Chapter 121

“Why would I protect her? In a place like this, you fend for yourself. Ever heard of survival of the fittest?”

The line Kwon drew was so clear that it made Yeonhoo’s earlier fixation on the unfamiliar name Lee Seoyeon seem almost ridiculous.

“Then what do you call what you’re doing right now?”

He meant, Aren’t you protecting me right now?

Kwon scoffed.

“You and her aren’t the same. Who would I ever do this for besides you?”

The answer was so firm it bordered on cold.

Yeonhoo stared blankly for a moment—then froze.

“I’m only doing this because it’s you.”

For some reason, he couldn’t look to the side.

He had the strange certainty that the moment he turned his head, he would meet Kwon’s eyes.

“You got quiet all of a sudden.”

A low chuckle brushed past Yeonhoo’s ear as he stubbornly kept his eyes forward.

The sound made something inside him itch so badly that his grip tightened around the mouse.

(Alliance) oTyudakTyudako: we’re here!

At the same time, the two of them came to a stop before an enormous castle gate.

First time I’ve ever stood outside another alliance’s gates.

—Whirrrrr, THUD!

The gates opened with a massive mechanical groan, revealing the alliance territory beyond.

It was nothing like <47>.

Whoa, what the hell? There are so many people. More than most towns, even.

The sheer number of players was overwhelming.

The place was so crowded it almost felt like you couldn’t take a step without tripping over someone.

But what those people were doing was even stranger.

What are they moving?

Alliance members in the area to the left were each dragging wooden carts back and forth along the same route over and over again.

On the right, another group was frantically repairing something, smashing it apart, and then repairing it again.

While Yeonhoo stared at the bizarre spectacle, someone stepped directly in front of them.

(Alliance) nnppcc: Oh, hello!

(Alliance) nnppcc: I’ll be giving you a quick introduction to the place from here on out!!

(Alliance) oTyudakTyudako: oh you’re here

Apparently finished with their job as guide, oTyudakTyudako immediately typed, “Have fun at orientation!” and disappeared.

(Alliance) nnppcc: First, your levels are... wow! You started today! You’re both COMPLETE beginners!

(Alliance) nnppcc: Welcome to our alliance! Would you like to receive this first?

What a weird way of talking....

Judging by the nickname, nnppcc was probably role-playing as an NPC. That would explain the oddly mechanical way they spoke.

In any case, Yeonhoo accepted the trade request and tilted his head.

Skip Ticket 1?

Kwon seemed just as puzzled.

“They’re giving us Skip Ticket 1.”

Zombie Village had skip tickets that let ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) players bypass certain parts of the story depending on their progress.

Yeonhoo normally used an All-in-One Skip Ticket to skip the story in one shot, but the item being offered here was a paid ticket that only let you skip through Chapter 1.

Oh, there’s gold too? If they hand out gold and skip tickets the second you join, their benefits are insane.

Yeonhoo was just thinking, Works for me, when the trade suddenly closed.

(Alliance) nnppcc: If you want these, all you have to do is complete a few little requests for me first!

Once again, the universal truth was proven:

Nothing in life came free.

“What a pain....”

Yeonhoo flinched and glanced sideways at Kwon after hearing him mutter in annoyance.

But Kwon immediately switched back to his mild tone as though he had never said anything.

“We’re planning to play through the story ourselves anyway. Should we just say we don’t need them?”

“Hmm. Still, don’t we have to play along with them at least a little if we want them to really accept us as alliance members? We have to fit in too!”

Besides, this alliance looked much bigger than Yeonhoo had expected.

And I don’t think attacking them would solve anything anyway. Even if we hit them, they can just change their nicknames, switch servers, and make another alliance. Then we’re right back where we started.

If this really was VITA, the most important thing would be figuring out why they kept attacking other alliances, whether they truly were planting spies everywhere... and what exactly they intended to do with the cores they stole.

Of course, figuring all of that out would be easier said than done.

“You’re not wrong, but fitting in doesn’t look like it’ll be easy. These guys seem pretty hardcore about treating people differently based on rank.”

Kwon was right.

In <47>, every alliance member had shared a fairly equal bond centered around alliance leader Miu and vice leader ShinJadu.

This place, on the other hand, looked like a rigid class system.

Whoa. So these must be ranks.

The alliance member list showed every nickname assigned a rank from L10 through L1.

We just joined, so I guess that’s why we’re L10—the lowest. And this person guiding us is L3....

Apparently, the higher the rank, the more authority a member had.

Mexibokku, whom Yeonhoo suspected was Caldi, was L2—essentially management level.

Even oTyudakTyudako was fairly high up at L4.

(Alliance) nnppcc: New recruits~ everyone~~

nnppcc’s call snapped Yeonhoo back to attention.

“Well, since we’re already here, let’s do our best to fit in!”

“Sure.”

Kwon gave a vague nod of agreement.

Of course, despite his casual tone, his eyes never stopped scanning the area while he recorded the game screen and took screenshots.

(Alliance) IOnly: Ah, yes!!!

But Yeonhoo wasn’t the only one answering.

(Alliance) jungsuuuuuk: yeah okay

(Alliance) SouthGateIntersection: Yes

(Alliance) ASi: Yep

Looking around, Yeonhoo realized that quite a few new players had joined around the same time as them.

