I Gave Up Being Stronger

Chapter 92

Even during the days before Cha Jin-Hyeok regressed, the world was filled with many mysteries that remained unsolved. Among them were matters related to the Masked Sage.

He was a Wizard that wore a mask that was strikingly similar to the Pharaoh’s Golden Mask that Jin-Hyeok had obtained. Nothing was known about the Masked Sage’s identity. All that was known was that he was a Wizard who sometimes got rid of Earth’s calamities that were too difficult for the Players to deal with.

Worldwide, the Masked Sage had revealed himself only seven times, and Jin-Hyeok had met him in person.

‘I remember him saving my party when we were fighting Shin Yu-Ri, Player name: Shwerer Gustav.’

Shin Yu-Ri was one of the most notorious villains in Korean history. She led a villain alliance called the Demigod Alliance, and Jin-Hyeok’s party battled with her in his previous life.

‘We underestimated Yu-Ri’s power, and we almost got wiped out.’

The one who helped them then was the Masked Sage.

Even though that person was not wearing a mask right now, Jin-Hyeok could recognize him instantly. It was undoubtedly the Masked Sage.

‘His face is severely burnt.’

The Masked Sage’s face was distorted beyond recognition. That had to have been why he wore the mask. The Masked Sage looked down at Jin-Hyeok and said, “The price has been paid.”

His voice was not pleasant to hear. Rather, it was so husky it seemed to grate like metal. Just hearing his voice seemed to drain Jin-Hyeok’s energy.

Before Jin-Hyeok knew it, the fruit he had plucked was in the Masked Sage’s hand. Jin-Hyeok didn’t even know when he had taken it.

“Go back.”

“How?”

Jin-Hyeok needed the fruit to pass through the exit gate. The Masked Sage’s eyes were on Jin-Hyeok. Jin-Hyeok clearly understood what those eyes were trying to say—they implied that Jin-Hyeok’s problems had nothing to do with the Masked Sage.

Since the Masked Sage had taken Jin-Hyeok’s life once and received the price for the fruit, the Masked Sage’s stance was that he had done his part. Whether Jin-Hyeok was trapped and died here, or starved to death, was none of his concern. It was so rational and self-evident that Jin-Hyeok had no choice but to accept it.

“I apologize. I asked a pointless question,” Jin-Hyeok said.

He asked something far more productive, “I need the fruit to exit through that gate. I want to pay a fair price to obtain the fruit.”

“The price is for you to propose.”

It seemed Jin-Hyeok was on the right track. Rather than trying to steal or seize the fruit from the Masked Sage, he instead needed to properly negotiate with him.

[Trade with ???

You must propose a trade condition that 「???」 will find acceptable. However, you have only one chance, and if you propose an unsuitable condition, you may be killed by 「???」.]

The thought of being killed by the Masked Sage did not particularly bother him. If Jin-Hyeok could not properly obtain the fruit, he would die anyway.

‘I have almost nothing that would satisfy him.’

Logically speaking, that was the case. Jin-Hyeok did not know the Masked Sage’s exact Level, but it was at least over 250. There was no way that Jin-Hyeok, whose Level was that much lower, could possibly possess something that would please him. Even the items that could be considered as his best items, such as the Berklev Necklace, the Guardian Ring, or the Greatsword of La’kan, would be junk in the Masked Sage's eyes.

‘I really can’t fulfill his needs.’

Thus Jin-Hyeok had to approach it differently.

‘The answer had already been decided from the moment he showed up.’

The Masked Sage did not wait long for Jin-Hyeok’s answer.

“Show me your offer.”

“Alright.”

Jin-Hyeok pulled an item from his inventory.

[Pharaoh’s Golden Mask]

This was the only thing Jin-Hyeok could offer. Even before his regression, the Masked Sage wore a mask similar to this one.

“What is this?”

‘What should I reply to make the item seem impressive?’

Jin-Hyeok quickly thought of an answer.

“It is a mask of the one who dreamed of eternity.”

If Jin-Hyeok couldn’t sell the item on practicality, he needed to sell it on style.

‘Huh?’

The Pharaoh’s Golden Mask that was in his hand had vanished. When Jin-Hyeok looked to see where it had gone, the Masked Sage was already wearing it. The Masked Sage lightly touched the item with his own hand.

‘Wow… How’s that possible?’

The comparatively worn-out Pharaoh’s Golden Mask had transformed into the detailed and magnificent Golden Mask that Jin-Hyeok was familiar with. It was as if a junk item had morphed into a Mythic-Grade item.

“The price has been paid,” the Masked Sage said.

The fact that this mask was worth more than Jin-Hyeok’s life was a bitter pill to swallow, but it seemed to have satisfied the Masked Sage nonetheless.

