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Chapter 230

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[NPC Information]

- Nickname: Valderian

- Level: 370

- Role: Crawford Guild Master

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He is Valderian, the Guild Master of Crawford.

[Episode Quest: Prisoner]

- Restriction: Entering Crawford

- Reward: Ability to proceed with the next quest + Experience Points

- Description: Help Crawford.

The next quest involved assisting this guild.

‘The Fall of Riadolf? That was quite a wild episode.’

It is said that James Marcus clicked his tongue after completing it.

This episode required entering Crawford to bring down the Kingdom of Riadolf.

To be precise, it meant triggering the cause of its downfall.

‘So, this episode can only be completed by toppling the powerful Riadolf.’

No one quite understood why such an episode existed.

‘We have to find out.’

In New World, quests were never assigned without purpose. Every quest came with a mandatory reward, and when an absurd quest appeared, there was always a reason for it.

The episode that James Marcus tackled was essentially fruitless.

However, within the collection of episodes, there existed something known as a "Hidden" episode.

Therefore, this episode likely had a hidden element as well.

Jeong-hoon brushed his hand over his dantian.

The power that allowed him to return in time.

It was certain, given what he had heard from "him" before obtaining this power.

There were no meaningless episodes—he just had to navigate it carefully.

"Hmm, how did you figure out our passcode?"

Valderian asked Jeong-hoon with an intrigued expression.

He had realized that Jeong-hoon deciphered the code upon entering with Patrick.

"I came across it by chance."

"By chance, huh… Fine. So, what brings you here?"

"I want to join the guild."

"Rejected."

Valderian replied without a second\'s hesitation.

"And why is that?"

"Our guild doesn’t accept outsiders."

Valderian smirked.

‘Every single quest is supposed to be difficult, isn’t it?’

Even James Marcus had struggled for a long time before he was able to join this guild.

The difficulty was notoriously high, making the quests extremely challenging to complete.

However, Jeong-hoon had learned the strategy through him.

This episode was so tough it often came up as a topic of conversation, so it was impossible to forget.

Jeong-hoon looked at him with a sly smile.

"I’ll take care of the guild\'s long-standing wish."

“Long-standing wish?”

Valderian frowned.

“Yes, I’ll help resolve the guild’s long-standing wish.”

“…You’re quite an informed fellow.”

“Well, if I figured out the passcode, wouldn’t I know at least that much?”

“Ha ha, fair enough.”

Valderian chuckled and pulled out a document, handing it to Jeong-hoon.

“What’s this?”

The document had a bold title: “Emergency Rescue Request.”

In short, three members of Crawford were held captive in Riadolf, and it was a request for their rescue.

The sender was Valderian. The recipient was a guild member acting as a spy within Riadolf.

“We need to rescue these captives, and I’d like you to help a little.”

“Let’s skip the lies and get to the point.”

Jeong-hoon had no intention of completing every quest detail like James Marcus had. Every episode had skippable parts—just like now.

‘The captives are fake to begin with.’

If he followed the quest diligently, he’d be asked to fulfill certain demands under the guise of freeing the captives. Only after meeting those demands could he proceed to the next quest.

Since this process could take a considerable amount of time, he intended to skip it entirely.

As he made this decision, a question mark flickered above his head.

[Episode Quest: Join Crawford]

- Restriction: Complete the Crawford Prisoner Quest

- Reward: Ability to proceed with the next quest + Experience Points

- Description: Join Crawford.

Done.

He successfully skipped the quest.

When Jeong-hoon accepted the quest, Valderian let out a hearty laugh.

“What an amusing friend you are. Alright, then let me ask you once more.”

“Go ahead.”

“What’s your real reason for wanting to join Crawford?”

“Because I dislike Riadolf.”

“Dislike?”

“Yes.”

A simple, straightforward answer.

Yet it was enough to win Valderian’s trust.

‘After all, they aren’t on Riadolf’s side.’

The mighty kingdom of Riadolf had invaded and now ruled over a small nation called Soberion, and Crawford was a guild formed by people from Soberion.

Their ultimate goal was the liberation of Soberion—a quest that was virtually impossible to complete unless Riadolf fell.

This was why the difficulty was so high.

“That’s a good answer.”

A sly smile curved on Valderian’s lips.

At the same time, an exclamation mark blinked above his head, indicating that Jeong-hoon could now proceed with the next quest.

[Quest Completed.]

[You have gained 4,000,000 experience points.]

[You may proceed to the next quest.]

At that moment, one of the men seated nearby sprang to his feet.

“Guild Master! You’re not seriously considering allowing an outsider to join the guild, are you?!”

Crawford was strictly a guild for people from Soberion, so it was natural for members to resist the Guild Master’s decision.

“It’s not a full membership. It’s a temporary one.”

“Temporary membership?”

The mention of temporary membership softened the guild members\' opposition.

“Yes. To gain full membership, he’ll have to prove himself.”

Jeong-hoon tilted his head in confusion.

“Prove myself?”

“Yes. Didn’t you say you’d help fulfill our long-standing wish?”

As Valderian nodded, a question mark flickered above his head.

[Episode Quest: Investigation]

- Restriction: Complete the Crawford Guild Membership Quest

- Reward: Ability to proceed to the next quest + Experience Points

- Description: Investigate Riadolf’s capital and help fulfill Crawford’s long-standing wish.

