The Returnee's Hidden Strategy Stream

[Translator - Jjescus ]

[Proofreader - Starfall ]

Chapter: 68

“…..?”

Hanbit reread the chat.

But the message hadn't changed.

[Black Dragon: Chat? Didn't you bid 100 million?]

[Luna: It's the only way to contact you, and it's a pretty fair price, isn't it? Oh, I won't take long.]

“What?” Hanbit's voice came out involuntarily at the absurd statement.

Spending 100 million just to make contact?

It didn't make sense no matter how he thought about it.

Bzzt-

His smartphone vibrated.

It was a call from Yeonwoo.

Thinking this was good timing, Hanbit accepted the call.

“Hyung! What's this? Did it really sell for 100 million? To who?”

A loud voice came from the other end of the phone.

He must have just checked the auction listing.

[Black Dragon: Just a moment.]

Hanbit left a message in the chat and said the other person's name.

"It's someone named Luna."

“...Luna? Could it be Luna from Yeonhwa Gaming? The advanced team?”

As expected, the information came out immediately.

Hanbit took a screenshot of the messages he had exchanged with Luna.

"I sent you a picture. Check it out."

“Just a moment.”

Yeonwoo's voice disappeared for a moment.

It didn't take long since it was a short message.

“Um... it's different from what I expected.”

"Different?"

“I heard she's quite demanding. She's the daughter of the Yeonhwa Group chairman, so I understand, but…”

"...The chairman's daughter?"

The daughter of a conglomerate chairman.

That explanation alone made the 100 million purchase understandable.

"For a rich kid, 100 million isn't even money."

“Even as an individual, she's one of the top-ranked vanguards. And 100 million is a bargain. You're the most curious treasure chest in RP right now.”

"What a golden goblin?"

Hanbit reacted with disbelief at the absurd analogy.

But the situation felt a little more realistic now.

'How much is expensive?'

Hanbit looked at the message carefully and pondered for a moment.

He could make plenty of money by selling high-value information at a high price.

However, he couldn't easily predict the repercussions of spreading information indiscriminately.

He needed to be cautious if he was going to reveal any information.

“Hyung, what do you want to do? If you don't want to talk to her, I'll do it for you.”

"I can't do that after taking 100 million. I have a conscience too."

“Wow, really? I didn't know.”

"Are you trying to kill me?"

Yeonwoo responded playfully.

It was his way of lightening the mood.

"So, what do you think? Are companies still contacting you?"

“It was a mess this morning. I sent you the file, so just take a look at the list.”

"Just a moment."

Hanbit opened the received message and checked the file.

There were many more names than the list he had shown at the restaurant.

"There are so many. But I'm going to join your company anyway."

“That's why I'm saying this. I think you need at least one connection with the advanced team.”

"Why suddenly connections?"

“Your growth rate is much faster than expected. Information about players will become very important soon.”

Yeonwoo's concern was simple. It was difficult for a new company to obtain information that was not revealed in the media.

He said that they had information on advanced players, PK guilds, and people with unique skills and Items.

“They even share information about who is friendly with whom and who is not. There are factions that compete with each other.”

“So, you want me to befriend Luna first?”

“Let's just establish a connection first. After all, Yeonhwa approached you quite aggressively.”

Yeonwoo added that they were in a position of power.

Although he didn't want to do that, he clearly understood the need for connections.

"Okay, I'll talk to her."

“Be calm and businesslike. Don't get into any arguments…”

Beep-

Hanbit quickly ended the call, feeling like Yeonwoo was about to nag him.

He opened the app and typed a message into the chat.

[Black Dragon: I'm sorry for the interruption. You said you wanted to talk, right?]

[Luna: I didn't mean to be so formal. Or is there something you're curious about?]

[Black Dragon: Curious?]

[Luna: Well, I'm an advanced player too, so I can answer whatever I can. I don't know much about company stuff though.]

[Black Dragon: Isn't that a bit of a loss for you, Luna?]

[Luna: Well, why don't we exchange information?]

"Not bad."

There was no reason to refuse Luna's offer.

He had exactly one question he wanted to ask.

Hanbit immediately typed a message.

[Black Dragon: Then I'll ask first. Do you know anything about a player named Adventurer A?]

Adventurer A, the author of the guidebook. It was a person who had been constantly on his mind.

If they were in the same advanced team, they might know something.

[Luna: I know of them. We've crossed paths in the field a few times.]

[Black Dragon: Really? What are they like?]

[Luna: Well, I don't know. Shady? Unpleasant? Something like that.]

