Return of the Frozen Player

The 75th floor of the Korean Player Association building had dozens of personal training rooms. Seo Jun-Ho entered one of them.

“...Geez, even the air is heated in here,” he remarked.

The large training room was furnished with all kinds of workout equipment. The lights were off, and the only sound that could be heard was the occasional panting.

“Why is it so dark... Are you a vampire or something?”

Rahmadat immediately reacted when Seo Jun-Ho turned on the lights. “Hey...! Wait, Jun-Ho?”

He looked toward the door, taking off the towel that had been on his face. Then, he went back to bench-pressing.

“Hup! Hup!”

All the equipment in this gym belonged to Rahmadat and had been flown in from India. They were all made of materials from Gates. Thanks to that, you could use them to have an intense workout unimaginable for normal people.

“That looks heavy. How many kilos is that?”

“Hup...Hup...! Two thousand!” Rahmadat said curtly. His chest heaved, almost looking like it was about to explode. He finished his light set and put away the barbell before standing up. “I’m surprised. To think that you’d come to a gym.”

“It’s because you and I have somewhere we need to go together.”

“...Somewhere we need to go?” Rahmadat’s eyes sparkled, and his muscles twitched.

However, Seo Jun-Ho quickly cut off his hopes before he could get too excited. “I’m telling you now, we’re not gonna spar. We have some business to take care of on the 2nd floor.”

“Hm, that’s a shame... The 2nd floor, you say?”

“Aren’t you excited? You might even be able to fight some fiends if you do well.”

“I shall fight them! Let’s go right away.”

This was why Seo Jun-Ho had decided to look for this guy.

While he waited for Rahmadat, he tried to talk to the Frost Queen. “You’re still not talking? I bought you a hotdog on the way back from the workshop.”

“...” She swiftly turned her head away, showing that she was still mad.

But... With the ketchup on her face, she didn’t seem intimidating at all.

“You have ketchup on your lips.” Seo Jun-Ho handed her a tissue, and she turned red all the way to her ears before disappearing off somewhere.

“Tsk tsk. When will she grow up...?”

As time went on, she seemed to become more and more like a child. But on some days, she would seem like an adult.

Seo Jun-Ho couldn’t understand Spirits at all.

“I’m here!” Rahmadat returned in no time, and they headed to the artificial island in the Pacific together.

“Seems like the elevators have been perfectly restored,” Seo Jun-Ho commented.

“The Administrator of the 1st Floor is quite impressive. Though, I haven’t fought him before.”

Rahmadat looked around in awe like some country bumpkin. Once the button was pressed, and the elevator started to move, he became tense with anticipation.

“So this is the 2nd floor!” he exclaimed, full of excitement. He had only heard about this exotic land from others.

“...”

The city was in ruins. The air was gloomy, and people were in the midst of constructing new buildings.

“The fiends must have raided this city first, and it’s probably because it’s connected to Earth,” Seo Jun-Ho said.

“...Mm.” Rahmadat’s face was furrowed, disturbed by what he was seeing. Every street was filled with the citizens of Gilleon, and every citizen’s face was gloomy.

“Player Seo Jun-Ho...?” Seo Jun-Ho turned toward the adolescent voice and smiled.

“Huh? Young master Simus!”

He didn’t seem to have trouble walking anymore after he had received treatment from both Seo Jun-Ho and Skaya. He bounded over and looked up at Seo Jun-Ho with a bright face.

“You were unharmed?” he asked.

“Yes, I suppose... What are you doing in a place like this?”

“Reconstruction, of course.” Simus scratched his head. Despite his young age, he was helping out with rebuilding the city.

“How admirable...”

“It’s nothing. Mother and Father are working much hard than I am.”

“...” Seo Jun-Ho patted his head without saying anything. A few of the knights looked like they were about to fly into a rage, but Commander Phivir recognized Seo Jun-Ho, and he reprimanded those knights with a look.

“Hehe... Where are you going, Player Jun-Ho?” he asked.

“I’m on my way to Maliva. I have some business there.”

“Huh? Maliva?” Simus’s eyes grew wide, and he turned around. Phivir met his eyes and nodded.

“That was one of the cities we lost contact with,” he said.

“...Lost contact with?” Seo Jun-Ho asked with interest.

