The Return Of The Genius Ranker Of All Times [EN]: Chapter 115

115.

Eliza turned her head with a creak, like a robot in need of oiling, her eyes brimming with tears.

Looking up, her eyes seemed about to burst, as if asking, “Is that true?”

“No, Eliza is cute.”

-Liza… Liza…

“I’m serious. You’re not weird.”

-Liza… Liza…

She kept muttering, looking dejected, but this time, no translation was needed.

*That I’m strange… that I’m a monster…*

These words were as vivid as if they were in a speech bubble above my head.

It seemed that Eliza, who had only ever heard that she was cute, was quite shocked to hear that she looked strange.

‘Oh dear.’

Even Dohyun, who was next to me, felt sorry for her. She had confidently stepped up only to be knocked out in one hit, but Charlie didn’t stop.

-For those who protect the Lord to be mere goblins and spiders… Ah, I should have come sooner… I’m sorry, Lord. Please do not forgive me.

-Hey, is that bastard ignoring people? Hey, you, come here.

-Liza Liza!!

-Aren’t you a goblin, not a person?

-Kyak!

Jihad was taking a fighting stance, ready to take on Lu Bu [a legendary Chinese warrior known for his unmatched strength], who was performing a flawless victory, and Eliza was tearfully chirping.

And Charlie, not even paying attention to them, was looking at me and begging for forgiveness.

‘……No wonder he’s called a harsh critic.’

I didn’t understand why users who had cleared the tutorial often called Charlie a harsh critic, or a picky and annoying bastard, but now I understand.

What’s even more surprising is that I don’t see any malice in Charlie.

-Ah… it’s all my fault.

“……”

He was just genuinely filled with guilt.

To Charlie, Jihad and Eliza were just strangely * 생긴* [shaped/looking] monsters, or pets, nothing more, nothing less.

Who would sincerely fight with mere creatures?

-Ugh, I’m so frustrated. Okay, let’s die together today. How dare you not recognize your senior…

“Hey, hey, stop it. Be quiet.”

I stopped Jihad because it seemed like the fight would escalate, and Jihad’s eyes widened.

The pupils of that guy were shaking.

-……Master, are you taking his side?

“……Huh?”

Dohyun was momentarily flustered by his appearance, like a tragic heroine betrayed by her trusted husband, and he shouted.

-The rolling stone pushes aside the embedded stone… is that really what’s happening? How can the master abandon us!

-Liza Liza! Liza!

-See, Eliza says you shouldn’t! You even gave her a precious necklace! Eliza!

Even Eliza was glaring at me, making me feel like a truly terrible man.

In the end, Dohyun, unable to bear the absurdity, opened his mouth.

“No, what are you talking about? When you think about it, he came under my command first.”

-What? What are you talking about? Of course, we were first…

-The Lord’s words are correct. This humble knight has been the Lord’s sword for hundreds of years.

-……?

Is that true?

Dohyun sighed and nodded at the sight of him blinking as if asking that, and Jihad opened his mouth in shock.

Then, after thinking for a moment, he suddenly asked back.

-……Then, are you hundreds of years old?

“No, that’s not it. Um… it’s complicated to explain. Just think of it that way.”

-Then… Charlie, senior?

-Liza?

Jihad’s attitude changed.

The confident appearance of trying to educate him was gone, and Jihad was hesitating and looking at him.

[Guardian ‘Jihad Black’s guardian trait ‘Strong against the weak’ is activated.]

It was because he realized that he thought he was superior in terms of experience, but in fact, it was the opposite.

He lost his sense of how to position himself.

From his point of view, he thought he was chewing out a junior, but he found out that he was a veteran.

‘What the hell……’

Should I really call this consistent……?

Dohyun sighed at his attitude change, which made him laugh in vain.

“We’re all guardians, so there’s no senior or junior. Just be comfortable with each other.”

As he waved his hand roughly and spoke, Jihad’s eyes sparkled as if he had never been looking at him. Feeling much more comfortable, he belatedly became aware of his gaze and cleared his throat.

