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Chapter 308 – The City of Death (5)

“That was so hard.” Gi-Gyu groaned. The interview was something he had to do so that he could move around freely again. It also helped him maintain what he had built so far. But that one activity ate his entire day.

“Thank you for your hard work,” Alberto said to Gi-Gyu.

Again, Gi-Gyu was making headlines.

-Why did Morningstar reappear in Italy when he should supposedly be recovering from injuries?

After Gi-Gyu’s last visit to Italy, Alberto and Sung-Hoon had released an official statement; it said Morningstar was recovering from the injuries he had suffered during the monster battle. Consequently, when Gi-Gyu returned to Italy, he had to publicly explain why he was back and what he knew about the monster.

“It was so hard acting like I was injured and in pain when I felt perfectly fine,” Gi-Gyu grumbled. Since he was supposed to be recovering, he had to create a disguise. One that even players with sharp eyes couldn’t see through.

‘I can’t believe he made himself ill for this.’?Alberto was in awe.

Though temporarily, Gi-Gyu had made himself physically sick before making his public statement. When he appeared on TV, he looked as pale as a ghost. No one could doubt that he was badly injured and in the middle of recovery.

-The dark beast! It reaches Italy!

-The Italian government requests Morningstar to destroy the corruption within our country!

-The Colosseum tragedy! Was the Caravan behind it?

-Morningstar sacrifices himself to save the Italian citizens!

The media outlets used Gi-Gyu’s explanation as headlines. The fact that the public believed it was the Italian government, not the Italian association, that had requested Morningstar’s presence was especially beneficial.

“The Italian government is in an awkward position now.” Alberto smiled. “Your popularity has skyrocketed. The citizens of Italy are cheering the government for doing the right thing.”

The Italian government was now stuck between the Vatican and its people. Ultimately, it had decided to aid Gi-Gyu.

Gi-Gyu asked Alberto and Go Hyung-Chul, “What do you think is the Vatican’s ultimate goal?”

Gi-Gyu was now free to roam the city, but they still needed to figure out what the Vatican was planning.

Gi-Gyu continued, “What are they trying to accomplish by releasing a monster like that?”

“Perhaps…” Go Hyung-Chul replied. “They are trying to become a hero. Considering how they have been behaving and how sneaky they are, this is the best answer I can come up with.”

“A hero?”

“First, create a huge turmoil in Italy.” Go Hyung-Chul smirked. “Second, fix the problem. In two simple steps, they can become heroes not only in Italy but also in the entire European continent.”

“So you think they will become active from now on?” asked Gi-Gyu.

Instead of answering him, Go Hyung-Chul nodded.

“He’s probably right.” Alberto agreed. “Knowing what I know about them and their behavior until now…”

Alberto became quiet. Of all of them here, Alberto was the angriest with the Vatican. Italy was his country, and even if one didn’t count the recent Colosseum incident, the Vatican would still be responsible for the deaths of numerous Italian people. Go Hung-Chul and Gi-Gyu had acted fast during the Colosseum incident, but a lot of people still died. The casualties included non-players, players, and even association members.

‘Especially the players that supported Alberto,’?Gi-Gyu thought sadly. Those who died that day weren’t corrupt people with boundless ambitions and desires. They were brave players who had tried to do the right thing for Italy and its people.

“We know one thing for sure,” Go Hyung-Chul stated. “That Colosseum monster… I think there are more of it out there.”

There were indeed more criminals out there that had been drugged with an unknown substance. They were attacking players, and their number hadn’t decreased—it had actually increased. Also, they stayed underground, so finding them wasn’t easy.

“We need to stop them,” Alberto announced. “If what happened in the Colosseum repeats, Rome and Italy will become synonymous with death.”

Gi-Gyu and Go Hyung-Chul nodded.

After thinking for a moment, Gi-Gyu asked Go Hyung-Chul, “How about ‘them?’”

Gi-Gyu was determined to do what was necessary.

Go Hyung-Chul smiled at Gi-Gyu and replied, “Actually, they have been waiting for your arrival for a long time.”

Go Hyung-Chul and Gi-Gyu’s eyes met, while Alberto’s eyes sparkled. The three of them left the room quickly.

***

“Hng!” A man stepped back in fear, but his back hit a wall—no, it was a torso.

“Where do you think you’re going?” asked the man with the wall-like torso. “You need to keep your promise.”

Another man standing before him added, “Your deadline has passed.”

‘I’m surrounded!’?the man thought in panic.

“A…all right… I mean… Yes, sir!” yelled the man. He was afraid, but he quickly realized that he couldn’t escape. They were in a dark alley, and no one could hear him.

The man in the front muttered, “Gosh, we saved you, yet you’re still complaining.”

The other man trembled in fear, rummaging his pocket for something. “I barely managed to get this! So take it, and please leave me alone…!”

The man begged to be released, but when he saw the item in his hand disappear in a blink of an eye, he became quiet. He was a non-player, and these men weren’t people he could escape. They could kill him easily and leave his corpse in the middle of this dark alley if they wanted to.

‘I don’t want to end up like my friends!’?They were just gone forever.

The man begged, “Y-you’ll let me go, right?”

“Sure.”

However, the man couldn’t move because the Asian man with black eyes was now holding him by his neck.

