Chapter 44: The Shadow of Hodellem

“For now, the best move is to head back to Doltec.”

I nodded at Sephiroth’s suggestion. Doltec was the one who had captured Ignas and abused the power of the pearl. The location of our last quest was actually Doltec’s castle. According to Sephiroth, the man was also into mermaid farming. I grumbled a bit because the quest flow felt strange—like I was being spoiled on the story while simultaneously being kept in the dark.

“I’m the type of person who likes to finish quests in the order they’re given.”

“Is that so?”

“Could you at least pretend to listen?”

“The situation is already like this, so what can you do? This plot is wildly different from the main story, so just give up on the order.”

He had a point. Judging by the reactions of not just Sephiroth, but Seong-jin and Gyu-tae as well, this story had veered far off the tracks of the main narrative. And to be honest, I was too curious about how this quest would unfold to postpone it. Preventing the extinction of three races was way more exciting than finding a few missing Orc youths. Besides, unlike this fast-paced quest, the main quest—even though I’d worked on it yesterday with Sephiroth while he was herb-gathering—still hadn’t solved the secret of the missing Orcs. Since the pacing was slow, I figured it was better to save it for later.

By the way, what was that pearl he just pulled out?

“What’s that?” I asked, pointing at the pearl in Sephiroth’s hand.

“A Mermaid’s Pearl.”

“Huh? Doesn’t Doltec have that?”

Sephiroth shook his head. “In the timeline of our current quest, Doltec has already lost the pearl.”

“Wait, what? But Ignas said Doltec used him to exploit the pearl’s power.”

“Yeah, he did.” Sephiroth nodded. “But in the main quest timeline, Doltec loses the pearl. That’s why he’s currently scraping together anything that even looks like a pearl. The main quest involved taking down Doltec, who was oppressing and plundering residents to find a replacement. But this time, things seem a bit different.”

“Then what is that pearl?”

“A junk item you get after clearing the Doltec quest. Most people sell it for pennies. I kept it thinking it might be useful someday.”

The small pearl in Sephiroth’s hand certainly had the same mysterious luster as the large one we’d seen in Doltec’s castle. It was tiny—barely half the size of a pinky nail—but it possessed a magical quality that caught the eye better than most gems.

“If it’s a Mermaid’s Pearl, then it might actually belong to Ignas.”

“Yeah, looks like it. Doltec keeps saying he’s looking for the legendary pearl.”

Sephiroth agreed with my guess. The more I looked at it, the more it resembled the pearl from before. Noticing that I was staring intently at his palm, Sephiroth suddenly thrust his hand toward me. Under the iridescent, mysterious colors of the pearl, the vision I’d seen during the event suddenly flashed back into my mind.

“Wh-what the?”

“Nothing. I just thought you wanted to touch it.”

Sephiroth seemed a bit surprised by my startled reaction. I fidgeted with my fingers awkwardly. I should have forgotten it by now, but the vision featuring Na Eun-hyeok was so vivid that it kept popping out of my memory at the most random times. The Na Eun-hyeok I saw today overlapped with it. Na Eun-hyeok, loved by everyone. Na Eun-hyeok, my project partner. Na Eun-hyeok, whose voice sounded just like Sephiroth’s.

“It’s not that. Sorry for jumping. I was just thinking about something else.”

With those thoughts in mind, I found I could be a bit gentler with Sephiroth. Responding to my unusually calm tone, Sephiroth replied:

“If you’re sorry, kneel down and bark like a dog three times. Then I’ll forgive you.”

“F*ck off, seriously.”

I’m the idiot for trying to have a civilized conversation with this guy!

After bickering for a while, Sephiroth and I headed toward Hodellem, the western city where Doltec resided. Since I had never visited Hodellem, we had to go on a “walking tour of the world” from the beginner village. Hodellem was a port city with an incredibly developed commercial sector, and Doltec reportedly ruled over it like a lord or a king.

“Doltec hit the jackpot with mermaid farming. His hands are in more than half of the city’s commercial districts. The entire market of Hodellem shifts based on his stance.”

“So it’s like a monopoly.”

“Exactly. Every city council member in Hodellem is closely tied to him, so it wouldn’t be weird to call it political-business collusion.”

