Chapter 165: Forced Return (2)
“I accept.”
Taesan nodded. There was no reason to refuse additional rewards.
Moreover, Taesan was angry too. This incident was clearly a targeted attempt to interfere precisely at the moment he was about to meet the God of Magic. It was a petty trick to prevent him from getting stronger by meeting the God of Magic.
[Sub-Quest Accepted.]
The God of Magic smiled in satisfaction.
“Good. When you return here, come find the poor, pitiful child again. Then I will give you the trial for intermediate magic.”
“Understood.”
The God of Magic clenched his fist, and the trembling of Taesan’s body intensified. As he was about to return to Earth, the God of Magic spoke.
“They will try to kill you.”
There was no need to ask who “they” were.
And moments later, Taesan returned to Earth.
He first took a deep breath. He felt the distinct air of Earth, qualitatively different from the labyrinth.
Taesan looked around.
“Wait a minute.”
“What is this? Why is it so sudden?”
People were bewildered by the sudden return, as previous returns to Earth had always been preceded by a long delay.
Taesan scanned the crowd, looking for Kang Junhyuk, Lee Taeyeon, Geum Junggeun, and Kim Hwiyeon.
In the midst of his search, someone recognized him and shouted.
“Kang Taesan!”
“Taesan?”
Taesan frowned. Their gazes turned towards him all at once.
“It’s Kang Taesan!”
“Taesan! Please save me!”
They rushed towards Taesan like fanatical followers charging at their cult leader.
“Taesan! Taesan!”
“Please! Let me touch you just once!”
Taesan was taken aback by their frantic appearance and kicked off the ground.
As he moved swiftly up the walls of the buildings, people cheered.
He clicked his tongue at the voices echoing throughout the area.
‘What is this really about?’
[Your divinity has increased by 1%.]
“Why is this going up now?”
He grumbled as he moved to the highest building and activated his scouting ability. He quickly located Lee Taeyeon, Kang Junhyuk, Kim Hwiyeon, and Geum Junggeun and moved towards them.
“Wow!”
He grabbed them and brought them to the rooftop of a building.
They stared at him in bewilderment, unable to resist.
“Brother. You really are like lightning. How are you so fast?”
Geum Junggeun laughed helplessly. He had been confident in his growth, but now he was reminded of the gap he had forgotten.
“That’s not important. What’s with those people?”
Taesan frowned as he looked down at the crowd below.
People were cheering for him.
“Didn’t you check the community?”
“I did, but I didn’t think it would be this bad.”
It wasn’t just admiration or gratitude; it was literally worship.
“Well…”
Kim Hwiyeon explained with a hesitant expression.
“Actually, it wasn’t this bad at first.”
According to her, people initially considered Taesan a benefactor.
With the talents for struggle and death he had bestowed, they could clear floors they normally couldn’t. Any normal person would be grateful, and Taesan’s name began to spread.
And then, followers of Taesan started to appear.
At first, there weren’t many. Their worship wasn’t excessive either. But the followers rapidly increased in number.
Starting from Easy Mode, the trend was now spreading through Normal and Hard Modes at an astonishing speed.
“Thanks to that, people keep asking me about what conversations I had with Taesan, what he told me.”
“We don’t have such issues since we’re in Solo Mode.”
“But isn’t the community noisy? Everyone else is in a frenzy.”
“Oh, that’s true.”
Kang Junhyuk nodded reluctantly. Solo Mode players struggling in single-digit floors often asked Lee Taeyeon and Kang Junhyuk various questions.
“It’s too much. It’s a nuisance for both Taesan and us, and we can’t do anything to stop it.”
“Can’t you say something? Tell them to tone it down.”
They hoped people wouldn’t worship Taesan so excessively. Geum Junggeun, who had been quietly listening, spoke up.
“Is there a need to stop it?”
“Huh?”
“I don’t think there’s a need to stop the worship.”
“Isn’t it annoying? It’s a hindrance.”
“But they find peace of mind thanks to it.”
Kim Hwiyeon paused at Geum Junggeun’s words. He continued with a bitter smile.
“Brother, sister, Taeyeon, Junhyuk, you all might be strong in mind, but ordinary people need a sanctuary for their hearts.”
“I’m not strong…”
Lee Taeyeon muttered, but everyone ignored her. Kim Hwiyeon spoke.
“A god…”
“Do we look like we believe in gods in this situation?”
The monsters that covered the Earth, the labyrinth, the forced returns, and the ruined Earth.
If gods had protected them, such things wouldn’t have happened. Those who believed in religion died, or they descended into disbelief as they ventured into the labyrinth.
Taesan was the same. He too had once called upon the name of a god. But eventually, he erased the existence of gods from his mind.
People wanted to believe in gods but couldn’t.
Taesan muttered.
“Am I that figure?”
“Probably. You’ve given us strength.”
People found solace in the existence of Taesan.
Taesan looked at the people below, gazing up at him.
Their faces didn’t show despair or depression.
Only admiration for Taesan.
