Artifact-Devouring Player

Chapter 208 : Berserk Charm - (2)

Chapter 208: Berserk Charm  - (2)

"You'll be partnering with a Player named Sophia. She's specialized in the mental domain."

"It seems like the Gate must have a lot of mental-related elements."

"That's right. In fact, without Sophia, the strategy would be nearly impossible. Of course, having only Sophia isn’t enough to clear it either."

Because the Gate required a two-person team, the choice of partner was extremely important.

Normally, areas with entry limits tended to include combat-type Players, but Frederick hadn't done that.

Although Sanghyun had never entered this Gate before, he could roughly guess its structure.

There would likely be monsters powered by spiritual energy or those that existed in ghostly forms.

This type of monster couldn’t be harmed by physical attacks alone, no matter how powerful.

A Player who could handle the spirit world was essential. That’s likely why Sophia was necessary.

"What kind of person is Miss Sophia?"

"If I talk about our relationship, she’s my younger cousin. So, she’ll probably be even more tense."

"I understand what you mean."

Because her older cousin was a bigshot, she wouldn’t just ride his coattails — rather, she’d be more nervous and work harder.

For Sanghyun, this was his first time teaming up with a mentally-aligned Player, so he was looking forward to it. What kind of Player would she be?

"I’ll contact Sophia. She’ll visit soon, so go ahead and talk with her."

"Understood."

"Then... shall we wrap up here? We’ll go over more detailed matters after we clear the Gate. The contract for the Endless Dungeon promise will be signed and sent via Sophia."

"Thank you. It was brief, but we covered quite a lot."

"That’s how business is."

Frederick smiled.

Sanghyun felt comfortable because the look in Frederick’s eyes seemed to be based on friendly feelings.

He laid the groundwork as if he wouldn’t bring up recruitment, but his real intent was clearly to recruit him.

However, since Sanghyun held the knife by the handle, he had no reason to rush.

Raising a Player’s value was his own responsibility.

And if a Player was truly skilled, people would naturally gather around, whether they liked it or not.

This was exactly that kind of situation.

Slowly, as slowly as possible... That was how he intended to approach it. The slower he went, the more his value would rise.

In the evening, he received a call from Han Hyunjeong.

She mentioned that a private plane had taken off and was just departing from Incheon Airport.

The estimated arrival time was tomorrow morning. Since Sanghyun didn’t have any other plans, he relaxed and rested more comfortably.

There wasn’t much to watch on TV, so he opened his smartphone and logged into PlyTube.

PlyTube was perfect for catching up on recent news, as it frequently posted content about Players.

If there was one problem, it was that it also had a lot of unverified fake news.

But as long as he only subscribed to channels operated by reliable media outlets, he didn’t need to worry about the credibility of the information.

For example, channels like The Player’s Journal. That was where Park Jungmin had worked in the past.

After Park Jungmin’s identity was revealed, people who had worked closely with him were reportedly shocked.

Some of them were said to have suffered serious mental trauma and were undergoing counseling therapy.

While browsing around following the algorithm's suggestions, a piece of news caught Sanghyun’s eye.

He played the video.

They attack Players abandoned in areas with unstable security and steal their Artifacts.

The World Player Union has sternly warned Inferno to cease its criminal activities.

However, Inferno posted a video of a Player being beheaded, displaying an extreme and provocative defiance.>

"Hmm..."

Inferno was becoming an increasingly troublesome criminal group as time went on.

It had only been two years since the Player era had begun.

In that time, human civilization had achieved remarkable advancements in science and medicine through a new order and system.

This was essentially a Fourth Industrial Revolution that started with the spoils obtained by Players clearing dungeons.

But just as light always casts a shadow, the Player era had a dark side.

That was the emergence of criminal organizations.

Criminals who had gained power beyond human limits never used that power for good.

It had been an expected outcome. Not everyone in the world lives kindly and righteously.

But the international crime syndicates had appeared sooner than most experts had predicted.

Inferno was one of them.

They even had multiple records of seizing warships — enough that they could be considered their own navy.

And because those warships had been fully modified to operate using Magic Stones, they didn’t need fuel supplies.

Since they could self-supply, economic sanctions like oil embargoes had no effect on them whatsoever.

"The more your name becomes known, the more likely you'll become a target for scum like that."

It was the dilemma of growth.

To reach higher, you had to raise your level, and the more you did that, the more famous you became.

It was the fate of a named Player — the constant threat to their life.

That reality now applied to Sanghyun as well, who had been growing at a rapid pace.

Just the fact that he had made contact with Frederick proved it. Most Players couldn’t even dream of meeting him.

Even if rumors of this leaked just a little, many Players would start to pay attention to Sanghyun.

"Constellation Devourer. Devourer Network."

What came to mind as the most immediate threat were still the Constellation Devourers, with whom he had past run-ins.

They operated a secret communication network called the Devourer Network, targeting capable Players.

Tory, Nietzsche, and the trio — Sanghyun had already clashed with five of them.