-Ahem, since the master said so, I can’t help it. You should know you’re lucky…

-Li, Liza……!

Perhaps because of his previous strong appearance, or because he didn’t become a junior, but because he lost the safety net of being a senior.

He was glancing at him slightly, but he was better than before.

Fortunately, Charlie accepted it well without feeling bad.

-Hmm, I don’t understand, but if the Lord has acknowledged it, it must mean that your abilities are outstanding, unlike what I saw. I’m sorry if I was rude.

-No, well… I wasn’t doing well either.

Charlie readily offered an apology first, and Jihad was too embarrassed to get angry, so he mumbled and spat out an answer.

Charlie shook hands with such Jihad.

-I’m Charlie, nice to meet you.

-We, well… I’m Jihad. This is Eliza.

-Liza!

Eliza, who jumped up, went up on the hands of the two and put her hands together.

There were still some awkward aspects, but Dohyun shook his head at the situation where the relationship was roughly settled.

A goblin who has inherited the blood of an ancient tribe and a fluffy spider with parasitic abilities.

And the helper NPC [Non-Player Character] who helps with the tutorial is a guardian……

‘It’s a crazy party, really.’

Everyone else has normal and cool guardians, but why are only these terrible mixed races following me?

His head throbbed, and he was holding his forehead when.

Charlie, who had finished sorting out the relationship, suddenly remembered something and came over and handed something over.

-Ah, Lord. I picked this up.

“Huh?”

-I picked it up when you were focusing on something.

Dohyun’s eyes flashed as he looked at it.

[The Eye of Truth is activated.]

‘Fragment of Fate!’

The faint red light that was leaking out.

It was the same light I saw in the heart of the Destroyer Gayman.

What I had been wanting all along was finally in my hands.

Dohyun, who received the half-broken hourglass, immediately checked the information and his eyes were filled with embarrassment.

It couldn’t be helped.

[Broken Hourglass of Faith]

-Grade: ???

-Description: It is a broken hourglass. It contains an unknown powerful divine power.

“……What is this?”

Because the information was so different from what I had expected.

There was nothing similar to what I had obtained from Raven from start to finish.

No, the name itself doesn’t even have the ‘F’ in Fate.

Just in case, I fiddled with it here and there, but there was no change.

‘It looks ordinary, too.’

It was a worn and broken hourglass that you could see anywhere.

It looks red because of the Eye of Truth, but there is no flashing reaction like before.

‘Come to think of it, the main quest completion doesn’t pop up either.’

……Was it not a Fragment of Fate after all?

Then why is the Eye of Truth still reacting?

If this is the case, do I have to stay longer even after clearing the graduation quest?

I thought it was a Fragment of Fate, but I was confused by the unexpected result.

‘No, how much hardship did I go through to catch it, and this is what it is?’

Of course, thanks to that, I’m also clearing the graduation quest wonderfully, and I’m getting a lot of rewards, but……

Still, this is not it!

I was about to find Gamilion to discuss this absurd situation.

“Ah……”

“I can’t believe it……”

A voice filled with emotion was heard from somewhere, grabbing Dohyun.

Turning his head towards the sound, he saw a group of people.

“Did you really kill that Destroyer?”

“To catch the Blue Duke…… Who are those people……”

“I can’t believe it even though I saw it with my own two eyes…… Who would believe this?”

The appearance of the priests, gaping and admiring.

Their eyes were moist, and it seemed to be quite touching.

Some were even shedding tears.

“Cough…… This time, you have saved everyone.”

“It’s all thanks to the hero. It’s because you tied him up and caught him so that he couldn’t escape into the city.”

“There is no foresight. He is a wonderful person who combines martial arts and wisdom.”

“Ah…… I can go back to my family.”

The sight of the old men hugging each other and stomping their feet, soaked in emotion, made Dohyun, who had been in a hurry, stop.

‘Um.’

I felt strange for some reason.

To Dohyun, they are just passing NPCs, but the emotions shown by them were by no means formal data fragments.

Everyone was sincerely relieved and excited about protecting Brion from the Destroyer.

-They are the people the Lord has saved. None other than the Lord.

