The Return Of The Genius Ranker Of All Times [EN]: Chapter 64

Part 64.

Because we’re all human, after all.

Investigating the Martial King would raise less suspicion than a human questioning the Nymph Queen!

With that in mind, the investigation into the Martial King began and lasted for two hours.

“Martial King? Who’s that?”

“I don’t know about the Martial King, but I know the Painting King. See that person painting over there? His nickname is Painting King. He’s really good at painting.”

“How about this painting instead of the Martial King? This painting is a masterpiece created by an artist with 30 years of experience…”

To put it bluntly, it was a bust.

‘Seriously, what’s with this?’

When asked about the Martial King, everyone reacted as if they had never heard of him.

If that was all, it would be fine, but so many Nymphs were suddenly trying to sell things that it felt like I was in the middle of Seoul [a major commercial hub]. Was that just my imagination?

‘So, it’s true that they have human blood in them.’

Indeed, unlike the Elves, they were a friendly (?) race.

Still, it wasn’t a complete loss.

“Martial King… I think I’ve heard of him. I think I heard my father mention him. It was like a fairy tale, something about being a helper of heroes?”

“Martial King? Are you talking about Gradit? It’s been a long time since I’ve heard that name. Why are you curious about him?”

“…I don’t want to talk about him.”

“It’s been a while since a disciple asked about Gradit. But I’m sorry. I don’t really want to talk about him.”

As Rak had said, the older or higher-ranking Nymphs seemed to know about the Martial King.

But strangely enough, the reactions were all similar.

It wasn’t a friendly reaction.

“I don’t want to talk about him.”

“Gradit… he was someone who earned his trust. But he disappeared at a crucial moment.”

“‘Once a friend, always a friend’ is a joke. Or were they never friends in the first place?”

“He was a pleasant and strong man. At least, he was the strongest human I’ve ever seen.”

The moment the name Martial King came up, everyone’s expression turned cold or serious.

But it wasn’t to the point of feeling hostility.

It was neither one nor the other, a strange reaction.

‘There’s definitely something there…’

They all just shook their heads and wouldn’t tell me anything clearly, which was driving me crazy.

‘Ugh, this is so frustrating.’

In the end, Dohyun had no choice but to revise his plan after looking around the entire village.

Was the Martial King the only thing related to That Day or the Queen?

If he couldn’t find out about the Martial King, he decided to ask about the heroes of the statues who were sacrificed on That Day instead.

This, too, was a bust, to put it bluntly.

“They are great people. If it weren’t for their sacrifice, our village would be in ruins.”

“I don’t know much. But my grandfather told me. Thanks to those heroes, we can live in peace like this.”

“There is a memorial service every month, so please participate if you have the chance.”

They all praised the heroes, but they didn’t give any useful information.

The only information worth mentioning was about Lucia.

“Um! Our knight members are all striving to emulate the spirit of the heroes. Among them, the hero I admire the most is Lucia. She is a legend to our knights.”

“If only Lucia were here… the heroes wouldn’t have been sacrificed like that.”

“It’s a pity that she’s not here.”

The name that was mentioned the most whenever heroes were talked about was Lucia Grandel.

‘Lucia must have been an incredibly strong person, Master?’

‘Indeed, the respect in their eyes is by no means false. They seem to genuinely respect her.’

‘Lizariza.’

Dohyun nodded at the Guardians’ words.

Seeing her praised to that extent, she must have been an incredibly strong person or the only one who could have been a crucial joker in the war.

For example, a warrior who reached the highest level, or a rare ability user among the Nymphs who are historically few in number.

It was interesting information, but it wasn’t important to Dohyun right now.

After wandering around for another hour without getting anything, he finally asked about the Nymph Queen, thinking he had nothing to lose…

“Why is a human asking about the Queen?”

“That’s unpleasant.”

“Information about the Queen is top secret. Did you enter our village without knowing that?”

“I hope you don’t cross the line twice.”

As expected, he was coldly rejected.

But it wasn’t for nothing that he asked.

‘The reaction is more prickly than I thought.’

A level of coldness that was on a different level from when he asked about the Martial King.

It was so cold that he could feel hostility.

Just asking about the Queen was enough to elicit this kind of reaction, which was not a normal reaction.

Something was definitely going on.

‘The residents’ reactions are completely different from Fratel.’

Not like the affectionate stories of Gilberun and Angela, but an important story that had to be kept top secret.

But they were so wary that there was no way to know right now…

Clang-

“Kuhh~ This is it! This is why I come to Akrana. How is it? Isn’t it amazing?”

“…Well, it’s tasty.”

In the end, the current situation was that he was drinking Akrana’s special beer at the pub that Ast had been singing about.

The members were just Ast and Dohyun.

-I’ve added you as a friend, so I’ll contact you again when I find another great spot.

-This adventure was very enjoyable. Next time, I’ll prepare a more heartwarming adventure.

That was the end of the two people’s departure.

Barion had business in the Elf village from the start, and Rak had met him to introduce him to a great spot, so they returned to their original destinations.

While looking at the two names that had newly filled his friend list besides his companions, Ast grumbled and complained.

