Chapter 163: I am the Center of the World – 5
Thanks to the interrogations by the special agent Orochi, the circumstances behind the scheme were revealed in due time. The ones behind this was the country ‘Tsnoer’ from the world ‘Mishta’ which had experienced its 3rd Great Cataclysm and the citizens of The Netherlands who had opened the transport gate there.
The Netherlands had no strong people to speak of, and was out of everyone’s attention. Naturally, they could not participate in the two meetings that traded Vanguard’s advanced weapons.
But at some point in time, the head of the clan alliance in Netherlands miraculously reached level 85, and somehow opened a gate before scheming to steal all the items in the Vanguard auction by persuading the king of the mercenary country, Tsoner. Their conditions were to split the loot in a ratio of 8 to 2.
They probably felt that The Netherlands would no longer have any future at the rate its citizens were levelling. That was probably why they thought of such things.
Moreover, the one that helped them was the king of the mercenary country, who had experienced all sorts of battles and a 4th class thief to boot. They probably thought that there was no way they could fail.
Of course, they were all massacred by Yu IlHan, and failed in executing their plans.
“I can understand why people may think that Vanguard’s advanced weapons trade is unjust and unfair, and that people may hate it. It is in fact, unjust. The choice I made, was to help strengthen the strong people even more.”
[Yes.] (Liera)
“I can understand why they might become restless; and I can also understand that they had to become stronger at any cost. This can’t be helped as humans.”
Any human had the ‘right’ to struggle for survival – he truly did think so.
However, he also thought that they had to bear the consequences of their struggle by themselves.
[It sometimes scares me that IlHan thinks like that, you’re scarily cool!] (Liera)
[This woman’s already done for. The god of love poured poison onto her brain.] (Spiera)
[Yu IlHan’s thought process is now becoming like that of a higher existences’. I don’t know whether to feel happy or sad about this.] (Erta)
The time Orochi spent extracting information was not even 20 minutes after the auction. The Netherlands would have never dreamed that Yu IlHan would have found out the culprits like this, and as such, there was no need for him to hurry.
Slowly, but surely. That was the trick to not failing.
So, he first finished all the auction related trades.
“To think we’d really acquire this sword….. Vanguard, I’ll remember it. I’ll definitely not make you regret selling this to me. I’ll bring some presents next time.”
“I’ve come to take back my items. Shit……!”
“Give me my necklace! My necklace! Ah, MiRae, hi!”
“I’ll check 350 coins worth of items.”
“So stiff.”
Yu IlHan couldn’t care less about the happiness and despair of those who either got or didn’t get the items, as he traded the items with the coins. This was also finished quickly with Kang MiRae and Ericia’s support.
“Finished!”
“Wow, so much.”
Kang MiRae was flabbergasted after seeing the items remaining in Yu IlHan’s possession after the auction.
“That’s amazing. Mr. IlHan. Really, amazing.”
“That’s true. I didn’t know I’d get so much out of it.”
With a single auction, he acquired nearly 700 4th class magic stones, as well as metalworking materials he could use in the future. Although he did expect things to become like this to a certain extent, it still was an amazing amount.
“So many 4th class magic stones……”
“Master, what are you going to do now?”
“First, I’ll need to swap out all the artifacts.
Until now, he needed to scringe and save on the 4th class magic stones he acquired, but now that he had so many it would no longer be the same. Whether it was weapons, armor, or even accessories!
Yu IlHan could stamp out uniques and legends with just 3rd class materials and magic stones. With this many 4th class magic stones, he had the confidence to decorate himself with legendary equipment in every possible slot.
And with these magic stones, which would obviously have enough left over……. yes Yu IlHan spoke to Kang MiRae, who had an even deeper expression than him, while looking at the profits.
“You helped me out a lot this time. If it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t have sold the items so efficiently, or could have made such a large profit. Thanks a lot.”
“Not at all! As I said before, it is thanks to you that a lot of chaos died down and the people became safer….. It was all possible because you listened to my opinion and helped me.”
Answered Kang MiRae in shyness. She felt like she could fly into the air right now, but she was forcing herself to think that it was a sense of satisfaction from doing her job 120%.
And Yu IlHan’s unexpected blow struck her heart.