By the time Jin-Hyeok had come to his senses, the Masked Sage had long vanished. With his current skills, Jin-Hyeok could not even perceive the Masked Sage's movements.

‘I knew it before, but that guy is truly formidable.’

Jin-Hyeok’s heart inexplicably pounded.

‘Someday, if I truly become strong, could I become even stronger than the Masked Sage?’

Just merely envisioning that made him feel incredibly excited and happy. It was like the happiness he felt in the past when he imagined winning the lottery.

‘First, let’s go get that fruit.’

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

Jin-Hyeok bought another rope. Using the Whirling Arrow, Jin-Hyeok climbed onto the tree branch in the same way as before.

‘Wait. Are these fruits all the same?’

That was highly unlikely. Even apples from the same tree tasted different.

‘Since I can only take one, I should choose very carefully.’

The Masked Sage had not given Jin-Hyeok a time limit, so he decided to take his time and think. Simply picking the prettiest one based on appearance seemed pointless.

‘It would be nice if I could use Pure Luck. By the way, when I can use this damn Mystery agai—Oh, now I can use it.’

Jin-Hyeok didn’t know if this was a good thing or a bad thing, but somehow Pure Luck had one again become available for use. Since it had become available for use, there was no point in thinking and reasoning about it in his head.

[You have activated the Mystery 「Pure Luck」.]

After the Masked Sage disappeared, Jin-Hyeok felt a bit more at ease.

“I just used the Mystery.”

At the same time, Jin-Hyeok reflected on himself. When faced with a truly urgent situation, he could not proceed with his Play as if he was livestreaming. All his attention had been focused on figuring out how to get out of the aforementioned situation.

‘If this keeps happening, I can’t really call myself a true Streamer.’

A real professional should be able to maintain a consistent quality of livestream in any situation. However, with the appearance of the Masked Sage, Jin-Hyeok had forgotten what he was supposed to do. It was fortunate that his livestream was not actually on, since Jin-Hyeok would’ve died of embarrassment if it had been the real livestream.

Jin-Hyeok regained his composure and continued to speak.

“Among the numerous fruits, I see one that shines particularly bright.”

Jin-Hyeok began to climb the tree as if enchanted by something. Using the Whirling Arrow and rope, he moved around like Tarzan.

“This must be the one… Huh?”

He reached out to pick the fruit, but it suddenly warped. Looking around, he saw the shining fruit in the distance.

“I need to pick it before the light disappears.”

Jin-Hyeok bought a spray from the Broadcaster’s Shop. He approached and marked the fruit with the spray, and what followed was a continuous grind.

“It warped again. It’s incredibly fast.”

Jin-Hyeok smiled.

‘What kind of fruit warps this fast?’

He continued to chase after the fruit.

Gasp!

Despite moving carefully, he almost touched a different fruit. It was a close shave. He sighed in relief and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

“This task requires substantial physical stamina and precise mental focus.”

He might not look like it from the outside, but he was in a highly tense state. If he were to accidentally touch two fruits, he would die as the Masked Sage had only permitted him to take one.

‘And not getting that fruit I want would also be a terrible outcome.’

Dying during Play was a common occurrence, but failing to obtain what he had aimed for was even more dreadful than death.

“I’m definitely going to obtain it!”

He smiled again.

‘How long has it been since I felt this level of tension! This is what Playing is all about!’

He had not felt this kind of tension recently. This thrilling sensation that even a slight mistake could cost his life was making him smile.

‘I feel so alive.’

This primal sensation that made him feel alive seemed to awaken every dormant cell in his body.

‘The fruit warped again!’

The fruit was too fast. That was why it was so enjoyable. He could enjoy this time even more because of it.

“I will catch it no matter what.”

He didn’t know how much time had passed. It felt like roughly ten hours had gone by.

“I’ve got it!”

Heaven always helped those who helped themselves. In the end, he was able to get the fruit that he wanted. Fearing it might warp again, he quickly put it in his inventory and immediately ran toward the exit.

[The fruit has been identified.]

[You have escaped the Guardian Tree Dungeon.]

Normally, the term, clear, would be used in the notification, but this time, the word, escaped, was used. Perhaps the concept of clearing did not even exist in this place. There was no significant reward given. The wriggling fruit inside his inventory seemed to be the reward.

“It’s already evening.”

He looked at his inventory again.

It felt kind of weird. Jin-Hyeok had no way of describing the feeling.

“It sort of feels like my inventory will explode if I leave it in there.”

He had never heard of an inventory exploding, but he had a feeling that something would go wrong if he left the fruit as is.

“I think I need to plant this fruit in the ground!”

