Chapter 299.: Gathering Allies
"So you'd like to go first?" Seong Gook asked to confirm.
"That's what I'm saying." Jae Woo nodded his head.
Seong Gook and the other contestants were wondering what was going on in that head of his. Why did he volunteer to go first? He has to know that going first puts you at a disadvantage.
Did he really think he'd be able to beat Galmoss going first? No way. Defeating Galmoss would be no easy feat. So why did Jae Woo volunteer to go first?
So-called 'unbeatable' monsters like Galmoss would prove to be a challenge to any player, even Jae Woo. Despite that, he'd chosen to go first; he had a good reason for this.
First, the monster had a bounty. It was a ghost-type monster, and Ubist could cut through ghosts. He felt like it was doable.
Second, it was an opportunity. Since the other contestants were all distinguished players in their own right, choosing a later position could be disadvantageous. After all, it gave the contestants a chance to nab the bounty before he even went. If that's the case, then he'd rather go first and put an end to the competition.
Finally, the others were backed by large organizations, while he wasn't.
Let's assume Marco goes first and fails. His failure would allow the other contestants to figure out better ways of fighting it.
Since Snow Flower and Strong Punch were backed by a large guild and mercenary group respectively, they could prepare more thoroughly than Jae Woo. They would have access to tremendous resources, while Kang Oh was limited to what he had on hand.
With this in mind, Kang Oh volunteered to go first.
"Understood. Mr. Kang Oh will be the first hunter to fight Galmoss!" Seong Gook declared. "Now, who will go second..."
A short while later...
They finalized the order.
Kang Oh was first, Marco was second, Strong Punch was third, and Snow Flower was fourth.
"There are a few things you should know!" Seong Gook said. They were almost finished. "Do whatever you can to kill the monster. You can use your connections, and you may also receive assistance from your guild. However, we ask that you not get in the way of the other hunting teams."
Killing Galmoss by yourself was impossible.
Marco would likely call upon Blue Sky, while Strong Punch would bring the Sword Mercenaries' special-class mercenaries. Obviously, Snow Flower would bring the Leopard Squad's most elite troops.
"If all four of you fail, then the bounty goes up in smoke. I guess that counts as a win for us." Seong Gook grinned.
So that answered it. If they all failed to take down Galmoss, then they'd be paid absolutely nothing.
The network would have footage to show, so they wouldn't care. Thus, them failing would indeed be a win for the network as Seong Gook had said.
"Mr. Kang Oh, please hunt the monster within a week. Please let the staff know when you're ready." Seong Gook stared at Jae Woo.
Jae Woo nodded his head.
"If Mr. Kang Oh fails, then our next challenger, Mr. Marco, will have a week to hunt Galmoss." Seong Gook stared at Marco this time.
"So we have a week to prepare," Marco said.
"That's right. Mr. Strong Punch and Ms. Snow Flower will also have a week to prepare."
"Yes."
"Understood."
The two simultaneously replied.
"If you succeed, then we'll contact you later with the time and date of the next shoot. We'll reveal the next monster and determine your order there."
"When will you give us the money?" Jae Woo asked.
"When we reveal the next monster. It'll be in cash!"
"Cash. Sounds good!" Jae Woo grinned.
"I've explained everything. If you have any other questions, then please direct them to our producer." Seong Gook pointed at Jin Cheol. Jin Cheol just softly waved back.
"The death of an 'unbeatable' monster; please look forward to it and give us your support!" Seong Gook gave his closing statement.
"Cut! Good work."
"Good job."
The shoot was over.
* * *
Roaming Galmoss.
Only a team of five could fight Galmoss. Anymore and you'd have to face Ghost Knights too; 1,000 of them at that!
Thus, Kang Oh needed to find four allies, or henchmen. Kang Oh sought out Eder, Worker #1, first.
"Huh?"
Originally, Eder's house was dreary; the building itself had been falling apart, and the statues had been cracked. However, it had been completely repaired. It looked as good as new!
'Did he get his house fixed?'
After all, the ghost that inhabited this 'ghost-possessed' house no longer existed.
Knock, knock.
Kang Oh knocked on the door, and was greeted by a young girl. She wore a maid uniform, and had orange hair and freckles on her cheeks; she was rather cute.
"Who are you?"
"I came to see Eder."
"You came to see Mr. Eder?"
"Mr. Eder?"
"Yes, you're looking for the master of this house and my employer, Mr. Eder, correct?"
"Yes."
'Eder, you rascal! You hired a maid!'
"Who shall I say is asking for him?"
"Kang Oh."
"Understood."
The maid quickly walked away. A short while later, Eder came out to see him.
"Mr. Kang Oh, it's been a while."
"You seem to be doing good."
Eder's skin was clear and shiny.
"I went through so much to get this body back. I have to take care of it." Eder beamed.
"I have something to talk to you about."
"Please come in."
Kang Oh went inside and was surprised by the house's interior too.
The cobwebs, the dust-covered furniture, the broken cups, and the ripped books sprawled on the floor were gone. The house was completely clean!
"I'm trying to live like an actual human being now. I'm no longer a ghost nor a monster," Eder said. He must've read Kang Oh's expression.
"What about the maid?"
"I can't manage the entire mansion by myself."
"Do you have a butler too?"
"I'm in the process of getting one. Would you like to do it?" Eder asked jokingly.
"How much?" Kang Oh joked back.
"3 gold per day."
3 gold. Back in the day, that's how much Kang Oh would pay Eder for his services.
"That's a lot."
No, it wasn't. However, if he were to say the opposite, then he'd be admitting that he was a terrible employer.
