LGHTNOVELBOOK Chapter 36
Chapter 36
0.
Seonghyeon stepped out of the capsule and headed to none other than the tax office with his older sister, Yoo Mina.
Not to handle taxes, but to register as a business owner.
Thanks to Eternal World, the number of gamers registering as business owners had surged lately.
Seonghyeon was one of them.
With the Rapid Guild offering him a substantial signing bonus and annual salary, registering as a business owner before receiving the money was the norm.
Taking the money without registration would mean paying an enormous amount in taxes.
Given the rise of gamers and guilds, the process of registering as a business owner didn’t take long.
“Hmm.”
Seonghyeon looked at his business registration certificate, feeling oddly strange.
Who would have thought he’d ever be a business owner?
It wasn’t something he’d imagined as a career path, but why not?
This was a time when you could make a living from games.
And in the world of gaming, his talent—or rather, his abilities—had proven effective.
Letting that potential go to waste would have been a bigger loss.
Seonghyeon carefully placed the business registration certificate into an envelope, along with the business account book he had just received from the bank.
Unlike him, Yoo Mina was busy making calls somewhere.
At home, she might have been the epitome of silliness, but in moments like this, she was reassuring.
“Got it.”
She ended her call curtly, prompting Seonghyeon to look at her in curiosity.
Who had she been talking to?
He didn’t have to wait long to find out.
[Notification: XX Bank Business Account – 2,000,000,000 KRW has been deposited.]
The sound of his phone’s alert drew his attention.
Checking it instinctively, Seonghyeon froze at the amount deposited into his new account.
Two billion won.
Even though he already knew the contract details, seeing the number in his account left him speechless.
His eyes trembled, and his jaw dropped.
How many 22-year-olds could say they’d received 2 billion won?
It was only a signing bonus, but they’d mentioned additional performance bonuses too.
Not to mention his annual salary of 500 million won.
On top of that, his level and evaluations would determine further bonuses.
And there was also a 10% ticket royalty.
“Can I even accept this much?”
He’d been surprised when reading the contract, but now that the money had actually been deposited, the reality hit him hard.
“Don’t freak out too much. Just keep doing what you’re already doing,” Yoo Mina said, grinning.
“Yeah, I know, but it still doesn’t feel real.”
“Ahaha! Finally, you realize your sister’s greatness! Ahaha!”
Watching his sister laugh like a fool, Seonghyeon felt oddly reassured.
To think this woman is ranked 9th in the world.
Actually, considering she’d mentioned her rank might rise soon, he should probably think of her as 8th.
Still, seeing her act like this eased his nerves.
He just needed to keep doing what he’d been doing.
Seonghyeon’s gaming goal was to follow the footsteps of Helena and Hero Hindel.
If he stuck to that path, everything would be fine.
As he relaxed, Yoo Mina looked at him and asked,
“Since we’re out, should we grab something to eat? Mom’s out today too.”
“Hmm. Sure, let’s do that.”
While he was eager to dive back into the game, food was a necessity.
He’d skipped breakfast, so he was feeling pretty hungry.
The two decided to visit a restaurant Mina mentioned, known for its popularity in the area.
Given Seonghyeon’s preference for Western cuisine, it was an easy choice.
When they arrived at the restaurant, a staff member greeted them.
“Oh? Yoo Seonghyeon?”
“Huh?”
The staff member’s voice sounded familiar.
Seonghyeon paused for a moment, then quickly remembered.
“Ah, Sujeong?”
“Wow, it’s been ages! The last time I saw you was before you enlisted! You’re out now?”
“Yeah, I guess.”
While Seonghyeon responded calmly, Lee Sujeong greeted him with evident excitement.
Then her eyes shifted to the woman beside him.
Yoo Mina, no longer acting like her usual silly self, exuded an elegant and refined aura.
Momentarily stunned, Sujeong gulped nervously.
Though Seonghyeon himself had striking looks, his sister’s presence seemed to overwhelm her.
When the conversation abruptly stopped, Seonghyeon frowned in confusion.
“Wh-Who… is she?” Sujeong asked cautiously.
Her tone suggested she’d misunderstood something.
Seonghyeon’s expression twisted in exasperation—an unusual reaction for someone usually calm and composed.
“She’s my sister.”
“Oh! I-I see! Hello, I’m Lee Sujeong, one of Seonghyeon’s classmates at university. Please, take any seat you like. I’ll be over to take your order shortly!”
“Ah, thank you,” Mina replied with a polite smile.
Seonghyeon sighed deeply at his sister’s overly poised demeanor.
Her overly elegant response only made their sibling bond more evident.
Taking Sujeong’s advice, the two found a seat.
Mina, still grinning, commented, “She’s pretty cute. I approve!”
“What are you even talking about?”
“Huh? Don’t you two have something going on?”
“…Have you ever been in a relationship, noona?”
Mina flinched, her eyes twitching.
Her own brother had just delivered a painful blow. She wasn’t prepared for this.
“…Why are you rubbing salt into my wounds?”
“Because it’s obvious you haven’t.”
“Hey! Anyone could see she’s interested in you!”
“What? No way. She’s just a classmate who hasn’t seen me in a while.”
Mina looked at Sujeong, who was now smiling at Seonghyeon from across the room.
Even someone falling off a skyscraper could see it was a sign of interest.
