Pick me Up – Chapter 267 – Golden Legacy (1)
I opened my eyes and saw a familiar ceiling.
It was the bedroom of my personal quarters on the fifth floor of the Lobby.
There were no traces of the explosion that had completely destroyed it.
When I returned from the Dimensional City, the damaged facilities were completely restored, as if nothing had happened.
Anything did not impose any sanctions on me.
He simply filled the newly built display cases with sculptures. As a result, a large sum close to a million gold disappeared, but Anything did not hesitate. Even when the Lucette ship was half-sunk or when I failed my promotion mission.
Of course, some things changed.
After changing into casual clothes, I looked at my left hand.
The black ring that I always wore on my finger had disappeared without a trace. The Ring of Darkness. It was a badge of Loki that Yurnet had made and gifted to me. Thanks to the abilities of this ring, I used to communicate with Yurnet.
‘…….’
In the early morning, the Master was not connected.
I drank some water and went down to the Training Ground in the backyard.
As I opened the backyard door, wham!
The sound of an arrow hitting the scarecrow could be heard.
“You’re a bit late today!”
Jenna, dressed in sportswear, was practicing archery.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m practicing here. The air is good, or something like that.”
Ping!
An arrow pierced the left side of the scarecrow’s chest.
I sat on a wooden bench.
“If you have something to say, say it. I don’t like beating around the bush.”
“No, I just wanted to come…”
“Are you here because of yesterday? Because you’re curious about my identity? I don’t feel like beating around the bush. It’s exactly as you think. Although you probably already imagined it.”
Ping!
Jenna’s arrow pierced the exact center of the already embedded arrow.
Silently, Jenna prepared for the next shot.
“Any other questions?”
Jenna did not seem surprised at all. Sure, it’s not like we’ve been together for a short time. There were many moments when she could suspect my identity, so she probably already expected it. She pretended to be unaware so as not to worry me.
“……Master.”
Jenna murmured.
“You were a former Master. The people we saw that time were your subordinates when you were Master.”
“Yes. I trained them to the extreme.”
“So you already knew everything. How to complete missions, how to become stronger. It always seemed incredible to me. Because there was nothing you didn’t know.”
“Are you disappointed?”
“No, not at all.”
Jenna put away her bow.
Then she approached and sat in front of me.
“You weren’t from Taonier. You had another place of origin. Is it Earth?”
“Yes. I’m not from Taonier.”
Jenna stood up.
She spoke with her back to me.
“That sister went too far. Threatening you for no reason. She is not fit as a subordinate. If it had been me, I would have done it really, really well. I should have been the one summoned there.”
“I don’t know.”
“I won’t ask you more questions. I don’t want to give you a headache. Just one more thing.”
Jenna turned towards me and pointed her finger at me.
“I’ll teach that arrogant girl a lesson. Somehow. I can’t live with that. Is it okay?”
“You’ll teach her a lesson?”
“She seems very strong… but if I try hard, don’t you think I can surpass her?”
“Don’t you know who she is…?”
Jenna moved her index finger.
“I know. I’ve heard of her in Niflheim. Siris the invincible! But since she’s someone like me, I think if I try hard, I can surpass her. Wait and see! I’ll show her the power of a genius.”
“…….”
“Then, I’ll continue with my training. Rest well today and don’t get distracted. Don’t forget that, no matter what you do, I’ll always be by your side.”
Jenna lightly jumped over the backyard fence and disappeared.
I let out an incredulous laugh. Was it a difference that could be overcome with effort? I don’t remember training Siris so loosely.
The fact that I was a Master.
That I was summoned from somewhere else and not from Taonier.
Jenna didn’t ask more.
‘I don’t know if she does it out of consideration or because she doesn’t like complicated things.’
I smiled.
It’s hard to know.
But one thing is clear.
‘I’ll teach her a lesson.’
It was a ridiculous idea.
