Chapter 95 - One-horned tribe

[Sudden Quest / Hired Warriors]

Description: The recent conflict between Red Dragon and Cheonghwado is leading up to a war and many players in The Tower are preparing for the upcoming battle. The One-horned tribe has brought an end to its long-standing neutrality and is also preparing to join the war as a group of mercenaries.

Join the war as a guest member of the One-horned tribe. Distinguish yourself in the war to gain greater rewards.

Time Limit: Until the end of the war

Rewards:

1. Intimacy with the One-horned Tribe +150

2. Lunar Seed

3. ???

Yeon-woo wasn’t the only one surprised by the offer.

“What? With him?”

“Do we really need more outsiders?”

“Why not?”

“I mean, I don’t mind another human joining, but they have to be skilled enough. If not, then....”

“Nah, he should be fine. He traveled with Edora-nim and Phante-nim. Besides, he’s the infamous Hoarder.”

“I guess you’re right.”

The elders and other members of the tribe discussed the news among themselves.

Even Phante and Edora looked at the Martial King with surprise. It was a very serious issue.

Yeon-woo felt his heart pounding crazily.

There was no one in The Tower that didn’t know about the upcoming war between the two big clans, as it as an event of a massive scale.

Yeon-woo, especially, had been keeping close tabs on the war, as both of the clans were primary targets of his revenge.

Therefore, he had been searching for ways to take part in the war.

However,

‘I can join the war along with them?’

The One-horned tribe was a race the members of which most clans would die to recruit.

What’s more, he could also solve the issue with his egg.

There couldn’t be a better solution to his problems.

But what puzzled him about this was that,

‘What happened to their ‘neutral stance’?’

As far as he knew, for a very long time, the One-horned tribe had not interfered in any major event that took place in The Tower.

And that was the reason why a great force such as them had not been involved in the fall of the giant clan, Arthia.

But for some reason, they had decided to throw away their long-standing custom.

Of course, it wasn’t that he didn’t have a clue as to why they might have made this decision.

The ‘Spear God(槍武神) of Cheonghwado. He was from the One-horned tribe.’

The Spear God, one of the five leaders of Cheonghwado. As his title suggests, his spearmanship was second to none among the top rankers.

Perhaps it was him the reason why the One-horned tribe had decided to involve themselves.

“Is it Cheonghwado that you are siding with?”

“Huhu. You’re quick-witted.”

The Martial King nodded with a broad smile.

Encouraged by his positive answer, Yeon-woo decided to ask him the questions he had.

“As far as I am aware, One-horned tribe has always been of neutral standing. May I ask you why you’ve decided to enter the war?”

“No comment on that! But I can tell you that it has something to do with what you probably have in mind.”

‘So it was the Spear God’s doing. I don’t know what he did to get them involved.’

But there was one thing he was certain about.

‘The fat is in the fire. This war is now irrevocable.’

Yeon-woo clicked his tongue at how clever Cheonghwado’s move was.

He was wondering how they would make up for the difference in military strength, but this was the least he had expected.

If the One-horned tribe was siding with Cheonghwado, Red Dragon might have to keep themselves on their toes.

‘The war is not going to end so easily.’

Yeon-woo felt his blood boiling with anticipation.

If his enemies were to exhaust themselves fighting against each other, he might be able to get rid of them both without major resistance.

“If I were to enter the war, which role would I have to play? In fact, I don’t understand why you would need soldiers outside of your own tribe.”

“Well, I guess you can think of it like that. But things are not as easy as they seem.”

The Martial King leaned back in his chair as he scratched his head.

“Let me ask you a question. While you were on your way to the center of our village, did you get any feeling like we were preparing for a war?”

Yeon-woo recalled the peaceful scenery of the village and shook his head.

“No, sir.”

“Right? They are just that kind of people. Even when I announced that we are changing our policy for this once, some people weren’t happy about it. Well, of course, there are some crazy ones who welcomed the change because that means they can go on a rampage.”

