Chapter 49
“It’s Confidential Anyway, Right?” (1)
1.
Crackk—!
Of course, monsters appeared in the basin as well.
Usually, other fields spawned monsters that matched the area’s theme, but here?
Totally unpredictable.
[You have slain <Arachne Giant Centipede Lv.130>!]
[You have slain <Frostmane Gnoll Patrol Leader Lv.120>!]
Insect-types, beastmen, and more—
Monsters of all sorts showed up. This field truly had no pedigree.
At first, Do-yoon wanted to take point, but I firmly stopped him.
Every bit of EXP was precious, after all.
And besides—
Beeeep—!
Our little Peanut was darting between enemies, racking up his fair share of screen time.
That way—
[<Hamtopia> has donated ₩100,000!]
“Amazing Peanut! Are you going to make a Peanut highlight reel too? He’s so cute ㅠㅠ Buy him some almonds!”
—We could earn some honest revenue like this.
『Riding a wheel is more fun than this, Master! Can I go home and ride all night?』
“Of course.”
Beeeeeep—!
Peanut squealed happily, spinning in excitement at the mention of his exercise wheel.
Watching a fist-sized hamster obliterate house-sized monsters made one question whether physics still applied here.
The Great Peanut’s Strength Show!
This streamer’s just letting the pet do all the work lol
He literally strapped the drone to the hamster
So cute though
Wait, is Peanut a Meteor-type pet?
Then what the hell does the Meteor trait even do? He uses magic, bows, fists, and summons pets.
Total jack-of-all-trades build
Does that kind of trait even exist?
Maybe he has multiple traits
But you only unlock new ones on higher floors, right? Thought you needed to clear an Epic Quest
Good, the stream was running smoothly thanks to Peanut.
I looked down at the fragment in my hand and nodded.
The statue shard was pointing northeast.
Since the camera drone was following Peanut anyway, I could chat for a bit.
“It’s quiet.”
“Right? It’s already been thirty minutes since we came in.”
When Kim Do-yoon murmured that, Deputy Chief Choi spoke in a low voice.
“…You two already sensed them, didn’t you?”
“There are ten of them. With movements that faint, they must be assassin-type players. You know anything about this?”
Choi let out a sigh, then nodded.
“Mr. Kim, you know as well as I do—every country operates players like that. Ours included.”
“I’ve run into them a few times on the 6th floor.”
“Then they’re likely operatives from the National Security Bureau.”
“How much does China know about me, exactly?”
“Only what’s been made public on your streams. And to be honest… even our government doesn’t fully understand the Meteor Player.”
Choi’s answer was honest.
Do-yoon shrugged, his tone flat as ever.
“Then it’s unlikely they’ve sent any top-rankers.”
“That’s also our assessment.”
“Mr. Meteor, will you continue the quest?”
I smiled and nodded.
“No reason not to. Besides, they’ve already surrounded us. Bloodshed’s inevitable.”
I could tell from how quickly they tightened the formation.
Perfect coordination—definitely professionals.
Maybe my tone sounded too casual, because Choi spoke again, carefully.
“I don’t doubt your strength, Mr. Meteor. But they are seasoned veterans—”
“Deputy Chief Choi.”
“…Yes?”
“Why do you assume I’m not?”
I said it lightly, but the question froze him in place.
He hesitated for a long time.
No need to explain further.
I had no intention of describing the hell I went through in Avalon—
how many I’d killed, how much blood was on my hands.
That didn’t matter anymore.
What mattered was now.
I was back on Earth.
With people I cared about.
Everything I did here was simply part of protecting them.
“One question: if someone dies in a joint-controlled zone, am I held responsible?”
“…No.”
“Then who is?”
“They’ll issue a formal apology, claim it was the work of a rogue unit. As always.”
“That’s all I needed.”
Before long, we arrived at our destination.
Woooooom—!
In a forest of the Goliath Basin stood a pile of stones.
I held up the statue shard near it, and it began to hum violently—
a blue sphere of light rose from the rubble.
[This is a gate leading to a special area: <Unknown>.]
[Would you like to enter?]
[Warning: Only you may enter this area.]
Ah, so that’s how it works.
I confirmed, then—
“Thread of Ariadne. Save current location.”
[Current location saved with <Thread of Ariadne>.]
Done.
“Will you be entering? We can hold this position if you wish.”
“The quest can wait. In this situation, that’s the least of our worries. Besides, if I go in alone, it’ll look like I’m running away.”
“…I could handle things myself, but I can’t guarantee it.”
Man, is that stoicism a bit or his real personality?
I stretched lightly and asked,
“By the way, can I stream this part?”
“What exactly are you referring to?”
“The fight that’s about to start.”
The assassins were already closing in—
their killing intent made it obvious they were enemies now.
Checking the stream, I saw Peanut still putting on a show, donations pouring in.
At this rate, Peanut could handle all the income while I just coasted.
“That’ll be restricted. Combat between players is prohibited unless it’s a friendly duel—same rule for MeTube.”
“Then while Peanut’s collecting tips, maybe I’ll just…”
Just as I was about to line up my camera angle—
BOOOOOOM—!
Something exploded in the distance.
At the same time, a new message popped up in front of me.
[Broadcast connection unstable.]
[Signal lost! Attempting reconnection.]
[5…4…3…2…1… Failed.]
[Severe damage detected to drone communication unit. Repairs required.]
????????
