STGB Episode 436

Rival(2)

Lee Baek-ho.

Age twenty-three.

A freshly discharged soldier with young, black hair and the eyes of an old country boy.

He called me “hyung.”

[Me? It’s been… over ten years.]

At least ten years – no, actually, now that another four years have passed since he said that, it must be at least fourteen years that he’s survived as a player in this city.

Initially, I thought he was an odd fellow.

But…

[You already belong here].

I was reminded of what Hans A said when I met him in the punishment box.

The venom and persistence behind what he had said before.

[Hyung! Stop talking crap! I’m going back. So, we should be counting our real ages!]

Lee Baek-ho is not some eccentric weirdo.

He’s just more desperate than anyone else.

Because of that, it’s actually easier to read his motives.

[Hurry up and lift the Ban. Otherwise, you’re really gonna die here.]

His tone is frivolous.

[Hey, idiot. Who said you could start a fire without my permission?]

He acts like a tyrant, relying on his overwhelming power.

[Wow, so you really were a player, huh?]

Even though he might seem to follow only his own desires,

In the end, he just wants one thing:

[I don’t build any attachments in this world, got it?]

To escape this cursed world and return to his original one.

People with clear goals are easier to deal with. However, I’ve been cautious about revealing my identity to Lee Baek-ho until now.

But…

‘No need for that anymore.’

He doesn’t know that I’m Bjorn Jandel, but he knows I’m an evil spirit.

And more importantly.

“Wow, damn……”

Because now, after all this time, I’ve grown strong enough.

Even if this monstrous guy is the opponent, I can protect myself in the worst-case scenario.

“So… you were really Bjorn Jandel. If Rihen Schuiz is Bjorn Jandel, then you were the one I met in Atlanta last time?”

After revealing my identity, Lee Baek-ho let out a few gasps of relief.

“…It’s really a relief. Knowing it now.”

That was a bit irritating.

“A relief?”

“Ah… it’s better not to talk about it.”

“I’ll listen first and decide for myself.”

When I cut him off sharply, Lee Baek-ho’s eyebrows knit slightly.

“But, hyung.”

“…”

“Why are you talking to me so aggressively?”

He didn’t sound angry, more like he didn’t understand. Yet before I could say anything, he seemed to figure something out on his own.

“Ah… now that I think of it, I did behave that way before.”

He must be recalling what happened back when I was Bjorn Yandel.

“Sorry, hyung. It happened when I didn’t know it was you, so you’ll forgive me, right?”

Before I could even decide whether to accept the apology, Lee Baek-ho sighed again.

“Hyung, seriously… if you’d just told me back then, none of this would have gotten so complicated.”

Hahaha…

This is really frustrating.

“So, it’s my fault?”

“No. I didn’t say that. But it’s ultimately my fault. After all, it’s because of me that it became known that Bjorn Jandel is an evil spirit.”

His calm voice made my anger flare momentarily. Still, I controlled my emotions and focused on the conversation.

“Now that we’ve cleared up our names, why did you do it?”

“For my plan, I needed a symbolic figure. Again, if I’d known it was you, hyung, I would never have done it that way.”

I’m not fully convinced, though.

I know a bit about him too now.

“Even if I had really died?”

If I had truly been killed, would he still have chosen not to use me?

***

‘…….’

The answer to my question was silence.

Does he dislike lying?

It’s too early to tell.

Maybe he just avoids obvious lies.

Lee Baek-ho naturally changed the subject.

“Don’t you wonder how I found out you were Bjorn Jandel? Honestly, I thought you’d ask that first.”

The answer is simple.

There were other things that mattered right now.

Knowing how he found out wouldn’t change what’s already happened.

Even if it means returning to the past—

“Ah, of course, you wouldn’t have answered even if I had asked.”

What’s he trying to do now?

“But just to mention, it wasn’t certain. So I decided to test it this time.”

The way he tested didn’t need explanation.

He suspected I was Bjorn Jandel, yet acted normal, waiting until I mentioned “Misha” or “Bjorn Jandel” first.

‘Maybe that’s why he was acting so nervous around Hyun-byeol, so I’d let my guard down a bit more-’

“Oh, but that Hyun-byeol Noona is really scary. How did you ever date someone like that? Wow, it’s been a long time since I lost a battle of nerves. I ended up chuckling in disbelief.”

So that was genuine?

I’m not sure, but no need to dwell on it now.

“Anyway, that’s enough of that topic.”

I switched gears and went straight to the point:

“Why did you take Misha?”

“Of course, for the labyrinth conquest.”

As expected.

I’d guessed as much, but hearing it confirmed put me oddly at ease.

“Weren’t you raising her for the same reason? A dual-wielding ice swordsman makes the later parts of the ninth floor easier.”