"It's a lot?"
"Yeah, but no thanks."
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"Why?"
"I have business to attend to."
Kang Oh moved onto the main topic.
"Did they finally find Krishan?"
"Not yet."
"Then?"
"Let's talk over tea. I want to try some tea brewed by an actual maid."
"Alright."
A short while later...
Sip.
Kang Oh sipped on his black tea. It was made by a maid, just as he'd requested.
"So what did you want to talk about?" Eder put down his cup and asked.
Kang Oh answered with a question. "How's your body?"
Eder needed some time to get used to his original body. Thus, Kang Oh had given him some time off.
"I'm managing."
"Can you fight?"
"Yes." Eder nodded his head.
"What level are you?"
"426."
Eder had once been called the Legendary Healer. His original level was 426.
"I assume you're a Healer?"
"I'm a master of the healing arts, and after I was cursed by the Goddess of Death, I learned necromancy as well."
If you master a class, then you can acquire another class. This was called a multi-class. Eder was a good example of this concept.
"How strong are you combat-wise? No, what does a Healer do in combat? How good is your necromancy?"
Kang Oh was curious about Eder's combat ability, now that he was able to use both his healing arts and necromancy in battle.
"Well, I think showing you would be faster than explaining. So what did you come here for today?"
"I need to kill Galmoss, but it's too much for me alone," Kang Oh explained.
"You want to work together?"
"Yeah."
"I accept."
Now that he'd regained his original body, Eder could level up, and he could gain proficiency too. Which meant he could become even stronger than before!
The stronger he was, the better. After all, the Mayanes were so powerful that they were capable of challenging the gods themselves.
Hunting and exploring with Kang Oh was his best chance at getting stronger.
"But I have a condition."
"Which is?"
"Treat me as an equal. Share the loot fairly! And you cannot abuse, threaten, or attack me. I won't accept any unjust orders either!"
"Fine." Kang Oh agreed. It was worth it to nab a level 426 Master Healer. "Do you want me to write a contract?" Kang Oh asked.
"No, it's fine." Eder violently shook his head. He was sick of contracts.
"That's unfortunate. Anyway, get ready. I'll call you when I've gathered enough people."
"Understood."
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Kang Oh left Eder's mansion.
Worker #1, no, Teammate #1, Eder, had come along, so now it was time to ask Sephiro.
- Mr. Sephiro.
He sent a brief message.
- I'm sorry, I'm busy.
And received a brief message in return.
- What's wrong? You're not finished with Waryong's quest?
- No.
- When will you be finished with it?
- Not right now. I'll let you know when I'm done with it.
- You're not lying to me, are you?
- I'm not.
- Despia's dungeons are waiting for you.
- Yes. I'll finish the quest ASAP and then join you.
- I'll see you later.
"Tch." Kang Oh clicked his tongue. That was really unfortunate.
'Fine, next up is...'
Kang Oh began to move.
* * *
Underneath the Holiseum…
Kang Oh came to Burkan's room.
"Brother!"
"You've been coming a lot lately."
"Hehe."
"Don't laugh. It's creepy."
"I have a favor to ask you."
"Another one?"
"I'd like to hire Mr. Dion."
Dion was a gladiator that wielded twin gladiuses. He'd be a huge help against Galmoss.
"Dion's not here."
"Where did he go?"
"I can't tell you. He took the 100 Fighters with him too."
"Damn."
'What bad timing!'
"That's it, right? Come back later." Burkan waved his hand, telling him to leave.
"Then I'd like to take Darion with me."
It'd be a step down, but something was better than nothing.
"Darion?"
"Yes."
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"Ask Darion yourself."
"Can't you just go and ask him to help me out?"
Burkan scowled. "Darion's a full-fledged gladiator now. If you want to hire him, then be respectful and pay him appropriately, you rascal."
"Tch, understood."
"Go on."
"Yes. By the way, you haven't seen Master Valan lately, have you?" Kang Oh asked.
"Nope."
"I hope he never shows up again..."
How great would that be?
"He'll show up again."
"I'm sure he will."
He's so strong that even if he wanted to, he wouldn't be able to die.
"Tch. Then I'm really going now."
"Alright."
Kang Oh left his room, grabbed a gladiator passing through, and asked where Darion was.
"Keep following this passageway, and you'll see a white door on your right. That's Darion's room."
"Thank you."
However, he didn't need to go all the way there. He followed the passageway, and a short while later, Darion came out of the corner.
'He's as good-looking as ever.'
Darion had well-defined facial features and a sharp nose. His green eyes glowed like emeralds, and he had thick eyebrows.
"M-Mr. Kang Oh?" Darion turned the corner, and was shocked to see Kang Oh.
"You've been doing well?"
"Yes." Darion calmed himself down and replied dryly. 'Don't get caught in the devil's scheme,' he inwardly said.
"How strong are you in gladiator terms?"
"Me?"
"Yeah."
"I'm a first-class gladiator."
"What's above that?"
"Special-class and master-class."
"Mr. Dion is special-class while Burkan is master-class?
"That's right."
"How much are first-class gladiators worth?"
"It depends."
"How much would it cost to hire you?" Kang Oh asked.
"No, thank you," Darion said firmly, suspecting some underhanded scheme.
"What's wrong?"
"I don't like working with you."
"Hoh."
'This guy's gotten a bit smarter. It doesn't really matter though. He's mostly the same as ever.'
Kang Oh placed his hand on Darion's shoulder. "Oho, why are you like that all of a sudden?" Darion began to squirm under his touch. "Now, calm down and listen to what I have to say."
Kang Oh began whispering like the devil!
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