“After the city became like this, we sent out requests for help to neighboring provinces,” Phivir explained, pointing to one of the carts full of supplies. They were scattered everywhere. “Many of them sent us aid while those that couldn’t send us aid decided to send us workers to help with the reconstruction. However...” Phivir shook his head. “We received no response from Maliva. Even though our city lord has good relations with them.”

“...Really?”

“Milord thinks that something must have happened... But the knights are thinking otherwise.”

It made sense. After all, it was often said that the true nature of a relationship would be revealed during a crisis.

“If I have time, I’ll look into that as well,” Seo Jun-Ho said.

“We would be grateful. Do you need a carriage?”

Seo Jun-Ho looked at Rahmadat. “Do you want to ride one?”

“No,” he stubbornly said before grinning. “Let’s get some fresh air and run there.”

***

It would take about twenty days on average to go from Gilleon to Maliva by carriage. But Seo Jun-Ho and Rahmadat had shortened it by half. Horses had to take frequent breaks, but they didn’t need as many. This was also possible because they were much faster than horses.

“...What do you think?” Seo Jun-Ho asked.

“Hm. Nothing seems strange on the surface,” Rahmadat replied.

They entered through the gates and took a lap around the streets, checking out the situation.

They came to only one conclusion: there was nothing suspicious.

They stopped by a pub, talking as they quenched their parched throats.

“It’s my first time in Frontier, but I can still tell that there’s nothing suspicious about this city,” Rahmadat said.

“Your eyes are good. I think the same as well.”

Before the city was destroyed, Maliva hadn’t been very different from Gilleon. In other words, it was so active that it was on the same level as the Starting City. The streets were packed with people, and they were all smiling.

“Everyone looks happy... Are you sure there really is a problem here?” Rahmadat asked.

“Well, we don’t know that yet.” Seo Jun-Ho watched the sun setting beyond the city walls, and stood. “So, let’s ask.”

“Ask who?”

“Moonlight.”

Rahmadat looked up, but the moon hadn’t risen yet. He tilted his head in confusion.

***

Moonlight was a run-down bar. It was on the outskirts of the city and was in a very disadvantageous area for businesses.

“I think I understand why they went out of business,” Rahmadat said honestly. There were no traces of people in the dark alley, let alone sounds of chatter. Who would go to a bar inside a collapsing building?

Seo Jun-Ho faced his back toward the dusky moon and knocked on the door.

Creaaaak.

The door made a strange sound as it creaked open.

“Who’s coming in at a time like—” The bartender looked up, and his expression immediately changed. He composed himself and escorted them inside. “Please have a seat over there and wait for a bit.”

He swept the floor with a broom before disappearing.

pαпᵈα-nᴏνɐ1·сóМ Rahmadat grinned. “He’s pretty useful.”

“He’s a Player. His level’s probably a lot higher than yours, actually.”

Seo Jun-Ho leaned against the back of his chair and looked around the bar. The interior was a little old-fashioned. It resembled an underground pub that might appear in an 80s American movie.

“The concept is pretty good, though.” Part of the roof was made of glass, and blue moonlight poured through it, lighting up the pub.

‘So that’s why it’s called Moonlight.’

Seo Jun-Ho grinned. He liked this place a lot.

A moment later, a man approached their table. He seemed like the general manager.

He bowed. “Seo Jun-Ho-nim, and Rahmadat Khali-nim. It’s an honor to meet you.” He didn’t seem to be lying. Several of the other bartenders were watching them enviously.

“Yes, it’s nice to meet you,” Rahmadat said.

“It’s nice to meet you. What should we call you?”

“My name is Jung Hyun. Please call me Chief Jung.”

“Alright, Chief Jung.” As the owner of Moonlight, Seo Jun-Ho was smoothly able to give his first order. “I heard that there was a useful Quest here. Please give me the related materials.”

“...Understood.” Jung Hyun’s eyes sparkled as he bowed deeply.

‘He’s not your average man.’

As expected of an information broker, he was piecing together information about the owner. Seo Jun-Ho was a star Player who managed to grip the interest of the entire industry even though he had just debuted two years ago. However, Jung Hyun had expected him to have some weak points compared to others because of his rapid growth. For example, his leadership skills.

‘But it’s not the case...’

Seo Jun-Ho’s calm, unwavering voice was a tone that belonged to someone who had led people plenty of times before. They only spoke for a moment, but Jung Hyun was already a little impressed.

‘He has no cracks in his armor.’

It was a given for Rahmadat, but the Player sitting next to him didn’t even have a single crack that could be poked through with a needle.

