Beyond - 9
Jiwon was bewildered. Her brother had been suddenly kidnapped by Hargan.
"It's definitely my brother..."
She knew that Kim Yuwon and her brother looked alike. But could they not even recognize their own blood from her?
Just by looking at his expression, it was evident that it wasn't Kim Yuwon but the neighborhood idiot, her brother Kim Cheolsu.
Of course, most people wouldn't notice.
That means...
"They took the wrong person."
Those idiots.
They thought her brother was Kim Yuwon.
Did 'Hargan' think the same?
Did he really think her brother was Kim Yuwon, he, the son of Zeus who became a Ranker as fast as Kim Yuwon?
She had doubts but soon pushed them aside.
Hargan, Olympus... were stories from a distant world for them.
Right now, the most important thing for her was to find her missing brother.
So...
"Brother?"
In the distance, she saw the back of her damn brother.
"Brother!"
Waving her hand, she ran towards him.
She was worried something bad would happen to him if he was kidnapped, but fortunately, he seemed to have escaped.
Cheolsu turned around at Jiwon's shout.
However...
"...Eh?"
Jiwon froze as she looked into his eyes.
Her entire body chilled.
Despite having the same nose, eyes, and mouth, the pressure he emanated was different.
At that moment, she realized for the first time that looks can be deceiving.
This man in front of her was not her brother.
"Brother?"
The man who closely resembled Kim Cheolsu, Jiwon's brother, was Kim Yuwon.
He looked at her with a perplexed expression.
And at that moment...
"Hey, Cheolsu!"
The same men who had threatened her before reappeared.
Growling, they surrounded Yuwon and Jiwon in an instant.
Yuwon had a puzzled expression, not knowing what was happening.
"What's going on?"
"What's going on? What's going on?"
One of them reached into his pocket.
Another menacingly drew the knife from his waist, with a murderous look.
Another spat on the ground, creating a hostile atmosphere.
"They're dead."
The men who used to be terrifying now felt like flies.
And rightfully so.
"You, bastard, do you know how you humiliated us before?"
Crack.
The man who addressed Yuwon was grabbed by the hand.
And the next moment...
Aaaah!
His wrist bent in the opposite direction, and a scream echoed in the alley.
"What, what's happening?"
"This bastard!"
The men who had brandished their knives as a threat rushed towards Yuwon.
And a moment later...
Clang!
The knives that had stabbed into Yuwon's stomach broke.
"...Eh?"
"What are you doing?"
Crack!
Fingers snapped, and the men's heads flew backward.
Some had broken foreheads as if their skulls had cracked, and others were foaming at the mouth.
No matter how hard they tried, these thugs were nothing more than weaklings who hadn't even reached the 10th floor.
With his level, they couldn't harm Yuwon or even a newly ascended Ranker.
"Y-you, y-you..."
"Are you friends with those guys too?"
At Yuwon's question, Jiwon quickly shook her head.
"No, no! Not at all! I just mistook you for..."
"Brother?"
"Yes, yes! You may not believe it, but my brother looks exactly like you, Yuwon-nim."
"Ah, that's why those guys too?"
Somehow, Yuwon, who understood the situation, nodded.
Certainly, there wouldn't be a crazy guy with a knife on this lower floor if not for something like this.
Buzz~
At that moment, Yuwon's kit beeped.
Yuwon, who was waiting for Hargan, checked the message that arrived on the kit and nodded.
"Follow me."
"Eh?"
"Don't you want to find your brother?"
"...?"
Jiwon tilted her head, not understanding what was happening.
Meanwhile, Yuwon's figure gradually moved away.
Jiwon, bewildered, followed Yuwon.
-----------------
"It's an honor to meet you! My name is Orpheus!"
Orpheus bowed deeply, greeting.
Seeing a great Ranker greet him that way, Cheolsu almost kneeled by reflex.
However...
"I'm Kim Yuwon."
He shook the extended hand indifferently and nodded.
According to rumors, Kim Yuwon was quite cynical and had a cold character.
"It makes sense, right?"
Glancing at Hargan, there was no particular reaction.
It seemed he didn't suspect anything.
Not only Orpheus.
There were five Olympus Rankers who had come down to see Kim Yuwon.
All of them had come to help with Kim Yuwon's wedding.
'I'm in trouble.'
Sweat broke out on his forehead. His expression became increasingly gloomy. While shaking hands with another Ranker, he thought to himself:
"If I get caught, I'll die. I'll definitely die."
He preferred being threatened by thugs like before.
"Hey, are you sick?"
Hargan's reaction to Cheolsu's approach was natural.
With cold sweat running down his face, he couldn't help but look sick.
"Ah, I'm just a little stomach-sick."
"Your stomach?"
"Yeah, I'm going to the bathroom for a moment."
Cheol Su left with an unconvincing excuse.
He turned on the faucet and took a deep breath.
"Phew, phew."
His heart was pounding with tension.
He could only think of how to get out of this place.
Buzz~
His kit in his pocket vibrated.
A message from Jiwon arrived.
[Jiwon: Oppa! Did you really meet Kim Yuwon? He looks so much like you!]
His veins instantly bulged.
"Of course! What you saw was me!"
It bothered him that his sister, not understanding his situation, was so happy.
Cheolsu, who calmed down for a moment, raised his head and looked at himself in the mirror.
