10,000 players.

Actually, the expedition had begun with a little over 9,500 players. Five hundred died, so there were about 9,000 players left now.

It had been less than three days, so the fatalities were minimal, but…

“Leviathan killed about 300 players,” Hwang Chae-Il reported.

This meant that only 200 players had died at the hands of Eden creatures. So, the enemy players’ allies had killed more players than all the Eden creatures combined. It was a tough pill to swallow for the enemies.

Hwang Chae-Il continued, “The people outside believe this expedition was a success because they saw Eden’s barrier disappear for a moment.”

The whole world was waiting for the result of the Eden expedition. The footage from Kim Min-Hee’s channel had left the world as a whole mesmerized. Eden’s barrier withdrawing for a bit made them think that the Iron Guild and the Caravan Guild had succeeded in defeating this gate.

But the truth was…

“We’re splitting the surrendered players into two groups. One for those corrupted by the Caravan and the Iron guilds, and the other for the innocents.”

Everyone had surrendered, the war was over, and the expedition was a total failure. Every death was in vain.

“You did very well,” Gi-Gyu thanked Hwang Chae-Il.

“Thank you, Master, for returning on time.” Hwang Chae-Il bowed appreciatively. “What should I do after we complete sorting them out?”

What would happen to those who had surrendered? They wouldn’t be murdered for no reason; depending on Gi-Gyu’s decision, their fates would change dramatically.

Their lives depended on Eden, more specifically, Gi-Gyu.

Gi-Gyu contemplated while Hwang Chae-Il left the room with another bow. There was no need to be impatient anymore.

Their master was back, so time was on Eden’s side now.

***

Sorting close to 10,000 players was time-consuming. This was especially hard because some criteria couldn’t be seen by non-players.

The only ones who could do this job were…

“Dammit, why do I have to waste time doing this?” Soo-Jung grumbled.

“Because our master asked us to, remember? If you’re tired, you can take a break. I’ll be fine on my own,” El replied.

Soo-Jung could see the true nature of anyone with Evil Eye, while El could see the true color. Because only these two women could sort the players accurately, they were asked to do this tedious job.

“Haa…” Soo-Jung sighed deeply. She closed her eyes and opened them again; this time, her eyes had turned deep violet.

The players were lined up in a row, and Soo-Jung looked at them individually.

“You, you, you, and you.” Soo-Jung pointed at a few.

The faces of these players turned dark.

“Kill her!” They suddenly screamed and activated their skills to attack Soo-Jung.

“Haa…” Soo-Jung just waved her hand and turned them into dust. She sighed deeply again, recognizing that the Caravan and Iron guilds had corrupted more players than they had anticipated. Also, there were a few who were born pessimists.

Thankfully, none of them had taken the First Potion, making it easy to deal with them.

Whoosh.

“Ugh!” When Soo-Jung waved her hand again, a few more players fell to the ground. Beneath their feet, small black flames burned brightly.

“...” The other players watching this tried their best not to moan.

Dark Flame was Soo-Jung’s unique skill and pride. Close to 10,000 players had experienced this fire, so just watching it reminded them of the unimaginable pain they had suffered.

“I-I’m not one of them!” Some selected players chose to beg instead of attacking Soo-Jung.

Soo-Jung raised her hand and muttered, “I know. Don’t worry.”

These players had nothing to do with the Iron Guild or the Caravan Guild but had pessimistic tendencies. They were to be questioned and sent home if found innocent. Their fates weren’t in Soo-Jung’s hands.

Rattle.

A group of skeleton soldiers appeared to drag the dead players away. They also escorted the pessimist players.

“Phew…” Someone sighed in relief. Unlike the cruel and beautiful Soo-Jung, El was much more merciful. She was indeed an angel.

El ordered, “These two gentlemen over there… Please usher them out.”

***

Heo Sung-Hoon looked at Gi-Gyu oddly. “Ranker Kim Gi-Gyu…”

Heo Sung-Hoon had returned to Eden after a long time. The war had begun before he could even settle down. After the war, he had to take charge and take care of the pressing issues. Then, finally, he visited Gi-Gyu, who was in the Sephiroth Tree.

Gi-Gyu, who had his head on the desk, looked up. “Why are you looking at me like that?” He had never spent much time at a desk before, so he hadn’t expected to either. Turned out paperwork was harder than he had thought.

Gi-Gyu had just started his break when Sung-Hoon visited him with an odd face.

Heo Sung-Hoon’s eyes were sparkling so brightly that Gi-Gyu got a bad feeling about it.

Gi-Gyu warned, “I’m not interested in men, so don’t—”

“What are you talking about?!” Heo Sung-Hoon yelled. “I’m not interested in men either! Why would you say…!”

Heo Sung-Hoon’s comical response made Gi-Gyu grin. He was physically and mentally exhausted, as he didn’t get a second of rest in the last three months. Spending nearly a year inside his shell was draining since he had to remain alert the entire time. And even after the test, he wasn’t given a chance to rest.

But, now that Sung-Hoon stood before him, things felt more… real.

He was finally back.