‘That’s a relief.’

With such a reliable owner, the quality of the information Moonlight could gather would naturally increase.

Jung Hyun hummed as he went through the warehouse and down to the basement. There, dozens of Players were sitting with headphones as they typed some documents.

“There is a big outbreak in the western part of the Empire. The causes are unknown. The Church of the Sun...”

“Count Radenchella’s legitimate heir has been decided? Give me more details.”

“This should be 2nd-grade... Wait, why is important information like this labeled 3rd-grade?”

They were Players who possessed skills related to dealing with information. They would gather information through their individual methods, and optimize its credibility and quality. As Jung Hyun walked through the countless desks, he was reminded of a library. He picked up several rolled-up parchments before returning to Seo Jun-Ho.

“You will understand once you read it,” he said.

The documents were written in the Imperial language, but Seo Jun-Ho had no trouble reading them. When he was done, he was silent for a while before speaking, “So, two weeks ago, this phenomenon started without warning?”

“That’s correct.”

“There is something I wish to know.” Rahmadat raised his hand. “Are the residents of the city unable to fall asleep?” he asked.

“Yes...”

“And that includes you all as well?”

“No.” Jung Hyun shook his head. “We don’t know why, but Players like us are fine.”

“...Wait. So, it’s only affecting the natives of Frontier?” Seo Jun-Ho interrupted.

“Yes.”

“Have you spoken with any of the citizens?”

“Of course. I can feel that they are quite satisfied with the current situation.”

“Satisfied? Even though they can’t sleep?” Seo Jun-Ho looked confused.

“Though they cannot sleep, they’re not tired. Moreover, they seem to have become even better than usual, physically,” Jung Hyun explained.

“...Makes sense. That means they can use the time they previously had to spend sleeping into doing whatever they want.”

Seo Jun-Ho and Rahmadat exchanged looks. This was their first encounter with such a strange phenomenon.

“Are there any fiends or Players that have skills related to sleep?”

“No. At least, not that we know of.”

“...”

Tap tap.

SeoJun-Ho tapped his finger on the table as he fell into contemplation.

‘Something’s missing...’

Whenever something like this was orchestrated, someone was bound to profit from it. But right now, there wasn’t really anyone that was getting anything out of the phenomenon other than the citizens.

“The citizens aren’t really bothered by it either...” Seo Jun-Ho muttered.

“I can feel that they’re enjoying it, seeing as they now have all the time in the world to devote to their jobs and families, while being perfectly healthy,” Jung Hyun said.

“In that case, the person who will profit the most out of this is...”

“Since the city is growing, wouldn’t it be the city lord?” Rahmadat suggested.

Seo Jun-Ho shrugged. “Have you met him before?”

“My apologies. We still do not have enough influence to be able to meet someone like him...”

“Then we’ll go to him.”

“Um...” Jung Hyun carefully opened his mouth. “Forgive my forwardness, but Viscount Hosen doesn’t meet with Players if he can help it.”

Moonlight had consistently been requesting a meeting with the city lord, but they were rejected each time because Viscount Hosen had a strong sense of pride as a noble.

“You don’t need to worry about that,” Seo Jun-Ho said as he took out a small letter from his Inventory. “I have a letter of recommendation. I should at least be able to have a meal with him.”

“H-how did you...?”

“...I got lucky.”

On the day that Seo Jun-Ho first went up to Frontier, Captain Ju-Ha gave him the letter of recommendation, saying that it was a gift to her junior.

‘Though, I had no idea that I would have to use it like this.’

Jung Hyun no longer looked shocked. Rather, he nodded. “In that case, could I accompany you when you go meet him?”

“I’d love to have an expert come with me.”

“Well, is there any need to wait?” Rahmadat shot out of his seat. “Let us go. Right now.”

The three men started toward Viscount Hosen’s estate. While they walked, Seo Jun-Ho couldn’t shake the feeling that something was out of place.

‘What a strange feeling.’

He felt like he was walking down the streets of Seoul, not Frontier. It was the first time he had seen so many people milling around at night when it wasn’t even the festival season.

‘Well, I suppose we’ll find out once we meet him.’

Whether Viscount Hosen was the mastermind or not, he would have more information as the city lord.

“...”

From afar, a pair of eyes watched the three of them walking down the road.

“Supernova and the King of Destruction... I should report this.”

The girl considered this for a second before she started toward the mansion, one step ahead of them.