TRC 09

Chapter 09…

―You always have a plan, don’t you?
―Siwoo always, always, always has a plan.
―So our leader’s a plan freak, huh?

Once, I told that to my teammates.
No—my betrayers.

I’d told them there was a famous movie back on Earth, and that my favorite line came from it.
Ever since then, they’d mock me with that line.

“Damn bastards…”

Yeah, they weren’t wrong.
Even after realizing that the world never goes according to plan,
I still make plans as naturally as breathing.

So naturally, I don’t even notice I’m doing it anymore.

This time’s no different.
From the moment I decided I had to get a Record Transfer Ticket, I already had everything mapped out.

First, exclude skills.

Skills can be created or copied as long as certain conditions are met.
Some are impossible, sure—but most are doable.

So it all comes down to talent.

Then came the real problem: which talent to choose.

In truth, I’d already decided whose ability I wanted.

Originally, I planned to take Zegalsang’s talent…

In my previous life, Zegalsang was the guild master of China’s “Tianshun Guild.”
A famous sorcerer—his talent was well-known.

His talent: [Zhuge Liang’s Mantou (B+)].

A very useful ability when using skills or powers that required a “sacrifice (Dummy)” as payment.

I’d thought it would be the perfect match for my “Limit Break” ability…

…that is, until I learned about Joo Gunryul.

[Joo Gunryul’s Talents]

• Super Regeneration (A+)

• Demon-Banishing Body (S)

From what the Record Coffin showed, Joo Gunryul—like me—was a double-talent user.
But the difference was in rank: A+ and S-grade.

“What is he, a zombie? No wonder stabbing him doesn’t work.”

I’d guessed he had regeneration-type powers.
And of course, I wanted them.

For a Tamer—whose main body is the weak point—that kind of ability is invaluable.

But what really caught my attention was the other one.

“Wait… what’s this? Demon-Banishing Body (滅邪肢體)?”

[Demon-Banishing Body (滅邪肢體)]

• Grade: S

• Info: A body untouched by corrupt energy.
  (Reduces all negative effects on the user by 90%)

“…What the hell?! Isn’t this completely broken?”

A talent this overpowered actually exists?
A 90% reduction of all debuffs?

If it really blocks that much, even high-level curses wouldn’t touch me.

Wait… ‘all negative effects’ means…

That would include curses from enemies, penalties from items, titles—
and even debuffs from other talents.

“Then this is perfect for me.”

Without hesitation, I selected Joo Gunryul’s talent.

[You have used 1 Record Transfer Ticket.]
[Transferring Joo Gunryul’s Talent ‘Demon-Banishing Body (S)’ to the user.]
[Your list of talents has been updated.]

And with that, I was no longer a double-talent user—
I had become a triple-talent one.

“But… the gods have granted me one more ticket!”

Pulling the final ticket from my pocket, I mimicked a famous movie line dramatically.

With this, I could even become a quadra-talent user!

I could just take Joo Gunryul’s Super Regeneration (A+) too, but—
an idea suddenly flashed in my mind.

“Record Coffin, show me the list of Julie Pearson’s talents.”

Julie Pearson—the owner of Bluestone, the mega-corporation that mass-produces artifacts.

If I could steal her main talent…

My mind raced, imagining all the possibilities branching out like a web.

Goosebumps ran down my arms.

Even I was afraid—of how much stronger I could still become.

“I’m… scared of myself.”

But thinking of showing that power to my betrayers made the corners of my mouth lift.

After collecting all the rewards, the Record Coffin opened again.
The Player Test was over.

The first person I met outside was the government officer who’d guided me earlier.
And I’ll never forget the look on his face.

Actually, I doubt I could forget it in my lifetime.

He treated me like a presidential candidate—
fidgeting nervously, as if I’d shatter if dropped or wear out if touched.

“Good thing Seo Gyeoul showed up when she did.”

She’d saved me from that awkwardness.

Instead of taking me to the media room where the officials and scouts were waiting,
she’d led me out through a hidden passage that connected directly outside.

If I’d gone the normal way, I’d have been surrounded by reporters and guild scouts,
bombarded with questions nonstop.

I knew Seo Gyeoul wasn’t someone who helped without reason,
so I’d asked her directly why she was being so kind.

―It’s just a thank-you for keeping your promise.
―You mean the A+ Test Grade? But that was just part of—
―If it’s hard to understand, then just say it’s because I’m in a good mood today.
―…What?

Her words made no sense.

But since it wasn’t to my disadvantage, I let her guide me out quietly.

“Coco Mansion, Myeongil-dong, please.”

The taxi (with the night surcharge) stopped before a familiar old apartment building—
one I’d only seen in dreams lately.

The home where I’d lived with my mother before I left.
A small, worn-down apartment she’d barely bought after saving her whole life and taking a loan.

To savor the feeling fully, I skipped the elevator and took the stairs up.

[Room 708]

“….”

The front door was caked with grime.
Through the cracks came the spicy-sweet smell of stir-fried pork.

Beep beep beep beep—

As I entered the passcode, I heard movement inside.

“Siwoo!”

The door swung open, and there she was—my mother, Mrs. Park Miyoung—smiling brightly.

God, how I’d missed that face.

