Vol 3 Chapter 44

This guy was Caesar now. Inside THE MIST, he was just Caesar. Caesar. ...Kapros had to keep that in mind.

"Escape? Didn't you kill him?"

"He wouldn't die so easily just from taking a hit to the shoulder. Didn't you already know that?"

"What are you talking about? You threw him off a cliff."

At Kapros's question, Caesar once again lifted the corner of his mouth. It was clearly a sneer.

"That's escaping. He was probably lucky too."

"..."

As Kapros remained silent, unable to understand these words, Caesar slowly walked towards him. While Kapros looked around, ready to dodge if necessary, Caesar stopped in his tracks and stared at him intently as he spoke.

"...As I thought."

"..."

"It seems I did well to come and confirm it myself."

"...What?"

Caesar lowered his eyes and turned his body in the opposite direction.

"Let's end this boring conversation here, mage. I've seen you and confirmed what I needed to, and you've heard the answer to your question from me."

The low voice coldly announced this and began to walk away with heavy steps.

"...And one more thing. I have no intention of killing you lot midway yet, but if it becomes bothersome, I might give up, so I hope you become strong enough to make it worth fighting next time."

What? While Kapros stood there, momentarily unable to speak due to these unexpected words, Caesar turned and left through the opposite end of the alley without any lingering attachment.

"...Ha."

Only after some time had passed did Kapros's mind, which had seemed formatted, finally return, and he couldn't help but burst out in frustration.

In the end, he was the only one who got slammed, while the guy left unscathed. Why did he become so endlessly confused only when meeting that guy? It was an unavoidable problem, but that 'unavoidability' was the issue.

"Damn it... Damn it!"

What had Kapros been doing for three years? Even after returning to Korea, he had planned to simply ignore and bury the guy who hadn't come to find him as a sign that he was overcoming it well. That was certainly true at first.

But it seemed that this ignoring wasn't something he could do at will. He had realized the unsightliness of his arrogance in claiming he could treat the guy as just a relic of the past without any trouble since their encounter in MIST, but now that he had realized it so painfully again, he felt self-loathing.

He had thought he had overcome many things, but was it just a superficial shell?

Perhaps due to his mood, even his leg seemed to ache all over. As he stood there dejectedly, leaning against the wall, it happened.

Clang! Bang!

Suddenly, a loud sound of clashing metal came from the other side of the alley where Caesar had left.

***

[ ...Of course I have to cover my face, but what's this about a modeling offer? ]

"It's exactly as I said. Since your profession is what it is, the company was wondering if you'd be interested in working as the face of THE MIST. What do you think? The signing bonus can be as much as you want, of course."

[ Haha. I'm not working because I'm short on money. I started this game to enjoy it, so if I reveal my face now, what becomes of everything I've done so far? A promotion? ]

"If you're not interested, that's fine, of course. The contract due to the quest has been established, so I'll contact you again later."

- Click.

"..."

After the hologram video call ended abruptly, Yoon Seok-ho pressed his temple firmly.

"What's this? The great Branch Manager Yoon Seok-ho is having such a headache?"

As Yoon Seok-ho raised his head, Nam Mugeon, the Eastern GM of THE MIST, was standing at the door, having arrived at some point. He didn't bother hiding his gleeful expression.

"Did something happen in the game?"

Yoon Seok-ho asked, narrowing his eyes slightly, but Nam Mugeon wasn't the type to miss such an opportunity.

"Wasn't that the HW quest user just now? You said it was difficult to contact them, but you finally managed to contract them. I'm glad to see your nickname as the 'man of charm' will be safely maintained?"

"I asked if something happened... you know."

Nam Mugeon, who had been eagerly chattering away thinking he could get one over on the sly, insufferable branch manager, flinched at Yoon Seok-ho's suddenly infinitely cold and leisurely voice.

It was a voice that female colleagues who liked Yoon Seok-ho would have admired as incredibly sexy, but to Nam Mugeon, it was just the voice of a demon freshly popped out of hell.

"Ah, well..."

"...Come to think of it, did you say you had a girlfriend? Only straight?"

At those words uttered by Yoon Seok-ho with a ferocious eye-smile and a voice so leisurely it sounded gentle, Nam Mugeon almost jumped about 30 centimeters from his spot.

"W-wait a minute!"

Ignoring Nam Mugeon's cry, Yoon Seok-ho slowly rose from his seat and began to loosen his neck on both sides while slightly pulling his tie with his hand. The cracking sound was chillingly audible.

"How about we create a male scandal together?"

"Wait! Wait a minute! I was wrong, so please stop! If you're stressed, you must have many other lovers, so go to them! If my Soyoung finds out I'm working with such an outrageous boss, I'll die!"

"Outrageous boss? How dare you say that about a handsome man like me. And I don't have a lover right now. I'm urgently looking for one."

Despite saying this, Yoon Seok-ho sat back down. Nam Mugeon sighed and handed over the stack of papers he had brought.

"...What's this?"

To Yoon Seok-ho, who looked at him with puzzled eyes, Nam Mugeon pointed to the front page and explained.

"It says it's the result of the work you requested last time. They sent it directly as a document for security reasons."

"Ah... That. Thank you."

"Then I'll take my leave now."

As Yoon Seok-ho nodded and looked intently at the document, Nam Mugeon bowed and was about to leave when he hesitated and turned back.

"Oh, right."

"...What?"

"It's about the HR user's access bio records."

"Hm?"

Seeing Yoon Seok-ho's serious gaze as he immediately took his eyes off the document, Nam Mugeon scratched the back of his head but continued speaking.

"I'm telling you this just in case there's something strange, but it's not a big deal. Recently, the HR user's bio records during login have been a bit unstable. Other users also experience unstable bio records when they log in while in poor physical condition, but this has been subtly... continuing for a few weeks."

"...Is that so? I see."

"Then I'll really be going now."

Click.

Even after the door closed, Yoon Seok-ho didn't look at the documents but stared into space, lost in thought. Only after some time had passed did he seem to notice the report bundle he was holding.

"Ah, right. I had to look at this too."

After rummaging through his desk and putting on his thin-rimmed glasses, Yoon Seok-ho skimmed through the first page of the paper stack.

[ ...It is judged that those likely to have developed grudges against 'Saturn Co., Ltd.' due to its game business in Korea are primarily related to the existing game industry, which has seen a sharp decline since the opening of 'THE MIST'. In particular, 'Mage Soft Co., Ltd.' (known for works such as 'Filadia Origin', 'Lil Knight', etc.), which is considered one of the companies that suffered the most losses, has unusually been releasing consecutive interviews expressing concern about the prolonged depression in the industry related to THE MIST and calling for government measures, while there are indications that they have been directing the manipulation of negative public opinion against THE MIST behind the scenes... ]