But her clueless brother dismissed it entirely.
Mina shook her head, deciding not to press the matter.
Everyone handles relationships their own way.
When their food arrived, Sujeong brought out an additional main-dish-level plate.
“This is on the house! Enjoy, ma’am!”
“Ah, thank you.”
Mina smiled graciously, then glanced at her brother.
“…Still think it’s nothing?”
“What?”
“Never mind,” Yoo Mina sighed, waving off her brother’s cluelessness.
Most of Seonghyeon’s female classmates had acted similarly, so it never crossed his mind that these interactions could be signs of interest.
The two siblings continued their meal leisurely and returned home without incident.
Well, almost without incident.
[S University XX Batch Classmate Lee Sujeong: Seonghyeon! We’re having a get-together with the group this weekend. You’ll come, right? Everyone would be thrilled if you joined!]
An unexpected text message arrived.
1.
In one of the second villages, Sekan Village, life carried on with a somber air.
The village had lost its elder, Gwen, a revered figure, leaving behind a subdued atmosphere.
Though it lacked distinctive features, Sekan Village followed the same pattern as other second villages, with numerous dungeons designed to encourage party play.
NPCs and players alike filled the village, making it as lively as any other.
But at the village entrance, the guards experienced something far from ordinary.
Caw—! Caw—!
“Huh, there sure are a lot of crows today.”
“Yeah, but… were there always crows around here?”
Unlike usual, crows began gathering from all directions, perching near the village gate.
The guards merely found it strange, not alarming.
After all, they were just crows.
But as the number of birds increased—dozens, then hundreds, then thousands—they began to realize something was amiss.
As the crows amassed, dark clouds rolled in, casting an ominous shadow over the village.
A chilling atmosphere gripped the air, sending shivers down the guards’ spines.
“Should… should we alert the village?”
“For c-crows?”
Even so, they hesitated. After all, it was just a flock of birds.
That was until a single, massive crow descended from the sky.
The thousands of smaller crows converged on the larger one, their cries merging into a cacophony.
Caw—! Cawwww!
The birds moved in unison, forming an undulating shadow that grew thicker and denser, eventually solidifying into a massive, mirror-like surface.
This wasn’t an ordinary mirror, though—it was pitch black, reflecting nothing but darkness.
The guards finally recognized the severity of the situation and tried to sound the alarm.
But they couldn’t move.
What… what’s happening?!
Why can’t I even speak?!
Unable to even swallow, they stared helplessly at the black mirror as ripples spread across its surface.
Like water disturbed by a single drop, the mirror’s surface shimmered.
Then, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, three figures emerged from the darkness.
Once they stepped out, the black mirror dissolved, and the ominous clouds dispersed, revealing a clear sky.
The sun shone brightly, but the guards’ attention was fixed on the three strangers.
The one in the center, a towering figure, wore a mask resembling a crow—or was it a raven?
To his right stood a man so pale he could easily be mistaken for a corpse, his body covered in grotesque stitching.
On the left, a woman clutched a doll, her empty, abyssal eyes betraying no emotion.
Gulp—
The guards swallowed hard, their throats dry.
Each of the three exuded an otherworldly presence, their appearances anything but ordinary.
It wasn’t until their eyes fell on the black robes adorned with an equally black crown emblem that realization struck.
“O-Overpalace!!”
“They’re envoys from Overpalace!!”
The clatter of weapons filled the air as they dropped from trembling hands.
Overpalace—the tower of all dark mages.
And now, its envoys had arrived in Sekan Village.
The guards, paralyzed by fear, could do little but watch as the masked man stepped forward.
In a voice as smooth as silk, he addressed them.
“Do not be afraid. We mean no harm to the village.”
His words were soft yet commanding, and the guards instinctively nodded.
They contemplated whether to alert the village chief, but the man shook his head.
“We are here for our own purpose. Go about your duties. We require no grand welcome or attention.”
With those words, the three dissolved into rippling shadows, vanishing as if they’d never been there.
The guards, left trembling, clutched their weapons tightly.
“Th-this is unbelievable.”
“To think Overpalace would come here… there must be something in this village.”
They resumed their posts, wary but determined to protect the village.
High above, standing on a rooftop, the three envoys observed the guards.
The guards had never been their concern.
Their purpose here was singular.
“This is the last village where His presence was felt,” the masked man said. “After Persville, He must have come here.”
The corpse-like man cackled, throwing his head back in a fit of unsettling laughter.
“Ahahaha! Yes! I feel it! I feel His essence everywhere in this village!”
The woman with the doll said nothing but tightened her grip on the toy.
Her reaction was unusual, but neither of her companions seemed to mind.
It was only natural given the circumstances.
“We’ll spread out to find Him,” the masked man commanded.
“Ahahaha! Excellent! I love it!” The corpse-man’s laughter grew even louder as he disappeared.
The doll-clutching woman nodded silently and faded into the shadows.
The masked man snapped his fingers, sending a horde of crows scattering throughout the village.
For a while, the man stood silently, his senses linked to the countless crows as they scoured every corner of Sekan Village.
Eventually, his gaze locked onto one particular crow.
Through its eyes, he saw a young man staring back at him with a calm expression.
The young man’s lips moved.
“Not an ordinary crow, huh?”
The masked man smirked, his voice low and ominous.
“We’ve found Him.”