Chapter 115: Poetic Justice (1)

Which guild did it? Or was it even a player who defeated it in the first place?

Seol Eun-Yeong's mind raced with questions.

The Church of Solaris’ influence has grown stronger? Why?

There were only two possible scenarios for such a message to appear. Either an NPC who could use holy power defeated Aosa, or a player who could use holy power defeated Aosa.

Realizing this, Seol Eun-Yeong hurriedly gave orders. “Find Aosa's corpse. Someone must be looting it. Find out who.”

“Yes, ma’am!”

The elite members of the Cheonhwa guild scattered in all directions.

Soon, the information they gathered started to flood the guild chat.

[Not sure who is doing it is, but the city is completely destroyed.]

[It really is. There's hardly a building left intact near the square.]

[It looks like a very brutal and intense battle took place.]

[Oh! We’ve found what seems to be Aosa’s massive remains!]

Upon hearing the report she had waited for, Seol Eun-Yeong quickly opened the guild chat window.

[Whose work is it? How many people?]

[Uh... well...]

There were two things Seol Eun-Yeong particularly disliked. One was dealing with slow-witted people, and the other was talking to those slow-witted people.

As her gaze turned fierce, Boyd quickly typed into the chat from beside her.

[Forget it, just give us the coordinates. Where exactly is it?]

[The coordinates are...]

The moment the coordinates appeared in the guild chat window, Boyd gently touched Seol Eun-Yeong's shoulder.

“Well then, miss, excuse me for a moment.”

“I said call me Master...”

“Teleport.”

Shwooom.

Being over level 200 and granted the title of Archmage, Boyd's skill casting was quick and clean.

In an instant, they teleported to the destroyed plaza, and Boyd whistled. “The kids were right. Whoever did this shot a full-blown Hollywood disaster movie.” Boyd tapped the debris with a curious expression and turned his head. “And... that must be Aosa. It looks a bit different from the description given by our intelligence.”

Seol Eun-Yeong didn't bother to respond and approached where Aosa lay.

Gurgle, gurgle.

The creature, leaking blue liquid, was gradually disintegrating into polygons.

It’s certainly different from our intel's expectations.

The intel department had speculated that Aosa was a small monster taking a human form. Because of this, the Cheonhwa guild had been on high alert for the Aosa raid.

We were confident since it was another human-form raid boss monster.

They thought the experience gained from tackling Veghas would be very helpful.

They believed they had arrived faster than anyone else, but someone had already beaten them to it.

And judging by the corpse...

Seol Eun-Yeong's sharp eyes scanned Aosa's corpse. Although half of it had already vanished, the overwhelming presence from its massive size was still intimidating.

Who could the one who defeated this monster be?

Seol Eun-Yeong slowly raised her head. As she did so, a man looking down at her came into view. He was illuminated by the bright moonlight behind him.

Just one person?

It couldn't be. How could a boss monster be taken down solo?

She shook her head and quickly looked around at her guild members.

However, they all shook their heads in unison; it was as if they had coordinated it beforehand.

[We’ve searched the entire city.]

[We deployed all the rangers, checked the footprints, and used search and tracking skills.]

[There were a few other users around, but they were just spectators.]

I can't believe it.

Seol Eun-Yeong shook her head in denial. If what they said was true, the man before her was comparable to Yoo Ha-Rin.

Someone else like her has appeared?

The continent of

MID Online

was vast. It was an enormous world. But even so,

MID Online

had already surpassed seven hundred million registered users!

It didn't make sense that such a skilled player could remain hidden for months and then suddenly appear out of nowhere.

In that case...

Seol Eun-Yeong examined the man's attire once again.

His armor looked sophisticated and high-quality at a glance, and his solid body radiated an indescribable aura of intimidation and confidence.

An NPC?

That was the only conclusion she could reasonably accept.

But his appearance...

No matter how she looked, he didn't seem like a Cleric or Paladin of the Church of Solaris.

Without hesitation, she asked, “Are you a player?”

The man nodded.

“Then are you the one who defeated Aosa?”

Kai glanced at Seol Eun-Yeong, then turned his gaze to the message window and gave a nod.

It was an attitude that clearly disregarded her. This instantly provoked the anger of the Cheonhwa guild members.

“What an arrogant...”

“Does he even know who he's talking to...”

“Shut up.”

Her voice wasn't loud, but it was cold and firm, striking everyone's ears.

The guild members, who had been heated, immediately fell silent at her words.

“

Tsk

.”

Seol Eun-Yeong silenced the commotion with a single word and stared intently at Kai.

He’s really rude.

However, she didn't blame him for that. After all, the best worker was the best in the workplace, and the best player was the best in games.