The next quest was an investigation.

‘Here it is.’

The foundation of Riadolf’s downfall.

While James Marcus had spent about three weeks on this quest, Jeong-hoon had no intention of investing that much time—he already knew the answer.

* * *

Riadolf’s Capital

Jeong-hoon moved carefully, avoiding people’s eyes. The area was under heavy guard.

[Are they trying to capture intruders?]

‘Probably. Especially after we took down those guards.’

Anima was right. The heightened security was because Jeong-hoon had subdued the guards to get in, making it necessary to stay out of sight.

He moved cautiously and finally reached the central fountain.

‘If James Marcus was right, there’s supposed to be a button here.’

A mechanism to trigger the episode’s progression.

Jeong-hoon dipped his hand into the water. Releasing his magic, the fountain began to glow, and a portal formed on the water’s surface.

[W-what’s happening?]

‘What is this?’

Mukho and Anima were shocked by the sudden appearance of the portal.

“It’s a hidden portal.”

It had been there all along, just hidden beneath the fountain. Jeong-hoon simply released magic to bring the portal to the surface.

He planned to exit through that portal.

“Intruder!”

“It’s him!”

But as he prepared to leave, he was confronted by the guards he’d knocked out earlier.

“Now this is annoying.”

Jeong-hoon had planned to slip out quietly, but he hadn\'t expected to run into those guards again.

He unfolded his Sky Scroll and swung his fist at them.

“Guh!”

“Urgh!”

One guard fell with each punch, a sight so astonishing that the remaining guards were gripped with shock.

“H-how is he so strong… ugh!”

“Damn it! Call for backup!”

“Argh!”

They didn’t even get the chance to call for reinforcements. Within five minutes, all of them were down.

Jeong-hoon strolled out, calm and unbothered.

* * *

Meanwhile, someone was observing the scene from afar.

‘Is that guy a monster?’

It was none other than Valderian, the Guild Master of Crawford.

Shortly after Jeong-hoon departed, Valderian followed to keep an eye on him, intending to confirm whether this stranger was trustworthy.

Without hesitation, Jeong-hoon had gone straight to the central fountain and placed his hand in the water. Valderian scoffed at the sight.

That fountain had already been thoroughly inspected—nothing was supposed to be there.

But then, to his astonishment, the fountain began to glow, and a portal appeared on the water’s surface.

‘What in the world!’

Valderian couldn’t believe his eyes. The dungeon he’d searched for all this time had just revealed itself.

And to top it off, Jeong-hoon had dispatched the guards in no time and vanished.

‘…Time to head back.’

Valderian quickly used a return stone and hurried back to the guild headquarters.

* * *

Shortly after Valderian returned to headquarters, Jeong-hoon also arrived.

“What… are you?”

Valderian looked at Jeong-hoon, face filled with astonishment.

“Were you tailing me?”

Jeong-hoon grinned slyly.

In fact, he’d sensed Valderian’s presence while leaving the headquarters. He’d feigned ignorance to gain Valderian’s trust.

“…Yes. It was to see if you’re someone I can trust.”

“Of course. Either way, the investigation’s complete. As you saw, a portal appeared at the central fountain.”

“How did you manage it?”

“I just channeled my magic, and it worked.”

“That’s… impossible…”

Valderian was at a loss for words.

He had personally examined every corner of the capital, including the fountain, yet had found nothing. He’d even tried channeling magic and various other methods, all to no avail.

‘Of course. The device only responds when someone is actively on the quest.’

These characters were merely NPCs, meant to function within the confines of the episode. Naturally, they couldn’t stray from the set storyline, and only players on the quest could progress to the next stage.

KABOOM!

A deafening roar shook the ground.

‘It’s begun.’

As the dungeon rose to the surface, the monsters within it began to escape. These creatures would bring about the downfall of the mighty nation of Riadolf. That was the intended end of this episode.

Due to its extreme difficulty, this was an episode that typically required players to struggle through for a long time, but Jeong-hoon, already familiar with the strategy, cleared it swiftly.

However, Jeong-hoon had no intention of ending it here.

“Heh, so it begins,” Valderian chuckled, a gleam of excitement in his eye. A blinking exclamation mark hovered over his head.

The final quest was to evacuate Valderian and the Crawford guild members from Riadolf. Once they escaped, the nation would fall, and Crawford, with Valderian at its center, would survive.

But Jeong-hoon chose to ignore this quest.

‘Evacuating now would mean nothing.’

Jeong-hoon had a ‘hidden’ plan in mind for this episode. He intended to eliminate the monster, going beyond the scripted outcome.

“Guild Master! You need to evacuate immediately!”

“…”

But Valderian didn’t respond, as Jeong-hoon had yet to complete the quest. And, of course, that quest was never going to be completed.

“I’ll be off now.”

As Jeong-hoon rose to leave, Valderian grabbed his arm.

“What? Didn’t you hear the explosion outside?!”

“Likely, monsters are emerging from the portal. It’s the only thing that could explain that noise.”

“Yes… Riadolf is going to fall—thanks to you!”

Valderian’s maniacal words hung in the air, but Jeong-hoon replied with a calm smile.

“No. I simply dislike Riadolf. I have no intention of destroying it.”

“…What?”

Unfurling the Sky Scroll Jeong-hoon left the headquarters, his movements so swift Valderian had no time to react.