Some were absolute beginners at his level, while others had already leveled up quite a bit.

(Alliance) nnppcc: Then I’ll assume all the new recruits here are participating~ Let me explain!

Yeonhoo’s eyes widened as the instructions began pouring in.

(Alliance) nnppcc: Anyone who wants Skip Ticket 1, head to the cart area right now! Learn how to use the carts, max out your Porter Skill, and show proof to receive your ticket!

(Alliance) nnppcc: Anyone who wants Skip Ticket 2, head to the ladder area! Max out your Repair Skill and show proof!

(Alliance) nnppcc: Skip Ticket 3 requires proof that you’ve maxed out Watchtower Construction!

(Alliance) nnppcc: Anyone who wants Skip Ticket 4.....

The list of chores flooding the chat window seemed endless.

Only then did Yeonhoo understand the bizarre scene he had witnessed earlier.

The alliance members dragging carts around and repeatedly repairing ladders weren’t doing it because they wanted to.

They were working for alliance rewards.

But that’s weird. Why are they making everyone train basic utility skills like these?

It would make more sense to tell them to gather materials and fill the alliance warehouse.

Even if they maxed out the skills nnppcc had just listed, it didn’t seem like the alliance would gain much immediate benefit from it.

So why were they going so far as to hand out skip tickets and gold just to make people train them?

Yeonhoo was deep in thought when another alliance member approached.

(Alliance) Kjin: I finally hit max level

(Alliance) nnppcc: Wow! Congratulations! Kjin, you’ve been quietly working hard ever since you were a beginner! I, nnppcc, offer you a heartfelt round of applause!

The approaching member seemed to be around L5.

nnppcc dramatically set off a firework effect.

(Alliance) nnppcc: Along with a gem gift, your rank will now be raised! Congratulations, Kjin! You are now rank ‘L4,’ which means you may enter the ‘Inner Area,’ accessible only to L4 and above!

...Inner Area?

What was that?

Yeonhoo stared in confusion.

As if nnppcc could somehow feel his gaze, they immediately explained.

(Alliance) nnppcc: The Inner Area contains the alliance resource storage, which you’re free to use! Our officers are always standing guard there, so it’s completely safe from looting!

Hearing that, Yeonhoo looked around the beginner area again.

Now that he was paying attention, there were quite a few traces of past invasions.

Apparently, the alliance used the beginners as a buffer on the outside while keeping its important resources and personnel comfortably sheltered in the Inner Area.

This is so weird.

Even stranger was the fact that nobody seemed to question it.

Even if they’re low-level, aren’t alliance members normally supposed to protect each other?

But this place strictly divided safety and rewards according to rank.

And apparently the rewards were satisfying enough that everyone simply kept their heads down and did their assigned work.

“This feels like some kind of cult....”

“Exactly.”

Kwon agreed.

“This is fun.”

At some point, the lifeless look in his eyes had disappeared.

He was staring at the screen with bright, fascinated eyes.

That made Yeonhoo just a little nervous.

“What’s fun about it?”

“Everything.”

None of this is fun. It’s just scary....

“So what do we do now?”

“If we beat the shit out of them now, they’ll just hide again and scrub their identities. So I think I’ll do what you suggested.”

“What I suggested? What?”

“Fit in.”

Kwon smiled.

“We’ll fit in perfectly and find out everything there is to know.”

Something about that smile felt ominous enough that Yeonhoo couldn’t answer right away.

Kwon, however, looked genuinely delighted.

“We can turn the tables and rob those bastards’ core too....”

In other words—

“So you mean... we’re the spies now?”

Kwon nodded.

“You’re smart, Yeonhoo. This time, we become the spies. And if these bastards really are the people we’ve been looking for, we strip them clean—from their core to their warehouse. And while we’re at it, we find out why they’ve been doing all this.”

The fact that Kwon no longer even bothered hiding that he was Miu was almost absurd.

But Yeonhoo could only cover his mouth as his heartbeat steadily accelerated.

Holy shit.

This was totally....

This is like a fucking spy thriller. This is awesome.

Wasn’t this basically some kind of double-agent operation?!

Am I, a pathetic loser like me, really worthy of such an important role?!

Yeonhoo could barely contain his excitement.

His face flushed with anticipation before he cleared his throat and forced himself to regain his composure.

“Uh, I only started playing today, so I have no idea what you’re talking about... but, yeah. Sounds good.”

His face, however, looked like he understood better than anyone.

“And since I’m a total beginner, I don’t understand a single thing you just said! But you look like you need my help, so I’ll do everything I can!”

He looked like someone who knew far too much.

Practically vibrating with excitement, Yeonhoo thought,

Holy shit. Double-agent Mechanic Yeonhoo. That’s so fucking cool. Should I redo my customization all in black this time? Or maybe go with a reporter concept? Infiltrating a cult....

He was already getting lost in fantasies about his new role when—

“But Yeonhoo, if we’re going undercover, we should do it properly, right? So how about we....”

Kwon’s next suggestion froze Yeonhoo’s flushed expression solid.

“Pretend we’re newlyweds?”

....................What?