He knew nothing in regards to what were the conditions that needed to be met, or what he needed to do, but he did know exactly where the Guardian Tree in his previous life used to grow.

He began to run with all his might.

‘Huh?’

He felt significantly lighter. Just yesterday, he had the nighttime run with Steel Sniper, so he could precisely sense the difference.

‘I’ve grown!’

A thrilling chill ran down his spine. It seemed that maintaining a state of extreme tension while leaping between tree branches had led him to grow in some way. This sensation was not represented by any numbers, like Levels or Skills. This subtlety, which Level Grinders could never know, could only be gained through practice and training. This growth made him happy once again.

Today was a happy day in many ways for Jin-Hyeok.

‘Damn it. I need to calm down.’

A sense of crisis that his inventory might burst washed over him. It felt like his life as a Player would be over if his inventory exploded. It felt like running with a time bomb inside him. A more accurate description would be the sensation of needing to relieve oneself urgently.

‘Please! Not now!’

Jin-Hyeok arrived at the Yeonhui Intersection. It was an intersection with two roads that were about four lanes wide. In Jin-Hyeok's past life, someone had grown a Guardian Tree here in the middle of the intersection.

‘It’s really going to explode!’

A second felt like a minute. It seemed like the fruit was going to explode any second.

‘Hurry up!’

Jin-Hyeok called Mok Jae-Hyeon, thinking that he might handle it better than Jin-Hyeok. Fortunately, Jae-Hyeon was nearby, watching over Cha Jin-Sol or something, and he said he was coming on a bike.

‘He’s coming!’

Jin-Hyeok explained the situation on the phone as he was on his way. Jae-Hyeon arrived and hurriedly got off his bike.

“I’m going to set up a barricade first,” Jae-Hyeon said.

Using the Wood Fortress, Jae-Hyeon pulled stems from the ground.

Honk! Honk!

The sudden appearance of Jae-Hyeon’s Wood Fortress created a massive traffic jam on the road.

‘Jae-Hyeon, you’ve grown too!’

Jin-Hyeok was quite happy with how Jae-Hyeon took care of everything effortlessly without being told what to do. On the other hand, Jin-Hyeok’s fruit was about to explode.

“Hey! Hurry up!”

Jae-Hyeon used the stems to dig at the ground, forming a about three-meter-deep pit. Jin-Hyeok threw the Guardian Tree’s fruit into the newly dug pit. The fruit made contact with the earth.

Rumble.

An earthquake occurred in the area. The tremor was strong enough to cause nearby shop signs to fall to the ground.

Then, a notification for the entire Server popped up.

[The 「Seed of the Golden Guardian Tree」 has been planted.]

From the area where Jin-Hyeok had thrown the fruit, a magnificent beam of golden light shot up, soaring high enough to touch the clouds, standing like a pillar.

‘I didn’t see anything like this happen before the regression…’

Something had changed.

‘This beam of light… it must be…’

He had never seen it on the Earth Server, but he had seen it on other Servers. It was known that such a pillar of light would rise when a Golden Guardian Tree, not an ordinary one, was planted.

[72:00:00]

The pit had mysteriously covered itself, and instead, a number was floating above it. It was a 72-hour timer.

[71:59:48]

In seventy-two hours, the Golden Guardian Tree would grow from the pit.

‘If I remember correctly, there were only about six Golden Guardian Trees across all the Servers.’

Jin-Hyeok had never seen one on a small Server like Earth. He remembered that three of them were on Planet Arvis, the strongest Server, and the remaining three were on other powerful Servers.

Not much was known about the Golden Guardian Tree. Since the Servers where they were located did not disclose much information about them, they were rumored to have much greater power than ordinary Guardian Trees.

‘This is incredible.’

Underneath the timer, faint letters could be seen.

[Planter: Kim Chul-Soo]

It seemed like these characters were visible only to him.

‘Planter?’

It indicated that Jin-Hyeok was the one who planted it, but he was not sure why this was being recorded. Jin-Hyeok would probably know more after seventy-two hours.

Soon, golden dust began to rise from the spot where the Golden Guardian Tree’s fruit was buried, and another global notification followed.

[A safe zone will be set within a radius of 1,000m.]

The safe zone was already set, even though the Guardian Tree hadn't grown yet. It seemed to be because this was a Golden Guardian Tree, not an ordinary one. The seed itself was quite extraordinary.

‘The boundary of the safe zone is clearly drawn in my mind.’

It felt as if a small map had unfolded in his mind. It seemed that various benefits were given to the Planter.

‘I wish the seven-two hours would pass quickly.’

He did not realize it, but a smile crept across his face. As he returned home with a beaming smile, he found that the secretary of Chairman Choi Ik-Hwan of Shinil Group was at the front door.