“No, it was very good since the annoying matters were reduced thanks to you. Since things became like this, I’ll make a new accessory, what would you like?”
“Sorry!?”
An accessory, by Yu IlHan himself? Kang MiRae looked at the thin, white fingers on her hand, and abruptly raised her head. There was also her cheeks, to which tomatoes would acknowledge as ‘Unni!’ 1
“It, it’s really fine! I’ve already received so much, if I receive any more, I wouldn’t be able to raise my head anymore……”
“Yap.”
Kang MiRae was waving both of her hands in refusal, when a woman appeared from her back and grabbed those hands.
“Kyak.”
“Huh.”
Just as when both Kang MiRae and Yu IlHan were blinking their eyes in surprise, the culprit extended Kang MiRae’s hand in front of Yu IlHan’s eyes, while saying –
“A ring would be nice. A ring that matches MiRae’s white and pretty fingers.”
“Oh, definitely, she has such beautiful…… huh? You two know each other?”
“…….Your Highness.”
Kang MiRae, who finally figured out who the culprit was, sighed and pushed her hand away.
“You’ve seen her before, but I’ll introduce her again. This is the first imperial princess of the great empire of Palladia in the world I was sent tot.”
“I’m Irma An Ill’ta. Let’s be friends from now on! And please call me by my name from now on.”
she spoke in fluent English, while extending her hand towards Yu IlHan. Yu IlHan also replied in fluent English.
“I’m Yu IlHan. I don’t have any intentions on being friends with you so please never call me by my name only.”
“Aren’t you a strong enemy!?! How are you so similar to MiRae in this respect? Wait, are you two close because you’re like that?”
“Your Highness, please get off me.”
Irma An Ill’ta was a fair-looking lady with blond hair, that looked like she had never touched a drop of water in her life. Moreover, her two round eyes looked pure when said positively, and idiotic when put badly.
Seeing how such a person was screaming ‘kya kya’ while clinging to Kang MiRae, Yu IlHan couldn’t help but smile as she rather resembled Na YuNa. Why was Kang MiRae so popular with such women.
Just as when he was thinking that, the imperial princess threw a sharp question.
“The one who killed the ones outside was you, Mr. Yu IlHan, wasn’t it? Even though I look like this, I’m skilled enough in magic to read such traces!”
“I have no intentions on hiding it. On Earth, only I am capable of such a feat, so I can’t even hide it anyway. Did you come here to ask about that?”
“No, it’s not that…… but why is your face turning rotten like that so suddenly?”
Was it that unpleasant to talk with her!? – The imperial princess was slightly shocked on the inside, but the reason why Yu IlHan’s expression turned rotten was because he had found the figure of Na YuNa who was running over here with a bright smile on her face.
Her chest made pendicular movements whenever she moved around violently, putting Yu IlHan’s heart in a difficult position, but what was even more difficult was her existence itself.
‘There’s nothing more frightening than two Na YuNas in the same place.’ 2
She clung to him so much nowadays even without this, saying that it was unfair that he only hung out with MiRae. Yu IlHan hated her, whether it was her four-dimensional actions, speech, and mysterious wishes, as well as her childish actions.
So, Yu IlHan decided to ditch whatever ‘slowly, but surely’ he had in his mind, and decided to leave this place right now.
“I have something I need to look into, so I’ll take my leave first. Ericia, I’ll be back soon, so clean up and rest. Oh, Miss MiRae, I’ll make the ring soon so please wait a little.
“Sorry!? R, ring? No, I-!”
While Kang MiRae was at a loss of what to say in panic, Yu IlHan extended his Ruin Calling.
“Oh my, how cool. Just what is this……”
“Hup!”
The moment Irma An Ill’ta blinked her eyes in surprise due to encountering such a weirdly shaped pair of wings, Yu IlHan jumped on the spot and disappeared. He had leaped several kilometers into the air in a blink of an eye!”
“Wao!”
Na YuNa, who arrived a step late, exclaimed in her usual banter.
“He ran away because he’s embarrassed to see me, didn’t he? How cute!”
“……That’s one optimistic view you have there.”
Kang MiRae, who finally regained her calm now that Yu IlHan was gone, lightly pushed the imperial princess away, and straightened her clothes. However, her expression contained a slight satisfaction. It was cute how she was straightening her sleeves without showing it.