Yeon-woo then understood the Martial King’s dilemma.

“Not all of them are participating.”

“Yeah…. Even if I yelled in their ears, those bastards won’t even try to listen.”

Yeon-woo nodded.

The Martial King then smiled as he leaned his head on his clasped hands.

“So that’s why I am trying to get more people to help us. Well, to be honest with you, there are about nine people other than you helping us. All of them experts.”

Yeon-woo thought for a moment.

‘Although he says, I’m sure all of the warriors will follow him except for a few elders once he actually heads into battle.’

Because the One-horned tribe was known for their absolute loyalty to their king and their tribe.

But for some reason, Yeon-woo couldn’t give an answer to his offer.

‘I can’t tell what he’s up to.’

When he looked at the Martial King’s smile, he saw the smile of a ferocious beast.

He was like both Phante and Edora combined into one. Very fiery, but also very meticulous.

Yeon-woo could hardly tell what was going on inside his head.

Besides, the conditions the Martial King offered him were almost too favorable for him.

‘What if I don’t actively participate in combat?’

His offer was missing any clause regarding how much he should fight in the war.

Now that the system had already acknowledged his offer as a proper ‘quest’, he wouldn’t be able to deny him his reward.

Someone as great as the Martial King couldn’t have been unaware of this fact.

‘Then why does he want me to join this war?’

But before Yeon-woo could properly think about this matter,

“How long are you gonna sit there and stare at me? Just give me your answer, yes or no.”

The Martial King hurried him to make a decision.

In the end, Yeon-woo gave him his answer.

“I’ll join.”

*Kwang*

Martial King suddenly separated his clasped hands and slammed down on the table.

“Yes! That’s my man! Now, since you’ve decided to join the war, try to take a close look at how things turn out during the war. You’ll learn a lot from it.”

The Martial King nodded with satisfaction.

The rest of the people in the room also seemed to agree with the Martial King’s decision.

Only Phante and Edora seemed to have something to say but they couldn’t open their mouths because of the atmosphere.

“Now, I officially announce that Cain will join the war as a guest member of our tribe. Does anyone have an objection?”

The tribe members watched silently as a sign of consent. Some even stared at Yeon-woo with eager eyes as if they wanted to try him.

“Then it has been...!”

The moment when the Martial King was about to deliver the final judgment,

“I object.”

One of the bodyguards stepped to the front.

Everyone’s eyes fell on him.

And when Yeon-woo looked around, strangely, he found out people were showing different expressions.

While the elders looked at the bodyguard with amused eyes, Phante was wearing a deep frown, and Edora also had a frosty look on her face.

The Martial King asked the bodyguard who raised the objection.

“Alright, Jang. What’s your opinion?”

“Father!”

‘Father?’

Yeon-woo looked at the man with a puzzled look.

“We are in a formal meeting. Watch your language.”

“I apologize, my king. But I must say, we can’t let a nobody like him who hasn’t even cleared the 11th floor join us. That cannot happen.”

Jang glared at Yeon-woo with an irritated look.

There was a distinct arrogance in his eyes as if saying how dare he try to stand shoulder to shoulder with their tribe.

Yeon-woo shed a smile on his face. Such a look was not unfamiliar to him.

‘Phante and Edora used to look at me like that when I met them in the tutorial.’

Only then was he able to realize that he was currently dealing with the One-horned tribe.

He had forgotten about that fact because everyone looked at him with friendly eyes.

“So? Are you trying to say you cannot accept someone who Phante and I recommended?”

Edora asked Jang with a cold voice.

Jang responded with rather sardonic laughter.

“I’m afraid I am.”

“Do you realize how rude you are being?”

“Well, I beg to differ. I think it is you two who are being rude to the rest of us. I can’t even understand how you thought of bringing a novice to our war.”

“Oh, so you think you’re better than him?”

“How dare you compare me to a mere human?”

There was a tense atmosphere between the two of them. If someone didn’t stop them, it seemed like they would start a fight right here.