I felt strange for some reason, so I was watching quietly when a soft voice was heard.

Looking to the side, I saw Charlie’s face smiling happily.

-In fact, I was a little worried. Beliefs are gradually contaminated when they meet time.

“……”

-But…… Even after a long time, the Lord seems to be the same as before. After all, my eyes were not wrong. This humble sword is very proud.

At the same time as Charlie, who met my eyes, added words, an alarm rang.

[Guardian First Sword, ‘Charlie’s loyalty increases.]

[Guardian First Sword ‘Charlie’s loyalty is at its maximum and will not increase any further.]

As I was watching it quietly, the first time I met Charlie suddenly flashed through my mind.

‘Come to think of it, Charlie was like that when I first met him.’

He was sadder than anyone else when he saw his dead colleagues in Arren Castle, which was a tutorial, and he was more moved than anyone else when Dohyun finally caught the Iron-Blooded Mayongjong.

As Charlie was like that, wouldn’t he know better than anyone else how they feel?

As I was watching it like that, I also heard a story about Charlie.

“But…… Who is that knight……?”

“He was definitely using the Sword of Light…… Isn’t that the swordsmanship that only the knights of Arren Castle use?”

“Where did he suddenly appear from? Did he fall from the sky?”

“Come to think of it, the ceiling is already *뚫려* [pierced/broken], I guess he came down from there.”

“……Hey, are you saying that as a *드립* [ad-lib/joke] now?”

“……Cough.”

The priests, who had calmed down to some extent, were making noise while looking around.

It was not a reaction close to *경계* [caution] or suspicion like before, but a pure *의구심* [doubt/question].

‘Well, I can’t help but be curious.’

From their point of view, at the moment of *절체절명의* [desperate/critical] when their only hope was about to disappear, Charlie suddenly appeared, *뿌리며* [scattering/emitting] a dazzling light, right?

He appeared like a savior.

That’s why they were hesitant to ask and were just looking around.

“Thank you so much, hero. Our Brion will never forget the hero’s grace.”

“No. It’s natural.”

It was Guildetti, the vice-priest, who *매 준* [took on] the *총대* [responsibility].

Still, he was a figure worthy of being their representative.

“*허허* [Hehe]…… It’s natural. No one other than the apostle can do it like the hero. If Lord Leved knows this fact, he will express his sincere gratitude.”

“Thank you.”

“We should be more grateful. But……”

Guildetti, who *흐린* [blurred] his words slightly, asked carefully.

“……Who is that knight, hero?”

While I was *고민* [pondering] for a while about what to answer, Charlie, who noticed the difficulty, stepped forward.

-I am Charlie, the first sword of the great Lord. I guess you are the vice-priest here.

“Ah, that’s right. Thank you so much, knight.”

-I didn’t do anything. I just *얹었을* [placed/added] the *숟가락* [spoon] on what the Lord created.

“You are *겸손* [humble]. We saw it, so don’t say that.”

After conveying his heart to some extent, Guildetti *꺼내었다* [took out] the *얘기* [topic] he had been *궁금했던* [curious about].

-But…… If it’s not *실례* [rude], may I ask how you came? There must have been a *결계* [barrier], so I don’t understand even after seeing it.”

It was an *지극히 상식적인 의문* [extremely common question].

In the first place, the reason why Dohyun was *상대하게* [facing] *파멸자 게이먼 혼자* [the Destroyer Gayman alone] was because of the *결계* [barrier] that he had *쳐둔* [set up].

Even dozens of knights couldn’t *엄두도* [dare to] and were just *빨고 손가락* [sucking their fingers/doing nothing], but Charlie, who *당당하게* [confidently] appeared very, was not *이해가* [understandable].

Charlie’s answer to that was very *심플* [simple].

-I came at the Lord’s *부름* [call].

“……?”

-I am a knight who *맹세한 충성을* [swore loyalty] to the Lord. Isn’t it natural for a knight to *응하는* [respond] to the Lord’s *부름* [call]?

“That…… Yes?”

Charlie, who said that, was very *근엄했다* [solemn].