“You need to thank me, no?”
The imperial princess, who would never such an expression, spoke in a teasing tone. Kang MiRae snorted with a hmph, and replied as if nothing had happened.
“If it’s not a ring for the ring finger, there’s no meaning in it.”
“Oh? You already thought that far?”
“Uh!”
Kang MiRae’s cheeks instantly reddened like a volcano about to erupt. She took a severe blow this time.
“What are you two talking about?”
Asked Na YuNa in a naïve voice. Kang MiRae refused to speak, and the imperial princess whistled, and Ericia, who watched the process throughout the entire time, snorted.
In Ericia’s view, not to mention Kang MiRae, all three women in this place were not worthy of Yu IlHan.
No, in the first place, it was funny how Kang MiRae thought of Yu IlHan as a potential lover. There was such a large disparity in strength, and she couldn’t understand why human tradition brought morals, society and whatnot to place everyone on the same level.
What about the wolfkin Ericia? After the complete defeat whether it was in simple fighting power, or strategy, Yu IlHan was a target of idolization and servitude. She would follow whatever he orders her to do, and he would give her a reward if she satisfied him.
Although it would be thankful if he bestowed a blessing to Ericia for the future of wolfkin, she would never ask for one herself. That was natural.
So, she had to do what he ordered her to do, to the best of her abilities.
“I’m going to clean up here and go. What are you going to do?” (Ericia)
“I have something to consult Mr. IlHan about, so I’m going to wait. I’ll help out while I wait, Ericia.” (MiRae)
The two capable women immediately found work and began. Na YuNa and the imperial princess who were left out, looked at each other for a moment before closing their mouths. Although they were introduced to each other through Kang MiRae, they weren’t close yet.
But at that time, the imperial princess shouted in realization.
“Oh yeah. I had something to talk to him about! Magic engineering!”
“Why are you bringing that up only now!”
Kang MiRae, who was incinerating the documents on the desk with lightning abruptly turned her head and shouted. A strand of lightning escaped her and made the imperial princess flinch.
“It was fun teasing MiRae, so….. I’ll wait here too.” (Irma)
“I also came here to talk to him, so I’ll wait here too.” (YuNa)
“Then please work hard while you wait. There’s a lot to clean up.” (Ericia)
Ericia Declared. The imperial princess, and Na YuNa, who hated physical labor, both took a step back, but Ericia lifted them up by the neck in no time with an even brighter smile.
She was a wolf, and she would never let go of a prey once captured.
“Please present your respect to master in action. So, work.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
While the wolf was making a princess and a holy maiden work, Yu IlHan was flying towards the Netherlands. Even New York took only 17 minutes, so Netherlands took an even shorter time.
[What are you going to do? Kill all of them?] (Erta)
“The clan alliance? Nah.”
Yu IlHan laughed as he shook his head.
“Although it angers me that they attacked the auction venue, the current situation is a lot different to Ferata. Even if I kill all of them, only the innocent people living in Netherlands would suffer due to the lack of a shield.”
[Then what are you going to do there?] (Liera)
“To steal.”
[……To steal?] (Liera)
Yu IlHan soon arrived at his destination. The gate that the Head of the clan alliance of Netherlands, opened in secret, leading to Tsoner of Mishta!
That place was strictly guarded by the members of the clan alliance, but no matter how many people there were, it was impossible to catch Yu IlHan in concealment. Yu IlHan smiled and posed himself.
“Yu IlHan, departs!”
[You really don’t get tired, do you!] (Erta)
He immediately ran into the gate. Just as when he let his body relax into the strange sensation he would never get used to, the scenery in front of his eyes became different.
Unlike Earth just before, there was a gloomy ash-grey sky. It was raining slightly, so he immediately realized that he was really transported to another world.
At that time, a voice, not belonging to the people of Earth, flowed into his ears along with the rain sounds.
“When is His Majesty coming back?”
“He was already so strong, but if he gets his hands on such a weapon…… I look forward to it.”
“Hey, stop talking.”
An even more number of people were guarding the gate, and it looks like they couldn’t help it since it was their King that had went through.
“That’s one strict guard.”