During his third return in his previous life, people’s expressions weren’t like this. As return quests appeared, many left wills in the community and committed suicide.
Considering the high rate of suicides among those who died while descending the labyrinth, it was clear that people found mental stability, and it was likely that Taesan provided that stability.
“Still, you don’t have to do anything for them. Just pretend you don’t see it. Let them have a place to lean on.”
Geum Junggeun spoke with a bitter expression. No one else could say anything.
“Of course, it’s quite an unreasonable thing to say. Everyone already relies on you, and now to put this burden on you…”
“It’s fine.”
Taesan shook his head.
“I just need to ignore it, right? It’s not particularly difficult, so it’s okay.”
Geum Junggeun’s face brightened.
♦ ♦ ♦
After that, Taesan didn’t actively react to people but didn’t avoid them either.
He calmly accepted their worship and moved on. As a result, the reverence towards him grew even stronger.
[Your divinity has increased by 1%.]
His divinity increased again.
At this point, it was clear.
His divinity increased every time people worshipped him.
“It’s still useless though.”
Divinity was currently of no value. It was a skill that needed to be linked with another skill to be useful, but he didn’t know what that skill was.
Still, seeing it steadily increase wasn’t a bad feeling.
As Taesan calmly accepted their worship, people began to go about their own tasks.
Finally, the makeshift cultivation showed results.
“Oh!”
People marveled at the rapidly growing vegetables.
In just five minutes, the corn was perfectly grown.
“The taste is good too!”
“This means…”
People were overjoyed that the food problem was solved. They again looked at Taesan with respect, who had introduced the makeshift cultivation skill.
Their peaceful lives were short-lived as a new special quest appeared.
[In one week, head to Seoul City Hall.]
“Finally, Seoul.”
People began to prepare. They gathered their weapons and packed their food. Thanks to Taesan’s presence, hardly anyone felt fear or terror.
Meanwhile, Taesan had his own tasks.
He swung his sword.
“Come at me.”
Lee Taeyeon picked up her sword with a frightened face.
“Didn’t you learn swordsmanship?”
“But my proficiency is 0%…”
“This is to increase it, so come at me. I even adjusted the stats equally, so why are you scared?”
Urged by Taesan, Lee Taeyeon finally steeled herself and charged at him.
“Yah!”
Taesan swung his sword. Smoothly, he parried her attack and struck her shoulder.
“Ugh!”
“That’s not how you do it.”
Taesan explained, exasperated.
“You learned Flow and Strong Strike, right? Draw out that sensation into your body and use it with your sword.”
“But even if you say that…”
Lee Taeyeon looked clueless.
Taesan stroked his chin. The ghost chuckled.
[It’s tough, huh?]
“I’m not cut out to be a good teacher.”
The swordsmanship he created. The Ability Sword.
The title of Master Swordsman stated that swordsmanship could be passed down.
One of his goals for this return was to teach swordsmanship. Given the effectiveness of the Ability Sword, learning it would greatly increase their chances of clearing the labyrinth. Hence, Taesan was now trying to pass it down to Lee Taeyeon and Kang Junhyuk.
Even though skills couldn’t be learned outside the labyrinth, the Ability Sword, being a skill he created himself, didn’t seem to have an issue with being passed down.
But that wasn’t the problem.
When Taesan first learned the Sword of the Storm Scar, he started with 0% proficiency. The ghost had told him that it would be quite a struggle to increase proficiency, and Taesan overcame it with proficiency-enhancing potions.
But Lee Taeyeon and Kang Junhyuk didn’t have such special items, so they had to increase their proficiency on their own.
“You’re next.”
Kang Junhyuk, eyes gleaming, charged.
As Taesan blocked with his sword, he advised.
“You learned Flow, Strong Strike, and Counter, right?”
“Yes!”
They had both descended beyond the 10th floor.
They should have at least one or two useful skills by now.
“Remember when you acquired the skills. Use that sensation with your sword.”
Taesan’s sword moved gracefully. He parried Kang Junhyuk’s sword and struck his chest.
“Kugh!”
Kang Junhyuk fell. Taesan muttered calmly.
“It’s not easy.”
“Even if you say use it with the sword…”
Kang Junhyuk grumbled as he got up. Watching this, Kim Hwiyeon spoke.
“I’m envious. We can’t even learn it.”
Taesan had tried to teach the Ability Sword to Kim Hwiyeon and Geum Junggeun too. But it couldn’t be passed down to them.
“Is it because we’re in Hard Mode?”
“Other Solo Mode people couldn’t learn it either.”
He had also tried teaching Solo Mode players who were still on single-digit floors, but it was the same. Only Lee Taeyeon and Kang Junhyuk could learn it.
“In any case, you two must learn it.”
Taesan held his sword calmly.
“That way, people won’t die.”
He couldn’t do everything alone.
He could save a few people, but not many. Therefore, he needed Lee Taeyeon and Kang Junhyuk’s help.
They gritted their teeth and picked up their swords.
Time passed.
After a week, they began their journey to Seoul.