Chapter 114
[Using 208,000 points.]
[Remaining Trial Points: 1,106,500.]
I immediately purchased all the items in the Theme 2 Shop.
The effect was similar to last time.
Like swiping a debit card, the points I had accumulated vanished.
And items floated up before my eyes.
Scrolls with the ‘shrinking’ and ‘extending’ abilities.
And an Elixir of the same kind I had before, a random box, and a World Tree Root.
Finally, even a Wish-Granting Scroll.
‘Heh.’
So easy.
Is this what it feels like for chaebols to go shopping at a department store?
I FLEXED and bought in one go all the items that were said to be hard to even acquire during past trials.
Of course, that didn’t mean the process of earning the points was easy.
[Hidden condition fulfilled.]
[You have purchased all items in the Theme 2 Shop.]
[The ‘Theme 2 Exclusive’ VIP Shop will now open.]
‘As expected…!’
My heart pounded.
It was what I had naturally expected.
But it wasn’t easy to calm down.
How could it be?
This was the place that sold the item that had gifted me a Godslayer-grade item.
What would it give me this time? The thrilling anticipation squeezed my heart.
“You tenacious bastard.”
Floa glared at me, her voice full of envy.
“Monopolizer. Greedy pig. Swine. Oink oink. Did you have to take it all to feel satisfied?”
“Shut up and open it quickly. I’m loaded with points.”
“Haa, I expected it, but still… it gives me a reality check every time I see it, for real.”
She shook her head and waved her arm.
[Tiring!]
[Examiner ‘Floa’ is opening the ‘VIP Shop’.]
[The currency of this shop is ‘Trial Points’.]
[All products are limited to 1 per person. A purchase limit is in effect.]
[List – 1/1]
[1. Reward Probability Amplification Scroll – 1,000,000 points]
“Kyah.”
As expected.
It was the same this time.
‘A truly ridiculously overpowered scroll.’
It was a scroll that allowed me to obtain a reward two tiers higher than the one I was supposed to receive after the trial ended.
Even if I were to just safely secure an S-grade item this time.
‘It means I can get a whopping SSS-grade item.’
And with a 100% probability at that.
There was no room for hesitation.
“I’ll pay all my remaining points. I’m buying it right now. Not buying something like this is a sin.”
“So you did have them, huh? The points.”
“What’s there to say? I told you, I’m loaded.”
“Tch, you lucky bastard.”
‘Snap!’
Floa snapped her fingers with a sour look on her face.
[Using 1,000,000 points.]
[Remaining Trial Points: 106,500.]
And just like that, it was over!
I felt it instinctively.
‘This theme is going to be a complete freebie.’
From the very moment I caught the Toxin Mist.
Everything was practically a stage set for me.
If the color of one’s spoon was determined by points, then I was…
an all-time diamond spoon.
And.
Barring any unforeseen circumstances, a dirt spoon could never break a diamond spoon, no matter how hard it tried.
No matter how many of them there were.
—
When several people gather, conflict is bound to arise.
That’s true even among those who are supposedly close.
But here were gathered hunters who were complete strangers, from different countries and cultures.
Could there possibly be no trouble?
“Ah, fuck. The glares are killing me. They’re so sharp.”
And that conflict is always instigated by one person who stands out.
A person who can’t hold back and blurts out things that most people would have kept to themselves.
Olivia Rodrigo was such a person.
“Mister, why do you keep staring at me like that? Aren’t we a team now?”
‘Flinch.’
The middle-aged man, who had been quiet, felt his facial muscles stiffen.
For her to pick a fight now after being quiet all this time.
It was highly probable that it was because Joo Donghoon, the Team leader she had been wary of, was gone.
‘Honestly.’
The middle-aged man shook his head.
They say it’s best to avoid a crazy bitch.
That girl, Olivia.
Hadn’t she grumbled throughout the entire march and eventually spoken to the Team leader with a look of displeasure?
“Here we go again.”