[Black Dragon: Unpleasant?]

[Luna: He's overly confident of his abilities. You know those people who think they're really special?]

He thought he was special. That was the vibe Hanbit had gotten from reading the guidebook.

[Black Dragon: Are they also stuck on the current episode?]

[Luna: They're completely stuck. That's why there were rumors. They led the strategy as the author of the guidebook, but now they're worse than everyone else.]

[Black Dragon: Did it happen suddenly?]

[Luna: It started with Episode 8. Even now, he goes to the strategy meetings and brags about how everyone should trust him.]

"Hmm."

Hanbit recalled the contents of the guidebook.

The information there was only up to about Episode 7.

As expected, there were many mistakes, and it was insufficient to be a guide.

[Black Dragon: Thank you. Now I'll answer your question. You're curious about the blocked episode, right?]

[Luna: No?]

[Black Dragon: Huh?]

The smooth flow of the conversation was interrupted strangely.

[Black Dragon: Isn't the episode information the most urgent?]

[Luna: My plans have changed a bit. I'm curious about the sub-quest information. Do you know an NPC named Lorio?]

[Black Dragon: Lorio... is that the guy who likes crystal rabbits?]

[Luna: You know that too? Anyway, I'm supposed to catch a crystal rabbit, but where can I find it? I've searched everywhere but can't find it.]

"……"

He had made up his mind, but she asked him how to catch a rabbit.

Feeling bewildered, Hanbit typed a reply.

[Black Dragon: If you go to the end of the 1 o'clock direction from Sloben City, you'll find a mountain of rocks. Have you been there?]

[Luna: There are tons of caves there. I've already searched everywhere.]

[Black Dragon: No, not there. Go into the swamp behind it.]

[Luna: A swamp?]

[Black Dragon: You'll see when you go.]

Hanbit had caught crystal rabbits several times.

It wasn't like they were worth a lot of money or anything.

[Luna: Thank you. I'll go right away. If you have any more questions, feel free to contact me. It's not bad to exchange some casual information, right?]

[Black Dragon: Yes, let's do that.]

[Luna: Sounds good. Oh, the Yeonhwa Gaming CEO might contact you, so just ignore them. I'll contact you again.]

The conversation ended abruptly.

At the end, Luna's personality seemed to be revealed.

"Are they not getting along with the CEO?"

Her comment about ignoring the CEO's contact.

He didn't know the internal situation, but it would be fine as long as they exchanged the necessary information.

"Adventurer A..."

Hanbit's thoughts returned to the previous question.

The half-baked guidebook and the fact that he couldn't use his power right now meant that he couldn't be a competitor in the future.

Still, he felt uneasy for some reason.

He didn't know if it was a feeling of unease or something else.

Shrugging off his thoughts, Hanbit returned to his office.

* * *

The monitor screen glowed in the dark room.

A man sat in front of it, nervously biting his nails.

"What's going on?"

The man frantically searched the community posts.

Player Black Dragon, who had suddenly appeared in the RP world.

The spectacle he displayed from the beginning was far beyond the standard of being simply unique.

"It can't be. It just can't be..."

Adventurer A.

The father of the newbies, the man who wrote the most perfect guidebook, was none other than himself.

But Black Dragon was dismantling the game through a completely different route, as if just to spite him.

He even hired a PK guild midway through, but he easily overcame that.

And the ending of the episode story was so unbelievable that he had to doubt his own eyes.

[Player Black Dragon's party has succeeded in the condemnation of Barres.]

[...the player who first reached the truth in Episode 1...]

An ending completely different from his own.

The problem was that RP recognized it as "the truth."

[Players who have cleared Episode 1 will be given the opportunity to reset and replay.]

That message seemed to spread throughout the world, suggesting a chance to correct the past.

It had a different meaning for this man.

"I can't be wrong..."

He was wrong.

It was something that couldn't happen no matter how much he thought about it.

His certainty was proven by a past known only to him.

He had met a goddess and experienced life in another world.

[Damn, I screwed up following the guidebook.]

[It's totally Adventurer A's fault.]

[I knew it was fishy when it was so expensive. lol]

[I only believe in Black Dragon now.]

"These trash!"

The people who had praised him had completely changed their stance.

How could they betray him, someone who had actually met a goddess?

He couldn't accept it.

"Black Dragon... I have to take care of that bastard first."

The sound of him biting his nails stopped.

Grabbing his smartphone, the man typed a message.

"Find someone for me."

[Translator - Jjescus ]

[Proofreader - Starfall ]