#598. never say
* * *
Athens.
A large city that was on par with Sparta in the Free City League.
In particular, given that it is the hometown of Plato, the Athenians used to claim that Athens was the origin of all philosophy and culture.
And recently, the nose of the Athenians has risen even higher.
The cause was the World Federation.
The 7 guilds are the losers of the present age no matter what anyone says.
That they set up their headquarters in Athens was enough to make the citizens proud.
Including the fact that the whole city is experiencing a tremendous boom thanks to the money that high-level players belonging to the 7 guilds sow.
But the center of it.
The atmosphere at the World Federation was heavy.
This is because the aftereffects of the failure to dispatch peacekeeping troops remained.
At least, the Saint Guild got better as they proceeded with the potion business, but the officers were still paying attention to the monarch.
âIs the follow-up over?â
[Your minor procedures remain, but you can just see it as a matter of time.]
âThank you for your hard work.â
[There is nothing to do. Our guild doesnât suffer much damage.]
From that point of view.
Infinity Guild was relatively better.
Only a small number of high-level players were sent to the peacekeeping force.
Other than that, it was easier to deal with than other guilds, thanks to all the support being condescending.
Even so, the fact that they had to spend more than a month showed how much the World Federation suffered this time.
Even if it was better than other guilds, Infinity Guild was the same.
Thatâs why Cheolsu, the guildâs executive, cautiously asked the question.
[When will you return to the Master Guild�]
âHave I come across something I need?â
[I donât need a master right now, but since heâs been away for a long time, the guild members seem uneasy.]
âIs that so?â
Master of the Infinity Guild.
Infinite Lord Lee Chun-gi agreed with Cheol-suâs words.
He was the one who hadnât known each other since fighting Limon.
But after the establishment of the World Federation, I spend most of my time in Athens again.
In addition to the withdrawal of the peacekeepers, it was only natural that the members of the Infinity Guild would feel uneasy.
It is all the more so in that the deputy guild leader, Grand Duke Nam Ki-moon, who is supposed to be comforting the guild members, was seriously injured by the swordsman and was hospitalized a while ago.
So it was clear that I needed to go back soon.
Butâ¦
âI still have work to do on this side. So, for the time being, please work hard with the rest of us.â
[I donât know what happened⦠Please come back as soon as possible. Our guild needs absolutes.]
âI will keep that in mind.â
You donât have to do anything.
Please remember that the absolute one who makes the 7 guilds the losers of this era just by being there is the monarch.
The boy who finished the communication.
Recalling the story of withdrawal.
Lee Chun-gi wiped his monocle with a handkerchief.
ââ¦I donât know if there is any meaning there.â
calmly and indifferently.
After quietly muttering to himself.
Lee Chun-gi walked slowly through the headquarters of the World Federation.
For delaying his return just because he had work to do, he seemed too relaxed and even indolent.
But he didnât stop.
As leisurely as taking a walk.
using several skills.
I just went around the headquarters.
It was thanks to him that he could see the commotion on one side.
Wow Jangchang!
âYou say that nowâ¦?â
âOh, why are you so angry? I was just answering a question.â
âshut up!â
Paperweight!
âUghyakyakyam!â
âIf you donât want to die, get outâ¦! Right Now!â
âOh, Iâm going. Iâll be leaving right away, so stop using that bastardâs liquor!â
Truly a ruckus.
At the end of the noise that resonated all around, the cowboy ran out of the Soulless Guildâs quarters as if he were running away.
Lee Chun-gi quietly asked Geomrang Billy the Kid.
âIs there a problem?â
âOoh, isnât this the Infinite Lord Nari?â
For a moment, he even made an exaggeratedly surprised expression.
Billy immediately smiled and shrugged his shoulders.
âItâs nothing. The brother-in-law and sister-in-law said it was too late, and the lady said to wait for about a year, and it is a torch like that.â
âI havenât seen a few sword masters lately, so it looks like theyâve gone somewhere.â
âYes. I went to run some lady errands.â
Thanks to that, he says heâs the only one struggling to deal with Wandererâs hysteria.
Moaning for a while.
Billy made a puzzled expression when he felt Lee Chun-giâs gaze staring at him through the one-eyed glasses.
âDo you have anything to say?â
âItâs because I have a question rather than something to say.â
âWhat do you mean?
Like asking where.
Billy speaks softly.
At the end of looking at him.
Lee Cheon-gi quietly asked a question he had been curious about for a long time.
âWhy do you listen to the commanderâs orders?â
ââ¦you ask about something bizarre. Is it so strange that we follow the lady who resurrected us?â
âyes.â
Maybe itâs because itâs an unexpected question.
Looking at Billy with a strange expression.
Ichigo nodded calmly.
If Wanderer had resurrected ordinary people, he would have understood.
In the first place, it is only natural to follow the player who summoned you as there is a certain degree of coercive force in the commander-type skills.
In particular, it was an open fact that there was an additional spell hanging on the resurrected ones.
Butâ¦
âYou guys are sword masters, arenât you?â
Absolute among absolutes.