“Doesn’t she ever get tired of it?”
“Vice-leader. Are you going to make her do any work?”
Eventually, a few members of the group who had been holding back also spoke up.
“……”
On my way back after parting with Floa, I sensed the unusual atmosphere and stopped in my tracks.
Did something happen while I was away?
I crouched down and observed the situation.
“Olivia, your mission was to set up a shelter with Olena. Is the work all done?”
The words of Judgement Spear, Zhang Wei, who was acting as the vice-leader.
“Bullshit.”
However, Olivia’s reaction was unexpected.
It was also strange.
She was a bit thoughtless, but…
at least when I was around, she wasn’t that insolent.
“Honestly, besides the Team leader, everyone here is more or less the same. You think you’re something special just because you got a title?”
‘Step, step.’
Olivia walked to the center with an indifferent face.
Along with a nameless lackey who was trailing her closely.
‘Hmm.’
I activated the Supreme Azure Mind Method to gauge her full power.
‘She’s actually quite something, isn’t she?’
I thought she just had a sharp tongue.
But she was on a similar level to Zhang Wei.
1. Judgement Spear, Zhang Wei
2. Olivia Rodrigo
3. Space Mage, Vladimir Rodygin
The power of these three felt similar.
The rest of the members were slightly or far below them.
‘Even so, all of them.’
They weren’t even worth the dirt under Floa’s toenails, who had just caused a huge scene.
“Aren’t your words a bit too harsh?”
“That’s right, to someone who’s working hard as the vice-leader.”
“He was chosen by the Team leader’s order, too. Isn’t it natural to follow the control of the Team leader who chose him?”
‘Murmur, murmur.’
As the team members spoke up with displeased expressions.
“Hmph.”
Olivia hummed through her nose.
“You’re all so damn nice, aren’t you? Tsk, tsk, to not even know how to raise your own value.”
“Value?”
It was then that the martial artist, James, stepped forward.
“Do you think your existence has any value to our team right now?”
“Hoo, are you picking a fight with me now?”
“I’m asking you seriously. Why are you so twisted, ruining the team’s atmosphere all by yourself?”
“My, my, so serious?”
Olivia let out a short laugh.
“Alright, well. If you’re curious, I’ll tell you. The Team leader chose him, and that’s that. But this trial was clearly stated to be a cooperative one. Right? That means all ten of us are needed, without a single one missing. Is there any need to bow down just because the Team leader is strong? It’s not like we’re a bunch of pushovers.”
“It’s because it’s cooperative, as you said.”
“Heheh, how do you know if it’s cooperative or not?”
“What?”
“The Team leader took almost 99% of the contribution in Theme 1. Do you know what that means in other words?”
A smile formed on Olivia’s lips.
“It means that much of our share was taken away, you stupid bastard.”
Her venomous words were relentless.
“And besides. The vice-leader, too. Even if he controls us with missions and what not. In the end, he’s just going to order us around to his own liking, right? Is it because he’s a Chinese Communist Party bastard? In our country, we call that a dictatorship.”
“What are you saying…!”
Myoi Hana, who was listening, tried to step forward, but.
Olivia raised a hand and cut her off.
“Fine, I’ll be blunt. I honestly hate this fucking situation. To be honest, besides that Chinese guy with the spear and the Russian Space Mage, everyone else just seems like freeloaders who got lucky with the Team leader, you know?”
“What?”
James’s brow furrowed.
What she was saying was treating the other six as dead weight.
His pride wasn’t so low as to stay quiet after hearing that.
“This bitch, I’ve been letting it slide, but now?”
‘Whoosh!’
A fist, moving at nearly the speed of sound, flew towards Olivia, but.
“……!”
Olivia was no longer where he had swung.
‘What, what was that?’
Just as the bewildered James was looking around.
‘Shhhlick!’
Something black, like a snake, wrapped around his calf.
‘This is.’
James’s eyes widened.
‘A whip?’
That’s right.