Still, there’s something I’m curious about:

“You could’ve had many other candidates. Why Misha, in particular?”

“Because I liked her devotion. If I promised to resurrect you with a Stone of Revival, I figured she’d never betray me.”

“That’s it?”

“Well, there were other small reasons… and to be honest, part of it was just my whim. I found it intriguing that she never changed her mind about you even after learning you were an Evil Spirit.”

He didn’t seem to be lying.

In fact, he didn’t really seem to care about Misha.

Or, more accurately, he seemed to think of her as an object.

“Oh, right! If you want her back, I’ll give her to you. I’ve put a few years into raising her, and I feel a bit guilty about Hyun-byeol noona, but…”

Right now, his interest was only in me.

“Between us Koreans, right?”

Then he gave me a big grin.

“I can stomach that much for you, hyung.”

Such over-the-top kindness.

It makes it clear: he’s not just being nice because I’m Korean. There must be another reason.

Otherwise, a guy who wants to return home wouldn’t give up Misha so easily.

But…

‘Better to pretend I don’t know for now.’

I  didn’t even attempt to investigate.

Securing Misha safely was the priority…

“Now that the cat’s issue is resolved, let’s talk about something else!”

“Something else?”

“I’m just curious about you, hyung. When I was at your rank, I wasn’t as strong as you. I even consumed a deep-sea giant’s essence recently. From the facts confirmed so far, it seems like at least four Level 3 essences…”

Lee Baek-ho started spewing various questions about me, and I filtered what to ignore and answered diligently where necessary.

The world is give and take.

Having agreed to send Misha back, it seemed better to show this much courtesy.

However…

“So, where were you for those two and a half years?”

I hesitated over this question.

Should I tell him about what happened twenty years in the past?

It didn’t take long to decide.

‘He already knows I’m Bjorn Jandel. No need to hide it. Maybe I can glean some useful information from him.’

Auril Gavis is a public enemy to all players.

Thus, sharing information and discussing methods to counter him was important.

So…

“The Fragment of Records…? I’ve heard of it, but so it really exists.”

The incident of being sucked into the past on Farune Island.

And…

“You met Auril Gavis?”

I mainly recounted entering the community 20 years ago. After all, he probably wasn’t interested in how I saved Amelia.

“Yeah, it turns out he was the one who created this community.”

“Ah, I know that. I heard it from Ruinzenes… Wait a minute… that old man said, before the community fell apart, Auril Gavis brought a strange guy… Could that have been you?”

“Probably.”

“Wow… now you sound like the protagonist. Keep going. What happened next?”

“Auril Gavis was very interested that I was a player from the future.”

I explained the conversation I had with Auril Gavis, omitting that I had cleared the original game.

Surprisingly, Lee Baek-ho already knew most of it. Considering that one of his current comrades is the Ruin Scholar, it makes sense.

I told him about the past expecting to get info in return.

“I know the Earth Witch is alive. Just don’t know where.”

“That old man said she’s in a place where everyone’s desires converge. Any idea what that means?”

“Huh? He really said that? That’s easy. Where else but the end of the labyrinth?”

“But in the game, there was no final boss.”

“That’s because it was a tutorial. You’ve been around long enough to know, hyung. This place is distinctly different from the game. Maybe the earth witch might turn out to be the final boss. Hmm, how should we prepare then?”

Talking like this proved more fruitful than I expected. Although I gave information, I ended up gaining even more.

“Oh, that Kagureas guy you mentioned is the one who collected the three Genesis Relics, Right?”

Wait, it was two when I left… But more importantly—

‘He is a Barbarian……?’

“You didn’t know? You and he are somewhat connected. They called you the‘Little Balkan,’ right?”

What…?

“Don’t tell me—”

“Yeah, Kagureas is Balkan. More precisely, that’s the assumption. New World 136, April 2nd :Shortly after Balkan died at the age of 55, the Genesis Relics he had collected disappeared and reappeared with the tribes they originally belonged to.

This was shocking.

So my legendary predecessor, and the original bearer of my nickname, is an Evil Spirit.

“What about the portal beneath the royal palace—do you know anything?”

“I’ve been investigating for a while, but I’ve learned almost nothing. Just that the portal down there isn’t an entrance, but an exit.”

“An exit?”

“It means you can’t enter somewhere through it; rather, it’s the other way around. If you take a portal somewhere, you can travel to where the royal basement portal is.”

Hmm, I see…

It sounded highly suspicious.

Anyway, afterward, we talked as allies for the first time in a long while, and that topic also came up.

[Auril Gavis, do you feel any remorse for the countless ‘spirits’ who were dragged here because of your greed and died?]

That was the final question that ended our truth game.