“To leave without eating this, you’re going to regret it. Barion only knows how to enjoy adventures; he has no romance for gourmet food. How can you taste this in reality?”

Could it be that he had grown fond of them in the past two days?

He was trying to act like he wasn’t, but he was constantly complaining about leaving as soon as they arrived at the village, and his regret was dripping.

‘You were just complaining that there were no normal people.’

Dohyun chuckled and held out his beer glass.

“Yeah, yeah, eat a lot. Old man.”

As if he didn’t expect an answer, Dohyun shook his head as he watched Ast immediately order another beer.

‘At this point, didn’t he really come to Akrana just to drink?’

He already knew that the old man liked alcohol, but seeing him drink so happily again, he was impressed.

He likes alcohol so much, how did he make such a monstrously muscular body?

Perhaps he heard that murmur.

“Hey, I don’t drink like this outside. It’s only because I’m here that I can drink.”

“…….”

Ast blurted out as if asking the obvious.

“During the Demonic War, it was VR [Virtual Reality], so I could only feel the mood, which was a shame, but it’s no joke here. The first thing I did when virtual reality games came out was to drink all kinds of alcohol. I can taste it, I can detoxify when I get drunk, I don’t lose muscle mass… Isn’t this heaven?”

“…I see.”

“Besides, there are so many unique drinks here that I like. It’s a taste that can’t be realized in reality? I think there would really be drinks like this if there was a fantasy world, kya. This is romance.”

As someone who doesn’t really enjoy alcohol, Dohyun honestly didn’t sympathize.

Wasn’t the point of drinking to get drunk?

As someone who had only ever drunk soju [Korean distilled spirit] or beer, Dohyun couldn’t understand drinking alcohol for the taste.

‘This just tastes like a slightly better beer.’

Dohyun muttered and glanced to the side.

-Wow, this is so delicious?

-Liza? Lizariza!

-Uh-uh, Eliza, you can’t. You’ll get drunk if you eat it.

-Indeed, the taste is unique, but the alcohol taste is not repulsive and subtly lingers in the tongue, making it a good drink.

“Oh, Charlie knows how to drink?”

-Um! Alcohol is an indispensable part of a knight’s life. This much is basic.

…Since that’s what they say, Dohyun decided to just assume that he was insensitive to the taste.

They were having so much fun; there was no need to mention it.

How much beer had they drunk?

“So, why were you wandering around so much? You were rummaging through the village all day.”

“Ah, that?”

Dohyun answered Ast’s question with a sigh.

“I had to meet the Nymph Queen, so I was looking for a way.”

“Queen? How are you going to meet the Queen? No one has met her in a year. Even Myeolsal probably hasn’t seen the Queen.”

“I know.”

“What kind of quest are you doing… wait a minute, don’t tell me?”

Ast, who had been tilting his head as if he couldn’t understand, suddenly widened his eyes as if he had thought of something.

His expression told Dohyun what he was about to say.

“…Are you really doing the main quest?”

Dohyun answered immediately to the direct question.

There had been suspicions that Kaiser was doing the main quest since the main continent.

Ast must have expected it, and there was no need to hide it from his companion now.

“Crazy…”

But that was Dohyun’s point of view.

Even though he had expected it to some extent, Ast couldn’t help but be surprised when he received a definite answer.

Ast swallowed and lowered his voice, looking around.

“The real main quest… you’re really something. I and Barion searched so hard but couldn’t find it; how is the guy who started the latest clearing the main quest?”

“I got it after catching the tutorial boss.”

“Wow, is it that too? I guess that’s why no one could find the main quest. What crazy person would think of taking down such a monster at level 1?”

“To say that, didn’t you try it too, old man?”

“No, that’s just what I’m saying. Everyone thinks about it, but they just can’t put it into practice… wait a minute. Then, could it be that all the big incidents you’ve caused so far were all…?”

When Dohyun nodded instead of answering, Ast let out a hollow laugh as if he finally understood.

From ending the Lion King’s trial to opening the world quest, catching the Forgotten King, and catching the Great Disaster.

And even catching the Black Knight Garion.

All of that was related to the main quest, which was shocking.

“What kind of main quest is it that the difficulty is like that?”

“It’s a long story to explain. To summarize, I’m looking for some pieces, but it’s a pain in the ass. Why are all the named people who have the pieces so OP [overpowered, i.e., extremely strong]…”

“…….”

“It’s related to my job, so I can’t not clear it. Most of the quests are deleted if I fail, so there’s no going back.”

“I wouldn’t have been able to clear it even if I got it. Aren’t you having a hard time?”

Dohyun, who had been chuckling at Ast’s shocked muttering, suddenly met Ast’s eyes.

“What, what’s with that face again?”

“I’ve been thinking, now that we’ve come to the New Continent, and the enemies have increased, and the difficulty is going crazy… Gamillion is gone, and this won’t do.”

The moment Ast frowned as if disgusted by Dohyun’s suddenly serious face.

Dohyun smiled and blurted out.

“So, I’m going to get some help from you now, old man.”

“What?”

“Old man, be my assistant.”

It had been a year since he had been doing the main quest alone.

It was time to borrow the hands of his companions.