Instead, she no longer bothered with formalities either.

“Are you a solo player?”

He nodded.

“Which guild are you affiliated with?”

Kai shook his head while lightly tapping his clean chest.

Normally, Seol Eun-Yeong’s gaze would have turned cold at his attitude, but she admired talent.

With skills like his, a certain level of pride is understandable.

Instead, she showed an understanding expression and a bright smile. “Come to Cheonhwa. We’ll offer the best treatment in the world.”

Taken aback, Kai stopped looking at his inventory to turn to her.

Why is she inviting people to join a guild as casually as handing out restaurant flyers on the street?

Moreover, the person making the offer was no ordinary individual.

If I’m not wrong... that armor set is the Black Tiroman set. Its current owner should be Seol Eun-Yeong.

And she did look like Seol Eun-Yeong. Rumored to be the granddaughter of the chairman of Cheonhwa Group and the master of Cheonhwa guild. She was also one of the top-ranking Knight class players, famous for her excellent leadership, and one of Korea's three gaming goddesses.

But why does she look familiar... Oh, of course.

He remembered seeing her in the raid video of the King of Looters, Veghas. She was also more famous than most celebrities that there wasn't anyone living in Korea who did not know about her!

Kai decided that nodding or shaking his head wouldn’t suffice for the conversation anymore.

He slowly said, “... You don't know anything about me, yet how can you make such a blind recruitment offer?”

“Is that necessary?” Seol Eun-Yeong revealed her confident attitude. “In

Mid Online

, the only thing that represents a player is their skill. Personality, age, appearance? I don’t care about those things. The fact that you soloed Aosa is enough for me.”

As expected of someone nicknamed the Queen, she was grand and bold.

Feeling slightly dumbstruck, Kai shook his head politely. “I appreciate the offer, but I have no desire to join any guild.”

“... Yoo Ha-Rin said the same, and now you...” Muttering to herself, Seol Eun-Yeong raised an eyebrow and asked, “What exactly is your reason? Cheonhwa is as good as any of the world’s top ten guilds.”

Though mountains were high, they were still below the sky, an unchangeable law of nature. But her pride was higher than the sky itself—her pride was immeasurable. She had universal-level pride!

This is the second time

Yoo Ha-Rin and now this man. They were the only ones to reject her offer of the best treatment.

Why?

It wasn't just an empty promise; she truly could offer the best treatment in the world. She could provide a salary, treatment, and fame beyond imagination, even offering her private jet if necessary.

While Seol Eun-Yeong pondered seriously, Kai gave a concise answer.

“Joining Cheonhwa or one of the world’s top ten guilds... it wouldn’t feel like playing a game anymore.”

“Well...” Seol Eun-Yeong’s lips moved, but no further words came out.

...If they want wealth, I can give them wealth, if they want honor, I can give them honor.

However, she couldn’t offer freedom to someone who wanted it.

Cheonhwa guild was a cage she had a firm grip on, and joining the guild meant becoming a bird in her cage.

In reality, being part of a large guild meant prioritizing the guild’s interests over personal enjoyment.

Then did Yoo Ha-Rin reject my offer for the same reason?

Of course, it was something Seol Eun-Yeong could never understand. However, she didn’t feel the need to impose her thoughts on others, as her pride wouldn’t allow her to cling so desperately.

“...Well, come find me if you change your mind.”

Kai didn’t bother to answer that he would. After all, it was never going to happen.

***

Phew. Suddenly meeting Cheonhwa guild, that was a surprise.

At the same time, Kai let out a sigh of relief.

If I had been just five minutes late in defeating Aosa...

He would have had to share some of the rewards and XP points with them. He shook his head at the thought which made him shudder.

Anyway, now that the troublemakers are gone...

He couldn’t hide his smile as he scrolled up through the endless message log.

[Level increased.]

[Level increased.]

[Level increased.]

[Level increased.]

[Level increased.]

[Level increased.]

...

At level 102, Kai had defeated both the 170-level human form Aosa and the 200-level unleashed Aosa. As a result, his level had increased by a whopping twenty-one levels!

“Now this is what I’m talking about!”

𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

This was why once someone got a taste of solo play, they could never give it up!

I gained 105 stat points from killing one monster!

Of course, only Kai in the entire world would consider Aosa just as a monster.

I’ll save the stat distribution for later enjoyment.

Just imagining where to distribute the points filled him with joy.

But first, I need to check the boss rewards.

Due to Seol Eun-Yeong’s sudden appearance, he hadn’t been able to properly check Aosa’s rewards!

It was a final 200-level boss monster, so it shouldn’t have dropped trash items.

Full of anticipation, Kai carefully touched Aosa’s corpse.