NOVEL WEB 117. Crossroads (1)
“I’ll grant you power equal to the king’s throughout the land.”
The reward proposed by Arajin—no, that’s not right. The yokai who had turned this floor’s fate upside down, the Three-Headed Nine-Tailed Fox, offered a truly sweet deal. No hunter had ever received such an outrageous proposal before.
‘It’s my first time hearing the term “floor ownership rights.”‘
Judging by the meaning of the words themselves and the yokai’s statement, it seemed to be the right to rule On, or rather, this entire floor. Anyone could easily imagine how much could be accomplished with such power.
“Isn’t this enough to make you come to me?”
Above the three maliciously curved eyes, a new system message appeared.
[Branching point occurred! Choose a quest:
Great Fortune (S)
Misfortune (S)]
‘At this point, I’m too numb to be surprised anymore.’
A hidden quest transfer, of all things. Reading those few words gave me a headache. Hunters who’d be glad to get even one hidden quest would probably call this a first-world problem.
As the silence stretched on, sparks flew over the unidentified beast form, as if urging me to hurry.
“How impatient.”
Judging by its inability to wait even a moment, I guess the other hunters all accepted the offer immediately? I understood why. I too had once been blinded by hidden quest rewards.
Glancing to the side, I saw Lee Kang-to completely dumbstruck. He won’t be much help. I pushed him behind me, as if hiding him, and asked the Three-Headed Nine-Tailed Fox:
“What are the exact conditions?”
The condition presented by the system was “the complete revival of the Three-Headed Nine-Tailed Fox.” But this alone wasn’t enough to guess exactly what needed to be done. However, one thing was clear…
‘For some reason, the Three-Headed Nine-Tailed Fox is currently in an incomplete state.’
The use of the term “revival” suggests it had been driven to a state equivalent to death or annihilation at some point. It’s probably related to the main quest that once swept through this floor.
‘There must have been some problem in the process of recovering the power it lost then.’
If so, this upcoming Sak month night must be an unmissable opportunity for the Three-Headed Nine-Tailed Fox. It likely plans to devour the soul butterflies crossing over to the afterlife to achieve its goal. With so many having died from the plague and become butterflies, it would be quite a feast.
I’m not sure what part I’d play in this process, but a thorny path was certainly ahead. Whatever it is, it must be something this creature can’t or won’t do itself.
‘It’s no match for the “Great Fortune” quest we’ve already started.’
However, the situation completely changed with one statement from the Three-Headed Nine-Tailed Fox.
“Do nothing. That will suffice.”
“Nothing, you say?”
“Yes. If you wish, I’ll prepare accommodations for you within the palace. You may rest there until everything is over.”
I couldn’t help but laugh at the arrogant statement. In other words, if it could just keep us, the only variables, out of the way, there’d be no chance of failure. What remarkable confidence.
But that’s precisely what made it so tempting. Confidence breeds more confidence. The yokai’s relaxed tone had a captivating power.
‘This makes the comparison to Great Fortune seem almost unfair.’
While we now had a vague idea of Baek-a’s whereabouts, there was still a long way to go. Even if things went well, it would all be for naught if we failed to guide the soul butterflies on the Sak month night.
On the other hand, choosing “Misfortune” would make everything easier.
“I assume this authority includes the precious items of this land as well?”
“You ask the obvious. Items far more valuable and rare than what you saw in Cheonyogun will be laid at your feet.”
“I see.”
Believing it had found a way to tempt me, the Three-Headed Nine-Tailed Fox began listing various precious items. However, contrary to its expectations, there wasn’t a hint of temptation in my question.
Our goal was simply to obtain materials to craft an L-rank sword. No matter how impressive the floor ownership rights might be, if it didn’t align with this goal, it held no meaning. Well, it seems that was a needless worry.
‘Surely there must be at least one S-rank material item.’
Just then, Lee Kang-to, who had finally come to his senses, shook my shoulder.
“What is it?”
“Are you re-really thinking of switching quests? We can’t do this without consulting Hunter Han Cha-hyun!”
“Didn’t you say you’d listen to whatever I say? Don’t throw a wrench in the works now, just wait quietly.”
I’m sorry, but Lee Kang-to’s actions right now were nothing but a hindrance. Fearing that a prolonged argument might leak information to the other side, I intentionally spoke more coldly.
Fortunately, Lee Kang-to soon fell silent, hugging his tail. I turned back to the Three-Headed Nine-Tailed Fox, who was watching our discord with gleeful eyes, and asked:
“Did you offer the same reward to others as well?”
“Ah, so that’s what was bothering you.”
“No matter how many precious things there are, it’s meaningless if I can’t have them exclusively, isn’t it?”
The Three-Headed Nine-Tailed Fox twitched its ear tips as if in understanding. It then explained that while the reward itself was the same, there were differences within it.
‘This is a bit tricky.’
Seeing my rather disgruntled reaction, the Three-Headed Nine-Tailed Fox quickly added:
“I swear on my tails. You’ll be able to enjoy more, and sooner, than anyone else.”
“If that’s the case… One last question. Why us specifically?”
“It’s been a long time since I’ve been pushed this far. But once is enough for such occurrences.”
It sounded plausible at first glance. But I soon realized it was a complete lie. What a shameless creature.
