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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: Choosing
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Rimon blinked for a moment at the sight of the man's head suddenly morphing into a cow's.
He instinctively turned to Kang Jeongsu and Yuna Kyung.
"Hey, is this one of his skills too?"
"Pardon?"
"This. This right here. You can't see it?"
"What do you mean 'this', Team Leader?"
Rimon made a bizarre face as he watched the two look utterly baffled.
From their pupil reactions as they scanned the surroundings, he realized they couldn't see Seo Yongchan's cow head at all.
Am I the only one who can see this?
If this had happened back in the day, Rimon would have drawn his sword immediately.
When something freakish occurred, nine times out of ten it was the work of a priest or witch's magic—that had been common knowledge then.
But not anymore.
Common sense had changed.
Hmm, looks like some kind of skill, though.
Though not a Player himself, Rimon was still a PAB agent of note.
He knew there were all sorts of skills that could alter one's body.
That was why he was flustered.
...Why the hell would a transformation skill activate out of nowhere?
Skills were activated by the user's will.
That was basic knowledge.
But Seo Yongchan had been out cold for ages.
Seeing those still-upturned cow eyes, Rimon couldn't help but feel uneasy.
"Hey, are there skills that only trigger when you're knocked out?"
"What kind of nonsense is that?"
Smack!
"Kyaa! Hit me again!"
"When your superior asks a question, what's 'nonsense' supposed to mean, huh?!"
"You have to ask a proper question first! Do skills that activate on knockout even exist?!"
"See? Doesn't make sense, right?"
"Of course not!"
Rimon averted his gaze slightly.
He nodded emphatically at Kang Jeongsu's face, which screamed what kind of insane question is that?
Yeah, no way something like that would go unreported.
Constellations demanding mountain sacrifices.
Elixirs that could revive even the dead.
Players contracting with multiple Constellations.
The Player world was rife with all sorts of outrageous rumors circulating like ghost stories.
But he'd never even heard whispers of a Player using skills while unconscious.
It was just that implausible.
...Which is exactly why it's happening for real now.
Rimon fell into thought.
Why had this happened?
But no matter how much he racked his brain, nothing came to mind.
"Why'd you even ask something like that?"
"Well, it's just..."
Rimon suddenly shut his mouth.
He glanced at Yuna Kyung and Kang Jeongsu's puzzled faces and pondered.
If he told them Seo Yongchan looked like he had a cow head, would they be amazed?
Or would they think he was crazy and eye him suspiciously?
Judging from their earlier reactions, unfortunately the latter.
"Never mind."
Rimon gave up on consulting them.
Instead, he poked Seo Yongchan's cow head with his finger.
Doesn't seem like an illusion, at least...
From the horns sprouting from the head to the fur covering the face—the tactile sensation was all too real.
After confirming it multiple times by touch, Rimon wore an odd expression.
He was a Sword Master.
No greenhorn who couldn't distinguish a cheap illusion.
And if it wasn't an illusion, that meant one thing.
Did this bastard have a cow head all along and was hiding it with a skill?
Logically, that was the most reasonable conclusion.
If Seo Yongchan had been masking his head with a skill, it revealing his true form upon knockout made sense.
Of course, he'd have to accept the shocking fact that Seo Yongchan was originally a cow-headed freak.
But that was easy.
From the Demon God War in Europe to the Spirit Uprising that swept the Americas, the Seven Dragon Society's rebellion that turned Asia upside down.
As a Sword Master, Rimon had fought in every major war, facing countless monsters and freaks.
One more cow head wasn't worth batting an eye at this point.
The problem is why only I can see it...
Was it because he'd beaten Seo Yongchan down?
Or just because he was a Sword Master?
Either way, it was clear only he could see the cow head.
And no matter how much he protested, neither Yuna Kyung nor Kang Jeongsu—nor anyone—would believe him.
In other words, killing Seo Yongchan like this would straight-up be murder.
Alright, so what now.
Rimon stared intently at the cow-headed Seo Yongchan.
He'd been debating whether to kill him from the start.
Now, the fact that he was a cow head was just extra weight on the scale.
And between killing or sparing him, the choice had been clear from the beginning.
"Jeongsu."
"Yes?"
"If anyone questions it later, say it's all on me."
"If not you, Elder, whose fault would it be?"