“Sounds shady.”

“That’s why I smashed everything last time, but I wonder how it’ll go this time…”

Sephiroth trailed off as the outline of the Hodellem port city finally began to emerge before us.

An open dirt road stretched through lush, thick trees. At the end of the road, a white stone brick floor began at the city entrance, continuing inside as clean as snow. A massive gate stood open in the middle of the city walls. Above the arched entrance—made of brick stacked on gray stone and decorated beautifully with carvings—a large clock marked the time. Along the stone path in front of the arch, navy blue banners embroidered with anchors and fishing boats hung majestically.

[Shout] anna8821: Sephiroth approaching the Hodellem main gate! Everyone run for your lives!

A warning about Sephiroth’s approach scrolled past. I’d seen this so often during our trek across the world that I wasn’t even surprised anymore. I just felt a little sorry for the people who had business to do in Hodellem.

Sorry, guys. We’ll just finish the quest and leave.

I offered a silent apology and passed through the gate. The users who had been crowding the area just moments ago had all fled and hidden; only NPCs remained, filling the empty streets of Hodellem. The guards in silver armor rushing toward us were an added bonus.

As I nimbly dodged to the side, the guards raised their swords to strike at Sephiroth.

“Humans are good at learning, but NPCs have zero learning capacity,” Sephiroth grumbled as he fluidly evaded the attacks. It was a talent to be able to speak so leisurely in that situation. I looked at him with exasperated eyes.

“What are you looking at? Get going to the quest.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

I shouldn’t feel this way, but I desperately wished Sephiroth would get a permanent ban.

“Doltec is in the office building inside the central market.”

“Then let’s head toward the central market first.”

Sephiroth took the lead while dodging the guards. Watching the guards attack with terrifying momentum while Sephiroth nimbly evaded them felt like watching a well-choreographed play. Wish I had some popcorn. I was walking along aimlessly when—

“I heard Master Doltec is looking for a pearl again.”

The conversation of two men walking by, carrying large fish, caught my ear.

Both men looked elderly. Their skin was sunburnt red, and they had white towels tied like bandanas around their heads. Sorrow was etched into every deep wrinkle on their faces. Their clothes—brown, black, and white—were stained with dirt and faded.

“Still?”

“Shh! Someone might hear.”

The NPCs looked around cautiously. When I stopped to watch them, Sephiroth glanced back, then quickly dashed forward. It was a familiar sight. Assuming he was going to lure the guards away and come back, I crouched against a staircase wall to hide. The two men, seemingly unaware of my presence, continued their conversation in hushed voices that I could still hear perfectly.

“Well, you know the rumor. That Master Doltec is actually using some strange sorcery…”

“Hey! Don’t you know everyone who said that got taken away?”

“That’s why I’m only telling you.”

“True. It was a famous story ten years ago, wasn’t it? Anyone who went to meet the Master became his fanatical follower the next day…”

Fear and worry clouded their faces. They looked around once more. Just as I pressed my body closer to the wall—

“What are they saying?”

“Gah…! You scared me!”

I barely managed to suppress a scream. Sephiroth, who had already ditched the guards and returned, was crouching behind me. Can’t this guy give some kind of warning? Usually, I can hear other users’ footsteps, but Sephiroth made uniquely zero noise. It was as if he was constantly using a stealth skill.

“Make some noise when you’re coming.”

“Moving quietly became a habit. Anyway, what are they saying?”

“They think Doltec is using sorcery.”

While we whispered, the two fishermen’s conversation continued.

“Do you remember when the Master’s mansion was destroyed about three years ago?”

“Of course I remember. It was a huge ordeal. He was furious and vowed to catch the culprit, but I don’t think they ever found him?”

“The captain of the Yellow Sun says there’s no way a human did that.”

“Really?”

“He said that to blow up a mansion that size, you’d need explosives, but there were no traces of explosives anywhere. Instead, it looked like a giant claw had literally ripped the house apart.”

“That is strange.”

“And they said a mysterious stringed instrument sound was heard nearby.”

“Ugh, why are you being so creepy? You’re not pulling my leg, are you?”