As soon as he heard it, Lee Baek-ho burst into laughter.

“Pffft! Puha, ahahahaha! Really? You asked that old geezer something like that?”

“Why are you laughing?”

“No reason. It’s just… if I had to say, that’s totally something you’d ask, hyung. But you’re still pretty naïve, I’d say.”

What? Naïve? Me?

I was dumbfounded, but it seemed Lee Baek-ho genuinely thought so.

“So, what did that old man say?”

I relayed the answer I’d heard back then, word for word, not missing a single syllable.

[How could I possibly be at ease? Of course I feel sorry. I also feel a sense of responsibility. I will likely carry these feelings for life, living in atonement.]

He said this while looking me straight in the eyes.

[So, how about it, does that answer satisfy you?]

And then the jewel turned red.

“Hmm…”

I’d expected Lee Baek-ho to join me in cursing the psycho-like old man. Instead, he wore a strange expression.

“This is a bit ambiguous.”

“Ambiguous how?”

“He talked at length, and deliberately exaggerated it, too.”

“Huh?”

“It’s a classic pattern for hiding lies inside truths. Especially since he could only answer yes or no at that moment, right?”

Lee Baek-ho was suspicious of Auril Gavis’s intentions.

But the problem was, if I think about it, what he said wasn’t completely nonsensical.

“Hmm, then why’d that old man do that? Just a coincidence? What do you think, hyung?”

“Who knows… How should we know what’s going on inside that old man’s head?”

“True, that’s fair.”

Our discussion about Auril Gavis’s answer ended there, cleanly.

It seemed Lee Baek-ho was more curious about something else.

“Hey, hyung…”

“Go ahead. Don’t drag it out and make me anxious for no reason.”

“Ah, but what I want to ask might be a bit rude.”

“Doesn’t matter, just ask.”

“Then I’ll do it, okay?”

“Yeah.”

With my permission, Lee Baek-ho asked cautiously:

“What’s your goal, hyung?”

It wasn’t completely out of the blue.

But somewhat unexpected, I asked back:

“My goal?”

“Whether you want to return to Earth or not.”

So that’s what he was curious about.

“When we met at Gnome Tree, you said you weren’t sure.”

Yeah, I did.

At that time, he had asked if it was because of the Red Cat Tribe.  When I stayed silent, he said I reminded him of his old self and told me not to expect too much from an NPC, which was more like a piece of advice than anything else.

‘…Back then he just let it slide probably because he didn’t place much value on “Bjorn Jandel.”’

“Do you still not know?”

“Not sure…”

“In that case, think about it seriously now. We’re well past the point where ‘just surviving’ could be considered a proper goal.”

I only meant to pretend, but various thoughts began whirling in my head.

What is my goal?

“If it’s too hard, think of it this way. Suppose there’s a button right here. By pressing that button, you can return to your original world immediately.”

Lee Baek-ho’s advice was more helpful than I’d expected.

Even though I might not know what I’d decide in the future…

“Alright, so what would you do?”

At least I could figure out how I feel right now.

“…”

If there really were such a button, I would hesitate in front of it for a long time.

I’d be thinking nonstop in my head.

If I go home, what’s waiting for me there?

Plenty of things come to mind right away.

“…”

Hamburgers, cola, games.

Fun media and countless modern conveniences.

A world where I don’t have to kill anything. Where I won’t be covered in blood every day, suffer pain, or struggle desperately just to survive.

I may have to worry about living, but not surviving.

Yes, there is a life beyond the button, a life of ease that I hope for.

But—

“…”

That doesn’t change anything.

‘But… the result wouldn’t change.’

In the end, I wouldn’t have pressed the button.

No, I wouldn’t have pressed it.

That was not the life I wanted right now.

“So, it seems like you’ve reached a conclusion?”

“Yeah.”

I have my answer.

My goal is to survive.

To survive here, in this world full of dangers, as if walking on thin ice.

Me, and all the people I’ve met here.

That’s my honest desire.

Therefore…

“Will you tell me what you’d do?”

I met his gaze and answered:

“I’d press it. That button.”

I decided not to reveal my true feelings. For now, I needed to cater to him.

It was obvious enough.

I knew exactly what answer he’d been waiting for.

“…”

After hearing my response, Lee Baek-ho was silent as he looked at me.

A brief hush fell over us.

A silence that felt somewhat heavy.

“Tsk.”

The short pause ended when Lee Baek-ho clicked his tongue.

“Man, you are getting on my nerves. Are you treating me like a moron because I can’t use my skills here?”

Unlike his usual light-hearted attitude and joking tone, he stared right at me.

“Lying to me while looking me straight in the eyes.”

With a cold gaze I had never seen from him before.