Kang Jeongsu was briefly dumbfounded by the words.
But then he saw Rimon place his foot on Seo Yongchan's body and went wide-eyed.
He tried to stop him without thinking.
"Elder, wait—!"
But it was too late.
Before Kang Jeongsu could finish, Rimon was delivering the final blow to Seo Yongchan.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Infinite Art Museum.
This world-famous gallery housed countless masterpieces, yet it saw few visitors relative to its renown.
It had been built solely for one person from the start.
"I have a report, sir."
"What is it?"
"Young Master Seo Yongchan met with an accident at PAB headquarters."
Slicked-back hair, impeccably neat.
A spotless white suit.
Rimless glasses and an unusually impassive expression.
The man exuded an air of utmost calm, and even this sudden news didn't make him turn.
His eyes fixed on one painting, he asked coolly.
"Is he dead?"
"No threat to his life."
"Sounds like everything else is a problem."
"...The healers say he's barely clinging to life. A miracle he's even breathing."
"My, my brother-in-law's in quite the sorry state."
"Yes, especially his... male functions. Even the Holy Lord's power might not restore them, per consensus."
High-level healers could reattach severed limbs.
If even they threw up their hands?
He wasn't wounded—he was a walking corpse.
"What a pity."
But the man showed no shock or agitation at the gruesome news.
He merely murmured softly.
"I told him time and again to cut back on the drinking and stop showing off. Seems my advice fell on deaf ears."
His tone dripped with regret.
But his face was utterly cold.
Park Hyeon-gun hadn't seen it, but he could picture it easily.
If he truly pitied Seo Yongchan, he'd have sought the Holy Lord's aid instead of empty words.
As expected, the man asked not about Seo Yongchan, but something else.
"Just to confirm: who was with my brother-in-law during the incident?"
"Rimon Asfelder."
"Certain?"
"Yes. The PAB Director has already acknowledged Rimon's unilateral action and issued a suspension."
It was only natural.
Even Rimon couldn't turn a man into a vegetable and walk free.
Considering the victim was Seo Yongchan, it was shockingly lenient.
Lenient to the point of suspicion.
"Rimon Asfelder."
The man repeated the name.
Glancing at the oil painting before him, he continued softly.
"Humanity's Last Sword Master, Guardian Deity, National Savior Hero. Truly worthy of respect."
The painting was titled Dawn's Hero.
A world-renowned masterpiece depicting a great swordsman who saved the world from a Demon God descended to earth.
Worth billions at minimum.
At auction, tens of billions easy.
Reaching toward it, the man said coldly.
"If only that fame stayed in textbooks."
Riiip!
In the blink of an eye.
A globally treasured cultural artifact reduced to confetti.
Yet neither the perpetrator nor the witness, Park Hyeon-gun, expressed regret.
He simply replied as if expectant.
"I'll handle it."
No explanation of what or how.
But the man didn't press for details.
Not out of trust in Park Hyeon-gun.
He just lost interest.
Sword Masters ruling as strongest was ancient history.
The era when knightly duels decided wars, and sword skill alone made heroes.
Just as guns toppled knights and samurai.
In this age of skills and Constellations.
A non-Player like Rimon was too insignificant to bother with.
Instead, he turned to a worthy concern.
"More importantly, what of her?"
A vague query.
But Park Hyeon-gun grasped it instantly.
Only one woman merited this man's attention.
"Confirmed entry into the country, but tracking her afterward is ongoing."
"Even with your guild's top tracers, no leads yet?"
"...No excuses, sir."
Park Hyeon-gun trembled.
He knew failure here meant his end.
"No reprimand. She's no pushover, after all."
The man didn't blame him.
Just added calmly.
"Money's no object. Hire more top-tier tracers."
"Even if it causes friction with other guilds?"
"Doesn't matter. Results do."
Park Hyeon-gun could guess.
Good results? Fine.
That "kindness" was a veiled ultimatum: fail despite this, and no mercy.
"...Understood."
Still, he bowed.
He had no choice.
The man before him brooked no flaws.
The most meticulous among the ten Lords at Players' pinnacle.
Infinite Monarch Lee Cheongi.
"I expect good news."
With that, Lee Cheongi walked on, leaving the bowed Park Hyeon-gun behind.
Having cleanly forgotten the last Sword Master, soon to fade into history's shadows.