“Ugh… Y-you said you’ll let me live…”

“And I will.”

The Asian slowly loosened his grip around his neck.

“Huh…?” The man suddenly realized that he was full of energy.

“You must live an ethical life from now on.”

“W-what the…?” When the man could finally think clearly, he found himself alone in the alley, enveloped by nothing but cold wind and silence.

‘Was I dreaming just now…?’?he thought, but he knew it couldn’t be that.

“Ackkk!” Suddenly, he began screaming and ran out of the alley.

A moment later, when the man had disappeared, the figure who had let him go murmured to himself, “I may have let you live, but… I don’t know if you’ll actually survive.”

Gi-Gyu came out from the dark and revealed his face.

“You’re so cold.” Alberto appeared from nearby.

“I wouldn’t say we’re cold. He was supposed to die, but we let him live.” Go Hyung-Chul also appeared from the dark.

The man who had escaped just now was the only surviving member of the group of thugs that had picked a fight with Go Hyung-Chul. Gi-Gyu had used the sync to read the man’s memories and save him.

‘I can’t believe he was poisoned with a toxin I couldn’t remove,’?Gi-Gyu thought in concern. He could have tried to remove it, but he knew it would put him at risk.

‘And this man wasn’t worth taking that risk.’?Gi-Gyu tried hard not to vomit. The memories he had read told him that this man had done terrible things. Gi-Gyu didn’t consider the thug a human because he had been corrupt even before taking the drug.

Before the thug had left, Gi-Gyu showed him what he had done wrong.

Go Hyung-Chul muttered, “But I think he believes he has been cured.”

Gi-Gyu smiled bitterly. He had suppressed the toxin inside the man but didn’t remove it. This was the best Gi-Gyu could do to get what he wanted. Based on Gi-Gyu’s assessment, the thug wouldn’t last a day and would soon join his other thug friends, which was exactly what he deserved.

Alberto seemed to want to change the subject. Pointing at the bottle Gi-Gyu was holding, he asked, “So is that it?”

It was the bottle the man had left behind. It was filled with the drug being sold secretly in the alleys of Rome and the rest of Europe.

Gi-Gyu replied, “Yeah, it’s called God’s Tears, huh?”

The drug had an extravagant name.

“Go Hyung-Chul,” Gi-Gyu called out to him, holding the bottle.

“Don’t worry.” Go Hyung-Chul grinned.”I already figured out who it is and how to contact him.”

Gi-Gyu had read the man’s memories but couldn’t learn about this. It was probably because the one he was looking for wasn’t a non-player. Gi-Gyu suspected that the culprit either erased the man’s relevant memory or placed a barrier around them. This was one of the reasons Gi-Gyu had chosen not to remove the toxin from the man. If the culprit were as powerful as Gi-Gyu thought, he would know something was wrong if the thug returned alive unaffected by the toxin.

The simplest way was to follow the man. To get more drugs, he would go to the culprit and lead them to him in the process.

‘But we have no idea how powerful this culprit is, so we might end up in a dangerous situation,’?Gi-Gyu thought. If he ended up facing an opponent he couldn’t restrain quickly, they could have needless casualties on their hands.

‘So this would be the safest and surest way.’?

Things could have gotten even more complicated had Gi-Gyu placed a secret detection skill on the thug.

Just then, Go Hyung-Chul looked far away and announced, “He’s dead. I’ll go take care of his body.”

It appeared that the thug didn’t even last a day. He had died not even an hour after he had been let go.

“Now…” Gi-Gyu needed to do his job.

Alberto asked, “Are you going to go right now?”

Both Go Hyung-Chul and Gi-Gyu nodded at the same time.

***

Gi-Gyu wasn’t given much time to roam the city freely. Because he had made an official appearance, many were curious about him.

Gi-Gyu looked out the window and mumbled, “The streets are still filled with people.”

Gi-Gyu stayed in the same hotel room he had stayed in during his last visit. Outside the hotel, a large crowd had gathered. They weren’t just Italian reporters but people from all over the world. They were all waiting in the hope of getting a glimpse of Gi-Gyu.

“I guess I’m really popular,” Gi-Gyu mumbled proudly. Indeed, he was incredibly popular. He had helped Korea, China, and now Italy. Some called him a child with too much power, while others thought he was a villain who had helped with the Chinese coup.

But no one could deny that Gi-Gyu was a hero who had saved many people.

Just then, Gi-Gyu’s hotel room door opened with a loud creak. Reporters weren’t allowed inside the hotel, and the entire floor with Gi-Gyu’s room was kept vacant.

El had entered his room.

“El,” Gi-Gyu greeted pleasantly, but El looked back at him coldly.

She replied, “Do not call my name with my master’s face.”

“Ah… Of course… I… thought maybe someone might be watching us.”

“I’ve already placed the necessary barrier, so you should deactivate your skill and rest,” El ordered coldly.

“All right.” Rohan deactivated his unique skill Halloween. Now looking like himself, he returned to his room.

“Master…” El sighed deeply as he looked out the window. She wondered when Gi-Gyu was coming back.

Just then, a sharp pain tinged in her chest.

‘I knew it…’?El looked out at the gray cloud and sighed deeply.