00606 The thick trunk doesn’t change. …Or does it?

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“But now that I think about it, this is serious.”

A moment later.

My older brother, who had been lying on the bed, slowly sat up and spoke.

“Serious?”

“Yeah. The rule of exploration just popped into my head. You know what I mean, right?”

The rule of exploration.

Of course I know it. For example, when exploring a forest, the deeper you go, the stronger the monsters you encounter become compared to the entrance. It’s not a perfect rule, but based on experience, the boss monsters usually appear near the end. So it’s not entirely wrong… Wait a minute.

“Actually, looking at your攻略 (strategy) data, I’m a bit worried. If monsters that strong are already showing up in this area, how much stronger will the monsters be in the next region…?”

The moment he said that, my foggy mind suddenly cleared. I realized I’d forgotten the most important thing.

I know what kinds of monsters mainly appear in the third region. And my brother has to lead the Northwest Alliance into that third region soon.

In other words, the reality that he’s walking straight into a death trap hit me all at once.

“Then… you should’ve told me beforehand if you were coming!”

Unable to hold back the flood of anxiety rising inside me, I raised my voice without thinking. If only I’d known at least three days in advance, I could’ve had time to prepare.

“Hahaha.”

But whether he understood my feelings or not, my brother remained calm and collected. He even smiled comfortably and gently got up, approaching me.

“Don’t be too angry. It wasn’t my choice not to inform you about the alliance.”

“What? Then…”

“The Northwest Alliance… no, more precisely, the will of the North.”

“The will of the North?”

I couldn’t help but frown. So it wasn’t that they forgot—it was that they deliberately ignored it? Why?

Before I could even think about the reason, a sudden possibility flashed through my mind. I couldn’t help but narrow my eyes, even though I hoped I was wrong.

“Anyway, enough about that… So, what do you think, Suhyun? I want to hear your thoughts now.”

Stopping right in front of me, my brother smiled softly and gently clasped my shoulder. Meeting my gaze, he spoke calmly.

“Do you think our Northwest Expeditionary Force can conquer the next region?”

My brother left sometime after dinner, as night deepened.

After forcing him to go back despite his insistence on staying overnight, I stepped out of the tent and stopped in a quiet spot.

Everything around me was painted pitch black, with only the stars in the night sky casting a faint glow on the ground. A cool night breeze occasionally brushed against me, but I didn’t feel particularly cold.

Even though it was about time to sleep, I was out for one reason: I couldn’t fall asleep.

I wanted desperately to shake off the anxiety lodged deep in my chest, but it wouldn’t go away.

A long time ago, I had a thought.

The future changes.

And yet, it doesn’t.

The minor details—the branches—may shift here and there, but the trunk always tries to return to its source.

Since entering the second run, I’ve changed countless events that were supposed to happen.

I saved users who should have died, and let die those who should have lived. I even destroyed an alliance. I preemptively seized ruins that other users would later discover. I founded a mercenary clan that wasn’t supposed to exist, influencing the Northern Continent significantly.

If each of those is a branch, then I’ve twisted countless branches along the way.

As a result, the future has started to unfold more or less as I want.

If I had to pick the single best thing I’ve done so far, I wouldn’t hesitate.

I made sure the Northern Continent skipped the Warring States period and moved directly to the next phase. That was even more amazing than unexpectedly defeating Belphegor in the ruined laboratory.

In the first run, the Northern Continent would be in the middle of fierce power struggles between regions and clans by now. Normally, it would take two or three years just to unite forces against the demons, let alone conquer the Steel Mountains.

But Lee Hyo-eul’s survival led to the establishment of the Central Management Organization, and thankfully, the Warring States period never came. Instead, they conserved their strength and began the Steel Mountains campaign much earlier than planned… or so I thought.

I was wrong.

Listening to my brother, I realized that although the future had been accelerated, that wasn’t the end. By twisting the branches too much, unforeseen side effects had begun to emerge.

In the form of ‘conflict.’

No doubt, many users now look at the East with suspicion.

Especially the North, which almost entirely harbors deep resentment toward the East.

Of course, it’s not that the East-North conflict is my fault.

But my influence is the biggest reason the North is in this situation. I killed the user who was supposed to lead the North, and I swept up all the resources found there, investing everything in the South.

…Anyway.