Why’s there static all of a sudden?
Drone broke?
???
???
Explain.
Explain!
EXPLAIN!!!
[Broadcast has been terminated.]
“…The stream’s actually dead?”
The forced shutdown made Choi clench his fist.
“Magic pulse bomb. It disables any device containing Abyss metal—no doubt about it.”
“So the drone’s busted?”
“Destroyed, more like. Every circuit’s fried.”
These bastards.
“…They messed with my business?”
“That’s what you’re worried about right now?! They came fully prepared for this!”
“Unforgivable.”
“Mr. Meteor?”
“Stay here, both of you.”
“Wait, it’s dangerous! Those men are killers—they’ve slaughtered countless—”
Before Choi could finish, I launched myself forward.
2.
Commander, operation commencing.
“The top priority is Meteor. The Sword Ghost being here is annoying, but all we need is Meteor alive. Capture first—losing a few limbs is fine.”
And if he resists?
“Kill him. That’s direct from upstairs.”Understood.
The masked commander smiled as he scanned the vast forest.
“Killing some fool begging for death, huh? Been a while since we’ve been here, hasn’t it, Lieutenant?”
“Yes, sir.”
Goliath Basin—
A border zone they’d often been deployed to four years ago.
How many times had they fought Korean players here under the “joint-control” pretext?
If not for the Abyss’s periodic resets, the ground would still be covered with corpses.
‘This 3rd-floor raid includes our nation’s rising stars. We need to teach those Peninsula dogs some discipline.’
And what better target than Meteor?
Not tied to any major guild or to his government.
The perfect warning example.
A mere 3rd-floor player couldn’t possibly be a threat.
Meanwhile, his team had two 6th-floor veterans and the rest from the 5th.
Even with that “Sword Ghost” around, they had more than enough firepower.
Commander, have you watched the footage HQ sent?
“What footage?”The one about Meteor. He’s… more capable than he looks. Holds world records too. Fastest to reach the 3rd floor.
“You worry too much. Scared of a 3rd-floor rookie? I even brought a new toy—deadly poison, fatal even to 7th-floor players. A mere scratch will kill someone from the lower floors.”
This job was his calling—
a place where murder wasn’t punished.
For him, the Abyss was paradise—
a world where his desires could roam free.
‘Finish this, and I’ll be promoted.’
He almost wished he could stream the whole thing live,
to humiliate that arrogant bastard in front of everyone.
But it had to remain off the record.
‘…Maybe I’ll test the poison on the Sword Ghost too.’
He fiddled with a vial in his pocket, grinning.
A toxin only two weeks old—
crafted by the continent’s top alchemist using corpses as base material.
Even players with extreme resistances died from it.
If he could kill that famous “Sword Ghost Kim Do-yoon,”
his status would skyrocket.
“Units 9 and 10—track Kim Do-yoon as well. If you get a chance, tag him once and retreat.”
He sent the order, but no one replied.
Static.
‘No way… The radios are designed to resist pulse bombs.’
Then suddenly—
“Meteor’s here! Everyone regroup at the commander’s position! Move! He’s coming straight for you!”
Not even three seconds later—
“Hi.”
A man appeared before him, casually holding two of his subordinates by the neck.
The commander’s eyes widened.
“You… speak Korean?”
“…Meteor.”
“Oh, you do! I mean, these guys have been watching me for a while, so I came to return the favor. You’ve got the strongest mana signature—so you’re the commander, right?”
He quickly assessed the situation.
Strong enough to subdue his men alive, and yet didn’t kill them outright?
‘He’s never killed before. Good. That’ll make him easier to handle.’
Too powerful to capture—so he’d have to kill.
The commander drew his blade, coating it with poison, and sneered.
“Impressive.”
“Where’d you learn Korean? Your accent’s flawless—sounds like Seoul.”
“Not your concern.”
Players who awaken to power always share one fatal flaw—
arrogance.
They overestimate themselves, and die without ever realizing that arrogance costs lives.
This one was no different.
Looking down at him like that—
“Kill him.”
Assassins leapt in from every direction.
Poisoned daggers and arrows flew first,
followed by the synchronized rush of the entire squad.
Their signature coordinated strike—
the same formation that had wiped out countless enemies before.
This would be no different.
‘A shame we can’t take him alive, but—’
BOOOOOOOM!
BOOM!
A deafening blast and shockwave tore through the forest.
He raised an arm to block, but—
“Cough.”
Blood welled up from his throat.
Thud.
“Self… destruction?”
Kneeling, he stared toward where Meteor had stood—
only to see the same man smiling brightly amidst the flames.
“This poison’s pretty good. My fingers are tingling—would kill a few dozen elephants easy. You’d get stopped at the airport for sure.”
Meteor was now dragging one man by the head, walking toward him.
The commander tried to stand, but his legs refused.
“C-Commander…”
His lieutenant coughed blood.
“Yeah, he’s the commander, right?”
“R…run…”
Before he could finish—
Crunch!
Thud.
With a sound of something being crushed, Meteor’s playful voice echoed.
“Let’s call this self-defense.”
The commander met his eyes.
Behind that teasing look, a glint of something terrifying flashed.
Then Meteor smiled faintly.
“Don’t worry, I’m not gonna kill you. You and I are gonna film a little video together, okay? Ever made a clip where you talk shit about your boss? You know, your Chairman?”
Only then did the commander realize—
he was still standing in the middle of hell.