He couldn’t believe the two were siblings who had the same father.

But the elders were busy just watching them fight.

*Clap*

“Okay, let’s stop there.”

With a clap of the Martial King, the warlike atmosphere soon scattered away.

The elders smacked their lips in disappointment.

“I know that siblings grow as they fight, but I can’t let you fight in here. We are having a meeting here, remember? Anyway, Jang, you’re saying you can’t trust Cain, is that correct?”

“Yes, my king.”

“Then we can test him.”

Martial King turned towards Yeon-woo.

Yeon-woo nodded in answer.

“And we got his consent. Now, about the tester... Jang, how about you do it yourself?”

Jang nodded with a cold sneer.

“Father!”

Edora shouted at the Martial King, but he disregarded her words.

“Everyone, gather at the tournament hall in five minutes. We’ll proceed with his test there”

* ? *?? *

The people ebbed away from the palace after the Martial King’s announcement. Jang even threw Yeon-woo a cynical sneer as he left the room.

Phante and Edora walked up to Yeonwoo.

“We’re sorry, Oraboni.”

“Hyungnim. Things might have gotten a little bad.”

Phante scratched the back of the head.

“Don’t worry. This was bound to happen the moment I joined as a guest member.”

“I know but… You didn’t deserve this. And I feel like we’ve gotten you involved in our family affairs.”

“…?”

Yeon-woo tilted his head puzzledly.

‘Family affairs?’

Edora carefully opened her mouth.

“Oraboni, do you happen to know anything about the ‘families’ in our tribe?”

Yeon-woo nodded.

Although the members of the One-horned tribe were considered a single ‘tribe’, they were actually a union of 51 different families altogether. There is at least one successor in each family and only one of them can ultimately become the next king.

“Well, then it’ll be easier to explain. Our tribe consists of 51 families. One of them is the Cheonglam family, where Phante and I were born. Our father, on the other hand, is from the Baekseon family.”

Edora continued her explanation with furrowed brows.

“Our tribe’s king is chosen among the children of the previous king, and it is the king’s duty to produce at least one heir for each family.”

Yeon-woo thought it was way too complicated.

“Which means...?”

“Yes, Jang and us, we are just half-siblings. And Jang is also from the Baekseon family, just like our father.”

Edora bit her lower lip.

“He is... also one of the four most probable successors, just like Phante. No, to be precise, it is more probable for him to become the next king rather than Phante.”

“No, it’s not!”

“Shut it! If you don’t like it, then you should have been stronger.”

Edora hushed Phante down and looked back at Yeon-woo. Though she was trying to hide it, Yeon-woo could see a hint of nervousness from her eyes.

“So what you’re saying is that Jang might have done this to make Phante lose ground.”

“Yes, that’s what I think he wants.”

‘This is why they said they got me involved in their family affairs.

“What’s more, Jang has reached the 30th floor at an early age. He is said to be one of the most talented even among our tribe members. So....”

Edora blurred the end of her words, but Yeon-woo seemed to know what she wanted to say.

She didn’t want Yeon-woo to fight him. She was afraid he might get himself injured.

Yeon-woo broke into a broad smile.

He thought it was cute to see Phante and Edora worrying about him. They didn’t look like the ones he met at the tutorial.

‘How strong is he if these two are this much worried?’

And at the same time, Yeon-woo was very annoyed at Jang. Because he absolutely abhorred getting involved in someone else’s problem

He also wanted to give Jang a lesson for making them worry.

“If you need the Lunar Seed, we’ll try to get it for you....”

“Don’t sweat it.”

Yeon-woo reached out and rumpled Edora’s hair.

Edora’s eyes widened with surprise.

“I can take care of myself. You guys can sit still and watch.”

“B, but…!”

“When I say I’m okay, I mean it. Besides, this kind of troublesome job.”

Yeon-woo’s eyes drew a pair of arcs beneath the mask.

“Should be taken care of by big brothers.”