What is the reason why they, who truly have omnipotent power, canât solve their magic tricks?
Looking at Lee Chun-gi asking seriously, Billy narrowed his eyes.
âYou speak as if you know a lot about the Sword Master, donât you?â
âCanât we?â
ââ¦well, I think it could be. You are from that country.â
Billy scratched the back of his head.
It was only natural that Lee Chun-gi, who worked in the same country as Limon, knew the power of a sword master better than other monarchs.
So he opened his mouth lightly.
âThe reason we follow Lady is simple. Because thatâs how you can fulfill your long-cherished dream.â
âDid you say it was a long-cherished dream?â
âThe fact that we came back from the dead in the first place is because each of us has a long-cherished wish.â
If you didnât have a full dream.
It would have been impossible for Wanderers to revive them no matter how fraudulent their skills were.
Even if he forcibly resurrected it, he wouldnât have been able to carve the spell.
To Billy who just cut it off.
Lee Chun-gi asked again.
âYou mean youâre just using the Command Lord after all?â
âUtilization is a bit of a misnomer. Itâs more like a mutually beneficial position.â
Of course, not all sword masters are like that.
The swordsman who died at will.
A sword that has already escaped.
An openly uncooperative swordsman.
Geomwang, etc., which is troublesome in many ways.
Even though they were resurrected to fulfill their long-cherished wish, there were actually more than half of the Sword Masters who had no intention of cooperating with Wanderer.
âAbove all, there is a reason why we canât get out of this trap until we resolve our grievances.â
However, as long as you donât use the expedient of distorting the meaning of the command or completely blocking your ears.
They couldnât openly defy Wanderer either.
After the escape of the sword.
It wasnât just because Wanderer had strengthened his spell, and it was now impossible to use shortcuts or even run away.
It was because of the nature of the gourd engraved on them.
ââNever say that.â
ââ¦â
âSo youâd better give up the idea of placating us.â
As long as they have their own longings.
Itâs impossible to break this spell.
Even if he gave me a mountain of gold and beauty, there would be no way he would get out of Wanderer and go under another monarch.
Watching Billy tap the tattoo on his neck as if he was very sorry, Lee Chun-gi could only remain silent.
* * *
Tak-tak-tak.
A roaring bonfire.
Sit comfortably in front of it.
While stroking the hair of a running repairman who was sleeping soundly on his own knee.
Limon looked up at the night sky.
Is it because it is in the middle of the Amazon, where even the light of the world does not reach and even the turbid air melts among the thick trees?
The night sky where even the faintest stars are clearly visible.
The scenery was so beautiful that it evoked memories as if it had traveled back hundreds of years.
However, Limon was not looking at the night sky.
just quietly.
just heavy.
I was alone in my thoughts.
It filled Limonâs head a few hours ago.
It was a memory of closely examining the running eagleâs spell.
Of course, being neither a player nor an adult, he couldnât understand the exact reason or structure of the spell.
However, through the experience of encountering many mysteries over a long period of time and the stories I heard from the running repairman, I learned a few things.
âAs expected, this brew is incomplete.â
Maybe itâs because he forcibly restrained an existence that exceeded his rank as a sword master.
There was a hole in the Wandererâs gourd.
A typical example is that there is a limit to the number of commands that can be placed at one time.
For example, donât run away.
Also, donât attack the Wanderer.
Do not deliberately evade orders.
Do not fight other resurrected Sword Masters, etc.
The fact that he gave each of these trivial orders to the running repairman was proof that the Sword Master could not be controlled without an order.
Even so, the fact that the order ended with only five or six in itself showed the limit of the spell.
The reason why the running repairman can be with Limon like this is because he took advantage of that gap.
This in itself was positive.
and another one.
âIt would be possible to break the spell for now.â
Whatever the structure is.
After all, it was created with black magic and skills.
He could do as much as he could without hurting the running eagle.
Because he was a sword master.
âButâ¦â
Even though he was sure of that fact.
Limon did not let go of his heavy expression.
Then he sighed quietly, looking at the tattoo still clearly visible on the running eagleâs abdomen.
It wonât be the only one who can cut this gourd.
There is only a difference between easy and difficult.
Any sword master would be able to do it.
Nevertheless, the reason why not even Limon, other than other sword masters, had yet to slash the running eagleâs veins was simple.
Itâs not that I didnât cut it.
Itâs something I couldnât cut.
It was because he knew it through the sword masterâs intuition.
This bondage is not just a restraint.
The essence of black magic that even used the power of the demon that Wanderer used to resurrect them.
In other words, this tattoo is the wedge and root that allows sword masters who have died once to live again in this world.
So thatâs what I found out.
The reason why the revived Sword Masters are listening to the Wandererâs orders, whether they like it or not.
And I thought of the ending that I expected it might be, but I never hoped for.
with his own knees cut.
Looking at the disciple who is sleeping soundly.
Limon muttered bitterly in his heart.
âSuri will die the moment you unwrap this spell.â