Fired Characters from an Idle Game

43. Folks We All Know – (3)

[Entering Dungeon: ‘Arboretum Nest’]

Hwang Jae-man and his subordinates entered the Nest. Along with a sickening lurch, they stepped into an Arboretum interior steeped in a frigid silence.

“Doesn’t seem the leader’s dead yet. Let’s hurry and strike first before he finishes clearing the Nest.”

Their purpose in gathering was, of course, to kill the Awakened Nam Ju-yeon who had entered moments before.

Murder within the Nest left no trace. The environment reset periodically, making it the perfect place to plot assassination.

However, the subordinates wore doubtful expressions.

“Um, Jae-man hyung….”

“What is it?”

“That b*stard… he’s an S-Class Awakened.”

“So what?”

Hwang Jaeman’s brow furrowed, prompting a subordinate to speak carefully.

“They say he controls two Four-Star Calamities. Even Tae-min, our big brother, only has three Three-Stars. How can we, with our strength, possibly defeat such a monster?”

“Brother, didn’t you see that video last time? He stopped a Calamity in Gwangjin District with just his own power. He’s insane.”

As if this were the signal, the other subordinates each added their own concerns.

“Shut up.”

Hwang Jaeman would hear no more of it.

“I don’t give a damn if he has two Four-Stars or is an S-Class Awakened. Does being S-Class mean bullets just bounce off him?”

“…W-well, not exactly….”

“Besides, the guy’s just some naive kid from peaceful Seoul, doesn’t know the realities of the world. We just need to teach him that lawless places have their own rules. We’ve offed a few already, haven’t we?”

“…Ugh…”

Hwang Jaeman had committed murder countless times.

To solidify his power and seize the Calamities of others.

Therefore, he expected this murder to be a simple hunt as well.

“…W-what is that?”

That was before he saw the woman with dark blue hair floating in the sky.

“A woman?”

“Are there Calamities in human form?”

“…They might exist, somewhere…”

Hwang Jaeman narrowed his eyes, focusing on the words floating above the woman’s head.

[5★ Myrien, Storm of the Northern Sea]

“…Huh?”

For a moment, he thought he’d misread it and rubbed his eyes, but the five-star rating remained.

An icy chill washed over his brain.

A sensation like his heart had plummeted into his stomach, and at the same time…

*Crackle!*

“Gaaah!”

Lightning from the sky struck down, charring a subordinate standing right beside Hwang Jaeman to a crisp.

The acrid smell of burning flesh lingered in the air.

“Damn it, goddamn it! Run!”

Hwang Jaeman bolted, his underlings scrambling after him.

[5★ Miren, Tempest of the Northern Sea, is casting skill «Black Lightning Spear».]

“Gah!”

One of the trailing underlings was impaled by a colossal lightning spear and tumbled to the ground.

His teeth chattered.

That b*tch is serious.

Seriously trying to kill everything in front of her.

Hwang Jaeman poured even more power into his footsteps, and each time he glanced back, one of his men was gone.

“Ugh!”

He summoned calamities, tossing them out as bait.

He’d thought they’d buy him some time, but they were annihilated in less than ten seconds.

Now all that was left was his own sorry hide.

Hwang Jaeman ran desperately, reaching the exit of the nest only to find…

[5★ Selene, the Scorched Saint, is watching you.]

In the blink of an eye, a wedge-shaped sword pierced his chest.

The woman, covered in burn scars, stared down at him with icy eyes, the last sight Hwang Jaeman ever saw before breathing his last.

*

“Goddamn it! Get them back here!”

Jeon Taemin, the Daegu Clan Leader, only heard the full story thirty minutes after Hwang Jaeman’s party had left.

He’d thought there was something shifty about their eyes, but he never imagined they’d plot to stab Nam Juyeon in the back.

Jeon Taemin flew into a rage and ordered them brought back, but too much time had already passed.

“Damn it, that b*stard, pretending he did something when he did nothing…”

As he stewed in fear and anxiety, a subordinate arrived with a report.

“Nam Juyeon… she’s back?”

“Yes, sir. That’s correct.”

“Hwang Jaeman and those guys…?”

“They’re nowhere to be seen.”

Suspicion hardened into dread…

“Here.”

Then came Nam Jooyeon, tossing a stack of passes onto the desk with a thud. The unease bloomed into full-blown terror.

Six passes in all.

For Hwang Jaeman and his lackeys.

“It was self-defense,”

Nam Jooyeon said it like it was nothing.

“You… killed them?”

“Must I elaborate on the manner of their demise? That’s rather morbid, wouldn’t you say?”

“…Wh-where are the… bodies?”

Instinctively, Jeon Taemin’s words became formal, addressing Nam Jooyeon with utmost respect.

Nam Jooyeon merely shrugged, responding to his groveling plea.

“Don’t fret. They received proper rites.”

Only then did Jeon Taemin register the faint scent of burnt flesh clinging to her.