There were so many things he could do now. He could actually just sit back and relive his happy memories. Gi-Gyu was happy.

“I’m relieved to see you’re back safely,” Heo Sung-Hoon mumbled. He was part of Eden now and a close acquaintance of Gi-Gyu. There had been a chance that Gi-Gyu wouldn’t return alive from the test. Sung-Hoon knew that, so tears of joy filled his eyes, and he tried to hug him.

“Ack! D-don’t!” Gi-Gyu yelled to stop him.

Just then…

Creak.

The door opened, and Gi-Gyu and Sung-Hoon froze on the spot. An uncomfortable silence fell.

Sung-Hoon looked stranger than ever. He had tears in his eyes but a wide smile on his lips. Gi-Gyu almost burst into laughter at the ridiculous sight, but he stopped himself.

He tried to look calm because an elderly woman stood in the doorway.

She whispered, “Thank you.”

Before Gi-Gyu could react, Sung-Hoon embraced him tightly. Gi-Gyu felt his shoulders getting wet with Sung-Hoon’s tears. He had changed only a few minutes ago, so he got annoyed that he would have to change again.

Also, getting hugged—tightly—by another man wasn’t pleasant. Still, Gi-Gyu patted Sung-Hoon’s back gently. Soon, Sung-Hoon realized he was making a scene, so he stepped back. But his face was still covered with tears.

Ignoring Sung-Hoon, Gi-Gyu turned to look at the elderly woman. He introduced himself, “Nice to meet you. I’m Kim Gi-Gyu. I am Heo Sung-Hoon’s…”

‘Definitely not his lover.’

Gi-Gyu continued with a bright smile, “Good friend and colleague. He has helped me a lot.”

Glancing at Heo Sung-Hoon, Gi-Gyu added, “I must say that you raised an amazing son, Ma’am.”

Heo Sung-Hoon’s mother stood before them. She had been on her deathbed not too long ago after all the doctors had given up on her. She had been waiting to take her last breath when…

“Thank you,” she thanked Gi-Gyu again.

***

“Master…” The man looked overjoyed. He bowed deeply as if he was in a king’s presence.

“Rohan,” Gi-Gyu called out his name.

Rohan seemed touched as he trembled and looked up.

“You did very well,” Gi-Gyu praised him.

While Gi-Gyu was away, Rohan had worked hard to make the Eden battle a success. He controlled the Iron Guild’s unit to give the advantage to Eden. He also helped Eden prepare for the battle.

If it weren’t for Rohan, Eden might have suffered great damage.

“I’m just honored to have helped you, Master.”

Gi-Gyu gave Rohan a bitter smile. Every time he saw Rohan, he thought about his ability. Rogers Han used to resent him with all his heart, but now, Rohan was unconditionally loyal to him. His sync ability was simply too strange to accept.

Gi-Gyu shook his head. He knew he should be thankful rather than question things.

“What after dividing the players? Nothing much. I’ll take care of the problematic ones, and the rest will leave with you, Rohan.”

“...!”

Rohan was the first one to hear Gi-Gyu’s future plan.

Gi-Gyu continued, “Tell the world that you negotiated with me to save the players. Make sure they know you made a great sacrifice.”

“...”

This way, Rohan would become a hero to the world. Gi-Gyu wasn’t sure how Rohan would be seen inside the Iron Guild, but it had to be positive. Rohan technically failed in closing the gate, but if they believed he did everything he could to save so many players…

Gi-Gyu was certain the Iron Guild would treat Rohan well.

“Not many should blame you for this defeat,” Gi-Gyu explained.

Rohan nodded in agreement. After all, close to 10,000 players would be his witness.

Gi-Gyu continued, “In fact, they will praise your ability to bring so many out alive.”

The 10,000 players would report Gi-Gyu's unbelievable strength, making Rohan the hero who saved most of the players from an impossible battle.

“Many things will change, Rohan. With what happened in this battle, the Iron Guild and the Caravan Guild will lose much of their authority.”

They might even collapse completely.

Hwang Chae-Il had used his quick thinking to give Gi-Gyu an incredible opportunity.

“Your reputation will improve greatly, so don’t lose this chance, Rohan.”

“...”

“Grow stronger. Find those you can trust and create your own army. Become a public figure.”

Gi-Gyu grinned widely and added, “The time to get Ironshield… It’s here.”

Rohan trembled, realizing the time had finally come.

***

“...”

Everyone was gathered here, but the room was silent. This was their first meeting ever since Gi-Gyu returned. And now, Tao Chen and Choi Chang-Yong were present as well.

The silence continued. They had already asked their question. Now, they were just waiting for Gi-Gyu to answer.

The question they had asked was the main topic of this meeting. But in a way, it was also the most childish question anyone could ask.

Everyone was wondering the same thing.

‘How powerful is he now?’ 

This was the question that had been thrown at Gi-Gyu. It may sound immature, but it was vital as everything depended on it now.

Gi-Gyu slowly opened his mouth. He assertively replied, “I will take down Ha Song-Su.”

Everyone was satisfied with his answer because they could feel the overwhelming confidence in his voice.