The main weapon Olivia was showcasing for the first time was a whip.
And since it was not one, but two whips.
Just as the remaining whip was about to strike the restrained James hard.
“Hey, stop.”
“Stop it.”
Judgement Spear and the Space Mage blocked his path.
The man who seemed to be Olivia’s lover also stood before them.
He was on her side, I guess.
‘Wow.’
Watching the scene from afar, I sighed inwardly.
Honestly, I thought it would just blow over if I just endured it a little.
But Olivia was the real deal.
It was truly mind-boggling.
‘If she’s that twisted, she probably doesn’t have any friends, let alone a social life…’
Some might say.
That being frank is the trend in foreign countries.
That being direct without being polite like a prude is more charming.
‘No.’
That’s not being frank.
That’s just being a psychopath.
A mentally ill person who doesn’t give a damn about others’ feelings for the sake of their own logic.
“……”
What should I do about this?
I was someone who had never stepped up to take action somewhere.
I wasn’t a goody-two-shoes, but I wasn’t the type to show off either.
‘But.’
I can’t let this continue.
I am the Team leader, and I have to lead this trial to victory.
As I thought that, I finally became certain.
‘Let’s take action.’
A deeply festered cyst doesn’t disappear just by being left alone.
It disappears only when it’s cut out or treated with medicine.
This isn’t about deciding who is right or wrong.
My thoughts could be right, or Olivia’s thoughts could be right.
However, for the team to roll smoothly in one direction.
Someone has to fold their thoughts.
‘They have to fold. If they don’t, I’ll fold their back for them.’
‘Step, step.’
I began to walk confidently.
I continued my steps towards the team members who were in a standoff due to the conflict.
“Huh? Team leader?”
I walked.
“Team leader! You’re here? Come quickly. Do you know what’s going on right now? That person, Olivia, she…!”
I kept walking.
Someone spoke to me, but I didn’t look.
I ignored them.
Because my gaze was fixed only on Olivia’s eyes.
“……”
I don’t know how I looked, but.
It seems I wasn’t just a goody-two-shoes.
Seeing as they parted for me like Moses parting the Red Sea.
“Ha?”
Seeing me, Olivia let out a scoff.
Seeing her expression, my already cold mood sank to an even lower temperature.
‘That one.’
If there was a competition for pissing people off, wouldn’t she win a prize right away?
Floa also had a foul mouth.
But this was a different feeling.
“What, don’t tell me you were listening? Damn it, the Team leader is a voyeur.”
Did she just decide to go all out?
Or was she trying hard to act like she was fine?
“Yes, well. As it happened, I heard everything.”
“You did?”
Olivia grinned.
“Then this will be quick. As you heard, I really hate freeloaders. I believe the world should be fair and people should be treated according to their abilities, you know?”
“……”
“It’s the same now. Everyone else is working their asses off, but no one says anything even if the Team leader just comes back from playing around somewhere strange, right? I get that, too. I acknowledge it.”
Olivia swung her twin whips out to either side.
“But while you’re taking weaklings with you for the sake of the team, why are the strong people not getting any special treatment?”
She might be right.
To prepare for any unforeseen circumstances.
My thought of having to take all the team members safely might be wrong.
‘But.’
I am the Team leader.
And regardless of whether she is right or wrong.
I have to lead the ship that is our ten-member team to its destination.
And right now.
The ideology of this person named Olivia is becoming a huge obstacle.
“Huh? Am I the kind of person who should be setting up that clueless mister’s bed over there? That’s not right, is it?”
“You’re right.”
I nodded my head.
As if my answer was satisfactory, Olivia’s smile brightened even more.
“Right? Kyah, as expected of the Team leader! Unlike that serious-faced guy, James or whatever, you’re easy to talk to, you know?”
“I wonder.”
Easy to talk to, my ass.
That’s not the ‘right’ I meant.
I took out my staff.
“You’re right, alright. Right for a beating.”
And I slammed it on the ground.