The Return Of The Genius Ranker Of All Times [EN]: Chapter 130

130.

Hidden NPC.

This refers to NPCs that are a kind of hidden piece, virtually impossible to meet through ordinary means.

You can only encounter them after fulfilling difficult hidden conditions, so it’s naturally not easy to meet them.

So much so that even the adventure king Barion had only met four of them so far.

‘It’s only my second time since Gamillion, right?’

To meet such beings twice already at level 41.

It was clearly an incredible opportunity, but for some reason, Do-hyun felt weary.

-It’s upsetting enough trying to avoid the outlaws, but it was so hard because there wasn’t anyone to help me… Still, one group did decipher my map, but what’s the point? They just pass by without seeing me.

“I see.”

-So, after a lot of thought, I decided to just change my method. Leaving my location wouldn’t work.

“…Skip.”

-So, what I did was… Are you listening?

That hidden NPC, Jin Rudel, was an incredible chatterbox, somehow reminiscent of Zzrinna of Raven.

‘Wow… I feel like my ears are going to bleed, Master.’

‘Lizariza…’

‘Just say the word, my lord. I’ll take care of it.’

‘You’re not even visible.’

‘Ahem…’

So much so that even Jihad, who was quite talkative himself, gave up.

Especially since they were listening to that terrifyingly long speech without even being visible, it must have felt even more exhausting.

‘That’s strange. From what I’ve heard, other users couldn’t even hear his voice.’

If they could hear his voice, Jin Rudel wouldn’t have bothered leaving codes or maps.

Is it because I, as his master, recognized that man that the Guardians can also hear his voice?

It seemed that was the case.

[The Eye of Truth is activated.]

‘If you’re going to let me see it, why not just let everyone see it…’

It’s ambiguous, and I’m not sure what it is, but what can I do?

Do-hyun couldn’t even be 100% sure that he knew everything about the Eye of Truth.

He should be grateful that at least the Guardians could hear the sound.

Otherwise, he would have had to summarize and explain that over-talker’s long speech.

-Ah, I’m sorry. It’s been so long since I’ve talked to someone that I was out of my mind. You try being cut off from people for a few years, and you’ll understand.

“…It’s alright.”

-Still, I feel bad that I’ve been talking so much. A ghost suddenly appeared, so you must have a lot of questions. Why don’t you say something?

Good things come to those who endure.

It was worth enduring the urge to punch him in the face with superhuman patience.

Watching Jin Rudel, who had finally shut his mouth and was ready to listen, Do-hyun gathered his thoughts.

‘He chattered so much that I can’t even organize my thoughts.’

The only thing he understood was that he said he hadn’t spoken to anyone in years.

If that was true, it meant he was the first to discover him.

This was important.

Hidden Pieces are important in themselves, but the value of the first Hidden Piece to be discovered is even greater.

‘Hoo.’

Calming his excited heart, Do-hyun spoke calmly.

“I have three questions.”

-Oh, what are they?

First, what are those outlaws doing, and what are they looking for?

Second, why is Jin Rudel in the forest, and why is he leaving traces for people to find?

The answers came quickly.

-Only on nights when the moon is full and filled with lunar energy can those guys and I descend into this world. To be exact, it’s because of a special item that their leader has…

The explanation was long, but to summarize:

The day those guys first came down to this world with an item containing special energy, Jin Rudel happened to die.

Thanks to that, he was drawn to that energy before he could pass on and was forced to descend into this world.

That was how he became unable to go to the afterlife or stay in this world, which is his current situation.

-I don’t know where those rotten bastards came from… but it’s clear they’re planning something. It seemed like they were carrying out someone’s orders.

“…So, are you just wandering around aimlessly?”

-Hey, if that was all, it would be manageable. Those guys are out to get me. The Lycanthropes can see me, so they bark every time they see me… I’m pretty busy trying to avoid them.

“Hmm?”

Do-hyun couldn’t help but tilt his head at this point.

He couldn’t understand why he was avoiding them when they didn’t attack unless provoked.

Unless he had done something to harm them…

-I stole something that those guys were preparing to offer to their boss, who I don’t even know.

“…”

That changed things.

Do-hyun nodded, his doubts immediately resolved.

He died, and the first thing he saw when he opened his eyes were those terrifying-looking guys, and he thought about stealing from them…

‘Should I say he’s amazing, or that he’s not normal…’

He couldn’t tell whether to call it boldness or madness.

-Don’t look at me like that. I had no choice.

Was it because his impure thoughts were showing on his face?

Jin Rudel protested, feeling wronged.

-I heard those guys were planning to go into the castle and start a war. Are you just going to stand by and watch, Sir? Hey, you’re not a man if you do.

“…”

-I’m already dead anyway, so I just thought I’d be killed twice if I got caught. I’m good at stealing, if nothing else. Hehe, thanks to that, those guys are blind now. They can’t even get out of the forest.

‘Goodness.’

If that was true, his one great act of theft had saved the city.

Not only had the outlaws’ plans been thwarted by what Jin Rudel had stolen, but they also seemed to have various restrictions.

The birth of a hero came from theft.

Judging by his appearance, he must have been in his early 30s when he died, but his ambition was incredible.

‘…Is he a Godbug instead of a Thiefbug?’

Just as his image of thieves was changing slightly.

-Well, I think that’s enough talk… So, what’s the last thing you’re curious about?

Do-hyun, regaining his senses at Jin Rudel’s shrug, composed himself and answered.

“It’s nothing much, I was just wondering if you knew how to meet the Lord. I really need to meet him, but he won’t make time for me.”

Of course, he didn’t expect anything when he said that.

He was a legendary thief who deserved to be remembered in history, but in the end, he was still a thief. How could someone with the status of a thief know how to meet the Lord?