He took down all five, so wouldn’t they now be more cautious?

That would only be true if you didn’t understand the madness of the Constellation Devourers.

In his past life, the more proficient a Player was at eliminating Constellation Devourers, the more obsessively they were pursued later on.

"Mystery."

The second threat that came to mind after the Constellation Devourers.

Too many things were hidden in shadows, making it an unpredictable entity.

But one thing was certain — once it took an interest in a Player, it never let go easily.

And ever since he was invited to the Death Match, he had already been on its radar.

Unless one of them died, it would be a never-ending cycle of bad fate.

"Criminal organizations."

And lastly, multiple crime syndicates including Inferno.

They kidnapped and murdered Players without hesitation and were deeply involved in drug trafficking.

Moreover, each country had internal factions and connections, making them difficult enemies.

"But that doesn’t mean I can give up on growing. If you’re scared of that, you might as well never leave the house."

He thought caution was necessary, but there was no need to shrink back.

For example.

No one refuses to drive or use public transportation just because they might get into a traffic accident.

And even if you walk, is that really safe? If you’re unlucky, accidents can happen anywhere.

Being seized by fear and losing your burning passion and determination — that was something he believed must never happen.

However, he did think he should never forget the weight that came with leveling up and growing.

From now on, many eyes would be on his path, and among them, there would be some not so favorable.

After that, Sanghyun continued to rest while watching a few more interesting news pieces.

There were many topics, but the one that particularly caught his attention was the polarization phenomenon among Players.

The main point was that high-level Players grew even faster, while lower-level Players grew increasingly slower.

The reason was simple.

The Players who had raced ahead from the beginning had enjoyed more first-clear benefits in dungeons and Gates.

In the process, they had monopolized rights and ran dungeons beneficial to growth in an exclusive manner.

The growth of a Player would inevitably trend upward, regardless of whether the XP gained was small or large.

So if someone monopolized the means to gain, then it was only natural that growth would accelerate exponentially.

That's why "ultra-ultra-ultra" named figures like Jerron Decay and Frederick Villain had emerged.

Because they pushed forward from the start and cleverly monopolized elements that would benefit them.

A prime example was the Endless Dungeon that Sanghyun had negotiated with Frederick about earlier today.

"This will only deepen going forward."

This phenomenon would not ease but accelerate. It would keep being brought up as an issue, but never get resolved.

Because in the ecosystem of Players, which runs on the logic of capital and power, meaningless goodwill or assistance simply did not exist.

Therefore, Sanghyun also intended to constantly aim for the heavens, diligently striving and growing.

He seemed to have a lot already, but precisely because of that, he was not perfect. The road ahead was still long.

That night.

Sanghyun met Sophia, who came directly to his lodging.

With her short blonde hair and striking blue eyes, Sophia gave off a unique impression from the moment she walked in.

It felt like when you looked into her eyes, she could see straight into the depths of your soul.

Put nicely, it was insight. Put harshly, it felt like she was dissecting your very inner being.

Since they could speak in English, Sanghyun invited her in and continued the conversation right away.

Maybe because both had clear goals for the meeting, the atmosphere was more business-like.

Through the conversation, Sanghyun learned Sophia’s level was 345. The Gate’s level cap was 350 — it was just around the corner.

If she grew any more from here, her chances of clearing that Gate would significantly decrease.

Despite the serious first impression, the conversation began in a rather friendly and relaxed atmosphere.

After exchanging names and sharing stats, Sophia began speaking in earnest.

"Before coming, I watched the Death Match video hosted by Mystery. And I reviewed all available material on you, Mr. Sanghyun."

"I was actually trying to look up information on you as well, Miss Sophia, but I couldn’t find anything at all."

"That’s to be expected. I grew up mostly within the guild, and rarely participated in outside activities."

There were quite a few cases like that.

Players being nurtured like strategic weapons under guild management.

Since Player-related info couldn’t be exposed, outside activities were naturally prohibited.

Even within the guild, only a select few Players were allowed to interact and coordinate with such individuals.

Since Sophia was Frederick’s cousin, he likely assigned only those he trusted around her.

"So I should probably apologize in advance for not being aware of your abilities beforehand."

"Not at all. If even I can’t find my own information, how could you, Mr. Sanghyun? I’ll just show you now."

"Is that alright?"

"What I’ll be sharing with you is less than 20% of what I have, so don’t worry."

Her confidence was unmistakable.

There was something about her that quietly overlapped with Sanghyun himself.

Like how showing one or two status effect skills didn’t mean you were showing everything.

At that moment—

Sophia gently stood from her seat and walked over to where Sanghyun was sitting.

"If it’s okay with you, may I place my hand on your body for a moment? I think you need a taste of what I can do."

"Of course."

Sanghyun relaxed his body in his seat. And the moment Sophia’s hand made contact—

"...!"

Sanghyun nearly screamed.

Because right in front of his face, a ghost was staring at him vividly.

It was like a horror special in real life.