Chapter 13: The Guild’s Tempting Trap

[General] LA TechBro: This isn’t some pyramid scheme/religious meeting/recruitment event

[General] LA TechBro: I promise^^

His playful response only made Kyunghun more suspicious.

[General] LA TechBro: As I mentioned, our main DPS just left,

[General] LA TechBro: so there’s an open spot~^^

[General] Machoking: That’s a big deal.

Of course. There have been reports of reckless PvP under the guise of guild recruitment lately, and these people seemed like that kind of troublemaker.

No wonder they were overpraising Machoking’s skills.

Kyunghun pulled out the armor Seohyun had gifted and equipped it on Machoking, moving his cursor over a smoke bomb just in case he needed to disappear immediately.

But their attention was elsewhere.

[General] LA TechBro: Come on~ show some Korean generosity~^^)9

[General] LA TechBro: Think about it three times! Two more times would be enough!

They were putting on an over-the-top show to convince Machoking to join their guild.

Twice?

Kyunghun stared at the screen for a moment and sent two refusals as requested.

[General] Machoking: No, I won’t do it.

[General] Machoking: I can’t.

[General] LA TechBro: Korean generosity is too modestㅜㅜ

[General] Machoking: Excuse me, sir?

[General] LA TechBro: We really need a main DPS^^

[General] Machoking: Haha, you saw earlier, right? I didn’t do it, my friend did.

Kyunghun quickly credited Seohyun for the performance, but LA TechBro had a shameless comeback.

[General] LA TechBro: Isn’t riding on someone else’s skills also a skill?~^^

[General] Cat: Excuse me, sirㅇㅅㅇ

[General] Cat: Our guild leader is pleading like this,

[General] Cat: How much more miserable are you going to make us――

Kyunghun, about to cut off this useless chat, noticed a female character in a white robe quickly approaching him. Judging by the cross on her robe, she was likely a cleric, but her demeanor suggested she was ready to crack his skull if needed.

[General] Cat: Just come and save me a spot

[General] Cat: Why are you being so stingy――

Hearing “sir” from her confused Kyunghun.

[General] LA TechBro: Cat, we’re not trying to fight here

[General] Cat: I’m just frustratedㅜ ㅅㅂ

[General] Cat: Even with full resolution, this forest looks awful

[General] Cat: My eyes are going to rotㅅ1팔ㅜㅜ

A guild like this… Kyunghun guessed it would run in a predictable way.

While he was distracted by their chats and thinking about escaping, someone he had forgotten reappeared.

[General] Odin88: Our guild is currently holding an event

[General] Odin88: Joining comes with a small gift,

[General] Machoking: Ah

[General] Machoking: I already said I don’t want to join, so why are you doing this?

Even as Kyunghun coldly replied, Odin88 persisted.

[General] Odin88: There’s a small gift when you join… and a little ceremony as well.

[General] LA TechBro: ^^ You can choose whichever item you want

At that moment, greedy Cat tried to sneak in.

[General] Cat: …Could I get one too?ㅇㅅㅇ

[General] LA TechBro: Sorry, Cat~ only for new members!^^

[General] Cat: I’ll rejoin then…

[General] Cat: No second-hand new member?ㅜㅜㅜㅜㅜㅜㅜㅜ

[General] LA TechBro: You know there’s no rejoining after a kick, right?^^

[General] Odin88: Also, we hardly have guild fights.

[General] Odin88: You can continue enjoying solo play..!

[General] Odin88: Machoking, just think of our guild as dust in the air.

[General] Cat: The guild leader just whispered to me to shut up

[General] Odin88: Ah,, yes,,

Kyunghun, quietly watching the rapidly scrolling chat, finally spoke.

[General] Machoking: You mean… you really give the item I want?

He quickly scanned the items lost on the first day and those in the storage.

[General] LA TechBro: Of course^^

[General] LA TechBro: Just tell us~ anything that’s rotting or leftover, it’s yours.

