Perhaps Joachim was recalling what he had seen in the Dungeon rather than actually watching the elevator go up.

‘He was certainly remarkable. My hands even sweated while watching him,’ Ernst thought.

Ernst also saw the Parasitic Tree back then, which had not only covered the entire island but also sucked as much of the ocean water as it could, reaching high up in the sky. Beyond the white sea of clouds, he also vaguely saw Chang-Sun fighting a monster that exuded powerful divinity.

They were too far away, so Ernst couldn’t watch the whole fight, but he at least managed to witness Chang-Sun violently ripping through the clouds and the sky as he fought, reminding Ernst of a deity’s messenger from the folk tales that he had heard in the past. After that, Joachim and Ernst also listened to the survivors’ stories about what Chang-Sun had done for them, allowing them to confirm that they had the right impression of him all along.

‘But he’s still not a ranker.’ Ernst smiled bitterly. ‘The world is really unfair.’

Ding!

When the elevator arrived on the eighth floor, its doors opened up.

‘Still, it all must be a part of the goddess’ plan.’

Ernst wasn’t jealous of Chang-Sun.

In fact, he respected the goddess’ great plan of recruiting a man of talent early and taking him under her wings. Chang-Sun fought brilliantly and lived up to the goddess’ expectations, so Ernst cheered for him.

‘She even sent down an oracle a couple of days ago…’?Ernst recalled.

He was certain that Joachim, who wanted to test Chang-Sun, had the same thoughts.

Knock, knock, knock.

Standing before room 803, Joachim lightly knocked, and someone allowed them in. As he opened the door wide and entered, they saw Chang-Sun, who had taken off his hospital clothes and was changing into a shirt. While Chang-Sun buttoned up his shirt, Baek Gyeo-Ul, who stood by his side, slightly bowed at Joachim and Ernst. They bowed back, and Joachim looked at Chang-Sun as he greeted him. “It’s nice to finally meet you. I’m Joachim Wolff of the Illuminati.”

“I’m Lee Chang-Sun. I heard I kept you waiting for quite some time,” Chang-Sun replied in quite fluent English. His parents were really enthusiastic about his education when he was young, which was how he learned English and became quite good at it. The skill came in handy when he became a professional gamer, but he thought he had forgotten about it when he ended up in Arcadia. He had seemingly remembered it subconsciously, however, so he had no problem talking with Joachim.

“No, not at all. Rather, I feel bad for being so persistent even though you likely haven’t fully recovered yet.” Joachim smiled gently, but he was already observing Chang-Sun.

‘He’s something else,’ Joachim concluded.

To find out what a person was like, it was best to have many conversations or stay by their side to observe them, but sometimes, a short conversation was enough to figure out who they were.

That was the case for Chang-Sun. He was charismatic, and his eyes were sharp. He looked like a giant tree that would never crumble down no matter the storm that rampaged over it. The state [Kalokagathia], which the Illuminati considered the best, referred to the unity of body, mind, and soul. The word really suited him, and that was why Joachim felt very confident about the idea he had in his mind.

“You seem to be preparing to leave the hospital,” Joachim said.

Joachim thought Chang-Sun was just going out somewhere for a bit because he was changing into a shirt, but since he had a Boston bag full of his belongings beside Gyeo-Ul, he was likely preparing to actually get discharged.

Chang-Sun nodded. “I have a business trip abroad.”

“Oh, no, you didn’t get to rest properly… I guess the White Tiger Clan’s star is truly busy. I’ll cut to the chase, then.” Joachim briefly stopped and caught his breath. He then slowly and clearly said, “Mr. Lee.”

Joachim’s eyes shone brightly. “Please become the Illuminati’s Clan leader.”

* * *

Four days had passed, and the day to fly out from Korea had come. Song Yoo-Jun was driving the limousine to the Incheon International Airport. On the Yeongjong Bridge, Gyeo-Ul nervously said, “…Hyung.”

“What is it?” Chang-Sun, who was carefully wiping the [Zhan Lu Sword], turned his head when Gyeo-Ul called him.

“I’m nervous,” Gyeo-Ul replied innocently with a serious expression, making Chang-Sun chuckle. Gyeo-Ul pouted. “Ah, hyung! I’m really serious.”

“Yeah, I know. I know.” Chang-Sun nodded.

“… It looks to me like you don’t,” Gyeo-Ul mumbled.

Since several days ago, Gyeo-U had been really tense because he was so nervous about leaving Korea for the first time. Although he usually had big guts and wasn’t easily fazed, getting on a plane seemed to be the exception.

“Can airplanes really fly? I still don’t get how a lump of metal can fly in the air… Arghh…I can’t do anything inside it but let the plane take care of everything…”

“By that logic, how can a car move and a boat float around?” Chang-Sun asked with a chuckle.

“Urggh… You’re right, but…” Gyeo-Ul covered his face.

Although he had no problem chopping up hideous monsters, getting on a plane seemed to be a completely different matter for him. Chang-Sun wasn’t sure how to calm Gyeo-Ul, so he just turned to look at the [Zhan Lu Sword] again, thinking Gyeo-Ul would be able to overcome his fear on his own.

Oong, oooong!

The [Zhan Lu Sword] lightly trembled as if it was reacting to Chang-Sun.

[The Affection of the ‘Zhan Lu Sword’ toward you has increased!]

[The Affection of the ‘Zhan Lu Sword’ toward you has reached a certain level. You can now access a part of its memory.]