“What’s this? Are you tearing up? I didn’t raise my son to be a crybaby.”

“Crybaby? You didn’t see me just now? I killed monsters!”

“That’s what I mean! Why didn’t you tell me? Why keep it a secret from your own mom?!”

“Ah—ow!!”

She pinched my arm with her spicy hands.

Rubbing the sting, I muttered back,

“Didn’t you see Spider Boy? Heroes keep their identity secret, Mom.”

“…Hah?! This kid and his nonsense… Get in already. You must be starving. I made your favorite stir-fried pork.”

That one simple phrase—“Let’s eat”—
was something I’d longed to hear again for so long.

Suppressing the lump in my throat, I answered dryly,

“Yes, Mom.”

After a shower, I flipped through TV channels I didn’t care about,
fidgeting with the remote for no reason.

Eventually, I stood up and faced my old room.

“….”

“What are you doing out there? Aren’t you going in?”

“…Going now.”

I closed my eyes tight and turned the doorknob.

Creak—

Slowly opening my eyes, I took in the small room in front of me—
the single bed, desk, bookshelf, chair, and old computer.

So plain it looked like a monk’s cell.

Still, I felt strangely grateful to those betrayers.
Because of them, I got the chance to return.

Thanks, you damn bastards. I’ll repay you—with a painless death.

Moving on instinct, I pressed the power button on the computer.

Even though the TowerNet system existed now,
I wanted to use this relic instead.

Whirr—

The dusty fan screeched, and the monitor flickered to life.

“Oh… I used to hate that sound. Now it feels nostalgic.”

Clicking the broken right mouse button, I started browsing.

[Today’s Trending Articles]

“Let’s see if my story’s made it online yet.”

I entered the most popular server and checked the reactions.

There were quite a few eye-catching headlines.

[Who was the Irregular that Cleared Today’s Gate in Gangdong-gu?]

└ Are we sure an Irregular did that?
└ Yeah. My cousin’s in the Yotun Guild. Said they wasted a trip.
└ Your cousin’s in Yotun? Then I’m the rookie of Goblin Guild.
└ I am the Goblin Guild Master. That rookie’s ours.
└ Stop feeding the troll.
└ But if it’s true, isn’t this huge? We might finally have someone like Joo Gunryul or Miyamoto Daichi!
└ Idiot. You think every Irregular’s the same?
└ I’m telling you! My team leader got wrecked by that guy—in front of the girl he likes!
└ “My” team leader? Hello, this is Yotun Guild’s master. We’ve found the idiot leaking guild secrets.

“Heh, same old chaotic internet. Never change.”

Scrolling further down—

[Rumor: The Star of the Surprise Player Test Might’ve Ranked #1 in the Record Coffin?]

└ This journalist just posts anything, huh?
└ Nah, it’s real. And he’s a Tamer! Beat Joo Gunryul with pets.
└ I once fought alongside Joo Gunryul in 2011, you know—back in Beijing, when I used to punch ducks barehanded and eat tteokbokki like rebar—
└ Wall of text detected, cut.
└ But seriously, if that’s true, then what?
└ What do you mean, “then what”? It’s history in the making! If he took down Joo Gunryul—the guy even Miyamoto on the 200th floor respects—then I’m singing the national anthem from verse one to four right here.
└ This will be a holy comment.

Grinning, I typed my own final comment.
I’d have to come back later to listen to that anthem recording.

‘Looks like the government’s suppressing info about me, huh?’

So far, just rumors and speculation.

Probably “adult matters.”

Even better.

I’d been worried about too much attention,
especially in case it affected my mother.

Of course, they couldn’t hide it forever—
but as long as they slowed things down, it gave me time to prepare.

‘And at the center of those “adult matters”… is probably Seo Gyeoul.’

Especially Seo Gyeoul, who saw my power firsthand.

In my past life, after consuming the Moon’s Eye,
she had devoted herself completely to a certain mission.

“They should be expanding their operations about now…”

Scrolling further—

[Follower Terrorist Activity Up 20% Over the Past Year…]

‘Just as I thought.’

Seo Gyeoul and the other higher-ups would definitely want to use me as their sword against them.

The gate-clear contract was just the beginning; terms could be renegotiated.

After all, the two incidents were deeply connected.

The Followers’ Terrorism—
and the corruption caused by unclassified rifts.

No, “connected” isn’t enough.
They’re causally linked.

The Followers had discovered how to artificially generate gates.

Of course, it hadn’t started that way—
but after years of research, they’d learned how to trigger Gate Breaks,
and began exploiting it.

That time was right around now.

I hadn’t shown it earlier in front of Seo Gyeoul,
because that information was still highly classified.

‘Anyway, if I’m going to help take them down,
I’d better find something suitable to gift her—
since I stole the Moon’s Eye from her, after all.’

It was like pulling the cat’s fangs out of a granary full of rats.

As I pondered what to give her,
a breaking news headline froze me in place.

“…!?”

[(Breaking News!) Just Now—Follower Group Attacks ‘Gate Farm’ Facility…]

Bzzz—

My phone vibrated.

A text. From Seo Gyeoul.

Only one line:

―Do you have time right now?

Without a second thought,
I grabbed my coat and ran outside.