No matter how talented Jenna was, she couldn’t compare to Siris.
I had seen it in person. That girl should also know the difference. She couldn’t not know it.
Even boasting has a limit.
Siris is the result of all my combined efforts and research.
She is not someone who can be surpassed simply with talent or luck.
‘Even so, she says those things.’
Surpassing that girl is the same as surpassing my former self.
“…….”
I stabbed the Bifrost into the ground.
“Who’s watching me?”
In the empty backyard, I murmured standing.
“Don’t stay there, come out. I know you’re there. It’s not Siris or Yurnet. It doesn’t fit Lidygion or Nihaku either. So, there’s only one person left.”
I turned around.
From the bushes in the corner of the backyard, a shadow moved and a small boy walked out.
A boy with a well-fitted cap and violet eyes looked at me from under the brim.
Muden Nidelk.
“He noticed me.”
“Did you think I wouldn’t notice?”
Obviously, I’m not strong enough to perceive the presence of this boy.
I just thought logically. It was expected that there would be a watcher since this is supervision.
“What’s your role?”
“Protection and surveillance.”
Muden responded coldly.
“You weren’t supposed to get along with Siris.”
“Tch, I also hate this kind of work. We should have changed the submaster a long time ago. That kid’s super special move was about to be completed.”
Was he referring to Aaron?
It seems he’s doing well.
“It seems you also know what’s on server 1.”
“I know. Siris told me. Honestly, I don’t care much, but she insisted so much that I had no choice. I was dragged almost by force.”
Muden let out a laugh.
“Don’t expect my help, Master. I don’t like you. I was sacrificed many times saying I had no talent. You should have moderated a bit.”
This boy is basically cold and rational.
In the first battle, when his companions died, he didn’t panic. Siris also assigned him the task of surveillance due to this attitude. It’s unknown what the other three might do.
“Do as Siris says. Complete the mission and return to Earth. We’ll take care of external obstacles. With your abilities, you can do it. You’ve set an impressive record. You reached the 60th floor in less than half a year.”
Muden sneered.
“Thanks to you.”
“Really?”
“Are the other guys also listening to this?”
I didn’t know if he was hiding or really didn’t know.
I continued talking.
“First, I want to thank you.”
“……?”
“If it weren’t for you, it would have been much harder. Thanks to you, I reached comfortably. Seriously. I quickly resolved the nuisances and easily became stronger. If I hadn’t had your help, I would have had to take a much longer path. I rode an incredible bus. I didn’t know having support was so good.”
I pulled the Bifrost from the ground and let it hang.
“But I wasn’t your king.”
It was an illusion.
An unexpectedly generous deal. They treated me with full devotion and gave me all kinds of benefits. Those who only considered me as a simple piece of data. It would have been a lie to say I wasn’t carried away by that.
‘I lacked.’
I knew them as game characters, but not as people.
That was the difference between El Cid and me.
‘Did Tel trick me again?’
El Cid told me that the heroes of Niflheim followed me completely.
I couldn’t say anything either. I hadn’t followed them completely either. I only received help unidirectionally and rarely returned the favor.
I received so much help that I couldn’t even count it.
As a result, without Niflheim’s intervention, I would have suffered great losses in the fight against the rankers. They only made one request.
‘I should follow it.’
From a moral standpoint.
“Muden.”
“Yes?”
“Go back.”
Muden looked at me as if he couldn’t believe it.
“Are you crazy?”
“Won’t you go back?”
“Of course not. From the beginning……”
I held the hilt of Bifrost backward.
The target was the left chest.
I deactivated the black dragon scales and stabbed with all my strength.
“Damn it!”
At the last moment, Muden appeared next to me and grabbed the sword.
A second later, I would have been lying with blood spurting from my heart.
“Are you crazy, Master?!”
Clang!
The Bifrost flew out of my hands.
Muden spoke through gritted teeth.
“Do you know that if you die, Niflheim……”
“Will disappear.”