The beast’s blue eyes pretended to look at me while actually observing the goblin perched on my shoulder. It probably thought Sori was a spiritual beast from Cheonsan.
‘And it likely sees us as Sarome’s last move.’
To be fair, it wasn’t entirely wrong. If we were to switch to the Three-Headed Nine-Tailed Fox’s side here, it would essentially be over for Sarome.
The image of the foolish Mountain Lord, guarding the mountain alone to the end without anyone’s recognition, flashed through my mind. I rubbed my face, unconsciously erasing the downcast expression I had unknowingly worn.
The Three-Headed Nine-Tailed Fox seemed to interpret my actions as a sign of decision.
“It seems you’re ready to give your answer now.”
“Yes.”
Just as I was about to answer while looking straight into its three eyes, two hands of different sizes grabbed me. Lee Kang-to and the goblin, moving in unison as if rehearsed, shouted at me.
“No, Mr. Kim!”
“I-I agree! Think about it a little more, please!”
“Let go. I’ve simply chosen the best option.”
But they only tightened their grip. Clicking my tongue, I resorted to my final method.
“If you don’t let go, I’ll have no choice but to do this.”
“Gasp!”
“This isn’t like Mr. Kim at all! The world would have to turn upside down for this to happen!”
The goblin shrieked as he saw the bow that had suddenly appeared in my grasp. Ignoring him, I silently created an arrow with mana in my other hand. Sensing the ominous atmosphere, Lee Kang-to retreated, taking the goblin with him.
“Conflict, disappointment, and even greed. What an unexpected feast.”
The Three-Headed Nine-Tailed Fox interjected, saying it couldn’t just be a bystander. Before Lee Kang-to could dodge, a spark shot out from the beast form and caught his ankle. He twisted his body, trying to break free. Watching this scene with indifferent eyes, I nocked the arrow to my bow.
“A-are you really going to shoot us?”
Instead of answering, I aimed the arrow at Lee Kang-to. Apparently finding this amusing, a low chuckle emanated from the Three-Headed Nine-Tailed Fox at my feet.
“Let me lend you my strength. With your abilities alone, you can’t…”
“No need. It was just two days ago that I nearly died because of you. Are you trying to do it again?”
“Huh?”
“My, my. To think you wouldn’t understand until the very end.”
With a twisted smile, I shifted my aim from Lee Kang-to to the Three-Headed Nine-Tailed Fox’s form. At the same moment, I applied the skill “Rising Moon” to the arrow.
“We’re old acquaintances, you know.”
Perhaps because it wasn’t its physical form, the Three-Headed Nine-Tailed Fox paid no attention to my arrow. It merely furrowed its brow, seemingly trying to grasp the meaning of “old acquaintances.”
Not missing its moment of distraction, I immediately released the bowstring. The white arrow flew towards the beast on the ground. The arrow, hitting the eye on its forehead dead center, was quickly absorbed, melting away.
[You have disrupted the mana channel of ‘Twisted Evil, Three-Headed Nine-Tailed Fox’. You recover mana equal to 30% of the damage dealt to the enemy.]
I had thought “Rising Moon” would be devastating against a form made of magical energy. But it seemed even more effective than I had anticipated, as the Three-Headed Nine-Tailed Fox let out a near-scream.
“Ugh, it was you! How dare, how dare a mere human…!”
“After being bested by me two, no, three times, you still have the audacity to say ‘how dare’?”
My retort seemed to thoroughly infuriate it, as the Three-Headed Nine-Tailed Fox threw away all pretense and snarled that we’d settle this on the Sak month night. However, its crumbling form was far from threatening. I responded in a calm tone.
“The result will be the same then.”
Reading my resolve, the system outputted a timely message.
[You have chosen ‘Hidden Quest, Great Fortune (S)’.]
It was only after the Three-Headed Nine-Tailed Fox’s form had completely disappeared that Lee Kang-to and the goblin approached me. Their eyes sparkled as if expecting praise.
“I-I didn’t forget this time. I matched the mood well, right?”
“Sori did well too, right?”
“You managed to realize I was acting, huh.”
I asked with a shrug, and the goblin waved his tiny limbs wildly as he exclaimed.
“Of course! There’s no way Mr. Kim would betray the Mountain Lord!”
“Ah, yes.”
I didn’t bother to point it out, but the goblin’s assumption was wrong. My choice of Great Fortune wasn’t due to sentimental reasons like feeling sorry for Baek-a and Sarome, or thinking the king and the Three-Headed Nine-Tailed Fox were evil.
‘Just stay still and that’s all? As if.’
A rookie hunter unfamiliar with the World Tower might have fallen for it. But not me.
The World Tower is a place where you can gain anything, but also where nothing comes easily. There’s no way it would casually give away something as significant as “rights.”
‘Just look at my trait.’
At first, I was elated at the prospect of obtaining an S-rank trait, thinking I’d be on easy street. But even now, when I’ve become quite savvy, I still can’t handle it properly.
Who knows what consequences there might be if I blindly swallowed something as grandiose as floor ownership rights? This time, it might not be just an item exploding, but the entire floor.
“That’s really all there is to it.”
I muttered this excuse, not sure who I was addressing, and let out a sigh.