He slumped into his chair, as if his legs had given way, and clasped his hands together, pleading.

“Please, spare my life. It wasn’t my doing. I know my place… How could I possibly send men to kill someone who commands a cataclysm…?”

“He’s not lying, Actor.”

The voice came suddenly, from behind him.

Jeon Taemin couldn’t bring himself to turn around.

A hand, cold as glacial ice, had already settled on the nape of his neck.

“So, Actor. What to do? Shall we kill him?”

“It’s fine. He said it wasn’t his order.”

Jeon Taemin mentally brushed down his chest several times in relief.

Thankfully, this Awakened being, Nam Jooyeon, seemed disinclined to end his life.

“Thank you, I, I will never forget this mercy for as long as I live.”

“You best not. If Actor were the man he used to be, he’d split someone like you in two and chew on your innards. Especially the heart, Actor has a fondness for those, right?”

“…Mirian, I don’t particularly recall ever doing that.”

“An example, simply an example.”

Jeon Taemin knew the name Actor but didn’t dare to ask.

Nor did he ponder the question.

Raising himself above his station would only cost him his life.

“So.”

It seemed his conversation with Mirien had concluded. Nam Juyeon perched on the edge of the desk, looking down at Jeon Taemin.

Though at their first meeting he’d seemed a harmless, meek youth, he was entirely different now. The slight tension in his lips and the furrow in his brow spoke of a man who did not regard him as an equal.

“Jeon Taemin, was it? I have a task for you.”

“W-what is it? If it’s within my abilities, I will do anything!”

Jeon Taemin hastily dropped to his knees, preparing to listen attentively to Nam Juyeon’s words.

Nam Juyeon seemed pleased by the display, offering a wry smile as he spoke.

“Firstly, take every resource your clan possesses and synthesize a 4-star piece of equipment. The item I require is an Elixir. Contact me as soon as it’s created. My number is here.”

A 4-star piece of equipment…

For Jeon Taemin, who hadn’t even glimpsed a 4-star Calamity, it was like a bolt out of the blue, but here, all he could do was acquiesce.

Jeon Taemin nodded vigorously, and Nam Juyeon raised a second finger.

“And secondly. If you find something that looks like this, contact me immediately.”

[4☆ Shard of a Broken Crown]

A rough-looking fragment.

But, undoubtedly, its 4-star status signified its importance.

“Y-yes, understood! I will dispatch my people to search at once!”

“Good. And from now on, if anything happens in the provinces, report it to me promptly.”

“Y-yes, sir!”

Listening to him, it seemed this man intended to claim the Daejeon clan as his own dominion.

Though it was abject, it was better to live on one’s knees than die standing.

Jeon Taemin forced a smile and nodded.

“Ah, and just so you know, you understand what happens if you try anything funny, right?”

Nam Juyeon picked up a permit lying carelessly on the desk, inquiring. The name Hwang Jaeman was clearly visible on the permit, stained with crimson blood.

“N-not at all, sir!”

“Good.”

Only then did Nam Juyeon, no, Actor, nod in apparent satisfaction and leave the room.

“Bye now.”

Simultaneously, the soft sensation that had been resting on the back of his neck vanished.

“Haa, haaa…”

Jeon Taemin remained slumped on the floor for a while, struggling to regain his composure.

“…Ah.”

A dampness clung to my nether regions.

*

“An exquisite negotiation.”

Selene, who had been waiting outside, offered me a gentle smile.

Whether it should be called a negotiation, or virtually extortion, wouldn’t have been strange.

“Not destroying the Nest altogether, was all to subjugate this group. I am humbled by my lord’s perspicacity.”

It was impossible to know where her genuine praise ended.

But, it was probably best to accept it with good grace.

“There’s no real reason to dismantle the Daejeon Clan. It could invite unnecessary suspicion. Better to just use them as a workshop.”

After all, Daejeon could be considered the very heart of South Korea.

If anything were to happen on the Peninsula, this place would be a strategic stronghold.

And, I’d be able to procure an elixir for Selene on the side.

“So, where are we off to now?”

Mirien, idly fiddling with a folding chair in the lobby as if fascinated, inquired.

[Calamity Reserves: 90/90]

“Well, I don’t think there’s any need to keep purging Nests anymore.”

Having annihilated the band of intruders and seized all the Calamities they possessed.

The initial goal had already been achieved.

I turned my head north.

“Let’s… return to Seoul for now.”

The next Outburst was fast approaching.

From the fifth Outburst onward, there was a low chance of a 4-Star Calamity emerging, so we needed to be thoroughly prepared.

Above all, having realized that Asteria, the Star-Devouring Queen, harbored animosity toward me, I needed to formulate a countermeasure for that as well.

And so, we headed back to Seoul, only to be confronted with shocking news upon our arrival.

[Ms. Nam Ju-yeon! Listen to this! I’m an S-Rank now!]

Bureau Chief Yoo Jun-seo had successfully synthesized a 4-Star Calamity.

That man truly was blessed by fortune.