Even if I, as Master, were absent, Niflheim could survive at least 10 years.
If we interpret it another way, it means Niflheim’s lifespan runs out without me.
“If you don’t want to be tied and locked in a cell, don’t do this again.”
“Then I couldn’t complete the mission. How do you plan to send me back to Earth?”
“You’re crazy.”
Muden drew his weapon.
The dark spear, Ruin.
“Judge coldly. This is for your own good.”
“That’s your opinion. I was brought here by force, and now you want to throw me out like nothing. I can’t accept it. I make my own decisions. Whether to cause trouble here or go to sleep on Earth. Don’t force me. If you can’t accept it…… I’d rather die.”
I let out a smile.
“With your power, you can stop me here. How far can you go? Can you follow me in missions being a subordinate of Niflheim? What if I commit suicide during a mission?”
“…….”
“You don’t need to pressure me to complete the mission. I’ve already decided. Don’t comment on anything else. I have the right to decide my destiny. I won’t give it to anyone.”
“Is……”
“Different from when I was Master?”
I took a step forward.
The spear’s blade grazed my chest slightly.
He was right.
Before, I would never have done something so crazy.
Risking my life in this gamble.
“Obviously, I’m no longer Master.”
Muden lowered the spear.
“Really, it’s incredible.”
“Tell Siris. If she understands, she should leave me alone and go away.”
“The Master’s life is not just the Master’s. It’s everyone’s……”
“Do you think I’ll die that easily?”
I sheathed the Bifrost.
“……Siris won’t accept it.”
“Tell her to come after I finish the climb. Then I’ll listen to her complaints or whatever. Even if they tie me up and take me to Earth, I don’t care.”
“This is madness.”
Muden grabbed his forehead.
Then, he disappeared into a diffuse shadow.
‘Did we gain time?’
I snapped my fingers.
Stardust scattered and a familiar fairy appeared.
[Has he gone?]
Iselle looked around with a scared expression.
“You should know.”
[It seems so……]
She seemed scared by Muden’s presence.
It wasn’t surprising. That boy was also a monster surpassing a common hero.
But Iselle was at level 200.
Not in combat strength, but in other abilities she was not far behind.
She can directly interfere with the server and game data.
“Open the door.”
[……Yes.]
Iselle nodded.
She began to spin her arms while accumulating energy.
[Haaa! Fairy Portal!]
Flash!
With a dazzling glow, a dimensional portal appeared right in front of me.
Without hesitation, I entered the portal.
A familiar floating sensation.
A diffuse light spread.
[※Warning!]
[Unauthorized access……]
Beep.
Iselle put her hand on the hologram and the warning disappeared.
The next thing that appeared was a small room. A small room where you could only enter by crouching, with a tidy bed, a desk, and a chair. On the wall hung a picture with my signature.
[Room#75244687]
[Iselle’s Room]
This was another dimensional plane inside the Lobby.
No one could enter here without Iselle’s permission.
[Ugh.]
Iselle wiped the sweat and waved her hand.
Finally, the portal closed.
“The object?”
Iselle pointed to the desk.
I approached and opened the drawer, revealing a familiar leather-bound book.
‘Well, it’s not perfect.’
I quickly flipped through the pages of the book.
They were torn here and there. Approximately half.
‘It took quite a bit.’
Tearing out half of the pages and making it look like a new book required meticulous work.
Fortunately, it was a thick book; if it had been a thin magazine, it would have been noticed immediately.
They had fallen into the trap.
Sure. Siris probably never saw the original book.
It wouldn’t be possible if it were completely fake, but I filled half with real pages.
I prepared it before the assassins arrived.
Just in case.
“So, have you finished interpreting the data?”
I looked at Iselle.
I made a fake copy with as many unnecessary parts as possible.
[About that……]
“About that?”
Iselle, hesitating for a moment, opened her mouth.
[The Engraving of El Cid was found.]
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