[It looks like it was done in secret.] (Erta)
What good was having guards, when they couldn’t even see a single Yu IlHan. Yu IlHan waved at them while exiting that place.
The place the gate was placed, was inside a giant castle made for warfare. This castle was like a symbol of the mercenary country where the king took care of what little administrative affairs there were.
“And there’s also a secret treasure vault too.”
[How did you know that?] (Liera)
“Our proud Orochi found that out.”
[Krrrrrrr. That’s nothing.] (Orochi)
Ignoring Orochi, Yu IlHan quickly found his way to the treasure vault, and entered after breaking through the front door. Although he made a loud noise, there was no concern. Unless he attacked someone and failed to kill them, his concealment would not wear off!
“Wao.”
The treasure vault was full of glittering precious metals. Not only that, there was also a large amount of precious metals unique to this world, which made Yu IlHan nod in satisfaction.
“Was this some thief country and not a mercenary country?”
[Well, there’s not much difference between the two. Oh, that necklace looks pretty.] (Erta)
[IlHan, I want that crystal ring over theeere!] (Liera)
“Yeah, yeah.”
With this much, they could have taken a unique rank without difficulties even if legend rank was pushing it a little. Well, human greed always brought doom upon them.
Well, since Yu IlHan had made a huge profit thanks to it all was good. He transported everything inside the vault into his inventory. Remote collection’s action time! Concealment and remote collection. Now that was the ideal thief skill set.
“Good, I’m done.”
[I thought I was looking at disappearance magic and not remote collection.] (Liera)
What was just as important as quiet infiltration and quick work, in the line of thievery, was quick retreat. Unlike the poor skills of the thieves that infiltrated the auction venue, Yu IlHan perfectly robbed the entire place, and left that place while still in concealment, until he reached the gate.
“Well then.”
Checking the figures of the warriors waiting outside the gate without even knowing what happened inside the castle, Yu IlHan stepped half into the gate, before throwing the Tsoner kings’s head that had been in his inventory.
The head flew quite far and smashed into the castle walls with a ‘splat’, and the people immediately found out the identity of the person whom the head belonged to.
“Th, His Majesty the King has…”
“His Majesty died!?”
“Just what… Who could kill him when he reached the 4th class…….!”
“No, this must be a fake. This is a fake!”
Now, from now was the real deal – Yu IlHan thought while jumping into the gate without hesitation.
A portion of them would come over to The Netherlands in rage, and at that time, Yu IlHan would be able to decide on his further actions according to the reactions of the clan alliance.
He would probably have no choice but to kill someone. If it was possible, it would be good if as little blood was shed as possible, but now that the pimple was popped, he had to squeeze out all the stuff! Yu IlHan thought that this was the most foolproof method.
“Oh, well then. Should I confiscate the mass-supplied weapons in Netherlands first?”
[I don’t even get who’s the bad guy now.] (Erta)
The people of Tsoner reacted more violently than Yu IlHan had thought – all the forces guarding the gate, as well as the military inside the castle invaded Earth!
Netherlands panicked, and the clan alliance panicked even more. They didn’t know why those people were reacting so violently, but there was no one to explain. Like that, everyone was sucked into chaos.
The Netherlands incident only calmed down after 11 hours passed.
The actions of Netherlands, the clan alliance, as well as Tsoner, became known to everyone in the world, and after that, gates connecting to Mishta no longer opened on Earth.
Vanguard had confiscated all of the weapons sold to the Netherlands, and declared that they would have no further interactions with the country and its main clans, resulting in many people residing in Netherlands seeking asylum in other countries.
Moreover, since the clan alliance, the core faction that protected the country, was doomed, Netherlands soon failed to hold up its functions as a country and met its downfall.
A completely intact country falling into the depths of history, while trying to scheme against Vanguard, became a frightening warning to the other countries on Earth. They realized that anyone would be f*cked up if they tried to touch Vanguard.
That was the moment when the order of the world was clearly engraved into everyone.
Author’s notes
“I’m tired of killing people now….. I’ll kill countries instead!”
A premonition of a new quest (3)
Translator’s notes
Sorry to the readers in Netherlands if this offended you in any way.
And man, that was a long chapter.
1/6 chapters
1. i.e. redder than a tomato
2. Maybe three Na YuNas…