Chapter 307: A Statue Too Precious For Me To Lose (1)

Austin took out from his pocket a few pictures of the statue emitting a red haze.

Of course, it didn’t seem too big of a problem from the pictures alone.

But the words written below the statue were a problem.

[The statue has reached the threshold of accepting the energy of death.

-If you do not destroy the statue quickly, the latent energy of death will be released from the statue.

-The energy of death that comes out will transform the whole continent into a land of death.

: The statue that has begun to emit the energy of death cannot be destroyed until the entire continent turns into a land of death.]

While Juyoung Hong was conversing with Austin like that, the top five executives of the Holdridge Group in New York were holding a discussion around the table.

“Will they move, based on the information about NPCs alone?”

“They will because the information about NPCs still has tremendous value.”

“Since we gave Austin some room to negotiate, he should have no problem with Asirante or Juyoung Hong over there. Although we caused the problem, it also has something to do with Juyoung Hong anyway.”

“Hahaha! We didn’t know we would start our first association with Juyoung in such a mean way like this!”

“Well, we are too greedy, honestly.”

“Right. We’re too greedy.”

The top five executives of the Holdridge Group wrapped up their conversation, smacking their lips bitterly.

In the living room of the Myongjin Shelter.

“…”

“…”

“…”

When I looked at the picture’s caption, only one thing came to mind. These Holdridge guys from America were truly a lump of trouble.

It also seemed like they were aware of it, given that they were trying to avoid my eyes by looking down.

Of course, I was not sure whether it was really possible for the statue to turn the whole continent into a land of death, but it was certain that somebody should smash the statue as soon as possible to avoid unnecessary risks.

So I immediately opened my mouth.

“By the way, if you guys can’t even make any cracks in the statue…”

I knew the Holdridge Group was not just an ordinary guild that one could see anywhere.

They were one of the top guilds in the world.

That’s why I asked such a question, and Austin replied with the answer I expected since I had encountered a similar situation before.

For example, I once invaded Japan by breaking through the so-called wall together with the Mirae Guild. And it was me who broke that wall.

No matter how many times the Mirae Guild players attacked the wall, in the end, It was me who broke it by launching the most powerful and precise attack.

Austin said, “Even if we attack the statue numerous times, only the attack with the strongest damage is effective. Of course, we’re not asking you to destroy it for free. We’re willing to compensate you fully for your efforts.”

So I responded immediately, “Sure, tell me what the reward is.”

What Austin said next was quite surprising because I had never even imagined the existence of NPCs despite the appearance of monsters in reality.

However, it was obvious that the one fighting against the military unit was an NPC in the video that Austin presented to me as evidence.

Of course, I would investigate more about it at some point in the future.

But it was very important for me to know it in advance so I could make preparations.

In addition to the information about the NPCs, Austin also presented other rewards.

“We will also give you 20 billion golden rings and 30,000 coins.”

Austin’s offer was not bad.

In particular, everybody would be in a dangerous situation if I didn’t solve the problem even if it was the Holdridge Group who caused it. So I had no choice but to intervene.

However, I didn’t agree immediately. I said, “Everything that comes out after the statue is destroyed will be mine.”

Austin mentioned something previously. He clearly said if I destroyed the statue, a huge reward would be waiting for me. Besides, the statue kept summoning monsters that had hundreds or tens of hundreds of coins. So, I had no choice but to take the reward seriously.

No matter how much I tried to disregard the reward, it was something very special to me.

And I thought that I deserved this reward in return for my efforts to destroy the statue.

“…”

“…”

Austin and the Commander of the 1st Army of the Holdridge Group remained silent at my suggestion at first, but their silence did not last long.

“Okay,” Austin replied in the affirmative.

Late at night at the Myongjin Shelter.

After promising them we would fly together to New York tomorrow, they were escorted to the gust room. After that, my family members and Director Sok held a meeting for a long time. Above all, the information about the NPCs was shocking to all of them.

“Monsters and NPCs…I have no slightest idea of what will come out next at the end of the game,” I said.

“…”

“…”

“…”

Not only my father, but also Director Sok, head of the Strategy Department, didn’t react to what I said. They were at a loss because they felt they knew something, but they didn’t know, either.

So, I opened my mouth again.

“I don’t know what will come out at the end of this game, but won’t it be enough if we had at least enough power not to be overwhelmed by others? I mean even if we die, we need the power to die by our own choice rather than be killed by others.”

In the early days we were pushed around by the Mirae Guild, then by the Daesung and Kusan Alliance. And although we allied with the Mirae Guild out of necessity, we chose the name of the alliance to be the Myongjin & Mirae alliance. Nonetheless, back then, we tended to treat the Mirae Guild as our big brother.

But the situation is different now. Myongjin has emerged as the No. 1 guild in Korea, surpassing even the Daesung & Kusan Alliance. Moreover, Myungjin’s reputation has gone up because of me, and the players belonging to Myongjin strived to be even better than before because of their pride in Myongjin’s name. In other words, we were in a situation where everything was going our way.

As if he also noticed it, my father said, nodding at us, “Okay, you’re right, Juyoung. Just continue doing what you are doing. At the end of the day, you will be able to make the decision on your own instead of being influenced by others. And I think that’s enough for now.”

Our meeting ended after that.

Of course, the Strategy Department of the Myongjin Guild will have to rack their brains to find a clue to solve the situation, no matter how hard it is, because that was their job.

Anyway I came out of the meeting and accessed ‘Revival Legend’ to become stronger than before.

The next morning I quickly headed for New York using a private plane sent by the Holdridge Group. I was told that the energy of death could flow out of the statue at any time, and if that happened, it would no longer be possible for me to destroy the statue.

So, when I arrived in New York, I was welcomed by a lot of people from the Holdridge Group.

“Welcome, Juyoung Hong!”

“Thank you for visiting!”

The top five executives of the Holdridge Group did not come out to greet me.

But I didn’t feel bad because I knew they hardly revealed themselves to the outsiders.

To be honest, I was more curious about the statue than them.

Anyway, I headed to their headquarters by driving along the well-paved roads.

Then I moved straight to the huge building next to the headquarters.