Even if he did when he was alive, it was even less credible now that he was a ghost.

‘Is this really the time for me to be picky?’

The reason he asked anyway was simply because he was grasping at straws.

A formal question with no expectations whatsoever.

-Huh? The Lord? Are you talking about the Lord I know? The owner of the castle?

That’s what it seemed like…

-That’s great! I was wondering if I could shamelessly ask you for a favor, but now I don’t have to hesitate!

“Do you know the Lord?”

-Of course, I do. He’s my nephew.

“Huh…?”

That straw turned out to be a jackpot.

* * *

Deep in the forest on a night when the moon is full.

There is a cave there. A huge cave that you might think a bear lives in.

It was out in the open and not hard to find, but no one entered it.

Specifically, on nights when the moon is full.

“You’d have to be crazy to go when the moon is full.”

“The rewards are the same, so why go when the moon is full? It’s not like it’s a graduation quest.”

“The boss’s stats increase by 30%, but the experience and items are the same. Isn’t that crossing the line?”

“You can’t even party up. There’s a reason why it’s called the next Brick Game [a notoriously difficult and frustrating game].”

All the rewards are the same, but the difficulty increases like crazy?

What’s more, that dungeon is a solo dungeon?

You’d have to be crazy to go there. Even more so in God of Survival, where there’s a death penalty.

However, there are always people with circumstances.

“Ah, I have to clear it because of the quest time limit…”

“I have a job quest. Ah, damn it… Why does the moon have to be full now?”

“Ugh… This is stressful. Should I go buy some items?”

People who had to clear job quests or important quests had no choice but to go there with tears in their eyes.

Do-hyun was one of them.

-Master, you seem to be in a good mood.

“Of course, I am, you idiot.”

But unlike the others, Do-hyun’s expression was very bright.

No, it was so bright that his lips looked like they were about to tear.

It was because of the quest window floating in front of him.

[Jin’s Request]

-Rank: Rare+

-Description: Jin Rudel, a thief who became a hero of the city without anyone knowing.

In fact, he had a secret of birth. Although he has been excommunicated now, he was the uncle of the current Lord in the past.

He has something that he must deliver to the Lord.

The problem is that the item is hidden in the Shadow Lycanthrope’s habitat.

Find the item for him, who has become a ghost.

-Jin Rudel’s item (0 / 3)

-Quest success: Jin Rudel’s favorability increases, creates the linked quest ‘Uncle’s Item’.

-Quest failure: Linked quest is not possible and the quest is deleted.

‘Kuh.’

Jin Rudel.

A Hidden NPC and a man who is the uncle of the Lord of Sargis.

-There is information that I must tell him. I didn’t want to come back here, but I came back because of that. But as you can see, I died before that, haha!

‘…Everything is fine, but why is it in such a place?’

-That’s where I died. I thought I hid it well and came out… But I ran into them there. Tsk. I guess you shouldn’t do things you’re not used to.

‘…

At the same time, he was also a man with terrible luck.

Anyway, Do-hyun had come all the way here because of his request.

‘This is how it turns out.’

To think that someone he thought was just a legendary thief was actually the Lord’s uncle.

This coincidence was fate.

Is this why Gamillion is so insistent on fate?

‘Well, this wasn’t originally a quest that was so easy to get.’

This was not just a simple guess.

-I’m just exposed to that mysterious energy, so people can’t see me. It’s hard to exert physical force properly…

-So, I tried to mark the location of the item as much as possible… Why can’t everyone recognize it? No, even if they can’t recognize it, that’s fine. Why do they leave the item behind after going there! You have to bring it with you! That’s the only way they’ll see me!

The item is hidden in the cave.

Originally, it was a hidden quest that started when you acquired it.

He couldn’t bring himself to go there because he was afraid of the Lycanthropes who could see ghosts.

Jin Rudel, who was frustrated and angry, was still vivid in his mind.

‘How did he hide it so well that no one could find it?’

Was it because he hid it too well? Was the trace that Jin Rudel left as a hint too bad?

Or was it because the users lacked sense?

He was suddenly curious, but whatever it was, it didn’t matter.

He was able to easily get the hidden quest thanks to the Eye of Truth.

‘The Eye of Truth is a scam after all.’

There’s no scam like this.

He was always amazed by the wondrous performance, even though he experienced it all the time.

-But Master…

“Why.”

-…There seem to be a lot of people here, don’t you think? The atmosphere is a bit strange.

-Lizariza…

Jihad and Eliza asked cautiously, looking around.

It was as the two of them said.

There was no one on the way here, but there was a considerable number of people gathered in front of the cave.

Considering that it was a situation to avoid because the moon was full, it was strange.

No matter how many people were trying to clear it because they had no choice, this number was not convincing.

Of course.

“These people aren’t all here to clear the dungeon.”

Their purpose was not the dungeon.

Probably 90% of the people gathered here have other purposes.

-Huh? Then?

-Liza?

-Um.

Charlie tilted his head and made a sound of incomprehension.

But they would soon find out.

“Ah, damn it! It’s brown again!”

“Naisaaaa!!!”

“Hey, you have to pray first, you bastard. That’s why we came here.”

“Ah, that’s right. Thanks. I’ll buy you a meal if it turns yellow.”

“Okay, you bastard.”

A man wailing as if possessed by TwoXDragon [a popular online gambling game] and a man kneeling and weeping in anger.

And even groups praying while looking at the full moon outside the cave.

Turning his head slightly at the extremely abnormal sight, Do-hyun was seen praying while looking at the full moon like those groups.

-Ah.

Jihad nodded.

-That’s what was strange.

No wonder the atmosphere was strange but somehow familiar.