The Frozen Player Returns

Chapter 76. Turn up the Volume (1)

“...”

Kal Signer slowly opened his eyes. As an unfamiliar ceiling came into view, he slipped his hand under his pillow. He was looking for the dagger that he would always hide underneath his pillow before he slept.

“Ah.”

He gripped it in his fist as he took in his surroundings. Once he was fully awakened, he remembered that he was on the 1st floor and checked the clock on the table.

“...I slept for 17 hours?” He muttered in surprise. He couldn’t remember the last time he had been able to sleep deeply like this. His body had been constantly exhausted for the past few months because of Kim Woo-Joong’s pursuit. The chase sapped his energy, and his health had never been great either.

‘Fucking Kim Woo-Joong. I’ll make you pay for humiliating me.’

He gulped down the glass of water on the table and went to go shower.

He was in Paradise—to be more precise, he was in a bunker in the basement of Paradise. It had once been prepared for war and was perfectly isolated from the rest of the world.

“It’s nice and sturdy.” No one would be able to find him, not even a member of the Nine Heavens.

Kal Signer took a long shower and came out wearing comfortable workout clothes. He checked his Vita.

‘A message?’

It was from Torres and had been sent six hours ago. Kal Signer’s face twisted as he read the text.

[Please come to the lecture hall for a moment. I have something to show you.]

“...Is that weakling trying to give me an order?” He let out a frustrated sigh. It had only been two days since they had agreed to stay incognito and mind each other's business. Yet here he was, trying to summon him. He couldn’t even be bothered to come to Kal Signer himself and had sent a text message instead.

‘Did he go crazy?’

Fiends lived under the creed of survival of the fittest. It was a world that was ruled by the strong. Torres may be the director of Paradise, but he was barely level 75. To Signer, who was level 100, he was like a child.

“Tsk, it’s annoying...but I’ll see what’s going on.”

As fiends did, Kal Signer was planning to give him a good beating. He emerged from the bunker with a sour face. The entrance of the bunker was connected to the back of the property.

“Hm?” Kal Signer stopped as he approached the building. Being the experienced Player that he was, he noticed that something was wrong. His eyes narrowed.

‘It’s… too loud.’

Just the day before, Paradise had been a quiet place. The 200 children were under Torres’ control and they didn’t scream or run around. But now, he could hear dozens of people all around the building milling around and talking. Two men started to walk out of the building.

“I’m supposed to start on the 1st floor, correct?”

“Yeah, all the offices are here, so go through all of them before...Huh?”

They froze as they saw Kal Signer.

“You bastard, do your job right! How did a civilian get here?” The supervisor hit the other man on the back of the head.

“I-I’m sorry. But that’s odd… I definitely searched thoroughly…” Having been scolded, the subordinate frowned and waved his hands in a shooing motion. “Hey, ahjussi[1]. Based on your clothes, it looks like you came in accidentally while jogging, but you can’t just waltz in here.”

“...Ahjussi?” Kal Signer’s eyes were full of fury.

He looked around.

‘What?’

He didn’t understand what was going on. From what he saw, the two men in front of him definitely weren’t fiends.

‘They’re not even Players. They’re just insects.’

That was when he started to get confused.

‘How did normal people get into Paradise? Where are the rest of the fiends?’

It wasn’t just these two. There were dozens of people running around carrying boxes and files, and they were all normal people.

“What the hell is going on here…?”

“Why do you even need to know that ahjussi? Hurry up and go. Leave!”

‘...Should I just kill them all?

Bloodlust leaked into his eyes, but he quickly suppressed his anger.

‘Dammit, if only it weren’t for Seo Jun-Ho.’

Right now, he was carrying out Nazad Hallow’s orders. It would be bad for him if he did something that caught people’s attention.

“I’m going, I’m going.”

Kal Signer left Paradise as he emitted a cold vibe. He was leaving with only the clothes on his back. He turned around and muttered to himself.

“...What the hell happened while I was asleep?”

There was no one there to answer his question.

***

Seo Jun-Ho sat on a pew at the Vatican Palace. The Players guarding the Vatican kept glancing at him.

“...They’re all staring at you,” Marco whispered. He squirmed in his seat, uncomfortable.

Seo Jun-Ho turned the page in his newspaper. “Don’t pay them any mind. They’re rightfully expressing their respect,” he said nonchalantly.

“...”

That’s what he said, but Seo Jun-Ho glanced around his surroundings. Just as Marco had said, they were all staring at him in admiration.

‘It’s worse than before.’

Of course, tons of people had admired him 25 years ago. But now, they practically treated him like someone out of a legend. Everyone would bow their heads as he passed them in the streets.

‘Well, it’s not a bad thing.’

He hummed to himself.

They were currently waiting for the examinations to finish. They would soon find out if the children had truly gone back to normal.

“Is it really gonna be alright? My siblings…”

“I told you. They’re not fiends anymore.” Unlike Marco, Seo Jun-Ho was sure of it.

‘I sucked up all the demonic energy from the roots. If they’re still fiends, they might’ve been born with it.’

He had absorbed the demonic energy from all 217 children, raising his magic stat by 21. On top of that, his level had increased by two after he killed all the fiends.