My brother said the North deliberately didn’t want to announce the alliance. The meaning behind that is clear.

If you think about it, the answer comes naturally. When I first heard the news, I was puzzled, and Han So-young, sensing something subtle, quickly sorted things out.

Then how would the East, already engaged in a delicate standoff with the North, react to this news?

There’s a big difference between being told in advance and not being told at all.

In other words, the North is basically saying, “You’re doing whatever you want, so why should we have the obligation to tell you?”

By pulling the West into the fold, the North succeeded in uniting the Northwest Alliance, and it’s obvious who that move was aimed at. The East wouldn’t be happy about that.

The important thing is that at this point, new conflicts have arisen between the regions.

This isn’t something to just shrug off. The deeper this rift grows, the more it could recreate the kind of interregional tensions seen during the Golden Lion era.

I don’t think it’s paranoia.

Because no matter how much you try to change the future, it won’t change on its own. Haven’t I felt that many times already?

Even if the Steel Mountains campaign ends well, it’s still a problem. The Warring States period that never happened in the Northern Continent is now showing signs of emerging anew on the new stage of Atlanta.

So what should I do now?

At that moment—

“Oh ho. And who do we have here?”

Just as I was lost in thought, staring at the night sky, a rough voice suddenly sounded. At first, it seemed unfamiliar, but the more I thought about it, the more familiar it became.

“The legendary Mercenary Lord of our Southern Expeditionary Force? Huh? Hahaha!”

A man strode up, resting a spear casually on his shoulder. It was none other than Gong Chan-ho. But this time, his usual swagger was replaced by a steadier gait. I watched him silently.

Why did Gong Chan-ho suddenly appear here? This is the outskirts where users rarely come and go, except for patrols. Surely, the Northern Expeditionary Force’s Gong Chan-ho wouldn’t be on guard here.

“Legendary? That’s nonsense the moment I see it.”

“Why so harsh? Everyone’s been singing your praises. They say you played a huge role in this campaign.”

Gong Chan-ho kept approaching, his voice smooth and teasing.

But I felt no particular reaction. At first, I had high hopes for Gong Chan-ho. I thought he might be someone worth working with.

But after the last User Academy, my interest in him completely vanished. Gong Chan-ho was no longer someone I cared about.

“Even if that’s true, what does it have to do with you? Why don’t you worry about your own affairs?”

“Heh. That twisted sarcasm is still the same. Anyway, don’t stare at me like that. I’m on guard duty, you know. More precisely, on patrol.”

But his next words completely shattered my assumption that Gong Chan-ho wouldn’t be on guard.

“Patrol? You?”

“Yeah. When we arrived at the fortress the Eastern guys built, they told us to handle the security around your camp ourselves.”

“Huh?”

“So when we got here, I told them straight up: we’ll take care of our own security. No hard feelings, so don’t worry. It’s better this way, right?”

Even though we requested it ourselves, the fact that the East said that to the North… I guess Jo Sung-ho isn’t happy about it either.

Anyway, it was surprising that Gong Chan-ho was on patrol.

“…Weren’t you supposed to be the Commander-in-Chief?”

“Commander-in-Chief, my ass. Nobody wanted the job. It’s just a fancy title with no real power.”

Gong Chan-ho spat and shook his head vigorously. His words were oddly unfocused, but by saying that, he showed he knew the situation of the Northern Expeditionary Force—and his own position.

Then why did Gong Chan-ho volunteer to be Commander-in-Chief?

“Curious, huh? Why I took the Commander-in-Chief position.”

He seemed to read my thoughts and zeroed in on my question. Before I could say a word, he continued.

“Simple. I just wanted to fight.”

I couldn’t believe my ears for a moment.

“You just wanted to fight?”

“Exactly. At least as Commander-in-Chief, I wouldn’t be interrupted when fighting. No need to obey anyone’s orders—a position where I can fight freely.”

“…Seriously.”

“If I manage to hold this position and survive, I’ll be even stronger. Heh heh heh.”

…Getting stronger the more you fight, huh? It’s not entirely wrong, but I thought there’d be some deeper reason or explanation. And yet, all he says is that he just wanted to fight?

That was when it happened.

Just as I was about to dismiss it as incomprehensible, my mouth watering in disbelief—

Suddenly, Gong Chan-ho stopped walking and looked at me, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.

I instantly felt uneasy.