[General] Odin88: Yes… our vice-guild leader is capable,

[General] Odin88: so nothing is impossible..

[General] Cat: Yep, our vice-guild leader’s nickname is “Lightning Rich,”

[General] Cat: They have so much money, just ask for what you need ㄱㄱㄱ

[General] LA TechBro: Do you see our passionate recruitment efforts, Machoking^^

Their summary: there’s an open slot, they happened to witness Kyunghun’s performance during guild quests, and please, join.

Even if the target doesn’t believe it, the offer to receive items just for joining was tempting.

Kyunghun paused from his laptop to consider the items he had in storage and those lost on the first day. Adding the half-dozen items Seohyun gave and a pair of purchased combat boots…

“Should be enough for Jongun too, right?”

Having doubled what he had, he wondered if it would be enough, but humans are insatiable. The tempting offer of guild items made Kyunghun’s decision harder.

Seeing Kyunghun hesitate, the three intensified their efforts.

[General] LA TechBro: Is there an item you want~^^

[General] Cat: Just name an expensive one!!ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ

[General] Odin88: Right, opportunities like this don’t come often… make a reasonable choice.

With all of them pushing for his joining, Kyunghun’s thin resolve began to crack.

[General] Machoking: Haha, well;; I can only log in twice a month anyway

[General] LA TechBro: That’s fine, just save a spot^^

Kyunghun started getting flustered from their unwavering smiles. He realized he hadn’t smiled since meeting LA TechBro.

[General] Machoking: Seriously, I might not even log in twice a month;;

[General] Machoking: If a guild member is inactive, doesn’t that hurt the guild?;;

[General] Odin88: Don’t worry about that, we have nothing else to do.

[General] Cat: We’re all useless anyway!!

Then LA TechBro spoke with a calm smile.

[General] LA TechBro: I’ve been playing this game a long time

[General] LA TechBro: I’m confident there’s nothing left to achieve^^

Feeling he should respond, Kyunghun said:

[General] Machoking: ………….Impressive

[General] LA TechBro: So, will you join?^^

[General] Cat: Wow, that was exhausting

[General] Odin88: Still… it was worth the effort,,

[General] Machoking: Um… can I ask one more thing?

Cat flirtatiously jumped in again.

[General] Cat: ㅋㅋ Tell us, sir, we’ll grant anythingㅇㅅㅇ

[General] Machoking: Earlier, I noticed

[General] Machoking: You mentioned the vice-guild leader,

[General] Machoking: Are they aware I’m joining?

[General] Cat: Ask the guild leader ㄱㄱ

[General] LA TechBro: Machoking~ sharp and clever question~^^

Passing the conversation quickly to gain time, LA TechBro complimented Machoking while Odin88 returned as his direct interlocutor.

[General] Odin88: Yes, our vice-guild leader

[General] Odin88: has circumstances that prevent frequent logins,

[General] Odin88: so you need not worry.

[General] Odin88: Just come and help us with headcount…

At this point, the staged persuasion felt so natural that Kyunghun’s resolve began to waver.

[General] Machoking: But if you join a guild, you can’t leave, right?

[General] Machoking: I’m new to guilds;;

[General] Odin88: Ah,,, guild leader?

At the right moment, LA TechBro reassured Kyunghun.

[General] LA TechBro: Machoking, you know there’s no leave button, only kick.

[General] LA TechBro: If you want, we can kick you^^

[General] Odin88: You see, the guild leader never said that

[General] Cat: Sir, whisper that to the guild leader ㄱㄱ

[General] Odin88: Ah, yes

Quietly observing the three talking to each other, Kyunghun replied:

[General] Machoking: Alright… fine then.

Then, as if realizing something, he exclaimed “Ah,” and moved his fingers.

[General] Machoking: But, um

[General] Machoking: the joining

[General] Machoking: is the vice-guild leader aware?