‘Using it is really tricky,’?Chang-Sun thought. He had been staying in the hospital for the past week, saying he was too sick to see visitors so he could be free from external influences and analyze the [Zhan Lu Sword] further. Chang-Sun had found the [Zhan Lu Sword]’s abilities to be quite handy in the Changgwi Cave. It was also durable and sharp-edged, living up to its title of a Fine Sword.

Its Effects, [Dignity Creation] and [Domination Enhancement], were also quite good. They artificially made his mana heavier to the point where releasing it alone could already pressure the enemies. The problem was that those were all of its abilities that Chang-Sun could use, so the sword lacked in some—no, in many aspects to think of it as a relic that even the ‘Gemini’ had wanted.

In contrast to the [Yuchang Sword], which revealed more of its ability when its friend showed up, the [Zhan Lu Sword] didn’t try to reveal any more of its secrets, so Chang-Sun had to keep trying to find out more. However, whenever he did, he got a message that told him to raise his Affection points with it. In the end, Chang-Sun inevitably put a lot of effort into that while he was in the hospital.

After conducting several experiments, Chang-Sun found out that the [Zhan Lu Sword] liked to be respected. In contrast to the [Yuchang Sword], which was also known as the ‘assassin’s sword,’ the [Zhan Lu Sword] was the symbol of kings, which could be why the swords’ personalities differed. It naturally liked being revered since a king was a supreme person.

‘It’s just like raising a cat,’?Chang-Sun thought, feeling like he was raising a snooty one at that.

Regardless, Chang-Sun required the [Zhan Lu Sword]’s abilities, so he did his best to continuously raise his Affection points with it little by little. The new message told him he could now access a part of its memory, so he infused his mana into the sword, hoping something would happen.

Ting!

However, his mana was bounced back as if the sword pushed his hands away.

[The mana infusion has been canceled.]

[The ‘Zhan Lu Sword’ has refused to acknowledge you as its master.]

For a moment, Chang-Sun got really annoyed. ‘… Should I just break it?’

If he reassembled the sword again afterward, it might finally listen to Chang-Sun. He didn’t actually plan on carrying out that idea, but he did get quite angry at the snooty sword. As the ‘Divine Twilight,’ he had held numerous relics and treasures, but he had never experienced handling such a tricky weapon.

‘No, maybe it’s natural for the sword to react this way,’?Chang-Sun contemplated, changing his mindset and reminding himself that he wasn’t the ‘Divine Twilight’ anymore, who had acquired the [King of All Weapons]. Ou Yezi’s Nine Fine Swords were treasures among treasures, and even the Celestials coveted them. Hence, it was only natural for it to be very difficult to be ‘recognized’ as its master.

In fact, he had only been able to unlock the [Yuchang Sword]’s seal because he made it compete with [Tiamat’s Snaggletooth], which was Taotie the Devil Blacksmith’s masterpiece. Considering it wouldn’t have been easy to unseal those swords under normal circumstances, he would require a lot of time to make the [Zhan Lu Sword] accept him as its master.

‘If it rejects me even after I’ve done everything I could, I might have to seriously consider snapping it in half or throwing it into a smelting furnace.’?Chang-Sun concluded.

Perhaps because Chang-Sun looked at it coldly, the [Zhan Lu Sword] felt incoming danger and fiercely trembled.

‘Anyhow, Minerva is truly something else. She could have asked me to return it, but she readily let me have it,’?Chang-Sun thought as he recalled the conversation that he had with Joachim several days ago in the hospital.

“The goddess sent us a new oracle,” Joachim said.

He also delivered some news when he asked Chang-Sun to become the Illuminati leader.

“An oracle?” Chang-Sun repeated.

“Yes. The goddess usually sends us oracles that are full of metaphors and analogies, but it’s different this time,” Joachim said.

“How so?” Chang-Sun asked.

“It was clear that the oracle was meant for you, Mr. Lee.” Joachim smiled.?

?

With an expression that was full of respect for his goddess, Joachim, her devout follower, continued to talk with admiration that Chang-Sun could really not understand.

“She said, ‘Take what belongs to you, for it is the only gift that I can give you, who has become my friend. I will continue to always be the closest to you,’” Joachim said, sounding mesmerized.

?

‘A friend, huh.’ Chang-Sun faintly smiled.?

Chang-Sun screwed over the ‘Gemini,’ who tainted her divine ground, so the oracle meant Minerva now considered Chang-Sun as a comrade, which made him feel awkward yet fresh. The Celestials he knew never used the word ‘friend’ to describe a mortal, thinking they would appear less dignified.?

However, Minerva didn’t seem to care about it one bit. That gave him a rough idea of why she remained respected and praised by her numerous followers for generations. However, her followers understood the oracle in a completely different way.?

?

“Doesn’t ‘be the closest to you’ mean she wants you right by her side?” Joachim asked elatedly.?

?

“The person who stands by her side understands the goddess the best, a person who can be an apostle and leader that would speak for the goddess and lead us,” Joachim continued.?

?

“Mr. Lee, that means the goddess wants you to lead us, the ignorant lambs.” Joachim smiled.

?

Joachim looked as if he had zero intention to back down as he spoke, much like a devout fanatic. Hence, Chang-Sun felt Joachim wouldn’t give up even if he refused the offer. After their conversation, Chang-Sun realized that no matter how he answered, Joachim wouldn’t let him go and incessantly beg. His eyes were burning with that much fervor.

… Imagining a middle-aged gentleman begging him made him not want to ever think anymore.

1. A bridge in Korea