Even for him, it was a face that looked exactly like Kim YuWon.
Whether this was a curse or a blessing depended on him.
"You can do it, Kim Cheolsu."
Clap~
He gave himself two strong slaps on the cheeks to snap out of it.
"You can do it, man."
It was said that even in the tiger's den, if one stayed alert, they could survive.
With that determination, Cheol Su took a step forward.
"Your stomach? Feeling better?"
Upon returning, Hargan was drinking with Orpheus and Dionysus.
"Can you drink alcohol?"
Being the alcohol brought by Dionysus, known as the best alcoholic beverage entrepreneur, it wouldn't be of normal taste.
Refusing now would only raise suspicions.
"Of course."
Nodding, Cheolsu extended his cup. Just at that moment, when Hargan was about to pour alcohol for Cheolsu...
"Oh, now that I remember, aren't you the one who doesn't drink well? What happened?"
He made a mistake.
But how would he know?
Whether Kim YuWon enjoyed alcohol or not.
While Cheolsu was left speechless.
"It's a joke, why are you so serious? From what I heard, you even drink with Hercules' brother."
Hargan laughed heartily and slapped YuWon's shoulder with familiarity.
Indeed, YuWon had started drinking occasionally after the battle against the Outers ended.
If he didn't drink alcohol before, it was a mix of personal taste and concern that it might weaken his mind.
Glup~
Drinking the alcohol Hargan served, Cheolsu sighed in relief inside.
However, that wasn't the end.
"Is Pandora okay?"
"I heard from Lord Hephaestus. The first sword he created is now..."
"Oh, Sungyoon mentioned that OhGong is in his shop right now. What game is he hooked on lately?"
"Mr. YuWon. If possible, I would like to invite you to our next dinner..."
Questions and invitations piled up.
Cheolsu skillfully dodged the questions at every moment.
But that would only last for a while.
Creak~
The door of the venue Hargan had reserved opened.
Clearly, it had been said that the door should be closed so that no one would enter.
"Oppa!"
An entirely unexpected person entered.
Kim JiWon.
Cheolsu's sister.
"Ji, JiWon?"
Cheolsu's eyes widened, and his face turned as white as chalk.
If JiWon called him "Oppa" now, it would be a big problem.
No matter how well he acted, if it was discovered that he was JiWon's brother, everything would be revealed.
"Don't do it! Don't come! Please..."
While silently shouting and signaling to JiWon,
Creak~
Following JiWon, another person entered the shop.
A man who was like a doppelganger of Cheolsu.
Kim YuWon.
Their eyes met.
'I'm screwed.'
The real one had appeared.
The mask that Cheolsu had been using crumbled.
Cheolsu's legs trembled as he faced the approaching Kim YuWon.
He felt Hargan's presence rising from his seat.
Now, he himself would become a skewer...
"Not bad."
Hargan's words as he approached YuWon.
What wasn't bad?
A question mark appeared over Cheolsu's head.
"Really?"
"Could he be useful as a substitute?"
"Better than a doppelganger?"
"Those guys have too short maintenance time. Plus, it's difficult to deceive Rankers sensitive to Arcane Power."
At Hargan's words, YuWon smiled and nodded.
"Then it's fine."
----------------
A little earlier.
YuWon, lying in the living room of his house, asked the yawning Son OhGong:
"Don't you have work to do?"
"Hmm? Me?"
It was Son OhGong, registered as an Olympus mercenary. His job was to maintain order in the Tower and resolve conflicts between Guilds.
However, for some reason...
YuWon had never seen Son OhGong actually work.
"For what? My clones do everything anyway."
Son OhGong's words made YuWon's eyes widen.
"What's wrong?"
"I should have learned that too."
"That?"
"Cloning Technique. It looks very useful."
The Cloning Technique was Son OhGong's main ability.
Of course, even for YuWon, there was no way to learn the Cloning Technique.
It was a unique skill that only Son OhGong possessed.
"Are you jealous?"
"...Yes."
Seeing YuWon admit it more easily than he expected, Son OhGong asked.
"What do you need it for?"
"There are too many places calling me. There are some I can't go to."
"It's true. With your name or just your face, there are many things you can solve."
Zeus, Thor, Vishnu, etc.
There were countless Guilds asking for YuWon's help.
And rejecting all that help meant letting go of a large number of Points.
"If what you need is a face, not strength, why not try with a Doppelgänger?"
"A Doppelgänger?"
"Oh, well, I heard an interesting story recently."
Son OhGong laughed with a mischievous smile just thinking about it.
"On which floor was it? Anyway, they say there's a guy who looks exactly like you."
-----------
"Not such a bad actor. If only he had a bit more guts, he'd be perfect, wouldn't he?"
Hargan patted Cheolsu on the shoulder.
"And it seems you need points. How about it? Want to do a little part-time job?"
"Ah, a part-time job? Are you serious?"
Cheolsu had no idea what kind of part-time job he was talking about.
From Hargan's reaction, it seemed he already knew that he wasn't Kim YuWon.
So why had he spent so much time with a low-level Player like him?
Cheolsu's question was immediately answered by YuWon's words.
YuWon patted Cheolsu on the shoulder.
With a satisfied expression, he said to Cheolsu.
"Approved. Clone."
Tags:
LWTG (Novel)