Chapter 21. Leave It to Luck (2)
“There’s a Dionysus Artifact nearby that forms the core of this city, isn’t there?”
What?
The elite officer stared at him.
But Jooheon only smiled.
He could feel the aura of an extremely powerful Divine-Grade Artifact somewhere nearby.
Judging by the scale of it, he assumed it belonged to this world’s Majesty.
There was no way a Majesty would allow an Artifact of that level to run wild right in their own territory otherwise.
And if Jooheon destroyed the Majesty’s Artifact...
Wouldn’t that count as winning the conquest battle?
Then I should be able to ask about my daughter too.
With that thought, Jooheon crossed his arms and lowered his head in an irritatingly relaxed manner.
“Take me to where that Artifact is.”
“!”
His smile deepened.
“Choose carefully.”
“You can become an NPC...”
“Or you can stay human and guide me.”
The elite officer’s shoulders trembled.
Her pride as one of Majesty’s direct subordinates.
Her duty.
Everything she had protected until now flashed through her mind.
But becoming an NPC and losing her humanity...
That terrified her more than death.
“...I’ll guide you.”
Jooheon grinned and dusted off his coat.
“Good.”
Majesty Yoo Jaeha nodded too.
“Then that settles—”
Jooheon cut him off.
“Now hand over every Artifact you have.”
“...You bastard.”
Meanwhile, inside the Security Command Center...
“Report!”
“An elite officer has been infected with Madness and is currently moving together with an unidentified man!”
“What?”
The commanding officer stared in disbelief.
“Is that confirmed?”
“Yes.”
The reporting officer swallowed.
“According to eyewitnesses, the unidentified man used a Dionysus Artifact as though he were Majesty himself.”
A chill spread through the operations room.
Someone muttered quietly.
“...Someone who isn’t Majesty used that Artifact inside the City of Madness?”
That silence said everything.
An order was issued immediately.
“He is a dangerous individual disrupting the city’s order.”
“Arrest him immediately.”
“And if he resists...”
“You are authorized to kill him.”
The elite officer walked unsteadily ahead.
Jooheon followed behind with Rope trailing lazily along the ground.
A strange smile rested on his face.
“See?”
“In the end, you’re guiding us just fine.”
He chuckled.
“Better than becoming an NPC, right?”
“...Shut up.”
“Good answer.”
Cup-Ramen Jaeha mocked him.
[You think the security forces are just going to leave Captain alone?]
[They’ve probably put a bounty on his head already.]
Jooheon smirked.
“Good.”
He nodded.
“Even better.”
“I don’t have many Artifacts here, so it saves me the trouble if they come to me.”
That said...
It would be troublesome if an entire army came rushing over at once.
I barely have any Artifacts in this world.
Jooheon glanced at Majesty Jaeha.
“Is there no way to use Artifacts from my original world?”
“There is.”
Jaeha answered.
“If you have a [Summon Ticket].”
“How do I get one?”
“Rulebook usually gives them as rewards.”
He shrugged.
“You might also get one if you beat the hell out of another Majesty.”
Jooheon slowly looked at him.
Majesty Jaeha stared back with disgust.
“I create my own Artifacts.”
“I don’t collect stuff like that!”
Jooheon clicked his tongue and looked away.
He was confident in his physical abilities, and Rope was with him.
Still...
That wasn’t enough to properly fight Majesties or top-tier Artifact Users.
Majesty Jaeha could create emergency Artifacts if necessary, but...
That bastard takes surprisingly long to make them.
Jooheon muttered:
“Your creation speed is exactly as slow as someone else’s restoration speed.”
Cup-Ramen Jaeha screamed.
[HEY!]
[PLEASE CONSIDER HOW FAST YOU BREAK ARTIFACTS FIRST, YOU BASTARD!!!]
Jooheon ignored him.
Either way, if they were ambushed, it would be dangerous.
The more Artifacts he had, the better.
That was partly why he had dragged the elite officer along.
But then...
Jooheon frowned at the manhole she had brought them to.
“Don’t tell me you expect us to go down there.”
“I do.”
She pointed downward.
“The Artifact you asked about is inside.”
Jooheon smiled dangerously.
“This looks like you’re leading us into a trap.”
“If you really intend to fight Majesty...”
The officer looked back at him.
“Then obtaining the Divine-Grade Artifact in here is essential.”
“Oh?”
Jooheon raised an eyebrow.
“Why are you suddenly helping me?”
“Helping you?”
She scoffed.
“Don’t misunderstand.”
At that moment...
Red light erupted from manholes all across the city.
They began resonating.
From above, the glowing manholes looked like pieces of a massive magic circle.
Then something astonishing happened.
A hole opened beneath Jooheon’s feet like a sudden sinkhole.
It swallowed him.
Jooheon heard the officer’s voice from above.
“Anyone with enough Reason to resist Madness...”
“Lock them all inside the tomb!”
The city plaza shook with crimson light.
Jooheon and several others were sucked into the opening.
Rope immediately stretched toward him.
But unexpectedly...
Jooheon didn’t grab it.
Rope sounded genuinely shocked.
[Huh?]
[Why aren’t you grabbing me?]
[Why?]
Jooheon instead grabbed Majesty Yoo Jaeha by the collar as the bastard tried to save himself.
Then dragged him down too.
“Hey! Are you insane?!”
Rope hurriedly followed Jooheon.
BOOM!
BOOM!
One after another, they disappeared into the darkness.
The plaza sealed itself again.
The security officers immediately reported in.
“Commander, activation was successful.”
“The troublemakers have been imprisoned.”
“Good.”
The security commander smiled.
That labyrinth was a prison created by the blessing of the Cup.
To escape...
A prisoner had to raise their own Madness Gauge.
But the higher their Madness became...
The more vulnerable they became to the authority of the Majesty ruling this city.
“So having a high Reason Gauge is useless in the end.”
“Inside that labyrinth, they’ll be forced to drink the alcohol themselves.”
“And that alcohol isn’t ordinary alcohol.”
“It turns people into NPCs immediately.”
The officers smiled.
“Majesty designed this city perfectly.”
Until now...
Every intruder imprisoned there had been turned into an NPC.
Then sold to other Majesties.
“Prepare the trade.”