“We are done examining them.” A priest said as he approached. He drew a cross across his chest, seemingly overjoyed. “Specter-nim has once again given hope to the land! The children are safe!”

“Wow…!”

“As expected of Specter-nim!”

Priests, Players, and civilians alike drew crosses across themselves and raised their hands in prayer.

Pope Aberson V approached him and bowed his head. “Specter-nim...I sincerely thank you for saving the lives of these little lambs.”

“Well, someone had to do it.” Seo Jun-Ho shrugged.

“...And I am ashamed that it was not us. If it’s alright, may I release this incident to the public to warn others about the fiends?”

“Sure.” It was already in his plans to make an announcement about Specter when he went back to Korea.

‘It’s not a bad idea to sprinkle some crumbs using the Vatican first.’

He shook the Pope’s wrinkly hand.

“Buf if you’re really thankful, can I ask you a favor?”[2]

“Please, speak.”

“All the children I brought are orphans. They became scapegoats of crime because they didn’t have guardians.”

“...” The Pope closed his eyes and pressed his lips together tightly. He couldn’t even begin to imagine how much pain and fear the children had suffered.

“Your enemies are also closer than you think. The Vatican is the holiest place on earth, and this happened right under your noses. You know the Church isn’t entirely blameless, right?”

“I have nothing to say. With this incident, we’ve come to realize how blind we were.”

“Then take responsibility. The Vatican has the capacity to take care of all the orphans in Rome, doesn’t it?”

Seo Jun-Ho couldn’t do all that himself. He planned to entrust the children to the Vatican. Thankfully, the Pope nodded eagerly.

“We won’t spare any hands. We’ll make sure the children are properly educated and happy.”

“That’s all I need to hear.” He felt like a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He patted Marco’s head. “Since you’re now under the care of the Vatican, you won’t have any problems getting a part-time job.”

“Specter-nim…” Marco started to tear up.

Seo Jun-Ho only smiled. “You say you’re a man, but all you do is cry.”

“I-I’m not crying. There’s dust...My eyes sting, that’s all.”

There must have been a lot of dust because Marco cried for a long time.

Both Seo Jun-Ho and the Pope laughed.

***

When Seo Jun-Ho was ready to leave, the same Association teleporter from last time approached him.

“I-I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you last time!” He bowed at a 90-degree angle.

“Pffft, I did all that so you wouldn’t.” Seo Jun-Ho chuckled.

“Oh...yes!” Seo Jun-Ho looked at Marco.

Marco seemed dissatisfied. “...Is it really okay if you leave like this?”

“It would be a hassle if there were a lot of people. That’s why you were the only one I called here.”

The only people in the room were the three of them. The Vatican had respected his wishes to leave quietly.

“...You’re really weird, Specter-nim. You’re the complete opposite of what I’ve read in books.”

“Really? What do the books say?” Seo Jun-Ho was intrigued.

“They say you’re a lot nobler, colder...and they also say that you’re boring,” Marco responded.

Seo Jun-Ho bent down to meet his height. “This is your second lesson. As a Player, don’t believe everything you read.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” Marco’s eyes sparkled. He scratched his neck and bowed deeply. “I saw that this is how people in Korea express their gratitude.”

“From where did you see that…?”

“Youtube.”

“...” Seo Jun-Ho was silent.

“Once I become a good Player, you’ll be the first person I’ll run to. I’m gonna repay you by becoming your apprentice,” Marco promised.

“Sorry, but I don’t take apprentices or anything like that.”

“Oh…” Marco’s face fell in disappointment at the clear refusal.

Seo Jun-Ho ruffled his hair. “I only take teammates. But the standards are a bit high. If you wanna get there, you’ll have to train your ass off.”

“...” Marco’s face brightened as he looked up. He would never be as happy as he was right now after his hero had encouraged him. His heart pounded as he felt happiness well up inside him.

“I hope you’re happy. Send my regards to your siblings.” Seo Jun-Ho waved.

“Yes, please stay healthy!” Marco exclaimed.

Seo Jun-Ho and the teleporter disappeared.

***

Kal Signer pulled at his hair as he flipped through articles. He finally understood why he had been chased out of Paradise.

[Breaking news! Specter’s big revival!]

[Specter destroys fiends’ hideout!]

[What exactly did Paradise do? Aberson V makes a shocking reveal.]

[‘Fiend Hunter’ Specter is still going strong 25 years later.]

The articles popping up in real-time were all about Specter.

He gnashed his teeth.

‘Dammit, if I wasn’t asleep back then…’

The regret hit him like a wave. If he had been able to kill Specter or capture him alive, he might have been promoted and directly became the Eighth Apostle.

“Tsk. Why are there so many lucky guys these days?”

He was referring to Seo Jun-Ho and Specter. Kal Signer was more confident in his abilities than others.

He sighed.

‘Seems like this wasn’t the right time, Specter.’

As he looked down at his plane ticket to Korea, his frustration subsided a bit.

“Just you wait. After I kill Seo Jun-Ho...You’ll be next.”

Kal Signer planned to catch the two rabbits before he went back up to the 2nd floor.

1. This is a Korean word for an older man. ☜

2. Specter actually speaks to the pope casually ☜