Come to think of it, Gong Chan-ho had been smiling ever since he first saw me in the tent. Did he hit his head during the fight or something?

“Hey. There’s one more thing I’m curious about.”

“Hm?”

“Why have you been grinning every time you look at me since earlier?”

“…….”

Gong Chan-ho fell silent for a moment.

But the silence didn’t last long.

“…Because I’m happy.”

“Happy?”

What on earth did he mean by that?

“Yeah. I’m happy because I confirmed that the guy I’m aiming for has gotten stronger than before. There’s no way I wouldn’t be. A goal that’s easy to catch isn’t worth anything.”

“A goal…?”

“Yeah. That’s you. You.”

“……?”

He pointed at me, emphasizing it again and again. For a moment, I felt a bit thrown off. What the hell is this guy talking about all of a sudden?

But Gong Chan-ho didn’t seem to care at all. Instead, he slowly lowered his spear and tilted his head from side to side. Crack, crack—the rhythmic sound of his neck bones echoed.

“After I lost to you last time, I really… no, never mind. I don’t like dredging up messy past stuff.”

“…….”

“But there’s one thing I’ll say for sure. I haven’t just been sitting still since then. …Yeah, I’ve changed. Because at least now, I can feel one thing clearly.”

“Feel?”

“When I used to rely only on my strength, I didn’t know. But now, I can feel it.”

“So….”

“That I’m still weaker than you. …Much weaker.”

“Hmm.”

Suddenly, memories of the old Gong Chan-ho flashed through my mind—the pathetic guy who insisted he hadn’t lost and begged to come back.

But now, it’s different. He’s accepted that defeat and admitted he’s still weaker.

A faint curiosity stirred inside me.

Gong Chan-ho didn’t say anything more. He just stared at me quietly, then, looking very serious, set his spear down on his shoulder. He pointed the tip forward and assumed a ready stance.

I spoke softly.

“What exactly are you trying to do?”

“Are you asking that knowing full well, or do you really not know?”

Gong Chan-ho answered immediately.

I know. That’s a challenge, isn’t it? But…

“You say you’re weaker than me. You know that, right?”

“Right. I know it for sure. You’re different from the others. Whenever I see you, no matter how hard I try to think positively, I can’t feel confident I’ll win. Even when I first saw that strong brain of yours, I didn’t get this feeling.”

“So, you’re saying you’ll throw yourself at me even though you know you’ll lose?”

“Yeah. You’re probably wondering why I keep provoking you like this. …But my position is different.”

Different, huh…

“To be honest, I don’t really understand it myself. I know I’m not ready yet… but every time I see you, something inside me boils over like crazy. Honestly, I don’t care about winning or losing anymore.”

“…….”

“Even if I lose again… even if I realize you’ve gotten even stronger than last time…!”

“…….”

“Even if I fall into the abyss like before, now… now I’m confident I can climb back up anytime!”

“So…”

I spoke quietly.

I hadn’t drawn my sword yet, nor did I intend to. Not yet.

“So, you’re saying you want to fight me now?”

“No. Right now, you and I aren’t fighting.”

Gong Chan-ho shook his head vigorously. Gripping his spear tighter, he bared his teeth.

“I’m challenging you.”

---------------------------= Author’s Note =---------------------------

Actually, Gong Chan-ho likes Kim Soo-hyun. He doesn’t realize it himself, but he can’t forget her.

If we go back to the User Academy incident, Kim Soo-hyun and Gong Chan-ho fought each other.

Maybe that’s when it started—Gong Chan-ho’s feelings for Kim Soo-hyun.

At first, Kim Soo-hyun slapped Gong Chan-ho hard across the cheek with her sword. The sound was sharp—smack!

At that moment, Gong Chan-ho thought:

“Ah. You’re the first user who’s ever slapped me.”

That’s when Gong Chan-ho first started to like her.

After that, he kept getting happily beaten by Kim Soo-hyun.

Right there, Gong Chan-ho discovered his S&M side.

Kim Soo-hyun’s strikes were so satisfying that his body involuntarily craved more.

And then came the neglect play.

Kim Soo-hyun coldly turned her back, ignoring Gong Chan-ho’s desperate pleas for her to stay.

And from there…

…That’s the little fantasy I cooked up. What do you think?

If you liked it, leave a comment. If not, feel free to hit me. (?)